Fort Ticonderoga

Fort Ticonderoga was originally constructed as Fort Carillon in 1755, serving as a base of operations for French troops during ongoing hostilities between the French and British in North America. In 1759 the fort was seized by British troops, and in 1775 it was taken by American Revolutionaries under the command of Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold. The fort proved pivotal in transporting military supplies to Boston, helping the Americans to take the city with the aid of 59 artillery pieces.

With all the battles surrounding Fort Ticonderoga, it should be no surprise that a few spirits have remained behind. The ghost of a British soldier has been seen looking out from the upper window of the south barracks, and red orbs have been spotted throughout the fort. Nancy Coates, the mistress of General “Mad” Anthony Wayne, haunts the lake outside the fort. When she came under suspicion that Wayne had left her for another woman she drowned herself in Lake Champlain; her apparition now appears floating or running on the water, and her sobbing can be heard at times. Sarah Pell, whose family helped restore the fort after it fell out of use post-war, is said to haunt the Pavillion. She stares out a window at the King’s Garden, watching one of the two areas she personally restored from inside the other.