Station (frontier defensive structure)
Encyclopedia
A Station was a defensible residence constructed on the American
frontier
during the early nineteenth century.
Many of these structures were built on the Kentucky
frontier in and around the Louisville
area during the struggle with the British
and Native Americans
. It was required under Virginia
law that settled land be surveyed, a corn crop be planted and a dwelling be established.
The dwelling, a station, was often crudely built and served its purpose only while hostilities were ongoing. Family groupings often maintained the station and visitors were welcome. Soldiers were often given land grants after service and many built stations to secure the area until cities and towns were developed.
The purpose for stations in Kentucky was for protection because some Native American tribes joined with the British during this period and the new Americans in this region were often under attack. The tribes who participated believed the British would succeed in a promised elimination of westward expansion.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
frontier
Frontier
A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. 'Frontier' was absorbed into English from French in the 15th century, with the meaning "borderland"--the region of a country that fronts on another country .The use of "frontier" to mean "a region at the...
during the early nineteenth century.
Many of these structures were built on the Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
frontier in and around the Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
area during the struggle with the British
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
. It was required under Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
law that settled land be surveyed, a corn crop be planted and a dwelling be established.
The dwelling, a station, was often crudely built and served its purpose only while hostilities were ongoing. Family groupings often maintained the station and visitors were welcome. Soldiers were often given land grants after service and many built stations to secure the area until cities and towns were developed.
The purpose for stations in Kentucky was for protection because some Native American tribes joined with the British during this period and the new Americans in this region were often under attack. The tribes who participated believed the British would succeed in a promised elimination of westward expansion.
See also
- Corn Island (Kentucky)Corn Island (Kentucky)Corn Island is a now-vanished island in the Ohio River, at head of the Falls of the Ohio, just north of Louisville, Kentucky.-Geography:Estimates of the size of Corn Island vary with time as it gradually was eroded and became submerged. A 1780 survey listed its size at...
- Fort Nelson (Kentucky)Fort Nelson (Kentucky)Fort Nelson, built in 1781 by Richard Chenoweth, was the second on-shore fort on the Ohio River in the area of what is now downtown Louisville, Kentucky. Fort-on-Shore, the downriver and first on-shore fort, had proved to be insufficient barely three years after it was established...
- Fort-on-ShoreFort-on-ShoreFort-on-Shore, built in 1778 by William Linn, was the first on-shore fort on the Ohio River in the area of what is now downtown Louisville, Kentucky. George Rogers Clark had directed Linn to move the militia post to the mainland from its original off-shore location at Corn Island...
- Fort William (Kentucky)Fort William (Kentucky)Fort William was a pioneer fort in Kentucky established in 1785 by Colonel William Christian and Anne Christian. William Christian directed the defense of what is now Louisville from attacks by the Indians. The fort was in the area of Jefferson County near St. Matthews and Lyndon...
- Spring Station (Kentucky)Spring Station (Kentucky)Springs Station was established in 1780 in the area of Beal's Branch of Beargrass Creek in what is now Louisville, Kentucky. It was established at the time of the founding of Louisville as part of the settlement's defensive network of six forts, to protect settlers from attack by the Indians who...
- Floyd's Station (Kentucky)Floyd's Station (Kentucky)Floyd's Station was a fort on Beargrass Creek in what is now St. Matthews, Kentucky. In November of 1779 James John Floyd built cabins and a stockade near what is now Breckenridge Lane. In 1783, John Floyd, future Governor of Virginia was born in the Station. The pioneer father was killed by...
- Low Dutch StationLow Dutch StationLow Dutch Station was established in 1780 on the middle fork of Beargrass Creek in Kentucky. This station was settled by Dutch pioneers from Pennsylvania and was also known as New Holland Station. The...
- Bryan's StationBattle of Blue LicksThe Battle of Blue Licks, fought on August 19, 1782, was one of the last battles of the American Revolutionary War. The battle occurred ten months after Lord Cornwallis's famous surrender at Yorktown, which had effectively ended the war in the east...