Rowdy Crossing Into The Illinois Prairies

Map In A Museum

General Hopkins' Kentuckians, undisciplined, and hopelessly insubordinate, after crossing into the Illinois prairies, became reckless and disorderly.  It was known among them that the success of the expedition depended entirely on their activity and secrecy.  Yet they loitered and shot game along the way and otherwise disobeyed the positive commands of the veteran general and his aids to such a shameful extent that the Indians in all the territory desired to be covered, learned the object of the movement and fled north to safety, just as had been feared when orders for secrecy and haste had been given.  The season was rainy and the roads naturally slow; competent guides were lacking and on the fourth day out from Ft. Harrison, the army lost its course in the vast prairies and returned disgraced, to the Wabash.  What a mortifying finish, after writing the following letter to Governor Shelby of Kentucky, as gallant old General Hopkins did!--Vincennes, Sept. 29, 1812 [Source]

Dudley And Disaster At Fort Meigs

Col. Wm. Dudley's Defeat Opposite Fort Meigs...:

Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Kentucky... [Included is Colonel William Dudley who was killed May 5, 1813, at Fort Meigs:

A Band Of Brothers

From the Library of Congress, First American West: The Ohio River Valley, 1750-1820, a letter written by
Isaac Shelby.

Headquarters

Camp at the mouth of Portage Upon Lake Erie

20th Oct. 1813

The Army having now returned to this place [from the Battle of the Thames].....October 20....united...a Band of Brothers.....

From The Battle of the Thames: In which Kentuckians ...:

"On October 20th the day following their arrival a general order was issued for the troops to return to Kentucky by way of Franklinton (Columbus), at which point those who had received government arms were to deposit them...".

Detroit Reclaimed

Interesting events ...:

[September 29] 1813 Detroit....

"On August 16, 1812, it was surrendered by General Hull to the British army commanded by Gen. Isaac Brock. Detroit was reoccupied by the Americans on September 29, 1813, when the name of the fort was changed to FORT SHELBY The new name was adopted in honor of Gen. Isaac Shelby, governor of Kentucky, who raised a large body of Kentucky riflemen and marched to the relief of Detroit." [Source]

1813-14  War with the Creek Indians......

Governor Shelby In Ohio

Source

Excerpted dated entries from the Rootsweb Kentucky message archives:

Movements of the Kentucky Militia   -   Aug. 17, 1812 Jan. 24, 1813

Between Kentucky and Canada

GEN. ISAAC SHELBY'S ORDERLY [ORDERS] BOOK

(Most days, just routine orders of the day; i.e., regulations)

Original in Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library

Aug. 16 Camp at George Town
Aug. 28 HQ Cincinnati

Sep. 2 Camp Lost Creek
Sep. 11 St. Marys HQ [entered out of order on Oct. 7]
Sep. 23 Camp Maumee 33 Miles from Ft. Wayne


A reference to Governor Shelby's correspondence and St. Mary's in September:

Source

Also see Shelby's Campaign To Canada.

Isaac Shelby

Source

Peter Dudley

In the Calendar of the Papers of John Jordan Crittenden:

1837 Dudley, P.[eter] re War of 1812

Source

...for indemnity for loss in cost of equipping the Regiment of Volunteer mounted gunners of Kentucky in service of the U.S. [in war of 1812].

Another letter [written by Isaac Shelby to James Monroe] from the Peter Dudley file at Fold3:

Isaac Shelby

[Source]

Isaac Shelby (1750-1826), the first Governor of Kentucky, commanded troops at the Battle of The Thames.

In summing up the character of Isaac Shelby we may emphatically exclaim he was a good and a gallant man. His life, like that of all the leading spirits of his day, was an eventful one; and, in bravery and patriotism, he was, perhaps, surpassed by none of his cotemporaries.  And Shelby's memory is safe.  He will not be forgotten--at least by the sons of Kentucky; for his name on their lips is a "household word." Louisville Literary News-Letter  [Source: The Hesperian, Volume 3, Sketch of Isaac Shelby]

Shelby's Campaign To Canada

From The Pictorial Field-Book of the War of 1812...

From Outlines of the Life and Public...

"Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled. That the thanks of Congress be, and they are hereby presented to Major General William Henry Harrison and Isaac Shelby. late Governor of Kentucky, and through them to the officers and men under their command, for their gallantry and good conduct in defeating the combined British and Indian forces under Major General Proctor on the Thames, in Upper Canada, on the 6th day of October, 1813, capturing the British army, with their baggage, camp equipage. and artillery...".