Land Tortoise (shipwreck)
Encyclopedia
Radeau Land Tortoise (Shipwreck) is the Lake George
site of a shipwreck from the French and Indian Wars
era. The vessel is a radeau
. Simple in construction, it was built by the British and Colonial forces in 1758 to help combat the French in North America. She was intentionally sunk by adding ballast two days later in Lake George with plans to resurrect her in the spring of 1759. This plan was never fulfilled however, leaving the Land Tortoise at the bottom of Lake George for more than two centuries. It is believed to be the oldest intact warship in North America, and is the only surviving ship of its type. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1998. The site is accessible to the general diving public.
Lake George (New York)
Lake George, nicknamed the Queen of American Lakes, is a long, narrow oligotrophic lake draining northwards into Lake Champlain and the St. Lawrence River Drainage basin located at the southeast base of the Adirondack Mountains in northern New York, U.S.A.. It lies within the upper region of the...
site of a shipwreck from the French and Indian Wars
French and Indian Wars
The French and Indian Wars is a name used in the United States for a series of conflicts lasting 74 years in North America that represented colonial events related to the European dynastic wars...
era. The vessel is a radeau
Radeau (Ship)
A Radeau was a simply constructed vessel used for many purposes, most notably as a naval battle platform. The term 'Radeau' is derived from the French, meaning raft. Because of the versatility and wide variation of the craft, as well as the ambiguity of the term, there are many vessels that could...
. Simple in construction, it was built by the British and Colonial forces in 1758 to help combat the French in North America. She was intentionally sunk by adding ballast two days later in Lake George with plans to resurrect her in the spring of 1759. This plan was never fulfilled however, leaving the Land Tortoise at the bottom of Lake George for more than two centuries. It is believed to be the oldest intact warship in North America, and is the only surviving ship of its type. It was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1998. The site is accessible to the general diving public.
External links
- Land Tortoise - New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
- "Radeau LAND TORTOISE" summary at National Park Service
- From the depths of Lake George
- "The Lost Radeau: America's Oldest Intact Warship", a documentary film
- Weekly World News 18 DEC 1990
- All Over Albany Archive: The Lost Radeau: a shipwreck in Lake George