The Bicentennial of the War of 1812

 

A Battle in the War of 1812

Map of Battle Sites

This Monday, June 18, will mark the 200^th anniversary of the beginning of the War of 1812.  Although a fledgling country, the United States showed it’s moxie by declaring war on the greatest power in the world, Great Britain.

Americans were tired of Great Britain’s domineering attempts to restrict U.S. trade, the Royal Navy’s impressments of U.S. sailors into service for Britain, and the continual thwarting of America’s expansion into the western territory.  The war would last almost three years, ending on February 17, 1815 with the Treaty of Ghent.

American’s viewed the War of 1812 as the second war for independence.  (They had fought their first war for freedom from English rule almost 30 years before during the American Revolution.)  This time Americans vowed to eliminate Britain’s hold on North America for good.  It was time for the United States to become totally independent from Great Britain and Europe.

Although the War of 1812 does not garner much attention now, it was a catalyst for many amazing and familiar events and facts that are part of our lives today.

Canada, British and Indian Troops

It was during this war that the U.S. invaded Canada three times.  In the U.S., the War of 1812 is seldom celebrated but in Canada it is heralded as a time when the Canadians stood against the U.S. and won - all three times.

Burning of the White House

While the American Revolution won the U.S. its independence – the War of 1812 cemented it.  America came out of this war as a power to be reckoned with.  Patriotism was high after the British army captured Washington and burned the White House on August 24, 1814.  American citizens saw this act as barbaric and rallied together for the defeat of the British.

Original Star Spangled Banner

Francis Scott Key

The U.S. national anthem was written less than two weeks later during the Battle of Fort McHenry on September 3, 1814. Francis Scott Key watched the conflict from aboard the HMS Minden where he was being held captive.  Key was so inspired by the fight that he penned the words to what we now know as the Star Spangled Banner.   However, when he wrote it, Key titled it the Defence of Fort McHenry.

'Uncle Sam' Wilson

It is also said that Uncle Sam was created during the War of 1812. New York meat packer, Sam Wilson, packaged rations for the military in barrels stamped “E.A. -  U.S.”  The initials E A stood for Elbert Anderson, the producer, and rumor had it that U.S. stood for ‘Uncle Sam’ Wilson, the meat packer. (The image of the white bearded Uncle Sam came about during World War One.)

In April 1905, the last veteran of the War of 1812 died.  New York City held a Grand Parade to honor Private Hiram Silas Cronk, who died just two weeks after his 105^th birthday.  Cronk had spent his life after the war as a farmer in the state of New York.

Monument Dedicated to the War of 1812

Arlington Cemetery

Also, in 1905, construction workers discovered the bodies of fourteen soldiers of the War of 1812 at what is now the Washington Navy Yard.  The remains were buried at Arlington National Cemetery later that year.  It wasn’t until April 1976, the year of the United State’s Bicentennial, that the Daughters of the War of 1812 had a monument erected at Arlington as a tribute to the fourteen unknown soldiers and sailors of the War of 1812, and to all others who had also died in that war.

Johnny Horton

For many of us growing up in the sixties, singer Johnny Horton gave us our first understanding of the War of 1812 - set to music.  Horton was a rockabilly singer known for his historical ballads.  He recorded his number one chart topper, The Battle of New Orleans in 1958. 

Jimmy Driftwood

The song was written in the 1950’s by Jimmy Driftwood, an Arkansas school teacher.  Driftwood wanted his students to become more interested in history, so he decided to put major events to music to get their attention. In 1960, the song won a Grammy for Best Country and Western Recording.  

Although the War of 1812 is known as the "Forgotten War,"  it is because of these three years of battles that America stepped out from Britain's shadow and became a world power to be taken seriously. Let us remember this on Monday and honor what our ancestors believed in and fought for.

~ Joy

Cemeteries Worth the Visit– Frankfort, Kentucky

View of Frankfort from
the cemetery

Cemetery Gates

The Frankfort Cemetery, in Frankfort, Kentucky is visible from anywhere in the town.  Located on a bluff, it overlooks the City of Frankfort, with views of the State Capitol building, and Kentucky River. The rolling lands and vistas are gorgeous, no matter what time of year you visit.

Ambrose Dudley's
Grave

Judge Mason Brown, Edmund Taylor, A.G. Hodges, Henry Wingate, Jacob Swigert, A.P. Cox, Philip Swigert, Orlando Brown and M.R. Stealey incorporated the cemetery on February 27th, 1844.  Approval for incorporation was granted by the Kentucky General Assembly.   In 1845 thirty-two acres were purchased from Ambrose and Eliza Dudley for $3,801.  The land, at the time was known as Hunter’s Garden.  In 1858 and again in 1911, more land was purchased, to account for the current total of 100 acres in the cemetery. The Frankfort Cemetery was the second cemetery to be incorporated in the United States.

Frankfort Cemetery

Early View from Cemetery

Scottish landscape architect Robert Carmichael was hired to design the cemetery in the Romanesque style similar to Mount Auburn Cemetery in Boston.  Carmichael designed curving lanes and incorporated flowers not usually found in the region to create a garden style cemetery.  He terraced certain areas to overlook the gorgeous views of the Kentucky River.  Carmichael died in 1858 and is buried here.

In 1848, $15,000 was appropriated to build a monument to those who died in defense of the country during the Civil War. The State Mound designed by Russian-American sculptor Robert E. Launitz.  Most of the intricate carving was done in Italy and then shipped to Frankfort up the Mississippi. The military memorial is located on a twenty feet square granite base in the center of the cemetery.  The Statue of Victory tops the monument and four eagles guard each of the four corners.

Cemetery Chapel

In 1890 a Romanesque Revival chapel was built on a hill overlooking the Kentucky River and Frankfort.  Painted a pale mauve, it blends in with its surroundings, regardless of the time of year.

Daniel Boone

Boone's Monument

The most visited gravesite is that of frontiersman Daniel Boone, but the infamous question is if Daniel Boone is actually buried here?  Boone died in Missouri on September 26, 1820.  He was buried next to Rebecca, his wife, at what is now Marthasville, Missouri.  The Boone’s remains were supposedly disinterred by family in 1845 and moved to the new Frankfort, Kentucky Cemetery.  But Boone’s relatives in Missouri were not pleased when Kentucky kinfolk came to take the remains South. Legend has it that they allowed them to exhume the wrong bodies to take back to the Bluegrass State.  It has never been proven if Boone and his wife were really moved back to Kentucky, or if they remain in Missouri.

Boone killing Indians

Rebecca Boone

Regardless, a large monument stands in the Frankfort Cemetery with four panels that depict Boone’s life in Kentucky.  The southern panel depicts Boone in a fight with Indians, one has been killed and one is ready to attack.  The panel on the eastern side shows Rebecca Boone milking a cow.  

Boone & boy

Boone at Cabin

On the northern panel stand a man and boy, said to represent Boone

 telling the boy where he wanted to be buried.  And the panel on the western side shows Boone sitting by his cabin with a slaughtered deer at his feet.

Grave of Theodore O'Hara

Grave of Paul Sawyier

Other notable people buried here include Impressionist artist, Paul Sawyier, Vice President Richard M. Johnson, and Theodore O’Hara, poet of The Bivouac of the Dead which is quoted in numerous cemeteries at war memorials.

The cemetery also contains the graves of seventeen state governors, those massacred at River Raisin during the War of 1812, three national poets, and many military officers and soldiers from the Civil War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War and numerous other conflicts.

Tree Replacement Program

Memorial Plaque

Wind and storm damage on this high bluff over the years, has damaged or destroyed many of the huge, older trees.  The Frankfort Cemetery completed a tree and garden replacement program in 2010, where over 500 trees were planted.  Over eighty-five different tree varieties were selected, with 60 of those being native Kentucky species.  The donation cost to sponsor a replacement trees ranges from $300 to $600, and a memorial plaque is included.

The Frankfort Cemetery is located at 215 East Main Street.  The cemetery is open from 7:30 to sunset.  The phone number is (502) 227-2403.

The Frankfort Cemetery can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Frankfort-Cemetery/166030506756088?v=info&sk=info

Bivouac of the Dead

With the gorgeous views, ample history, and beautiful landscapes, the Frankfort Cemetery is well worth the afternoon of any Tombstone Tourist!

~ Joy