History of Erie county, Pennsylvania. Containing a history of the county; its townships, towns, villages schools, churches, industries, etc, Part 39

Author: Bates, Samuel P. (Samuel Penniman), 1827-1902; Whitman, Benjamin, 1940-; Russell, N. W. (Nathaniel Willard); Brown, R. C. (Robert C.); Weakley, F. E; Warner, Beers & Co. (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1280

USA > Pennsylvania > Erie County > History of Erie county, Pennsylvania. Containing a history of the county; its townships, towns, villages schools, churches, industries, etc > Part 39

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* Jesse D. Elliott was born in Maryland in 1785. He entered the United States Navy as a Midshipman in 1806, and was promoted to a Lieutenancy in 1810. On the 7th of October, 1812, he won great honor by leading an expedition which captured the British vessels Adams and Caledonia from under the guns of Fort Erie. For this he was awarded a sword, and the thanks of Congress. July 13, 1813, he was appointed to be a master com- mandant over the heads of thirty other lieutenants. In 1814, he was transferred to Lake Ontario. He did good service in the Mediterranean in 1815. In 1818, he was promoted to be a Captain, and subsequently had command of squadrons on several stations. He was tried for misconduct in 1840, and sentenced to four years' suspension from the navy. President Jackson, in 1843, remitted the balance of his sentence. He died on the 18th of December, 1845.

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pounders; Niagara, Master, Commander Elliott, the same armament; Caledo- nia, Purser Magrath, three long 12-pounders; Ariel, Lieut. John Packett, * four long 12-pounders; Trippe, Lieut. Smith, one long 32-pounder; Tigress, Lieut. Conklin, one long 32-pounder; Somers, Sailing Master Almy; one long 24 and one long 12-pounder; Scorpion, f Sailing Master Champlin, same armament; Ohio, Sailing Master Dobbins, one long 24-pounder; and Porcu- pine, Midshipman Senat, one long 32-pounder. In explanation of the change of Perry's and Elliott's titles, it should be stated that commissions had been received shortly before their departure granting both of them promotions. Most of the officers were young men-the average ages of the commissioned ones being less than twenty-three, and of the warrant officers less than twenty years. With very few exceptions, they had no acquaintance with the naviga- tion of the lakes.

CHALLENGING TO FIGHT.

On the 17th, the squadron anchored off Sandusky, where Perry notified Gen. Harrison of their presence, and was invited on board the Lawrence the next day by that officer, attended by his staff and accompanied by some twenty Indian chiefs, who were taken on board that they might report the wonders they had seen and be deterred from joining the enemy. The astonishment and alarm of the red men when the salute was fired in honor of Gen. Harrison is said to have been indescribably comical.

Eight days later the fleet sailed to the head of the lake and discovered the British at anchor in the mouth of Detroit River; but failing to draw them out, returned to Put-in-Bay. On the 31st a re-enforcement of fifty volunteers was received, making a total muster roll of 470. Most of the new men were Ken- tuckians who had experience as watermen on the western and southern rivers, and they proved to be a valuable acquisition. About this juncture, however, there was much biliousness and dysentery in the squadron, principally among those from the seaboard, caused by the change from salt to fresh water. Among the number who were taken down was Perry himself, who was unable to per- form active service for a week. As soon as he could take the deck again, he sailed for the second time to the mouth of the river, where it was learned that the new British ship was ready for duty. Failing to draw the enemy from his anchorage, Perry returned to Sandusky and renewed his communication with Gen. Harrison. Here the command of the Trippe was transferred to Lieut. Holdup # and that of the Caledonia to Lieut. Turner, while Mr. Dobbins was ordered to Erie with the Ohio " for the purpose of taking on board provisions and other articles." The latter hastened back to find that the pork and beef left on board the fleet had become putrid on account of the carelessness of the contractors, and was immediately ordered to Erie again for a fresh stock. The battle took place while the Ohio was at anchor in the harbor of Erie, much to the regret of Mr. Dobbins and his gallant crew, who had to submit to some un - just criticism for what was no fault of their own. They distinctly heard the firing on the 10th of September.

*Lieut. Packett resided at Erie after the battle, and died there.

+Stephen Champlin returned to Erie, in 1845, as Commander of the United States steamer Michigan. He remained in that position about four and one-half years, when he was placed on the reserve list with full pay. He lived at Buffalo, afterward, and was the last survivor of the commanders in the battle.

Lieut. Holdup was the father of the distinguished Com. Thomas H. Stevens. He served in the navy many years afterward, and was promoted to post Captain. He died suddenly, in 1836, while in command of the Wash- ington Navy Yard. He was an orphan and became a protege of Gen. Stevens, of Charleston, S. C., who obtained a midshipman's warrant for him in 1809 In 1815, by an act of the Legislature of South Carolina, he assumed the name of his benefactor, and was ever after known as Thomas Holdup Stevens.

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HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY.

PREPARING FOR BATTLE.

On the 6th of September, the entire American fleet, with the exception of the Ohio, was anchored in Put-in-Bay. Believing that the crisis was near at hand, Perry, on the evening of the 7th, summoned his officers on board the Lawrence, announced his plan of battle, produced his fighting flag- containing the words, "Don't give up the ship "-arranged a code of signals, and issued his final instructions. On the 10th, at the rising of the sun, the lookout shouted the thrilling words, " Sail, ho!" and the men of the squadron, who were almost instantly astir, soon saw the British vessels, six in number, rise above the horizon. Still feeble from sickness as he was, Perry gave the signal immediately to get under way, adding that he was "de- termined to fight the enemy that day." Approaching the British vessels near enough to arrange his line, he brought forth his battle flag, and, mounting a gun-slide, said to his men as he pointed to the inscription: "Those were the last words of the gallant Lawrence, after whom this vessel was named." Then, pausing a moment, he exclaimed, "Shall I hoist it?" The response was a unanimous "Aye, aye, sir;" and as the folds were spread to the breeze'six hearty cheers were given by the crew, which were taken up on board the other vessels until one continuous cheer was heard along the line .* Grog and lunch were then served, the decks were sprinkled with sand, and preparations were made for taking care of the dead and wounded. Perry visited every part of the Lawrence, inspecting the guns and cheering the men by pleasant words. The lake was quite smooth and it was an hour and a half from the time the line of battle was formed until the first shot was fired. This period of terri- ble suspense was spent in friendly interchange among the officers and men, in farewell handshakes and the promise of kindly acts in case of death. At a quarter before 12 o'clock, when the Detroit and Lawrence were still more than a mile apart, the sound of a bugle was heard on the British flagship, followed by cheers along their line, the band struck up " Rule Britannia." and, in a moment after the music ceased, a shot was thrown at the Lawrence which fell short. In a few minutes a second shot was fired from the Detroit, which struck the Lawrence, seeing which Perry's vessel became the target for all the long guns of the enemy. The first gun on the American side, by order of Perry, was fired from the Scorpion and the second from the Ariel.t

BRIEF ACCOUNT OF THE VICTORY.

The purpose of this sketch being to deal with the subject mainly in its local bearings, no attempt will be made to give a minute account of the action, which has been graphically described by several of the most eminent writers. of the country, and in an especially eloquent manner by J. Fennimore Cooper, the novelist. It is enough to say that, through some cause, the real nature of which has been hotly discussed, the Niagara did not engage the enemy at close. quarters, and the battle, for a time, was maintained "by the Lawrence, Cale- donia, Scorpion and Ariel, against the whole British squadron, assisted only by the long twelves of the Niagara, and the distant, rambling shots from the headmost gunboats." The Lawrence for two hours sustained the fire of the two heaviest British vessels, as well as some stray shots from the others, "un-

*In Hanry T. Tuckerman's poem, "The Hero of Lake Erie," he refers to this flag as follows: "Behold the chieftan's glad prophetic smile,

As a new banner he unrolls the while;

Hear the gay shout of his elated crew,

When the dear watchword hovers to their view,

And Lawrence, silent in the arms of death,

Bequeaths defiance with his latest breath."

#The battle took place about ten miles in a northwardly direction from Put-in-Bay. The action began on the part of the Americans at five minutes before 12 o'clock.

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til every gun was dismounted, two-thirds of her crew killed or wounded, and the ship so badly cut up aloft as to be unmanageable." In this critical situa- tion, Perry took his fighting flag under his arm and passed in a row boat, ac- companied by his brother and four men, to the Niagara, which was making an effort to gain the head of the enemy's line. The British felt sure that the day was their's and sent up a cheer. On boarding the Niagara, Perry, who had stood erect in the boat the whole way, was met cordially by Elliott, who offered and was ordered to bring the gunboats into close action, while the former as- sumed command of the vessel. The gunboats being well up, and the Caledo- nia in good position, the signal to break through the British line was shown from the Niagara at 2:45 in the afternoon. The fire of the Niagara was re- served until she got abreast of the Detroit, when she poured her starboard at pistol shot into that vessel and the Queen Charlotte, while with the port broad- side she sent a storm of ball into the Lady Provost and Chippewa. The Caledonia and the gunboats followed close behind, dealing death on both sides, and, the Detroit having fouled with the Queeu Charlotte, neither vessel was able to reply. After passing through the British liue, the Niagara rounded to under their lee, and sent one broadside after another into the entangled ves- sels, causing such fearful damage that in fifteen minutes from the time she bore up a white handkerchief was waved from the Queen Charlotte as a symbol of submission, shortly succeeded by one from the Detroit. The firing ceased almost instantly, after a struggle of almost three hours' duration. Two of the smaller British vessels undertook to escape, but were brought back by the Scorpion and Trippe. When the smoke of battle cleared away, the two squadrons were found to be intermingled, with the exception of the shattered Lawrence, which was drifting with the wind some distance to the eastward. As the shout of victory went up, her flag, which had been struck after Perry left, was again hoisted to the masthead by the remaining few of her crew who were able to witness the triumph of their comrades. Perry sat down as soon as the firing had ceased and wrote on the back of an old letter this modest and memorable epistle to Gen. Harrison:

UNITED STATES STEAMSHIP NIAGARA, September 10, 4 P. M.

DEAR GENERAL: We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one sehooner, and one sloop. Yours with great respect and esteem,

O. H. PERRY.

To the Secretary of the navy he messaged: "It has pleased the Almighty to give to the United States a signal victory on this lake," detailing the num- ber of captured vessels. These brief dispatches were forwarded by schooner to Gen. Harrison, then at the mouth of Portage River, distant some twelve miles.

Taking all the circumstances into consideration, the victory of Perry was one of the proudest in naval annals. The Americans had the most vessels, but the British had the superiority in guns, their number being sixty-three to our fifty-four. The men engaged were about equal in number, but the British marines were veterans while ours were chiefly raw volunteers. The difference in favor of the British was still more striking when we compare the experience of the officers, their commander having served with Nelson at Trafalgar, and most of his subordinates having been trained to warlike duties, while Perry had never seen an engagement and his associates, except two or three, knew very little of real service. When to the above it is added that quite one-fifth of the Americans were on the sick list-the roll of the Lawrence showing thirty-one and of the Niagara twenty-eight unfit for action on the morning of the battle-while the British were generally in good health, the triumph of the Americans is still more surprising.

Joseph Eberfole

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HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY.

AFTER THE BATTLE.

About 4 P. M., Perry returned to the Lawrence in order that the remnant of her crew might witness the formal surrender. He was met at the gangway by those who were able to be about, but there were no cheers, no outbursts of delight-"not a word could find utterance." The young commander now threw off the round jacket he had worn during the fight and resumed his un- dress uniform in order to meet the officers of the captured vessels, who came on board and presented their swords, but were allowed to retain their side arms. When Lieut. O'Keefe handed him the sword of Capt. Barclay, the British commander, who was too severely wounded to appear in person, Perry inquired kindly about him and the rest of the enemy's wounded, tendering in a manly spirit every assistance within his reach. During the evening, he visited Capt. Barclay on board the Detroit, and re iterated his sympathy. Re- ferring to his own escape, he said to Purser Hamilton, " The prayers of my wife have prevailed in saving me."

The captured squadron consisted of the Detroit, Queen Charlotte, Lady Provost, Chippewa, Hunter and Little Belt, the first two being badly cut up in their hulls, the third having her rudder shot away, and the others being but slightly damaged. The killed were forty-one and the wounded ninety-four, being more than one in four of the men engaged. Among the killed were Capt. Finnis and Lieut. Gordon, of the Queen Charlotte, and among the se- verely wounded, besides Capt. Barclay, were First Lieut. Garland and Purser Hoffmeister on the Detroit. A number of Indians were on board the Detroit as sharp-shooters, and upon inquiry being made for them by an American officer, a search was started and they were found in hiding below. Being brought on deck, they were asked how they liked the sport, and one replied: "No more come with one armed Captain (Barclay) in big canoe -- shoot big gun too much. American much big fight."

The casualties on the American side were as follows: Lawrence, killed, 21; wounded, 61; Niagara, killed, 2; wounded, 25; Caledonia, wounded, 3; Somers, wounded, 2; Ariel, killed, 1, wounded, 3; Trippe, wounded, 2; Scorpion, killed, 1, wounded, 1-a total of 27 killed and 96 wounded. On board the Porcupine and; Tigress not a soul was injured. The most prominent Americans killed were: Lieut. Brooks, commanding the marines of the Lawrence; and of the wounded, First Lieut. Yarnall, Second Lieut. Forest, Sailing Master Taylor and Purser Hamilton on the Lawrence, and First Lieut. Edward and Acting Master Webster of the Niagara. After the battle, Perry inquired with some anxiety about his little brother Alexander. He was found sound asleep in his berth, exhausted with the fatigues and excitement of the day.

At nightfall, the dead marines and seamen of Perry's squadron were lashed up in their hammocks, with a thirty-two pound shot attached in each case to anchor them, and consigned to the bottom of the lake, all the surviving officers and men who were able to be on deck acting as witnesses to the burial, which was conducted by the chaplain according to the impressive form of the Episco- pal Church. On the larger British vessels, the killed in action had been thrown overboard as soon as life was extinct, but those on the smaller ones were deposited in the water in the same manner as the Americans. The Law- rence being a complete wreck, Perry adopted the Ariel as his flagship, and on the morning of the 11th the two squadrons sailed for Put-in-Bay, where they arrived about noon, and anchored. On the morning of the 12th, the dead officers of both crews were interred on shore, the funeral procession marching in twos, alternately British and American, to the music of the bands of both squadrons. The Ohio, Dobbine' vessel, reached Put-in-Bay on the 13th, with

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a welcome supply of provisions, and soon after a boat each from Cleveland and Sandusky came with fresh meat and vegetables, which added much to the com- fort of the wounded. Those of the prisoners who were able to travel were turned over to Gen. Harrison, who forwarded them to Chillicothe, Ohio, while the badly wounded were put on board the Lawrence, which had been suffi- ciently repaired for the purpose, and brought to Erie, reaching here on the 23d, thirteen days after the battle. The citizens of Erie vied with each other in showing them every attention, no discrimination being made between friend and foe. The court house was used as a hospital, Dr. Usher Parsons, Surgeon of the Lawrence, and Dr. John C. Wallace being the physicians in charge. A few who could not be suitably cared for were sent to Waterford, then almost as large a place as Erie. Only three of the wounded died after the action.

VICTORIES ON LAND.

The Americans being now in absolute control of the lake, Perry and Harri- son commenced instant preparations to retrieve the disasters to our cause on the frontier. Harrison's army, which had received large accessions of volun- teers, was mainly transported on the serviceable vessels of the two fleets to the Canadian shore near the head of the lake. The British abandoned Malden, retreating up the Detroit River, followed by our army and squadron. At Sand- wich, finding he could be of no direct service on the water, Perry volunteered as an Aide to Harrison. The battle of the Thames, the defeat of Proctor and the death of Tecumseh followed, wiping out all armed resistance in that quarter and leaving the western part of Canada in the quiet possession of the Americans. The Indian allies of the British were humbled, and unbroken peace prevailed in all the country west of Pennsylvania. Some of the vessels of the squadron were used to transport such portions of the army as had not been disbanded, to the Niagara frontier, while others remained in charge of Gen. Cass, Governor of Michigan, to be used in carrying supplies for the western posts.

PERRY'S RETURN TO ERIE.

At Detroit, Perry received a letter from the Secretary of the Navy promot- ing him to the rank of Post Captain, dating from the 10th of September, granting him leave of absence to visit his family, and assigning him to com- mand at Newport until a suitable ship should be provided for him. Taking Harrison and his staff, who had been ordered to Fort George, on board the Ariel, he sailed for Erie, where the Niagara was ordered to meet him. At Put-in-Bay, he stopped to meet Barclay, whom he found much improved, and to whom he communicated the good news that he had secured a parole for him to go home to England. The British commander and his attending Surgeon were invited to join the party, and willingly accepted. The Ariel, with her distinguished passengers, arrived at Erie on the morning of the 22d of October, where Perry was destined to be disappointed in his expressed hope that he might be able to land without any demonstration. As the vessel appeared off the point of the peninsula, two field pieces greeted her with a national salute. A large delegation of citizens met Perry at the foot of French street, escorted him and his party to Duncan's Hotel at the corner of Third and French streets, and almost smothered him with congratulations. In the evening, the town was illuminated and a torch-light procession paraded the streets. Ever thoughtful and magnanimous, Perry had requested that no noise or display should be made near the hotel to annoy the wounded Commodore, a desire that was courteously complied with .* The Niagara arrived at Erie the

*The Norwich (Conn.) Courier of March 4, 1814, states that " a public dinner and ball were given to Capt. Barclay at Terrebonne, Canada, on the 20th of February. Among the voluntary toasts, this gallant but un- fortunate officer gave the following : 'Commodore Perry, the gallant and generous enemy.'"

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HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY.

afternoon of the same day as the Ariel. The forenoon of the 23d Perry em- ployed in a visit to the Lawrence, which lay at Anchor in Misery Bay, and in the afternoon he sailed for Buffalo, accompanied by Harrison and Barclay. Reaching that place on the 24th, he turned over the command on the Upper Lakes to Elliott, and journeyed eastward by land " amid a blaze of rejoicing " to his Rhode Island home.

The battle of Lake Erie raised Perry from obscurity to world-wide renown. Congress passed a vote of thanks to him and his officers and men, and be- stowed gold medals upon both Perry and Elliott. President Madison, in his message some time after, referredto the victory as one " never surpassed in luster." The thanks of the General Assembly of Pennsylvania were voted to Perry and Elliott, gold medals were ordered for both, and silver medals for those citizens of the State who served on board the squadron. In addition to these honors, the General Government granted silver medals and swords to the other living officers, a medal and sword to the nearest male relative of each of the dead commissioned officers, and three months' pay to all the petty offi- cers, seamen, marines and infantry who fought on board the fleet. The British vessels were prized at $255,000, of which $12, 750 went to Commodore Chaun- cey, $7,140 apiece to both Perry and Elliott, $2,295 to each Commander of a gunboat, Lieutenant, Sailing Master, and Captain of Marines, $811 to each midshipman, $447 to each petty officer, and $209 to each marine and sailor. Congress made a special grant of $5,000 to Perry to make up for a defect in the law which excluded him from a portion of the prize money for his special command, making a total of $12,000, which was quite a fortune for those days.

Perry never returned to the scenes of his youthful trials and triumphs. After a suitable period of rest, " he was placed in command of the Java, a first-class frigate, and sailed to the Mediterranean. Returning, he was sent with a small squadron to the West Indies. While there, he was attacked by yellow fever, and died on the anniversary of his birthday (August 23), at the early age of thirty-four. His remains were buried at Port Spain, Trinidad, where they rested until 1826, when they were moved in a sloop-of-war to Newport, R, I., and re-interred with great ceremony. The State of Rhode Island erected a granite monument to his memory."

THE WINTER OF 1813-14.

The season being well advanced, Elliott ordered the vessels into winter quarters-the Ariel and Chippewa going to Buffalo, where they were driven ashore and went to pieces; the Trippe and Little Belt to Black Rock, where they were burned by the British when they crossed over to Buffalo, and the balance of the squadron to Erie. Those in our harbor were moored in Mis- ery Bay, where preparations were made for their defense, a rumor being cur- rent that the British, in revenge for their defeats, were planning an expedition to cross the ice and destroy the shipping and village. Among the fortifications provided at this time were two block-houses-one on Garrison Hill, and the other on the tongue of land between Misery Bay and the bay proper. The first of these was burned in 1832, and the second in October, 1853, the fires in both cases being charged to incendiaries.

To return to the land forces: We find in the State Archives, under date of September 20, 1813, mention made by the Governor's Secretary of the men who had been called out by Col. Wallace, stating that the call was not author- ized by law, and the expenses incurred could only be paid by special act of the Legislature. This has reference, probably, to the militia who came for the protection of the fleet just before it sailed up the lake. On the 30th of Decem-

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ber, word reached Erie that an army of British aud Indians had landed at Black Rock, forced our army to retreat, burned the villages of Black Rock and Buffalo, captured and destroyed the Government vessels, and, flushed with triumph, were advancing up the lake for the purpose of capturing Erie. The most terrifying rumors were put in circulation, and the excitement ran so high that many citizens removed their families and effects to the interior. The troops at Erie only numbered 2,000 men, while the hostile force was reported at 3,000. The first brigade of Gen. Mead'e command was ordered into serv- ice, and came together hurriedly, increasing the defensive force to about 4,000. Happily, the alarm proved to be false, but one delusive report came after another so fast that a considerable body of troops was kept at Erie dur- ing most of the winter. Many of these men were substitutes, and all were poorly furnished with arms and equipments. The principal camp was just north of the First Presbyterian Church, where the ground was covered with low log barracks, most of which burned down soon after they were abandoned. The records show that the Erie County militia were ordered out on the 3d of January, 1814, and discharged on the ensuing 7th of February- On the 10th of January, the Governor notified the Secretary of War that a portion of Mead's command had been ordered out, and suggested that as they had ren- dered almost unremitting service during the past eighteen months, it would be nothing more than just to relieve them by "militia drawn from sections that had hitherto been excused by reason of their remoteness from the seat of war." A letter was received by the Governor on the 18th of January from Gen. Mead, reciting that when Perry was ready to sail he was deficient in men; that he requested him to induce some of his troops to volunteer for service on the vessels, which one hundred did, and that he promised they should receive pay as militiamen upon their return. To fulfill his pledge, the General borrowed $500, which he asked to have refunded. On the 18th of January, 1,000 militia from Cumberland and adjoining counties were ordered to rendezvous at Erie by the 8th of March, N. B. Boileau heiug appointed their Colonel command- ant. February 1, Gen. Mead was directed to retain his detachment in service until the arrival of the above troops. A letter from the Governor's Secretary, of the date of February 17, refers to Gen. Mead's complaints that the troops of his command had not been paid on the 3d of March. Gov. Snyder wrote to Gen. Mead in reference to a requisition upon him by Maj. Martin, of the regular army, for 2,000 men to defend Erie and the fleet, ar- guing that it was unnecessary, and refusing to give his asseut.

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History of Erie county, Pennsylvania. Containing a history of the county; its townships, towns, villages schools, churches, industries, etc, Part 39

Author: Bates, Samuel P. (Samuel Penniman), 1827-1902; Whitman, Benjamin, 1940-; Russell, N. W. (Nathaniel Willard); Brown, R. C. (Robert C.); Weakley, F. E; Warner, Beers & Co. (Chicago, Ill.) Publication date: 1884 Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & co. Number of Pages: 1280

Author: Bates, Samuel P. (Samuel Penniman), 1827-1902; Whitman, Benjamin, 1940-; Russell, N. W. (Nathaniel Willard); Brown, R. C. (Robert C.); Weakley, F. E; Warner, Beers & Co. (Chicago, Ill.)
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: Chicago : Warner, Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 1280