1811 - 1812 - 1813 - 1814 - 1815 - 1816 - 1817 - 1818 - 1819

1810

Indiana population was 24,520 from page 3 1851 Indiana Constitution History.

1810 - Little Turtle dies in Fort Wayne. William Wells, his son-in-law, is killed while escorting a group of women and children to safety from Fort Dearborn. From Millennium milestones in Fort Wayne from the archives of The News-Sentinel newspaper. 

1810, August 20 - Shawnee military and political leader Tecumseh addressed Territorial Governor William Henry Harrison in Vincennes. Through this address, Tecumseh hoped to persuade Harrison to both relinquish American claim to land acquired in the Treaty of Fort Wayne and to dissuade him from further encroachment upon Native people’s land, saying “If you will not give up the land and do cross the boundary of your present settlement it will be very hard and produce great troubles among us.” Tecumseh had travelled to Vincennes from Prophetstown, just north of present day Lafayette, with an escort of seventy-five warriors. The Treaty of Fort Wayne, signed in 1809, exasperated tensions between Prophetstown and the territorial government as Prophetstown leadership had not been informed of the proceedings. According to historian Adam Jortner, the August 1810 summit “did not produce any changes in relations, but it did produce some of the most eloquent explanations and defenses of the Prophetstown position on land ownership.” Posted August 20, 2018 by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook. Learn more about Tecumseh by the National Park Service.

1810, December 17 - 19 Acts establish a permanent seat of government for Indiana Territory

1811

1811, January 7 - Indiana Territory General Assembly petitions United States Congress for a donation of land for a capital.

1811, November 7 - The Battle of Tippecanoe is waged with forces under William Henry Harrison and Native Americans led by the Prophet.

1811, December 11 - Territorial Assembly petitions Congress to admit Indiana as the 19th state into the Union. See page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996. See January 21, 2016 Indiana Bicentennial Commission on Facebookpost with video on the 20 star bicentennial flag.

1811, December 16 - New Madrid earthquake magnitude 7.5 and January 23, 1812 New Madrid earthquake magnitude 7.3 from a map and discussion posted January 23, 2017 by U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) on Facebook. Summary of 1811-1812 New Madrid Earthquakes Sequence at USGS.gov and damage map were posted December 16, 2017 and a December 11, 2022 post with map referenced The New Madrid Seismic Zone at USGS.gov posted by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

1812

1812 a woodcut drawing of a wooden bridge across the Maumee River below the confluence of the St. Mary's and St. Joseph rivers in the present Lakeside area then known as "the old apple orchard." Published in 1909 as Bloomingdale Bridge posted July 6, 2017 onthe original Great Memories and History of Fort Wayne, Indiana page on Facebook.

1812, March 1 -a letter from William Wells to Sec. of War Eustis. Fort Wayne The 1 March 1812 Sir, In my letter of the 10th ultimo, I inform you that the Indian chief Tecumseh had arrived on the Wabash. I have no to state to you that - - that he has determined to raise all the Indians he can immediately with an intention no doubt to attack our frontiers. He has sent runners to raise the Indians on the Illinois and the upper part of the Mississippi and I am to take his guns himself to Murry and the aid he was promised by the Cherokees and the Creeks. The Prophet’s orator who is considered the third man in this hostile band passed within 12 mile of this place on the 23 ulto with 8 shawnese 8 winnebagoes and 7 kickapoos in all 24 on their way as they say to ---- ----- where they expected to receive a quantity of powder and lead from their Father the British ! It is believed that they have been told by the messengers from Malden that passed this place in January that ammunition would be sent to that place for them—it is evident that these fellows are determined to make a Bold Stand. But I cannot believe that any number of Indians will be such –as to join then unless we are at war with the British. They will keep up…. People in a clear state of illusion as long as the Prophet is sufficed to live. I do not believe none that the Indians will hurt him and the government had better send 150 to 200 mounted Riflemen and put an end to him. These men should be raised as secretly as possible and they should Dash at him instantly. Should upon an act be adopted at this theme by the government I would be glad to have charge of its Execution. I have the Honor to be seen Respectfully your most obt servant, William Wells  Copied from a March 21, 2019 post on the Society of the War of 1812 in the State of Indiana on Facebook by Richard Allen Ferguson who received a photocopy of the letter. The first two paragraphs are an [Extract] on page 806 of American State Papers: Documents, Legislative and Executive, of the Congress of the United States and page 27 of Messages and letters of William Henry Harrison 1922 publication both on Internet Archive.

1812, March 31 - Congressional commitee recomends admission when the population of Indiana Territory is 35,000. See page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996.

1812, April 30 - Louisiana became the 18th nation's state.

1812: During the War of 1812, the loss of Fort Dearborn in a fierce battle and the fall of Fort Detroit to the British leave Fort Wayne vulnerable to attack by the British and their Native American allies. Fort Wayne is besieged by Indian forces until rescued by the American army under Brig. General William Henry Harrison.

1812, May 10 - the United States calls out militia forces to prepare for war against Canada. War will be declared on June 18. Copied from a May 10, 2019 post by Forces of Lord Selkirk on Facebook.

1812, June 18 - President James Madison signed a declaration of war against Britain. Indiana Territorial Governor William Henry Harrison left office to help lead soldiers in the 32-month conflict between the U.S. and Great Britain and its Indian allies. Read IHB: Indiana Territorial Governor WIlliam Henry Harrison (1773 - 1841) on IN.gov. Two years later, British troops set the Capitol building and White House ablaze. See a photo of a charred piece of timber from the White House on National Museum of American History on Facebook. See The War of 1812 on Today in History - June 18 at The Library of Congress. Samuel Lewis's 1812 map "A correct map of the seat of war." on Accessible Archives on Facebook.

1812, July 14 - Chief Little Turtle, a leader of the Miami people, died near present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana.

July 14, 2015 post by Indiana Bicentennial Commission on Facebook:

ON THIS DAY // On July 14, 1812, Little Turtle died near present-day Fort Wayne, Indiana. One of the greatest military leaders in Native American history, Little Turtle was a member of the Miami tribe of Indians.

He lived in a Miami village known as Kekionga located on the banks of the St. Joseph River. Little Turtle's first burst of fame came in 1780, when the French attacked the Miami and other tribes living near the Maumee River. When Little Turtle heard of the invasion, he rallied an army of Miami warriors to pursue the French. Although the Indians were greatly outnumbered, they defeated the French by surrounding their camp and attacking after nightfall.

In 1989, in response to years of considerable violence between the American settlers and Native Americans, President George Washington ordered a general in the Indiana Territory - General Josiah Harmar - to raise a force of men to destroy the Miami village of Kekionga. Harmar's force of 1,453 men reached the village of Kekionga on October 17, 1790.

What resulted was series of battles that were all overwhelming victories for the Native Americans. Little Turtle and his warriors defeated Harmar's forces multiple times in separate battles and skirmishes. It was the worst defeat of U.S. forces by Indians up to that time, and was later surpassed by St. Clair's Defeat and the Battle of the Little Bighorn.

Little Turtle's triumph was short-lived, though. A Revolutionary War hero named "Mad" Anthony Wayne analyzed Little Turtle's warfare strategies and then organized a huge force of 5,000 men. What resulted was the famous Battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794. Wayne and his soldiers forced Little Turtle and his warriors to flee.

After the battle, Little Turtle struck a friendly agreement with the Americans. For the rest of his life, Little Turtle lived at his lodge in northeastern Indiana. He continued to be a respected leader who urged improvements in the quality of life and morals of Native Americans. #IndianaHistory

July 14, 2023 post by Miami Nation of Indians of Indiana on Facebook:

On this day in 1812, the great Miami Chief Little Turtle began his walk to the Creator. He was one of our greatest Chiefs and arguably one of the greatest Native American military leaders. Among his greatest military victories was The Battle of the Wabash (also know as St. Clair's Defeat or the Battle of a Thousand Slain) at present day Fort Recovery Ohio where the United States Army suffered it's worst defeat at the hands of a Native American Army. He also lead a prosperous village and trading post near present day Columbia City Indiana.

1812 September 5 – September 12 - Siege of Fort Wayne on Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. War of 1812's Siege of Fort Wayne comes to life in re-enactments this weekend at Old Fort This is the 200th anniversary of the battle that helped shape the city's future was by Kevin Kilbane published September 3, 2012 in The News-Sentinel newspaper. See September 5, 2015 post by Johnston Farm & Indian Agency on Facebook.

1812, September - the great Squirrel Stampede! See 1819 Squirrels and Hamilton County goes nuts for squirrels by Amy Lynch on Sep. 19, 2022 on VisitIndiana.com.

1812, December 28 - William Henry Harrison resigns as Governor of the Indiana Territory in order to join in the War of 1812. Read more INDIANA TERRITORIAL GOVERNOR WILLIAM HENRY HARRISON (1773 - 1841) on IN.gov. See December 28, 2018 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

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1813

1813, March 3 - Thomas Posey becomes second governor of Indiana Territory. Harrison resigned to pursue a military commission.

1813, March 11 - State Capital Act of 1813 moves the seat of government from Vincennes to Corydon when Indiana only had 10 counties.

1813, May 1 - the capital of the Indiana Territory was moved from Vincennes, Indiana to Corydon, sitting just north of the Ohio River, remaining the state's capital until 1825 when Indianapolis took over that role. See photo posted May 1, 2017 on Indiana Bicentennial Commission on Facebook on Facebook.

May 1, 2023 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

#OTD in 1813, the capital of the Indiana Territory moved from Vincennes to Corydon, a more central location. Corydon was the first capital of Indiana when it became a state in 1816 and served as the capital city until 1825, when it was transferred to Indianapolis. Learn more at: https://www.in.gov/history/files/interritory.pdf

The image below is courtesy of the Indiana State Museum and Historic Sites.

1813, September 7 - 1813 United States nicknamed Uncle Sam on This Day in History on History.com.

1813, October 5 - during the War of 1812, Shawnee Indian chief Tecumseh is killed near Canada's Thames River.

1814

1814 burning of the U.S. capital, by the British during the War of 1812, pushed Congress to publish the most important records of our government resulting in millions of volumes in reports, journals, digest, codes, and miscellaneous documents of many Americans in libraries across the country in the Federal Depository Library Directory (FDLD).

1814 - Colonel John Allen, a Kentuckian who fought in defense of Fort Wayne and the Maumee River area after the siege, is killed during the battle of the River Raisin near today's Monroe, Michigan. Allen County would later be named in his memory.  From Millennium milestones in Fort Wayne from the archives of The News-Sentinel newspaper. 

1814, August 24 - the British marched into Washington, D. C. and set fire to the Capitol building and White House during the War of 1812.

August 24, 2023 post by Heritage Documentation Programs, NPS on Facebook:

Yeah, you're looking at scorch marks!

#OnThisDay, August 24, 1814, British soldiers marched on Washington, DC destroying the U.S. Capitol, The White House and and many other public buildings.

PHOTO CAPTION

Scars from the 1814 #fire appeared 176 years later, in 1990, when multiple layers of white paint were removed from the White House walls during #restoration. (The White House Historical Association / Erik Kvalsik, photographer)

LEARN MORE

See the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) measured drawings and photographs of the White House, when it was documented in the 1990s in preparation for the structure's 200 year anniversary, in the HABS/HAER/HALS Collection in The Library of Congress at https://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/dc0402/

See the 2014 CBS Sunday Morning story "The 1814 burning of Washington, D.C." video on https://www.cbsnews.com/.../the-1814-burning-of...

Visit The White House and President's Park, a unit of the National Park Service, at https://www.nps.gov/whho/index.htm

#nationalparks #onthisdayinhistory #OTD #Warof1812 #historicarchitecture #photography #architecturaldrawing #USPresidents #TheWhiteHouse #americanhistory #FireDamage #washingtondc

1814, August 29

August 29, 2020 post by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

On August 29, 1814, the Indiana Territorial Legislature adopted a resolution requiring a census of the "free inhabitants" of the territory, which excluded Native Americans and enslaved African Americans. In 1812, the U.S. Congress recommended that the territory's population be at least 35,000 as a qualification for statehood. The census, completed in 1815, enumerated the population of Indiana at 63,897, leading to Indiana’s statehood in 1816. [This census precipitated Indiana’s transition from territory to statehood, which was completed December 11, 1816, under the Enabling Act.]

Learn about the search for a new state capital after statehood here in the March 1996 The Indiana Historian magazine.

The image below, showing a page of the census, is courtesy of The Lilly Library at Indiana University.

 

Learn more about Indiana's road to Indiana Statehood on IN.gov.

1814, September 13 - during the War of 1812 while bombs and rockets were being fired upon Baltimore's Fort McHenry for 25 hours, it inspired Francis Scott Key to write the Star-Spangled Banner our National Anthem. Read The Lyrics, You asked, we answered: Why is there a question mark at the end of the National Anthem? and Francis Scott Key on the Smithsonian National Museum of American History blog.

1814, September 14

September 14, 2022 post by Smithsonian Libraries and Archives on Facebook:

On this day in 1814, Francis Scott Key wrote our national anthem by the rockets' red glare.

In 1914, the same Star-Spangled Banner was repaired under a squid's steely stare.

Using a temporary workspace in the Smithsonian Castle, Amelia Fowler and a team of seamstresses secured the tattered flag to a backing of unbleached linen. Other exhibition materials had been removed from the room, but a giant squid hanging from the ceiling remained.

More from Smithsonian Institution Archives: Repair Work on Star-Spangled Banner

Learn more at Today in History - September 13 The Star-Spangled Banner at The Library of Congress.

1814, December 24 - The War of 1812 ends with the signing of the Treaty of Ghent.

1815

1815, December 11 - Territorial Assembly again petitions Congress to admit Indiana into the Union. See page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996

1815, April - In April 1815, a volcano known as Mount Tambora erupted in a massive explosion on the island of Sumbawa in present-day Indonesia. The eruption was the largest volcanic eruption in recorded history. It obliterated the top of the mountain and produced tsunamis, pyroclastic flows, and ash killing at least 10,000 islanders. The explosion propelled ash, pumice, and sulfur dioxide into the atmosphere and impacted global temperatures. As a result, the year 1816 was known as the Year Without a Summer. Copied from The 1815 Eruption of Mount Tambora and the Year Without a Summer posted July 1, 2022 by Jenny Ashcraft on Newspapers.com

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1816

Indiana in 1816; an address by Potterf, Rex M, Publication date 1952, on Archive.org
An address by Rex M. Potterf delivered before the Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical Society (December 12, 1928), at the Swinney Homestead, Fort Wayne, Indiana, on the anniversary of Indiana's admission to the Union one hundred and twelve years ago.

1816 - is still known to scientists and historians as eighteen hundred and froze to death or the year without a summer. From his Monticello home in Virginia, Thomas Jefferson recorded the severe weather of 1816 in his weather diary. There is an image of the diary shown on A weak solar maximum, a major volcanic eruption, and possibly even the wobbling of the Sun conspired to make the summer of 1816 one of the most miserable ever recorded. New Hampshire diarist Adino Brackett in his final entry for the infamous cold year of 1816 — aka “the year there was no summer”: "This past summer and fall have been so cold and miserable that I have from despair kept no account of the weather. It could have been nothing but a repeatation [sic] of frost and drought." From The Weather Doctor Weather Almanac for June 2009 WEATHER DIARIES AND JOURNALS. See also Wikipedia Year Without A Summer and Weather of 1816 -- a year to remember March 8, 2011 by Don Cosby Washington Times-Herald.

1816, April 19 - President James Madison signs the Enabling Act allowing for the Indiana Constitutional Convention to form a government and join the Union.

April 19, 2016 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

ON THIS DAY // On April 19, 1816, President James Madison signed into law the Enabling Act, which served as official approval from Congress for Indiana to formally begin the process of becoming a state.

The Act authorized inhabitants of the territory "to form for themselves a constitution and state government, and to assume such name as they shall deem proper" and that "said state, when formed, shall be admitted into the union upon the same footing with the original states, in all respects whatever."

See THE ENABLING ACT, 1816 on IN.gov

Indiana Statehood on page 6 of the March 1996 The Indiana Historian A Magazine Exploring Indiana History at IN.gov.

April 19, 2023 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

#OTD in 1816, President James Madison signed into law the Enabling Act, which served as official approval from Congress for the Indiana Territory to formally begin the process of becoming a state. The act authorized inhabitants of the territory "to form for themselves a constitution and state government, and to assume such name as they shall deem proper" and that "said state, when formed, shall be admitted into the union upon the same footing with the original states, in all respects whatever."

Read the text of the act as it was printed in 1816 in the Western Sun on Hoosier State Chronicles: https://bit.ly/3YvvUpd.

The image below is courtesy of Hoosier State Chronicles.

1816, April 29 Indiana becomes the 19th state. All of northern Indiana is included in Knox County, with Vincennes as the county seat. Talk immediately begins about building the Wabash-Erie Canal through Fort Wayne. The state constitution forbids slavery, but slavery continues until the Civil War.

1816, June 10 - the first state constitutional convention assembled at Corydon.

June 10, 2022 post by the Indiana Historical Society on Facebook.

On this day in 1816 the first state constitutional convention assembled at Corydon. Forty-three delegates, representing the thirteen counties then in existence, gathered to write the state’s governing document borrowing some concepts from those established in other states. Indiana became a state on December 11, 1816. The collections at IHS have one of the two handwritten copies of the state's first constitution.

June 10, 2023 post by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

#OTD in 1816, delegates chosen to form Indiana's first state constitution assembled at Corydon. The delegates elected Jonathan Jennings as president and William Hendricks as secretary of the convention. By a vote of 33 to 8, the delegates asserted that it was expedient to form a constitution. In describing the quality of the assembly, Knox County delegate John Badollet wrote, “It is unfortunate that, when called upon to form a constitution a territory is in the most unpropitious circumstances to success for the want of men of intellect and political knowledge . . . . This was woefully verified in our case, for though our convention contained several thinking men, the majority was composed of empty bablers, democratic to madness, having incessantly the people in their mouths and their dear selves in their eyes.” Learn more with the convention journals: Journal of the convention of the Indiana territory, 1816

The image below is of the first Indiana state constitution, courtesy of the Indiana Archives and Records Administration.

1. Constitution of 1816 and Full text of the 1816 Constitution at IN.gov.
2. There were 43 delegates from 15 counties. Read more about Indiana Statehood and The Setting for the Convention on IN.gov/history.
3. Members of Indiana's 1816 Constitutional Convention and photo of old Indiana Capitol Building on Indiana Albums on Facebook.
4. Digital image of Indiana State Constitution, 1816 at IndianaHistory.com.
5. Indiana Constitution, 1816 About this collection The Indiana Constitution of 1816 was written in Corydon at the Constitutional Convention. This marked the end of the Indiana Territory and the beginning of the statehood of Indiana. This copy of the Indiana Constitution of 1816 is one of two copies written. At We Do History online digital collection by the Indiana Historical Society.

1816, June 29 - delegates at the constitutional convention in Corydon adopted the first Indiana State Constitution. See photo posted June 29, 2018 by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

1816, August 5 - elections held under new constitution; Jonathan Jennings became first state governor in first state and county elections. See page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996 or Jonathan Jennings: Honoring the Autonomy and Democratic Values of Pioneer Hoosiers by S. Chandler Lighty posted on July 26, 2017 on Indiana History Blog by the Indiana Historical Bureau.

1816, November 4 - the first Indiana General Assembly convened in Corydon, Indiana. Read The Indiana General Assembly, A History: Part One (1815-1825) on IGAhistory.org blog.

1816, December 11 - President James Madison signed an act of Congress admitting Indiana to the Union as the 19th state of the United States. Indiana was the second state, after Ohio, to be created out of what was the Northwest Territory. Learn more about the road to Indiana’s statehood. A December 11, 2022 post included an image showing the 1816 Resolution of Admission, signed December 11, courtesy of National Archives and Records Administration, accessed via Indiana Memory while a December 11, 2018 post includes an imagine of an early map by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

Statehood Day 2018 posted December 17, 2018 by the Indiana Archives and Records Administration on YouTube
Every year on the anniversary of Indiana’s statehood (December 11), the Indiana State Archives participates in a big celebration at the State Capitol, which culminates in the installation of Indiana’s 1816 and 1851 Constitutions in the rotunda for the duration of the legislative session. This video chronicles the journey of both Constitutions from the Archives to the State Capitol.

1. Indiana Statehood 16-page article in The Indiana Historian magazine September 1999 issue by the Indiana Historical Bureau.
2. See Search for a new capital on page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996. Corydon in Harrison County was the state capital since 1813 seat of government. Mountain lions still roamed the state, elk grazed the prairies and bison still roamed the western edges of Indiana. The state population was 65,000, about equal modern Terre Haute with the capital in Corydon moved from Vincennes in 1813 from Celebrating Indiana's rich history by Lee Hamilton and Becky Skillman published September 13, 2015 on the BrazilTimes.com.
3. Indiana at 200 (20): Indiana Becomes 16th State by Andrea Neal published March 10, 2014
4. Indiana at 200 (22): Slavery Existed in ‘Free’ Indiana by Andrea Neal published April 7, 2014.
5. Among framers of 1816 constitution who met under the Constitution Elm was John Boone of Harrison County, Daniel Boone’s brother from Indiana at 200 (19): Framers Met Under an Elmby Andrea Neal published February 24, 2014.
6. In late 1816, just as Indiana became a state, when Thomas and Nancy Lincoln moved with their son and daughter from Kentucky to Spencer County, which was still a forested wilderness from Indiana at 200 (18): Years Here Shaped Abe Lincoln by Andrea Neal published February 10, 2014 all on Indiana Policy.org.
7. Indiana had black laws with prohibitions against blacks testifying in court against whites, marrying whites, voting, serving in the militia and even migrating into the state, read more in How Hoosier roots helped shape Lincoln published November 26, 2016 in The Journal Gazette newspaper.
8. The Indiana General Assembly (1815-1825): Statehood, Slavery, and Constitution-Drafting by Justin Clark posted on August 23, 2017 on Indiana Historical Bureau.

1816, December 13

December 13, 2020 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook:

On December 13, 1816, the year Indiana became a state, the Indiana General Assembly approved an Act providing for a "Public Seal and Press." The State of Indiana did not officially adopt the seal until 1963. The emblem depicted a fleeing buffalo and a woodsman chopping down a tree. Debate regarding the placement of the sun—namely its rising or setting—has endured since the early 19th century.

Learn more about the seal's history here: Indiana's State Seal—An Overview

Also Indiana State Seal, Indiana Code: IC 1-2-4-1

A similar December 13, 2022 post by the Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

October 25, 2023 post by WANE 15  on Facebook:

The design of Indiana’s state seal was given legal sanction by the Indiana General Assembly in 1963, per sitting Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb’s Office.

A stamp of approval: How Indiana got its state seal

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1817

Journal of Thomas Dean : a voyage to Indiana in 1817 (1955) - Dean, Thomas, 1783-1843?
Reprinted from Journal of Thomas Dean, published by John Candee Dean, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1918 Archive.org.

1817, May 5 - the Indiana Supreme Court held its first session in Corydon, Indiana. The three judges were appointed by Governor Jennings to serve seven-year terms. See photos and more on May 5, 2016 Facebook post by Indiana Bicentennial Commission on Facebook.

1818

1818, January 28 - the Indiana General Assembly passed an "Act to license and regulate taverns," requiring anyone operating a tavern to obtain a license from the county commissioners and pay a $500 bond. They were also required to submit twelve certificates from “respectable house-holders” which attested to their “good moral character.” Posted January 28, 2018 by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook.

1818, April 4 - Congress decided the U.S. flag would consist of 13 red and white stripes and 20 stars, with a new star to be added for every new state.

1818, May 10 - Paul Revere, American patriot and midnight rider dies in Boston.

1818, October 2-6 - United States Treaty Commissioners Jonathan Jennings, Lewis Cass, and Benjamin Parke met in St. Mary's Ohio with leaders of Delaware and Miami tribes located in Indiana. Treaties brought the middle third of the state called the New Purchase under United States ownership. Most settlements at statehood were located in the southern part of the state. See page 6 of The Indiana Historian March 1996.

1818, October 5 - Nancy Hanks Lincoln, mother of 9 year old future president Abraham Lincoln, died of milk sickness. Milk sickness was a common illness caused from consuming milk and meat from cows feeding on white snakeroot, Ageratina altissima, a shade loving plant found throughout Indiana with white flowers that bloom in late summer and early fall.

1. The Lincoln Collection at the Allen County Public Libraryon Facebook posted about milk sickness at least twice.

   October 7, 2014 post by the Lincoln Collection on Facebook:

   On October 5, 1818, Abraham Lincoln’s beloved mother Nancy Hanks Lincoln died of milk sickness. She was buried near the family’s home in southern Indiana, in what would later be called Pioneer Cemetery, but her grave was left largely unattended until efforts to commemorate her son renewed attention toward Nancy and her family. In 1880, a gravestone was erected over Nancy’s burial site, paid for by Clem Studebaker. In 1900, a new, larger monument was commissioned, using stones from the Abraham Lincoln Memorial in Springfield. That memorial was dedicated on October 1, 1902, by Governor Winfield Durbin, in what is now Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial. The initial artist’s sketch by Thompson Stickle and the finished monument are pictured here. Read more in the Lincoln Financial Foundation Collection’s information file about Nancy Hanks Lincoln memorials here: http://lincolncollection.org/search/results/item/...

   October 6, 2020post by the Lincoln Collection on Facebook:

   Abraham Lincoln’s mother Nancy Hanks Lincoln died on October 5, 1818 due to milk sickness—an ailment caused by consuming milk from a cow that has ate white snakeroot, a poisonous plant. Abraham was only nine years old at the time. The Lincolns didn’t grieve alone; the late summer of 1818 brought milk sickness and related deaths to communities across southern Indiana. Nancy’s grave is located in Pioneer Cemetery, on the grounds of the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial in Lincoln City, Indiana.

   Learn more:

   Abe Lincoln and Nancy Hanks by Elbart Hubbard: https://archive.org/.../abelincolnnanc00.../page/n3/mode/2up

   Grave of Nancy Hanks Lincoln: https://www.lincolncollection.org/search/results/item/...

   Nancy Hanks Lincoln by Lloyd Ostendorf: https://www.lincolncollection.org/search/results/item/...

   Nancy Hanks: The Story of Abraham Lincoln’s Mother by Caroline Hanks Hitchcock: https://archive.org/.../nancyhanksstory1.../page/n7/mode/2up

2. The curse of Milk Sickness, part 1 of 2 on February 18, 2019 and The curse of Milk Sickness, part 2 of 2 on February 19, 2019 both posted by Dave Tabler in Epidemics & Pandemics / Folk medicine at Appachian History.net.
3. An October 4, 2014 post on Indiana Native Plant Society (INPS) on Facebook discussed seeing evidence that deer also eat white snakeroot.

4. September 2, 2022lengthy post by IN Nature on Facebook.

5. Plant Chats with Val- White Snakeroot is the video at the National Park Service shown below.
6. Discoverer of the Cause of Milk Sickness William D. Snively Jr., MD; Louanna Furbee, June 20, 1966, on the JAMA Network.
7. VIII.90 - Milk Sickness (Tremetol Poisoning) from Part VIII - Major Human Diseases Past and Present published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 March 2008 by Thomas Cone Jr., Edited by Kenneth F. Kiple.
8. Toxicity of white snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) and chemical extracts of white snakeroot in goats at National Library of Medicine NIH.gov.
9. White snakeroot: a toxic plant to horses at University of Minnesota Extension.
10. White Snakeroot (Ageratina altissima) Picture of the Week November 30, 2020 by Marcelo Zimmer, Weed Science Program Specialist, Plant & Pest Diagnostic Lab, Purdue University.

11. White Snakeroot - Plant Chats With Val posted Nov 12, 2020 by Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site on YouTube
    Ageratina altissima White Snakeroot, Ageratina altissima, is a poisonous herb that can grow over 4 feet tall and is native to the eastern and central United States. “Ageratina” is derived from Greek and means “un-aging”, as the flowers stay in bloom for a very long time, well into the fall. In the 19th century, many people became sick after drinking milk. It was eventually discovered that the “milk sickness” was caused by drinking milk from cows who had eaten White Snakeroot, which contains the toxin tremetol. Dr. Anna Pierce Hobbs Bixby made the connection between white snakeroot and milk sickness, but her warnings were ignored. The dangers of White Snakeroot were already known to local Native American tribes, and Dr. Bixby reportedly gained this knowledge from them. One of the most well-known cases of death from milk sickness was that of Nancy Hanks Lincoln, the mother of 16th president, Abraham Lincoln. She was caring for nearby neighbors who were suffering from milk sickness when she became ill herself. She died when she was only 35 years old. Abraham Lincoln was 9 years old at the time. “Death in a one-room log cabin was a grim experience for the survivors. Nancy's body was prepared for burial in the very room in which the family lived. Thomas and nine-year old Abraham whipsawed logs into planks, and with wooden pegs they fastened the boards together into a coffin. After the body was properly prepared and dressed by the neighbor women, it was placed into the casket. Nancy was then taken to her final resting-place on the hill just south of the family's farm.” – Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park

12. October 5, 2023 post by Indiana Historical Bureau on Facebook

    #OTD in 1818, Abraham Lincoln's mother, Nancy, died at Little Pigeon Creek Community in present-day Spencer County of milk sickness. She contracted the illness after drinking the milk of a cow that had consumed the poisonous white snakeroot plant. After her passing, Lincoln helped his father Thomas construct Nancy's coffin, and they buried her near the family farm. According to the NPS, " Undoubtedly, she left her mark on the young boy in the countless small and intimate ways that mothers do with their children. The experience of her death also prepared her son for facing the tragedy and loss that is a part of life as well. The intangible effects of both her life and her death became a part of Abraham's life and helped shape the man he became."

    Read more about Nancy Lincoln here: https://www.in.gov/icw/files/20160331_Lincoln_Nancy.pdf

    Portrait of Nancy Lincoln courtesy of the History of American Women.

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1819

1819: Fort Wayne is abandoned as an army post, becomes part of Randolph County. The county seat is Winchester. From Millennium milestones in Fort Wayne from the archives of The News-Sentinel newspaper. 

1819 - Acquisition of Florida - 2nd of three big land grabs by the young United States, following the Louisiana Purchase (1803) and before the 1867 Purchase of Alaska. See Acquisition of Florida: Treaty of Adams-Onis (1819) and Transcontinental Treaty (1821) on U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian.

1819, 1822, 1823, and 1834 - an invasion of squirrels destroying Indiana pioneer corn crops from Along the Heritage Trail The Squirrel Invasion This tale may actually be true by Tom Castaldi, local historianpublished July 23, 2013 on Fort Wayne Monthly. "Three times during the first half of the 19th century, crops were destroyed by these bushy-tailed varmints," Allen County historian Tom Castaldi wrote in a column for Fort Wayne Monthly magazine. Tom, one of our state's most popular county historians and an expert on canals, Italian immigration and other aspects of our heritage, will join Nelson in studio as we explore the squirrel invasions. In his column, Tom noted that early Indianapolis civic leader, attorney and landowner Calvin Fletcher described the massive number of squirrels in the 1820s - and wrote about the devastation they wrought - in his diaries. Copied from Squirrel invasion of 1800s and other quirky episodes posted Jan. 4, 2014 on Archives of Hoosier History Live podcast on Saturdays, noon to 1 p.m. ET on WICR 88.7 FM. Squirrel on We Do History blog at Indiana Historical Society.City’s very earliest residents faced a unique challenge by Connie Zeigler posted November 2008 in Urban Times Archives. Squirrels know when it's time to move by the Editorial Board published March 26, 2022 in The Journal Gazette newspaper mentions the Great Squirrel Stampede of 1822 which decimated Hamilton County cornfields like a locust swarm, the last event in 1985. “There were thousands, millions in some of them,” Historian David Heighway told the IndyStar for the Hamilton County Bicentennial event. The article stated: Squirrel migrations across the upper Midwest, New England and the Carolinas were observed in 1809, 1819, 1842, 1852 and 1856, reported freelance writer Wayne Capooth for Farm Progress magazine in 2006. In southeastern Wisconsin, a gray squirrel migration in 1842 lasted four weeks, was 130 miles wide and 150 miles long, and involved nearly a half-billion squirrels. One of the earliest referenced migrations occurred in 1749 in Pennsylvania. Records show the state spending 3 cents for each squirrel killed. Capooth learned that 640,000 were turned in for bounty. Call it nutty but Hamilton County will celebrate the Great Squirrel Stampede by John Tuohy published March 23, 2022 in the Indianapolis Star. The Great Squirrel Stampede by David Heighway, Hamilton County Historian on the Hamilton East Public Library website. Indianapolis Squirrel Wars updated: Feb 25, 2019 on class900indy.com.

Squirrel Stampede English Nut Brown Ale posted July 14, 2018 by Grand Junction Brewing Co. on their Facebook page:

Have you ever heard of the great Squirrel Stampede? According to Hamilton County historians, stampedes of migratory squirrels destroyed cornfields across the State of Indiana in 1822 and 1845, with Hamilton County crops taking a big hit from their wrath. The story sounds completely nuts to us, but we felt it an appropriate beer name.

We are thrilled to announce that 4-packs of the extremely popular Squirrel Stampede English Nut Brown Ale are now available for purchase at both the brew pub and taproom locations and available now at multiple Crown Liquors and Big Red Liquors stores around town! Cheers

Local. Independent. Handcrafted.

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Oddities in Hamilton County History: The Great Squirrel Stampede posted Sep 29, 2016 by Hamilton East Public Library on YouTube.
To feed or not feed the squirrels? We discuss The Great squirrel Stampede and how it almost destroyed all of Hamilton County's food supply.

1819, November 24

Early travelers to Fort Wayne by Riley, James; Teas, Thomas Scattergood; Fort Wayne and Allen County Public Library on Archive.org.
The letter written by Captain James Riley in 1819, and the journal kept by Thomas Scattergood Teas in 1821, are reprinted here

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