Forts of the American Frontier 1776-1891: California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska (Fortress)

This title explores the contribution made by settlers, explorers, traders and goldseekers of various nations to the nascent architecture of the West Coast of the United States. In doing so, it charts the progress westwards of those who claimed new land as their own, and defended it with forts and blockhouses, and the resulting conflicts with indigenous Native American peoples. Packed with detailed illustrations, this book provides a fascinating study of the westward advance of modern America, and covers sites such as Fort Point at the entrance to San Francisco Bay, the Presidio of San Francisco, Fort Guijarros in San Diego, California, Fort Humboldt in Eureka, California, Sutter's Fort, the 19th-century agricultural and trade colony in California, and Fort Vancouver National Historic Site in Washington and Oregon. With the violent separation between the United States and Britain which began in 1776, the new'Americans'set off to fulfill their manifest destiny and rule their new land from coast to coast. As they pushed westward, they came into conflict with both natives and other European settlers, and began to build fortresses to defend their newly claimed land. This book charts the development and variation of the fortresses of the American Frontier, covering both American defenses and those of the Spanish in the west. It also examines the little-known forts of early Russian settlers on the Pacific coast. CONTENTS......Page 3 INTRODUCTION......Page 4 CHRONOLOGY......Page 8 DEVELOPMENT OF THE FORTS......Page 9 TYPES OF MILITARY FORT......Page 15 THE PRINCIPAL ELEMENTS OF DEFENSE......Page 35 LIFE IN THE FORTS......Page 43 THE FORTS AT WAR......Page 47 THE FATE OF THE FORTS......Page 56 THE FORTS TODAY......Page 58 BIBLIOGRAPHY......Page 62 GLOSSARY......Page 63 INDEX......Page 64 IMPRINT......Page 65 "Forts of the American Frontier 1776-1891: California, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska".