Little Red, in its forth location, at Trudeau Sanatorium, c. 1938. From Richard H. Ray's memoir, Saranac 1937-1940 The original site of the Trudeau Statue on the grounds of Trudeau Sanatorium. Trudeau Cottage stands at right. c. 1920s. Courtesy of Lynn Newman. Lost Buildings at Trudeau Sanatorium

In addition to the Trudeau Sanatorium buildings that were extant at the time of the nomination to the National Register of Historic Places, there had previously been many other buildings on the sanatorium property that were torn down, either during the operations of the sanatorium itself, or later, by the American Management Association, which bought the property in 1957. Only one building, the Open Air Pavilion, burned. Some of these buildings were known under more than one name, such as Jenks Cottage AKA "Little Red." Minturn Cottage is extant, the oldest sanatorium building on the AMA property; its name was changed to Trudeau Cottage with no explanation for the change.

Two structures were moved from the sanatorium property and relocated in 1964 to the new Trudeau Institute as memorials, where they can still be seen today:

Eighteen of the first patient cottages and the original wooden laundry building were built by 1894. None of the latter group survives.

Cottage Notes
Asiel Cottage  
Childs Memorial Infirmary  
Cooper Cottage Same as Sunshine Cottage, 1887. Removed to build Anderson Cottage on its site.
Dodge Cottage  
Gardner Pavilion Believed to be an addition to Childs Infirmary. No photos of it are known.
Arthur and Susan Gillender Memorial Cottage  
Little Green Cottage Same as Reid-Folger Cottage, 1886: torn down during sanatorium operations.
Hall Cottage Became Hall Infirmary and then Hall Cottage again. This Hall Cottage is not the same as the Hall Cottage, cure cottage of the same name in the village.
Hoffman Cottage  
Kerbs I  
Kerbs II  
Lea Cottage 1887, where Norman Bethune painted his murals: torn down during sanatorium operations.
Liberty Camp  
Loomis Cottage  
Main Building Built in 1884-5. Torn down and replaced in 1896.
McAlpin Cottage Torn down during sanatorium operations
Mellon Library Torn down in 2005 by AMA.
D. Ogden Mills Training School for Nurses First this wooden building; then the Reid Nurses Home was built and attached to it; then Mills was torn down; then Reid was torn down.
Moore Cottage  
Nathan Cottage  
Open Air Pavilion Burned, and replaced by the Recreation Pavilion.
Penfold Cottage  
Pine Cottage Same as Pohemus Cottage, 1886; torn down during sanatorium operations and Ladd Cottage built on its site.
Polhemus Cottage Same as Pine Cottage, 1886; torn down during sanatorium operations and Ladd Cottage built on its site.
Reid Nurses Home Torn down in 2005 by AMA
Reid-Folger Cottage Same as Little Green Cottage, 1886: torn down during sanatorium operations, c. 1909.
Resident Physician's House  
Richardson Cottage  
Rosenfeld Cottage  
Schiff Cottage  
Service Cottages  
Spruce Cottage Same as Stokes Cottage; torn down during sanatorium operations.
Stokes Cottage Same as Spruce Cottage; torn down during sanatorium operations.
Straus Cottage Moved during sanatorium operations to become Radiographer's Cottage
Sunshine Cottage Same as Cooper Cottage, 1887. Removed to build Anderson Cottage on its site.
Twilight Camp  
Wheeler Cottage  
Women's Service Building  

Adirondack Daily Enterprise, September 30, 2005

AMA to demolish three old buildings

By ANDY BATES, Enterprise Staff Writer

SARANAC LAKE - Two historic buildings on American Management Association's Saranac Lake campus are set to be torn down as part of an ongoing improvement project, according to AMA officials based in New York City.

The campus was originally known as the Trudeau Sanatorium, but it has been under AMA's care for nearly half a century.

According to AMA Public Relations Manager Roger Kelleher, "As part of a campus improvement project, AMA has begun removing three buildings that have been deemed irreparable."

Of those three buildings, the library and the Reid building (formerly the nurses' residence building) were part of the Sanatorium' and are both listed on the National Register of Historic Places, according to Historic Saranac Lake Director Mary Hotaling. The other building slated for removal is the CS3 building, which AMA primarily used as a call center, according to Kelleher.

Kelleher added that the project also includes the renovation of other buildings, one of which is the historic chapel, also listed on the national register, and two more modern buildings on the campus.

"I know they've been in bad condition for some time," Hotaling said Thursday, adding that she feels Historic Saranac Lake could have been used more as a consultant for the project.

Hotaling said these two buildings are not the only historic buildings on the campus to have met the same fate. At the time of AMA's purchase of the campus, Hotaling estimated that there were approximately 50 buildings. Over time, that number has been almost cut in half.

"Of course, these are historic buildings, and they're part of the fabric of Saranac Lake," Hotaling said in response to their pending demolition. "When they're torn down, we lose the ability to show people what it was like here, and we also lose the ability to interpret that history ourselves.

"But it's also a case of what one can afford to restore," Hotaling recognized.

She added that she would have liked the opportunity to partner with AMA before the decision had been made to brainstorm possible ways in which to save the buildings. AMA is a nonprofit, membership-based association that provides management development and educational services to individuals, companies and government agencies worldwide.

Lake Placid News, July 30, 1915

J. J. O'Connell has been awarded the contract for the construction of an infirmary for the employees of the Adirondack Cottage sanitarium. The building is a gift of E. B. Gardner, of Troy.

 

 

1899 Sanborn map of the Adirondack Cottage Sanitarium. The 1895 Sanborn does not include the Sanitarium. 1903 Sanborn map of the Adirondack Cottage Sanitarium.

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