Gallery of Very Special Places
The Gallery of Very Special Places is a complete listing of sites in North Country communities that have been nominated and documented by local residents and then designated by Traditional Arts in Upstate New York as outstanding local cultural landmarks. For more complete information on each site, click on the thumbnail photo on this page.
Other sites are frequently added to the Gallery and more or updated information may be added to existing sites. Check back occasionally to see what’s new. And please click here to add your own memory of a TAUNY Very Special Place to our guestbook.
For more complete information on TAUNY’s Register of Very Special Places or how to nominate or document sites in your own community you consider local landmarks, return to the home page or click on Learn More or Learn How. To learn more about TAUNY or how you can support the important work we do, see our website www.tauny.org.
Adirondack Sport Shop - Wilmington, NY
Near the Ausable River and a few miles from Lake Placid, Fran Betters fashions thousands of flies each year, tells “big stories,” and teaches the art of trout fishing to longtime customers and newcomers alike in this small shop that’s a must stop for the serious sportsman.
Beth Joseph Synagogue - Tupper Lake, NY
The small congregation of Jews who settled a century ago in this Adirondack lumbering village built this extraordinary synagogue that has recently been restored with a major community effort. Services, art exhibits and musical performances are available all summer long.
Camp Dudley - Westport, NY
Several dozen buildings in Adirondack rustic style look out over Lake Champlain from the campus of the oldest continuously operating children’s camp in the nation. Boys who later become loyal alumni return each year for outdoor recreation and a strong sense of community.
Monument Park - Carthage, NY
A park with several veterans memorials, the original burying ground, dominated by a tall obelisk with a Civil War soldier figure, is the gathering place for local ceremonies.
Clare & Carl's - Plattsburgh, NY
Home to the local favorite “michigan” hot dog–served with a spicy meat sauce and chopped onions– and other treats made to order and still delivered to you by carhops, this modest roadside stand has been the frequent destination for generations of Lake Champlain summer residents.
Cooks Corners Schoolhouse - Pierrepont, NY
Like others in rural New York State, this typical one room schoolhouse was closed in the mid-20th century, but local families acquired it for their community meeting place. Still well maintained, the group sponsors ice cream socials, winter card parties and other events all year long.
Crystal Restaurant - Watertown, NY
Little seems to have changed in the decor of this classic businessman’s eatery on Public Square in Watertown since it first opened. Pressed tin ceilings and mosaic tile floor are matched in era with the modest prices and the friendly service offered by the Dephtereos family.
Dick's Country Store, Music Oasis & Gun City, Churubusco, NY
A little bit of heaven for the bluegrass music fan who also loves to hunt, this ordinary looking building on Route 11 east of Chateaugay offers not only basic staples for neighbors but an amazing selection of guns, the greatest names in stringed instruments, and frequent live music jam sessions.
E. M. Marilley and Company - Croghan, NY
Rainy day or not, this family-run general store is a must stop for a look into Lewis County’s past. Not at all a museum [though it surely looks like one!], Jim Marilley sells sharp cheddar cheese from a big block, hunting clothes, gardening tools, and nearly everything else you could ever need.
Hopkinton Town Green, Hopkinton, NY
A park established by settlers two centuries ago at the main intersection in the hamlet is surrounded by the Congregational Church, the town hall and the town museum and library.
Italian American Civic Association - Massena, NY
A private men’s club in the old Italian neighborhood thrives as one of a handful of ethnic social clubs still left in the North Country. A great social gathering place, the men regularly cook for themselves and guests and play card games that trace back to their immigrant grandfathers’ day.
Lazy River Playground - Hermon, NY
Built in the 1940s by John Grandy along a still section of the Grasse River as a place to swim, picnic and enjoy summer days, Lazy River still welcomes local people for family reunions, office parties and a genuine good time playing miniature golf, roller skating or just watching the river go by.
The Redford Carousel - Redford, NY
Original carved horses and sleighs on this rare antique carousel are maintained and operated by volunteers from the tiny parish of the Church of the Assumption which owns this amusement ride and offers rides on it only one day each year, for the church’s annual Redford Picnic in August.
Santa's Workshop - Wilmington, NY
Still the place to go for “believers,” Santa’s Workshop may well have been the very first theme park in America. Here you can still find the original charming buildings, including Santa’ house, a barn full of live reindeer and, of course, the old fellow himself and his elves to entertain the whole family.
Six Nations Indian Museum - Onchiota, NY
Decades ago, the Fadden family created this museum on their own property in the very heart of the Adirondack woods to present the history and arts of Iroquois people. They continue to offer personally guided tours of their fascinating collection in this replica of a traditional longhouse.
Veronica Terrillion's Woman-Made House and Garden - Indian River, NY
Along a lonely Lewis Count road, who would expect a roadside garden of zebras, giraffes, black bears, St. Francis and the Virgin Mary and, better yet, all made of concrete? The personal creations of one woman still bear witness to her personal faith and love of nature and family for passersby to see.
Vivekananda Cottage - Wellesley Island, NY
While all of the fascinating community of Thousand Island Park is on the National Register for its Victorian gingerbread architecture, one cottage on a hilltop remains the retreat for followers of the Ramakrishna cleric Swami Vivekananda who come each summer from around the world to study and contemplate.