Lake Champlian Maritime Museum to Launch Replica 1776 Gunboat
During the American Revolutionary War, Lake Champlain was the scene of much activity with the British moving soldiers and supplies southward from Canada to the fight in the Colonies. The Colonists came up with the idea to stop them and as a result, there were some sea battles as well as land battles at the British Fort at Ticonderoga.
On the water, the rebels and the British used a variety of watercraft, notably the gunboat whose sole function was to bring as a platform for a cannon. These gunboats were simple affairs, not much more than a large raft and often built on th spot. A large Frigate could easily defeat one but when the gunboats were used in numbers and spread out, they could inflict serious damage on a larger and more powerful enemy ship.
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