Major Andrew Hunter Holmes-- Part 3: War of 1812 Service

During March 1814, the commander of American forces at Detroit, Colonel Butler, ordered Captain Andrew Holmes of the 24th Tennessee Regiment on a raid into the British Western District in Upper Canada.  His objective was to capture a British military post.  

He won a skirmish/battle near Longwood, a heavily forested tract of land that lay between Delaware and the present town of Thamesville, near present-day Wardsville, Ontario.

Exactly five months later the American forces tried to attack the heavily fortified Fort Mackinac in August 1914.  Major Holmes was killed while leading a force of troops in the attack.

The British ambushed them in a bloody skirmish which left 13 Americans dead including Holmes.

On the 30th of the same month, Andrew Jackson wrote Governor David Holmes a note of condolence saying:  "I sympathize with you most cordially in the afflicting loss of your brother, Major Holmes."

(David Holmes was the governor of the Mississippi Territory.)

--Brock-Perry

Talking About Old Fort Jackson, Savannah-- Part 1: Was It Named After Andrew or Stonewall?

 From the May 18, 2022, Bluffton, Today (S.C.) "Harrell:  Sit on the Shore and watch the boats go by" by Annelore Harrell.

She lives on the north side of the Savannah River, her friend lives on the south side of it.  They wanted to get together so settled on this old fort located in the middle between them.

This fort was not named after Stonewall Jackson or even Andrew Jackson .  The fort in question was named after  James Jackson.  Who?

James Jackson came from Devonshire, England, in 1722 and studied law and became an avid Patriot for independence and involved in the American Revolution.  He had quite the temper and was an expert with the sword.  He also got involved in the political world and had more "than one brouhaha, most notably the Yazoo land deal."

James Jackson was governor of Georgia, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate as well as quite a war hero.  Admiring citizens  of Georgia gifted him a house near Reynolds Square in Savannah.

I Always Thought It Was Named for Andrew Jackson.  --Brock-Perry

Maine Was a Part of Massachusetts During the War of 1812

In case you're wondering why the militia defending Portland, Maine, was called out by the governor of Massachusetts in 1813, that was because Maine was still a part of that state.

However, being physically separated from Massachusetts, Maine was not keen on that idea of being part of Massachusetts.  Secessionist sentiment in Maine was stoked  during the War of 1812 when Massachusetts' pro-British merchants opposed the war and refused to defend Maine from British invaders.

In 1819, Massachusetts agreed to permit secession, sanctioned by the voters of the rapidly growing Maine the following year.

Formal secession and admission as the 23rd state came on March  15, 1820, as part of the Missouri Compromise, which maintained the  balance between slave and free states.

In Case You Were Wondering.    --Brock-Perry

Replica of James Monroe's Birthplace-- Part 2: Service in the American Revolution and Virginia

James Monroe, still a teenager, joined the 3rd Virginia Regiment, commanded by Hugh Mercer, and served in campaigns led by George Washington in  New York and New Jersey.

"He is our only  president to have  served on active military duty in the Revolutionary War  aside from George Washington," said G. William Thomas, president of the James Monroe Memorial Foundation, in the opening ceremony.

At the Battle of Trenton on December 26, 1776, Monroe sustained a bullet wound to his shoulder and nearly died.  He carried that bullet in his body for the rest of his life. 

Following his military service, Monroe served in the Virginia House of Delegates and the Continental Congress and then was elected by state legislators to be one of the first U.S. senators from Virginia.

Washington appointed him  ambassador to France, and in 1799, he was elected governor of Virginia.

--Brock-Perry

William Miller, 15th (18th) Governor of N.C.-- Part 3

From NC Home site.

Born in 1783 and by 1805 was practicing law and was a large landowner.

In 1810, the governor appointed him attorney general.  Served in six consecutive General Assemblies, the last three as Speaker of the House as well.

On November 29, 1814, the North Carolina General Assembly appointed him as the 15th governor of the state.  He served three terms before leaving office.  (One source I've read says he was the 18th governor.  Wikipedia has a complete list of North Carolina governors and he is the 18th.  The 15th governor was David Stone.)

The War of 1812 was ending as he took office as governor, but he fully supported it and President Madison's policies.  Once the war was over, he was pressed by the general Assembly to buy a full length statue of George Washington.   Antonio Canova was  hired to make it in 1815 and it arrived at the statehouse in 1821.

That statue was unfortunately destroyed by a fire in 1831.

--Brock-Perry

William Miller, War of 1812 Governor of North Carolina-- Part 2

After the war, as governor of North Carolina, he lent his support to early efforts to establish a system of public education in the state.  He also helped improve internal state trade and transportation and a revision of the penal code and judicial system.

One of his appointees to the  bench was instrumental in the organization of the North Carolina Supreme Court.

After his terms, President John Quincy Adams appointed Miller as diplomatic agent to Guatemala.  He died of yellow fever en route to assume his new post.

It is believed he was buried at sea.

--Brock-Perry

William Miller, Governor of North Carolina-- Part 1: Supported Madison's Military Policy

From the December 10, 2020, Elizabeth City (NC) Daily Advance  "Week in NC History: William Miller, Governor during the War of 1812."

On December 10, 1825, former Governor William Miller died in Key West, Florida.

Born around 1783 in Warren County., Miller worked  as a private lawyer, the state's attorney general and a member of the General Assembly before first being elected as governor in 1814.  He went on to serve three terms in that post, and was the first to occupy   the newly completed Governors' Palace at the south end of Raleigh's Fayetteville Street.

Active on the national political stage, Miller supported the military policies of  President James Madison during the concluding weeks of the War of 1812 by ordering out additional militia units for potential service on the southern frontier.

--Brock-Perry

What Tecumseh Fought For-- Part 5: Aftermath of Tecumseh's War

The Battle of Moraviantown (Battle of the Thames) produced a considerable array of elected officials, among them three Kentucky governors, a vice president (Richard Johnson), and a president, an aging William Henry Harrison, who campaigned in 1840 under the slogan of "Tippecanoe and Tyler Too").

And because Tecumseh had died in a British fight, near a river that borrowed its name from England, his doomed war was  easily swallowed up by the larger War of 1812 between the British and Americans.

And then, an unrelenting stream of Americans poured into the Old Northwest Territory and Indians began fighting an increasingly lost war to delay them.  Tecumseh's War presaged  the Black Hawk War of 1832 in Illinois and Wisconsin; the deadly removal of Potawatomi people from Indiana to the Great Plains in  1838; the Dakota Uprising of 1862, in Minnesota.

Trace such conflicts back to Pontiac's Rebellion and what emerges  is not a picture of  innocent pioneer settlement in the continental heartland but a full century of Midwestern dispossession and resistance.

--Brock-Perry

Eight Facts About Theodosia Burr Alston-- Part 4: First Lady of South Carolina

6.  SHE WAS THE FIRST LADY OF SOUTH CAROLINA.

Her husband, John Alston, became governor of South Carolina in December 1812, making Theodosia the First Lady.

Unfortunately, she only held that position for  21 days, before tragedy struck.

Columbia was chosen as the site of South Carolina's capital in 1786.

--Brock-Perry

The Three Attempts to Launch the USS Constitution

In the last post, I mentioned that the Democratic papers made fun of the USS Constitution because of the fact that it had taken three tries to get the ship into the water.

From Wikipedia.

The ship's launch on September 20, 1797, was attended by President John Adams and Massachusetts Governor Increase Sumner.  Upon launch, the ship slid down the ways just 27 feet before stopping.  It turned out that her weight had caused the ways to settle into the ground, preventing further movement.

Work on it was hasty, and a second attempt two days later resulted in just an additional 31 feet.  People were wondering if the ship would ever get launched.  After a month of rebuilding the ways, the third time was the charm and on October  21, 1797. the Constitution finally reached the water.

Captain James Sever christened her by breaking a bottle of Madeira on her bowsprit.

--Brock-Perry

Green Clay's Family-- Part 2: Clement Comer Clay, Governor of Alabama

From Find-A-Grave

A cousin of Green Clay.

December 17, 1789 to September 6, 1866.

Eighth governor of Alabama.  Also attorney, politician, Alabama legislator and U.S. House of Representatives and Senate.

Born in Virginia.

Served under General Andrew Jackson battling the Creek Indians during the War of 1812.  This is also known as the Creek War 1813-1814.

While governor (1835-1837), his administration's term was dominated by the Creek War of 1836, arising from their resistance to Indian Removal.  During his time in office, the U.S. Army  removed the Creek Indians from southeastern Alabama under the terms of the 1832 Treaty of  Cusseta.

The Creeks were relocated to Indian Territory, now Oklahoma.

--Brock-Perry

Henry Lee III-- Part 3: Politician and Marriages

Henry Lee organized the Virginia militia.  When war with Britain became imminent, Lee requested  asked President James Madison for a commission, but that didn't happen.

From 17886 to 1788, Lee was a delegate to the Congress of the Confederation and in 1788 a delegate  at the Virginia convention to ratify the U.S. Constitution.  From 1789 to 1791, he served in Virginia's General Assembly and then from 1791 to 1794, he was governor of Virginia.

Then, 1791 to 1801, he served as a U.S. Representative.  He gave a famous eulogy for former President Washington when he died. in 1799, with the words:  "First in war, First in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen."

He married twice and it was from the second one that Robert E. Lee was born.

--Brock-Perry

Major General Henry Lee III-- Part 1: "Light-Horse Harry"

From Wikipedia.

One of the men almost killed while defending Alexander Contee Hanson, was a hero of the American Revolution and owner of a famous nick-name.  He would be Henry Lee III.

(January 29, 1756-March 25, 1818)

Was ninth governor of Virginia and a U.S. representative from Virginia.  His service during the American Revolution earned him the nickname by which he is probably best known, "Light-Horse Harry."  Lee was also the father of the Civil War's Robert E. Lee.

--Brock-Perry

War of 1812 Heritage Trail, Lewes, Delaware-- Part 4: Fisher House and Churches

**Henry Fisher House--  American Revolution hero.  The house was sold to Colonel Samuel Boyer Davis who was living there when he commanded the defense of Lewes in the War of 1812.

**  Presbyterian Church--  has a communion service given to it by Col. Samuel Davis.  Two Delaware governors are buried there.

**  Saint Peter's Episcopal Church--  Four Delaware governors are buried here.

--Brock-Perry

Thomas Stockton-- Part 2: War of 1812 Veteran and Delaware Governor

Continued from March 19, 2018, post.

As a member of the Delaware militia, Stockton took part in the attack on Fort George on the Niagara River and was at the Battle of Lundy's Lane.  Eventually he was promoted to major in the 42nd Infantry.  he retired from service in 1825.

In 1844, he was elected governor of the State of Delaware where he served until his death in 1846.  He was the sixth Delaware governor to die in office.

A member of the Society of Cincinnati, he was buried at Immanuel Episcopal Church.  Several of his sons and grandson served in the Civil War.

--Brock-Perry

Thomas Stockton-- Part 1: Delaware Militia and Governor

From Wikipedia.

In the last post, I mentioned that Caleb P Bennett was brought up on charges of not doing is duty by Thomas Stockton during the War of 1812.

Born 1781  Died 1846.

American soldier and politician from New Castle, Delaware.  Member of Whig Party, War of 1812 veteran and governor of Delaware.   His father was a brigadier general in the American Revolution in the Delaware militia.  Graduated from Princeton College and joined the Delaware militia.

During the War of 1812, he participated in the attack on Fort George on the Niagara River and the Battle of Lundy's Lane.

Entering politics, he was elected governor of Delaware in 1844 and became the sixty governor of the state to die in office.

--Brock-Perry

Caleb P. Bennett-- Part 2: Colonel of Delaware Militia, Governor

In the War of 1812, he was a captain of artillery and commander of the town of New Castle where he erected a battery.  He was made colonel of the militia and made sure his men received enough training and discipline to be good soldiers.

But, their was a problem with brigadier general and Whig rival Thomas Stockton who brought Bennett up for court martial charging him with failure to do his duty, but it was not proved.

After the war Bennett was very involved in politics in Delaware.  he served as governor from 1833 to 1836 and died in office as had Joseph Haslet, becoming the fifth governor of the state to die in office.

He is buried at the friends Burial Ground in Wilmington, Delaware.

--Brock-Perry

Delaware's Joseph Haslet, War Governor-- Part 2: State Mostly Against the War

Joseph Haslet ran for governor in 1814, but lost.  He ran again and won, serving from January 15, 1811, to January 18, 1814.  The War of 1812 took place during much of his tenure.

His state of Delaware was mostly against the war, but Haslet got the legislature to raise a 1,000 militia force and to make $25,000 to equip it.

The bright spot of the war for the Americans were the naval victories.  One of those was the capture of the British ship HMS Frolic by Captain Jacob Nicholas Jones of Delaware which gave the state much pride.  However, the arrival of British fleets in the Chesapeake and Delaware bays was cause for alarm.

--Brock-Perry

Delaware's Joseph Haslet, Wartime Governor-- Part 1: His Father

From Wikipedia.

Last week I wrote about Lewes, Delaware and mentioned Delaware governor Joseph Haslet being involved with the British attack on it in 1813.

Some more information on him.

1769 to June 20, 1823.

American planter and politician from Delaware.  Member of the Democratic-Republican party and served twice as governor of the state.  The first time was during the War of 1812.

His father was John Haslet (1727 to January 1777), Presbyterian clergy and soldier, veteran of the French and Indian War and American Revolution.  He was killed while colonel of the 1st Delaware Regiment at the Battle of Princeton.

His mother died a month later and he became the guardian of Chief Justice William Killen.

--Brock-Perry

Robert Lucas-- Part 3: War of 1812

Service in the War of 1812 .

One person wrote of Robert Lucas:  "As a spy he was productive and brave-- as a soldier he had no superior."

Robert Lucas rose to national prominence during the court martial of General William Hull for his surrender of Detroit.  Lucas' journals were used as evidence and helped convict Hull.

Rapidly rose to political power after the war and became Ohio's governor for two terms from 1832-1836.

Later appointed the first governor of Iowa territory and is buried at Oakland Cemetery in Iowa City, Iowa.

--Brock-Perry