HISTORY

Brigadier General William Wadsworth

William Wadsworth was a proud, but woefully inexperienced member of the Upper New York State Militia in command of the 7th Brigade. On June 25, 1812 NY Governor Tompkins ordered Wadsworth to move to the Niagara Frontier and reinforce the 400 regular army at Black Rock. He freely admitted to Tompkins that he was, "ignorant of even the minor duties of the duty to which you have assigned me." The Governor then assigned the more experienced Major General Amos Hall to overall command of the Niagara Frontier militia on July 28, until Stephen van Rensselaer assumed the command on August 11.

Wadsworth left Canandaigua with about 900 men reaching Batavia on July 1, picking up U.S. regular troops along the way. These consisted of the 13th U.S. Infantry Regiment under Lieutenant Colonel John Chrystie and Major James Mullany; the 23rd U.S. Infantry Regiment under Lieutenant William Clarke; and the 3rd U.S. Artillery Regiment under Captain James McKeon. Wadsworth reached Black Rock on July 3 with a combined force of 1600 men.

Appraising the defenses between Buffalo and Fort Niagara, Wadsworth reported that Fort Niagara "is very much decayed" and under gunned. He requested additional troops and artillery. He set his troops to work building entrenchments, but this was nearly futile "without axes, hoes, shovels or anything of this kind."

Per Wadsworth's request, Governor Tompkins sent an engineer, Nicholas Gray, to assist Wadsworth. Upon his arrival on July 18, Gray reported to Tompkins that the "camps were in good health and orderly" and that Wadsworth "had ordered a military school, both for officers and soldiers... and pays unwearied attention to the troops, and is forming a system which has as its objective the organization of the staff and camp duties."

In October of 1812, during the Battle of Queenston, he turned over his right to command over to Lt. Col. Winfield Scott. After the initial crossing, Wadsworth led a detachment of militia volunteers and Winfield Scott's regulars across the river to reinforce Captain Wool's position. Only 250 Militia had agreed to cross with Wadsworth.

Van Rensselaer dispatched a note to Scott and Wadsworth giving them permission "to withdraw if the situation warranted."

Wadsworth's men did retreat. During their retreat Wadsworth was wounded in the right arm. His line collapsing, Wadsworth's men soon ran out of ammunition and were forced back to the edge of the heights. He made a direct effort to remain facing the enemy at all times so that he would not be shot in the back and thus appear to be cowardly. Waving his sword and swearing at the troops hoping to instill them with a fighting spirit, Wadsworth made a genuine, but vain, attempt to get the militia to cross the Niagara to meet the British. One witness, after seeing this display, later described Wadsworth as "the most eloquently profane officer in the [US] army."

In the end, he was captured with the rest of the surviving American troops.

Shortly after his parole General Wadsworth returned to his home on the Genesee Valley to recuperate.