LOCALadk Magazine

LOCALadk 21 The Town of Long Lake comprises two hamlets, Long Lake and Raquette Lake, located in the central Adiron- dacks with a year-round population of approximately 800 people. With tourism being the main industry in town, the Parks, Recreation & Tourism Department strives to bring fresh and unique programming to the area to increase travel, business, recreation, investment, and community involvement. History of Art in Long Lake Since the 1850's when the Adirondacks started to be- come a destination for recreational pursuits, the natural beauty and ruggedness attracted artists to capture the terrain, first in painting and then later through photogra- phy. Some of America's most famous painters made the trek to the mountains to try their hand at depicting the wonders they saw, including such luminaries as A .F. Tait, Winslow Homer, and Thomas Cole, followed later by pho- tographers Seneca Ray Stoddard and Katherine McClellan. Both A .F. Tait and Thomas Cole are known to have paint- ed in the Long Lake area, with Cole's work memorialized by a plaque at the Long Lake Town Beach granted by the Pomeroy Foundation, and Tait's work often easily recog- nizable to locals with views of South Pond and other Long Lake vistas. While that is a brief history of art in Long Lake, the Parks, Recreation and Tourism Department wants to tie the past to present and focus on the future of art in Long Lake and upcoming projects scheduled for 2023. Obstacles One of the things that makes Long Lake so appealing is the difficulty it takes to reach the area. Since W.W. Du- rant first started building Great Camps and railroads in Raquette Lake, people realized that spending the extra effort and time to reach the center of the Adirondacks was well worth it, and thus still holds true for Long Lake today. It is objectively not easy to reach Long Lake, but this assures the people choosing to recreate and stay in Long Lake have explicitly chosen this area over another and I think this can be seen by the appreciation travelers, tourists, and locals have for Long Lake. The same thing that makes Long Lake such an attractive place to vacation also makes it very difficult to provide quality programming to residents and tourists. The remoteness of the area means that there are a limited number of local bands, artists are not traveling through as often as more populated areas, and without a dedicated bandshell or music venue, we do the best we can with our resources. But what the Town lacks in infrastructure and proxim- ity it makes up for with enthusiastic crowds and a pic- turesque view of the Seward Range from our stage on the Town Beach. The Parks and Recreation Department funds our concerts through grants, and support from the Long Lake Town Board and an extremely supportive local community who values the fun and camaraderie that our Music by the Lake concert series provides.

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