Things You Didn't Know About Oliver Hazard Perry-- Part 2: A Builder

3.  Perry was promoted to Master Commandant in the Navy at age 28.  After being a midshipman, he returned to Rhode Island and supervised the construction of a flotilla of small gunboats.  In March 1812, he achieved the high rank of Master Commandant, something few as young as he achieved.

4.  In 1813, he was given command of naval forces on the Great Lakes and appointed to supervise the construction of an American fleet on Lake Erie.  His headquarters were at what is today Erie, Pennsylvania.  When he arrived, there were no American ships and the British already had eight ships.

Despite the fact that he had no nearby resources other than trees, in short order he had nine vessels with the 490 ton brigs Lawrence and Niagara being the largest.

--Brock-Perry

Stephen Champlin-- Part 1: Buried Next to Millard Fillmore, 13th President

From the Stedman  Families Research Center, John Lisle.

Commodore

Born 17 November 1789   South Kingstown, Washington County, Rhode Island

Death  20 February 1870   Buffalo, Erie County, New York

Buried  Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, NY

Biography of Stephen Champlin   by Robert Champlin

Stephen Champlin, son of Stephen Champlin and Elizabeth Raymond Perry, was  born in South Kingston, Rhode Island, on November 17, 1789, and died at Buffalo (Erie County) New York on February 20 1870.  he was buried in the Forest Lawn Cemetery there.

The Champlin family plot (which contained two dozen stones when I visited in August 1994) is located right next to the Fillmore family plot in which Millard Fillmore, the 13th President of the United States is buried.

--Brock-Perry

Stephen Champlin, USN-- Part 1: At the Battle of Lake Erie

From GENii Family Tree   Commodore Stephen Champlin.

Stephen Champlin was born 17 November 1789 in South Kingston, Rhode Island,  and lived in Lebanon, Connecticut, on his father's farm until the age of sixteen.  Rejecting a future of farming, he became a seaman and attained the rank of captain in the West Indian trade in six years.

At the beginning o the War of 1812, he was appointed sailing master in the U.S. Navy and given command of a gunboat.  He was later ordered to Lake Erie where he took command of the schooner Scorpion and fought in the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie. He served with a relative, Oliver Hazard Perry.

He is said to have fired the first and last shot of the battle and given credit for capturing the British vessel Little Belt.

--Brock-Perry

Dr. George Hazard Perry, Sr. (Brother of Christopher R. Perry)-- Part 1

Christopher R. Perry, father of Oliver Hazard and Matthew Calbraith Perry, had two brothers.  I found no mention of either one being in the military.  But....

From Find-A-Grave.

DR. GEORGE HAZARD PERRY, SR.

Born  4 January 1757 in South Kingston, Rhode Island

Died 22 February 1825 Lee, New York.

Buried in Perry Family Cemetery in Rome, New York.

I found nothing about him being in the military.

And, how was this military?

Next Post.  --Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry-- Part 3: Becomes a Rich Man and Commands USS General Greene in Quasi War

After the American Revolution, he served on a merchant ship and sailed to Ireland where he was able to bring his beloved Sarah to the United States where they were married in Philadelphia in 1784.  (That must have been an interesting story of his meeting his future wife while a prisoner.

They moved to South Kingston, Rhode Island where his parents had a 200 acre estate.  Their first child, Oliver Hazard Perry was born there in August 1785.)

Christopher Perry then  pursued his career as a merchant ship captain, making voyages all over the world and making a small fortune in the process.  He was able to move his family to the fast-growing Newport, Rhode Island and by 1797, he was rich enough to retire.

On January 7, 1798, he was commissioned as a captain in the U.S. Navy during the Quasi War with France.  Given command of the frigate USS General Greene, he brought along his son, 13-year-old midshipman Oliver Hazard Perry.

You can read the rest of the story about his time on the USS General Greene on my May 4 and May 6 blogs.

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry-- Part 2: Service in the American Revolution

Born in Newport, Rhode Island.  His mother was a descendant of two of the Mayflower Compact signers.

AMERICAN REVOLUTION

He enlisted in a local militia company at age 14 early in the American  Revolution.  He then served on two privateers, but the second one was captured  and Perry was confines on the infamous prison hulk, the Jersey in New York Harbor for three months before escaping.

In 1779. he joined the Continental Navy as a seaman on the 30-gun frigate USS Trumbull.  He was aboard this ship when it engaged the 32-gun British letter of marque Watt in a hard-fought, but indecisive battle.

  After that, Perry enlisted on another privateer which was captured and Perry was again imprisoned, this time  at Newry Barracks in Ireland where he met his future wife, Sarah Wallace  Alexander. he was able to make another escape, this time by posing as a British seaman.  He arrived back in the U.S.  shortly before the end of the war in 1783.

(In case you're wondering, the Perry in my sign-off below comes from Christopher's son, Oliver Hazard Perry.  The Brock is from British/Canadian War of 1812  hero Isaac Brock.)

--Brock-Perry

Christopher R. Perry, USN-- Part 1: Father of Some Famous Sons

I'm sure I knew that Oliver Hazard Perry had a father, but never thought anything about him until I was doing posts about ships that had been burned in the Washington Navy Yard in 1814 to prevent them from being captured by the British.  One of them was the frigate USS General Greene, another ship I had never heard of as well.

And, not only was Christopher Perry the father of Oliver Hazard, but also quite a list of other naval officers.

Here's his story.

From Wikipedia.

CHRISTOPHER RAYMOND PERRY  (December 4, 1761 - June 1, 1818)

Was an officer in the United States Navy, appointed Chief Justice of the Court of Pleas for Washington County, R.I., in 1780 and served until 1791.  He was the father of Oliver Hazard Perry and Matthew Calbraith Perry.

The Perry in my sign-off below is for Oliver Hazard Perry.

--Brock-Perry

The USS General Greene-- Part 1: Also Burned At Washington Navy Yard Aug. 24, 1814

From Wikipedia.

The USS General Greene was a 124-foot long frigate mounting 30 cannons and manned by a crew of 250.

It was built under government contract by Benjamin Talman and James De Wolf in Rhode Island   It was launched  21 January 1799 and first commanded by Christopher R. Perry, whose son, Oliver Hazard Perry, was a midshipman on his father's ship.

Its first mission in 1799 resulted in damage during a heavy gale, putting into Havana, Cuba, for repairs and the crew being struck with yellow fever with more than twenty dying.  It returned to the U.S. to clean up the illness and then took station at San Domingo for six months.

--Brock-Perry

Oliver Hazard Perry and the Sinking of the USS Revenge-- Part 2

On january 9, 1811, the USS Revenge ran aground off Rhode Island was lost.

"seeing fairly quickly that he could not save the vessel, [Perry] turned his attention to saving the crew, and after helping them down the ropes over the vessel's stern, he was last to leave the vessel."

A court-martial exonerated Perry and placed the blame for the ship's loss on its pilot.

In January 2011, divers claimed to have found the remains of the USS Revenge.

--Brock-Perry

Watch Hill Light, Rhode Island-- Part 2: Other Wrecks

In 1827 a rotary light was installed.  The lighthouse operated until 1855 when it closed due to severe erosion.  It was moved further inland away from the edge of the bluff and a new 45-foot lighthouse was built.

The steamer Metis crashed aground off Watch Hill in 1872, killing 130 people.  Lighthouse keeper Captain Jared Starr Crandall received a Congressional Gold Medal for his actions in rescuing survivors.  After his death, his wife, Sally Ann (Gavitt) Crandall, became the first  female lighthouse keep in the country.

A U.S. Life-Saving Service station was built next to the lighthouse and operated until the 1940s.  It was destroyed in 1963.

In 1907, the steamer Larchmont collided with a schooner 4 miles from the lighthouse, killing 200.  The hurricane of 1938 caused severe damage to the structure.  The light was automated in 1986 and leased to the Watch Hill Light Keepers Association.

--Brock-Perry

Watch Hill Light, Rhode Island-- Part 1: Second One Built in 1807

From Wikipedia.

There has been a beacon at Watch Hill, Rhode Island, dating to 1745.  Rhode Island's colonial government erected a watchtower and beacon there during the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary War.

The original structure was destroyed in a 1781 storm.  Plans were immediately made to build a new lighthouse to mark the eastern entrance to Fishers island Sound and to warn mariners of dangerous reefs southwest of Watch Hill.

President Thomas Jefferson signed an act to build a lighthouse there in 1806 and construction of the 35 foot tall structure was completed in 1807.

So, there was a lighthouse there when Oliver Hazard Perry had his ship, the USS Revenge run into the reef and sink in 1811.

--Brock-Perry

U.S. Navy Recovers Cannon Off Rhode Island-- Part 2: Watch Hill Reef

There was a thick fog and heavy swells that January 9, 1811, when Oliver Hazard Perry's ship, the USS Revenge struck the reef off Watch Hill in Waverly.  Hazard ordered the men to jettison the cannons, mast and anchor to get off the rocks, but to no avail.  His ship sank (and he was disgraced).

The cannons were found in 2005 by a pair of divers and the announcement was made in 2011, on the 200th anniversary of the sinking.

--Brock-Perry

U.S. Navy Recovers Cannon Off Rhode Island-- Part 1: Perhaps From Perry's USS Revenge

From the June 3, 2017, Providence (Rhode island) Journal "US Navy recovers cannon to identify 200-year-old shipwreck."

A picture of the cannon accompanies the article with the label:  January 7, 2010, one of the cannons found on Water Hill reef by Charles Buffum, Stonington, Connecticut, and Craig Harger..  They found six cannons and an anchor 15 feet below the surface of the water.

It is believed the cannon is from the wreck of Oliver Hazard Perry's schooner USS Revenge which sank in the area on January 9, 1811.

Always Great to Find Lost Stuff.  --Brock-Perry

Perry's (?) Cannon Discovered Off Rhode Island's Coast

According to the AP, a cannon has been discovered off the coast of Rhode Island, believed to be from the USS Revenge, a ship commanded at one time by War of 1812 naval hero Oliver Hazard Perry.

The ship sank in 1811 after hitting a reef.

Conservation work will be done on it and desalination at the Washington Navy Yard.  Foundry marks on the cannon are expected to definitely identify the ship wreck as it is not known that any other U.S. navy ships sank in the area.

--Brock-Perry

Captain William Henry Allen, Rhode Island Naval Hero-- Part 3

Next, William Allen was given command of the brig USS Argus, a two-masted, 95 1/2 foot ship mounting eighteen 24-pounders and two 12-pdr. guns.

Naval historian Ira Dye, in his book, "The Fatal Cruise of the Argus: Two Captains in the War of 1812," wrote that Allen sailed his ship to the British Isles and in the summer of 1813, attacked 20 vessels, burning, sinking and destroying all but two.  This was more victims than any other U.S. ship of its size during the War of 1812.

On August 14, 1813, the Argus fought the much larges HMS Pelican under the command of Captain John Maples.  The Argus was beaten and 97 prisoners captured.  Twelve Americans were killed and Allen was badly wounded, but didn't die until four days later.

He was given a huge military funeral in Plymouth, England, and buried at St. Andrew's Churchyard.

Allen's family wanted the body brought back to Rhode Island like Perry's body was brought back from Trinidad in 1826.

--Bock-Perry

Captain William Henry Allen, Rhode Island Naval Hero-- Part 2

On William Allen's first cruise, he went from Philadelphia to North Africa on the USS George Washington to carry tribute to the Dey of Algiers to keep him from attacking American shipping.

In June 1807, in the Chesapeake Bay, he allegedly fired the only shot at the HMS Leopard when it was impressing American seamen from the USS George Washington.  This even caused President Jefferson to enact his December 1807 Embargo against Britain.

In early 1812, Allen was 1st Lieutenant on Captain Stephen Decatur's frigate USS United States in its victory over the HMS Macedonian and then he took command of that ship and sailed it into Newport, Rhode Island, as a prize on Dec. 6, 1812.

--Brock-Perry

Captain William Henry Allen, Rhode Island Naval Hero-- Part 1

From the  January 115, 2013, Providence (RI) Journal by Patrick T. Conley.

Sunday is the 200th anniversary of William Henry Allen's death in battle and that day he will be inducted into the Rhode Island Heritage Hall of Fame.

Allen sailed out of Providence and is far less known than Rhode Island's Oliver Hazard Perry.

William was born in Providence on Oct. 21, 1784, the son of Sarah Jones, sister of the state's pacifist and anti-war governor, and William Jones. His grandfather,  Major William Allen of Providence, had been a Revolutionary War soldier and later brigadier general of the state militia and sheriff of Providence County.

Young William wanted a naval career, so his influential family got him an appointment by U.S. senator Ray Greene as a midshipman.  At age 15, he was on his first cruise.

--Brock-Perry

Building a War of 1812 Warship

From the April  2014 Smithsonian Magazine.

A replica of a British warship captured by Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry (One of the "We have met the enemy, and they are ours" ships) at the Battle of Lake Erie in 1813, is nearing its launch date. It will be named the USS Perry (the article did not mention the name of the British ship it was modeled after).

It was started by a Canadian group that ran out of money and then bought by enthusiasts from Rhode Island (Perry was a state native).  After six years and $10 million, the 138-foot steel-hulled, three-masted, 20 sailed tall ship will be launched sometime this summer from Newport Shipyard.

It will be the first of the type launched in the United States since 1903, but the ship is fitted with the latest 21st century technology and has back-up engines.

Looking Forward to Seeing It.  --Brock-Perry

Paul Revere's Bell On the USS Constitution-- Part 1

Last month, I wrote about the bell of the HMS Guerriere coming to Rhode Island last year and that it had been taken from the ship after its battle with the USS Constitution before the Guerriere sank.

During the battle,the Constitition's bell was destroyed and it had been made by Paul Revere's factory; the Paul Revere famous for his Midnight Ride to warn the Minutemen of the British Army marching out from Boston.

I knew that Revere was also a famous silversmith, but not that he had anything to do with making bells. Of course, that meant I had to do some research.

A Ringing In My Ears. --Brock-Perry

Rhode Island's Great Road

I'll write more about this road in my RoadLog blog, but for right now, I'll give a short history of it here since I mentioned that the Hearthside House is located on the Great Road.

The Great Road was a major transportation route through the Blackstone River Valley until the early 1800s with the completion of the Louisquisett Pike and Blackstone Canal took away much of its traffic.

It connected Rhode Island with Massachusetts, to the north.

Several small mills operated along it, but the limited power of the Moshassuek River prevented the development of larger mills like those along the Blackstone River. The Great Road remained an agricultural area until well into the 1900s.

The Blackstone River Valley National Heritage Corridor has a driving tour guide of it "Great Road-- Lincoln, Rhode Island-- Travel Through Three Hundred Years In Three Miles.". The road dates to 1683 and would definitely have been used during the War of 1812.

Oh, That Great Road. --Brock-Perry