I understand that World War I wasn’t really the first world war.  In the early 19th century, France and England were fighting throughout the world.  England was trying to stop trade between Canada and the young United States.  At the same time, the U.S. expansion was being  complicated by the English who were lending their support to the Indians.

The War of 1812 has important historic significance in England, Canada, and the United States.  However, it is  not celebrated except for in Canada.  In Northwest Ohio we do remember this war because so much of it was fought right here.

We have a replica of Fort Meigs in Perrysburg, {about 30 miles west of here} and annual activities at what was Fort Stephenson, which is now Fremont, Ohio.{ I have lived in Fremont my whole life.}  Then, of course we have the famous battle of Lake Erie in Put-in-Bay, which is about 25 miles north of Fremont.

We have re-enactments of the battle at Fort Meigs every year, complete with uniforms and guns of the era.  There is a huge monument in Perryburg honoring Commodore Oliver Hazzard Perry that over looks the Maumee River.

Perry first fought from the Flagship Lawerence and then was transferred to the Niagra the Lawerence sustained too much damage to continue.  It was from the Niagra that the Brittish were defeated because their supply lines to Fort Detroit were severed.

I love history, so I love this whole story, but what amazes me the most was what happened at the  siege of Fort McHenry in Baltimore.  A young lawyer,  Fancis Scott Key watched the seige from a Brittish ship and wrote a poem called, “The Defense of Fort McHenry”.  It was printed and re-printed in all the newspaper of that time.  Then it was set to music.  In 1931 it became our national anthem: “The Star-Spangled Banner”.

It amazes me that the war that birthed our own national anthem is forgotten by most of our nation.  The War of 1812 did many things that changed the course of our great nation.  It prepared the way for our westward expansion.  In many ways it helped everyone except the American Indians.  England won, because  they defeated Napoleon.  Canada won because  they forged a new identity and began to seek independence from France.  The U.S. won because we gained our national sovereignty.  The Indians were led by a famous Shawnee chief, Tecumseh who sought to unite all the tribes in order to fight the westward expansion.  He was killed in the Battle of the Thames.  With him died his dream of a unified Indian nation.

If one desires to look, we can even find the hand of God in our wars.  Although there was much destruction and blood shed during the War of 1812, it also brought strength and advancement to us as a country.