1812: The Navy's War (49 page)
To further strengthen the army, Congress approved Madison’s request to raise enlistment bounties to a whopping $124, plus 320 acres of land. As a result, the recruitment of regulars for five years or until the end of the war increased significantly. By the spring of 1814, the army had risen to 40,000 men, and by the end of the year to nearly 45,000. The president retained Armstrong, however, even though the secretary bore a major part of the responsibility for the failures of the previous year. Madison wasn’t happy with him, but he evidently thought replacing him was more bother than it was worth.
GAINING NAVAL SUPREMACY on lakes Ontario and Champlain was as essential, in Madison’s view, as reinvigorating the army. Secretary Jones spared no effort to carry out the president’s policy, but he thought the forces building on the lakes should be part of a defensive, rather than an offensive, strategy. He did not think it wise, given the government’s limited resources, to continue attacking Canada. He urged that emphasis be placed on the oceans, “where twenty of his ships cannot check the depredations of one of our ships or prevent the capture of his single ships.” Secretary Armstrong disagreed; he wanted to move aggressively against Canada. He continued to support attacking Kingston as a prelude to moving on Montreal, but if that failed, he was open to making an effort in the Niagara area and farther west with a view to acquiring all of Upper Canada. The administration gave little thought to defending the eastern seaboard against attacks.
Secretary Jones wrote to Commodore Chauncey on January 15, 1814, emphasizing again the president’s urgent desire to obtain supremacy on Lake Ontario. “Every possible resource and effort must be directed to the creation of such a force at Sackets Harbor as will enable you to meet the enemy on the Lake the moment he may appear, and with means competent to ensure success.”
Jones also urged Master Commandant Macdonough to do whatever was necessary to regain supremacy on Lake Champlain so that he “could meet the enemy on the first opening of navigation.” Macdonough had a monumental task ahead of him. At the end of December 1813 he had only the 6-gun sloop
President
, the 7-gun sloop
Preble
, and the 7-gun sloop
Montgomery
, along with four gunboats carrying one long eighteen-pounder each. The British had four men-of-war at Isle aux Noix, including two captured the year before. The ships were small, the largest carried only 13 guns, but Commander Daniel Pring was building the 16-gun
Niagara
(renamed
Linnet
). Pring, who had been Yeo’s flag captain in the
Wolfe
, was appointed commander of the Lake Champlain fleet in July 1813. He was one of the better officers in the Royal Navy.
President
, the 7-gun sloop
Preble
, and the 7-gun sloop
Montgomery
, along with four gunboats carrying one long eighteen-pounder each. The British had four men-of-war at Isle aux Noix, including two captured the year before. The ships were small, the largest carried only 13 guns, but Commander Daniel Pring was building the 16-gun
Niagara
(renamed
Linnet
). Pring, who had been Yeo’s flag captain in the
Wolfe
, was appointed commander of the Lake Champlain fleet in July 1813. He was one of the better officers in the Royal Navy.
To help Yeo win the arms races on both lakes, and to restore British supremacy on Lake Erie, the Admiralty sent him sailors, ships in frame, shipwrights, dockhands, guns, ammunition, and naval stores. The added resources were having an effect. During the winter of 1813–14, Chauncey fell seriously behind in the “war of the dockyards,” as the great Canadian scholar Robert Malcomson called it. The energy and optimism that had marked Chauncey’s work when he first arrived at Sackets Harbor in the fall of 1812 had considerably diminished. He estimated that it would not be until July that he had supremacy again on Lake Ontario.
During the winter, Yeo raced ahead at Kingston, building the 58-gun
Prince Regent
, the 40-gun
Princess Charlotte
, and three gunboats,
Crysler
,
Queenston
, and
Niagara.
Three more would come later. To help man them, the Admiralty sent seven hundred ten seamen and a battalion of marines—a considerable reinforcement. The ice broke on Lake Ontario the first of April, and two weeks later Yeo’s ships and crews were ready to fight.
Prince Regent
, the 40-gun
Princess Charlotte
, and three gunboats,
Crysler
,
Queenston
, and
Niagara.
Three more would come later. To help man them, the Admiralty sent seven hundred ten seamen and a battalion of marines—a considerable reinforcement. The ice broke on Lake Ontario the first of April, and two weeks later Yeo’s ships and crews were ready to fight.
At Sackets Harbor, on the other hand, Henry Eckford and his men did not begin construction on new ships until January. He was building two brigs, the 20-gun
Jefferson
, under Master Commandant Melancthon Woolsey, and the 20-gun
Jones
, under Master Commandant Charles Ridgely. Both were launched the second week of April. Eckford was also building the 58-gun
Superior
and the 42-gun
Mohawk
. When completed, Chauncey would have unquestioned supremacy on Lake Ontario, but the
Superior
was not even launched until the first of May and the
Mohawk
not until the eleventh of June.
Jefferson
, under Master Commandant Melancthon Woolsey, and the 20-gun
Jones
, under Master Commandant Charles Ridgely. Both were launched the second week of April. Eckford was also building the 58-gun
Superior
and the 42-gun
Mohawk
. When completed, Chauncey would have unquestioned supremacy on Lake Ontario, but the
Superior
was not even launched until the first of May and the
Mohawk
not until the eleventh of June.
Obtaining enough men remained a problem for Chauncey. Madison tried to help by signing a law increasing wages for service on the lakes by 25 percent and increasing the bounty by a third. On March 7 the commodore wrote to Jones, “The increase pay and bounty I think will insure men for this service, and in fact they deserve it for they suffer much beyond what anyone can form an idea of unless they witness it—we seldom have less than 20 percent of our whole number sick and sometimes 30 percent—within three days we have buried seven marines out of a corps of 180 and have this day on the sick report of the same corps 40—and our seamen in nearly the same proportion.” The commodore’s own health was being compromised by long service on the lake, just as Oliver Hazard Perry’s had been on Lake Erie.
IN PURSUANCE OF Secretary Armstrong’s orders, General Brown split off from Wilkinson’s army and marched west to Sackets Harbor with 2,000 men, arriving on February 16, 1814. In early March Brown received orders from Armstrong indicating he wanted to attack Kingston as soon as practicable. A direct attack on Montreal was ruled out because it was thought to be too strong. Moving on Kingston proved impossible, however. The mildness of the winter made traveling across the ice too hazardous, and Chauncey would not be ready with his fleet until July at the earliest.
Unable to attack Kingston, Brown marched west to Buffalo. He was under the impression that Armstrong wanted him to move to the Niagara area, but the secretary had intended only to make a feint in that direction. Nonetheless, when Armstrong discovered Brown had traveled west, he approved the move. General Brown waited at Buffalo for further orders, and his subordinate Winfield Scott trained the troops, something they badly needed.
At this point, the president still did not have a clear idea of how he was going to proceed. British forces in Canada were still relatively weak, and Madison continued to support an invasion, but without a definite plan. In the absence of a clear overall strategy, Armstrong, without the administration giving any thought to it, shifted the focus of the invasion west to the Niagara River, a peripheral area, when Kingston and Montreal were the original and more logical targets.
WHEN THE
Prince Regent
and
Princess Charlotte
were finished in Kingston the third week of April, Admiral Yeo and Lieutenant General Gordon Drummond prepared to attack Sackets Harbor, but Prevost, judging the defenses to be too strong, restrained them. Yeo and Drummond then looked for an easier target and decided to attack Oswego, through which Chauncey routed nearly all his supplies.
Prince Regent
and
Princess Charlotte
were finished in Kingston the third week of April, Admiral Yeo and Lieutenant General Gordon Drummond prepared to attack Sackets Harbor, but Prevost, judging the defenses to be too strong, restrained them. Yeo and Drummond then looked for an easier target and decided to attack Oswego, through which Chauncey routed nearly all his supplies.
On May 5, the British fleet suddenly hove into view off the beach at Oswego, where U.S. Army Colonel George Mitchell prepared hurriedly to fight with only 290 men. Yeo opened fire on the American defenses a mile from shore. At the same time, he deployed fifteen boats loaded with troops. As they approached the beach, Mitchell’s accurate artillery fire created so much havoc the boats turned around and went back to the ships. Undeterred, Yeo attacked again the next morning. His flagship
Wolfe
pounded Mitchell’s batteries and the fort, while his huge landing force of as many as 1,000 rowed once more toward the beach.
Wolfe
pounded Mitchell’s batteries and the fort, while his huge landing force of as many as 1,000 rowed once more toward the beach.
After putting up what fight he could against overwhelming odds, Mitchell retreated in good order to Oswego Falls, twelve miles up the Oswego River, and prepared to defend the important supply depot there. For some unknown reason Yeo did not follow. Instead, he settled for capturing the schooner
Penelope
, a supply vessel that was sitting in the harbor with a cargo of three long thirty-two-pounders and two long twenty-four-pounders; two bateaux with a cargo of one thirty-two-pounder and one twenty-four-pounder; some ordinance; naval stores; a large quantity of rope; and 2,600 barrels of flour, pork, salt, and bread. Yeo overlooked the far more important heavy guns, cables, and other supplies at Oswego Falls. Had he captured those, Chauncey’s shipbuilding would have been set back weeks. Secretary Jones wrote to the president that had the enemy destroyed what was at Oswego Falls, “the consequences would be disastrous indeed.”
Penelope
, a supply vessel that was sitting in the harbor with a cargo of three long thirty-two-pounders and two long twenty-four-pounders; two bateaux with a cargo of one thirty-two-pounder and one twenty-four-pounder; some ordinance; naval stores; a large quantity of rope; and 2,600 barrels of flour, pork, salt, and bread. Yeo overlooked the far more important heavy guns, cables, and other supplies at Oswego Falls. Had he captured those, Chauncey’s shipbuilding would have been set back weeks. Secretary Jones wrote to the president that had the enemy destroyed what was at Oswego Falls, “the consequences would be disastrous indeed.”
The following week Yeo began blockading Sackets Harbor. Chauncey was convinced that if the British had launched an attack right then, they would have taken the shipyard. “If Sir James had landed 3000 men when he first appeared off this harbor and made a simultaneous attack with the fleet,” Chauncey wrote to Jones, “he must have carried the place, for our new vessels (with the exception of the
Jefferson
) at that time were without their armament and the military force had been considerably weakened by five hundred of the best troops being ordered from this place to Buffalo and a few days ago about seven hundred more marched in the same direction.” General Brown, who was in charge of the army defending Sackets Harbor, strongly disagreed; he thought the defenses were more than adequate. He had placed General Gaines in command with 1,500 troops, and he thought Gaines had the matter well in hand. Yeo must have concluded the same thing, for he did not attack. Chauncey had a bad habit of overestimating the enemy’s strength and underestimating his own.
Jefferson
) at that time were without their armament and the military force had been considerably weakened by five hundred of the best troops being ordered from this place to Buffalo and a few days ago about seven hundred more marched in the same direction.” General Brown, who was in charge of the army defending Sackets Harbor, strongly disagreed; he thought the defenses were more than adequate. He had placed General Gaines in command with 1,500 troops, and he thought Gaines had the matter well in hand. Yeo must have concluded the same thing, for he did not attack. Chauncey had a bad habit of overestimating the enemy’s strength and underestimating his own.
Avoiding Yeo’s blockade was a constant problem for Master Commandant Melancthon Woolsey, who was in charge of moving heavy guns and other essential equipment and provisions from Oswego to Sackets Harbor. Woolsey ran bateaux at night along the coast, hugging the shore. On May 28, nineteen bateaux, carrying twenty-one thirty-two-pounders, thirteen smaller guns, and ten heavy cables, silently moved out of the Oswego River for the trip. One of the bateaux lost its way, however, and fell into British hands. A captured sailor was forced to reveal details of the shipment. Yeo immediately dispatched Commander Stephen Popham with two hundred men to seize it. On May 30 Popham attacked Woolsey’s remaining eighteen boats at Sandy Creek, twenty miles north of the Oswego and thirty miles south of Sackets Harbor.
Commander Popham was in for a surprise, however. Woolsey had laid a clever trap. Major Daniel Appling of the U.S. Army, with 120 men and an equal number of Oneida Indians, supported by cavalry and light artillery that Chauncey provided when he learned what was afoot, waited for Popham and attacked when he least expected it. In the ensuing melee, Popham lost 14 men and had 28 wounded before he surrendered. Appling captured 6 Royal Navy officers, 55 sailors and marines, and 106 soldiers. He also took two gunboats and five barges. The defeat induced more caution in Yeo; he could ill afford to lose either the men or the boats.
On June 6 Yeo returned to Kingston with his fleet. He was building the gargantuan 102-gun
St. Lawrence
, and he decided to wait for her to be completed and for more reinforcements from England before he attacked Chauncey. Drummond agreed that a delay was in order. Until Chauncey launched the
Mohawk
and the
Superior
, however, Yeo still had command of the lake. Drummond could move men and equipment wherever he pleased, and the Americans could not.
St. Lawrence
, and he decided to wait for her to be completed and for more reinforcements from England before he attacked Chauncey. Drummond agreed that a delay was in order. Until Chauncey launched the
Mohawk
and the
Superior
, however, Yeo still had command of the lake. Drummond could move men and equipment wherever he pleased, and the Americans could not.
WHILE YEO WAS concentrating on Lake Ontario, he neglected Lake Champlain. He used the new powers the Admiralty had given him to command all the operations on the lakes to put the lion’s share of his resources into building the
St. Lawrence.
His fixation with the giant ship drained men and materiel away from Commander Pring’s operation on Lake Champlain. Yeo had done the same thing to Barclay on Lake Erie the previous year, depriving him of the resources needed to compete with Perry. Pring continued to build at Isle aux Noix but not with the speed that would have allowed him to keep ahead of Macdonough. Yeo’s obsession also allowed Chauncey to regain superiority on Lake Ontario the first week of August, when the
Mohawk
and
Superior
were finally finished. Even by that time, the
St. Lawrence
was not yet launched. It would not be until September 10, and it would not be ready to sail until October 16, just as the season was ending.
St. Lawrence.
His fixation with the giant ship drained men and materiel away from Commander Pring’s operation on Lake Champlain. Yeo had done the same thing to Barclay on Lake Erie the previous year, depriving him of the resources needed to compete with Perry. Pring continued to build at Isle aux Noix but not with the speed that would have allowed him to keep ahead of Macdonough. Yeo’s obsession also allowed Chauncey to regain superiority on Lake Ontario the first week of August, when the
Mohawk
and
Superior
were finally finished. Even by that time, the
St. Lawrence
was not yet launched. It would not be until September 10, and it would not be ready to sail until October 16, just as the season was ending.
Meanwhile, Master Commandant Macdonough was working hard preparing his fleet at Vergennes, Vermont, twenty-two miles south of Burlington and approximately fifty miles from Plattsburg. He had moved his squadron to Vergennes in December 1813 and had established a secure dockyard on Otter Creek, one of the state’s largest rivers. The facility was situated at the head of navigation, seven miles from the mouth of the creek. Timber resources were plentiful, and Vergennes had a blast furnace, an air furnace, eight forges, a rolling mill, a wire factory, a grist mill, and a mill for fulling cloth.
Macdonough’s biggest problem continued to be a lack of seamen. Even with added bonuses and more pay, finding sailors was difficult. Recruiting offices were opened in Boston and New York, but the bounties now being offered for service in the army, the attraction of privateers, the high price of clothing (which seamen had to pay for themselves), and little prospect of prize money on Lake Champlain continued to make recruiting slow. While Macdonough waited for sailors, he asked the army to fill the gap. General Izard loaned him 250 soldiers until more seamen arrived.
Macdonough was competing for resources with Chauncey, just as Pring was with Yeo. Fortunately, Secretary Jones had a higher appreciation of the critical needs on Lake Champlain than the Admiralty did. Jones induced Noah Brown and his brother Adam, the shipbuilders who had worked miracles for Perry on Lake Erie, to do the same at Vergennes. They arrived in February 1814 and went right to work. By March 2, two new gunboats were in the water, and a 26-gun ship, the
Saratoga
, was begun. By March 7 her keel had been laid, and on April 11 she was launched—a remarkable feat. The ship’s timber had been standing in the forest less than six weeks before.
Saratoga
, was begun. By March 7 her keel had been laid, and on April 11 she was launched—a remarkable feat. The ship’s timber had been standing in the forest less than six weeks before.
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