Forester's Inn
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerForesters Inn was on the Indian Carry, on Coreys Road. The building had originally been located on the Raquette River, but it was moved about a mile up the carry in the late 1800s.
Potsdam Courier and Freeman, November 6, 1895
Ferris J. Meigs of the firm of Dodge, Meigs & Co., was in town last week. We believe they are going to erect a large hotel at Axton.
Potsdam Courier and Freeman, January 24, 1917
INN AT COREYS DEMOLISHED*
WAS ON STATE LAND AND HAD TO GO.
The Foresters, A Favorite Stopping Place For Lumbermen.
"Coreys in the Spring." Looking north from the Raquette River. Foresters Inn is in the center at back (undated)
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerForesters Inn, at Coreys on the Racquette, for many years a well known stopping place, for hunters and fishermen and canoeists of the Racquette river, and of lumbermen of the Ampersand and Seward forest ranges, is being demolished and its last manager, Fred Woods, is removing the building which is worth saving, to a new site which he has purchased of Mrs. Jason Vosburg, on the carry.
1905 USGS topographic map detailThere has been a stopping place there for 50 years. It was a portage in the early days, later the headquarters of a lumber company and following the lumber company came the Cornell School of Forestry. The State, purchased the land for the forestry school and later told the forestry school to move out. Since the departure of the professors and students, the house, built partly of logs and the remainder of sawed timber, has been conducted as a boarding house for the entertainment of sportsmen.
Foresters Inn is finally demolished* under the order of the Conservation Commission that all buildings be removed from State land and the State is applying its edict to itself, the same as it does to individuals. Fred Woods, who was the last manager of the property, had a lease of the buildings and had made certain improvements under the terms of the lease. In consideration of the improvements Mr. Woods made, these buildings are turned over to him and he will remove them to another site.
[* Note: As the final sentence makes clear, the Inn was not demolished at all, but was moved one mile north.]
Tupper Lake Free Press, February 8, 1934
…The Santa Clara Lumber Co., then operating extensively in the Ampersand and Cold River sectors, used Axton as a base. The large hotel conducted by the late Fred Woods was well patronized by lumbermen going to and from camps 1, 2, 3 and 4, up to Cold River and Shattuck Clearing.
In those early times it was a two-day trip to get up and back. Today the trip to Axton may be made in 26 minutes with ease, with modern autos instead of the horse-drawn vehicles in mud as obtained before state roads were established…
An early view of Axton on the Raquette River (undated)
Foresters' Inn is at left. This is not the photograph referred to in the letter.
Adirondack Daily Enterprise, March 25, 1995Tupper Lake Free Press and Herald, January 9, 1941
Editor
Free Press
Dear Sir: While reading the Free Press this morning I noted the old-time photo which I of course recognized at once. The picture was taken in 1903, I believe, although that may not be the exact date. However, I was 11 or 12 years old at the time. It was taken on the shore of what we called the "Slough" of Raquette River, at Axton. My dad was proprietor of Foresters' Inn at the time. He was the late Charles DeLancett.
The hotel was the headquarters at that time for several professors and their families and a number of students from Cornell College of Forestry in Ithaca. Some of them lived in cottages and cabins surrounding the hotel, which accommodated about 30 or 35 people.
A drawing of Foresters' Inn by a guest.
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerThe photo was taken on the occasion of a field day, a feature of which was a log-rolling contest.
The Cornell students worked in the nurseries and setting out young trees in the adjacent woods. Several times in the course of the summer they held dances and picnics or a field day, at which they staged contests of various kind for fun and recreation. They were a grand crowd of boys and the professors and their families were very nice. I was only a youngster at the time and I played with their children and had great fun with them.
We were all on the dock of the boathouse, at the left of your picture, when the photo was snapped that day. Some of the students were out on the logs, even some of the more agile and daring of the professors tried their hands at it.
Foresters' Inn was subsequently purchased and moved about halfway across the old Indian Carry. Mr. Fred Woods was the new owner. He ran the hotel at its present location for some years, and after his death his son, Ernest. took over. You'll all remember Mr. Woods and his son.
I was so pleased to see that picture, as it recalled the happiest days of my life spent at Axton, in the Inn, and on the river. I've often told that to my friends.
This may not be a very graphic account of what the old photo shows, but it is as I remember it. I might add that at least three of the professors and their families were German and could speak only a little English. One old lady, Mrs. Klemme, the mother of one of the young professors, used to teach my sister and me a few words of German in exchange for some of our English words. We liked her and used to love to listen to her trying to explain in English something which had happened to her . . It seems incredible that those nice people could be of the same nationality as Hitler and his kind!
I Really only intended to describe the picture and tell when it was taken, but I seem to have written on and on . . If possible, I'd like to have this photo back.
Sincerely
Gladys LaQuay
(Mrs. LaQuay enclosed the old photo, clipped from the Free Press, on which the location of the Boathouse, Foresters' Inn, the windmill and two cottages were lettered in)
Tupper Lake Free Press, February 8, 1934
…The Santa Clara Lumber Co., then operating extensively in the Ampersand and Cold River sectors, used Axton as a base. The large hotel conducted by the late Fred Woods was well patronized by lumbermen going to and from camps 1, 2, 3 and 4, up to Cold River and Shattuck Clearing.
In those early times it was a two-day trip to get up and back. Today the trip to Axton may be made in 26 minutes with ease, with modern autos instead of the horse-drawn vehicles in mud as obtained before state roads were established…
Tupper Lake Free Press and Herald, September 28, 1988
...The [Healing Woods Counseling] center is located in the former Axton Hotel. Originally located in Axton, it was moved to its present location at Coreys in the 1920s. Lisa and her husband, Klaus [Meissner], have renovated the former dining room of the lodge in order to provide private counseling to the community...
Foresters Inn
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerFrom an undated brochure for Foresters Inn
FORESTERS INN is at the heart of the Adirondacks. It is in the finest section of the Great North Woods for hunting and fishing. It is a convenient stopping place for those who make the ever popular canoe trips between Fulton Chain and the St. Regis or Saranac Lakes.
The Inn is located at the Raquette River end of the famous Indian Carry. This portage links together the Raquette River and the beautiful Upper Saranac Lake—a carry passing over the watershed which separates the Saranac and Raquette River systems, the height of land from which trend away the waterways to the St. Lawrence and, on the other side, to Lake Champlain.
Set in the Raquette River Valley, 1546 feet above the level of the sea, Foresters Inn lies in the shadow of the Ampersand Mountains, which rise to an altitude of 3365 feet above sea level. The cathedral heights of Mount Seward, another of the Titans of the Adirondack Plateau, border the eastern side of the valley.
"The Raquette River Valley" From the Foresters' Inn brochure.
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerForesters Inn is a delightful and convenient stopping place for those who make the ever popular boating trips through the Adirondacks. Especially is this true of the canoeist who journeys from the Fulton Chain of Lakes to the St. Regis and Saranac Lakes. From the Inn waterway trips in almost every direction are possible.
"Ampersand Mountain." From the Foresters' Inn brochure.
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerThe vacationist may put his boat in the water of the Raquette River, within a stone's throw of the Inn, and journey south through the Raquette to Long Lake, to the Raquette Lake, to Blue Mountain Lake and into the lakes of the Fulton Chain—a trip of nearly one hundred miles. It is possible to launch a boat at the Inn and proceed westward into Raquette Pond to Tupper Lake, Childwold and on down the stream to the St. Lawrence River. Or, from the Upper Saranac, at the other end of Indian Carry, the canoeist may begin his journey down the Saranac River, through the Middle and Lower Saranac Lake, to Saranac Lake Village, and thence on down the river to Lake Champlain at Plattsburgh.
The Inn commands splendid views of forested mountain and valley. Seward, Ampersand, Stony Creek, Panther and Santanoni Mountains are to be seen from the veranda and grounds. One of the most magnificent views afforded anywhere in the mountains is to be had from the summit of Seward, the trail to which is to be reached by a pleasant drive through a forest road.
In addition there are many points of interest to be seen near at hand. There are drives and walks beautiful alike to the lover of nature or to those who seek the rest and quiet of the North Woods for a few days. Boating and fishing on the Raquette River are never failing sources of diversion for vacationists.
"A Bungalow." From the Foresters' Inn brochure.
Courtesy of Lisa and Klaus MeissnerThe angler will find the keenest of delights on the trout streams near the Inn.
Ampersand Brook and Cold River are exceptionally fine waters for speckled trout, while many of the other streams which find their way from the slopes of Ampersand and Seward Mountains afford never ending days of delight for the angler who seeks sport in the North Woods. The Raquette River provides the best of black bass fishing, while in the lakes and ponds nearby are to be had lake trout.
Hunters, who make Foresters Inn their headquarters, will find the finest deer section in the Adirondacks at their doors. The valley of the Raquette affords a cover unsurpassed for this great game, while the Cold River Valley, a short distance away, is noted among the best hunting grounds in the East. The deer hunting season attracts many sportsmen to the Adirondacks. Those who hunt in the section of which Foresters Inn is the center are usually among the best satisfied at the end of the hunt. The Inn is kept open each autumn for the accommodation of hunters; for it is the most convenient point from which sportsmen can conduct successful hunting. A visit in the autumn makes it possible to secure the double pleasure of deer hunting and bass fishing. Arrangements for camping outfits and for guides may be made with the proprietor.
Foresters Inn is under the management of F. E. Woods. Friends, patrons and guests find that he is meriting their continued favor. Those who plan to remain for a time in the summer will find that Foresters Inn is a pleasant summer home, combining the quiet and freedom from intrusion of a private residence with the freedom of a large hotel. Courtesy and attention are, of course, accorded all guests.
The house is comfortably furnished throughout. The table receives the especial attention of the management. It is supplied with fresh eggs, milk, cream, butter and vegetables from the farm operated in connection with the Inn.
There is a boat and horse livery in connection, together with boat wagons for those tourists who wish to make the portage to the Upper Saranac or to other waters. There is a long distance telephone in the hotel, and there is a store for the convenience of campers and tourists.
Foresters Inn is reached by the New York Central to Tupper Lake Junction and thence by carriage over a good road; or, from July 1 to September 1, by stage and steamer, morning train only, from Saranac Inn Station.
The rates are $12 per week. For particulars, address
F. E. WOODS,
Proprietor, Coreys, N. Y.
