From an undated clipping from the Watertown Daily Times, presumably printed in 1948, introducing a series called Old Saranac Lake photographs
Old Pictures to Show History of Saranac
Beginning Wednesday The Watertown Daily Times will publish a series of pictures of old Saranac Lake illustrating various events and periods in the history of that village.
The pictures in this series were taken over a period of years by local and itinerant photographers who sought to record the life of a village from its earliest days. The names of some of these photographers have been forgotten over the years and of those who are remembered, in most cases the pictures they took can not be identified.
Most of the pictures were part of an exhibit displayed by the Adirondack National Bank and Trust company last year. The pictures were loaned by that institution, by E. L. Gray and company, Seaver A. Miller, and the Kollecker Gift shop. The photographers who are accredited with most of the pictures are George Baldwin, Charles Kollecker [sic, see William Kollecker] and William Distin.
A great part of the information that was used to identify the various photographs and supply the captions was gleaned from the excellent memories of Justice Frank E. Sheldon, Matthew M. Munn town clerk of Harrietstown and Ernest Sheldon, a photographer in the employ of the E. L. Gray company.
The pictures trace Saranac Lake from its earliest days when it was a center for Adirondack logging activities and when it was populated by a handful of people and boasted of two hotels and stage coach stop.
More photographs from the series can be found at
