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Fort Blunder - Definition |
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Fort Montgomery was a massive stone fortification built between 1844 and 1871 on the northwest arm of Lake Champlain at Island Point in the town of Rouses Point, New York. The first fort at this location was built in 1816 to protect against an attack from British Canada such as that which led to the Battle of Plattsburg in 1814. This first fort was inadvertently built on the Canadian side of the border, as a result of which it is sometimes better known as 'Fort Blunder'.
Construction on the fort was abandoned after three years, and much of its material was cannibalized by the locals.
No evidence has come to light that this first fort was ever named. It is often mistakenly referred to as Fort "Montgomery".
This second fort was constructed after the Webster-Ashburton Treaty of 1842 returned Island Point to the United States. Fort Montgomery was one of a very few "Third System" forts built along the Northern Frontier, most being constructed along the Atlantic Coast.
Most of the fort was demolished in 1937 for fill to construct a bridge between Rouses Point, New York and Alburgh, Vermont.
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