Lewis County

Adirondack Voices: Residents Speaking Out For Environmental Protection

September 12, 2023 by Lorraine Duvall Leave a Comment

I recently came across copies of Adirondack Voices from the 1990s, published by the Residents’ Committee to Protect the Adirondacks (RCPA). This organization was founded in 1990 by full-time residents of the Adirondack Park intent on trying to keep some peace in the Adirondacks.

RCPA believed that the integrity and economic viability of the Adirondack communities they lived and worked in could be enhanced while preserving their unique wilderness and wild forest landscape. [Read more…] about Adirondack Voices: Residents Speaking Out For Environmental Protection

The Naming of Twitchell Lake in the Adirondacks

July 31, 2023 by Noel Sherry 4 Comments

“Toponym” is the technical term for a place name, especially one derived from a topographical feature. I’m hooked on toponyms. My starting point is Twitchell Lake in Big Moose, located in the town Webb, Herkimer County, NY, in the Adirondacks where six generations of my family have vacationed in a cabin since the early 1900s.

Debate on our lake’s name has reached a crescendo as a history committee collects our stories for a Twitchell book. This article explores the fascinating connection between our lake’s name and the Twitchell family of Copenhagen, in Lewis County, NY. This map traces the 50-mile route from Copenhagen through Lewis County, across the Black River, and then up the Number Four Road into the Adirondack Mountains. Which leads to my question: How on earth did this dairy farming family get its name attached to this lake? [Read more…] about The Naming of Twitchell Lake in the Adirondacks

Rangers Rescue Several Hikers Over July 4th Week, Including 4 Incidents In Keene

July 17, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Forest Rangers respond to search and rescue incidents throughout New York State. Working with other state agencies, local emergency response organizations and volunteer search and rescue groups, Forest Rangers locate and extract lost, injured or distressed people.

What follows is a report, prepared by DEC, of recent missions carried out by Forest Rangers. [Read more…] about Rangers Rescue Several Hikers Over July 4th Week, Including 4 Incidents In Keene

2022 US Census Estimates: 89% Of NYS Counties Lost Population

April 6, 2023 by Peter Bauer 1 Comment

The US Census recently released its estimates for changes in U.S. population for 2021-2022. These are estimates that are based on samples and models from across the country and are not the complete counts that we see with the decennial census.

This new estimate for New York State projected that the state lost just over 180,000 residents in the last two years, with losses projected from every part of the state. Across New York, 55 of the state’s 62 counties were estimated to have lost population. [Read more…] about 2022 US Census Estimates: 89% Of NYS Counties Lost Population

Dr. John Swinburne’s Life in Crime, War & Politics

March 26, 2023 by Peter Hess 1 Comment

John Swinburne was born May 30, 1820 in Denmark, Lewis County, New York. He attended school in the communities of Lowville and Denmark, and in Fairfield, Herkimer County, all in New York. He was an excellent student and upon completion of his studies, he took a job as a teacher.

In 1841, at the age of 21, he began the study of medicine and in 1843 entered Albany Medical College where he was a student under the tutelage of Dr. James H. Armsby, a founder of the college. He eventually went to work for Dr. Armsby and upon his graduation in 1846, started his own practice. [Read more…] about Dr. John Swinburne’s Life in Crime, War & Politics

The Adirondack Park Agency At 50: State Leaders Are Missing The Point

February 7, 2023 by David Gibson 6 Comments

Well, it’s happened again. Another state budget is proposed by the Executive, wherein the Adirondack Park Agency’s legislated job is mischaracterized by this Governor’s (and former governors’) budget divisions as working “to achieve a balance between strong environmental protection and sustainable economic development opportunities for the residents of the Adirondack Park” (2023 Executive Budget Briefing Book).

Balance is an important goal to strive for in our individual lives. However, nothing in the Adirondack Park Agency law, now reaching 50 years old in May, calls for “a balance between strong environmental protection and sustainable economic development.” [Read more…] about The Adirondack Park Agency At 50: State Leaders Are Missing The Point

Mohawk River Basin Grants Available

February 4, 2023 by Editorial Staff Leave a Comment

The Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is offering $600k in Mohawk River Basin Grants to help municipalities, soil and water conservation districts, school districts, colleges and universities, and not-for-profit organizations to implement the goals and objectives of the Mohawk River Basin Ac tion Agenda 2021-2026, a five-year plan advancing efforts to conserve, preserve, and restore the Mohawk River and its watershed. [Read more…] about Mohawk River Basin Grants Available

Adirondack Logging History: Wood’s Lake & Beaver River Stations

January 23, 2023 by Noel Sherry 5 Comments

After Hudson River logging sharply declined by 1905, the Adirondack railroad line known as the Mohawk & Malone kept NYS lumber companies in business for at least another twelve years. A big part of this was due to logging north of Big Moose, shown on this New York Central & Hudson River railroad map, with eight station stops northward toward Tupper Lake (shown at left), three of them as junctions for logging railroads — Wood’s Lake, Brandreth, and Nehasane.

Beaver River Station was shifting from logging to tourism. Little Rapids was a flag stop, Keepawa unlisted in an 1895 train schedule. This article will describe the logging history of Wood’s Lake and Beaver River stations, beginning with a new lumbering operation just north of Big Moose. [Read more…] about Adirondack Logging History: Wood’s Lake & Beaver River Stations

Key Adirondack Wilderness Inholding Protected

January 17, 2023 by Editorial Staff 1 Comment

Northeast Wilderness Trust announced that it has purchased a key inholding in the Adirondack Park’s Five Ponds Wilderness, establishing the Bear Pond Forest. With this acquisition, the 1,056-acre Bear Pond Forest is now safeguarded from development, and the Forest will gradually be integrated into the surrounding 107,230-acre Five Ponds Wilderness, which is connected to the 23,816-acre Pepperbox Wilderness. [Read more…] about Key Adirondack Wilderness Inholding Protected

History Corrected: Adirondack Guide Charles H Smith & King Edward VII

January 3, 2023 by Roy Crego 4 Comments

History often makes a muddle of people’s lives. One such example is Charles H. Smith (ca. 1832 – 1911) of Petries Corners in the town of Watson, Lewis County, NY. Charles was well known as an Adirondack guide in the Beaver River/Stillwater area of the Western Adirondacks.

He lived to a ripe old age as an elder statesman of the guiding fraternity. But confusing reports of his age, a story about guiding for royalty, and a common first and last name have obscured his actual accomplishments. [Read more…] about History Corrected: Adirondack Guide Charles H Smith & King Edward VII