In January, the Mattel Toy Company announced it was creating a doll to honor Ida B. Wells (1862-1931). Perhaps this will trigger more interest in Wells, an under 5-foot-tall teacher, journalist, suffragist and fearless civil rights activist. Born into Mississippi slavery during the second ...

When it comes to accounting terms, people usually nod just their heads upon hearing them not knowing what they really mean. For example, what is a “fund balance?” The answer to that question is extremely important for Saranac Lake and its public safety. Quite simply, our fund balance is the ...

Municipal water supplies are highly regulated in New York state by its Department of Health which requires testing and constant monitoring. Our dedicated staff in the Village of Saranac Lake takes pride in supplying good quality water to its residents and samples our product every day. The ...

Have you ever experienced the passing of one of your parents? It is certainly one of the agonies of life, no matter how we wish to describe it. And one we can’t avoid. We are deeply affected by their absence in our lives. I lost my mom some years ago. Upon her passing, I experienced an ...

Part one ended with the village’s policy of making property owners responsible for water (and sewer) piping under the street. There are many such examples. Church Street was given over to state Department of Transportation maintenance to save the village money. Several years ago, one ...

Frederick Douglass (1818-1895) and John Brown (1800-1859) first met in 1847. Over the next 12 years, the two abolitionists corresponded frequently and saw each other on many occasions. Douglass, the former slave and brilliant orator, and Brown, a religious zealot, were bound together by their ...