Author's Background:
I am not a professional historian, although I am trained as one. I hold an undergraduate and graduate degrees in British and
European history, but am a practicing lawyer in the Province of Ontario.
I was a volunteer at Fort Wellington from 1979 to 1985. I then worked at Fort Wellington as a member of the Royal Canadian
Rifle Regiment animation unit during the summers of 1985 and 1986. I was a Fort Wellington guide in 1988, 1989 and 1990.
I spent a lot of time as a child and youth at Fort Wellington, and although I now live five hours away from Prescott, I never skip a
chance to drop in and look around. My last visit was on Sunday, 8 July, 2007. I have to say that I was impressed by the
friendliness of the summer staff and enjoyed speaking with several guides. Most of the photographs on this site are from that visit.
Please note that I also actively contribute to the Wikipedia article on Fort Wellington. Similarities of style and syntax are not
accidental. I also contributed most of the photographs in the Wikipedia article.
Please note that the words used on this site are mine. I wrote them. They belong to me. I hold the copyright, and all rights are
reserved. If you want to write about Fort Wellington, go ahead, but do not steal my words. If you want to write about Fort
Wellington but do not know how to write, take some lessons. I have worked hard over the years to become lucid and articulate.
You can learn, too.
Notes About This Site:
There are a few points which I should make to clarify terminology.
Firstly, I have deliberately used the terms "rifle", "rifle loopholes" and "riflemen" with exact reference to the military definition of the
word "rifle" in the mid-nineteenth century. There is a reason. From 1842 onwards, a British Army regiment called the Royal
Canadian Rifle Regiment was stationed at Fort Wellington. Its men were armed with rifles - not muskets. Therefore, whenever
you read the word "rifle" or "riflemen" on this site, it is not anachronistic. It is very accurate.
Secondly, I have presumed that the reader is familiar with some basic terminology for fortifications. "Blockhouse" and "earthwork"
are self-explanatory. "Bastion" may not be. "Latrine" better be if you are in need of one. If you do not understand a term, please
consult one of the many texts about military fortification which have been published in the last four hundred years.
Parks Canada:
For those of you who are not familiar with it, Parks Canada is an agency of the Government of Canada which administers and
operates two types of sites in Canada: National Parks and National Historic Parks and Sites. The former are nature parks, such as
Banff, Jasper, Gros Morne, Pacific Rim, St. Lawrence Islands, and about 70 other sites across Canada. The latter are places of
historical significance across Canada, including the Fortifications at Louisbourg and Quebec, the Rideau Canal, Fort George, Fort
Langley - and Fort Wellington.
Parks Canada has billions of dollars worth of assets and has a budget which is not even close to being sufficient to fund its
operations or even preserve its assets. Although clearly not an essential government service in the same manner as the courts or
our much-lauded health care system, many of the sites operated by Parks Canada are among the most beautiful and significant in
Canada.
Fort Wellington is a fairly minor operation by Parks Canada standards. If it is the same now as it was in the late 1980s, it has a
year-round staff of about six people and a summer staff of about 12 more. In its heyday in the early 1980s, there would also have
been 20 uniformed military animators and any number of child volunteers. These days, it looks pretty quiet in comparison to how
it used to be.
It is important to note that I have nothing to do with Parks Canada. I last worked for them in September, 1990. This site is my
own and has nothing to do with Parks Canada.
Photography:
I do not have a camera fetish. To me, cameras are things for taking pictures. I like photographs best when they are relatively
centred and in focus. Do not write to me asking about exposures, f-stops, or things like that. You may as well ask me my opinions
on classical Mongolian poetry. I simply do not know. Or care.
Unless credited, all of the photographs on this site are mine. You may not reproduce them without my permission. I hold the
copyright on them, and all rights are reserved. Stealing photographs online and passing them off as your own is theft.
Contacting Me:
You may contact me at my Hotmail address, which is "@hotmail.com" preceded by "rbgstewart". I do not put these two things
together on this site because I have received enough business proposals from Nigeria and enough opportunities to buy cheap
pharmaceuticals in my lifetime. No more are required.
Also, I do not personally know your great-great grandfather who served at Fort Wellington in 1843. I am not a genealogist and nor
am I a freelance military historian. If you have questions about these things, hire a genealogist or a freelance military historian.
They will appreciate the business and, remember, you get what you pay for. Free advice is usually worthless. In short, do not
write to me asking me questions like this.
On the other hand, if you have some great memories about working at or visiting Fort Wellington, please drop me a line. If you
have photographs you think would look pretty on this site. Please send them. I will give you full credit when they are posted.
I am not a professional historian, although I am trained as one. I hold an undergraduate and graduate degrees in British and
European history, but am a practicing lawyer in the Province of Ontario.
I was a volunteer at Fort Wellington from 1979 to 1985. I then worked at Fort Wellington as a member of the Royal Canadian
Rifle Regiment animation unit during the summers of 1985 and 1986. I was a Fort Wellington guide in 1988, 1989 and 1990.
I spent a lot of time as a child and youth at Fort Wellington, and although I now live five hours away from Prescott, I never skip a
chance to drop in and look around. My last visit was on Sunday, 8 July, 2007. I have to say that I was impressed by the
friendliness of the summer staff and enjoyed speaking with several guides. Most of the photographs on this site are from that visit.
Please note that I also actively contribute to the Wikipedia article on Fort Wellington. Similarities of style and syntax are not
accidental. I also contributed most of the photographs in the Wikipedia article.
Please note that the words used on this site are mine. I wrote them. They belong to me. I hold the copyright, and all rights are
reserved. If you want to write about Fort Wellington, go ahead, but do not steal my words. If you want to write about Fort
Wellington but do not know how to write, take some lessons. I have worked hard over the years to become lucid and articulate.
You can learn, too.
Notes About This Site:
There are a few points which I should make to clarify terminology.
Firstly, I have deliberately used the terms "rifle", "rifle loopholes" and "riflemen" with exact reference to the military definition of the
word "rifle" in the mid-nineteenth century. There is a reason. From 1842 onwards, a British Army regiment called the Royal
Canadian Rifle Regiment was stationed at Fort Wellington. Its men were armed with rifles - not muskets. Therefore, whenever
you read the word "rifle" or "riflemen" on this site, it is not anachronistic. It is very accurate.
Secondly, I have presumed that the reader is familiar with some basic terminology for fortifications. "Blockhouse" and "earthwork"
are self-explanatory. "Bastion" may not be. "Latrine" better be if you are in need of one. If you do not understand a term, please
consult one of the many texts about military fortification which have been published in the last four hundred years.
Parks Canada:
For those of you who are not familiar with it, Parks Canada is an agency of the Government of Canada which administers and
operates two types of sites in Canada: National Parks and National Historic Parks and Sites. The former are nature parks, such as
Banff, Jasper, Gros Morne, Pacific Rim, St. Lawrence Islands, and about 70 other sites across Canada. The latter are places of
historical significance across Canada, including the Fortifications at Louisbourg and Quebec, the Rideau Canal, Fort George, Fort
Langley - and Fort Wellington.
Parks Canada has billions of dollars worth of assets and has a budget which is not even close to being sufficient to fund its
operations or even preserve its assets. Although clearly not an essential government service in the same manner as the courts or
our much-lauded health care system, many of the sites operated by Parks Canada are among the most beautiful and significant in
Canada.
Fort Wellington is a fairly minor operation by Parks Canada standards. If it is the same now as it was in the late 1980s, it has a
year-round staff of about six people and a summer staff of about 12 more. In its heyday in the early 1980s, there would also have
been 20 uniformed military animators and any number of child volunteers. These days, it looks pretty quiet in comparison to how
it used to be.
It is important to note that I have nothing to do with Parks Canada. I last worked for them in September, 1990. This site is my
own and has nothing to do with Parks Canada.
Photography:
I do not have a camera fetish. To me, cameras are things for taking pictures. I like photographs best when they are relatively
centred and in focus. Do not write to me asking about exposures, f-stops, or things like that. You may as well ask me my opinions
on classical Mongolian poetry. I simply do not know. Or care.
Unless credited, all of the photographs on this site are mine. You may not reproduce them without my permission. I hold the
copyright on them, and all rights are reserved. Stealing photographs online and passing them off as your own is theft.
Contacting Me:
You may contact me at my Hotmail address, which is "@hotmail.com" preceded by "rbgstewart". I do not put these two things
together on this site because I have received enough business proposals from Nigeria and enough opportunities to buy cheap
pharmaceuticals in my lifetime. No more are required.
Also, I do not personally know your great-great grandfather who served at Fort Wellington in 1843. I am not a genealogist and nor
am I a freelance military historian. If you have questions about these things, hire a genealogist or a freelance military historian.
They will appreciate the business and, remember, you get what you pay for. Free advice is usually worthless. In short, do not
write to me asking me questions like this.
On the other hand, if you have some great memories about working at or visiting Fort Wellington, please drop me a line. If you
have photographs you think would look pretty on this site. Please send them. I will give you full credit when they are posted.
Fort Wellington - An Online History - Author's Notes Robert B. Stewart |
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