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Battlefield Delineation: Siege of Fort Stanwix and Battle of Oriskany Battlefield Kocoa Assessment and Mapping Project Ga-2255-11-017 Rome, New York

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Battlefield Delineation: Siege of Fort Stanwix and Battle of Oriskany Battlefield Kocoa Assessment and Mapping Project Ga-2255-11-017 Rome, New York BATTLEFIELD DELINEATION: SIEGE OF FORT STANWIX AND BATTLE OF ORISKANY BATTLEFIELD KOCOA ASSESSMENT AND MAPPING PROJECT GA-2255-11-017 ROME, NEW YORK ARPA COMPLIANT COPY Research Based on a Grant from The American Battlefield Protection Program To Rome Area Chamber of Commerce Report Prepared By Michael Jacobson, PhD, RPA September 12, 2013 For More Copies: Kristen L. McMasters Archaeologist and Grants Manager National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program 1201 Eye Street NW (2287) Washington, DC 20005 This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Interior. BATTLEFIELD DELINEATION: SIEGE OF FORT STANWIX AND BATTLE OF ORISKANY BATTLEFIELD KOCOA ASSESSMENT AND MAPPING PROJECT GA-2255-11-017 ROME, NEW YORK Research Based on a Grant from The American Battlefield Protection Program To Rome Area Chamber of Commerce Report Prepared By Michael Jacobson, PhD, RPA September 12, 2013 For More Copies: Kristen L. McMasters Archaeologist and Grants Manager National Park Service American Battlefield Protection Program 1201 Eye Street NW (2287) Washington, DC 20005 This material is based upon work assisted by a grant from the Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Interior. Battle Delineation: Siege of Fort Stanwix and Battle of Oriskany Grant # (GA-2255-11-017) p. i Acknowledgements The Public Archaeology Facility and authors of this report would like to acknowledge those who aided in the research and analysis for this project. We would like to thank the Rome Area Chamber of Commerce for allowing us to take part in this study and for helping to arrange for the presentation of our results at the public presentation in June 2013. We would also like to thank the staffs of the Fort Stanwix National Monument and Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site. They were a continuous help by providing access to their records and archives. They also gave us numerous insights and details of their experiences and interpretations of both Fort Stanwix and the Oriskany Battlefield. We would also like to acknowledge Joseph Robertaccio. He has conducted personal research on the Battle of Oriskany for years and was kind enough to provide us with documents and some of his interpretations of the battle. We would also like to acknowledge Brock University for allowing us access to their Loyalist collection. The documents reviewed in their collection detailed the personalities and perspectives of the British and Loyalists during St. Leger’s expedition. We also appreciated the landowners that allowed us access to their property and details on the history of landscape use on their property. Finally, we would like to thank the staff of New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation's Bureau of Technical Preservation Services who provided insights into the Oriskany Battlefield's landscape and a listing of previous archaeological testing within the park. Battle Delineation: Siege of Fort Stanwix and Battle of Oriskany Grant # (GA-2255-11-017) p. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Overview of the Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany ................................................... 3 1.2 Project Overview ................................................................................................................................ 4 II. RESEARCH GOALS ............................................................................................................................. 12 2.1 Identification of Archives and Collections ....................................................................................... 13 2.2 Defining Features of the Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany .................................... 13 2.3 Identifying the Boundaries of the Siege site and Battlefield ............................................................ 14 2.4 Developing an Integrated View of the Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany ............... 14 III. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .......................................................................................................... 15 3.1 Documentary Research ..................................................................................................................... 15 3.2 Initial GIS Mapping .......................................................................................................................... 16 3.3 Field Methods ................................................................................................................................... 16 3.4 GIS Analysis ..................................................................................................................................... 17 IV. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND ......................................................................................................... 20 4.1 The Oneida Carry and the Mohawk Valley ...................................................................................... 20 4.2 Preparations for the Invasion of the Mohawk Valley ....................................................................... 28 4.3 St. Leger’s Advance ......................................................................................................................... 31 4.4 The Siege Begins .............................................................................................................................. 37 4.5 The Battle of Oriskany ..................................................................................................................... 39 4.6 Finalizing the Siege .......................................................................................................................... 50 4.7 Aftermath .......................................................................................................................................... 56 V. DEFINING FEATURES AND KOCOA ANALYSIS .......................................................................... 61 5.1 KOCOA Determination .................................................................................................................... 61 5.2 Historic Perspectives of Defining Features ...................................................................................... 72 Preparations and British Advance ...................................................................................................... 72 Battle of Oriskany and Willett’s Sortie .............................................................................................. 75 The Siege ............................................................................................................................................ 78 The British Retreat ............................................................................................................................. 81 5.3 Geographic Analysis of Defining Features....................................................................................... 85 VI. DEFINING FEATURE INTEGRITY .................................................................................................. 96 6.1 Environmental Setting ...................................................................................................................... 96 6.2 Post Battle Land Use and Alterations ............................................................................................. 101 Development of Fort Stanwix and the Oneida Carry ....................................................................... 101 Oriskany Battlefield ......................................................................................................................... 110 6.3 General Threats to Defining Feature Integrity ................................................................................ 157 6.4 Condition of Battlefield Defining Features .................................................................................... 157 VII. PRESERVATION PLAN/FUTURE RESEARCH ........................................................................... 206 7.1 Confirmation of Integrity Assessment ............................................................................................ 206 7.2 Integration of Common Interpretive Elements ............................................................................... 209 Collaborative Interpretation ............................................................................................................. 209 7.3 Future Preservation Strategies ........................................................................................................ 210 VIII. SUMMARY ..................................................................................................................................... 211 APPENDIX I: BIBLIOGRAPHY ............................................................................................................ 216 APPENDIX II: FORT STANWIX/ORISKANY REPOSITORY COLLECTION DATA ...................... 225 APPENDIX III: FORT STANWIX-ORISKANY BATTLEFIELD DEFINING FEATURES DATABASE
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