The Ottawa free trader., 1851-07-12
For the Free Trader.
Starved Rock--OnCe a French Fort

. ErguIt.4tsull rf ne t.iIu'tS lGuiIuN, tfsIt I@t
o. niam
Every one who has visited this natural curiosi
ty. which is rendered the more an object OF ia
t.rrst by the evidences and remains ot :oriuer
atthcariun ON it~ summlt. and who has listened
'o the dim Indian legend Of the seigr, the starya
t.pr and the final extinction Of the remnant of
that oncc populous tribe, the Illinois, must have
i,.t dr~,jc to SNOW more o!ItS previous history
And while resting within those entertainments 90
,hc deep shade ut It's eyersrcens, through which
4 the wind whistles moEtniully As If chanting rc.
QUEEN 10 the dead around, who has not wished
. that the >ighuL breeze could more fully reveal
the scenes that have been enacted hcrrl What
excited such a spirit of hatred and drevcnEe where
all nature appears So calm and delightful How
many cycles have passed since these revolving
scenes tr1usprtdi Were these embellishments
thrown up by the red men These and addition.
nj queries are often asked by the numerous yisi.
tants of this signal spot
From limited examination of history and the
variations OF the early French discoveries Of the
west am induced to believe that the fnrtifca.
tiuns on the Rock are not the work of the Indians
but of the French, who, nearly u hundred wears
before our Revolutionary War, built fort there
/ and occupied It as such tor a number Of years
/ The first particular account of this region Is by
/ La Sale and Father Hennepin, who mention a
village of tho Illinois Indians which must have
been within the limits Of this county, aud pruba.
by not far from that spot.
/ They left Lake Michigan at the moUtl Of The
St Josephs, on the third of December 1879, and
/ travelling west fell in with the head waters Of the
Illinois, down which they sailed. The latter part or
[ the month they came TO this village of about
500 cabins where they found corn in abundance
+ Continuing on their Journey they reached Peoria
+ l1lgp ha Z, pf ltrpurN II, tlav
daring the winter and built fsrt (Crsveceur)
I IN the spring La Sale returned 70 Canada first
deSpatChng ilcun,pn down the river to explore
/ the Mississippi and leaving his lieutenant Font
/ In command, who under his direction commcn.
/ ced a fort called Fort St Louis - both of which
however in the following September, loSO, he
WAS obliged 10 desert on account of the attacks Of
the lroquuis In the autumn Of lose, La Sale,
on his return from having discovered the mouth
. of the Mississippi, completed his long projected
I fort of S'. Louis upon the high and commanding
[ bluff ofthc Illinois, now known as rock fort,
blulT two hundred and fifty feet high. and ucces-
sble only on one side. '-inHaiS ot the Ucst
Here this eutcrpri,Ing explorer resided for part
of the succeeding wear, thus hcnoring the county
which now bears hls name by having lived in it,
On leaving for the las, time, he again placed
Fonu in command, who appears to have rrIguei
here for years monarch ui all he surveyed OF ia
.a'. ,I.7lr.c,,. ,, rr.li,r,,iL,. and actin, r.
,..,.,.,v,r ,f. r,Lr,v.r and ppc,rr,.i Fro,,b
,, ~, ,,..r., L..ir,,,,. ~ u-,rJsr tbrop,,h ,bot
I.,,,;f,I ,,rrtry nal i.-, d,.,oy.r.. of Which No
b,yo no r,,orl i.fp In IfSG bis Jor,,rinps y,c,,
invaded by She IroqGois He with Baron La
Houtan and their Indian allies appear to have
warrei against them II intervals during this and
the two following years.
1ts- h., ,r,s ,,ir.J rs, T,r,.I orl h;s siv
,,.,,,..,,s ,t, .oI, .nryivcrs or Ia S,Irc,. l.s,
AMI f,t,, ,xrsljf,.n How lop,r F,nti remained
l,-, mp tba fort wa. k.nt nm ia mn. cer,,iplv
.rno, rh,rlov,ix saws tb,t H., S,Ilo's Ir,rL
I,,-...t ,l, V..l a., , l,,I .,,,o,.J ,,,,,,, ,Lo
rv,-t- - W., H.. .,...,ts ,I,t r,rr ,,I trr,r,,.
,-,l, ,s ,.,,,-;,,l H., tho. ,.c,-g .f,.r l-
i,'.,b c',,'. yIl ,y..n.l ,bs ,i,n prt,l ,bo an
.gIfqo ,.,,o.-s rr,.r, ia commencement, rp5,L
was ,,rb,rs a.. I,r, ,s ,ba f.r, vo. Ion, ,,,,.
,b,,,,b IL, vol ,.Ir,.boJ.i, l-,i i, az, ..,,
,,,.r6.ir ,c ,, Fr.,lL ,c.ts ,bar s,i.,i,,,;, a.,
-. ,,,,.,,,, l.. nod. If.r,.k E,,t or E,r, :,
/ 7 oris an ,to u,5noi-
Z En, ,ri., AMI l,, than, ,,,r, tho TIl,r,i. n.
.,,...-,..o,,..,3 A. o,r', a. rcs, ar..'.,,
,I,,,,f,a- ,no,er, tIa f,rr,lar oftLoav;ss,,r
atL IT,I, S,;r,,~ n, T,t, S,,,,r,r ,,,,. ,.;.i.,l
] L so,,c 81 ,b. TrIpri IosritlIl, rac, nrocc,,,,
,.,,oJ -, conno, b,,in', ~, iy,,,o, nm, th bS,
opI ,rrovr ,rIp told thrrn how fLpir ancient s'o.
-. o,i ,r,;r ,,,,hor. L.,l bo.n d;,,;n;.L.J H..
/ H., S;,,,,, ~, ono Ill. orJ ,ho rrn,,,;s ,r,,oJ
IL - or -" -. H., >
Va, ,',,o ,L,,, S,Ir, r.r,,r, ,l.c,,r,rj. ,,o,
L.,., Laa,, l.;, ,,,,,,,r,,,, t,r CI,,is
,o;y ofaX,cy r. ,,co "os ,ha.n,r,oj,tofr
,,o'so,.;.r, bsro ,er,e,an,s ,bo IIino;s NJ ;,'b,
bi,;r,, all o county, b.t,roe, ,bo Gn,bacbo Oyn
v;.s;ss;r,i ,oJ mn r;r.rs. ,l,o ,h,t ,,r.;,,
- H., a. ,,.J -. u.r
o,,o,.o,, ,;,,, IA ,L, i, dl;,;an :, lt. ,a,,;
.:i 49, - ~ -. H.
- W., .1 .,a,',I.,LI. LS,i',! III
.,al oni t;m,, oyon oe,,nino" o,J -,
L;-;,. ',,I ,S";. ri,e, ,ho II;na;s ho s,rs
.,., sI" =
-,oG'''o p'' %,n J s.ti, saI, 'i,.DG L,,,.n.I,
Siv T,ti,rs or Trnopois os ,bey are also called
- - ii;,,.I H., Ill, an,,,,;.,. -,
. appear W hNNc SolLI"Htu tHc ACd'''I thtl''te va