Circa 1880 -1890. Town of Diana, NY. This photo was found in the home of Cora and Ted Luther of Harrsiville, NY
Life in the Adirondacks is hard. Harsh winters, rugged topography, and distance from major markets make living in the region a perpetual challenge. It’s largely understood that because of its remoteness, the Adirondacks was the last area mapped in New York. Henry Hudson reached Albany in 1609 but it wasn't until 1865, over 250 years later, when Verplanck Colvin charted the furthest reaches of the mountains.
The absence of maps never meant an absence of people. Dr. Curt Stager's research confirms that Indigenous peoples lived in the Adirondacks for over 12,000 years, long before the first colonial surveyor set foot in the region. They hunted, fished, and built lives on terrain so demanding that later cartographers needed centuries to fully chart it. We believe that origin, one of resilience carved into an unforgiving landscape, still feeds the Adirondack ethos today.
Modern Adirondackers are self-sufficient, many running small businesses or picking up two or three jobs to support their families. They know the woods around their communities for both pleasure and resource, seeking solace between work, and deer, blueberries, and mushrooms to augment their grocery hauls. They have their favorite swimming holes, their secret fishing spots, and their favorite times for seclusion from the summer crowds. This is their home, and they embrace every aspect of it with grit and determination.
Perseverance is our legacy, too. As we honor the tradition of the Adirondacks with our diverse clothing lines, we remain committed to American manufacturing, a challenge succumbed to by many of our formerly favorite brands. There are fewer and fewer American factories, and, as the garment workforce ages, fewer employees to work them. Production costs are high, often 6-8 times more than South American or Asian competitors, and lead times are long. As factories shutter, we lose time and effort seeking alternative domestic manufacturers for our goods.
Just last month, we were informed that the factory that was set to manufacture our upcoming women's jacket line (more on that in a future post) no longer had the capacity to build our line. Their costs were going up and their customers were moving overseas. They had to cut. This means we at Adirondack Field have to pivot too, but we won’t go abroad. That would be giving up.
We believe we've identified a new factory in New Jersey that can do the job, the same factory that made Team USA's 2026 Winter Olympics jackets. The switch will cost us time, and probably a lost season for sales, but overall the product will be better, and we'll add a new Olympic legacy to our own Adirondack story. This type of change is typical for small business, but we believe it is even more standard for Adirondack businesses: if at first something doesn't work, adjust and try again.
That is grit. That is determination. That is the Adirondack Ethos.