Schroon, New York
Encyclopedia
Schroon is a town in the Adirondack Park, in Essex County
, New York
, United States
. The population was 1,759 at the 2000 census. The town is also known as Schroon Lake, which is actually a centrally located lake, and the name of a hamlet on the lake.
The Town of Schroon is in the southern part of Essex County and is north of Albany
. The Town of Schroon contains two lakes: nine-mile (14 km) long Schroon Lake, and five-mile (8 km) long Paradox Lake. The two lakes are connected by the Schroon River
.
, is a year-round tourist destination, with boating, swimming and fishing in the summer and snowmobiling, snowshoeing and ice fishing in the winter; hiking and hunting are popular in the fall and spring. Each September, hundreds of runners compete in the Adirondack Marathon
, which finishes in downtown Schroon Lake. The roads around the lake constitute an almost perfect 26 mile distance.
Schroon's main street is US-9, which offers restaurants, antique and collectible shops, a movie theater and churches. The Town of Schroon maintains public docks in the village area, which makes the shops and restaurants accessible to boaters. Schroon has two free municipal boat launches. New York State also has public campsites on Schroon Lake. Paradox Lake also has a New York State campground on its shores.
Schroon Lake serves as summer home to the Seagle Music Colony. It is also home to Schroon-North Hudson Historical Museum, Natural Stone Bridge & Caves, and a municipal golf course.
Schroon Lake is the home of the main headquarters of the Word of Life Fellowship. Word of Life maintains a conference center, summer youth camps, a Bible Institute and place of worship at its properties in Schroon Lake.
The Town of Schroon is the home of Camp Southwoods, a traditional, co-ed, resident camp, although the camp is physically located on nearby Paradox Lake.
as a French colony. The origination of the name "Schroon" is not precisely known: some believe it to be derived from a Native American word for large lake.
The Town of Schroon was formed in 1804 from part of the Town of Crown Point
. The town was partitioned to form the newer Town of Minerva
in 1817. In 1840, part of Schroon was returned to Crown Point. As with other towns of Essex County, the early economy was heavily involved in lumber
production.
Prior to the construction of the Northway (Interstate 87
), US Route 9 was the major north-south highway between Albany and Montreal
, which made Schroon Lake a convenient stopping off point for travelers to purchase gas, lodging, and meals.
Schroon Lake was also the former home to the world class Scaroon Manor resort which closed in 1962. The Scaroon Manor was the site for the 1957 Warner Brothers movie "Marjorie Morningstar
" which starred Gene Kelly
, Natalie Wood
. Carolyn Jones
and Ed Winn. Also featured in the film was Camp Red Wing (though not mentioned by name) on the east side of the Lake, from which Wood and Jones depart by canoe at night for their escape to the musical South Winds (Scaroon Manor). Open to the public for many years, the old Scaroon Manor site is now owned by the state, and access is limited to those who pay for a day pass.
The "Scaroons" is/are mentioned twice in The Last of the Mohicans
by James Fenimore Cooper
, as a place seen by Hawkeye (Natty Bumppo
), Chingachgook
and Uncas
after they had departed Horicon (the name used by Cooper for Lake George) while traveling northward chasing Magua and his two captives, Cora and Alice Munro. It is unclear from the context in the book whether Cooper is referring to the lake or a chain of mountains, the latter being a more likely interpretation.
, the town has a total area of 141.2 square miles (365.7 km²), of which, 133.2 square miles (345 km²) of it is land and 8 square miles (20.7 km²) of it (5.69%) is water.
The southern line of Schroon is the border of Warren County
. Schroon Lake lies in both Essex and Warren Counties.
The Northway passes through the center of the Town of Schroon. US Route 9 runs parallel to the interstate. New York State Route 74
, an east-west highway, intersects US-9 and the interstate west of Severance. Combined with the tourism, the highways bring substantial revenue to the town through the Schroon Town Court.
Schroon is approximately four hours north of New York City
, two hours south of Montreal, Canada, 1 hours from Burlington
, Vermont
.
Schroon also has an airfield with a 3000 feet (914.4 m) runway that is capable of landing small and medium size private airplanes.
The Schroon River flows into the town across the north town line and flows out the south town line.
of 2000, there were 1,759 people, 737 households, and 473 families residing in the town. The population density
was 13.2 people per square mile (5.1/km²). There were 2,130 housing units at an average density of 16.0 per square mile (6.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.12% White, 0.85% African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.11% from other races
, and 0.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.45% of the population.
There were 737 households out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples
living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $29,054, and the median income for a family was $36,579. Males had a median income of $29,821 versus $20,298 for females. The per capita income
for the town was $15,302. About 8.5% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
Essex County, New York
Essex County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2010 census, the population was 39,370. Its name is from the English county of Essex. Its county seat is Elizabethtown...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The population was 1,759 at the 2000 census. The town is also known as Schroon Lake, which is actually a centrally located lake, and the name of a hamlet on the lake.
The Town of Schroon is in the southern part of Essex County and is north of Albany
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
. The Town of Schroon contains two lakes: nine-mile (14 km) long Schroon Lake, and five-mile (8 km) long Paradox Lake. The two lakes are connected by the Schroon River
Schroon River
The Schroon River is a tributary of the Hudson River in the southern Adirondack Mountains of New York, beginning at the confluence of Crowfoot Brook and New Pond Brook near Underwood, and terminating at the Hudson in Warrensburg. Its watershed is entirely within the Adirondack Park...
.
Local attractions
Schroon Lake 43°46′49"N 73°46′40"W, in the towns of Schroon and HoriconHoricon, New York
Horicon is a town in Warren County, New York, United States. It is part of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. Horicon's population was 1,479 at the 2000 census.Horicon is on the county's north border and is inside the Adirondack Park.- History :...
, is a year-round tourist destination, with boating, swimming and fishing in the summer and snowmobiling, snowshoeing and ice fishing in the winter; hiking and hunting are popular in the fall and spring. Each September, hundreds of runners compete in the Adirondack Marathon
Adirondack Marathon
The Adirondack Marathon is a marathon, , held each September in Schroon Lake, New York. The race follows a road course around the lake. The race motto is "The most beautiful 26 miles 385 yards you will ever run." There were 331 finishers in 2010.-The Course:...
, which finishes in downtown Schroon Lake. The roads around the lake constitute an almost perfect 26 mile distance.
Schroon's main street is US-9, which offers restaurants, antique and collectible shops, a movie theater and churches. The Town of Schroon maintains public docks in the village area, which makes the shops and restaurants accessible to boaters. Schroon has two free municipal boat launches. New York State also has public campsites on Schroon Lake. Paradox Lake also has a New York State campground on its shores.
Schroon Lake serves as summer home to the Seagle Music Colony. It is also home to Schroon-North Hudson Historical Museum, Natural Stone Bridge & Caves, and a municipal golf course.
Schroon Lake is the home of the main headquarters of the Word of Life Fellowship. Word of Life maintains a conference center, summer youth camps, a Bible Institute and place of worship at its properties in Schroon Lake.
The Town of Schroon is the home of Camp Southwoods, a traditional, co-ed, resident camp, although the camp is physically located on nearby Paradox Lake.
History
The town was first settled around 1800, north of the current Schroon Lake hamlet. However, there is a claim that the town was occupied during the Colonial PeriodThirteen Colonies
The Thirteen Colonies were English and later British colonies established on the Atlantic coast of North America between 1607 and 1733. They declared their independence in the American Revolution and formed the United States of America...
as a French colony. The origination of the name "Schroon" is not precisely known: some believe it to be derived from a Native American word for large lake.
The Town of Schroon was formed in 1804 from part of the Town of Crown Point
Crown Point, New York
Crown Point is a town in Essex County, New York, USA. The population was 2,119 at the 2000 census. The name of the town is a direct translation of the original French name, "Point au Chevalure."...
. The town was partitioned to form the newer Town of Minerva
Minerva, New York
Minerva is a town in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 796 at the 2000 census. The town is named after Minerva, goddess of wisdom.The Town of Minerva is located in the southwest corner of the county...
in 1817. In 1840, part of Schroon was returned to Crown Point. As with other towns of Essex County, the early economy was heavily involved in lumber
Lumber
Lumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
production.
Prior to the construction of the Northway (Interstate 87
Interstate 87
Interstate 87 is a Interstate Highway located entirely within New York State in the United States of America. I-87 is the longest intrastate Interstate highway in the Interstate Highway System. Its southern end is at the Bronx approaches of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge in New York City...
), US Route 9 was the major north-south highway between Albany and Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, which made Schroon Lake a convenient stopping off point for travelers to purchase gas, lodging, and meals.
Schroon Lake was also the former home to the world class Scaroon Manor resort which closed in 1962. The Scaroon Manor was the site for the 1957 Warner Brothers movie "Marjorie Morningstar
Marjorie Morningstar
Marjorie Morningstar can refer to:*Marjorie Morningstar , a 1955 novel.*Marjorie Morningstar , a 1958 movie....
" which starred Gene Kelly
Gene Kelly
Eugene Curran "Gene" Kelly was an American dancer, actor, singer, film director and producer, and choreographer...
, Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood
Natalie Wood, born Natalia Nikolaevna Zacharenko was an American film and television actress. After first working in films as a child, Wood became a successful Hollywood star as a young adult, receiving three Academy Award nominations before she was 25 years old.Wood began acting in movies at the...
. Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Jones
Carolyn Sue Jones was an American actress.Jones began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress for The Bachelor Party and a Golden Globe Award as one of the most promising actresses...
and Ed Winn. Also featured in the film was Camp Red Wing (though not mentioned by name) on the east side of the Lake, from which Wood and Jones depart by canoe at night for their escape to the musical South Winds (Scaroon Manor). Open to the public for many years, the old Scaroon Manor site is now owned by the state, and access is limited to those who pay for a day pass.
The "Scaroons" is/are mentioned twice in The Last of the Mohicans
The Last of the Mohicans
The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757 is a historical novel by James Fenimore Cooper, first published in February 1826. It is the second book of the Leatherstocking Tales pentalogy and the best known...
by James Fenimore Cooper
James Fenimore Cooper
James Fenimore Cooper was a prolific and popular American writer of the early 19th century. He is best remembered as a novelist who wrote numerous sea-stories and the historical novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales, featuring frontiersman Natty Bumppo...
, as a place seen by Hawkeye (Natty Bumppo
Natty Bumppo
Nathaniel "Natty" Bumppo is the protagonist of James Fenimore Cooper's pentalogy of novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales.- Fictional biography :...
), Chingachgook
Chingachgook
Chingachgook was a fictional character in four of James Fenimore Cooper's five Leatherstocking Tales, a lone Mohican chief and companion of the series' hero Natty Bumppo. Chingachgook married Wah-ta-Wah who bore him a son Uncas, but she died young. Uncas, at his birth "last of the Mohicans" grew...
and Uncas
Uncas
Uncas was a sachem of the Mohegan who through his alliance with the English colonists in New England against other Indian tribes made the Mohegan the leading regional Indian tribe in lower Connecticut.-Early life and family:...
after they had departed Horicon (the name used by Cooper for Lake George) while traveling northward chasing Magua and his two captives, Cora and Alice Munro. It is unclear from the context in the book whether Cooper is referring to the lake or a chain of mountains, the latter being a more likely interpretation.
Geography
According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the town has a total area of 141.2 square miles (365.7 km²), of which, 133.2 square miles (345 km²) of it is land and 8 square miles (20.7 km²) of it (5.69%) is water.
The southern line of Schroon is the border of Warren County
Warren County, New York
Warren County is a county in the U.S. state of New York. It is part of the Glens Falls, New York, Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the population was 65,707. It is named in honor of General Joseph Warren, an American Revolutionary War hero of the Battle of Bunker Hill...
. Schroon Lake lies in both Essex and Warren Counties.
The Northway passes through the center of the Town of Schroon. US Route 9 runs parallel to the interstate. New York State Route 74
New York State Route 74
New York State Route 74 and Vermont Route 74 are adjoining state highways in the northeastern United States, connected by one of the last remaining cable ferries in North America. Together they extend for through Essex County, New York, and Addison County, Vermont...
, an east-west highway, intersects US-9 and the interstate west of Severance. Combined with the tourism, the highways bring substantial revenue to the town through the Schroon Town Court.
Schroon is approximately four hours north of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, two hours south of Montreal, Canada, 1 hours from Burlington
Burlington, Vermont
Burlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
, Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
.
Schroon also has an airfield with a 3000 feet (914.4 m) runway that is capable of landing small and medium size private airplanes.
The Schroon River flows into the town across the north town line and flows out the south town line.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 1,759 people, 737 households, and 473 families residing in the town. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 13.2 people per square mile (5.1/km²). There were 2,130 housing units at an average density of 16.0 per square mile (6.2/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.12% White, 0.85% African American, 0.40% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.11% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 0.34% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.45% of the population.
There were 737 households out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.93.
In the town the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $29,054, and the median income for a family was $36,579. Males had a median income of $29,821 versus $20,298 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the town was $15,302. About 8.5% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.
Communities and locations in Schroon
- The Arlington House – A bed and breakfast in the early 20th Century, this 18 bedroom house is a giant in the Schroon Community.
- Clarks Island — An islandIslandAn island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
in Schroon Lake near Schroon Lake hamlet. - Loch Muller — A hamlet near the western town line.
- The Narrows - A constricted part of Schroon Lake near South Schroon Lake.
- Paradox - A hamlet near the east town line on NY-74, and at the east end of Paradox Lake.
- Paradox Lake — A lake by Severance. It is linked to Schroon Lake.
- Schroon Falls — A location near the north town line on US Route 9.
- Schroon Lake — (1) A lakeLakeA lake is a body of relatively still fresh or salt water of considerable size, localized in a basin, that is surrounded by land. Lakes are inland and not part of the ocean and therefore are distinct from lagoons, and are larger and deeper than ponds. Lakes can be contrasted with rivers or streams,...
located in the south-central portion of the town and extending south into Warren County. (2) A hamlet on the northwest end of the lake. The town government is located here on the west side of Schroon Lake on US-9. - Schroon Lake Airport (4B7) - A general aviation airport, located northeast of the Schroon Lake hamlet.
- Schroon Lake Loop — A hamlet south of Schroon Lake hamlet on US-9.
- Schroon River — A riverRiverA river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
that flows into the north end of Schroon Lake. - Severance — A hamlet in the northern part of the town on NY-74, at the west end of Paradox Lake. Is home to several clusters of rental homes.
- South Schroon Lake — A hamlet near the south end of the lake on US-9.