Fort Ticonderoga sits on a promontory overlooking the narrows at the southern end of Lake Champlain. To the south is Lake George and the Hudson River. The waterways were strategic pathways during the American Revolution and the War of 1812 as factions fought for control.
As the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence nears, North Country Bureau Chief Pat Bradley visited the fort to learn more.
The walls of Fort Ticonderoga tower above the outer pathways that lead to the interior parade grounds and soldiers barracks. Curator Dr. Matthew Keagle is in charge of all the historic artifacts found at or donated to the fort.
“The fort itself is only one small part of almost 2,000 acres of property, which includes not just the fort itself, but the surrounding fortifications, earthworks, former garden areas, the Carillon battlefield, part of Mount Independence in Vermont, Mount Defiance which overlooks the site and all of these areas have archaeological significance.”
Keagle moves through the visitor entry and onto the walkway that leads past canons to the parade grounds inside the fort. He stops to look at Mount Defiance and the surroundings.
“Mount Defiance, the promontory that overlooks the peninsula, and then across the lake in this direction is Mount Independence, which is the northward pointing kind of promontory in what’s now Vermont that was fortified and begun specifically in 1776. Mount Independence was not called that prior to July of 1776. The text of the Declaration of Independence is read op the Pennsylvania brigade here on July 28th of 1776 and by the next day the chief engineer starts referring to that as Mount Independence.”
During this year’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, many historical sites will feature readings on July 4. But Keagle says to be true to its history, Fort Ticonderoga will wait until nearly a month later to read the document.
“Because they didn’t know about it. July 4th this army is a shambles. They don’t know that a Declaration of Independence has been read on July 4. They’re trying to survive. Only later will they get the word on July 28th, That’s when it happened here.”
By October of 1776 the fort and the surrounding hills were home to about 13,000 Continental soldiers.
Inside the fort’s walls, Vice President of Public History Stuart Lilie notes that while it was a critical military installation during America’s early history, the fort has been a museum for 118 years.
“The French built this as a wartime fort, something to meet the immediate needs of invasion. It’s also worth noting that this served as kind of the last bastion of defense. This was to hold a winter guard when the French were here. When the Americans were here this served as a central supply depot. Americans dug in to do the kind of real work that led to liberty.”
Lilie emphasizes that while there is heightened attention as the 250 anniversary approaches, the battle for independence was long fought.
“Independence was not simply about one day July 4, 1776. This entire war, all 8 years of it, each day of it was as critical as the next. So the story of how each one of those days played out, how countless individuals and their actions combined together to create the outcome that we so readily assume was the case. At so many points along the way things could have come out very, very differently.”
As visitors walk the grounds, they encounter full-time costumed staff reenacting what it was like to live at the fort and defend the fledgling United States during the early days of the Revolutionary War.
A window adjacent to the soldiers’ barracks and overlooking the parade grounds is open. Inside are two cobblers.
Kevin Maher is deftly sewing together bovine leather to create period accurate shoes.
“There’s a lot that goes into the making of a shoe from the actual studying of original shoe fragments and using those fragments we create patterns. We cut out the leather, build the shoe to the measurements of the individual they are being built for and go ahead and take a couple days to make them and then they go on the individual’s feet. So we literally go from studying the inception of the shoe to the wearing to the eventual destruction, which means they come back to us for the repairs.”
Outside the main walls of the fort a crowd has gathered to watch reenactors show the effort it took to arm and fire a canon.
“Put it in the gun.”
A costumed narrator notes, “And as simple as that sounds that’s exactly what they do, bringing that cartridge through the ladle all the way to the breech of the canon. After shot and wad has been rammed back, these wooden levers, each crew equipped with, to in unison heave the gun out into battery.”
The commander then orders, “Heave. Heave. Handle the powder horn. Prime.”
“Once again,” the narrator notes, “these soldiers handle these levers so the commander of the piece may step behind the canon in order to direct these soldiers to:”
“Point the gun at the object,” orders the commander.
The narrator explains, “Once the commander is satisfied with the aim:”
“Fire!”
Fort Ticonderoga is commemorating the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with multi-year special Real-Time Revolution programs through 2027.
