Fort Ticonderoga is thrilled to announce the opening of the British Powder Magazine in the Southwest Bastion, open to visitors for the first time in 50 years.
Visitors can descend into this interactive space, passing through the oak door that secured this magazine. Inside this vaulted stone room, examine reproduction cannon shot and wracks of powder kegs. Young visitors will be able to roll their own cartridge and learn about the production of ammunition and the long lines of supply that made the fight for independence possible.
This space has been opened as part of Fort Ticonderoga’s multi-year programmatic initiative REAL TIME REVOLUTION™, an innovative real-time experience bringing Ticonderoga’s history to life during America’s 250th celebration. REAL TIME REVOLUTION™ captures in real- time, the events, personalities, and peoples that led to American independence from 1774 through 1777. As this captivating narrative of nationhood unfolds, day by day through living history programs from 2024 to 2027, the Powder Magazine is more than a stage, it’s part of the story.
“When the British built Fort Ticonderoga out of the ruins of French Fort Carillon in 1759, they could not rebuild the old French powder magazine in the southeast bastion of the fort, said Stuart Lilie, Fort Ticonderoga Vice President of Public History. “The explosion of twenty-four tons of gunpowder left that bastion a crater throughout the rest of Fort Ticonderoga’s history. In rebuilding the fort, British engineers moved the powder magazine to the southwest bastion, which was relatively unscathed in the explosion. This magazine served British and American soldiers alike, storing gunpowder and ammunition for the final campaign into French Canada in 1760. This remained the fort’s powder magazine through the close of the French & Indian War, as the British stockpiled captured French ammunition, as well as their own.”
“Americans loaded their boats with ammunition from this space for the invasion of Canada in the summer of 1775,” said Beth L. Hill, Fort Ticonderoga President & CEO. “As rebellion turned to a fight for independence in July 1776, this powder magazine held the ammunition for the fight for freedom on land and on the water of Lake Champlain. After the British recaptured Ticonderoga, they pulled captured American ammunition from this gunpowder magazine to defend Fort Ticonderoga from American raiders. Supplying the muskets and guns of Ticonderoga, the Powder Magazine was a central space in all its stories from 1759 -1777.”
Thanks to generous support from Americana Corner, and additional support from the Massachusetts Society of Colonial Wars, and the National Society of Colonial Wars, Fort Ticonderoga is able to make this new space accessible to the public and expand its immersive interpretive experiences and programs.
About Fort Ticonderoga
Welcoming visitors since 1909, Fort Ticonderoga is a museum, historic site, major cultural destination, and center for learning, on-site and across the globe through Fort Ticonderoga’s Center for Digital History. As a multi-day destination and the premier place to learn more about North America’s military heritage, Fort Ticonderoga engages more than 70,000 visitors each year. Presenting vibrant programs, historic interpretation, boat cruises, tours, demonstrations, and exhibits, Fort Ticonderoga and is open for daily visitation May through October and special programs during Winter Quarters, November through April. Fort Ticonderoga is owned by The Fort Ticonderoga Association, a 501c3 non-profit educational organization, and is supported in part through generous donations and with some general operating support made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts. To view Fort Ticonderoga’s electronic press kit, click here. © The Fort Ticonderoga Association. 2024 All Rights Reserved.
Photo: Credit and copyright Fort Ticonderoga.