Allen County, Indiana People

Colonel John Hardin

Site of Hardin's Defeat
Site of Hardin's Defeat
Indiana Historical Bureau photo

See Hardin's Defeat.

A colonel with the Kentucky militia Marker gone, bridge going up at site of battle Militia colonel’s dubious role in local history has been forgotten by Kevin Leininger published August 17, 2013 in The News-Sentinel newspaper. The marker used to say: Colonel John Hardin, of the Kentucky Militia, with 180 men and Captain John Armstrong, U.S. Army, with 30 men, were routed here on October 19, 1790, by Indians under Miami Chief Little Turtle during General Harmar's Campaign.

October 19, 2017 post by The Bones of Kekionga on Facebook:

Spoiler alert if you haven’t read the book yet, but today is the 227th anniversary of Hardin’s Defeat. Here’s a photo of where it happened, just south of Churubusco on Carroll Road along the Eel River.

October 18, 2022 post by The Bones of Kekionga on Facebook:

Wednesday, October 19, is the 232nd anniversary of Hardin's Defeat also known as the Battle at Eel River. American Survivors that retreated back to General Harmar's camp would have found him at an Indian village called Chillicothe. This location would have been south of the Catholic Cemetery on Lake Avenue on both sides of the Maumee River west of Coliseum Blvd., possibly where the retention ponds are now located. [current Lakeside Neighborhood. ]

Saturday is the 232nd anniversary of The Battle of Kekionga, also known as Harmar's's Defeat that took place in the Lakeside neighborhood stretching from the Maumee River to the St. Joseph River north of the Tennessee Ave. bridge today, and spilling into the St. Joe River.

Read about the engagements in The Bones of Kekionga. www.jimpickettbooks.com

October 19, 2023 post by Miami Nation of Indians of Indiana on Facebook:

On this date in 1790, Chief Little Turtle surprises and defeats Col John Hardin on the banks of the Eel River (13 miles northwest of present day Fort Wayne, Indiana) south of present day Churubusco Indiana. Hardin was leading a scouting detachment after an army under Josiah Harmer arrived October 15th at the large Miami city of Kekionga (other various nations of Native American's lived there as well), where present day Fort Wayne Indiana is located. Harmar discovered it deserted so Hardin was sent to scout the area and find the Miami. Hardin's force would consist of over 200 men versus Little Turtle's approximately 100 warriors. Little Turtle would utilize strategy and stealth to inflict heavy casualties on Hardin's force (about 62 dead and 12 wounded), before Hardin withdrew back to the main camp.

The Site of Hardin's Defeat Reviewed in 2010. Location: This marker was damaged and removed. It will not be replaced due to text inaccuracies by the Indiana Historical Bureau on IN.gov. Erected by Indiana Sesquicentennial Commission, 1966 . Site of Hardin’s Defeat marker on THE HISTORICAL MARKER DATABASE HMdb.org. See General Harmar and The Battle of Kekionga.

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