Fort Hamilton (Pennsylvania) (Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania)
Stroudsburg · Pennsylvania · French and Indian War
History & Significance
In December 1755, a series of attacks on people in the area east of what is now Stroudsburg terrified the population. On December 10, a war party of about 200 Native American warriors attacked the Hoeth family farm and killed Frederick Hoeth, his wife, and seven of their eight children.
The next day, warriors set fire to Daniel Brodhead's Plantation and attacked and burned farms belonging to the Culvers, the McMichaels, and the Hartmanns. The Moravian mission at Dansbury was also destroyed.
In response to these attacks, the Pennsylvania Legislature placed Benjamin Franklin and James Hamilton in charge to erect a chain of forts along the Blue Mountain in the Minisink region. Captain John Trump and Captain George Ashton were sent on December 17 to begin construction on Fort Depuy, Fort Norris and Fort Hamilton.
Fort Hamilton was apparently a blockhouse surrounded by a stockade about 80 feet in diameter, with half-bastions at each corner. Construction was completed by early February, and Franklin sent Captain William Craig to garrison the fort with 41 men from his "company of Ulster-Scotch" infantry.
Craig and his men were soon replaced by Lieutenant Anthony Miller and 15 men detached from Captain Jacob Orndt's company at Fort Norris. Miller was replaced in July by Captain John Nicholaus Wetterholt, who reported in November that he commanded a garrison of 26 men.
Two historical markers for Fort Hamilton can be found near the fort's original site: A brass plaque at 901 Main Street was placed there in 1930 by the Pennsylvania Historic Commission and The Monroe County Historical Society. A marker was placed in 1967 by the Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission at the intersection of Main Street and 9th Street in Stroudsburg.
Key Facts
Map
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🧳 Visiting
What you’ll see when you visit:
- French and Indian War-era stockaded fort ruins (1756)
- Named after Pennsylvania Deputy Governor James Hamilton
- Served as settler refuge during frontier conflicts
- Situated in Stroudsburg area of northeastern Pennsylvania
- Never saw direct combat despite frontier tensions
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Hamilton_(Pennsylvania)
- https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=29
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_forts_in_the_French_and_Indian_War
- https://www.northamericanforts.com/East/pa-noreast.html
- https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Franklin/01-06-02-0132
Other Forts in Pennsylvania
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