Battle of Ogdensburg The Battle of Ogdensburg was a battle of the War of 1812 . The British gained a victory over the Americans and captured the village of Ogdensburg , New York . Although small in scale , it removed the American threat to British supply lines for the remainder of the war . Background . When the war broke out , a flourishing illicit trade was soon established between Ogdensburg and Prescott , Upper Canada ( later to become the province of Canada West in 1841 ) , on the Northern side of the Saint Lawrence River . This was checked early in October 1812 when the Americans reinforced the militia with some of the regular 1st U . S . Rifle Regiment under Major Benjamin Forsyth . The British made an abortive attack with their own militia on October 3 , which was quickly repulsed by the American forces in Ogdensburg , after which the militia dispersed . During the next few months , Forsyth ' s riflemen made several raids across the river , sniping at British troops and occasionally capturing boatloads of supplies on their way to Kingston , Ontario . On February 21 , 1813 , Lieutenant General Sir George Prevost , the British Governor General of Canada , passed through Prescott on his way to review the situation in Upper Canada , accompanied by several detachments of reinforcements . He appointed Lieutenant Colonel " Red George " MacDonell as commandant of British troops in Prescott and left him instructions that he was to attack Ogdensburg only if the Americans weakened their garrison . MacDonnell had other ideas . With the extra troops temporarily available , he determined to seize the opportunity . He planned for a company of the Glengarry Light Infantry , 70 militia and some light guns mounted on sleighs to make a frontal attack on the fort which housed Forsyth ' s riflemen . The main column , consisting of 120 men of the 8th ( King ' s ) , 30 of the Royal Newfoundland Fencibles and 230 of the local militia flank companies , would cross the river lower down and attack from the flank . Battle . The Americans were used to seeing British troops drilling on the frozen Saint Lawrence and were taken by surprise when they suddenly charged . The riflemen in the fort held out against the frontal attack , mainly because the British guns became stuck in snow drifts , and American artillery , under Adjutant Daniel W . Church of Colonel Benedict ' s regiment and Lieutenant Baird of Forsyth ' s company , fired on the British with mixed results . As the British main body threatened to surround them , they retreated and abandoned the town . The militia retreated back into the civilian population . The artillery under Church and Baird managed to put up a tough resistance until both Church and Baird were wounded . The British then took control of the town . The British burned the boats and schooners frozen into the ice , and they carried off artillery and military stores . There was some looting of private property , but some of the plundered goods were later returned . Casualties . The British casualty return listed two British regulars , two Glengarry Light Infantry and two militiamen killed ; 12 British regulars , 12 Glengarry Light Infantry and 20 militiamen wounded ; for a total of six killed and 44 wounded . Lieutenant Colonel Macdonell reported that 20 Americans were killed and 70 captured , of whom many were wounded . An American account gave their loss as 26 killed and wounded and about 60 taken prisoner , a figure which suggests that only six of the wounded men escaped capture . Aftermath . After the British withdrew , the Americans did not re - garrison Ogdensburg . The British were able to purchase supplies from Americans merchants there for the remainder of the war . The Ogdensburg area may have been populated by more Tories and Federalists than was previously thought . The normally cautious Prevost amended MacDonell ' s despatch to make it appear that the attack had been carried out on , rather than against , his orders . The regimental Chaplain of the Glengarry Light Infantry , Alexander Macdonell , is reputed to have accompanied the attack , wielding a crucifix to encourage lagging soldiers . He was supported by Presbyterian minister the Rev . John Bethune of Williamstown .