A Battlefield Relic, the “John Tansel” Powder Horn ©

Foreword: A signed “John Tansel” powder horn has a period label describing it as a War of 1812 battlefield relic from the Battle of River Raisin [Frenchtown] in Michigan fought in early 1813. The battle was a devastating defeat for the American forces comprised heavily of Kentuckians, and “Remember the Raisin” became their battle cry for the rest of the war. The Kentucky-made “John Tansel” powder horn seems appropriate for a relic from a defeated army of mostly Kentuckians, but it raises an awkward question: How could a well-carved John Tansel powder horn be on an 1813 battlefield, when he was only twelve years old at the time? The answer helps explain not only the “John Tansel” battlefield relic horn, but several other Tansel powder horns of uncertain vintage. 

The Powder Horn: The River Raisin battlefield horn is signed in large script “John Tansel” within its decorative carving. The carving is unmistakably John Tansel’s work based on his eagle with fringe on its lower leg joints, a snake in its beak, overhead banner with turned ends, awkward backward-flowing antlers on the deer, and dorsal fin on the flying fish. The large border scallops and eagle with droopy wings indicate a date of about 1820 based on the evolution of John’s carving style. However, a period label glued over the butt plug reads: “In the Year 1812 John Tansel’s Horn Taken at the Battle of River Raisin with Vice Pres. R. M. Johnson and his brother James Johnson & Speed Smith & General Wm. H. Harrison.” The name “John Tansel” was scratched out on the label many years ago, but enough remains to decipher his name. The label appears to have several errors, but within those errors are the clues to understanding the horn’s history. 

Figure No.1: The front of the “John Tansel” inscribed powder horn has his name to the left of his typical ca.1820 eagle. The well-carved Tansel horn has two odd details, a flat butt plug and a slender spout with a faceted tip that lacks a raised ring for strap attachment.

Figure No.2: The back of the “John Tansel” powder horn clearly shows its well-carved fish-mouth with finely engrailed edges. The large basal and smaller fish-mouth scalloped borders, large star surrounded by smaller stars, and large dog are common features on his ca. 1820 horns.

Battlefield Relics: In the fall of 1813 General William H. Harrison’s army left Ft. Meigs, Ohio, and moved toward Canada and the Battle of Thames. Among Harrison’s troops was a regiment of mounted Kentuckians commanded by Col. Richard M. Johnson. During the march, Col. Johnson led his troops to Frenchtown and on September 27, 1813, “liberated” what was left of the battle-scared, burned-out little village. About eight months earlier, it had been at the center of the Battle of River Raisin, where the victorious British and their Native American allies had left the American dead unburied on the battlefield, fodder for wolves and vultures. Johnson’s troops collected and buried the remains, most of which were bones. During that time, numerous battlefield relics were picked up by Johnson’s troops to serve as mementos and motivation for Kentuckians during the rest of the war. The “John Tansel” powder horn was one of those battlefield relics that fueled an intense desire for revenge in most Kentuckians.

The Horn Body: The “John Tansel” powder horn’s flat butt plug differs from most Kentucky era Tansel plugs that are lathe-turned, high-domed, end-grain walnut plugs. The slim spout also differs from Tansel work with its lack of a raised ring for strap attachment and its odd, faceted tip. Those discrepancies raise questions about the horn that need answers.
     The horn was a true River Raisin battlefield relic collected in September of 1813 (sic) as noted on its paper label. But when found, it was not a Tansel horn. Rather, it was a plain horn without a “fish-mouth” separating its body and spout, no decorative carving, and had been made by someone other than a Tansel. Some years later in about 1820, the owner of the relic horn took it to John Tansel in Scott County, Kentucky, to have it decorated, perhaps to make it a more noteworthy battlefield memento and more honored family heirloom. Today’s collectors often don’t think about plain, functional horns being taken to the Tansels for decorating by their owners [Ft. Meigs horns are the best examples]. When a Tansel horn has an odd plug, odd spout, etc., it may have been a pre-existing horn the Tansels carved sometime later. The “John Tansel” horn was one of those horns. It had enough wall thickness to add the traditional Tansel fish-mouth detail, but its slender spout with faceted tip was too narrow to carve a raised bead for strap attachment, so it remained as-is along with the flat plug. Ongoing Tansel research has helped us understand how Francis and John [and Stark and Timothy to a lesser degree] progressed artistically over their carving years, allowing reasonable dates to be applied to many of their undated horns. Based on John’s progression, the relic horn can be dated to about 1820 +/- 1 year. In this case, the horn was made sometime before the Battle of River Raisin in 1813, and the carving was added at least seven or eight years later.

Figure No.3: The spout on the “John Tansel” horn is unusual for its lack of a carved raised ring for strap attachment, a detail almost universal on Tansel horns. The applied faceted tip is also a non-standard detail for a Tansel horn. When odd details appear, it suggests the horn may have been made elsewhere and taken to the Tansels for carving.

Figure No.4: The “John Tansel” signature on the “relic” horn is big and bold, making a strong statement about who carved the horn. The neatly formed, large basal scallops with smaller scallops decorating their edges is often seen on John Tansel’s work from around 1820 plus/minus a year or two.

Deciphering the Label: The old, faded label on the relic horn reads, “In the Year 1812 John Tansel’s Horn Taken at the Battle of River Raisin with Vice Pres. R. M. Johnson and his brother James Johnson & Speed Smith & General Wm. H. Harrison.” The label claims the horn belonged to “John Tansel.” Today we know that is not true; he was the later carver and/or decorator of the horn, not the horn’s owner who lost it at River Raisin. The horn was already carved with John Tansel’s name on it when the label was filled out, causing the label-maker to think John was the owner. Therefor the label was made sometime after he decorated the horn in 1820. There is also a questionable date of “1812” on the label. The original owner of the relic horn was undoubtedly a Kentuckian in Col. Richard M. Johnson’s command and acutely aware of when the Battle of River Raisin took place [1813] and when Harrison’s troop re-visited the field to bury the dead. The “1812” date strongly suggests the label was applied by a later relative of the relic’s first owner who changed the date one year, knowing it was from the War of 1812, but not being fully aware of the 1813 date of the Battle of River Raisin. Sometime later the name “John Tansel” was scratched off the label, probably when the relative realized John Tansel was a local horn carver and not the horn’s owner back in 1812 or 1813.   

Figure No.5: The wood butt plug on the “John Tansel” horn is flat. The Tansels made a few flat butt plugs out of thick horn that were chimed into the horn’s bell, but they seldom made flat, exposed wood plugs. Of major importance is the old label on the plug’s surface. The label provides a partial provenance for the powder horn and connects it to the Battle of River Raisin in 1813. The lighter area on the label is where the name “John Tansel” was later partially removed from the label.

Summary: The “John Tansel” powder horn is a true relic of the River Raisin battlefield, but its history isn’t as obvious as it might seem. At times Tansel horns are found with non-standard features such as odd butt plugs and/or spouts, or the horn body looks like a known type of powder horn [non-Tansel] such as a Philadelphia screw tip or other eastern form. Collectors need to remember that plain powder horns were at times taken to the Tansels for decorating. Such horns may have been battlefield pick-ups like the “John Tansel” horn, perhaps a Kentucky soldier’s powder horn decorated by Francis Tansel during [or soon after] the War of 1812, or simply a neighbor wanting to up-grade his plain horn. Several War of 1812 era horns with Francis Tansel’s carving look like Philadelphia screw tip horns and may have been pre-existing horns [perhaps additional River Raisin pick-ups by Kentucky troops] taken to him for decorating. A final thought to keep in mind: If a Tansel powder horn’s body appears to be significantly different from the normal Tansel body, it may have been a pre-existing horn decorated by one of the Tansels. It is still a Tansel horn, but its horn body was made by someone else.