Fort Frederick (18WA20)

Fort Frederick was an English stronghold during the French and Indian War, and is located near the town of Big Pool in Washington County. It was constructed by Maryland Governor Horatio Sharpe between 1756 and 1758, and has stone walls that stand about 18 feet high. It did not see any fighting during the French and Indian War, but it did serve as a staging area to support the English cause. Use of the fort ceased in 1758 after the English captured Fort Duquesne in Pittsburgh and relieved pressure on the Maryland frontier. It was briefly pressed into service again during the 1763 Pontiac Rebellion, but the main battles took place in Pennsylvania and the fort was soon abandoned.

During the American Revolution, Fort Frederick was used as a prisoner-of-war camp for English and Hessian soldiers. It also saw some action during the U.S. Civil War, when two Union companies were stationed there. In between these military conflicts, the land surrounding the fort was farmed.

In 1922, Fort Frederick was purchased by the State of Maryland to become a park. Since then the walls and some stone foundations have been reconstructed. Part of the fort has been restored to its 1758 appearance, while other sections have been converted into interpretive spaces for visitors.

Several archaeological projects have taken place in and around Fort Frederick. Most of have focused on the historic component, but prehistoric artifacts have also been found there. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) excavated numerous trenches at the site in the 1930s in order to help with reconstruction efforts. Record-keeping during this work was spotty at best, and much of the collection has disappeared. In 1971, Maryland State Archaeologist Tyler Bastian dug a single trench across the width of the eastern barracks. Additional trench testing, under the supervision of William Liesenbein, took place in 1973 in the northeast and southwest bastions in an effort to locate a powder magazine. Liesenbein found intact deposits dating from 1765 onward, but not conclusive evidence for the magazine.

In 1974 and 1975, Stephen Israel did more trench testing in the area of the enlisted barracks, prior to new reconstructions and utility placement. He encountered various features, including builder’s trenches, pits, and a possible root cellar. Two years later, John Milner & Associates excavated 18 test units and seven trenches in the southwest bastion and north and west of the fort walls. JMA established a uniform site grid across the fort that could be used for subsequent investigations. The 1977 excavations found a great deal of disturbance from earlier work and did not identify specific activity areas, but they did determine the presence of undisturbed deposits dating to the initial 1756-1758 occupation. The artifacts reflected daily life in the fort, and detailed analysis was done on the animal bone.

Greenhorne & O’Mara, Inc. performed additional excavations in 1999 and 2000 that tested areas throughout the fort. A total of 216 features were uncovered in 69 test units. They found a great deal of disturbance from previous excavations and reconstruction efforts, but they also identified some intact 18th-century deposits. Numerous 18th-century artifacts, including more than 60 arms-related ones, were recovered from both disturbed and undisturbed contexts.

(Edited from Diagnostic Artifacts in Maryland, Small Finds and the Maryland Historical Trust Synthesis Project)