Fort Lyttelton
Dublin Township, Fulton County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Begun in 1755 by George Croghan, named by Governor Morris after Sir George Lyttelton, then the Chancellor of the Exchequer. Garrisoned variously by Provincial and regular troops, as well as local volunteers in 1763. By 1764 it was reported in ruins.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Begun in 1755 by frontier trader and Indian agent George Croghan, Fort Lyttelton was one of a string of provincial strongholds thrown up across Pennsylvania during the French and Indian War. Named by Governor Morris for Sir George Lyttelton, Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer, it sheltered provincial soldiers, regulars, and local volunteers through the frontier violence of the 1750s and the 1763 uprising. By 1764 the fort had already fallen into ruins, its wartime purpose spent.
Why it matters
The fort marks the vulnerable colonial frontier during the imperial struggle for North America, when Pennsylvania's backcountry settlers depended on a fragile chain of garrisons for survival.
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Related people
- · George Croghan
- · Governor Robert Hunter Morris
- · Sir George Lyttelton
Related events
- · French and Indian War
- · Pontiac's War (1763)
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Fort Littleton - PLAQUE
Dublin Township, PA · est. 1924
In 1756, as war between Britain and France spilled across the Pennsylvania frontier, the colony raised a chain of provincial forts to shield its exposed backcountry settlements. Fort Littleton was one of these strongpoints, ordered up under Governor Robert Hunter Morris and planted on this knoll to guard a vital road through the mountains. In the fear-filled years of the French and Indian War, such stockades were refuge and rallying point for settlers who lived within reach of raiding parties.
Forbes Road - Raystown Path
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The Raystown Path was one of the great Indian trails threading the Allegheny ridges of central Pennsylvania, and in 1758 it became a corridor of war. During the French and Indian War, General John Forbes cut a military road westward toward the French stronghold at the forks of the Ohio, throwing up a chain of forts to guard his slow, methodical advance. The towns strung along his line of march — Littleton, Bedford, Ligonier, and finally Pittsburgh — still carry the names of those wilderness garrisons.
Fort Loudon - PLAQUE
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Fort McCord
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