There is a road to everywhere, all we need to do is find the road.
As we stand in modern day western Illinois, there are times when we have to accept we made it to this place using some path. There are so many people who have, before heard of, if not seen part of, the Oregon Trail. Most of the people who I have grown up with have heard of this because of the computer game that made the trail a big deal. But the thing is, that there were so many other trails that were here, either before or after, the formation of the Oregon Trail. But the thing is, what we need remember is that these trails took us far beyond the civilizations that we were living in.
As we talk about the life of those who were living on the frontier, we mostly think that there is a need to find a way to understand the situation that connected these people to the path of those who were moving across the countryside. I can tell you there were a great many settlers who wanted to cross the dangerous path that crossed what is now 6 states. But the thing is, there are many people who have no desire to cross those states these days. As we look out at all those Midwestern states, we can see that there are plains and a lot of very flat land, but still those moments were full of danger. There were things that just made the path dangerous, but that is the thing, we need to understand, that these men, women, and children were not crossing the 6 states in cars that could speed them across this path in a single day.
As the drive was sure to tell, there are times when you have to admit that it would have been interesting to see what this trail would have looked like at the time when it was here. While it is no Oregon Trail, it was an important route for the Native Americans to travel, when they were headed east or west across the state, before there were many or even any white settlers in the area. The Great Sauk Trail was an actual physical path, that even the early settlers of Illinois used, and as these individuals moved along the path, some of them decided to stay.
The trail today is hard to see these days, in most of the state, because the settlers who came in decided that they would settle along this road, that they would build towns along the route, and they would eventually disappear in most of those communities, becoming nothing more than someone’s backyard.
But then there are places where this route, where it is visible. But we know that it came to this point in Henry County, that we can see that there were people who would have possibly just a little further down the line, or maybe even at this point, where the trail actually splits and there is a northern route, and a southern route. This split took people to different areas. Some, who traveled the northern route, they were headed to the Rock Island and Moline, Illinois area. Many of them would settle there in those communities, but the southern route went through, and would have paralleled Illinois Route 81.
In the picture above you can read that the trail would have come through this point, and possibly on to the west, or maybe it dropped south and into what would be the northern part of Kewanee, Illinois. While we are not 100% sure where the path was, there are still signs that people settled right along this path.
There, off in the west you can see that there are a great many things that have changed. But this area is where the road would have been, or in the early days, the path that one would have followed. Now, we know that the Indigenous tribes would have traveled this path, especially during hunting times, so that they were able to quickly find where it was they were going. And it is a good chance that the Native Americans were the ones who showed white settlers this path, and they saw how nice it was to make this trek.
There are so many places that have developed along this path, and so many things were able to flourish because people were easily able to traverse the road and get goods and such to the people on the other end. But over time this path would be abandoned. It would have been replaced by the road system that was put in. Highways would have taken over and they would in the end connect people from one town to another, and eventually the Great Sauk Trail would have eventually fade into the backdrop.
However, as I grew up, there was little attention paid to this historical route. I paid little attention to the history of my own region, not knowing that there was something as historical as this.
I grew up studying history, and I can tell you, there were few times when the history books left out, or even better yet, never even mentioned that there were people here before we settled the lands. In fact many history books here in the United States fail to mention the Native Americans, with notable exceptions being for Pocahontas and the Trail of Tears. There are so many gaps in history as to what these people were like. And the fact that we do not know that history, things like The Great Sauk Trail never even get mentioned. It seems the only time Native Americans get any mention in American History, is all because they have something bad to do with the events that were happening.
But, I digress, there is something about this route that allows people to get back and forth to different places easily. It is a chance for people to not have to cut their own path, but for me, as a kind in this world, I never heard thing one about the trail. And while there were times growing up where I did not know the history of the area, there were probably a lot of times that I would not have really felt connected to the stories that I wanted to hear. While the Native Americans and their history has always fascinated me, I can tell you, I would love nothing more than to have heard that there was something local that was part of that historic move of getting people to the area.
As we ventured a little further north, there is a small state park. It is filled with a lot of trails that people can hike and some wonderful nature, but if you go to the park, you will find the round barn, that you see above. It is this round barn that tells us that there were those who would settle right along the Great Sauk Trail. It is one of the few buildings that is left that is right along the trail, and actually tells us a little about the people who used to live in this area. We know that the Illinois plains were quite fertile, and that many people made the venture to this area, put down roots and they began to establish farms, as well as little communities, along this path.
While I can say with certainty, that there are parts of the path still visible, the biggest part is, that at the end of the Great Sauk Trail, there was a ferry, especially if you took the southern route, which traveled west toward the small town of Andalusia, Illinois. Not really a big town that offered a great many ventures, there was a man, who had traversed the trail, decided that there was a need for a ferry which would cross the Mississippi River.
Andalusia is not without its own history, mind you, but I can share, I am not going to go into that history with you in this post, but perhaps one in the future. As I entered the community of Andalusia, I knew that there was a place out along the channel, where we could go and see the river, or at least the Andalusia channel. It was a wonderful day to go and visit, and the river scene was kind of quiet that day, but it is clear that there were things that just too good to last, but I was glad to be there, looking out on the river and to see there were others there who were enjoying the day along the water.
There is nothing that would keep me from taking pictures of the river, if ever I get the chance. But there are those people, who live here, who take the river for granted. Like it is just another common thing to see, but I know that there are those who have never gotten to see it. Some of those people live in other countries, but then there are those who live here in the United States, and they still don’t get to see the river, in all of its splendor.
But that was one thing that I had growing up, was an appreciation for the Mississippi. There have been a lot of stories that I have read over the years, that have been set here along the banks of the Mississippi River, some of the best are the ones that are written by Mark Twain, ones like The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, or Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, those are some of my favorites, but not only those, but his book, Life On The Mississippi, these books are important because they talk about the things that happened here along the river, and they capture life as it is. But the thing that always fascinated me is that there are so many ferries that used to offer passage across the river. They were pretty much anywhere, and then there was the advent of the invention of the bridge.
But we will get into the history of the different modes of transportation one of these days. But that is the thing, as we travel to and from the locations that are all over the place, there are few of us who want to take the time to stop and see what the area’s history really is. I can tell you, that when I was young there were a lot of times that I would have done anything to learn more about an area. For some reason, the things my parents did, were things that allowed me to learn about the area that I lived in. It was not that I really wanted to say this or that was not here, but I know now, a few years after my father passed away, that there are so many times I wish I would have slowed down and listened to some of the stories that he had to share. The fact that I know some of the things that I do, well, that in itself is a testament to the things that I have taken the time to learn about and try to understand.
So, while there are signs and information about an old trail, and that these signs and such existed even when I was younger, I can tell you, I want nothing more than the chance to learn what it was that made those men, women and children cross the Illinois plains, and they were able to eventually settle along the path, if they so chose, but it was not long before they were replacing the Great Sauk Trail with some highway that would take them where they wanted to go in a faster means than the trail would have allowed for.
So, by all means, take the time to learn about the things that are in your neighborhood. It might surprise you as to what took place in your own back yard.
Thanks for checking things out.