King’s Grove, Route 374, Chazy Lake, NY
It all came about in 1947. Exford and Catherine King started The Grove basically as a small take-out stand along the shore of the lake. Exford, or Jim as he was known back in his Detroit, MI days, had been a restaurant operator in the Motor City, and the desire to run a restaurant never left him. So, the Grove came into operation the same year I was born. I was told many times that one of the large cardboard bread boxes used to deliver the hot dog and hamburger buns served as my first crib. I grew up in this home to summer fun along Chazy Lake. A michigan with, order of fries and a chocolate milk or Pepsi was the favorite menu selection. The restaurant expanded with a dining room and the well known dance hall that was later converted into a bar. Many romances grew from dancing on a Friday, Saturday or Sunday night to tunes such as the “Wabash Cannonball”:
- “Now listen to the jingle, and the rumble, and the roar,
- As she dashes thro’ the woodland, and speeds along the shore,
- See the mighty rushing engine, hear her merry bell ring out,
- As they speed along in safety, on the Great Rock Island Route.”
I got to call a few of those wonderful square dances as a kid dressed in my western outfit with encouragement from the Lytle sisters and their parents from down in Lewis, NY. My favorite was “Kissing in the Moonlight”, and I got to shut the lights off in the hall as the couples danced the night away and kissed over the musical bridge of the song. There were many other events held at the Grove. Boat races, political rallies, Shriner’s conventions, wedding receptions, church and school picnics and the day trips of Montrealers on a weekend to enjoy an escape from the city to the Adirondacks are all a part of King’s Grove history. The Grove was later operated by my brother James King and passed through other hands before coming to a final close. I hope you enjoy this trip to the Grove days at Chazy Lake and invite you to share your memories with us.
Plattsburgh Press-Republican
Friday, June 12, 1970
I remember the first square dance held at King’s Grove. The men who worked at the concentrator at Lyon Mountain wanted to have a picnic and dance. They helped build an open pavilion about 1000 sqft. For music, Mae M. sat in the dump box of a truck with a piano playing country square dance tunes. I believe that Ed F. also played his fiddle. That was so popular that nearly everyone wanted to dance there. They came from most of northern New York, parts of Quebec, and Vermont. One of the local bands was The Merry Mels. The one from Vermont was The Western Aces who had a radio show out of Burlington. At the height of this, there were dances on Wednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The most on the dance floor at one time I can recall was 18 squares. And yes, I got kissed in the moonlight. As time passed, the building was torn down and recycled into a good-sized hunting cabin which unfortunately burned down.
hey umm my name is james exford king III i found this website n thought maybe it was connected to me in someway maybey u know my dad James Exford King II or my grand dad james Exford King idk lol umm if anything rings a bell contact me back please
I am Catherine Yvonne Tavernier (Kippy). James King my uncle that I loved a lot gave me the name Kippy (I think I was 3 or so). I remember coming from Minn. every summer and as old as 5 or 6 I was put to work at King’s Grove. I worked in the kitchen, cleaning the bath house, picking up trash. The best times was when Grandpapa would have clam bakes and the campgrounds were full of people. One summer (I think I was 6) I was swimming. I started to drown and my Uncle Jim saved me. There is so much more to tell and will share next time.
Kippy