The Washington times., 1901-08-04
FATE OF THE PORCUPINB.
Remains of One of Perry's Vesse.
in Ferrysburg, Mich.

Purchased From the Government
Merchant Trade by n Missionary
Bcached and Abandoned for Years
Lying in a heap of debris in the back
yard of Charles Dollhouse at Ferrys-
burg. Mich. is all that is left of the old
sloop Porcupine of Commodore Oliver
Hazard Perry's famous fleet-one of the
little gun vessels of one gun which sailed
into close action with the British squad
ron at the Battle OF Lake Erie and won
the battle after the heavy Lawrence had
been riddled and sunk.
After several years as a diminutive
man-of-war on the lakes. sixty years as
a lake trader. and a few months as a fish
erman's boat, and twenty-four years as a
sunken wreck In Spring Lake, the sioop
now is falling to pieces in the yard of the
man who rescued it from its grave in the
sand and water. The stern post has been
taken from the debris and will come into
life again as a part of the porch Of
Michigan physicians summer home.
After the war the Porcupine was pur-
chased from the Government by the Rev.
Mr.. Ferry, missionary to the Indians,
who was located at Grand Haven, Mich.
The vessel was used in merchant trade,
sailing the lakes with salt in its hold and
lumber on its decks. After sixty years OF
good service it became unseaworthy, was
abandoned by trade, and then taken up
by lake fishermen, but proved of little
value to them. After few short voyages
she was sailed from Lake Michigan up
Grand River to Spring Lake. and there
beached. Here it lay for twenty-four
long years with the merciless waves dash
ing over it. Several attempts were made
to raise 1t from its watery grave, but no
one was successful until Mr.. Dollhouse
became interested. He, with the aid Of
large capstan and two sets of blocks, lift
ed II from the water. He had secured the
whole bottom and the sides as far up as
the deck, the ribs being intact. 1t was
filed with sand and the great weight
made 1t almost impossible to move 1t, hut
it was hauled a couple of blocks and
finally placed in the back yard of its res
cuer, covering sixty-five feet of ground
When taken from the water its tim
bers, in which British bullets are still
embedded were perfectly sound, but the
rays from the sun soon began to rot the
wood, and what is left now is fast decay
ing and mingling with mother earth
The brave little slcop was strong with
its one gun in the battle of Lake Erie,
and it's end is coming on the shore of
peaceful lake, which is summer resort
Oh michigan people
Its structure from the water side was
first a planking of Southern pitch pine.
then layer of tar paper, and then huge
blue oak beams put together by hand
made iron clamps and spikes. The most
IL h sc
left of the keel, the oak planks being in
a fair state of preservation. Three feet
of the stern post, with the iron rudder
shoe, Is alco in fine condition. This part
of the little warrior has just been pur-
chased by a Michigan surgeon. who has
his summer home on Spring Lake. The
relic Is placed on one of the porches fas-
tened to the side of the cottage by one Of
its own wrought iron bolts.
The sloop, which has reached this quiet
end, was one of the finest which Commo-
dore Perry. then a lieutenant. had built
at Presaue Isle to met the British on the
lakes. When the lieutenant to whom
was given this gigantic task was sent to
Lake Erie he found himself the com
mander of a fleet which did not exist The
trees which formed the beams of his YES
the lake. He had neither men-of-war.
rnen-of-warsmen. or guns He had ener-
gy, however. and that was enough
The Porcupine was one of the vessels
thus "a pidly constructed. 1t was destined
to be one of the small members of the
feet which met the enemy and took them
captive. One gun was its armament. Two
large brigs to mount twenty guns each
Iatl at TSi
small gun vessels were quickly completed.
What the Porcupine. with its larger and
smaller sisters had to do is best described
by what they did do afte. they had de-
feated ihe British under Captain Bar
clay. The Porcupine had to help in driv-
ing the British ont of Detroit. 1t con-
veyed a part of the American troops to
landing in Upper Canada These troops
won the battle of the Moravian towns on
October 5, 1913, which placed the upper
part of the province In the hands or the
Americans Upon this little vessel and
the other boats of the fleet depended the
American supremacy on the lakes.
Under Perrys energetic management
two large brigs, the Porcupine. and sew
eral other small gun vessels soon were
launched The spring of 1913 was passed
and a draft of men to put behind the
guns. Perry seemed never to sleep. By
August he had his fleet and 800 men. had
been raised to the rank of captain. and
less than five months had been sufficient
to convert the trees which were growing
on the larke shore into armed vessels.
When the little Porcupine set out to re-
ceive its baptism it was in the company
of the following boats:
Lawrence, 20 guns, Captain Perry COM
Niagara, 20 guns, Captain Ell
lott commanding: Caledonia, guns. Mr.
commanding: Ariel. guns.
lieutenant Packet commanding: Trippe.
I gun, Lieutenant Smith commanding;
Tigress, / gun, Lieutenant Conklin COM
manding; Somers, 2 guns. Mr.. Amy COM
manding: Scorpion. 2 guns. Mr.. Cham
plin commanding; Ohio, I gun, Mr.. Dob
bins commanding.
The fleet was lying at Put-ir-Bay on
the morning of September 10 when the
lookout at the masthead of the Lawrence
discovered the enemy coming from the
northwest. The signal was at once given
for all vessels to get under way. At the
outset the American vessels We're con-
fronted with problem which threatened
for a time to leave them at a serious dis
advantage The peculiar armament of
Perry's ships made it necessary for them
TO obtain the weather gauge of the en-
emy, and no way of doing this was APP
parent but by beating around some small
islands that lay in the way. Perry
thought he did not have time for this
maneuvre and was about to give the or
der to pass to the leeward of the British
.fv,1 shit taH fro,