History of Cayuga County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 8

Author: Storke, Elliot G., 1811-1879. cn
Publication date: 1879
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 762

USA > New York > Cayuga County > History of Cayuga County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 8

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

EARLY MODES OF TRAVEL.

light draft. Upon the upper edge and on both sides ran a wale or plank, the entire length, upon which the boatmen walked as they slowly poled the boats up stream. This was done by placing one end of a long pole on the bottom of the river and the other against the shoulder, and thus, by pushing, the boat was propelled.

After passing Little Falls there was a free passage of six miles, to the " German Flats," where, by reason of shoals, a short portage was made. From thence to Utica, fifteen miles, the passage was again free. Between Utica and Rome the water was shallow and obstructed by trees felled into it by the settlers. At Fort Stan- wix, now Rome, immigrants left the Mohawk and passed into Wood Creek by a portage of about two miles. This was a small, yet naviga- ble stream, that flowed into Oneida Lake after a course of about thirty miles. From Oneida Lake the route lay through the Oswego and Seneca Rivers to the outlets of the Cayuga and Seneca Lakes. On the latter, at Seneca Falls, their last obstruction was met.

The time required to make this journey from Schenectady to Seneca Lake was from fifteen to twenty days, and the bateaux then used were propelled by three men, and would carry about one and a half tons. A single family with few effects would, therefore, constitute a full load. This was the summer route of travel. In winter, the immigrants came on rude sleds drawn by oxen, through an unbroken forest, over a rude pathway made by widening the Indian trails, and often upon routes the only guides to which were blazed trees.

The summer route referred to was under the control and management of the Western Inland Lock Navigation Company, incorporated in 1791. This Company rapidly improved the navigation of their line, by constructing locks at Little Falls, removing the other obstructions in the Mohawk, and connecting that river with Wood Creek by a canal, straightening the former and shortening the distance over it nearly one half. Boats were now put upon the route propelled by five men, that would carry twelve tons, and ten days only were then required to go from Schenectady to Seneca Lake.

These improvements, limited as they were, are said to have doubled the value of the contiguous lands. For many years the route was liberally

patronized by the flood of immigrants that were seeking homes in Western New York. It was the great popular line to the West, passing through Cayuga County. It bore thousands of the early settlers to their new homes, brought to them their merchandise, and carried their produce to the eastern markets.

ERIE CANAL. - As settlements increased, the shoulders of men were found inadequate to push through the tortuous channels of the natural water courses the needed supplies and produc- tions of the people, and as early as 1803, Gouv- erneur Morris sounded the key note when he said " Lake Erie must be tapped and its waters carried over the country to the Hudson." The project of an artificial canal between the Hudson and the lakes, was vigorously canvassed from 1807 till the conclusion to build the work was reached. The survey was ordered in February, 1808. James Geddes, of Syracuse, was entrusted with the preliminary surveys, and instructed by the Surveyor-General as follows :

" As the provision made for the expenses of this business is not adequate to the effectual exploring of the country for this purpose, you will, in the first place, examine what may appear to be the best route for a canal from Oneida Lake to Lake Ontario, in the town of Mexico, and take a level and survey of it ; also whether a canal cannot be made between the Oneida Lake and Oswego, by a route in part to the west of the Oswego river, so as to avoid those parts along it where it will be impracticable to make a good navigation. The next object will be the ground between Lakes Erie and Ontario, which must be examined with a view to determine what will be the most eligible track for a canal from below Niagara Falls to Lake Erie. If your means will admit of it, it would be desirable to have a level taken throughout the whole distance between the lakes."

The whole expense of this preliminary survey was only $675. Mr. Geddes submitted his re- port on the three different routes in 1809. He most favored the interior route without passing through Lake Ontario.

These surveys established the practicability of this interior route for a canal, and the next step was to secure the means to build it. An effort was made to secure the aid of the General Gov- ernment in 1809, and the surveys and plans were laid before President Jefferson, who carefully ex amined them, but regarded the scheme as in the highest degree chimerical and disposed of it in

THE ERIE CANAL.

the following summary way: "You talk of making a canal three hundred and fifty miles through the wilderness ; it is little short of mad- ness to think of it at this day." But there was " order " and energy in the " madness" of the canal men at that day ; they persevered and tri- umphed.

In 1810 a commission was appointed, consisting of De Witt Clinton, Stephen Van Rensselaer and seven others, to explore the inland navigation route. They did so, and made a favorable re- port the next year. James Geddes and Ben- jamin Wright were then employed as engineers, and a second and fruitless effort was made. to se- cure Congressional aid. In 1812 the commis- sioners reported that "the canal should be built by the State of New York on her own account."

The war of 1812-'15, suspended operations relating to the canal ; but the Legislature of 1816 authorized the loan of a million dollars, and the section from Rome to the Seneca River was to be the first completed. This conclusion was based upon the possible contingency that the full plan might not be executed, and if not, the completion of this section would, with the Mohawk River, furnish greatly increased means of interior communication.

The report of the engineers, Messrs. Geddes and Wright, was made in 1816, embracing a careful survey of the line from Rome to Black Rock and revised estimates of the cost of the entire canal, placing it at $5,000,000.

On June 27th, 1817, the first contract was made, and July 4th of that year the first spade- ful of earth was lifted at Rome from the grand Erie Canal with appropriate ceremonies. The first contractor was John Richardson, of Cayuga County. Ninety-four miles of the canal were completed in the autumn of 1820, and in Novem- ber, 1825, the entire work was finished from the Hudson to the Lakes, at a cost, including the Champlain Canal, of $8,273, 122.66.

In July, 1820, boats commenced running be- tween Utica and Montezuma three times a week, the trip requiring two days, and the fare on the packet boats, including board, was $4. Stages ran from the principal interior villages for the transportation of passengers, and freight wagons for goods and merchandise. In 1821 the boats ran from Montezuma to Schenectady.

In the completion of the Erie Canal our citi-

zens took a lively interest and made arrange- ments to celebrate the event. On the 29th day of September, 1825, a meeting of the citizens of Auburn was held at the Western Exchange, then kept by Holt & Curtis ; Dr. Erastus Humphreys was Chairman, and William H. Seward, Secre- tary. The following resolution was passed :

" Resolved, That we hail with great satisfac- tion the approaching completion of the Erie Canal, the most splendid work of internal im- provement undertaken in any country, and that we will heartily cooperate with our fellow-citi- zens in other parts in celebrating the same."

Elijah Miller, Erastus Humphreys and S. W. Hughes were appointed a committee to arrange for the celebration. That event occurred at Port Byron-then Bucksville-on the 27th day of Oc- tober, 1825, and was an occasion of great festivi- ty. An ox was roasted, cannon fired, speeches made and toasts given ; one of the latter, as ex- hibiting the enthusiasm excited by the event, we reproduce.

By James Lucky, Esq .:

"The grand Erie Canal; a monument of wonder, which at its commencement was looked upon by its friends with fear, and by its foes as an impossibility. But fear has been lost in joy, and impossibilities have been overcome; the work is completed and it is ours to 'rejoice with exceeding joy.'"

" Weed's Basin " and " Bucksville " were sharp rivals for the honor of being the port of entry for the more pretentious village of Auburn, and of the business of the county to and from the canal. Stages were run over both routes, and a lively freight and passenger traffic was main- tained for fourteen years, until the construction of the Auburn & Syracuse Railroad.

EARLY ROADS-STAGES .- The first roads through our County followed quite closely the Indian trails. In 1790, General Wadsworth and a party of immigrants, widened the trail from Whitestown to Canandaigua. In 1797, $45,000 were raised by lotteries, under the authority of the State, to improve its various roads, the great Genesee road receiving $2,200, of this sum. That road through this County was, substantially, the old road through Skaneateles and Mottville, through Franklin street in Auburn, and thence westerly nearly on a line with Genesee street, to Cayuga Ferry, which was about one mile north of the present Cayuga Village.

In 1797, the Cayuga Bridge Company was in-

EARLY STAGE LINES.

corporated, comprising John Harris, Thomas Morris, Wilhemus Mynders, Charles Williamson and Joseph Annin, the latter the Sheriff of the County in 1800. The bridge was completed in that year, at a cost of $25,000.00. Its length was one mile and eight rods.

THE SENECA TURNPIKE COMPANY. - This company was incorporated in 1800, to construct a turnpike road six rods wide, from Utica to Canandaigua ; twenty-five feet of it, in the cen- ter, to be covered with gravel, or broken stone, to a depth of fifteen inches. They were permit- ted to place gates ten miles from each other, and to exact twelve and one-half cents toll for two- horse teams, and twenty-five cents for four horses. The Cherry Valley Turnpike was also laid out in that year, running from Cherry Val- . ley, in the county of Otsego, to the outlet of the Skaneateles Lake, where it connected with the great Seneca Turnpike.

In 1804, an act was passed giving Jason Parker and Levi Stevens the exclusive right to run stage wagons for seven years, on the new turnpike between Utica and Canandaigua. These were the first stages which ran through Cayuga Coun- ty. The number of passengers to each coach was limited by law to seven adults, and the stages made two trips per week. In 1805, John Post fitted up three stage boats, or bateaux with seats and oil cloth coverings, to run between Utica and Schenectady. The current would carry the boats down the Mohawk ; but they were poled up by men, the same as were the other boats of the " Navigation Company."

The population of Cayuga County and of the entire Military Tract was, at this time, increas- ing with wonderful rapidity, and the supplies of merchandise which they required and the ship- ment eastward of their surplus productions, so over-taxed the public means of transportation, that they were supplemented by private freight wagons, carrying farm products to Albany and returning laden with merchandise. A caravan of teams from a neighborhood would go in com- pany and assist each other, by doubling teams up heavy hills or through the deep sloughs. These long journeys, the round trip often oc- cupying two weeks, were thus cheered by mu- tual aid and sympathy, and were rather interest- ing episodes in the routine of early farm life. At the hospitable inns, which arose by the way-side

every few miles, these hardy and happy teamsters would pass a noon, or night, as cheerfully as any modern traveler in the pretentious hotels of to- day. Besides these farm-teams heavy transpor- tation wagons were regularly run over the Seneca Turnpike, often drawn by from seven to nine horses, and carrying a proportionate load. The wagons were massive, with very broad tires, to prevent them from penetrating the road-bed. The writer well remembers the interest with which in early boyhood he viewed the broad and distinctly marked paths left in the highways by the wheels of these " big wagons," and the great difficulty which they encountered in passing through the miry road south of the " Bottsford Tavern," three miles north of Auburn.

THE SHERWOOD'S AND OTHER STAGE LINES .- In 1809, Isaac Sherwood, of Skaneateles, became a partner of Jason Parker of Utica, in the stage line through this County, carrying the United States Mail. In 1816, a line of stages left Canan- daigua every week-day, and ran to Utica in thirty- six hours. The proprietors were Thomas Powell, J. Parker, J. Wetmore, Aaron Thorpe and Isaac Sherwood & Co. From Utica east, a tri-weekly line ran to Albany, under the control of the same parties. This "old line mail," held the exclusive control of the passenger transportation over the great central line of travel, until 1828, and their business was large and remunerative.

In that year the "Pioneer line" of stages was put upon the route. It was intended to further the reforms demanded by a large public sentiment opposed to Sunday traveling. A national society "to promote the due observance of the Sabbath," had been formed. The members of this society were required to sign written or printed pledges to patronize only those lines of stages, steam, and canal boats, that ran only on secular days. Aux- iliary societies were formed throughout the coun- try, and liberal subscriptions made to carry out the plan of running " six day lines." The old stage companies offered to sell their stage prop- erty to the new organization ; but their offer was rejected and the gauntlet thrown down for a ter- rible stage war.

The old companies were financially strong ; understood their business fully ; had, by an ex- perience of years of successful business, mastered all its details, and were, of course, prepared to maintain a sharp contest with their inexperienced

RAILROADS.

rivals. They had but one interest over the prin- cipal lines of travel in the State, and they united, as one man, in the fight. The old contestants at this time were : Jason Parker, A. Shepard, S. D. Child, and T. S. Faxton, of Utica ; Isaac Sherwood, of Skaneateles ; J. M. Sherwood, of Auburn ; C. H. Coe, of Canandaigua ; Adams & Blinn, of Rochester ; B. D. Coe, of Buffalo ; E. Phillips, of Syracuse ; S. Goodwin, of Madison; William Storey, Cherry Valley ; Asa Sprague, of Schenectady ; and A. Thorpe, of Albany.

Many stage lines then converged at Auburn, from Homer, Ithaca, Oswego, Aurora, &c., and hence the struggle for passengers at this point was sharp. The " Pioneer line" obtained control of the Western Exchange, then the leading hotel of the village, where the old line horses had been kept, and hoped thus to embarrass and defeat their rivals ; but a new place was quickly fitted up opposite the Bank of Auburn, entitled the " Bank Coffee House," and made the general head-quar- ters here of the " old line."

The citizens of Auburn and of the county gen- erally were not idle spectators of the contest. They came in large numbers to the aid of the old stage interest, and to defend, what they believed to be a sacred individual right, attempted to be forcibly wrested from them by a class of men whom they denominated fanatics. At a very large public meeting, at which it is said one thousand were in attendance, Rev. John Jeffreys, of Mentz, stated the object of the meeting, and the following is one of the resolutions adopted.

" Resolved, as the sense of this meeting, that all associations and combinations of men, formed to prescribe and dictate to others in what man- ner they shall observe and keep the Sabbath, are subversive of the free exercise of the rights of conscience ; and that this meeting hereby enters their solemn protest against the forming, or or- ganizing any religious party in politics."

Archibald Green, William H. Seward, and Dr. Campbell, were appointed a committee to publish the proceedings of the meeting in pamphlet form.

The opponents of the "Pioneer line" did not object to legitimate competition in running stages, or in other business ; but they did object to combining the religious opinions of a portion of the community, to coerce those who differed from them.

To secure a more rapid transit of passengers, and thus increase patronage, J. M. Sherwood &

Co., caused to be built for them, a sufficient num- ber of light, yet strong, coaches, to carry six pas- sengers only, drawn by their fleetest horses, and driven by their most reliable men, and denomi- nated the " Telegraph line."

The building of the "American Hotel," now St. James, was an outgrowth of the stage con- test. It was commenced in 1828 and finished and occupied in 1830, by J. M. Sherwood & Co., and was the head-quarters of their stage business. The hotel was kept by Thomas Noyes, and the agent of the large stage business, was the ever bland and courteous Consider Carter, kindly remembered, by all that knew him. The new and rapid "Telegraph line"; the building of the "American" ; the failure to secure the carriage of the United States Mail ; but above all the fail- ing support of their enterprise by the great body of the people, were so many broken links in the chain of their hopes, that the "Pioneer" speedily waned, withered and died ; leaving the field again free to the " old line," which they held until January 28th, 1838. On the completion of the Auburn and Syracuse Railroad, the eastern bound stages were hauled off ; and many of the horses were employed for about a year and a half in drawing the cars upon wooden rails between Auburn and Syracuse.

RAILROADS .- The first movement towards the construction of a railroad from Auburn to the canal was made in 1828, in which year the con- mittee of the Legislature on Canals and Internal Improvements, reported favorably upon the sub- ject of lending State aid to the construction of the road from Auburn to Weed's Basin. Their reasons for favoring the measure were first: it would be a feasible and cheap experiment, and furnish a model for improvements of a similar kind ; second: the needed accommodations of the people, and third: the advantage it would be to the interests of the State represented in the Auburn prison.

The same committee add : " That in particular districts, and for particular objects, improvements by railroads can be usefully extended ; but that they can bear a fair competition with well located and well supplied canals, remains to be proved ; and while railroads are of minor consideration, yet as tributaries to the canals, they will be of vital importance." The committee add, " that un- employed convicts could be engaged in the con-

AUBURN & SYRACUSE RAILROAD.

struction of the road," and they unanimously agreed upon a bill for the purpose. Francis Granger was the chairman of the committee, and the presumed author of the report, but the meas- ure failed.

AUBURN AND SYRACUSE RAILROAD .- Pursuant to the action of a public meeting held at the Western Exchange in January, 1832, an applica- tion was made to the Legislature, then in session, to incorporate a company to construct a railroad to the canal. The charter was finally obtained May Ist, 1834; (Chapter 228 Session Laws.) The corporators were : Daniel Sennett, Ulysses F. Doubleday, Bradley Tuttle, David Munro, Grove Lawrence and William Porter, Jr. The following named gentlemen were appointed commissioners to receive subscriptions of stock, viz. : Daniel Sennett, Ulysses F. Doubleday, Bradley Tuttle, John Seymour, Halsey Phelps, Stephen Van Anden, David Munro, John Wilkinson, Grove Lawrence, Hezekiah Earll and William Porter, Jr. The organization was perfected in January, 1835, as follows : Elijah Miller, President ; A. D. Leonard, George B. Throop, N. Garrow, J. M. Sherwood, S. Van Anden, Richard Steele, John Seymour, Abijah Fitch, E. E. Marvine and Allen Warden, of Auburn, and Henry Raynor and Vivus W. Smith, of Syracuse, Directors ; E. F. Johnson, Engineer, and Levi Williams, Assistant Engineer ; Levi Lewis, Superintend- ent. About six months were spent in surveying and locating the road, and work was begun upon it in December, 1835. The first payment to contractors was in January, 1836.

The construction of this road was met with unexpected embarrassment. The very severe financial panic of 1837, and the general suspen- sion of banks and the failure of business men, rendered it difficult to negotiate the necessary funds ; but the energy and perseverance of the directors overcame these obstacles, and on Jan- uary 8th, 1838, the road was open from Auburn to Geddes, the cars being drawn by horses until June 4th, 1839, when the first locomotive was used, Amos Sherwood, Alfred Conklin, J. H. Che- dell, Thomas Y. How, Jr., John Wilkinson, C. C. Dennis, and George H. Wood, have been prominently connected with its management.

This road was first intended to be a part of a line of communication extending to the head of Owasco Lake, and its depot terminus was to

have been near the stone mills of Messrs. Burr & Thorne, and there connect with the projected Owasco Canal. A freight depot was secured on the south side of Genesee street, and used for some time. This road had the exceptional privi- lege, at that day, of carrying freight. Wil- liam G. Fargo commenced his eventful life in transportation, in the capacity of freight agent in this depot. Silas W. Armett and George C. Skinner, were, in turn, his successors.

The freight cars then used had but four wheels, and three tons constituted a full load. These freight cars were hauled to and from the car house, then on Van Anden street, to the freight depot, one at a time, by horses owned and driven by Jabez Gould. "Uncle Nat Williams," long the prince of freight men between Auburn and the Erie Canal, was the freight conductor on this road. He was succeeded on the 5th day of Sept., 1841, by J. Lewis Grant, this being his first expe- rience in railroad business in which he sub- sequently became distinguished as the superin- tendent and manager of several important lines. The depot was fixed at its present location by law, after a long and bitter controversy.

The early passenger cars rested on four wheels, had three compartments, with seats running lengthwise upon the sides like those of an omni- bus, and each compartment would seat eight per- sons. There was no room to move about, or stand upright, any more than in the late stage coaches. Side doors opened into each compart- ment through which " collector," as he was called, could enter. He passed from one com- partment and car to another, by hanging to a hand rail near the top of the car, and walking on a foot piece extending the length of the car on the outside, and about four or five inches wide. Collector Wilkinson lost his life by slipping from his frail foot-hold one snowy night and rolling beneath the cars.

The first eight-wheel coach, with center aisles and end platforms, was put upon the Auburn road in 1839, and it was, for several years, the only eight-wheeled car upon the entire line to Albany. The locomotives then used were about one-fourth the present weight.

The Auburn and Rochester Railroad was com- pleted November 4th, 1841, finishing the chain of roads from Albany to Buffalo, then comprising seven separate companies, as follows : Albany

THE "DIRECT" ROAD -SOUTHERN CENTRAL.

and Schenectady, Utica and Schenectady, Syra- cuse and Utica, Auburn and Syracuse, Auburn and Rochester, Rochester and Attica, and Attica and Buffalo. Each of these roads was operated separately and, at the terminus of each, the pas- sengers and baggage changed cars, the check for the baggage being a chalk mark upon it, indi- cating its destination. Seven different tickets must be procured by each through passenger, and there were the same number of conductors to "punch," not the tickets, but the sleepy and irritated travelers, who could take but little rest between the terminal stations. This annoying practice was soon superseded by through tickets and through cars. The Auburn and Syracuse and Auburn and Rochester Railroads, were consoli- dated in July, 1850, and a general consolidation of all the roads was effected under the general title of the " New York Central," on May 17th, 1853.

THE DIRECT LINE OF THE NEW YORK CEN- TRAL RAILROAD .- The line from Syracuse to Rochester, composed of the Auburn & Syracuse and the Auburn & Rochester Railroads, was one hundred and four miles over a crooked route with heavy grades. In 1849, the attention of Mr. John Wilkinson, of Syracuse, and others was called to the necessity of constructing a more direct and level railroad between Syracuse and Rochester, and with that object in view they organized the Rochester and Syracuse Direct Railroad Company, August Ist, 1850, with a capital of $4,200,000. The surveys were made by O. C. Childs, and showed that a level railroad could be constructed twenty-two miles shorter than the old line. This road was built in the ensuing years under the direction of James Hall, engineer, and opened in 1853. In 1855 it was consolidated with the . New York Central Railroad Company which was formed under the Act of April 2d, 1853, authorizing the con- solidation of the several roads in operation and in contemplation between Albany, Troy, Buffalo and Niagara Falls. The stock of the company was received at $130, and each stockholder re- ceived a like amount of stock of the new com- pany at par, and for the difference, certificates or premium bonds bearing six per cent. interest, and payable May Ist, 1883.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Cayuga County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 8

Author: Storke, Elliot G., 1811-1879. cn Publication date: 1879 Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason Number of Pages: 762

Author: Storke, Elliot G., 1811-1879. cn
Publication date: 1879
Publisher: Syracuse, N.Y. : D. Mason
Number of Pages: 762