History & local legend
Fort Necessity near Farmington marks the Great Meadows battlefield where George Washington’s force fought on July 3, 1754. After a day of heavy rain and fighting, the British surrendered; the French burned the original stockade the next day. A reconstruction now stands on the battlefield.
A reenactor named Ed reportedly encountered soldiers in the surrounding woods after arriving a day before his friends. Already dressed in eighteenth-century clothing, he assumed the men were taking part in the event. One told him there was a war to fight and asked him to join them.
Ed played along and began walking with the group. Then all the soldiers vanished. Betsy Miklos, whose father knew Ed, sent the story to a folklore collector in May 2009. She recalled him telling the family what had happened as soon as they arrived.
