08/10/2026
War of 1812 Forts in Missouri.
History of Missouri from the Earliest Explorations and Settlements Until the Admission of the State Into the Union
Volume 3
By Louis Houck · 1908
The forts, so called, crected during this war by the shores
on the Mississippi river and in the St. Charles district, were
strong log houses with a projecting upper story, and with
holes for musketry, says Long.s" Fort Mason was locate
far from the present city of Hannibal, Fort Howard, ne:
mouth of the Cuivre river and the present village of M
Buffalo fort was two miles below the present city of Louisia
what is now known as the Allison farm."
Fort Wood was c
near the Big spring where the town of Troy in Lincoln county
located; Fort Howell, in Howell's Prairie; Fort Cap au
eight miles above the mouth of Cuivre river, and opposite (
Gris in Illinois; Pond fort, a short distance from the present
of Wentzville; White's fort on Big Prairic; Kountz's fort
old Boonslick road, eight miles west of St. Charles; Zumwalt's f
near the present village of O'Fallon; Castilo's fort near Howel
Prairie; Clark's fort, four miles north of Troy in Lincoln counl
Stout's fort, a small stockade near Auburn in St. Charles county
On the Missouri river Kennedy's fort was near the present town
Wright City in Warren county; Callaway's fort a short distance fre
the present town of Marthasville, and not far from the old to1
Charette; Fort Clemson, near Loutre island; Boone's fort in t
Page bottom was built by Daniel M. Boone and was the strong
and largest of all these forts in that locality. Several such forts we
also located on Loutre island." Farther up the Missouri river
the Boonslick settlement was Cooper's fort which seems to ha
been a stockade lanked by log houses, near the Missouri river.
was the largest fort of the settlements, in a bottom prairie (nc
the present town of Glasgow). About 150 yards from the timl
between it and the river, a common field of 250 acres was work
by all the inhabitants of this fort,- twenty families and a number
young men resided in the fort. McLaine's fort, afterwards call
Fort Hempstead " was erected on a high hill, near Sulphur cree
on the bluff about one mile from the present town of New Frankli
Fort Kinkead, near the river, about one and one-half mile from t
site of Old Franklin;"" and Head's fort on the Big Moniteau near
(((Connected with Fort Hempstead were the following early settlers: Am
Jesse and Otto Albright; Aquilla, Abraham, James, John and Shadra
Barnes; Robert Barclay, Campbell and Delaney Bolan; David and Her
Burris; Prior Duncan, Stephen and John Field; John Hunes, Usebines Hu
bard, Asaph and Daniel Hubbard; Joseph Jolly (afterward in Jolly's botto
Cooper county), John, David and Matthew Kincaid; Adam McCord, Dan
and John Monroe; John Matthews, William Nash, Gilead Rupe, Enoch, Isa
and William Taylor; Enoch Turner, Giles and Britton Williams; Frank Wo
and Henry Weeden.- History of Howard and Cooper Counties, p. 158.
this fort, if a man went to slecp while acting as sentinel, the penalty impos
was grinding as many pecks of corn with a handmill as there were wido
in the fort.
There were seven widows in the fort and each became the recipie
of a peck of meal whenever a sentinel went to sleep on duty. History
Howard and Cooper Counties, p. 161.
" So named in honor of David Kinkead; was located in the Missot
bottom, about a mile and a quarter above Boonville, and about a mile nor
of the river. At Fort Kinkead, and connected with it during the War of 18
were James Alcorn, Price and John Arnold; Joseph and David Boggs; Rob
and William Samuel; Townsend Brown, Christopher and Nicholas T. Burc
harrt; Lindsay Carson and sons " Kit," Andrew and Moses; Charles al
William Canole; Isaac Clark, Joseph, James and Perrin Cooley; James Coc
rell, James, _ John, Peter and William Gleason; James Douglas, Daniel DI
ben, John Elliott, father of Col. N. G. Elliott; Hiram, Reuben, Sarshall)))))
the old Boonslick trace from St. Charles, not far from what 1
then called the " Spanish Needle Prairie,' four miles above Roc
port, the most easterly fort of the settlement. Head was "a br
and useful man."" On the south side of the Missouri the 1
Cole fort was located in the " Old Fort Field" about one and c
half mile east of the present site of Boonville, north of the Roc
The second fort of this name was erected about one r
port road.
below the present city, and where the widow Hannah Cole, widov
William T. Cole, settled and lived after her husband had been slair
the Indians, on the bluff overlooking the river in what is now knc
as East Boonville. This place was selected by the settlers as the n
suitable for defense, being located at the edge of a very steep bluff
easily defended, and also affording facilities to obtain a good sup
of water. In order to make the supply of water, even during Ind
attack, secure, the settlers ran a long log over the edge of the b
and attached to it a rope and windlass to draw up water. After
construction of this fort the er****on of other places of defe
south of the river was abandoned, because it was built large enol
to afford all the scattered families then living south of the river a pl
for protection. McMahon's fort was also located on the south s
of the river, about five miles from Cooper's fort.
During the war the Indians stole so many horses from the sett
of the Boonslick settlements, that for two or three years after the cl
of the war they were compelled to plow out the corn with oxen,t
even with milch cows.
There were fourteen white settlers and two negroes killed in
1 upper a small Boonslick number country it may during seem the to war, us and now, about but as counting many
Indians the settlers then dwelling in that district, a large percentage of the popition.
7
((((((Simeon Fugate; Reuben Gentry, Abner, John and William Grooms; Al
and Moses Head; Robert Hinkson, who moved to Boone county; Noah Ca
Joseph, William and Ewing MeLain; Joseph Moody, Mrs. Susan Mul
Thompson Mullins, William Pipes, Christopher, James, Jesse and Silas R
ardson; John Rupe, Thomas Smith, John and James Sneathan; Joseph $
John Stinson, Solomon, David and John Tetlers; Isaac and John Thorn
Jonathan Davis, Elisha and Levi Todd; James Phillips, Jesse Turner, Thor
Joseph, William and Ewing McLean. History of Howard and Co
Counties, P 158,
& Draper's Notes, vol. 6, P 313 et seq.
00 History of Cooper county, by Levins and Drake, P.
2I.
67 The services of Major Thomas Forsyth, at Peoria, are also worth
St. note Louis during and this on war. this farm Major he Forsyth died in October 1816 33, removed 1833. his family Forsyth to a acted)))))
http://www.fortwiki.com/McMahan%27s_Fort
https://www.coopercountyhistoricalsociety.org/forts
https://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/wm19CZJ_Site_of_Buffalo_Fort_Pike_County_MO
https://www.hannibal.net/news/planned-monument-to-depict-general-site-of-fort-mason/article_13630b8a-d5a1-11ee-80c9-b33b98e24c2c.html
https://www.genealogy.com/forum/general/topics/warof1812/3289/
