History of North Creek, NY

 

North Creek is a hamlet of the Town of Johnsburg.  Johnsburg is the largest town in Warren County and was originated from the Town of Thurman.  Johnsburg, NY partitioned on April 6, 1805, and established six hamlets with post offices (Bakers Mills, Johnsburg, North Creek, North River, Riparius and Wevertown).   In 1788, John Thurman purchased 25,200 acres of Township #12 and his name was taken as the founding fathers.  Thurman's given name was Johnsburgh.  On September 27, 1809, John Thurman was killed by a bull in Bolton, NY when he was 79 years old and is buried in a stone enclosure at Wevertown Cemetery. 

North Creek businesses in the 1800's were tanneries, woodworking plants, logging between North river and Glens Falls.  When the railroad arrived in 1871, North Creek developed into a town center, and garnet mining (Barton Mines Corp.) continues and is known as one of the longest operating family owned mining industry.

North Creek was the original northern terminus of the first railroad into the Adirondacks, built by Dr. Thomas C. Durant. It was to the station at North Creek that then Vice President Theodore Roosevelt rode from Mount Marcy upon learning of the death of William McKinley in 1901.   On the morning of September 14, 1901, Vice President Roosevelt was on a journey to join his family vacationing in the Adirondacks at the Tahawus Club.   He was traveling from Newcomb to North Creek when he heard the urgent message from Elihu Root, Secretary of War, "The President appears to be dying and to return." 

On September 6th, President McKinley had been shot as an assassination attempt in Buffalo at the Pan American Exposition.  At first his wounds were not lift threatening, so Vice President Roosevelt continue with his family plans.  But at 2:15 via telegram from Secretary of State John Hay, he was advise 'lose not time in coming."  He immediately departed North Creek to Buffalo; and that very same afternoon, at the home of Ansley Wilcox, Theodore Roosevelt became our 26th President.

Later the depot at North Creek became a landmark around the events surrounding Theodore Roosevelt's Presidency.   The Delaware & Hudson's N. Creek branch, built in 1872,  was to log timber and collect garnet deposits after the first settlers arrived in 1793.  They use to flow logs down the Hudson River until the Delaware & Hudson was built.  In 1903, a freight station was added, and in 1937, the Delaware & Hudson began operating ski trains for the city's vacationers at the mountain.

Now in 2007, the train tracks are now connected in hopes of returning the wonderful ski trains.  Much work is still to be done, but the folks along the track are  working hard to make this effort in creating new history a success.

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