Free Admission for 2018 Re-enactment of the Battle of Stoney Creek

From the May 16, 2018, Hamilton (Ontario) News by Mike Pearson.

The re-enactment will be held June 2 and 3rd, Saturday and Sunday.

In previous years adult admission was $10, but last year it was free in honor of Canada 150.

It will be held at the Battlefield House Museum & Park.

Lots of War of 1812 Stuff Going On.  --Brock-Perry

Grave Marking of Private Isaac Nation, War of 1812 Patriot

From the May 18, 2018, Texas Mesquite News.

On May 12, the Craig Austin Rowley Chapter, General Society of the War of 1812 and the John Cavet Chapter #39 U.S. Daughters of the War of 1812 had a grave marker dedication for this man.

Isaac Nation was in Major Henry Price's 2nd Regiment Ohio Militia.

He moved to Texas in the spring of 1848.  His group was hit by small pox on the way, and many died, including him.

Brock-Perry

Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial-- Part 3

The monument was dedicated July 31, 1931.

In 2004, $2.4 million was spent on a new visitor center.  The monument receives some 200,000 visitors a year, despite the fact that it is on an island.

It was featured on a 2013 U.S. quarter, along with Oliver Hazard Perry.

It was closed most of the summer of 2006 after a 500 pound piece of granite broke off the southeast corner of the observation deck.  In 2009 it was closed for repairs and reopened in 2013.

More recently, it was closed in the summer of 2017 for repairs and cleaning.

Story of a Monument.  --Brock-Perry

Another HMS Detroit-- Part 3: Recaptured By the Americans

On 9 October 1812, an American boat expedition led by Lt. Jesse D. Elliott captured both the HMS Detroit and Caledonia while they were anchored right under the guns of British Fort Erie.  They were able to successfully get the Caledonia away and back to the American base at Black Rock, New York.

But the larger HMS Detroit, owing to light wind was swept down the Niagara River's strong current and under British guns.  Elliott and his men manned the Detroit's guns until they ran out of ammunition.  They cut the cable and drifted down the river.

The ship grounded by Squaw Island within range of both American and British guns, whereupon Elliott and his men abandoned ship.  A force of British troops then boarded the ship only to be driven off with heavy losses.

Both sides fired at the battered hull until it caught fire and burned.

--Brock-Perry

Another HMS Detroit-- Part 2: The Former American Brig Adams

From Wikipedia.

Launched 1798 by the United States.  150 tons.  Built at U.S. Shipyard on River Rouge near River Rouge.  Begun in 1798 and launched 18 May 1799.

Officially named President Adams.  The commissariat at Fort Shelby in Detroit used the ship to transport troops and supplies to Fort Mackinac and Fort Dearborn.

The Adams was in drydock in Detroit when the War of 1812 began and was back at sea 4 July 1812, but was surrendered along with the American troops by General William Hull on August 16, 1812.

The British Navy took her and renamed the ship the HMS Detroit.  Along with the HMS Caledonia, they effectively controlled Lake Erie and the Upper Great Lakes.

--Brock-Perry

Another HMS Detroit-- Part 1: Captured, Recaptured and Destroyed

From Wikipedia.

This was the former American brig Adams which was purchased in 1812 and fitted out to mount six 6-pdrs..  It surrendered to the British 16 August 1812, after the surrender of Detroit.  The British changed its name to the HMS Detroit

On October 9, Americans under Lt. Jesse Elliott recaptured the ship, but were unable to get the ship away from shore guns and burned her later that day.

Not to be confused with the frigate Adams.

--Brock-Perry

HMS/USS Detroit-- Part 2: Essentially a Hulk After the Battle of Lake Erie

It was classified as a corvette and was originally planned for twenty 24-pdr. carronades but those cannons were captured when the Americans attacked York, Upper Canada.  As a result, the HMS Detroit was armed with an assortment of guns, some taken from British Fort Amherstburg.

Many of these were long guns, which could fire further than carronades, but were lighter shot.  This made an initial big difference in the Battle of Lake Erie.

After their capture at the battle, the badly damaged Detroit and HMS Queen Charlotte were used as hospital ships.  A gale struck a few days later, further damaging the ships.  After the wounded were taken off, the two British ships were essentially nothing more than hulks.


They were taken to Put-In-Bay to prevent sinking.  In May 1814, the USS Ohio assisted in fitting out the two ships at Put-In-Bay and then convoyed them to Erie, Pennsylvania where they were laid up until sold in 1825.

--Brock-Perry

HMS/USS Detroit-- Part 1: Actually, Not Much of a Career

I have been writing about the six ships by the name USS Detroit in my Cooter's History Thing blog the last several days.  The very first one was a War of 1812 ship so will write about it here,

From Wikipedia.

The first USS Detroit was a captured British vessel at the Battle of Lake Erie, the HMS Detroit.  It was a 20-gun sloop of 305 tons and had a very short career in the Royal Navy.  It was launched in August 1813 and captured by the Americans in September 1813 at the Battle of Lake Erie.

After capture, it became the  USS Detroit, but was so badly damaged from the battle that it was laid up until sold in 1824.

--Brock-Perry

Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial-- Part 2: Mighty Tall Monument

From Wikipedia.

The memorial is 75 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty and its upper deck platform is 12 feet taller than the Statue of Liberty's torch.  Only the Gateway Arch, San Jacinto Monument and Washington Monument are taller of our national monuments.

Entering the column, the visitor goes up 37 steps and then a National Park Service ranger will operate an elevator to the viewing deck.  From there you have an incredible view.

Perry's fleet of American ships sailed out from Put-In-Bay before the big victory at the Battle of Lake Erie, a major turning point of the War of 1812.

The tower was mostly finished by 1915, but problems kept it from completion until the federal government assumed control in 1919 and provided the additional funds to finish it.

--Brock-Perry

USS Constitution Salutes Our Vietnam Veterans

From the May 18, 2018, Boston Globe  "USS Constitution Salutes Vietnam Veterans, Commemorates the War."

The USS Constitution is usually connected with the War of 1812, but Friday it commemorated the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War.

Five hundred Vietnam veterans departed on the Constitution at 10 a.m. and sailed around the harbor.  At Castle Island, the ship fired a 21-gun salute toward the South Boston Vietnam Veterans Memorial.

--Brock-Perry

Perry's Victory and Peace Memorial-- Part 1: 352-Feet Tall

From Wikipedia.

This monument is located on an isthmus of South Bass Island (Put-In-Bay).  At 352-feet tall, it is the largest Doric column in the world.  Its construction was run by a multi-state commission from 1912-1915 "to inculcate the lessons of international peace by arbitration and disarmament" between the United States and Canada.

It honors Oliver Hazard Perry and six officers (three British and three American) who died during the Battle of Lake Erie). The six officers are buried under the rotunda of the monument.  Perry, however, is buried in Newport, Rhode Island.  Carved into the walls of the rotunda are the names of soldiers and sailors who were killed or wounded in the battle.

--Brock-Perry

Put-In-Bay Celebrates Reopening of the Perry's Victory and International Memorial Today

From the May 16, 2018, Toledo (Ohio) Blade.

Local dignitaries will be on hand at the Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial in Put-In-Bay, Ohio, on South Bass Island in Lake Erie.  It will open today, Saturday, May 19, 2018.

The 353-foot tall tower was off limits to visitors since last summer.  The museum and visitors center, outside of it, however, was open.  Workers cleaned and repointed the granite column and replaced broken tiles inside the structure.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place at 10 a.m. and three U.S. and state congressmen are to be in attendance.

The tower is to honor the dead of the Battle of Lake Erie as well as Oliver Hazard Perry's victory as well as peace between the United States and Canada for all these years since the War of 1812.

The project cost $2.4 million.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Eustis-- Part 5: World War II

In 1923, Camp Abraham Eustis became Fort Eustis and operated until 1931.  Then it became a prison camp, primarily for bootleggers during Prohibition, but when that was repealed the number of prisoners dropped drastically.

Afterwards, it was used for a number of different uses, both military and non-military.  It was also a WPA camp at one time.

It reopened as a fort in August 1940, part of the U.S. build up before World War II.  It was an anti-aircraft training base  In 1943, the British Army's Caribbean Regiment trained there.

In 1946, it became the home of the U.S. Army Transportation School.

A portion of the U.S. Maritime Administration's National Defense Reserve Fleet (NDRF) anchored in the James River adjacent to Mulberry Island.  It was known as the "Ghost Fleet."  There are still some of them there, though deterioration has caused major environmental problems.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Eustis-- Part 4: Artillery Training in WW I

During World War I, Camp Abraham Eustis was established after the military bought the island and surrounding land for $538,000, displacing about 200 locals.  Camp Eustis was established as a coast artillery replacement center for Fort Monroe.

It also was a balloon observation school.  The camp was named for General Abraham Eustis, War of 1812 veteran and first commander of Fort Monroe.

Camp Wallace was established a few miles upstream in 1918 and became the Upper Firing Range for artillery training.  It eventually had 30 barracks, 6 storehouses and 8 mess halls on 160 acres.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Eustis, Newport News-- Part 3: During the Civil War

From Wikipedia.

In 2010, this military base was combined with nearby Langley Air Force Base and now it is Joint Base Langley-Eustis.

Most of the fort is located on Mulberry Island in the James River which was settled soon after Jamestown in 1607.

During the Civil War, Confederate Fort Crawford (Fort Crafford) was on Mulberry Island and served as the southern end of the Warwick Line which was a Confederate line of defensive works across the Virginia Peninsula.  This line extended north to Yorktown on the York River and delayed Union forces under George McClellan advancing against Richmond in 1862.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Eustis' 100th Anniversary-- Part 2: Trained Artillery Men During Both World Wars

Fort Eustis was named for Brevet Brigadier General Abraham Eustis, a veteran of the War of 1812.  The fort was established to train artillerymen during World War I.  Some 20,000 trained there with some winding up in balloons and airplanes acting as artillery spotters.

The fort served the same role during World War II.

Today, it is the home of the Army Transportation Corps.  It became this after World War II.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Eustis' 100th Anniversary: Named After War of 1812 Officer

From the May 11, 2018, Daily Press (Va.) "100th anniversary, medal of Honor winner, honored at Fort Eustis.

The fort is named for Brevet Brigadier General Abraham Eustis.

Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. William Wayne Seay, fifty years ago in the Vietnam War was involved in a none-hour ambush.  Twice he dashed from cover to grab grenades and toss them back.  Though gravely wounded, he stood up to shoot North Vietnamese soldiers.

A plaza at the fort is now named Seay Plaza in his honor.

Fort Eustis is home to the Army Training and Doctrine Command, which oversees 32 Army schools.  They also have a school for the mapping of future wars.

--Brock-Perry

Looking For Fort Johnson-- Part 3: The Fort Is Found

A search team using several documentary clues and a series of auger tests along with a remote sensing survey explored several residential properties opposite the former mouth of the Des Monies River.

They discovered Fort Johnson's location by luck  Many military buttons and objects dating to the period of time were found.  In addition, physical and geo-physical evidence was found.

All but one of the fifteen 1 X 2 millimeter hand units had War of 1812 features.

Also, evidence of structures that were at the fort as shown on a hand-drawn map made by Captain James Calloway were located.  Callaway was stationed at Fort Johnson.

--Brock-Perry

Looking For Fort Johnson-- Part 2: Exact Location Not Known

The following fall, 1815, Cantonment Davis was built on the site of Fort Johnson.  It was used as a winter staging area for the construction of the nearby Fort Edwards.  It was afterwards used by the military and later the American Fur Trading Company for several decades before it was abandoned.

An obelisk stands at the site of Fort Edwards, but the exact location of Fort Johnson and Cantonment Davis is unknown.  They knew roughly where they were, but not exactly.

--Brock-Perry

Looking For Fort Johnson-- Part 1: People Don't Know Much About the War in the Upper Mississippi Valley

From Illinois State Archaeology Survey "War of 1812 Forts Project."

During the summer of 2003, David Noka began an unsubsidized search for Fort Johnson and Cantonment Davis in Warsaw, Illinois.  They were assisted by others.

As far as the War of 1812 is concerned, some people in the country know a little about the war, mainly sea victories, Fort McHenry, Battle of New Orleans and the burning of Washington, D.C., but most would be hard-pressed to say much about the important aspect of the war in the Upper Mississippi region.

Brevet Major Zachary Taylor established Fort Johnson in September 1814.  It commanded the mouth of the Des Moines River and a series of rapids on the Mississippi River.

It was abandoned and destroyed less than eight weeks later when it became apparent that because of its remoteness, if would be too hard to supply during the winter.

--Brock-Perry

Samuel C. Muir-- :Part 3: Some Facts About Him

Other sources on Muir:

**  Muir helped lay out the City of Keokuk and named most of the main streets.

**  One of the early pioneers of Iowa.

**  While at Fort Edwards at Warsaw, Illinois in 1820, he crossed the Mississippi River to where Keokuk is today and married "a beautiful and intelligent Indian girl of the Sac nation."

**  In 1820, Dr. Samuel C. Muir built the first house in what is today Keokuk near Main and Water Street.  In 1839 the house was bought by C.B. Fleck.

**  Keokuk was named for Chief Keokuck, Chief of the Sac and Fox Indians.  In 1883, his bones were dug up from Franklin County, Kansas, and brought to Keokuk.  He was reburied in Rand Park under a massive stone.

--Brock-Perry

Samuel C. Muir-- Part 2: Resigned From Army Over Order to Abandon His Wife

Some years later, an order from the U.S. Army required that officers abandon their Indian wives if they had one.  Muir refused to obey the order and resigned his commission.

Afterwards, he settle on a farm near the mouth of the Des Moines River, opposite of his old fort, Fort Edwards.  This is where the town of Keokuk, Iowa, stands today.

He died in 1832 of cholera, leaving his wife and five children destitute while his property was involved in litigation.

Keokuk was first known as Pirch-e-chut-tech and Dr. Muir was one of its first settlers as well as one of the first pioneers in the state of Iowa.

--Brock-Perry

Samuel C. Muir-- Part 1: From Scotland and At Fort Edwards

On May 7, I wrote about Samuel C. Muir, the Army surgeon at Fort Edwards and his Indian wife.  He was one of the early white settlers in Iowa.

From Lagenweb.

A graduate of the University of Edinburgh and surgeon in the U.S. Army.  In 1820, he married an Indian girl of the Sac Nation and was stationed at Fort Edwards.

According to the account of Stephen Watts Kearny and Henry Schoolcraft who were on a military expedition in northern Iowa in 1820, they visited the Dubuque (Iowa) mines on the morning of August 5 and stopped their six-oared keelboat at the settlement of traders and met Muir, late of the U.S. Army and his squaw and two children.

He and his men were treated politely by Dr. Muir and the traders.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Edwards Monument, Warsaw, Illinois

Built 1914 to honor 100th anniversary.  Barre granite monument.  Cost $7,390.  A three-day celebration was held, attracting crowd estimated to be at 10,000..

The monument has four bronze panels at the bottom of it.  The first three feature pictures of Fort Edwards, Ninian Edwards (Illinois Territorial Governor and namesake) and Zachary Taylor.

The fourth panel reads:  "Erected September, 1914 to commemorate the establishment of Fort Edwards built by Major Zachary Taylor 3rd U.S. Infantry September 1814.  Abandoned July 1824."

Evidently, for the fourth panel, they got a lot of this confused with Fort Johnson.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Edwards-- Part 3: Built to Replace Fort Johnson

From the Warsaw, Illinois, Park District.

Even after the Treaty of Ghent ended the War of 1812, problems with the Indians continued.

The 5th U.S. Infantry was sent to establish a fort in Illinois at the mouth of the Des Moines River.  They likely discovered the charred remains of Fort Johnson but found a more commanding view of the Mississippi River and Des Moines River.  They spent the winter and construction of the new fort in Cantonment Davis located on the ruins of Fort Johnson.

They cleared the bluff north of the old fort and built Fort Edwards, named after the territorial governor of Illinois, Ninian Edwards.  This fort was abandoned by the military in 1824 and was then used by the American Fur Company owned by John Jacob Astor.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Johnson-- Part 4: Where Is It?

From Warsaw, Illinois, Park District.

Fort Johnson was hastily built in 1814 and was a rough stockade of rounded logs with blockhouses.  But in Autumn 1814 it was burned when the fort was abandoned by the Army when it retreated further south to an installation near Elsberry, Missouri.

Fort Johnson was always known to exist on the bluff somewhere near present-day Mulberry Street in Warsaw, but the exact site is in question.

However, persistent research by Joe Bartholomew and others have discovered the location through discoveries and artifacts found at the site.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Edwards in Warsaw, Illinois-- Part 2: An Interesting Story

Sometime before 1820, a beautiful Indian maid had a dream that a white warrior would paddle across the Mississippi and come to her lodge.    When she awoke, she went to Fort Edwards where she saw Dr. Samuel Muir, an army surgeon.  She believed him to be the man of her dreams.

She told her story to Dr. Muir and "due to her beauty, devotion and innocence,"  Muir agreed to marry her.

He called her Sophia and they had a baby.  Many of the other officers at Fort Edwards derided Muir for marrying an Indian girl and he became ashamed.  He was restationed to another fort in Missouri and abandoned her.

She then traveled one hundred miles with children and found him and Muir then swore that he would never leave her again.  The Army later banned marriages between officers and Indian women, whereupon Muir resigned his commission.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Edwards in Warsaw, Illinois-- Part 1: Replaced Fort Johnson

From Illinois in Focus.

Warsaw, in Hancock County, is the westernmost town in Illinois.  At the north end of the town is Fort Edwards Park.  This is on the site of Fort Edwards, the fort that replaced Fort Johnson.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Johnson (Illinois)-- Part 3: Three Fortifications in Warsaw, Illinois

From Joseph Smith Papers.

Fort Johnson.  Located at the foot of the Des Moines rapids on the Mississippi River in the town of Warsaw, Illinois.

Three forts have been constructed there:  Fort Johnson (1814), Cantonment Davis (1815-1818) and Fort Edwards  (1816-1824).

I was wondering about the Fort Edwards mentioned in the last post.  So it replaced Fort Johnson.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Johnson (Illinois)-- Part 2: Where Is It?

In October 1815, Fort Johnson was reoccupied and renamed Cantonment Davis.  Troops from here helped construct Fort Edwards which was occupied by American troops until 1824 and then traders moved in until about 1832.

Recent archaeological surveys have determined the probable location of Fort Johnson / Cantonment Davis.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Johnson-- Part 1

From Wikipedia.

Built on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River in modern-day Warsaw, Illinois.  Was established in 1814 by Major Zachary Taylor after retreating from the loss at the Battle of Credit Island.  The fort was able to hold a full company of troops. and had a commanding view of both the Mississippi River and the mouth of the Des Moines River.

Taylor and his men remained there into October 1814,when their supplies ran out.  They retreated from here to Cap au Gris, near St. Louis.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Cap au Gris-- Part 2

From Legends of America.

**  Also called Fort Independence.

**  Eighteen miles east of Troy.

**  The small town of Cap au Gris grew up around the fort.

**  Officially laid out inj 1845.

**  By 1876, the arrival of railroads caused the town to disappear.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Cap au Gris-- Part 1

From Wikipedia.

Also called Capo Gray.  A temporary fort near Troy, Missouri, built by Missouri Rangers (U.S. Mounted Rangers) under the direction of Nathan Boone, son of Daniel Boone.

After his defeat at Fort Johnson, Zachary Taylor (later U.S. president) and his soldiers returned to Cap au Gris in October 1814.

The Battle of Sink Hole was fought nearby on May 24, 1815.

The unincorporated community of Cap au Gris occupies the site of the fort.

--Brock-Perry

Can You Believe This, Andrew Jackson's Grave Desecrated in a Hate Crime?

From the April 30, 2018, Newsweek  "President Andrew Jackson's grave spray painted with 'killer,' anarchist symbols on Nashville, officials say"  Michael Edison Hayden.

The graves of President Jackson and his wife Rachel were desecrated by those committing a hate crime.  This was discovered Friday morning.

Obscenities were also spray painted on them.  There was also the word 'KILLER" on it.

There was a nearby white supremacist event going on which drew 60 or more anti-racist protesters so it is a good possibility this hate crime was committed by the anti-racists.

At least they were describing this as vandalism which is how the media almost always describes these hateful acts when committed against Confederates.  To me, the white supremacist  haters are just as bad as the people they don't like.

Brock-Perry

Battle of the Sink Hole

From Wikipedia.

Fought May 24, 1815, after the end of the War of 1812 between Missouri Rangers and Indians led by Black Hawk.  The Sauk Indians were either unaware or didn't care that the British had signed the Treaty of Ghent.  Most likely didn't care.  Just because the British were out of the war didn't mean that their land was any safer from American encroachment.

It was fought near a low spot near the mouth of the Cuivre River near the present day Old Monroe near Fort Howard and Fort Cap au Gris.

It was an ambush on the Rangers and resulted in a siege in which seven Rangers, including their commander Captain Peter Craig, were killed.  One Sauk was killed.  There are conflicting accounts of the battle from both sides, however.

In 1816, Black Hawk reaffirmed the Treaty of St.Louis.

--Brock-Perry