Historic Saranac Lake

Historic Saranac Lake is a not-for-profit architectural preservation organization that captures and presents local history from our center at the Saranac Laboratory Museum. We were established as a membership organization in 1980, and we welcome support from our members to advance our programs.

Historic Saranac Lake (HSL) offers professional knowledge and experience to the public in support of historic preservation, architectural and historical research and education. HSL is located in the Village of Saranac Lake, a year-round resort town, within New York State's 6 million-acre Adirondack Park. We operate the Saranac Laboratory Museum and an online museum of local history at hsl.wikispot.org.

We accomplish our mission by sponsoring Historic Resource Surveys, nominating and listing over 170 resources to the National Register of Historic Places partnering on and administering preservation projects such as the restorations at Union Depot and the Bartók Cabin, and producing publications, articles and curricula that highlight the lives and architecture unique to our region. Our educational events feature these sites and stories through our Summer Music Series, History Day, walking tours, and lectures, all offering a heritage tourism experience filled with outdoor, fresh-air history.

In 1998, Historic Saranac Lake assumed ownership of Dr. Edward Livingston Trudeau's Saranac Laboratory, which was founded in 1894 for the study of tuberculosis. The building survives as a tangible reminder of the possibility and optimism Trudeau sustained despite the struggle and loss of so many to this debilitating disease. In 2009, we opened our first two ehibits at the Saranac Laboratory Museum, "125 Years of Science" and "The Great War: WWI and Saranac Lake" in the John Black Room. In 2010 we unveiled replicas of the original laboratory cabinets.

We ask you to join us as we look forward to 30 more years of capturing and presenting Saranac Lake's unique history. We rely on the support of our members. Please become a member of Historic Saranac Lake at one of the levels listed. Members enjoy free admission to the Saranac Laboratory Museum and HSL's tours.