North Country At Work

Guideboat builder Carl Hathaway carrying a guideboat. Saranac Lake, NY. Circa 1960-1980. Photo courtesy of Chris Woodward.

Guideboat builders Carl Hathaway and Chris Woodward in Hathaway’s Boat Shop. Woodward had just bought the boat shop from Hathaway. Saranac Lake, NY. 1991. Photo courtesy of Chris Woodward.

A guideboat in the making in Woodward Boat Shop. Saranac Lake, NY. March 18, 2009. Photo courtesy of Chris Woodward.

KC Reiter, left, and Rennie Fenwick painting a large handmade sign. Reiter has made signs for business across Northern New York and into Canada. Fenwick often did the graphics for the signs in the beginning of the business. Late 1980s. Plattsburgh, NY. Photo courtesy of KC Reiter. Read and listen to the full story on KC’s […]

KC Reiter, who crafts signs, next to one she made for the Iroquois Campground & R.V. Park. Circa 2000. Peru, NY. Photo courtesy of KC Reiter. Read and listen to the full story on KC’s career here.

Heidi Fortsch’s yarn business, Brown Dog Fiber Arts Studio, is her  passion. In 2018, she turned about 500 pounds of raw fiber into about 350 pounds of yarn, all from her 600 square foot apartment in Chazy. It all started back in 2012, when Heidi, a knitter of some years, became dissatisfied with the yarn […]

Men working beaver hides inside a shop. They are working the fur side to make the pelts supple. Circa 1910 – 1920. Elizabethtown, NY.

Masonic Flea Market in August of 2006. Yearly flea market organized by the Masonic Lodge in Saranac Lake, NY.

Gunsmith Brian MacDougall working on a rifle in his shop. 2017. Colton, NY. Photo courtesy of Brian MacDougall.

David R. Nichols cutting inlay pieces for a custom guitar. According to Greg Kie, Nichols has worked on guitars for BB King, Johnny Cash, ZZ Top, and Aerosmith. At one time, he was the only craftsman doing inlay work for the Martin Guitar Company. He’s something of a North Country legend, and a 1963 SUNY […]