Authors Dr. Anne Deming and Dr. Bob Deming were the guest speakers at the recent Valley Historical Society meeting on the two books they wrote and published.

SINCLAIRVILLE — During the recent meeting of the Valley Historical Society held at the museum in Sinclairville, authors Dr. Bob Deming and Dr. Anne Deming were the guest speakers.

The Demings have been summer residents of Bear Lake for 45 years, and during that time have collected a great deal of history of the area. The Demings wrote and published the two books History of Bear Lake, and Camp in the Woods on Bear Lake.

The history book took 10 years of organizing information and interviews, and is a history of a small community along the shores of Bear Lake. There are 141 acres around the lake and 70% are wet lands. There have been recorded 82 bird species and 66 plant species. The Demings spoke of some of the long time residents and the old hotel. The camp book was written later. The Camp in the Woods book was the history of the YMCA camp which was in existence for 46 years until 1974. The index of the book has about 500 names because these were the people who were interviewed and helped with gathering information for the book. A very interesting talk was enjoyed by all.

President Larry Barmore opened the meeting by leading all in the Lord’s Prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance. The minutes of the previous meeting were read by Barmore and approved. Treasurer John Sipos gave the financial report of the society.

Following the meeting, refreshments were served which included two different cakes baked by member Susan W. Sipos, and cookies by Gayle McKinney. The next meeting will be on Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the Sinclairville Library.

The Valley Historical Society was formed in 1977 by the late John and Ruth Smith, the Rev. John Rough, and Walter Waite. The museum building was purchased one year later and has undergone multiple improvements since then. For more information on the Valley Historical Society, write to P.O. Box 1045, Sinclairville, NY 14782. New members are always welcome.