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Canadian Barry Gough's new work makes an important and long-awaited contribution
to our understanding of the struggle for domination in the Upper Great Lakes and
the American heartland during the War of 1812. A critical time for both the old
northwest and the peoples who lived along the U.S.-Canadian border, it was also
a time when the territories that became Wisconsin and Minnesota were formed, the
fur trade was established, and the Indian nations attempted to preserve both
their homeland and their independence. It is a unique study in that it goes far
beyond the Battle of Lake Erie, where traditional historical accounts end,
adding new chapters to the history of Detroit and Michilimackinac.
This comprehensive, chronological account exposes the reader not only to the
naval and territorial consequences of the era but also to the plight along the
way. It is the story of shipbuilding, of the limits of sea power, and of the men
and women who succeeded in traversing unknown water and land. The author details
such events as Commodore Arthur Sinclair's disastrous U.S. naval expedition to
Lake Huron and Georgian Bay in 1814 and describes how British forces captured
unsuspecting U.S. naval schooners. Supplemented with excellent maps and
illustrations, the text also provides information about hydrographic surveying
and the search for useful naval bases. This book will appeal to everyone
interested in the age of fighting sail, Native American history, and early
American naval pursuits.
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