Chicago’s name was bestowed by the team’s founder, Major Frederic McLaughlin. He got it from the nickname of his World War One Army Battalion, who called themselves the Blackhawks. And they called themselves that in honor of the original-Chief Black Hawk. Now all these years later, the Chief’s image can be found on the team’s jerseys, the United Center ice, and of course the locker room floor. So just who was Chief Black Hawk? Historian Kerry Trask wrote the book, Black Hawk: The Battle for the Heart of America. He’s professor emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Manitowoc and he gives us all the details.

RELATED:
History of Founding of Chicago Blackhawks