See Boston Tea Party

See Paul Rever's Ride
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Thomas Paine's 
"Common Sense" Document

Declaration of Arms

Early American Flag: 
Betsy Ross 
 
 
 

George Rogers Clark 
(oil on canvas) 
Rosemary Brown Beck, 1976 

George Rogers Clark Day

Vincennes, Knox County, Indiana
The oldest city in Indiana, Vincennes was named after François Marie Bissot, Sieur de Vincennes. It began as a French fur trading outpost founded in 1732. The City of Vincennes is the County Seat of Knox County, Indiana. It is located on the Wabash River in the southwestern quadrant of the state. Vincennes is 51 miles north of Evansville, Indiana, and 56 miles south of Terre Haute, Indiana.

Vincennes was the site of an important Revolutionary War battle, and was the home of  U.S. President William Henry Harrison. It was also the center of  government for a huge frontier territory.

Examples of Vincennes’ historical wealth include the George Rogers Clark Memorial Historical Park, the Old Cathedral, the Vincennes State Historic Sites, Grouseland, the home of President William Henry Harrison, the Old French House, Fort Knox II at Oubache Trails Park, and the Indiana Military Museum.

The Old French House is one of the few remaining upright-log style houses in the nation. It offers visitors a real-life glimpse of life on the early frontier at its earliest. In addition, there is an Indian museum located on the same property that reveals views of this region before settlers arrived. The Old French House is owned and operated by the Old Northwest Corporation.

The largest land conquest of the Revolutionary War took place in Vincennes and the drama of that event is revisited at the George Rogers Clark Historical Park. The park features a massive granite memorial located on the site of the former British Fort Sackville which was captured by Colonel George Rogers Clark and his troop of frontiersmen and Frenchmen. The memorial was dedicated in 1936 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt. 

Lt. Gov. Henry Hamilton's surrender of
Fort Sackville, Vincennes  to Colonel George
Rogers Clark (February 25, 1779)

Adjacent to the memorial park is the Old Cathedral Complex. The Cathedral is an imposing edifice that towers on the site of three previous churches, the first of which was constructed in 1749.

Grouseland, the home of President William Henry Harrison, was saved from destruction by the Daughters of the American Revolution. William Henry Harrison governed the Indiana territory while living there, before becoming the ninth president. Grouseland received its name from the birds Harrison reportedly enjoyed hunting in the fields around the area. The stately mansion was built between 1802 and 1804 and now contains Harrison possessions and period pieces.

Grouseland

The Vincennes Historic Sites combine to create an offering enjoyed by residents and visitors alike. The site at First and Harrison streets includes the Territory Capitol. It is considered to be the oldest government building in the Midwest. Next door is the Elihu Stout Print Shop which relives the production of the first newspaper in the Indiana Territory in 1804. Also in this lineup of historic sites is the birthplace of Maurice Thompson. This small-frame house reveals the sparse lifestyle of the period. Thompson was the author of  the best-selling novel of 1900, "Alice of  Old Vincennes."

Added to the historic sites in 2001 as part of Vincennes University's bicentennial celebration was a replica of the original Jefferson Academy. The academy was the first example of a facility for formal education in the Indiana Territory. The replica, a frame structure, includes a classroom, kitchen, bedroom and fireplace. In 180l the leading citizens of Vincennes, headed by Indiana Territory Governor William Henry Harrison, organized Jefferson Academy and appointed Father Jean Francois Rivet, the Catholic priest at Vincennes, as the first headmaster.

Fort Knox II
In 1803, the army garrison within the town of Vincennes was moved three miles north of  Vincennes after local residents complained the soldiers spent most of their time in local saloons. The site, a bluff overlooking the Wabash River, was chosen because of its command of the river, it provided a good landing place, and there was a spring nearby. With the activities of the Shawnee brothers, Tecumseh and The Prophet, the local situation became dangerous. More soldiers were assigned to the area and the fort, under the command of Captain Zachary Taylor, became the jumping-off place for Territorial Governor William Henry Harrison's rendezvous with destiny - the Battle of Tippecanoe, September 26, 1811.

The 42-acre site is bounded by the Wabash River. Included on the property is an outline of the original fort marked by logs. It was one of the three forts built and garrisoned by the U.S. Army in the Vincennes area to protect the settlers and help control the strategic Wabash River.

The Indiana Military Museum, about three miles from Vincennes on Old Bruceville Road, is dedicated to the memory, understanding and appreciation of U.S. military history. Displays include vintage uniforms, weapons and vehicles not brought together in any other location.

Indiana was the nineteenth state admitted into The Union.

1st and Main, Vincennes

Xavier Cathedral and Library,
Vincennes. The oldest Catholic
church in the state of Indiana

Overview - Vincennes, Knox County and Indiana:

• Site of the First Catholic church in Indiana. (1749)
• Was the First county organized in Indiana. (1790)
• Home of the First newspaper in Indiana. (1799)
• Site of the First Presbyterian church in Indiana. (1806)
• Site of the First Masonic Lodge in Indiana.
• Home of the First bank in Indiana. (1814)
• Host to the First medical society in Indiana. (1817)
• Sixth largest county in Indiana.
• Total Area - 517 square miles or 330,880 acres.
• Knox County’s Population was 39,884 in the 1990 Census.
• Home of Col. Francis Vigo.
• Home of James Douglas "Blue Jeans" Williams, 14th Governor of Indiana.
• Home of Matthew E. Welsh, 41st Governor of Indiana.
• Boyhood home of the world's greatest clown, Richard "RED" Skelton.
• Vincennes was originally in the French colony of Louisiana, then the British colony of Canada, then the Illinois County of the Commonwealth of Virginia, then became Knox County in the Northwest Territory, then the The Indiana Territory, and currently, the State of Indiana.
• Statehood:  December 11, 1816 (19th state)
• Nickname:  Hoosier State
• State bird:  Cardinal
• State flower: Peony
• State tree:  Tulip tree
• Motto:  “The Crossroads of America”
• Song:  “On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away”
• Housed its capitol in the city of Corydon until moving the capitol to Indianapolis in 1825.
• The main manufacturing industries in the late 19th century – milling, meat, lumber and liquor – were supplemented after 1910 by a steady growth in heavy industry, especially the production of iron, steel, glass, electrical machinery, railroad equipment and automobiles. Today, Indiana enjoys a great diversity of industry – primary metals, petroleum-refining, chemicals in the Calumet region, pharmaceuticals, transportation, electronic equipment, and farm machinery.

• When aw visitor hailed a pioneer cabin in Indiana, or knocked upon its door, the settler would respond, "Who's yere?" From this frequent response, Indiana became known as the "Who's yere" or Hoosier state.
• There was once a contractor named Hoosier employed on the Louisville and Portland Canal who preferred to hire laborers from Indiana. They were called "Hoosier's men" and eventually all Indianans were called Hoosiers.
• A facetious explanation was offered by James Whitcomb ("The Hoosier Poet"). He claimed that Hoosier originated in the pugnacious habits of early settlers. They were enthusiastic and vicious fighters who gouged, scratched and bit off ears and noses. This was so common an occurrence that a settler coming into a tavern the morning after a fight, and seeing an ear on the floor, would touch it with his toe and casually ask, "Whose ear?"
• Jacob Piatt Dunn (Indiana historian) noted that "hoosier" was frequently used in many part of the South in the 19th century for woodsmen or rough hill people. He traced the word back to "hoozer" - derived from the Anglo-Saxon word "hoo" meaning high or hill used in the Cumberland district of England. Immigrants from Cumberland, England, settled in the southern mountains - e.g. Cumberland Mountains, Cumberland River, and Cumberland Gap.

But one thing is missing in the picture,
Without her face it seems so incomplete.
I long to see my mother in the doorway,
As she stood there years ago her boy to greet.

Chorus
Oh, the moonlight's fair tonight along the Wabash,
From the fields there comes the breath of new mown hay.
Thro' the sycamores the candle lights are gleaming,
On the Wabash, far away.

Many years have passed since I strolled by the river,
Arm in arm with sweetheart Mary by my side.
It was there I tried to tell her that I loved her,
It was there I begged her to be my bride.

Long years have passed since I strolled thro' the churchyard,
She's sleeping there my angel Mary dear.
I loved her but she thought I didn't mean it.
Still I'd give my future were she only here.

Chorus