News and views, and history and humor, about the lake I love.

"I can hear my granddad's stories of the storms out on Lake Erie, where vessels and cargos and fortunes, and sailors' lives were lost." ~ James Taylor, Millworker

Monday, July 22, 2013

Test your knowledge about the War of 1812


Communities along the shores of Lake Erie are geared up to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Lake Erie, fought less than 15 miles from where I am writing this. Folks will be flocking from far and wide to see the veritable flotilla of tall ships as they converge at the western end of the lake for this grand celebration.

In the coming weeks I will be posting information about the events coming up during the Bicentennial festivities. Lake Erie is going to be in the national spotlight. You will want to be a part of it.

The Port Clinton News-Herald has posted this series of 20 questions to test your knowledge about this lesser-known yet important war in our history and so I thought I would share it with you.

Meanwhile, I urge everyone unfamiliar with the Battle of Lake Erie, or Oliver Hazard Perry, to take the time to become familiar with this fascinating part of our history. At the young age of 28, Perry courageously commanded a group of mostly green soldiers, sailors, and militiamen to victory. It was the first time in history an entire British fleet had been defeated. Following the victory, he scrawled on the back of an envelope the now famous words: "We have met the enemy and they are ours."Pretty cool stuff. Perry was an interesting man. I will write more about him in a later post as I delve into this most fascinating bit of local history.


No comments:

Post a Comment