British and American leaders placed great importance on gaining control of the Great Lakes and the St. Lawrence River because of the difficulties of land-based communication. The British already had a small squadron of warships on Lake Ontario when the war began, and they had the initial advantage, so the Americans established a Navy yard at Sackett's Harbor, New York. Commodore Isaac Chauncey took charge of the large number of sailors and shipwrights sent there from New York, and they completed a warship in a mere 45 days. Ultimately, almost 3,000 men worked at the shipyard, building 11 warships and many smaller boats and transports. Having regained the advantage by their rapid building program, Chauncey and Dearborn attacked York on April 27, 1813, the capital of Upper Canada.On May 25, 1813, the American Lake Ontario squadron and Fort Niagara began bombarding Fort George.[96] An American amphibious force assaulted Fort George on the northern end of the Niagara River on May 27 and captured it without serious losses.[97] The British also abandoned Fort Erie and headed towards the Burlington Heights.[97] The British position was on the verge of collapse in Upper Canada; the Iroquois Indians considered changing sides and ignored a British appeal to come to their aid.[97] The Americans did not pursue the retreating British forces, however, until they had largely escaped and organized a counter-offensive at the Battle of Stoney Creek on June 5. The British launched a surprise attack at Stoney Creek at 2 a.m., leading to much confused fighting[97] and a strategic British victory, as the Americans pulled back to Forty Mile Creek rather than continuing their advance into Upper Canada.[97] At this point, the Indians living on the Grand River began to come out to fight for the British as an American victory no longer seemed inevitable.[97] The Iroquis ambushed an American patrol at Forty Mile Creek, while the Royal Navy squadron based in Kingston came to bombard the American camp, and General Dearborn retreated to Fort George, mistakenly believing that he was outnumbered and outgunned.[98] British Brigadier General John Vincent was encouraged by the fact that more and more Indians were now arriving to assist him, providing about 800 additional men.[98] Laura Secord providing advance warning to James FitzGibbon which led to a British-Indian victory at the Battle of Beaver Dams, June 1813 An American force surrendered on June 24 to a smaller British force due to advance warning by Laura Secord at the Battle of Beaver Dams, marking the end of the American offensive into Upper Canada.[98] British Major General Francis de Rottenberg did not have the strength to retake Fort George, so he instituted a blockade, hoping to starve the Americans into surrender.[99] Meanwhile, Commodore James Lucas Yeo had taken charge of the British ships on the lake and mounted a counterattack, which the Americans repulsed at the Battle of Sackett's Harbor. Thereafter, Chauncey and Yeo's squadrons fought two indecisive actions, neither commander seeking a fight to the finish. Late in 1813, the Americans abandoned the Canadian territory that they occupied around Fort George. They set fire to the village of Newark (now Niagara-on-the-Lake) on December 10, 1813, incensing the Canadians and politicians in control. Many of the inhabitants were left without shelter, freezing to death in the snow. This led to British retaliation following the Capture of Fort Niagara on December 18, 1813. The British and their Indian allies stormed the neighbouring town of Lewiston, New York on December 19, torching homes and killing about a dozen civilians. The British were pursuing the surviving residents when a small force of Tuscarora Indians intervened, buying enough time for the civilians to escape to safer ground.[100][101] The British attacked and burned Buffalo on December 30, 1813.