Fort Deshler
Encyclopedia
Fort Deshler, located near Egypt
, Lehigh County
, Pennsylvania
, was a French and Indian War era frontier fort
established in 1760 to protect settlers from Indian attacks. The fort was near the location of what is presently the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 145
and Chestnut Street, between Egypt and Coplay
.
The fort was built by Adam Deshler, who was employed during the French and Indian War furnishing provisions for provincial forces. The fort was actually a fortified stone blockhouse
, 40 feet (12.2 m) long and 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, with walls 2.5 foot (0.762 m) thick, that also served as Deshler's home. Adjoining the building was a large wooden building, suitable as barracks
for twenty soldiers and for storing military supplies.
There appears to be no evidence that the fort was either garrisoned with provincial troops or served any military purpose beyond functioning as a place of refuge and rendezvous for settlers of the region.
The fort remained in the Deshler family until 1899, at which time the building and its remaining 151 acre (0.61107586 km²; 0.23593770860979 sq mi) of property were sold to the Coplay Cement Company for $100,000.
Historian Charles Rhoads Roberts, in his 1914 History of Lehigh County Pennsylvania and a Genealogical and Biographical Records of its Families, wrote the following about Fort Deshler:
Fort Deshler was not preserved, and stood in ruins until it collapsed around 1940. Today, its former location is commemorated by a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
marker.
Egypt, Pennsylvania
Egypt is an unincorporated community in Whitehall Township, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, United States, about north of Allentown and west of Cementon. Egypt is located on Pennsylvania Route 329, just west of its intersection with Pennsylvania Route 145 at Eagle Point.The population of Egypt is...
, Lehigh County
Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
-Climate:Most of the county's climate is considered to fall in the humid continental climate zone. Summers are typically hot and muggy, fall and spring are generally mild, and winter is cold. Precipitation is almost uniformly distributed throughout the year....
, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
, was a French and Indian War era frontier fort
Fortification
Fortifications are military constructions and buildings designed for defence in warfare and military bases. Humans have constructed defensive works for many thousands of years, in a variety of increasingly complex designs...
established in 1760 to protect settlers from Indian attacks. The fort was near the location of what is presently the intersection of Pennsylvania Route 145
Pennsylvania Route 145
Pennsylvania Route 145 , unofficially known as "the gateway to Allentown", is a long north–south state highway in the Lehigh Valley area of eastern Pennsylvania...
and Chestnut Street, between Egypt and Coplay
Coplay, Pennsylvania
Coplay is a borough in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, six miles northwest of Allentown. It is part of the Lehigh Valley region of the state. In 1900, 1,581 people lived in Coplay; in 1910, 2,670 people lived there...
.
The fort was built by Adam Deshler, who was employed during the French and Indian War furnishing provisions for provincial forces. The fort was actually a fortified stone blockhouse
Blockhouse
In military science, a blockhouse is a small, isolated fort in the form of a single building. It serves as a defensive strong point against any enemy that does not possess siege equipment or, in modern times, artillery...
, 40 feet (12.2 m) long and 30 feet (9.1 m) wide, with walls 2.5 foot (0.762 m) thick, that also served as Deshler's home. Adjoining the building was a large wooden building, suitable as barracks
Barracks
Barracks are specialised buildings for permanent military accommodation; the word may apply to separate housing blocks or to complete complexes. Their main object is to separate soldiers from the civilian population and reinforce discipline, training and esprit de corps. They were sometimes called...
for twenty soldiers and for storing military supplies.
There appears to be no evidence that the fort was either garrisoned with provincial troops or served any military purpose beyond functioning as a place of refuge and rendezvous for settlers of the region.
The fort remained in the Deshler family until 1899, at which time the building and its remaining 151 acre (0.61107586 km²; 0.23593770860979 sq mi) of property were sold to the Coplay Cement Company for $100,000.
Historian Charles Rhoads Roberts, in his 1914 History of Lehigh County Pennsylvania and a Genealogical and Biographical Records of its Families, wrote the following about Fort Deshler:
Fort Deshler was not preserved, and stood in ruins until it collapsed around 1940. Today, its former location is commemorated by a Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission is the governmental agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania responsible for the collection, conservation and interpretation of Pennsylvania's historic heritage...
marker.
See also
- Lehigh County Historical SocietyLehigh County Historical SocietyLehigh County Historical Society is a nonprofit organization, founded in 1904, dedicated to collecting, preserving, and exhibiting the history of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania and the Lehigh Valley...
- List of Forts in the United States