2/20/2014 - West Side Leader
     

The marker that notes the significance of Col. George Croghan in the Fairlawn area will be set up again at Croghan Park when work there is completed this summer, according to Fairlawn officials.

Photo courtesy of city of Fairlawn

The namesake of Croghan Park in Fairlawn has long been considered to have spent a night in the vicinity of Smith Road in Fairlawn in 1813 on the way to Fort Stephenson during the War of 1812.

But Sharon Myers, president of the William Wetmore Chapter Daughters of 1812, who has been researching local involvement in the War of 1812, said it’s most likely Croghan’s detachment came through the area, but he wasn’t with them.

“Smith Road was extremely important,” Myers said. “It was the main east-west route for troops and supplies. That’s where Croghan comes into our area. But he was not going for supplies. A detachment of his company was camped out at [what is now] Macy’s.”

Fairlawn Mayor William Roth said he’s not heard that Croghan wasn’t with his troops before.

“It’s our understanding that they camped roughly where Croghan Park is, and the assumption is that he camped with them,” he said. “We’re honored to name the park after him.”

Regardless of whether or not the war hero rested his head in Fairlawn, Kentucky-born Croghan was one of the nation’s finest during the war between the U.S. and Britain 200 years ago. Myers, who said Croghan is one of her favorite historical figures from the war, along with Oliver Hazard Perry, will share information about Croghan at a presentation Feb. 25 at 7 p.m. at the Fairlawn-Kiwanis Community Center, 3486 S. Smith Road.

Myers said Croghan was just 21 when he won the Battle of Fort Stephenson, in Fremont, and defeated the British and thousands of Native American warriors with a single cannon.

The event is the first leading up to a planned rededication of Croghan Park, which is 40 years old this year.

“We’re pretty excited,” Roth said. “It’s the 40th anniversary of the park, and we’re going to be doing a lot this year.”

Since Fairlawn is in the midst of improvements to the park that bears Croghan’s name, it seemed like a great time to celebrate the man and provide the opportunity to learn more about him, said Laurie Beisecker, director of the Fairlawn Parks and Recreation Department.

She added, however, the city only came to realize the significance of the anniversary by accident. Former Councilman Jim Swartz was cleaning out an office when he came upon a shovel that was used in the groundbreaking for the park. It was marked with the date, which prompted city officials to realize this year was a big anniversary for the park.

Beisecker also came to see residents are interested in Croghan and his history after a memorial to Croghan located at the corner of Sand Run Parkway and Miller Road was removed.

“Once the memorial came down, because of the work there, we started getting calls from people asking ‘What are you doing?’” Beisecker said.

Plans are still coming together for the summer rededication of the park, but Beisecker said the date is set for July 19.

“It’s going to be really neat,” she said.

Local dignitaries and elected officials will be on hand, and there will be activities for families, Beisecker said. Plans also call for military re-enactors to be at the site.

As for the park’s improvements, Beisecker said the pedestrian bridge is being replaced and a new rain garden will be installed. A pump system will help keep rainwater out of the park’s playing field, she added, directing it instead to the rain garden.

Roth said work has been on hold because of the weather, but if temperatures warm up in the coming weeks as predicted, the foundation will be prepared for the new bridge.

And of course, the Croghan memorial will be placed back at the corner.

Myers said the memorial also has an interesting history. It was originally on Smith Road at the current site of Summit Mall, but it was moved when the mall was built, she said.

The marker, dated 1954, was a project of the Portage Trail Chapter Daughters of 1812, Myers said.

Beisecker said she’s not sure what was at the park site before it became a park. The condition of the soil there is not suitable for building, which is why it was used for a park, she added.

Other monthly presentations highlighting local history and the War of 1812 will take place in the months leading up to this summer’s park dedication. On March 25, John Burke will speak on Capt. Wolf and Smith Road.

For more information, call 330-668-9515.

CUYAHOGA FALLS NEWS-PRESS, FEBRUARY 24, 2014

Colonel from War of 1812 profiled

Have you ever wondered how Croghan Park in Fairlawn got its name? In honor of the upcoming rededication of Croghan Park and 1812 Living History Encampment on July 19, by the city of Fairlawn, local historian Sharon Myers, President of the William Wetmore Chapter Daughters of 1812, will present a program on Col. George Croghan at 7 p.m. on Feb. 25 at the Fairlawn Community Center at 3486 S. Smith Road.

Learn how 21-year old Col. George Croghan won the Battle of Ft. Stephenson, in Fremont, and amazingly defeated the British Army and thousands of Indians under Tecumseh with only one cannon, Old Betsy.

Prior to this, two unsuccessful attacks on Ft. Meigs, near Toledo, were made by the British and the Indians before focusing on Ft. Stephenson.

A company from Hudson is said to have helped build Ft. Meigs in January of 1813.

A detachment of Croghan's Company camped on Smith Road, near present-day Macys, on their way to Ft. Stephenson with supplies from Pittsburg. One of these men was Jonah Turner who thought that the land was so beautiful, he promised he would come back and settle after the War. And he did. Purchasing 350 acres, he is credited for being the founder of Copley Township.

This is a PowerPoint presentation with a short video on Ft. Meigs. For more information, contact Sharon Myers 330-794-5099.

As we enter 2014, let us remember that this year marks yet another Bicentennial -- that being "The Star-Spangled Banner," our national anthem, which was written during the Battle of Fort McHenry in Baltimore by Francis Scott Key during the last year of the War of 1812.

British troops had attacked Washington, D.C., setting fire to many important government buildings, including the White House and the U.S. Capital in late August 1814 and marched toward Baltimore, the third largest city in the U.S. and the center for shipping and boat building. If the British took Baltimore, they could destroy American ships and without ships, the U.S. would have little hope of winning the war.

The British raided American farms and houses and broke into the home of Dr. William Beanes looking for food and drink and valuables. Beane and his friends were able to round up the thieves and place them under arrest. One soldier escaped and reached British General Robert Ross and told him what had happened. Ross sent the troops to arrest Dr. Beanes, who was then jailed in Ross's warship the Tonnant.

Although Beanes was an American, his captors thought he was British, charged him with treason and threatened to hang him. Francis Scott Key, a well-respected lawyer, heard about his friend's capture and got permission from President Madison to negotiate with the British on Beane's behalf. Key arranged to have an American agent for prisoner exchange accompany him. They found and boarded the Tonnant.

Key and Skinner pleaded their case to General Ross showing him letters from British soldiers who had been wounded and Dr. Beanes had treated the men with kindness. After conferring with the British, they relented but would not release the doctor or Key immediately because they had seen and heard too much of the preparations for the attack on Baltimore. They were placed under guard and were forced to wait out the battle behind the British fleet.

On Sept. 13, 1814 the British attacked Baltimore's Fort McHenry. British warships continuously bombarded the fort for 25 hours. 1,500 shells were used. They ceased fire due to a lack of ammunition.

Prior to this, Maj. George Armistead, Commander of Fort McHenry, asked seamstress Mary Pickersgill to create a flag to fly over Fort McHenry prior to the battle. This flag was to be so large that the British troops would easily identify Armistead's position from afar. Pickersgill spent six weeks making the 30 x 42 foot flag.

Key watched the bombs bursting in air as the British attacked the fort throughout the night. Unknown to Key, the battle was actually going badly for the British. They had underestimated the American forces. American officers had sunk more than 20 ships in Baltimore Harbor before the battle which created an underwater wall that kept the British ships too far away to seriously damage the fort.

The next morning by the dawn's early light Key saw the broad stripes and bright stars of the U.S. flag still waving in the distance over Fort McHenry, sending a big message: the United States had not surrendered. Key wrote a patriotic poem called "The Defense of Fort McHenry."

True to their word, the British freed Key, Skinner and Beanes after the battle. Copies of Key's poem were given to soldiers and in November it was set to music by publisher Thomas Carr. The United States has used it as the national song since the 1880s. It was made the official national anthem by Congress in 1931 under President Herbert Hoover, replacing Hail Columbia.

The flag remained in the possession of Major Armistead for some time. Pieces of it were given to the fort's soldiers or their wives. It is now 8 feet shorter than it was originally. It has been permanently housed at the Smithsonian since 1912 and has undergone multiple restoration efforts.

The flag had 15 stripes, not 13. The stars are 2 feet by 2 feet tip to tip. The flag will not unfurl in winds less than 5 mph. At least 3 to 5 people are required to raise and lower the flag as it weighs 45 pounds.

The Bicentennial of the War of 1812 has brought much enthusiasm and interest in this forgotten war and many researchers have delved deeper to discover answers to some of the controversies that have lived on through the past 200 years. One of these controversies that occurred right here in Summit County has been solved! I am speaking of the controversy of the three gunboats that were built here on the Cuyahoga River. We have discovered that they were, indeed, built here and ordered by the Army and not the Navy. They were used in the Battle of the Thames which was just a few weeks after the Battle of Lake Erie. They were indeed gunboats and not Schenectady boats as some have speculated. There is evidence that the Schenectady boats (flat boats similar to barges) were built in Cleveland and not Summit County. And yes, the Cuyahoga River was a navigable river and deemed so by the Federal Government during the early 1800's.

Contact Sharon Myers, President, William Wetmore Chapter Daughters of 1812, 330-794-5099.

Daughters of 1812

The William Wetmore Chapter Daughters of 1812 will conduct a Memorial Service for the Veterans of the War of 1812 buried in Stow and Maple Lawn Cemeteries July 20 at 10:30 a.m. in the veterans section of Stow Cemetery on Route 59 in honor of the Bicentennial of the War of 1812.

The Chapter is looking for descendants of the veterans listed below. Anyone who is related to any of the following men, is asked to let Chapter President Sharon Myers know at 330-794-5099 or armshome@aol.com. The Chapter would love to include descendants in the ceremony. The veterans are:

Thomas Bowen, Alden Bucklin, William Burnham, Henry Butler, John Campbell, Col. George Darrow, Clerk Joseph Darrow, Aaron Flanders, Samuel Flanders, Sgt. Jonathan Gaylord Jr., Stewart Gaylord, Fifer Thomas Gaylord, Oscar Harvey, Francis Kelsey, William Mcclelland, Moses Miller Jr., Charles Powers, John Powers, Assistant Surgeon Lewis Rice, Constant Rogers, Ambrose Roswell, Henry Shuman, Drum Major Josiah Starr, Teamster William Stow, Miles Thompson, Orson Thompson, Commissary William Wetmore, Col. Henry Wilcox, Isaac Wilcox, and Samuel Young.