Excerpt from Historic Landmarks of America: As Seen and Described by Famous Writers The reader will doubtless notice the preponderance Of the fort among the landmarks. This is explained by the fact that nearly every American town had its origin in the little stockade first built for protection against the savages and later as a redoubt against French or English foes. These are eloquent testimonies to the far-sightedness of the French, English, and American generals and explorers, who planted their garrisons in such commanding positions. Many of these sites have now become great cities, such as, for instance, Pittsburg and Detroit, and many of these old forts - such as Fort Marion in St. Augustine, Niagara, Ticonderoga, West Point, Michilimacinac, etc., are among the most picturesque sights that America offers to the traveller. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.