Battle of Lake Erie

Battle of Lake Erie
Part of the War of 1812
Battle of Lake Erie by William H. Powell, painted 1865, shows Oliver Hazard Perry transferring from US Brig Lawrence to US Brig Niagara
Date September 10, 1813 Location Lake Erie, near Put-in-Bay, Ohio Result Decisive United States victory
Belligerents
United Kingdom	United States
Commanders and leaders
Robert Heriot Barclay	Oliver Hazard Perry Jesse Elliot
Strength
2 ships 2 brigs 1 schooner 1 sloop	5 schooners 3 brigs 1 sloop
Casualties and losses
41 killed, 93 wounded, 306 captured, entire squadron captured	27 killed, 96 wounded, 1 brig severely damaged

The Battle of Lake Erie, sometimes called the Battle of Put-in-Bay, was fought on 10 September 1813, in Lake Erie off the coast of Ohio during the War of 1812. Nine vessels of the United States Navy defeated and captured six vessels of Great Britain's Royal Navy. This ensured American control of the lake for the rest of the war, which in turn allowed the Americans to recover Detroit and win the Battle of the Thames to break the Indian confederation of Tecumseh. It was one of the biggest naval battles of the War of 1812.

Background

1812

When the war broke out, the British immediately seized control of Lake Erie. They already had a small force of warships there: the sloop of war Queen Charlotte and the brig General Hunter. The brig Lady Prevost was under construction and was put into service a few weeks after the outbreak of war. These vessels were controlled by the Provincial Marine, which was a military transport service and not a naval service. Nevertheless, the Americans lacked any counter to the British armed vessels. The only American warship on Lake Erie, the brig USS Adams, was not ready for service at the start of the war, and when the American army of Brigadier General William Hull abandoned its invasion of Canada, the Adams was pinned down in Detroit by the British batteries at Sandwich on the Canadian side of the Detroit River. The British Major-General Isaac Brock used his control of the lake to defeat Hull's army at the Siege of Detroit.

The British took the Adams when Detroit was surrendered, renaming her HMS Detroit. Together with the brig Caledonia, which had been commandeered from the Canadian North West Company, she was boarded and captured near Fort Erie on 9 October, by American sailors and soldiers led by Lieutenant Jesse Elliot. The Detroit ran aground on an island in the middle of the Niagara River and was set on fire to prevent her being recaptured. The Caledonia was taken to the navy yard at Black Rock and commissioned into the United States Navy. Also present at Black Rock were the schooners Somers and Ohio and the sloop-rigged Trippe, which had all been purchased by the United States Navy and were being converted into gunboats. While the British held Fort Erie and the nearby batteries which dominated the Niagara River, all these vessels were pinned down and unable to leave Black Rock.

Late in 1812, Paul Hamilton, the Secretary of the Navy had received long-time American lake mariner Daniel Dobbins, who had escaped capture at Detroit and brought information on the British forces on Lake Erie. Dobbins recommended Presque Isle (present-day Erie, Pennsylvania) as a naval base on the lake. ("Presqu'isle" is French for "peninsula", literally "almost an island"). Dobbins was despatched to build four gunboats there, although Lieutenant Elliot objected to the lack of facilities. Commodore Isaac Chauncey had been appointed to command of the United States naval forces on the Great Lakes. He made one brief visit to Presque Isle on 1 January 1813 where he approved Dobbins' actions and recommended collecting materials for a larger vessel, but then returned to Lake Ontario where he afterwards concentrated his energies.

1813

In January 1813, William Jones (the newly-appointed Secretary of the Navy) ordered the construction of two brig-rigged corvettes at Presque Isle, and transferred shipwright Noah Brown there from Sackets Harbor on Lake Ontario to take charge of construction. Other than their rig and crude construction (such as using wooden pegs instead of nails because of shortages of the latter), the two brigs were close copies of the contemporary USS Hornet. The heaviest armament for the ships came from foundries on Chesapeake Bay, and were moved to Presque Isle only with great difficulty. (The Americans were fortunate in that some of their largest cannon had been despatched shortly before raiding parties under Rear-Admiral George Cockburn destroyed a foundry at Frenchtown on the eastern seaboard.) However, the Americans could get other materials and fittings from Pittsburgh, which was expanding as a manufacturing center, and smaller guns were borrowed from the Army.

Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry had earlier been appointed to command on Lake Erie, through lobbying by the Senior Senator from Rhode Island. He arrived at Presque Isle to take command at the end of March. Having arranged for the defence of Presque Isle, he proceeded to Lake Ontario to obtain reinforcements of seamen from Commodore Isaac Chauncey. After commanding the American schooners and gunboats at the Battle of Fort George, he then went to Black Rock where the American vessels had been released when the British abandoned Fort Erie at the end of May. Perry had them towed by draught oxen up the Niagara, an operation which took six days, and sailed with them along the shore to Presque Isle.

Meanwhile, Commander Robert Heriot Barclay was appointed to command the British squadron on Lake Erie. Another British officer had already endangered his career by refusing the appointment as success appeared unlikely. Barclay missed a rendezvous with the Queen Charlotte at Point Abino and was forced to make the tedious journey to Amherstburg overland, arriving on 10 June. He brought with him only a handful of officers and seamen. When he took command of his squadron, the crews of his vessels numbered only seven British seamen, 108 officers and men of the Provincial Marine (whose quality Barclay disparaged), 54 men of the Royal Newfoundland Fencibles and 106 soldiers, effectively landsmen, from the 41st Foot. Nevertheless he immediately set out in the Queen Charlotte and the Lady Prevost. He first reconnoitred Perry's base at Presque Isle and determined that it was defended by 2,000 Pennsylvania militia, with batteries and redoubts. He then cruised the eastern end of Lake Erie, hoping to intercept the American vessels from Black Rock. The weather was hazy, and he missed them.

During July and August Barclay received two small vessels which had been constructed at Chatham on the Thames River and attempted to complete the ship-rigged corvette HMS Detroit at Amherstburg. Because the Americans controlled Lake Ontario and occupied the Niagara Peninsula in early 1813, supplies for Barclay had to be carried overland from York. The American victory earlier in the year at the Battle of York resulted in the guns (24-pounder carronades) intended for the Detroit falling into American hands. The Detroit had to be completed with a miscellany of guns from the fortifications of Amherstburg. It was alleged that these guns lacked flintlock firing mechanisms and matches, and that they could be fired only by snapping pistols over powder piled in the vent holes. (Nevertheless, they were very effectively served during the battle).

Barclay repeatedly requested men and supplies from Commodore James Lucas Yeo, commanding on Lake Ontario, but received very little. The commander of the British troops on the Detroit frontier, Major-General Henry Procter, was similarly starved of soldiers and munitions by his superiors. He declined to make an attack on Presque Isle unless he was reinforced, and instead he incurred heavy losses in an unsuccessful attack on Fort Stephenson, which he mounted at the urgings of some of his Indian warriors.

Blockades of Presque Isle and Amherstburg

By mid-July, the American squadron was almost complete, although not yet fully manned (Perry claimed to have only 120 men fit for duty). The British squadron maintained a blockade of Presque Isle for ten days from 20 July to 29 July. The harbour had a sandbar across its mouth, with only 5 feet (1.5 m) of water over it, which prevented Barclay sailing in to attack the American ships (although Barclay briefly skirmished with the defending batteries on 21 July), but also prevented the Americans leaving in fighting order. Barclay had to lift the blockade on 29 July because of shortage of supplies and bad weather. Perry immediately began to move his vessels across the sandbar. This was an exhausting task. The guns had to be removed from all the boats, and the largest of them had to be raised between "camels" (barges or lighters which were then emptied of ballast). When Barclay returned four days later, he found that Perry had nearly completed the task. Perry's two largest brigs were not ready for action, but the gunboats and smaller brigs formed a line so confidently that Barclay withdrew to await the completion of the Detroit.

Perry had received 130 extra sailors under Lieutenant Elliot, who had been despatched by Chauncey. Although Perry described some of them as "wretched", at least 50 of them were experienced sailors drafted from the USS Constitution, then undergoing a refit in Boston. Perry also had a few volunteers from the Pennsylvania militia.

His vessels first proceeded to Sandusky, where they received further contingents of volunteers from Major General William Henry Harrison's Army of the Northwest. After twice appearing off Amherstburg, Perry established an anchorage at Put-in-Bay, Ohio. For the next five weeks, Barclay was effectively blockaded and unable to move supplies to Amherstburg. His sailors, Procter's troops, and the very large numbers of Indian warriors and their families there quickly ran out of supplies. After receiving a last-minute reinforcement of two naval officers, three warrant officers and thirty-six sailors transferred from a transport temporarily laid up in Quebec under Lieutenant George Bignall, Barclay had no choice but to put out again and seek battle with Perry.

Battle

Movements of the squadrons of Perry and Barclay on the morning of 10 September

On the morning of 10 September, the Americans saw Barclay's vessels heading for them, and got under way from their anchorage at Put-in-Bay. The wind was light. Barclay initially held the weather gauge, but the wind shifted and allowed Perry to close and attack. Both squadrons were in line of battle, with their heaviest vessels near the centre of the line.Astern of the Lawrence, the Niagara, under Elliot, was slow to come into action and remained far out of effective carronade range. It is possible that Elliott was under orders to engage his opposite number, the Queen Charlotte, and that the Niagara was obstructed by the Caledonia, but Elliot's actions would become a matter of dispute between him and Perry for many years. Aboard the Queen Charlotte, the British ship opposed to the Niagara, the commander (Robert Finnis) and First Lieutenant were both killed. The next most senior officer, Lieutenant Irvine of the Provincial Marine, found that both the Niagara and the American gunboats were far out of range, and passed the brig General Hunter to engage Lawrence at close range.

Although the American gunboats at the rear of the American line of battle steadily pounded the British ships in the centre of the action with raking shots from their long guns from a distance, Lawrence was reduced by the two British ships to a wreck. When the Lawrence surrendered, firing died away briefly. The Detroit collided with Queen Charlotte, both ships being almost unmanageable with damaged rigging and almost every officer killed or severely wounded. Barclay was severely wounded and his first Lieutenant was killed, leaving Lieutenant Inglis in command. Most of the smaller British vessels were also disabled and drifting to leeward. The British nevertheless expected the Niagara to lead the American schooners away in retreat. Instead, once aboard Niagara, Perry dispatched Elliot to bring the schooners into closer action.

Niagara broke through the British line ahead of the Detroit and Queen Charlotte and luffed up to fire raking broadsides from ahead of them, while the Caledonia and the American gunboats fired from astern. Although the crews of Detroit and Queen Charlotte managed to untangle the two ships they could no longer offer any effective resistance. Both ships surrendered at about 3:00 pm. The smaller British vessels tried to flee but were overtaken and also surrendered.

Although Perry won the battle on the Niagara, he received the British surrender on the deck of the recaptured lawrence.

Results

The British lost 41 killed and 94 wounded. The surviving crews, including the wounded, numbered 306. The Americans lost 27 killed and 96 wounded, of whom 2 later died.

The vessels were anchored and hasty repairs were underway near West Sister Island when Perry composed his now famous message to Harrison. Scrawled in pencil on the back of an old envelope, Perry wrote:

Dear General: We have met the enemy and they are ours. Two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop. Yours with great respect and esteem, O.H. Perry

Perry next sent the following message to the Secretary of the Navy, William Jones:

Brig Niagara, off the Western Sister, Head of Lake Erie September 10, 4 P. M. Sir:- It has pleased the Almighty to give to the arms of the United States a signal victory over their enemies on this lake. The British squadron, consisting of two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop, have this moment surrendered to the force under my command after a sharp conflict. I have the honor to be, Sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, O. H. Perry

The British army under Procter had made preparations to abandon their positions even before Procter knew the result of the battle. In spite of exhortations from Tecumseh, Procter began to retreat on 27 September. Lacking supplies, Tecumseh's natives had no option but to accompany him.

Once his vessels and prizes were patched up, Perry ferried 2,500 American soldiers to Amherstburg and Detroit which were captured without opposition, while Harrison moved overland with 1,000 mounted troops. Harrison caught up with Procter's retreating force and defeated them on 5 October at the Battle of the Thames, where Tecumseh was killed.

The Americans controlled Lake Erie for the remainder of the war. This accounted for much of the Americans' successes on the Niagara peninsula in 1814 and also removed the threat of a British attack on Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, or Western New York. However, an expedition to recover Mackinac Island on Lake Huron failed, and the Americans lost eight of their smaller vessels and prizes. (Four were destroyed when the British captured Black Rock at the end of 1813, and four were boarded and captured in separate incidents on Lake Erie and Lake Huron.) Although the naval engagement was small compared to Napoleonic struggles, the victory had disproportionate strategic import.

Aftermath

After the war, the U.S. Navy intentionally sank both the Lawrence and Niagara in Misery Bay in Lake Erie; the battle damage they had suffered was too extensive to repair. In 1875, the Lawrence was raised and moved to Philadelphia, where she was displayed at the 1876 Centennial Exposition. Later that year, the ship burned when the pavilion that housed it caught fire. Although Niagara was raised and restored in 1913, she subsequently fell into disrepair. She was eventually disassembled, and portions of her were used in a reconstructed Niagara, which is now on view in Erie, Pennsylvania.

The Perry Monument within Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial now stands at Put-in-Bay, commemorating the men who fought in the battle.

After the war, there was a bitter quarrel between Perry and Elliot over their respective parts in the action, mostly fought at second hand in the press. On the British side, Barclay was exonerated of any blame by a court-martial but was too badly injured to see service again for several years.

Reasons for the American victory

Most historians attribute the American victory to what Theodore Roosevelt described as, "Superior heavy metal". Perry's leadership, particularly in the latter stages of the action, is also mentioned as a factor. The British historian C.S. Forester commented, "...it was as fortunate for the Americans that the Lawrence still possessed a boat that would float, as it was that Perry was not hit."

On the British side, William Bell served as constructor and built the Detroit, which was the best-built ship on the Lake. However, the Detroit was built slowly, in part due to Bell's perfectionism, and indeed it was the only purpose-built British warship constructed on Lake Erie during the war. This building imbalance, given the fact that six American ships were built in the same time frame, was another important cause of the American victory (although it might be argued that, even if Barclay had possessed more hulls, he would have been unable to obtain armament and crews for them).

The battle itself was close-run. Because of failing winds and Elliot's inaction (perhaps caused by confusion over orders), Perry's superior squadron straggled into action, and as a result, Perry's flagship was forced to fight against unequal odds. A draw might have been possible, though a complete British victory was unlikely. In the event, the portion of the American squadron which had not been engaged in the early part of the action was later able to overwhelm the damaged British ships with their depleted and exhausted crews.

Vessels involved

Listed in order of sailing:

Navy	Name	Rig	Tonnage	Crew	Armament	Notes
Royal Navy	Chippeway	Schooner	70 tons	15	1 × 9-pounder long gun	captured
do.	Detroit	Ship	490 tons	150	1 × 18-pounder (on swivel) 2 × 24-pounder long guns 6 × 12-pounder long guns 8 × 9-pounder long guns 1 × 24-pounder carronade 1 × 18-pounder carronade	Barclay's flagship; captured
do.	Hunter	Brig	180 tons	45	4 × 6-pounder long guns 2 × 4-pounder long guns 2 × 2-pounder long guns 2 × 12-pounder carronades	Commanded by Lieutenant George Bignall captured
do.	Queen Charlotte	Ship	400 tons	126	1 × 12-pounder long gun 2 × 9-pounder long guns 12 × 24-pounder carronades	Commanded by Robert Finnis; captured
do.	Lady Prevost	Brig	230 tons	86	1 × 9-pounder long gun 2 × 6-pounder long guns 10 × 12-pounder carronades	captured (lost rudder)
do.	Little Belt	Sloop	90 tons	18	1 × 12-pounder long gun 2 × 6-pounder long guns	captured
Total	6 warships		1,460 tons	450	330 lb shot from long guns 474 lb shot from carronades	captured
United States Navy	Scorpion	Schooner	86 tons	35	1 × 32-pounder long gun 1 × 32-pounder carronade	Long gun dismounted (overcharged) commanded by Sailing Master Stephen Champlin
do.	Ariel	Schooner	112 tons	36	4 × 12-pounder long guns	One gun exploded (overcharged)
do.	Lawrence	Brig	480 tons	136	2 × 12-pounder long guns 18 × 32-pounder carronades	Perry's flagship; surrendered but recaptured
do.	Caledonia	Brig	180 tons	53	2 × 24-pounder long guns 1 × 32-pounder carronade	captured from British October 9, 1812 commanded by Lieutenant Daniel Turner
do.	Niagara	Brig	480 tons	155	2 × 12-pounder long guns 18 × 32-pounder carronades	Commanded by Jesse Elliott
do.	Somers	Schooner	94 tons	30	1 × 24-pounder long gun 1 × 32-pounder carronade
do.	Porcupine	Schooner	83 tons	25	1 × 32-pounder long gun
do.	Tigress	Schooner	82 tons	35	1 × 32-pounder long gun
do.	Trippe	Sloop	60 tons	35	1 × 24-pounder long gun
Total	9 warships		1,657 tons	540	288 lb shot from long guns 1,248 lb shot from carronades

References

• "The Dobbins Papers." Severance, Frank H. ed. Publications of the Buffalo Historical Society v. 3 (Buffalo, New York: Buffalo Historical Society, 1905)
• Elting, John R. (1995). Amateurs to Arms: A military history of the War of 1812. New York: Da Capo. ISBN 0-306-80653-3.
• Emerson, George D. (Compiled by) (1912). The Perry's Victory Centenary — Report of The Perry's Victory Centennial Commission, State of New York. Albany: J. B. Lyon Company.
• Forester, C.S. The Age of Fighting Sail. New English Library. ISBN 0-939218-06-2.
• Hitsman, J. Mackay (1999). The Incredible War of 1812. Toronto: Robin Brass Studio. ISBN 1-896941-13-3. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Mahan, Alfree Thayer (1840 – 1914)(1905) Sea Power in Its Relation to the War of 1812 (2 vols.) (Boston: Little Brown) American Library Association.
• Malcomson, Robert (1998). Lords of the Lake:The Naval War on Lake Ontario 1812-1814. Toronto: Robin Brass Studio. ISBN 1-896941-08-7.
• Miller, Arthur P. Jr. (2000). Pennsylvania Battlefields and Military Landmarks. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 0-8117-2876-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Roosevelt, Theodore. The Naval War of 1812. The Modern Library. ISBN 0-375-75419-9. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |city= ignored (|location= suggested) (help)
• Skaggs, David (1997). A Signal Victory: The Lake Erie Campaign, 1812–13. Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-5575-0892-5. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
• Symonds, Craig (2005). Decision at Sea. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-1951-7145-4.
• Zaslow, Morris (ed). The Defended Border. Macmillan of Canada. ISBN 0-7705-1242-9

Further reading

• Axelrod, Alen; Phillips, Charles. The MacMillan Dictionary of Military Biography (New York: MacMillan, 1998.) p. 343.]
• Bancroft, George, 1800-1891;Dyer, Oliver, 1824-1907. (1891) History of the battle of Lake Erie: and miscellaneous papers (New York : R. Bonner's sons) 292 pp. at American Library Association.
• Barnes, James, 1866-1936 (1898) The hero of Erie (Oliver Hazard Perry) (microform) (1898) New York: D. Appleton and here for other formats.
• Burges, Tristam (1770-1853) (1839) Battle of Lake Erie, with notices of Commodore Elliot's conduct in that engagement (Providence, Brown & Cady) at Internet Archive.
• Conners, William James, 1857-; Emerson, George Douglas. (1916) The Perrys victory centenary. Report of the Perry’s victory centennial commission, state of New York (Albany, J.B. Lyon Company, Printers).
• Cooper, James Fenimore (1846) Lives of Distinguished American Naval Officers Google Books and here for American Library Association.
• Jesse D. Elliot, Address of Com. Jesse D. Elliot, U.S.N., Delivered in Washington County, Maryland, to His Early Companions at Their Request, on November 24, 1843 (Philadelphia: G.B. Zeiber & co., 1844).
• Hickey, Donald R. (1990) The War of 1812: The Forgotten Conflict Urbana, Illinois: University of Illinois Press. National Historical Society Book Prize and American Military Institute Best Book Award. ISBN 0252060598; ISBN 978-0252060595.
• Hickey, Donald R. (2006) Don't Give Up the Ship! Myths of the War of 1812. (Urbana: University of Illinois Press) ISBN 0-252-03179-2.
• Downloadable resources regarding Oliver Hazard Perry, American Library Association.
• Langguth, A.J. (2006). Union 1812: The Americans Who Fought the Second War of Independence. New York: Simon & Shuster. ISBN 0743226189. {{cite book}}: Check |isbn= value: checksum (help)
• Mackenzie, Alexander Slidell, 1803-1848. (1915) Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry : famous American naval hero, victor of the battle of Lake Erie, his life and achievements (Akron, Ohio: Superior Printing Co.)
• Mackenzie, Alexander Slidell, 1803-1848 (1840) The life of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry. (New York, Harper) Volume 1, Volume 2.
• Niles, John Milton (Bedford, Mass.: Applewood Books, 1830) The Life of Oliver Hazard Perry.
• Reid, George. (1913) Perry at Erie:how Captain Dobbins, Benjamin Fleming and others assisted him. (Erie, Pennsylvania: Journal publishing company).
• Skaggs, David Curtis. (October 2006) Oliver Hazard Perry: honor, courage, and patriotism in the early U.S. Navy. Annapolis, Maryland:Naval Institute Press, 302 pp. ISBN 978-1-59114-792-3; ISBN 1-59114-792-1.
• Skaggs, David Curtis. Perry Triumphant (April 2009 Volume 23, Number 2) Naval History Magazine United States Naval Institute.
• James T. White (1895) p. 288. National Cyclopaedia of American Biography.

External links

• "Log of the Battle of Lake Erie" by Sailing Master William Taylor
• US Brig Niagara
• Barclay's court martial records and correspondence