The Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance invites the public to attend its annual Memorial Day remembrance ceremony on Monday, May 29, at 10:30 a.m. The event will be held at the Grave of the Unknown Soldiers on Fort George Road in Battlefield Park, Lake George.
The four soldiers buried at the site were American provincials who were ambushed by the French on the morning of September 8, 1755. The attack, referred to as The Bloody Morning Scout, was the first of three engagements cumulatively called the Battle of Lake George. Their remains were discovered in the 1930s by road crews excavating along State Route 9 south of Lake George Village. They were reinterred in Battlefield Park shortly afterward.
The Memorial Day remembrance ceremony will open with an invocation by Pastor Ali Trowbridge of the Caldwell Presbyterian Church.
New York State Assemblymember Matt Simpson will give the keynote address at the ceremony. In an Alliance press release, Simpson stressed the importance of honoring “The courageous soldiers who laid down their lives in sacrifice so that those who came after them could see the birth of this great nation and its ideals of freedom and democracy. They should now and forever be remembered with honor and gratitude.” He added: “The historic shores of Lake George bore witness to the heroic acts of people seeking the realization of a new vision, a new idea, a new nation. It is our duty to pay homage to this distinct legacy with pride, now and evermore.”
Also speaking will be historian Mark Silo, an Alliance member who recently profiled Sir William Johnson’s successful defense at the Battle of Lake George. Bruce Venter, author of “The Battle of Hubbardton”and a Trustee of the Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance, called Silo’s new research on the British battlelines at Lake George “groundbreaking and illuminating in understanding how quickly the lessons learned from the ambush were successfully applied by William Johnson and his officers.”
The Memorial Day remembrance program will also include a presentation of colors by the Lake George Volunteer Fire Department and the laying of a memorial wreath by Lake George American Legion Post 374. Reenactors from Fort William Henry will provide a military salute. The ceremony will conclude with the playing of “Taps” by Amy Baker.
The Lake George Battlefield Park Visitor Center, across Fort George Road from the unknown soldiers’ burial site, will be open on Memorial Day from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. to accommodate those who attend the Memorial Day ceremony.