Soldier Illness and Environment in the War of 1812

The University of Maine DigitalCommons@UMaine Electronic Theses and Dissertations Fogler Library Spring 5-8-2020 "The Men Were Sick of the Place" : Soldier Illness and Environment in the War of 1812 Joseph R. Miller University of Maine, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd Part of the Canadian History Commons, Military History Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Miller, Joseph R., ""The Men Were Sick of the Place" : Soldier Illness and Environment in the War of 1812" (2020). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3208. https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/etd/3208 This Open-Access Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UMaine. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UMaine. For more information, please contact [email protected]. “THE MEN WERE SICK OF THE PLACE”: SOLDIER ILLNESS AND ENVIRONMENT IN THE WAR OF 1812 By Joseph R. Miller B.A. North Georgia University, 2003 M.A. University of Maine, 2012 A DISSERTATION Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (in History) The Graduate School The University of Maine May 2020 Advisory Committee: Scott W. See, Professor Emeritus of History, Co-advisor Jacques Ferland, Associate Professor of History, Co-advisor Liam Riordan, Professor of History Kathryn Shively, Associate Professor of History, Virginia Commonwealth University James Campbell, Professor of Joint, Air War College, Brigadier General (ret) Michael Robbins, Associate Research Professor of Psychology Copyright 2020 Joseph R. Miller All Rights Reserved ii “THE MEN WERE SICK OF THE PLACE”: SOLDIER ILLNESS AND ENVIRONMENT IN THE WAR OF 1812 By Joseph R. Miller Dissertation Advisors: Dr. Scott W. See and Dr. Jacques Ferland An Abstract of the Dissertation Presented In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy (in History) May 2020 War of 1812 scholarship has focused primarily on classic military studies of decisive battles. Likewise, scholarship on the experience of war essentially concentrates on how killing and combat effected the human psyche. This dissertation pursues a broader perspective. It examines the impact of the environment on the health of soldiers and emphasizes everyday conditions and environmental suffering. Veterans’ accounts typically elevate suffering in camp over combat. A substantive study of soldiers’ responses to daily environmental conditions demonstrates the importance of health management to the outcome of the War of 1812. Through case studies of health measures related to frontier conditions, the use of alcohol to manage morale, the role of rations and food insecurity on the 1814 campaign, and close attention to two military units on either side of the conflict – the British 104th Regiment of Foot and the U.S. 21st Infantry Regiment – this dissertation argues that daily environmental management was far more important than victories in battle. The environment may have been the most significant factor in the War of 1812, but that did not reduce the importance of human agency. An exploration of illness demonstrates that the best commanders took proactive steps to protect the health of their soldiers. The British Army used veteran units in intensive combat areas and placed unfit and inexperienced soldiers in less threatened locations, such as the Maritime provinces of British North America; moreover, it reduced the size of its forces when the environment could not sustain large armies. The Americans, on the other hand, promoted officers with the most experience in frontier warfare and allowed leaders to move freely between militia and regular units to gain experience. For both sides the management of provisions was central to troop morale, patriotism, and health. This included generous alcohol rations to mediate harsh climatic conditions and the horrors of combat. The 1814 campaign in Niagara demonstrates that success on the battlefield was secondary to and dependent upon an effective logistical system that provided enough calories for each soldier. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Dissertations stretch the limits of comprehension. I have written one; I produced it, but it is still hard to imagine. Every footnote, every great idea you must write down or it is lost. The day to day grind is important to remember. It is the same with you, Rachel. From “I want to drink a martini everyday” to “let’s try a dropper with the fortified milk,” it is unconceivable how much you mean to me. That is what you are, billions of moments that are impossible to possess, remember, or quantify. But fortunately, they are mine. I have been aided by faculty, military officers, and friends from Maine that are too numerous to list and thank. Special praise needs to go to Liam Riordan, LTC Michael Davis, and Tony Llerena because they have always been encouraging. To Ryan Stovall and Bob Whelan: I cannot imagine finishing this project without sharing drinks with surly veteran writers. We are a special kind of crazy and it was nice to feel normal once and while. I want to thank Richard Clark and the Joint History Office at the National Guard for giving me a job before I completed this dissertation. I love my job, and all my colleagues make it a great place to work. To Brigadier General James Campbell, thank you for all your feedback and constant advocacy. To Katy Shively, your addition to my committee and your suggestions have been invaluable. To Nory Jones, you are like a mother to me. You are a professional who inspires me, and I will always strive to emulate your compassion. Finally, to Scott See, I know that not everyone would have taken me on as a student. You accepted and encouraged me before I understood how to stop being a soldier in combat. Now I am a federal historian, making choices about what projects to pursue. It is an amazing privilege to be where I am because when I started graduate iii training, I was too concussed to read for extended periods of time. I am indebted to everyone who brought me to this place. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS …………………………………………………………… iii LIST OF MAPS …………………………………………………………………........ vi INTRODUCTION …………………………………………………………………....... 1 CHAPTER 1: MANAGING THE SICK LIST ………………………………………. 45 Conclusion: A Problematic Revolutionary Heritage ………………………….. 82 CHAPTER 2: THE WAR FOR CALORIES ……………………………………….... 88 The Battle of Lundy’s Lane ………………………………………………........ 95 Fort Erie ……………………………………………………………………… 102 CHAPTER 3: LIQUOR AND SOLDIER MOTIVATION …………………...…….. 119 CHAPTER 4: WARFARE AT THE COMPANY LEVEL: JOSEPH TREAT AND HIS UNIT’S WAR AGAINST NATURE …..………….. 149 New Englanders Suffering in Republican Conflict …………………….…….. 157 An Exceptional Document …………………………………………….……... 164 Defense of Honor and Denied Glory …………………………………………. 168 Conclusion ……………………………………………………………………. 177 CHAPTER 5: WASTED OPPORTUNITIES AND THE 104TH REGIMENT OF FOOT …………………………...…………...……………. 181 CHAPTER 6: SICKNESS AND OPERATIONAL MILITARY HISTORY: A HUMAN-CENTRIC CONCLUSION ………….…………………..…..….……. 209 BIBLIOGRAPHY ………………………………………………..…….………….….. 220 BIOGRAPHY OF THE AUTHOR …………………………………….….……..…… 235 v LIST OF MAPS Niagara River and Vicinity, 1814 ……………………………………………………. 89 Chippewa and Vicinity, 1814: The Battle of Lundy’s Lane …………………………. 97 vi INTRODUCTION Lying in bed alone, a young captain was too ill to troop the line. He was destined to lead armies in Mexico and Florida and become the President of the United States. However, as the commander of the small Fort Harrison on the Ohio frontier, Captain Zachary Taylor was outnumbered, most of his soldiers were ill, and he was completely cut off from reinforcements. To make matters worse, Taylor’s strongest soldiers remained well despite the fever raging in his company, but they had abandoned their post to seek survival on their own. The situation was hopeless; however, Taylor continued to lead.1 He encouraged his soldiers to fight, and he managed to hold Fort Harrison. His letter recounting the episode shifted from the first-person to the third-person narrative, and Taylor was surprised by his performance in a terrible situation.2 The military and political leader of the Shawnee Confederacy, Tecumseh, commanded the force opposing Taylor. Tecumseh surrounded Fort Harrison, and because of William Hull’s pledge of extermination it was likely that all the American soldiers would be killed if Fort Harrison capitulated.3 The hopelessness of brutal frontier warfare situations and a trend towards massacres between Americans and Native Americans pushed Captain Taylor to defend his fort with soldiers completely unfit for regular duty.4 Yet the Americans answered the call, overcame their ailments and injuries, and held off a much larger force. Fighting 1 Zachary Taylor to William Harrison from Fort Harrison 16 September 1812, in John Brannan (Ed.). Official Letters of the Military and Naval Officers of the United States, During the War with Great Britain in the Years 1812, 13, 14, & 15 : With Some Additional Letters and Documents Elucidating the History of That Period (Washington City: Printed by Way & Gideon, for the editor, 1823), 62. Short citation will be, Brannan (Ed.), Official Letters. 2 Ibid. 3 The Proclamation of William Hull to the Inhabitants of Canada from Sandwich, Upper Canada 12 July 1812 in Brannan (Ed.) Official Letters, 31. 4 Taylor to Harrison, in

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