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The Plank Road Toll House was constructed in 1848 as an entrance and exit to the Glens Falls/Moreau/Lake George Plank road. The Toll House was originally located at the southern end of the Fort Edward road which carries travelers from Fort Edward to South Glens Falls. After the toll road was eliminated the building was used as a train stop in the Town of Moreau and then an antiques shop before moving to the campus of the museum in 1972. The restoration of the building reflects what the living quarters of the toll collector would have looked like. |
| Plank roads were one of the first solutions to muddy rutted dirt roads in America. To pay for the construction of these improved roads private individuals, corporations or municipalities would finance construction and then operate the plank road as a toll road. People entering or leaving the road would enter via a toll house. The toll keeper would often live nearby or onsite for convenience sake.
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| The first president of the Plank Road company was Dr.
Billy Joe Clark. Dr. Clark is an interesting local figure worth
mentioning. Dr. Clark helped organize the Moreau and Northumberland
temperance society. In the 1800’s it was common for men women and
children to drink freely.
Alcohol was consumed before breakfast, during breakfast, and periodically throughout the day. A drink that held favor with locals was Rum Fustian. This drink was made with 1 Pint of gin, 1 gallon of rum, a bottle of sherry and a quart of beer. Nutmeg, Egg yolks and sugar and were added for additional flavor. This heavy consumption of alcohol took its toll on health, labor efficiency and the social character of citizens. Dr. Clark viewed this drunkenness as the cause of many societal problems and saw the Temperance Society as a way to reduce alcohol abuse. In the recent publication, "Letters to Lura" by Doris Putnam Lassalle, the Toll House, which also served as a train station on the Moreau Plank Road figures prominently as the place where her letters were sent and received. The book is interesting in terms of 19th century correspondence between two local literary people; one, a young poet who attended the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute and her mentor, a semi retired lawyer, who helped to promote her literary career before she passed away at a very young age. |
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