IMPORTANT WAR OF 1812 PRESENTATION HORN CUP.
Carved in the manner of Frances Tansel with a spread-winged eagle over a banner reading "Gn CLAY 1813", a map of Fort Meigs, and the British guns along the Maumee River. The bottom is comprised of an 1802 Draped Bust silver dollar engraved with "B.J. Clay". 3 1/8"h. 2 3/8"d. (top). Minor split at the base.
General Clay
At the time of his death in 1828, General Green Clay (b. 1757) was one of the wealthiest and most prominent men in Kentucky. Although not as well known today as his son, the abolitionist Cassius Marcellus Clay, or his cousin, Henry Clay, Green Clay played a very significant role in the early history of Kentucky.
After serving in the Revolution in 1777, Clay, a native Virginian, headed west to explore the wild frontier. He fought Indians with Daniel Boone at Boonesborough and then made his fortune surveying western lands at a time when surveyors were often in danger of Indian attack. At a time when money was scarce, surveyors received land as payment for their services, and Clay eventually owned 40,000 acres in what became Madison County and all of Bourbon and Clay Counties. In addition to his vast land holdings, Clay owned toll roads, distilleries, taverns and a ferry on the Kentucky River.
In 1799, Clay moved his family from a log house near Boonesborough to a magnificent new Georgian home, constructed using slave labor, on a 4,400 acre plantation near Richmond, Kentucky. Clermont, which was expanded by Clay's son Cassius Marcellus prior to the Civil War and renamed White Hall, was restored by the State of Kentucky as a state historic site.
As a prominent citizen, Clay was heavily involved in public affairs. He served in the Virginia Legislature from 1788-89, in the Virginia convention that ratified the U.S. Constitution, in the Kentucky Constitution Convention in 1799, in the Kentucky Legislature and Senate, and as an officer in the Kentucky Militia. It not surprising that Governor Isaac Shelby appointed Clay to command the Kentucky troops that were being dispatched at the request of General William Henry Harrison for the defense of Fort Meigs in the spring of 1813.
The Siege
William Henry Harrison established Fort Meigs in early 1813, and his troops constructed the fortification during the late winter and early spring. Built at the foot of the Maumee River rapids at present-day Perrysburg, Ohio, the post was a large and sprawling facility. Designed as a supply depot and staging area for troops and supplies preparing to advance against British-held Detroit, the fort consisted of blockhouses, artillery batteries, and an earth and log stockade that enclosed nearly ten acres.
Fort Meigs survived two attacks in 1813. In late April, British troops commanded by General Henry Procter and native allies, led by the Shawnee chief Tecumseh, invested the garrison. The British force arrived at the rapids on April 28th and over the next few days, established four artillery batteries on the north bank of the Maumee River directly opposite the American post. At dawn on May 1st, the British opened the duel with a massed volley from all of their cannon. Harrison responded with fire from his own artillery and, for the next five days, the battle raged with neither opponent able to inflict serious damage or casualties upon the other.
In February 1813, Harrison requested reinforcements from the Kentucky governor Isaac Shelby. Shelby responded by recruiting a brigade of 1,200 volunteers and placed Green Clay in command. The Kentucky brigade left for Ohio in late-March, and when the siege at Fort Meigs began, Clay and his reinforcements were only a few miles from the American post.
Upon Clay's arrival, Harrison ordered him to advance to the rapids and divide his force into two wings. One wing, led by Clay's second-in-command William Dudley, was to land on the north side of the Maumee, attack and disable the British artillery, return to their boats and cross the river to the safety of the American stockade. The other wing, led by Clay, was to land on the south bank of the river and fight their way directly into the fort. Clay accomplished his mission, but Dudley allowed his detachment to be drawn into an ambush in which he and many of his men were killed or captured.
Unable to defeat the now-reinforced garrison, Procter ended the siege and withdrew on May 9th.
Harrison left the post shortly thereafter and named Clay as the fort's new commander. The British returned to Fort Meigs in late July, however, since they had been stripped of their artillery by the British Navy (who was building a fleet on Lake Erie), Procter had no hope of battering the American post into submission. On July 25th, the British and Indians staged a mock battle amongst themselves near the American post hoping that the Americans would believe that a column of reinforcements was under attack and leave the protection of the stockade to rescue them. Once away from the fort, they would become vulnerable to an ambush. Fortunately, Clay was not so easily fooled and eventually Procter broke off the engagement. Clay remained in command at Fort Meigs until September 1813.
The Cup
The cup bears a number of similarities to the work of Francis Tansel (b. 1760) who served under Clay at Fort Meigs. Of particular note is the spread-winged eagle on the front and the map of the fort on one side. There are a small number of powder horns carved by Tansel that have similar eagles as well as maps of the fort. However, a close comparison of the present cup with extant Tansel horns and a Tansel cup indicate that the carving of the Clay cup is not the work of Francis Tansel. Based on these similarities and the time and place the present cup was carved, and for whom it was carved, it is likely that the as-yet unidentified carver served in the Kentucky militia and knew both Tansel and his horns.
The cup shows Fort Meigs as it appeared following repairs made in the wake of the first siege. It also shows the four British artillery batteries used during the first siege, the Maumee River, and Audubon Island located about a mile east of the American post. An unusual carved motif, which includes a coffin, may indicate the location of a garrison cemetery south of the fort.
This cup stands alone as a fine example of the horn carver's art. However, its presentation to the famed General Clay and its association with such an important War of 1812 engagement make this cup a truly significant piece of Ohio Valley history.
Provenance
General Green Clay (1757-1828)
Brutus Junius Clay (1808-1878) of Kentucky
Green Clay (1839-1912) of Audrain County, Missouri
Cassius Marcellus Clay (1879- by 1978) of Audrain County, Missouri
The current owner, purchased at the Cassius and Bethel Clay estate auction, October 21, 1978 (retains an original newspaper advertisement for that auction and the sale ticket)
References
Gallien, Shelby. "Tansel Powder Horns from Ohio", in the publication of the Association of Ohio Longrifle Collectors, v. 20, no. 1, February 1998.
Gilpin, Alec R. The War of 1812 in the Old Northwest, Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1958.
Johnston, James R. Accouterments. Privately printed, n.d.
Lindley, Harlow, ed. Fort Meigs and the War of 1812, Columbus: Ohio Historical Society, 1975.
Nelson, Larry L., "Dudley's Defeat and the Relief of Fort Meigs during the War of 1812," Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, 2006.
Schooley, Herschel. Centennial History of Audrain County.
Garth's is grateful to Larry Nelson, former site manager at Fort Meigs, and Lou Schultz for their assistance in the preparation of this catalog entry.
Carved in the manner of Frances Tansel with a spread-winged eagle over a banner reading "Gn CLAY 1813", a map of Fort Meigs, and the British guns along the Maumee River. The bottom is comprised of an 1802 Draped Bust silver dollar engraved with "B.J. Clay". 3 1/8"h. 2 3/8"d. (top). Minor split at the base.
General Clay
At the time of his death in 1828, General Green Clay (b. 1757) was one of the wealthiest and most prominent men in Kentucky. Although not as well known today as his son, the abolitionist Cassius Marcellus Clay, or his cousin, Henry Clay, Green Clay played a very significant role in the early history of Kentucky.
After serving in the Revolution in 1777, Clay, a native Virginian, headed west to explore the wild frontier. He fought Indians with Daniel Boone at Boonesborough and then made his fortune surveying western lands at a time when surveyors were often in danger of Indian attack. At a time when money was scarce, surveyors received land as payment for their services, and Clay eventually owned 40,000 acres in what became Madison County and all of Bourbon and Clay Counties. In addition to his vast land holdings, Clay owned toll roads, distilleries, taverns and a ferry on the Kentucky River.
In 1799, Clay moved his family from a log house near Boonesborough to a magnificent new Georgian home, constructed using slave labor, on a 4,400 acre plantation near Richmond, Kentucky. Clermont, which was expanded by Clay's son Cassius Marcellus prior to the Civil War and renamed White Hall, was restored by the State of Kentucky as a state historic site.
As a prominent citizen, Clay was heavily involved in public affairs. He served in the Virginia Legislature from 1788-89, in the Virginia convention that ratified the U.S. Constitution, in the Kentucky Constitution Convention in 1799, in the Kentucky Legislature and Senate, and as an officer in the Kentucky Militia. It not surprising that Governor Isaac Shelby appointed Clay to command the Kentucky troops that were being dispatched at the request of General William Henry Harrison for the defense of Fort Meigs in the spring of 1813.
The Siege
William Henry Harrison established Fort Meigs in early 1813, and his troops constructed the fortification during the late winter and early spring. Built at the foot of the Maumee River rapids at present-day Perrysburg, Ohio, the post was a large and sprawling facility. Designed as a supply depot and staging area for troops and supplies preparing to advance against British-held Detroit, the fort consisted of blockhouses, artillery batteries, and an earth and log stockade that enclosed nearly ten acres.
Fort Meigs survived two attacks in 1813. In late April, British troops commanded by General Henry Procter and native allies, led by the Shawnee chief Tecumseh, invested the garrison. The British force arrived at the rapids on April 28th and over the next few days, established four artillery batteries on the north bank of the Maumee River directly opposite the American post. At dawn on May 1st, the British opened the duel with a massed volley from all of their cannon. Harrison responded with fire from his own artillery and, for the next five days, the battle raged with neither opponent able to inflict serious damage or casualties upon the other.
In February 1813, Harrison requested reinforcements from the Kentucky governor Isaac Shelby. Shelby responded by recruiting a brigade of 1,200 volunteers and placed Green Clay in command. The Kentucky brigade left for Ohio in late-March, and when the siege at Fort Meigs began, Clay and his reinforcements were only a few miles from the American post.
Upon Clay's arrival, Harrison ordered him to advance to the rapids and divide his force into two wings. One wing, led by Clay's second-in-command William Dudley, was to land on the north side of the Maumee, attack and disable the British artillery, return to their boats and cross the river to the safety of the American stockade. The other wing, led by Clay, was to land on the south bank of the river and fight their way directly into the fort. Clay accomplished his mission, but Dudley allowed his detachment to be drawn into an ambush in which he and many of his men were killed or captured.
Unable to defeat the now-reinforced garrison, Procter ended the siege and withdrew on May 9th.
Harrison left the post shortly thereafter and named Clay as the fort's new commander. The British returned to Fort Meigs in late July, however, since they had been stripped of their artillery by the British Navy (who was building a fleet on Lake Erie), Procter had no hope of battering the American post into submission. On July 25th, the British and Indians staged a mock battle amongst themselves near the American post hoping that the Americans would believe that a column of reinforcements was under attack and leave the protection of the stockade to rescue them. Once away from the fort, they would become vulnerable to an ambush. Fortunately, Clay was not so easily fooled and eventually Procter broke off the engagement. Clay remained in command at Fort Meigs until September 1813.
The Cup
The cup bears a number of similarities to the work of Francis Tansel (b. 1760) who served under Clay at Fort Meigs. Of particular note is the spread-winged eagle on the front and the map of the fort on one side. There are a small number of powder horns carved by Tansel that have similar eagles as well as maps of the fort. However, a close comparison of the present cup with extant Tansel horns and a Tansel cup indicate that the carving of the Clay cup is not the work of Francis Tansel. Based on these similarities and the time and place the present cup was carved, and for whom it was carved, it is likely that the as-yet unidentified carver served in the Kentucky militia and knew both Tansel and his horns.
The cup shows Fort Meigs as it appeared following repairs made in the wake of the first siege. It also shows the four British artillery batteries used during the first siege, the Maumee River, and Audubon Island located about a mile east of the American post. An unusual carved motif, which includes a coffin, may indicate the location of a garrison cemetery south of the fort.
This cup stands alone as a fine example of the horn carver's art. However, its presentation to the famed General Clay and its association with such an important War of 1812 engagement make this cup a truly significant piece of Ohio Valley history.
Provenance
General Green Clay (1757-1828)
Brutus Junius Clay (1808-1878) of Kentucky
Green Clay (1839-1912) of Audrain County, Missouri
Cassius Marcellus Clay (1879- by 1978) of Audrain County, Missouri
The current owner, purchased at the Cassius and Bethel Clay estate auction, October 21, 1978 (retains an original newspaper advertisement for that auction and the sale ticket)
References
Gallien, Shelby. "Tansel Powder Horns from Ohio", in the publication of the Association of Ohio Longrifle Collectors, v. 20, no. 1, February 1998.
Gilpin, Alec R. The War of 1812 in the Old Northwest, Lansing: Michigan State University Press, 1958.
Johnston, James R. Accouterments. Privately printed, n.d.
Lindley, Harlow, ed. Fort Meigs and the War of 1812, Columbus: Ohio Historical Society, 1975.
Nelson, Larry L., "Dudley's Defeat and the Relief of Fort Meigs during the War of 1812," Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, 2006.
Schooley, Herschel. Centennial History of Audrain County.
Garth's is grateful to Larry Nelson, former site manager at Fort Meigs, and Lou Schultz for their assistance in the preparation of this catalog entry.
Condition report
Descriptions provided in both printed and on-line catalogue formats do not include condition reports. The absence of a condition statement does not imply that the lot is in perfect condition or completely free from wear and tear, imperfections or the effects of aging. Interested bidders are strongly encouraged to request a condition report on any lots upon which they intend to bid, prior to placing a bid. All transactions are governed by our Conditions of Sale.
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Auction details
Early American Antiques & Accessories
11:00 AM PT - May 23rd, 2008
offered by
Garth's Auction Inc.
2690 Stratford Road Box 369
Delaware, OH 43015
Delaware, OH 43015
