In December 2010 the Barracks and more than 7 acres of property was offered to a Canadian real estate developer for $35,000 with the intention of building an apartment complex on the historic site.

Relations with England were not cordial following the war and the establishment of a permanent Army Post for a garrison at Plattsburgh, along the strategically important Lake Champlain corridor, which for centuries had been a route for invasion, seemed an obvious choice.

Although troops had been stationed there from roughly 1812 to 1825, no permanent military installation had been constructed with the men often being housed in dilapidated and inadequate log structures left over from the War.

This fact had blatantly demonstrated to lawmakers and military leaders alike that the standing peacetime strength of the United States Army was far too small to meet the nation's needs.

The innovative permanent Army post planned for Plattsburgh was initially to be four stone barracks structures positioned in a quadrangle around a 200-foot (61 m) square parade ground and surrounded by a wooden palisade with a western facing gate.

These forts, which had been carefully laid out prior to the Battle, had been constructed under the direction of Major Joseph Totten, an expert in military and tactical engineering of the period.

After this initial burst of progress, however, the site experienced several periods of stagnant and halted construction due in part to bureaucratic red tape from Washington.

After numerous letters and solicitations were written to the Secretary of War by concerned Plattsburgh citizens, the Assistant Quartermaster General of the Army, Captain R. E. Clary was dispatched to oversee the construction project in September, 1841.

Under Clary's supervision by September of the following year, it was reported to the Quartermaster General that the exterior work of the "company quarters" had been completed with the exception of the stone steps, portico floors, stairs leading to the upper level, and adjustment of the columns.

Future 18th President of the United States Ulysses S. Grant occupied quarters in the officer's barracks while stationed at Plattsburgh as a young Lieutenant sometime between his graduation from West Point in 1843 and prior to serving in the Mexican War in 1846.

Beginning in the early 1890s, a sprawling expansion program greatly enlarged the Army Post at Plattsburgh to the north with the construction of 3 much larger and more modern barracks, relegating the 1840 era structures to a much more secondary role.

Their nickname was bestowed upon them during their years at Plattsburgh by President William Mckinley, who when frequently summering nearby at the luxurious Hotel Champlain, would often visit the Post to review the troops and attend performances by the unit's band.

Also, off the backside of the building where the four storm-sheds and hospital bathroom were originally located, several small single and two story porches were built to allow more convenient access to rooms from that side.

During World War I and the years immediately preceding it, the building served as part of the Civilian Military Training Camp at Plattsburgh, the brainchild of General Leonard Wood and forerunner of today's ROTC program.

In 1939, on the eve of World War II, Plattsburgh Barracks hosted the massive 1st United States Army maneuvers, a huge pre-War training operation involving aircraft, tanks, and roughly 20,000 soldiers.

[1] With the impending closure of the base in 1995, one of the last official acts of the Air Force concerning the building was to perform asbestos and lead paint abatement, removing most of the remaining interior down to the studs, and replacing the barracks's slate roof.

In December 2010, it became public knowledge that the Old Stone Barracks and over 7 acres of surrounding property had been offered to Bernard Schneider, a Canadian real estate developer, for $35,000.

In late 2014, the Old Stone Barracks was purchased by Terry Schmaltz and his wife Mary Theresa Pearl with plans to restore and refurbish the historic building as the new home of the "Valcour Brewing Company," a craft brewery.