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The original Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort that was built starting in August 1758 and was not completed until 1762. It was not until August 1777 which was when the British siege began under Brigadier General Barry St. Leger. The first maneuvers of the British siege was to divert the spring fed stream that was being used as the source of water for the fort. Occupied by the Continental Army under Colonel Peter Gansevoort, the American soldiers dug temporary wells inside the fort to provide an alternate water supply.
The British gun battery of four cannons and four mortars was located just north of Fort Stanwix, and these relatively small weapons were unable to cause significant damage to the fort.
The British siege was finally broken when American reinforcements under the command of Benedict Arnold closed on the fort, and Arnold used a ruse by providing misinformation to the British in order to convince the besiegers that a much larger force was arriving. This misinformation, combined with the departure of Indian fighters who were not interested in siege warfare caused St. Leger to abandon the effort after just three weeks and retreat.
Fort Stanwix Today
Located in the city of Rome, New York, this wood and earthen star fort has been entirely recreated. In fact, after buying the land, tearing down all the homes and businesses that had been built over the fort, the national park services dug down to find the original fort and excavated it to find over a million artifacts. Then they rebuilt the new fort using the original British plans and the structure was finished by 1978 to become a national monument.
Fort Stanwix Information:
Year Built:
1758 - 1762
Year Closed:
1828
Type Construction:
Wood Stockade
Location:
Coordinates Parking:
43.2105976, -75.4577452
Coordinates Fort:
43.210556, -75.455278
Elevation:
455 feet
Address:
112 South James Street, Rome, New York 13440
Entrance Fee:
None
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