Black Hawk was a Native American Sauk tribe leader who lived from 1767 to 1838. In life, he earned a reputation as a fierce and cunning warrior who resisted encroaching governmental oppression, but also as a man who could show mercy. He is often called on for protection and is called "a watcher on the wall" because he sends notice of breaches in one's spiritual perimeter defenses. Root doctors who work with the spirit of Black Hawk traditionally place a bucket filled with earth or sand on his altar, within which stands a statue or statuette of an Indian. Offerings of fruit and of tobacco may be set before Black Hawk; his offerings do not generally include alcohol. He is most often called upon for protection and various types of control and defense work.