Fort Atkinson State Preserve
Encyclopedia
Fort Atkinson State Preserve is a state preserve of Iowa
, USA, containing the remnants of Fort Atkinson, a U.S. Army frontier post created to keep the peace between various Native American
tribes as well as prevent white settlers from encroaching on Indian lands.
The 1830 Treaty of Prairie du Chien, negotiated between the United States and various tribes, established the Neutral Ground: the tribes agreed to land cession of a 40 miles (64.4 km) strip of land, two strips of land 20 miles (32.2 km) wide each on either side of the boundary roughly from present-day La Crosse, Wisconsin
and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
, extending from the Mississippi River
to the Des Moines River
in what today is southeastern Minnesota
and northeastern Iowa
. Originally planned as a buffer zone
between the Sioux
, Sac and Fox Nation
s, the land was soon designated for the Ho-Chunk
(or Winnebago) tribe after their removal from Wisconsin
. Fort Atkinson was founded to keep the Ho-Chunk on the Neutral Ground, and to protect them from other tribes as well as prevent white traders and settlers from intruding on Indian land. The post was also reinforced the authority of the U.S. government official who operated a school, model farm and provided supplies to the Ho-Chunk.
A camp was founded on the site on May 31, 1840 by Cpt. Lynde commanding Co. F, 5th US Infantry
and named after Henry Atkinson, the commanding officer in charge of the Ho-Chunk resettlement. The fort took three years to construct and was completed by the end of summer of 1842. Company B, 1st US Dragoons arrvied on June 24, 1840, remaining until June 20, 1846. Co. F, 5th US Infantry was replaced on Sept 10, 1841 by Co. K, 1st US Infantry, which recently arrived from Florida. Co. I, 1st US Dragoons under Captain James Allen was additionally posted at Ft. Atkinson from August to November 1842, the three companies marked the largest garrison at the post during its history with 196 soldiers in the garrison in August 1842. Co. A & B, 1st US Infantry were each briefly at the post in the spring and summer of 1843. Co. E, 1st US Infantry, replaced Co. K on May 19, 1844. The infantry left the post on Sept 9, 1845. After Co. B, 1st US Dragoons left in June 1846, to report to Ft. Leavenworth in response to the Mexican–American War
, the post was briefly vacant.
Morgan's Iowa Company of Volunteer Infantry began staffing the fort on July 15, 1846. Parker's Iowa Company of Mounted Volunteers arrived in September 1846, but was disbanded as being too expensive in November 1846. Morgan's Company was reoganized as a mounted unit in July 1847 and helped moved the Ho-Chuck from Iowa to Minnesota in June 1848. The last of the militia left on September 11, 1848. The fort was again briefly vacant until Co. C, 6th US Infantry under Captain T L Alexander reached the post from Mexico on Sept. 28, 1848. The fort was abandoned by the 6th US Infantry on February 24, 1849.
The fort was sold at public auction
in 1855. The private owners had the land surveyed and plat
ted for the town of Fort Atkinson. In 1906, a geologic study of Winneshiek County
named the stone used in the fort as the Fort Atkinson Limestone Member of the Maquoketa Group
, having originated from a shallow tropical sea 440 million years ago. The state of Iowa acquired the fort in 1921 and reconstruction started in 1958. In 1968, the fort was dedicated as part of the State Preserves System because of its geological, archaeological and historical value.
, outside of which were 14 additional buildings. The design was typical of frontier posts, using a rectangular layout enclosed by a wooden picket-stockade. A parade ground was at the center, surrounded by four main barracks
. Cannon houses sat at the northeast and southwest corners, a powder magazine
in the southeast corner and a commissary
in the northwest. Buildings outside the fort included the granary, bakery, blacksmith and stables. The buildings were constructed out of limestone
quarried nearby or hewn
logs with cut-pine shingle roofs.
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
, USA, containing the remnants of Fort Atkinson, a U.S. Army frontier post created to keep the peace between various Native American
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
tribes as well as prevent white settlers from encroaching on Indian lands.
History
La Crosse, Wisconsin
La Crosse is a city in and the county seat of La Crosse County, Wisconsin, United States. The city lies alongside the Mississippi River.The 2011 Census Bureau estimates the city had a population of 52,485...
and Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin
Prairie du Chien is a city in and the county seat of Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,911 at the 2010 census. Its Zip Code is 53821....
, extending from the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
to the Des Moines River
Des Moines River
The Des Moines River is a tributary river of the Mississippi River, approximately long to its farther headwaters, in the upper Midwestern United States...
in what today is southeastern Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
and northeastern Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. Originally planned as a buffer zone
Buffer zone
A buffer zone is generally a zonal area that lies between two or more other areas , but depending on the type of buffer zone, the reason for it may be to segregate regions or to conjoin them....
between the Sioux
Sioux
The Sioux are Native American and First Nations people in North America. The term can refer to any ethnic group within the Great Sioux Nation or any of the nation's many language dialects...
, Sac and Fox Nation
Sac and Fox Nation
The Sac and Fox Nation is the largest of three federally recognized tribes of Sac and Meskwaki Native Americans. They are located in Oklahoma and are predominantly Sac....
s, the land was soon designated for the Ho-Chunk
Ho-Chunk
The Ho-Chunk, also known as Winnebago, are a tribe of Native Americans, native to what is now Wisconsin and Illinois. There are two federally recognized Ho-Chunk tribes, the Ho-Chunk Nation of Wisconsin and Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska....
(or Winnebago) tribe after their removal from Wisconsin
Wisconsin
Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...
. Fort Atkinson was founded to keep the Ho-Chunk on the Neutral Ground, and to protect them from other tribes as well as prevent white traders and settlers from intruding on Indian land. The post was also reinforced the authority of the U.S. government official who operated a school, model farm and provided supplies to the Ho-Chunk.
A camp was founded on the site on May 31, 1840 by Cpt. Lynde commanding Co. F, 5th US Infantry
5th Infantry Regiment (United States)
The 5th Infantry Regiment is the third-oldest infantry regiment of the United States Army, tracing its origins to 1808...
and named after Henry Atkinson, the commanding officer in charge of the Ho-Chunk resettlement. The fort took three years to construct and was completed by the end of summer of 1842. Company B, 1st US Dragoons arrvied on June 24, 1840, remaining until June 20, 1846. Co. F, 5th US Infantry was replaced on Sept 10, 1841 by Co. K, 1st US Infantry, which recently arrived from Florida. Co. I, 1st US Dragoons under Captain James Allen was additionally posted at Ft. Atkinson from August to November 1842, the three companies marked the largest garrison at the post during its history with 196 soldiers in the garrison in August 1842. Co. A & B, 1st US Infantry were each briefly at the post in the spring and summer of 1843. Co. E, 1st US Infantry, replaced Co. K on May 19, 1844. The infantry left the post on Sept 9, 1845. After Co. B, 1st US Dragoons left in June 1846, to report to Ft. Leavenworth in response to the Mexican–American War
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known as the First American Intervention, the Mexican War, or the U.S.–Mexican War, was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848 in the wake of the 1845 U.S...
, the post was briefly vacant.
Morgan's Iowa Company of Volunteer Infantry began staffing the fort on July 15, 1846. Parker's Iowa Company of Mounted Volunteers arrived in September 1846, but was disbanded as being too expensive in November 1846. Morgan's Company was reoganized as a mounted unit in July 1847 and helped moved the Ho-Chuck from Iowa to Minnesota in June 1848. The last of the militia left on September 11, 1848. The fort was again briefly vacant until Co. C, 6th US Infantry under Captain T L Alexander reached the post from Mexico on Sept. 28, 1848. The fort was abandoned by the 6th US Infantry on February 24, 1849.
The fort was sold at public auction
Public auction
A public auction is an auction held on behalf of a government in which the property to be auctioned is either property owned by the government, or property which is sold under the authority of a court of law or a government agency with similar authority....
in 1855. The private owners had the land surveyed and plat
Plat
A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
ted for the town of Fort Atkinson. In 1906, a geologic study of Winneshiek County
Winneshiek County, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 21,056 in the county, with a population density of . There were 8,721 housing units, of which 7,997 were occupied.-2000 census:...
named the stone used in the fort as the Fort Atkinson Limestone Member of the Maquoketa Group
Maquoketa Group
The Maquoketa Group is an assemblage of several geologic formations. It is Upper Ordovician in age and named for the Maquoketa River in Iowa. It exists in Missouri, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana. It is equivalent to the all but the basal formations of the Cincinnati Group in Ohio. ...
, having originated from a shallow tropical sea 440 million years ago. The state of Iowa acquired the fort in 1921 and reconstruction started in 1958. In 1968, the fort was dedicated as part of the State Preserves System because of its geological, archaeological and historical value.
Design
The fort included 24 buildings and an 11'9" stockadeStockade
A stockade is an enclosure of palisades and tall walls made of logs placed side by side vertically with the tops sharpened to provide security.-Stockade as a security fence:...
, outside of which were 14 additional buildings. The design was typical of frontier posts, using a rectangular layout enclosed by a wooden picket-stockade. A parade ground was at the center, surrounded by four main barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
. Cannon houses sat at the northeast and southwest corners, a powder magazine
Powder Magazine
Powder Magazine, Powder House, or Powderworks may refer to:* Gunpowder magazine*Magazine , the general term-in the United States:* Powder Magazine , listed on the NRHP in Alabama...
in the southeast corner and a commissary
Commissary
A commissary is someone delegated by a superior to execute a duty or an office; in a formal, legal context, one who has received power from a legitimate superior authority to pass judgment in a certain cause or to take information concerning it.-Word history:...
in the northwest. Buildings outside the fort included the granary, bakery, blacksmith and stables. The buildings were constructed out of limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
quarried nearby or hewn
Hewing
Hewing is the process of converting sections of a tree stem from its rounded natural form into a form with more or less flat surfaces using primarily, among other tools, an axe or axes...
logs with cut-pine shingle roofs.