USA > New York > Monroe County > Rochester > Rochester and Monroe County: A history and guide > Part 20
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NUNDA, 5.7 m. (1,336 alt., 1,085 pop.), was first settled in 1806, but the village was not laid out until 1824. The name is a contraction of the Indian name for the place O-non-da-oh (where many hills come together). Nunda (pro- nounced Nun-day'), like many other communities of the Genesee country, flourished during the lumbering period of the early 19th century. By 1835, 18 sawmills were active in the vicinity of the village, along with flour mills, tan-
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neries, furnaces, hat factories, a woolen mill, and a steam engine manufactory. Today the Foote Manufacturing Co., makers of concrete mixers, is the largest industry. The highly ornamented, square Gothic towers of the village are conspicuous.
Helen Hunt Jackson (H. H.), author of Ramona, was a native of Nunda, as was also Helen Barrett Montgomery, who translated the New Testament from the Greek text into modern English.
In Nunda the route turns L. on State 63.
MOUNT MORRIS, 16.8 m. (595 alt., 3,238 pop.), was named for Robert Morris, financier of the American Revolu- tion, who bought from Ebenezer Allen the land on which the village stands. The first name of the town was Allen Hill, but this was changed to Richmond Hill by Col. John Trumbull of Washington's staff, who painted the Signing of the Declaration of Independence. He planted an orchard here with a view to making this his permanent home, but he changed his plans.
On Murray Hill in the town is the new MOUNT MORRIS STATE TUBERCULOSIS HOSPITAL, opened March 1, 1936. Its situation high above the main part of the town makes it a conspicuous object in the landscape for miles around.
A large packing company employing about 800 people is the principal manufacturing plant, but there are other smaller industries employing large numbers of people. Mount Morris has a large population of Italian origin who take an active part in the civic life of the village.
Beyond the business section the route turns L. on State 36.
At 17.8 m. the road crosses the Genesee River on a long single-span bridge.
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At 18.1 m. is junction with a dirt road.
Immediately left on this dirt road is WHITE WOMAN'S SPRING, from which Mary Jemison drew water for her cabin home, and near which the ruins of one of her houses are still visible.
About 0.5 m. up the dirt road, a short distance L. is SQUAKEE HILL. By the terms of the Big Tree Treaty, signed near Geneseo in 1797, the Seneca Indians were given 2,000 acres on Squakee Hill on which to build their village. The hill became famous on ac- count of the Indian festivals held on it every year; council meet- ings were also held here periodically for a long time. About 500 ft. N. of the Squakee Hill Inn is the site of the council house in which the pow-wows were held. Here on the morning of the Seneca New Year was held the Sacrifice of the White Dog.
The HIGH BANKS, 1.5 m., can best be viewed from Lookout Point. It is a tribute to the conservatism of the native population that they are content with the name of High Banks, for many visitors have remarked upon the similarity of the formation to the Grand Canyon; it might be called a Grand Canyon in minia- ture. In 1793 the Marquis de Talleyrand stood on the brink of this gorge, and after gazing at the sight for more than an hour he said, "It is the fairest landscape the human eye ever looked upon."
State 36 continues to Leicester, 21 m., which was passed on the way to Letchworth State Park. In Leicester the route turns R. on US 20.
CUYLERVILLE, 22.2 m. (621 alt., 300 pop.), lies close to the scene where Boyd and Parker were tortured to death during the Clinton-Sullivan campaign.
The BOYD-PARKER MEMORIAL, 22.9 m. (R), was erected in memory of the two young patriots who were tortured after being captured by their Indian enemies, dying here Sept. 14, 1779. The TORTURE TREE, an old elm, still stands near the monument. This spot is also the SITE of GENESEE CASTLE or Little Beard's Town. The Indian name was De-o-nun-da-ga-a (where-the-hill-is-near). This town marked the western limit of the Sullivan expedition.
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GENESEO, 26 m. (600 alt., 2,261 pop.), stands on the site of a Seneca Indian village, which in 1750 consisted of about 50 large huts, the inhabitants of which were known to the Jesuits as the Senecas of the Chenussio, (beautiful valley). In the village is the SITE of the LOG HOUSE which accommodated the commissioners who negotiated the Big Tree Treaty between the United States of America and the Iroquois in 1797.
In 1788-89 Lemuel B. Jennings crossed the wide stretch of country between the Connecticut and Genesee Rivers, and ended his journey on the flats west of the present town. He was the first settler of Geneseo. In 1789 the famous inter- preter, Capt. Horatio Jones, settled in the town and built a log house on the bank of the river. General Washington appointed him agent and interpreter at the Council and Treaty of Big Tree.
The two pioneers who were to have the most lasting effect upon the surrounding country were the brothers, James and William Wadsworth, who journeyed from Dur- ham, Conn., to Geneseo in 1790. They bought an immense estate at a cost of about 8 cents an acre, and they and their descendants became leaders in the development of Living- ston County.
This Genesee country is one of the few places in the United States where the colorful fox hunt approaches the splendor of the sport in England. In the hunt-club kennels on the northern edge of the town are kept about 100 im- ported and home-bred Welsh and English fox hounds. Thoroughbred hunting horses are bred locally. The hunting season opens in early autumn and continues as long as the weather permits, sometimes through December.
The GENESEO STATE NORMAL SCHOOL, corner Bank St. and Wadsworth Ave., was established in 1867 as the Wadsworth Normal and Training School, but its name
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was changed to the present one by the legislature in 1871. The main building, of red brick, with a frontage of 300 ft. and a depth of 350 ft., is of Victorian architecture. The school offers the regular three-year teachers' training course.
SECTION D. GENESEO-ROCHESTER. STATE 20 D. 5, 2. 30 m.
Beyond Geneseo the route continues N. on State 20D through country that once formed part of the Wadsworth domain and now is the scene of many of the fox hunts. Some of the finest farmland in the Genesee Valley lies along the highway.
AVON, 9.2 m. (600 alt., 2,403 pop.), is situated at the site of the first bridge across the Genesee River, on the line of the greatest east-west traffic up to the time the Erie Canal was built. Avon was once called Avon Springs be- cause of its sulphur-magnesium mineral springs south of the town. The Indians occupying this area used the waters for medicinal purposes.
In pre-Civil War days Avon Springs was an important watering place. At the springs were Knickerbocker Hall and Congress Hall, both with bathhouses. Busses were run between these hotels and the large United States Hotel in the village at Genesee and West Main Sts., where many of the elite of the day lodged and whence, accompanied by servants, they were taken to the springs by coach. The Avon Springs Sanatorium was established in 1872 on what is now Wadsworth Ave. and was later moved to the build- ing now known as the Avon Inn at E. Main and Temple Sts. Avon long ago lost its popularity as a resort, but the springs are still there; and a movement is on foot to have them developed by the state.
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WHITE& TAVERN
White Horse Tavern, at East Avon
Today the village has a large canning plant with a capac- ity of 4,000 tons, which processes locally grown peas, corn, tomatoes, and other products.
At the village circle the route turns R. on State 5.
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EAST AVON, 11.2m. (821 alt., 200 pop.), is a picturesque crossroads. The WHITE HORSE TAVERN (L) is a con- spicuous landmark. It was built about 1800 by John Pearson of brick made from clay found on the banks of the Genesee at Avon. A white wooden horse stood on the lawn until practical jokers recently made off with its head. Now a horse sculptured in stone snorts in silence.
Just beyond the tavern is the old cemetery in which the GRAVE OF PIONEER JOHN PEARSON is marked by an old creekstone tablet bearing the date of 1812.
In East Avon the route turns L. on State 2.
At 17.5 m. is intersection with State 251.
Left on State 251 is the STATE AGRICULTURAL AND IN- DUSTRIAL SCHOOL, 2.5 m. (L), which was transferred in 1904 from its high-walled prison-like barracks in Rochester to its present site. A colonnaded administration building looks down over a tract of 1,432 acres and 30 cottages, or colonies, each housing about 25 boys under 16 years of age who have been guilty of mis- demeanors and have been committed by one of the juvenile courts in the state. The spirit of the institution is correctional and edu- cational rather than penal. No prison walls, bars, or chains re- strain or confine the boys. Twenty farm colonies and nine in- dustrial colonies afford activity and training; and ample oppor- tunities are provided for recreation, education, and the develop- ment of initiative. Corporal punishment is forbidden, but strict obedience is required. For serious infringement of rules a boy is transferred to the "punishment colony" and required to perform the more difficult and disagreeable tasks. Special care is taken of the boys' health; systematic religious training is given by leaders in the faith of the home family; every effort is made to restore the lads to useful, normal citizenship. It is a self-contained village, so efficiently organized that, instead of being an expense, the in- stitution makes a substantial annual return to the state treasury.
WEST HENRIETTA, 20.8 m. (601 alt., 250 pop.), was well known early in the 19th century for the manufacture of carriages and wagons. The old CARRIAGE FACTORY
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still stands (L), identified by its cobblestone walls, but has been converted by modern progress into an automobile repair shop. The original forges, work benches and ma- chines, and the bellows used to fan the fires a hundred years ago, can still be seen.
Just N. of West Henrietta, State 2 descends METHODIST HILL, on which early automobiles were tested for their hill-climbing abilities. It is said to have received its name on account of the services which Calvin Brainard (brother of Ezra Brainard, who built Carthage Bridge) conducted in his barn in the rear of the century-old cobblestone house at the hill top.
From this hill the city of Rochester is visible in a distant panorama. The buildings of the Strong-Memorial Hospital and the University of Rochester (L) are half hidden among the trees, their towers, like those of baronial castles, sil- houetted against the sky. Although they are in reality several miles apart, perspective telescopes the Eastman Kodak tower, the wings of the Genesee Valley Trust Co., and the four-pointed Gothic tower of the Colgate-Roch- ester Divinity School.
State 2 leads to the Rochester city line and the Four Corners, 30 m.
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TOUR 6
STONY BROOK STATE PARK
Rochester, East Avon, Scottsburg, Dansville, Stony Brook State Park, Livonia, Rochester. State 2, County Highway, State 256, 255, 36, 2. Rochester-Rochester, 95 m.
Erie R. R., Rochester Branch, Conesus to Rochester; bus service Rochester to Dansville. Concrete roads, open throughout the year. Limited accommodations in villages; hotels in Dansville.
The broad highway traverses a rich farming country. From spring to fall the air is heavy with the odors of the country- side: freshly plowed loam, sweet clover, new-mown hay, and ripening fruits.
East from Four Corners on Main St .; R. on South Ave .; R. on Mt. Hope Ave. (State 2) to the city line at the Barge Canal, 3 m.
Just beyond the Barge Canal Bridge (L) is the HOME OF THOMAS WARRANT, Rochester's first coppersmith, who came from England in 1818. Forbidden by the English laws of that time to transport the tools of his trade from England, he smuggled them aboard a ship bound for Canada, and from there sailed across Lake Ontario to Rochesterville. The house, erected about 1830 on the site of a log cabin built in 1819, is a two-story frame structure painted white with green blinds. It is constructed in the Queen Anne
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style, wide-eaved and topped with a square tower. It is now occupied by the fifth generation of the original owner's descendants.
At 7 m. begins the long ascent of METHODIST HILL. (see Tour 5, Section f).
WEST HENRIETTA, 8 m. (601 alt., 250 pop.). (see Tour 5, Section f).
EAST AVON, 18.1 m. (821 alt., 200 pop.). (see Tour 5, Section c).
At 22 m. the route leaves State 2 and turns R. on the un- numbered Long Point Road, crosses the outlet of Conesus Lake at Lily Pond, swings upward to the crossing of U. S. 20 at 23 m., and continues on State 256, which skirts the W. shore of the long, river-like Conesus Lake.
Cottages, screened by wide-branching trees, line the lake on the L .; to the R., trees and farmhouses dot the hilly rise in deeper retirement from the lake shore. The scene changes little in the 8 m. drive along the lake.
At 27.1 m. is LONG POINT (L), a county park, the gift of the Wadsworth family, with bathhouses and public facilities. An old COBBLESTONE HOUSE, at the S. end of the park, dates from early pioneer days.
A marker at the intersection at 31 m. indicates the route of the Sullivan expedition against the Indians of western New York in 1779.
At 34.4 m. (L) is the UNION CEMETERY with tablets of creek stone bearing dates as early as 1801. It includes the graves of Revolutionary soldiers and soldiers of the War of 1812; among the former is the grave of Capt. Daniel Shays, 1747-1825, leader of Shays' Rebellion, who fled Massa- chusetts and settled in Sparta.
SCOTTSBURG, 35.2 m. (924 alt., 150 pop.), was first called Collartown, in honor of two pioneer settlers, Jesse
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STONY BROOK STATE PARK
and Jacob Collar, who settled one-half mile N. of the present village. Later it was renamed Scottsburg, probably for William Scott, who about 1816 built a woolen mill near the head of Conesus Lake. The village contains a notice- able array of old-fashioned flower gardens.
At the southern edge of Scottsburg, State 256 climbs a winding hill, joins State 255, and leads into SPARTA, 38.8 m., founded in 1792, and now containing only a house or two, a church, a school, and a town hall.
At 41.7 m. is the Dansville station of the Lackawanna R. R., high above the village of Dansville. A bad grade crossing crests the hill, where the route turns L. on Health St. and descends to the town.
Halfway down, at 42.2 m., is the entrance (L) to the BERNARR MACFADDEN PHYSICAL CULTURE HOTEL, which stands on the site of the Jackson Sanatorium, founded in 1858 by Dr. Caleb Arthur Jackson.
At the foot of the hill the route turns R. on William St. and L. on Main St. to the downtown section of Dansville.
DANSVILLE, 43 m. (725 alt., 5,200 pop.).
Railroad Stations: Delaware, Lackawanna & Western R. R., Health
St .; Dansville & Mount Morris R. R., Milton St.
Bus Station: Central Greyhound Lines, Dansville Hotel.
Airport: Municipal airport, 1 m. N. of village on Cumminsville Rd .; taxi fare 25 cents.
Taxis: 25 cents upward, according to number of passengers and distance.
Accommodations: Three hotels; tourist homes.
Information Service: Dansville Hotel, Main St.
Theaters and Motion Picture Houses: Opera House, Exchange St. Three motion picture houses.
Swimming: Conesus Lake, 11 m. N. of village.
Golf: Dansville Country Club, State 26, 18 holes, greens fee, $1. Annual Events: Firemen's Carnival, last week of July; Spring Flower Show, 2nd week in May; spring and fall hikes from New York City to Bernarr MacFadden health resort.
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Dansville, one of the gateways to the Genesee country, lies in a valley flanked by hills. One of the earliest settlers, Daniel Faulkner, came to the valley from Pennsylvania in 1795 and built the FIRST SAWMILL. The settlement was named for him. Col. Nathaniel Rochester had his home here before the founding of Rochesterville.
While visiting Dansville on a lecture tour in 1876, Clara Barton (1821-1912) was attracted by the water cure at the Dansville Sanatorium and purchased an adjacent house for a country home. In 1881 she organized in Dansville the first Red Cross unit in the United States, known as the Clara Barton Chapter. The second unit was formed in Rochester soon thereafter.
Dansville is supported by industries with an annual out- put of over $6,000,000 and a payroll of approximately $1,500,000. Chief products are heating equipment, shoes, paper, nursery stock, and books.
The route turns R. on Exchange St. (State 36).
STONY BROOK STATE PARK, 46 .m., covers 560 acres of rough, rocky country through which Stony Brook Creek has cut a deep gorge. Sheer walls of rock outcrops, thick with hardy trees, rise on each side of the canyon. Two waterfalls add picturesqueness. A footpath, frequently crossing the stream from ledge to ledge, leads along the entire length of the canyon.
In origin and geologic history, Stony Brook ravine is similar to all the Finger Lakes glens. In falling to the bot- tom of a glacial valley, the brook has carved a gorge through soft Devonian shales and sandstones. Tougher beds of sandstone, less susceptible to erosive forces, tend to be preserved and form the crests of waterfalls.
As a result of destructive storms, the canyon was closed to visitors in 1937 because of danger from falling rocks and
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Stony Brook Park-The Upper Falls
trees, and no swimming or camping was allowed in the park.
A work relief project, employing 139 men, began in 1937 a program of reconstruction to include athletic fields, parking areas, a swimming pool and bathhouses,
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cabins, and picnic areas with fireplaces and tables. The creek channel is to be rendered safe from the present menace of falling trees and rock; and a dam is to be built at the head of the canyon to form a 71/2 acre lake for swimming and boating. The projected improvements cover an estimated period of 4 years; parts will be opened to the public as the work is completed.
The return to Rochester is by way of State 36 to Dans- ville, thence on State 255 to the junction with State 256, 56.6 m. Here the tour keeps R. and continues on State 255.
At 57 m. far ahead is a view (L) of Conesus Lake, blue in the encircling hills.
At 61.5 m. State 2 swings up from the SE. and merges with State 255.
CONESUS, 61.7 m. (400 pop.). An Indian trail leads from the village through an old Indian encampment to the head of Conesus Lake.
At the business center of LIVONIA, 68.5 m., the route turns L. on State 2, and follows a long, winding hill.
LAKEVILLE, 72.5 m. (825 alt., 400 pop.), is a commercial resort town supplying the needs of cottage owners and resi- dents along the shore of Conesus Lake. The cottage com- munity more than doubles the population during the summer.
At the business center of LAKEVILLE State 2 turns sharply R., joins US 20, and passes the junction with the Conesus Lake Road at Lily Pond. From this point the re- turn to Rochester through East Avon retraces the route taken on the way out.
Rochester city line, 92 m .; Four Corners, 95 m.
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TOUR 7.
LITTLE FINGER LAKES
Rochester, Lima, Springwater, Honeoye, Mendon Ponds Park, Rochester. State 2A, County Roads, State 254, 64, 5, 65, 31. Rochester-Rochester, 94.4 m.
Lehigh Valley R. R. to Lima and Hemlock; Erie R. R. to Springwater. Rochester-Dansville bus lines. Roads mostly concrete and macadam, with some gravel and dirt roads near Canadice and Honeoye Lakes, open throughout the year.
From Rochester to Lima the route traverses a generally level countryside, with small hills varying the landscape. Beyond Lima, in the Little Finger Lakes region, the high- way gradually ascends to altitudes up to 1,600 ft. Here the landscape is notched with deep valleys bounded by steep slopes. Many of the hillsides are heavily wooded, with occasional terraced farms dotting the cleared spaces. The Little Finger Lakes group comprises Honeoye, (Hon-e'- oye), Hemlock, Canadice, and Conesus Lakes.
SECTION A. ROCHESTER-RUSH. State 2A. 11.8 m. (see Tour 8, Section a).
SECTION B. RUSH-SPRINGWATER. State 2A. 26.4 m.
At DANN'S CORNERS, 4.4 m. (L) is the WEST SEN- ECA MONUMENT to the Seneca villages and Christian missionaries, 1668-1710.
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LIMA, 7.4 m. (849 alt., 897 pop.), derives its name from Old Lyme, Conn., from which the pioneer settlers came in 1789. Before that it was the SITE OF SGA-HIS-GA-AAH (it-was-a-long-creek), a Seneca village. William and Daniel Warner came to Lima in 1795 and became prominent and influential. The Warner family in Lima became very numer- ous. According to local tradition, in the early days strangers were told "If you pass a man on the street and don't know his name, just call him Warner; you are sure to hit it every time."
In 1830 the Genesee Conference of the Methodist Epis- copal Church established in Lima the GENESEE WES- LEYAN SEMINARY, which at one time was one of the most influential educational institutions in western New York. The school is still being conducted.
South of Lima the country becomes more hilly and less populous. At 25.7 m., where the well-graded highway reaches an altitude of 1,370 ft., there is a striking view of Hemlock Lake (R) filling a deep valley with densely wooded slopes for 6 miles. Hemlock Lake is the chief source of Rochester's water supply.
HEMLOCK, 15.2 m. (902 alt., 317 pop.), is a farming village at the foot of Hemlock Lake. The village is the scene of the annual Hemlock Fair. A road leads from the center of the village southward to a small park with picnic grounds on the lake front.
SPRINGWATER, 26.4 m. (970 alt., 600 pop.), is a trading center for the surrounding countryside. In 1866 it was the scene of a riot when squatters settled on the Springwater Flats. Action taken by the landowners brought about their forced removal. This led to reprisals in the form of slaugh- tered stock, burned buildings, and finally to a pitched battle in which the squatters were defeated.
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LITTLE FINGER LAKES
In Springwater is junction with State 2.
State 2 leads R. up a steep hill with sharp curves. At 4.6 m. the valley to the right is the site of the ghost settlement of CALA- BOGUE. The name is believed to be derived from the word Cala- bogus, defined as "moonshine whiskey." The place was settled by squatters who were attracted by the building of the Erie R. R. in 1853. They continued to live in the valley unshackled by moral or religious influences until compulsory education and other social reforms led to their gradual absorption by other communities. A few dilapidated shacks are all that remain to indicate the exist- ence of the settlement. The road leads to Conesus Lake (see Tour 6).
SECTION C. SPRINGWATER-JUNCTION STATE 5 AND 64. STATE 2A, COUNTY ROADS, STATE 254, 64. 24.1 m.
The route retraces from Springwater on State 2A to junc- tion with county macadam road at .8 m. and turns R. on county road. At 2.1 m. the route turns L., and at 2.7 m. passes over a deep ravine.
At 4.1 m. is a panoramic view (L) of CANADICE LAKE, a potential source of water supply for the city of Rochester, which owns the waterfront except for about half a mile of private cottage sites.
At 8.4 m. the route turns R. The abandoned structure at the turn (R) was an inn during Civil War days.
CANADICE, 8.9 m. (1,569 alt., 100 pop.), one of the oldest settlements in Ontario County, has no business sec- tion. The village is on the former stagecoach road that led from Dansville to Canandaigua.
At Canadice the route turns L. on a county macadam road, at 9 m., R. on a dirt road. From the latter point, HONEOYE LAKE is visible directly ahead. The road descends sharply to the lake front: motorists are warned by roadside signs to place their cars in second gear in making the descent.
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Honeoye Lake is a popular summer resort, with more than 400 cottages along its shores. At the lake front, the tour turns L. on a county macadam road and follows the shore.
HONEOYE, 13.1 m. (844 alt., 700 pop.), is the trading center for the surrounding farms and, in season, for the lake residents. In the center of the village, The SULLIVAN MONUMENT commemorates the Sullivan expedition (1779) and the erection of Fort Cummings at the foot of Honeoye Lake.
One block L. of the monument stands the PITTS HOUSE, built in 1821 by Gideon Pitts, son of Capt. Peter Pitts. The house was the birthplace of the Pitts daughter who became the white wife of Frederick Douglass, Negro journalist and anti-slavery lecturer.
At the monument the route turns R. on State 254.
A marker at 13.9 m. indicates the SITE OF PETER PITTS' HOME. Capt. Peter Pitts was the first settler in the township of Richmond.
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