Famous people's places / Detroit – Downtown
Fort Lernoult (Fort Shelby)
Closed – archive entry · 1827
British-built fort at Fort and Shelby streets, constructed in 1778–79 and demolished in 1827, whose 1812 surrender is tied to William Hull, Isaac Brock and Tecumseh.
01 / The story of this place
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British forces built Fort Lernoult over the winter of 1778–79, a large earthwork fort just north of the original walled town of Detroit, replacing the smaller and less defensible Fort Detroit. The United States took formal control under the Jay Treaty in 1796, and the fort was renamed Fort Shelby after Kentucky governor Isaac Shelby around the time of the War of 1812. On August 16, 1812, American general William Hull surrendered Detroit and the fort without a fight to British general Isaac Brock and Shawnee leader Tecumseh, one of the war's most notorious capitulations; American forces retook the city the following year. With Detroit no longer on the frontier and the fort obstructing the growing city's street grid, the last troops left in 1826 and the city had it razed in 1827. Workers excavating for a bank building in 1961 uncovered fort timbers and thousands of artifacts, now held by Wayne State University, and a historical marker at Fort and Shelby streets recalls the site today.
- Built by the British over the winter of 1778–1779
- Renamed Fort Shelby around the War of 1812
- Hull surrendered Detroit here to Brock and Tecumseh, August 16, 1812
- Demolished by the city in 1827
- Marked today by a historical plaque at Fort and Shelby streets
Famous Detroiters
Famous people tied to this place 4
Lexicon entries for the people who lived, worked, performed or liked to spend time here.
- Tecumseh 1768–1813 · Shawnee chief and war leader
Related place
The fort surrendered to Brock and Tecumseh on August 16, 1812; it was demolished in 1827, and a historical marker on the corner building now recalls it.
- Isaac Brock 1769–1812 · British Army general
Related place
The American fort Brock captured on August 16, 1812; demolished in 1827, it is recalled by a historical marker on the corner building.
- William Hull 1753–1825 · army officer, first governor of Michigan Territory
Related place
The fort Hull surrendered on August 16, 1812; it was demolished in 1827, and a historical marker on the corner building recalls it.
- Jean François Hamtramck 1756–1803 · US Army officer, first American commander of Detroit
Worked here
The fort he occupied on July 11, 1796, and commanded until 1803; demolished in 1827, recalled by a marker at Fort and Shelby streets.
Sources & fact check · Checked: 2026-09-25
An independently written bilingual guide. This collection is not an attendance-based ranking.
03 / Events
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