Horicon

Horicon lies beside Lake George at the southeastern edge of the Adirondacks. The lake drains north towards Lake Champlain and forms part of a route between the Hudson and Saint Lawrence valleys. Indigenous travelers used this corridor long before rival European armies built forts along it. The Jesuit Isaac Jogues named the lake Lac du Saint-Sacrement in 1646.

In 1755 William Johnson named the lake for King George II while leading a British colonial force against the French. After a battle at its southern end, the British built Fort William Henry there; the French held Fort Carillon to the north. In 1757 Montcalm besieged William Henry and forced its surrender. French troops destroyed the fort, and Indigenous allies attacked the departing British column, killing and capturing many of its members.