Doddridge's Fort
Independence Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
To the north were located the stockaded cabins of John Doddridge. Built about 1773, they served as a refuge for settlers of this region in Revolutionary days. Also boyhood home of Dr. Joseph Doddridge.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Around 1773 John Doddridge raised a cluster of stockaded cabins on this frontier, strong enough to shelter neighboring families when danger threatened. Through the Revolutionary years such fortified homesteads were the settlers' refuge from raids along the western border. The place is also remembered as the boyhood home of Dr. Joseph Doddridge, later a noted chronicler of frontier life.
Why it matters
It preserves the memory of the small private forts that made permanent settlement of the trans-Appalachian frontier possible during the Revolution.
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Related people
- ¡ John Doddridge
- ¡ Joseph Doddridge
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
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