Henry Atkinson

Henry Atkinson was a United States Army officer whose long frontier career included service in the War of 1812 and command responsibilities across the upper Mississippi and Missouri regions. As commander at Jefferson Barracks and other western posts, he was involved in military policy toward Indigenous nations and played a leading role in the Black Hawk War of 1832.

A career frontier officer, Atkinson directed the campaign against Black Hawk’s British Band and commanded United States forces at the end of the war. He also led western expeditions and treaty missions before returning to army command in the upper Mississippi region.

Robert Shea’s Shaman places Henry Atkinson within the federal military presence expanding into the upper Mississippi country in the years before and during the Black Hawk conflict. His authority represents the United States government that negotiates with, pressures and ultimately fights Native communities as the novel’s Sauk and settler characters are drawn into the struggle over land, removal and frontier power.