You are approaching the intersection of Main Street, part of the historic Portage Road. Believed to have been an Indigenous trail, it was used to portage around the Falls and Rapids of the Niagara River. As the main north/south road in the area, it was used by both armies during the War of 1812.

In the lead up to the Battle of Lundy's Lane, the British forces were defeated at the Battle of Chippawa, on July 5, 1814 and withdrew to Fort George, pursued by the Americans under General Jacob Brown. Running short of supplies and needing reinforcements, Brown's forces were unable to press their advantage. After burning the Village of St. Davids, they returned along Portage Road to their camp in Chippawa, where obtaining supplies from the American side of the Niagara River was much easier.

Aware of American movements, British troops, under General Phineas Riall, began forming up along Lundy's Lane at its junction with Portage Road on the morning of July 25, 1814. British pickets at Willson's Tavern (south of this spot, near the Falls) were spied by advance American scouts. Shortly after 5 p.m., the American Brigade, under General Winfield Scott, began marching up Portage Road from Chippawa, chasing the British pickets from Willson's Tavern and approaching within half a kilometre (approximately 500 yards) of Lundy's Lane. General Scott began to form his brigade here (numbering slightly more than 1000 men). He sent a messenger to General Brown at Chippawa with the information that British troops were facing him down in force and he was preparing for an attack.

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Niagara Falls Museums - Niagara Falls Public Library - Dept. of Geography and Tourism Studies,Brock University.

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