An outstanding tome regarding the ships of 1812 ( )

Great book about the warships of the Great Lakes (and Lake Champlain), the book is generally concerned with the War of 1812.

The biggest flaw of the book is the missing information on boats that never seen any action. The Adams (Detroit), Isaac Brock, Duke of Gloucester (York), and the two American 100 gun ships Chippewa and New Orleans are all missing.

The writing is well done, and Malcolmson shows how firm a grasp he has the naval aspect of 1812 having literally written the book about the war in Lake Ontario). ( )

Probably of most interest to a sailing ship modeler – lots of hull plans, armament inventories, mast and spar dimensions, etc., with rather pedestrian accounts of the actual naval battles. The economics aspect, however, is well covered – both sides were attempting to build, outfit and man modern naval vessels in the middle of nowhere. The British had the advantage here since their lake ports were closer to centers of population, and as long as they held the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario naval stores could be transported in by ship. The Americans, on the other hand, had to haul ordnance and ship fittings overland to Sackett’s Harbor, Oswego, and Erie. Oddly, the Americans had the advantage in crew quality – most noticeably in the War of 1812. Since the Royal Navy controlled the Atlantic, Canadian sailors were busy on merchant vessels. American seaman, blockaded in port, had nothing better to do than trudge across New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio to crew vessels on the lakes.

Both “warships” and “Great Lakes” are interpreted liberally, with the former including miscellaneous merchant vessels with spare cannon stuffed in here and there and the later including Lake Champlain, Lake George, and Lake St. Clair. Lake Champlain, of course, figured heavily in both the American Revolution (the Battle of Valcour Bay in 1776) and the War of 1812 (the Battle of Plattsburg in 1814); during the American Revolution the Royal Navy operated more vessels on Lake Champlain than all of the Great Lakes combined.

The War of 1812 occupies about two-thirds of the book. Lake Ontario was the scene of an interesting arms race between American Commodore Isaac Chauncey and British Commodore Sir James Lucas Yeo. Control of the lake repeated changed hands as new ships came off the stocks, with the weaker side prudently retiring to the shelter of fortified bases at Sackett’s Harbor or Kingston until they could launch more or better vessels. The war ended with the British in control, having launched the 104 St. Lawrence before the Americans could counter with the 100s New Orleans and Chippewa. (The New Orleans remained on her custom-built stocks until 1884 before she was finally broken up – the lumber was salvaged and a cane made out of New Orleans oak was presented to Franklin Roosevelt in 1929).

The situation on Lake Erie was dramatically different; both sides risked their entire and approximately equal fleets in an engagement at Put-In-Bay in 1813, won by the Americans under Oliver Hazard Perry.

Heavily and well illustrated, with a nice glossary of naval terms and an extensive bibliography. Author Robert Malcomson is Canadian and slightly, but not obnoxiously, favors the Royal Navy and Provincial Maritime in his accounts. ( )