USA > New York > Wyoming County > Perry > History of the town of Perry, New York > Part 16
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Main street, occupies its original position, or nearly so, but its grading has been materially changed. In the early days. from the Presbyterian Church down toward the outlet, it was quite steep, but much filling was done from time to time to re- duce the grade. In the rear of the First National Bank block was a pond of water, sonorous with the music of frogs in the evenings of the early days. At that time, beginning at the present junetion of Main and Gardeau streets, Main street veered a few feet further to the east until at St. Helena street it was about two rods east of its present location. The follow- ing excerpts are taken from an article written for the Silver Lake Sun by the late John Stainton in 1870. Among other in- teresting facts concerning the Town of Perry of the period of 1818-20, he said :
"The primitive village consisted of two stores in framed buildings-Bailey & Hatch's, corner of Main and Covington streets, and Benjamin Gardner's at his residence, above the mill pond (near the present depot). The latter might perhaps be called the principal store; but, you ask. "Why up there out of the way?" We answer, there was no "way" in reality. The roads were laid out, but not worked ; nor were village lots fenced in. You might go from the outlet on Main street to the Academy site on an air line and find no obstacle, except an army of stumps ; so the Gardner store was not so inaccessible as might appear. Mr. Gardner was postmaster at that time, and his store was a general center of operations."
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HIGHWAYS, BRIDGES, ETC.
From the above description of methods of laying out streets the reader can gain an understanding of the reason for the hit- and-miss arrangement of the older streets of the village, many of them apparently created from cowpaths or the most used paths of early days, the same as is said of the streets of Boston, Mass., and because the original owners of the tracts in which this locality was situated did not believe that it would be de- veloped, giving their attention to other and more promising sec- tions, leaving this small settlement to work out its own destiny.
The culvert on Main street over the outlet was constructed under the supervision of Noah Bacon at an early date, presum- ably about 1830; prior to that a wooden bridge crossed the stream. When the culvert was built it was quite narrow and the sidewalks on either side were constructed as ordinary bridges. In 1857, Judge Rufus H. Smith widened the culvert to its present dimension, filling in with dirt excavated from the cellar for the Smith block, which was under construction at that time.
The culvert on Gardeau street was constructed in 1883 by B. A. Nevins, Supervisor, and Warren A. Phillips, Highway Commissioner. John Bernard was the contractor. In making the necessary fill, 7,000 cubic yards of dirt was used the first year and 3,000 the second year. A wooden bridge erected at an early date was in use up to this time.
A wooden bridge was erected across the outlet ravine on Center street, near Tomlinson & Son's mill, in 1813. A culvert took its place in about the year 1832 and was constructed by Highway Commisisoner Noah Bacon. This first culvert was narrow, being only eight feet wide. It was extended some- what in 1865 and in 1903 it was rebuilt and greatly enlarged under the direction of B. A. Nevins, Supervisor, and Lewis H. Crane, Highway Commissioner.
Farming land on the east side of the outlet, belonging to
ally laid out. Main street was then known as the Allegany road; Leicester
a portion of the Village of Perry (called Columbia at that time) as it was The above map was kindly furnished by Hon. B. A. Nevins and shows
COLUMBIA
VILLAGE
N. 65 30'E.
LEICESTER ROAD
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
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in 1816, and will give the reader a fair idea of the village streets as origin-
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HIGHWAYS, BRIDGES, ETC.
street as Leicester road; Short street as Center street. The unnamed streets in the center and at the lower left of the map represent what are now known as Covington and Lake streets. It will be noticed that what is now Short street was originally laid out to intersect Lake and Church streets, but the portion of Short Street from Covington street to Church street was not worked and never became a thoroughfare. Leicester street in 1816 at its western extremity intersected the West Perry road at or near the pres- ent corner of Federal and Lake streets, instead of the present intersection at the Five Corners. The roadway designated as Short street, which is shown connecting Leicester road and the present Lake street was closed about 1835. The narrow roadway connecting Lake and Covington streets was closed many years ago.
PROSPECT STREET
GROVE
LEICES
STREET
ATL
WATTOS STRALY
LAKE
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SILVER
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The above map is published to show the reader by dotted lines the ap- proximate location of the old abandoned roads of the village and the streets
256
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
which were laid out up to 1853, which is about midway from the time of the settlement of the village to the present. 4 The dot and dash lines show the corporation line of the period. The street designated as Prospect street was laid out at this time but was not worked. Some years later, Watkins avenue was laid out a little north of its location. Water street was known at that time as Mill street.
the late John and Robert Grisewood was cut into building lots. and in 1892 Borden Avenue was laid out from Watrous street to the outlet opposite Main street, and dedicated to the village, Aug. 1st, 1892. The section built up rapidly and, in 1894, an iron bridge was erected across the outlet to connect the prop- erty with Main street, by the Oswego Bridge Co., under the direction of E. G. Matthews, Supervisor, and Edward Purcell. Highway Commissioner.
Owing to the expansion of the plant of the Perry Knitting Co., and the growth of the population in the vicinity of their mills, the late Alonzo Crane eut his farm land on the cast bank of the outlet into building lots in the year 1900 and laid out Walnut street and dedicated it to the village. That section was soon occupied by a number of houses and, in 1902, an iron bridge spanning the outlet and connecting Walnut and Water streets, was erected by the Oswego Bridge Co., under the direc- tion of W. W. Grieve, Supervisor, and Lewis H. Crane, High- way Commissioner.
For a period of many years, work was done on the streets of Perry to keep them in condition, but in the Spring and Fall of each year many of them were almost impassable, notwith- standing, for the reason that there was no systematic or scien- tific plan in use. In particular, Main, Lake, Center and Water streets, where traffic was heavy, were at times simply highways of mud to the depth of from one to two feet, a severe handicap to users of the streets and especially to teamsters and our in- . dustries that had much hauling of unfinished and finished pro- ducts. The urgent need of improving conditions became gener-
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-
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
which were laid out up to 1853, which is about midway from the time of the settlement of the village to the present. The dot and dash lines show the corporation line of the period. The street designated as Prospect street was laid out at this time but was not worked. Some years later, Watkins avenue was laid out a little north of its location. Water street was known at that time as Mill street.
the late John and Robert Grisewood was cut into building lots. and in 1892 Borden Avenue was laid out from Watrous street to the outlet opposite Main street, and dedicated to the village, Aug. 1st, 1892. The section built up rapidly and, in 1894, an iron bridge was erected across the outlet to connect the prop- erty with Main street, by the Oswego Bridge Co., under the direction of E. G. Matthews, Supervisor, and Edward Purcell, Highway Commissioner.
Owing to the expansion of the plant of the Perry Knitting Co., and the growth of the population in the vicinity of their mills, the late Alonzo Crane cut his farm land on the east bank of the outlet into building lots in the year 1900 and laid out Walnut street and dedicated it to the village. That section was soon occupied by a number of houses and, in 1902, an iron bridge spanning the outlet and connecting Walnut and Water streets, was erected by the Oswego Bridge Co., under the direc- tion of W. W. Grieve, Supervisor, and Lewis H. Crane, High- way Commissioner.
For a period of many years, work was done on the streets of Perry to keep them in condition, but in the Spring and Fall of each year many of them were almost impassable, notwith- standing, for the reason that there was no systematic or seien- tific plan in use. In particular, Main, Lake, Center and Water streets, where traffic was heavy, were at times simply highways of mud to the depth of from one to two feet, a severe handicap to users of the streets and especially to teamsters and our in- dustries that had much hauling of unfinished and finished pro- ducts. The urgent need of improving conditions became gener-
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LAKE
SILVER
Map drawn by G. D. Roche, engineer, showing the corporation of Perry in 1915
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HIGHWAYS, BRIDGES, ETC.
ally admitted, and it was decided to send to the State Depart- ment of Highways for an expert to come and look over the sit- uation and give the authorities his advice as to the best plan to pursue. The Department sent Frank Lyon in response to the request, and the whole subject was gone over carefully with him, with the result that in 1903 the village voted to bond itself in the sum of $15,000 for the construction of Macadam streets to the extent that the sum would pay for. George C. Diehl, Highway Engineer of Erie County, was secured to plan and supervise the work, which was done by Street Superintendent P. A. McArthur and his force of assistants. For that sum, Main street was paved from Hope to Mill street ; Mill street and Water street to Main. The width of the improved road was 20 feet on the average, but was widened to 40 feet through the business section. Since that time, other streets have been simi- larly improved, viz: Center street from the junction at Main street to Lake street; Lake to Short street; Short street to Covington street ; Covington street to Center street ; Lake street to Federal street. Approximately, $30,000 has been invested in such improvement by the Corporation of Perry, which in- cludes slag on the Lake and Main street hills and other minor improvements that have made our streets in usable condition with convenience and the ability to haul heavy loads over them at any period of the year.
CHAPTER XVII
Early Transportation by Stage Coach and Canal-Long and Bitter Struggle to Secure Railroad Connections-The Men Who Made It a Reality.
Up to the year 1871, the only means of publie conveyance in Perry was the time-honored stage coach. Although every- thing conceivable was done for the accommodation of the trav- eler, transportation by stage was exceedingly slow and tedious. Taverns abounded throughout the country, averaging through this section one to about every mile of highway.
In the early days of the stage business Perry was one of the largest and most important villages in Western New York. The main stage route east and west from Canandaigua to Elli- cottville ran through here on the old Allegany road. After the opening of the old Genesee Valley Canal, stages ran twice daily between Perry and Cuylerville.
A certain Edwin Root, a notorious wag, ran a popular stage line between Perry and Geneseo for a number of years. It is said that he was a wide-mouthed, loud talking driver, who could guide four horses and hold his whip in one hand while with the other he could press his tin horn to his big mouth and blow blasts loud and long. The turn that he took in coming up to the hotel would have done credit to the Fifth Avenue nabobs with their English drags and outriders. He was a firm believer in advertising, and the writer was fortunate enough to secure one of his widely-distributed handbills bearing date of Jan. 1st, 1844, from which the following excerpts are taken :
"Male and Female Stages from Perry to Geneseo and back in a flash. Baggage, persons and eyesight at the risk of the owners and no questions answered. Having bought the
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valuable rights of young Master James Howard in this line, the subscriber will streak it daily from Perry to Geneseo for the conveyance of Uncle Sam's mail and family, leaving Perry before the crows wake up in the morning and arriving at the first house this side of Geneseo about the same time. Return-
WILLIAM WARD
ing, leave Geneseo after the crows have gone to roost and reach Perry in time to join them. Passengers will please keep their mouths shut, for fear they will lose their teeth. Fare to suit passengers.
"The Public's Much Obliged Servant, Edwin Root."
A stage route from Perry to Batavia was a popular thor- eughfare for many years. A.B. Walker ran stages between Perry
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
and Pike, and Perry and Attica. The building of the Erie Rail. road seriously affected the stage business, and for many years the main line was the formerly well-known "Bill" Ward's Ex- press between Perry and Castile. A stage to Mt. Morris was also continued until after the opening of the Silver Lake Railroad. The last of the once flourishing traffic was a one-horse wagon which came up from Pavilion carrying the way mail to Coving- ton. LaGrange and Perry Center. The crack of the long whip and the toot of the driver's horn is no longer heard, and the old thorough-brace vehieles have gone to decay. The locomotive and the automobile have found their way throughout the entire country, giving facilities for transportation and business, and affording conveniences and speed in travel in wide contrast to the difficulties and tedious journeys encountered by the early settlers in reaching the spot which their toil converted from a wilderness to a modern Garden of Eden.
Most of the produce raised in this section between 1840 and 1852 was hauled overland to Cuylerville and shipped over the Genesee Valley Canal to Rochester, Albany, Troy and all points east. After the Erie Railroad Company completed their line through Castile in the Summer of 1852, more or less was shipped over that route.
The citizens of Perry, feeling the need of railroad commun- ication, began to agitate the proposition as early as 1866. The first railroad article, in which the project of securing an iron connection with the outside world was discussed, appeared in the Silver Lake Sun of March 2d, 1867. In this article a road was contemplated from Rochester by way of LeRoy and Perry, up the Genesee Valley to Olean and thence into Pennsylvania. This was the origin of the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg Rail- road (State Line Railroad) and it was probably regarded at the time by the majority of Perry's citizens as newspaper talk that would amount to nothing. Several prominent citizens then
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asserted that the time had gone by when a railroad could be built that would reach Perry. It was argued that all cross lines in the state ran northwest and southeast, and "the lay of the country" would prevent any line from reaching us.
Finding this too large a project to begin with, the local press came out in favor of a railroad from Perry to Silver Springs (then called East Gainesville), and had a preliminary survey and report made by Col. James O. McClure, C. E.
Probably the most enthusiastic agitator in favor of provid- ing Perry with a railroad connection with the outside world was the late James Wyckoff, who was among the first to recog- nize the advantages that would accrue in developing the town and stimulating its growth. Mr. Wyckoff took an aggressive part in the preliminary work, so much so that he aroused bit- ter antagonism on the part of some residents of the north part of the town, who believed that he was attempting to saddle upon them a debt that could never be lifted. One of the most bitter ones remarked : "I feel that I would be justified in taking a crowbar and breaking open your safe." Others bitterly op- posed the proposition for a railroad, one teamster agreeing to haul with two teams all of the freight that would ever come into or go out of Perry.
How ridiculous those matters appear now, in the light of the present situation. But there is no doubt that the misguided ones were sincere in their opinions, and we can think of their attitude with amused tolerance. On the other hand, what an obligation we owe to Mr. Wyckoff, Mr. Page, Mr. Sanders and those other men to whose vision and the courage to fight for their convictions made possible the realization of a railroad and lifted Perry out of the class of "little inland towns.'
At the time of the death of Mr. James Wyckoff on July 19th, 1890, George C. King (then editor of the Perry Herald),
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
in an obituary notice of Mr. Wyckoff made the following refer- ence to his connection with the Silver Lake Railway :
"He was one of the original and most active and determ- ined promoters of the Silver Lake Railway enterprise; was president of the road for a number of years and a director from the beginning until now. After the sale of the road, he held for several years the office of Railroad Commissioner of the Town of Perry."
The late George Tomlinson, who was a contemporary of Mr. Wyckoff and associated with him in local affairs, paid the following tribute to his memory in an obituary notice which appeared in the Perry Weekly News on July 24th, 1890:
"The death of Mr. James Wyckoff calls to mind the criti- cal days of the Perry railroad. While others bore an important part and rendered valuable assistance, it was his unyielding perserverance that held all in line. His far-sighted sagacity took in the future of the enterprise, and he was willing to stand in the breach and take the responsibility from which more timid men shrank in dismay. When all others were despond- ent and gave 'way before the accumulated discouragements, his faith grew stronger and his active efforts were redoubled until a gleam of hope revived the courage of others and the project was a success.
"It is to Mr. James Wyckoff that the Town of Perry is in- debted more than to any other man for the great public im- provement which connected this village with the outside world. He was as confident in the most gloomy period of the undertak- ing as when he saw the first locomotive run over the rails. Other pens will do him justice and record his worth, but it is befitting his memory to note an achievement of so much public benefit."
The movement in Perry attracted the attention of enter- prising men north and south of us, and the through road prop- osition again began to be discussed. The first State Line Rail- road meeting took place at Wiscoy, March 5th, 1869, and was attended by prominent citizens of Rochester and the towns
JAMES WYCKOFF
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
along the route proposed. Messrs. George A. Sanders of Perry and L. R. Hitchcock were appointed a committee to visit the Pine Creek region of Pennsylvania and report in regard to its resources, productions, and the feasibility of reaching it by rail. Their report was presented at a largely attended meeting held at Castile on March 17th, and it added greatly to the pre- vailing enthusiasm all along the line. Another meeting in aid of the project was held in Caledonia on March 31st, and at Rochester on April 8th, 1869, the State Line Railway Company was organized. It was not until after this preliminary work had been completed, and an organization effected, that a counter move was started at Warsaw, which finally resulted in the abandonment of the above mentioned route. It was event- ually located upon what is known as the " Warsaw and Sala- manca route, " at a meeting held in Rochester on January 7th, 1870.
At the largest and most enthusiastic railroad meeting ever held in the county, convened at Smith's Hall in Perry on Jan. 12th, 1870, the Rochester & Pine Creek Railway Company was organized. Its purpose was to build a road from Castile to Caledonia, and had every town on the line adhered to the plan with the firmness and determination of Perry, the trains would have long since been running over the route from Rochester to the Pennsylvania Railroad. It soon became apparent that the efforts of the Warsaw people who were quietly working in op- position to the plan had alienated the managers at Rochester from this route, and in some of the towns it began to be looked upon as too large a job to undertake without Rochester's aid.
Perry was soon bonded for $100,000 in aid of the road, and on the 20th of August, 1870, R. C. Mordoff, R. W. Brigham and L. G. Morgan were appointed commissioners. An opposition developed in Castile, which prevented the bonding of that town. A disposition was manifested in York to "go slow, " and
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the project seemed to be in a fair way to get another setback. At this time the proposition was revived in favor of Perry tak- ing hold of the matter alone and going to Silver Springs, the nearest point on the Erie Railroad. A majority of the people heartily endorsed the proposal and the directors were urged to begin work.
On the 5th of December, 1870, the contract for the grading and masonry from Perry to Silver Springs was let to A. Mar- cellus, to be completed August 1st, 1871. Robert Bell had pre- viously been engaged as civil engineer, and the work was begun on Dec. 8th, 1870, near the culvert across the outlet, just above the present site of the Tempest Knitting Company's plant. The road was completed and a long blast from the locomotive an- nounced its first arrival in Perry, on Oct. 20th, 1871. Some delay was experienced in procuring rolling stock and making the necessary arrangements for the operation of the road; but everything was eventually secured, and on the 14th day of February, 1872, the first regular passenger train left Perry for Silver Springs.
The $100,000 raised by bonding the town was used in the construction of the road; the balance needed for procuring the necessary equipment (some $23,000) was generously furnished by a number of the local citizens.
For a period of a few years the road was operated with varying degrees of success. In 1877 the time came, however, when the operating expenses were greater than the receipts, and conditions did not look favorable for the maintenance of the line. To make things worse, there came a heavy snow storm during the Winter of that year and the track was covered with an unknown depth of snow. All traffic was suspended ; there was no money in the treasury. A meeting of the directors was called and all answered to their names, as follows : Samuel Chapin, Henry N. Page, Rufus H. Stedman, M. C. Williams,
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF PERRY
James Wyckoff, German Olin, E. G. Matthews, Austin Toan, I. C. Rudgers, R. W. Brigham, Luther Chapin, George Tomlin- son, J. C. Lowing. Deep anxiety was visible upon every face, and the grave question was: " What shall be done in this emer- geney ?" Two questions were up for consideration. It was understood that parties would give $50,000 for the road, fran- chise and rolling stock.
George A. Sanders, at that time a resident of Perry, sent in a proposition to lease the road for a term of years, agreeing to pay the town $1,000 per year as rental, the town to pay the expense of clearing the snow from the track. There was ap- parent an unwillingness to offer the road for sale, so the only question left was the proposition of Mr. Sanders. A resolution was offered in these words :
"Resolved, That the proposition of George A. Sanders be accepted, and the president of the road is hereby instructed to close the contract and execute a lease."
While this resolution was under discussion, Mr. Mark Smith called one of the members of the Board aside and asked that he be permitted to make a bid. This was reported to the meeting and the motion was carried to postpone for one week the question of leasing the road. The desperation of thesituation was such that much feeling was manifested, and the question of postponement was carried by only one majority. This was on a Saturday. The following Monday morning, Mr. E. G. Mat- thews provided himself with an Alpenstock and walked the entire distance to Silver Springs, taking measurements of the depth of the snow on the track. At a meeting of the Board, convened on the next Wednesday, Mr. Matthews in giving his report, exclaimed : "Gentlemen, I will stake my reputation that I can make that road pay!" As a result, the Board gave him the opportunity to make good his boast and an agreement was made by which Mr. Matthews was to advance $1,000 and was
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