Editing Fort Stanwix

{{Short description|Historic place in Rome, New York, United States}}
{{Infobox NRHP
| name                  = Fort Stanwix
| nrhp_type             = nhl
| nrhp_type2            = nmon
| locmapin              = New York#USA
| image                 = Fost areal image007.jpg
| caption               = Aerial view of the Fort Stanwix reconstruction
| location              = 100 North James St., [[Rome, New York]]
| coordinates           = {{coord|43|12|38|N|75|27|19|W|display=inline,title}}
| area                  = {{cvt|16|acre}}
| built                 = 1758
| designated_nrhp_type  = November 23, 1962<ref>{{cite web |url=http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=35&ResourceType=Building |title=Fort Stanwix |date=13 September 2007 |work=[[National Historic Landmark]] |publisher=[[National Park Service]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110513030106/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=35&ResourceType=Building |archive-date=13 May 2011 |access-date=15 July 2018}}</ref>
| designated_nrhp_type2 = August 21, 1935
| added                 = October 15, 1966<ref>{{NRISref|2007a}}</ref>
| visitation_num        = 84,933
| visitation_year       = 2002
| website               = [https://www.nps.gov/fost Fort Stanwix National Monument]
| refnum                = 66000057
}}'''Fort Stanwix''' was a colonial [[fort]] whose construction commenced on August 26, 1758, under the direction of British General [[John Stanwix]], at the location of present-day [[Rome, New York]], but was not completed until about 1762. The [[bastion fort]] was built to guard a [[portage]] known as the [[Oneida Carry]] during the [[French and Indian War]]. '''Fort Stanwix National Monument''', a reconstructed structure built by the [[National Park Service]], now occupies the site.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.nps.gov/fost | title=Fort Stanwix National Monument (U.S. National Park Service) }}</ref>

Fort Stanwix is historically significant because of its successful defense by American troops during an August 1777 [[Siege of Fort Stanwix|siege]]. The fort had been built by the British in 1758 at a strategic site along the water route from Lake Ontario to the Hudson River. After American forces captured and rebuilt the fort during the [[American Revolutionary War]], they were besieged by a British army that invaded from Canada via Lake Ontario, hoping to reach the Hudson River. The British force abandoned the siege, a consequence that helped lead to the defeat of a larger British army during the [[Saratoga campaign]].

Fort Stanwix was also the site of the [[Treaty of Fort Stanwix|1768 Treaty of Fort Stanwix]] between Britain and Native American tribes, as well as of the  [[Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784)|1784 Treaty of Fort Stanwix]] between the tribes and the American government.

Besides the fort reconstruction itself, the national monument includes three short trails that encircle it, one of which follows a portion of the [[Oneida Carry]].  The [[Marinus Willett]] Collections Management and Education Center preserves the monument's 485,000 artifacts and documents, displays exhibits about Fort Stanwix and the [[Mohawk Valley]], and serves as a regional tourism center.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/archive/fost/expand/willettCenter.htm |title=Willet Center |access-date=2021-09-18 |archive-date=2008-10-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081018095519/http://www.nps.gov/archive/fost/expand/willettCenter.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

==History==
Fort Stanwix was constructed in 1758 to guard a portage, the [[Oneida Carry]], between the main waterway southeastward to the Atlantic seacoast, down the [[Mohawk River|Mohawk]] and [[Hudson River|Hudson]] rivers, and an important interior waterway northwestward to [[Lake Ontario]], down [[Wood Creek]] and [[Oneida Lake]] to [[Oswego, New York|Oswego]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/fost/history/history-sec1.htm |title=I. THE ONEIDA CARRING[sic] PLACE AND ITS EARLY FORTS |website=[[National Park Service]] |access-date=August 30, 2020 |archive-date=August 6, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806015155/https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/fost/history/history-sec1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1768)===
{{main|Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1768)}}
{{unreferenced section|date = September 2019}}
In 1768, Fort Stanwix was the site of [[Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1768)|an important treaty]] conference between the British and the [[Iroquois]], arranged by [[Sir William Johnson, 1st Baronet|William Johnson]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Treaties of Fort Stanwix {{!}} North America [1768 and 1784] {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Treaties-of-Fort-Stanwix |access-date=2023-06-25 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> By the time of this treaty, the fort had become dilapidated and inactive. The purpose of the conference was to renegotiate the boundary line between Native American lands and white settlements set forth in the [[Proclamation of 1763]]. The British government hoped a new boundary line might bring an end to the rampant frontier violence, which had become costly and troublesome. Native Americans hoped a new, permanent line might hold back white colonial expansion.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The final treaty was signed on November 5 and extended the earlier proclamation much further west. The Iroquois had effectively ceded [[Kentucky]] to the whites. However, the tribes who actually used the Kentucky lands, primarily [[Shawnee]], [[Delaware]], and [[Cherokee]], had no role in the negotiations. Rather than secure peace, the Fort Stanwix treaty helped set the stage for the next round of hostilities.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Fort Stanwix was abandoned in 1768 and allowed to go to ruin.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

===Fort Schuyler and the Battle of Oriskany===
{{main|Siege of Fort Stanwix|Battle of Oriskany}}
The fort was reoccupied by Colonial troops under the command of Colonel [[Elias Dayton]] on July 12, 1776. They began reconstruction and renamed it Fort Schuyler, although many continued to call it Fort Stanwix. Colonel [[Peter Gansevoort]] took over command of the fort on May 3, 1777.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

On August 3, 1777, the fort was besieged by [[8th (The King's) Regiment of Foot|The King's 8th Regiment of Foot]], Loyalists, and Native Americans, under the command of Brigadier General [[Barry St. Leger]], as part of a three-pronged [[Saratoga campaign|campaign]] to divide the American colonies. Gansevoort refused the terms of surrender offered by the British, and the siege commenced.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

According to local [[folklore]], when the Colonial troops raised the flag over the fort on August 3, 1777, it was the first time that the [[Flag of the United States]] was flown in battle. It is more likely that the flag flown at Fort Schuyler was one that consisted only of thirteen stripes, an early version of the [[Flag of New York (state)|Flag of New York]], or the [[Continental Union Flag]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nps.gov/fost/historyculture/flag-of-ftstanwix.htm |title=Fort Stanwix National Monument; Red, White, Blue – and Gold |first=Kelly |last=Cardwell |date=26 February 2015 |access-date=15 July 2018 |work=[[National Park Service]] |publisher=[[U.S. Department of the Interior]] |archive-date=14 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141014205516/http://www.nps.gov/fost/historyculture/flag-of-ftstanwix.htm |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Battle of Oriskany]] was fought a few miles away when an American relief column, led by General [[Nicholas Herkimer]], was ambushed by [[Loyalist (American Revolution)|Tories]] and their Native American allies. While many of the besiegers were attending to that battle, the defenders of the fort sallied forth and attacked the enemy camp, looting and destroying enemy stores. Demoralized and reduced in strength, the British withdrew when they heard reports of the approach of yet another relief column, led by General [[Benedict Arnold]]. The British forces withdrew through Canada and joined Burgoyne's campaign at [[Fort Ticonderoga]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The British failure to capture the fort and proceed down the [[Mohawk Valley]] was a severe setback and helped lead to the defeat of General [[John Burgoyne]] at the [[Battle of Saratoga]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

In April 1779, an expedition from Fort Schuyler against the [[Onondaga people]] was begun by the [[Continental Army]] led by Col. [[Goose Van Schaick]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The fort burned to the ground on May 13, 1781, and was not rebuilt.<ref>{{cite book |title=Casemates and Cannonballs. Archaeological Investigations at Fort Stanwix |url=https://archive.org/stream/casematescannonb00hans |last1=Hanson |first1=Lee |last2=Hsu |first2=Dick Ping |year=1975 |pages=196}}</ref>  It was abandoned and the garrison took up quarters at [[Fort Herkimer]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

===Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784)===
{{main|Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784)}}
The [[Treaty of Fort Stanwix (1784)|second Treaty of Fort Stanwix]] was conducted at the fort between the Americans and the Native Americans in 1784. During the [[War of 1812]] a blockhouse was built on the parade ground. Beginning in 1828 the fortifications were dismantled.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

== National monument ==
{{Multiple image|total_width = 500
| image1            = Fost FTST3697.jpg
| caption1          = View of the reconstructed Fort Stanwix around 1980

| image2            = Fost_FTST3700.jpg
| caption2          = Reconstructed drawbridge and curtain wall
}}
President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] signed enabling legislation that created the [[National monument (United States)|national monument]] on August 21, 1935;<ref>{{cite web |last=Kusch |first=Michael |date=31 January 2017 |title=75 Years – Thank You to The People who Refused to Forget: 1935–2010 |url=http://www.nps.gov/fost/historyculture/thank-you-to-the-people-who-refused-to-forget.htm |access-date=15 July 2018 |work=[[National Park Service]] |publisher=[[U.S. Department of the Interior]] |archive-date=6 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220806015156/https://home.nps.gov/fost/learn/historyculture/thank-you-to-the-people-who-refused-to-forget.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> at that time, the land that would ultimately be used for the monument was occupied by the businesses and residences of downtown Rome.  During the 1960s, Rome city leaders lobbied for a fort reconstruction as part of an [[urban renewal]] program to help revitalize downtown Rome.  Under political pressure from Senator [[Robert F. Kennedy]] (D-NY), who was seeking political support in upstate New York, the Park Service reluctantly agreed to build a reconstruction of the Revolutionary War-era fort.<ref name="Zenzen">{{cite book |last=Zenzen |first=Joan M. |title=Fort Stanwix National Monument: reconstructing the past and partnering for the future |publisher=State University of New York Press |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-7914-7433-4 |location=Albany, NY |oclc=163593261 |ref=Zenzen}} See also the 2004 report on which the book is based: {{cite web |last=Zenzen |first=Joan |date=June 2004 |title=Reconstructing the Past, Partnering for the Future: An Administrative History of Fort Stanwix National Monument |url=http://www.nps.gov/archive/fost/expand/adminHistory.htm|url-status=dead |publisher=National Park Service |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070809120746/http://www.nps.gov/archive/fost/expand/adminHistory.htm |archivedate=August 9, 2007 |df=mdy}}</ref>

The Park Service completed a master plan for Fort Stanwix in 1967, and in 1970, the NPS began a three-year archaeological investigation.  Reconstruction of the fort began in 1974, and the partially completed structure was opened to the public in time for the [[United States Bicentennial]] celebration in 1976.<ref>Executive Summary.  Some local residents continued to regret the loss of architecturally interesting buildings that were torn down to make way for the reconstruction.</ref>  The current reconstruction—an earth-and-timber-clad, reinforced concrete structure surrounding three freestanding buildings—was completed in 1978.<ref>Executive Summary.  Some original buildings and features of the historic fort remain unreconstructed.  Reconstructed structures have experienced chronic maintenance problems, including water seepage, rotting wood, and foundation cracks.</ref>

From 1976 until the mid-1990s, the national monument explained the significance of the national monument to visitors using [[first-person interpretation]] to portray the fort immediately after the siege (1777–78), emphasizing life during the American Revolution.  More recently, third-person interpretation has extended visitor understanding to the [[French and Indian War]] as well as the role played by the fort during the negotiation of a series of treaties with Native Americans.<ref>Executive Summary.</ref> A new visitor center was added in 2005. The monument is currently open year around, operated by the National Park Service.{{cn|date=August 2024}}

==See also==
*[[List of national monuments of the United States]]
*[[Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site]]
*[[Sally Ainse]], owner of a deed for the land where Fort Stanwix was located

==Notes==
{{reflist}}

==References==
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20080509195149/http://kings8th.com/ "The King's, or 8th Regiment – Detroit Garrison"]}}
*''Casemates and Cannonballs. Archeological Investigations at Fort Stanwix, Rome, New York'', by Lee Hanson, Dick Ping Hsu
*''Fort Stanwix Construction and Military History'', by John F. Luzader, 2001, {{ISBN|1-888213-53-1}}
*William J. Campbell, ''Speculators in Empire: Iroquoia and The 1768 Treaty of Fort Stanwix'' (University of Oklahoma Press, 2012).

==External links==
{{commons category|Fort Stanwix National Monument|Fort Stanwix}}
*[http://www.nps.gov/fost/index.htm Fort Stanwix National Monument] – NPS
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20090531145432/http://www.nps.gov/history/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/79oriskany/79oriskany.htm ''The Battle of Oriskany: "Blood Shed a Stream Running Down",'' a National Park Service Teaching with Historic Places (TwHP) lesson plan]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S5oCV9t_zqo/ Video showing the fort and several re-enactors] from 2016

{{Protected areas of New York}}
{{Oneida, New York}}
{{National Monuments of the United States}}
{{National Register of Historic Places in New York}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:1758 establishments in the Province of New York]]
[[Category:French and Indian War forts|Stanwix]]
[[Category:American Revolutionary War forts|Stanwix]]
[[Category:Forts in New York (state)|Stanwix]]
[[Category:National Park Service national monuments in New York (state)]]
[[Category:National Historic Landmarks in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Portages in the United States]]
[[Category:Museums in Oneida County, New York]]
[[Category:Military and war museums in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Colonial forts in New York (state)|Stanwix]]
[[Category:British forts in the United States|Stanwix]]
[[Category:Buildings and structures in Oneida County, New York]]
[[Category:American Revolutionary War museums in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Rome, New York]]
[[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Oneida County, New York]]