Fort Seybert

Fort Seybert was a German frontier outpost built in 1756 along the South Fork of the South Branch Potomac River in the Appalachian mountains of West Virginia. It consisted of a circular stockade with blockhouses and served as a defensive structure for the growing settlement in this remote mountain valley.

The fort was established in 1756 by German-speaking settlers to protect their farms in the border region. In April 1758 it was attacked and destroyed by Shawnee and Delaware warriors, marking a turning point in conflicts between settlers and indigenous peoples in this valley.

The site tells the story of early frontier settlements and shows how European colonists and Native Americans lived in close proximity in this mountain region. The remains speak to the tensions that shaped the valley's early years.

The site sits in a remote valley in the mountains and requires driving on rural roads through West Virginia. Visitors should be prepared for uneven terrain and be aware that the ruins are minimally marked with no formal pathways developed.

The fort was designed with a circular stockade about 30 meters in diameter and contained a two-story blockhouse inside as the central defensive structure. This compact defensive system was typical of colonial frontier forts and shows how settlers protected their settlements from attack.