- Ohio History in 2000 Words
- Mound Builders
- Native Ohioans
- The Ohio Company
- Ohio's Wood Forts
- Indian Wars
- War of 1812
- Ohio's Canals
- Ohio's Road
- Scenic Railroads / Museums
- Underground Railroad
- Civil War in Ohio
If you include the first fortification in the Ohio Country, Fort Sandoski, there would be a total of 3 forts named Fort Sandusky with several of those being rebuilt several times.
Fort Sandoski was built by the French on the northwest shore of Sandusky Bay. The British later built a Fort Sandusky on the southeastern shore of Sandusky Bay. In the War of 1812 a group of American militia built a temporary fort on the Sandusky River they named Fort Sandusky. This was a few months later renamed Fort Stephenson.
Fort Sandusky was a British fortification built on the southeastern side of Sandusky Bay, just west of Cedar Point. It was constructed after the French and Indian War as a halfway point between Fort Pitt (now Pittsburgh) and Fort Detroit. Both of those forts were originally constructed by the French. After the French and Indian War, the French gave up control these territories and the forts were taken over by the British. The problem was that Fort Detroit could not be easily supplied and there was a signed treaty between the English and Ohio Country Native Americans, that the British would not build any fortifications in the Ohio Country.
British commander at Fort Pitt, Colonel Henry Boquet, decided to ignore this treaty and sent a small military garrison to construct a stop-over point on the southern shore of Sandusky Bay. Fort Sandusky was completed in November of 1761. The original garrison remained here until the following February. At which time, feeling secure enough that a small contingent of men (15 soldiers) could protect and maintain the outpost, the rest returned to Fort Pitt, leaving Ensign Christopher Pauli in charge.
During this time a number of Native American groups became aware the British had broken their treaty and an Ottawa leader named Chief Pontiac organized a rebellion against the British fortifications in the Northwest Territory which included attacking and destroying fortifications and butchering settlers whenever and wherever they were found.
This uprising commonly called Pontiac's Rebellion began against a surprise attack against Fort Detroit in May of 1763. These attacks quickly spread to all of the forts in the Northwest Territory. The first was the destruction and mutilation of Fort Sandusky's garrison. Every soldier in the fortification was brutally killed except for it commander, Ensign Pauli.
Ensign Pauli was taken hostage by the Wyandot and held for some yet to be determined ransom. However, as Pauli was being held in one of the local villages, he managed to escape and worked his way back to the burned fort. Here he met with a British relief party. Together they left the burned ruins of Fort Sandusky for Fort Detroit which was still under siege by Pontiac.
The following year a much large British contingent arrived in Sandusky Bay and started rebuilding the fortification. This however, was never completed, and plans to rebuild were abandoned.
Fort Sandusky "Replica" at Cedar Point
If you've visited Cedar Point and gone to Frontier
Trail you may have noticed a fortification called Fort Sandusky. It should be noted that this only an interpretation of what an Ohio Country fortification looked like. It in fact has very little in common with any frontier fortification other than picketed logs. None of Ohio's fortifications would have had stone walls. The height of the log walls are close in height and size. Most forts on the western frontier did not have artillery pieces. A few fortifications did have artillery pieces like Fort Meigs and Fort Stephenson.
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