On December 30, 1813, during the War of 1812, British troops and Indigenous allies crossed the Niagara River and attacked Buffalo, New York. The raid was a retaliation for an earlier American burning of the Canadian town of Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake). Most of Buffalo and nearby Black Rock were set on fire, leaving residents homeless in winter conditions. The destruction shocked Americans and underscored the vulnerability of frontier communities during the conflict. In the aftermath, the burning of Buffalo encouraged calls for stronger defenses along the border. The town later rebuilt and grew into a major city in western New York.
