The south road entrance to Peebles
Island State Park in Cohoes and Waterford was originally a military
road. Today the road is called Delaware Avenue in Cohoes.
It runs straight northward on Van Schaick Island, past the historic Anthony Van
Schaick house (ca. 1735), to a ford crossing the Third Sprout of the Mohawk
River. Then it continued on Peebles Island and crossed on land to the
Fourth Sprout of the Mohawk River, which was also forded over to the village of
Waterford, originally called Half Moon. These islands are formed by the
four outlets of the Mohawk River into the Hudson River. Since the entire
Mohawk River divides into four branches, and the river bottom there is level,
solid shale rock, the water in each branch was then relatively
shallow. Horses and wagons could easily cross by going from island to
island; this is the origin of the name "Waterford." The word "sprout"
used here is the Dutch word "spruyt" meaning branch or sprout. This
road may have been used as early as 1709 for military purposes, but more likely
it was built for military traffic in accordance with the orders for the Crown
Point Expedition from James de Lancey to William Johnson dated April 16,
1755. Johnson was ordered from Albany "to proceed with the Train of
Artillery and ordnance Stores provided for the Expedition, under their Convoy to
Crownpoint, clearing as you pass along a practicable Road for the Transportation
of them and the other Stores, and to cause such strong houses and places of
security to be Erected as shall be requisite to serve for magazines of Stores,
places of shelter for the Men in their March and return to and from the said
City of Albany." This is from the published Johnson Papers,
volume I, page 469. In 1757 the British built a fort in the village of
Waterford at the Half Moon landing place of the road, north of Peebles
Island. Until the late 19th century Peebles island was known as Haver
Island.
At Crown Point there was a road built southward to Ticonderoga that shows
on many old maps. Parts of this road still exist as Lake Road and Bridge
Road (Route 903), and other parts may be visible as traces closer to
Ticonderoga. At Crown Point there are visible remains of an original stone
bridge abutment under the present highway (Bridge Road) that follows the
military road.
In present
Vermont much research has been done on a famous military road, the Crown Point
Road. There is a Crown Point Road Association, and many sections of the
original road have been traced and identified.