Detrital zircons in quartz-rich lithologies from the deformed and metamorphosed Mesoproterozoic Adirondack Lowlands in northern New York, part of the Grenville Province, have been used to document sediment provenance and basin evolution, and provide initial temporal constraints on sedimentation. Despite the effects of Shawinigan (c. 1200–1150\ Ma) and Elzevirian (c. 1240–1225\ Ma) orogenesis, zircon grains recovered from quartz-rich lithologies from the Grenville Supergroup largely retain detrital morphology and isotopic systematics, while displaying minimal metamorphic effects. The ages obtained constrain deposition of the entire sequence between c. 1276 and 1255\ Ma. Changes in provenance track the evolution of the basin from the initial rift-drift phase, foredeep development, and transition to final basin fill and response to initial pre-Elzevirian compression. The relative lack of zircons derived from the Superior Province and predominance of those from south-central Laurentia during deposition of the sequences indicates the influence of an intervening oceanic basin to the north.