DIARY SHEDS LIGHT ON REVOLUTIONARY WAR BATTLE

The rediscovery of a Revolutionary War diary belonging to one of the American commanders of the Battle of Valcour Island is offering historians a fresh firstperson view of the fight that historians credit with helping the fledgling United States of America survive.

The diary of Col. Edward Wigglesworth, the third in command of the American fleet during the Lake Champlain battle that began 242 years ago Thursday, was thought lost, but it was rediscovered in a museum’s catalogue by an amateur historian this year. Excerpts from the diary had been published decades ago, but students of the battle wanted the original. “It’s a voice from Valcour Island,” said Art Cohn, of the Lake Champlain Maritime Museum, who has studied the battle for decades.