War of 1812 Wednesday: A Son of the Forest
William Apess, depicted in an 1829 engraving on the frontispiece of his autobiography A Son of the Forest. His name is sometimes spelled "Apes," as in the Internet Archive edition of his book, but his facsimile signature on the cover of a 2014 biography, The Life of William Apess, Pequot is clearly Apess (with long S).
William Apess was a mixed race man in early 19th century America of mostly Pequot heritage, who identified as Pequot, although he had European and African ancestry as well. I have only just discovered him and his writing but I'm fascinated by his short but eventful life, which included organising a massive protest on behalf of the Mashpee Wampanoag people.
He was also a War of 1812 veteran, fighting in the United States Army, and A Son of the Forest is a compelling and very underappreciated narrative of his experiences as an ordinary soldier. There aren't many War of 1812 memoirs from enlisted/other ranks, and the two I see mentioned all the time are A Narrative of a Light Company Soldier's Service by Shadrack Byfield, and Autobiography of Thaddeus Lewis, by Thaddeus Lewis.
Byfield and Lewis published their accounts late in life, and Apess' book is closer to the events of the war. He was only 15 years old when he enlisted, and like Thaddeus Lewis he eventually became a Methodist minister.
Wandering about, I fell in company with a sergeant and a file of men who were enlisting soldiers for the United States army. They thought I would answer their purpose, but how to get me was the thing. Now they began to talk to me, then treated me to some spirits and when that began to operate they told me all about the war, and what a fine thing it was to be a soldier. I was pleased with the idea of being a soldier, took some more liquor and some money, had a cockade fastened on my hat, and was off in high spirits for my uniform.
— A young William Apess enlists in the War of 1812, in A Son of the Forest.
