I just got word that my new book, Historic Tales from the Adirondack Almanack, should be available for purchase in mid-July; it’s being published by The History Press.

Over the past four years I’ve tried to offer a look at the modern Adirondack Park that includes historical context to today’s political, cultural, and economic news and trends. For example, when mining accidents made national news, I wrote about the mining accidents that occurred in the Adirondack region with regular frequency in the 19th and 20th centuries. When the excursion boat Ethan Allen sank in October 2005, I wrote about similar accidents on Lake George that had also taken a large number of lives. When debate raged over allowing floatplanes to continue to land on Lows Lake, I wrote a short history of development there. Local events, places, and attitudes have been source of fodder for Adirondack Almanack’s historical cannon.

Bank robberies, the Ku Klux Klan, snowmobiling, gambling, railroads, buried treasure, raising hops, rattlesnakes and earthquakes are just a few of things that inspired historical pieces about the Adirondack Park. They are all collected here, with a few whimsical historical explorations thrown in for good measure. These essays were meant to be glimpses of history, short pieces on context, not usually complete historical narratives – although a five-part history of snowmobiling in the Adirondacks may be an exception. I’ve edited them lightly trying to preserve their character while translating them from the internet page to printed page.

Thanks are due to the many readers of Adirondack Almanack, many of whom provided feedback and encouragement when these stories were first posted. I hope you’ll find the new book worthwhile. I will post information about how to get a copy in the coming weeks along with some events that are being scheduled around the book.