Hugh McLellan (right) and brother
Malcolm at the Moorsfield Press office
on March 4, 1943. The office was
in the basement of the old Session
House, then the Lyceum Theater and now
the Knights of Columbus Hall in
Champlain, New York. Hugh's son,
Woody, also worked at the press but
was serving in the Army during WW2
when this photo was taken. This
photograph is owned by the website
author, other copies exist.
The Moorsfield Press Centennial
1919-2019
The Moorsfield
Press was founded by architect and historian
Hugh McLellan in April of 1919 in the
Village of Champlain, New York. Hugh's
goal was to print historic papers from his
father's Abraham Lincoln collection as well
as letters from the Pliny Moore Papers that
he had recently transcribed (Hugh was the
great-great
grandson of Pliny Moore). Hugh wanted
to print these historic documents in the
same style as publications printed in the
18th century. This included using the Caslon
Olde-Style typeface, Old English typeface
and hand-made paper. Hugh printed a
number of pamphlets related to his Champlain
relatives as well as Town of Champlain
history. As the Moorsfield Press was the
only printing press in town it quickly
became a commercial printing business.
Historical publications were sporadically
printed between 1919 and 1980. Between
1937 and 1938, the Moorsfield
Antiquarian was published as an eight
volume set.
When the Moorsfield Press was founded,
Hugh asked his friend, Winfred Porter
Truesdell, for advice. Truesdell
became the mentor of Hugh in the early
years of the press as he had printing
and publication experience. Hugh even
printed Truesdell's Print
Connoisseur magazine for several
years. Hugh's son, Woody, was 12
years old when the press was founded and
later took over the business. He
worked at the press from 1919 to after
1980.
A comprehensive history has been written
about the founding of the Moorsfield
Press and Hugh's friendship with Winfred
Porter Truesdell.
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Publications
of the Moorsfield Press
(1919-1980)
Moorsfield
Press Movie Posters
Moorsfield
Press Champlain Posters
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Winfred
Porter Truesdell:
Champlain's
International Art Publisher
Winfred
Porter Truesdell was an
internationally known art publisher who lived
in New York City. He first published 12 books
about famous bookplate artists in the early
1900s. He then focused his attention to
photographs and engravings of Abraham Lincoln
as well as prints and engravings of famous Revolutionary,
Civil War and Spanish-American War soldiers
and politicians. By 1916, he had become
good friends with architect Hugh McLellan as
McLellan's father was a major Abraham Lincoln
collector of "Lincolniana." Truesdell
published an art magazine called the The
Print Connoisseur starting in 1920 and
moved to Champlain, New York in 1924 where he
continued to print it until 1932.
Truesdell also spent several decades preparing
a four volume set of books about Abraham
Lincoln's photographs and engravings. He
printed one volume in 1932 but died in 1939
before printing the other volumes.
The Print Connoisseur Magazine
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The Floral Paintings of Harriet
Stewart Miner
and her book
"Orchids: The Royal Family of
Plants,
with Illustrations from Nature"
Harriet Stewart Miner (1840-1895) was an
amateur botanist and painter of flowers and
was related to the Moore, Nye and McLellan
families of Champlain, New York. Harriet lived
most of her life in Syracuse, New York and
spent years studying and painting orchids. She
had access to collections in the Syracuse
area, Albany, New York City, Boston,
Philadelphia and Cincinnati and in 1885
published the first color book on orchids in
America called: "Orchids: Royal Family of
Plants". The book contained 24 large-format
chromo-lithographs that were printed using a
special French lithographic process. The
scientific name of each flower was given as
well as details of its growing location and
life history. Many reviews of the time
were favorable. The book became a major
resource for botanists as well as lovers of
flowers. Today, her book is found in
libraries around the world as well as online.
Found in the collections of
the Clinton County Historical Association in
Plattsburgh, New York, are at least seven
additional paintings of flowers made by Miner
that were not included in her book. These
paintings, as well as others that may be by
her, are presented here.
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Champlain
Historic Calendars
2003 - 2017
The Champlain Historic Calendar Series
The Champlain
Historic Calendars were published between
2003 and 2017 and focused on the history of
the Village and Town of Champlain, New
York. The calendar series included 12
large-format images as well as a
comprehensive caption. An original essay was
written in the back of the calendar and grew
from three pages to 17 pages and included
numerous photographs and other images. Many
topics were covered including the founding
of Champlain by Pliny Moore in 1785,
Champlain in the War of 1812, the evolution
of the village and town of Champlain, the
cemeteries of Champlain and a history of
Point au Fer at Rouses Point. The 2009
calendar was dedicated to the 400 year
anniversary of the exploration of Lake
Champlain by Samuel de Champlain and the
building of two Champlain monuments in
Plattsburgh and Crown Point by architect
Hugh McLellan. All of the historic
information presented in the calendars had
been collected by Hugh McLellan who lived in
Champlain. His collection of historic
material, including the Pliny Moore Papers,
is now found at Special Collections,
Feinberg Library, SUNY-Plattsburgh and the
Clinton County Historical Association, among
other places. Other material used in the
calendar series is courtesy the Samuel de
Champlain History Center in Champlain. The
calendars were well-received and several
hundred people in the village and town of
Champlain, as well as people in other states
with ties to the area, purchased the
calendars. The calendars are still available
today and are as relevant now as they were
when they were first published.
Concept painting of the "White
House" at Point au Fer by Elaine Rochester
Cloutier, used by permission.
- The 2003 calendar
had a three page history of the Village of
Champlain but is not available.
- 2004 had a
seven page historical essay on the former
Savoy Hotel and mansion of Champlain that
burned down in 2003.
- 2005 had a
seven page historical essay on the burning of
the Champlain Presbyterian Church in 1844 and
how it relates to the building of the Session
House (current Knights of Columbus Hall) in
1848, new Presbyterian Church (old Village
Hall) and other buildings.
- 2006 had a
seven page history that detailed the Village
of Champlain’s extensive role in the War of
1812.
- 2007 had
an expanded 11 page history on the founding of
the Village and Town of Champlain by Pliny
Moore.
- 2008 had a
11 page history that detailed the settlement
of Champlain in 1788 and building of its first
sawmill.
- 2009 had a
15 page history that detailed the building of
the Crown Point and Plattsburgh Champlain
Memorials.
- 2010 had a
11 page history that detailed the history of
Dewey's Tavern in the Town of Champlain.
- 2011 had a
11 page history that detailed the history of
the early settlements in Champlain Town
including the Village of Champlain, Rouses
Point, Perrys Mills and Coopersville.
- 2012 had a
15 page history that detailed the history of
the cemeteries and burying grounds in
Champlain Town.
- 2013 had a
15 page history that described the
establishment of the early roads and bridges
in Champlain Town.
- 2014 had a
15 page history that described the canal boat
industry along the Great Chazy River.
- 2015 had a
19 page history that described the early iron
industry including the Champlain Agricultural
Works and the Sheridan Iron Works (which had a
158 year history).
- 2016 had a
19 page history that noted some of the
earliest photographers in the Town of
Champlain including Bert F. Paine. His
portraits made c1904-1907 are found at the
Clinton County Historical Association and were
printed. Additional subjects include
photographers L.P. Case of Champlain, Gates
Photography of Plattsburgh, photographer W.B.
Pierce of Rouses Point, Pliny Dunn, the WWI
Armand Catelli funeral, Bill Earl, the Mansion
House in the Village of Champlain, the
Costello Apartment House, the Windsor (Saxony)
and Marnes Inn and Dock (made by Dr. Charles
Marnes), Slingsby's Dock and the Station House
Hotel in Rouses Point.
- 2017 had a
19 page history that described the history of
Point au Fer at Rouses Point, NY on the shore
of Lake Champlain. This was a post that
had been controlled by the French, British and
American forces at different times during the
French and Indian War and Revolutionary
War. The historic essay includes
recently discovered information never before
published related to President George
Washington's involvement with British
harassment of landowners in the Town of
Champlain long after the Revolutionary
War ended.
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