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June 27, 2009

Retired county historian to release book

Retired county historian to release book

By JEFF MEYERS

to buy the book

The Northern New York American-Canadian Genealogical Society will host a signing for Addie Shield's new book, "Survival in the First Half of the 20th Century," at the Oval on the former Plattsburgh Air Force Base from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Aug. 1 during the society's Family Heritage Day.

Orders can be placed through the Genealogical Society in care of Julie Dowd, P.O. Box 1256, Plattsburgh, NY 12901 or at www.nnyacgs.com. Hardcovers are $30 and softcovers are $20 with a $3 shipping and handling fee for mailed copies. Samuel de Champlain and his wife, Helen Boulle, will also be in attendance Aug. 1.

PLATTSBURGH — Addie Shields has shared countless stories depicting the trials and tribulations of settlement and maintaining an existence in northeastern New York.

Now, the retired Clinton County historian reveals her family's struggles through the Great Depression.

Her new book, "Survival in the First Half of the 20th Century," not only focuses on those harsh Great Depression years, but also tells the story of how Shields's ancestors came to the North Country well before the turn of the century, an example of the French-Canadian movement southward into New York.

"It's the emergence of the French from their dispersion in Acadia," she said as she made final revisions to the soon-to-be-published book with help from Julie Dowd of the Northern New York American-Canadian Genealogical Society.

"The lure of the American dream called to them," Shields added. "But then they got caught scratching gravel in the stagnant economic crisis of the 20th century."

VISUAL IMAGE
Acadia was originally the French colonial empire stretching from eastern Quebec and the Maritime provinces to New England. The Acadia region now refers to Atlantic Canada with heavy French roots, including New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.

The book "describes how her great-grandmother and grandfather came down from Canada on the ice on a sled in March and turned right onto the Chazy River," Dowd said as she studied the manuscript from her laptop at the County Historian's Office. "It's incredible."

The narrative quickly moves to the family's home on Route 22 in Beekmantown.

"It's a lovely tale, mainly about her mother and father (Howard Lawrence and Agness Dupee Lawrence) and their struggles to keep the farm in the family," Dowd said. "It shows how people at the time didn't actually have cash money. If they had chickens, they brought eggs to the store and bartered for other things."

Filled with photos from Shields's personal collection, the book gives readers a visual image of those days when people faced a constant struggle for survival.

"The book encapsulates the history of ordinary people who lived here," said Anastasia Pratt, the current county historian who helped in the editing of the book along with her mother, Gloria Pratt. "It shows the day-to-day livelihood of a local community.

"It's pretty unique for our area," she said of the book's role in describing a former era from a personal narrative perspective. "This type of writing has become popular in other parts of the country, but we don't have a book like this written by someone who is still with us."

STILL ACTIVE
Shields, who has always been interested in writing about her family's presence in the region, utilized the many letters she wrote as a youth living with her grandparents.

She has dedicated the book to her children, Charlotte Atwood, who died in early 2008, and Chuck, who lives in Las Vegas.

Shields, who turned 93 June 21, lives at the Vilas Home in Plattsburgh and continues to work as the town historian for Beekmantown. She regularly attends historical functions across the county and is working on a new book on Beekmantown history that will continue to tell the story of everyday life in the North Country.

She copyrighted several pieces while county historian, including a look at the local connection to the Underground Railroad and the relationship between Plattsburgh and Burlington.

E-mail Jeff Meyers at: jmeyers@pressrepublican.com

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Retired county historian to release book
by By JEFF MEYERS , , Fri May 14, 2010, 08:09 PM EDT
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