It’s an Indiana State Museum site about four miles up the Wabash River from Vincennes, Indiana and just around the corner from Ouabache Trails Park Campground, our home for the last four nights. Named for the country’s first Secretary of War, Henry Knox, Fort Knox II was active in the Indiana Territory 1803-1813. It was one of several forts in the area and the second of three military forts to bear the same name. As a historical site, it’s a self guided tour with some excellent interpretive signs on grounds with enough reconstruction to allow you to see the location and scope of the place. Historical figures associated with Fort Knox II include the Shawnee leader, Tecumseh, as well as two men later elected to the US Presidency. William Henry Harrison was at the time the Governor of the Indiana Territory and Zachary Taylor was a young Army officer. In 1811 it was the mustering point for troops prior to the march to Prophetstown which resulted in the victory at Tippecanoe. Ultimately the fort was decommissioned and dismantled in 1813 with the building materials shipped downstream to be used in the building of Fort Knox III. If you happen to be a history geek like us, and are fascinated with events of the era of the American Revolution and settling of the Northwest Territory, consider a trip to Vincennes. We’re considering a return trip, there’s a lot to see and learn. We’ll return to Ouabache Trails and attempt to get Site 6 again, or perhaps 1 or 7.
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