The St. Lawrence County Historical Association UARTERLY Volume LXVII - Number 1- SPRING 2023 Ro SUGAR BUSHES FEATURED ARTICLES ‘A Pleasant and Agreeable Sail: Ogdensburg's First Balloon Ascent History of Greater Horseshoe Lake Landscape (Part 1} ‘AAA, Low and the Horse Shoe Forestry Company‘The 2023 Quarterly is made possible by a generous gift from an anonymous donor. Publications Committee Lynne Matott cro? Lym Swafford onoging Eater) Roger Bailey Carlene N.Bermann, Dale 3. Bumett Michael G. Draper Mary llen Jones Caro! Opdyke Mary Jane Watson The SLCHA Quorteriis published Winter Sonng Suenmer a Fal ehyear bye wren Streprodvesd move the express Hitorea Assocation (Scr The Quarry. 600 each [8500 for member lus $500 fo poste. Contributions The SLCHA Quarter we wrmgng edt nage SLCKA Query rb Oalehaors QUARTERLY ‘Volume LXVII « Number 1 + SPRING 2023 ISSN: 0558-1031 Contents Welcome to our new Managing Editor, Lyn Swafford......2 From the Past, Into the Future, 3 Updates From the Archives & Museum 4 Mite! Droper ‘Pleasant and Agreeable Sal! ‘Ogdensburg's First Balloon Ascent. s Dovid Weate History of Greater Horseshoe Lake Landscape (Part i) AA, Low and the Horse Shoe Forestry Company ..8 Matthew N Themas and Mary Kundler-Larmann On The Cover ‘Thvee examples of Horse Shoe Forestry “ompany embossed glass jars and bottles with company nome and foo used for packaging maple syrup, maple suger, and courtesy of Matthew M. tomas.The History of the Greater Horseshoe Lake Landscape Part One: A.A. Low and the Horse Shoe Forestry Company bby MotthewM. Thomasand Mary Kunsier Lorman Pon amg For the south woods af St. Lawrence County, there is perhaps no other historical narrative that captures as much interest and attention as the story of ‘Abbot Augustus Low and his Horse Shoe Forestry Company! in the final decades of the 1600s, notable ‘wealthy fomilies were establishing large preserves ‘of land and Adirondack Great Camps. In contrast, St Lawrence County was witness o the development of a different grand estate. Neither @ hunting preserve Tor an elegant retreat lke the estates of Wobb, Durant, and Vanderbilt, A.A, Lows estate was the fast-daveloping creation of an inventive man of the times who did not need te make money from the enterprise ‘AA. Low was 8 wealthy Brooklyrite who, at the {um of the last century, used his enormous wealth to purchase great blocks of land around Horseshoe Lake and the Bog RWver (Figure I). He established & sprawling industry exploking forest products and built an electrified settlement for his hundreds of workers, private railroads, hydropower dams ‘sawmill, maple sugaring plants, anda private camp {or nis family (Figure 2}, A notable thread in the story ofthe Horse Shoe Forestry Company ishowit quicky sprang from the wilderness only to come crashing down following the catastrophic forest fire of 1908, However, the Horseshoe story continues well beyond the time and works of A.A. Low. in fact, following the death of AA, Low, it was his son, AA. Low. J, whe directed and enabled 2 significant portion of the ‘second chapter of the history ofthe Horseshoe landscape? ‘Arent deal has already been written about AA. Low land the Horse Shoe Forestry Company by authors ‘such as Clatk Gove, Dean, Kudish, MeMartin, Frenette ‘and others? However, inthe telling of history, there is always room for a fresh look from new perspectives Using new sources and research materials and applying new technolagies not previously avallable ‘This has been demonstrated in recent books by John Talbi and this article's co-author Matthew Thomas The objective here is to refine and deepen our understanding of the Horseshoe story, and we have {an the existing histories not as immutable truth but instead as a starting point to develop questions ‘and direct our research efforts. Most notable ‘among past works that have led us to question our lassumptions and sources of evidence is the often cted and seminal article on Horseshoe history by F. Mark Clark that was published in this journal in 1974" With that connection it seems fitting to share the updated story here. This newly expanded story of Horseshoe has been divided into two parts and \wil appear sequentially in thi journal. The fist part, appearing here, focuses on AA. Low, Sr. from the origins and progression of the Horse Shoe Forestry Company through to his death in 1312. The second part will explore the Horseshoe landscape under AA. Low, Jr. and what became of the Low estate from Tor2te the 19908, THE QUARTERLY + Dev «2025 191TOCATION OF KEY SITES INTHE GREATER HORSESHOE LANDSCAPE {CIRCA 1088-1913, Figure Locations of ros ronas and prima Oct areas atthe AA Low erate ond nus! In this article, the names of the geographic locations. of the lake and settiement of Horseshoe are spelled {5 one word consistent with mast recent naming conventions, despite the earlier names of Horse ‘Shoe Lake and Horse Shoe Pond being written 3s two words. For reference to the Horse Shoe Forestry Company, tis always written as two words folowing the formal naming of the company as designated {and traclemarked by A.A, Low ‘The Practical Philanthropist AA. Low's frst taste of the Adirondack wildernest probably came in 1858 or 1859 when, as a teenager traveling with his cousin (who later became his stepbrother} William G, Low, he visited the home of william Constable in Lewis County, From there they traveled by wagon and foot to Raquette Lake where the young Lows were treated to an impressionable ‘two weeks of hunting, fishing, and camp life” As a young man, Low made guided outings in the Independence River area with 2 guide from the Puffer family in 1869 and 1874. He and Willarn also made a European tour, 2s was traditional for young members of wealthy families for acquiring culture" AA. Low's father Ablel Abbat Low was @ founding 101 member of the Preston Pond Club at Tahawus in 1876, providing a further connection to the wilde fof northern New York? The Low family was said to hhave spent part of thelr surnmers in Lake Luzerne, traglealy documented in the record of the death of AA. Lows young son in Luzerne in 1884, Low continued his Adirondack connections with eventual purchases ofthousands of acres of remote forestlands ‘With a privileged upbringing, AA. Low was wall acquainted with the manners and formalities ‘common among those who moved in citcles of people with influence and equally great wealth, Low was described as"a man of unusual appearance and ‘great dignity of bearing and a kinaly manner that made friends for him everywhere..A commanding figure..that) dressed with care-He was formal, bbut courteous in meeting strangers, and his high standards of excellence prevailed."° There is no ‘question that by the mid-1890s, A.A. Low was a very wealthy man, just how wealthy is unclear. in 1869, when brothers AA. Low and Seth Low liquidated the company started by their father, Seth was reported to have earned $5 milion. it can be assumed that AA Low's share was similar amount t atime of no Inheritance ax and no income tax. 1901 newspaper ST.LAWRENCE COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONesd Four 3 Two men possi mes Hi Jha Re, staning ‘tangle 9 mas seem heated evaporating pon er mong ‘rape sy aon! toon eusporter patente sponser Irdua Low loge token fam Fae and Hubbard bao, The aie Sugar nau Fom BS antcle estimated A.A. Low's wealth to be as much as 540 millon, the equivalent of over a billon dollars today.” Bom and raised in the prestigious section of Brooklyn Heights, Low always maintained a strong connection to that community. n a time of no tax "write-offs" he was pereonally invalved in Brooklyn's charities and improvement institutions, providing Financial assistance and promotional support. Low ‘was once described as 9 "practical philanthropist” and was @ notably generous man, especially as ‘the primary benefactor supporting St. Michael’. Episcopal Church where he even taught Sunday school" in addition, Low was known for his efforts at ‘beautifying Brooklyn with the planting of hundreds. lof tres on the streets and making trees available to any individuals that wished to plant more A.A, Low was said to have been an unselfish man who spent money freely and took care of his workers and his ‘community. One report said, "he made an effort to keep every worthless character in the neighborhood Cf his shop employed, to keep him out of mischiet™ Lows ‘neighborhood shop" was 2 workshop he ‘maintained in the old Brooklyn Bank building. it ‘was here that he worked with hls personal team of engineers and assistants to develop his and his team's ideas and inventions. Putting his “ideas laboratory" to work, Low was prolific in his attempts to bring his and others’ ideas 1c lfe, and he had many patents tohis nameto prove THE QUARTERLY = Levis) +2023 it Interestingly, that legacy has reached mythical proportions figuratively and literally, with an often: repeated claim that "during his lifetime (he) was second only to Edison in the number of individual patente oranted."® A careful and exhaustive search ‘of patent records by rallroad historian John Taibi and this article's co-author Mary Kunzler-Larmann has foundtheclaimtobe unsubstantiated Theirresearch found 367 patents attibutable to A.A, Low (10 design patents, 306 US inventions, 23 foreign inventions, 2 labels, and 26 taademarks in comparison to the 038 Uspatente atsnbuted to Edigon.|n reality, there were ‘many other inventors with mote patents than Low In his lifetime. One list from 1900, published by the United States Patent Office, identifies the number ‘of patents awarded incividuals in rank order to that date, and A.A. Low was not even in the top Swenty™ ‘Low was what might be called a gentleman inventor ‘as well asa gentleman forester, akin toa gentleman farmer who owns and runs a farm more for pleasure ‘han for profit or success. As described by one of his patent attorneys, “Mr. Low was just the reverse of the run of ordinary inventors. He would spend xyeats in perfecting a machine, and as soon as he had it developed to the point whore it satified hirm, he dropped it as quick as he had taken it up, and there was no effort made to put the invention on the market or exploit it in any way" There is also question about how appropriate it is to ascribe the title of inventor to AA. Low He has his name f0n many patents, but i is not clear how many nor which ones were truly his invention or idea. Some ideas may have come from others, but because of his resources and his patronage, Low was able to develop some of them, resulting in his name being added to the patents. The truth probably lies somewhere In the middle, Low did come up with ‘many ideas himseft buthe also was named on other patents, both as patentee and assignee, where the original idea probably came from oneof the workers the employed and supported in his ideas laboratory Following the Brooklyn workshop model, Low continued his research and development activities at his Horseshoe operation, 2 virtual northwoods ideas laboratory, Ideas for items connected to activities at Horseshoe that he designed and patented range from sap pails and covers (US patents 658039, 1658040, 655035, 659575, 651221, 68513, USD 34539) im‘© natural wood fuel (US 660863), and even a cast Iron woed stove embossed with the logo of the Horse Shoe Forestry Company (US626828), In some ‘cases, he faciltated the invention and design of technology that was never put to use, such as a stoam-heated evaporator for making maple syrup designed by James H. Hill and John Rivet (US patents 6844262 and 687484), Low and these men did build a small prototype or model steam heat ‘eveporator that matches the patent design, but ‘there is na indication that steam heat was ever used) In the extensive manutacturing of maple syrup and sugar by the Horse Shoe Forestry Company (Figure 3) Rather, all the maple sugar houses were designed for, and used, wood-fired evaporators. Opening of Horseshoe In the yoars prior to the construction of the New York Central and Hudson River Railroad (NYC)* and ‘AA. Lows arrival and purchase of the lands around Horseshoe Lake, the woods were witness to sporadic softwood logging and visitation by hunters and sportsmen. Travel was by foot, horse and wagon ‘ver primitive tralls and roads or by canoe and ‘uide boats on the Bog River and inland lakes. Two ‘overland routes were in existence prior to Low and the coming of the railroad. The Canton to Chester Road, also called the Colton and Long Lake Road, ‘an from the southwest comer of Tupper Lake west orthwest toward Massawepie Lake and was in use i sTLaw from at least as early 25 the 1850s. This route from Tupper Lake was also used by guides and others as {an overland portage into Horseshoe Lake, avoiding ‘he alls and rapids on the lower Bog River. The other overland route was the Bog River Tote Read which ran west and south from an intersection with the Colton and Long Lake Road, southwest past Hitchins ond and westward, crossing and recrossing the og River before terminating near Goose Pand. Through the late 1800s, the region encompassing Horseshoe Lake and the Bog River was some of the most remote land in the Adirondacks and experienced limited softwood logging. Like most lands in the Adirondacks at that time, nearly al the ‘acreage in the area vias owned by lumbermen ike Moses Herrick, and FA. Weed and George W. Sisson ff the Sherman Lumber Company, in what were then the townships of Oakham and Atherton, as wel 28 the Hollis Snell Lumber Company along the 9 River Lagging was most active in the late 18805, ‘and early 1890s with the cutting of spruce and waite pine. By the time A.A. Low began to purchase lands around Horseshoe Lake, nearly three quarters of the spruce and pine had been logged off Logging generally occurred in the winter months, and logs ‘were sent down rivar in the spring when the rivers ‘were high from snow mett2 In 1092, while the NYC Railroad wes under ADIRONDACKS, LAKE VIEW INN, HORSESHOE POND’ N. ¥, Health, Hest or Pleasure, Outing in the Mountains, Scenery Tasurpassed. Good Ronting. GEO. &, DORELOW, Prey, \CE COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION-A®rsin ed rr » ee gute & view trom te raiood woeks looking west at the (elcance of AA. Low Ot Maseahoe setterant Courtesy ofthe construction, Seneca Ray Stoddard reported in the 25rctedition of his Agironclacks Illustrated guidebook that ‘a station to be called ‘Horse-Shoe Pond will be established on the new (al) road about 5 miles west of the (Tupper Lake} house, and stages will ‘un to connect with (the) trains” There is evidence to suggest that the initial stop and first Horseshoe ralitoad station may have been situated @ half mile orth of the later Horseshoe settlement, where the Colton to Long Lake aka Old Canton to Chester Road) intersected the newly laid rails. Photographs and descriptions of the original station tell us it was a simple wooden shed, 7 x 9 feet in size with {an accomparying freight ‘car parked alongside fon a ral siding with a station agent who assisted travelers and handled freight shipments (Figure 4) In addition, unpublished maps from Conners and Sewall show a cluster of buildings at this lacation north of the Horseshoe settlement, identified 2 "section houses,” a term commonly used in reference to railroad worksites” Field investigations by the authors recorded historic remains and the ‘earthen berms of multiple structures at ths lecation Research into this question is ongoing, “The NYC Rallroad began running in October of 1892 land, by the spring of 1893, a settlement along the ‘west shore of Horseshoe Lake had begun to form, ‘George Dukelow had established a simple two-story hotel called the Lake View Inn with patrons arrving ‘at a scheduled stop on the NYC Railroad (Figure 5) THE QUARTERLY + Levit? + 2028 [At this location along the shore of Horseshoe Lake, the NYC rals ran close tothe shore of the fresh andl clean, spring-fed lake, permitting the railroad to Jocate a purnp station and water tank for refreshing the steam locomotives. The clean water source was further exploited by the valload company for ice harvesting each winter beginning in 1893 or 1894 Arrival of A.A. Low Establishment of the Forest Presenwe and the State initiative to acquire lands inside the bive line prompted many welloft New Yorkers, like the ‘earlier mentioned Webb, Durant, and Vanderbilt, to purchase large tracts for the establishment of their ‘ovmn private forests and Great Camps. AS one oftheir contemporaries, Abbot Augustus Low followed their lead. AA. Low's arrival at Horseshoe began with land purchases in August and September of 1896, acquiring tile to the lands around the south and southwest shoreline of Horseshoe Lake, Additional purchases, including 10.000 acres from the Sherman, Lumber Company fer $100,000, expanded his ‘holdings to the west and south, adding portions of the Bog River, Trout Pond, and Siver Lake and its surrounding mountsine™ By March 1898, Low had ‘akon ownership of Hitehins Pond and addtional stretches of the Bog River™ AJA Low was clearly interested in somethingmorethanacampandestate in the Adirondacks as evidenced by a November 1696 article in Brookiya Life, which stated that AA Low had been especially interested in the ‘study of Foute 7 Buitings ot the Horeetoe stoma. 10g {otoge house sack bam in background rsp Mouse. 38 Court ofthe Perce Museum 13){Enge boarding uss on the la @ sma sanonte house the arborculture and forestry’ on his estate, and he was ‘now enabled to make practical experiments" on his With ownership of the cote lands of his estate secured, in the spring of 1897, Low and his engincor John Erehardt began construction of a five-mile- jong macadam road frorn Horseshoe Lake to Lows new camp on Silver Laka.® Construction began with stonework for the main buildings of the camp along with stone foundations for ice houses and barnes nearby and at the growing Horseshoe settlement. Along with the stonework, carpenters worked 10 Construct the wood framed cottages, boat house, stables, kitchen, dining room, and other buildings fof the camp on Silver Lake. AS the sole owner of the lands around Silver Lake, Low had the luxury of formally renaming the body of water Lake Marian and christening Camp Marian in henor of his wife, Marian Ward Low.” ‘By purchasing all the lands and property at and around Horseshoe Pond, Low turned his estate and the settlement of Horseshoe into a private eeserv, closed to the public. Dukelow’s Lakeview Inn for guests was closed and the hotel was remodeled a5 AA, Lows personal residence at the Horseshoe 46h settlement (Figure 6). A New York Times newspaper writer described the house az looking like the residence of a prosperous farmer or county lawyer, which, in effect. he was® To house the hundreds of men he employed, Low built @ large boarding house on the flat land behing his residence. With Dukelows departure from Horseshoe, AA. requested Dukelow's former title of Postmaster of orseshoe, a position Dukelow held from October 1896 to January 1898, Dukelov relocated to Sabatts In early 1898 where he purchased the Wilderness inn, established a guide camp on Long Pond, and tookover duties asthe Sabattis postmaster. Dukelow ater sold the Wilderness Inn in Sabatts to AA, Low in 19020: $40,000" ‘The settlement at Horseshoe saw rapid growth and: development under Low's ownership. Lowdeepened land straightened the crack alongside his residence, drying out the adjacent land, which was then cleared foruseasa pastureandgardens Tothe west, "behind" his residence, ne added a variety of farm-related structures, including a twosstory carriage barn, a jong barn for horses and cattle, nother long barn- ike structure with @ deep foundation constructed lof massive stone walls and possibly used as an ice house of warehouse (Figures 7 and 6), Tothe east of the residance, between the NYC Railroad tracks and: the shore of Horseshoe Lake, Low erected a sawmill, land waste burner, an additional boarding house of {guest residence sometimes called Low's clubhouse, 2 company office, storehouse, locomotwe engine house, and a group of separate cottages for the families of marcied workers (Figure), The Horseshoe settlement was illuminated with electric lights from. { steam powered generator or dynamo, bringing the modern convenience of electricity to the wildemess feven before it was in regular use in the nearby ‘Agirondack town of Tupper Lake. in 1899 Low built three branches of @ private narrow ‘gauge railroad extending out into the forest like spokes on a wheel with the Horseshoe settlement {a the central hub (Figure 2), Each branch of Low's railroad was given a name (Wake Robin, Grasse River, ‘Maple Valley) and the rails were used to efficiently move men, equipment, logs, maple sap and maple yup though the forest and into the Horseshoe settlement [Figure 1}, Low's railroad was centered 2 the Horseshoe settlement to access the contral SST LAWRENCE COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONTAYOUT OF HORSESHOE SETTLEMENT ‘Circa 1908 Fgure 8 Layxt of stiomant at Haweshoe, crea 968 shoving bulings ciead {rocks rood ona other fetares row Sy Mahou Me Tottoe, barns and warehouses via a large teardrop-shaped loop with other connecting spurs located paralle! to both the east and the west sides of tne NYC Railroad (Figure ). Early operation of Low's railroad saw three locomotives running on narrow gauge rails. In later years, the rails were replaced with standard width ‘racks and locomotives 1A few years later, Low had a more formal railroad station builtin the new Horseshoe settlement at his ‘own expense, replacing the NYC Railroad's wooden shed used as a depot (Figure M} According toa Now York Times article from 190), "When Mr. Low went to Horseshoe, he told the New York Central that he wanted a station. The New York Central suavoly replied after its fashion, that the aged freight car then officiating served its purpose amply. Mr. Low fa 072 ‘ic noes te Adrondackexpenance ‘Seton ar ra Yo rns 2241, ‘Filer ser Cy acreruanl hea ea pe farm te fete Shoe roesey Camporynoting tet thay had putehaee trent output of he taney and raster jm. ers ole re thoteenay ll and ab spe buter “eae Bry Goods ‘3 const aeacen bane Sarelomon Bae and Aabet ‘Rugusts Law forte ele ted loging of bar from ne REST Ge New Wan Sue Department of Ermer 2e "Sega tom AA, Low to Mair sorting geod he 3 onal afer and de spoestobe delvereato reso ‘cider 96 Cstacsoned the adondack uparanes Same by Caoee Ca The New Yok Times 2 November Sai ce bny 2000 9s Tapped Noraend News 2 Api 903.8 BE Attensa tne sate rodemaienemae 38340 ‘trough 30582 grntnn Septemoet and Ortob BOO. Offer [Sonate aftme Unt Stats Potent Ore Vo Na 8 ote Sos00) a6 986 2 Twaith Census of the Unted States, Schedule No.1 — ‘Spulation Ton of neten, Se conrenes County Sst New (Fr ch bg er Sy wana for sawing nerdwood {ope sled ty ahesin hese OU. he aor Fane, 20 Spshaving Souneaseny Porte Tognshyp Ne. 2fOaktom) ‘a Souester Sart Taran hs aterton} St cowence Sar rope ofA Lom 19 Ereehue surveyor Coleone the Foden cts oF the Depotmant of critonmentt Sarwan Cer ot agreement Bete AR ow oe SST LAWRENCE COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONLeen Sogn Sars om ses ete sa Sn a arma tts SE Secreta enw tes caareaete serra etic ea Escort eran yaaa Sets tate aoe as ears cere eg tereniaors ee Seceegeercne mye SPER ce ie men oy Eee meee camo he Sroka neuer seen des coher parecer ct Seeccrateteruemingeeaben Bee erence SERS Ay a cy Pl epson ner’ tri eh $3 tab So te Ob 2005 lk 74 Lr in "att Siete thee oemaecacesaraes Sceocene semen Sit choir beroauig ein hey ea eee nee EET coun caren eet ts BE Be me mn to tt SS ar thee ae oe Rae oi Sey tor een Seog Sa aera tne omen EBevb ne Be ton ow it arm Her SAREE na lien enor 000 BSE ac anomie son? ch ‘Burned” Courier and Freeman 30 September 1308.1 FE irtng ater teraee Segenzeentiec cae See ee ym an: ebicns Serk Be Se a tw me toes patentee SORES a etre tare Socerconaurr ne at ienereeaha tarsus oe Sehr cakes aamenons cre feat osc ot Thome ne ay SEE mocanererns THE QUARTERLY + LxvIE) +2028 $5 “Abbot Augustus Low Dead EreokIm Daly Eagle, 25 ‘SSpeemter is “Mts alteod $90000 "Dury Blames ew ‘ot Conval for avons Pex" New vse Fribune My 18S. "Bench ana Bar" Commerce) soharuse, tay TOE a Augustus au on The ho Te Cone ane Madson et Soe Secu ofthe tat wi and estore 8 apis Gm cresonn ve. ew Terk contra ona usron five ead Srpany Se tawrence County NY audgment rarer Hoy {einen Supplement Rew rk Sete pa Fovars of How Yor unos ay Sty et Paul HD West Pobishing, ota 128 Reports of Cats Once ita cout oF [Aspnle fie sate cttenvorc via asand Brosere 1251