Fort Ticonderoga

250 years ago this week, thousands of American troops were encamping at Fort Ticonderoga. Most of the soldiers arriving here had served in Canada and were sent to Ticonderoga after retreating from Crown Point, but not all of them. This spring we’ve followed the movements of Colonel Anthony Wayne’s 4th Pennsylvania Battalion. Three companies of the battalion, led by Wayne, were sent north to Canada; the other five companies, which were not ready in time to join Wayne’s detachment, were sent to Long Island with Lieutenant Colonel Francis Johnston.

On June 29, orders were issued for Johnston’s detachment to march north to Ticonderoga. On July 11, 1776—250 years ago today— the detachment reached the landing at the northern end of Lake George, an extension of Fort Ticonderoga’s military footprint. Johnston’s orders for the day, captured in the orderly book of Captain Persifor Frazer’s company, were dated “Camp Neare Ticonderago July 11 1776”.

Reunion may have been on Johnston’s mind when he issued these orders. Each day the commander of a party would name a new parole and countersign. These two words were used by officers and men as passwords to enter and exit camp, to pass sentries and guards, and to prove that they were authorized to give orders to the guard. For July 11, the parole Johnston chose was “Wayne”, in honor of the regiment’s colonel. The countersign is written as “Houssaere” but was probably “Haussegger” for the regiment’s major, Nicholas Haussegger.

Haussegger had served with the companies under Johnston in Long Island, while Wayne had commanded the detachment in Canada. The next morning, the two officers and the rest of the regiment would reunite at Ticonderoga. Their campaigns so far had been quite different, but now they came together with a common goal: reinforcing Ticonderoga until it was strong enough to stand against the British.

See this orderly book for yourself in The Archaeology of Independence exhibit in the Mars Education Center! Or learn more about it (object ID MS.7200) on the Ticonderoga Online Collections database: https://fortticonderoga.catalogaccess.com/archives/30799

General James Wilkinson lived a life full of power and scandal, serving as the senior officer of the US Army, governor of Louisiana Territory, and envoy to Mexico. He was also a paid spy for the Spanish Crown, although proof of his double dealings was not discovered until decades after his death. In 1776, though, long before his deal with Spain and his ascent to the top of the army, he was only Captain James Wilkinson, an aide-de-camp to Benedict Arnold and a veteran of the Canadian campaign. On July 10, 1776—250 years ago today—Wilkinson had news to report.

Wilkinson penned this letter to Richard Varick, who served as aide-de-camp to Northern Department commander Philip Schuyler in Albany. Wilkinson was then at Crown Point with the rest of the ex-Canadian army, but he had news from the north, obtained from a scouting party. “We learn that the Enemy had three Sloops and two Schooners on the Stocks at St. Johns”, Wilkinson shared. Both the British and American armies understood that naval control of Lake Champlain was vital, and the British quest to outbuild the Americans was underway. Evidence of their work could be seen in the forests: “A considerable number of Hanoverians are employed in procuring Timber in the Woods…”

Wilkinson had less alarming news too, sharing that “Genl Carlton had strictly prohibited the Indians passing the Lake, agreeable Intelligence to the timorous Fair of your City [Albany].” The overall picture that he painted was ominous, but Wilkinson was not intimidated. In fact, he seemed to long for the opportunity for glory that a battle would bring. “The Enemy are very Numerous,” he wrote. “I hope their Activity will give me an Opportunity of reaping Laurels or embracing Death. O how I [love?], burn, & smart.” Wilkinson’s 1776 service did not lead to either laurels or a glorious death; instead, a severe case of typhoid fever, contracted at Ticonderoga, took him out of action for several months. He would have to wait for the 1777 Saratoga Campaign for another chance at a fight.

Learn more about this letter (object ID 2003.0074.020) on the Ticonderoga Online Collections database: https://fortticonderoga.catalogaccess.com/archives/29469

The Heights of Carillon, the Old French Lines, Liberty Hill - the rising ground to the West of Fort Ticonderoga has gone by many names. As guests leave Fort Ticonderoga, many notice the monuments and markers laid out on this historic ground, but what really happened there? And what have we learned about the people who fought and toiled across this small patch of Ticonderoga`s dramatic landscape?

Select Wednesdays in July & August, join Fort Ticonderoga Curator, Dr. Matthew Keagle, for a special walking tour of what Continental soldiers called Liberty Hill. Based on historical research and newly conducted archaeology, learn how the greatest battlefield of 18th-century North America was transformed into a defensive bulwark of the young United States. Go beyond the accessible areas of the battlefield to explore aspects of the fortifications and camps not visible at any other time.

Gain a new appreciation of Ticonderoga`s significance, today and 250 years ago, as the Continental Army was just beginning to dig in at Ticonderoga, and preparing to repeat history here on North America`s most historic landscape.

Limited tickets available for this premium experience, grab yours today! https://fortticonderoga.org/ft_events/?_sft_ft-event-category=a-guided-tour-of-fort-ticonderogas-liberty-hill

250 years ago today—July 5, 1776—as the Continental Congress made plans for the future of an independent United States, the Northern Army was licking its wounds at Crown Point. Among them was a Massachusetts soldier named John Shepard, who had served in the reinforcements that had marched north that spring and arrived in Canada just in time to join the army’s retreat. He was not impressed by what he had seen.

In this letter to his brother Alexander, Shepard shares his complaints about the Canadian campaign: “The Transactions of the Army in Canada have Always been Very Rongly Represented in New England, for we always heard that Quebec would be given up to our People soon, when the Army in Canada had not the least Expectation of Prosperity.” His main complaint, like many others who served in Canada, was the army’s disorganization. In his view, the problem came from the top: “If a Cannon Comes to [General Schuyler] Ready Mounted he will Perhaps send the Cannon to Montreal and the Carriage to Surrel the Ball to one place and the Powder to an other.”

The retreat brought Shepard and the rest of the army out of “miserable” Canada, but he was not impressed with the new camp, saying, “We have Commissary’s without Stores, Quarter Masters without Provison, Doctor’s without Skill or Medicens…” Skill and medicines were sorely needed, as by his count over half the army was sick. Shepard himself had “had the Small Pox Very favourable”, but even after his recovery he did not feel as healthy as he had before.

Rumors stated that Shepard’s regiment was to move elsewhere soon, although no one could agree on where: Fort No. 4 in western New Hampshire? Cohoes, just north of Albany? All the way to New York City? Either way, “there is no Doubt but what we shall be Remov’d from this place”. Shepard was not left in suspense for long. In a postscript to the letter, added July 9, he gives Alexander the news: “they have Orderd the Stores to put on Board the Schooners in order to Go to Ticondaroga”.

Learn more about this letter (object ID 2003.0074.018) on the Ticonderoga Online Collections database: https://fortticonderoga.catalogaccess.com/archives/29467

In July 1776, the Continental Army needed ships. After its attempts to make Quebec the fourteenth colony had collapsed, the Northern Army had retreated to the relative safety of Crown Point. Their troubles were far from over, though. General Guy Carleton, head of the newly reinforced British army in Canada, was just past the northern border and planning an attack of his own. The Americans had to work fast to build defenses.

Building fortifications at Fort Ticonderoga was a key component of the American strategy. Just as important was building up their fleet on Lake Champlain. Ticonderoga guards a key point in the water route between Canada and New York City. If the British controlled Lake Champlain, they could sail south down it or neighboring Lake George, then march to the Hudson River, giving them control of much of New York and cutting New England off from colonies farther south. Carleton and his army were building a fleet of ships to accomplish just this goal, helped by prefabricated parts that Carleton had ordered from Europe. To stop them, the Americans needed their own ships.

On July 3, 1776—250 years ago today—the Connecticut Committee of the Pay Table issued 50 pounds to Captain Jonathan Lester, an experienced shipbuilder. Lester had been serving the war effort for nearly a year, first building naval cannon carriages and then partnering with another shipbuilder, Job Winslow, to build row galleys. Immediately after Lester completed his galley, the Shark, Connecticut gave him a new job. He became the captain of a company of 25 ship’s carpenters, which was “to build &c at & about Lake Champlain.”

That summer, Lester marched to Skenesborough with his company and one led by his old colleague Captain Job Winslow. In the shipyard there, he and the rest of the carpenters would work to swell the ranks of the American fleet on Lake Champlain, trying to keep up with the fast pace of British shipbuilding in the north. The fate of the Northern Department might depend on it.

Learn more about this commission (object ID MS.7529, property of Robert Nittolo) on the Ticonderoga Online Collections database: https://fortticonderoga.catalogaccess.com/archives/31395