Don't Give up the Ship Story!

Recently the Associated Press reported that a team of divers, Charles Buffum, Craig Harger and Michael Fournier, believe they have discovered the wreck of the USS Revenge off the coast of Rhode Island.

The divers say they have viewed four canons, an anchor, and some other metal objects. Nothing made of wood has survived and they have not yet found a ship's bell or anything else that has a name on it that might identify the wreck, but the objects seem to be from the right time period and no other military ships were reported to have disappeared in that area.

The Revenge sunk while under the command of Oliver Hazard Perry when it hit a reef during a storm in 1811, 200 years ago this week. Perry supposedly was demoted following the event and was sent to sail on Lake Erie, a much smaller sea.

Perry became known as the "Hero of Lake Erie" during the War of 1812 when he became the first US commander to defeat a British squadron. He is also credited with the saying "I have met the enemy and they are ours" and his battle flag's motto "Don't give up the ship" is still symbolic to our Navy.

Once can visit Perry's Victory and Peace Memorial at Put-in-Bay in Ohio and a painting, "Perry's Victory on Lake Erie hangs," hangs in the rotunda at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus.

The local interest in this story is about a legend that ties Joseph Naper's brother to the Battle of Lake Erie. A book published in 1907 called Concerning the Van Bunschoten or Van Benschoten family in America indicates that Joseph's brother Benjamin Naper served under Perry and is in fact depicted as one of the oarsmen in the painting. An art historian, however, says that the artist, William Henry Powell, used seamen from Brooklyn as his models. Still, the gentleman with the white sidewhiskers sure looks like the only photo surviving of Joseph Naper!

Strolling the Streets of Yesteryear

Today one can "walk" down the street of a town half a world away thanks to Google Maps. While the results are not quite as sophisticated, one can also "walk" many towns from the past thanks to Sanborn Maps.

The Sanborn Maps were drawn starting in 1867 for assessing fire insurance liability in urban areas. Farms and very small towns are not represented, but many, many other areas are. In Illinois, nearly 500 communities are recorded, from Abingdon to Zion City.

Each map shows the streets and the blocks in between, as well as water sources like wells, springs, etc. Buildings are drawn indicating additions and sheds and are labeled as well: Harness Shop, Blacksmith, Candy Shop, Dry Goods.

While it's certainly interesting to see how a familiar street was laid out one hundred years ago, it's also fascinating to learn what sort of businesses thrived then. Drugstores were on every corner - much like they are today!

While the first Sanborn Maps were created in 1867 and the last ones in 1970, they weren't drawn every year and not every town had them. To see what's available, check with your library. You may even be able to access them from your home computer and stroll the streets of yesteryear to your heart's content.

A Reception with Elizabeth Wright at Chicago History Museum
Saturday, January 22
12:30 pm
Join Elizabeth Wright, granddaughter of Frank Lloyd Wright for an exclusive look at her newest book, Dear Bob, Dear Betty: Love and Marriage During the Great Depression. The book examines the witty, sassy, and poignant correspondence between the youngest son of Frank Lloyd Wright and his future wife during their courtship. Mingle with Ms. Wright before the program at the pre-lecture reception for members only. Both events are FREE for members.


Charles Darwin and the Voyage of the Beagle
Sunday, January 23
4:00- 5:00 pm
Imagine an evening at London's Royal Geological Society with the affable, young Charles Darwin among friends, telling the stories of his amazing adventure sailing around the world on the HMS Beagle. Storyteller and science teacher Brian "Fox" Ellis steps into Darwin's shoes to model the scientific process and engage listeners in a discussion of the facts so they can draw their own conclusions. Registration Recommended.
Advance: $5/Naperville Heritage Society Sustaining Members and students, $6/non-member
At the Door: $7/adults, $6/youth or student

Civil War Symposium
Saturday
10:00 am - 3:00 pm
Explore a variety of topics with local historians during the 150th anniversary of the start of America's Civil War. This year's program will feature:
Reflections on Abraham Lincoln, The Wisconsin Grays Go to War,
Civil War Era Music and
Frederick Douglass: Mission of the War...Abolition!
The 2011 Midway Village Museum Civil War Symposium includes all speakers and a box lunch.
The cost is $28 for Adults and $18 for students (3-17)
Advance registration is required by Wednesday, January 19. Call the museum at 815 397-9112 to register.

Happy Nouvelle Annee from Old Fort Wayne

Fort Wayne, Indiana carries that name because it was the site of several forts in early American history. The original structure was Fort Miamis built in 1697 by French settlers as one of a string of forts between Quebec and St. Louis. It was named for the Miami Indians who lived in the area.

By 1721, the fort had been rebuilt and renamed Fort St. Philippe des Miamis and continued to serve as a French trading post until 1747 when Huron Indians who were allied with the British burned it to the ground. Once again, the French rebuilt the fort and used it during the French and Indian War from 1754 to 1763.

Old Fort Wayne is now a living history museum that welcomes visitors. Next month, you can celebrate Nouvelle Annee at Old Fort Wayne and be transported back 260 years to the winter of 1751. At that time, the fort sheltered French soldiers and settlers as well as native people. The war was still a few years off, but Great Britain was already sowing the seeds of unrest by wooing the native tribes with better trade prices and other bribes.

The replica fort is of particular interest to Chicagoans because it was built by John Whistler, an Irishman who served with the British army during the Revolutionary War. Later, he immigrated to the United States and entered the U.S. army. Whistler helped build forts at Fort Wayne in 1798 and again in 1816. The last fort greatly resembles a fort he built in 1803 on Lake Michigan's shoreline - Fort Dearborn. Visiting the replica at Fort Wayne gives Chicagoans a new understanding of Fort Dearborn.

If the name Whistler seems familiar, that's because of an interesting side note. John Whistler had fifteen children with his wife Anna. One son, James McNeill Whistler, became a artist, famous for his painting of Anna, his mother.

The Incident at Fort Dearborn

William Wells

During the War of 1812, Great Britain was successfully capturing U.S. forts. When Fort Michilimackinac fell to the enemy army, U.S. Captain Nathan Heald was ordered to abandon Fort Dearborn, give away the fort's supplies to the Potawatomi Indians and withdraw to Fort Wayne. There were 93 people living in the fort, including women and children who were the families of some soldiers.

Captain Heald destroyed the liquor and weapons in storage rather than turn them over to the Potawatomi, which angered the younger braves. William Wells, a legendary frontiersman, was the uncle of Rebekah Wells, Captain Heald's wife. Wells rode like the devil to Fort Dearborn to try averting a confrontation between the soldiers and the Potawatomi, but by the time he arrived, the distribution of stores was completed. The army no longer had enough provisions to stay holed up in the fort and the Potawatomi were already incensed by the destruction of the weapons and liquor.

Wells, who lived with the Miami tribe as a boy and was married twice to native women, painted his face with war paint and prepared for the worst. The worst came soon enough.

The convoy was hopelessly outnumbered by the Potawatomi and many were killed, including Wells and 12 of the 18 children in the group. The rest were taken prisoner and on the following day, the fort was burned to the ground.

Traditionally known as the Fort Dearborn Massacre, some are now referring to it as the Battle of Fort Dearborn.