Fort Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga and Lake Champlain, seen
from atop Mount Defiance

After saying goodbye to our new friends at Romeo & Giulietta's, we drove to the north end of Lake George to visit Fort Ticonderoga. Another important fort in our country's early history, it was the site of a British victory immediately before their defeat and surrender at Saratoga.  Originally built by the French and called Fort Carillon, it was renamed Ticonderoga after France's defeat in the French and Indian War.  The fort was strategically located between Lake Champlain and Lake George, along the border of present day New York and Vermont, and was a key outpost in the the early development of the United States.

As with other historic sites on this trip, you would assume it is a part of the National Park Service; however, it is privately owned and maintained by a non-profit.  The earliest act of preservation of this fort was undertaken by the Pell Family in the 1820s.  Less than a century later, the non-profit museum was created and the fort restored making it one of the earliest preservation efforts in the history of the United States.