{"nrhp_refnum":"66000329","name":"Fort de Chartres","other_names":["Fort de Chartres State Park"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"Terminus of IL 155, W of Prairie du Rocher, Fort Chartres","address_restricted":false,"city":"Prairie du Rocher","county":"Randolph County","state":"IL","lat":38.09105037300003,"lon":-90.16375847326161,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1966-10-15","is_nhl":true,"nhl_designated_date":"1960-10-09","areas_of_significance":["Exploration/Settlement"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A reconstructed 18th-century French fort on the site of the third Fort de Chartres, near Prairie du Rocher in Randolph County, Illinois, begun in 1753 and completed three years later; it is now a state park.","why_significant":"Fort de Chartres was the center of French civil and military government of the Illinois Country in the 18th century and one of France's most impressive fortifications in North America. After French sovereignty ended in 1763, the fort served as the center of British administration of the Illinois Country until 1772. The nominated area also holds the sites of the two earlier forts, the village of Chartres, and a Michigami Indian village.","narrative":"Fort de Chartres, near Prairie du Rocher in Randolph County, Illinois, is a reconstructed French fort on the site of the third and last fort of that name. Construction began in 1753 and finished three years later. Stone walls eighteen feet high and more than two feet thick enclosed about four acres, with a bastion at each corner, a massive gatehouse, barracks, officers' quarters, a guard house, a powder magazine and a kitchen set around a parade ground. The fort could hold 400 men but usually held about half that number. It served as the center of French civil and military government in the Illinois Country. French troops stayed until October 1765, when British troops took over and renamed it Cavendish. The British evacuated and destroyed it in 1772. The state purchased the site in 1915, exposed the original foundations and rebuilt the gatehouse, guard house, chapel and storehouse, which now houses a museum. The protected area also includes the sites of two earlier forts, the village of Chartres and a Michigami Indian village.","period_of_significance":"1756-1772","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Reconstructed and operated as a state park and museum; condition listed as excellent, though the powder magazine was stabilized but needed roof repairs.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.706635-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/32/8916/28891632/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/66000329_NHL.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/66000329/eda09a75b6-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/66000329/eda09a75b6-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 3.0","author":"Kbh3rd","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fort_de_Chartres_02Aug2007-32.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Kbh3rd</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fort_de_Chartres_02Aug2007-32.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"74000772","name":"French Colonial Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/illinois/french-colonial-historic-district-74000772/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28891632","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_de_Chartres","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q3078159"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/randolph-county/fort-de-chartres-66000329/"}