By Staff
NILES – Support the Fort, Inc invites the public to the unveiling of the reproduction of the 1730's religious medallion found at the archaeological site of Fort St. Joseph in Niles.
The presentation will be held Dec. 18, at the Niles Senior Center, 1109 Bell Road at 7 p.m. This medallion was unearthed during the July 2004 field school at the fort site. This brass medallion is only one of two found intact in North America.
Reproductions which are struck in brass and silver and will be for sale that evening. These reproductions, with historic, cultural and religious emphasis, can be worn or used as a collector's piece.
The cast brass religious medallion with depictions of Jesus Christ and the Virgin Mary has Latin inscriptions. On the medal obverse is a depiction of Christ and a Latin inscription, "CLARIOR SOLE MISERE," roughly translated as "You, who are brighter than the sun, have mercy." On the reverse is a depiction of Mary and a Latin inscription, "MATER SAL VATORIS," which translated as "Mother of the Savior." A medal very similar in design but with slightly different inscriptions and dating to the first half of the 18th century has been recovered from the Palais de l'Intendant in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada.
Support the Fort, Inc was started in 1991 as an offshoot of the Friends of the Fort. Support the Fort focuses on educating the public about the early history of Michigan and the reason European explorers came to the region. Fort St. Joseph was established in 1691, near the Jesuit mission that was started in what is now Niles, by Father Claude Allouez to minister to the local Native Americans.
Allouez died Aug. 27, 1689, and is buried near the site of the fort on Bond Street in Niles. The fort was located near the crossing of two major Native American trails, the Grand River Trail from the north and the Sauk Trail from the east.
Fort St. Joseph, (1691-1781) served mainly as a trading post, but at times there were military stationed there. During some of the Indian Wars it was closed for protection of the people. The fort was held by the French, British, and Spanish for less than 24 hours and then of course, America. On May 25, 1763, Pontiac's Rebellion erupted and an attack on Fort St. Joseph occurred. Thus Niles claims the distinction of being the City of Four Flags.
In 1913, local school children saved their change from milk money to help move the huge boulder that now marks the site of the fort from a farm just south of the site. The boulder was larger than thought and a train track was needed to move the boulder across a creek.
In 1998, Support the Fort invited the Anthropology Department of Western Michigan University to explore the site of the fort. Previous to that Notre Dame University and the University of Michigan had attempted to locate the fort unsuccessfully. The late Dr. Joseph L. Peyser had been contracted by the City of Niles to translate early French documents about the fort. Dr. Peyser had located an early map that indicated the fort lay on the eastern bank of the St. Joseph River and this map was shown to Dr. Michael S. Nassaney who then used the map to do sample test pits on the site in 1998. Enough artifacts from the correct time were found that Western continued the study again in 2000, 2002 and 2004. The site is at a very high water table and must be dewatered to allow the students the opportunity to dig. The water level came up by 12 feet when a dam was constructed in the mid 1800s and the fort is buried with this water.
Recently the City of Niles and Western Michigan University entered into a contract to allow ten more years of study at the site. During the August Open House held during the dig, nearly 2000 people came to learn how a dig is conducted. An Advisory Board was established to help guide all involved in the dig and establish an Interpretive Center near the dig site. This center will allow the students to study, curate, store and display the artifacts found at the site of the fort. Artifacts are currently on display at the Fort St. Joseph Museum near the Niles City Hall at Main and Fifth Street. Carol Bainbridge, Museum director, has an exhibit about the different phases at the fort.
Support the Fort conducts an annual Education Day for area fourth grade students where they come to visit a Living History village which ties into their MEAP testing on Michigan history. At this event, children get a 'hands on' experience concerning domestic life, Native Americans, voyageurs and the fur trade, military drills and sample archaeology by using a screen to look for artifacts. Support the Fort brings in professional reenactors to answer questions and explain life during Michigan's early history. This event is held in October at South Riverfront Park on Bond Street. This year 800 students from area were served at this event. Support the Fort is pursuing more grants to continue this event for the future.