USA > New York > Broome County > Gazetteer and business directory of Broome and Tioga Counties, N. Y. for 1872-3 > Part 9
USA > New York > Tioga County > Gazetteer and business directory of Broome and Tioga Counties, N. Y. for 1872-3 > Part 9
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60
60
TWENTY YEAR CALENDAR.
Almanac or Calendar for 20 Years.
CB
A
G
F
ED
C
B
A
GF
E
1864
1865
1866
1867
1868
1869
1870
1871
1872
1873
D
C
BA
G
F
E
D C
F
E
D
1874
1875
1876
1877
1878
1879
1880
1881
1882
1883
1
8 15/22 29
Sun.
Sat.
Frid'y.
Thurs.
Wed.
Tues.
Mon.
2
9
16 23 30
Mon.
Sun.
Sat:
Friď'y.
Thurs.
Wed.
Tues.
3 10 17
24 31
Tues.
Mon.
Sun.
Sat.
Frid'y.
Thurs.
Wed.
4 11 18 25
..
Wed.
Tues.
Mon.
Sun.
Sat.
Friď'y.
Thurs.
5 12
19|26
Thurs.
Wed.
Tues.
Mon.
Sun.
Sat.
Friď'y.
6/13
20 27
Frid'y.
Thurs.
Wed.
Tues.
Mon.
Sun.
Sat.
7 14 21 28 .
Sat.
Frid'y.
Thurs.
Wed.
Tues.
Mon.
Sun.
Jan. and Oct.
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
May.
B
C
D
E
F
G
A
August.
C
D
E
F
G
A
B
Feb., Mar., Nov.
D
E
F
G
A
B
C
June. 1
E
F
G
A
B
C
D
Sept. & Dec.
F
G
A
B
C
D
E
April & July.
G
A
B
C
D
E
F .
EXPLANATION .- Find the Year and observe the Letter above it; then look for the Month, and in a line with it find the Letter of the Year; above the Letter find the Day ; and the figures on the left, in the same line, are the days of the same name in the month.
Leap Years have two letters ; the first is used till the end of February, the second during the remainder of the year.
61
BROOME COUNTY.
BROOME COUNTY.
BROOME COUNTY was formed from Tioga, March 28, 1806, and named in honor of John Broome of New York, who was then Lieut. Gov. of the State, and who acknowledged the compliment by presenting the County with a handsomely executed silver seal, appropriately designed by himself, em- blematical of the name. Berkshire and Owego were annexed to Tioga County, March 21, 1822. It is situated near the center of the south border of the State, centrally distant 110 miles from Albany, and contains 706 square miles. Its surface is greatly diversified, consisting of rolling and hilly uplands, broad river intervales and the narrow valleys of small streams. The hills extend from the Pennsylvania line northerly through the County. They are divided into three general ranges by the valleys of the Susquehanna and Chenango rivers. The first range, lying east of the Susquehanna, forms the east border of the County. Its highest summits are 400 to 700 feet above the Delaware, and 1,400 to 1,700 feet above tide. The declivities of the hills are usually steep, and the summits spread out into a broad and hilly upland. This ridge is divided by the deep ravines of a large number of small streams, and in several places it rises into peaks. The second ridge lies in the great bend of the Susquehanna, and is bounded by the valleys of that river and the Chenango. The highest summits are 300 to 500 feet above the Susquehanna, and 1,200 to 1,400 feet above tide. The hills are generally bounded by gradual slopes, and the summits are broad, rolling uplands. The southern portion of this ridge is high above the valleys ; but towards the north the hilly character subsides into that of a fine rolling region. The third ridge lies west of the Chenango and Susquehanna rivers. Its summits are a little less in elevation than those of the second ridge ; and the general characteristics of the two re- gions are similar. The wide valley of the Susquehanna divides it into two distinct parts, the southern of which is more hilly than the northern. The hills in the central and western parts
62
¡ BROOME COUNTY.
of the County are rounded and arable to their summits. The narrow valleys that break the continuity of the ridges are usually bordered by gradually sloping hillsides .*
The geological formation of the County is so exceedingly simple that it scarcely received notice in the report of the geo- logical and mineralogical surveying party of the State at an early day. It possesses little attraction to the scientist. The principal rock is graywacke, which is found lying in strata, in a nearly horizontal position, in all the hills and in the beds of the largest streams, and which forms the basis of the moun- tains. All the rocks are included in the Chemung and Cats- kill groups. The former-consisting of slaty sandstone and shales-occupies all the north and west portions of the County ; and the latter-consisting of gray and red sandstone, red shale and slate-crown all the summits in the south and east por- tions. Much of the more level portions of the surface is cov- ered to a considerable depth by depositions of sand, gravel, clay and hardpan. The rocks crop out only upon the declivities and summits of the hills.t The valleys throughout the County give evidence of having been excavated by the action of water, whose currents exerted a force immensely greater than any which seek the ocean through these channels at the present day. Their origin is referred by geologists to the drift period- a time when the gorgeous hillsides which now afford so many attractive homes, were inundated, and the productive vales pulverized and prepared by the mighty agencies then at work for the occupancy of man. Weak brine springs were early found, extending for several miles along the valley of Halfway Brook in the north part of the County. Sulphur and other mineral springs are found in various parts of the County. § Several excavations for coal have been made, but without suc-
* French's Historical and Statistical Gazetteer of New York.
+ "The pebbles found in and near the banks of the Susquehanna and Chenango rivers," says Wilkinson, in the Annals of Binghamton, "exhibit an astonishing variety : garnet, tourmaline, quartz, agate, hornstone, porphyry, granite, jasper, feldspar, hornblend, dark blue limestone, and conglomerates of almost every character are occasionally picked up and added to the cabinet of the naturalist."
# Several years since a boring was commenced in Lisle, on the site of an old deer lick, and was continued to a depth of more than 400 feet, without any practical result. More recent attempts have been made to develope the springs in the valley of Halfway Brook, in the town of Barker, a more detailed account of which will be given in the history of that town.
§ A sulphur spring has for some time been developed in the town of Nanticoke ; and one was recently discovered at Osborne Hollow, in the town of Colesville, while a shaft was being sunk to ascertain the depth of a vein of lead, traces of which are found there. A chalybeate spring was recently discovered in Binghamton, in the history of which town a more detailed account of it will be given.
.
63
BROOME COUNTY.
cess, as all the coal measures are above the highest strata of rocks found in the County. It is believed that the County has no valuable minerals, or at least none in sufficient quantity to render them profitable. Traces of copper and nickel are sup- posed to have been found at Osborne Hollow, but too little is known regarding it to warrant an assertion.
The principal streams are the Susquehanna, Delaware, Chen- ango, Tioughnioga and Otselic rivers ; Oquaga, Okkanum, Nanticoke, Little Snake, Big and Little Choconut, Castle; Yorkshire, Bradley, Tracy and Kattel creeks ; and Halfway, Page and North brooks .*
* The Susquehanna, having its rise in Otsego Lake, enters the County at Nineveh, ou the north line of Colesville, passing in a southerly direction through that town and Windsor, and leaves the County near the south- east corner of the latter town. After forming the great bend in Penn. it again enters the County on the south line, and runs in a north-westerly direction to the north of Conklin, forming the division between that town and Kirkwood, when it turns and flows nearly due west through the town and city of Binghamton, forming the dividing line between Union and Vestal, and leaves the County on the west border, on the line of these two towns. Passing nearly its entire length through mountainous country, whose prominences are ofttimes abrupt and irregular, it is sub- jected to frequent changes in its course ; and though this feature detracts from its value for navigable puposes, it adds vastly to the beauty of the country adjacent to its banks. In its upper course through the County its valley is contracted and rendered narrow by the high and steep declivities through which it meanders ; but further west it expands into broad inter- vales, skirted by gradually sloping hillsides. The usually placid surface of its clear, sparkling waters, the gently receding banks, dotted with the evidences of thrift and industry and mechanical ingenuity, and crowned with the alternating foliage of the forest and cultivated field, combine to present the picture of rare and quiet beauty for which it is so celebrated. This picture is varied at intervals by its more wild and rugged aspects, which develope a romantic beauty, at times approaching the sublime.
In Smith's history of Virginia, the name of this river is written Sas- que-sa-han-nough ; and by Mr. Morgan, in the Onondaga dialect, Ga-wa- no-wa-na-neh. This last name, says C. P. Avery, in a paper on The Sus- quehanna Valley, which appears in The Saint Nicholas of March, 1854, is pronounced as follows : "The first and third a pronounced as in the syllable ah ; the second one as in fate ; the fourth as in at."
The Delaware forms the southern portion of the east boundary of the County, commencing at the village of Deposit, and flowing in a south-east direction, through a deep, rocky valley, bordered by steep and often precipitous hills.
The Chenango enters the County on the north line, a little east and north of Chenango Forks, and pursuing a southerly direction, forming in its course the boundary between the towns of Chenango and Fenton, augments the Susquehanna, with which it unites near the southern limits of the city of Binghamton. In the north part, the valley of this river is hemmed in by high ridges ; but in the south it expands into a broad inter- vale. It has a uniform descent of five or six feet to the mile, and is free from rapids and sudden turns.
Upon Guy Johnson's map of 1771, this river is named Ol-si-nin-goo ; upon DeWitt's map of about the year 1791, Che-nen-go; and in Mr. Mor- gau's work, O-che-nang .- The Saint Nicholas, March, 1854, p. 412.
The "Indian name," says French, in his State Gazetteer, is " O-nan-no- gi-is-ka, Shagbark hickory," the second and fifth syllables in the name being accented.
64
BROOME COUNTY.
The soil along the river intervales is generally very fertile, consisting of deep, sandy and gravelly loam, mixed with disinte- grated slate and vegetable mold. The narrow valleys of the smaller streams are also fertile. The soil upon the north and west hills consists principally of gravelly loam intermixed with clay and disintegrated shale, and is well adapted to grazing. The declivities of the south and east hills are similar to the last in character, but their summits are generally covered with clay and hardpan. The large proportion of upland and the unevenness of the surface render this County best adapted to pasturage. While all branches of agriculture are pursued,
The Tioughnioga enters the County on the north, from Cortland county, and 'flows in a south-east direction, through the east part of Lisle, the south-west corner of Triangle and diagonally (from north-west to south- east,) across the town of Barker, until it unites with the Chenango at Chenango Forks. Its valley is very narrow, being bordered by high and steep hills.
"This name is formed from Te-ah-hah-hogue, the meeting of roads and waters at the same place."-Spafford's Gazettecr of New York, 1813, p. 176. The Otselic also enters the County from the north, and like the Tiough- nioga, into which it empties at Whitneys Point, flows through a narrow valley, through the west part of Triangle.
Oquaga Creek enters the County on the north line of Sanford and flows south through the center of that town to McClure Settlement, when it turns east and empties into the Delaware at Deposit.
By the early missionaries this creek was called Onuh-huh-quah-geh, and by the Iroquois, now in Canada, it is so pronounced. Upon an early map it is named O-nogh-qua-gy .- The Saint Nicholas, March, 1854, p. 413.
Okkanum Creek, which flows east through the north-west part of Wind- sor ; Nanticoke Creek, which flows south through Lisle, Nanticoke, Maine and Union, nearly to the south-west corner of the latter town ; Little Snake Creek, which rises in the south-east corner of Vestal and flows east through Binghamton and Conklin ; Big and Little Choconut * Creeks, the former of which rises in Penn. and flows north-west through the center of Vestal, and the latter, in the north-west part of Chenango and flows south through the south-east part of Maine, north-east part of Union, crossing in a south westerly direction the north-west corner of Binghamton, and westerly through the south-east corner of Union ; and Tracy Creek, which rises in Penn. and flows north through the west part of Vestal, are tribu- tary to the Susquehanna. Castle Creek, which rises in the south-west part of Barker and flows south through Chenango ; Kattel Creek, which rises ·in the north-east part of Chenango and flows south through that town ; and Page Brook, which enters the County near the center of the north line of Fenton and flows south-west, are tributary to the Chenango. Yorkshire Creek, which enters the County from Cortland County, in the north-west corner of Lisle, and flows south-east through that town ; and Halfway Brook, which also enters this County from Cortland, near the north-east corner of Triangle, and flows south through the east part of that town and to the north-east part of Barker, when it turns west, are tributary to the Tioughnioga. Bradley Creek, rises in the east part of Maine, through which town it flows, in a south-west direction, and emp- ties into Nanticoke Creek a little south of Union Center. North Brook rises in the west central part of Sanford and pursues a south-east course to Oquaga Creek, with which it unites a little south of McClure Settlement.
*Choconut, upon an early map, is written Chugh-nult. At the treaty of 1768, it is written the same way, with the exception of the letter I, which is omitted .- THE SAINT NICHOLAS March, 1854, p. 412.
65
BROOME COUNTY.
fruit culture, and stock and wool raising, in connection with the products of the dairy, form the leading interests .* Manu- facturing is carried on to a limited extent at Binghamton and other places. A stronger disposition to engage in this branch of industry is manifest.
The County Seat is located at Binghamton, at the junction of the Susquehanna and Chenango rivers. Previous to the erec- tion of this. County, Binghamton (then Chenango Point) was a half-shire of Tioga County, and courts were held a part of the time at the house of J. Whitney, until 1802, in which year a court houset was erected. The County (Tioga) was divided into two jury districts in 1801. In 1828 an act authorizing the erection of a new court house passed the Legislature, and $5,000 were raised in the County for that purpose.§ In 1857 the court house erected in 1828 was superseded by the present elegant structure, which is located at the head of Chenango street, fronting on Court street. | The County Clerk's office is a fire-proof building situated on court house square, adjacent to
* French's State Gazetteer.
+ The first court house was located on the north-west corner of Court and Chenango streets, fronting on Court street. In size it was about 36x24 feet, finished in a plain and hasty style, and contained two log jail rooms, a room for the residence of the jailor below, and the court room above. It was afterwards moved across the road, and stood a little down from the top of Court hill .- Annals of Binghamton, p. 182.
The first county officers were : Gen. John Patterson of Lisle, First Judge ; James Stoddard of Lisle, Amos Patterson of Union, Daniel Hud- son of Chenango and Geo. Harper and Mason Wattles of Windsor, As- sociate Judges, (the last named two were added in 1807, the year following that in which the County was erected,) Ashbel Wells of Binghamton, County Clerk; and Wm. Woodruff, Sheriff. The first court was held on the second Tuesday in May, 1806, and the first cause tried under the authori- ty of this County was between Amraphael Hotchkiss and Nathan Lane jr. -a civil suit. The first criminal cause was the people against Ebenezer Centre.
* Annals of Binghamton, p. 217. French says the first court house was superseded by the erection of a new one in 1826.
§ Ami Doubleday, Grover Buel and Geo. Wheeler were appointed com- missioners to superintend the construction of the work.
| This last building is ninety-six feet long and fifty-eight feet wide. The basement' is built of stone and the upper stories of brick. A Grecian portico supported by four Ionic pillars, each six feet in diameter and thirty-six feet high, adds beauty and finish to the front. Its fine dome is surmounted by a statue of justice, whose evenly balanced scales, it is hoped, are a true symbol of the equity meted out in its courts. It contains the usual county offices, the rooms for which are large, convenient and well ventilated. It was erected ata cost of $32,000.
66
BROOME COUNTY.
the court house .* The jail is on Hawley street a short distance from the court house.t
The County Poor House is located on a farm of 130 acres, about three miles north of Binghamton, on the west side of the Chenango River. Of its management, the committee appoint- ed to inspect it in 1871, say in their report, " that we found the house in excellent order ; and everything (apparently) done for the unfortunate inmates, that the liberality of the County and the kind and humane treatment of the keeper and his family could do to make them comfortable." The children receive in- struction at the Susquehanna Valley Home, in the city of Binghamton.Į
*This building is to be superseded by one now in process of erection, in the rear of the present one. The basement of the new building is being constructed of stone, and the upper story will be built of brick, with stone trimmings. Its front will be forty-six feet and two inches, its length sixty-eight feet and four inches, and its height above ground thirty-one feet and six inches. The upper story will consist of three commo- dious rooms, one of which will be used for the office of the clerk, one for that of the recording clerk, and the third as a depository for legal documents. The basement is designed to be used for storing docu- ments to which reference is seldom made. It will be a tasty, fire-proof structure, and furnished with modern improvements. The County appro- priated, Dec. 6, 1871, $16,000 for its erection.
The following is an abstract of the first deed recorded in the clerk's office of Broome County :
" THIS INDENTURE made the twenty fourth day of March, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and six, between James Harvey of the town of Union and county of Tioga, and Catharine, his wife, on the one part, and Lewis heeler of the town of Chenango and county aforesaid, of the other part, for and In consideration of the sum of Two Hundred Dollars, to them in hand paid, at or before the ensealing and delivery of the presents, by the said party of the second part, the receipt whereof Is hereby acknowledged, Have granted, bargained, sold, aliened, remised, released, conveyed, assnred, enfeoffed, and confirmed; and, by these presents do fully, freely and absolutely, gra it, bargain, sell, alien, remise, release, convey assure, enfeoff, and confirm unto containing one acre and one hundred square rods of land, more or less, situate
The third deed recorded is a conveyance from John and Peter Augustus Jay, esquires, of Bedford, Westchester county, to Garret Williamson, far- mer, of the same place, and bears date of Nov 29, 1805. It was recorded May 20, 1806. By it one hundred acres, a part of sixteen thousand acres granted by letters patent to Jay and Rutherford in 1787, is conveyed.
The portion of the jail containing the cells was built in 1858, at a cost of $15,000. In its construction due provisions were made for the safety, health and classification of prisoners .- French's Gazetteer, p. 179.
# From the report of the Proceedings of the Board of Supervisors in 1871 we glean the following interesting particulars relative to the poor of the County : The whole number of paupers relieved or supported during the year ending Dec. 1, 1871, was 1,602, all of whom were County paupers. The number of persons temporarily relieved was 1,375. The aggregate ex- pense of relieving and supporting paupers was $23,437.48. Of this sum the amount expended for temporary relief was $10,961.10. The actual value of the labor of the paupers maintained was $1,200; the estimated amount saved iu their support in consequence of their labor was $500; and the sum actually expended independent of the labor and earnings of the paupers, divided by the average number kept during the year, gives $1.54 per week, as the actual expense of keeping each person. The number of paupers re- ceived into the Poor House during the year was 160, two of whom were
67
BROOME COUNTY.
The principal works of internal improvement are the Che- nango Canal * ; the N. Y. & Erie R. R. t ; the Syracuse, Bing-
born there. The number who died during the year was five; the number bound out, two; and the number discharged, 141. The number remaining in the Poor House Dec. 1. 1871, was 79, of whom 43 were males and 36, fe- males. Of the males, three were of the age of sixteen years or under, and of the females, two. Of the seventy-nine inmates, twenty-two were for- eigners; ten, lunatics; thirteen, idiots; two, mutes ; and one was blind. The number of insane paupers, supported by the County, and remaining in Willard Asylum, at Ovid, Dec. 1, 1871, was eleven.
The following table shows the nativity of persons relieved or supported in the County during the year 1871 :
Country.
Male.[Female.| Total.
United States
397
422
819
Ireland.
344
237
581
England.
22
7
29
Scotland
4
3
7
Germany
75
56
131
France
9
4
13
Italy
8
8
Austria
2
2
Russia
6
11
Denmark
1
1
Totala.
860
742
1602
and the following, the causes of pauperism of persons relieved or support- ed in the County, during the same year :
Causes.
Male.| Female.|Total.
Intemperance, direct.
94
8
102
Children having intemperate parents.
20
40
60
Wives having intemperate husbands.
20
20
Debauchery ..
3
22
25
Debauchery of parents.
5
. 7
12
Vagrancy.
381
178
559
Idiocy
6
11
17
Lunacy
14
14
28
Blindness
12
4
16
Lameness
26
8
34
Sickness
66
48
114
Decrepitude
13
7
20
Old age.
24
26
50
Deaf and Dumb
3
3
Indigent and destitute.
65
125
190
Children having destitute parents sick
38
60
98
Females having sick husbands
27
27
Orphans
8
9
17
Bastards
2
6
8
Totals
860
742
1602
The first cost of the land and the erections on it was $3,000. The present estimated value of the whole establishment is $30,000.
* This Canal was authorized Feb. 23, 1833, in which year it was begun, and was finished in 1837, at a cost of $1,737,703. It connects the Erie Canal at Utica with the Susquehanna River at Binghamton. It is ninety-seven miles long, exclusive of thirteen and three-fourths miles of feeders, none of which are navigable. It is supplied by the Chenango River and six res- ervoirs, viz: Madison Brook, Woodmans Pond, Lelands Pond, Bradleys Brook, Hatchs Lake and Eaton Brook reservoirs, all of which are in the south part of Madison County. The Canal extends across to and up the valley of Oriskany Creek to the summit level and down the valley of Che- nango River. From Utica to the Summit it rises 706 feet, by 76 locks, and from thence it descends 303 feet. by 38 locks, to the Susquehanna, Of its
t See foot note on following page.
80
122
202
68
BROOME COUNTY.
hamton & N. Y. R. R .*; the Albany & Susquehanna R. R.t ;
114 locks, two are stone and the remainder composite. Upon the feeders are twelve road and eighteen farm bridges. It enters the County on the north line of Fenton and follows the course of the Chenango, on the east side.
Attempts have been made to effect the extension of this Canal to Athens, Penn., and large appropriations have been made by the State for that purpose and considerable work done, but it still remains a huge, un- finished ditch, with little prospect of its being perfected according to the original design. Efforts, which seem likely to prove successful, are being made to secure from the State the right of way along this route for the road-bed of a new railroad.
+ The N. Y. & Erie R. R. was authorized April 24, 1832, and the com- pany organized in July, 1833. The first preliminary survey was made in 1832, by DeWitt Clinton, Jr., by order of the Government. In 1834 the Governor appointed Benj. Wright to survey the route; who, assisted by James Seymour and Chas. Ellett, began the survey May 23d, and finished it the same year. In 1845 the Company was reorganized, and forty miles were put under contract. Various financial embarrassments, necessitat- ing State aid and increased private subscriptions, and involving the re- linquishment by the original stockholders of one-half the amount of stock held by them, confronted this gigantic enterprise and retarded its accom- plishment, so that its final completion to Dunkirk was not effected until 1851. The road was opened to Binghamton Dec. 28, 1848, and to Dunkirk May 14, 1851. It enters the County at Deposit and extends through the town of Sanford, across the south-east corner of Windsor, when it leaves the County, passing into Pennsylvania, and enters it again on the east bank of the Susquehanna, extending along the west line of Kirkwood, through the north part of the town and city of Binghamton, and the southern part of Union, leaving the County in the south-west corner of that town. Being the first road opened through the County, it contributed largely to the latter's growth and development.
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