Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-06-30

Ulcers who was left in charge of the
elpless hulks while Commodore PERI
and the rest of the fleet Went off to CO.
operate with Gen. Harrison.
After the battle of the Thames the
/ fleet returned to Erie and the Niagara
| the sister ship of the Lawrence, was
anchored as receiving ship. She re
manned In that service for a quarter of a
century and was then taken over to Mis-
| cry bay ard scnttled. Her hull can be
7een lying at the bottom half bur ed in
sand when the water is clear. Two d
| hulks, dismantled relics of the time when
sailing vessels carried on the commerce
of the lake. are now lying at ease over
the rema ms of the Niagara, gradually
rotting away.
| In 1887 all of the remaining vessels of
! Perry's fleet were condemned by the Navy
| Department and sold at auction to Capt.
, George Miles for nominal sum- He
/ fitted them out for merchant service, but
they lasted only a little while. In 1875
| the Detroit, Barclays laeship. was sold
TO the hotelkeepers at Niagara Falls for a
! spectacle to attract visitors. They placed
i live bear and other animals aboard and
sent her adrift in the river above the
| cataract. An immense crowd came from
| all directions to witness the spectacle.
! but instead of gong over the falls the
! Detroit lodged on the rocks and lay there
| for years until the water finally broke
her up and she went over piece by piece,
Renamed General wayne.
The Caledonia was renamed the Gen
eraI Wayne and was In the merchant
service until 1920, when she went to
wreck. The Ohio and Somers were cut up
f, by the British at the battle IF Fort Erie:
! the Scorpion and Tigress were disabled In
an engagement with the British and sank
in Lake Huron: the Little Belt and Trippa
were destroyed when the city of Buffalo
was burned: the Ariel was wrecked and
sank in Buffalo bay; the Porcupine was
transferred to the revenue department
and the Lady Provost was sold 10 a Ca
madam sailor.
! The Lawrence was a mine of wealth
1 for curio sellers. Canes, paper weights
and other objects were manufactured by
the carload from pieces Of her hull that
were brought up by divers until 1876.
when what was left of her was raisel
and TRANSPORTED to the centennial ex osi-
! tion in Philadelphia, where she pr we'd
to be object of great interest. Sc
was then broken up and converted into
furniture.
Capt. Dobbins lived long and enjoyed
many honors az the foremost citizen of
Erie. He was a native of Mifiin county
Pa. was born in l116. came to Erie to
help survey the wilderness i'm 1885, be-
came a sailor. was taken prisoner by
the British in 1912 and released on parole
For that reason he could not take COM
mand of one Of Perry's vessels as he de,
in the navy for practically the rest of
his life. He died in 1856 at the age of
eighty-five. His widow reached the age
of 100 years. dying in 1879. The Dob
bins home, which sheltered two genera
: stood at the corner of ad and State
street. Gen. Lafayette spent a night
there as Capt Dob bins guest when he
visited Erie. Several years ago the house
was moved back on a side street to give
place to a brick building.
Left Large Family.
Capt Dobbins left large family. and
his descendants are among the most
prominent people of Erie. His son, Capt.
William Dobbins. was an honored citi-
zen until his death a few years ago. One
OF the daughters married John +. Tracy,
who had a large family. john +. Tracy.
jr., built the Northwestern railroad: one
of his sisters married the late William
L. Scott, another married Capt. McCul-
lum. a naval officer, and a third became
, the wife of Mr. Griswold, a wooden manu-
facturer in Philadelphia. Mrs. Charles
H. Strong of Erie and Mrs. Richard III.
daughters of Capt Dobbins.
One of Commodore Perry's heroes was
executed as a deserter in Erie in the fal!
of 1914. The incident is related IN dole
full ballad called THE Mournful II ely
Of James Bird" The last Of the eleven
stanZas is as follows:
See. he knecls upon his coffin. Sure his death
do no good.
Spare him. Hark o God! They've shot him.
His bosom streams with blood
Farewell Bird. Farewell forever. Friends and
home he'll see no more!
But his rnangled corpse lies buried on Lake
Ere's distant shore.
Three other sailors OF the fleet remain
ed in this city as residents until their
death Benjamin Fleming, who was
maintop watch on the Niagara during
the battle. was the most prominent and
popular. and was always an object OF in
terest. John Murray. a marine, and Jesse
Wall, a colored fifer. were the others.