War Declared by Great Britain Against France and Spain FORTIFICATIONS ON THE FRONTIER Source: History of Charlestown, NH - Fort No. 4 by Rev. Henry H. Saunderson p.21 War was declared by Great Britain against France and Spain. This declaration was made on the 29th of March 1744 though it was not proclaimed in Boston until the June following. We shall better comprehend many things relating to this war by understanding the line of frontier which was open to attack, and which consequently required to be defend- ed. It must be remembered then, that the northern bound- ary of the settlements of New England and New York, at that time, was limited by a line commencing at St. George River in Maine, and running south-westerly parallel with the sea coast, embracing two or three ranges of towns until it intersected the Merrimac at Dunstable; thence up that river to the mouth of the Contoocook, and ascend- ing that river to its source, and continuing across the high lands to the head of the river Ashuelot; thence down that stream to Hinsdale and on a westerly course, crossing the Connecticut River at Fort Dummer. Leaving the Connecticut at that point the boundary extended in a south-west direction, crossing Bernardston and Coleraine to North River, in the latter town; thence down that river to its junction with Deerfield River and up this river through the valley of Charlemont to Hoosac Mount- ain; thence over the mountain nearly "in the old turn- pike road" to Hoosac River in Adams; thence following that stream to its junction with the Hudson. This was the New England frontier to be defended, in addition to which, were such settlements as were on the Connecti- cut River above the Ashuelot. On this frontier nearly all the important places had erected temporary fortifications which were tenable only against Indian attacks with musketry, but which, as they were not liable generally to any different assaults, in the absence of stronger defences, answered very import- ant purposes for their protection. They became places of refuge into which, in times of Indian incursions, the inhabitants could flee and ordinarily be safe, till their savage enemies had passed on to make depredations on some other settlement, or were on their march back to Canada. On this frontier, west of the Connecituct, the govern- ment of Massachusetts in the certainty that there was to be war, authorized the building of a cordon of forts, to extend from Fort Dummer to her western boundary; and thence down that boundary to the north line of Connecti- cut. Under this authorization the old defences at North- field and Greenfield were repaired; some mounts were erected and several houses were stockaded in Bernardston and Coleraine; a strong fort was built in the present town of Heath at the expense of the government and call- ed Fort Shirley; and another in Rome and named Fort Pel- ham; and a stronger fortress still in the present town of Adams called Fort Massachusetts. The following towns on the western frontier also had small defences, viz. Williamstown, Pittsfield, Stockbridge and Sheffield. At Blanford, farther in the State, a small work was also erected, not only for the protection of the settlers, but as a station on the then principal route to Kinder- hook and Albany in the State of New York. In addition to these defences there were Josiah Sartwell's Fort or Blockhouse built in 1738 in what was a part of Hinsdale but is now Vernon, VT., and Bridgman's Fort, which was built the same year and was deemed much stronger. Anoth- fort was east of the Connecticut River and nearly oppos- ite Sartwell's Fort in Hinsdale, NH, and was built in 1743 by Rev. Ebenezer Hinsdell, who was one of the proprietors of No. 4. Upper and Lower Ashuelot were also fortified by small block-houses. Such was the frontier to be defended in this war, and such the fortifications on which the settlers were to depend for protection. _____________________________________________________ Transcribed by Janice Farnsworth