Citizendia

Colonial Niagara Historic District
(U.S. National Historic Landmark)
View of Fort Niagara from the Ontario side of the Niagara River
View of Fort Niagara from the Ontario side of the Niagara River
Location:Youngstown, NY
Nearest city:Niagara Falls
Coordinates:43°15′42″N 79°03′49″W / 43.26167, -79.06361Coordinates: 43°15′42″N 79°03′49″W / 43.26167, -79.06361
Area:250 acres (1 km²)
Built/Founded:1726
Designated as NHL:October 9, 1960[1]
Added to NRHP:October 15, 1966 [2]
NRHP Reference#:66000556
Governing body:New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation

Fort Niagara is a fortification originally built to protect the interests of New France in North America. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the A National Historic Landmark (NHL is a Building, site, Structure, Object, or District, that is officially recognized by the Youngstown is a Village in Niagara County, New York, USA. The population was 1957 at the 2000 census New York ( is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous Niagara Falls is a City in Niagara County, New York, United States. A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system. A National Historic Landmark (NHL is a Building, site, Structure, Object, or District, that is officially recognized by the Events 768 - Carloman I and Charlemagne are crowned Kings of The Franks. Year 1960 ( MCMLX) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP is the United States government's official list of districts sites buildings structures and objects deemed worthy of Events 533 - Byzantine General Belisarius makes his formal entry into Carthage, having conquered it from the Year 1966 ( MCMLXVI) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. The New York State Office of Parks Recreation and Historic Preservation operates (as of 2004) 168 State parks 35 state Historic The Viceroyalty of New France (Nouvelle-France was the area colonized by France in North America during a period extending from the exploration of the It is located near Youngstown, New York on the eastern bank of the Niagara River at its mouth, on Lake Ontario. Youngstown is a Village in Niagara County, New York, USA. The population was 1957 at the 2000 census The Niagara River flows to the north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle built the first structure, called Fort Conti, in 1678. René Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle, or Robert de LaSalle ( November 22, 1643 &ndash March 19, 1687) was a French Fort Conti, built in early 1679 at the mouth of the Niagara River and Lake Ontario as a post for the French explorer René-Robert Cavelier Sieur de La Salle In 1687, the Governor of New France, the Marquis de Denonville, constructed a new fort at the former site of Fort Conti. Jacques-Rene de Brisay de Denonville Marquis de Denonville ( 10 December 1637 &ndash 22 September 1710) was Governor of New France He named it Fort Denonville and posted a hundred men under the command of Capt. Fort Denonville, built in 1687 at the current site of Fort Niagara, and replaced Fort Conti on the mouth of the Niagara River and the shore of Lake Pierre de Troyes, Chevalier de Troyes. Pierre de Troyes, Chevalier de Troyes ( D. 8 May 1688) a captain in the French army arrived at Quebec in August 1685 with reinforcements for The winter weather and disease decimated the men and all but twelve perished by the time a relief force returned from Montreal. Montreal, or Montréal in French ( pronounced in French, in English) is the largest city in the Canadian province of Quebec It was decided in September of 1688 to abandon the post and the stockade was pulled down. In 1726, a two story "Maison a Machicoulis" or "Machicolated House" was constructed on the same site by French engineer Gaspard-Joseph Chaussegros de Lery. It was called the "House of Peace" or trading post to appease the Hodenosaunee, or Iroquois. A trading post is a place where the trading of goods takes place The Iroquois Confederacy (also known as the "League of Peace and Power" the "Five Nations" the "Six Nations" or the "People of the Longhouse The Iroquois Confederacy (also known as the "League of Peace and Power" the "Five Nations" the "Six Nations" or the "People of the Longhouse The name used today, "The French Castle" was not used until the 19th Century. The fort was expanded to its present size in 1755 due to increased tensions between French and British colonial interests.

The fort played a significant part in the French and Indian War, and fell to the British in a nineteen day siege in July 1759, called the Battle of Fort Niagara. The French and Indian War (1754&ndash1763 was the North American chapter of the Seven Years' War. The Kingdom of Great Britain, also known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain, was a State in northwest Europe, in existence from 1707 to 1800 The Battle of Fort Niagara was one of the final battles in the French and Indian War, the North American theatre of the Seven Years' War. The French relief force sent for the besieged garrison was ambushed at the Battle of La Belle-Famille, and the commander of the post, Pierre Pouchot, surrendered the fort to the British commander, Sir William Johnson, who initially led the New York Militia. The Battle of La Belle-Famille occurred on July 24, 1759 during the French and Indian War near the portage of the Niagara river when a French relief force Captain Pierre Pouchot ( April 8, 1712 – 1769 was a French military engineer and officer in the French regular army Sir William Johnson 1st Baronet (1715 &ndash 11 July 1774) founder of Johnstown, New York, was an Irish pioneer and army The Irish-born Johnson was not the original commander of the expedition, but became its leader when General Prideaux literally lost his head, stepping in front of a mortar being test-fired during the siege. The fort remained in British hands for the next thirty-seven years.

Fort Niagara served as the Loyalist base in New York during the American Revolutionary War for Colonel John Butler and his Butler's Rangers. For other people named John Butler see the John Butler disambiguation page Butler's Rangers (1777–1784 was a British provincial regiment composed of Loyalists (or "Tories" in the American Revolutionary War, raised by Loyalist A Tory militia in the command of the British Army. Lt. Col. William Stacy, a high-ranking officer of the Continental Army, was captured at the attack on Cherry Valley, New York by Butler's Rangers. William Stacy (February 15 1734 – August 1802 was an officer of the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War, and a pioneer to the Ohio The American Continental Army was an Army formed after the outbreak of the American Revolutionary War by the colonies that became the United States of America Aftermath Butler purchased the captured officers from the Indians and arranged for some of the women and children prisoners to be freed He was held captive at Fort Niagara during the summer of 1779. [3] Niagara become notorious for drinking, brawling, whoring, and cheating. Crude taverns, stores, and bordellos sprouted on "the Bottom", the riverside flat below the fort. [4]

"The French Castle"
"The French Castle"

Though Fort Niagara was ceded to the United States after the Treaty of Paris ended the American War of Independence in 1783, the region remained effectively under British control for thirteen years. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The Treaty of Paris, signed on September 3, 1783, and approved by the Congress of the Confederation on January 14, 1784, formally In this article the inhabitants of the thirteen colonies that supported the American Revolution are primarily referred to as "Americans" with occasional references to "Patriots" Only after signing of the Jay Treaty did American forces occupy the fort in 1796. The Jay Treaty, also known as the Treaty of London of 1794, between the United States and Great Britain averted war solved many issues left over from In the interim, United Empire Loyalists fleeing persecution in the new USA were given land grants, typically two hundred acres per, in Upper Canada and some were sustained in the early years partly by aid from the military stores of the fort. The name United Empire Loyalists is a honorific name which has been given after the fact to those American Loyalists who resettled in British North America and other The Province of Upper Canada (French Province du Haut-Canada) was a British colony located in what is now the southern portion of the Province of Ontario The British captured Fort Niagara during the War of 1812, on the night of December 19, 1813. The War of 1812 was fought between the United States of America and the British Empire, particularly Great Britain and her North American colonies British forces relinquished it to the United States with the Treaty of Ghent. The Treaty of Ghent ( signed on December 24 1814, in Ghent, currently in Belgium, was the peace treaty that ended the War of 1812 It has remained in US custody ever since.

The name "Old Fort Niagara" which is associated with the fort today does not refer to its age but to distinguish the colonial-era fortress from its more modern namesake. The post-Civil War era saw the building of "New Fort Niagara" outside the original walls of the fort. Following the Civil War, masonry forts were abandoned for the style of military camp we now know (masonry fared poorly under bombardment). The newer Fort Niagara contained a thousand-yard rifle range, access to rail lines, and access to large industrial areas (Niagara Falls and Buffalo). Fort Niagara was used to train troops for the Spanish-American War and World War I, and during World War II as an induction center and later a POW camp for 1,200 German soldiers of Rommel's famous Afrika Korps. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. The German Afrikakorps ( German: Deutsches Afrikakorps DAK) was the original German blocking force (Sperrverband = Armored Blocking Force in Libya After WWII, the fort served as emergency housing for returning veterans. During the Korean War, the fort was used as for the headquarters for anti-aircraft artillery and later Nike missiles. The Korean War refers to a period of military conflict between North Korean and South Korean regimes with major hostilities lasting from June 25 1950 until the The US Army officially deactivated Fort Niagara in 1963. Military presence on the site continues with the United States Coast Guard still operating at "The Bottoms" making Fort Niagara one of the longest continuously run military bases in the United States, 1726-presentday.

Reenactors dressed in British 1812 uniforms at Old Fort Niagara
Reenactors dressed in British 1812 uniforms at Old Fort Niagara

In 1931 after nine years of lobbying for repairs and preservation by local citizens a formal operating license between Old Fort Niagara Association and the U. S. War Department establishes rights to preserve and operate the fort. In 1960 the fort was among the first sites designated as National Historic Landmarks. A National Historic Landmark (NHL is a Building, site, Structure, Object, or District, that is officially recognized by the [5] [1][6]

Fort Niagara has been renovated and now serves as Fort Niagara State park and museum. Fort Niagara State Park is located in the Town of Porter in Niagara County New York, USA The restored fort is the scene of frequent historical reenactments of 18th century battles that took place on the site, as well as period dances, fundraisers and other special events. The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system Fort Niagara is a State Historic Site.

Contents

See also

Footnotes

  1. ^ a b Colonial Niagara Historic District. This is a list for articles on notable historic Forts which may or may not be under current active use by a military Fort Mississauga National Historic Site is a fort along the shore of Lake Ontario, not far from the Niagara River in Niagara-on-the-Lake Ontario. Ontario (ɒnˈtɛrioʊ is a province located in the central part of Canada, the largest by population and second largest after Quebec The Niagara River flows to the north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. For other uses see Fort George Fort George National Historic Site is a historic military structure at Fort Erie National Historic Site was the first British fort to be constructed as part of a network developed after the Seven Years' War (or in the United States National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service (2007-09-12). Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 1213 - Albigensian Crusade: Simon de Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester, defeats Peter II of Aragon at the
  2. ^ National Register Information System. National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service (2007-01-23). Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Events 393 - Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor
  3. ^ Campbell, William W. : Annals of Tyron County; or, the Border Warfare of New-York during the Revolution, J. & J. Harper, New York (1831) pp. 110–11, 182.
  4. ^ Taylor, pg. 102
  5. ^ National Park Service; National Historic Landmark Survey, New York; retrieved June 6, 2007. The National Park Service ( NPS) is the United States federal agency that manages all National Parks, many National Monuments, and other conservation
  6. ^ John H. Conlin (1986), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: Fort NiagaraPDF (5. 07 MiB), National Park Service  and Accompanying 23 photos, exteriors and interiors.PDF (1. A mebibyte (a contraction of me ga bi nary byte) is a unit of Information or Computer storage, abbreviated MiB. 95 MiB)

References

Taylor, Alan, The Divided Ground, 2006, ISBN 0-679-45471-3

External links

A geographic coordinate system enables every location on the Earth to be specified in three coordinates using mainly a spherical coordinate system.
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