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The Prospect Mountain Veterans Memorial Highway is a
The parkway begins at an intersection with Routes 9 and 9N (Canada Street) in the town of Lake George. The parkway passes through a gate, heading up the base of Prospect Mountain. The route is very scenic, with trees on both sides of the road. Route 917A parallels Birch Ave., a street in Lake George. Soon after, the parkway passes over Interstate 87 (I-87, named the Adirondack Northway). The road expands to several lanes after the Northway, coming to a tollbooth. After the toll booth, the parkway begins to head up the mountain. With large heavy, stabilized rocks on both sides of the road, used as a guard rail to prevent danger (such as running off of the road), the parkway curves around the mountain, intersecting with several specialized scenic overlooks. The road curves around the several peaks of Prospect Mountain, coming to an end at the main peak at , where a view can be seen. The furthest that can be seen are the
parkway
A parkway is a landscaped thoroughfare.''"parkway."''Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. Merriam-Webster, 2002. http://unabridged.merriam-webster.com (14 Apr. 2007). The term is particularly used for a roadway in a park or ...
located in the town of Lake George, New York. The road is long, starting at the U.S. Route 9 (US 9) and New York State Route 9N (NY 9N) concurrency and ending at the peak of Prospect Mountain. Although the road is designated as New York State Route 917A, an unsigned reference route, by the New York State Department of Transportation
The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is the department of the New York state government responsible for the development and operation of highways, railroads, mass transit systems, ports, waterways and aviation facilities in ...
, all maintenance on the roadway is performed by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (informally referred to as NYSDEC, DEC, EnCon or NYSENCON) is a department of New York state government. The department guides and regulates the conservation, improvement, and protection ...
.
Route description
The parkway begins at an intersection with Routes 9 and 9N (Canada Street) in the town of Lake George. The parkway passes through a gate, heading up the base of Prospect Mountain. The route is very scenic, with trees on both sides of the road. Route 917A parallels Birch Ave., a street in Lake George. Soon after, the parkway passes over Interstate 87 (I-87, named the Adirondack Northway). The road expands to several lanes after the Northway, coming to a tollbooth. After the toll booth, the parkway begins to head up the mountain. With large heavy, stabilized rocks on both sides of the road, used as a guard rail to prevent danger (such as running off of the road), the parkway curves around the mountain, intersecting with several specialized scenic overlooks. The road curves around the several peaks of Prospect Mountain, coming to an end at the main peak at , where a view can be seen. The furthest that can be seen are the Green Mountains
The Green Mountains are a mountain range in the U.S. state of Vermont. The range runs primarily south to north and extends approximately from the border with Massachusetts to the border with Quebec, Canada. The part of the same range that is in ...
in Vermont
Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...
and the White Mountains in New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...
.
History
Prospect Mountain originally had to use an incline railway car to access the house at the top where people could dance and eat. Construction on the railway began in January 1895 and cost $120,000 total. Construction was finished six months later, with the railway opening on June 15, 1895. After failing financially, the railway system ceased operation in 1903. The area was bought and soon donated to the State of New York. The nearby hiking trail that heads up towards the mountaintop is part of the old railway. In 1932, the building at the top of the mountain burned down and was replaced by a steel fire tower. For 30 years, people studied what to do with the land, which was owned by the state, and in 1954, New York GovernorTom Dewey
Thomas Edmund Dewey (March 24, 1902 – March 16, 1971) was an American lawyer, prosecutor, and politician who served as the 47th governor of New York from 1943 to 1954. He was the Republican candidate for president in 1944 and 1948: althoug ...
signed legislation to build a highway up the mountain. Twelve years later, in 1966, then-Governor Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979), sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of t ...
made funds available for the highway. The Prospect Mountain Veterans Memorial Highway was opened in 1969, dedicated to war veterans and providing access to the summit with a view at its peak.
Major intersections
References
{{Good article Parkways in New York (state) Transport infrastructure completed in 1969 Transportation in Warren County, New York Monuments and memorials in New York (state) Toll roads in New York (state)