About: Raid on Port Dover

The Raid on Port Dover was an episode during the War of 1812. American troops crossed Lake Erie to capture or destroy stocks of grain and destroy mills at Port Dover, Ontario, which were used to provide flour for British troops stationed on the Niagara Peninsula. At the instigation of Lieutenant Colonel John B. Campbell and without sanction from his superiors or the government of the United States, the Americans also destroyed private houses and other property, prompting British commanders to demand reprisals in other theatres of the war. To some degree, the burning of Washington by the British later in the year was influenced by the American actions at Port Dover.