George Mercer's Report on "Pittsburg" Sept 1759
After Fort Duquesne fell 25 Nov 1758, General Forbes did not immediately name it Fort Pitt. There was no officially named Fort Pitt or a new fort built named Fort Pitt until late fall 1759. Forbes assigned many names on 1 Dec 1758. He called this area of the 3 Rivers, the area known as The Point, the name of Pittsburg. On that same date he called the camp and fort at Loyalhanna, Fort Ligonier. Forbes on that same date, dubbed the camp at Reas Town, also written as Rays Town, as Fort Bedford.
This area called The Point is the whole point of why Fort Loudoun Winchester VA was built. It is why a cannon left behind by Braddock is still pointing to "Pittsburg" on the corner of Cork and Braddock in Winchester VA.
As Assistant Quarter Master of VA and MD, George Mercer is touring all the needs of the forts. He's been at "Pittsburg."
He recently was at Fort Pleasant and has visited forts along the South Branch of the Potomac.
He is now in Winchester VA. He writes on 16 Sept 1759 to a retired Colonel George Washington, still keeping connection to this man who can help many in their careers:
All is well and quiet on the Ohio—Single Persons come from Pittsburg down. The Savages come in to the General in great Numbers begging Remission of their Sins, and Forgiveness for past Offences.
The General told Me, there were sometimes 1000 there at once—The French, you certainly must have heard, have evacuated and burnt their Forts at Venango—Presque Isle, and Le Bœufe, and retired to Detroit.7
We are going to build a very respectable Fort at Pittsburg, of Brick, to contain 4000 Men on an Emergency, and capable of holding out against Shells as ’tis to be covered.
Source
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See Robert Stewart's report on "progress" of "Pittsburg":
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Brief Bio of George Mercer
George Mercer is still Assistant Quarter Master of Maryland and Virgina reporting to General Stanwix since 19 Aug 1759. George Mercer's Company was one of the companies building Fort Loudoun in Winchester Va in 1756. He was also aid de camp to Colonel George Washington who designed the fort. In 1758 he became Lt Colonel under Col Byrd III in the 2nd VA Regiment. In 1761, George Mercer will be elected to join GW in the House of Burgesses, representing Frederick Co VA. He was burned in effigy for becoming Stamp Collector in 1765. He was a contender to be Governor of a new planned colony call Vandalia in 1770. He was appointed Gov of North Carolina but never assumed the position. We learn of an old war injury from a letter he writes in Paris. We learn in 1778 his arm was wounded at Fort Necessity in 1754.
Still in Paris in March 1779 he complained of feeling healthy maybe less than 10 days since April 1778. During that time his eyes were bandaged from some infection that might not last long. He was hoping to come back to America if Peace could be achieved in the Autumn of 1779. We know peace didn't happen until 1783. He died widowed in London, having remained a passive loyalist, in 1784.
That's it.
That's our lead story
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Compiled by Jim Moyer updated 9/13/2023, 9/17/2023
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Sources
The Letter of 16 Sept 1759
George Mercer writes from Winchester to retired Colonel George Washington
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The Renaming
A quote from Cubbison's book on the Forbes Expedition:
On December 1 [1758],
Forbes issued those orders that remain today as his most enduring legacy in North America. Specifically, he named the posts upon which he had expended so much labor and effort:
"General Forbes is please to name the different Posts as follows & all Officers serving in the Army are desired to give them their several appelations either in Writing or otherwise;
Late Fort Duquesne = Pittsburgh
Loyal Hannon = Fort Ligonier
Ray's Town = Fort Bedford "
Source:
Page 179, The British Defeat of the French in Pennsylvania, 1758: A Military History of the Forbes Campaign Against Fort Duquesne: by Douglas R. Cubbison. More on this author here. And a review here.
The letters by all the top officers --
all refer to Reastown (Raystown) and to Loyalhanna -- not Fort Bedford, not Fort Ligonier until after the French abandoned Fort Duquesne
More detail on why those name changes
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The burning of the French Forts north of Pittsburg.
This finally ends the threat of any French comeback.
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Progress in "Pittsburg"
.Pittsburg in June 1759
.Founders Online footnote 3. Maj. Gen. John Stanwix arrived at Pittsburgh at the end of August 1759, and on 3 Sept. his engineer Capt. Harry Gordon initiated work on the permanent fort, Fort Pitt. Stewart probably left Fort Ligonier in Pennsylvania with Lt. Col. Adam Stephen on 18 Sept., arriving at Pittsburgh with supplies and about one hundred and fifty men and officers on 23 Sept. 1759. Stewart’s sketch of the proposed fort has not been identified..
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