| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Fort Montgomery |
| | Valiantly defended by the 5th New York, Lamb’s Artillery and local militia under Gen. George Clinton against heavy British-led forces October 6, 1777. — Map (db m7385) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Building a Fort |
| | Early in the Revolutionary War, the Continental Congress realized that the Hudson River was critical to the American Cause. If the British controlled the river, they could divide the rebellious colonies. Therefore, the Americans began work on Fort Montgomery in March 1776 and quickly erected several buildings. Sited where the river is narrow and currents made navigation difficult, the fort was originally conceived as a large battery of cannons. At its heart was a “Grand Battery” of . . . — Map (db m7555) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — The Battle of Fort Montgomery |
| | To aid Lieutenant General John Burgoyne’s British army stalled at Saratoga, Lieutenant General Sir Henry Clinton sailed from New York with 3,000 British, German, and Loyalist soldiers and a flotilla of warships. On the morning of October 7, 1777, Clinton landed 2,100 of his men on the west side of the Hudson River near Stony Point. This force followed a narrow trail through the mountains, where they ran into a party of 30 men sent from Fort Clinton to detect the British advance. After beating . . . — Map (db m7404) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Fort Montgomery Today |
| | Welcome to Fort Montgomery State Historic Site. Built by Americans early in the Revolutionary War, Fort Montgomery was captured and destroyed by the British in 1777. Except for a small gun battery constructed in 1779, the fort was not rebuilt. In 1910, the site was acquired as part of Bear Mountain State Park. Since then, archaeological explorations have revealed the remains of the fort and yielded many artifacts that have added to our understanding of the fort’s history. In 1973, Fort . . . — Map (db m7674) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — North Redoubt |
| | The term redoubt at Fort Montgomery means a strong point in the fort’s walls. There were three redoubts at Fort Montgomery, including the North Redoubt, which you see here. Two of the redoubt’s walls projected out from the fort so that enemies approaching the walls of the fort would be exposed to cannon and musket fire from the redoubt. About 15 feet outside the redoubt was a two-foot-deep ditch, which would have slowed an approaching enemy.
The lower portions of the redoubt’s walls were . . . — Map (db m7577) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — The Battle Around the Redoubts |
| | Brigadier General George Clinton, the Governor of New York State, commanded Fort Montgomery during the battle of October 6, 1777. Aware the British were approaching, he ordered some of his men to take a 3-pounder cannon down the western road leading to the fort to slow the enemy. The Americans temporarily stopped the 900 advancing British and Loyalist soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Mungo Campbell, but were eventually forced to abandon their gun and return to the fort.
As . . . — Map (db m7578) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Barracks |
| | You are looking at the foundation of a barracks built in the summer of 1776. This was probably a two-story building with a cellar under the northern half. Artifacts recovered from the site tell us a lot about the soldiers who lived here. In the 18th century, shoe buckles, brass and silver buttons, cuff links, glass tableware, tea services, and flatware were symbols of elevated status. The large quantity of these items recovered from all of the barracks excavated at Fort Montgomery challenges . . . — Map (db m7623) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Enlisted Men’s & Officers’ Barracks |
| | The long foundation to the left was a barracks for enlisted men. The short foundation on the right housed the fort’s senior officers and served as a commissary for storing food provisions. Items stored here were controlled and carefully guarded. Archeology suggests that only the northern half of the cellar was used for storage. The southern half of the cellar had a fireplace and may have been where the officers’ servants lived.
Construction was virtually constant during the 18 months Fort . . . — Map (db m7624) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Soldiers’ Necessary |
| | A “necessary” is a privy, or outhouse. In front of you is the vault of the only necessary known to have existed at Fort Montgomery. When it was finished in April 1776, it was described as “a large necessary, for soldiers.” It is hard to imagine that this one small building served the needs of hundreds of soldiers, so it is possible that there were other necessaries within the fort that have not yet been identified.
In privies, archeologists usually find large . . . — Map (db m7626) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Guard House |
| | When excavation of the Guard House was completed in 1969, the site was reburied to protect the feature. Therefore, little is visible today. The Guard House was divided into two rooms that reflected dual uses. The southeastern room was where soldiers on guard duty were stationed. The northwestern room was used to house prisoners. It had a floor of mortar poured directly on bedrock, presumably to keep prisoners from escaping through the floor. There is no evidence of bars or any other means of . . . — Map (db m7630) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Powder Magazine |
| | Fort Montgomery’s powder magazine provided a secure, dry place in which to store the garrison’s gunpowder and ammunition. The magazine was located here because of the site’s good drainage and because of the protection afforded by the rock ridge between it and the river. The magazine was built early in the fort’s construction. By the middle of June 1776, its 8-foot-thick walls were completed, and masons were ready to finish its arched brick vault. Once finished, the arch was covered with sandy . . . — Map (db m7633) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Grand Battery |
| | Fort Montgomery was built to prevent British ships from sailing up the Hudson River. The centerpiece of the fort’s river defenses was its Grand Battery of six 32-pounder cannons. One of the largest cannons of the Revolutionary War, a 32-pounder was a formidable piece of artillery with a range of well over a mile. The term 32-pounder refers to the weight of the gun’s cannonball. Each cannon weighed more than 6,000 lbs. Enemy ships sailing up the river would be exposed to these giant guns before . . . — Map (db m7668) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — The Naval Battle of Fort Montgomery |
| | Accounts of the naval action during the Battle of Fort Montgomery are conflicting. This scene is one impression of how the river might have looked during the battle.
"The Shark and Cambden were ordered on the east side of the river to defend the cable and chain in case the enemy should attempt on that side, the Montgomery lay across the tide with her broadside to the enemy and the Washington under her stern. About 12 o’clock the 6th the enemy appeared and fired upon him, but he did not . . . — Map (db m7556) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — 32-Pounder |
| | The modern cannon beside you is an accurate reproduction of a ca. 1760-1780 English 32-pounder cannon. The term “32-pounder” refers to the weight of the cannonball, not the cannon itself, which weighs nearly 6,000 pounds. The casting for this reproduction cannon barrel is based on an original English 32-pounder on display at New Windsor Cantonment State Historic Site. The carriage is based on drawings of English carriages typical of the period.
It is not known where the Americans . . . — Map (db m7669) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — The Naval Battle of Fort Montgomery |
| | When Sir Henry Clinton’s British troops reached Forts Clinton and Montgomery on October 6, 1777, some of his ships began moving upriver to support them. First came two galleys, the Dependence and the Crane, which were rowed into position. Four American ships, the frigate Montgomery, the sloop Camden, and the galleys Shark and Lady Washington defended the giant iron chain the Americans had stretched across the river below Fort Montgomery. As the British . . . — Map (db m7622) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — The Historic 1777 & 1779 Trails |
| | You are walking part of the 1777 historic trail that retraces as nearly as possible the routes taken by the British army during the Revolutionary War.
The 1777 trail represents the route taken by British General Sir Henry Clinton’s forces on October 6, 1777. After landing 2,100 men at Stony Point, he marched north to capture Forts Clinton and Montgomery. At Doodletown, the trail splits. The east branch of the trail follows the march of forces under Sir Henry Clinton and Major General John . . . — Map (db m7671) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — West Redoubt |
| | Fort Montgomery’s “West” Redoubt was one of three strong points built to defend the fort from an overland attack. New York State’s Governor, Brigadier General George Clinton, commanded Fort Montgomery during the battle on October 6, 1777. Clinton ordered his men into the fort’s three redoubts, where they were attacked by 900 British and Loyalist soldiers. After mounting a brave resistance, the Americans were driven from the redoubts and were forced to abandon the fort. — Map (db m7588) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Welcome to Fort Montgomery |
| | You are standing near the western end of Fort Montgomery: a Revolutionary War fort built to defend the Hudson Highlands and protect American control of the Hudson River. On October 6, 1777, the British captured Fort Montgomery and destroyed it in the days that followed.
Trails from this parking area lead to two of the fort’s redoubts. The trail that passes beneath the highway will take you to the Fort Montgomery visitor center and Fort Montgomery’s remains where interpretive signs will . . . — Map (db m7438) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Round Hill Redoubt |
| | Fort Montgomery’s “Round Hill” redoubt was built to protect a piece of high ground that commanded the rest of the fort. It was one of three redoubts that the Americans built as they realized their gun batteries, which faced the river, were vulnerable to an overland attack. It is likely these redoubts were initially built as unconnected fortifications that were later linked by earthworks to enclose the rest of the fort. — Map (db m7597) HM |
| New York (Orange County), Fort Montgomery — Round Hill Redoubt |
| | During the Battle of Fort Montgomery on October 6, 1777, the fort’s undermanned garrison formed a single rank behind the parapet (the fort’s defensive wall). British skirmishers approached the fort keeping up a constant fire. The British then sent a flag to the fort seeking the Americans’ surrender. When the Americans refused, the British resumed the battle and drove the Americans from the redoubts. — Map (db m7592) HM |
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