North Country Identity

(03/07/12) Cold nights, warm days, sunshine: chickdees are busy, and the sap is rising. It all adds up to maple syrup season. Whether your operation includes a bulk holding tank and miles of plastic tubing, or just a few buckets hanging off the trees in the backyard, it all starts the same way, with a strategically placed hole in a sugar maple.

And it's today's Heard Up North, produced by Martha Foley.

(03/05/12) It's a scene that was common-place in the early 20th century, horses out on a frozen lake cutting through the ice with bladed plows.

Ice harvesting may not be part of your family's plans this year, but for one rural St. Lawrence County family it's the only way to keep food cool during the summer. Trevor Alford visited the Douglass family farm outside Canton and has our story. more

(02/14/12) A St. Lawrence County community is being reminded, again, of an 80 year-old rumor many people would rather forget.

A new novel re-imagines what happened when a little girl went missing overnight in Massena. It's based on a true story from 1928. The town's small Jewish community was accused of kidnapping her for a ritual murder.

Julie Grant set out to find out what really happened. She found that after 80 years, it's not easy to parse the truth from rumors and memories.

But she did find that people from cultures around the world brought together in America's "melting pot" were easily pulled apart in a time of crisis. more

(02/10/12) NCPR kicked off election coverage with a series of stories this week. See below for more on the 23rd district race for the House of Representatives.

Politics are everywhere these days, from the bitter Republican primary fight that's playing out on our TV screens to the redistricting battle in Albany that could shake up politics right here in our own backyard. As 2012 goes on, the news and conversation will only get louder and more intense.

Most high school students can't vote, but politics plays a big role in their lives, too. And they're paying attention, at least the teens are who gathered recently in Peru to talk about government and politics. Our correspondent Sarah Harris sends this report. more

(02/02/12) There were clear skies, cool temperatures...and a woodpile. A perfect combination for our Heard Up North.

(01/25/12) Libraries aren't just quiet places filled with books. In the North Country, libraries serve as social hubs and community centers. These days, they're scrambling to keep pace with the changing ways that we use information and technology.

But decreases in funding are making it harder for rural libraries to juggle their many missions. Sarah Harris has our story. more

(01/25/12) These are tough times, as libraries grapple with changing technology and shrinking budgets. But librarians in Clinton County say their work is more important than ever. Sarah Harris talked with Stan Ransom, Frances Fairchild, Betsy Brooks, Eva Jankowska and Jacqueline Madison, all librarians in Clinton County. more

(01/13/12) State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is again pushing for legislation to create an online database to report and track the use of prescription narcotic drugs. On Wednesday, Schneiderman announced that his Internet System for Tracking Over-Prescribing Act, which he proposed last year, has bipartisan support in the Legislature. He also issued a report that details the growing prescription drug abuse problem in every corner of the state, including the North Country. Chris Knight has our story. more

(12/23/11) The US Postal Service is in crisis mode, trying to downsize while wrestling with billions of dollars in deficits. Dozens of local post offices have been targeted for possible closure. And as many as 200 mail processing centers around the country may also shut down - including facilities in Plattsburgh, Glens Falls and White River Junction, Vermont. A final decision on their fate has been put off until May, but as Sarah Harris reports, people are already talking about the jobs and the services that may be lost here in the North Country. more

(10/10/11) It's been a banner for fruit, including apples.

Martha Foley's neighors have been gathering to press cider for over 20 years. The hand-cranked press lives in an old milk house. It's a barrel-shaped contraption, with heavy slatted sides. Whole apples are washed, chopped and packed into the press.

The cranking starts, the squeeze gets tighter and tighter, and eventually, the cider flows.
The whole process is a team effort, starting outside with a bath for the apples. This Heard Up North first aired last fall.