A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York, Part 91

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co.
Number of Pages: 1102

USA > New York > Allegany County > A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York > Part 91

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together there will be a devil of a meeting,' and he was right. I was at work for John F. Babcock as an ap- prentice, and we all ran to the house when we saw the flying timber coming and falling among us. Not being in the center of the storm, which passed to the north, the house stood. After the storm Babcock took a horse and started for home. His house was a log one standing south of the one where Charles Bixby now lives. Babcock's house stood through the wind which tore off a corner of the roof and unroofed his log barn. A little above Babcock's, on the present Gleason Hill road, was a hemlock tree lying beside the track on the lower side with earth thrown against it to make the road. It was 70 or 80 feet long and about 3 feet through at the butt. The wind rolled this log across the road, and left it lying on the upper side of the track. On the side of the road where the log first laid stood Scott Kinney's log house. Mrs. Kinney, her children, and some women neighbors were in it. The wind leveled the house nearly to the floor, tumbling the logs down upon the occupants, and some of the women had to be extricated. A son of Kinney's had his skull crushed. Dr. Allen removed the bone, put in a silver plate. The boy recovered. Reuben Bridgeman's log house was un- roofed. Between Baird's and Babcock's some buildings were torn down. On the farm where Charles Ford now lives Charles Amsden's frame barn was leveled to the ground. His frame house was uninjured. There was a " linter " on the back side of John Hank's log house. In this was a dog churn and a baby in its cradle. The churn and the cradle were carried into the field below, where the cradle was found with the baby undis- turbed. The barn was demolished."

Ward Pierce says that as long ago as he can remember Gideon Lewis and Henry Torrey were making grindstones at the Wing quarry. Many grindstones were got out there in early days, and they were quite an article of commerce.

" In the early twenties," says William A. Benjamin, " a sawmill was built where Ralph Richardson afterward lived by one Winters; afterward one was built at the falls on White creek at the Wing place by Mr. Arnold. No dam was made, simply a log laid on the rocks, water being conducted by a race from above the falls. While the canal was being built, the Cases, who were building locks and grading, put up a store and built up the village for years called Caseville. To saw their lumber they constructed a mill on the site of the Arnold mill and put in a dam. After the canal was built Nathan Bailey put up another mill on the site of the Winters mill. In 1822-3 the nearest gristmill was the Cherry mill. This stood near the

present gristmill. The Benjamins harvested 2 acres of wheat in 1823 of which Io sheaves made a bushel of wheat and the toll over. No other mill was nearer than Angelica and Philips- burgh. Set out an orchard in the fall of 1822 or 3, buying the trees at a nursery in Caneadea. Old Ben Chamberlain then lived where John White lives. Bill Bennett on the Miles place, where the road to Angelica leaves the river road. Old Major Reynolds lived next below Ben- nett, and Joseph T. Ford on the John B. Ford place. Next below was Mr. Bridgeman. Henry J. Raymond owned the land at Gougeville and built the mill. A little way above a fall of some two feet in the river was called Bennett's falls. Rockwell Hopper was next below. Below Hop- per was Jedediah Nobles, then one Ford, John Sellon, Wm. Sellon, Garrett Vandermark. Then came Col. King's mills, etc. Across the bridge lived Martin Butts, and Parker Alexander kept the postoffice. He built the Mrs. Covert house in 1843. Dr. Davis had an office between a hotel on the flats and the river. For several years there were no other buildings in the village ex- cept 'Cherry mill ' and a log house on the bank above 'cold spring,' the watering trough. From there the land was cleared out toward the cemetery. About 1840 Henry D. Lyman from Burrville built his hotel. Robert Renwick built his store in 1843, his house earlier. Hughes and Chamberlain came in 1842-3. The old man Petty settled on the J. Neely farm. Christo- pher Jennings built a mill. Elijah Reynold lived on the Hiram Seeley places. A log school- house stood near the little old graveyard. Rufus Petty was a teacher, and soon after went to Texas and joined Col. Fanning's Texas troops and was killed. McIntosh kept a tavern on the Stephen Wilson place and had a ' still.' John McKeen was on the Brown place."

When the first settlements were made, deer were very plentiful, and the rifle was as much depended upon for meat, as was the soil for a harvest. In every house suspended by loops or laid upon hooks over or near the fire place, was always to be found, except when in use, the trusty rifle of the settler; no sight was more familiar in the cabin, and many became expert in its use, and in the chase. William Bennett, " Bill Bennett," was a famous hunter, and many stories are told of his exploits. Tradition says that he

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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

drove a deer through the streets of Angelica completely tired out, and sub- missive as a cow. When the bounty on a full grown wolf's scalp was $20 from the state and $20 from the county, and $10 for " whelps'" scalps, the inducement stimulated effort. Those who knew " Bill Bennett " say that he has been known to capture a she wolf and a litter of whelps, kill the old one, and carefully take the young ones home and rear them with the care and anxiety of a dog fancier, to hurry them up to the proportions of a "full grown " wolf, and thus get his $20 apiece instead of $10.

Conspicuous among the very early settlers were Benjamin, Elisha, Calvin and David Chamberlain, brothers. Their descendants are scattered not only all Western New York, but in other states. Benjamin had two sons, Gen. Calvin T. Chamberlain of Cuba, and Judge Benjamin Cham- berlain of Randolph, who became noted public men. David Sanford was no ordinary man, and Jedediah Nobles, Nathaniel Reynolds, Thaddeus Ben- nett, Benjamin Littleton, Thomas Mapes, Rockwell Hopper, Simon C. Moore, William and Harry Byrns, Joseph T. and Lewis H. Ford, were men well fit- ted for the work of the pioneer. Others could be named. These are only specimens of the early settlers. Later came the Gleasons, the Wilsons, the Browns, Lounsbury, Jenkins, Millett, Tibbetts, Jennings. Athertons, Guil- fords, Crawfords, Drews, Pierces, Howells and of others a host. The for- rests disappeared, and the green fields were opened to the smiling sunlight.

In the thirties the pine timber of Allegany began to come into notice. No better pine was to be found, but Rochester and Buffalo were the nearest places of market. Rafting and " bull-frogging " then came into play. Dur- ing the fall and winter all hands were engaged in cutting logs and drawing them to some suitable place on the river bank. Large quantities of logs would thus be ready to be rolled into the river in the first suitable spring flood, to float to the mills at Portage, Mt. Morris and Rochester. "Booms " were constructed to hold the logs near the mills where they were sawed during the summer. But some of the logs would lodge, and these would be left high on the land after the flood unless again rolled into the water. So gangs of men called "bull-froggers " would follow these logs with boats, axes, pikes, cant-hooks, etc. A man with a yoke of oxen quite frequently accompanied the bull-froggers. It often became necessary to wade into the water, and at night these men would come into quarters with their clothes dripping wet. In this way they would chase the logs to their destination. This was "bull-frogging." Lumber sawed at Belfast and above would sometimes be made into rafts and run to Portageville, then taken out and hauled over the hill past the lower falls, again rafted and the journey re- sumed. Sometimes the booms would break, and the logs would be " chased " down to another mill. If any passed Rochester they would be lost in Lake Ontario. Ebenezer Kingsley informed the writer that he had once found some of his logs on the Canadian shore. William Stephen and James Atherton were prominent among those lumbermen. John Gleason, Asahel N. Cole, Ebenezer Kingsley, John McWhorter were others in the business. Millions

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and millions of feet of lumber and logs have been sent to market from Bel- fast in this laborious, exciting and hazardous way, and Belfast was distin- guished over any other river town for the amount of its business in this line.

Rafting was abruptly ended when the Genesee Valley canal was opened. (See pages 123 and 124 for history of the building of the canal). The canal opened to Oramel in 1851, but Belfast had to wait two years longer. Through this town the work was heavy (mostly through an original forest), and a reservoir was constructed at Rockville which when filled covered many acres. When the canal was opened the logs were made into rafts in the canal and went through this to the mills below without loss, and the home manufactured lumber was sent to market on canal boats.

In June, 1842, Joseph Miller, the inventor of the "Miller car-coupler," here constructed a one-horse machine for cutting grass, with the cutter bar in front of the horse, which did not prove a success, as, after cutting one swath of about 20 rods, the horse ran away and broke it to pieces. In 1852 or 53 the mowing machine however came to stay, making its first appearance on the old Chamberlain farm near the transit.

Tanneries .- Belfast has had her share of tanneries. Half a century ago one was built at Rockville. Not far from the same time Hiram Seeley oper- ated one on his farm near the Junction, southwest of the village. Lewis Ford and Hiram Seeley built one at the "Huddle " and also ran a shoeshop. Afterward Lewis Ford built one on South Main street, which was later operated by Fred Sheeley. There was also once one at Black Creek on the river road. Not one is in existence to-day. All swept away by the irresist- ible tide of centralization and consolidation, which has not only wiped out the small tanneries, but the shoeshops and wagonshops and coopershops, which, in the old days, were a distinguishing feature of country villages.

Cheese Factories .- Though some parts of the town are well adapted to dairying it was never prosecuted, further than a few isolated individual dairies, till Kinney & Gunn in 1869 erected the "Belfast Cheese Factory," for several years one of the most important of those institutions in northern Allegany. It stood north of the village, and is no longer used for its original purpose. Mr. Justus H. Neely came from Herkimer county in 1844, and brought with him Herkimer county knowledge, notions and ideas about cheese and butter making, and was the first in town to manufacture cheese in quantities. In 1872 he built the "White Creek Cheese Factory " (now owned by Warren Wilkinson). There are now three other factories in town, all owned by A. E. Perry, who to the one in Belfast village has lately added a creamery. He also owns the Oramel and Marshall factories. The four factories use the milk of about 1,800 cows, and have reputation for excel- lence of work fully up to the high standard of Allegany.

SUPERVISORS .- David Hitchcock, 1824; William Bennett, 1825-26; Lyman Tibbetts, 1827-30, 1836, 1841' Selah Bacon, 1831-32; John McKeen, 1833-34; Robert Renwick, 1835; Stephen Wilson, Jr., 1837-40; Wil- liam A. Kirkpatrick, 1842-43; Isaac Miles, 1844-46; Jacob Searl, 1845, 1847, 1848; Joab B. Hughes, 1849; Jo

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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

seph D. Beard, 1850; Samuel C. Wilson, 1851; Hazen Hughes, 1852-53; D. A. Knapp, 1854-55; Sidney Stowe, 1856; John W. Eldridge, 1857-58, 1865; O. W. Story, 1859; Robert Snow, 1860; Charles M. Crandall, 1861; Christopher Jennings, 1862, 1864; C. W. Saunders, 1866-68, 1877-80; Thomas Miller, 1869-70; Benja- min Willis, 1871; J. H. Saunders, 1872; James M. Davis, 1873-74; Eaton Kinney, 1875-1876; B. T. Willis, 1881-85, J. M. Davis, 1886-87; A. P. McIntosh, 1888-90; M. L. Brainard, 1891-92; I. S. Hunt, 1893-95.

OFFICERS FOR 1895 .- I. S. Hunt, supervisor; J. D. Shuart, town clerk; R. R. Seeley, W. B. Renwick, Newton Sumner and F. S. Burlingame, justices of the peace; William M. Gleason, Henry Guilford, Eaton Kinney, assessors; F. C. Hastings, commissioner of highways; Lyman Stanton, collector; Michael Burke, overseer of the poor; Addison G. Weaver, George Wilson, inspectors of election, Ist district; R. Bradway Renwick, George I. Fisk, 2d district; Lyman Stanton, W. E. Vaughan, Almond Burlingame, Michael Garvin, John Farnum, constables; Henry Gleason, Charles P. Bixby, Charles English, commissioners of excise.

BELFAST VILLAGE .- Mention has been made of the settlement on the low flats near the dam and bridge, northeast of the present village. One effect of the "big flood " of 1835 was a movement to change the business places and residences from the low flats to the plateau, or table land, then covered with an immense growth of timber, and the building of the new village soon began. The growth for the first few years was slow. Henry D. Lyman about 1840 built a hotel, and Robert Renwick a store. It was not however until the completion of the Genesee Valley canal was made reason- ably certain that sufficient confidence was inspired to promote a vigorous and substantial growth. Judge Benjamin Chamberlain was quick to discern the trend of things material, and so (as was his custom in such cases) he purchased all the purchasable land where the village is, and in the fall of 1849 employed Charles Williams to lay it out in lots and streets and make a village map preparatory to offering lots for sale. He also included in this village plat a public park which he deeded " to the people of the town of Belfast." A cemetery then existed on the present village lots of Mrs. Hattie Johnson and John Holden, but early in 1850 the bodies were removed, mostly to the cemetery in the eastern part of the village.

Stimulated by the public works and the prospects of the canal the vil- lage grew quite rapidly. The headquarters of the engineer corps for this portion of the canal was established here, and contributed toward enlivening things, and general prosperity ensued which has continued with occasional brief interruptions to the present. By 1852 the village had a newspaper, A. N. Cole starting the Genesee Valley Free Press, soon removing it to Wellsville .* For felicity of situation no village on the Genesee river equals Belfast. It is above the highest water. The ground is dry, good springs are abundant, and the well water is pure. A high order of interest is taken in religious and educational matters, and the morals of its people are of a high standard, with school, churches, societies, etc., of a corresponding character.

BUSINESS INTERESTS, 1895 .- The leading dealers in general merchan- dise are N. C. Saunders & Co., and I. S. Hunt, in hardware; Thornton and Freeborn. E. Carter & Co., manufacture and deal in harnesses, etc .; the

* Hiram Rich, son of Esau, was born in Hume March 1, 1822. In 1852 he came to Belfast, and in com- pany with his brother, C. O. Rich, built in 1853 a sash and blind factory, and later added a saw and shingle mill.

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Tarba Manufacturing Company conducts milling in all branches and saw and planing mills, and R. G. Young deals in flour and feed. V. I. Cook and Mr. Dort are watchmakers and jewelers; and "Norm " Holden runs the Belfast House. The village has the usual accessories of shops and mechanics and a bank. With many natural attractions and many monied citizens who are proud of their home, the future of the village is a promising one.

Banks and Exchange .- Until the latter half of this century no regularly established banks were nearer Belfast than Bath, Olean, Warsaw and Gen- eseo. About 1852 Joab and Hazen Hughes established here a branch of the Millford Bank of New Jersey. The bills were issued and signed by the Messrs. Hughes, as president or vice president and cashier. Business was conducted successfully until 1856 or 57, when it went down in the general financial crash of the country. It seems well established that A. J. Lewis was the next to conduct the purchase and sale of exchange and the best in- formed fix the time as 1863. For eight years from 1865 B. T. Willis & Bros. did private banking, and before they ceased to operate, J. M. Davis opened an account in New York, and bought and sold exchange and discounted paper.

THE BANK OF BELFAST was organized March 25, 1882, as a co-partner- ship in which the several stockholders are individually liable to the extent of their means, and all are directors. The first officers were: James M. Davis, president; Charles W. Saunders, vice president; W. B. Manley, cash- ier. The bank represents a capital of $200,000. Present stockholders are: J. M. Davis, I. S. Hunt, Mrs. Emma J. Davis, Miss S. S. Jennings, David Kinney, Alfred Spring, Mrs. Sophia Jennings, G. Fisk, Mrs. Eliza Saunders, and W. B. Manley. The present officers are: J. M. Davis, president; I. S. Hunt, vice president, and W. B. Manley, cashier. R. Bradway Renwick is employed as book-keeper. For the fourteen years of its existence, the business has been conducted upon a sound financial policy. By careful and conservative management and fair treatment to its customers the bank has steadily grown in public favor and is one of the reliable financial institutions of the county.

One of the best business institutions of Belfast is the M. B. Tarba Man- ufacturing Company's plant, consisting of a custom and merchant flouring and gristmill and a saw and planingmill. The present structure of the grist- mill was built about 1852, by Parshall and Eldridge. About the same time H. and C. Rich put in a sawmill and sash, door and blind factory. The grist- mill occupies nearly if not quite the site of the old "Cherry mills," The property now combined has frequently changed hands. Some years since it was owned by George B. Knickerbocker; later by L. F. Hull, who enlarged and improved it, introducing the full roller process, and other improved machines and devices, enabling it to successfully compete with any mill in this section of the state. The Tarba Manufacturing Company are the pres- ent owners and the mill and connected industries are doing a successful business.

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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY, N. Y.

Fires .- In June, 1871, the Belfast House then a wooden structure was burned, and the same day the old Lyman hotel building farther north was also burned. Jan. 2, 1877, the Willis and Saunders block, a row of wood structures opposite the present brick blocks. was burned. In this were the stores of A. R. Hopper, Saunders Bros. and B. T. Willis & Bros., offices, etc. In December, 1887, a fire consumed the Davis block, including three stores, and the Belfast bank, was injured. In February, 1893, Neely's grist- mill was burned. Another fire destroyed the block on the east side of Main St., for some years the store of A. J. Lewis. The effect of these fires has been the construction of a better class of buildings, and the exercise of more care in making them safe.

Belfast Fire Department .- This was incorporated Feb. 22, 1887, with these trustees: A. R. Hopper, R. Neely, O. Whipple, F. H. Smith, James Lang. The first officers were: Reuben Neely, president; I. S. Hunt, secretary; W. B. Manley, treasurer. Under act of 1895, these fire commissioners were elected, J. D. Shuart, J. V. Jennings, Eaton Kinney. The department has a Rumsey hand engine, 1,000 feet of hose, a good engine-house with rooms overhead for meetings. Six cisterns located in different parts of the village, are depended upon to furnish the water supply. The officers are: T. B. Miner, chief; George Thornton, assistant chief; Chas. Rich and E. J. Sul- livan, foremen; H. H. Marsh, treasurer. The equipment for fighting fire is good. the protection afforded is such as to materially reduce the rates of in- surance.

The Genesee Valley Seminary was established in 1857. The trustees named in the charter, were: William Windsor, Robert Renwick, John Huff, Sidney Stowe, Wilson Collins, Frederick Sheeley, John W. Eldridge, William R. Smith and Calvin T. Chamberlain. At a meeting of the trustees held at Belfast, Feb. 2, 1857, Robert Renwick was made president, William Wind- sor, secretary, and Richard Jacobs, treasurer. Robert Renwick, Ozro Thomas, W. R. Smith, and John W. Eldridge were elected building com- mittee. Later John W. Eldridge was awarded the contract to build a suita- ble seminary for $5,300. Rapid progress was made and Sept. 19, 1857, Prof. S. R. Thorp was elected principal of the seminary, and S. R. Thorp, John W. Eldridge and Dr. C. M. Crandall were made a committee on dedication. It was dedicated in the latter part of October, 1857, Rev. Thomas K. Beecher delivering the address. Nov. 14, 1857, these teachers were elected to assist Prof. Thorp, and with him constitute the first faculty: Prof. F. D. Tooker, mathematics and natural sciences; Miss Lucia Clement, preceptress; Dr. C. M. Crandall, lecturer on anatomy, physiology and hygiene; Mrs. Crandall, painting; Miss Mary J. Natting, French and music. The school was soon opened with about 180 students, and was under the control of the Methodist Episcopal church until Aug. 11. 1860, when its direction was passed to the Baptists with the condition that the selection of principal should be subject to the approval of the trustees. In November, 1860, Prof. Joel Hendrick was elected principal. His assistants were Prof. Lyman B. Tefft and Misses

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Susan Stowe and Lucinda Ford. After seven years of faithful labor Prof. Hendrick was succeeded by Prof. Fradenburgh who remained until June, 1868. Prof. R. A. Waterbury succeeded him Sept. 2, 1868, and was succeeded Sept. 13, 1873, by Prof. Melville E. Crowell.

May 14, 1874, the trustees voted "to turn over the Genesee Valley Seminary, and all the lands and other property thereunto belonging, to school district No. 1, in Belfast, for the purpose of making a Union Graded School, with an academic department and vacate their office as such trus- tees, when the district shall have accepted this proposition, and shall have elected a board of education to take charge of said union school." The proposition was accepted, and the first board of education consisted of Eaton Kinney, John Rockwell, W. W. Byrns, A. R. Hopper and Dr. C. W. Saunders. Dr. Saunders was made president, and Mr. Byrns secretary. Under the new order Prof. M. E. Crowell was the first principal. The present teachers are F. W. Gray principal, Mrs. Silver class-teacher, Miss Nelson grammar, Miss A. Mountain intermediate, Miss Bertha Carter primary. The attend- ance has increased from 258 in 1890-1, to 297 in 1894-5, and the Belfast Sem- inary and Union School has done its full share in elevating the standard of education, morality and intelligence of the community, and for the material prosperity of the town.

Baptist Church .- Without doubt, Rev. Ephraim Sanford conducted the first religious services. In French's Gazetteer, it is stated that it was in 1806, and that he formed the first church in 1807-8. No record proof of the statement is to be found. That the first services were held in 1806 may be true, but the writer would as soon think it was earlier, for the habit of Rev. Mr. Sanford was to preach whenever opportunity occurred, and the few settlers could be convened. Some of them came from long distances, fol- lowing the primitive wood paths and the lines of blazed trees. The first meeting held to establish a church, of which record has been kept, was at the house of Isaiah Smith, April 6, 1811. Mr. Smith was chosen moderator, and Ezra Sanford clerk. The record does not show any business transacted. On April 27 and May 14, 1811, meetings were held but no action was taken till June 1st when Thaddeus Bennett, Elizabeth Bennett, Isaiah Smith, Lila Smith, Nathaniel Reynolds, Margaret Reynolds, Ezra Sanford, Samuel Very, Ziba Huff, Zephaniah Huff, Jonathan Huff and Jacob Rickey, to use their own words, "joined together in covenant relations." August 24th this com- pany adopted articles of faith and covenant. In December, 1811, it was voted "to send to the Wayne and Bristol churches (Steuben and Ontario counties), calling a council in order to regularly organize a Baptist church on the first Thursday in February, 1812." No record of this meeting for organization has been preserved, but in April, 1812, " trustees were chosen who were to act also as deacons," but no names are mentioned. Sept. 11, 1812, the first delegates were elected to attend the Steuben Association. In July, 1813, the church voted to hold their covenant meetings "on the last Saturday in each month " and the practice has ever since been recognized.

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HISTORY OF ALLEGANY COUNTY. N. Y.

In August, 1813, the church felt itself strong enough to send out four missionaries, S. Very, J. Rickey, T. Bennett, and E. Sanford, to hold meet- ings in Nunda, Ischua and Van Campen's Creek. Sept. 29, 1827, "The church left the Steuben Association, to join the Holland Purchase Associa- tion," and nearly seven years elapse before the next entry, June 28, 1834, which imparts the intelligence that it was then that the first funds for home and foreign missions were raised. In 1835 the church "resolved that we cannot co-operate with any society bound by a constitution, to support slave- holding ministers in the slave states, believing that it is wrong to support a sin abroad that we would not at home." In 1838 Lewis H. and Joseph T. Ford were chosen deacons, which office each held most of the time for forty years, or until released by death. In 1842 62 members were added by bap- tism, during the labors of Rev. J. E. Eldridge as pastor. The need of a meetinghouse was sorely felt, for up to this time services had been held in dwellings, schoolhouses and barns. Putting forth great efforts the society constructed a building which was finished and dedicated in 1844. For the next 21 years the church observed the usual routine of services, but all the time making steady growth, and in 1865 50 members were added. In 1874 a council was called to ordain as pastor Rev. Eugene Hillman, on Nov. 18th. Sept. 25, 1889, Pastor C. L. Bonham was ordained

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A Centennial Memorial History of Allegany county, New York, Part 91

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew Publication date: 1896 Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co. Number of Pages: 1102

Author: Minard, John Stearns, 1834-1920; Merrill, Georgia Drew
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: Alfred, N.Y., W. A. Fergusson & co.
Number of Pages: 1102