Rogers Island

Rogers Island was strategically important because of its location, military role, and use as the training ground for one of early America’s most influential light-infantry forces. During the French and Indian War, it served as the center of British frontier operations. Fort Edward and Rogers Island occupied the narrow portage between the Hudson River and Lake Champlain, the key route for armies traveling between New York and Canada. Major Robert Rogers based his operations there for about two and a half years and wrote Rules of Ranging, tactical guidelines that continue to influence U.S. Army Ranger training. Although Fort Edward had fallen into ruins by the Revolutionary War, the site remained strategically valuable, with troops stationed in the island’s remaining barracks until 1777, when they fled as General John Burgoyne’s army advanced toward Saratoga.