A Layer of Ice Shielding Infinite Layers of History
From May to November you can find Fort Ticonderoga bustling with the sounds of history. Often, you will witness the flash of musketry, the march of soldiers and the echoing of the Fife and Drum Corps. It is hard to fathom that on a white, wintry day like today, it is quiet enough to hear […]
Damnatio Memoriae
In Latin the phrase damnatio memoriae means “to condemn the memory.” It refers to the practice of erasing someone’s presence from history by removing images or references to them. Whether legally sanctioned or spontaneous, it was a powerful form of punishment. Damnatio memoriae could take many forms. In ancient Rome portraits and statues were often […]
“Lodging as the Nature of the Campaign will Admit”
The 4th Pennsylvania Battalion, along with the other regiments of their brigade, completed their fortifications along the Old French lines by early September in 1776. Officers and men had lived in tents since they encamped on this hill in July. With the works finished, Colonel Anthony Wayne issued the order to begin building better housing […]
View of the Ruins of Ticonderoga Forts on Lake Champlain
The earliest-known published image of the ruins of Fort Ticonderoga is View of the Ruins of Ticonderoga Forts on Lake Champlain, a line engraving by Gideon Fairman after a sketch by Hugh Reinagle published in Analectic Magazine, Philadelphia, vol. II, no. 4 (April 1818), frontispiece, opp. p. 273. Artist Hugh Reinagle (ca. 1788-1834) probably visited the […]
Grow a Salad Quilt
It’s a real treat to make a trip to the garden with basket in hand to pick fresh greens for a salad. I like to pick enough for just a day or two at a time so the greens are as crisp as possible. Are you planning to grow vegetables this season? Here’s an idea from the King’s Garden that […]
Beautiful Brassicas
Brassica refers to a genus of plants in the mustard family, sometimes refered to as cole crops or cruciferous vegetables. A few examples are cabbage, Brussels sprouts, kale and broccoli. These crops are important sources of vitamin C, fiber, and other micronutrients that support good heatlth. The military gardens at Fort Ticonderoga in the 18th century included generous […]
Children’s Garden Design: The Sunflower House
Common name: Sunflower Botanical name: Helianthus annuus Family: Asteraceae Plant type: Herbaceous annual Blooms: Late summer to autumn The sunflower is native to the Americas. There is evidence that it was grown domestically as early as 2600 B.C. in Mexico. The large flower heads consist of showy outer ray flowers and fertile disc flowers that mature into […]
Children’s Garden Offers Something For Everyone
A plot that was once part of the vegetable and cutting gardens for the Pell summer home, and before that a soldier’s garden that helped feed 18th-century troops, is now utilized as our Children’s Garden. This 50×50 garden includes flowing internal pathways, topiaries, kid-sized chairs and thematic plantings to help children and adults learn […]
William Ferris Pell, Horticulturalist
When William Ferris Pell purchased the 546-acre Garrison Grounds encompassing the ruins of Fort Ticonderoga in 1820, he preserved the remaining stonework of the Fort and began shaping the landscape surrounding the summer home he built nearby. Set in a pastoral landscape, the site was described as reminiscent of “park scenery of England; and the view of the ruins from […]
We’ve Got the Blues
Deep blue, azure blue, sky blue, and sapphire blue – annuals and perennials in shades of blue are artfully arranged to accent both soft and bold colored plant groupings. All are on display in the King’s Garden, one of just a few examples of landscape architect Marian Coffin’s work that remains from her successful career that peaked […]