Whitehall, at the intersection of Lake Champlain and the Champlain Canal, commands a historically significant shipping and transportation corridor as well as a place in American history. Whitehall's history is interpreted at the Skenesborough Museum, located along the canal in the center of Whitehall.

French and Indian War veteran Philip Skene established Skenesborough, a vast 56,000-acre empire at the head of Lake Champlain, in 1759. Skene, a committed Loyalist, was in England petitioning the King to designate Skenesborough a Crown Colony when the Revolutionary War broke out. Skene's sawmills and the harbor and shipyards of his settlement were commandeered by the Americans to build the first American military fleet over the summer of 1776. The War of 1812 was fought farther north on Lake Champlain, however the shipyards of Whitehall again supplied ships for the American fleet. After the Battle of Plattsburgh, the boats were scuttled in Whitehall harbor. Today, Whitehall is considered the birthplace of the American Navy.

The local economy depended on the waterways. Boat building in the local shipyards brought skilled tradesmen and artisans to the village during the eighteenth century. Throughout the nineteenth century, goods-laden boats from Pennsylvania and New York City coming up the canal passed boats coming down the lake from Montreal and Burlington. The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries brought silk mills to Whitehall, where abundant water powered mills that shipped finished silk ribbon and cloth to urban markets by canal boat, lake sloop or railcar.

Amtrak

More than 140 years ago, the Delaware & Hudson began service through Upstate New York. Today, Amtrak's Adirondack carries on the nostalgic and romantic service from the Hudson Valley through the Champlain Valley to Montreal, showcasing the history and scenic beauty of the region along the way. Station service is available in Whitehall at the corner of Main Street and Saunders Street.