Saratoga NHP Dedicates Surrender Site Visitor Plaza

The Surrender Site, with its new plaza. This site is in the process of becoming a part of Saratoga National Historical Park.

NPS Photo

On one of the most significant sites in American history, local community leaders celebrated the dedication of the new Saratoga Surrender Site visitor plaza at an event on Thursday, October 17, 2019. Through a highly successful fundraising campaign, Friends of the Saratoga Battlefield worked with other community organizations to construct the impressive memorial plaza.

Marking the site where British General John Burgoyne surrendered his army to American General Horatio Gates on October 17, 2019, the site reflects the significance of its history with a bronze bas-relief at its center depicting John Trumbull’s 1821 masterpiece depicting the historical event. Supporting this centerpiece, visitors will find a granite wall overlooking the Hudson River and landscape that has been preserved since the Revolutionary War.

Despite the weather, the celebration of the memorial carried on with a ribbon cutting sponsored by the Saratoga County Chamber of Commerce. Community partners from the Friends of the Saratoga Battlefield, the Historic Hudson-Hoosic Rivers Partnership, the Sons of the American Revolution, and local and state representatives filled the event tent.

With the visitor amenities complete, the site will now transfer stewardship over to the National Park Service. The NPS is working with the land owner, Open Space Institute, to finalize transfer documents.

The site is open to visitors from dawn to dusk throughout the year. Final site development will continue in the next year. Landscaping, additional interpretive signage, period fencing, and cannons are all part of the comprehensive plan.