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This
is the official
Town of Gaines Historical Website.
Gaines is located in Orleans County, NY!
Any questions of comments please feel free to email us with our online
form. We will send a return email as soon as possible.
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| The
War of 1812 and the Settlers |
| The
War of 1812 was a reality to the settlers on the Holland Land Purchase.
The people living along the Ridge Road witnessed those fleeing a
burning Buffalo in 1813 and heard the reports of British ships on
Lake Ontario. The Battle of Lundy’s Lane in July of 1814 had
stopped the Americans. Major General Brown, the commander of the
American forces on the Niagara Frontier, sent a messenger to Sackets
Harbor ordering Brigadier General Edmund Pendleton Gaines to assume
command at Fort Erie. On August 5, 1814 General Gaines arrived at
the Fort. Two days later the British General Drummond advanced. |
Picture
of General Gaines
For whom the Town is named. |
Because the Fort had been strengthened with new bastions, the
Americans were able to answer the attack and the exchanges lasted
for eight days. Even though the regular troops on the Niagara
Frontier totaled 1,000, they were being besieged at Fort Erie
by an army of 4,000 British troops and Canadian militia. The frontier
troops could not be expected to hold the fort or to evacuate and
retreat against such odds......more
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The
Bennet Brothers Shop, located on Eagle Harbor Road, was an integral
part to the economy in Gaines. |
This
is an artists rendition of how Gaines might have looked in the
early 1800's. |
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