This is the story as related by Rachel Hall to my grandfather. The former was
seven days a captive of the Indians, immediately following the massacre of 1832.
She was fifteen years of age and her sister Sylvia was seventeen years old. They
witnessed the ruthless destruction of their parents, brothers, sisters and
others of the little group who had settled at the spot which is now Shabbona
Park, a few miles north of the village of Harding.
A group of Sac and
Fox Indians, who lived some distance up the creek, had been deprived of their
fish on account of a dam which had been constructed across the creek at the
settlement of the whites. This made them quite indignant. One day two young
braves went to the settlement to visit a man by the name of Davis, who was a
large, strong man. During their visit the two braves were misused, and finally
driven out of the settlement because they were getting in love with the two
girls. This was more than the Indians could stand, so on May 20th they took the
settlement by surprise.
Rachel Hall's little son and his chum, George
Keith, who is now my grandfather, used to coax her to tell the story of the
Indian massacre, which she did many times.
With tears in her eyes, she
told of how she saw her own grandmother shot through the head while she lay sick
in bed. The nightcap that she wore at the time she was shot is still in
existence, showing the hole where the bullet passed through. She also saw
Pettigrew's little boy taken by the legs and his head knocked over a stump by a
large Indian. Then Davis' little boy was shot by an Indian, while two other
Indians held the boy by each hand.
After the Indians had killed most of
the settlers they took the two girls, who had been spared, placed them on ponies
and struck out with the two girls in the middle of the procession. Their ponies
were led by two stalwart Indians. One of the Indians had a scalp hanging from
his belt in plain view of the girls all the time. Later on the girls found out
that it was their own mother's scalp.
There were about forty braves in
the party. Once when Rachel had been riding on one of the ponies for most of the
day, she made signs to let the Indians know that she was tired. She was then
taken off the pony and allowed to walk. Toward evening they came upon a stream
which they decided to cross before camping. The water was three feet deep and
since Rachel was walking, she was forced to walk through or wade the stream
instead of riding, as most of the others did. They camped on a green knoll, and
when it became quite dark the Indians held a war dance, which lasted only a
short time.
In the morning the girls expected they would have to travel
immediately, but a new sight met their eyes. The Indians cleared a piece of
ground which was about ninety feet in circumference. In the center of this they
placed a pole with a spear on the top of the pole and a scalp fastened to the
end of the spear. Several spears were stuck in the ground around the pole with
hearts of the people who had been killed at the massacre placed on the points of
the spears. The girls were then placed near the pole while the Indians danced
around them with their spears sticking into the ground near the girls, who were
shaking with fear.
After their performance, the Indians packed up and
started on their journey. They traveled for six days, camping each night
wherever they happened to stop.
One evening two Indians came into camp.
One had a person's head tied onto a stick, which hung over his shoulder. The
head was placed upon a pole and a war dance immediately took place. During the
war dance, Girty, who was the leader of the squad, asked one of them if it was a
man's head. Upon being notified that it was a man's head, he then asked whom the
person was. The Indians told him it was Reverend Paine's head. Upon hearing
this, Girty grew angry because his followers had slain the missionary of the
Indians and was determined to kill the one who killed his friend, but was
detained by the others and the Indian who had slain Paine was forced to leave
the party and set out alone.
The following morning the party again
resumed their journey. During the day, as they were stopping to rest, a group of
white men came upon the party. They came especially to get the girls, but they
made believe that they were just a few wandering men who happened to come upon
the Indians' party. The men tried to make the Indians believe that they were in
love with the girls and wanted to take them along so they could marry them.
After much consultation the Indians gave the girls up for the presents the
whites promised them.
Extracted 08 Nov 2018 by Norma Hass from Stories of Pioneer Days in La Salle County, Illinois, by Grammar Grade Pupils, published in 1932, page 95.
| Lee | DeKalb | Kane |
| Bureau |
 |
Kendall |
| Putnam | Grundy | |
| Marshall | Woodford | Livingston |
