History, Natural History & the Arts
Sunday, October 22, 1916, seemed like a good day for a deer hunt at the Adirondack League Club, near Old Forge. Walter D. Gelshenen of Manhassett, Long Island, and his brother-in-law William S. Lawson of New York City hired two local guides, Alexander White and Howard Stell.
They started out early for Fernow Mountain, east of Little Moose Lake and just south of Mountain Pond. [Read more…] about The Shooting of Adirondack Guide Alex White
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, three generations of the Crego family worked as wilderness guides in the Western Adirondacks. Along the way, they raised families, worked for prominent employers, adapted to new forms of transportation, and helped lay the groundwork for the conservation movement in New York State. [Read more…] about The Crego Family: Three Generations of Adirondack Guides
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has announced hunters in New York killed an estimated 224,190 deer during the 2019-20 hunting seasons. [Read more…] about 2019-20 Deer Hunting Statistics Released
Out of an abundance of caution and to limit the community spread of COVID-19, DEC has postponed the examinations scheduled for April 3, 2020, to practice the sport of falconry, become a wildlife rehabilitator, or use leashed tracking dogs to find wounded or injured big game animals. The exams were originally scheduled to be administered at DEC regional offices statewide. [Read more…] about DEC Postpones April 3 Exams
Megan Plete Postol is set to lead a discussion and book signing of her book, Southern Adirondacks Foothills Fishing, Hunting and Trapping (Images of America, 2019), on Saturday, June 29th, at 11 am at the Rome Historical Society.
The book features photographs of many Adirondack sportsmen and will be available for purchase. [Read more…] about Adk Foothills Fishing, Hunting And Trapping Talk in Rome
The New York State Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame proudly announces that it has inducted 11 new members.
In the Pioneer Category, Greene Smith, son of Gerritt Smith, the abolitionist and philanthropist from Madison County, was selected for being an advocate of protecting natural resources.
Greene Smith had an great interest in birds and became a taxidermist, donating over 300 specimens to Cornell University to help start the ornithology program there. Greene’s
Ornithon (or aviary) once stood at the Gerrit Smith Estate, now a National Historic Landmark in Peterboro, Madison County, NY. [Read more…] about Greene Smith Named To Outdoorsmen Hall of Fame
In early November 1930, a hunting party in the Boreas River area split up to do what Adirondack hunters so often do: execute a deer drive. Among those taking part were Lew Buck, Leo Adams, Edward White, Murray Short, and Murray’s brother Herbert. Herb was a corrections officer who had recently been promoted and transferred to Auburn Prison from Clinton Prison in Dannemora. It was Dannemora that provided the link between him and the other men: Buck was the village’s former postmaster, White was a retired Clinton keeper, and his close friend Adams still worked there as a guard.
Concern mounted at day’s end when the men reassembled and Herbert was a no-show. But he was a very experienced woodsman, and the entire party was aware that a storm was moving into the area, so in that sense he was prepared for anything. His companions surmised he may have been turned around while trying to get back to camp before the snow fell. At that point, the explanations they considered carried reassurances that everything was OK, or soon would be. [Read more…] about Herbert Short: Lost in the Boreas River Country in 1930
This week on The Historians Podcast, Bob Cudmore and Dave Greene discuss an exclusive hunting and fishing club that existed for most of the twentieth century in western Quebec province in Canada. Many of the club members were from New York State and Amsterdam, NY, native Tom Pikul contributed anecdotes for the story.
Listen to the podcast here. [Read more…] about Amsterdam Area Folks Hunting and Fishing in Canada