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To Plan A Trip

March 2024
1min read

The Lake Champlain Maritime Museum has extensive displays on the Battle of Valcour Island and the archeological explorations being made there. The museum is open daily 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., from late May to mid-October ( www.lcmm.org / 802-475-2022).

The Fort Chambly National Historic Site highlights the strategic importance of the Richelieu River. For details on hours, call450-658-1585 ( www.pc.gc.ca/lhn-nhs/qc/fortchambly ).

The Crown Point State Historic Site with its ruins is open until dusk from May to October; the small museum with its many artifacts recovered here over the years is open Wednesday through Monday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (518-597-4666).

The Fort Ticonderoga National Historical Landmark includes, among its many exhibits, the blunderbuss Ethan Allen lent Arnold before the capture of the fort here in May 1775. The fort is open daily from early May to late October 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ( www.fort-ticonderoga.org ).

Whitehall, New York, has the Skenesborough Museum, which traces the history of shipbuilding here. It’s open mid-June to mid-October, with varying hours ( www.whitehallchamber.com ).

Saratoga National Historical Park is 40 miles north of Albany, where routes U.S. 4 and N.Y. 32 join. The visitor center is open daily ( www.nps.gov/sara / 518-664-9821).

Those wanting to trace Arnold further can visit a number of places associated with his career. Fort Stanwix in Rome, New York, where he lifted the siege and sent his (then) enemies retreating back to Canada, has been restored by the National Park Service; it’s open daily 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ( www.nps.gov/fost / 315-338-7730).

After he went over to the British, Arnold led a raid on New London, Connecticut. The state park at Fort Griswold, where his forces massacred 88 of the 165 defenders on September 6, 1781, has the restored fort and a Revolutionary War museum; the grounds are open daily year-round from 8:00 a.m. to sunset (860-445-1729).

At West Point a restored Fort Putnam survives from the time Arnold commanded here, and it has an excellent view of the Military Academy and the Hudson. It’s open for limited hours between May and September; contact the West Point Museum at 845-938-2203/3590.

Arnold died in 1801, an exile living in London. He was buried at St. Mary’s Church, Battersea.

For those wanting to stay in a motel named for the hero-traitor, there’s the Motel Arnold in St. Augustin de Woburn, Quebec, 819-544-2711, and the Auberge Benedict Arnold in Ville de St. Georges de Beauce, Quebec ( www.aubergearnold.qc.ca / 418-228-5558).

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