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Bennett Park / Fort Washington

Fort Washington was built by the Continental Army on the highest natural point in Manhattan during the summer of 1776. The hastily-constructed five-bastion fort had earthen-walls that offered little defense against attackers. The fort was the last stronghold in Manhattan to fall to the British on November 16, 1776 and it remained in British hands until the Americans regained control of New York on November 25, 1783. During the war, the fort was renamed Fort Knyphausen after Wilhelm, Baron von Knyphausen (1716-1800), a German general in British service. The fort effectively vanished after the war with the surrounding area ultimately becoming the Washington Heights neighborhood. (reference)

Fort Washington should not be confused with Fort Washington Park, which runs along the Hudson River to the West on land acquired by the city through condemnation between 1896 and 1927.

The true location of Fort Washington is in James Gordon Bennett Park, located between 183rd Street, 185th Street, Fort Washington Avenue and Pinehurst Avenue. James Gordon Bennett (1795-1872) was the founder, editor and publisher of the New York Herald and a pioneer in the American newspaper business. Bennett owned this plot of land and his son, James Gordon Bennett, Jr. (1841-1918), permitted the Sons of the American Revolution to erect the bronze and marble memorial pictured here. After Bennett died, the property was sold although the former fort location was not subdivided and was ultimately bought by the city for a park in 1928. (reference)

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