USA > New York > Genesee County > History of the Genesee country (western New York) comprising the counties of Allegany, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Chemung, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Schuyler, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates, Volume II > Part 58
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The town of Kiantone was set off from Carroll, November 16, 1853. A small creek that flows into the Conewango was called by the Indians Ky-en-tho-no, and from this was derived the name of the town. The first town meeting was held on February 21, 1854, at the house of E. Frissel. Ezbai Kidder was elected super- visor.
The first settlers came into the town while it was a part of Carroll. Among them were the Frews and Russells, who were important factors in developing this part of the county. Joseph Akin came from Rensselaer County in 1807, and located on the Stillwater Creek. Laban Case built a blacksmith shop and a large log house, in which he opened a tavern. Robert Russell built the first mill on the Kiantone Creek, a short distance above the Indian village of that name. In 1810, Solomon Jones and Wil- liam Sears came from Vermont. The Jones family lived with Joseph Akin until a cabin could be erected. John Jones and his two sons, Benjamin and Levi, came from Vermont a little later. Other early settlers, principally from Massachusetts and Ver- mont, were: Elijah Braley, Ebenezer Cheney, Ebenezer and Emri Davis, James Hall, Ezbai Kidder, Jasper Marsh, Isaac and William Martin.
Kiantone is without a railroad or an incorporated village. It has a Congregational church, which was organized in 1815, and a Christian Society of Universalists, organized in December, 1853.
On March 23, 1824, the northern part of Clymer was cut off and erected into the town of Mina, which then included the town
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of Sherman. Alexander Findley was born in Ireland and came with his parents to Pennsylvania about 1790. In his excursions as a hunter he discovered this lake and in 1811 bought a tract of land near its northern end from the Holland Land Company. In 1815 he began the erection of a sawmill and is credited with having been the first settler in the town. Later he built a grist mill and about 1827 a carding mill. Mr. Findley and his son, William, served in the War of 1812. Other pioneers were: Cullen Barnes, E. F. Bisby, Charles Brockway, Robert A. Cor- bett, George and Roger Haskell, Benjamin Hazen, John Keeler, Seth McCurry, Asa Madden, Philip Mark, Joseph Palmer, Damon, H. J., and James Skellie, Potter Sullivan, Nathaniel Throop and Aaron Whitney. The first school was taught by Elisha Moore in 1826 in a school house near Findley's mills; the first store was opened in 1824 by Charles Brockway; and a Doc- tor Wilcox was the first physician. Nathaniel Throop was the first postmaster and carried the mail once a week from Mayville. The first inn was opened at Mina Corners by Cullen Barnes about 1824. It is claimed that Nehemiah Finn, of Mina, made the first butter shipped from Chautauqua County to New York City. The first town meeting was held about a month after the town was created in the school house near Findley's mills. Nathaniel Throop was elected supervisor. In 1855, Reverend E. B. Torrey organized the United Brethren Church at Findley Lake. The Lakeside Assembly, on the west shore of Findley Lake, was founded in 1895 by Rev. C. G. Langdon, the United Brethren minister. It is modeled after the Chautauqua Assembly.
The town of Poland was taken from Ellicott, April 9, 1832. The first town meeting was held at the house of S. R. Gleason March 5, 1833, when Nathaniel Fenton was elected supervisor. It was within the limits of this town that Thomas Kennedy and Edward Work settled in 1805, and later constructed mills. Other Poland pioneers were: Elihu Barber, John Brown, James Cul- bertson, Dr. Samuel Foote, who was the first physician, Aaron Forbes, Amos Fuller, Gideon Gilson, Stephen Hadley, Horace Hartson, Jeremiah Hotchkiss, Amasa Ives, Luther Lydell, Josiah Miles, John Merrill, Ephraim L. Nickerson, who established the first brickyard, Dr. Nelson Rowe, Ezra Smith, Aaron Taylor, Elias Tracy, David Tucker, Daniel Wheeler, Joshua Woodward
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and his five sons, Hiram, Lewis, Pierce, Reuben and Royal, and Isaac Young.
Kennedy is the only village of importance. When the post- office was established here it was called Poland Center. The rail- road was built in 1859, and the station was named Kennedy, which later became the name of the postoffice. The Kennedy Baptist Church was organized in January, 1836, with twenty-two members. The Methodist Protestant Church was organized in May, 1839, by Rev. James Covell, but it is no longer in existence. What was known as the Poland Free Church was established in 1856. The Wesleyan Methodist Church at Levant was organized at a comparatively early date.
At the time Chautauqua County was created, on March 11, 1808, it was divided into two towns-Chautauqua and Pomfret. The latter embraced all of the tenth and eleventh ranges of the Holland Purchase, and the territory now comprising the towns of Dunkirk and Pomfret, nearly one-half of the county. It was organized a few weeks later by a town meeting held at the house of Elisha Mann. Philo Orton was elected supervisor.
In the early part of this chapter the settlement made by David Eason, Low Miniger and Thomas McClintock in 1803 is referred to. McClintock was the first purchaser of land and is credited with having been the first actual settler. All three of these men sold their lands to Zattu Cushing in 1806 or 1807. Following these came Justus Adams, Varnum Bacheller, Hezekiah Barker, Benjamin and Oliver Barnes, Abel Beebe, John S. Bellows, Wil- lard Blodgett, Hezekiah and Thomas Bull, Pearson Crosby, Mar- tin Eastwood, David Elliott, Orrin Ford, Luther Frank, Samuel Gear, Daniel Gould, Joel Harrington, Ozias Hart, Calvin Hut- chinson, Ezekiel Johnson, John Mack, Elisha Mann, Irwin and Todd Osborne, Nathaniel Pearson, George W. Pierce, Benjamin Randall, Elijah Risley and his three sons, Elijah, Levi and Wil- liam, John Sawin, Jonathan Sprague, George Steele, Eli Webster, Richard Williams, Ephraim and Henry Wilson.
The water power of the Canadaway Creek was used by the pioneers for manufacturing. Sawmills and grist mills made their appearance at an early date. About 1810 Thomas and Hezekiah Bull built a flour mill at Laona (so named by Henry Wilson about 1820). Ebenezer Eaton established a carding mill
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there in 1812, and a cotton mill was built by Thomas Bull in 1817. It was burned soon afterward, and in 1823 a larger cotton mill was built by Thomas Bull and Orrin Ford. In 1854 it was changed to a paper mill. Distilleries and tanneries were among the early industries.
The first settler on the site of the village of Fredonia was David Eason. He selected his location in 1803, and built his house the following year. During the next five years quite a village grew up and was called Canadaway, for the stream on which it is located. When the Chautauqua Gazette was estab- lished in January, 1817, it was dated at "Fredonia," the editor evidently not regarding Canadaway as sufficiently dignified. In 1829 the village was incorporated as Fredonia. The population at that time was about 700 and it was the largest village in the county.
Fredonia claims a number of "first things." It was the first place to use natural gas. As early as 1821 gas was discovered issuing from a spring on the banks of the Canadaway and was piped to the hotel, where it was used for lighting. When Lafay- ette visited the village in 1825 the streets were illuminated with natural gas. The first gas well was sunk by Preston Barmore in 1858. The Fredonia Academy, opened in the fall of 1826, is said to have been the first institution of its kind in western New York. In 1833 the three Risley brothers, Elijah, Jr., Levi and William, started the first seed farm in this part of the state. Elijah opened the first store at Fredonia in 1808. He afterward served as sheriff of the county and in 1848 was elected to con- gress. The first grange in the United States was organized here in 1868 by Oliver H. Kelly. The first Woman's Christian Tem- perance Union was also organized in Fredonia and marked the beginning of the first woman's crusade.
Directly west of Pomfret is the town of Portland, which was created on April 9, 1813, and then included the present towns of Ripley and Westfield. Thomas Prendergast was elected super- visor in 1814.
In 1804, James Dunn came from Meadville, Pennsylvania, and bought 1,100 acres of land near the center of the town. The next year he built his log cabin and brought his family, a wife and six children, to the new home. During the next twelve
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months several families settled near Dunn, including David Eaton, the four Fays, Benjamin Hutchins, Peter Kane and John Price. Elijah Fay set out the first vineyard, which was the beginning of the great grape industry in this section of the state. James Dunn opened the first tavern in 1808; the first school was taught in the spring of 1810 by Miss Anna Eaton; the first school house was built that year; Dunham & Sage built the first saw- mill in 1816; Simon Burton built the first grist mill in 1817, and Thomas Klumph opened the first store in one room of Augustus Klumph's log house. Brocton, the largest village, was incorpo- rated on March 20, 1894, and at the first election on the 17th of April, Garrett E. Ryckman was elected the first president of the village. The town of Ripley was set off from Portland, March 1, 1816. The first town meeting was held in the following month; Amos Atwater was elected supervisor. Robert Dunlap bought land from Colonel McMahan in 1803, but if he settled in the town it was for a short time only. The next year he sold over five hundred acres to William Alexander, who was one of the first associate judges of the county. His brother, Campbell, was also an early settler, and a lieutenant in the War of 1812. Other pioneers were: Jonathan and Moses Adams, Silas Baird, Bur- ban Brockway, Basil Burgess, Alexander Cochran, David, John and Samuel Dickson, Josiah Farnsworth, Jonathan Parsons, John Post, David Royce, Samuel Truesdale and William Wisner.
The Buffalo and Erie highway was surveyed in 1804 and soon after the village of Ripley (at first called Quincy) grew up on this road. The first tavern was the State Line House, opened by Samuel Truesdale in 1805. Part of the property was in Pennsylvania. David Royce and John Post were early tavern keepers. Brockway & Miller built a saw mill on the Twenty-Mile Creek at an early date. Grist mills were also built before the town was organized. Silas Baird, John Akers and Henry Fair- child established the first brickyard. The postoffice at Ripley was established in 1815, with Robert Dickson as postmaster. Rappole & Keeler opened the first store in the village. The first school house was built in 1817.
A Baptist church was formed in 1825. In 1891, it was reor- ganized as the First Baptist Church of Ripley. The Methodist Church of East Ripley was dedicated in January, 1842, though
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the society had been organized some years earlier. The First Presbyterian Church of East Ripley was organized in 1818. In 1853 it divided and the Second Presbyterian Church was formed. In 1871 the two were united under the name of the First Presby- terian Church of Ripley.
The town of Sheridan was set off from Hanover and Pomfret April 16, 1827. Nathaniel Grey, one of the committee that went to Albany to urge the erection of the town, was an admirer of the poet Sheridan and suggested that name for the town. The first town meeting was held at the tavern kept by William Gris- wold May 8, 1827; Lyscom Mixer was elected supervisor. Settle- ment began in 1804, when five men located lands. They were: Abner and Alanson Holmes, Hazadiah Stebbins, Francis and William Webber. The next year came Simeon Austin, Gerald and William Griswold, John Hollister, Orsamus Holmes, Joel Lee, Thomas Stebbins and John Walker. Orsamus Holmes opened the first tavern. The first postoffice was established there in June, 1806, and Mr. Holmes was appointed postmaster. It was called Canadaway, but not the Canadaway afterward named Fredonia. The second postoffice was established at Hanover (afterward Kensington), but when the office at Sheridan was established, in 1839, the others were discontinued. The first school was taught by William Griswold in his house in the winter of 1807-08. The first store was opened by Elisha Grey.
A Methodist Episcopal church was organized at the house of Stephen Bush in 1809. The Baptist Church in the south part was organized in 1844, but in 1861 was disbanded.
Among the early industries were a sawmill and tannery, established by Haven Brigham on Beaver Creek, where he also built a grist mill, the only one ever in the town. Thomas Chap- man started a rope walk in 1833, making rope from flax and hemp. William Ensign and Jonathan Pattison began the manu- facture of brick at an early date.
On April 7, 1832, the town of Mina was divided and the eastern part was erected into the town of Sherman. The town was not organized until the following spring, when a town meet- ing was held at the house of Otis Skinner, who was elected super- visor.
The first settler in the town was Dearing Dorman. In 1823
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Elisha Eades, Lester R. Dewey and Otis Skinner settled near Dorman. Mr. Skinner taught the first school in his residence in the winter of 1828-29. The first sawmill was built by Alonzo Weed on Lester R. Dewey's farm. A man named Aldrich built the first grist mill on French Creek, and about the same time a man named Treat built one on Chautauqua Creek.
In May, 1832, Benjamin H. Kip, Elijah and Otis Miller built a sawmill and the next year a carding mill on French Creek, where the village of Sherman now stands. Otis Miller opened a blacksmith shop there and a little later started a tannery. The place was called Millerville and Kipville for a time and was then given the name of Sherman. When the railroad was built in 1867 the village took on new life and in 1890 it was incorporated.
On June 23, 1827, a Congregational church was organized, but later was changed to Presbyterian. A Baptist church was organized in August, 1827; the Methodist Episcopal Church began as a class in 1832, and the church was organized in 1836. In 1842 a Universalist church was organized in the village.
The town of Stockton was formed from Chautauqua February 9, 1821, and was named for Richard Stockton, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. In 1850, a strip was taken from the northern part of Ellery and added to Stockton. The town was organized in the spring of 1821 at a town meeting held at the house of Abel Thompson; Calvin Warren was elected super- visor.
In 1809, Jonathan Bugbee selected a tract of land where the little village of Centralia now stands, and returned to Madison County. Two years later, accompanied by his parents and two brothers, Simeon and Wyman, he returned to his purchase. In the meantime, Joseph Green, Bela Todd and John West had set- tled near the Bugbee land and Shadrach Schofield, Henry Walker and David Waterbury located about a mile farther west. The first tavern was opened where the village of Cassadaga now stands by Ichabod Fisher in 1811; the first school house was built in 1814; E. P. Steadman was the first physician; James Beebe was the first postmaster at Cassadaga; a sawmill and grist mill were built about 1817 by John Hines, Hiram Lazell and Elijah Nelson. The settlement that grew up about the mills became the village of Stockton; in 1921 it was incorporated.
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In 1817 the Baptist Church near Chautauqua Lake was divided, one branch becoming the Baptist Church of Stockton. The Cassadaga Baptist Church was organized on May 8, 1834. The Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in 1825, and later established a branch at Centralia. A Congregational church was organized in 1815; a Christian church in 1825; and the United Brethren and Universalists organized about 1850.
By the act of January 24, 1823, the southern part of Han- over was cut off and erected into the town of Villenova, meaning new village. At the first town meeting, held the following spring, Ezra Puffer was elected supervisor. The settlement was com- menced in 1810 by Eli and John Arnold and Daniel Whipple. A year later came Benjamin and William Barrows, Nathaniel Bowen, Charles Mather, Roderick Wells and one or two others. Bowen enlisted in the War of 1812 and was killed at the battle of Buffalo in 1813. By the time the town was organized there were probably thirty families living within its limits.
The first school was taught by a Mrs. Battles in 1815 at Wright's Corners; the first sawmill was built about 1818 by Auren G. and Nathaniel Smith; the first postoffice was estab- lished at Wright's Corners, with Villeroy Balcom as postmaster; and the first store was opened there in 1828 by Grover & Norris. Mr. Balcom opened a tavern there at an early date.
Hamlet, a village of 331 inhabitants, on the west branch of the Conewango Creek, has been the principal business center since about 1845. James L. Brown built a carding mill there, which was soon followed by a grist mill, and in 1860 Hickey & Howard started an iron foundry. Martin Crowell established a planing mill about the same time. None of these industries is now in existence owing to the failure of the water power and the neglect of the village to secure railroad accommodations.
A Methodist Episcopal church was organized at Wright's Corners in 1812. The church of that denomination at Hamlet was formed on Christmas Day in 1823. The Free Will Baptist Church was organized in 1826. A Wesleyan Methodist church was organized in 1858.
The purchase of land by James McMahan and the settlement formed at the mouth of the Chautauqua Creek about the begin- ning of the nineteenth century have already been mentioned. The
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town of Westfield was created by the act of March 29, 1829, the territory being taken from Portland and Ripley. On April 7, 1829, the first town meeting was held at the Westfield House, then kept by Asa Farnsworth. Amos Atwater was elected supervisor.
As the settlement at the mouth of the Chautauqua Creek is the oldest in the county, many of the first developments occurred there. The first school was taught by William Murray in 1803. Other early teachers were Anna Eaton and John M. Keep, who later became a lawyer. The first grist mill was built by John McMahan in 1804. A sawmill was built about the same time. The first postoffice was established on May 6, 1806, with James McMahan as postmaster. It was located on the west side of the creek and was discontinued when the Westfield office was opened. Jonathan Cass opened the first tavern in 1811; Lawton Richmond was the first physician, and James McClurg was the first mer- chant. The first bank was established by Sextus H. Hungerford in 1848. It became the First National and is still in existence. The completion of the Lake Shore Railroad in 1852 contributed greatly to the prosperity of the village. Westfield was incor- porated in 1833. The Presbyterian Church was organized in 1808; the Baptist Church, in 1825; St. Peter's Episcopal Church, in 1830; the Methodist Episcopal Church, in 1831; the Catholic Church of St. James, in 1858, and the German Evangelical Church, in 1861.
At the mouth of the Chautauqua Creek is the little hamlet of Barcelona, which was established in 1831 by the Barcelona Com- pany. It was made a port of entry and the government erected a lighthouse in which natural gas was used as the illuminant. It was carried through wooden tubing from the gas spring, about three-fourths of a mile distant. For about twenty years Barce- lona was an important shipping point. A large brick hotel was built and several stores were opened, but the building of the rail- roads farther inland diverted the trade to Westfield, and Barce- lona gradually declined.
On April 18, 1831, the Legislature granted a charter to the Chautauqua County Bank, located at Jamestown. This was the first bank in the county.
The State Bank of Brocton was organized in 1892, taking over the business of the private banking firm of Dean & Hall. The
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Cherry Creek National Bank was originated in 1890 as a private bank by E. B. Crissey. It was reorganized as a national bank in 1914. The Clymer State Bank began business in September, 1910. In 1917 the Conewango Valley National Bank was organ- ized with a capital of $25,000. The Merchants National Bank of Dunkirk was organized in 1882. In 1883, at Dunkirk, the Lake Shore National Bank succeeded the Lake Shore State Bank, organized in 1854. The Dunkirk Trust Company began business in June, 1920, with a capital of $250,000. The First National Bank of Falconer was organized in 1900. The First National Bank of Forestville was opened in September, 1912. A national bank was organized at Fredonia in 1866 and was liquidated in 1905. It was followed by the National Bank of Fredonia, which began business in 1906. The Citizens Trust Company of Fre- donia was chartered on March 1, 1906, as the successor of the Citizens State Bank. The Mayville State Bank was organized in 1891. The First National Bank of Ripley was opened in 1891. The State Bank of Sherman was organized in 1890. Silver Creek has two banks, both organized in 1912, the First National and the Silver Creek National. On January 2, 1919, the Sinclairville State Bank opened its doors for business. The oldest bank in Westfield dates back to 1848, when Sextus H. Hungerford opened a private bank. In July, 1864, it became the First National Bank, and later the name was changed to the National Bank of West- field. In 1923 the Grape Belt National Bank of Westfield was organized.
The first schools of Chautauqua were subscription, or "pay" schools. From 1821 to the beginning of the Civil war, several academies were established. The Fredonia Academy, said to be the oldest in western New York, was incorporated in 1824; the Mayville Academy, in 1834; the Jamestown Academy, in 1836; the Dunkirk and Westfield academies, in 1837; and the Ellington Academy, in 1851. Then came the union schools and these academies were turned over to the school authorities and became union or town high schools-all except the Fredonia Academy, which was given greater distinction. When the Legislature of 1866 authorized four state normal schools, the citizens of Fredonia offered to donate the site and raise funds for the necessary build- ings, if the state would give the Fredonia pupils academic instruc-
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tion free. The offer was accepted and the school was established. In December, 1900, the original building, used as a school and dormitory, was destroyed by fire and seven young women students lost their lives. A new building was erected and opened in 1903.
In January, 1817, James Percival started the Chautauqua Gazette at Fredonia (then called Canadaway). This was the first newspaper in the county. The next year the Chautauqua Eagle was founded at Mayville by Robert J. Curtis. Both these papers have long since disappeared. The oldest newspaper in the county is the Fredonia Censor, which was established by Henry C. Fris- bee in April, 1821. The Ashville Farm Loan was established in 1919, and is published monthly; the Brocton Mirror was founded in 1890; the Chautauquan was established at Chautauqua in 1875; the Cherry Creek News was established in 1883; the Dun- kirk Observer was founded in 1882; the Forestville Free Press was established in 1891; the Fredonia Censor was established in 1821; the Normal Leader, published monthly during the college years by the students of the Fredonia Normal School, was estab- lished in 1902; the Mayville Sentinel was founded in 1834; the Ripley Review was established in 1882; Sherman has a weekly, called the Chautauqua News, established in 1876; the Silver Creek Gazette was founded in 1880; the Silver Creek News was estab- lished in 1906; the Sinclairville Commercial was established in 1879; the Westfield Republican was founded by Martin C. Rice and the first number was dated April 25, 1855. It was the first Republican newspaper in the State of New York.
Early in the year 1805, Governor Morgan Lewis and his council of appointment named Perry G. Ellsworth, Peter Kane and David Kincaid as justices of the peace for the town (now county) of Chautauqua. These were the first judicial officers. The first court of common pleas met at Mayville on June 25, 1811, Judge Zattu Cushing presiding, and the session lasted for four days. From 1811 to 1846, when the court of common pleas was abolished, only four men held the office of first judge, viz .: Zattu Cushing, Elial T. Foote, Thomas A. Osborne and Thomas B. Campbell. The constitution of 1846 created the county court, which superseded the court of common pleas. Abner Lewis was the first judge of the county court. Squire White was the first surrogate in Chautauqua County.
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