Niagara Falls - Drummond Hill Cemetery

Location:  City of Niagara Falls   N 43 05.352 W 79 05.749 
On the west side of Lundy's Lane, near the top of the hill.

I have already posted the main memorial at this site(April 28, 2012), marking it as a National Historic to remember the pivotal Battle of  Lundy's Lane.
There remains several other smaller but no less important markers in this cemetery which must also be mentioned.  Namely the grave of hero Laura Secord, the U.S. Infantry line of advance, and a statue to Lieut-General Drummond who commanded the British troops.  Numerous graves of the fallen soldiers are found throughout the cemetery.

Oddly enough, both sides have claimed victory in this important battle, just as they have in the War of 1812 as a whole.  There is a movement to restore the U.S. Infantry Line, as well to erect monuments and interpretive plaquing to commemorate the Aboriginal, Black and Women’s History associated with the site.
More information regarding this can be found at  http://www.thebattleoflundyslane.ca/

Marker text:

Laura Secord's Grave:

TO Perpetuate the name and fame of Laura Secord
who walked alone nearly 20 miles by a circuitous, difficult and perilous route through woods and swamps and over miry roads to warn a British outpost at Decew's Falls of an intended attack and thereby warned LIEUT. FitzGibbon on the 24th, June, 1813, with less than 50 men of H.M. 49th Regt., about 15 militiamen and a small force of Six Nation and other Indians under Captains William johnson Kerr and Domonique Ducharme, to surprise and attack the enemy at Beechwoods (or Beaver Dams) and after a short engagement to capture Col. Boerstler of the U.S. Army and his entire force of 542 men with two field pieces.

Holding the  High Ground:
Early on the morning of July 26th, 1814,
Lieutenant-General Sir Gordon Drummond awaited
another attack on the Lundy's Lane hill near
Niagara Falls.  Throughout the previous night,
this hill had been taken and retaken in the
bloodiest, most hard fought battle of the war
of 1812-14.
The expected attack did not occur, the Americans
exhausted, withdrew to Fort Erie.  In November,
they abandoned Fort Erie and retired across the
Niagara River.
Drummond and his troops had successfully
maintained British sovereignty in the Niagara
Penninsula.

The Niagara Parks Commision
1989

Ralph Sketch
Sculptor

U.S Line:
U.S. INFANTRY TRENCH JULY 25TH 1814
THIS MONUMENT ERECTED JULY 25TH 1991
BY THE AMERICAN LEGION, NIAGARA
COUNTY COMMITTEE & DEPT. OF NEW YORK.
IN MEMORY OF THE U.S. OFFICERS &
SOLDIERS WHO DIED AT THE BATTLE
OF LUNDY'S LANE.
CONNECTICUT 25TH, NEW YORK 23RD,
MASSACHUSETTS 9TH & 21ST,
PENNSYLVANIA 22ND, & VERMONT 11TH

National Historic Site:
This was the site of the bloodiest battle of the War of 1812. On the afternoon of 25th July, 1814, Lieutenant-General Gordon Drummond with about 2800 men engaged the invading American army which had recently been victorious at Chippawa. The armies were evenly matched and the six-hour battle lasted until darkness and heavy losses put an end to the fighting. Each force had lost over 800 men. Although each claimed victory, the Americans had failed to dislodge Drummond from his position. They withdrew the next day, ending their offensive in Upper Canada.