History of Chautauqua County, New York : from its first settlement to the present time : with numerous biographical and family sketches, Part 69

Author: Young, Andrew W. (Andrew White), 1802-1877; Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation. fmo; Huntington Free Library. fmo
Publication date: 1875
Publisher: Buffalo, N.Y. : Printing House of Matthews & Warren
Number of Pages: 948

USA > New York > Chautauqua County > History of Chautauqua County, New York : from its first settlement to the present time : with numerous biographical and family sketches > Part 69

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OTIS SKINNER was born Oct. 20, 1799, in Norwich, Chenango Co., N. Y., and, in 1823, removed to this town, and settled on lot 32. In 1868, he removed to the village, where he resided until his death, Aug. 7, 1872. He was a prominent citizen, and a leading member of the Baptist church. He was the first justice of the peace in the township while it was a part of the town of Clymer ; and he was supervisor of Mina when Sherman was a part of that town, and of Sherman since its erection. He was also for several years a justice of the sessions of the county court. He was married, June 9, 1822, to Sylance Randall, who was born March 10, 1802, in Richmond, N. H. They had 10 children, besides two who died in infancy : 1. Joseph, who resides near the early homestead of his father. 2. Julia D., wife of Harrison Wade, who resides in Garland, Pa. 3. Sarah Jane, who resides in town, unmarried. 4. Eliza, wife of Calder Wolcott, who live on her father's early homestead. 5. James M., who died at 24. 6. Charles, who went to California ; enlisted in the war against the Indians, and died of fever at Great Salt Lake City, March 2, 1863. 7. Lovinia, who married Wm. H. Robbins, and resides in town. 8. Mary E., unmarried.

LOREN STEBBINS was born in Conway, Mass., Oct. 27, 1804, and after a brief residence in Vermont, and Yates and Livingston counties, N. Y., removed, in 1828, to Sherman, near Waite's Corners. In 1873, he removed to the

Gliš Skinner

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SHERMAN.

village, where he now resides. He was married, in Livingston Co., to Eunice Willard, and had 6 children : Sophrona, who married Francis H. Chappell, and lives in Wisconsin ; Ann, wife of George Tarbell, in Corry, Pa .; Elvira, wife of Myron H. Eggleston, in Harmony ; Martha Jane, who died at 30, un- married ; Julius, who died in the army, of disease, at Suffolk, Va .; Carlos, who married Lydia Bunker, of Ohio, and resides on his father's farm in Sherman.

CHURCHES AND OTHER ASSOCIATIONS.

The First Presbyterian Church of Sherman was organized June 23, 1827, as the First Congregational Church of Mina. Most of the original members were from the Congregational church of Farmington, Conn. : Elisha Wood- ruff, Charlotte Woodruff, Wm. Williams, Mary Williams, Charles Hawley, Clara Hawley, Robert Woodruff, George Hart, Esther Hart, Dennis Hart, Elvira Hart, Julia Gleason, Hiram N. Gleason, Ava Hart, Betsey W. Hall. H. Gleason and Asa Hart united on profession of faith. The church was organized by Rev. Miles P. Squier and Rev. Amasa West, and united with the Presbytery of Buffalo. Rev. Justin Marsh, from Connecticut, its first minister, was installed October, 1828. The church was largely helped by the Connecticut Missionary Society. A church edifice was built on land given the society by Charles Hawley, near Keeler's Corners, on Presbyterian Hill, and was dedicated March-7, 1833 ; sermon by Rev. D. D. Gregory. The house was taken down and moved to Sherman village during the fall of 1845; and in 1856, it was enlarged and repaired. In the spring of 1871, the church adopted the Presbyterian form of government, and was connected with Pres- bytery. Its first pastor was Rev. Justin Marsh, from Oct., 1828, to Aug., 1831. Those who have since served the church as pastors and stated supplies, were J. B. Wilson, Jabez Spicer, H. Eddy, Edwin Coleman, C. S. Cady, Romaine Payne, Oliver N. Chapin, Wm. T. Reynolds, A. H. Lilly, Walter Couch, Ezra Jones, Henry M. Hazeltine, John F. Severance, Wm. L. Hyde. Present pastor, S. N. Robinson. Elders, E. C. Hart, J. M. Calhoun, H. L. Kendrick.

The First Baptist Church of Sherman was formed Aug. 29, 1827, 2 12 miles south of the village, the Rev. Orange Spencer officiating. The number of its constituent members is said to have been 25, with 5 more recognized as such, who were without letters at the time. The earliest records being miss- ing, the names can not all be given. The following are given from recollec- tion: Rev. Orange Spencer, Benj. Boorman, Nathaniel Throop, Lester Leach, and their wives, Lucy Pelton, Polly Hewitt, Harriet Gardner, Mrs. Selden, Benj. Selden, and Harriet Allen. Orange Spencer is said to have been the . first Baptist that ever preached in the town. Meetings were held in dwell- ings and school-houses until about 1842, when they began to hold meetings in their unfinished meeting-house in the village, which was not completed and dedicated until 1844. Rev. Mr. Spencer was the first pastor, and was suc- ceeded by George Sawin, Thomas Ravlin, Charles Sanderson, who served the church for 19 years. Rev. J. N. Pease is the present pastor. Two of the con- stituent members, Dea. Benjamin Boorman and his wife, are still living.

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

The Free Baptist Church of Sherman was organized about the year 1835, Elder Levi Rexford presiding. The persons constituting the church at its organization, were : Dexter Stebbins and Eliza, his wife; Moses Stebbins, Samantha Stebbins, Loren Stebbins, and Irene Stebbins, who was the mother of Dexter, Moses, Samantha, and Loren Stebbins; and Daniel Eastman. Among its early members were Sally Stebbins, Jane Ransom, Clarissa Knapp, J. W. Huntley and Mary, his wife. The first clerk was Dexter Steb- bins ; the present clerk, Aaron Stebbins. The first deacon was Loren Steb- bins, who still holds the office with Rolfe Eggleston. The first pastor was Levi Rexford. Among its later ministers were A. Hulin, B. F. Neuly, Arad Losee, Ansel Griffith, Oliver Johnson, Benj. M. Koon, and the present pastor, Robert Martin. This church numbers 145 members.

Olive Lodge of Freemasons, No. 575, was organized July 6, 1865. Its charter members were Lyman S. Herrington, S. B. Miller, S. H. Myrick, S. D. Adams, J. A. Merry, Samuel Little, Lewis T. Harrington, Thomas R. Coveney, William E. Thorp, James E. Coveney. First officers, appointed by the grand lodge-L. T. Harrington, W. M .; S. B. Miller, S. W .; S. H. Myron, J. W. Elected-W. H. Keeler, treas .; T. R. Coveney, sec .; S. D. Adams, S. D .; L. T. Harrington, J. D .; J. M. Coveney, S. M. C .; E. Myrick, J. M. C .; Alfred Thorp, tyler. Present officers [1873]-Samuel Little, W. M .; B. J. Coffin, S. W .; Henry Wilson, J. W .; C. E. Sheldon, treas .; C. H. Corbett, sec .; S. C. Horton, S. D .; P. S. Page, J. D .; J. W. Burrows, S. M. C .; William F. Green, J. M. C .; P. E. Wellman, tyler.

STOCKTON.

THIS town was formed from Chautauqua, Feb. 9, 1821. It was named in honor of Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. One tier and a half of lots [12] from the north part of Ellery were annexed in 1850. It includes also one tier of lots taken from tp. 4, r. 13, on its west side, and contains an area of 28,860 acres. Its surface is a rolling upland. The soil of the upland is a clay loam, and in the valleys, a sandy loam. Cassadaga lake lies principally in Stockton, in the north-east corner of the town, and Bear lake about .3 miles west ; both extending north into the town of Pomfret. These lakes give names to their outlets, Cassadaga and Bear creeks, which unite in the south-eastern part of the town. Their united waters flowing south-easterly, and crossing the extreme north-east corner of Ellery, form, just within the west line of Gerry, a junction with Mill creek. These are the principal tributaries of the Cassadaga, which, in its very mean- dering course south-easterly through portions of Gerry, Ellicott, and Poland, unites with the Connewango creek in the south part of Poland. The com- bination of these streams forms the Connewango river, which flows southward into Pennsylvania, and unites with the Allegany river.

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STOCKTON.

Original Purchases in Township 4, Range 12.

1809. November, Hezekiah Vial, 38.

1810. May, Joseph Green, 49. Bela Todd, 33. Benjamin Miller, 39. June, Lawrence Scofield, 50. 1811. April, Ebenezer and Salmon Tyler, 33. Silas Gates, 24. Heze- kiah Vial, 32. Henry Walker, 49. August, Benj. Miller, 31. October, Shadrach Scofield, 50, 58. November, Zattu Cushing, 32.

1812. June, Abel Thompson, 29, 37.

1815. April, Calvin Nelson, 29. Alfred Trow, 29. May, Frederic Sprague, 25. James Haywood, 28, 36. George Porter, Jr., 34. Aaron Jones, 48. Bela Todd, IT. June, Levi C. Miller, 40. August, Jesse Hig- gins, 37. September, Samuel Crissey, 40. Joseph Sackett, 23. October, Thomas Curtis, 19, 20. Zaheth Higgins, 37.

1816. May, Hiram Lazell, 21. Calvin Hitchcock, 19. Edward Ellis, 21. July, Aaron Smith, 13. Sawyer Phillips, 15. Stephen Williams, 41. September, Gould Crissey, 45. October, Adam McNitt, 13. Joseph Sac- kett, 14. David Sackett, 11. Dec., Elijah Nelson, 45. Philip Phillips, 15. 1817. April, Jeduthan Smith, 15. Eben'r Smith, Jr., 6. June, Aaron Lyon, 12. Calvin Smith, 20.

1818. March, Alva Lazell, 27. May, Lewis C. Todd, 10.

1819. May, Gilbert Putnam, 33. Aretus Rogers, 43, 44. July, Calvin Warren, 40. Levi C. Miller and Parley Munger, 40.

1821. October, Philip Phillips, 6. Stephen Crane, 44. Jonathan Clark, 22, 23. Hiram Jones, 22. Robert Belding, 22. Nathan Smith, 22, 23. Israel Smith, 22.

1822. May, William A. Glisson, 3. July, Ebenezer Smith, Jr., 5. Sep- tember, Zephaniah Rogers, 43.

1823. February, Stephen Crane, 35. March, Harvey Gibbs, 54.

1824. March, John Russell, 2. April, Truman Todd, 62. May, Robert Padden, 62. Bela Todd, 11. June, Daniel Johnson, 61. Franklin Black-

mer, 61. Alvin Crissey, 31. September, Stephen Crane, 53. Ely F. Mun-

ger, 31. October, Ebenezer Smith, Jr., 14.

May, Elam Todd, 64. September, John Brown, 60.

1826.

1825. January, Chauncey Goodrich, 52. October, James Morrill, 51.

1827. February, Thomas Francis, 51. James Francis, 51. June, Wm.

Weed, 51. August, Andrew Putnam, 25. Roswell Reed, 51. September, Abraham Bennett, 35. October, Thomas Carlisle, 35.

1828. March, Alanson McClary, 43. Nathaniel Getchell, 51. William Sabin, 43. June, Edwin Francis, 59. July, Wm. B. Brooks, 59. Aug., Jas. Duncan, 55. Geo. Dye, 35. Sept., David L. Getchell, 35. Jesse Wells, 43.

1829. Jannary, Ephraim Sanford, 43. February, Abel White, 10. March, William Weed, 51. Eliakim Lindsey, 59. Bela Tracy, 1, 2. July, Josiah Richardson, 5. August, John Scovel, 10. September, Abraham Eddy, 26. October, Mason Tower, 10. David .L. Hills, 64. Joel Rogers, 64. Dec., Heman Padden, 60. November, Foster Mitchell, 55.

1830. March, George Cipperly, 4. April, Fordam Pease, 60. May, Titus Johnson, 60. Eleazar Flagg, Jr., 25. October, Henry H. Haner, 2. James Jones, 27. Elisha B. Rossiter, 64. November, Waterman Ells- worth and others, 42. Adna Lamson, 3. Andrew Putnam and others, 42. Samuel Palmer, 58. David Hills, 64.

1831. January, Abraham Bennett, 44. May, Nathan Brown, 63. Chas. Brown, 55.

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

Township 3, Range 12.

1809. November, John Fish, 32.

1810. March, Timothy Russell, 64.

18II. April, Ebenezer Tyler, 48. Solomon Tyler, 48. Jonathan Bug- bee, Jr., 40.

1817. February, Amos Inman, 40. Philander Brunson, 15. July, New- ell Putnam, 32.

1822. August, John O. Harris, 10.

I830. September, Justus Jones, 56. November, Samuel Jones, 23. December, Horace Brunson, 23.

Township 4, Range 13.

1811. June, Roswell Ladd, 2. August, Thomas Smith, 4. James Dyer,

I. David Waterbury, I. Peleg Scofield, 7.

1826. February, Almon and Heman Barber, 5. April, Allen Barber, 5. 1827. October, Hiram Barber, 5. Samuel S. Jones and Abel J. Parker, 6.

Shadrach Scofield, David Waterbury, and Henry Walker, from Saratoga Co., says the State Gazetter, made the first settlement in the south part of the town, in 1810. The names, however, of not less than ten original pur- chasers were entered in 1809, the first that of John Silsby, of lot 48. Some of these, it is presumed, settled on their lands the same year. Henry Walk- er's name appears as that of a purchaser in lot 49, in tp. 4, r. 12, May, 1811, and that of Schofield as a purchaser in lots 50 and 58, Oct., 1811. Water- bury appears only as purchaser of lot 1, tp. 4, r. 13, now a part of Stockton; but we find him on the Land Company's plat of tp. 4, r. 12, as owner of the west part, and Shadrach Scofield of the east half of lot 57, though neither appears on the sales book as purchaser of any part of that lot, which is the south-east corner lot of that township.

Mr. Crissey, in his historical sketch of Stockton, says, Ebenezer Tyler and Solomon [Salmon] Tyler, from Greene Co., John West, Joseph Green, and Bela Todd, from Herkimer Co., moved in and settled on the town line, [south line of tp. 4, r. 12,] about the first of March, 1810. The contracts of both Green and Todd are dated May, 1810. West appears nowhere as purchaser on the sales book, except in the town of Chautauqua, lot 29, tp. 3, r. 13, in Nov., 1810. The contract of the Tylers, however, bears date April, 1811. In October of the same year, [1810,] says Mr. C., Samuel Waterbury, Shad- rach Scofield, and Henry Walker, all from Saratoga Co., settled in the west- ern part of the town.

The next year, 1811, the sketch continues, Dexter Barnes and John Aker came in from Herkimer Co. It does not mention their location. Barnes was a blacksmith. In June of that year, he built the first blacksmith shop in town, on the south side of the road, a little distance east of the residence of Henry Alden. His name is not found in the list of original land purchasers in Stockton. In March, 1814, John Ecker, [probably the man Aker,] bought a part of lot 41, though he probably came at the time stated. He had the distinction of being the first fiddler in the town. Dancing was a favorite amusement with many of the settlers. With only log cabins, and these gen-

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STOCKTON.

erally having but one room, it required considerable tact to provide a suita- ble ball-room. By turning the beds out of doors, or crowding them up cham- ber, sufficient space was provided for single jigs and French fours ; and fiddling John had considerable custom. During this year, [1811,] Comfort and Elisha Morgan located about a mile north of Shadrach Scofield, on lot 58, being one of the two before mentioned as having been purchased by Mr. Scofield, and adjoining the one on which he resided.

The next year, 1812, the war broke out with Great Britain. Many of the settlers were called out in the defense of their country. From this section went Shadrach Scofield, Dexter Barnes, Bela Todd, Comfort Morgan, Elisha Morgan, Nathan Bugbee, and Wyman Bugbee. But the red coats were too much for them. Buffalo was burned ; and in a few weeks they all returned ; Comfort Morgan with a bullet in his knee, (certainly not a very comfortable reminder of his experience,) and Wyman Bugbee with a hole in his hat. Fears were now had of a visit from the Indians with tomahawks in hand. Happily those fears were not realized ; and the hardy pioneers went to slaying trees instead of Indians.

In 1811, Benjamin Miller, from Oneida county, settled three-fourths of a mile north of Delanti. He came with two ox-teams, and one or two hired men ; and on the day of his arrival he built a shanty of poles and hemlock boughs, which sheltered them for the night. This was the first settlement in Bear creek valley. As did many others in the time of the war, in this front- ier county exposed to the enemy, Mr. Miller, after a stay of about two years, went back to Oneida county ; and after the war was over, he returned to his farm, where he resided till his death in 1857. His son William O. resides on a part of the old farm ; Linus W., on land adjoining. There were three daughters : Laura, who was married to Origen Crissey ; Elvira, to John L. Kazer ; and Irene, to Royal L. Carter. All are now widows ; the two last, residing in Fredonia.

In June, 1812, Abel Thompson, from Sangerfield, N. Y., bought 100 acres from the north part of lot 29, and 178 acres from the north part of 37 ; in- cluding the farm now owned by Truman Todd, and extending west beyond the creek, and north to and including a small part of the village of Delanti. He was the first settler there. His house was a square pen of logs covered with elm bark, with a floor of split logs, and with no chimney but a hole in one end of the roof to let out the smoke and to let in daylight. The fire was built on the ground against the end of the house, the logs of which were protected from the fire by two or three huge back logs. Early the next year he brought in his family with an ox-team, the snow being still deep, with a crust hard enough to bear up a man, but not the oxen. He unloaded his goods at Mr. Miller's on the snow. A road must be cut through the thick underbrush and broke through to his partly built log cabin, a distance of three-quarters of a mile, which required two days, a longer time than it now requires to come from New York. Mr. Thompson died in December, 1831. Two of his sons, Horace and Newell C., are still living in Stockton.

558

HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

In 1815, Hiram Lazell and Elijah Nelson came from Massachusetts. A year or two after, they went back to Massachusetts, got married, and returned with their families in November, 1817 ; Mr. Lazell having bought lot 21, May, 1816; and Mr. Nelson lot 45, in November following. They are said to have aided much in the early settling and building up of Delanti.

Aaron Lyon, Samuel Shepard, and Ira Jennings, all from Mass., came in July, 1819. Mr. Lyon appears as an original purchaser in lot 12, in June, 1817, though he settled early on the west side of Cassadaga lake, on lot 48, near the town line, where Franklin S. Lyon, his youngest son, afterwards re- sided. He was a brother of the first wife of Dr. Waterman Ellsworth, and of Mary Lyon, the founder of the Holyoke Female Seminary in Massachu- setts. He had two sons and eight daughters. Five of the girls married ministers. The lamented Lucy and Freelove were missionaries, being the first and second wives of Rev. Mr. Lord, a missionary at Ningpo, China. At the time of their emigration, Franklin was a babe. To guard him from the joltings of the wagon over the rough road, he was placed in a cradle. which was suspended by ropes from the top of the covered wagon. In this swinging nest he made the journey in excellent order. Mr. Lyon was for many years a justice in Stockton, and several times elected supervisor. He removed a few years ago to Virginia, where he died soon after. Samuel Shepard was the first justice in the town.

Resolved W. Fenner, a native of Rhode Island, came into this county in November, 1819, from Madison Co., and bought of Abel Brunson, a part of lot 15, tp. 3, r. 12, subsequently annexed to Stockton. Besides farming, he worked at his trade, that of a cooper ; and he was for a number of years connected with others in the milling business. He died in 1848, aged near- ly 83. Mrs. Prudence Crandall Fenner, his widow, died in 1864, aged 85. They had 4 sons and 3 daughters, of whom only John A. resides in town.

Washington Winsor, a native of Rhode Island, from Otsego Co., N. Y., settled near Delanti, in 1827. He was a Baptist minister, and preached at Stockton and at Carroll ; afterward at Cassadaga, where he died in 1840, aged 56. His children are : Chauncey, now druggist at Delanti ; Ora, who resides in Wisconsin; Roxana, wife of Jason Crissey; and James M., in Newport, R. I.

Jonathan Bugbee, Jr., was born in Woodstock, Conn., May 11, 1789, and removed with his father, in 1808, to Madison Co .; thence, the next year, to Chautauqua, and at Bemus' Point made the acquaintance of Amos Adkins, a young surveyor for the Holland Company, who piloted him to lot 33, tp. 3, r. 12, now in the south part of Stockton, [taken from Ellery in 1850.] Pleased with the beautiful interval and the clear brook filled with trout, he called, a few weeks after, at the land-office at Batavia, on his return to Mad- ison county, and had the lot "booked" to him. In February, 1810, he arrived, with his father and mother and his brothers Wyman and Simeon, at the residence of Wm. Barrows, three miles west from Sinclairville. He had two yoke of oxen, which, with two long sleds, had conveyed the household

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STOCKTON.

goods and the old lady, while the men came most of the way on foot. The snow had been thawing for several days ; and on arriving at the Cassadaga creek, opposite to Mr. Barrows', and finding the stream much swollen, they came to a sudden halt. Mr. Barrows came with his canoe to their rescue. The teams swam the creek ; the goods were brought over the next day. They had with them a potash kettle, which was too heavy for the canoe. After consultation, it was decided that the kettle would swim, and carry one of the men over. Wyman volunteered to go on board and paddle it across the creek. The kettle was lowered into the water, and the navigator went on board ; but he was soon obliged to abandon the ship. After the water had subsided, the kettle was raised, and made to do duty many years, when black salts was almost the only commodity that could be sold for cash.

Jonathan, with his father and two brothers and the teams, and Barrows for a guide, cut his own road, for about three miles, to the place he had chosen as his future home, arriving there on or about the Ist of March, 1811. In or about the year 1821, he commenced the business of keeping tavern, which he continued several years. His health having been for some time on the decline, he sold most of his farm in parcels, and died Oct. 19, 1829. His father, whose name also was Jonathan, was born in Windham Co., Conn., July 1, 1750, and died in Stockton, June 30, 1830. His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Dean, died in Ellington, where she was living with her son, Wyman, in June, 1829, aged.69.

Nathan, oldest brother of Jonathan, came in 1813, and was a member of his father's family. In 1817, he married Sally De Motte, and settled on lot 40, tp. 3 ; but sold out his " chance" the next year, and removed to lot 25, in tp. 4. About two years afterwards, he sold out to his brother Simeon, and removed to Ellington ; thence, a few years after, to Saybrook, Ashtabula Co., O., where he died, 1860. Wyman married Milla Love in Stockton, in the winter of 1813, and settled on lot 33, adjoining the land of Rufus Todd, but sold his possessions the next year to John West, and settled in Ellington. Simeon married Naomi Searls, and began house-keeping on the south part of lot 25, where Joseph A. Brevoort resides.

Abel Brunson, born in Connecticut, son-in-law of John Love, having mar- ried Sally Love in 1809, came to Chautauqua with his father-in-law, and set- tled on lot 15, township 3, range 12, now in Stockton. It is said that, for a number of years, " he plied his axe with such unremitting stroke, that he knew nothing of Sunday, and hardly the day of the month." He owed for his farm, and had an increasing family to support. He would go on foot to the land-office to make payments of the smallest sums as fast as he ob- tained them. The difficulty of early settlers in paying for their farms may be judged from the fact, that with his extraordinary industry he was unable to make his last payment and take his deed, until the expiration of twenty years after he made his purchase ; the original debt being but $300. Says our informant : "This may surprise many of the present day ; but Mr. Brunson was one in a hundred of the first settlers who were able to pay for their lands

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HISTORY OF CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY.

according to contract." His early milling was done at Kennedy's mill on the Connewango. For much of the way there was no road ; " but with the grist slung across the yoke of the oxen, they proceeded over logs and around the tops of trees, keeping the direction by blazed trees, returning the following day to be greeted with love and joy by the wife and children from the log cabin in the wilderness." In 1824, he built a frame house, and opened a tavern, which he kept until 1838, when he took down his sign and built a saw-mill, which, for lack of water, proved a failure. He had two children before he came to Chautauqua, to whom ten were added, two of whom died in childhood. Eight are still living : Horace, in Buffalo ; Sedgwick, in Silver Creek ; Lorenzo, in Ellicott ; George, in Ashtabula county, O. ; Abel O., on the old farm of his grandfather Love ; and Alfred P., on the old homestead of his father. Abel Brunson died on his farm, Sept. 30, 1861, having resided there fifty years. His wife died in the same place, Dec. 25, 1867.

John West, a native of New Hampshire, was born February 5, 1790, after the death of his father. At the age of 5 years, he was bound out to the service of Philo Hopson, during the remainder of his minority. In May, 1810, he came with his foster-father to Chautauqua county, and assisted him in building a log cabin on the site of the present brick blacksmith shop at Hartfield. This log house was the first building in that place. He after- ward worked for Hopson and William Bateman in building a saw-mill on the inlet, which began to saw boards late in the fall of that year. The next winter he returned to Herkimer county, and came back the next May, [1811,] accompanied by Dexter Barnes from that place. These two young men helped clear the land on the site of the county poor-house. Soon after this, they and Peter Barnhart engaged with William Peacock, agent of the Hol- land Company, to cut a road from the 14 mile stake, east of the land-office, to the Cattaraugus line, and then 734 miles beyond to the old Indian road leading from Cattaraugus to the Allegany river. The 14th mile stake stood near the house of Amos Atkins, known as the Love Stand, in the town of Gerry. The road was to be cut one rod wide, and cleared of small trees and fallen ones, at the price of $to per mile. In going to their work, they took the only road then opened from the lake to Cassadaga creek. This road had been cut out by Edward and Josiah Hovey and Jared Nicholson, and led from Tinkertown [Dewittville] to the house of William Barrows, on the Cassadaga creek. They were about three months in cutting the road to the Cattaraugus line, about 21 miles from the place of beginning.

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