USA > New York > Genesee County > Our county and its people : a descriptive and biographical record of Genesee County, New York, v. 1 > Part 35
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The Young Men's Christian Association was founded in the spring of 1889 with these officers: President, Levant C. McIntyre ; vice president, Safford E. North: general secretary, C. H. Harrington; recording secretary, A. H. Thomas; treasurer, John M. Mckenzie. For some time the rooms were located on the corner of Main and Jackson streets. but the association now has quarters in the old Alva Smith residence at the head of Park avenue which for many years was used for a ladies' seminary.
The Western hotel, owned by Andrew J. Wells, was destroyed by fire September 13, 1889. A hotel on this site, then conducted by a man named Ilensinger, was burned in 1850. The latter was the orig. inal hotel erected on the site of the old Western hotel, and was a land- mark in the first half of the century.
The Baker Gun and Forging Company, celebrated as the manufac- turers of the Baker hammerless shot guns, is the successor to the Syra- cuse Forging and Gun Company, which removed its plant from Syra- cuse to Batavia in the spring of 1889. The enterprise was originally founded in Syracuse in 1886, but the company was reorganized and re- named upon the removal of the establishment to Batavia. Oddly enough, it began business by manufacturing an improved fifth wheel for wagons, finally adding the manufacture of the new Baker gun, the invention of W. H. Baker, for several years the general superintendent of the company. The market for this gun extends throughout every State in the Union, from five to six thousand being sold annually. Besides the Baker hammerless, popular grades include the Batavia hammerless, the Paragon hammerless and the Baker 1896 model, a hammer gun for nitro powder. The manufacturing plant ineludes a two-story main factory and foundry, in which about two hundred skilled workmen are employed. The company's officers are: President and treasurer, William T. Mylcrane; vice-president, C. W. Hough : secretary, E. W. Atwater.
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THE VILLAGE OF BATAVIA.
Hotel Richmond occupies a site that for just three-quarters of a century has been occupied by hotel buildings. On that lot the first of the famous old Eagle taverns stood. This was a spacious three-story brick structure built by Horace Gibbs for Bissell Humphrey and first opened to the public on February 1, 1823. It was destroyed by fire May 30, 1834. In this tavern Batavia Lodge No. 433, F. & A. M., held many of its meetings. The second Eagle tavern was erected by a stock company at an expense of about fifteen thousand dollars. Its doors were opened December 25, 1835, under the management of Eras- tus Smith. In 1869 Albert G. Collins, Andrew J. Andrews and James H. White purchased the Eagle hotel property, which was renamed Hotel Richmond by Mr. Collins; but numerous residents of Batavia protested over the name, believing that it had too strong political sig- nificance for those days, and Mr. Collins and his partners were pre- vailed upon to change the name, and the same was changed to that of St. James Hotel. Collins & Andrews were proprietors until 1884, when Mr. Collins purchased the interest of his partner. In the latter year the hotel was remodeled into an arcade with four stories. In that year Mr. Collins rented the property to Capt. Orrin C. Parker, who conducted it until January S, 1886, when it was destroyed by fire. The present Hotel Richmond, which is said by many travelers to be one of the finest hostelries of its class in the country, was erected in 1889 by a stock concern known as the Batavia Hotel Company. June 22, 1889, the company, in which Mrs. Mary E. Richmond, widow of Dean Rich- mond, was a heavy stockholder, executed a ten-year mortgage for forty thousand dollars to her. In January, 1896, in default of payment of interest, an action of foreclosure was begun by the executors of the Richmond estate against the hotel company, and March 9, 1896, the property was purchased by the executors of that estate for $43, 649.82. The hotel has been under the management of Benjamin R. Wood since June, 1891.
The Batavia roller mills, on Evans street, were established in 1884 by .V. D. Nobles, the present proprietor.
The Ellicott street roller mills were erected by Frank G. Moulton in 1859.
The Consumers' Electric Light and Power Company was organized and incorporated in 1889 with a capital of twenty-five thousand dollars and these officers: President, Henry Craft; secretary, C. H. Caldwell; treasurer, R. L. Kinsey. February 13, 1890, the plant of the Batavia
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Gas Light Company was sold to those interested in the Consumers' Electric Light and Power Company. The two companies soon after were consolidated under the name of the Batavia Gas and Electric Com . pany.
The Batavia and New York Wood Working Company was incorpo- rated in July, 1832, soon after which it purchased the entire plant, business and good will of the New York Lumber and Wood Working Company, a concern which had been established about six years. The company's main building, exclusive of boiler and engine rooms, is sixty by three hundred feet, and three stories in height. The concern makes no stock article of any kind, working only to designs and on contract. The products comprise doors, sash, blinds, mouldings, in- terior hardwood finish for buildings, wainscoting, stairs, office par- titions, bank interiors, and fine cabinet work of all kinds, made from architects' drawings and in special designs. Many of the finest com- mercial and office buildings, hotels, apartment houses and private res- idences in the great cities of the East have been supplied with interior woodwork by this establishment. It employs regularly about two hundred and fifty skilled workmen. The officers of the company are: President, J. N. Scatcherd; vice-president, C. H. Honeck; secretary and treasurer, A. D. Scatcherd.
The predecessor of the Batavia and New York Wood Working Com- pany-the New York Lumber and Wood Working Company-sprang from the Batavia Manufacturing Company, incorporated in 1884 with a capital stock of two hundred thousand dollars. Soon after the firm was changed to the Batavia Sewing Machine Company, with a capital stock increased to three hundred thousand dollars, which contracted to manufacture the Post combination sewing machine. During the sum- mer of 1884 the company erected the building now occupied by the wood working company, near the eastern boundary line of the village, at a cost of about forty thousand dollars. The plans of the company could not be carried out, by reason of financial difficulties, and in 1885 the building became the property of the New York Lumber and Wood Working Company, formerly the New York Wood Turning Company of New York city. The company, whose capital was one hundred thousand dollars, was composed of residents of New York city, with W. C. Andrews as president, and Charles H. Honeck as superinten- dent. In 1892 it sold its business to the Batavia and New York Wood Turning Company.
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THE VILLAGE OF BATAVIA.
June 26, 1893, the taxpayers of Batavia decided by vote to authorize the trustees of the village to expend twenty-three thousand dollars for an electric light plant. The trustees at once acted upon the authority thus conferred upon them, and the electric light plant began oper- ation July 13, 1894. The apparatus was furnished by the Fort Wayne (Ind. ) Electric Company, at an expense of twelve thousand five hun- dred dollars, the contract for the same having been awarded January 25, 1894.
April 25, 1893, a number of the business men of Batavia held a meet- ing and organized the Batavia Board of Trade. The first officers, elected on that date, were: President, Charles W. Hough; first vice- president, Augustus N. Cowdin: second vice-president, Ashton W. Caney; corresponding secretary, Edward Russell; recording secretary, David D. Lent; treasurer, Joseph C. Barnes.
During the gubernatorial campaign in the fall of 1894 William Me- Kinley, then governor of Ohio, stopped in Batavia about nine o'clock on the morning of October 26, and made a speech of eight minutes from a platform erected for the purpose in the park at the northeast corner of the Surrogate's office. The distinguished orator was greeted by a vast audience of early risers from all parts of the county. He was in- troduced by Judge North as the next president of the United States, a prediction destined to be fulfilled.
The Batavia Street Railroad Company was incorporated February 26, 1895, to operate an electric street railroad from Batavia to Horse- shoe lake, a distance of seven and one half miles. The capital stock was fixed at seventy five thousand dollars, and the company had these original directors: Amos H. Stephens, A. B. Wilgus, J. H. Wilgus, J. S. Lindsay, C. C. Marsh, New York; H. R. Burdick, Malden, Mass. ; E. P. Wilgus, Mark Sugarman, Brooklyn; F. G. Fadner, Chicago. The road contemplated has never been constructed.
Among the other local organizations are the following: Lodge No. 197, I.O.O.F., was instituted in August, 1868, by H. S. Andrews, D. G.M., with five charter members: Weeden T. Bliss, William Hoyt, Si- eon Lothiem, Thomas Yates and B. P. Fonda. Majestic Lodge No. 754, I. O.O.F., was instituted June 4, 1896, with Clayton W. Shedd as N.G. Richmond Encampment, No. 67, Patriarchs Militant, was insti- tuted August 21, 18:2. Security Lodge No. 21, A. O. U. W., was chartered April 20, 1876, with C. F. Starks as C.M. The Batavia Farmers' Club was organized in 1872 with P. P. Bradish as president,
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J. G. Fargo as secretary and Henry Ives as treasurer. The Philhar- monic Society was organized in 1883. Batavia Lodge No. 5, E. O. M. A., was instituted March 15, 1879, with thirty-three charter mem- bers. The Batavia Athletic Association was founded in 1887 with forty members and M. F. Cross as president. The Batavia Chess Chib was organized in December, 1898, with Oliver A. Jones as president. The Batavia Business Men's Bowling Club was organized January ?, 1896, with D. W. Tomlinson as president, E. J. Mockford as vice- president, Dr. Burkhart as secretary, and Orrin C. Steele as treasurer. The Batavia Gun Club was organized April 9, 1896, with George Lewis as president and field captain, W. E. Baker as secretary, and H. M. Johnson as treasurer. Upton Camp, S. of V., was organized with twenty-seven members May 24, 1892, with H. H. Scott captain, George A. Gardner first lieutenant and George B. Thomas second lieutenant.
The shoe factory of P. W. Minor & Son was established in Batavia in 1896, and employs about one hundred hands. P. W. Minor already had been engaged in the manufacture of shoes for about forty years. The industry is a valuable addition to the industries of Batavia.
Smith Brothers' Shoe Company is the most recent addition to the manufacturing industries in Batavia. This company, composed of Louis E. Smith and Anthony C. Smith, was established in 1897. The factory is located on Railroad avenue, employs from ten to eighteen hands, and manufactures ladies', misses' and children's shoes exclu- sively.
In the spring of 1849 the town of Batavia, at its annual town meet- ing, appointed William Seaver, Samuel Heston and Seth Wakeman a committee to ascertain and report at the next town meeting the matter of procuring a suitable site for a town hall, specifying in such report the place, the size of the building proposed and. the cost thereof with the requisite furnishings. About this time the grand jury of Genesee county adopted this resolution :
That it is advisable that the old court house should be either torn down or repaired, or that it should be disposed of in such manner as to insure its being kept in a decent state of repair.
The town committee mentioned in the foregoing decided that the old court house could be repaired and converted into a town hall, and there- fore applied to the board of supervisors for its possession. November 7, 1849, the county legislature adopted the following resolution :
WHEREAS, The old court house owned by the county of Genesee, situated in the
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village of Batavia, is in a perishable and dilapidated condition, and of very little use to said county, and
WHEREAS, It is represented that the same can be repaired and converted to a use- ful purpose, therefore be it
Resolved by the board of supervisors of the county of Genesee that in conformity with an application presented to this board in behalf of the town of Batavia by a committee consisting of William Seaver, Samuel Heston and Seth Wakeman, the use and occupancy of said old court house, together with the ground upon which it stands, be granted to the said town of Batavia for the purpose of converting the said build- ing into a town house so long as the said building shall stand and be used for the pur- pose aforesaid, upon condition that the said building shall be thoroughly repaired, fitted up and appropriated to the uses and purposes set forth in the said application, to which this resolution is annexed.
Resolved, further, in case the said building shall be so repaired, fitted up and appropriated by the town of Batavia and kept in good repair, that for the purpose of securing to the building of proper care and protection, and that it may be under the eoutrol and management of some legal authority, it shall be and remain in charge of such public officer or officers as the electors of the town of Batavia may at their an- nual town meeting by resolution designate which officer or officers shall have the exclusive power to grant permission for its use and occupancy, except that it shall always be free for holding of town meetings and election meetings of the Genesee County Agricultural Society, and meetings for educational purposes, and except that the board of supervisors may at any meeting of said board have the use of said building or such part thereof as may be desired, and further if at any time the said building shall be needed for the purpose of holding any of the Supreme, Circuit and County Courts therein, then that it may be used for such purposes.
Resolved, That the foregoing application, preamble and resolution, be entered in the minutes and proceedings of this board.
The town committee reported at the next ensuing town meeting rec ommending the acceptance of the proposition of the board of super- visors, and the town of Batavia, by resolution, accepted the report and offer on the part of the county authorities. Thus the old court house, the oldest building now standing west of the Genesee river, became the property of the town of Batavia, with certain conditions and limitations attached to the proprietorship.
Instead of repairing the building, the town board of Batavia, at that time consisting of John B. Pike, supervisor; Isaac M. Joslyn, town clerk; Augustus Cowdin, Nathaniel Read, M. W. Hewitt and Richard Smith, justices of the peace, entered into a contract with Levi Otis, Benjamin Pringle, Rufus Robertson and William L. Mallory, whereby the building became the property of these men, they agreeing to make these repairs: Raising the building from its foundation, fitting up the basement for the use and occupancy of the Batavia Village Fire Depart-
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ment ; fitting up the first story into offices; converting the second and third stories into one story and one large room, for use as a town hall; erecting stairways in each of the two semi-octagons, thereby making it conveniently accessible ; providing a new roof, new flooring, new win- dows and doors, plastering, painting and papering-in short making all the alterations and repairs essential to a first class public building. The town agreed to pay these four men for such work the sum of one thousand dollars, the latter to be entitled to all the rents and profits thereof. The town board reserved the use of the building, subject to the rights of the county therein, as contemplated by the resolution of the board of supervisors giving the structure to the town.
The building was accordingly repaired and named Ellicott hall, in memory of Joseph Ellicott, its founder, and used as a town hall up to 188S.
Since the transfer of the building to private ownership the title has undergone several changes. In 1853 William L. Mallory sold his one- fourth interest therein to the remaining three partners. In 1868 the interest of Rufus Robertson was sold to Horace M. Warren. In the same year the one-third interest of Benjamin Pringle was sold to Mr. Warren and Levi Otis, leaving the title to the property in the hands of the two latter men. In 1870 the board of supervisors deeded to Messrs. Otis and Warren a strip of land sixty-six feet to the north of the build- ing towards Main street and the full width of the building, for the pur- pose of enlarging it and converting it into an opera house; but the repairs were never inade. In 1871 Levi Otis sold his half interest in the property to H. M. Warren, who thereby became sole owner. After Mr. Warren's death it became the property of his two daughters, Mrs. F. M. Jameson and Mrs. W. W. Whitcomb. In 1893 Mrs. Whitcomb sold her half interest to Mrs. Jameson.
In the winter of 1896-98 the town board conceived the idea of again purchasing the property, the main thought being to preserve it as a historic relic. The board therefore appointed John Thomas, supervisor of Batavia, a committee to consult Mrs. Jameson for the purpose of as. certaining if it could be purchased, and if so, at what price. The terms proposed being considered satisfactory, the town board prepared a res- olution directing the purchase, which it submitted to the voters of the town at the annual town election in the spring of 1898. The resolution was adopted by a large majority and the purchase was consummated. Soon after, the work of repairing the structure was begun, the original
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colonial style being preserved. The building to-day is considered the staunchest in Genesee county. While the repairs were in progress Upton Post No. 299, Grand Army of the Republic, made application to the town board for the fitting up of one of the rooms in the building for their occupancy; and the laws of the State permitting this to be done, the application was granted by a unanimous vote, and the Grand Army post and the local camp of the Sons of Veterans, raised the Stars and Stripes over the building, the first flag being donated by Gen. George W. Stanley, a member of Upton Post, G. A. R.
The dedication of this historic building took place on the evening of Wednesday, October 26, 1898, Harry Burrows acting as master of cere- monies. The Rev. A. M. Sherman opened the ceremonies with a brief prayer. This was followed by the singing of "The Star Spangled Banner" by the Alert quartette, composed of the Messrs. Telfair, C. W. Hutchinson and Frank C. Fix, with Miss Stanley as accompanist. John Thomas, supervisor of the town of Batavia, read an interesting historical record of Ellicott Hall. prepared by him for the occasion. 1 W. L Colville, on behalf of Upton Post, thanked the town for giving the post new quarters in the building. He was followed by the Hon. Safford E. North, judge of Genesee county, who delivered the dedicatory ad- dress. The singing of " America" by the Alert quartette and the benediction by the Rev. A. M. Sherman concluded the exercises.
In the course of his address Judge North spoke as follows:
Ninety-six years ago, the thrift and energy of the men, who, with their strong arms and bright axes, blazed a way through the primeval forests, led them to erect here, at this junction of two Indian trails, the building which, after the lapse of so many eventful years, we are rededicating to-night. With what ceremonies it may have been dedicated almost a century ago, or whether without ceremony, we know not. Of all those whose hands wrought this substantial structure-whose ponderous oaken timbers have withstood wind and rain these many years -- not one is left to tell the story. It may well be guessed, although we do not know for certain, that not one even of the children of those who built so well yet survives to read in to-mor- row's paper the story of how, after all the chances and changes of the eventful years which lie between us and the time when this structure was erected, it was reserved for those who bear the honored title of Sons of Veterans once more to dedicate this structure, grown classic with historical associations.
It was only a year ago that the matter was under serious consideration whether this building, grown somewhat unsightly from lack of repair, should not be demol- ished. But a few men of sound judgment-and foremost among these. I was glad
1 Many of the facts contained in the above history of this time honored building were gleaned from the address of Mr. Thomas.
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
to note, was Supervisor John Thomas-said that it was too bad to tear down a struc- ture surrounded by so many time-honored memories, and which had been the first court house not only for Genesee county, but for all of what are now Erie, Wyoming. Niagara, Orleans, Chautauqua, Cattaraugus and Allegany, as well as a part of the present counties of Livingston and Monroc.
And so it came about that the proposition was submitted to the voters of Batavia at the town meeting in March of this year (1898), and thanks to the good sense of our people, old Ellicott Hall with its interesting history and with its ninety-six years was elected, not to be torn down, but to receive a fresh coat of paint, to be strength- ened, renovated and repaired and to remain the common property of us all, to be- come the heritage of our children and our children's children.
THE CHURCHES OF BATAVIA.
In preceding pages of this chapter the details of the organization of the older churches in Batavia appear in chronological order. Follow- ing will be found concise historical sketches of the churches from the date of their organization to the present time.
The First Presbyterian church of Batavia is the outgrowth of a Con- gregational society organized September 19, 1809, by the Rev. Royal Phelps, who had been sent to the Genesee country by the Hampshire Missionary Society of Massachusetts. Those who signed the member- ship roll upon the institution of the church were Silas Chapin, David Anderson, Ezekiel Fox, Solomon Kingsley, Mrs. Solomon Kingsley, Patience Kingsley, Eleanor Smith, Elizabeth Mathers, Mrs. Esther Kellogg, Elizabeth Peck, Huldah Wright and Mrs. Polly Branard. The ancient records show that during the same month in which the society was organized a sacramental service was held in Jesse Rum- sey's barn. In June, 1810, the Rev. Reuben Parmelee preached in Abel Wheeler's barn. Meetings were held after this at Phelps's inn. the Phelps school house, at Clark's settlement, and at the residences of Samuel Ranger and Ezekiel Fox. In 1813 regular services were in- augurated in the court house, now Ellicott hall, and continued there until 1824, when the first house of worship on Main street, opposite the court house, was erected. This was a frame building and cost about three thousand five hundred dollars. This was occupied by the society until 1856, when a handsome stone structure was erected on East Main street, corner of Liberty street. Sunday school rooms were added to this church in 1ss2, a new gallery was built in I888, and in 1889 the interior of the church was renovated and redecorated, completely re- juvenating it.
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Up to October 2, 1818, when the church connected itself with the presbytery, the society was served by the Rev. Reuben Parmelee, the Rev. John Spencer, the Rev. John Alexander, and the Rev. Messrs. Ayres, Bliss, Swift, Hanning, Sweezy, Squires, Colton, Duvel, and Ephraim Chapin. In 1822 the church was incorporated under its pres- ent name. Since 1818 the church has had the following regular pas- tors.
1818-22, Rev. Ephraim Chapin: 1823-26, Rev. Calvin Colton; 1827- 28, Rev. Charles Whitehead; 1829-31, Rev. Russell Whiting; 1837-39, Rev. Erastus J. Gillett; 1839-43, Rev. William H. Beecher; 1843-31, Rev. Byron Sunderland; 1852-55, Rev. William Lusk; 1855-58, Rev. Isaac O. Fillmore; 1861-69, Rev. Charles F. Mussey; 1871-64, Rev. Chester W. Hawley; 1875-77, Rev. Thomas B. McLeod; 1StS-S?, Rev. William Swan; 1887-91, Rev. Allan D. Draper; Rev. William J. Mc- Kittrick, 1891-94; Rev. Henry R. Fancher, March 4, 1895, to date.
The details of the organization of the First Methodist Episcopal church of Batavia, December 15, 1819, appear in earlier pages in this chapter. The society was then a member of the " New Amsterdam Circuit and Genesee District," and for some time services had been held either in the court house or a frame school house located a short distance west of the old land office on West Main street. In 1820 and 1821 the Rev. James Hall and the Rev. Zachariah Paddock were in charge of the circuit. James Gilmore and Jasper Bennett served in 1821-1822, and John Arnold and Asa Orcutt in 1822-1823. May 16, 1823, the work of raising money for a church edifice, by subscription, was begun. June 23 following the trustees of the society contracted with Thomas McCulley, Joseph Shaw and Seymour Ensign to build a stone church forty by forty-five feet in dimensions. This church, which cost about two thousand eight hundred dollars, was dedicated June 13. 1824. It stood on the corner of Main and Lyon streets. In 1839 this building was sold to the First Freewill Baptist church of Batavia. Then for about two years the M. E. congregation worshipped in the Nixon building, subsequently a district school house, located east of St. James's church. A new house of worship on the east side of Jackson street, known as St. John's church, was erected in 1841 and dedicated Decem- ber 3 of that year. This was sold to William M. Terry in 1866, and burned July 15, 1888. After leaving the Jackson street church the ยท congregation worshipped about a year in Concert hall, corner of Main and State streets. In 1868 anew brick house of worship, costing twenty
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