Travels in the 2nd half

Signs are made to catch your eye, to draw you in to a business. In colonial times, when many people were not able to read, it was important that these signs conveyed the name and type of business visually.  Walking around Colonial Williamsburg, in Virginia, you notice that a lot of effort has been placed in recreating the types of signs that would have lined the streets four-hundred years ago. Here are some of my favorites. Barber Shop Cabinet Maker Carpenter Coffee Shop Tavern Grocer clothes shop Red Lion Inn Wetherburn Tavern  

Lake George and the Adirondacks are beautiful. You can go boating, hiking or just spend some time sitting on the shore. But, what if it rains? What is there to do other than sitting in your room? Luckily, just ten miles south, on route NY-9 is the city of Glens Falls. Glens Falls sits along the Hudson River, at the point where there is a large waterfall. It was originally founded by a group of Quakers, and in 1766 it was named Wing’s Falls after that groups founder. In 1788 the hamlet was transferred to Colonel Johannes Glen, who renamed it Glen’s Falls. The falls afforded a source of water and power. Today Glens Falls is still a manufacturing center, producing medical devices, industrial valves and specialty paper. On my way to Glens Falls I took a trip to the town of Lake Luzerne. My research found a couple of small museums there, but they were not yet open for the season in early June. However, Main Street has some beautiful old houses to look at, and the Adirondack Folk Sch...

When you visit Lake George, a trip to Fort William Henry might not be history for you. If so, head about thirty miles north to visit Fort Ticonderoga, at the juncture of Lake George and Lake Champlain. As I discussed in last weeks blog, Lake George and Lake Champlain formed a key water passage for traveling from Quebec to New York. In order to complete that journey, there is a two mile portage between the lakes. This portage was an important place to defend in order to control the movement of goods and troops. In 1755, the French army began construction of Fort Carillon, along Lake Champlain, at the mouth of the La Chute River. Fort Carillon was a stone faced, star-shaped fort, built on a bluff. It offered firing lines north and south along the lake. It was placed at a narrow point where it could control the passage of boats. The walls were seven feet tall and fourteen feet thick. In 1757 the French army captured Fort William Henry, at the southern end of Lake George. This...