Lake George
There are several significant bodies of water named Lake George.(1) Lake George is a long narrow lake at the base of the Adirondack Mountains northern New York. The lake extends about 52 kilometers on a north-south axis and varies for 1.5 to 5 km in width. It drains into Lake Champlain to its north through a short stream (La Chute River) with many falls and rapids, dropping about 50 meters in its 4 km course.
The original name in Iroquois was said to be Andiatarocte, the lake shut in and was named by the French Lac du Saint Sacremente, Lake of the Holy Sacrament.
The Village of Lake George is located on the south end of Lake George and the Village of Ticonderoga is at the northern end.
History
The first European visitor to the area, Samuel de Champlain, noted the lake his journal on July 3, 1609, but never named it. In 1646 the missionary Isaac Jogues named it Lac du Saint-Sacrement, and the exit stream as the river La Chute.
On August 28, 1755) Sir William Johnson led British colonial forces to occupy the area in the French and Indian War. He renamed the lake as Lake George for King George and built a protecting fortification at its southern end. The fort was named for the king's son as Fort William Henry. In September, the French responded by beginning construction of Fort Carillon, later called Fort Ticonderoga, on a point where La Chute enters Lake Champlain. These fortifications controlled the easy water route between Canada and Colonial New York.
(2) Lake George is also a broad and shallow lake on the St. Johns River in Florida. It is six miles wide and twelve miles long, with an average depth of ten feet.
(3) Lake George is also a lake in south-eastern New South Wales, Australia. It is renowned for emptying and filling on a cyclic basis, for the treachery of its waters when full (a number of people have drowned), and for a mirage which makes it appear full when it is in fact empty. It was named for King George III by British settlers, however its name in the local indigenous language was Werriwa.