First Battle of Sackets Harbor-- Part 2: The British Provincial Marine Demands Surrender

On Sunday, July 19, 1812, Captain Melancthon Taylor Woolsey of the USS Oneida discovered five British warships off Sackets Harbor.  They belonged to the Provincial Marine and were the Royal George (24 guns), Prince Regent (22 guns),  Earl of Moira (22 guns), Governor Simcoe (10 guns) and Seneca (2 guns).

The British captured a merchant ship and sent its crew ashore with demands for the surrender of the USS Oneida and the Lord Nelson, a merchant ship captured before war was declared.  The Americans were told that if a shot was fired at the British, they would burn Sackets Harbor.

The Oneida attempted to escape, but was turned back to Navy Point by British guns.

--Brock-Perry