Professor David Henkin examines the ongoing war between Native American nations and the United States in 1812 and prior to and following 1812. He also considers popular memory of Native American history and failure to integrate it into U.S. history as a whole.
Eighth-grade American history educator Eric Langhorst introduces an interactive Smithsonian website on the Star-Spangled Banner, suggesting it as a classroom resource for studying the War of 1812.
William Henry Harrison built Fort Meigs on the Maumee River in 1813 to protect northwest Ohio and Indiana from British invasion. Today's reconstruction is one of the largest log forts in America. British and Canadian troops, assisted by Indians under Tecumseh, besieged the fort twice. The 10-acre log enclosure with 7 blockhouses and 5 emplacements presented a formidable defense. The first assault was in May of 1813 and the second was in July. Both failed and the British retreated after the second. The Museum and Education Center has 3,000 square feet of exhibits and artifacts—including soldiers' letters and diaries, weapons, maps, and uniforms—that describe Fort Meigs's role during the War of 1812.
A second website covering the site can be found here.
The site offers exhibits; tours; educational programs; workshops and classes; and recreational and educational events, including living history events.
Indian Mill, built in 1861, is the nation's first educational museum of milling in its original structure. The restored three-story structure replaces the original one-story building that the U. S. government built in 1820 to reward the loyalty of local Wyandot Indians during the War of 1812. Many exhibits are placed around the original mill machinery. The restored miller's office displays the history of milling from prehistoric times to the present.
The mill offers exhibits and tours.
As homeport of U.S. Brig Niagara, the Erie Maritime Museum presents the story of Niagara as the reconstructed flagship of Pennsylvania and the warship that won the Battle of Lake Erie in the War of 1812. Offering a wide range of multimedia and interactive exhibits and coupled with lively interpretive programs, Erie Maritime Museum vividly illustrates Niagara's history and the region's rich maritime heritage. As the premier exhibit at the Erie Maritime Museum in Erie, PA, the Niagara is docked for public viewing September through May and intermittently during the summer each year.
The museum offers exhibits, tours, and educational programs.
Following the outbreak of war between the United States and Great Britain in June 1812, Sackets Harbor became the center of American naval and military activity for the upper St. Lawrence Valley and Lake Ontario. In an attempt to destroy the American shipyard, a British-Canadian force launched an attack on May 29, 1813, while the majority of the American forces were attacking Fort George. In December 1814, the Treaty of Ghent officially ended the War of 1812, and the fleet was placed in storage. After the war the earthen fortifications were graded off and the battlefield reverted to farmland.
Today, the site offers tours, demonstrations, exhibits, and occasional living history events, as well as other educational and recreational programs.
This lecture, created by the Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project, traces the settlement of Illinois from the early years of European exploration of North America to the 1860s. It focuses particularly on the relationship between settler groups and Native Americans, on the construction of infrastructure that linked Illinois to the rest of the emerging U.S., and on the changing culture of the state's occupants.
This lecture, created by the Abraham Lincoln Historical Digitization Project, traces the history of Native American tribes in Illinois, from the early days of Western North American exploration into the mid-1800s.
John Mack Faragher of Yale University discusses the range of relationships between Native Americans (particularly the Kickapoo) and settlers in antebellum Illinois. He looks at the development from relatively benign relations, involving the trading of goods and ideas, to the rise of racism and violence following the War of 1812 and the Black Hawk War.
To view this clip, select "Settlers and Native Americans Before the Black Hawk War" under "Native American Relations Video."
Professor John Moser examines the first period of partisan division in the U.S., between Jeffersonian Republicans and Hamiltonian Federalists from the 1790s through 1812. He looks at how this period of intense party opposition influenced foreign policy.
To listen to this lecture, scroll down to the Monday, July 12th, 10:50 am-12:20 pm session. Then click on the Real Audio link in the gray bar to the left of the main text.