Loch Sheldrake

The hamlet of Loch Sheldrake, originally named Sheldrake Pond, is named both for the 64-acre lake that is its main attraction as well as the Sheldrake, a type of duck that lived in the area. The hamlet followed the business ups-and-downs associated with the typical Catskills town with industries such as tanning and lumber providing much of the growth. In the 1920s to the 1960s the resort industry, sometimes referred to as the Borscht Belt, thrived and brought in hundreds of thousands of tourist each year to Sullivan County. However, by the 1970s and 1980s, with changing American vacation patterns and declining business, many of the once famous resorts began to close their doors. Remnants of the bygone era can be seen today throughout Sullivan County and Loch Sheldrake is no exception with decaying bungalow communities and deserted hotels lining the highways as well as boarded up storefronts and an abandoned movie theater lining the heart of Main Street. The Laundromat, pictured here, located in what was surely a diner at some point, is wearied, yet symbolic of many such small towns in the county.

On a wide but interesting tangent, Loch Sheldrake holds a special place in the history of boxing. James J. Braddock, better known as the Cinderella Man, trained at the Hotel Evans in Loch Sheldrake for seven weeks prior to his famous 1935 heavyweight title fight with champion Max Baer. Braddock was a 10-to-1 underdog and was given virtually no chance to beat the champion, a champion who had previously killed two men in the ring. It was a truly American rags-to-riches, David-versus-Goliath story. Braddock’s story was the subject of renewed interest in 2005 with the release of the feature film titled “Cinderella Man”, which was directed by Ron Howard and starred Russell Crowe and Renee Zellweger.