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| Example of a uniform worn by members of the 1st New Jersey Regiment |
John McLaughlin served in the Continental Army. His service began on May 7, 1782 at Amherst, New Hampshire, and lasted for 3 years in Captain Issac Farwell's Company, 1st New Hampshire Regiment. A reference was found on John in the New Hampshire Revolutionary War Rolls, Volume 3.
In 1784 Tax Listing of Deering, New Hampshire, he shows assets of a house and a cow. On November 06, 1802, John was granted a license to sell "spirituous liqueur" for one (1) year. On March 30, 1810, he was appointed Highway Surveyor.
He enlisted in the US Army 45th Regiment Infantry as a private on April 6th, 1814 at the age of 39 during the War of 1812. He died at Sacketts Harbor, NY on Oct 18th, 1814 as a result of wounds sustained in battle that was likely in Niagra. His four eldest sons also joined the Army. Hezekiah died at Sacketts Harbor as well.
His enlistment certificate stated he was "age 39, 5'8" tall, light eyes, dark hair, light complexion". Born in New Boston, N.H." John McLaughlin's son "John" went for his personal belongings.
Bethia may have moved to Illinois to live with her son David after 1814. She died in Weld, Maine at the age of 49 (Sept 6, 1818).
The following is a brief history of the War of 1812 and Sackets Harbor where John H. McLaughlin and his son, Hezikiah, died:
One of the most profitable industries for Sackets Harbor’s early settlers was the manufacture of pearl ash and potash from felled timber, worth as much as $320 per ton on the Canadian market. But Great Britain's increasing "search and seizure" of American merchant ships ultimately led to the Embargo Act of 1808, outlawing trade with Britain and its possessions. Widespread smuggling ensued. The armed brig Oneida and a company of marines were sent to Sackets Harbor in 1809 to enforce the embargo.
War with Great Britain was officially declared in June, 1812 by the U.S. and Sackets Harbor becomes headquarters for the U.S. Army and Navy on the northern frontier. Sackets Harbor was the United States' most important shipbuilding center during the War of 1812. Headquarters for the U.S. Navy on the Great Lakes, it was home to thousands of shipwrights, carpenters, sailors, and soldiers gathered to construct, sail, and defend the fleet. During the War of 1812, one third of the United States Army, and a quarter of its Navy, were stationed at Sackets Harbor.
The first Battle of Sackets Harbor occurred on July 19, 1812 when five ships of the Canadian Provincial Marine Fleet attacks Sackets Harbor, but is repulsed by the guns of the Oneida and a long 32 pound cannon mounted on shore.
With its strategic position, abundant resources, and superb natural harbor, Sackets Harbor became the center of military and naval operations for the war's northern theater. Following the first battle, the tiny lake port developed into an extensive military complex, ringed by a fortification network manned by thousands of troops. As America's single largest naval port and shipbuilding effort of the time, hundreds of workmen and sailors constructed and manned the largest American fleet of the war.
In May of 1813 British and Canadian forces landed and marched on the village. This Second Battle of Sackets Harbor ended in an American victory when the British and Canadians retreat, but American military and naval stores were destroyed.
The village's Fortifications were strengthened even further as a result of the battle but this delayed American efforts to launch a campaign into Canada. However, several forays into Canada are mounted from Sackets Harbor, including the American attack on York (Toronto) on April 27. This attack culminated in an American victory, at the price of the life of Brigadier General Zebulon M. Pike. On November lithe American forces were defeated in an attack on Canada at Chrysler’s Farm
In 1814, supply boats from New York City, carrying guns, rigging, and supplies for the U.S. frigate the Superior, are halted near Sandy Creek, NY by British forces. But American troops trick the British in an ambush at Sandy Creek and succeed in transporting the supplies overland to Sackets Harbor, allowing the Supenor to be launched.
The U.S. and Great Britain signed a peace treaty in Ghent, Belgium on Christmas Eve, 1814. The terms of the treaty call for peace without territorial concessions from either side, and disposal of most of the armaments and ships amassed during the War of 1812.
The U.S. Congress ratified the peace treaty on February 16, 1815. When word reaches Sackets Harbor, work stops on two unfinished ships under construction, the New Orleans and the Chippewa.
Following the War's negotiated end in 1815, Sackets Harbor for a time was the North Country's most celebrated and prosperous village. The veterans who remained to settle here and the establishment of Madison Barracks in 1815 contributed to a post-War boom that transformed the crude barracks town of tents and log shanties into a village of considerable elegance, with diguified Federal style buildings of wood, brick, and native stone.
Sackets Harbor's strategic role in the War of 1812 as a defender of America's northern frontier surprises many. The "Second War of Independence" with Great Britain is more commonly associated with such famous events in its southern theater as the burning of public buildings in Washington and the bombardment of Fort McHenry. But it was in Sackets Harbor that a great military and naval operation successfully defended the nation's northern border. Were it not for Sackets Harbor, this section of the country might actually be a part of Canada today. Indeed, the entire course of American History may have been decided here.
(Compiled by D. R. Hagberg)
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