WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Lake Champlain Has Violent History
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Ferrisburgh, Vermont - April 12, 2009
Piracy on the high seas is nothing new. In fact, an expert on maritime history says Lake Champlain saw its share of trouble as a result of the War of 1812, as depicted at the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum. The American government declared a trade embargo against England and Canada, which turned many Vermonters and New Yorkers against the government.
Art Cohn, of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, explained, "And so what you have is an extremely dynamic, very intense period of lawlessness where Champlain Valley residents are defying the embargo by moving log rafts and smuggling boats; some of them very famous, some of them well-known."
Cohn says the upcoming Quadricentennial celebration this summer will highlight some of the violent history of the lake.
Andy Potter - WCAX News
