Canadian Historic Sites: Occasional Papers in Archaeology and History No. 11

A History of Fort George, Upper Canada

by Robert S. Allen

Abstract

Fort George was built between 1796 and 1799 and subsequently served as British military headquarters in Upper Canada. During the War of 1812 the post was engaged in several artillery duels with Fort Niagara across the river on the American side, and was the site of a fierce battle and two sieges. Although by 1815 Fort George was in a state of decay and disrepair, British troops continued to garrison the fort until the 1830s, when the star-shaped fort at Mississauga Point became the major military installation of His Majesty's forces in the Niagara area. The work of reconstruction was begun in 1937 by the Niagara Parks Commission and completed in 1940. Fort George was transferred to the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development in 1969 and declared a national historic park.