Lake George Shipwrecks and Sunken History

by Joseph W. Zarzynski, Bob Benway

Discover lost history in the dark waters of Lake George.
Lake George is bustling with boaters, swimmers, fishermen and many others, enjoying its scenic, quintessentially Adirondack shores. But the depths below hide a whole other world--one of shipwrecks and lost history. Entombed are remnants of Lake George's important naval heritage, such as the legendary Land Tortoise radeau, which sank in 1758. Other wrecks include the steam yacht Ellide and the first famed Minne-Ha-Ha. These waters hold secrets, too, like the explanation behind the 1926 disappearance of two hunters. After years of exploration across the lake's bottomlands, underwater archaeologist Joseph W. Zarzynski and archeological diver Bob Benway present the most intriguing discoveries among more than two hundred known shipwreck sites.

Genres: Nonfiction

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2011

Reviews

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This non-fiction book on the history of Lake George as told by the sunken boats and other items found on the bottom of the lake is a souvenir book from my vacation last week. As I was reading, I kept wanting to tell my husband interesting facts. It was also handy that he could point out the various landmarks mentioned and explain boating and other technical terms because there was little to no cell service. I enjoyed it even more than I thought I would when I bought it.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's not really a book. It's a series of newspaper articles collected and organized. As such, the level of detail isn't that deep. Also, if you're not extremely familiar with Lake George (and I am not) then a few maps would have helped orient the reader.

[Steve Callahan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read for anyone with an interest in L. George history and what's been found in the waters depths. Lots of shipwrecks starting with the Revolutionary War. Could have used some maps to pinpoint locations for those of us who visit often.

[Bridget Johnson (Jameson) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Topical vacation reading

[Gary Braham · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked up this book on a recent summertime visit to the Lake. I like the lake, I like history, so I picked up a copy. This book is actually a series of newspaper articles. It has been partially edited to make more sense as a book, but it is still a series of newspaper articles. Each one is about 2 -3 pages long. Because it is meant to be a weekly column in the newspaper, each short story includes the same basic setup. The authors refer to themselves in the third person, a lot. "Joe and Bob of Bateaux Below went on a dive sponsored by the Fund For Lake George Inc." is basically the start of each article. It became so distracting, I started counting, then it became really distracting. One two page article mentioned the name of their organization 4 times, and their own names three times each. I started wondering if that was a record, so I started counting more. Page 85 only has 150 words on it, and ten of them are "Bateaux Below" Page 103 is just a picture and a diagram mostly, 72 words, 8 of them being "Bateaux Below" and 6 of them being "Bob Benway"

Because each article follows the same basic format, and is only 2-3 pages long, we don't get too much information about each shipwreck. This can be ok, because not all of them seem terribly interesting. But some of them are, and it would be nice to have some more information or storytelling.

I finished the book, and lowered my review from 3 to 2 stars due to my unhappiness with the book as I finished. It was like being stuck in Groundhog Day, or at a restaurant where you can only have the same appetizer over and over. Because it is a collection of short newspaper columns, we are getting the same set up over and over again. That got older and older the longer I read, and started to feel like way too much self promoting or tooting ones own horn. Once they got all the intro out of the way, there was only a little bit of space in each article to describe something new. With better editing, the book could have been a lot better, and more interesting. Rather than repeat the same paragraph or two each article, they could have done one chapter or two explaining who they were and what they do really well. Then we would have a better description than what the article did, and it would be done and out of the way for the rest of the book. Free of the article format, they could spend a lot more time on the interesting shipwrecks and stories, and not feel obligated to spend as much time on the less interesting or important wrecks.

[george burns · Rating 4 out of 5]

History Underwater

Lake George deep, cold and beautiful, understandably attracts tourists; but the lake also has a rich and vibrant history. It was most important as a corridor between combatants during the French and Indian War. Glimpses of the lake's history can be seen through the study of the numerous sunken ships in the lake. Almost as interesting as the history of the wrecks, is the recounting of the efforts of a dedicated band of volunteers to locate, preserve and provide historical context for the wrecks. One unfortunate problem is that the book consists of a collection of newspaper articles which results in tedious repetition of basic facts; but do not let this blemish discourage you from reading this informative book