Royal Savage Gun Carriage: Historic pieces reassembled

PLATTSBURGH | A box of odd-angled, worn wooden parts with a placard was a museum mystery for years. One of the broken and battered pieces was labeled: Part of a Gun Carriage on the Royal Savage. The historic puzzle was given to the Clinton County Historical Association (CCHA) years ago by the son of a Special Deputy Collector of Customs, John Martin (1870-1907), who apparently confiscated the box of broken, once sunken treasure at the border, circa 1885. Historians kept it all together, wondering what a strange collection of busted wood might be. "The wooden pieces had been at CCHA for many years, in a heap," Lake Champlain historian and Crab Island caretaker Roger Harwood said in a recent conversation. "When I was president of the Historical Association, I didn't pay any attention to it. I couldn't figure it out. Nobody paid any attention until Dick Soper came along." The indicia says it was seized at the border by a customs agent, Harwood said. "It was seized in 1885, I believe, heading into Canada." It was not unusual for Lake Champlain mariners and curious summer sailors to pick up parts and pieces of the Royal Savage, a warship schooner built by the British in 1775. While in British service, the vessel was first damaged and sunk on Oct. 14, 1775, by American troops at Fort St. Jean. U.S. patriots raised the ship after they captured the fort. And they fixed it. The Royal Savage served as Benedict Arnold's flagship in a burgeoning U.S. Navy. The Royal Savage returned to maritime warfare on Lake Champlain a year later as a primary ship, one of three leading a new U.S. Navy fleet commanded by Arnold. They aimed to push British naval incursions back north and engaged in fire at Valcour Bay. On Oct. 11, 1776, the Royal Savage faced the British but ran aground on the southwest shore of Valcour Island. The U.S. command abandoned the position and British sailors boarded the Savage, attempting to use the guns against their adversaries. As night fell, the British, too, gave up the ship. To prevent any attempt by U.S. forces to recapture it, they set the Royal Savage on fire. Historic accounts tell how bright the fire burned against a dark, foggy October night. The fiery blaze and exploding munitions consumed the boat and British attention, a flaming diversion that likely helped Arnold and his fleet slip quietly past the enemy line. The burnt ribs of the Royal Savage settled against Valcour Island's shifting shoal. A known lake artifact and local historic object, it was eventually raised by marine diver Lorenzo Hagglund in 1934. PUTTING PIECES TOGETHER The odd box of pieces had already been taken off the wreck site. "It was supposedly taken from the Royal Savage before Hagglund did anything. The metal is bent, so it didn't fit together right," Harwood said. A retired, long-time industrial arts instructor, Harwood found the parts incongruous. "The Brits knew there were cannons on the boat and came back to get the cannons. Why didn't they take the gun carriage, maybe it was tipped over and bent? Maybe it was tied to the boat?" Harwood mused. Enter historian Dick Soper, former exhibits director and docent at the former Champlain Valley Transportation Museum. Soper is now exhibits director at the CCHA History Museum on Ohio Avenue. "Pieces of the gun carriage at some point in time were headed for Canada," Soper said in a recent interview with The Sun. For over a hundred years, it wasn't uncommon for people to loot historic artifacts from the lake, he said. Local history 70 years ago wasn't as keen on Battle of Valcour details as it is today. "Back in the day, if you reached into Lake Champlain and pulled something up -- people would just take it." Last summer, Soper and Harwood decided to take a longer look at the busted parts marked "Royal Savage Gun Carriage." "We dragged it out and started shifting it around. After 150 years, the wood was deteriorated. We worked together and wrestled it around," Soper said. "Some of the pieces were hooked together." A CANNON FITS The real epiphany came when Soper brought in a wooden cannon mold that had been originally given to the Transportation Museum. "When I was at the Transportation Museum, a wooden cannon-looking thing showed up. It was finally given to the Battle of Plattsburgh, and they had it and didn't know what to do with it," Soper said. Dick went over and got the "cannon" to see if it fit, and it did. It tied the whole carriage puzzle together. "It was a cannon pattern, from which you would make a mold," Soper said. "You can still buy them. They are used for sand cast with cast iron to make cannons," Harwood said. "We made a frame for it," Harwood said. "The two sides of the carriage are very different." Harwood said they have learned from Valcour Bay Project research that early U.S. sailors used whatever they had to make what they needed. The wooden gun carriage sides are held together now with zip ties to keep it sturdy. Fire and water damage is clearly visible on the old boards. "You can see here where the wood was damaged by fire," Harwood pointed to a smooth area where over a century of wind and water had washed away the char. "It was likely damaged either when the boat sank or when the cannons came off. The pieces were not damaged sitting around at the museum," Harwood said. "The wooden mold is a little bit small," Soper said. "It was maybe a four-pounder. But visually, it makes sense. A person coming in to visit the museum would learn a little more about the Royal Savage." "I was so excited to see those pieces come together," Harwood said. The Royal Savage Gun Carriage is part of a new display being put together at the CCHA Museum on Ohio Avenue as part of the America250 Battle of Valcour special exhibit. The museum opens for summer hours in May, but is open now, Wednesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., as well as by appointment. Learn more about the Clinton County Historical Association on their web page: clintoncountyhistorical.org/

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Royal Savage Gun Carriage: Historic pieces reassembled

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