North Country Identity

(04/11/12) Last spring downtown Plattsburgh got a new restaurant: a Himalayan restaurant. It's owned and operated by Tenzin and Yangchen Dorjee, a Tibetan couple who moved to northern New York with their two kids in 2007.

This month they're putting on a Tibetan arts festival where visiting monks will make a mandala out of sand, and offer lectures on topics ranging from Tibetan medicine to religious ethics. Sarah Harris visited the restaurant and talked to Tenzin Dorjee about the family's journey to Plattsburgh and how they're keeping their culture alive in the North Country. more

(04/05/12) At one time, there were four mills located at the Croghan Dam, on each side of the Beaver River. John Martin is owner and operator of the last remaining, the Croghan Island Mill.

He specializes in custom windows and doors...things you can't get at Lowe's or Home Depot.
Up until the stop logs were removed from the dam, Martin's machinery was powered by water, which drove pulleys and belts in the historic mill. He's had to rely on electricty since then, but he's had to cut back.

Martin's glad the dam has been reclassified as a lower risk. "Hopefully we can go back to water power," he said, and "business will pick back up and I can get back to normal life again."
Martin gave David Sommerstein a tour of the mill a year ago.

Martin says his father bought the mill from Lehman & Zehr, the original owners, in 1969.

(04/04/12) Plattsburgh is a city in transition. There's a lot of effort to attract new families and businesses and rebrand the lakeside city as a destination. As Sarah Harris reports, a key part of that revitalization means bringing the downtown back to life and building the arts scene. more

(03/21/12) The unusually warm weather this March hasn't been great for sugar makers. Maple syrup yields across northern New York and Vermont have been low, and a lot of producers are pulling their taps. But in spite of the strange temperatures, sugaring traditions remain alive and well. Sarah Harris went to an Adirondack "boil" and sent this audio postcard.

(03/07/12) Cold nights, warm days, sunshine: chickdees are busy, and the sap is rising. It all adds up to maple syrup season. Whether your operation includes a bulk holding tank and miles of plastic tubing, or just a few buckets hanging off the trees in the backyard, it all starts the same way, with a strategically placed hole in a sugar maple.

And it's today's Heard Up North, produced by Martha Foley.

(03/05/12) It's a scene that was common-place in the early 20th century, horses out on a frozen lake cutting through the ice with bladed plows.

Ice harvesting may not be part of your family's plans this year, but for one rural St. Lawrence County family it's the only way to keep food cool during the summer. Trevor Alford visited the Douglass family farm outside Canton and has our story. more

(02/14/12) A St. Lawrence County community is being reminded, again, of an 80 year-old rumor many people would rather forget.

A new novel re-imagines what happened when a little girl went missing overnight in Massena. It's based on a true story from 1928. The town's small Jewish community was accused of kidnapping her for a ritual murder.

Julie Grant set out to find out what really happened. She found that after 80 years, it's not easy to parse the truth from rumors and memories.

But she did find that people from cultures around the world brought together in America's "melting pot" were easily pulled apart in a time of crisis. more

(02/10/12) NCPR kicked off election coverage with a series of stories this week. See below for more on the 23rd district race for the House of Representatives.

Politics are everywhere these days, from the bitter Republican primary fight that's playing out on our TV screens to the redistricting battle in Albany that could shake up politics right here in our own backyard. As 2012 goes on, the news and conversation will only get louder and more intense.

Most high school students can't vote, but politics plays a big role in their lives, too. And they're paying attention, at least the teens are who gathered recently in Peru to talk about government and politics. Our correspondent Sarah Harris sends this report. more

(02/02/12) There were clear skies, cool temperatures...and a woodpile. A perfect combination for our Heard Up North.

(01/25/12) These are tough times, as libraries grapple with changing technology and shrinking budgets. But librarians in Clinton County say their work is more important than ever. Sarah Harris talked with Stan Ransom, Frances Fairchild, Betsy Brooks, Eva Jankowska and Jacqueline Madison, all librarians in Clinton County. more