On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
Turning point in the struggle for an independent United States of America Saratoga Battle Chapter Sons of the American Revolution 4 July 2002 Originally placed in honor of our Nation’s Bicentennial — — Map (db m9171) HM
Near Saratoga National Battlefield Road, on the left.
Here you can walk the place where the Second Battle of Saratoga ended in an
American victory. Between the end of the First Battle of Saratoga on September
19 and the Second Battle of Saratoga on October 7, about 600 German soldiers
encamped . . . — — Map (db m211373) HM
Near Auto Tour Road, on the left when traveling south. Reported permanently removed.
Mid-September of 1777 found an American army of 8,500 encamped on these uplands, called Bemis Heights. The soldiers worked feverishly building fortifications to block the Crown Forces marching from the north. You can see the site of American . . . — — Map (db m220499) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Standing here in the summer of 1777, with you back to the invading Crown Forces, you would have seen the eastern leg of the American fortifications which surrounded Bemis Heights. The white stakes across the ravine mark the southern end of these . . . — — Map (db m11533) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Skillful military engineering converted this bluff into a stronghold. Gun batteries on the river flats below commanded even the hills on the other side of the river. Behind you, across the ravine, was the main American line. It was this the British . . . — — Map (db m11531) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Still caught in the frenzy of fighting at the Barber Wheat Field, American troops launched savage attacks across this area in a vain attempt to drive the Crown Forces from these fortifications. — — Map (db m11508) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Artillery and infantry positions along this bluff commanded the road to Albany. This defense line forced the British army to fight on American terms. — — Map (db m11561) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
While Morgan’s Light Corps, the 5th and 6th Massachusetts Continentals and other American troops attacked the Breymann Redoubt from the front, the intrepid Benedict Arnold – without a command of his own - joined a handful of Americans in a daring . . . — — Map (db m210105) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
The farmhouse which stood near here was used as an American observation post. Between the engagements, Patriot pickets held the near side of the Middle Ravine; British pickets, the far side. — — Map (db m9894) HM
Near Saratoga National Battlefield Road, on the left when traveling north.
Near this very spot, a musket ball crashed into the leg of General Benedict Arnold
as he led a charge to the rear of the fortified camp. He had been shot "through his Ankle, which broke the Bone." The wound left him injured for life. After eight . . . — — Map (db m210104) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
You are on the crest of Bemis Heights at the apex of the American defense lines. Nearby were a fortified barn, batteries, infantry breastworks, hospital, headquarters and encampment sites. — — Map (db m9878) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north.
Erected 1887 by John Watts de Peyster Brev. Maj. Gen. S.N.Y. 2nd V. Pres’t Saratoga Mon’t Ass’t’n In memory of the “most brilliant soldier” of the Continental Army, who was desperately wounded on this spot, the sally port of Burgoynes . . . — — Map (db m9141) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
This reconstruction is one of two small outworks that were built to provide forward protection for the much larger Balcarres Redoubt. The knoll derives its name from the many casualties suffered in this area during the fighting of October 7, 1777. . . . — — Map (db m11510) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
Born: Invernesshire, Scotland Died: Saratoga, New York This memorial commemorates the death and burial October 8, 1777 of General Simon Fraser, a loyal Highlander, trusted soldier, and respected leader of Burgoyne’s advance corps who was mortally . . . — — Map (db m9374) HM
On Saratoga National Battlefield Road, on the right when traveling north.
Here you would have seen thousands of British, Irish, and German soldiers,
women, and children in 1777. They had camped on this site in relative safety
for the weeks between the two battles of Saratoga.
General Burgoyne's army had 3,800 . . . — — Map (db m210096) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
Scaled in size according to the rank of the occupant, Crown Force officers’ tents – or marquees – graced the American wilderness with fluttering pennants, elegant fringe and elaborate awnings and breezeways. The several large, colorful marquees . . . — — Map (db m210094) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling east.
On the night of October 8, Burgoyne began his retreat northward. At Saratoga (Schuylerville) his army was surrounded by the Americans. After a week of siege, Burgoyne surrendered on October 17, 1777, by the terms of the Convention of Saratoga. . . . — — Map (db m10046) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
The British General Simon Fraser, mortally wounded during the battle of October 7, 1777, was buried near this site the following day. — — Map (db m10065) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north.
At the height of the fighting in the Barber Wheat Field, when New Hampshire Continentals overran two British cannons, an excited American officer, Colonel Joseph Cilly, leaped upon one of the smoking guns to claim it for the Patriots’ cause. — — Map (db m10022) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Crown Forces beat off repeated American attacks against this fortified position from about 3:30 in the afternoon until dusk on October 7, 1777. — — Map (db m11505) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
When Burgoyne ordered his army into retreat, the Crown Forces Artillery Park – located on the flat area below and to your right – became a scene of frantic activity. The artillery equipment assembled there – larger field guns and . . . — — Map (db m36826) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
When the order came to retreat, the civilian teamsters contracted by the British – many from Canada – began harnessing teams of horses and yoking pairs of bawling oxen in the Baggage Park on the flat directly below you. Wagons and two-wheeled carts . . . — — Map (db m36828) HM
On the wooded hill to the left stand Earthworks thrown up by Amer. Army before the Battle of Saratoga 1777 State Education Department 1932 — — Map (db m11563) HM
On U.S. 4 at New York State Route 32, on the right when traveling south on U.S. 4.
The Champlain Canal/Bemis Heights site is a residential site first occupied during the 1830s soon after the construction of the Champlain Canal. The highway (NY 32) was developed during the eighteenth century as a north-south passage between the . . . — — Map (db m28605) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
The first battle of Saratoga was fought here on September 19, 1777. The map shows the troop positions. British forces drove the Americans from this place immediately around Freeman’s farmhouse. Then the British fortified the area, including the . . . — — Map (db m11504) HM
On Hudson Avenue (U.S. 4), on the right when traveling south.
Through this place passed Gen. Henry Knox in the winter of 1775-1776 to deliver to Gen. George Washington at Cambridge the train of artillery from Fort Ticonderoga used to force the British Army to evacuate Boston Erected by The State of New York . . . — — Map (db m23709) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Saratoga 1777 British Redoubt To commemorate the services of Lieutenant John Hardin of Morgan’s Rifle Corps who led a successful reconnaissance Sept. 18, 1777. Who also distinguished himself in the battles fought on this ground Sept. 19 and . . . — — Map (db m66808) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south. Reported permanently removed.
John Neilson, who farmed this land, cast his lot with the Patriot cause. The building you see is a restoration of his original home. By mid-September 1777, the American Army had taken over Neilson’s house and barn, and enclosed much of his farm . . . — — Map (db m220492) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
In memory of The Noble Son of Poland Brig. General Thaddeus Kosciuszko Military Engineer Soldier of the War of Independence who under the command of General Gates selected and fortified these fields for the great Battle of Saratoga in which the . . . — — Map (db m9690) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
In marked contrast to the officers’ marquees were hundreds of enlisted men’s tents. The main British encampment of some 4,000 soldiers extended east of Balcarres Redoubt to beyond the crest of the rise in front of you and to your left. Markers in . . . — — Map (db m210095) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
Burgoyne’s retreating army was forces to leave its sick and wounded to the care of the Americans. The main British medical facilities were located on the flat area below and to your right. — — Map (db m36824) HM
Near Saratoga National Battlefield Road, on the left.
Spurred on by their success in the nearby wheatfield,
nearly 1000 American soldiers attacked up the hill
directly in front of you. The defenders were now
greatly weakened.
More than half of Colonel Breymann's men had
gone out the morning of . . . — — Map (db m211371) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
“I dedicate this gun to the American Cause.” Colonel Joseph Cilley In honor of Enoch Poor Brigadier-General of the New Hampshire troops Joseph Cilley Colonel of the First Regiment Henry Dearborn Colonel of the Second Regiment . . . — — Map (db m10084) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
Under intense pressure from the Massachusetts Continentals and New York and Massachusetts militia, units of the German Brunswick and Hesse-Hanau regiments were forced back from this site near the center of the battle line. — — Map (db m66813) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
If the ‘redcoats’ had advanced down the road below toward Albany the guns of this strongpoint would have been the first to greet them. In 1777 the road swung from its present route diagonally across the fields below you toward the river. — — Map (db m9932) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south.
When news of the British invasion reached the farmers who tilled these fields, some went north to join the Crown Forces. Such a loyalist was John Freeman. On a hot summer afternoon in 1777, one of Freeman’s neighbors who stayed to fight for the . . . — — Map (db m220510) HM
Here on these bluffs and in the valley below you can see
where General Burgoyne reassembled his army. It was
just one day after the October 7 battle.
The Hudson River and the river road had made it
possible for the British Army to march . . . — — Map (db m210823) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Here stood one of the strongest units of the American river fortifications. It was strengthened by the water batteries along the river. — — Map (db m9938) HM
It was supposed to be a secret retreat under cover of darkness. Lieutenant-General John Burgoyne abandoned his camp on October 8 and left behind 400 sick and wounded. A severe thunderstorm and plodding supply boats delayed the retreat. The hungry, . . . — — Map (db m209895) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
In honor of Adjutant Philip Rockefeller Lieutenant Peter Rockefeller Lieutenant William Rockefeller Captain Diel Rockefeller Privates Simon Rockefeller Diehl Rockefeller Christian Rockefeller John Rockefeller Henry Rockefeller --------------- . . . — — Map (db m66812) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Here Morgan reluctant to destroy so noble a foe was forced by patriotic necessity to defeat and slay the gentle and gallant Fraser. To commemorate the magnanimity of Morgan’s heroic nature and his stern sense of duty to his country, this tablet is . . . — — Map (db m9378) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Here the battle raged back and forth on Sept. 19 and Oct. 7. Here Major Acland was wounded ---------- The gift of Mrs Estelle Willoughby — — Map (db m9383) HM
On County Route 70 at Radar Road, on the left on County Route 70.
The hill above was the location of a Cold War early warning radar site built as part of a system designed
to defend the United States against enemy air attacks. This marker erected by and dedicated to the men and women of the 656th Radar Squadron . . . — — Map (db m131570) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
American and British advance pickets often exchanged musket fire across Middle Ravine during the weeks that followed the Battle of September 19, 1777. Then, on the afternoon of October 7, excited American pickets reported large formations of Crown . . . — — Map (db m208864) HM
Grievously wounded, General Simon Fraser was carried here to the Taylor cabin, which had been taken over as a residence by Baroness Riedesel, the wife of the German commander.
The bleeding general was brought into the room, where a cheerful . . . — — Map (db m32502) HM
On Hudson Ave. (New York State Route 4), on the right when traveling north.
Blockhouse
Replica of an 18th century
blockhouse. Built in 1927.
Original visitor center at
Saratoga Battlefield.
Moved to this site in 1999.
— — Map (db m40491) HM
On Hudson Avenue (U.S. 4) at Park Avenue, on the right when traveling south on Hudson Avenue.
Erected by the war chest of The Town of Stillwater to honor patriotic services in The Great World War A. Bache • G. W. Baker • H. B. Baker • J. R. Baker • C. J. Baker • W. Barrey • A. Barthea • A. Barthiamie • L. A. Batchelder • J. L. Bennett • A. . . . — — Map (db m56989) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south. Reported permanently removed.
By closing the road and river, the Americans forced the British into rough, wooded lands where they could not use their infantry and artillery to best advantage. — — Map (db m220531) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
Built in the 1820s, many years after the Revolutionary War, this section of the Champlain Canal followed the same natural north-south route chosen by Burgoyne’s invading army. Linking the Hudson River with Lake Champlain, the canal joined northern . . . — — Map (db m36829) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
Thaddeus Kosciusko, a Polish military engineer and volunteer in the American cause, directed the building of fortifications to block the British Invasion. — — Map (db m11534) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Stunned and reeling from fighting in Barber’s Wheat Field, Crown Forces were able to re-form here behind previously constructed defenses. These log-and-earth walls had been built shortly after September 19, 1777. These fortifications are now known . . . — — Map (db m11507) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north.
The fighting began where you now stand and in the woods behind you in mid-afternoon of October 7, 1777. Within minutes, more than 4,000 men collided in savage combat along a line stretching westward across the Barber Wheat Field in front of you and . . . — — Map (db m10020) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling south. Reported permanently removed.
In the fields before you, the first action of the Battle of Saratoga began. Shortly after noon on September 19, American pickets posted in the Freeman House fired on advance elements of the center column of the British army. The Americans were . . . — — Map (db m220507) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
Failing to capture the Balcarres Redoubt, the Americans surged against Crown Forces’ fortifications built here. Attacking relentlessly, they overwhelmed this important defensive position just before nightfall, October 7, 1777. Never more than a . . . — — Map (db m211372) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north. Reported permanently removed.
On October 7, General Burgoyne sent 1,500 men and 10 cannon to flank the American position on Bemis Heights. The Patriots intercepted the British here in the Barber wheatfield and the battle was on again. — — Map (db m210706) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north.
As the action of October 7 developed, the British right and left flanks began to break under the American attack. General Simon Fraser was mortally wounded a few yards northwest of here (to your left) while trying to rally the British 24th Regiment. . . . — — Map (db m10015) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the left when traveling north.
Two small fortified cabins defended by Canadian troops stood about 600 feet south of this site. These cabins were an important link in the British line of defense as can be seen on the reproduction map drawn by an English officer. Their capture . . . — — Map (db m66822) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling west.
Capture of the Breymann Redoubt forced Burgoyne to withdraw his army to a position centered on three fortifications shown on this map drawn by a British officer. This is the site of the eastern wall of the second of these three fortifications which . . . — — Map (db m10066) HM
Morning skirmishing in the woods over a
mile north of here on September 19, 1777
made clear. The British were coming.
General Arnold "took the liberty to give it as my Opinion that we ought to March out and attack them." General Gates agreed. . . . — — Map (db m208865) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling east. Reported permanently removed.
On these bluffs the British constructed three redoubts to protect their artillery park and hospital, located on the river flats below. — — Map (db m210825) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
This monument is erected by the Ancient Order of Hibernians of Saratoga County to the memory of Timothy Murphy Celebrated marksman of Colonel Morgan’s Rifle Corps whose unerring aim turned the tide of battle by the death of the British General . . . — — Map (db m28611) HM
On Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling south.
The Unknown American Soldiers who perished in the Battles of Saratoga September 19 and October 7, 1777 and were here buried in unmarked graves helped to assure the triumph of the War of Independence, to create the Republic of the United States of . . . — — Map (db m9736) HM
Near Park Tour Road, on the right when traveling north.
Captain 4th Company Colonel Thaddeus Cook’s Regiment Connecticut Militia Killed here in the Battle of Saratoga September 19, 1777 Erected by Bidwell Family Association September 19, 1924 — — Map (db m11511) HM
