CHAPTER X

Portage and Old Fort Winnebago--Cemetery Where Soldiers of Several Wars Are Buried--Waubun House

When Wisconsin was on the frontier, as a protection against the Indians, three forts were built--Fort Howard at Green Bay, Fort Crawford at Prairie du Chien, and Fort Winnebago at Portage. The central object of interest in this little journey is the early outpost at the Fox-Wisconsin portage.

Leaving Baraboo on Trunk Line 33, leading directly east of the city, where open fields now greet the eye on either side, was once a treeless tract known as Peck's Prairie. This was named for Eben Peck, an early settler whose residence was on the present highway a short distance west of the fair ground.

Roche Moutonnee

After passing a road which turns to the left and leads to the man mound, a roche moutonnee, sheep shaped surface of the quartzite, may be seen about a half-mile to the left. The surface of the outcrop was rounded during the invasion of the glacial ice into this region.

Just before reaching the Baraboo River the road swings to the left, approaching the talused slope of the rugged north range of the Baraboo Bluffs. Two species of cacti grow on the summit here, also to the west--Opuntia humifusa, the western prickly pear, and Opuntia fragilis, the brittle opuntia.

The road runs on the verge of a dry ravine, where an Indian effigy mound reposes on the opposite bank, near the Baraboo River. Other mounds were to the west and an Indian ford crossed the stream here. About 1906 an Indian skeleton was unearthed on the bank of the gully, nearly opposite the farmstead.

Garrisonville

In the region about the ravine, Mrs. Ann Garrison, in pioneer times, laid out a paper city, much to the regret of lot purchasers in Philadelphia and elsewhere. The sawmill, the pottery, the hotel, and the "salted" gold mine are but memories now.

The gap where the river escapes from the valley into the lowland to the north, has a geological history similar to that of Devil's Lake. No talus covers the slopes, however, the loose stones having been swept away when the ice sheet flowed slowly through in glacial times.

An Ancient Lava Bed

At seven localities about the outer margin of the quartzite region, igneous rocks have been found--at Alloa, near the Devil's Nose, at Baxter's Hollow, three near Denzer and the Lower Narrows.

By far the largest area, fully described by Professor Samuel Weidman in "The Baraboo Iron-Bearing District," is found at the Lower Narrows, distributed over the width of more than half a mile along the north slope, to the east and west of the gap. At the bridge the road to the left leads to a point less than a mile distant, here the igneous rock or rhyolite comes boldly within a few feet of the highway. By climbing upon the ledge one stands on a surface older than the Baraboo Hills, older than any deposit in the whole region. As lava the rhyolite flowed, then cooled and during the upheaval of the north range was forced upon its edge, remaining so to this day. Upon this cooled lava the whole later geologic formation of the region rests--to be upon it is to be upon the floor of the world.

Road Hugs the Bluff

Eastward from the bridge over the Baraboo River, the highway hugs the bluff. A few Indian mounds may be seen less than half a mile to the north after passing the first farm house. To the east of these mounds the skeletons of about sixty Indians were uncovered when one was leveled a number of years ago. The Indian corpses had been seated in a circle and buried in one heap of earth. Evidently there had been a battle or pestilence amongst them.

Reduced facsimile of oil painting by Ira A. Ridgeway of Portage in 1896, based on contemporary plans and recollections of early settlers. The view is from the southwest. The building to the right of the gate is the guardhouse; to the left, the armory. On the opposite side of the square, to the left, were the officers' quarters. The peakedroof building at the left corner was a blockhouse, and a similar structure was in the corner diagonally opposite. The magazine appears in the corner adjacent to the guardhouse, and at its side to the right were soldiers' quarters. The chapel was in the corner diagonally opposite the magazine, but is not visible; as is the case with some of the other smaller buildings. The log building near the end of the bridge over the Fox river, to the right, was Henry Merrell's sutler's store. The low structure a little to the east was the ice cellar. A little further along was the surgeon's headquarters and to the right the hospital. In the distance, looking between the hospital and surgeon's quarters, may be seen the old stone bakery; the blacksmith shop and the carpenter shop were close by, but do not appear in the picture. At the left of the bridge is a commissary building; just to its rear was Jones's store, a portion is discernible. Beyond the fort to the left (out of the above picture) was a log theatre. Still further to the left, was the Indian Agency building. An enormous well was in the exact center of the stockade. It is in use at the present time.

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To the right of the highway are many hidden beauty spots all along the way to the Baraboo River, especially where the streams come down from the high land above. The most attractive of these is Fox's Glen, to the right and just east of the rural school building facing the river.

The high ground on the right, just before crossing the bridge over the Wisconsin River, is the site of an Indian village. The pioneers crossed the river here on a ferry, the first bridge being built in 1857. It was destroyed by a cyclone in 1903, and the present structure was then erected.

Home of an Author

After entering West Cook Street, the main thoroughfare of Portage, and reaching the third street to the right, the car should be swung one block south to pass the home of Miss Zona Gale. The residence, 506 West Canal Street, is southern colonial in architecture, and stands on the bank of the winding Wisconsin, the rear lawn sloping back to the waterway.

Scene of a Dark Deed

One block to the left and one block to the north, brings the visitor to the intersection of West Cook and Mac Streets; here Pierre Pauquette, the Indian trader, interpreter, and portager was killed by an aborigine. The deed was committed, it is said, a little southwest of the intersection of the streets.

Pauquette was one of the most picturesque figures in the early days of Wisconsin, indissolubly identified with those who cast their lot at the portage.

Monument to Discoverers

Crossing the canal bridge near the Wisconsin River and continuing south several blocks, a granite monument marks the place where Jacques Marquette and Louis Joliet, the first white men to visit this region, crossed the portage on June 14, 1673, and floated down the Wisconsin.

Many noted persons crossed the portage in early times. Duluth and Hennepin were here in 1680 and Nicolas Perrot, the Baron Lahontan, and Charles Pierre Le Sueur were three famous travelers in the late seventeenth century. An expedition to build a French fort on the upper Mississippi, passed here in 1727; Johnathan Carver tells of his visit in 1766; and here was the rendezvous for Indian forces during the American Revolution. An expedition against St. Louis gathered here in 1780. Then came the much passing of troops between Fort Howard at Green Bay and Fort Crawford at Prairie du Chien. Here in 1827 occurred the dramatic surrender of Red Bird, bringing to a close the Winnebago War.

In 1793 Laurent Barth came to transport baggage with oxen, in 1801-2 Augustin Grignon wintered at the portage as a fur trader, and in 1810 the overland division of the Astorian expedition to the Pacific coast went westward over this historic route.

During the war of 1812 Robert Dixon, British Indian agent, collected his savage allies at this point; and the expedition which drove the Americans from Prairie du Chien, passed thither in 1814. By this route the British forces, following the treaty of Ghent, retreated in 1815.

An Early Hostelry

Carpenter's place was on the corner to the south of the monument. In a building near the pioneer hotel, Abe Wood killed Pawnee Blanc, buried in a mound near the Portage-end of the Wisconsin River bridge.

Continuing on Bronson Avenue to the east and after crossing the railroad tracks, the location of the Franklin House may be seen several rods to the right. A large elm tree with a small house back of it marks the location of the pioneer Portage hotel where dignitaries of the early days were entertained.

The Riverbend Place, the home of Mr. and Mrs. A. J. Stace, is the last house before crossing the Fox River. To the rear of this house is where Henry Merrill, the sutler of Fort Winnebago, resided.

Fort Winnebago

After crossing the stream, the location of the commissary building of the fort will be observed a few rods to the left. Goods from boats plying the Fox were unloaded into the building; a fragment of the wall still remains, hidden in the weeds and grass.

The frame house to the right, somewhat modified, was the fort hospital.

The well at the farmstead at the left was in the center of Fort Winnebago when completed in 1830. The portage was made a military post in 1828, Major David E. Twiggs erecting the fortification. During the Black Hawk War the outpost was useful in checking the hostile tribesmen, it remained a garrison until 1845, and was sold in 1853, the nineteen and fifteen-hundredths acres bringing $23.94. The old deed is in the Portage Library.

Colonel Zachary Taylor, afterward president of the United States, visited the fort with Captain Hugh Brady, Indian fighter, in 1836, and Lieutenant Jefferson Davis, later president of the confederacy, came with the military force to construct and garrison the place. Judge D. Doty, afterward territorial governor, often was there, while General Lewis Cass, and Captain Frederick Marryat, celebrated English novelist, were among the many noted visitors. Miss Marcy, later the wife of General George B. McClellan, was a child here, the daughter of a lieutenant.

The Old Cemetery

Continuing on the central of the three roads about a quarter of a mile, the Fort Winnebago cemetery will be found in a grove to the right. Near the west fence is the grave of Cooper Pixley, a soldier of the Revolution, who died in 1855, aged 86.

A little to the east is the grave of William Sylvester, a soldier of the War of 1812, and the first mayor of Portage. He was born October 28, 1792, and died November 20, 1875. His two wives sleep beside him.

Near the center of the cemetery is the grave of Henry Carpenter, a soldier in the Black Hawk War, and hard by are the graves of Civil War veterans, while the body of Archie White Eagle, a Winnebago Indian veteran of the World War, also sleeps in the enclosure.

Those who died in the fort are buried along the south fence. The boards marking their graves burned years ago and their locations are now lost.

Some of the graves in the cemetery are those who came to the lead region in early times and later to the portage.

Returning toward Portage, cross the canal at the eastern extremity of the city, turn sharply to the right and follow the road on the bank of the artificial waterway to the Agency or Waubun House, now owned by Attorney E. S. Baker. John H. Kinzie came with his bride to the portage in 1830 and this house was soon after erected for them. Mrs. Kinzie brought her piano up the Fox River in a boat, mention of which is made in her delightful Wau-Bun.

Near the Agency House Four Legs, chief of the Winnebago, was buried.

The lock where the canal joins the Fox is a short distance to the east of the historic house, and the blacksmith shop was in the field forty rods or more to the west.

Burial Place of Pauquette

Returning along the canal, crossing the railroad, and traversing East Cook street near the center of the city, a turn is made to the right at the Baptist Church. Between the church and the parsonage to the rear stood the first French Mission between Depere and Prairie du Chien, erected with logs by Pierre Pauquette in 1833-34. He was killed by an Indian in 1836 and beneath the rude place of worship was buried. According to a tablet on the parsonage, the remains of Pauquette were exhumed in 1904. They now repose in the Catholic cemetery.