Today, Sackets Harbor Battlefield is interpreted to the public by exhibits, outdoor signs, guided and self-guided tours, demonstrations of 1813 army camplife, and a restored 1850s Navy Yard and Commandant's House. The Lieutenant's house offers additional interpretation, exhibits and an expanded gift shop.

Following the outbreak of war between the United States and Great Britain in June 1812, Sackets Harbor became the center of American naval and military activity for the upper St. Lawrence Valley and Lake Ontario.

In an attempt to destroy the American shipyard, a British-Canadian force launched an attack on May 29, 1813, while the majority of the American forces were attacking Fort George. In December 1814, the Treaty of Ghent officially ended the War of 1812, and the fleet was placed in storage. After the war the earthen fortifications were graded off and the battlefield reverted to farmland. The remaining buildings were converted to barns, naval offices, and quarters.

Improved Canadian-American relations ended the need for a naval base at Sackets Harbor. The navy maintained the facility until 1955, although it was seldom used except for training by the state's naval militia and the naval reserve.