Poplar Ridge, NY
September 10-18, 2005
Our first (unintentional) stop: an overnight stay in a motel in Niagara Falls, NY and then a quick trip to see the falls the next
morning. Picture perfect day, no?
Our first (unintentional) stop: an overnight stay in a motel in Niagara Falls, NY and then a quick trip to see the falls the next
morning. Picture perfect day, no?
And, just to prove we were here...
Now on to Poplar Ridge...
The sign in front of the driveway to the cabin. 1885 Lake Road. This cabin was built in 1933 by Dan's great-grandfather Alfred Simkin. The cabin is located on the east side of Cayuga Lake (one of the finger lakes) in upstate New York, about midway down the lake, just outside of Aurora.
In 1933 there was no indoor plumbing here. The bathroom was added on later, the shower was added just about five years ago. The well water may be potable according to government standards (despite it's strong smell of sulphur), but not to
the Simkin standards. Thank heavens for bottled water! :)
The sign in front of the driveway to the cabin. 1885 Lake Road. This cabin was built in 1933 by Dan's great-grandfather Alfred Simkin. The cabin is located on the east side of Cayuga Lake (one of the finger lakes) in upstate New York, about midway down the lake, just outside of Aurora.
In 1933 there was no indoor plumbing here. The bathroom was added on later, the shower was added just about five years ago. The well water may be potable according to government standards (despite it's strong smell of sulphur), but not to
the Simkin standards. Thank heavens for bottled water! :)
The east side of the cottage as you look from the "driveway". There really isn't a driveway. It's more of a path that leads down to the lawn. Kind of a steep drop with woods and cliffs on either side. Dan had to loop around a tree to turn the car around. Backing out would be dangerous!
The windows you see near the roof go all the way around the upstairs.There are no glass windows, just screens. To close them for the night, there are large hinged wooden doors inside that have to be lifted up and secured with sliding wood latches.
The windows you see near the roof go all the way around the upstairs.There are no glass windows, just screens. To close them for the night, there are large hinged wooden doors inside that have to be lifted up and secured with sliding wood latches.
The south side of the cottage.
Looking towards woods near "driveway"..
View of Cayuga Lake from the screened-in porch.
Screened-in porch where we ate most of our meals.
The kitchen. There is an electric stove there too, so it's not too rustic. Thanks to mold growing there, the oven wasn't usable, but we could still use the stove top.
Part of the spare bedroom. I just put this here so you can see how the inside walls were made.
This is the view of Cayuga Lake from our bed. Every night you could hear the water washing up on the beach, the crickets,
and the tree frogs. That's what I miss the most!
and the tree frogs. That's what I miss the most!
Dan tending to the fire before his relatives came over for a visit the last night we were there.
Dan walking down the path to the beach. The path leads to a one-lane dirt road (see the truck). Then we have to walk a few yards north until we get to some more steps that lead down to the beach itself.
Dan shivering in the cold water on a foggy day. He finally did end up taking a swim.
Another day at Simkin beach. A sunny afternoon on the water. That dock and boat belongs to the neighbor to the north, by the way.
The sunny afternoon turning into evening...
A lovely sunset over Cayuga Lake...
A foggy evening on the beach. That thing in the middle is the Camp Gregory raft. Camp Gregory is an interdenominational camp that pretty much all the Simkins, I think, have attended at one time over the years. It's just a little way down the road south from Simkin cottage.
Water skiiers on the lake. During the week there's hardly a boat to be seen. However, on the weekends it's pretty busy. But not as busy as some Oakland County lakes can be!
Even on litttle Lake Road, there's no escaping construction. They were tearing up the road just north of the cottage almost all week long. Not sure what they were doing. They had a big hole dug, then they filled it with gravel and stones.
Lake Road headed toward Aurora.
Poplar Ridge Road.
Field on the side of Poplar Ridge Road.
Another field on Poplar Ridge Road.
Poplar Ridge Road as we go down a hill. Cayuga Lake and it's opposite shore in the background.
More farm land...
Our sightseeing trip on Thursday...
First stop. Hazard Public Library. That's the library in Poplar Ridge. It shares a building with the Poplar Ridge Post Office as you can see. I had the distinct feeling that the librarian there is overworked. If the rest of Poplar Ridge is anything like the Simkins, that tiny library gets alot of use!
First stop. Hazard Public Library. That's the library in Poplar Ridge. It shares a building with the Poplar Ridge Post Office as you can see. I had the distinct feeling that the librarian there is overworked. If the rest of Poplar Ridge is anything like the Simkins, that tiny library gets alot of use!
Howland Stone Store Museum.
The sign reads:
Howland Store.
Built 1837. Slocum Howland.
Quaker. Noted abolitionist
Entrepreneur and land owner
Father of Emily Howland.
Emily Howland was a suffragette and abolitionist, and used some of her inheritance to pay for women to go to college, including some to go to the University of Michigan, according to the assistant curator here at the museum. The assistant curator here, by the way, went to school with Dan's father. The curator, now in his 80's, taught at the Howland school, just south of the museum. The Slocum Howland home was used as a stop on the underground railroad.
The museum's downstairs displays parts of the original store and lots of suffragette memorabilia that Emily and her niece saved. The upstairs displays all kinds of stuff from Emily's travels around the world, including things that nowadays would not be allowed out of the country, like pieces of the pyramids in Egypt. Her niece traveled with her and actually put the items on display in wooden and glass cases.Those wooden and glass cases are still in use today.
The sign reads:
Howland Store.
Built 1837. Slocum Howland.
Quaker. Noted abolitionist
Entrepreneur and land owner
Father of Emily Howland.
Emily Howland was a suffragette and abolitionist, and used some of her inheritance to pay for women to go to college, including some to go to the University of Michigan, according to the assistant curator here at the museum. The assistant curator here, by the way, went to school with Dan's father. The curator, now in his 80's, taught at the Howland school, just south of the museum. The Slocum Howland home was used as a stop on the underground railroad.
The museum's downstairs displays parts of the original store and lots of suffragette memorabilia that Emily and her niece saved. The upstairs displays all kinds of stuff from Emily's travels around the world, including things that nowadays would not be allowed out of the country, like pieces of the pyramids in Egypt. Her niece traveled with her and actually put the items on display in wooden and glass cases.Those wooden and glass cases are still in use today.
The red building is now an antique shop.
Seward House, Auburn, New York
William H. Seward's home after he married. William H. Seward was President Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of State and was instrumental in the United States purchase of Alaska. Now this house is a tourist attraction. If you're ever in Auburn, NY, I recommend going to see it. Tours run continuously. The history of the family is fascinating! And,almost all the items in the house are the actual items the Sewards owned. This family saved EVERYTHING!
William H. Seward's home after he married. William H. Seward was President Abraham Lincoln's Secretary of State and was instrumental in the United States purchase of Alaska. Now this house is a tourist attraction. If you're ever in Auburn, NY, I recommend going to see it. Tours run continuously. The history of the family is fascinating! And,almost all the items in the house are the actual items the Sewards owned. This family saved EVERYTHING!
Another view. Looking from the street side.
The gazebo.
The carriage house.
On our way back home we stayed at a very nice hotel in downtown London, Ontario, Canada for the night.
Then it was back home again...
This was taken from the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia. Those white specs on the water are sailboats.
This was taken from the Blue Water Bridge in Sarnia. Those white specs on the water are sailboats.
The Blue Water Bridge
"Welcome to Michigan"
"Welcome to Michigan"
Sorry for the distortion on some of the pictures. Some pictures were scanned with a scanner that was not working as it should, to say the least. That's the reason for the green lines across some photos. Despite this, I hope you enjoyed this edition of my travelogue, the first trip Dan and I took as husband and wife.
Created by Joyce P. Simkin
Last edited in HTML July 28, 2006
Last edited in Weebly November 25, 2016
Created by Joyce P. Simkin
Last edited in HTML July 28, 2006
Last edited in Weebly November 25, 2016