USA > New York > Oneida County > History of Oneida County, New York : from 1700 to the present time, Volume I > Part 59
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There are at present four hundred resident members and about forty non- resident members. The present officers are president, Thomas F. McKeough; vice president, J. Linn Hughes; secretary, Thomas O. Cole; and treasurer, George E. Ormsbee. The club was successful from the first, has had a steady growth until it has arrived at its present most satisfactory and prosperous con- dition.
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COMMERCIAL TRAVELERS' MUTUAL ACCIDENT ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA-This association was incorporated March 20, 1883, and one of the prime movers was Edward Trevett. It was probably not within the mind of the organizers that their company would attain to such tremendous proportions as has been the real fact. The primary object of the association was to furnish members with accident insurance at actual cost, to include a death benefit to be paid to the family when death resulted from accident, and weekly indemnity for accidental injuries. At first the amount was limited to $5,000, but this has been increased to $10,000, provided loss of life occurs and that death results while the mem- ber is riding on a passenger car propelled by steam. The average cost per year for each member is $7.78, and the company has paid out since its organization more than four million dollars for indemnities. The present membership is something over 72,000, and it is claimed, with what seems to be satisfactory evidence, that it is the largest insurance company of its kind in the world.
KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS
Utica Council No. 189, Knights of Columbus, was instituted September 6th, 1896, twelve years after the founding of the order in Connecticut. At the time the order was almost unknown outside of a few of the New England states and there were but four councils in the state of New York with the exception of Greater New York. Utica Council has done much to spread the order in Cen- tral and Northern New York and is well and favorably known as one of the pioneer councils of the order. At its institution it contained fifty members and during the fifteen years of its existence it has steadily increased until at present its membership is nearly 800.
In 1907 the council purchased a beautiful home at 309 Genesee street. The house has been remodeled and furnished at an expense of nearly $15,000 the entire purchase price and the additional $15,000 being entirely contributed by the members which attests their generosity in the spread of Columbianism. Plans are being considered for the erection of an auditorium and gymnasium in connection with the home and when completed Utica council will have one of the finest club houses in the state and it will be a welcome addition to the advantages and improvements of the city. Since its institution the council has given many lectures and literary entertainments many of which have been open to the public gratis. Its social functions have been looked forward to with pleasant anticipations which have always been realized.
Since its institution the following Grand Knights have presided :
1896-1897-1898 -- P. J. O'Reilly.
1899-George H. Stack.
1900-1901-1902 -- John E. Carberry.
1903 -- Thomas C. McDermott.
1904-A. V. Lynch.
1905-1906-William J. McSorley.
1907-1908-R. E. McCreary.
1909-1910-M. F. Kelly.
1911-R. E. MeCreary.
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UTICA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE-On a Friday evening in May, 1896, to be exact, the 15th, a party of Uticans, individually representative of the industrial and commercial acumen of the city, was gathered in the parlors of the Y. M. C. A. The call bringing them together stated that the city needed a live or- ganization of business men. Joseph B. Sherwood was chairman of the meeting, and before adjournment The Utica Business Men's Exchange was organized. A constitution was adopted which gave as the object of the Exchange-"To foster the present business institutions of the city, induce new ones to locate here, and, in general, to promote the welfare of the city." This movement created an interest in the internal workings of our city which was reflected in the news columns of the day. Industrial statistics and convention city notes were com- mon. At the June meeting of the Exchange its name was changed to "The Utica Chamber of Commerce."
Following is a list of the directors with their principal business connections: George E. Dunham, editor Utica Daily Press; John C. Hoxie, of Griffin & Hoxie; Charles W. Wicks, of Wicks & Greenman; Joseph B. Sherwood; Henry W. Mil- lar, of Charles Millar & Son; Correl Humphrey, secretary of the Chamber of Commerce; Herman I. Johnson, of Johnson & Murray; Spencer Kellogg, of C. C. Kellogg & Sons; Quentin McAdam, of the Utica Knitting Company; G. Edward Cooper, architect; Nicholas E. Devereux, of the Oneida Knitting Com- pany; Frank E. Wheeler, of the International Heater Company; Albert C. Salisbury, of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad; Oscar S. Foster, of Foster Bros. Manufacturing Company; Charles B. Rogers, of the First Na- tional Bank; Henry A. Davis, lawyer; John L. Mahar, of Mahar Brothers; and Edward L. Wells, of J. B. Wells & Son. Of these, George E. Dunham was presi- dent; Joseph B. Sherwood, first vice president; Henry W. Millar, second vice president; Quentin McAdam, treasurer, and Correl Humphrey, secretary. Later, in 1902-3, John L. Mahar was president; in 1898, John C. Hoxie, and in 1903-4, Oscar S. Foster. Others who have since served as presidents are George S. Dana, Frank M. Kendrick, George W. Oatley, Frederick H. Gouge, George A. Frisbie, William I. Tabor and Benjamin T. Gilbert. Since its incorporation the Chamber has had three secretaries: Correll Humphrey, J. Soley Cole and Denis F. Howe.
At the annual banquet held in April of each year, the Chamber of Com- merce has entertained and been entertained by speakers famous in their differ- ent spheres. Among them have been Vice President James Schoolcraft Sher- man; Admiral Winfield Scott Schley; Lieutenant Robert A. Peary, discoverer of the North Pole; Count von Bernsdorff, the German Ambassador; Secretary of the Treasury Shaw; Secretary of the Navy Victor B. Metcalf; Mayor William J. Gaynor, of New York; Governors David B. Hill, Frank Black and Charles S. Hughes of New York; Gen. Adna R. Chaffee, of Santiago and Pekin fame; United States Senators Carter of Montana and Heyburn of Idaho; Congress- men Landis of Indiana, Cushing of Washington, and Bede of Minnesota; Presi- dent W. C. Brown, of the New York Central; President Stryker, of Hamilton College; President Schurman of Cornell; John Barrett, Director General of the Pan American Union; Col. Waring and S. N. D. North; George H. Daniels of
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the New York Central; Martin S. Knapp, of the Interstate Commerce Commis- sion, and Job Hedges.
Since its inception the Chamber of Commerce has, with officers and mem- bership composed of representative citizens, always been abreast of the times. Through its initial efforts in 1896 two industries were given to the city-the Mott Wheel Works and the Savage Arms Company which have distributed since that time many thousands of dollars in pay rolls. The fashion of the day was to offer bonuses of land or buildings to outside industries to locate here, and committees of the Chamber have since then spent time and money in their en- deavors to establish new industries on that basis. In many cases these indus- tries have failed, causing financial loss to loyal Uticans who helped promote them, but, where buildings were erected to accommodate such industries, others and more successful ones eventually occupied them, making the result a net gain to Utica. The spirit of association has been a factor in getting together Utica capital for investment in Utica industries, and the healthy growth and present prosperous condition is the result of that policy.
To stimulate industrial activity the Chamber has devoted its effort toward the development of sections of the city and securing conveniences for others where the wheels of industry already spin. Through its efforts in 1901, Broad street, with its mile of factories, was provided with industrial switches and the old basin bridge brought to grade. It was also largely responsible for the adop- tion of our present building code. It contributed its share towards the opening of Hickory street through the State Hospital grounds, and, on its urgent re- quest, the Board of Supervisors took over the old Deerfield Toll Road, where traffic is now free.
The Chamber has struggled for fifteen years in the interest of satisfactory mail and passenger schedules. For the benefit of Utica trade it has fought yearly with the northern roads, the southern roads, and, up to the time of its electric equipment, with the West Shore road, that their patrons might have seasonable shopping hours in Utica. In the years before our growing trade made extra hotel accommodations impossible many important conventions were brought to Utica, committees having traveled far and wide in this interest. The Chamber has made strenuous efforts to promote Utica's interest in assess- ments, taxation and insurance. It has taken a lively interest in the laws that pertain to our election methods, endorsing the policy of direct primaries and working for its adoption.
Perhaps no movement, having for its aim a public improvement, ever called for more strenuous and sustained effort than the fight for the present Oneida county court house. This handsome public building was first held in prospect at a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce February 20, 1900, when Henry J. Cookinham addressed the Chamber on the totally inadequate conditions of the court house and county clerk's office in Utica. A resolution was offered by him elaborating these conditions and providing for a committee of five to inquire into the advisability of repairing the old building or erecting a new one. The resolution was adopted, and President Hoxie appointed the following commit- tee : Henry J. Cookinham, M. W. VanAuken, Walter N. Kernan, Smith M. Lind- sley and Russell H. Wicks. The committee found that the old buildings were
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wholly inadequate to the demands of the county, and the public records of the county totally unprotected against fire. The committee was authorized by the Chamber to present the facts to the board of supervisors. They did so on April 17, and on April 27, a committee from the board of supervisors, after going over the ground with the gentlemen from the Chamber of Commerce, reported to the board that a new county building was imperatively demanded. The supervisor's committee recommended that such a building be erected at a cost of not to exceed $150,000. This report was signed by four supervisors-J. W. Potter, Robert McCreary, F. E. Swancott and E. J. Fletcher. The board adopted the recommendation, and approved a resolution which provided for a committee of five, including the chairman, J. W. Potter, to be vested with the full power of the board and have charge of the construction of a new county building. The same resolution requested that the Chamber of Commerce act in an advisory capacity. The committee proceeded with its duties. The first point to be taken up by it-the matter of site-aroused suspicion. On January 4, 1901, the committees of the Chamber and the supervisors met and discussed the matter of location, as well as other details. It was their last joint meet- ing, as by this time suspicion had crystallized into an opinion that all was not right.
On February 8 a meeting was held in Mr. Cookinham's office at which, be- sides several Uticans, were present Senator Willard and John C. Davies. At the meeting it was decided to draft a law providing for a commission to erect the new county building. Four days later this bill was introduced into the senate. It carried an appropriation of $350,000, and named the following commission to carry on its work: Henry J. Cookinham, Frederick T. Proctor, A. H. Munson, Leslie W. Kernan, Josiah Perry, E. H. Risley, Smith M. Lindsley, of Utica; James P. Olney, A. R. Kessinger, of Rome; H. W. Bent- ley of Boonville; George M. Norton of Kirkland; Van R. Weaver of Deerfield; Byron A. Curtiss of Camden, and W. Stuart Wolcott of New York Mills. Mr. Wolcott declined to serve, and Lieut. W. G. Mayer of Waterville was selected to fill his place. This bill was endorsed by the Chamber of Commerce and the Oneida County Bar Association, and signed by Governor Odell March 13. The commission organized by electing Henry W. Bentley, chairman, and William H. Gifford, secretary. Mr. Gifford died shortly after, and was succeeded by Gen. Sylvester Dering. The selection of a site was immediately considered. Above or below the canal was argued strenuously by the adherents of each section. The committee on sites reported on several, but the controversy soon narrowed down to three: On Pearl street south to Bethesda church; on John street between Park avenue and Elizabeth street; and on Charlotte street be- tween Elizabeth and Mary streets, which latter site was finally adopted. The board of supervisors, having fought the bill energetically, now refused to issue bonds on request of the commission and as required by statute. They de- manded that the question be submitted to the people. On December 18, Judge Andrews in the Supreme Court ordered a peremptory writ of mandamus to com- pel the issue. An appeal was taken to the Court of Appeals, and the commission sustained. In the meantime the commission, having thoroughly examined other buildings of like nature, concluded to ask the legislature for an additional $530,-
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000. The whole question was immediately thrown into a bitter political fight, geographical, mostly, which had on one side Utica and surrounding towns, and on the other the board of supervisors and the rest of the county. Pilgrimages to Albany rapidly succeeded, each larger than its predecessor, until the climax was reached. An attempt was made to foster a referendum clause to the addi- tional appropriation bill, but it was killed, and on April 4 the bill was signed by Governor Higgins, after a hearing given by him to two train loads of Oneida county citizens, during which the controversy was waged by each side with much acrimony. Still later a bill was passed granting $55,000 additional for furnish- ing the building. Friday, May 19, the commission awarded the contract to Con- nor Brothers of Lowell, Mass., the price being $730,000, not including the site or furnishings. Shortly afterward the work was commenced. The construction was carefully watched by the commission and by representatives of the archi- tect, Cutler, of Boston. To the members of the commission, who gave gener- ously of their time and energy, may be attributed the fact that the building was erected practically within the contract price.
The Chamber has always been in touch with public improvements. Many of its members, busy in their private fields, have given time to committee work in the interest of beautifying Utica, its streets and parks. The report of the committee on improving and beautifying Utica, 1908, containing the Olmsted plan, many of whose suggestions have been adopted, is still in demand by libraries and civic associations throughout the country.
At a membership meeting of the Chamber in May, 1906, Dr. Matthew D. Mann, of Buffalo, delivered an address on civic improvement. Following this address Mr. Merwin K. Hart offered a resolution which requested the appoint- ment of a special committee to consider means of improving and beautifying the city. President Kendrick appointed the following committee: Merwin K. Hart, chairman; Charles Rogers, P. C. J. DeAngelis, Spencer Kellogg, Otto A. Meyer, C. K. Corbin, Clifford Lewis, Jr., C. Loomis Allen and Frederick H. Gouge. The committee, appreciating that the scope of its work required pro- fessional assistance, engaged the services of Frederick Law Olmsted, the noted landscape architect, of Brookline, Mass. After an exhaustive examination of local conditions his attention was centered on two points, parks and grade crossing on the New York Central railroad. At his suggestion the park law, in force at present, was drafted and enacted in May, 1907. In treating of parks Mr. Olmsted's report called for a general system along the southern front of the city connected by a parkway. It made as much use as possible of the park ideas in the State Hospital grounds, the hill cemeteries, the reservoirs, and the Masonic Home.
Mr. Thomas R. Proctor on June 17, 1902, had addressed the Chamber of Commerce on Utica and its parks. He had evidently given the subject much earnest consideration, for inside of a couple of years he began acquiring suit- able park sites in the southern part of the city. Mr. Olmsted, above men- tioned, was engaged by Mr. Proctor to develop the land along park lines, par- ticularly the Steele's Hill site. Roads and bridges were laid out in the high- est style of landscape art; seats, fountains and flag poles were provided, until the plans were completed. June 22, 1907, Mr. Proctor conducted a party, con- Vol. 1-81.
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sisting of Mayor Richard W. Sherman, other city officials, and some four score of Utica's foremost citizens on a tour of these parks. This occasion was taken to formally name them. The names selected were those of men famous in the history of the city-Horatio Seymour, Addison C. Miller, J. Thomas Spriggs, Roscoe Conkling, Thomas R. Proctor and Truman K. Butler. The Thomas R. Proctor and Roscoe Conkling Parks were turned over to the city July 3, 1909. The J. Thomas Spriggs, Horatio Seymour and Addison C. Miller Parks had al- ready been given to the city by Thomas R. Proctor and wife February 21, 1908. Frederick T. Proctor and wife, on the same date, presented the Truman K. Butler Park to the city. July 3, 1909, was a gala day in Utica. On that day in the presence of the city officials, the national guard of surrounding territory, thousands of visitors, and in the presence of the Proctor family, Mr. Thomas R. Proctor, with a few simple remarks, formally presented to the city Roscoe Conkling Park. Mayor Thomas Wheeler gracefully accepted for the city, and Governor Charles S. Hughes, the guest of honor, delivered an address fitting for the occasion.
The Olmsted report to the Chamber included these plans so successfully carried out by Mr. Proctor, and connected the separate parks with a parkway built around parallel macadam roads, generally along the lines of Pleasant street to the eastern city limit, and westerly from Genesee street continuing by viaduct over the southern railroads. The city, through the Park Board, is carrying out the first part of the program at present. Three miles of the roadway are now completed, and the surrounding land graded preparatory to planting. By grace of Mr. Proctor, and through the efforts of the city itself, Utica will shortly have a park system second to none.
In taking up the railroad improvement in the northern end of the city, the Olmsted plans ran along the lines over which the Chamber of Commerce had worked for some years. Up to the beginning of the present century the city and its principal railroad artery, the New York Central, were badly handicapped by the congested conditions around the foot of Genesee street, caused by the natural channel of the Mohawk river, which, at this point, swung in a bend up to within a short distance of the Central depot. Through the length of the city all land along the railroad was subject to flood conditions in the spring and fall, and when the summer droughts arrived sewage discharge into the river was a menace to public health.
In 1891 a law was enacted which authorized the mayor to appoint a com- mision to investigate the matter of straightening the Mohawk river, and in 1893 another enactment provided the method, subject to a two-thirds vote of the common council in approval. Part of Deerfield, enough to bring all land south of the suggested new channel into the city limits, had already been annexed. James F. Mann was chairman of the commission, and was one of the original advocates of moving the Mohawk river channel. With him were associated on the commission : Thomas R. Thomas, Charles H. Childs, John B. McMillan of Utica; Alfred C. Shaw and William Rien of Deerfield. Afterwards James Coupe, John R. Baxter and George S. Dana were appointed to succeed James F. Mann, Thomas R. Thomas and John B. McMillan.
During the '90s a preliminary survey of the proposed channel was made by
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James Constable. Outside of that nothing else was done at the time, although the subject was buffeted about more or less in politics and surrounded with general misunderstandings, the newspapers, from time to time, keeping the pro- ject alive. The whole proposition was forcibly brought before the public again at a meeting of the Chamber of Commerce in June, 1900. The sense of this meeting called for a committee to investigate the whole question. On the com- mittee were George E. Dunham, John C. Hoxie, Thomas R. Proctor, William E. Lewis and John F. Hughes. They reported to a special meeting that the improvement was highly desirous. Their report went into details, describing the objectionable condition that existed in that vicinity in the spring and sum- mer. They called attention to the obvious benefits to the city in removing the channel half a mile north, thereby opening up desirable land for industrial growth of the city. The report was unanimously accepted, and the meeting called for action on the part of the common council. The council appropriated $2,000 for a survey, and in January Stephen E. Babcock, who, throughout the work, was the engineer in charge, submitted a report based on a thorough sur- vey, which estimated the cost to be within the $150,000 allowed by the law of 1893. The commission called for bids, and that of T. E. Riddle Construction Company was provisionally accepted. Pressure was immediately brought to bear on the Common Council to approve. The topic filled the newspapers and dominated. the conversations of the time. The Council hesitated, for it felt that the responsibility for this act should not be placed upon its shoulders. It was entirely logical in its stand, and suggested that the whole question be re- ferred to the people. But the public clamor would not be denied. The Council finally passed a resolution asking the legislature to authorize a referendum. Mayor Sherman vetoed it. The Chamber of Commerce, the newspapers and citizens generally kept up their pressure. On December 9 a new provisional contract was let by the commission to Harries & Lettenay of Boston at $119,- 979, and submitted, in effect, to the Common Council for approval. Monday, December 29, was the day set aside for its consideration. On the Saturday morning previous an enthusiastic meeting of citizens was held in the Chamber of Commerce. Many prominent citizens were present, and after a succession of rousing speeches it was decided to attend the Council meeting in a body. The meeting on Monday evening was perhaps the most enthusiastic and mem- orable in the city's history. Men representing every variety of interest in the city were present. The business before the meeting was thoroughly dis- cussed. The pressure could not be resisted. The Council gracefully ac- cepted the contract between the city and the New York Central railroad by a vote of thirteen to two. No Common Council ever performed a more useful service to the city. The old channel of the Mohawk river was doomed to move. In the spring the work was started. The construction dragged at times, but, after much agitation was completed, and finally accepted by the state July 28, 1909. The final cost was about $250,000.
Through all these movements the grade crossings of the New York Central railroad were not lost sight of. By agreement, that road was to have possession of the old river bed. This made possible plans for the new freight and passen- ger depots. The elimination of the Genesee street crossing was vitally neces-
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sary. It was unofficially contemplated in all the river-straightening agitation. When this improvement was brought before the people there developed two opinions of the methods to be used in bringing it about. One element favored the elevation of the tracks through the city, while another favored an elevated roadway. The Common Council, after investigating the experiences of other cities, committed itself to the viaduct scheme. The whole question was threshed out at various meetings of the Chamber of Commerce. The Olmsted report considered all these schemes. At a meeting of the Chamber each was discussed thoroughly by its particular advocates. The final action of the Chamber pledged it to the scheme afterwards adopted, and the over-crossing as it stands today is the result. The structure was designed by the New York Central, accepted by the city, and its construction was started in the spring of 1910. It was com- pleted in the spring of 1911. Its cost was divided-the state paying one quar- ter, the city one quarter, and the New York Central Railroad Company the bal- ance. On completion of the over-crossing the Park avenue crossing was closed by consent of the city.
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