1917 Rand McNally / Bentley Map of Lake George, New York, Military History

A rare historical map of Upstate New York focusing on the Adirondacka and Lake George region, created by Harriet A. Bentley, and published in 1917 by Rand McNally. Clearly a labor of love, it is adorned with copious notes providing a military history of the region, focusing on the French and Indian War (1754 - 1763) and the American Revolutionary War (1775 - 1783).

A Closer Look

Although produced by the major firm Rand McNally, this map is unusual in that it was printed in a very small run, its historical notes printed to appear handwritten, on waxed linen rather than paper. This particular example is even more atypical in that the title has been blotted out.

Coverage extends from Lake George south to what is now Glens Falls. The waterways, roads, and terrain are carefully noted, as are forts, garrisons, other fortifications, and the locations of battles. An inset map at bottom-left highlights Glens Falls, the site of multiple battles and massacres.

At top-left is an illustration of a monument erected in 1903 to commemorate the 1755 Battle of Lake George, which resulted in a British / Mohawk victory over the French / Abenaki alliance. In the statue, the Mohawk chief 'King Hendrick Theyanoguin' is providing advice to the British commander William Johnson. The statue sits near a site where Johnson's command tent was located.

A War-Ravaged Region

As indicated in the title, this map focuses on the area between the 18th century British Fort Edward, just to the southeast a bit further down the Hudson River from Glens Falls, and Fort William Henry, at the southern end of Lake George. These forts, part of a chain extending to Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain, were the backbone of British control of New York, such as it was, and therefore became the inevitable focus of any French attempt to control the region. What is now Glens Falls, then just a rural hamlet, was important as it sat halfway between Fort Edward and Fort William Henry.

As both the French and British were small in number and distracted by conflict in other parts of the world (the French and Indian War was the North American extension of the worldwide Seven Years' War), they relied on colonial militia and Native American allies to fill their ranks. Given the terrain, large battles in open country were rare, with ambushes, raids, and sieges of the forts more common. Animosities driven by colonial expansion and tensions between Native American groups led to numerous atrocities.

The conflict in Upstate New York mostly followed the general course of the war, in which the British fared poorly, suffering several disastrous defeats, but with superior numbers and resources were able to gain the upper hand over time. One exception was the Battle of Lake George in September 1755, technically a draw but in effect a British victory. After the battle, the British commander Johnson constructed Fort William Henry on Lake George. However, amid cautious planning and internal disagreements among the British, the French and their Indian allies seized the initiative. In August 1757, Fort William Henry was besieged by French and Indian forces and, with no relief in sight (despite a large British force stationed at Fort Edward), the defenders surrendered within days. For reasons that are still debated, after the British surrender some of the Indian allies of the French looted the fort and attacked the rear portion of the British prisoner column as well as civilians who sought protection at the fort. The incident became a rallying cry for the British and was later recounted in sensational accounts, including James Fenimore Cooper's 1826 novel The Last of the Mohicans, that drastically inflated the death toll.

The British launched a calamitous campaign in 1758 to invade Canada that failed when they were defeated by a much smaller French force just outside Fort Ticonderoga. Nevertheless, the French in North America were too low on men and supplies to press their gains, allowing the British to eventually prevail in the conflict.

This area again saw battles during the American Revolution. Though not as renowned or decisive as the American victory at Saratoga to the south, this region did see fighting during the Saratoga Campaign that preceded the decisive battle of the same name, as well as the movement of some troops (including General Washington) later in the conflict.

Publication History and Census

This map was drawn by Harriet A. Bentley, a local historian, and published by Rand McNally in 1917. Little is known about the author of this map, except that s/he published a book in 1927 titled The Old Military Road from Fort Edward to Lake George (OCLC 719852). We are only aware of two other examples of this map, held by the New York Historical Society and the Adirondack Experience Library in Blue Mountain Lake, New York, respectively.