Let’s go back to the year 1808, when a Native American village was established along the banks of the Wabash and Tippecanoe Rivers. Portions of it were located in the area that you see today on the left side of the train; it was called Prophetstown. Tecumseh came to this area, with the band of Shawnee that he led, after all were forced out of their homelands in Ohio by white settlers. At the time, the United States was a new country, and many Americans were looking to live in new territories west of the Appalachian Mountains.  However, as you can imagine, Native Americans did not like their ancestral areas being taken over in such a way and did not understand the idea that someone could actually own a piece of land. Tecumseh decided that the only way Native Americans could survive and continue to live in their homelands would be to form an alliance with other tribes. He traveled persuading tribes to join his coalition. More than 14 tribes set aside their century-old disputes to stop their new common enemy. They come together in what became Prophetstown to seek the wisdom of Tecumseh’s brother – a Shawnee religious and political leader known as the Prophet. The Native Americans hoped the sheer size of their settlement would stop westward expansion.

Instead of putting a halt to westward expansion, what was occurring at Prophetstown angered white settlers and the government. Many were especially alarmed when the Prophet’s message grew more militant and the training of warriors began to take place here.

In November 1811, then-governor of Indiana Territory, William Henry Harrison, moved around 1,200 troops to near Prophetstown. He was there to meet with tribal leaders and make them aware of federal demands that Natives stop attacking white settlers in the Ohio Valley. Tecumseh was away from the village upon Harrison’s arrival on November 6, 1811. He and the soldiers decided to camp out overnight near the site, awaiting a meeting the following morning with the Prophet. It is reported that some Natives in the village grew restless that such a large number of soldiers were camped so close, and feared an imminent attack. In the middle of the night, the Prophet awoke and told his villagers that he had a vision that sending a party of warriors to murder Harrison in his tent was the best way to avoid battle. Although the outnumbered attackers took Harrison’s army by surprise, Harrison and his men stood their ground for more than two hours. The Natives were ultimately repulsed when their supplies and ammunition began to run low. This was the Battle of Tippecanoe – taking place during the early morning hours of November 7, 1811.

Casualties for the Americans included 63 killed and 126 wounded; estimated casualties for the Natives included 50 to 65 killed and between 70 and 80 wounded. After the battle, the Natives abandoned Prophetstown and Harrison’s men burned it to the ground, destroyed the Native’s food supply for the winter, and returned back to their base near present-day Vincennes, Indiana.

Today, the battlefield site and monument can be seen on the left side of the train, just south of the Town of Battle Ground.

About 25 years after the battle, the site became home to numerous political rallies – as William Henry Harrison successfully ran for President in 1840, with John Tyler as his vice-president. “Tippecanoe and Tyler, too” became one of the most famous campaign slogans in American politics. The battlefield became a popular site for tourists as early as the 1850’s, thanks in large part to its proximity to the railroad line we are traveling on today. The 85-foot-high marble obelisk, seen on the left, was built in 1908 for the cost of $24,500.

At Meadow Lake Wind Farm, each turbine is 260 feet tall from the base of the tower to the hub – and another 127 feet to the tip of its three-bladed rotor. Farmers can make from between $5,000 to $10,000 per year for leasing their property to have turbines on them

MONON
(Population: 1,759; Elevation: 682 feet)
(Milepost 88.4) (40.8600° N, 86.8776° W)

So how you may be asking – of all of the larger cities along its routes – how did Monon, a town of less than 2,000 people get chosen for the name of this railroad? The answer lies in the fact that Monon was the junction point between the railroad’s two major lines – one that ran from Michigan City to Louisville, and the other than ran from Chicago to Indianapolis.

By looking at the map on the previous page, you see that from Crawfordsville to Monon, the Hoosier State has actually been running on the Monon’s former main line from Michigan City to Louisville, Kentucky. Here in Monon, we switch onto the Monon’s former main line from Chicago to Indianapolis. That is why our train will seem to make a sharp turn to the left, while appearing to switch between rail lines. Our train continues to follow what is now the CSX’s Monon Subdivision, but our direction changes from due north to more northwesterly.

Unfortunately, portions of the Monon’s original two main lines routes have been removed from service now.  If your train were to keep going due north in Monon, you would have ended up in Michigan City. Today, you can go north for only another 15 miles to Medaryville, where the track dead ends at a grain elevator. Likewise, if you turned right at Monon Junction instead of left, like our train does, you would have ended up taking the Monon’s Route into Indianapolis. Today, you can only go less than 10 more miles on this rail line down to Monticello – where it will dead end at the TP&W line that we crossed back at Reynolds.

The brick station, which can be seen from the train, opened in June 1953; it is currently used as a CSX freight office. By looking right, you should also be able to see a red caboose that sits in a grassy area between the old main line that continued north to Michigan City and part of the railroad wye here. Even though this caboose is not authentic Monon, it is still worth a visit if you’re ever in town off the train.  There is also a marker at this site that presents a history of the Monon Railroad. Also keep your eyes on the right for a view of the Monon water tower.  If you look at the right side – you can see it smile.