History of
Lake George, New York
When you vacation at The Quarters, you will discover the Lake George and Adirondack
region of Upstate New York is rich in history. To give you a head start on your
discoveries, we've provided the following historical information.
The Lake George New York area played a prominent role in famous battles of the
French and Indian Wars as well as the American Revolution, but prior to that it was an
important artery of travel for the American Indian. For them it formed the
connecting link in  the
main water route between the Hudson River and Lake Champlain. The Iroquois, who
were continually at war with the Algonquins of the north, appropriately call it An-di-a-ta-roc-te,
'There Where the Lake Is Shut In'. In August of 1642, Father Isaac Joques and two
others, paddled over Lake George and were the first white men to set eyes on its
beauty. They were attacked and captured by the Mohawks but Father Joques escaped
and returned home to France. In 1646 he was sent by the French Governor on a
political embassy to the Iroquois in relation to a treaty of peace. He reached
the foot of Lake George on the Festival of Corpus Christi and renamed the lake 'Lac du
Saint Sacrament.' Father Joques died a martyr at the hands of the Mohawks. A
statue was erected and dedicated to him in July of 1939 and may be seen in the
Battleground Park at Lake George.
| Did
you know that...
Lake
George is one of the most beautiful bodies of water in the world and is
known as 'The Queen of American Lakes'??
The
32 mile long lake, which is fed by mammoth underground springs,
includes 109 miles of shoreline, about 300 islands, and covers an
approximate area of 44 square miles. The lake, 320 feet above sea
level, varies in depth from 1 foot to 195 feet and in width from one to
three miles.
The
mouth of the lake is located at Lake George Village and the outlet is
to the north at Ticonderoga. The Lake is in fact, 210 feet higher by
sea level than Lake Champlain. This is a natural wonder, since
the water from Lake George empties through Ticonderoga Creek into Lake
Champlain at a total fall which surpasses that of Niagara Falls. |
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Along
Lake George's shores military decisions were made that had a far reaching
effect on our country's early history. In 1755, an expedition against the
French planned to extinguish French rights in America. Albany was
selected as the rendezvous point and troops from all the colonies gathered
there. Major General William Johnson advanced from Fort Edward to Lake
Saint Sacrament with a force of 2200 colonial troops and 300 Indians, encamped
at the head of the lake and re-christened it Lake George, in honor of King
George II. It was at this time that the Battle of Lake George took place
with its three engagements: Bloody Morning Scout, Battle at Lake George and
Battle at Bloody Pond. There is a monument in the Battleground Park of
General William Johnson and King Hendrick of the Mohawks commemorating this
battle.
Following
the Battle of Lake George, General Johnson hurried to strengthen defenses at
the head of the lake. He erected a fort which he named Fort William Henry
in honor of the Duke of Cumberland, brother of King George II. In 1757
the first real attempt was made by the French against this fortress. In
August of that year a large force of French and Indians, led by Marquis de
Montcalm, secured the surrender of the fort after a six day siege. The
defenders were promised safe convoy to Fort Edward, but instead, a bloody massacre ensued. The fort was then torn down and the
logs set on fire. This campaign was used by James Fenimore Cooper as the
background for his famous novel, 'The Last of the Mohicans'. |
The fort was reconstructed and opened to the public as a museum in
1953. Battles in this area continued during the French and Indian Wars
and was followed by a short period of peace. Ill-feelings between the
colonists and the British continued to mount and the war for American
Independence finally began on April 9, 1775. One month later Fort
Ticonderoga was seized from the English by Ethan Allen, Benedict Arnold, and
the Green Mountain Boys, 'In the name of the Great Jehovah and the
Continental Congress'. The fort fell without loss of a single life and
was the first American victory to the Revolution. In November, General
George Washington sent General Henry Knox to bring cannon from Fort
Ticonderoga to Boston. They were dragged to Fort George by scow and
then over the snow by sled to Boston. Today there are markers at six
mile intervals tracing the route which General Knox followed that
winter. Fort Ticonderoga was restored by the Pell family and is
now open to the public.
In addition to being rich in history, Lake George New York offers many
fine attractions as well as outdoor
activities such as hiking, fishing, and golf. |
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