Original Revolutionary War Relic Iron Skeleton Key Recovered from the Debris Field of the Gunboat Philadelphia by Colonel Lorenzo F. Hagglund and Bill Resler, Lake Champlain, 1935, the Philadelphia was Sunk October 11, 1776 at the Battle of Valcour Island, Under Brigadier General Benedict Arnold, Very Good.
This Iron Skeleton Key measures 4.25" in length and was recovered from the debris field surrounding the Gunboat Philadelphia, one of the eight gundalow gunboats built in the summer of 1776 as part of Brigadier General Benedict Arnold's hastily assembled Continental Navy fleet on Lake Champlain. The Philadelphia met her end on October 11, 1776, during the Battle of Valcour Island, one of the first naval engagements of the American Revolutionary War, when she was struck by a 24-pound British cannonball, and sank within an hour, coming to rest upright on the lake bottom in roughly 60 feet of water, where she would remain undisturbed for nearly 160 years.

This Iron Key retains its original form, with a substantial oval bow, a square-sectioned shank, and a T-shaped bit, the surface throughout showing the heavy encrustation and oxidation consistent with nearly 160 years of submersion in Lake Champlain followed by decades above ground, presenting an appropriately dark, rough textured, and archaeologically authentic surface as shown.

A genuinely rarity and evocative artifact recovered directly from the wreck site of one of the most celebrated and historically consequential vessels of the American Revolutionary War, offering tangible connection to Benedict Arnold's Lake Champlain fleet and the pivotal 1776 defense that helped delay the British invasion of New York long enough for the Continental Army to regroup and ultimately triumph at Saratoga.
In 1935, Colonel Lorenzo F. Hagglund, a World War I veteran, salvage engineer, and lifelong Lake Champlain history enthusiast, located Philadelphia's remains and, together with Bill Resler, raised both the vessel and hundreds of associated artifacts from the surrounding debris field, including shot, cooking utensils, tools, buttons, buckles, and human remains.

The Philadelphia herself, remarkably preserved by the cold fresh waters of the lake, was subsequently displayed at various sites throughout the Champlain Valley before being donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 1961, where she remains on permanent exhibit at the National Museum of American History as the oldest surviving intact vessel of the United States Navy. A National Historic Landmark, and the centerpiece of the Smithsonian's ongoing conservation efforts ahead of the nation's 250th Anniversary in 2026.
[American Revolution, Revolutionary War, Battle of Valcour Island] [Benedict Arnold, Continental Navy, Battle of Saratoga] [Relics, Militaria, Shipwreck Artifacts]