Note 182 — Chapter XXVII

Henry S. Riggs, a private in Gillham’s company, who still lives at Lynnville, in Morgan County, has given the march of his company and of Capt. Gordon’s as follows: “We first met at a farm near Exeter, and encamped the first night on the bank of the Mauvaisterre, northeast of Jacksonville. We then marched in a northeasterly direction and forded the Sangamon River near Petersburg. The journey across country to the vicinity of Ottawa, and later Rock Island, occupied a week, and a detachment of one company was left at Ft. Wilbourn. At this point there were, besides the whites, a good many friendly Indians who needed or desired our protection. I was one of those left on guard at the fort, so did not take part in any of the skirmishes with the Indians. Black Hawk and his braves were so far outnumbered that they knew the folly of continued resistance, but in the final struggle seventeen whites were killed and the Indian loss was heavy. Peace was finally declared, and when the volunteers returned to their homes they had been in the service just 104 days. For this campaign each man furnished his own horse and weapon and the greater part of his ammunition.”