“We Have Met the Enemy and They Are Ours” – Commemorating the Battle of Lake Erie 2013

Oliver Hazard Perry‘s message to his superiors was brief: “We have met the enemy and they are ours; two ships, two brigs, one schooner and one sloop.”  Perry’s victory at the Battle of Lake Erie on September 10, 1813, was one … Continue reading

Sailing the Brig Niagara, Armchair Sailor No More

Retiree Edd Hale writes in the Pittsburgh Post Gazette about surrendering his status as an armchair sailor to sail the Great Lakes in the Brig Niagara, a replica of the Master Commandant Oliver Hazard Perry‘s flagship on which he won the Battle of Lake Erie, one … Continue reading

The Two Most Important Naval Victories of the War of 1812 – Part 1: Battle of Lake Erie

The best known naval battles of the War of 1812 were single ship duels between US Navy frigates and ships of the Royal Navy.  Nevertheless, the two most important American naval victories of the War of 1812 were fought in fresh water, hundreds of  miles from the ocean. … Continue reading