Lake James History Project
As this is being written in late February 2010, it has been three years since we first proposed this project
to the Lake James Board. Our interviews of Lake James cottage owners began that summer, so we have completed 2 ½ years of work so far. We are striving to have a draft of the history book to the Board this year, hopefully by summer.
We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of our Lake James neighbors in providing photos, maps, anecdotes, and information about the lake. We intend to acknowledge all these sources in the book. What we thought was a large lake with little isolated communities has now revealed its connectedness as we have gotten to know the friendly people all around its shores.
As the project progressed, it became bigger and bigger as we realized all the bases we had to cover in this, the first Lake James history book. We soon realized that we could not cover everything to the last detail, or we would be spending all our time on that, to the expense of everything else. For example, pages and pages could be written about the railroads that developed in northeast Indiana and eventually delivered passengers to Lake James. We have chosen more of an overview of that topic. We trust that others with particular interest will explore these areas further.
We are still receiving tips and photos, as we are yet in draft form and information can be added. If you think you have a story or picture about Lake James that would be of interest, please contact us.