The War of 1812 on the Pacific Coast

The war reached the Pacific on 30 November 1813, when HM Sloop Racoon arrived at the American fur trading post of Fort Astoria, in what is now Oregon. Although the fort had already been purchased by Canadian fur traders from the North West Company, the Royal Navy went through the motions of “capturing” it and renamed it Fort George. This meant that the fort had to be returned to the Americans when the war ended, weakening British claims to the Oregon Territory, which ultimately became part of the United States.

Print by Sir Henry James Warre, 1848
Library and Archives Canada, 1970-188-459(A) l