Fort Vancouver Historic Structures Report

Recommendations

a. The south stockade wall of a Fort Vancouver restored to the conditions of late 1845 or early 1846 should be the inner south palisade as uncovered by archeological excavations. At least planning should be done on this basis, leaving the possibility of switching to the outer wall (line JL on the Summary Sheet, Archeological Excavations) should further historical or archeological research reveal that the south wall was moved southward about six feet during the 1846 rebuilding.

b. All other reconstructed walls should be in the outermost locations revealed by archeological excavations in 1947-1952.

c. In an attempt to throw additional light upon the date at which the south wall was moved outward, future archeological excavations should include the following steps:

(1). Excavate the easternmost 17 feet of the inner south wall to see if there is evidence of stockade posts beneath the three parallel timbers found by Mr. Caywood in 1952.

(2). Search for gate locations along the entire length of both south walls.

(3). Search outside the southeast stockade corner for evidence of a blockhouse.

d. An archeological search should be made for the evidence of the king posts, with particular attention to the position of these posts in relation to the smaller pickets.

e. Upon a reassessment of the historical and archeological evidence available in 1966 and on the basis of new information garnered since that time, a stockade restored to the conditions of late 1845 or early 1846 should possess the following characteristics:

(1). Height of posts above ground level: 15 feet.

(2). Logs peeled, with diameters ranging from 5 to 10 inches for ordinary palisade posts and from 10 to 13 inches for king posts.

(3). The tops of the posts in at least one or two walls should be saw-cut, with the flat tops slanting slightly toward the inside of the palisade.

(4). If the date to which the fort is to be reconstructed is prior to January, 1846, the entire stockade should have two lines of girths as shown in the Emmons sketch. If the date is after January, 1846, the south wall should have only one line of girths. This line should be about two feet below the tops of the posts.