Recently the community received the good news that, after three years in the planning stage, approximately 2.8 miles of the Moody Road proposed for reconstruction has met with APA approval.
Almost .75 mil of that reconstruction will involve what is locally referred to as “Moody Flow” but is labeled as “the causeway” by the D.O.T. The flow skirts the shallow delta waters of the Racquette River and is an emergent wetland rich in it diversity, renowned for its numerous variety of birds of passage and other wildlife.
Some power/telephone poles will be removed and the lines they carried will be buried, enhancing the exceptional view. Several overlooks will also be established, including a wonderful proposal that would place one overlook on the rise of ground south of the bowling alley. This will provide an unsurpassed view shed encompassing the marsh, lake and surrounding mountains. Interpretive signage would accompany parking space at the overview location.
In 1849, the flow was described by S.H. Hammond, editor of the Albany State Register, and an early visitor to the region as “a beautiful prairie stretching away, skirted by tall trees. As you look upon it, you can hardly believe that it is not a pleasant meadow and you wonder where the farmhouses and all the cattle are.”
Louis Simmons in Mostly Spruce and Hemlock expands on Hammond’s visit when he notes that Hammond’s description of the area between the foot of the lake (Tupper Lake) and Racquette Pond or Long Neak, as Hammond called it, is interesting.
Simmons tells us that Seaver’s history of Franklin County erroneously describes it simply as an expansion of the Racquette River caused by the dam. Granted, Louis concedes, the lake or pond was considerably expanded as the dam flooded lowland areas, but a beautiful little lake existed there before the first reservoir dam was built and was mentioned by many of the early writers. When Hammond visited the Tupper area in 1849, no dam had yet been built, either at Setting Pole rapids or anywhere else in this area.
Long Neak is a garbled, mispronounced name for the original name of Racquette Pond, which was Lough Neagh (Lock Nay), a beautiful lake in Ireland. It was labeled such by a nobleman who lived on the banks of a lake in Ireland. In a duel over the affections of a fair lady, our expatriate Tupper nobleman feared he had killed his opponent and fled to America via Montreal and the St. Lawrence River to St. Regis. There he found Captain Peter Sabattis, chief of the tribe.
Captain Peter took pity on him and, for a fee, carried him and his effects up the Racquette River to his old hunting ground and built him a snug, warm log house on the banks of Racquette Pond, near the place where the river and the pond merge. For many years, this clearing was referred to by early guides as Paddy’s Choppin or Irish Clearing. The Irish nobleman lived there for many years, clearing a piece of land and raising a few potatoes, but he mainly lived on game and trout, then abundant here. Finally, his friends in Ireland in some way learned of his whereabouts and sent for him, notifying him that he had not, after all, killed his adversary. He returned to Ireland, leaving only his name for the pond – a name that sadly was short lived.
So, what happened to those once pastoral lands that existed in the 1800s along what is today’s causeway? Shortly after the close of the Civil War, Potsdam lumbermen found it difficult to drive their logs down the Racquette River below Tupper, especially in low water when rapids and waterfalls obstructed the passage of the logs. So they built a dam in 1870 at Setting Pole rapids (a mile or so beyond the Underwood Bridge on the NY Central Railroad). This dam was huge, over 300 feet long and 10 feet above still water, and it had 10 gates. The result was the flooding of lands for a distance of nearly 30 miles upstream. The location of today’s Junction (Faust) was completely under water. Of course, all of the fine timber lining the shores was killed, transforming a beautiful section into a dead forest.
The dam, despite its massive construction, gave way in May 1871. It took 36 hours for the wall of water that was released to reach Potsdam, where it caused great damage. The dam was repaired in 1872, but Moody residents, with flooded boathouses and the hope that meadows could be restored if the dam were removed, tore the dam apart in 1885. (Note: The dam would not be rebuilt until the 1930s.)
Some Personal Thoughts
After a recent visit to our impressive Wild Center, I was struck by the
thought that the Adirondacks are a land of emerging contrasts – the
old clashing with the new. And in between, nature tries to keep a balance.
The Moody Flow is a classic example that if man steps back a little,
nature will respond and heal and renew. What was an ugly land of drowned
and dead trees is now a beautiful marsh, a rich biome, a diverse sanctuary
for all manner of wildlife, and it is a great sponge filtering out
assaults (like acid rain) that drift into this place where we live.
A new understanding and relationship is happening here as we respect
and harmonize with Mother Earth that will make all the difference in
the future of the Adirondacks, a fragile gem that deserves our protection.