Battle of Cook ' s Mills The Battle of Cook ' s Mills was the last engagement between U . S . and British armies in the Niagara , and the penultimate engagement ( followed by the Battle of Malcolm ' s Mills ) on Canadian soil during the War of 1812 . Background . General Gordon Drummond had lifted the Siege of Fort Erie on 21 September 1814 , and withdrew to a strong defensive position at Fort Chippawa on the north bank of Chippawa Creek . An American division under Major General George Izard had marched overland from Plattsburgh , New York to reinforce the Americans at Fort Erie ( commanded by Major General Jacob Brown ) . Being the senior Major General , Izard took command of the combined force . The more aggressive Brown wished to attack Drummond immediately , with the combined force numbering 6 , 300 . Izard chose not to risk the casualties of attacking a strong defensive position . Angered at Izard ' s lack of action , Brown left with his division ( half the army ' s strength ) and marched to Sacketts Harbor , New York , where a British attack was feared Izard finally marched north to Chippawa Creek . The creek was unfordable , and the bridge had been destroyed . During 16 October , his artillery exchanged fire with the British , without effect . Battle . Attempting to deprive the British of their chief source of flour , Izard sent a brigade of about 1 , 200 men , consisting of the 5th , 14th , 15th and 16th U . S . Infantry with some detachments of riflemen and U . S . Dragoons under Brigadier General Daniel Bissell , to take Cooks Mills on Lyon ' s Creek in Crowland township . In response , Drummond dispatched about 750 men ( the 6th Regiment , the Glengarry Light Infantry and the flank companies of the 104th Regiment , with a 6 - pounder gun and a Congreve rocket detachment ) under Lieutenant Colonel Christopher Myers to reconnoitre the American force . On the morning of 19 October , Myers came into contact with the American picket just east of the mills . A half hour fight ensued , but the Americans could not be lured from the cover of the woods . Observing American soldiers moving through the trees on his right , Myers feared his force was being out - manoeuvred . He ordered a retreat , and the Americans promptly pursued his column nearly to their camp at the Lyon ' s Creek settlement . Returning to Cooks Mills , the Americans destroyed all the grain and flour found in the mill , and the next day they withdrew to their camp at Black Creek . Aftermath . The battle showed the effects of Izard ' s well trained troops . Despite this minor victory , it became apparent that Drummond was not going to move from his defences . Izard also heard that British ships dominated Lake Ontario , and any American advance risked being cut off by a landing in its rear . He withdrew to Fort Erie . The British loss of 200 bushels of wheat was offset when several American provision boats crossed the Niagara unaware of Izard ' s retreat and fell into British hands . Izard later destroyed Fort Erie and returned to the U . S . side of the river . Drummond moved to the remains of the fort but chose not to rebuild it , and the fighting along the Niagara Frontier came to an end . The site of the battle was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1921 . Eight active regular battalions of the United States Army ( 1 - 2 Inf , 2 - 2 Inf , 1 - 3 Inf , 2 - 3 Inf , 4 - 3 Inf , 1 - 4 Inf , 2 - 4 Inf and 3 - 4 Inf ) perpetuate the lineages of a number of American infantry regiments ( the old 5th , 14th and 16th Infantry Regiments ) that took part in the battle .