Adirondack Museum
Encyclopedia
The Adirondack Museum, located on NY-30 in the hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake
in Hamilton County, New York
, is a museum
dedicated to preserving the history of the Adirondacks. The museum is located on the site of an historic summer resort hotel, the Blue Mountain House
, built high above Blue Mountain Lake
in 1876, that operated until the late 1940s.
Its collections include historic artifacts, photographs, archival materials, and fine art documenting the region's past in twenty-two exhibit spaces and galleries. It offers special events, classes, symposia, workshops, demonstrations and field trips. The museum contains a research library; its publication program has produced 65 books of Adirondack history, art histories and museum catalogs.
and two cars that had been abandoned on the Marion River
Carry between Utowana and Raquette Lake
s. Within a year, the Adirondack Historical Association was formed. In 1953 the historic Blue Mountain House was purchased as the site for the museum, and after years of demolition and construction, gathering historic materials and designing exhibits, the museum opened on August 3, 1957. In 1963-64 the museum sponsored the archaeological exploration of the Wiawaka Bateaux Site by Terry Crandall.
railroad car, several guide boats and an Idem class racing sailboat, a steam locomotive
, a one-room schoolhouse, a complete blacksmith
shop, the rustic "Sunset Cottage", and the Log Hotel, original to the museum's site, which is on the National Register of Historic Places
.
Other material includes:
Blue Mountain Lake, New York
Blue Mountain Lake is a rural hamlet in the Town of Indian Lake of Hamilton County, New York located at the intersection of New York Routes 28 and 30 with a population of 146 according to the 2000 United States Census. Blue Mountain Lake also refers to the lake on the banks of which the village is...
in Hamilton County, New York
Hamilton County, New York
Hamilton County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. It is named after Alexander Hamilton, the only member of the New York State delegation who signed the United States Constitution in 1787 and later the first United States Secretary of the Treasury. Its county seat is Lake Pleasant...
, is a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
dedicated to preserving the history of the Adirondacks. The museum is located on the site of an historic summer resort hotel, the Blue Mountain House
Blue Mountain House Annex
Blue Mountain House Annex, also known as The Log Hotel, is a historic hotel located on the grounds of the Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake in Hamilton County, New York. It was built in 1876 and is a two story structure built of square hewn spruce logs with halved log cornering. It features...
, built high above Blue Mountain Lake
Blue Mountain Lake (New York)
Blue Mountain Lake is a lake in Hamilton County in the central Adirondacks; Blue Mountain Lake is the eastern end of the Eckford chain of lakes. The hamlet of Blue Mountain Lake lies on its southeastern shore and the Adirondack Museum looks down from high above its eastern shore...
in 1876, that operated until the late 1940s.
Its collections include historic artifacts, photographs, archival materials, and fine art documenting the region's past in twenty-two exhibit spaces and galleries. It offers special events, classes, symposia, workshops, demonstrations and field trips. The museum contains a research library; its publication program has produced 65 books of Adirondack history, art histories and museum catalogs.
History
The museum started as a result of an effort in 1947 to protect the steam locomotiveSteam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
and two cars that had been abandoned on the Marion River
Marion River
The Marion River is a river that connects Blue Mountain Lake via Utowana Lake and Eagle Lake to Raquette Lake in Hamilton County in the central Adirondacks. New York State has classified the Marion as a Scenic River....
Carry between Utowana and Raquette Lake
Raquette Lake
Raquette Lake is the source of the Raquette River in the Adirondack Mountains of New York State, USA. It is near the community of Raquette Lake, New York. The lake has 99 miles of shoreline with pines and mountains bordering the lake. It is located in the towns of Long Lake and Arietta,...
s. Within a year, the Adirondack Historical Association was formed. In 1953 the historic Blue Mountain House was purchased as the site for the museum, and after years of demolition and construction, gathering historic materials and designing exhibits, the museum opened on August 3, 1957. In 1963-64 the museum sponsored the archaeological exploration of the Wiawaka Bateaux Site by Terry Crandall.
Collections
The museum collection includes a number of large objects, including a PullmanPullman (car or coach)
In the United States, Pullman was used to refer to railroad sleeping cars which were built and operated on most U.S. railroads by the Pullman Company from 1867 to December 31, 1968....
railroad car, several guide boats and an Idem class racing sailboat, a steam locomotive
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
, a one-room schoolhouse, a complete blacksmith
Blacksmith
A blacksmith is a person who creates objects from wrought iron or steel by forging the metal; that is, by using tools to hammer, bend, and cut...
shop, the rustic "Sunset Cottage", and the Log Hotel, original to the museum's site, which is on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
Other material includes:
- A fine art collection that contains over 2500 works including oil and watercolor paintings, prints, and artists' sketchbooks.
- The second largest collection of inland wooden watercraft in the United States.
- More than 70,000 historic photographs including the work of Seneca Ray StoddardSeneca Ray StoddardSeneca Ray Stoddard was an American landscape photographer known for his photographs of New York's Adirondack Mountains. He was also a naturalist, a writer, a poet, an artist, and a cartographer. His writings and photographs helped to popularize the Adirondacks.Stoddard was born at Wilton, in...
, Alfred StieglitzAlfred StieglitzAlfred Stieglitz was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his fifty-year career in making photography an accepted art form...
, and Eliot PorterEliot PorterEliot Furness Porter was an American photographer best known for his color photographs of nature.-Early life:...
. - The largest public collection of rustic furnitureRustic furnitureRustic furniture is furniture employing sticks, twigs or logs for a natural look. Many companies, artists and craftspeople make rustic furniture in a variety of styles and with a variety of historical and contemporary influences...
in North America. The museum owns many pieces created by Joe BryereJoe BryereJoseph Bryere , known as Joe Bryere or J.O.A., was a guide in the Adirondacks and a noted woodworking artist whose style played a significant role in creating the rustic, “Adirondack look” we know today...
, a local woodworking artist. - The Museum's library claims the most comprehensive repository of books, periodicals, manuscripts, maps and government documents related to the Adirondack region.
See also
- Natural History Museum of the AdirondacksNatural History Museum of the AdirondacksThe Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks is a natural history museum that opened July 4, 2006 in New York state's Adirondack Park. The museum and the exhibits were designed by The Office of Charles P. Reay with the St. Louis architectural firm HOK...
(The Wild Center) - Adirondacks
- Great CampsGreat CampsGreat camps refer to the grandiose family compounds of cabins that were built in the latter half of the nineteenth century on lakes in the Adirondacks such as Spitfire Lake and Rainbow Lake. The camps were summer homes for the wealthy, where they could relax, host or attend parties, and enjoy the...
- Adirondack guideboatAdirondack guideboatAdirondack guideboats were built since the early 19th century and evolved from a hunting skiff to today's highly refined design, virtually unchanged since the late 19th century...
- Reynoldston, New YorkReynoldston, New York-Location of Reynoldston:Reynoldston is a former settlement in Upstate New York or sometimes referred to as Northern New York . Located in the Township of Brandon in Franklin County, Reynoldston was about 1400 feet above the St. Lawrence River Valley. It is in the northern foothills of the...
Sources
- Gilborn, Craig A. and Alice W., Museum of the Adirondacks, The Adirondack Museum, 1993 ISBN 978-0-910020-36-7