Read more
Excerpt from Camp Niagara: With a Historical Sketch of Niagara-on-the-Lake and Niagara Camp
Youngstown. The garrison was lodged in log blockhouses, affording quarters for 220 men, besides Which there was a separ ate building for the officers. The magazine was built of stone, with an arched roof, but was not considered bomb-proof. The whole of this fortification was greatly out of repair, and not deemed capable of much defence. Under General Brock's supervision, however, the fort was considerably strengthened and several detached earthworks were thrown up on command ing points in the vicinity. No attack upon it was attempted until the morning of October 13th, 1812, when, perceiving a column of troops on the march to oppose the passage of the river at Queenston, the garrison of Fort Niagara turned all their guns upon Fort George and the town of Niagara, with such destructive effect that in a few minutes the Courthouse and gaol with fifteen or sixteen other buildings were set on fire by shells or hot shot. While the greater part of the militia who occupied the fort in the absence of the regular garrison, were employed in fighting the ¿ames its guns were worked with such vigor and effect by a detachment of the Lincoln Artillery under Captains Cameron and Powell, assisted by two non-commissionej officers of the 4ist Regiment, that in the course of an hour the Ame: i can batteries were completely silenced. It was then discovered that the roof of the magazine, which contained eight hundred barrels of powder, had been set on fire by a shell. Without an instant's hesitation Captain Vigoreux of the Royal Engineers climbed upon the burning building, and his gallant example being promptly followed by others, the metal covering was soon torn off and the ¿ames extinguished in the timbers under neath. The government storehouse at the water-side near Navy Hall was, however, entirely consumed.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
