In 1796, Fort Amherstburg (Fort Malden) was selected for the site of a new dockyard for the construction of vessels for the Provinvcial Marine after the former site in Detroit was ceded to the Americans. It was the only British naval base west of Kingston and located on the Detroit River with easy access to Lake Erie and Lake Huron.
The dockyard comprised a large storehouse, two blockhouses, a timber yard, saw pit and a wharf. The blockhouses flanked the Navy Yard with Fort Amherstburg (Fort Malden) and the town of Amherstburg on either side, with the dockyard overlooking the channel which ran between it and Bois Blanc Island. The dockyard was further protected by defenses erected on the island which watched over the entrances to both ends of the channel.
Many of the town's residents worked at the dockyard.
Many of the British ships that participated in the 1813 Battle of Lake Erie were built here.
--Brock-Perry
2012 marks the 200th anniversary of America's "Forgotten War," the War of 1812 that took place over three years, 1812 to 1815.
Battle of New Orleans.
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