Songs to Keep: Treasures of an Adirondack Folk Collector

THERE'S A PATH THAT LEADS BACK TO MY ADIRONDACK HOME FOLK MUSIC ECHOES THROUGH A MOUNTAINOUS FOREST, THANKS TO A WOMAN WHO SAVED TRADITIONAL SONGS FROM DISAPPEARING.

I LEARNED SUCH GOOD SONGS FROM MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

AND SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE JOIN PETE SEEGER IN HIS FINAL INTERVIEW, THE BACON BROTHERS, AND PETER AND PAUL AS WE CELEBRATE THESE "SONGS TO KEEP: TREASURES OF AN ADIRONDACK FOLK COLLECTOR."

PRODUCTION OF "SONGS TO KEEP: TREASURES OF AN ADIRONDACK FOLK COLLECTOR" IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY THE NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL ON THE ARTS, WITH THE SUPPORT OF GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO AND THE NEW YORK STATE LEGISLATURE.

AND BY CURTIS LUMBER.

WITH 21 LOCATIONS SERVING NEW YORK AND VERMONT, CURTIS LUMBER SUPPLIES ITS CUSTOMERS WITH BUILDING MATERIALS, HARDWARE, SIDING, WINDOWS, AND DOORS FOR KITCHENS, ADDITIONS, AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

WITH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM LAKE GEORGE MIRROR, COVERING THE QUEEN OF AMERICAN LAKES SINCE 1880.

GUIDE BOAT REALTY, YOUR GUIDES TO ADIRONDACK REAL ESTATE... AND... [ BIRDS SINGING ] Man: COME, ALL YOU SONS OF FREEDOM WHO AROUND THESE MOUNTAINS RANGE COME, ALL YOU TRUE-BORN LUMBER BOYS AND LISTEN TO MY SONG ON THE BANKS OF THE SWEET SARANAC WHERE THE LIMPID WATERS ROLL WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO Man: WITHOUT THE HARD WORK OF A MARVELOUS ADIRONDACK WOMAN, MARJORIE LANSING PORTER, MANY OF OUR FOLK SONGS WOULD HAVE BEEN LOST.

BUT SHE RECOGNIZED EARLY ON THAT THESE SONGS WERE FINE TO KEEP AND SET ABOUT SAVING THEM FOR ALL OF US.

Seeger: I THINK I LEARNED SUCH GOOD SONGS FROM MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

I LEARNED MANY GOOD SONGS FROM HER.

Woman: WHEN I WAS IN GRAD SCHOOL, MY PROFESSOR SENT ME OUT TO START COLLECTING ADIRONDACK FOLK TUNES, AND SO MANY OF THE FIDDLERS AND SINGERS WERE ALREADY DEAD.

WHEN MARJORIE LANSING PORTER WAS COLLECTING, IT WAS KIND OF IN THE NICK OF TIME.

Man: I'VE BEEN WORKING ON THE RAILROAD ALL THE LIVELONG DAY Narrator: TRADITIONAL FOLK SONGS, TUNES MORE THAN A HUNDRED YEARS OLD, STILL ECHO ACROSS THE VAST UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

THESE SONGS FROM THE DAYS BEFORE RADIO, MOVIES, AND TELEVISION KEPT EARLY AMERICANS ENTERTAINED AS THEY WORKED TO CREATE A NEW COUNTRY.

Man: OH, MY DARLING OH, MY DARLING OH, MY DARLING CLEMENTINE Narrator: MANY OF THESE SONGS HAVE LASTED, THANKS TO PEOPLE WHO RECORDED THEM AT A TIME WHEN THEY COULD HAVE SIMPLY VANISHED FROM THE FABRIC OF AMERICAN CULTURE.

IN THE ADIRONDACK MOUNTAINS OF NEW YORK, A JOURNALIST NAMED MARJORIE LANSING PORTER WORKED TIRELESSLY TO SAVE THE FADING FOLK SONGS OF HER LITTLE CORNER OF THE COUNTRY.

Woman: FRIENDS, COME AND LISTEN WHILE I SING TO YOU A SONG Narrator: THE ADIRONDACKS IS A RUGGED LANDSCAPE OF MOUNTAINS, NATURAL FORESTS, AND TOWNS.

A HUNDRED YEARS AGO, LOGGERS, TRAPPERS, AND MINERS MADE THEIR LIVING OFF THE LAND AND ENTERTAINED THEMSELVES WITH BALLADS -- SONGS THAT REFLECTED THEIR WAY OF LIFE.

Man: THE VALUE OF FOLK MUSIC TO ME IN MY LIFE IS THAT I WAS EXPOSED TO SOMETHING THAT WAS CREATED NOT FOR THE MONEY, BUT BY PEOPLE WHO WERE LIVING THEIR LIVES AND NEEDED TO TELL THEIR STORY OR SHARE THEIR STORY.

Narrator: MUSICIAN PETER YARROW, FAMOUS AS A MEMBER OF THE 1960s FOLK TRIO PETER, PAUL, AND MARY, AND A LIFETIME RESIDENT OF NEW YORK STATE, GREW UP LISTENING TO TRADITIONAL FOLK TUNES.

Yarrow: TO GET A REAL REFLECTION OF WHAT THE CULTURE WAS IN A TIME WHEN PEOPLE LIVED IN A DIFFERENT WAY.

THEY LIVED WITH SUCH A BOTTOM LINE IN FRONT OF THEM, THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE THESE SONGS.

THAT HONESTY IS INFECTIOUS.

Narrator: THE SONGS WERE INFECTIOUS TO MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

IN THE 1940s, SHE SAW THE NEED TO SAVE THE VANISHING SONGS THAT HAD ONCE BEEN KNOWN TO MANY IN HER MOUNTAINOUS REGION.

SHE VERY MUCH KNEW THAT THIS WAS PROBABLY THE LAST GENERATION OF PEOPLE WHO ARE GONNA BE SINGING THESE SONGS.

ONCE RADIO CAME INTO PEOPLE'S HOMES AND ONCE YOU COULD BRING RECORDED MUSIC INTO THE HOME, NOW ENTERTAINMENT CAME TO THEM.

THEY DIDN'T HAVE TO PRODUCE IT.

HELLO, LAKE PLACID.

HOW ARE YOU GUYS?

[ APPLAUSE ] WE ARE SO PLEASED THAT YOU COULD ALL BE HERE WITH US TONIGHT AS WE CELEBRATE THE WORK OF A REMARKABLE WOMAN NAMED MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

AND SHE WAS A HISTORIAN AND A JOURNALIST, AND SOMEONE WHO WAS KEENLY INTERESTED IN ALL THINGS LOCAL AND ALL THINGS PIONEER.

QUITE BY ACCIDENT, ONE DAY IN THE EARLY 1940s, MARJORIE PORTER BECAME A SONG COLLECTOR.

SHE ENDED UP VISITING DOZENS OF ADIRONDACK COMMUNITIES AND ENDED UP AMASSING A COLLECTION OF OVER 400 SONGS.

Narrator: IN THE SUMMER OF 2013, PERFORMER AND TEACHING ARTIST DAVE RUCH HOSTED A SERIES OF CONCERTS IN THE ADIRONDACK REGION, SALUTING THE MUSICAL LEGACY OF THE LATE MARJORIE PORTER.

GREAT-GRANDAD DIED AT 89 21 SONS HE LEFT BEHIND TIMES CAN CHANGE BUT YOU NEVER CAN TELL WE MIGHT DO HALF AS WELL Narrator: THE CONCERTS WERE MORE THAN A MERE CELEBRATION OF PORTER'S HARD WORK.

THE ORGANIZERS OF THE SHOWS -- A GROUP OF FOLKLORISTS, MUSICIANS, AND HISTORIANS -- AIMED TO SPARK NEW INTEREST IN THE COLLECTION OF OLD SONGS, FOLK TREASURES THAT WERE UNDISCOVERED BY THE GENERAL POPULATION.

Man: ALL RIGHT, SO THIS IS... Narrator: THAT'S ALSO WHAT MOTIVATED THEM TO CREATE AN ALBUM, RE-RECORDING SOME OF THE OLD SONGS FOR MODERN LISTENERS.

THE CD PROJECT WAS SOMETHING THAT WE TALKED ABOUT EARLY ON, AND I THINK EVERYBODY AGREED WE WANTED TO TRY TO HAVE NORTH COUNTRY, NORTHERN NEW YORK ARTISTS DO THE RE-RECORDINGS OF THE SONGS.

Narrator: THE RECORDINGS FROM PORTER'S ORIGINAL COLLECTION -- WELL-PRESERVED AS THEY ARE, SOUND A BIT HARSH TO MODERN EARS.

[ MAN SINGING ON SCRATCHY RECORDING ] Narrator: LOGGER AND FARMER JOHN GALUSHA, KNOWN TO HIS FRIENDS AS "YANKEE JOHN," SANG ABOUT 50 SONGS FOR PORTER, INCLUDING ONE THAT ORIGINATED IN HIS HOMETOWN.

Man: THIS SONG, "IRISHTOWN CREW," IT'S A SONG THAT I'VE SUNG SINCE I WAS A TEENAGER.

AND ON THIS NEW ALBUM, IT'S GOING TO BE SUNG BY THE FRASER FAMILY AND FRIENDS.

WHEN I FIRST HEARD "YANKEE JOHN" GALUSHA'S SONG, THE "IRISHTOWN CREW," I FIRST OF ALL LOVED HIS VOICE, AND I LOVED THE TONE OF HIS VOICE.

HE HAD THE IRISH INFLECTION GOING.

[ GALUSHA SINGING ] Woman: WHEN I FIRST HEARD THE ORIGINAL RECORDING OF THE SONG AND HEARD THIS MAN'S VOICE, IT WAS VERY SCRATCHY, IT WAS KIND OF HARD TO FOLLOW, AND I HONESTLY DIDN'T HAVE A WHOLE LOT OF AFFINITY FOR THE SONG.

[ GALUSHA SINGING ] AS WE WORKED ON IT AND AS I CAME TO THE REALIZATION THAT, YOU KNOW, WE ARE HONORING THIS MAN, AND I CAN'T HELP BUT THINK WHAT IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE TO TALK TO HIM.

FROM THAT POINT ON, AS WE WORKED ON IT, WE FELL IN LOVE WITH THE SONG.

I HAD TO SET MUSIC TO IT.

THERE WAS NO MUSIC TO GO BY.

AND I HAD REALLY NO NOTES TO GO BY, SO WE HAD TO COME UP WITH A KEY, SOME CHORDS.

I LIKE TO GO WITH MINOR CHORDS, I LIKE THE WAY THEY SOUND.

AND I LIKE THE WAY THAT CAME OUT IN OUR ARRANGEMENT.

WE'RE READYish.

SOON AS WE GET SOME LEVELS, GET EVERYBODY IN THEIR PLACE, GET 17 PEOPLE SINGING THE SAME SONG, WE'RE GONNA BE READY.

[ LAUGHTER ] [ ROOM QUIETS ] ON THE FIRST DAY OF APRIL I NE'ER WILL FORGET THE IRISHTOWN BOYS AT RATIGAN'S MET THEY FILLED UP THEIR BOTTLES AND SWORE SOLEMNLY All: THAT THAT VERY DAY THEY WOULD GO ON A SPREE AND SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE DOL LADDIE SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE LO DAY Berggren: RIGHT NOW, WE'RE IN A CEMETERY IN IRISHTOWN, WHERE YOU CAN SEE THE TOMBSTONES OF MANY OF THE PEOPLE IN THIS SONG.

FOR EXAMPLE, OVER HERE, MICHAEL O'CONNOR, MENTIONED AS MICKEY CONNORS IN THE SONG.

AND BEYOND THAT, NELSON BURTO, THE BURTO GRAVESTONE.

THERE WAS HOLLAND AND BLUTCHER AND WILLIAMS AND BREEN AND ONE McINERNY THAT DRIVES THE GREY TEAM THERE WAS ISAAC, LETTY, PATTY, AND JOE AND ONE MICKEY CONNORS THAT LIVED DOWN BELOW AND THAT'S WHERE HE LIVED, DOWN BELOW.

IT'S VERY RARE THAT YOU KNOW WHO WRITES A FOLK SONG.

BUT IN THE CASE OF "IRISHTOWN CREW," WE KNOW THAT JIM McCOY AND HOLLAND DOHERTY, WHO ARE FROM THE AREA, WROTE IT TOGETHER.

AND BY INCLUDING ALL THE NAMES OF THE LOCAL FOLKS, I THINK IT GIVES EXCITEMENT FOR THOSE AROUND, HAVING THEIR NAMES MENTIONED, AND THEY'LL WANT TO SING IT.

BUT ALSO IT MEMORIALIZES THESE FOLKS, AND, HOPEFULLY GIVES THEM JUST A TOUCH OF IMMORTALITY.

"THE IRISHTOWN CREW" WAS WRITTEN IN 1880 AT A TIME FOLLOWING THE POTATO FAMINES, WHEN HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF IRISH IMMIGRANTS CAME TO THIS COUNTRY AND SETTLED.

SOMETIMES THERE WERE TANNERIES, SOMETIMES SAWMILLS, BUT THERE WAS WORK FOR THEM.

AND THEY SETTLED HERE.

THERE USED TO BE A PUB, RATIGAN'S, THE SONG MENTIONS.

AND TO THIS DAY, THERE STANDS THE CHURCH AND A SCHOOLHOUSE.

Man: THIS HISTORY OF THE SONG, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE LOGGERS IN THE NORTH COUNTRY, AND WHAT THEY DID, MOST OF THE TIME, AFTER THEY GOT PAID.

AND MOST OF THE TIME AFTER THEY GOT PAID, THEY WENT TO THE BARS AND GOT DRUNK.

THEY FILLED UP THEMSELVES ON RATIGAN'S BEER AND STRAIGHT FOR THE CORNER, THEY QUICKLY DID STEER RESOLVED BEFORE MORNING, THEY'D FINISH THEIR SPREE AND SPEND A FEW MOMENTS WITH YOUNG TOMMY MEA AND SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE DOL LADDIE SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE LO DAY I THINK ONE OF THE THINGS THAT ADDING INSTRUMENTATION TO THESE SONGS DOES IS IT MAKES THEM MUCH MORE PALATABLE TO THE MODERN EAR.

WE'RE NOT USED TO HEARING PEOPLE SING OLD FOLK SONGS UNACCOMPANIED, WHICH IS EXACTLY HOW THEY WERE SUNG BACK WHEN MARJORIE PORTER WAS RECORDING THESE PEOPLE.

SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE DOL LADDIE SING FOL THE DOL LADDIE RI TOL THE LO DAY [ MAN CHUCKLES ] Narrator: FOLK COLLECTOR MARJORIE LANSING WAS BORN IN PORT HENRY, NEW YORK, IN 1891.

YOUNG MARJORIE AND HER LITTLE SISTER KATHRYN GREW UP IN THIS APARTMENT BUILDING IN THE VILLAGE.

THEY WERE SURROUNDED BY THE PRODUCTION OF NEWSPAPERS AND THE CURIOSITY OF JOURNALISTS.

THE GIRL'S GRANDFATHER AND GREAT-GRANDFATHER BOTH OWNED PRESTIGIOUS NEWSPAPERS IN THE REGION.

WHEN MARJORIE WAS IN HER 50s, SHE RECEIVED A LETTER FROM A MAN WHO USED TO WORK AT THE NEWSPAPER OFFICE IN PORT HENRY WHEN SHE WAS FIVE YEARS OLD.

AND HE REMEMBERS HER AND HER LITTLE SISTER.

HE SAID, "I CAN STILL GET A KICK OUT OF YOU GIRLS COMING TO THE OFFICE AFTER SCHOOL AND SOME SATURDAYS, AND HOW THE BOYS USED TO TEASE ME ABOUT HAVING TO SING AND ENTERTAIN YOU GIRLS EACH WEEKEND."

SO IT'S WONDERFUL THAT OTHER PEOPLE EVEN OUTSIDE OF HER FAMILY WERE SINGING TO HER.

Narrator: AS THE FAMILY HISTORIAN, PORTER'S GRANDDAUGHTER, SEAN ROSEMEYER OF CHICAGO, ENJOYS RETURNING TO THE ADIRONDACKS TO RETRACE HER GRANDMOTHER'S STEPS.

THIS IS THE HOME OF MY GRANDMOTHER MARJORIE'S AUNTIE MIN.

SHE AND HER AUNTS WOULD BAKE TOGETHER, THEY WOULD BE SINGING IN THE KITCHEN, THEY'D BE TELLING STORIES.

THE GRANDFATHER WOULD BE IN THE LIVING ROOM WITH ALL THE COUSINS, AND HE'D BE TELLING THEM STORIES.

AND, REALLY, THAT WAS THEIR ONLY FORM OF ENTERTAINMENT BACK THEN.

SO THEY WOULD JUST SING AND TELL STORIES.

AND THROUGHOUT HER LIFE, MARJORIE ALWAYS WROTE ABOUT HER BELOVED HOME IN TICONDEROGA.

Narrator: MUSIC CONTINUES TO BE NURTURED WITHIN THESE WALLS.

THE HOME NOW HOUSES A DANCE STUDIO AND A DAYCARE CENTER.

[ GUITAR STRUMMING ] Children: IN THE DAYS OF OLD, AND THE DAYS OF GOLD HOW OFTEN I REPINE FOR THE DAYS OF OLD WHEN THEY DUG UP THE GOLD IN THE DAYS OF '49 Narrator: TEACHING ARTIST DAVE RUCH TRAVELS TO MANY SCHOOLS IN THE ADIRONDACK REGION, SHARING HISTORY THROUGH SONG.

THERE WAS NANTUCK BILL, I KNEW HIM WELL A FELLOW THAT WAS FOND OF TRICKS AT A POKER GAME HE WAS ALWAYS THERE AND HEAVY WITH HIS BRICKS HE'D DRAW HIS CARDS AND ANTE UP AND GO IN A HATFUL BLIND IN A GAME OF BLUFF BILL LOST HIS BREATH IN THE DAYS OF '49 All: IN THE DAYS OF OLD AND THE DAYS OF GOLD HOW OFTEN I REPINE FOR THE DAYS OF OLD WHEN THEY DUG UP THE GOLD IN THE DAYS OF '49 Ruch: IT'S A FANTASTIC WAY FOR THE KIDS TO LEARN HISTORY.

AND FOR SOME KIDS, IT'S A MUCH MORE ACCESSIBLE MEDIUM THAN TO JUST SIT AND BE LECTURED TO.

I LIKE THE SONG BECAUSE IT'S AN OLD FOLK SONG, AND I LIKE OLD FOLK SONGS.

I LIKE COUNTRY SONGS, TOO.

THAT'S WHERE THIS SONG COMES FROM.

IT ACTUALLY COMES FROM THE LOGGING CAMPS, THE LUMBER CAMPS.

IT'S A SONG THAT WAS SUNG THERE.

BUT IT'S NOT ABOUT THE LOGGING CAMPS, IS IT?

WHAT'S IT ABOUT?

MINING.

MINING.

RIGHT, THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH.

I LIKE THE "DAYS OF '49" SONG BECAUSE IT'S ABOUT GOLD, AND I LIKE GOLD.

All: IN THE DAYS OF OLD, AND THE DAYS OF GOLD HOW OFTTIMES I REPINE FOR THE DAYS OF OLD WHEN WE DUG UP THE GOLD IN THE DAYS OF '49 Narrator: MANY OF PORTER'S GRANDCHILDREN RETURNED TO THE ADIRONDACKS TO ENJOY THE CONCERTS AND THE ALBUM LAUNCH IN THE SUMMER OF 2013 -- A CELEBRATION OF THEIR GRANDMOTHER'S LEGACY.

Rosemeyer: THIS ONE, I THOUGHT, I WAS FUNNY, BECAUSE IT LOOKS LIKE HER MOTHER'S TRYING TO ASK HER TO STAND STILL FOR THE PHOTOGRAPH.

AND I THINK SHE'S WIGGLING ALL AROUND AND ACTING IMPATIENT.

Man: KATHRYN ALMOST LOOKS LIKE SHE'S UPSET WITH MARJORIE FOR NOT SETTLING DOWN AND BEING GOOD.

Rosemeyer: YEAH, 'CAUSE KATHRYN KNEW HOW TO BE GOOD.

WHEN KATHRYN AND MARJORIE WERE VERY YOUNG, THEIR MOTHER WENT TO WORK FULL-TIME AT THE NEWSPAPER.

AND HER PARENTS WERE DIVORCED.

HER FATHER LEFT FOR CHICAGO TO WORK ON A MAGAZINE.

AND MARJORIE AND KATHRYN WERE TOGETHER ALL DAY AT SCHOOL.

THEN THEY'D COME HOME AFTER AND DO THE HOUSEWORK.

AND THEY WERE INSEPARABLE IN THE FIRST NUMBER OF YEARS OF THEIR LIFE.

THEY EVEN WENT TO HIGH SCHOOL TOGETHER.

THEY'RE JUST ONE YEAR APART IN AGE, AND SO THEY TOTALLY GREW UP TOGETHER.

Narrator: IN 1915, THE NEWLY MARRIED KATHRYN LANSING BEALL DIED FROM A HEART CONDITION AT THE AGE OF 22, LEAVING THE 23-YEAR-OLD MARJORIE WITHOUT HER BELOVED SISTER.

WHEN GRANNY ALWAYS TALKED ABOUT KATHRYN, SHE TALKED ABOUT HER WITH LONGING AND -- SHE REALLY MISSED HER AND MISSED HAVING HER AROUND HER.

AND, OBVIOUSLY, LOVED HER THEN, BUT SEEMED TO LOVE HER EVEN MORE AFTER HER PASSING.

AND SHE MENTIONED HER A LOT FOR SOMEBODY WHO'D BEEN DEAD FOR 30 OR 40 YEARS.

A CHIEFTAIN, TO THE HIGHLANDS BOUND CRIES, BOATMAN, DO NOT TARRY AND I'LL GIVE THEE A SILVER POUND TO ROW US O'ER THE FERRY NOW, WHO BE YOU COULD CROSS LOCHGYLE THIS DARK AND STORMY WATER OH, I AM THE CHIEF OF ULVA'S ISLE AND THIS LORD ULLIN'S DAUGHTER THE LOSS OF KATHRYN TOOK SO MUCH AWAY FROM MARJORIE, I'M SURE, AND I THINK THAT'S ONE OF THE REASONS SHE LOVED TO COLLECT THE BALLADS, BECAUSE IT REMINDED HER OF THE HAPPY TIMES IN HER CHILDHOOD WHEN SHE AND KATHRYN AND HER MOTHER WERE TOGETHER.

AND, YOU KNOW, SHE ALWAYS SHARED THOSE SONGS AND THOSE STORIES WITH KATHRYN.

AND EVEN THOUGH KATHRYN WAS GONE, SHE WANTED TO COLLECT THOSE SONGS AND HOLD THEM DEAR LIKE SHE HELD HER SISTER.

'TWAS VAIN THE LOUD WAVES LASH'D THE SHORE RETURN OR AID PREVENTING THE WATERS WILD WENT O'ER HIS CHILD AND HE WAS LEFT LAMENTING Narrator: TO PRESERVE CHERISHED MOMENTS OF FAMILY HISTORY, PORTER COLLECTED OBJECTS BEFORE SHE EVER COLLECTED SONGS.

THESE ITEMS SHE TREASURED FROM HER CHILDHOOD, FROM HER BELOVED HOME.

BUT MOST OF THE OBJECTS SHE COLLECTED THROUGHOUT HER LIFE TOLD A BIGGER STORY, THE HISTORY OF THE ADIRONDACKS.

IN THE 1940s, HER OBJECT COLLECTION HELPED HER FOUND A MUSEUM IN A RED BARN SHE SPOTTED FROM HER WINDOW IN KEENE, NEW YORK.

10 YEARS LATER, HER GROWING COLLECTION NEEDED AN ADDITIONAL BUILDING.

AS THE ESSEX COUNTY HISTORIAN, SHE HELPED FOUND THE ADIRONDACK HISTORY CENTER MUSEUM IN 1955 AT A FORMER SCHOOL IN ELIZABETHTOWN, NEW YORK.

IT'S THE FULL SPECTRUM OF EVERYTHING THAT'S RELATED TO THIS REGION -- HOUSEHOLD ITEMS FROM FARMS.

IT INCLUDES MINING ARTIFACTS.

SHE EVEN COLLECTED IRON ORE, SHE COLLECTED ROCKS.

AND THEN, OF COURSE, THERE ARE THE LARGER OBJECTS -- THE STAGE COACH, WHICH IS PROBABLY AN ICONIC ARTIFACT.

COUNTY HISTORIANS TEND TO BE MEN.

MARJORIE LANSING PORTER MUST HAVE BEEN AN UNUSUAL WOMAN, AND I THINK IT WILL BE WOMEN WHO WILL HELP SAVE THE WORLD.

Narrator: IT WAS PORTER'S SAVING OF FOLK SONGS THAT EXCITED THE ALBUM PRODUCERS IN THE SUMMER OF 2013.

72 YEARS EARLIER, IN 1941, PORTER MET A GRANDMOTHER NAMED LILY DELORME WHO WAS ENGAGED IN A SPINNING WHEEL DEMONSTRATION, A TURNING POINT FOR PORTER.

SOMEHOW, I DON'T KNOW IF LILY STARTED SINGING A SONG, BUT THEN MARJORIE UNDERSTOOD THAT SHE MIGHT KNOW A LOT OF OLD SONGS, AND SHE SAID, "DO YOU KNOW THE WORDS OF A SONG THAT MY MOTHER USED TO SING TO ME CALLED 'THE BANKS OF CHAMPLAIN'?"

AND LILY SAID, "SURE."

AND SHE STARTED SINGING IT FOR HER.

AND THAT'S ACTUALLY WHEN MARJORIE BEGAN HER FIELDWORK OF COLLECTING AND RECORDING THE SONGS.

Narrator: PORTER PURCHASED THIS SOUND SCRIBER, A DICTATION MACHINE THAT RECORDS SOUND BY PRESSING GROOVES INTO SOFT VINYL DISCS.

EVEN THOUGH THIS EARLY SOUND-RECORDING EQUIPMENT YIELDS SCRATCHY RESULTS, IN THE 1940s, IT REPRESENTED THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY FOR PORTER TO PRESERVE THE SONGS THAT WERE KNOWN MOSTLY TO AN AGING AND DISAPPEARING POPULATION.

THE MACHINE WEIGHS 20 POUNDS.

HOW WONDERFUL IT WAS FOR HER AS A LITTLE 5'2" WOMAN TO CARRY THIS BIG, HEAVY SOUND SCRIBER MACHINE BACK TO DO THE COLLECTING.

AND IT MUST HAVE BEEN QUITE A CHORE JUST TO GET THE RECORDER TO THE PEOPLE.

MRS. PORTER WENT TO GREAT LENGTHS TO LEARN ABOUT THE ADIRONDACK CULTURE.

SHE OFTEN LAMENTED THAT SHE HAD NOT BEEN AROUND AT A TIME WHEN SHE COULD HAVE GONE INTO THE LUMBER CAMPS.

SHE DID ARRANGE TO GO DOWN INTO ONE OF THE IRON MINES, A PLACE WHERE WOMEN WERE NOT ALLOWED TO GO.

ON AT LEAST A COUPLE OF OCCASIONS, SHE WENT INTO BARS AND RECORDED SINGERS IN THERE.

ON BOTH OCCASIONS, AS THE EVENING WENT ON, THE SINGERS GOT DRUNKER AND DRUNKER AND MORE BOISTEROUS AND MORE BOISTEROUS.

AND SHE GOT SOME INTERESTING VERSIONS OF SOME OF THESE SONGS.

TWO, THREE, FOUR... OUR BARQUE WAS FAR FAR FROM THE LAND WHEN THE FAIREST OF OUR GALLANT BAND Narrator: PORTER HAD FIVE CHILDREN BETWEEN 1913 AND 1924, FROM TWO MARRIAGES THAT EACH LASTED ABOUT 10 YEARS.

IN THE 1940s, THE TWICE-DIVORCED PORTER WAS WORKING AS A JOURNALIST AND HISTORIAN TO SUPPORT HERSELF AND HER FAMILY.

HER PART-TIME WORK INCLUDED TAKING GALLUP POLL SURVEYS AND SELLING BAKED GOODS IN HER HOME.

NO ONE PAID FOR HER SUPPLIES, FOR HER GAS, FOR HER TIME, TO GO AND COLLECT THESE BALLADS THAT NOW SHE'S KNOWN FOR.

AND THAT WAS HER LOVE OF THE BALLAD COLLECTING.

SHE JUST WENT AHEAD AND DID IT IN BETWEEN ALL HER OTHER JOBS.

Woman: SHE WAS COLLECTING SONGS, SHE WAS RECORDING SONGS, SHE WAS SUPPORTING HER CHILDREN, SHE WAS TRYING TO MAKE HER WAY AS A WOMAN WITH A PROFESSION, AND BY THE WAY, ATTACHED TO THAT WAS PASSION -- AND THAT WAS UNKNOWN AT THE TIME.

REALLY, SHE DIDN'T LET TIME OR MONEY OR WEATHER SLOW HER DOWN.

SHE JUST FORGED AHEAD TO GET THESE SONGS, AND IT'S A REAL HONOR TO HER HARD WORK, BECAUSE NO ONE HAD SPONSORED HER TO DO IT.

AND LET'S GO OUT FORWARD, PLEASE.

Narrator: FOLK SINGER AND PART-TIME RAFT GUIDE LEE KNIGHT UNDERSTANDS PORTER'S INFATUATION WITH THE ADIRONDACKS.

THE ADIRONDACKS, THEY JUST CAPTIVATE PEOPLE.

IT'S HOME.

IT'S OLD, IT'S FULL OF FASCINATING HISTORY, BEAUTIFUL NATURE, RIVERS, AND STREAMS.

YOU'VE GOT THE FOUR SEASONS, YOU'VE GOT THE BEAUTIFUL WILDFLOWERS, THE WONDERFUL THINGS THAT HAPPEN WITH SNOW AND ICE.

THE RIVERS RUNNING FROM ALMOST NOTHING TO OVERFLOWING AS THE SNOW MELTS AND THE HEAVY RAINS COME IN.

A GREAT PLACE TO BE.

[ GUITAR STRUMMING ] COME, ALL YOU GALLANT MINER BOYS WHO TOIL IN UNDERGROUND AND IF YOU PAY ATTENTION THE TRUTH, I'LL NOW PEN DOWN 'TWAS ALL ABOUT A MINER BOY WHO WAS YOUNG AND IN HIS PRIME WHO LOST HIS LIFE ONE FATEFUL NIGHT DOWN IN THE JOKER MINE THE SONG I'M DOING IS ONE CALLED "YOUNG BRENNAN," AND IT'S A TRUE STORY OF A YOUNG IRON MINER, 23 YEARS OLD, HAVING A FALL IN ONE OF THE IRON MINES NEAR MINEVILLE -- THE JOKER MINE.

AND IT HAPPENED IN 1903.

THIS YOUNG MAN'S NAME WAS BRENNAN HIS AGE WAS 23 HIS PARENTS LIVED IN MINEVILLE AND RAISED HIM TENDERLY HIS PARENTS LIVED IN MINEVILLE AND GRIEVED THEIR HEART FULL SORE TO KNOW THE SON THEY'D RAISED ON EARTH THEY'D NEVER SEE NO MORE IT WAS ON A THURSDAY EVENING IN NINETEEN HUNDRED AND THREE HE WENT TO WORK DOWN IN THE MINE HIS HEART SO FULL OF GLEE BUT A DREADFUL SIGHT BEFORE DAYLIGHT CAUSED HIS COMRADES TO WHINE TO SEE BRENNAN FALL 300 FEET DOWN IN THE JOKER MINE THIS WAS THE KIND OF THING 100 YEARS AGO, IF ONE OF YOUR COMRADES ON THE JOB HAD DIED IN A TRAGIC WAY, A SONG MIGHT WELL BE COMPOSED TO COMMEMORATE THE EVENT, AND THE PEOPLE WOULD SING FROM TIME TO TIME TO REMEMBER THAT PERSON.

THEY CARRIED BRENNAN TO HIS HOME GOOD CHRISTIANS FOR HIM PRAY AND THE BASEBALL NINE OF WITHERBEE THEY LOWERED HIM IN HIS GRAVE AND THE BASEBALL NINE OF WITHERBEE THEY LOWERED HIM DOWN TO REST HIS SPIRITS AND INTENTIONS ARE NOW WITH HIM AT REST BACK IN THOSE DAYS, TIME WAS DIFFERENT.

AND THESE WERE BALLADS.

A BALLAD WAS A SONG WHICH TELLS A STORY.

AND SO THESE MEN WERE SINGING A STORY.

AND A GOOD BALLAD HAS DIFFERENT THINGS THAT ARE GONNA PULL YOU IN, AND YOU'RE GONNA LISTEN TO IT, AND YOU REALLY DON'T WANT FOR IT TO END.

IT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE THREE-AND-A-HALF-MINUTE SONG WE'RE USED TO TODAY.

JUST A WHOLE DIFFERENT CULTURE.

'CAUSE IN THE TRADITION, THAT'S WHAT A FOLK BALLAD IS, A SONG TELLING A STORY.

THEY'RE THE SOAP OPERAS OF THEIR DAY.

SO COME, ALL YOU GALLANT MINER BOYS AND A WARNING I WILL GIVE WHEN YOU GO DOWN IN THAT DARK HOLE BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU SAY FOR MANY A YOUTH A WELL-MET YOUTH HAS MET WITH SUCH A FATE Narrator: LEE KNIGHT HAS SPENT ABOUT 30 YEARS TRANSCRIBING 250 OF THE PORTER SONGS BY HAND FROM THE SCRATCHY RECORDINGS.

IN 2008, HE SUBMITTED AN IDEA TO TAUNY, A NON-PROFIT FOLK CULTURE ORGANIZATION SERVING NEW YORK'S NORTH COUNTRY.

BUT I CAN'T READ OR WRITE MUSIC.

AND I HAD THIS BIG ROADBLOCK.

AND I HEARD ABOUT TRADITIONAL ARTS IN UPSTATE NEW YORK, AND I WENT TO THEM AND I SAID, "I HAVE THIS COLLECTION OF FOLKS SONGS, AND I NEED SOME HELP IN GETTING THE MUSIC DONE."

IT TURNED OUT THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE KNEW OF THE PORTER COLLECTION AND WERE EXCITED ABOUT THE PORTER COLLECTION AND HAD WANTED TO DO SOMETHING WITH THE PORTER COLLECTION BUT HADN'T YET.

OR, YOU KNOW, HAD DONE SOMETHING BUT WANTED TO DO MORE.

Narrator: TAUNY ORGANIZED TEAMS IN THE ARTS COMMUNITY TO HELP FUND KNIGHT'S MUSIC BOOK OF THE COLLECTION AND CREATE THE NEW ALBUM AND CONCERT TOUR OF THE REGION.

I WANDER ROUND FROM TOWN TO TOWN JUST LIKE A ROVING SIGN AND THE PEOPLE ALL SAY THERE GOES TOM MOORE OF THE DAYS OF '49 Narrator: AS THE CONCERT SERIES CAME TOGETHER, YOUNG FOLK SINGER ALEX SMITH WAS INVITED ON STAGE TO JOIN THE ARTISTS FROM THE NEW ALBUM.

SMITH PERFORMS ABOUT 150 SHOWS A YEAR IN THE EASTERN U.S., INCLUDING TO ENTHUSIASTIC CROWDS IN NEW YORK CITY AND WASHINGTON, D.C. I THINK THE BEAUTIFUL THING ABOUT THIS MUSIC IS THAT IT EVOLVES OVER TIME.

[ LAUGHTER ] MY DAD DOESN'T AGREE.

AND HE PLAYS THIS SONG A CERTAIN WAY.

AND HE'S GONNA COME AFTER ME WITH A BAT WHEN HE HEARS HOW I DO IT.

[ STRUMMING UPBEAT TUNE ] Narrator: HE AND HIS MENTOR DAN BERGGREN PERFORM "THE BALLAD OF BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE," ONE OF THE BETTER-KNOWN SONGS FROM THE PORTER COLLECTION.

COME, ALL YOU FINE FELLERS WHERE'ER YOU MAY BE SIT DOWN AWHILE HERE AND LISTEN TO ME THE TRUTH I WILL TELL WITHOUT ANY MISTAKE 'BOUT THE RACKETS WE HAD ROUND THE BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN THERE'S THE SULLIVAN BROTHERS THERE'S BIG JIMMY LOU OLD MOOSE GILBERT AND DANNY PAT, TOO A LOT OF FINE FELLERS AS EVER WAS SEEN AND WE ALL WORKED FOR GRIFFIN ON TOWNSHIP 19 DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN "THE BALLAD OF BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE" IS YOUR QUINTESSENTIAL LUMBER CAMP SONG.

BILL MITCHELL WAS THE CHARACTER WHO WAS THE BOSS IN THIS STORY.

HE'S, YOU KNOW, VERY UNPOPULAR WITH THE LUMBERJACKS, AND HE EVENTUALLY PUSHES ONE OF THEM TOO FAR, AND THEY BEAT THE TAR OUT OF HIM.

BILL MITCHELL, YOU KNOW, WELL, HE KEPT OUR SHANTY AS MEAN A DAMN MAN AS YOU EVER DID SEE HE LAID ROUND THE SHANTY FROM MORNING TILL NIGHT IF A MAN SAID A WORD HE WAS READY TO FIGHT DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN ONE MORNING 'FORE DAYBREAK JIM LOU, HE GOT MAD BEAT THE HELL OUT OF MITCHELL AND THE BOYS WAS ALL GLAD HIS WIFE, SHE JUST STOOD THERE AND THE TRUTH I WILL TELL SHE WAS TICKLED TO DEATH TO SEE MITCHELL CATCH HELL DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN OLD GRIFFIN JUST STOOD THERE THE CRABBY OLD DRAKE A HAND ON THE RACKET HE THOUGHT HE WOULD TAKE WHEN SOME OF THE BOYS CAME AND TOOK HIM AWAY "BY CHRIST," SAYS OLD MITCHELL "I HAVE NOTHING TO SAY" DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN NOW YOU CAN TALK OF YOUR FASHIONS AND YOUR STYLES TO BE SEEN AIN'T NONE TO COMPARE WITH THEIR COOK OF 19 SHE'S SHORT, THICK, AND STOUT WITHOUT ANY MISTAKE ALL THE BOYS CALL HER NELLY, THE BELLE OF LONG LAKE DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN AND NOW, MY GOOD FELLERS, ADIEU TO YOU ALL CHRISTMAS IS COMING AND I'M BOUND FOR GLENS FALLS WHEN I GET THERE, I'LL GO OUT ON A SPREE FOR YOU KNOW WHEN I HAVE MONEY, THE DEVIL'S IN ME DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN [ WAVES LAPPING ] Seeger: I THINK WE LEARN THE HISTORY OF OUR COUNTRY BY KNOWING SOME OF THE OLD SONGS.

REGULAR PEOPLE SHOWED US WHAT THEIR LIFE WAS LIKE.

THIS "BALLAD OF THE BLUE MOUNTAIN LAKE" HAS A LITTLE REFRAIN, AND EVERYBODY COULD JOIN IN ON IT.

DERRY DOWN DOWN DOWN, DERRY DOWN Narrator: ANOTHER SINGER WHO DRAWS FROM THE PORTER COLLECTION IS FOLK LEGEND PETE SEEGER.

MY THREE HEROES ARE JESUS CHRIST, HENRY DAVID THOREAU, AND PETE SEEGER.

Narrator: IN THE 1950s, SEEGER LEARNED ABOUT PORTER THROUGH THEIR MUTUAL FRIEND -- ADIRONDACK ARTIST ROCKWELL KENT.

SEEGER AND PORTER CORRESPONDED AND COLLABORATED ON PROJECTS FOR MORE THAN 10 YEARS.

I THINK I LEARNED SUCH GOOD SONGS FROM MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

I LEARNED MANY GOOD SONGS FROM HER.

Narrator: IN 1965, SEEGER RELEASED THE ALBUM "CHAMPLAIN VALLEY SONGS," FEATURING MANY OF PORTER'S TREASURES.

AND HER LINER NOTES, THE INFORMATIVE TEXT ABOUT EACH SONG, WAS WRITTEN BY JOURNALIST MARJORIE LANSING PORTER.

Seeger: INSTEAD OF JUST MEMORIZING OLD SPEECHES AND OLD BATTLES, YOU SING THEM.

AND WHEN YOU SING THEM, IT BECOMES FUN.

MOI, ILS M'ONT-Y PAS FAIT FAIRE UN P'TIT COTILLON BLANC, MOUMAN J'AIME MON P'TIT FLACON MA MERE, QUAND Y'A DU RHUM DEDANS, MOUMAN J'AIME MON P'TIT FLACON MA MERE, QUAND Y'A DU RHUM DEDANS, MOUMAN Narrator: THE NEW ALBUM ALSO REFLECTS PORTER'S INTEREST IN THE MANY CULTURES THAT INFLUENCED LIFE IN THE ADIRONDACKS -- IRISH, BRITISH, SCOTTISH, FRENCH-CANADIAN, AND NATIVE AMERICAN.

[ SINGING IN NATIVE LANGUAGE] "THE THUNDER SONG" IS A NATIVE AMERICAN HAUDENOSAUNEE CHANT.

IT'S ABOUT A YOUNG MAN WHO WAS RAISED IN THE OLD TRADITIONAL WAYS OF THE NATIVE AMERICANS.

AND HE SEES THE NEW WAYS, AND HE THINKS MAYBE THOSE ARE BETTER, AND HE WANTS TO EXPLORE THEM.

AND HE EVEN BECOMES SOMEWHAT DISMISSIVE OF THE OLD WAYS.

AND ONE DAY, HE'S OUT ON A CANOE TRIP WHEN A BIG THUNDERSTORM CAME UP.

AND WITH THUNDER AND LIGHTNING FLASHING, AND THE WIND IS BLOWING AND THE LIGHTNING HITS EITHER NEAR HIM OR HITS HIM, AND THE END RESULT IS HE HAS THIS REVELATION, WHICH INCLUDES "THE THUNDER SONG."

AND AS A RESULT OF THAT, "THE THUNDER SONG" IS CREATED.

AND WHEN HE RETURNS, HE DECIDES HE WANTS TO GO WITH THE OLD WAYS.

THE OLD WAYS HAVE MERIT, THAT HIS GRANDPARENTS, HIS ANCESTORS KNEW WHAT THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT.

YOU GOTTA THINK ABOUT IN THAT MOMENT, WHAT HE COULD HAVE HEARD, WHETHER IT WAS JUST THE WORDS IN THE WIND, YOU KNOW -- BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, EVERYTHING ON THIS EARTH HAS GOT ITS OWN RHYTHM.

AND THE WAY THE MAN IN THE STORY FIRST PERCEIVED THIS SONG COULD HAVE BEEN A LOT DIFFERENT THAN WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO TRANSLATE FROM RAY FADDEN'S RECORDING.

Narrator: SINGER LEE KNIGHT SHARED PORTER'S INTEREST IN DIFFERENT CULTURES, HISTORY, AND MUSIC.

THE 25-YEAR-OLD FOLK SINGER AND THE 79-YEAR-OLD PORTER BECAME FRIENDS IN 1970 AFTER KNIGHT INTERVIEWED HER FOR A RADIO SHOW.

ONE OF THE PHRASES SHE USED IS THAT THESE SONGS WERE "FINE TO KEEP."

WHAT A WONDERFUL PHRASE.

SOMETHING WHICH IS BEING NEGLECTED, WHICH WE MAY HAVE LOST, SHE SAW AS HAVING AN INHERENT VALUE TO IT.

THEY ARE FINE TO KEEP, AND NOBODY'S DOING IT, SO I'M GOING TO DO IT.

Narrator: PORTER WAS NOT THE ONLY COLLECTOR OF FOLK MUSIC IN HER DAY.

BUT BY CONCENTRATING ON A HUNDRED-MILE RADIUS IN THE ADIRONDACKS, SHE COLLECTED VERSES, VARIANTS, MELODIES, AND ENTIRE SONGS THAT WERE UNIQUE TO HER REGION.

THERE ARE SONGS IN THIS COLLECTION THAT DON'T EXIST OUTSIDE OF THE COLLECTION.

SHE REALLY DID US A HUGE FAVOR BY DOING THIS WORK AND SAVING THESE SONGS FOR US.

[ ACCORDING PLAYING ] WE'RE SINGING "GREAT GRANDAD" BECAUSE IT'S A SONG ABOUT A MAN WHO LIVED ON THE FRONTIER, LIVED CLOSE TO THE LAND, FACED THE CHALLENGES OF LIVING CLOSE TO THE LAND, HAPPENED TO RAISE 21 SONS, ON TOP OF ALL THAT.

IT REMINDS ME OF THE ADIRONDACKS AND THE DESIRE EVEN OF PEOPLE TODAY TO LIVE CLOSE TO THE LAND, TO HAVE THAT CHALLENGE OF EITHER LIVING OFF THE LAND SOMEWHAT OR IN A LARGE PART THAT PEOPLE SEEK OUT TODAY, AND CAN SEEK OUT IN A PLACE LIKE THIS, A PLACE LIKE THE ADIRONDACKS.

[ PANTING ] Woman: WE HAVE SONGS ABOUT PAUL BUNYAN AND JOHN HENRY.

AND YOU COULDN'T IMAGINE DOING WHAT THEY DO.

BUT WITH "GREAT GRANDAD," IF YOU HAVE A LITTLE GRIT, AS MY GRANDMOTHER WOULD SAY, YOU COULD BE LIKE THAT, BE THAT KIND OF MAN WHO REALLY PUT IT ALL TOGETHER IN THE HARD TIMES.

ONE, TWO, THREE, FOUR... [ PLAYING UPBEAT TUNE ] GREAT GRANDAD WAS A BUSY MAN COOKED HIS GRUB IN A FRYING PAN PICKED HIS TEETH WITH HIS HUNTING KNIFE WORE THE SAME PANTS ALL HIS LIFE HE WAS A CITIZEN, TOUGH AND GRIM DANGER WAS DUCK SOUP TO HIM HE ATE CORN PONE AND BACON FAT GREAT-GRANDSON WOULD STARVE ON THAT Both: 21 CHILDREN CAME TO BLESS THE OLD MAN'S HOME IN THE WILDERNESS BUT GREAT-GRANDAD, HE DIDN'T LOSE HEART BOYS HUNTED RABBITS AND THEY KETCHED RIGHT SMART GREAT-GRANDAD DIED AT 89 21 SONS HE LEFT BEHIND TIMES THEY CHANGE, BUT YOU NEVER CAN TELL WE MIGHT DO HALF AS WELL [ BIRD CHIRPING ] OBVIOUSLY, SHE WAS VERY FORWARD-THINKING IN CAPTURING THESE SONGS THAT SHE KNEW WOULD BE IMPORTANT, NOT ONLY THEN, BUT MORE SO INTO THE FUTURE.

Narrator: EVER MINDFUL OF THE FUTURE, PORTER SAW TO IT HER FRAGILE VINYL DISCS WERE RECORDED ONTO REEL-TO-REEL TAPES, A MORE RELIABLE TECHNOLOGY FOR PRESERVING THE RECORDED INFORMATION.

IN HER WILL, SHE DONATED HER VINYL RECORDS AND THE BACKUP TAPES TO THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK IN THE CITY OF PLATTSBURGH, ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE ADIRONDACKS.

THE SPECIAL COLLECTIONS DEPARTMENT IN THE LIBRARY CAREFULLY STORES THE RECORDINGS, NEARLY 70 HOURS' WORTH OF SONGS AND STORIES.

IN 2009, ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR TIM CLUKEY MADE IT HIS MISSION TO DIGITIZE AND CLEAN UP THE AUDIO FROM THE ORIGINAL DISCS.

THE THREE-YEAR PROCESS HAS RESULTED IN DIGITAL FILES THAT ANYONE MAY HEAR AND STUDY AT SUNY PLATTSBURGH.

ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I LIKE ABOUT IT IS THE ABILITY TO USE THIS MATERIAL, WHETHER IT'S ORAL HISTORY OR SONGS, IS TO BE ABLE TO GO BACK IN TIME.

JOHN GALUSHA, FOR EXAMPLE, WAS BORN BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR.

SO TO HAVE A RECORDING FROM SOMEBODY THAT LIVED BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR IS JUST AMAZING TO ME.

Narrator: ALSO IN PLATTSBURGH, A LITTLE LOG CABIN SITS ON A BUSY STREET.

PORTER HAD THIS RUSTIC HOUSE CONSTRUCTED IN THE LATE 1930s.

IT ONCE HAD A VIEW OF A DIRT ROAD AND THE SURROUNDING FIELD.

Rosemeyer: IT'S SO WONDERFUL TO FEEL ALL THE COZINESS THAT SHE USED TO WRITE ABOUT, THE WOOD WALLS -- THE LOG -- THE OLD DOORS.

SHE LOVED THE COZINESS OF IT.

AND DURING WARTIME WOULD LISTEN ON THE RADIO TO REPORTS OF WORLD WAR II.

AND, ACTUALLY, IT WAS HERE THAT SHE BEGAN HER BALLAD COLLECTION IN THE EARLY 1940s.

Ruch: "MY ADIRONDACK HOME" WAS SUNG IN 1951 BY A FAIRLY YOUNG MAN NAMED FRANCIS DELONG.

HE COULDN'T HAVE BEEN MORE THAN 20-SOMETHING YEARS OLD, OR MAYBE 30.

THIS IS A SOMEWHAT DIFFERENT SONG FROM A LOT OF THE OTHER SONGS ON THE COLLECTION.

IT'S SOMETHING THAT WOULD HAVE BEEN COMPOSED FAIRLY RECENTLY, SO IT'S NOT A SONG THAT'S BEEN PASSED DOWN THROUGH THE GENERATIONS OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.

IT'S VERY MUCH A COUNTRY SONG, AND IT'S INFLUENCED BY ALL THE COUNTRY MUSIC THAT WAS ON THE RADIO AT THE TIME.

Man: IN 1951, MY DAD RECORDED "MY ADIRONDACK HOME" FOR MISS PORTER.

AND TO THIS DAY, I HAVE NEVER HEARD THE SONG.

[ MAN SINGING ] HIS SINGING VOICE WAS UNIQUE, AND IT NEVER SOUNDED LIKE WHEN HE WAS TALKING.

HIS VOICE WAS ALWAYS DIFFERENT WHEN HE SANG.

AND THAT'S MY DAD.

Narrator: WHEN IT CAME TO RE-RECORDING "MY ADIRONDACK HOME," A PAIR OF PHILADELPHIA-BORN BROTHERS AGREED TO DONATE THEIR TALENTS TO THE PROJECT AS A TRIBUTE TO THE MANY SUMMERS THEY'VE SPENT IN THEIR FAMILY CABIN, THEIR OWN ADIRONDACK HOME.

[ UPBEAT TUNE PLAYS ] I LEFT MY ADIRONDACK HOME ABOUT A YEAR AGO I MET UP WITH BAD COMPANY, THE KIND WE SHOULDN'T KNOW I LEARNED TO DRINK AND GAMBLE TURNED OUT TO BE A BUM I'M TIRED OF ROAMING ROUND AND I'M GOING TO BE BACK HOME THERE'S A PATH THAT LEADS BACK TO MY ADIRONDACK HOME I'M GOING BACK TONIGHT AND I NEVER MORE WILL ROAM I CAN SEE MY MOTHER THERE, FOR HER BOY, SHE SAYS A PRAYER AND SHE WAITS IN HER ARMCHAIR IN MY ADIRONDACK HOME DAD HAS LEFT THIS CRUEL WORLD FOR HEAVEN UP ABOVE LEAVING MOTHER ALL ALONE WITH ONLY ME TO LOVE BUT I LEFT MY LITTLE HOME, FOUND NOTHING SHORT OF PAIN NOW I KNOW THAT I WAS WRONG AND I'M GOING BACK AGAIN THERE'S A PATH THAT LEADS BACK TO MY ADIRONDACK HOME I'M GOING BACK TONIGHT AND I NEVER MORE WILL ROAM I CAN SEE MY MOTHER THERE, FOR HER BOY, SHE SAYS A PRAYER AND SHE WAITS IN HER ARMCHAIR IN MY ADIRONDACK HOME Man: THE LYRIC IS VERY TOUCHING.

IT'S A NICE LITTLE STORY, SO I RELATED TO IT RIGHT AWAY, AND KEVIN DID AS WELL, I THINK.

Man #2: I LIKE THE IDEA THAT YOU GO DOWN THE WRONG ROAD AND BECOME A BUM.

[ LAUGHS ] I THOUGHT THAT WAS GREAT.

JUST, YOU KNOW, IT'S LIKE -- IT'S FUNNY, 'CAUSE HE SEEMS LIKE A -- HE SEEMS LIKE A PRETTY YOUNG GUY, YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?

AND HE'S ALREADY KIND OF BLOWN HIS LIFE, AND HE'S GOTTA GET HOME 'CAUSE HE KNOWS HE'S WALKING DOWN THE WRONG ROAD.

Man: THE ADIRONDACKS, IT'S A PLACE THAT I WAS ALWAYS VERY HAPPY WHEN I WAS A LITTLE KID.

Bacon: YOU'RE IN AN AREA THAT YOU DON'T EVEN THINK OF HAVING THE WILDERNESS, YOU KNOW -- THE NORTHEAST.

AND YET, HERE'S THIS PRISTINE KIND OF WILDERNESS -- NATURAL LAKES AND MOUNTAINS AND WILDLIFE.

AND IT'S JUST BEAUTIFUL.

Man: ONCE PEOPLE SORT OF GET GLUED TO THE ADIRONDACKS, THEY ALWAYS KEEP COMING BACK, AND THERE'S JUST SO MANY THINGS AS A CHILD THAT GET IMBUED IN YOU, IN YOUR PSYCHE, IN YOUR PERSONALITY.

AND YOU ALWAYS FEEL LIKE, YOU KNOW, YOU GOTTA GO OUT IN THE WORLD AND WORK REALLY HARD, BUT THAT'S THE PLACE THAT I REALLY FEEL I'M GETTING BACK TO.

NOW THAT YOU'VE HEARD MY STORY DON'T EVER LEAVE YOUR HOME WHEN YOUR MOTHER NEEDS YOU SO, DON'T EVER START TO ROAM DON'T DISAPPOINT YOUR MOTHER, FOR SOMEDAY SHE'LL BE GONE WHENEVER YOU'RE AWAY, DON'T FORGET THIS LITTLE SONG THERE'S A PATH THAT LEADS BACK TO MY ADIRONDACK HOME I'M GOING BACK TONIGHT AND I NEVER MORE WILL ROAM I CAN SEE MY MOTHER THERE, FOR HER BOY, SHE SAYS A PRAYER AND SHE WAITS IN HER ARMCHAIR IN MY ADIRONDACK HOME Man: THE SONGS OF THE ADIRONDACKS REALLY WOULD NOT BE PRESENT TODAY UNLESS THERE WAS A VITALITY THAT EXISTED WHEN THEY WERE CREATED -- BECAUSE THEY WERE NOT CREATED FOR A TOP-40 PLAY LIST.

THEY WERE CREATED TO BE AN INTERACTIVE MEANS OF REFERRING TO A COMMON CONCERN IN THEIR COMMUNITY.

HOW DID THEY TRANSCEND TIME?

WELL, BECAUSE THEY STILL HAVE THAT SPARK OF URGENCY, THAT SPARK OF CARING.

AND SO THEY'VE BEEN KEPT ALIVE BY PEOPLE WHO STILL CARE.

FRIENDS, COME AND LISTEN WHILE I SING TO YOU A SONG LIFE IN THE LUMBER CAMPS WAS PRETTY DIFFICULT.

YOU WENT INTO THE WOODS IN THE FALL OF THE YEAR, YOU STAYED UNTIL THE SPRING.

YOU GOT UP BEFORE DAWN, WENT OUT, WORKED ALL DAY CUTTING DOWN TREES, SKIDDING THEM TO THE BANKS OF THE STREAMS.

THEN YOU CAME IN IN THE EVENING, YOU HAD YOURSELF A BIG SUPPER, AND THE MEN WOULD SIT AROUND.

AND THEY WOULD DO THINGS LIKE SING SONGS, TELL STORIES.

THEY HAD TO MAKE THEIR OWN PARTY, THEIR OWN ENTERTAINMENT.

AND YOU COULDN'T SAY, "I PASS."

YOU HAD TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE ENTERTAINMENT.

WE'RE LOSING A FOLK TRADITION, I THINK, IN GENERAL.

AND TO FIND SONGS THAT TELL STORIES ABOUT THE HISTORY OF A PLACE LIKE THIS, I THINK IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO KEEP THOSE ALIVE.

AND I FEEL REALLY EXCITED THAT I WAS ASKED TO DO ONE, BECAUSE I DON'T HAVE AS MUCH OF A CONNECTION WITH THOSE OLD SONGS, AND NOW I FEEL LIKE I DO.

FRIENDS, COME AND LISTEN WHILE I SING TO YOU A SONG IT'S ALL ABOUT THE PINEWOOD BOYS AND HOW THEY'RE GETTING ALONG THEY'RE A JOLLY LOT OF FELLOWS SO MERRY AND SO FINE WHO SPEND THE WINTER PLEASANTLY CUTTING DOWN THE PINES THEY ALL GO OUT OF A CHEERFUL HEART AND A WELL-CONTENTED MIND FOR THE WINTRY WINDS DO NOT BLOW COLD AMONG THE WAVING PINES SO LONG THEIR SAWS AND AXES RING UNTIL THE SUN GOES DOWN HURRAH, MY BOYS, FOR THE DAY IS DONE TO THE SHANTY WE ARE BOUND WHEN SPRINGTIME ROLLS AROUND HOW GLAD WILL BE ITS DAY SOME WILL RETURN TO THEIR HOMES AND FRIENDS WHILE OTHERS WILL WANDER AWAY WHEN FLOATING ICE GOES DOWN AND BUSINESS, IT DOES THRIVE 300 ABLE-BODIED MEN ARE WANTED ON THE DRIVE Rosemeyer: THIS IS MY VERY FAVORITE PHOTO.

IT'S MARJORIE AND ALL OF HER FAMILY IN FRONT OF THE HOUSE.

AND IT WAS SUCH A HAPPY TIME FOR HER AND HER CHILDHOOD WHEN THE HOUSE WAS FILLED WITH MUSIC AND SONG.

AND EVERYONE SHOULD HAVE A PHOTO OF THEIR HAPPIEST TIMES.

AND LATER ON IN LIFE, YOU KNOW, OTHER THINGS STARTED TO HAPPEN.

HER PARENTS WERE DIVORCED, SHE LOST HER SISTER, WORLD WAR II CAME ALONG.

MANY THINGS HAPPEN IN LIFE, AND OVER THE YEARS, SHE CONTINUED TO COLLECT THE SONGS THAT REMINDED HER OF THOSE HAPPY TIMES.

OUR BARQUE WAS FAR FAR FROM THE LAND Narrator: AS THE SUMMER OF 2013 DREW TO A CLOSE, THE NEW ALBUM WAS RELEASED AND THE CONCERT SERIES WRAPPED UP IN PLATTSBURGH.

20 DESCENDANTS OF PORTER CAME FROM AS FAR AWAY AS CALIFORNIA AND OREGON TO ENJOY THE FINAL SHOW.

THE CAPTAIN ON THE PROMENADE LOOKING VERY SAVAGE STEWARD AND THE CABIN MAID FIGHTING FOR THE CABBAGE Narrator: THE CONCERT FEATURED A SPECIAL GUEST APPEARANCE FROM PORTER'S GRANDDAUGHTER JUNE MILLINGTON, CO-FOUNDER OF THE 1970s ALL-FEMALE ROCK BAND FANNY.

YOU KNOW, THE CELEBRATION OF MARJORIE LANSING PORTER AND HER WORK IS WAY OVERDUE.

AND I THINK IN THESE TIMES, WHEN WE ARE LOOKING TO WOMEN TO HELP LEAD US AND HELP SUPPORT AND ELEVATE US ALL AS HUMAN BEINGS, I THINK HER WORK FITS RIGHT IN WITH THE TIMES.

[ PLAYING UPBEAT TUNE ] I LOVED THE CONCERT.

WHAT HAPPENED FOR ME IS THAT IT BROUGHT THE BALLAD COLLECTION ALIVE.

I'VE HEARD THOSE SCRATCHY RECORDINGS.

SOME OF IT WAS INAUDIBLE.

I'M NOT A MUSICIAN, SO I DIDN'T GET THE UNDERLYING TUNES.

BUT TO HAVE THE MUSICIANS MAKE THESE LIVELY, FUN BALLADS, IT'S LIKE, THEN I GOT IT.

IT'S LIKE I COULD SEE WHY SHE LOVED BALLAD COLLECTING IN THE ADIRONDACKS.

[ TUNE CONTINUES ] I COULDN'T HELP STOP FROM LOOKING OVER AT THE PICTURE OF MARJORIE AND THINKING HOW JOYFUL SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN TO SEE THAT THE WORK THAT SHE CARED ABOUT COLLECTING AND PRESERVING WILL CONTINUE TO BE PASSED ON.

FOR ME, HAVING GROWN UP HERE, YOU COULD JUST HEAR IT, YOU COULD SMELL THE WOODS, YOU COULD SEE THOSE PEOPLE OUT SINGING THOSE SONGS, PUSHING LOGS INTO THE RIVER.

IT'S A FABULOUS EFFORT.

DERRY DOWN, DOWN SEEING DAN BERGGREN AND ALEX SMITH TOGETHER ON THE STAGE, HANDING THE TRADITIONS DOWN RIGHT IN FRONT OF OUR EYES, WAS AMAZING!

OLD JESS LIKE ALL THE REST WHO NEVER WOULD DECLINE ALL IN HIS BLOOM WENT UP THE FLUME IN THE DAYS OF '49 IN THE DAYS OF OLD IN THE DAYS OF GOLD HOW OFTEN I REPINE FOR THE DAYS OF OLD WHEN WE DUG UP THE GOLD IN THE DAYS OF '49 [ CHEERING ] [ BIRDS CHIRPING ] Rosemeyer: NEAR THE END OF HER LIFE, MARJORIE MOVED BACK TO ELIZABETHTOWN, NEAR THE MUSEUM THAT SHE WAS SO INVOLVED IN.

IT'S RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET.

SHE ALWAYS PLACED HER FURNITURE IN THESE BIG WINDOWS SO SHE COULD GET A VIEW OF THE MOUNTAINS -- THE MOUNTAINS SHE LOVED, THAT SHE HIKED IN.

SHE COLLECTED THE STORIES.

AND IN THE END, I FEEL SHE JUST FADED AWAY INTO THOSE MOUNTAINS THAT INSPIRED THE MUSIC SHE COLLECTED.

YE HEARTY SONS OF FREEDOM WHO ROUND THESE MOUNTAINS RANGE COME GATHER ROUND, YOU LUMBER BOYS AND LISTEN TO MY SONG ON THE BANKS OF THE SWEET SARANAC WHERE THE LIMPID WATERS FLOW AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILDWOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO TO THE MUSIC OF OUR AXES WE'LL MAKE THE WOODS RESOUND WITH MANY A TALL AND LOFTY PINE COME TUMBLING TO THE GROUND AT NIGHT AROUND OUR GOOD CAMPFIRE WE'LL SING WHILE COLD WINDS BLOW AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO WHEN WINTER, IT IS OVER AND OUR ICE-BOUND STREAMS ARE FREE WE'LL DRIVE THEM ALL TO GLENS FALLS AND WE'LL HASTE OUR GIRLS TO SEE WITH PLENTY TO EAT AND PLENTY TO DRINK BACK TO THE WOODS WE'LL GO AND WE'LL RANGE THE WILD WOODS OVER AND ONCE MORE A-LUMBERING GO THE DVD OF "SONGS TO KEEP" WITH BONUS FEATURES IS AVAILABLE FOR $19.95 PLUS SHIPPING AND HANDLING.

CALL 1-800-836-5700 OR GO TO mountainlake.org.

PRODUCTION OF "SONGS TO KEEP: TREASURES OF AN ADIRONDACK FOLK COLLECTOR" IS MADE POSSIBLE IN PART BY THE NEW YORK STATE COUNCIL ON THE ARTS, WITH THE SUPPORT OF GOVERNOR ANDREW CUOMO AND THE NEW YORK STATE LEGISLATURE.

AND BY CURTIS LUMBER.

WITH 21 LOCATIONS SERVING NEW YORK AND VERMONT, CURTIS LUMBER SUPPLIES ITS CUSTOMERS WITH BUILDING MATERIALS, HARDWARE, SIDING, WINDOWS, AND DOORS FOR KITCHENS, ADDITIONS, AND OTHER CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.

WITH ADDITIONAL SUPPORT FROM LAKE GEORGE MIRROR, COVERING THE QUEEN OF AMERICAN LAKES SINCE 1880.

GUIDE BOAT REALTY, YOUR GUIDES TO ADIRONDACK REAL ESTATE... AND...