Living Adirondack History Event: 1774 His Majesty’s Garrison

For a unique perspective on pre-revolutionary war life, visit Fort Ticonderoga in the Adirondacks on January 13, 2024.

In this one-day living history event, Fort Ticonderoga will portray life in 1774 in a peacetime garrison in British North America on the eve of the Revolutionary War. For history buffs, this is a great opportunity to examine the daily life of British soldiers and their families at Ticonderoga, tending to activities including cooking, shoemaking, brewing, and carpentry.

A schedule designed to showcase life in a military fort in pre-revolutionary war Adirondacks.

Fort Ticonderoga has planned a series of events throughout the day to provide visitors with an inside glimpse of Fort life in 1774.

Fort Ticonderoga barracks.

• 10 am — Fort Ticonderoga Opens to Visitors

• 10:15 am — Key to the Continent Guided Tour. In this entertaining half-hour tour, discover the incredible story of Ticonderoga. Learn about the iconic battles of Carillon and Ticonderoga during the French & Indian War and the Revolutionary War. Explore groundbreaking preservation and reconstruction efforts that allow Fort Ticonderoga to bring to life its heroic tales today and for generations to come.

• 11 am—Musket Demonstration. Meet British soldiers as they would have appeared in 1774, armed with their muskets and bayonets. Go beyond loading and firing to discuss how a peacetime army kept its soldiers ready for conflict abroad or hostilities within.

• 11:30 am — Guided Tour of the Fort Ticonderoga Museum. More than a century of collecting has allowed Fort Ticonderoga to acquire North America’s largest and most important collection of 18th-century military material. This guided tour gives visitors the scoop on the most significant, rare, and interesting pieces in the collection.

• 12:30 pm — Music Demonstration (Inside Mars Education Center Great Room). From battle to barracks life, explore the role of fifers and drummers in the British Army. Learn the meaning behind the many tunes and how they were used in a British Army defending their empire around the globe.

• 1:15 pm - Key to the Continent Guided Tour. A repeat of the 10:15 am tour, discover the incredible story of Ticonderoga. Learn about the iconic battles of Carillon and Ticonderoga during the French & Indian War and the Revolutionary War. Explore groundbreaking preservation and reconstruction efforts that allow Fort Ticonderoga to bring to life its heroic tales today and for generations to come.

• 2 pm — Cannon Demonstration — In addition to soldiers, a handful of British artillerymen maintained the guns of Ticonderoga, a legacy of the great campaigns of the French & Indian War. Discover the British naval training used to safely fire these cannons from the fort’s walls.

• 2:30 pm — If you missed the earlier Guided Tour of the Fort Ticonderoga Museum, this is your chance to participate.

• 3 pm — Key to the Continent Guided Tour (see above)

Throughout the day, visitors can watch:

• Shoemaking (Ground Floor Officers’ Barracks)

• “A Knife and Place for Each Man” (Ground Floor of the Officers’ Barracks). Step inside Fort Ticonderoga’s mess room and discover how a peacetime garrison ate their meals in a respectable manner. Although not the kitchen, learn why one of the women of the garrison would be cooking within this pre-designated space.

• Soap Making (Parade Ground) — How did soldiers of the British Army keep their linens clean? Watch as the women of the 26th Regiment of Foot turn ash and fat into soap for the laundering of shirts, shifts, and bed linens.

• Spruce Beer (Parade Ground) — Even a peacetime army had to watch for scurvy, and soldiers were encouraged to brew Vitamin C-rich spruce beer. See the process of cooking up this nutritious drink and a savory meal as part of daily garrison life.

• A Family’s Quarters (Ground Floor Soldiers’ Barracks) — Step inside a family’s quarters and see the simple comforts of peacetime garrison life. Learn how women employed by Ticonderoga’s Barracks Master outfitted the barracks with proper bedding.

• Carpentry (Ground Floor Soldiers’ Barracks) — Watch wood chips fly as carpenters furnish the barracks of the fort with new furniture. See how chisels, saws, and augers helped carpenters refit soldiers’ barracks into apartments for them and their families.

For more information about this event, visit the Fort Ticonderoga website.

Explore these places to eat, shop, stay and things to do in and around Ticonderoga.