HistoricSiteMarkers
Colonial America

Forbes Road, 1758, Fort Bedford to Fort Duquesne - Edmond's Swamp (PLAQUE)

Shade Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania

Marker Inscription

The fort stood a few rods west of this marker. The Forbes Road leads westward to Stony Creek Encampment 10.5 miles from Fort Bedford.

Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission

The Story

During the French and Indian War in 1758, British General John Forbes cut a road westward across the Pennsylvania mountains to strike the French at Fort Duquesne. This marker records the chain of encampments and supply forts strung along that route, positioning Edmond's Swamp relative to Stony Creek and Fort Bedford. The Forbes Road became a lifeline for one of the war's decisive campaigns.

Why it matters

The Forbes Road opened the way to the forks of the Ohio — the future Pittsburgh — and helped decide the contest for control of North America between Britain and France.

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Related people

  • · John Forbes

Related events

  • · Forbes Expedition of 1758

Themes & tags

French & Indian WarTransportationFrontier HistoryMemorial

Nearby & related markers

Forbes Road - Edmunds Swamp

Shade Township, PA · est. 1952

In 1758, during the French and Indian War, General John Forbes cut a new military road west toward the French stronghold at Fort Duquesne. This spot along the old Raystown Path — named for Indian trader Edmund Cartlidge — offered good grass to feed the army's horses, a vital consideration for a force hauling supplies through the Alleghenies. A nearby redoubt guarded the encampment.

Forbes Road, 1758, Fort Bedford to Fort Duquesne- Stony Creek Encampment (PLAQUE)

Quemahoning Township, PA · est. 1930

On the 1758 Forbes Road, the Stony Creek Encampment served as a fortified supply headquarters — its "Ovens" baking bread for the army — during the French and Indian War campaign against Fort Duquesne. Fortifications rose just north of this site as General John Forbes staged men and provisions for the mountainous advance. The marker records its distance along the road from Fort Bedford.

Forbes Road - Stony Creek Encampment

Quemahoning Township, PA · est. 1951

During the French and Indian War, British General John Forbes cut a military road across Pennsylvania toward Fort Duquesne, and along it his army built fortified supply depots to feed the advance. The Stony Creek encampment stood just north of here, a stockaded storehouse on the route that then climbed toward Laurel Hill and the site of Tomahawk Camp. These depots kept Forbes's 1758 campaign supplied through the rugged Alleghenies.

Forbes Road, 1758, Fort Bedford to Fort Duquesne - Fort Dewart McLeans' Encampment (PLAQUE)

Juniata Township, PA · est. 1930

This plaque marks Fort Dewart, one of the small fortifications built along the Forbes Road during the French and Indian War and garrisoned for several years. Constructed under Colonel Henry Bouquet, it guarded the army's line of march as it pressed westward toward Edmond's Swamp and, beyond, Fort Duquesne. Such posts protected supply trains crossing the rugged Allegheny highlands.