JUNE 24 - A piece of American history
The Battle of Beaver Dams took place on 24 June 1813, during the War of 1812. An American column marched from Fort George and attempted to surprise a British outpost at Beaver Dams billeting themselves overnight in the village of Queenston, Ontario.
Laura Secord, a resident of Queenston, had earlier learned of the American plans, and had struck out on a long and difficult trek to warn the British at Decou's stone house near present-day Brock University. When the Americans resumed their march, they were ambushed by Native warriors and eventually surrendered to a small British detachment led by Lieutenant James FitzGibbon. About 500 Americans, including their wounded commander, were taken prisoner.
The loss of Boerstler's detachment demoralized the Americans at Fort George. From then until they abandoned the fort on 10 December, they rarely dared send any patrols more than a mile from the fort. To reinforce their fear of the Indians, there was another minor disaster on 8 July when a party from the 8th (King's) Regiment and Merritt's Troop of Provincial Dragoons, accompanied by Ottawas under Captain Matthew Elliott and other Indians under Mohawk chief John Norton, went to retrieve a chest of medicines which had been hastily buried at Ball's Farm near Two Mile Creek when the British had evacuated Fort George in May. An American party from the 13th U.S. Infantry under Lieutenant Joseph Eldridge attempted to pursue the British detachment but was ambushed, losing 28 men, several of whom were scalped despite the efforts of officers of the Indian Department to prevent it.
Most of the American regular soldiers and Boyd himself were transferred from Fort George to Sackett's Harbor in September, leaving the fort in the hands of New York Militia.