Fort Ticonderoga’s Art Collections and Exhibition
Fort Ticonderoga is well known for its 18th-century military collections and vast library and archival collections, but few people realize that it preserves an important art collection as well. From the very beginning of the museum’s collecting endeavors, obtaining art in the form of portraits of people associated with the site’s history, depictions of events […]
3 Details for a Perfect New England Militia Portrayal at Ticonderoga
When General Horatio Gates tasked General Lincoln to, “divide and distract,” General Burgoyne’s British and German army with a series of raids along his supply route to Canada, he called upon the Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont militia to provide the majority of his 2000 man force amassed in Pawlet, Vermont. Most of these militiamen […]
King’s Garden Perennial Favorites
I am often asked, “What is your favorite flower in the King’s Garden?”, and usually the answer is different every time. It is difficult to pick just one favorite when there are so many to choose from! The twelve plants listed below are the perennials that I enjoy most and recommend to many gardeners. Anchusa […]
“The accommodations are first class but limited” Fort Ticonderoga’s Little-Known 19th-Century Hotel
Fort Ticonderoga is best known for its military structures and associated history, but what many people do not realize is that the site played a very important role in the history of 19th-century American tourism. Once steamboat travel became the principle mode of transport on New York’s northern lakes, Fort Ticonderoga became the location where […]
Summertime Reading
“A book worth reading is a book worth owning.” So said my dad. That mantra seems to have rubbed off on me, as the stacks of books at home and in my office can attest. While my historical tastes span from the Middle Ages to the present and in both Europe and America, the vast […]
Robert Fairchild and His Powder Horn
Powder horns are unique artifacts in that they have the ability to speak to a single person’s 18th-century military service unlike most other objects. Muskets, swords, and other similar items, though important, are rarely able to connect people today nearly face-to-face with an individual person from the past. What makes powder horns so interesting, and […]
Building the Giberne, Part 2
The red leather that gives the giberne its notable color in the 1757 watercolors is Russia leather, a hard-wearing upholstery leather. This leather was extremely popular through the 18th and 19th century due the preservative effects of the Russian birch tar used in its processing. A German treatise from 1807 advocated for the domestic German […]
Wild French Food in 1755
The past two years visitors often asked, “Did they hunt for their food?” in reference to the historical soldiers we portrayed at Fort Ticonderoga. For the men of Colonel Williard’s 1759Massachusettsprovincial regiment who we portrayed in 2011, the answer was a pretty definitive no. The one comical exception came from the diary of Private Lemuel […]
Encouraging a Passion for History
Earlier this week I travelled to Cooperstown to participate as a judge at New York State History Day. Sponsored by the New York State Historical Association, New York State History Day serves thousands of students in hundreds of school districts across the state. This year’s contest was the biggest ever, with over 400 students competing […]
King’s Garden Volunteers Welcome
It’s always a pleasure to discover a plant growing in an unexpected place among purposefully placed plants in the garden. These “volunteers” are nature’s gift to the gardener, the product of prolific re-seeders, birds or small mammals leaving seeds behind, or a gust of wind carrying seeds from outside the garden. It is not uncommon […]