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In telling the story of the Brig Niagara I am going to work my way back -- back to the past where, the words of Captain James Lawrence, emblazoned on the battle flag of Commodore Perry’s Flagship Lawrence - “Don’t Give Up The Ship” -- had to be disregarded, the flag lowered, as Commodore Olive Hazard Perry survived the sinking of the Lawrence and continured the battle from the decks of the now famous, U.S. Brig Niagara.
Today, Erie, Pennsylvania takes great pride in the U.S. Brig Niagara. Reconstruction of the flagship was completed in the summer of 1990 and today the Niagara set sail visiting numerous Great Lakes and Atlantic Seaboard posts -- offering lessons for sailors, historians, and visitors, young and old. On board the Niagara, traveling as crew mates, are people that can remember as little children back in 1913, watching from Misery Bay as the Brig was pulled from the mire of Lake Erie - a pile of soggy junk. Today the ship is a “living museum” of 19th century on the lake.
Since the birth of the Brig Niagara it has gone through several incarnations. The first is the original Niagara - a “square-rigged, two-masted warship originally armed with eighteen carronades and two long guns. On the berthing deck were sleeping quarters for the officers and crew, storerooms, sail bin, and a wood stove. Magazines for shot and gunpowder were stored in the hold below deck.”¹ It was part of a fleet of six vessels that the U.S. Navy built. “Six vessels in Perry's Fleet, including Niagara were constructed in Erie. Building of the American squadron was a remarkable feat, given Erie's mere five hundred inhabitants and remote location. Shipwrights, blockmakers, blacksmiths, caulkers, boat builders, and laborers were recruited from Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and elsewhere. Materials to construct the vessels were imported from other regions of Pennsylvania including iron from Meadville and Pittsburgh; canvas for sails from Philadelphia; rigging, cannon shot and anchors crafted in Pittsburgh. The cannon were brought from Washington, D.C. and Sacketts Harbor N.Y. Because there were no sawmills, the lumber had to be cut, hewed, and squared by hand.”² In 1813 Commodore Perry engaged British ships in the Battle of Lake Erie near Put-In-Bay, Ohio. After the dramatic disabling of the Flagship Lawrence, Perry transferred to the Niagara to continue the fight. Perry and his 13-year-old brother James Alexander, were the only surviving officers of the Brig Lawrence. The Battle of Lake Erie was won within 15 minutes of Perry’s transfer to the Niagara due to Perry’s determined fight! He forced the British to surrender and reported to his superiors from the Niagara, “We have met the enemy -- and they are ours.” And they were indeed. This event of the War of 1812 saw the securing of the Northwest Territory; opening supply lines and lifting the country’s moral.
In 1820 the U.S. Navy sank the mighty warship. A century later it was pulled from its lake home to be resurrected for the 1913 anniversary of the Battle of 1812. In 1931 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began a major restoration, only to leave the Niagara again to deteriorate until the 1980s. Using some of the original timbers from the 1813
Brig, the restorers went at her again! This final incarnation, built by Melbourne Smith, began in 1988 and today the ship is a beautiful, stirring recreation.
Today the Niagara is a stunning attraction to the bayfront of Lake Erie in Erie Pennsylvania. The Niagara is the official ship of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and as a historical museum is invaluable.
As of August 26th 2000, Niagara will be open for public visitation at Erie Maritime Museum. Please note that Niagara has scheduled crew training sails throughout the month of September, 2000. Please call the museum at 452-2744 to see if the ship is in port the day of your visit.
1. “Specifications-U.S. Brig Niagara” The Flagship Niagara League, September 2000.
2. "The Battle of Lake Erie" The Flagship Niagara League, September 2000.
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