The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania 1752-1763

The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania 1752–1763: Fortification and Struggle during the War for Empire

By Louis M. Waddell and Bruce D. Bomberger

112 pages, 8-1/2" X 11", softcover: $11.95

ISBN: 0‑89271‑069‑1

Reviewed by Dave Bell

I came across an ad for this book, The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania 1752–1763: Fortification and Struggle during the War for Empire, in Pennsylvania Magazine. I didn't remember seeing it advertised in any of my normal sources of information about the French and Indian War and buckskinning. The price was right, I thought, so what the heck. Within a couple of weeks, the book arrived.

On the cover of The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania by Louis M. Waddell and Bruce D. Bomberger is a reproduction of a watercolor painting done of Fort Ligonier by Lt. Archibald Blane while he was serving at that post ("sketched on the spot, 30th June 1762"). Sample section headings include “Origins of the French and Indian War,” “The French Forts,” “Washington's 1753 Route—The Venango Path,” “Fort Necessity,” “Pennsylvania's War with the Indians,” “British Army Forts in Pennsylvania,” “The Worldwide Conflict,” and “Fort and Site Inventory.” Of the book’s 112 pages, four are the index. The index includes references to 48 forts, including some outside of Pennsylvania.

The focus of the effort that resulted in this book was to locate, document and determine the archaeological condition of as many forts and fortified buildings as possible. Over 100 sites were inventoried and approximately 60 percent were assigned probable locations. Original and secondary sources were considered, as well as local population ideas and beliefs, which in some cases, especially Fort Necessity, proved more accurate than initial archaeological surveys. Sites were located on U.S. Geological Survey maps. Images of the various forts and sites were collected and included in this book. Present-day pictures of some of the sites were also included.

The section of the book on Pennsylvania's Provincial forts describes the way forts were built, layouts of typical forts, and purposes of bastions and half‑bastions. One set of drawings by Charles M. Stotz shows how sod walls, palisades and horizontal log walls were constructed.

The text is well-written and covers not only information about the forts but also information about what was going on at the time the fort was built. There is a listing on page fifty that includes documented activities of "white society" in western Pennsylvania (coal mining, brewing spruce ale, tanning hides, trapping for beaver, for example). Activities that are not documented but were probably occurring (growing tobacco, textile weaving, distilling alcohol, etc.) are also listed. A lot of information is transferred in an easily digestible manner. Its strength is in the way it conveys a little information about a lot of things in a way that is not academic or ponderous. For charter members of the "Short Attention Span" Club, this is particularly appreciated.

I found the “Fort Site and Inventory” section, especially the listing on Fort Necessity, to be rewarding. Fort Necessity is listed as a Virginia fort since it was built by George Washington, a Virginian, even though it was built in modern-day Pennsylvania. The description says that it was a "small expedient fortification" built in May of 1754 and was a low log building about 14 feet by 14 feet surrounded by a circular stockade 53 feet in diameter. Fort Necessity was destroyed by the French in July of 1754. The location section states "Near U.S. 40 NW of Farmington, Fayette County" and includes the historical note that George Washington became the owner of the site of the fort in 1782. Notes also include information about the first reconstruction in 1932 and the more accurate rebuilding in 1954.

The 12-page annotated bibliography of published and unpublished works is invaluable to anyone interested in the French and Indian War-era. One book is used extensively in this publication and deserves special mention, Charles Morse Stotz's Outposts of the War for Empire: The French and English in Western Pennsylvania, Their Armies, Their Forts, Their People, 1749–1764. It was published by the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania in 1985.

Heavily interspersed in the very readable narrative are drawings (modern and contemporary), maps and pictures, and drawings from archaeological digs. The French and Indian War in Pennsylvania 1752–1763 is well-balanced and deserves a space on your bookshelf or better yet on the arm of your favorite reading chair. Put on your tricorn, pop your Last of the Mohicans CD into the player and read on . . .

Published by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission in 1996.