The 41st Regiment of Foot at the Battle of Lake Erie (Sep. 10, 1813): An Analysis of Casualty Rates 
​By James Yaworsky

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[Extract from] A LIST OF KILLED AND WOUNDED IN HIS MAJESTYS SHIPS AND VESSELS UNDER MENTIONED IN ACTION WITH AN AMERICAN SQUADRON ON LAKE ERIE UPPER CANADA 10th SEPTEMBER 1813.

H.M.S. Detroit

KILLED - 0
WOUNDED - 8

David Green	Private - slightly
James Bolman	Private - severely
William Liversley	Private - severely
William Young	Private - slightly
William Hart	Private - severely
Miles Wermesley	Private - slightly
Patrick Boyle	Private - slightly
Robert Dunamore	Private - slightly

H.M.S. Lady Prevost

KILLED - 0
WOUNDED - 5

David Green	Private - slightly
James Bolman	Private - severely
William Jackson	Private - severely
William Webber	Private - slightly
John Norris (2)	Private - slightly
? Davis	Private - slightly

H.M.S. General Hunter

KILLED - 0
WOUNDED - 1

John Blacker

Private - severely

H.M.S. Queen Charlotte

KILLED - 7

John Linard	Private
Samuel Freath	Private
Cornelius Coackley	Private
James Barter	Private
Thomas Watkins	Private
John Ratcliff	Private
William Boxman	Private

WOUNDED - 8

John Breach	Private - dangerously
William Smith	Private - dangerously
George Wearham	Private - dangerously
John Bucket	Private - severely
John Locket	Private - severely
Edward White	Private - dangerously
Rol. Selway	Private - dangerously
George Staff	Private - severely

Total Casualties in the Squadron

	Killed	Wounded
Officers	3	9
Men	38	85
Total	41	94

(signed) R.H. Barclay
Commander & late Senr.Officer

NOTES:
It appears that the transcription by Knopf contains several typographical errors as well as omissions and/or errors in reading the original documents. I have not seen the original myself. I have included only information pertinent to the 41st.

Total casualties for the 41st amounted to 7 privates killed, 22 wounded. Total casualties for the Royal Newfoundland Regiment were: killed: 16 - 1 Lieutenant, 1 sergeant, 14 privates; wounded: 25 - 3 sergeants, 2 corporals, 20 privates.

A Return of British prisoners of War at Chillicothe Ohio
​Ending on 31 March 1814  lists the following numbers taken captive September 10 1813:

Royal Navy	104
41st Regiment	141
Royal Newfoundland Regiment	65
Indians	65 (!)
Officers of the fleet	17

​Presumably these figures include the wounded.

​The official Morning State Report, 41st Regiment, 5 October 1813, lists "prisoners on board fleet, 10 September, 1813" as:

1 lieutenant
3 sergeants
5 corporals
143 privates (from Lomax's History of the 41st Regiment, P. 88.)

This adds up to 152 members of the Regiment. Adding up the dead (7); plus "officer of the fleet"(presumably the Lieutenant) (1); plus the "rank and file" (141); produces a total of 149. The British and American tallies therefore appear to be off by 3 for the 41st. Or 4 if the Lieutenant shouldn't be included.  Perhaps 3 or 4 of the wounded died between Barclay's report, and the arrival of the prisoners at Chillicothe. This would appear to be the most likely conclusion, given that Regimental records are presumably quite accurate for the number of members detached for duty with the fleet.

But note the Return of Prisoners of War, landed at Camp Portage on the 15th & 16th September, 1813, reproduced below, lists 119 members of the 41st.  Adding on the 22 wounded produces 141 names which tallies with the Chillicothe return.

The other possibilities appear to be:

1. 3 or 4 members of the Regiment were able to escape capture in some way (unlikely);
2. 3 or 4 members of the Regiment in fact never boarded the ships (not as likely as wounded dying);
3. 3 or 4 members were killed in the action, their bodies thrown overboard, then missed in Barclay's report (the most unlikely).

Note that the total of 1 commissioned officer (and only a lieutenant), 3 sergeants, and 5 corporals seems a niggardly provision to supervise 143 privates who were evidently spread over at least the listed 3 of the 5 ships of the fleet.

The Royal Newfoundland Regiment had 16 killed plus 65 prisoner (of whom 25 were wounded) for a total of 81 members present at the battle. Half the members present were casualties -slightly over 50%!  The 41st had 29 casualties out of 152 which translates in to roughly a 20% casualty rate.  Were the Royal Newfoundland soldiers, having a proportion of "sailors" in their ranks, taking on more hazardous duties i.e. stationed in fighting tops, acting as sailors clearing damaged rigging, etc.?  Or was this mere chance?

Figures for the "Royal Navy" apparently include everyone else. Adding the "officers of the fleet" to this total produces 104 + 17; further adding killed of 18 produces a grand total of 139, of whom 18 + 47 were casualties for a total of 65 - once again, running close to the 50% level.

The combined "Royal Navy" and "Royal Newfoundland" casualty rates would suggest that the 41st were acting purely as "marines" - i.e. on ships, but still primarily footsoldiers  - and were perhaps able to shelter somewhat from the cannon fire, or at least were not stationed in as exposed positions as those who had to work the ships were.          

[Extract from] RETURN OF PRISONERS OF WAR, LANDED AT CAMP PORTAGE ON THE 15th & 16th SEPTEMBER 1813.

41st Regiment

No.	Name	Rank
1	Arthur O'Kieffe	Lieutenant
2	Richard Forrestal	Sergeant
3	William Lane	Sergeant
4	Charles Jones	Sergeant
5	George Brooks	Corporal
6	John Rashill	Corporal
7	William Simms	Corporal
8	Joseph ?	Corporal
9	William Matthews	Corporal
10	Patrick Power	Private
12	George Trowbridge[Troubridge]	Private
13	Daniel Dolley[Dolby?]	Private
14	Robert Dollimore	Private
15	Robert Kilmister	Private
16	Patrick Sheehan	Private
17	Joseph Newman	Private
18	Patrick Boyle	Private
19	Charles Jeskins[Perkins?]	Private
20	Peter Tracy	Private
21	William Jones	Private
22	John ?	Private
23	John Hood	Private
24	William ?	Private
25	John Norris	Private
26	Samuel ?	Private
27	Richard G ?	Private
28	Samuel Mumford	Private
29	William ?	Private
30	John Blacker	Private
31	John ?	Private
32	Daniel Price	Private
33	Zachariah Windale	Private
34	William Baxter	Private
35	Robert Tyson	Private
36	William Hooke	Private
37	James Morgan	Private
38	Michael Myers	Private
39	William Mathew	Private
40	John McGrath	Private
41	William Williamson	Private
42	John Watts (?)	Private
43	Jacob Broadway	Private
44	William Sheldon	Private
45	Thomas Jones	Private
46	Thomas Glass	Private
47	Robert Gilchrist	Private
48	James Nowland	Private
49	James Clarke	Private
50	Daniel Enwright	Private
51	John Shields	Private
52	John Bellenger	Private
53	Thomas Steffes	Private
54	Michael Toole	Private
55	Thomas Watson	Private
56	Nathaniel Beasley	Private
57	Charles Cooper	Private
58	James Grist	Private
59	William Pike	Private
60	William Hawley	Private
61	Robert Mullens	Private
62	John Ward (?)	Private
63	Mathew Birtwistle	Private
64	Robert Giles	Private
65	Andrew Connill	Private
66	Thomas Tolboy	Private
67	Benjamin Whitehouse	Private
68	John Hodge	Private
69	Isaac Goddard	Private
70	William Teadon(?)	Private
71	Adam Wild	Private
72	Peter Carrington	Private
73	Henry Hull	Private
74	Robert Smith	Private
75	William Plummer	Private
76	Michael O'Bryan	Private
77	John O'Bryan	Private
78	John White	Private
79	Michael Broyle	Private
80	John Whiteley	Private
81	Francis Beagon	Private
82	Thomas Cooling	Private
83	Miles Wormsley	Private
84	John Farrell	Private
85	Jacob Hall	Private
86	George Taylor	Private
87	James Mullett	Private
88	Thomas Forth	Private
89	John Walter	Private
90	John Rowe	Private
91	Daniel Newport	Private
92	John Stone	Private
93	A(?) Davies	Private
94	James Kemp	Private
95	George Meach	Private
96	Richard Finnimou(?)	Private
97	James Hopkins	Private
98	Benjamin Garlick	Private
99	John Faulkner	Private
100	James Connack (Cormack?)	Private
101	Thomas Ashby	Private
102	John Sumner(?)	Private
103	William Rawlings	Private
104	John Chapman	Private
105	John Browne(?)	Private
106	John Norris	Private
107	John McCreary	Private
108	John Collins	Private
109	Joseph Pimlett(?)	Private
110	Robert Nelson	Private
111	William Thomas	Private
112	Thomas Clancy(Clarey?)	Private
113	Timothy Sullivan	Private
114	George Stagg	Private
115	Hugh (?)	Private
116	William Wesley(?)	Private
117	John Prichard	Private
118	William Levesby	Private

from photostat of original in William L. Clements Library, University of Michigan.

Note the extent to which this list tallies with the Morning State quoted in Lomax: 1 officer, 3 sergeants, 5 corporals,  but only 29 (killed & wounded) + 110 (on this list) = 139 privates, instead of 142 as on the Morning State.

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PRINCIPAL SOURCE:
Document Transcriptions of the War of 1812 in the Northwest Vol. IV, Anecdotes of the Lake Erie Area, War of 1812 

Transcribed from Original Sources by Richard C. Knopf. Published by The Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, Ohio, 1957 (in collection Perry's Victory and International Peace Memorial, Put-In-Bay, Ohio 43456).