Plattsburgh Bay - Plattsburgh, NY - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

In Plattsburgh, on the shore of where the Saranac River flows into Plattsburgh Bay, is a marker stating that the Plattsburgh Bay is on the National Register as a National Historic Landmark.

The marker is in Champlain Park, which is off Cumberland Ave. Park along the street. From the monument to Samuel de Champlain, walk down the paths to the shore. The marker is in a pyramidal mortared cairn and states that Plattsburgh Bay is registered as a National Historic Landmark.

The nomination form states that there are specifically three locations that are part of this designation.

The first is Plattsburgh Bay, which is a sheltered area, part of Lake Champlain and is where Saranac River flows into the lake. It is also the site of the Battle of Plattsburgh during the War of 1812.

The second is MacDonough Monument, which honors the American commander who won the Battle of Plattsburgh. This monument is a tall obelisk made of sandstone. On certain occasions, the monument is open for people to ascend to the top and get a view. On the sides are the names of four of the ships that took place in the battle.

The third is the site of Fort Brown, further upstream of Saranac River and was part of the same battle. The place is now park and has a historical sign marking the location.

The nomination form has details about the landmark and the Battle of Plattsburgh and surviving sites from that battle.

The bay is "...formed by the peninsula of Cumberland Head on the north and east and by the mainland on the west, where is situated the town of Plattsburgh. The Bay's open end, facing south, is about one and one half miles wide. Near the mainland or Plattsburgh side of the Bay is Crab Island. Much of the beach area on Cumberland Head is open and affords a good view of the scene of the naval action..."

The MacDonough Monument is on the bayfront overlooking the scenes of the naval action... an obelisk of Indiana limestone 135 ft. high. The Memorial is decorated with reliefs of symbolic naval scenes and lists the names of the American ships which won the decisive battle of Plattsburgh."

Fort Brown "...which was an earthwork fort erected by the Americans on the south bank of the Saranac is presently the only remaining fortification. It is located alongside U.S. 9, to the west of the Plattsburgh Air Force Base. The configurations of the earth show the general outline of the fort, which as eroded somewhat."

The Battle of Plattsburgh took place in September of 1814. It had both land and naval confrontations. Prior to the battle, the British had established a sound blockage off the U.S. eastern coast and burned the Washington D.C. The Brtish were then applying forces from Canada. Plattsburgh itself had seen raids in July 1813. Starting from this time, Commander Thomas Macdonough had ships built on the lake. By May 1814, three ships were ready, the Saratoga, Ticonderoga, Preble, and 10 small gunboats. The brig, Eagle, came later. The British armed forces came into Plattsburgh and forced the Americans to the east side of the Saranac River, where they held their ground there. In the water, the Americans decided to anchor in the bay and wait for the British to attack. On September 11th, the naval battle began. In short, the fleets were pretty evenly matched and fierce fighting went on for two and a half hours. in the end, the Americans were victorious and most of the British fleet surrendered. The British land forces resumed their fighting but were repulsed. The British had to withdraw and the Americans retained control of this part of Lake Champlain.

I was able to visit the first two and not the third.

Street address: Cumberland Ave. Plattsburgh, NY United States of America 02901 County / Borough / Parish: Clinton Year listed: 1966 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Historic - Non-Aboriginal, Military Periods of significance: 1825-1849, 1800-1824 Historic function: Defense Current function: Landscape, Recreation And Culture Privately owned?: no Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Secondary Website 2: [Web Link] National Historic Landmark Link: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed

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