|
At least four large batteries were built- one was set up at
the mouth of the river, another close by the millpond within the town. Two
others were constructed beside
Riverside
Cemetery and on a hill across the river from
Fort
Brown. Several smaller batteries were also built. Prevost established his
headquarters in a farmhouse owned by Edward Allen (Broad and Cornelia
Streets) and the bulk of his forces were encamped on the high ground to the
northwest of the town.
Meanwhile, Macomb was busy across the river. Day and night
the defenses were strengthened. Volunteers from Vermont began to arrive in large
numbers. Any man who could shovel was set to work preparing the defensive works
for the onslaught that was sure to come. Those who couldn't work- and there were
many- were evacuated to Crab Island. Even here, on
"hospital island," a battery was set up- two 6-pounders were mounted.
They would be manned by convalescents well enough to fire them.
In a somewhat controversial move, the American forces began
firing "hot-shot" or super-heated shot, designed to set afire the
target, into the buildings occupied by the British within the town. They were
successful in removing the enemy from the security of the buildings, but in
doing so some fifteen or sixteen buildings were burnt down.
(Clinton County Community College's wonderful Lee Hunt mural
THE DEFENSE OF PLATTSBURGH
does an excellent job of showing the damage done to the town by these fires. We
used to have a link to the mural on the web but it has been changed or removed
and we are unable to locate it again).
Occasionally, during this time of preparation on both sides,
a detachment would be sent out to probe the other sides defenses. On the evening
of Sept. 9th, Capt. George McGlassin led 50 men in a daring raid across the
river. Splitting his tiny group in two, they surprised some 300 British who were
erecting a rocket battery just 500 yards from Fort Brown. The British force,
thinking they were being attacked by a much larger force, retreated to a safe
and distant location. McClassin's men spiked the British rockets and returned
safely across the river without losing a man.
Finally, at dawn on September 11, the British fleet left its
anchorage off Chazy. The plan was for Prevost to launch a simultaneous attack on
land at the first sight of British vessels rounding Cumberland Head. Once the
American forts were captured, the American fleet would be trapped between the
British Army on shore and the Navy in the bay. By 7:30 the first of the ships
had arrived at Cumberland Head. Within an hour, the fighting in the bay would
begin in earnest.
Rather than attack the American forts directly in a frontal
assault, Prevost had his troops again attempt to cross the bridges on the
Saranac River. Each time, the assault was repulsed at the lower bridges. Further
to the west, however, the British were able to successfully cross the river at a
ford near Pike's Cantonment. The militia here fell back, driven by several
companies of British regulars. They continued pushing the retreating militia,
and for a while the American rear was in danger of being compromised. At Salmon
River, the militia were reinforced by a large group of Vermont volunteers and
the British advance was halted for a time.
In the bay, the naval battle was raging... an officer rode up
with word of the outcome.
|
Twitter, too!
