Born: 1864
Died: 1945
Married: Keith Carr
Children: Edna Cardy; Sarah; William Leslie, known as "Les"
Emma Bowles was born in Brighton, England in 1866. At 16 she married Keith Carr of Scotland, and emigrated to New York City in 1880. When Keith developed tuberculosis in 1898, they moved to Saranac Lake, where he appeared to be cured after a year at the Adirondack Cottage Sanatorium. A relapse in 1900 brought them back to the village, staying first at 22 Bloomingdale Avenue. They moved to 104 Main Street, and Emma took in cure patients as boarders, while her husband attempted the cure himself. After his death in 1904, Emma stayed on, advised to do so for her children's sake by Dr. Edward L. Trudeau, who lived across the street at 5 Church Street.
Trudeau's friend, Dr. Edward R. Baldwin arranged for the Carrs to move to a cabin and an unfinished house at 38 Park Avenue; at the time Park Avenue was empty from the #38 all the way to Catherine Street. To increase the capacity for patients, Mrs. Carr erected tents on platforms beside the cabin.
In 1906, Emma was able to buy 38 Park Avenue for $3,800, and in 1910, she built an annex at 40 Park Avenue, that made the tents unnecessary.
The Carr Cottages developed an excellent reputation, especially for the quality of the food. From 1916 through the mid 1920s, they also provided nursing care, as Emma's daughter, Edna, completed a nursing program and helped her mother for several years.
Sources:
- Gallos, Philip L., Cure Cottages of Saranac Lake, Historic Saranac Lake, 1985. ISBN 0-9615159-0-2
