News

1922 Centennial

Evolution of the Adirondacks High Peaks Wilderness

The Adirondack History Museum of Elizabethtown, August 6, 2022

2022 marks the centennial of three historic events that ignited public interest in exploring the Adirondack wilderness and climbing the “46” high peaks: formation of Adirondack Mountain Club, publication of Robert Marshall’s High Peaks of the Adirondacks, and Grace Hudowalski’s first ascent of Mount Marcy.

The Adirondack History Museum of Elizabethtown, in partnership with ADK and the Adirondack 46ers, will host a Centennial Celebration August 6th. The event is underwritten by a grant from the Trust and will include a screening of The Mountains Will Wait For You, lectures about the lumbering and fires in the early 20th century, early trails and the use of guides, a retrospective of significant developments in the history of ADK, a social hour following the lectures, musical selections by Peggy Lynn and Dan Duggan and a reception recognizing and celebrating ADK’s historic centennial.

To promote public understanding of this unique aspect of Adirondack history, the Grace Hudowalski Charitable Trust is republishing Marshall’s pamphlet, a precursor to ADK trail guides and a significant part of NY State’s cultural heritage, with an introduction guiding readers through significant events that followed the original publication.

Schedule

Speakers

Sharp Swan (The High Peaks a Century Ago) is a long time Adirondack resident being affiliated with Pok-O-MacCready Camps, which was founded in 1905 by his great-grandfather.  Sharp founded Cloudsplitter Construction in 1989 and spends as much free time as possible hiking in High Peaks. Sharp graduated from Westminster College in Fulton, Missouri with a history degree and a passion for the American Civil War.   He has spent a substantial amount of time during the past twenty years in the Seward Range looking for the last vestiges of the Santa Clara Lumber Company (1889-1926) and serves on the board of the Adirondack History Museum in Elizabethtown, New York.

Tony Goodwin (Building the Trails and Making Them Known). Born in 1949 and raised in Hartford, Connecticut, Tony spent every summer in Keene Valley. He finished the 46 at age 11, and then worked seasonally at Johns Brook Lodge (1966-1968), and as Adirondack Mountain Club “Ridge Runner” (1974), and chief of the ADK’s first professional trail crew in 1979. Tony graduated from Williams College 1971 with a BA in History and Plattsburgh State College in 1980 with an MA in History.  He worked for the Lake Placid Olympic Organizing Committee as Venue Manager at Cross-Country and Biathlon 10/79 – 4/80 and as manager of Mt. Van Hoevenberg Cross-Country and Biathlon Area from 1981 to 1985. Tony served as Executive Director of Adirondack Trail Improvement Society 1986 until retirement in September 2021.  Tony is founder and Executive Director of the Adirondack Ski Touring Council (now Bark Eater Trails Alliance – BETA) 1986 to 2014., editor of the Adirondack Mountain Club’s High Peaks Guide through five editions since 1985: 11th Edition (1985); 12th Edition (1992); 13th Edition (2004), 14th Edition (2021), and 15th Edition (2021) and author of three guides to cross-country skiing: Northern Adirondack Ski Tours (1982), Classic Adirondack Ski Tours (1994), and Ski and Snowshoe Trails in the Adirondacks (2003) with a new edition of the latter due out before next winter.

He served on the Citizens Advisory Committee to the High Peaks Wilderness Unit Management Plan 1990-1992.

Bethany Garretson (Healing and Empowerment in the High Peaks) is an Environmental Studies and Recreation Instructor at Paul Smith’s College and Clarkson University in upstate New York. She’s a passionate mountain athlete and accomplished writer, and has been published by Outside, Alpinist, and Trail Runner Magazine. In 2020, she made history with Katie Rhodes, when they climbed all 46 High Peaks in the Adirondack Mountains unsupported, becoming the first women to do so. She is a Brand Ambassador for SheJumps, a non-profit that advocates for women and girls to get outside and recreate.

Julia Goren (ADK at 100 and the future of ADK) is Deputy Executive Director of the Adirondack Mountain Club and has previously been ADK’s Education Director and Summit Steward Coordinator. She is a co-author of the Adirondack Council’s VISION 2050 project and was Director of that project. She is president of the board of Northern Lights School in Saranac Lake, a Steering Committee member of the Adirondack Community Recreation Alliance, and a former board member of the Adirondack 46ers and Waterman Alpine Stewardship Fund.

Register

The Centennial event is open to the public free of charge (donations are always welcome). Seating for the lecture series (9:30 AM to 4:00 PM) is limited to 125 persons. We will have seating for an additional 125 attendees for the reception.