Letters to the Editor
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Lincoln's service in the Black Hawk War
Lincoln did join the Illinois state milita in the Black Hawk War, but he mocked his service continually. He saw no combat and referred to his time in the Wisconsin woods as a "bloody struggle with the mosquitos and charges upon wild onions."
In any case, the Black Hawk "War" was not a glorious moment for Americans, ending with a massacre of men, women, and children as they tried to surrender, hide, or swim the Mississippi. Lincoln was lucky to have missed it. Though, later as President, he signed a death warrant for a mass hanging of Sioux after their conflict in Minnesota.