1828, he had established a successful lead mine operation at Blue Mounds, as well as operating an inn and general store serving the local miners, local tribes and other travelers. His tavern became a popular stopover along the Old Military Trail, and soon his small mining camp grew with settlers arriving from Illinois and within the Michigan Territory. He was honored by the Michigan territorial governor Lewis Cass and appointed a magistrate. He held the position of magistrate for four years, serving as justice of the peace, and from the winter of 1830–1831 until 1837, as postmaster of Moundville. During the Black Hawk War, he served as a colonel in the Wisconsin Territorial Militia. Fort Blue Mounds was later built near Brigham's home, and he and his neighbors took refuge there during the conflict. While Brigham remained in command, he successfully defended the post against several raids by the Sauk and Fox. Involved in politics during his later years, Brigham was a member of the territorial council between 1836 and 1842 and a state representative in 1848, and he served on the Dane County board of commissioners in 1845, 1848–1850, and 1854–1855. Death He died at the home of his niece, a Mrs. H.G. Bliss, in Madison, Wisconsin on September 14, 1861, and was buried in Forest Hill Cemetery. Although the original cabins at the site had long since disappeared, the general store remained at Blue Mounds for over forty years as an historic landmark until it was destroyed in a fire in January 1877. His part is now part of Blue Mound and Brigham County Park, the latter being named in his honor. Legacy In March 1910, his heirs donated the site of an old blockhouse from Fort Blue Mounds to the State Historical Society of Wisconsin having been used during the Black Hawk War. A bronze tablet marking the site of the fort was unveiled by the Wisconsin Landmarks Committee in a special ceremony held on September 5, 1910. A replica of his general store is also on display at the Mt. Horeb Historical Society Museum in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin. References 1789 births 1861 deaths American people of the Black Hawk War People from Shrewsbury, Massachusetts People from Blue Mounds, Wisconsin American miners American merchants County supervisors in Wisconsin Members of the Wisconsin Territorial Legislature Members of the Wisconsin State Assembly 19th-century American politicians People from Marquette County,