Before Paul Saenger died last fall,  he hoped his cruise boat, ‘The Carillon,’ would find a berth on Lake Champlain, its home waters.

That wish has been fulfilled with the announcement that Fort Ticonderoga will purchase the 60’ foot boat and incorporate it within a new waterfront initiative.

“We are extremely pleased to acquire this iconic vessel,” said Sandy Morhouse, Fort Ticonderoga’s board chairman. “My wife and I were privileged to be Paul’s guests on his last cruise before passing away.  He clearly wanted the boat to stay in the southern part of Lake Champlain. We’re pleased that we’re able to fulfill that wish while, at the same time, enhancing the Fort Ticonderoga experience.”

The Carillon was built in 1989 by Scarano Brothers, the Albany-based firm that also built Shoreline Cruises’s Horicon and Adirondac, which sail out of Lake George Village. Built to recall a Thousand Islands tour boat from the 1920s, the wood boat has been based across the lake from Fort Ticonderoga in Shoreham, Vermont.

It will now be berthed at Fort Ticonderoga, said Beth Hill, the Fort’s president.

“We’ll use the Carillon for field trips, private cruises, cruises that help tell the story of Fort Ticonderoga and, at least once a week, scenic cruises for the general public,” said Hill.

Access to Lake Champlain and its role in the histories of the French and Indian War and the American Revolution will enhance Fort Ticonderoga’s standing “as a cultural destination experience,” said Hill.

A network of docks, whose location has yet to be determined, will be part of the Fort’s new “waterway transportation and recreation system,” said Hill.

Even before it became known that the Carillon was for sale, the Fort had applied for grants to purchase a tour or pontoon boat  and construct docks, Hill said.

A $70,500 state grant, announced in December, will help the Fort construct its first dock, said Hill.

According to Hill, the Carillon will benefit the Town of Ticonderoga as well as the Fort.

“This project is directly linked with a Town of Ticonderoga priority to increase access and waterway experiences through tourism development. Our goals are aligned, which makes this initiative especially exciting,” said Hill.