Jump to content

Camp Bywater

From Historic Saranac Lake Wiki
Revision as of 01:08, 17 September 2025 by Migratebot (talk | contribs) (Fix image duplication and formatting issues 🤖 Generated with Claude Code)
(diff) ← Older revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)


Camp Bywater is a private Camp on [Clear], owned by the Dorlon and Mitchell families.  The camp occupies a 4-acre site on  the northwestern shore.  Early owners of this property include Ida H. Rice, owner of The Rice Hotel, which became the Lake Clear Inn
, July 24, 1992
On January 20, 1906, the premises was conveyed to Ella S. McKenzee of Dobbs Ferry. It had once been the summer Camp of the McKensie School, a boarding school at Dobbs Ferry. This campsite included a main camp and four tent platforms-- one of them a Twin tent platform. .  This property was within the boundaries of the Lake Clear Inn.  Walter Cluett had helped Charlie Wardner buy the Lake Clear Inn around this time.  Portions of the 8th and 9th holes of the Lake Clear Inn Golf Course ran through this property under an agreement with the Dorlons and the Inn.

In 1918, Lillian Cadby Dorlon had contacted Walter, her cousin,  about the camp for the summer. They then rented the camp for the summer.  On October 3, 1919, Cluett sold the camp to Lillian Cadby Dorlon and her husband Philip S. Dorlon.

November 16, 1934 John H. (Harf) Dorlon, acquired the camp from his parents and siblings. "Harf's Highway" is named after him.  Harf enjoyed this camp for many years. He and his family, wife Martha Wetmore Dorlon, daughter Martha Knight Dorlon Mitchell and son John H. Dorlon Jr., stayed in the "Main Camp".