Governor Edwards acted quickly to attempt to maintain peace, ordering the militia to “erect a chain of block houses in advance of the settlements at about twenty miles from each other commencing on the bank of the Illinois river, and a sufficient force to be distributed among them, with orders to scout from one to another every day.” The most prominent of these new blockhouses was constructed during the summer of 1812 by Colonel William Russell and named Camp Edwards in honor of the Governor, although it would commonly be known as Fort Russell. Its importance was due to its strategic location between the Mississippi River and Kaskaskia River. Governor Edwards spent considerable time at the fort, and while he was the commander-in-chief of the militia, he had very little military expertise or Native American knowledge.