Adirondack Museum

Familypalooza at the Adirondack Museum

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The Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake, will host Familypalooza 2011 on Saturday, July 9, 2011. The Adirondack Museum invites children age 17 and under to visit free of charge for this special event.

Familypalooza will be a full day of family fun, adventure and exploration at the Adirondack Museum. Kid-friendly music, presented by Radio Disney, Albany and the Zoomobile from the Utica Zoo will be on-site with animals of New York State. Special programs will take place from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Members of the Adirondack Mountain Club, Albany Chapter will be offering introduction to kayaking and safety and rescue demonstrations.

Children can jump and tumble in the bouncehouse, play at the museum’s Tot Lot and Little Log Cabin. Families can go on an Adirondack scavenger hunt together. Kids can make believe with the Adirondack Lakes Center for the Arts, and put on a skit for family and friends. There will be costumed animal characters, face painting, arts & crafts and more.

The museum is open May 27 through October 17, 2011, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., 7 days a week, including holidays. There will be an early closing on August 12, and adjusted hours on August 13- the museum will close for the day on September 9. All paid admissions are valid for a second visit within a one-week period.

Adirondack Museum Offers Paddle Making Workshops

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Craftsman Caleb Davis will return to the Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake this summer to teach a series of one-day paddle making workshops. Students will use hand-tools to craft their own wooden canoe paddle. The first workshop is offered on June 29, 2011. Additional workshops on June 30, July 5, 7, 12, 19, 21, 26 and August 2, 18, 25.

Students may choose a single or double blade cherry wood paddle. The workshops start at 8:30 a.m. and end at 5:00 p.m. Space is limited to 5 participants per workshop, and pre-registration is required. The non-refundable fee is due at registration: $115 for single blade paddle, $120 for double blade paddle. Register online, but note this is a
physically demanding activity.

Caleb Davis, proprietor of Tremolo, creates handcrafted canoe paddles. He is a former shop teacher and a member of the League of New Hampshire Craftsmen. Tremolo is both a vocation and a passion for Caleb, whose enthusiasm towards the art of both canoeing and paddle making is contagious- all it takes is five minutes with Caleb to make you want to pick up a blank and craft that perfect paddle, then to jump into your solo or
tandem canoe and master traditional flatwater paddling techniques.

Davis is a skilled instructor and continues to enhance his skills with course work and certifications. His past and current certifications include: Canadian Recreational Canoeing Association Instructor, Canadian Recreational Canoeing Association Instructor, Eastern Professional Ski Touring (XC) Instructor, United States Rowing Association Coach, League of New Hampshire Craftsman &#8211 Canoe Paddles, American Canoeing Association Flat Water Tandem Instructor, American Canoeing Association Flat Water Solo Instructor, Traditional Flatwater Canoeing Association.

Two New Exhibits at Adirondack Museum

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Two new exhibits have opened at the Adirondack Museum: &#8220The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait&#8221 and &#8220Night Vision: The Wildlife Photography of Hobart V. Roberts.&#8221

Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait was the classic artist of Adirondack sport. &#8220The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait&#8221 features paintings and prints depicting life in the Adirondack woods &#8211 images of hunters, sportsmen, guides, and settlers that include a wealth of historical detail. An ardent sportsman and lover of the outdoors, Tait lived in the region for extended periods of time near Chateaugay, Raquette and Long lakes.

His images of animals and sporting adventures were among the best known in 19th-century America thanks to Currier & Ives, whose lithographs of Tait paintings helped popularize the Adirondacks as a sportsman’s paradise.

Chief Curator, Laura Rice called the exhibit, &#8220a rare opportunity to see some of Tait’s most important works, including a few from private collections which are rarely, if ever, on exhibit.&#8221

&#8220Night Vision: The Wildlife Photography of Hobart V. Roberts&#8221 focuses on the work of one of the nation’s most recognized amateur wildlife photographers in the first decades of the 20th century. Roberts’ Adirondack wildlife photographs represent an important breakthrough in science and the technology of photography. He developed a thorough knowledge of Adirondack
wildlife and their habits, and deer jacking inspired him to consider night photography. A feature article in the New York Times, August 26, 1928, described Roberts’ as &#8220hunting with a camera in the Adirondacks.&#8221

The &#8220Night Vision&#8221 exhibit features approximately 35 original large-format photographs of Adirondack wildlife. Roberts’ cameras, equipment, colored lithographic prints, hand-colored transparencies, published works, and his many awards will also be exhibited. His work has been published in Audubon Magazine, Country Life, Modern Photography, and The National Geographic
Magazine.

The museum is open through October 17, 2011, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., 7 days a week, including holidays. There will be an early closing on August 12, and adjusted hours on August 13- the museum will be closed on September 9. Visit www.adirondackmuseum.org for more information. All paid admissions are valid for a second visit within a one-week period.

Adirondack Museum Offers Locals Free Admission

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The Adirondack Museum is introducing two new programs just for year-round Adirondack Park residents. The Adirondack Museum invites year-round residents of the Adirondack Park to visit free of charge every Sunday, and on all open days in May and October. Proof of residency such as a driver’s license, passport, or voter registration card is required.

The Adirondack Museum has also introduced a new &#8220Friends and Neighbors&#8221 Adirondack Park Resident Membership Program. Year-round Park residents can now enjoy all the museum has to offer every day of the season through a very special program that makes museum membership more affordable than ever before &#8211 half the regular price at the Individual, Companion, and Family levels. Call the membership office for more information: (518) 352-7311 ext. 112 or email [email protected].

Two new exhibits will open at the Adirondack Museum on May 27: &#8220The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait&#8221 and &#8220Night Vision: The Wildlife Photography of Hobart V. Roberts.&#8221

The museum is open 10:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., 7 days a week, including holidays, from May 27 through October 17, 2011. There will be an early closing on August 12, and adjusted hours on August 13- the museum will close for the day on September 9. Please visit www.adirondackmuseum.org for details.

Photo: The Museum’s &#8220Living with Wilderness&#8221 exhibit, photograph by Richard Walker.

Adirondack Museum Opens for the Season

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The Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake, New York will open for the 54th season on Friday, May 27, 2011. This season, the museum opens two new exhibits and also introduces a host of family activities and special events.

The Adirondack Museum’s two new exhibits &#8211 &#8220The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait&#8221 and &#8220Night Vision: The Wildlife Photography of Hobart V. Roberts&#8221 &#8211 showcase two very different, yet complimentary, visions of the region.

&#8220The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait&#8221 features paintings and prints depicting life in the Adirondack woods-images of hunters, sportsmen, guides, and settlers, that include a wealth of historical detail. Arthur Fitzwilliam Tait was the classic artist of Adirondack sport. From the objects Tait worked with to Currier and Ives prints and finished oil paintings, the exhibit showcases Tait’s artistic vision and skill and highlights the region’s beauty and character.

&#8220&#8216-The Adirondack World of A.F. Tait’ looks at the life and work of this most quintessentially Adirondack artist,&#8221 said Chief Curator, Laura Rice. &#8220This exhibition represents a rare opportunity to see some of Tait’s most important works, including a few from private collections which are rarely, if ever, on exhibit.&#8221

&#8220Night Vision: The Wildlife Photography of Hobart V. Roberts&#8221 focuses on the work of one of the nation’s most recognized amateur wildlife photographers in the first decades of the 20th century. The &#8220Night Vision&#8221 exhibit features approximately 35 original large-format photographs of Adirondack wildlife. Roberts’ cameras, equipment, colored lithographic prints, hand-colored transparencies, published works, and his many awards will also be exhibited. Roberts’ Adirondack wildlife photographs represent an important breakthrough in science and the technology of photography. His work has been published in Audubon Magazine, Country Life, Modern Photography, and The National Geographic Magazine.

The Adirondack Museum has planned a full schedule of family activities, hands-on experiences, special events, lectures and field trips for all ages. Programming for families in 2011 has expanded to include an Artist in Residence program, and a collaborative canvas where visitors can help paint an Adirondack landscape.

This summer, the museum has a special new event to kick-off summer for families -&#8221Familypalooza&#8221 &#8211 on July 9. Familypalooza will include a bounce house, music show by Radio Disney, kayaking and paddling demonstrations on the museum’s pond, costumed animal characters, food, face painting and more. Children age 17 and under will be admitted free of charge for the day. Families will also enjoy &#8220The Adirondacks Are Cookin’ Out!&#8221 &#8211 a tribute to food prepared with smoke and fire &#8211 on July 28, and Dog Days of Summer on August 6.

Two special exhibits will also return in 2011. The Adirondack Museum celebrates food, drink, and the pleasures of eating in the Adirondack Park in, &#8220Let’s Eat! Adirondack Food Traditions.&#8221 The exhibit shares culinary stories and customs, and a bit about local celebrity Rachael Ray. &#8220Common Threads: 150 Years of Adirondack Quilts and Comforters&#8221 includes historic quilts from the museum’s textile collection as well as contemporary comforters, quilts, and pieced wall hangings.

The Adirondack Museum has introduced some lower admissions prices for 2011. The admissions prices are $18 for adults, $16 for seniors (62 and over), $12 for teens (13-17), $6 for kids (6-12) and free for those 5 and under. Admission will be free for members and all active military every day. Reduced group rates are also available.

The museum is open May 27 through October 17, 2011, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., 7 days a week, including holidays. There will be an early closing on August 12, and adjusted hours on August 13- the museum will close for the day on September 9. Visit www.adirondackmuseum.org for more information. All paid admissions are valid for a second visit within a one-week period.

Museum Seeks Adirondack Quilts

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Do you have an exceptional bed quilt or pieced wall hanging that was made in, inspired by, or depicts the Adirondack region?

The Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake, New York is seeking quilts for &#8220The Third Annual Great Adirondack Quilt Show&#8221 to be held from September 17 to October 9, 2011. The show open the day of the museum’s Fabric and Fiber Arts Festival and will complement the final season of the exhibit &#8220Common Threads: 150 Years of Adirondack Quilts and Comforters.&#8221

There will be two divisions in the show. Historic quilts (those made before 1970) can be of any theme or technique, but must have been made in the Adirondacks. Modern quilts (those made after 1970) should have a visible connection to the Adirondack region. A &#8220People’s Choice&#8221 award will be presented to one quilt in each division.

An eligible quilt might depict an Adirondack scene in applique or be composed of pieced blocks chosen because the pattern is reminiscent of the region &#8211 &#8220Pine Tree,&#8221 Wild Goose Chase,&#8221 or &#8220North Star,&#8221 for example.

Although the show will not be juried, applicants must complete a registration form prior to September 1, 2011. A statement by the maker is required to complete the application process. For additional information or to receive an application, please contact Hallie Bond via email at [email protected] , by telephone at (518) 352-7311, ext. 105, or through the postal service at P.O. Box 99, Blue Mountain Lake, N.Y., 12812.

Photo: &#8220Late Summer&#8221 by Joanna Monroe was one of the entries in the 2010 Great Adirondack Quilt Show.

@adkmuseum.org>

The History of the 90-Miler in Rochester

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A special program, &#8220The History of the 90-Miler&#8221 will be held on May 5, 2011 in Rochester. Adirondack Museum Curator Hallie Bond will share the history of the &#822090-Miler&#8221 at the Midtown Athletic Club from 6:30 p.m. &#8211 8:00 p.m. The fee for the program is $10 per person, and includes a cocktail reception.

The &#822090-Miler&#8221 or Adirondack Canoe Classic is a canoe and guideboat race that celebrates the era of human-powered boats in the Adirondacks. The race begins in Old Forge, N.Y. and proceeds up the Fulton Chain of Lakes into Raquette Lake and on to the Saranac Lakes, finishing in the Village of Saranac Lake. In its 28th year, the event is so popular that registration is capped at 250 boats.

Special guest Nancie Battaglia will share photographs of the race, including her award winning aerial photo of the 90-miler chosen as one of Sports Illustrated&#8216-s 2009 Pictures of the Year. A renowned Lake Placid, N.Y. based photographer, Nancie Battaglia is a regular contributor to the New York Times and Adirondack Life magazine and shot the 2010 Winter Olympics in
Vancouver.

The ninety-mile water route from Old Forge to Saranac Lake forms what was known a century and a half ago as the &#8220Great Central Valley&#8221 of the Adirondacks. It was the best route through the wilderness at the time &#8211 easier travel than roads, which were distinguished by quagmires, corduroy, steep inclines, and rocks. The key to traveling via waterway was the Adirondack guideboat. The Great Central Valley is no longer the most efficient way to get through the Adirondacks, but still has tremendous appeal to people who follow it to experience the woods and waters as the original travelers did.

The Adirondack Museum invites all those who have taken part in the 90-Miler, to come and share your own stories of adventure.

Reservations must be made directly with the Midtown Athletic Club by calling (585) 461-2300.

Hallie E. Bond has been Curator at the Adirondack Museum since 1987. She has written extensively on regional history and material culture including Boats and Boating in the Adirondacks, published by Syracuse University Press in 1995 and &#8216-A Paradise for Boys and Girls’: Children’s Camps in the Adirondacks, Syracuse University Press, 2005.

Photo: Paddlers in the 90-Miler by Nancie Battaglia.

Adirondack Ingenuity at the Adirondack Museum

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What do a jitterbug, a car saw, and a water bicycle have in common &#8211 besides really strange names? Learn the answer when you join the Adirondack Museum at Blue Mountain Lake, New York for the final program in the 2011 Cabin Fever Sunday series.

Associate Curator Laura Cotton will reveal the secrets of these and many other Rube Goldberg contraptions on Sunday, April 10, 2011 in a presentation entitled &#8220Adirondack Ingenuity&#8221as part of the museum’s Cabin Fever Sunday programs.

Historically, Adirondackers have been really good at re-inventing, re-using, and re-purposing. Ingeniously clever, local residents have made do with what they have, and made what they have do even more! A number of intriguing examples of North Country inventiveness are part of the Adirondack Museum’s permanent collections and will be at the heart of Cotton’s presentation.

From spruce gum pickers to the mysterious jitterbug, folks have created unique and useful items to make &#8220getting by&#8221 a bit easier and occasionally a lot more fun. The museum invites audience participation in the program. Do you have a unique Adirondack artifact? Bring your ingenious example on April 10, and share its clever story!

Held in the Auditorium, the program will begin promptly at 1:30 p.m. Cabin Fever Sundays are offered at no charge to museum members or children of elementary school age and younger. The fee for non-members is $5.00. Refreshments will be served. For additional information, please call the Education Department at (518) 352-7311, ext. 128 or visit the museum’s web site at www.adirondackmuseum.org.

The Museum Store and Visitor Center will be open from noon to 4 p.m.

Laura Cotton, both Associate Curator and Registrar, is a graduate of Whitworth College, Spokane, Washington with a BA in Art and Art Administration. She holds a MA from the University of Washington. She was a Curatorial Research Assistant at the Corning Museum of Glass, Corning, N.Y. before joining the staff of the Adirondack Museum in 2008.

Photo: 1923 Chevrolet pick-up truck that was converted into a buzz saw in the late 1920&#8242-s to early 1930&#8242-s. Gift of Bradford McAdam in memory of Harold L. McAdam. Collection of the Adirondack Museum.

Women and Conservation History at Adirondack Museum

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March 2011 marks the centennial celebration of International Women’s Day. Although women have long been dedicated and progressive history makers, their actions were slow to receive international attention. Adirondack Museum Educator Jessica Rubin will offer a presentation entitled &#8220Women and the Conservation Movement&#8221 as part of the museum’s popular Cabin Fever Sunday series on Sunday, March 27, 2011.

Rubin will discuss the role of women and female-centered organizations in the early conservation movement, excellent examples of historic female activism. Groups such as the National Federation of Women’s Clubs and individuals like journalist Kate Field and botanist Lucy Bishop Millington will be highlighted in the presentation to illustrate the unique ways women interacted with and advocated for the American wilderness at a time when most were confined to the &#8220private sphere.&#8221

Rubin will show that women were instrumental in the creation of state and federal conservation legislation and protections long before they had the right to vote. From the Adirondacks to California women were outspoken players in the national conservation crusade.

Held in the museum’s auditorium, the program will begin promptly at 1:30 p.m. Cabin Fever Sundays are offered at no charge to museum members or children of elementary
school age and younger. The fee for non-members is $5.00. Refreshments will be served. For additional information, please call the Education Department at (518) 352-7311, ext. 128 or visit the museum’s website.

Jessica Rubin holds a B.A. in Politics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and will receive a M.A. in Public History from SUNY Albany in the spring of 2011. She joined the staff of the Adirondack Museum in 2008. She previously taught at the Conserve School, a college-preparatory school with an environmental and outdoor focus in northern Wisconsin. Her love for and interest in the environment was greatly influenced by four summers of work in Yosemite National Park.

Photo: Photo by female photographer Katherine Elizabeth McClellan, 1898. Collection of Adirondack Museum.

Wife of Abolitionist John Brown Subject of Performance

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Author-historian Sandra Weber and musician David Hodges will present a dramatic performance of the life of Mary Day Brown, wife of radical abolitionist John Brown.

The Adirondack Museum&#8216-s Cabin Fever Sunday series will return to Saranac Lake, New York on February 27, 2011. &#8220Times of Trouble&#8221 with Weber and Hodges will be held at Saranac Village at Will Rogers. The time will be 2:00 p.m. The presentation will offered at no charge to museum members, residents of Saranac Village, and children of elementary school age or younger. The fee for non-members is $5.00.

Dressed in period costume, Weber and Hodges will weave narrative and song to share the little known life of Mary Brown. The poignant piece illustrates the significant role this plain woman played as wife of the radical abolitionist John Brown.

The program will present Mary’s early life and marriage as well as later tragedies involving bankruptcy, accidents, and death. The presentation closes with Mrs. Brown’s most difficult &#8220times of trouble&#8221 in the aftermath of the raid on Harper’s Ferry. Sandra Weber has spent ten years researching the life of Mary Day Brown.

Weber is an author, storyteller, and independent scholar with special interest in the Adirondacks, Mary and John Brown, as well as women’s history. Her publishing credits include eight books and numerous articles in periodicals such as Civil War Times, Adirondack Life, Pennsylvania Magazine, and Highlights for Children.

In 2004 and 2005, Sandra Weber toured with folksinger Peggy Lynn performing stories from their book, Breaking Trail: Remarkable Women of the Adirondacks.

David Hodges has played guitar and bass for more than twenty years. He has performed with bands throughout New York, Texas and Pennsylvania and recorded CDs with &#8220Mad Factory&#8221 and &#8220Evil Twin.&#8221 Hodges currently plays with &#8220Mr. Freeze,&#8221 a blues-rock band, and accompanies Sandra Weber in folk music performances.