ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a brief comparison between the British and French occupations at Fort Michilimackinac with something of a statement of the history of the occupation itself. The French were the first settlers at the site, the actual date of initial settlement is in dispute, but sometime between 1705 and 1720 a French settlement was established at Michilimackinac. In 1761 the British garrison was massacred there by the local Indian groups participating in Pontiac’s uprising. The British moved in with garrison troops and throughout the period of British occupancy the number of troops in garrison increased. By the end of the British occupation there was a large garrison and the function of the site had changed from that of a fortified settlement to a strict military post. British institutional buildings are entirely different from anything else on the site. They have stone foundations, very massive back to back fireplaces, and brick construction.
