Welcome to the Official Website of the Friends of Fort Ontario.

It seems an appropriate tribute to the devoted volunteers who have committed tens of thousands of hours, in service to Fort Ontario, that we launch our web site during the 15th Anniversary Celebration of Friends of Fort Ontario.

From the original few participants gathering in 1988, we moved forward to gain our charter in 1989. Since then, we have grown in numbers and financial contributions in support of Fort Ontario State Historic Site.

Most recently, the Friends surpassed many of our original goals. Our programs have yielded very high attendance, we opened and staffed our on site museum shop, partnered with site and regional staff, and county and state elected officials to install a bluestone interior walkway at Fort Ontario. This past year two exterior buildings (flankers) were added to the Enlisted Men’s Barracks. The West Guardhouse is in the completion stage of an expansive restoration. Our second newsletter this year was recently distributed and now through this web site, we will reach a global community.

We continue to operate as an all volunteer organization. This has been accomplished and maintained by an effective collaboration facilitated through the Memorandum of Understanding that the Friends of Fort Ontario and the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation operate by.

Our pride in the Fort, as an important historical military site, drives our fundraising for much needed capital improvements. The history of the military involvement and the subsequent social histories, confirm this institution’s dominance in the development of the Northern Frontier. Oswego was originally settled, on Lake Ontario, as a trading center. This further links Fort Ontario’s prominence to more recent times.

We welcome you to tour our website and hope with the tools provided you will make Fort Ontario, in Oswego, New York, part of your travel plans. There are informative brochures and articles provided by knowledgeable staff and Friends historians.

Current events and visitation hours will be updated for your convenience. To book tours and for hours of operation the telephone number of Fort Ontario State Historic Site is listed below.

Remember, as you tour our site you will step into the footprints of Fort Ontario’s history as
“Guardian of the Northern Frontier”.

Fort Ontario State Historic Site
One East Fourth Street
Oswego, New York 13126 USA
Telephone: 1-315-343-4711