Page:History of Richland County, Ohio.djvu/140

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��HISTORY OF OHIO.

��attacked Tapper and his troops, who, though worn down with the march and not a Httle disorganized through the jealousies of the officers, withstood the attack, and repulsed the British and their red allies, who returned to Detroit, and the Americans to Fort McArthur.

In the fall of 1812, Gen. Harrison ordered a detachment of six hundred men, mostly mounted, to destroy the Indian towns on the Missisineway River, one of the head-waters of the Wabash. The winter set in early and with unusual severity. At the same time this expedition was carried on, Bonaparte was retreating from Moscow. The expe- dition accomplished its design, though the troops suffered greatly from the cold, no less than two hundred men being more or less frost bitten.

Gen. Harrison determined at once to retake Michigan and establish a line of defense along the southern shores of the lakes. Winchester was sent to occupy Forts Wayne and Defiance; Perkins' brigade to Lower Sandusky, to fortify an old stockade, and some Pennsylvania troops and artil- lery sent there at the same time. As soon as Gen. Harrison heard the results of the Missis- ineway expedition, he went to Chillicothe to con- sult with Gov. Meigs about further movements, and the best methods to keep the way between the Upper Miami and the Maumee continually open. He also sent Gen. Winchester word to move for- ward to the rapids of the Maumee and prepare for winter quarters. This Winchester did by the middle of January, 1813, establishing himself on the northern bank of the river, just above Wayne's old battle-ground. He was well fixed here, and was enabled to give his troops good bread, made from corn gathered in Indian corn-fields in this vicinity.

While here, the inhabitants of Frenchtown, on the Raisin River, about twenty miles from Detroit, sent W^inchester word claiming protection from the threatened British and Indian invasion, avowing themselves in sympathy with the Americans. A council of war decided in favor of their request, and Col. Lewis, with 550 men, sent to their relief Soon after. Col. Allen vras sent with more troops, and the enemy easily driven away fnjm about Frenchtown. Word was sent to Gen. Winchester, who determined to march with all the men he could spare to aid in holding the post gained. He left, the 19th of January, with 250 men, and ar- rived on the evening of the 20th. Failing to take the necessary precaution, from some unex- plained reason, the enemy came up in the night, estabUshed his batteries, and, the next day, sur-

��prised and defeated the American Army with a terrible loss. Gen. Winchester was made a pris- oner, and, finally, those who were intrenched in the town surrendered, under promise of Proctor, the British commander, of protection from the Indians. This promise was grossly violated' the next day. The savages were allowed to enter the town and enact a massacre as cruel and bloody as any in the annals of the war, to the everlasting ignominy of the British General and his troops.

Those of the American Army that escaped, ar- rived at the rapids on the evening of the 22d of January, and soon the sorrowftil news spread throughout the army and nations. Gen. Harrison set about retrieving the disaster at once. Delay could do no good. A fort was built at the rapids, named Fort Meigs, and troops from the south and west hurriedly advanced to the scene of action. The investment and capture of Detroit was aban- doned, that winter, owing to the defeat at French- town, and expiration of the terms of service of many of the troops. Others took their places, all parts .of Ohio and bordering States sending men. \

The erection of Fort Meigs was an obstacle in the path of the British they determined to remove, and, on the 28th of February, 1813, a large band of British and Indians, under command of Proc- tor, Tecumseh, Walk-in-the-water, and other In- dian chiefs, appeared in the Maumee in boats, and prepared for the attack. Without entering into details regarding the investment of the fort, it is only necessary to add, that after a prolonged siege, lasting to the early part of May, the British were obliged to abandon the fort, having been severely defeated, and sailed for the Canadian shores.

Next followed the attacks on Fort Stephenson, at -Lower Sandusky, and other predatory excur- sions, by the British. All of these failed of their design; the defense of Maj. Croghan and his men constituting one of the most brilliant actions of the war. For the gallant defense of Fort Stephenson by Maj. Croghan, then a young man, the army merited the highest honors. The ladies of Chillicothe voted the heroic Major a fine sword, while the whole land rejoiced at the exploits of him and his band.

The decisive efforts of the army, the great num- bers of men offered — many of whom Gen. Harrison was obliged to send home, much to their disgust — Perry's victory on Lake Erie, September 10, 1813 — all presaged the triumph of the American arms, soon to ensue. As soon as the battle on the lake was over, the British at Maiden burned

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