Western Pennsylvania during the War of 1812 was far more active than one today might imagine. It pitted the United States against Great Britain and Canada (a British Colony) with their Native American allies and cost the lives of some 20,000 men. Infantry forces fought in Canada, Michigan, New York, Ohio, and Washington, D.C., and naval units battled on the Oceans, on the Great Lakes, and in and around New Orleans. Western Pennsylvania's contributions to the war were significant and this two-volume work studies the conflict from regional voices and news reports of the day. I Consider It My Duty examines the regional impact of the war through newspapers, magazines, books, letters, diaries, and other archives that survive. This two volume work studies that era from the voices of the day in Western Pennsylvania. Here you will find how people felt about the war. How people lived lives during this time and all of the anguish, heart-break, and fears are reported through the newspapers, magazines, books, letters, diaries, and various archives that survive today. I Consider also explores the Native American perspective in participating in the war, a conflict that threatened their nation and way of life. Great Britain was allied with the Native Americans to agitate against U.S. expansion into the Western Territories. Beyond being an important history, this book is an excellent reference for those folks looking into their Western Pennsylvania Genealogy, the book presents a detailed reference source for genealogists: including materials from various Pennsylvania Archives; local and State militia roll calls; and Federal Army units. Author Mark Painter spent years researching and creating this archive: a detailed recording in the words of the people who lived and suffered through it. The work includes rare, first-hand accounts of war atrocities and battle strategies in soldiers' diaries and military communications that helped define future military policy and planning. I Consider chronicles citizen pride in the young untested nation and public reaction to their nation at war. Witness American fear of the British and potential loss of new freedoms won a generation earlier in Revolutionary War. There are so many ways you can read this two-volume work.
About the Author: Mark Painter is a Mercer County, Pennsylvania, historian and genealogist researching and writing about many Western Pennsylvania historical topics. A former U.S. Marine and National Guardsman, he was drawn to document the region's military contributions to the often overlooked War of 1812. Mark also researched and compiled information on the War of 1812 Battle of Stoney Creek, Mercer County Revolutionary War veterans, and Mercer County's U.S. Colored Troops. His work includes publishing abstracts on Mercer County Naturalizations and the Shenango Valley Cemetery, and Proof of Settlement Certificates of Western Pennsylvania. He is currently researching the Mercer County Abolition movement.