Site of the Second Fort Crawford - Prairie du Chien, WI - Wisconsin Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

The marker reads:
"SITE OF THE SECOND FORT CRAWFORD
1829-1856

The first Fort Crawford was built in 1816, and stood on the site now occupied by the "Villa Louis." After a decade of Mississippi River flooding, the U. S. Army relocated Fort Crawford to this site, constructing the new fort of locally quarried limestone. Under construction from 1829-1834, the fort included housing for eight companies of soldiers and their officers. The army added a separate surgeon's quarters and military hospital. The soldiers built the fort while on fatigue duty but were often called away from the construction to settle Indian disputes. In 1825, 1829, and 1830 important Indian treaties were negotiated at the first and second Fort Crawford. Here, on August 27, 1832, Sauk Indian leader Black Hawk surrendered, ending the Black Hawk War. Colonel Zachary Taylor, Colonel Willoughby Morgan, Lt. Jefferson Davis, and Dr. William Beaumont served at Fort Crawford in the 1830s. The Fort Crawford Hospital was partially reconstructed by WPA workers in honor of Dr. William Beaumont, renowned for his pioneer experiments in human digestion.

Erected 1999"

The information sign reads:
"In 1999, archaeologists discovered these limestone foundation blocks lying under three feet of fill as they monitored road and pipeline work along Beaumont Road. These limestone blocks were part of the foundations of the Second Fort Crawford, and important frontier post that helped establish an American presence in what is now the state of Wisconsin.

These blocks were quarried from the bluffs across the Mississippi River in Iowa. Soldiers and civilians under the direction of Zachary Taylor constructed the fort between 1829 and 1834.

The large sawed stone is from the Company Quarters while the two smaller stones, found near the east entrance, may be stepping stones. The mortared stones are a reconstruction of a section of the Officers' Quarters southern foundation. These stones represent a touchable piece of the fort's history."

County: Crawford Location: Building MarkerID: 432

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