Fonthill near Fort Erie in Niagara Region, Ontario — Central Canada (North America)

In the Line of Fire

Photographed by Tim Boyd, April 23, 2025

1. In the Line of Fire Marker

Inscription.
The history of this house includes bearing witness to the Battle of Ridgeway.

This house was built in the early 1800s on Ridge Road North, half a kilometre from this location. Zechariah Teal purchased that property in 1822. By 1866, when the Fenian Army invaded, Zechariah had passed away, and his family found themselves on the front lines. The bullets that pierced these walls have left their mark on an interior door frame - a lasting reminder of the battle and what the family inside endured.

Living in this two-room house were:

Phebe Teal (54) (Zechariah's widowed daughter-in-law)

Joseph (25) (widower)
Mary Melissa (3)
Elisha (24)
m. Eliza (24)
Charles (2)
Lester (1)
Mary Ann (19)
Robert (18)
Jeanette (13)

In 1916, the property was sold to Charles Roadhouse. The Roadhouse family donated the building to the Bertie Historical Society in 1975.

It was moved and renovated with assistance from the Ridgeway and Crystal Beach Lions Club and the federal government. Today, it is maintained and interpreted by Fort Erie Museum Services.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Settlements & Settlers

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• Wars, Non-US. A significant historical year for this entry is 1822.

Location. 42° 54.27′ N, 79° 2.472′ W. Marker is near Fort Erie, Ontario, in Niagara Region. It is in Fonthill. It is on Garrison Road 0.3 kilometers east of Ridge Road North, on the left when traveling east. the marker is on the grounds of the Ridgeway Battlefield National Historic Site. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 3388 Garrison Rd, Fort Erie ON L0S 1N0, Canada. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Ontario’s Golden Horseshoe

and in Niagara Canada.

It is also in Central Canada.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Great Lakes,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once a British colony,

the Viceroyalty of New France,

the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

and Rupert’s Land.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Buildings on the Battlefield (a few steps from this marker); Berties Farmers (a few steps from this marker); One Farm Family’s Fight (a few steps from this

Photographed by Tim Boyd, April 23, 2025

2. In the Line of Fire Marker

The Teal House

marker); Farm Innovations (a few steps from this marker); Irelands Farmers (a few steps from this marker); A Catalyst to Confederation (within shouting distance of this marker); Map and Timeline of Events - Fenian Invasion, 1866 (within shouting distance of this marker); Map of the Battle of Ridgeway Site June 2, 1866 (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Fort Erie.

Credits. This page was last revised on August 18, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 26, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. This page has been viewed 117 times since then and 14 times this year. Last updated on August 16, 2025, by Kevin Westell of St. Catharines, Ontario. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on April 26, 2025, by Tim Boyd of Hamilton, Ontario. • Devry Becker Jones was the editor who published this page.