Commodore Isaac Chauncey was in command of a little squadron of armed schooners, hastily prepared, on
Lake Ontario late in 1812.
The vessels were the
Oneida (his flag-ship),
Conquest,
Growler,
Pert,
Scourge,
Governor Tompkins, and
Hamilton.
He sailed from
Sackett's Harbor (Nov. 8) to intercept the British squadron, under
Commodore Earl, returning to
Kingston from
Fort George, on the
Niagara River, whither they had conveyed troops and prisoners.
Chauncey took his station near the
False Ducks, a group of islands nearly due west from
Sackett's
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Harbor.
On the afternoon of Nov. 9 he fell in with
Earl's flag-ship, the
Royal George.
He chased her into the
Bay of Quinte, where he lost sight of her in the darkness of night.
On the following morning (Nov. 10) he captured and burned a small armed schooner, and soon afterwards espied the
Royal George making her way towards
Kingston.
Chauncey gave chase with most of his squadron (which had been joined by the
Julia), and followed her into Kingston Harbor, where he fought her and five land-batteries for almost an hour.
These batteries were more formidable than he supposed.
A brisk breeze having arisen, and the night coming on,
Chauncey withdrew and anchored.
The next morning the breeze had become almost a gale, and
Chauncey weighed anchor and stood out lakeward.
the
Tompkins (
Lieutenant Brown), the
Hamilton (
Lieutenant McPherson), and
Julia (Sailing-master Trant) chased the
Simcoe over a reef of rocks (Nov. 11), and riddled her so that she sank before she reached
Kingston.
Soon afterwards the
Hamilton captured a large schooner from
Niagara.
This prize was sent past
Kingston with the
Growler (Sailing-master Mix), with a hope of drawing out the
Royal George; but
Chauncey had so bruised her that she was compelled to haul on shore to keep from sinking.
A number of her crew had been killed.
The wind had increased to a gale on the nights of the 11th and 12th, and during the night of the 12th there was a snowstorm.
Undismayed by the fury of the elements,
Chauncey continued his cruise, for his heart was set on gaining the supremacy of the
Lakes.
Learning that the
Earl of Moira was off the
Real Ducks Islands, he attempted to capture her. She was on the alert and escaped, but a schooner that she was convoying was made captive.
On the same day
Chauncey saw the
Royal George and two other armed vessels, but they kept out of his way. In this short cruise he captured three merchant vessels, destroyed one armed schooner, disabled the British flag-ship, and took several prisoners, with a loss, on his part, of one man killed and four wounded. Among the latter was Sailingmaster
Arundel, commander of the
Pert, who was badly injured by the bursting of a cannon.
He would not leave the deck, and was knocked overboard and drowned.
After the capture of Fort George Chauncey crossed the lake, looked into
York, and then ran for
Kingston without meeting a foe. He retired to
Sackett's Harbor, where he urged forward the completion of a new corvette, the
General Pike, 26 guns.
She was launched June 12, 1813, and placed in command of
Capt. Arthur Sinclair.
It was late in the summer before she was ready for a cruise.
Meanwhile, the keel of a fast-sailing schooner was laid by
Eckford at
Sackett's Harbor, and named the
Sylph, and a small vessel was kept constantly cruising, as a scout, off
Kingston, to observe the movements of the British squadron there.
This little vessel (
Lady of the Lake) captured the British schooner
Lady Murray (June 16), laden with provisions shot, and fixed ammunition, and took her into the harbor.
Sir James L. Yeo was in command of the British squadron on the lake.
He made a cruise westward, and on July 7 appeared with his squadron off
Niagara.
Chauncey and
Scott had just returned from the expedition to
York.
Chauncey immediately went out and tried to get the weather-gage of Sir James.
He had thirteen vessels, but only three of them had been originally built for war purposes.
His squadron consisted of the
Pike,
Madison,
Oneida,
Hamilton,
Scourge,
Ontario,
Fair American,
Governor Tompkins,
Conquest,
Growler,
Julia,
Asp, and
Pert.
The British squadron now consisted of two ships, two brigs, and two large schooners.
These had all been constructed for war, and were very efficient in armament and shields.
The belligerents manoeuvred all day, and when at sunset a (lead calm fell they took to sweeps.
When darkness came, the
American squadron was collected by signal.
The wind finally freshened, and at midnight was blowing a fitful gale.
Suddenly a rushing sound was heard astern of most of the fleet, and it was soon ascertained that the
Hamilton and
Scourge had disappeared.
They had been capsized by a terrible squall, and all of the officers and men, excepting sixteen of the latter, had perished.
These two vessels carried nineteen guns between them.
All the next day the squadrons
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manoeuvred for advantage, and towards evening
Chauncey ran into the
Niagara River.
All that night the lake was swept by squalls.
On the morning of the 9th
Chauncey went out to attack Sir James, and the day was spent in fruitless manoeuvres.
At six o'clock on the 10th, having the weather-gage,
Chauncey formed his fleet in battle order, and a conflict seemed imminent; but his antagonist being unwilling to fight, the day was spent as others had been.
Towards midnight there was a contest, when the
Growler and
Julia, separating from the rest of the fleet, were captured.
Returning to
Sackett's Harbor,
Chauncey prepared for another cruise with eight vessels.
Making but a short cruise, on account of sickness prevailing in the fleet, he remained in the harbor until Aug. 28, when he went out in search of his antagonist.
He first saw him on Sept. 7, and for a week tried to get him into action, but Sir James strictly obeyed his instructions to “risk nothing.”
On the 11th
Chauncey bore down upon Sir James off the mouth of the
Genesee River, and they had a running fight for three hours. the
Pike was somewhat injured, but the British vessels suffered most.
The latter fled to
Kingston, and
Chauncey went into
Sackett's Harbor.
On the 18th he sailed for the
Niagara for troops, and was chased by
Yeo. After a few days
Chauncey crossed over to
York with the
Pike,
Madison, and
Sylph, where the British fleet lay, when the latter fled, followed by the American vessels in battle order.
The baronet was now compelled to fight or stop boasting of unsatisfied desires to measure strength with the
Americans.
An action commenced at a little past noon, and the
Pike sustained the desperate assaults of the heaviest British vessels for twenty minutes, at the same time delivering destructive broadsides upon her foes.
She was assisted by the
Tompkins,
Lieutenant Finch; and when the smoke of battle floated away it was found that the
Wolfe (Sir James's flag-ship) was too much injured to continue the conflict any longer.
She pushed away dead before the wind, gallantly protected by the
Royal George.
A general chase towards
Burlington Bay immediately ensued.
Chauncey could doubtless have captured the whole British fleet, but a gale was threatening, and there being no good harbors on the coast, if he should be driven ashore certain capture by land troops would be the consequence.
So he called off his ships and returned to the
Niagara, where he lay two days while a gale was skurrying over the lake.
The weather remaining thick after the gales, Sir James left
Burlington Bay for
Kingston.
Chauncey was returning to
Sackett's Harbor, whither all his transports bearing troops had gone, and at sunset, Oct. 5, when near the Ducks, the
Pike captured three British Transports—the
Confiance,
Hamilton (the
Growler and
Julia with new names), and
Mary.
the
Sylph captured the cutter
Drummond and the armed transport
Lady Gore.
The number of prisoners captured on these five vessels was 264.
Among the prisoners were ten army officers.
Sir James remained inactive in Kingston Harbor
during the remainder of the season, and
Chauncey was busied in watching his movements and assisting the army in its descent of the
St. Lawrence.
He did not, however, sufficiently blockade
Kingston
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Harbor to prevent marine scouts from slipping out and hovering near
Wilkinson's flotilla on the
St. Lawrence.
A British squadron on the lake hovered along its southern shores in the summer of 1813 and seriously interfered with supplies on their way to the
American camp on the
Niagara.
They captured (June 12, 1813) two vessels laden with hospital stores at Eighteen-mile Creek, eastward of the
Niagara River.
They made a descent upon the village of
Charlotte, situated at the mouth of the
Genesee River, on the 15th, and carried off a large quantity of stores.
On the 18th they appeared off
Sodus Bay, and the next evening an armed party, 100 strong, landed at
Sodus Point for the purpose of destroying American stores known to have been deposited there.
These had been removed to a place of concealment a little back of the village.
The invaders threatened to destroy the village if the hiding-place of the stores was not revealed.
The women and children fled from their homes in alarm.
A negro, compelled by threats, gave the desired information; and they were marching in the direction of the stores when they were confronted at a bridge over a ravine by forty men under
Captain Turner.
A sharp skirmish ensued.
The
British were foiled, and as they returned to their vessels they burned the public storehouses, five dwellings, and a hotel.
The property destroyed at Sodus was valued at $25,000. The marauders then sailed eastward, and looked into Oswego Harbor, but
Sir James Yeo, their cautious commander, did not venture to go in.
Chauncey was unable to accomplish much with his squadron during 1814.
Early in the season he was taken sick, and in July his squadron was blockaded at
Sackett's Harbor, and it was the last of that month before it was ready for sea. On the 31st
Chauncey was carried, in a convalescent state, on board the
Superior (his flag-ship), and the squadron sailed on a cruise.
It blockaded the harbor of
Kingston, and
Chauncey vainly tried to draw out
Sir James Yeo for combat.
At the close of September
Chauncey was informed that the
St. Lawrence, pierced for 112 guns, which had been built at
Kingston, was ready for sea, when the commodore prudently raised the blockade and returned to
Sackett's Harbor.
The St. Lawrence sailed in October with more than 1,000 men, accompanied by other vessels of war; and with this big ship
Sir James was really lord of the lake.
The
Americans determined to match the
St. Lawrence, and at
Sackett's Harbor the keels of two first-class frigates were laid.
One of them was partly finished when peace was proclaimed, early in 1815.
Chauncey expected that
Yeo would attack his squadron in the harbor, but he did not; and when the lake was closed by ice the war had ended on the northern frontier.
