Schroon ( ) is a

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

in the

Adirondack Park The Adirondack Park is a park in northeastern New York (state), New York protecting the Adirondack Mountains. The park was established in 1892 for "the free use of all the people for their health and pleasure", and for watershed protection. At , ...

, in Essex County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. The population was 1,880 at the 2020 census. The largest community in the town is the

hamlet ''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a Shakespearean tragedy, tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play. Set in Denmark, the play (the ...

of Schroon Lake, located at the northern end of the lake of the same name. The Town of Schroon is in the southern part of Essex County. The town contains two lakes: the northern two-thirds of Schroon Lake, and Paradox Lake. The two lakes are connected by the

Schroon River The Schroon River ( ) is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River in the southern Adirondack Mountains of New York, beginning at th ...

, a southward-flowing tributary of the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

History

The Town of Schroon was first settled by Europeans in 1804 from part of the Town of Crown Point, north of the current Schroon Lake hamlet, as part of France's colonial holdings south of Quebec. The town was partitioned to form the newer Town of

Minerva Minerva (; ; ) is the Roman goddess of wisdom, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy. She is also a goddess of warfare, though with a focus on strategic warfare, rather than the violence of gods such as Mars. Be ...

in 1817. In 1840, part of Schroon was returned to Crown Point. As with other towns of Essex County, the early economy was heavily involved in

lumber Lumber is wood that has been processed into uniform and useful sizes (dimensional lumber), including beams and planks or boards. Lumber is mainly used for construction framing, as well as finishing (floors, wall panels, window frames). ...

production. The origination of the name "Schroon" is not precisely known. Some believe it to be derived from a Native American word for "large lake". Others believe it devolved from French soldiers who inhabited the region during the French & Indian Wars. The soldiers were enamored with Madame Scarron (a popular paramour of French King

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

and prior to that the wife of noted French poet/playwright

Paul Scarron Paul Scarron (; – 6 October 1660) (a.k.a. Monsieur Scarron) was a French poet, dramatist, and novelist, born in Paris. Though his precise birth date is unknown, he was baptized on 4 July 1610. Scarron was the first husband of Françoise d'A ...

). In the late 1800s the Village of Schroon became a destination for wealthy families from the NY Metropolitan area. Their trip started in New York City by rail to the town of Riverside, then a stagecoach to Pottersville, and finally aboard a steamer that traveled up the lake to the Village. By 1915, after the introduction of automobiles, people from the cities were flocking to the Schroon Lake region. Capitalizing on this booming tourist trade, grand resorts such as Taylor's on Schroon (later Scaroon Manor), the Leland House and the Brown Swan – along with a number of Adirondack Style Lodges – made Schroon Lake a premier summer vacation spot. Schroon Lake by canoe

Prior to the construction of the

Adirondack Northway Interstate 87 (I-87) is a north–south Interstate Highway located entirely within the US state of New York. I-87 is the main highway that connects New York City and Montreal. The highway begins at exit 47 off I-278 in the New Yor ...

( Interstate 87), US Route 9 was the major north–south highway between Albany and

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

, which made Schroon Lake a convenient stopping point for travelers to purchase gas, lodging, and meals. The

Scaroon Manor Scaroon Manor is a campground on Schroon Lake in the Adirondack Park. New York State purchased the site, which had been privately run, in 1967. Prior to its development as a campsite, Scaroon Manor was a high class summer resort. The movie ''Marj ...

resort, which closed in 1962, was the site for the 1957 filming of the

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

movie ''Marjorie Morningstar'', which starred

Gene Kelly Eugene Curran Kelly (August 23, 1912 – February 2, 1996) was an American dancer, actor, singer, director and choreographer. He was known for his energetic and athletic dancing style and sought to create a new form of American dance accessibl ...

Natalie Wood Natalie Wood (née Zacharenko; July 20, 1938 – November 29, 1981) was an American actress. She began acting at age four and co-starred at age eight in ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1947). As a teenager, she was nominated for an Academy Award f ...

Carolyn Jones Carolyn Sue Jones (April 28, 1930 – August 3, 1983) was an American actress of television and film. She began her film career in the early 1950s, and by the end of the decade had achieved recognition with a nomination for an Academy Awa ...

and

Ed Wynn Isaiah Edwin Leopold (November 9, 1886 – June 19, 1966), better known as Ed Wynn, was an American actor and comedian. He began his career in vaudeville in 1903 and was known for his ''Perfect Fool'' comedy character, his pioneering radio show ...

. Also featured in the film was Camp Red Wing (though not mentioned by name) on the east side of the lake, from which Wood and Jones depart by canoe at night for their escape to the musical South Winds (Scaroon Manor). Open to the public for many years, the old Scaroon Manor site is now a NY State Campground. The "Scaroons" is/are mentioned twice in ''

The Last of the Mohicans ''The Last of the Mohicans: A Narrative of 1757'' is an 1826 historical romance novel by James Fenimore Cooper. It is the second book of the '' Leatherstocking Tales'' pentalogy and the best known to contemporary audiences. '' The Pathfinder'', ...

'' by

James Fenimore Cooper James Fenimore Cooper (September 15, 1789 – September 14, 1851) was an American writer of the first half of the 19th century, whose historical romances depicting colonial and indigenous characters from the 17th to the 19th centuries brought h ...

, as a place seen by Hawkeye (

Natty Bumppo Nathaniel "Natty" Bumppo is a fictional character and the protagonist of James Fenimore Cooper's pentalogy of novels known as the ''Leatherstocking Tales''. He appears throughout the series as an archetypal American ranger, and has been portrayed ...

Chingachgook Chingachgook is a fictional character in four of James Fenimore Cooper's five ''Leatherstocking Tales'', including his 1826 novel ''The Last of the Mohicans''. Chingachgook was a lone Mohican chief and companion of the series' hero, Natty Bumppo ...

and

Uncas Uncas () was a '' sachem'' of the Mohegans who made the Mohegans the leading regional Indian tribe in lower Connecticut, through his alliance with the New England colonists against other Indian tribes. Early life and family Uncas was born ...

after they had departed Horicon (the name used by Cooper for Lake George) while traveling northward chasing Magua and his two captives, Cora and Alice Munro. It is unclear from the context in the book whether Cooper is referring to the lake or a chain of mountains, the latter being a more likely interpretation.

Geography

According to the

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the Federal statistical system, U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and American economy, econ ...

, the town has a total area of , of which is land and , or 6.17%, is water. The southern line of Schroon is the border of Warren County. Schroon Lake (the water body) lies in both Essex and Warren counties. The Adirondack Northway ( Interstate 87) passes through the center of the town of Schroon. Access is from Exits 27 and 28. US Route 9 runs parallel to the Interstate. New York State Route 74, an east–west highway, intersects US-9 and the Interstate at Exit 28, west of Severance. Schroon is approximately by highway north of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

, south of

, and southwest of

Burlington, Vermont Burlington, officially the City of Burlington, is the List of municipalities in Vermont, most populous city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the county seat, seat of Chittenden County, Vermont, Chittenden County. It is located south of the Can ...

. Schroon has an

airfield An aerodrome, airfield, or airstrip is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for public or private use. Aerodromes in ...

with a runway that is capable of landing small- and medium-size private airplanes. The

flows into the town across the northern town line and flows out across the southern town line towards the Hudson River. In the town, there are many state hiking trails, some leading to the Hoffman Notch Wilderness area.

Demographics

As of the

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of 2000, there were 1,759 people, 737 households, and 473 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 2,130 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

, 98.98%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 0.40% Native American, 0.17% Asian, 0.11% from other races, and 0.34% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 0.45% of the population. There were 737 households, out of which 26.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.4% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.8% were non-families. 29.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 15.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.34 and the average family size was 2.93. In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.5% under the age of 18, 6.7% from 18 to 24, 26.4% from 25 to 44, 25.6% from 45 to 64, and 18.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.2 males. The median income for a household in the town was $29,054, and the median income for a family was $36,579. Males had a median income of $29,821 versus $20,298 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $15,302. About 8.5% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line, or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

, including 8.3% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

Communities and locations in Schroon

*The Arlington House – A bed and breakfast in the early 20th century, this 18-bedroom house is a giant in the town. *Clarks Island — An island in Schroon Lake near Schroon Lake hamlet. The Native American name was Caywanoot. Called Magdalen Island in 1798, and later Islobella, and most recently Word of Life Island, after the current owner. The home of a youth camp operated by Word of Life Fellowship. *Loch Muller — A

near the western town line. *The Narrows - A constricted part of Schroon Lake near South Schroon Lake. *Paradox - A hamlet near the eastern town line on NY-74, and at the eastern end of Paradox Lake. *Paradox Lake — A lake located in Schroon by the hamlet of Severance. *Schroon Falls — A location near the northern town boundary on U.S. Route 9. * Schroon Lake – A lake located in the south-central portion of the town and extending south into Warren County. * Schroon Lake – A hamlet on the northwest end of the lake. The town government is located here on the western side of Schroon Lake on US-9. Talichito was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 2012. * Schroon Lake Airport (4B7) - A general aviation airport, located northeast of Schroon Lake hamlet. *Schroon Lake Loop — A hamlet south of Schroon Lake hamlet on US-9. *Schroon River — A river that flows into the northern end of Schroon Lake. *Severance — A hamlet in the northern part of the town on NY-74, at the west end of Paradox Lake. It is home to several clusters of rental homes and permanent residences. The Samson Fried Estate was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. *South Schroon Lake — A hamlet near the southern end of the lake on US-9. *The Three Bears — a private community on the eastern side of the lake.

Local attractions

Schroon Lake () is located in the towns of Schroon and Horicon, and is a year-round tourist destination, with boating, swimming and fishing in the summer and snowmobiling, snowshoeing and ice fishing in the winter; hiking and hunting are popular in the fall and spring. Each September, hundreds of runners compete in the Adirondack Marathon, which finishes in downtown Schroon Lake. The roads around the lake constitute an almost perfect 26 mile distance. Schroon's main street is US 9, which offers restaurants, antique and collectible shops, a movie theater and churches. The Town of Schroon maintains public docks in the village area, which makes the shops and restaurants accessible to boaters. Schroon has two free municipal boat launches. New York State has public campsites on Schroon Lake and Paradox Lake. Schroon Lake is the summer home of the Seagle Festival (formerly Seagle Music Colony). It is also home to Schroon-North Hudson Historical Museum, Natural Stone Bridge & Caves, and a 9-hole golf course located on Hoffman Road. Along with these, there are a few local restaurants and bars. Schroon Lake is the home of the Word of Life Bible Institute, as well as family and youth camps and programs. The town is also the home of

Camp Southwoods Camp may refer to: Areas of confinement, imprisonment, or for execution * Concentration camp, an internment camp for political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or minority ethnic groups * Extermination ...

, a traditional, co-ed, resident camp on Paradox Lake.

References

External links

Town of Schroon official website

Adirondack Marathon

Schroon Lake's Hyper Local News Blog

Medcalf Acres Riverfront Campground & RV Park

Schroon Lake on the Adirondack Northway: I-87
{{authority control Towns in Essex County, New York Towns in New York (state)