Fort Franklin (Schuylkill County (Schuylkill County, near Snyders, Pennsylvania)

Schuylkill County, near Snyders · Pennsylvania · French and Indian War

Quick BriefBuilt in 1756 at Benjamin Franklin's order in response to raids by Native American war parties on Pennsylvania settlements, Fort Franklin was a stockaded fort designed to provide protection for settlers' families during the French and Indian War. Poorly constructed and located in a sparsely populated area north of the Blue Mountain, the fort was one of a chain of defensive posts stretching from the New Jersey border to the Maryland border. The fort never saw military action and was abandoned in late 1757.

History & Significance

Benjamin Franklin was tasked with establishing defensive works to protect Pennsylvania settlements from French-allied Native American attacks. After completing Fort Allen near Bethlehem in January 1756, Franklin sent Captain Charles Foulk to construct Fort Franklin between Fort Allen and Fort Lebanon.

Foulk selected a site near the region known as "Allemangel"—a German term meaning "lacking all"—situated on a hill near a creek with panoramic views, and construction was largely completed by late February. A June 1756 inspection found the fort to be approximately 40 feet square, very poorly stockaded, with two log houses at opposite corners serving as bastions, all deemed unfit for defense.

Located halfway between Fort Allen and Fort Lebanon as part of Pennsylvania's frontier defensive line, the fort never experienced combat and was abandoned in late 1757. Archaeological investigations conducted in 1984 over a 200-by-300-foot area found neither the fort's remains nor associated artifacts.