Adirondack Hotels and Inns

Images of America: New York

by Donald R. Williams

The Adirondack region evolved over years from vast, impassable wilderness to a land of logging camps, tanneries, sawmills, and small settlements. By the end of the 19th century, the area grew again, becoming a tourist destination famed for its great hotels, quaint inns, cottages, and rustic cabins. The hotels and inns spread throughout the Adirondacks, beginning after the Civil War and continuing during the Gilded Age between World Wars I and II. The region drew the rich and famous, as well as workers and families escaping the polluted cities. This volume contains 200 vintage images of those famed accommodations that catered to years of Adirondack visitors. Most of the buildings seen in this book no longer exist, having been destroyed by fires, the wrecking ball, or simply forgotten over time. Adirondack Hotels and Inns provides a timeless look at the vacation retreats of the past.

128 pages, Paperback

First published April 9, 2008

Reviews

[Anne Brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

I guess my expectations for this book were a little off, but I was hoping for more anecdotes about what it was like to work or stay at these types of resorts, but instead it was literally just "Here's a picture of the ___ Hotel. It had x number of floors, a dining room, an orchestra, hot and cold water, electric lights, a 2 story porch, automobile service and these various activities...These people owned it until it burned down in 19xx. "

It did make me nostalgic for my drives through the Adirondacks back and forth to college, and made me want to book a vacation to one of the few resorts that remain open, but other than that there was little "meat" to it and it was a very short read.