c.1852

Old Fort Ambrotype

In 1794 General Anthony Wayne selected the confluence of the three rivers as the location to build Fort Wayne. Establishing a military garrison at what had been a center of Native American resistance to American settlement in the Old Northwest was both a symbolic and practical measure to control the area. Its prime location allowed for trade with native tribes and Euro-Americans alike. The site provided a portage for goods to be transported on each of the three rivers. Referred to by Chief Little Turtle as "the glorious gate," whomever controlled this strategic gateway would control westward expansion.

The ambrotype (4-3/16" by 3-1/4") is a copy of an older daguerreotype taken while the last of the old 1816 fort buildings were being dismantled in 1852. The original image was taken by Charles Stevens, who was visiting his cousin Hannah Fairfield. The man on the top was John Fairfield who was tearing the building down. The others, left to right, were Addie, Priscilla and Hannah Fairfield, and Charley Munson. Ambrotypes were wet collodion negatives on glass with an applied black background (varnish, paint, paper) which made the image appear positive. They were a popular form of photography from 1854 through the 1860s.