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Remove/Control Exotic/Invasive Vegetation from the Great Meadows Cultural Landscape
Fort Necessity National Battlefield » Remove/Control Exotic/Invasive Vegetation from the Great Meadows Cultural Landscape » Document List
ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT:Great Meadows Cultural Landscape Rehabilitation Project, Fort Necessity National Battlefield 2006
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Environmental Assessment has been prepared to outline various alternatives considered and/or applied to rehabilitate the Great Meadows Cultural Landscape, Fort Necessity National Battlefield, to a condition which reflects the actual battlefield scene circa 1754. On May 24, 1754, Lt. Colonel George Washington selected the Great Meadows as the site of an encampment for soldiers of his Virginia Regiment who were in the vicinity of the Great Meadows to improve the existing Nemacolin Trail to Redstone Creek on the Monongahela River. At this site on July 3, 1754, Washington and his troops engaged the French and their Indian allies in the first battle of the French and Indian War. The Great Meadows was selected for two primary reasons: 1. it provided available pasture for the regiment's cattle and horses, and 2. it contained two small streams, Great Meadow Run and Indian Run, which provided a source of fresh water and natural entrenchments for his troops. On July 3, 1754 the proximity of large trees to the fort was an important aspect of the battle at the Great Meadows. Therefore, restoration of the forest/meadow border and the reforestation of the hillsides are the highest priority for historical interpretation.
Following the battle, early agricultural practices and, later park management practices, significantly altered the appearance of the historic landscape. The two streams were deepened and straightened; the wetlands surrounding the fort site were drained by the installation of drainage ditches and tiles and the deposition of several feet of fill dirt; the forests were removed from the surrounding hillsides. These changes have resulted in a much drier, open landscape in which exotic vegetation thrives as the dominant species.
Loss of those natural features, such as the mature hardwood forests from which the French and Indians fired upon the fort and shallow meandering streams used by Washington troops as entrenchments, has made interpretation of the battle tactics and outcome difficult for park visitors to envision. However, we now have the knowledge and the expertise to re-establish the historic wetlands, to return the drier portions of the meadow to a native eastern prairie community, and to re-establish the hardwood forests that surrounded the Great Meadows during the eighteenth century. Research and design development is still on-going in regards to the restoration and enhancement of natural stream and wetlands hydrology. Currently the fort site is managed as a memorial surrounded by mowed turf. Therefore this Environmental Assessment will deal strictly with the restoration of the historic forest/meadow border and the forested hillsides. Because of close association with natural stream and wetland hydrology, the restoration of the dry meadow and historic fort site will not be dealt with at this time in terms of planting native species. Exotic plant species in these areas will, however, be removed along with those impacting the forest/meadow border and hillside plantings areas.
Upon the successful completion of this project, the Great Meadows will not only portray the landscape at the time of the battle that began the global conflict between England and France in 1754, but will represent a harmonious melding of cultural and natural resource management practices. It is the purpose of this Environmental Assessment to present treatment alternatives to restore the historic forest/meadow border and forested hillsides and to describe the impacts that each of these treatments will have on both the cultural and natural resources of the Great Meadows historic landscape.
Acting Superintendent
Fort Necessity National Battlefield &
Friendship Hill National Historic Site
1 Washington Parkway
Farmington, PA 15437
(724) 329-5802 office
(724) 329-8682 fax
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This Environmental Assessment has been prepared to outline various alternatives considered and/or applied to rehabilitate the Great Meadows Cultural Landscape, Fort Necessity National Battlefield, to a condition which reflects the actual battlefield scene circa 1754. On May 24, 1754, Lt. Colonel George Washington selected the Great Meadows as the site of an encampment for soldiers of his Virginia Regiment who were in the vicinity of the Great Meadows to improve the existing Nemacolin Trail to Redstone Creek on the Monongahela River. At this site on July 3, 1754, Washington and his troops engaged the French and their Indian allies in the first battle of the French and Indian War. The Great Meadows was selected for two primary reasons: 1. it provided available pasture for the regiment's cattle and horses, and 2. it contained two small streams, Great Meadow Run and Indian Run, which provided a source of fresh water and natural entrenchments for his troops. On July 3, 1754 the proximity of large trees to the fort was an important aspect of the battle at the Great Meadows. Therefore, restoration of the forest/meadow border and the reforestation of the hillsides are the highest priority for historical interpretation.
Following the battle, early agricultural practices and, later park management practices, significantly altered the appearance of the historic landscape. The two streams were deepened and straightened; the wetlands surrounding the fort site were drained by the installation of drainage ditches and tiles and the deposition of several feet of fill dirt; the forests were removed from the surrounding hillsides. These changes have resulted in a much drier, open landscape in which exotic vegetation thrives as the dominant species.
Loss of those natural features, such as the mature hardwood forests from which the French and Indians fired upon the fort and shallow meandering streams used by Washington troops as entrenchments, has made interpretation of the battle tactics and outcome difficult for park visitors to envision. However, we now have the knowledge and the expertise to re-establish the historic wetlands, to return the drier portions of the meadow to a native eastern prairie community, and to re-establish the hardwood forests that surrounded the Great Meadows during the eighteenth century. Research and design development is still on-going in regards to the restoration and enhancement of natural stream and wetlands hydrology. Currently the fort site is managed as a memorial surrounded by mowed turf. Therefore this Environmental Assessment will deal strictly with the restoration of the historic forest/meadow border and the forested hillsides. Because of close association with natural stream and wetland hydrology, the restoration of the dry meadow and historic fort site will not be dealt with at this time in terms of planting native species. Exotic plant species in these areas will, however, be removed along with those impacting the forest/meadow border and hillside plantings areas.
Upon the successful completion of this project, the Great Meadows will not only portray the landscape at the time of the battle that began the global conflict between England and France in 1754, but will represent a harmonious melding of cultural and natural resource management practices. It is the purpose of this Environmental Assessment to present treatment alternatives to restore the historic forest/meadow border and forested hillsides and to describe the impacts that each of these treatments will have on both the cultural and natural resources of the Great Meadows historic landscape.
Contact Information
Jeff ReinboldActing Superintendent
Fort Necessity National Battlefield &
Friendship Hill National Historic Site
1 Washington Parkway
Farmington, PA 15437
(724) 329-5802 office
(724) 329-8682 fax