The Great Middle Sister Island Leek Hunt of 1813

Middle Sister Island is one of the three sisters, tiny dots of land that sit in the shallow Western Basin of  Lake Erie formed by the Bass Islands, Pelee and a number of others. It has been uninhabited except for seabirds for millennia. A 9.5 acre landmass, it's moment of fame came when General William Henry Harrison's Northwest Army used Middle Sister as a jumping off point for his amphibious landing on the Canadian shore. Apparently, there was a type of leek growing naturally. Here is Sergeant Alfred K Brunson's description of what happened when the soldiers found edible plants growing in their midst:

The army moved from Put-in-Bay, in open boats, accompanied by the shipping that had not been crippled in the battle, unto the middle sister island. Here the troops under General McArthur, from Fort Meigs, met us. That little island was alive with men; said to number fifteen thousand. We had not been long on it before some one discovered leeks, a kind of wild onion; and we having been so long without any vegetable of the root kind, were all eager for something besides bread and meat. As soon as the discovery was made, the news of it spread like wild-fire, and every man that could was scratching and digging with his fingers, scalping-knife, or a stick, and probably in fifteen or twenty minutes the whole island was dug over. I got about have a dozen, which I relished with a zest.

General Duncan McArthur, in command of one of the two brigades of regular infantry regiments assembled on the island, used the time the army spent on Middle Sister to reorganize his men, but also had to contend with soldiers shooting their weapons without orders.

Camp on the Middle Sister Sept. 24 1813
Brigade orders. The troops of my Brigade will be prepared to embark at any moment when called and after the following manner. Each man will take with him his arms one blanket and provisions only the baggage knapsacks and camp equipage and sick of each regt. will be left in tents pitched for that purpose. The women and a suitable number of men as nurses will all be left. A report of the strength present of each company will be immediately handed in to the brigade major.
Signed Duncan McArthur
Brig. Genl. USA

Camp on the Middle Sister Sept. 25 1813
Brigade orders. It is my wish that the companies of the several regts comprising my brigade will be arranged as to from platoons of equal size and strength and for that purpose until further orders Colonel Wells will cause 15 men in Capt Holt’s Company to be attached to the command of Capt. Bradford. Colonel Miller will cause 8 men of Capt. Elliot’s Company to be attached to the command of Capt. Herring and five men from each of Capt. Langham’s and the late Nearing Companies to be attached to Capt. Chunn’s. Also one subaltern from Capt. Herring’s Company to be attached to Lieut. Lee’s who will command the late Capt. Nearing’s Company.
…
From the heads of companies in sections and in order to be prepared to act in that way each company in the camp will by the commandants of the regiments will (illeg.) into two sections and officers stationed to the (illeg.) of each and (illeg.) that no officer or soldier will be (illeg.) either on the march or in incampment from his company or the section to which he may be assigned unless from urgent necessity  and should from any cause the present number of men reported in each company be augmented or diminished the commanding officers of regiments will be careful to have them so arranged as to comply with the intention of the above order. The genl. Cannot help expressing his astonishment at the number of guns which have been fired in violation of orders and that no names have been taken by the officers to punish the offenders. The commandants of regiments will endeavor to ascertain from what vessel flints and ammunition can be procured of which there appears to be a deficiency and have each man supplied with two spare flints and his box filled with cartridges.
Lieut. Sanders is appointed extra aide de camp to Genl. McArthur and as such will be obeyed and respected.
 Signed
By Command
D Gwynne Brig. Aid Maj.

My guess is that soldiers were trying to supplement their diet a bit further by shooting at the local wildlife...