French and Indian War Brown Bess bayonet made into a tool, recovered at Lake George (ON LAYAWAY,MW)

This is another nice early piece coming out of a 60-year collection of French & Indian War/Revolutionary War artifacts. Being offered is a British Brown Bess bayonet that was fashioned into a sickle type tool. It was probably used as a fascine knife for clearing brush around the forts, or even a weapon of a Mohawk Indian. This was found in the early 20^th century in the Lake George area.

The Battle of Lake George was fought on September 8, 1755. British forces of 1,500 soldiers and 200 Mohawk Indians under the command of William Johnson defeated a much larger allied French and Indian force of 3,500 under German General Baron Dieskau.

In June 1759, British General Jeffrey Amherst arrived in Lake George and soon proceeded to build a new fort at the lake. The site was the high ground east of the ruins of Fort William Henry, which had been destroyed by the French in 1757. A provincial officer described the fort as "the walls [are] about 14 feet thick built of stone and lime."

In “Soldiers of the American Revolution”, by Don Troiani, there is one of these modified bayonets shown (see pictures). The bayonet remains in very nice condition, having surface rust but solid, typical of being an early recovery. The collection began in the late 1950s and the collector meticulously displayed and cataloged every piece along with its provenance. This is the first time this bayonet has been on the open market, and it is truly a unique piece of early American History. It definitely merits a place in an advanced collection or museum. As with all the pieces in this esteemed collection, a Certificate of Authenticity will be included.