Fort Niagara, from Fort George

This site at the mouth of the Niagara River always has had a strategic importance: prior to European contact as the beginning of a portage around impassable rapids and falls; then as the French Fort Conti built in 1678; then as a reconstructed Fort Denonville in 1687. It was captured by the British in 1759 during the French and Indian War, then played a key role as a Tory staging base during the Revolutionary War. It was finally occupied by American troops in 1796.

Lossing's illustration depicts Fort Niagara during hostilities of the War of 1812. English forces captured it in 1813, relinquishing control following the Treaty of Ghent in 1814. Today, the location is a popular tourist attraction, where one of the most striking features is a "French Castle" built in 1720 as an administrative and trading post.

Lossing, Benson J[ohn] (1813-1891)

The Pictorial Field-book of the War of 1812; or, Illustrations, by Pen and Pencil, of the History, Biography, Scenery, Relics and Traditions of the Last War for American Independence (Harper & Brothers, 1868): 274. Thomas Fisher Canadiana Collection, University of Toronto, via Internet Archive

Engraving

3.5 x 4 in.