By way of introduction, Great Camp Sagamore is a National Historic Landmark in the Adirondack mountains above Raquette Lake, NY. Built in 1897 to be perhaps the grandest of the "Great Camps," Sagamore Lodge (as it was formerly known) featured exceptional architecture, intricate infrastructure, and a stunning natural landscape that included three dozen buildings on a 200 acre private glacial lake within 1500 acres of forest preserve. It also supported enough staff and laborers to make the camp--forty miles away (round trip) from the nearest train station--entirely self-sufficient and able to cater to some of the wealthiest Americans ever in the styles that they sought.

Initially built by and for William West Durant, son of transcontinental railroad magnate Thomas C. Durant, the camp was soon sold to one of the principal Vanderbilt heirs, who--with his wife and eventual widow--maintained it for more than half a century. After twenty years of stewardship by Syracuse University, in 1975 the camp was purchased by the Sagamore Institute of the Adirondacks, a non-profit organization that continues to maintain the space today.

Mr. Williams will talk about the camp's construction and history, sharing stories and photos of the Great Camp.

This lecture is in partnership with the Historic Albany Foundation.

Sponsored by the Society of Architectural Historians Turpin Banister Chapter