Fort Frederick State Park Fort Frederick State Park is a Maryland state park surrounding the restored Fort Frederick , a fort from the French and Indian War and American Revolutionary War . The park is south of the town of Big Pool on the Potomac River ; the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal runs through the park grounds . The fort was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1973 . History . Fort Frederick was built in 1756 - 57 by the colony of Maryland . During the French and Indian War in 1756 a £6000 appropriation was authorized by the Maryland Legislature at the request of Governor Horatio Sharpe to build a fortification on the frontier . The fort , named after Frederick Calvert , 6th Baron Baltimore , was completed the following year . " The fort ' s design , which was developed by Sebastian Vauban , a French engineer , is a large square with four diamond - shaped bastions . This is typical of 18th century fortifications . The fort is built of native sandstone . " The large stone fort was designed primarily as a place of refuge for area settlers . Between 1757 and 1758 , small raids by Indians in nearby settlements , caused settlers in the surrounding countryside to flee eastward . At the same time men of the 60th Regiment of Foot and local militia soldiers garrisoned the fort . Ranging parties were sent from the fort to patrol the area and to deter if not prevent Indian raids . The fort was not designed to resist artillery , as it was correctly assumed that the French would not be able to transport artillery to the remote location from the west . The fort served its purpose in 1763 during Pontiac ' s Rebellion ; however , the fort was never directly attacked . From 1777 to 1783 the fort was used as a prisoner of war camp for as many as 1 , 000 captured British and German soldiers . Fort Frederick was sold at auction in 1791 and lay abandoned until the American Civil War . The fort was garrisoned at the outbreak of war and was used as a gun emplacement to protect the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal and the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad , which paralleled the canal . The 1st Maryland Infantry ( US ) occupied the area in December 1861 and Company H fought in a skirmish at the fort against Confederate raiders on Christmas Day , 1861 . The regiment left in February 1862 . In October 1862 a picket from the 12th Illinois Cavalry briefly occupied the area . The military usefulness of the fort ended by 1862 . In 1922 the property was acquired by the State of Maryland for use as Maryland ' s first state park . The walls had deteriorated , but were standing up to in places . Archeological investigations and the discovery of the original plans allowed a complete reconstruction . Much of the restoration work of the 1930s was done by the Civilian Conservation Corps . Description . The fort is a large stone quadrangle with bastion s at each corner . Each face of the curtain wall is about long , high and thick at the base . The bastions project diagonally about , are thick at the base , and were filled with earth to provide a platform . The main gate is located in the center of the south curtain wall . Two of the three barracks buildings have been restored . The west barrack is reconstructed to its 1758 appearance , while the east barrack contains displays regarding the history of the fort . The north barrack , known as the Governor ' s House , has not been reconstructed .