Reference collection
Forts, ports, towns, shipyards, islands, and battlefields formed landscapes that made some choices possible and others impossible.
16 records
Places · Maryland · Chesapeake
Political battleground, privateering port, and fortified city
Baltimore appears at both ends of the American wartime narrative: murderous partisan violence in 1812 and mass defensive mobilization in 1814.
Open record →Places · Michigan Territory · Great Lakes
Fort, settlement, and gateway to the interior
Hull surrendered Detroit in August 1812; American forces recovered it after Perry’s Lake Erie victory forced British withdrawal.
Open record →Places · Upper Canada · Niagara
Escarpment battlefield above the Niagara River
American troops gained the heights in October 1812 but were isolated when reinforcements refused to cross. British, Canadian, and Indigenous forces retook the position.
Open record →Places · New York · Lake Ontario
Principal American inland naval base
Sackets Harbor became a shipbuilding, supply, and command center for the Lake Ontario contest.
Open record →Places · Upper Canada · Lake Ontario
British naval and logistical base
Kingston anchored British power on Lake Ontario, supporting ships, troops, and the communications route to the upper province.
Open record →Places · Marquesas Islands · Pacific
Polynesian island and Essex refitting base
Porter refitted his squadron, intervened in local conflicts, and announced an American claim without durable effect.
Open record →Places · Upper Canada · Lake Ontario
Colonial capital attacked in 1813
American forces captured York; looting and burning became part of a widening cycle of destruction and later retaliation claims.
Open record →Places · Maryland · Chesapeake
Upper-bay town raided in 1813
British forces burned and plundered much of Havre de Grace during their expanding Chesapeake operations.
Open record →Places · Muscogee homelands · Tallapoosa River
Fortified Red Stick position at Tohopeka
Jackson’s American, Cherokee, and allied Muscogee army broke Red Stick resistance here in March 1814.
Open record →Places · Spanish West Florida · Gulf
Spanish port contested by British and American power
British forces used Spanish Pensacola; Jackson captured the town in November 1814 before moving toward New Orleans.
Open record →Places · New York · Lake Champlain
Land-and-water defensive position
Macomb’s defenders and Macdonough’s squadron checked a major British invasion in September 1814.
Open record →Places · Maryland · Washington approaches
Battlefield opening the road to the capital
Poorly coordinated American lines collapsed here on August 24, 1814, though Barney’s sailors and marines resisted fiercely.
Open record →Places · Maryland · Patapsco Neck
Approach battlefield outside Baltimore
Stricker’s militia delayed the British advance on September 12, 1814; Ross was mortally wounded nearby.
Open record →Places · Baltimore Harbor · Maryland
Harbor fort and national memory site
Fort McHenry and supporting batteries denied the British water approach during the September 1814 attack.
Open record →Places · United Kingdom of the Netherlands
Site of the peace negotiations
American and British commissioners negotiated here through changing military news and shifting demands in 1814.
Open record →Places · Louisiana · Lower Mississippi
Defensive line below New Orleans
Jackson’s coalition defended the Rodriguez Canal line against the main British assault on January 8, 1815.
Open record →