 As a consequence of an 1804 treaty between the Governor of Indiana Territory and a group of Sauk and Fox leaders regarding land settlement , in 1828 the Sauk and Fox tribes vacated their lands in Illinois and moved west of the Mississippi River . However , Sauk Black Hawk and others disputed the treaty , claiming that the full tribal councils had not been consulted , nor did those representing the tribes have authorization to cede land . Angered by the loss of his birthplace , Black Hawk led a number of incursions across the Mississippi River beginning in 1830 . Each time , he was persuaded without bloodshed to return west . In April 1832 , encouraged by promises of alliance with other tribes and the British , he again moved his so @-@ called " British Band " of around 1 @,@ 000 warriors and civilians into Illinois . Finding no allies , he attempted to return to Iowa , but events overtook him and led to the Battle of Stillman 's Run . A number of other engagements followed , and the state militias of Wisconsin and Illinois were mobilized to hunt down Black Hawk 's band . The ensuing conflict became known as the Black Hawk War . On May 19 , a group of militia volunteers were ambushed at Buffalo Grove and the same day as the raid at Plum River , May 21 , a more famous war event , the Indian Creek massacre , occurred . The Indian Creek event , believed to mostly a peripheral event to the Black Hawk War was followed on by more violence preceding the attack at Spafford Farm . 
