Lake George

Lake George is one of the most historic areas throughout the entire New York State. It has been nicknamed the “Queen of the American Lakes” and drains into Lake Champlain. The lake is 32 miles and draws from underground springs. It also includes 109 miles of shoreline, close to 300 islands, covers nearly 44 square miles, and is 320 feet above sea level. The water from Lake George empties through Ticonderoga Creek into Lake Champlain at a total fall which surpasses that of Niagara Falls. Along Lake George’s shores were made military decisions which had an effect on America’s early history and helped mold what America is today.

Lake George is located in the Adirondack Park and mountain range. Notable landforms include Anthony’s Nose, Deer’s Leap, Roger’s Rock, the Indian Kettles, Diver’s Rock (a 15 ft (4.6 m) jump into the lake), and Double-Diver’s. Mountains include Tongue Mountain, Sugarloaf Mountain, Prospect Mountain, Shelving Rock, Pilot Knob, and Black Mountain.

The lake was originally named the Horican, meaning “tail of the lake”, by local Native Americans, and was called the Horican in James Fenimore Cooper’s narrative Last of the Mohicans.

In 1755, an expedition against the French was planned to eliminate French rights in America. This meeting was scheduled to take place at Albany and all the colonies met there. The plan was set and Major General William Johnson advanced from Albany to Fort Edward to Lake Saint Sacrement with a force of around 2200 colonial troops and 300 Indians for the Battle of Lake George.

The Lake George and Adirondack area had a prominent role in famous battles of the French and Indian Wars as well as the American Revolution and was originally a route of travel for the American Indian. For them, it formed the connecting link in the main water route between the Hudson River and Lake Champlain. The Iroquois called it: “There Where the Lake Is Shut In.

In August of 1642, Father Isaac Joques and his men paddled over Lake George and were the first white men to set eyes on its beauty. They were attacked and captured by the Mohawks but Father Joques escaped and returned home to France. In 1646 he was sent by the French Governor on a political embassy to the Iroquois in relation to a treaty of peace. He reached the foot of Lake George on the Festival of Corpus Christi and renamed the lake “Lac du Saint Sacrement.” Father Joques died a martyr at the hands of the Mohawks. A statue was erected for him to him in July of 1939 and stands to this day in Battleground Park.

Following the Battle of Lake George, General Johnson hurried to strengthen defenses at the head of Lake George. He erected a fort which he named Fort William Henry.

In 1757 the first real attempt was made by the French against this fortress. In August of that year a large force of French and Indians secured the surrender of the fort after a six day overtaking. The defenders were promised safe convoy to Fort Edward, however, a bloody massacre ensued sparked by the long history of war between the Adirondack Indian tribes involved. The fort was then torn down and the logs set on fire. This campaign was used by James Fenimore Cooper as the background for his famous novel, “The Last of the Mohicans.” The fort was reconstructed and opened to the public as a museum in 1953.

Battles in this area continued during the French and Indian Wars and were followed by a short period of peace. Ill-feelings between the colonists and the British continued to mount and the war for American Independence finally began on April 9, 1775. One month later Fort Ticonderoga was seized from the English by Ethan Allen, Benedict Arnold, and the Green Mountain Boys.

The fort fell without loss of a single life and was the first American victory during the Revolution.

In November, General George Washington sent General Henry Knox to bring cannon from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston.

They were dragged to Fort George by scow and then over the snow by sled to Boston. Today there are markers at six mile intervals tracing the route which General Knox followed that winter.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lake George was a common spot sought out by well known artists, including Martin Johnson Heade, John F. Kensett, E. Charlton Fortune and Frank Vincent DuMond.

Millionaire’s Row was the haunt of Lake George‘s richest summer residents. Lake George also has a solid gaming community, with gamers and streamers teaming up, using Twitch Marketing and even influencer marketing efforts to help their channels grow.

Good to Know
“Lake George is without comparison, the most beautiful water I ever saw; formed by a a contour of mountains into a basin thirty-five miles long and from two to four miles broad, finely interspersed with islands, its water limpid as crystal and the mountainsides covered with rich groves of silver fir, white pine, aspen and paper birch down to the water, here and there precipices of rock to checker the scene and save it from monotony. An abundance of speckled trout, salmon trout, bass, and other fish with which it is stored, have added to our other amusements the sport of taking them.”

—Thomas Jefferson

Restaurants

SJ Garcia’s

Bars

American Legion

Blue Moose Tavern & Restaurant

Christie’s on the Lake

Duffy’s Tavern

Fire and Ice Bar & Grill

Garrison Bar & Lounge

John Barleycorn’s Pub

JT Kelly’s Pub & Grill

Judd’s Tavern

King Neptune’s

Lemon Peel Lounge

Shepard’s Cove

Village Pub

The Village Pub

Whispers Lounge

 

 

Camps (as of 2010)

 

Adirondack Camping Village

(518) 668-5226

Hearthstone Point Campground

(518) 668-5193

King Phillip’s Campground & Resort

(518) 668-5763

Lake George Escape Campground

(518) 623-3207

Lake George RV Park

(518) 792-3775

Ledgeview Village and RV Park

(518) 798-6621

Mohawk Campground

(518) 668-2760

Morgan RV Resorts

(518) 798-6218

Mt. Kenyon Campgrounds
1571 Lake Avenue

(518) 696-2905
Riverview Campground

(518) 623-9444

Whippoorwill Campsites

(518) 668-5565

 

Hotels

 

America’s Best Value Inn

(518) 668-2143

Balmoral Motel

(518) 668-2673
Balsam Hotel

(518) 668-3865

Boulders Resort

(518) 668-5444

Brookside Motel

(518) 668-3344
Clarion Inn & Suites

(518) 793-3196

Comfort Suites

(518) 761-0001
Country Hearth Inn

(518) 668-4141

 

Cramer’s Point Motel & Cottages

(518) 668-2292
Depe Dene Hotel

(518) 668-2788
Dunham’s Bay Resort

(518) 656-9242
Econo Lodge

(518) 668-2689

Fort William Henry Museum

(518) 668-5471

Georgian Resort & Conference Centre
384 Canada Street
Lake George, NY 12845
(518) 668-5401

Golden Sands Resort

(518) 668-2203
Greenhaven Resort

(518) 668-2489

Hampton Inn & Suites

(518) 668-4100

 

Heritage of Lake George Hotel

(518) 668-3357

Holiday Inn Turf

(518) 668-5781
Howard Johnson Tiki Resort

(518) 668-5744
Lake Crest Inn

(518) 668-3374
Lake Haven Motel

(800) 347-0543
Lake Motel

(518) 668-2810

Lake View Hotel & Conference

(518) 668-3131
Marine Village Resort

(518) 668-5478

Motel Montreal

(518) 668-5439
Mohican Motel

(518) 792-0474
Park Lane Motel

(518) 668-2615

Prospect-Aire Motel

(518) 668-5069
Quality Inn

(518) 668-3525

Roaring Brook Ranch & Tennis

(518) 668-5767
Scottish Inn Hotel

(518) 668-3588
Scotty’s Motel

(518) 668-2467

Studio Motel

(888) 738-2566
Sundowner Hotel

(518) 668-5175
Surfside on the Lake

(518) 668-2442

Tahoe Resort

(518) 668-5711

Travelodge of Lake George

(518) 668-5421

Wingate by Windham

(518) 668-4884

 

 

Pizza