Joe Bryere
Encyclopedia
Joseph 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. Along with Ernest Stowe, Seth Pierce, George Wilson and other master craftsmen, Joe Bryere helped create the rustic aura so desired in the Adirondack great camps
of the late 19th century and early 20th century.
Joe Bryere was born in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, a small community in Quebec
Province, Canada
. According to the Drouin Collection, the spelling of the Bryere name was interchangeable from Briere to Bryère. Little is currently known of his upbringing, and his family has yet to be definitively established. At least one author has suggested that Joe Bryere's father left the family when Joe was young to seek his fortune in gold-mining, never to return.
In the early 1880s, Joe Bryere made his way into the United States and eventually to Raquette Lake
, located in Hamilton County
, New York, in the central Adirondacks. He worked for a few years on Camp Fairview, owned by Charles Durant, cousin of William West Durant
. From early on he was known then for his enterprising ability and physical strength. At that time, the Adirondacks were not heavily populated, and many frontiersmen made their claim to land by squatting for long periods of time, in stark distinction from many of the railroad magnates who could own tens of thousands of acres of land in the Adirondacks.
After moving to the Adirondacks, Joe Bryere met Mary Agnes Gooley, and they were married in 1884 at Ed Bennett's Inn, Under the Hemlocks. They were the first couple known to be married at Raquette Lake. Together they built Brightside on Raquette log by log, living in tents, shacks and eventually in the original hotel they had built together. Brightside was opened in 1891.
Joe became known for his work over the course of his lifetime by crafting numerous pieces of furniture, which he sold or used to furnish Brightside. As Adirondack furniture became more and more popular through the 20th century, the style of his work was duplicated by large numbers of craftsmen. Today, a large collection of his work is on display at the Adirondack Museum
in Blue Mountain Lake, New York
.
Woodworking
Woodworking is the process of building, making or carving something using wood.-History:Along with stone, mud, and animal parts, wood was one of the first materials worked by early humans. Microwear analysis of the Mousterian stone tools used by the Neanderthals show that many were used to work wood...
artist whose style played a significant role in creating the rustic, “Adirondack look” we know today. Along with Ernest Stowe, Seth Pierce, George Wilson and other master craftsmen, Joe Bryere helped create the rustic aura so desired in the Adirondack great camps
Great Camps
Great 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...
of the late 19th century and early 20th century.
Joe Bryere was born in Sainte-Anne-de-la-Pérade, a small community in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
Province, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. According to the Drouin Collection, the spelling of the Bryere name was interchangeable from Briere to Bryère. Little is currently known of his upbringing, and his family has yet to be definitively established. At least one author has suggested that Joe Bryere's father left the family when Joe was young to seek his fortune in gold-mining, never to return.
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,...
, located in Hamilton County
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...
, New York, in the central Adirondacks. He worked for a few years on Camp Fairview, owned by Charles Durant, cousin of William West Durant
William West Durant
William West Durant was a designer and developer of camps in the Adirondack Great Camp style, including Camp Uncas, Camp Pine Knot and Sagamore Camp which are National Historic Landmarks. He was the son of Thomas C. Durant, the financier and railroad promoter who was behind the Crédit Mobilier...
. From early on he was known then for his enterprising ability and physical strength. At that time, the Adirondacks were not heavily populated, and many frontiersmen made their claim to land by squatting for long periods of time, in stark distinction from many of the railroad magnates who could own tens of thousands of acres of land in the Adirondacks.
After moving to the Adirondacks, Joe Bryere met Mary Agnes Gooley, and they were married in 1884 at Ed Bennett's Inn, Under the Hemlocks. They were the first couple known to be married at Raquette Lake. Together they built Brightside on Raquette log by log, living in tents, shacks and eventually in the original hotel they had built together. Brightside was opened in 1891.
Joe became known for his work over the course of his lifetime by crafting numerous pieces of furniture, which he sold or used to furnish Brightside. As Adirondack furniture became more and more popular through the 20th century, the style of his work was duplicated by large numbers of craftsmen. Today, a large collection of his work is on display at the Adirondack Museum
Adirondack Museum
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...
in Blue Mountain Lake, New York
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...
.
Sources
- Gilborn, Craig, Adirondack Furniture and the Rustic Tradition, New York: Harry N. Abrams, 2000.
- Timm, Ruth, Raquette Lake, A Time to Remember, Utica, North Country Books, 1989, ISBN 0-032052-63-0.
- State of New York Annual Report of the Forest Commission For the Year 1893, Vol. 1., Albany: James B. Lyon, State Printer. 1894, Pg. 343