Heritage Hill State Park stands on a 40-acre site that is itself part of Wisconsin history, where Camp Smith, a temporary location of Fort Howard, part of the pioneer settlement known as Shantytown, and Wisconsin's first courthouse once stood. The military road linking Fort Howard with Fort Winnebago at Portage and Fort Crawford at Prairie du Chien passed through this site. Many buildings there are original structures saved over the years by people of foresight and perseverance, including Henry Baird's law office, several original Fort Howard buildings, the Cotton House, a French fur trader's cabin, and the Tank Cottage, Wisconsin's oldest standing house, dating from 1776. The spread of civilization in Wisconsin began with the people who first made their homes here on the banks of the Fox River.