Suggested Reading

Despite being a mostly forgotten war in the public's memory, the War of 1812 has been thoroughly researched by scholars and authors over the past two centuries. The list included below contains only a few of the many titles available, but provides a wide variety of older and newer publications across many perspectives including those of the British, Canadian, American Indians, Women, and African Americans. The listing of resources below does not presume endorsement by the National Park Service.

Secondary Sources:

Battle of Lake Erie or Participants in the Battle

A Signal Victory: The Lake Erie Campaign, 1812-1813 by: David Curtis Skaggs & Gerard T Altoff

Deep Water Sailors, Shallow Water Soldiers by: Gerard T Altoff
Contains throughly researched lists of men who particiapted in the Battle.

Oliver Hazard Perry and the Battle of Lake Erie by: Gerard T Altoff

Oliver Hazard Perry: Honor, Courage, and Patriotism in the Early U.S. Navy by: David Curtis Skaggs

The Lake Erie Campaign of 1813: I Shall Fight Them This Day by Walter P. Rybka

Yankee Surgeon: The Life and Times of Usher Parsons, 1788-1868 by Seebert J. Goldowsky

War of 1812

187 Things You Should Know about the War of 1812: An Easy Question-and-Answer Guide by Donald R. Hickey

1812: The War That Forged a Nation by Walter R. Borneman

1812: War with America by Jon Latimer

America on the Brink: How the Political Struggle Over the War of 1812 Almost Destroyed the Young Republic by Richard Buel

Amongst My Best Men: African Americans and the War of 1812 by Gerard T Altoff

Don't Give Up the Ship!: Myths of the War of 1812 by Donald R. Hickey

Flames Across the Border: 1813-1814 by Pierre Berton

In the Midst of Alarms: The Untold Story of Women and the War of 1812 by Dianne Graves

The Invasion of Canada: 1812-1813 by Pierre Berton

Lossing's Pictorial Field Book of the War of 1812 by Benson Lossing *Available at Google Books for free

Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy by Ian W. Toll

Tecumseh: A Life by John Sugden

Tecumseh and Brock: The War of 1812 by James Laxer

The Civil War of 1812: American Citizens, British Subjects, Irish Rebels, & Indian Allies by Alan Taylor

The Incredible War of 1812: A Military History by J. Mackay Hitsman, Donald E. Graves

The Naval War of 1812 by Theodore Roosevelt

The War of 1812 by Henry Adams

The War of 1812: A Forgotten Conflict by: Donald R. Hickey

The War of 1812: A Short History by: Donald R. Hickey

The War of 1812: The War That Both Sides Won by Wesley B. Turner

Union 1812: The Americans Who Fought the Second War of Independence by A. J. Langguth

Primary Sources:

James Madison's Papers at the Library of Congress

The Travels and Adventures of David C. Bunnell by David C. Bunnell

The War of 1812 in Person: Fifteen Accounts by United States Army Regulars, Volunteers and Militiamen by John C. Fredriksen

Surgeon of the Lakes: The Diary of Dr. Usher Parsons 1812-1814 by Ph.D. John C. Fredriksen

Additional primary sources can be found online for free on the Internet Archive. Search for "War of 1812 Personal narratives".

Last updated: June 2, 2025

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