Wasaga Under Siege - The Story of the Nancy
Note that this information is outdated.
On July 24, 25 and 26 come to Nancy Island and relive an exciting historical reenactment; The War of 1812.
The story of the Nancy, a Schooner which sailed the Upper Great Lakes as a private cargo vessel is important to Wasaga Beach. During the war of 1812, the Nancy was pressed into service as a British supply ship. While performing this duty in August 1814, the schooner was sailed up the Nottawasaga River to hide from three American ships patrolling the area. The American ships, the Niagara, Tigress and Scorpion had a large force of men and firepower that proved to be too much for the vulnerable Nancy and her crew. The American ships were anchored in the Bay and proceeded to pound the Nancy across the strip of land, which separated the river from the bay. The Captain of the Nancy, Lieutenant Worsley, decided that the situation was hopeless and decided to scuttle the ship rather than let her and her valuable supplies fall into enemy hands. Before Lt. Worsley and his men could blow up the Nancy, there was a direct hit and she caught on fire and sank.
Worsley and his crew escaped into the woods and at night managed to slip around the guarding ships moored in the bay and rowed over 350 miles to warn the British at Fort Michilimackinac. Those guarding ships, the Tigress & the Scorpion were later captured by the British and renamed.
The sunken hull of the Nancy formed an obstruction in the river and eventually an island was established by the accumulation of silt. The remains of the hull now rest in a museum on the island to mark the site of the Nancys final resting place. For more information on the Park, please go to http://www.wasagabeachpark.com/.
The Grand Encampment at Nancy Island Historic Site features over 400 re-enactors opening their living history encampments to the public along with 19th century merchants, musket and cannon demonstrations, period artisans & demonstrators, roaming entertainers, live musical entertainment all day and much more. Come out and view the activiities and battles all weekend. For a full list of activities and events, please go to www.wasagaundersiege1812.com | | |