Oliver Hazard Perry and the Battle of Lake Erie
After a four-year tour of duty with the United States Coast Guard, which included a WestPac cruise to Vietnam, Gerard T. Altoff joined the U.S. National Park Service in 1972. Duty assignments at Zion National Park in Utah and Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota were followed by his current position at Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial, where he has served as the Chief Ranger and Historian since 1979. In addition to numerous articles published in historical journals, Altoff's books includeDeep Water Sailors - Shallow Water Soldiers: Manning the United States Fleet on Lake Erie, 1813andAmongst my best men: African Americans and the War of 1812.Altoff also co-authoredA Signal Victory, the Lake Erie Campaign, 1812-1813with Dr. David Curtis Skaggs.