Fort Hogan

From Black Hawk Slept Here

The site of Fort Hogan is diagonally across the intersection from this street sign. (October 2004)

This road was the south boundary of the Nottawasepe reservation. Fort Hogan was at the end of the road, just past the stop sign, on the right side of this road. (October 2004)

Settlers in southern Wisconsin and Illinois started gathering for protection and building forts when the Black Hawk war started. Even as far away as Indiana and Michigan, they gathered to build forts. But in Michigan, the scare died down before any were completed.

Fort Hogan was said to be in the extreme northwest corner of Colon Township of St. Joseph County, immediately to the south of the Nottawasepe reservation -- the land that still belonged to the Potawatomi people.

Stories vary as to just how much work was done on Fort Hogan before it was abandoned.

Items to be discussed or referenced in this article:

• Who were the storytellers and how reliable are they? What else do we know about them?
• What about this Nottawasepe reservation? Why build a fort right next to it?