Highlighting Fort Stanwix With Oneida County Tourism

Oneida County Tourism is celebrating National Travel and Tourism Week now through May 9th. You can celebrate with virtual #CNYGetaways all week long. One place known for it's rich history is Fort Stanwix.

Hear from Ft. Stanwix's Park Ranger & history buff Val Morgan as she talks about their programs for kids and families, the history of the fort and more:

Known as "the fort that never surrendered," Fort Stanwix, under the command of Col. Peter Gansevoort, successfully defended the colonies from a siege, in August 1777, by British, German, Loyalist, Canadian, and American Indian troops and warriors. The failed siege combined with the battles at Oriskany, Bennington, and Saratoga thwarted a coordinated effort by the British in 1777, under the leadership of Gen. John Burgoyne, to take the northern colonies, and led to American alliances with France and the Netherlands.

Fort Stanwix became a national monument on August 21st, 1935. When this was happened, the land that would ultimately be used for the monument was occupied by the businesses and residences of downtown Rome. During the 1960s, Rome city leaders lobbied for a fort reconstruction as part of an urban renewal program to help revitalize downtown Rome.

Reconstruction of the fort began in 1974, and the partially completed structure was opened to the public in time for the United States Bicentennial celebration in 1976. From 1976 until the mid-1990s, the national monument explained the significance of the national monument to visitors using first-person interpretation to portray the fort immediately after the siege (1777–78), emphasizing life during the American Revolution. More recently, third-person interpretation has extended visitor understanding to the French and Indian War as well as the role played by the fort during the negotiation of a series of treaties with Native Americans."