Saturday, September 13, 2025

  Are Canadians Still Mad at Us?

 

First let me be clear; I'm not a Canadianphobe or an anti-Canadianite, in fact, nothing can be further from the truth. I've always viewed Canadians as a soft spoken, friendly and gentle people however, a few years ago, I experienced a new behavior in a small handful of  Canadian locals that made me question that perception.

Lost in the Back Country

Back in the 80's, my wife and I decided to go on a road trip to Ontario Canada in search of the site where the Battle of the Thames took place in 1813 and where the great Shawnee war chief Tecumseh was killed.

 

 Our quest took place years before smartphones came on the scene so the only thing to guide us was a paper road map, my male instincts and my Viking ancestor direction genes.  I knew once we got to Detroit all I had to do was point the car east and drive east until we came to a town called Thamesville.  I was wrong.  After wandering around the Canadian countryside for more than 3 hours with a wife frustrated with a crumpled paper map, my male instincts in question and my  Viking direction gene pool drained, I decided to swallow my male pride and ask someone for directions to Thamesville.   

Cold shoulder, indifference or passive-aggression?

Driving into town I pulled over to the curb and asked a passerby if he could tell me how to get to the Thames battlefield. He just stared at me, turned and walked away. My first thought was perhaps he didn't speak English (lots of French people in Canada). I continued on and found another person and asked him the same question. That individual said he didn't know where it was and walked away without saying another word. I thought this was odd because here I was in the town of Thamesville, supposedly located somewhere near the famous battlefield yet no one could tell me how to get there.  Strange!   

This was the site of one of the most significant battles of the War of 1812, the site where the great Shawnee chief, Tecumseh had been killed, and  marked began the beginning of the end of British domination in Canada, yet for some reason area residents couldn't OR wouldn't tell me where it was. WHY?  

Are they hiding something?

Leaving town as ignorant as when I first arrived, we decided to fend for ourselves and drove on following the only road heading east out of town.  As it turns out, the battlefield site was only 2 miles from town.  

Ah, It's All Starting to Make Sense Now

One of the things my high school history teachers failed to teach us was that while we were ramping up to fight the British on American soil (again), we were also ramping up to fight them on Canadian soil as well.  Hmmm, here all this time I'd thought Canada was just an innocent bystander in 1812, turns out, they were actually in the crosshairs of the American army.
 

Setting the Stage

Seems England wasn't getting along with anyone in 1813.   In addition to American outrage  at them for taking American sailors off American ships, England also entering its 9th year of war with Napoleon in France.  They suspected  we were up to something, and they also knew they couldn’t afford to fight two major wars on two different continents. 

 

Sensing England was backed into a corner, President Madison saw this as the opportune time for the United States to rid itself once and for all of English interference, not only on the high seas, but on the entire North American continent as well.  His solution; invade Canada and annex it as part of the United States.

The Plan

 The plan was simple; invade Canada at three strategic points; Detroit, Toronto and Montreal.   

 

                        The 3-Prong Attack Into Canada

 

1)  The right prong would advance from Lake Champlain (Vermont) and capture Montreal. 

 2)  The center prong would march across the Niagara frontier and capture Toronto. 

 3)  The left prong, already in place at Detroit would cross the Detroit River and seize the British fort at Amherstburg>  They would then advance into the western districts of Canada where they would get support from the large numbers of Americans who had recently been given large tracts of land by the American government.

 

The Key Players

 

The main characters in this drama were American Gen. William Hull and his counterpart, British General Isaac Brock.

Creating Illusions

Brock learned from reading some of Hulls captured papers that he (Hull) was almost paranoid that if he lost a fight with the British and its Indian allies, all the residents of nearby Detroit would be massacred. Playing on Hull's fears, Brock decided that if he could at least create the illusion that his forces were superior in number to Hulls, he might gain an advantage over Hull's troops, who ironically  outnumbered Brooks troops 2 to 1.  

The "Tour of the Beans"

 


The "tour of the beans" was one of Brook's ingenious ploys designed to create the impression that his force was larger than it was. 

Because many of his troops were inexperienced fighters, he had them dressed in the uniform of regulars giving the impression that all his men were battle hardened veterans. He then had a high embankment built near the river’s edge in plain view of the Americans. 

 

At mealtime, the "tour" began with soldiers walking in front of the embankment with their food.  They would walk to the end of it circle around behind it and eat their meal (beans). Once finished, they walked around the front of the embankment and again circled it, adding to the illusion that his fighting force was much larger than it actually was.

It Worked

The ploy worked, On August 16, 1812 after a standoff that had lasted several weeks and fearing an Indian massacre Hull surrendered his 2500 men army along with hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of military equipment.  The sad irony of all this is Hulls troops had marched over 200 miles, much of it through the treacherous Great Black Swamp and all its dangers.  They had built miles of corduroy roads for supply wagons to travel on and when they finally prepared to engage the British, who they outnumbered the enemy 2 to 1, Hull surrendered without firing a single shot. The officers were taken to Detroit and the militia troops pardoned to go home after signing a document saying they wouldn't fight again.

 

 

A section of one of Hull's corduroy roads  

  

Hulls Surrender

Why Did The Invasion Plan Fail?

The  3-prong attack looked good on paper but it didn't work for several reasons.

1.  (West prong) - Hull surrendered the Army at Detroit.

2.  (Center prong near the Niagara Border) - New England governors claimed that their militia troops were only to be used defensively.

3    (East prong) - Militiamen refused to cross the Canadian boarder to take Montreal.  They feared the Federalists who were opposed to the war would not come to aid the troops if they needed help.

Terror in Ohio

 

With no army to protect them, Ohio citizens feared that the British, Canadian and Indian forces would swoop down into Ohio and murder innocent civilians in their beds. Luckily that didn't happen but as a precaution, the Kentucky militia was called up to build forts along the Auglaize (including Fort Amanda) and the rest is history.


 Did this Provoke the British Into Burning Washington?

 

 No?  They burnt our capital because we burned theirs first.   Hull surrendered in August 1812 and the following year on April 27, 1813 we burned the British capital in York Canada.  The Brits didn't burn our capital until sixteen months later on August 24, 1814.  Was it a random act of war, I  don't think so, I think it was simply payback time for the Brits.


 

So what do modern day Canadians think about all this?

A few years ago, I was talking with a man from Canada who had just become an American citizen. He was also interested in history, so I asked what they taught Canadian school kids about the War of 1812. He said Canadians teach their school kids that Americans attempted to invade Canada and annex it but failed. He added, "We've only been in 2 wars and both of them with the United States?" I really wanted to ask him if he thought Canada won or lost those wars, but I thought it best not to go there. My lasting impression of him was that he was a "soft spoken, gentle and kind individual" and I'd prefer to leave it that way.

Is History Repeating Itself?

In 2025 President Trump floated the idea that perhaps Canadia might want to consider becoming a state in the United States. Judging from the responses I heard in the media, my guess is the answer is "NO!"  My suggestion is you not pose that question to the townsfolk in Thamesville, they're already pretty peeved with us.   

Conclusion 

While I am sorry that some of my friends to the north are still a little testy about our little disagreement 200 years ago, I now understand why.   So if you've ever in  Thamesville, Canada, it's probably best you avoid the subject of the War of 1812.   

 ******************************************************

                        


Both books "Fort Amanda -A Historical Redress”  and "The Schillinger are available on Amazon.  Price is $20. If you'd like a signed or personalized copy, send $20 for the book and $4 for shipping ($24 total) along with your address to 

David Johnson
1100 Little Bear Loop
Lewis Center, Ohio 43035

Saturday, August 9, 2025

Ensign Schillinge's Frustrating Journey Home - 1813

   During the War of 1812, thirty-one year-old William Schillinger of Plainville, Ohio was called to active duty.  He served as ensign in Captain Daniel Hosbrook's company from Hamilton County, Ohio.  Schillinger reported for duty at the Courthouse in Cincinnati on February 5, 1813.  While there Schillinger recorded the men as they reported for duty, prepared payrolls and took part in the daily drills.  On February 14th, the 76 man company left Cincinnati bound for their duty station; Fort Amanda on the Auglaize.  Fourteed days and 126 miles later the company arrived at the gates of Fort Amanda.  While there Schillinger kept a meticulously detailed journal of his daily activities,  I transcribed the journal and published it in 2019[1].  

Fast Forward to July 1813  

Schillinger’s tour of duty ended on August 3rd, the date Captain Brier and his militia company from Montgomery County  was scheduled to assumed command of the post. The latter part of July Schillinger began making preparations for going home.  His final days at Fort Amanda and his trip home were going to be anything but routine.  

“They Have No Idea of What a Garden Is”

 GARDENS
 

July 23, 1813 - Friday.  With few military duties to tend to, and not really feeling well, Schillinger and Lieutenant Davis decided to tour the Indian village at Wapakoneta.Schillinger had never been to the village and the first thing that caught his eyes was the disarray of what the Indians referred to as their “gardens.”  The pumpkins, water and musk melons, cucumbers, beans of various kinds were growing among the corn which seemed to be planted without any kind of order. Another thing he noticed was that all the work was done “squaws.”   When the two men returned to Amanda later that day, they received the alarming news that the British were shelling Fort Meigs.[2] 

                   The  British At Fort Amanda’s Gate

 

July 24, 1813 - Saturday.  Either the flu or measles, or possibly both were still ravaging the posts along the Auglaize.  There was a continual flow of sick soldiers from forts to the north being sent home early and the route home passed by Fort Amanda.   Captain George Benaugh, forage master[3] for Fort Amanda was deemed so ill, they sent a man to St. Marys to bring  Doctor Jacob back to Amanda.  .  

Later that afternoon, men at the fort were stunned  to see a British soldier walking across the field northwest toward the fort.  Turns out the man was part of the British force attacking Fort Meigs.   Apparently, he tired of military life he decided to desert.  Of particular interest is the fact that the only reference Schillinger made in his journal regarding the incident was  “One of the Brittish Deserters came to fort this evening.”  

 July 25, 1813 Sunday.  Twenty-one-year-old Jonathan Markland, Ensign from McHenry’s Company at Fort Jennings came to Amanda. He was very ill and had been discharged and given permission to go home.  Since Sunday's at Amanda were considered "days of rest"  Schillinger spent the rest of his day writing letters, one to his wife, Alasanna, and one to his father-in-law, Nathaniel Armstrong.

Sick Again

July 26, 1813 - Monday.    For Schillinger, history was repeating itself.  When he went home on furlough in May he had been ill for several days prior.  Now with his duty about to end, and he would be going home in a few days, ill again.  He wrote in his journal that he had a “very severe turn of the face & headache..  He was probably suffering from a case of the flu, measles or possibly even malaria.

Shortly after noon, Privates Joseph Abbott and Thomas Patterson, left Amanda with a wagon load of personal belongings headed for Clermont County.  Instead of taking the regular trail southwest to St. Marys, the men went south by way of Ft. Logan as it was, the most direct route to Piqua, 36 miles south.

July 27, 1813 - Tuesday.  Ensign Tweed of Capt Seaton  Comp along with 5 or 6 men on their way home arrived at Amanda late that afternoon,  Schillinger noted that the Ensign was very sick.

July 28, 1813 - Wednesday.  The following day, Wednesday July the 28th, Ensign Tweed,,  still very ill left Amanda and started for St. Marys.  Schillinger spent his day doing company paperwork

July 29, 1813 - Thursday.  Schillinger noted in hjs journal that he was feeling better and wrote miss,d my ague & fever to day.”   (Ague was a term used to describe chills and shaking).     

July 30, 1813 - Friday     Three of the men in the company were sent to senton to St. Marys. Apparently too weak to walk or ride, two of the men were loaded onto a wagon and the other a cart.   While things were relatively calm at Amanda, things were quite different 45 miles to the north at Fort Defiance.   Capt. Isaac Gray of the Kentucky militia was shot by Indians a short distance from Fort Defiance.  The wound later caused him to lose total use of it.

A Non-Stop Parade of Sick Soldiers



July 31,1813 - Saturday.   Several men passed through Amandaon their way north to Fort Defiance that day with horses and wagons to bring some of the sick men home.

August 1, 1813 - Sunday.  Another from Fort Amanda was sent home via St. Marys.  Another man was sent along to care for him.  Francis Duchouquet, am Indian Interpter arrived at the fort to draw provisions for the Shawnee tribe in Wapakonta.

Replacements Arrive

A few days earlier, Schillinger wrote a letter to his wife.   Notice the difference in the size and flair of the dates of Figure 1 and Figure 2.  Figure 1 was written in March, shortly after arriving at Amanda.  Figure 2 was written one week before Schillinger was scheduled to return home, which could explain the bold, and more flamboyant writing style, perhaps an expression of his excitement at going home.

                                    Figure 1                                                                Figure 2

                       Journal Entry – March                                        Journal Entry – July

going home                going home2

 August 2, 1813 - Monday At 2 o’clock that afternoon, Capt. Samuel Brier and his company of approximately 60 men from Montgomery County arrived at Fort Amanda.  Schillinger spent the remainder of the day working with Ensign Daniel Heaston, his counterpart in Briers Company.   In the evening, Schillinger finished packing and making final arrangements for going home the following day.

Expletives

(A staunch Presbyterian, Schillinger didn’t swear)

 August 3, 1813 - Tuesday.    Schillinger, Davis and Hosbrook had originally planned to travel home together but to their unpleasant surprise, they found that the horses they had planned to use were missing. Apparently, Schillinger was very angry when he wrote, “some evil disposed persons having drove them off and we could not find them.” It must have been especially frustrating for him, as he was still not feeling well. They asked the quartermaster for another horse but were told that only one was available so it was agreed that Schillinger would take the horse loaded with their baggage and meet them at the home of Christopher Statler near Piqua..[4]

Hosbrook and Davis took the more direct route via Fort Logan to Piqua. Schillinger went via the St. Marys route arriving there shortly after 2 o’clock. He stayed the night there.

Going home 3

August 4, 1813 - Wednesday.   Anxious to get an early start, Schillinger awoke early and left St. Marys around 5:30 that morning. He arrived at Loramie’s store around 9 o’clock and after feeding his horse, proceeded on to the rendezvous point with Davis and Hosbrook at the home of 26-year-old Christopher Statler, two miles north of Piqua. Schillinger arrived at the Statler home at 4:30 and a short time later, his brother-in-law Capt. Armstrong arrived with a horse for him. It was getting late so the two men decided to stay the night at the Statler home - a very good idea. While the British were no longer an immediate threat to them, another threat, just as deadly, was literally just around the corner - renegade Indians

Two weeks after Schillinger passed through Piqua on his way home, a renegade Indian named Mingo George and a teenage accomplice murdered a man named Ross a few miles southeast of the Statler home. The same day, the murderers found Henry and Barbara Dilbone and their three children working in the fields about five miles east of Piqua. They shot and mortally wounded Henry, then chased down and tomahawked Mrs. Dilbone to death. Luckily, the children escaped unharmed. Neighbors found Henry the following day, still alive; however, he died later that day.

          Frontier justice was not long in coming. Gardner Bobo, formerly a militia captain in the Revolutionary War and a friend of the Dilbone family, secured the services of William Richardson, the brother-in-law of Barbara Dilbone. Together they lay in wait for Mingo George where the present Miami-Shelby county line crosses the Miami River. He appeared at dusk as he was returning from the gristmill on the Miami River. They shot and killed Mingo George and using a long pole, pushed his body down into the quagmire near the riverbank.

Oh No Not Again

 BrokenFence - Copy

August 5, 1813 - Thursday.  Once again, the morning did not start well for Schillinger. When he went out to feed his horses, he found that the bars of the corral had been pulled down and the horse he had brought from Fort Amanda, as well as the horse his brother-in-law had brought for him, were both gone. Schillinger and Captain Armstrong, is brother-in-law decided not to wait for Hosbrook and Davis as originally planned, choosing instead to leave as soon as possible to try to find the horses. He wrote a quick letter of apology to Hosbrook and Davis then he and Armstrong started south. They eventually found the missing horses about a mile from the Statler home.  

A Kind Gesture

          A short time later, Schillinger met two men from his company walking along the road, both of whom were sick.  He gave them one of the horses and continued on his journey home. He rode through Piqua and continued on to Staunton arriving there around 9 o’clock that morning.  He ate breakfast, fed his horse and then continued on to Dayton where he ate dinner (probably at Stains tavern).  After dinner, he rode another 12 miles to Mr. Tibbal’s home on Yankee Road where he stayed the night 

Home Sweet Home

August 6, 1813 - Friday.  Schillinger arose early that morning, said goodbye to the Tibbal family, mounted his horse then rode south 12 mile passing by the Shaker Town.[5] He arrived a short time later at the home of his wife’s uncle, James Norris.  After breakfast the two men talked for about an hour then around 11 o’clock, Schillinger fed his horse, said his goodbyes and started toward home. He rode 5 miles and stopped at the White Horse Tavern[6] in Mason for a few minutes, then on to the town of Montgomery where he stopped at the home of Mr. Weller. He unloaded Hosbrook and Davis’ baggage and after freshening up, started on home arriving there shortly after sundown[7]. He had been in the saddle 14 hours that day. He wrote in his journal that when he arrived home he “found all well.” His six-month active-duty service to country was over.

End of Life

            As life became more and more difficult for William to live alone, he moved into his daughter's home at 178 Auburn Avenue in Cincinnati.  He lived there until his death at 2 o’clock in the afternoon of March 17, 1871. He died peacefully at the age of 89.

            The coroner’s report listed his cause of death as old age. He had outlived seven of his eight children, Frances being his only surviving child. William’s obituary read:

“On yesterday afternoon at the residence of his son-in-law A. H. Hinkle, Esq., on Mount Auburn, one of our oldest citizens – Col. Wm. SCHILLINGER – departed this life at the advanced age of 89 years.  Col. SCHILLINGER was born on Cape Island, New Jersey in 1782 and emigrated to the West in 1802, having walked the whole distance from Philadelphia to this city. Shortly after locating here, he removed to the settlement at Plainville, and while there married to Miss Alasanna Armstrong, of that place. In 1812 he again took up his residence in Cincinnati, and remained here until the hour of his death.  During the whole of his residence in Cincinnati, Col. Schillinger has been closely identified with its history. In his early manhood, and for beyond his middle life, he was “part and parcel” of the municipal government of the city, and was a member of the first City Council convened. In the very early times, when it was necessary to look after the Indians on our immediate borders, Col. Schillinger volunteered as a member of Capt. D. Hosbrook’s company, of Gen. Wm. H. Harrison’s command and performed a tour of duty against the Indians of the Maumee river. On the return of this expedition on the formation of the militia (which in those days meant active duty), Col. Schillinger was elected successively, Ensign, Captain, Lieutenant Colonel and Colonel, and commissioned by Governors Huntington, Worthington and Ethan Allen Brown. Most of our old citizens will recollect a society identified with our Fire Department called “Protection Society No. 1,” whose members comprised the very best of our citizens. Of this Col. Schillinger was for years Chief.  Of this trust he was very proud. The duty of the company was to protect property at fires.  They wore white badges on their hats, inscribed “Protection,” and usually took possession of the immediate vicinity of the fire, keeping the people         from crowding the firemen at their work.  Among the colonel’s papers, carefully preserved, was found a list of members of this early organization.  As a reminder of those days, we give the names (Names are listed in the original obit)  Col. Schillinger was early identified with the church, and was an Elder for many years of the Rev. Joshua Wilson’s First Presbyterian Church, and was one of the corporators of Lane Seminary.  He was ever a consistent Christian, and was rewarded by a long life.  He passed away peacefully and without pain and has, without doubt, gone to the reward promised to those who are “faithful unto the end.”

Funeral on Monday, March 20th at 2 P.M., residence of his son-in-law, A.H.Hinkle, Mt. Auburn. Friends of the deceased and members of the Pioneer Association are invited to attend. Carriages will leave the office of the Undertaker, Mr. Estep, corner of Seventh and Central Avenue, at half-past 1 o’clock.”

 Epilogue

             There could have been no more fitting end to the man who had served his country so valiantly in wartime, and his church and community so faithfully in peacetime. Even in death, this soldier, who once selflessly gave up his horse to a sick comrade, continues to give. His journal entries tell us what daily life was like at Fort Amanda, as well as sharing with us the names of many of the men and women of the Fort Amanda story whose names were lost to history.  Thanks to him, their names and a short bio of over 100 men are in my book "Fort Amanda - A Historical Redres."  Also included are GPS coordinates of their grave site.

          In April 1871, one month after Williams’ death, the body of Alasanna, William’s first wife and mother of his 8 children, was exhumed and reburied with her husband in Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati.  The couple rests in peace in Section 52, lot 196 of the Spring Grove Cemetery.  From I-75, exit onto West Mitchell Ave. Turn left onto Spring Grove Ave. and continue ½ mile.  Cemetery entrance will be on your right.

(N39°10'27.59”,W84°31'29.99”)

      



[1] Fort Amanda - The Schillinger Journal: February 5 - August 6, 1813

[2] Fort Meigs is located near Perrysburg, Ohio

[3] Forage Master a military officer responsible for procuring and distributing supplies, particularly food, forage (animal feed), and other necessities for a military

[4] The Statler home was located in the vicinity of the intersection of St. Rt. 66 and North Hardin Road, 2 miles north of Piqua.

[5] The old Shaker Village was located near the intersection of St. Rts. 63 and 741 west of Lebanon

[6] The White Horse Tavern was probably located near the intersection of N. Mason Montgomery RD. and SR 42.

[7] Around 7:45 that evening.