History of Oneida County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 71

Author: Durant, Samuel W
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Fariss
Number of Pages: 920

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zation of Trinity Episcopal Church. He was also active in establishing the first publie library in the place, and was president of the village, and of the Manhattan Bank. In the war of 1812 he went as a volunteer to Sacket's Harbor when threatened by the enemy. That place was then under the command of General Jacob Brown, who was a brother- in-law of Mr. Williams.

He filled the positions of district attorney of the Sixth District in 1801-13, and of Oneida County in 1818-21 ; was representative in Congress in 1805-7, and member of Assembly in 1816, 1818, 1819. He was also a member of the Constitutional Convention of 1821. In April, 1823, he was appointed circuit judge, which position he held for many years.

He was at one period counsel for the Oneida Indians, who bestowed upon him the sobriquet of " Upright Friend." He was appointed elerk of the Supreme Court, and a few months previons to his death removed to Geneva, Ontario Co., where he died Sept. 25, 1835. His remains were brought to Utica for interment.

" Judge Williams was twice married, and the father of a large family. His first wife, to whom he was married in 1800, and who died in 1807, was Mary Skinner, of Wil- liamstown ; his second, Maria Watson, an adopted daughter of her uncle, James Watson, of New York, to whom he was married in 1809, survived him many years, and died in 1851.

" Of his numerous family, who have occupied honored posts in the church, at the bar, and in various walks of business, the most are now deceased. They were as fol- lows : Thomas Skinner, Henry Hunt, Edward Templeton, Nathan Thompson, James Watson, Mary Eliza (Mrs. David Wager), John Douglass, Hobart, Brown Howe, Sarah Watson (Mrs. Theodore Dimon), Helen (Mrs. Kathern)."*

Erastus Clark, another prominent citizen, came to Utica in 1797. He was born in Lebanon, Conn., May 11, 1763. His father was Dr. John Clark, and his maternal grand- mother was a sister of Rev. Jonathan Edwards. Mr. Clark graduated with honor at Dartmouth College, N. H., and was admitted to practice law, for which he had pre- pared himself. He removed to Clinton, then in Herkimer County, in 1791, and in 1797 changed his residence to Old Fort Schuyler. At the first election held under the village charter of 1805, he was elected one of the trustees ; and again, in 1817, under the revised charter, was elected a member of the council. He also represented his distriet twice in the General Assembly, and was one of the original trustees of Hamilton College. Among his associates were such men as Alexander Hamilton, Egbert Benson, Jonas Platt, and Thomas R. Gold.

The following estimate of Mr. Clark, by Judge Jonas Platt, we transcribe from Dr. Bagg's " Pioneers of Utica" :

" For originality and decision of character his name was proverbial. An enlightened conscience was his hahitnal guide ; and if from pre- cipitancy or irritation his head sometimes erred, there was a redeem- ing principle in his heart which reclaimed and regulated his erring judgment and passions with magnetic influence. His frankness was sometimes ill.timed and excessive. What others thought he spoke, and this naked and uoreserved habit of mind and expression frequently

# From Dr. Bagg.

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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.

gave offense when he was not conscions of it, and sometimes betrayed apparent vanity. But of no other man can it be more truly said, that those who knew him hest esteemed him most. His liberal charity and his generons spirit in promoting hedevoleat ohjects and public institu- tions were ever leading and conspicuous, while no man was less indul- gent to his own appetites or more self-denying in his pleasures and personal gratifications. His habit of living was simple, plain, and frugal, and yet his honse was the abode of cheerful, cordial, and fa- miliar hospitality. In the more intimate and tender relations of domestic life, the virtues of this excellent man shone with peculiar lustre. His religious character was free from ostentation, but uniform, consistent, sincere, and ardent."

James Watson Williams said of him,-

" He was a man of strongly-marked character, of noted integrity, and of shrewd, sharp sense; of fine classical attainments, which he kept fresh to the close of his life; of thorough historical knowledge, and a wonderful memory ; sparing of words, but not of point or pith ; a man to the purpose, but somewhat cynical; not quite bland enough to be popular, hut esteemed for his independence and force of mind."

He died Nov. 7, 1825. The father of Mr. Clark died in Utica, Dec. 23, 1822, at the age of ninety-four. His mother died in Lebanon, Conn., Dee. 14, 1823, aged ninety- two.

" Judge Ambrose Speneer said of him, that he was the only man he ever knew who could split a hair and show the parts."*

Another prominent lawyer of this, the " heroic age" of Utica, was Francis A. Bloodgood, who was a native of Al- bany, and a graduate of Union College. He was admitted to practice before the Supreme Court, Aug. 5, 1790, and made his first public appearance before a Utica audience on the anniversary of the nation's birth, July 4, 1797. He filled the office of village trustee in 1805, and was one of the original trustees of the Utica Bank. In 1810 he rep- resented his district in the State Senate, where he embraced the political doctrines of the De Witt Clinton school. His residence was in Whitesboro' Street. About 1823 he re- moved to Ithaca, Tompkins Co., where he subsequently died.

One of the most noted personages that ever made Utiea his home was Colonel Benjamin Walker, of Revolutionary fame, the friend and companion of Baron Steuben, who also settled at Utica in 1797. Colonel Walker, it is believed, was born in London, England, in 1753. He received a prac- tical education, and passed some time in France, where he became proficient in the French language. While yet quite young he became connected with a respectable mercantile firm in London, under whose patronage he came to Amer- ica, and procured a situation with an eminent merchant in New York, with whom he was residing at the breaking out of the Revolution. He at once espoused the cause of the colonies, and served in the Second New York Regiment, in which he rose to the rank of captain, and while in this ea- pacity was appointed aid to Baron Steuben. The army was then encamped at Valley Forge. He became the firm friend and confidant of the baron, and from 1778 to 1782 had charge of all his correspondence. The baron dietated to him in French, and Walker translated and wrote it in English :

" He accompanied his general to all the inspections and

reviews, acted as translator in case of need, and often extri- cated him from difficulties." He was emphatically the baron's " right-hand man," and the one on whom he chiefly relied in all matters of importance.

About 1782 he became attached to the military family of General Washington, where he continued during the remainder of the war. He kept up a correspondence for many years with the commander-in-chief, and was one of those who were strongly recommended by Washington to the patronage of Congress.

After the elose of the war he filled the position of see- retary to the Governor of New York. He subsequently engaged in the wholesale hardware and commission business in New York, with Major Benjamin Ledyard as a partner. He also held the position of naval officer of the port of New York up to the year 1797. In that year he was ap- pointed as agent for the cstate of the Earl of Bath, an extensive property lying mostly in Madison County, and closing his business in New York he removed to Utica (or Old Fort Schuyler), where he continued to reside to the end of his life. "The management of this estate, as well as the care of the lands devised him by Baron Steuben (in 1794), occupied much of his attention." In 1800 he was elected as representative to Congress; but one term satis- fied him, and he would never afterwards accept of a public office.

" Among those who took part in the organization and erection of Trinity Church he was perhaps the foremost. The Bleecker family had promised the donation of a site to the first church of any kind that should be erected in this place. Lady Bath, of England, had also pledged the gift of several hundred acres of her land in Madison County to the first church of an Episcopalian character that should be built in this part of the State. Not only was it through the agency of Colonel Walker that the latter gift was realized, but his name also heads the list of individual subscriptions made for the church, and, in association with Nathan Williams and William Inman, he was appointed on the building committee."+

Colonel Walker had a large farm adjoining the village, and he built himself a fine residence on Broad Street,-the same now occupied by Abraham E. Culver,-where he dis- pensed a " refined and elegant hospitality." . . . " He gave most of his time to the society of his friends, to whom his gay, good sense, his unassuming manners, his open, gener- ons temper, his independent spirit, and his extensive ae- quaintance with the world rendered him a most enlivening and instruetive companion. For those days his style was considerable. He kept three slaves,¿ employed several men on his gardens and grounds, had a good deal of plate, and was the first inhabitant who owned a coach."

It is said that "it was his particular delight to search out merit in distress, to cheer the poor man in despondency, to prove himself a father to the fatherless, and to restore hope and comfort to the breast of the widow. To these beneficent purposes he appropriated a large share of his

+ Dr. Bagg.

# Slavery existed in New York until as late as 1820, and slave- sales were announced in the Utica papers as late as 1817.

# Dr. Bagg.

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HISTORY OF ONEIDA COUNTY, NEW YORK.

income ; and it is confidently believed that no individual in this part of the country distributed more charity than he. And yet in all this there was no ostentation of bene- ficence.''

Colonel Walker is described in Dr. Bagg's work as being "in person rather short and fleshy, having a decided Eng- lish physiognomy, and an expression of benevolence coupled with some degree of sternness. He had a fine voice, and when he presided at one time at a meeting of citizens, called to express their disapprobation of Mr. Jefferson's embargo, he addressed them in a loud tone, and with a curt, mar- tial air, as he would have issued orders on the field of battle."

He died on the 13th of January, 1818, and his remains were interred in the village burying-ground, where they re- mained until the 17th of June, 1875, when they were re- interred with befitting ceremonies in Forest Hill Cemetery. His portrait is preserved in the picture, by Trumbull, of Washington resigning his commission, which is in the ro- tunda of the Capitol at Washington, D. C.

The following interesting matter concerning Colonel Walker and his family is from " Pioneers of Utica":

" Miss Robinson, his wife, who was from New York, and a sister of Captain Thomas Robinson, of the navy, had died the year previous (1817). With respect to his earlier acquaintance with her, the follow- ing anecdote is related by Peter S. Duponceau, another of Steuben's aids, who says he had it from Walker himself:

"' While he was in the family (military) of General Washington, he asked the general's leave of absence for a few days, to go and see this lady, to whom he had already been long engaged. The general told him that ho could not at that time dispense with his services. Walker insisted, begged, and entreated, but all in vain. "If I don't go," said he, "she will die." "Oh, no," said Washington, " women do not die for such trifles." "But, general, what shall I do ?" " What will you do? Why, write to her and tell her to add another leaf to her book of sufferings."'

"Baron Steuben, who had friendly nicknames for his aids and sub-inspectors, used to call Colonel W. and his wife ' le petit Walker et sa grande femme.' After her death her sister-in-law, Mrs. Robin- son, became the housekeeper, a son of his being installed as secretary. Colonel Walker had a nicce and adopted daughter, who became the wife of Peter Bours, and a natural daughter, who at first mar- ried a French gentleman, the Marquis de Villehaut, who filed from France at the time of the great Revolution in that country. He set- tled at Morris, in Otsego County, where he kept a store. She was divorced from him, and after her father's death she visited France, where she married Colonel Comhe, an officer of the first Napoleon. Upon the accession of Louis Philippe to the throne of France, Colo- nel Combe returned to his native country, and was soon after dis- patched to Algiers, where he was killed at the head of his regiment. Mrs. Combe continued to reside in France until her death, June 5, 1850."

Samuel Hooker was another settler of the year 1797. He had removed from Barre, Mass., and settled in Albany, where he pursued the business of a carpenter; and it was while engaged at his trade that he accepted a proposition from the agents of the Holland Land Company to come to Old Fort Schuyler and superintend the erection of a large brick hotel on Whitesboro' Street, since well and favorably known as the " York House." He accordingly removed to this place, and began the work in 1797 and finished it in 1799. In 1803, Mr. Hooker and his son drew plans for the new Trinity Church and made a contract for its construction. He also carried on the business of fire-insurance agent. His popularity in the church may be inferred from the

statement that he was annually elected warden for a period of twenty-one years. He died Oct. 19, 1832, at the age of eighty-six years.

His sons were quite prominent,-Philip as an architect in Albany, and John in Utica, in various callings. The latter became eventually insane, and died at the age of sixty years. Junius, another son, was a merchant in Utica, and something of a military man, and subsequently removed to New York. William also removed to New York. Samuel F. was a resident of Utica for a time.

Among other residents for longer or shorter periods were Richard Kimball and James Flusky, the latter of whom lived across the bridge, in Deerfield, and pursued the vari- ous callings of cooper, fish-dealer, cartman, and ferryman. His dwelling was known as " Fort Flusky."

THE FIRST VILLAGE CHARTER.

The year 1798 witnessed many civil changes in the western portion of the State. The original county of Montgomery, which once included about half of the State, had been gradually curtailed by the erection of various new counties,-Ontario, Tioga, Otsego, Herkimer, and Onon- daga,-until it contained only a fraction of its former di- mensions. On the 15th of March, 1798, an act was passed by the Legislature for the organization of Oneida and Che- nango Counties from the extensive territory of Herkimer County. Whitestown, which had at one time comprised all of the western portion of the State, but had been re- duced in size, fell to Oneida County, and the village of Old Fort Schuyler was still included within its limits. But the growing village began to feel itself of considerable con- sequence, and the question of a separation from the mother town had been already discussed. This action took tan- gible form early in 1798, and culminated in a meeting of the people for the purpose of choosing a name for the pro- posed new village. There was much discussion upon this point, almost every citizen having a different choice, and the matter is said to have been finally decided by lot, and fell upon the name Utica, which was the choice of Erastus Clark, evidently a classical scholar, and a man of taste. The Legislature was petitioned, and on the 3d of April, 1798, an act was passed ereeting the village government, and authorizing the citizens to elect annually five freehold- ers, who should bear the honorable title of Trustees. The actual powers conferred in the charter were very restricted, and amounted mainly to the right to enact ordinances for the prevention and extinguishment of fires, and the abate- ment of nuisances. The Legislature named the place, in its title, Old Fort Schuyler, and in the body of the act, Utica, so that it was a question whether the place really had a legal name after all.

The first section of the act of incorporation, describing the boundaries, is as follows :

"The district of country contained within the following boundaries, to wit: beginning at a point or place on the south side of the Mo- bawk River, where the division line between lots Nos. 97 and 98, in Cosby's Manor, strikes the said river; thence running southerly in the said division line to a point in the same forty chains southerly of the great rond leading to Fort Stanwix ; thence east, thirty-seven de- grecs south, to the easterly line of tho county of Oneida ; thence northerly in tho said county line to the Mohawk River; thence westerly up the waters thereof to the place of beginning, shall here-

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after be known and distinguished by the name of the village of Utica."

The records of the village for the first seven years of its existenee, or from 1798 to 1805, are lost, having been burned in the fire which destroyed the council-chamber, Dec. 7, 1848, and there are no means of determining who were the original and subsequent officers for that period, excepting that some stray item of intelligence has pre- served the fact that Francis A. Bloodgood was treasurer in 1800, and Talcott Camp in 1802.

It would seem, from an item preserved in the columns of a newspaper of that date, that at the time of the burning of Post & Hamlin's store, in February, 1804, there was a fire company of some description in existence, and this would indicate that the board of village trustees had per- formed certain aets of legislation. The burned-out firm returned " their warm thanks to the fire company, and to the citizens and strangers in general, for their eager exer- tions in saving the property of the sufferers, and in ex- tinguishing the flames."

The year 1798, in addition to the noteworthy event of incorporation, witnessed many improvements in the village, and the arrival of many new-comers, both settlers and travelers.

Among the former was Thomas Skinner, from Williams- town, Mass. He was a graduate of Williams College, and soon after his arrival in Utica entered into partnership in the practice of the law with Nathan Williams, who married Mary, a sister of Mr. Skinner. Mr. Skinner became a prominent citizen, and filled various offices both in the church and in the gift of the people. He served as one of the village trustees, and as early as 1807 was attorney of the corporation, and also acted in the latter capacity for the Utiea Bank. He was for several years treasurer for the Presbyterian Church, and contributed as a fluent writer to the Columbian Gazette. He also held the position of trustee of the Utica Academy for thirty-five years, and always punctually attended their meetings. At one time he was so popular as to be the nominee of one of the po- litical parties for representative in Congress, but was beaten by Thomas R. Gold, whose name appears first on the list of attorneys admitted to practice at the formation of Oneida County. Mr. Skinner at first lived on Whitesboro' Street, afterwards on Broadway, and later at No. 32 Broad Street.

The year 1798 witnessed the establishment of the first newspaper in Utiea. William McLean had begun the pub- lication of a paper at New Hartford in 1794, which he named the Whitestown Gazette. New Hartford was then in the town of Whitestown, of which it continued a part until 1827.

In 1798 he removed his press to Utica and issned the paper under the name of Whitestown Gazette and Cato's Patrol, the latter title having reference to the younger of the Roman Catos, who was the defender of the ancient Utica. Mr. McLean was a native of Hartford, Conn., born Dec. 2, 1774, and was consequently quite a young man when he commenced the publication of his paper. He continued. the business in Utica until 1803, when he sold to a couple of his apprentices, Messrs. Seward and Williams, and returned to New Hartford, where he opened a tavern

and kept it for several years. He subsequently removed to Cazenovia, and engaged in the same business. In 1818 he journeyed to Cherry Valley, and issued a paper called the Cherry Valley Gazette, which is still published there. He died at the last-mentioned place on the 12th of March, 1848, in the enjoyment of the esteem and good-will of the citizens.

John C. Hoyt was another new-comer about this time, and in November, 1798, advertised in the columns of the Whitestown Gazette that he had commenced the business of a "taylor," at the shop formerly kept by William S. Warner, opposite Bagg's inn, Utica. His shop was on the southwest corner of Genesee Street and Whitesboro' road. Here he remained for more than twenty years.

He filled the offices of trustee of the village and of the Presbyterian Church, and was greatly esteemed and re- spected. He was a native of Danbury, Conn., and died at the early age of forty-four years, in August, 1820.

Elisha Burchard came the same year. He engaged in farming, and had a dwelling near what is now the corner of Court and Schuyler Streets. He took an active part in the fire company, of which he was for several years the foreman. He died in March, 1811, leaving a large family.

The year 1798 is noteworthy also for a visit made to Utica by the famous traveler and writer Dr. Timothy Dwight, president of Yale College. The following descrip- tion of the place we take from Dr. Bagg, who copied it from a volume descriptive of his travels:

"Utica, when we passed through it, was a pretty village contain- ing fifty houses. It is built on the spot where Fort Schuyler for- merly stood. Its site is the declivity of the hill which bounds the valley of the Mohawk, and here slopes easily and clegantly to the river. The houses stand almost all on a single street, parallel to the river. Generally those which were built before our arrival wero small, not being intended for permanent habitations. The settlers were almost wholly traders and mechanies, and it was said that their business had already become considerable. Their expectations uf future prosperity were raised to the highest pitch, and not a doubt was entertained that this village would, at no great distance of time, become the emporium of all the commerce earricd nn between the ocean and a vast interior. These apprehensions, though partially well founded, appeared to me extravagant. Commerce is often capri- cinus, and demands of her votaries a degree of wisdom, moderatioo, and integrity, to fix her residence and secure her favors, which is more frequently scen in old, thao in new establishments.

" We found the people of Utica lahoring, and in a fair way to labor a long time, under one very serious disadvantage. The lands nn which they live are chiefly owned by persons who reside at a dis- tanee, and whn refuse to sell or rent them except on terms which are exorbitant. The stories which we beard concerning this subject it was difficult to believe, even when told by persons of the best reputa- tion. . . . A company of gentlemen from Holland, who have pur- chased large tracts of land in this State and Pennsylvania, and who are known by the name of the Holland Land Company, bave built here a large briek honse to serve as an inn. The people of Utica are united with those of Whitesboro' in their parochial concerns."

The "large brick house" mentioned by the reverend doctor was the same which was known for many years as the " York House,"* and was for a long period the most noted hostelry between Albany and the lakes.

Its proprietors were the celebrated Holland Land Com- pany, who had, on the 21st of November, 1788, purchased of

# So named in 1814 by its then proprietor, Henry Bamman, a Frenehman. Up to this time it had been known as the "Hotel."

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the State of Massachusetts 2,600,000 acres of land in West- ern New York, and subsequently opened offices for the sale and settlement of the same .* For some good and sufficient reason the company, in November, 1795, had purchased from Thomas and Augustus Corey, 200 acres of great lot No. 95, which was for a long time thereafter known as the " Hotel Lot." On this lot the " York House" was erected during the years 1798-99. The reasons which induced the company to erect such a structure here were, undoubt- edly, the central location of Utica with reference to western business, its prospective importance at that date which was very promising, and the great amount of travel already de- veloped in the Mohawk Valley, which necessarily made Utica an important station, whether moving east or west.

The location of the building was not an inviting one, being at that time very low and wet, and affording no good foundation. Dr. Bagg repeats a current story that the workmen lost a crowbar by leaving it standing in a soft place while taking their dinner; and, according to another story, not only the bar but the corner-stone also sunk out of sight in the boggy swamp. Samuel Hooker & Son had the contract for the erection of the building. The bricks were manufactured by Heli Foot, of Deerfield. The foundations, like those of the Stadt House in Am- sterdam, were artificial, and consisted of hemlock-logs, laid lengthwise in the trench excavated for the walls. The building is said to have continued to settle for many years, but the movement was so uniform that no serious damage resulted to the walls. When completed it was a three-storied structure of quadrangular form, and sur- mounted by a " hip" roof. It contained a large number of rooms, and in addition to the usual rooms for guests had a large ball-room fitted up, and another which was occupied by the Masons as a lodge-room. It was a grand and im- posing building for those days, and stood conspicuous above all other buildings in the place.f Its dimensions were about 48 by 60 feet ; not a very wonderful size when com- parcd with the Baggs and Butterfield caravansaries of to- day, but enormous for the time in which it was erected. Upon its upper story were the letters " HOTEL," which, in spite of time's ravages and a free use of paint, are still legible.

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History of Oneida County, New York : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers, Part 71

Author: Durant, Samuel W Publication date: 1878 Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Fariss Number of Pages: 920

Author: Durant, Samuel W
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Philadelphia : Everts & Fariss
Number of Pages: 920