Battle of Stoney Creek Re-enactment Set for This Weekend

 From the June 2, 2024 CHCH (Canada) by Kiana Ferreira.

The Battle of Stoney Creek started on the night of June 5, 1813 and was a turning point for the British. 

This weekend is the 41st re-enactment of the battle which was a night raid by the British on American forces.  It is the longest continually running war of 1812 re-enactment in the province (Ontario) and will bring more than 10,000 attendees.

Along with the Battle of Beaver Dams two weeks later, it returned the Niagara Region to British and Canadian control and ended the U.S. attempt to conquer the western part of the province.

Well, It Was Last Weekend.  --Brock-Perry

Historic Fort George-- Part 8: British Recapture It and Then Capture American Fort Niagara

The Americans had intended to use Fort George as a bridgehead in Canadian territory to launch further attacks.  However, that did not come to pass.  Disease,  increased desertion rates,  risks of ambushes and a general British advance toward the fort following their victories at  Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams kept it from doing that.

American forces began a slow withdrawal from the fort until in December 1813, there were but 60 soldiers there.  Upon receiving intelligence that a force of 1,500 British and 500 First Nations Indians were advancing the Americans withdrew and razed the fort and nearby settlement.

The American garrison left the fort on December 11 after spiking the cannons and destroying the town.  However, the fort itself was left intact.

British forces arrived shortly after the Americans left.  Nine days later, they conucted an attack across the Niagara River that led to the capture of the American Fort Niagara and the razing of American communities in retaliation for what had happened to Niagara (the name of Niagara-on-the-Lake as it is called today).

--Brock-Perry

Mary Madden Henry-- Part 7: The Americans Destroy the Town of Niagara

After the battle, the Americans held on to the area until December.  They had hoped to use Fort George to launch an attack on the British base at Burlington Heights, but their defeat at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams wrecked their plans.

Moreover, occupying Fort George made them vulnerable to ambushes.

As a result, on December 10, 1813, the Americans decided to abandon Fort George and Niagara, burning the town in their departure.  Those who lived there only had an hour's warning before they lost their homes.

Mary's house was spared though.  How did she get so lucky again?

The lighthouse was considered useful by the Americans for shipping, so they chose not to destroy it or the keeper's house.

As she did before, Mary came to the aid of those who needed her.  She and her husband opened their doors to the newly homeless.  Mary again provided hot food and medical care, which was undoubtedly much appreciated considering that winter had already come to the region.

--Brock-Perry

Fort George, Canada-- Part 4: The Battle of Fort George and American Occupation

On the morning of May 25, 1813,  batteries at Fort Niagara and  along the American side of the Niagara River unleashed a devastating bombardment  on Fort George.  Almost every building within the fort was destroyed.

Two days a later, a large American invading force landed west of the mouth of the Niagara River.  The town of Niagara was turned into a battlefield  as the Americans pushed toward Fort George.  British and Canadian militia forces put up stiff resistance, but were heavily outnumbered.

Around noon, the order was given to retreat, and the British retired to Burlington Heights (located in present-day Hamiliton, Canada).

The Americans occupied Fort George for almost seven months, but failed to maintain a strategic foothold in Upper Canada following their defeats at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams.  By December 1813 the U.S. forces at Fort George had dwindled down to a small handful of militia.

After an American scouting party encountered a large force of British on reconnaissance , the commanding officer at Fort George, Brigadier General George McClure of the New York militia,  feared an attack was imminent.

And, Then....  --Brock-Perry

Steps of A Traitor, Joseph Willcocks-- Part 2: The Ultimate Affront

Within a few weeks, Joseph Willcocks had recruited and took command of about 120 men who became the  Company of Canadian Volunteers who were mostly American immigrants and some pro-American Canadians living in Niagara.

Two of their officers were prominent elected  officials:  Abraham Markle and Benajah Mallory.  Mr. Wyatt then classified Willcocks' actions as an American officer as being like those of the Civil War's  William Quantrill:  foraging, scouting and a reign of terror by burning pro-Brit farms belonging to people he had known and opposed in politics.

He even took hostages across the border and had them imprisoned.

But what was the worse case, took place after the decisive British victories at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams, when the American Army retreated back to Fort George.

--Brock-Perry

DeCew House and the Battle of Beaverdam-- Part 2

Had Laura Secord not warned of the Americans coming, the battle might have gone the other way and been a British loss.

After the war, DeCew lived at the house with his family and operated a nearby mill at DeCew Falls.  He sold it in 1834.

The next owner lived there until 1942 when it was purchased by the Hydro-Electric Power Commission of Ontario.

The original house burned down in 1950, but the lower stone walls were restored and a plaque installed to tell of its significance.

It is now a designated historic site.

--Brock-Perry

DeCew House a Focal Point in the Battle of Beaverdam-- Part 1

From the June 22, 2013, Welland (Can.) Tribune by Jeff Blay.

Thorold, Canada.

The Battle of Beaverdam is best-known for Laura Secord's famous walk or the crucial effort of the Six nations' warriors who won the battle.    But the stone house used as British headquarters, now called the DeCew House, has its own story.

John  DeCew was captured at Fort George in May 1813 and was held as a prisoner of war in Philadelphia.

he had built the house, known as the site where Laura Secord warned British Lt. James Fitzgibbon of the American advance on his position prior to the battle.

--Brock-Perry