Three Forts of Presque Isle

Three centuries of fortification on a Great Lakes peninsula.

Presque Isle is a sand spit peninsula extending into Lake Erie at Erie, Pennsylvania, one of the most ecologically unusual landscapes in the state, and one of the most strategically significant in American military history. Three successive forts were built on or near the site between 1753 and 1815: a French fort, a British fort, and an American fortification from the War of 1812.

Encore's 2021 Master Plan has two main components: the reconstruction of the French, British, and American fort sites; and a blueprint for the development of a 30,000 sq. ft. interpretive center that tells the larger story of Erie's transformation from prehistoric landscape to frontier settlement to industrial city. The plan also includes recommendations for a heritage area interpreting the region's maritime and market history, "Lake and Land," with guidance for integration into the region's contiguous heritage tourism initiatives across Ohio and New York.

The design language for all signage and wayside elements responds to the natural landscape: materials, colors, and forms that recede into the dunes and shoreline rather than compete with them.