Combat in the North Woods
In discussing firelocks, cannons, or mortars with visitors, the question that logically comes up is the use of these weapons in a battle. Unfortunately, mentioning “A Battle” leads to images conjured out of the movies. Despite the rugged, wooded hills surrounding Fort Ticonderoga, as well as Lake Champlain, the hypothetical battle in which these weapons […]
His story deserves to be told…
Battles are often remembered for the major military figures involved and how the actions that took place on the battlefield contributed to the greater outcome of a war. Usually when discussed today, battles are described in terms of tactics, commanders, and remarkable feats of heroism. Casualty numbers are generally known, and people understand very well that […]
Fort Ticonderoga’s Art Collection and Students
The other day I had the opportunity to work with a group of students from Richmond Elementary School in Richmond, Vermont. These third and fourth graders came to Fort Ticonderoga to take part in our “The Artist’s Eye: Geography, History, and Art” school program that uses works of art in “The Art of War” exhibit. […]
The Reward of Warring Valor
Among the many remarkable objects in Fort Ticonderoga’s collections is a rather small but very important French military medal, the Ordre royal et militaire de Saint-Louis. The Ordre de Saint-Louis was created in 1693 as an award for military merit and valor. It was awarded only to French Catholic officers who had served for at least […]
Becoming Soldiers in 1775
The citizen soldiers of Colonel Hinman’s regiment that garrisoned Fort Ticonderoga in the summer of 1775 arrived as well equipped and trained as one could expect for soldiers rapidly raised following the Lexington alarm. Arms, accouterments, and drill weren’t the only important aspects of being a soldier, as these and other colonial soldiers discovered during […]
Keeping Ticonderoga Secure and Healthy During the Winter of 1776-1777
“The Care of the Fortresses of Tyonderoga and Mount Independence being committed to you as commanding Officer…” begins a letter written by General Philip Schyler as he turns over command of Ticonderoga to Colonel Anthony Wayne in the fall of 1776 was recently acquired by Fort Ticonderoga through generous donor support. Written November 23, 1776, […]
What Connects Us to History?
Two words, perhaps an idea, that comes up frequently with visitors is “my history” as in this Fort, or its history is, “my history.” While this idea of a personal connection to Fort Ticonderoga’s history seems relatively simple to define, it is not a simple concept. A personal connection to history could be defined by any number of […]
Preserving Amos Chaffee’s Memory
On July 7, 2012 Fort Ticonderoga received a remarkable donation. For over two centuries the Chaffee family has preserved their ancestor, Amos Chaffee’s, engraved powder horn, musket and walking stick. Now the family is entrusting the Fort Ticonderoga Association to preserve their family’s Revolutionary War objects for future generations. Amos Chaffee served at Fort Ticonderoga […]
The Many Faces of 1775
The classic image of those citizen soldiers who stood up to the British redcoats on Lexington green or at the old French fort of is in a word, white. The reality of those colonial militia and regulars was far more diverse. As we explore the Connecticut colonial regulars who garrisoned Fort Ticonderoga in the summer […]
Stephen H.P. Pell and World War I
Fort Ticonderoga Museum founder, Stephen Hyatt Pelham Pell (1874-1950) served two nations in World War I. In early 1917, prior to the United States’ involvement in the war, Stephen Pell enlisted in the Norton Harjes Ambulance Service attached to the Chasseurs Alpins achieving the rank of sergeant. On October 2, at Baccaret, France, after lying […]