Battle Overview
The October 11-13, 1776 battle was the only ‘fleet on fleet” naval battle of the Revolutionary war between British and Patriot ships. Valcour Island is on the western side of Lake Champlain between the present day states of Vermont and New York. On October 11, 1776, the British fleet under the overall command of Guy Carleton traveled south on Lake Champlain from their supply base at St. John. Arnold was waiting in Valcour Bay, hidden from the British view until they rounded the island. In the subsequent three day battle, the British destroyed or captured 11 of the 15 Patriot boats. While a resounding tactical victory, the British were unable to capitalize on their control of Lake Champlain to capture Fort Ticonderoga. After a desultory probe, Carleton led his forces back to Canada for the winter.
Diaries and Memoirs
Enys, John. The American Journals of Lt. John Enys. Edited by Elizabeth Cometti. 1st ed. Blue Mountain Lake, N.Y.: Adirondack Museum, 1976.
A British officer’s perspective of the Battle of Valcour Island.
Other Primary Sources
Darley, Stephen. The Battle of Valcour Island: The Participants and Vessels of Benedict Arnold’s 1776 Defense of Lake Champlain, 2013.
Darley’s book contains many primary sources, including letters, memoirs, statistics, and listings of ships and sailors. This book is a great reference for those interested in the composition of the fleets and experiences of the combatants. It is the result of extensive scholarship and a worthy addition to your personal library.
Secondary Sources
Kelly, Jack. Valcour: The 1776 Campaign That Saved the Cause of Liberty. First U.S. edition. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2021.
Novelist Jack Kelly offers an eminently readable account of the 1776 naval battle on Lake Champlain between fleets commanded by Rebel General Benedict Arnold and British General Guy Carleton. Kelly posits that Arnold’s bravery in confronting the superior British fleet prevented an invasion of the Hudson River Valley which could have ended the rebellion within a few months of the Declaration of Independence. Kelly offers a perspective similar to Nathaniel Philbrick’s monograph published five years prior. Both authors seek to rehabilitate Arnold as more than a simple traitor, but a major contributor in the early war years.
Laramie, Michael G. By Wind and Iron: Naval Campaigns in the Champlain Valley, 1665-1815, 2015.
Mahan, A. T. “The Naval Campaign of 1776 on Lake Champlain.” In History of the Royal Navy of Great Britain. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1898.
An eminent nineteenth-century naval strategist and historian, Alfred Thayer Mahon is the first historian to purport that Arnold saved Ft. Ticonderoga for a year by engaging the British at Valcour Island. The naval historian described how Arnold used the winds and positioning to give his undersized fleet a fighting chance. This interpretation has been accepted by most historians. However, others believe that Arnold unnecessarily destroyed his ships and uselessly wasted his men. Instead of engaging the British in open battle, he should have deployed his ships under the protective cannon of Forts Independence and Ticonderoga. Against this combined force, the British would have made the same decision to return to Canada due to the freezing of the lake and inability to prosecute a winter seige.
Nelson, Paul David. “Guy Carleton versus Benedict Arnold: The Campaign of 1776 in Canada and on Lake Champlain.” New York History 57, no. 3 (1976): 339-66. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23169484.
Nelson provides a contrary view to Mahan asserting that Benedict Arnold mistakenly engaged the British at Valcour Bay. Nelson believes that Arnold should have moved his fleet to the safety to Fort Ticonderoga.
Nelson, James L. Benedict Arnold’s Navy: The Ragtag Fleet That Lost the Battle of Lake Champlain but Won the American Revolution. Camden, Me.: International Marine/McGraw-Hill, 2006.
James L. Nelson’s monograph is an excellent example of Alfred Thayer Mahan’s interpretation of the Battle of Valcour Island under Benedict Arnold’s leadership was a key turning point in the war. Nelson describes the building of the Rebel fleet and its performance against superior forces during the October 11-13 battle on Lake Champlain. Both Nathaniel Philbrick and Jack Kelly offer readers a similar view.
Philbrick, Nathaniel. Valiant Ambition: George Washington, Benedict Arnold, and the Fate of the American Revolution. New York, New York: Viking, 2016.
Philbrick emphasizes the military friendship and excellent working relationship between Benedict Arnold and George Washington in the early years of the American War for Independence. He emphasizes the depth of their working relationship which makes Arnold’s eventual treason even more treacherous. This is an engaging book most valuable to those reading their first book on the Battle of Valcour Island.
Journal Articles
The Journal of the American Revolution has published several articles which extends the primary sources and presents important new scholarship.
Skeenesborough (modern-day Whitehall, New York)
Outstanding local lore, but Whitehall is not recognized by the US Navy as its birthplace. Likely, its ships not on blue water and built by Benedict Arnold, a traitor contribute to the Navy’s reluctance to recognize the Lake Champlain fleet. For another view of the first American Navy ship, see an article on Philip Skene’s schooner Katherine, captured on May 9, 1775 which is before another other claimant.
Historical Depictions and Battle Maps
Researching the American Revolution 
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