Several Recruits Have Died At Fort Mifflin

Letters Received By The Adjutant General from George Izard:

Source (Fold3)

"....several recruits have died at Fort Mifflin, and I fear more will soon meet with the same fate."

Note:  My ancestor, William Hinds, died 25 June 1813, probably at Fort Mifflin.

Fort Mifflin

My presumed ancestor, William Hinds, died near Fort Mifflin on June 25, 1813.

Source [On Mud Island - Map Depicting Revolutionary War era]

Mifflin: The Fort That Saved America, by Andrew M. Coker, was featured here.  Excerpts below:

"After Jefferson was elected, he decreased the funding from $15,000 dollars in the year of 1800, to $1,000 dollars in 1801. Since the nation’s capital had moved from Philadelphia to Washington D.C. the year before, officials no longer saw the importance of Fort Mifflin."

"As a precautionary protection measure for Philadelphia in the War of 1812, Fort Mifflin was once again actively manned. Captain James Nelson Barker was appointed commander of the fort on July 16, 1812. Although the fort was prepared to defend Philadelphia, it saw no action during the War of 1812."


From The Story Of Philadelphia:

Meanwhile there was a good deal of nervousness at Philadelphia which was practically unprotected. Colonel Izard and Lieutenant Colonel Winfield Scott had taken the bulk of the Fort Mifflin troops with them to fight in Canada and the West. There were, in fact, only fourteen invalided soldiers in the fort.


A Fraternity Formed in the War of 1812 Era....Fort Mifflin and the Society of Red Men:

"...does conclusively prove the existence of a Society of Red Men at Fort Mifflin during the war of 1812."

Source: Another Revolutionary War era map [Fort Mifflin Played A Part In That War] 

William Hinds At Province Island

The following notation

M. R. dated Province Island Barracks  October 23, 1812, present.  Died June 25/13, See Pension Case (Book 668) 

was found with William Hinds' entry at Ancestry, U.S. Army, Register of Enlistments, 1798-1941.

Where was Province Island Barracks and what was its history?

Province Island Barracks was mentioned once in the History of Mifflin County [Pennsylvania].

In the 1820 census, it was grouped between Kingsessing Twp. and Fort Mifflin:

Pennsylvania (1820 census): Philadelphia County (Outside of Philadelphia City) Pt. 1. Includes Kingsessing Twp.; Province Island Barracks; Fort Mifflin; ...FHL US/CAN Census Area [ 181414 ]

The Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania explained some of its history:

Governor Printz, to secure the Minquas trade, built Fort Manaiung (or Manayunk) on Province Island at Kinsessing, thus controlling the kill or creek near the mouth of the Schuylkill by which the Indians reached the Delaware.

Also found in the Annals...:

The name of the island went from Fisher Island to Province Island to State Island.  Penrose Ferry bridge crosses from the eastern shore of the Schuylkill to the western shore of Province Island.

Province Island was near Fort Mifflin according to a site listing Pennsylvania Frontier Forts.

From the Pennsylvania magazine, information about Fort Mifflin and Province Island during the Revolutionary War:

William Hinds was my ancestor; husband of Elizabeth Acklin and father of Ann (Hinds) Rice.