Exploring a Revolutionary War Fort - Mount Independence - Orwell, Vermont

The Mount Independence State Historic Site in Orwell, Vermont is one of the nation’s most significant Revolutionary War sites, offering six miles of trails along the archaeological remains of the fortification. Jointly owned and managed by the State of Vermont’s Division for Historic Preservation and the Fort Ticonderoga Association, Mount Independence documents the critical efforts to defend northern New York, New England, and the cause of American liberty.

Mount Independence was the site of extensive fortifications built in July 1776 to stop the British invasion following an American defeat in Canada. From July 1776 to July 1777, the fate of the newly independent United States of America rested on this rocky peninsula on the east side of Lake Champlain. This strong defensive position was first called East Point or Rattlesnake Hill but was renamed Mount Independence after the Declaration of Independence was read to the soldiers assembled here.

Lieutenant Colonel Jeduthan Baldwin of Massachusetts, chief engineer of the American Northern Army, with assistance from Thaddaeus Kosciusko, designed the sophisticated three-tier defensive system at Mount Independence. By late October 1776, three brigades had completed encampments, the large shore battery and horseshoe-shaped battery, and began a picket fort in the center of the Mount. The sight of Mount Independence, Fort Ticonderoga, and 12,000 assembled troops proved so impressive that British General Guy Carleton and his fleet abandoned an attempted invasion, retreating to Canada for the winter.

The American soldiers strategically retreated in July 1777 as the German and British troops occupied the area. Over a period of four months, the enemy strengthened the defenses to withstand an American counterattack as the bulk of the invading army under British General John Burgoyne marched south to defeat at Bennington and ultimately to surrender at Saratoga.