Autumn in the Thousand Islands

It’s the time of the year when Thousand Islands cottage dwellers close up their summer homes and say goodbye to the St. Lawrence River. While there are still the year-rounders who enjoy the crisp air and autumn beauty, they are few. Yet, the autumn colors in the area are simply spectacular and not to be missed!

Historically, people like the Bournes who built Singer Castle (then called The Towers) on Dark Island, the Emerys who built Calumet Castle on Calumet Island, and the Pullmans who built Castle Rest on Pullman Island, would often visit the islands in the fall, often to hunt and fish. The Bournes even had a duck blind on a separate nearby island.

Yet, I suspect, many of the Gilded Age families returned to enjoy the autumn colors on the St. Lawrence River in their beloved Thousand Islands. The grand cities like New York City, Philadelphia, and others simply couldn’t provide the abundance, wide-range, and intensely beautiful autumn scenery the area offered them.

Leaf peeping in the Thousand Islands is a memorable experience. The densely deciduous forests along the river and on the islands turn vibrant, awe-inspiring colors. Leaves fall into the water and paint an unforgettable tapestry. Bright reds, oranges, and yellows dot the landscape, with more subtle hues of pinks, purples, and peach filling in the autumn color wheel. If you haven’t been to New England in the fall, you won’t regret adding it to your bucket list.

But why is it so beautiful here? Cooler temperatures in late summer combined with plenty of sunshine, often leads to brighter colors. But freezing can kill the leaves prematurely. As you’ll recall from your biology classes, photosynthesis breaks down chlorophyll, yellow pigments in the leaves become visible, and the leaves lose their green color. Reds and purples come from the sugars trapped in the leaves.

Ideally, an early moist growing season, a dry late summer, and a sunny, warm fall with cool nights, create the most stunning colors of the autumn season. And here, along the St. Lawrence River, this is often the case.

The St. Lawrence River autumn usually peaks around the first of October, reflecting these colors on its clear water and multiplying the breathtaking scenery. You can take boat cruises around the color-bursting islands until mid-October to see for yourself. Though timing can vary from year to year due to weather and the increasing length of nights, you won’t want to miss it—at least one time in your life.

About Reagan’s Reward:

Reagan Kennedy assumes the position of governess to the Bernheim family’s twin nephews, and her life at Cherry Island’s Casa Blanca becomes frustratingly complicated. Service to a Jewish family and tending to eight-year-old mischievous boys brings trouble galore.

Daniel Lovitz serves as the island’s caretaker and boatman. When he tries to help the alluring Reagan make sense of her new world, her insecurities mount as her confidence is shaken―especially when she crosses the faith divide and when Etta Damsky makes her life miserable. As trouble brews, Daniel sees another side of the woman he’s come to love.

Finalist in the 2020 Selah Awards, Reagan's Reward will touch your heart.

About Susan:

Susan G Mathis is an international award-winning, multi-published author of stories set in the beautiful Thousand Islands, her childhood stomping ground in upstate NY. Susan has been published more than twenty times in full-length novels, novellas, and non-fiction books.

Her first two books of The Thousand Islands Gilded Age series, Devyn’s Dilemma, and Katelyn’s Choice have each won multiple awards, and book three, Peyton’s Promise, comes out May 2022 with Rachel’s Reunion in November. The Fabric of Hope: An Irish Family Legacy, Christmas Charity, and Sara’s Surprise, and Reagan’s Reward, are also award winners.  

Susan is also a published author of two premarital books, two children's picture books, stories in a dozen compilations, and hundreds of published articles. Susan makes her home in Colorado Springs and enjoys traveling around the world. Visit www.SusanGMathis.com for more.

The Taste of Autumn

By Kathy Kovach

Fall is my favorite time of year. A chill kisses the morning air. Leaves present their last hurrah in a finale of bursting color. Spicy, earthy scents rise up from the path, like an incense presented upon the death of something beautiful.

Then there are the tastes. A cornucopia of delicious delicacies only to be appreciated during the season that ushers in winter. The first, and most obvious, is pumpkin. Imagine yourself on a New England farm in 1672. Pumpkins grew in abundance, and thus was born the first recorded recipe in New Englands Rarities Discovered by John Josselyn.

In the 1800s, sweet pumpkin dishes began to grace holiday tables. Pumpkin pie was the most popular, but other creative recipes also made an appearance. Such as a scooped-out shell filled with ginger-spiced milk and roasted by the fire. Mmm...wish I had a recipe for that.

Autumn harvest also reminds me of apples. From Golden Delicious and Granny Smith to Gala and Pink Lady. I can still remember the aroma of fresh apples bobbing in a tub just before I plunged my face in to capture one of the beauties, during a festival or party at home. Having a slight overbite gave me an unfair advantage. This tradition didn’t start out as an innocent game, however.

Hundreds of years ago, the ritual started with the British as a way of choosing a mate. The romantic game may have had superstitious roots, but I’m sure it evolved into a fun way to connect with that special someone. In one variation, each apple was assigned to a different fellow. The young lady would try to bite into the apple of one she fancied. If she succeeded in one try, their romance was certain. Two tries meant he would court her, but their romance would fade. A third signaled a doomed failure as a couple. Not sure I’d keep trying. I’d just grab the guy and run. Another game constituted a race. Whichever young damsel caught a bobbing apple first would be the next to marry. I wonder if the men ever deigned to get their faces wet?

The game eventually faded in popularity, but was brought back at the end of the 19th century by Americans seeking their immigrant roots.

Finally, a less healthy and cavity-inducing indulgence shows up every fall. The stores have bags of the stuff, and my husband becomes a child when I bring the first bounty home. Can you guess? Candy corn, of course. The most loved/hated confection in existence.

Most historians agree that the peculiar candy was introduced in the 1880s by George Renninger, an employee of the Wunderle Candy Company in Philadelphia. At this time, farmers made up about half of the work force, therefore, marketing swung that way. Candies were formed into tiny pumpkins, turnips, chestnuts, and even pea pods. Renninger came up with a unique tri-colored design in the shape of a corn kernel. In 1898, Goelitz Candy Company, now called the Jelly Belly Candy Company, picked up the confection and labeled it “Chicken Feed.” Corn was not yet used for human consumption, but given to the livestock. Today, approximately 35 million pounds of the corn syrup based sweet treat are sold every year according to Lauren O’Toole, a spokesperson for the National Confectioners Association. My husband is a major stock holder.

Every season has its signature taste. Peppermint, sugar cookies, and hot chocolate in winter. Spring vegetable dishes. Watermelon and strawberries for the hot summer. But the autumn senses tantalize the most, in my opinion, with the rich harvest tastes and smells that seem to laude Americana.

Titanic: Legacy of Betrayal

A secret. A key. Much was buried on the Titanic, but now it's time for resurrection.

Follow two intertwining stories a century apart. 1912 - Matriarch Olive Stanford protects a secret after boarding the Titanic that must go to her grave. 2012 - Portland real estate agent Ember Keaton-Jones receives the key that will unlock the mystery of her past... and her distrusting heart.

To buy: Amazon

Kathleen E. Kovach is a Christian romance author published traditionally through Barbour Publishing, Inc. as well as indie. Kathleen and her husband, Jim, raised two sons while living the nomadic lifestyle for over twenty years in the Air Force. Now planted in northeast Colorado, she's a grandmother, though much too young for that. Kathleen is a longstanding member of American Christian Fiction Writers. An award-winning author, she presents spiritual truths with a giggle, proving herself as one of God's peculiar people.

Website
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Autumn Views

Autumn - the word reminds me of wood smoke on a crisp morning, multi-colored leaves fluttering through the air, and the taste of pumpkin pie. At least, those are the sensations I experience when I see or hear the word. As usual, an image search revealed a lot more than I imagined.

This 1874 print of autumn leaves with the phrase, Walk in Love, came in under the heading of Prang's Floral Mottoes. Included information also called it an emblem picture. I would have loved to find one in cross-stitch or crewel work, and at 28 x 43.3 cm would have been perfect for seasonal wall decor.

[Prang's floral mottoes, no. 18?]. Walk in love. L. Prang & Co. Boston, [1874]. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

In 1887, this print of two women enjoying themselves on a plaza suggests the day to be quite warm according to their wardrobe, however, the scattering of colored leaves by their feet prove the seasonal change to autumn has begun.

Happy Autumn Hours, c1887 Jan. 13. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Another fashion image showing autumn is this delightful American poster by Penrhyn Stanlaws, artist, showing a woman "...wearing a long yellow coat and matching hat, walking pass (sp) trees as the wind blows leaves all around her." The color combinations in this poster, as well as the artistic use of the archaic spelling of the word, AVTVMN, draw my gaze when placed among other autumn images. 

Autumn Hours, Signed: Penrhyn Stanlaws, 1907. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

In the early 20th century, stereographs were commonly found displaying social life. This one from 1903 shows five women gathering leaves - still a favorite fall activity - and comes under the title, A Golden Autumn Day.

A Golden Autumn Day, c1903. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Although this 1906 Vancouver, British Columbia, street scene doesn't look like autumn, the caption on the back reads, "Granville Street, near Pender. Looking North. A foggy day in the autumn. One auto, tram cars on the left hand side, the hand cart, Rand Bros. office, Old Style sign of 'Semi-Ready.' The corner before the Rogers building was built." Do you know what caught my eye in this photograph other than the fashion and the tram? The Semi-Ready sign. My imagination ran away wondering what was sold as semi-ready in this era (ie clothing, baking, food, shoes?) until I spotted the title. 

Granville Street near Pender Street, looking north, showing sign for Semi-Ready Tailoring, ca 1906. Source: City of Vancouver Archives

Of course, I can't show autumn images without some type of vegetable display and here we have a 1912 photograph showing harvest treasures from Edmonton, Alberta. 

Autumn Harvest Vegetable Display, Edmonton, Alberta. 1912. Source: Glenbow Archives, Calgary, Alberta

And because I like showing fashion via real photographs, this 1912 image from Milton, Ontario is from Bessie Murray's photograph album showing the closing exercises of the W.L.C. in 1912. No scattering of leaves, but entitled, Seven Women Dressed in Autumn Clothing.

Seven Women Dressed in Autumn Clothing, 1912. Source: Milton Historical Society

Of course, what would autumn be without a cattle roundup...This 1904 Montana stereograph shows, "2 cowboys on horseback, one rolling cigarette; the other lighting cigarette; herd of cattle in background." I wonder if this was used in a cigarette ad? I seem to recall several such ads with cowboys and cattle while growing up.

Cowboys on the range - an autumn beef roundup, Montana, c1904. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Since many social events of autumn ended in a hay ride, I found this image entitled, Vacation Days in Autumn on the Farm, which was published in both photographic prints and stereographs from 1900-1910. The summary information reads, "Women enjoy hayride on cart pulled by two cows." Note that these cows are female oxen, not milking or beef cows as commonly known.

Vacation days in autumn on the farm. 1900-1910. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

Do you remember the smells of burning leaves? Here's a 1940 color slide from Connecticut showing something not often seen these days...leaf burning in the streets.

Burning the autumn leaves in Norwich, Connecticut, 1940 Nov. Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C.

The scenes of autumn are varied and ever-changing, depending on where you live, but full of color and the expectation of new things to come - like Christmas. 

What comes to mind when you think of Autumn?

To me, fall means looking skyward for migrating cranes. These beautiful large birds are slowly making a return from near extinction and some pass over our house ever spring and fall where they're mixed in with sandhill cranes. Postage stamps, like this Canada 5 cent from 1955, followed by a 3 cent U.S. stamp in 1957,  brought some awareness to their situation, as do conservation efforts on both sides of the border.

Whooping Crane, Canada Post 5c stamp, 1955. Courtesy of National Archives of Canada

To bring awareness of their plight, I included a dancing crane scene in my published novella, Sweet Love Grows. (see below)

Anita Mae Draper's historical romances are written under the western skies of the Saskatchewan prairie where her love of research and genealogy yield fascinating truths that layer her stories with rich historical details.  Anita's short story, Here We Come A-Wassailing, was a finalist for the Word Guild's 2015 Word Awards. Her novellas are included in Austen in Austin Volume 1, The American Heiress Brides Collection, and The Secret Admirer Romance Collection. Readers can check out Anita's Pinterest boards for a visual idea of her stories to enrich their reading experience.  Discover more at:

Website - www.anitamaedraper.com

Pinterest - www.pinterest.com/anitamaedraper/