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Your support is sustaining the future of local news in our communities.

The season of thanks

With the end of the year approaching, it’s a good moment to look at the work in front of us and the community that makes it possible.

Local news exists only because a community chooses to support it. Throughout the week, readers pick up the paper or read us online. They call, email, send photos, share tips, and ask questions. They tell us what matters in their towns and trust us to report it accurately and fairly. That trust is the foundation of what we do.

We’re grateful for our readers — those who have been with us for decades and those who are just joining us. We’re grateful for the people who answer our reporters’ questions, even when the stories are complicated. And we’re grateful for advertisers who continue to invest locally and understand the role a regional newspaper plays in community life.

We’re also grateful for the commitment this region has shown to supporting independent local journalism. Donor support helps us keep local government visible, cover schools, and report on the everyday moments that shape life here. It also allows us to invest in the next generation through our summer internships and our high school journalism program, where students learn by doing real reporting.

And, of course, we’re grateful for the people inside the paper — reporters, editors, designers, photographers, drivers, and staff who work to help you stay informed and connected.

As we enter the season of gratitude, we want to say this plainly: thank you for reading, for engaging, and for believing that our towns deserve strong local news.


Your support is vital

This weekend we presented the Estabrook Community Leadership Award to Bunny Williams, who has spent decades working to better our communities, at our Jubilee reception. (Click here for coverage.)

As Bunny noted in her remarks, “What I learned is that the best part of this community — as beautiful as it is — is the people.”

Thank you to everyone who helped make our event a success.

This edition also marks the launch of our annual appeal. Enclosed you’ll find a pre-addressed envelope and letter, or you can donate online at lakevillejournal.com/donate.

We look forward to another year of telling the stories of this region — and we’re grateful to everyone who helps make it possible.

Latest News

Missing former Dover Town Supervisor found at Wingdale Train Station

Ryan Courtien disappeared from his Wingdale home at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, July 12, wearing tan pants and a black shirt. He has now been located and is currently being evaluated in a local hospital.

Photo provided

DOVER PLAINS — New York State Police said missing former Dover Town Supervisor Ryan Courtien was located and taken to a local hospital Friday evening, July 17.

Dutchess County Sheriff's Deputies received a tip on Friday just before 6 p.m. that Courtien had been spotted at the Wingdale train station about a mile away from his home on 32 Waldo Road.

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Fire destroys Stanford farm equipment shed, propane tanks explode

Fire crews douse the smoldering remains of an equipment shed at 357 Hunns Lake Road in Stanford after a fire and propane tank explosions destoryed the structure and farm machinery housed inside on Friday, July 17.

Photo by Nathan Miller

STANFORDVILLE — A fire destroyed a farm equipment shed in Stanford Friday, July 17.

Richie Ahlf, who lives at 357 Hunns Lake Road, was alerted to the blaze on his property when a landscaper working nearby noticed smoke and flames and ran into Ahlf's yard.

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Authorities end search for missing former Dover Town Supervisor

Ryan Courtien disappeared from his Waldo Road home in Wingdale on Sunday morning, July 12. Authorities concluded the search of the landscape surrounding his home after four days of scouring the woods at 4 p.m. Wednesday, July 15.

Photo by Lucia Iandolo

DOVER PLAINS — The search for former Dover Town Supervisor Ryan Courtien has concluded after four days of scouring the area surrounding his Wingdale home, but authorities say the investigation is ongoing.

New York State Police announced the end of the search for the 49-year-old Wingdale resident and current Dover Planning Board chair at roughly 4:45 p.m. Wednesday, July 15. Courtien disappeared from the yard in front of his Waldo Road home in Wingdale shortly after leaving the house at 9:30 a.m. Sunday, July 12, to work in his yard.

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Millerton dressmaker forged path as early businesswoman
Mary Kisselbrack, left, and her husband, George.
Provided

If you’ve driven down Main Street in Millerton, you’ve passed the former home and shop of one of the village’s earliest female entrepreneurs. At a time when most businesses were owned by men, Mary Kisselbrack made a name for herself in the late 1800s as a well-respected milliner and dressmaker.

On April 11, 1891, train conductor George Kisselbrack purchased a 124-by-232-foot vacant lot at 54 Main St. and hired locally renowned builders Beers and Trafford to design what would become their home and Mary’s business.

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Wastewater project coming to fruition after decades of debate

Millerton’s business community will soon see the completion of a public wastewater system, addressing what local officials and business owners have called a major constraint on commercial development in the community for decades.

The $13.8 million project, which is expected to serve the core of the Village of Millerton and a commercial stretch of the Town of North East along U.S. Route 44, represents one of the largest infrastructure investments in the community in decades, and brings an end to calls for a sewer system that stretch back to World War II. Officials say the system will safeguard local waterways while creating a foundation for long-term economic stability.

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Millerton Moviehouse marks 120 years with structural upgrades

Wooden beams made from tree trunks comprise the load-bearing structure under Millerton’s Moviehouse.

Graham Corrigan

There are a handful of buildings that have stood the test of time over Millerton’s 175-year history. But if there’s one that stands out as a singular representation of the town, it’s the Millerton Moviehouse and its iconic clock tower.

Built in 1903 as a grange hall, it was soon converted into a movie theater with a second-floor ballroom. It was one of a handful of buildings that came to define the town in the following decades, standing tall across the street from the Episcopal Church and Millerton Inn, next to Terni’s, and up the hill from Millerton’s train station.

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Want more of our stories on Google? Click here to make us a Preferred Source.