The Battle of Bad Axe, also known as the Bad Axe Massacre, is a battle between Sauk (Sac) and Fox Indians and United States Army regulars and militia that occurs on August 1–2, 1832.
This final battle of the Black Hawk War takes place near present-day Victory, Wisconsin in the United States
It markes the end of the war between white settlers and militia in Illinois and Michigan Territory, and the Sauk and Fox tribes under warrior Black Hawk.
The battle occurs in the aftermath of the Battle of Wisconsin Heights, as Black Hawk's band flees the pursuing militia.
The militia catches up with them on the eastern bank of the Mississippi River, a few miles downstream from the mouth of the Bad Axe River.
The battle that follows is very one-sided: historians have called it a massacre since the 1850s.
The fighting takes place over two days, with the steamboat Warrior present on both days.
By the second day, Black Hawk and most of the Native American leaders haved fled, though many of the band stay behind.
The victory for the United States is decisive and the end of the war allows much of Illinois and present-day Wisconsin to be opened for further settlement.
