The Battle of Tippecanoe (near present-day Lafayette, Indiana) disrupted Tecumseh’s federation of Native American tribes in the Old Northwest, allowing the United States to strengthen its hold on the region. After the battle, Tecumseh and his followers relied even more heavily on British aid and sanctuary in Canada, unable to mount effective resistance in the United States. The engagement also brought the territorial governor of Indiana, William Henry Harrison, to national prominence.
The Tippecanoe River ran near the village of Proph-etstown, named for Tecumseh’s brother, the Shawnee Prophet, Tenskwatawa. The settlement thrived during the end of the first decade of the 19th century, attracting members of many different tribes who joined Tecumseh’s panIndian movement and responded to Tenskwatawa’s call for a return to Indian traditions. The site also offered access to Canada so the inhabitants could draw upon supplies and weapons from the British. However, more and more European-American settlers poured into the region, leading to conflict. Governor Harrison, in particular, came to view Prophetstown as an obstacle to further development in Indiana territory. Several meetings between Harrison and Tecumseh only convinced Harrison that he needed to strike before the Indians gathered more strength. In 1811 he collected about 700 militia and, with 350 regulars under Colonel John P. Boyd, marched on Prophetstown. When this army reached its destination on November 6, Tenskwatawa and Harrison agreed not to attack one another so that they could open negotiations the next day.
Unfortunately for the Indians, Tecumseh had traveled to the South to see if he could get tribes in that region to join his pan-Indian movement. Tecumseh had warned his brother to avoid open hostilities until he could gather enough warriors to assure victory. Tenskwatawa, however, decided that he needed to attack Harrison and Boyd before they could attack him. He therefore told his followers that the enemy bullets would have no affect on them and planned a predawn attack. Harrison and Boyd had prepared for this contingency, ordering their men to sleep by their arms, setting camp behind fieldworks formed into a rough square, and posting plenty of pickets. A few hours before daybreak about 600 to 700 Indians launched a ferocious assault. The militia and regulars responded well to the surprise and in an intense two-hour battle finally compelled the Indians to retreat. Thirty-seven soldiers lay dead and more than 126 were wounded (another 25 were to die from their wounds). Native American casualties are unknown but must have been high as well, since the Indians abandoned the town and dispersed. The situation for Harrison and Boyd remained tense as they expected another attack at any moment from Tecumseh, who they believed to be returning from the South. After a sleepless night on November 7, the army moved into the village the next day and burnt it together with all of the food supplies.
In the aftermath of the battle, Tenskwatawa lost credibility, and Tecumseh decided to head for Canada to work more closely with the British. Although Harrison eventually emerged with an enhanced reputation, at first there was some controversy about who deserved credit for the victory—Harrison or Boyd—and there was some debate over the tactics used in the battle.
Further reading: R. David Edmunds, Tecwmseh and the Quest for Indian Leadership (Boston: Little, Brown, 1984).
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