Location: Deposit, NY
Status: Unknown
*Special thanks to the Deposit Historical Society for providing the old images
During the early to mid-part of the 20th century, the Catskills region of New York State became very well known as a destination to get away from everyday life and a place where you could relax at the many resorts that were in the area. This area mostly included the Borscht Belt, where many have stayed at the most well-known resorts in this region. These resorts included the Nevele, The Brown’s Resort, and, one that we’ve talked about in the past, Grossinger’s Resort. While most people knew about the resorts in this part of the Catskills, some may not know that there was a resort in the upper part of the region close to the Southern Tier part of the state. This was Scott’s Family Resort and not only was it well known in the small town it was located in, but it was also well known around the nation from when it first opened to its closure. Throughout its 150-year run, Scott’s was known as the place for entertainment as there were dozens of things to do on site almost every day. Not only were you staying at the resort, but you were also staying with the Scott family as the members welcomed you to their resort. Unfortunately, since its closure just a few years ago, each building on the grounds is slowly rotting with one of the more well-known ones that had been torn down in 2021. What made Scott’s Family Resort stand out from the rest of the resorts in the Catskills and the surrounding area? What will become of the site in the future? These questions and more will be answered as we take a look at the history behind Scott’s Family Resort.
The history behind the family resort began when James H. Scott and Elvira J. Wilder left their home in Brattleboro, Vermont and moved by ox cart to Jackson, Pennsylvania. The couple had been married since 1845 and it is presumed that they moved to find a home to start raising a family. In December 28, 1869, Mr. Scott purchased a farmhouse and 98 acres of farmland on Sand Pond (later to be called Oquaga Lake) in Deposit, NY. Within the year, the couple started moving in and soon boarded visitors in the two spare rooms they had at the small Oquaga Lake Farmhouse. In 1870, James added more additions to the house and increased the number of guests to 50 at a time due to high demand. He continued to expand in 1875 when he bought 17 acres of lake-front property that established the resort theme. The Scotts continued to add to their property three years later with the purchase of the new main farmhouse (formerly known as the Jonas Rivenburgh Farmhouse). During this time, guests were charged an average of $8 per room and board and 25 cents for transportation to and from the Deposit Erie Railroad Line via horse and carriage until 1892. James’s son, Elwin Scott, also opened picnic grounds near the south shore of Sand Pond and used boats and a four-seated wagon to transport guests as there was not yet a road around the lake.
The Original Scott's Farmhouse
By the late 1870’s, the Oquaga Lake House (as it was called back then) was established as both a resort spot and center for commerce. Guests had all they needed on site since they could get their mail, fresh milk from the dairy, ice and supplies from the general store and more. In 1898, the infamous Playhouse (known back then as the Casino) opened and offered bowling alleys, a state-of-the-art soda fountain and a modest hardwood dance floor. Because of all of these features, it quickly became one of the most popular destinations on the lake.
The Oquaga Lake Casino, 1898
As of 1885, ownership of the Oquaga Lake House was passed down from James H. Scott to his son Elwin Scott. This would start the line of generations of the Scott family that would hold ownership of the resort as a total of six generations were said to own the property. (Unfortunately, while doing research, I was only able to find 4 out of the 6. This is being noted to avoid any confusion.).
Elwin further enlarged the size of the farmhouse around 1887, making it crowded with guests as time went on. It was believed around this time Sand Pond had its name changed to Oquaga Lake after the Native American name ‘Oghwagha’.
At the turn of the century more change came to the resort. This included the addition of cottages as 13 were spotted on the land in 1903. This number would go up to over 100 in the years to come. The most popular cottages that guests stayed in were the Scott’s Oquaga Lake Farm and the Windermere, which we will discuss later in this entry. Before the 1905 season, Elwin built a new Casino that had everything that the original had but also included a large stage, dressing rooms, space for billiards, an ice cream parlor and a large dance floor. After years of owning the resort, Elwin sold the property to his son, Raymond James Scott Sr. With this purchase, Raymond changed the name of the resort from the Oquaga Lake House to Scott’s Family Resort to help blend more with their new image.
Many changes came to the newly named Scott’s Family Resort during the time Raymond Sr. owned the property with his family. One of these changes, unfortunately, came on Christmas Eve in 1921 when the 200-room farmhouse (Lake House), post office and general store all caught fire and were quickly engulfed in flames. At the time of the fire, Raymond and his wife were in Binghamton with his parents for the holidays. Once the couple came back to the property, the farmhouse was destroyed totaling a $50,000 loss. Although the loss was a devastating blow, Raymond Sr. remained undaunted and vowed to rebuild a new lake house in its place, eventually welcoming guests to his new lodge in the spring of 1922. Possibly what the family lost in that fire motivated the Scotts to keep improving the resort as dozens of amazing changes were happening to the property in the coming years. The first new addition was the Annex that was built in 1924. This was a 3-story building that had 25 ‘sleeping rooms’ with private bathrooms and a large lobby. 13 individual garages were also added so guests could use them.
Scott’s Annex, 1920’s
Along with the addition of the annex, many other things occurred at Scott’s resort including construction, real estate transactions, motion pictures being shown on the property for guests, and more. The famous Scott’s Showboat made its debut during this time in June of 1932 on Oquaga Lake. The Showboat, made by Raymond’s buddy Sid Scut, entertained a large audience with open-air concerts as both guests and the bands that were performing occupied the boat. Despite being popular with guests, the boat was powered by a 25 h.p. outboard motor, which made riding on it very slow and suborn. This would be replaced with a Nash Truck engine within the following year as the canvas top would be added as well. This variation of the Showboat would run for years until it was replaced in 1961 with another boat that carried the same design as the original but had updated mechanics.
The Scott's Showboat
Scott’s Family Resort continued to run during not only during the Great Depression, but also World War II, which caused some problems during the war period. With lack of trained help and shortages of food and gasoline, this made it hard to keep running the resort. Luckily, this did not stop the Scotts as the family managed to push on.
In 1958, Raymond Scott Sr. continued the family tradition and passed the resort down to his son Raymond Scott Jr. (or ‘Scottie’ for short). This marked the 6th generation of the resort and a turning point as Scottie and his family would be the last to run Scott’s.
Before gaining ownership of the resort, Raymond ‘Scottie’ Scott Jr. enlisted in the US Army when he was 18 years old. While in the military, Scottie trained as a Paratrooper in the Philippines in anticipation of the assault on Japan. After serving his time, he returned home and met his soulmate and wife of 74 years, Doris. Scottie soon became owner of Scott’s Family Resort and spent the rest of his life devoted to the business.
Changes continued to happen at the resort as Scottie’s years of ownership focused more on the entertainment side of the establishment. While the previous Scotts introduced entities like the Showboat and the Playhouse, Scottie took it a step further by having various events take place within these structures and all over the property. Scottie was the kind of person where if he saw someone was bored, he would immediately get them moving with the assortment of activities that would be happening from May to October. These activities included Volleyball games, tennis, bowling, shuffleboard and bocce tournaments, speed boat rides, waterskiing, nature hikes, canoe excursions, bus trips to scenic views, painting and dance lessons, and so much more!
Guests playing Shuffleboard in 1955
As mentioned before, Scottie would focus on the entertainment that would go on throughout his resort. This makes sense considering both him and his wife Doris were entertainers themselves as they both enjoyed singing and dancing with guests. People would often catch themselves singing with Scottie in sing-a-longs on the Showboat as he would captain the boat in the late afternoons. Scottie was also part of the ‘Lakeshore Four’ where he and his band would provide dance music prior to the evening’s scheduled performance at the Playhouse. Some of the shows that would take place here included the whole Scott family. Scottie and Doris also taught dance lessons that included them doing spins and lifts well into their 80s. Overall, it was impossible to stay at Scott’s Family Resort without having something to do each day you stayed there.
“When you escape Route 17 at the Oquaga Lake exit and turn down a back road to Scott’s Oquaga Lake House you go back in time to the 1890s and the 1920s to an era of Prohibition (Scott’s a dry house) and stereopticon slides and vaudeville and the family entertainment of a gentler America.”- Excerpt from a newspaper article in 1974
Scott’s Family Resort celebrated their 100-year anniversary in 1970. To celebrate (and to show appreciation for their guests), the Scott’s held a weekly centennial contest to recognize the guest of the week. The guests would have to have registered at the resort long ago and have the most consecutive summers to date at that point in time. One of these winners was Mary Neusdadt, a friend of the family who stayed at the resort 49 years ago and only missed 4 years in-between the 31 conceptive years she stayed at the resort from 1926-1957. All the other winners of contest were either not listed in the source, never claimed their prize, or had passed away before the contest. During this time, the Scotts celebrated their older guests while continuing to welcome in new ones. One of these newer guests were the American Gymnastics Camp who occupied the Windermere Cottage from the late 1960s to early 1970s. Other guests included musicians, families, and more.
Some say it was amazing that Scott’s was able to keep having guests coming to the resort around a time when many stopped going to other Catskills Resorts. Around the 1970s, many other resorts in this region, most notably along the Borscht Belt, started closing their doors due to people wanting to vacation at more exotic locations. With this in mind, Scottie started spreading the word of his family resort to everyone he knew. From in town to as far as Canada, Scottie used word of mouth to keep having people going to Scott’s Resort. This plan proved to be successful as more and more people stayed at the resort each year.
As the years went on, Scottie and Doris’s daughters Patty and Peggy helped their parents run the resort along with their own families. Each person worked in different capacities of the resort while continuing to maintain an escape for guests from the fast-paced world. By 2008, the resort grew from its small farmhouse over 100 years ago to 1,100 acres.
The Scott Family in 1999
Scott’s Family Resort saw another wave of new guests in 2018 as the resort was featured in 3 episodes of the Amazon Prime show ‘The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’. Scott’s Resort was renamed ‘the Steiner Resort’ in the show as a huge sign showing the resort’s new name was visible on the property. Along with the sign, a small archway was placed on the walkway going towards the lake next to the playhouse. The Windermere Cottage was featured in the show as well.
A shot of the Windermere Cottage from “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”, 2018
After the resort gained national fame from its feature, they often advertised themselves as being part of the second season of the popular show. The Scotts were so proud of this that they hosted a ‘Maisel Weekend’, a 3-day event that took place during the 4th of July weekend. A variety of acts played at the playhouse throughout the weekend while guests enjoyed a spectacular fireworks show on the holiday. Many guests from around the country started going to Scott’s not only because of the resort’s feature, but they were also able to relive the time period the show took place in because of the resort’s overall theme. Unfortunately, these guests wouldn’t be able to stay for much longer as Scott’s Family Resort would soon close for good.
It was announced on the Scott’s Family Resort Facebook page that after nearly 150 years in business, the 2019 season will be their last season.
‘To all our dear friends and loyal supporters of Scott's,
Due to circumstances beyond our control, Scott's Family Resort will not be opening for the 2020 season. Our hearts are broken. We hope for a silver lining in all of this. Please know that we will try our best to keep a tiny little part of Scott's alive, even if it is at Patty and Gary's house.
Much love,
The Holdrege and Hallock families’
This announcement surprised many people who have been going to the resort for years. Why were they closing if they were still hosting over hundreds of people each year? Gary Holdredge, who worked on the property, said it would cost the family around $80,000 yearly to open their doors. This, along with the property becoming too much for the family to keep up with, made it clear that Scott’s family Resort had to close and be sold. Luckily, the family was able to sell their property in 2020 to Geragos Global, a well-known Hollywood-based investment group, for $2.7 Million.
Another heartbreaking announcement was made two years after the last season of the resort was opened. Raymond ‘Scottie’ Scott Jr. passed away on May 3, 2021 at the age of 95 at his home in Englewood, Flordia. It was noted on his obituary that he considered Englewood his ‘second home’ and his first home was at ‘his beloved’ Oquaga Lake where he grew up as an only child of an Inn Keeper Father (Raymond Sr.) and Mother. Former guests and more mourned Scottie’s passing as he was considered a beloved part of the resort they went to for many years.
As of October 2023, the future remains unclear for the former Scott’s Family Resort property. Since its purchase in 2020, the buildings that contain so many memories remain empty and rapidly decaying. The famous playhouse, which housed various shows and events throughout the years, collapsed with the weight of heavy snow and was torn down. Because of this, reopening the resort was proven a challenge since that building was a major focal point on the property and held a lot of historical value. According to Geragos Global, they were going to make minor renovations and reopen the resort within the following season before the playhouse collapsed.
While the investment group is currently looking for options on what to do with the land, dozens of Deposit residents are starting to look at the previously beloved resort as an eye sore to the community as the buildings keep falling apart year after year. While it’s unknown what will become of the former Scott’s Family Resort, those who stayed there will always have the memories they made and pass them down to their families for generations just like how the Scott family did for 150 years.
This has been the story behind Scott’s Family Resort.
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