Mapping the Adirondacks : Colvin, Blake, and the First True Survey of the Great Adirondack Wilderness

New York State’s Adirondack region is as ancient as is it immense – over six million acres of wild forests, lakes, rivers, and mountains. Mapping the Adirondacks celebrates the overwhelming nature of this landscape by following two early visitors who became totally obsessed by the region. This is the first book to focus solely on Verplanck Colvin and Mills Blake’s original survey of the Adirondack Region, a monumental project that would help define and protect the land for generations to come. It was an 18-year-old explorer and travel writer named Verplanck Colvin who, in 1865, began personally mapping a half million acres of true Adirondack wilderness. Then, in 1872, right after the State legislature gave a slight nod to the project, Colvin dubbed himself “Superintendent of the Adirondack Survey” and hired an equally intrepid surveyor to help—his ever-dependable and longtime friend Mills Blake. Together they extended the scope and granularity of their survey, hired hundreds of Adirondack guides and other talented people to assist them, and devoted the next 28 years to the meticulous work of mapping the Adirondacks. Beginning with chapters on early surveying terms and principles, then following Colvin and Blake’s progress along fourteen popular Adirondack peaks, with harrowing stories of the many successes and failures of the project along the way, author Thatcher Hogan has created the definitive account of one of the greatest public work projects in American history. Featuring commentary alongside Colvin’s own often-dense reports, primary source journals, maps, and benchmarks – along with supporting research, original maps, historical photos, and summit view charts– Hogan uncovers a story of genius innovation, intense ambition, physical hardships, and a weatherproof friendship. The State’s investment in the survey would pay off many times over. Colvin and Blake’s surveys documented thousands of benchmarks and provided the State with the incontrovertible evidence needed to prevail in hundreds of complex Adirondack land disputes. Most significantly, it enabled the State to consolidate and expand its extraordinary Adirondack Forest Preserves—the prized mountains, forests, and waters of today’s beloved Adirondack Park.