Little Lake Butte des Morts is a lake in the US state of

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

, eight miles north of

Lake Butte des Morts Big Lake Butte des Morts () is a shallow freshwater lake located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, in Winnebago County. It is part of the Winnebago Pool (also known as the ''Winnebago System'') of lakes in east central Wisconsin, along with Lake W ...

. It is part of the Fox–Wisconsin Waterway and receives its inflow from a short segment of the Fox River which drains from the north end of Lake Winnebago around

Doty Island Doty Island is an island in Winnebago County, Wisconsin. Its northern part is in the city of Menasha and its southern part is in the city of Neenah. Doty Island is surrounded by two branches of the Fox River on the north and south, flowing from L ...

. The north end of Little Lake Butte des Morts becomes the section of the Fox River running to Green Bay. The lake is part of the Butte des Morts region in

Winnebago County, Wisconsin Winnebago County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 171,730. Its county seat is Oshkosh. It was named for the historic Winnebago people, a federally recognized Native American tribe now known ...

. The southern half of the lake is located within the cities of Menasha and

Neenah Neenah () is a city in Winnebago County, Wisconsin, Winnebago County, Wisconsin, in the East North Central States, north central United States. It is situated on the banks of Lake Winnebago, Little Lake Butte des Morts, and the Fox River (Wiscon ...

. The name "Butte des Morts" was given by French settlers, and means "Mound of the Dead" in reference to a nearby

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

. French archives state that in 1716, over 8000

civilians Civilians under international humanitarian law are "persons who are not members of the armed forces" and they are not "combatants if they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war". It is slightly different from a non-combatant, b ...

and over 500 soldiers lived within the fortified walls of Little Lake Butte des Morts. In 1716, during the

Fox Wars The Fox Wars were two conflicts between the French and the Fox (Meskwaki or Red Earth People; Renards; Outagamis) Indians that lived in the Great Lakes region (particularly near the Fort of Detroit) from 1712 to 1733.In their book ''The Fox Wars' ...

, French expeditionary forces laid siege to the fort, in the battle of the

Siege of Little Butte des Mortes The siege of Little Butte des Morts was a battle fought during the Fox Wars, in Wisconsin, and Michigan. The battle was fought at Little Lake Butte des Morts, in what is now Winnebago County, Wisconsin, in 1716. At the time, the Fox had a massive ...

, and

massacred A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...

most of the inhabitants. Similar events occurred in another siege in 1730.Fox Wars (ca. 1710-1740)
/ref> The Roland Kampo Memorial Bridge which carries the Tri-County Expressway (

WIS 441 State Trunk Highway 441, and also called the Tri-County Expressway or Highway 441 (STH-441, or WIS 441) is a state highway in the US state of Wisconsin. Together with Interstate 41/US Highway 41 (I-41/US 41), the highway forms a beltway aro ...

US 10 The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

) crosses the lake. The Fox Cities Trestle Bridge, a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetcar ...

also crosses the lake. It carries the Loop the Lake Trail and

Friendship State Trail The Friendship Trail is a recreation trail in northeastern Wisconsin. The trail is used by walkers, hikers, bikers, horseback riders, and snowmobilers during the winter months. Two sections of the trail are complete: ~14 miles from Winchester eas ...

References

Lakes of Winnebago County, Wisconsin {{WinnebagoCountyWI-geo-stub