USA > New York > Geography of the state of New York. Embracing its physical features, climate, geology, mineralogy, botany, zoology, history, pursuits of the people, government, education, internal improvements &c. With statistical tables, and a separate description and map of each county > Part 30
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Judge Dean, the efficient Indian agent during the revolution, was also an early settler. He was a native of New England, but spent several years of his boyhood among the Oneida In- dians, by whom he was adopted. He subsequently graduated at Dartmouth college, intending to become a missionary to that tribe.
The demand for his services during the revolution prevented his fulfilling that intention, and he accepted the office of Indian agent and interpreter, and in that capacity rendered efficient aid to the American cause. The Oneidas granted him, at the close of the war, a tract of land on Wood creek about two miles square, which he subsequently exchanged for a similar tract in Westmoreland. On the extinction of the Indian title, in 1788, the latter was confirmed to him by the state, and he resided upon it during the remainder of his life .*
* Two or three years after Judge Dean's removal to Westmoreland, an incident occurred which furnishes a parallel to the often related rescue of Captain John Smith, by Pocahontas.
It was a custom among the Indians, that when one of their number had been murdered by a member of another tribe, the blood of some one of the offending tribe must be shed, as an atonement for the offence. The same custom extended to their intercourse with the whites.
At this period, an Oneida Indian had been killed by some unknown white man, who had escaped. The chiefs assembled to determine what was to be done. After several days consultation, they decided that the life of Mr. Dean must be forfeited, as an atonement for the murder.
Accordingly, the chiefs, eighteen in number, came to his dwelling at midnight, and informed him that they had decided to sacrifice him for the murder of their brother, and that he must now prepare to die. In vain he remonstrated, pleading his past services to their tribe, and urging that he was an adopted son of the Oneidas, and therefore not liable to such a doom. In vain did he represent the hapless condition of his wife and helpless babes.
The old chiefs heard hiin patiently, but their decision was unalterable. He had nearly abandoned all hope of escape, when his attention was arrested by the pattering of a footstep without the door. Soon the latch was raised and a squaw entered ; she was the wife of the senior chief, and in Mr. Dean's boyhood, had adopted him as ber son.
The entrance of a woman into a solemn council was, according to Indian eti- quette, at war with all propriety. The chiefs however remained silent. Soon another came, a sister of the first, and the wife of another chief; and presently a third, also the wife of a chief. Each stood near the door in silence, closely wrap- ped in her blanket.
At length the presiding chief bid them " begone." The squaw who first entered, replied, that they must first change their determination, and not kill the good white man, her adopted son. The command to go was repeated, when each of the squaws threw off their blankets, and brandisting a knife in their extended hands, declared that they would destroy themselves, if one hair of the white man's head was touched. The chiefs were astonished at the whole proceeding, and regarding it as an evident interposition of the Great Spirit in his behalf, reversed their decree, and Mr. Dean's life was spared.
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Some years previous to the revolution two men named Roof and Brodock established themselves in the vicinity of Rome, and were engaged in the carrying trade. They were compelled to leave during the revolution, but afterward returned and re- sumed their farms.
Early in the summer of 1777, news hvaing reached the county that an expedition was intended against the settlements in the Mohawk valley, under the command of General St. Leger, Fort Stanwix at Rome, was repaired, garrisoned, supplied with provisions, and its name changed to Fort Schuyler.
On the 2d of August, 1777, the garrison consisted of 750 men, under the command of Colonel Gansevoort, and they had suffi- cient ammunition and provisions for a six weeks' siege. At that time the fort was invested by General St. Leger, who demanded its surrender. The demand was indignantly spurned by the garrison. Hearing of the investment of the fort, General Her- kimer assembled about 800 militia, and hastened to relieve the beseiged garrison. On the evening of the 5th of August, he arrived at Oriskany creek, and despatched two expresses to Col. Gansevoort, notifying him of his approach, and requesting him to make a sally from the fort at the time of his intended attack.
These expresses arrived safely on the forenoon of the 6th, and a signal cannon having been fired, Colonel Marinus Willet, the second in command, sallied from the fort with 250 men, and succeeded in carrying the camps of Sir John John- son and the Indians, capturing their stores, baggage, ammuni- tion, &c., without the loss of a single man.
The attack of General Herkimer was less fortunate. St. Leger having heard of his approach, stationed a force in ambus- cade on his route. The militia, heedless and self confident, rushed on till their vanguard were surrounded by the enemy. Those in the rear then fled, but the remainder fought with the utmost desperation. Their assailants were mostly Indians and loyalists, and in many cases the two parties were personally known to each other, and private hate was added to national hostility. Rage supplied the place of arms; no quarter was asked or given on either side. Early in the battle General Herkimer was wounded; but seating himself on his saddle, and leaning against the trunk of a tree, he continued to order the battle with the utmost composure. The conflict continued for six hours ; at the end of that time the tories and Indians retreat- ed, leaving the militia masters of the field. The loss in killed and. wounded on both sides was very great. That of the Americans was nearly 200 killed, and about the same number wounded.
After this battle, St. Leger again summoned the fort, but was
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again defied. Finding, however, that they must be reinforced or eventually surrender, Col. Willet and Lieut. Stockwell, of the garrison, volunteered to go to the head quarters of General Schuyler, at Stillwater, and obtain aid.
They left the garrison on the night of the 10th of August, creeping on their hands and knees through the enemy's camp, and after numerous hair breadth escapes, succeeded in reaching Gen. Schuyler's camp and procuring the necessary assistance.
General Learned and General Arnold were despatched on this service. The latter, hastening on in advance with 900 troops, captured a tory refugee named Han Yost Schuyler, whom by promises and threats he induced to go to the camp of St. Leger, and alarm the Indians by exaggerating the number of his troops. A friendly Oneida Indian was also sent on the same errand. The stratagem was successful. The Indians, already dissatisfied, abandoned St. Leger at once, on receiving the intelligence of Arnold's approach, and thus deserted, he raised the siege and retreated with the utmost haste, the Indians plundering his troops whenever they found opportunity.
One of the most prominent of the early settlers of this county was Judge White, the founder of Whitestown. He was a na- tive of Middletown, Connecticut, and one of the proprietors of the Saghdaquida patent. He removed here in 1784, with his family.
In 1788 the town of Whitestown was laid out, and comprised all that part of the state lying west of a line drawn north and south through the city of Utica, a tract of country now contain- ing more than 1,100,000 inhabitants. The same year a treaty was made with the Oneidas, by which they ceded to the state the whole of their lands, except a few trifling reservations.
Judge White lived to see the wilderness where he had first located himself, densely populated, and the privations of the settlers exchanged for plenty .* Judge Sanger was another of the early settlers who located in New Hartford.
The town of Steuben was granted by the state to Baron Steu- ben, for his services during the revolution. He resided here during the latter part of his life, and was buried here.
* A little incident which occurred soon after the war, illustrates the Indian character very forcibly. An old Oneida chief named Han Yerry, who, during the revolution, had acted with the British, but who was quite friendly to Judge White, came one day with his wife and a mulatto woman to his house, and asked permis- sion to take the little grand-daughter of the judge home to his cabin for the night, making it a test of the strength of his friendship. Judge White consented, con- sidering it best to manifest confidence in the Indian, although he felt many mis- givings, and the mother of the child could hardly be prevailed on to part with it. The succeeding day was one of deep anxiety to the family of the judge-but just at sunset the Indian and his squaw reappeared with the child, clad in a complete Indian dress.
The confidence which the judge manifested in them, secured their warm and permanent friendship.
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CITIES AND VILLAGES, UTICA, situated on the south side of the Mohawk, on the site of old Fort Schuyler, is a thriving and business city, in the midst of one of the most fertile and wealthy sections of the state, having a central location. - Its locality being on a gentle declivity to the north, commands a beautiful pros- pect of the Mohawk valley. The streets are spacious, and the buildings neat and commodious. Being connected with Albany and Troy, and with Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo by rail- road and canal ; with Binghamton by the Chenango canal, and by stages, with the northern and southern counties of the state, it is the centre of an extensive business. It is also engaged in manufactures. Several large steam mills have recently been erected for the manufacture of cotton and woollen goods.
The New York State Lunatic Asylum, located here, is a noble institution, and when completed will surpass in extent and conve- nience any other in the United States. A farm of 160 acres is attached to it. The Utica Academy, and the Utica Female Sem- inary, are both excellent institutions, and have a high reputa- tion. The Young Men's Association possess a good library and have maintained a course of lectures for some years. The museum contains a fine collection of curiosities and antiquities.
The early growth of Utica was slow; in 1794 it contained but three or four houses. It was incorporated as a village in 1798, and received its present name. It was chartered as a city in 1832. Population 12,190.
ROME, on the site of Fort Stanwix (the new Fort Schuyler) is situated at the junction of the Black river and Erie canals. The Utica and Syracuse railroad also passes through it. The village has some manufactories, and is largely engaged in the forwarding trade. The United States government have an ar- senal, magazine, and a number of workshops here. The Rome Female Seminary is well sustained. Population 2800.
WHITESBORO', in the town of Whitestown, also a county seat, was incorporated in 1813. It is a pleasant village, finely deco- rated with shade trees, and is engaged in the manufacture of cotton goods. It has also a very large flouring mill and an ex- tensive pail and tub manufactory.
The Whitesboro' Academy is a large and flourishing institu- tion. The Oneida Institute, a manual labor school of a high order, intended for a boarding school, is also located here ; con- nected with it is a farm of 114 acres. The students are re- quired to labor three hours per day. Population 2000.
Oriskany is a large manufacturing village in the same town. Broadcloths and cassimeres are the principal articles of manu- facture. Population 1200.
New York Mills, in the same town is an important village
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largely engaged in the manufacture of cotton goods. Popula-
tion 1000.
Waterville, in the town of Sangerfield, is a thriving village, engaged in the manufacture of woollen goods, carriage springs, starch, and musical instruments. Population 1000.
Trenton Falls is a small village, worthy of notice for the picturesque and beautiful falls on the West Canada creek, from which it derives its name. Trenton, in the town of the same name, is a somewhat larger village, incorporated in 1819.
Clinton, in the town of Kirkland, is pleasantly situated on the Oriskany creek, nine miles from Utica. The literary institu- tions of this village and its vicinity, have given it a wide celeb- rity. Hamilton College, situated a mile west of the village, was founded by the exertions of the venerable Kirkland, and is now in a prosperous condition. It has four fine stone edifices.
The Clinton Liberal Institute is a chartered institution. The edifice is of stone, ninety-six by fifty-two feet, and four stories high above the basement, for the male department, and a smaller building for the female department. It is conducted by six teachers. There is a farm attached to this institution, for the benefit of such students as may desire to defray the expense of their education by manual labor.
The Clinton Grammar school, and the Clinton Domestic seminary, a female institution of some note, are also located here. In the vicinity are several manufactories. Population 800.
New Hartford, in the town of the same name, and Oriskany Falls, in the town of Augusta, are flourishing manufacturing villages.
Vernon, in the town of Vernon, Sauquoit, in the town of Pa- ris, and Hampton, in the town of Westmoreland, are thriving villages.
Oneida Castleton, a post village in the town of Vernon, oc- eupies the place where the councils of the Six Nations were formerly held,-the large white walnut trees under which they assembled are still standing in full vigor, and often, by the au- tumnal blasts, sing the requiem of that almost annihilated race of the aborigines.
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XXVIII. CAYUGA COUNTY.
Square Miles, 648. Organized, 1799.
Population, 49,663. Valuation, 1845, 89,760,050.
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TOWNO
1. Aurelius, 1789.
2. Geneva, 1789.
3. Scipio, 1789.
14. Victory, 1821.
4. Sempronius, 1789.
15. Ira, 1821.
5. Brutus, 1802.
16, Auburn, 1823.
6. Cato, 1802.
17. Fleming, 1823.
7. Locke, 1802.
18. Springport, 1823.
8. Owasco, 1802.
9. Sennet, 1807.
20. Ledyard, 1823.
21. Moravia, 1833.
22. Niles, 1833.
Rivers. a. Owasco Outlet. b. Salmon Creek. c. Owasco Inlet. e. Little Sodus Creek. k. Seneca.
Lakes, &c. J. Lake Ontario. DD. Cayuga. d. Owasca. f. Skene- ateles. g. Duck. . i. Cross. 1. Little Sodus Bay.
Villages. AUBURN. Aurora. Cayuga. Montezuma. Moravia.
BOUNDARIES. North by Lake Ontario; East by Oswego, On- ondaga and Cortland counties; South by Tompkins county; West by Cayuga lake, and Seneca and Wayne counties.
SURFACE. The southern section of the county has an irregular surface, rising into ridges on the shores of Cayuga and Owasco lakes. Poplar ridge, the watershed of the county, is between these two lakes, and has an elevation of 600 feet. The north- ern part is comparatively level, yet has a rolling appearance, in consequence of numerous gravelly hills, which seem like mounds formed by art.
RIVERS. The principal streams are the Seneca river, Salmon and Little Sodus creeks. The Seneca has a very sluggish course through a marshy country.
LAKES. Cayuga lake on the western border, Skeneateles on the eastern, and Owasco in the centre, are the largest lakes. Besides these it has Cross, Duck and Otter lakes, and Lock pond.
BAYS. Little Sodus bay is an inlet of Lake Ontario.
CANALS The Erie canal crosses the county a few miles dis- tant from the Seneca river, and parallel with it.
RAILROADS. The great line of Railroad between Albany and Buffalo also passes through this county.
CLIMATE .. Mild and temperate, much moderated by the nu- merous bodies of water around and within it. It is regarded as salubrious.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. This county embraces quite a variety of formations. On the borders of Lake Ontario is found the Medina sandstone; immediately south of !this the Clinton,
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11. Stirling, 1812.
19. Venice, 1823.
10. Mentz, 1808.
12. Conquest, 1821.
13. Summer Hill, 1821.
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Niagara and Onondaga limestone groups ; next the Helderberg series, and in the extreme southern part of the county, the Lud- lowville slaty rocks.
Gypsum, water limestone, sulphate of Barytes, Epsom salts, fluor spar, sulphate of iron, and pure sulphur are the principal minerals.
Petroleum or mineral oil is found on Cayuga lake. Valuable brine springs occur in Montgomery. Here are also sulphur springs, and a chalybeate spring has been discovered in the town of Sennet.
SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. The soil of this county, in consequence of its peculiar geological structure, is rich, and its lands are among the most fertile and highly cultivated in the state. Wheat yields the most abundant crops; and fruits thrive in great perfection. The timber consists of oak, beech, butternut, elm, poplar, basswood, pine and hemlock.
PURSUITS. The attention of the inhabitants is chiefly turned to agriculture. Large quantities of the various kinds of grain and wool are annually produced, and considerable numbers of cattle reared.
Manufactures. The principal articles of manufacture are flour, woollen and cotton goods, leather and lumber. Salt is manufactured in considerable quantities.
Commerce. It has a considerable amount of commerce-be- ing connected by the Cayuga lake with the southern counties- by the Erie canal and Auburn and Syracuse railroad with the Hudson and Lake Erie, and by the Cayuga and Seneca canal with the Seneca lake, and the country bordering on it.
THE STAPLES of the county are wheat and other grains, pota- toes, butter and wool.
SCHOOLS. The common schools, in 1846, numbered 256. They were taught an average period of eight months, attended by 16,781 scholars, at an expense for tuition of nearly $21,312. The number of volumes in the school libraries was 29,718.
The number of private schools was .thirty-five, having in attendance 658 pu- pils. It has also four academies and one female seminary, with 388 scholars, and one theological seminary with seventy-one students.
RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. Baptists, Presbyterians, Meth- odists, Friends, Universalists, Congregationalists, Episcopali- ans, Dutch Reformed, Unitarians, and Roman Catholics. There are in all seventy-seven churches and eighty clergymen.
HISTORY. The first settlements in this county were made in Aurelius, Genoa and Scipio, about the time the Indian title was extinguished, in 1789. The first settlement at Auburn was made in 1793, by Col. John L. Hardenburg, from whom it was named Hardenburg's corners. It received its present name in 1805.
In Moravia, settlements were commenced in 1794. At that
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time there were still some Indians residing on the flats. The county has had a rapid and prosperous growth, and in its zeal for public improvements ranks among the first counties in the state.
VILLAGES. AUBORN, the shire town of the county, and one of the most flourishing villages in the state, is situated on the out- let of Owasco lake. Though irregularly laid out, its streets are spacious, and many of its buildings elegant. Besides the county buildings, it contains seven churches, a male and a female sem- inary, and the Auburn Theological seminary, under the control of the Presbyterians, which has four professors, seventy-one students, and a library of 5000 volumes.
The Auburn State Prison, located here, is a massive granite building, erected at an expense of over half a million of dol- lars. The main building has a front of 276 feet, and is three stories high besides the basement. The two wings, one on either end, are each 242 feet long, and forty-five wide. The whole is enclosed by a solid stone wall, from sixteen to forty feet high, and three feet thick. The number of prisoners is about 700, who labor in work shops during the day, and are confined in separate cells at night. Population 6171.
Moravia is a thriving incorporated village, in the town of the same name. The Moravian Institute is a chartered institution of some note. Population 600.
Aurora, in the town of Ledyard, lies upon the Cayuga lake, and is hardly surpassed in the beauty of its location, by any vil- lage in western New York. The Cayuga academy is a flourishing institution. Steamboats stop here several times a day on their route between Ithaca and Cayuga bridge. Popu- ulation 500.
Cayuga is a pleasant village on the eastern bank of the Cayuga lake. A daily line of steamboats plies between this place and Ithaca, connecting the Ithaca and Owego and the Auburn and Rochester railroads. A toll bridge, and a railroad bridge, each of them upwards of a mile in length, here cross the Cayuga lake.
Montezuma. A number of saline springs are here found, from which salt of the best and purest quality has been manu- factured ever since the earliest settlement of the country. The Montezuma marshes commence about a mile west of the village, and are known as the Paradise of musquitoes. Population 700. Weedsport is a thriving village on the canal in the town of Benton. It has a large amount of business. Population-800.
Port Byron, in the town of Mentz, is a large village, on the Erie canal. It has one of the largest flouring establistments in the state, beside several other manufactories. Population 1000.
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XXIX. ESSEX COUNTY.
Square Miles, 1162. Organized, 1799.
Population, 25,102. Valuation, 1845, 81,483,136.
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1. Crown Point, 1788.
2. Willsborough, 1788.
3. Jay, 1790.
4. Elizabethtown, 1798.
5. Chesterfield, 1802.
6. Schroon, 1804.
7. Ticonderoga, 1804.
8. Minerva, 1804.
TOWNS.
9. Essex, 1805.
10. Lewis, 1805.
11. Moriah, 1808.
12. Keene, 1808.
13. Westport, 1815.
14. Wilmington, 1821.
15. Newcomb, 1828.
16. St. Armand, 1844.
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Mountains. EE. Kayaderosseras. GG. Chateaugay. HH. Clinton. JJ. Au Sable.
Peaks. g. White Face. k. Mount McMartin. m. Mount McIn- tyre. n. Mount Marcy. o. Mount Defiance, (in Ticonderoga).
Rivers. C. Hudson. a. Bouquet. c. Boreas. d. Indian. e. Adiron- dack. f. Schroon. i. Au Sable. j. Saranac. q. West Branch.
Lakes. W. Champlain. 1. Schroon. r. Paradox. s. Pharaoh. t. Crane Pond. u. Harries Lake. v. Rich. w. Delia. h. Teralt. . Sanford. z. Placid. & Auger Pond. b; Warm. c. Rattlesnake. a. Black. & Long.
Forts. Ticonderoga. Crown Point.
Villages. ELIZABETHTOWN. Westport. Keeseville. Ticonde- roga. Essex.
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BOUNDARIES. North by Franklin and Clinton counties; East by Lake Champlain; South by Warren county ; and West by Hamilton and Franklin counties.
SURFACE. The surface of this county is mountainous. Three distinct ranges cross it, and a fourth touches its western bound- ary. The Kayaderosseras range, beginning at Crown Point, passes over the southeastern towns. The Clinton range ex- tends through the central portion, the Au Sable passes through the northwest section, and the Chateaugay forms a portion of the northwestern boundary.
In the towns of Keene, Newcomb, and Moriah, a group of lofty peaks, known as the Adirondack group, extends from the Au Sable to the Clinton range. Mounts Marcy, McIntire, Mc- Martin, Dial mountain and White face, are the principal of these peaks. Mount Marcy is 5467 feet, or more than a mile, above tide water, Mount McIntire 5183, White face 4355, and Dial mountain 4900 feet high.
It is a characteristic of the mountains of this county, that their sides are precipitous and broken. Between the ranges of the mountains are extensive valleys, through which flow large streams.
The Adirondack pass, about five miles from the Adirondack iron works, de- mands a cursory notice. At an elevation of some 2500 feet above tide water, a narrow gorge extends quite through the mountain, whose massive perpendicular walls a thousand feet in height, rear themselves on either band in gloomy sub- limity, as if proudly defying the puny art of man. The pass is nearly a mile in length, and rises in height from 500 to 1000 feet.
RIVERS. The principal rivers of the county are the Au Sable, the Saranac, the Bouquet, the Hudson and the Schroon, with their tributaries, and Putnam creek.
LAKES. No county in the state probably possesses so great a number of lakes and ponds as Essex. The character of its sur-
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face is such as to produce this result; in its deep chasms and mountain gorges, its ravines and dells, bounded by walls of ever during granite, the waters which fall upon the hills, or the product of the melting snows upon its lofty peaks, gather and remain, till they have attained sufficient height to overflow the barriers which restrain them.
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