Fort Dayton was an

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

fort located on the north side of the

Mohawk River The Mohawk River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is the largest tributary of the Hudson R ...

West Canada Creek The West Canada Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 river in upstate New York (state), New York, United States. West Canada Creek is an important w ...

, in what is now

Herkimer, New York Herkimer is a Administrative divisions of New York#Town, town in Herkimer County, New York, United States, southeast of Utica, New York, Utica. It is named after Nicholas Herkimer. The population was 9,566 at the 2020 census, down from 10,175 in ...

. A fort had previously been built on the same site during the

French and Indian War The French and Indian War, 1754 to 1763, was a colonial conflict in North America between Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and Kingdom of France, France, along with their respective Native Americans in the United States, Native American ...

. It should not be confused with Fort Herkimer, which was located on the south side of the Mohawk River, in

German Flatts, New York German Flatts is a town in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 12,263 at the 2020 census down from 13,258 at the 2010 census. The town is in the southern part of Herkimer County, on the south side of the Mohawk River, ...

History

Fort Dayton is named for Colonel Elias Dayton, who led the construction effort in 1776. It was one of several forts constructed in the

Mohawk Valley The Mohawk Valley region of the U.S. state of New York is the area surrounding the Mohawk River, sandwiched between the Adirondack Mountains and Catskill Mountains, northwest of the Capital District. As of the 2010 United States Census, ...

. When the

started, the fort was described as "little better than a dilapidated block-house". It was rebuilt under the supervision of

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Elias Dayton Elias Dayton (May 1, 1737 – October 22, 1807) was an American merchant and military officer who served as captain and colonel of the local militia and in 1783 rose to become a brigadier general during the American Revolutionary War. After ...

of the 3rd New Jersey Regiment on the orders of

General A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

Philip Schuyler Philip John Schuyler (; November 20, 1733 - November 18, 1804) was an American general in the American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War and a United States Senate, United States Senator from New York (state), New York. He is usually known as ...

in the autumn of 1776. It was a wooden and earthen fortress which enclosed the stone church and other buildings located on the highest ground in the village, once known as "Stone Ridge". There also was a blockhouse constructed on the hill overlooking Fort Dayton. On August 4, 1777, General

Nicholas Herkimer Brigadier-General Nicholas Herkimer (also known as Nikolaus Herchheimer; – August 16, 1777) was an American military officer who fought during the French and Indian War and Revolutionary War. He died in 1777 from wounds suffered during the ...

assembled about 900 troops of the Tryon County militia at Fort Dayton for their march to support Colonel

Peter Gansevoort Peter Gansevoort (July 17, 1749 – July 2, 1812) was a Colonel in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He is best known for leading the resistance to Barry St. Leger's Siege of Fort Stanwix in 1777. Gansevoort was also ...

Fort Stanwix Fort Stanwix was a colonial fort whose construction commenced on August 26, 1758, under the direction of British General John Stanwix, at the location of present-day Rome, New York, but was not completed until about 1762. The bastion fort was bui ...

, which was under siege by

Barry St. Leger Barrimore Matthew "Barry" St. Leger (bapt. 1 May 1733 – 23 December 1793) was a British Army officer. St. Leger was active in the Saratoga Campaign, commanding an invasion force that unsuccessfully besieged Fort Stanwix. St. Leger remain ...

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

and Indian forces. Herkimer's troops, consisting mainly of Palatine German settlers, followed the north shore of the Mohawk River, and camped the first night west of Sterling (Staring) Creek. On August 6, Herkimer's troops were ambushed in a small ravine by St. Leger's British,

Tory A Tory () is an individual who supports a political philosophy known as Toryism, based on a British version of traditionalist conservatism which upholds the established social order as it has evolved through the history of Great Britain. The To ...

, and Indian forces. General Herkimer himself was wounded, but continued to lead his men in what became known as the

Battle of Oriskany The Battle of Oriskany ( or ) was a major engagement of the Saratoga campaign during the American Revolutionary War. On August 6, 1777, an American column of Tryon County militia and Oneida people, Oneidas marching to relieve the siege of Fort ...

. General Herkimer died from his wounds on August 17, at his home near the present day Town of

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

. On February 18, 1779 Henry William Dwight wrote to his brother that 'the people here are scandalously neglected, both with regard to troops and provisions.' He complained of 'no flour and little beef'. (Sedgwick Papers) Fort Dayton was attacked multiple times including the

Attack on German Flatts (1778) The attack on German Flatts (September 17, 1778) was a raid on the frontier settlement of German Flatts, New York (which then also encompassed what is now Herkimer (town), New York, Herkimer) during the American Revolutionary War. The attack wa ...

. Fort Dayton was also a base for soldiers aiding Johann Christian Schell after his stand at Schell's Bush and for pursuing Tory leader Walter Butler and his troops. After the destruction of

in 1781 it was the westernmost fort in the Mohawk valley, and was besieged by Mohawk leader

Joseph Brant Thayendanegea or Joseph Brant (March 1743 – November 24, 1807) was a Mohawk military and political leader, based in present-day New York and, later, Brantford, in what is today Ontario, who was closely associated with Great Britain du ...

in 1782.

After the war

In July 1783 General

George Washington George Washington (, 1799) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the first president of the United States, serving from 1789 to 1797. As commander of the Continental Army, Washington led Patriot (American Revoluti ...

toured Fort Dayton, when he was visiting the Mohawk Valley on an inspection tour. The fort was eventually abandoned, and was razed in 1832 to make way for the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east–west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigability, navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, ...

. A memorial marker of the site of Fort Dayton can be found at the Historic Four Corners intersection on North Main Street in Herkimer. The 1778 attack and the 1782 siege are represented in the historical novel ''

Drums Along the Mohawk ''Drums Along the Mohawk'' is a 1939 American historical drama film based upon a 1936 novel of the same name by American author Walter D. Edmonds. The film stars Henry Fonda and Claudette Colbert, was produced by Darryl F. Zanuck, and direct ...

'' and the 'based upon the book' movie of 1939.

Archaeology

In 2015, the Herkimer County Historical Society (New York State) sponsored a search for the exact location of Fort Dayton. One archaeological excavation in the town of Herkimer revealed pipes and a well, although the investigators believe that none of these artifacts predate the mid-nineteenth century.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fort Dayton

Dayton Dayton () is a city in Montgomery County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of cities in Ohio, sixth-most populous city in Ohio, with a population of 137,644 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. The Dayton metro ...

Buildings and structures in Herkimer County, New York Buildings and structures demolished in 1832