Andrew Jackson's Hermitage to Host Battle of New Orleans Commemoration

From the December 30, 2022, Rutherford County Source.

Andrew Jackson's home, the Hermitage in Tennessee will host its annual Battle of New Orleans Commemoration from 9 a.m. to5 p.m., Sunday January 8, 2023 with a keynote address by former Marine Corps officer and recently retired Nashville lawyer, as well as a line-up of activities for the family.

Ground passes to the public will be free to the public with a wreath-laying ceremony at 1 p.m.

ACTIVITIES:

10 a.m. to 3 p.m.:  Children's crafts and games.

10 a.m., noon and 3 p.m.:  Battle of New Orleans Gallery talks by  the Director of Interpretation.

Noon:  A reading from Jackson's orders to rally the 2nd Division of the State of Tennessee will take place on the balcony of the Hermitage Museum.

--Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Encampment Returning This Weekend to Old Fort Niagara

From the September 4, 2022, Niagara Gazette (New York) by Robert  Creenan.

One of Old Fort Niagara's favorite events is returning this weekend to show visitors what life was like during the War of 1812.  There will be close to 100 re-enactors present and it is open to the public Saturday and Sunday from  10 a.m. to 5 p.m..

In addition, there will be other activities:

Lecturer   Richard V. Barbuto, Ph.D. will speak about the Battle of New Orleans at 2 p.m. Saturday at the Visitor Center auditorium.

There will be a "Hot Shot" artillery demonstration showing how cannonballs were heated and what kind of specific damage they could do to a fort or ship.

There will also be musket and other artillery firing.

There will be ongoing demonstrations of  early 19th century soldier life, including blacksmithing, silversmithing, laundry, cooking and foodways.

--Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Marker Ceremony in Ponchatoula

From the May  4, 2022, Hammond (Louisiana)  Daily Star.

When the British threatened New Orleans in January 1814, Louisiana men rallied to defend their city.  Among the militia men was Antoine Lavigne.  His and others effort led to the British defeat at  Chalmette on January 8.

A monument marking his grave will be unveiled at a ceremony  on May 7 at 10 a.m. at Collins Cemetery in Ponchatoula.

An honor guard from American Legion Post  47 in Ponchatoula as well as re-enactors in War of 1812 uniforms will also be there.  The public is invited to attend.

Antoine Lavigne has many ancestors in the area bearing names like Lavigne,   Hoover, Mitchell,  Perrin, Wells, Poche, Radford,  Raiford and Tucker.

Antoine Lavigne married Marie  Rousseau Lavigne and later settled on the east bank of the Tangipahoa River.  After the death of his wife, he remarried  Mary Elizabeth Hoover (Ouvre) Denelle,  widow of  Jean Baptiste  Denelle.

--Brock-Perry

Pivotal War of 1812 Battles

From the May 3, 2022, 24/7 Wallst. site "The most pivotal battles that made America what it is today" by Angelo Young.

BATTLE OF LAKE ERIE, Ohio, September 10, 1813.

BATTLE OF CHIPPEWA, Ontario, July 5, 1814

BATTLE OF LUNDY'S LANE, Ontario, July 25, 1814

BATTLE OF LAKE CHAMPLAIN, New York, September 11, 1814

BATTLE OF PLATTSBURGH, New York, September 11, 1814

BATTLE OF NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana, January8, 1815

Just of Interest.  --Brock-Perry

The Battle of New Orleans, January 8, 1815

From the January 8, 2022, We Are the Mighty  "Today in Military History:  Battle of New Orleans

On January 8, 1815,  U.S. General Andrew Jackson won one of the most decisive battles in the War of 1812.  But, the Treaty of Ghent, technically ending the war had been signed two weeks earlier, but not ratified but the U.S. and no one knew it at the time.

In September of 1814, the Americans had won a major victory on Lake Champlain in New York and the British were ready to negotiate peace terms.  Representatives from both sides met in Belgium and signed the Treaty of Ghent on December 24, 1814.

LEADING UP TO THE BATTLE

On December 23, 1814, A British force reached the LeCoste's Plantation, abut nine miles south of New Orleans.  Andrew Jackson led an American force in a surprise attack on the British which delayed them long enough for the Americans to build a heavily fortified defensive earthwork along the Rodriguez Canal, about four miles south of the city

The British general Sir Edward Packenham had every reason to believe he was going to be successful.  He was leading a force of some 8,000 British regulars, fresh from fighting the Napoleonic Wars and would be up against some 4,700 Americans.  Of these, only a small number were regular troops.  The rest were militia, civilians,  Choctow Indians, freed slaves and even pirates.

Instead of a victory, the British were mowed down and lost some 2,000 of their force as opposed to some 100 for Jackson.

--Brock-Perry

January Events War of 1812: New Orleans, War Declaration, Secretary of War, Frenchtown and Raisin

JANUARY 8, 1815

**  Battle of New Orleans

JANUARY  9, 1813

**  Great Britain declares war on the United States.

JANUARY 13, 1813

**  John Armstrong replaces William Eustis as Secretary of War.

JANUARY 18, 1813

**  American forces seize Frenchtown, Michigan.

JANUARY 22, 1813

**  Battle of River Raisin, Michigan.

--Brock-Perry

Marines in the War of 1812

Happy 246th birthday United States Marine Corps!!

From Wikipedia.

During the War of 1812, Marine detachments on ships took part in the great frigate duels that characterized the war at sea.  These were also the first and last engagements of the war.

Probably their most significant service took place when they held the center of General Andrew Jackson's defensive line at the Battle of New Orleans, the final major land battle and one of the most one-sided engagements of the war.

Then, there were victories of American ships over the HMS Cyane, HMS Levant and HMS Penguin in the last engagements of the war where the Marines gained a reputation as expert marksmen in ship-to-ship action.

They played a large role in the 1813 defense of Sackets Harbor, New York, and Norfolk, Portsmouth, Virginia.

--Brock-Perry

John S. Roberts

From the Texas State Historical Association Handbook of Texas.

JOHN S. ROBERTS

(1796-1871)

Signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence, East Texas merchant and political figure.

He was born in Virginia on July 13, 1796.  At age sixteen, he enlisted  in the Tennessee  Militia for service in the War of 1812 and was at the Battle of New Orleans as a member of Colonel John Coffee's regiment.

In May 1815, he was discharged

By 1822, he was a resident of Nagodoches, Texas.

--Brock-Perry

John S. Roberts: War of 1812 Veteran and an Important Man in Early Texas

From the John S. Roberts Chapter National Society United States Daughters of 1812.

He was a very important person in the early days of Texas, but also fought in the War of 1812 before that.

The Battle of New Orleans had a great impact on the future of Nacogdoches, Texas, because so many future east Texans participated in it.  Some of those men were Bean, Bullock, Goyens, Perry and John S. Roberts.

John S. Roberts was 19 years of age when he traveled  from Nashville with militiamen under the command of General Carroll, to join Coffee and Jackson with a contingent of Tennesseans.

An account of the battle written in 1840 in France by Cardinal  Moyne credits Roberts  with being  "in the thickest of the historic battle" and conducting himself "in a brave manner" where he fought with "conspicuous bravery."

--Brock-Perry

Camp Blount Volunteer Days Gets Underway in Tennessee This Weekend-- Part 1: Played a Major Role in the War of 1812

From the September 28, 2021, Elk Valley Times (Tennessee) "Camp Blount Volunteer  Days gets underway Friday and Saturday" by Lora Scripps.

Members of the Camp Blount Historic Site  Association are getting ready for the first Camp Blount Volunteer Day set for this Friday and Saturday, October 1 and 2.  It will be held on the site of the historic Camp Blount in Tennessee.

The camp was located on the banks of the Elk River, just a little over a half mile south of downtown Fayetteville and is the site where Gen. Andrew Jackson mustered troops for the Creek  Indian War in October of 1813 during the War of 1812.

The muster of volunteers back then was the beginning of a campaign that culminated  in the Creeks defeat at the Battle of Horseshoe Bend.

Nine months later, Tennesseans again mustered at Camp Blount under Jackson and marched to New Orleans where they took part in the Battle of New Orleans, the final defeat of the British in the war.

--Brock-Perry

About That Captain Thomas E. Craig-- Part 2

Gillum Ferguson explained the Indian situation in Central Illinois back then, saying that Gomo, an Indian chief who had years earlier traveled to Philadelphia to meet George Washington, sought peace for his village near present-day  Chillicothe, Illinois.  Meanwhile, across Peoria Lake to the south was the village of Shequenebec whose chief was a mystic -- and increasingly hostile to the settlers.

About fifteen miles south of Peoria, on the  Mackinaw River was a  mixed village of Kickapoo, Potawatomi,  Ottawa and Chippewa, with about sixty warriors, "all desperate fellows and  great plunderers."

At this point in his research on Illinois in the War of 1812, he found that the last thing written about the future state was a long article in  1904.

For the record, Ferguson said that the United States declared war on Britain in June 1812.  A peace treaty was signed in December 1814, but the Battle of New Orleans (made famous by singer Johnny Horton) took place in January 1815.

While doing research for his book, Ferguson visited Peoria and other sites across the Midwest (Illinois Territory stretched into parts of Wisconsin and Michigan).    The staff at the Peoria Historical Society collection at Bradley University were very helpful to him.

--Brock-Perry

Caroline Abbott and War of 1812-- Part 3: The War Is Over

There are six books in the Caroline Abbott series.  The last two have a whole lot to do with the War of 1812, which, of course is of interest to us.

The "Caroline's Battle" book which I covered in the last two posts was the fifth in the series.  The sixth also has a lot to do with the war, "Changes for Caroline."

Here is a summary of events covered in this book:

** How the Americans and British  sought to end the war, culminating in the Treaty of Ghent on December 24, 1814.

**  The Battle of New Orleans on January 8, 1815,  between American and British forces unaware that the war was over, resulted in a crashing American victory.

**  Celebration of the war's end as news spread across the United States.

**  The War of 1812 resulted in status quo ante bellum, with heavy military and civilian losses and neither the British or American sides gaining or losing territory.

--Brock-Perry

U.S. Presidents Who Served in the War of 1812-- Part 2: Andrew Jackson and Others

As mentioned in the previous post, James Buchanan served in the War of 1812 as a private in Henry Shippen's Company, 1st Brigade, 4th Division of the Pennsylvania Militia and participated in the defense of Baltimore.

As stated before, only two of the Founding Fathers served in the American Revolution, but a total of five were in the War of 1812.  Starting with Andrew Jackson (1829-1837) and then William Henry Harrison (1841), John Tyler (1841-1845), Zachary Taylor (1849-1850) and James Buchanan (1857-1861).

But, the War of 1812 is forever linked to Andrew Jackson who led American forces to victory at the Battle of New Orleans.  It was a battle where a ragtag American Army defeated a larger trained professional British Army in a battle that saved the Mississippi River from British control and was actually fought after the war was over, but due to slow communication no one knew it was over.

It should also be noted that Jackson's military career began when he was just thirteen.  as a teenager, he served as messenger for an American unit during the American Revolution.  But he was definitely not one of the Founding Fathers at that age.

Moreover, during his quite colorful life, Jackson took part in 103 duels -- however killing just one man.

--Brock-Perry

The Battle of New Orleans, American Battlefield Trust

From the American Battlefield Trust 2021 calendar.

The calendar features a different battlefield from the Civil War, War of 1812 and American Revolution every month.  This organization, as I said in the last post, is committed to saving historic acres in these wars that were fought in the United States.  They originally started off just for Civil War battles, but I am glad they have expanded their efforts to the other two.

This month's full page picture by Buddy Secor features the Chalmette Battlefield Jean  Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve in Chalmette, Louisiana.

Text:

"NEW ORLEANS, LA.

On January 8, 1815, Major General Andrew Jackson's outnumbered army defended New Orleans from British capture and secured the greatest American victory of the War of 1812.

To date, the Trust has saved 25 acres of War of 1812 battlefields, with more on the horizon.  Future preservation and education efforts will continue to elevate the battlefields of this important, but often overlooked, conflict."

I belong to this organization, and as this blog is titled "Not So Forgotten."

There is also a small picture of  the Cowpens National Battlefield in Gaffney, S,C., by Brian Keeley.

--Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Events in January

From the American Battlefield Trust January 2021 calendar.  (Also American Revolution)  This organization purchases land for preservation where battles were fought on American soil.

JAN. 3:  Battle of Princeton, N.J.  1777

JAN. 8:  Battle of New Orleans, La.  1815

JAN. 9:  Great Britain declares war on the U.S.  1812

JAN. 17:  Battle of Cowpens, S.C.  1781

JAN: 22:  Battle of River Raisin, Monroe, Mi.  1813

--Brock-Perry

January 8, 1815: The Battle of New Orleans

JANUARY 8, 1815

U.S. forces led by General Andrew Jackson defeated the British in the Battle of New Orleans.

This was the last major closing engagement  of the War of 1812.

--Brock-Perry

December 27, 1814: USS Carolina Destroyed

DECEMBER 27, 1814:

WAR OF 1812

The American schooner Carolina is destroyed .  It was the last of Commodore  Daniel Patterson's makeshift fleet that fought a series of delaying actions that contributed to Andrew Jackson's victory at the Battle of New Orleans.

For more on the USS Carolina, click on the USS Carolina label below.  I had some difficulty in determining if this was the USS Carolina or USS Caroline, but now believe the ship's name was USS Carolina.

--Brock-Perry

Action Around Apalachicola Bay-- Part 10: Action After the Battle of New Orleans

Not knowing that the Treaty of Ghent  had been signed in December, Admiral Cochrane moved his forces back to Mobile and Prospect Bluff.  Just after his marines captured Fort Bowyer in a second attack at Mobile Bay, Cochrane got word of the Treaty of Ghent and began to withdraw from Mobile.

However, he left Nicholls and Woodbine  in command of the black Colonial Marines and Choctow Indians at the fort at Prospect Bluff.

The War of 1812 on the Gulf of Mexico began and ended at Apalachicola River.

But the departure of the Royal Navy did not end  the conflict with the blacks and Seminoles.  Attempts to recover Forbes & Company's losses during the three successive wars occupied Forbes and the Innerarity brothers for the rest of their lives, and led to the second largest Spanish  land grant in Florida's history.

Called the Innerarity's Claim of Searcy's  1829 map of Florida, the grant extended from Apalachicola to the Choctawhatchee River.  The story of how that land claim was settled  and the gradual decline of the John Forbes and Company's trading firm in the Territory of Florida is another story in itself.

--Brock-Perry

Action Around Apalachicola Bay-- Part 9: It's a Race to New Orleans Where Jackson Wins That Big Victory

After their defeat at Fort Bowyer, the British retreated to Pensacola, and Jackson determined to push them out of that place, even though it was technically neutral.  His forces reached Pensacola on November 6, 1814.  After the Spanish rejected his flag of truce,  he defeated the small garrison the next day in a brief skirmish.  One thing about Jackson, he never let a little thing like neutrality stop him.

In the meantime, the British pulled out of the city, destroying Forts Michael and Barrancas on the way.

Jackson  went back to Mobile, where he confirmed that the British force was heading for New Orleans.  Now that he was sure that Mobile was not the target, he  rode with his officers to New Orleans in ten days, with his army following later.  Partly because of the warnings of James Inneraritys, he arrived in New Orleans shortly before the British fleet.

He took command of the local militia, prepared the defenses and led his troops to that outstanding victory  at the Battle of New Orleans in January 1815.  (See the header at the top of the blog.)

--Brock-Perry

Jackson Was Trusting to His Lord for the Victory at New Orleans

Before the battle, Jackson had  told his aide-de-camp Major Davezac of his confidence of victory.  "I was sure of success, for I knew God would not give me previsions of disaster, but signs of victory.  He said  this ditch can never be passed.  It cannot be done."

On January 26, 1815, Andrew Jackson wrote to Robert Hays and talked about the Battle of New Orleans:  "It appears that the unerring hand of Providence shielded my men from the shower of balls, bombs, and rockets, when every ball or bomb from our guns carried with them the mission of death.

On February 17, 1815, Jackson wrote to Secretary of War James Monroe:  "Heaven, to be sure, has interposed most wonderfully in our behalf, and I am filled with gratitude, when I look back to what we have escaped."

--Brock-Perry