USA > New York > Lewis County > Gazetteer and business directory of Lewis county, N.Y., for 1872-73 > Part 20
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Turin Masonic Lodge No. 184 was instituted Dec. 3, 1850, and numbers ninety members. Regular meetings are held on the Saturdays of the weeks in which the moon fulls and every second week thereafter, from April 1st to Oct. 1st, at 8 P. M., and the rest of the year, every Saturday, at 7 P. M.
DEWEYVILLE, in the south-east part, one and one-half miles east of Turin, was formerly a place of considerable importance by reason of Cadwell Dewey's woolen manufactory and grist mill, but owing to the recent failure of Mr. Dewey its business has diminished.
HOUSEVILLE (p. o.) is in the north part, four miles north of Turin. Charles C. House's cheese factory located here uses the milk of 800 cows.§ This place was named from its founder Eleazer House.
The first settlement is believed to have been made by Win- throp Shepard, who came from Westfield, Mass., in 1796, and located on the East road, about two miles from Turin village. HIe was a captain at Sackets Harbor during the war of 1812. He resided in the town until his death, Sopt. 24, 1854, at the age of S2 years, and raised a family of fourteen children, eleven boys and three girls. He came in company with his brother, Maj. Gideon Shepard, who settled in West Turin.
* The Turin Cheese Factory, of which Thomas R. Evans is proprietor, uses the milk of 60 cows and makes jekalbe. of cheese in a fair season. The dry house is esx80 feet, and making room, 25340 feet.
t Of this number all were white, 501, native and 48, foreign.
# The pre-ent officers are J. E. Stuber. President : F. McCullock, Foreman ; C. W. Teed. Ist Aest. ; J. B. Davis, 24 .1.st. ; E. D. Holden, Secretary ; and E. W. Everett, Treasurer.
§ The dry house connected with this factory is 108 by 30 feet, two stories, and the making room 30 feet square.
Among other manufactories in the town, removed from business centers. are Iloratio HI. Phillips' cheese factory, on the River road, which is capable of using the milk of 450 cowe; Welsh Hull Chene Factory, of which James Roberts is proprietor, which is 30 by 40 feet, and use the milk of ED cows; Orrin Carpenter's cheese factory, two miles west of Houseville, which is wri by 9 fret, two stories high, and uses the milk of 300 cows: The Williams' raw mal, one mile west of Turin, which is operated by water. uses a circular raw and is capable of buying about 5.000 feet of lumber per day ; and Mrs. Lucy Morgan's raw will and cheese box factory, located a little south-west of Hondeville, which we operated by water and gives employment to four persons in the manufacture of 10.000 to 12.000 boxes aunnally. The principal sawing done is for the manufacture of cheese boxer.
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Within three or four years he was joined by Edward Johnson, a native of Middletown, Conn., and a Revolutionary soldier, who previous to his settlement here located at Whitestown, (Oneida Co.,) and subsequently removed to Martinsburgh ; Zaccheus and Amos Higby, from Middletown, Conn. ; Elijah, Justus and Reuben Woolworth, from Meriden, Conn., the first of whom came in 1797, and in 1819 removed to Allegany county, the second came the same year and in September, 1809, opened the first inn, at Turin village, and the last came in 1800; Thomas Kilham, from Meriden, Conn., who died from the effects of an excessive opiate administered by a drunken physician, April 25, 1825; Levi and Stephen Hart, the latter from Wallingford, Conn. ; Giles Foster, whose several sons and daughters became heads of families and chiefly settled in the town; Major Zaccheus Bush and sons, from Meriden, Conn .; (Oliver, Walter, Edward, Henry, Enoch and Charles, the former of whom was a major in the war of 1812 and settled near the north line); John Salmon; John Wilkinson, who came from Meriden, Conn., in 1798, when there was no house between his and Lowville; Judah Barnes, who was soon after joined by his father, Amos Barnes, and who, in 1798, jointly erected the first saw mill in town ; Daniel Taylor, who settled on the Williston place, near Turin village; Consider Williston, who settled on the place subsequently owned by Winfield S. Whitaker; Jonathan Bush, (from Meriden, Conn.); Thomas Ragan, Levi Benedict, Beekman Sabin, (the last two from Pawling, Dutchess Co.,) ; George and Thomas Hoskins, the former of whom settled in 1801; Elias Sage and Benjamin Dowd. The foregoing settled on Township No. 4. Settle- ment upon No. 3, was begun in October, 1798, when Eleazer House, (a native of Glastonbury, Conn., and the first coroner appointed north of Utica,) Ezra Clapp,* (who was a native of
* The following anecdote we extract from Hough's History of Lewis County :-
" An incident occurred near Honseville in the summer of 1808, which is worth pre- serving. as belonging to the primitive days of settlement. The country abounded in wild animals, especially woives, bears and deer, and the former became so bold as to carry off on one occa-ion a sheep from the field of Mr. Clapp, by daylight. although Mrs. C. endeavored to frighten away the beast. Upon the date mentioned. Mr. Clapp found a large black wolf in a trap, balf a mile west of the house, and with his neighbors help, beat him with clubs untit he thought he was dead. He then took the wolf before him ou horseback. and brought him to his barn, but as he evinced signs of life on the way, it wis thought safe to secure him by a chain around the neck. the trap remaining upon his leg. Half an hour after the wolf was as active as ever. and the settlers apon learning the circumstance, assembled from far and hear to indulge in savage sport with the chained enemy of their flocks. Many large dogs were provoked to attack bin separately. but one snap from his powerful jaws sent them howling from the bird, nor could they be induced to approach a second time. Having Wearied themselves with this brutal amn-ement, his captors at 1: neth ended his life by a rule shot."
" Deer were accustomed to cross over from the hills on the west to the forests east of the river. at a point known as Proven's Hill, at a gate-house of the Turm plank road, and also at a point half a mile south of Turin village. They would begin to appear late in the evening, and in the course of the night, hundreds world cross. On one occasion Mr. Clapp built a yard onelosed with a high fence ou three sides, the fourth
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Westfield, Mass., and settled on the farm subsequently owned by Win. Thompson, where he kept an inn for thirty years,) David Kendall, (from Suffield, Conn.,) Alex. Cooley and others purchased on the East road opposite Houseville. Mr. House built a saw mill and put up the frame of a house and barn, and in March, 1800, moved on his family. In 1808 he removed to Houseville, where he kept an inn till near the time of his death. Christopher Clobridge, a Hessian, who served in the British army during the Revolution, settled in the town in, or previous to 1797. for in that year he constructed a stump mortar, after the Indian fashion, near the east border, to which, when the mill at Constableville was not in operation, the early settlers were accustomed to carry their grists. His son, Adamı, was also a pioneer settler. Chauncey Foster, who was born at Meriden, Conn., in 1783, and came to Turin March 19, 1805, is the oldest man now living in the town. He has raised a family of seven children, all, save one, of whom are living. Shortly previous to this a somewhat remarkable resolution prevailed at a Town Meeting, which, in effect, made all .foreigners who had not gained a residence in the town in- eligible to do so, unless they gave bonds with two sureties guaranteeing indemnity to the town against all charges during their natural lives. Whether this proscriptive and invidious act was rigidly enforced. or whether it was ever carried into effect, we are not advised, but it is probable that it, like other Utopian schemes, soon demonstrated its impracticability, as the town possesses no such extraordinary attractions to the emigrant from a foreign country, compared with other localities, as would compensate for the humiliating and unjust discrimination thus imposed. But notwithstanding the hos- tile sentiment which then evidently prevailed against foreign emigration, the town stands fourth in the County in density of population, though it must be admitted to have a lower per centage of the foreign element than most of the towns.
The first religious exercises were conducted by missionaries about the beginning of the present century. The first Church (Congregational) was organized Sunday, Sept. 19, 1802, by Rev. John Taylor of Deerfield, Mass., while on a mission through the Mohawk and Black River countries, under the auspices of the Missionary Society of Hampshire County. Judah Barnes was ordained deacon. Mr. Taylor says of him, " Deacon is a most excellent character and has great influence-for two or three
bring a steep de-cent, and in one night forty deer were caught in this enclosure. As late as 1-30, numbers of deer were shot at Proven's Will. The last wolf hunt in this town. occurred in the ewamp adjacent to this place in the summer of 1836, when three or four of these animals were traced thither, but although many persons surrounded the woody, they mostly escaped."
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years he has preserved regular meetings on the Sabbath." He says further, "The methodists'and baptists appear to be a little vexed at ye above proceedings. It is probable that the forma- tion of a chh. will be the means of checking their progress. There are a goodly number of valuable men in this town, tho' not professors." There were found, he says, in a congregation of "perhaps 160," assembled on the day when the organization was effected, but four males and two females professors, though there were twenty-three others in the town too unwell to attend. In another place he says, "there are in this town many Methodists and baptists, who are doing great mischief in divid- ing ye people."*
The Second Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Turin
. village was organized with about sixty members, May 20, 1833, by Rev. Anson Fuller, its first pastor.t The church edifice, a stone structure, was erected in 1833, at a cost of $3,000, and was enlarged and repaired in 1859. It will seat 600 persons. There are 112 members, who are under the pastoral care of Rev. Edwin S. Cheesman. The Church property is valued at $3,000.1
Nebo Church at Welsh Hill, was organized with twenty mem- bers, in '1847, by Rev. Wm. Roberts, its first pastor. The church edifice, which will seat 200 persons, was erected in 1847, at a cost of $1,000, which is the present value of the Church property. The present pastor is Rev. O. Piton Jones. The present number of members is thirty.§
The Third M. E. Church of Turin, at Welsh Hill, was organ- ized with forty members, in 1870, by Rev. J. W. Roberts, its first pastor. The house of worship was erected in 1871, at a cost of $2,000, and will seat 300 persons. The present num- ber of members is thirty, and the present pastor, Rev. E. S. Cheesman. The Church property is valued at $2,000.1
WATSONT was formed from Leyden, March 30, 1821 .**
* Doc. Hist. State of New York.
t The first trustees were Ozias Wilcox. Sylvester Hart, Heman Stickney, Deuel Goff, Leonard HI. Humason and Sylvester Foster,
# Information furnished by C. G. Riggs.
§ Information furnished by H. E. Pritchard.
! Information furnished by Harlow Shepard.
" Named from James T. Watson, who owned a tract of 61, 433 acres, lying in this and Herkimer counties, including this town, and under whom settlement was bezun. It originally embraced all of Lewis county eist of Black River.
** At the first town meeting held at the house of John Beach, on the second Thursday in April, 1821, Caleb Lyon way elected Supervisor : John Beach, Town Clerk ; Ozem Bush, Phineas Cole and Joseph O. Mott, Commissioners of Highways ; Samuel Smith
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Brantingham (now Greig) was taken off April 5, 1828; Diana, April 16, 1830 ; a part of Croghan, April 5, 1841; and a part of New Bremen, March 31, 1848. It lies upon the east bank of Black River, near the center of the County, and extends to the east border of the County. It has an area of 61,811 acres. The surface is generally level in the west part, but the central and east parts are more hilly and broken. Its streams are Beaver River, and Independence Creek, tributaries to Black River, and numerous small branches of these and Black River. Its surface is dotted by numerous beautiful sheets of water, the principal of which are Beaver River, Francis and Crystal lakes in the north and Chases and Stony lakes in the south. Chases Lake, near the south border, is noted for its beautiful scenery and being nearest the settlements is frequently visited by the tourist. The others are chiefly hidden in the solitary recesses of the forests of Brown's Tract, which im- pinges upon the east border, and are seldom visited except by the hunter and sportsman. The principal settlements extend only a short distance east of Black River, leaving the entire eastern portion or nearly three-fourths of the town, an almost unbroken wilderness. A road has, however, been opened to the vicinity of the northern lakes and a few isolated settle- ments have been made upon it. The soil is light and sandy.
Bog iron ore has been excavated in this town and large quantities of it shipped to the furnace at Carthage.
The population of the town in 1870 was 1146, of whom 1063 were natives, and 83, foreigners : all were whites.
During the year ending Sept. 30, 1871, the town con- tained nine school districts, and employed nine teachers. The number of children of school age was 340; the numberatten !- ing school, 207; the average attendance, 136; the amount expended for school purposes, $1,633.84; and the value of school houses and sites, 84,185. WATSON (p. o.) is situated on Black River, about three miles south-east of Lowville, and contains a church, hotel, two stores, a blacksmith shop, about twenty houses and seventy-five inhabitants.
INDEPENDENCE RIVER (p. o. ) is situated on the creek of the same name, and contains a store, saw mill, blacksmith shop,
and Phineas Cole, Orerreurs of the Poor : Joseph O. Mott and Daniel B. Baker, Constables ; Samuel * With. Conector ; Caleb Lyon, John Beach and Phineas Cole. Com- missioners and lasectors of Common Schools ; Ozem Bush. Thomas Puffer and Daniel Chase, Fence Viewer ; I'ma- Cole, Isaac avery, Reuben Harris and Joseph O. Mott, Overseers of Hightrans.
Owing to the small number of freeholders in the town at its organization and the difficulty of selecth & p. r.o. - eligible to office, an act was passed Feb. 6, 1521, empow- ermir white make in this town, of legal age, and having a contract for land worth $150, to hold oflice.
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cabinet shop, twenty-two houses, and about one hundred inhabitants.
CHASES LAKE (p. o.) is situated at the outlet of Chases Lake, and contains two saw mills, a barrel factory, sash and blind factory, and a manufactory of extracts from white hem- lock bark, known as the North Woods Works, which gives employment to fifteen men, and manufactures seven hundred tons of extract annually.
CRANDALLVILLE is & hamlet situated on Independence Creek, on the south line of the town, and contains a store, saw mill, joiner shop, sash and blind factory, a boarding house, eight houses and about seventy-five inhabitants.
The first attempt was made to settle this town by James T. Watson, the proprietor of the Watson Tract, who, for many years, was accustomed to spend his summers in the County. He was affable and highly educated, but unfortunately the high attainments of which his early life gave promise, were blasted by the premature death of his affianced-an event which pro- duced in him a mental aberration, which, though it continued through life, was less aggravated at certain seasons than at others. This misfortune manifested itself in his business transactions, and frequently made him a victim to humorous though always innocent caprice ; and though it cast a cloud over his whole subsequent life, it never entirely subverted the many noble qualities he possessed, and which shone out with rare brilliancy in his social intercourse, when least depressed by its influence .* IIe terminated his earthly existence by that most lamentable of all agencies-suicide -- while suffering from one of the severe attacks of. melancholy which frequently over- shadowed him. The fatal act occurred at New York, Jan. 29, 1839, at the age of fifty years. "In after life," says Dr. Hough, " the image of the loved and the lost came back to his memory, like the sunbeam from a broken mirror, and in his waking reveries he was heard to speak of her as present in the spirit, and a confidant of his inmost thoughts." Actual settlement was begun by Elipbalet Edmonds and Jonathan Bishop, who received deeds from Rodolphe Tillier, agent of Castorland, Oct. 10, 1:98, the former for 100 acres, and the latter for 162, at 82 per acre, and began improvements on the banks of the river. They did not remain long, however. Edmonds removed to
* An incident which aptly illustrates his mental condition at such times, is cited by Dr. Hough, in his History of Lewis County. We quote : " In the summer of 1:33, he undertook to cultivate an immonea garden, chi-dy of culinary vegetables, upon bis farm in Watson, beginning at & savon when, under the most favorable conditions, nothing cont'd come to maturity, and inejating thet he would bo satisfied if the seeds only e; routed, as this would prove the capacity of his land."
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Adams in the fall of the following year, and became a pioneer settler there. Soon after, Isaac Puffer, a native of Princetown, Mass., came with his family from Otsego county, and settled in the town. This family was, for many years, the only settlers in the town. Mr. Puffer was the first purchaser under Watson, for whom he built a saw mill near Chases Lake. Melanchon W. Wells became the first agent of Watson, in 1807, and under his direction Watson's west triangle was soon after surveyed by Robert McDowell. But failing to form a settlement he, after a few years, relinquished the agency. Jonathan Bishop, Jabez Puffer, David Durfy, Ozem Bush, John Beach and R. Stone, were among the first settlers at Watson village. Settlements advanced slowly for many years, and many of those who under- took improvement were of the poorer classes, who possessed neither resources nor tact in encountering the difficulties which the wilderness presented. In 1828, Mr. Watson made his first, and it is believed only attempt to settle the town with Europeans. Over twenty Wurtemburghers, whose passage was paid and winter's subsistence provided by Watson, upon con- dition of three years service, were induced to settle here, but most of them left the following spring. Hezekiah Tiffany, we are advised, settled in the town, on No. 4 road, near Beaver River Lake, in 1825. and built the first saw mill on a small stream which empties into that lake. It is a little doubtful, however, whether the statement which credits him with erecting the first mill is correct, as circumstances seem to indicate that Mr. Puffer, or rather Mr. Watson, is entitled to this honor. The first attempt at agriculture of any considerable magnitude was made by Isaac Puffer, who, in 1811, burnt over a windfall, and planted corn, which yielded over forty bushels, among the logs. David Barber and - Bunce commenced a settlement on No. 4, Brown's Tract, in the north-east part of the town, in 1822. Orrin Fenton settled in that locality in 1826. An incident which occurred July 29, 1839, and which serves to illustrate the extreme peril which attended a residence in this town at an early day, and suggests a reason why the country has so long remained unsettled, is related by Dr. Hough, in his History of Lewis County :
" The house of James Ranney [nine miles east of Lowville, ] was," he says, "left in charge of a girl twelve years old, and a child a little over a year old was sleeping on a bed in an adjoining room ; hearing the child scream, the girl sprang to the door, and saw a wild animal leap from an open window with the infant in its mouth. She followed about forty rods, thinking it was a large dog, till it reached a pair of bars, when, after several times trying to leap over with its burden, it made off into the woods without it. The child was not seriously injured. The animal proved to be a huge male panther."
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The wild beasts with which the forests were infested gave the early settlers much annoyance, and often made serious raids upon their flocks ; but, under the inspiration of large rewards which were offered for the destruction of these natives of the forest, and the annual expeditions of sportsmen, who have penetrated to the most intricate recesses of the far-famed Brown's Tract, comparative immunity is afforded the residents of the town from the fears which these noxious beasts inspired.
The spirit of rivalry which characterized the political actions of the early settlers of Watson may, perhaps, be recorded at this day without provoking other emotions than those of mirth- fulness. At the organization of the town the settlements at Watson and Lyonsdale were not connected by roads, and could only be reached by the river, or by roads west of it. This iso- lation gave rise to clannish feelings, and local interests which embittered the two settlements toward each other, and lead each to seek to advance its own interests sometimes at the expense of the other. The vast extent of territory embraced in the town rendered the selection of places for the holding of town meet- ings a matter of importance. As a disposition was manifested on the part of those residing in the southern part of the town to monopolize this choice and continue the meetings at Lyons- dale-a measure which practically disfranchised those living in the north part-a plan was concerted and successfully executed by the latter, under the incitement of the Watson settlement, by which relief was obtained. The north party, which was numerically the stronger of the two, rallied all its available forces, in 1825, and secretly proceeded to the place ( Lyonsdale) at which, by adjournment of the previous year, the meeting was to be held. The meeting was organized an hour earlier than was customary and was adjourned to the house of Thos. Puffer, in the present town of Watson. on the following day. The south party met and perceived that they had been out- generaled, but were not wise enough to accept the situation. The justice to whom they applied to organize the meeting, refused to do so, and rather than admit being check-mated they proceeded to organize a meeting withont legal sanction and elected officers as usual. The north party met pursuant to adjonrnment and also elected officers; and for four years two annual meetings were held and two sets of officers were elected, but only those elected by the north party were recognized to be regular and authoritative. The labors of those elected by the southern party must have been those of love, or were prompted by a misconception of the principle involved in the controversy, for they received no pay for their services, and their authority
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was limited to their own section, or faction, and was then exer- cised only by sufferance. In 1828, the south party, having grown wiser, or become restive under a forced acquiescence in the acts of their rivals, concocted a plan by which the north party was in turn circumvented. The latter, forgetting that "eternal vigilance is the price of liberty," and having become lax through the intoxication of repeated successes, met, as was their custom, but to find a sufficient number of their southern rivals to place them in the minority. The meeting resulted in the election of officers previously agreed upon by the south party, who left a few at home to conduct their own meeting. The results of the two meetings presented a striking similarity. The legality of the action of the north party was demonstrated in a suit brought by one Goodell against one Baker, the col- lector of the north party, for distraining the former's horse for a tax. On the first trial the case was decided in favor of Goodell, but it was appealed and the decision reversed. The division of the town was agitated for several years, but this bone of conten- tion was removed by the legislature in 1828, by the erection of the town of Brantingham. It is due to both parties, however, to state that each voted "to raise money to protect the rights of the town, and in Watson the poor fund belonging to the town was voted to be applied to this law suit."
Religious services were initiated by the Methodists, but in what year we cannot say.
The Seventh Day Baptist Church was organized with forty members, by Elder Wm. Green, May 2, 1841. Their house of worship was erected in January, 1863, at a cost of $800, and will seat 200 persons. The first pastor was Rev. Wm. G. Quible ; the present one is Rev. Thomas R. Reed. The present number of members is 82. The Church property is valued at $1,000 .*
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