Frontier Forts Under Fire ─ The Attacks on Fort William Henry 1757 and Fort Phil Kearny 1866

Fort William Henry and Fort Phil Kearny were both military outposts of the North American frontier. Both lasted but briefly—about two years from construction until their walls went up in flames. And both saw what were termed “massacres” by Indians outside their walls.This book reexamines the traumatic events at both forts. The Fort William Henry Massacre was condemned by both British and French as barbaric. Yet these European powers proved capable of similar crimes. The Fort Phil Kearny defeat, traditionally attributed to Captain William Fetterman’s having disobeyed orders, has been scrutinized in recent years. Did the women present at that time write a distorted version of events? It would appear his second-in-command, the rash Lieutenant George Grummond, led the charge over Lodge Trail Ridge. Or did he?

Paul Williams has worked in the television and film industries as a writer, producer and director. He lives in Melbourne, Australia.