Fort Stanwix

The Oneida Carrying Place was a six-mile portage connecting the Mohawk River and Wood Creek and served as a vital link for those traveling by water from the ocean to the Great Lakes. When Europeans arrived, nations fought for control of the carry, the homelands of the Six Nations Confederacy, and the rich resources of North America. In this struggle, Fort Stanwix would play a vital role. The fort was built by the British in 1758 and was intended to be a support base for their campaigns against the French in Canada. However, it soon became embroiled in the conflict between the British and their Iroquois allies on one side, and the French and their Algonquin and Huron allies on the other. In 1768, after years of warfare, the Treaty of Fort Stanwix was signed, ceding control of the carrying place to the British. The fort would change hands several more times before finally being abandoned in 1781. Although it is now a ruins, Fort Stanwix remains an important reminder of the bloody conflict that once raged over control of this strategic location.