Sauk Trail
Encyclopedia
Sauk Trail began as a Native American
trail running through Illinois, Indiana and Michigan in the United States. From west to east, the trail ran from Rock Island
on the Mississippi River
to the Illinois River
near modern Peru
then along the north bank of that river to Joliet
, and on to Valparaiso, Indiana
. Then it ran northeasterly to LaPorte
and into southern Michigan
running through Niles
, Three Rivers
, Ypsilanti
and ending at the Detroit River
near Detroit
. The trail followed a winding path around natural topography including following the ridges of dune
and moraine
s that mark the earlier glacial period Lake Michigan shorelines. European settlers improved the trail into a wagon road and later into modern highways, although these often have been straightened and rerouted.
There is a suggestion that sections of the trail followed the southern boundary between the dense forest and the mixed grassland regions. The presence of a mastodon
trailway along the same path indicates that the Native Americans may have been using a long established game trail. Henry Schoolcraft
, at present-day Michigan City, Indiana
in 1820, describes the trail, as a "plain horse path, which is considerably traveled by traders, hunters, and others..." and said that a stranger could not follow it without the services of a guide because of the numerous side trails. The Sauk Trail intersected many important trails and early roads including the trails to Vincennes
, to Green Bay
, to Fort Wayne and to Little Traverse Bay
.
Early European settlers used the trail including perhaps Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle
in 1678 to reach Fort Miami
, an early fur trade
post. Later traders and their Indian suppliers would continue to use the trail. The French and later British militaries used the trail during the time when they occupied Fort St. Joseph. In 1781, the Spanish also used the trail when they raided Fort St. Joseph during the American Revolutionary War
.
To better supply the isolated Fort Dearborn
in Chicago, the American Congress passed an act to construct a road from Chicago to Detroit. The surveying for this Chicago Road began in 1825 but financial shortfalls led to a decision to mostly follow the path of the Sauk Trail which military couriers were already using. By 1835, daily stage coach departures run by the Western Stage Company traveled all the way from Chicago to Detroit on a multi-day trip whose travel time was dependent on how bad the road was at the particular season. The Chicago Road was described as "a huge serpent, lazily pursuing its onward course, utterly unconcerned as to its destination."
Sections of the trail still exist in some form; for example, the winding road still called Sauk Trail which runs from Frankfort, Illinois
to Dyer, Indiana
(passing through the town of Sauk Village, Illinois
). Johnson Sauk Trail State Park in western Illinois sits on another section of the trail. Sauk Trail forms the southern boundary of Sauk Trail Woods
park. When the Lincoln Highway
, the first national transcontinental highway was built, its route through western Indiana followed the roads built over the Sauk Trail.
Although called the Sauk Trail after the Sac tribe, other local tribes (such as the Fox, Ho-Chunk
(Winnebago), Kickapoo, Potawatomi
, Kaskaskia
, and Peoria
) were known to use it and the trail probably predates Sac presence in the area. The Sac, however, had to travel the entire length of the trail from their home near Rock Island to collect their treaty payments from the British at Fort Malden
near Detroit (and later from the Americans at Detroit).
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...
trail running through Illinois, Indiana and Michigan in the United States. From west to east, the trail ran from Rock Island
Rock Island, Illinois
Rock Island is the county seat of Rock Island County, Illinois, United States. The population was 40,884 at the 2010 census. Located on the Mississippi River, it is one of the Quad Cities, along with neighboring Moline, East Moline, and the Iowa cities of Davenport and Bettendorf. The Quad Cities...
on 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 Illinois River
Illinois River
The Illinois River is a principal tributary of the Mississippi River, approximately long, in the State of Illinois. The river drains a large section of central Illinois, with a drainage basin of . This river was important among Native Americans and early French traders as the principal water route...
near modern Peru
Peru, Illinois
Peru is a city in LaSalle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 10,295 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Ottawa–Streator Micropolitan Statistical Area...
then along the north bank of that river to Joliet
Joliet, Illinois
Joliet is a city in Will and Kendall Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. As of the 2010 census, the city was the fourth-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 147,433. It continues to be Illinois' fastest growing...
, and on to Valparaiso, Indiana
Valparaiso, Indiana
Valparaiso is a city in and the county seat of Porter County, Indiana, United States. The population was 31,730 at the 2010 census, making it the 2nd largest city in Porter County.-History:...
. Then it ran northeasterly to LaPorte
LaPorte, Indiana
La Porte is a city in La Porte County, Indiana, United States, of which it is the county seat. Its population was 22,053 at the 2010 census. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City-La Porte, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the...
and into southern Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
running through Niles
Niles, Michigan
Niles is a city in Berrien and Cass counties in the U.S. state of Michigan, near South Bend, Indiana. The population was 11,600 at the 2010 census. It is the greater populated of two principal cities of and included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a...
, Three Rivers
Three Rivers, Michigan
Three Rivers is a city in St. Joseph County in the US state of Michigan. The population was 7,811 at the 2010 census.Three Rivers derives its name from the confluence of the St. Joseph River with its tributaries the Rocky and Portage Rivers. It is the home of St...
, Ypsilanti
Ypsilanti, Michigan
Ypsilanti is a city in Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the city population was 22,362. The city is bounded to the north by the Charter Township of Superior and on the west, south, and east by the Charter Township of Ypsilanti...
and ending at the Detroit River
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
near Detroit
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
. The trail followed a winding path around natural topography including following the ridges of dune
Dune
In physical geography, a dune is a hill of sand built by wind. Dunes occur in different forms and sizes, formed by interaction with the wind. Most kinds of dunes are longer on the windward side where the sand is pushed up the dune and have a shorter "slip face" in the lee of the wind...
and moraine
Moraine
A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...
s that mark the earlier glacial period Lake Michigan shorelines. European settlers improved the trail into a wagon road and later into modern highways, although these often have been straightened and rerouted.
There is a suggestion that sections of the trail followed the southern boundary between the dense forest and the mixed grassland regions. The presence of a mastodon
Mastodon
Mastodons were large tusked mammal species of the extinct genus Mammut which inhabited Asia, Africa, Europe, North America and Central America from the Oligocene through Pleistocene, 33.9 mya to 11,000 years ago. The American mastodon is the most recent and best known species of the group...
trailway along the same path indicates that the Native Americans may have been using a long established game trail. Henry Schoolcraft
Henry Schoolcraft
Henry Rowe Schoolcraft was an American geographer, geologist, and ethnologist, noted for his early studies of Native American cultures, as well as for his 1832 discovery of the source of the Mississippi River. He married Jane Johnston, whose parents were Ojibwe and Scots-Irish...
, at present-day Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City, Indiana
Michigan City's origins date to 1830, when the land for the city was first purchased by Isaac C. Elston. Elston Middle School, formerly Elston High School, located at 317 Detroit St., is named after the founder....
in 1820, describes the trail, as a "plain horse path, which is considerably traveled by traders, hunters, and others..." and said that a stranger could not follow it without the services of a guide because of the numerous side trails. The Sauk Trail intersected many important trails and early roads including the trails to Vincennes
Vincennes, Indiana
Vincennes is a city in and the county seat of Knox County, Indiana, United States. It is located on the Wabash River in the southwestern part of the state. The population was 18,701 at the 2000 census...
, to Green Bay
Green Bay, Wisconsin
Green Bay is a city in and the county seat of Brown County in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, located at the head of Green Bay, a sub-basin of Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Fox River. It has an elevation of above sea level and is located north of Milwaukee. As of the 2010 United States Census,...
, to Fort Wayne and to Little Traverse Bay
Little Traverse Bay
Little Traverse Bay is a small bay, 170 feet deep, off Lake Michigan in the northern area of the Lower Peninsula of Michigan. Harbor Springs and Petoskey are on this bay.The Little Traverse Light marks its entrance....
.
Early European settlers used the trail including perhaps Rene-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle
René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle, or Robert de LaSalle was a French explorer. He explored the Great Lakes region of the United States and Canada, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico...
in 1678 to reach Fort Miami
Fort Miami (Michigan)
Fort Miami was a fort on the bank of the St. Joseph River at the site of the present-day city of St. Joseph, Michigan, in the United States.It was established in November 1679 by a band of French explorers led by René Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle on the banks of what was then called the River...
, an early fur trade
Fur trade
The fur trade is a worldwide industry dealing in the acquisition and sale of animal fur. Since the establishment of world market for in the early modern period furs of boreal, polar and cold temperate mammalian animals have been the most valued...
post. Later traders and their Indian suppliers would continue to use the trail. The French and later British militaries used the trail during the time when they occupied Fort St. Joseph. In 1781, the Spanish also used the trail when they raided Fort St. Joseph during the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
.
To better supply the isolated Fort Dearborn
Fort Dearborn
Fort Dearborn was a United States fort built in 1803 beside the Chicago River in what is now Chicago, Illinois. It was constructed by troops under Captain John Whistler and named in honor of Henry Dearborn, then United States Secretary of War. The original fort was destroyed following the Battle of...
in Chicago, the American Congress passed an act to construct a road from Chicago to Detroit. The surveying for this Chicago Road began in 1825 but financial shortfalls led to a decision to mostly follow the path of the Sauk Trail which military couriers were already using. By 1835, daily stage coach departures run by the Western Stage Company traveled all the way from Chicago to Detroit on a multi-day trip whose travel time was dependent on how bad the road was at the particular season. The Chicago Road was described as "a huge serpent, lazily pursuing its onward course, utterly unconcerned as to its destination."
Sections of the trail still exist in some form; for example, the winding road still called Sauk Trail which runs from Frankfort, Illinois
Frankfort, Illinois
Frankfort is a village in Will and Cook Counties, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,782 at the 2010 census. According to Forbes.com, in 2007 the village ranked as the 36th fastest growing suburb in the United States. - Previous spelling :...
to Dyer, Indiana
Dyer, Indiana
As of the census of 2010, there were 16,390 people residing in the town. The population density was 2,731.67 people per square mile . There were 6,125 housing units at an average density of 1,020.83 per square mile...
(passing through the town of Sauk Village, Illinois
Sauk Village, Illinois
Sauk Village is a village in Cook County and small parcel south of 231st St. in Will County, Illinois. The population was 10,411 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sauk Village is located at ....
). Johnson Sauk Trail State Park in western Illinois sits on another section of the trail. Sauk Trail forms the southern boundary of Sauk Trail Woods
Sauk Trail Woods
Sauk Trail Woods are located within the Cook County Forest Preserves in Park Forest and Chicago Heights, Illinois. They are part of the Thorn Creek Trail System. They contain miles of paved bike trails and off-trail dirt paths. Sauk Trail Woods contains Sauk Lake and Thorn Creek. The topography is...
park. When the Lincoln Highway
Lincoln Highway
The Lincoln Highway was the first road across the United States of America.Conceived and promoted by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, the Lincoln Highway spanned coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City to Lincoln Park in San Francisco, originally through 13 states: New York, New Jersey,...
, the first national transcontinental highway was built, its route through western Indiana followed the roads built over the Sauk Trail.
Although called the Sauk Trail after the Sac tribe, other local tribes (such as the Fox, 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....
(Winnebago), Kickapoo, Potawatomi
Potawatomi
The Potawatomi are a Native American people of the upper Mississippi River region. They traditionally speak the Potawatomi language, a member of the Algonquian family. In the Potawatomi language, they generally call themselves Bodéwadmi, a name that means "keepers of the fire" and that was applied...
, Kaskaskia
Kaskaskia
The Kaskaskia were one of about a dozen cognate tribes that made up the Illiniwek Confederation or Illinois Confederation. Their longstanding homeland was in the Great Lakes region...
, and Peoria
Peoria (tribe)
The Peoria people are a Native American tribe. Today they are enrolled in the federally recognized Peoria Tribe of Indians of Oklahoma. Historically, they were part of the Illinois Confederation.-History:...
) were known to use it and the trail probably predates Sac presence in the area. The Sac, however, had to travel the entire length of the trail from their home near Rock Island to collect their treaty payments from the British at Fort Malden
Fort Malden
Fort Malden is a fort that stands on the remains of Fort Amherstburg in Amherstburg, Ontario. The original fort was abandoned by the British/Canadians in 1813 when Southwest Ontario fell into American hands. The Americans began building a smaller replacement fort on the same site, but this was...
near Detroit (and later from the Americans at Detroit).
See also
- U.S. Route 112U.S. Route 112U.S. Route 112 was a largely east–west state trunkline highway across the southern portion of the US state of Michigan between New Buffalo and Detroit...
, which follows part of the trail in Michigan - Saginaw TrailSaginaw trailSaginaw Trail is the collective name for a set of connected roads in Southeastern Michigan that runs from Detroit to Saginaw through Pontiac and Flint. It was originally a tribal foot trail. On December 7, 1818 the Michigan Territorial government authorized the building of a road from Detroit to...
, another trail named after the Sac