Fort George, Ontario facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Fort George |
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Blockhouses inside the fort
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| Location | 51 Queen's Parade, Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada |
| Built | 1796–1799 |
| Original use | Military fortification |
| Rebuilt | 1937–1939 |
| Restored by | Niagara Parks Commission |
| Current use | Museum |
| Visitors | ~55,000 (in 2007) |
| Owner | Parks Canada |
| Official name: Fort George National Historic Site of Canada | |
| Designated | 21 May 1921 |
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Fort George was an important military fort in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario, Canada. It was used by the British Army, Canadian soldiers, and for a short time, by the United States Army. The fort was mostly destroyed during the War of 1812. Today, the site is a National Historic Site of Canada since 1921. You can visit a rebuilt version of Fort George there.
The British built Fort George in the 1790s. It was meant to replace Fort Niagara, which was across the river. In May 1813, during the Battle of Fort George, many of its buildings were destroyed. American forces then took over the fort for seven months. They left in December 1813. The British got the fort back, but they didn't rebuild it much. This was because they captured Fort Niagara soon after.
Fort George wasn't designed very well for wartime. So, Fort Mississauga replaced it in the 1820s. However, the military still used the Fort George grounds until the end of the First World War. In the late 1930s, the Niagara Parks Commission rebuilt Fort George. The site opened in 1940. Since 1969, Parks Canada has managed it as a historic site and a living museum.
The fort has an unusual shape with six bastions (parts of the fort that stick out). It also has several rebuilt buildings inside. The only original building still standing is the gunpowder magazine. Fort George is part of the Fort George National Historic Site. This site also includes Navy Hall to the east. The historic site helps people learn about the War of 1812, military life in the 1800s, and how historic places were saved in the 1930s.
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Why Was Fort George Built?
The idea for a fort here first came from Gother Mann of the Royal Engineers. It was planned as a second fort to help defend Fort Niagara if it was attacked. Fort George was also made large because it was meant to store supplies. It wasn't designed to protect the river mouth or the nearby town.
After the Jay Treaty was signed, British forces had to leave U.S. territory. This included their fort at Fort Niagara. In 1791, land was set aside to build new forts. This land was on high ground next to Navy Hall in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The Royal Engineers chose this spot. It was about 4.3 meters (14 feet) higher than Fort Niagara.
Fort George's Story
Even though land was set aside, the British Army didn't start building Fort George until 1796. This was after the Jay Treaty was signed. Fort George was finished in the same year. It had a blockhouse (a strong building), a stone gunpowder magazine, and two small warehouses. To gain an advantage, American forces built a battery (a place for cannons) across the river. The British built a half-moon battery to counter this. The Royal Canadian Volunteers mostly manned Fort George.
However, tensions with First Nations and the U.S. grew in the late 1790s. This made the British strengthen their forts, including Fort George. Six earthen and log bastions were built around the fort. These were connected by a 3.7-meter (12-foot) wooden palisade (a fence of strong posts) and surrounded by a ditch. By the early 1800s, the fort had five log blockhouses, a hospital, kitchens, workshops, and officers' quarters. The Royal Canadian Volunteers built most of the original fort. This unit was later disbanded in 1802.
By 1812, the fort was the main base for the British Army's central division. It was also a supply center for the British Indian Department. Major-General Isaac Brock thought Fort George was too big to defend with his soldiers. He planned to make the fort smaller by a third. He wanted to abandon the southern bastions and the stone gunpowder magazine. He would build new palisades to cut off these parts.
Fort George During the War of 1812
Soon after the U.S. declared war, soldiers from the York Militia worked on the northeast bastion. During the war, British Army regulars, Canadian militia (including the Captain Runchey's Company of Coloured Men), and First Nation allies manned the fort.
Because it was so close to the Canada–United States border, Fort George was involved in many battles during the War of 1812. In October 1812, American forces in Fort Niagara fired heated shots at the fort. This was a distraction for the American attack on Queenston Heights. This attack, and another in November 1812, destroyed several buildings. After Brock died at Queenston Heights, he was buried with a military funeral at Fort George's northeast bastion.
The Battle of Fort George
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The Battle of Fort George started on May 25, 1813. Fort George was heavily shelled by cannons and heated shots from Fort Niagara. New shore batteries also fired at it. This destroyed the log buildings inside the fort. Two days later, American troops landed about 3 kilometers (1.9 miles) from Fort George. They came ashore on Lake Ontario under cannon fire.
After the third wave of landings, Brigadier General John Vincent realized his 560 men were at risk of being surrounded. He ordered his men to destroy the fort's ammunition, disable its guns, and retreat. First Nations warriors led by John Norton covered the British retreat. The Americans did not try hard to chase them.
The Americans moved carefully towards the fort. They wanted to avoid any traps, especially a sabotaged gunpowder magazine. This had happened at the end of the Battle of York. American forces arrived quickly enough to stop the destruction of much of the fort. A U.S. artillery captain put out one of the magazine fuses.
American Control of the Fort
The British left the fort on June 7, but American forces didn't officially take it over until June 9. Once they were in control, the Americans immediately started building new defenses. They strengthened the fort's bastions and made the northwest bastion longer. The fort became the headquarters for the U.S. Army of the Center. The Americans made the fort much smaller and easier to defend. It became a five-sided fort. They rebuilt the earth walls and repaired the palisades. They also added trenches near the northeast bastion and towards the river. However, they didn't build any other permanent structures. Their soldiers stayed in small outposts around the fort.
The fort was mostly changed to defend the American camp next to it from attacks from inland. The Americans planned to use this camp to invade further into the Niagara peninsula. During their seven-month stay, the American military brought more soldiers to the fort. They also created a local volunteer corps. This was the only military unit raised inside the fort during the war.
The fort was meant to be a starting point for an American invasion. But the American military had to change their plans. They faced problems like disease, soldiers leaving, and ambushes outside the camp. The British also advanced after the battles at Stoney Creek and Beaver Dams. Plans to move further inland were eventually dropped. American forces slowly started leaving the fort. By December 1813, only 60 soldiers remained.
When they learned that 1,500 British and 700 First Nations warriors were coming, the American soldiers were ordered to leave. They were also told to burn the fort and the nearby town. The American soldiers left the fort on December 11. They disabled the fort's guns and burned the town. However, they did not destroy what was left of the fort.
British Return to Fort George
British forces arrived at the fort shortly after the Americans left. They found that only the gunpowder magazine and some temporary magazines built by the Americans remained. Soon after taking back the fort, the British started building temporary barracks, officers' quarters, a guardhouse, and another magazine.
Nine days later, British forces attacked and captured Fort Niagara. They then burned towns on the American side of the river. This was in revenge for the burning of Niagara. Since Fort Niagara remained under British control, the British military focused more on it. They didn't invest much more in Fort George.
In July 1814, American forces led by Winfield Scott tried to take Fort George and Fort Niagara. But Scott had to pull back. The naval support he was promised did not arrive.
After the War of 1812
In 1817, American president James Monroe visited the Canadian side of the Niagara River. British officers entertained him at the fort. However, military experts criticized Fort George after the war. It couldn't guard the mouth of the Niagara River well. This led to the building of Fort Mississauga in the 1820s. Around the same time, Butler's Barracks was built southwest of the fort. It was out of range of American cannons.
The equipment inside Fort George was sold off in 1821. Its palisades were moved to other places in 1822. By 1825, Isaac Brock's body was moved from the fort to Brock's Monument in Queenston. In 1828, the British Army's main base moved to York. The fort reportedly only had a few "wooden decaying barracks." In 1839, Navy Hall became barracks for the British soldiers. The fort's old barracks became stables.
In the 1860s, the Canadian government took control of the British military area. This included Fort George, Fort Mississauga, Butler's Barracks, and the training grounds. But the ruins of Fort George were not used much by the Canadian militia. The fort's ruins were sometimes rented to a private citizen. This person looked after the property. During this time, some buildings were used for other things. The officers' quarters became part of a farmhouse. The stone gunpowder magazine stored hay. The property itself was used for cattle grazing. By the 1880s, the bastions and gunpowder magazine were in bad shape. Parts of the fort were used as farmland. Only the officers' quarters were occupied by a caretaker.
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In 1882, the Wright family leased the land from the Department of Militia and Defence. They opened a golf club in the area. The golf course used parts of the ruins. In 1895, the golf course became an eighteen-hole course, expanding further into the ruins. The fort's ruins caused problems when the golf club wanted to clear them. Most of the golf club members were Americans who spent summers there. Local newspapers criticized the plan. They said it was "selling out" and "desecrating sacred heroic sites." The golf club eventually dropped their plans for the fort ruins. The golf club closed shortly before the First World War.
During the First World War, the Canadian military built a hospital on the fort's esplanade (open area). This area, called Camp Niagara, also had a mess hall, kitchen, and guardhouse. The military used these buildings until the end of the war.
Fort George Becomes a Historic Site
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On May 21, 1921, the site was named a National Historic Site of Canada. A stone monument (cairn) was placed there. In the mid-1930s, the Department of National Defence agreed to a deal. The Niagara Parks Commission would rebuild and restore Fort George, Fort Mississauga, and Navy Hall. In return, the commission would lease all three properties for C$1 per year for 99 years. The department could take back the properties with six months' notice.
The commission started restoring Navy Hall in August 1937. Then they restored the fort's gunpowder magazine. However, the fort's officers' quarters were torn down and moved. The buildings from the First World War were also moved outside the fort. Bulldozers were used to push the fort's earthen walls into place. The area was also cleared of overgrown plants.
In 1939, they rebuilt the fort's old buildings. A visitor center was also built outside the fort. White pine wood was brought from northern Ontario for the construction. The fort's reconstruction finished in 1939 with the wooden gates. The visitor center took a few more months. The reconstruction followed the fort's original 1799 designs. Much of the work was done through make-work programs. The wood used was treated with creosote to make it last longer. This material lasted until 2010.
Fort George was part of the 1939 royal tour of Canada. However, the royal group only drove past the fort and did not go inside. The Niagara Capital Commission had planned a "grand opening." But the start of the Second World War meant these plans were put aside. Fort George opened to the public on July 1, 1940. Its "official opening and dedication" happened in June 1950. This included a flypast by the Royal Canadian Air Force and the United States Air Force. The Niagara Parks Commission ran the fort as a museum. They showed military artifacts in the rebuilt blockhouses.
In 1969, the lease with the commission ended early. The property was transferred from the Department of National Defence to Parks Canada. In 1987, a group called the Friends of Fort George was formed. From 2009 to 2010, archaeologists dug at the site. They learned about the fort's layout and found artifacts left by soldiers during the war.
Exploring the Fort Grounds
Parks Canada now manages the fort and its surrounding land as the Fort George National Historic Site of Canada. The site includes the fort and a visitor center outside the fort. West of the fort is the Commons. This is an 80-hectare (200-acre) green space. It separates Fort George from Butler's Barracks, another National Historic Site.
The only building on the site that is from the original fort is the stone gunpowder magazine. Most of the other buildings were rebuilt in the 1930s. All the rebuilt historic structures are important. They show the fort's "historical character." They also teach about how historic sites were developed through make-work programs during the Great Depression. They also show the methods used to preserve history in the 1930s.
Inside the Fort
Fort George was changed several times in the early 1800s. But the 1937–39 reconstruction made the fort look like its 1799 design. However, no detailed archaeological study was done before rebuilding. So, there are some differences between the rebuilt fort and the original 1799 one. The ramparts (walls) are placed differently, and the blockhouses look different. Also, bulldozers flattened the fort's inside ground. This made it much flatter than the original fort.
The gunpowder magazine is the only original building in the fort. Rebuilt buildings include four blockhouses, an officers' kitchen, officers' quarters, and a guardhouse. The officers' quarters are in a Colonial Revival-style. The guardhouse has a gabled roof covered in cedar shakes. All the rebuilt buildings are general ideas of the original structures. Their designs are based on how the architect thought a frontier fort would look. Because of this, their historical importance is only for the area they cover. The fort's artificer's (craftsman's) and blacksmith shop was also built in the 1930s. This building is not based on any historical original. It is used as a modern workshop but looks like the other rebuilt buildings.
Fort George's Blockhouses
The fort has three blockhouses inside its palisades. All of them were finished in 1939. These blockhouses are two-story log buildings. Their second story hangs over the first. They also have low pitched roofs covered in cedar shakes. The current blockhouses inside the palisades are not designed like the original Fort George blockhouses. Instead, they are based on blockhouses at Fort York.
The blockhouses were first designed with exposed logs. This was to give them a rugged "frontier" look. But clapboards (overlapping wooden boards) were added to make them look more refined. Blockhouse 1 and 3 are square. Blockhouse 2 is a large, rectangular blockhouse. Unlike the others, Blockhouse 3 is entered by an outside staircase that leads to its second story. Blockhouse 3 also has storage rooms, change rooms, lunch rooms, and washrooms for Parks Canada staff.
Besides the three blockhouses inside the palisades, there is another blockhouse on the fort's palisades. It is near the south redan (a V-shaped part of the fort). This one was also completed during the fort's reconstruction. Like the others, it is two stories tall and has an overhanging second story. But unlike the others, it is octagon-shaped. The only way to enter the octagonal blockhouse is through a tunnel from inside the fort. Its look is also based on the blockhouses from Fort York.
The Gunpowder Magazine
The fort's gunpowder magazine is the only building that dates back to the fort's original construction in 1796. It is also the oldest building in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The fort was built on high ground above Navy Hall. But the gunpowder magazine was built over a dip in a ravine. This meant only the roof was visible from Fort Niagara. A drainage system was needed to remove moisture from the ravine. This was done soon after the magazine was finished to stop the floorboards from rotting. Before the gunpowder magazine was ready, the original Navy Hall was briefly used to store ammunition. This happened after the British moved their soldiers from Fort Niagara to Fort George. Soon after the magazine was finished, defensive earthworks were built to its northeast to protect it more.
The walls are made of 2.4-meter (8-foot) thick limestone. This stone likely came from nearby Queenston. The inside was built with bricks. A 0.9-meter (3-foot) thick brick arch reinforced its roof. The small windows and doors are covered in copper. This was to prevent sparks from accidentally igniting the gunpowder. The double-layered wooden floors were also pegged to the ground instead of nailed. Despite these features, the building was not fully bomb-proof. It could still catch fire from accidents or enemy attacks.
Even though the gunpowder magazine was in the part of the fort that Isaac Brock abandoned, it remained in use. During the Battle of Queenston Heights, the metal roof covering caught fire. But the soldiers quickly removed it and put out the fire. The British mostly abandoned the fort in the 1820s for Fort Mississauga. However, the magazine was still used by Fort Mississauga's soldiers until the 1830s. In the mid-1800s, people sometimes lived in the building without permission.
The building could store 300 barrels of gunpowder. A second stone and brick gunpowder magazine was built, but it was abandoned and "in ruins" by 1814.
Fort George's Ramparts
The fort's ramparts (defensive walls) were made of uneven earthworks. They had six bastions, each framed with timber and connected by a line of pickets (sharp wooden stakes). Bulldozers pushed the earthworks into place in the 1930s. The original fort's earthworks were built differently. They used wooden frames over the ravine and wet clay to stabilize the soil. Because bulldozers were used for the reconstruction, only the area around the two northern bastions looks like the original fort.
The fort was first designed as a supply depot, not a true defensive fort. So, the earthwork's bastions were not well placed. They had weak spots where enemies could attack. Before the War of 1812, attempts were made to fix this. Isaac Brock ordered the fort to be made smaller. He wanted to abandon the southern ramparts and build new palisades at a new defensive line. The Americans also changed the fort's original ramparts when they occupied it. They made it into a smaller, more defensible five-sided fort. These changes are not seen in the rebuilt Fort George. The restoration brought the fort back to its 1799 design. However, you can still see the archaeological remains of the American trenches next to the fort.
Besides the fort, Fort George National Historic Site also includes Navy Hall. This is a rebuilt historic building below the fort's eastern walls, by the Niagara River. The original Navy Hall was built before Fort George. It served as barracks for the Provincial Marine (a naval force). The larger area was a shipyard and supply depot for Fort Niagara. In the late 1780s and early 1790s, the building was sometimes used by the lieutenant governor of Upper Canada, John Graves Simcoe, as his home. Simcoe's offices became an officers' mess for soldiers at Fort George. The rest of the building stored supplies for the Provincial Marines. American cannon fire in November 1812 destroyed the original Navy Hall.
The British rebuilt Navy Hall and a new wharf soon after the war. The new building was slightly smaller. By 1840, Navy Hall was changed to be barracks. The area around it had a guardhouse, customs house, ferry house, and taverns. But by the 1850s, these buildings were only used for storage. To make way for the Erie and Niagara Railway, Navy Hall was moved closer to the fort ruins. It was later used as a stable. During the First World War, the building was partly renovated. It became a laboratory for the Canadian Medical Corps. But it was abandoned again after the war and fell apart. After the railway line closed, the building was rebuilt in its original spot. A new stone foundation was used. The building's front was mostly covered in stone. The wood was salvaged from an old barn.
In 1969, Navy Hall was also named a National Historic Site of Canada. It is still connected to the Fort George National Historic Site. Like the other rebuilt buildings at Fort George, Navy Hall's historical importance is only for the area it covers. Navy Hall has not been fully evaluated for national importance. It is considered an important "cultural resource" for the historic site.
Visiting the Museum
Parks Canada runs the fort as a living museum. Visitors can see what military life was like in Upper Canada in the 1800s. There are also exhibits about the War of 1812. Some exhibits focus on Lieutenant Governor Simcoe and the Provincial Marine.
The museum has several artifacts from the fort during the War of 1812. These include a portrait of an officer from the 100th Regiment of Foot who was stationed there. There is also a sword believed to be carried by an officer of the Royal Engineers. You can also see a sword belt plate from the Lincoln and Welland Militia.
Images for kids
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Map of Fort George and the surrounding area during the War of 1812. Fort Niagara and where most of the Battle of Fort George took place are marked on the map to the north.
