Ketchum’s trap

As the sun began to set at the Battle of Lundy’s Lane Major Thomas Jesup, commanding the Twenty-Fifth U.S. Infantry, saw an opportunity to capture the British guns. A first step in this plan required someone to reconnoitre and secure the road junction leading to the British position.

Jesup choose Captain Daniel Ketchum for this important task. Jesup described Ketchum as “a very good man for the service on which I sent him.” Ketchum recruited his company from Connecticut and was permitted to dress, equip and drill his men as light infantry. Ketchum took his men and moved into the Portage Road where he quickly began to catch individuals and small groups of British and Canadians moving in the dark.

Ketchum managed to catch some high-ranking officers, including General Riall. Riall was hit by a musket ball in the right arm during the battle and as he was riding to the rear of the line, he became caught in Ketchum’s trap. A few minutes later one of Drummond’s aides, Captain Robert Loring, was caught attempting to ride through the junction with orders for the dragoons. 

Battle of Lundy's Lane commemoration, 1914

The next person to enter the trap was William Hamilton Merritt as he was making his way to report to Drummond. When Merritt failed to report his friend Captain John Clark, an adjutant in the Lincoln Militia, was sent to retrieve him when he became caught in the trap. After taking a few more prisoners, the aptly named Ketchum rejoined Jesup in the main body of the Twenty-Fifth.

Jesup now had a problem; what was he to do with the nearly dozen officers and over a hundred men captured. Riall asked to be paroled so that he could visit his own surgeon but Jesup said he had no power to grant such a request. At the same time, Jesup’s men began to cut the prisoners suspenders so that they would be forced to hold their pants, making it difficult for them to escape.

As the prisoners were loosing their suspenders, a British officer rode out of the darkness to Riall, saying, “General Drummond is impatient for information.” The officer was quickly taken prisoner. Ketchum took his prisoners to the rear when he stumbled into a British unit that opened fire, causing Ketchum to loose a number of prisoners but he retained the captured officers. Ketchum despotised the prisoners to a guard before returning to the battle.

As the battle continued, Jesup believed that the battle was lost when he received word that the brigade had been cut to pieces. Jesup decided to move his men back when they heard the rumble of artillery wheels and saw troops moving toward them on the Portage Road. Jesup soon found himself conversing with Captain Thomas Biddle of the U.S. Artillery who informed him that Major-General Jacob Brown had arrived with reinforcements and was about to continue the battle.

On Friday, July 25, the commemoration of the Battle of Lundy’s Lane begins at 7:30 p.m. with a commemorative service. At 8:30 p.m., a participatory walk takes place with participants walking to the battlefield. Click here for a full list of details.

Prisoner of war – Samuel White

Captain Samuel White of Pennsylvania fought under the command of Colonel Fenton and Campbell during the Niagara 1814 Campaign. On July 5th at the Battle of Chippawa, White marched to the battlefield where volunteers were requested to push the British out of the woods. White laid down his sword and borrowed a rifle, volunteering as a private.

As the battle began to wane, White heard the order to withdraw from the woods too late. As he was making his escape, White “had not proceeded more than a few rods, when we suddenly found ourselves surrounded by Indians who had been lying in ambush.” White and his compatriots were seized upon by their captors who demanded money. Unable to comply, the captured men were stripped of their valuables leaving them in only a shift and pants. White recounts that the natives killed a number of militia while regular officers and men were spared.

Map of the Battle of Chippawa.
Lossing's Pictorial Field-Book of the
War of 1812

White was soon hurried across the Chippawa River to the rear of the line with “American round shot still rolling after us; one of them fell within a yard of me as I pressed forward, making the clay fly all over us, and then bounded into the creek.” White was forced back to the native encampment being jeered by British soldiers along the way. After a short while, British officers collected White and brought him to General Rial for interrogation. White complained that he was robbed of $100 and his clothing, but Rial said, “all the Indians got was legitimate spoils and could not be returned.”

After his meeting with Rial, White was placed in the care of a sergeant who treated him well and lent him a coat as he was suffering severely from the cold night. Eventually, White and his comrades made it to Fort George where he received kindness from a British doctor. Dr. Carr mentioned that one of his sons had been taken prisoner by the Americans and was treated with great kindness, causing Dr. Carr to respond in kind to White and his fellow officers. Eventually White and company reached York where they signed paroles for their release to Montreal to await exchange back to the U.S. While aboard ship, White attempted to bribe the captain to run his ship close to the American shore to allow his escape, but the captain didn’t comply.

White and some of his fellow officers were later imprisoned in Kingston; an act that White believed violated his parole agreement. Eventually White was paroled back to the U.S. at the end of the war.  

To learn more about the Battle of Chippawa, you can head to the Niagara Falls Library on May 1 to hear the Niagara Parks Commission’s Superintendant of Heritage Jim Hill speak about the battle. Click here for more information.

A long time it appears to me – Prisoner of war

Being captured during the War of 1812 was not a welcome occurrence for officers. However, the treatment of officers in captivity varied greatly from regular soldiers as William Hamilton Merritt’s experience can attest.

On July 25, 1814 during the Battle of Lundy’s Lane, Merritt was with the Niagara Light Dragoons during the battle when he got word that Major-General Riall had been taken. Merritt left his unit to report his intentions to attempt to rescue Riall. Upon Merritt’s return to his troops, he was lost in the darkness and smoke on the battlefield and found himself surrounded by the U.S. 28th Regiment. Merritt was quickly transported to the American side of the Niagara were he was joined by 18 fellow officers and 116 privates.

Merritt left a memorandum book highlighting his days as a prisoner. Merritt was paroled to Greenbush, New York, and during his time as a prisoner he visited museums, went to church and had parties with fellow officers and prominent Americans, among other leisurely activities. On August 25, 1814, Merritt wrote “Pleasant Weather. One month since I was made prisoner – a long time it appears to me. Read the Newspaper, strolled, returned and enjoyed a good dinner.”

After three months of being a prisoner Merritt writes, “Three months have passed away since I was made prisoner, and no prospect whatever of an exchange.” He goes on to write about the boredom he faces and that reading books is one of his only salvations. Throughout his time as a prisoner, Merritt wrote to Catherine Prendergast and when he was finally released from the U.S., he married Catherine.

If you want to learn more about prisoners during the War of 1812, you can head to the Jordan Historical Museum on September 21 to listen to author David Hemmings talk about this topic. In addition, on September 19 you can listen to Dan Laroche talk about the Burning of the Niagara in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Click here to find out more about these events.

A brave and rash commander – Phineas Riall

Phineas Riall was the younger son of an Anglo-Irish banking family. He entered the army at the age of 18 where he quickly rose to the rank of major through the purchasing system. He served in the 128th Regiment of Foot but went on half pay in 1798 when the regiment was disbanded. Riall served during the Irish ‘troubles’ but gained most of his experience as a major of the 15th Regiment of Foot in the West Indies in 1803. He was promoted to colonel in 1810 and made a major-general two years later.

By 1813, Riall was sent to Upper Canada to serve under Lieutenant-General Drummond. Riall proved to be an aggressive commander and he won a number of small engagements against the Americans in 1813. William Hamilton Merritt described Riall as “very brave, near sighted, short but stout. Is thought by some rather rash, which by the by, is a good fault in a General officer.” Riall was well known for his brash style of command, which won him many victories in the past. However, at the Battle of Chippawa his brash style was not successful.

 

Phineas Riall

On July 5, 1814 at the Battle of Chippawa Riall was in command of all British forces. Two days prior an American army of about 4,000 strong crossed the Niagara River and captured Fort Erie. Riall opted to come out from the defences behind the Chippawa River in order to engage the Americans. Riall decided on this course of action since he was unaware that Major Buck had surrendered Fort Erie. Riall did not wait for reinforcements since he believed his force was more than capable of defeating the American army. During the battle both the British and the Americans had roughly equal numbers but the Americans were able to outflank the British forces and push them back across the Chippawa River.

The aftermath of the battle showed that the British suffered around 500 casualties to roughly 300 American casualties. British regulars had for the first time in years been clearly beaten in a stand-up fight of roughly matching strength. Merritt wrote about the aftermath of the battle, “It certainly is a very delicate thing to censure a Commanding Officer, particularly so popular and brave a Man as General Riall, still in this case, he acted hastily, neither did he employ all the Means he had in his power.”  

After the defeat at Chippawa, Drummond assumed direct command of the forces in the Niagara. Riall participated in the Battle of Lundy’s Lane where he was hit by a musket ball in the right arm. As he rode to the rear, he was caught by American forces and was eventually sent to the U.S. as a prisoner of war.

After the war, Riall never held an important military command again, but he was promoted to lieutenant-general through seniority in 1835 and full general in 1841. From 1816-1823 he was Governor of Grenada. Riall was married in 1819, knighted in 1831, and died in 1850 at the age of 75.

This Friday you can join the Niagara Parks Commission and the Chippawa Branch 396 of the Royal Canadian Legion as they honour those who served at the Battle of Chippawa. A ceremony will be held on the battlefield at 7 p.m. and all are welcome to attend. Click here for more information.