Education: Apollos' Fortune

In the 1840s a rangy, big-boned, imaginative young Vermonter named Apollos Smith operated a boat through the northern canal connecting Lake Champlain with the Hudson River. In the course of a hunting trip Apollos was enchanted by the chill beauty of the Adirondacks and decided to open a sportsmen's lodge on the Saranac River near Loon Lake. He built it himself, with a living room and kitchen on the first floor and eight thinly partitioned sleeping rooms upstairs. Board and lodging cost $1.25 a day; no women were admitted. From a barrel...

Want the full story?

Subscribe Now

Subscribe
Subscribe

Learn more about the benefits of being a TIME subscriber

If you are already a subscriber sign up — registration is free!