A National Historic Landmark, Fort Western was built by the Proprietors of the Kennebec Purchase as a fortified trading post. The fort is a rare surviving example of a eighteenth-century military outpost in Maine. Lieutenant James Howard and twenty men were assigned to the fort. In the 1750s local Native Americans actively defended their lands from European settlement and Fort Western was established to provide safe travel along the Kennebec River. Fort Western remained an active military post until 1767. Howard later bought the fort and used it has a residence and store. During the American Revolutionary War, Fort Western played a prominent role in the attempted attack on Quebec lead by General Benedict Arnold. Eventually only the main building remained at Fort Western, the large side-gabled, two-and-a-half stories rectangular structure. The building is clad in wood shingles and is devoid of exterior ornamentation. In the 1920s the locally prominent Gannett family in cooperation with the City of Augusta rehabilitated the main building and began reconstructing the block houses and stockade. Today Fort Western is open seasonally for tours.
Year Listed: 1969
National Historic Landmark Designated: 1969
For more information: https://npgallery.nps.gov/NRHP/AssetDetail?assetID=47f4feaa-350f-44fe-90bb-1d915ddce359