“After the Battle of Tippecanoe his military ardor was even more increased, and, upon hearing that a speedy declaration of war was forthcoming, he expressed a desire to join the regular army. Recommendatory letters of the most flattering kind were written by Generals Harrison and Boyd to the Secretary of War; at the commencement of hostilities against Great Britain, he was appointed a captain in the Seventeenth Regiment of Infantry. He was in command for some time at Clark Cantonment [Clarksville, Indiana], near the Falls of the Ohio; but after a brief period there he was ordered to march with his few regulars to the headquarters of the Northwestern Army at Detroit. His countenance beamed with delight upon receiving this order. Soon large bodies of militia and volunteers were marching to Detroit; but before they had proceeded far they heard of Hull’s surrender. “Shortly afterwards the command of the Northwestern Army was given to General Harrison. For a short time, Captain Croghan commanded Fort Defiance on the Maumee River; after the defeat of General Winchester, he was ordered to Fort Meigs. His conduct during the unforgettable siege of that fort was handsomely noted in General Harrison’s official report, and afterwards he was promoted to a majority and stationed with his battalion at Upper Sandusky. Late one afternoon information reached him by express of an attack upon Fort Stephenson [Fremont]. The distance between the two places was thirty-six miles, and the road was extremely bad. Because of the pitch darkness he and his men were obliged to lie down in the road and wait for the return of light in order to avoid the risk of losing their way. “He arrived at Fort Ball before sunrise the next morning, having waded waist deep through mud and mire and having been exposed to a heavy rain during the whole night. There he was informed that the report of an attack upon Fort Stephenson was unfounded; after remaining a few days, he proceeded to Fort Stephenson, after receiving orders to take command of that post. He arrived there about the fifteenth of July. “A few days later, Fort Meigs was besieged by large British and Indian forces. No doubt was entertained that the enemy would visit Fort Stephenson; accordingly, Major Croghan labored day and night to place the hastily built fort in a state of readiness. The necessity of cutting a ditch around the fort became apparent to him immediately. In order to foil the enemy if they should succeed in leaping the ditch, which was nine feet wide and six feet deep, he had large logs placed on the tops of the walls. The logs were adjusted so that a slight weight would cause them to fall from their position and crush to death all below. This improvement in the art of fortification took place only a few days before the attack. It is a novel idea and it originated with Croghan.