Refurbished Battlefield Park monuments to be rededicated with ceremony

The Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance will hold an unveiling and rededication ceremony on Friday, June 27, to celebrate the restoration of three iconic monuments in Battlefield Park. The oldest of the monuments, the Battle of Lake George sculpture, was originally dedicated in 1903. Also restored were the Mohawk Warrior sculpture, dedicated in 1921, and the statue of Isaac Jogues, originally dedicated as a peace monument in 1939. The public is invited to attend the ceremony, which will begin at 1 p.m. in the park.

The ceremony will include presentations on the relevance of each monument to American history, the background of each monument’s creation and the work required to restore the works of art that had been subject to decades of Adirondack weather.

The restoration project was initiated by the late Dan George, who passed away in January 2025. George, a world-renowned sculptor and Lake George native, visited the sculptures last summer, according to his wife, Erica Marks, “… and the shock at their state of neglect led him to spring to action–even as he was fading from cancer. He jumped in to help, spurring a fundraising drive and pulling in a wide range of contacts. While Dan didn’t live to see the project to completion, he was deeply gratified to know it was well underway by the time of his passing.”

“Dan George has an enormous legacy of artistry and humanity across the globe,” says John DiNuzzo, President of the Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance. “Dan’s impact on his hometown of Lake George, through our project, may be among his most enduring impacts. We are so grateful that he swooped into our lives as he did.”

To launch the project, George contacted Andrew Pharmer, a partner at Workshop Art Fabrications in Kingston, New York, and also a native of Lake George, to propose that they team up to restore the Battlefield Park monuments. Pharmer said he remembered the monuments and recalled that even in 1984, when his class held their senior class picnic in the park, the monuments were in poor condition. “I was happy to oblige,” says Pharmer, “because this was something I could give back to my hometown with my particular expertise as an art fabricator.”

The project’s cost was approximately $48,000 and was met by contributions from organizations and private donors. The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New York, which had originally commissioned the Battle of Lake George monument in 1903, contributed to the restoration of the Battle of Lake George sculpture. The Lake George Park Commission, through a grant, supported repairs to Isaac Jogues and Lorna Hainesworth of Randallstown, Maryland, underwrote the entire cost of restoring the Mohawk Warrior sculpture.

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, which operates Battlefield Park, provided supplemental work on the grounds surrounding the monuments. According to DiNuzzo, DEC also plans to replace the rustic restrooms in the park with a new, accessible facility this fall.

Tentative schedule for the June 27 sculpture rededication

Noon: Informal reception in the Lake George Battlefield Park Visitor Center, 75 Fort George Road (lower level), with exhibits and light refreshments.

1:00 PM: Ceremony on the west side of the park, featuring commentary by:

John DiNuzzo, President, Lake George Battlefield Park Alliance (host)
Hon. Vinnie Crocitto, Jr., Supervisor, Town of Lake George
Erica Marks, on behalf of her late husband, sculptor Dan George, and their family
Ken Parker, Chair, Lake George Park Commission
Charles W. Neuhauser, Governor General, Society of Colonial Wars
J. Barclay Collins II, New York Governor, Society of Colonial Wars
Lorna Hainesworth, Ambassador & National Traveler

1:45 PM (time approximate): At each sculpture, a guided summary of its history and the restorations made, featuring Andrew Pharmer and Vinny DiDonato of Workshop Art Fabrication along with J. Barclay Collins II (Battle of Lake George), Peter Wuerdeman (Mohawk Warrior), Mark Silo (Isaac Jogues).

2:45 PM (time approximate): Warm wishes to all guests for safe travels home. The Battlefield Park Visitor Center will remain open until 4:00.

The sprucing up of Battlefield Park has been an ongoing project leading up to the highly anticipated construction of a reinterment site for the remains of 44 individuals associated with the Continental Army. The Revolutionary War-era remains, believed to have been patients at the smallpox hospital at Fort George in 1776, were discovered in Lake George Village in 2019. The Repose of the Fallen project will place the remains in six columbaria on a plaza in the park overlooking Lake George. The reinterment is scheduled for Memorial Day Weekend, 2026.