Episode
1599: Fort Plank Revolutionary War Genealogy with Ken D. Johnson
- Published
- Jun 25, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 1988
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Summary
Most people learn American history through famous battles, the founding fathers, and well-known landmarks, but some of the most powerful stories come from small, forgotten places that never make it into textbooks. In this episode, Fort Plank historian Ken D. Johnson reveals the hidden Revolutionary War history of Fort Plank and New York’s Mohawk Valley, and how one obscure frontier fort shaped the lives of families, soldiers, and communities for generations. Ken shares how a simple genealogical curiosity about his own ancestors turned into a decades-long mission: preserving the stories of the ordinary men, women, and children who defended and rebuilt the Mohawk Valley. What began as researching family roots led him deep into merchant ledgers, military orders, land claims, church records, and personal journals, evidence that allowed him to reconstruct the true story of Fort Plank and its people with remarkable precision. Rather than rewriting history with modern opinions, Ken focuses on documented facts and first-person accounts, which he compiles in works like “In Defense of the Facts: An Ongoing Search for Fort Plank” and “The Bloodied Mohawk.” You’ll hear why Fort Plank was far more than just a military outpost. Built on the remnants of a French and Indian War site, it became a critical commissary fort, supplying food, candles, and essentials to Revolutionary troops based on complex ration systems. After the war, when local families returned to burned-out farms and ruined homes, they didn’t leave the fort to rot, they repurposed its materials to rebuild barns, houses, and livelihoods, turning a symbol of war into the foundation of a renewed community. Ken also explains how financial records and account books can unlock family and local history in ways birth and death…