Location: 112 E. Park St. Rome, NY Map
Area: 16 acres (6.5 ha)
Constructed: 1758
Fort Stanwix is a historic military stronghold located in Rome, New York in USA. This star shaped Fort Stanwix covers an area of 16 acres (6.5 ha). Fort Stanwix was constructed in 1758- 62 by the British Armies to defend Royal possessions in the New World. The fort defended an old portage used during the Seven Years' War. The fort was not completed until 1762 and was abandoned in 1768. That year, it hosted the signing of an important treaty between the British and the Amerindian Iroquois (Treaty of Fort Stanwix) before being abandoned. This treaty redefined with the Indians the frontier to which European settlers could venture.
In 1768, Fort Stanwix was the site of the Treaty of Fort Stanwix
conference between the British and the Iroquois, arranged by
William Johnson. The purpose of the conference was to
renegotiate the boundary line between Indians and white settlers
proclaimed in the 1763 Royal Proclamation. The British
government hoped that a new border line would bring an end to
rampant violence in the border areas, which had become costly
and worrying. The Indians hoped that a new, permanent frontier
would hold back white colonial expansion.
The final
treaty was signed on November 5th and extended the previously
proclaimed frontier line much farther west. The Iroquois had
effectively left Kentucky to the whites. However, the Indians
who actually lived in Kentucky, Shawnee, Delaware and Cherokee
played no part in the negotiations. Rather than securing peace,
the Treaty of Fort Stanwix set the scene for the next acts of
war.
Fort Schuyler
During the American Revolutionary
War, the abandoned Fort Stanwix was rebuilt by American forces
and named Fort Schuyler after Army Major General Philip
Schuyler. But after several forts bore this name, it often
stayed with Fort Stanwix to distinguish it. In 1777 the fort was
attacked by British forces under General Barry St. Leger as part
of the three-armed Saratoga campaign to split American forces in
New York. The fort commander, Colonel Peter Gansevoort, refused
the British terms of surrender and a 21-day siege began.
An American relief column under General Nicholas Herkimer
attempting to come to the aid of the besieged fort was ambushed
by British troops, Loyalists and Indian allies at the Battle of
Oriskany. Because many of the besiegers took part in the battle,
the besieged sallied out, attacking the enemy's camp and
plundering and destroying their supplies. Demoralized and
weakened in numbers, the British retreated to Canada after
hearing (false) rumors that more relief troops under General
Benedict Arnold were on the way. The fort was the only one in
the original 13 states of the United States that the British
were never able to capture. The failure of the British to
capture the fort and then advance further through the Mohawk
Valley was a serious setback and contributed to General John
Burgoyne's defeat at the Battle of Saratoga.
In 1781 the
fort was abandoned again because of its remote location far from
the settlement areas and quickly fell into disrepair. In 1784,
the Americans and the six peoples of the Iroquois made a treaty
at the ruins of Fort Stanwix. With him, the Indians were
recognized as allies of the United States and were largely
guaranteed their traditional habitats. For this they dissolved
their coalition and ended the guerrilla war against the white
settlers southeast of the Appalachia. The claims from the treaty
to land and independence were no longer recognized by the state
of New York just a few years later. The Oneida, one of the six
peoples, have been conducting a process for around 100,000
hectares of traditional land since the early 21st century.
In 1817, the Erie Canal opened, replacing the old waterway
and portage at Fort Stanwix.
The site of the former Fort Stanwix was designated a national
monument as early as 1935 and was recognized as a national historic
landmark in November 1962. It was listed on the National Register of
Historic Places in October 1966.
For the United States
Bicentennial celebrations in 1976, the fort was reconstructed at the
original site. The areas were acquired from various private owners as
part of a large-scale urban renewal program. Some of the construction
work was carried out using historical methods. The city of Rome turned
to tourism as a new source of income because in 1964 its largest
employer, a base of the U.S. Air Force, had been closed.
Today,
the fort regularly hosts reenactment events that recreate different eras
of the 18th century.