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Greece Historical Society and Museum

"Discover Greece, New York's Past, Preserve its Future."

Bicentennial Snapshot # 07: Town of Greece War of 1812 Part 3

May 3, 2022January 27, 2025 by Pat Worboys and Maureen Whalen


This week we conclude our three-part presentation on the attacks along the Greece shores of Lake Ontario during the War of 1812. Today we look at the battle fought on May 15, 1814. What occurred then never made it into any national history books, but is legendary in local history. Initially, 33 men from the volunteer militia responded to the sighting of the British fleet at the mouth of the Genesee River and fooled Commodore Sir James Yeo into thinking that they were “a substantial force” until more regiments could join them to turn away the enemy.

The Valiant 33

We know 17 these names of and members of the Valiant 33:

Isaac Stone, Francis Brown, Elisha Ely, Abelard Reynolds, Hamlet Scranton, Jehiel Barnard, Hervey Ely, Jesse Hawley, Silas O. Smith, Oliver Colby, Sam Latta‡§, George Latta*§  Thomas King†, Bradford King†, Zaccheus Colby‡, Eastman Colby, Frederick Rowe

Note the symbols next to some of the names

  • *- Greece Town Supervisor
  • † – They are the Sons of Giddon King more on King’s Landing is in King’s Landing
  • ‡ – They are Town of Northhampton Supervisors, not Gates or Greece – The town of Gates was formed in 1813 when the town changed its name to Gates, and for more information on the forming of the town of Greece check out the first snapshot of How Greece was formed
  • §- The Latta Family, Sam and George are brothers, born in Walkill, Ulster co., New York. More on the Latta Family in Snapshot #10 and in the publications Eight Miles Along the Shore and the latest book Pioneer Families of Greece Volume 1.
Samuel Latta's War of 1812 Card
Samuel Latta’s War of 1812 Card
Sketch of what appears to be the Frederick Bushnell and James K. Guernsey mercantile business at the mouth of the Genesee River or the

One of the Wearhouse that was hit was near Frederick Bushnell’s and James K. Guernsey’s mercantile business located in the Port.

The war of 1812 did last till February 18th, 1815 but there were so many small battles and wars in this battle, was the British attempting to retake the colony back and make America regret its choice to become its own country on July 4th, 1776.

General Peter Porter arrived that afternoon in time to receive a second flag. The British demanded that they surrender the provisions or they would land an army and 400 Indians. There were now 600 to 800 men on the east and west sides of the river ready to fight. Not knowing how many men were defending Charlotte, Yeo sailed away from the mouth of the Genesee on the morning of May 16, 1814.

General Peter Porter sent a message back to the Governor of New York that day stating:

“We saved the town and our credit by fairly outbullying John Bull.”

General Peter Porter
General Peter Porter
General Peter Porter
Years of service 1812–1815
Rank: Major General
Sir Commodore James Lucas Yeo

“At the Genesee, the enemy had a substantial force.”

Sir James Yeo wrote in his report to his superior officers:
Eight Miles Along the Shore
Eight Miles Along the Shore By Virginia Tomkiewicz and Shirley Cox Husted
Pioneer Families of the Town of Greece - Vol. 1
Pioneer Families of the Town of Greece – Vol. 1

More on the war of 1812 is in the book we published Eight Miles Along the Shore.

Learn more about the Latta Families Samuel Latta and George Latta in Pioneer Families of the Town of Greece Volume 1

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Pat Worboys
Technology Coordinator/ Chief Technology Officer |  + posts Bio

Pat Worboys is one of the two Co-Director of the Greece Historical Society's Information Technology Committee. Pat is the Producer of the Bicentennial Snapshots series. Pat holds two degrees one in Information Technology (A.A.S) and the second one is in Interactive Media Design (Web Design) (A.A.S.).

  • Pat Worboys
    January Programs & Winter Museum Closure
  • Pat Worboys
    Evolving Our Gift Shop: A Step into the Future of Museum Retail
  • Pat Worboys
    Craft Show Saturday
  • Pat Worboys
    How to Watch the Sunday Bridge Talk On YouTube
  • Pat Worboys
    Annual Membership Meeting for the 2025 Operating Year
  • Pat Worboys
    A Brief History of Wegmans by Gary Harris
  • Pat Worboys
    Roc The DAY! 2024 With Greece Historical Society
  • Pat Worboys
    Unleash Your Potential: Shape the Future of the Greece Historical Society!
  • Pat Worboys
    2024 “Sweet Sensations” Strawberry & Dessert Tasting Fundraiser
  • Pat Worboys
    The Kannewischer Family Live Stream
  • Pat Worboys
    The 2024 Strawberry Fest is Coming!!
  • Pat Worboys
    Join Us for M & M Sunday! April 21, 2024
  • Pat Worboys
    Play Ball Exhibit
  • Pat Worboys
    Celebrating 50 years of WDKX (103.9)
  • Pat Worboys
    The first Warren C. Crandell Memorial Scholarship entry period is now open!
  • Pat Worboys
    BICENTENNIAL SNAPSHOT COLLECTION ON DVD
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot Series Completed
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 54: Gone, but Not Forgotten
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 53: Buckman’s Dairy
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 52 – Greece Performing Arts Society
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 51: Some Notable Women of Greece
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 50: Barnard and Lakeshore Fire Districts
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 49: Dewey-Stone / Barnard
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 48: Gordon A. Howe
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 47: Childhood diseases
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 46: Epidemics and Pandemics
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 45: Speakeasies
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 44: Rumrunners and Bootleggers
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 43: Rediscovering Greece’s Historic Schoolhouses of 1872 Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 42: Rediscovering Greece’s Historic Schoolhouses of 1872 Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 41: Northgate Plaza
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 40 – Growing up on Paddy Hill Farm
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 39 – Paddy Hill, Read’s Corners, Latta at Mount Read
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No 38: Our Town in World War II
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 37: Unsolved Arson Case – The Holiday Inn Fire of 1978
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No.36: Centennial Celebration of North Greece and Ridge Road Fire District
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 35: “Lafayette, We Are Here!”
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 34: Extreme Weather Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 33: Extreme Weather Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 32 – Ghost Legends Of Greece NY
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 31 – Notable homes in Greece, NY
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 30: Cobblestone houses, Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 29 – Cobblestone Houses Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 28 – Jerome Combs, The Cobblestone Baseball Catcher
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 27: “The Cooper” Tom Toal
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 26 – Doctor Abdiel Bliss Carpenter
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 25 Hotel De May
  • Pat Worboys
    Our Annual Pasta Dinner
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 24 The Hotel of Many Names
  • Pat Worboys
    “Set in Stone”: The History of Cobblestone Masonry
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 23 – The Larkin Hotel
  • Pat Worboys
    A Farewell to Frear’s Garden Center
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 22 – North Greece / Jenkin’s Corners
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 21 – Doctor Samuel Beach Bradley
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 20 – “Hoosick” / West Greece
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 19- Henpeck, Hoosick, and Hojack, What’s in a Name? Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 18 Henpeck, Hoosick, Hojack, What’s in a Name? Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 17 – Henpeck / South Greece Hamlet
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 16 – ‘ADA’ Ridge Hamlet
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 15 – Erie Canal
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 14 – General Stores
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 13: Asa Rowe, James Vick and the Beginning of the Nursery Industry
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 12 – The Ridge Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 11 – The Ridge Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 10 – Samuel and Lydia and George and Frances Latta
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 09 – Giles H Holden
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 08 – Charlotte – Genesee Lighthouse
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 06: War of 1812 Part 2
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 05: War of 1812 Part 1
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 04: King’s Landing
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 03: The Hinchers
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 02: The Onödowá’ga (Oh-n’own-dough-wahgah) (Seneca is the English name)
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 01: The Founding of The Town of Greece
  • Pat Worboys
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 0: The Trailer
Maureen Whalen
+ posts Bio

Researcher, writer, narrator, and a retired librarian and local historian who worked at the Charlotte Branch Library, Author of A History of the Seneca Park Zoo, and Co-Author of the following books Winning the Vote in Greece, Our Town in World War II. She is the Narrator to all the Bicentennial Snapshots.

  • Maureen Whalen
    The Fight Against Polio
  • Maureen Whalen
    Ralph Francis: Black Activist and Abolitionist
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 54: Gone, but Not Forgotten
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 53: Buckman’s Dairy
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 52 – Greece Performing Arts Society
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 51: Some Notable Women of Greece
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 50: Barnard and Lakeshore Fire Districts
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 49: Dewey-Stone / Barnard
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 48: Gordon A. Howe
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 47: Childhood diseases
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 46: Epidemics and Pandemics
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 45: Speakeasies
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 44: Rumrunners and Bootleggers
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 43: Rediscovering Greece’s Historic Schoolhouses of 1872 Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 42: Rediscovering Greece’s Historic Schoolhouses of 1872 Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 41: Northgate Plaza
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 40 – Growing up on Paddy Hill Farm
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 39 – Paddy Hill, Read’s Corners, Latta at Mount Read
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No 38: Our Town in World War II
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 37: Unsolved Arson Case – The Holiday Inn Fire of 1978
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No.36: Centennial Celebration of North Greece and Ridge Road Fire District
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 35: “Lafayette, We Are Here!”
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 34: Extreme Weather Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 33: Extreme Weather Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 32 – Ghost Legends Of Greece NY
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 31 – Notable homes in Greece, NY
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot No. 30: Cobblestone houses, Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 29 – Cobblestone Houses Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 28 – Jerome Combs, The Cobblestone Baseball Catcher
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 27: “The Cooper” Tom Toal
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 26 – Doctor Abdiel Bliss Carpenter
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 25 Hotel De May
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 24 The Hotel of Many Names
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 23 – The Larkin Hotel
  • Maureen Whalen
    A Farewell to Frear’s Garden Center
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 22 – North Greece / Jenkin’s Corners
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 21 – Doctor Samuel Beach Bradley
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 20 – “Hoosick” / West Greece
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 19- Henpeck, Hoosick, and Hojack, What’s in a Name? Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 18 Henpeck, Hoosick, Hojack, What’s in a Name? Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 17 – Henpeck / South Greece Hamlet
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 16 – ‘ADA’ Ridge Hamlet
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 15 – Erie Canal
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 14 – General Stores
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 13: Asa Rowe, James Vick and the Beginning of the Nursery Industry
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 12 – The Ridge Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 11 – The Ridge Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 10 – Samuel and Lydia and George and Frances Latta
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 09 – Giles H Holden
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 08 – Charlotte – Genesee Lighthouse
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 06: War of 1812 Part 2
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 05: War of 1812 Part 1
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 04: King’s Landing
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 03: The Hinchers
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 02: The Onödowá’ga (Oh-n’own-dough-wahgah) (Seneca is the English name)
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 01: The Founding of The Town of Greece
  • Maureen Whalen
    Bicentennial Snapshot # 0: The Trailer

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Posted in Bicentennial SnapshotsTagged 1813, American Commander Isaac Chauncey, American Commodore Isaac Chauncey, Bicentennial-SnapShot, Braddock Bay, Braddocks Bay, British Commander James Yeo, British Commodore Sir James Yeo, Dewitt Clinton, Genesee River, Greece, Greece Historical Society, Hanford brothers, Hanford Tavern, Lord of the Lake, malaria, Maureen Whalen, New York, Oliver Phelps, Peter Spicer, Pike, Sacket's Harbor, Sam Latta, September 11, Sylph, Topsail Schooner, U.S.S. Sylph, War of 1812

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