Master Of Lake Champlain

Source

War -- New York (State) -- New York-- Newspapers

Date: 1814-06-14

Notes: p. 208, col. 4

One Of The Great Rules Of Strategy

General Jackson Statue In New Orleans

"The battle of Plattsburg; a study in and of the war of 1812...General Macomb.... :

The same idea [as the British had before the Battle of New Orleans, to separate the country at the Mississippi River], combined with one of the great rules of strategy, was back of the battle of Plattsburg. The British believed — and had indeed good grounds for so believing — that if they won at Plattsburg, defeating both the fleet on Lake Champlain and the land forces, they could divide as regards military operations.

Victory On September 11th

Source (Battle Of Plattsburgh Illustration, Page 60)

From Historic Lakes, The Battle of Plattsburgh, in four parts, culminating in victory on September 11, 1814.

See The Battle of Lake Champlain on Facebook, too.

On September 11, 2012, there was an article in the Press Republican [Plattsburgh, New York] entitled, "In My Opinion: Battle of Plattsburgh was pivotal."

The Naval History blog has a post entitled Unsung Heroes of the Battle of Lake Champlain.

Champlain 1812's history of the battle included an overview and a timeline.

Commodore Stephen Cassin

The outstanding actions of Commodore Cassin took place in the Battle of Lake Champlain.

Source

See links from Wikipedia and FindAGrave.

General Alexander Macomb

Source

Alexander Macomb was born in Detroit on April 3, 1782, though he moved to New York and was schooled in New Jersey.

When however the war of 1812 broke out, he asked to be transferred to the artillery because there would be little opportunity of distinguishing himself in his old corps [of Engineers]. He was appointed a Colonel and given the command of the third regiment. ...in November 1812, Macomb was able to join the army on the northern frontier with his new command. Here he distinguished himself at Niagara and Fort George. In January, 1814, he was raised to the rank of Brigadier. The charge of the country bordering on Lake Champlain was now entrusted to him and it was here that he won the battle of Plattsburgh, one of the most gallant victories of the war. [Source]

He died on June 25, 1841.

Surveying Commodore MacDonough's Shipyard

An August 2011 news release from the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum included the following information:

McDonough's War of 1812 Shipyard Receives Grant

WASHINGTON, DC -- The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum has received a grant of $23,985 from the National Park Service's American Battlefield Protection Program (ABPP) to undertake an archeological survey to determine the precise location and established boundaries for MacDonough's War of 1812 Shipyard in Vergennes, Vermont.

Skirmish At Fort Cassin & Otter Creek

On this date (May 14th) in 1814:

In the spring of 1814..., a flotilla of small war vessels was constructed at Vergennes under Lieutenant, afterward Commodore, Macdonough earthworks, since known as Fort Cassin, after Lieutenant Cassin of the US navy, were thrown up at the mouth of Otter Creek; and May 14 the earthworks and the completed vessels repelled an attack by a British fleet which was attempting to enter the creek in order to destroy the latter. [Source]

The Fighting Race

Excerpts from The Glories of Ireland:

 In America, the War of 1812 once more gave opportunity to the Fighting Race.  [My Irish genes love that description]

The commanding figure of the war, which opened so inauspiciously for the United States, was General Andrew Jackson, the hero of the battle of New Orleans, and afterwards twice elected President of the United States. "Old Hickory", as he came to be lovingly called, was proud of his Irish father, and sympathized with the national longings of the Irish people.

After Commodore Perry, the victor in the battle of Lake Erie, and himself the son of an Irish mother, the northern naval glory of the War of 1812 falls to Lieutenant Thomas MacDonough, of Irish descent, whose victory on Lake Champlain over the British squadron was almost as important as Perry's. Admiral Charles L. Stewart {"Old Ironsides"), who commanded the frigate Constitution when she captured the Cyane and the Levant, fighting them by moonlight, was a great and renowned figure. His parents came from Ireland, and Charles Stewart Parnell's mother was the great sea-fighter's daughter.