USA > New York > Cattaraugus County > Historical review of Cattaraugus County > Part 6
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In 1820 a post-office was established at Adrich Mills, the village later being commonly known as Lodi. A mile or so north of Lodi was a hamlet called Hidi. A tannery was established at Hidi in 1853, which was swept by fire in 1862, but was afterwards rebuilt. A factory which manufactured agricultural implements was operated by Sellew and Popple for many years. The population of Persia was over thir- teen hundred in 1860.
The name of Lodi was changed to Gowanda and the village in- corporated in 1848. In 1878 Gowanda was re-incorporated, this time taking Hidi within its limits. The residential section of the village
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extended a considerable distance across Cattaraugus Creek, this part of the village being in Erie County.
The town of Otto appears to have seen its first occupation in the Zoar Valley, a name applied to the wide area of bottom-land along the Cattaraugus Creek, east of Gowanda. Weird legends are associated with this region. Indian folk-lore established the Zoar as the scene of residence of a troupe of fairies, from whom some of the Indian ceremonies were supposed to be learned. The presence of fairies was claimed to be further in evidence by the resemblance of marks on the hardened sand along the creek to tiny footprints-supposedly those of dwarfs. Folk-lore also mentions that sounds heard in the valley- supposed to be caused by the fairies beating tom-toms-was con- sidered the signal for the Indians to go through certain religious rituals.
Since the coming of white people to the region, other legends of the Zoar have developed. One story states that a traveling peddler stopped at one of the houses in the Zoar to make arrangements for a night's lodging. It appears that he showed poor judgment in selecting that dwelling, for he was dealt a severe blow on the head and thrown into the cellar, perhaps the consequence of an attempt to rob him, or possibly the result of suspicion that the peddler was a treacherous character. He gradually regained consciousness and climbed the cellar steps to the point at which he was able to begin raising the trap door. At this point someone clipped off part of the fingers exposed from the trap door with an axe. This second attack proved too much for the traveler and he fell to his death in the dungeon beneath the dwelling. Before expiring, so the legend goes, he verbally pronounced a "curse" on the region or its dwellers.
Strange and far-reaching happenings have been attributed to this "curse." Some people believing it casts its sinister shadow even to the present day. One hundred years has been considered the time of the "curse's" fulfillment, and, while no person has suggested to the writer what was the exact year of the peddler's visit, the suggestion has been ventured that the curse "must be nearly run out." .
The small but picturesque waterfalls of the Zoar region constitute an impressive sight when the moonlight reflects on their waters, re- minding a visitor of the ghastly sight described by Coleridge:
"About, about, in reel and rout The death-fires danced at night;
The water, like a witch's oils, Burnt green and blue and white."
A unique spot in the Zoar region is a rather unusual waterfalls known as "Schoolmarm Falls." It is located in the extreme north- eastern part of the town of Otto, a short distance from the mouth of one of the tributaries of the Cattaraugus. According to tradition, a
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"Schoolmarm Falls" in the Zoar Valley
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teacher and her class paid a visit to this scene, in the course of which one of the pupils strolled into such perilous proximity of the falls that the teacher rushed to his rescue. The rescue of the child from danger was accomplished, but the teacher was herself flung to her death in the rocky bed of the stream.
The Zoar region today contains the remains of abandoned houses and barns-reminders of days when the area was more populated than at present. Whether the story of the "curse" or the normal pressure of economic necessity was the chief factor in the Zoar's abandonment does not appear certain.
In 1838, Justus Scott, of Otto, with the help of his two sons, cleared a large tract of land in preparation for cultivation. The brush was collected into piles which Mr. Scott intended to burn after waiting a sufficient time for them to dry. He left the neighborhood on a short trip while the brush was drying, and after being absent for several days, his wife decided it best to burn the brush herself. Accordingly, she passed through the field, setting fire to one pile, then another, as she passed along. Suddenly she realized that in her careless manner of setting the brush afire, she had neglected her own safety. Looking around, she saw fires on all sides, with no exit in evidence. Seized with terror, she escaped through an opening between the wind-rows, un- injured except by terror, smoke and heat. One is left to wonder what Mr. Scott's predominate emotion was when he heard of the near- catastrophe: whether he was proud of his wife's efforts, angry at her for attempting a task she failed to understand, or simply mortified at having a wife who would be thoughtless enough to get in such a pre- dicament.
The village of Waverly, now known as Otto, saw its first settle- ment in 1822, in which year the South branch of the Cattaraugus was dammed. It has been written that "a saw-mill is situated above the dam and has connected with it a cider mill." In 1829 a custom mill was started at Waverly which was later to manufacture woolen goods.
Horace Wells was probably the first settler in East Otto, locating in the section which later became the village. Three brothers, John, Allen and Rufus King settled near the junction of the Connoisaraulay Creek with the Cattaraugus in 1817. Several settlers who came from Vermont also located in East Otto. Two hamlets, East Otto and Plato, grew up in the town. The former sprang up near the source of the South Branch of the Cattaraugus. The latter, located in the south- eastern part of the town, had, according to Adams, "quite a boom at one time, and aspired to become a city." It never succeeded, however, in approximating New York or London in population.
The earliest recorded settlers in the town of Dayton were Simon Bruce and Silas Nash, who probably located in the town in November, 1810. The two men had intended to settle in Chautauqua County, and
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when they located in Dayton, they believed that they were in that county. Nash subsequently built a log house, the first dwelling in the town. In 1817 he started the first saw-mill, which was operated by the power of Conewango Creek. The town, however, was handi- capped by a scarcity of waterpower. Timothy Shaw came to Dayton in 1814, his family arriving the following year. Ralph Johnson came to the town from Connecticut in 1815, later to become the first post- master.
West Dayton, also known as Cottage, was the first hamlet in the town. Pine Valley, later to be known as South Dayton, was the scene of two thriving shingle mills, Ranlett Bros. opening one in 1852, and Henry Wolfe another about ten years later.
John Wickham has been called the "Father of South Dayton." According to legend, he had a dream or vision in which South Dayton appeared as a prosperous trading center, and it may have been through his efforts that the village was planned and laid out in lots in 1875. Wickham's keen eye saw that the village was ideally situated, and he became the owner of a hotel, grist mill and about thirty buildings. Robert Ewing was also a large property owner.
The village of Dayton, known as Dayton Summit in its early days, was the scene of a factory manufacturing cradles for harvesting. The intersection of two railroad lines of the Erie system at this point gave it a scene of activity.
New Albion, which includes the bustling village of Cattaraugus, probably saw its first settlement in 1818, when Matthew Dimmick came to the region. He left New Albion soon afterward, and the cabin which he had erected was subsequently used as a place of shelter by other settlers until their own cabins were ready for occupation. Ben- jamin Chamberlain, later to become the well-known judge, settled in the town in 1818, but, like Dimmick, left soon afterward. John Kin- nicutt, later destined to be town clerk for seventeen years, came to the town in 1821. Other early settlers included David Hill, Jeremiah Maybe and Charles Sibley, who subsequently opened the first grist mill in the town. Solomon G. Wright built a house which came to be known as "Solomon's Temple" because of its unusual style. James Godard opened the first tavern on the old Chautauqua Road in 1820 or soon after.
The village of Cattaraugus owes its existence largely to Joseph Plumb, who at one time owned most of the land now in the village. Mr. Plumb donated a "right of way" to the Erie Railroad through his property, including land on which to erect a depot. The village may be said to date from the construction of the railroad and its station. The 1839 map of the county fails to show any sign whatever of village or hamlet at this point. Although most of the land was situated on the hillsides which slope toward the tributaries of the Cattaraugus
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South Branch, a village of considerable importance sprang up in a remarkably short time, and Plumb's donation to the railroad proved to be a profitable investment. Oakes and Berger, a widely-known firm dealing in dairying supplies and similar wares, dates back to a small tin shop and tea-kettle repair establishment opened by Mr. Oakes in 1884. Its growth and prosperity has been a tremendous boon to the village. The location of most of the streets, especially Main Street, on a rather steep hillside, has gone to make problems for the community, but its citizens have displayed a forward-looking spirit as is shown by the broad lay-out of Main Street, making the handling of traffic less difficult.
When Mr. Plumb deeded land from his estate to other holders, a clause was inserted in each deed which provided that the title should revert to Mr. Plumb if liquor were sold on the premises. A man by name of Tubbs, a pool-room operator, sold liquor on some of this re- stricted territory, and Mr. Plumb began suit for its recovery. The Court of Appeals re-affirmed a decision which had been handed down by a lower court, which decided that Tubbs had forfeited his title, which reverted to Plumb. The latter, however, subsequently deeded the property to the Tubbs family.
The town of Mansfield, called Cecilius in its early days, appears to have received a considerable number of settlers in the decade be- tween 1820 and 1830, although a few people settled there previous to 1820. Nathaniel Fisk and Amos and Timothy Morgan, were among its earliest pioneers. The two Fenton brothers came from the vicinity of Collins in Erie County about 1819 and began clearing the forests on the holdings they had purchased. They were, however, possessed with a certain fear of the dangers which they believed abounded them; the panthers and wolves which inhabited the forests inspired them to take cautions which some might scoff at as cowardly, others might praise as prudent measures for their safety. The Fenton brothers built a platform in the branches of a tree and surrounded the tree with dry brush. These arrangements completed, the two young men felt more at ease, since at the approach of a panther or a wolf they could, if not too far distant, ascend to their platform after setting fire to the pile of dry brush which surrounded it. Their safety-first arrange- ment was soon destined to see practical use. One evening, perhaps as the youths were completing their daily tasks in the forest, a scream was heard resembling the cry of a panther, the hearing of which caused them to make a hasty retreat to the tree. Setting fire to the brush, they climbed to the platform, the cry from the forest perhaps still audible. The light from the brush fire must have made a spec- tacular reflection on the evening sky. Soon the dark form of a living being made its way from the woods. The terror which the Fentons felt at its coming soon turned to relief, as the youths discovered their
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third brother approaching. The third Fenton had left his home for Mansfield, following a blazed trail most of the distance. The darkness of night, which asserts itself earlier in the forest than in the open, resulted in his being unable to follow the trail. He cried through the forest for aid, and, soon discovering a bright light in one direction, he headed toward it, unable to understand why his brothers should be perched like monkeys in a tree. The three brothers stayed in Mans- field until the beginning of the 1819-20 winter, by which time they had grown dissatisfied with "roughing it" and decided to return to Erie County. While crossing Cattaraugus Creek on a raft, one of the brothers fell in the creek and nearly perished. There is no record of them ever having returned to Mansfield.
By 1830 there were nearly four hundred people residing in Mans- field. Two hamlets, Eddyville and Maples, sprang up in the northern part of town, but neither grew to any considerable size. Eddyville got its name from the Eddy family, influential in the history of the town.
James Franklin and his son, James, Jr., were the earliest settlers in the town of Leon. Abner Wise and his wife settled in the town the same year. Tom Cheney, a fifteen-year-old boy, came to the region and aided the Wises in clearing the land, probably making his home with them. Edmund Dudley came from Niagara County in the spring of 1819; he afterwards returned to Niagara County for a time, and on the way back to Leon he stopped at the Holland Land Co. office at Ellicottville. Inquiring as to the price of the land he was occupying in Leon, he met with the reply that half of the barrel of whiskey he had with him would pay for the land. Thus it came about that the first land deeded by the company in Leon was bought for half of a barrel of whiskey. The other settlers in the town were occupying the land by arrangement with the land proprietors, not having purchased it as yet. John Noyes ran a distillery for about six or seven years, later operating a carding mill. There was a poor supply of water power in Leon, and the lumbering industry did not thrive to any considerable extent. The dairying industry received an early start in this region, however, and several cheese factories and creameries were established.
In 1835 a post-office was established at Leon Mills, it being later moved to Leon. A post-office had previously been opened at Pleasant Grove in the eastern part of the town. No village of any considerable size ever grew up in the town except Leon, which is located near the center of the town.
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SECTION THIRTEEN DEVELOPMENT OF SOUTHWESTERN TOWNSHIPS
Eliphalet Follett, who opened a "house of entertainment" a short distance east of Rutledge, and James Butler, a native of Vermont, were probably the earliest settlers in Conewango. They came to the region in 1817. The widow McGlashen and her four sons came to the region in 1819. One of the sons, Robert, afterwards became the first justice. Several saw and grist mills were operated on Mill Creek and Elm Creek. Conewango saw early activity in dairying, several cream- eries being operated in the town. The old Chautauqua Road traversed the northern section of the town, and Rutledge, the chief hamlet located entirely in the town, was built along this route. Part of East Randolph and a small section of Conewango Valley also extend into Conewango township.
A post-office was established at Rutledge in 1825. The post-office was called Conewango and it was quite common to hear the village referred to by that name. A library was established in 1824, Cone- wango thus showing its progressive educational spirit at a much earlier date than its neighboring communities.
The early history of the town of Randolph is featured by the settlement there of a number of pioneers who stayed for a short time and then migrated westward. Among those in this category were Edmund Fuller, who, after living for a time in the West, again return- ed to this county, settling at Little Valley; Tom Harvey, who pur- chased Fuller's interests, and the York brothers, Sam and Jerry, the former coming to Randolph in 1821, the latter in 1823. In 1822, H. S. Latham, of Long Island, built the first substantial dwelling in the town, followed in 1823 by the second, built by Benjamin Clarke. Mr. Latham made an unsuccessful attempt to open a tannery. Otis Hitch- cock and family were also among the earliest settlers; the eldest of the ten Hitchcock children was fatally injured as a result of a fall from a horse sometime after the family settled in Randolph.
In 1823, Tom Harvey built a saw-mill on the banks of Beetle Run, usually known as "Dry Brook," because of the scarcity of water in its cannel during the greater part of the year. This mill ran about twelve years, being discontinued at that time because of the scarcity of water power. Walter Crowley operated a mill which worked a large quantity of pine for a number of years; the maintenance of this industry was suspended by the destruction of the dam from which it derived its power in 1865. After four years it was again put in operation, and after running with water power for a time, steam was made its power of operation. Abram Bush built a mill in 1830, the lumber being floated down the mill race to the Little Conewango. About 1870, En-
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field Leach became interested in this enterprise which came to be known as Red Lion Mills. It was located on the south side of Main Street, west of the Weeden Road's point of intersection.
Two villages, East Randolph and Randolph, sprang up in the town. The former was the chief center of industry in the early nine- teenth century, having the advantage of the superior water power afforded by Elm Creek and Spring Brook. The village was the center of a general foundry business founded in 1828 by Dozon, Pease & Swan. Elm Creek was the chief sourse of its power. Hall's Machine Works was also an early product of the community's industrial enter- prise. Erastus Hall began operation of a tannery in 1862 which may be considered a successor to Calvin Rumsey's unsuccessful attempt to operate one some time previously. A small part of East Randolph is in the town of Conewango.
The business section of the village of Randolph was centered in the vicinity of Dry Brook in its early history. This stream overflowed its banks so frequently that it was deemed expedient to move the location of the business section eastward, to the angle formed by Main and Jamestown Streets, in about 1835.
Like a few other districts of the county, Randolph was envisioned as the site of a future city, a vision which resulted in a combine form- ed for the purpose of land speculation. Each member was declared unable to sell without the consent of all members of the combine. It was dissolved by a decision of the County Court in 1849, giving the handicapped village a comparatively late chance at expansion.
The construction of what became A. & G. W. Railroad through Randolph gave it a great industrial advantage over East Randolph, and the latter village declined in importance as Randolph increased. For a time it showed promise of developing into a railroad center, and it seems likely that, had the proposed line of the A. & G. W. from Randolph to Buffalo materialized, this would have resulted. The vil- lage became the scene of Gibbs' Handle Factory, a planing mill, and a factory which manufactured dairying utensils. This factory's prod- ucts won first prize in the exhibit of such utensils at the New York State Fair.
The establishment of Randolph Academy, later known as Cham- berlain Institute, gave the village a reputation as an educational center. The community was also a center of archeological research. Dr. Frederick Larkin, of the village, conducted investigations concern- ing mounds and other pre-historic works in his own community and elsewhere. Similar research was conducted in the vicinity by Dr. Apoleon Cheney.
Sentiment in favor of merging East Randolph with Randolph in one village has failed to develop into an active movement. Technically
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existing as two villages, with separate water and fire departments, they can be described as a single community having two origins- one on each side of what might be termed "Educational Plateau," an imposing elevation noteworthy as the sight of Chamberlain Institute of former days, Randolph Central School of the present.
Philip Tome came from Susquehanna, Pa., to Cold Spring in 1818, and was one of the earliest white settlers in the town. Charles Crook, a veteran of the Revolutionary War, built a mill on Cold Spring Creek. Several saw-mills were located along the creek in time, the early ones being chiefly operated by water power, the later ones by steam. Spring Brook was dammed near East Randolph to furnish power for a saw- mill. The dam in its present form was built shortly before the open- ing of the present Glover's mill in 1833. Previous to the construction of the first dam at this point, it appears that the region was occupied by a smaller pond or a swamp. In recent times the pond at East Ran- dolph has been used as a fishing pond, boats being rented to sportsmen.
A fish hatchery, also located near East Randolph, was managed by James Eddy, who had come from Otsego County. By 1868, Mr. Eddy is said to have enlarged the hatchery until it contained sixteen ponds. After Mr. Eddy's death the hatchery was taken over by a man by name of Annin. The hatchery continued to flourish under Mr. Annin's management for some years, after which he sold it to the village of East Randolph for water supply. He went to the vicinity of Rochester where he maintained another hatchery. In recent times the East Randolph fish hatchery has been taken over by the state.
A lake of curious and singular nature of about two acres may be found northwest of Steamburg. It is known as Red Pond, a name given to it, according to general impression, because of the cast of the water either in the lake itself or in its outlet, which crosses Route 17 and empties into the Little Conewango. Whatever color the water in the outlet may appear, the water in the pond itself has a black, rather than red, tint.
An old legend, however, gives another explanation for the name of the lake. According to this legend, an Indian youth and a princess whom he courted, plunged to their death by suicide in the weird, black water of this pond after parental objection to their courtship had developed. The pond has been described as "treacherous" by those familiar with it. Certain it is that it reaches an amazing depth, even a few feet from the shore. It is fed from underneath, either by a channel or by springs, and it is said that a current having a suction which will draw a fishing line toward it can be noticed. The lake and the thickets on its shore form a haven for wild ducks. The dense growth of wildwood growing in the marshland along part of the lake shore contributes toward giving the scene a tropical appearance.
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A village known as Cold Spring existed near the mouth of Cold Spring Creek in the early nineteenth century. After the A. & G. W. Railroad established a station at Steamburg, the village practically moved to that point. Steamburg was the scene of several saw-mills, most of which were operated by steam. A milk plant was established in 1874.
The earliest settler in Napoli is believed to have been Timothy Butler, who settled a little east of the present Napoli Corners. He later left this region and settled in Virginia. George Hill came to Napoli in 1818, planting the first orchard in the town. Sergeant Morrill and his wife located a short distance southwest of the corners, toward East Randolph. A road from Little Valley into the town of Napoli was cleared by the earliest settlers, and it is quite probable that their communication was with Little Valley rather than East Randolph. It is recorded that "when Mr. Morrill arrived in town, having no team, he obtained the help of eight men and boys a day, who hauled logs with chain and rope and put up the body for a house."
At an early date, John Morrill, son of the above-mentioned pioneer, proceeded to Quaker Run with a mule, carrying three bags of corn. He had the grain ground at the Friends' grist mill and, as dark- ness overcame him on his homeward journey, he was unable to follow the path and became lost. Young Morrill, apparently having more confidence in the mule's instinct than in his own sense of direction, mounted the beast and arrived home safely late the same night.
A tannery was operated for a time by Nathan Bennett, having been opened in 1821. Napoli, like Leon and Conewango, had an early start in the dairying industry and several cheese factories and cream- eries were established. The lumbering industry never flourished to any great extent in Napoli. A post-office was established at Owens- borough in the northern part of the town in 1825 and one at Napoli Corners in 1827. The corners settlement was the only hamlet of any consequence in the town. It once contained three churches, and was the center of commercial and social life for the surrounding region.
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