Battle of Lake George Then and Now

Since chronicling his dogged research into determining the lines of the British Army during the 1755 Battle of Lake George in the Winter 2023 issue of the Alliance’s journal, the Fort George Post (“Sir William, Where Exactly Were Your Lines?”), historian Mark Silo has conducted a number of popular tours and presentations that described his process and its outcomes. Mark is now ready and eager to present an expanded iteration of his findings with tours beginning at the Lake George Battlefield Park Visitor Center on Saturday, May 9, at 11:00 AM and again at 1:00 PM.

The "Battle of Lake George Then and Now” tour will take place within the Battlefield Park and the adjacent Battleground Campgrounds. Its focus will be on the middle of the three-phased September 8, 1755 conflict among the British/American provincial, French troops, and the Native allies of each.  This phase, also known as the Battle at Johnson’s Camp, carried the day for the British after they had been ambushed a few hours earlier in the Bloody Morning Scout (located 3 miles south in today’s town of Queensbury).

While previous onsite tours emphasized the process for ascertaining the locations of Major General William Johnson’s improvised lines of defense, the May 9 tour will go beyond the battle lines to correlate today’s landmarks with corresponding points on 1750s maps of the area. Existing paths and roads will be used as 18^th Century features are juxtaposed with the modern appearance of the same landscapes.  Mark will also be describing the events of the battle at the locations where they occurred, using the words of men who were present that day.

This is a free program which is being made available first to Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance members. The number of registrations will be limited to maximize each participant’s enjoyment. As space permits, the general public will also be invited to attend.  

Those interested in the "Battle of Lake George Then and Now” walking tour are asked to email info@lakegeorgebattlefield.org and specify the 11:00 or 1:00 delivery, along with the number of attendees.

We’re looking forward to another excellent history lesson on the Battle of Lake George from Mark Silo!