USA > New York > Livingston County > A history of Livingston County, New York: > Part 37
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The 8th N. Y. Cavalry numbered among its mem- bers many brave and gallant troopers from the differ- ent towns in this county, and in August, 1862, James McNair received a commission as Captain and re- cruited a large number of men in Groveland and the towns adjoining, who formed the nucleus of Company L of this regiment. Almost its first service won for the regiment a fame which to the close of the war was never diminished. When General Miles surrendered Harper's Ferry, this regiment not only cut its way out, but passing entirely through Lee's army, captured Longstreet's wagon train, and was safe inside the Union lines when the morning dawned. The regi- ment took part in the following engagements, which are engraved on a shield attached to its regimental flag-staff: Winchester, Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Snicker's Gap, Phillimont, Union, Upperville, Bar- ber's Cross Roads, Amisville No. 1, Amisville No. 2, Freeman's Ford, Beverly Ford, Middleburg, Gettys- burg, Williamsport, Boonsboro No. 1, Boonsboro No. 2, Funkstown, Falling Waters, Chester Gap, Brandy Plains No. 1, Brandy Plains No. 2, Culpepper, Rac-
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
coon Ford, Jack's Shop, Germania Ford, Stevens- burgh, Brandy Plains No. 3, Oak Hill, Bealton Sta- tion, Muddy Run, Locust Grove, Barnett's Ford, Craig's Church, Yellow Tavern, Richmond Defenses, Meadow Bridge, Hawes' Shop, White Oak Swamp, Malvern Hill 2d, Nottaway C. H., Roanoke Station, Stony Creek, Winchester 2d, Summit Point, Kearney- ville, Opequan, Front Royal, Milford, Fisherville, Tour's Brook, Cedar Creek, Middle Road, Lacey Springs, Waynesboro, Five Forks, Namazine Church, Sailor's Creek, Appomattox, Lee's Surrender. Six- teen officers were killed under the flag of this regi- ment, of whom two were from this county, Major James McNair, killed at Nottaway C. H., June 23d, 1864, and Captain H. C. Cutler, killed at Beverly Ford, June 9th, 1863. Captain Andrew Kuder and 1st Lieutenant Charles A. Goheen returned with the regi- ment, and were mustered out at the close of the war.
In the summer of 1861, while General Wadsworth was on a flying visit to Geneseo he stated to promi- nent gentlemen that the war was to be a long one, and . he was extremely anxious that Livingston should do her whole duty. To accomplish this he proposed that a regiment should be raised in the county, and asked Col. John Rorbach to allow him to present the latter's name to the Governor for a commission to recruit such a regiment. After some hesitation Col. Rorbach con- sented, and in a short time he received a commission to recruit and organize a regiment for the service. The experiment seemed a hazardous one, inasmuch as the county had already furnished recruits enough at least for a regiment, but earnest men had hold of the meas- ure, and it was bound to succeed. It was also pro- posed to call the new regiment the "Wadsworth Guards," in honor of the brave officer who had first proposed its organization, and who had already re-
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
flected such honor on his native county by his daring bravery and self-sacrificing patriotism.
Colonel Rorbach found, after some weeks' hard work, that it would be impossible to organize a regi- ment without having a local depot to which he could send his recruits as fast as they were secured. He asked the State government, therefore, to establish a military depot at Geneseo, and an order to this effect was issued. The " old camp ground " at the head of North street having been selected as the site of the military depot, barracks were immediately con- structed, and the work of recruiting was again entered upon with new vigor. The men, as fast as they were enlisted, were sent to this depot, which was called Camp Union. The energetic commander of the post, seconded by his able assistants, pushed the work of enlisting men so vigorously that the minimum number was secured, and the regiment mustered into the ser- vice Jan. 24th, 1862. In the following month the Wadsworth Guards, as they were called, received marching orders, on the 26th of February, 1862, they departed for the seat of war. At Albany three companies were added to the regiment from Troy, to make its complement of ten, and an organiza- tion was perfected as the 104th Regiment, N. Y. V. I., with the following officers :
Colonel-John Rorbach. Lieutenant Colonel-R. Wells Kenyon. Major-Lewis C. Skinner. Adjutant-Fred. T. Vance. Quarter Master-Henry V. Colt.
Surgeon-Enos G. Chase. Assistant Surgeon-Douglas S. Landon. Chaplain-Daniel Russell.
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
Co. A B 0 D E F
CAPTAINS. Henry G. Tuthill.
Luhman H. Day.
Stephen L. Wing. Zopher Simpson.
Hugh O. Lattimore. Gilbert G. Pray.
H I
Jas. A. Gault. Jas. H. Selleck.
John Kelly.
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John C. Thompson.
' IST LIEUTENANTS. Albert S. Haver. Henry A. Wiley. Henry Runyan. Jacob H. Stull. William T. Lozier. Luman F. Dow. John P. Rudd. E. B. Wheeler. William R. Cross. John H. Miller.
2D LIEUTENANTS. Reuben R. Weed. Homer Stull.
Nelson J. Wing.
George H. Starr. Wm. L. Trembly. Wm. J. Hemstreet.
John R. Strang. Thos. Johnston.
Chas. W. Fisher. William C. Wilson
The first seven companies named were recruited principally in this county ; the others were those added at Albany. The regiment was soon engaged in active service, and under the successive commands of Colonels Rorbach, Lewis C. Skinner, Gilbert G. Pray and John R. Strang, it participated in some of the hardest fought battles of the war. It seemed to be its fate, from the start, to be in the thickest of every fight and to suffer terrible losses. At the battle of the sec- ond Bull Run the regiment lost 94 officers and enlist- ed men ; at Antietam 76; at Fredericksburgh 53; at Gettysburg 219; and had only 315 men on its rolls Jan. 1st, 1864, out of 917 originally mustered into the service. It also participated in the battles of Cedar Mountain, Rappahannock Station, Thorough- fare Gap, South Mountain, Chancellorsville, Mine Run, The Wilderness, Chantilly, North Anna, Spottsylva- nia, Bethesda Church, Weldon Railroad and Peters- burgh. In July, 1862, F. DeW. Ward, D. D., of Geneseo, joined the regiment as Chaplain, and served in this capacity until November 25th, 1863, a period of one and one-fourth years. The regiment was mus- tered out in 1865, having served its term of three years, won a proud record for bravery and faithful- ness to duty, and nobly asserted its right to bear the name of that brave patriot, James S. Wadsworth.
In the summer of 1862, a call having been made for 300,000 more troops, the State government made each Senatorial district a regimental district, with a mili-
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
tary camp in each one, at some designated point. The counties of Livingston, Wyoming and Alle- gany, composing the 30th district, were thus made a regimental district, with the camp at Geneseo. On the meeting of the Senatorial committee, however, a resolution was adopted requesting the Governor to change the location of the camp to Portage. This was accordingly done, and persons having been authorized to enlist recruits, the work of filling the district's quota commenced. So rapidly did this proceed that recruits came flocking into the Portage camp before the barracks were erected for their accommodation, and early in August a sufficient number of men had enrolled themselves in the three counties, to form a full regiment, and the 130th Regiment, N. Y. V. I., was organized and mustered into service Sept. 3d, 1862. It was composed of four companies from Liv- ingston, three from Wyoming and three from Alle- gany. The organization was completed by the elec- tion of the following officers :
Colonel- William S. Fullerton.
Lieutenant-Colonel-Thomas J. Thorp.
Major-Rufus Scott.
Adjutant-George R. Cowee.
Quarter-Master-A. B. Lawrence.
Surgeon-B. T. Kneeland.
Co.
CAPTAINS.
IST LIEUTENANTS. J. P. Robinson.
C. L. Daily.
B
Howard M. Smith.
S. Herbert Lancey.
Saul C. Culbertson.
C
O. R. Cook.
S. V. Waldo.
D
Leonard Wilkins.
Jared M. Bills.
E
S. F. Randolph. S. A. Farman.
Elias Harton, Jr.
F
A. K. Thorp.
G
G. Wiley Wells.
H
I
R. A. Britton.
F. S. Adams.
K
Andrew J. Leach.
Jas. O. Slayton.
2D LIEUTENANTS.
A
J. E. Bills.
R. P. Taylor. Jacob W. Knapp. Wheeler Hakes. Jeremiah Hatch. Alanson B. Cornell. Joel Wakeman. James Lemen.
C. L. Brundage. Ira Sayles.
E. S. Osgood.
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Edmund Hartman.
The regiment was ordered to Fortress Monroe, and formed a part of the Seventh Army Corps. It was changed to the 19th N. Y. Cavalry, Aug. 11th, 1863,
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
and from the 10th of September, 1863, was known as the First New York Dragoons. The regiment was commanded successively by Colonels Fullerton," Alfred Gibbs and Thomas J. Thorp, and participated in the battles of Deserted House, Blackwater, Siege of Suffolk, Manassas Plains, Culpepper, Todd's Tav- ern, Yellow Tavern, Meadow Bridge, Old Church, Hawe's Shop, Coal Harbor, Darbytown, Kearneyville, Trevillian Station, Newtown, Cedar Creek, Smithfield, and several other engagements. It was mustered out - in 1865, having done service for the Union that has won for its members the highest honor, and the endur- ing gratitude of the people.
Just here let it be recorded that Livingston was the first county to furnish its quota for this regiment, having responded with alacrity and cheerfulness to the call for help which came from an imperilled gov- ernment, and it was said on this occasion with just pride that "the patriotic fervor of her sons continues unabated, and their response to the call for men is still answered by hundreds who unreluctantly sacri- fice the comfort, happiness and allurements of home, for the stern experience of the camp." When the 130th Regiment was organized, two or three hundred more men had been enlisted than were required to fill it to the maximum number. The Senatorial commit- tee immediately authorized Colonel James Wood, Jr., of Geneseo, to recruit and organize another regiment, and enlistments continued with unabated zeal. War meetings were held throughout the county, patriotic citizens made substantial additions to the national and State bounties, and towns vied with each other in friendly rivalry, in filling their quotas. It was a time of intense feeling ; of earnest devoted patriotism. Col-
* Resigned before the regiment left the State.
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
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onel Wood's authority was granted in August. In one month all the men for the regiment were in camp at Portage, and there was a surplus of nearly four hun- dred recruits in the district. The regiment was mus- tered into the service September 26th, 1862, as the 136th Regiment, N. Y. V. I., with the following officers :
Colonel-James Wood, Jr.
Lieutenant Colonel-Lester B. Faulkner.
Major-David C. Hartshorn.
Adjutant-Campbell H. Young.
Quarter-Master-John T. Wright.
Surgeon-B. L. Hovey.
1st Asst. Surgeon-E. Amsden.
2d Assistant Surgeon-C. F. Warner.
Quarter-Master Sergeant-Richard W. Barney.
Commissary Sergeant-J. S. Galentine.
Co. CAPTAINS.
A. T. Cole.
A B
Edward H. Pratt.
A. A. Hoyt.
D
A. Harrington.
F H. B. Jenke.
G
J. H. Burgess. Sidney Ward.
H E. H. Jeffres.
I H. L. Arnold.
K
A. F. Davis.
IST LIEUTENANTS M. M. Loyden. John J. Bailey. Wells Hendershott. Myron E. Bartlette. Jas. G. Cameron. John Galbraith. Orange Sackett, Jr. Edward Madden. Frank Collins.
Geo. H. Eldredge.
2D LIEUTENANTS. John W. Webster. Nicholas V. Mundy.
Emerson J. Hoyt. Russell G. Dudley.
- Seth P. Buell. Chas. H. Wisner. Kidder M. Scott. Anson B. Hall.
Geo. M. Reed. Geo. Y. Bose.
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The regiment was composed of five companies from Livingston, three from Wyoming, and two from Alle- gany. It left Camp Williams (Portage) October 2d, 1862, and proceeding directly to Washington, was soon after seeing actual service in the field. It was assigned to the Eleventh Corps under General Sigel, where it remained until April 14th, 1864, when it be- came a part of the 3d Brigade, 3d Division, Twentieth Corpa The regiment was successively under the command of Colonels Wood,* Lieutenant-Colonel
* Promoted to the rank of Brigadier General in 1864, and to the rank of Major General in 1865.
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
L. B. Faulkner and Lieutenant-Colonel H. L. Arnold, and took an important part in the battles of Chancel- lorsville, Gettysburg, Lookout Mountain, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Knoxville, Buzzard's Roost Gap, Resaca, Cassville, Dallas, Gilgal Church, Kulp's Farm, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek, Turner's Ferry, Atlanta, Milledgeville, Savannah, Charleston, Averysburgh, Bentonville, Goldsboro and Raleigh. The Regiment was mustered out June 13th, 1865, hav- ing won the commendation of commanders, an endur- ing fame, and the deepest gratitude of the people. Throughout the struggle its members had been brave, unflinching soldiers, and in every battle had entered the thickest of the fight with a gallant bravery that earned them great distinction.
Besides those in these organizations, many recruits were furnished by the county for other regiments. Among these were the 14th Heavy Artillery, the 24th Artillery (of which Lee's Battery was a part) Harris' Cavalry, and regiments from other States. Others, again, entered the Navy, and won enviable records there. The total number who entered the Union ser- vice in other regiments other than those raised in the county is unknown, but it was certainly several hun- dred.
Such, in brief is the war record of Livingston, and imperfect and incomplete as it is, it yet reveals a spirit of the truest loyalty in the people of the county, and presents an example of labor and sacrifice, of bravery and patriotism, which the nation well may emulate. The people gave freely of men and money, and in the darkest hours of the struggle they never faltered. Even when their loved sons fell like forest leaves before the rude blast, they did not waver, but closing up the fearful breach with others as dearly beloved, they watched with aching but brave hearts, for the final
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON. COUNTY.
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issue of the strife. And when it came, they deemed the victory a glorious one, though it had cost thou- sands of lives and millions of treasure ; though there was scarcely a home that was not mourning the loss of father, brother or lover, and tears and sorrow attested the horrible havoc of war.
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TOWN SKETCHES.
AVON.
Area, 24,891 acres ; population in 1875, 3,325 ; Boundaries : North by Monroe county ; east by Lima ; south by Livonia and Geneseo ; west by the Genesee river, which separates it from York and Caledonia.
In area and productive wealth Avon ranks among the leading towns of the county. It was formed from the original District of Geneseo in January, 1789, and embraced townships ten and eleven of the seventh range, under the name of Hartford. This designation was derived from the city of the same name in Con- necticut, and was suggested by Dr. Timothy Hosmer, one of the first proprietors of the township and a native of that State. In 1808 its name was changed to Avon, from a town in Connecticut in the vicinity of the city of Hartford. In 1818 the town of Rush was set off from Avon.
About one thousand acres of the territory of the town consist of river flats ; the remainder is upland, comprising a series of terraced hills, generally run- ning in the direction of the river, with intervals of broad sweeps of undulating ground. Deming hill, in the southern part of the town, rises to the height of about 150 feet above the alluvial meadows skirting the
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
river. The soil of the flats is unsurpassed in fertility ; that of the uplands is a substratum of sand intermixed with gravel, and in some parts with clay, and is especially adapted to the growth of wheat. The farms are under a high state of cultivation, and are princi- pally owned by their occupants. The forests have generally been cut away, but selected shade trees in profusion have been spared by the axe, adding great beauty both to the farming lands and the several hamlets.
The Genesee river flows along the whole western border of the town ; and the outlet of Conesus lake traverses its south-western corner. The Little Conesus, a considerable stream which drains a large swamp in the town of Lima, crosses the southerly portion of the town and empties into Conesus outlet below Little- ville.
The first permanent settlement in the town was made by Gilbert R. Berry in the spring of 1789. He located less than a rifle-shot south of the old red bridge, where he opened a log tavern. In that day there were few white men within a day's ride. Berry had brought together the material for his rude log house, when a lucky circumstance enabled him to raise it without calling the Indians to his assistance. The late Judge Hopkins of Niagara county happened to be returning from a hunting expedition to Canada with several companions, and stopped at Canawaugus for a few hours' rest. Here they found the pioneer just as he was about sending out for his dusky neigh- bors. They saw Berry's strait and fell to and aided in lifting the remaining heavy logs to their places, thus securing him a domicil. Berry was of Irish ex- traction. He came hither from Albany, where he had been bred to mercantile pursuits. "His wife," says Colonel Hosmer, "was a grand-daughter of the Hen-
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
drick Wemple, historically known as the interpreter of General Herkimer in his interview with Brant at Unadilla previous to the mournful meeting at Oris- kany. Berry resided for a time at Geneva, but push- ing westward to near Canawaugus, he not only opened a tavern and store there, but established trading-posts at Big Tree, and at the mouth of the river, carrying on a brisk business with trappers and hunters ; and his pack-horses, laden with furs, were often seen threading the main trail to and from Albany. He acted as General Chapin's local Indian agent, corres- ponding with his principal and with the post at Buf- falo, not by telegraph, but by means of old Sharp Shins, the Indian Runner. At his death, which oc- curred in 1797, while he was yet a young man, his widow assumed charge of the tavern, which became the favorite stopping-place of land agents, surveyors, explorers, Scotch emigrants and pioneer settlers." The rope ferry across the river at Canawaugus, early established by her husband, also fell under her charge. The more notable Indians were partial to "Widow Berry's tavern," and Te-neh'-anah (which Seneca name expresses her reluctance to sell spirits to the Indians in the absence of her husband) was greatly esteemed by them. Turner says : "Widely known in early days was the comfortable resting-place that she provided for man and beast ; and in her primitive tavern some of the best wives and mothers of the Genesee country were reared."
In 1790 Dr. Timothy Hosmer and Major Isaiah Thompson, of Farmington, Connecticut, visited the Genesee country and purchased the township on behalf of five Connecticut men, of whom they were two. "The price paid," says Colonel Hosmer, "was eighteen pence, New England currency, per acre, then'a high rate in consequence of the open flats.
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
Of the five grantees only Major Thompson and Dr. Hosmer became residents here. The latter had been surgeon of the Sixth Connecticut regiment and served through the war of the Revolution. His diploma of membership in the Society of the Cincinnati, signed by Washington as its President, and General Knox as Secretary, is an eloquent attestation of his long term of service."* "Partly from love of adventure, partly to escape professional practice requiring constant toil, he emigrated from his pleasant New England home to this realm of unbounded forest. He passed the sum- mer of 1790 in exploring the country, returned home in the fall, and in the following year, accompanied by his sons Frederick and Algernon Sydney, began the work of settlement by erecting a log dwelling near the present residence of his nephew, James Hosmer. In 1792 his family joined him, and being the only phy- sician within call of the datched settlements, he re- lieved the sick, prompted by a spirit of benevolence rather than professional gain. His good humor and encouraging words cheered the desponding settlers wrestling with disease and the fearful privations of the wilderness. The red man appreciated his skill and named him At-ta-gus, or "healer of diseases."
"When Ontario county was organized Dr. Hosmer became one of its judges and succeeded Oliver Phelps as First Judge. The latter office he held until sixty years of age, the constitutional limitation. He pos- sessed a fine literary taste, and his well-selected libra- ry of medical and miscellaneous works was an anom- aly in the backwoods. His correspondence reveals
* "His dress-sword, a sharp blade, inclosed in a silver-mounted black leathern sheath, is now in possession of a grandson, at Meadville, Pa. On Dr. Hosmer devolved the duty of laying finger on Andre's pulse after the execution of that noted British spy, and reporting him dead to the officers of the Court martial."
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
varied reading and mental culture. He had acquired high professional reputation in the army, and at one time was transferred from the Connecticut line to the staff of the Commander-in-chief.
"He was a gentleman of the old school, scrupulous- ly clean and neat in his attire, with a portly frame and erect military carriage. His hair was ribbon- tied, and carefully powdered by his black body-ser- vant 'Boston.' His breeches of soft and nicely dressed deerskin, were fastened at the knees by silver buckles. He was courtly in his manners to all, but especially marked for chivalric courtesy to women. When passing a lady acquaintance in the street, he would bow with uncovered head though rain were falling, and the poorest, the most unfortunate of the sex ever found in him a ready champion and defender. He died in November, 1815, aged 70 years." He sleeps in the village cemetery, where a plain and sub- stantial headstone marks the spot.
"Major Thompson was a cavalry officer of merit during the Revolutionary struggle. His intrepid conduct in battle commanded the respect of his supe- riors." "He died the first season after his arrival in the Genesee country, of bilious fever. His grave, with its enclosure of pickets, arrested the attention of passers-by in my boyhood, situated not far from two oaks, survivors of forests, that grace the grounds of 'Rose Lawn,' a bow-shot from the railroad depot." No trace now remains, however, of the resting place of this veteran of the first great national struggle.
"The next settler of consequence in Avon was Cap- tain John Ganson, an officer of Sullivan's expedition. Under his supervision a 'tub-mill' was built on the beautiful stream that, following its natural channel, emptied into the river on the Markham farm, and is
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
now lost in the reedy embrace of Horse-Shoe pond .* To this tub-mill no doubt was attached a hand seive of splinters being substituted therefor. It was a busy place in the olden time, and grists to be ground were brought through heavily timbered woods from Bough- ton's hill and other sequestered clearings many a mile distant. The stones of this primitive mill were taken from native quarries near by, and ingeniously fash- ioned on the spot. No trace of this curious structure now remains. "
"A second growth of forest conceales the old track that led to its mossy door-way, and with diminished volume flows on the singing waters of a stream which turned this first mill that made flour in the valley of the Genesee." "The title of Captain Ganson proving defective to the fine tract here selected by him, he purchased the famous tavern stand so long associ- ated with his name near Le Roy."
Another name occurring frequently in early remi- niscences of Avon is that of Colonel William Mark- ham. Colonel Hosmer says of him: He was one of old Ontario's first representatives in the Assembly. He came into the Genesee country with Captain John Smith of Hermitage, and explored the wilderness in 1788, accompanied by chain-bearers and surveyors ; surveyed the first line run from Canandaigua to the Genesee river ; and years afterward was one of the commissioners designated to locate the county seat. I knew him in my tender years, and no portrait in memory's hall is painted in more vivid lines than his patriarchial face and silvery hair. Hospitable to strangers, kind to the poor, public spirited as a citi-
* The tub-mill stood on a stream that crosses the road south of the Sack- ett place, on the Rochester road, and distant from the highway about 25 rods in an easterly direction
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HISTORY OF LIVINGSTON COUNTY.
zen, he is ever mentioned in terms of commendation by surviving pioneers."
"A mile or more south of this old worthy's home- stead was the residence of Jehiel Kelsey,-an honest man. A son of the Green Mountain State, and trained in a rugged school, he was a leading spirit in the march of improvement."
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