At the start of the War of 1812, Fort St. Joseph was the most westerly British outpost in Upper Canada. Within weeks of the commencement of hostilities, a contingent of 160 Canadian voyageurs and First Nations, along with 30 British regulars and two field pieces led by British Captain Charles Roberts moved from Fort St. Joseph to reclaim the fort at Mackinac Island. Abandoned, Fort St. Joseph was burned by a U.S. force in July 1814. As a result of shifting strategic considerations and the decline of the fur trade, the British did not rebuild the Fort St. Joseph following the war. In 1974, the ruins became a National Historic Site administered by Parks Canada.