Fort William Henry, a British fort destroyed by French troops in 1757, was reconstructed on its original site on the southern end of Lake George in 1955. It was a major landmark in the village of Lake George, the premier postwar car tourist town of the Adirondacks. The fort is located at the southern end of the lake of Lake George, the largest lake in the Adirondacks, part of a historically important corridor between Canada, Lake Champlain, and the Hudson River, a busy place in colonial wars of the 18th century, when waterways were the primary means of conveyance. On the lake shore across from the fort is the home port for large steamboats that take travelers across the lake, or out for lunchtime cruises.