365 acres with frontage on, and under, Lake Champlain
is for sale in northern New York. The property comes with a 19th
century fortification, Fort Montgomery, that while in need of
some repair, is still largely intact. Furthermore, the property
abuts the Canadian Border, making this an excellent opportunity
to add to the defense of the nation.
It’s happened before. In 1814, a General named George Provost,
a former governor of Nova Scotia and the Commander in Chief of
British Forces in Quebec planned and executed an attack on the
United States during the War of 1812. The plan called for an
attack by land and by water, with the naval forces coming down
the Richelieu River into Lake Champlain, past the current site
of Fort Montgomery. A Naval battle commenced, on September 11,
in Lake Champlain, and Prevost, and his plan, were defeated by
the American Navy, and militia from New York and Vermont. The
Battle of Baltimore occurred a few days later, an event that
led to the end of the war, and the creation of the American national
anthem.
Clearly though, the north end of Lake Champlain needed to be
fortified, and in 1816, construction started on a fort on the
American side of the border, established at the 45th parallel.
A new survey however placed the parallel ¾ of a mile south of
the new fort, putting it inside Canada. That fort was abandoned,
and a new one built south of the line. The old fort, referred
to as Fort Blunder, was plundered for its construction materials.
An international treaty in 1842 established the border back
at its original location, ¾ of a mile north of the 45th parallel
at the Richelieu, even though this was originally drawn in error.
Work began on a new fort there in 1844. Construction and improvements
continued over the years, until 1871. It was deactivated in 1900,
having never been involved in any battle, and its armaments were
removed. Fort Montgomery was sold to the public at auction in
1926. This is the fort that is there today.
The fort is on an artificial island, linked to the shore by
a causeway. It is located at the northern end of the lake, near
Rouses Point, where the lake becomes the Richelieu, the river
that connects the lake to the St. Lawrence, near Montreal. The
fort was built in a five-pointed star formation, in a manner
more typical of a coastal fortification, and a type that is rarely
found in the interior of the country. It has 40 foot tall stone
walls projecting out of the water, though portions of it were
removed in the 1930’s during the construction of a nearby bridge.
It is currently owned by Victor I. Podd, of Boca Raton Florida,
whose father, Victor T. Podd, bought it in 1983, and built the
headquarters for his company, Powertex, a maker of plastic liners
for shipping bulk materials, on the western end of the property.
Victor I. Podd has tried to interest the Department of Homeland
Security in the site, suggesting that it be used to watch boats
that can easily cross the international border on the river.
But as of this writing the property is still listed on Ebay,
where Mr. Podd has brokered other deals, including the sale of
a nearby former missile base.
Asking price is $9,950,000, though so far no one has entered
anything more than the $3,000,000 starting bid. |
