USA > New York > Genesee County > Our county and its people : a descriptive and biographical record of Genesee County, New York, v. 1 > Part 11
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It was not until February 2, 1812, that the first Presbyterian church of Le Roy was organized, although religious services had been held in that town with some degree of regularity ever since 1800, when they were inaugurated by the Rev. David Perry, a missionary from Massa- chusetts. The Le Roy church of 1812 at once was increased in num- bers by the admission into membership of the local adherents of the Congregational denomination. The organization of the society was perfected by the Rev. Oliver Ayer and the Rev. Reuben Parmalee. David Anderson was the first to be ordained to the deaconate. The Rev. David Fuller, the first resident clergyman, served the society for a short time, when the Rev. Calvin Colton was installed as the first regular pastor. A substantial house of worship was erected by the society in 1826.
The old arsenal at Batavia, which was abandoned about 1816, was erected just prior to the war of 1812. This was one of the numerous measures for defense adopted by the State Government for the pro. tection of the frontier as soon as it was seen that hostilities were in- evitable. About 1810 the State entered into a contract with Joseph Ellicott for the construction of a building twenty feet square and twelve feet'in height, to be used for the storage of military supplies. The arsenal remembered by the present generation was not built until after the close of that war.
In 1811 a Protestant Episcopal church was established in Sheldon (Bennington), then in Genesee county, this being the first church of that denomination organized upon the Holland Purchase. The first wardens were Joshua Mitchell and Fitch Chipman, and the first vestry- men were John Rolph, John W. Coleman, Seneca Reed, James Case, Philo Welton and James Ward. The Union Religious Society was es- tablished in 1812 at Warsaw, then also in Genesee county. The first trustees were Isaac Phelps, Abraham Reed, John Munger, William Bristol, Zerah Tanner and Shubael Goodspeed. The first Baptist church of Sheldon was organized in 1812 with the following trustees: Pelatiah Case, Darius Cross, Justin Loomis, Solomon King, William W. Parsons and Ezra Ludden.
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THE PIONEERS OF THE COUNTY.
CHAPTER IX.
PIONEERS OF GENESEE COUNTY.
The settlement of the territory west of the Genesee river was re- tarded greatly by reason of the continued Indian troubles, linmediately after the close of the war a number of New England farmers, princi- pally from the western part of Connecticut, started out with their fam- ilies to build new homes in the already famous "Genesee country;" but soon after entering the State of New York they learned of the dangers that beset the whites in that locality, and abandoned the pro- ject. Some returned to the locality whence they had come, and others located in the Mohawk valley or in Saratoga county. As early as 1:53 two families, named Reynolds and Rogers, left Canaan, Connecticut, with the intention of settling west of the Genesce river, but their jour- ney ended in Saratoga county.
While the tide of immigration in the direction of the rich and productive plains of the famed Genesee country was not very strong until the close of the eighteenth century, still a number of daring seekers after new homes found their way into this region prior to 1800. In a preceding chapter appear the names of most of the taxpayers west of the Genesee river in 1800. Just when they came and where they located has never been ascertained in some cases. The pioneers of those days, while building for posterity, did not keep a record of their movements and other important events, consequently later generations have been com . pelled to live on with but meagre knowledge of the careers of their ancestors, excepting rare cases.
It is probable that the first white man to locate in the territory now comprised within the confines of the county of Genesee, and perhaps the first to locate permanently at any point on the Holland Purchase. was Charles Wilbur, who, in 1793, began the cultivation of a farm which subsequently became a part of the site of the village of Le Roy. Wilbur erected a small log house, which he used as a residence and a tavern. There has been some difference of opinion on this point, but - modern' research, reinforcing the records of the past, leads to the con-
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clusion that Wilbur was the first white man to found a home in that part of New York State west of the Genesee river.
While Wilbur was the pioneer settler, his residence at this point cov- ered a comparatively brief period, and he did little to perpetuate his name or fame. It is to the Ganson family that the credit for pioneer progress and industry properly belongs.
Captain Ganson was born in Bennington, Vt., in 1:50. At the be- ginning of the Revolutionary war he enlisted as a private in the patriot army, went at once with a Vermont regiment to Boston, arriving there in time to participate in the battle of Bunker Hill. During that en - gagement a British musket ball carried away one of his fingers. Soon after he was commissioned as captain, and kept command of a com- pany until the close of the war, when he returned to his home at Ben nington.
During a part of the war Captain Ganson was a member of the com- miand of General Sullivan, and as such participated in the latter's ex- pedition against the Seneca Indians. During his brief sojourn in the borders of the famed "Genesee country " he was impressed by the remarkable fertility of the land and the agreeable climate. It was to him an ideal spot for a home and for carrying on agricultural pursuits. Compared with the rugged hills of Vermont, it was little short of a paradise for a farmer.
With the close of the war Captain Ganson decided to make a still further personal investigation of the wonderful new country, and the fear of the dreaded Seneca Indians did not deter him from starting out on his trip of inspection. In 1789 he left Bennington, accompanied by his two sons. Of these, John was fourteen years of age and James was twelve. Late in the fall of that your they reached a point about two miles south of the site of the village of Avon, where he purchased land on which to build his future home.
Leaving his sons in the custody of a friendly Seneca he returned to Vermont for the purpose of bringing the remainder of his family west with him. But soon after reaching home his wife died, and it was not until late in the spring of 1790 when he began his final journey west- ward with the remnant of his family. At this time there were few settlements west of Utica, and most of the latter part of the journey had to be made over Indian trails. From Canandaigua to the Genesce river, a distance of over twenty miles, hardly a white habitation was to be seen. Soon after settling upon the Genesee the Gansons erected
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the first grist mill located upon that river. It was a log structure and a primitive affair, but it proved a great convenience to the pioneers for miles around.
In 1797 Captain Ganson and his sons deerled to remove to the west side of the river, and the former purchased the farm and house owned by Charles Wilbur. This place was the beginning of what subsequently became generally known as " the Ganson settlement," the neighborhood which ultimately developed into the thriving village of Le Roy. Here. a few years later, following the completion of the Holland Land Com- pany's surveys, came immigrants in large numbers, and for many years the tavern of John Ganson, who as a lad of fourteen came west with his father, was one of the most noted between the Hudson river and the Great Lakes.
Both Stafford and Le Roy have long laid claim to the honor of being the location of the first permanent settlers in Genesce county. Though Captain Ganson purchased the Wilbar farm in 1797, it is generally be- lieved that he did not remove there until the following spring. On this point there is some doubt. In 1198 James Brisbane, the first mer- chant on the Holland Purchase, came to Stafford with a load of sup- plies and general merchandise for sale to the surveyors at work under direction of Joseph Ellicott. He at once opened a store, on the site of the present village of Stafford, which was called the Transit store. house: but its exact location is not now known. Though the truth is not definitely known, there are many reasons for believing that Cap- tain Ganson had moved upon his newly acquired property in Le Roy a short time before Brisbane built his store, where he also at first re. sided. It is not likely that the mooted question will ever be definitely decided.
Settlements were also made at Batavia in 1298. These are more fully described in the chapter devoted to the history of the village of Batavia.
To revert to " the Ganson settlement: " Immigration hither assumed large proportions immediately after the completion of the surveys made by the Holland Land Company. Capt. Jotham Curtis, one of the earliest to come, was a farmer and tavern keeper. Joseph Hewitt and Daniel Davis came soon after. All three were there, however, before 1502, the year when the surveys were completed. Chapman Hawley located east of Le Roy village about 1501, and was well known as " the fiddler" for that section. For some time he was an important func-
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tionary at local dances and other entertainments. Richard M. Stod- dard, who came to this neighborhood in 1502, was the first local agent for the Triangle tract. Ezra Platt, who removed here from Canandai- gua, either in 1801 or 1802, probably the latter date, was the first to re- ceive the appointment of judge of Genesee County Court of Common Pieas. Stephen A. Wolcott, who came from Geneva in 1802, was the first cabinet-maker and builder in town.
Daniel Davis, whose settiement here has already been noted, married Naomi Le Barron soon after his arrival. She came from Killing- worth, Conn., with the family of Philemon Nettleton. Their marriage was the first in the Ganson settlement and their daughter, Naomi Davis, was the first white child born there. Charles Wilbur, the first justice of the peace, performed the wedding ceremony. At the same time and place Gardner Carver and Lydia Davis were married by Jus- tice Wilbur. Davis's farm was about two miles east of that of the Gansons, near the eastern edge of the present town.
Hinds Chombethin was one of the very earliest pioneers, and one of the most enterprising and useful citizens in the community. In all public movements he was conspicuous as a leader for many years. He opened the first road from the Genesee river to Ganson's, over the old Indian trail, under direction of Richard M. Stoddard. The farm he first opened lie sold in 1801 to Asher Bates, who in that year came from Canandaigua.
Richard M. Stoddard was one of the most conspicuous and influen - tial men of the community in its early days. He came from Canan- daigua with Ezra Platt. In May, 1801, Joseph Ellicott, then acting as special agent for Le Roy and Bayard, engaged Mr. Stoddard to make a survey of the Triangle tract, giving explicit directions as to the laying off of a tract of five hundred acres at " Buttermilk Falls." This tract, which was purchased in 1502 by Mr. Stoddard and Ezra Platt, is now entirely covered by the village of Le Roy. They erected on the Oatka a grist mill, which is believed to have been the first west of the Genesee river. Mr. Stoddard became the first sheriff of Genesee county and to his efforts is due in a very large measure the peaceful conditions which surrounded the inhabitants of this county during a portion of the first decade of the present century. He also built a commodions tavern and several other houses. He was a man of wide influence, which he invariably exercised for good.
In 1239 Gilbert Hall began the cultivation of the farm known in
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THE PIONEERS OF THE COUNTY.
recent years as the Phelps farm. Friend Hall came soon after and located near by. Jabez Fox and James Davis, jr., settled in town about 1800. Lyman Prindle built a home on West Main street in 1801. The following year Richard Waite came from Canandaigua. His home was frequently used in the early days as a house of worship. Daniel D. Waite, for many years editor of the Batavia Advocate, was his son. Captain James Austin was an early millwright in Le Roy, and Thad- dens Keyes had the first tannery there. Ebenezer Fox, one of the pioneers, conducted a singing school for some time. Aaron Scribner and Samuel Davis removed to this town about 1802. The latter was the proprietor of an early tavern. In a drunken brawl which occurred in his house he met his death at the hands of his son, James, and Elijah Gray, sr. Both were tried and convicted of the murder. Gray was sentenced to State prison for life, but sentence was subsequently com- mtited. James Davis was hanged for the crime, at Batavia, in 1-29. Among others who settled in the town prior to 1802 were Captain Nathaniel Buel, John Sweatland and Orange Judd.
In 1805 Jeremiah Hascall came from Connecticut and settled upon the farm east of the village which in more recent years has been known as "Dreamland." He had four sons-Jeremiah, Amasa, John and Augustus P .- and two daughters.
In 1808 Simon Pierson located near Fort Hill. He was a descendant of Abraham Pierson, the first president of Yale University. He served as a major in the war of 1812, and enjoyed a reputation as an authority on Indian antiquities. He made numerous excavations in the ancient Indian fort near his home and discovered large numbers of Indian relies. Some of these he found below the largest trees, proving that the works were very ancient.
Contemporaries of Major Pierson were George W. Blodgett, the first saddler and harnessmaker, who settled upon the farm afterward occu- pied by his daughter, Mrs. J. R. Anderson; Mr. Brown, who was the pioneer blacksmith; John Gilbert, a blacksmith and axe maker, father of the distinguished artist: Levi Farnham, the first manufacturer of clothing; Captain Isaac Marsh, who built an early saw mill, probably the first in town; John Hay, the first stone mason, who built the first Episcopal church; William Whiting, who came from Canandaigua in 1805; Colorel William Olmsted, who came from Williamstown, Mass., in 1800, father of John R. Olinsted of Le Roy.
Among others who located in the town of Le Roy prior to the begin-
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ning of the war of 1812 were Heman J. Redfield, who became a dis- tinguished citizen of Genesee county; Augustus H. Ely, Stephen Still- well, Daniel Woodward, David Anderson, Alexander Anderson, Joseph Austin, Jonathan Wright, Benjamin Webb, Joel Butler, Thankful Buel, Joy Ward, Captain William Thomas, Edmund Beach, Jonas Bart- lett, Christopher Cadman, Joseph Cook, Amasa Clapp, Lee Comstock, Thomas Studley, Thomas Severance, James Roberts, Elias Peck, Henry Goodenow. Ezekiel Hall, Israel Herrick, Daniel Pierson, Rus- sell Pierson, Ebenezer Parmelee, David W. Parmelee, Zalmon Owen, William Holbrook. Moses McCollum, Alfred Morehouse, Jesse Beach, Philip Beach, Colonel Norton S. Davis, Dudley Saltonstall, whose daughter became the wife of Richard M. Stoddard; Phineas Bates, Cyrus Douglass, Dr. David Fairchild, Jabez Fox, Amos Hall, Nathan Harvey, Alexander MePherson, Abel Nettleton, - Scofield, Amzi Stoughton, Richard Waite, Stephen A Wolcott, Dr. William Coe, Ca !- vin Davis, John McPherson, Samuel B Wolley, Daniel White, David White, Allen MePherson, Gideon Fordham, John Franklin, Jacob Mc- Collum, Robert Nesbit, Captain David Scott, Asa Buell, Moses Lilly, Isaac Perry, George A. Tiffany, David Emmons, Jason Munn, Philo Pierson, Simon Pierson, the author: Abram Butterfield, Ithamar Coe, John Elliott, Dr. Frederick Fitch, Dr. Benjamin Hill, Captain Theodore Joy, H. Johnson, Silas Lawrence, Hugh Murphy, R. Sinclair, Stephen P. Wilcox, Major Nathan Wilcox, Harry Backus, Timothy Backus, Ebenezer Miles, Salmon Butler, Chester Barrows, Willis Buell, Ward Beckley, Jacob Coe, Silas Fordham. William Harris, Seth Harris, Mar- tin Kelsey, Uriah Kelsey, James MePherson, jr., Captain Isaac Marsh, Graham Newell, Stephen Olmsted, Harvey Prindle, Elias Parmelec, Dr. Chauncey P. Smith, Dr. William Sheldon, Thaddeus Stanley, Alanson Stanley, J. Harlow Stanley, Thomas Tufts, Thomas Warner. Chester Waite, Captain John Webb, Washington Weld, Joseph Annin, Abraham Buckley, Nathan Bannister, Joseph Curtis, Levi Farnham, Julius Griswold, Samuel Gilbert, Ebenezer Lawrence, Pliny Sanders m, Elisha Stanley, John Thwing, Stephen Taylor, Stephen Walkley.
The mill of Stoddard & Platt was the first erected in Le Roy, its operation beginning in 1803. This mill antedates that which the Hol- land Land Company erected at Batavia.
The year before a wooden bridge had been erected over the Oatka. These two institutions served to attract people to Le Roy from the sur- rounding country, and were in a measure responsible for its early
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growth. The bridge was built by James Ganson, under direction of Charles Wilbur and Jotham Curtis, commissioners of highways. The town voted $50 towards paying the expense of construction, and $200 more was raised by popular subscription. The work was finished five days after it had been begun, as men from all the adjacent country participated in the work, donating their services.
The post office at Le Roy was established in 1801, Asher Bates being the first to officiate as postmaster. Richard M. Stoddard and James Ganson were his immediate successors.
Richard M. Stoddard was the first to offer any merchandise for sale in town, but he did no general business. The first regular store in town was opened in 1806 by George F. Tiffany on the east side of the Oatka. Philo Pierson was also an early merchant, opening a store at the corner of Main and North streets in Le Roy about 1810. David Emmons and Captain Theodore Joy were proprietors of a general store at this point during the period under discussion. Captain Joy was one of the best known merchants between Canandaigua and Buffalo. M. & B. Murphy and James Annin located very early here. The latter first had a store on the east side of the Oatka, but like several others, he removed.to the west side of the creek as soon as it became evident that that locality was to be the business centre of the village.
Dr. William Coe was the first regular practitioner to locate in Le Roy, where he settled in 1803. Besides practicing his profession he taught several of the higher branches of learning in the evening. Many of the prominent persons of the generation succeeding him owe to Dr. Coe the education they obtained. Dr. Frederick Fitch, Dr. Ella Smith, Dr. Chauncey P. Smith and Dr. William Sheldon practiced in town during this period. Graham Newell was the pioneer lawyer in town.
The name of the town was changed to Caledonia in 1802. In 181lit was called Bellona, from the goddess of war, nearly every able-bodied man in town having enlisted in the American army to fight against the British. The name was not changed to Le Roy until 1813.
In the year 1798. Joseph and Benjamin Ellicott and James Brisbane are recorded as inhabitants of the town of Batavia. The separate chapter in the history of the village of Batavia furnishes more detailed information regarding these noted pioneers and some of their contem- poraries. The early records show that John Branan located in town in 1800. In the township outside the village the first settlers were Isaac Sutherland, who built a substantial log house on his farm about two
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
miles west of the land office in the village, and General Worthy L. Churchill and Colonel William Rumsey, who located in the eastern sec- tion of the town. Soon after Benjamin Morgan, John Lamberton and Samuel F. Geer settled in the town.
The life and services of Joseph Ellicott, the founder of Batavia, have been touched upon in extenso elsewhere in this work. Let us now take a retrospective view of some of the less distinguished, though prominent and influential pioneer inhabitants, than the first agent of the Holland Land Company. Perhaps James Brisbane deserves the first place in the list.
Mr. Brisbane was born in Philadelphia, of Irish parentage, October 12, 1176. At the age of twenty-two years he left the City of Brotherly Love with a large quantity of supplies and general merchandise for sale to the corps of men then engaged in surveying the Western New York wilderness under the direction of Joseph Ellicott. Mr. Brisbane and those who accompanied him first stopped at Stafford, where a building called the Transit storehouse was erected. This was in 17OS. January 2, 1800, he accompanied Mr. Ellicott back to Philadelphia. Returning in the spring of 1802 he located permanently in the new village of Ba- tavia, which was laid out in that year, offering for sale the first lot of general merchandise ever shipped to that point. July 21, 1802, Gideon Granger, postmaster-general, commissioned him as the first postmaster of Batavia. This was the second post-office west of the Genesee, that at Lewiston being the first. Isaac Sutherland and Samuel F. Geer had erected a building on the northeast corner of Main and Church streets, which was immediately rented for use as a store by Mr. Brisbane, and afterward purchased by him. In 1806 he resigned the postmastership and Ebenezer Cary was appointed in his place. At the same time he disposed of his stock of goods and rented his store to Trumbull Cary. He soon after went to New York and engaged in the book business for two years. Returning to Batavia in ISOS he resumed business at his original stand, remaining there until 1821. During the earlier years of his residence in Batavia he purchased large parcels of real estate, which soon became exceedingly valuable. In 1833 he became the prin- cipal incorporator and largest shareholder of the Tonawanda railroad. Mr. Brisbane was married in 1807 to Mary Lney Stevens, a sister of James W. Stevens, the first clerk of Genesee county. His death oc- curred May 20, 1951. He was survived by two sons: Albert, born in 1800, and George, born in 1812.
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Among the other pioneers of the town, prior to the war of 1812, were the following :
James W. Stevens, a native of New Jersey and a graduate of Prince- ton College, came in 1800. At the earliest period of its land sales in Western New York he became connected with the Holland Land Com- pany, and remained in that capacity until the affairs of that concern were closed up. He was the first clerk of Genesee county, holding office from 1804 to 1810. No man in all Genesee county was more highly esteemed than he.
David E. Evans, a nephew of Joseph Ellicott, came from his home in Maryland to assume a clerical position in the Holland Land office. He was elected to the State Senate in 1818 and served in that body four years. He became a member of congress in 1826, but resigned in that year in order to accept the agency of the Holland Company, to succeed Jacob Otto, a position he filled with great fidelity until 183?, when the affairs of the company were closed up. His death occurred in 1850. Mr. Evans was a publie-spirited man, and a liberal contrib- utor to all worthy enterprises, public or private.
Ebenezer Cary accompanied Mr. Ellicott as a surveyor to the Hol- land Purchase, and served the company for some time in various ca- pacities. He was an early merchant in Batavia, succeeding James Brisbane.
Dr. David McCracken and Roswell Graham came in 1801, and James Cochrane in 1802. The latter was the proprietor of a bell foundry on Bank street. He died in 1526.
Trumbull Cary, brother of Ebenezer Cary, was born in Mansfield, Conn., August 11, 1787. He came to Batavia in 1805, and after spend- ing four years as clerk for James Brisbane and Ebenezer Cary, bought out that firm and remained in business until 1840. He also served as postmaster for part of that time. He served in both branches of the State Legislature, and was an adjutant in the war of 1812. He was the founder of the Bank of Genesee, and was for many years one of the most successful business men and financiers in this section of the State. He died June 20, 1869.
Ebenezer Mix was born at New Haven, Conn., December 31. 1259. In 1800 he came to Batavia and worked at his trade as a mason in the summer and taught school in the winter. In 1810 he began the study of the law with Daniel B. Brown, but in the spring of IS11 entered the employ of the Holland Land Company, where he remained as
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
contracting clerk for twenty-seven years. During this period he was for twenty-one years surrogate of Genesee county. While serving in that office, he codified the State laws relating to the descent and distri- bution of estates. He served with distinction in the war of 1812, act- ing as the volunteer aide of Gen. Peter B. Porter at the memorable sortie at Fort Erie, September 17, 1814. He was recognized as one of the best mathematicians in the State, and was the author of a work en- titled " Practical Mathematics." He also assisted Orsamus Turner in the compilation of his " History of the Holland Purchase." March 30. 1815, Mr. Mix married Jemima Debow. His death occurred in Cleve- land, O., January 12, 1869.
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