Champlain Valley region driving tour

50 Self-guided historic driving tour

Champlain Valley

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If you want to take a road trip that is relaxing, fun and educational, try this self-guided historic driving tour through the Lake Champlain Valley. Start at one end, and go to the other. Or just pick one or two villages and spend some time there.

The quaint communities along Lake Champlain offer stunning views of Vermont and establishments where you can grab a take-out meal for a picnic.

This is the bread basket of Essex County, where agriculture is making a comeback with many small, family farms. It’s easy to find a farm-to-fork experience.

There’s a lot of history here, much more than we can squeeze into this guide. For more information and itinerary ideas, visit Lakes to Locks Passage: New York’s Great Northeast Journey, 518-597-9660, www.lakestolocks.org.

Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga: 102 Fort Ti Road, 518-5852821, www.fortticonderoga.org. Fort Ticonderoga was built by the French from 1755 to 1759 during the French and Indian War and called Fort Carillon. On July 8, 1758, it was successfully defended by French forces despite overwhelming British forces. The following year, the British defeated the French here.

On May 10, 1775 during the Revolutionary War, Ethan Allen, Benedict Arnold and the Green Mountain Boys surprised the sleeping garrison at dawn and overwhelmed them, making Fort Ticonderoga America’s first victory of the war.

Mount Defiance: This small mountain is owned by Fort Ticonderoga and has a toll road to its historic summit. Entry is included with admission to the fort or can be purchased separately at the base of the mountain. Get a view of the fort on Lake Champlain and enjoy a picnic at the summit.

Directions: In Ticonderoga, head south on Route 9N and turn left on Montcalm Street in 0.75 mile, then turn right on Champlain Avenue in 0.6 mile. Follow Champlain Avenue for a short distance, turn left on Defiance Street, and look for the toll road on the right.

Ticonderoga Heritage Museum: 137 Montcalm St., 518-585-2696, www.ticonderogaheritagemuseum.org. Learn about Ticonderoga’s industrial industry in this building that dates to 1888. It is the last remaining structure of the Ticonderoga Pulp and Paper Company.

Hancock House: 6 Moses Circle, 518-585-7868, www.tihistory.org.

This Georgian Revival style mansion is an exact replica of Thomas Hancock’s (John Hancock’s uncle) former Beacon Hill home in Boston. Originally built in 1925-1926 by philanthropist Horace A. Moses for the New York Historical Association, it now serves as the home of the Ticonderoga Historical Society as a regional museum and reference library.

Self-guided walking tour of Ticonderoga:

www.aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ticonderoga.pdf

Ironville

The Ironville Historic District is a national historic district located southwest of Crown Point. It is known as the “Birthplace of the Electrical Age, ” as Allen Penfield, Timothy Taft and Allen P. Harwood pioneered the first industrial use of electricity in their iron works below the pond south of the district.

The district includes 12 buildings, including the Penfield Homestead Museum, built in the 1820s, 703 Creek Road, Crown Point, 518-597-3804, www.penfieldmuseum.org.

Ironville gets its name from the iron-mining operations of the 19th century. During the Civil War, iron from ore mined here was used to build the U.S. ironclad ship Monitor, which battled the Confederate ironclad ship Merrimack at the Battle of Hampton Roads. The Monitor’s iron was mined in Hammondville, separated in Ironville, processed in Crown Point and shipped by railroad along Lake Champlain.

Self-guided walking tour of Ironville: www. aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/ironville.pdf

Fort Ticonderoga

Historical sign at Ironville

(Provided photo — Andy Flynn)

Crown Point bridge and fort ruins at the Crown Point State Historic Site

(Provided photo — ROOST)

Continued from Page 50

Crown Point

Crown Point State Historic Site: 21 Grandview Drive, Crown Point, 518-597-4666 (phone), https://parks.ny.gov/historic-sites/34/details.aspx. The Crown Point State Historic Site preserves and interprets the ruins of two forts from the colonial wars between the British and French. Both are located next to the new Lake Champlain bridge from New York to Vermont, which replaced the 1929 bridge when it opened on Nov. 7, 2011.

The French built Fort St. Frederic between 1734 and 1737 and destroyed it in 1759 during the French and Indian War after British troops captured Fort Carillon to the south. The British then built a larger fort, “His Majesty’s Fort of Crown Point. ”

During the Revolutionary War, Green Mountain Boys captured the fort from the British on May 12, 1775. Benedict Arnold used it as a staging area for the fledgling American navy and was abandoned in 1777. The British abandoned the fort in 1780. The state acquired the property in 1910.

Port Henry

Port Henry was once a bustling village in the town of Moriah on Lake Champlain where iron ore from nearby mines was transported to markets far away.

The story of this community and surrounding hamlets is told at the Iron Center Museum, 34 Park Continued on Page 52

OUTLET STORES

Outlet Stores

GIFTS-ANTIQUES

I-87, Exit 29, Route 9, North Hudson, NY “50,000 Items at Great Savings” Tools, Tarps, Toys, Camping & Sporting Goods, Gi ware, Housewares, Clothing, Footwear, Dollar Store, Christmas Shoppe, Adirondack & Rustic Furnishings, Antique & Collectibles, & Much more STORE SCHEDULE

Memorial Day thru Labor Day: Open Daily 9am-6am Labor Day thru mid November: Open Fridays, Saturdays & Sundays 9am-5pm www.gokeysoutletstores.com (518) 532-9323/9156 Flea Market

Antiques, Crafts & More

May thru October Saturdays & Sundays 9am-5pm Indoor & Outdoor Space Available Vendor Information: (518) 532-9323/9156

Adirondack Buffalo Co.

Bison Products • Produce Stand Fresh Baked Goods • Gift Shop Rustic Furniture

Enjoy a spectacular view of the buffalo in the hub of the Adirondacks Northway Exit 29 (518) 532-9466

Open 10am-6pm Thursday-Monday Memorial Day thru late October 3184 Blue Ridge Rd.

North Hudson, NY 12855 www.adirondackbuffalocompany.com

20 22 MAIN STAGE SEASON

putting it together RED

by John Logan

June 30 - July 17 July 21 -August 7 August 7 - 28

The Adirondacks’ only professional Equity theatre.

www.DepotTheatre.org • 518.962.4449 • Wesport, New York

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n o i g e R t s a o C k c a d n o r i d A

2 2 0 2 l l a F / r e m m u S • e d i u G n o i t a c V a k c a d n o r i d A / e s i r p r e t n E y l i a D k c a d n o r i d A Place, 518-546-3587. The Town of Moriah Historical Society presents history exhibits in a restored carriage house at the former WitherbeeSherman and Company mining headquarters.

A sign on Route 9N/22 details the sightings of Champ, the fabled lake monster.

Another sign honors Brooklyn Dodger pitcher Johnny Podres, a native of Witherbee. Unveiled on June 9, 2012, the sign is located 0.25 miles south of the hamlet on Route 9N/22. The sign shows Podres as he looked on his 1955 baseball card. Podres helped the Dodgers win the 1955 World Series.

Self-guided walking tour of Port Henry:

www.aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/03092 6VLPPortHenry.pdf

Westport

Depot Theatre: 6705 Main St., 518-962-4449, https://depottheatre.org. Built in 1876, this building is a functioning train station with service by Amtrak. It is also home to The Depot Theatre, a nonprofit professional theater that provides entertainment in the summer months.

Essex County Fairgrounds: Route 9N/Sisco Street. The Essex County Fairgrounds features four venues that date to when the fair opened here in 1885: the grandstand, judge’s stand, Floral Hall and racetrack. The fair will be held Aug. 17 to 21.

Self-guided walking tour of Wadhams and

Westport: www.aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/ 08/wadhamswestport.pdf

Elizabethtown

The hamlet of Elizabethtown is the county seat for Essex County. Historic county buildings are located here, including the 19th century courthouse where abolitionist John Brown’s body lay in state on Dec. 6, 1859 on its way to his North Elba farm, where he was buried, and the Hand Hale Historic District.

Adirondack History Museum: 7590 Court St., 518-873-6466, www.adkhistorycenter.org. The museum is the home of the Essex County Historical Society and is located in a 1916 neoclassical-style former school.

Self-guided walking tour of Elizabethtown:

www.aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/elizabethtown.pdf

Essex

Founded in 1765, the entire hamlet of Essex is on the National Register of Historic Places. It includes well-preserved 19th century brick and stone homes, churches, inns and shops. Industries in town once included stone quarries, iron mines, tanneries and shipyards. It is currently home to a dock for Lake Champlain Ferries with service to Vermont.

Self-guided walking tour of Essex: www.aarch. org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/essex.pdf

Willsboro

The town of Willsboro was named for New York City merchant William Gilliland, an Irish immigrant who began to purchase land along Lake Champlain in the mid-1760s for a baronial estate. The town is now home to NYCO Minerals, which mines wollastonite.

One of the earliest buildings in town — the Adsit Cabin — is located on Point Road. It is believed that Samuel Adsit built the cabin in 1779.

Self-guided walking tour of Willsboro:

www.aarch.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/willsboro.pdf

Port Kent

Port Kent was the eastern terminus for the Port Kent and Hopkinton Turnpike, a 19th century toll road that spanned west to St. Lawrence County. It is also the site of the Elkanah Watson House on Lake Street. A private home now, it was built in 1828 by businessman Elkana Watson on a bluff overlooking Lake Champlain. It is near the train station and ferry dock.

Ausable Chasm

Ausable Chasm: 2144 Route 9, 518-834-7454, http://ausablechasm.com. Since 1870, Ausable Chasm has thrilled and amazed all who have come to explore. More than 10 million visitors have witnessed what mother nature has provided: a uniquely-carved, vertical-walled canyon made of 500-million-year-old rock. As one of the earliest and oldest attractions in the U.S., Ausable Chasm has developed a history filled with adventures, disasters, and many famous visitors. A horse nail factory was located here on the east bank below Rainbow Falls between 1877 and 1910.

Ausable Chasm Depot Theatre, Westport

(Staff photo — Andy Flynn)