Woodward Hall, built in 1931-1932, is significant at the local level under Criterion B as the home of Earl Woodward (1891-1956). During the 1920s, Woodward reinvented Adirondack tourism in the Lake George region through the introduction of dude ranch style resorts. After renting rustic cabins to sportsmen and operating a resort on a more traditional model for a few years, Woodward perceived the opportunity for expansion in the tourist market. Rather than stopping with one successful resort development, Woodward continued to build in addition to speculating in timber. Between 1928 and 1930, he created Northwoods, a vacation home development situated around two man-made lakes. Woodward built the Northwoods Dude Ranch at the heart of the development; the successful resort introduced the idea of western-style vacations in the Adirondacks. The dude ranch model caught on quickly, and became a primary feature of the local tourism landscape within a decade. Woodward acted as the gregarious host at the dude ranch he was operating in the summer and at his stone house where he entertained friends, guests, and real estate customers. By the mid-1940s, he also began purchasing, subdividing, and redeveloping
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