Saugerties High School - Sawyer Yearbook (Saugerties, NY)

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terned after one as it was in the time of Rip Van The theme of our .7954 Sawyer js mountains Each year our custom is to folfow a theme in our yearbook. The theme chosen for the 1954 SAW- YER is mountains. We feel that it is fitting since Saugerties lies at the foot of the mountains and serves as a gateway to the pictureque Catskills. This mountain range, lying west of the Hudson River and mainly in Ulster and Greene Counties, is noted for its impressive scenery. The highest peaks in the Catskills are Slide Mountain C4,204 feetj and Hunter Mountain C4,025 feetD. Not only are the Catskills rich in beauty but they are the home of many folk tales and legends which capture the interest of all who hear them. Perhaps the favorite is Washington lrving's story of Rip Van Winkle who encountered the little men of Hendrick Hudson's crew while hunting in the mountains. After drinking their brew, he fell asleep for twenty years and awoke to a new government formed after the revolution he had slept through. A vacationland development which will be known as Rip's Retreat is now in the planning stages. It will be located on the site of the Catskill Moun- tain House property at Haines Falls, and is expected to stimulate great interest on the part of tourists. This development is to be an authentic village pat- Winkle. DIRECTORY Athletics Page 23 Music Page 37 Faculty Page 45 Activities Page 53 Classes' Page 67 Seniors l' Page 73 Advertising Page 99 C 'fl 1 F O Iames Fenimore Cooper also used the glades and woods of the Catskills as a romantic background for his stories. His love for the mountains is shown in a quotation from The Pioneers which says: There's a place in them hills that I used to climb to . . . that would well repay any man for a barked shin or a torn moccasin . . . lt is a place to make a man solemnize. Some of the roads which enter the mountains include the Plattekill and Kacrterskill Clove roads. To enter Plattekill Clove, the visitor turns off Route 212 about three miles west of Saugerties. Here we find a climb of nearly l4U0 feet in a distance of lk miles. Kaaterskill Clove is entered at Palenville. Each year the scenic beauty of the Catskills at- tracts many visitors, and brings tourist trade to Saugerties. Hunting and fishing, and the peaceful rustic air of the mountains tempt travelers from great distances. The art work in the SAWYER is based on our theme. All drawings are done by the students. Now, come and pay a pictorial visit to Sauger- ties High School, and see the students at work and play with the stately Catskills providing a back- ground for your tour. Something wise is in a mountain Something powerful and strong: Centuries have passed before it- lt is part of history's song. Maybe it's the way the trees stand Straight and tall against the sky Or because the mighty river Reverently passes by. Something's peaceful in a mountain Yet that's not so very odd. Years and years have found it standing Away up there - right close to God. M. A. M. Page 3

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The Esopus Creelf anal Calslcjll Mountains as seen from Barclay Heights 5...n . .J Al This view, familiar to all Saugerties people, was taken within a few feet of a residential section of the village and yet scarcely a single residence is clearly in view. The mountain and the Esopus Creek have brushed aside everything else to give due honor to the beauties of nature which we are privileged to enjoy. Our scenery, and our water facilities, and the opportunity of being close to na- ture are Goclfgiven gifts. ln the picture is one of the bays of the artificial lake that lies west of the bridge over the Esopus. ln the summer months, many boats skim its crystal surface, and patrons of the Saugerties Bathing Beach along its shore enjoy swimming in the cool water. Page 5