Storied Averill sporting camp changes hands

Quimby Country, Inc., says that a Vermont couple has purchased a majority stake in the 125-year-old family resort and sporting camp in Averill.

Lilly and Gene Devlin of Cornwall, will hold a 51 percent stake in the company that will operate Quimby Country and they will become general managers for the 2018 season. Quimby Country, Inc. will retain a 49 percent interest on behalf of its shareholders, most of whom are longtime guests.

For the past seven years, the Devlins have run a 92-year-old summer camp in the Adirondacks. Prior to that, Mr. Devlin was a teacher and school administrator, including six years as director of a wilderness school in Maine. He is a graduate of the University of Vermont with a degree in English and education, and holds a master’s degree in organization development and leadership from Antioch University — New England. Mrs. Devlin is also a graduate of the University of Vermont with a degree in early childhood development and has been actively involved in education, working with children and families in both classroom and in wilderness settings.

Quimby Country was founded as the Cold Spring fishing camp by Charles Quimby in 1893. Upon Mr. Quimby’s death in 1919, his daughter Hortense took over and turned it into a three-season resort serving anglers, hunters, and families. In 1965, a group of longtime guests, concerned about Miss Quimby’s deteriorating health, bought the then 600-acre property and renamed it Quimby Country. In the years since, the property has grown to more than 1,000 acres with a lodge, clubhouse, and 19 cottages on Forest Lake, as well as a beach house on Great Averill Pond.

Brooke Bridges, president of Quimby’s board of directors, said, “We believe the Devlins are worthy successors to Hortense Quimby and will ensure that the family resort and sporting camp to which she devoted her adult life endures for many years to come.”

“We’re excited to become part of such a long and storied heritage,” Mr. Devlin said.

“And we look forward to building on its traditions to give Quimby Country’s guests and employees an exciting future,” Mrs. Devlin added.

To learn more about Quimby Country, visit www.quimbycountry.com — submitted by Dick Martin.