Introduction
At least two sources reference the ruins of an old breastworks fort that was located in Larimer Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania. Originally, this web page was created in an attempt to collect information about the fort from readers. Now, this web page has been revised to briefly present the hypothesis included below.
The WVSC reference to the fort
A typed, undated WVSC document identifies the location of the fort, stating: "A Breastworks Fort located near Wittenburg on the pioneer trail dates to the year 1755, according to early county history. Senior citizens now residing in the area identify the location of the fort as some few hundreds-feet from White Oak churches." The 1755 date is likely based on the excerpt from an 1884 history book that is included below. The referenced senior citizens may have known the location of the fort from having seen the remains of its earthen breastworks, or they may have known the location of the fort from local tradition.
The fort reference in an 1884 history book
The Larimer Township chapter of the 1884 book "History of Bedford, Somerset and Fulton Counties, Pennsylvania" (61.5 MB pdf) states: "Along Will’s creek led one of the earliest routes of travel. It was over this road that Braddock’s army passed in its memorable expedition of 1755. The remains of a rude fortification or breastworks are still to be seen at a point on Will’s creek, near the center of Larimer township. This defense is supposed to have been constructed by Braddock’s forces."
The first two sentences of the quote, should in my opinion, be ignored as garbled nonsense. Braddock's army did not march through what is now Larimer township on it's ill-fated 1755 expedition against Fort Duquesne. Instead, Braddock's army marched west from Fort Cumberland, which was at the mouth of Wills Creek at the present-day site of Cumberland, Maryland.
The third sentence of the quote is, however, evidence that the remains of a fort were still visible in Larimer Township circa 1884. The quote says the fort was "at a point on Will’s creek, near the center of Larimer township," but in reality no part of Wills Creek is located very near the center of Larimer Township. Although the White Oak Churches are not located very near the center of Larimer Township either, they are located near the headspring of Wills Creek.
The hypothesis: A redoubt constructed by Burd's forces in 1755
James Burd was ordered to cut roads to the Yough and to the camp at Wills Creek (Fort Cumberland) in support of Braddock's campaign against Fort Duquesne. The orders for the road to Wills Creek were cancelled, and the road to the Yough was abandoned when Burd's forces heard of Braddock's defeat. A 1755 map (see below) shows Burd's incomplete road to the Yough with good accuracy. Instead of showing this road as stopping at the point of abandonment, the 1755 map shows it turning south-southeast in the vicinity of Berlin, on a course leading to Fort Cumberland. This 1755 road would have passed through Larimer Township. This suggests that Burd completed the road to Fort Cumberland before the cancellation order was received. A deed for property on Laurel Creek, not far from the White Oak Churches, mentions that the property is located on Burd's old road. An old path that crossed this property also ran past the location of the White Oak Churches, as proven by the oldest surveys in the area. From these facts, I have formed the hypotheses that the fort near the White Oak Churches may have been a redoubt constructed by Burd's forces in 1755.
Click here for detailed information supporting this hypothesis, which is also explored extensively in chapter 37 of my 2014 book "In Search of the Turkey Foot Road", fourth edition.
The 1932 book "The Somerset County Outline" lists six forts that were constructed within the present-day bounds of Somerset County during the French and Indian War in connection with Forbes' expedition: Fort Dewart, the fort at Edmond’s Swamp, Belleair, Fort Stony Creek, Kickenapaulin’s, and Fort Dudgeon. It doesn't seem inconceivable that the Larimer Township breastworks fort was another French and Indian War fortification, built in connection with Burd's 1755 road building activities in support of Braddock's campaign.
L. Dietle
