It was 1964, ten years after replica Fort William Henry Museum first opened its doors to tourists. It was also one of the years of the centennial anniversary of the American Civil War (1861–1865).
So, Fort William Henry, a museum that interprets the history of the French & Indian War (1755–1763), decided to also have an exhibit about our nation’s bloodiest conflict.
In October museum curator James A. Magee notified law enforcement agencies of the theft of several Civil War artifacts. The rare objects were stolen from a display at the popular visitor attraction on the southern shore of Lake George.
Magee said that the missing Civil War antiques included four pistols, a message pouch, and a shot bag. He estimated that each century-old firearm was valued at $50 (by 1964 standards) and the two military pouches were appraised at $15 each. The $230 total, with inflation, would be worth nearly $2,500 today, probably much more by militaria collectors.
Earlier in 1964, Magee made more space available in the replica garrison for new displays. Included in the Civil War exhibition that year was an 1862 hand-drawn map of the United States and Confederate military camps at Pea Ridge, Arkansas.
On March 7–8, 1862, fierce fighting, contested by 26,500 American and Confederate troops, took place at Pea Ridge. The United States won that bloody clash.
Janet Spahn of Diamond Point on Lake George donated the map to Fort William Henry Museum. Fortunately, the rare document was not pilfered during the robbery.
A review of newspaper records from the 1960s has not uncovered any information that indicates the antiquities were ever recovered.
Nine years later in January 1973, Albany’s Schuyler Mansion also had a daring theft of relics. Among them were two shoe buckles set with diamond pastes that were said to have been owned by General John Burgoyne, the British commander at the Battles of Saratoga in 1777.
Also snatched were precious lockets, with strands of hair from George Washington, as well as Alexander Hamilton and his wife Elizabeth. A rare colonial-era ring was also taken.
Shockingly, a few months later in May 1973, several Revolutionary War (1775–1783) artifacts were stolen from the Richards Library in Warrensburg, about 10 miles north of Fort William Henry. (You can read about that here.)
Unfortunately, it has not been unusual for some museums to be victims of thievery around the time of major anniversaries, when the monetary value of cultural artifacts is at their greatest.
Read more about New York State’s Material Culture.
A version of this article first appeared on the Lake George Mirror, America’s oldest resort paper, covering Lake George and its surrounding environs. You can subscribe to the Mirror HERE.
Photo: Reenactors portraying United States troops during the Civil War in the 1960s at Fort William Henry (courtesy Fort William Henry Museum).
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