War Of 1812, Navy Topic Of Museum Lecture Series

June 8, 2010 Contributor

OSWEGO, NY – The third lecture of the 2010 H. Lee White Marine Museum lecture series will be presented June 12 at 1:30 p.m. in the Pontiac Room at the museum.

The speaker is Dr. Gary M. Gibson and his topic will be “Oswego, the Navy, and the War of 1812.”

The Brig Oneida, the first U.S. warship built on the Great Lakes, was built in the Oswego Harbor. The vessel, depicted in a rendering by renowned local artist Frank Kraft, is on exhibit at the H. Lee White Marine Museum. Inspired by the upcoming Festival of Sail tall ship event, Dr. Gary M. Gibson will discuss Oswego’s role in the War of 1812.
The Brig Oneida, the first U.S. warship built on the Great Lakes, was built in the Oswego Harbor. The vessel, depicted in a rendering by renowned local artist Frank Kraft, is on exhibit at the H. Lee White Marine Museum. Inspired by the upcoming Festival of Sail tall ship event, Dr. Gary M. Gibson will discuss Oswego’s role in the War of 1812.

Mercedes Niess, executive director of the museum, said, “We hope this lecture will get members of the public interested in tall ships and the role they played in our history. Oswego is the oldest freshwater port in the U.S. This is also a great introduction for the upcoming Festival of Sail event, which will feature three magnificent tall ships.”

Dr. Gibson’s presentation will discuss the critical role of Oswego throughout the War of 1812.

Oswego played a role in making the activities of the American army and navy on Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River a success.

Beginning as early as 1808 with the building of the brig Oneida, the United States Navy recognized how critical Oswego was to the defense of the nation’s northern frontier.

A computer scientist by profession and a vice president of Velocity Servers, an Internet service company, Gibson has been researching the naval War of 1812 on Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River since 1992.

Gibson has digitized his primary source material.

In anticipation of the Festival of Sail tall ship event, Dr. Gary M. Gibson will speak at the H. Lee White Marine Museum on June 12.
In anticipation of the Festival of Sail tall ship event, Dr. Gary M. Gibson will speak at the H. Lee White Marine Museum on June 12.

A past president of the Sackets Harbor Battlefield Alliance, he is the author of several publications including Service Records of U. S. Naval and Marine Corps Officers Stationed on Lake Ontario during the War of 1812, the second edition of which is currently in preparation.

Since 2001, Gibson has presented numerous papers on the results of his research at symposia and meetings in the United States and Canada.

Gibson resides in Sackets Harbor.

The H. Lee White Marine Museum is located at the end of the pier in the Historic Maritime District at the north end of West First Street.

For more information about this program or other museum activities, please contact the H. Lee White Marine Museum at 315-342-0480 or [email protected]

Also, visit www.hleewhitemarinemuseum.com missing or outdated ad config

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