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Lieutenant Colonel Joseph Wanton Morrison By the time of the Battle of Chrysler's Farm, Joseph Wanton Morrison was already fifty years old. He had spent most of his life in the British Army where he gained the reputation of a reliable and obedient officer. Like his regiment, the 89th, he was new to North America. It would be the first time he had complete command in a battle. In the days leading up to the Battle of Chrysler's Farm, Morrison had been on board Captain Mulcaster's gunboats chasing General Wilkinson's army. They would land whenever an opportunity presented itself to harass the Americans, and re embark quickly only to give chase again soon after. On November 11, 1813, Wilkinson finally put his army ashore just beyond the Chrysler farm. Here was the perfect opportunity to entice the Americans into a European-style battle. This was the only sort of contest his overwhelmingly outnumbered troops had any chance of winning, Morrison reasoned. During the ensuing battle, the Americans under Brigadier General John Parker Boyd charged three times, relying each time on their superior numbers. But whatever direction they charged from, the well-trained British performed a textbook parade ground maneuver under Morrison's guidance, designed specifically to put them in the perfect position to push back the Americans with concentrated musket volleys. In little more than an hour, the Americans were pushed back to the river where they promptly re-embarked and fled to the safety of the American side. The following day, an American council of war voted to give up the attack on Montreal. Morrison later commanded the 89th Regiment at the Battle of Lundy's Lane. He suffered a severe wound that prevented him from further participation in the War of 1812.
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