Among New York’s forgotten places, Conklingville, New York stands out for its historical significance. This abandoned settlement, once full of promise and activity, now serves as a haunting reminder of how communities rise and fall. Its quiet streets echo with the footsteps of those who came before.
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Conklingville, New York stands as a poignant example of a community sacrificed for the greater good. Once a thriving settlement in the Sacandaga Valley, this ghost town now lies beneath the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake, its buildings, streets, and history submerged by the construction of the Conklingville Dam in 1930. The story of Conklingville represents a fascinating chapter in New York’s history, illustrating how environmental management, economic interests, and community displacement have shaped the Adirondack region.
Origins and Early Settlement
The area that would become Conklingville was part of the ancestral lands of indigenous peoples, primarily the Mohawk and Abenaki, who had inhabited the Sacandaga Valley for thousands of years. Archaeological evidence suggests Native American presence in the region dating back seven to ten thousand years. These indigenous communities established settlements along the Sacandaga River, particularly near Day Center, Fox Hill near Batchellerville, and on the Big Vly near Munsonville.
European settlement in the Sacandaga Valley began in earnest between 1783 and 1790, as settlers moved west from New England and north from the Mohawk Valley following the American Revolution. The community that would become Conklingville developed along the Sacandaga River, which flowed from the Adirondack foothills above Northville, Fulton County, east through the ancient river valley in Saratoga County to join the Hudson River at Hadley.
The settlement was named after the Conkling family, who were among the early prominent residents of the area. Like many small communities in the region, Conklingville developed around local industries that took advantage of the river’s power and the abundant natural resources of the Adirondack foothills. Sawmills, tanneries, and small manufacturing operations formed the economic backbone of the community.
By the late 19th century, Conklingville had established itself as one of several interconnected communities along the Sacandaga River. The valley was home to a diverse population that included descendants of European settlers and Native Americans, who had integrated into the local economy working in paper mills, glove factories, tanneries, and sawmills, as well as in logging operations and on road crews.
Community Life in the Sacandaga Valley
Life in Conklingville and the surrounding Sacandaga Valley communities was characterized by the close-knit relationships typical of rural America in the 19th and early 20th centuries. The valley contained a dozen distinct communities, including Conklingville, Cranberry Creek, Munsonville, Benedict, Osborn’s Bridge, Fish House, Batchellerville, Edinburg, West Day, and Day Center. These settlements were connected by a shared dependence on the Sacandaga River and its tributaries.
The social fabric of these communities was strengthened by generations of intermarriage and shared cultural practices. Local stores served as gathering places where residents exchanged news and stories. One-room schoolhouses provided education for children from both settler and Native American families. Churches, blacksmith shops, and other community buildings formed the centers of social life.
The Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville Railroad connected the valley to larger markets and brought tourists to the elaborate Sacandaga Park, which became a significant attraction in the region. This Coney Island-style playground featured hotels, cottages, boarding houses, an amusement park, and a theater. The park attracted up to 90,000 visitors each summer and hosted famous entertainers of the era, including Al Jolson, W.C. Fields, Eddie Cantor, and band leader John Philip Sousa.
Cultural exchange between European settlers and Native Americans created a rich tapestry of traditions in the valley. Indigenous creation myths blended with European folklore, while traditional healing practices incorporated both Native American shamanic and herbal knowledge and European medical traditions. This cultural hybridity was reflected in the stories told at local gatherings and in the practical skills passed down through generations.
The Decision to Dam the Sacandaga
The fate of Conklingville and the entire Sacandaga Valley was sealed by recurring flooding problems along the Hudson River. As early as 1867, spring flooding of the Sacandaga and Hudson Rivers had been brought to the attention of the New York State Legislature. These floods routinely caused factories to shut down for a week, while streets in Hudson River cities from Mechanicville to Troy would become like canals. In summer, an additional week’s work would be lost when water levels were too low to produce adequate water power for industrial operations.
The idea of damming the Sacandaga River had been considered since the 1860s, both for flood control and, later, for power generation. In 1874, the New York State Canal Commission suggested that ‘the creation of reservoirs on the head-waters of the Hudson would allow control over its seasonal flow and prevent flooding of downstream communities.’
The turning point came with the great Easter flood of 1913, described as ‘the most disastrous in history,’ which caused major damage to towns along the Hudson River below the Sacandaga, including Albany, Green Island, Rensselaer, Troy, and Watervliet. Floodwaters of five feet or more filled city streets and remained for more than three days. In Troy, fires caused by broken gas mains created even more damage than the flooding itself, while Albany reported more than 180 cases of typhoid fever resulting from contaminated drinking water.
In response to this disaster, the New York State Legislature passed the ‘Burd Amendment’ to the New York State Constitution in November 1913, allowing up to 3% of state forest preserve to be used for the creation of reservoirs. However, it wasn’t until 1922, following three serious flash floods and subsequent epidemics, that public reaction finally overcame legislative resistance to proposals for building a dam at Conklingville.
The Hudson River Regulating District was formed and authorized to buy 27,000 acres of Sacandaga Valley land. The project was financed through a combination of contributions from industries that would use the generated power (95.5%) and from the communities that had been flooded in 1913. The dam was designed by Edward Haynes Sargent, with the first bids received in 1927. The project was projected to be completed in 1929, but various setbacks, including a flood that year, delayed completion until March 27, 1930. The final cost of the dam was $12 million.
Resistance and Displacement
Residents of the Sacandaga Valley were bitterly opposed to the dam and the flooding of their communities. The prospect of losing homes, businesses, and land that had been in families for generations created significant resistance. Legal challenges were mounted, though ultimately unsuccessful against the government’s right of eminent domain, which claimed the region because, according to officials, ‘it would serve the greater good.’
The Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville Railroad instituted a protracted lawsuit over the flooding of its tracks and eventually won a judgment of $1.6 million. Local folklore even tells of a group of witches who attempted to put a curse on the dam to make it fail, reflecting the depth of local opposition to the project.
For the residents of Conklingville and other valley communities, the news that their homes would be flooded arrived in the mid-1920s. Ethel Edwards, who grew up in one of the Sacandaga Valley hamlets, remembered ‘the feeling of utter desolation and heartache at having to leave all her childhood memories behind.’ The displacement affected not only the physical structures but also the deep social and cultural connections that had developed over generations.
While landowners were paid fair market value for their property, the emotional and cultural losses could not be compensated. Some opportunistic individuals, described as ‘landsharks,’ invaded the area as early as 1923 and started buying up property to resell to the Water Regulating District at a profit, adding another layer of exploitation to the displacement process.
The Clearing of the Valley
For four years leading up to the valley’s flooding in 1930, an enormous clearing operation transformed the landscape. Workers feverishly cut and burned timber, tore down fences, removed or burned down residences, and dug up and relocated over 1,000 gravesites from 22 cemeteries. The purchase included the elaborate Sacandaga Park with its hotels, cottages, boarding houses, amusement park, and theater, as well as the right-of-way for the Fonda, Johnstown and Gloversville Railroad between Gloversville and Northville.
Don Bowman, who worked on the demolition crew, recalled that ‘Even the home-grown apple trees. All had to go.’ Buildings, brush, and orchards were razed, stacked, and burned, creating smoke that hung over the valley for two years. Many of the workers on these crews were themselves residents of the valley, including Native Americans and those married to Native Americans, adding a painful irony to the destruction process.
Charlotte Russell, a Northville resident, remembered her family touring the destruction in their Tin Lizzie. It became a ‘popular pasttime for ‘Sunday drivers’ to motor around the roads of the valley, for whole families to see the progress being made… The beautiful landscape had become a barren desert, the air thick with smoke and debris.’
Many homeowners, as well as the Sacandaga Park officials, had stopped making repairs and maintenance on their property well before the valley was flooded, contributing to the bleak appearance of what had once been a pristine part of the Adirondack Park. By April 1930, when the newly constructed Conklingville Dam closed its valves, the valley was filled with 38 billion cubic feet of water, and all that remained of Conklingville and its neighboring communities was submerged beneath the new reservoir.
The Conklingville Dam
The Conklingville Dam, located in Hadley, Saratoga County, is an earthen dam that stands 95 feet high. It impounds a maximum of 792,000 acre-feet of water, creating a lake with a perimeter of 129 miles and an area of 42 square miles—approximately the size of Lake George. The dam’s construction effectively restored the configuration of the ancient ‘Glacial Lake Sacandaga,’ which had existed at the end of the Wisconsin Glacial Episode when a glacial moraine blocked the outflow of the Sacandaga River.
The primary purpose of the dam was flood control, particularly to prevent the devastating floods that had affected communities along the Hudson River. Its secondary purpose was power generation; as of 2016, the dam generates 22 Megawatts of hydroelectric power. The hydroelectric plant at the dam is named for Elmer West, a builder of the Spier Falls Dam located downstream on the Hudson.
The dam’s third purpose was recreation. The Great Sacandaga Lake (as it was renamed in the 1960s to promote tourism) now supports boating, fishing, swimming, and water sports, with many summer rentals of homes and boats available. The New York Department of Environmental Conservation maintains four boat launches on the lake, and a nearby DEC campsite on the Sacandaga River has 143 campsites.
Today, the water level on the lake is still carefully regulated to prevent flooding while maintaining adequate flow downstream on the Hudson, fulfilling its original purpose while supporting the region’s recreational economy.
Legacy and Remembrance
The flooding of Conklingville and the Sacandaga Valley represents a significant chapter in New York’s environmental and social history. The creation of the Great Sacandaga Lake fundamentally altered the geography and economy of the region, transforming a valley of small communities into a large recreational lake that now attracts tourists and seasonal residents.
For the descendants of those displaced by the dam, the legacy is complex. While the economic benefits to downstream communities and the recreational opportunities created by the lake are undeniable, the loss of ancestral homes and communities remains a painful memory. The story of Conklingville serves as a reminder of the human costs often associated with large infrastructure projects and environmental management decisions.
Efforts to preserve the history of the submerged communities have included the collection of oral histories, photographs, and artifacts. In recent years, a sign project has placed 15 markers around the lake to pay tribute to its history and the communities that once existed there. Local historical societies maintain collections related to the pre-flood valley, and books like Don Bowman’s ‘Go Seek the Powwow on the Mountain and Other Indian Stories of the Sacandaga Valley’ help preserve the cultural heritage of the area’s Native American residents.
Occasionally, during periods of low water, remnants of the submerged communities become visible—giant timbers, foundations, and even, sadly, casket handles from unmarked and overlooked gravesites have washed up on shore, providing tangible connections to the valley’s past. These physical reminders, along with the stories passed down through generations, ensure that Conklingville and its neighboring communities are not entirely lost to history, despite being hidden beneath the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake.
Today, the Great Sacandaga Lake and surrounding region has once again become a destination for travelers seeking outdoor recreation, though in a form very different from the Sacandaga Park that once drew thousands of visitors. The transformation of Conklingville from a living community to a submerged ghost town illustrates the dynamic relationship between human settlement, environmental management, and the ever-changing landscape of the Adirondack region.
Visiting Conklingville Today
While the original settlement of Conklingville lies beneath the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake, visitors to the area can still connect with its history. The Conklingville Dam itself, located in Hadley, is accessible and offers a tangible link to the events that led to the community’s submersion. The dam provides a vantage point to view the lake that now covers the former valley.
Several local museums and historical societies maintain exhibits related to the lost communities of the Sacandaga Valley. The Edinburg Historical Society, the Northville Historical Society, and the Fulton County Historical Society all preserve photographs, documents, and artifacts from the pre-flood era.
For those interested in experiencing the recreational aspects of the lake that replaced Conklingville, the Great Sacandaga Lake offers numerous access points for boating, fishing, and swimming. The New York DEC’s four boat launches provide public access to the lake, while the nearby DEC campsite on the Sacandaga River offers camping facilities.
The historical markers placed around the lake help visitors understand the geography of the submerged communities and provide context for the dramatic transformation of the landscape. These markers serve as reminders of the human history that lies beneath the surface of what is now one of New York’s largest bodies of water.
Sources:
1. ‘The making of Great Sacandaga Lake (And the flooding of communities).’ The Adirondack Almanack. https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2020/10/great-sacandaga-lake.html
2. Bruchac, Joe. ‘Flooding the Sacandaga Valley.’ https://joebruchac.com/blog/f/flooding-the-sacandaga-valley
3. ‘Conklingville Dam.’ Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conklingville_Dam
4. ‘The Lost Sacandaga Valley.’ Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Lost-Sacandaga-Valley/61557413160857/
5. Bowman, Don. ‘Go Seek the Powwow on the Mountain and Other Indian Stories of the Sacandaga Valley.’ Greenfield Center, NY: Bowman Books, Greenfield Review Press, 1993.
6. ‘Fish House: Great Sacandaga Lake’s Underwater Mysteries.’ The Adirondack Almanack. https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2015/08/fish-house-great-sacandaga-lakes-underwater-mysteries.html
