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The Rogers Island Visitor Center, off Route 197, in Fort Edward, will be transported back in time as it becomes a 1758 French and Indian War camp, on Saturday, September 26th and Sunday, September 27th, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Enjoy the smells as meals are prepared over open camp fires and listen to stories of 18th century camp life.  Hear the musket fire as work parties are attacked beyond the fort and watch as the British and Provincial soldiers, along with their Native American allies, hurry to their defense.

To understand the significance of the French and Indian War, the Rogers Island Visitor Center in cooperation with the Post Star have created a special online presentation at http://poststar.com/highlights/fiw/. This website provides visitors with a French & Indian War 101 tutorial plus information on the key battles fought during this war. Special features include: how to fire a musket, eating in 1755, 18th Century medicine, and how to play "Nine Men Morris."

For more details or to plan a visit to the Rogers Island Visitors Center, please click here to visit their website.

On August 13, 2009 at 2 p.m., in honor of the Quadricentennial, the Washington County Historical Society will present "Meet Samuel de Champlain," a first person account of 17th century life in the colony of New France.  Don Thompson, re-enactor will present the program wearing an authentic costume.  He will use artifacts and anecdotes.
 
The program will be held in Whitehall at Cook's Island Recreation Center on Main Street.  The program is designed to appeal to just about every age - from Grade 3 on up.  The performance is free and open to the public. Children must be accompanied by an adult.
Don Thompson is a retired social studies teacher who divides his year between Florida and Vermont.  He participates in archaeological digs every summer, usually at Rogers Island in Fort Edward, NY.
 
For more information, please visit the Washington County Historical Society website.

Think of the Country Life B&B as a Saratoga Springs Bed and Breakfast in nearby Greenwich!

The beautiful 1820's farmhouse is surrounded by the hills of Washington County, gateway to the Adirondacks and a short distance from Vermont. In the morning at the Country Life B&B, guests will enjoy a full, home-cooked breakfast featuring a fruit course and either stuffed french toast with cinnamon syrup or a signature dish of baked fresh fruit (fresh from the garden) on cinnamon toast.

 

Stroll around the pastures or through the pine woods alongside the creek. Splash in the natural swimming hole, twin waterfalls and a rock slide. A bridge across the stream leads to 30 acres of old woodlands filled with trails and wildlife. Relax and picnic by the waterfalls.

Celebrating their 28th year in business, owners Wendy and Richard Duvall fell in love with this home years ago and have proudly turned it into an unique and special place to stay when you are in the greater Saratoga region. For details, please visit the Country Life B&B website at www.countrylifebb.com.

Located on Route 4, in the historic Village of Fort Edward, the Anvil Inn Restaurant now caters to people interested in an outstanding meal whether they arrive by boat, car, train or on foot. The Anvil Restaurant was originally constructed as a Blacksmith Shop in the early 1840's by Alexander Burke. Even today, you can see the remnances of this bygone era in this restored building which became a restaurant in 1975.

The Anvil Inn is owned and operated by the Orsini Family now and offers private dining, banquets and private parties. An extensive lunch and dinner menu is available along with a wide variety of wines and beers. A number of specialty desserts area also local favorites and include a Cranberry and a Bread Pudding that are out of this world good.

For details or to make a reservation, please visit www.anvilinn.com.

The Lakes to Locks Passage was established in 2002 by the New York State Legislature as a New York State Byway, and designated the same year as an All-American Road by the Federal Highway Administration (one of 25 nationally). The Byway follows the interconnected waterway of the Upper Hudson River, Champlain Canal, Lake George, Lake Champlain, Richelieu River and Chambly Canal through six Counties in New York State: Rensselaer, Saratoga, Washington, Warren, Essex, and Clinton.

One of the primary goals of the Lakes to Locks Passage is to promote an awareness of local history and the significance of the interconnected waterway now known as Lakes to Locks Passage to the local community and to the many tourists who visit the area each year. In Washington County, there are a wide range of Lakes to Lock's sites that one can visit including but not limited to:

The Old Fort House Museum - Built in 1772 as a private residence with timbers taken from the ruins of the fortification of Fort Edward. The fort was built to guard the upper Hudson Valley by the British during the French and Indian War. It served as the staging ground for invasion northward into French Canada. The old fort house is the focal point of a museum campus which includes five additional buildings also open to the public. One of these contains a significant display of the 1750's fort including a number of artifacts from the fort and surrounding areas.

Heritage Center - The Slate Valley Museum is the official Heritage Center of the Lakes to Locks Passage. The Heritage Centers provide an orientation to the community theme; identify the location of interpreted sites, nearby attractions and adjacent communities; visitor services information and public restrooms.

Whitehall Canal Harbor Park - The new "Canal Harbor" includes lengthy new seawalls with boat utilities, large park, watercraft launch, and general recreation area - a beautiful addition to a graceful colonial waterfront town. All in walking distance of Amtrak, the town center, and Lake Champlain!

The Old Burial Ground - Salem's oldest cemetery is said to hold the largest number of graves of Revolutionary War soldiers in the state. Tradition says that a hundred bodies were brought from the Saratoga battlefield and buried here in a common grave.

For more details on these and other wayfaring communities within the Lakes to Locks Passage in Washington County, visit http://www.lakestolocks.com/waypointcommunities.cfm.

In a historic 1790 home in the hamlet of Kingsbury, a Crazy dream has come true for Hilary Cooper-Kenny. Utilizing leftover products of the textile industry and antique looms, old blue jeans and millends, she manufactures functional, durable and beautiful floor coverings while fabric remnants become fashionable rag bags.

While Crazy as a Loom is a working studio, visitors are always welcome. There are literally tons of fabric, and many projects in progress at all times. It is all about color and texture. With 13 antique looms, 10,000 pounds of fabric and 2,600 square feet in which to work, visitors will be treated to the rhythmic sounds of old looms doing their job, treadles to floor, harnesses raised, beaters packing the weft and the opportunity to weave their way into one of Washington County's formerly best kept secrets.

For more details, please visit www.crazyasaloom.com.

For over a century, the Washington County Fair has been a showcase of ingenuity and innovation. A unique opportunity for the Washington County community to come together to celebrate its agricultural heritage. Best of all, everyone's invited to the Fair Grounds, in Greenwich, August 24th - August 30th, 2009, to experience all of the excitement.

4-H displays, great rides, food, entertainment and more animals than you can imagine. Tractor pulls, a demolition derby, a firefighter show, dog agility demonstrations, and an ATV pull are just a few of the special events that take place on the fairgrounds. Visit the fair's website at www.washingtoncountyfair.com to join the countdown to the fair, to get directions, or just to learn more.

The Champlain Canal, rich with historical significance and romantic promise, awaits you. Families are welcome on cruises where children and parents alike will be captivated by the natural spectacle. Champlain Canal Tour Boats offer cruises that will tickle the fancy of history buffs as they depart the hustle, bustle and beeps of today and traverse the waters that played such a pivotal role in the Battle of Saratoga.  At night, beneath a starry Adirondack sky, romance fills the air as you cruise slowly down the waterway. Whether you are looking for an afternoon activity or a post-dinner event, the Champlain Canal will lead you to everything you are hoping for and more.

Cruising along the Canal can be done rain or shine.

Washington County is a study in history, with magnificent homes in every village and hamlet demonstrating the architectural mastery of generations past, and small mercantiles offering a service and geniality of days-gone-by.

The museums are equally illustrative and accessible, offering up close and personal looks at the slate that tops everything from mansions to barns throughout the county and beyond. The Pember Library and Museum in Granville actually combines history and nature with guided tours, hikes and day camps, delighting young and old.

Another spin on the slate legacy is the Slate Valley Museum, also in Granville, which lives within a New World Dutch Barn. Visitors will see every aspect of the slate industry through life size replicas and genuine artifacts from the bedrock of one of this area's greatestries.

For more details, please visit the Slate Valley Museum's website.