Lewiston is the home of Old Fort Niagara built by the French in 1726. It was expanded when the English gained control in 1759. The British held the fort until they were forced to yeild it to the US by treaty in 1796. 
The British recaptured it in 1813 and they ceded it to the US a second time in 1815 at the end of the war of 1812. The fort's strategic location at the mouth of the Niagara river as it flows into lake Ontario, made it's possesion vital to all concerned during the 17 and 18 hundreds.
During the Civil War and WWI, the fort was utilized as a training facility for American soldiers. It's extremely interesting to see and hear about these things that were important to the formation of our nation but I certainly didn't feel that way when I was in high school. LOL!
