I recently stumbled across a reference to local boatbuilders, Frederick W. Rice and Fred M. Rice. The mention, buried in museum notes about a Willsboro, NY Adirondack guideboat builder, was brief. Too brief.

55-year old guide and boatbuilder, Fred Rice… Fred M. Rice learned boatbuilding from his father, a builder of small sailboats from Willsboro. (Source: Adirondack Experience, The Museum on Blue Mountain Lake)

A small sailboat builder in Willsboro? What sort of vessels did the Rices build? Where did they build them? What years were they building boats in Willsboro? Were there other Willsboro sailboat builders?

I was intrigued.

My hasty poke-around rendered little information about boatbuilders Rice and Rice, so our expert researcher Katie Shepard dug a little deeper.

Katie learned that Fred M. Rice’s father, Frederick W. Rice (Source: LocalWiki), arrived in the North Country from Connecticut and began building boats.

Frederick W. Rice was born in Hartford, Connecticut, the son of Caleb and Jane E. Rice. He had been a boat builder in both Burlington, Vermont and Essex, New York, where he… met and married Harriet “Kitty” Todd, in 1872.

Frederick W. Rice first came to Saranac Lake in 1876 and bought property (Lower Saranac Lake) in 1893 where he built a home and boathouse for fabricating Adirondack guideboats. Although it seems that his local reputation was for building popular guideboats, Frederick W. Rice and William A. Martin also built this elegant steamboat named Water Lily.

He [Frederick W. Rice] became well known for his guideboats, and he sold photographs and did photo finishing for tourists. With William A. Martin, he built the Water Lily, launched in 1876, the first steam-powered boat on Lower Saranac Lake; it made regular runs up to Bartlett’s Hotel. He is best known for his scenic views of the Saranac Lake area, and for his portraits, especially his photographs of his then-neighbor, the noted author Mark Twain…

His oldest child, Fred M. Rice, stayed [in Saranac Lake] and worked as a guideboat builder and guide; he is best known as the guide and friend to Martha Reben, who wrote three books about her experiences camping on Weller Pond while recovering from tuberculosis. (Source: LocalWiki)

So, we have a bit of background on Frederick W. Rice and Fred M. Rice, but any local boatbuilding history remains ellusive.

Here’s a bit more about the Water Lily which the senior Fred Rice built with William A. Martin.

Fred W. Rice, Sr., who had been in Willsboro, N. Y., building sail boats for use on Lake Champlain…

William A. Martin, who was a builder of Adirondack boats, and Mr. Rice built “The Water Lily” during the winter 1878-79. She was a steamer, it being before the day of motor boats or gasoline engines. The engine was in the center of the boat with a cabin at each end and a deck running around the boat, Messrs. Martin and Rice were skilled workmen, and put their best work on this boat. The cabins were finished with birdseye maple and cherry polished like a mirror. The outside was painted white with her name on each side, and on the stern. (Source: LocalWiki)

We found a passing reference to Fred W. Rice, Sr. in A History of the Adirondacks, Volume 1, by Alfred Lee Donaldson, but the focus is in on the Water Lily. Here’s another reference to the Water Lily that is helpful for those readers familiar with Captain Philomene Daniels.

In the fall of 1877 Fred W. Rice and William A. Martin, son of William F. Martin, began work on the project and on the Fourth of July, 1878 the Water Lily, the first steamboat in the Adirondacks, was launched. The Saranac Lake Water Lily shouldn’t be confused with the steamboat of the same name that ran between Westport and Vergennes during that same period and had the distinction of being commanded by the “world’s first licensed female steamboat pilot”, Captain Philomene Daniels. (Source: www.bunksplace.com)

Another tidbit about the younger Rice was discussed by Betsy Tisdale two summers ago at the Belden Noble Library.

At 25, after three years at Trudeau Sanatorium and three risky operations, she signed out against medical advice and hired Fred Rice, a local guide, who carried her from taxi to guideboat on Lower Saranac Lake. ~ Betsy Tisday (Source: Essex on Lake Champlain)

I’m hoping that Betsy Tisdale may be able to help us out.

All things considered, our research so far leaves much to be desired. If you can help us learn more about boatbuilding on Lake Champlain by Frederick W. Rice and/or Fred M. Rice, we’d love to hear from you!

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