The term "sugarmaker" is derived from the fact that maple syrup production involves the making of sugar from the sap of maple trees. The term has been used for generations and is still used today to refer to maple syrup producers. It is a fitting title for those who dedicate themselves to this time-honored tradition of turning the sap of maple trees into delicious, pure maple syrup.
In the colonial times, cane sugar was expensive. In fact it was one of the most expensive imports. Thomas Jefferson wrote,
"The sugar maple is too valuable a tree not to be cultivated extensively. The uses of sugar, molasses, beer, and vinegar, will forever ensure its cultivation; and even its sap alone, which may be boiled down to a syrup, without further expense or labor, would find a great demand, were it only known. There is no foreign article which enters so largely into the consumption of this country as sugar; and none the produce of which can be made so cheaply here."
To supplement their income, farmers collected sap from maple trees and boiled it down to concentrate the sugar until it became solid.
Sugar camps
Sugarhouses
Sugarmakers
because the process of making maple syrup involves boiling down the sap from maple trees to concentrate the sugar. The sap is collected by tapping the trees and collecting the sap in buckets or tubing systems. Once the sap is collected, it is boiled down in a process known as "sugaring off" to evaporate the water and concentrate the sugar. This process can take several hours and requires constant attention to prevent the syrup from burning.