round lake

About 6 years ago I had planned to travel out to the Syracuse area to track down Loomis ancestors in towns like Cicero, Clay, and other small villages in Onondaga County. I never did make it out there -- my trip was canceled due to bad weather. Most of you have read my ongoing research on our great-grandpa Chester Loomis, and I continue to search for bits of information that add to my sense of connection to him.

Recent poking around on the internet brought up a new bit of information that was of interest to me. According to an article in the July 1, 1894 issue of the New York Times, Chester was spending the summer teaching art classes at the Round Lake Association, a community just east of Albany. By that time he and Sara Dana has settled into life in Englewood, NJ and had started their family. Spending a summer teaching closer to the family homestead must have been a perfect opportunity for them. Round Lake was originally established as a Methodist camp, but in the 1890s the emphasis shifted to education and leisure activities. The community of Round Lake still thrives -- and I was happy to see from their website that they're very proud of their library!

So now I need to reschedule that trip to New York, and add Round Lake to the list of destinations. According to Fransje, it's just a short drive from Halcyon Farm!