Before there was Inlet II: James Galvin and the Fulton Chain Club 

PART TWO

In July 1875, James Galvin became the founding president for the Jefferson County Union Agricultural Society, which had as one its directors Theodore Basselin of Croghan.

The society built a fairground which attracted popular county fairs held annually.

Earlier in 1875, Galvin was unanimously elected Wilna’s town supervisor and would serve six years (1875-1880).

The newspapers reported that he refused to spend any money on Election Day liquor, instead contributing money for the poor.

In 1876, Galvin contested against Samuel Garmon of Watson for superintendent of the Black River Canal, a political appointment though holders of this position managed the canal conscientiously.

Galvin served as Garmon’s deputy until the latter’s replacement in April 1877.

During the years 1879 to 1882, Watertown papers would report about Galvin’s trips to Canada for horses.

They also noted Galvin’s sales of large horses, some 1300 lbs., to Theodore Basselin for use in his lumber business.

By 1883, the Black River Canal superintendent position was divided into Sections, with James Galvin becoming Section 2 superintendent, managing the route from Boonville to Lyons Falls, including any Black River and Moose River improvements.

He assigned Forge dam tending duties to James and Charles Barrett of the Forge House in 1885 and 1886.

In July 1885, Galvin accompanied James Shanahan, superintendent of public works, to Stillwater to locate the Beaver River dam site.  Continue reading →

Everybody has stake in our country’s political goings-on

What do I know about politics? The little banner on this page, next to a goofy mug of some kid, proclaims “Politics and Other Musings.” I have had little formal training in the field, and certainly lack the expertise of any of the millions of Political Science majors in the world.

I don’t work in government. I can count the number of Congressmen and State Senators and Assemblymen that I have spoken with on one hand. I don’t even have a high school diploma! What gives me the right to try to connect politics with a public audience, albeit a small public audience?

The truth, which occasionally I like to hide from myself, is that everyone has this right. Everyone reading this column has a human brain, and a politically active mind.

Most of us have plenty of political training, as a matter of fact. Not in the form of college credits, but in the form of general life.

Harold Lasswell famously defined politics as “Who gets what, when, and how.”  His words transcend Congress. There is a stereotype of politics in the mind of America. We seem to think that politics belongs to old men wearing nice suits, sitting in front of antique wood paneling, in a big domed building in Washington DC.

Contrary to this belief, we can all relate to Lasswell’s definition. Continue reading →

Some nutritional trends to watch for in the year 2013

With the start of every year it seems we come across new nutrition trends. To follow are some of the new trends that are currently being predicted.

Gluten-free diets. The gluten-free diet is designed for people who have Celiac Disease and are gluten intolerant.

However, people without this condition have been following this diet as a means of weight loss.

The food industry has been paying attention as there seems to be gluten-free items on every shelf in the stores.

Restaurants are also offering gluten-free items on their menus.

Thanks to the gluten-free diets, ancient (or heirloom) varieties of grains are making a comeback.

These grains have become more accessible to consumers at both supermarkets and on restaurant menus.

While some ancient grains contain gluten, there are just as many that are gluten-free, including amaranth, teff, quinoa, millet, and buckwheat.

Not only do these ancient grains add variety to diet, they are also loaded with nutrients, including plant-based protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants.

Get to know these gluten-free ancient grains and their flours.

Snacking gets real! The United States has no doubt become a snacking culture.

This isn’t necessarily good if your definition of a snack means pre-packaged foods riddled with processed and artificial ingredients.

The good news is that the snacking trends for 2013 are all about making your own snacks at home using wholesome ingredients.  Continue reading →

Snow cavern construction keeps vacationing school kids busy

 The snow banks around our Lime­kiln Lake driveway had grown so large during the Christ­mas and New Year’s break of 1976/77 that my sister and I were able to make several tunnels within them.

We dug those long skinny tunnels with our own hands and the use of an old Army shovel.

We went through several pairs of wool mittens in the process—exchanging them periodically when our fingers got wet and cold.

My favorites were a pair of Air Force mittens given to me by my Uncle Bob.

I could count on them to keep my hands warmer for a longer period of time as I dug away during snow mining details.

And we could always count on our dog Mutt to assist us by doing a little digging of her own.

I can still hear her whining as she pawed away at my feet trying to get to the bottom of things.

Sometimes she was so persistent she would find the bottom of my boot and pull it right off my foot.

Then she would back her way out of the tunnel with it in her mouth and parade it around as if it was some sort of trophy. Continue reading →

Dear Neighbors and Friends,

We are delighted to share great news with our Indian Lake Theater supporters: our facility has been awarded $62,000 from New York’s Regional Economic Development Council for multiple building renovations.

Numerous projects throughout the Adirondacks and North Country received grants in a very competitive process.

Nancy Berkowitz crafted the proposal that highlights the importance of our place within the community and suggests ways to make the theater more comfortable and energy efficient for years to come. These projects are vital to our mission of operating a year-round community stage and screen.

As the new year begins we’ll tell you more about how we will launch the theater into the digital age as well as begin the work funded by the New York State grant.

We are grateful for the opportunities and looking forward to the challenges, and we are especially thankful for your continuing commitment to Indian Lake Theater.

See you at the movies!

Happy holidays,

Danielle Shaw, Ben Strader, Elizabeth Folwell, Bill Murphy, Mary Lamphear, Brenda Valentine, Pat Benton, Louis Falzerano, Ann Carroll, Harriet Barlow, Joann Quinliven

The Food Cliff: Trying to keep from rolling over

Fiscal, schmiscal, I’m facing my own cliff here, dangling precariously over the edge.

It’s a Cliff alright, and in a world where famine and hunger run rampant I am feeling the guilt of overindulgence weighing heavily—literally.

I’m a fatty fat, and not proud of it. We have no scale in this house, never have, and for that I am grateful.

No, I do not need a nasty tell-all gadget to blast me in the face with knowledge easily accessible to my waking self—I’m gaining, gaining, and gaining some more.

I adore food. I love cooking it, eating it, sharing it with friends and loved ones.

Everything about it entices me, thrills me even, and lures me out of bed each and every day, belly growling like I didn’t fall asleep with a big fat tummy full of delightfulness.

Of course, the fact that I’m primarily residing in jammie pants and sweats does not help the issue one teeny weeny little bit.

It’s winter, dammit—warm and cozy totally trumps cool and cramped.

Unfortunately the constant sink/stove activity burns zippo for calories, so for those of you gals out there trying to convince yourself that standing in one place with just your hands and arms in motion will jump start the ol’ metabolism, well, you’re just foolish. Continue reading →

Twenty-four bird species identified locally in annual Christmas Count 

White-Winged Crossbill- female. Photo by Carolyn Belknap

Well, there should be some more smiles on faces in the area with the white stuff that fell on us over the weekend.

The skiers and snowmobilers should have something to ride on hopefully until spring.

The weather forecast predicts snow for the next few days and temperatures more winter-like.

By the time you read this the fiscal cliff will either be bridged or we will have gone over it.

Not many truly know what will happen if we go over the cliff but it seems we will find out.

After the shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School there have been many debates on what should be done or could have been done to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

NRA Chief Wayne LaPierre said we should have armed guards in all our schools which would prevent this from happening again.

A conservative Republican wants the government to spend more money for these guards when we can’t support mental health clinics much less local post offices.

The NRA Chief will not consider any gun or large gun clips as any part of these actions saying the only solution is to put up a good guy with a gun against a bad guy with a gun.

I think this can be changed and hope it will be. I can’t see an armed guard standing at the door of the Inlet School and no one behind the window at the Inlet Post Office.

Our veterans who have put their lives on the line for a number of years come home and sometimes it takes over two years before they are recognized by the government they have been fighting for.

Let us spend the money where it should be spent—not on armed guards in our schools.

If everyone spoke up to their legislators we certainly would outnumber the radical gun owners. Continue reading →