Illinois Territory in the War of 1812

During the War of 1812, the Illinois Territory was the scene of fighting between Native Americans and United States soldiers and settlers.

[1] At Peoria, Potawatomi chief Main Poc was a supporter of the resistance movement of Shawnee prophet Tenskwatawa and his brother Tecumseh.

[1] Raids against American settlers in Illinois increased after the Shawnee brothers' loss at the Battle of Tippecanoe in the Indiana Territory in 1811.

The low point for the Americans came in August 1812, when a large Indian force, primarily Potawatomis, attacked soldiers and civilians as they evacuated Fort Dearborn in Chicago.

Led by Governor Edwards and Colonel William Russell, they attacked and destroyed Potawatomi and Kickapoo villages, prompting the Natives to abandon the area.

Operations on the Upper Mississippi River during the War of 1812. 1: Fort Bellefontaine U.S. headquarters; 2: Fort Osage , abandoned 1813; 3: Fort Madison , defeated 1813; 4: Fort Shelby , defeated 1814; 5: Battle of Rock Island Rapids , July 1814 and the Battle of Credit Island , Sept. 1814; 6: Fort Johnson , abandoned 1814; 7: Fort Cap au Gris and the Battle of the Sink Hole , May 1815.