Join local author Harry Gratwick as he uncovers stories of adventure and
bravery from the forts of Maine.
Whether dotting the coastline, guarding the banks of the Kennebec or
defending the Canadian border, Maine's many forts have sheltered its
towns and people since the seventeenth century. Both Fort Kent and Fort
Fairfield were built after the War of 1812 during the Aroostook War,
when hostilities raged between Mainers and British Canadians over the
region's rich timber stands. Portland Harbor's Fort Preble became
embroiled in the Civil War when a Confederate raider tried--and
failed--to steal a ship from its waters. In the twentieth century,
Maine's preservationists protected many of these citadels, including
Fort Knox in Penobscot Bay, the largest and most elaborate of all
Maine's forts.