James Wardner's Story of How Brighton Got Its Name, by his son, Charles Wardner
Not long after my return to Rainbow, Paul Smith come over to see me and talk over new plan he was working on to secure a second division of the Town of Duane. This vast political division of Franklin County originally extended from the village of Saranac Lake nearly to the village of Malone. All of the town meetings for Duane were held in Duane Center, usually in the school house, but sometimes in the dining room of the Yellow Tavern. Voters in the southern part of the township were obliged to spend an entire day or hard travelling each way in order to attend a meeting.
Captain Pliny Miller of Saranac Lake became tired of driving his team of horses over the thirty miles of rough woods road, some of the way hub deep in mud or bumping over rough corduroy, in order to attend town meetings. He decided to bring the town meeting nearer home. Accordingly he influenced all his neighbors to attend the next meeting in a body. They came from miles around and voted to change the place for the next meeting.
At a meeting in 1840 a sufficient number responded to Captain Miller's urging to force a resolution to hold the next meeting at Saranac Lake. This was a complete surprise to Major Duane, the town supervisor. He had been caught napping. For years all town affairs had gone just as he dictated. No one had ever before dared to oppose his political desires. They knew he would retaliate in some way, but were wholly unprepared for the turn his pique actually did take.
At the next town meeting Major Duane gathered his followers and forced a partition of the Town of Duane. At the time he did not realize what this would mean in loss of revenue to the town. He said he did it to prevent being obliged to drive thirty miles to any more meetings held at Saranac Lake.
On March 31st, 1841, the southern section was formally established and named for Major Duane's wife, Harriet — Mrs. Duane was the eldest daughter of William Constable, another early pioneer, for whom a town east of Malone was named. The remaining part of the TOWN of Duane covered a large territory and extended to within a few miles of Saranac Lake. As farms were developed along the Military Road and lumbering operations grew, the inhabitants of this section increased in numbers. The same old political unrest existed.
The taxpayers in our part or the township complained bitterly that the tax money was used almost exclusively on roads and other improvements in northern part, chiefly around Duane Center, neglecting the southern half. The population was sufficient to make two towns, but every time we brought it up at town meetings Major Duane would muster sufficient votes to defeat our efforts.
Paul Smith had succeeded in getting the lumbering company of Keese & Tomlinson interested in building a road across the big marsh from Bloomingdale to connect with the Military Road near Ricketson Brook at the foot of Harrietstown Hill. Paul Smith was quite visibly excited as he came over to see me that afternoon. He would not tell me what was on his mind until we were by ourselves.
"Jim," he said, "I have a sure fire scheme to get the town divided this time as it should be. You take the contract to build the new Bloomingdale road and hire all the voters in the Town of Duane you can. I am taking a big lumbering job and I'll hire Duane voters. When it comes town meeting time we will quietly tell the boys to vote for the division if they want to hold their jobs."
"Your plan certainly is a bright one," I told him. "I am sure it will work like magic."
Both of us did as we agreed. We gave each man time off with pay to go and vote, but told them that the partition measure must succeed in order to have the work continue. To Major Duane's great surprise our plan met with success. We had a substantial margin of votes.
Next came the question of what we should name the new division. No one seemed able to offer a good or acceptable name. I drove over to see my friend Paul Smith and see what ha had to offer. I found that worthy sitting on the veranda smoking the inevitable cigar and watching some sportsmen and guides shooting at a mark. I asked him to suggest a name for the new town.
"Jim, when I first told you about my plan you called it a 'bright one'. Now that suggests a good name," Paul said. Taking an envelope out of his pocket, he wrote the words on the back of it. Then scratching out the final letter "e", he sat and looked at it.
"There you have it," he continued, handing the envelope to me. "That is also the name of the place in England from which my people came. I think Brighton will be a good name".
Everyone agreed with Paul. Accordingly in November 1853 the Town of Brighton was formally set aside from the Town of Duane and received the name as suggested by Paul Smith. I was elected as the first supervisor of the town and held that office for thirty-five years.
THE TOWN OF BRIGHTON
The Town of Brighton is located in south-central Franklin County within the Adirondack Park. Its average elevation is 1,620 feet with Star Mt., Sable Mts., Jenkins Mt., Jones Hill, and Buck Hill all over 2000 feet. Most of the land is forested, much of the rest is water with the St. Regis Lakes, Spectacle Ponds, Black Pond, Long Pond, Osgood Pond, Church Pond, Rainbow Lake, Jones Pond, Mountain Pond, Barnum Pond, Forestmere Lakes, Rice Lake, and Slush Pond. It has 2 state highways, Rte. 86 and Rte. 30, and 5 communities: Gabriels/Split Rock, Paul Smiths/Easy Street, Keeses Mills, McColloms, and Rainbow Lake.
How Brighton got started: In 1805 the Town of Malone was established. In 1808 Franklin County was formed from part of Clinton County. By 1828 the Town of Duane, which included Malone, was established. In 1858 the Town of Brighton was set off from Duane and included also part of Fowler. Around 1815 to 1820 early settlers in what would later be Brighton came mostly to log and lumber, hunt, fish, farm and begin to run resorts. Some of these earliest settlers were Samuel Johnson, Amos and Levi Rice and Moses Follensby. In 1851 Oliver Keese and Thomas Tomlinson started a lumber mill. In 1855 James Wardner came to hunt, then to farm, and finally to run a sportsmen's resort in Rainbow Lake. In 1858 the Town of Brighton was established, with James Wardner the first Supervisor. One year later, in 1859, Paul Smith, with his wife Lydia Martin, opened their hotel on Lower St. Regis Lake. This was later to become a world renowned hotel.
How Brighton Grew: By 1860 the town population was 208. In 1867 the first school opened, with only three students. By 1871 there were three schools, though by 1870 the population was only 204. In 1873 Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau had come to Paul Smith's Hotel expecting to die of TB but instead, began his eventual recovery, leading later to the establishment of Trudeau Sanitorium in Saranac Lake. By 1875 the Brighton population had grown to 247. There were then 48 dwellings, 27 farms, and 4 schools with 71 students. In 1877 St. John's in the Wilderness Episcopal Church was built. By 1880 Paul Smith's Hotel accommodated 300 guests; by 1890, 500 guests. Many men found work by guiding these guests over the years, earning a good living and building nice houses for themselves on "Easy Street" as it is still called.
Brighton in the 1890's: The 1890 population had grown to 500. By now many great camps had been built on the St. Regis Lakes by Paul Smith's guests, including Wild Air by the Reid family. The Leavitt, Hobart, and Martin farms were begun and they became known for growing seed potatoes. McColloms Hotel opened, and railroad service began to Gabriels and Rainbow Lake. In 1895 the cornerstone for the Sisters of Mercy's Gabriels TB Sanitorium was laid and the first patients were admitted in 1897.
1900 - 1910: A new school was built in Gabriels, the Grange #106 was organized, the Sisters of Mercy bought a farm for the Sanitorium, White Pine Camp on Osgood pond was built in 1908. Paul Smith's Railroad from the hotel to Lake Clear Junction began. Rainbow Lake TB Sanitorium opened. Gabriels now included: Gabriels sanitorium, 2 stores, a small hotel, a blacksmith, a railroad station, and a garage.
1910 - 1920: The population in 1915 was 741. The town supervisor, clerk and highway superintendent were paid for the first time. Thirty-three men and two women served in WWI. The town received a lot from Phelps Smith (Paul's son) for a town hall which was designed and built in 1914 by master builder Ben Muncil, who also built Topridge, White Pine Camp, churches and homes in Brighton, The town hall is now on the National Register of Historic Places. John Burroughs, Thomas Edison and Harvey Firestone toured through Brighton.
1920 -1930: US President Calvin Coolidge held "the summer white house" at White Pine Camp in 1926. Popular, generous Bert LaFountain ran a speakeasy in his home during prohibition. Marjorie Merriweather Post and E.F. Hutton bought a camp and had Ben Muncil remake it into Camp Topridge. Muncil also built Gabriels Catholic church, and Northbrook Lodge on Osgood Pond and its farm, later called Asplin, now Moody's. Famous architect John Russell Pope (Jefferson Memorial) designed three buildings for Gabriels Sanitorium. St. John's in the Wilderness log church burned and was replaced with the stone church which still exists.
1930 - 1940: Paul Smith's Hotel burned. A new Grange Hall was built. A Civilian Conservation Corps Camp, "S-60" was established at Barnum Pond. Its members fought the great Bay Pond fire. Rainbow Sanatorium closed. Paul Smith's College was chartered in 1937 as the successor to the hotel.
1940 -1950: 108 served in WWII, of which four were women; eight die. The Civilian Conservation Corps Camp S-60 closed in 1942. By 1946 Paul Smith's College had 150 students. The Brighton Blues Baseball Team played at night with new lights.
1950 -1960: Camp Regis/Applejack was only one of 4 children's camps left. There were four known participants in the Korean War. Railroad service to Gabriels and Rainbow Lake stopped. Northbrook Lodge on Osgood Pond opened as a resort.
1960 -1970: The 1960 population was 1,092. Paul Smith's College bought the Hotel Saranac. The old Smith Hotel Cottage at the college burned down. Brighton schools closed; students were bussed to Saranac Lake from then on. Gabriels Sanitorium closed; Paul Smith's College took possession of the buildings. At least two were killed in the Vietnam war; the list may not be complete.
1970 -1980: The 1970 population was 1,473. The Gabriels post office was robbed and burned. White Pine Camp was sold, restoration begun, and it opened for resort guests. Its centennial celebration will be August 10, 2008, open to the public. Paul Smith/Gabriels Volunteer Fire Department established. Brighton Seniors Club established. 3 stores closed.
1980 -1990: Ted's "Mall" grocery opened. Paul Smith's College sells the Gabriels San to New York State for a minimum security prison, and leased 2,885 acres to the state for the establishment of a Visitor Interpretive Center.
1990 - 2000: Brighton Seniors Club donated funds for a picnic pavilion in the town park. The first Brighton History Day was held at the town hall. A stone with plaque honoring the CCC S-60 camp was placed near Barnum Pond. Paul Smith's College started a 4 year college program. St. Gabriels Catholic church and the St. Regis Presbyterian Church held their 100th anniversaries. Baker, Glover, and Harriman cottages, original Paul Smith's Hotel cottages and now at the college, were added to the National Register of Historic Places. With grants from the NY State Council on the Arts and others, a book, disk, photos and paintings called the Brighton 2000 Project was created as a record of the town in the millennium year.
2000 - 2010: The population in 2000 was 1,682, including 363 prison inmates, 535 college students, 784 residents. There are three farms left: Tucker's potato farm, Leavitt's growing grains & hay, and Moody's raising Christmas trees, cattle, pigs, and horses. Most folks living here year round gain a living elsewhere or in small home based businesses. Some are retired, some of these moved here upon retirement. Two church congregations are still active, two have closed. Paul Smith's College has recently added a new library and student center thanks to Joan and Sandy Weill grants. The Visitor Interpretive Center still draws many people. Brighton now has two stores and four restaurants.
Brighton History Days have been held one weekend each summer since 1994, sponsored by the Brighton Architectural Heritage Committee.
