Betsy Doyle and the Battle of Fort Niagara-- Part 5: A 12-Hour Bombardment.

About an hour before sunrise, the British cannons at Fort George opened fire on Fort Niagara.    For the next twelve hours, the American and British artillery exchanged a cannonade  that was heard along the entire length of the Niagara River.

During this exchange, Betsy Doyle carried red-hot cannonballs from a fire to the six pound cannon mounted on top of the mess hall.  That hot-shot" was intended to set fire to British buildings and battlements.

But loading hot-shot was difficult and dangerous.  The hot iron  could cause gunpowder to explode prematurely in the cannon, wounding or killing anyone standing nearby.

--Brock-Perry

Betsy Doyle and the Battle of Fort Niagara-- Part 4: 'An Instance of Extraordinary Bravery'

From the National Park Service "Autumn 1812:  Betsy Doyle helps operate a cannon to defend Fort Niagara."

While British cannonballs crashed around her, Betsy Doyle carried red-hot iron shot to the American cannons atop Fort Niagara.  With her husband a prisoner of the British, Betsy was left alone to fight for survival on the frontier, going above and beyon the call of duty.

"An instance of extraordinary  bravery"--  Lieutenant Colonel  George McFeeley.

In the early  dawn of November 21, 1812, Betsy Doyle looked out from Fort Niagara across the Niagara River to British Fort George, waiting for the first shots to be fired.  With ammunition for only a 12-hour bombardment, the American artillery was ordered to hold fire  unless fired upon by the British.

Betsy stood alongside soldiers of the First Regiment of United States Artillery, with whom her husband had served before his capture at  the Battle of Queenston Heights just one month earlier.  While Andrew Doyle remained imprisoned, Betsy continued to live and work at Fort Niagara with her children.

--Brock-Perry

Betsy Doyle, American Heroine-- Part 3: Carrying Those Red-Hot Cannonballs

After the capture of her husband, Betsy Doyle was left to fend for herself at Fort Niagara.  Like many women, she supported herself and her family by laundering soldiers' clothing.

When the cannons began to roar on November 22, 1812, Betsy abandoned her washtub and offered her services to the gun crew from her husband's regiment.

During the ensuing barrage she carried red-hot cannon balls from the furnace to the cannon which was then fired at Fort George, 1,300 yards away.  Fort Niagara's commandant noted that Betsy "showed fortitude  equal to the Maid of  Orleans (Joan of Arc)."

The participation of women in America's wars is recorded in many scattered sources -- order books, letters, journals, and official records for all  of America's early wars, and these sources are well represented in the University of Michigan Clements Library.

--Brock-Perry

Betsy Doyle, American Heroine-- Part 2

From the  Nov. 12, 2012, Clements Library Chronicles "Today in History:  Heroine of Fort Niagara" by Brian Dunnigan.

Two hundred years ago, Betsy Doyle, wife of a U.S. artilleryman at Fort Niagara, New York, stood by the soldiers stationed at a gun platform during a ferocious exchange of cannon fire with the British-held Fort George across the Niagara River.

Betsy, whose name is often incorrectly given as "Fanny,"  was the wife of artilleryman Andrew Doyle.  As such, she was one of the many married women who accompanied their husbands into the field with both the British and American armies.

Doyle, however, was not present to see his wife's heroism; he had fought at the Battle of Queenston Heights on October 13, where he was taken prisoner.

--Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Heroine Betsy Doyle

While doing research about the Greenbush Cantonment I came across the name of this woman in connection to her role in the War of 1812 and to Greenbush, New York.  I decided to follow up on her.

Historical Marker located in Youngstown, Niagara County, New York.

BETSY DOYLE

Heroine of Fort Niagara.  Carried hot shot to cannon, stood  sentry duty.

Fled  310 miles to Greenbush, NY when enemy attacked fort in 1812.

--Brock-Perry

Anniversary of the River Raisin Massacre: 'Remember the Raisin'

From The Press (Toledo, Ohio)

JANUARY 22, 1813

The River Raisin Massacre takes place near Frenchtown Township in Michigan (Near Monroe).

Hundreds of American troops under the command of General Winchester are killed by the British and Indians.  The attack is led by Chief Tecumseh and the it became a rallying cry for American troops for the rest of the war.

*****************************

I'm not so sure that hundreds of American soldiers were massacred.  After Winchester's surrender to the British, Americans were taken by them and some sixty of the worst wounded were left behind.  When the Indians came on the 22nd, those that could travel were taken and those that couldn't were put to the tomahawk.

The cry "Remember the Raisin" was heard after this.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush in the War of 1812: The Cantonment-- Part 3

Major John Defreest, who lived in what is now North Greenbush,  was an officer in Colonel Carr's New York Militia.    Carrr was one of several Rensselaer County soldiers who served during the war.

Depending upon which story you believe, Col. Carr's soldiers arrived just in time to turn the tide at the Battle of Plattsburgh, or was too late to tip the  balance for an American victory.

After the war ended in 1815, the government continued to station a few soldiers at the Cantonment and finally sold the property to  Hathhorn  McCulloch for $8,007, in 1831.

Today, the only building left at the site is one of the officers' quarters and it is a private residence.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush in the War of 1812-- Part 2

When General Dearborn took command of the Greenbush Cantonment, the cost overruns began.  He bought the land on behalf of the government for $9,000 and construction of the Cantonment began.  It wasn't until a year later that Dearborn discovered the government didn't have a clear title to the land.

So he had to pay an additional $1,250 to perfect the title.  Additionally, the government purchased a large field of standing rye nearby that was ready for harvest.  However, a cavalry unit arrived there and the hirses promptly devoured the whole crop.

The Cantonment consisted of  eight barracks for enlisted men, three units for officers, the general's house,  surgeon and physician's quarters, a hospital, horse stables, armory, arsenal  storehouse, guard house, kitchens and many latrines.

Jim Greenfield is not sure whether local units were stationed there.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush in the War of 1812: The Cantonment-- Part 1

From Town of North Greenbush Notes:  Greenbush in the War of 1812" by Jim Greenfield.

No battles occurred in the old town of Greenbush, New York (Rensselaer,  East and North Greenbush) during the war, the area does have claim to fame because the U.S. Army constructed a large military post called the Greenbush Cantonment there.

The several hundred  acre cantonment was located near the present-day Red Mill School in East Greenbush.  During the war, over 5,000 troops trained there.

The Greenbush location was well located because it was near the action occurring at both the Niagara Frontier and Lake Champlain.

The commanding general of the cantonment was  Henry Dearborn, a veteran of the American Revolution.  One suspects he might have been well past his prime abilities.  Rather than a "fighting general" he was more of an administrative general" far from the battlefield.  Think General Halftrack from the "Beetle Bailey" comic strip.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush Cantonment-- Part 3

From North American Forts site.

GREENBUSH CANTONMENT

(1812-1819) East Greenbush, New York

A 400-acre post that was the headquarters of the Northern Division of the U.S. Army.  Built here were eight two-story barracks, three officers' quarters, hospital, two commissaries, arsenal, armory, guardhouses, magazine and stables around a parade ground.

Inactivated and then sold in 1831.

All buildings were removed except one of the officers' quarters which then became a private residence.  This structure still exists today at 250 McCullough Place (provate property).

The Red Mill Elementary School occupies the parade ground.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush Cantonment-- Part 2

The central core of the cantonment was surrounded by  the support buildings and stables.

Each set of four enlisted barracks faced a  separate large parade field while the three  officers' quarters were positioned at the head and foot of the parade areas.

The post was declared surplus in 1819 and sold to private parties in 1831.

CURRENT STATUS

It is private property in East Greenbush, Renssalear County, New York.

One building, an officers' quarters, remains and is converted into apartments.  The Red Mill School now occupies the grand parade grounds.

--Brock-Perry

Greenbush Cantonment-- Part 1

Private Samuel Helms was executed here.  (See last three posts.)

From Fort Wiki.

Greenbush Cantonment (1812-1819)--  A U.S. Army  post established in 1812 during the War of 1812 in Renssalear County, New York.  Abandoned in 1819.

HISTORY

First established in May 1812 on 400 acres purchased by the government for training of troops.    Built on this site were accomodaqtions for  some 4,000 troops and included a 100-bed hospital.

A central core of  buildings, eight large enlisted barracks (252 feet by 22 feet) and three large officers barracks (90 feet long), housed the garrison.

--Brock-Perry

 

Private Samuel Helms Executed-- Part 3: Death in Late August or Early September 1813

"All of my research doesn't support desertion.  It proves he went AWOLn and was tried on charges before an illegal court-martial," said Bobbie Reno.  He was sent to the provost marshal jail at Greenbush Cantonment, a major Army base during the War of 1812, where some 4,000 soldiers were housed and trained.

Samuel Helms always intended to return and was not running from military services as the desertion charges indicated.  War of 1812 records  show that he was listed as AWOL on October 2, 1812, and he was back in camp and placed on muster rolls on October 22, 1812.

It appears that Private Helms became an example for what would happen to deserters.

Helmswas ordered to be tried in July 1813 at Greenbush Cantonment for desertion.  he was convicted and executed by firing squad in either late August 1813 or early September 1813.  Reno says she believes he was buried in an unmarked grave somewhere on the grounds of the cantonment, perhps at the school fields.

With the 210th anniversary of his execution coming up this year, Reno said, "I thought it might be a good thing to go to the governor."

(Hopefully, the governor will clear Private Helms' name.)

--Brock-Perry

Private Helms Executed-- Part 2

Private Helms was an unknown soldier who was executed during the War of 1812 for desertion at the Greenbush Cantonment (camp), which is now the site of  the Hampton manor neighborhood and Red Mill Elementary School.

Now, Greenbush historian  Bobbie Reno is out to get those charges dropped.

Samuel Helms of Captain Joseph Delafield's Company in the 1st New York Militia Regiment apparently might have had an illegal court martial.

Reno attempted to have the state militia  rule in his innocence but they couldn't.  However, she got the governor of the state, Kathy Hochul, to review her documentation and rule on it.

The issue for Private Helms is whether he deserted his post in Ulster County or went AWOL (absent without leave) to see his wife and three young children.

Reno's research makes it seem that the private was AWOL and shouldn't have been tried at court martial.

More to Come.  --Brock-Perry

Private Samuel Helms Was Executed 210 Years Ago, A Modern-Day Historian Wants Him Exonerated

From the January 5, 2023, Times-Union by Kenneth C. Crowe II.

East Greenbush, New York

Bobbi Reno of  East Greenbush says the War of 1812 soldier didn't desert, he went AWOL.

She's asked the governor to remedy that.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Montgomery-- Part 10: Good Ol' Fort Blunder May Be Gone Soon

Fear of Fort Montgomery having a structural collapse stems from the removal of iron reinforcing rods which were likely cut out for their scrap value during wartime scrap drives of World War II.

These rods were initially devised to brace up and reinforce the massive fort's detached outer wall face, a defensive element of the fort's construction whichlater proved to be a structuarl flaw.

Previously, a third remaining  bastion on the northern side of the fort suffered a similar collapse and was completely destroyed in 1980, mostly falling into the moat.

In September2008, the Preservation League of New York State placed Fort Montgomery on their "Seven to Save" properties.  This listing effectively recognized the historical significance of the Fort Montgomery ruins.  It also identified the ruins as being in dire need of stabilization and preservation.

Save Fort Montgomery.  --Brock-Perry

Fort Montgomery-- Part 9

During the mid-1980s, Victor Podds worked with local historical societies to have the state of New York purchase the property with a view toward the possible restoration of the site.  Despite being offered the fort at no cost,  negotiations broke down and the state declined to accept the property.  

Since May 2006, Podds' heirs have attempted to sell the property on eBay.  The first auction ended on June 5, 2006, with a winning bid of $5,000,310.  However, the sale was not completed, and as of 2019 the fort and lands surrounding it remain for sale.

(Of course, we now know that it has been bought recently.  See last month's posts.)

There are current concerns among preservationists that what remains of the fort today in in danger of  catastrophic structure collapse.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Montgomery on Lake Champlain-- Part 8: In the Last Century

In 1926, the U.S. government sold Fort Montgomery along with the adjacent military reservation at public auction.  

During the period of disuse which followed, as had also happened with the abandoned 1816 fortification on the site,  many locals visited the fort and carted off untold ammounts of wood, bricks, windows and doors for use in their homes and other buildings.

Ultimately, most of the fort, aside from the gutted western facing officers' quarters, a small portion of the southern wall and three bastions (two of which remain today), was demolished in 1936-1937.

It's massive  stones were crushed into the lake for fill to construct the nearby bridge between Rouses Point, New York, and  Alburg, Vermont.

The property had a number of private owners before it was sold in 1983 to Victor Podd, Sr. who constructed the headquarters of te Powertex Corporation on the adjacent "Commons" to the west of the fort.  Island Point, the actual fort site, was left untouched.

--Brock-Perry

Fort Montgomery on Lake Champlain-- Part 7: Decline

Continued from last month.

In the years following the Civil War, with the introduction of much more modern and powerful armaments such as explosive shells and rapid-firing rifled cannon, the military importance of  masonry fortifications like Fort Montgomery was rapidly drawing to a close.  

Technology now existed which could allow  an enemy force to quickly  reduce a masonry fort's massive casemates and walls to piles of rubble.

The last decade of the 19th century saw the gradual removal of  the old fort's guns, also long obsolete.  By 1900, there were just 37 guns still present and by 1900, that number was down to just 20.  It is thought that the larger guns were removed and taken down the lake by barge in 1909.

After being loaded onto  railroad cars in Plattsburgh, many of the iron cannon met their end being melted down for scrap metal in Philadelphia.

Following that, the now gunless and empty fort was watched over by a caretaker, usually a retired soldier who loved in a nearby house and  patrolled the grounds.

--Brock-Perry

Events Occurring in January: Battle of New Orleans, Britain Declares War, River Raisin Massacre

From the January American Battlefield Trust 2023 calendar.

JANUARY 8, 1815

**  Battle of New Orleans, Louisiana

JANUARY 9, 1813

**  Great Britain declares war on the United States.  (The U.S, declared war in June 1812.)

JANUARY 13, 1813

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

JANUARY 18, 1813

**  American forces seize Frenchtown, Michigan Terrirory.

JANUARY 22, 1813

**  The Battle of River Raisin; roughjly 40 to 60 American soldiers are killed in what became kniown as "The River Raisin Massacre."

--Brock-Perry

Andrew Jackson's Hermitage to Host Commemoration of the Battle of New Orleans-- Part 2

The annual wreath-laying ceremony with keynote speaker Robert D. Tuke and the presentation of the colors with the Tennessee National Guard and Tennessee SocietyUnited States Daughters of 1812 will take place at 1 p.m.

Robert Tuke, who was an active duty Marine Corps officer 1969-1973 and recently retired from his law firm Trauger & Tuke as well as serving as an  as an adjunct professor at the Vanderbilt School of Law.  Following the brief program, the wreaths will be laid on the tomb to honor both General Jackson and his wife, Rachel.

At 2:30, there will be an exclusive event for Hermitage members with the Vice President of Collections, featuring New Orleans-related relics from the Hermitage collection.

"This is one of my favorite days at the Hermitage," said Howard J. Kittell, President and CEO of the Andrew Jackson Foundation.  "This event commemorates a crucial victory for our nation in a conflict with Great Britain.  General Andrew Jackson led a ragtag army of U.S. servicemembers, volunteer militia, free blacks, Native Americans, and even a band of pirates to defend New Orleans in an invasion.

"The battle only lasted about 30 minutes but resulted in more than 2,000 British casualties.  Jackson became an American hero, and national pride was at an  all-time high.  We look forwad to commemorating that  victory with a day filled with events that young and old will not only enjoy, but learn from, including an annual wreath-laying ceremony at Jackson's tomb."

Brock-Perry

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

12th Year of This Blog

Today marks the 12th year I've had this blog which started in 2012.

I started it because that year marked the bicentennial of the war which started in 1812.  I realized that I really didn't know a lot about it and I sure have learned a lot since then.

This marks the 3,951st post and the blog has had 496,926 visits.

A real learning experience for me.

The Brock-Perry signoff refers to British General Isaac Brock and American naval officer Oliver Hazard Perry.

I have to wonder if there are any other War of 1812 blogs that have been around this long or have had as many posts?

--Brock-Perry