INVASION AT BALDOON The origins of the War of 1812 are complicated, and are tied to the American War of Independence (1775-1783) and the ongoing warfare between France and Britain (1803-1814). Other influences were the encroachment of American merchants on British-controlled trade, and British attempts to end that encroachment. Longwoods Road began as a trail through the woods. It was a major route for British and American soldiers in the war of 1812. It is now part of Highway 2. Despite political efforts by President Jefferson in 1807, relationships between Britain and the Franco-American Alliance did not improve. Problems also existed between Canadians and Americans. At the beginning of the 1812 war, the Sydenham River was barely inhabited; there was a village called Baldoon (near present-day Wallaceburg), and one or two farms in Caradoc, but most of the area was wilderness. The war was nearly over when settlers on the Sydenham experienced it firsthand.

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