Major William Trent (1715 – c.1787), born in Western Pennsylvania, was a soldier and merchant who played an important role in the early stages of the French and Indian War, which he started as a Captain and company commander[notes 1] of the Virginia Regiment, the same position, albeit lower in rank, as Major George Washington. He was a key local figure in the westward expansion during the 1740s–1780s push to settle across the formidable Appalachian barrier by the English Americans after the 1744 purchase of vast lands in the Ohio Country across the Appalachian Mountains in the 18th century.
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Trent lead the advanced company when the regiment moved across the Appalachian divide along Nemacolin's Trail during which times he established two forts (sic) that were taken and destroyed by the French — Fort Prince George begun February 17, 1754[1] after Washington's return from warning the French to leave the Ohio Country, and Fort Hanger[2][3] on the banks of Redstone creek at it's confluence with the Monongahela River and near the crossing ford of the river by Nemacolin's Trail. Fort Prince George was far from completion when a military expedition of 600 lead by Sieur de Contrecoeur, which had set out from Fort Le Boeuf c. Saturday March 16, and arrived c. March 31 – April 2 at the Forks of the Ohio and surrounded Trent's command, forcing him to surrender and return to Virginia. The French force included engineers and after demolishing Fort Prince George, began building the larger, more complicated Fort Duquesne [4] which the English would have to later capture during the war. The officers of the Virginia Regiment decide to continue their campaign to secure the trans-Allegheny region for the Ohio Country and decide to organize a campaign around the strategy of building a wagon road to Redstone Creek, the nearest point a wagon might hope to negotiate a descent to the Monongahela then attack and recapture the Forks of the Ohio after sizable reinforcements arrive. On the 25th the Virginia Regiment begins building a road from Wills Creek that hopefully will cross the mountains to Redstone Creek. As before Captain Trent is sent ahead with an advance party and supplies carried by pack animals while Lt. Col. Washington oversees the main column improving the road from Wills Creek up through the Cumberland Narrows Pass over the divide.
| “ | Wednesday May 1 George Washington's Regiment sets off from Wills Creek, now Cumberland, Maryland. Washington and his officers decide to press on regardless of recent French advances in the area particularly the beginnings of a fort at the Forks of the Ohio. Thus their mission remains to construct a road to Redstone Creek (present day Brownsville, Pennsylvania) and await sizable reinforcements. Then the army will go by water to take the Fort Duquesne at the Forks of the Ohio from the French. – Peter Koch, National Park Services[1] |
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Trents' command makes minimal improvements and reach Redstone Old Forts and build Fort Hangard — a blockhouse built out of logs felled along Redstone Creek[5]
He started his pioneer life being a soldier-of-fortune during the various local Indian wars in Pennsylvania and present day Maryland and West Virginia, and the French and Indian War. He was the commander of the militia at Fort Pitt during Pontiac's Rebellion.
During the siege of Fort Pitt, Trent recorded in his journal that blankets from Fort Pitt's smallpox hospital had been given to besieging Indians during a parley. His motives were ambiguous in his journal, but in his account book, Trent explained that the blankets had been handed over in an attempt "to Convey the Smallpox to the Indians".[6]
Some credit Trent with being among the founding fathers of Pittsburgh. In later life he became a land speculator in the western Pennsylvania region.
Trent was the son of William Trent, founder of Trenton, New Jersey.
pp 382 specifically discusses the 'Hanger' fort (literally in French: "storehouse") (merely a blockhouse) site on Redstone creek founded in 1754 vs. the Dunlap Creek site of Fort Burd — the one is on the ford, the other on the bigger (canoe friendly) stream.
"Wednesday April 17, 1754
The Virginia Regiment arrives at Wills Creek (known as Cumberland, Maryland today). While in Wills Creek, Washington learns that Trent's company, the advance party of the Regiment, who had been sent to start building the fort at the Forks of the Ohio, had been surrounded by a 600 man French force and forced to return to Virginia. The French immediately destroyed the British Fort and started building their own more sizable fort, Fort Duquesne.
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