“The steamboat navigation on Lake Champlain has closed for the season—the boats having made their last trip on the 24th,” The Elizabethtown Post reported on Nov. 26, 1852. “Now, for want of a railroad, our traveling friends may hibernate for the next five months.”
The R. P. Advertiser fact-checked the Elizabethtown paper.
“Rather too fast, Mr. Post,” the rival publisher chided, in a correspondence published in The Post on Dec. 10. “The steamers United States and Burlington, two of the most regular and reliable steamers that are floated on the water of Lake Champlain, are, up to date, making their regular trips, and, to judge from the weather, will continue to do so for two or three weeks to come.”
The Post admitted its mistake.
“We acknowledge the corn,” The Post responded. “We were too fast, but the sudden freeze up just before Thanksgiving, which hindered the boats taking one trip, deprived us of our mails, and, worst of all, prevented us from retaining our Yankee turkeys, annoyed us and we spoke hastily.”
The editor was in a better mood a week later.
“The snow came at last. Friday night and Saturday if fell fast, and the Sabbath dawned as bright and beautiful a winter morning as is ever seen.”
The editor was cautious this time.
“We believe navigation is closed now, but in this uncertain world won’t venture to state anything as a fact again until we see in print. It is certain that we have had no mails from the south since Monday in consequence of the dropping off of the boats.”
It continued to snow.
“About eight inches of snow last night and the sleighing is good.”
In other 19th century December weather news collected from historic newspapers of the region:
1890
It’s not my definition of ideal weather.
“Heavy winds have prevailed here for several days, and from eight to ten inches of snow have fallen. The mercury measured 20 below Sunday morning,” the Comstock correspondent reported in The Granville Sentinel on Dec. 26, 1890. “So far it has been an ideal winter.”
It had been frigid for most of December.
“The mercury registered 2 below zero here Tuesday morning. Wednesday there was a light fall of snow,” The Granville Sentinel reported on Dec. 5.
If it was any consolation, there was good sleighing.
“The snow which fell here last Saturday has made fine sleighing, and is being well improved,” the Shushan correspondent reported on Dec. 12. “Monday morning was the coldest day of the season, the mercury indication all the way down to 15 degrees below zero in different localities.”
It was a cold Christmas week.
“The thermometer registered 16 below Saturday morning,” the Sentinel reported Dec. 26.
1880
“Schroon Lake is partially frozen over down to the Narrows, the earliest within the memory of the oldest inhabitant,” The Elizabethtown Post & Gazette reported on Dec. 2.
“Almost six inches of snow fell yesterday, enough to make good sleighing if old Boreas will allow it to remain where it originally fell.”
“The ice in the lake at Crown Point was 6 inches thick last week Tuesday, and teams crossed on it at that point. This is said to be the earliest crossing in 50 years,” the Post & Gazette reported on Dec. 9.
“About three inches of snow fell Tuesday evening, and the sleighing never was better than now,” the Post & Gazette reported on Dec. 16.