Could BoomDays Open The Door To The War Of 1812?
It's funny... I don't know when the BoomDays event started attracting soldiers from the War of 1812, but the fact is... they did. These guys appeared to be a big hit last night - they even shot off a few rounds over the lake to commemorate the event. It was the first time that I had been to a city event where someone donned 200-year old military garb. Now normally I would shy away from overzealous ‘re-enactors’, but for some reason the whole bit worked well with BoomDays ceremonies. BoomDays has already spread its wings to Niagara Falls (US side) and hopes to get the Canadian side to partake... could this be the start of Buffalo's push to hold a successful War of 1812 reenactment or celebration?
Do you recall the post submitted by Randy Reade in October of '05? It warned that Buffalo was missing out on a grand opportunity to showcase the city. The 200-year anniversary of the War of 1812 is now just four years away, and the BoomDays event may have opened the door in a most unexpected way. From Randy Reade:
As every Buffalonian should know, the war was fought to a large extent on the Niagara Peninsula and WNY, culminating with the burning of Niagara-on-the-Lake and the Village of Buffalo. This war is often called "the forgotten war" because its causes seemed to be silly, and we came so close to losing it.
It's for that exact reason that Buffalo should seize upon the opportunity to focus a spotlight upon our community and the role our region played in helping to shape the young nation.
Hey, with Tucker Curtain's push to turn the area around Dug's Dive into a destination... why not put together a four-year plan to pull the event off?
Combined excerpt from The National Post:
In Toronto, the 20-member steering committee has already begun working on events to mark the war's anniversary, with particular emphasis on the two American raids in the spring and summer of 1813... the Ontario government has provided a total of about $50,000 in grants to local organizing committees planning the bicentennial.
Bottom photo: Event organizer Rick Smith with Mayor Brown
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brokeleg
Pimp our 1812 shit out. National 1812 Museum, Buffalo, NY. Sell! sell! sell!
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RisingDamp666
What a little History Whore you are, brokeleg! Putting this particular historical 'ho on Buffalo's "track" will be a little more daunting than mere costuming and faux-musket fire. Buffalo should attack and invade Fort Erie, sack and burn that little burgh and then regroup to take Toronto. Only when all of Canada is aflame will the past wrongs of 1812 have been avenged.
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Hospitable
Aside from being burnt to the ground.. what else happened in buffalo pertaining to the war of 1812?? I think i slept through that history lesson
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wizardofza
^ Not very much apparently. In 1812 Buffalo was nothing but a glorified trading post by the lake that had very little to do with the booming city it would become after the Erie Canal got built.
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MikeCloutier
Buffalo would have factored rather large in the War of 1812. The Americans held Fort Erie for quite a while during the period from where they engaged in the later Niagara campaign and would have launched from Buffalo (or more likely Black Rock). It was also their destination when they retired (retreated) from Fort Erie. Very ambitious plans are underway in Niagara to commemorate our successful repulsion of the U.S. invasion, and it would be appropriate for Buffalo to participate in some way. There were close community ties between our "little burgh" and Buffalo that transcended the political machinations of American warhawks.
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brokeleg
While Buffalo was just a little frontiertowne, the point is the Niagara River was THE frontline of the war. And risingdamp, we already did that. The reason Buffalo got burned down was because the mighty mighty U.S. 6th Regiment of Foot burned down Torontotowne, or York as it was then known. We also burned Queenston, NOTL (then Newark, the Capital of Upper Canada) and successfully seiged Fort George and Fort Erie. The bloodiest battle of the war was at Lundy's Lane (sorry New Orleans dont count) and we whooped their ass at Chippewa, both on the West banks of the Niagara. Lundy's Lane is now a cemetery surrounded by cheap motels and cuban cigar shoppes. So yes Buffalo had a minor role but we happen to be the major city on THE frontline of that comical war. For what its worth at least I'm somewhat in touch with the life story of my hoes.
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brokeleg
While Buffalo was just a little frontiertowne, the point is the Niagara River was THE frontline of the war. And risingdamp, we already did that. The reason Buffalo got burned down was because the mighty mighty U.S. 6th Regiment of Foot burned down Torontotowne, or York as it was then known. We also burned Queenston, NOTL (then Newark, the Capital of Upper Canada) and successfully seiged Fort George and Fort Erie. The bloodiest battle of the war was at Lundy's Lane (sorry New Orleans dont count) and we whooped their ass at Chippewa, both on the West banks of the Niagara. Lundy's Lane is now a cemetery surrounded by cheap motels and cuban cigar shoppes. So yes Buffalo had a minor role but we happen to be the major city on THE frontline of that comical war. For what its worth at least I'm somewhat in touch with the life story of my hoes.
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RisingDamp666
Well then, let's do it again. Isn't that in the spirit of these stupid war reenactments that have strangely leisure time surplused Civil War buffs roaming the country, picking their rotting teeth with twigs as they try to shoehorn their 'authentic Civil War outfits' on over their Wal-Mart physiognomies? And shouldn't we burn Toronto down anyway for the simple fact that their theatre district has spawned some pretty terrible Broadway fare of recent? Yes, Canuckians, it has finally come to this. Prepare to meet your fate before the eyes of God....and the CBC.
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MikeCloutier
You're more than welcome to have your way with Toronto. But please avoid the Molson's plant.
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dixiechick
MikeClotier, (an ya'll)
yes it was Black Rock. There was a significant battle here....aptly titled, "the Battle of Black Rock"
From what I understand and have researched about the war of 1812, relating to this area, is that it was a curious time of both transition and identity. The Native American Tribes had some of their last 'homeland' along the Niagara River, and we were united to a point in working together in defending the area. Industry was just beginning to gain a strong foothold here, and the foundation for Commerce and National Identity in this area were being more solidly laid. By 1812, this was more than a glorified trading post. Just depends on one's definition, I guess...
So, stupid war reenactments, pimping history, whatever...still, this is a gpod project to do, in an appropriate way...,...if for no other reason than to have some information and events that show different sides of the story....go deeper that a readers digest view. So many things that could be done. And hey, bring not only some tourists our way, but more importantly, educate our locals about the places in which they are living. Whatever 'take' on the history of that place may be. Kinda a groovy forum for discussion and exploration.
Stir it up! Get something going! What the Hell? Why not?
And, Hospitable, there were a lot of other things, perhaps more subtle than war and razing, that were going on here at that time, and as a direct effect of that conflict....I have to be honest...I'd need to go back through my research to get you the specifics...but will do so soon. Layers of stuff that had both an influence and consequence of the outcome of the war in this area....I'll recheck it....I'm going out to garden now, in my yard, which would have been one of the first areas to be burnt to the ground.....Oh Sunny Day!
Dig it!
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