If ever there were an icon of the strife and tension that has existed from the late 1500s through the War of 1812, Fort Ticonderoga is it. Its geographic position near the bottom of Lake Champlain has given it a chokehold on travel, trade and treasure between warring factions, whether those be early Indian tribes such as the Mohawks or the Iroquois or later French, British and American troops. As such, it was seen as a critical source of cannon for the American colonists in 1775 for forcing the British to retreat from Boston in March of 1776. Fort Ti played directly and indirectly in the French and Indian War, the Revolutionary War and the War of 1812.
The Carillon is a tour boat available for Fort Ti visitors and gives tours on the Lake Champlain waters adjacent to the Fort. You can see what an imposing site the Fort is from the Lake.
Brio went past the Fort and cruised further down the Lake to Chipman Point where we stayed for the night. Our hostess then drove us back to cross the Lake on the Fort Ti Ferry.
We then walked the half mile distance from the New York side up to the Fort.
Here is a chronology of the site.
Because of connections we enjoy through the Massachusetts Society of Colonial Wars, we were treated to a private tour by the President and the Curator.
Meet Beth Hill and Matt Keagle. These folks are terrific and we were fortunate to be with them for perhaps two hours.
The artifacts and collections available for viewing are just remarkable. The Museum itself has been in operation since 1909 and is one of the early efforts at preserving the history of such an important time in our nation's development.
We left after an early lunch, knowing that we needed to continue south into the Champlain Canal.
Wow! This was such an important capstone to our trip!!
Cheers,
Brio
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