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Street photography is not something for every photographer. Getting out there and taking pictures of random strangers in the street. Sure you get some people who turn away, or make a face, or even confront you about it. But for the most part, people are generally unaware. Back in August I went out and wandered up then down Queen Street in Toronto along with some fellow film photographers to capture a little slice of life on a typical Saturday afternoon in the city. Probably one of my favourite combos for shooting in the Street is my Nikon F4 and 105mm f/2 lens sure not aRead More →

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One of the most controversial and convoluted battle in the War of 1812 is that of the Battle of Beaver Dams. It’s also been my most active posts in the project, at least my original posts. I have received more hate mail and rude comments (both of which will never be made public) so rather than let it stand as it is, I did what any good student of history would do, that is research more and learn more. In doing so I came across two books (both of which are cited at the bottom of this post) that have greatly opened my eyes toRead More →

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Moral within the American army was falling fast by the autumn of 1813. While Detroit had one, and at the Battle of the Thames William Henry Harrison had secured the western parts of Upper Canada, a majority of the colony remained in the hands of the British, and the only American army that could strike remained pinned at Fort George. The other two armies languished at Sacket’s Harbor and Burlington Vermont on Lake Champlain. The secretary of war, John Armstrong was at odds with his new Commander-In-Chief, General James Wilkinson where to strike next. Wilkinson believed that the best place to strike against the BritishRead More →

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When it came to naval warfare in the 19th century the undisputed masters of the sea was the Royal Navy. The rivers and lakes of Upper and Lower Canada were the highways of the day, these were the main trade routes not only for economic purposes but military as well. Any nation that controlled the waterways, could control the course of the war. With the United States not having a squadron of note on the Great Lakes at the start of the war the British were quick to seize control of both Lake Ontario and Lake Erie. With Brock’s capture of Detroit in August ofRead More →

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The final engagement in the Northern Theatre of the War of 1812 was two different naval actions, but as the two are intimately connected, I have combined them into one entry and titled it after the second engagement, the Battle of Lake Huron. The results of this battle gave the undisputed British control over the North by the end of the war, and sole control of Lake Huron. Following Croghan’s failure to take back Mackinac Island in his frontal assault in August of 1814, Sinclair opted to blockade the small island fort and cut off the supply line which meant locating H.M. Schooner Nancy. Eventually,Read More →

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When Oliver Hazard Perry defeated the British Squadron in September of 1813 it not only cut the British off from additional troops and supplies coming from the eastern parts of Upper Canada, but it also removed the key supply route up the Detroit River to the distant outpost at Fort Mackinac. By 1813 the British had moved all their northern operations to Fort Mackinac, leaving the old Fort St. Joseph in the hands of the Northwest Company, protected by the local militia. However when William Henry Harrison liberated Detroit, occupied Amherstburg and defeated Procter and Tecumseh at the Battle of the Thames, his eye turnedRead More →

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The history of Mackinac Island and the War of 1812 in the Northern part of what is now Michigan and Ontario is actually a trilogy of events that lead to the eventual British Victory in the North. In the 19th Century communication was a slow and dangerous journey for the couriers that carried messages from the larger posts in the south. This was both a help and a hindrance to the theatre in the north. Fort Mackinac was built by the British 1780 near the end of the American Revolution as the island fort better defended than the old French fort, Fort Michilimackinac, on theRead More →

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I never realized exactly how isolated Fort St. Joseph is, even from the main highway you’re still looking at around 30-45 minutes drive down to the south western corner of St. Joseph Island. And to make things all the better it was pouring rain the day I visited these distant ruins, at least the wonderful staff at the site were welcoming and very friendly, and probably happy that they even saw one other person. It’s no wonder that the 10th Royal Vets that were stationed here in the early 19th century turned to drink. The path from the visitors centre to the ruins of theRead More →

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Hull was worried, he had received word that Fort Mackinac had been taken by the British and that General Brock was heading west with reinforcements from York, but he continued to occupy Sandwich, despite the arrival of Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Procter, commander of the 1st battalion 41st of Fort at Fort Amherstburg on the 26th of July ahead of General Brock. Procter had orders to disrupt the American supply lines to the south and isolate Hull and Fort Detroit. On the 4th of August, Hull received a message from Captain Brush in command of one such supply columns that had stopped at the settlement of FrenchtownRead More →

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I sadly was unable to participate in the week long celebration of Instant Photography last year because I was in the Chicagoland region, but this year I went full force and worked on reducing my stock of expired Polaroid and Impossible material! I got the shooting started early over the weekend before ‘roid week so I’d have two days worth of material already stocked up. Day One – Jaite Depot Anniversary Speed Graphic – Fuji Fujinon-W 1:56/125 – Polaroid Type 79 Located in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park in Ohio, the Jaite train depot one served the company town, the town’s surviving building now serveRead More →