 Fort Wellington served as the rallying point for the local militia, and in early 1813 was also a base of operations for members of the Glengarry Light Infantry under the command of Lieutenant Colonel George Macdonell.On February 22, 1813, Macdonell led the approximately 500 men under his command in a drill exercise on the frozen St. Lawrence River.The British troops then streamed across the frozen river to attack the town of Ogdensburg, where they destroyed the military barracks and four American ships frozen in the ice, and returned to Prescott with significant amounts of food, ammunition, cannon and prisoners.