Nov 07, 2021 7:42 PM

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Posted Nov 07, 2021 7:42 PM
Burlington historian Russ Fry poses on Black Hawk Rock, which he hopes will be a historical monument one day. Photo by William Smith.
Burlington historian Russ Fry poses on Black Hawk Rock, which he hopes will be a historical monument one day. Photo by William Smith.

By William Smith

Almost 190 years have passed since Chief Black Hawk led his men to war, and Burlington historian Russ Fry is confident the chief held counsel at the rock west of the Mississippi River before he did.

Fry has been attempting to get the rock recognized as a historic site for years and provides most of his evidence in a new book entitled “Black Hawk Rock.” 

Black Hawk Rock may be one of the most famous Burlington landmarks that still isn’t registered as a national historic site.

Wedged in a ravine overlooking Highway 99 north of Burlington, the rock has likely been around since glaciers covered the land. But it didn’t garner fame until the Native American Sauk leader Chief Black Hawk turned the rock into a wartime meeting place. It’s not visible from the roadway and requires a steep climb halfway up the bluff to actually see.

“It is believed that Black Hawk stood upon this rock and counseled on issues of war,” Fry said. “Much of eastern Illinois, parts of Wisconsin and Missouri, and most of Iowa were once the domain of his people. He fought a war in 1832 against the settlers to preserve his homeland. His defeat led to Iowa being opened for settlement.”

Fry said he’s encountered two major obstacles in trying to obtain the historical designation. One arguing point is whether or not Black Hawk met at the rock and gathered warriors to cross into Illinois for war. Some history books say Black Hawk left from near Wapello by the mouth of the Iowa River.

“Other historians say that he left from here in Burlington,” Fry said.

That’s what Fry believes as well. He said Black Hawk’s autobiography backs up that account.

“I believe he crossed the river over Burlington toward Oquawka and went north, and the conflicts of that crossing caused the Black Hawk War,” Fry said.

The other obstacle has been the integrity of the rock. In the 1890s, the Daughters of the American Revolution wanted to move the rock to Crapo Park. But once they started digging around the rock, they discovered it was at least six foot high.

It would be hard to move today with modern equipment; back then, it was even less feasible. Some historians are worried that the rock has been tampered with too much to count as a landmark, but Fry says that isn’t the case.

“It’s obvious they didn’t move it,” Fry said.

This is the fourth book that Fry has written about Chief Black Hawk. In a previous book, Fry provides evidence as to why Chief Black Hawk is likely buried in an unmarked grave in Aspen Grove Cemetery. Previous accounts said the chief’s bones burned in a Burlington fire.

“I also discovered that they may have been given to the University of Iowa in 1853, but I don't believe they were actually sent there,” he said.

Fry said some of the best evidence of Black Hawk Rock’s importance was reported by the Hawk Eye newspaper. An old edition of the paper reads:

“A little distance above the waterworks, farther around the turn of the bluff, it terminates as suddenly and sharply as the steeply sloping sides. It is a clear-cut opening in the hillside slightly rising ’til a distance of 75 to 100 yards from the face of the bluff. Well back in this grassy retreat upon a little projection of earth that elevates above the surface lies a huge granite boulder. Everything is admirably arranged for a council chamber.”