Presque Isle State Park Favorites

Favorite thing: Two phrases which have found a permanent place in the American verancular originated on the waters of Lake Erie during the War of 1812. "We have met the enemy and they are ours," was part of a message sent by Commodore Oliver Hazzard Perry in Sept, 1813, back to General William Henry Harrison on the mainland.

"Don't Give Up the Ship" was an order shouted by Perry's friend, Captain James Lawrence, during a battle a few months before the more famous Battle of Lake Erie. Perry honored his friend by having the slogan sewn onto his personal battle flag, and it became a rallying cry throughout the war of 1812, and even to this day.

The flags pictured are replicas of Perry's battle flag, and also the United States flag as it appeared in 1812. There are 15 stars and 15 stripes, one for each of the 13 original states, plus the new states of Vermont and Kentucky, the total number in the nation at that time. In later years a new star has continued to be added as each new state entered the union, but the number of stripes was reverted back to 13, for the original colonies.