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In the grander scheme, the Battle of Ridgeway gets all the glory when it comes to the limited history of the Fenian Raids of 1866. And yet a second skirmish took place almost instantly after the one at Ridgeway. The sad fact is that both battles could have been avoided and maybe the whole matter could have been better remembered. But to understand where the Battle of Fort Erie came from, we must first go back to Port Colborne, where we split off last week on the 1st of June 1866. Lieutenant-Colonel John Stoughton Dennis felt left out, a blow to his fragile ego. DespiteRead More →

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The Welland Canal had brought expansion and growth to the Niagara Region, along the canal work camps flourished into settlements, villages, and towns. But the canal remained under private control, and to maintain the wooden infrastructure they needed income from ship traffic and the fees paid to transit the canal. The trouble with the wooden structures is that they were getting old and starting to fall apart and by the start of the troubles of 1837 many of the locks could no longer function. And with the canal at standstill ships could not transit therefore no money would come to the canal, so the locksRead More →

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One of the most controversial and convoluted battle in the War of 1812 is that of the Battle of Beaver Dams. It’s also been my most active posts in the project, at least my original posts. I have received more hate mail and rude comments (both of which will never be made public) so rather than let it stand as it is, I did what any good student of history would do, that is research more and learn more. In doing so I came across two books (both of which are cited at the bottom of this post) that have greatly opened my eyes toRead More →

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What do chocolate and the war of 1812 have in common; just one thing, a name, Laura Secord. Many people today hear the name Laura Secord and think of the Canadian confectionary company, but there was a hero behind that name. But unlike other heroes from the war whose names were praised right after their great victories, Laura lived in relative obscurity for decades after the war had ended. Born Laura Ingersoll on the 13th of September 1775 in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, she was the eldest of four born to Thomas Ingersoll and Elizabeth Dewey. When she was eight her mother passed away, her fatherRead More →

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This entry I’m writing specifically for my dear friend Erin, who like me, has a love for the War of 1812. In one of her recent blog posts, she mentioned her new job at an independent children’s book publisher, Pajama Press. The book, Acts of Courage, covers the story of Laura Secord. My entry today is not on Mrs. Secord, but rather the British officer she interacted with, James FitzGibbon. FitzGibbon, not one of the first heroes of the war that one would think about, his contributions overshadowed by Laura Secord and Issac Brock. Fitzgibbon’s story blends with them both. An Irishman raised from theRead More →