Chasing Oliver Hazard Perry

Book excerpt: Chasing Oliver Hazard Perry chronicles Craig Heimbuch's journey through time and place in hopes of bringing to life a history that has haunted him since he was young the story of Oliver Perry and the War of 1812. In the spirit of Tony Horwitz, Heimbuch travels to the battlefields, talks to historians, re-enactors, and fellow travelers to create a book that is funny, moving, and very informative. Perry's story and legacy have stuck with Heimbuch through his entire life. He was just a boy when he first stood at the base of the Perry Monument at Put-in-Bay and listened to his father tell the story of how Perry scribbled on a scrap of paper a report to the American general laying siege to Fort Detroit his famous line, We have met the enemy, and they are ours.