History Lessons

Our last day at Prophetstown State Park, we decided to stay close and check out a couple of the history attractions in the area.

Right in the park is Historic Prophetstown.

It was an easy ride on the bike path from the campground to the farm

From their website . . . .

The Farmstead

This real working farm contains outbuildings, crops, and livestock found on a traditional farm.

Bryce enjoyed talking to the animals . . . and chasing them!

Learn the difference between pets and livestock, the reason farmers raise livestock, and how every person is connected to agriculture.

The pigs were keeping cool in the mud!

Bryce wanted to know if they really slaughter the pigs . . . and I asked him where he thought they got the pork chops and bacon that was for sale in the freezer in the Welcome Center . . . last year it was laying in the mud!

The horses were on their lunch break while we visited

The House

Visit the Gibson Farmhouse to experience life in the 1920's. This is the last historical component of our facility. The house is set up like a traditional farmhouse, complete with furniture, baking, and a farmer's wife.

Well, it’s bigger than the convection oven in my RV, but I’m not sure it’s more versatile!

Repair Shop

The boys check out the repair shop, and its assortment of tools

The repair shop contains tools and equipment used to fix the things we break! The mechanic is also handy on the forge at blacksmithing.

 

After our visit to Historic Prophetstown, we rode our bikes back to the campground and had some lunch before driving into Battleground to visit the Tippecanoe Battlefield National Historic Site.

The 16-acre site of the battle was deeded to the State of Indiana by John Tipton, a veteran of the fight, on November 7, 1836, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the battle.  This November is the 200th anniversary of the battle.

 

. . . from wikipedia . . .

The Battle of Tippecanoe was fought on November 7, 1811, between United States forces led by Governor William Henry Harrison of the Indiana Territory and forces of Tecumseh's growing American Indian confederation led by his younger brother Tenskwatawa. In response to rising tensions with the tribes and threats of war, a United States force of militia and regulars set out to launch a preemptive strike on the headquarters of the confederacy. While camping at the confluence of the Tippecanoe and Wabash Rivers, outside Prophetstown, awaiting a meeting with tribal leaders, Harrison's army was attacked in the early morning hours by forces from the town. Although the tribal forces took the army by surprise, their assault was ultimately repulsed as the attackers' ammunition ran low.

Although the tribes attacked with fewer men and sustained fewer casualties, the United States was victorious both tactically and strategically. The immediate result of the battle allowed Harrison's army to destroy Prophetstown and scatter its inhabitants. In addition to serving as an important political and symbolic victory for the United States, the Tippecanoe defeat dealt a devastating blow to Tecumseh's confederacy, which never fully regained its former strength. The battle was the culmination of rising tensions in a period sometimes called Tecumseh's War, which continued until the collapse of tribal resistance with Tecumseh's death in 1813. Public opinion in the United States blamed the Native American uprising on British interference; it was later revealed that the British leaders in Canada had supplied Tecumseh's force with firearms and munitions. This suspicion led to further deterioration of American relations with Great Britain and served as a catalyst to the War of 1812, which began only six months later.

Well, that was our history lesson for this trip . . . actually, these were a couple of educational days for us . . . history and science (at the dairy farm).  Back at the RV, we had some dinner – including homegrown Lafayette sweet corn, compliments of one of our neighbors, and started getting cleaned up for the drive home on Friday.  We had about a 250-mile drive to get home, so we were planning on an early start.  This has been a fun 2-week camping trip, and we can’t wait until we can keep moving from one campground to another . . . rather than having to go “home” and back to work!