Part of a series of articles titled The Momentous History of a Monument.
Article
The 150th Anniversary of the 1777 Campaign: "A Day of Days at the Oneida Carrying Place"
![Program A old souvenir program from Fort Stanwix and Oriskany anniversary event.](/articles/000/images/Program_2.jpg?maxwidth=650&autorotate=false)
Image courtesy of Rome Historical Society
The largest Honor America Days Concert pales in comparison however, to the Sesquicentennial celebration organized by the city (with assistance from the state) in 1927 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the Siege of Fort Stanwix and the Battle of Oriskany. With an estimated one hundred thousand visitors, it would bring the largest number of people into the Rome area until Woodstock in 1999. It was also the event that would foreshadow the creation of the present day Fort Stanwix National Monument.
The main activities took place on August 6th (150th Anniversary date of the Battle of Oriskany), and began at 9:30 a.m. at the Oriskany Battlefield site. Music from the Watertown Fife and Drum Corps and the New Hartford Band entertained spectators. Then, shortly after 10 a.m., some new history was made. The Oneida County Historical Society presented the state with a deed for the Oriskany Battlefield Monument, and 4.87 acres of land. This would form the nucleus for the present day Oriskany Battlefield State Historic Site, enjoyed by both local residents and people from all over the world. Visiting today, one can view the "new" tablets unveiled on that August day in 1927, which added the names of an additional 232 militia men to the monument.
The centerpiece of the celebration however was in Rome. The Rome Sentinel’s description of the city was similar to what can still be seen today during the Honor America Days events: "The city, spic and span…decked with flags and bunting in great profusion. Bands playing, streets alive with automobiles and pedestrians." The anniversary celebrations also helped bring about the first major scholarly work written about the British siege and the Oriskany battle. The Rome Sentinel commissioned its editorial writer, John Albert Scott to produce a history of the events of 1777. This account ran in a special addition of the paper on August 6th, and was also published as a book. To this day, Scott's Fort Stanwix and Oriskany remains one of the best researched and written accounts of the siege and battle.
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![Mohawk_Acres_1927 A crowd of people walk through an open field. Some sit in old "model T" style cars.](/articles/000/images/Mohawk_Acres_1927_1.jpg?maxwidth=1300&maxheight=1300&autorotate=false)
Image courtesy of Rome Historical Society
![Byrd_at_1927_Fort A man in a crisp white uniform stands in a miniature wooden fort addressing a crowd.](/articles/000/images/Byrd_at_1927_Fort_2.jpg?maxwidth=650&autorotate=false)
Image courtesy of Rome Historical Society
![Crowd2 Faded newsprint picture of hundreds of people in a crowd, peering at a miniature fort while a performance is enacted around it.](/articles/000/images/Crowd2_1.jpg?maxwidth=650&autorotate=false)
Image courtesy of Rome Historical Society
![1927_Fort_1 Seven men in black suits, ties, and hats walk in front of a small wooden fort while talking to each other.](/articles/000/images/1927_Fort_1_1.jpg?maxwidth=1300&maxheight=1300&autorotate=false)
Image courtesy of Rome Historical Society
Last updated: September 9, 2020