The Loyalists of America and Their Times Volume II Part 37

PART II.

AMERICANS ATTACK AND PLUNDER IN AND ABOUT BROCKVILLE--SUCCESSFUL RETALIATORY ATTACK ON OGDENSBURG.

The next military affairs in the order of time, ill.u.s.trative of the loyalty and courage of the Canadians, occurred on the River St.

Lawrence, in the neighbourhoods of Prescott and Brockville. Most of the American invasions were mere raids for destruction and plunder of property. In the winter of 1813 several of these raids were made from Ogdensburg on the British settlements. "After winter (1813) had fairly set in, and the St. Lawrence was frozen over, the Americans on several occasions sent marauding parties across the ice to pillage and destroy the Canadian settlements. [The American mode of giving liberty to Canada.] On the night of the 6th of February, two companies of riflemen from Ogdensburg, under command of Captain Forsyth, made a descent on the town of Brockville, wounded a sentry, fired several houses, and carried off a quant.i.ty of plunder, together with fifty of the inhabitants.

Several inroads from Ogdensburg were made; and the British were anxious to retaliate." (Tuttle.) On the closing of the session of the Legislature of Lower Canada, the 17th of February, 1813, the Governor-General, Sir George Prevost, made a tour of inspection of the forts of Upper Canada. On his arrival at Prescott he was importuned to authorize an attack upon Ogdensburg, in retaliation for an attack upon Brockville by the enemy some days previous. He consented to a demonstration on the river to ascertain the enemy's force; and on the ensuing morning (22nd February), as the Governor-General departed, accompanied to Kingston by Lieut.-Colonel Pearson (commander of Prescott), Lieut.-Colonel M'Donnell, second in command, moved with his party across the river on the ice, towards Ogdensburg. The enemy, perceiving the movement, were prepared to receive him; and Lieut.-Colonel M'Donnell, impelled by that spirit characteristic of British soldiers, turned the demonstration into a real attack.

The enemy was driven from the town after a short contest, leaving about twenty killed and a considerable number wounded. Four bra.s.s field-pieces, seven pieces of iron ordnance, complete, with several stand of arms and a considerable quant.i.ty of stores, fell into the hands of the victors, who lost seven killed, and seven officers (including Lieutenant-Colonel M'Donnell) and forty-one men wounded. After having destroyed two small schooners and two gun-boats left there to winter, they removed the stores and arms to their own side of the river at Prescott. This brilliant achievement prevented any further American forays on the Canadians from Cornwall to Gananoque for the rest of the winter.

PART III.

WINTER PREPARATIONS IN LOWER CANADA FOR THE CAMPAIGN--UNPRECEDENTED MARCH ON SNOW-SHOES OF LOYALIST VOLUNTEERS FROM NEW BRUNSWICK TO LOWER CANADA--AMERICAN PLAN OF OPERATIONS.

The greatest exertions were made in Canada during the winter to prepare for the ensuing campaign. The Canadian regiment of Fencibles, the Voltigeurs, the Glengarries, were recruited with diligence and success, though still without reinforcements from England--too much engrossed with her European wars to afford much a.s.sistance to the colonies. A volunteer regiment from New Brunswick came, by permission and authority, to the a.s.sistance of the beleaguered but hitherto successful Canadians.

"The King's Regiment of New Brunswick was mustered into the regular army as the 104th Regiment, and sent to Canada for active service. The regiment was first formed amongst the Loyalists who had settled in York county, about Fredericton, in 1784, and on its voluntary enrolment in the regular army, the Legislature pa.s.sed complimentary resolutions to officers and men, and presented the regiment with a handsome silver trumpet. A portion of this regiment was conveyed to Quebec by sea; but several companies made a very trying march on snow-shoes, through an unbroken country, during very cold weather, to arrive in Canada in time for the spring campaign."[206]

"The plan of the American campaign for 1813 was that a large army under General Dearborn was to threaten Lower Canada, whilst a determined effort was to be made to retake Michigan territory, capture the forts of Niagara frontier, and thus reduce the whole of Upper Canada. This accomplished, all the armies were to make a joint descent upon Montreal and Quebec, which would be followed by the occupation of the Maritime Provinces, and thus the British would be driven from the American continent."[207]

PART IV.

AMERICAN FLEET ON LAKE ONTARIO SUPERIOR TO THE BRITISH FLEET, AND, WITH THE ARMY, ATTACKS AND TAKES YORK (TORONTO), AND AFTER OCCUPYING IT LESS THAN TWO WEEKS, RETIRE WITH MUCH HASTE.

The American fleet on Lake Ontario was superior to that of the British, and was being daily augmented at Sackett's Harbour--their princ.i.p.al navy yard on Lake Ontario. The first descent was expected to be upon Kingston; but the American Government deemed it too hazardous a game to risk their Lake armament upon an enterprise against this princ.i.p.al military depot of the British in Upper Canada, and resolved to direct their forces against more distant and defenceless places on the lake.

Commodore Chauncey having equipped his fleet for an expedition, and received on board upwards of 1,700 troops under the command of Generals Dearborn and Pike, sailed from Sackett's Harbour as early as the 25th of April, and on the following evening arrived off York (Toronto) with fourteen sail of armed vessels; and on the following day commenced landing their troops about three miles west of the town--the British being compelled to retire after making a strong resistance. The grenadiers of the 8th Regiment, who lost their captain, M'Neal, were, after a desperate contest, almost annihilated by the overwhelming numbers of the enemy.

The best account we have read of this expedition against, or rather raid upon, the town of York, is given by Thompson, and which I quote at length, relating as it does to what was then and now is the capital--the defenceless capital--of Upper Canada:

"In the month of April, the ice having completely broken up in the port of Sackett's Harbour, where the American squadron under Commodore Chauncey had wintered, General Dearborn, commanding the right division of the Army of the Centre, consisting of 4,000 men stationed in that vicinity, selected 2,000 of the most efficient of his division [American History of the War, published in New York], and on the 22nd of the month embarked them on board the fleet, with which he ascended the lake, and with this force appeared off the harbour of York, the capital of Upper Canada, on the morning of the 27th.

"The enemy appearing to threaten an attack upon the town, General Sheaffe collected his forces, which consisted of nearly 700 men, including regulars and militia, with about 100 Indians; and with these he made a most determined resistance to the landing of the enemy; but at length, overcome by numbers, he was compelled to retire; by which means the enemy was enabled to effect his landing a short distance above the fort, which was situated about two miles to the west of the town, at the entrance of the harbour.

"So soon as the American troops, who were led on by General Pike, had made good their landing, they formed into two lines (the first of which was commanded personally by General Pike, and the rear or reserve line by General Pearce), and in this order advanced upon the first battery and carried it by a.s.sault; they then advanced towards the citadel in the same order, and by the same means captured an intervening battery.

"Here the columns halted, in order to dress the lines for an attack upon the main works. At this moment a large magazine accidentally exploded, by which a quant.i.ty of stones and timbers were thrown into the air, and in their fall killed and wounded a number on both sides, amongst whom was the American general, Pike.

"The British regulars and militia performed prodigies of valour, but were overpowered by a force three times their number, and in a high state of discipline;[208] they were compelled to retreat towards the town.

"General Sheaffe then held a Council with his princ.i.p.al officers and civil authorities of the town, by whom it was advised that he should retreat towards Kingston with the remainder of his troops; and that the commandant of the militia, Lieutenant-Colonel Chewett, should treat with the American commander for terms for the surrender of York.

"At the capture of York the British lost not less than 400 men, 300 of whom were made prisoners of war, and about forty killed and wounded by the explosion. The Americans lost 378, thirty-eight of whom were killed and two hundred and twenty-two wounded by the explosion of the magazine.

General Pike died of his contusions a few minutes after being carried on board of one of the vessels.[209]

"On the 8th of May, the American army under General Dearborn once more evacuated York, after having occupied it twelve days, and secured much booty."

PART V.

AMERICAN FLEET AND ARMY RETURN TO SACKETT's HARBOUR--MAKE PREPARATIONS FOR ATTACKING FORT GEORGE AND THE TOWN OF NEWARK, WHICH, AFTER A SEVERE BATTLE, THEY TAKE AND OCCUPY.

After evacuating York, the American fleet and army proceeded again to Sackett's Harbour, where preparations were immediately made for invading the Niagara frontier. On the 20th of May the American fleet again ascended Lake Ontario, and on the morning of the 23rd they appeared off the mouth of the Niagara river, soon after which, the weather being favourable to their purpose, they attacked Fort George and the town of Newark (now Niagara), by land and water. Early in the morning of the 27th of May the enemy commenced a combined attack upon the fort, having previously, on the 24th and 25th, materially injured the works by a warm cannonade from their s.h.i.+ps and batteries. A body of about 800 riflemen, under Colonel Winfield Scott, landed near the Two Mile Creek, while the fleet ranged up in the form of a crescent, extending from the north of the Lighthouse to the Two Mile Creek, so as to enfilade the British batteries by a cross fire. The riflemen, after forming and ascending the bank, were met by the British, and compelled to give way in disorder, and return to the beach, from whence they kept up a smart fire under cover of the bank. In the meantime, another body of upwards of 2,000 men, under the command of General Lewis, made a landing, and formed on the beach under cover of a tremendous cannonade of round shot, and showers of grape and canister from the fleet, that swept the adjacent plain, and compelled the British to retire. General Vincent, finding the works torn to pieces by the enemy's artillery, and no longer tenable against so overwhelming a force, caused the fort to be dismantled, and the magazines to be blown up, and retreated to Queenston, leaving the Americans to take possession of the ruins of the fort. The British loss consisted of fifty-two killed and upwards of three hundred wounded and missing [more than half the entire force]. The Americans state their loss at thirty-nine killed and a hundred and eleven wounded.[210]

PART VI.

THE BRITISH RETREAT TO BURLINGTON HEIGHTS--BATTLE OF STONY CREEK--DEFEAT OF THE AMERICANS, AND THEIR DISORDERLY RETREAT TO FORT GEORGE.

"General Vincent, on the ensuing day, having collected all the forces from Chippewa and Fort Erie, and destroyed or rendered useless the posts and stores along the frontier, commenced his retreat towards Burlington Heights, at the head of Lake Ontario." (Christie.)

"General Vincent continued his retreat as far as Burlington Heights; and on the 1st day of June was followed by an American army of 3,500 infantry, and about 300 cavalry, commanded by Generals Chandler and Winder, for the purpose, as was vainly boasted, of making prisoners of the whole British army, and thus terminate the contest of the north-western frontier."

This expected conquest of the whole British army was commenced by the affair of Stony Creek, when both of the American generals themselves were taken prisoners.

On the evening of the 5th of June, the American forces encamped at the village of Stony Creek, about nine miles from the British camp at Burlington Heights, with the purpose of attacking and taking the British position next day. But General Vincent was on the alert to obtain information as to the enemy's strength and movements, and dispatched Colonel (afterwards Major-General) Harvey, with two companies, to reconnoitre their camp at Stony Creek, and, from the report received, determined to attack them that very night.

"All the troops, both regulars and militia, that could possibly be spared from the garrison at Burlington Heights, together with those who had retreated from Fort George, amounting in all to 700, were ordered to be in readiness for a movement. Immediately after dark they commenced an advance towards Stony Creek, where, after several halts in order to reconnoitre the country through which they were marching, they arrived between one and two o'clock on the morning of the 6th of June.

Immediately the quarter guard of the enemy was surprised and taken, and the a.s.sailants rushed into the camp, where all was in apparent security.

But such a scene of carnage commenced--the huzzas of the besiegers; the yells of the Indians, led on by Captain Brant; the clas.h.i.+ng of bayonets, and, above all, the thunder of the cannon and musketry, rendered it truly appalling. A column of the enemy was at length formed into some kind of order, but to no purpose; they were by this time completely unnerved and dispirited, which, together with the darkness of the night and the clouds of smoke, threw them into the greatest confusion and disorder. Not so, however, with the British troops; their plans had been so well concerted, that every man knew his rallying signal; they were, therefore, at all times beyond surprise. The American army, being completely discomfited, retreated from their bivouac in the greatest confusion.

"As soon as General Vincent had completed the defeat of the enemy, he again fell back upon Burlington Heights, taking as trophies of his victory three field-pieces and a bra.s.s field howitzer, captured from the enemy, besides both their generals, and about 150 officers, sergeants, and rank and file.

"After the defeat at Stony Creek, the American army, in the most indescribable manner [helter-skelter, every man for himself] retreated towards Fort George [whence they came] without the least military order or subordination; in fact, such officers as could avail themselves of horses on the road, regardless of the means employed for that purpose, took them and made their way to the lines with all possible speed, and left the rest of the army to s.h.i.+ft for themselves; they, therefore, retreated [or scampered] in small detached parties, some of whom had exonerated themselves of their arms and equipments. Thus did they travel [at double-quick] towards their headquarters from two or three to a dozen; and were, in compa.s.sion for their sufferings, succoured by those very people whose houses, a day or two previous, they had ransacked and plundered."[211]

PART VII.

GENERAL VINCENT, REINFORCED, PURSUES THE RETREATING ENEMY--BRILLIANT AFFAIR OF THE BEAVER DAMS, IN WHICH SEVERAL HUNDRED AMERICANS SURRENDER TO ONE-FIFTH THEIR NUMBER--THE AMERICANS COOPED UP IN FORT GEORGE--FORT SCHLOSSER AND BLACK ROCK ATTACKED BY THE BRITISH, AND THE PUBLIC FORTS AND MAGAZINES DESTROYED OR TAKEN--THE AMERICAN ARMY CANNOT BE INDUCED TO COME OUT OF FORT GEORGE INTO OPEN FIELD FIGHT.

In a short time General Vincent received some reinforcements, and a.s.sumed the offensive, advanced towards Fort George with a view to investing it--forming his line on the Four Mile Creek, with his left resting on the lake; but he ultimately extended his line from the Twelve Mile Creek (St. Catharines) to Queenston.

General Lewis, who now had full command (General Dearborn having resigned), finding his advance posts and foraging parties continually hara.s.sed and frequently made prisoners by small detachments of British and Canadian troops stationed at different posts through the country, in order to prevent the American camp at Fort George from obtaining supplies, dispatched Colonel Boerstler with about 600 or 700 men, by way of Queenston, with a view of dislodging a detachment or picquet posted at a place called the Beaver Dams, a few miles from Queenston. Colonel Boerstler was surprised by a small party of Indians under Captain Ker; and believing themselves hemmed in by superior numbers, surrendered to Lieutenant (afterwards Colonel) Fitzgibbon, of the 49th Regiment, who arrived in time to complete the victory with a detachment of forty-six rank and file. The prisoners were five to one to the captors, being 512 in number, including twenty-five officers, two field pieces, and a stand of colours.

By these successes, the Americans were compelled to confine themselves to Fort George and its neighbourhood; and before the 1st of July the British had formed a line extending from Twelve Mile Creek, on Lake Ontario (Port Dalhousie), across to Queenston, on the Niagara river; and the Canadians began now to retaliate the game of marauding which the Americans had been practising on the Niagara frontier. From Chippewa an attack was made on Fort Schlosser, on the American side of the river, during the night of the 4th of July, by a small party of militia and soldiers under Lieutenant-Colonel Clarke, who surprised the guard at that post, and brought away a bra.s.s six-pounder, upwards of fifty stand of arms, a small quant.i.ty of stores, with a gun-boat and two batteaux.

At daybreak in the morning of the 11th of July, Lieutenant-Colonel Bishop, lately commanding Fort Erie, crossed over the river with 240 men, consisting of a small party of militia and detachments of the 41st and 49th Regiments, and effectually surprised the enemy's post at Black Rock, burning his block-houses, stores, barracks, dockyard, and a vessel, but were compelled to hasten their departure by a reinforcement of American militia and some Indians in their interest, who opened a smart fire under cover of the surrounding woods, killing thirteen of the British attacking party, and wounding a considerable number--among others, Lieutenant-Colonel Bishop, mortally; but the British party brought away seven pieces of ordnance, two hundred stand of small arms, and a great quant.i.ty of stores.

The two armies were almost in sight of each other at Fort George; the commander of the British wished to ascertain the extent of the enemy's works and his means of defence, and to draw him into an open field of battle, and therefore, on the 24th of August, made a demonstration as if to a.s.sault the fort, drove in the picquets; took several of them, advanced to within a few hundred yards of the enemy, who, though supported by the fire upon the British from their batteries on the American side of the river, could not be induced to leave their entrenchments and venture in the open field, although the force of the British did not exceed 2,000, while the American force exceeded 4,000, but wholly depending upon resources from the American side for their subsistence, and compelled to act solely on the defensive, from the hostile front a.s.sumed by the British in the neighbourhood. The American army of 4,000 men, being cooped up within the limits of the fort, depending for their supplies from the United States, and not daring to go out of their fortifications, could do little harm and be of little use to the American cause, the British commander did not think it advisable to incur the loss and risk of an a.s.sault upon the fort.

PART VIII.

WAR IN THE WEST--GENERAL PROCTOR'S UNSUCCESSFUL SIEGE OF LOWER SANDUSKY.

In the meantime General Harrison was on the Sandusky river, making preparations to prosecute the war with vigour, in order to recover the Michigan territory, as soon as the fleet fitting out at Erie (Presqu'

Isle), under Captain Perry, who had been dispatched thither by Commodore Chauncey towards the end of May, should be sufficiently strong to co-operate with the land forces. General Proctor resolved to make another effort to defeat General Harrison's purpose to recover Michigan, and immediately besieged the American fort at Lower Sandusky; but in consequence of the withdrawment of the Indians out of the reach of the enemy's guns, and disinclined to the delay of a siege, and General Harrison with a respectable force at no great distance, General Proctor thought proper to raise the siege and retire to Amherstburg.