Historic markers tell tales of past forest fires, turnpikes, homesteads and taverns
By Tom French
One could argue the ancient monuments of antiquity are the original historic markers, especially those commemorating great battles, but the first “Blue Plaque” appeared in England in the 1860s to mark Lord Byron’s birthplace. Ironically, the house was demolished in 1889.
Unless it’s across the street from a favorite haunt (see Raquette Lake Hotel & Tap Room – four within 100 yards), maybe you don’t stop to read the details. If you’re like me, you catch the gist from the heading as you speed by. Maybe a date. Perhaps it’s along a frequent route, so you’ve slowly been reading it over the years. If it’s a really historic, historic marker in the Adirondacks, there’s a good chance it’s about a forest fire, a road, a tavern, or the “Site of…” something.
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Early historic markers
The first roadside historic markers in New York appeared in the late 1920s and early 1930s as part of a sesquicentennial celebration mandated by the state legislature for the State Education Department to highlight “sites… of historic significance (from) the colonial, revolutionary or state formative period.” Markers could be had for as little as $2 if the application was approved. According to a NYS government website, funding for this initial burst of history “appears to have run out” by 1939.
In the Adirondacks, these first markers can still be found on many of the major arteries coursing through the Park, though some of those thoroughfares have been rerouted such as around Star Lake where several are off the beaten path. The Tooley Pond Road, the original stage coach route from Cranberry Lake to points north, sports a 1935 marker about a 1908 Forest Fire started by “a burning fallow.”
An abundance of forest fire markers seems to be from 1935 when the Conservation Department (precursor to the DEC) was somehow involved. In addition to a different color scheme (brown and yellow or white with green), the Conservation Department is credited at the bottom (along with the State Education Department). Their tops reflect the 50th anniversary of the Adirondack Forest Preserve with the dates 1885/1935 along with two beavers and a conifer with a crown of pinecones at the top.
Most markers have historically been National Blue and Sunset Yellow, perhaps in homage to the “New York State color palette.” Many new markers still follow that colorway, though not always.
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The earliest markers may be undated, so the oldest official New York State signs I found have a date from 1932, such as the one about the Port Kent/Hopkinton Turnpike in Loon Lake or the sign indicating where John Brown first stayed while he was building his farm (east of the ski jumps along Route 73). The Northwest Bay Road, the first into Saranac Lake from the east, appears to have multiple markers, though some may be missing including the one in Santa Clara, which is also missing its marker for “Oldest Building,” the former railroad station and now St. Peter’s Oratory.
The various internet sites listing markers are admittedly incomplete and some give locations with old highway numbers (NYS 192 at Gabriels, for example). Attempts to catalog the markers are hindered by lack of a centralized effort and the fact that many missing markers have been dropped from existing lists.
Perhaps the most remote Adirondack marker is at the end of the gravel road into Sabattis, 11 miles west of Route 3 between Tupper and Long Lake. Nothing remains of the town other than the gates to a Boy Scouts camp, a recreational club, and the sign. The Adirondack Railroad recently rehabilitated a siding to turnaround the train from Tupper. The 1935 marker appears to have been recently restored by an undisclosed party. Known as Long Lake West in 1908, “it was the most destructive fire in the history of New York State” at the time. It completely destroyed the community.
The original cast iron signs were created at the Walton East Branch Foundry in the Catskills. Its successor, Catskill Castings, still makes signs, including the fifteen placed by the Sacandaga Lake Advisory Council around the reservoir in 2020. Owner George Haynes, who worked for Walton in the early 1980s, explains that they switched to aluminum in 1989. Catskill Castings also restores markers. “We sandblast them back to bare metal and then repaint them,” Haynes said.
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Restoration needed
Many could use sprucing up. The 1935 marker in McColloms, north of Paul Smiths along Route 3 (another Forest Fire), is corroded and lost between trees. In winter, the 1939 Jennings Road marker along Route 458 near Meacham Lake can be buried in snow. Even the 1935 Whiteface Fire Tower marker, now displayed at the Adirondack Experience, could use a coat of paint.
The town of Caroga recently refurbished their undated Wheelerville Tannery sign with help from the DEC. A number of New York state government sign shops can assist with restoration.
Financing for the markers has evolved over time. Oversized rest-area markers were prioritized in the sixties along the Thruway, interstates, and elsewhere (see east of Blue Mountain Lake along Route 30/28). With the advent of high-speed travel, distracted driving and rubbernecking became a concern. By the 1970s, local governments were encouraged to pick up the slack via their historians (a 1919 law mandates every municipality to have a historian – some officials pull double duty). Confusion seems to prevail over who is responsible for maintenance of the originals. “Anyone interested… should contact the appropriate county, city, town, or village historian.”
And anyone willing to cover the cost can put a new marker on their property, though consulting with local historians and government officials is advised. Many signs erected by towns, villages, and private parties dot the Adirondacks, including the Saranac Iron Works marker placed by the Town of Saranac, Charles M. Dole’s Gravesite at St. John’s Cemetery in Paul Smiths (Founder of the National Ski Patrol, erected by the Ski Patrol and US Army just yards from a 1935 marker for C.R. Pettis’ (sic) Grave – Superintendent of State Forests from 1910 to 1927 and “Father of Reforestation in New York”). Recently, the John Thomas Brook marker near Onchiota, credited to the Draper-Lussi Endowment and Paul Smith’s College, was erected. The Friends of the Dodge Library in West Chazy erected seventeen historic markers in the late 1960s, including the Robinson’s Tavern sign along Route 190 which is passed by over 5000 vehicles every day.
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A renewed effort
Today, the nation’s leading funder of historic roadside markers is the William G. Pomeroy Foundation based in Syracuse. After surviving Acute Myeloid Leukemia following a stem cell transplant, Pomeroy, a Central New York entrepreneur involved with information technology, established the foundation to diversify the bone marrow donor registry. But, his passion for history resulted in a second mission.
According to his daughter, Deryn, “My dad has fond memories of stopping to read historical markers with his dad. When he learned that New York state had stopped funding historical markers in the late 1930s, leaving local communities to raise money on their own, he decided to start funding markers locally in Onondaga County where organizations had expressed an interest in wanting to tell their histories.”
Starting with two markers in Onondaga County in 2006, the Pomeroy Foundation has now funded over 2,000 markers in 48 states including more than 80 in the Adirondack Park. The most recent addition was honoring Blacksville near Loon Lake.
Until a concerted effort is made to catalog markers, the exact number, including those lost to history, may be difficult to pinpoint. But efforts such as Pomeroy’s and others will hopefully ensure that the many nuggets of local history survive even if the history of the markers themselves is sometimes foggy.
Photo at top: The rest area along Route 30/28 sports a 1960s-era historic marker describing “The Adirondacks” with information about Mount Marcy and the history of the area beginning with the Iroquois through mining, lumbering, the establishment of the Forest Preserve, railroads, and resorts. Photo by Tom French
It’s great to come across these commemorative markers, but do we need one for every forest fire? I’d like to see some marking the old Atlas Missile sites.
Hello — Thanks for reading and commenting on the article. Most of the Forest Fire markers were placed in 1935 at a time when large fires were relatively recent and in the back of everyone’s minds. Many of the signs even say, “Prevent Forest Fires.”
Tom – I want to do this for the Cranberry Lake North Shore Hub / former Western Adirondack Presbyterian Church here in Cranberry. Not sure where to start or how to manage the whole thing. Advice?
Hello Susan — Great idea! Anyone interested in erecting an historic marker should reach out to the Pomeroy Foundation for assistance and advice (https://www.wgpfoundation.org/). They have several marker programs and grant opportunities.
There’s a very old sign in this same style (early 1900’s) by a pulloff at the south end of Tupper Lake (near Horseshoe Lake road); I specifically stopped to photograph it to preserve it’s memory. I’m surprised it hasn’t been stolen yet.
Hello Johnathan — Thanks for reading and commenting. That particular marker is from 1935, part of the collaboration between the New York Conservation Department (now DEC) and New York State Ed. Several of those “State Land” signs exist throughout the park, and they literally indicate a 1935 boundary into (or out of) Forest Preserve Land. One side even says “entering,” while the other says “leaving.” Of course, many boundaries have changed in the last 89 years.
Sometimes “pulling off” to read the signs is difficult – fast traffic, no (or thin) shoulder, some areas have several signs posted along particular stretches. For those, I might pass them by and then turn around and simply find a place to park and walk back to read them. They talk about very interesting moments in time or individuals in time. We need more of these signs.
Someone actually added many of the sign locations in NH into Google Maps. Perhaps someone with a lot of time on their hands could add the NYS (or at least Adirondack) signs to Google Maps app!
I’ll be trying this app, ExploreHere https://apps.apple.com/us/app/explorehere-historical-guide/id1485772125
Virginia’s Dept of Historic Resources has its roadside historic markers on a website database. Very handy for those markers that have no pull-of access. Just a thought.
Might an un-wilderness-appearing Pomeroy sign be permitted in a designated wilderness location? What group would need to make that designation? Town Highway Dept., APA, DEC Region?
Hello James — Thanks for reading and commenting. Any sign on state, government, or municipal land would require the requisite approvals.
I have “pulled over” and read these signs fo most of the last 70 of my 87 years, most of whicfh was in NYS and now retired inthe ADKs. By an large the signs are a real benefit to local and broader understanding of NYS history. But absent a central rep[ository and more important;y, some authoritative verification of the story line, I fear that some of these signs perpetuate an erroneous view of history.
A sign in Ticonderoga is an example. It alleges that the British canon hauled up Mt Defiance (Rattlesnake) in 1777 were a surprise that scared the Americans to vacate the Fort. In fact St Clair was well aware of that threat but had too few troops to resist that emplacement much less than defend the Fort when outnumbered two or three to one by Burgoyne and had decided to vacate the Fort and strengthen Gates at SaratogaGene, which is what happened
In my view the signs should be subjected to State funded maintenance and a systematic “Truth in Signage” program
Hello Gene — Thanks for reading and commenting. When the state program first began in the 1920s and 30s, all state funded signs had to be approved by the State Education Department for accuracy. The bottoms of the signs often indicate who funded the sign, and many were erected by local governments or organizations. It’s unfortunate that the Ticonderoga signs may be inaccurate. The Pomeroy Foundation requires primary source documentation to verify historical accuracy. More information about their requirements can be found here: https://www.wgpfoundation.org/history/nys-historic-markers/
Tom-interesting article- you might check out the attached article about our local historian also trying to save the historical markers: https://www.dailygazette.com/news/restoring-history-one-sign-at-a-time/article_7639b805-7db4-5e69-817d-f2477d7e8685.html
Shannon Hickman
(Doug Miller’s sister-in-law)
Hello Shannon — Fun article. I like his cloak and dagger approach. Not an easy job. In my research, I discovered several that had been restored via wire brush versus sand blasting. Fortunately, the new ones are made of aluminum.
Being a history buff I’ve realized over the years of picture taking of historical signs throughout the east coast specifically those with me in the picture with the signs was a wonderful way to reflect back and reminiscing back about that historic visit and showing my friends and educating them
A great map of the Historic Markers in Warren County can be found here;
https://warrencountyny.maps.arcgis.com/apps/Shortlist/index.html?appid=f791a4a56fe04af981300b4c6630045e