When inspiration strikes, the North Elba Historical Society writes a piece digging into a facet of the history of the Town of North Elba. You can generally find these commentaries posted below and in the Lake Placid News.
Victor Herbert’s Victrola
December 5, 2018 by: Courtney Bastian and Parmelee Tolkan Victor Herbert’s Victrola is donated to the Historical Society This autumn the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society received the unique donation of Victor Herbert’s personal Victrola from a long time seasonal resident. Victor Herbert (1859-1924) was one of the leading composers of his era. He wrote more than 40 operettas, including “The Red Mill,” “Naughty Marietta” and “Babes in Toyland”. This Christmas-themed musical features the vocal piece, “Toyland” and the instrumental piece “March of the Toys”. Beginning in the 1890’s, Victor Herbert and his family were long time summer residents [...]
Found in the archives
October 29, 2018 by: Parmelee Tolkan, President of the Board of Trustees Found in the Archives by the Lake Placid/North Elba Historical Society The arrival of autumn for the History Museum means turning off its lights, boarding up windows, and bunkering down for the long and cold winter season. But just because the museum is not open does not mean work and research halts. This past week our curiosity overtook and we began browsing through old archives and artifacts. We stumbled upon a photo negative with eighteen young men wearing suit and ties sitting atop steps. In pencil is [...]
Women’s Rights Artifacts Donated to the Lake Placid/North Elba Historical Society
September 10, 2018 by: Courtney Bastian Women’s Rights Artifacts Donated to the Lake Placid/North Elba Historical Society The Historical Society’s newest exhibit, Suffrage Centennial: Women’s Place in Society has caused two community members to come forward and donate relevant artifacts. The new objects add yet more color to the exhibit and are now on display at the museum. One object recently brought in is a large board that has pages of a petition from 1917 glued to it. The petition says: “I, the undersigned, believe that the Vote should be given to the Women of New York State.” There [...]
Lake Placid History in Poems
This year the Lake Placid-North Elba Historical Society is celebrating the 50th anniversary of Frances and Louise Brewster’s gift of the train station. This gift has given the Society the opportunity to preserve and present the community’s history to residents and visitors. The Society has been writing and publishing newsletters for members just as long. In the summer 1968 edition, Mary MacKenzie, who was the editor of the Placid Pioneer, wrote a small piece about two different poems that were inspired by our town and its beauty. In each poem, you can envision the locations that gave the authors so [...]
Lake Placid on the Silver Screen
By: Carla Eilo Lake Placid may be quite a distance from Hollywood, but it played a part in early movie history. The snow, winter sports, and mountains made the storylines come to life. When filming was done in town, it often made the front page of the newspapers. All of the films listed below were silent movies, except for the last one, Dangerous Nan McGrew. Here is a peek into our Hollywood past. Janice Meredith 1924 This film was based on a book and play titled, “The Beautiful Rebel.” Set in the countryside of New Jersey during the [...]
Home Economics History
The words "home economics" may bring back memories of classes in high school where groups would hover around sewing machines or several little kitchens, learning the basics of household skills. I know I have a few memories myself of poorly sewn pot holders and over cooked apple pies. Did you know Lake Placid plays a part in home economics history? One of the first people noted to dedicate their lives to the domestic science was Catherine Beecher. Beecher was the sister of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" fame, Harriet Beecher Stowe. Having grown up in a religious family who valued education, Stowe [...]