Twice in his lifetime Abraham Lincoln traveled within sight of the Rock River east of this site. He passed this way on July 2, 1832, as a private in a mounted company of Illinois militia accompanying forces under General Henry Atkinson during the Black Hawk War. On October 1, 1859, he again passed this way after delivering a political address in Hanchett's Hall at the invitation of the Beloit Republican Club. He spoke the same evening in Janesville and spent the weekend as a guest in the home of William M. Tallman. While following the Prairie Road between Beloit and Janesville in 1859, Lincoln pointed out to his companions the route taken by the army in pursuit of Black Hawk's band.