I had to ask. If you
weren't at the reunion and have been away from Cooperstown as long as I
was, maybe you're
wondering too "Where's that?" Possibly though you have been
around in the era of Winter
Carnival and Star Field is as familiar as the Pit.
I didn't go on the field trip
but did I see where they went from the comfort of the Otesaga Hotel where I stopped for
lunch on my way to Fenimore
House. *
(*My sister took this shot in 1990 - it was little
changed.)
It doesn't look very star-like in this picture. But it
used to. I don't recall it by that name although I remember
the field well. This picture from
"A Visit to Cooperstown" by Walter R Littell shows a
similar view, as it was in 1946. Pretty star-like. So
how did that great
field get opened up on those wooded shores?
James Fenimore Cooper purchased 200 acres in
1835 there when he came back to live in Cooperstown and established a
farm, primarily to supply his family and
guests. According to Hugh Cooke
MacDougall*, Cooper visited Chalet
Farm,
as it was called, often and
even during winter, presaging its current popularity. The
farm has continued although the original farmhouse burned in
1958. The land is now part of the Clark's Fernleigh Farm so
possibly the field will not disappear entirely.
MacDougall describes the
farm as 'never a financial success' in Cooper's time and it likely
helped
discourage additional farming on east side of the lake that would have
cleared more land. But it is also a testament to
the
determination of the Clark
family to preserve and protect the natural beauty of the Otsego
Lake area that
continues to this day.
There are pictures of Star
Field in winter at CooperstownRealEstate.com.
Look in the drop down menus on the right. The site has some nice
Cooperstown links but you will want to have your pop-up blocker on if
you explore.
* In 1989, at the bicentennial of
birth of
James Fenimore Cooper, the New York State Historical Association
published "Cooper's Otsego County" by Hugh Cooke
MacDougall. It is a delightful guide to many sites in the county
and
town associated with Cooper's life and fiction. I am
indebted to it for the history of Star Field, which is one of the 22
places described in the tour of the county. Regrettably I was
unable to find the book listed for sale online. It may still be
available at Fenimore House. It's a wonderful book to plan a vacation
around.
