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THE INDIAN CHIEF 
 SHABBONA 
 
 LUTHER A. HATCH 
 
 Late Superintendent of Schools, 
 
 DeKalb, Illinois. 
 
 1915 
 Published by Mrs. L. A. Hatch, DeKalb, Illinois. 
 
t- 
 
 Copyrighted by 
 
 MRS, L. A. HATCH 
 
 19 15 
 
 
 
 2)CI.A411399 
 
 PRINTED IN THE MANUAL ARTS PRINT SHOP 
 NORTHERN ILLINOIS STATE NORMAL SCHOOL 
 
 SEP -9 1915 
 *1<^ /. 
 
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THE INDIAN CHIEF 
 SHABBONA 
 
 THE Indians have gone from Illinois, but 
 there are many people living today who 
 remember having seen the last of this dus- 
 ky race as it disappeared. With them have 
 gone, never to return, many of the primitive 
 conditions that once existed. It is with 
 difficulty that the present generation 
 reconstructs in image form and scenes and 
 conditions that met those who first came 
 to this land as explorers or founders of 
 homes. Fortunately we have with us a 
 few of the early pioneers from whose lips we 
 may gather a few of the fragments of our 
 early history. These should be collected and 
 retained as a part of our national heritage 
 It will give us strength to look back upon 
 those early days and to recount the strug- 
 gles through which we have come. 
 
 The conflicts which took place between 
 
£ THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 the red man and the early white settlers 
 would make a long story were all told. 
 Were we to write this story the name of 
 Shabbona would appear in many places. 
 Were you to read it you would come to 
 love the man and to respect him for the 
 true manhood that he displayed on so many 
 occasions. Were you to go to the early 
 settlers who knew Shabbona you would 
 find them all agreed as to the nobility 
 of his character. He was known by them 
 all as "The Friend of the White Man." The 
 writer will tell the story as he gathered it 
 from those who knew him, and from other 
 sources that will be indicated at the close 
 of this article. 
 
 SHABBONA GROVE-HOME OF CHIEF 
 
 In the southern part of DeKalb County 
 in Illinois is found a small village that has 
 been named after Shabbona. Not far from 
 this village is to be found a grove known as 
 Shabbona Grove. It was at this grove that 
 Shabbona and his people made their home 
 for many years. Those who live at the grove 
 take pleasure in pointing out the spot where 
 he pitched his wigwam. It was a beautiful 
 place in those early days nestled on the 
 banks of a little stream. It was a small 
 clearing in the wood well protected from 
 the storms that raged during the winter. 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 3 
 
 In the early years of his stay at this grove 
 it was the home of his whole tribe, which 
 by the way never numbered more than one 
 hundred thirty souls. After the govern- 
 ment moved the Indians from Illinois, 
 Shabbona and his family lived here for a 
 number of years. A hollow in the ground 
 marks the place where he had a shallow 
 well from which he obtained water. A few 
 mounds mark the resting place of a number 
 of his family. 
 
 You are told that a house was built for 
 the old chief by the white settlers who 
 thought they would show their appreciatiorif 
 for him in this way. This house was made 
 of logs. He never lived in it, so some 
 who knew him say, but instead used it as a 
 shelter for his ponies and a storehouse for 
 his provisions. ..At times some of the 
 younger Indians of the tribe used this cabin 
 as a place of shelter but old Shabbona and 
 Coconoko, his wife, always preferred to live 
 in the tent even during the coldest weather 
 in winter. As he visited his white friends 
 it v/as almost impossible to get him to sleep 
 over night in a house. He preferred to roll 
 up in his blanket and sleep out of doors. 
 By his association "with the whites he ac- 
 quired much from them but there were 
 many Indian traits and customs that he 
 retained as long as he lived. • 
 
4 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 At one time the grove at which he made 
 his home was one of the finest in the state of 
 IlUnois. It covered an area of 1,500 acres. 
 In it were found large white, bur, and red 
 oak. No better black walnut trees were to 
 be found anywhere than were found here. 
 Outside of this grove extended great tracts 
 of prairie land noted for their fertility. 
 Surrounded by this, Shabbona, the Indian 
 chief, lived and ruled his little kingdom. 
 Plenty surrounded him on all sides. He and 
 his people visited other Indian settlements, 
 of which there were many in northern Illi- 
 nois. Other chiefs and their people visited 
 him and lived off his substance. His word 
 had much weight in the councils with other 
 chiefs. He was one of the great chiefs 
 among the chiefs. 
 
 WHO WAS SHABBONA? 
 
 But you ask, Who was this Shabbona? 
 He was a member of the Ottawa tribe of 
 Indians, born as the best authorities think, 
 in Ohio somewhere on the Maumee River. 
 He was the grand nephew of the great 
 Indian chief, Pontiac. He lived at the time of 
 Tecumseh and the Prophet. He knew them 
 both and took several long journeys with the 
 former. For a time he was a friend of Black- 
 hawk. He knew Keokuk, Big Foot, Sauganash, 
 Black Partridge, Snachwine, Wabansee, and 
 
5 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 Red Jacket. He probably knew Big Thun- 
 der. Spotka, the Pottawattomie chief, 
 appreciated his worth, and as an indication 
 of his appreciation gave his daughter in 
 marriage. 
 
 The name of this chief was not always 
 spelled by writers in the same way. The 
 iOilowing spellings are found: Shabbona, 
 Chamblee, Shaubene, Shabone, Shaubenay 
 aad Shabehaey. Shabbona seems to be the 
 spelling preferred. The old chief liked to 
 have his name pronounced as if there were 
 but two syllables to it, and to pronounce it 
 as if it were spelled Shab ney, with the ac- 
 cent on the first syllable. 
 
 In appearance he was a very striking 
 character. He would be singled out from 
 among a body of Indians because of the 
 native dignity of the man. He was five feet, 
 nine inches in height, broad shouldered, 
 with a large head supported by a heavy neck. 
 His hands, f<jr a man of his size, were small. 
 His body was long so that when he rode on 
 horseback he appeared larger than when on 
 foot. He was a well built man. When a 
 young man he excelled in all kinds of ath- 
 letic exercises. As a boy he was the picture 
 of health. He was always large for his age. 
 When a young rnan he weighed two hun- 
 dred pounds and before his death he weighed 
 two hundred forty pounds. As has been 
 
6_ THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 intimated he was very inuscular and capa- 
 ble of great endurance. Until his last illness, 
 which occurred in his eighty-fourth year, he 
 did not know what it was to be sick. One in 
 speaking of him says, "He was as strong as a 
 buffalo, as swift of foot as a deer and as 
 gentle as a woman." There are those who 
 think that Shabbona, with his power to un- 
 derstand men, his soundness of judgement 
 in dealing with matters that pertained to his 
 race, his coolness in times of danger, his 
 loyalty to principles, might have become 
 one of the great men of the world had he 
 had opportunities of education. He pos- 
 sessed those characteristics that made him 
 a leader. People loved him, they believed 
 in him, they acted upon his suggestions. 
 
 HIS FIRST VISIT TO ILLINOIS AND 
 HIS MARRIAGE 
 
 In the autumn, it was the custom of the 
 Indians to go on extended hunts in order that 
 food might be secured and prepared for the 
 winter. At this time of the year game was 
 in good condition and the fur of fur-bearing 
 animals was at its best. Sometimes these 
 hunts took the hunters a long distance from 
 their homes. The Indians of certain tribes 
 came to feel that they owned certain hunt- 
 ing grounds and looked upon others who 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SH ABB ON A 7 
 
 might hunt upon these grounds as hostile 
 to their interests. 
 
 In the autumn of 1800, a party of Ot- 
 tawa hunters from the country around Lake 
 Erie went on a hunting expedition into what 
 is now known as lUinois. This hunt led 
 them around the lower end of Lake Michigan 
 to the present site of Chicago. Here they 
 felt at home as they were among their 
 friends, the Pottawattomies. Among those 
 who went on this hunt was a young man 
 known as Shabbona— the Shabbona about 
 whom this article tells. This was his first 
 visit to Illinois. V/-hen the hunt was over the 
 Indians returned to their homes in the 
 Ohio country. Shabbona, however, did not 
 return, but spent the winter at the home of 
 Spotka, the chief of the Pottawattomies at 
 Chicago. As has been stated his stay with 
 this chief resulted in Shabbona's receiving 
 Spotka's daughter in marriage. Shabbona 
 was already a chief among the Ottawas and 
 this marriage to the daughter of a Pottawat- 
 tamie chief made him a Pottawattomie, 
 and later he became a Pottawattomie chief. 
 
 By his sterling qualities he won the 
 respect of his new brothers and as has been 
 indicated became a chief among them. It 
 is said that at first they were inclined to 
 feel somewhat jealous of Shabbona and as a 
 
8 THE INDIA IV CHIEF SNA B BONA 
 
 result said some things of him that were not 
 altogether good. Some of these remarks 
 came to the ears of Shabbona. Ir maciehim 
 feel sad to hear these things for he had tried 
 his best to please those with whom he lived. 
 After thinking matters over for a time he 
 decided that he could stand it no longer, so 
 one morning he arose and announced to his 
 squaw, Coconoko, that he was going to go 
 back to his people to live among them. 
 Bidding Coconoko good-bye he mounted his 
 pony and rode away to the eastward. He 
 rode and thought and the farther he got 
 away from his squaw the more he thought. 
 Before night overtook him he turned his 
 pony about and returned to Coconoko to live 
 with her during the remainder of his life 
 which closed fifty-nine years after this. 
 While he was gone Coconoko talked to her 
 people about the injustice that had been 
 done Shabbona. After this there was never 
 any more trouble along this line for they 
 soon came to appreciate his worth. 
 
 It was not long after this that Shab- 
 bona selected Shabbona Grove as his home. 
 
 From 1800 to 1807 Shabbona trav- 
 eled much among the Indians along the Illi- 
 nois, Fox, and Rock Rivers. At times he 
 went farther to the south, also up the 
 Mississippi, and into Wisconsin. The miss- 
 ionaries among the Indians often secured 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 9 
 
 him to guide them as they went from tribe 
 to tribe. In this way he became very well 
 acquainted with the leading chiefs and with 
 the country in which they lived. It is said 
 that he could mark out a trail or river 
 course in the sand, indicating all of the land- 
 marks, so that it was easy for a stranger not 
 acquainted with the country to find his 
 way. This knowledge of the country and 
 acquaintance with the chiefs was a good pre- 
 paration for the later life that Shabbona led. 
 
 SHABBONA MEETS TECUMSEH 
 
 In the year 1807, Shabbona had the 
 good fortune, if looked at in one way, and 
 bad fortune if looked at in another light, 
 to become acquainted with Tecumseh— 
 Flying Panther — the chief of the Shawnee 
 Indians, who was a man of many high qual- 
 ities, impressive manners, and wonderful 
 natural eloquence. Tecumseh was a little 
 older than Shabbona but they were both 
 comparatively young men at this time, 
 neither being over thirty-five years of age. 
 The two chiefs had many councils together. 
 Tecumseh saw the evil influence of whisky 
 among his people so he prohibited its use. 
 This and ocher things he did left their im- 
 press upon Shabbona for good, although in 
 later years he imbibed somewhat. 
 
10 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 In the year 1810, General Harrison met 
 Tecumsehon the Wabash in council. After 
 this council Tecumseh went to Shabbona's 
 village and persuaded Shabbona to go with 
 him to see the Indians of northern Illinois 
 and Wisconsin to get them to join in concert- 
 . ed action in driving back the whites who 
 were pushing their settlements forward into 
 their hunting ground. These two chiefs went 
 from village to village along the Illinois and 
 Fox Rivers. Then they went to the Winne- 
 bago and Menominee Indians to the north. 
 Both of these tribes fought against the 
 Americans during the War of 1 8 1 2. Tecum- 
 seh and Shabbona then moved to the south 
 along the Mississippi, visiting the Sauks and 
 Foxes, meeting Black Hawk and Wapello 
 the leading chiefs. At Rock Island the two 
 chiefs parted, Tecumseh going farther to the 
 south along the Mississippi and Shabbona 
 returning to his home in DeKalb County. 
 In the summer of 1811 Tecumseh and 
 Shabbona met General Harrison again at 
 Vincennes in a second council. After a 
 wordy conference Tecumseh withdrew and 
 with Shabbona and two Shawnee chiefs set 
 out for the south to visit the Creeks, Cher- 
 okees, Choctaws and Seminoles. While 
 absent his followers were defeated on the 
 seventh of November, 1 8 1 1, in the battle of 
 Tippecanoe by General Harrison. 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBOSA 
 
 MASSACRE AT FORT DEARBORN 
 After the visit to the south Shabbona 
 returned again to the grove. It was while 
 here that he heard of the declaration of 
 war with England. There was a plan on 
 foot to attack and capture if possible, Fort 
 Dearborn before news could reach that 
 place. Runners came to Shabbona telling 
 him that the attack was to be made and 
 that the Pottawattomies were alltotak^ 
 part in the war. He decided that he would 
 not go to the attack on Fort Dearborn as he 
 had many friends there among the whites. 
 Seeing the other Indians going he mounted 
 his pony and went also. Snachwine had 
 planned and carried out the attack. When 
 Shabbona arrived he was shocked to see 
 what had been done. Scattered along the 
 beach of the lake lay the forty-two (some 
 say fifty-two) bodies of the victims of the 
 massacre, scalped and mutilated, women, 
 children and soldiers alike. The body of 
 Captain Wells lay in one place, his head in 
 another while his arms and legs were scat- 
 tered over the prairie. The remains of 
 Captain Wells were gathered up by Black 
 Partridge and buried near where they were 
 found, while the bodies of the other victims 
 were left where they fell until the rebuild- 
 ing of Fort Dearborn in 1816— four years 
 
12 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 later. Then their scattered hones that had 
 been bleaching in the sun were gathered up 
 and buried by Captain Bradley. 
 
 The prisoners were placed in Kinzie's 
 house where Black Partridge and Shanbona 
 tried to protect them with their braves. 
 Parties of Shawnee Indians arrived from the 
 Wabash. These were thirsting for blood. 
 They expected to arrive in time to take 
 part in the attack. They rushed by Black 
 Partridge and Shabbona to get at the pris- 
 oners and had not Saguanash arrived just as 
 he did their lives would have been taken. 
 They would have shared the fate of the oth- 
 ers. As it was they were saved and we feel 
 grateful for the share that Shabbona had in 
 the saving of their lives. They were made 
 prisoners. Part of them were taken to St. 
 Joseph and to Canada. Others were scat- 
 tered among the different tribes of Potta- 
 wattomies but in time they were sent to 
 Detroit and ransomed. 
 
 TECUMSEH'S DEATH AND 
 SHABBONA'S VOW 
 
 After the massacre of Fort Dearborn 
 Shabbona returned to his grove with his 
 mind made up to take no further part in 
 the War. In the fall of 1812 emissaries 
 from Tecumseh reached Shabbona's village 
 bearing presents and the wampum belt ask- 
 
T I.E INDIAN CHIEF S'JABBONA 13 
 
 ing hini and his braves to join with hini in 
 the v/ar. Shabbona was deceived intc^ be- 
 lieving that the Pottawattomies and. many 
 other tribes in Ilhncns were going to tf^ketip:) 
 the hatchet and join the English in their 
 war against the Americans. So Shabbona 
 gave up the winter nuat he had planned to 
 take and with twenty-two of his warriors 
 laft tor the s at of the war. On his way to 
 theWabaeh where the Shawnees dwelt he 
 fell in with Black Hawk and the Indians 
 i/hder his command. The Hawk and Shab- 
 bona had been friends for many years and 
 had sat together ipany times in council, n 
 this war Shabbona stood next in command 
 to Tecumssh. At Fort Maigs and Fort Ste- 
 phenson the Indians were badly whipped 
 by the Americans. This discoureged Black 
 Hawk and his warriors so he, with them, 
 returned to his home on the Mississippi. 
 Shabbona, however, remained with Tecum- 
 seh and pushed onward, through Indiana 
 and Ohio into Canada. In September, 1813, 
 the battle of the Thames was fought and at 
 this battle Shabbona saw his friend Te- 
 cumseh killed by Col. Richard M. Johnson. 
 Shabbona being second in command, the 
 leadership fell upon him. The battle raged 
 with fury and there seemed to be no chance 
 for the Indians so he ordered his braves to 
 retreat, which they did. Shabbona never 
 
14 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBOAA 
 
 expected to escape from the conflict alive. 
 It is said that he prayed to the Great Spirit 
 that if his Hfe was saved he would never 
 take up arms again against the whites. It 
 was saved and from this time till his death 
 he kept his vow. For this stand he lost 
 prestige among the Indians. In derision they 
 called him, "Friend of the White Man." 
 
 The people of northern Illinois remem- 
 ber Shabbona not for the part that he took 
 in the war of 1812 but for what he did after 
 the war. Until 1849 the grove in DeKalb 
 County was his home. True he came and 
 went but this was where he lived with his 
 family and where those of his family who 
 had died were buried. The white settlers 
 did not come to Illinois in very large num- 
 bers, until after the Indians were moved 
 west of the Mississippi, after the Black Hawk 
 War. When Chicago was laid out as a town 
 in 1830 there were twelve families besides 
 the garrison. Three years later the popula- 
 tion had increased to 550. After the War 
 of 1 8 1 2 Shabbona was always ready to pro- 
 tect the settlers in and about Chicago. 
 
 In the fall of 1823 Fort Dearborn was 
 vacated and troops did not occupy it again 
 until the fall of 1828. During this time the 
 citizens of Chicago were unprotected except 
 by the friendly Indians. All went well 
 until the Winnebagoes took up the hatchet 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF S'iABBONA 15 
 
 against the whites in 1827. At the time 
 Shabbona went to almost every village of 
 the Pottawattomies and persuaded them to 
 remain at home, and not take part in the 
 war. He told the citizens of Chicago that he 
 would station his braves there and defend 
 them if they wished him to do so. 
 
 VISITS BIG FOOT AND SAVES CHICAGO 
 
 The people of Chicago requested Shab- 
 bona and Saguanash to visit the village on 
 Big Foot Lake [Lake Geneva], and try to 
 persuade Big Foot to not go to war with the 
 whites. The two rode to the village on horse 
 back. Saguanash did not enter the village 
 but took a position so that he could see 
 Shabbona as he met Big Foot and his 
 braves. The meeting was not of a friend- 
 ly nature. Shabbona was accused of being 
 a friend of the whites and an enemy of the 
 Indians. Shabbona tried to convince Big 
 Foot that the war with the whites meant 
 the destruction of the Indians. The war- 
 riors collected around the chiefs as they 
 carried on their conversation. Big Foot be- 
 came enraged and took out his tomahawk 
 and was about to kill Shabbona but was 
 prevented from doijig so by the warriors 
 who were standing about. The warriors 
 took away Shabbona's rifle, tomahawk, 
 knife and blanket and bound him with 
 
16 THE INDIAN CHIEF S^IABBONA 
 
 buckstring thongs, afcer which he was led 
 to an unoccupied tent and placed under the 
 guard of two warriors. 
 
 Saguanash saw all this from his hidinj^ 
 place on the bluff that overlooked the vill- 
 age. When it looked as if the fate of Shab- 
 bona was sealed he mounted his pony and 
 rode to Chicago to tell the story of what he 
 had witnessed. During the night the Win- 
 nebagoes held a council and it was decided 
 that it was not safe to retain Shabbona as 
 a prisoner so he was released and alleged 
 to return to Fort Dearborn. This was against 
 the wish of Big Foot. He released him but 
 secretly set out on his trail with a few of his 
 warriors determined to kill him if possible. 
 Shabbona suspected something of the sort 
 and urged his fleet pony forward and made 
 his escape. Big Foot followed him for many 
 miles but finally gave up the pursuit. This 
 visit of Shabbona io the village of the 
 Winnebagoes resulted in their remaining at 
 home and Chicago was again safe. 
 
 For several years preceding 1832, the 
 Indians of northern Illinois had been com- 
 paratively quiet as far as outward signs were 
 concerned, but there was a spirit of discon- 
 tent prevalent among the Sauks and Foxes. 
 They could not get over feeling that the 
 whites were aggressors and that slowly but 
 surely they were losing their land and being 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 17 
 
 driven into the West where they would have 
 to encounter new enemies in new fields. 
 This was not altogether to their liking. 
 
 VVhile the Indians wandered about from 
 place to place, they, for the most part, had 
 a home other than their wigwams. They 
 disliked to leave the place where they were 
 born, especially if there was a good prospect 
 of their never seeing it again Oftentimes 
 there centered about such a locality a his- 
 tory and a body of traditions that tended to 
 make it well nigh sacred to them. To 1: e 
 driven from the place where their dead, for 
 generations had been buried, engendered a 
 just hatred for the whites that has not been 
 easily blotted from their memories. 
 
 In Illinois, as elsewhere, the Indians and 
 whites have not mixed. They are too un- 
 like in their modes of livelihood and in dis- 
 position to dwell in peace together. Where 
 the whites settled the Indians gradually 
 disappeared. For the most part they recog- 
 nized the superiority of their aggressors. 
 Occasionally we find a character like Shab- 
 bona, who, in a measure, took on the ways 
 of the whites and remained among them, 
 to watch with interest, the changes that 
 followed their coming. 
 
M THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 BLACK HAWK WAR 
 AND SHABBONA'S WARNING 
 
 In 1832 Black Hawk and the Prophet 
 made a desperate effort to induce the Potta- 
 wattamies and Ottawas to join with the 
 Sauks and Foxes in a war against the 
 whites. It was February of 1832 that a 
 great council of the Sauxs, Foxes, Winne- 
 bagoes and Pottawattamies was held at 
 Indian Town. Many chiefs were present, 
 among them Shabbona, who at this time was 
 fifty-sev^en years of age. The council lasted 
 for many days and nights. Eloquent appeals 
 were made by Black Hawk to induce the 
 other tribes to unite in a final attempt to 
 drive the white m.an from the frontier. It 
 was evident that if such an attempt were 
 not made in a short time the whites would 
 become so numerous that all hopes to drive 
 them back would be fruitless All of the 
 Pottawattamies, but one tribe, joined Shab- 
 bona in opposing the union of the tribes and 
 the council finally broke up without effect- 
 ing a union. 
 
 At this time Black Partridge and Snach- 
 wine, the peace chiefs, were dead and Shab- 
 bona stood next in power among the Pott- 
 awattomie chiefs. Ever since Shabbona 
 had seen his friend Tecumseh fall in battle 
 at the Thames, he had been a missionary for 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 19 
 
 peace among the Indians. He had become 
 thoroughly convinced that it was useless for 
 the Indian to take up arms against the 
 whites. 
 
 When Black Hawk saw that he could not 
 get the tribes to join, he went back to his 
 watch tower at the mouth of Rock River 
 determined on war at any cost. He then 
 went across the Mississippi into Iowa. Here 
 he remained until April, 1832, when he 
 again crossed into Illinois and moved up the 
 Rock River valley with his warriors. He 
 moved on until he came to a point about 
 twenty-five miles above Dixon Ferry and 
 from there he went east to a grove of timber 
 which has since been known as Stillman's 
 Run. 
 
 At this point Black Hawk did not meet 
 the warriors he had expected to meet, so he 
 sent for Shabbona. He went as did others 
 to meet in council with Black Hawk for the 
 last time. It was here that the last war 
 dance took place. Black Hawk tried hard to 
 get Shabbona to join with him for he knew 
 that if he secured Shabbona, practically the 
 whole of the Pottawattamies would be in 
 favor of the union and would take part in 
 the war. Many of the Pottawattamies 
 were doubtless waiting for a chance to kill 
 off some of their white enemies. A war 
 would furnish such a chance. Shabbona 
 
20 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 was convinced that Black Hawk was deter- 
 mined upon war and could not be turned 
 from his purpose. The Hawk said, "If we 
 unite our forces we will have an army like 
 the trees of the forest and will drive the 
 palefaces before us like autumn leaves be- 
 fore an angry wind." Shabbona replied, 
 "The army of the palefaces will be like the 
 leaves on the trees and will sweep you into 
 the ocean beyond the settiiig sui." 
 
 Then we have the story of how he stole 
 away from the council in the night, with 
 hiS son and nephew, to warn the whites of 
 their imminent danger. In doing this he 
 took his life in his hand, for, to fall across 
 the path of Black Hawk meant death, for 
 he had refused to join with him in war and 
 had gone over to give assistance in every 
 way to the enemy. 
 
 This meant that Shabbona had lost 
 caste with many of the Indian tribes. He 
 could never again meet with them in coun- 
 cil. He must be alert lest he be taken by 
 his enemy, for he was looked upon as a 
 traitor by the Hawk and his people. He 
 must look for protection from the whites. 
 
 It was a perilous undertaking to warn 
 the settlers but in it lay their only safety. 
 Shabbona's son and nephew warned the 
 settlers along the Fox River and at Holder- 
 man's Grove. The settlers were warned as 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 21 
 
 far east as the DuPage River in DuPage 
 County. The whites were urged to go to 
 Ottawa and to Fort Dearborn as soon as 
 possible so as to escape the fury of Black 
 Hawk, which was sure to break upon them. 
 This advice they followed. Shabbona warn- 
 ed the settlers of Bureau County and those 
 along Indian Creek. Some of the settlers 
 went to Hennepin, some went to Peoria and 
 others went to Springfield. Shabbona was 
 in his saddle 48 hours. He rode his pony 
 to death, took off the saddle, borrowed 
 another pony of a settler and went on his 
 mission. In his broken English he told the 
 settlers to go. In some cases he rode back 
 to warn them a second time and even beg- 
 ged them to make haste to leave. Often- 
 times in the past the settlers had been 
 warned of impending Indian hostilities, to 
 find, after fleeing to the nearest fort, that 
 the alarm was without foundation. A num- 
 ber were inclined to look upon Shabbona's 
 warning as a false alarm. As a result many 
 had barely time to escape Black Hawk and 
 his warriors. At Indian Creek no attention 
 was given to his warning. The Indians 
 found the people of the settletnent at work 
 in their fields and about their homes and in 
 a short time thirteen were killed and two 
 girls were taken prisoners. 
 
 Shabbona had sent his people to the 
 
22 THE IMjIAi\ CHIEF SUAE BON A 
 
 east into Indiana to get them away from 
 the reach of Black Hawk. After the war 
 they returned to the grove in DeKalb 
 County. 
 
 You are famihar with the story of Black 
 Hawk after this, his attempt to escape to 
 the north and his capture by the troops 
 who were guided in their search by Shab- 
 bona. With his capture and the removal of 
 the Indians to reservations west of the 
 Mississippi River the terror of Indian massa- 
 cres in Illinois came to an end. There soon 
 poured into this rich prairie state a host of 
 pioneers to lay under subjection the resour- 
 ces of the wilderness in the building of 
 their homes. 
 
 It must have been a picturesque gather- 
 ing in 1835, as Pottawattamies to the num- 
 ber of 5,000 assembled for the last time at 
 Chicago. They had come decked with all 
 their mos( showy ornaments, to draw their 
 pay from the government. Pathetic indeed 
 was it to see them in their last dance, dis- 
 playing as they did, all the savagery of sav- 
 ages. On that August day the people of 
 Chicago saw the last of a race as it took its 
 departure, worsted in the struggle for exist- 
 ence, baffled at every point, and made to 
 retire before the progress of the white man. 
 
 To us the story of the red man in Illinois 
 seems a long way in the past but there are 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 23 
 
 men living today who witnessed his depart- 
 ure. 
 
 GOVT RESERVATION FOR SHABBONA 
 
 We will now turn our attention to the 
 reservation that Shabbona and his people 
 owned for a time. In a treaty made at Prai- 
 rie Du Chienin 1829, the Pottawattamie 
 Indians ceded their land in northern Illinois 
 to the United States. At this time two sec- 
 tions were reserved as a home for Shabbona 
 and his family. This tract of land included 
 Section 23, and the west half of Section 25, 
 and the east half of Section 26, in town 38, 
 ran^e 3, east of the Third Principal Meridian 
 at Paw Paw Grove. The tract of land in- 
 cluded 1,280 acres of most excellent land 
 in a very good locality. 
 
 In October 1832 these lands were again 
 reserved for Shabbona in a treaty which 
 was made at Tippecanoe. In 1833 it was 
 provided that Shabbona might sell his land 
 if he felt so inclined, but for some reason in 
 1834 this privilege was taken from him. 
 This left Shabbona's land as a regular reser- 
 vation to be used by him until the govern- 
 ment saw fit to take it from him. At any 
 rate this is the way the matter culminated 
 finally. 
 
 When the Indians were removed by 
 the government to reservations west of the 
 
24_ THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 Mississippi River the Indians of Shabbona's 
 tribe outside of his relatives were made to 
 to go also. This was a hard blow for Shab- 
 bona. He loved his grove and the graves of 
 his dead. He loved his people and they 
 loved him. When they went he went with 
 them to see that they were well located. 
 
 From 1835 until 1849 Shabbona did 
 not make the grove his permanent home. 
 He went to the west several times to visit 
 his friends and in a few instances made 
 extended visits, but he always returned to 
 Illinois ane^ to his reservation. The peo- 
 ple were for the most part glad to have him 
 return and visit among them. His genial 
 disposition and the memory of what he 
 had done for them made the people reserve 
 a warm affection for Shabbona. 
 
 / SALE OF THE OLD HOME 
 
 '' ^ About 1845 Shabbona sold part of his 
 ^lafid'^to the Gates brothers. He was not 
 
 'a^WHre'of the fact that the right to dispose 
 ^^ofliis ffesei'vation had been taken from him. 
 •'Thfe (Sktek 'brothers soon sold the land that 
 "lliey hafd^ Mfcquired to settlers who bought 
 "sM^ll-pd't^hfe tirihcipally for the wood. 
 '^Mfari^ of -tHfe^e '^^ttlers lived on the prairie 
 ^afAW^th-^''Woo^%^S6f'ri4tich value to them. 
 
 It is said that during Shabbona's absence 
 
 'fi^oib^'tlifei grove ^the' ' ^u'ri-oUilding settlers 
 
 ^riJ "to ja'jv/ aii.>i ; ■; / 1 jj-.n c}- i -> iw 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 25 
 
 would cut the best timber that he had and 
 haul it to their homes. 
 
 In 1849 while Shabbona was away the 
 commissioners of the general office decided 
 that Shabbona had forfeited his right to his 
 land by leaving it and that it should be sold. 
 
 The men who purchased the land from 
 the Gates brothers were now in trouble. 
 All of Shabbona's reservation was to be sold 
 at Dixon. The government would sell it for 
 $1.25 an acre. It had been improved and 
 was in some cases worth many times this 
 amount. The people of Shabbona Grove 
 selected two of their citizens, William Marks 
 and Reuben Alien, to bid in the land. The 
 others went along to see that these men had 
 a chance to monopolize the bidding. There 
 were 150 deterrnined men in the party 
 ready to use force to carry their point if 
 necessary. There were a few others there 
 ready to bid in the land but they had no 
 chance to do so and the men from Shab- 
 bona Grove bought the land for $1.25 an 
 acre. 
 
 Now comes the sad part of our story. 
 Shabbona bad been in the West on an ex- 
 tended visit. He returned, expecting to re- 
 ceive the remainder of the payments due 
 from the Gates brothers and to receive the 
 rent due him from his own land that had 
 been rente . This happened in 1849. It 
 
^6 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 was night when he came to his grove, tired 
 from his long journey. With him were his 
 people numbering something less than 25. 
 They camped where they had been wont to 
 camp, gathered a few poles for their tents 
 and a few faggots for a fire. Imagine their 
 surprise in the morning when the man, or 
 better brute, who owned the land ordered 
 him with curses to leave. The man was 
 brutal in his treatment of Shabbona and his 
 people. One writer in speaking of his treat- 
 ments says, "Here he had lived for many 
 years, and here were buried his beautiful 
 twin boys, whose graves had been torn by 
 the ruthless plowshare of his betrayers. 
 Painting his face black, he fell prone o'er the 
 little graves, calling upon the great spirit for 
 strength and patience to endure his great 
 affliction; living for a season on bitterness 
 fed, he ate not, slept not, but constantly beat 
 his breast, weeping and wailing until he grew 
 wan and weary, then his powerful intellect 
 wavered, tottered and fell, and he wandered 
 forth without object or aim and was found 
 lying upon the ground away up on Rock 
 Creek, in Kendall County, in a distracted and 
 starving condition and was brought back to 
 life and reason by some good Samaritan." 
 This leaves Shabbona without a home. 
 It is said that he never again went back to 
 his grove. It is said that once a year the 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA £7 
 
 squaws used to return and silently find 
 their way to the place where their dead 
 were buried and there a few days were 
 spent in mourning, as it were for their de- 
 parted. They had very little to do with the 
 people who lived at the grove except to ask 
 for a little water or food. When their season 
 of mourning had passed they took their de- 
 parture as sileiitly as they had come and 
 went back to th -ir people. For seven years 
 following his return to Illinois he spent his 
 time visiting those of his tribe who had 
 moved to the v/est end his friends in Illi- 
 nois, it was during this time that the fig- 
 ure of Shabbona riding his pony became a 
 familiar sight in northern Illinois especially 
 in and about Chicago and to the south as 
 far as and even beyond the Illinois River. 
 He was a good rider, and usually rode in his 
 old age, for we must remember that Shab- 
 bona was 75 years of age, when he was 
 driven from his home in the grove. He did 
 not care much for the roads of the whites 
 but would take the trails that led across 
 fields and through the timber if these were 
 shorter. The settlers looked for him every 
 Spring and in the Fall. If he did not pass 
 they would feel that something had been 
 missed. 
 
28 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 SHABBONA'S LAST YEARS 
 
 Sometimes Shabbona traveled alone and 
 again he traveled with a part, or all, of his 
 family. His squaw always rode in a demo- 
 crat wagon, sitting in the bottom of the box, 
 filling it from side to side, for we must re- 
 member that she weighed in the neighbor- 
 hood of 400 pounds. She was so fat that it 
 was with difficulty that she could get up 
 aloneif she lay flat on her back. She would 
 get into the wagon by mounting a chair and 
 rolling over into the box. Her children or 
 grandchildren usually went along and drove 
 the ponies. Others followed on foot or rode 
 their ponies. If Shabbona happened to 
 reach the home of a white friend late at 
 night he was always very careful lest he 
 might disturb them. In the morning they 
 would discover his presence by seeing his 
 ponies grazing about, or by finding him roll- 
 ed up in his blanket on the porch or in 
 some other well protected place. Late in 
 the fall of the year when the weather 
 was cold Shabbona rolled up in his blanket 
 and seemed unmindful of the weather as 
 he slept. 
 
 Sometimes he would stop for several 
 days at a place, visiting his white friends. 
 His nephews and boys on these occasions 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHAB BO\A 29 
 
 played games with the children of the 
 white people and all seemed to forget their 
 race differences for the time. There was a 
 healthy rivalry in their sports which made 
 their coming, from time to time, an event 
 in the minds of the younger people. These 
 Indian children were well behaved as they 
 had received the best of home training in 
 manners from the hands of Shabbonr. 
 Some of the frills of modern civilization had 
 been omitted in this training but those 
 principles which tend toward the develop- 
 ment of strength of character had receive i 
 attention. 
 
 Shabbona knew his place and was 
 always careful never to do anything to 
 impose upon the manners and customs of 
 the whites. When he came to a farmhouse 
 he was careful to use his own cup in drink- 
 ing instead of using the one that he found 
 at the well. As has been stated it was with 
 difficulty that he could be induced to stay 
 over night in a house and it was equally as 
 difficult a matter to get him to sit down to 
 eat at the table with the whites. Occasion- 
 ally this happened with his more intimate 
 friends. His squaw, we are told, had to wait 
 until she had been waited upon by Shab- 
 bona, and orders had been given her by her 
 lord to begin the process of eating. The 
 
30 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 Indians were very fond of the cooking of the 
 whites. It was not an uncommon thing for 
 Coconoke to gather up all that was left on 
 the table in her apron and store it away to 
 be eaten on their journey later. The bread 
 was very appetizing to them. The Indains 
 liked the way that the whites cooked meats 
 Frequently they would take a deer that had 
 been killed to the \^''hites to be co®ked. The 
 whites were glad tt) do this to please them 
 and to receive a portion of the venison, or 
 whatever it might be, for their trouble. The 
 Indians we^e' especially fond of the gravy 
 that went with the meat as it was returned 
 to them. 
 
 As Shabboria traveled about among the 
 whites he took a great interest in what they 
 were doing. He liked to watch them to see 
 how they did things and in this way he 
 learned to do many things as the whites 
 did them. At his home;, in the Grove he had 
 fences around part of feis ground that was 
 culivated to keep his ponies from destroying 
 his crops. He had learned to culiviat© corn 
 in very much the same way as the whites 
 did at that time. He was always busy tink- 
 ering around at something. He was not a 
 lazy Indian. What he. did might have 
 amoiiHted to more thaij it did but for an 
 Indian he did very well. The whites respect- 
 
THE INDIAN CHEIF SHABBONA 31 
 
 ed his industry. They liked to have him 
 question them as to their ways of doing 
 things and were glad, for the most part, to 
 help him to acquire their ways. 
 
 Shabbona was quite a hand at doctox^- 
 ing. The whites often called upon him to 
 help them with their sick. Snake bites and 
 wounds that would not heal he knew how 
 to cure. He went to the woods and on the 
 prairie and there gathered his medicines. 
 His own good health and the good health of 
 his family was pretty good proof of his abil- 
 ity along this line. 
 
 People may wonder how Shabbona and 
 his people managed to live after they were 
 driven from their Grove. He was a good 
 hunter and gain«d much in this way. In 
 the Fall of the year he went to Chicago and 
 his friends found out what he lacked in the 
 way of clothing and food for the winter and 
 among themselves supplied his wants. The 
 people who knew him in many parts of Illi- 
 nois gave him things as he visited them, 
 but in spite of all this, Shabbona and his 
 people were badly neglected by the whites, 
 considering what he had done for them. 
 After Shabbona's death those who remained 
 for a number of years lived as paupers and 
 beggars and at times their conditions were 
 pitiable. 
 
32 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 We are told that Shabbona was quite 
 anxious that one of his daughters should 
 marry a white man and it is said that he 
 offered to give a goodly sum of money to 
 any good respectable white masa who would 
 marry one of them. No one seemed to be 
 inclined to take up his offer as the daughter 
 he had in mind was built on the same plan 
 that her mother was. 
 
 Shabbona was quite a public character 
 and on all great occasions he was made 
 much of. He was always the center of 
 attraction at the fairs. He and his family 
 were sure to attend. He appreciated very 
 much the honor that was conferred upon 
 him on such occasions. On the Fourth of 
 July, 1857, there was a great celebration 
 at Ottawa and Shabbona, his squaw, grand- 
 children, and children were there. They 
 led the procession. In the evening there 
 was given a great ball which Shabbona and 
 his people attended. At this ball the belles 
 of the town came out in their finest. There 
 was a desire to know who of them excelled 
 in beauty and grace. Shabbona was made 
 judge and in the most critical manner ex- 
 amined each lady in the contest who passed 
 before him for inspection. He was called 
 upon to give his decision. Here he showed 
 his sense of humor, his insight into human 
 nature, and his appreciation of his wife. 
 
THt: INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA JJ 
 
 Turning to Coconoke, his squaw, he brought 
 his hand down upon her well-rounded shoul- 
 der and said, "Much, heap, big, prettiest 
 squaw." 
 
 During the political carnpain of 1858 
 Shabbona was present on the platform with 
 Lincoln, Douglas and Lovejoy at the famous 
 debate between Lincoln and Douglas at 
 Ottawa. At this time he was 83 years of age. 
 
 Shabbona traveled much. On one oc- 
 casion he went to Washington and while 
 there met Col. Johnson and the two talked 
 over the battle of the Thames and the death 
 of Tecumseh. When they parted Johnson 
 gave Shabbona a gold ring th:;t he wore 
 during the remainder of his life. 
 
 On one occasion Shabbona, with a white 
 man whose complexion v/as almost as dark 
 as that of an Indian, was introduced to Gen- 
 er .1 Scott. General Scott took the white 
 man to be Shabbona and in his pompous 
 manner began to tell him how much he ap- 
 preciated what he had done for the whitf s 
 in Illinois during the Blaek Hawk war. 
 Shabbona stood it as long as he could and 
 then pointing to himself said to General 
 Scott, " Me Shabbona. " 
 
 The Indian in Shabbona displayed itself 
 on one occasion at Morris, Illinois. At this 
 point there was a toll bridge across the 
 river. One of the citizens of Morris had 
 
34 THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 
 
 taken it upon himself to pay toll for Shab- 
 bona and his people whenever they wanted 
 to cross the bridge. The toll keeper kept 
 account of the times Shabbona crossed and 
 interfered with his crossing in no way. On 
 one occasion there was a new toll keeper 
 who did not know of this arrangement. 
 Shabbona appeared with his tribe and want- 
 ed to go over. The toll keeper would not let 
 him cross without paying. Sha bbona turned 
 about and went to the man who was look- 
 ing after his toll secured a note from him, 
 returned and was allowed to pass. He cross- 
 ed to the end of the bridge, turned about, 
 gave a whoop, and crossed and recrossed the 
 bridge several times to show the toll keeper 
 what he could do. 
 
 Aftt r Sh:^b^ona was driven froni his 
 Grove he had no home until 1857, when 
 people who were interested in him raised a 
 sum of money and purchased a home for him 
 of 20 acres in Section 20, town 33, range 6, in 
 the town of Norman, Grundy County, Illinois. 
 Here they built a house for him and tried to 
 provide for him. He lived here until his 
 death July 27, 1 859. He hved to be eighty- 
 four years of age. He was hurried in a lot 
 in Evergreen cemetery near Morris, Illinois. 
 This lot was donated by the cemetery asso- 
 ciation. His wife lies hurried in the same lot. 
 She died November 30, 1864. Her death 
 
 RD 14.8 n 
 
THE INDIAN CHIEF SHABBONA 35_ 
 
 was pathetic. While crossing Mazon Creek 
 in her democrat wagon with a little grand- 
 child in her arms the wagon was upset and 
 she was drowned, although the water was 
 but a few inches deep. The child was found 
 beneath her. It was also dead. There are 
 also buried in the lot his favoite daughter 
 Mary, and his grand-daughters, Mary Okon- 
 to, and Met-wetch, and his nieces, Chicksaw 
 and Soco. All of Shabbona's people who re- 
 mained, moved out west, after the death of 
 Coconoke. 
 
 On Friday October 23, 1903, about fifty 
 people gathered in Evergreen cemetery to 
 witness the dedication of a monument to 
 Shabbona. This consists of a huge boulder 
 bearing the simple inscription, "Shabbona, 
 1775-1859" - a fitting mark for the resting 
 place of one of Illinois' noble men. Shabbo- 
 na wanted nothing to mark his grave for he 
 said that the life he lived should be his only 
 monument. It was laregly through the 
 instrumentality of P. A. Stone of Morris, 
 Illinois, and a body of workers that this 
 monument was erected. 
 
REFERENCES 
 
 Memories of Shaubena, N. Matson 
 History ot De Kalb County, H. I. Boise 
 History of De Kalb County, Album, 
 
 Chapman Brothers 
 The Saux and Black Hawk War, 
 
 Perry A. Armstrong 
 The Northwest and Chicago, 
 
 Rufus Blanchard 
 History of De Kalb County, 
 
 Clinton Rosette 
 History of La Salle County, Baldwin 
 Historic Waterways, Thwaties 
 
 The Prairie Schooner, 
 
 Wm E. Barton 
 Stories of Illinois, Mara L. Pratt 
 
 History of Illinois, 
 
 Davidson and Stuve 
 The Black Hawk War, 
 
 Frank E. Stevens 
 Many Early Settlers. 
 
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