Living History Event March 15-16 Brings to Life the Remarkable Story of a Fledging Army Fighting for Independence in March 1776 at Fort Ticonderoga

Be in the moment and experience March 1776 at Fort Ticonderoga on Saturday and Sunday, March 15-16 to discover the remarkable story of how a fledging army fought for independence! See how New York soldiers used British military drill to put their muskets and fowlers to use against their enemy. Smell the sawdust and watch the wood chips fly as carpenters hew down logs to build another sled to keep the train of supplies rolling into Canada. Visit the Continental Store to see how the American army supplied its troops or pick-up a needle and thread to help sew mattresses for soldiers at the Fort’s tailor shop.

The must-experience living history event takes place 10 am – 4 pm, Saturday and Sunday, March 15-16. The cost is $10 per person and payable at the gate. Friends of Fort Ticonderoga and children 4 years old and under are free.

Examine History with Soldiers in 1776

“As Fort Ticonderoga begins to tell the epic story of 1776 during the 2014 season, guests to this living history event are asked to join the reinforcements headed for northern forts and Canada and face this military crisis with them,” said Beth Hill, Fort Ticonderoga’s President and CEO. “Stand inside the parade of the Fort as New York soldiers, reenlisted veterans from 1775 and new recruits, drill to defend this vital link in the supply chain. Hear leather heels strike the ground as they march in step. Thrill at the crack of their firelocks as they fire volleys. Watch the carpenters hard at work as they turn logs and lumber into crates, sleds, and beams. Explore Fort Ticonderoga as it comes to life with the struggle to keep an American army alive in March of 1776.”

“For the freezing, sick, and starving American soldiers living in houses and barns outside the walls of Quebec in early 1776, hope lay just to the south at Fort Ticonderoga, an old French Fort on Lake Champlain,” said Stuart Lilie, Fort Ticonderoga’s Director of Interpretation. “The lives of American soldiers and the campaign to capture Canada were in jeopardy. Unlike the persistent snow and ice in Canada, the Continental Army’s solders were melting away from disease, injury, and expiring enlistments. In the depth of the winter teams of oxen and horses dragged sleds on frozen rivers and lakes along the chain of Forts from Albany all the way to Quebec. Filled with food, winter clothing, and medicine, the contents of each sled were vital to keep the remaining American soldiers alive. Warm weather and cracking ice threatened to shatter the Army.”

Event Schedule, Exhibits, and Activities

10:00 AM Fort Opens for Visitation

10:15 AM, 1:15 PM, 3:00 PM
Fort Guided Tour (Beginning at the American Flag)
From Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold, to cannons for Boston, to snow and smallpox, set the stage for 1776 and its epic story at Ticonderoga.

11:30 AM and 2:00 PM Musket Demonstration (Fort Demonstration Area)
His Majesty’s Exercise to fight his Majesty’s regulars? See how New York soldiers used British military drill to put their muskets and fowlers to effect together.

12:00 PM Sleds Slide Supplies
Smell the sawdust and watch the wood chips fly as carpenters hew down logs to build another sled to keep the train of supplies rolling into Canada.

2:30 PM Wood Call (Beginning at the American Flag)
March with these Yorkers out to the forest to harvest more logs to supply the fort and the army with timber. Hiking boots recommended*

4:00 PM Fort Closes to Visitors

Available All Day Saturday & Sunday

The Continental Store (Ground Floor of the Officers Barracks)
A hardware store, a fabric store, a supermarket and more! Packed in the barracks, bastions and casemates, see the magazine of Continental army supplies kept at Fort Ticonderoga.

Tailor’s Shop (Second Floor of the Officers Barracks)
Everyone likes a comfortable mattress including soldiers in 1776! Pick up a needle and thread and help sew mattresses for soldiers. This supply meant more than a good night sleep—it meant survival in the winter campaign season.

Soldier’s Quarters (Ground Floor of the Soldiers Barracks)
Spring is just around the corner, right? For New York soldiers who served in 1775, only to reenlist in January, the winter must have been interminable. Damp, drafty, and crowded, the barracks of Fort Ticonderoga were still an improvement over the muddy and icy trenches of service in Canada.

Officer’s Quarters (Ground Floor of the Officer’s Barracks)
A trunk, a cot, a few candles, and you had to pay for it all yourself! If you feel like you live at your office, see how junior officers really lived in theirs.

“It Would Make a Heart of Stone Melt” Exhibit (Ground Floor of the Soldiers Barracks)
Examine wounds, disease, injury, and the treatment of these ailments for soldiers at Fort Ticonderoga during the American Revolution.

Pork, Pigeon, & Pottery Exhibit (Ground Floor of the Soldiers Barracks)
In this exhibit of original artifacts recovered from the ruins of Fort Ticonderoga, explore the meals of soldiers and officers who served inside this “Old French Fort.”

Related articles

• Experience A Living History Event and Explore Lives of Provincial Soldiers at Fort Ticonderoga on Feb. 15-16 (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Fort Fever Series at Fort Ticonderoga This Winter (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Fort Ticonderoga Living History Event: Carillon’s First Winter (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Powder horn donated to Fort Ticonderoga (wwlp.com)
• Fort Ticonderoga Presents Brown’s Raid Battle Re-enactment (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)