Mercer's Fort (Pittsburgh, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania)
Pittsburgh, Allegheny County · Pennsylvania · French and Indian War
History & Significance
Colonel Hugh Mercer built this temporary fortification during the winter of 1758–1759 at the strategic confluence of the Monongahela and Allegheny Rivers, immediately after the French burned Fort Duquesne and retreated on November 24, 1758. It was a small stockade with bastions, designed to accommodate a garrison of 200 men, built between December 1758 and early January 1759.
The fort initially served to defend the site, but as Fort Pitt neared completion, it was used mostly to lodge workers and to store supplies. Outside the fort Mercer had a "council house" built, for meetings with Native Americans, and the first of which took place on July 4, 1759, and included George Croghan, Colonel Mercer, William Trent, Andrew Montour, interpreter, Lenape chief King Beaver, and Seneca war leader Guyasuta.
In April 1759, General Henry Bouquet asked Mercer to relocate the fort to higher ground, and sent another British engineer James Robertson to assist him. In June 1759, a threatened French counterattack with 700 troops, 800 Native American warriors, and artillery was aborted when the French forces were diverted when British troops arrived to attack Fort Niagara. When dismantled in mid-1760, the wood was recycled for use in other construction.
Key Facts
Map
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Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercer%27s_Fort
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Pitt_(Pennsylvania)
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hugh_Mercer
- https://history.state.gov/milestones/1750-1775/french-indian-war
- https://www.northamericanforts.com/East/pa-pitt.html
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