About this record
After the British defeated the French in 1760, they took possession of French forts throughout Canada. Lt. James Gorrell was sent out to Green Bay in 1761 with a small garrison of British soldiers to occupy Fort La Baye. This is his journal of that assignment, the earliest English account of Wisconsin. Two years later Pontiac successfully organized the western tribes to resist the British, captured Fort Mackinaw in a brilliant sneak attack, and laid siege to Detroit. Surrounded by Indian opponents, Gorrell was forced to evacuate all the way back to Montreal, and Green Bay saw no more British soldiers until the War of 1812.Citation
Gorrell, James. "Lieut. James Gorrell's journal. Commencing at Detroit, September 8th, 1761, and ending at Montreal, August 13th, 1763." Wisconsin Historical Collections, vol. 1 (Madison, 1855): 24-48.