Vacation Like Gustav Stickley!
By Vonda K. Givens, Executive Director
I smile whenever I look at these canoeing photos of Gustav Stickley and his family, particularly the two of him and his wife Eda. I’m delighted by how relaxed and happy they look, wearing the tranquil smiles of happy vacationers.
The canoeing photos, all courtesy of the Stickley family, have been in the museum’s files for many years, but perhaps because they weren’t taken at Craftsman Farms, I haven’t thought about them very much. Only recently, for instance, did I realize that there were three different photos taken during the same outing. Presumably the children in the photos are Gustav Jr., and one of Gus and Eda’s five daughters. My best guess is Hazel.
The first Pictorial History of Craftsman Farms features the photo with the children, and its caption noted that it was taken in the Adirondacks prior to the family’s years at Craftsman Farms. It is true that, by the time the Stickleys arrived at Craftsman Farms, the children were all teenagers and older. Ruth, the youngest, was 13. Gustav Jr. was 15 and Marion was 17. The eldest daughters, Hazel, Mildred, and Barbara were 19, 22, and 23, respectively. In fact, Barbara’s wedding, as described by The Jerseyman newspaper, took place on the porch of the Log House in 1911, soon after the family took residence. Incidentally, The Jerseyman also stated that the couple enjoyed a canoeing honeymoon (which makes me wonder: Were the Stickleys canoeing enthusiasts, and in all my years on the staff, I just didn’t realize it?).
Because of the museum’s upcoming Farms Afield: Lake George Retreat in the Adirondacks, I’ve been thinking about these photos. I think the Pictorial History’s caption, placing the photos in the Adirondacks, is accurate, but New York state, which was home to the family much longer than Craftsman Farms (where they lived only from 1910 to 1917), has numerous lakes. According to my noncomprehensive Internet research, it has 7,600 lakes. So the photos could have been taken elsewhere in the state*, but my instinct says the Adirondacks is right. It just seems like they are canoeing on an Adirondack lake.
Back in 2013, I led a Farms Afield to Great Camp Sagamore, one of the Adirondack Great Camps built by William West Durant and the summer home of the Vanderbilt family. Great Camp Sagamore (not to be confused with The Sagamore Resort, the site of our upcoming retreat and one of the grand historic hotels of the Adirondacks) is run today as a nonprofit camp. That trip was my first summer experience in the Adirondacks, and I have returned for many summers, and even a couple of autumns, to take in the peaceful beauty of the North Country. In short, I love it up there.
Stickley’s connections to the Adirondacks were in the back of my mind when I worked with Membership Manager Parker Sanchez to plan the upcoming Farms Afield: Lake George Retreat.
The Craftsman magazine features the ads of the Hudson Navigation Company which promote traveling by steamship into “The Heart of Leisureland”, with a route including Lake George. And the June 1903 issue offers Harvey Ellis’ lovely design for an Adirondack camp. I mean, it’s a dream of a camp if you feel inclined to construct it (and if you do, I’d love to visit)!
Our Farms Afield to Lake George will kick off with an exploration of the rich history linking Stickley to this area. Jonathan Clancy will speak about the Adirondacks and the Arts and Crafts movement, and special guest Erin Tobin of Adirondack Architectural Heritage will speak on The Great Camps and Adirondack rustic style.
Following the opening lectures, we’ll proceed with vacationing like Gustav Stickley. I’d like to spend a lazy hour in an Adirondack chair on the shores of Lake George. Maybe you’ll want to—like the Stickleys—spend an afternoon paddling in a canoe. For just about any summer activity you can dream up, The Sagamore Resort will oblige. The Resort has so many activities, it’s easier for me to tell you what they don’t have than to list them all!
If you haven’t taken in the Adirondacks in the summer, especially in the high season, I invite you to enjoy it among friends amid the luxury and historic grandeur of The Sagamore Resort. Join us in the “Heart of Leisureland!” I’m looking forward to seeing you, like Gustav Stickley, relaxing at the lake and wearing the contented smile of a happy vacationer!
*Among New York state’s many lakes is Lake Skaneateles, located in the Finger Lakes, where the Stickley family has owned a summer cottage since the 1930s. It was purchased during Gustav Stickley’s later years. I pondered if the canoe pictures were taken on Lake Skaneateles, but I don’t think so. Rest assured, though, that Skaneateles is a gorgeous lake (and town!). I have visited once or twice, and I would be more than happy to return!
Photo credits:
Family photo collage courtesy of Cindy McGinn and the estate of Peter Wiles, Sr.
“An Adirondack Camp” by Harvey Ellis in the July 1903 issue of The Craftsman.
An ad for the Hudson Navigation Company in the Jul 1916 issue of The Craftsman