Fort Stephenson / Fort Stephenson

Side A: War of 1812. Victoriously defended by Major George Croghan. Battle of Fort Stephenson. August 2, 1813. Built on this spot 1812-1813 and named for Col. Mills Stephenson, one of its builders. Side B: Major George Croghan, age 21, took command in July 1813. He was surrounded Aug. 1 by 2,000 Indians, under Tecumseh, bombarded from the river by British ships. He had but 160 men and 1 cannon, Old Betsy. The British under Gen. Henry Proctor with 400 men attacked Aug. 2, were repulsed with heavy losses and retreated to Canada. This ended the war on U.S. soil in the west. Perry’s victory on Lake Erie came Sept. 10. Our invasion of Canada followed. Proctor was defeated and Tecumseh killed Oct. 5 in the Battle of the Thames, southern Ontario.