During the early 1800s, blockhouses like Mansfield's were a common form of protection in case of Native American uprising, and Mansfield's is the last standing one with its original timbers. In 1812, eleven blockhouses were built throughout the Mansfield area, and this one, the last remaining of the eleven, was first located in Mansfield's Central Park. It was built by Col. Charles Williams and company from Coshocton, Ohio, with the help of local settlers. Intended solely for use in the War of 1812, the blockhouses were temporary structures and were demolished once they had outlived their purpose. Mansfield's blockhouse, however, continued in use after the war drew to a close, when Mansfield needed a courthouse and jail. Rather than build a new structure, the settlers adapted the existing blockhouse at Central Park. In 1813, Luther Coe renovated it, making the lower crib Mansfield's first jail and the upper crib Mansfield's first courthouse. It served in that capacity for three years before being sold to James Curre.. Protected from the demolition that befell the other blockhouses, it survived another ninety years before the City of Mansfield reacquired it in 1906.