Point Frederick
Text from the plaque
A strategic location for the defence of the Loyalist settlement at Cataraqui (Kingston), this point was reserved in 1788 and named after Sir Frederick Haldimand, Governor of Quebec (1778-86). In 1790-91 a guardhouse and storehouse were built. By 1792 a dockyard was in operation and during the War of 1812 this vital naval base was fortified. On November 10, 1812, the Fort Frederick battery took part in repulsing an American naval squadron under Commodore Isaac Chauncey. This structure, one of four massive stone Martello towers built to strengthen Kingston's defences, was erected in 1846-47 during the Oregon boundary crisis between the United States and Britain. In 1852 the dockyard was closed and in 1870 Fort Frederick was abandoned.
Transcribed from the marker, not summarised.
Find the place
The County of Frontenac
The City of Kingston
Inside the walls of the tower
on the grounds of the Royal Military College of Canada
N 44 13.666 W 76 28.166
Recorded June 2005. Check current access before visiting.
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Where it stands
Visitors' notes
February 15, 2015
Today, February 15, is Flag Day, the anniversary of the adoption of the Canadian flag in 1965. This year marks 50 years since the Maple Leaf was first raised. At the military college, the lowering of the Canadian ensign and the raising of the Maple Leaf over the Mackenzie Building took place at noon, 50 years ago today. It was reenacted in a ceremony the other day, and those original two flags were on display at a reception, following the event. Until about two years ago, they were housed in this Martello tower, a military museum, but high humidity forced them into temporary storage. It would be good to have them on public display again, especially since the college played a role in creating the Canadian flag. Its dean of arts, George Stanley, suggested in 1964 that a new national flag be based on the college flag -- two red bars, and a central white field, with a maple leaf centred upon it in place of the college arms. Today, a plaque at the base of the Mackenzie Building, which once flew that college flag, tells of how that banner inspired our national flag a half century ago. Happy Flag Day! -Wayne
September 13, 2014
On this day (Sept. 10) and at this place, 200 years ago, the greatest warship seen on the Great Lakes in the age of sail was launched. The triple-decked HMS St. Lawrence had 112 guns, and a crew of more than 830. Such a deterrent, it never saw action, and its two sister ships, including HMS Canada, ceased construction in the closing months of the war. The St. Lawrence was later used by a Kingston brewery for storage before a storm took her to the lake bottom not far from shore, where it rests today below the waters it once safeguarded. -Wayne