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Fort Hamilton 1791-1796 |
Spanish-American war veteran Walter McDonald, monument curator, spent two years constructing this scale model finshing it in 1939. Actual size and shape of the original fort are not certain, but it may have been as large as the size of 1 or 2 football fields. This display is an honored favorite at Butler County Monument.
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About Fort Hamilton
Fort Hamilton was a frontier outpost built in 1791 used to move supplies and horses for the United States army into the American frontier. Fort Hamilton was named after Alexander Hamilton, George Washington's Secretary of Treasury and friend of General Arthur St. Clair who was responsible for the original Fortifications. In 1792 the fort was enlarged with a stable area by General "Mad" Anthony Wayne.
About The Generals Who Built Fort Hamilton
General Arthur St. Clair
Built Original Fortifications
Stubbed His Toe
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General "Mad" Anthony Wayne
Hero Of The Indian Wars
Loved By His Troops
Called "Black Snake" By Indians
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General St. Clair and Mad Anthony Wayne had a long standing rivalry during the American Revolution. General St.Clair was branded a poor leader after he relenquished command during a campaign in Quebec, having stubbed his toe, while Anthony Wayne became more vibrant and even more commanding after recieving a more serious leg wound during the same retreat. After the revolution, it was necessary to claim lands in the Ohio territory for settlement, and to finally end British involvement in the region.
Indian Leader Tecumseh 1768 - 1812
"Unless we support one another with our collective forces, they will soon conquer us, and we will be driven away from our native country and scattered as leaves before the wind..."
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Indian Wars In The Ohio Territory
Indian leader Tecumseh united Midwestern Indian tribes against the U.S. Army; defeating St.Clair's forces at Fort Recovery Ohio. His forces were later defeated by Mad Anthony Wayne at Fallen Timbers.
The eventual defeat of the Indian Nations by the U.S. Army is attributed to Tecumseh's betrayal by his brother who attacked Vincenes Indiana before Tecumseh could gain the support of tribes in Missouri and other regions. This attack was all the justification Indiana'a Governor Harrison (later U.S. President) needed to actively destroy Indian presence in the Midwest.
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Ignoring clear warnings from Washington about the danger posed by Indians in the Ohio territory, General St.Clair was blamed for one of the worst defeats ever of a U.S. Army at Fort Recovery Ohio where some 700 soldiers were killed by forced led by the Indian Chief Little Turtle. After this defeat (by comparison, only 200 troops were killed by Indians at Custer's last stand), General Anthony Wayne was sent into the region and was responsible for defeating a combined force of 2,000 Indians who later attacked Fort Recovery in Ohio. Later he went on to defeat the Indian tribes at the great battle of Fallen Timbers in Ohio, effectively ending the Indian conflicts as well as British support of the Indians permitting settlement of the Ohio territory (then called the "midwest") to settlers.
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What Happened To Fort Hamilton
In 1795-1796, after the battle of Fallen Timbers near Greenville, Ohio, Fort Hamilton was dismantled. Only the Powder House in the south corner of the Fort remained until the Great Flood that occured along the Great Miami River in 1913.
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