Braddock's Grave
and Fort Necessity
Rare Old Images of French &
Indian
War Sites from our
Archives
The French & Indian War began in 1754 at Jumonville near Uniontown, Fayette County, PA, the epicenter of our Minerd- Minard- Miner- Minor family. While our family had not yet arrived in the area by that time, some of our cousins have played key roles in the preservation of important French & Indian War sites that today are part of the Fort Necessity National Battlefield.
One of the key landmarks of the war is the "Braddock's Grave" monument marking the resting place of the ill-fated British Army officer, Maj. Gen. Edward Braddock. He was mortally wounded in battle in 1755 at what is now Braddock, near Pittsburgh, while leading an expedition toward Fort Duquesne. Young Lt. Col. George Washington served in Braddock's command, and presided over the burial. Cousin William Alexander Gaither was caretaker of the grave site in the 1870s, and cousin William A. Stone served on the executive committee to erect the monument in 1913.
This page contains some rare old images of the war areas from our archives. Click to learn more about our family's connections with these sites.
Above left: British assassination of French forces in 1754, under the
command
of 22-year-old Maj. Gen. George Washington, killing Ensign Jumonville, the
"shot heard 'round the world." Above right: Washington in
battle at Braddock,
near modern day Pittsburgh, when his army was routed, and his commanding
officer, Gen. Edward Braddock, was mortally wounded. Both illustrations
from the 1860 book, The Illustrated Life of Washington, by the Hon. J.T.
Headley.
The dying Braddock retreating to the mountains above Uniontown in 1755, where
he
passed away July 13, and was buried. Steel engraved print published by Johnson &
Miles, New York, based on the original painting by Alonzo Chappel, and reproduced
in the book, Our Country. A Household History for All Readers, by Benson
J.
Lossing, LL.D. (New York: Henry J. Johnson, 1879).
Above left: Dunbar's Knob at Jumonville, PA, near where in
1754 Maj. Gen. George
Washington ambushed French forces, thus setting off the
French and Indian War.
(No. 41, Braddock Road Series by John Kennedy Lacock,
Amity, PA. Published by
E.K. Weller, Washington, PA.) Above right: The
grave of French Ensign Coulon de
Villiers, sieur de Jumonville, whose
ambush-death in 1754 incited the war. (Postmarked
1906, #A 51859, The Rotograph
Co., New York City).
Above: The
original road east of Braddock's grave, where Braddock marched men and guns
in
an ill-fated attempt to capture Fort Duquesne, and where Braddock ultimately was
buried after his mortal wound in battle. (No. 36, Braddock Road Series.)
Above left: an early square reconstruction Fort Necessity,
site of Washington's first real
battle and surrender in 1754. Above right:
Log cabin, used as a first aid station during the
battle, sited in the middle of
the fort. (Minsky Bros. & Co., Pittsburgh, Publisher.)
Above left: Braddock's grave one mile east of Chalk Hill
beside the National Pike. (No. 34,
Braddock Road Series.) Above right:
Braddock's grave monument with steps from the
National Pike. (I. Robbins &
Son, Pittsburgh, Publisher.)
Above left: Braddock's Grave prior to erection of the
granite monument. (Kwin & Co.,
Chicago, Publisher.) Above right: The
newly installed granite monument at
Braddock's Grave. (I. Robbins & Son,
Pittsburgh, Publisher.)
Above: Two views of what was the Fort Necessity Museum, in
a house built in about 1816
for use as a stage coach tavern. For three decades,
George Washington owned this
property, called "Great Meadows," from 1769 to
1799. (Both views published by
Minsky Bros. & Co., Pittsburgh.)
Copyright © 2002, 2006 Mark A. Miner