Fort Necessity Interpretive and Education Center

The Interpretive and Education Center is a good place to start your visit to Fort Necessity

NPS Photo/Tom Markwardt

Quick Facts

Location:

3 Washington Parkway, Farmington, PA 15437

Significance:

French and Indian War

Amenities

13 listed

Baby Changing Station, Captioned Media, Food/Drink - Snacks, Gifts/Souvenirs/Books, Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits, Information - Ranger/Staff Member Present, Picnic Shelter/Pavilion, Playground, Restroom - Accessible, Tactile Exhibit, Theater/Auditorium, Wheelchair Accessible, Wheelchairs Available

The Fort Necessity Interpretive and Education Center is a good place to start your visit. Park Rangers will be able to provide information on places to visit, scheduled programs (when in season) and the history of the park.

Most visitors enjoy the twenty-minute film “Road of Necessity” shown in the theater (or on the park website). The museum has artifacts, interpretive panels, and audio-visual elements explaining the history of the 1754 Fort Necessity campaign and the National Road. The Fort Necessity National Battlefield park store, located in the lobby, carries books, souvenirs, apparel, snacks, and drinks.

The Interpretive Center is open seven days a week from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm throughout the year, except for New Year's Day, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, weather permitting. Please check the operating hours and seasons.

• Fort Necessity National Battlefield

  
  

  An audio clip from the self guided tour that explains what Fort Necessity National Battlefield has to offer
  Audio Transcript

  Fort Necessity National Battlefield commemorates the events that led to the start of the French and Indian War. George Washington was 22 years old, and these events introduced the young officer to warfare.

  The Fort Necessity/National Road Interpretive and Education Center is the best place to start your visit. It is open daily from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. At this visitor center, you can get acquainted with the park stories. Plan to spend about 40 minutes at the visitor center to watch the orientation movie and explore the museum exhibits and artifacts.

  It is a short walk from the visitor center to the fort. In the summer months, you may encounter an historic soldier or warrior in the meadow.

  Nearby, on a hill overlooking Fort Necessity is the Mount Washington Tavern. This museum of the National Road era is furnished to reflect life during the road’s heyday in the mid 1800’s. Hours vary so check at the visitor center desk.

  There are two additional areas of Fort Necessity National Battlefield separated from the main park. Braddock’s grave is the final resting place of General Edward Braddock, whose campaign to the Forks of the Ohio River a year after the battle of Fort Necessity ended in disaster.

  Jumonville Glen is the site of a fifteen minute skirmish where Washington’s forces clashed with the French. Six weeks later the French surrounded Washington’s fort of necessity, and the French and Indian War began.