Adirondack Daily Enterprise, June 25, 1965Covey's Mountain Lodge, also known as Covey's Cabins, was a tourist cabin business on a 160-acre parcel on the south shore of McKenzie Pond operated by Lester and Gerry Covey from the early 1960s until at least 1985.
The cabins may have been originally built to house the students of the Adirondack Summer Art School, 1900 to 1917.
In 1925, the property was bought by Frank Menzel, who operated it as Menzel's Camps, a tourist camp.
Adirondack Daily Enterprise, May 15, 1979
The board instructed Village Manager E. John Lawless to try and solve a water problem at Covey's Cabins off MacKenzie Pond Road. The village is bound by contract to supply the cabins with water, and for some reason the tourist lodging camp has had water problems for the past four years. At present it is without water.
Harry J. Schramm, groundskeeper, said, the pump and motors have broken down and been replaced. He theorized that the village lines from MacKenzie Pond may be creating a vacuum in the Covey line.
Lawless said that may be the problem, adding that Thomas Carroll, water superintendent and John Cullen, village engineer, are puzzled by the problem.
Adirondack Daily Enterprise, January 14, 1988
Fire guts Saranac Lake home
By CHRIS MELE
SARANAC LAKE - One of Covey's Cabins on McKenzie Pond Road, a structure believed to be at least 100 years old with an interior lined with birch bark, burned quickly to the ground here early this morning.
No injuries were reported in the 12:45 a.m. blaze, which gutted the two-story house within 30 minutes, said Saranac Lake fireman Richard Yorkey
Peter Bower, who rents the cabin from owners Robert and Thomas Scheefer, was awakened in the wee hours by his cat, said Thomas Scheefer. Bower heard noises downstairs and found the living room in flames. Scheefer said electrical power was out and Bower was forced to run about a mile to call firemen from Robert Scheefer's house, also on McKenzie Pond Road.
Another person who rented the cabin with Bower, Sharon Brush, was not at home at the time of the fire. Thomas Scheefer said both tenants lost all their possessions in the blaze. Scheefer said Bower is now staying with him, although he was uncertain where Brush was going to stay.
Saranac Lake firemen, supported with manpower and equipment from the Lake Placid and Paul Smiths/Gabriels fire departments, used 25,000 gallons of water to extinguish the blaze. They remained on the scene until 5:32 a.m.
Yorkey noted the building was at least 100 years old and had been lined on the inside with birch bark — two factors-that contributed to the quick burning fire. Although the cause of the fire had not been determined this morning, it is believed to have started in the fireplace, Yorkey said.
Lake Placid News, June 19, 1991
Robert and Thomas Scheefer were granted a permit for a seven lot subdivision of a 25 acre site (formerly the location of the Covey Lodge) located off the McKenzie Pond Road outside of Saranac Lake. The site is a partially cleared and grassed area with scattered trees resulting from burned and abandoned tourist facilities and golf course, according to agency documents. The North Elba Town Planning Board gave the project approval in February, 1989.
The project was consistent with park zoning and would not have any adverse impacts on the surrounding area, agency staff concluded, leading to easy approval by the Board of Commissioners.
