Fort Allen (Carbon County, Pennsylvania)

Fort Allen was a military structure built in Franklin Township (in what is now Weissport), in Carbon County, Pennsylvania in 1756. It was first of several frontier defenses erected by Benjamin Franklin for the Province of Pennsylvania during the French and Indian War.[1]

Not to be confused with Fort Allen (Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania).
Fort Allen
Franklin Township, Carbon County, Pennsylvania (near Weissport) in United States
TypeMilitary Fort
Site history
Built1756

History

Benjamin Franklin and his militia troops built Fort Allen in January 1756 after Moravian Indians were chased from Gnadenhutten near Bethlehem, Pennsylvania during the French and Indian War. In a letter, Franklin says the name Fort Allen was chosen "in Honor of our old Friend," Chief Justice William Allen.[2]

Monuments and markers

Two Pennsylvania state historical markers commmemorate Fort Allen: one along U.S. 209 in Franklin Township near Wachovia Bank, and another in Weissport Borough Park opposite 112–116 Franklin St.[1] A stone monument erected in 1922 in the same park reads:[3]

"Erected by Col. Benjamin Franklin in the winter of 1758 at the order of the Province of Pennsylvania. The fort consisting of the two block houses and a well, surrounded by a stockade, was situated 201 feet southwest of this spot. It was used as a base of supplies and as a rendezvous for troops during the period of the French and Indian Wars. The well is the only trace left of the fort."

References
  1. "Fort Allen (1947HM00086)" and "Fort Allen Well," in "Pennsylvania Historical Marker Search." Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission, retrieved online August 20, 2023.
  2. "From Benjamin Franklin to ——, 25 January 1756," Founders Online, National Archives, Founders Online (National Archives), retrieved August 20, 2023. Original source: The Papers of Benjamin Franklin, vol. 6, April 1, 1755, through September 30, 1756, ed. Leonard W. Labaree. New Haven and London: Yale University Press, 1963, pp. 365–368.]
  3. "Fort Allen 1756–1922 – Weissport PA –". Waymarking.com. 2020. Retrieved August 20, 2023.

40.82938°N 75.70281°W / 40.82938; -75.70281

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