William Lincoln Coulter (1865–1907) was an American architect who came to Saranac Lake, New York, in the spring of 1896 in an effort to cure his tuberculosis, and stayed to design some of the finest Adirondack Great Camps and Cure Cottages in the area. Among the camps he designed were Knollwood Club,

Camp Eagle Island Eagle Island Camp, also known as Camp Eagle Island or simply EIC, is a youth summer camp and former Girl Scout camp located on Eagle Island on Upper Saranac Lake in New York's Adirondack region. The site is listed on the National Register of His ...

and Prospect Point Camp; Camp Eagle Island has been designated a US National Historic Landmark. In Saranac Lake, in 1903, he designed a house at 147 Park Avenue for Thomas Bailey Aldrich, editor of the ''

Atlantic Monthly ''The Atlantic'' is an American magazine and multi-platform publisher. It features articles in the fields of politics, foreign affairs, business and the economy, culture and the arts, technology, and science. It was founded in 1857 in Boston, ...

'', that wits dubbed "The Porcupine" because it had so many fine points and belonged to a "quill pusher". He also designed the Coulter Cottage, built between 1897 and 1899. Coulter was born in

Norwich, Connecticut Norwich ( ) (also called "The Rose of New England") is a city in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The Yantic, Shetucket, and Quinebaug Rivers flow into the city and form its harbor, from which the Thames River flows south to Long ...

, to William and Hanna Coulter. He worked in an architect's office in New York City starting at 16, while a night student at

Cooper Institute The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art (Cooper Union) is a private college at Cooper Square in New York City. Peter Cooper founded the institution in 1859 after learning about the government-supported École Polytechnique in ...

. When he arrived in Saranac Lake in 1896, he had fifteen years experience in architectural work. His firm sent him north for his health and to help James Aspinwall, nephew of Dr.

Edward L. Trudeau Edward Livingston Trudeau (5 October 1848 – 15 November 1915) was an American physician who established the Adirondack Cottage Sanitarium at Saranac Lake for treatment of tuberculosis. Dr. Trudeau also established the Saranac Laboratory for ...

, design additions to the

Adirondack Cottage Sanitorium The Adirondack Cottage Sanitarium was a tuberculosis sanatorium established in Saranac Lake, New York in 1885 by Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau. After Trudeau's death in 1915, the institution's name was changed to the Trudeau Sanatorium, followin ...

that Trudeau had started in 1884. Within five years, he was working on Swiss chalet style Moss Ledge and rustic

Camp Pinebrook Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to desc ...

on Upper Saranac Lake, the latter for New York Governor Levi P. Morton, and Knollwood Club on Lower Saranac Lake. According to a 1900 newspaper account, his plans had generated more than $600,000 worth of work and kept an "army of workmen" busy. In 1902, he hired

Max H. Westhoff Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (English Springer Spaniel), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of OBE) * Max (gorilla) ( ...

, an experienced architect who soon became his partner. With Westhoff, he produced a number of homes in Saranac Lake and lake camps in the Adirondacks along with two in New Hampshire; he also worked on additions to Paul Smith's Hotel and the Lake Placid Club. Prospect Point Camp, on Upper Saranac Lake, was built for Adolph Lewisohn, for whom they also designed a house in Ardsley and another dwelling in the city.

Sources

*Gallos, Phillip L., ''Cure Cottages of Saranac Lake'',

Historic Saranac Lake Historic Saranac Lake is a non-profit, membership organization dedicated to the preservation of the history and architectural heritage of the Saranac Lake area of New York State in the Adirondacks. History Founded on 15 January 1980, the organ ...

, 1985, . *Gilborn, Craig. ''Adirondack Camps: Homes Away from Home, 1850-1950''. Blue Mountain Lake, NY: Adirondack Museum; Syracuse: Syracuse University Press, 2000. 19th-century American architects Rustic style architects Adirondack Great Camps 1865 births 1907 deaths People from Saranac Lake, New York {{US-architect-stub