[67]. For an account of Fort George, see Buttrick’s Voyages, ante, note 7.
The village of Newark was about a quarter of a mile from this fort. It was settled by Loyalists immediately after the Revolution, and was then called West Niagara. When, in 1792, the province of Upper Canada was created, it was made the capital, and Governor Simcoe took up his residence there, changing the name to Newark. The Americans captured it (May, 1813), and held the place until the following December. Before leaving, Brigadier-general McClure ordered it to be burned, and all the houses, to the number of one hundred and fifty, were laid in ashes. When it was rebuilt after the war, the name Niagara was adopted.—Ed.
[68]. Bordering the river, five miles above Fort Niagara, is a flat more than sixty feet lower than the surrounding territory. Here the British landed on the night of December 18, 1813, and the following day surprised and captured Fort Niagara.—Ed.
[69]. August 17, 1814, a British force under Major-general Ross landed at the mouth of the Potomac and marched leisurely toward Washington. The city was entirely without defense. Two thousand men having been collected from the surrounding country and a thousand regulars assembled, the British were met (August 24) at Bladensburg—five miles north-east of Washington. Resistance was brief, the Maryland militia fled, followed by the remainder of the troops. Ross entered Washington without further opposition, and burned the public buildings.—Ed.
[70]. This is hardly a fair illustration. The difficulty was, that the Seminole stronghold was on Spanish territory, and it was Jackson’s boldness in invading neutral territory, pursuing the Indians into the swamps, and seizing the Spanish posts, that ended the war. He entered Florida late in March, 1818; after five days’ march, he reached and destroyed the Indian village, Fowltown; took possession of St. Marks, April 6, and then marched one hundred and seven miles across a swampy wilderness to Suwanee—the town of the Seminole chief Bowlegs. The Indians had been warned and had retreated, but he burned the village, and the war was ended as far as the Seminoles were concerned.—Ed.
[71]. When on the morning of November 7, 1811, the Indians attacked General Harrison’s camp and thus opened the battle of Tippecanoe, the militia were for a time thrown into confusion, while the Fourth United States Infantry under command of George Rogers Clark Floyd, stood their ground. After the campaign was ended the latter more than hinted that had it not been for them the whole force would have been massacred.—Ed.
[72]. Major-general Brown having crossed Niagara River (July 3, 1814) and captured Fort Erie, General Riall marched to attack him. The two forces met (July 5) on the plains of Chippewa, midway between Forts George and Erie, and after a sharp skirmish the British retreated to Queenstown. The importance of the battle was overshadowed by that of Lundy’s Lane, which occurred the same month.—Ed.
[73]. It is held that Niagara Falls have receded seven miles from their position when first known, the average yearly recession being from four to six feet.—Ed.
[74]. Augustus Porter, brother of General Peter Porter, was born at Salisbury, Connecticut, in 1769. When twenty years of age, he left home for western New-York, becoming a surveyor in the Phelps and Gorham Tract, and later in the Holland Purchase. In 1806, he removed with his family to Niagara Falls, where he continued to reside until his death in 1825. In association with three others, he formed the Portage Company, which leased from the state for fifteen years the exclusive privilege of transporting property across the portage between Lewiston and Schlosser. He was the first judge of Niagara County, opening his first term at Buffalo in 1808. The unusual length of his life enabled him to see the country, through which he had travelled for days without meeting a white man, develop into a populous agricultural and commercial region.—Ed.
[75]. For a brief account of Black Rock and Buffalo, see Buttrick’s Voyages, ante, notes 4 and 9.—Ed.