...200 year ago from tomorrow June 18 when the US Congress declared a war on Britain that would bring death and disaster to Detroit. Canadians and Americans would soon after exchange artillery fire across the Straits of Detroit. An increasingly savage war would rage along the shores of Lake Erie and the corridor between Detroit and Niagara.

American forces would soon begin an ill-fated invasion of Essex County that would end in ignominious defeat, the surrender of Detroit, and a year-long occupation of Detroit. A relief column from Kentucky would be massacred near Monroe and hundreds would die from cholera after Detroit was regained following the Battle of Lake Erie.

When we fixate on our present ills perhaps some historic perspective might make our current challenges shrivel in comparison to those faced by 1812-1815 Detroit and Windsor.

War of 1812 Thread