Fort Stanwix
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Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort erected in 1758 by British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York. The fort guarded a portage known as the Oneida Carrying Place during the French and Indian War. A reconstructed fort has been built at the site by the National Park Service, and the Fort Stanwix National Monument lies in the center of the modern city.
In 1768, Fort Stanwix was the site of an important treaty conference between the British and the Iroquois, arranged by William Johnson. The purpose of the conference was to renegotiate the boundary line between Indian lands and white settlements set forth in the Proclamation of 1763. The British government hoped a new boundary line might bring an end to the rampant frontier violence, which had become costly and troublesome. Indians hoped a new, permanent line might hold back white colonial expansion.
The final treaty was signed on November 5, and extended the earlier proclamation line much further west. The Iroquois had effectively ceded Kentucky to the whites. However, the Indians who actually used the Kentucky lands, primarily Shawnee, Delaware, and Cherokee, had no role in the negotiations. Rather than secure peace, the Fort Stanwix treaty helped set the stage for the next round of hostilities.
Fort Schuyler
In the American Revolutionary War, the abandoned Fort Stanwix was reconstructed by American forces and named Fort Schuyler, though many have continued to call it Fort Stanwix. In 1777 the fort was attacked by British forces under the General Barry St. Leger as part of a three-pronged attack (see Saratoga Campaign) to split American power in New York State. The fort commander, Colonel Peter Gansevoort, refused the terms of surrender offered by the British, and the siege commenced.
The Battle of Oriskany was fought when an American relief column, commanded by General Nicholas Herkimer was ambushed by British troops, Tories, and their Indian allies. While many of the besiegers were attending to that battle, the defenders of the fort sallied forth and attacked the enemy camp, looting and destroying enemy stores. Demoralized and reduced in strength, the British withdrew when they heard rumors of yet another relief column, led by General Benedict Arnold. The British failure to capture the fort and proceed down the Mohawk Valley was a severe setback and eventually led to the defeat of General John Burgoyne at the Battle of Saratoga.
Another treaty was conducted at the fort between the Americans and the Indians in 1784.