Commemorating the War of 1812 on the Niagara Frontier

September 18, 2012 at 9:51 AM

Perhaps no other part of the United States saw more battles during the War of 1812 than the Niagara Frontier in Western New York State. Tourists now travel to Niagara Falls and visit places like Old Fort Niagara to be reminded of the history.

As one visitor wrote during an 1821 trip to Niagara, "This beautiful country stimulates my patriotism." Battlefields and monuments on both sides of the U.S.-Canada border became sites where Americans, and especially New Yorkers, came to understand why the War of 1812 mattered, and how they could remember its fallen heroes. Their emotional responses to place and history at Niagara's battlefields both honored veterans and neglected the war's causes. Memories of 1812 envisioned a peaceful border between two nations that had once shed each other's blood.

The Niagara County History Center is pleased to announce a program sponsored by New York State Speakers in the Humanities Program entitled, “American Antiquities are So Rare: Commemorating the War of 1812 on the Niagara Frontier,"  to commemorate the War of 1812 Bicentennial. This FREE public program will be presented by area scholar, Thomas Chambers at 7pm Thursday, Sept. 27, at the History Center, 215 Niagara Street, Lockport, NY 14094.

Thomas A. Chambers is Associate Professor of History and Department Chair at Niagara University in western New York. He took his Ph.D. and M.A. at the College of William and Mary, and earned his B.A. at Middlebury College. He currently serves as Chairman of the Niagara Falls National Heritage Area Commission, and has been active in the 1812 Legacy Council. His book on battlefield commemoration is forthcoming from Cornell University Press.

For more information contact the History Center at 716-434-7433.

Michelle Blackley

Michelle Blackley is the Communications Manager at Niagara Tourism & Convention Corporation (NTCC). Besides having the pleasure of calling Western New York home, Michelle has lived throughout New York State, including New York City, and abroad in Dublin, Ireland. A Niagara County native, she is a globetrotter at heart. With a background in journalism, book publishing and publicity, she explores Niagara County to report its happenings on the Niagara USA blog. Please contact Michelle at michelle@niagara-usa.com or follow her @shellblackley.