Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890, Part 110

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders
Number of Pages: 1384

USA > New York > Jefferson County > Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890 > Part 110

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In 1870 the board purchased a lot on Coffeen street for $700, with a view to erecting thereon a school-house for the better accommodation of pupils living west of the R., W. & O. Railroad tracks. But it was found that this location would be too far from the little old wooden school-house on Boon street, which, although entirely inadequate, has been used since 1865, and the lot was exchanged in 1873 for one on Boon street, a few rods north of the old building, and on the other side of the street. During the following winter a contract was let for building a new school-house on this lot for the sum of $9,590, but owing to unexpected difficulties arising in the attempt to find a secure foundation for the building the original plan was materially altered, and additional expense incurred. The consequence was that the lot, building, fences, outbuildings, furniture, walks, and grading cost not far from $15,500. Up to 1886, when the new Academy street school-house was

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

erected, the Boon street building was the best in the city, and even now it is not excelled in some respects.

When in 1869 Watertown became a city the three schools formerly in North Watertown and Juhelville became part of the city system of public schools. The little stone building on Bradley street, erected in 1824, has been repaired and still serves as a primary school, although, judging from the growth of that part of the city, a larger school building will be demanded for that section before a great while. In 1887 a new addition to Cooper street school was built at a cost of $9,509.49, it being in reality half of a pro- posed building, capable of receiving scholars from the two smaller schools, Bradley street and Pearl street, and thus providing for all the children on the north side of the river until they shall be ready to enter the High School. The stone school-house on Factory street, erected in 1823, although totally unfit for school purposes, was used as a primary school until 1888-89, when a new building was erected on the corner of Pearl and Vincent streets, at a cost of $6,368.37, the old school abandoned, and the property sold.

The board of education was first organized in June, 1865. Following is the list of those who have served as presidents of the board :--

Theodore Babcock 1865 to 1868

William W. Taggart

1881-82

Allen C. Beach. 1868-69

Edmund Q. Sewall

1882 to 1884

Theodore Babcock 1869-70

Hannibal Smith

1884 to 1886

Beman Brockway.

1870 to 1876 1 John Lansing.

1886 to 1888

William W. Taggart

1876 to 1878

Azariah H. Sawyer 1888 to

John Lansing 1878 to 1881

J. Felt, Jr., was the first clerk of the board, acting also as superintendent of the schools. He served but one year, 1865-66, when he was succeeded by H. H. Smith, who served for three years. In 1869 W. G. Williams was elected clerk. He resigned in February, 1870, and Hannibal Smith, at that time principal of the High School, acted as temporary clerk until March, when Mr. Smith was appointed superintendent of the schools, and Edwin Baylies, assistant superintendent and clerk. This arrangement continued until December, 1870, when Mr. Baylies resigned, to be succeeded by Dan- iel G. Griffin. Messrs. Smith and Griffin served until 1872, when the two offices were again united, and Mr. Griffin became full superintendent and clerk, serving until 1875, when he resigned, to be succeeded by A. R. Beal. In 1877 the two offices were again divided, with William K. Wickes, then principal of the High School, as superintendent, and Fred Seymour, assistant superintendent and clerk. In 1879 Mr. Seymour was appointed full super- intendent and clerk, which position he has held up to the present writing.

The writer, in closing this sketch of the schools of Watertown, wishes to acknowledge valuable aid from the records of the Jefferson County Institute, kindly furnished by T. H. Camp, and from the excellent report of the former superintendent, D. G. Griffin, for the year 1872-73. He is also indebted to Messrs. John C. Sterling, Beman Brockway, and Lotus Ingalls, all of whom have served on the board of education.

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

EARLY FIRES.

Watertown has been repeatedly devastated by fires, some of which pro- duced a decided check to its prosperity, while others acted beneficially, by removing rubbish that would otherwise have disfigured the village for time indefinite, and from which the place recovered with an elastic energy charac- teristic of a progressive age and people. On February 7, 1833, a fire oc- curred which burned the extensive tannery and oil-mill of J. Fairbanks, the paper-mill and printing office of Knowlton & Rice, and a morocco factory and dwelling of Kitts & Carpenter ; loss $30,000. The destruction of

Beebee's factory, July 7, 1833, and the Black River woolen-mills, December 22, 1841, have been mentioned elsewhere. March 21, 1848, at 3 o'clock in the morning, a fire occurred in an old stone shop, in the rear of the Union mills, and a little above, which spread rapidly to the buildings on the island opposite, and to others above, which, with the bridge, were rapidly consumed ; and two men, Leonard Wright and Levi Palmer, perished in the flames, hav- ing entered a woolen-mill for the purpose of rescuing property. Among the buildings burned were the paper-mill of Knowlton & Rice, the satinet fac- tory of Mr. Patridge, occupied by W. Conkey, a row of mechanic shops on the island, etc. This fire threw many mechanics out of employment, and was seriously felt by the public. Contributions for the sufferers were raised in the village, and nearly $1, 100 were distributed among them.

On Sunday, May 13, 1849,* occurred the "great fire " in Watertown. The driver of the late stage from Utica, who had left two of his passengers on Clinton street, was the first to discover the fire about 2 A. M., on his return to the stage barn on Arsenal street. By this fire the fairest portion of the business part of the town was consumed. The fire broke out in a storage in the rear of where the First National Bank now stands. When the writer, on proceeding to the fire soon after the alarm had sounded, had reached the point where the Stone street church now stands he witnessed an explosion that sent the burning timbers, fire brands, and cinders into the air, and covered the shingle roofs of the American Hotel and Paddock buildings with sparks and coals. Almost in an instant the wood work of the buildings was in a fierce blaze. The rooms of the hotel were fully occupied by boarders, and the situation was perilous in the extreme. It was an hour when all had retired and were in slumber. The landlord, a Mr. Mallery, was aroused from his sleep, and with his clerk, George Higbee, gave the alarm to the boarders by passing through the halls, staving in the doors of the rooms and awakening the sleepers. All were saved, but none too quickly, as the flames were

* This account of the most disastrous fire that ever occurred in Watertown, and also that of December, 1851, which destroyed Perkins's Hotel and other property, were written by John L. Hotchkin, and published in 1885, in a pamphlet containing a history of the fire department, etc.

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

coming in through the rear windows, and the inmates had to escape in their night dresses in many instances, some of them having to fight fire in the pas- sage and stairways to save themselves, and it was supposed for some days that one or more persons had been lost in the hotel.

The fire crossing Court street like a flash, the Wooster Sherman Bank was soon in flames, and a brisk wind starting up drove the flames down the street, firing the Safford, Hayes, and Peck blocks in an instant. The fire, in the meantime, had commenced on the Fairbanks stone block on the west side of Court and was coming down on that side of the street. The flames crossed the narrow street, causing a complete arch of fire and smoke, grand to look at, but "fearful to contemplate." Norris M. Woodruff was at this time chief of the fire department, and upon duty that night, mounted upon his horse, he seemed " everywhere at once," giving imperative orders to every one to go to work, "man the brakes," save property, and he asked no one to go where he would not lead. When Court street was a lane of fire, and the goods of the merchants were piled in the street only to burn where they lay, the chief galloped his horse through the street and over the obstructions, with fire and smoke to the right and left of him and flames overhead.

The new Woodruff block, similar to the present Iron block, and standing upon the same spot, had only been erected in the summer of 1848, and, of a more modern style of architecture, was the finest building in the town. Cov- ered with a tin roof it was the opinion of many, and hope of all, that the new building would resist the flames, but one fatal defect was in the wooden cornice. The fire from the Sherman Bank roof licked around the corner tower of the fine cornice and set it in a blaze, working under the roof, and soon for want of sufficient water the fire was not only rapidly consuming that fine building, but extending down the Public Square. An expression of dismay went through the great crowd when the new block ignited, but the owner, the chief, seemed to be more energetic than ever, and never did men and women work to save property harder than on that eventful night.

Fanned by the wind the fire spread in different directions, burning every structure on Court street to the old county clerk's office, yet standing and now used as a grocery. That building was arched with stone with a wooden roof, which was thrown off by some of the residents of the neighborhood, leaving no " food for fire," and by the veering of the wind towards the river the con- flagration was stayed,-at the corner of Jackson street,-burning, however, both sides of the streets to that point. The Trinity Church that stood upon the site of the present one was burned. The town clock, located in the tower, struck the hour of four while the spire was enveloped in flames, and within 30 minutes thereafter the steeple fell. The fire also worked up Arsenal street, burning both sides to the point where the Watertown Post printing office now stands, consuming another hotel, the Columbia House, standing upon the site of the present Globe. The intermediate space between Arsenal and Court streets was burned over, not a structure escaping. The buildings

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

but one west of Anthony street, and where the Woodruff House stands, were burned. Towards the south the flames did not make such headway, being against the wind. A building had been torn away a few days before on the spot where stands Messrs. Sterling & Mosher's store. The course of the fire was arrested at that point, but the territory now covered by the arcade, Ar- cade street, American barns, Delong's livery barns, and reaching to the resi- dence of Mr. Woodruff was burned over. The only business blocks that stood in the village after the fire were the block comprising the building owned by O. Hungerford, John Clarke, Watertown Bank, and Lansing & Sherman, and, on the opposite side of Washington street and Public Square, Perkins's Hotel block and Franklin building, with the building on the north side of the Square, now occupied by Van Namee Brothers, and the furniture stores, Streeter's block, and White's block. Four banks, nearly every dry goods store, and all the printing offices but one were burned.

The " water supply " of the village consisted of a cistern sunk upon the spot where stands the drinking fountain at the head of the park, which was supplied by a lead pipe from a living spring at the corner of Washington and Sterling streets, but the suction pipes of the engines soon drained the " reser- voir " dry, the private wells and cisterns near the burning district gave out, and upon Court street houses would take fire and burn down with scarcely a pailful of water to apply during the fire ; and before daylight people in the Square, in " looking aloft," saw what appeared to be sparks of fire flying southward and against the wind ; they proved to be great flocks of wild pig- eons attracted by the fire, their breasts reflecting the light as they passed over. For several days afterward the adjacent " woods were full of them." The ground upon the Square was covered with all descriptions of goods and merchandise piled in promiscuous heaps. Soon after daylight a rain set in, and the owners, to prevent damage by another element, had to cover their goods with oil-cloths, etc., and also to station a guard of constables to pro- tect their property from thieves.

No services were held in any of the churches upon that Sabbath. The fire raged until nearly noon ; the clergy were all at work saving property. All classes, both men and women, used their efforts to save their neighbors" property, and the event was one long to be remembered in the annals of Watertown.

The fire department of the village in 1848 and on duty at the fire con- sisted of Norris M. Woodruff, chief engineer ; Benjamin F. Hotchkin,' first assistant ; E. C. Lewis, second assistant. Neptune Engine Company No. 1, William A. Loomis, foreman; Rough and Ready Company No. 2, Nathaniel Farnham, foreman ; Jefferson Company No. 3, William Y. Buck, foreman ; Hook and Ladder Company No. 1, Samuel Fairbanks, foreman. The engines were of the side-break pattern, and required much strength of muscle to work them. But they were " worked with a will," and only stopped when all avail- able supply of water was exhausted.

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

On September 24, 1850, a fire occurred on Sterling street, from which the burning shingles were wafted to the steeple of the Universalist Church, and when first noticed had kindled a flame not larger than that of a candle ; but before the place could be reached it had enveloped the spire in flames, be- yond hope of arresting it, and the building was consumed. With the utmost exertions of the firemen and citizens of the village the fire was prevented from extending further.

In December, 1851, occurred a great conflagration destroying the build- ings then upon the site of the present Washington Hall block, comprising Perkins's Hotel, a large three-story frame building, with the book store and bindery of the old stationery firm of Knowlton & Rice, and stores of other dealers. The fire was first discovered at 12 o'clock, noon, just at the hour that people were leaving their work, consequently the members of the fire department were out in full force to combat with the fire, that looked at one time as if it would seize the barns and shops in the rear and sweep Franklin street in its course. The proprietor of the hotel was Charles Perkins, an elderly man lying upon a sick bed. He was taken from the burning building upon a mattress to a place of safety, but he did not long survive this exposure, dying soon after.

The department then consisted of Hook and Ladder Co. No. 1, Samuel Fairbanks, foreman ; Neptune Engine Co. No. 1, William A. Loomis, fore- man; Rough and Ready Engine Co. No. 2, Nathaniel Farnham, foreman ; Jefferson Engine and Hose Co. No. 3, Thomas Dory, foreman. The engines were of the old brake pattern, and did excellent service on that occasion. The water supply was from the cistern at the head of the present park in Public Square.

The day was extremely cold, and it was with difficulty that the machines were kept from freezing. The buildings were of wood with shingle roofs, old and very inflammable, and it required hard and unremitting work to keep the fire within the boundaries of the present Washington Hall building. But it was mastered after several hours' work. The difficult feat of the day, how- ever, and one that has hardly been excelled since, was the "cutting out " of the fire at the east end of the hotel, where the Franklin building, owned by J. B. & B. F. Hotchkin, and yet standing, and now owned by Gates & Spratt, in which there were no brick partition walls, and stored with combustible goods, was saved by the efforts mainly of Nathaniel Farnham, foreman of No. 2, and Austin Skinner, a veteran fireman of No. I. The two men, clinging to the slippery shingles, cut, with axes, holes in the steep roof for the nozzels; then holding the pipes from the engines extinguished the fire effectually at that point. The loss was estimated at about $25,000.

October 16, 1852, a fire occurred on the west side of Washington street, which consumed all the buildings south of Paddock's block, viz .: Hunger- ford's block, Citizens' Bank, and Sherman's block ; loss about $14,000. Me- chanics Row, below the Union mills, was burned November 5, 1852, loss

744

CITY OF WATERTOWN.

about $20,000. Hudson Haddock, aged 19 years, perished in the flames while endeavoring to rescue property. July 23, 1853, the car factory and ma- chine shop of Horace W. Woodruff, on the north bank of the river, opposite Beebee's Island, was destroyed by fire, with its contents. On the night of December 11, 1853, a fire consumed the building erected for a tannery, but used as a sash and butter-tub factory, on the south side of Beebee's Island, adjoining the bridge, and owned by Messrs. Farnham & Button.

The destruction by fire of the Black River woolen-mills, in which confla- gration several lost their lives, and many others were severely injured by jumping from the burning building, was one of the saddest calamities ever experienced by this community. The following is condensed from an ac- count published at the time in the New York Reformer : About half past 5 o'clock Friday afternoon, May 6, 1859, the bells of Factory Square sounded the dreaded alarm, and in 30 minutes the well-known woolen fac- tory in the east end of the village was a mass of ruins. At the factory the most heart-rending scenes were being enacted. The fire originated in the "picking room," and an ineffectual effort was made to extinguish it with buckets of water. This was soon desisted from, and Mr. King at once gave the order to start the flooding pump. This was done, and the wheel and pump worked well-but all was ineffectual. Mr. King then started to alarm the operatives, of whom there were 130, scattered through the five stories, the only means of egress from all above the second being down a winding stair. Many of the operatives heard the alarm and rushed down the stairway, and the ladders outside the building, in comparative safety. Over a dozen, owing to the great confusion and want of time, were not so fortunate, and found themselves completely shut off from egress. Some of these were very badly burned in getting down the ladder after the fire had become a mass of flame in all but the fourth story; but the greater number of them threw them- selves from the windows to the hard and stony ground below. We append their names and the injuries received by each: Miss Angeline Stone, aged about 2r, jumped from the fourth story, was picked up insensible, and died in about half an hour. John Shepherd was an object of excruciating suffering. He was deeply burned on the face, arms, breast, and neck, and died on Sun- day afternoon about 3 o'clock. Mrs. Vincent White jumped from the fourth story and sustained serious injuries to her spine. Miss Maria Greenwood, aged about 18, jumped from the fourth story and was badly injured. Miss Celia Blodgett jumped from the fourth story, and her escape from any other injury than the mere shock was really wonderful. She arose from the spot without help, and walked one-fourth of a mile to her home. James M. Griffin escaped from the weavers' room down a ladder, with his little girl, seven years of age, between his legs. He was deeply burned on his left arm. His child was burned slightly on her right leg. Mr. and Mrs. Marshall were both badly burned on the face, breast, and neck, but not fatally. Thomas Farrar was badly burned on the left arm. Mrs. Elizabeth Franch, aged about

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

26, jumped from the fourth story. Her ribs were broken, and she was badly burned. Mary Harris jumped from the third story and sustained a broken ankle. Mary A. Huntley and Mrs. Hannah Rogers were severely burned. Thomas Osburn was deeply burned in the face, neck, and arms. Miss Simms was injured by jumping from the third story, and was also badly burned. This completes the list of injured. The most probable conjecture as to the origin of the fire is that it originated by a piece of iron or stone passing through the picker, and igniting the linty combustible. Once started it spread too rapidly for human efforts to extinguish. The water works at this time did not extend farther east than High street, and the hose carts were conse- quently useless. The building was the property of the old Black River Woolen Company, and was rented to Messrs. Elting, King & Co., at $1,650 per year. The building and machinery were worth at least $35,000.

FIRE DEPARTMENT.

The original charter incorporating the village of Watertown provided for the election of five fire wardens, each of whom was supplied with four ladders. Each owner or occupant of any building was obliged to furnish one or two buckets, according to the size of the structure, and to have them properly marked, and kept in a convenient place for use. It was also "ordained " that, on an alarm or cry of fire, every male inhabitant of 15 years and upward should repair to the place of the fire " forthwith " and put himself under the direction of the fire wardens. A fine of $I was imposed for "disobeying orders." Each warden was furnished with a white staff seven feet long by which to " distinguish " himself.

The first fire company was organized May 28, 1817, and on September 27 following, at a meeting of the "freeholders," the sum of $200 was voted toward the purchase of a first-class fire engine. The "Cataract " was pur- chased soon afterward. The same meeting authorized the formation of a Hook and Ladder Company, and William Smith was its first captain. August 6, 1832, the second engine company was formed and attached to the fire engine belonging to the Jefferson cotton-mills. This company was No. I, and the one previously organized, Cataract Co. No. 2 ; Dyer Huntington was chosen chief engineer, and Adriel Ely, assistant. In April, 1835, Nep- tune Engine Co. No. 3 was formed, with the first brake engine used in town. In 1837 this company became No. I. In 1842 a company was organized to take charge of the engine formerly belonging to No. I. This company dis- banded in 1845, and the same year, a new engine having been purchased, a new company was formed and called Jefferson Hose No. 3. Cataract Co. No. 2 was disbanded about this time, its engine having been damaged. In June, 1848, a new engine was purchased for No. I, and in July of the same year Central Hose Co. No. 2 was organized, taking the old " machine " of No. 1, which was called " Rough and Ready," and which was stored in barns or

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CITY OF WATERTOWN.

sheds as place could be found. These companies exist to-day, with slight variation in names, and are doing excellent service. On April 10, 1850, the fire department was chartered by act of the legislature, and the status of the active branch of the department, January 1, 1890, was as follows :-

Name of Company.

Organized.

Pres't Memb.

Neptune Hose and Steamer Co. No. 1.

April, 1835. 39

Central Hose and Steamer Co. No. 2.

July, 1848.

39 .

Jefferson Hose Co. No. 3.

- -, 1845. 36

John Hancock H. and L. Co. No. 1.

June 10, 1817.

In addition to the above Star Hose Co. No. 4 was organized January 20, 1890, for the better protection of that portion of the city lying north of the river. It has 12 members and occupies a building on Curtis street owned by the city. There are at present five companies of " exempt firemen," with a total membership of 266.

Neptune Company occupies a substantial brick building on Factory street, and Central Company a similar building on Goodale street, both owned by the department. The last two occupy Firemen's hall on Stone street, built by the village in 1854. The city pays the regular expenses of the organiza- tion, including rent, etc. January 11, 1851, the department was in debt 56 cents. It has now an ample fund on hand, received chiefly from taxes on insurance companies outside the state, doing business here, for the support of disabled firemen. It has also erected two engine-houses, and February 8, 1875, by resolution of its directors, decided to purchase a first-class steam engine for especial use along the river, at important manufacturing points not easily reached by fire hydrants. A Silsby rotary engine, one of the best in the world, was purchased for $4,000. It has already done effective serv- ice, and demonstrated its superiority. The city, the same summer, placed in the court-house tower a fire alarm bell weighing 4,000 pounds. In 1880 a new steamer, costing $4,100, was purchased of the Silsby Mfg. Co., and named " Roswell P. Flower," in honor of a former member of the depart- ment, the city and the department being joint owners. No further facts are needed to demonstrate that Watertown is well protected against large or dangerous fires, especially when it is remembered that the reservoirs described elsewhere furnish at all times a plentiful supply of water for fire purposes, by means of 100 fire hydrants placed at convenient points about the city.

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Geographical gazetteer of Jefferson county, N.Y. 1684-1890, Part 110

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders Number of Pages: 1384

Author: Child, Hamilton, 1836- [from old catalog] comp; Horton, William H., [from old catalog] ed
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y., The Syracuse journal company, printers and binders
Number of Pages: 1384