Mackinac Umbrellas

Fort Mackinac short history: Before 1763, the French used Fort Michilimackinac on the mainland south shore of the Straits of Mackinac to control the area. After the Treaty of Paris (1763), the British occupied the French fort but considered the wooden structure too difficult to defend. In 1780/1781, its lieutenant governor Patrick Sinclair constructed a new limestone fort on the 150-foot limestone bluffs of Mackinac Island above the Straits of Mackinac. The British held the outpost throughout the American Revolutionary War. Captain Daniel Robertson commanded the garrison on Mackinac Island from 1782 to his death in 1787. Despite the terms of the Treaty of Paris (1783), the British did not officially relinquish the fort to the United States until 1796. From 1875 to 1895, Mackinac National Park, the second national park in the United States after Yellowstone National Park, included Fort Mackinac and much of Mackinac Island. During the national park years, the troops stationed at Mackinac acted as park rangers. The Army tasked these men with maintaining the park, so they spent much time cutting new roads and footpaths through the park. To improve conditions and boost morale, the Army constructed a bathhouse at the fort (in which every man at the fort was required to bathe at least once a week), a post toilet (complete with flush toilets), and a post canteen (where the men could read current magazines, play pool, and buy beer and wine). They wanted Fort Mackinac to be a "desirable station." Soldiers also had regular military duties, drilling on the parade ground and taking target practice at least once a week on either a 600- or 1000-yard rifle range. The skills learned at the fort later proved important for many troops who were posted at other locations in the still-dangerous American West.

Printed on canvas, stretched and brush textured with a transparent gel. Finished size of 16" x 16", and signed. It is also available as a 12" x 12" printed on heavy watercolor paper or as an A2 size (4.25" x 5.5") notecard.