New York Almanack

History, Natural History & the Arts

Turin

Constable Hall: A Unique Lewis County House Museum

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Constable Hall, Lewis County, providedConstable Hall remains a clear reminder of the era when much of the land in Northern New York was settled in the late 1700s. Located on Constableville, in Lewis County, this Federal style limestone mansion with a Greek Revival portico was built in the early 1800s by members of the Constable family.

In 1792, Wiliam Constable, Alexander Macomb, and Daniel McCormick bought nearly four million acres of land known as the Macomb Purchase for 16 cents an acre (encompassing all of Lewis, Jefferson, St. Lawrence and parts of Oswego, Herkimer and Franklin counties). [Read more…] about Constable Hall: A Unique Lewis County House Museum

How Winter is Changing in the Tug Hill Region

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A stream on Tug Hill in winter with snow (courtesy Bridgeview Real Estate)Tug Hill receives the greatest average snowfall totals in New York State. In Harold Samson’s book Tug Hill Country; Tales from the Big Woods (1971) he wrote “Tug Hill is, and always has been, noted for its winter snows… In winter, the Tug Hill plateau becomes a vast wilderness of white; favorite playground of snowmobilers and other winter sports enthusiasts.”

An economic study in 2021 estimated that 34,254 unique snowmobile users ride Tug Hill’s trails each year, bringing in nearly $81.6 million in sales from snowmobile activity. A new study by the Tug Hill Commission hopes to better understand how our warming climate will affect the region and its winter sports industry in the years to come. [Read more…] about How Winter is Changing in the Tug Hill Region

Management Plan For Tug Hill East State Lands Completed

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Tug Hill East Unit Map (provided by DEC)The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) has finalized the Unit Management Plan (UMP) for the Tug Hill East Unit.

The Tug Hill East Unit covers a total of 22,886 acres of public land in seven State Forests, one Unique Area, and 13 Detached Forest Preserve parcels in the Lewis County towns of Lewis, Martinsburg, Osceola, Turin, and West Turin, the Oneida County town of Ava, and the Oswego County town of Redfield. [Read more…] about Management Plan For Tug Hill East State Lands Completed

A Welsh Immigrant Writes Home from Upstate New York, 1856

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“Welsh Settlement in Upstate New York, 1795 to c. 1940s,”There is a fascinating letter from Evan Evans of Turin, Lewis County, NY to his relatives back in Wales. It is written in Welsh and dated August 1856.

The letter tells the story of a young man who had recently arrived in the United States who was struggling with homesickness and wrestling with doubts about whether he had made the right decision to move to America. He describes the sea-crossing, his arrival, and his new life in north-central New York State.

The letter now resides in the Meirionnydd Archives in northwest Wales. [Read more…] about A Welsh Immigrant Writes Home from Upstate New York, 1856

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