Discover Toronto's history as told through its plaques

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The Western Battery and The Battle of York

Photos and transcription by contributor Wayne Adam - Posted December, 2015

On the northeast corner of Fleet Street and Strachan Avenue can be found this Fort York plaque. Here's what it says:

Coordinates: 43.636385 -79.409396

Roughly 200 metres southwest of here (near today's Princes' Gates) was the location of the Western Battery - an outer earthwork fortification and artillery emplacement positioned to protect Fort York from a western assault. At the height of the Battle of York on April 27, 1813, an accidental explosion occurred there when a portable magazine containing artillery ammunition was detonated. The explosion killed 10 men and wounded many others. York's defending troops had fallen back to the Western Battery as the American forces pressed home their attack on the fort and Town of York. Shortly after the accident, the battery was abandoned. Regular army defenders pulled back to the garrison and prepared for withdrawal from the town. Local militia remained with civic leaders to negotiate the terms of surrender.

Other plaques in this series
Garrison Common and the Battle of York
Grand Magazine and Explosion Crater
The Main (East) Gate
Strachan Avenue Military Burying Ground
West Curtain Wall and Dry Moat

More
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