DUf^
/^JOHNM^X
I OLIN 2
\S LIBRARY .<^/
CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY
924 074 296 561
DATE DUE
PRINTED IN U.S.A
GAYLORD
¥2
^^
Cornell University
Library
The original of this book is in
the Cornell University Library.
There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.
http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924074296561
(QJy^.'zz:;zz^
.'lr,,im.t/:;-/ri: ■■/'■/ D'/M/hs iliMm ,■//',.,//.»',/ ,n,/ ll,\tl,;n \;-iry,.i/i .
SEMl-CHNTHNNIAL HISTORY
OF THE
CITY OF ROCHESTER
WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF
SOME OF ITS PROMINENT MEN AND PIONEERS
]JY
WILLIAM F. PECK
SYRACUSK, N. Y.
D. MASON & CO., PUBLISH liRS
1 884
J'-'
i \ ,}
D. MASON & CO.,
ENGRAVERS, PRINTERS AND BINDERS,
Syracuse, N. Y.
1 884.
CONTENTS.
PAGE,
CriAI'TER 1. — Ahorii^inal Occuftation of I he Lower Genesee Country — Aiitiiiuity of
Man — • AiUediluviaii Relics — Tlie Ancient Ueach of Lake Ontario Inhabited by
Man, - II
CHAPTER II. — Surface Geology — The Great Sea — Origin of the Genesee River —
Great Age of the Lake Ridge — Man's Antiquity in the Genesee Country, i6
CHAPTER \\\.— Ancient Races— IX^t Mound-builders — The White Woinan of the
Genesee — Traditions of the Red Men — Presence of a Pre-historic People in the
Genesee Valley, and about Irondequoit Bay — The Ridge Mounds and Relics —
Ancient Landings on the Genesee — A Race of Large Men, - 20
CHAPTER IV. — The Red Men — Their Traditional Origin and Occupation of New
York — Dispersion of the Tribes — League of the Iroquois — Vale of the Senecas
— Ancient Nations of the Genesee Country, 28
CHAPTER V. — Water Trails — Terminology of the Genesee River and Irondequoit
Bay — Little Beard's Town — Casconchagon — The Jesuits — Indian Expedition
up the Genesee — The Mouth of the Genesee Practically at Irondequoit Bay —
Early Maps — Teoronto Bay — Mississauge Indians the Last at Irondequoit, 32
CHAPTER VI. — Local Trails of the Genesee — Indian Fords, Towns and Fortifica-
tions— Butler's Rangers — Indian Spring — Sacrifice of the White Dog — Flint
Quarry — Sgoh-sa-is-thah — Portage Trails — Irondequoit Landing — The Tories'
Retreat — Indian Salt Springs — Ancient Mounds, 36
CHAPTER VII. — Early French Missions — Tsonnonlouan — The Jesuit's Escape —
La Salle at Irondequoit — Struggle between the French and English for Possession
of the Lower Genesee country, 47
CHAPTER VIII. — DeNonville's Expedition — Treachery of the French Governor-
General — Magnanimity of the Iroquois — French Army at Irondequoit — Execu-
tion of Marion — The Fort on the Sand-bar — The March on Gannagaro — The
Defiles, Ambuscade and Battle — Horrors of Indian Warfare — Cannibalism — De-
struction of the Seneca Towns, 50
CHAPTER IX. — Totiahton — lis Ancient and Modern History — DeNonville's Return
Route to the Sand-bar, 57
CHAPTER X. — Strength of the Iroquois — A Terrible Revenge — French Invasions
— Irondequoit a Place of Great Importance in Colonial Times — Fort des Sables
— Charlevoix Describes the Casconchiagon — Captain Schuyler Builds a Trading-
House at Irondequoit Landing — His Official Instructions — Oliver Culver Discov-
ers the Ruins of the Trading-House — Senecas Sell the Lower Genesee Country to
the King of England — British Armies at Irondequoit, - 61
Contents.
I'AGE.
CHAPTER XI. — The Senecas' Castles on the Genesee — Treaty of Peace with the Eng-
lish— Decline of Iroquois Power — Sullivan's Campaign against the Senecas —
Fate of Lieutenant Boyd — Sullivan's Troops on the Site of Rochester, 69
CHAPTER XII. — The White Man's Occupancy of the Genesee Cotmtry — The Native
Title Extinguished — Indian Reservations — Present Indian Population, 73
CHAPTER XIII.— The Genesee Fall's Mill Zo/— The Triangle — Ebenezer Allan's
One-Hundred-Acre Tract — The Stone Ridge— Peter Sheffer— Allan's Mills —
The Mill Stones — Jenuhshio, or "Indian ' Allan — The First White Settler-
First Grist Mill in the Genesee Valley — Allan's Deed to Benjamin Barton — Close
of Allan's Career — His Son Claims the One-Hundred-Acre Tract, 75
CHAPTER yi\S!. — Early Settlers — Z\\x\Aa\)\\tx Dugan — Colonel Fish^The First
Dwelling-House — Maude's Visit to Genesee Falls in 1800 — Destruction of the
Allan Mills — The Old Mill Stones — Rochester, Fitzhugh and Carroll Purchase
the One-Hundred-Acre Tract— Early Towns and Pioneers, 85
CHAPTER XV. — The Rochester Post-Office, 9°
CHAPTER XVI.— The Birth of Rochester —K^^sons for Its Tardy Settlement —
Prevalence of Diseases in this Part of the Country — Dr. Ludlow on Typhoid Pneu-
monia— The First House on the West Side of the River — The War of 181 2 —
Attempted Intimidation at Charlotte — The Projected Invasion Abandoned —
Erection of the Red Mill, the Cotton Factory, etc. — Census of 181 5 — The First
Newspaper, 97
CHAPTER XVII. — Rochester as a village — lis Incorporation in 1817 — The First
Village Election — The First Church Built — The Commerce with Canada — Set-
tlement of Carthage — The Great Bridge there — Its Fall, and that of Other Bridges
— Surveys for the Erie Canal — Monroe County Erected — Building of the Old
Aqueduct — The Old Court-House — John (2uincy Adams, 108
CHAPTER XVIU.— The Growth of the Village — The. First Bank in Rochester —
The First Presbyterian Church — La Fayette's Visit to Rochester — The Abduc-
tion of William Morgan — The Excitement in Rochester and Elsewhere — Trial,
Confession and Punishment of the Original Abductors — Other Trials in Different
Counties — Anti-Masonic Party Formed — Bitterness of Feeling Engendered —
The-Body Found at Oak Orchard — Morgan or Monroe, Which ? — Perhaps Neither
— The First Village Directory — The Fate of Catlin — The Leap of Sam Patch —
The Mormon Bible — The First Cholera Year — St. Patrick's Day in 1833, 118
CHAPTER XIX. — Rochester as a City — Its Incorporation in 1834 — Organisation of
the Government and Inauguration of Mayor Child — He Conscientiously Resigns
the Office — The River Steamboat — The Flood of 1835 — The Navy Island Raid
— The First Murder in the County — The First Foundry — Anti-Slavery Move-
ments — Bringing the Bones of Patriot Soldiers to Mount Hope — The Printer's
Festival — Mexican War Volunteers — Woman's Rights Convention, 128
CHAPTER XX. — The City's Progress to the War Time — Visit of Fillmore and His
Cabinet, and of Daniel Webster — Singing of Jenny Lind — Civic Festival in 1851
;— Building the New Court-House — The Meridian of Rochester — The Mock
Funeral of Henry Clay — The Cholera in 1852 — The Ira Stout Murder — The
"Irrepressible Conflict" — De Lave's Rope-Walking — Death of ex-Mayors Allen
and Child, - - - - - 140
CHAPTER XXI. — The War Time and Beyond— Breaking out of the Rebellion —
The Call for Volunteers — Enthusiastic Response from Monroe County — Forma-
tion of the Old Thirteenth and Other Regiments — Support of the Government
Contents.
PAGE.
during the War, and Rejoicing over the Return of Peace — The Mock Funeral of
Abraham Lincoln — The Oil Fever and the Western Union Excitement — The
Flood of 1865 — Performances of the Fenians — " Swinging around the Circle" —
Seth Green's Fish-Culture, - - 149
CHAPTER Y.yA\.— -To the Fiftieth Birthday — T\\^ Howard Riot — The Small-Pox
and Other Diseases — The New City Hall — Mount Hope Records Found in Can-
ada—John Clark's Murder of Trevor — The Centennial Celebration of 1876 —
The Railroad Strike of 1877 — The Mock Funeral of President Garfield — The
Cunningham Strike — The Telegrapher's Strike — Principal Improvements in the
City in 1883, with their Cost — Other Statistics, - - - 158
CHAPTER XXIII. — The Great Celebration — Preparations for the Event — Services in
the Churches on Sunday — Opening Salute on Monday — The Literary Exercises
— The Pyrotechnic Display — Reception of Guests — The Great Parade — The
Banquet — The Toasts — The Close, - - - - 174
CHAPTER XXIV. — The City Government — The Present Officers — The Common
Council — The Board of Education — The City Debt — The Tax Levy for the
Present Year — The Municipal Court — The Police Board — The Executive Board
— The County Officers — The United States Officials, - - - 179
CHAPTER XXV.— 77^^ Civil Zw^ — The Village Trustees — The Mayors — The
Boards of Aldermen — The City Treasurers — The Police Justices — The City Su-
pervisors— The Sheriffs — The County Clerks — The County Treasurers — The
State Senators — The Members of As.sembly — The Members of Congress, 184
CHAPTER XXVI.— The Fire Department — Its History from the Beginning —The
Apparatus in Early Times — The First Fire Company — The Old Volunteer De-
partment— Its Glories and its Misdeeds — The Protectives, Alerts and Actives —
The Firemen's Benevolent Association — Dedication of the Monument — List of
Chiefs and Assistants — The Fire Record, . . - 201
CHAPTER yjC^W. — Libraries and Literature — Thi^ First Public Library — The
Franklin Institute — The Athenaeum — The Central Library — The Law Library —
The Young Men's Christian Association — The Literary Union — "The Club" —
The Fortnightly — The Shakespeare Club, - - 216
CHAPTER XXVIU.— Associations — Scie^itific, Social, Political, etc.— T\\c Aca.A&'
my of Science — The Rochester Club — The Rochester Whist Club — The Eureka
Club — The Abelard Club — The Mutual Club — The Celtic Club — The Com-
mercial Traveler's Club — The Irish National League — ■ The Civil Service Reform
Association — The Lincoln Club — The Riverside Rowing Club — The Canoe
Club, - - 222
CHAPTER XXIX.— The Erie Canal— Its Origin — Vague Ideas of Gouverneur Mor-
ris— Definite Conception of Jesse Hawley — Legislative Action in 1808 — De Witt
Clinton Appears — Canal Commissioners Appointed in 1816 — Myron Holley and
His Great Services — Important Meeting at Canandaigua — Opposition at Albany
— Work Begun July 4th, 1817 — The Canal Completed October 24th, 1825 — The
Grand Celebration — Enlargement of the Canal — Great Convention in this City —
Canal Statistics — The Genesee Valley Canal, -. - - 228
CHAPTER XXX.— The Forces of Nature — The. Electric Telegraph — Construction
of the O'Rielly Lines — Transformation into the Western Union — Other Tele-
graph Companies Here — The Telephone — Gas and Electric Light — -Coal —
Its Introduction as Fuel in Rochester — Insurance Companies Here, Past and
Present, - 238
Contents.
PAGE.
CHAPTER XXXI. — The Churches of Rochester — Earliest Organisation of Religious
Societies in the Settlement — The Presbyterian Churches — The Episcopal Churches
— The Friends, or Quakers — The Baptist Churches — The Methodist — The Ro-
man Catholic — The Unitarian — The German Lutheran, Evangelical and Re-
formed— The Congregational — The Jewish — The Universalist — The Second
Advent — Other Churches, - 243
CHAPTER XXXn.— The Early Schools of Jioches/er — HnWah M. Strong's School
in 1813 — Limited Educational Resources — Meagerness of State Appropriation —
Old District Number i, and First Male Teacher — Mill Street a Fashionable Quar-
ter of Rochester — Maria AUyn's School in 1820— jFairchild and Filer's Latin and
English School — Lyman Cobb's School, Spelling-Bobk and Dictionary — The
Manual Labor School — The Rochester High School — The Schools of Misses
Black and Miss Seward, West Side of the River — Rochester Female Academy —
Seward Female Seminary — Other Institutions of Learning, - 296
CHAPTER XXXUl.— The Ptiblic Schools — The First Board of Education — The
School Census in 1841 — The Modern High School — Free Schools Established in
1849 — Opposition to the System — The Difficulties Surmounted — The Common
Schools of the City — A Sketch of Each One, 317
CHAPTER XXXIV.— The Medical Profession — nea.\th of Rochester in the Early
Days — Longevity of the Pioneers — Efficient Sewerage of the Village — Dr. Jonah
Brown, the First Practitioner — High Tone of the Profession at that Time — Form-
ation of the Monroe County Medical Society — Its Officers and its Members —
Stringent Provisions of its Constitution — Biographical Sketches of Deceased
Physicians, - - "331
CHAPTER XXXV. — Homoeopathy and Dentistry — Early Homoeopathic Physicians —
Their Advent and Influence — The Practice of Dentistry — Advance of the Art, 340
CHAPTER XXXVI.—- The Press of ^oc/^^/^r — Early Journalism — The Gazette —
The Telegraph — The Advertiser, with its Various Absorptions — Sketch of the
Union and Advertiser — Notices of its Representative Men — The Anti-Masonic
Inquirer ^nA Thurlow Weed — The Democrat — The American — The Chron-
icle— Continued History of the Democrat and Chronicle — Sketches of those
Prominently Associated with It — Various Dead Newspapers, from 1828 to 1884 —
The Express and Post-Express — The Morning If erald— Sunday Journalism in
Rochester — German Journalism — Agricultural- Publications — Religious Papers
— Papers Connected with Institutions — The Labor Reformers — Concluding Ob-
servations, - 343
CHAPTER XXXVII. — Rochester Judges and Lawyers — HsirXy ^V)a.ys — The. First
Lawyer — Erection of the County — Building of the First Court-House — Earliest
Sessions of Court — Circuit-Riding — The Circuit Court — The Vice-Chancellor's
Court — The Court of Appeals — The Supreme Court and its Justices — The
County Courts and Judges — Special County Judges — The Surrogate's Court —
Mayor's Court — District - Attorneys — The Rochester Bar — A List of its Mem-
bers, - - - 366
CHAPTER XXXVin.— The Secret Societies of Rochester — YK&m?isonry \n the Vil-
lage— Institution of Wells Lodge in 1817 — Growth of the Order — Histoiy of the
Lodges, Chapters, Councils, etc. — Monroe Commandery — Its Drill Corps — Cy-
rene Commandery — The Scottish Rite — Lodges of Perfection — Masonic Relief
Association — The Odd Fellows — History of the Lodges of this City — The Good
Work of the Order — The Knights of Pythias — Ancient Order of United Work-
men — The Foresters — The Elks — Other Secret Societies, - 38 1
Contents. . , s
PAGE.
CHAPTER XXXIX. — C/^arz'O/ and Benevolenc6 — The City Hospital — St. Mary's
Hospital — The Female Charitable Society — The Monroe County Bible Society —
The Rochester Orphan Asylum — The Catholic Orphan Asylum — The Jewish
Orphan Asylum — The Home for the Friendless — The Industrial School — The
Church Home — The Home of Industry — The Deaf Mute Institution — The Hu-
mane Society — The Alms House — The Insane Asylum, ■ 403
CHAPTER XL.— The Home Guard — K Glance at the Rochester Militia, from the
Earliest Days Down to the Present Times — The First Rifle Company and Regi-
ment— The Irish Volunteers — The Pioneer Rifles and the Battle of "Tod-Wad-
dle"— The Grays and Cadets, and the Battle of Lyell Bridge — Other Organisa-
tions and Bloodless Encounters — The Militia During the War — The Disbandment
in 1881, - - - 429
CHAPTER XLI. — The Cemeteries of Rochester — Iht Early Cemeteries of the Village
and the City — The Burial-Places on the East and West Sides — Negotiations for
a New Ground — Abandonment of the Old Places, and Transfer to Mount Hope
— Description of the Cemetery — ^The Old Catholic Burial-Ground — Necessity for
a New Place of Interment — Purchase of the Land and Consecration of the Ground
— Description of the Holy Sepulcher Cemetery, - - - - 438
CHAPTER XLII. — Amtisements in Rochester — The Entertainments of Early Days —
The First Circus — Its Change into a Play-House — The First Theater — Mr.
Whittlesey's Prize Address — Edmund Kean's Appearance and his Speech —
Dean's Theater — The Rochester Museum — Concert and Other Halls — Corinth-
ian Hall and Academy of Music — The Grand Opera House — The Driving-Park
— The Exploits of the Track — State Fairs and Shoots, . - 450
CHAPTER XLIIL— r//^ Underground Railroad —Tht Flying Bondmen — Their
Miseries in Servitude, their Privations while Escaping — Their Arrival in Roches-
ter and their Transit to Canada — The First Rendition of a Fugitive — Her Res-
cue, her Recapture, and her Liberation by Suicide — No other Slave ever Returned
from Rochester — Scenes and Incidents of the Harboring of Negroes— General
Reflections, . -. - 458
CHAPTER XLIV. — The Banks of Rochester — Banking Facilities in Early Days —
Establishment of the Bank of Rochester — The Bank of Monroe — The Rochester
City Bank — The Bank of Western New York — The Commercial Bank — The
Farmers' and Mechanics' Bank — The Rochester Bank — The Union Bank — The
Eagle Bank — The Manufacturers' Bank — The Traders' Bank — The Flour City
Bank ■ — The Monroe County Bank — The Perrin Bank — The Bank of Monroe —
The Bank of Rochester and the German American Bank — The Commercial
National Bank — The Merchants' Bank — The Private Banks — The Savings
Banks, - 463
CHAPTER XLV. — The Railroads of Rochester — The Beginning of Railroads —
The First One Laid in America — The Rochester and Carthage Railroad — The
Tonawanda Railroad — The Auburn and Rochester Road — The Niagara Falls
Road — The Rochester and Syracuse Road^ — Consolidation into the New York
Central — The Elevated Tracks — The Genesee Valley Road — The Rochester and
Pittsburg Road — The Bay Railroad — The Belt Railroad — The Valley Canal
Railroad — The Street Railroad, - - 472
CHAPTER XLVI. — Rochester's German Element— Tht First German Immigration
to the Genesee Valley — Indentured Colonists Followed by Voluntary Immigrants
— The Settler's Career of Industry — His Social and Religious Life — He Becomes
a Citizen and a Soldier, - _ . ■ . 481
Contents. — Biographical Sketches.
PACE,
CHAPTER XLVn. — Reformatory and Correctional — The Western House of Refuge
— Full Description of tiie Institution — Its History from tlie Beginning — The
Monroe County Penitentiary — The County Jail, - - 497
CHAPTER XLVIII. — The Rochester Rappings — Sounds Heard at Hydesville — The
Fox Family — Doings on March 31st, 1848 — First Supposed Intelligent Response
— Mrs. Leah Fish and Her Investigations — The Fox Girls Separated — Rappings
on the Boat — Investigation in Rochester and Use of the Alphabet — Public In-
vestigation Urged — Committee Selected — Corinthian Hall Investigation — Re-
ports of Committees, etc., ... - - 508
CHAPTER XLIX.— The Fine Arts in Rochester — 'S,)f^X.cVt?. of the Early Painters of
Rochester — Art Exhibitions here in Former Days — The Sculptors and the Arch-
itects— Engravingoh Wood, Copper and Stone — Photography — Music and the
Musicians — The Art Club and the Art Exchange, - 518
CHAPTER L. — The University and the Theological Seminary — Madison University
— Plans for its Removal — A New University Established at Rochester — Its
Founders and Trustees — Its Influence on the City — Its Course of Study — Its
Lectures, its Library and its Museums — Its Benefactors and its Buildings — The
Theological Seminary — Full Description of the Institution, 531
CHAPTER \A.— The War Record— WhaX Rochester Did to Save the Nation — The
Regiments and Other Organisations Raised in the City and Sent to the Field — A
Brief Account of their Service — Their Achievements and their Losses — The Gen-
eral Officers from the City — The Grand Army of the Republic, 555
CHAPTER LII.— The Rochester Water Worhs — The Necessity of a Water Supply
for the City — Early Plans for Furnishing it — The Company of 1852 — Its Failure
and the Report of the Expert — Works Finally Constructed by the City — Full Ac-
count of their Operation — Tests Made in 1874 — A Remarkable Exhibition —
Sources of a Water Supply — The Lakes and the Reservoirs — The Holly Works,
the Pump House and the Machinery — The Telephone to Hemlock Lake — Total
Cost of the Work — Analysis of the Water, - 577
CHAPTER LIII. — Rochester Manufactures — ^^ Diver.sified Nature of Her Industries —
Early Prophecies Fulfilled, with some Variation — Her Water Power and Flouring
Mills of Minor Consideration in the List of Enterprises — Clothing, Shoes, Iron
Work, Machinery, Wood Work, Flour, Beer, and a Wide Range of Miscellaneous
Articles in the List, 598
CHAPTER LI v. — Biographical, 647
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.
I'AOK.
Anderson, Martin B., LL. D., .__ 676
Bronson, Amon, - -ji^
Child, Jonathan, 686
Clarke, Freeman, , 647
Biographical Sketches. — Illustrations.
PAGE.
Cox, Patrick, 649
Dewey, Chester, D. D., LL. D., : 650
EUwanger, George, _ :.. 700
Erickson, Aaron, 698
Gardiner, Hon. Addison, ..: 653
Gorsline, William Henry, , 687
Greenleaf, Hon. Halbert Stevens, _ 705
Hatch, Jesse W., 656
Hill, Charles J., 659
Moore, Dr. E. M., 715
Morgan, Hon. Lewis Henry, LL. D., 723
Moses, Schuyler, 661
Mumford, George H., . 6g8
Mumford, William W., _ 697
Northrop, Nehemiah B., - _ : 663
Pancost, Edwin, ■ 685
Parsons, Hon. Cornelius R., yig
Peck, Everard, (S64.
Raines, George, yi8
Reynolds, Abelard, 600
Reynolds, Mortimer F., _ 604
Reynolds, William Abelard, 602
Riley, Ashbel Wells, _ 55 e
Rochester, Nathaniel, _ 56g
Selden, Henry Rogers, _ ygq
Seward, Jason W., _ 6-2
Smith, Hon. Erasmus Darwin, LL. D., gyg
Sibley, Hon. Hiram, -Qg
Warner, Hulbert Harrington, _ ggj
Whitney, George J., 6y^
Wood worth, Chauncey B., g- .
Yates, Arthur G., _ gg-
ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE.
Anderson, Martin B., LL. D., portrait, facing 538
Bronson, Amon, portrait, facing 713
Child, Jonathan, portrait, facing 130
Clarke, Freeman, portrait, facing 468
8 Illustrations,
TAGE.
Cox, Patrick, portrait, facing 649
Deed given by Ebenezer Allan, fac simile of, 82, 83
Dewey, Chester, D. D., LL. D., portrait,. _. facing 310
Ellwanger, George, portrait, - - - - '.facing 486
Erickson, Aaron, portrait, - . .facing 422
Gardiner, Hon. Addison, portrait, - facing 370
Gorsline, William H., portrait, facing 688
Greenleaf, Hon. Halbert Stevens, portrait, facing 705
Hatch, Jesse W., portrait, facing 246
Hill, Charles J., portrait,. . - . - ..facing 202
Indian Pipes,.. , 24, 25
Indian Skull, . 25
Lower Falls, 1768,.: ., facing 64
Moore, Dr. E. M., portrait, facing 334
Morgan, Hon. Lewis Henry, LL. D., portrait, facing 168
Moses, Schuyler, portrait, facing 186
Mumford, George H., portrait, . . facing 404
Mumford, William W., portrait, facing 464
Northrop, Nehemiah B., portrait, . . . facing 663
Pancost, Edwin, portrait, facing 685
Parsons, Hon. Cornelius R., portrait, facing 716
Peck, Everard, portrait, facing uo
Post-office, The First in Rochester, 96
Raines, George, portrait, facing 718
Reynolds, Abelard, portrait, .facing 92
Reynolds, Mrs. Abelard, portrait, .facing 176
Reynolds, Mortimer F., portrait, facing 218
Reynolds, William Abelard, portrait, facing 160
Riley, Ashbel Wells, portrait, .facing 430
Rochester, map ofini8i4, facing 97
Rochester, map of in 1827, facing 124
Rochester, map of in 1838, between 132, 133
Rochester, Nathaniel, portrait, frontis piece
Seward, Jason W., portrait,. facing 306
Sibley, Hon. Hiram, portrait, facing 238
Totiakton and Vicinity, map of, _ 58
Upper Falls, 1768, facing 64
Warner, Hulbert Harrington, portrait, facing 681
Whitbeck, Dr. J. W., portrait, _ .facing 406
Whitney, George J., portrait, ^ .facing 675
Woodworth, Chauncey B., portrait, facing 264
Yates, Arthur G., portrait, facing 695
PREFACE.
To the Citizens of Rochester: —
This book tells its own story, but a few words with regard to
its compilation are deemed appropriate. Its editor or author — for
while he is less than the latter he is certainly more than the former —
has given full credit in the running pages to all those who assisted
him by the preparation of complete chapters or of portions of chap-
ters to any appreciable degree. To those who have aided by giving
information when it was sought, by confirming previous impressions
or by correcting erroneous conclusions, no reference by name is
necessary ; they will find their satisfaction in the knowledge that
their help has been utilised and that they have contributed to the
preservation, in this form, of facts that would otherwise grow con-
stantly more difficult to obtain. With the hope that the volume
will stand as an enduring record of Rochester, from the earliest
times in which can be found a trace of human life in this locality to
the fiftieth birthday of the city, the compiler presents this work to
the consideration of his fellow-citizens.
Rochester, N. Y., September 23//, 1884.
HISTORY
OF THE
CITY OF ROCHESTER.
CHAPTER I.
ABORIGINAL OCCUPATION OF THE LOWER GENESEE COUNTRY.'
Antiquity of Man — Antediluvian Relics — The Ancient Beach of Lake Ontario Inhabited by Man.
THE aboriginal occupation of America is a subject of exhaustless research.
Among the many divisions of this subject none present so broad a field
of observation to the thoughtful investigator as the antique remains of the con-
tinent. The inquiry regarding their origin, and its direct bearing on the ques-
tion of man's early history, opens the door of discussion to subjects diverse, in
character, comprehending nearly every line of thought and course of study.
The prominence given to these antiquities has engaged the attention of men
of every nationality and station in life, resulting in many ably-fought battles
between earnest advocates of dissimilar views.
The interest in such remains is not alone confined to those found in America.
The Old world has celebrated in prose and verse the antiquities of ancient ern-
pires and the relics of nations and tribes of primitive people to whom it is not
difficult to trace an historical connection ; while men of the highest scientific
attainments engage in the collection and collation of evidences of the antiquity
of the human race. The New world possesses no record of historic reference
whereby the truth respecting her primitive peoples can be established. The
fragmentary knowledge possessed by historians is derived from evidences fur-
nished by time-worn remains, mythology and analogous reasoning, and Foster
tells us, in his admirable work, The Pre-historic Races of the United States,
that but recently a deep feeling of distrust pervaded the public mind of this
' The first fifteen chapters of this work were prepared by Mr. George H. Harris.
2
12 History of the City of Rochester.
country in reference to every discovery which is supposed to carry back the
origin of man to a period antecedent to the historical era; "and yet," contin-
ues the same author, "reasoning from palaeontological analogies, we ought to
expect to find evidences of the hiiman occupancy of this continent, reaching
back to an antiquity as remote as on the European continent."
Happily, modern thought is progressive. The rapidity with which scientific
discoveries and inventions of a marvelous, though practical nature are success-
ively brought before the public view is exerting an appreciable influence in
the preparation of the human mind for a favorable reception of vital, though
recently^ admitted, truths; "and," remarks Sir John Lubbock, "the new views
in regard to the antiquity of man, though still looked upon with distrust and
apprehension, will, I doubt not, in a few years be regarded with as little disqui-
etude as are now those discoveries in astronomy and geology which at one
time excited even greater opposition." '
"Within the present generation," says Foster, "has been opened a sphere
of investigation which has enlisted an able body of observers, whose labors
have thrown a flood of light upon the question relating to our common hu-
manity. Ethnography has been raised to the rank of the noblest of sciences.
However strange these new views with regard to the origin and history of our
race may appear, they cannot be disregarded. We must weigh the value of
observations, and press them to their legitimate conclusions." The develop-
ment of those kindred sciences, geology and palaeontology, united with the re-
sults of ethnological research, during the past half-century, are truly amazing
in their possibilities" and effect. The revelations of science are not only revolu-
tionising the world of thought, but actually overturning the foundations of an-
cient history. The New world of historians is the Old world of geologists,"
who inform us that America was "first born among the continents, and already
stretched an unbroken line of land from Nova Scotia to the far West, while
Europe was represented by islands rising here and there above the sea;"' that
the Laurentian mountains in Canada, and portions of the Adirondacks in New
York — the classical grounds of American geologists — are the oldest forma-
tions in the world, and along their surf- beaten coasts were developed the ear-
liest forms of organic life. Dawson describes the Eozoon Canadense, or "dawn-
animal," a microscopic organism of the Laurentian foundations, and suggests
the possibilities of life existent in the waters of the ocean long before the ap-
pearance of land above the surface;'' while the character of recent discoveries
tends to strengthen the belief that the origin of man, even, may be assigned to
' Preface of Pre-historic Times, by Sir John Lubbock.
^ The early rise of the American continent was asserted, for the first time, by Foster, in his report
on the mineral lands of Lake Superior. The fact is too well established to require special quotation of
authorities, as nearly all works on American geology, issued subsequent to 1853, affirm the statement.
' Agassiz, Geological Sketches.
* The Earth and Man, by J. W. Dawson, p. 23.
The First Human Occupancy. 13
tin's, the most ancient of continents. Revelations of so startling a nature are
the result of patient investigations pursued by learne.d men, who find the chro-
nology of the Hebrew Pentateuch, which would bring everything relating to
human history within the short compass of four thousand and four years ante-
cedent to the Christian era,' insufficient to account for the mutations the earth
has undergone,' and the development of man from the low stage of wildest
savagery, which all evidences prove his primitive condition to have been, to
the modern plane of intellectual power and refinement.
We speak of the race of men found in possession of this continent at the
time of its discovery by Europeans in the fifteenth century as the Aborigines
of America, and long usage has rendered the term, in the sense in which it is
applied to the Indians, peculiarly fitting, though incorrect. They were natives
of America, but not its original inhabitants. There are proofs of the presence
here of people who lived at so early a period of time that no authoritative ref-
erence to them has ever been found in written history. We know of their ex-
istence, and occupation of the land, only through discovery of remains of a
character suggestive of the term "Mound-builders," which has become their
historical designation. For the history of time and events back of the red
man and the Mound-builder, we must penetrate the earth itself, and, from the
evidentiary material discovered, trace or reason out a parallelism with existing
forms and conditions, basing our conclusions entirely upon the principle that
from the beginning of time nature has worked upon the same plan, with like
forces and results as at present.
Abstruse as the question of man's antiquity may appear, it is, nevertheless,
pertinent to our subject — the early human occupancy of this immediate local-
ity. We are confident that the St. Lawrence basin and the near-lying moun-
tain districts of New York and Canada will yet furnish material aid to science
in the final solution of this great problem, but, if we attempt to trace the rec-
ord of man's remote occupation of our home territory by a chain of successive
events, we find many of the links of connection broken or entirely wanting ;
still there would seem to be some grounds for the confidence expressed, in the
discovery of a certain class of ancient relics that has attracted little attention in
the world of science.
In a communication to the American Antiquarian society prior to 1830 the
late Dr. Samuel L. Mitchell, professor of natural history, and father of geology
in the state of New York, mentioned this class of antiquities as distinguished
' The .Samaritan Pentateuch places the creation of the world B.C. 4700; the Septuagint, 5872; Jo-
sephus, 4658; the Talmudists, S344; Scaliger, 3950; Petavius, 3984; Playfair, 4007. Dr. Hales
places it at 541 1, and enumerates over one hundred and twenty various opinions on the subject, the dif-
ference between the latest and remotest dates being no less than 3268 years. Good Uishop Usher,
whose chronological table is used in the English Bible, follows the Hebrew account, and places the
creation B.C. 4004.
' Sir William Thomson thinks the time which has elapsed from the first foundation of a solid crust
on the earth to the modern period may have been from seventy to one hundred millions of years.
14 History of the City of Rochester.
entirely from those which gre usually ascribed to the Indians and Mound-
builders, as follows : —
" In the section of country about Fredonia, New York, on the south side of Lake
Erie, are discovered objects deservedly worthy of particular and inquisitive research.
This kind of antiquities present themselves on digging from thirty to fifty feet
below the surface of the ground. They occur in the form of fire-brands, split wood,
ashes, coals and occasionally tools and utensils, buried to those depths."
Dr. Mitchell also expressed an earnest wish that the members of the soci-
ety should exert thernselves with all possible diligence to ascertain and collect
facts of this description for the benefit of the geologist and historian ; in the
expectation that, "if collected and methodised, conclusions could be drawn of
a nature that would shed light on the ancient and traditionary history of the
world." Priest tells us the relics mentioned by Dr. Mitchell were found be-
neath the ridge which borders the east shore of Lake Erie, and refers to their
origin as "antediluvian."' A superficial deposit, known as the "lake ridge,"
similar to the one on Lake. Erie, extends from Sodus, New York, westward
around the head of Lake Ontario into Canada, at a distance varying from
three to eight miles from the present beach of the lake. Throughout its whole
extent in this state this ridge is well defined, bearing all the indications of hav-
ing once been the boundary of a large body of water, and of having been pro-
duced in the same manner as the elevated beaches of the ocean and larger
lakes. In height it varies from a gentle swell to sharply defined elevations
fifteen to twenty feet above the surface of the ground, occasionally descending
toward the lake for fifty or one hundred feet in an easy slope. Its seaward
side is usually covered with coarse gravel and often with large pebbles. Pro-
fessor Hall, our state geologist, says : — -"^
" If anything were wanting in the external appearance of this ridge to convince the
observer of the mode of its formation, every excavation made into it proves conclusively
its origin. The lowest deposit, or foundation, is a coarse sand or gravel, and upon this
a regular deposit of silt. The layer of vegetable matter is evenly spread, as if deposited
from water, and afterward covered with fine sand, and to this succeeds coarse sand and
gravel. Fragments of wood nearly fossilised, shells, etc., are found in digging wells and
cutting channels through the ridge; and there can be no doubt of its formadon by the
waters of Lake Ontario, which once stood at that level."^
The grand Indian trail from the Genesee falls to the Niagara river passed
along the summit of this ridge, and for over seventy years the white man has
used it as a road-bed (for one of the most extensively traveled highways in
New York) between Rochester and Lewiston. The farm of David Tomlinson
is situated on the Ridge road, half a mile west of the village of Gaines, Orleans
county. When first occupied in 1814 the ground was covered by forest trees
of large growth, many being three and four feet in diameter, and the stumps
of two, specially noted as standing over a mile north of the ridge, measured
' Antiquities of America, by Josiah Priest.
^ Geology of New York. Part IV., p. 349.
Ancient Remains. 15
each, nearly eight feet across the top. As far as the eye could reach in either
direction the ridge in this vicinity then declined toward the lake in a smooth,
unbroken grade, and about one hundred and fifty feet north of its center the
clear waters of a spring bubbled forth and darted away lakeward in a tiny riv-
ulet. From, the main Indian trail on the ridge a path led down to the spring,
which was well known to the Indians, who often camped in the neighborhood.
In 1824 the spring-basin was cleaned out and stoned up in the form of a
well. In 1853 the water failed and the well was deepened. In 1864 the well
bottom was lowered to a total depth of twenty feet. About eighteen feet be-
low the original surface the digger came upon a quantity of brush overlying
an ancient fireplace, consisting of three round stones, each about one foot in
diameter, placed in the form of a triangle. A mass of charcoal and ashes sur-
rounded the stones which were burned and blackened by fire and smoke.
Several sticks were found thrust between the stones, the inner ends burned
and charred as left by the expiring flames. A careful inspection of these
sticks by a gentleman' thoroughly acquainted with the nature and grain of va-
rious woods proved them to be hemlock and ash. Some were denuded of
bark ;\nd had the smooth surface usually presented by water-washed wood
found on any beach. Several slicks were split, and surrounding one was a de-
pressed ring, or indentation, as though some dull instrument had been em-
ployed in an effort to weaken or break the wood. The ashes were indurated
to a degree requiring the use of a pick in their removal, and rested upon a
stratum of sand, which was also in a hardened condition, being taken out in
large pieces that proved to be very fine grained, with a smooth surface slightly
creased in places, possibly ripple marks. When first discovered the brush was
closely packed over the fireplace and had every appearance of having been
forced into position by the action of water. The fireplace and all- the details
of its narrow'^ surroundings, which were carefully noted, clearly indicated that
it had been made upon a sand-beach, and was subjected to an inundation that
washed the mass of brush, possibly gathered for fuel, over the stones and ashes,
which were afterward covered many feet deep by successive strata of the same
gravelly soil of which the ridge is composed, and was thus preserved fpr ages
unknown.
In a survey of the grounds and after thorough consideration of the circum-
stances the writer became assured of the following conclusions : The fireplace
was constructed by .persons having the use of rude implements and possessed
of some knowledge of cookery, at a period just previous to the formation of
the ridge. In its formation this ridge was extended along the base of an ele-
' John J^utt, of Rochester, to whose excellent knowledge of the early history of this locality the
writer is indebted for many fact.s.
" In 1880 these facts, as presented, were brojght to the notice of Lewis H. Morgan, of Rochester,
who assured the writer that the discovery was the most interesting and valuable one within his knowl-
edge, respecting the ridge, and he earnestly advised its publication.
1 6 History of the City of Rochester.
vation connected with the mountain-ridge, and constituted a solid dam, from
one hundred to one hundred and fifty feet wide, across the mouth of a little
valley and inward curvature of the hillside. The accumulation of water, shed
by the surrounding slopes, originally transformed the basins thus created into
ponds, and subsequently, when drained, converted them into marshes. The
valley waters, aided by the current of an inflowing stream, forced a channel
through the ridge, but the waters of the small pond were gradually released
by soaking through the mud bottom and following the course of a vein under-
neath the ridge to its northern side, where they»rose to the surface in the form
of a spring. The failure of the spring was caused by the clearing and cultiva-
tion of its marsh source. It is evident that the spring came into operation long
after the ridge was formed, and. the rise of the water directly above the fire-
place was incidental, there being no connection whatever between the two
events.
If these conclusions are justified by the conditions related, it would appear
that man was a habitant of the south shore of Lake Ontario before the ridge
existed, and, if the age of the ridge can be even approximately determined,
some idea can be had of the length of time he has occupied our home terri-
tory. The results of a special study regarding the peculiar topographical feat-
ures of Western New York lead to the conclusion that the ridge is of very an-
cient origin — in fact, that it antedates the present rock-cut channel of the
Genesee — and, though our range of inquiry is necessarily limited, a brief ex-
position of reasons influencing this conclusion may prove of interest.
CHAPTER II.
Surface Geology — The Great Sea — Origin of the Genesee River — Great Age of the Lake Ridge
— Man's Antiquity in the Genesee Country.
IN every direction about Rochester we behold the effects of aqueous'action.
The hills, domes and pillars of sand and gravel, the rolling plains and allu-
vial ridges, the great valleys and deep channels of watei'courses, the polished
rocks of limestone beneath the soil, and huge boulders scattered over the sur-
face, all combine in an appeal to our reason, arouse an interest and create a
desire to learn the primary cause of these singular forms of nature. The sci-
ence of geology teaches that the earth first appeared above the waters of the
ocean in the form of azoic rock, and those grand scientists, Agassiz and Dana,
tell us that certain portions of the territory of the Empire state were among
the very first kissed by the warm sunlight of heaven.
Peculiar Formation of the Genesee River. 17
Passing over the changes occurring during many succeeding geological
ages, we reach a period when the rising continent had divided the waters of
the ocean by the elevation of mountain barriers, and converted all this part
of America into an inland sea. The physical contour of much of the state of
New York is directly due to the active agency of the waters of this sea, which
left its impress upon so large an area of our natural surroundings; and its his-
tory, as revealed by geological developments, has a local application which
may worthily excite an interest not usual in matters of this character. Even
the noble river, quietly carrying its daily tribute of mountain waters from the
AUeghanies through the heart of Rochester to Lake Ontario, has its place in
the history of the great sea, and it is a curious fact that the results of scientific
research show the history of the Genesee as differing from that of other rivers
in the processes of its formation. The tinge of romance, lending attractiveness
to all narrations of man's early acquaintance with the Genesee, deepens to a
flush in the recital of the ancient river's history. The spring gushing from a
hill-side, its sparkling waters finding their way to some natural depression,
forms a purling brook, by small degrees and successive additions enlarging to
the size of a creek, increasing in volume and magnitude to the full development
of a river flowing in silent majesty, with great sweeps and curves, along its well-
defined channel, crushing with irresistible force through some rock-bound
mountain gorge, plunging with mighty thunderings over a great precipice
into the deep basin below, and thence passing onward to lose their identity
forever in the commingled floods of lake and ocean — such is the natural
history of rivers.
No record like this bears the Genesee. The growth of its formation was
one of recession. Not at the bubbling fountain of distant plain or hill-slope
began the inceptive movement of its birth, but near its very entrance into the
great fresh water sea of its deposit. Springing into life with the full force born
of bursting lake barriers, its first current must have been a mighty stream of
great width and power, capable of rending asunder the rock foundations of the
earth; and the course now pursued from its modern headwater sources on the
mountain plains of Pennsylvania is the result of a deicreasing volume, narrow-
ing its bounds from the broad expanse of its mother-lakes to the contracted
space of the latest channel in the valley bottom. This, and many 'other facts
of special interest, we learn in the history of the great sea whose boundaries,
at the period of its first separation from the ocean, are not clearly defined; but
an idea of their general course at a later date, when the configuration of the
earth was nearly complete, can be formed by a brief study of the topography
of North America, which discloses an immense basin, bounded on the north
by the range of mountains extending through Canada to the far West; on the
east by the New England range, extending southwesterly by the Highlands of
New York, and the AUeghanies of Pennsylvania, thence west and south toward
the Mississippi river.
1 8 , History of the City of Rochester.
The elevation of the interior of the continent produced its natural effect in
a subsidence of the sea-waters into the depressions of the earth then existing,
their divisions into lesser seas, and in time by successive drainage at outlets of
different elevation, the formation of lakes. The immense basin of the St.
Lawrence, which extends from the gulf of St. Lawrence to the headwaters of
the Mississippi — a distance of two thousand miles — formed the first reser-
voir. This, in time, was divided by natural barriers into three sub-basins.
The first of these has an area of about 90,000 square miles, more than one-
fourth of which is occupied by the waters of Lake Superior. The next, or
middle, basin has an area of at least 160,000 square miles and contains Lakes
Huron, Michigan and Erie in its lowest depressions. The surface of the lower
basin has an area of about 260,000 square miles and is covered in part by the
waters of Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence river. The upper, basin prob-
ably had its outlet into the middle basin, which, previous to the destruction
of the original coast- ridge at the northeastern end of Lake Erie and conse-
quent birth of Niagara river, had its drainage to the south through the valleys
of the Des Plains, Kankakee, Illinois and Mississippi rivers, into the gulf of
Mexico. 1
The period in which the actual division of the middle and lower basins
took place cannot be fixed, but the occurrence marked an era from which our
interest in the subsiding waters of the great sea is confined to the lower, or On-
tario, basin. About the time of this separation the Mount Hope and Pinnacle
range of hills, on the southern boundary line of the city, formed a barrier at
the north end of the Genesee valley, and, dividing the waters, produced a
great shallow lake covering all the valley between Rochester and Dansville.
The waters of the sea, now Lake Ontario, continued their retirement to the
north, and coast lines formed during the period of recession can be traced at
many points on the slopes of the Ontario basin where the waves left their mark
on cliff, and hillside, or washed up great alluvial ridges in open plains. At
least a dozen such ridges can be found at different places in New York, and
two at Rochester, the lake ridge being the most distinct. It is probable that a
barrier across the St. Lawrence then restrained the lake waters, which escaped
through the valley of the Mohawk at Little Falls into the Hudson. The low-
est part of the old channel through the rocky gorge at Little Falls is 428 feet
above the. ocean, and the ridge in Rochester is about 441 feet.^ It is supposed
'^Niagara Falls and Other Famous Cataracts, by George W. Holley. This book contains a very
interesting history of the middle basin and the probable origin of the Niagara river and falls.
2 Through the kindness of R. J. Smith, A. J. Grant and E. U. Whitmore, civil engineers, the ele-
vation of various points between the upper Genesee fall and Lake Ontario, which has never been pub-
lished before, has been obtained. The ridge at the intersection of the Charlotte boulevard west of Han-
ford's Landing, is 193.91 feet above Lake Ontario. At the crossing of the Ontario Belt railroad, about
. 1,000 feet east of the river, the ridge is 182.45 1^^' above the lake. The latter, according to the recent
(1878) geodetic survey, is 247.25 feet above the ocean. An influx of water rising 247.25 feet above
mean tide at New York would place the ocean on a level with Lake Ontario; 441 feet, with the ridge,
and connect the lake with the Hudson river through the Mohawk valley at Little Falls; 508 feet, with
Antiquity of the Lake Ridge. 19
that the waters had retired beyond the level of the ridge, and from some un-
known cause — possibly the breaking down of the natural obstruction at the
northeastern extremity of Lake Erie, and discharge of its waters into Lake
Ontario — again rose several feet, the ridge being formed under the water
while the surface was but a few feet above. The breaking away, or removal,
of the St. Lawrence barrier reduced the lake to its present level.
Following this event, the Genesee valley lake burst through the hills east
of the- Pinnacle, formed a great river, now the Genesee, and excavated the
bay of Irondequoit.' In time this channel became obstructed and the waters
cut a new outlet through the hill west of the present channel at tlie Rapids in
South Rochester, pursuing a direct northern course to the present Genesee
falls in the heart of the city. This passage becoming obstructed just north of
the Rapids, the river was directed east toward Mount Hope and thence north-
ward through its modern channel. The production of the Genesee river
gorge through Rochester to Latce Ontario is mainly the result of erosion,
having been effected by running water aided by frost, and it is evident that
this work has been accomplished since Lake Ontario retired from the ridge.
If this theory is correct — and it is affirmed by scientists''' — the lake ridge
antedates the Genesee river and Irondequoit bay, and the fireplace discovered
on the old beach beneath the ridge at Gaines was constructed by men who
occupied our home territory at a period so remote that it is not possible to fix
its limit. It may be stated, however, that, from deductions covering the age
of supposed contemporaneous events, it has been crudely estimated as exceed-
ing fourteen thousand years.
the Erie canal aqueduct in Rochester, and submerge half the city; 573.58 feet with Lake Erie; 58S
feet, with Lake Michigan ; 600 feet would carry the waters over the dividing plateau between Chicago
and the Mississippi valley and re-establish the great interior sea, with the ocean flowing from Labrador
to the gulf of Mexico. The sea would be 353 feet above the present level of Lake Ontario, and Roch-
ester submerged but ninety-two feet at the aqueduct. The tops of many buildings in the city would re-
main above the surface. I'innacle hill, in the sliape of a conical island, would rise seventy-one feet
above the water, and Mount Hope and the intervening range form a cluster of knolls and line of shal-
low, bars.
' Professor James Hall, Geological Survey of the Fourth District.
^ See //lustrations of Surface Geology and /irosions of the Earth's Surface, by Edward Ililch-
cock, JX. U. ; Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, Vol. IX.; Geology of New York, by James
Hall, and other standard works.
20 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER III
Ancient Races — The Mound-builders — The White Woman of the Genesee — Traditions of the
Red Men — Presence of a Pre-historic People in the Genesee Valley, and about Irondequoit liay
— The Ridge Mounds and Relics — Ancient Landings on the Genesee — A Race of I^rge Men.
THAT a race, or -races, of men preceded the Indians in the occupation
of this country is too well understood to require special iteration. We
may never learn the origin of those ancient people, or gather more than scat-
tering lines of their history, but tangible, imperishable proofs of their former
presence on a large area of the American continent still remain in the form of
earthworks which extend from New York westwardly along the southern
shore of Lake Erie, and through Michigan and the intermediate states and
territories to the Pacific. They have been fpund on thfe shores of Lake Pepin,
and on the Missouri river over one thousand miles above its junction with the
Mississippi, and extend down the valley of the latter to the gulf of Mexico.
They line the shores of the gulf from Texas to Florida, continue in diminished
numbers into South Carolina,' and stand as eternal sentinels on the Rio Grande
del Norte.
The age in which the Mound-builder lived and flourished is at present
undetermined; it may yet be decided as contemporaneous with that of ancient
nations known to civilised man, or at some definite period beyond the present
measurements of written history. The theory generally accepted places the
Mound-builders in possession of this country at the advent of the Indians,
who dispossessed and nearly exterminated the original owners of the soil.
The survivors of the conquered people fled down the Mississippi valley, and
are supposed to have mingled with tribes of red men that followed them. In
his new work, the Iroquois Book of Rites, page ii, Mr. Hale says he has
found traces in the Cherokee tongue of a foreign language, which he supposes
to have been derived from the Mound-builders of the Ohio valley, whom he
identifies as the AUegewi, or Tallegewi. According to the legends of the Iro-
quois and Algonkins, those two races of red ntien united in a war against, and
overpowered, the AUegewi, who, says Mr. Hale, " left their name to the Alle-
ghany river and mountains, and whose vast earthworks are still, after half a
century of study, the perplexity of archaeologists."
While these monuments are not generally supposed to exist beyond the
tributary sources of the Alleghany, in Western New York, there would appear
to be reasonable grounds for a belief that the Mound-builders, or other an-
cient people, extended their settlements into the interior of the state, and
dwelt here in considerable numbers. During the old French war, in 1755,
a party of French and Indians attacked a frontier settlement in Pennsylvania,
murdered a number of the inhabitants and carried away several women and
' Antiquities of New York and the West, by E. G. Squier, p. 294.
Tllli MOUND-UUILDERS. 21
children as captives. Among the latter was a little girl, who was adopted by
a Seneca family, grew to womanhood, became the wife of two Indian warriors,
reared several children, and for nearly eighty years held.no family or social
relationship other than that of her Indian associates, to whom she was known
as Deh-he-wa-mis. Her name was Mary Jemison, but for over a century the
people of her own race have designated her " the white woman of the
Genesee," the greater part of her life being spent in the vicinity of the
Genesee river. At the great council held at Big Tree (Geneseo) in 1797 her
Indian friends stipulated that Mrs. Jemison should receive a tract of land
located on the Genesee between Mount Morris and Portage. The river passes
through this land in a deep, narrow valley, and the fertile land on the valley
bottom, where the white woman made her home, is l<^own as Gardeau flats.
In Seaver's Life of Mary Jemison, page 1 34, we find the following state-
ments, received from her own lips :• —
"About riiree hundred acres of my land when I first saw it were open flats lying
on the Genesee river, which it is supposed were cleared by a race of inhabitants who
preceded the first Indian settlements in this part of the country. The Indians are
confident that many parts of this country were settled, and for a number of years
occupied, by a people of whom their fathers never had any traditions, as they never
had seen them. Whence these people originated, and whither they went, I have
never heard one of the oldest and wisest Indians pretend to guess. , When 1 first came
to Genishau, the bank of Fall brook had just slid off, exposing a large number of
human bones, which the Indians said were buried there long before their fathers ever
saw the place, and they did not know what kind of people they were. It, however,
was, and is, believed by our people that they were not Indians The tradition
of the Seneca Indians in regard to their origin is that they broke out of the earth from
a large mountain at the head of Canandaigua lake, and that mountain they still vener-
ate as the place of their birth. Thence they derive their name 'Ge-nun-da-wah,' or
'Great Hill People.' The Senecas have a tradition that previous to, and for some time
after, their origin at Genundawah, the country, especially about the lakes, was thickly
inhabited by a race of civil, enterprising and industrious people who were totally
destroyed by the great serpent that afterward surrounded the great hill fort, with the
assistance of others of the same species, and that they (the Senecas) went into pos-
session of the improvements left."
Near the top of a high ridge of sand hills, in the town of Pittsford, south
of the Irondequoit valley, and about one mile east of Allen's creek, stands a
great heap of limestone boulders, evidently of drift origin. They are the only
stone of that character in that vicinity, measure from two to three feet in
diameter, and are heaped one upon the other in a space about twelve feet
square. They occupied the same place and position sixty or seventy years
ago, and old residents say the heap existed in the same form when the ground
was cleared. Indians who passed that way in early days regarded the stones
with superstitious awe, stating, when questioned, that a people who lived there
before the Indians brought the stones to the hilltop.
22 History of the City of Rochester.
"On the shore of Lake Ontario, on a high bluff near Irondequoit bay, in
1796," says Oliver Culver, "the bank caved off and untombed a great quantity
of human bones, of a large size. The arm and leg bones, upon comparison,
were much larger than those of our own race."' The bluff mentioned by Mr.
Culver was the seaward side of an elevated spot that might properly be
termed a natural mound. It was one of the outlying range of sand hills or
knolls, then existent along the shore of the lake in that locality, and long
years ago succumbed to the never-ceasing encroachment of the lake waters. ■
Its location was immediately west of the angl^ formed by the present west
line of Irondequoit bay and Lake Ontario ; as late as 1830 human bones of an
unusually large size were occasionally seen projecting from the face of the
bluff, or lying on the beach where the undermined soil had fallen. The tribe
of Seneca Indians living in Irondequoit in 1796 could give no information
concerning these bones, stating their belief that they were the remains of a
people who dwelt about the bay before the Indians came there.
The town of Irondequoit north of the ridge was known as the "pine bar-
rens " to the early settlers who cleared it of a heavy growth of pine trees, many
of which stood upon the top of the bluff, and over the ancient cemetery, sixty
years ago. The French historians of DeNonville's invasion of the Indian
towns in this vicinity, in 1687, describe the country east of Irondequoit bay
at that date, as covered with tall woods sufficiently open to allow the army to
march in three columns. These facts clearly show that if the land about Iron-
dequoit bay was once cleared and cultivated, as some infer, it was at quite an
early period, and by people known only through tradition to the latter-day
Indians.
During his investigation of the aboriginal monuments of New York, in
1848, Mr. Squier visited several located within the bounds of Monroe county,
and spent considerable time in fruitless search for an ancient inclosure and
mounds, which he had been informed existed at an early date in Irondequoit
near the Genesee river. In his valuable work,* published soon after, he ex-
pressed a hope that the discovery of these monuments might reward the labors
of a future explorer. Long and patient searches for the works mentioned by
Mr Squier were made some years ago without success, and in 1879 the circum-
stance was casually alluded to in the presence of the writer's aged mother, who,
at once, located the mounds and gave an excellent description of their primitive
appearance.
In its course from the upper falls in Rochester to Lake Ontario the Gen-
esee river flows in a deep, valley-like channel formed by ages of attrition.
From the lower falls to within three-fourths of a mile of the lake, the east bank
rises in a nearly perpendicular wall, varying from one hundred to two hun-
' Phelps and Gorham Purchase, p. 428.
' Antiquities of Neio York, p. 58.
Evidences of the Mound-builders Near Rochester. 23
dred and fifty feet in height,' broken at intervals by the deeply worn outlets
of creeks and brooklets. At the northern limit of the city, half a mile below
the lower falls, a great break occurs in the bluff, which curves inward, forming
a crude semi-circle. Immense quantities of detritus havp accumulated at the
bottom, and slope up the face of the precipice, affording room for a narrow flat
along the water, and opportunity for man to construct a roadway which winds
in a serpentine course up the steep bank to the level land above. This is the
only place on the east side of the river between the falls and lake where easy
communication can be effected between the general surface of the land and the
river bed. It constitutes a natural landing-place, and is practically the head of
navigation from Lake Ontario. The western end of the lake ridge, at its sev-
erance by the river, rests upon the top of the cliff directly above the landing.
At the southern base of the ridge are the ice ponds of Messrs. Emerson and
Brewer, fed by the waters of springs which rise a short distance east.
The locality was formerly a grand camping-ground of the Indians, the last
one of that fated race who set up his wigwam on the ridge, in 1845, commem-
orating the event by the murder of his squaw. It was undoubtedly one of the
most noted points between Lake Erie and the Hudson river, and as well known
to the people who preceded the Indians as to the latter. From its commanding
situation overlooking the river in both directions, its nearness to the landing
and trails which converged there, the adaptability of the soil for easy handling
by the rude implements of the natives, and many other natural advantages of
the neighborhood, it was the place preferable above all others upon which to
erect burial mounds, and two of these, evidently of artificial origin, existed
there when the first settlers made their homes near the lower falls. These
mounds were about four feet high and twenty or twenty-five feet across the
base. They occupied the most elevated portion of the ridge, and were situ-
ated from seventy-five to one hundred feet east of the edge of the bluff, and
about the same distance north of and parallel with the present line of Brewer's
pond.
At the time Mr. Squier made his search the ground was, or had been, un-
der cultivation and the mounds reduced to nearly the level of the natural ridge.
When examined in 1879 no satisfactory conclusion could-be reached regarding
their manner of construction, though it was plainly observable in places that
' To the scientist the imtneeliate vicinity of Rochester must ever present attractions unsurpassed by
lliosc of other localities. Especially is this true in the splendid facilities afforded the geologist to mi-
nutely examine the works of nature, and pursue his favorite study within her very laboratory, the deep,
rook-cut channel of the Genesee river. This fact was well understood at an early day, and sketches
illustrating the escarpment of the lower Genesee adorn many standard works on geology. Dana^s
Manual, page 90, illustrates a section, four hundred feet in height, of the strata as exhibited along the
Genesee, at the lower falls. This section has a world-wide fame as fairly illustrating the structure and
arrangement of stratified rocks in their chronological order ; and no series of natural rocks could be
finer, as the transition from one stratum to another is quite abrupt, and, moreover, each may be traced
for a long distance through the adjoining country.
24 History of the City of Rochester.
sand, intermixed with clay, covered the original surface of the ground to the
depth of a foot. Fragments of chipped flint, arrow-heads and stone knives
were picked up in considerable number near the mounds, and, on digging one
or two feet into the ground, bits of charcoal, several rude points and a broken
spear head of stone were unearthed.
In 1880 a sand bank was opened in the side of the ridge, and that part
covered by the mounds has since been entirely removed. During the course
of excavation a laborer came upon human -remains. Parts of eight skeletons
were exhumed, each surrounded by fine black soil. These were concealed and
all evidence of the find destroyed ; but the discovery of a bone of unusual
size, together with a curious pipe, was brought to the attention of Mr. Brewer.
The laborer could remember few details of the position in which the remains
were found, and the opportunity for careful investigation was lost.
The Mound-builders were inveterate smokers, and great numbers of pipes
have been found in their mounds. The skill of the makers seems to have been
exhausted in their construction, and no specimens of Indian art can equal those
of the lost race. Many pipes of a shape similar to those discovered in the
mounds of the Ohio and Mississippi valleys have been found in various parts
of the country. Figure l is a greatly reduced representation of an article of
stone, evidently intended for a pipe, but unfinished, found near Mount Morris,
in the Genesee valley, and sent to the New York state cabinet at Albany by
Mr. Squier, who says: "It is composed of steatite or 'soap-stone,' and in
shape corresponds generally with the pipes of stone found in the mounds of the
Mississippi valley. One or two pipes of stone of very nearly the same shape
have been found in the same vicinity, but in point of symmetry or finish they
are in no way comparable to those of the mounds. " * The pipe taken from the
ridge mound in Rochester is of the distinctively characteristic, or primitive
form'' peculiar to the Mound-builders, and is represented in figure 2. It
is, or was originally, five and one-half inches long, one and three-fourths
wide, and one inch and seven-eighths from bottom of base to top of bowl.
The lines are slightly irregular, but very perfect for a hand-made article. The
material is steatite, very close grain and quite brittle. In color it is a deep,
* Antiquities of New York, p. Ii8.
2 Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, p. 227.
Arch/Eological Remains.
25
rich brown, with blending patches of lighter shade, and every particle of the
surface is so beautifully polished that it might easily be mistaken for marble.
It was the only article of any description found with the human remains, though
other relics may have been unnoticed. Close questioning elicited the fact that
nearly all the graves were near the south slope of the ridge, and from two to
two and a half feet below the original surface, while the large bone, a humerus,
was nearer the surface and perhaps more directly beneath the center of the west
mound; from which it may be inferred, though not definitely proven, that the
mound was built over that particular body with which the pipe was buried, and
the other bodies interred in the side of the mound at a subsequent period.
The condition of the remains would seem to favor this view, the humerus
being the only remaining part of the body to which it belonged, while several
portions of skeletons from the other graves were, though very much decayed,
quite firm in comparison; one skull (figure 3) being preserved entire. Mr.
FIG. 3.
Brewer presented this skull and pipe to Professor S. A. Lattimore of the Uni-
versity of Rochester, to whom we are indebted for their use.
In March, 1882, a human skeleton of large proportions was unearthed near
the former location of the east mound. The laborers, astonished at the great
size of the bones, engaged in a discussion as to whether it was or was not the
26 History of the City of Rochester.
remains of a human being, and, with true Hibernian method, broke the skele-
ton into fragments to prove the case.
As previously stated, the only landing on the east side of the lower Gen-
esee is at the base of the bluff upon which the ridge mounds were situated,
and is now known as Brewer's landing. In their journey from the lower to
the upper Genesee, the Indians usually made a portage around the falls of
Rochester, carrying their canoes from this landing to near the mouth of Red
creek, above the rapids in South Rochester, where the light crafts were again
launched upon the river and found a clear passage up the unobstructed chan-
nel to Mount Morris. That was the established "Voute one hundred years ago,
but good and valid reasons induee a belief that the more ancient landing was
at Hanford's, on the west bank of the Genesee, about one-fourth of a mile be-
low, or north of Brewer's landing; and that the two places were connecting
points in a general highway extending east and west along the ridge. Evi-
dence is not wanting to prove that another grand road once extended westward
from Hanford's landing, with diverging branches running to distant points.
This road was not in use some miles west of the river one hundred years ago,
and that portion of it has probably been abandoned for two or three centu-
ries ; but, possessing a general knowledge of Indian methods of trailing, the
topography of the country, and the probable objective points, the writer is
slowly tracing the course of this older highway from the Genesee at Rochester
to the Alleghany and Ohio rivers and Lake Erie.
Discoveries have been made, at various places along this supposed route, of
mounds and burial grounds containing human skeletons considerably larger
than men of the present day, copper ornaments, etc., and one or two instances
will be given. In excavating for sand on the farm of Samuel Truesdale, in the
town of Greece, in 1878, several skeletons were disinterred, one from its im-
mense size attracting particular attention. Nearly the entire frame was secured
and removed to a level spot between two trees, where Warren Truesdale placed
each bone in its natural position. The skeleton thus reformed measured over
eight feet in length. A piece of mica and a rude arrow point were found in
the grave above the bones, which were about three feet below the general sur-
face, and entirely separate from the other skeletons. A small mound, perhaps
a foot in height, marked the, spot.
Half a mile west of Mr. Truesdale's farm the Erie canal turns abruptly to
the west along the brow of the mountain-ridge, and constitutes the northern
boundary of George H. Lee's farm. The ridge at this place rises in a gentle
swell above the surrounding surface, and, at its highest part, is from sixteen to
twenty feet above the canal bottom. The ground was cleared in i8r8, by
David Oviatt, of a dense forest of beech and maple, many of the trees being
full thirty inches in diameter. Not the slightest trace of former settlement or
human occupation of the ground existed. In 1820 or 1822 the Erie canal
Skeleton Remains of the Mound-builders. 27
was constructed through the northern slope of this ridge. During the work
some twenty skeletons were exhumed from the ground directly beneath the
stumps of the forest trees. The soil is composed of from six to twelve
inches of black mould overlying a bed of clay, very compact when m situ, but
loose-grained and easily crumbled when exposed to the atmosphere. So tena-
cious is the character of this clay bed, excluding to a great degree both air and
water, that all larger bones of the skeletons were preserved in perfect form,
from skull to instep inclusive ; some of them being carefully uncovered and
the bones laid in their natural order on the ground, measured from $cvcn feet
upward.' No article of any description was found in the graves. In 1879 a
beautiful rling-stone ax was plowed up in a field near the ancient burial ground.
It is very hard, gives forth a clear metallic sound when struck, and the edge is
as finely beveled as a steel ax of modern make. It is a splendid specimen of
polished stone workmanship, ten and a half inches long, two and a half wide
and one and a half inches thick.
Dependent as certain of these statements are upon the results of future
research for a correct understanding of their relative worth and bearing, the
advance of specific conclusions regarding the subject in question might appear
unwise ; but, while the discovery of lately existing monuments and traces of a
people superior to the red men in physical structure, the mythology of the
latter and other evidence of a similar nature serve to strengthen a personal
belief in the pre-Indian occupation of our home territory, the facts presented,
and many matters not here shown, are but niinor paragraphs of a volume of
cumulative evidence that might be compiled. Such facts have exercised an
influence upon reflective minds leading to firm conviction, and able writers
have repeatedly affirmed the conclusion. Governor De Witt Clinton, an early
historian of the locality of Rochester, was particularly impressed with this idea,
and Orsamus Turner, author of the History of the Holland Purchase, reiterates
it in numerous passages of his works. He says : —
" Our advent here is but one of the changes of time. We are consulting dumb signs,
inanimate and unintelligible witnesses, gleaning but unsatisfactory knowledge of races
that have preceded us We are surrounded by evidences that a race pre-
ceded them (the red men), further advanced in arts, and far more numerous. The up-
rooted trees of the forest, that are the growth of centuries, expose their mouldering
remains, uncovered mounds reveal masses of their skeletons In our valleys,
upon our hillsides, the plow and the spade discover their rude implements, adapted to
war, the chase and domestic use. All these are dumb, yet eloquent chronicles of by-
gone ages We are prone to speak of ourselves as inhabitants of a New world,
and yet we are confronted with these evidences of antiquity. We clear away the forests
and speak familiarly of subduing a virgin soil; yet our plows upturn the skulls of those
whose history is lost."
' Junior Pioneer Historical Collections, by Jarvis M. Hatch, p. 29. This statement was confirmed
by the late Wilson D. Oviatt, Daniel E. Harris and others.
28 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER IV.
The Red Men — Their Traditional Origin and Occupation of New York — Dispersion of the
Trilies — League of the Iroquois — Vale of the Senecas — Ancient Nations of the Genesee Country.
PUZZLING as the remains of the Mound-builders prove to the archaeolo-
gist, the early history of their Indian successors is no less a problem to
the historian. Nearly four centuries have elapsed since Eiiropeans came into
personal intercourse with the latter, and half a million of the race still exist
upon American soil, yet their origin is buried in the depths of a gloom so
profound that no man has ever traced it to its source.
The length of time our Indian predecessors have, occupied this continent
has never been ascertained, though it is unquestionably a fact that they were
not indigenous. The weight of evidence thus far favors the theory of Asiatic
descent, but in "the absence of written, pictorial, or sculptural history it is
impossible to trace clearly the connection between wandering savages and
their remote ancestry."'' Centuries of nomadic and climatic changes have
effectually obliterated direct proof of such connections, and Indian mythology
asserts the origin of many tribes as local to their habitation.
The Senecas ascribe their origin to a great hill at the head of Canandaigua
lake, but Morgan explains that "by this legendary invention they designed to
convey an impression of the remoteness of the period of their first occupation
of New York,"^ and presents other traditionary evidences showing the lower
St. Lawrence^ to have been the earliest known abode of the original families
from which the Six Nations were descended. These ancient people were of
the Huron-Iroquois stock. They were expelled from the lower St. Lawrence
by the Algonkins, to whom they had been subject, and migrated westward up
that river. Entering Lake Ontario they coasted the south shore in search of
a suitable place to locate. Historical accounts of this migration vary. Macau-
ley states that the Iroquois then consisted of only two tribes, the Mohawks
and Senecas, that they entered the Oswego and Genesee rivers, conquered the
Mohawk and Genesee countries first, and the intermediate space subsequently. ^
President Dwight believed the original settlements of the Six Nations in New
York to have been identical with those in which they were found by Euro-
peans, while Colden and Smith thought the Iroquois originated and remained
upon the grounds of their latter-time occupation. Morgan says that at the
migration from the St. Lawrence the Iroquois entered the central parts of
New York through the channel of the Oswego river. Their first settlements
' How the World was Peopled, by Edward Fontaine.
' League of the Iroquois, p. 7.
^ Ibid., p. 5; see also Colden, History of the Five Nations, p. 23; Cusic, Ancient History of the
Six Nations, p. 16.
* Macauley's History of New York, vol. 2, p. 184.
3
Traditional Origin ok the Indians. 29
were located upon the Seneca river, where for a time they dwelt together. At
a subsequent day they divided into bands, and spread to found new villages. '
In his interesting work, Legends, Customs and Social Life of the Seneca
Indians, Rev. Mr. Sanborn gives a legend still preserved in that nation, which
makes all Indians the descendants of one family originally located whert; now
are New York and Brooklyn. It describes the migrations and final location of
tribes, in nearly the same manner as Cusic's account. The latter's quaint
history appears to be the version from which several others were derived. In
the Iroquois Book of Rites, Mr. Hale follows Cusic, who supposes a body of
Iroquois concealed in a mountain near the Oswego falls. . Upon their libera-
tion by the "Holder of the Heavens," they went around a mountain and
followed the Mohawk and Hudson rivers to the ocean. ' Some of the people
continued southward, but the main company, under the guidance of the
Holder of the Heavens, returned up the Hudson to the Mohawk river.
Along this stream and the upper waters of the Hudson the first families made
their abode. Their language was soon altered and they were named Te-haw-
re-ho-geh — that is, "a speech divided" — now Mohawk.'^ The other families
journeyed westward from the Mohawks, and, halting at various places, took
up separate abodes. The Oneidas, near a creek, were termed Ne-haw-re-
tah-go, or Big Tree- people ; the Onondagas, on a mountain, were known
as the Seuh-now-kah-tah, "carrying their name;'' the Cayugas, near a
long lake, were named Sho-nea-na-we-to-wah, " a great pipe ; " the Seuecas,
near a high mountain south of Canandaigua lake, received the name Te-how-
nea-nyo-hent, "possessing a door."
The sixth family continued their journey toward the setting sun and
touched the bank of the great lake Kan-ha-gwa-rah-ka ("a cap"), now Lake
Erie. Turning southward they came to a great river, which Cusic designates
the Mississippi, but which Hale shows to have been the Ohio; the people dis-
covered a grape vine lying across the river and attempted to pass over the
water on this rude bridge, which broke and left them divided. Those who
were upon the further side of the river continued their way, and after long
1 League of the Iroqiwis, p. 6.
2 Hale says the Huron speech became the Iroquois tongue, in the form in which it is spoken by the
Mohawks. In Iroquois tradition, and in the constitution of their league, the Mohawk nation ranks as
tlie eldest lirother of the family. A comparison of the dialects proves the tradition to be well founded.
The Mohawk language approaches the nearest to the Huron, and is undoubtedly the source from
which all other Iroquois dialects are derived. Mr. Hale refers to the Mohawks as the Caniengas. The
latter designation is said to be derived from that of one of their ancient towns. This name is Kani-
enke, "at the flint." Kamien, in their language, signifies flint, and the final syllable is the same
locative particle which we find in Onontake, "at the mountain." In pronunciation and spelling, this,
like other Indian words, is much varied, both by the natives themselves and by their white neighbors,
becoming Kanieke, Kanyenke, Canyengeh and Canienga. (The latter form, which accords with the
sister names of Onondaga and Cayuga, is adopted by the author in his Book of Rites, but it is not
probable that the word will ever displace the familiar historical designation — Mohawk).
30 History of the City of Rochester.
wandering settled near the mouth of the Neuse river. They were named
Kau-to-nah, and are now known as Tuscaroras. '
The speech of all the nations thus formed was altered, but not to an extent
preventing them from an understanding of one another's language. The
people left upon the near side of the river were dispersed, and each family
sought residences according to their convenience.* The various accounts of
this dispersion are meager, but it is believed that all nations and tribes of red
men who occupied the country between Canandaigua lake and Lake Erie, the
Alleghany mountains and Lake Ontario, were ofTshoots of the Senecas; that
the dispersed families in time grew into tribal' communities and were known
by various names. Those who settled about the mountains to the south were
called Andastes, Canestogas, etc. Those who dwelt along the shore of the
lake were known as the Eries, and northeast of them were the Attiwan-
daronks. Philologists assert that the languages of all these people, so far as
can be ascertained, differed but little from the Seneca tongue; but it is certain
that long anterior to the white man's intrusion on the soil of Western New
York they had become nations distinct from the Seneca. Cusic and Sanborn
agree in the statement that the famous league of the Five Nations was formed
at a period not long subsequent to the dispersion, but in the loose chronology
of the Indians' verbal history no definite idea of dates can be obtained. It is
only by comparison with some contemporary event recorded in the annals of
civilisation, that the time of the occurrence can be fixed. Morgan places the
origin of the league in 1459,^ and this date is in accordance with deductions
of later historians.
The founder of the league was an Onondaga chieftain named Hiawatha,
who succeeded in uniting the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and
Senecas in one great family, whose bond of common interest was strengthened
by ties of blood. To the English they were known as the Five Nations. By
the French they were called Iroquois, and that name was applied to all the
members of the league. The native name of the confederacy is given differ-
ently by historians, but all agree upon its signification. According to Cusic it
was Ggo-nea-seab-neh. Macauley and Hale, both of whom derived their in-
formation directly from the Mohawks, render it respectively Aganuschioni and
Kanonsionni. Morgan, whose knowledge of the Six Nations was acquired
from the Senecas, states that after the formation of the league, the Iroquois
called themselves the Ho-de-no-sau-nee, which signifies "the people of the
long house. " It grew out of the circumstance that they likened their confcd-
1 In the Seneca dialect the name of the Tuscaroras was Dus-ga-o-weh, "the shirt-wearing people;"
the Cayugas were Gue-u-gweh-o-no, "the people at the mucky land; " the Onondagas were Onun-da-
ga-o-no, "the people on the hills;" the Oneidas were O-na-yote-ha, "the granite people;" the
Mohawks, Ga-ne-a-ga-o-no; the Senecas, Nun-da-wa-o-no. — Morgan, pp. 51 and 52.
2 Cusic's Ancient History of the Six Nations,
3 Systems of Consanguinity and Ajffiiiity of the Human Family, p. 151.
The Neutral Nation. 31
eracy to a long house, having partitions and separate fires, after their ancient
method of building houses, within which the several nations were sheltered
under one roof The eastern door was on the Hudson river, the western door
at the Genesee. The confederation was simply for common defense, and each
nation or canton was a sovereign republic, composed of clans, governed by its
• own chiefs and sachems. No enterprise of importance was ever undertaken,
either by the league, or by individual nations, without first considering the
matter in council. The great councils of the league were held at Onondaga,
but each nation and tribe had a particular location for its council fire, which
was always lighted before deliberations began. The primeval council fire of
the Senecas was at Genundawah, near the head of Canandaigua lake, and in
the light of its steady flame were formed the first war parties of the nation
From Genundawah the Senecas went forth upon their first expeditions against
tribes to the west, and there the victorious warriors were welcomed home from
battle with all the pomp of barbaric fashion.
Before the Senecas crossed the Genesee in conquest, several nations of red
men occupied the land to the west. Those who owned the country bordering
the lower Genesee were called Kak-kwas by the Senecas, and were known to
the French as the Attiwandaronk, or Neutral Nation. Brebeuf, the Jesuit, says
the name Attiwandaronk was applied to them by the Hurons, and signifies
"people of a language a little different. " The French termed them Neutral,
from the fact that they took no part in the war between the Hurons, Algonkins
and Iroquois. Members of those antagonistic nations met upon neutral ground
in the territory of the Attiwandaronks, and the towns of the latter afforded
safe refuge to fleeing parties of all the surrounding tribes.
The country of the Neutral Nation was south of Lake Ontario, and ex-
tended from the Genesee westward nearly to the shore of Huron, including the
Niagara river and a portion of the north coast of Lake Erie. The Relations
of the Jesuits describe them as living in twenty-eight villages, under the rule
of a noted war-chief named Souharissen. Their council fires were along the
Niagara, and their town nearest the Genesee but one day's journey from the
Senecas. They were superior to the Hurons in stature and strength, and the
men frequently went entirely naked. The early French missionaries who pen-
etrated their country found the Attiwandaronks exceedingly suspicious of all
intruders, but succeeded in visiting eighteen of their towns.
The neutrality so long maintained by these people was forcibly broken by
the Senecas in 1647. For some reason not well understood, the latter sud-
denly attacked the Attiwandaronks, and as early as 165 1 had subdued the
entire nation. All old and feeble men and children were put to death and the
surviving warriors and women adopted by the conquerors. In time tribal dis-
tinctions were forgotten, and the descendants of the captive Attiwandaronks
* League of the Iroquois, p. 51.
32 History of the City of Rochester.
became Senecas in heart and name. The destruction of the Neutral Nation,
and the overthrow of the Eries in 1655, gave the conquerors control of all the
country bordering the Genesee river, between the Alleghany mountains and
Lake Ontario ; and in after days the great valley of the Genesee was known as
the "Vale of the Senecas. " Within the historical period the council fire of the
nation kindled at Genundawah has illumined the gloomy forest at Ga-o-sa-eh-
ga-aah near Victor, gleamed brightly in the pleasant valley of the Genesee, and
cast its expiring light over the shattered remnants of this once mighty people
at Lake Erie ; yet for nearly three centuries after Columbus kissed the ocean-
laved sands of San Salvador, the Senecas held possession and control of the
land originally occupied by them in the Genesee country, erected their rude
cabins on its watercourses, roamed its hills and dales, hunted through its forest
glades, lived, fought and died brave, lordly masters of the soil inherited from
their fathers, whose crumbling bones the plow of the pale face still upturns as
the seasons of harvest recur.
CHAPTER V.
Water Trails — Terminology of the Genesee River and Irondequoit Bay — Little Beard's Town —
Casconchagon — The Jesuits — Indian Expedition up the Genesee — The Mouth of the Genesee Prac-
tically at Irondequoit Bay — Early Maps — Teoronto Bay — Mississauge Indians the Last at Ironde-
quoit. .
ALL tradition of ancient migrations of the red men refer to some navigable
waiter as the route over which they came, or went. The canoe was the
earliest known conveyance . of primitive man, and water was his favorite high-
way. Says Bancroft: "Emigration by water suits the genius of savage life ; a
gulf, a strait, the sea intervening between islands, divides less than the matted
forest. To the uncivilised man no path is free but the sea, the lake and the
river."'
The Iroquois entered New York from Lake Ontario. Their first journey
was down the Mohawk and Hudson to the ocean, and their return up those
rivers was accomplished in canoes.'' In the near vicinity of the numerous lakes
and streams of the interior were founded their earliest and largest settlements.
The Genesee has ever been the principal natural water highway of Western
New York, and for unnumbered Centuries the light crafts of the natives have
glided over this limpid trail on missions of peace and war. Constituting, as it
' History of the United States, vol. III., p. 317.
i Legends of the Senecas, by J. W. Sanborn, p. 11. In his narration of this migration, the great
historian of the Senecas informed Rev. Mr. Sanborn that the people carried their canoes from one
stream, or body of water, to another. ,
Indian Occupation of the Genesee Valley. 33
did, the original western boundary line of their territory, the river was well
known to all the Iroquois nations. After the destruction of Gaosaehgaah by
DeNonville, the Senecas occupied the Genesee valley, and in early colonial
times their great town was near the confluence of the river and Canaseraga
creek. At a subsequent period it was located near the present site of Cuyler-
ville. One hundred years ago it bore the name of its chief, Little Beard. It
was termed the Chinesee Castle, and in the old colonial records, of a date prior
to Little Beard's occupation of the place, it is variously mentioned as Chen-us-
sio, Chin-as-si-o, Chen-nu-assio, Chin-es-se, Chin-os-sio, Chen-ne-se-co, Gen-
is-hau, Gen-nis-hc-yo, Gcn-ish-a-u, Jen-nis-sec-ho, Gen-ne-se-o, Gen-nc-see,
The apparent discrepancy in the orthography of the word is easily explained
when it is understood that every tribe of the Six Nations conversed in its own
dialect, and that each tribe in the same nation possessed peculiarities of speech
not common in other tribes. All Indian names, either of persons or of places,-
are significant of some supposed quality, appearance, or local situation, in brief
are descriptive, and the tribes denominated persons and places in conformity
to such quality, etc., in their own dialects.
The Indians had no permanent names for places, and before Little Beard's
time the town was known only by its descriptive title of Gen-nis-he-o, the pro-
nunciation of which was varied by the different tribes, according to the pecul-
iarities of each dialect, yet all signifying the same thing substantially — to-wi't,
Gcn-ish-a-u, "shining-clear-opening;" Chen-ne-se-co, "pleasant-clear-open-
ing;" Gcn-ne-sec, "clear-valley " or "pleasant-open-valley ;" Gen-nis-he-yo,
"beautiful valley." This term was local and originally applied only to that-
portion of tlie river near Cuylerville then occupied by the Chen-nus-se-o In-
dians, but owing to the large size of the town, and its important location, the
name Genesee gradually displaced all others and became the general designa-
tion of the entire river. Ga-hun-da is a common noun signifying a "river" or
"creek." The Iroquois usually afifixed it to the proper name of a sti'eam, as
Gen-is-he-yo Ga-hun-da or Genesee river.
The native name of the lower Genesee first mentioned by early writers is
Casconchagon. According to Bruyas, a Jesuit missionary to the Five Nations,
the literal meaning of the name by which the Mohawks and Onondagas dis-
tinguished the Genesee river is "at the fall," Gascons-age. It is derived
from Gasco, "something alive in the kettle;" as if the waters were agitated
by some living animal, ' The Seneca name is Gaskosago. Morgan renders
the interpretation "Under the Falls," and in his table exhibiting the dialect-
ical variations of the language of the Iroquois, as illustrated *in their geo-
graphical names, gives the inflective differences of the name, as pronounced
by the Six Nations.''
1 N. Y. Col. Mss., IX., 1092.
2 League of the Iroquois, p. 394.
34 History of the City of Rochester.
In the Jesuit Relations for 1662-3, Father Lallemant says that in the
month of April (1663) eight hundred Iroquois warriors proceeded from the
western end of Lake Ontario to a fine river resembling the St. Lawrence, but
free from falls and rapids, which they descended one hundred leagues to the
principal Andastogue village, which was found to be strongly fortified, and the
aggressors were repulsed. In a note, embodying the above statement, on
page 37 of Early Chapters of Cayuga History, by Charles Hawley, D. D.,
General John S. Clark says: "This route appears to have been through the
Genesee river, to Canaseraga creek, thence up that stream and by a short
portage to Canisteo river, and thence down the Canisteo, Chemung and Sus-
quehanna rivers to the fort. This route is indicated on the earlier maps, .as
one continuous river, flowing from Lake Ontario."
In the map prepared by General Clark, for Rev. Dr. Hawley's work, the
■ route pursued by the expedition is represented as extending from the head of
Irondequoit bay southwesterly to the Genesee river, and doubtless had refer-
ence to the portage trail (described in chapter VI.) between Irondequoit landing
and Red creek ford. Though the route by the lower Genesee and around the
falls, on the present site of Rochester, was several miles less than by the Iron-
dequoit portage, the Iroquois appear to have preferred the latter course as the
better known and established road. On Guy Johnson's map of the country
of the Six Nations, in 1771, this trail is plainly indicated as the "Indian path
to the lake," and many circumstances within the knowledge of the present
writer induce a belief that in Indian times Irondequoit bay was considered the
the practical mouth of the Genesee river. In certain old records the names
Casconchagon and Irondequoit are occasionally applied equally to river and
bay, as though having reference to one locality, but the former appears to
have been least known, and it is quite certain that, to all the vast country
of the Senecas, Irondequoit bay was the northern outlet. Its geographical
position on the southern shore of Lake Ontario, midway between Chouaguen
(Oswego) and Niagara, rendered it the most convenient and important place,
in a military yiew, in the Genesee country. It was the objective point of all
expeditions, peaceful or warlike, to and from the Senecas, and from its head-
waters trails ran to every part of the Iroquois territory, connecting with others
to all parts of the continent.
From the shadow of grim old woods near its shores and dense thickets of
matted vines concealing its numerous dells, the glittering eyes of savage sen-
tinels kept watch, o'er the blue expanse of Ontario for expected friends and
foes. Under its pine-mantled cliffs the Indian chieftains rendezvoused their
navies of birchen bark, and reckoned their numbers on belts of wampum.
Around its borders echoed the "shrill yell of barbarian hordes," and the deep
thunder of the pale^faces' cannon. Palisaded fortifications of red and white
men have guarded the narrow passages at either extremity of the bay, and
Irondequoit Bay. 35
fleets of both races battled on the lake within shot of its entrance. Great
armies of savage and civilised nations have occupied its broad sand-beach,
sought refuge within its sheltering headlands and marched their serried
columns over its tabled elevations. Every point and nook about the grand
old bay has its thrilling history; yet few among the thousands who daily roam
the shady groves of Irondequoit in summer, gaining health and strength in
every draught of the pure lake breeze, know aught of the stirring events of
by-gone days enacted on these very grounds.
The first mention of Irondequoit bay, found in the Documents Relating to
the Colonial History of New York, is that of Rev. Jean de Lamberviile, a
Jesuit missionary to the Five Nations, in a letter written at or near Onondaga,
July 13th, 1684, to M. de la Harre, governor of Canada. Therein the reverend
father refers to an expected visit of the French official to Kan-ia-tare-on-ta-
quoat. The name, as thus given by De Lamberviile, is from the Iroquois, or
Mohawk, dialect, and signifies, literally, "an opening into, or from, a lake;" an
inlet or bay, from Kaniatarc, "a lake," and hontontogonan, "to open."' Mar-
shall says the Seneca name is 0-nyiu-da-on-da-gwat, "it turns out or goes
aside."^ Like all Indian names of places, it is descriptive, and refers to the
prominent, or peculiar feature of the locality to which it is applied, and the
fact that the south shore of Ontario is indented with several large bays which
must have been equally well known to the natives indicates the superior
importance of Irondequoit in their estimation, as the bay of all. Evidence of
this is found in early maps of the Lake Ontario region.
The earliest known map of this part of the country was published in 1632,
by Champlain. The great explorer places a large bay on the south shore of
Lake Ontario in the exact location of Irondequoit, but omits the name. The
Jesuits' map, published in 1664, represents Irondequoit bay and spells it
"Andiatarontaouat." Vangondy's map, published in Paris in 1773, renders it
"Ganientaoaguat." Upon the great map of Franquelin, hydrographer to the
king, at Quebec, "drawn in 1688, by order of the governor and intendant
of New France, from sixteen years' observations of the author," Irondequoit
bay appears as "Gan-ni-a-tare-on-toquat," differing slightly in orthography,
yet identical with the name mentioned by De Lamberviile a few years before.
A conclusive proof of the great importance of this bay in the view of past
generations is found in the fact that it still bears the native name by which
it was distinguished at the advent of the whites, over two and. a half centuries
ago. The dissimilarity of tribal pronunciation, and orthographic variations are
illustrated in the following list collated from many sources: Kan-ia-tare-on-to-
guoat, Ganni-a-tare-on-to-guoat, Can ia-ter-un-de-quat, Adia-run-da-quat,
Onia^da-ron-da-quat, On-gui-da-onda quoat, Eu-taun-tu-quet, Neo-da-on-
1 N. V. Col. Mss., IX., 261.
2 DeNonville's Expedition, by O. H. Marshall, in Collections of New York Historical Society,
part second, p. 176.
36 History of the City of Rochester.
da-quat, Tjer-on-da-quat, The-ne-on-de-quat, Tie-run-de-quat, The-ron-de-
quot, Tie-ron-de-quat, Tie-ron-te-quet, Tis-o-ron-de-quat, Ty-ron-de-quot,
Tie-rond-quit, 0-ron-do-kott, Run-di-cutt, Ge-run-de-gutt, Je-ron-do-kat,
Je-ron-de-quet, Je-ron-de-quate, Jeron-de-kat, Jar-ron-di-gat, Qron-do-quat,
Iron-de-gatt, Iron-de-katt, Iron-de-quat, Iron-de-quot, Iron-de-quoit.
In Spafford's Gazetteer of New York, published in 1824, that author says
the Indians called it Teoronto (bay), a sonorous and purely Indian name, too
good to be supplanted by such vulgarisms as Gerundegut, or Irondequoit.
The Indians pronounce the name Tche-o-ron-tok, its signification being "where
the waves breathe and die," or "gasp and die." Spafford was the first author
to make this assertion. No mention of the name Teoronto, in connection
with Irondequoit bay, can be found elsewhere than in his work previous to its
issue in 1824. His information was derived from a correspondent in Roches-
ter, whose only knowledge of the matter was obtained by questioning Indians
then living on the Ridge — or Oswego — trail, about one mile east of the bay,
in the town of Webster.' They were not Senecas — the last of that nation
having removed to reservations about 1798-9 — but Mississauges. The tribe
is now settled on Rice lake, in Canada, and as late as 1853—4 parties crossed
Lake Ontario in canoes to fish and hunt at Irondequoit bay. Doctor Peter
Crow and other native Mississauges still visit thejr white friends at Ironde-
quoit. The name Teoronto was accepted by English writers, and is occasion-
ally revived in foreign guide books. Marshall tells us that the word is not
Seneca but Mohawk, and its true signification "a place where there is a jam
of floodwood."*
CHAPTER VI.
Local Trails of the Genesee — Indian Fords, Towns and Fortifications — Hutler's Rangers — hi-
dian Spring — Sacrifice of the White Dog — Flint Quarry — Sgoh-sa-is-thah — I'orlage 'I'rails —
Irondequoit Landing — The Tories' Retreat — Indian Hall Springs — Ancient Mounds.
"^
THILE the march of civilisation had advanced beyond the Genesee to the
north and west, the hunting-grounds of the Senecas were still in their
primitive state, and the cycle of a century is not yet complete since the white
man came into actual possession of the land and became acquainted with its
topographical features. To the pale-faced adventurer of the seventeenth cent-
ury to whom all this vast territory was an unexplored blank, viewing the land
1 Old settlers on Irondequoit bay, Amos Knapp, Isaac Drake and others, inform me that they
knew the Webster Indians well, and the latter possessed neither knowledge nor tradition respecting
the ancient name and history of the bay.
a O. II. Marshall, in Collections of N . Y. Hist. Society, part second, p. 176.
Local Trails of the Genesee. 37
from his birchen canoe on Laite Ontario, the bays, rivers and larger creeks pre-
sented the only feasible routes by which it could be entered and traversed, yet,
once within its borders, the hardy explorer found the country marked by an
intricate net-work of foot paths which spread in every direction. These dark
wood lanes unknown to civilised man, their soil heretofore pressed only by the
feet of Indians and wild beasts, will ev^r be known in history as the " trails of
the Genesee." They were the highways and by-waj's of the native inhabitants,
the channels of communication between nations, tribes and scattering towns,
in which there was a never-ceasing ebb and flow of humanity.
The origin of these trails and the selection of the routes pursued were nat-
ural results of the every-day necessities and inclinations of the nomadic race
first inhabiting the land, and time had gradually fashioned the varying interests
of successive generations into a crude system of general thoroughfares to which
all minor routes led. To find the beginning and end of these grand trails one
might traverse the continent in a fruitless search, for, like the broader roads of
the present white population, many of which follow the old trail courses, the
beaten paths extended from ocean to ocean, from the southern point of Pata-
gonia to the country of the Eskimos, where they were lost in the ever-shifting
mantle of snow covering the land of ice — and the trails of the Genesee were
but a local division of the mighty complication.
In general appearance these roads did not differ in any particular from the
ordinary woods or meadow path of the present day. They were narrow and
winding, but usually connected the objective points by as direct a course as
natural obstacles would permit. In the general course of a trail three points
were carefully considered — first, seclusion ; second, directness, and, third, a
dry path. The trail beaten was seldom over fifteen inches broad, passing to
the right or left of trees or other obstacles, around swamps and occasionally
over the apex of elevations, though it generally ran a little one side of the ex-
treme top, especially in exposed situations. Avoiding open places save in the
immediate neighborhood of towns and camps, it was universally shaded by for-
est trees. A somber silence, now and then interrupted by the notes of birds
or the howling of beasts, reigned along these paths. ' Fallen trees and logs were
never removed, the trail was either continued over or took a turn around them.
The Indians built no bridges, small streams were forded or crossed on logs,
while rivers and lakes were ferried on rafts or in canoes.
The main trail of the Iroquois extended from Hudson, on the Hudson river
below Albany, westwardly to Buffalo, crossing the Genesee at Cannawaugus —
now Avon. From Canandaigua lake a branch ran northwest to the head of
irondequoit bay, then to the Genesee falls, and along the lake ridge to the Ni-
agara river at Lewiston. This was the grand line of communication between
the Five Nations, and the ultimate destination of every other trail in the pres-
1 Macauley, vol, II., p, 219.
38 History of the City of Rochester.
ent state of New York. Along its silent course the swiftest runners of the Irp-
quois bore their messages of peace or war with a speed and physical endurance
incredible. Morgan says : —
"Whenever the sachems of a nation desired to convene the grand council of the
Iroquois league, they sent out runners, to the nation nearest, with a belt of wampum.
This belt announced that on a certain day thereafter, at such a place, and for such and
such purposes (mentioning them), a council of the league would assemble. If the mes-
sage originated with the Senecas it reached the Cayugas first, as the nation located
nearest upon the line' of trail. The Cayugas then notified the Onondagas, they the
Oneidas, and these the Mohawks ; the reverse being the order when the message origi-
nated in the east. Each nation within its own confines spread the information far and
wide; and thus, in a space of time astonishingly brief, intelligence of the council was
heralded from. one extremity of their country to the other. If the subject was calculat-
ed to arouse a deep feeling of interest, one common impulse from the Hudson to the
Niagara, and from the St. Lawrence to the Susquehanna, drew the people toward the
council fire; sachems, chiefs and warriors, women, and even children, deserted their hunt
ing grounds and woodland seclusions, and literally flocked to the place of council. " '
Their wandering, hunter, life and habit of intent observation rendered the
Iroquois familiar with every foot of land in their territory, enabling them to
select the choicest locations for abode. Towns were frequently moved from
place to place, new trails worn and old ones abandoned to stray hunters and
wild animals. Trails leading to or along the edge of water were usually per-
manent. Hardly a stream but bore its border line of trail upon either bank.
From the shore of Lake Ontario to the headwaters of the Genesee, trails fol-
lowed every curve of the river as closely as natural obstacles would permit, and
branches led up the sides of tributary creeks.
Trails converged on the Genesee in the vicinity of Rochester at two places,
the ridge north of the lower falls, and the rapids some eighty rods below the
mouth of Red creek. The passage of the river north of the lower falls was
effected in canoes or on rafts ; in the absence of either or both, the aboriginal
traveler plunged into the water and stemmed the strong current with his
brawny arms. Before the white man obstructed its channel with dams the
Genesee was one continuous rapid from Red creek to the south line of the
present Erie canal aqueduct. An Indian ford existed at a shallow place near
the immediate line of the present race-dam, between the jail and weigh-lock,
but was never in such general use as the upper ford below Red creek, where
the river could be more easily and safely crossed by footmen.
The great trail coming west from Canandaigua on the present route of the
Pittsford road divided a few rods east of Allen's creek. The main trail turned
to the north over a lovv ridge, across the present farm of the venerable Charles
M. Barnes' and down a gully to Allen's creek. The ford was exactly at the
1 League of the Iroquois, p. 1 10.
2 No resident of Monroe county is more thoroughly interested in its aboriginal history than Charles
M. Barnes. His admirable knowledge of colonial and pioneer history, and remarkable memory of
Local Trails of the Genesee. 39
arch through which the waters now pass under the great embankment of the
New York Central railroad. Following the west bank to a point where the
creek turned directly to the right, the trail left the stream and curving gradu-
ally to the west along the base of a high bluff ran up a narrow gully to the
table-land. Taking a northwest course from this point it passed the brick resi-
dence of D. McCarthy, crossed a trail running to the fishing resort on Ironde-
quoit creek and at the distance of one hundred rods again curved to the west
along a short slope, striking the line of the present road on the farm of Judge
Edmund Kelley. In the side of this slope were numerous springs near which
the Indians frequently camped. When the ground was first plowed many
Indian relics were found, and also evidences of a former occupation by some
large body of white men. At least two bushels of bullets were discovered in
one spot, and numerous other indications of the presence of an army.
From these springs a trail ran directly north half a mile and turned east
down the hillside to the famous Indian landing on Irbndequoit creek. Along
this road between the springs and landing was located the famed Tryon's Town,
of Gerundegut, founded by Judge John Tryon about 1798. From Tryon's
Town the main trail continued its northwest course to the Thomas road, some
rods north of University avenue. Fro.m that point the present (old Thomas)
road leading to the cobble-stone school-house on Culver street, and thence to
Norton street, runs on the old trail. Leaving Norton street a short, distance east
of Goodman, the path crossed a swamp to Hooker's cemetery. The ground
in front of Mr. Hooker's residence is said to have been the site of a very an-
cient fortification. Following the north edge of the elevation the trail crossed
North avenue to the Culver farm opposite, and can still be traced through the
grove of forest trees to the former location of a large Indian settlement on the
sand knolls,' half a mile west. From this town the course was due west down
the side .of Spring brook to the Ridge mounds and Brewer's landing on the
Genesee river.
East avenue is located upon the general route of the second trail from
Allen's creek westward. It divided near Union street, the principal path turn-
ing slightly to the south and ending at the ford near the weighlock. The branch
crossed Main street near the liberty pole and struck the river trail in the vicinity
of Franklin and North St. Paiil streets. Indian huts were scattered about the
bluff in that vicinity until 18 19.
A trail came from Caledonia springs east by way of Mumford, Scottsville,
Chili and Gates to Red creek ford in South Rochester. This was the general
thoroughfare from the Indian towns near the Canaseraga creek to the lower
early events in the vicinity of Rochester, have proved invaluable aids in the collection of many facts
herein pre.sented.
1 In a conversation held v/hh David Forest on this very ground, in 1854, Oliver Culver stated that
in 1 796 he arrived at Irondetjuoit landing in a canoe, and came over the trail described to this town,
where he traded with the Indians. It was from them that he received his information regarding the
large skeletons discovered at the mouth of Irondequoit bay.
40 History of the City of Rochester.
Genesee and Lake Ontario. It was down this trail that Butler's rangers fled,
after the massacre of Boyd and Parker at Little Beard's Town in 1779, on
their way to the mouth of the river.
' A path seldom used during the later Seneca occupation ran north from Red
creek ford in the general direction of Genesee street, to the head of Deep hol-
low, around which it curved to the Lake avenue trail. From this path a sec-
ond came north from the rapids over the course of Plymouth avenue to a spot
called Indian spring (near the corner of Spring street and Spring alley in rear
of the First Presbyterian church), and followed the little spring creek north-
east to the vicinity of Central avenue and Mill street. This trail branched near
Atkinson street, the branch running eastward to the ford near the present jail.
From this ford a path ran directly to Indian spring, in the vicinity of which
the wigwams of , the natives were occasionally set up. It was at the southern
extremity of the ridge lying west of this spring that the Senecas made their
last sacrifice of the white dog. Lewis H. Morgan is authority for the state-
ment that this ceremony was performed on the ground now occupied by W. S.
Kimball's residence on the south side of Troup street, between Eagle street
and Caledonia avenue. A third trail turned north from the jail ford and con-
nected with the Plymouth avenue trail near Central avenue, continuing north
to Deep hollow, where it was joined by the Genesee street trail. At the pres-
ent Ridge road on the boulevard the trail separated ; the main path running
west on the ridge to Lewiston, and the other to the lake shore. The summit
of the hill over which Lake avenue passes, near the present residence of Charles
J. Burke, was once the site of a large Indian town, and all the slope and low
ground east of that place to the river and north to Hanford's landing, was
used for camping purposes. There were numerous springs along this hillside,
and the Indians obtained flint from a quarry on the edge of the bluff"' near the
river end of Frauenberger avenue. - Numerous little heaps of flint chips, half-
finished and broken arrow-heads, and other weapons of stone were found in the
woods of that locality by the early settlers. Upon these grounds the late Dr.
Chester Dewey gathered many valuable relics of the stone age now in the
Smithsonian institution.
The waters of the springs mentioned once formed a short creek, the chan-
nel of which was parallel with and some rods west of the edge of the bluff".
This channel is yet quite distinct and so straight as to suggest the idea of arti-
ficial origin. It emptied over the edge of the cliff" into the great dell at Han-
ford's landing. At the upper end of this dell the' waters of a larger stream,
which has its source some miles westward, still dash recklessly over the cliff"
and hurry through the rocky passage below to join the river. Between these
creeks, on land now owned by R. J. Smith, the ground takes the form of a low
ridge, extending some distance southward from the cliff". The situation is grand
"^Pioneer Historical Collections.
Romantic Legend. 41
and the view down the river and over the water, some two hundred feet below,
very pleasing. A great fortification once stood on this ridge, but when or by
whom constructed history tells not. Over a century ago it was a mere heap
of ruins. Squier says it consisted of a semi-circular embankment, the ends of
which reached the very edge of the immense ravine, and had three narrow
gate-ways placed at irregular intervals.' Every part of the embankment was
obliterated long years ago, but its lines have been inferred by the quantities of
relics found within certain sharply defined limits. It is a singular fact that no
cemetery has been discovered in the vicinity of this place, the nearest burial-
ground of the aborigines west of the Genesee, known to the writer, being
some two miles distant.
There is a legend connected with some cliff near the lower falls of the Gen-
esee river, and this may, possibly, be the spot. Stripped of the fanciful language
in which the mythical narratives of the red man are usually clothed, it is a simple
pathetic tale. 'Tis said that a pale-faced wanderer paddled up the river one
summer's day, long years ago. He came alone directly to an Indian camp on
the river side, and remained with the tribe. In time his native country and
his people were forgotten in the happiness of loving, and being loved by, a
beautiful forest maiden. They were married in the Indian fashion, and the
days passed away like moments in their lodge "near the singing cataract."
One day a strange canoe, filled with white men, came up the, Genesee in search
of the pale-faced wanderer, who proved to be an exiled chieftain (nobleman)
of France. His friends came to carry him back to honor and fortune, but his
heart was in the wildwoods and he refused to go. Then they sought to com-
pel him, but, clasping his Indian wife in his arms, the exile rushed to the brink
of a great cliff where the rock rose straight up above the water, and, spring-
ing far out over the precipice, the two were crushed and mangled on the rocks
below. Tradition has failed to preserve the names of the white brave and his
dusky bride, or identify the place of their' death. The brief description of
locality answers equally well to the bluff opposite the Glen House, or this dell
at Hanford's landing. •
From the top of the cliff within the limits of the old fort a stone can be
cast to the water's edge at Hanford's landing below. From the landing a
path ran along the water at the base of the bluff, up the river to the lower falls.
At the spot now called Buell's landing, directly opposite Brewer's landing, a
path led up the face of the jutting rocks, reaching the table land in the yicinity
of the flint quarry, and natives crossing the river often climbed this steep path
in preference to the longer route by the lower landing. The first white settlers
in this vicinity (Gideon King and others) widened a path leading up the great
sloping bank from the old Indian landing north, to a wagon road. In 1798
Eli Granger laid the keel of the Jemima, a schooner of forty tons and the first
' Aboriginal Monuments of New York, p. 58.
42 History of the City of Rochester.
American vessel built on the Genesee (some say the first built near Lake On-
tario), at the foot of this road ; the landing, then callied King's, now Hanford's,
became the lake port, and there the steamer Ontario first touched the river
bank when she commenced her trips in 1817. From the landing a second path
curved up the little promontory on the north side of the dell, and extended
around the edge of the cliff to the old fort. From that place it ran up the
creek to the- main or' Ridge trail, which it crossed some distance west of the
present boulevard. Continuing, along the north bank of the creek to the farm
of Samuel Truesdale, where the giant skeleton was exhumed in 1878, it turned
west along the mountain ridge, running straight to a spring on the present farm,
of George H. Lee. Indians came upon this creek and camped in Mr. Trues-
dale's chestnut grove until 1853.
At the rapids in South Rochester the river passes over a ledge of lime-
stone, and before the dam was constructed the channel was very shallow some
sixty rods above and belciw. Ort the east bank a flat extended from Red creek
north around the base of Oak hill. It was eaten away by the current long
years ago, but.it originally constituted the the east-side Janding of the ford.
The west end of Elmwood avenue strikes the river just south of the upper edge
of the old ford. In early pioneer days there were two or three good springs
in the bank of a small creek which entered the river at that point. A pre-
historic town, covering all the surface of Oak hill, once existed tHere. Stohe
relics were found on every foot of the ground from the feeder dam to Red creek,
by the' early settlers. In their anxiety to distance Sullivan's soldiers, Butler's
men rid themselves of everything possible at this ford. Ammunition and arms
were' buried in the. ground near the springs and concealed in hollow trees in
the vicinity. In 1816 Mr. Boughton found ninety-six pounds of bullets in
the bottom of a rotten stump, and several other discoveries of bullets, bars of
lead, etc., have been made by various parties.
From the springs at the ford the trail ran northeast to the corner of Indian
Trail and First avenues in Mount Hope cemetery. At that point it divided,
one branch turning sharply to the left, directly up the slope and north over
the top of section G to the present Indian Trail avenue, which it entered and
thence followed the ridge sttaight to a spot in front of George Ellwanger's res-
idence, continuing down Mount Hope avenue. South and North St. Paul streets
to Brewer's landing. From the latter place it ran near the edge of the high
bank to Lake Ontario. On the farm of Daniel Leake traces of an Indian town
and burial ground have been discovered and the old path can yet be followed
in places through the woods north of the "rifle range." An ancient fortifica-
tion stood near the ford of a brook which rises in the littlevale southeast of
Rattlesnake point. It was the ruins of this fort for which Mr. Squier searched
in vain about 1848. The Seneca ferrying-place across the river was at the
terminus of the trail at about the same location as the present upper ferry at
Portage Trail. 43
Charlotte. In the brush and woods on the east bank at this point Butler's
rangers sought refuge while waiting for the tory Walker to return from Fort
Niagara with boats for their removal. The log house afterv^ard occupied by
Walker stood, a few feet southeast of the angle in the present road where it
turns west across the swamp at the ferry. Stone pestles, arrow-heads, bullets,
etc., have been found in the vicinity in considerable numbers by Jerome Man-
ning and other old settlers.
From the corner of Indian -Trail and First avenues in Mount Hope ceme-
tery the south branch of the trail, coming from Red creek ford, passed a few
rods east to a beautiful spring in the side of the present artificial pond. Curv-
ing slightly northward it divided, one path following the general course of Stan-
ley street and Highland avenue along the southern base of the hills to the cor-
ners north of Cobb's brick-yard on Monroe avenue; the other branch running
directly to the summit of the hills near the water-works reservoir, and east
over the top of Pinnacle hill, joining the first path near the corners. From
that place the course was directly east to the riffle on Irondequoit creek some
distance above the dug- way mills. This riffle was a noted resort of the In-
dians who went there from the upper Genesee to fish. It was known to the
Senecas as Sgoh-sa-is-thah. The meaning of the word is "the swell dashes
against the precipice," referring to the fact that a heavy swell sometimes beats
against the ledge over which the fall pours. Springs still exist in, the bank
near the riffle where the Indians camped. From this fishing ground alarge
open path ran directly south over the hills to the Pittsford roa,d, and thence to'
Honeoye. At its crossing of the New York Central railroad at the "sand-cut"
east of the Allen's creek embankment, an Indian burial ground was located.
During the excavation of a part of this hill, about 1876, human remains were
exhumed, among which were several skeletons of unusual size, One exceeding
seven feet in length. Numberless relics of stone, rusty knives and fragments
of firearms were picked up by the workmen, Dennis Callahan securing a small
flat-iron bearing the figure of a spread eagle. East of this trail, between the
cemetery and the Pittsford road, quantities of stone relics have been found, in-
dicating the site of a pre-historic town. West of this site is located the great
cairn of limestones, supposed to have been heaped up by people preceding the
Indians.
There were two Indian roads known as the portage trails. The first has
been described as the Mount Hope avenue and St. Paul street route, over
which canoes and baggage were transported between Red creek and Brewer's
landing. This route was followed by the Indians long after Rochester was set-
tled by the whites, and Phederus Carter, James Stone ^nd other pioneer boys
often assisted their Indian friends to carry canoes over this path.
The grand portage trail diverged from the Mount Hope avenue path near
Clarissa street, ran along the ridge south of and parallel with Gregory street to
' 4
44 History of the City of Rochester.
South avenue, thence straight to Oliver Culver's old homestead, corner of Cul-
ver street and East avenue. Passing a few rods eaist of the house the trail-
route was down the north road east to the landing on Iroridequoit creek. ' This
was the general highway between the upper Genesee and Irondequoit bay, to
which reference has been made in chapter V. Some 3'ears ago an aged Seneca
was asked to describe the route of this trail between the Genesee river and
Irondequoit landing. Raising his hand anS cleaving the air with a direct for-
ward blow the Indian replied: "Straight as the arrow flies, runs the carrying-
path." A verification of this assertion may be/ound on any map of Monroe
county showing the following points : Mount Hope avenue and Clarissa street,
South avenue and Grand street. East avenue and the Culver road and the land-
ing on Irondequoit creek. A line extending from the first to the last would
pass in as nearly a direct course through the intermediate points as the original
form of the ground would admit. From South avenue to East avenue the
trail ran over a section of low ground which extended southward to the base
of the Pinnacle range of hills, and was known as the "bear swamp."
A huge dome-shaped hill fills the Irondequoit valley directly opposite the
old Indian landing-place so often mentioned. The creek hugs the west bank
at the landing and sweeps around to the southeast in a great semi-circle called
"the ox-bow," leaving a crescent-shaped flat at the southern base of this island
hill. When the surrounding slopes were covered with forest trees this flat
formed a pleasant and secluded retreat, which could only be reached over the
landing trail or by crossing the creek, which is very deep in that vicinity.
After leaving Red creek ford Butler's rangers separated on Mount Hope, one
party proceeding down the Mount Hope avenue trail to the mouth of the Gen-
esee, the other going east to Irondequoit landing and the 0X7 bow flat, which
appears to have been a well known and favorite resort of the tories. From
this hiding-place they made their way over the town of Irondequoit to the
mouth of the Genesee river, where they remained in the brush and the woods
several days, not daring to build a fire or make the least noise, lest Sullivan's
avenging forces should discover and annihilate them. Walker had been sent
from Caledonia springs to Niagara for boats, and when he finally arrived in the
Genesee the rangers were nearly famished. After one ravenous meal they
embarked for Niagara and Oswego, and the lower Genesee was rid of all the
murderous gang save Walker, who, remaining as a British spy, built a cabin
near the ferrying- place.
The west side of the island hill, facing Irondequoit landing, has yielded to
nature's erosive forces, and a charming inclined valley extends from the landing
to the very eastern limit of the hilltop, which was once connected with the
high land east by a narrow ridge. From the landing the old trail course was
up this valley to the elevated table land opposite. Running some distance east
to avoid the tremendous gulfs reaching back from the bay, it turned north,
The Trail to the Salt Spring. ' 45
ending on the sand-bar at the mouth of Irondequoit bay. From the landing
to Lake Ontario every rod of ground is historical. When the farms of Henry
Smith and Edson Welcher, just north of the float-bridge road, were settled,
an Indian cemetery was discovered. There were two hundred grave-mounds
arranged in rows, over which grew oak trees fully eighteen inches in diameter.
In the woods near at hand great corn-hills were plainly to be seen, and the
Indians had a landing-place on Plum Orchard point, immediately below.
A second trail turned east to the ridge, along which it continued to Sodus
and Oswego. It was known to the Senecas as Ne-aga Wa-a-gwen, or Ontario
foot-path. The village last occupied by Seneca Indians in Webster was located
on the ridge near this path, about one mile east of the bay, and the latter-day
Mississauges camped on the same ground. Their landing was on the bay, at
the foot of the ridge. In a hollow north of the landing H. M. Hames discov-
ered twelve skeletons lying in a circle, like the spokes of a wheel, with their
feet to the center, where were deposited a number of rude stone weapons,
probably arms of the buried warriors. One of these relics, an immense spear-
head of flint, is in possession of the writer. It is an interesting fact that while
iron weapons, beads and other evidences of association with the whites are
occasionally found in graves of the natives on the high land about Rochester,
' burial-places in hollows or ravines usually contain relics of the stone age only.
A mound which was very prominently located on the bluff" north of Dunbar
hollow was opened by the early residents, who obtained a great number of
stone weapons, mostly tomahawks and skull- crackers.
A large fort once occupied the ground just north of the ridge at the inter-
section of the sand-bar trail. This work is mentioned by Macauley, but Squier
failed to locate it in 1848. ' DeNonville does not appear to have observed it
in 1687, and it was undoubtedly very ancient. Stone arrow-heads di.scovered
there are quite large and broad. Arrow-heads of the same description are
found in a dcU on the Victor tra,il. From the old fort a trail ran northeast to
a salt-spring located about one and a half miles east of the bay. The Indians
came from Gardeau, Mount Morris, Moscow, Geneseo, Lima, Avon and Canna-
waugus to make salt at this spring, camping in the woods between it and Iron-
dequoit bay. The tory Walker and an old Seneca chief from Moscow were the
last to use it, and in 1788-9 they covered the spring over. They disclosed its
location in confidence to three or four white friends, Asa Dunbar being of the
number. He revealed it to Wm. H. Fenfield, and the latter to Jarvis M. Hatch,
from whom the present writer obtained the following quaint directions to effect
its re-discovery : " In a large gorge half a mile from the lake shore take a run-
way to a point one-fourth of a mile southwest of the gorge. The spring is
near some trees in a cultivated field, entirely covered over and effectually con-
cealed. I have been to it in i860." There was another spring in Dunbar hol-
^. Aboriginal MtmHtnents, p. 58.
46 History of the City of Rochester.
low, which is so called from the fact that Asa Dunbar, an early settler of gigan-
tic strength, frequented the place to manufacture salt. The process was very-
simple, the brine being boiled in a "three-pail kettle."
Two mounds once occupied the hilltop south of the Sea Breeze hotel on
the west side of Irondequoit bay. Their former location was pointed out to
the writer in 1880 by Charles M. Barnes and Amos Knapp. The mounds
were from twenty to thirty-five feet east of north of the present wooden " ob-
servatory." Squier says they were small, the largest not exceeding five feet
in height. Upon excavation he found they had been previously disturbed,
and his examination resulted in the discovery of a few fragments of bone, char-
coal, pottery and arrow-heads.' Old settlers inform me that Wm. H. Penfield
opened these mounds about 1817. He obtained many curious things, in-
cluding sword scabbard-bands of silver, belt buckles, belt and hat ornaments
and other articles of military dress. Directly east of these mounds is a deep
gully, now crossed by two rustic bridges. The Indian canoe landing was at
the mouth of this gully, where a fine spring furnished good water. A trail
came up the hill from the sand-bar west of the mounds along the edge of the
gully to its beginning.' A few rods east of this point was a burial-place where
Indian remains are still found. The gully or landing trail united with the other,
ran southwest to the ridge in the vicinity of the Forest House, and due south
to the west end of the float-bridge road, where it joined the trail already
described, leading to the camping-ground on Judge Kelley's farm and onward
through the Allen's creek "defile" to the Pittsford road. This was the main
trail, west of the bay, from Lake Ontario to Irondequoit landing, Victor and
Honeoye creek, and DeNonville marched down this path from Allen's creek
on his return to the lake.
The small island on the west side of Irondequoit bay, upon which the
Schneider House stands, is of artificial origin. It was originally of ellipsoidal
form, ninety feet long, thirty-two wide and seventeen high. In his prepara-
tions to build, Mr. Schneider lowered the whole island to within two feet of
the surface of the water, first removing a dead oak tree about fifteen inches
through, which stood on the very top of the elevation. The mound was com-
posed of alternate layers of sand and clay so distinctly marked as to attract
attention. In the bottom of the exact center, fifteen feet below the surface,
Mr. Schneider unearthed about one bushel of hand-worked stones consisting
of arrow and spearheads, knives, tomahawks of various shapes, skull -crackers,
war-club heads, fish-net weights, skin-dressers, finishers, etc. Some of these
articles were beautiful specimens of polished- stone work and nearly all above
the average size usually found in this vicinity. The construction of this mound
cost a vast amount of labor, and the object is conjectural. It marked the en-
trance to a small bay which undoubtedly constituted a fine harbor extending
1 Aboriginal Monuments, p. 57.
Early French Missions. 47
back into a great valley. It is a secluded locality, immense forest trees still
standing about the shore, but was once frequented by the native inhabitants.
A brawling stream curves through the valley bottom and enters the little bay,
which has become nearly impassable by the growth of rushes. A trail ex-
tended the whole length of the valley and the old path is yet quite distinct in
places. It followed the original upward course of the stream to the north end
of Culver street. A trail left the creek at the head of the valley and ran south
across the float-bridge road some two miles to the Irondequoit creek landing
and Genesee falls trail, which it crossed near the old Thomas road, and contin-
ued up the bank of a creek to the portage trail at Oliver Culver's old home-
stead on East avenue. Numberless side paths connected these principal trails
at intervals, and threaded the forest in every direction to springs, deer-licks,
and other places of interest to the native inhabitants. Other trails will be
mentioned in their proper connections, but many interesting facts are omitted,
enough having already been presented to prove that a numerous population
occupied the territory of the lower Genesee long before the white man came
upon its soil.
CHAPTER VII.
Karly French Missions — Tsonnontouan — The Jesuit's Escape — La Salle at Irondequoit —
Struggle between the French and English for Possession of the Lower Genesee Country.
THOUGH the Franciscan Le Caron is supposed to have passed through the
Iroquois (Mohawk) country about i6i6, coureurs des bois are known to
have traded with tribes on the south shore of Ontario before De. la Roche
Dallion passed the winter of 1626-7 with the Neuters, the whites possessed no
definite knowledge of -Western New York or the water connections of Lake
Ontario with the west, until 1640, when Brebeuf's mission to the Neuters per-
fected their knowledge of the Niagara river and Lake Erie. "Could we but
gain the mastery of the shore of Ontario on the side nearest the abode of the
Iroquois," the Jesuits said, "we could ascend by the St. Lawrence without dan-
ger, and pass free beyond Niagara, with a great saving of time and pains."
To accomplish this end the French bent all their energies. In the' canoes
of the traders, ofttimes preceding them, went the brave priests to plant the
standard of the Roman church and extend the dominion of France, in the wilds
of Western New York. With varying success they advanced from Onondaga
westward until, in 1657, Chaumorit preached the faith in the towns of the Sen-
ecas, but in two short years war between the French and Iroquois again drove
48 History of the City ov Rochester.
the missionaries to the northern shore of Ontario. In 1661 Le Moyne returned
to Onondaga, and several missions were re-established. In the fall of 1668 a
deputation of Seneca chiefs visited Montreal and requested the Jesuits to estab-
lish missions in their country, that the people might share all the advantages of
religion enjoyed by Iroquois nations to the east. In compliance with this
request Father Fremin was sent to Tsonnontouan, as the Genesee country was
then called by the French. The good priest arrived at his post of duty No-
vember 1st, and, taking up his abode at the same town wherein Chaumdnt had
preached, founded the mission of St. James. At that date the Senecas had
four large villages east of the Genesee river. Tlwough the researches of O. H.
Marshall the location of these towns has been definitely fixed. The principal
village, at which Fremin resided, was situated on what is now termed Bough-
ton hill, near Victor. The exact site is south of the railroad, on a farm owned
by R. B. Moore. Wentworth Greenhalp, who visited the town in 1677, de-
scribes its location and appearance under the name of Canagorah. Ten years
later DeNonville, who destroyed the place, mentions it in his official report by
its Mohawk designation of Ganangorah. In this effort to re-discover the site of
this town Marshall learned its correct Seneca name — Ga-o-sa-eh-ga-aah. '
Father Gamier, who had been stationed at Onondaga, joined Fremin in his
labors and established the mission of St. Michael at Gan-don-ga-rae, a small
village located on Mud creek, between three and four miles southeast of Victor,
where he remained several years. Bruyas, Pierron and other priests visited
these towns during the life of the missions, and the general route to and from
the Seneca villages appears to have been through Irondequoit bay. In 1683
Garnier was secretly informed of ttie intention of the French to make war
upon the Iroquois, and, hastening to Irondequoit landing, he was concealed and
escaped in a little barque belonging to the French government, which lay at
anchor there, trading with the natives.
August lOth, 1669, La Salle, the afterward noted French explorer, arrived
at the mouth of Irondequoit with seven canoes and twenty-four men, including
Dollier de Casson and Galinee, two priests of the seminary of St. Sulpice,
Montreal. They were accompanied by two other canoes bearing a party of
Senecas, who had wintered on the St. Lawrence and were now acting as guides.
La Salle's object in this visit was to obtain a guide to the Ohio river, that of
the priests the conversion of the natives. The party landed on the sand-
bar and were escorted to "Sonnontouan" or Gannagora by crowds of
1 The etymology of this name was explained to Mr. Marshall in 1847 by Blacksmith, the principal
chief of the Senecas. He said the whole village was supplied by one spring, which issued from the
side of a hill. To procure water more conveniently the Indians made troughs or conductors of bass-
wood bark, which, when stripped from the tree, curls readily into the proper shape, and with these
they conducted the water to a point where it could be caught in their vessels. The fact that this was
the only spring in the vicinity gave prominence to the use of the basswood bark, and hence, according
to the Indian Custom, arose the name Ga-o-sa-eh-ga-aah, or "the basswood bark lies there." — O.
H. Marshall, in DeNonvilWs Expedition, p. 159.
La Salle at Irondequoit. 49
savages. They remained with the Senecas one month, and failing to accom-
plish their purpose departed westward along the shore of Lake Ontario. Dur-
ing the following two years La Salle was upon the soil of Western New York
many times, and undoubtedly explored every foot of the Genesee river from
its mouth to Portage, in his efforts to discover the route to the Ohio and Mis-
sissippi. That he visited Irondequoit bay on several occasions is well known.
With their first faint knowledge of the interior of New York and the great
lake region, the whites keenly appreciated the sagacity of the red men in their
selection of Irondequoit bay as the general landing-place of the Senecas and
harbor of the league, and recognised the important bearing its possession would
have upon the steadily increasing interests of trade and future civilisation.
With the French on the north, and the English and Dutch on the south and
east, to all of whom the great lakes and streams presented the only practicable
channels of communication with the west, the Iroquois country became the
center of conflicting interests, and, simultaneously with the supremacy of the
linglish in Eastern New York, came the struggle between that nation and the
French for possession of the great lake region and control of the Indian trade.
Niagara was the key to the western lakes, and Oswego and Irondequoit the
ports through which all the costly loads of Indian goods and rich cargoes of
furs must naturally pass to the west and east ; for, though the French held .
possession of the St. Lawrence and had free access to Ontario, the journey
thither was long and perilous, and Indian goods could be purchased in Albany
and transported to Montreal at a less rate than they could be imported direct
to that place from France,' while the trails of the Iroquois, which could be
traveled from Albany to Irondequoit on horseback, and the watercourses, of
the interior of New York presented shorter, safer and more profitable routes
for unrestricted traffic ; hence the desire of the English to open the way to the
west, and the endeavors of the French to obtain possession of Oswego, Iron-
dequoit and Niagara, close them to the Engli.sh and secure the Indian trade to ,
the French colony of the St. Lawrence. Added to this was the natural en-
mity existing between the two nations and the jealous rivalry and inordinate
greed for territorial possessions in the New world. Each nation claimed the
Iroquois country, France by right of first discovery and occupation, England
by virtue of conquest from the Dutch and treaty stipulations, and both enacted
the monarchical role of paternal proprietorship, endeavoring to awe and con-
trol the various tribes by alternate threatenings and persuasion.
From the attack of Champlain on the Mohawks at Ticonderoga point in
1609, the Iroquois as a nation had maintained a relentless enmity toward the
French, though a shadow of peace had occasionally been made and some hun-
dreds of Indians enticed to Canada through the religious influence of French
priests; on the other hand the Iroquois had steadily inclined to the English,
I TV. y. Col. Mss., V. 728-230.
so History of the City of Rochester.
who were their acknowledged friends and allies. Despairing of ultimate suc-
cess by other means than force, the governors of Canada invaded the country of
the Five Nations on several occasions with armies of colonists and Indian allies,
but neither honors nor lasting benefits accrued to the French from these expe-
ditions. In 1685 De la Barre was recalled to France and the marquis De-
Nonville succeeded him as governor- general of Canada. Despite the influence
of French missionaries in their midst, the Iroquois still barred the way to a
free navigation of water highways leading to the west, insolently repudiated
the authority of the French government, and openly avowed their friendship
for the English, who were permitted to set up the British arms in several Iro-
quois villages.
CHAPTER VIII.'
DeNonville's Expedition - Treachery of the French Governor-General — Magnanimity of the
Troquoi.s — French Army at Irondequoit — Execution of Marion — The Fort on the Sand- Bar — The
March on Gannagaro — The Defiles, Ambuscade and Battle — Horrors of Indian Warfare — Canni-
balism — Destruction of the Seneca Towns.
UPON assuming the reins of colonial government, DeNonville determined
" to break the power of the Iroquois and subdue their pride by an invasion
of the Seneca settlements. To conceal his intentions the wily governor made
overtures to the savages through the Jesuits stationed in their villages, and the
summer of 1686 was spent in negotiations which terminated by the adoption
of a resolution that both parties — French and Iroquois — should meet at Cata-
racouy, '^ to take measures for the conclusion of a general peace. Neither party
placed confidence in the proposed peaceful measures, and the French had no
intention of obtaining peace through treaty. During the entire summer De-
Nonville was very anxious to lay up a store of provisions and munitions at
Cataracouy in preparation for the next season's campaign, but was restrained
from so doing through fear of alarming the Iroquois. Active preparations were
instituted during the winter and spring of 1686-7. Fort Cataracouy — then
a small redoubt — was placed in defensible condition, stocked with the neces-
sary supplies, and the three small vessels on Lake Ontario secured for service.
June 1 2th, 1687, the French governor left Montreal for Cataracouy with
an army consisting of eight hundred and thirtyrtwo regular troops ; nine hun-
1 The material for this chapter is collated from the Colonial and Documentary Histories of New
York ; the Expedition of the Marquis DeNonville against the Senecas, in 1687, by O. H. Marshall ;
Discmery of the Great West, by Francis Parkman ; Historical sketches in the Victor Herald, by J. W.
Van Denburgh, and the writer's private journal.
2 Kingston.
DeNonville's Expedition. 51
died and thirty militia, over one hundred colonial scouts and four hundred In-
dians. Of this force M. de Callieres was commander-in-chief, under the orders
of the Marquis DeNonville, Chevalier de Vaudreuil, commander of the regu-
lars, and General Sieur Duguay (Du Gue) commandant of the militia. The
troops were formed into eight platoons of two hundred men each, the regulars
under Captains D'Orvilliers, St. Cirg, de Troyes and Vallerennes, the militia
under Captains Berthier, la Valterye, Grandville and Longueil Le Moynes.
In the order of march a battalion of regulars succeded one of militia, alter-
nately. Six bateaux were assigned to each company, each boat carrying eight
men, baggage and provisions, each captain having charge of twenty-four ba-
teaux. The Indians served as guides and scouts and marched without order.
The army arrived at Cataracouy July ist, after a terribly laborious voyage up
the rapids of the St. Lawrence, and engaged in preparations for the contem-
plated expedition. Two of the little vessels were loaded with supplies, and
two large bateaux furnished with cannon and long guns to cover the troops
while landing. The third vessel was sent to Niagara laden with provisions and
ammunition for a party under Sieurs de Tonty, de la Durantaye and du Lhu
(Du Luth), who had received instructions the previous summer to collect all
the French, and Indian allies from the western woods, for this expedition. Or-
ders were also forwarded by messenger for the reinforcements to meet Gover-
nor DeNonville at Irqndequoit bay on a certain date.
Notwithstanding the warlike preparations of the French, which drew an
official remonstrance from Governor Dongan of New York and excited the
alarm of the Five Nations, DeNonville stoutly declared his pacific intentions,
and, under a pretense of holding a great council for the ratification of peace,
induced the Jesuit missionaries to decoy to Canada a number of Iroquois.
Upon their arrival at Cataracouy these people were made prisoners and fifty of
the men, including several sachems and chiefs, sent to Montreal, in company
with certain other Indians who had been captured while fishing on the river
during the upward voyage of the French army. By order of his most Chris-
tian Majesty, the king, these proud warriors were shipped to France as slaves
for the royUl galleys. When news of DeNonville's infamous act reached the
Onondagas, "among whom Father Lamberville was then residing as a mis-
sionary," says Marshall, " the chiefs immediately assembled in council and send-
ing for the father related the above transaction with all the energy which a just
indignation could arouse, and, while he expected to feel the full effects of the
rage which he saw depicted in every countenance, one of the old men unex-
pectedly addres.scd to him the following remarkable language, as related by
Lamberville himself: —
"It cannot be denied," says he, "that many reasons authorise us to treat you as an
enemy, but we have no inclination to do so. We know you too well not to be persuaded
that your heart has taken no part in the treachery of which you have been the instru-
ment, and we are not so unjust as to punish you for a crime of which we believe you
52 History of the City of Rochester.
innocent, which you undoubtedly detest as much as we do, and for having been the in-
strument of which we are satisfied you are now deeply grieved. . It is not proper, how-
ever, that you should remain here. AH will not, perhaps, render you the justice which
we accord, and when once our young men shall have sung their war song, they will look
upon you only as a traitor, who has delivered over our chiefs to a cruel and ignoble
slavery. They- will listen only to their own rage, from which we will then be unable to
save you." Having said this, they obliged him to leave immediately, and furnished
guides to conduct him by a safe route, who did not leave him until he was out of danger.
July 4th the army embarked at daybreak, and crossing the lower end of
Lake Ontario coasted the south shore westward.. So admirably were the plans
of DeNonville arranged and executed that, though aware of the impending
blow, the Iroquois knew not in what quarter it would strike, and hence could
adopt no general measure of defense. The little barque that had been dispatched
to Niagara met the army near Sodus bay July 9th with ne'ws of the reinforce-
ments, and then returning westward hovered about the mouth of Irondc-
quoit bay. Iroquois scouts stationed there immediately reported the presence
of the vessel, and the Seneca sachems sent warriors to the lake. Posting them-
selves in the woods at the west end of the sand-bar, near the present location
of the Sea Breeze, they were surprised and nearly cut off by Indians of De-
Nonville's Niagara party who came down the lake shore on foot, the main body
being in canoes. This party consisted of one hundred and seventy French
coureurs des bois, and three hundred western Indians of all nations, enemies
of the Iroquois. They arrived at the mouth of Irondequoit July loth, at the
same moment with the army under DeNonville, "by reason of which," re-
marked Baron La Hontan, "our savage allies, who draw predictions from the
merest trifles, foretold, with their usual superstition, that so punctual a meeting
infallibly indicated the total destruction of the Iroquois." "The first thing
with which I occupied myself on my arrival," writes the French governor,
. " was to select a post easy to be fortified for securing our bateaux, to the num-
ber of two hundred, and as many canoes. July i ith was spent in construct-
ing palisades, fascines and pickets, for securing the dike that separates the lake
from the marsh, in which we had placed our bateaux."
On their voyage to Niagara Durantaye's forces had captured and pillaged
two parties of English traders, bound to the west under the guidance of a
young Canadian named La Fontaine Marion. Baron La Hontan mentions him
as an unfortunate young man who became acquainted with the country and
savages of Canada by the numerous voyages he made over the continent.
After rendering his king good service Marion asked permission of several of the
governors-general to continue his travels in further prosecution of his petty
traffic, but could never obtain it. As peace existed between the two crowns,
he determined to go to New England, where he was well received on account
of his enterprise and knowledge of Indian languages. He was engaged to
pilot two companies of English through the lakes to the west, and it was those
DkNonville's Expedition. 53
peaceful traders upon whom Durantaye had laid violent hands and brought
them captive to Irondequoit. DeNonville had previously sought and received
the sanction of the king to treat all Frenchmen found in the service of the
English as deserters. While the sixty Englishmen were sent to Montreal and
subsequently released, Marion was adjudged a traitor and his doom pronounced.
The morning following the arrival of the army at Irondequoit the sentence of
death was imposed. On the calm surface of the lake rode the French navy
of three small sail. Covering the broad sand-beach were overturned boats
and canoes; on the elevatcd'part of the sand-bar stood the half-finished fort'
of pickets surrounded by the army tents and equipage. "Never," says an
eye-witness, "had Canada seen, and never perhaps will it see, a similar spec-
tacle. A camp composed of one-fourth regular troops with the general's suite ;
one-fourth habitants in four battalions, with the gentry of the country ; one-
fourth Christian Indians, and finally a crowd of all the barbarous nations,
naked, tattooed, and painted over the body with all sorts of figures, wearing
horns on their heads, queues down their backs, armed with arrows." For a
moment there is a profound hush in camp. All eyes are turned to an open
square in the center — a file of soldiers facing the lake and a poor wretch
standing alone at the water's edge casting a last despairing glance at the wild
scene about him. Then a sharp command is given, a loud report follows, and
France has sacrificed another victim to her cruel policy in the form of humble
Marion.
The fort, requiring some two thousand palisades in its construction, was
completed during the forenoon of July 12th. For its defense and the protec-
tion of the boats and stores, DeNonville detached four hundred and forty men
under command of D'Orvilliers.' At three o'clock in the afternoon the army
commenced its march upon the Seneca towns in the interior. The advance
guard consisted of three hundred Christian Indians under guidance of an Iro-
quois afterward known as the grandfather of Brandt, with the western Indians
on the left, supported by three companies of courcurs des bois, one hundred
Ottawas, three hundred Sioux, one hundred Illinois and fifty Hurons. Then
1 This palisade fortification was built on tlie sand-bar, at tlie mouth of Irondequoit bay, about eighty
rods from its eastern end. The bar, which is only a narrow sand ridge to the west, is some thirty rods
wide at this point, and at the advent of the first white settlers was from fifteen to twenty feet high in
places. Several small mounds were scattered over the ground, and many graves were discovered, one
marked by a tablet of iron bearing an inscription in some unknown language, which is said to have
liccn neither Spanish, Dutch nor French. During the construction of the Rome, Watertown & Og-
dcnsburg railroad, which crosses the bay on this sand-bar, several button-wood trees, each from twelve
to eighteen inches in diameter, were removed. Under some of these were found iron bullets, parts of
gun-barrels completely oxidised, iron and stone tomahawks, flint arrow-heads, etc. In 1880 the writer
discovered several stone relics and portions of two human skeletons under the roots of a tree then
standing on the edge of an excavation near the railroad. The channel connecting the waters of the
bay with those of the lake has changed its location three several times within the memory of persons
now living; shifting from the extreme eastern end of the bar to the western end, back two-thirds of
the distant? to the eastern shore of the bay, and finally to its present location in the center of the bar.
54 History of the City of Rochester.
followed the regulara and militia, with the rear guard of savages and wood-
rangers. Ascending the bluff at the end of the sand-bar and following a
well-beaten trail, the army returned to the south among lofty trees sufficiently
open to allow the troops to march in three columns. The objective point was
Gannagcira, and the army made three leagues (nine miles) that afternoon. "We
left on the next morning," continues DeNonville in his official report, "with the
design of approaching the village as near as we could, to deprive the enemy
of the opportunity of rallying and seizing on two very dangerous defiles at two
rivers^ which it was necessary for us to pass and where we should undoubtedly
meet them. These two defiles being passed in safety, there still remained a
third at the entrance of said village, at which it was our intention to halt. . .
. . . About three o'clock in the afternoon M. de Callieres, who was at the
head of the three companies commanded by Tonty, De la Durantaye and Du-
Lhu, and all our savages fell into an ambuscade of Sonnontouans posted in the
vicinity of the defile."
DeNonville gives two accounts of this battle, differing widely, and others are
confusing. That of the Abbe de Belmont is the best : —
" The march was a little hurried. The weary troops were dying with thirst. The
two bodies found themselves at too great distance from each other. The scouts were
deceived ; for having come to the barrens, or plains, they found five or six women who
were going around in the fields. This was a lure of the Senecas to make them believe
that they were all in the village. The territory of Ganesara is very hilly ; the village
is upon a high hill which is surrounded by three little hills or terraces, at the foot of a
valley, and opposite some other hills, between which passes a large brook which in a
little valley makes a little marsh, covered with alders. This is the place which they
selected for their ambuscade. They divided themselves, posted three hundred men along
the falling brook between two hills in a great thicket of beech trees, and five hundred
at the bottom of these hills in a marsh among the alders ; with the idea that the first
ambuscade of three hundred men should let the army pass and then attack them in the
rear, which would force it to fall into the second ambuscade, which was concealed at
the bottom of the hills in the marsh. They deceived themselves nevertheless, for as
the advance guard, which M. de Callieres commanded, was very distant from the body
under the command of the marquis, they believed it was the entire array. Accordingly
as the advance guard passed near the thicket of beeches, after making a terrible whoop
(sakaqua !) they fired a volley. The Ottawas and the heathen Indians all fled. The
Christian Indians of the mountain and the Sault, and the Abenaquis held fast and gave
two volleys. The marquis DeNonville advanced with the main body, composed of the
royal troops, to occupy the height of the hill, where there was a little fort of pickets;
but the terror and disorder of the surprise were such that there was only M. de Cal-
zenne, who distinguished himself there, and M. Dugue, who bringing up the rear guard
rallied the battahon of Berthier, which was in flight, and, being at the head of that of
Montreal, fired two hundred shots. The marquis, en chemise, sword in hand, drew up
the main body in battle order, and beat the drum at a time when scarcely anyone was
to be seen. This frightened the three hundred Tsonnontouans of the ambuscade, who
2 Allen and Irondequoit creeks.
DeNonville's Expedition. 55
fled from above towards the five hundred that were ambushed below. The fear that
all the world was upon them made them fly with so much precipitation that they left
their blankets in a heap, and nothing more was seen of them."
In his description of the battle Baron La Hontan admits a serious defeat
of the French : —
"When we arrived at the foot of the hill on which they lay in ambush, distant about
a quarter of a league from the village, they began to utter their ordinary cries, followed
with a discharge of musketry. If you had seen, sir, the disorder into which our militia
and regulars were thrown among the dense woods, you would agree with me that it
would require many thousand Europeans to make head against these barbarians. Our
battalions were immediately separated into platoons, which ran without order, pell mell
to the right and left, without knowing whither they went. Instead of firing upon the
Irocjuois, we fired upon each other. It was in vain to call for help from the soldiers of
such a battalion, for we could see scarcely thirty paces. In short we were so disordered
that the enemy were about to fall upon us club in hand, when our savages, having ral-
lied, repulsed and pursued them so closely, even to their villages, that they killed more
than eighty, the heads of which they brought away, not counting the wounded who
esca])ed. We lost on this occasion ten savages and a hundred Frenchmen ; we had
twenty or twenty-two wounded, among whom was the good Father Angelran."
Although the savage allies were greatly offended at the refusal of DeNon-
ville to leave his wounded and pursue the fleeing Senecas, the French com-
mander ordered a bivouac on the field. "We witnessed the painful sight of
■ the usual cruelties of the savages," writes the marquis to M. de Seignelay,
"who cut the dead into quarters, as is done in slaughter-houses, in order to put
them into the kettle ; the greater number were opened while still warm, that
their blood might be drank. Our rascally Ottawas distinguished themselves
particularly by these barbarities and by their poltroonery, for they withdrew
from the battle. The Hurons of Michilimaquina did very well, but our Chris-
tian Indians surpassed all and performed deeds of valor, especially our Iroquois,
on whom we dared not rely having to fight against their own relatives. The
Illinois did their duty well We learned from some prisoners who
had deserted from the Senecas that this action cost them forty-five men killed
on the field, twenty- five of whom we had seen at the shambles, the others were
seen buried by this deserter ; and over sixty very severely wounded.
The Abbe de Belmont thus continues the narrative : —
"We marched in battle order, waiting for an attack. We descended the hill by a
little sloping valley, or gorge, through which ran a brook bordered with thick bushes
and which discharges itself at the foot of a hill, in a rnarsh full of deep mud, but planted
with alders so thick that one could scarcely see. There it was that they had stationed
their two ambuscades, and where perhaps we would have been defeated, if they had not
mistaken our advance guards for the whole army and been so hasty in firing. The mar-
quis acted very prudently in not pursuing them, for it was a trick of the Iroquois, to
draw us into a greater ambuscade. The marsh, which is about twenty acres, being
passed, we found about three hundred wretched blankets, several miserable guns, and
began to perceive the famous Babylon of the Tsonnontouans ; a city or village of bark.
S6 HiSTOKY OF THE CiTY OF ROCHESTER.
situated on the top of a mountain of earth, to which one rises by three terraces or
hills. It appeared to us from a distance to be crowned with round towers, but these
were only large chests (drums) of bark about four feet in length, set the one in the other
about five feet in diameter, in which they keep their Indian corn. The village had been
burnt by themselves ; it was now eight days since. We found nothing in the town ex-
ce{)t the cemetery and graves. It was filled with snakes and animals ; there was a great
mask with teeth and eyes of brass, and a great bear skin with which they disguise in
their cabins. There were in the four corners' great boxes of grain, which they had not
burned. They had outside this post their Indian corn in a piquet fort at the top of a
little mountain. Steps were cut down on all sides, where it was knee-high throughout
the fort."
On the 15th several old men and women were captured or surrendered,
one of the old men being father or uncle of the chief of the Senecas. "After
we had obtained from the old man all the information he could impart," con-
tiriues DeNonville "he was placed in the hands of the reverend Father Bruyas,
who, finding that he had some traces of the Christian religion through the in-
strumentality of the reverend Jesuit fathers, missionaries for twenty years in
that village, he set about preparing him for baptism, before turning him over
to the Indians who had taken him prisoner. He was baptised, and a little
while after they contented themselves at our solicitation, with knocking him on
the head with a hatchet instead of burning him according t6 their custom. Our
first achievement this day was to set fire to the fort of which we had spoken.
It was eight hundred paces in circumference, well enough flanked for saveges, ■
with a retrenchment advanced for the purpose of communicating with a spring
which is half way down the hill, it being the only place where they could ob-
tain water." During the three days following, the French were engaged in
the destruction of corn, beans and other produce, multitudes of horses, hogs
^nd various kinds of property belonging to the Senecas ; the grain of the small
village of St. Michael, or Gannogarae, distant a short league from the large
town, being destroyed on the 17th. The Indian allies were busy scouring the
country and reported the enemy dispersed through the woods on their retreat
to the Cayugas. From this point DeNonville's narration may be quoted
directly : —
"On the 19th of July moved our camp in the morning from near the village of St.
James or Gannagaro, and encamped before Totiakton,^ surnamed 'the great village,' or
the village of the Conception, distant four leagues from the former. We found there a
still greater number of planted fields, and wherewithal to occupy ourselves for many
days On the 21st went to the small village of Gannounata,' distant
two leagues from the larger, where all the old and new corn was destroyed the same
day, though the quantity was as large as in the other villages. It was at the gate of
1 Boughton hill.
2 It was at this village that the prods verbal (act of taking formal possession of the country) was read.
3 This place the fourth Seneca village, is supposed to have been about two miles southeast of East
Avon, at the source of a small stream which empties into the Conesus, near Avon springs. It was
called Dyu-do-o-sot, by the Senecas, from its location "at the spring."
ToTiAKTON — Its Ancient and Modern History. $7
this village that we found the arms of England, which Sieur Dongan, governor of New
York, had caused to be placed there contrary to all right and reason, in the year 1684,
having antedated the arms as of the year 1683, although it is beyond question that we
first discovered and took possession of that country, and for twenty consecutive years
have had Fathers Fremin, Gamier, etc., as stationary missionaries in all these villages.
On the 22d we returned to Totiakton, to continue there the devastation already com-
menced. On the 23d we sent a large detachment of almost the entire army
to complete the destruction of all the corn still standing in the distant woods. About
seven o'clock in the morning seven Illinois, coming alone from their country to war
against the Iroquois, arrived at the camp as naked as worms, bow in hand, to the great
joy of those whom Sieur de Tonty had brought to us. About noon of the same day
we finished the destruction of the Indian corn. We had the curiosity to estimate the
whole quantity, green as well as ripe, which we had destroyed in the four Seneca vil-
lages, and found that it would amount to 350,000 minots of green, and 50,000 of old
corn [1,200,000 bushels]. We can infer from this the multitude of people in these four
villages, and the great suffering they will experience from this devastation.
" Having nothing more to effect in that country, we left our camp in the afternoon
of the same day to rejoin our bateaux. We advanced only two leagues. On our way
a Huron surprised a Seneca who appeared to be watching our movements. He was
killed on the spot because he refused to follow us. On the 24th of July we reached
our bateaux after marching, six leagues. We halted there on the next day, the 25th, in
order to make arrangements for leaving on the 26th, after having destroyed the redoubt
we had built. We dispatched the barque for Cataracouy, which we had found with
the other two at Ganniatarontagouat, to advise the intendant of the result of our expe-
dition, and by that opportunity sent back those of our camp who were suffering the
most from sickness. On the 26th we set out for Niagara, resolved to occupy that post
as a retreat for all our Indian allies, and thus afford them the means of continuing, in
small detachments, the war against the enemy whom they have not been able to harass
hitherto, being too distant from them and having no place to retire to."
CHAPTER IX.
Totiakton — Its Ancient and Modern History — DeNonville's Return Route to the Sand-Bar.
THE history of Totiakton is a matter of local interest, and the positive iden-
tification of its former site will explain to many inquiring minds the "mys-
tery" regarding the numberless antiquities discovered in its neighborhood. In
1677 Wentworth Greenhalgh made a journey from Albany to the Indians west-
ward, lasting from May 27th to July 14th. In his Observations (Co/. Mss.,
III., p. 252) Mr. Greenhalgh says: —
"Tiotehatton lyes on the brinke or edge of a hill, has not much cleared ground, is
ncare the river Tiotehatton, which signifies 'bending;' itt lyes to westward of Canagorah
about thirty miles, contains aboUt one hundred and twenty houses, being ye largest of
58
History of the City of Rochester.
all ye houses wee saw, ye ordinary being about fifty or sixty feet and some one hundred
and thirty or one hundred and forty foott long, with thirteen or fourteen fires in one
house, they have a good store of corne growing about a mile to ye northward of the
towne. Being att this place the 17th of June, there came fifty prisoners from the south-
west-ward, they were of two nations some whereof have few gunns, ye other none at
all ; one nation is about ten days journey from any Christians and trade only with one
greatt house nott farre from ye sea, and ye other trade only, as they say, with a black
people ; this day of them was burnt two women and a man, and a child killed with a
stone, att night we heard a greatt noyse, as if ye houses had all fallen, butt itt was only ye
I Totiakton. i, a, 2 Ccmeleries.
Sheldon. 8 J. Russell. 9
_ J, 3 Bhifls. 4 Palisaded Fort. 5 Spring. 6, 6, 6 Honeoye Gullet. 7 J. T.
Sheldon's Plain. 10 Sibleyvtlle. 1 1 Honeoye Falls. 12 Line between Mindon and iuist Kush.
MAI' OF TOTIAKTON AND VICINITY.
inabitants driving away ye ghosts of ye murthered. The i8th, goeing to Canagorah.
wee overtook ye prisoners; when ye soldiers saw us they stopped each his prisoner and
made him sing, and cutt off their fingers, and slasht their bodys with a knife, and when
they had sung each man confessed how many men in his time he had killed."
Location of Totiakton. 59
Totiakton was distant from Gannagora just eleven miles in a northwest
direction. Its former site was located by O. H. Marshall in 1847. Blacksmith,
the aged Seneca chief from whom Mr. Marshall obtained much information,
called this village De-yu-di-haak-doh, which he said signifies "the bend," from
its location on a bend of the creek. In this he agrees with Greenhalgh. The
present writer has searched out the old town site and prepared the foregoing
map of the locality from personal survey.
It is in the town of Mendon, Monroe county, on the northeasternmost bend
of Honeoye outlet, two miles north of Honeoye Falls, and exactly twelve and
one-half miles in an air line due south of the center of Rochester. In this
vicinity the Honeoye flows in a beautiful valley varying from one-fourth to
three-fourths of a mile in width, and the channel twists and turns in all direc-
tions through the fertile bottom. The ancient town was located on the table
land which projects into the west side of the valley in the form of a bold bluff,
facing the east, at an elevation of about one hundred and fifty feet above the
water. This ground was purchased by Abncr Sheldon, in 1802, and is now
included in the estate of his son J. F. Sheldon, a gentleman whose courtesy
and valuable assistance in the collection of many facts connected with this sub-
ject will be long and gratefully remembered. The so-called " clear ground,"
when Abner Sheldon came in possession, consisted of "oak openings," and a
number of large trees were then scattered about the old. town site. Judging
from the limits within which relics have been found, the Indian village occu-
pied an area of about twenty-five acres. A plentiful supply of water was ob-
tained from springs situated along the base of the bluff to the north. A fine
"medicine" spring of sulphur- water is now in operation. The ground has been
under cultivation seventy-five years, yielding an annual harvest of antiquities
including human bones, gun-barrels, locks, knives and hatchets of iron ; toma-
hawks, arrow-heads, pestles, skinners, etc., of stone; wampum and beads of
clay ; pottery, brass kettles and trinkets, brass rings bearing the legend I. H. S.,
pipes, bullets, etc., etc. Three cemeteries have been discovered in locations
designated on the map, and all skeletons unearthed have been found in a sitting
posture, facing the east.
On the edge of the bluff, about eighty-five rods southeast of, and overlook-
ing the old town, Mr. Sheldon discovered the ruins of a palisade inclosure,
occupying half an acre of land. It was nearly square in form and built of logs
twelve feet long set closely together in the earth to the depth of four feet. At
the date of its discovery the timber was greatly decayed, many of the palisades
having rotted to the ground. It was doubtless erected by the Indians who
rallied immediately after DeNonville's departure, as a temporary abode, and
defense prior to their permanent settlement elsewhere. The statement of De-
Nonville and other historians of the expedition, regarding the immense amount
of corn destroyed by the French troops, has been questioned by late writers,
5
6o History of the City of Rochester.
yet a thorough survey of old Totiakton and its environs cannot fail to impress
one with a sense of the good judgment exercised by the aboriginal inhabitants
in its selection as a place of permanent abode, and the superior advantages
possessed by the natives for the cultivation of the soil. About two hundred
acres of ground lying southwest of the old Indian village presents a surpris-
ingly smooth, level surface, and was long known as "Abraham's plain." It is
now termed " Sheldon's plain." The Indian corn fields mentioned by Green-
halgh were in the oak openings on this plain, and the rich flats in the valley
bottom were undoubtedly cultivated to some extent.
DeNonville states that the French left Totiakton in the afternoon of July
23d, and advanced two leagues (six miles). On the following day they reached
their bateaux at the mouth of Irondequoit bay, after marching six leagues or
eighteen miles. It is evident that the expedition did not return to Irondequoit
over the same route by which it reached Totiakton, and the course pursued by
the army on its return to the sand-bar has never, within the knowledge of the
present writer, been described or suggested in print. As early as 1682 the
French had become accustomed to all the woods and acquainted with all the
roads through them {^Col. Mss., IX., 195), and the Jesuits, several of whom ac-
companied the expedition, had occupied missions in all the Seneca towns for a
period of twenty years, and doubtless understood every mile of Indian path
east of the Genesee. So well known and public a thoroughfare as the portage
trail between Red creek ford and Irondequoit landing could not have escaped
their knowledge, Personal researches have satisfied the writer that the Indians
once had a road from the Honeoye outlet to Red creek ford. This trail crossed
the Honeoye north of old Totiakton, ran nearly west to an Indian village at
the present East Rush cemetery, and thence northwest to the farm now owned
by Marvin Williams half a mile south of West Henrietta corners,- where evi-
dences of early Indian occupation have been frequently found. A second trail
left the Honeoye above Rush junction, ran north via Hart's Corners and crossed
the farm of David Ely in its course straight to the town on the Williams farm,
which is about six miles from old Totiakton. This place would have been De-
Nonville's camping ground on the night of July 23d if he had followed this
trail. At the east base of the hill upon which the town was located is a large
pond said to have been the original source of Red creek. The distance from
the camp down the Red creek trail to the ford, and via the portage trail and
Irondequoit landing to the sand-bar, is about twenty-two miles. If the French
army pursued this route it passed over the present site of Rochester ; but it
would appear that this road is much too long.
The writer has traced a trail from the Irondequoit landing-path at the resi-
dence of Charles M. Barnes in Brighton, across the Pittsford road to an old
town site on Allen's creek in the town of Pittsford, which ran up the east side
of the creek directly south. If this trail continued on the same general course
Numerical Strength of the Iroquois. 6i
it would strike Totiakton. On this line, a short distance north of Mendon Cen-
ter, are several large ponds fed by springs, where the Senecas went to fish, and
numerous indications of Indian camps have been found the entire length of the
Allen's creek valley. The distance from the old Indian settlement, by the pres-
ent road, to the mouth of Irondequoit bay is about twenty-two miles, and this
agrees more perfectly with DeNonville's estimate of eight leagues, or twenty-
four miles. That an Indian path once extended over this line from Irondequoit
to Mendon can hardly be doubted, though its exact course is not known, and
it is very probable that the French army returned to the sand-bar on this trail.
CHAPTER X.
Strength of the Iroquois — A Terrible Revenge — French Invasions — Irondequoit a Place of Great
Importance in Colonial Times — Fort des Sables — Charlevoix Describes the Casconchiagon — Captain
Schuyler Builds a Trading-House at Irondequoit Landing — His Official Instructions — Oliver Culver
Discovers the Ruins of the Trading-House — Senecas Sell the Lower Genesee Country to the King of
England — British Armies at Irondequoit.
THE early French ignored the native names of people and places in many
instances, and applied such designations as pleased themselves. Occa-
sionally Indian names were used, but not as a rule. The Mohawk canton was
called Anniegue, the Oneida Onneiout, the Onondaga Onnontague, Cayuga
Oioguen, and the Seneca Sonnontouan. In 1665 the Jesuits estimated the num-
ber of warriors at 2,340. In 1667 Colonel Courcey, agent for Virginia, stated
that the Five Nations had 2,150 warriors. Wentworth Greenhalgh in 1677
placed the number of fighting men at 2,150. In 1685 DeNonville gave the
numerical strength of the Iroquois as follows: Mohawks 250, Oneidas 150,
Onondagas 300, Cayugas 200, Senecas 1,200, or 2,100 men all told, capable
of bearing arms. Marshall estimates the entire population about that date as
7,000, but Bancroft says that in 1660 the whole number could not have varied
much from ten thousand ; and their warriors strolled as conquerors from Hud-
son's bay to Carolina, and from the Kennebec to the Tennessee. The Seneca
was the most powerful nation of the league, and had all its braves been a
home when the French arrived at Irondequoit, the history of DeNonville's
expedition would doubtless record a disastrous repulse of the invaders, who
claimed that they routed and put to flight eight hundred Senecas. The latter
stated that the greater part of their warriors were absent, fighting distant foes,
and their entire force in the engagement, with the French consisted of only four
hundred and fifty men. The Seneca loss probably did not greatly exceed one
hundred, and many of these were old men and boys not reckoned active war-
riors, hence their military strength was but sHghtly diminished. They retreated
62 History of the City of Rochester.
to Canandaigiia, and in an incredibly short space of time collected a force of
one thousand men, who took the trail for Niagara. Upon the completion of
the fort at that place by the French, a detachment under La Hontan was or-
dered west to relieve the garrison of Fort St. Joseph at Detroit. That officer
portaged the falls of Niagara and embarked his troops at Schlosser. The party
had barely left the land when the thousand Iroquois appeared on the shore in
close pursuit. The French succeeded in reaching Lake Erie in safety, and,
distancing the heavy canoes of the Indians, escaped to the north shore.
In 1688 DeNonville induced the Five Nations to send a delegation to Mon-
treal for the purpose of agreeing upon terms of peace. The Iroquois dispatched
seventeen hundred men to the St. Lawrence, five hundred visiting Montreal as
a peace delegation, and twelve hundred awaiting the result near at hand. A
treaty was concluded, but one Kondiaronk, a Huron chief, determined to frus-
trate it. When a party of the Iroquois peace envoys were returning up the
St. Lawrence, Kondiaronk attacked them, killed several and captured the rest.
He represented that he was acting upon an understanding with the French, and,
when informed that he had destroyed a, peace delegation, affected great indig-
nation, released his prisoners and advised them to avenge their fallen friends.
During the summer twelve hundred Iroquois landed on the south side of Mon-
treal, and destroyed the place, slaughtering men, women and children without
mercy. Smith says that "a thousand French were slain in the invasion, and
twenty-six carried into captivity and burned alive. Many more were made
prisoners in another attack in October, and the lower part of the Island of Mon-
treal wholly destroyed."
War between France and England occurred soon after, lasting until 1697.
With few exceptions the Iroquois remained implacable enemies of the French,
and the latter made several invasions of the Iroquois country. In 1689 La
Hontan entered New York from the south shore of Lake Erie with an army of
western Indians, and had several engagements with the Iroquois, but his battle
grounds have never been identified. In February, 1692, an army of French
and Huron allies attacked the hunting parties of the Senecas in Upper Canada.
In 1693 the Mohawk country was devastated. The last French expedition
against the Five Nations of which we have any record occurred in 1696, when
Count de Frontenac landed an army at Oswego and destroyed the crops of the
Onondagas and Oneidas. That expeditions were made to the Seneca country,
and battles fought here of which no known record exists, is fully believed by
those who have given the subject of Indian antiquities thought and study.
Did space permit, many excellent reasons influencing this belief might be pre-
sented. The French occupancy of Western New York has never been fully
recorded, and lasting memorials of unknown struggles upon .our honie soil have,
for years, proved perplexing obstacles to the completion of a perfect history.
From 1689 to the treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, the French and English may be
Fort des Sables. 63
said to have been continually at war in all our great lake region, and the con-
test for dominion and control of the Indian trade ceased only upon the final
overthrow of French power in Canada. During all this period Oswego, Iron-
dequoit and Niagara remained subjects of contention.
In April, 1700, Robert Livingstone, then secretary of Indian affairs for New
York, made a journey to Onondaga to ascertain the condition of matters within
his jurisdiction. In his report of the trip to the earl of Bellomont, he says;
"I do humbly offer that it is morally impossible to secure the Five Nations to
the English interest any longer, without building forts and securing the pa.sses
that lead to their castles." Mr. Livingstone recommended the erection of a
fort between Lakes Erie and Huron at a point 744 miles southwest of Albany,
and mentions the route to that place as follows : "Albany to Terindequat [Iron-
dequoit] at the Lake of Cadatacqui [Ontario] 400 miles, thence to Onyagara
where the great fall is eighty miles, from thence to the beginning of Swege
[Erie] lake 64 miles, to Swege creek and from thence to Wawachtonok 160
miles." He also recommended a fort on the Onondaga river, to be garrisoned
with 100 youths, and remarked : " It is true that the French do trade, and have
small hutts and berks which they call forts at some of those Indian habitations
where they have priests."
The governor of Canada also desired to erect forts, one at Niagara, "the
second at Jerondaquat, that is, on this side of Cadaracqui lake where the path
goes up to the Sinnekes castles, about thirty miles from where the Sinnekes
have now their castles." August 20th, 1701, Lieutenant-Governor Nanfan
reported to the lords of trade that he had procured from the Five Nations an
instrument whereby they conveyed to the crown of England a tract of land
800 miles long and 400 broad, including all their beaver hunting, which tract
began at Jarondigat." 1
In 1 716, the French erected a building near the present site of the Sea
Breeze hotel at the northwest angle of Irondequoit bay and Lake Ontario.^
It was known to the French as Fort des Sables, and appears to have been con-
sidered quite an important station. Ata private conference held in June, 1717,
between Governor Hunter of New York and two sachems of each of the Five
Nations, the latter said : —
"We have had two messages from hence — one la,st fall and another this winter —
to inquire if the French had built a fort and planted a garrison on this side the great lake,
at a place called Terondoquat, belonging to the Sinnekes; we could not give them a
positive answer till we had sent as far as the Senekes ; but now can tell your excellency
that there is no such thing, but that the French have built a trading-house at the said
place, where they supply our Indians with powder and lead to fight against the Flat-
heads and other enemies of the Five Nations ; and we must likewise acquaint you that
1 Col. Mss., IV., 888.
2 For the identification of this location 1 am indebted to my good friend B. Fernow, keeper of his-
torical documents of the state library at Albany.
64 History of the City of Rochester.
our people are furnished with other goods also at the said French trading-house, as
clothing and other necessaries, which stops a great deal of peltry coming hither; but the
French are supplied with all those goods from the people here at Albany, which goes
first to Canada and from thence up Mount Royal river and so on to Terondoquat, where
the French trading-house is built upon ground belonging to the Sennekes. If you will
stop that trade of goods being carried from hence to Canada the other trade will fall of
course."
In May, 1720, Lawrence Clawsen was sent to Niagara to protest against
the erection of forts on the Seneca lands, by the French, and in his journal
says : " On the 7th I returned to Tjerondequatt, where I mett a French smith
sent by the governor of Canada to work for the Sinnekies gratis."
It would seem that Fort des Sables was not in the ordinary sense a military
post. Charlevoix tells us that the French erected cabins, surrounded by pickets,
"to which they give beforehand the name of Fort, for they say that in time
it will be changed into a real fortress." Rev. John Durant, who passed Ironde-
quoit in 17 18, says the French left only one storekeeper and two soldiers at
such posts during each winter. In October, 1720, the Sieur de Joncaire left
Montreal for Niagara, with two canoes laden with merchandise, and twelve
soldiers, "whereof he sent six when he arrived at the fort of Cataraque. He
pursued afterward his voyage, but the ice stopped him thirty-five leagues from
the mouth of the river of Niagara, where he was obliged to go into another river
called Gaschonchiagon, where he passed the winter." Father Charlevoix
stopped at Irondequoit bay ifiKMay, 172 1, on his journey westward, and, writ-
ing soon after from Niagara, says : —
"I departed from the river of Sables the 21st, before sunrise; but, the wind con-
tinuing against us, we were obliged at ten o'clock to enter the bay of the Tsonnon-
thouans [Braddock's bay]. Half way from the river of Sables to this bay there is a
little river [the Genesee], which I would not have failed to have visited, if I had been
sooner informed of its singularity, and of what I have just now learned on my arriving
here. They call this river Casconchiagon. It is very narrow and of little depth at its
entrance into the lake. A little higher it is one hundred and forty yards wide, and they
say it is deep enough for the largest vessels. Two leagues from its mouth we are
stopped by a fall which appears to be sixty feet high, and one hundred and forty yards
wide. A musket shot higher we find a second of the same width, but not so high by
two-thirds. Half a league further a third, one hundred feet high, good pleasure, and
two hundred yards wide. After this we meet with several torrents; and after having
sailed fifty leagues further we meet a fourth fall [Portage] every way equal to the third.
The course of this river is one hundred leagues, and when we have gone up it about
sixty leagues we have but ten to go by land, taking to the right, to arrive at the Ohio,
called La Belle Riviere. The place where we meet with it is called Ganos ; where an
officer worthy of credit (M. de Joncaire) and the same from whom I learnt what I have
just now mentioned, assured me that he had seen a fountain the water of which is like
oil, and has the taste of iron. He said also that a little further there is another fountain
exactly like it, and that the savages make use of its waters to appease all manner of
pains. The bay of the Tsonnonthouans is a charming place. A pretty river winds
here between two meadows, bordered with little hills, between which we discover
SOUTHEAST VIEW OF THE GREAT CATARACT
ON CASCONCHIAGON OR LITTLE SENEGA'S RIVER, LAKE ONTARIO.
1768.
SOUTHEAST VIEW OF THE LOWER CATARACT
ON CASCONCHIAGON [GENESEE] OR LITTLE SENEGA'S RIVER, LAKE ONTARIO.
1768.
Trading House at Irondequoit. 65
valleys which extend a great way, and the whole fprms the finest prospect in the world,
bounded by a great forest of high trees; but the soil appears to be somewhat light
and sandy."
The actual occupation of the Seneca country by the French was an incen-
tive to the English to adopt measures for protection of the Indian trade, and
in the early summer of 1721 the assembly of New York passed an act for
raising the sum of five hundred pounds for securing the Indians to the English
interest. This sum Governor Burnet expended chiefly in the establishment
of a settlement at Irondequoit. His project met with the hearty approval of
the authorities at Albany, and a small company of volunteers was promptly
organised to carry it into effect. This company consisted of Captain Peter
Schuyler, jr., Lieutenant Jacob Verplanck, Gilleyn Verplanck, Johannis Van
den Bergh, Peter Gronendyck, David Van der Heyden and two others w^ose
names are unknown. Governor Burnet's instructions to Captain Schuyler
were as follows : —
" You are with all expedition to go with this company of young men that are will-
ing to settle in the Sinnekes' country for a twelvemonth to drive a trade with the far
Indians that come from the upper lakes, and endeavor by all suitable means to persuade
them to come and trade at Albany or with this new settlement. You are not to trade
with the four hithermost nations but to carry your goods as farr as tlie Sinnekes'
country to trade with them or any other Indian nations that come hither. You are to
make a settlement or trading-house either at Jerondoquat or any other convenient place
on this side of Cadarachqui lake upon the land 'belonging to the Sinnekes, and use all
lawful! means to draw the furr trade thither by sending notice to the farr Indians that
you are settled there for their ease and incouragement by my order, and that they may
be assured they shal have goods cheaper here than ever the French can afford them at
Canada, for the French must have the principal Indian goods from England, not having
them of their own. You are also to acquaint all the far Indians that I have an abso-
lute promise and engagement from the Five Nations that will not only suffer them to
pass freely and peaceably through their country, but will give them all due encourage-
ment and sweep and keep the path open and clean when ever they intend to come and
trade with this province. Being informed that there are sundry French men called by
the Dutch 'bush loopers,' and by the French coureurs du bois, who have for several
years abandoned the French colony of Canada and live wholly among the Indians, if
any such come to trade with you, with their furrs, you may supply them and give them
all possible incouragement to come hither where they shall be supplyed with Indian
goods much cheaper than at Canada. Altho the place where ypu settle be land be-
longing to the crown of Great Britain, both by the surrender of the natives and the
treaty of peace with France, nevertheless you are to send out skouts and spyes and be
ui)on your guard, the French not being to be trusted, who will use all means to prevent
the far Indians coming to trade with you or their coming to Albany. You are to keep
an exact dyary or journall of all your proceedings of any consequence, and keep a
constant correspondence with the commissioners of the Indian affairs at Albany, whom
I will order to give me an account thereof from time to time, and whenever you shall
receive orders from me to treat with the Sinnekes, or any of the Five Nations, you are
to be carefuU to minute down your proceedings and their answers, and to send them to
me with the first opportunity, inclosing them to the commissioners of the Indian affairs
66 History of the City of Rochester.
who will forward them with all expedition, and if any matters of great moment and fit
to be kept very secret do occur, you are to send an account thereof to me in a letter
sealed, which may be inclosed to the commissioners in order to be forwarded, and you
are not obliged to mention such matters in your letter to the commissioners. When
you come to the Sinnekes' country you are to give them a belt of wampum in token
that they are to give credit to you as my agent to treat with them of all matters relat-
ing to the public service and the benefit of the trade, and at your desire to furnish you
with a number of their people as you shall want for yoyr assistance and safety on such
conditions as you and they can agree upon. When you have pitched upon a con-
venient place for a trading-house, you are to endeavor to purchase a tract of land in
the king's name, and to agree with the Sinnekes for it which shall be paid by the publick
in order that it may be granted by patent to those that shall be the first settlers there
for their incouragement. You are not to hinder or molest any other British subjects who
are willing to trade there on their own hazard and account for any Indian goods, rum
only excepted. You are to communicate to the company such articles of your instruc-
tions as shall be proper for their regulation from time to time. If you judge it neces-
sary you may send one or two of your company either among the far Indians, or to
come to Albany, as the necessary service of the company shall require, but not above
two of the said company, of which yourself may be one, will be permitted to be absent
at one time. When you are about to absent yourself from the said settlement you are
to leave a copy of such part of instructions with the lieutenant as you judge necessary
for his regulation. All the goods and merchandize that you and said company shall
take away with you are to be upon one joint stock and account and all your profitt and
losse to be the same. Given under my hand at the manor of Livingston the eleventh
day of September in the eighth year of his majesty's reign, anno Dom. 1721.
"Wm: Burnet."
Additional Instructions.
"Whereas it is thought of great use to the British interest to have a settlement upon
the nearest port of the Lake Eree near the falls of lagara, you are to endeavor to
purchase in his majesty's name of the Sinnekes or other native propriators all such
lands above the falls of lagara fifty miles to the southward of the said falls which they
can dispose off, you are to have a copy of my propositions to the Five Nations and their
answer, and to use your utmost endeavors that they do perform all that they have
promised therein, and that none of these instructions be shewn to any person or persons
but what you shall think necessary to communicate to the lieutenant and the rest of
the company."
Upon his arHval at Irondequoit Captain Schuyler selected a location for
his trading-house secure from French surveillance, yet affording easy access
from Lake Ontario, and control of all Indian paths leading to the water. The
actual site of the building was a little plateau overlooking the noted Indian
landing on Irondequoit creek, at the eastern terminus of the grand portage
trail. This spot may be regarded as the most important point in all the. lower
Genesee country. It was the great Indian landing-place from Lake Ontario,
and general trading-ground of the early tribes.. Previous to the building
of Fort des Sables the French ran their little sailing vessels up the bay and
creek to this landing, and it was doubtless at this place, and not in the Genesee
Purchase of Irondequoit by the English. 6y
river, that the brigantlne of La Salle dropped anchor in June, 1670. There
the Senecas went to trade furs for arms, trinkets and brandy; there Father
Hennepin left the bartering crew of French and Indians, and wandered deep
into the woods, built a chapel of bark wherein, secure from observation and in
communion with nature, he performed his religious duties. ^ The house erected
by Captain Schuyler's company stood a short distance from the edge of the
bluff, with one side facing the creek. It was an oblong structure of consider-
able size. After an occupation lasting one year, Captain Schuyler returned to
Albany in September, 1772, with all his company. While excavating the
earth for a building upon the same location about 1798, Oliver Culver dis-
covered the foundation logs of a block-house, evidently destroyed by fire, and
musket balls, etc., in large quantities. It has been assumed by certain writers
that the ruins discovered at the Irondequoit creek landing by Mr. Culver were
the remains of a battery or redoubt built by DeNonville, and that his army
actually landed at that place, but this is an error. As we have already shown,
DeNonville's army landed at the mouth of Irondequoit bay, and the only
fortification erected by the French at that time was on the sand-bar. It is
supposed, however, that the "first defile" mentioned by DeNonville was the
passage through the valley at the Irondequoit landing. The ruins found by
Mr. Culver were undoubtedly the lower logs of Captain Schuyler's trading-
house.
For many years Irondequoit, as the great pass to the Seneca country,
proved a bone of earnest contention between French and English, each nation
proposing to build a stone fortress at the entrance of the bay upon obtaining
the consent of its rightful owners, the Seneca Indians. In August, 1741,
Lieutenant-Governor Clarke, of New York, wrote the lords of trade as
follows : —
" I have the honor to inform your lordships that by the means of some people
whom I sent last year to reside in the Senecas' country (as usual) I obtained a deed
for the lands at Tierrondequat from the sachimes, and I have sent orders to those
people to go around the lands in company with some of the sachimes and to mark the
trees, that it may be known at all times hereafter how much they have given up to us.''
"Deed to His Majesty of the Lands Around Tierondequat.
"To all people to whome these presents shall or may come We, Tenekokaiwee,
Tewasajes and Staghreche, Principall Sachims of the Sinnekes' country, native Indians,
of the province of New York, send greeting. Know yee that for sundry good causes
and considerations us Moveing but More Especially for and in consideration of the
value of one hundred pounds currant money of the said province, unto us in hand paid
and delivered at and before the ensealing and delivery hereof by the receipt whereof we
do hereby acknowledge and therewith to be fully paid and contented thereof and there-
from and of and from every part and parcell thereof, do fully clearly and absolutely
request exonerate and discharge them the Said their Executors Administrators and
1 New Discovery, p. 109.
68 History of the City of Rochester.
Assigns and every of them forever by these presents have therefore given granted
released and forever quit Claimed and by these presents for us and our defendants do
give grant release and forever quit claim unto our most gracious Sovereign Lord
George the second by the grace of God of Great Britain France and Ireland King
Defender of the faith etc., his heirs and Successors all our Right title and Interest
Claime property profession and demand of in and to all that tract of land Scituate
lying and being in the county of Albany beginning on the bank of the Oswego lake
six miles easterd of Tierondequat and runs from thence along the Lake westward
twenty miles and from the Lake southeastward thirty miles keeping that distance from
the Lake all the way from the beginning to the end with all and Singular of woods
underwoods trees mines mineralls quarrys hereditaments and appertenances whatsoever
and the Reversion and Reversions Remainder and Remainders Rents Issues and
Profitts thereof to have- and to hold all and singular the above bargained premisses with
the appurtenances unto our said most gracious Sovereign Lord his heirs Successors and
Assigns to the sole and only proper use benefitt and behoof of our said Sovereign Lord
his heirs Successors and. Assigns for ever, in Testimony whereof we have hereinto sett
our marks and seals this tenth day of January in the fourteenth year of his Majesties
Reign annoq: Dom : i74f-
v(V^ Sergrmen.
Dekoschten I ^_
alias Tenehokaiwee "^^ ^
/T Sergrmen.
Signed Sealed and Delivered Twessa
In the presence of
l^O
Hendryck Wempel „ "^ ^ Sergrmen,
-- _ Staichreseh W °
Jacobus Van Eps
Philip Ryder
^O
"Albany 3d October 1741 appeared before Philip Livingston Esquire one of his
Majesties Councill for the Province of New York Hendrik Wemp Jacobus Van Eps
and Philip Ryder who declared on the holy Evangelists of Almighty God that they
saw the within named Tenehokaiwe Tewassajes and Staghreche Sachims Sign Scale and
deliver ye within deed as their voluntary act and deed for the use therein mentioned.
" P : Livingston."
Governor Clarke made repeated efforts to effect the settlement of an English
colony at Irondequoit, without success. Oswego, being on the main water
communication between Albany and Lake Ontario, and Niagara, controlling
the passage to Erie and the western lakes, became the principal points of
contest, and great forts were built at those places while Irondequoit remained
a simple trading station. July 1st, 1759, General Prideaux, with Sir William
Johnson second in command, left Oswego with an army of two thousand men
and five hundred Indians on an expedition against Fort Niagara, at the mouth
of Niagara river, then occupied by the French. The expedition was supplied
with heavy artillery and all necessary military equipments for a protracted
siege, and was transported in vessels, bateaux and canoes. Coasting the south
shore of Lake Ontario, the first night's encampment was at Sodus, the second
The Seneca Castles on the Genesee. 69
at Irondequoit and the third in Braddock's bay — which latter place was then
named Prideaux bay, in honor of the English commander, who was killed a
few days later during the siege. At each halting-place discharges of artillery
were made to inspire their Indian allies with courage, and their foes with terror.
Upon the surrender of Fort Niagara Sir William Johnson, with nearly all his
army and six hundred prisoners, returned down the lake to Oswego, again camp-
ing at Irondequoit. In 1764 General Bradstreet left Oswego upon an expedi-
tion against the hostile western tribes under Pontiac. During the passage up
Lake Ontario his army, consisting of twelve hundred troops, followed by Sir
William Johnson with six hundred Indians, also encamped at Irondequoit.
Israel Putnam, of Bunker Hill fame, was then lieutenant-colonel of the Con-
necticut battalion in the expedition, and several other men who subsequently
became illustrious patriots of the Revolution, were ofificers of Bradstreet's army.
CHAPTER XI.
The Seneca Castles on the Genesee — Treaty of Peace with the English — Decline of Iroquois
Power — Sullivan's Campaign against the Senecas — Fa,te of Lieutenant Boyd — Sullivan's Troops on
the Site of Rochester.
THE red men seldom rebuilt upon the site of a town destroyed by enemies,
though they occasionally settled in the near vicinity of such places. As
a rule the surviving inhabitants removed to a distance. After the destruction
of their four principal villages by DeNonville, the Senecas sought other local-
ities for their settlements. Towns sprang up in the lower Genesee country,
mainly on the trails leading to Irondequoit bay, but as early a? 1715 their cas-
tles were located on the middle and upper Genesee. The frequent removals
and establishment of new towns render any chronological account of the Seneca
settlements impossible. The soil of the Genesee valley is rich with humble
memorials of their presence in every part of its rugged uplands and alluvial
flats, and, did space permit, it might prove an interesting theme to point out
existing evidences of several large Indian towns which were located in the im-
mediate neighborhood of Rochester ; but this shall be our task at some future
day ; at present we must hasten with the record of changes contemporary with
the close of aboriginal occupation. For a period of twenty years following the,
termination of French dominion in Western New York in 1759 there are few'
events of direct local bearing recorded in history. The Iroquois had steadily'
maintained* their sole right to possession of the Genesee country against all
comers, and upon the overthrow of the French at Niagara naturally sided with
them against the conquerors, entering into active preparations to rid the coun-
70 History of the City of Rochester.
try of every Englishman. Immediately succeeding the treaty of Paris in 1763
and consequent end of the French war, the Iroquois decided to acquiesce in
the' general submission to British rule. April 3d, 1764, a preliminary treaty
was.arranged between the Senecas and English at Johnson Hall, and ratified
at Niagara the following summer under a peremptory threat of General Brad-
street to at once destroy the Seneca settlements if the peace compact was not
promptly and fully confirmed by all the nation. This treaty was the beginning
of the end of Indian domination in the Genesee country.- Among other con-
cessions wrung from the Senecas by the terms of^this peace was the surrender
of title to lands along the Niagara river between Lakes Ontario and Erie.
Having large niilitary forces at Oswego and Niagara, the English were prepared
to follow up this acquisition of title by actual occupation and control of the
grounds ceded, and the foothold thus obtained by the whites was never relin-
quished.
The diversion of the direct channel of western tradi to and through Oswego
eastward, upon the ascendency of the English, rendered Irondequoit and the
lower Genesee comparatively unimportant stations, or ports of the Senecas.
Individual traders and small parties of whites often visited the Indian settle-
ments and British troops occasionally passed through the dark forests, but the
border line of civilisation was far to the eastward, and the exciting events pre-
ceding the struggle between the colonists and mother-land failed to disturb the
primitive peace of our home wilderness. Through all the dreadful scenes of
the Revolution the occurrences on the lower Genesee were confined to the pas-
sage of war parties of British and Indians, but the great " vale of the Senecas"
became a stronghold and secure retreat for predatory bands of tories and sav-
ages, who made frequent, desolating incursions and "hung like a scythe of
death" about all the border towns of the American colonists. In retahation Gen-
eral John Sullivan invaded the Genesee country with an army. of four thousand
men during the summer of, 1779, and destroyed the Indian settlements. On
his march up the Tioga — or Chemung, as it is now called — he attacked and
routed some twelve or fifteen hundred British troops, tories and savages under
Butler, Johnson and Brandt, who were intrenched at Newtown, about four
miles below the present city of Elniira. The retreating enemy were followed
to Geneva, Canandaigua and Conesus. Sullivan expected to find the famous
Genesee Indian castle at the mouth of the Canaseraga creek, but in all his army
there was not a single person sufficiently acquainted with the country to guide
a party outside the Indian trails, and on his arrival at Ka-naugh-saws (head of
Conesus lake) he dispatched Lieutenant Thomas Boyd of Morgan's rifle corps,
with twenty-six men, to ascertain the location of the town. Boyd's little band
crossed the Conesus' outlet and followed the trail to a village on the Canaseraga,
about seven miles distant, which was found deserted, the fires still burning.
The party encamped near the town and on the following morning, Septem-
Sullivan's Expedition. 71
ber 13th, 1779, started to rejoin the army. Just as they were descending the
hill at the base of which the army lay, five or six hundred warriors and loyal-
ists under Brandt and Butler rose up before them and with horrid yells closed
in upon the little band from every side. In the terrific struggle that followed,
all the' party were killed except Murphy, McDonald, Putnam and a Canadian,
who escaped, and Boyd and Parker, who were captured. The prisoners were
conducted to Little Beard's Town (now Cuylerville), which was then termed the
Chinesee castle, and upon their refusal to impart information regarding Sulli-
van's army were turned over to the Indians. Parker was simply beheaded, but
Boyd was subjected to the most horrible tortures that savage ingenuity could in-
flict. Sullivan's soldiers, who had crossed the Genesee to attack Little Beard's
Town, were so close at the time that the advance found the remains of Boyd
and Parker while the blood was. still oozing from the headless trunks. They
were buried that evening with military honors,' under a clump of wild plum
trees, at the junction of two small streams which form Beard's creek, and a
large mound was raised over the grave. ^
Previous to the arrival of Sullivan's army the Indians had sent all their
women and children to Silver lake, and upon the first appearance of the Amer-
ican troops on the west side of the river the enemy fled precipitately. Brandt
with his warriors and the British regulars took the Moscow trail for Buffalo
creek and Niagara, while the tory rangers went to the Caledonia springs. From
that place Walker, the noted British spy, was sent to Fort Niagara with instruc-
tions to obtain a sufficient number of boats to transport the tories and meet
them at the mouth of the Genesee river. The rangers then came down the trail
to Red creek ford at the rapids in South Rochester (see chapter VI.), where
they divided into two parties, one going directly to the lake, by the St. Paul
street route; the other over the portage trail to Irondequoit landing and the
tories' retreat in the great ox-bow curve of the Irondequoit creek, thence across
the country to the mouth of the Genesee, where the boats from Niagara found
the entire party in a starving condition some days later. Little Beard's Town
is said to have been the extreme western point reached by Sullivan, and it has
long been a question of considerable interest whether any part of his army de-
scended the Genesee to the vicinity of Rochester. Following the arrival of the
troops at the Genesee castle all property of the Indians was ruthlessly destroyed,
including one hundred houses, some two hundred acres of grain, large crops of
beans and potatoes, and several orchards, one of which contained fifteen hun-
dred trees. "While this work was in progress at Little Beard's Town," says
Norton, "General Sullivan, according to the undisputed tradition of years, sent
Generals Poor and Maxwell down the river to Cannawaugus, which place they'
destroyed, and on this return march likewise burned Big Tree village. Gen-
1 For an account of the final disposition of their bones, the reader is referred to chapter XIX. of this
history.
72 History of the City of Rochester.
eral Sullivan makes no mention of this fact, nor is the destruction of Canna-
waugus recorded in the numerous journals kept by officers of Sullivan's army;
the conclusion is irresistible that no portion of the army got as far north as
Cannawaugus, and that that village escaped the general destruction ; Big Tree
village, it is sufficient to say, had no existence on the Genesee until after the
Revolution." i
While the return route of Sullivan's army is fully understood, it is not prob-
able that the minor incidents of each scouting expedition were considered of
sufficient importance to merit special record. Sullivan's spies undoubtedly
followed the retreating enemy some distance, and one or more parties of scouts
may have trailed the tories to Irondequoit and the mouth of the river. The
rangers certainly believed that Sullivan's men were in their immediate vicinity,
as they concealed themselves in the brush and dared not shoot a gun, build a
fire or expose their precious carcasses until the appearance of Walker with the
boats for their removal. The Indians retreated to Fort Niagara, and most of
the Senecas remained there during the winter, which was unusually severe.
The food furnished by the British being insufficient and of inferior quality, hun-
dreds of Indians died from starvation and scurvy. Few ever returned to their .
old homes east of the Genesee, the main body of Senecas settling at Buffalo
creek, Squawkie hill, Little Beard's Town and Cannawaugus. Some came upon
the lower Genesee, and as late as 1796 the town located on the Culver farm in
Irondequoit (see chapter VI.) numbered over three hundred inhabitants. Their
power as a nation was completely broken, and upon the conclusion of peace
between the United States and England, the latter nation made no provision
for her defeated Indian allies, leaving them entirely to the mercy of the
Americans.
1 Sullivan's Campaigit, by A. Tiffany Norton, p. i66. While this statement of Norton's would
appear to effectually dispose of the question, it is quite certain that the pioneers of the lower Genesee
firmly believed that .Sullivan's army, or some considerable portion of the troops, actually came within
the present boundaries of Rochester. In 1810 Jacob Miller settled the Red creek ford farm on the east
bank of the Genesee, and found a number of decaying boats near the mouth of Red creek. ■ Mr. Miller
was repeatedly informed by Indians that these were the remains of boats used by Sullivan's soldiers
who came down the river in pursuit of the tory rangers.
About 1821 Charles M. Barnes, Calvin and Russell Eaton and a fourth boy named Stanley were at .
play on the bank of Allen's creek in Brighton, near the crossing of East avenue. They noticed a man,
apparently about seventy years of age, looking around at various objects, and inquired what he was
searching for. The stranger replied " I was in Sullivan's army, and the first night after the fight I
slept under a large white oak tree that stood near this spot. The place has altered very much, but I
recollect that it was under a tree that stood close to the creek." The boys pointed out a large white
oak Titump standing on the east bank of the stream some rods below, and the stranger thought that
might have been the exact spot where he slept, but could not say positively, as the surroundings were
so changed. He told the boys his name and rank and related several incidents of Sullivan's march.
Mr. Barnes is still living, hale and hearty at seventy-three, and has a distinct remembrance of the cir-
cumstance, though the name of the stranger was forgotten years ago. The relation of similar incidents
was common among our early settlers, and there can be little doubt that they were founded on fact.
First White Occupancy. 73
CHAPTER XII.
The White Man's Occupancy of the Genesee Country — The Native Title Extinguished — Indian
Reservations — Present Indian Population.
THE soldiers of Sullivan's army carried to their eastern homes wonderful
tales of Western New York, of its grand forests, natural meadows, rich
soil and valuable watercourses, and to many the Genesee country became the
land of promise and the Eden of pioneer hopes. At the close of the Revolu-
tionary war all of New York west of German Flats was a wilderness inhabited
by Indians only. At the conclusion of peace in 1783 King George III. re-
linquished his claim to this territory, to the United States. The state of New
York asserted her right to all lands extending westerly to Lakes Erie and On-
tario, founding her claim mainly as successor to the Five Nations and on the
acquiescence of the British crown. Massachusetts resisted this claim upon the
ground of prior title to certain portions of the land by virtue of a charter granted
to the council of Plymouth by King James I. in 1620. This dispute was settled
by a treaty held at Hartford, Connecticut, in December, 1786. Among other
conditions of the settlement, Massachusetts relinquished all sovereignty and
jurisdiction over all that part of the state of New York lying west of a meridian
drawn through Seneca lake, and comprising what were subsequently known as
the Phelps & Gorham and Holland Land company's purchases (see New York
Charter, by O. H. Marshall), reserving the right of preemption in the soil, or
in other words the right to purchase of the Indians. In April, 1788, Oliver
Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham purchased of Massachusetts the preemption
right of the territory ceded to that state, comprising some six million acres,
for one million dollars. In July of that year these gentlemen extinguished
the "native right" to a portion of these lands by purchase of the Indians at a ■
treaty held at Buffalo, and in 1790, being unable to fulfill their agreement with
Massachusetts, prevailed on that commonwealth to take back four million
acres and reduce the amount of ther purchase money to thirty-one thousand
pounds. After settling a portion of their tract, in November, 1790, Phelps and
Gorham disposed of nearly all the residue, about 1,264,000 acres, to Robert
Morri.s, who sold the same to Charles Williamson, who held it in trust for Sir
William Pulteney. The Pulteney estate was bounded "on the north by Lake
Ontario, east by the preemption line, south by the state of Pennsylvania, west
by a transit meridian line due north from latitude 42 to the Genesee riv^at
its junction with the Canaseraga creek, thence by the Genesee river to the
south line of Caledonia, thence west twelve miles, and thence northwesterly by
the east line of the 'triangle,' twelve miles west of the Genesee river to Lake
Ontario." It is not our purpose at this time to trace the succession of title
to lands in Western New York. It is sufficient to say that Massachusetts sold
74 History of the City of Rochester.
the four million acres given up by Phelps and Gorham, to Robert Morris. In
1 792-3 Mr. Morris sold nearly all of his interest in lands west of the Genesee
river, to Herman Le Roy, William Bayard, Matthew Clarkson, Garrett Boon
and John Linklaen, in trust for certain gentlmen in Holland, and this tract was
afterward known 4s the "Holland Purchase." A law permitting aliens to hold
real estate was passed soon after, enabling Sir William Pulteney and the Hol-
landers to assume the titles of their respective estates. By the terms of his
transactions with Sir William Pulteney and the Holland company, Mr. Morris
was bound to extinguish the whole native title to all lands between Seneca
lake and the Niagara frontier, and accordingly a treaty with the Senecas was
held at Geneseo (Big Tree) in September, 1797. Of the six million acres in
Western New York owned by the Indians previous to Phelps and Gorham 's
first purchase in 1787, the terms of the Geneseo treaty left for their use only
the following described " reservations:" —
" 1 . Cannawaugus, two square miles lying on the west bank of the Genesee river, west
of Avon. 2 and 3. Big Tree and Little Beard, in all four square miles on the west
bank of the Genesee, near Geneseo. 4. Squawkie Hill, two miles square, on the west
bank of the Genesee, north of Mount Morris. 5. Gardeau, or Gardow, the "white
woman's" reservation, containing abovit twenty-eight square miles (17,927 acres) on both
sides of the Genesee river, between Mount Morris and Portage. 6. Caneadea, sixteen
square miles, on both sides of the Genesee above Portage. 7. Oil Spring, one square
mile on the line between Alleghany and Cattaraugus counties. 8. Alleghany, forty-four
square miles, on both sides of the Alleghany river, near Salamanca. 9. Cattaraugus,
forty-two square miles, on both sides and near the mouth of Cattaraugus creek, on
Lake Erie, twenty-six miles north of Buffalo. 10.. Buffalo, one hundred and thirty
square miles, on both sides of Buffalo creek, near Buffalo. 11. Tonawanda, seventy
square miles, on both sides of Tonawanda creek, about twenty-five miles from its mouth,
and sixteen miles northeast of Buffalo. 12. Tuscarora, one square mile, on the moun-
tain ridge, three miles east of Lewiston."
The Indian title to all these reservations, except Alleghany, Cattaraugus,
Tonawanda and Tuscarora, has since been extinguished. As early as 1820
the red man had few representatives in the Genesee valley, and about 1 830
they ceased to occupy their old camp grounds along the lower Genesee. In
1826 John De Bay and Samuel Willett, two men who accompanied Clark in
his famous western expedition in 1806, then residents of Rochester, purchased
a quantity of goods, engaged T. J. Jeffords, ^ a lad of thirteen, as assistant,
and made the tour of Indian towns in Western New York. The first camp
visited by the traders was located on the ridge, east of Irondequoit bay, and
1 Mr. Jeffords is well known to the citizens of Rochester, having held several positions of honor
and trust in the county of Monroe. The pleasure of a visit to his pleasant home in East Rush is
greatly enhanced by the presence of his aunt, Mrs. Rebekah Price, the first white child born in Rich-
field, Otsego county, September 2d, 1791. Mrs. Price has lived at Rush shice l8o3. Her mind is as
clear and active as that of many people at sixty. From the rich store-house of her memory and the
recollections of Mr. Jeffords, many interesting facts concerning Indian and pioneer times have been
obtained.
The Genesee Falls Mill Lot. 75
consisted largely of French associates of the Indians, with whom they were
living. The second town was on or near the present farm of Judge Edmond
Kelly, south of Irondequoit landing. The traders found about twenty Indians
at the Bell farm on the north side of Honeoye outlet, and one hundred and
fifty at Cannawaugus. Passing through York "to Wiscoy above Portage, they
struck a town of three hundred Senecas. At Red House station, above Sala-
manca, they found four hundred and fifty Indians. On the bank of Silver
creek, near Captain Camp's residence, one hundred Senecas were engaged in
a council.
In his late work, Weird Legends and Traditions of the Seneca Indians,
issued in May, 1884, Rev. J. W. Sanborn presents the results of his experience
as a missionary to that nation. Touching the present population of the In-
dians, chapter XXIV., he says : —
"In Western New York the total population of the Senecas is 3,014, disposed as
follows: On the Alleghany reserve 914, Cattaraugus reserve 1,500, Tonawanda reserve
600. The Indian population, including all the tribes in the state of New York, is fully
6,000."
CHAPTER XIII. 1
The Genesee Falls Mill Lot — The Triangle — Ebenezer Allan's One-Hundred-Acre Tract — The
Stone Ridge — Peter Sheffer — Allan's Mills — The Mill Stones — Jenuhshio or " Indian" Allan —
The First White Settler — First (Jrist Mill in the Genesee Valley — Allan's Deed to lienjamin liartou
— Close of Allan's Career — His Son Claims the One-Hundred-Acre Tract.
WHEN Oliver Phelps held his treaty with the Indians at Buffalo, in 1788,
he was anxious to secure all their lands within the Massachusetts pre-
emption claim, but the Indians declined to part with any land west of the
Genesee river, regarding that stream as a natural boundary set by the Great
Spirit between the white and red men. Unable to effect his object by honor-
able purchase, Mr. Phelps appealed to the generosity of the Indians and asked
them for a piece of land west of the Genesee, large enough for a "mill seat,"
representing the great convenience a mill would be to them, whereupon the
Indians requested him to state the amount of land required for such a purpose.
Mr. Phelps replied that a piece about twelve miles wide, extending from Canna-
waugus (Avon) on the west side of the Genesee river to Lake Ontario, about
twenty-eight miles, would answer his purpose. The Indians were reluctant to
part with so large a tract, but, upon Mr. Phelps's assurance that it was all
1 The material for chapters XIII. and XIV. is derived from the journals of Charlevoix, and Maude,
the Life of Mary femison, Turner's histories of the Holland Purchase, and Phelps <V Gorham Pur-
chase, Pioneer Collections, and private journal of the writer compiled from personal researches.
6
']6 History of the City of Rochester.
needed, granted his request. This strip of land, thus acquired by Oliver
Phelps, contained about 200,000 acres and was designated the "Genesee Falls
mill lot." The first survey of the mill tract was made by Colonel Hugh Max-
well, who started at Cannawaugus, ran twelve miles west of the Genesee river,
and then due north. to Lake Ontario. Whether these lines were run with a
view of again cheating the red men, or were made through mistake is not cer-
tain; but the Indians bitterly opposed the boundaries thus created, and Augus-
tus Porter ran a new line which was as near an average of twelve miles from
the Genesee as a straight ' line would permit. In after surveys west of this
line, the tract struck out of Maxwell's survey by Porter was termed the
"Triangle."
Mr. Phelps fulfilled his agreement with the Indians by a contract with one
Ebenezer Allan, who agreed to erect saw and grist mills at the Genesee falls,
the consideration being the conveyance to Allan of one hundred acres of land,
commencing at the center of the mill and extending an equal distance up and
down the river, then west far enough to contain the hundred acres in a square
form. So far as known no writings ever passed between Phelps and Allan, but
in a deed for twenty thousand acres embracing all the present site of Rochester
west of the Genesee river, sold to Quartus Pomeroy, Justin Ely, Ebenezer
Hunt and a Mr. Breck in 1790, an exception and reservation was made of
"the one hundred acres previously granted to Ebenezer Allan."
Allan is supposed to have been the first white settler in the Genesee valley,
other, than the tory Walker at the mouth of the Genesee, and first white
occupant of the territory now covered by the city of Rochester. Whatever
his faults . and, vices, this fact is. patent, and from his first appearance as an
actual resident of the Genesee valley dates the era of permanent settlement.
No history of Rochester would be complete that omitted mention of Ebenezer
Allan and his many interests in Western New York. From the mouth of the
river at Lake Ontario to the lower falls at Gardeau, Allan- inaugurated im-
provements which have found their full development only during the present
generation. Nearly a century has elapsed since the sounds of his rasping
mill- saw first echoed across our beautiful river and were hushed in the roar of
untamed waters dashing over their rocky bed in the channel below; but the
memory of his presence here, on the soil we love so well, must be cherished
while the Flower city has an existence.
In the Revolutionary war Allan was a tory and became acquainted with
the Senecas during their incursions against American settlements on the Sus-
quehanna. He joined the Indians in their predatory battles, and excelled all
his savage associates in ferocious^cruelty. Mary Jemison, the "white woman,"
says thatduring one of his .scouting expeditions with the Indians Allan entered
a house very early in the morning where he found a man, his wife and one
child, in bed. The man instantly sprang on the floor for the purpose of
Ebenezer Allan. ^^
defending himself and family; but Allan killed him at one blow, cut off his
head and threw it into the bed with the terrified woman ; took the child from
its mother's breast and dashed its head against the jamb, leaving the unhappy-
widow and mother alone with her murdered family. It has been said by some
that after killing the child Allan opened the fire and buried it under the coals
and ashes, but of that Mrs. Jemison was uncertain; though she thought
Allan repented these deeds in later days. He accompanied the Senecas to the
Genesee, and was with Walker at the battle of Newtown. When the Indians
returned to their desolated homes, after the departure of Sullivan's army in the
fall of 1779, Mrs. Jemison went to Gardeau and husked corn for two negroes
who lived there. In the spring of 1780 she built a house on the flats, and
Allan made his appearance at that place soon after. He was apparently with-
out any business to support him, and remained at the white woman's house
during the following winter. In the spring Allan commenced working the
flats and continued to labor there until the peace of 1783, when he went to
Philadelphia, and in a short time returned with a horse loaded with dry goods.
Locating on the present site of Mount Morris he built a house and became a
trader.
Dissatisfied with the treaty of peace, the British and Indians on the frontier
determined to continue their depredations on the white settlements between
the Genesee and Albany. The Senecas were about setting out on an expedi-
tion when Allan, understanding their mode of warfare, procured a belt of
wampum and carried it as a token of peace either to the commander of the
nearest American military post, or to the American commissioner. The officer
sent word to the Indians that the wampum was cordially accepted and a con-
tinuance of peace was ardently desired. The Indians considered the wampum
a sacred thing, and dared not go against the import of its meaning. They
immediately buried the hatchet as respected the Americans, and smoked the
pipe of peace; but with the aid of the British resolved to punish Allan for
presenting the wanipum without their knowledge. A party of British soldiers
was sent from Fort Niagara to apprehend Allan, but he had escaped and they
confiscated his property and returned to the fort. A second attempt to capT
ture him failed, as he was concealed in a cave about Gafdeau and supplied
with food by the white woman ; a third effort was successful and Allan was
taken to Montreal or Quebec for trial, where he was honorably acquitted of
the crime charged, that is, putting too sudden a stop to the war. Proceeding
to Philadelphia he purchased'on credit a boat load of goods, which he brought
by water to Conhocton, and thence to Mount Morris on horses provided by
the Senecas. These goods were exchanged for ginseng and furs, which Allan
sold at Niagara. Harvesting a large crop of corn on his own land, he carried
it down the river in canoes to the mouth of Allen's creek, then called Gin-is-
* a-ga by the Indians, There he built a house and cultivated the soil. Butler's
78 History of the City of Rochester.
rangers and the Indians would steal cattle from the Mohawk and the Susque-
hanna and drive them to the Genesee, where Allan kept them on the rich flats
until in prime condition and then sold them at Fort Niagara and in Canada.
Col. Butler, British superintendent of Indian affairs at Niagara, supplied Allan
with a quantity of goods for the Indian trade, and the latter appropriated the
lot to his own use and profit.
In July, 1788, as previously stated, Allan contracted with Mr. Phelps to
erect saw and grist mills on the one-hundred-acre lot at the Genesee falls.
During the following summer he built the saw-mill and got out timber for a
grist mill. At that period the river bed was nearly level from the location of
the present aqueduct, south to the race dam at the jail, and the Indian
canoe landing was on the present site of W. S. Kimball's tobacco fac-
tory. There was a perpendicular fall fourteen feet high, where the aqueduct is
located, which was then known as the "upper fall." The ledge, of Hmestone
forming this fall curved northwest to the corner of Basin street, where it again
turned west and, running nearly parallel with West Main street, ended abrupt-
ly about one hundred feet west of Plymouth avenue. This "stone ridge" was
from ten to fourteen feet in height. It has been entirely removed above the
present surface of the ground, but a portion of its base now forms the west side
of the mill race under Aqueduct street. All land east of this ledge to the pres-
ent channel of the river, is "filled ground." The saw-mill erected by Allan
stood upon the present site of the building owned by Nehemiah Osburn, east
of Aqueduct street. The first lumber sawed was used to roof the mill, the
second was for the grist mill, and the third was sold to Orange Stone.
In the fall of 1789 Peter Sheffer, and his sons Peter and Jacob, came upon the
Genesee and found Allan on his farm near the mouth of Allen's creek. He
had a comfortaJDle log house on his land, three hundred acres of which had
been given him by the Indians, and one hundred and seventy purchased of
Phelps and Gorham. Some sixty acres of flats were under cultivation, and
twenty then in wheat, while the farm was stocked with horses, cattle, etc.
Mr. Sheffer purchased this tract for $2.50 an acre. Turner says that the money
realised by the sale of this farm enabled Allan to push forward his mill enter-
prise, yet he also states that the Sheffers did not reach the Genesee until De-
cember. This is evidently a mistake, as the deed from Allan to Peter Sheffer
is dated November 23d, 1789, was acknowledged before Timothy Hosmer, No-
vember I2th, 1793, and recorded on page 178 book 2 in the county clerk's
office at Canandaigua, March 39th, 1794. Furthermore William Hencher
stated that the frame of Allan's grist mill was raised November 12th and
13th. That was at an earlier date than Turner supposed Mr. Sheffer to have
been in this region.
Allan sent out Indian runners to invite every white man in Genesee valley
to the raising of the grist mill. The party numbered just fourteen, all told. '
Erection of Allan's Mill. 79
The mill frame was heavy, hewed timber, twenty-six by thirty feet. It stood
north of the saw-mill previously erected, upon what was afterward known as
the "old red mill" site, on "Mill lot number 2." This exact spot is directly
in the rear of numbers 39 and 41 East Main street, half way between Aque-
duct and Graves street. The ground is now occupied by M. F. Reynolds's
paint mill, and E. R. Andrews's printing establishment. Allan procured rum
from a trading boat at the mouth of the river, and liquor was "free as water."
The entire party camped on the ground the first night. Lumber for the mill
floor had been previously .sawed and was laid on the 13th, all hands indulging
in a dance in the evening and then sleeping on the new floor. The iron for
both mills was brought on horseback from Conhocton to Allan's farm, and
thence down the river in canoes. In bringing the mill irons down, a Dutch-
man named Andrews, having them in charge, went over the upper fall and was
drowned. The iron was recovered, but Andrews was never seen again, and
Allan was credited with his murder.
In August, 1800, John Maude, ah English traveler, passed through the
lower Genesee country and in his description of the Allan grist mill says : "It
contains but one pair of stones made from the stone of a neighboring quarry,
which is found to be very suitable for this purpose." This curious statement .
of Maude's has been repeated by every historian writing on this subject, so far
.as we are aware, to the present day. The "quarry" mentioned has remained
undiscovered thus far (1884), and Mr. Maude's informant led him into other
and more serious misstatements, one of which was that said informant "remem-
bered the two steps of the lower falls (some twenty rods apart) as united in one
fall. A reference to Charlevoix's description of the Genesee in 1721 shows
that the lower falls were then identically the same as at present, as regards dis-
tance. The run of stone used in Allan's grist mill were made from boulders
on the surface of the ground near the mill. With the assistance of Indians,
Allan himself cut and dressed both stones. He was a blacksmith, had a forge
near his house at Allen's creek, and also one at the grist mill, where he fitted
the mill irons with his own hands. Allan often shod his own horses and re-
paired guns for himself and the Indians.
With all his faults, Ebenezer Allan was riot lazy. He was imposing in ap-
pearance, and though usually mild in manner had a bold, determined look and
the faculty of controlling all about him. He usually had from ten to thirty In-
dians at work, and in return supplied them and their families with everything
required, including whisky. Wherever Allan went, a company of Indian satel-
lites attended to do his bidding. During his stay at the grist mill the Senecas
encamped in the vicinity of Exchange street, and at the Indian spring. He was
an adopted member of the Seneca nation, and was known to the red men as
Jen-uh-shi-o. From his intimate associations with the natives he was called
" Indian Allan "by the whites, who greatly disliked him. About the time of
8o History of the City of Rochester.
his first appearance on the Genesee, Allan married a Seneca squaw named
Kyen-da-nent. Her English name was Sally. They had two daughters,
Mary, born in 1780, and Chloe, born March 3d, 1782. While at the falls in
1 789 a man named Chapman stopped with his family on their way to Canada,
and Allan proposed to the daughter Lucy, to whom he was married by a
sham magistrate. Chapman went on his journey to Canada and Lucy was
taken back to Allan's farm, where she found his squaw wife and children.
About this time Allan beat a boy to death, and pushed an old man into the
Genesee, intending to drown him and marry his wife. The man got out of the
river, but died next day, and his murderer added*the widow to his harem. He
also married the half-breed daughter of a negro named Captain Sunfish, and
robbed the old man of his money. On his removal to Mount Morris Allan
married one Millie McGregor, daughter of an English tory, and is said to have
had half a dozen other wives during his residence in the Genesee valley.
Lucy Allan had one child, Millie six, and Sally two. Upon the completion of
the mill Allan moved into a room in the building, and so far as known his was
the first white family that resided on the site of Rochester. Poor as it was, the
grist mill proved a benefit to the few settlers in the sparsely inhabited region.
People came from Lima, Avon, Victor, Irondequoit and other towns to get a
grist or procure a few boards from the saw-mill.
It has been frequently stated that Allan's was the first grist mill in the Gen-
esee valley, but this statement is incorrect. During the winter of 1788-9 John
and James Markham built on a little stream which enters the Genesee river
about two miles north of Avon. It was a small log building, and all the lum-
ber used in its construction was hewed out by hand. The curbs were hewed
plank, the spindle made by straightening out a section of a cart tire, and the
stones roughly cut from native rock. There was no bolt, the substitutes being
hand sieves made of splints. The mill was a rude, primitive concern, but it
mashed corn better than the wooden mortar and pestle then used by early set-
tlers, and during the year or two of its existence was highly valued.
Allan's residence here was temporary. In 1790 he bought a stock of goods
in Philadelphia and reopened his trading station at Mount Morris, leaving his
brother-in-law, Christopher Dugan, in charge of the mills. Just when Allan
moved his family to Mount Morris is not known, but it is probable that they
left the mills early in 1792, soon after the sale of the one-hundred-acre lot to
Mr. Barton. The deed, or more properly, assignment of his interest, given by
Ebenezer Allan to Benjamin Barton, is the foundation of all titles to real estate
within the so-called "one-hundred-acre tract," the boundaries of which may
be crudely described as running from the jail on the bank of the Genesee
about four hundred feet south of Court street, west to a point near Caledonia
avenue and Spring street, thence north to an angle about one hundred feet
northwest of the corner of Frank and Center streets, and due east to the river
Deed of the One-Hundred- Acre Tract. 8i
directly east of Market street. A fac-simile copy of this venerable document
is shown on the next page. Its subject matter is as follows : —
"Articles of agreement made this 27th day of March in the year of our Lord one
thousand Seven Hundred and Ninety-two, between Ebenezer AUin and Benjamin Bar-
ton, witnesseth that for and in Consideration of Five Hundred pounds New York Cur-
rency received by the said Ebenezer AUin of Benjamin Barton, the said Ebenezer AUin
doth seU'aU that Tract of .land containing one hundred acres lying on the west side of the
Genesee river in the County of Ontario State of New York Bounded East on the Genesee
river so as to take in the Mills lately Built by the said AUin. From thence to run North-
erly from said Mills Sixty three rods also southerly of said Mills Sixty three rods from
thence Turning westerly so as to make one hundred acres strict measure. And the said
Ebenezer AUin doth hereby impower the said Benjamin Barton to apply to the Honr'd
Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham or Either of them for a good and sufficient deed of
conveyance to be by them — or Either of them executed to the said Benjamin Barton,
his Heirs or assigns for said Tract of land and the said Ebenezer AUin doth hereby
request and Impower the said Oliver Phelps or Nathaniel Gorham to scale and Deliver
such Deed to the said Benjamin Barton his Heirs or assigns, and the said Ebpnezer
AUin doth hereby exonerate and discharge the said Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham
in consequence of their executing the deed ass'd, from all and Every agreement or Instru-
ment which might or may have existed Respecting the conveyance of said Tract of land
from them the said Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham or Either of them to the said
Ebenezer AUin, in Witness whereof the said Ebenezer AUin hath hereunto set his Hand
and Seal the day and year above written.
" Sealed and delivered
in the presense off " E. Allan [seal.]
Gertrude G Ogden
John Farhn "
" Reed, of Benjamin Barton a Deed for Aliens Mills on the Genesee River, in
settling therefor I am to settle the Bond for j£s°° which he gave Ebenezer Allen for
which I was security. Dec. 24th 1793. Saml. Ogden."
1)
a
«j 1^ § -ii:-!^
(U
J3
<
a m
P 0 O^
g '^ S c do
° S g -g I 8 "
V V nl 5 -S ■««• S
o 3 Ma '^ .!2 /; J ffl ■„ 5 .s
1 This indorsement was made by Mr. Turner.
J^
U-c/t-f
>«^ ^^-^ ^^ -- -^
;!^iM^ tx^^^ -'^It^ /Xn54 ^<^ ^*t.**V^^*^ o/.if^U^ ^«t^
•'^'^—-'^ if-n^ ^^4^*^ ^:i£<-f'J CCe-t-^-f •S55Z«^ T^ic^t-^-et-t^ <^i»J /^i
•"'^ ^^e-»»,e-^.tu tiStiiie^ ^^^7^ y(i-^'*■■^y rU^*-cc-^-^ A-t^*XnA*uy<^
"^^
84 History of the City of Rochester.
This deed has a curious history. Its existence appears to have passed from
public memory until Orsamus Turner began the collection of material for his
grand histories of the Phelps & Gorham and Holland purchases. During a
visit to the family residence of Brandt, the noted Mohawk sachem, at Brantford,
Ontario, Mr. Turner found the Allan deed, among other papers formerly be-
longing to Brandt, stored in a barrel in the garret. No information could be
obtained regarding the time or manner in which Brandt came into possession
of the document, which was readily given to Mr. Turner. In June, 1849, he
requested D. M. Dewey to present the old deed to the Rochester Athenaeum
for safe keeping. It passed into the possession of M. F. Reynolds, with other
effects of the Athenaeum, and is now carefully treasured in the Reynolds library.
Soon after his return to Mount Morris, Allan induced the Seneca chiefs to
give a tract of land four miles square, where he then resided, to his half-breed
daughters for their support and education. ^ He artfully framed the convey-
ance so that he could appropriate the land to his own use, but, in accordance
with its provisions, sent his Indian girls to a school at Trenton, New Jersey ;
also sending his white son to Philadelphia, to obtain an English education. In
1792 Allan built a saw-mill on the outlet of Silver lake, at Smoky hollow,
near the Genesee river. He sold the land deeded to his girls to Robert Mor-
ris, and removed them from school. In 1797 Allan disposed of all his prop-
erty in the: Genesee valley and removed to Delawaretown, in Upper Canada,
leaving his Squaw wife behind. He also arranged with two men to drown his
white wife, Millie. The men brought her down the river in a canoe and pur-
posely ran the boat over the upper fall, but Millie escaped to the shore and
followed Allan to Canada. Governor Simcoe granted him three thousand acres
of land upon condition of certain improvements, and Allan became rich. In
1 806 his white neighbors combined against him, and he was repeatedly arrested
upon charges of forgery, larceny, etc., but was invariably acquitted. Losses
of property followed, and about 18 14 Allan died in greatly reduced circum-
stances, willing all his interest to MiUie and her children. About 1820 a son
of Ebenezer Allan came to Rochester and set up a claim for his mother's right
of dower in the One-hundred-acre tract. It will be seen, by reference to the
conveyance given to Barton, that Allan's name alone is attached to the instru-
ment. A compromise was effected with parties holding titles in the property,
but our informant, the venerable Mrs. Abelard Reynolds, has too indistinct a
remembrance of the affair to aid us with particulars.
1 This deed was recorded in the office of the clerk of Ontario county, at Canandaigua, August rst,
1791, in book of deeds number i, page 134. It was signed by eighteen sachems, chiefs and warriors
of the Seneca nation, So-go-u-a-ta, better known as " Red Jacket," being of tlie number.
Christopher Dugan — Josiah Fish. 85
CHAPTER XIV.
Christopher Dugan — Colonel Fish — The First Dwelling-House — Early Settlers — Maude's Visit
to Genesee F'alls in 1800— Destruction of Hie Allan Mills — The Old Mill Stones — Rochester, Fitz-
hugh and Carroll Purchase the One-hundred-acre Tract — Early Towns and Pioneers.
MR. BARTON sold the One-hundred-acre tract to Samuel B. Ogden, De-
cember 24th, 1793. The latter transferred the property to Charles Will-
iamson, of Bath, agent for Sir William Pulteney, and it thus became a part of the
Pultcncy estate. Upon his removal to Mount Morris, Allan placed his brother-
in-law, Christopher Dugan, in charge of the mills, and Dugan's was the second
family on the site of Rochester. Allan's sister is said to have been a lady of
education and culture, who married an old British soldier, and followed her
wayward brother to the wilderness, where she clung to him through all his
wickedness for years. She became housekeeper for her brother, and with her
husband formed a part of Allan's family until the latter left the mills. August
9th, 1794, Dugan wrote to Colonel Williamson, saying: —
"The mill erected by Ebenezer Allan, which I am informed you have purchased, is
in a bad situation, much out of repair, and, unless attention is paid to it, it will soon
take its voyage to the lake. I have resided here for several years, and kept watch and
ward without fee or recompense ; and am pleased to hear that it has fallen into the
hands of a gentleman who is able to repair it, and whose character is such that I firmly
believe he will not allow an old man to suffer without reward for his exertions. I wish
to have you come or send some one to take care of the mill, as my situation is such as
makes it necessary soon to remove."
Mr. Dugan left the mill soon after, and .settled on his farm near Dugan's
creek. At the time of Aaron Burr's visit to the Genesee falls, the following
summer, not a soul could be found about this vicinity.
In 1795 Colonel Josiah Fish purchased a farm at the mouth of Black creek
and with the aid of his son Lebbeus commenced improvements. They came
down to the falls late in the season and boarded with a man named Sprague,
whom they found in charge of the Allan mills. The fare consisted of " raccoon
for breakfast, dinner and supper, with no vegetables. On extra occasions
cakes, fried in raccoon oil, were added." It would thus appear that Sprague
was the third resident of Rochester, though no mention was made of his family.
In 1796 Mr. Williamson expended about five hundred dollars in improvements
at the falls, and engaged Colonel Fish to take charge of the mills. The latter
moved his family, consisting of his wife, a son and one daughter, here in No-
vember. They did their cooking in a board shanty which was built against
the stone ledge at the present northwest corner of Basin and Aqueduct streets,
and resided in the grist mill, which was minus glass windows and other com-
forts. The next fall Colonel Fish put up three sides of a log house against the
stone ledge, which constituted the back wall, in which a chimney-place was
excavated. Turner says this house stood on the site of the old red mill near
86 History of the City of Rochester.
Child's basin. It has been assumed that he was in error, but one fact appears
to be overlooked, or is unknown to certain writers; there were, two "Red"
mills, the second one occupying the present (1884) site of the Arcade mills on
the east side of Aqueduct street. The ruins of a log house remained there in
1812, and Turner had reference to this spot. Colonel Fish was the fourth res-
ident of Rochester, and the house erected by him was the first building occu-
pied exclusively as a dwelling, within the present bounds of the Flower city.
When Thomas Morris escorted Louis Philippe, afterward king of France, and
his brothers, the Duke de Montpensier and Count Beaujolais, from Canandaigua
to view the Genesee falls in 1797, they entirely overlooked the humble dwell-
ing at the mills; but in 1800 a party bound up the lake, of which William
Nixon Loomis was one, were overtaken by a storm off the mouth of the Gen-
esee and, running into the river for safety, came up to view the falls. "Upon
the present site of Rochester they came to a solitary log cabin, knocked and
were bid to come in. Upon entering they found that in the absence of the
family a parrot had been the hospitable Representative. The family (Col. Fish's)
returned soon, however, and gave- them a supper of potatoes and milk." In
1798-9 Jeremiah Olmstead moved to the falls and lived in a hut south of the
House of Refuge. This shanty had been erected by one Farewell, who re-
mained there but a short time. He was the fifth resident of Rochester and
Olmstead the sixth, so far as is known, but future researches may change the
order of succession. Turner says the clearing made by Olmstead "was the
first blow struck in the way of improvement, other than the Allan mill, on all
the present site of the city of Rochester." In 1800 Oliver Culver purchased
a farm on what is now East avenue and the Culver road, cleared seven acres
and sowed it to wheat. Suspecting that his title was imperfect, Mr. Culver left
the farm until 1805, when he returned and became a permanent settler. He
was the seventh resident within the present boundaries of Rochester. The
same year Wheelock Wood, of Lima, built a saw-mill on Deep hollow, and
operated it one year, but the terrible fever and ague, the enemy of all early
settlers, prostrated his workmen and forced Mr. Wood to abandon the place.
He is supposed to have been the eighth resident. In the journal of his visit to
Western New York in 1800, John Maude says that on August 19th he arrived
at "Genesee Mills."
"As Colonel Fish, the miller, had not those accommodations which I expected, not
even a stable, I was obliged to proceed to Mr. King's at the Genesee landing, where I
got a good breakfast on wild pigeons, etc. Mr. King is the only respectable settler in
this township (number i short range) in which there are at present twelve families, four
of them at the landing Further improvements are much checked in
consequence of the titles to the lands here being in dispute. Mr. Phelps sold three
thousand acres in this neighborhood to Mr. Granger for ten thousand dollars, secured
by mortgage on the land. Granger died soon after his removal here, and, having sold
part of the land, the residue would not clear the mortgage, which prevented his heirs
administering the estate. Phelps foreclosed the mortgage, and entered on possession,
Early Mills. ' 87
even on that part which had been sold and improved. Some settlers, in consequence,
quitted their farms; others repaid the purchase money; and others are endeavoring
to make some accommodation with Mr. Phelps The landing is four miles
from the mouth of the river, where two log huts are built at the entrance to Lake On-
tario At noon returned in company with Colonel Fish. Had a fine view
from the top of the bank, of the lower falls, of which I took a sketch. The lower fall
is fifty-four feet, the middle fall ninety-six feet, and the upper fall must be something
under thirty feet ' . In a few minutes I joined Colonel Fish at the Mills. . .
. . . The grist mill is very ill- constructed ; it is too near the bed of the river, and the
race so improperly managed that it is dry in summer and liable to back-water in winter.
This mill is not at present able to grind more than ten bushels a day; were it in good
order it would grind sixty. It is now almost entirely neglected, in consequence of be-
ing so much out of repair. The saw-mill is already ruined."
In 1802 Colonel Fish returned to his farm at Black creek, and after his de-
parture the Allan grist mill had no regular miller. It was nominally in charge
of a Mr. King, who came from Hanford's landing and lived in a shanty just
west of the middle falls. Occasionally one or two settlers would make neces-
sary repairs and grind their own grists free of cost. In 1804 Noah Smith built
a mill for Tryon and Adams on Allen's creek in Brighton. This mill was
located on the west side of the stream, about twenty rods north of the present
New York Central railway embankment. Oliver Griswold of Irondequoit land-
ing purchased the old Allan mill stones and irons for Tryon and Adams, who
placed them in the new mill. In 1803 the Allan saw-mill was swept away in
a freshet which broke over the race gate and undermined the building, nearly
carrying the grist mill also. This was destroyed by fire in 1807. In 1806 Sol-
omon Fuller built a small mill on Irondequoit creek, and the Allan stones and
irons are said to have been transferred to that mill. They passed into the pos-
session of Lyman Goff, who sold them to Stephen Chubb. The latter used them
in a horse-mill in Henrietta. In 1825 Isaac Barnes and Captain Enos Blos-
som built a grist mill on the west bank of Allen's creek about thirty rods north
of East avenue. These gentlemen bought the Allan stones of Mr. Chubb,
and placed them in their mill, with one other run of stone. The mill was re-
built in 1837, and the old stones were taken to Mr. Barnes's residence, where
they were used as door steps for many years. In 1859 Lorenzo D. Ely and
Oliver Culver reported to the Junior Pioneer association of Rochester, that the
Allan mill stones were in the possession of Isaac Barnes, and his son Charles
Milo Barnes, millers at Allen's creek, and suggested the propriety of securing
these valuable historical relics of Rochester's first settler. Oliver Culver, Ly-
man Goff and Mr. and Mrs. Isaac Barnes fully identified the stones as the origi-
nal run made and used by Indian Allan. They consisted of the bed and run-
ning stone, and were too large and heavy to place in an ordinary room. A
petition was presented to the board of supervisors of Monroe county, in Decem-
ber, and that body passed a resolution that "the Junior Pioneer society have
leave to place in the rear of the court-house a pair of mill stones said to have
88 History of the City of Rochester.
been the first ever used in this county." ^ In order to defray the expense of
removing the stones to Rochester, a subscription list was circulated by Jarvis
M. Hatch between the 4th and 1 5th of February,' i860. It was signed by S. W.
D. Moore, Samuel Richardson, Charles J. Hill, Thomas Kempshall, L. A.
Ward, Joseph Field, William Pitkin, John B. Elwood, N. E. Paine, Rufus
Keeler, Charles H. Clark, John Williams, E. F. Smith, Isaac Hills, Jonathan
Child, sr., Hamlin Stilwell, Maltby Strong, C. J. Hayden and Jacob Gould,
each of whom agreed to pay one dollar. The Messrs. Barnes generously do-
nated the mill stones to the Junior Pioneer association, and Charles M. Barnes
brought them to the city. A committee from the association received and
placed the stones in the rear of the court-house; At the building of the new
city hall, south of the court-house, the old mill stones were used as found
ations for two lamp-posts at the entrance to the city hall. It would be a fit-
ting and proper action for our city authorities to remove the valuable relics to
a permanent and secure place where they will be preserved, for future gener-
ations.
In 1802 Nathaniel Rochester, William Fitzhugh and Charles Carroll bought
the One-hundred-acre lot of Sir William Pulteney's agent, for seventeen and
one half dollars per acre. Having greater interests elsewhere, the proprietors
took no steps to improve or settle the tract until 18 10. At the date of purchase
the special interest of new settlers in this vicinity was centered in Tryon's Town,
south of Irondequoit landing, and King's (now Hanford's) landing, near the
lower falls. It was thought by shi-ewd men that one of those places would
in time become the great business, center . of the lower Genesee country.
James Wadsworth succeeded to the agency of the Pulteney estate and, becom-
ing part owner of a tract on the west side of the river near the Rapids, made
strenuous efforts to found a city there. The place was named "Castle Town"
or Castleton, in honor of a resident. Colonel Isaac Castle. A tavern, store and
other business was started, and several people located there, but the "city" was
a failure. The hundred-acre tract was then termed " Fall Town," and the su-
perior water privileges of this immediate vicinity, combined with other advan-
tages of the location, eventually drew the strength of public opinion in its favor,
while the indomitable spirit and enterprise of its pioneer inhabitants laid the
foundation for our present magnificent city. Elijah Rose settled on the
east side of the river in 1806, and built a log house on Mount Hope avenue,
(the present street number of which is 281), about one hundred and fifty feet
south of the present residence of George EUwanger. This house was subse-
quently occupied by several families — those of Jacob Miller, Daniel Harris, John
Nutt and other pioneers. The writer has often heard his aged grandmother
1 For the verification of this fact, and much valuable information regarding the period of early set-
tlement, we are indebted to Donald McNaughton, whose father, John McNaughton, was one of the
first pioneers west of the Genesee.
Early Pioneers. 89
and her sister, the late Mrs. Lucretia Lee, relate their experience in fighting a
lot of wolves away from the blanket door of this same log house, about the time
of the British invasion at Charlotte, when the men were all absent.
In 1807 Charles Harford erected a block-house near the great falls. It is
variously located on State street near Vincent place, and at the intersection of
Center and Mill streets. It is said to have been the first well-coxistructed
dwelling in the city limits on the west side of the Genesee. The next year
Mr. Harford built a saw- mill, and completed a grist mill on the present loca-
tion of the Phoenix mill. His mill-race was the beginning of Brown's race.
In 1807-8 Lyman Shumway put up a shanty near the falls on the east side of
the river; and Samuel Ware came in about 1 808-9. I" 1788-9 General
Hyde, Prosper Polly, Enos Stone, Job Gilbert, and Joseph Chaplin, of Lenox,
Massachusetts, and John Lusk, of Berkshire, bought a large tract east of the
Genesee, of Phelps and Gorham. In the summer of 1789 Mr. Lusk settled
his land at the head of Irondequoit bay, and in the spring of 1790 brought
out his family. Enos Stone's son, Orange, Joel Scudder, Chauncey and Calvin
Hyde, and others having families, followed soon after. Orange Stone located
half a mile east of Brighton village on the Pittsford road, near the " big rock
and tree," and opened a tavern. His brother, Enos Stone, jr., with other
young men, drove the stock of the new settlers to Brighton, but continued to
reside at Lenox for a number of years. He made several visits to the Genesee,
and became an agent for the sale of lands. In compensation for his services
he received one hundred and fifty acres on the east bank of the river, opposite
the hundred-acre tract on the west side. Enos Stone, sr., did not make Roch-
ester his permanent home until 18 16, but in 1808 he erected a saw-mill for his
son, about one hundred feet north of the east end of the present aqueduct. A
freshet afterward carried the mill away. Early in March, 18 10, Jacob Miller
arrived at the Genesee, and was temporarily domiciled in the log-house built
by Mr. Rose. As soon as his house could be made ready, Mr. Miller settled
on his farm directly west of the Monroe county penitentiary, and several of
his children soon after located in that neighborhood. Enos Stone, jr., also
arrived in March, with his family and effects. Mr. Stone made his home at
the house of his brother Orange, for several jveeks, and during that period a
son, James S. Stone, was born May 4th, 18 10. The latter now resides on his
farm in the town of Greece, hale and hearty at the age of seventy-four.
While staying with his brother, Enos Stone erected a log-house east of the
saw-mill, which was rebuilt. In October he put up a small frame building
sixteen by twenty feet. The cutting of the timber, raising and inclosing
occupied three days, and Mrs. Stone, a hired man and a hired girl assisted.
The site of this building was established by Schuyler Moses and Edwin Scran-
tom several years ago. It was on the east side of South St. Paul street,
directly east of the terminus of the aqueduct, and was the first framed dwell-
90 History of the City of Rochester.
ing in Rochester. It was removed to number 53 Elm street, where the
original timber frame is, covered with modern boards, and the building used as
a wood-shed.
CHAPTER XV.
the ROCHESTER POST-OFFICE.
PRIOR to 1 81 2 the main route from Canandaigua to the Niagara frontier
was by the "Buffalo road," which ran through Bloomfield, Avon, Cale-
donia and other towns westward. In all that portion of New York between
this road and . Lake Ontario not a single post-office or mail route had been
established. In the early season of that year Dr. Levi Ward received author-
ity from Gideon Granger, then postmaster-general, to transport a weekly mail
from Caledonia, via Riga, Murray, Parma and Northampton, to Charlotte.
According to the terms of the contract the mail was to leave Caledonia every
Monday morning at eight o'clock, and arrive at Charlotte, a distance of about
thirty- two miles, at four p. m. Tuesday. The postmaster- general agreed to
appoint deputy postmasters in locations designated by the contractor, which
were seven miles distant from each other. Dr. Ward's compensation was the
net proceeds of letter and newspaper postage collected on the route. The rate
was from twenty to twenty-five cents per letter, according to distance, and for
newspapers one cent each. The plan was at once put in operation, and the
success and satisfaction resulting induced the postmaster- general to enter into
a new contract with Dr. Ward, for the extension of routes along the Ridge
road to Oak Orchard creek; from Parma through Ogden and Riga to Bergen,
and from Bergen to Batavia; in fact, the arrangement gave Dr. Ward discre-
tionary "authority to designate the location of post-offices wherever he would
agree to deliver rnail once a week, for all the postage he might collect, in
nearly all the country between Canandaigua and the Niagara river, and from
the Canandaigua and Buffalo road northward to Lake Ontario." ^ The system
continued in operation, supplying the convenience of mail facilities to a wide,
sparsely populated region until 1815, and on some of the routes until 1820,
when it was generally superseded by the ordinary contract system.
As early as 1804 the business men of Canandaigua contributed to the
improvement of a road that had been constructed many years before from
Canandaigua to the crossing of Allen's creek on East avenue and thence north
to Tryon's Town near Irondequoit landing, and extended it northwest through
1 Sketches of Rochester, 1838, by Henry O'Rielly, p. 331.
Early ^A1L Facilities. 91
the present town of Irondequoit, passing in the rear of Hooker's cemetery
(where the old road-bed still exists) and across the country to the east bank
of the Genesee river and Charlotte, or Port Genesee, as the place was variously
termed. All travel from Canandaigua, north of the Buffalo road, was over
this. so-called "Merchants' road" to Charlotte, and mail matter was occasion-
ally carried by teamsters. In i8i2 the latter place was looked upon as the
future great lake port and rising town of Western New York, 1 but no means
of regular communication existed between that place and Rochester until
1 8 14, when Gideon Cobb started a semi- weekly ox-team line for the convey-
ance of freight and passengers.
On the establishment of Dr. Ward's postal system F. Bushnell was ap-
pointed postmaster at Charlotte, and through the kindness, of individuals who
"called for mail," the residents of Rochester — numbering fifteen people all
told, July 4th, i8i2 — were enabled to correspond with the world at large,
and receive news via Canandaigua or Bath, Avon, Caledonia, Parma and
Charlotte. This roundabout course was not considered a sufficient accom-
modation, and the subject of direct mail connections with the east was ear-
nestly discussed. The late Edwin Scrantom (whose record of early local events
is invaluable) was authority for the statement that "the first rhail received in
Rochester arrived in July, 18 12." If the date is correct the mail must have
been carried by private individuals during that summer, as no post-office
existed and the first postmaster, Abelard Reynolds, was not appointed until
October, and his commission not issued until November 19th, 181 2. ^ For
this appointment Mr. Reynolds was indebted to the influence of Colonel Roch-
ester, through Henry Clay, his intimate friend, and son-in-law of Colonel
Thomas Hart, the business partner of Colonel Rochester. It was agreed upon
during an interview between Colonel Rochester and Mr. Reynolds, held at
Dansville some time in July, 1812; no regular application for a post-office in
Rochester had been made to the department at that time.
While here in July Mr. Reynolds purchased lots 23 and 24 north side of
Buffalo street, built the wall and frame of a dwelling twenty-four by thirty-six
feet, upon lot 23 (now numbered 10, 12, 14, 16, East Main street), contracted
for the completion of the house, and late in August returned to Pittsfield,
Mass., for his family. In his unpublished memoirs Mr. Reynolds refers to his
appointment as postmaster, in the modest manner peculiar to himself: —
"While in the post-office at Pittsfield, in October, Colonel Danforth, the postmaster,
informed me that he saw by the papers that I had been appointed postmaster at Roch-
ester. I replied that I had not heard of it, but it was not an unexpected event, as an
office had been applied for at that place and my name recommended as a proper person
to discharge its duties."
1 Memoirs of Abelard Reynolds.
2 Records of Post-Office Department, Washington.
92 History OF THE CiTY^ OF Rochester.
Learning that the contractor had done nothing to his house, Mr. Reynolds
engaged Otis Wallcer of Brighton, to carry himself and a load of furniture to
Rochester, where he arrived November 1st. He at once set about the erection
of a building on lot 24 (now numbered 18, 20, 22, East Main street) which was
completed January 15th. Returning to Massachusetts he engaged William
Strong to bring a load of furniture, and with his own horse and cutter brought
to their new home his wife, their son William, and Mrs. Reynolds's sister liul-
dah Strong, arriving at Rochester early in February. Mr. Reynolds was a
saddler and occupied the front room of his house fgr business purposes. There
the citizens of Rochester and other early settlers of the vicinity came for their
mail.
Among the furniture brought from Pittsfield was a large desk of pine, three
and a half feet in length, two wide and four feet high. It had a pigeon-hole
compartment in the top and two large drawers underneath furnished with neat
brass ring-pulls ; it was stained to resemble black walnut, and the sloping top
was covered with black velvet trimmed with brass-headed tacks. This desk
was placed in the shop, where it served a triple purpose as the receptacle of
tools and private and public papers. All mail matter received was put in the
pigeon-holes, and practically the desk was the first post-office of Rochester.
It was in constant use as the depository of mail and post-office papers during
Mr. Reynolds's term of office, and now occupies an honored position in the
Reynolds library, firm and substantial as when first made, though plainly ex-
hibiting the marks of over seventy- two years of service. A cut of the desk sup-
plements this chapter.
The first regular mail was brought to Rochester from Canandaigua on horse-
back. It was received once a week, and part of the time a woman (whose name
history fails to reveal) performed the duty of post-rider. The letters were carried
in saddle-bags which hung across the horse in rear of the saddle, to which they
were attached, and the old mail saddle-bags were usually well filled. The com-
pletion of the bridge at Main street in Rochester opened up a shorter route from
Canandaigua to the Niagara river, and diverted considerable of the through
travel from the Buffalo road passing through Avon and Caledonia. The road
from' Rochester to Buffalo, via Batavia, was not then opened, and the ridge
road between Rochester and Lewiston was simply a wide trail, at times nearly
impassable. In 1813 the legislature granted five thousand dollars for "cutting
out the path and bridging the streams," and the improved conditions turned
the tide of western travel through Rochester, and over the Ridge road, in a
steadily increasing flow. During the summer and fall' of 1 8 1 3 Mr. Reynolds fin-
ished the basement story and some of the rooms of the large house and moved
into it, transferring the post-office business to his new habitation, where the
desk previously described continued in service as the regular depository of all
mail matter. In 1815 J. G. Bond and Captain Elisha Ely determined to run
a stage between Rochester and Canandaigua, and organised a company for
-iJiayrJ. ^U^^^^^^^
Early Mail Facilities. 93
that purpose, consisting of William Hildreth of Pittsford, and otiier tavern-
keepers along the route. Mr. Hildreth put a light wagon on the road in No-
vember, 1815, the post-rider discontinued his trips, and the mail was carried to
and from Rochester by wagon twice a week.
In January, 1816, the company placed a coach body on runners, and it was
the first four-in-hand mail coach that ever entered Rochester, the enthusiastic
reception accorded to it by the villagers nearly reaching the proportions of a
public celebration. Messrs. Bond and Ely extended their enterprise to the Ni-
agara river, by enlisting the tavern-keepers along the Ridge road, their princi-
pal supporters and earnest co-laborers being Messrs. Barton and Fairbanks of
Lewiston. In the early spring of i8i6 General Micah Brooks presented a res-
olution to congress, inquiring "as to the expediency of establishing a post route
from the village of Canandaigua, by way of the village of Rochester, to the
village of Lewiston in the county of Niagara and state of New York." The mail
was then carried by stage, the company taking all postage received in payment.
Congress soon after authorised the route proposed by General Brooks, and the
company contracted to carry the mail for a set price. A tri- weekly four-horse
coach was Jjut upon the route in June, 18 16, and within a year there was often
a necessity for sending out three and four extras a day for passengers. The
travel increased to such an extent that for several years coaches ran in such
numbers that they were seldom out of sight of each other along every mile of
the Ridge road.
In 1815 Mr. Reynolds opened his house as a tavern, and in 1817 rented it
to Lebbeus Elliot for two years. During that time the post-office remained in
the same building, to which Mr. Reynolds returned in the spring of 18 19. He
added a wing to the east side of the building for a bar-room, with a portico in
front, at the east end of which he located the post-office, connecting it with the
bar-room. The partition between the office and open part of the portico con-
sisted of a glazed, pigeon-holed case for mail, and the delivery was through an
opening in this case to the portico. Persons could thus step from the street
into the portico, obtain their mail and pass onward without entering the tavern.
The steamer Ontario commenced her trips from Sackett's Harbor to Lewiston
in 181 7, and once a week came to Hanford's Landing. The postmaster- general
having authorised the carrying of mails by steamboats in 18x5, the American
lake ports and Canada were thus brought into regular communication with
Rochester. In 18 19 a mail route was established between Cuylerville and
Rochester, and in 1 820 mails were received once a week from Bath, Dansville,
Geneseo, Avon and intermediate towns. It is said that mails from Canandai-
gua and Lewiston reached Rochester daily in 1820; but "as late as 182 1 there
was not a single post coach in the United States west of Buffalo. The Erie
canal was staked out but not a shovelful of earth had been removed from its
bed in Buffalo, railroads were unborn and telegraphs unthought of." ^
1 Poty's History of Livingston County, p. 597.
94 History of the City of Rochester.
In 1 824 the mail stage between Rochester and Geneseo ran three times a
week each way, leaving here Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at half-past
five in the morning. In April, 1825, E. Fiske established a daily Hne of stages
from Geneseo, "intersecting the east and west lines at Avon, thus giving daily
communication with Rochester, Canandaigua and Batavia." Elegant coaches
were placed on the route in December, but the regular mail was carried only
three times a week. In 1826 the citizens of Rochester regularly received
through the post-office twenty-six daily, two hundred and eighty-four semi-
weekly and six hundred and ninety weekly newspapers, and the receipts of the
last quarter of that year were $1,718.44. Mails arrived and departed as fol-
lows : " Eastern and western, once a day ; Palmyra, seven mails a week in sum-
mer and three in winter ; Penfield, six mails a week ; Scottsville, seven mails a
week in summer, and three in winter ; Oswego, one mail a week ; Batavia,
three mails a week; Geneseo, three mails a week." Preparatory to the erec-
tion of the Arcade, in 1828, the post-office effects were removed to a building
on the northwest corner of Buffalo and Hughes streets, now West Main and
North Fitzhugh. In the spring Mr. Reynolds moved the tavern building about
one hundred and fifty feet north of its original position, and upon the erection
of the Arcade it was attached to and constituted the rear part of that struct-
ure. In 1829 the post-office was re-established in the new building, on the
old location.
To trace the opening of new routes and lines of postal communication be-
tween Rochester and the outside world, to record the successive changes in the
mode of conveyance from the saddle-bagged post-horse, picking his way
through the dangers of a primitive wilderness at the rate of one mile an hour,
to the finely appointed mail car of the modern railway, passing through the
country over its smooth track of steel at a speed exceeding sixty miles an hour,
would require the space of volumes. To chronicle the innovatidns of time and
postal reforms from the uncpvered, wafer-sealed sheet requiring twenty-five
cents to carry it a distance of one hundred miles,- to this era of cheap postage,
free delivery and instantaneous postal telegraphic connections around the globe,
is not my purpose.
The records of seventy- two years of postal transactions show that political
preferment effected many changes in the head of the Rochester post-office.
Abelard Reynolds, the pioneer postmaster, commissioned November 19th,
181 2, held the position seventeen years, his son William A. Reynolds acting as
assistant and deputy during the latter part of his term. Mr. Reynolds's suc-
cessors, and the dates of their appointment, were as follows : John B. Elwood,
June 29th, 1829 ; Henry O'Rielly, May 24th, 1838 ; Samuel G. Andrews, Janu-
ary 1 8th, 1842; Henry Campbell, July i8th, 1845 ; Darius Perrin, April 12th,
1849; Hubbard S. Allis, June 30th, 1853; Nicholas E. Paine, July 6th, 1858;
Scott W. Updike, July 26th, 1861, and July 12th, 1865; John W. Stebbins,
Postal Statistics of Rochester. 95
March 28th, 1867; Edward M. Smith, January i6th, 1871 ; Daniel T. Hunt,
March nth, 1875 ; March 3d, 1879, and March 3d, 1883.
The changes made in the location of the post-offices have been few. In a
letter written to Postmaster-General Barry, April i8th, 1833, Mr. Reynolds
inclosed a plan of the Arcade and among other things said : —
"The first room 'on the west side of the hall, as you enter from Buffalo street, is the
post-office. It has a small recess in front, which is closed at night, where the citizens re-
ceive their letters and papers. The whole arrangement is admirably calculated to ac-
commodate the public, the Arcade hall being sufficiently spacious to contain all who
will ever congregate on the arrival of the mail."
The rapid increase in population, however, exceeded even Mr. Reynolds's ex-
pectations, and he soon after made arrangements for a better accommodation of
the post-office and the public. The old tavern post-office building was re-
moved from the rear of the Arcade to the north side of Bugle alley (Exchange
place), where Corinthian Academy of Music now stands, and in 1848 was
moved to numbers 11 and 13, Sophia street. There the frame was bricked up
and in its new form the building has been in use as a private residence to the
present day. Upon its former site, in the rear of the Arcade, Abelard Rey-
nolds erected a brick building, forty-six by twenty-two feet. This stood fifteen
feet north of the Arcade, to which it was connected by a frame building, or cov-
ered-way and was used solely for postal purposes. It extended to Exchange
place, and walks along each side afforded free passage through the Arcade to
Main street. About 1842 this post-office building was torn down, the Arcade
extended to Exchange place, and the post-office located at the northwest end
of the hall. In 1859 it was removed to the east side. To meet the require-
ments of increasing business additional space has been acquired from time to
time, until the post-office now includes 15, 17, 19 Arcade hall, 37, 39 Arcade
gallery and 11 to 23 inclusive. Exchange place, covering an area of floor room
exceeding 8,000 square feet.
A comparative statement of postal statistics will illustrate the wonderful
changes that have occurred during the span of a single life and within the
memory of many persons now living. The population of Rochester January
1st, 1813, did not exceed fifty people, all told. The mail, then averaging
about four pieces, arrived and departed once a week after that date, and the
receipts of the post-office for the first quarter of the year were $3.42, the
expense and profit to the government nothing. Until 1 8 19 all mail matter
was kept in a desk, and for a period of twenty years following its establish-
ment the duties of the office were performed by the postmaster and one
assistant
January 1st, 1884, the population of Rochester numbered 108,971. Mails
were received daily by twenty- two railway trains and six stage routes; the
letter pouches and sacks received averaging 119 and those dispatched 379.
1 No. 4, present Arcade hall.
96
History of the City of Rochester.
The number of pieces handled by carriers during 1883 was 12,891,375. The
number of pieces handled daily by the entire office force averaged 100,000,
and the aggregate for the year was 36,000,000. The total transactions of the
money order department were 100,695 amounting to $863,751.92. The
registry department registered 12,754 letters and 4,034 packages, and delivered
at the office 48,870 letters. The gross sum received by the post-office in 1883
was $259,840.13; the total expense $57,466.41, leaving a net profit to the
government of $202,373.72.
The officials of the office were: Postmaster, Daniel T. Hunt; assistant
postmaster, W. Seward Whittlesey; superintendent of carriers, George F.
Loder; assistant superintendent of carriers, James T. Sproat; chief clerk,
Calvin Wait; money order department, Willis G. Mitchell; registry depart-
ment, Frank A. Bryan; stamp department, Jacob G. Maurer; mailing depart-
ment, William C. Walker; assisted by a force of twenty-five clerks and thirty-
three letter carriers.
Note. — All of the foregoing chapters were prepared by Mr. George H. Harris. — [Kd.
THK FIRST I'OST-OFl'ICE OF ROCHESTER
ROCHESTER
1814.
Reasons for Rochester's Tardy Settlement. 97
CHAPTER XVI.
THE BIRTH OF ROCHESTER.
Reasons for Its Tardy Settlement — Prevalence of Diseases in this Part of the Country — Dr.
I.ucUow on Typhoid Pneumonia — The First House on the West Side of the River — The War of
1812 — Attempted Intimidation at Charlotte — The Projected Invasion Abandoned — Erection of the
Red Mill, the Cotton Factory, etc. — Census of 1815 — The First Newspaper.
IT is easy to locate in time the very day of the discovery of an island, the
very hour of laying the corner-stone of a new building, the very minute in
which the pick is put into the ground for the beginning of a railway; but to
settle upon the time of the initiation of a village is a thing approaching
the impossible, and the historian who is the most absolute in his statement of
such an event is the one to be most flatly contradicted by succeeding writers.
The range of years in one of which the settlement of Rochester (or Rochester-
ville) is to be fixed is not very great, but authorities are not agreed as to what
constituted the inception of the hamlet or the precise time in which it took
place. Orsamus Turner, in his History of the Phelps & Gorhain Purchase,
puts the date at 18 il, for the reason that that was the year in which Colonel
Rochester first surveyed and sold lots on the One-hundred-acre tract. Others
place it at 181 2, the year which is acceptable to the majority, including Dr.
Coventry, a resident of Geneva in early days and more lately of Utlca, who
adopts it in an address delivered before the Oneida county Medical society in
1823, and Elisha Ely in the Rochester directory of 1827, wherein it is spoken
of as the birth year of the village.
Turner comments upon the reasons for the tardiness in effecting a settle-
ment at this piace. After speaking of what had been done on the shore of
the lake west of here, at Oak Orchard and other little hamlets, he says : —
" l'"ollo\ving these ])ioncer advents, other adventurers were ' few and far between ;' tliey
were in a few localities in Niagara, along on the Ridge in OHeans, in Clarkson, Ogdeii,
Bergen, Riga, Chili, Greece, Penfield, Macedon, Walworth, Marion, and along on the
road from Sod us to Lyons. When litde neighborhoods had been formed in all these
detached localities, disease came into the openings of the forest about as fast as they
were made. Often families, and sometimes almost entire neighborhoods, were carried
into the older and healthier localities, upon ox-sleds and carts, through wood-roads, to
be nursed and cared for. Through long years this operated not unlike the carrying
of the dead and wounded from a battlefield into the presence of those whose aid is
required to renew and maintain the strife. It is but litde less appalling and discouraging.
The whole region now immediately under consideration was sickly in all the eady years,
and upon that account, and for other reasons, was slow in setthng. All the region around
the falls of the Genesee, at the mouth of the river, at King's Landing, was regarded as
prolific in the seeds of disease — of chills and fever — almost as are the Poiitine marshes
of the Old world and the passes of the Isthmus on the route to California. A single
instance may be stated in this connection. The causes that have been cited are quite
98 History of the City of Rochester.
sufficient to account for the late start of Rochester; to explain to the readers of the
present day why valuable hydraulic privileges, in the immediate neighborhood of shipping
ports of Lake Ontario, were so long principally shrouded by the primeval forest, after
settlement had approached and almost surrounded the locality. To these causes the
reader may add what he has already observed 'Of the tendency of things toward tlie
main thoroughfare, the Buffalo road, in early years, and the fact that quite u]) to the
period of the start of Rochester the commercial enterprise and expectation of a large
settled portion of the Genesee country was turned in the direction of the headwaters
of the Alleghany and Susquehanna rivers."
In this opening year the bridge across the Genesee river was finished, and
long after its completion it was regarded with far more pride and admiration
than were ever bestowed on its present successor, the substantial and invisible
structure over which Main street now takes its way. It was, indeed, no mean
afiTair, for it took two years to build it, and the expense, amounting to $I2,000,
was borne by the counties of Ontario and Genesee. Before that time the only
bridge on the river was at Avon, twenty miles south, where the " Bufifalo road"
crossed, and the usual means of passage at this point was by fording on the
level rocky bottom where Court street bridge now stands. Besides this there
was a rude ferry at the rapids above, with a large flat-boat drawn by an end-
less cable, for David Frink made the transit in this manner in the fall of i8i i,
with his wife and six children, one of whom afterward married Alonzo Frost,
and another Edward Frost ; both ladies are now living in this city, at the age
of seventy-eight and eighty years, respectively. The completion of the bridge
probably did much to determine the location of the future city, for previous to
that the strife had been quite active between the village at the mouth of the
river — named after Charlotte, a daughter of Colonel Troup, the agent of the
Pulteney estate -^ and the little gathering of houses around Frederick Hanford's
store at the upper landing, first named King's Landing, then called Fall Town,
and later known as Hanford's Landing.
An extract from Ayi Essay on the Genesee Country, published by Dr. Lud-
low in the New York Medical atid Physical Journal for 1823, is of interest as
showing the sanitary condition, in this early period, of this locality, through
which he was then continually traveling, and from which he had constant
reports : —
"In March of 181 2 there were frequent cases of pleuritis with great diversity of
symptoms. In some cases copious bleeding was required, with a strict antiphlogistic
regimen, while in others an opposite course of treatment was indicated. The weather
had been variable, with southerly winds. In April and May were noticed for the first
time a few sporadic cases o{ pneumonia typhoides, a disease until then unknown, and
which, during the ensuing winter, became the most formidable epidemic which had ever
appeared in this country. In the first cases the local affection was principally confined
to the throat, and these were more fatal than those which succeeded them, in which the
lungs and brain were principally affected. The summer months were extremely warm
and dry J diarrhoea, dysentery and the usual fevers were prevalent. During the autumn
pneutnonia typhoides again prevailed in different parts of the country, particularly among
First House on the West Side of the River. 99
the soldiers at Lewiston, on the Niagara frontier. In January and Februar)', 1813, the
weather was very variable, being alternately cold and humid; the epidemic pneumonia
now became general and caused great mortality. There were two forms of the disease,
sthenic and asthenic ; the greater portion, however, were of the latter kind
The multiplicity of symptoms occasioned a great variety of treatment ; some depleted,
others stimulated. On its first apjjearance large bleedings were employed, but with
temporary relief, in most cases the patient sinking oh the third or fourth day. In other
sections of the country this mode of treatment was more successful. Those who were
opposed to the lancet trusted to opium, a practice equally fatal The epidemic
ceased on the return of warm weather. The summer was unusually healthy. In the
winter of 1814 the destructive disease returned, though it was not so malignant as it
had proved the last season. Depleting remedies generally produced a favorable ter-
mination. In the autumn catarrhal complaints were very prevalent. In 1815 the
fevers were generally inflammatory and easily subdued. In July dysentery prevailed as
an epidemic, but admitted of free depletion. In some cases it was accompanied by ex-
ternal inflammation and tumefaction of the face, neck and joints ; in some few instances
the inflammation of the face terminated in gangrene. The fatality was greatest among
children."
The sickness described above was evidently of a nature kindred to those
diseases mentioned by Turner. Whatever influence they may have liad in
postponing the settlement of the village, they evidently had not much effect in
checking the growth of Rochester, after it once began, for it increased so rap-
idly as to show that settlers must have poured in from all quarters. The very
first year displayed an activity which has scarcely been emulated since then,
when we take into consideration the paucity of numbers, the difficulty of the
transportation of material from other places and the smallness of capital invested,
compared with the streams of wealth that have, in these later years, flowed
into the far western towns when they began to exhibit evidence of prosperity.
Among the events of that year, after the proprietors of the Allan mill lot had
surveyed it into village lots and opened it for sale and settlement, was the erec-
tion of the first house on the west side of the river. This was on the corner
of State and West Main streets, where the Powers block now stands, and was
built for Hamlet Scrantom by Henry Skinner, on a lot which the latter had
purchased from Colonel Rochester. Having been begun early in the year it
was completed in May, Mr. Scrantom finishing the structure by roofing it with
slabs from the saw-mill on the other side of the river, which were floated across
at the rapids, as the bridge was not then open for travel. On the Fourth of
July the house was first occupied, and what celebration there was of the
nation's birthday in this place consisted in part of bonfires built in front of the
log hut. One of the four sons of the occupant of this dwelling was Hamlet D.
Scrantom, elected mayor of the city in i860, and another was the late Edwin
Scrantom, who at a later period in life referred to it in a pleasing little poem
called My Early Home, one stanza of which is as follows : —
loo History of the City of Rochester.
" Back on the misty track of time,
In memory's flickering light,
I see the scenes of other days
Like meteors in the night.
The garden, with its low-built fence.
With stakes and withes to tie it ;
The rude log-house, my. early home.
And one wild maple by it."
Mr. Scrantom is the authority for the statements given immediately above,
as told to the writer several years ago, and subsequently published by Mr.
Scrantom. Not in conflict with those recollections, but as setting the matter
in another light and showing that, while the log hut above alluded to was
doubtless the first dwelling built on the west side of the river, the first frame
house erected in that neighborhood was put up by other parties, the following
extracts are given from the private diary, or " memoirs and reminiscences," as
he styles them, of the late Abelard Reynolds, who came here from Pittsfield,
Mass., in April, 1812: —
" On arriving at the falls I called on Enos Stone and introduced myself as being in
search of a location in the western wilds for myself and little family. Mr. Stone replied
that he was from Lenox, which adjoined Pittsfield ; that Messrs. Rochester, Carroll and
Fiti;hugh had appointed him as their agent to dispose of the lots in the Hundred-acre
tract on the other side of the river, that the name was the village of Rochester, which,
instead of inhabitants, consisted only of trees. He gave me a warm invitation to setde
in Rochester and become his neighbor. I crossed near where the aqueduct stands.
He gave me on the west side a button-wood tree as an object to guide me on the
perilous voyage, at the same time remarking that the fall previous a man with. his family
moving to the West, in attempting to cross with his team (his family having left to criJ).ss
on the unfinished bridge), was swept over the rapids, and the man, wagon and horses,
with a load of furniture, were carried over the falls and lost. Having crossed in safety
I proceeded to Charlotte and passed the night at a respectable hotel kept by Erastus
Spalding. The next day I retraced my steps, called on Mr. Stone, examined the map
of the village of trees, viewed falls, etc. 1 finally concluded to settle at Rochester,
provided I could be suited in the selection of a lot. He said I should have my choice,
and, taking the map of the village of trees, we crossed the unfinished bridge on loose
plank, descending the long ladder at the west end. Then walking up to the four corners
and glancing at the map, I said 1 would take number i ( ' Eagle' corner), but he said that
lot was sold to Henry Skinner. He recommended the Clinton House lot, because it had
a view of a handsome lawn opposite, in front of the Allan mill. It did not suit me. I told
him I would take lots 23 and 24 [ where the Arcade now stands], but he said they
were also sold, the former to Captain Stone and the latter to himself, in payment of
services rendered, but that I might have his lot. We recrossed the bridge and called
on Captain Stone, who was told that I wished to settle in Rochester and purchase his
lot. 'Well,' he said, 'for five dollars I will assign the article.' I paid him the five dol-
lars and he made the assignment. I now commenced operations. I found a mason by
the name of Sampson in township number 7 (now Irondequoit), who agreed to build
the basement wall on which to erect my two-story frame building, twenty-four by thirty-
six feet square. I engaged a carpenter by the name of Nehemiah Hopkins to frame
First Store Erected. ioi
and raise the building, and on the i6th of August, 1812, said building was raised and
planked. I then arranged with Hopkins to inclose and finish the house to the extent
of the joiner's work, while I should return to Pittsfield to remove the family."
Mr. Reynolds then went back to Massachusetts and completed his arrange-
ments for the transfer of his family to their new home, when, stopping in at
the Pittsfield post-office for the final letters which he might receive before set-
ting out, two surprises met him — a gratification and a disappointment. He
was informed of his appointment as postmaster, and received a letter from Mr.
Stone, telling him that Hopkins had done nothing to the house after he left
Rochester. This news, of course, deranged his plans for the removal of his
family. Returning alone, to his western possessions, Mr. Reynolds decided
that it would be rnore trouble to complete the large house than it would be to
erect a smaller one on lot 24, and thus fulfill the purchase contract, by which
he was bound to put up a house within a year. The timber was growing in
the forest, but determination overcame all obstacles, and by the middle of Jan-
uary, 1813, the new house was framed, raised and finished except the plaster-
ing, the lime for which he could not obtain at that time. A second return to
Pittsfield, a third journey to Rochester, this time with the family, the traveling
being done in a sleigh, ended with another surprise, though easily overcome.
He says: "We found our house occupied by Israel Scrantom, but he vacated
at once and gave up possession, and, comparatively speaking, we considered
ourselves in comfortable quarters, for.it was the best house in the place." In
this house, on the 2d of December, 18 14, occurred the birth of Mortimer F.
Reynolds, the first white child born on the west side of the river within the
precincts of the present city, and in fact the first white child born in Rochester,
as that name did not apply to the east side, until the incorporation of the vil-
lage. The "large house" was finished within a year after the first one, and
stood on that spot till 1826, when, as the building of the Arcade then began,
it was moved to Sophia street, opposite the Central church, and there it still
remains, inclosed within brick walls. Here was established the post-office, a
full description of which, from that time to this, has been given in the previous
chapter.
In July the first merchant's store, which was built by Silas O. Smith, was
opened by Ira West, and about that month Isaac W. Stone, in a house which
he had just built on St. Paul street, near where the Chapman House now
stands, opened a tavern, the only one in this locality for the next two or three
years. Moses Atwater and Samuel J. Andrew^ (the father of Samuel G. An-
drews) then began to make improvements on the east side of the river, while
on the west Francis Brown, Matthew Brown, jr., and Thomas Mumford laid
out village lots, to which they gave, in honor of the first-named of the three, the
title of Frankfort, an appellation which the district has borne almost up to this
day, From this place to Lewiston the highway (or what should have been
I02 History of the City of Rochester.
such) ran along by the Ridge road, but, as it was then almost impassable, the
legislature granted, in 1813, $5,000 for clearing the path and bridging the
streams between the two places. Three houses were built on the west side
during that year, and, what was of more importance to the growth of the vil-
lage and the development of that industry from which so much of its wealth
was to be subsequently derived, the mill race south of East Main .street was
opened by Rochester & Co.
The year 18 14 witnessed the first mercantile operations of any importance
in the little village, but in that time an event transpired which for years after-
ward formed a leading theme of conversation among the older inhabitants and
was the subject of at least one poem by a resident author, the late George H.
Mumford, though no copies of it have been obtainable for a long time past.
"Madison's war" — to use the name which the opponents of the national ad-
ministration gave to what is generally known as the war of 18 12 — had been in
progress for two years, and, although no gunpowder had been burnt here for
any other purpose than to kill the bears and other animals that lurked in the
surrounding forest and occasionally came among the houses, still it had some
effect in causing the emigration hither to slacken perceptibly. Many of the
able-bodied men in the vicinity had gone to the Niagara frontier, leaving this
point almost defenseless, and to make matters worse Sir James Yeo, the officer
in command of the British fleet on Lake Ontario, had frequently cruised off
the mouth of the Genesee, and had in June, 1813, come to anchor and sent a
party on shore for the purpose of plunder. No resistance was made, as there was
no military organisation there to offer it, and the enemy, who had landed in the
afternoon, remained over night, keeping sentinels posted, and retired early in
the morning, taking with them a quantity of salt, whisky and provisions from
the store-house of Frederick BushncU, for which they kindly gave a receipt to
George Latta, the clerk. Turner thinks their speedy departure was owing to
their getting information that an armed force was collecting at Hanford's Land-
ing, and says that a body of armed men which had gathered there marched
down, arriving at the Charlotte landing just as the invaders were embarking on
board their boats. The men to whom he refers were probably those under the
command of Colonel Caleb Hopkins, who was a resident of Pittsford at the
time, but had been holding for many years the double position of collector of
the customs and inspector of the same, at the port of Genesee, both commis-
sions being issued by President Madison. His civic duties did not prevent him
from engaging in military pursuits, as the following letter will show. It was
written by General Amos Hall, at that time a major-general of militia, and
commanding a division in this district, and is addressed to "Lieutenant- Colo-
nel Caleb Hopkins, Smallwood, Ontario County," — Smallwood being the name
then borne by the village which is now Pittsford, as well as the township which
included both it and the village of Brighton : —
The War OF i8i2. 103
"Bloomfield, June 16, 1813.
"I this moment received your letter by Major Norton, advising me of the landing
of the enemy from their fleet, off the mouth of the Genesee river. Your calling out
your regiment was perfectly correct. You will please to collect as many men as appear-
ances will justify, until the enemy's vessels leave the mouth of the river. It cannot be
expected they will make much stay, but you will be able to judge of their movements
by to-morrow morning. I shall expect you will give me immediate notice if you think
more force is wanted. A. Hall."
With this invasion as a foretaste of what might be in store for Rochester,
it is no wonder that great alarm was felt lest the British admiral might, at some
day not far distant, land quite a body of troops, and march up the river. The
alarm was not confined to this particular locality, as may be seen by the follow-
ing letter, sent on the 8th of January, 18 14, by the "committee of safety and
relief" at Canandaigua, to the influential inhabitants of New York city, being
addressed to DeWitt Clinton, then mayor. Colonel Robert Troup, General
Clarkson and others : —
"Gentlemen: Niagara county and that part of Genesee county which lies west of
Batavia are completely depopulated. All the settlements, in a section of country forty
miles square, and which contained more than 12,000 souls, are effectually .broken up.
These facts you are undoubtedly acquainted with ; but the distresses they have pro-
duced, none but an eye-witness can thoroughly appreciate. Our roads are filled with
people, many of whom have been reduced from a state of competence and good pros-
pects, to the last degree of want and sorrow. So sudden was the blow by which they
have been crushed that no provision could be made either to eliide or to meet it. The
fugitives from Niagara county, especially, were! dispersed under circumstances of so
much terror that in some cases mothers find themselves wandering with strange children
and children are seen accompanied by such as have no other sympathies with them
than those of common sufferings. Of the families thus separated, all the members
can never meet again in this life, for the same violence that has made them beggars has
deprived some of their heads and others of their branches The inhabitants
of Canandaigua have made large contributions for their relief, in money, provisions and
clothing. And we have been appointed, among other things, to solicit further relief for
them from our wealthy and liberal-minded fellow-citizens. In pursuance of this
appointment, may we ask you, gentlemen, to interest yourselves particularly in their
behalf? We believe that no occasion has ever occurred in our country which presented
stronger claims upon individual benevolence, and we humbly trust that whoever is will-
ing to answer these claims will always entitle himself to the precious reward of active
charity."
The response to this appeal was generous and prompt, for an indorsement
dated January 24th appears on the letter, stating that resolutions proposed by
the recorder (Josiah Ogden Hofifman) were passed unanimously by tfie corpo-
ration of New York, granting $3,000 for the relief of the sufferers. In addition
to this, the legislature on the 8th of February appropriated $50,000 "for the
relief of the indigent sufferers in the counties of Genesee and Niagara in con-
sequence of the invasion of the western frontier of the state, including the Tus-
carora nation of Indians, and the Canadian refugees — the money to be distrib-
uted by Graham Newell, William Wadsworth and Joseph Ellicott."
I04 History of the City of Rochester.
Provisions were now made in earnest for repelling the invasion which was
definitely expected at the mouth of the river, and the precautions were taken
none too soon. Isaac W. Stone was commissioned as captain of the dragoons,
to be enlisted for six months as volunteers, under command of General Peter
B. Porter. Hervey Ely and Abelard Reynolds contracted to furnish the equip-
ments, the former, to provide the clothing and the latter the saddlery, all to be
paid for when the soldiers should receive their pay from the government for
their services. Enlistments began immediately, but it did not take long to find
that thirty-three men were all that could be raised in the village itself By active,
recruiting among the surrounding towns seventeen men were obtained, and the
company of fifty men was stationed at Charlotte, Captain Stone being promoted
to the rank of major, and Francis Brown and Elisha Ely elected to captain-
cies. Before they started for their destination, word was received that Admiral
Yeo, with a fleet of thirteen vessels, had appeared at Charlotte and dropped
anchor. Hastily equipping themselves with muskets that had been lodged with
Hervey Ely & Co., and leaving behind them one of their number who refused
to go, and another who was deputed to remain behind and take off the women
and children in a cart if the enemy approached too near, they hurried away.
Halting for a time near Deep hollow, beside the lower falls, they set to work on
a breastwork already begun, which was called Fort Bender, and upon the bat-
tery of this they planted a four-pounder cannon, to intimidate, if not to resist
the enemy, in case they should attempt a landing at that point from small boats,
or, as Turner says, "to impede the crossing, by the invaders, of the bridge over
Deep hollow." After completing this work of military engineering, which con-
sisted mainly of fallen trees, they started again, long after nightfall, and, after
marching in the rain and through deep mud, they reached Charlotte at two
o'clock in the morning. Here they found that further measures of defense had
been already taken. An eighteen-pounder — which, as well as the piece of
heavy ordnance already mentioned, had been sent from Canandaigua on the
order of General Porter, the commander of the forces in this part of the state —
had been mounted on the only fortification in the place, a breastwork upon the
bluff near the old hotel, so located as to command the road leading up the bank
from the wharf, and composed of two tiers of ship timber, with the space be-
tween filled in with barn refuse. Other troops were already there, consisting
of a volunteer company under Captain Rowe, from Gates and Greece, while
Colonel Atkinson's regiment, made up from other towns in the county, were
either there previously or came up during the day. Nevertheless the Rochester
contingent was evidently the head and front of the American army at that
place on the 15th of May. O'Rielly, in his history of Rochester, remarks:
"Though the equipments and discipline of these troops would not form a brill-
iant picture for a warHke eye, their very awkwardness in those points, coupled,
as it was, with their sagacity and courage, accomplished more, perhaps, than
Projected' Invasion of Charlotte; 105
could have been effected by a larger force of regular troops bedizened with the
trappings of military pomp. The militia thus hastily collected were marched
and counter-marched, disappearing in the woods at one point and suddenly
emerging elsewhere, so as to impress the enemy with the belief that the force
collected for the defense was far greater than it actually was." So impatient
were these men to meet the invading veterans that early in the morning, before
any demonstrations were made from the fleet toward the shore, a volunteer
party, consisting of Captain Ely, Abelard Reynolds and Jehiel Barnard, went
out in an old boat that had been used as a lighter, in the midst of a heav)'' fog,
The mist suddenly clearing away, they found themselves within range of the
guns of the whole, British fleet, so that a gunboat darted out after them and
they had all they could do to make their escape. The circumstances immedi-
ately succeeding we will let O'Rielly tell in his own words: —
"An officer with a flag of truce was sent from the British fleet. A militia officer
marched down, with ten of the most soldier-like men, to receive him on Lighthouse
point. These militiamen carried their guns as nearly upright as might be consistent
with their plan of being ready for action by keeping hold of the triggers ! The British
officer was astonished. He looked unutterable things. ' Sir,' said he, ' do you receive
a flag of truce under arms, with cocked triggers?' 'Excuse me, excuse me, sir; we
backwoodsmen are not well versed in military tactics,' replied the American officer, who
promptly sought to rectify his error by ordering his men to ' ground arms.' The Briton
was still more astonished, and, after delivering a brief message, immediately departed
for his fleet, indicating by his countenance a suspicion that the ignorance of tactics
which he had witnessed was all feigned for the occasion, so as to deceive the British
commodore into a snare. Shortly afterward, the same day, another officer came ashore
with a flag of truce for a further parley, as the British were evidently too sus-
picious of stratagem to attempt a hostile landing if there was any possibility of com-
promising for the spoils. Captain Francis Brown was deputed with a guard to receive
the last flag of truce. The British officer looked suspiciously upon him and upon his
guard, and, after some conversation, familiarly grasped the pantaloons of Captain
Brown about the knee, remarking, as he firmly handled it, ' Your cloth is too good to
be si)oiled by such a bungling tailor,' alluding to the width and clumsy aspect of that
garment. Brown was quickwitted as well as resolute, and replied jocosely that he was
' prevented from dressing fashionably by his haste that morning to receive such dis-
tinguished visitors I ' The Briton obviously imagined that Brown was a regular officer
of the American army, whose regimentals were masked by clumsy overclothes. The
proposition was then made that if the Americans would deliver up the provisions and
military stores which might be in and around Rochester and Charlotte, Sir James Yeo
would spare the settlements from destruction. 'Will you comply with the offisr ? '
' Blood knee-deep first ! ' was the emphatic reply of Francis Brown."
Turner in describing the events of the day, in his History of the Phelps &
Gorham Purchase, follows quite closely the diary or "memoirs" of Mr. Rey-
nolds. He makes no mention of the melodramatic incident described above,
but says that the purpose of the flag of truce was to tender the assurance of
Sir James Yeo that if all the public property were surrendered, private prop-
erty should be respected.
io6 History of the City of Rochester.
" To favor his mission he presented a paper signed by several citizens of Oswego,
the purport of which was that as the government had left large quantities of stores and
munitions at that place, without any adequate force to protect them, they had concluded
not to risk their lives and property in the defense. The message and the paper were for-
warded to Captain Stone, who decided at once that the citizen soldiers assembled at
the mouth of the Genesee river could not follow the precedent- of their countrymen at
Oswego. ' Go back and tell the officer,' said he, ' that he may say to Sir James Yeo
that any public property that may be here is in the hands of those who will defend it.'
Soon after this, a gun-boat, sloop-rigged, of from ninety to one hundred tons burden,
sailed out from the fleet, approached the mouth of the river and fired a six-pound shot,
which compliment was returned from the eighteen-pgunder on the American battery.
The gun-boat then fired fifteen or twenty-six eight-pound shots, but one of them, strik-
ing the store-house, doing any damage. Soon after this occurrence Peter B. Porter
arrived and assumed command. Another flag of truce came from the British fleet at 4
o'clock p. m., bringing a peremptory demand from Sir James Yeo that the public prop-
erty be delivered up, and the threat that, if his demand was not complied with, he
would, make a landing with his marines and 400 Indians. To this General Porter re-
plied, through his aid. Major Noon, that he would endeavor to take care of any force
that Sir James felt disposed to send on shore, accompanying the reply with an intima-
tion that a third flag of truce, sent upon the same errand, could not be respected."
Thus ended the negotiations and the projected invasion, except that for a
few hours afterward several heavy balls were thrown, harmlessly, from the
fleet, many of which missiles were picked up arid used afterward for breaking
stones in the erection of public buildings. For the next two or three days
troops kept coming into Charlotte, but the number never exceeded 800, a force
utterly inadequate to cope with the body of men that the English admiral could
have landed had he chosen to do so. Why he retreated without action is a
matter of conjecture, there being only two plausible suppositions — one, that
he considered the victory, though certain, to be a barren one, as the amount
of property here was very small, and the other that he w^s really deceived, by
some clevei- marloeuvres that were preformed by our militiamen, into a serious
over-estimate of the strength opposed to him.
Rochester's warlike experience being thus happily concluded, we may turn
our attention, as the settlers turned theirs, to the consideration of peaceful pur-
suits. Emigration soon set in with redoubled spirit, and in 18 15 the prosperity
of the hamlet greatly increased. Mail facilities received an unwonted impetus.
Samuel Hildreth, of Pittsford, began running a stage and carrying the mail
twice a week between Canandaigua and Rochester, a distance of twenty-eight
miles, and a private weekly mail route was established between Rochester and
Lewiston, dependent for its support on the income of the post-offices along the
route. In this year was erected the first building here of any magnitude — the
old "red mill," on West Main street, near Aqueduct — which was put up by
Hervey Ely and Josiah Bissell, assisted, in the elevation of the roof-timbers, by
every man and boy in the place; it was destroyed by fire in 1837. The first
wedding in tlie settlement was on October 8th, when Delia, daughter of Ham-
Incidents of i8i6. 107
let Scraiitom, was married to Jehiel Barnard, in a house on the top of a hill on
Brown street, next to where the school of St. Patrick's parish now stands; Mrs.
Barnard lived to a very advanced age, and died in this city in 1881. Abelard
Reynolds opened the first tavern on the west side; the first religious society was
organised, consisting of sixteen members; the first book store was opened, op-
posite the Arcade, by Horace L. Sill and George G. Sill; the Genesee Cotton
Manufacturing company was organised and work was begun on the factory, at
the foot of Factory street, completed in the following spring, which ran 1,392
spindles, contained the only cotton machinery west of Whitestown and had the
first bell hung west of the Genesee river; the steady purchase of produce from
the surrounding country began; in December the first census was taken, show-
ing a population of 33 1.
The year 1S16 witnessed a variety of stirring incidents, of which the follow-
ing are worth recording : Rev. Comfort Williams was installed as pastor of the
Presbyterian congregation, being the first clergyman settled here ; Matthew
and Francis Brown finished the mill race which still bears their name — eighty-
four rods in length, thirty feet wide and three feet deep, blasting through rock
much of the way ; Colonel Rochester, then living in Bloomfield (whither he had
removed after residing in Dansville), built for his residence a frame structure,
which afterward became the Break o' Day house, on Exchange street, but he
did not move into it for two years, as Dr. Levi Ward, who then came here from '
Bergen, occupied it till 18 18, when Colonel Rochester settled permanently in
the village which bore his name ; Caleb Lyon began the settlement of Carthage;
the Buffalo road was surveyed and laid out to Batavia ; the: first trees for orna-
ment appeared, sugar maples set out on the west side of Washington street by
Hervey Ely and John G. Bond ; the first newspaper was established, a weekly,
called the Gazette, published by Augustine G. Dauby and John P. Sheldon,
afterward by Derick and Levi W. Sibley, and still later by Edwin Scrantom as
the Monroe Republican, after which it became and is now the weekly edition
of the Union & Advertiser; the summer was one of the coldest ever known in
this part of the country, before or afterward, a hard frost on the i6th of August
destroying all the growing crops and making a distressing scarcity the next
winter.
The late Judge Moses Chapin has left a sketch of the future city in this
year, which marks the close of its embryonic epoch, and for that reason it may
be given entire, except as changes are made in it to conform to the alterations
that have taken place since 1847, when it was written: —
"The principal settlement on West Main street was between the Powers block and
the bridge over the Genesee. 'J'he buildings were rows of small shops on each side of
the street, mostly a story and a half high. Here and there was a building further west
on that street, and the brush had lately been burned to clear the street along in front of
where the court-house now stands. A frog-pond occupied a part of the court-house
yard at the base of a high stone ledge. From the bathing-house on the west side was
io8 History of the City of Rochester.
a log causeway over a deep swamp, in which the forest trees were then standing; be-
yond Washington street west there was an unbroken forest. State street had been
cleared of trees, but the stumps were remaining. The forest came almost to the west
line of the street, between Allen and Brown streets. On the west side of Exchange
street a small frame building stood perched on a high ledge of stone, where William
AUing's stationery store was afterward located; further west was a dwelling-house back
of where the Bank of Monroe now stands ; then on the south was occasionally a smal[
building. On the other side of the street were no buildings. A yard for saw-logs
occupied the ground of Child's basin. On North Fitzhugh street there was no settle-
ment north of the present site of the Baptist church, and cart-tracks then led north to
adjacent woods. From Sophia street, on west beyond Washington, was an ash swamp,
filled with water the most of the year. ' The long, pendent moss from the boughs of the
trees in this swamp presented a picturesque appearance. The land south of Troup
street was a forest. On the east side of the river was a cluster of houses on Main and
South St. Paul streets. From Clinton street east, from Mortimer north and from Jack-
son south was mostly forest. A black walnut tree of magnificent proportions stood in
the north part of Dublin, not far northwest from the falls, and attracted many visitors."
CHAPTER XVII.
ROCHESTER AS A VILLAGE.
Its Incorporation in 1817 — The First Village Election — The First Church Built — The Com-
merce with Canada — Settlement of Carthage — The Great Bridge there — Its Fall, and that of Other
Bridges — Surveys for the Erie Canal — Monroe County Erected — Building of the Old Aqueduct —
The Old .Court-House — John Quincy Adams.
TT7E have seen the troubles through which our early settlers passed — the
\\ wasting disease, the difficulty of communication, the alarm caused by
the menacing army of the British. These surmounted, and the further growth
of the place being reasonably assured, it seemed that the collection of buildings,
of stores, factories and dwelling-houses, should be bound together by corporate
ties. Accordingly the legislature passed an act in April, 181 7, incorporating
the village of Rochesterville, thus placing a suffix, which was probably consid-
ered a mark of dignity, to the shorter name of Rochester, which the place had
previously borne. The village belonged, until its incorporation as a city, to
the towns of Gates and Brighton, and lay in the counties of Genesee and On-
tario. On the 5th of May the village election was held, at which the five trus-
tees provided for in the charter were chosen, Francis Brown, Daniel Mack,
William Cobb, Everard Peck and Jehiel Barnard being the persons for whom
tlie votes of the villagers were cast. Of these Francis Brown was chosen pres-
ident of the board — and therefore of the village — and Hastings R. Bender was
elected clerk, Frederick F. Backus being subsequently appointed treasurer.
Improvements Following Incorporation as a Village. 109
The assessors for that year were Isaac Colvin, Hastings R. Bender and Daniel
D. Hatch, with Ralph Lester as collector and constable. Thus fairly launched
into corporate life, the village took a new start in prosperity, and with each
succeeding year advances were made that indicated a determination on the part
of those then settled here to make the best of their surroundings, and extract
from nature all the assistance that could be secured to their strong hands and
firm hearts, while at the same time the continued stream of westward emigra
tion, which dropped many of its components at this point, made the task
lighter for each, though the aggregate became constantly heavier. In addition
to those who came to locate permanently, many were attracted hither tempo-
rarily by the prospects of advantage in trade. The village had by this time
become the principal wheat market for the whole valley of the Genesee, so that
the continued influx of teams coming in with this and other grains made a
scene of activity and enterprise, heightened by the constant buying, selling and
bartering at the various stores. Wheat rose to $2.25 per bushel, but the
millers took all that was offered, and an easy sale was found for the flour.
Buildings of all kinds increased in number, the most important erected in 1817
being the church that was built on Carroll street (now State) for the Presby-
terian society, the first house for public worship in this neighborhood. In spite
of all the prosperity, it must not be supposed that Rochesterville was yet*out
of the woods. On the contrary, the forest still inclosed it on every hand, on
each side of the Genesee, for when Elisha Johnson purchased of Enos Stone,
in this year, eighty acres of his farm adjoining the river on the east side, the
back land of the purchase was the primeval wood. Mr. Johnson surveyed the
whole into a village plat, constructed a dam across the river, and excavated a
large mill canal from thence to the bridge, four feet deep, sixty feet wide, and
nearly seventy rods in length, thus opening, at an expense of $12,000, exten-
sive water privileges, of which William Atkinson, for one, immediately availed
himself, building on this private canal the "yellow mill," with three run of
stones. The venerable Schuyler Moses, now living on Chestnut street, worked
on the erection of this mill. Another important edifice was the old Mansion
House, built by D. K. Cartter and Abner Hollister, the first three-story build-
ing erected here. Precautions were taken, in a thorough and systematic man-
ner, even at this early date, against the destruction of the property of the village
by fire, and every citizen had to be supplied with fire buckets, besides which
arrangements were made for hooks, ladders and other apparatus included in
the paraphernalia of those days. A sketch of the fire department from that time
to this is given further on. Of course, the lighter accomplishments, as well as
the more solid branches of industry, must be cultivated, and therefore an instru-
mental band was formed at this time, the first meeting being held at Reynolds's
tavern, when arrangements were made to procure instruments from Utica.
Preston Smith was chosen leader, and the members of the musical organisation
I lo History of the City of Rochester.
who played under him were Joseph Strong, Bradford King, Edwin Scrantom,
Jehiel Barnard, Perkins, L. L. Miller, James Caldwell, Jedediah Stafford,
H. T. McGeorge, Nathaniel T. Rochester, Selkreg, Myron Strong, Eras-
tus Cook (who brought the first piano to Rochester), Horace L. Sill, Alfred
Judson, Alpheus Bingham, Leyi W. Sibley and Isaac Loomis,
Not alone on land but on water did the new village make its influence felt, for
the steamboat Ontario now began to make regular trips from Sackett's Harbor to
Lewiston, stopping at the port of Genesee, and to make connection with the
vessel several craft were kept busy transporting produce and manufactured ar- ^
tides down the river, besides which many boats*were at frequent intervals com-
ing up to Hanford's Landing from ports below. No statement is obtainable of
the commerce for 1817, but in the next year the exports from the Genesee
river down the lake to the Canada market, during the season of navigation,
were 26,000 barrels of flour, 3,653 barrels of pot and pearl ashes, 1,173 barrels
of pork, 190 barrels of whisky, 214,000 double butt staves, which made a total
valuation of $380,000. , That was not a bad showing for the foreign commerce
of a little village during its first full year of corporate existence, and 18 19 showed
a fair increase upon that, for the exports to Canada then amounted to $400,000.
The year 181 8 was not remarkable for any thrilling events in the vil-
lage or any striking advance in its material prosperity, but the strictest atten-
tion was paid to the devising and enforcing of ordinances for the promotion of
health, the security of property and the convenience, as well as safety, of the
people. Matthew Brown, jr., Roswell Hart, William P. Sherman, Daniel Mack
and H. R. Bender were appointed as street patrol, and in their persons the maj-
esty of the law was duly respected. The second weekly newspaper was estab-
lished— the Rochester TelcgrapJi (not Rochestervillc, for the appendix does not
seem to have been generally used even when it was officially a part of the name
of the place), edited, published and printed by Everard Peck & Co., the first
number appearing on the 7th of July in this year. For the manufacture of the
material used by the two journals Gilman and Sibley built a paper-mill on the
east side, near Atkinson's flour mill. In September the second census was
taken, showing a population of 1,049. l^^t however little of interest or excite-
ment took place in the proximity of the two cataracts then known as the Upper
and Middle falls — the latter of which now bears the name of the former, while
the continued deportation of the rock from the river bed above and below the
Court street bridge has destroyed the precipice of fifteen feet for the "upper"
falls to flow over — enough was going on at the Lower falls to call our attention
in that direction. The settlement then known as Carthage — an appellation
borne by that locality long after it was embraced within the city limits, by which
it was generally designated till a very few years ago — was a rival of Rochester,
or rather it was hoped by those living in the vicinity of the lower falls and on
the east side of the river that that point would be the very center of the future
(^ §■ e^":^'^^^ <tyc ty/(_
The Bridge Between Rochester and Carthage. i i i
city which they felt sure was to grpw up somewhere in the neighborhood. Ca-
leb Lyon, who was probably the first settler there, had been on the ground for
several years, had made a small opening in the forest and had erected a number of
log cabins, but the few families upon the tract were mostly squatters, and Elisha B.
Strong, from Windsor, Conn., may be considered the real pioneer — in fact,
almost the "patroon" of the place. In company with Elisha Beach he pur-
chased, in 1 8 1 6, 1 ,000 acres embracing the site of Carthage and made the most de-
termined efforts to build up a town that should be of enduring vitality. A pub-
lic house was erected, kept by Ebenezer Spear ; stores were opened for business ;
at least one lawyer, Levi H. Clark,- had his office there, and Strong and Al-
bright built, at the upper step of the falls, a flour mill with four run of stones.
In spite of all this it was evident that more must be done; one further act was
necessary — the spanning of the Genesee and the uniting of the Ridge road,
which was broken by the gorge of the river. For that purpose a stock com-
pany was formed by Messrs. Strong, Beach and Albright, together with Heman
Norton, for the erection of a bridge at that point, and at the same time — as the
only highway leading from the Brighton road to Carthage was the "Merchants'
road," which had been cut by merchants of Canandaigua several years before —
Franklin street was laid out. People who have wondered why that thoroughfare
was put through at so unaccountable an angle with the contiguous streets will be
satisfied with the explanation that it was done by the modern Carthaginians
with the hope of diverting the tide of westward emigration from the "Buffalo
road" and turning it in their direction. The bridge was begun in May, 1818,
and from, the beginning it attracted far more than local attention, though the re-
marks were not always unmixed with bitterness. For instance, some one pur-
porting to be a "traveler in the West" wrote at the time to the New York
Spectator, pronouncing the structure "a monument of folly" and describing not
only its projectors but the inhabitants of Rochester as a class as "bankrupts and
adventurers without capital." To this ill-natured scribe replied a resident of
Carthage, in a long letter to the New York Evening Post, demonstrating the
utility of the work and vindicating the business integrity of the dwellers by the
Genesee. As the edifice approached completion it became evident that it was
to be one of the most admirable of its kind in existence, a writer in the Catskill
Recorder observing that "it will almost rank with one of the wonders of the
world." The bridge <vas finished before the winter was over, and how far the
laudation quoted above was justified by the facts may be seen by the follow-
ing, taken from the Rochester Telegraph o{Y&hr\x^xy i6th, 1819: —
" It is with pleasure that we announce to the public that the Carthage bridge is com-
pleted and that its strength has been successfully tested by the authority designated in
its charter of incorporation. It consists of an entire arch thrown across the Genesee
river, the chord of which is 352 and -^^ feet and the versed sine fifty-four feet. By a
recent and accurate admeasurement it is found that the summit of the arch is 196 feet
above the surface of the water. It is 718 feet in length and thirty feet in width, be-
112 History of the City of Rochester.
sides four large elbow braces placed at the extrenjities of the arch and projecting fifteen
feet on each side of it, thereby presenting a resistance to any lateral pressure or casualty
equal to a width of sixty feet. The travel passes upon the crown of the arch, which
consists of nine ribs, two feet and four inches thick, connected by braced levelers above
and below and secured by nearly 800 strong bolts. The feet of the arch rest upon solid
rock about sixty feet below the surface of the upper bank, and the whole structure is
braced and bound together in a manner so compact as to disarm even cavil of its doubts.
The arch contains more than 200 tons and can sustain any weight that ordinary travel
ma> bring upon it. Loaded teams of more than thirteen tons passed over it together a
few days since and produced very little perceptible tremor. Great credit is due to the
contractors, Messrs. Brainard and Chapman, for their persevering and unremitted efforts
in accomplishing this stupendous work. It was erected upon a frame called the sup-
porter or false bridge. The Genesee river flows under the bridge with an impetuous
current and is compressed to the width of about 120 feet. This width was crossed by
commencing a frame on each side near the margin and causing the weight behind to
sustain the bents progressively bending over the water, which meeting at the top formed
a Gothic arch over the stream, the vertex of which was about twenty feet below the
present floor of the bridge. Though now purposely disconnected from the bridge, the
Gothic arch still stands underneath the Roman and is esteemed by architects, in point
of mechanical ingenuity, as great a curiosity as the bridge itself The bridge contains
69,513 feet of timber, running measure, in addition to 20,806 feet of timber contained
in the false bridge or supporter. All this has been effected by the labor of somewhat
less (upon an average) than twenty-two workmen, within the short space of nine months.
Were this fact told in Europe it would only excite the smile of incredulity. The bridge
qt Schffahausen in Switzerland, which for almost half a century was regarded as the
pride of the eastern hemisphere, was built, we are informed, in a little less than three
years, and was the longest arch in Europe. It was but twelve feet longer than the
bridge at Carthage (admitting that it derived no support from a pier in the center), was
only eighteen feet wide and of ordinary and convenient height. It was destroyed dur-
ing the French revolution, and no entire arch is known at present in the old world to
exceed 240 feet span. The most lofty single arch in Europe is in England, over the
river Wear, at Sunderland, which falls short of the bridge at Carthage 116 feet in the
length of the span and ninety-six feet in the height of the arch. The bridge at Car-
thage may therefore be pronounced unrivaled in its combined dimensions, strength and
beauty, by any structure of the kind in Europe or America. The scenery around it is
picturesque and sublime ; within view from it are three waterfalls of the Genesee, one
of which has 105 feet perpendicular descent. The stupendous banks, the mills and ma-
chinery, the forest yielding to the industry of a rising village, and the navigable waters
not 100 rods below it are calculated to fill the mind of a generous beholder with sur-
prise and satisfaction. Particularly is this the case when the utility of the bridge is re-
garded in connection with its extent. It presents the nearest route from Canandaigua
to Lewiston, it connects the points at the great Ridge road, it opens to the counties of
Genesee and Niagara a direct communication with the water privileges at the lower
falls and the head of navigation on the river, and renders the village of Carthage ac-
cessible and convenient, as a thoroughfare from the east, the west and the north.''
The bridge was guaranteed, by the contractors, to stand for a year and a day,
and it is somewhat singular that a great proportion of those inhabitants of the
city who have had any idea at all about the matter have always supposed that
Events of 1819 — The Erie Canal. 113
it lasted for exactly that time, the tradition being so firmly established that
more than one history has repeated the statement. It stood for more than one
year and three months, giving way on the 22d of May, 1820, at a moment
when there was no weight upon it, the great mass of timber not being suffi-
ciently braced to pi'event the springing upward of the arch. As it sank into
the flood below, the hopes of Carthage sank with it. Efforts were made to re-
pair the loss, but they only served to retard the decay of the settlement ; imme-
diately after its destruction another bridge was built upon piers, about a hundred
rods south of the former and on a lower level ; a few years subsequently another
was erected which stood till 1835. In 1856 the City erected, at a cost of $25,-
©00, a second suspension bridge on the site of the first, which was constructed-
on a novel principle and one that seemed injudicious to most persons other than
the architect. At either end of the bridge stood two columns, each one a combi-
nation of four hollow cylinders or tubes of cast iron, screwed together by flanges
and bound and braced with wrought irqn rods. These columns, about ninety
feet in height, rose from the rocky terrace below the high bank and served as
towers to support the wire cables that were anchored beyond them. It had
stood for about seven months when one night in April, 1857, ^ very heavy, wet
snow fell, to the depth of four inches, and when the sun rose there was no
bridge there. No one saw it fall, and no one, so far as is known, heard the
sound, except the watchman at the paper-mills below.
The year of 18 19 came and went without many changes in the appearance
of the village, other than those caused by the erection of new mills, as will be
detailed in another place in this volume. In addition to the completion of the
Carthage bridge the river was again spanned within the village limits, a toll
bridge being thrown across by Andrews, Atwater and Mumford, about midway
between the falls and the present site of Andrews street bridge ; it was prob-
ably not very strongly constructed, as it stood but a few years and there, was
no occasion to rebuild it. The title of the village corporation was changed by
act of the legislature, the name of Rochesterville, which had always been dis-
tasteful to the people, giving place to the original appellation of Rochester.
This is what it ought to have been called all the time, not only on account of
Colonel Rochester, the part owner of the land on which the village stood, but
as bearing, in its natural features, a resemblance more or less .marked, and cer-
tainly not wholly fanciful, to the town of the same name in England. On the
28th of September the state engineers made a survey of a route for the canal
through the village. The question of the course to be taken by the Erie canal
was one that agitated the inhabitants of the little place, as will be seen by the
following extract from the Rochester Telegraph of November 2d, 18 19: —
"We learn from Mr. White, one of the engineers who have been employed in explor-
ing the route for the canal, that the commissioners, at their late meeting in Utica, de-
cided in favor of the northern route, from Montezuma to the Genesee river, which it will
intersect at this village. The course it will take west of the river is not yet determined.
1 14 History of the City of Rochester.
It is expected that contracts will be made this season, for working some part of the
canal in this section of the country. The result of the first experiment which was made
to navigate the canal between Rome and Utica will afford its friends and advocates the
highest gratification."
A letter in the same number of the newspaper, from a correspondent at
Utica, gives an account of "the first trial of the great canal," in a trip made
from that place to Rome by Governor Clinton, the canal commissioners and a
number of gentlemen, the letter closing with the ardent hope on the part of
the writer that the season then in progress would " witness the transportation
of salt from Salina to Utica by the canal, a distance of more than fifty miles."
An account of the inception of this great work, its progress, its completion and
its enlargement, as well as the rneans taken to direct its course through this
. city, will be found in another place. Village lots had by this time greatly in-
creased in value, but the prices at which they were held in 18 19 have a strange
look at this day. A store lot fronting on State street (then Carroll street),
where part of the Powers block now stands, was offered for $1,000, and the
Boody farm, embracing one hundred acres, now partly covered by some of the
finest residences and grounds on East avenue, was offered at ten dollars an
acre. At about the same time the lot on West Main street between Exchange
and Aqueduct streets, and running back to where the canal now is, was sold
for $1,175.
In 1820 the village had grown to be a place of 1,502 inhabitants, according
to the United States census taken in that year ; the first court of record was
held here, Hon. Roger Skinner presiding at a session of the United States dis-
trict court ; St. Luke's (Episcopal) church was built, being the second house for
public worship erected here ; the price of produce fell greatly in this year, corn
being from twenty to twenty-five cents per bushel and wheat thirty- seven and
a half cents, so that flour was sold at from $2.25 to $2.50 per barrel.
The legislature did in February, 1821, what it ought to have done before —
it passed a law creating the county of Monroe out of portions of Genesee and
Ontario counties, which had hitherto been divided by the river. Jesse Haw-
ley, Fitch Chipman and Samuel M. Hopkins were the members of assembly
from Genesee county, and there is no record that they were hostile to a meas-
ure that was plainly demanded by justice to a thriving and increasing popula-
tion, with a large village astride of a river and situated in two counties, but
John C. Spencer, who was then one of the seven members from Ontario coun-
ty, and who afterward became so eminent as a jurist, set himself in violent
opposition to the scheme. It was not the last time that a resident of Canan-
daigua exerted himself to prevent legislation favorable and just to Rochester,
but then, as sixty years later, the effort was unsuccessful and the bill passed,
aided in its adoption by the strenuous arguments of Daniel D. Barnard, Ash-
ley Sampson and others, who went down to Albany to facilitate its passage.
Morris S. Miller, Robert S. Rose and Nathan Williams, the commissioners ap-
First Deed Recorded. i i s
pointed for the purpose, located the new county building on a lot given for
that object by Messrs. Rochester, Fitzhugh and Carroll, and on the 4th of Sep-
tember the corner-stone of the court-house was laid.
The first deed of land sold in the county after its erection was placed on
record on the 6th of April in this year, bearing date of the 19th of March pre-
vious. The conveyance was of a piece of ground in the town of Brighton
(for the village was in the two to'vns of Brighton and Gates), on what is now
the northwest corner of North St. Paul and Mortimer streets. The grantors
were Elisha Johnson and Betsey his wife ; the grantees, Andrew V. T. Leav-
itt and Charles J. Hill ; the witnesses, Lucinda House and Charles Harwood.
The property was purchased in 1850 from Messrs. Leavitt and Hill by George
G. Clarkson, who continued till a few years ago to live in the house which had
been built there by Mr. Leavitt, when the demand for ground for manufactur-
ing purposes caused him to sell it ; the old dwelling-house was then torn down
and the Archer building erected in its place. In this year (182 1) a female charity
school was opened for the gratuitous instruction of poor children. In August
the erection of the old aqueduct was begun. William Britton, who had been
a keeper in Auburn state prison, was the contractor for the work, and, as it was
a state affair, he was authorised by a special act of the legislature to employ a
hundred convicts on the work. He seems, however, to have taken only thirty
of those gentlemen at first, a number quite sufficient for the purpose, as it
turned out, for they all made their escape, one after another, and sought else-
where for more congenial fields of labor and a wider range of enjoyment.
The force employed to guard them had probably been insufficient, ^nd what
few custodians there were had evidently not practised shooting to any great
extent, or perhaps they were Communists before their time, and sympathised
with the fugitives; at any rate, it is certain that of all the shots fired at the
escaping prisoners, not one took effect.
Building went on apace in 1822. The third house for public worship was
built in the village by the society of Friends, and the fourth was begun by the
Methodists, a brick chapel, on South St. Paul street, where the Opera House
now stands. The county court-house was completed, and, though many of
the readers of this volume will remember well its appearance, many others will
not be able to go back so far as that, while both classes will be interested in.
the following description of the old building, taken from the directory of
1827: —
"The natural declivity of the ground is reduced to two platforms — the first on the
level of Buffalo street, forming a neat yard in front of the building, which recedes sev-
enty-five feet from the line of the street, the other raised about six feet above the former
and divided from it by the building itself and two wing walls of uniform appearance,
presenting, toward Buffalo street, the aspect of an elevated terrace, but on a level
with the streets immediately adjoining. This last, together with the yard of the Presby-
terian church, now comprehended within the same inclosure, forms a small square, laid
1 1 6 History of the City of Rochester.
out in grass plats and gravel walks, and needs only the further attention of the citizens,
in planting it with shade trees and shrubbery, to render it a very pleasant and valuable
accommodation as a public walk. This is now known by the name of Court square.
The court-house building is fifty-four feet long, forty-four wide and forty high It
presents two fronts — the one facing Court square, showing two stories and a base, the
other toward Buffalo street, two stories and a full basement. Each front is finished with
a projecting portico, thirty feet long and ten feet wide, supported by four fluted Ionic
columns, surmounted by a regular entablature and balustrade, which returns and con-
tinues along the whole front. From the center of the building arises an octagonal belfry,
covered by a cupola. The basement affords convenient offices for county and village
purposes. The court-room is in the second story, extending the entire length and
breadth of the building, and is a remarkably well lighted and airy apartment."
The basenient referred to was not always used for office- room alone, for
during the latter portion of the existence of the structure the cells of the police
station were located in the northwest corner. The county jail, erected about
this time, contained two tiers of cells, divided by a hall through the center,
inclosed in a secure manner. It stood in the rear of a handsome and commo-
dious brick house on what was then Hughes street (now the north part of
Fitzhugh), on the site afterward occupied by the Unitarian church, and now
by the German Evangelical church of St. Paul. After being used for its
intended purpose for aboiit ten years, it was, after the erection of the jail on the
island, occupied for a long time as a recruiting station by officers of the United
States army. Business was brisk in this year, even in the winter, and it is
recorded that on the Sth of February 7,000 bushels of wheat were taken at
the mills in Rochester and Carthage. In the autumn the canal was extended
as far as this place, and on the 29th of October the first canal boat left the vil-
lage for Little Falls, laden with flour. In September the fourth census was
taken, showing that the population had nearly doubled in two years, the num-
ber recorded as permanent being 2,700, besides 430 laborers on the public
works. Thurlow Weed came here in November and obtained employment on
the Telegraph.
In 1823 a fifth house of public worship was built, St. Patrick's (Roman
Catholic) church, on Piatt street, where its successor, the cathedral, now stands.
It was constructed of stone, and was forty-two feet long and thirty eight wide.
The great event of the year was the completion of the canal aqueduct across
the Genesee river, which was signalised by a public celebration, consisting of
an address by Ashley Sampson, and the passage of boats through the new
water-way, escorted by the military companies, Masonic societies and citizens
generally. The work cost $83,000, and although far inferior to the existing
structure, both in expense and in workmanship, it was considered at the time a
"stupendous fabric," as it was denominated by the civil engineer who superin-
tended its construction. Its west end was on the same spot as that of the pres-
ent aqueduct, while its eastern terminus was a few rods north of where this one
turns southward. The walls were composed of red sandstone, with pilasters
Canal Aqueduct Finished in 1823. 117
and coping of gray limestone, and many of the blocks, particularly in the piers,
were of great size. These were trenailed to the rock, in which excavations
were made, by large iron bolts, and were so cramped and cemented as to form
a mass which was supposed to possess the consistency and firmness of a single
piece. The aqueduct was 804 feet long, and was built on eleven arches, one
of twenty-six feet chord, nine of fifty feet each, and one of thirty feet, the re-
maining distance being of masonry put up on the land. The piers were thirty-
six feet long, ten feet wide, and four and a half high, with eleven feet for the
rise of the arch. Many of the stones of which it was composed were used in
building the high wall which runs along the bank of the canal north of Court
street, and others went into the construction of private dwellings in the city.
In the latter part of the year, meetings were held to devise means for aiding
the Greeks in their struggle against the Turks. Balls were given, money was
subscribed to the extent of $1,500 throughout the county, and a fat ox was
slain and sold by the pound, the proceeds being donated to the Greek fund.
John Quincy Adams, both during his presidential term and long afterward,
frequently alluded to the fact that his first' nomination for the executive office
came from Rochester. The Telegraph had, in an early number during 1823,
urged in its editorial columns, probably by the pen of Mr. Weed, who was then
associate editor, the claims of the distinguished statesman, and was the first
paper in the country, so far as is known, which placed his name at the head as
the candidate for the presidency. Shortly afterward a pubHc meeting was held
here, at which Mr. Adams was nominated, which was the first action of the
kind taken anywhere, and was as authoritative as any nomination could be, for
national conventions were then unknown. The legislature of New York chose
at that time the presidential electors, and Mr. Weed, though not a member of
either house, went down to Albany and presented the claims of Mr. Adams as
set forth here and elsewhere, for the movement had by that time become gen-
eral throughout the state. It was owing in great part to Mr. Weed's influence
that the friends of Henry Clay were induced to join with those of John Quincy
Adams in a union electoral ticket, to defeat William H. Crawford and General
Jackson, which scheme was successful, and of the electors thus chosen thirty
voted for Adams, five for Crawford and one for Jackson.
1 1 8 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XVni.
THE GROWTH OF THE VILLAGE.
The First Bank in Rochester — The First Presbyterian Church — LaFayette's Visit to Rochester —
The Abduction of William Morgan — The Excitement in Rochester and Elsewhere — Trial, Confess-
ion and Punishment of the Original Abductors — Other Trials in Different Counties — Anti-Masonic
Party Formed — Bitterness of Feeling Engendered — The Body Found at Oak Orchard — Morgan or
Munroe, Which ? — Perhaps Neither — The First Village Directory — The Fate of Catlin — The Leap
of Sam Patch — The Mormon Bible — The First Cholera Year — St. Patrick's Day in 1833.
THE record of 1824 may begin with the estabh'shment of the Bank of Roch-
ester, which was incorporated by act of the legislature ; the Buffalo street
bridge, beginning to decay, was rebuilt by the county at an expense of $6,000,
Samuel Works being the commissioner and Elisha Johnson the contractor ; the
Episcopal society moved their old edifice to the rear and erected St. Luke's
church, which is still standing and bids fair to last through another generation ;
the First Presbyterian society having disposed of their old building to another
congregation, erected a new church — the sixth in the village — on Fitzhugh
street, back of the court-house, the church and its session-room, which was
separate from it, occupying the present site of the city hall. It fronted north
and was eighty-six feet long, by sixty-four wide and thirty high, with a tower
projecting three feet from the face of the building and running up seventy-one
feet from the base, surmounted by an octagonal spire of seventy-nine feet, so
that the whole height of the steeple was one hundred and fifty feet. The ves-
tibule was entered from three doors, from the middle one of which the stair-
case rose, leading to the galleries. Unlike the arrangement in most churches,
the pulpit was at the front of the auditorium, and all the pews were so arranged
as to face it directly. It was built of stone, covered with cement in imitation
of whitish free-stone, and the cost of the whole building, with the lot on which
it stood, was about $16,000. A few years after its erection, while Rev. Dr.
Finney was conducting a revival there, the plastering began to fall on the heads
of the crowded congregation, and in consequence of the alarm then occasioned
the walls were strengthened on the outside by buttresses rising between the
windows and above the eaves.
In 1825 the question was agitated whether the community should apply for
a charter as a city, since the powers granted to the village trustees by the act
of incorporation were inadequate ; after considerable discussion, the people con-
cluded not to make the application but to rest content with an amendment,
which was obtained, increasing the powers of the board of trustees. The growth
of the place during the spring and early summer of this year was surprisingly
large, for the village census, taken in February, showed the population to be
4,274, while the state census taken on the istof August, gave the number as
5,273, an increase of a thousand less one. On the 7th of June LaFayette vis-
Visit OF LaFayette. 119
ited the city, coming on a canal boat from the west, though the canal was not
completed till four months later. A deputation of eighteen leading citizens had
gone to Lockport the day before, to meet him and bring him hither, and, as
the morning advanced, the flotilla came in sight, six boats leading, then a craft
bearing the illustrious guest, then six other vessels completing the procession.
Not only did all the village turn out to do honor to the idolised Frenchman,
who had done so much for the independence of this country, but an equal num-
ber of persons came in from the surrounding towns to participate in the ova-
tion. From a stage erected over the center arch of the aqueduct, William B.
Rochester made an address of welcome, to which the general gave a reply, of
which the following words are a portion : —
"Sir, when, about ten months ago, J had the happiness to revisit the American shore
it was in the bay of New York, and within the limits of her vast and flourishing empo
rium of commerce, that 1 made a landing. On this western frontier of the state, where
I am received in so affectionate and gratifying a manner, I enjoy a sight of works and
improvements equally rapid and wonderful, chief among which is the grand canal, an
admirable work of science and patriotism whereby nature has been made to adorn and
serve, as seen in the striking spectacle which is at this moment presented to our view."
During the firing of a salute LaFayette landed, and, in company with Col-
onel Rochester, rode through the streets to Colonel Hoard's, where he received
the veterans of the Revolution. From thence he was taken to the Mansion
House, where a dinner was served, with some two hundred guests, and at four
o'clock in the afternoon he set out for Canandaigua, where he passed the night.
In this year the old Museum building, on Exchange street, was built ; Josiah
Bissell purchased what was called the Cornhill tract, a district now lying in the
third and eighth wards, which has almost to this day borne the name of Corn-
hill. The appellation of the tract came from the fact that it was then a farm,
the greater part of which was a cornfield.
In 1826 the seventh house for public worship was erected, a meeting-house
built by the Dissenting Methodists; a bridge was built at what is now Court
street, the money being raised by subiscription, and the work done by a com-
pany of land proprietors, who cut the street through to the Pittsford road (now
East avenue), on the east side of the river, and at the same time built the
Rochester House, on the west side, on the southwest corner of Exchange
street and the canal, hoping to draw the travel in that direction ; Luther Tucker
& Co. established the Rochester Daily Advertiser (with Henry O'Rielly as ed-'
itor), the first daily paper between Albany and the Pacific ocean ; the village
census showed a population of 7,669.
This year is rendered memorable by the abduction, from the jail at Canan-
daigua, of William Morgan, a former resident of Rochester, who had been
engaged in preparing for publication a book purporting to reveal the secrets of
Freemasonry. When it was understood that Morgan was intending to pub-
lish these things, every effort was made to suppress them ; menaces, threats
I20 History of the City of Rochester.
and bribes were resorted to in vain ; an attempt was made to burn the printing-
office in which the pages were being put in type, and finally Morgan was sub-
jected to a number of harassing arrests, which his intemperate habits and
general character made easy, for he was not of high standing in the communi-
ty. He was repeatedly put in jail for small debts, and at last arrested on a
charge of petty larceny, being accused of borrowing a shirt from a tavern-
keeper at Canandaigua and not returning it. He was taken from his home in
Batavia to the former village, where the charge was promptly dismissed, but he
was immediately re- arrested on a debt of two dollars, which he admitted, and
was thrown into prison, on the nth of September. The next night several
men came to the prison and paid the debt, with the costs, and, Morga'n, as he
left his place of confinement, was seized, thrown into a carriage and driven off".
He was never seen in public again. His wife became alarmed at the prolonged
absence of her husband, and the excitement extended to her neighbors, from
them to the rest of the village, and speedily spread through the state, gather-
ing intensity through the next three yeans, during which the trials in five dif-
ferent counties of those charged with the abduction were going on- — special
sessions of the courts being sometimes ordered for the purpose — and finally
entering into the arena of politics, where it broke up the parties then existing,
divided the politicians into friends and opponents of the order, and created a
distinctly Anti-Masonic political party, which for years influenced the elections
in this state, and put a presidential ticket into the field in 1832. Rochester
was the center of excitement, and the Monroe county Morgan committee, with
Hervey Ely, Thurlow Weed, Frederick F. Backus and Frederick Whittlesey as
the most active members, was earnestly engaged in bringing to light all the
facts that could be obtained with regard to the dark affair.
The first indictments found were those against the four persons supposed to
have been engaged in taking Morgan from the Canandaigua jail and putting
him into the carriage in which he was driven away. Three of the accused —
Chesebro, Sawyer and Lawson — pleaded guilty, to the surprise of the court
and the spectators, as it had been supposed, from the eminence of their coun-
sel, consisting of John C. Spencer, Mark H. Sibley, W. Hubbell and H. F.
Penfield, that a determined defense would be made. The fourth defendant,
Sheldon, was tried and convicted, but it was generally admitted afterward that
•his case was one of mistaken identity and that it was some one else who stood
by the door and was supposed to be Sheldon by Mrs. Hall, the wife of the
jailer, who let out the prisoner and his captors and who witnessed the struggles
of Morgan as he was being forced into the coach. Chesebro and Sawyer
pleaded in mitigation of their offense that they supposed that the object in
removing Morgan was to get him away from the control of Miller, who had
been influencing him to publish his disclosures ; that they supposed, until the
last moment, that Morgan had consented to go away freely and that they did
The Abduction of Morgan. 121
not know what had become of him, all of which was probably true. Sawyer
was sentenced to one month's imprisonment in the county jail, Sheldon to three
months' and Chesebro to one year's, while Lawson, who had hypocritically
paid Morgan's debt and beguiled him to his doom, was sentenced for two
years. The admissions made by some of the witnesses on the trial of Sheldon,
as well as the persistent inquiries of the Morgan committee, resulted in tracing,
stage by stage, the route that was taken by the carriage containing Morgan
from Canandaigua through this city down to Hanford's Landing and thence
west to Lewiston, where, as was alleged, he was taken across the Niagara river
to Canada. Upon these data indictments were found against a great number
of persons, some of prominence, others insignificant, and the results of the
different trials were as diverse as possible, the verdict of "guilty" being ren-
dered in some cases, of "not guilty" in others, while in the majority of in-
stances, perhaps, the jury disagreed. The testimony was of course conflicting,
but it seemed to be fairly established that the prisoner was, taken to Canada
and an effort made to induce the Masons there to take care of him, perhaps,
as was said by many, to send him to some distant point of the British domin-
ions. Before most of the trials took place Gov. De Witt Clinton, who was him-
self a Mason and the highest authority in the order in the United States,
became so well satisfied, from private information which he had obtained, of
Morgan's transportation to Canada that he wrote officially to the earl of Dal-
housie, the governor of Lower Canada, and said, after giving a description of
Morgan : —
" During the last year he put a manuscript into the hands of a printer in Batavia, pur-
porting to be a promulgation of the secrets of P'reemasonry. This was passed over
by the great body of that fraternity without notice and with silent contempt, but a few
desperate fanatics engaged in a plan of carying him off, and on the 12th of September
last they took him from Canandaigua by force, as it is understood, and conveyed him to
the Niagara river, from whence it is supposed that he was taken to her Britannic majesty's
dominions. Some of the offenders liave been apprehended and punished, hut no intelli-
gence has been obtained respecting Morgan since his abduction. I have therefore to
appeal to your justice and humanity on this occasion, and to request your excellency to
cause inquiry to be made respecting him, and, if he is forcibly detained, to direct his lib-
eration and to communicate to me the results. It is conjectured that he is confined in
some fort or prison under false pretenses.'' ,
Lord Dalhousie was unable to give any information with regard to the
matter.
The narrative from the point of Morgan's passage across the river into
Canada grows more uncertain. The evidence is circumstantial, but that which
is practically unimpeached goes to show that he was brought back — pre-
sumably because the people on the other side would have nothing to do with
him and was confined for a few days in an old magazine in Fort Niagara, at
Lewiston. What was done with him after that is not historical, but the story
which is more nearly substantiated than any other is that he was taken out of
122 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
the fort, put into a boat, rowed out in the Niagara river to some point near
where its waters widen into Lake Ontario, and drowned. No direct testimony
to that effect was obtained at any of the trials, the witnesses who were sup-
posed to know something of the matter either refusing to answer on the ground
that by so doing they might criminate themselves or else testifying to complete
ignorance as to the ending of the tragedy. The evidence outside the court-
room is indirect, consisting of reports of confessions and of narratives made
from hearsay, and only in that it is cumulative does it offer better claims to '
credibility .than the vague rumors from time to time that the missing man had
been seen in remote parts of the earth. The secret was well kept, and was
undoubtedly told to but few outside of those engaged in the work. That the
vast body of Masons both here and elsewhere were not only guiltless of any
complicity in the crime at any of its stages but were, then and ever after, in
profound ignorance of its consummation, no one at this day can doubt for a
moment. Not so in that unhappy time. The righteous indignation of the
people over the commission of the deed extended to a groundless hatred of
the whole order, the members of which were subjected to persecutions of
various kinds, were generally ill treated and in some instances — as on the
occasion of a procession at Batavia, Morgan's old home — narrowly escaped
death from the blind fury of the mob.
The constant trials in courts of justice for nearly three years were enough
to keep alive the ill feeling that was engendered, but other events occured to fan
the flames of passion and intolerance. For ten years from the incorporation of
the village Dr. F. F. Backus had been annually elected treasurer of Rochester,
but after the abduction of Morgan he had come out as an opponent of Masonry.
As the village election in the summer of 1827 approached he was again
placed in nomination, but, though as usual no one was named in opposition to
him, it was found on counting the ballots that he was defeated by Dr. John B.
Elwood, a man equally, respected, belonging to the same political party 'and not
a Mason, but who, nevertheless, since he knew nothing about his own candi-
dature till after he was elected, was probably chosen only as a means of retri-
bution. The natural result followed. Early in September a Monroe county
convention of Anti- Masons was called, to nominate candidates for members of
Assembly. Timothy Childs, an eloquent advocate of the village, was nominated
as the member from Rochester and was elected by a majority of 1,700, being
chosen in the next year as member of Congress, in which capacity he served for
four years as an Anti-Mason.
Between the time of Mr. Childs's nomination and his election an incident oc-
curred in the Morgan history which in the mystery in which it was clouded
from that day to this exceeded even the uncertainty of the principal act in the
drama. On the 7th of October, 1827, a corpse was discovered on the beach in
the town of Carleton, Orleans county, at a point where Oak Orchard creek
Supposed Finding of Morgan's Body. 123
empties into Lake Ontario. From certain marks on the body it. was supposed
to be that of the man whose name was in every mouth, and several members of
the Morgan committee went up to Oak Orchard and had the remains exhumed.
A second inquest was held, as a former one had given a verdict of non-identifi-
cation, and several reputable witnesses were examined, who, before seeing
the remains, testified to certain physical peculiarities of Morgan, such as a
broken tooth in one jaw and a missing tooth in another, which marks were
found to be the same in the body discovered on the shore. Mrs. Morgan, who
was present, positively identified the corpse as that of her husband, though she
declared, that she had never before seen the clothes in which it was found, and
the coroner's jury of twenty-three members returned a unanimous verdict that
it was "the body of William Morgan and that he came to his death by suffoca-
tion by drowning." The committee of investigation gave to the public a re-
port to the same efiect, signed by all the members — Samuel Works, Hervey
Ely, Frederick F. Backus, Frederick Whittlesey and Thurlow Weed — and the
remains were buried a second time.
But public opinion was not quite satisfied, and the feeling of uneasiness was
increased by the news that in September, 1827, a Canadian named Timothy
Munroe had been drowned in the Niagara river. His widow and son were sent
for and brought to this city, whence they went, together with prominent Masons,
to Oak Orchard creek. Again were the remains taken up and a third examin-
ation was held, the result being only a further complication of the mystery.
Mrs. Munroe described minutely and accurately all the outer garments of her
husband, with the rents in them and the repairs that she had made, and her de-
scription corresponded exactly with the appearance of the clothes found, which
had not been shown to her. She and her son identified the corpse as that of Mun-
roe, but their previous description of him did not by any means tally with the
presentment of the body, as to length or as to the color of the hair and whisk-
ers. Which of the two it was, or whether it was neither, has never been set-
tled. The body was for a third time laid to rest, but the Morgan excitement
knew no repose. The Daily Advertiser of the day after these events contained
a paragraph saying that Mr. Weed had declared that, whatever might be
proven to the contrary, the corpse found at Oak Orchard was "a good enough
Morgan till after election." This phrase, which long ago attained the im-
portance of a familiar quotation, was repudiated at the time by Mr. Weed,
though unsuccessfully, but his explanation, as given in his autobiography, pub-
lished last year, ought to extinguish the wrong credit given to him. Eben-
ezer Griffin, one of the counsel of those charged with the abduction, said to
him: "After we have proven that the body found at Oak Orchard is that of
Timothy Munroe, what will you do for a Morgan? " To which Mr. Weed re-
plied : "That is a good enough Morgan for us until you bring back the one you
have carried off."
9
124 History of the City of Rochester.
Through the following year the fever of partisanship continued. Great
numbers of clergymen and others renounced the order, while others gave up
all active participation in its councils but were still known as "adhering
Masons." Finally, in 1829, as the hostility to the society in this locality in-
creased rather than diminished in bitterness, the part of wisdom was taken and
all the Masonic institutions in Rochester and the surrounding country ceased
to exist, being abolished by surrendering their charters to the grand lodge.
Many of our prominent citizens who were instrumental in the adoption of this
conciliatory course united publicly in assigning their reasons, which were after-
ward embodied in an address that was circulated through the newspapers and
in pamphlet form. After remaining dormant for more than a dozen years in
this locality the institution of Masonry again sprang to life in 1843, when the
angry passions of its opponents had passed away, and soon acquired a stronger
hold in the community than it had ever before possessed.
The first directory of the village, from which many of the minor items
previously rehearsed have been taken, and which since its publication has
formed the basis of all histories of Rochester, was published in 1827, and the
record for that year may give place to a glance at its pages. It -begins with
the names of the inhabitants, divided into two lists — first, the householders,
separated into wards under the initial letter of the surname, and then the
boarders, segregated in the same manner, with their occupations and the names
of those with whom they boarded. Then comes a description of the county
of Monroe and its environs, followed by that of the village of Rochester, ter-
minating with its record of events. After that we have a list of the regula-
tions adopted by the trustees, the first of which reads: "Householders must
clean and keep clean the sidewalks and streets opposite their premises, except
in specified cases; fine for neglect, $5." This was evidently not specific
enough, for the second regulation after it says that " they must sweep and
clean the sidewalks opposite their dwellings, every Saturday, from the first day
of April till the first day of November; fine for each neglect, $1." The
directions for the prevention and extinguishment of fires are very minute, and
those calculated to preserve the public health almost equally so. The real or
supposed interests of morality were carefully looked after, for no nine-pin alley
was to be kept, under a penalty of $5 per day, theatrical representations
were restrained by ordinance and the keeping of billiard tables for gaming was
prohibited, while tavern-keepers and grocers were forbidden to keep them at
all, perhaps because they were considered peculiarly addicted to hazard. Then
are given the officers of the corporation, then the religious societies, then the
benevolent, then the literary and other institutions, the newspapers, the post-
office, and the bank. The population is alluded to as being "composed chiefly
of emigrants from New England and the other states of the Union, together with
a considerable number from England, Ireland, Scotland and Germany, and a few
Sam Patch — His Fatal Leap. 125
natives of Norway and Switzerland." A list of the principal occupations pursued
by them shows that three hundred and four were carpenters, one hundred and
twenty-four shoemakers, twenty-five physicians, twenty-eight lawyers, seven
clergymen, thirty-one printers, etc. The trade in lumber is spoken of as very
considerable, and the commerce on the canal is mentioned, with the statement
that "passengers are charged one and a half cents a mile, exclusive of board,
which is about fifty cents a day." The public edifices are described, including
the market, which was then building on the northeast corner of Main and Front
streets, and which fell into the river a few years later. The little book con-
cludes with this sentence: "We look forward to this place at some distant
day as a flourishing city, flourishing not merely in wealth and power but in
knowledge and virtue, an honor and a blessing to sister cities around, and the
home of a great people, enlightened and happy."
The year 1828 was signalised by no important incidents, but the fate of a
young artist excited the deepest sympathy for a long time after his death,
which occurred on Sunday, September 21st. The Mechanics' Institute had
commissioned the celebrated painter George Catlin to execute a portrait of
De Witt Clinton, which when finished was brought to Rochester by Julius Cat-
lin, a younger brother of the artist. Young Catlin, who was also a painter,
set out one fine day to make sketches of the lower falls. Descending to the
water's edge he endeavored to reach a sand-bar near the center of the river,
probably to get a better view of the scene. When £^bout half way across the
channel he was seized with cramps and ere assistance could arrive he had per-
ished. An elegant gold watch and chain, seen in his possession a short time
before he entered the water, were missing, and the suspicion arose that he had
been foully dealt with by a man who was fishing at the time near by, but this
gave way upon investigation. The funeral of the unfortunate Catlin was held
at the Episcopal church in this city on Tuesday, September 23d, and a sermon
was preached by Rev. Mr. Gear, after which the body was followed to the
grave by a large number of persons and interred with appropriate ceremonies.
No event particularly conducive to the growth or welfare of the village marks
the year 1829, but it is made forever memorable in local history by the last
and fatal leap of Sam Patch. Sam was a person whose celebrity was not con-
fined to this neighborhood, though his home was here, at least as much as any-
where else, for he had acquired a reputation, some time before his final plunge
into the water, by making an aquatic descent at Paterson, N. J., and by jump-
ing into Niagara river from a rock projecting from the bank more than half
the height of the cataract. He had a habit, more prominent when he was in
his usual condition of inebriety than when he was perfectly sober, of saying
that "some things can be done as well as others," and it was the reduction of
this platitude to an absurdity that cost him his life. On the 8th of November
he leaped over the precipice close to the Genesee falls, a distance of ninety-six
1 26 History of the City of Rochester.
feet, accompanied in his plunge by a tame bear. Both beings came to the sur-
face soon after striking the water, as much satisfied with the entertainment as
were the crowd of spectators. Not content with this success, Sam announced
that he would exceed that performance, and so on the 13th of the same month
he ascended a scaffolding twenty feet higher than the brink of the falls, where
he harangued in maudlin fashion the immense throng that swarmed on earth
and roof and branch. As he proceeded, he became conscious of his weakness,
and to revive his failing courage he took another draught of liquor. The effect
was the reverse of what he hoped for ; his nerves became unstrung, but he was
not the man to retreat, even with death staring him in the face ; in desperation
he rushed forward and took the terrific plunge, falling rather than leaping, and
striking the water, not with his feet but upon his side, and with a force, as was
estimated at the time, of more than 4,000 pounds. He did not rise to view,
and no trace of the rash adventurer was found throughout the winter. Rumors
were afloat that he had been seen, but they were baseless and were disproved
in the following spring, when his mangled body, with the limbs broken, was
found at the mouth of the river, and was buried in the little cemetery at Char-
lotte.
It was in this year that our village narrowly escaped the attainment of celeb-
rity on account of its connection with another mountebank, of brighter intellect
than poor Sam Patch, and of infinitely greater capacity for rnischief, who was
then about to introduce to the world a new religion, destined to carry in its
train a long Hne of miseries that would have appalled even the stolid heart of its
founder, could he have foreseen them, and probably deterred him from his
course. The story is told by Thurlow Weed, in his autobiography, in these
words : —
" A stout, round, smooth-faced young man, between twenty-five and thirty, with the
air and manners of a person without occupation, came into the Rochester Telegraph
office and said he wanted a book printed, and added that he had been directed in a
vision to a place in the woods near Palmyra, where he resided, and that he found a
'golden Bible,' from which he was directed to copy the book that he wanted published.
He then placed what he called a 'tablet' in his hat, from which he read a chapter of
the 'book of Mormon,' a chapter which seemed so senseless that I thought the man
either crazed or a very shallow impostor, and therefore declined to become a publisher,
thus depriving myself of whatever notoriety might have been achieved by having my
name imprinted upon the title page of the first Mormon Bible. It is scarcely necessary
to ^dd that this individual was Joseph Smith, the founder of the Mormon creed. On
the day but one following he came again, accompanied by Martin Harris, a substantial
farmer residing near Palmyra, who had adopted the Mormon faith and who offered to
become security for the expense of printing. But I again declined, and he subsequently
found a publisher in E. B. Grandin, of Palmyra, in 1830."
In 1830 St. Paul's church was finished and consecrated, the builder being
Elisha Johnson, whose authority as president of the board of trustees at the time
enabled him to procure a change of the name of the street on which the edifice
The Cholera Epidemic in 1832. 127
stood, from River to St. Paul. The last wolf seen wild in the county was killed
in February, near Irondequoit bay, after being hunted for five days by nearly
a hundred persons from Rochester and adjacent villages ; he was five and a
half feet long, and had destroyed many sheep before he was tracked; up to some
twenty-five years ago his stuffed skin stood before a hat store opposite the Ar-
cade. In this year Dr. Joel Parker, then pastor of the Third Presbyterian
church, preached a discourse for the benefit of the Female Charitable society,
at which was sung an ode composed for the occasion by Judge Harvey Hum-
phrey, the first verse of which is as follows : —
"All hail to thee, Charity ! daughter of heaven !
Best, sweetest of mercies to lost mortals given !
Oh, dark were our journey, through life's weary day,
Without thy bright smile to illumine our way."
The next year seems to have been marked by few events of local im-
portance. Col. Nathaniel Rochester died on the 31st of May; a sketch of his
Hfe will be found in another place. The first cargo of wheat from Ohio to
Rochester was brought by the old Hudson and Erie line, to Hervey Ely. The
Monroe County Horticultural society was organised on the 8th of October,
with James K. Guernsey as president, Orrin E. Gibbs as treasurer, and Hestor
L. Stevens as recording secretary ; a fine exhibition of flowers was made in the
Arcade.
No charge of lack of interest can be made against the record of 1832, but
the predominant interest is of a sad and gloomy character, for it was the first
year of the cholera in this locality. Toward the close of the spring the dreaded
scourge had appeared in New York city and Montreal, and in anticipation of
its arrival in this village a public meeting was held here to devise measures to
prevent its coming, if possible, or, at the worst, to mitigate its destructiveness.
Dr. Ward, Dr. Coleman, Dr. Reid, Everard Peck and Ashbel W. Riley (who
became a major-general in the militia service a few year later, since which time
he has been universally known by his title) were appointed a board of health,
and Dr. Coleman was sent to Montreal to learn as to the best methods of pre-
vention and of treatment; the village was districted and every precaution
taken, but all in vain. The first case was that of a stranger, whose name was
never learned. He had just arrived here and was stopping at a little tavern on
South St. Paul street, below Court, kept by J. Polly. When his case was re-
ported Mr. Riley attended him and did all that could be done for him, but he
died the same day and was interred in the old burying-ground on Monroe
avenue, where the bodies of all the victims of the disease in that year were
laid. From that time on, all through the blazing months of July and August,
the pestilence stalked through the little town, and wherever it went Mr. Riley
went with it, without hesitation, without fear, without rest, except what was
absolutely necessary. One hundred and eighteen died during the summer,
and eighty of that number he placed in their cofiins with his own hand, almost
128 History of the City of Rochester.
invariably unaided and alone. His noble work was not confined to that season,
for although the frightful contagion passed us by for the next year, it came
back in 1834. The faithful guardian of the public health, then in New York,
heard that the epidemic had appeared here, a man named Van Kleeck having
died at the mouth of the river. The officer hastened back to his post and was
immediately appointed superintendent of the cholera; nurses were placed
under his command and an old cooper-shop on Brown street was fitted up as a
hospital, where those smitten with the disease were taken unless they had
friends to take care of them at home, but, in spite of all, fifty-four died and
their remains were buried in the cemetery on West avenue.
St. Patrick's day fell on Sunday in 1833, and so its observance was post-
poned till the next day, March i8th, when the celebration consisted principally
of a public dinner at the Franklin House, then kept by James Tone. Henry
O'Rielly presided, with Gen. Hestor L. Stevens, Isaac R. Elwood, W. A. Rab-
beson and John O'Donoughue officiating as vice-presidents at the different
tables. Long speeches were made by Mr. O'Rielly and Judge P. G. Buchan.
In the first month of this year a charity school was established by the society
of St. Luke's church for the free education of the poor children of the city,
which was undoubtedly not denominational in its work, for the directory of
1834 states that upward of 400 persons under the age of fifteen had received
instruction in it during the previous year. The teacher was G. P. Waldo, and
the school was established during the rectorate of the Rev. Dr. Whitehouse,
afterward bishop of Illinois. With the mention of this noble though infant
charity the record of Rochester as a village comes fittingly to a close.
CHAPTER XIX.
ROCHESTER AS A CITY.
Its Incorporation in 1834 — Organisation of the Government and Inauguration of Mayor Child —
He Conscientiously Resigns the Office — The River Steamboat — The Flood of 1835 — The Navy
Island Raid — The First Murder in the County — The First Foundry — Anti-Slavery Movements —
Bringing the Bones of Patriot Soldiers to Mount Hope — The Printers' Festival — Mexican War
Volunteers — Woman's Rights' Convention.
TO the repeated applications of the villagers of Rochester the legislature
finally yielded, passing an act in the early part of 1834 for the incorpora-
tion of the city. The charter was a long one, divided into eleven titles, con-
taining in all 276 sections. These provided minutely for the government of
the new city and for the maintenance of the public welfare in almost every
conceivable manner. The limits of the village were much extended, though
Incorporation of Rochester as a City. 129
principally toward the north in a narrow strip which embraced the lower falls
and the old steamboat landing near there, taking in a portion of the McCracken
tract on the west side of the river and the Carthage tract on the east, and the
whole area of the new city was 4,000 acres. On the 2d of June the common
council and supervisors were elected, of whom only one is now living. Gen. A.
W. Riley, who was the first alderman from the fourth ward. A week later the
council elected Jonathan Child mayor of the city, Vincent Mathews attorney
and counsel, Samuel Works superintendent, John C. Nash clerk, E. F. Mar-
shall treasurer, and William H. Ward chief engineer. On the loth of June
Mayor Child was inaugurated, and the following extract from his address then
delivered will show the potency and promise of the little municipality fifty
years ago : —
" The rapid progress which our place has made, from a wilderness to an incorporated
city, authorises each of our citizens proudly to reflect upon the agency he has had in
bringing about this great and interesting change. Rochester has had little aid in its
])ermanent improvement from foreign capital. It has been settled and built for the most
])art by mechanics and merchants, whose capital was economy, industry and persever-
ance. It is their labor and skill which have converted a wilderness into a city ; and to
them surely this must be a day of pride and joy. They have founded and reared a city
before they have passed the meridian of life. In other countries and times the city of
Rochester would have been the result of the labor and accumulations of successive gen-
erations ; but the men who felled the forest that grew on the spot where we are assem-
bled are sitting at the council-board of our city. Well, then, may we indulge an honest
pride as we look back upon our past history, and let the review elevate our hopes and an-
imate our exertions. Together we have struggled through the hardships of an infant settle-
ment and the embarrassments of straitened circumstances, and together let us rejoice
and be happy in the glorious reward that has crowned our labors. In the intercourse of
social life, and on all occasions involving the interests of our young city, let us forget our
politics and our party, and seek only the public good. The fortunes of us all are em-
barked in a common bottom, and it cannot be too much to expect a union of counsels
and exertions to secure their safety.''
Apart from the organisation of the city government a step forward was
taken in this city in 1834, which it was thought at the time would be the be-
ginning of greater things in the same direction. As an improvement upon the
flat-boats which before that time were poled up the river, above the dam, a
steamboat was built and put into operation, to run from here to Geneseo, an
event which was talked about through the whole country and which seemed to
the villagers of Dansville, Geneseo and Mt. Morris to be the opening up to them
of the outside world. She was called the Genesee, was a stern-wheeler, flat-bot-
tom and capable of carrying more than three hundred passengers, besides towing
other boats, of which there were twenty or thirty in use, for which purpose she
was in great part designed. Her captain was J. W. Phillips, who, during the
war of 1812, had brought flour down from Geneseo and Wheatland and carried
it by teams to Albany. The landing was made at the Rapids, aiid carryalls
1 30 History of the City of Rochester.
were stationed there to bring the passengers down to the center of the city.
After the Genesee had made the voyage for two seasons the enterprise was
abandoned, and the vessel was run over the dam and broken up.
Mayor Child showed that he was true to his convictions of right. During
all of his term of office he had been unalterably opposed to the granting of any
licenses for the sale of ardent spirits, confident that their public use was a seri-
ous detriment to the welfare of the city. The common council of the first year,
although opposed to licensing in general, differed with him as to the strict ap-
plication of the principle and had permited four grocers to sell the intoxicat-
ing fluid, believing that a gradual reform would be more satisfactory to the cit-
izens than an absolute denial of all applications. The new board, however,
which came in in June, 1835, were far more lax than their predecessors and at
once granted so many licenses that Mr. Child, rather than sign the permits, re-
signed on the 23d of that month the office of mayor, from which he would have
otherwise have retired on the first of the next January, as the mayor and com-
mon council were not, after the beginning, to enter upon their duties at the
same period. The resignation was accepted and the recorder, Isaac Hills, was
authorised to sign all tavern and grocery licenses till a new mayor was chosen,
which election took place on the 2d of July and General Jacob Gould entered
upon the duties of the office. A great flood occurred in this year, which, though
not so disastrous as that of thirty years later, was worse than anything that had
taken place before its own time ; up the river vast damage was done to hay and
corn ; at this point Buffalo street was overflowed as far west as the Arcade
and much injury was done to goods in cellars ; at the lower falls the new bridge
was swept away ; careful measurements made by Hervey Ely showed that the
quantity of water which then passed was as much as 21164,000 cubic feet in a
minute. The Rochester Academy of Sacred Music was organised in October;
the names of the original officers are not known, but in 1837 Addison Gardiner
was president, James M. Fish secretary and Edward R. Walker professor, with
F. F. Backus, L. B Swan and Moses Long as music committee ; its object was
"the cultivation of sacred music generally, but more particularly of the music
in churches and for charitable purposes."
In 1836 the first Andrews street bridge was built; the first balloon ascen-
sion was made, by a Frenchman named Lauriatt, from a vacant lot where the
Waverley House and Congress Hall now stand ; hydrogen gas was used, made
from acids ; the most remarkable part of the show was the falling of the roof of
a blacksmith shop at a corner of the inclosure, with several men on it, one of
whom, named Frisbie, fell on an ax that was screwed in a vise with the
handle up and forced it completely through the fleshy part of his thigh, be-
tween the great muscle and the bone ; the man being thus impaled, Dr. W. W.
Reid, one of the best surgeons of his time, had to saw through the ax-handle in
order to extract it; Frisbie was so little affected by the performance that he
jMhi
* .-
rf-"'
JONATHAN CHILD.
The Patriot War. i 3 1
was at his work a short time after, and thirty years later was a strong and
hearty old man. This must have been a very quiet year among our fathers —
though pro-slavery riots were common enough in other cities — for General
Gould, who had been elected to succeed hiniself, made these remarks in the
course of his address on giving up the mayoralty on the last day of Decem-
ber:—
" Our city has also been remarkably distinguished for peace and good order, and hap-
pily delivered from the fire that devours the property and the pestilence that destroys
the lives of our citizens. During the period of my office, nearly two years, I wish it to be
remembered as a most extraordinary and to me most gratifying fact, that, with a popula-
tion averaging 1 6,000, I have never been called upon to interfere, nor has there ever
been occasion to do so, for the suppression of riot, mob, tumult, or even an ordinary
case of assault. This fact speaks a most gratifying eulogy for our civil and religious in-
stitutions, and for the intelligence and morality in the community in which we live."
Several events made 1837. ^ memorable year to the people of this locality.
The great financial crisis, followed by depression and widespread bankruptcy
among the merchants, was severely felt here by all classes, the poorer ones be-
ing the most affected by it, and it was mainly for the purpose of giving employ-
ment to the great number of laborers who would otherwise have been out of
work that Buffalo street west of King street was then cut down to its present
level. On the other side of the lake a ferment of dissatisfaction had during the
whole summer pervaded the province of Ontario (then Canada West), and a
newspaper edited by William Lyon Mackenzie, a restless demagogue, had so
stirred up the minds of the Canadians that in the autumn something like an
armed rebellion broke out. A feeling of sympathy for the insurgents, who were
rioters rather than patriots, spread throughout this part of the state, and a party
of men, who had nothing else to do, under a man named Van Rensselaer,
took possession of Navy island, in the Niagara river, and issued proclamations
urging all persons to join them in aid of the insurrection. The fever increased
and people flocked to the island from all quarters ; carried away by the excite-
ment and actuated by a sentiment that seems inexplicable, large sums of
money were advanced by an active committee in this city, to forward men and
means by wagons and post-coaches, and so well were their appeals responded
to in every school district of the county that wagon loads of all conceivable
kind of things came pouring in and were stored in one wing of the market,
arms and accoutrements in all stages of dilapidation, provisions of every variety
and blankets and coverlets enough to envelop the whole island.
While this was going on, the news came one Saturday evening that the
British troops had come across the river to the American side, set the steamer
Caroline on fire, cut her adrift and sent her over the falls with sixty persons on
board. This was enough to arouse the whole city ; the people gathered about
the Eagle Hotel, and the mayor had to read the bulletin again and again ; the
officers of the militia met, and the soldiers were on the point of being called
132 History of the City of Rochester.
out. Sunday intervened without further news, and on the following Monday
it was learned that the story of the steamboat was true, except that part which
related to the loss of life, for there was nobody on board of her when she de-
scended the falls. More recruits rushed to the island, gun-houses were rifled
of their contents here and elsewhere, and a real war seemed about to be precip-
itated between the two countries by the popular madness. Before the patience
of the Canadian government gave out, however, our own interfered ; General
Scott was ordered to the frontier ; with a few troops he cleared off the island ;
the authorities on the other side sentenced about^a dozen persons to transpor-
tation to Botany Bay for life, though it afterward pardoned those of the convicts
who were American citizens, and so the Navy island raid came to an end.
Mackenzie, the leader of the rebellion, escaped to New York, and finally, in Jan-
uary, 1839, came up here, where he started a weekly paper, called the Gazette,
intending to make further trouble for the Canadian government; in June of
that year he was tried at Canandaigua for violation of the neutrality laws, was
convicted and sentenced to imprisonment in our jail for eighteen months ; within
a year he was pardoned and disappeared.
An affair of more purely local interest, though productive of an excite-
ment almost equally great, and an interest more lasting, was the murder of
William Lyman by Octavius Barron, on the night of the 23d of October. Ly-
man was a grain buyer employed by Joseph Strong, the proprietor of the City
mills, and he started homeward for the last time with nearly $6,000 in his pos-
session. Barron, a young Frenchman, only eighteen years old, induced two
other men, named Bennett and Fluett, to follow Lyman with him, and when
their victim had reached an open lot between North St. Paul and Clinton
streets, near his home at the corner of what is now Clinton place, they shot
him through the back of the head, killing him outright, and after taking $500
from his person, though they missed $5,000, which was in his hat, they went
to a saloon to divide the money, and it was mainly on the testimony of some
girls who were employed in a millinery shop, back of the bar room, that Bar-
ron was convicted. The body of Lyman was found by Judge Humphrey the
next morning, and the horror of the whole community over the first murder
in Monroe county continued without abatement until the perpetrator had paid
the penalty of his crime. He was tried on the 28th of the following May,
being defended by a lawyer named Bennett — residing at Lima, though he
was at the same time president of the Dansville bank — while the prosecution
was conducted by William S. Bishop, the district attorney, assisted by Mark
H. Sibley, of Canandaigua ; Barron was convicted one week later, and was
hanged on the 2Sth of June, 1838. His accomplices obtained a change of
venue, and were tried at Batavia, where, by some legal technicality, they escaped
the punishment of their awful deed. Darius Perrin, who was the sheriff at the
time, performed the execution of Barron, but declined the usual fee of $500,
oMi
a S!«SFKS»!ftSftS««5«5
K ^? - ~ ■■
Thk First Murders in Monr(je County. 133
and the supervisors showed their appreciation of his delicacy of feeling by
throwing out of his bill of expenses an item of $1.50 for the flax rope used on
the occasion, which was made at the old rope-walk on Buffalo street, near St.
Mary's hospital.
The curse of Cain having come upon the infant city, the guilt of murder
seemed indissolubly connected with the place by a repetition of the crime in
1838, even before the first assassin was tried. On the evening of May 4th
Austin Squires shot dead his wife as she was removing > some garments from a
clothes-line in the rear of their residence, on the corner of Lancaster street
and Monroe avenue ; the deed was dorie in a fit of jealousy, and while the
perpetrator was in a condition of intoxication, besides which he was a man of
eccentric mind, and many considered him lacking in full moral responsibility,
but the plea of insanity had not then been brought to its present state of
artistic development, so he was tried in October, and hanged on the 29th of
November, at the age of thirty-five.
It is pleasing to turn from the necessary record of these horrors to the de-
tails of peaceful avocations, prominent among them being the transformation
of the old Gilbert warehouse, a doorless and windowless skeleton with a
haunted reputation, which stood at the upper end of the canal bridge on South
St. Paul street, at the junction of the feeder with the Erie canal; William H.
Cheney rented it from Dr. Elwood, who was then its owner, put in an engine
and boiler, and started a furnace and foundry, casting the first cooking- stove
made in this part of the country, after an old "saddle-bags" pattern gotten up
in Philadelphia; he stayed there for eight years, when he moved his furnace to
St. Paul street, just below Court. Henry O'Rielly (the spelling being changed
from its original form, in conformity to his wish) published h.\^ Sketches of
Rochester, with Incidental Notices of Western New York, a valuable work,
requiring a good deal of research, and one whose merit has been generally
recognised from that time to this. The book was published by subscription,
and the interest which was at that time felt in the preservation of the records
of the settlement in permanent form, may be judged from the fact that many
citizens subscribed for a large number of copies, thirty being taken by A. M.
Schermerhorn, the same number by Jonathan Child, by Fletcher M. Haight
and by John Allen & Co., while thirteen others took twenty-five each, and so
on, 660 copies being taken by thirty-five individuals or firms. The Rochester
Anti-slavery society was formed on the 4th of January, the following officers
being elected: Lindley M. Moore, president; George A. Avery, Silas Cornell,
Russell Green, O. N. Bush, David Scoville, vice-presidents; Oren Sage, treas-
urer; S. D. Porter, corresponding secretary; E. F. Marshall, recording secre-
tary. A state convention was held here, in the court-house, a week later, but
it came to nothing.
In 1839 the Liberty party was formed, the corner-stone of the organisation
134 History of the City of Rochester.
being laid in this city. Myron HoUey, in June, started the Rochester Freeman,
in which he urged the policy of independent political action on the part of
those opposed to slavery. On the 28th of September the Monroe county con-
vention for nominations was the first to be held — in answer to the recom-
mendation of the national anti-slavery convention in the previous July, refer-
ring the question of independent political nominations to the judgment of the
Abolitionists in the different localities — and it adopted an address and a series
of resolutions, prepared by Mr. Holley, who added to the great reputation
which he had gained for his services in connection with the Erie canal, the
honor of being, more than any other one person, the founder of the Liberty party.
From this convention sprang that of the state, held at Arcade, Wyoming coun-
ty, in the succeeding January, and from that the national convention, held at
Albany in the following April, which nominated James G. Birney for the pres-
idency. In this year the new Methodist and tlic Fifth Presbyterian churches
were dedicated, and' the new Rochester artillery was organised.
For 1840 the following will have to answer: The semi-centennial celebra-
tion held Monday, March i6th, commemorating ,the settlement of Western
New York, excited much interest throughout the city. The Brick church was
crowded to excess, hundreds being unable to obtain seats. A procession made
up of the different military organisations of the city marched through the prin-
cipal streets to the Brick church, where the following programme was ren-
dered : Prayer by Rev. Tryon Edwards, an ode written for the occasion by
D. W. Chapman and read by Graham Chapin, a discourse by Myron Holley,
with reference to the settlement and history of Western Ne\v York, followed
by an ode composed for the celebration by W. H. C. Hosmer and read by My-
roti Holley.
An imposing ceremony caused the year 1841 to be memorable for a long
time after it had passed away. In August, 1779, General Sullivan started on
his campaign to chastise the Indians in Western New York, who had committed
wanton devastation and murdered peaceful settlers throughout a wide circuit
of country. In the eleventh chapter of this work is given a description of the
surprise, by the red men and the tories, of a detachment of his troops under
Lieutenant Boyd, with the execution, in Indian fashion, of that officer and a
private named Parker, at a distance from the scene of the general massacre.
Sullivan's army came up soon afterward and the bodies of the victims were
buried where they lay, tho.se of Boyd and Parker where the village of Cuyler-
ville, Livingston county, now stands, and the others a few miles off, near Grove-
land. Sixty-two years later the bones were exhumed, those of Boyd and
Parker were placed in an urn, those of the others in a "sarcophagus," and both
receptacles were delivered to a committee from this city, which went up the
Genesee Valley canal in a flotilla of boats, accompanied by the Williams light
infantry, the Union Grays, the City Cadets, the German Grenadiers and the
Remains of Boyd and Parker Removed. 135
Rochester artillery, as well as by the mayor and other city officials. The next
day, August 21st, they returned, and the procession, augmented by the fire de-
partment of the city, moved at once to Mount Hope. Just as the line entered
the grounds it was joined by Governor Seward and his staff, who had come
from Batavia on a special train, by the fastest time ever made up to that point,
a fact that was chronicled in newspapers throughout the country. The two
receptacles containing the precious relics were united in one structure and
placed on an elevation which had been deeded for that purpose, and a short
address was delivered by Rev. Elisha Tucker of this city, dedicating the spot
under the name of Revolutionary hill — though the title subsequently gave
place to that of Patriot hill. Vice-Chancellor Whittlesey then introduced the
governor, who made an address befitting the occasion.
On the 7th of January, 1842, Jesse Hawley died at Cambria, Niagara county,
and was buried at Lockport, which had been his permanent residence since
1836; he was the original projector of the overland route of the Erie canal
and was one of the most prominent citizens of Rochester during its existence
as a village, holding many offices, among others that of collector of the port of
Genesee, to which he was appointed by President Monroe in 1817 and held it
until Jackson's election in 1828. The fourth of July was grandly celebrated,
all the military, civic, literary and benevolent societies turning out and going to
Washington square, where Chancellor Whittlesey delivered an address and
temperance pledges were circulated, receiving many signatures. During the
summer the Auburn & Rochester railroad had a prolonged, quarrel with the
National Hotel, a temperance house, in the course of which the agent of the
road tore down the sign of the hotel ; an indignation meeting of the citizens
was held, nearly 2,000 attending. A duel was fought on Pinnacle hill, between
two young men whose names are not given in the newspapers of that time ;
no one was hurt, and it was thought that the seconds, in loading the pistols,
forgot to put in the balls. The new aqueduct was finished at a cost of $600,-
000.
Ireland's wrongs seem to have agitated the minds of many of our citizens
during the summer of 1843, many meetings being held to advocate the repeal
of the union with England and the restoration of Ireland's nationality, the
largest of them being on the loth of July, in Monroe hall, when addresses were
made by the chairman, General Hestor L. Stevens, George Dawson, Dr. Thel-
ler and others. John Quincy Adams visited Rochester on the 27th of July;
was received with great honor by a committee, three of whom had been pre-
viously appointed to go to Buffalo to meet him; grand torchlight procession in
the evening in his honor, and an address by the venerable statesman from a
platform erected in the court-house square.
Up to the time of the November election in 1844, the whole state was
agitated by the presidential canvass, and Rochester was in no wise behind the
1 36 History of the City of Rochester.
other cities in the enthusiasm displayed. On the i-2th of April the friends of
Henry Clay celebrated the birthday of their favorite by a large gathering at
Irving hall, at which Governor Seward was expected to be present, but he sent,
instead, a two-column letter; Elisha B. Strong presided and an oration was de-
livered by Dr. D. F. Bacon, of New York. August 24th Levi W. Sibley died ;
he was one of the pioneers, having come here in 1818 with his brother Derick;
they were printers, and after working for some years on the Telegraph they
purchased the Gazette in 1821, and published it four years. The census taken
in March showed a population of 23,553, an increase of 3,358 in three years.
Three hundred and ten new buildings were ePected during the year, about
equally divided between the two sides of the river.
Temperance, the canal and slavery seem to have troubled the minds of our
people a good deal during 1845; Washingtonian gatherings were held to pro-
mote total abstinence, and a grain convention, attended by delegates from all
the western part of the state, took place here January 29th and 30th, to pro-
test against the competition of the Welland canal in diverting traffic from the
direct line of the Erie; James Seymour presided, many speecTies were made
and resolutions were c\dopted calling upon the legislature to equalise the tolls,
so as to make western forwarders pay the same whichever way the produce
went. On Febi-uary Sth, 6th and 7th the Western New York Anti-slavery
society held a convention, Isaac Post presiding. The mayoralty election in
March was quite exciting; Rufus Keeler, the Locofoco candidate;^ and John
Allen, the Whig, were within two votes of each other, and the common coun-
cil, acting as a board of -canvassers, were tied on the question of allowing three
imperfect votes to John Allen, which would have elected him; Mr. Allen,
having, as mayor, the casting vote in the council, magnanimously decided
against himself, and Mr. Keeler was declared elected; he declined to accept
the office, and Mr. Allen, who by that means would have held over, sent in his
resignation and the common council appointed William Pitkin mayor. On the
19th of May an anti-gambling meeting of prominent citizens was held, at
which J. H. Green, "the reformed gambler," made an address; two days later
a society was formed, with Frederick Whittlesey as president, Messrs. Champ-
ion, Kempshall, Bumphrey, Smith, Bloss, Wheeler and Barton as vice-presi-
dents; I. F. Mack as corresponding secretary, and J. H. Babcock as treasurer;
under the auspices of the society Mr. Green delivered a lecture at the court-
house five days afterward. On the 1st of October Edwin Scrantom, one of
the best known auctioneers of the day, sold off a large quantity of central real
estate, in several small parcels, to the highest bidders; twelve lots on the east
side of Front street brought $4,815; thirteen on the west side, $6,660; three
on Mumford street sold for $1,275; "'"e on Mill street realised $1,740; five
on a back street then running between Front and the river bank went for
$1,490; the Selye house and lot, on the corner of Mill and Fish (now Center)
Franklin's Birthday. — Famine in Ireland. 137
streets reached $3,600, and other property was knocked down for $8,645 — '"
all $28,225, to eleven purchasers. On the 22d of October a state temperance
convention was held here, presided over by Chancellor Whittlesey. The widow
of Colonel Nathaniel Rochester died on the 9th of December, leaving fifty-
eight direct descendants.
Benjamin Franklin's birthday was celebrated on the i6th of January, 1846,
in grand style by the printers of Western New York ; it was the first festival
of the craft of this city and was held at the Champion Hotel, which was the
old Morton House refitted, rechristened and opened as a temperance house,
on the corner of Buffalo and Fitzhugh streets. Derick Sibley presided at the
principal table, and a newspaper of the next day, in an account of the pro-'
ceedings, which takes up more than eight columns, says that "one hundred and
seven, including Adams's brass band, sat down to one of the most sumptuous
repasts ever furnished to printers' palates;" all those living here who were then
or ever had been connected with the press as editors or publishers were pres-
ent ; many of them made speeches, and letters were read from several journal-
ists in other parts of the state. On the 8th of February Rev. Ashbel Baldwin,
then the oldest ordained Episcopal minister in the United States, died at his
residence in this city, aged nearly eighty-nine. The first exhibition of the
Genesee Valley Horticultural society was held June I2th, at the Blossom House.
The Mexican war having broken out in the spring of that year, a meeting of
citizens was held on the 27th of May, General Gould presiding, to sustain Pres-
ident Polk's administration ; a "committee of safety" was appointed, which in
turn appointed John Allen, Horace Gay and H. B. Ely a committee to take
measures for the enrollment of volunteers ; the response was more tardy than
had been anticipated, and by the time a company of thirty-three was raised,
under Captain H. B. Ely, word came that the quota of the state was full and
no more troops were needed,, so the enlistments were revoked and the men
stayed at home.
The next year, 1847, saw greater activity and excitement in the matter,
General Taylor's brilliant achievements having stirred the warlike feelings of
the young men of the North, so that when more troops were called for there
was less difficulty .in getting enlistments in this city. In the early part of the
year Caleb Wilder, as captain, organised a company, forty members of which, .
under charge of Lieutenant Edward McGarry, left here in April for Fort Ham-
ilton, where they remained until joined by the complement of the company,
when, on the 9th of June, they proceded to the mouth of the Rio Grande,
where they remained about sixteen months, doing active and efficient service as,
a part of the army of occupation. This was the great year of famine in Ireland
as it was foreseen it would be, in consequence of the failure of the potato
crop the year before — and of course meetings were held here, to send relief
to the starving people, the largest, perhaps, being at the court-house on Feb-
History of the City of Rochester.
ruary 8th ; Dr. James Webster presided ; $363 was raised at once ; Dr. Lee,
General Gould and Rev. Mr. Holland were appointed a committee to send cir-
culars to the neighboring towns. In this year an amendment to the charter
was adopted by the common council, and subsequently passed by the legisla-
ture, whereby all city officers were to be after that year elected by the people,
except the clerk of the board, the superintendent of Mount Hope cemetery and
the messenger of the council. On the 30th of September the Society of the
Pioneers was organised, at a dinner held at the Blossom House, with Enos
Stone as president, Judge Sampson, Ralph Parker and Oliver Culver, as vice-
presidents ; sixty-two were present at this first festival, or sent letters joining
the organisation, which at the outset was to comprise only those who were here
before 1816; of that original number, not one is now living, the last to pass
away being Charles J. Hill, who died last year ; the limit of time was then ex-
tended so as to admit all who resided in Western New York prior to 1820; the
number of members then rapidly increased, so that in i860 there were ninety
men and forty women connected with the society. In July a new railroad
bridge was built across the river by the Auburn & Rochester railroad, to take
the place of the old one laid down seven years before. In this year coal was
first burned as fuel, as will be more fully told in another chapter. The mor-
tality for this year was 747, a death rate of more than two and a half per cent.
In February, 1848, much excitement was caused by the disappearance of
Porter P. Pierce, a young woolen manufacturer; a meeting was held at which
sixty-eight prominent citizens, with Dr. Webster at the head, were appointed a
vigilance committee to unravel the mystery ; other meetings were held, and
rewards offered ; the body was afterward found in the river with marks of vio-
lence; the murderer was never discovered. On the 2d of August there was a
woman's rights convention at the Unitarian church, the building being filled to
overflowing; Amy Post called the meeting to order; Abigail Bush was presi-
dent, with other women to fill the remaining offices ; proceedings were opened
with prayer by Rev. Mr. Wicher, of the Free Will Baptist church ; Miss Burtis,
a Quaker school-teacher, acted as reader, as the secretaries could not be heard.
Frederick Douglass, William C. Nell and William C. Bloss spoke in favor of
the emancipation of women from *all artificial disabilities ; Milo Codding and
three other men spoke against this, contending that "woman's sphere was
home," to which Lucretia Mott replied vigorously, followed by Mrs. Stanton
and others ; letters were read from Gerrit Smith and William Lloyd Garrison,
cordially approving all the objects of the meeting; there were three sessions,
each well attended. On August 23d a citizens' meeting was held for the relief
of Albany, nearly a quarter of that city being burned, with a loss of more than
a million of dollars; a draft for $1,000 was remitted by the mayor, Joseph
Field. The gas works having been completed in this year, the illuminating
fluid was supplied on the 13th of December, the first consumer being C. A.
Jones, who resided on Franklin street.
Incidents of 1850. 139
Cholera visited the place again in 1849, in spite of the fact that the utmost
precautions had been talten in the early part of the year to cleanse the filthiest
places, and put the city in a sanitary condition ; about one hundred and sixty
deaths resulted from the disease. In May the trial of Dr. Hardenbrook, for
the murder of Thomas Nott, took place, the motive alleged being the desire to
marry Mrs. Nott; strong testimony was offered to show that death occurred
from poison administered by the doctor, who had professionally treated the
deceased ; the jury, after being out five hours, rendered a verdict of acquittal.
Fanny Kemble read here. May 9th and lOth, "Othello" and the "Tempest."
Corinthian hall was opened during the summer, having been begun in the
spring of the previous year ; Bugle alley was changed in name to Exchange
place, and the title of Mill street was given to the whole line of that thorough-
fare, whose southern end had hitherto been known as Work street. As navi-
gation was nearing its close, the City mills, which were overloaded, fell with a
crash, in consequence of the great strain upon the floors ; eleven thousand
bushels of wheat were precipitated into the raceway and the flumes, which be-
came dammed up and the water burst through, carrying the grain into the
river; an almost total loss.
f On the 13th of March, 1850, General Ebenezer S. Beach died; he came
here in 1820, and almost from the first was engaged in the milling business, in
which he was, so far as known, more extensively interested than any other
person in the United States. John T. Talman, another of the early settlers,
died February I2th. Hamlet Scrantom, who was the first white resident of
Rochester, on the west side of the river, died in this year, in the house on
State street (subsequently occupied by Martin Briggs, his son-in-law) where
the family had resided since 18 16. The corner-stone of the court-house was
laid on the 20th of June, with imposing ceremonies, all the military and the
city officials turning out and moving through the principal streets ; the prayer
was by Rev. Dr. Hall, the address by Judge Cliapin, and the stone was laid by
Mayor Richardson and the chairman of the board of supervisors; in the box
under it were placed copies of all the newspapers of the day, city directories,
daguerreotypes of officials, statistics of various kinds, and many other objects
of interest. A mournful occasion caused the passage of a similar procession,
augmented by the fire department and the secret societies, on the 13th of
July, in token of the national loss sustained by the death of the president,
General Taylor, on the 9th ; at Washington square a eulogy was delivered by
Rev. Mr. Hickok, of the Bethel church ; most of the buildings in the city were
draped, and the railroad trains that passed through were covered with the em-
blems of mourning ; General L. B. Swan was marshal of the day on both of
these observances. In September Powers's "Greek Slave" was exhibited here
for several days. Lectures were given during the early part of the year by
Horace Greeley, President Hopkins, of Williams college ; Richard H. Dana,
10
I40 History of the City of Rochester.
John B. Gough, Senator John P. Hale, Bishop Hopkins, of Vermont, and Rev.
Dr. Lord, of Buffalo. The University of Rochester and the theological sem-
inary were established here in autumn. The census taken during the summer
showed a population of 36,561, an increase of 11,296 in five years. This fin-
ishes the first half of the nineteenth century, though not the first half century
of the existence of Rochester, which had, however, even at this time, taken
her place as one of the most prosperous, and in some respects one of the most
important, cities in the state.
CHAPTER XX.
THE CITY'S PROGRESS TO THE WAR TIME.
Visit of Fillmore and his Cabinet, and of Daniel Webster — Singing of Jenny I.ind — Civic Fes-
tival in 1 85 1 — Building the New Court-IIouse — The Meridian of Rochester — The Mock Funeral
of Henry Clay — The Cholera in 1852 — The Ira Stout Murder — The " Irrepressible Conflict " —
De Lave's Rope- Walking — Death of Ex-Mayors Allen and Child.
PRESIDENT FILLMORE conceived the idea that some of the unpopu-
larity which he had incurred at the North, and especially in his own state,
by signing the fugitive slave bill, would be removed by making a tour with his
cabinet and explaining matters as he went along, so he set out with three of
the secretaries and was generally well received; he reached here on the 20th
of Mayj 1851, and was greeted by a fine turnout of the military and other
organisations; much disappointment was felt over the absence of Daniel Web-
ster, then secretary of state, who had lagged behind the party for some time,
not getting to Buffalo till two days after the others had left; salutes were fired
and the visitors were escorted to Washington square, where the mayor made
a long address to the president, who responded, followed by Attorney- General
Crittenden and ex-Gov. Graham, secretary of the navy; in the afternoon the
party dined at the Eagle Hotel, where more speeches were made. Mr. Web
ster reached here three days later, but was not honored by an official recep-
tion, which he had probably expected and which he would certainly have
received a few years before ; the next morning he spoke, from the south end
of the Arcade gallery, to a large crowd, but the circumstances under which
his speech was delivered were not such as to enhance his great reputation.
Jenny Lind sang here July 22d and 24th ; the desire to hear her was so great
that every nook and corner in the adjacent streets was occupied, and as the
heat of the evenings caused the windows of Corinthian hall to be kept wide
open it was estimated that the notes of her voice reached as many outside of
The New Court-House. 141
the building as listened to it within. For her second night the tickets, to keep
them out of the hands of speculators, were sold at auction, and they all
brought a premium, which aggregated $2,501.41; this amount she sent the
next day to the mayor, N. E. Paine, to be distributed as follows : To the Fe-
male Charitable society $800, to the Rochester orphan asylum $500, Catholic
orphan asylums $300, Home for the Friendless $300, German Lutheran
church $200, Cartmen's Benevolent association $200, Firemen's Benevolent
association $201.41. The annual fair of the State Agricultural society was
held here in September, with greater eclat than in any year since then ; the
address was delivered by Stephen A. Douglas ; and the crowd in attendance
was by far the largest ever seen up to that time in Western New York; one
evening during the progress of the fair a civic festival was held in Corinthian
hall, which was attended by Gov. Hunt and his military staff, ex-President
Tyler, ex- Gov. Marcy, ex Gov. Morton of Massachusetts, Gen. Wool, John
A. King, Horace Greeley, many judges of the Supreme court and other nota-
bilities. Chancellor Whittlesey, one of the most distinguished citizens of
Rochester, died September 19th; resolutions of respect were passed by the
university, the courts and many other bodies. Enos Stone, generally con-
sidered the first settler upon the east side of the river, where the city now
stands (as is fully described in the first portion of this work), died on the 23d
of October. Matthew Brown, who came here in 1817, died December 28th.
The new court-house was finished in December at a cost of $61,93 1. 95 (though
additions a few years later increased the amount by something over $10,000),
of which the city paid $33,465.98 and the county $28,465.97 ; Gideon Cobb,
who took the old court-house at $500, did the mason work, and Henry T.
Rogers was the carpenter; the original appropriation was for $25,000, by the
supervisors, for a county building alone, but the common council afterward
joined with them to erect a court-house, with rooms for both city and county
officers; the plans for this included wooden columns to support the roof of
the portico, and it was mainly by the exertions of Gen. Swan that the massive
stone pillars which do more than any other part of the structure to give dig-
nity to its appearance were raised, instead of the miserable posts which would
have become mutilated long ago by time and mischief It will be of interest
to our readers to know — what has perhaps never been printed before — the
exact meridian of the city of Rochester, which may be given in this connec-
tion because the figure of Justice, which surmounts the upper dome, was taken
as one of the points of triangulation by the officers of the coast survey in
1876; the image is in latitude 43° 9' 22.44", longitude TJ^ 36' 50.97".
On the 6th of February, 1852, a Portuguese family, named Antonio, left on
the cars for Albany — an innocent proceeding, in itself, but it gave to those who
had been their neighbors on Lyell street an opportunity to dig in the cellar of
the late residence of the family and to find buried there the body of Ignacio
142 History of the City of Rochester.
Pinto, who had lived with the others and had been missed since, the previous
November; one deadly wound was in the breast, another on the head ; an offi-
cer was sent after the family and brought them back ; Maurice Antonio was
tried for the murder in April — an interpreter b^ing used as medium all through
the trial — and was hanged on the 3d of June. Sally Holley, the daughter of
Myron Holley, delivered an address on anti-slavery on the i6th of February.
Ralph Waldo Emerson, Leonard Bacon, Horace Mann, T. D'Arcy McGee,
Horatio Seymour and Donald G. Mitchell were among the lecturers of the
winter. Horace Gay, formerly district attorney, master in chancery, member
of Assembly, etc., died June 9th, at Baltimore, having been taken sick while on
the way to attend, as a delegate, the Democratic national convention in that
city. Henry Clay having died on the gth of June, one week after General
Scott obtained the Whig nomination as candidate for the presidency, this city,
in common with all others in the country, was deeply moved by the general
feeling of sorrow ; resolutions of regret were passed by the council and all the
literary organisations; an immense throng gathered at the depot. as the remains
passed through here on the 6th of July, on the way to Kentucky ; formal obse-
quies were held here July 13th, with a eulogy at the First Methodist church by
Rev. Mr. Hickok, of the Bethel ; this was not all, for on the 23d of the same
month there was a mock funeral procession — "under the dir,ection of the young
men of Rochester," as the newspapers had it — with more imposing pageantry
than had ever been seen here before, surpassing that displayed after the death
of Taylor, of John Quincy Adams or of Harrison; all conceivable associations
and companies turned out, to precede or follow the funeral car to Washington
square, where an oration was delivered by Charles G. Lee ; the court-house
was hung in black from basement to cupola, draped flags were hung across
the streets at intervals, and all the bells tolled as the procession moved.
But, before the summer was over, the streets were filled with mourners on
account of the actual presence of the destroyer, and the mimic demonstrations of
woe gave place to the manifestations of a far more personal grief, perplexity and
dread. The cholera returned, and its ravages here, as in Buffalo and elsewhere,
were more frightful than in any previous year. Its coming had been foreseen, as
formerly ; the board of health began its work of purification early in the spring,
though the unusual fall of rain through April and May retarded their work, and
on the first appearance of the disease a building on High street (now Caledonia
avenue) was turned into a hospital and given in charge of Dr. Richard Gundry ;
into this sixty-eight patients were taken, of whom twenty-four died. There
were, during the summer, nearly seven hundred cases, the deaths numbering at
least 420, and possibly 473 (the discrepancy being due, in part, to confusion in
undertakers' reports), so that a little over one per cent, of the population was
carried off by the scourge. The first case was that of John Hart, an Irish
laborer on Factory street, which occurred June 6th ; the last, which took place
Occurrences of 1853 and 1854. 143
early in November, was that of a prisoner in the jail, eighty-three years old,
who, when another inmate died of the cholera, became panic-stricken, was
seized with the disease and soon fell a victim. Moses B. Seward, Dr. J. J. Treat
and Dr. William Bell died of the epidemic in August, Dr. D. C. Phelps in Sep-
tember. The mayor, Hamlin Stilwell, exerted himself effectively at first, but
his health soon gave way and he was obliged to retire temporarily from active
labor, when his duties fell upon Alderman William F. Holmes, who fortunately
was a member of the board of health at the time, and to whose memory praise
is due for the fidelity, courage and devotion which he showed in doing what
could be done to prevent the establishment of the epidemic and in relieving the
miseries of those who suffered from it. A committee of the board, consisting
of Dr. E. W. Armstrong, D. M. Dewey and Hiram Banker, drew up a long and
complete report of the cholera for this year, from which is taken the informa-
tion given above. Clay's great rival, Daniel Webster, having died October
25th, the city hall bell was tolled here during his funeral at Marshfield on the
29th ; memorial services were held in Corinthian hall November 23d, an ora-
tion being delivered by Jerome Fuller of Brockport.
As the city was full of the newly developed theories of Spiritualism, with
their attendant manifestations. Dr. Mcllvaine, of the First church, preached a
sermon on "the arts of divination," on the 20th of March, 1853. In the
same month Francis Gretter, a candy peddler, stabbed and killed instantly
Paul Satterbee, of the same age with himself (about thirteen years) ; man-
slaughter third degree ; House of Refuge till becoming of age. In May the
seamstresses (or "sempstresses" as they were then called) formed a protective
union for mutual support and to aid in securing fair compensation ; several
meetings were held by them in Corinthian hall. Silas Ball, one of the old
pioneers, died May 8th. In May the association for juvenile reform was or-
ganised, with William Pitkin as president, Hervey Ely vice-president, J. B.
Robertson treasurer and S. D. Porter secretary ; its object was, especially, the
care of truant children. Highway robberies during this month were common
enough to alarm the people of Rochester and make most of them go home
early at night. On June 19th died John Smith, vague as to name, but with his
individuality established by his having come here in 1814 and kept the first
meat stall in the place, at the west end of the bridge, his shop being called —
presumably in derision — "the fly market." A long-staying comet affrighted
many timid people during August. The corner-stone of Plymouth church was
laid on the 8th of September, Rev. Dr. O. E. Daggett delivering the principal
address; that of St. Mary's (Catholic) was laid on the i8th, the services being
conducted by Bishop Timon of Buffalo. Harry Pratt, one of the most re-
spected of our private citizens, died at the end of the year.
Lyceum oratory found good development during the early part of 1854,
Henry Giles, Wendell Phillips, Agassiz, Bayard Taylor, Oliver Wendell Homes,
144 History of the City of Rochester.
Theodore Parker and Horace Greeley being among the lecturers of the season.
The veterans of the war of 1812 held a mass meeting in the common council
chamber on the 3d of January and appointed Ebenezer Griffin, Jonathan Child
and S. L. Wellman to petition Congress' for appropriate relief Everard Peck,
who came here in 18 16, died on the 9th of February. In March forty-five
clergymen of this city, headed by Dr. Dewej' and Dr. Anderson, signed a pe-
tition to Congress, remonstrating against the attempt to organise Kansas and
Nebraska as slave territories ; similar remonstrances were signed by great num-
bers of the citizens, and all the petitions were presented to Congress by our
member, Dr. Davis Carpenter, of Brockport. On the 3d of May the ground
of St. Mary's church, on St. Paul street, was sold at auction for $4,600, the old
church for $160. This was a bad year for the millers — first, by reason of the
short crop of grain, and consequent high prices, and, . second, on account of
the lack of water, the drought being so great that the Phoenix and the Red mill
were idle during the whole season, and the others ran to about half of their ca-
pacity; the shipments of flour were less than in any previous year since 1844.
On thq 14th of November Emma Moore, aged thirty-seven, disappeared ; anx-
iety was soon felt by her friends, and then by the public ; meetings were held
by the citizens and a reward of $1,000 was offered by the sheriff; the body
was found in the upper race on the 19th of the following March ; coroner's jury
rendered a verdict of "death by drowning, whether by her own voluntary act
or otherwise is entirely unknown to the jury."
Woman's rights asserted themselves in 1855, a county convention of those
in favor of them being held at Corinthian hall on the 15th of January, with
Mrs. Lucy Clapp, of Perinton, presiding; Miss Anthony read a long address
in the afternoon, and Mrs. Rose, of New York, spoke one in the evening.
Science predominated in the Athenaeum course during the month, six lectures
on chemistry being delivered by Prof Silliman, of Yale college. On the 26th
the Union Grays, under command of Captain Lee, were called out by the
sheriff to quell a riot of laborers on the canal, engaged in a strike ; several
arrests, but no one seriously hurt. The night between the 6th and the 7th of
February was considered the coldest ever known in this locality since civilisa-
tion existed here; the mercury fell to twenty-six below at four in the morn-
ing. One hundred and twenty-five guns were fired and bonfires lighted on
the evening of the 6th, on account of the reelection of William H. Seward to
the United States senate. On the nth of May Martin Eastwood was con-
victed of the murder of Edward Brereton and sentenced to death, but he
secured a new trial, and got off with a long imprisonment. The short-lived
political party, calling itself the "American," but more commonly known as
the "Know- Nothing," attained its greatest strength in this year, at least, in
Rochester, where it placed Charles J. Hayden in the mayor's chair at the
spring election. The pro-slavery outrages in Kansas and Missouri excited the
Diary OF Events OF 1 8s6 AND 1 857- HS
utmost indignation in Rochester, and a large meeting in expression thereof was
held at the city hall on the ist of June, with Prof J. H. Raymond and others
as speakers. On the 15th of July the Junior Pioneer association was organ-
ised, its condition of admission being that the applicant should have resided
here before 1825, the limit being subsequently extended to 1830. The first
president was Ezra M. Parsons, of Gates ; the treasurer, George W. Fisher ;
the corresponding secretary, L. Ward Smith ; Jarvis M. Hatch was first on the
executive committee, and William A. Reynolds at the head of that on histor-
ical collections. The first object given to the society was a cane, with the fol-
lowing inscription: "A fragment of the boat Young Lion of the West, pre-
sented to the Junior Pioneer association by H. H. Knapp, October, 1855."^
About 1863 this organisation was merged in the older pioneer society, and
the consolidated body continued for a few years, when it quietly passed away,
George G. Cooper being its last president. Many of the very early settlers
died during this year, among them Mrs. Levi Ward, Mrs. Joseph Sibley, Mrs.
Samuel J. Andrews, Eli Stillson and Elbert W. Scrantom. A number of
lectures by celebrated speakers were delivered before the Ladies' Anti-Slavery
society in the course of the winter.
During the early part of 1856 snow fell in immense quantifies, impeding
the passage of trains in January and February, and on the nth of March the
blockade was so complete as to cause a great accumulation of passengers at
the hotels in the city, besides those who were confined in the cars by being
snowed in. Elihu Burritt, the "learned blacksmith," lectured before the Typo-
graphical Union on the i6th of January. Rev. Dr. Finney, the revivalist,
preached here during the month ; there was much religious excitement, great
numbers attended the meetings, and many joined the church. On May 21st
high mass was celebrated in St. Patrick's church (the interior being hung with
black) for the repose of the soul of Bishop Bernard O'Reilly, formerly the be-
loved pastor of that parish, who was on the \\!i-idXz6i Pacific when she sank in
mid-ocean. An indignation meeting, on the 30th of May, over Brooks's cow-
ardly assault on Senator Sumner, filled the city hall more densely than in any
former instance ; the mayor, Samuel G. Andrews, presided, and all living ex-
mayors were vice-presidents ; Dr. Anderson delivered the longest speech of
the occasion. July 30th the first carriage crossed the suspension bridge at
Carthage. Rev. John Donnelly was killed by the cars on the Central railroad
bridge, August 9th. Great interest was aroused by the Fremont campaign ;
Gov. Seward spoke in Corinthian hall on the third day before election. Chas.-
M. Lee, one of the best-known lawyers of the city, died on the 2Sth of No-
vember.
There was, in 1857, almost a repetition of the snowfall of the previous
1 A similar cane, made from another piece of the same old vessel, our first canal boat, is iiow in the
possession of Henry L. Fish, having been presented to him by George G. Cooper in 1882.
146 History of the City of Rochester.
year; a train which left here on the 19th of January was twenty-seven hours
in working through to Albany. There was enou-gh of a flood in February, on
the 8th, to carry away most of the old buildings on the north side of Main
street bridge by undermining the old piers, and finally to sweep away the
greater part of the ancient bridge itself The new one was about half built at
the time. The Garrisonian Abolitionists had a convention at Corinthian hall
on the loth of February; Messrs. Garrison, • May, Remond and others in
attendance, with Miss Anthony, Mrs. Post, Miss Burtis and others of this city.
Ephraim Moore died on the 12th of April ; he came here in 18 17, was one of
the trustees of the village, and held various positions of trust and responsibility.
The passage by the legislature of the bill for extending the Genesee Valley
canal, was thought to be the forerunner of so vast an influx of wealth from the
iron, coal and timber lands in Pennsylvania that the city was illuminated on
the 13th of April, and a large meeting of felicitation was held in the city hall ;
our citizens have not yet grown rich out of it. Lake avenue was improved in
this year by widening the sidewalks to the extent of twenty feet, and planting
a double row of maple trees near the curb ; it was due to the efforts of Alder-
man Lewis Selye in the common council, and to his personal liberality. This
was quite a y'ear for bridges. Main street bridge, constructed of cut stone, was
finished at a cost of over $60,000, after a prolonged wrangle in the common
council, over the efibrts to take the matter out of the hands of the commission-
ers appointed by the legislature to build it. The suspension bridge at Carthage
fell in April, as described in a previous chapter. Andrews street bridge was
rebuilt of iron, at a cost of $12,000; in tne course of its construction, on the
19th of December, Nathan Newhafer, one of the workmen, stepped on a loose
plank, fell into the water and was swept over the falls. Court street bridge
was completed in the following year, at an expense about the same as that of
the Andrews street crossing. A Methodist anti-slavery convention was held
at St. John's church in this city on the i6th of December. On the 19th of
that month Ira Stout decoyed his brother-in-law, Charles W. Littles, an attor-
ney, to Falls field, and murdered him, with the assistance of Mrs. Littles,
Stout's sister, throwing his body over the precipice ; in doing so, both the
murderers fell, rolled a part of the way down, and nearly met their own death ;
Stout's arm was broken, and both he and his sister were covered with burdock
burrs ; these things were what led to their detection ; Stout was tried the next
year, convicted, and executed on the 22d of October ; Sarah Littles was tried
later and sent to Sing Sing for seven years.
The record, for 1858 may begin with the mention of a sermon preached at
Plymouth church on the I2th of January, by Rev. Dr. Chester Dewey, it
being the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination as a minister. On the 2Sth
Charles A. Jones died after a lingering illness, a victim of the mysterious
"National Hotel disease," which prostrated so many of the guests at the ban-
Events of 1858-1859. 147
quet given at Washington at the time of President Buchanan's inauguration on
the 4th of March, in the previous year. On the 27th of February the funeral
of two young men — T. Hart Strong and Henry H. Rochester, who had per-
ished just a week before, at the burning of the Pacific Hotel, in St. Louis —
took place at St. Luke's; the, church was densely packed, and emotions of sad-
ness and solemnity were manifested by all present. Another death — that of
William H. Perkins, who was killed on the 12th of May in a railway accident
near Utica — produced a more general feeling of sorrow than can be appre-
ciated at this day, when we have not yet outgrown the calmness with
which the civil war taught us to regard the most frightful casualties. The lay-
ing of the first Atlantic cable was celebrated on the evening of August 17th
by a brilliant illumination, fireworks, bell-ringing, procession of the military
and fire companies, etc.; the conflagration at a later hour is mentioned in an-
other chapter. Though the date is not generally associated with the address,
as in the case of Webster's "seventh of March speech," yet the place is indis-
solubly connected with the oration, delivered at Corinthian hall on the 2Sth
of October, by William H. Seward, in which, speaking of the struggle between
the upholders of the systems of free and slave labor, he declared it to be "an
irrepressible conflict between opposing and enduring forces." The phrase was
instantly accepted all over the United States, and was familiarly used till long
after one of those forces had ceased to endure and the great statesman who
uttered the sentence had passed away. Dr. F. F. Backus, one of the earliest
of the settlers of Rochester, whose public services are alluded to in other por-
tions of this work, died in the latter part of the year.
The Jews of this city held a large meeting on the 20th of January, 1859,
to express the indignation which they felt, in common with all their race
throughout the world, over the abduction of the Mortara child from his parents
by the Inquisition of Rome. John Allen, the mayor of the city in 1844, died
in New York on the 1st of April; he was held in the highest respect not only
for his executive abilities but for his rare integrity, so that he was often called
"honest John Allen;" his remains, after being brought from New York, lay in
state in the mayor's room at the court-house; his funeral was attended by all
the military organisations, the fire companies, the Masonic associations and
other bodies; the procession was under the charge of ex- Mayor Hills, and the
bearers were ex- Mayors Child, Gould, Kempshall, Hill, Field, Richardson,
Strong and Hayden. A matter in the middle of August was more than a
nine-days' wonder and aroused an inordinate degree of public interest. Stimu-
lated by Blondin's feats in crossing Niagara, another funambulist, named De
Lave, undertook to do a similar thing here, and after due advertising and
judicious procrastination he made the passage on the i6th, on a tight-rope,
stretched seven hundred feet obliquely over the falls, so that in walking across,
from east to west, he made the ascent in front of and directly over the princi-
148 History of the City of Rochester.
pal sheet of water; a delighted crowd of not far from 20,000 people witnessed
the performance, which he repeated two or three ijtimes in the course of the
next ten days, so that it got to be an old story. The first locomotive explo-
sion in this city took place on the 12th of September, when the boiler of the
engine Ontario, of the New York Central road, was blown to pieces, just west
of the depot; the engineer was so badly hurt that one leg had to beamputated,
and the fireman was severely scalded, but both recovered and were employed
on the road for many years. Agricultural fairs of the state association had
been held from year to year, here and elsewhere, but by i860 it was found that
the display was too large and the interests were too divergent to allow of jus-
tice being done to each exhibitor, so a convention was held on the 15th of
March for the purpose of forming the Western New York Agricultural, Horti-
cultural and Mechanical association. Rev. Dr. Joseph Penney died on the 22d;
he was the pastor of the First Presbyterian church for many years and subse-
quently president of Hamilton college. On the ist of May the new building
of the Home for the Friendless was opened, with appropriate ceremonies. The.
first parade of the Genesee river fleet took place on the i ith of that month.
On the 17th the general assembly of the Old School Presbyterian church began
its session at the First church in this city; Dr. Breckenridge, of Kentucky,
•being detained by illness. Dr. Scott, of California, opened the session with a
sermon; Dr. Yeomans, of Pennsylvania, was elected moderator; the assembly
dissolved on the 30th, after a session of undisturbed harmony, contrary to pre-
vious expectation. Political excitement raged high in this year, both sides en-
tering earnestly into the struggle that was felt to be decisive; a great Demo-
cratic demonstration was made on the i8th of September, when Stephen A.
Douglas spoke to an immense crowd at Washington square; still greater en-
thusiasm was displayed by the Republicans, who got up the organisation of the
Wide- Awakes, which paraded the streets night after night during the campaign,
the largest manifestation being on October 18th, when Senators Wade and
Doolittle spoke here. Jonathan Child died on the 26th of October; he came
here in 1820 and after holding various offices under the village government
he became in 1834 the first mayor of the city, in the administration of which
office he has been surpassed by none of his successors; at his funeral, on the
30th, citizens of all classes displayed the respect in which he was held. As the
ending of this year marks the termination of the era of peace, it may bring this
chapter to a close.
The War of the Rebellion. 149
CHAPTER XXI.
THE WAR TIME AND BEYOND.
Breaking out of the Rebellion — The Call for Volunteers — Enthusiastic Response from Monroe
County — Formation of the Old Thirteenth and other Regiments — Support of the Government during
the War and Rejoicing over the Return of Peace — The Mock Funeral of Abraham Lincoln — The
Oil Fever and the Western Union Excitement — The Flood of 1865 — Performances of the Fenians —
"Swinging around the Circle" — Seth Green's Fish-Culture.
IN accordance with the proclamation of President Buchanan, and the recom-
mendation of Governor Morgan, the 4th of January, 1861, was observed,
here as elsewhere, as a day of fasting, humiliation and prayer, services being
held in most of the city churches, of all denominations, and at the university.
With the shadow of the impending war hovering before all minds, the people
were in no mood to discriminate justly, and an Abolition convention at Cor-
inthian hall, on the iith, was broken up by a mob, some of whom were nat-
urally of the baser sort, while with others the dread of a dissolution of the
Union extinguished their regard for the right of freedom of speech. In, the
early morning of February i8th thousands of citizens turned out to welcome
the president elect as he passed through here on the way to Washington, though
but a small portion of them could see him and still fewer cbuld hear the speech
which he made from the rear of the train. The crash came in April ; Mr. Lin-
coln's call for volunteers, on the iSth, stirred every heart; the common council
immediately appropriated $10,000 to defray urgent expenses; on the i8th a
meeting was held at the city hall to pledge support to the Union cause ; a sub-
scription of over $40,000 was raised in a few days for the benefit of families of
volunteers ; in a week more a regiment of men had enlisted here, under the di-
rection of Prof Isaac F. Quinby ; early in May they left for Elmira ; on the 29th
nine of the companies were organised, with one from Livingston county, as the
Thirteenth New York volunteers ; they passed through Baltimore, under com-
mand of Colonel Quinby, on the 30th, being the first volunteer regiment (to-
gether with the Twelfth New York) to reach that city after the attack on the Sixth
Massachusetts on the 19th of April. In the autumn the Eighth cavalry was
recruited here, and on the afternoon of Thanksgiving day, November 28th, it
left for Elmira. The record of these regiments, with that of others and parts
of others raised here, will be found in another chapter of this work. Among
the deaths of the year were those of Dr. Levi Ward, who came to the Genesee
country in 1807, settling at Bergen; in 181 1 was one of the commissioners to
settle the accounts of the builders of the first bridge across the Genesee at this
point and came here to live in 1817 ; Selah Mathews, one of the eminent law-
yers of his time ; General Lansing B. Swan, who had been prominently con-
nected with the militia for many years, had organised the "Grays" in 1835 and
had, in connection with Gen, Burroughs, codified the military laws ; of Orlando
ISO History of the City of Rochester.
Hastings, of Ebenezer Griffin, the last incumbent of the office of city recorder ;
of Joshua Conkey and of Calvin Huson, jr. ; the last-named, who was formerly
district-attorney, dying in prison at Richmond, Virginia, where he had been
held in confinement since being captured, together with Alfred Ely, our mem-
ber of Congress, at the battle of Bull Run, on the 21st of July.
The war fever, which had somewhat abated during the winter, increased as
the summer of 1862 came on and another call was made for troops. In July
Camp Fitzjohn Porter was established near the Rapids, on the west side of
the river, as Camp Hillhouse, on the east side, could no longer be retained.
The new quarters were intended for the use of the infantry regiments which it
was seen must be raised to fill the quota of the county, and under the impetus
given by war meetings which were held almost nightly in different parts of the
city the recruits poured in fast, Gen. John Williams doing his best to organise
and prepare them for duty. In the latter part of August the dry goods mer-
chants and other storekeepers closed their establishments every afternoon at
three o'clock, to help on the work; on the 19th the One Hundred and Eighth,
more than a thousand strong, under command of Col. Palmer, left for Elmira,
and the One Hundred and Fortieth started just one month later. Of events
connected with the war may be mentioned the reception of Congressman Ely
on the 4th of January, on his return from captivity in Richmond, and Parson
Brownlow's address to a crowded audience in Corinthian hall, on August 12th,
when he told how Tennessee was fraudulently and forcibly taken out of the Un-
ion. On the 28th of July the bells were tolled and flags hung at half mast, for
the funeral of ex-President Van Buren, who had died on the 24th. In Sep-
tember the state fair was held here ; Clarissa street bridge was completed and
opened for travel on the 25th, at a cost of about $1 5,000. Of the deaths in the
city during the year were those of Mrs. Hamlet Scrantom, in February — who
came here in 1812 and lived in the first house built on the west side of the river
— and of Hervey Ely, in November; he came here in 18 13, and his promi-
nence may be known by the frequency with which his name appears in the early
chapters of this work.
Joy and exultation opened the year 1863, for its beginning marked the en-
franchisement of most of the colored race on this continent, and a jubilant
emancipation celebration was held at Corinthian hall on the 4th of January.
On the I ith of February the Eagle Hotel was closed, after having been kept
open for forty years. April was distinguished by a religious revival in many of
the churches. St. Mary's hospital corner-stone was laid on the 28th of June.
The first street car ran on the 9th of July. Our streets witnessed during this
year many a military funeral of one after another of those who fell in battle or
died from wounds or exposure ; of those the most impressive was that, on the 1 5 th
of July, of Patrick H. O'Rourke, colonel of the One Hundred and Fortieth, who
was killed at Gettysburg on the 2d. The hideous draft riots in New York called
Events of 1864. 151
out the citizen soldiery to suppress them, and the Fifty-fourth left here to aid in
the work on the i6th of July. Three weeks later the conscription took place here,
beginning on the 5th of August and continuing for three days, during which
1,096 names were drawn from the wheel to fill the quota, from the city alone ;
the drawing was done by Robert H. Fenn, a highly respected citizen who was
totally blind. The 6th of August was observed as a day of thanksgiving for
the national victory at Gettysburg. No one who was in Rochester from the
14th to the 22d of December can forget the grand bazaar that was held in
Corinthian hall during that week, for the benefit of the soldiers ; it was well at-
tended throughout, day and evening, and the receipts were over $15,000.
The necrological record for the year embraces the names of Rev. Dr. John T.
Coit, pastor of St. Peter's church ; Isaac R. Elwood, the last clerk and attorney
of the villlage, city clerk in 1838, clerk of the state Senate from 1842 to 1848, and
secretary of the Western Union for many years , William C. Bloss, eminent as
an Abolitionist and general reformer, member of Assembly in 1845, '4^ ^^^ '47 !
WilUiam S. Bishop, formerly district attorney and member of the state Senate ;
Samuel G. Andrews, who came here in 1815, was mayor in 1840 and 1856,
county clerk, clerk of the state Senate and representative in Congress ; Rev. Dr.
Calvin Pease, pastor of the First Presbyterian church ; Silas O. Smith and his
son, L. Ward Smith.
The progress and effects of the war were plainlj'- visible by reason of the
increasing number of pension agencies, which multiplied rapidly in the early
part of 1864, and by the offering of high bounties to fill out the quota under
the last call for 300,000 men, 'which had been increased to 500,000 long before
the contingent demanded was obtained ; the county gave $300 to each recruit,
the city gave an additional sum, each ward something further, and besides
those was the immense amount frequently paid by individuals for substitutes.
This brought into prominence the breed of "scalpers," the go-betweens or mid-
dle-men, who took money from all parties, and cheated most of them ; as a natu-
ral consequence of the swindling, "bounty -jumping" became disgracefully com-
mon. Still, the dreadful conscription, which was again enforced elsewhere
during the summer, was avoided in the city, and people were satisfied. The
funeral of Major Jerry Sullivan, of the First Veteran cavalry, who was killed
in a skirmish in Virginia, at the age of twenty-four, on the loth of March,
took place on the 19th, the remains, after lying in state in the city hall, being
borne to the Pinnacle cemetery by the Alert hose company and the "old Thir-
teenth " (of the latter of which he was one of the original officers), the Union
Blues acting as escort, and other military bodies joining in the procession. On
the 27th of July the Fifty-fourth left for Elmira, under command of Captain
Sellinger, to serve in guarding the rebel prisoners in camp there. The City
hospital was opened and dedicated on the 28th of January ; the Brackett House
was built during the summer. Rev. James Nichols, formerly a school teacher
152 History of the City of Rochester.
and then a chaplain in the army ; Anson House, one of the old pioneers ; Jason
Baker, formerly county treasurer ; Captain Daniel Loomis — one of the most
prominent builders of early days, who built the old jail in 1822 and the present
jail (in connection with Richard Gorsline) about sixteen years later — and Col-
onel Eliphaz Trimmer, member of Assembly in 1857 and 1863, died during the
year.
As though the war did not offer enough excitement, there were about this
time two phases of speculation that amounted almost to popular frenzy — the
petroleum investments and the Western Union telegraph stock-buying. As to
the former of these, it is difficult to name any* one year as that most closely
connected with the ruinous enterprises that were engaged in, but perhaps 1 864
will do as well as any other. Two years before that the oil fields of Pennsyl-
vania had given unmistakable indications of the vast treasure that lay beneath
the surface of the ground, and when the Noble well began to pour forth a steady
stream of some two thousand barrels a day, the excitement, which was at first
local, spread beyond the limits of that state, and especially through the western
part of New York. Other flowing wells quickly followed, and then capital
began to flow down from Rochester to meet the gushing tide of oil, and to
increase the production by boring in every spot where the peculiar appearance
of the earth afforded the slightest ground for hope. Petroleum Center, a little
place on Oil creek, was built up almost entirely by Rochester money; the
McCollum farm, and other large tracts of land, were purchased — those bought
first being obtained for low prices, but those taken later on being sold for im-
mense sums — many went down there from here to work in an honest, industri-
ous manner, attracted by the high wages that were paid for day labor, and in
one way or another a large proportion of the families of this city were inter-
ested in the development of the slippery fluid. A few fortunes were made,
but a great many more were lost, and even the wealth that was gained gener-
ally stayed with its possessor but a short time.
> The other bubble was that of the Western Union telegraph stock. The
headquarters of the company were then in this city, and on that account the
foolish enthusiasm over its prosperity was almost confined to Rochester. In
the early part of 1863 the stock began to advance, and was soon so far above
par that the capital was increased, in March of that year, one hundred per
cent, in spite of which the appreciation continued at such a rate that in Au-
gust even the doubled stock was sold at a premium, and the advance was not
checked by the further watering of the stock, to the extent of one-third addi-
tional, in December. Exalted dividends declared out of questionable profits
were accepted by many, without close scrutiny of the concern, but most people
were indifferent to even those shadowy reasons, and the majority of those who
had any money left from their operations in oil were eager to buy Western
Union at any figure, providing it was higher than that of the previous day.
The Flood of 1865. 153
The end was slow in coming, but it arrived at last. In April, 1864, the highest
point was reached ; toward the end of that month the doubled stock actually
sold at $230 per share ; a few thousand shares at that price were quietly put
on the market, which broke under the weight, and the stock fell. Shortly after
the turn another doubling of stock took place, on the nth of May, with the
hope of stemming the downward current ; the desired effect was produced by
that or some other means, for the new certificates sold at par, or in that neigh-
borhood, for the rest of the year. What was called the "Western Union ex-
tension " stock, issued for the purpose of carrying the line across Behring strait
into Asia, was also a favorite and costly source of amusement at this time, until
the proved permanency of the Atlantic cable obliterated it.
Since 1865 that has always been known in this locality as "the year of the
flood." After very cold weather and a heavy fall of snow a thaw came on
suddenly in the middle of March; on the i6th some alarm was felt here, as
there was quite a freshet up .the valle)'; on the afternoon of Friday, the ,17th,
the accumulation of water began to appear here, the Genesee Valley canal was
soon overflowed, then the Erie was unable to hold what was poured into it
from the feeder, then the river itself stretched beyond its channel and when
darkness came on (and stayed, for the flow of gas stopped as the works were
submerged) the central part of the city was under water; all night long and
through Saturday morning it kept rising, boats being used in the streets where
the current was not too rapid to allow of navigation, to rescue people in danger
and to supply the hungry with food; late in the afternoon the water began to
slowly subside, but it was not till Sunday afternoon that the streets were entirely
clear ; the gas supply did not recommence for several days, as many of the
mains and other pipes were broken ; through travel on the railroad did not begin
till long after that, for both the New York Central bridge and the Erie bridge
up the river were swept away at an early stage of the proceedings, even rail-
road communication was suspended for two days, as no trains could get into
the old depot on the west side, while eastward the track was torn up by floods
between here and Syracuse; the direct damage done to property could not be
exactly calculated, but it was doubtless over a million dollars; with all the
catastrophe and all the peril not a single life was lost. After it was over, the
city commissioned Daniel Marsh, the engineer, to examine into the causes of
the deluge ; he reported that it was due entirely to the encroachments on the
river bed between the aqueduct and the upper falls, which made the channel
too narrow for the outflow of water from a territory of twelve hundred square
miles. About the same time the legislature named a commission of three,
Levi A. Ward being the chairman, to investigate the causes and propose
measures to prevent the recurrence of the calamity. Gen. I. F. Quinby, who
was selected as the engineer of the commission, made a thorough examination
of the river between this city and Geneseo, and found that the openings in the
154 History of the City of Rochester.
embankment of the Erie railroad over the flats from Avon westward were in-
sufficient to pass the immense volume of water that came down the river, the
consequence of which was the formation of a large lake extending from the
embankment southward as far as Geneseo. The water finally rose high enough
to overflow the embankment and sweep away, in a space of four hours,
twelve hundred linear feet of the same, and thus this vast reservoir was pre-
cipitated upon us; which explains the sudden rise of the water in this city.
Those openings in the embankment have been greatly enlarged since then, so
that, although a freshet and something of an overflow in the city may occur
in any year, a disaster like that of 1865 cannot well take place again, at least
from the same cause.
Gen. Lee surrendered on the 9th of April ; the news reached here at nine
o'clock in the evening; an hour later the fire alarm bell rang out the glad tid-
ings that the war was ended at last; the streets were instantly filled with people,
the mayor read the dispatches aloud from the steps of the Powers bank and an
impromptu celebration on a grand scale took place, with fireworks, bonfires,
salutes by th'e Grays, speeches and singing of patriotic songs by thousands of
inharmonious and happy voices. Within a week rejoicing was changed to
gloom; President Lincoln was murdered on the 14th and there was mourning
throughout the land; on the 19th, the day of the funeral at Washington, all
business places here were closed, services were held at noon in all the churches, at
two o'clock the procession, unparalleled in numbers and variety, with a funeral'
car, bearing a cenotaph, in the midst, walked through the streets from the
court-house square, returning to the same; the oration was delivered by Ros-
well Hart. Mr. Lincoln's remains passed through the city at three o'clock on
the morning of the 27th; the military turned out in full force and the
gathering numbered, perhaps, as many thousands as had witnessed the arrival
here, more than four years before, of the man who afterward so well fulfilled
the nation's hopes that rested on him then. A grand demonstration of the
Fenian brotherhood took place, at the court-house, on the 12th of August:
Judge Chumasero and others spoke. During the year the city lost, by death,
Thomas Kempshall, who had been a member of the first common council,
mayor in 1837 and member of Congress in 1839; Moses Chapin, who came
here in 1816, was one of the trustees of the village and the first judge of Mon-
roe county, and John C. Nash, formerly city clerk, county clerk and mayor,
successively.
Considerable excitement was occasioned by the murder, on the 8th of
March, 1866, of Jonathan T. Orton, a hackman, living on Union street, whose
body was found in his stable, with his skull smashed in ; one man was arrested,
but he proved an alibi; no judicial trace of the murderer was ever found.
During the last week in May the general synod of the Reformed Presbyterian
church was held here ; the moderator was Rev. R. J. Dodds, a returned mis-
KVfeNTS OF 1867. 155
sidfidi-y frorii Syria. In tlie early part of June the Fenians in this eity were
Jjrfeatly fexefcised cfver the invasidii of Caiiada by sc/me warlike rriembers of the
brotherhood and the battle with the "Queen's Own ; " several went from here,
and those IVho did hot go sympathised with those who did. Iii the perforihahce
of that presidential feat known as "swinging ardund the circle," Ahdrfew John-
son, accohipanied by Secretaries Seward and Welles, Generals Grant and
Custer, Admifal Farfagut and other notables, reached here on Septerriber 1st,
and gave an open-air reception frotii the balcony of Congress Hall to a large
crowd which was animated by curiosity rather than enthusiasm. There \^'as a
little niisiiiiderstariding in the Republican congfessional convention this year,
the result being that, while Roswell Hart received a renomirtatidn fronrt one
portion, Lewis Selye was made the candidate of the other side ; the Democrats
adopted the latter gentleman and he was elected.
A slight attempt at a flood Ivas made in the middle of February, I867, when
the ice gorged at the piers of the Erie failroad bridge, throwing the water into
the Genesee Valley canal, which overflowed into some of the low-lying streets
in the third and eighth wards ; the next day the cellars and basements of the
factories on Brown's race were filled ; there was a good deal of damage and
more alarm, lest there should be another calamity like that of two years be-
fore. A board of trade was established here on the gth of March, with George
J. Whitney as president, Gilman H. Perkins as vice-president, Charles B. Hill
as secretary and E. N. Buell as treasurer ; after livinig a sleepy life for a few
months, it slowly expired. The "Black Crook" rah here, at the Metropolitan
opera house, for thirty-six riights in the early part of the year. Ristori played
in "Queen Elizabeth" on the i6th of April ; every inch of room in Corinthian
hall was filled, at a high price. On the ibth of May some boys found in the
river at Charlotte the body of Louis Fox, a celebrated billiard player, who had
been missing since the 4th of the previous December; he had imdoubtedly
committed suicide in aberration of mind, rhainly induced by chagrin over the
loss of the champion cue of the United States in a contest with Joseph Deery
at Washington hall more than a year before his disappearance. In the rtiiddle
of May the Episcopal board of missions met here, presided over by Bishop Lee,
of Iowa ; also, the general asseinbly of the New School Presbyterian church.
Rev. Dr. Nel.son, of St. Louis, moderator. Weston, the pedestrian, pasSed
through here at midnight of November 12th, on his walk from Portland to
Chicago. Jacob Gould died November iSth ; he was one of the village trus-
tees, and second rrtayor of the city, appointed major-genei-al of artillery by Gov.
Clinton, collector of customs under Jackson and Van Buren, United States
marshal under Polk. Di'- M. M. Mathews, a riiuch respected and beloved phy-
sician, died November 23d. Dr. Chester Dewey died December 15th; he vfras
widely known as a scholar and an educator for more than half a century; a
sketch of his life and services will be found in another part of this volume.
1 1
156 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
With the exception of delightful readings from his own works, by Charles
Dickens, on the 10 and nth of March, nothing occurred in 1868 to interest
the people of Rochester till Joseph Messner killed his wife, in a fit of passion,
on the 13th of April, in the town of Penfield ; he was tried here the next year
and sentenced to be executed on the 4th of June, 1869; just before that time
came Gov. Hofifman granted a reprieve for two weeks, then a writ of error was
granted, and, after argument at the general term, Messner was again sentenced
to be hanged on the loth of December; on the very day before that date a
stay was granted by Judge Grover; after more than a year's delay the case
was argued before the court of appeals, a new trial was ordered, which took
place in the following June, and he was again sentenced to meet his death on
the nth of August, 1871; this time the judgment was carried into effect.
While an engine on the Genesee Valley road was standing still, a little south
of the depot, on Exchange street, on the evening of September 14th, the boiler
exploded ; the engineer, the brakeman, and a little girl standing by were
instantly killed ; two other little girls were so badly injured that they died a
few hours later. More than the usual number of buildings were erected this
year, no less than 503 — of which seven were of stone — being completed;
their total value, by careful estimate of each one, was $1,456,100. John V.
Richardson, who, after being professor of Latin at Madison university, came
here in 1850 and occupied the same chair in our university, died in this year;
also, Martin S. Newton, formerly district- attorney.
Practical operations in fish-hatching were begun in 1869 under the direc-
tion of Seth Green, who had begun five years before to experiment privately
in that way, and had succeeded, by using the least possible quantity of water
proportional to the milt used, in quadrupling the natural product of the fish ;
in 1867, his discoveries being made known, he had given a public exhibition
of his methods at Holyoke, Massachusetts, on the Connecticut river; in 1868
he and Horatio Seymour and Robert B. Roosevelt had been appointed fish
commissioners of New York state, and by this time the charge of the whole
matter was given into his hands, his own hatchery at Caledonia being pur-
chased by the state for that purpose. By the falling of a floor in the German
school of Saints Peter and Paul, on East Maple street, while the room was
packed with children and adults for the Epiphany festival, on the evening of
January 6th, eight were killed outright and nearly fifty badly injured ; the
most frightful accident that ever happened in this city ; the cause was a defect
in the building, by which a brick pier supporting iron columns below the floor
gave way ; no person was censured by the coroner's jury. St. Patrick's cathe-
dral was opened with gorgeous ceremonies on the 1 7th of March, by Bishop
Mc^uaid, assisted by Bishop Ryan, of Buffalo, and all the priests of this dio-
cese, some fifty in number. The Odd Fellows celebrated their semi-centennial
on the 26th of April. The swing bridge across the canal at Exchange street
Events of 1870. iS7
was built in the early part of this year, replacing the ancient structure with an
ascent by steps at both sides, which, to most of the old inhabitants, seemed a
necessary part of the Erie canal. The Powers block, which had been begun
in the previous year (save that the northernmost store had been built a few
years before), was finished before the end of this — so far, that is, as the State
street part and the stone part on West Main street are concerned ; the expense
somewhat exceeded the original estimate of $300,000. The death record of
the year includes the names of Colonel John H. Thompson, widely known as
an earnest worker in the Sunday-school cause, and for eighteen years the over-
seer of the poor; of William Pitkin, who came here in 18 14, was mayor of the
city in 1845-46, and held numerous positions of responsibilify and trust in
educational and financial institutions ; of Rev. Dr. Samuel Luckey, an eminent
Methodist clergyman, editor of the Christian Advocate and other denomina-
tional journals, and appointed regent of the university of the state of New
York in 1847, ^""^ of Frederick Starr, a zealous champion of the temperance
cause, connected with many religious movements, and a member of Assernbly
in 1839.
There were enough of the veterans of the war of 18 12 left in 1870 to hold
a meeting at the court-house on the 13th of January; John Seeley, of Roch-
ester, occupied the chair, but most of those in attendance were from the towns
of the county, very few from the city. A great canal convention was held at
Corinthian hall on the 19th, to promote the abolition of the contract system
in repairing the canals ; Henry L. Fish called the convention to order, and
Nathaniel Sands, of New York, was made president; letters were read from
most of the state officers ; many addresses were made, the longest by ex-Gov-
ernor Seymour. A successor or outgrowth of this convention was held at the
same place on the isth of July, to advocate the extension of the principles
involved; ex-Governor- Seymour was again present, and among the others
were Governor Fairchild, of Wisconsin ; Governor Merrill, of Iowa, and Peter
Cooper, of New York; long speeches by those named, and .by others. The
state sportsmen's convention was held here during the week beginning May
23d ; the contest for prizes took place at the fair grounds ; large attendance
and much enjoyment. The Fenians, in that same week, undertook to get up
a shooting-match of their own, and to repeat the performances of four years
before; several car-loads of men passed through, amid increasing excitement
on the part of the resident members of the brotherhood ; one company left
here on the 24th, under command of Captain (or "General") O'Ncil, and other
squads stood ready to depart, when their ardor was completely dampened by
the arrest of O'Neil by the United States marshal, and his lodgment in jail be-
fore he could or would get across the border ; thus ended the last attempt at an
invasion of Canada.
The state arsenal, fronting on Washington square, was built in the latter
IS8 HlSTORV OF THE ClTY OF ROCHESTER.
part of this year ; in November the Powers block was extended on West Main
street to Pindell alley, and was then regarded as complete, though there was
at that time no tower, and but a single mansard story, which was upon the
stone corner part only. The obsequies of Colonel George Ryan, of the One
Hundred and- Fortieth, who was killed at Laurel Hill on the 8th of May, 1864,
were held on the 19th of June in this year; the funeral services were at St.
Patrick's cathedral, and a long procession of veterans, with many other organ-
isations, followed the remains to the cemetery. Among the deaths of old citi-
zens during the year were those of Ebenezer Ely, aged ninety-three, who,
after being connected with a bank at Canandaigua- from 18 14 to 1820, came,
here in the latter year and opened a broker's office, which he kept from that time
till a few days before he died ; of S. W. D. Moore, mayor of the city in 1859
and 1866, who was universally known as 'Squire Moore, from his having held
the office of police justice for nine years ; of Hamlin Stilwell, who was engaged
in the canal packet business in early years, was mayor in 1852, and held other
municipal offices ; of Patrick G. Buchan, who was clerk of the mayor's court
in 1835, and county judge from 1847 to 1851, and of Mrs. Mary Ann Scran-
tom, the wife of Edwin Scrantom, who came here with her father, Asa Sibley,
in 1 818, taught school the next year, near the Rapids, when she was fifteen
years old, and afterward set type for her brothers, Derick and Levi W. Sibley,
when they published the Gazette.
CHAPTER XXir.
TO THE FIFTIETH BIRTHDAY.
The Howard Riot — The Small-Pox and Other Oi.seases — The New City Hall— Mount Hope
Records Found in Canada — John Clark's Murder of Trevor — The Centennial Celebration of 1876
— The Railroad Strike of 1877 — The Mock Funeral of President Carficld — The Cunningham Strike
— The Telegraphers' Strike — Principal Improvements in the City in 1883, with their Cost — Other
Statistics.
IN 187 1 there was a surfeit of crimes of all sorts and of accidents of almost
every description, but of the homicides committed none were adjudged by
court and jury sufficiently flagitious to rise (or sink) to the grade of murder in
the first degree, while of the casualties none were so peculiar in their nature as
to deserve mention. Little change, and still less progress, is discernible in the
city's records during that time. On the loth of April the Germans held a
grand peace jubilee over the closing of the Franco-Prussian war and the estab-
lishment of the German empire. A serious break in the Erie canal at the "Ox-
bow," near Fairport, on the 28th of April, called into requisition hundreds of
Mournful Tragedy. 159
laborers for several days ; they got up a strike on the 4th of May and were so
demonstrative that the Fifty-fourth had to be sent up there ; several were
arrested, work was resumed and the break closed on the 9th. Death was busy
throughout the year, and carried off more than one prominent citizen ; of those
who departed, the following are but a small proportion : H. N. Curtis, an ex-
tensive owner of business blocks ; Dr. Horatio N. Fenn, who came here as
early as 18 17, and who, after practising medicine a few years, gave up general
practice and devoted himself exclusively to dentistry, being the first in Western
New York to do so, as far as is known ; Preston Smith, who was one of the
very earliest pioneers of Rochester, coming here in 1813, being sent out by
Josiah Rissell, of Pittsfield, Massachusetts, to build a store here for him and
Klisha Ely, and living here constantly from 181 5 till his death, in a quiet, un-
obtrusive way ; Rev. Dr. Barker, who had been the pastor of St. Mary's (Cath-
olic) church for many years ; Rev. Dr. Albert G. Hall, for thirty-two yeai-s the
pastor of the Third Presbyterian church and a theologian of high standing in
the denomination ; Aristarchus Champion, one of the richest men in this part
of the state and one of the few whose great wealth was equaled by his benev-
olence; George H. Mumford, eminent as a lawyer, a financier and a promoter
of one of the worthiest charities, and Dr. Philander G. Tobey, the oldest phy-
sician in practice in the city at the time of his death.
A mournful tragedy marked the opening of the year 1872. A young
negro named Howard had committed an aggravated assault on one of the last
days of the old year, for which, after being captured some miles out of town
by officers in pursuit of him, he had been thrown into jail, to await his trial in
its regular course; in the morning of January 3d, as he was brought to town,
the people in the streets were so threatening in their attitude that the Fifty-
fourth was ordered out to guard the jail and prevent any attempt to take the
prisoner from the authorities and execute vengeance upon him; the precaution
was taken none too soon, for, as soon as darkness came on, a large crowd
gathered on Exchange street and on Court street as far as the bridge over the
race-way, at the west end of which companies D and G were posted; after
taunting the military for some time the mob began to throw stones at them,
and at last the soldiers, after they had repeatedly asked their officers to be
allowed either to advance or to fall back, were ordered to disperse the rioters;
the charge was made and the mob slowly retired, but more missiles were hurled,
some of them striking and wounding different members of the militia ; a mem-
ber of company D then discharged his musket, which was followed by a vol-
ley from both companies; several fell to the ground at once, but so dense were
the crowd and the darkness that it was not for several minutes generally known
whether the result was serious ; finally the wounded were gathered up and
carried to adjacent saloons, to the City hospital or to their homes, as the nature
of their wounds permitted; two of them, John Elter and Henry Merlau, died
i6o History of the City of Rochester.
in a few moments; the others, five in number, eventually recovered; the crowd
then slowly dispersed. The next afternoon another demonstration was made,
but the police, under Captain Sullivan, scattered the crowd without nluch
difficulty and there was no occasion for the services of the veteran organisa-
tions — the Old Thirteenth and the Ryan Zouaves — which had been sworn
in as special police. On the day after that the tragedy closed with an act
which would have been farcical but for the solemnity that invested the pro-
ceedings. In view of the expense attending the keeping of Howard until the
next session of the court — such as soldiers' pay and rations — it was deter-
mined to hold an extra session at once, and, as the excitement still prevailing
rendered it almost certain that there would be bloodshed if the trial took place
in open court, it was concluded to hold a secret session and at night; the win-
dows of the court-room were darkened to prevent the emission of light, and
Howard, with his face chalked to disguise him, was taken from the jail to the
court-house by back streets and arraigned before Judge E. Darwin Smith ; he
pleaded guilty, was sentenced to state prison for twenty years and was im-
mediately put into a carriage with jailer Beckwith and two sheriff's officers;
the party were at once driven to Honeoye Falls, where they took the cars and
reached Auburn in safety. The grand jury subsequently censured the two
military companies for firing into the mob, but that was all that ever came of it.
On the 15th of January the funeral of William A. Reynolds was held at
Plymouth church, President Anderson, of the university, delivering the dis-
course ; on the following Sunday Mr. Bartlett, the pastor, preached a memorial
sermon. In the early part of this year the frightful epidemic of small-p(5x
seemed about to establish itself among us ; there were twenty-eight deaths
from the disease and many cases that were not fatal ; those who were taken
down were removed at once to Hope hospital, where Dr. Little, who was then
the health officer, visited them every day during their confinement; a general
vaccination was ordered by him ; about 10,000 people, including children in
the public schools, underwent the incision, and the old session-room of the
First Presbyterian church was used as a general operating-room for all who
chose to come to it. It was at this time that the cerebro-spinal meningitis also
broke out with great violence, lasting only through the month of March, to a
day, and it is a little singular that in that time the number of deaths from that
cause should have been also twenty-eight, the same as from small-pox.
Throughout October a disease that went by the general name of the " cpizo-
oty" raged with great mortality among the horses. Susan B. Anthony and
other women of this city were, on the 26th of December, held to answer for
illegal voting in the eighth ward at the previous election. Besides the death
of Mr. Reynolds, mentioned above — a sketch of whose life will be found in
another part of this work — there were those of O. M. Benedict, a prominent
lawyer; Dr. L. C. Dolley, Isaac Post, a zealous Abolitionist in former years, and
Henry Stanton, Lyman Munger and James Riley, early pioneers of this place.
Completion of the City Building. i6i
In pursuance of the system of education for the very young, which had
been found so satisfactory in the Old world, a "real school" was established
in the early part of 1873, being dedicated on the 14th of February. On the
28th of May the corner-stone of the new city hall, just south of the court-
house, was laid with imposing ceremonies, most of which were conducted by
the Masonic fraternity — ^ which turned out in full regalia and made a fine ap-
pearance— and the ancient forms and rites of Masonry appropriate to impor-
tant occasions of this nature were used; Mayor Wilder made the opening ad-
dress, the prayer was by Rev. Dr. MuUer and the oration was delivered by Rev.
Dr. Saxe ; various relics, ancient records, deeds, coins of the United States,
etc., were deposited in the stone. Miss Anthony was convicted, at Canandai-
gua, on the 19th of June, of illegally voting in the previous year and was sen-
tenced to pay a fine of $100 for exercising the assumed right of female suffrage.
On the 29th of October the building of the Young Men's Catholic association
was formally opened. Vincent place bridge, which was begun in 1872, was
completed in this year; it is 925 feet long and 1 10 feet high, from the surface
of the water to the floor of the bridge ; the cost was about $150,000, borne by
the city at large, with the exception of a small section in a remote corner ; in
1874 the approaches to the bridge were opened, at an expense of $15,000, of
which one- half was borne by the city at large, and the other part by the region
more directly benefited.
The death record of the year includes the names of Dr. A. G. Bristol, who
came here at an early day; Robert M. Dalzell, who camp in 1826, was for
over a quarter of a century a deacon in the First Presbyterian church and super-
vised the building of all the flour mills that were erected in his time ; Thomas
Parsons, state senator in 1867-68 and father of our present mayor ; Gideon W.
Burbank, one of the early benefactors of the university ; Dr. Michael Weigel,
a respected German physician; John Haywood, who came here in, 18 19 and
soon afterward opened a hat store on State street, which he kept for more than
forty years, was the first treasurer of the Rochester savings, bank and was often
a member of the city council ; Colonel Aaron Newton, who came in 1 8 1 7, kept
a tavern for many years, beginning in 18 18, on the spot where the Blossom
Hotel and the Osburn House afterward stood, and was one of the chief pro
motcrs of the Old Pioneer society; Ebenezer Watts, aged ninety-two, also a
settler of 18 17, who for many years had a hardware store on Buffalo street
near Exchange street, and John McConviU, member of Assembly in 1864 and
1865.
In January, 1874, the city building on Front street was completed, at a cost
of something over $50,000, including plumbing and gas-fitting ; the police court-
room and head-quarters were located there at first, but were removed to the city
hall on the completion of that edifice ; the Front street concern has, since then,
been devoted to fire matters, the office of overseer of the poor, and other city in-
1 62 History of the City of Rochester.
terests. The water-works went into successful operation in tliis month ; a grand
public test was made on February i8th, as fully described in the chapter devoted
to that subject. On the 22d a boy of thirteen, while crazed with liquor, threw
himself into the river and was carried over the falls; perhaps it was that which
caused a revival of the temperance movement, mass meetings being held at
Corinthian hall during the next two months, addressed by Dr. Anderson, Dr.
Saxe and others; the Ladies' Temperance union petitioned the excise commis-
sioners in vain to grant no more licenses ; the police commissioners ordered
the closing of all saloons on Sunday ; the lager beer saloons kept open, but
most of the others closed their front doors. In March a letter was received by
the commissioners of Mount Hope, from the sheriff of Lincoln county, Ontario,
saying that some of the records of our cemetery and of our city treasurer's
office had been found at St. Catherine's ; messengers were dispatched for them
and obtained them; they were found to be the cemetery records for eleven
years, from 1846 to 1857, and the accounts of the sinking fund for most of the
same tinie ; they had been in the custody of John B. Robertson at the time of
the burning of the Eagle bank block in 1857, he being the comptroller and hav-
ing charge of those funds ; he had then alleged that they were burned, but he
had taken them off to cover a defalcation of nearly $40,000; a vast amount of
confusion as to Mount Hope lots had been caused by the deportation. The
sportsmen's national convention was held here in September. In this year
Prof. Swift began to develop his skil) in the discovery of comets ; there were
an unusual number of suicides, two of which were by jumping from Clarissa
street bridge; three corner-stones were laid — those of St. John's German Lu-
theran and the First German Methodist churches and of St. Joseph's orphan
asylum — and there were three dedications — those of the Free Academy and
the Salem Evangelical and St. Michael's (Catholic) churches.
Record may be made of the deaths, in this year, of Sam Drake, a well
known old fisherman, a very oracle on all things pertaining to the sport of an-
gling, who worked here at his trade of book-binding as far back as 1826, in the
same shop with Washington Hunt, afterward governor ; of John M. F"rench, a
prominent iron-founder, who held various offices and was more than once the
candidate of his party for mayor; of Pliny M. Bromley, very popular in early
days as a canal boat captain and in later years as the landlord of the Osburn
House ; of Isaac Butts, a veteran journalist of twenty years' experience as ed-
itor of the Advertiser and then of the Union, in which he acquired a great repu-
tation, though, having amassed a fortune by investments, he left the profession
about ten years before his death ; and of Thomas H. Rochester, son of him for
whom the city was named; he came here in 1820, built the old Red mill in
connection with his brother-in-law, Harvey Montgomery ; superintended the
construction of the Tonawanda railroad in 1834, was first cashier of the Com-
mercial bank, and mayor of the city in 1839; lie was throughout his life one of
the most highly esteemed citizens of Rochester.
Events of 1878. 163
The city hall, then recently completed, was opened to the public on the
evening of January 4th, 1875, by a musical entertainment (given by home tal-
ent) in aid of the sufferers by famine in the West — an auspicious opening, as
dedicating the edifice to fraternity and human sympathy. The building cost
$337,000, and was erected under the auspices of a commission appointed for
the purpose, consisting, at first, of George J. Whitney, Daniel W. Powers,
Charles J. Hayden, George C. Buell and Jacob Howe, of whom Mr. Whitney
resigned, and Lysander Farrar was, appointed in his place. As a purely mili-
tary display, the turnout at the funeral of General Williams, on the 29th of
March, was probably the finest ever seen in Rochester ; after that part of the
procession went the hearse, with the saddle-horse of the general, and then fol-
lowed the civic escort, with all the ex-mayors then living, and the different
officers of the city government. During this year the people were much dis-
turbed about the canal frauds, and the impending trials of contractors ; a mass
meeting was held on the 9th of April, Judge Warner presiding, to strike hands
with Governor Tilden in pushing on the cases to final punishment. The Lady
Washington tea-party, through two evenings in April, at the city hall, for the
benefit of the City hospital, was so attractive as to bring $2,000 to that insti-
tution. By a gale of wind, on the night of April 29th, the Leighton bridge
works at East Rochester were blown to the ground, and great injury was done
to persons and property in the city. Several burglaries were committed in the
early part of the summer, and in one case, where the house was not broken
into, the thief climbed a tree, and with a fishing-pole, line and hook, caught a
watch from the bedside of a sleeping man. The robberies were finally traced
to one probable culprit, and on the 3d of July an officer undertook to arrest
him ; he shot the policeman, but not fatally, and ran till he was stopped by
John Trevor, a bank watchman, whom he shot with another pistol ; but Trevor,
though so badly hurt that he died of the wound two days later, had held on
to the murderer till others secured him ; it was John Clark, a desperado
who had committed numerous crimes, and probably many murders else-
where. He was tried in September, and sentenced to hang on November
5 th; his counsel, William F, Howe, of New York, made desperate efforts for
a new trial, going before six Supreme court judges in different parts of the state,
with a motion for a stay of proceedings and a writ of error, but in vain ; after
a reprieve of two weeks Clark was hanged on the 19th of November. In this
. year the board of education passed a resolution prohibiting religious exercises
in the public schools ; all the city clergy preached on the subject ; about
equally divided in opinion. On the 17th of September the first fast mail train,
from New York to Chicago, passed through. A freight train, on the night of
October 7th, ran off the track and dashed into the Central depot at the rate of
fifty miles an hour, knocking down one of the piers and demolishing the wait-
ing-room ; the engine then fell over, and the fire went out; the. engineer,
164 History of the City of Rochester.
William J. Vianco, and the fireman, Andrew G. Northrop, his son-in-law, were
instantly killed, their bodies being found under the wreck.
The obituary list of the year is a long one, containing the names of Elias
Pond, who was collector of the port under President Taylor, elected sheriff in
1834, and member of Assembly in 1859 and i860, and actively connected in
old-time politics with Thurlow Weed and Governor Seward ; Daniel E. Harris,
for a long time the efficient assistant superintendent of Mount Hope ; William
Brewster, who came here in 18 16, well known to all the older inhabitants;
Rufus Keeler, who was mayor in 1857; George W. Parsons, a respected citi-
zen, for many years superintendent of the gas works ; Edward S. Boughton, an
old pioneer; John Williams, who came here in 1824, was mayor in 1853,
elected to Congress in 1854, chosen city treasurer for three consecutive terms,
prominently connected with military affairs for most of his life, being, when
he died, major-general of the seventh division of the national guard, succeeding
the late James S. Wadsworth ; Father Patricio Byrnes, pastor of the Immacu-
late Conception church ; Charles L. Pardee, formerly sheriff; David R. Barton,
who acquired a national reputation as a maker of edge tools ; Dr. H. B. Hack-
ett, of the theological seminary, one of the foremost Hebrew scholars of the
country ; A. Carter Wilder, mayor of the city in 1872, after having been mem-
ber of Congress from Kansas; Dr. Hartwell Carver, who always claimed to be
the originator of the Pacific railroad, and William H. Hanford, who, in 18 10,
settled at Hanford's Landing with his relative, Frederick, from whom it was
named.
An unearthly din at the hour of twelve ushered in the centennial of 1876,
"vexing the drowsy ear of night" with the combination of all imaginable arti-
ficial noises; the bells rang, cannon roared, torpedoes exploded, fish horns
resounded, all the engines of the New York Central which could be brought
together for the purpose screamed their loudest, the steam fire engines rattled
down to the "four corners" on the fastest gallop of their horses, and every
small boy who had been allowed to stay out of the house did his best to swell
the tumult of discordant sounds. That ended the celebration of the historic
year until the Fourth of July, which was observed in a manner unusually hila-
rious, but otherwise not remarkable, except that the Germans planted a Cen-
tennial oak sapling, with much ceremony, in Franklin square. At least three
deliberate murders were committed here during the year — those of Louis Gom-
menginger, a policeman, by Fairbanks ; of Joseph Fryer, a Whitcomb Hotel
porter, by Stillman, and of Catherine Boorman, near Hanford's Landing, by
Victor Smith, but all the murderers escaped the gallows, the first two getting
life imprisonment because they had prepared themselves for their work by be-
coming crazed with drink, and the third one pleading guilty by shooting him-
self and dying in jail a few days later. Of the deaths during the year were
those of Samuel Hamilton, a retired merchant of former days ; Horatio G. War-
Republican State Convention of 1877. 165
ncr, successively lawyer, journalist and banker; Samuel L. Selden, whose high
judicial career is sketched in another chapter; William F. Holmes, closely
identified with the canal interests, and whose services during the cholera of 1852
have already been mentioned ; Dr. Douglas Bly, of reputation as an inventor
of improvements in artificial limbs ; Dr. H. C. Wanzer, well known in the ranks
of dentistry ; Abram Karnes, a veteran banker, and Lysander Farrar, an emi-
nent counselor.
The first part of 1877 passed away quietly enough, but in July the railroad
strikes, which were the outcome of the labor riots of the previous month, broke
out on the Erie road ; the Fifty-fourth regiment was ordered to Hornellsville
on that account; on the 22d the strike extended to the New York Central and
Lake Shore roads and the next day was in full blast, so that there was a com-
plete stoppage of traffic on the Buffalo division of the Central ; great excite-
ment and alarm here, but no rioting or destruction of railroad property as else-
where ; two days later the engineers and firemen went back to their work, and
subsequently some of the most flagrant abuses which the insatiable greed of the
Erie and the Central had inflicted on their employees were partially corrected.
In the course of the summer the Rochester Yacht club, which had been organ-
ised in the spring, built a club-house at Summerville, and had a regatta on the
lake. The Republican state convention was held in the city hall on the 26th
of September ; Senator Conkling, then at the height of his power, made a bitter
personal attack on George William Curtis. On account of the starting of an
idle rumor that the Rochester savings bank was unsound, there was quite a run
on that institution during the last three days of the year, but it was checked by
the prompt action of the bank in paying all depositors and by the display of
more than a million dollars in greenbacks, which were piled on a hanging shelf
over the principal counter ; the strength of the bank was not injured in the least,
the only sufferers being those who by that means lost their interest for a month ;
over half a million dollars were drawn out in five days, $266,546.82 being paid
out on the 29th of December ; other savings banks were similarly treated, but in
a less degree. During the year there died here Rev. Dr. R. J. W. Buckland and
Rev. S. Emmons Brown, both professors in the theological seminary ; Samuel
Chase, one of the oldest inhabitants, at the age of ninety-three ; Mrs. Mary
Anderson, one of the first seven communicants of St. Luke's church in 1817 ;
Augustin Picord, aged one hundred and nine years, born under Louis XV.,
and a middle-aged soldier in Napoleon's "grand army;" Harvey Humphrey,
formerly county judge and a man of great classical learning; Gen. William E.
Lathrop, very prominent as a Mason ; ex-Mayor John B. Elwood, of whom
more will be said in the chapter on the medical practitioners ; Col. C. T. Ams-
den, formerly city treasurer; George W. Rawson, a justice of the Supreme
court, and Rev. J. V. Van Ingen, a highly respected clergyman of the Episco-
pal denomination,
1 66 History of the City of Rochester.
Railroad enterprise signalised the opening of 1878, for on the 28th of
January the last rail was laid on the State Line road (now the Rochester & Pitts-
burg) from here to Salamanca, connecting, by this means, the Erie with the
Atlantic & Great Western, besides opening up to this city a fertile and popu-
lous section of the country, inaccessible to us by direct communication before
then; great celebration at Salamanca that day, but a larger one, with immense
excursion from here, on the isth of the following May, after the road had
been ballasted. In consequence of the burning of a block on Exchange street,
near the canal, on the Sth of April, by which one man was burned to death,
the wall of an adjacent building just north fell, on the 14th of June, three floors
crashing down into the cellar and pulling with them a great part of another
block still further north; Colonel M. H. Smith, proprietor of a printing-office, was
caught in the ruins, carried- down into the cellar and fastened there with a hot
kettle across his chest and debris piled above; he was rescued with great diffi-
culty, terribly burned and otherwise injured, but finally recovered, with the
loss of the right arm. In bright daylight at some time before noon, on the
1 2th of October, twenty-four prisoners in the jail, most of whom were burglars,
escaped by breaking a hole through the cell of one of them into the dungeon
and thence into the yard; eight were recaptured the next day, and most of
the others aftei'ward; it was thought that they took much needless trouble in
getting out of so rickety a place. Burglary became quite popular in Novem-
ber, a number of houses in the third ward being entered. Among those who
passed away during the year were Dr. H. W. Dean, an eminent physician ;
Rev. John Barker, an old Methodist clergyman ; E. N. Buell, formerly city
treasurer and held in general esteem; Charles P. Achilles, much beloved by his
associates, county treasurer for one term; the venerable Abelard Reynolds, and
George J. Whitney, sketches of the last two of whom will be found elsewhere.
A terrible snow-storm, which during the last week of the previous year had
blocked the railroads in the vicinity and caused more than one fatal accident,
was renewed on the 2d of January, 1879, and produced disastrous results for
several days; the drifts were thirty feet high in the country; on the 5th no
train could get into or out of the city; many were frozen to death in snow-
drifts in adjacent villages ; trains ran off the track near here, a number of em-
ployees being killed; the blockade was not finally broken till the loth; the
executive board of the city paid $1,300 for shoveHng and carting away the
snow during the week. The national association of stove-makers held its an-
nual meeting here in January. For three days in July the Mannerchor cele-
brated the twenty-fifth anniversary of the society. During the year the El-
wood block, on the corner of State and West Main streets, was erected, and
the Allen street lift bridge, over the canal, begun in 1878, was completed, at a
cost of about $7,000; some $6,000 was subsequently spent on it. Dr. Jonah
Brown, who came here in 18 13, was the first physician in the place and the
Events of 1880. 167
grantee named in the first deed given for real estate paid for in the One-hun-
dred-acre tract (the lot on Exchange street where the Bank of Monroe now
stands), died in this year; also, Joseph Field, an old resident, one of the orig-
inators of the City bank and for many years its president, one of the most act-
ive promoters of railroads in early days, being for some time president of the
Buffalo & Rochester road, and mayor of the city in 1848; Dr. W. W. Ely,
whose abilities as a physician were supplemented by unusual literary culture;
Ezra Jones, whose experience as an iron founder went back for a generation
and his previous experience as a boat-builder far back into the village days,
and Colonel A. T. Lee, a veteran officer of the United States army.
Charles Stewart Parnell, the Irish patriot and agitator, made a tour through
the middle and western states in January, 1880, and was received here by his
fellow-countrymen. on the 26th of the month; he spoke at the city hall to a crowd
that filled the room and showed great enthusiasm. On the 6th of March the
legal profession furnished a criminal case out of its own ranks; Robert Jarrard,
a young lawyer, while frantic with drink, shot just over the heart, intending to
kill him, Wallace Rice, an inoffensive man, with whom he had a slight alterca-
tion; Jarrard, being released on bail, hung himself in his own house three days
later; Rice finally got well — in other words, "the man recovered from his
bite." This, being a presidential year, was equal to any of its predecessors of
that character in the displays and street parades that were given by both of the
great parties, if not in the intense earnestness that was felt over the election
contests during the war. The grandest show of the Republicans was on the
27th of October, both day and night. General Grant and others from abroad
joining in the turnout of the afternoon; the Democrats had theirs the next day
and evening, General McClellan appearing in the line of the afternoon parade ;
the whole country and many towns outside of it sent recruits for the different
processions, and the evening spectacle in each case was a very fine one, the
number of men in line on each night being something over seven thousand.
Several of the old pioneers died during the year — among them, Abner Wake-
lec, Lyman B. Langworthy, Johnson I.' Robins and Edwin Scrantom, the
residence of the last dating from the very birth of Rochester, as has been told
in an earlier chapter of this work — while of those whose residence dated back
to very early times were P. M. Crandall, Aaron Erickson (an outline of whose
life is given elsewhere), William Kidd, who by industry and integrity acquired
a large fortune and was for several years the treasurer of the county; Elijah
F. Smith, who had been mayor in 1841 (being the first one elected by the
people) and had held various offices of public responsibility; Edmund Lyon,
Dr. J. F. Whitbeck and John Widner, the last-named dying at the age of a
century.
Some railroad matters were settled up in the early part of 188 1, the State
Line road, which for a long time had been the source of great anxiety to its
1 68 History of the City of Rochester.
friends and creditors, being sold at auction, on the court-house steps, on the
8th of January, to the highest bidder, who was Walston H. Brown, of New
York, who paid $600,000 for it, reorganised it and changed it into the Roches-
ter & Pittsburg ; later in the same month the contract for the elevation of the
Central railroad tracks was signed by the citizens' commission and William H.
Vanderbilt. Copies of the revised New Testament were first sold here on the
2istofMay; 1,500 were bought by individuals on that day. Maud S., the
famous trotter, lowered, on the nth of August, her own record and trotted a
mile in 2:10^, the fastest time ever made up to that hour. On the 3d of July
prayers were offered up in all the churches for the recovery of President Gar-
field, who had been shot the day before; the people waited in suspense from
that time till the night of September 19th, when the simultaneous tolling of city
bells announced his death; the mock funeral here, at the time of his obsequies
on the 26th, was most impressive ; the procession was by far the longest ever
seen here up to that time, as well it may have been, for it embraced a large
proportion of those who less than a year before had made up the numbers of
the two monster parades that were given in rivalry over the approaching elec-
tion of the man whom now they mourned with a common sorrow.
In the obituary record of our citizens may be placed the names of James C.
Cochrane, an eminent lawyer ; William Stebbins and David Moody, among the
pioneers; George D. Stillson, who, after having been engaged in locating the
Tonawanda railroad, and other roads in this vicinity of half a century ago, had
been so long the superintendent of Mount Hope cemetery as to seem almost in-
separably connected with it ; Samuel D. Porter, who, during more than the life-
time of the city, had been actively engaged in promoting works of benevolence
and reform, and was for many years one of the leaders of the anti -slavery cause
in this section of the state (whftse oldest son died the day after his father, so
that the two were borne from the house together) ; Levi A. Ward, who came
here when a child, with his father, in 1 8 17, grew up with the place, and was
for more than a generation in the front ranks of citizenship, mayor in 1 849,
first president of the board of education, and connected with many institutions
of benevolence; Isaac Hills, a prominent resident, who, after teaching school
in Lenox academy, Massachusetts, where Mark Hopkins and David Dudley
Field were among his pupils, came here in 1824 to practise law, was district-
attorney, first recorder of the city, mayor in 1843, and the incumbent of numer-
ous other offices ; William Burke, the oldest hardware merchant in the city at
the time of his death ; John H. Martindale, brigadier-general in the war of the
rebellion, and afterward attorney- general of the state ; Mrs. Jehiel Barnard
(daughter of Hamlet Scrantom), who came here in 1812, and whose wedding,
in 18 1 5, was the first one in Rochester, and, lastly, Lewis H. Morgan, whose
scholarship reflected distinction upon the city of his abode. He was born near
Aurora, in this state, in 1 8 1 8 ; came to Rochester soon after his graduation at
'^C-Ooi.-^ yv- Cy^^
'^.C/t-^^Clyl—
Lewis H. Morgan. 169,
Union college in 1840, and began the practice of law, which he continued with
great success for several years, when he finally abandoned it to engage exclu-
sively ill literary pursuits. In early life he had become interested in the habits
and customs of the Indians formerly dwelling in the state, and his researches
in this direction caused the production by him, in 1851, of The League of the
Iroquois, in which he thoroughly explained the organisation and government
of that wonderful confederacy of the Six Nations, whose constitution, the form-
ation of which is assigned by tradition to Hiawatha, was in part the basis upon
which that of the United States was reared. This book, instead of closing Mr.
Morgan's labors in that line of study, only opened the field for wider investiga-
tion, and he entered upon his life-work, which was twofold — first, the estab-
lishment of the mutual relationship of the human race by tracing the similarity
of social customs, a generalisation which took years of labor, and found its
outcome in his Systems of Consanguinity of the Human Family, a ponderous
quarto of 600 pages, published by the Smithsonian institution, which contains
the systems of kinship of more than four-fifths of the world — second, and in
part the outgrowth of the first, the proof of his theory that \hz gens, instead of
the family, was the social unit of the race — a proposition which was wholly
original with the author, and was of course violently combated by English
writers, but accepted by many, even in Great Britain, and which he fully de-
veloped in his Ancient Society, by far the greatest of all his works, and the one
upon which his future renown will rest. Houses and House- Life of the Ameri-
can Aborigines was his last production, giving the results of his latest inquiries
into the habits of the western Indians and the Aztec tribes. Besides these vol-
umes was his work on the American beaver, published in 1868, which, though
really outside of the range of his special studies, was received by foreign scholars
with the highest admiration, was translated into various languages, and gained
for its writer the honorary membership of several of the most famous scientific
societies. Mr. Morgan was elected member of the Assembly in 1861 and
member of the upper house of the legislature in 1875, but these honors were
inconsequential, and were nothing to him in comparison with the presidency of
the American association for the Advancement of Science, which was conferred
upon him in 1879. He was the most distinguished ethnologist that this coun-
try ever produced, and the foremost in the world at the time of his death.
Small-i^ox was agaiii the enemy to fight against in the early part of 1882,
the aiann having been given in the autumn of the previous year and the work
of vaccination then entered upon ; it was carried out with far greater thorough-
ness than ever before, the board of health, with Dr. Buckley as health officer,
using the most stringent measures and being sustained by the municipal author-
ities ; several young physicians were appointed to do the work, and not only
every school but every manufacturing establishment had to submit to visitation
and operation upon all who could not show themselves proof against the infec-
170 History of the City of Rochester.
tion ; in this way between 20,000 and 30,000 were vaccinated, and the appear-
ance of the scourge was effectually prevented. Strikes were extensively inaug-
urated at this time, and in some instances carried on with disastrous results.
After there had been some trouble of that kind in one or two of the shoe shops
the employees of the Cunningham carriage factory determined to redress in that
manner some things of which they had complained in vain ; of 450 workmen,
400 went out on the 28th of January, the others remaining and being reinforced
by nearly a hundred of newly employed non-union men ; all through February
the conduct of the strikers was faultless, but on the 1st of March, their patience
and their means being nearly exhausted, they resorted to violence to obtain
their ends and attacked the non-union men in the street as they were returning
from their work ; the next day there were more wicked assaults and some
bloodshed, though no one was killed ; this, of course, could not be allowed to
go on, so the sheriff interfered and peace was preserved for the next two days,
after which, by the intervention of the mayor, a compromise was effected and
the men returned to work, abandoning the scheme for a cooperative carriage-
making company, with a capital of $250,000, which had been almost matured
during the strike. As a counterpart to the trades union, most of the em-
ployers in the city formed,, in May, a protective union, by which each one
bound himself not to employ men who have struck in other establishments and
to join in resisting any attempt on the part of the trades union to coerce any (jf
the associated manufacturers. In March, on account of the large amount of
money lying idle in the savings banks, by reason of the New York insurance
and other companies having loaned money in Monroe county below the legal
rate of six per cent., the savings banks here agreed to loan at five per cent,
on sums of $5,000 or upward. The summer months brought with them some
mild excitements, beginning with one, in June, of a rather serious nature, in
the shape of a funereal exhibition by the national association of undertakers or
funeral directors, the first of the kind in the United States and quite a fine affair;
then followed, in the same month, the first general parade of workingmen
ever seen in this city, in which over 6,000 "Knights of Labor" were in line,
their idea being to express abhorrence of the new penal code. In July a
disease called the "pink-eye" made havoc with the horses, thirty-six of the ani-
mals connected with the street cars being attacked in a single day ; few deaths
occurred from that cause. In August there was a great firemen's convention,
as described in another chapter. The Osburn House, after being one of the
leading hotels in the state for nearly a quarter of a century, closed its doors in
September and was turned into a business block. The lift bridge at Brown
street was built during the year, at a cost of about $1 1,000. On the 21st of
December those standing in front of the old City bank saw a sign attached to
the door, with these words : "This bank has suspended ; " much distress was pro-
duced by the failure, which was caused by speculation in oil ; the capital stock
was $200,000, a total loss to the holders ; the loss to depositors was very great.
First Chinese Voter in Rochester. 171
Death made many inroads into the ranks of our older citizens durjng the
year, carrying off Hamlet D. Scrantom, who came here, at the age of six, in
1 8 12, was elected mayor in i860, and after leaving office took a lease of Con-
gress Hall, and acquired a high reputation as a typical landlord ; David Bell,
who came here in 1822, was one of the first Quakers of the place, and always
active in charity ; Joseph Medbery, who was one of the first settlers here, at
one time president of the village and prominent in its militia, in which he held
the rank of major; Benjamin Fish, Nathan Huntington and Mrs. Mary West-
bury (at the age of one hundred), who were among the pioneers; James Vick,
whose fame as a nurseryman and cultivator of flowers was almost world-wide,
but who had been also a printer, an editor, an author, a publisher, a farmer,
a botanist, a merchant, and all his life a student ; Colonel Charles J. Powers,
whose good service in the field gained for him the brevet of brigadier-general,
and who was elected county, clerk in 1867; Patrick H. Sullivan, another brave
soldier, who was chief engineer of the fire department in 1864; Charles H.
Chapin, a prominent banker ; Francis Gorton, who, after a successful business
career as a merchant, became president of the Flour City bank, and continued
such till his death, twenty- six years later, and E. Peshine Smith, a noted pub-
licist, whose work on political economy is a standard text-book in several
American colleges, and who, many years ago, was professor of mathematics in
our university, then deputy superintendent of public instruction of the state,
then reporter to the court of Appeals, then solicitor of the state department at
Washington during much of the war time, after which he was, on the advice of
Secretary Seward, selected by the Japanese government as chief legal adviser
of the foreign department of that country, a position which he held until a few
years ago, when he returned to the United States.
Rochester's first Chinese voter was naturalised on the 8th of January, 1883 ;
his name was Sam Fang, his age twenty-seven, his residence in this country
twenty years; he could hardly be called a "heathen Chinee," being a member
of St. Paul's Episcopal church. Shortly after noon, on July 19th most of the
telegraph operators in all the offices here, as well as elsewhere, left their instru-
ments, in obedience to a rapping from the office at Washington, where the
headquarters of the brotherhood were. The signal agreed upon was the tele-
graphic utterance of the sentence " Grant is dead," and it was supposed that
the language would not be understood by any one but the different operators.
Some one in New York, however, either in the office or outside of it, happened
to overhear the secret message, and, giving to it its exoteric meaning, rushed
into the street and communicated what he mistook for information, upon which
there was great excitement, that was allayed only by the revelation of the strike
that had been just inaugurated. In the Western Union office here only two
telegraphers remained at work, and all the managers had to go on duty to take
the place of those who had retired ; in the American Rapid office all deserted,
12
172 History of the City of Rochester.
and the door was closed ; in the Mutual Union two operators stayed, and the
work went on as usual. A week later the American Rapid company compro-
mised with the strikers, and the office was reopened, but with the other the
trouble continued for just a month from the beginning of the strike, when at
last the operators, disappointed in the supply of funds from other trades organ-
isations, and driven to surrender by dire necessity, yielded and returned to their
work. They preserved, throughout the whole period of their voluntary sus-
pension from income-producing labor, their self-respect, and with it the respect
of the entire community, which sympathised in this well-directed though un-
successful resistance to the intolerable tyranny of the most heartless monopoly
of modern times. On the 5th of August the military funeral of General E. G.
Marshall — who died at Canandaigua, though he was sometime a resident of
this city, and was colonel of the "old Thirteenth" — took place here. In Sep-
tember three things occurred here — the convention of Freethinkers of the
United States, the visit of Lord Coleridge, chief-justice of the English court of
queen's bench, and the digging up on St. Paul street of one of the spikes and
strap rails of the old Rochester & Carthage horse railroad. The bi-centennial
of the German settlement of America was celebrated in fine style by the fellow-
countrymen of those pioneers, the street parade on the 8th of October being
notable for the variety of its elements. Of the prosperity and improvement of
the city during this last year of our historical record, the few following state-
ments may convey some intimation to readers in future years : The new depot
of the New York Central and the elevation of its tracks through the city were
completed, at a cost of about $2,000,000 ; the Powers Hotel — a fire-proof
building, standing on the site of an ancient tavern, older than the city itself,
which was built as the Monroe House, then changed its name to the National,
then to the Morton, then to the Champion, then back to the National — was
finished, at an expense of about $630,000 ; the Warner observatory, on East
avenue, was completed, costing, with its magnificent telescope, not far from
$100,000; the Warner building, a splendid iron structure on North St. Paul
street, was built, at an expense in the neighborhood of $500,000; Church
street was opened and improved at a total cost of about $ 1 65 ,000 ; North St.
Paul street was straightened and widened for the same amount ; the lift bridge
over the canal at Lyell street was built for $13,000, and finally. Central avenue
was extended and a bridge built across the river to Atwater street, at a cost of
$46,000. The records of the city surveyor's office show that during the year
there were eleven streets improved, at an expense of $110,000, and thirty-one
sewers constructed, costing $56,000. The records of the city treasurer show
that the receipts for the year, on account of general city tax, were $1,059,-
940.48; the expenditures for local improvements, $498,384.00; the receipts
on local improvements, $300,353.73, and the receipts for water rents about
$150,000. The registry of vital statistics indicates that the total number of
Necrology of 1884. 173
births was 2,472, of marriages 1,021, of deatlis 1,785. The population is at
this time (June loth, 1884) estimated at 110,000.
Of the deaths those may be noted of Samuel Richardson, mayor of the
city in 1850, though he lived in Pennsylvania for most of the time after that;
the venerable Jeremiah Cutler, who in 1824 was appointed a deputy in the
county clerk's office and served in that capacity continuously — with the ex-
ception of two intervals aggregating less than three years — till his death, at
the age of ninety-one, having been employed under twenty successive county
clerks; Lewis Selye, who came here in 1824 and soon acquired more than a
local fame as a manufacturer of fire engines, was always a public-spirited citizen
and a liberal giver, was elected county treasurer in 1848 and again in 1854 and
member of Congress in 1866; Dr. B. F. Gilkeson, a well-known physician; H.
Edward Hooker, a prominent nurseryman, held in the highest esteem by all
who knew him; Roswell Hart, one of the earliest coal dealers here, elected
member of Congress in 1864, secretary of the Rochester savings bank at the
time of his death; Isaac Ashley, a veteran landlord, who came here in 1825
and kept, first, the Carter House, near the canal feeder, then the Union Hotel,
then the National (at that time the Monroe), and then the Clinton, beginning
there in 1835 and retiring in 1878; Dr. Hugh Bradley, an eminent physician
and the oldest here at the time of his death; Addison Gardiner, a distinguished
citizen, whose public career is traced in another part of this work; Nathaniel
T. Rochester, a son of Colonel Rochester, who- came here in 1818, a man uni-
versally respected but of so retiring a disposition that he almost uniformly re-
fused to hold any public office; Charles J. Hill, who came in 1816 and was
mayor in 1842, of whom a sketch is given elsewhere; Joseph Curtis, one of
the proprietors of the Union & Advertiser, influential in financial circles and
respected by all his associates ; Judge E. Darwin Smith, who came here in
1824 and, after practising law for many years, was raised, in 1855, to the bench
of the Supreme court, where he remained till 1876, when he retired by reason
of the constitutional limitation of seventy years; and Mrs. Anson House (for-
merly Lucinda Blossom), who came here in 1820 and was one of the witnesses
to the first deed recorded in the county.
Up to the time of the celebration of the city's birthday nothing occurred in
1884, essential to mention in this chapter, except the death of Martin Briggs,
a prominent citizen, who held several public offices and was closely identified
with the iron industry of the city for more than fifty years; of George B. Har-
ris, the typical fireman of Rochester and chief-engineer of the department for
more than seven years; of Mrs. Silas O. Smith, who came here with her hus-
band in 1813, and of her son Edward M. Smith, one of the most popular citi-
zens of his day, who, after being in the municipal council, was elected mayor
in 1869; he was postmaster from 1871 to 1875, being in the meantime one of
the commissioners of water- works; for several years he was one of the three
174 History of the City of Rochester.
members of the fish commission of the state of New York and was a delegate
in its behalf to the fisheries exposition in London in 1883; in 1876 he was ap-
pointed United States consul at Mannheim, Baden, and occupied that position
at the time of his death, which occurred in England, as he was on his way to
return home.
CHAPTER XXIII.
the great celebration.
Preparations for the Event — Services in the Churches on Sunday — Opening Salute on Monday
— The Literary Exercises — The Pyrotechnic Display — Reception of Guests — The Great Parade
— The Banquet — The Toasts — The Close.
WITH perpetual announcements through the daily press of the approach-
ing festival, no one in all this region was ignorant of the preparations
that were made for the appropriate celebration of Rochester's fiftieth birthday,
and the populaf expectations were raised so high that a fulfillment of them
might well have seemed destructive of the vanity of human wishes. But so it
was that all that had been promised was performed and all that had been looked
for came to pass, and the citizens of Rochester were justly satisfied with a
triumph that has had no counterpart in this portion of the state. The anniver-
sary days were the 9th and loth of June, but the observances really began on
Sunday, the 8th, with a delivery in most of the churches of discourses per-
tinent to the occasion — in many cases reminiscent, in others prophetic. In
the First Presbyterian church, whose society is the oldest in the city, the ser-
vices were especially noticeable. In the morning Rev. Dr. Tryon Edwards, who
was installed as pastor of the congregation fifty years ago — and who is now
settled at Gouverneur, in this state — preached, by request, the same sermon
which he delivered at his installation, and many of his hearers at this time were
able to recall the words to which they had listened so long before. The evening
services were conducted by Rev. Dr. F. De W. Ward, now of Geneseo, whose
connection with the old church also dated back half a century, for it was then
that he was there ordained as a missionary to India.
Monday morning was quiet enough,except as it was occupied by tlie munic-
ipal committee in the reception of invited guests from abroad and in putting
the final touches on the decorations with which most of the buildings on all the
business streets were profusely adorned. As the minute of noon arrived the
city hall bell gave the intelligence that Rochester's semi-centennial birthday had
begun; the booming of cannon, with fifty measured notes, answered back the
The Semi- Centennial Celebration. 175
stroke, while for the succeeding hour the sweet chimes of St. Peter's church
gave forth melodious sounds that were not wholly lost amid the diapason of
the guns or the shrill discord from steam whistles. In the afternoon the liter-
ary exercises were held, before an audience that filled the large room, to which
admission was by tickets, given by the committee to all who asked for them.
The walls were decorated with the flags of all nations, the Stars and Stripes
occupying the greater space, and. across the ceiling stretched alternate lines of
red, white and blue bunting. On the platform were seated those who were to
take part in the proceedings, the general committee, the former mayors now
living and a large number of the old citizens who were voters in 1834. Soon
after two o'clock Mayor Parsons stepped to the front of the stage and made a
short address, beginning thus : —
" Fellow-citizens : The event that calls us together to-day is one truly memorable.
Never again in the life history of most, so far as our own city is concerned, will a similar
occurrence present itself. A half century hence, long after our children shall have as-
sumed the municipal inheritance we leave them, those who are active participants or
quiet listeners to-day will have gone the way of all men — gone to join the innumerable
throng. But this is not the time for sad reflection. Neither do we assemble in a spirit
of triumph or exultation. We have reason to rejoice, however, and have called in our
friends to rejoice with us.''
Rev. Dr. J. B. Shaw, the venerable pastor of the Brick church, then invoked
the divine blessing on the proceedings about to take place and gave thanks for
all the material blessings showered upon the city during its existence and for its
noble founders, "those conscientious and high-minded men,, from whose ex-
emplary lives has radiated an influence for good which has been felt through all
the years dovi^n to the present time." The prayer being ended, the mayor
read a communication from the town clerk of Rochester, England, containing
a resolution passed by the council of that city, acknowledging the invitation
sent by our mayor to theirs to be present at this celebration, regretting his in-
ability to do so and congratulating our city on its growth and prosperity.
Frederick A. Whittlesey then offered resolutions, which were adopted by the
assemblage, expressing gratification over the missive from the ancient corpora-
tion by the Medway to its youthful namesake, and requesting our mayor to
transmit to the council of the former place a copy of all the proceedings con-
nected with this day of jubilee. Telegrams were then read from Frederick
Douglass, now living in Washington; from Mayor Banks of Albany, and from
M. H. Rochester, of Cincinnati, conveying their felicitations and expressing
regret at their unavoidable absence on the occasion. The quartette of St.
Peter's church, consisting of Mrs. Mandeville, Miss Alexander, Dr. F. A. Man-
deville and F. M. Bottum, sang Oliver Wendell Holmes's Angel of Peace, with
the accompaniment of the Fifty-fourth regiment band, the whole music, vocal
and instrumental, of this piece and others, being under the direction of Albert
Sartori.
176 History of the City of Rochester.
Charles E. Fitch was then introduced and gave an extended historical ad-
dress, from which these extracts may be taken, the last one being his perora-
tion : —
" It is a fact not, perhaps, generally known, but exceedingly interesting and deserving
emphasis, that the chief impulse to the exodus of Colonel Rochester from Maryland
was his aversion to the institution of human bondage. He could not bear the thought
of rearing his family amid its demoralising influences. He freed all his slaves, bringing
the majority of them with him, as hired domestic servants, and, with his household goods,
set his face toward the north star. Thus Rocliester, which the Chrysostom of the col-
ored race was afterward to make his home, and from which New York's most philosophic
statesman was to announce the 'irrepressible conflict,' is, through the resolution of its
founder, most honorably identified with the revival of anti-slavery sentiment in America.
Mrs. Abelard Reynolds came to Rochester, a young wife and mother, to share
in the toils of the frontier settlement, and to rear her family in 'the nurture and admoni-
tion of the Lord.' What panorama of dissolving woods, of opening thoroughfares, of
artificial waterways, of iron fingers with friendly clasp of distant communities, of ascend-
ing walls enshrining peaceful homes or uplifting dome and tower and steeple, of ham-
mers swinging and wheels revolving, of varied industries unfolding and expanding, of
hospitals and asylums evoked by the gentle genius of charity, of the confident tread of
the sons pressing upon the tottering steps of the fathers, has passed before her eyes.
Mother in Israel ! we greet thee, to-day, with reverence and with love, grateful that
thou hast been spared to witness all these wonders, and earnestly imploring that, upon
the rounded cycle of thy hundred years, now so near its consummation, health and peace
and mercy may descend, in benediction We bid the newer generations
glory in the warmth and cheer of a newer age. We stand afar off and hail that centen-
nial hour. We, who are about to die, salute it; and our prayer only is, knowing how,
in the order of nature we pass away and are forgotten, that some tender hand, searching
amid the moss-covered entablatures of the past, may find the half-effaced inscriptions, and
learn that there were men and women who, in 1884, tried honestly, if humbly, to take
some note of their city's progress, and to transmit it to the coming century worthy, at
least, of its kindly welcome."
After the rendition of another selection by the quartette, George Raines de-
livered the oration, beginning with these words: —
"The true orator of the hour is the imperial city whose fifty years we celebrate ; at our
feet lie her rich robes of green, bound round with sheen of placid waters. She points us
to her open ways thronging with busy life ; her schools for youth crowned with a uni-
versity curriculum ; her theaters for popular amusement; her clanking machinery; her
flags of spray fluttering in triumph above tlie conquered waters escaping from brief im-
prisonment in mill and factory to seek the great lake ; to the princely palaces of the rich ;
to the thousand homes of toilers in all the arts of life in which fair women and brave
men dig deep in the bed-work of conscience the foundation of true morality and patriot-
ism for the generations of the future ; to her tribunals of justice in which the right is
measured to the people ; to her body of officials, administering a government of liberty
regulated by law ; to her churches and cathedral, echoing the solemn chant and te detim
of the religion of humain charity and of the holiness of sacrifice. Let church bells chime
and cannon boom the universal joy. Proud in every fiber of her achievements of the
past, which are hostages to the future, we have to hide no traditional disgrace in her
'- -*,-^,
.^a ' fi<v.
'{
MRS. ABELARD REYNOLDS.
1784- — 1884.
The Semi-Centennial Celebration. 177
civic history, either in court or camp or municipal council. We exalt the grand strains
of our rejoicing in honor at once of all the generations that have poured their labors of
love into our victory in the great rivalries of cities.''
Tennyson's Golden Year having been sung, Rev. Joseph A. Ely recited a
poem, of which the following are the first two and the last two stanzas : —
"Out of the forest sprung,
City of ours !
Fondly thou dwell'st among
Trees that with thee were young;
Now be thy praises sung.
City of flowers !
" O'er thee no castle walls
Proudly look down ;
No mythic glory falls,
No storied past enthralls,
Marble nor bronze recalls
Ancient renown.
" Lived their loved East again
Here in the west.
Borne by heroic men
Through river, lake and glen.
Mid the wild forest, then.
Seeking its rest.
" Long may the city's fame
Honor their worth,
Long, where the fathers came,
Children their praise proclaim.
Bearing a noble name
Wide through the earth."
A festival hymn, with music composed for the occasion by Prof Sartori,
was then given, after which the mayor introduced, successively. Mayor Low,
of Brooklyn, and Mayor Smith, of Philadelphia, both of whom made short ad-
dresses of congratulation, which were received with much applause by the audi-
ence, after which the time honored America was sung by the audience, accom-
panying the band, and the benediction was pronounced by Rev. Dr. H. C. Riggs,
of St. Peter's church. A sunset salute of fifty guns closed the day, and in the
evening an exhibition of fireworks was given at the driving-park, near Lake
avenue, where a crowd of nearly 30,000 people witnessed the finest display of
that kind ever beheld here.
Tuesday, the lOth, was ushered in by a sunrise salute, and from that time
the city was in a state of more joyful confusion than even on the preceding
day. The streets were filled at an early hour with a throng of persons, busy
in their idlene-ss, intent on looking at the holiday apparel of the buildings, and
watching with interest the movements of each other. Many of these were resi-
178 History of the City of Rochester.
dent citizens, but a great proportion were from other places, and the trains all
through the morning brought still larger numbers of strangers than had arrived
the day before. Between nine and ten o'clock came, in a special car. Governor
Cleveland and most of the officers of his staff, accompanied by Mayor Edson,
of New York, who had gone up to Albany the night before, to come on with
the others. The guests were met at the depot by Mayor Parsons and the
reception committee, besides a detachment of police, and a large military
escort, under the command of Colonel F. A. Schceffel, comprising the Eighth
Separate company, with the Fifty-fourth regiment band ; the Powers Rifles,
with drum corps ; the Lincoln Guards, with the Lincoln band ; the Greenleaf
Guards and the Flower City Zouaves. The line being formed, the party were
taken to the Powers Hotel, in the rotunda of which a reception was held.
Mayor Parsons delivering an address of welcome, to which the governor
responded ; after which Mayor Edson and Mayor Low made brief acknowl-
edgments. The noonday salute of fifty giins gave the signal for all the stores
to close their doors, a measure that required no self-denial, for at the very time
thousands of persons were occupying all the steps and stairways and windows
on the route of the procession that was to be, and thousands more were flock-
ing down to fill up any space not already taken. Patience was needed, but
good nature was paramount over all, and the dense throng on "the four cor-
ners" parted without a murmur for the carriages containing Governor Cleve-
land and the other distinguished visitors to pass through to Church street, re-
view the public school children assembled there, and return to the lofty platform
which had been erected on West Main street, in front of the court-house, for
their accommodation and that of all, pioneers and others, who had been invited
to seats upon it. This was done after the parade had really begun, for the line
of march was formed at the liberty pole, at the intersection of East Main street
and East avenue, and, though it began to move soon after two o'clock, it was
three before the head of the column had crossed the river by the Central avenue
bridge, and had come abreast of the reviewing-stand. In the van was the
police force — those in front mounted, the others on foot — then came the
marshal of the day, General John A. Reynolds, with a full staff of aids and
deputies ; then the veteran military organisations, then the citizen soldiery of
the present day — with a company of Buffalo Cadets between the lines of their
hosts, the Rochester Cadets — then the lodges of Odd Fellows, followed by the
uniformed Catholic Societies, the German societies of various kinds, and the
Ancient Order of United Workmen, succeeded by a number of organisations,
social, industrial and otherwise, and then the Rochester fire department, after
which came an almost endless array of wagons representing the different trades
and industries. The procession took more than two hours to pass the stand,
which will give a better idea of its length than any enumeration can — the
more so as its passage was continuous, for nothing occurred to obstruct it, as
The City Government. 179
ropes were stretched across the intersection of Main street, from Elizabeth to
Lancaster, and all vehicles were at an early hour excluded from the streets
along the line of march. It was, as the committee had determined it should be,
the grandest parade ever seen in this section of the state.
At six o'clock the banquet was served at the Powers Hotel, where more than
one hundred were seated. After the dinner the following toasts, with appro-
priate elaboration, were' proposed by Mayor Parsons, and were responded to by
those whose names are attached, in each case: "The state of New York,"
Governor Cleveland; "the United States," Alfred Ely; "the city of Roches-
ter," General A. W. Riley; "our sister cities," Mayor Edsori, of New York;
"Pennsylvania," Mayor Smith, of Philadelphia ; "our educational institutions,"
President Anderson; "the clergy," Bishop McQuaid ; "the judiciary," Judge
Macomber; "the bar," W. F. Cogswell; "the medical profession," Dr. E. M,
Moore; "the press," William Purcell ; "municipal government," Mayor Low,
of Brooklyn ; "our Dominion visitors," Mayor Boswell, of Toronto ; "bur labor
interests," William N. Sage; "the horticulture and floriculture of Rochester,"
Patrick Barry; "our labor interests" (to this there was no response, as H. H.
Cale, who had been designated, was absent); "our veterans," Colonel H. S.
Greenleaf; "the ladies," J. Breck Perkins (by letter). Judge Morgan then
introduced Oronoyetekha — the present chief of the Mohawks, from Canada,
and of the family of Joseph Brandt, the old war sachem of the tribe — who
.spoke in a manner that was the natural result of the finished education which
he had received in England. Another salute at sunset, with a general illumina-
tion of business blocks and houses, and a street display of miscellaneous fire-
works in the evening, many of which were of a high order, closed, with satis-
faction to all — participants, hearers and spectators — the semi-centennial
celebration of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXIV.
THE CITY GOVERNMENT.
The Present Officers — The Common Council — The Board of Education — The City Deljt —
The Tax Levy for the Present Year — The Municipal Court — The Police Hoard — The E:xecutive
Hoard — The County Officers — The United States Officials.
THE municipal year of this city begins on the first Monday of April. The
following persons now constitute the government: Mayor, Cornelius R.
Parsons; treasurer, Ambrose McGlachlin; police justice, Albert G. Wheeler;
city attorney, John N. Beckley; judges of the Municipal court, Thomas E.
i8o History OF THE City OF Rochester.
White, George E. Warner; city clerk, Peter Sheridan ; city surveyor, Oscar
H. Peacock; city messenger, Frank J. Irwin; overseer of the poor, John Lutes;
city sealer, Stephen Rauber; fire marshal, Arthur McCormick; street superin-
tendent, Gilbert H. Reynolds; assessors — John Gorton, William Mahar, Val-
entine Fleckenstein; executive board — George W. Aldridge, Byron Holley,
Samuel B. Williams; police commissioners — C. R. Parsons (ex officio), Fred-
erick Zimmer, Joseph W. Rosenthal; board of health — C. R. Parsons [ex
officio), J. W. Martin, E. B. Chace, Timothy Derick, Dr. F. B. Gallery, Dr. E.
M. Moore,, J. O. Howard. Dr. J. J. A. Burke is health officer
The common council is made up as follows: First ward, Wm. H. Tracy;
second ward, Martin Barron; third ward, Amon Bronson; fourth ward, Charles
Watson; fifth ward, Henry Kohlmetz; sixth ward, Elias Strouss; seventh
ward, Charles A. Jeffords; eighth ward, John H. Foley; ninth ward, F. S.
Upton; tenth ward, James M. Pitkin; eleventh ward, Peter G. Siener; twelfth
ward, Henry Rice; thirteenth ward. Christian Stein; fourteenth ward, Jag. M.
Aikenhead; fifteenth ward, J. Miller Kelly ; sixteenth ward, John B. Simmel-
ink. J. Miller Kelly is president of the board.
The board of education is as follows: First ward, J. E. Durand; second,
J. O. Howard; third, Thomas McMillan; fourth, H. A. Kingsley; fifth, C. S.
Cook; sixth, F. M. Thrasher; seventh, Milton Noyes; eighth, T. A. Ray-
mond; ninth, W. J. McKelvey; tenth, C. S Ellis; eleventh, Henry Klein-
dienst; twelfth, T. H, Maguire; thirteenth, F. C. Loebs; fourteenth, August
Kimel; fifteenth, J. P. Rickard; sixteenth, F. H. Vick. C. S. Ellis is presi-
dent of the board. S. A. Ellis is superintendent of schools.
The debt of the city in June, 1884, with the items of the various loans, is
as follows : —
Genesee Valley railroad loan re-issue $144,000 00
R. N. & P. R. R. loan 1 50,000 00
R. & S. L. R. R. loan 600,000 00
Arsenal site loan 8,000 00
Floating debt loan . 21 0,000 00
City Hall Commissioners loan 33S>ooo 00
Free academy building loan 1 25,000 00
Water works loan _ _ 3,182,000 00
Funding loan 1875 410,00000
Number 5 school loan 20,000 00
Consolidated loan 100,000 00
$5,284,000 00
The Genesee Valley railroad loan is provided for by excess of receipts from
lease to the N. Y., L. E. and W. R. R. after interest on the loan is paid.
The arsenal site loan is provided for by $1,500 received annually from the
county of Monroe, for rent of the arsenal.
The Tax Levy for 1884-85. 181
The tax levy for 1884-85 is as follows: —
For payment of notes authorised by the common council to supply deficiencies in
the following funds : —
Water pipe fund $75,000 00
City property fund 8,000 00
Park fund 2,000 00
Erroneous assessments. 633 58
Contingent fund 42,000 00
Highway fund 51,000 00
Health fund 3>5°o 00
Police fund 21 ,000 00
Lamj) fund 22,500 00
Fire department fund 1 7,000 00
$242,633 58
For deficiency in estimate in tax levy of 1883-84 of the
amount to be received from the executive board for surplus
receipts over expenditures from water works _ 40 000 00
For interest on the bonded debt as follows : —
At seven per cent, for one year_ _ $352,300 00
At four per cent, for one year 4,000 00
$356,3°° °°
Less amount to be paid in by executive board for
surplus receipts over expenditures from water
works 85,000 00
271,300 00
For payment of 15 bonds Free academy site loan
due January ist, 1884, at $iooo each 15,000 00
For payment of 50 bonds deficiency loan due
January ist, 1884 _ ' 50,00000
Less amount of unpaid taxes prior to 1870, col-
lected since the issue of said loan and placed
to its credit. — 25,939 75 24,060 25
For erroneous assessments 4,442 60
For local assessments on city property 6,477 75
For lighting city 75,°°° 00
For sup))ort of poor 20,000 00
For support of police 75,°°° 00
For contingent expenses 60,000 00
For board of health, including collecting gar-
bage 1 2,000 00
For city property 4,000 00
For parks 2,500 00
For executive board, as per requisition 165,200 60
For support of common schools 22 6,399 °7
Total $1,244,013 25
The Municipal court was organised in 1876, taking the place of the jus-
tices' courts which had formerly existed here-. It is a court of civil jurisdic-
1 82 History of the City of Rochester.
tion, for the trial of actions to the extent of $500. The first judges were
John W. Deuel and George W. Sill, both appointed by Governor Tilden — the
former for five years, the latter for six. In 1881 George E. Warner was
elected to succeed Judge Deuel, and in 1882 Thomas E. White was chosen to
succeed Judge Sill. ,. The term is six years; the offices are in the city hall
building.
The following list of the several police boards since the present law went
into effect, in July, 1865, has been furnished by B. F. Enos, the clerk of the
board : —
1865. — D. D. T. Moore, mayor; Henry -S. Hebard, Jacob Howe, sr.,
commissioners.
1866. — S. W. D. Moore, mayor; H. S. Hebard, Jacob Howe, sr., com-
missioners.
1867-68. — Henry L. Fish, mayor; H. S. Hebard, Jacob Howe, sr., com-
missioners.
1869. — Edward M. Smith, mayor; H. S. Hebard, George G. Cooper,
commissioners.
1870. — John Lutes, mayor; H. S. Hebard, George G. Cooper, commis-
sioners. H. S. Hebard acted as secretary to the board to. this date.
1 87 1. — Charles W. Briggs, mayor; H. S. Hebard, George G. Cooper,
commissioners. B. Frank Enos, clerk.
1872. — A. Carter Wilder, mayor; H. S. Hebard, G. G. Cooper, commis-
,sioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1873. — A. Carter Wilder, mayor; G. G. Cooper, Fred. Zimmer, com-
missioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1874-75. — George G. Clarkson, mayor; G. G. Cooper, Fred. Zimmer,
commissioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1876. — Cornelius R. Parsons, mayor; G. G. Cooper, Fred. Zimmer, com-
missioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1877—79 — C. R. Parsons, mayor; Fred. Zimmer, Henry C. Daniels, com-
missioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1880-84 — C. R. Parsons, mayor; Fred. Zimmer, Jacob Howe, jr., com-
missioners. B. F. Enos, clerk.
Thomas J. Neville, clerk of the executive board, has kindly prepared the fol-
lowing "history of the rise, power and progress of the commission of public works,
the executive board, the water commission, and the water-works and fire
board " :—
"The board of commissioners of public works was created by an act of the legisla-
ture passed May 20th, 1872. The members of this board were made commissioners of
highways and authorised to exercise all the powers and perform all the duties belonging
to such commissioners in all the streets, lanes, parks, etc., of the city of Rochester. The
authority to pass ordinances for public improvements, let contracts for, supervise the con-
struction of, and confirm assessment rolls of, such improvements was also given to said
The Board of Commissioners of Public Works. 183
commissioners, which power was formerly vested in the common council. A. Carter
Wilder, mayor, appointed Martin Briggs, Wm. Purcell, George H. Thompson, Herman
Mutschler and Daniel Warner commissioners of public works on May 28th, 1872. In
1873 Henry S. Hebard was appointed commissioner in place of Herman Mutschler, and
Thomas J. Neville in place of William Purcell resigned, and in 1874 Jonathan E. Pier-
pont, in place of Henry S. Hebard, whose term of office had expired, and Ambrose Cram
in place of Daniel Warner resigned. In March, 1876, by an act of the legislature, the
executive board was created, consisting of six members, three of whom were elected by
the people and three were appointed by the mayor. The three members elected were
Thomas J. Neville, Philip J. Meyer and V. Fleckenstein for the terms of one, two and
three years repectively, and Henry L. Fish, Ambrose Cram and C. C. Woodworth were
appointed for corresponding terms of office. On the executive board was conferred all
the power exercised by the commissioners of public works,, except the authority to pass
ordinances and confirm assessment rolls, and in addition thereto the control and man-
agement of the fire and water works department was conferred upon them. In the
chapter on the water works of Rochester will be found a sketch of the water board. In
April, 1879, the executive board was bisected and the management of the street depart-
ment was placed in a board of three members, viz., F. P. Kavanaugh and Ezra Jones
elected and F. C. Lauer appointed, and the water works and fire department in the
charge of a board of two members, V. Fleckenstein and C. C. Woodworth, which was
known as the 'water works and fire board.' In 1880 the executive board and water
works and fire board were united and a board constituted of three members was organ-
ised. The law provided that members be elected by the people for one, two and three
years. This board is now existing and has the care and management of the water works,
fire and street department of the city of Rochester."
It may be as well to give, in this connection, the names of the county offi-
cers now serving. The city members of the board of supervisors are given in
the following chapter. The county clerk is Henry D. McNaughton ; county
treasurer, Alexander McVean ; district-attorney, Joseph W. Taylor ; sheriff,
Francis A. Schceffel ; county judge, John S. Morgan ; special county judge,
Thomas Raines ; surrogate, Joseph A. Adlington ; superintendent of the poor,
George E. McGonegal ; coroners^Dr. Porter Farley, Daniel A. Sharpe.
Of the United States officials, the postmaster is Daniel T. Hunt, the col-
lector of the port is Charles E. Morris and the collector of internal revenue is
Henry S. Pierce.
1 84 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXV.
THE CIVIL LIST.
The Village Trustees — The Mayors — The Boards of Aldermen — The City Treasurers — The Po-
lice Justices — The City Supervisors — The Sheriffs — The County Clerks — The County Treasurers —
The State Senators — The Members of Assembly — The Members of Congress.
THE names of the trustees of the village, chosen at its incorporation in 1817,
have been given above, and those elected in succeeding years are as fol-
lows : —
1818. — Francis Brown, Daniel Mack, Everard Peck, Isaac Colvin, Ira
West. Moses Chapin, clerk ; Frederick F. Backus, treasurer.
1 8 19. — No election was held, the old trustees continuing in office.
1820. — Matthew Brown, jr., Moses Chapin, William Cobb, Charles J. Hill,
Elisha Taylor. Moses Chapin, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1 82 1. — M. Brown, jr., Moses Chapin, Warham Whitney, C. J. Hill,
Elisha Taylor. M. Chapin, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1822. — M. Brown, jr., president; R. Bender, C. J. Hill, S. Melancton
Smith, W. Whitney. H. R. Bender, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1823. — M. Brown, jr., president; Jacob Graves, W. P. Sherman, Abner
Wakelee, S. M. Smith. Rufus Beach, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1824. — John W. Strong, president; W. Whitney, Anson Coleman, Jona-
than Packard, Ashbel W. Riley. R. Beach, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1825. — M. Brown, jr., president; Phelps Smith, Frederick Starr, William
Rathbun, Gilbert Evernghim. R. Beach, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer.
1826. — During this year and the next seven one trustee was elected from
■each of the five wards into which the village had been divided, the wards being
represented in the order in which the trustees are named, as follows : WiU'am
Brewster, M. Brown, jr. (president), Vincent Mathews, John Mastick, Giles
Boulton. Rufus Beach, clerk ; F. F. Backus, treasurer ; Raphael Beach, collec-
tor.
1827. — Frederick Whittlesey, Ezra M. Parsons, Jonathan Child, Elisha
Johnson (president), A. V. T. Leavitt. R. Beach, clerk; John B. Elwood,
treasurer; Stephen Symonds, collector.
1828. — Ebenezer Ely, E. M. Parsons, Ephraim Moore, E. Johnson (presi-
dent), Nathaniel Rossiter. F. Whittlesey, clerk; F. F. Backus, treasurer; D.
D. Hatch, collector.
1829. — John Haywood, S. S. Alcott, Robert L. McCollum, E. Johnson
(president), William H. Ward. Hestor L. Stevens, clerk ; Seth Saxton, treas-
urer; Robert H. Stevens, collector.
1830. — William Pease, Joseph Medbery (president), Jonathan Child, Adon-
ijah Green, Harmon Bissell. Samuel L. Selden and Isaac R. Elwood, clerks ;
S. Saxton, treasurer; A. Newton, collector.
City Civil List. 185
183 1. — Rufus Meech, M. Brown, jr., Jacob Thorn, Harvey Humphrey, N.
Rossiter (president). A. W. Stowe, clerk ; Ebenezer Ely, treasurer ; Lester
Beardslee, collector.
1832. — S. L. Selden, William Rathbun, J. Thorn (president), Daniel
Tinker, Orrin E. Gibbs. A. W. Stowe, clerk ; Eben. Ely, treasurer ; Seth
Simmons, -collector.
^^33' — William E. Lathrop, Fletcher M. Haight (president), E. F. Marsh-
all, D. Tinker, Nathaniel Draper. I. R. Elwood, clerk ;' Ebenezer Watts, treas-
urer ; James Caldwell, collector. That ends the village government, for in
1834 Rochester was incorporated as a city.'
Mayors. — The first mayor chosen was Jonathan Child. His successors in
office are as follows: 1835 and 1836, Jacob Gould; 1837, A. M. Schermer-
horn and Thomas Kempshall ; 1838, Elisha Johnson ; 1839, Thomas H. Roch-
ester ; 1840, Samuel G. Andrews; 1841, Elijah F. Smith; 1842, Charles J..
Hill; 1843, Isaac Hills; 1844, John Allen ; 1845 and 1846, William Pitkin.;
1847, John B. Elwood; 1848, Joseph Field; 1849, Levi A. Ward; 1850,
Samuel Richardson; 185 1, Nicholas E. Paine; 1852, Hamlin Stilwell ; 1853,
John Williams; 1854, Maltby Strong; 1855, Charles J. Hayden ; 1856, Sam-
uel G. Andrews; 1857, Rufus Keeler; 1858, Charles H. Clark; 1859, Samuel
W. D. Moore; i860, Hamlet D. Scrantom ; 1861, John C. Nash; 1862, Mich-
ael Filon ; 1863, Nehemiah C. Bradstreet; 1864, James Brackett ; 1865, Daniel
D. T. Moore; 1866, S. W. D. Moore; 1867 and 1868, Henry L. Fish ; 1869,
Edward M. Smith; 1870, John Lutes; 1871, Charles W. Briggs ; 1872-73,
A. Carter Wilder ; 1874-75, George G. Clarkson ; 1876-77,1878-79,1880-
81, 1882-83, and 1884-85, Cornelius R. Parsons.
Aldermen.-^— The following is a list of the members of. the common council
from the incorporation of the city to the present time, the second name given
after each ward being that of the assistant alderman during the first four years,
after which two full aldermen were chosen from each ward till 1877, when the
representation was confined to one member :
1834. — First ward, Lewis Brooks, John Jones; second ward, Thomas
Kempshall, Elijah F. Smith ; third ward, Frederick F. Backus, Jacob Thorn ;
fourth ward, A. W. Riley, Lansing B. Swaii ; fifth ward, Jacob Graves, Henry
Kennedy. John C. Nash, clerk.
1835. — First ward, Hestor L. Stevens, William E. Lathrop; second ward,
Matthew. Brown, Hiram Blanchard ; third ward, James Seymour, ErastuS'
Cook ; fourth ward, Joseph Halsey, Nathaniel Bingham ; fifth ward, I. R. El-
wood, Butler Bardwell. Ariel Wentworth, clerk.
1836. — First ward, Alex. S. Alexander, John Haywood; second ward,
Warham Whitney, Joseph AUeyn ; third ward, Joseph Strong, Jonathan Pack-
ard ; fourth ward, Manley G. Woodbury, Mitchel Loder ; fifth ward, William
H. Ward, David Scoville. P. G. Buchan, clerk.
1 86 History of the City of Rochester.
1837. — First ward, H. L. Stevens, Kilian H, Van Rensselaer; second ward,
S. H. Packard. W. Barron Williams ; third ward, Joseph Strong, John Hawks ;
fourth ward, M. G. Woodbury, Schuyler Moses; fifth ward, L. C. Faulkner,
James Williams. J. W. Gilbert, clerk.
1838. — First ward, Abelard Reynolds, Stephen Charles; second ward,
John Allen, Isaac F. Mack ; third ward, Joseph Strong, John Hawks ; fourth
ward, Elias Pond, Matthew G. Warner ; fifth ward, Samuel G. Andrews, Orrin
E. Gibbs. I. R. Elwood, clerk.
1839. — First ward, Abelard Reynolds, Stephen Charles; second ward,
John Allen, George Arnold ; third ward, John C. Stevens, E. D. Smith ; fourth
ward, Elias Pond, S. W. D. Moore; fifth ward, S. G. Andrews, William Pit-
kin. T. B. Hamilton and W. R. Montgomery, clerks.
1 840. — First ward, Stephen Charles, Henry Witbeck ; second ward, George
Arnold, I. F. Mack ; third ward, E. D. Smith, Henry Cady ; fourth ward, S.
W. D. Moore, Porter Taylor; fifth ward, D. R. Barton, William J. Southerin.
W. R. Montgomery, clerk.
1841. — First ward, Henry Witbeck, John.son I: Robins; second ward, I. F.
Mack, Lewis Selye ; third ward, Henry Cady, Jo.seph Field; fourth ward,
Porter Taylor, William W. Howell ; fifth ward, W. J. Southerin, Aaron lirick-
son. W. R. Montgomery, clerk.
1 842. — First ward, J. I. Robins, Hamlin Stilwell ; second ward, Lewis
Selye, John Williams; third ward, Joseph Field, Henry Campbell; fourth ward,
W. W. Howell, George B. Benjamin ; fifth ward, Aaron Erickson, N. B. Nor-
throp. J. A. Eastman, clerk.
1843. — -First ward, H. Stilwell, S. Richardson; second ward, J. Williams,
L. Selye ; third ward, H, Campbell, Eleazar Conkey ; fourth ward, G. B. Benja-
min, Moses B. Seward ; fifth ward; N. B. Northrop, Joshua Conkey. A. S.
Beers, clerk.
1844. — First ward, S. Richardson, Alfred Hubbell; second ward, L.
Selye, J. Williams; third ward, E. Conkey, Simon Traver; fourth ward, M.
B. Seward, Thomas Kempshall ; fifth ward, J. Conkey, Rufus Keeler. A. S.
Beers, clerk.
1845. — First ward, A. Hubbell, Abram Van Slyck; second ward. Pardon
D. Wright, Seth C. Jones ; third ward, S. Traver, Everard Peck ; fourth ward,
T. Kempshall, John H. Babcock ; fifth ward, Joseph Cochrane, Jared Newell ;
sixth ward, L. A. Ward, George Keeney ; seventh ward, Wm I. Hanford, Jer-
emiah Hildreth ; eighth ward, John Briggs, Edwin Scrantom ; ninth ward, John
Fisk, Charles B. Coleman. Chauncey Nash, clerk.
1846. — First ward. A- Van Slyck, A. Hubbell; second ward, S. C. Jones,
Samuel F. Witherspoon ; third ward, E. Peck, Charles Hendrix ; Fourth ward,
J. H. Babcock, Theodore B. Hamilton ; fifth ward, Jared Newell, Henry Fox ;
sixth ward, Charles L. Pardee, L. A. Ward ; seventh ward, J. Hildreth, William
> L
\
SCHUYLER MOSES.
City Civil List. 187
G. Russell ; eighth ward, E. Scrantom, Samuel W. D. Moore ; ninth ward,
George J. Whitney, Charles Robinson. Chauncey Nash and James S. Tryon,
clerks.
1847. — First ward, A. Hubbell, S. Richardson ; second ward, S. F. Wither-
spoon, John Disbrow ; third ward, C. Hendrix, James M. Fish ; fourth ward,
T. B. Hamilton, Joseph Hall; fifth ward, H. Fox, Nathan H. Blossom; sixth
ward, L. A. Ward, John Rees ; seventh ward, W. G. Russell, L. Ward Smith ;
eighth ward, S. W. D. Moore, Hatfield Halsted ; ninth ward, C. Robinson,
James Gallery. J. S. Tryon, cleric.
1848. — r'irst ward, S. Richardson, H. Scrantom; second ward, J. Dis-
brow, ICz.ra Jones; third ward, J. M. Fish, Wm. Churchill; fourth ward, Joseph
Hall, John L. Fish; fifth ward, N. H. Blossom, Isaac Van Kuren; sixth ward,
Philander Davis, J. S. Benton; seventh ward, L. W. Smith, John Greig; eighth
ward, H. Halsted, S. W. D. Moore; ninth ward, J. Gallery, Sebastian Zeug.
H. L. Winants, clerk.
1849. — First ward, H. Scrantom, John Dawley; second ward, Ezra Jones,
S. B. Stoddard; third ward, Wm. Churchill, J. S. Caldwell; fourth ward, J. L.
Fish, G. S. Copeland; fifth ward, I. Van Kuren, N. B. Northrop; sixth ward,
Phil. Davis, Samuel P. Allen; seventh ward, John Greig, George T. Frost;
eighth ward, S. W. D. Moore, E. S. Boughton; ninth ward, Sebastian Zeug,
Peter A. Smith. Newell A. Stone, clerk.
1850. — First ward, J. Dawley, William F. Holmes; second ward, W. H.
Wait, Martin Briggs; third ward, J. S. Caldwell, L. R. Jerome; fourth ward,
G. S. Copeland, T. T. Morse; fifth ward, N. B. Northrop, Joshua Conkey;
sixth ward, Phil. Davis, C. A. Jones; seventh ward, G. T. Frost, Hiram Ban-
ker; eighth ward, E. S. Boughton, Henry L. Fish; ninth ward, Peter A.
Smith, Henry Suggett. J. N. Drummond, clerk.
185 1. — Plrst ward, Wm. F. Holmes, Benjamin M. Baker; second ward,
Martin Briggs, W. H. Wait; third ward, L. R. Jerome, Amon Bronson ; fourth
ward, T. T. Morse, Schuyler Moses; fifth ward, Joshua Conkey, J. B. Robert-
son; sixth ward, C. A. Jones, Thomas Parsons; seventh ward, Hiram Banker,
J. H. Babcock ; eighth ward, H. L. Fish, H. Seymour ; ninth ward, John Fisk,
Lysander Farrar. E. B. Shepardson, clerk.
1852. — First ward, B. M. Baker, Wm. F. Holmes; second ward, W. H.
Wait, B. F. Gilkeson ; third ward, Amon Bronson, John M. French ; fourth
ward, S. Moses, George Shelton ; fifth ward, J. B. Robertson, George B. Red-
field ; sixth ward, T. Parsons, Michael Filon ; seventh ward, J. H. Babcock,
Edward M. Smith ; eighth ward, H. Seymour, George G. Munger ; ninth
ward, L. P^arrar, Edgar Belden. Washington Gibbons, clerk.
1853. — First ward, W. F. Holmes, Ambrose Cram; second ward, B. F.
Gilkeson, J. C. Marsh ; third ward, J. M. French, Amon Bronson ; fourth
ward, G. Shelton, J. C. Chumasero; fifth ward, G. B. Redfield, M. Douglass;
13
1 88 History of the City of Rochester.
sixth ward, M. Filon, Charles H. Clark ; seventh ward, E. M. Smith, P. P.
Thayer ; eighth ward, G. G. Munger, Daniel D. Lynch ; ninth ward, E. Bel-
den, B. Schoeffel ; tenth ward, Thomas Parsons. W. Gibbons, clerk.
1854. — First ward, A. Cram, Johnson I. Robins ; second ward, J. C. Marsh,
A. J. Harlow ; third ward, A. Bronson, William Breck ; fourth ward, J. C.
Chumasero, George Shelton ; fifth ward, M. Douglass, E. K. Warren ; sixth
ward, C. H. Clark, Michael Filon ; seventh ward, P. P. Thayer, Stephen
Charles; eighth ward, D. D. Lynch, William H. Moore; ninth ward, B.
Schoeffel, J. Hilton ; tenth ward, T. Parsons, John Quin. W. Gibbons, clerk.
1855. — First ward, J. I. Robins, Edwin Pancost; second ward, A.J.
Harlow, Martin Briggs ; third ward, W. Breck, Thos. C. Montgomery ;
fourth ward, G. Shelton, J. M. Winslow ; fifth ward, E. K. Warren, M. Doug-
glass ; sixth ward, M. Filon, C. H. Clark ; seventh ward, S. Charles, E. W.
Sabin ; eighth ward, W. H. Moore, J. B. Bennett ; ninth ward, J. Hilton,
Louis Bauer ; tenth ward, J. Quin, John E. Morey. W. Gibbons, clerk.
1856. — First ward, U. C. Edgerton, W. S. Thompson; second ward, Mar-
tin Briggs, G. W. .Parsons; third ward, T. C. Montgomery, Adolphus Morse ;
fourth ward, J. M. Winslow, John T. Lacy ; fifth ward, M. Douglass, M. Mc-
Donald ; sixth ward, C. H. Clark, George G. Cooper ; seventh ward, E. W.
Sabin, Chauncey Perry; eighth ward, J. B. Bennett, H. L. Fish; ninth ward,
L. Bauer, Lewis Selye ; tenth ward, J. E. Morey, C. Dutton. C. N. Simmons,
clerk.
1857. — First ward, W. S. Thompson, Jacob Howe; second ward, G. W.
Parsons, Heman Loomis ; third ward, A. Morse, A. G. Wheeler; fourth ward,
J. T. Lacy, H. S. Hebard ; fifth ward, M. McDonald, P. M. Bromley ; sixth
ward, G. G. Cooper, J. Schutte ; seventh ward, C. Perry, P. Cunningham ;
eighth ward, H. L. Fish, Obed M. Rice ; ninth ward, L. Selye, John Lutes ;
tenth ward, C. Dutton, Thomas Parsons. C. N. Simmons, clerk.
1858. — First ward, Jacob Howe, W. Mudgett, jr. ; second ward, Heman
Loomis, G. W. Perry; third ward, A. G. Wheeler, W. A. Reynolds; fourth
ward, H. S. Hebard, G. W. Lewis ; fifth ward, P. M. Bromley, L. B. Twitch-
ell ; sixth ward, J. Schutte, D. W. Perry ; seventh ward, P. Cunningham, H.
Billinghurst; eighth ward, O. M. Rice, Henry B. Knapp ; ninth ward, John
Lutes, L. Selye ; tenth ward, Thomas Parsons, H. S. Fairchild ; eleventh ward,
J. W. Phillips, L. Bauer. C. N. Simmons, clerk.
1859. — First ward, W. Mudgett, jr. ; W. F. Holmes; .second ward, G. W.
Perry, Benjamin Butler; third ward, W. A. Reynolds, William Hollister ;
fourth ward, G. W. Lewis, H. S. Hebard ; fifth ward, L. B. Twitchell, N. C.
Bradstreet ; sixth ward, D. W. Perry, John C. Nash ; seventh ward, Henry G.
Moore, Aaron Erickson ; eighth ward, H. B. Knapp, N. A. Stone ; ninth ward,
L. Selye, John Lutes ; tenth ward, H. S. Fairchild, G. Shelton ; eleventh ward,
L. Bauer, J. C- Mason ; twelfth ward, W. T. Gushing, H. Billinghurst. F. S.
Rew, clerk.
City Civil List. 189
i860. — First ward, W. F. Holmes, James Brackett ; second ward, B. But-
ler, D. A. Woodbury ; third ward, W. HoUister, Eben N. Buell ; fourth ward,
H. S. Hebard, I. S. Waring; fifth ward, N. C. Bradstreet, Alexander Long-
muir ; sixth ward, Alonzo Stearns, Gottlieb Goetzman ; seventh ward, A. Er-
ickson, H. G. Moore ; eighth ward, N. A. Stone, Levi Palmer ; ninth ward, J.
Lutes, O. L. Angevine ; tenth ward, G. Shelton, Frederick Vose ; eleventh
ward, J. C. Mason, Christian Schaefifer ; twelfth ward, H. Billinghurst, Patrick
Barry. F. S. Rew, clerk.
1 86 1. — First ward, J. Brackett, W. F. Holmes; second ward, D. A. Wood-
bury, B. Butler; third ward, E. N. Buell, John H. Brewster; fourth ward, I.
S. Waring, H. S. Hebard ; fifth ward, A. Longmuir, N. C. Bradstreet ; sixth
ward, G. Goetzman, Charles H. Williams ; seventh ward, H. G. Moore, Jason
W. Seward ; eighth ward, L. Palmer, Daniel Warner ; ninth ward, O. L. Ange-
vine, M. C. Mordoff; tenth ward, F. Vose, S. B. Raymond ; eleventh ward, C.
Schaeffer, John Cody ; twelfth ward, P. Barry, George N. Hotchkin. N. A.
Stone, clerk.
1862. — First ward, W. F. Holmes, Luther C. Spencer; second ward, B.
Butler, George Darling; third ward, J. H. Brewster, E. N. Buell; fourth ward,
H. S. Hebard, C. M. St. John ; fifth ward, N. C. Bradstreet, P. M. Bromley ;
sixth ward, C. H. Williams, Joseph Hoffman ; seventh ward, J. W. Seward, H.
G. Moore ; eighth ward, D. Warner, H. L. Fish ; ninth ward, M. C. Mordoff,
Horace A. Palmer; tenth ward, S. B. Raymond, Louis Ernst; eleventh ward,
John Cody, G. A. Sidler ; twelfth ward, G. N. Hotchkin, Henry Hebing. C.
N. Simmons, clerk.
1863. — First ward, L. C. Spencer, Ambrose Cram; second ward, G. Dar-
ling, William C. Rowley ; third ward, E. N. Buell, Daniel D. T. Moore ; fourth
ward, C. M. St. John, Wallace Darrow ; fifth ward, P. M. Bromley, E. K. War-
ren; sixth ward, J. Hoffman, James O'Maley; seventh ward, H. G. Moore,
James Upton; eighth ward, H. L. Fish, D. Warner; ninth ward, H. A. Pal-
mer, M. C. Mordoff; tenth ward, L. Ernst, Alonzo Chapman ; eleventh ward,
G. A. Sidler, Thomas M. Flynn ; twelfth ward, H. Hebing, Hamilton McQuat-
ters. C. N. Simmons, clerk.
1864. — First ward, A. Cram, L. C. Spencer; second ward, W. C. Row-
ley, S. A. Hodgeman ; third ward, D. D. T. Moore, William H. Groot ; fourth
ward, W. Darrow, G. S. Copeland ; fifth ward, E. K. Warren, N. C. Brad-
street; sixth ward, J. O'Maley, Joseph Schutte ; seventh ward, J. Upton, Row-
land Milliman ; eighth ward, D. Warner, H. L. Fish ; ninth ward, M. C. Mor-
doff, H. A. Palmer; tenth ward. A.' Chapman, William Wagner; eleventh
ward, T. M. Flynn, G. A. Sidler ; twelfth ward, H. McQuatters, H. Hebing ;
thirteenth ward, George P. Draper, Lawrence Sellinger. B. Frank Enos,
clerk.
1865,-^ First ward, L. C. Spencer, A. Cram; second ward, Joseph Qual-
iQo History of the City of Rochester.
trough, George B. Harris; third ward, W. H. Groot, William Hollister; fourth
ward, G. S. Copeland, Stephen Remington ; fifth ward, Martin Heberger, E.
K. Warren; sixth ward, J. Schutte, Joseph Beir; Seventh ward, R. Milliman,
William H. Gorsline ; eighth ward, H. L. Fish, George Taylor ; ninth ward,
H. A. Palmer, W. D. Callister ; tenth ward, W. Wagner, John Quin ; eleventh
ward, G. A. Sidler, T. M. Flynn ; twelfth ward, H. Hebing, H. McQuatters;
thirteenth ward, L. Sellinger, G. P. Draper. B. F. Enos, clerk.
1 866. — First ward, A. Cram, L. C. Spencer ; second ward, G. B. Harris,
J. Qualtrough; third ward, W. Hollister, W. H. Groot; fourth ward, S. Rem-
ington, John Graham; fifth ward, E. K. Warren, William Guggenheim; sixth
ward, J. Beir, Herman Mutschler; seventh ward, W. H. Gorsline, David Cope-
land ; eighth ward, George Taylor, M. M. Brown ; ninth ward, W. D. Callister,
James H. Kelly ; tenth ward, J. Quin, Cyrus F. Paine ; eleventh ward, T. M.
Flynn, F. Adelman ; twelfth ward, H. McQuatters, B. Horcheler ; thirteenth
ward, G. P. Draper, John Mauder; fourteenth ward, H. S. Hogoboom. B. V.
Enos, clerk.
1867. ^ First ward, L. C. Spencer, A. Cram; second ward, J. Qualtrough,
J. Lutes; third ward, W. H. Groot, Ezra R. Andrews; fourth ward, J. Graham.
S. Remington ; fifth ward, W. Guggenheim, William Carroll ; sixth ward, H.
Mutschler, Lodo'wick F. Relyea ; seventh ward, D. Copeland, William Ratt ;
eighth ward, M. M. Brown, G. Taylor ; ninth ward, J. H. Kelly, Patrick Burke ;
tenth ward, C. F. Paine, S R. Woodruff; eleventh ward, F. Adelman, Robert
R. Charters ; twelfth ward, B. Horcheler, A. Bingemer ; thirteenth ward, J.
Mauder, Henry Miller; fourteenth ward, Cornelius R. Parsons, J. Quin. B. F.
Enos, clerk.
1868. — First ward, A. Cram, A. G. Whitcomb; second ward, J. Lutes, J.
Qualtrough ; third ward, E. R. Andrews, H. E. Rochester ; fourth ward, S.
Remington, G. W. Crouch ; fifth ward, W. Carroll, James Cochrane ; sixth ward,
L. F. Relyea, William Sidey ; .seventh ward, W. Ratt, C. A. Jeffords ; eighth
ward, G. Taylor, Patrick Caufield ; ninth ward, P. Burke, W. S. Thompson ;
tenth ward, S. R. Woodruff, Elijah Withall ; eleventh ward, R. R, Charters, J.- P.
Roche; twelfth ward, A. Bingemer, F. S. Stebbins ; thirteenth ward, H. Miller,
John Mauder; fourteenth ward, J. Quin, C. R. Parsons. R. H. Schooley,
clerk.
1869. — First ward, A. G. Whitcomb, C. W. Briggs; second ward, J. Qual-
trough, John Barker; third ward, H. E. Rochester, E. R. Andrews; fourth
ward, G. W. Crouch, S. Remington; fifth ward, J. Cochrane, William Caring;
sixth ward, W. F. Morrison, L. F. Relyea ; seventh ward, C. A. Jeffords, Philip
J. Meyer ; eighth ward, P. Caufield, Henry H. Craig ; ninth ward, W. S.Thomp-
son, John H. Wilson ; tenth ward, E. Withall, S. R. Woodruff; eleventh ward,
J. P. Roche, Jacob Gerling; twelfth ward, F. S. Stebbins, Edward Dagge ; thir-
teenth ward, J. Mauder John Nagle ; fourteenth ward, C. R. Parsons, William
Aikenhead. R. H. Schooley, clerk.
City Civil List. 191
1870. — First ward, C. W. Briggs, A. G. Whitcomb; second ward, J. Bar-
ker, George Wait ; third ward, E. R. Andrews, H. T. Rogers ; fourth ward, S.
Remington, George Herzberger ; fifth ward, W. Caring, M. M. Smith ; sixth
ward, L. F. Relyea, G. W. Connolly ; seventh ward, P. J. Meyer, E. A. Glover;
eighth ward, H. H. Craig, N. A. Stone ; ninth ward, J. H. Wilson, J. H. Kelly ;
tenth ward, S. R. Woodruff, W. Mandeville ; eleventh ward, J. Gerling, R. R.
Charters; twelfth ward, E. Dagge, F. S. Stebbins; thirteenth ward, J. Nagle,
J. Mauder; fourteenth ward, W. Aikenhead, C. R. Parsons. Wm. F. Morri-
son, clerk.
1871. — First ward, A. G. Whitcomb, George W. Aldridge ; second ward,
G. Wait, R. K. Gould ; third ward, H. T. Rogers, Charles F. Pond ; fourth ward,
G. Ilcrzbergcr, Michael Ilcavcy ; fifth ward, Owen F. Fee, W. Caring; sixth
ward, G. W. Connolly, Abram Stern ; seventh ward, E. A. Glover, Robert Y.
McConnell ; eighth ward, N. A. Stone, H. H. Craig ; ninth ward, J. H. Kelly,
L. Selye ; tenth ward, Wesley Mandeville, John Stape ; eleventh ward, R. R.
Charters, J. Gerling; twelfth ward, F. S. Stebbins, Valentine F. Whitmore ;
thirteenth ward, J. Mauder, Frederick Stade ; fourteenth ward, C. R. Parsons,
W. Aikenhead. W. F". Morrison, clerk.
1872. — F'irst ward, G. W. Aldridge, John Cowles ; second ward, R. K.
Gould, James O. Howard ; third ward, C. F. Pond, H. T. Rogers ; fourth ward,
M. Heavey, John Gorton ; fifth ward, W. Caring, O. F. Fee ; sixth ward, A.
Stern, G. W. Connolly; seventh ward, R. Y. McConnell, Charles C. Meyer;
eighth ward, H. H. Craig, W. W. Croft; ninth ward, L. Selye, J. H. Kelly;
tenth ward, J. Stape, J. H. Nellis ; eleventh ward, J. Gerling, Thomas Mitchell ;
twelfth ward, V. F. Whitmore, E. H. C. Griffin ; thirteenth ward, F. Stade, J.
Mauder ; fourteenth ward, W. Aikenhead, J. Philip Farber. W. F. Morrison,
clerk.
1873. — First ward, J. Cowles, G. W. Aldridge; second ward, J. O. How-
ard, A. H. Cushman ; third ward, H. T. Rogers, John McMullen ; fourth ward,
J. Gorton, G. Herzberger; fifth ward, O. F. Fee, Henry Brinker; sixth ward,
G. W. Connolly, A. Stern ; seventh ward ; C. C. Meyer, W. G. Anthony ;
eighth ward, W. W. Croft, D. M. Anthony ; ninth ward, J. H. Kelly, William
Shelp ; tenth ward, J. H. Nellis, John Bower ; eleventh ward, T. Mitchell,
George Fleckenstein ; twelfth ward, E. H. C. Griffin, V. F. Whitmore ; thir-
teenth ward, J. Mauder, J. Margrander ; fourteenth ward, J. P. Farber, F. S.
Skuse. W. F". Morrison, clerk.
1874. — First ward, G. W. Aldridge, William H. Tracy; second ward,
A. H. Cushman, J. O. Howard ; third ward, J. McMullen, George D. Lord ;
fourth ward, G. Herzberger, Wm. Whitelock ; fifth ward, H. Brinker, Charles
P. Bromley; sixth ward, A. Stern, William N. Emerson; seventh ward, W. G.
Anthony, C. R. Parsons ; eighth ward, D. M. Anthony, N. A. Stone ; ninth
ward, W. Shelp, James E. Booth ; tenth ward, J. Bower, Walter Weldon ; elev-
192 History of the City of Rochester.
enth ward, G. Fleckenstein, M. J. Maher ; twelfth ward, V. F. Whitmore, B. F.
Thomas; thirteenth ward, J. Margrander, J. Mauder; fourteenth ward, F. S.
Skuse, Louis P. Beck; fifteenth ward, Anthony H. Martin, James Gorsline;
sixteenth ward, M. H. Merriman, S. Dubelbeiss. W. F. Morrison, clerk.
1875. — First ward, W. H. Tracy, G. W. Aldridge; second ward, J. O.
Howard, Andrew Nagle; third ward, G. D. Lord, David H. Westbury; fourth
ward, W. Whitelock, A. G. Whitcomb ; fifth ward, C. P. Bromley, H. Brinker ;
sixth ward, Simon Hays, W. N. Emerson, F. H. Smith (to fill vacancy) ; sev-
enth ward, C. R. Parsons, F. S. Hunn ; eighth ward, N. A. Stone, J. W. Mar-
tin ; ninth ward, J. E. Booth, J. H. Kelly ; tenth ward, W. Weldon, FIdwin
Huntington ; eleventh ward, M. J. Maher, G. Fleckenstein ; twelfth ward, B. F
Thomas, John McGraw, 2d ; thirteenth ward, J. Mauder, Jacob Nunnold ; four-
teenth ward, L. P. Beck, Wm. S. Smith ; fifteenth ward, A. H. Martin, J. P.
Rickard ; sixteenth ward, J. George Baetzel, Wm. E. Buell. W. F". Morrison,
clerk.
1876. — First ward, G. W. Aldridge, W. H. Tracy; second ward, Andrew
Nagle, John M. Brown ; third ward, D. H. Westbury, Thomas Peart ; fourth
ward, A. G. Whitcomb, Nathan Palmer; fifth ward, H. Brinker, Frederick Mor-
hardt ; sixth ward, S. Hays, Willis C. Hadley ; seventh ward, Francis S. Hunn,
G. A. Redman;' eighth ward, John W. Martin, A. H. Bennett; ninth ward, J.
H. Kelly, E. B. Chace ; tenth ward, W. Weldon, Edwin Huntington ; eleventh
ward, G. Fleckenstein, John Brayer ; twelfth ward, J. McGraw, 2d, Benj. F.
Thomas; thirteenth ward, J. Nunnold, F. C. Lauer, jr.; fourteenth ward, W. S.
Smith, L. P. Beck ; fifteenth ward, A. H. Martin, J. P. Rickard ; sixteenth ward,
J. Geo. Baetzel, Charles Hilbert. Edward Angevine, clerk.
1877. — First ward, W. H. Tracy ; second ward, Michael H. P'itzSimons ;
third ward, T. C. Montgomery ; fourth ward, G. Herzberger ; fifth ward, E.
K. Warren ; sixth ward, S. Hays ; seventh ward, G. A. Redman ; eighth ward,
J. W. Martin; ninth ward, E. B. Chace; tenth ward, E. Huntington; eleventh
ward, Nicholas Kase ; twelfth ward, John Donivan ; thirteenth ward, Fred. C.
Lauer, jr. ; fourteenth ward, W. S. Smith ; fifteenth ward, J. Miller Kelly ;
sixteenth ward, J. G. Baetzel. Edward Angevine, clerk.
1878. — First ward, W. H. Tracy; second ward, M. H. FitzSimons; third
ward, T. C. Montgomery; fourth ward, G. Herzberger; fifth ward, E. K.
Warren ; sixth ward, S. Hays ; seventh ward, Charles T. Crouch ; eighth ward,
J. W. Martin; ninth ward, E. B. Chace; tenth ward, E. Huntington; eleventh
ward, Rudolph Vay ; twelfth ward, John Donivan ; thirteenth ward, Lewis
Edelman ; fourteenth ward, W. S. Smith ; fifteenth ward, Joseph W. Knobles ;
sixteenth ward, J. G. Baetzel. Edward Angevine, clerk.
1879. — First ward, W. H. Tracy; second ward, M. H. FitzSimons; third
ward, D. H. Westbury ; fourth ward, L. M. Otis ; fifth ward, E. K. Warren ;
sixth ward, Henry Hebing ; seventh ward, C. T. Crouch ; eighth ward, Geo.
City Civil List. 193
Chambers ; ninth ward, E. B. Chace ; tenth ward, W. Mandeville ; eleventh
ward, R. Vay ; twelfth ward, Philip Wickens ; thirteenth ward, Lewis Edel-
nian ; fourteenth ward, D. G. Weaver; fifteenth ward, J. W. Knobles ; six-
teenth ward, J. J. Hart. Edward Angevine, clerk.
1 880. — First ward, W. H. Tracy ; second ward, M. H. FitzSimons ; third ward,
D. H. We.stbury; fourth ward, L. M. Qtis ; fifth ward, Owen F. Fee; sixth
ward, Henry Hebing; seventh ward, Ira L. Otis; eighth ward, Geo. Chambers;
ninth ward, S. D. Walbridge ; tenth ward, W. Mandeville ; eleventh ward,
John A. Felsinger; twelfth ward, P. Wickens; thirteenth ward, Lewis Edel-
man ; fourteenth ward, D. G. Weaver; fifteenth ward, J. M. Kelly; sixteenth
ward, J. J. Hart. Lucius M. Mandeville, clerk.
1 88 1 — W. H. Tracy; second ward, Martin Barron; third ward, D. H.
Westbury ; fourth ward, H. S. Ransom; fifth ward, O. F. Fee; sixth ward,
A. Stern; seventh ward, I. L. Otis; eighth ward, G. Chambers; ninth ward,
S. D. Walbridge; tenth ward, J. M. Pitkin; eleventh ward, J. A. Felsinger;
twelfth ward, Henry Rice ; thirteenth ward, L. Edelman ; fourteenth ward, W.
Aikenhead; fifteenth ward, J. M. Kelly; sixteenth ward, J. J. Hart. J. T.
McMannis, clerk.
1 882. — First ward, Alphonso Collins ; second ward, M. Barron ; third ward,
Amon Bronson ; fourth ward, H. S. Ransom ; fifth ward, George W. Archer ;
sixth ward, A. Stern; seventh ward, C. A. Jeffords; eighth ward, G. Cham-
bers ; ninth ward, James A. Hinds ; tenth ward, J. M. Pitkin ; eleventh ward,
J. A. l'"clsingcr; twelfth ward, II. Rice; thirteenth ward, James T. Southard;
fourteenth ward, W. Aikenhead; fifteenth ward, J. M. Kelly; sixteenth ward,
J. J. Hart. Frank N. Lord, clerk.
1883. — First ward, A. Collins; second ward, M. Barron; third ward, A.
Bronson; fourth ward, Charles Watson; fifth ward, G. W. Archer; sixth
ward, Elias Strouss ; seventh ward, C. A. Jeffords ; eighth ward, John H. Foley ;
ninth ward, J. A. Hinds; tenth ward, J. M. Pitkin ; eleventh ward, J. A. Fel-
singer; twelfth ward, H. Rice; thirteenth ward, J. T. Southard; fourteenth
ward, J. M. Aikenhead ; fifteenth ward, J. M. Kelly ; sixteenth ward, John B.
Simmelink. F. N. Lord, clerk.
City Treasurers. — The following are the names of the city treasurers, in
order: 1834, E. F. Marshall; 1835, Theodore Sedgwick; 183(5, Erasmus D.
Smith; 1837, W. E. Lathrop ; 1838, E. F. Marshall ; 1839-40-41-42, Eben
N. Jkiell; 1843-44, James M. Fi.sh ; 1 845-46, Hiram Wright ; 1847, Matthew
G. Warner; 1848, Clarence H. Sweet; 1849-50, Elbert W. Scrantom ;. 185 i-
52-53-54, Charles M. St. John ; 1855-56, P.M.Bromley; 1857-58, Abram
Karnes; 1859-60, William E. Lathrop ; 1861-62, Thomas Hawks ; 1863-64,
Chri-stopher T. Amsden ; 1865-66-67-68-69-70, Harvey P. Langworthy ;
, 87 , -72-73-74, John Williams ; 1 875-76-77-1-78-79-80, George D. Williams ;
1880-81-82-83-84, Ambrose McGlachlin.
194 History of the City of Rochester.
Police Justices: — The following-named have presided over the criminal
court for the trial of minor offenses: Sidney Smith, from June, 1834, to Jun^.
1836; Ariel Wentworth; from 1836 to 1840, and from 1844 to 1848 ; Matthew
G.Warner, 1840 to 1844; S. W. D. Moore, 1848 to 1856; Butler Bardwell,
1856 to i860; John Wegman, i860 to 1865 ; E. W. Bryan, 1865 to 1873 ;
A. G.Wheeler, 1873 to 1877, and 1881 to the present time ) George Trues-
dale, 1877 to 1 88 1.
Supervisors. — The following are the names of the supervisors from the
city of Rochester in each year, those serving during the first two years being
■ elected from the city at large, after which an amendment to the charter allowed
a supervisor to be chosen in each ward : —
1834. — Erasmus D. Smith, A. M. Schermerhorn, Horace Hooker.
1835. — Joseph Medbery, Charles J. Hill, Jared Newell.
1836. — First ward, Maltby Strong ; 'second ward, Joseph Medbery ; third
ward, Thomas H. Rochester ; fourth ward, Elisha Johnson ; fifth ward, Elisha
B. Strong.
1837. — First Ward, Lyman B. Langworthy ; second ward, John Williams;
third ward, T. H. Rochester ; fourth ward, James H. Gregory ; fifth ward,
Jared Newell.
1838. — First ward, Thomas J. Patterson ; second ward, Elijah F. Smith;
third ward, E. D. Smith ; fourth ward, Thomas Kempshall ; fifth ward, Horace
Hooker.
1839. — First ward, Alfred Hubbell ; second ward, E. F. Smith; third
ward, Everard Peck ; fourth ward, J. W. Smith ; fifth ward, Levi A. Ward.
1840 — First ward, A. Hubbell ; second ward, Seth C. Jones ; third ward,
James M. Fish; fourth ward, William Griffith; fifth ward, L. A. Ward.
1 841 . — First ward, Eleazar Conkey ; second ward, John Allen ; third ward,
J. M. Fish; fourth ward, John Hawks; fifth ward, Rufus Keeler.
1842. — First ward, E. Conkey; second ward, J. Allen; third ward, J. M.
Fish ; fourth ward, Asahel S. Beers ; fifth ward, R. Keeler.
1843. — First ward, Samuel B. Dewey ; second ward, William Buell ; third
ward, Simon Traver; fourth ward, Schuyler Moses; fifth ward, Peter W.
Jennings.
1844. — First ward, John Haywood; second ward, William W. Alcott;
third ward, Henry Cady ; fourth ward, Robert Haight; fifth ward, E. B.
Strong.
1845. — Four new wards were added to the city in this year, but the city's
representation in the board of supervisors was not increased till 1853, the divis-
ion being for eight years by districts, as follows: First ward, Ambrose Cram ;
second and ninth wards, George H. Mumford ; third and eighth wards, E. F.
Smith ; fourth and seventh wards, Matthew G. Warner ; fifth and sixth wards,
P. W. Jennings.
City Civil List. 195
1846. — First ward, John Haywood; second and ninth wards, G. H. Mum-
ford ; third and eighth wards, Samuel Miller ; fourth and seventh wards, John
Miller ; fifth and sixth wards, William B. Alexander.
1847. — First ward, Johnson I. Robins; second and ninth wards, Joel P.
Milliner ; third and eighth wards, Zina H. Benjamin ; fourth and seventh wards,
John Miller ; fifth and sixth wards, David R. Barton.
1 848. — First ward, John Haywood ; second and ninth wards, J. P. Mil-
liner ; third and eighth wards, William H. Cheney ; fourth and seventh wards,
Thomas B. Husband ; fifth and sixth wards. Philander G. Tobey.
1 849. -.- First ward, John Haywood; second and ninth wards, John Crom-
bie; third and eighth wards, E. F. Smith; fourth and seventh wards, T. B.
Husband ; fifth and sixth wards, Harvey Humphrey.
1850. — First ward, Lansing B. Swan; second and ninth wards, J. Crom-
bie ; third and eighth wards, James Chappell ; fourth and seventh wards, M. G.
Warner; fifth and sixth wards, Mitchel Loder.
1851. — First ward, George Gould; second and ninth wards, J. Crombie ;
third and eighth wards, C. J. Hill ; fourth and seventh wards, James C. Camp-
bell ; fifth and sixth wards, M. Loder.
1852. — First ward, John Whitney; second, Lewis Selye ; third, Nathaniel
T. Rochester ; fourth, Simon L. Brewster ; fifth, Joshua Conkey ; sixth, Rob-
ert Syme ; seventh, William I. Hanford ; eighth, Zina H. Benjamin ; ninth, W.
Barron Williams; tenth, eleventh and twelfth, Hubbard W. Jones.
1853. — First ward, Abram Karnes ; second, Ezra Jones ; third, C. J. Hill ;
fourth, Alonzo K. Amsden ; fifth, J. Conkey ; sixth, R. Syme ; seventh, John
Rigney ; eighth, Asa B. Hall ; ninth, Daniel Gatens ; tenth, eleventh and
twelfth, George Peck.
1854. — First ward, Thomas Kempshall ; second, William E. Lathrop ;
third, Samuel Miller ; fourth, Alvah Strong ; fifth, J. Conkey ; sixth, R. Syme ;
seventh, John H. Babcock ; eighth, Henry L. Fish ; ninth, James C, Cochrane ;
tenth, eleventh and twelfth, Wm. B. Alexander.
1855. — First ward, Henry Churchill ; second, George Arnold ; third, C. J.
Hill; fourth, Harvey Prindle; fifth. Philander G. Tobey; sixth, Hiram Davis;
seventh, J. H. Babcock ; eighth, Henry B. Knapp ; ninth, Lysander Farrar ;
tenth, eleventh and twelfth, James L. Angle.
1856. — First ward, John Haywood; second, George Arnold; third, J.
Crombie ; fourth, Edward Roggen ; fifth, N. C. Bradstreet ; sixth, H. Davis ;
seventh, Aaron Erickson ; eighth, William Cook ; ninth, D. Gatens ; tenth,
eleventh and twelfth, David Wagner.
1857. — First ward, William S. Thompson; second, John H. Thompson;
third, William Churchill ; fourth, Hiram Smith ; fifth, J. Rigney ; sixth, Robert
R. Harris; seventh, Jarvis M. Hatch ; eighth, Sidney Church ; ninth, D. Gatens;
tenth, eleventh and twelfth, D. Wagner.
196 History of the City of Rochester.
1858. — First ward, W. S. Thompson ; second, Hamlet D. Scrantom ; third,
W. Churchill; fourth, James McMannis; fifth, William R. Gififord; sixth, John
G. Wagner ; seventh, Alex. W. Miller ; eighth, S. W. D. Moore ; ninth, Fran-
cis Brown ; tenth and twelfth, H. W. Jones ; eleventh, Charles Wilson.
1859. — First ward, Benj. M. Baker; .second, H. D. Scrantom ; third,
Amon Bronson ; fourth, Octavius P. Chamberlain; fifth, Wm. W. Bruff ; sixth,
George C. Maurer ; seventh, M. G. Warner ; eighth, Joel B. Bennett ; ninth, O.
L. Angevine ; tenth, H. W. Jones ; eleventh, Francis A. Adelman ; twelfth,
Philip J. Meyer.
i860. — First ward, B. M. Baker; second, J. H.*Thompson ; third, A. Bron-
son ; fourth, William McCarthy ; fifth, William Carroll ; sixth, Evan Evans ;
seventh, Edward M. Smith '; eighth, Benjamin McFarlin ; ninth, Thonfias C.
Gilman ; tenth, Louis Ernst; eleventh, Jacob Waldele ;. twelfth, Lyman Mun-
ger.
1861. — First ward, Hamlin Stilwell ; second, Samuel M. Hildreth ; third,
A. Bronson ; fourth, Wm. H. Burtis ; fifth, W. Carroll ; sixth, William Shep-
herd ; seventh, E. M. Smith ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, T. C. Gilman ; tenth,
Daniel B. Loder ; eleventh, Augustus Haungs ; twelfth, Alex. McWhorter.
1862. — F"irst ward, H. Stilwell ; second, Wm. C. Rowley ; third, A. Bron-
son ; fourth, George N. Deming ; fifth, PatHck J. Dowling ; sixth, William
Sidey ; seventh, Edwin Taylor ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, John H. Wilson ;
tenth, Henry Suggett ; eleventh, A. Haungs ; twelfth, Patrick Barry.
1863. — First ward, H. Stilwell: second, Ezra Jones; third, A. Bronson;
fourth, G. S. Copeland ; fifth, Patrick ConoUy; sixth, W. Sidey; .seventh, E.
Taylor ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, L. Selye ; tenth, D. Wagner ; eleventh,
Frederick Zimmer ; twelfth, James L. Angle ; thirteenth, John Seeder.
1864. — First ward, Dudley D. Palmer; second, Ezra Jones; third, A.
Bronson ; fourth, H. S. Redfield ; fifth, P. Conolly ; sixth, Chas. H. Williams ;
seventh, Byron M. Hanks ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, Wm. J. Sheridan ;
tenth, DeWitt C. Ellis; eleventh, J. W.~ Phillips; twelfth, P. Barry; thirteenth.
Philander Davis.
1865. — First ward, H. Stilwell; second Ezra Jones; third, A. Bronson;
fourth, W. V. K. Lansing ; fifth, P. Conolly ; sixth, C. H. Williams ; seventh,
D. B. Beach ; eighth, S. Lewis ; ninth, L. Selye ; tenth, A. H. Billings ; elev-
enth, Louis Bauer ; twelfth, Alex. ,McWhorter ; thirteenth. Christian Widman ;
fourteenth, Samuel S. Partridge.
1866. — First ward, Henry Churchill ; second, Ezra Jones; third, A. Bron-
son ; fourth, H. S. Redfield ; fifth, P. Conolly ; sixth, C. H. Williams ; seventh,
F. De W. Clarke ; eighth, S. Lewis ; ninth, L. Selye ; tenth, A. H. Billings ;
eleventh, Chas. S. Baker; twelfth, A. McWhorter; thirteenth, C. Widman ;
fourteenth, S. S. Partridge.
1867. — First ward, Joseph Curtis ; second, George Arnold ; third, A. Bron-
City Civil List. 197
son; fourth, Wm. S. Kimball; fifth, P. Conolly; sixth, Joseph Schutte; seventh,
J. W. Seward ; eighth, Daniel Warner ; ninth, L. Selye ; tenth, George Preck ;
eleventh, L. Bauer; twelfth, George V. Schaffer; thirteenth, C. Widman ; four-
teenth, John Stewart.
1 868. — First ward, Charles H. Stilwell ; second, John Barker ; third, Thos.
C. Montgomery ; fourth, J. C. Campbell ; fifth, P. Conolly ; sixth, J. Schutte ;
seventh. Porter W. Taylor; eighth, D. Warner; ninth, M. S. Fairchild; tenth,
Isaiah F. Force; eleventh, L. Bauer; twelfth, George, EUwanger; thirteenth,
George P. Davis ; fourteenth, J. Stewart.
1869. — First ward, H. Churchill; second, Thomas T. Sprague ; third, T. C.
Montgomery; fourth, James Kane, sr. ; fifth, William Guggenheim; sixth,
Quincy Van Voorhis ; seventh, P. W. Taylor; eighth, M. J. Glenn; ninth, C.
S. Baker; tenth, D. C. Ellis; eleventh, Thomas M. Flynn ; twelfth, Joseph L.
Luckey; thirteenth, Henry S. Brown; fourteenth, J. Stewart.
1 870. — First ward, H. Churchill ; second, G. Arnold ; third, T. C. Mont-
gomery ; fourth, J. Kane, sr. ; fifth, Michael Kolb ; sixth, Q. Van Voorhis ; sev-
enth, P. W. Taylor ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, C. S. Baker ; tenth, D. C. Ellis ;
eleventh, T. M. Flynn ; twelfth, J. L. Luckey ; thirteenth, Frederick Loebs ;
fourteenth, J. Stewart.
1 87 1. — First ward, L. A Pratt ; second, T. T. Sprague ; third, T. C. Mont-
gomery ; fourth, Lyman M. Otis ; fifth, W. W. Bruff; sixth, Q. Van Voorhis ;
seventh, Frank N. Lord; eighth, Charles P. Achilles; ninth, Addison N. Whit-
ing; tenth, D. C. Ellis; eleventh, Thomas Mitchell; twelfth^ John W. Deuel;
thirteenth, F. Loebs ; fourteenth, Richard H. Warfield.
1872. — First ward, Alonzo G. Whitcomb ; second, Charles A. Pool ; third,
James L. Brewster ; (appointed by council in place of Wm. Carson, deceased);
fourth. Royal L. Mack ; fifth, George J. Knapp ; sixth, Francis Boor ; seventh,
George F. Loder ; eighth, Nicholas Brayer ; ninth, William C. Stone ; tenth,
I. F. Force; eleventh, Geo. B. Swikehard ; twelfth, Henry Bender; thirteenth,
C. Widman ; fourteenth, Abram Boss.
1873. — I'^irst ward, Frank W. Embry; second, C, A. Pool; third, Henry
E. Rochester; fourth, John B. Hahn ; fifth, Heqian S. Brewer ;, sixth, F. Boor;
seventh, G. F. Loder; eighth, Wm. F. Parry; ninth, Thomas McMillan ; tenth,
Bernard Haag; eleventh, Jacob Gerling; twelfth, William C. Barry ; thirteenth,
Frederick C. Lauer, jr. : fourteenth, Chas. F. Hetzel.
1874. — First ward, Wm. F. Holmes; second, Ansel A. Cornwall; third,
H. E. Rochester; fourth, J. B. Hahn; fifth, John Dufner; sixth, F. Boor; sev-
enth, Chas. H. Webb ; eighth, B. McFarlin ; ninth, Frederick Miller (appointed
in place of Horace W. Jewett, resigned) ; tenth, Douglass Hovey ; eleventh,
J. GerHng; twelfth, Nicholas Cutberlet ; thirteenth, John Nothaker ; fourteenth,
Wm. H. Dake; fifteenth, John C. O'Brien; sixteenth, Henry E. Boardman
(last two appointed by comrnpn council).
198 History of the City of Rochestetr.
1875. — First ward, L. A. Pratt; second, C. A. Pool; third, H. E, Roch-
ester; fourth, Henry S. Hebard; fifth, J. Dufner; sixth, WilHs C. Hadley;
seventh, C. H. Webb; eighth, B. McFarlin; ninth, F. Miller; tenth, Daniel
Lowrey; eleventh, J. Gerling; twelfth, George V. Schaffer; thirteenth, F"rank
X. Bradler ; fourteenth, W. H. Dake ; fifteenth, Henry KHnkhammer ; six-
teenth, George J. Farber.
1 876. — First ward, L. A. Pratt ; second, James Day ; third, Chas. F. Pond ;
fourth, James E. Hayden ; fifth, Charles Englert; sixth, Samuel Rosenblatt;
seventh, C. H. Webb ; eighth, William Wright ; ninth, George W. Jacobs ; tenth,
Daniel Lowrey ; eleventh, John Greenwood ; twelfth, G. V. Schaffer ; thir-
teenth, Olaf Oswald ; fourteenth, W. H. Dake ; fifteenth, H. Klinkhammer ;
sixteenth, Henry B. McGonegal.
1877. — First ward, L. A. Pratt; second, Thomas Pryor ; third, C. F.
Pond ; fourth, J. E. Hayden ; fifth, C. Englert ; sixth, William S. Falls ;
seventh, C. H. Webb ; eighth, W. Wright ; ninth, G. W. Jacobs ; tenth, Ethan
A. Chase (appointed in place of A. N. Whiting, deceased) ; eleventh, Thomas
McAnarney ; twelfth, William Gibbs ; thirteenth, O. Oswald ; fourteenth, W.
H. Dake ; fifteenth, James H. Curran ; sixteenth, H. B. McGonegal.
1878. — First ward, L. A. Pratt; second, Michael M. Keenan.; third, C. F.
Pond; fourth, ]'. E. Hayden; fifth, William Emerson; sixth, W. S. Falls;
seventh, Maxey N. Van Zandt ; eighth, Leonard Henkle ; ninth, G. W. Jacobs ;
tenth, Harvey C. Jones; eleventh, Reuben Punnett ; twelfth, W. Gibbs; thir-
teenth, O. Oswald ; fourteenth, John J. Burke ; fifteenth, J. H. (Jurran ; six-
teenth, H. B. McGonegal.
1879. — First ward, William W. Carr ; second, M. M. Keenan ; third, Frank
M. Bottum; fourth, J. E. Hayden; fifth, C. Englert; sixth, W. S. Falls;
seventh, George Heberling; eighth, Maurice Leyden ; ninth, G.W.Jacobs;
tenth, H. C. Jones; eleventh, John Brayer; twelfth, Conrad Eisenberg; thir-
teenth, John A. P. Walter; fourteenth, Thomas Crane ; fifteenth, J. H. Curran ;
sixteenth, John W. Stroup.
1880. — First ward, James W. Clark; second, James Day; third, F. M.
Bottum ; fourth, J. E. Hayden ; fifth, Conrad Bachman ; sixth, Joseph Hoff-
man ; seventh, G. Heberling ; eighth, Bernard O'Kane ; ninth, Martin Joiner ;
tenth, H. C. Jones; eleventh, J. Brayer; twelfth, Philip Welder; thirteenth,
J. A. P. Walter; fourteenth, T. Crane; fifteenth, Anthony H. Martin; six-
teenth, Alexander Button.
1 88 1. — First ward, J. W. Clark; second, George Wait; third, F. M. Bot-
tum; fourth, Charles Watson; fifth, C. Bachman; sixth, Abram J. Cappon ;
seventh, G. Heberling; eighth, B. O'Kane; ninth, M. Joiner; tenth, Henry E.
Shaffer; eleventh, J. Brayer; twelfth, P. Weider; thirteenth, J. A. P. Walter;
fourteenth, Thomas Gosnell; fifteenth, A. H. Martin; sixteenth, A. Button.
1882. — First ward, Dwight Knapp ; second, Conrad B. Denny; third, F.
County and Other Officers from Rochester. 199
M. Bottum ; fourth, C. Watson ; fifth, George Caring (appointed in place of C.
Hachman, deceased) ; sixth, William Perry ; seventh, Charles C. Meyer ; eighth,
JamesP. Tumility; ninth, M. Joiner; tenth, George Weldon ; eleventh, William
Wolz; tw^elfth, P. Weider; thirteenth, Stephen Rauber; fourteenth, T. Gos-
nell ; fifteenth, Henry Kondolph ; sixteenth, John Vogt.
1883. — First ward, D. Knapp ; second, George B. Wesley; third, Thomas
Peart; fourth, Charles B. Ernst; fifth, Roman Ovenburg; sixth, Valentine
Hetzler; seventh, C. C. Meyer; eighth, James P. Tumility; ninth, M. Joiner;
tenth, Bartholomew Keeler; eleventh, W. Wolz; twelfth, D. Clinton Bar-
num; thirteenth, Carl F. Gottschalk; fourteenth, T. Gosnell; fifteenth, John
Foos ; sixteenth, Chauncey Nash.
1884. — First ward, E. F. Stilwell ; second, G. B. Wesley; third, George
Morgan; fourth, C. B. Ernst; fifth, George Caring; sixth, Abrani Stern;
seventh, C. C. Meyer; eighth, J. P. Tumihty; ninth, p-rederick E. Conway;
tenth, B. Keeler ; eleventh, John Brayer ; twelfth, D. C." Barnum ; thirteenth,
James H. Brown; fourteenth, T. Gosnell; fifteenth, George J. Held; sixteenth,
Oscar F. Brown.
County officers do not properly come within the civil list of a municipal
corporation, but, as Rochester is the county seat, and the county officers are
therefore located here, it seems better to insert them in this place with the year
in which they went into office, and to give, as well, the list of supervisors from
the city (as has been done above), and of state senators, members of Assembly
and representatives in Congress, in all cases from the city alone. The county
judicial officers — judges, surrogates and district-attorneys — will be found
named in order in the chapter devoted to the bench and bar.
Sheriffs. — 1821, James Seymour; 1823, John T. Patterson; 1826, James
Seymour; 1829, James K. Livingston; 1832, Ezra M. Parsons; 1835, Elias
I'ond; 1838, Darius Pcrrin; 1 841, Charles L. Pardee; 1844, Hiram Sibley;
1847, George Hart; 1850, Octavius P. Chamberlain; 1853, Chauncey B.
Woodworth; 1856, Alexander Babcock; 1859, Hiram Smith; 1862, Jcseph
H. Warren; 1865, Alonzo Chapman; 1868, Caleb Moore; 1869, Isaac V.
Sutherland (appointed in place of Moore, deceased); 1870, Joseph B. Camp-
bell; 1873, Charles S. Campbell; 1876, Henry E. Richmond; 1879, James K.
Burlingame; 1882, Francis A. Schoeffel.
County Clerks. — 1821, Nathaniel Rochester; 1823, Elisha Ely; 1826,
Simon Stone, 2d; 1829, William Graves; 1832, Leonard Adams; 1835, Sam-
uel G. Andrews ; 1838, Ephraim Goss; 1841, James W. Smith ; 1844, Charles
J. Hill; 1847, John C. Nash; 1850, John T. Lacy; 1853, W. Barron Williams ;
1856, William N. Sage ; 1859, Dyer D. S. Brown; 1862, Joseph Cochrane
1865, George H. Barry; 1868, Charles J. Powers; 1871, Alonzo L. Mabbett;'
1874, John H. Wilson; 1877 and i88o, Edward A. Frost; 1883, Henry D.
McNaughton.
200 History of the City of Rochester.
County Treasurers. — No record, so far as can be ascertained, has been
kept in any form, printed or written, of the early treasurers of Monroe county,
nor are their names obtainable from the records of the board of supervisors,
by whom they were elected before 1 848, for the reason that those records are
not in existence in their original form, nor can printed copies be found of more
than a very few of those ancient years — so that the list of supervisors above
given had to be made up in part from the original records (which are complete
and well preserved in the city clerk's office) of the proceedings of the common
council, which acted as a board of canvassers. The first treasurer was S.
Melancton Smith, and after him were Frederick Whittlesey, William S. Whit-
tlesey, William McKnight and William Kidd, the last of whom held the office
for six or eight years. The first to be elected by the people was Lewis Selye,
who entered upon the office in 1849 and again in 1855, after William H. Per-
kins had held it for the intermediate term. In 1858 Jason Baker went in, in
1864 Samuel Schofield, in 1867 George N. Deming, in 1873 Charles P. Achil-
les, in 1876 James Harris and in 1879 Alexander McVean, the present incum-
bent.
State Senators. — No member of the state Senate was sent from either the
village or the city of Rochester till 1844, when Frederick F. Backus was elected,
serving for four years; the next was Samuel Miller, in 1848; the others were
William S. Bishop, in 1854; Lysander Farrar, in 1862; George G. Munger,
in 1864; Thomas Parsons, in 1866; Lewis H. Morgan, in 1868; William N.
Emerson, in 1876; George Raines, in 1878; Charles S. Baker, in 1884 — each,
except Dr. Backus, for one term of two years.
Members of Assembly. — 1822, Nathaniel Rochester; 1823, Simon Stone;
1824, Enos Stone ; 1825 and 1830, Thurlow Weed ; 1826, Vincent Mathews ;
1827, Abelard Reynolds; 1828 and, 1833, Timothy Childs ; 1829, Heman
Norton; 1831 and 1832, Samuel G. Andrews; 1834, Flatcher M. Haight ;
183s, 1837, 1838 and 1840, Derick Sibley; 1836, Horace Gay; 1839, William S.
Bishop; 1841, Alexander Kelsey ; 1842, Frederick Starr; 1843, Robert
Haight; 1844, Ashley Sampson; 1845, 1846 and 1847, William C. BIoss;
1848, A. M. Schermerhorn ; 1849 and 1850, L. Ward Smith; 1851, William
A. Fitzhugh; 1852, Joel P. Milliner; 1853, Orlando Hastings ; 1854, James
L. Angle; 1855, John W. Stebbins ; 1856, 1862 and 1863, Eliphaz Trimmer;
1857, John T. Lacy; 1858, Thomas Parsons; 1859 and i860, Elias Pond ;
1 86 1, Lewis H. Morgan; 1864 and 1865, John McConvill ; 1866, Henry R.
Selden; 1867, Henry Cribben ; 1868 and 1869, Nehemiah C. Bradstreet ;
1870, 1876 and 1877, James S. Graham; 1871 and 1872, George D. Lord;
1873, Henry L. Fish; 1874 and 1875, George Taylor ; 1878, EHas Mapes ;
1879, 1880 and 1882, Charles S. Baker; 1881, John Cowles ; 1883, David
Healy ; 1 884, Charles R. Pratt;.
Members of Congress. — The following are the names of congressional rep-
The Fire Department.. 201
resentatives from this district who were residents of this city at the time of their
election, with the year in which the congressional term of each one began :
1823, William B. Rochester ; 1827, Daniel D. Barnard ; 1 829, Timothy Childs ;
,1831 and 1833, Frederick Whittlesey ; 1835 and 1837, Timothy Childs; 1839,
Thomas Kempshall; 1841, Timothy Childs; 1849 and 1851, A. M. Scher-
merhorn ; 1853, Azariah Boody ; 1855, John Williams ; 1857, Samuel G. An-
drews ; 1859 and 1 86 1, Alfred Ely; 1863, Freeman Clarke ; 1865, Roswell
Hart; 1 867, Lewis Selye ; 1871 and 1873, Freeman Clarke ; 1875, John M.
Davy; 1879 and 1881, John Van Voorhis ; 1883, Halbert S. Greenleaf.
CHAPTER XXVI.
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.!
Its History fiom the Beginning — The App.tiatus in Early Times — The First F"ire Company —
The Old Volunteer Department — Its (llories ami its Misdeeds — The I'rotectives, Alerts and Actives
— The Firemen's Henevolent Association — Dedication of the Monument — List of Chiefs and As-
sistants — The Fire Record.
IN a previous chapter mention has been made of the organisation of a fire
department for the little settlement, and the choice of Messrs. Hart, Kemp-
shall, Bond, Wakelee and Brown as fire wardens at the first village election in
the spring of 1 817. Their duty was not only to enforce the ordinances which
looked to the prevention of fires but to superintend the efforts for their ex-
tinguishment after they had broken out, to form the line of citizens who rushed
to the scene, each with the fire-bucket which he was compelled to own, and to
direct the rapid and judicious passage of those primitive appliances down the
line. This arrangement was soon seen to be inadequate, and on the 19th of
October, in the same year, the first fire company was organised, with the fol-
lowing members : Everard Peck, William P. Sherman, Josiah Bissell, Albert
Backus, Roswell Hart, Jehiel Barnard, Isaac Colvin, Hastings R. Bender,
libenezer Watts, Moses Chapin, Daniel Mack, William Cobb, Horace Bates, Ros-
well Babbitt, Gideon Cobb, Daniel Warren, Jedediah Safford, William Brewster,
Reuben Darrow, Ira West, Caleb L. Clarke, Davis C. West, CharlesJ. Hill. Daniel
Mack was chosen foreman. Of all these fire-laddies not one remains on earth,
the last to go being the otie who stood at' the end of the list in the original
record and who was the last to answer the final roll-call — Charles J. Hill, who
died in August, 1883. An engine was purchased, a poor affair into which the
1 In the ]>reparation of this chapter the editor has heen aided by articles of Edward Angevine,
which a|)peared in the daily press a few years ago ; by a manual of the department prepared in 1882
by II. \V. Mathews, L. M. Newton and (J. I!. Harris, and by the personal kindness of Mr. Mathews.
202 History of the City of Rochester.
water had to be poured from buckets, for it had no suction hose, but a house
was built for it on Court-House square and it was not till 1820 that the machine
needed repairs, when $9.25 was voted for that purpose, and in the same year the
board of village trustees appropriated. $120 "to purchase and repair fire uten-
sils, such as buckets, hooks, ladders, etc., and to build a shelter for the ladders."
In 1 82 1 the engine-house was removed to Aqueduct street, and the first rope
for the fire- hooks was purchased at an expense of eight dollars, a vote of all
the inhabitants being deemed necessary for the purpose. The first fire-truck
was obtained in 1824, when fifty dollars was voted for the purpose of procur-
ing one or more fire-ladders to be placed on wheels ; the next year four hundred
and seventy dollars was paid for a new engine, the house for which, costing
one hundred dollars, was located in Bugle alley, where the Corinthian Academy
of Music now stands, and a report was made to the fire-wardens by Frederick
Starr and Gilbert Evernghim, who had been previously appointed a committee
to organise a volunteer fire department, as up to that time the firemen were
rather appointees of the wardens and acting under their orders.
The volunteer department may be said to date its existence from the 5th of
May, 1826, for on that day the board of trustees of the village accepted the
following persons and issued certificates to them, assigning them to the com-
panies mentioned : —
Engine company number i. — Addison Gardiner, Alpheus Bingham, John S.
Smith, Silas E. Griffith, Thomas Matthews, Jacob Strawn, James Frazer, Ebenezer Watts,
William Bender, Everard Peck, Charles J. Hill, Daniel D. Hatch, Hervey Ely, Elisha
Taylor, Elias Beach, Nathan Mead, William Haywood, Jacob Gould, Robert King,
John Swift, Thomas Kempshall, Asa Mardn, Simeon P. Olcott, S. L. Merrill, Gilbert Ev-
ernghim, James K. Livingston, John C. Munn, William Rathbun, John Haywood, Jesse
Congdon, Timothy Kempshall.
Engine company number 2.-^ Anson House, Davis C. West, Giles Boulton, H.
Crandall, Dennis P. Brown, Joseph P. King, Frederick Starr, William Bliss, Abner Wake-
lee, E. H. Grover, Chauncey Eaton, C. W. Barnard, E. S. Curtis, John T. Wilcox, W.
G. Russell, Stephen Charles, John Colby, Volney Chapin, Roswell Bush, Charles M.
Lee, William Atkinson, Jabez Ranney, Joseph Halsey, Moses Barnard, Butler Bardwell,
Tiflfany Hunn, Jeremiah Williams, Abner Ward.
Hook and ladder company. — C. A. Van Slyke, Phelps Smith, E. J. Cummins, John
Bingham, Archibald Hotchkiss, Daniel Tinker, Henry Bush, Barney Bush, Josiah
Tower, Nathan Lyman, Phelps Smith, foreman.
At the same time the president of the board appointed the first committee
on the fire department, consisting of Vincent Mathews and William Brewster,
and Samuel Works was elected the first chief-engineer, a man of extraordinary
activity, of perfect fearlessness and of great presence of mind, admirably adapted
for such a post. Harvey Leonard, proprietor of the " Merchants' Exchange
tavern," which stood where the Young Men's Catholic association building
now is, was the first to be complained of for violating the ordinances, but he
was let off with a reprimand.
The Village Fire Department. 203
The next year saw quite an advance in fire matters; the village trustees
ordered the chief-engineer to purchase a new engine at a cost not exceeding
$1,200 ; three months later Mr. Works, who must have been an officer of mar-
velous moderation in the expenditure of public money, reported that he had
bought a new engine for $716, and also that he had expended $216 for 300 feet
of hose. In October a new volunteer company was organised by those living
in the second ward (Frankfort), with William Rathbun as foreman and B. H.
Brown as assistant. It was mustered into service as fire company number 3,
but the engine assigned to it was the little old one, bought ten years before,
while the new machine was called number 2 and given to that, company, known
by the name of "Torrent." The first inspection of the department took place
in October, the engines and the truck being ordered to appear for that purpose
in "Mumford meadow;" in the same month the trustees ordered that fire en-
gine number i be located near the First Presbyterian church, that engine num-
ber 2 be placed near the blacksmith shop opposite Blossom's tavern on Main
street (where the Osburn House stood in later years), and that number 3 ("Red
Rover") be housed near the intersection of Piatt and State streets. The oc-
currence of fires was evidently carefully guarded against, for in this year Mel-
ancton Smith, one of the fire wardens, reported that several stove-pipes in the lit-
tle theater on State street were in a dangerous condition. The growth of the vil-
lage rendered it necessary in 1830 to appoint an assistant to the chief-engineer,
and the man selected was William H. Ward, who two years later succeeded Mr.
Works as chief In January, 1 83 1 , number 4 ( "Cataract ") oame into existence
as a company, with Joseph Field, Fletcher M. Haight, Henry E. Rochester,
Daniel Loomis, Levi W. Sibley and James K. Livingston among its members ;
later in the year company number 5 ("Rough and Ready") was organised,
with Ashbel W. Riley, Selah Mathews, Edwin Scrantom, Anson House and
eighteen others on the original roll ; many of these must have dropped out within
a few years, for in 1847 number 5 di.sbandcd as a company; the engine house
was in the barn of A. W. Riley in rear of Court street. In 1833 company num-
ber 6 was organised, with its engine house in Pindell alley, but the members
were so dissatisfied with the location that the trustees a year later removed it to
Fitzhugh street (where the Alert hose now has its quarters), paying $150 for
removing the old house and refitting it. Here old "Protection 6" was housed,
with "Pioneer" hook and ladder company number i (afterward called "Em-
pire"), until the final dissolution of the volunteer department, both the engine
and the truck occupying the ground floor and having separate session-rooms
up stairs. The original roll of number 6 had thirty-one members, among
them William Ailing, A. J. Langworthy (afterward' chief-en*gineer), John Chris-
topher and Francis M. Marshall. In the year before this the first little disturb-
ance had occurred in the department, companies i and 5 having a serious
quarrel over the possession of a new machine which had been made by Lewis
14
204 History of the City of Rochester.
Selye. So mutinous idid the latter company become that it was disbanded by
the village trustees and reorganised the next year. In 1833 the first exemption
papers were granted, Frederick Starr and Joseph Halsey receiving those pre-
ciou,s 'documents.
The city government came into existence in 1834, but no startling change
was made in fire matters. John Haywood and Abelard Reynolds were chosen
by the common council as fire wardens for the first ward, John Jones and
Willis Kempshall for the second ward, Erasmus D. Smith and Thomas H.
Rochester for the third, Nehemiah Osburn and Obadiah M. Bush for the fourth,
Marshall Burton and William Colby for the fifth. W. H. Ward was elected
chief-engineer, with Theodore Chapin and Kilian H. Van Rensselaer as his
assistants ; in September hook and ladder company number 2 was organised
with thirty members, and located on the east side of the river; $1,500 was put
in the tax levy this year for the support of the fire department. A hose com-
pany, called the "^Etna," after the name of engine company number i, was
formed in 1835, with L. B. Swan, Heman Loomis, George A. Wilkin and A.
S. Wakelee among the members. Several disastrous fires in 1837 had aroused
the citizens to a sense of the importance of increasing the efficiency of the de-
partment, and in 1838 a number of additions were made. Two bucket com-
panies were organised, with George B. Benjamin, Justin M. Loder and W. H.
Enos among the members of the first, and S. W. D. Moore, Gabriel Longmuir
and D. C. Ailing on the roll of the second; an engine, tub and hose company
also came into being, with George W. Parsons and nine other members.
"Storm 7" now makes its appearance, the first engine company organised
under the city charter, with Newell A. Stone, Henry Haight, F. W. Backus,
Thomas Hawks and James L. Elwood among its original members. Its name
was not inapt from the first, and its restless disposition caused its disbandment
within a year of its foundation. Being reformed (in one sense) it became located
in January, 1843, on "Cornhill," where it led anything but a quiet life; reor-
ganised in 1853, it, was again di.sbanded five years later, and again reorganised
on the same day. When the war broke out. in 1861, and volunteers were
called for by President Lincoln, an entire company of the "Old Thirteenth"
was formed out of the members of "Storm 7," with William Tulley as captain,
Michael McMuUen as first lieutenant, and Jerry A. Sullivan as second lieuten-
ant— a completeness of record not equaled by any other fire company in this
locality, even by "Red Rover 3," though great numbers of that body enlisted
under Frank A. Schoeffel and Law S. Gibson, now respectively sheriff of this
county and chief-engineer of the department. In the month of November,
1838, "Osceola 8," "also, was organised, with Lewis Selye, James McMuUen, J.
M. Southwick, Orrin Harris and others as the charter members; originally
located on Piatt street, it was afterward moved to Mill street ; disbanded in 1853,
it was reorganised in the same year as "Columbia 8," was again disbanded
DiSBANDMENT OF THE VOLUNTEER FiRE DEPARTMENT. 205
in 1856, and reorganised a year or two later as "Live Oak 8," being located
on Alexander street, near Mount Hope avenue. "Champion 9," the last of
the volunteer engine companies in date of organisation, was chartered iti April,
1848, and disbanded in July, 1853. The engine lay on Main street, between
Clinton and Lancaster.
The glory of the volunteer fire department has passed away, and its disre-
pute has gone with it; "the noise of the captains, and the shouting," are no
more ; order reigns, instead of discord, and conflagrations are extinguished
without the disturbance of the public peace. In this city, as in other places,
the excesses of many firemen brought disgrace upon the department ; not only
were drunkenness and fighting the usual concomitants and consequents of every
respectable fire, but the flames were often kindled by the hands that were to
suppress them, and one incendiary fireman served a long term in state prison
as the reward of his crimes. With all this, no body of men ever existed that
could show a brighter record of courage, of endurance, of brilliant heroism and
sublime devotion to duty. Their virtues and their vices are bound together,
and where blame is given, praise should go with it, hand in hand. As con-
necting the old department with the new, three organisations of proved effi-
ciency and trustworthiness should now be mentioned — The Protectives, the
Alerts and the Actives.
On the evening of the 23d of August, 1858 — a few days after the general
disbandment of the old volunteer department, which occurred after the fire that
destroyed Minerva hall — in response to two calls made through the daily
papers, a meeting of business men was held in the mayor's office, and another
in the city clerk's office, one to organise what is now known as the I'rotcctivcs
aiid the other for the formation of a hose company.
The Protectives perfected their organisation at once, the company — or
association, as it was then called — having as an object for its formation, as im-
plied by the name, and as set forth in the first article of its constitution, the
removal of property from burning buildings, or buildings in dangerous prox-
imity to fire, and the protection thereof by an efficient and responsible guard
during the confusion incident to such occasions; also, the extinguishing of fires
when practicable. The first officers of the Protectives (or Protective sack and
bucket company number I, the explicit name of the association) were: George
W. Parsons, foreman ; William A. Hubbard, first assistant foreman ; James
Terry, second assistant ; Roswell Hart, president ; A. M. Hastings, vice-presi-
dent; George H. Humphrey, secretary; William H. Ward, treasurer, and
Joseph B. Ward, director in the Firemen's Benevolent association. Their
quarters were under Corinthian hall, on Mill street, and were provided for
them by the city. They entered service with an active roll of forty members.
The apparatus of the company, a four-wheeled carriage, designed especially
for their needs, was drawn by hand, and from its peculiar shape it was at once
2o6 History of the City of Rociiestkr.
called "the hearse." In this carriage were carried a number of pieces of can-
vas, several canvas sacks, and a large number of leather buckets, their only
means of fighting fire. The Protectives soon proved themselves a worthy ad-
junct to the department by the removal, in many instances, of complete stocks
of goods. The guard also provided for goods thus saved found favor at once
with the merchants, who, previous to this in case of fire, were in quite as much
danger of loss by theft as from the elements themselves. Continuing prosper-
ity favored the young company for the next few years, until the war of the
rebellion called for the very best members of such an organisation. The first
to enlist were spared by the redoubled efforts of their remaining brothers, but,
as member after member left to take the place of those who had fallen — and
they were many — the company commenced to falter, and for a period it could
scarcely be- said to live ; at last, however, with the return of the survivors of
that terrible struggle, nqw life was infused, and the company found that their
quarters were not suitable.
In' 1866 they purchased a lot on the northeast corner of Mill and Market
streets, and erected a three-story building thereon for their own use. March
2Sth, 1868, they were incorporated by a special act of the legislature. New
appliances for extinguishing fires were now coming into use, and in 1870 two
chemical fire extihguishers superseded the buckets, and from this time forward
the company were enabled to compete with other branches of the department,
owing to this valuable invention. For several succeeding years the compan)'
continued to grow, and adopt such changes as were brought about by the im-
proved system of the last decade ; two modern carriages had in turn superseded
the old hearse, and the bunk-room, with its regular bunkers, was now an ab-
solute necessity. Composed of the fleetest and strongest runners, midnight
fires were now hailed with delight, and, while the desire to strictly obey the
call to duty was as strong as ever in their breasts, the love for their company,
and the determination not to retrograde, caused these young champions of
their city's welfare to accept not only the rivalry of other volunteer organisa-
tions, but that of their greatest competitor, the paid department.
In 1881, the quarters of this company again proving inadequate for the
realisation of certain hopes for the future, to further their plan they sold to one
of their members the property then occupied by them, and moved into tem-
porary quarters at number 17 Mill street, in a building owned by the Butts
estate. Completing the purchase of a valuable lot on the east side of North
Fitzhugh street, a short distance from West Main, with the proceeds of the sale
of the Market street property, negotiations were commenced with the city for
the erection of a suitable building, and the proper equipment of the same.
Partially successful in . their efforts, the city having decided to appropriate
$10,000 for the erection of a house, the members felt that they could now look
forward with certainty to the fulfillment of their fondest hopes, namely, the
The Protectives. 207
establishing of the company on the plan of the insurance patrol companies of
the large cities of this country. We say they were only partially successful in
their efforts, and for this reason. Estimates from the plans adopted by the
company clearly proved that the appropriation was not large enough to com-
plete the building, but in the following spring the city appropriated nearly
$5,000 additional, which finished a building that is now regarded a model of
beauty and convenience. Much still remained to be done, as the heating ap-
paratus, plumbing and gas-fitting were not included in the builder's contract.
The house must also be furnished in order to make it serviceable for the pur-
pose intended. In this extremity the company decided to ask the insurance
companies doing business in the city and also the business men to aid them, and
in September, 1881, appointed a committee which issued a circular showing the
record of the company from 1859 to date. By this act the company received
from the insurance companies $1,136.25, and the business men attested their
appreciation of the company's efforts in their behalf by subscribing the sum of
$2,557.86, a total of $3,694.05, all of which was expended on the house and its
furniture. May 25th, 1882, the company took possession of its new home and
formally opened the same about a month later. The rapid growth of the city
now demanded greater service from the company, and the executive board
decided to furnish them with a patrol wagon and horses and two drivers and
lay aside the hand carriage then in use. August i8th, 1882, witnessed the
change from the old style to the new, and the company, not without regrets,
gave up the rivalry that had heretofore formed part of their very existence.
The following persons have held the office of foreman : George W. Parsons,
Wm. A. Hubbard, Lyman M. Newton, Wm. R. Brown, E. A. Jaquith, Dwight
H. Wetmore, Samuel B. Williams, A. M. Semple, Henry D. Stone, L. H. Van-
Zandt, J. H. Coplin, John Craighead, Herbert S. King, S. J. Rogers, Wm. R.
Pool, E. B. Bassett, R. W. Bemish, A. M. Bristol, C. P. Dickinson, Frank W.
Kinscy. The present officers of this organisation are : Frank W. Kinsey, fore-
man ; John R. Kelly, first assistant foreman ; Charles J. Allen, second assist-
ant ;• Albert M. Bristol, president; Herbert S. King, vice-president; Edmund
J. Burke, recording secretary ; Samuel B. Williams, financial secretary ; John T.
Roberts, treasurer; Rev. Wm. H. Piatt, chaplain.
The present members of the company are divided into the honorary roll,
requiring twelve years' service in the company, numbering seventeen ; an ex-
empt roll of eleven, a roll of five associate members and. the active roll of twen-
ty-five members, in all fifty-eight members, with two drivers, who are hired by
the city, and a steward paid by the company.
In conclusion, a brief summary of the work done by this company will show
the public on what grounds they have asked and received such substantial
proofs of their appreciation. During the twenty-six years of their life as a com-
pany they have responded to more than 1,700 alarms and have done duty at
2o8 History of the City of Rochester.
nearly 1,400 actual fires, and records in possession of the fire marshals and the
company show that the property saved or removed by the direct efforts of the
company amount to many hundred thousand dollars — a remarkable showing of
a remarkable company, standing alone, as it does, the only company in the
United States performing volunteer fire patrol duty, while not deriving any
benefit from the insurance companies. The members receive no compensation
for their services and the running expenses are borne by the city government.
This is but another instance of the city's watchful care of its business interests.
The organisation of the Alert or City hose number i, the latter being the
first name of this company, was perfected September 7th, 1858, by electing
E. W. Farrington, foreman ; Herbert Churchill, assistant foreman ; John P.
Humphrey, secretary; Abram Karnes, treasurer; and W. H. Cross director of
the Firemen's Benevolent association — the foreman acting as president during
the meetings of the company. Mr. Farrington was an old New York fireman
and did much toward setting the company on the high road to success. The
other original members were : Charles H. Clark, Morris Smith, Wm. S. Grant-
synn and Walter Sabey. The Alerts were quartered under Corinthian hall
block on Mill street, being next north of the Protectives. Here they remained
until 1866, when they were forced to vacate, and, the common council not pro-
viding them with a house, they stored their carriages and for a few months did
no fire duty, although holding regular meetings in a room rented by them for
that purpose in Baker's block. They soon tired of this and made up their
mind to have a house at their own expense, and a committee soon secured
quarters in a new block on the east side of Front street. Possession was taken
on February 1st, 1867, and they were again "Ever Ready," that being the
company motto. The company numbered at this time, active, exempt and
honorary members, in all about forty. In the latter part of 1874 the city
erected a carriage house for them on the site of the old house formerly occu-
pied by "Protection" 6 and "Empire" hook and ladder number i. This is a
three- story house, with carriage room and reading-room on the first floor;
bunk room, containing six double beds, locker room, bath-room and closet on
the second and an elegant session-room and company locker on the third. It
was completed about January ist, 1875. The company immediately set about
furnishing it at their own expense, and on Saturday evening, January 23d,
187s, the company, headed by a drum corps and drawing the three carriages
owned by them, left the Front street building and marched to and took pos-
session of the house they now occupy. The company had increa.sed greatly
during the eight years on Front street and now numbered in all over one hun-
dred members. The company was incorporated on the 30th of March, 1867,
having at that time thirty-two members on the active roll, of whom fifteen were
exempt. The following have been elected foremen : E. W. Farrington, W. S.
Grantsynn, James B. Humphrey, George B. Harris, Charles H. Stilwell, Charles
Alert and Active Hose Companies. 209
B. Ayers, R. H. Warfield, F. B. Watts, E. M. Smith, John A. Baird, W. H. H.
Rogers, Wm. H. Brady, John A. Davis, Frank H. Leavenworth, Charles H.
Atkinson, Samuel A. Rose, James Cassidy, Irving C. McWhorter, John E.
Kelly, John A. Vanderwerf, Henry W. Mathews. The present officers are :
Henry W. Mathews, foreman ; George W. Scott, first assistant ; Wm. V.
Boyd, second assistant; Charles H. Atkinson, president; Robert Renfrew, jr.,
vice-president; Wm. F. Brinsmaid, recording secretary; Charles E. Boor,
financial secretary ; Thomas H. Husband, treasurer ; Rev. W. D'Orville Doty,
chaplain ; C. H. Atkinson, W. F. Brinsmaid, Simon V. McDowell, Simon Stern
and Henry W. Mathews, trustees. After twenty years' services on the active
and exempt roll a member becomes a life member' in the company, conferred,
so far, only on H. W. Mathews and G. B. Harris. The honorary roll contains
the names of ninety-four members, the exempt roll thirty-three members, the
active roll thirty-seven — in all one hundred and sixty-four members. At the
time of the great parade held in this city on August i8th, 1882, the last day
of the meeting of the New York State Firemen's association, the Alerts, on the
right of the line, had on the rope ninety-one members, three officers, one
steward, with three ort the central committee and two marshals of division, in
all one hundred members.
Active hose company number 2 dates its organisation from June 9th, 1868,
when the following persons were named as officers : President, Arthur D. Wal-
bridgc ; vice-president, Cornelius R. Parsons; secretary, J. Matthew Angle ;
treasurer, P. Frank Quin; foreman, James Cochrane; assistant foreman, S. W.
Updike, jr. ; but they did not receive their carriage until some time about No-
vember 1st, of the same year. Before that time a difference of opinion arose
among the members and resulted in a number of those who had been most
active in effecting an organisation leaving the company, whereupon they
elected a new set of officers, who were the first under whom fire duty was
done, their fir.st alarm being on November 4th, 1868. They were located at
this time on Water street, next door to steam engine number i, where they
remained until November 5th, 1873, when they opened their new house on
North St. Paul street, where they now are. The names of those who have'
held the office of foreman are : James Cochrane, Bernard Dunn, John W. Wil-
son, Owen F. Fee, Joseph F. Cochrane, William H. Tracy, William V. Clark,
Josiah J. Kinsey, Adolph H. Otto, George Ford, John B. Mooney, Morris
H. Lempert, John E. Rauber, John Leight, R. C. Reynell, H. C. Knowlton.
About the i8th of August, 1882, the company received a new hose carriage
called "the citizens' gift," as it was bought by a subscription raised for that
purpose, and intended to be drawn by horses. The present officers of the com-
panyare: President, Henry C.Wulle; vice-president, R. Charles Reynell ; record-
ing secretary, Louis Rice; financial secretary, Adolph H. Otto ; treasurer, John P.
KisHngbury; foreman, H. C. Knowlton; first assistant, John Reinhart; second
2IO History of the City of Rochester.
assistant, Louis Rice. The honorary exempt roll, which requires ten years'
service in this company, contains the names of James Malcom, A. H. Otto,
Selim Sloman ; the exempt roll contains fifteen names, the active roll sixteen
names; and besides the company has what are called "passive" members, who,
upon the payment of yearly dues of the sum of three dollars, are entitled to
the privilege of the house but have no vote in its meetings ; on this roll there
are seventeen names.
In February, 1861, two steam fire engines were brought to the city, which
were afterward known as numbers i and 3. There was at first some slight op-
position to their use and much incredulity was fdt with regard to their effect-
iveness, especially in cases where rapidity of action was concerned. This,
however, soon wore away, especially after the substitution of horses for hand
labor, which was the motive power in drawing the steamers for the first few
months. The inevitable result followed ; the old hand engines soon fell into
disuse, the paid fire department was organised in 1862 and one steamer after
another was added to the list, until there were four, ready to be called into
active work at any moment. These performed all that could be accomplished
by any number of machines at a fire, and most of them turned out at every
alarm until the Holly system of water-works went into successful operation
in 1874, when the attendance of the steamers on ordinary occasions was ren-
dered unnecessary, so that only the hose carts of the paid department turned
out at every call, together with the chemical engine or fire extinguisher. 'The
two volunteer hose companies, the sack and bucket company and the patent
Hayes truck, with long, extension ladders, which was added to the apparatus
last year, run only to boxes in the center or more thickly settled parts of the
city, while the steamers respond only to a general alarm or a special call in
case of emergency. A fifth hose cart has just been added to the paid depart-
ment. A useful factor in the suppression of fires, and one which it would now
seem almost impossible to do without, is the fire alarm telegraph, of the Game-
well system, which was accepted by the city government in March, 1869, after
its construction at a cost of $12,000. Box after box has been added, until
now there are eighty-seven in all. The telegraph was from the beginning un-
der the charge of B. F. Blackall, who was succeeded three years ago by Charles
R. Finnegan, both of whom have conducted the affairs of the office in a satis-
factory manner. No more valuable adjunct to the department exists than the
fire marshal, whose obligations are various but whose most important duty is
to examine all buildings in process of construction and to forbid their comple-
tion if it will be dangerous to human life, as well as to order the demolition of
structures that have so far gone to decay as to render them unsafe. O. L. An-
gevine filled the office for a great number of years and in 1880 gave place to
William Carroll, who in April of this year was succeeded by Arthur McCor-
mick, the present incumbent.
Firemen's Benevolent Association, 2 1 1
Of the many parades of the fire department alone, the largest and most
imposing ever given under the old volunteer system was on September 13th,
1854, when several machines from Buffalo, Batavia, Elmira, Geneseo, Oswego
and Cobourg appeared in the line, two of the visiting companies being accom-
panied by brass bands. This was eclipsed by the grand procession at the ded-
ication of the firemen's monument in 1880 and by that in August, in 1882,
when the convention of the State Firemen's association, under the presidency
of Thomas A. Raymond, of the Alert hose company of this city, was held here.
The festivities then lasted through most of the week, but the exercises were not
confined to the mere entertainment of delegates and visitors from abroad, for
they included the exhibition at a large building on North St. Paul street, which
was temporarily used as headquarters, of all imaginable contrivances for the
extinguishment of fires or connected in any way with that important service.
It will now be well to go back a little in point of time and to give a sketch of
the Firemen's Benevolent association.
From an early period in the history of the village there had been a firemen's
benevolent fund, to provide for the maintenance of the men during sickness and
for the relief of the widows and orphans after death had taken away their nat-
ural support. This fund was neither permanent in its nature nor constant in its
amount, the money being raised from time to time, as occasion demanded, and
the advisability of making it lasting and adequate to all calls upon it was be-
ginning to be realised when Colonel Thomas S. Meacham, of Pulaski, Oswego
county, offered to give the city a mammoth cheese, weighing several hundred
pounds, which had been made in his dairy, and which, according to his condi-
tions, was to be sold at auction and the proceeds " to be set apart as a fund for
the relief of the widows and orphans of firemen and for disabled firemen." The
offer was gladly accepted and at a special meeting of the common council, held
October 13th, 1835, the colonel presented the chee.se. The nutritious article
was then transferred to the corporation and sold in small pieces, the sum total
obtained being $958. 27. This became the nucleus of the permanent firemen's
fund, and to take care of it the Firemen's Benevolent association was organised
the same year and incorporated in 1837. Ten years after its foundation the
fund showed an increase of one hundred and fifty per cent., being $2,405.06,
in 1856 it was $3,848.09, in 1866 it had mounted up to $10,246.18, in 1876
it had risen to $40,303.94, and on December loth, 1883, it was $50,136.39.
In only three years has there been a decrease — one of those being 1880, when
$8,956.89 was paid for the monument — and during all this time large amounts
have been disbursed annually for relief, aggregating more than $30,000, a per-
petual bed in the City hospital, for the use of the sick poor of the department,
has been purchased at a cost of $1,500, and other large expenditures have been
made. In 1864 the association was re-incorporated under the name of the
"Rochester fire department," in order that it might receive the two per cent.
2 1 2 History of the City of Rochester.
of the premiums paid to foreign insurance companies, which those organisa-
tions had, before that time, paid to the city treasurer.
The great day of the association — or department, as it must now be
called — was September 9th, 1880, when the monument, above referred to,
was unveiled with impressive ceremonies. All the firemen in the city, exempts
as well as those in active service, turned out to do honor to the occasion, and
visiting, companies, with their apparatus, and accompanied in some cases by
their own bands, were present from Auburn, Penn Yan, Ithaca, Brockport,
Lockport, and Bradford, Pa., to join in the parade, and the solemn march to
Mount Hope. The structure stands at the end of Grove avenue, in the south-
western part of the cemetery, on a high ground overlooking the river, and giv-
ing a view of some of the most beautiful portions of the city, two miles to the
northward. From the center of a platform, twenty-four feet and three inches
square, rises the monument to a height of fifty feet, made of Vermont granite,
without a blemish in it, and constructed entirely by Rochester workmen. On
the summit of the shaft is a figure eight feet nine inches high, that of a fire-
man, wearing a fire hat, with coat on the left arm, and standing in an attitude
of rest; the words "Fire department," on one of the bases, form the only let-
tering on the work. The exercises were opened with a brief speech by An-
drew M. Semple, the president of the day, after which Dr. H. C. Riggs, of St.
Peter's church, made a prayer ; Cornelius R. Parsons, the mayor of the city,
delivered an address ; then followed, after music, an address by James H.
Kelly, a. poem written for the occasion by Mrs. J. G. Maurer, and read by Dr.
Riggs, an address by John W. Stebbins, and the benediction by Rev. Byron
Holley, of St. Luke's.
The first officers of the association were : President, Erastus Cook ; vice-
presidents, Peter W. Jennings and William Blossom ; treasurer, John Williams ;
secretary, William R. Montgomery ; collector, A. J. Langworthy ; directors.
Engine company number i, William S. Whittlesey; number 2, Edward Rog-
gen ; number 3, Isaac Hellems; number 4, John T. Tallman ; number 5, E. B.
Wheeler; number 6, William Ailing; hook and ladder number i, William
Brewster; number 2, James Bradshaw ; hose number i, Heman Loom'is.
The different presidents from that time on were William Brewster, Martin
Briggs, George Arnold, George W. Parsons, XVilliam E. Lathrop, John Craigie,
George B. Harris, A. S. Lane, Joseph B. Ward, John Cowles, S. M. Stewart,
Law S. Gibson, L. W. Clarke, Thomas H. Husband, Henry W. Mathews and
Theron E. Parsons. The following are the names of the ch ief-engineers, from
their time of service, and the names of the various assistants : Samuel Works,
1826-31 ; W. H. Ward, 1832 and 1834-35 '> Thomas Kempshall, 1833; Theo-
dore Chapin, 1836; Alfred Judson, 1837-38 and 1840; P. W. Jennings, 1839
and 1 841; A. J. Langworthy, 1842; George W. Parsons, 1843-44; T. B.
Hamilton, 1845, 1847-48 and 1850; S. M. Sherman, 1846 and 1851-54;
Notable Fires. 213
James Cowles, 1849; William H. Sprung, 1855-56; Zachariah Weaver, 1857-
58 and 1868; George 13. Harris, August, 1858-62 and 1865-67; John Mc-
Mullen, 1863; P. H. Sullivan, 1864; Wendel Bayer, December, 1868-69 and
1880; Law S. Gibson, 1870-79 and 1881-84. Assistants, W. H. Ward, James
K. Livingston, Theodore Chapin, K. H. Van Rensselaer, W. S. Whittlesey,
Erastus Cook, Alfred Judson, P. D. Wright, Reuben A. Bunnell, P. W. Jen-
nings, I. H. Babcock, William P. Smith, A. J. Langworthy, G. W. Parsons, T.
B. Hamilton, George Charles, Thomas Hawks, S. M. Sherman, U. C. Edger-
ton, George W. Biirnap, John Craigie, James Cowles, J. P. Steele, Benjamin
H. Hill, M.H. Jennings, James Melvin, William Melvin,,W. H. Sprung, Ed-
ward Madden, Valentine Shale, Zachariah Weaver, John Cowles, J. N. M.
Weeks, S. M. Stewart, John R. Steele, John McMullen, Joseph Consler, Jo-
seph Corbin, John D. Pike, Robert B. Randall, Joseph Franklin, Jeremiah
Twaige, A. Galley Cooper, Friend W. Hines, John McMahon, Wendel Bayer,
P. H. Sullivan, Thomas O'Brien, John Arth, James White, James Malcom,
August Bauer, Charles Frank, Law S. Gibson, Thomas Crouch, Ralph- Ben-
don, John F. Goldsmith, John C. Connolly, Henry W. Mathews, Samuel Be-
mish, Anthony Kassel, John O'Kane, James Plunkett.
An organisation known as the Rochester Fire Engineers' association, con-
sisting of ex-chiefs and ex-assistant engineers, was formed on the 28th of
March, 1883, with the election of the following officers: George B. Harris,
president ; Zachariah Weaver, vice-president ; H. W. Mathews, secretary ;
Wendel Bayer, treasurer.
Anything like a full description of all the fires that have occurred here
would of course be impossible, and those that are named below are by no
means the only ones which created excitement at the time or required. hard
work on the part of the firemen before they could be extinguished. Some of
the mill fires have made a brighter blaze, and some of the burnings of lumber
yards and wood-work manufactories have entailed more prolonged labor of
the department, but they were not destructive of life nor did they bear away
with them in their ascending smoke the memory of old associations. The first
fire in the little village was on Sunday, December 5th, 18 19, when the build-
ing just east of where the Arcade now is, containing the office of the Gazette,
was burned; Edwin Scrantom, an apprentice of the establishment, was asleep
there at the time and would have awakened only to a fiery death had not
James Frazer, at the risk of his life, burst through the flames and rescued him.
The first fatality occurred December 2ist, 1827, when Thomas M. Rathbun,
of hook and ladder number i, was killed by a falling chimney at the burning
of Everard Peck's paper-mill, on South Water street, where Charles J. Hill's
flouring mill stood in later years. Only three alarms were given in 1836, and
but two of those were for fires of any magnitude — Lewis Selye's engine
factory and Jonathan Child's " Marble block," on Exchange street, just south
214 History of the City of Rochester.
of the canal. On the 26th of August, 1840, George B. Benjamin and John
Eaton, both firemen, were killed by a falling wall at the burning of the Curtis
building, on Main street. The old Mansion House, on State street, built in
1 82 1, was burned February 2d, 1844. May 2d, 1846, the old stone block
built by Hervey Ely in 1 8 1 7 on the corner of Main and State streets, where
the Burns block was afterward put up and where the Elwood block now stands,
was destroyed, and the Democrat office, which occupied a part of the building,
was ruined. In July, 1847, Grace church, on the site of the present structure,
was burned to the ground.
The destruction of "Chicken row," on the 3l[st of March, 1853, where the
Rochester savings bank now stands, did not amount to much of a conflagra-
tion, but it removed a notorious landmark and formed the subject of conversa-
tion for almost a month, when it was put out of mind by the calamity of the
burning, on the 29th of April in the same year, of the Rochester House. This
noted hotel, which in the early days of the canal was inseparably connected
with the glories of that great water-way, was a large structure on Exchange
street, extending from the canal to Spring street ; in its latter days it was
kept by E. W. Bryan as a temperance house and on the final night there were
ninety guests sleeping in it, all of whom escaped-, but four employees of the
place — three women and a man — were unable to get out and were burned to
death. Within a year from that time another hotel, the Blossom House (where
the Osburn House afterward stood), was destroyed, January 24th, 1854, the
fire beginning at three in the night and lasting till the next afternoon; the mer-
cury fell to zero soon after daylight, the pipes froze stiff, faster than they could
be thawed, men and machines were almost encased in ice, the free use of liquor
made the matter worse and one company was sent home by Mayor Williams
for its bad conduct. Early in the morning of November 21st, 1857, the Eagle
bank block, a fine six-story edifice, on the site of the present Masonic Hall
block, burned to the ground; Patrick Heavey and William Cleator, of engine
company number 2, were killed by a falling chimney; the Democrat establish-
ment, occupying the fourth and fifth floors, was again completely destroyed
and the Commercial bank building, next east, was crushed by a falling wall.
We now come to the most destructive fire, in point of pecuniary value, that
ever visited our city. Soon after eleven o'clock on the night of August 17th,
1858, flames were seen issuing from the livery stable of Heavey & McAnally,
on Minerva alley, and before daylight every building on the south side of Main
street from St. Paul to Stone street, including the Third Presbyterian church
and Minerva hall, was in ruins, five business blocks and twenty stores being
thus destroyed; the loss was $175,000, insurance nearly two-thirds of that;
water was difficult to get at and the firemen were somewhat fatigued by a long
walk in procession early in the evening, as well as by a $25,000 fire in Water
street the night before. On the lOth of November, 1859, the Unitarian church.
Notable Fires. 2 1 5
on Fitzhugh street, was burned, and just a month later the Second Baptist
cliurch, on the corner of Clinton and Main streets. The old Bethel church on
Washington street, next to the canal, which had long been vacant, as the con-
gregation had built the Central church, was burned on the night of November
24th, 1 861 ; a large tin dome stood above the roof, and as the heated air filled
its interior it rose like a balloon and soared away to quite a distance, present-
ing a brilliant and peculiar sight. For a fourth time the department suffered
a loss in its membership, when John D. Pike, Henry P'orscheler and Joseph
Wernette fell at the post of duty and died while fighting the flames at the burn-
ing of Washington hall on the 4th of May, 1867. March 17th, 1868, St.
Peter's (Presbyterian) church was burned, and on the 19th of December in the
same year the Deinocrat office underwent a third cremation, being burned out
completely in the conflagration that destroyed much of the old Eagle Hotel
block and extended through from Pindell alley to State street, taking in the
Union bank building and other property adjacent. The First Presbyterian
church, then unoccupied, where the city hall now stands, was burned on the 2d
of May, 1869, and the Opera House on the 6th of November in the same
year.
An ancient memorial of the city was lost when the old Hervey Ely mill, at
the east end of the aqueduct, went up in smoke in the early morning of August
24th, 1870, and the third week in December of that year gave hard work to
the department by three successive all-night fires — those of the Boston mill,
the Pool building (in which the Democrat job- room was burned) and the rag
warehouse of McVean & Hastings, on Exchange street, where the Daily Union
building now is. The fire in Stewart's block, on North Water street, January
1 8th, 1874, is noteworthy for being that at which the first stream was thrown
from the water- works hydrants. July 19th, 1876, a fire on Warehouse street,
near the canal, consumed five shops and factories ; John R. Marks, not a fire-
man, was burned to death. Another loss of life occurred at the burning of
Tower's thermometer works, on Exchange street, in consequence of the explo-
sion of some material there used; John Prescott, one of the workmen, was
caught fast by the flying debris and slowly perished in the flames. One of the
finest pyrotechnic displays, of late years at least, was at the destruction, on the
7th of April, 1880, of the "Beehive," an old building on Aqueduct street,
which was built in 1827 by E. S. Beach, Thomas Kempshall and Henry Ken-
nedy, and was used as a flour mill by the two first named, one after the other,
till the death of Mr. Kempshall, in 1865, when it was remodeled inside and
used thereafter for a great number of manufacturing industries. This will close
the fire record.
2i6 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXVII.
LIBRARIES AND LITERATURE.
The First Public Library — The Franklin Instilute — The Athenaeum — The Central Library — The
Law Library — The Young Men's Christian Association — The Literary Union — "The Club" — The
Fortnightly — The Shakespeare Club.
THE first organised association in this place for the dissemination of knowl-
edge by means of a public library was the Franklin Institute, but before
that there was at least an effort made in the same airection, as is shown by this
extract from the first volume of miscellaneous records in the county clerk's
office : —
"I, Jonathan Child, having been, at a meeting of two-thirds of such persons as have in
writing under their hands signified their consent and desire to associate themselves together
for the purpose of procuring and erecting a public library, held at the house of John G.
Christopher in said county of Monroe and state of New York, on the second Tuesday
of April 1822, the time and place previously agreed upon by a majority of such persons
as aforesaid, duly elected chairman, do hereby certify, in conformity to the statute in
such cases made and provided , that at such a meeting at the place and on the day aforesaid
Levi Ward, jr., Joseph Penney, Francis H. Cuming, Joseph Spencer, William Pitkin, Ash-
ley Sampson, William Atkinson, Abraham Plumb, Elisha Taylor, Anson Coleman, Enos
Pomeroy and Jonathan Child were by plurality of voices duly elected to serve as trustees
of ' the Rochester Literary company,' in said village of Rochester for the ensuing year."
Whether this company ever went into active operation cannot be definitely
ascertained. If it did so, however, it must have been short-lived, for the di-
rectory of 1827 makes no mention of it, but, on the contrary, distinctly says : —
"There is as yet no public library of general literature nor public seminary of educa-
tion. Measures are in operation, however, for prosecuting both these objects, which it is
hoped the present year will see in a good state of advancement."
At that very time the Franklin institute w^as in existence, for it was organ-
ised on the 13th of October, 1826, but its library was scientific, not literary, as
will be seen by this extract from its constitution : —
"The objects which the Franklin institute shall have especially in view shall be the es-
tablishment of a library for the use of the members, consisting of books on the arts,
sciences and manufactures, a museum of models of machines, a cabinet of mineralogy,
geology, and chemical substances, scientifically arranged ; lectures and apparatus for
illustrating the sciences connected with the mechanical arts, and mutual instruction in el-
ementary sciences as far as practicable."
The origin of the institute was in a course of lectures delivered here in that
year by Prof Eaton of Troy, which must have been well supported, for at their
close the managers found themselves in possession of a surplus of two or three
hundred dollars. This they resolved to devote to the establishment of a pub-
lic library, which was accordingly opened in rooms on the corner of Main and
Canal streets (now Water street); this was in the building formerly occupied by
Franklin Institute. — Athenaeum. 217
the Eagle bank. The aflfairs of the institute were conducted by a committee of
seven, who were chosen annually. The first committee consisted of Rev. Joseph
Penney, Rev. F. H. Cuming, Levi Ward, jr., Elisha Johnson, Jacob Graves,
Giles Boulton and Edwin Stanley. At the commencement of the year 1827
the association consisted of about seventy members and had obtained a small
cabinet of minerals, a library and several models of machines, and had be-
gun a system of cultivating knowledge in the arts and sciences by lectures,
experiments, and such examinations and inquiries as the means of the institute
would admit of At that day the privileges of such an association were highly
prized, as the fee of admission to membership was $5, subject to an annual
tax of $2.
Out of the Franklin institute grew the Rochester Athenseum and Mechanics'
Literary association, generally known by the shorter title of the Athenaeum,
which indeed was its name at first and until it was consolidated with other or-
ganisations. The following is from its annual report for 1859 : —
"Shortly after the foundation of the Franklin institute the Rochester Athenseum was
organised, in 1829, and, being incorporated in 1830, continued for some years. Its first
rooms were in the Reynolds arcade. At this time the library consisted of four hundred
volumes, and the papers received were eleven daily, four semi-weekly, and thirteen
weekly-. After that time it fell into a languishing condition, its books stored away and
its members inactive. It continued thus until 1838, when, by a union with the Young
Men's Literary association (which had been founded a short time before), new Hfe was
infused into it, and the two associations continued for some time to enlist the interest of
our citizens. In 1844 (their rooms being then in Smith's arcade) the library consisted of
2,700 volumes. After some time, however, the interest in the association decreased,
and in 1849 it was deemed advisable to effect a coalition with the Mechanics' Literary
association, which had been organised in February, 1836, and incorporated February
25th, 1839. This institution was in possession of a Ubrary of about 1,500 volumes. It
had regularly kept up a series of weekly debates, and had also held several exhibitions or
fairs of mechanical inventions, etc. The diploma awarded to exhibitors on such occa-
sions is here presented, and was really a creditable production for the time, though as
you will readily perceive, the locomotive is of rather a primitive construction. Immediately
after the combination of the two societies, they removed to their rooms (in Corinthian
hall building), and the first lecture before the association was dehvered by Rev. J. H.
Mcllvaine, on the 28th of June, 1849."
On the 30th of August a new constitution was adopted — and the first elec-
tion under it held in Arcade hall on the third Monday of September, 1849.
Levi A. Ward was elected president to serve for the remainder of the year.
In January, 1850, Mr. Ward was reelected for a full term. The good work
done by the Athenaeum in the way of providing lectures during a long series
of years is well known to most of our readers, who, by the purchase of course
tickets, kept alive the institution, for the sums derived from the sale of member-
ship tickets were by no means sufficient for that purpose. In the course of
each winter, for year after year, the best lyceum orators in the country spoke
to large audiences, and few of that class who had attained any eminence what-
2i8 History of the City of Rochester.
ever failed to be called upon or failed to respond. With regard to the number
of volumes in the library any statement that could be made would be imperfect
and unsatisfactory. In the time of its greatest prosperity the number was not
far from 25,000, but, as the fortunes of the institution waned, the volumes grew
fewer and fewer, many were borrowed and not returned, many were rendered
worthless by their constant usage, and the number now remaining stored to-
gether is about 17,000. The favorable lease under which the association had
occupied the rooms in the Corinthian hall block expired in 1 871, when, rents
having largely increased, application was made to the trustees of the Rochester
savings bank for the use of the upper story of tkeir building, located on the
corner of Main and Fitzhugh streets. The request was promptly acceded to
and the association was granted the uSe of the rooms free of expense, which they
occupied for a few years and then removed, first to the court-house and then
to rooms on Fitzhugh street. Here, in 1877, the usefulness of the association
came to an end, the books and other documents passing into the possession of
M. F. Reynolds and George S. Riley, the latter of whom at a later day trans-
ferred his interest in the property to the former gentleman, by whom it has been
transferred to the trustees of the Reynolds library, for the benefit of the city.
The following are the names of the different presidents of the Athenaeum asso-
ciation : 1849 and '50, Levi A. Ward; 1851, George W. Parsons; 1852, George
S.Riley; 1853, B.R. McAlpine; 1 854, Edward M. Smith ; 1855, John N. Pome-
roy; 1856, George G. Clarkson ; 1857-58 D. D. T. Moore; 1859, W. V. K.
Lansings i860, Ira B. Northrop ; 1861, Charles C. Morse; 1862, John Bower;
1863, Ezra R. Andrews; 1864, Wm. A. Reynolds; 1865, Charles B. Hill;
1866, De Lancey Crittenden ; 1867, Edward Webster; 1867, M. H. FitzSi-
mons ; 1868, Theron E. Parsons; 1869, M. H. FitzSimons; 1870, Thomas
Dransfield; 1871, A. M. Semple; 1872, C. E. Morris; 1873, J. H. Kelly;
1874, Jonas Jones.
The Central library was established in 1863, by consoUdating seventeen
school libraries into one. Selections from these were made, and in addition a
few valuable works were purchased, making one thousand volumes, thus form-
ing a foundation on which this library was built. It was first established in
suitable rooms in Baker's block, on West Main street, and in 1875 it was
removed to its present commodious quarters in the Free academy building, on
Fitzhugh street. Mrs. W. H. Learned was appointed the first assistant libra-
rian in 1870, and was succeeded in 1881 by Mrs. Katherine J. Dowling, the
present incumbent. An annual state appropriation of $879 is. devoted solely
to the purchase of books, and so carefully and substantially have these been
selected by the library committee every year, that each classified division of
volumes has grown in harmony, requiring additional alcoves annually, until
this library has to-day 15,000 volumes, mostly works of fair literary value.
It has a patronage of five thousand readers, and for many years was the only
Atlaiitifc Puihsluu^ ScEu^HViiig Co. ITT.
Law Library. — The Y. M. C. A. 219
one open to the public for reference and circulation, and to-day vies in extent,
variety and usefulness with older institutions of its kind.
The Law library, though intended specially for the use of the profession,
contains many works of interest, not, perhaps, to those classed under the in-
definite head of "general readers," but certainly to bibliophiles and those who
are able to appreciate the worth of a rare volume. It is a part of the law
library of the court of Appeals, much of which is in the capitol at Albany, the
books here being one-half of those that wer6 left after the judges had selected
what they considered necessary for their own use ; the other moiety of the un-
chosen volumes was sent to Syracuse. The library, which was brought here
in 1850, has at present more than 10,000 books, the value of which is not far
from $50,000, and many of these are of great worth on account of their an-
tiquity and their rarity. Over one hundred of them are printed in "black let-
ter," and some of them are more than three hundred years old — such as Brac-
ton's treatise on the laws and customs of England (in Latin), published in 1540,
and Fitzherbert's abridgment of laws (in Norman French), published in 1565 —
while there are more than a dozen volumes of reports by Noy, Fopham, Little-
ton and other great lawyers, published in the seventeenth century. The libra-
rian is L. R. Satterlee.
On March 17th, 1854, the young men of Rochester banded themselves in
a Young Men's Christian association, for mental and moral improvement. This
.society struggled through a few years of many discouragements until finally it
was disbanded. In the year 1864 the young men once more felt the need of
some society where they might get spiritual improvement, and help their fel-
low-men. With this purpose in view the association was reorganised, with G.
W. Parsons as president and George H. Dana as corresponding secretary. -
From the lack of zeal and energy the association lived only about six years.
In 187s the association was once more organised. This time, with good man-
agement, it steadily increased, both in membership and in the extent of work.
Of this organisation Horace McGuire was president, N. B. Randall correspond-
ing secretary, and F. L. Smith general secretary. In 1879 George C. Buell was
elected president, and has served the association as such to the present time of
writing. From 1875 D. L. Ogden, H. J. Reynolds, F. R. Wardle and F. De S.
Helmer have been the general secretaries. Mention has been made of the good
management of the present organisation ; with zeal, tact and tenacity added to
this, the work of the association has been brought before the public in such a
manner that it is recognised as a public benefaction. To give an idea of this
growth, the following statistics will speak for themselves : In 1880 the average
attendance at the reading-room was 250 per week.' In 1884 three hundred is
thus far the average of oite day. The year 1 880 saw but four meetings, which
were attended by both sexes, and very thinly. The present year (1884) all
meetings but two were for young men only, with an average attendance of
220 History of the City of Rochester.
twice the number in former years. Evening classes, in different English
branches, are very well attended, and great interest is exhibited. President,
George C. Buell ; vice-president. Prof. A. H. Mixer ; recording secretary, A.
N. Fitch; treasurer, C. F. Pond; general secretary, F. De S. Helmer; assist-
ant secretaries, C. W. Foreman and Edward S. Simmons.
The object of the Young Men's Catholic association is to cultivate a love of
morality, law and good citizenship among the youth of Rochester, to combine
the elevation of the mind with the development of the body by the alternation
of literary exercises with physical improvement. The organisation was effected
on the 25th day of March, 1872, by the election of the following officers:
President, Right Rev. B. J. McQuaid, D. D.; first vice-president, Charles
FitzSimons ; second vice-president, John Odenbach ; treasurer, William Pur-
cell ; corresponding secretary, F. A. Shale ; recording secretary, John C.
O'Brien. The association was incorporated the 3d of the following month. A
month before the organisation Bishop McQuaid had purchased, in his own
name, but really as trustee for the future society, the ground on the corner of
West Main street and Montgomery alley, then occupied by the Exchange
Hotel, for $30,000, the o\yner of which, C. B. Woodward, refused an offer of
$5, 000 more before the papers were drawn up. On the 4th of April the bishop
transferred the property to the association, and one year later, when the old
leases had expired, the erection of a building was begun, which was completed
before the next October. It is a sightly edifice, costing nearly $40,000,
seventy-severi and a half feet in front, eighty feet deep, with a wing twenty-six
by forty-two feet, and is four stories in height, the upper floor being used as a
gymnasium and occupied by the Athletic club, the one below that for the
purposes of the brganisation, including the exercises of the Literary Union, and
the other floors for offices and stores ; its architect was A. J. Warner. There
have been few changes in its directorship, and its present officers are the same
as given above, except that Timothy Whalen is now the second vice-pre.sident
and Dr. Richard Curran is the treasurer.
One of the most popular Catholic societies in Rochester at the present
time is the Rochester Literary Union, of which the following sketch was fur-
nished by E. J. Kelly: It was organised in the spring of 1875, with twenty-
five charter members. Its main object was to unite the Catholic young men
of the city without distinction as to nationality. They unanimously elected as
their first president, William Purcell, who for two years labored with the great-
est zeal to make the organisation what it is at the present time, the representa-
tive Catholic association of the city. Mr. Purcell was succeeded by James Fee,
who during his term of office did much for the improvement of the association
and by his liberality on many occasions evinced the interest he took in the
Literary Union. He was followed by William C. Barry, whose administration
was most successful. Mr. Barry has been succeeded by Patrick Mahon, Pat-
"The Cluu." — Fortnightly Club. 221
rick Cox, Patrick H. Magill (who scarcely had assumed his duties when he was
stricken by death, much to the sorrow of the association), Patrick Cauley, Bar-
tholomew Keeler, and Matthew Swan, the present incumbent. The Union has
had to record the death, during its existence, of six members, who in their life-
time were most active in their efforts to promote the welfare of the society.
They are as follows : Thomas F. Maher, Edward Maher, Edward Downey,
Patrick Mahon, Patrick H. Magill, Timothy G. M. Fahy and Professor Francis
H. Kennedy, who passed away much regretted by the association.
"The Club" is the comprehensive and non-descriptive title of a literary
organisation of high standing, which for thirty years has been in the habit of
meeting in alternate weeks, except during the warm weather, at the house of one
member after another, to listen to a paper read by one of the club, each in
turn taking his part as the contributor for the evening, and the others taking
up, in regular order, the discussion of the article after its reading. The subject
selected for treatment is in each case at the choice of the author, but naturally,
as a general rule, in the line of his tasks, his thoughts or his studies at that
time, and the names of the members will, of themselves, give to the readers
of this chapter a fair intimation of the nature, at least, of the topics upon
which the different discourses are founded. A preliminary meeting, for the
formation of the club, was held at the house of the late Lewis H. Morgan, on
the evening of July 13th, 1854, the first literary session being on the 7th of
the following November. For several years past the club has been frequently
called "the Pundit," but this appellation is disclaimed by those belonging to
it. The following arc the names of all who have been members, the first six-
teen being of those who are at present actively connected with it, the others
of those who have died or withdrawn from membership : —
President M. B. Anderson, Prof. A. C. Kendrick, Prof. A. H. Mixer, Dr. E. M.
Moore, F. L. Durand, F. A. Whittlesey, Theodore Bacon, Prof. S. A. Lattimore, Presi-
dent A. H. Strong, Prof. W. C. Wilkinson, Dr. W. S. Ely, Prof. W. C. Morey, Prof.
Howard Osgood, Oscar Craig, Dr. E. V. Stoddard, J. Brack Perkins, Calvin Huson, jr..
Rev. Dr. J. H. Mcllvaine, Lewis H. Morgan, Prof. J. H. Raymond, E. Peshine Smith,
Prof. Chester Dewey, Judge Harvey Humphrey, Prof. J. N. Pomeroy, S. D. Porter, Dr.
W. W. Ely, S. P. Ely, G. H. Ely, Prof. S. S. Cutting, President E. G. Robinson, Rev.
Henry Fowler, J. W. Dwinelle, L. A. Ward, Rev. Dr. G. D. Boardman, Prof. H. A.
Ward, Dr. H. W. Dean, Judge H. R. Selden, Rev. Dr. Calvin Pease, G. H. Mumford,
Judge G. F. Danforth, Rev. Dr. E. D. Yeoraans, W. F. Cogswell, Robert Carter, Prof.
R. J. W. Buckland, Judge E. Darwin Smith.
Following the example of the club described above, a few persons in 1881
agreed upon the advisability of establishing a similar institution, and the mat-
ter took shape a few months later, when the first session, without a preliminary
meeting, was held on the 23d of February, of "the Fortnightly" club, which
formed its organisation by the single act of electing a secretary. Dr. Dewey,
who has acted in that capacity ever since. While the Fortnightly has no or-
ganic constitution and no by-laws of any kind, its customs are the same with
222 History of the City of Rochester.
those of the older body. Its meetings are held every alternate Tuesday, with-
out exception, from the middle of October to the middle of May, and at each
an original paper is read. The first members were C. E. Fitch, M. W. Cooke,
Judge F. A. Macomber, Dr. C. A. Dewey, Dr. Porter Farley, Rev. N. M.
Mann, Robert Mathews, Rev. Myron Adams, Dr. C. E. Rider, J. P. Varnum,
Rev. Dr. Max Landsberg, Wm. F. Peck. Since the beginning Judge Macom-
ber has withdrawn and W. E. Hoyt and Dr. David Little have been elected in.
There is another club of a nature similar to that of the two just mentioned,
the membership of which embraces persons of both sexes, but, as it has pre-
served its anonymity during all the years of its existence, nothing more can be
said about it. The Browning club is another literary coterie, but its purpose is
the discussion of the works of standard English poets, rather than the reading
of original papers.
The Shakespeare club was organised December 15th, 1865, mainly through
the efforts of Rev. F. W. Holland. Twenty-eight persons were enrolled as
members at the first meeting. The average attendance at present, however, is
about sixteen. Meetings are held every Tuesday, from the first of November
until the first of May. The officers are : President, James L. Angle ; secre-
tary, De L. Crittenden.
CHAPTER XXVni.
associations— SCIENTIFIC, SOCIAL, POLITICAL, ETC.
The Academy of Science — The Rochester Club — The Rochester Whist Cluh — The Eureka Club
— The Abelard Club — The Mutual Club — The Celtic Club — The Commercial Travelers' Club —
The Irish National League — The Civil Service Reform Association — The Lincoln Club — The River-
side Rowing Club — The Canoe Club.
THE Rochester Microscopical society was organised January 13th, 1879, by
a few gentlemen interested in scientific studies. The question of organr
ising an academy of science was considered ; but it was deemed best to begin
with that department in which the most interest was then manifested, viz., mi-
croscopy, and afterward extend the scope of the society, if desired. The soci-
ety grew rapidly, and at the end of two years was the largest organisation of
the kind in the United States. March 14th, 1881, the suggested change was
effected, the scope of the society extended, its name changed, and its constitu-
tion and by-laws revised. Sections have been formed in several departments,
and considerable work is being done. The society was incorporated May 14th,
1 88 1, as the Rochester Academy of Science. The incorporators were the ofii-
Academy of Sciences. — Rochester Club. 223
cers of the academy for 1881: Rev. Myron Adams, president; H. Franklin
Atwood, vice-president ; Charles E. Rider, treasurer ; Henry C. Maine, secre-
tary ; Adelbcrt Cronise, corresponding secretary ; Samuel A. Lattimore, Wil-
liam Streeter and Cyrus F. Paine, trustees.
The object of the organisation is to promote scientific study and research,
and especially a thorough knowledge of the natural history of that part of the
state of New York in the vicinity of Rochester, and to make permanent collec-
tions of objects illustrative of the different branches of science. The following
sections have been formed, since the organisation of the academy: Anatomy,
astronomy, botany, entomology, conchology, hygiene, ichthyology, infusoria,
literature, microscopy, photography, taxidermy. Each of these sections is or-
ganised with such officers as the members may deem proper, and regular meet-
ings are held. The meetings of the academy are held in a large hall in the Ar-
cade, which has been devoted to the use of the academy by the owner, Morti-
mer F.. Reynolds. The membership of the academy is nearly 300. Good
progress has been made in the various departments of research. Collections
have been made by the sections of botany and entomology. The section of
astronomy is well equipped with instruments, and some excellent work has
been done. The orbits of several binary stars have been calculated, the sun .
has been successfully photographed and systematic observations have been
made. The section of botany has nearly completed a collection of the flora
of Western New York. The section of microscopy has done much valuable
work. The section of hygiene has organised a system of popular lectures on
hygienic subjects that have proved very valuable. The section of anatomy has
conducted lectures illustrafed by dissections. The photographic section has
done excellent work, both in field-photography and in micro-photography.i
The Rochester club was formed in i860, James Terry being the first presi-
dent, and the rooms occupied at the beginning being over. the present Bank of
Monroe. A few years later a change of location was made to the Ellwanger
& Barry block, on State street, and in 1877 a further move was made to the
luxurious apartments that constitute the third floor of the Rochester savings
bank building. The membership of the club, which was incorporated in
1869, is about 150, the number having been only slightly increased for several
years, as the club has been a strong one from its inception. The present offi-
cers are: A. .M. Bennett, president; H. B. Hathaway, vice-president; E. B.
Jennings, secretary, and Levi F. Ward, treasurer.
In October, 1882, a few gentlemen who were well inclined to whist formed
an organisation called the Rochester Whist club, for the purpose of playing the
game and improving themselves in it, the name adopted being descriptive of
the general object. Rooms were taken in the Cox building, on the corner of
Main and Water streets, but in a short time the membership had increased to
1 The sketch of the Academy of Science was kindly furnished by Henry C. Maine.
224 History of the City of Rochester.
such an extent — partly by the absorption of the old Audubon club — that
larger accommodations were needed and the association, in March, 1883, moved
to the Howe building, on North Fitzhugh street. In the course of the last
year a further expansion became more and more essential, and finally, in the
early part of this year, a second change was made, the club taking a lease of
the quarters occupied up to that time by the Windsor club, which then dis-
solved. The suite of commodious and elegant apartments, occupying the whole
front and other portions of the third floor of the Ellwanger & Barry block,
consists of seven rooms, which include a reception room, a reading-room, a
billiard-room, a card-room, an eating-room, etc. '^The club, in its purposes and
its pursuits, has long since outgrown the original designs of its founders, but
the old name is retained and under that title it was incorporated at the begin-
ning of this year. It numbers, at present, about one hundred members. The
officers for the year are: John E. Morey, president; William Mudgett, vice-
president; Homer Jacobs, secretary, and William E. Witherspoon, treasurer.
The Phoenix club was organised in 1872 as a society for the promotion of
social intercourse and amusement among the Jews. It erected a costly build-
ing on North Clinton street, and was in a flourishing condition until 1882, when
it was deemed advisable to dissolve the club, and the building was sold to the
Odd Fellows. A number of the former members of the Phoenix club then
banded together and formed the Eureka club for the same purposes. They
purchased the former Barton residence and transformed it into a luxurious
club-house. A large hall and a bowling-alley were added to the building,
and the society is now in a prosperous condition. The officers for this year
are : J. W. Rosenthal, president ; A. J. Katz, vice-president ; Benjamin Munk,
secretary ; treasurer, J. Michaels.
The Abelard club. — Only Knights Templar are eligible to membership
in this club, which was organised in 1872 and incorporated in 1875. It num-
bers more than one hundred and is one of the most influential organisations of
the kind in the city. It has three rooms, well furnished, on an upper floor of
the Powers block. The officers of the present year are : Charles T. Crouch,
president; Alfred H. Cork, vice-president; P. S. Wilson, secretary, and N. S.
Phelps, treasurer.
The Mutual club was organised on the 22d of February, 1881, and rapidly
increased in membership till it attained the number of seventy-five. It differs
from all social clubs in this city in that the wives of the members are eligible
to election, and the majority, perhaps, of those ladies have availed themselves
of the privilege. One evening in each week is devoted to a reunion of the
members of the club, of both sexes, at the rooms, of which there are four, in
the Powers block. The present officers are James Sargent, president ; J. W.
Archer, vice-president; J. Z. Culver, secretary, and H. W. Wilcox, treasurer.
The Celtic club, whose name shows the nationality of its members, is of a
Post A, C. T. A. — Irish Mutual League. 225
social character, though joining with that an efiTort for the mutual improvement
of its constituents. It was organised ten years ago, and its rooms have always
been in the Powers block. The present ofificers are : J. M. Murphy, president ;
Edward Julian, vice-president ; J. J. O'Byrne, recording secretary ; William
Gleason, treasurer, and Michael O'Connor, financial secretary.
Post A, Commercial Travelers' association. — The good-fellowship and
geniality of temperament that have always characterised the members of this
association led them to form themselves into a social organisation, on the 12th
of January of this year, both for the recreation of those who reside here, and
for the entertainment of those of the brotherhood who might be stopping here
on business. Rooms were at once taken on North Fitzhugh street, near West
Main, and the readiness with which the local "travelers" joined the new insti-
tution showed the desirability of its existence. The officers are : Abner B.
Wool, president ; H. M. Fuller and J. C. Bertholf, vice-presidents ; John W.
Taylor, secretary and treasurer, and W. H. Horton, recording secretary.
The Monroe county branch of the Irish National league of America, hav-
ing its headquarters in Rochester, came into existence April 29th, 1883, on
which day the principles set forth two days before by a convention in Phila-
delphia, called to cooperate with the Irish National league of Ireland, were
adopted as the principles of the new organisation. The objects which the Irish
National league was formed to attain for Ireland are national self-government,
land law reform; local self-government, extension of the parliamentary and
municipal franchises, and the development and encouragement of the labor and
industrial interests of Ireland. The principal purpose of the league in America
is to earnestly and actively sustain the Irish National league in Ireland, with
moral and material aid in achieving self-government for Ireland. The original
society from which the local society sprang was the Monroe County Irish Na-
tional Land League Relief association, which was organised on Sunday, Feb-
ruary 1st, 1880, at a meeting held in this city to form a permanent organisation
to assist Ireland materially in the famine then prevailing in the island, and to
keep up agitation against the system of land tenure, and political evils imposed
by England on the country, until those evils shall be removed. Any person
was eligible to membership who professed sympathy with the movement, and
paid ten cents a week into the treasury.
The officers of the society during the first year were : President, William
Purcell ; vice-president, A. B. Lamberton ; corresponding secretary, Patrick
Mahon ; treasurer, Patrick Cox ; financial secretary, Martin Barron ; recording
secretary, George F. Flannery. Dr. J. W. Casey was elected president for the
years 1881 and 1882, but declined the third term, and was succeeded by H. P.
Mulligan, who, in 1884, had as his successor Bartholomew Keeler, the incum-
bent at date of writing. No salary whatever is paid any of the officers. The
society, in addition to weekly meetings, at which European and American pub-
226 History of the City of Rochester.
lie men have spoken in behalf of the purposes of the league, has also printed
and distributed free in America and Europe thousands of documents relating
to the agitation in which it is engaged. The money which it has collected and
sent to Ireland amounts at this date to $i2,ooo. The last declaration of con-
sequence made by the league previous to the writing of this sketch was to
pledge itself to pay salaries to those Irish members of parliament who are
faithful to the interests of Ireland, but whose own means are not enough to
support them while attending exclusively to legislative duties. ^
The Civil Service Reform association was organised on the 26th of Octo-
ber, 1882, having for its immediate object the passage of laws opening appoint-
ment in the civil service of the United States to those who might satisfactorily
pass a competitive examination. It was constituted in affiliation with' the more
general association in the city of New York. Shortly after its formation Con-
gress passed the so-called "Pendleton bill," by which the principal object of
the association was accomplished, and a little later the legislature of New York
enacted a similar law with regard to this state. The society subsequently be-
came a member of the National Civil Service Reform league, and Dr. E. M.
Moore was chosen as the representative vice-president and member of the ex-
ecutive committee of the league. At its first meeting the association chose the
following- named officers, who have been twice reelected, and who are the
present incumbents : President, Dr. E. M. Moore ; vice-presidents, C. E. Eitch,
Oilman H. Perkins, James L. Angle, Max Landsberg, Louis Ernst, Patrick
Barry, A. S: Mann ; secretary. Porter Farley ; treasurer, F. W. Elwood ; ex-
ecutive committee, Theodore Bacon, L. P. Ross, J. P. Varnum, D. D. Sully,
John Fahy, S. P. Moore, Wm. F. Peck.
The Lincoln club is, to a great extent, political in its nature, but its activi-
ty is not confined to election campaigns, nor do party politics engross its
attention, for lectures, prepared by its members and by outsiders, are frequently
delivered before it, and one of the principal objects of the club is to familiarise
its members with the principles of civil government. The first meeting was
held in October, 1 879, and was attended by some twenty members. Pomeroy
P. Dickinson was elected to the presidency, an office which he held two years.
The membership increased so rapidly that in 1880 the club rooms on State
street were found inadequate, and a move was made to the supervisors' room
in the court-house, which they occupied until February, 1882, when arrange-
ments were made for the use of the large hall on the corner of West Main
street and Plymouth avenue, which they still occupy. The officers for the
year are : President, William E. Werner ; vice-president, W. F. Kislingbury ;
recording secretary, C. C. Werner ; corresponding secretary, J. F. Tallinger ;
financial secretary, Frederick A. Frick; treasurer, Williarn H. Higgins.
The Riverside Rowing club is exclusively amateur, and was organised
I The sketch of the National league was kindly furnished by Edmond Redmond.
Rochester Canoe Club. 227
September 7th, 1869, for the promotion, and encouragement of social and
friendly intercourse, physical culture, and improvement in the art of rowing.
The club-house is on the river, at the foot of Griffith street. At the annual
meeting held Wednesday, April 2d, 1884, the following officers were elected
for the ensuing year: President, Robert Mathews; vice-president, F. W. El-
wood ; captain, D. D. Sully ; secretary, James Montgomery ; treasurer, Thomas
H. Husband; executive committee, Frank C. Fenn,A. E. Perkins.
The Rochester Canoe club. — The idea of forming a canoe club in this city
originated with George H. Harris and M. B. Turpin, who, after many attempts,
succeeded in gathering together a few persons interested in aquatic sports and
perfecting an organisation. At a meeting held September 29th, 1882, a con-
stitution was adopted, and the following officers were elected : President, Geo.
H. Harris ; vice-president, M. B. Turpin ; secretary and treasurer, J. M. An-
gle ; captain, A. E. Dumble ; first officer, F. W. Storms. The object of its
originators, as expressed in article second of the constitution, is "to unite ama-
teur canoeists for purposes of health, pleasure, exploration, historical research,
and for the preservation of maps, drawings, details and objects of interest to
canoemen." The club is in a very prosperous condition, having a large and
enthusiastic membership, many canoes, and commodious quarters at the New-
port House, on Irondequoit bay. The officers for the year are : Captain, F.
W. Andrews; mate, Edward Gilmore ; purser, J. M. Angle.
There are of course a legion of other clubs and societies of various kinds in
this city, which might be mentioned in this chapter. Many of them are de-
scribed or alluded to in different parts of this work — such as the chapters on
"Rochester's German Elemen^" and "the Fine Arts in Rochester" — render-
ing unnecessary a recapitulation of them here ; in the case of others the most
painstaking inquiries on the part of the editor were met with evasions which
seemed to indicate a wish for obscurity; while others, still, appeared so transi-
tory in their existence, or so circumscribed in their scope, as to exclude them
from a work of this nature.
228 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXIX.
the ERIE CANAL.
Its Origin — Vague Ideas of Gouverneur Morris — Definite Conception of Jesse Hawley — Legis-
lative Action in 1808 — l)e Witt Clinton Appears — Canal Commissioners Appointed in 1816 — My-
ron Holley and llis Great Services — Important Meeting at Canan<laigua — Opposition at Albany —
Work Begun July 4tli, 1817 — The Canal Completed October 24tli, 1825 — The Grand Celebration —
Enlargement of the Canal — Great Convention in this City — Canal Statistics — Tlie (lenesee Valley
Canal.
WHO proposed the Erie canal? The answef to that question, apparently
so easy to be given, is impossible of attainment. Like many other of
the great events in the world's history, the project of the Erie canal was not a
definite, episodical enterprise, but a growth, a development from intangible,
almost inappreciable beginnings in the minds of men. The time of its concep-
tion is; naturally, equally indefinite, but if any period must be set let it be that
of the last year 'of the last century. Taking that as the date, Gouverneur
Morris may be said to be the originator of the idea, but his thoughts were so
vague in the matter that he himself would have been the last person to claim
the real parentage of the scheme. In 1800, while on a tour to Niagara falls,
he became impressed with the navigable capacities of the country and wrote to
a European correspondent : " One-tenth part of the expense borne by Britain in
the last campaign would enable ships to sail from London through the Hudson
river into Lake Erie." In 1803 he spoke to Simeon De Witt, then surveyor-
general of the state, of the possibility of tapping Lake Erie, but the probability
is that he had in mind a project for building a series of locks around Niagara
falls, thus enabling vessels to pass into Lake Ontario and get from there into the
Hudson by improving the natural watercourses between the mouth of the Os-
wego river and the Mohawk, from whence a serjes of short canals should take
them into the Hudson.
Jesse Hawley, afterward a resident of Rochester, was the first to place the
subject conspicuously and clearly before the people, in a number of essays that
appeared in 1807-08 over the signature of "Hercules" in a Pittsburg paper and
in the Genesee Messenger, published at Canandaigua. In these he marked out
a route nearly the same as that subsequently adopted, except that he proposed
to use the Mohawk river as one of the connecting links. While these articles
of Mr. Hawley's awakened public interest in the subject, it is doubtful if they
were the immediate cause of legislation. Benjamin Wright, of Rome, N. Y., in
a long letter to the New York Observer in 1866, claims the honor of that for
his father, Judge Wright, a member of thcvAssembly in 1808, who, he says,
being interested in an article on "Canals" just then published in Rees's Cyclo-
pedia, engaged Joshua Forman, a member from Onondaga county, in the work,
the result being that on the 4th of February, 1808, Mr. Forman introduced a
resolution, which Mr. Wright seconded and which was adopted, that
The Erie Canal. 229
"A joint committee be appointed to take into consideration the propriety of ex-
])loring and causing an accurate survey to be made of the most eligible and direct route
for a canal to open a communication between the tide-waters of the Hudson river and
I^ake Erie, to the end that Congress may be enabled to appropriate such sums as may be
necessary to the accomplishment of that great national object."
For the expenses of this survey an appropriation of $600 was made, and
in the following June Surveyor-General De Witt appointed James Geddes to
do the work. In opposition to the spirit of Mr. Forman's resolution, and in
spite of the fact that Joseph Ellicott, the agent of the Holland Land company,
had in letters to the surveyor-general traced a practicable route from Lake
ICrie to the Genesee river, with the assurance likewise that it could be extended to
the Seneca river, the instructions to Mr. Geddes were such as to distinctly
favor the route involving the navigation of Lake Ontario for a great propor-
tion of the distance. Mr. Geddes in 1809 made his report, which seems to
have detailed almost every conceivable plan but the right one, and to have
favored, for this part of the state, a ridiculous system of communication " up
the valley of Mud creek and across the country to the Genesee river, thence
up Black creek to the Tonnewanta swamp and down the Tonnewanta creek to
the Niagara river and up the same to Lake Erie." The way in which the
work was done may be seen from his statement that " almost everything re-
specting this space has been supplied by conjectures formed from appearances
on the map." Nothing further was done in the matter by the legislature till
1 8 10, when a resolution was adopted appointing "seven commissioners to ex-
plore the whole route for inland navigation from the Hudson river to Lake On-
tario and to Lake Erie."
De Witt Clinton now comes to the front as the most earnest advocate of the
canal pohcy, and his speech in the Senate in favor of that resolution wa,s the
beginning of a line of conduct which earned for him the enduring title of " the
father of the Erie canal." The commissioners thereby appointed were Gouv-
erneur Morris, Stephen Van Rensselaer, De Witt Clinton, Simeon De Witt,
William North, Thomas Eddy and Peter B. Porter. The commissioners did
their work with thoroughness, Mr. Clinton going through this region, fording
the river about where the jail now stands and going down to Hanford's Land-
ing to lodge for the night. In 181 1 the members made a report, drawn up
by Mr. Morris, "proposing a project which, although the signature of all the
commissioners was attached, was entertained seriously by no other member of
the board." It was, in effect, Mr. Hawley's original plan, "to bring the waters
of the lake, on one continued uninterrupted plane, with an inclination of six
inches in every mile, to a basin to be formed near the Hudson, from whence
there was to be a descent by a great number of locks." A bill was immedi-
ately passed increasing the number of commissioners by adding Robert R. Liv-
ingston and Robert Fulton and authorising them to apply to Congress for
cooperation and aid, on the ground that it was a national work. This applica-
230 History of the City of Rochester.
tion was transmitted to Congress in December, 1811, by President Madison,
but it was fruitless, and an appeal to different states resulted in best wishes from
some, disapproval from others and money from none. In 18 12 the commis-
sioners made a second report to the legislature, and a bill was passed author-
ising them to borrow five millions of dollars for the construction of the canal,
but the war with England, which broke out at that time, so engrossed the minds
of people that nothing was done and in 18 14 the bill was repealed — a fortu-
nate measure, as every cent borrowed on account of the canal was obtained of
our own citizens, instead of having the loan placed abroad at a discount. At
the close of 181 5 a large public meeting was held in New York, as an out-
come of which De Witt Clinton, as chairman of a committee then appointed,
draughted the document known as "the New York Memorial," which caused
petitions favorable to the construction of the canal to be poured in from all
quarters upon the legislature.
Still that body, averse to action, did nothing in 18 16 except to create a
board of canal commissioners whose duties were "to construct canals from the
Hudson river to Lakes Erie and Champlain." The board consisted of Stephen
Van Rensselaer, De Witt Clinton, Joseph Ellicott, Samuel Young and Myron
Holley. The last named gentleman then resided in Lyons, but a few years
after he moved to this neighborhood and identified himself with the interests of
Rochester, though he lived outside of the city limits in a beautiful place on the
east bank of the river, just north of the Ridge road, which for many years after
his death was known as the "Holley farm." One of the most pure-minded and
public-spirited of our citizens, he devoted his life to the enlightened service of
his fellow-men, and his efforts in behalf of this great medium of commerce,
which place him beside De Witt Clinton as one of the benefactors of the state,
were only a portion of the good deeds which he did for the commonwealth.
On the 8th of January, 18 17, a meeting was held at Canandaigua, of citizens
from most of the towns of Ontario county (which then included part of the site
of Rochester.) Few unofficial meetings have been more imposing than that
one, from the character, talent and eminence of those attending it. Colonel
Troup was the chairman, Colonel Rochester the secretary, and the first address
was made by Gideon Granger, then lately postmaster-general. After that John ■
Greig offered a series of resolutions, which were unanimously adopted, drawn
up by Mr. Holley and exhibiting with great force the transcendent advantages
that would result from a direct navigation between the .Hudson and Lake Erie.
To the action of this meeting may be ascribed, in great part, the wise and
liberal policy that was finally adopted by the legislature, but before that was
accomplished the most exasperating opposition had to be overcome. Governor
Tompkins urged the subject upon the attention of the two houses, and a law
was passed in April authorising the commencement of the canals. The strug-
gle against it in the Senate was very bitter and it would have been defeated
The Erie Canal. 231
but for Martin VanBuren, who, though a violent political opponent of Mr. Clin-
ton, had the sagacity to perceive the advantage which would accrue to the
state, to his party and to himself by the adoption of the measure and who
therefore spoke strongly in its favor. But the danger was not yet over, for the
members of the council of revision were divided on the subject, Lieutenant-
Governor Taylor — who was then acting governor, as Governor Tompkins had
become vice-president of the United States in the previous month — being in-
tensely hostile to it, so that it required the vote of Chancellor Kent, who
changed his mind at the last moment, to ratify the act of the legislature and
thus make it into a law on the 1 5 th of April. It was a splendid victory for New
York's great statesman, who could afford to disregard the jeers that both before
and after that were thrown out against "Clinton's big ditch." The bill which so
narrowly escaped defeat was, after all, not so complete as it should have been and
merely authorised the commissioners to connect by canals and locks the Mohawk
and Seneca rivers. It established a board of commissioners of the canal fund,
with power to contract loans, the interest on which was to be paid out of a fund
consisting of a small tax on salt made at the springs belonging to the state,
part of the duties accruing from sales at auction, donations of lands from indi-
viduals or companies to be benefited by the canal (such as tracts of 100,000
acres from the Holland Land company, 1,000 from Gideon Granger, 1,000
from John Greig, as agent of the Hornby estate, etc.), the proceeds of some
lotteries, a tax on steamboat passengers and a future tax of $250,000 on lands
lying within twenty-five miles of the canal.' The last-named tax was never
levied, the steamboat tax was not collected and no assistance was ever derived
from the lotteries. Work was begun on the 4th of July, 1817, on the middle
section, from Utica to the Seneca river, which was all that the commissioners
had power to do at the beginning. As the labor progressed, it became a mat-
ter of uncertainty, first, as to whether the canal should be completed at all ;
secondly, as to whether it should go by the overland route or by the Oswego
route, as it was called, that is by way of Lake Ontario, with locks around
Niagara falls ; or, thirdly, where it should cross the Genesee, if it crossed it at
all. A limited appropriation was granted by the legislature in 18 19, enabling
the commissioners to extend their operations over lines not previously surveyed
and let out, and Mr. Holley took advantage of that to send an engineer in July
of that year to Rochester to decide as to where the Genesee should be crossed
and to survey the line eastward from that point to Montezuma, which was the
end of the middle section. This was done in September, as has been noted in
another chapter, and it effectually settled the question as between Rochester,
Carthage and Black creek for the crossing of the river, but it did not at all de-
cide the fate of the overland route. The canal board was understood to be
divided on the question, and a meeting was held in this city at the counting-
room of John G. Bond to give expression to the popular feeling on the subject.
232 History of the City of Rochester.
A paper which was there drawn up by Enos Pomeroy was circulated far and
wide, with the signatures of Roswell Hart, Ira West, Charles J. Hill, John G.
Bond, Samuel J. Andrews, Benjamin Blossom and several others. It was
headed "Canal in Danger," and besides urging the completion of the work on
the northern route it advocated the election of Governor Clinton and his friends
to the legislature. It may have had effect in both ways, for Daniel D. Tomp-
kins was defeated by a small majority at the polls in his effort to "change back"
and to surrender the vice-presidency for the governorship which he had pre-
viously resigned, and "the Rochester hand-bill" was always thought to have
had much to do with his discomfiture. In October, 1819, the middle section
was finished, and the commissioners then, by a majority vote, gave out con-
tracts from Rochester to Palmyra. In spite of that the danger was not entirely
past, for when the legislature met in 1820 a desperate effort was made by the
friends of the Oswego route to stop work upon the western section until the
eastern section was completed and the Champlain canal also was finished. The
scheme failed, and from that time the success of the overland route in a con-
tinuous line from the Hudson to Lake Erie was assured.
As the work progressed, all the towns along the route took advantage of
the new mode of transportation opened to them, for water was let into the
different sections and even parts of sections as fast as they were completed.
Rochester was among the foremost in using the channel, especially for the ship-
ment of flour, as may be seen by the statement that from April 26th to May
6th, 1823, 10,000 barrels of it were shipped from here for Albany and New
York. It must, however, have been taken off at some point west of Albany,
for it was not till November of that year that boats from here entered the basin
at that place, along with the first boats that passed through the Champlain
canal, then just completed. The task of cutting through the mountain ridge
at the point where Lockport now stands, and constructing the admirable locks
which have given its name to that city, was a formidable one, taking up all of
1824 and most of 1825. On the 24th of October in the latter year the guard
gates at Lockport were raised, the long level east of that place was filled and
the grandest work on this continent, up to that time, was finished. The ex-
pense of constructing it was a little over seven millions of dollars. Its entire
length was originally 363 miles, of which the western section, from Montezuma
to Buffalo, embraced 158, with twenty-one locks and a fall of 106 feet. Of
the various commissioners who held office during the work, not all were "act-
ing commissioners," and Myron HoUey, who had by his speeches, his writings
and his votes dope more than all the others to secure the adoption of the
course that was substantially the same as that originally proposed by Jesse
Hawley, was very properly the one who had almost the entire charge of the
work on this section. Of the nine engineers employed on the whole canal,
three were residents of this city in 1838, if not before, viz.: Nathan S. Roberts,
The Erie Canal. 233
David S. Bates and Valentine Gill. The second named, Judge Bates, died to-
ward the close of that year, after having been the chief-engineer of all the
canals in the state of Ohio (at least of all those constructed up to the time of
his death) and of the ship canal around the falls at Louisville, Ky.
Of course a monster celebration had to take place on the completion of the
work, and to make the knowledge of it as nearly instantaneous as was possible
in those days large cannon were stationed at short distances all the way from
Buffalo to Sandy Hook. On the morning of the 26th of October the first sig-
nal gun, at our neighbor city, announced that the mooring lines had been cast
off from the leading boat of the flotilla that was to bear Governor Clinton, the
canal commissioners and other prominent citizens from Lake Erie to the
metropolis of America and the waters of. the Atlantic ocean. Instantly the
next gun responded and then the others, in succession so rapid that in one
hour and twenty minutes the final report gave the news to listening ears in
the streets of New York. The opening ceremonies at Buffalo were attended
by a committee from this place, of which Jesse Hawley was the chairman
and that gentleman made on the occasion a brief and appropriate address, to
which Oliver Forward responded on behalf of the citizens of Buffalo. The
triumphal procession stopped at all principal points on the line of the voy-
age, which ended on the 4th of November, with a crowning celebration
at New York. The proceedings here, on the 27th of October, were ushered
in by a drizzling rain, but in spite of that eight companies of handsomely uni-
formed militia turned out at two o'clock in the afternoon and formed in line on
thetowpath, with an immense concourse of spectators scattered over all avail-
able points. As the boats from the west appeared in sight they were greeted
with a fusillade of musketry from the companies, and when they reached the
aqueduct they found the entrance guarded by the boat Young Lion of the
West. Those on board of this sentinel craft hailed the Seneca Chief, which was
in the van of the procession, and a colloquy took place, in these words : —
"Who conies there?"
" Your brethren of the west, from the waters of the great lakes."
" By what means have they been diverted from their natural course ? "
" By the channel of the grand Erie canal."
"By whose authority and by whom was a work of such magnitude accomplished ?"
" By the authority and enterprise of the patriotic people of the state of New York."
" All right ! Pass."
The Young Lion then gave way and the Seneca Chief was allowed to enter
Child's basin, at the end of the aqueduct. As the boats passed into the basin,
they were greeted with a salute from heavy artillery under command of Cap-
tain Ketchum, and from field-guns commanded by Captain Jacob Gould. The
Rochester and Canandaigua committees of congratulation then took their places
under an arch surmounted by an eagle, and the Seneca Chief, having the com-
mittees on board, being moored. Gen. Vincent Mathews and John C. Spencer
234 History of the City of Rochester.
offered the congratulations of the citizens of the respective villages. Appro-
priate reply was made, and then, disembarking, a procession was formed, which
marched to the First Presbyterian church, where Rev. Joseph Penney offered
prayer, and Timothy Childs pronounced an able and eloquent address. The
company then marched to the Mansion House, kept by Christopher, and enjoyed
a sumptuous dinner. Gen. Mathews presided, assisted by Jesse Hawley and
■Jonathan Child. Among many toasts were the following : By his excellency —
"Rochester, — in 1810 I saw it without a house or an inhabitant. In 1825 I
see it the nucleus of an opulent and populous city, and the central point of nu-
merous and transcendent blessings." And by the lieutenant-governor — " The
village of Rochester, — it stands upon a rock, where the most useful of streams
laves its feet. Its age promises to attain the acme of greatness. " At half-past
seven the visitors reenibarked, and the squadron departed joined by the Young
Lion of the West, with the following citizens of Rochester as a committee, for
New York : Elisha B. Strong, Levi Ward, Wm. B. Rochester, Abelard Reynolds,
Elisha Johnson, General E. S. Beach, A. Strong, and B. F. Hurlbut. Of this
number none are now living, Mr. Reynolds being the last to pass away, after
being the sole survivor for many years.
Even at the outset the canal was considered to be too small for the business
that was likely to be done through it, and, as time wore on, the inadequacy of
its original dimensions, which were forty feet in width by four in depth, became
apparent to all. On the 2 1st of September, 1835, a meeting was held at the
court-house in Rochester, at which the mayor, Jacob Gould, presided, with E.
Darwin Smith as secretary, when a memorial and a series of resolutions, drawn
up by Myron Holley, were adopted, favoring the enlargement. These were, as
had been directed, forwarded to the canal board, which, at its meeting a month
later, decided on increasing the dimensions to seventy feet by seven, but to do
it by means of the surplus tolls alone. This was felt to be too slow a process,
and another meeting was held here on the 30th of December, 1836, presided
over by James Seymour, with S. G. Andrews as secretary, and addressed by
Dr. Brown, General Gould and Henry O'Rielly. As the outcome of this a
canal convention was held here on the i8th of January, 1837, one of the largest
conventions that ever took place in Western New York, with Nathan Dayton,
of Lockport, as president, with a long array of vice-presidents and secre-
taries. After stirring speeches from a great number of eminent men, urging
the procurement of a loan anticipating the revenue, so that the work could be-
gin at once, the following persons were appointed as a central executive com-
mittee at Rochester, to take all proper measures for placing the subject fully
before the people, and by memorials before the legislature : Henry O'Rielly,
James Seymour, Jonathan Child, E. Darwin Smith, S. G. Andrews, Thomas
H. Rochester, Horace Gay, Frederick Whittlesey, Orlando Hastings, Everard
Peck, A. M. Schermerhorn, Thomas Kempshall and Joseph Field. This com-
The Erie Canal, 235
mittee, in conjunction with one at Buffalo, presented a bill to the legislature,
authorising the expenditure of half a million dollars annually, in addition to
the surplus revenue, for the enlargement and the improvement of the canal,
but it was rejected.
In 1838, however, the legislature, mindful of the wishes of the people by
whom it had been elected, passed a bill appropriating four millions of dollars
annually for the purpose. This gave ample means for the desired improve-
ment, and for this great increase of the effectiveness of ,the canal, by means of
which boats can carry four hundred tons, whereas at the outset one was thought
to be heavily laden if it had forty tons, the state is more indebted to Myron
Holley than to any one else. The need of a new and larger aqueduct to take
the place of the old one in this city was more keenly felt than anything else,
and work upon it was begun the year before this appropriation bill was passed.
The structure, though not much larger than the old one, except as to width, is
far more substantial, and of more elegant workmanship. It cost $600,000, and
the material, which is of gray limestone, mostly from the Lockport quarries, is
of so durable a nature as almost to defy the tooth of time. In preparing the
foundation for the abutments and piers, and to give a free passage for the floods
of the river under the new arches, 30,000 cubic yards of rock were blasted and
removed out of the bed of the Genesee river.
It will not be necessary to recount further the history of the canal, to tell
of the many good things done for it, and of the many bad things done to it
and by means of it — of how its waters have flowed 'along, burdened with cor-
ruption, jobbery and peculation, but all the time have borne upon their bosom
a freightage so rich as to more than compensate for all the treasure taken
wrongfully away from it, or lost by the neglect of those who should have pre-
served it from the ravages of time, and the encroachments of selfish or design-
ing persons. Of all the manufacturers along its banks, there were few indeed
who did not divert the water for their own purposes, and those few paid to the
state an amount of money so small as to be not worth consideration in com-
parison with the. loss to which the canal was subjected. The quantity of water
thus taken is incalculable, certainly flowing up into the billions of gallons an-
nually, and, as it was generally drawn off at a time when the dryness of the
season so affected the water-courses that nothing could be gained from those
sources, the result was that boats were frequently stranded and delayed for
days at a time.
From the very beginning the citizens of Rochester took the liveliest inter-
est in the canal, in other ways than those detailed above. In 1827 the regula-
tions of the village charter forbade masters of boats to suffer any horn or bugle
to be blown within the village limits on the Sabbath, and a few years later a
Sabbath-keeping line of canal-boats was started, which received much en-
couragement and aid from Aristarchus Champion, who, in connection there-
• 16
236 History of the City of Rochester.
with, put in operation the "Pioneer," or six-day Hne of stages. Statistics of
the year 1834 show that our citizens then owned stock in the various trans-
portation lines on the canal to the amount of $74,000 and that about one-sixth
of the tolls paid throughout the state were received at this point. Rochester
has had but one canal commissioner since the time of Myron Holley — John
D. Fay, whose administration during his first term gave such satisfaction that,
after being elected in 1867, he was chosen again in 1870. To all citizens of
this generation a sketch of the Erie canal would seem incomplete without a
mention of Henry L. Fish, whose efforts to preserve and protect it from harm
and wastefulness have been unremitting and untiring, both in many public
capacities and by frequent contributions to. the local press.
The following-figures will be of interest : The cost of the first construction
was $7,143,789, of the enlargement $44,465,414, making a total of $51,609,-
203. When it was enlarged the line was straightened somewhat, shortening
the length by twelve and a half miles, so that it is now three hundred and fifty
and a half miles long, with seventy-two locks, whose total lockage is nearly six
hundred and fifty-five feet. The maximum burden of boats is two hundred
and forty tons. Of what was done on the canal in the way of freightage fifty
years ago the following comparative table will convey some impression : Total
tolls for 1833, $1,290,136.20; for 1834, $1,179,744.97; for 1835, $1,375,821.-
26 ; for 1836, $1,440,539.87 ; of these the amount collected in Rochester was,
in 1833, $168,452.37; in 1834, $164,247.28; in 1835, $176,170.33; in 1836,
$190,036.59. With a uniformity of progression almost unbroken, the tolls
continued to increase for twentyvfive years after the opening of the canal, but
the decline then began, and although it was gradual at first it eventually dropped
to so low a point that the abolition of tolls and the introduction of the free
canal system last year kept but little money from coming into the state treas-
ury, while the change was generally beneficial to the boatmen and those in the
forwarding business. In 1865 the tolls received at this point were $102,350.-
85, in 1870 they were $33,018.37, in 1875 $6,240.92, in 1880 $11,797.82, in
1 88 1 $7,192.27 and in 1882 $5,070.04. A few words with regard to the im-,
portance of keeping in operation the Erie canal, as a means of transportation
from the west to the Atlantic sea-board, will not be out of place. The state-
ment has often been made that the expense of preserving the great waterway
was greater than any income which could be derived from it, and that true
policy, therefore, dictated its abandonment. No conclusion could be more fal-
lacious. The object in the mind of its creators was not to put money into the
treasury but to benefit the people, and this it has ever done, never more so
than in those years when the aggregate of tolls was rapidly decreasing, never
more so than at this present time, when the canal is free and the state derives
no income at all from the commerce between its banks. If every boat were to
be rotting at the dock and no moving craft were henceforth to disturb the
tranquillity of its .waters, the necessity of its retention would still be paramount,
The Genesee Valley Canal. 237
and our legislators, should turn a deaf ear to every proposition for its close.
As long as it is in existence the farmer can get his produce to the great mart
of this hemisphere at a living rate of transportation, or sell it here at a
price that will enable him to support his family in comfort ; let the Erie canal
become a thing of the past, competition dies, and the rates of transportation
are at the merciless whim of railroad corporations, which would crush out
all incentive to agricultural production and paralyse half the industries of
our city.
While the Erie canal was in process of construction, and after its completion
as far west as this point had opened the channel of communication between
Rochester and the state capital, the necessity of connecting the great water-
way with the fertile section of country through which the Genesee flowed be-
came evident to the minds of all who had commercial relations with the farmers
of the happy valley. To more than those, for Gov. Clinton, ever mindful of
the interests connected with the great enterprise inseparably associated with his
name, became impressed with the idea at an early day, and strongly advocated
it in a message to the legislature in 1824. Of course nothing was done about
the matter at that session, or at any other till 1828, when a survey was ordered,
which was made under the direction of Judge Geddes. For some reason it
was not satisfactory, and the affair was dropped till 1834, when another act
was passed, authorising a re-survey, which was made under the direction of
Frederick C. Mills, who gave as the estimate of cost $1,890,614.12 for a canal
to extend from Rochester to Olean, on the Alleghany river, a route of one
hundred and seven miles. On the 6th of May a law was passed for its con-
struction, but no contract was let till 1837, when two miles were given out in
June, and twenty-eight were let in November. The work progressed very
slowly, so that it was not till 1856 that the canal was finished and opened to
Olean. The business which was expected to be done by this line was never so
great as had been anticipated, owing, perhaps, to the tardiness of its completion
and equally to the decline of the milling interests here and the impetus given
to the manufacture and sale of western flour soon after the canal went into
operation. The Rochester engineers engaged upon the work were Frederick
C. Mills, Henry S. Dexter, J. B. Stillson, Daniel Marsh, S. V. R. Patterson,
George D. Stillson, Burton W. Clark and Daniel McHenry. Many contractors
residing here have from time to time undertaken to keep the canal in repair,
but it has not been either pleasant or profitable to them, the heavy freshets and
other causes combining to make the labor greater than the emolument. Finally,
after dragging along at a loss to the state and almost everybody connected with
it, the canal was abandoned by the authorities at the close of navigation in
1878; offers were soon made to purchase it and after the consideration of all
propositions it was finally sold to the Genesee Valley Canal railroad company,
the deed, signed by Alonzo B. Cornell as governor of the state of New York,
bearing date the 6th of November, 1880.
238 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXX.
THE FORCES OF NATURE.
The Electric Telegraph ^ Construction of the O'Rielly Lines — Transformation into the Western
Union — Other Telegraph Companies Here — The Telephone — Gas and Electric Light — Coal — Its
Introduction as Fuel in Rochester — Insurance Companies Here, Past and Present.
BEFORE the perfecting of the Morse system in 1844 there was little confi-
dence felt that the electric telegraph would ever be of any practical im-
portance for business purposes ; in fact, it was impossible to get capitalists to
purchase stock in an enterprise so novel and extraordinary as the telegraph
was then considered to be. Now, when the entire globe is encircled by tele-
graphic lines, which bring into intimate relations the Old and New. worlds, it is
curious to note that forty years ago there was but one lightning line in opera-
tion by which the important news of the day was flashed from the Atlantic
coast to the Alleghany mountains, to the far-away Mississippi valley. This
line, which ultimately connected all sections of the United States within a radius
of 8,000 miles, was projected, organised and constructed by Henry O'Rielly,
of this city, to whose earnest and untiring efforts is largely due the success of
modern telegraphy. The lines which he then built, one after another, and
which were in their continuity the longest range of lines in the world, were
styled by him the "Atlantic, Lake and Mississippi range," but were popularly
known as the "O'Rielly lines," a name originally given in derision, but gener-
erally accepted in good faith. By that term they are alluded to in the south-
ern newspapers of 1846 and 1847. ^^ the construction of these lines Mr.
O'Rielly was pecuniarily assisted by a few friends in Rochester arid elsewhere,
prominent among whom were Samuel L. Selden and Henry R. Selden, both
of whom were afterward his courisel in successfully resisting the attempts of
the Morse patentees to violate the contract which they had made with him,
and to obtain an injunction against him. These lines were afterward consoli-
dated, and, with the addition of some others, formed the basis of that gigantic
monopoly, the Western Union telegraph company.
The first office opened in this city for the transmission of messages was
that of the New York, Albany & Buffalo telegraph company, which began
business in this city in the winter of 1844-45. The first press dispatch
received here was sent on the 1st of June, 1846, and appeared in the Democrat
of the next day. It came from Albany, and consisted of a long and quite full
report of the proceedings of the constitutional convention then sitting in that
city. The first location of the office here was in the basement of Congress Hall,
but it was soon removed to the Reynolds arcade — first to the north end of the
west gaUery, then to number 8 on the ground floor, and finally, toward the
close of 1850, to number 1 1, where it remains at the present writing. At this
time the manager of the company was George E. Allen, of Utica, and the first
v-
:Ssi
--immii^(ild£m^*<«Wff^'^'' ^\' ' ^ „ "" — -=
^=^
' - ^r-
'^^^^-^^^^^
j^
^i i, ^^^^fc
fc-
-i^B
^^OHHHH^^HH
t H
ft' t,
i= -
: z _
ZdJI-Jij' EB.HilU Sim£.HsvYiirH.
=--s^^=.^.^==.^,s^..^^=
M(A^€<y^ QM.
Telegraph and Telegraph Companies. 239
operator was a young man by the name of Barnes. Mr. Allen remained in
charge of the office until 1852, when he was succeeded by S. S. Pellett, who
had formerly occupied the position of line repairer and assistant operator. Mr.
Pellett resigned in December, 1852, and was succeeded by A. Cole Cheney,
who remained until May, 188 1, when A. J. Stoddard became the head of the
office. In November, 1883, George D. Butler, who had been connected with
the office since 1865, was appointed manager, to fill the vacancy caused by the
resignation of Mr. Stoddard. In i860 the New York, Albany & Buffalo tele-
graph company was consolidated with the Western Union, and some three
years afterward the instruments were removed to quarters on the third floor,
over the east gallery, as more room was required to transact the increased
business of the company. A few years later the Atlantic & Pacific, which had
an office here for about a year, was absorbed in the omnivorous company,
which a short time afterward also swallowed the American Union, another of
our short-lived concerns. In i88i the Western Union passed into the control
of Jay Gould. During the past few years the business has grown to enormous
proportions, having increased during the last year over thirty-three per cent.
The American Rapid telegraph company opened April 1st, 1 881, in the
Reynolds arcade. In October last this company was consolidated with the
Bankers', Merchants' & Southern telegraph company. The whole system, em-
bracing about 20,000 miles of line, extends from New Orleans east and north
to the New England states, and westward to Denver, Colorado. When the
company began business six wires only were in use; now twenty- two are in
constant operation, together with a district system of calls, with signal boxes
throughout the city in many of the principal business houses. Eugene J. Chap-
man is manager. Four day and one night operator are employed, besides
fifteen messenger boys.
The district telegraph is a valuable city institution. It went into operation
on the 1st of August, 1883, has now connection with several hundred boxes,
and employs forty or fifty boys, who may be summoned at any moment, be-
sides which signals may be sent for a carriage, a physician, the police, or the
fire department. Its office is in the Arcade.
The first office opened in this city for the transmission of oral messages
was that of the Bell telephone company, which began business in January,
1879, in rooms on the south side of Main street bridge. About the same time
the Edison company opened a similar office in the tower of the Powers block,
which was under the management of George A. Redman, but it kept open only
about a year, as their rights were purchased by the Bell company, and the two
lines consolidated in June, 1880. The first officers of the Bell company were
as follows: General manager, Edward J. Hall, jr.; secretary and treasurer.
Barlow C. Palmer ; local manager, Alfred Hall ; general superintendent, J. M.
Culberson ; consulting electrician, B. F. Blackall. The officers for the present
240 History of the City of Rochester.
year are as follows : Manager, William Mallett ; superintendent, li. F. Black-
all. The office is on Main street bridge.
It is impossible to determine with any certainty the exact date of the intro-
duction of illuminating gas into this city. A few private generators were in
use before the organisation of the Rochester Gas-light company, which came
into existence on the 24th of March, 1848, and began the manufacture of gas
on the 13th of December in the same year. The first officers of this company
were as follows: President, Lewis Brooks; secretary, Levi A. Ward ; engineer,
Henry Cartwright; directors — F. F. Backus, Joseph Field, F. Whittlesey,
William Pitkin, Lewis Brooks, S. C. Jones, Jos|ph Hall, L. A. Ward and D.
R. Barton. The first consumer was C. A. Jones. The present officers are :
President, Patrick Barry; vice-president, Thomas C. Montgomery; superin-
tendent, secretary and treasurer, Matt Cartwright. The office and works are
on the north side of Mumford street, near the river.
The Citizens' Gas company, which supplies consumers on the east side of
the river only, was incorporated in 1872, with the following officers: President,
George J. Whitney ; secretary, William H. Bowman ; treasurer, George K.
Mumford ; superintendent, Matt Cartwright. The works of the company are
on the flats below Vincent place bridge, in the northern part of the city.
Forty-five miles of pipe are in use. The present officers are : President,
Mortimer F. Reynolds ; vice-president, George E. Mumford ; secretary, treas-
urer and superintendent, William H. Ward; engineer, James H. Walker.
A company for the manufacture of gas from petroleum was organised here,
about three years ago, and came into existence under the name of the Munici-
pal Gas company. Most of the directors have always been non-resident.
About twenty-eight or thirty miles of pipe have been laid in the city. The
office is now on State street, and the present officers are : President, John P.
Townsend ; secretary, Charles F. Pond ; treasurer, John P. Scholfield ; super-
intendent and engineer, Frank P. Chase.
The Brush Electric light company began business in this city in July, 1881.
The officers of the company for that year were as follows : President, George
C. Buell; vice-president, William L. Halsey ; secretary and treasurer, George
E. Jennings; superintendent, Frank E. Gilmore. At the time of the organi-
, sation of the company the generators were located on North water street, but
during the past year they w6re removed to the lower falls, where better facili-
ties were offered for obtaining power, which is now equal to 2,700 horse power.
There are in use at present 475 electric lamps, 295 of which are used by tho
city in lighting the streets. The company are intending to introduce shortly
the Swan incandescent light. The officers for the year are : President, George
E. Mumford ; secretary and treasurer, A. Erickson Perkins ; superintendent,
George A. Redman.
Under the name of the Rochester Electric light company, the Weston sys-
The Use of Coal. 241
tem was introduced here in November, 1881, and has now 160 lights in use in
stores and places of entertainment in the city. Its present officers are: Presi-
dent, H. Austin Brewster ; vice-president, L. P. Ross ; secretary and treasurer,
F. M. McFarlin ; general superintendent, C. H. Babcock. The Fuller light
and the Maxim incandescent light are used in the Powers block, the generator
being in the cellar of the building, and the power being obtained from the en-
gines already stationed there. The Edison light is used in the Eastman dry
plate works on State street.
The Use of Coal. — With regard to the use of coal as fuel, it is difficult to
fi.x a precise time for its introduction, but the following will tell the story as
accurately as may be : In 1847 Jonathan Child brought Lehigh coal here for
foundry use. In the course of the next year Nathaniel T. and Henry E.
Rochester went into partnership with Mr. Child, and the. firm opened a house
for the sale of coal and iron. The coal was brought here from Philadelphia,
by way of Albany, and mostly in large lumps, for manufacturing purposes,
but the debris that was left after they were disposed of was sold to house-
keepers to be used as fuel in stoves. This soon became so generally recognised
as adapted to that end that the firm began the practice of breaking the large
pieces into smaller ones of a suitable size and selling then! for heating pur-
poses, and in a short time they were known as regular retailers of Lehigh and
Blossburg coal. In 1850 Roswell Hart opened an office for the sale of coal,
exclusively, and was therefore the pioneer in the business, as not connected
with any other branch of trade. At the outset he sold only bituminous coal,
but before the year was over he brought up by tide-water, from Philadelphia,
some three hundred tons of anthracite, and toward the close of 185 i it began
to come here by rail from Scranton and Pittston. There have been, in other
years, companies here which were engaged in the mining of coal, but the
only firm now engaged directly in that is one that is understood to be con-
fined to the production of bituminous coal. Having thus detailed the local
operations in the material now mainly used for making fire, let us turn our in-
quiries to the means provided for insuring against losses by that element.
In the matter of local insurance companies our city has always been behind
Buffalo, which has had them for many years and now boasts of four. The
present prosperous company mentioned below is not, however, the only one of
the kind that ever existed here, though most of the others were abandoned
within a few years after their incorporation. The first to be formed was the
Monroe fire insurance company, which was incorporated March 9th, 1825, with
a capital of $250,000; it must have expired almost immediately, for it was
"revived" on the 17th of April, 1826, and that is the last that is known of it.
Equally short Ijved was the Mutual Protection insurance company, incorporated
on the 7th of May, 1844, but the Farmers' & Merchants' insurance company
of Western New York was a little more tenacious, for after being incorporated
242 History of the City of Rochester.
on the 29th of October, 1850, it was changed to the Rochester insurance com-
pany on the 20th of March, 1852, and led a torpid existence for two years
after that. In January, 185 1, the Commercial fire insurance company was
organised, with a proposed capital of $100,000, but it never did any business,
and the attempts to start two other companies, the Union and the Flour City, were
equally fruitless. One company, however, was very successful and continued
for a long term of years — the Monroe County Mutual, which was organised
on the 2 1st of March, 1836. A. M. Schermerhorn was its first president, Ly-
man B. Langworthy was its last, and Levi A. Ward was its secretary and
treasurer from the beginning to the end. It took no risks in the city, but in-
sured farm property exclusively, in five-year policies, the total amount of in-
surance being nearly $100,000,000. Its affairs were managed with the greatest
economy, as its expenses, including' salaries, never came to $500 a year, and
its integrity may be known by its freedom from litigation, as it never had a
contested lawsuit. Its charter would have expired in 1876, but the company
decided to close up in February, 1865, as some of the great New York com-
panies had reduced the rates to so low a point as to render the business un-
profitable and make competition impossible. The secretary was directed to
pay the small balance on hand to the Female Charitable society.
The Rochester German insurance company was organised February 22d,
1872, entirely of Germans, with a capital of $100,000, doing a local business.
Louis Bauer was the first president, and Rudolph Vay the first secretary. In
the early part of 1873 the capital was increased to $200,000, so that the com-
pany could branch out and do an agency business. About this time Louis
Ernst became president. He resigned in 1875 and was succeeded by Frederick
Cook, who still occupies the office. The company's business now covers a terri-
tory of twenty six states and it has over 350 local agents. The company, from
a very small business, has grown to that extent that its income exceeds $500,-
000, and its gross assets are an excess of $600,000, of which $ioo,OQO is in-
vested in government registered bonds and $200,000 in bond and mortgage
on real estate in this city, besides which it owns various state bonds, Pullman
palace car stock and other securities. Its directors are : J. J. Bausch, Louis
Bauer, Nicholas Brayer, Fred'k Cook, John Dufner, Sam'l Dubelbeis, Louis
Ernst, Fred'k Goetzmann, Mathias Kondolf, John Lutes, George C. Maurer,
Jacob Nunnold, Chas. Rau, William Vicinus, Albrecht Vogt, John Weis, John
G. Wagner, Louis Wehn, Casper Wehle, Peter Pitkin. The officers are : Presi-
dent, Frederick Cook ; vice-president, John Lutes ; secretary, H. F. Atwood ;
counsel, Eugene H. Satterlee.
The Presbyterian Churches. 243
CHAPTER XXXI.
THE CHURCHES OF ROCHESTER.
Earliest Organisation of Religious Societies in the Settlement — The Presbyterian Churches — The
Episcopal Churches — The Friends, or Quakers — The Baptist Churches — The Methodist — The
Roman Catholic — The Unitarian —The German Lutheran, Evangelical and Reformed — The Congre-
gational— The Jewish — The Universalist — The Second Advent — Other Churches.
IN the following complete sketch of the Rochester churches the editor is
greatly indebted to several reverend gentlemen for the labor tliat they have
bestowed upon the various portions of the chapter, and for the research with
which they have compiled their different articles from sources of information
that extended over a wide field of reading and investigation. The article on
the Presbyterian churches was prepared by Rev. F. DeW. Ward, D. D., of
Geneseo ; that on the Episcopal churches was mainly compiled from a manual
prepared last year by Rev. Henry Anstice, D. D. ; that on the Baptist churches
was in great part furnished by Rev. C. J. Baldwin, D. D. ; that on the Metho-
dist churches was prepared by Rev. K. P. Jervis, of Victor ; that on the Cath-
olic churches mainly by Rev. D. Laurenzis, under the supervision of Rt. Rev.
Bishop McQuaid, D. D. ; on the Lutheran churches by Rev. Alexander Rich-
ter, on the German Evangelical by Rev. Charles Siebenpfeiffer, on the Jewish
churches by Rev. Max Landsberg, D. D. ; in the other cases the sketches have
been generally obtained from the pastors of the different congregations. The
arrangemerit of the various denominations is in accordance with the order of
their foundation of a distinct society in this place — except where the original
society has become extinct.
THE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHES.
The First is the oldest religious society of Rochester, dating back to
August 22d, 181 5, the entire population of the place being at that time but
331. The organisation was effected by a commission appointed by the pres-
bytery of Geneva, consisting of ministers Daniel Tuller and Reuben Parmelee,
with elders Samuel Stone and Isaac B. Barnum. The membership was six-
teen. The elders chosen were Oliver Gibbs, Daniel West, Warren Brown
and Henry Donnelly, with Elisha Ely as clerk. The first place of worship was
a plain wooden building on State (then Carroll) street, where is now the Amer-
ican express office. The year 1824 saw completed the new stone edifice on
the ground where now stands the city hall. The proceeds from the sale of this
property to the city were put into the commanding and commodious sanctuary
which graces the corner of Plymouth avenue and Spring street.
The pastors are as follows : Rev. Comfort Williams was installed January
17th, 1816, and resigned June 6th, 1821. Comfort street, on the east side of
the river, perpetuates his name and place of abode. Rev. Joseph Penney,
244 History of the City of Rochester.
D. D., a native of Ireland and graduate of Dublin university, came to America
in 1819, accompanied by that eminent instructor Rev. John Mulligan, LL. D.
He was installed pastor April 3d, 1822, and resigned April i6th, 1833. After
two years as pastor of a Congregational church in Northampton, Massachusetts,
he was elevated to the presidency of Hamilton college, which position he held
during four years and finally returned to Rochester, where after a long and
lingering illness he died, March 22d, i860, and is entombed with his wife and
several children in Mt Hope. Possessed of masculine intellect, large scholar-
ship, commanding presence, a warm heart and exceptional ability of utterance.
Dr. Penney has left an ineffaceable impression in this city and region. His por-
trait, painted by the skillful artist Gilbert, at public expense, long adorned the
walls of the Athenaeum, of which institution, under the name of the Franklin
institute, he was a leading patron. Rev. Tryon Edwards, D. D., a native of
Hartford, Connecticut, graduate of Yale and Princeton, was pastor between July
1834, and July 26th, 1844; pastor at Gouverneur, N. Y. Rev. Malcolm
N. McLaren, D. D., native of Albany, graduate of Union college and Princeton
seminary, held the pastorate from 1845-47, and then accepted a call to Brook-
lyn, N. Y. His last days are passing in Auburn, N. Y. Rev. Joshua Haw-
ley Mcllvaine, D. D., native of Lewis, N. Y., graduate at Princeton college and
seminary, occupied the pulpit from 1848 to i860. After several years as profes-
sor in his alma mater he accepted a call to Newark, N. J., where he now re-
sides. He is author of a late volume, entitled Wisdom of Holy Scriptures.
Rev. Calvin Pease, D. D., native of Canaan, Connecticut, graduate of the Uni-
versity of Vermont, of which institution he was for several years president, was
installed as pastor of the First in 1861 and closed his life when on a visit to
Burlington, 1863. A committee of the church, comprising the late Judge Gar-
diner and others, was, by appointment at the funeral. His residence in the
city was brief and his death a great affliction to the entire community.
Rev. Casper Maurice Wines, native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, graduate of
Washington college, Pennsylvania, and Princeton seminary, was pa.stor from
1866 to 1868 and is now an Episcopal rector in Cleveland, Ohio. Rev.
J. Lovejoy Robertson, native of Steubenville, Ohio, and graduate of Northwood
college, Ohio; commenced his pastorate December 7th, 1 870, which he contin-
ued to 1877. He is now pastor at Cortland, N. Y. Rev. Charles Edward
Robinson, D. D., native of Ludlowville, N. Y., .graduate of Hamilton and of
Auburn, was installed pastor in 1878. He has seen very many happy results
from his labors in and out of the pulpit.^
The officers for 1 884 are : Pastor, Charles E. Robinson, D. D. ; elders — Seth
H. Terry, George C. Buell, Charles J. Hayden, Charles H. Webb, A. G. Bas-
1 During the interim of pastors, the pulpit has been supplied by Professors Gmclit and Robinson,
former missionaries Dr. Beadle, of Syria ; Dr. Ward, of India; Dr. Lindley, of Africa; Rev. Mr.
Rankin, of China, and others.
The Presuyterian Churches. 245
sett, Newell A. Stone, David M. Hough and Henry Goold. Sabbath- school
superintendent, David M. Hough.
The Second, or "Brick." — During ten years the Presbyterians of Roch-
ester remained in one body and worshiped in the same sanctuary. The
population had advanced from 331 to about 5,000. After repeated and earnest
consultation it was determined to organise another society to meet the wants
of the rapidly advancing population. Thus came into being the Second
Presbyterian church of Rochester, in November, 1825, having, as the first
trustees, Timothy Burr, Ashbel W. Riley, Lyman Granger, Richard Gors-
line and Henry Kennedy. The place of worship was the wooden building on
State street, vacated by the First, when they (the First) took possession of their
new edifice. Here were services held till the completion of their brick edifice
on the corner of Fitzhugh and Ann streets, in the year 1828. Many revivals
of religion occurred during the occupancy of that building. It was a Zion, of
which it could be said of many hundreds "this and that man was born in her;
and the Highest himself did exalt her." In the year 1859 measures were taken
to erect an edifice, larger, .safer, more commodious and more answerable to
pressing demands than this of more than thirty years' age. Louis Chapin,
Charles J. Hayden and William Otis were the building committee, and A. J.
Warner was the architect. The corner-stone of the new building was laid July
3d, i860, with an address by Byron Sunderland, D. D., of Washington, D. C.
The dedication was June 30th, 1861, the sermon being preached by Samuel W.
Fisher, D. D., president of Hamilton college. The name "Brick church" was
given in 1833. Its membership at the commencement was twenty-five, most
. of them bringing letters from the First. The first elders were Timothy L. Bacon,
Silas Hawley and Linus Stevens.
The pastors have been as follows : Rev. William James, D. D., native of
Albany and graduate of Princeton college and seminary, was installed July 24th,
1826, sermon by Rev. Chaunccy Cook, and resigned October 14th, 1830; a
man of singular pulpit power and piety of heart, the latter causing his exultant
exclamation on his dying bed (February i8th, 1868) "It is all joy, joy." His'
religious character is resplendent in his published volume Grace for Grace.
Rev. William Wisner, D..D., native of Warwick, N. Y. ; left the practice of law
and after a course of theological training became pastor of the Presbyterian
church at Ithaca, N. Y. Leaving that field, where his labors had been emi-
nently successful, to succeed Dr. James as pastor of the Brick, he was installed
July 28th, 183 1, and dismissed September 22d, 1835. During his ministry of
four and a half years there were added to the church 202 by letter and ,372 on
profession of faith. Dr. Wisner was moderator of the "general assembly" in
1840 and died at Cedar Rapids, Iowa, January 7th, 1871. — —Rev. George
Beecher, son of Lyman Beecher, D. D., was installed June i8th, 1838, remained
two years, removed to Chilicothe, Ohio, where he accidentally shot himself July
246 History of the City of Rochester.
1st, 1843. His memoirs was written by his sister Catherine. Rev. James
Boyian Shaw, D. D., native of New York city, was one of the first children upon
whom the late Rev. Dr. Spring laid his hand in baptism. After a brief period
at Attica and Dunkirk he accepted a unanimous call to the Brick church and
was installed pastor February i6th, 1841, increasing during these forty-three
years in the love of his attached people and esteem of the entire community.
He was moderator of the general assembly in 1865 and represented the Pres-
byterian church in the established church of Scotland in 1873.
The officers for 1884 are: — Pastor, James Boyian Shaw, D. D. ; elders —
David Dickey, Harvey C. Fenn, Louis Chapin, Jesse W. Hatch, Truman A.
Newton, Joel G. Davis, Edward Webster, George N. Storms, Lansing G. Wet-
more, Ch. F. Weaver.
The Third. — When it was purposed to organise a second Presbyterian
church the enterprise encountered two serious obstacles. The membership of
the First was small and there was a natural reluctance to part with even a
score of their number, but, the organisation being determined upon, then came
the question of locality. Residents upon the east side of the river, then called
Brighton, presented many and strong arguments in favor of their part of the
village. Being outvoted they at once determined upon an organisation nearer
their own homes. In December, 1826, a religious society was incorporated
which ultimately took the title of the "Third Presbyterian church of Roch-
ester." The first services were held in a school-house on the corner of
Mortimer and Clinton streets. This becoming too strait for the increasing
congregation, a building was erected on the same street, size twenty-four by
sixty, the timber standing in the native forest on Monday morning and services
held on the next Lord's day. As if to add to its celebrity, within its walls
originated a movement, which was afterward adopted by the American Bible
society, of supplying everybody in the United States, with a copy of the Word
of God ; also that honest-hearted but abortive effort to prevent by law of Con-
gress the transportation of the mails and to close all post-offices on the Sabbath
day, coupled with the e.stablishment of a Sabbath-keeping line of boats on the
canal and a "pioneer line" of coaches on the road. These all had their origin
in the heart of that stalwart Christian, Josiah Bissell, jr., with the open purse of
that prince in the realms of money liberality, the late Aristarchus Champion.
On the 28th of February, 1 827, a formal organisation was perfected by the en-
rollment of nineteen persons with letters from the First and Second churches on
the west side of the river. The temporary but honored place of worship ere
long gave place to one more commodious and substantial on the corner of North
Clinton street, which from pecuniary necessity in 1834 was turned over to the
Second Baptists, and an edifice was erected in 1837 on the south side of Main
street, which was consumed by fire in the autumn of 1858. Then came the
erection of that imposing structure on the corner of Lancaster and Temple
J'',y-'/i .f'/7'/^,/A,v;v;, //,«.';.,./
The Presbyterian Churches. 247
streets, at an expense of $38,000, which has been lately sold to the Unitarians
and land purchased on the corner of East avenue and Meigs, where will soon
be the fifth place of worship on different sites. From small beginnings we see
now one of the largest and most influential Presbyterian churches in Western
New York.
The pastors and ministers have been as follows: — Rev. Joel Parker, D. D.,
native of Bethel, Vermont, graduate of Hamilton college and Auburn seminary,
was the first installed pastor. His salary was "half of brother Josiah Bissell's
biscuit, as long as he had one," or, more financially expressed, $150 for the first
six months and $800 per annum afterward. After three years' faithful and suc-
cessful service Dr. Parker removed to New York, thence to New Orleans, to
I'hiiadclphia, again to New York, and finally to Newark, N. J., where lie closed
a life of eminent ability and usefulness. Rev. Luke Lyons took charge in
1 83 1, but soon left to aid in establishing a new organisation on Court street,
long ago extinct ; he died in Illinois. Rev. William C. Wisner, p. D., native
of Elmira, N. Y., graduate of Union college, studied theology under his father,
Rev. William Wisner, D. D., of Ithaca. After two years of able service he
assumed the pastorate of the First church of Lockport, which he held for many
years with results that give him a place of honor accorded to few. Like his
father, he was moderator of the general assembly in 1855. Rev. William
Mack, D. D., graduate of Princeton seminary, served the church for three years
in 1835—37; went to Columbus, Tennessee, where he died. Rev. Albert
Gallatin Hall, D. D., native of Whitehall, N. Y., was himself a member of the
Third church, over which he was destined to preside as pastor from February,
1840, to his death in 1871. Besides being a power for good in the city, he was
a representative man in the entire Presbyterian body. Rev. George Patton,
graduated at the University of Pennsylvania and Newburg theological seminary,
and after fifteen years' ministration at Seneca, N.Y., was installed pastor of the
Third in the autumn of 1872.
The officers for 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. George Patton, D. D. ; elders — Thomas
15. Hu.sband, John Voorhes, Joseph Harris, William F. Cogswell, Edward F.
Harris, David Copeland and Charles Pomeroy. Sunday-school superintendent,
S. D. Bentley.
The Central. — In March, 1836, a colony left the First church, and formed
a new organisation having these as its characteristic features : First, a mis-
sionary church, established upon principles of high Christian consecration
and devotedness ; second, free, and embracing a Bethel interest ; third, open
for discussion on all subjects of morals, etc., such as temperance, slavery and
the like;' fourth, its secular as well as religious affairs to be in the hands of the
church exclusively. In August, 1836, thirty-nine members of the First church
were organised by the presbytery of Rochester under the corporate name of
the " Bethel Presbyterian church of Rochester; " In 1 841 the name was changed
248 History of the City of Rochester.
to the "Washington street church," and in the spring of 1858 to the "Cen-
tral Presbyterian church," which it now bears. The first edifice was on Wash-
ington street adjoining the canal, and the present is on North Sophia street.
The preaching of the Rev. Charles G. Finney, in 1842, led to the conversion
of three hundred and fifty persons, who distributed themselves among eight
city churches. During the year 1844 ten heads of families, with noble gener-
osity, left the Brick church for this. The absence of a pastor between 1842
and 1845 had reduced the membership to less than two hundred.
The pastors and ministers have been as follows : Rev. George Smith Board-
man, D.D., native of Albany, N. Y., and gradu*ate of Union college and of
Princeton seminary, first pastor in 1837, continuing to 1842, when he wont to
Cherry Valley and to Cazenovia, supplying various churches to the end of his
useful life. Rev. Milo Judson Hickok, D.D., native of New Haven, Ver-
mont, graduate of Middlebury college and of Union seminary, came to Roch-
ester in 1845, labored with great ability in the service of the Washington street
church; went to Scranton, Penn., where he was pastor fourteen years and be-
ing disabled by paralysis closed his days at Marietta, Ohio. A master in
thought, erudition and earnestness. Rev. P'rank Field EUinwood, D.D.,
native of Clinton, N. Y., graduate of Hamilton college and of Auburn and
Princeton seminaries, was installed pastor of the Central in November, 1854,
remaining to 1865, when ill health drove him from the flock. He is one of the
secretaries of the board of foreign missions. Rev. Samuel M. Campbell,
D.D., native of Campbelltown, N. Y., and graduate of Auburn seminary ; came
to the city and was installed pastor, March ist, 1866, remaining fifteen years,
when he removed to Minneapolis. Rev. Theodore W. Hopkins, native of
Cincinnati, Ohio ; graduate of Yale college and Rochester theological seminary ;
pastor elect, but not installed.
The oflScers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. Theodore W. Hopkins; elders —
William A. Hubbard, Heman Glass, Lewis H. Ailing, Charles Forbes, William
Ailing (clerk), Henry Churchill, John N. Harder, David Cory, l-'rank M. ICl-
lery, Alonzo L. Mabbett, George W. Sill and Darius L. Covill. Sunday-school
superintendents, Thomas Dransfield and Mrs. D. L. Covill.
Calvary. — Early in the year 1847 '^^v- Richard De l^^orest purchased a
lot in the southeast part of the city, on which he erected a small building,
containing one room. He then went through the neighborhood, giving in-
formation that a Sabbath-school would be commenced on the next Lord's
day, followed by preaching in the afternoon. Forty scholars were present at
the former and a crowd at the latter. This prepared the way for a formal ec-
clesiastical organisation under the name of "St. Paul street Congregational
church." Soon after a church edifice was erected on the corner of South
avenue and. Jefferson street and dedicated to divine worship November 3d, 1850,
the sermon being preached by President Mahan, of Oberlin, Ohio. Pecuniary
The Presbyterian Churches. 249
adversities compelling a sale of the property, it was purchased by L. A. Ward
with a view to its becoming Presbyterian, which it has since been. On the ish
of June, 1856, it came into connection with the presbytery of Rochester, with
the corporate title of "Calvary Presbyterian church of Rochester." Enlarge-
ments and improvements have taken place at different times, till it is now one
of the most commodious in the region of this locality.
The pastors and ministers have been as follows : Rev. Richard De Forest,
native of New York city and graduate of Auburn theological seminary, was the
founder of this church, and pastor while Congregational in polity. Energetic;
earnest and useful, his name will be ever held in grateful memory. He is
buried in Mount Hope. Rev. Charles Ray, a native of Calcutta, India,
where his parents (Rev. Edward and Sarah Ray) were missionaries. He grad-
uated at Union college and Princeton seminary and was installed as the first
Presbyterian pastor, .in July, 1856, and after two years resigned and has
employed his learning and labor in various departments and places to the pres-
ent time. Rev. Bellville Roberts spent four years of earnest effort in the
pastorate of this church, witnessing many happy results from his faithful minis-
tration. Rev. Alfred Yeomans, D. D., native of North Adams, Mass., son
of Rev. Dr. John Yeomans, moderator of the general assembly in i860, grad-
uated at Princeton college and seminary. His pastorate covered but one year,
when continued ill-health compelled his resignation. He is now pastor of a
church at Orange,- N. J., as successor of his brother, the late E. D. Yeomans,
formerly of St. Peter's, Rochester. Rev. Herbert W. Morris, D. D., a native
of Wales, look the pastoral charge of Calvary in 1867, giving to the people of
his charge the results of intense study and the accumulations of research, much
of which is made permanent in volumes that have few equals in Christendom.
Dr. Morris resides in Rochester. Rev. Edward Bristol, native of Buffalo,
N. Y., converted at fifteen, engaged at once in evangelistic work in the Lafay-
ette street church, of which the late Rev. Grosvcnor W. Heacock, D. D., was
the devoted and lifelong pastor ; after twenty-five years in the city missions and
alms house, he entered upon the work of a general evangelist and finally became
pastor of Calvary in 1878.
The officers in 1 884 are : Pastor, Rev. Edward Bristol ; elders — F. S. Steb-
bins, J. B. Reeves, Judson Knickerbocker, Thomas Oliver, Frank T. Skinner.
Superintendent of Sabbath-school, F. T. Skinner.
St. J'etcr's. — In May, 1852, Levi A. Ward, a member of the First church,
commenced the construction of a new church edifice upon a lot of land owned
by him on Grove street, opposite his own residence. Grove place. His desire
was to meet the public demand in that locality and to establish an order of
worship in which the entire congregation shall more largely unite than is
customary in the denomination. An edifice was erected at an expense of
$35,000 and dedicated October 25th, 1853, sermon by Rev. Dr. Mcllvaine,
2SO History of the City of Rochester.
pastor of the First, assisted by Rev. Dr. Mall of the Third and Rev. Dr.
F. De Wilton Ward, of Geneseo, brother of the founder. On the 13th of
December, 1853, a special meeting of the presbytery of Rochester (O. S.) was
held, when twenty-eight persons, members of different churches in the city,
presented certificates and were constituted "St. Peter's church of the city of
Rochester." Its special features are a form of worship but no liturgy — no.
printed prayer except that left by Christ himself Gown and bands arc used
by the clergymen, as is customary in all the churches in Scotland and many
older ones in America. The deed of the church property was executed and
delivered to the trustees by the founder, March 27th, 1867. The first edifice
was destroyed by fire, March i8th, 1868, but was immediately rebuilt at an
expense of about $50,000.
The pastors and ministers have been as follows : Rev. Richard H. Richard-
son, D. D., native of Lexington, Kentucky, graduate of Princeton college and
seminary, held the pastorate for one and a half years and holds a similar posi-
tion in Trenton, N. J. Rev. Joseph H. Towne, D. D., presided over this
church two years. Rev. John Townsend Coit, D. D., native of Buffalo
and graduate of Yale and Andover, commenced his pastorate of St. Peter's,
June 1st, i860. Three years passed profitably away, when, upon a visit to his
former parishioners at Albion, he was called suddenly to the heavenly world.
A tablet to his memory has been placed upon the right of the pulpit, with a
fitting inscription. Rev; Edward Dorr Yeomans, D. D., son of the late Dr.
Yeomans, moderator of the general assembly in Rochester, was a native of
North Adams, Mass., graduated at Princeton seminary, preeminent in varied
scholarship. His pastorate of St. Peter's began in May, 1863, when he removed
to Orange, N. J., and died of apoplexy, August 27th, 1868. A beautiful tab-
let in bronze is within the church. — Rev. James M. Crowell, D. D., a native
of Philadelphia, and graduate of Princeton college and seminary, was pastor
from May 5th, 1869, to December, 1870. He is now secretary of the Ameri-
can Sunday school union in his native city. Rev. Herman Camp Riggs,
D. D., native of Groton, N. Y., graduated at Union, and Union theological
seminary. Came to Rochester from Rutherford Park, N. J. ; was installed
over St. Peter's June 8th, 1878.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. Herman Camp Riggs, D. D. ; ciders
— M. K. Woodbury, J. E. Pierpont, E. F. Hoyt, E. E. Sill, T. W. Crissey,
R. E. White, H; W. Brown, S. A. Merriman ; deacons — M. K. Woodbury and
Hf W. Brown. Sunday-school superintendents, S. A. Merriman and J. Morgan.
Westminster. — This first Protestant church west of the Erie and Valley
canals sprang from the union of two Sunday-schools, one started by the
Brick church and the other by the Central. These had been under the
superintendency of John H. Thompson, William S. Bishop and Henry Churchill.
From May, 1861, to May, 1862, Rev Anson Gleason, long a missionary
The Presbyterian Churches. 251
among the Mohican Indians, labored with characteristic zeal in this field.
Mrs. L. A. Shepherd was a local missionary of the young people's society
of the Central in the same locality. After considerable time and much effort
funds were obtained to erect a building for worship, which was dedicated Jan-
uary 26th, 1871. The sermon was preached by Rev. Dr. Campbell, of the
Central, which had generously dismissed eighty-two persons to this new body.
In common with many church edifices of the city, this received substantial and
timely pecuniary aid from the late Aristarchus Champion, who resided in that
vicinity.
The pastors have been as follows : Rev. Henry Morey, graduate of Union
college and Princeton seminary, was installed April 27th, 1871, and resigned
in October, 1874; now an evangelist. Rev. Corlis B. Gardner, graduated
at Rochester, and at Auburn seminary, was installed February 4th, 1875.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Corlis B. Gardner; elders — B. H. Hill,
J. B. Whitbeck, H. K. Van Tyne, E. M. Doane, W. F. Parry, W. J. C. Hansen.
Memorial. — The name of this church suggests the time and manner of
its coming into being. The funds contributed by the Brick church during the
memorial years of 1869—70 were devoted to a new organisation on Hudson
and Wilson streets, in the eastern, as Calvary was in the southern, and West-
minster in the western limits of the city. A church chapel was built in 1870.
A church organisation was effected on January 17th, 1872, by a commission
of presbytery, fifty-four persons enrolling their names as members, thirty-
seven by letter and seventeen upon confession of their faith. To meet the
wants of the growing congregation, the original brick chapel was enlarged
into the present commodious Gothic structure and dedicated, free from debt,
August 1 8th, 1 88 1. The entire expense of lot and structure was about $20,000.
The average attendance is 350, with a constant increase.
The pastors have been as follows : Rev. Gavin L. Hamilton, installed in
1870, and continued his labors to the last Sabbath in 1874. Rev. Charles
Pierrepont Coit, native of Hastings, N. Y., graduated at Rochester university
and Auburn seminary, organised and built up a church in Binghamton, N. Y. ;
installed as pastor of the Memorial church January 2d, 1875.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. Charles P. Coit; elders — Edward
W. Warner, George H. Rudman, Aaron P. Lawrence, David C. Rudman,
Stephen W. Millichamp and Wilson F. Smith. Sunday-school superintendent,
Aaron P. Lawrence.
North Presbyterian church. — A commission of Rochester presbytery or-
ganised this church on Tuesday evening, February 12th, 1884. Thirty-nine
persons presented letters from various churches, and thirty-one after the usual
examinations as to personal experience and purposes. These seventy were
then con.stituted the "North church of Rochester." Three persons were then
elected and formally ordained elders : Isaac Bower, George W. Davison and
17
252 History of the City of Rochester.
Frank H. Clement. This church began as a Sabbath-school, conducted by
earnest workers of the Central church, under the efficient leadership of William
A. Hubbard, in 1869. The first meetings were held in a school-room, then in
a chapel erected in 1874, and it is expected that ere long an edifice will be
built to meet the demands of the increasing congregation and Sunday-school.
The nearest Presbyterian place of worship is that of the ]5rick, which is a mile
and a quarter distant.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. Peter Lindsay, graduate of Auburn
seminary, who began his labors on the third Sabbath of December, 1883;
elders — Anson W. Pond, George W. Davidson and Frank H. Clement.
Reformed Presbyterian church. — An organisation with this corporate title
dates to the year 1835, with a membership of twenty-nine. The first place of
meeting was the High school building, on the corner of Temple and Lancaster
streets. Subsequently an edifice was erected on the intersection of Stillson
and Main streets, which, after long occupancy, was sold for business purposes,
and the proceeds put into a structure larger and more commodious on North
St. Paul street, near Andrews.
The pastors have been as follows : Rev. John F"isher, a native of Ireland,
and preacher of marked ability ; he lived but a short time, and is buried in Mt.
Hope. Rev. G. B. McKee was installed in 1835, and resigned in 1842;
his remains also repose in Mt. Hope. Rev. David Scott, a native of Scot-
land, graduate of the University of Glasgow, came to America in 1829, suc-
ceeded Mr. McKee in 1844, resigned in 1862, and died at Alleghany, Penn-
sylvania, March 29th, 1 87 1, after an honored and useful life of seventy-seven
years. Rev. R. D. Sproule, native of Alleghany, Pennsylvania, graduate
of Jefferson college and Alleghany seminary, was installed in 1863, and after
a successful ministration resigned, and is now pastor of the Presbyterian church
in Providence, R. V. Rev. John Graham, native of New York city, gradu-
ate of the University of Penn.sylvania, and the Reformed Presbyterian sem-
inary; installed over the church June 26th, 1881.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. John Graham ; elders — Hugh Rob-
inson, Robert Aiton, James Campbell, Robert Wilson, Abram Ernisse and
Robert K. Toas.
First United Presbyterian church. — The way being prepared by the
preaching of Rev. John Van Eaton in 1843, on the 21st of September, 1849,
an organisation was perfected under the title of the "First Associate Reformed
church of Rochester." On the 20th of May, 1858, the Associate Reformed
Presbyterian church, and the Associate Presbyterian church of North America,
effected an organic union under the corporate title of the " United Presbyterian
church of North America," hence the present name of the "First United Pres-
byterian (U. P.) of Rochester." The first place of worship was a school-house
that stood near St. Luke's Episcopal church on Fitzhugh street, then an edifice
The Presbyterian Churches. 253
on Troup street and Plymouth avenue, which, being consumed by fire Septem-
ber 8th, 1850, purchase was made January 1st, 1851, of the 'church edifice on
tile corner of Court and Stone streets. Worship was there lield till the build-
ing was sold and purchase was made from the Free Will Baptists of their build-
ing on Allen street, near I'^itzhugh, which has become too strait, and must ere
long give place to a larger and more commodious building in order to meet
the wants of the growing congregation and demands of the enlarging church.
The pastors have been as follows: Rev. John Van Eaton, D. D., native of
Xenia, Ohio, and graduate of Miami university and Oxford seminary, com-
menced the pastorate of this church of his founding in 1849. Driven away
by the ill health of himself and family he went to York, N. Y., where he was
pastor for twenty-six years; a man of unwonted ability ; his death on March
5th, 1880, was a cause of great grief to his parishioners and community at large.
A useful volume on several of the minor prophets, published since his death,
illustrates his scholarship and ministerial fidelity. Rev. W. P. McAdams
was pastor three years and then retired to private life. Rev. Thomas Boyd
occupied the pulpit for four and a half years and is now pastor of Bethel and
Beulah churches in Pennsylvania. Rev. James Patterson Sankey, U. D.,
native of Londonderry, Ohio, graduate of PVanklin college, located at New
Athens, Ohio, and Allegheny United Presbyterian theological seminary, located
at Allegheny City, Penn., was placed in charge of this church by the presby-
tery of Caledonia, June 30th, 1864. A pastorate of twenty years, with no in-
timation by the people that he should leave, but wholly in the other direction,
is the highest proof of his usefulness and of his well-deserved favor in his
parish and by the entire city.
The officers in 1884 are: Pastor, Rev. James P. Sankey, D. D. ; elders —
Robert Sterritt, Thomas Lisle, James Hutchison and John Bamber. Sunday-
school superintendent, the pastor.
Several ministers and missionaries have gone from the Presbyterian churches
of Rochester : Jonathan S. Green, Sandwich islands ; F. De Wilton Ward,
D. D., India; Henry Cherry, India ; T. Dwight Hunt, Sandwich islands; James
Ballentine, L. Merrill Miller, D. D., Ogdensburgh ; Henry E. Peck, Charles G.
Lee, P'rederick M. Starr, Everard Kempshall, D. D., Elizabeth, N. J. ; William
N. McCoon, Charles R. Clarke, California; Henry B. Chapin, Ph.D., N. Y. ;
Robert Proctor, George Dutton, M. L. R. P. Hill, G. Parsons Nichols, D. D.,
Binghamton ; Horace H. Allen, Daniel Ames, Charles R. Burdick, Peter H.
Ikirkhardt, Elisha M. Carpenter, Nathan M. Chapin, Lemuel Clark, Darwin
Chichester, Hiram W. Congdon, Philo G. Cook, Henry Cooper, David Dickey,
Morvatt Evarts, William C. F"rench, D. D., Cleveland, John K. Fowler, Mer-
ritt Galley, Corlis B. Gardner, Alanson C. Hall, Augustus F. Hall, Gavin L.
Hamilton, Parsons C. Hastings, Ph. D., Alvan Ingersoll, Thomas H. Johnson,
George W, Mackie, David E. Millard, Enoch K. Miller, Henry T. Miller,
254 History or the City of Rochester.
David H. Palmer, James H. Phelps, James S. Pierpont, Augustus C. Shaw,
D. D., John Spink, A. D. White, WiiUam C. Wisner, D. D., Edwin S. Wright,
D. D., Worthington Wright, Albert G. Hall, D. D., Hezekiah B. Pierpont,
Richard De Forest, T. Reaves Chiprnan, Samuel Hayliss, Jonathan Copeland,
Gavin Langmuir, D. D., Charles H. Wood, Charles Ray, C. M. Torrey, Dillis
D. Hamilton, George S. Bishop, George Kemp Ward, John Middleton, I'red-
erick J. Jackson, Willis C. Gaylord, Theodore B. Williams, David F. Stewart,
Edward C. Ray, Eugene G. Cheeseman, James W. White.^
Of others not ministers who have gone as foreign missionaries, Henry A.
De Forest, M. D., Syria ; Mrs. Delia Stone Bishop Sandwich islands ; Mrs. A.
De Forest, Syria; Mrs. Maria Ward (Chapin) Smith, Syria ; Mrs. Janet Cam-
eron, Africa.
The total membership of the eleven Presbyterian churches of Rochester in
the spring of 1884 was 4,585; total Sunday-school membership, 4,620 ; total
contributions to the church boards and miscellaneous charities for the year
ending April, 1884, $18,416; congregational, general assembly and other
church purposes, $50,423 ; sum total, $68,839.
THE EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
St. Luke's church. — The organisation of this parish was effected through
the efforts of Rev. H. U. Ondcrdonk on the 14th of July, 18 17. At that
date the original corporators — S. Melancton Smith, Moses P. Belknap, Wil-
liam Y. Greene, Jesse Moore, A. G. Dauby, John P. Comparet, Anson House,
Daniel Hibbard, Jacob Howe, Elisha Johnson, Jonah Brown, Caleb Ham-
mond, Jabez Wilkinson, Joseph Thompson, William Atkinson, Samuel J. An-
drews, John C. Rochester, John Mastick, Silas O. Smith, Roswell Babbit, Enos
Stone, Oliver Culver, John P. Sheldon, Daniel Tinker, Lewis Jenkins, H. Mont-
gomery, Joseph Spencer and Joseph Griffin — held a meeting in a school-house
1 Rev. A. G. Hall, U. D., Rev. W. C. Wisner, 1). D., Rev. R. De Forest, Rev. Henry E. I'eck,
Rev. C. Gardner have been (the last is) Rochester city pastors.
Note. — The First, lirick, Central and St. Peter's are four of the most expensive and imposing
edifices in the city. The Third, having sold theirs to the Unitarians, are arranging to builil upon the
corner of East avenue and Meigs street. The other four are commodious, equal to the present wants
of their localities, but will, in due time, give place to others of larger iliinensions ami more cmnmand-
ing appearance.
Rev. George G. Sill, native of Silltown, Conn., came to Rochester in 1815, was licensed and or-
dained by the presbytery of Rochester, from 1825 to 1845, preached in Rochester and neighborhood,
edited the Rochester ObseiTer (the first religious newspaper in Western New York), compiled an<l
published a verse book of .Scripture for Sunday-schools, and died at Lyme, Conn., May 20th, 1859.
In the year 1830 Rev. Charles G. Finney made his first visit to Rochester, preaching in the First,
Second and Third churches, with heaven-endowed power and marvelous results. To this master in
logic, eloquence and fearlessness of spirit Rochester is greatly indebted, under God, for its moral and
religious eminence.
As Presbyterianism was first to occupy the ground when Rochester was but a "clearing," sur-
rounded by dense forests, so it has ever held its own in numbers, character and influence, making itself
felt for good, the city, land and world over.
The KriscoPAL Churches. 255
owned by Samuel J. Andrews on the east side of the river, when Colonel N.
Rochester and Sanuicl J. Andrews were elected wardens; Silas O. Smith, Ros
well Babbit, John Mastick, Lewis Jenkins, Elisha Johnson, John C. Rochester,
William Atkinson and Oliver Culver were chosen vestrymen. Occasional ser-
vices were held for the parish by Rev. Messrs. Onderdonk, Norton and Welton,
in the school-house on the lot adjoining the present church site. In 1818 Bishop
Hobart made his first visit to the infant parish, and in the building then occu-
pied by the First Presbyterian society administered the rite of confirmation to
four persons. In 1820 the first church edifice was erected on lot number 85,
which was given by the proprietors of the One-hundred-acre tract. It was a
long wooden structure, in size thirty-eight by forty-six feet, and contained about
forty pews. The funds for the erection of this building were provided by a
subscription in which the following entries appear : N. Rochester, in lumber,
$200 ; William Cobb, in blacksmithing, twenty-five dollars ; William Haywood,
in hats, twenty dollars ; Ebenezer Watts, in tinware, ten dollars ; E. Peck &
Co., in books and stationery, twenty dollars; Jehiel Barnard, in tailoring, five
dollars ; H. Scrantom, in flour, seven dollars ; Abner Wakelee, in shoes, ten
dollars ; Jacob Gould, in goods, ten dollars. The following additional subscrip-
tions were contributed toward the erection of a steeple or cupola ; A. Reynolds,
in goods or brick, five dollars ; D. D. Barnard, in cider and apples, five dollars ;
Timothy Bosworth in combs, five dollars ; Ephraim Moore, " in pork out of my
shop," five dollars. The little church was occupied for the first time on Christ-
mas day, 1820. Rev. Francis H. Cuming, deacon, first served as rector, hav-
ing entered upon his duties on the first Sunday of December, 1820, and some
two months later the church was consecrated by Bishop Hobart.
In 1823 the growth and prosperity of the church had been such that the
building could no longer accommodate the largely increased attendance. Con-
sequently, in September. 1823, the vestry entered into a contract with H. T.
McGcorgc to build a stone church fifty-five feet by seventy-three, at a con-
tract price of $9,000. The actual cost, however, was $10,400. The old frame
structure was moved to the rear of the lot and work begun on the new build-
ing in the latter part of 1823. The church was opened for public worship Sep-
tember 4th, 1825, and on the 30th of September, 1826, the ceremony of con-
secration was performed by Bishop Hobart.
After a successful rectorship of eight years, Mr. Cuming, in March, resigned,
and was succeeded by Henry J. Whitehouse, who was instituted by Bishop
Hobart, August 29th, 1830. Dr. Whitehouse resigned, May 1st, 1844, after a
successful pastorate of nearly fifteen years, and subsequently acquired a national
reputation as bishop of Illinois. He was succeeded by Rev. Thomas C. Pitkin,
who took charge of the parish July 14th, 1844. In consequence of ill health
Dr. Pitkin resigned the rectorship July 12th, 1847. I" the following October
a call was extended to Rev. Henry W. Lee, which he accepted and was insti-
2$6 History of the City of Rochester.
tilted by Bishop De Lancey on the i6th of P'ebriiary, 1848. While rector of
this church he was honored with the titles of D. D. and LL. D., and his pros-
perous ministry of seven years terminated December 24th, 1854, in consequence
of his election to the bishopric of Iowa, and previous consecration to that
office October 18th, 1854. Rev. Benjamin Watson was chosen his successor
and entered upon his duties on the 29th of the following April. Dr. Watson
having resigned July 23d, 1859, he was succeeded by the Rev. R. B. Cla.xton,
D. D., who was elected rector on the ist of October, and instituted by Bishop
De Lancey on the 20th of the following February. Dr. Claxton resigned on
the 1st of October, 1865, to accept the chair of^professor of pulpit eloquence
and pastoral care in the divinity school of the Protestant Episcopal church in
Philadelphia. On the 23d of April, 1866, Rev. Henry Anstice was called to
the rectorship and on the second Sunday of May entered upon his duties.
During the first year of his ministry the interior of the church was thoroughly
remodeled and refitted, the congregation in the meantime worshiping in the
First Presbyterian church. Saint Luke's was reopened for divine service March
lOth, 1867, and the institution of the rector by the bishop of the diocese took
place on the 14th of the same month. The officers for the present year are as
follows: Rector, Rev. Henry Anstice, D. D. ; wardens — G. H. Perkins, James
Brackett ; vestrymen — J. A. Eastriian, William Eastwood, E. W. Williams,
Clinton Rogers, Lorenzo Kelly, Alfred Ely, A. J. Johnson, Byron Holley.
St. Paul's church. — This, the second Episcopal parish in Rochester, was
organised May 28th, 1827, at a meeting presided over by Rev. Francis H.
Cuming, rector of St. Luke's. William Atkinson and Giles Boulton were
elected wardens, and Elisha Johnson, Elisha B. Strong, Jared N. Stcbbins, S.
M. Smith, Enos Stone, Samuel J. Andrews, Daniel Tinker and A. B. Curtiss,
vestrymen. Rev. Sutherland Douglas was the first rector, having been called
in April, 1828, and resigning on account of ill health in August of the follow-
ing year. The brick church edifice, then in process of erection, was completed
and consecrated by Bishop Hobart in August, 1830. Rev. Chauncey Colton
became rector in November of that year, resigning in December, 1831, when
he was succeeded by Rev. H. V. D. Johns, who preached but once and was
in turn succeeded by Rev. Burton H. Hickox. Mr. Hickox remained from
1832 to 1835, when Rev. Orange Clark. D. D., was called. Dr. Clark con-
tinued as rector for a period of four years and was followed by Rev. Washing-
ton Van Zandt, in 1839, who remained but one year and six months.
About this time the parish became involved financially, and a mortgage of
$10,000 was foreclosed, which led to the dissolution, of Saint Paul's and the
formation of a new corporation to buy the property under the name of " Grace
church." During the long vacancy which ensued, occasional services were
supplied by professors from Geneva, until June 12th, 1842, when Rev. William
E. Eigenbrodt became rector, remaining until December, 1843. On the 25th
The Episcopal Churches. 257
of July, 1847, tlie church building was destroyed by fire. Services were held
in the old High school on Clinton street, until Christmas of that year. The
new church edifice was consecrated as Grace church December 17th, 1848. Un-
der the auspices of the bishop the parish had been served for three months by
Rev. Stephen Douglas and later by Rev. John V. Van Ingen, D. D. The lat-
ter was elected rector in 1848. He was succeeded by Rev. Maunsell Van
Rensselaer, who was elected in September, 1854, and whose term of office ex-
tended to Easter, 1859. He was followed by Rev. Israel Foote, who entered
upon the rectorship August 1st, 1859. Dr. Foote, after an incumbency of
twenty-three years, resigned the rectorship, to take effect April 17th, 1882, and
was succeeded by Rev. W. H. Piatt, D. D., LL. D., who was called to the rec-
lorsliip September i6tli, 1882.
The present officers of the church are as follows: Rector, W. H. Piatt,
D. D., LL. D. ; wardens — A. G. Yates, William H. Sanger; vestrymen — H. H.
Warner, E. F. Woodbury, Frank W. Elwood, W. C. Dickinson, H. M. Ells-
worth, James L. Hatch, C. H. Amsden and A. Erickson Perkins.
Trinity church. — The movement to establish this parish was inaugurated
in 1836 by Rev. Henry J. Whitehouse, then rector of St. Luke's. Services
were held by Rev. Vandevoort Bruce, who became rector January 26th,
1846, in a school-house on Brown square, and later in school number 5 at
the corner of Center and Jones streets. The corner-stone of a church building
on the corner of Frank and Center streets was laid June 13th, 1846, and
opened for divine service on Christmas eve of that year. Mr. Bruce resigned
the rectorship of the parish May 12th, 1847, ^"d was succeeded by Rev.
Charles D. Cooper, in October of the same year. During his administration
the debt was entirely paid and the church consecrated by Bishop De Lancey
]<"ebruary 15th, 1848. Mr. Cooper resigned December loth, 1849, after an
incumbency of fifteen years, and was followed by Rev. Robert J. Parvin, who
assumed the rectorship February 1st, 1850, and resigned August 12th, 1852.
Rev. Addison B. Atkins became rector October 1st, 1852, remaining about two
years, and was succeeded by Rev. George N. Cheney, who took charge of the
parish October ist, 1854, remaining until May ist, 1863, when, in con.sequence
of impaired health, he resigned. During this year the church was enlarged
and improved and Rev. John W. Clark was called to the rectorship. He
entered upon his duties on the 6th of December, 1863, but remained only a
short time, and was succeeded by Rev. John V. Van Ingen, D. D., who labored
in the parish until July ist, 1868. After a vacancy of eight months Rev.
Charles H. W. Stocking took charge of the parish on the ist of March, 1869.
Mr. Stocking remained until December, 1871, and was succeeded by Rev. M.
R. St. J. Dillon-Lee, January, 1872. He officiated until October, 1873, and
was followed by Rev. C. J. Machin, who remained until January, 1875. Rev.
W. W. Walsh assumed the rectorship May ist, 1875, and is the present in-
258 History of the City of Rochester.
cumbent. On the 17th of April, 1880, the church property was sold and soon
after the present site of the church and rectory was purchased. Ground was
broken for the erection of a new house of worship on the 23d of June, 1880,
the corner-stone being laid by Bishop Coxe on the 29th of July, and the
church opened for divine service on the 31st of July in the following year.
The present officers are as follows : Rector, Rev. Warren W. Walsh ; war-
dens— George Arnold, William H. Cross; vestrymen — H. W. Davis^ F. G.
Ranney, F. S. Upton, John H. Bishop, John A. Van Ingen, James H. Kelly,
William Boyd, John G. Mason.
Christ church. — This parish was organised on the 7th of May, 1855, by
a number of parishioners of St. Luke's, with a few from St. Paul's. The
meeting was held in Palmer's block, and the following officers were elected :
Wardens — Silas O. Smith and David Hoyt ; vestrymen — Andrew J. 15rackett,
D. B. Beach, D. M. Dewey, John P^airbanks, J. M. Winslow, Charles R. Babbit,
Delos Wentworth and Edward M. Smith. The present site of the church was
purchased in June, 1855, and the building erected in the latter part of the same
year. Rev. Henry A. Neely was the first rector, and entered upon his duties
October ist, 1855. Mr. Neely continued rector until 1862, when he resigned,
becoming chaplain of Hobart college, afterward taking charge of Trinity chapel.
New York, and subsequently being consecrated bishop of Maine on the 25 th of
January, 1867. Rev. Anthony Schuyler, D. D., was his successor and entered
upon the duties of the rectorship October ist, 1862, remaining until 1868.
Rev. Walton W. Battershall became rector January 1st, 1869, continuing in this
relation until August ist, 1874. He was followed by Rev. Joseph L. Tucker,
February 17th, 1875. Mr. Tucker's ministry was terminated by his resigna-
tion, to take effect October 15th, 1877. The present rector. Rev. W. D'Or-
ville Doty, was called October isth, 1877, and assumed the rectorship on the
2d of December, of the same year.
The officers for the present year are as follows: Rector, Rev. W. D'Orville
Doty, D. D. ; wardens — J. Moreau Smith, D. M. Dewey; vestrymen — J. H.
Nellis, S. V. McDowell, E. W. Osburn, John A. Davis, J. A. Biegler, A. C.
Walker, W. J. Ashley and F. A. Ward.
Church of the Good Shepherd.' — During the pastorate of Rev. Dr. Clax-
ton, of St. Luke's, a mission of that parish was established and a building erected
in which services were held for the first time July 31st, 1864. The parish was
organised into an independent church by Rev. Henry Anstice, rector of St.
Luke's, March 29th, 1869. Rev. Jacob Miller, who had been ministering in the
congregation for twenty months as assistant to Mr. Anstice, was, on nomina-
tion by the latter, elected the first rector. Upon his resignation in September,
1869, Rev. J. Newton Spear was called, but he soon resigned on account of ill
health. Rev. James S. Barnes next entered on the field. May ist, 1870, but
left within six months. Rev. Frederick W. Raikes accepted the charge Decern-
The Episcopal Churches. 259
ber iSth, 1870, and after a ministry of two years resigned April 1st, 1873. He
was followed by Rev. Benjamin W. Stone, D. D., who after an incumbency of
eight years resigned April 1st, 1881. Rev. Byron Holley, jr., followed immedi-
ately as minister of the church of the Good Shepherd, reniaining in this position
until June 19th, 1882. Rev. James Stoddard assumed the care of the parish
August 1st, 1883.
The officers for the current year are : Rector, Rev. James Stoddard ; ward-
ens— George Cummings, John W. Attridge ; vestrymen — Thomas Baxen-
dale, Andrew Erhardt, J. N. LeLievre, Thomas Attridge, George R. Hoare,
Edward P. Hart and William Smiley.
Church of the Epiphany. — The parish of the Epiphany is the outgrowth
of cottage service held in the winter of 1866-67, by Rev. Dr. Anstice, rector
of St. Luke's. The corner-stone of a chapel was laid July 23d, 1868, and the
first public services therein were held February 28th, 1869, Rev. W. W. Raj'-
mond being then the assistant minister of St. Luke's. He was followed by
Rev. George S. Baker, August 14th, 1870, and to his ministry is largely due
the growth and prosperity of the enterprise. Rev. C. M. Nickerson succeeded
Mr. Baker November ist, 1875. The parish was organised into an independent
parish by Dr. Anstice, September 13th, 1876, and on his nomination Rev. Mr.
Nickerson was elected the first rector, who remained in the parish until Janu-
ary 1st, 1 88 1. He was succeeded by Rev. Amos Skeele, who was called
March 21st, 1881.
The present officers are : Rector, Amos Skeele ; wardens — George E.
Mumford, John Clements; vestrymen — J. H. Stedman, Jonas Jones, H. C.
White, E. W. Tripp, George H. Perkins, J. C. Smith, W. S. Oliver and Alfred
L. Davis.
St. James's church. — The corner-stone of this Episcopal church was laid
on the 1 8th of July, 1875. The missionary committee having charge of the
enterprise were John Morris, John Southall, Charles S. Cook and William H.
Wilkins. The first service was held June 5th, 1876, at which time the church
was consecrated by Bishop Coxe, and Rev. James H. Dennis began his work
in the field. The meeting of the members of the congregation to incorporate
themselves was held August 17th, 1876, at which Rev. James H. Dennis was
elected the first rector.
The present officers are as follows: Rector, Rev. J. H. Dennis; wardens —
John Morphy, John Nicholson; vestrymen — E. J. Shackleton, Dr. Hermance,
J. Cox, jr., E. E. Havill, William Sweeting, E. Baldwin, J. McCullum.
St. Andrew's church. — This parish had its origin in the work of a general
city mission supported by the four older parishes of the city in 1866. In
1867 the parish of Christ church took the mission under its special care,
and during 1870 it was in charge of Rev. Daniel Flack, then the assistant
at Christ church, of which Rev. W. W. Battershall was rector. A lot was
26o History of the City of Rochester.
secured at the corner of Munger and Ashland streets, and the corner-stone of
a permanent structure was laid on the 19th of July, 1873. Rev. David A.
Bonnar was elected rector, and preached the first sermon in the completed por-
tion of the new church. In 1877 ^^^ church property passed, through fore-
closure of judgment, into the possession of William B. Douglas. The bishop
and standing committee having authorised the formation of a new parish in the
field formerly occupied by St. Clement's, the organisation of St. Andrew's was
effected February 7th, 1879. The first rector of the parish was Rev. A. S.
Crapsey, who was elected June 1st, 1879. The edifice was consecrated by
Bishop Coxe May i6th, 1880. The officers at present are as follows: Rector,
Rev. A. S. Crapsey; wardens — William B. Douglas, John J. Luckett; vestry-
men — Henry S. Crabbe, William Dove, Thomas A. Evans, Samuel L. Selden,
Arthur C. Smith, Frederick Suter, George Yeares.
FRIENDS OR QUAKERS.
A monthly meeting of Friends was held at Farmington, Ontario county,
N. Y., on the 23d of the "eighth month," 1821. Permission was granted
allowing Friends of Rochester, Riga and Henrietta to hold a preparative
meeting at Rochester, and in accordance therewith the first meeting was
held at Rochester on the i8th of the tenth month, 1 821, and Isaac Colvin was
appointed clerk for the day. The meetings were to be held on the first and
fifth days of each week under the care of the following committee : Stephen
Durfee, David Baker, Sunderland Patterson, Nathaniel Walker, Asa Douglass
and Peter Harris. James Whippo and Mead Atwater were designated to pro-
pose some Friend as clerk. Aldrich Colvin and Erastus Spaulding were ap-
pointed to provide some suitable house for worship and discipline. The com-
mittee above named reported, and Thomas Congdon was appointed clerk on
the 20th of the twelfth month, 1821. The committee also reported upon a lot
and in favor of building a meeting- house, the total cost for a lot four rods by
eight rods, including building the meeting-house, being $1,050, and of buying
a burying-ground — village lot 175 Frankfort, sixty-six feet front by two hun-
dred feet deep, owned by Aldrich and Isaac Colvin — which could be had for
$80. Harvey Frink was appointed clerk for one year. On the 14th of the
eleventh month, 1822, the first meetings were held at Aldrich Colvin's house.
The house of worship, to be used also for a school-house, was built on the east
side of North Fitzhugh street, near Allen, and completed in the autumn of
1822, at a cost of $350.
A division or separation took place in the New York yearly meeting of
Friends in the year 1829 — and one branch was styled "orthodox" and the
other was called by many "Hicksites," and those names still exist. Among
the names of early members of the society, prior to the division, who belonged
to the Rochester meeting, we find, in addition to those already mentioned :
The Baptist Churches. 261
John Russell, Win. Lawton, Abram Staples, Zaccheus Aldridge, Wm. Rath-
bone, Silas Cornell, Joseph Cox and wife Dorothy, Ezra Scofield, Samuel
Fairwcll, Darius Shadbolt, Benjamin Fish, Thomas and Elizabeth Bills, John
Ireland, Hugh Pound, Henry Case, Wm. Griffin, Elihu F. Marshall, Silas An-
thony, Jonathan Warner, Gilbert Titus, Jacob Thorn, Barnabas Colman, Abram
Wilson, Lars Larson, Wm. Green, Philip Lyell, Oley Johnson, Daniel Batty,
Job Batty, Seth Macy, Wm. Macy, Jacob Bell, John Edgeworth, David Bell.
After the separation the Hicksite branch occupied the original meeting-house,
while the Orthodox Friends built a new one on Jay street. The society, as it
would seem, has accomplished its usefulness and fulfilled its destiny, and the
names of George Fox and William Penn still remain bright- and shining
lights of the Christian religion. There are but very few of the members of the
society left here, and those are of advanced years. Mary T. and Pamelia S.
P'rost, sisters of Harvey Frink, who was clerk of the Rochester meeting in
1822, still reside in the city; they maintain their interest in the society, and
have a fresh remembrance of the events that transpired in the early settlement
of Rochester, over seventy years ago. A few days since they visited Lake
View, the early residence of Erastus Spaulding, who was one of the committee
to procure a suitable house for worship in 1821. •
THE BAPTIST CHURCHES.
The First Baptist church was organised in the year 1818, and was then
called "the First Baptist church of Brighton." It had twelve constituent
members, none of whom are now living.- The numbers increased gradually
for the next twelve years, and 161 were connected with its membership in
1830. During the winter of 1830-31, when the great revival interest existed
in this city under the wonderful labors of that eminent divine. Rev. Charles G.
Finney, some 193 persons were added, and in 1832 some 368 members were
enrolled. The large emigration to the western states and the formation of the
Second Baptist church, on the east side of the river, which followed, reduced
the membership so that in 1835 only 244 remained. Its numerical increase
was soon resumed, however, for in 1844 the church contained 530 members.
P'rom 1 866 to 1 870 its progre.ss was steady, numbering at last 760, the largest
figures reached in its history. In the year i866, 185 new members were added.
In 1871 and 1872 three new Baptist churches — Memorial (on Lake avenue).
Rapids and East avenue were organised; taking many of the members of the
church, which, with other dismissals, reduced the membership to 545, which
has gradually increased to the present time, 1884. The church has now en-
rolled on its membership some 610 members.
Nine pastors and two temporary settlements have served this church : Rev.
E. M. Spencer, *i in the year 1819; Rev. Eleazer Savage, 1824 to 1826, three
1 Four of ihe above list are dead — as indicated by asterisks — and seven are living. Some of tliem
are now occupying very prominent positions as presidents of theological seminaries, or as editors or
publishers of denominational papers.
262 History of the City of Rochester.
years; Rev. O. C. Comstock, D. D.,* 1827 to 1834, eight years; Rev. Phar-
cellus Church, D. D., 1835 to 1848, fourteen years; Rev. J. A. Smith, D. D.,
1849 to 1854, five years; Rev. Jacob R. Scott, D. D.,* 1855 to 1858, three
years; Rev. Richard M. Nott,* 1859 to 1865, seven years; Rev. G. W. North-
rop, D. D., supplied the pulpit one year; Rev. Henry E. Robbins, D. D.,
1867 to 1872, six years; Rev. A. H. Strong, D, D., supplied one year; Rev.
Charles J. Baldwin, 1874- to 1884, ten years. The clerks of the church have
been as follows: Myron Strong, for four years; H. B. Sherman, for six years;
E. S. Treat, for seven years ; David Burbank, one year ; Dr. H. W. Dean, three
years ; J. A. Stewart, seven years. The following deacons (some of them of
honored memory) have passed away : Amos Graves, Ira Sperry, Isaac Tinney,
Oren Sage, Geo. S. Shelmire, John Watts, John Jones, H. L. Achilles, Edwin
Pancost, H. P. Smith, E. F. Smith, Myron Strong, H. N. Langworthy, H. W.
Dean, A. G. Mudge.
The present deacons are: Alvah Strong, William N. Sage, L. R. Satterlee,
J. O. Pettingill, S. A. Ellis, A. H. Cole, Matthew Massey, Cyrus F. Paine and
A. H. Mixer. The first two — Alvah Strong and William N. Sage — have
been members of the church nearly fifty-four years. The present board of trus-
tees consists of Ezra R. Andrews, president ; Z. F. Westervelt, G. D. Hale,
J. W. Warrant, C. A. Morse, B. P. Ward, Lewis Sunderlin, A. L. Barton and
T. De Puy. Charles T. Converse is the present treasurer. Between $300,000
and $400,000 have been contributed for benevolence and building of houses
of worship during the past fifty years.
The Sabbath-school superintendents have been : Myron Strong, one year ;
Rev. E. Savage, one year ; Rev. Zenas Freeman, two years ; H. L. Achilles,
two years ; EUery S. Treat, one year ; George Dawson, one year ; Edwin Pan-
cost, seven years ; William N. Sage, ten years ; James T. Griffin, two years ;
A. R. Pritchard, five years; L. R Satterlee, three years; A. G. Mudge, six
years ; S. A. Ellis, four years ; A. H. Cole, ten years.
The church first met after its organisation in a small school-house (number
I ) located where Rochester Free academy now stands. It was then removed
to the old court-house and sometimes met in the jury room. In 1827 the
church, being a feeble band and considered of no political importance, was turned
out by the sheriff in obedience to the directions of the board of supervisors.
The members removed to Col. Hiram Leonard's ball-room over a stable in the
rear of the old Clinton House and there-remained until 1828, when they pur-
chased of the Rochester Meeting-House company a wooden structure on State
street, in which previously the First and Second Presbyterian churches had
worshiped. This was located near where the American express company's build-
ing now stands, on State street. Five members of the church — Deacon Oren
Sage, Deacon Myron Strong, Zenas Freeman, H. L. Achilles and Eben Griffith
— gave their notes for $1,500 for the purchase and then spent about $1,000 in
The Baptist Churches. 263
improving the same, and the church there remained until they moved to their
building on Fitzhugh street in the year 1839.
The first building on Fitzhugh street was built of stone, at a cost of about
$18,000. It was considered a model of beauty, as well as of convenience, at
that time. But opinion changed very much in subsequent years. That build-
ing was enlarged in the year 1852, by extending it thirty feet and adding gal-
leries, at an expense of some $10,000. It remained in this shape till the year
1868, when the necessity for more room for the Sabbath-school and social
meetings of the church was so manifest that additional land was purchased, and
the rear part of the present structure was erected, at an expense of $53,034.-
75. In the year 1875 the foundations of the front building were laid, and
during the following year the entire building was completed, at an expense of
$74,836. 1 1, which, with cost of ground and rear part, makes the entire amount
$140,000 invested in the present building. This is a model of beauty, and
one of the finest church structures in the state.
The Second Baptist church was organised March I2th, 1834. For two
years prior thereto the subject had been variously agitated among the mem-
bers of the First Baptist church of forming another church, on the east side of
the river. It was not until the 26th day of February, 1834, that the project
was fully begun, and on that date letters of dismission were granted to fifty-
six persons, who formed the constituent members of the new church. At this
time a proposition was made by the Third Presbyterian church to sell their
house of worship, located on the northeast corner of Main and Clinton streets,
where the Washington hall block now stands. It was a stone and wooden
structure with a steeple and belfry. The first meeting of the new church and
society was held on April 8th, 1 834, when the following trustees were elected :
H. L. Achilles, S. Lewis (first class) ; Daniel Haight, John Culver (second
class) ; D. R. Barton (third class). On the 17th of April following, in accord-
ance with the previous arrangements, the Third Presbyterian church transferred
their meeting-house to the new church for the sum of $6,600, nearly the whole
amount being subscribed by about twenty members. On the night of Decem-
ber loth, 1859, this house of worship was consumed by fire.
After much consideration the site of the present church edifice, on the cor-
ner of North avenue and Franklin and Achilles streets, was purchased April
lOth, i860, for $5,400, the present edifice being erected thereon at an ex-
pense of $40,000; it is capable of seating 1,200 people. It was furnished and
dedicated in 1862. In the interim, service had been held in Palmer's block
(East Main street), and part of the time in the Third Presbyterian church. In
1848 the church suffered a loss of several members, in the organisation, by
Rev. Charles Thompson, of the Tabernacle Baptist church, which was then
organised, and by whom an edifice was erected on St. Paul street, near An-
drews, where the Jewish synagogue now stands. The organisation did not
264 History of the City of Rochester.
prove strong enough to live, and, after a brief struggle, the church was sold to
the Hebrews. In November, 1871, ninety-eight members were lost by the
forming of the East avenue Baptist church, which had been conducted as a
mission school for several years by the Second Baptist church. The Second
Baptist church has now a membership of 642 members. Rev. S. W. Duncan,
D. D., is the present pastor. Of the constituent members onh' three survive —
Mrs. Sarah M. Barton, Mrs. Dorcas Miller and Mrs. Emeline Sheik, all resi-
dents of this city. The ordinance of baptism was first administered July 13th,
1834, Ebenezer Titus and Martha, his wife, being the candidates.
The church has had eleven pastors, and of these but four are now living:^ —
Rev. G. D. Boardman, D. D., of Philadelphia, Pa. ; Rev. T. Edwin Brown, D.
D., of Providence, R. I. ; Rev. J. H. Gilmore, professor in the University of
Rochester, and the present pastor. Rev. Dr. Duncan. The first pastor was
Rev. li^lon Galiisha, who took the pastorate in May following tlie organisation
of the church, for a period of three years. He died at Brockport January 4th,
1856. Rev. Elisha Tucker was installed the second pastor, January 1st, 1837.
He resigned in 1841, removed to New York, and died in 1853. The third pas-
tor was Rev. V. R. Hotchkiss, who came from Pulteney, Vermont, April 26th,
1842, and remained until October 1st, 1845, when he accepted a call to a
church in Fall River, Mass. Rev. Charles Thompson became the fourth pastor
of the church, January i8th, 1846, and remained but a short interval, when he
organised the Tabernacle church of Rochester. The fifth pastor was Rev.
Henry Davis, who remained but a year, from 1849 to 1850. Rev. G. W.
Howard, D. D., commenced his labors as the sixth pastor of the church in the
autumn of 185 i ; after a pastorate of six years he removed to Chicago, and
then to New Orleans, where he died in 1863. Dr. G. D. Boardman assumed
the pastoral charge in October, 1856, occupying the same for eight years, when
he was called to preside oyer the First Baptist church of Philadelphia, where
he is still successfully ministering. Rev. Joseph H. Gilmore was installed as
the ninth pastor on October 9th, 1865, but resigned in 1867 to accept a pro-
fessorship in the university. The tenth pastor was the Rev. T. Edwin Brown,
D. D., who came from the Tabernacle Baptist church of Brooklyn, and assumed
the pastoral charge on November ist, 1869. He resigned in February, 1882,
to accept a call of the First Baptist church of Providence, R. I., which now
enjoys his successful ministry. His term of service, covering a period of thir-
teen years, is the longest single pastorate in the history of the church.
The present and eleventh pastor is the Rev. Samuel W. Duncan, D. D.,
formerly pastor of the Ninth street Baptist church of Cincinnati, Ohio, who
accepted the unanimous call of the church in June, 1883. In 1836 Rev. Jirah
D. Cole supplied the pulpit during the pastor's absence. From May ist, 1864,
to September 30th, 1865, Rev. E. G. Robinson, D. D., now president of Brown
university, and formerly of the Rochester theological seminary, was a stated
The Bafhst Churches. 265
supply. Among the early members of the church was Rev. E. Vining, " whose
beautiful and useful life had so impressed itself upon his brethren, that the Mon-
roe Baptist asssociation erected by special vote and contribution, a tombstone
in Mount Hope cemetery to mark his resting-place." Among those who
have been members of the church, and at times assisted in its pulpit services,
are Rev. E. G. Robinson, D. D., Rev. Dr. Buckland, (who supplied the pulpit
in 1874-75); Rev. Dr. S. S. Cutting, Rev. Eleazer Savage; aLso, among the
present members. Rev. Dr. Howard Osgood and President M. B. Anderson,
LL. D. There have been ordained to the ministry from the members of the
church Rev. George Otis Hackett, August 24th, 1844; Rev. Niles Kinney, N.
W. Benedict, D. D., and Rev. Wayland Benedict. Mrs. Louisa Hooker Van
Meter, a misionary to Burmah, was also a member of the church, having been
baptised in 1828.
The present deacons are : A. Mosely, Thomas Johnston and M. G. Seeley,
chosen in November, 1866; Professor Otis H. Robinson, chosen in November,
1874; D. G. Weaver, Charles H. Stanton, Charles Covell, W. W. Gilbert and
William H. Caldwell, chosen in November, 1878. The present trustees are:
C. B. Woodworth, chairman ; James Marden, secretary ; Martin A. Culver,
Daniel Harris, C: H. Stanton and J. B. Moseley. The following are the present
church officers: Rev. S. W. Duncan, D. D., pastor; M. G. Seeley, clerk; D.
G. Weaver, treasurer' of general benevolent fund ; Prof O. H. Robinson,
treasurer of poor fund ; W. W. Jacobs, treasurer.
The church started with a Sunday-school as an essential element. Its
growth has been no less satisfactory than that of the church. On the 6th of
March, 1834, Henry L. Achilles, as superintendent, opened a Sunday-school
in connection with the new church, and four days afterward the latter was con-
stituted, The number of scholars is not known ; but in October, 1834, a report
was made to the Sunday-school Union (which was then in existence in this
city), showing that the school had twenty-three teachers and one hundred and
twenty scholars, and possessed a library of one hundred and twenty-four vol-
umes. In nine years the school had increased to five, hundred and seventy-
eight scholars and fifty-two teachers, and it was then the largest Sunday-school
in the city, Nathan Britton being the superintendent. At the present time
there are about three hundred and eighty scholars and forty teachers connected
with the school. A new library of one thousand volumes was recently pur-
chased. The present officers are : Prof W. C. Stevens, superintendent ; W.
W. Jacobs, assistant superintendent ; T. B. Ryder, assistant superintendent ;
Mrs. M. A. Harris, superintendent of infant department ; Miss Lucy McMaster,
assistant in infant department ; H. F. Seymour, secretary and treasurer ; Edwin
O. Banker, librarian ; Rev. Howard Osgood, D. D., teacher of Bible class.
The First German Baptist church. — In 1 848-49 several German Baptists
from New York city and other places came to Rochester and commenced
266 History of the City of Rochester.
holding religious meetings in .private dwellings and in number i school-house
on Fitzhugh street. At first these meetings were conducted by a colporteur of
the American Tract society, and after a time by Rev. E. Roos, of Warrensville,
Penn., who labored here nine months. After this the services were conducted
by others at different intervals until October, 1850, when Rev. A. Henrich
came to this city from Buffalo, and, because of his efficiency and success in col-
lecting and cementing these scattered elements, he may be styled the founder
of the first German Baptist church of Rochester. On the 29th of June, 185 i,
this body was regularly organised and recognised by the proper judicatories,
Rev. A. Henrich being ordained as first pastor. Among the constituent mem-
bers were John Doppler, Jacob Bopser, Conrad Steppler and Joseph Richard,
all of whom have gone to their reward except the last named. In October,
1858, Mr. Henrich removed to Anthony, Penn., and then Rev. Prof A.
Rauschenbusch, of the German branch of the Rochester theological seminary,
supplied the pulpit for about six months, when Rev. Gerhard Koopmann, then
of the senior class of the theological seminary, accepted a call from the church
and was their pastor for a brief time. He was succeeded in 1863 by Rev.
Henry. Schneider, who was succeeded in 1865 by Rev. Ernest Tschirch.
In 1851, when the church was organised, services were held in a hall on
Ann street (now Allen street). A few years after this, purchase was made of
the old public school number 10, on Andrews street, east of North Clinton
street, for $2,000. In 1870 this stone building, was taken down and the
present inviting brick edifice erected at a cost of $10,000, being worth now,
lot inclusive, some $14,000. Mr. Tschirch did much in paying for said edifice
by collecting among the German and American Baptist churches. He left the
church in 1874 in a prosperous condition, and with only $1,000 debt on the new
house of worship. From this time Rev. Prof H. M. Schaffer of the theological
seminary supplied the pulpit for one year. In 1875 Rev. Peter Ritter, the present
pastor, accepted a call from the church. His labors among the Germans of this
city have been abundantly blessed, and about 289 persons have been added to
the church since, he took charge of it, 230 of them by baptism. Through the
efforts of Mr. Rit'ter the debt of $1,000 has been paid and the mortgage dis-
charged July 2d, 1883. In the past eight years about one hundred persons
have been dismissed by letter to unite with other Baptist churches.
Last year the church bought a large building spot on Sanford street, near
South avenue, for $1,200, on which there is a. chapel. It is well located for
growth and usefulness in this city. Services and Sunday-school are held there
every Sunday, also religious meetings during the week by the German students
of the theological seminary. The students also preach and conduct Sunday-
schools in other parts of the city and suburbs. This church is ecclesiastically
connected with the Monroe Baptist association, and with the eastern conference
of German Baptists. Present number of communicants, 289; whole number
The Baptist Churches. 267 .
of Sunday-school scholars, including mission, 428; Rev. P. Ritter, pastor;
George Fischer, Sunday-school superintendent; William Trump, and R. Wid-
nier, deacons; George Fischer, treasurer; John Strobel, clerk; Wm. N. Sage,
R. Widmer, Wm. Trump, John Strobel and John Arend, trustees.
The East Avenue Baptist church grew out of a mission Sunday-school,
which was established in 1847 by Dr. Giustiniani, for the benefit of the Ger-
man population of the city of Rochester. This was, at first, a union school
and met on Cherry street. In 1863 it was reorganised as the Bethlehem mis-
sion school, under the especial supervision of the Second Baptist church, and
met for years in McClellan hall, corner of east Main and Scio streets, S. G.
Phillips being its efficient superintendent. In 1870 the Sunday-school removed
to a commodious chapel on the corner of East avenue and Anson park, where
a church was soon organised with sixty-eight constituent members, of whom
fifty-four came from the Second Baptist church. For more than a year after
its organisation, the pulpit of the new church was supplied by Professors Buck-
land and Strong of the theological seminary, while Professor Gilmore of the
university acted as pastor. In 1873 Rev. Henry L. Morehouse, formerly of East
Saginaw, Mich., became pastor, and this relation continued till July ist, 1879.
After a brief interval the pastorate was assumed (February ist, 1880) by Rev.
W. H. Porter, of Ontario, who filled the position nineteen months. Since his res-
ignation the church has been under the efficient care of Prof T. Harwood Pat-
tison of the theological seminary, who has both supplied the pulpit and acted
as pastor. Rev. Henry C. Peepels, of Pittsburgh, Pa., has, however, recently
accepted a call to the pastorate of the church and enters upon his duties Sep-
tember 1st, 1884. The church has, also, recently sold its property on East ave-
nue and purchased lots on the corner of Park avenue and Meigs street, where
it is about to erect a neat and commodious house of worship. The present
membership of the church is 366. The Sunday-school, of which Deacon W.
P. Andrus is superintendent, reports an average attendance of 211.
The Lake Avenue Baptist church is the outgrowth of a mission school,
planted by the First Baptist church. It had a precarious existence for several
years, being without a house of its own and being obliged to meet in halls or
school-houses. In 1865 a substantial brick chapel was built, fronting on Lake
avenue, at the intersection of Jones avenue and Ambrose street. In commemo-
ration of the peace that followed the war of the rebellion it was called the Me-
morial chapel. The lot on which it stands was the free-will offering of Deacon
Oren Sage, of the First church, who also contributed liberally to the funds re-
quired for building the chapel. It continued as a mission thereafter for six
years. In 1871 a church was organised, having 107 constituent members, most
of whom took letters of dismission from the First church for this purpose.
There have been in its thirteen years' history only two pastors. During the
summer a call was given to Rev. Ebenezer Nisbet, D. D., to be the first pastor.
18
268 History of the City of Rochester.
This was accepted and he entered upon his labors November 1st, 1871.. After
a pastorate of four years Dr. Nisbet resigned, and A. J. Barrett, of the senior
class in the Rochester theological seminary, was engaged as stated supply. In
March, 1876, Mr. Barrett accepted a unanimous call to the pastorate of the
church and on June ist of that year was ordained to the Christian ministry,
so that he has now entered upon his ninth year of service. No year has
passed without some addition by baptism, the average for the eight years past
being thirty-two a year. The present membership (June 1st, 1884) is 463. The
brick chapel was found too small to accommodate the church, and in 1882 plans
were drawn, subscriptions were taken and the work of building commenced.
A new stone structure has been completed, eighty-eight feet by fifty-two. This
will eventually be the Sunday-school room, though now occupied as a church.
The main edifice is to be built soon, a portion of the money having already been
subscribed. The Sunday-school has had a remarkable growth. When it entered
the new brick chapel, in 1865, it numbered 128. In 1876 it reported to the
association an average of 228. In December, 1876, Deacon D. A. Woodbury
was elected superintendent. Under his efficient administration the average
attendance now reaches over 400, 503 having been reached on one Sunday in
March. The church pays all its obligations as fast as they mature, it has money
in the bank and is not disturbed by any internal dissensions.
THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
The First Methodist Episcopal church. — In 18 16, as some of our surviving
pioneers remember, the first Methodist preaching was heard ringing through
the forest, and that loud singing which in the old times rang out as a slogan, an-
nouncing where the Wesleyan regiment was rushing into battle, echoed near at
hand the solemn thunder of our upper falls. The next year, 1817, a class was
organised by Rev. Elisha House, and the society was thus, according to our
forms, located for permanent residence and work. Three years of class-meet-
ings, with such Sunday and week-day preaching as could be secured in private
residences and in the open air, developed the little society to such proportions
that a regular legal incorporation was effected on the 20th day of September,
1820, with Frederick Clark, Nathaniel Draper, Abelard Reynolds, Daniel Rowe
and Elam Smith as trustees. In the following June the First Methodist church
building was commenced, a small brick structure, on the west side of South
St. Paul street, nearest the southern line of the ground on which the opera
house now stands. The young society was not wealthy, and it was not till
July, 1826, that the building was fully completed and dedicated. The rapid
increase of membership from seventy when the church was dedicated to four
hundred three years later, compelled an enlargement of accommodations, and
in the fall of 1830 initiatory measures were taken for the erection of a spacious
building, in a more central location, and a large lot was secured on the corner
The Methodist Ei'iscoi'al Churches. 269
of West Main and Fitzhugh streets, where the Baker block now stands.. Here,
during the next year, an immense tabernacle, 104 by 80 feet was built of stone.
It was dedicated and occupied in the fall of 183 1, barely five years after the
"east-side" dedication. But a sad fate awaited the great "half-acre." It had
been used by its congregation but little more than three years when, one cold
night (the Sth) of January, 1835, it was totally destroyed by fire. Though
the society, already deeply in debt, was left with no insurance, it was heroic-
ally resolved to rebuild immediately, and within a year the house was so far
restored that a large . basement was ready to be used for worship, Sunday-
school, etc. In January, 1839, this second house was dedicated by Rev. Dr.
Levings, of the Troy conference.
These current years, with all their financial difficulties, were yet in a high
degree prosperous. The congregations and the Sunday-school were large. It
was estimated that a great revival during the incumbency of Rev. Glesen
Fillmore, 1830 to '32, resulted in about nine hundred conversions. Nine hun-
dred members were reported in 1834. The average number of members after
the separation of the East-side church in 1836 was about three hundred. We
had a strong officiary, including such men as Nehemiah Osburn, Ezra Jones,
Willis Kempshall, Elijah K. Blythe, Samuel Richardson, James Henderson and
others, and the business of the church was faithfully and well conducted. Soon
after the dedication of the reerected church, the trustees sold to the city a
large strip from the church lot, on the north side, as a site for fire engine house
number 6, and at length, after a long conflict with that malignant anti-Christian,
Giant Debt, it was found necessary to sell out and abandon the old corner. In
1854 a lot on the same side of Fitzhugh street, about midway between Main
and Ann streets, was purchased, and the next year the present edifice was
erected. During this transition the congregations assembled in the old city
hall building, on the site now occupied by Powers Hotel. Early in 1856 the
basement room of the new church was dedicated and occupied thenceforward
for nearly five years for auditorium and all other purposes. Since the dedica-
tion of its audience room, February 7th, 1861, the society has enjoyed a good
degree of prosperity, spiritual and financial. Faithful men have ministered in
its pulpit. Its Sunday-school, so long conducted by James Vick, of fragrant
memory, has been among the foremost in the city. Its offerings for the vari-
ous organised charities of the church have been liberal. Pastor MuUer com-
puted that up to his day the society had paid for ordinary and extraordinary
expenses and donations, from the very date of its first election, not less than
$4,400 per annum. This must be considered a very honorable showing. The
membership, notwithstanding, all reductions by death, removals and colonisa-
tions, has grown to 529 at the last conference report. The church edifice has
been several times repaired, repainted and refurnished — most notably in 1871,
during the pastorate of Rev. William Lloyd, when a new orgari was purchased,
and a sufficient sub-scription raised to pay off all existing indebtedness.
270 History of the City of Rochester.
The complete list of pastors, with dates of their appointment, is as follows :
1820, Oren Miller; 1821, Reuben Aylesworth; 1822, Elisha House; 1823,
Micah Seager; 1 824, Dana Fox ; 1825-26, John Dempster, D. D. ; 1827-28,
Zechariah Paddock, D. D. ; 1829, Gideon Laning; 1830-31, Glesen Fillmore,
D. D.; 1832, Robert Burch; 1833, Glesen Fillmore, D. D.; 1834, Elijah He-
bard; 1835-36, John Copeland; 1837, Wilber Hoag; 1838, Jonas Dodge;
1839, Glesen Fillmore, D. D,; 1840-41, Thomas Carlton, D. D. ; 1842, Moses
Crow, D. D. ; 1843, Samuel Luckey, D. D. ; 1844-45, Schuyler Seager, D. D. ;
1846-47, John Dennis, D. D. ; 1848-49, John G. Gulick ; 1850, John Copeland ;
1851-52, Augustus C. George, D. D.; 1853, Henry Hickok ; 1854-55, Jona-
than Watts; 1856-57, Daniel D. Buck, D. D. ; 1858-59, Israel H. Kellogg;
1860-61, Jabez R. Jaques, D. D.; 1862-64, Sanford Van Benschoten, D. D. ;
1865-67, James E. Latimer, D. D.; 1868-69, George C. Lyon; 1870-71,
William Lloyd; 1872-74, D. H. Muller, D. D.; 1875-76, C. A. Van Anda,
D. D. ; 1879-B1, George C. Jones; 1882-83, Charles W. Gushing, D. D.
The Asbury church. — The Second Methodist Episcopal church society
in Rochester was organised on the 26th day of September, 1836, just six-
teen years after the first, by the election of William Algood, Jonah Brown,
Philander Davis, Elihu H. Grover, John McGonegal, William G. Russell,
and John Stroup as trustees. Meetings had been held all along in the
old brick church on South St. Paul street, though the stone church on the
corner of West Main and Fitzhugh streets was the headquarters of the one
society. The pastor was John Copeland, to whom Rev. Daniel P. Kidder had
been appointed assistant, especially for the supply of this second congregation.
The new organisation adopted as its style "the East Side society of the Meth-
odist Episcopal church in Rochester." Becoming, with his parents, connected
as a member of this society within a month after its organisation, the writer
very distinctly remembers many incidents of its early history. Nathaniel Draper
was, during much of the time, superintendent of the Sunday-school. Joseph
Eggleston was one of its most hearty vocal members. His exhortations to
Christians and the unconverted to "bul-lieve" were frequent and emphatic.
In the autumn of 1841 it was resolved to build a new church, and a lot
on the southeast corner of Main and Clinton streets was purchased with that
purpose. Work was begun in the spring, and in the autumn of the following
year, 1842, the basement was finished and occupied for meetings. At this time
the new synagogue and the society began to be known as the St. John's church,
a name which it retained for nearly eighteen years. The auditorium was com-
pleted and the house dedicated by Rev. John Dempster, in February, 1844.
A full and carefully prepared business history of the society presented by Dr.
Austin Mandeville, at the farewell service Sunday morning March 9th, 1884,
recounts the financial difficulties encountered during many years, all of which
grew from the rash undertaking to build a house before any adequate provision
The Methodist Episcopal Churches. 271
had been made for paying the expense of its erection. The result of all was
that a mortgage necessarily given by the trustees was at length foreclosed at
law and all title to the property was lost to the society. Greatly discouraged
by this failure, most of the members withdrew and joined a new society, which
was organised by a due election of trustees on the first day of February, i860,
and entitled "the Asbury society of the Methodist Episcopal church of Roches-
ter." The trustees of this society purchased the St. John's church property
and changed its name to correspond with their corporate style. , In the spring
of 1866 the building was left for a season by the congregatiort, which worshiped
in Washington hall, on the opposite corner. After considering the question
of sale and new building, or radical repairs, it was decided to remodel and re-
furnish the old church, which was accordingly done at an expense, including a
new pipe-organ, of about $14,000. The work was completed and the church
reopened in May, 1867. With such advantages the society has hopefully and
very successfully continued its religious work through the past seventeen years,
with an active membership gradually increasing from 250 to about 400. The
natural business changes of the city, some considerable disturbance always ex-
perienced from too much-frequented streets, and the growing desire for a house
of worship more commodious in its arrangements and more ecclesiastically
orthodox in its architecture, recently determined the society to dispose of its
old house and remove to a point a little further east, on the corner of East ave-
nue and Union street. The sale and purchase have been completed and most
interesting farewell services were helcf on Friday, March 7th, and Sunday,
March 9th, 1884.
The pastors of "East-side," "St. John's" and "Asbury" have been : 1836,
D.F.Kidder; 1837, John Parker ; 1838-39, W. H. Goodwin ; 1840-41, Manly
Tooker; 1842, Samuel Luckey, D. D. ; 1843, F. G. Hibbard, D. D. ; 1844-
45, J. M. Fuller, D. D. ; 1846-47, Schuyler Seager, D. D. ; 1848^49, D. D.
Buck, D. D. ; 1850-51, W. H. Goodwin, D. D. ; 1852-53, John Mandeville ;
1854-55, John Raines; 1856-57, Jonathan Watts ; 1858-59, Thos. Tousey ;
i860, Thomas Stacey; 1861-62, D. W. C. Huntington, D. D. ; 1863-64, J.
E. Latimer, D. D. ; 1865, Geo. Van Alstyne; 1866-68, D. W. C. Hunting-
ton, D. D. ; 1869-71, F. G. Hibbard, D. D. ; 1872-73, L. D.Watson, D. D.;
1874-75, C. Eddy; 1876-78, D. W. C. Huntington, D. D. ; 1879-80, R. M.
Stratton, D. D. ; 1881, C., W. Winchester ; 1882-83, R- C. Brownlee.
The North Street church. — Early in 1849 several members of St, John's M.
E. church, who resided in the northeastern portion of the city, considered that the
growing population in their neighborhood needed the presence and labors of a
vigorous Christian organisation nearer at hand than the central churches, and,
with the concurrence and leadership of Dr. S. Luckey, held several preliminary
meetings for consultation on the subject. As a result they rented an old build-
ing on Joiner street, which had been occupied by colored people for religious
272 History of the City of Rochester.
meetings, and appointed Sunday services with the approbation of their pastor,
Rev. Dr. Bucli. On the 8th day of April the pastor met with them and preached
in the afternoon, and arranged two classes, numbering twenty-eight persons, as
the begining of, a new society. At the ensuing conference Rev. S. W. Alden was
appointed by the bishop to take pastoral charge of the classes, in connection with
a recently organised third Methodist church in the west part of the city. In
April following, a hall was rented at the corner of North and Delavan streets
for their meetings, and on the 17th day of said month (1850) Philander Davis,
James Hubbell, A. B. Judson, S. H. Moulder and John Patterson were elected
as the first trustees. At the conference following,*a first pastor was appointed
to "North street church;" very soon the question of building a suitable house
of worship was considered, and during the deliberations and preparatory efforts
came the proposal of Aristarchus Champion, a public-spirited member of the
Congregational church, to donate the sum of $10,000 to any church which
would agree to raise an equal sum for building several small preaching-houses
in parts of the city which were least conveniently located for attendance at the
central churches. This proposal being accepted by Dr. Luckey, in behalf of the
Methodist church, the North-street congregation became the first beneficiaries
and were thus enabled to erect the building which, completed and dedicated
the 2d day of November, 1853, has been from that date their pleasant home.
About twelve years later a fine improvement was made in the windows, in fres-
coing the walls, and in other finishing. Eight years later a new roof was put
upon the church and the pews were changed to a more modern pattern.
About the same time a convenient parsonage (number 4 Concord avenue) was
finished, and thus the essential furnishings of the society for comfortable life and
for aggressive work were happily completed.
The pastors of North street church have been : 1849, S. W. Aldcn ; 1850,
S. L. Congdon; 1851, S. Van Benschoten (supply); 1852-53, Alpha Wright;
1854-55, John Mandeville ; 1856-57, J. N. Brown ; 1858-59, Nathan Fellows ;
i860, S. Luckey, D. D. ; 1861, M. Wheeler; 1862-63, 1- H. Kellogg ; 1864-65,
A. H. Shurtleff; 1866-68, D. Leisenring ; 1869-71, J. N. Brown; 1872-74,
R. D. Munger; 1875-77, E. L. Newman; 1878-80, L. T. Foote; 1881-82,
E. T. Green; 1883, R. F. Kay.
The Corn Hill church. — The society now owning and occupying the
edifice known as the Corn Hill church, on Edinburg street, was originally
composed of about thirty members of the First Methodist Episcopal church,
who held religious meetings for some time in the old orphan asylum building
on Adams street. The 8th day of June, 1852, a legal organisation was effected
by the election of C. H. Bicknell, Geo. Harrison, Heman Lyon, C. C. Lee, W.
P. Stanton and Henry Wray,as trustees. A small colony from the First church,
which had organised as the Third Methodist Episcopal church of Rochester,
and, with pastors regularly appointed by the bishops, worshiped for some time in
The Methodist Episcopal Churches. 273
a little tabernacle on Caledonia avenue, was induced to surrender its incorpora-
tion and come into the new Corn Hill society, about doubling its membership,
and arrangements were at once initiated for erecting a suitable church building.
A portion of the Champion grant was appropriated to the society, and its church
was completed and dedicated in June, 1854. Twenty years later (1874) the
building was remodeled and the front towers added, with other improvements,
at an expense of several thousand dollars, and on April 26th it was reopened with
interesting services, attended by several of the former pastors. In connection
with the services Henry Wray and wife conveyed to the society, as a free gift,
the premises on Tremont street, for some years occupied by the successive
pastors as a parsonage. Through all the years of its history the society has
been eminent for its liberality and its industrious methodical activity. The
Sunday-school (for several years under the vigorous and judicious superinten-
dency of N. L. Button) has been large and prosperous.
The pastors appointed to Corn Hill have been as follows : 1853-54, A. C.
George, D. D. ; 1855, ]■ W. Willson ; 1856, J. A. Swallow (supply) ; 1857, S.
Seager, D. D. ; 1858, J. Ashworth ; 1859, S. Luckey, D. D. ; i860, I. Gib-
bard, D. D. ; i86i, J. Mandeville; 1862-63, A. N. Fisher; 1864-66, W. B.
Holt; 1867-69, G. W. Paddock; 1870-71, R. O. Willson; 1872, W. R. Ben-
ham; 1873-75, A. D. Wilbor, D. D. ; 1876-78, A. N. Fisher; 1879-81, A.
J. Kenyon; 1882-83, L. A. Stevens,
The Alexander Street church. — Through several years previous to 1850
religious services were regularly held in what was then known as the " Mount
Hor " or " Sand Hill school-house " in the town of Brighton, conducted prin-
cipally by Rev. A. H. Jervis, a local preacher from the First M. E. church
of Rochester. A congregation was thus gathered and for some time held
together and during part of the time a Sunday-school exercise was added.
After some suspension of these services a meeting was called in the school-
house on the 1 2th day of October, 1852, to effect the legal organisation of a relig-
ious society, and Gideon Cobb, B. Langdon, Godfrey Tallinger, Daniel Stock-
ing and Talcott Brown were elected trustees. The name of Alexander street
was adopted in view of the proposed location of a church soon to be erected.
The house, the third aided by the Champion donation, was built in 1853 and
dedicated by Bishop Janes. Twenty years later (in 1873) it was enlarged and
greatly improved, and since that date the society has enjoyed a steadily increas-
ing prosperity. In 1879 a commodious and beautiful parsonage was erected.
The following ministers have been pastors of Alexander street church : 1854,
Alpha Wright; 1855, Thomas Stacey; 1856-57, Elijah Wood ; 1858-59, John
G. Gulick; 1860-61, Israel H. Kellogg; 1862-64, John Raines; 1865-66,
Edwin J. Hermans; 1867, Henry Van Benschoten, D. D. ; 1868, Andrew
Sutherland; 1869-70, De Witt C. Huntington, D. D. ; 1871, John D. Requa ;
i872-74,John A. Copeland; 1875-76, Thomas J. Leake ; 1877, A. N, Damon ;
1878-80, John E. Williams; 1881-83, Lemuel T. Foote.
274 History of the City of Rochester.
The Frank Street church, corner of Smith street, was organised Dec. i6th,
1852, taking as its name "the Sixth Methodist Episcopal church of the city of
Rochester." Sylvanus J. Bartlett, Wm. Collins, Jeremiah Hegeman, James H.
Hinman, Joel P. Millner, Melancton C. Whitmore and Samuel S. Wood were
elected trustees. District school- house number 6 stood upon the corner where
the church now stands, and the pastor of the Methodist Episcopal "Third
church" had preached and maintained a Sunday-school there. The newly
formed society, receiving its share of aid from the Champion donation, deter-
mined to purchase the school-house property and build its church there. In
May, 1854, the work was begun and the church was dedicated in November
by Dr. Jesse T. Peck. For five years following, the society was tormented
and its property threatened by a balance of indebtedness incurred in building.
At times, and much of the time, there seemed no reasonable hope that it could
ever be disposed of The annual conference in 1859 authorised the pastor who
might be appointed at Frank street to visit the churches through the confer-
ence and solicit aid for his society. This work was done by Rev. William
Manning until the whole amount needed was received. Large repairs and im-
provements have since been made. The society has held its ground with a
membership increasing from thirty at the beginning to two hundred and fifty
at the last report. No Protestant church in Rochester has a wider urban and
suburban district as its legitimate. parish than Frank street.
The pastors appointed to Frank street society have been : 1853—54, S. B.
Rooney^ 1855, S. Van Benschoten, D. D. ; 1856-57, S. L. Congdon ; 1858, T.
B. Hudson ; 1859-60, Wm. Manning; 1861-62, R. Hogoboom ; 1863-65, D.
W. C. Huntington, D.D. ; 1866-67, G. W. Chandler ; 1868-70, J. Dennis,
D.D. ; 1 87 1, C. P. Hard; 1872-73, J. J. Landers ; 1874-75, T. J. Bell ; 1876-
78, T. J. Bissell; 1879, A. F. Morey ; 1880-82, G. W. Coe ; 1883, M. C.
Dean.
The Hedding church. — The same religious spirit which impelled faith-
ful men in 1849 to initiate the North street society inspired twenty- two
years later a few zealous persons to undertake the planting of a mission
still further north, with intent to reach a large outlying population who were
not very likely to be drawn together even as far away from their homes as
North street. After several tentative efforts a chapel was erected on the corner
of North St. Paul and Scrantom streets, which was dedicated the 24th of De-.
cember, 1876, and named Hedding church. This enterprise, like almost all
such endeavors, has required much energy and patient hopefulness on the part
of some determined workers to push it through to a measure of success and
encouraging promise. But this end was unquestionably attained when in De-
cember last the entire indebtedness of the society was cancelled.
The following pastors have been appointed to this work: — 1876, H. O.
Abbott; 1878-79, S. C. Smith; 1880, E. M. Sasseville ; 1881-82, I. H. Kel-
logg; 1883, G. W. Loomis.
The Methodist Episcopal Churches. 2;$
The Genesee Street church. — In the year 1878 a Christian lady, Mrs.
A. E. Tanner, gathered in her home on Genesee street the children of her
immediate neighborhood in a weekly meeting for religious instruction. It was
was very soon judged best to connect the mission with some responsible church,
and Corn Hill society assumed the charge, appointing Samuel Whybrew class
leader, and Harper Day Sunday-school superintendent. In 1879 a lot suitable
for a church building was conveyed by Mrs. James D. Bashford, to the trustees
of Corn Hill, it being in large part a donation from her. In 1880 Mr. Whybrew
added a gift of $100, and the question of building was considered until a corner-
stone was laid September 14th, 1882. May 20th, 1883, the house was com-
pleted and dedicated by Dr. J. T. Gracey. The structure is a neat frame building
in what is sometimes called "Gothic style," having seating capacity for 200
persons and costing with its furnishing about $2,500. In October, 1883, Rev.
P. T. Lynn was appointed the first pastor of Genesee street (as assistant of Rev.
L. A. Stevens of Corn Hill), by whose vigorous management the society has
been greatly advanced in all its interests. The membership has been much
more than doubled and the Sunday-school brought up to a high state of effi-
ciency.
The German Methodist Episcopal church. — In 1848 the Rev. John Sawter,
a member of the New York conference, commenced preaching in the German
language to a small congregation in his own house on Davis street, opening
also a Sunday-school. The next year a hall was rented on the corner of North
avenue arid Delaware street, and a society was duly organised. Dr. Luckey
having presented the trustees with a lot (corner of North and Tyler streets), a
modest chapel was soon erected, where the society worked and prospered until,
in 1869, it became fully self-sustaining. Before that, in i860, the church
building had been much improved and a parsonage built (number 33 Concord
avenue). About that date a parochial week-day school was opened, which
flourished for a season, but it was proved by a short history to be impracticable
as a permanent institution. The growing congregation, becoming straitened
for accommodations, determined as early as 1870 to remove and build a better
church, and lots on North avenue near Hudson street were secured for that
purpose. The corner-stone was laid August 30th, 1874, and the house was
completed at an expense of about $15,000 and dedicated by Bishop Janes, June
6th, 1875. Unfortunately the society ware largely involved' in debt by their
ambitious enterprise, and for a season the burden proved very inconvenient.
In 1880 the East German conference resolved to aid by collections in its other
churches to discharge these obligations. Nearly one-half of the amount was
thus secured.
The pastors have been as follows: John Sawter, John Graw, Jacob Kindler, C.
H. Afflerbach, A. C. Hertel, F. G. Gratz; 1859-60, C. Blinn ; 1861-63, John
G. Lutz; 1863-65, F. G. Gratz; 1866-68, Jacob Kolb ; 1869-71, Paul Quat-
276 History of the City of Rochester.
lander; 1872-73, J. W. Freund ; 1874-76, Julius Seidel ; 1877-79, G. Moyer;
1880-82, F. Rey; 1883, J. J. Messmer.
The African Methodist Episcopal church. — A few Christians of African
descent, meeting in a school-house on Ford street in the year 1827, organised
a Methodist society in connection with the so-called Zion church. A legal in-
corporation was first secured in 1836, the trustees being Charles Dixon, Wil-
liam Earles and Alfred Williams. Their house of worship, on the corner of
Favor and Spring streets, was built in 1831. Another society was afterward
formed, which occupied a small building on Joiner street. But it was found
impossible to sustain two churches, and the second was abandoned. The pas-
tors have been : Isaac Stewart, Henry Johnson, John P. Thompson, Dempsey
Kennedy, W. S. Bishop, John A. Williams, C. Thomas, James H. Smith, Wil-
liam Sandford, William Abbott and Thomas James.
From 1820 until 1840 Rochester was within the Genesee conference, from
1848 till 1872 in the East Genesee conference, from 1872 till 1876 in the West-
ern New York conference, from 1876 till 1884 in the Genesee conference.
From 1820 until 1832 Rochester was within the Genesee district, from 1832 till
1846 in the Rochester district. From 1846 till 1858 the societies were divided
between two districts, as indicated below. From 1858 till 1884 all have been
in the Rochester district.
The presiding elders have been as follows: Genesee district — 1820-21,
Gideon Draper ; 1822-25, Goodwin Stoddard ; 1826, Micah Seager ; 1827-28,
Asa Abel; 1829-31, Loring Grant. Rochester district — 1832, Glesen Fill-
more, D. D. ; 1833, Abner Chase ; 1834, Samuel Luckey, D. D. ; 1835, Abner
Chase; 1836-39, Manly Tooker; 1840-41, John Copeland; 1842-45, John B.
Alverson; 1846-49, Samuel Luckey, D. D. ; 1850-53, John Dennis, D. D. ;
1854-57, John G. Gulick; 1858, Augustus C. George, D. D. ; 1859-62, Wil-
liam H. Goodwin, D. D. ; 1863, John Mandeville ; 1864-67, John Dennis, D.
D. ; 1868-71, Kasimir P. Jervis; 1872-75, King D. Nettleton ; 1876-79, John
N. Brown ; 1880-83, John T. Gracey, D. D. West Rochester district — 1846-
47, Glesen Fillmore, D. D. ; 1852-54, John Copeland ; 1855-57, Augustus C.
George, D. D. Dansville district — 1848-49, Freeborn G. Hibbard, D. D.
Lima district — 1850, Freeborn G. Hibbard, D. D; 1857, John Copeland.^
Only a sacred and inspired history may presume to end itself in prophecy.
But it is essential, to a full view of any undertaking to understand its status in
a prospective outlook. It is proper, therefore, to state in addition that the two
older Methodist societies are in the very initiatory work of building large and
more elegant churches. Asbury has already removed into temporary chapel
accommodations upon the ground where its new sanctuary is to grow, and the
First (Fitzhugh street) church more than a year ago commenced a subscription
for such a house of worship as its honor, the proprieties of its environment,
and perhaps its safety, have made necessary.
iTlic German ami llic African sociulics arc iiol inclnilcd.
The Catholic Churches. 277
the catholic churches in rochester.
Rochester was formerly under the ecclesiastical administration of the bishops
of New York. The first of these was Rt. Rev. John Connolly, who came to
New York in 1817. There is no evidence that he ever visited Rochester. His
successor, Bishop Dubois, came to Rochester in 1834 to dedicate the second
church. Bishops Hughes and McCloskey also visited Rochester officially. In
1847 the diocese of Buffalo was erected, and Rev. John Timon, a member of
the Congregation of the Missions, was appointed its first bishop. In March,
1868, the diocese of Rochester was formed, having the counties of Monroe,
Livingston, Ontario, Wayne, Seneca, Yates, Cayuga and Tompkins as its limits.
Rev. ]?ernard J. McQuaid was consecrated bishop of the new diocese on the
1 2th of July, 1868, and took possession of his see on the i6th of the same
month.
St. Patrick's church. — The first priest who exercised the ministry in Roches-
ter, of whom we have any record, was Rev. Patrick McCormick, in 1818— 19.
He acted under the administration of Rt. Rev. John Connolly, first bishop of
New York, who took possession of his sec in 1817 and died in* 1825. Rev.
Mr. McCormick was succeeded by Patrick Kelly, in 18 19, remaining until
1823. It was during his pastorate that the first Catholic church was built in
1 82 1, on the corner of Piatt and Frank streets. The first pastors of Rochester
did not confine their labors to Rochester and its immediate neighborhood, but
sought out the scattered Catholics in a territory many miles in extent. Rev,
Michael McNamara came to Rochester in 1825, remaining as the pastor of St.
Patrick's, its first church, until 1832. He died at Chili, August 30th, 1832.
During his administration, the second church, eighty feet by fifty-five feet of
stone, was built. A wood-cut of this church is in O'Rielly's history. During
its erection the congregation rented the lower story of D. B. Crane's school
house, on Buffalo street, opposite the bath-house, for $1.25 per Sunday.
On the 20th of April, 1829, the congregation was organised as a church
corporation under the law of 1813. On the same day the following trustees
were elected : William Tone, John Sheridan, Robert Elliott, Stephen Conroy,
William Grennan, Patrick Rigney, Patrick Grace, William Morony and Richard
Storey. In 1832 Rev. John F. McGerry was appointed to succeed Father
McNamara. In 1833 Rev. Bernard O'Reilly replaced Father McGerry, who in
1834 returned to the pastoral charge of St. Patrick's. In 1835 Father O'Reilly
resumed the pastorship, which he held until 1 849, when, as vicar-general of the
new diocese of Buffalo, he took up his residence with the bishop of Buffalo.
In 1 850 he was consecrated bishop of Hartford. In January, 1 856, he sailed from
Liverpool in the Pacific and was lost at sea. The first election for trustees
under this pastor was in 1835, when the following were elected : William Tone,
Patrick Kearney, Patrick O'Maley, George A. Wilkin, Hugh Bradley, Joseph
Fluett, Bernard Klem, James McMullen and Garret A. Madden. Only the
278 History of the City of Rochester.
last named still lives. Father O'Reilly had Rev. P. Foley as assistant pastor in
1 834, who made an attempt to organise the congregation of St. Mary's on
the east side of the river. Rev. Mark Murphy, an eminent linguist, was assist-
ant to Father O'Reilly in 1840-41. In 1849 Rev. William O'Reilly, having
been his assistant from 1845, succeeded his brother as pastor of St Patrick's,
remaining until 1854. Rev. Michael O'Brien was pastor from 1854 to 1859.
Rev. Martin Kavanagh held the office for a year and was replaced by Rev.
M. O'Brien, who continued in office until 1865.
In May, 1864, the pastor and Michael Lester and James H. Tone, as trus-
tees, contracted for the building of the present church, it being the third stone
church on the same site. A large temporary building having been erected on the
lot of the academy, religious services were held in it until March, 1 869. In 1865
Rev. James M. Early was appointed pastor and continued the work begun by his
predecessor. On the 17th of March, 1869, the church was so far advanced that
the congregation moved into it. In November, 1870, it was solemnly blessed by
Most Rev. John McCloskey, archbishop of New York, now cardinal. Eighteen
archbishops and bishops, and over one hundred priests were present. In
April, 1876, Rev. Mr. Early offered his resignation as pastor and withdrew from
the diocese. He was immediately succeeded by Rev. James F. O'Hare, who
in seven years paid off an indebtedness of $70,000 which he found on the
church and school when he assumed office. The lay trustees for the year 1884
are John E. Waters and Dr. Richard Curran.
The early phases of the school connected with St. Patrick's parish are diffi-
cult to trace, as the records are imperfect and most of the parties connected with
it then have passed away or are lingering for the call of the last roll. There
was a school in the basement of the church as far back as 1832, Mr. Hughes
being one of the pioneer teachers, and Patrick Quin was the pedagogue between
1843 and 1848. For a long time the sexes were taught in the same classes,
but in 1843 the Sisters of St. Joseph took charge of the female portion of the
scholars, and since then the girls have been taught separately. In March,
1857, the new school- house on Brown street was opened for the reception of
boys, under the charge of the "Brothers of the Christian schools." Brother
Rodblphus was the first director. In the spring of 1871 the foundations of the
new building, next adjoining and west of the old one, were laid, and the work
continued without interruption, so that in September, 1871, ample school accom-
modations were afforded to all the children of the parish. This school, graded
after the manner of the public schools (save the coeducation of the sexes), is
free to all the children of the parish, and is supported by the congregation.
The Christian Brothers left Rochester in the summer of 1872 and their places
were supplied, in part, by laymen. D. B. Murphy, James Rowan and Wm. E.
Ryan had successively charge of the first and second grades of boys till July,
1882. In the meantime the Sisters of St. Joseph supplied the places of the
The Catholic Churches. 279
other lay teachers. Rev. D. Laurenzis was superintendent of this school from
1876 to 1882. The school reopened in September, 1882, with fifteen Sisters of
St. Joseph in full charge of all the children, under the guidance and direction
of Rev. James P. Kiernan as superintendent. There are at present about 700
children in average daily attendance at this .school, which continues to be a free
school, and to which neither the state nor the city contributes a single cent, but
which the people of the congregation, for conscience sake, though taxed for
the education of their neighbors' children in the public schools, support by
their own private contributions.
St. Joseph's Church (German) is located,\on Franklin street. The first Ger-
man Catholic who settled in Rochester was John Klem, in the year 1816.
He came from Havaria. He once traveled to New York city to have his child
baptised and to receive his Easter communion. He died in 1856. The Ger-
man Catholics of the city attended, for a time, St. Patrick's church. About the
year 1836 Rev. John Raffeiner visited Rochester. He found quite a number
of German Catholics in the city. He attended to their spiritual wants and ex-
horted them to build a church, especially as St. Patrick's was too small for all
the Catholics of the city. Soon after Rev. Joseph Prost, a Redemptorist father,
passed through Rochester. He also urged them to build a church.. On his re-
turn from Ohio he found, to his surprise, a church prepared. They had bought
the negroes' church on Ely street, for $1,600. Father Prost, with the permis-
sion of Bishop Dubois of New York and of his superior, remained in the city
and took charge of the German Catholics. After some difficulties with the
trustees, he left. The church was attended for about two years by several
priests, among whom we may mention Rev. J. N. Neumann, then a secular
priest, afterward a Redemptorist, and finally bishop of Philadelphia. In 1839
Rev. J. Saendel passed through the city with Indians, on his way to lower
Canada. He remained in Rochester about one year. He afterward joined the
Trappist order. The old church was called St. Mary's, on Ely street. The new
church of stone on Franklin street was begun in 1841, and finished in 1843, by
the Redemptorist fathers. The succeeding pastors, or rather rectors, were the
following reverend fathers, all Redemptorists : Fr. H. Tshenhens, 1841 to the
fall of 1841 ; Francis Beraneck, 1841-46; Alexander Czvikovicz, 1846-51;
Joseph Breska, 1851-54; John De Dyker, 1854-58 ; Max Leingruber, 1858-60;
Thad. Anwander, 1860-62; Lorenz Holzer, 1862-65; George Ruland, 1865-
74; Thad. Anwander, 1874-77 ; Peter Zimmer, 1877-79; Stephen Schneider,
1879-80; Jos. Frohhch, 1880 till now. The assistant fathers (in 1884) are:
Rev'ds V. Holscher, J. Saftig and H. Dressmann. There are also three lay
brothers. The pastoral residence (convent) was built about 1850; it was en-
larged in 1876.
The first, school connected with the parish was established by Rev. Joseph
Prost, about 1837, with one male teacher. There are now two large school
28o History of the City of Rochester.
buildings of brick ; one was built in 185 1, and the other in 1862. The Sisters
of Notre Dame were brought to the city by Mother Caroline, from Milwaukee,
October. 15th, 1854. They had about 175 in the school in the first year.
Now (in 1884) there are about 560 children attending St. Joseph's school.
The boys are under the care of three Brothers of Mary ; the girls are taught
by the Sisters. The Sisters' convent is near the church, on Andrews street.
The Brothers' house is near the pastoral residence, on Franklin street.
St. Mary's church is located on South street, and is one of the oldest and
largest parishes in the city, both in territory and in population. Its boundaries
are, on the west, the Genesee river ; on the north, Andrews street, University
avenue and East Main street; on the east, the New York Central railroad,
and on the south it includes the towns of Brighton and Henrietta. The Eng-
lish-speaking people attending this church number about 4,000. It seats
1,500 comfortably. It is built of brick, in Romanesque style of architecture.
The early struggles of this parish are well remembered by the old inhabitants.
The first church they occupied was bought from the Methodists, on St. Paul
street, opposite Ely, in 1834. Father Carroll was pastor in 1851. He suc-
ceeded in placing the parish on a firm basis, in spite of the poverty and
small number of the people. Father Creedon succeeded him, and continued
the work successfully for about one year. Rev. Thomas McEvoy purchased
the present site on South street, and commenced his laborious work of build-
ing, which bore him to the grave when success had crowned his efforts. He
went to New York to make preparations for the dedication, and died suddenly
before returning. Rev. Daniel Moore became his successor in 1858, and Rt.
Rev. John Timon, bishop of Buffalo, consecrated St. Mary'sv church on the
23d of August in that year. Rev. Thomas Flaherty was appointed pastor in
1 86 1, when Father Moore's patriotism placed him as chaplain in the army.
Very Rev. Father McMannis, vicar-general of Rochester, became pastor in
1862. By earnest pleading with Bishop Timon, he was permitted soon to
return again to his beloved people of Geneva, where he has remained ever
since, multiplying monuments to his zeal for religion and the welfare of the
people. Father Early succeeded Father McMannis, and remained until 1865.
Father McGowan took charge of the church until 1866. In this year, April
2Sth, Rev. Dr. Barker became pastor of St. Mary's, and remained until he was
succeeded by the present incumbent. Rev. J. P. Stewart, on May 7th, 1871.
The old parochial school in the basement of the church was entirely unsuited
to the work for which it was intended. Bishop McQuaid closed it, and aided
the pastor in every way to supply this necessary want. Generosity and zeal
soon completed the building. In 1873 the magnificent parochial school oppo-
site the arsenal, on South street, was thrown open to the children of the parish.
It has eight well-furnished and ventilated rooms, which by sliding doors between
may be formed into large halls. The children are taught by the Sisters of
The Catholic Churches. 281
Mercy. The convent is next north of the church. The Sisters visit, console
and instruct the poor and sici< of the city. They train young girls in their
industrial school and show them how to make a living by sewing or domestic
work, and obtain good girls to do house work for worthy ladies in Rochester
and the vicinity. A " children's home," or creche, is attached, for the assist-
ance of industrious parents who desire their children to be cared for during the
day. This fine building was purchased from N. H. Galusha in 1882, and
$6,000 was spent in preparing it for its present work of charity.
St. Peter's and St. Paul's church (German) is located on the corner of King
and Maple streets. When the members of St. Joseph's congregation began the
building of the present St. Joseph's church a number of members on the west
side of the river were dissatisfied with the location of the new church. Conse-
quently, they separated and started a church on the corner of King and Maple
streets, in 1842. After some trouble the first church, a frame one, was built.
Simon Zeug and J. loegele were the first trustees. Bishop Hughes, of New
YorK, paid a visit to Rochester in December, 1842, to settle some disputed
points. They accepted his decision, and in June, 1843, the church was opened
in harmony with Catholic discipline. The deed of the property was given to
Bishop Hughes. The old church being too small, the congregation built
another of brick in 1859. It was dedicated by Bishop Young, of Erie, August
iSth, 1859. This year (1884) the same church is being enlarged by about
thirty feet. The first pastor was Rev. Ivo Levitz, a Franciscan father. He
was pastor from 1843 to 1846. The succeeding pastors were: Rev. Count
Anthony Berenyi, from 1846 to 1848 ; Leonard Schneider, 1848-49; R. Fol-
lenius, 1849-51; Fr. X. Krautbauer (now bishop of Green Bay), 1851-58;
Stephen Richer, from May, 1858, to September, 1858; again Father Kraut-
bauer till April, 1859; Rev. Joseph Sadler (who built the new church), 1859-65.
The present pastor is Rev. Francis H. Sinclair, D. D., who has been so since
October, 1865. The assistant pastor is Rev. Aloys Wcissteiner. The trustees
in the present year are Joseph Gradl and George Spahn. The pastoral resi-
dence of brick, three stories high, was built in 1856.
The first school connected with the parish was established in the base-
ment of the old church in 1842. The second was established in the old
church itself in 1859, after the building of the brick church. The present one
was built of brick, three stories high, in 1867. The first year there were about
eighty pupils attending. In 1884 there are 500 children attending the school;
the boys are under the care of three Brothers of Mary, the girls are taught by
four Sisters of Notre Dame. On the south side of the church is the convent of
the Sisters, a fine brick building. On the east side of the school is the resi-
dence of the Brothers, a frame building.
St. Mary's French church is located on Pleasant street, near St. Paul, and
is generally called the " church of Our Lady of Victory." The P^rench
282 History of the City of Rochester.
Catholics of this city organised in the old German church on Ely street. The
congregation was formed in 1848 and called "St. Mary's French church."
The new church, of brick, was built by Father De Regge in 1868, on Pleasant
street. At that time (1868) the name of the church was changed to "Our
Lady of Victory," but the incorporation name retains the old title. This church
on Ely street was attended first by the Redemptorist Fathers of St. Joseph,
viz., by Rev. Fr. Mason from 1848 to 1849, and by Rev. E. van Campenhandt
from 1849 to 1852. The first resident pastor was Rev. A. Saunier, 1852-54.
The first trustees were Antoine Langie and Ambroise Dupont. The succeed-
ing pastors were : Rev. P. Bricoh, 1854-57 (from*St. Joseph's church); B. F.
Lefevre, 1858-59; A. Pierard, 1859-61; C. J. Magne, 1861-62; P. Matricon,
1862 ; A. Amatore, 1862-63 ; Le Breton, 1863; H. De Regge, 1863-69 ; J.
Dole, 1869-78; H. De Regge (administrator), 1878-79; A. Notebsert, since
1879, the present pastor. The present trustees are J. A. Remarque and Frank
Forest. The residence, in the rear of the church, northeast corner, was built
in 1870. It is of brick, two stories high;
The church of the Immaculate Conception is on Plymouth avenue. The
congregation was organised in 1849. ^t had formed a part of St. Patrick's.
The first church, a frame edifice, was built in 1849. It was destroyed by fire.
Another church of brick was then built in 1864. This also was greatly dam-
aged by fire in 1872. In the same year the present church of brick was en-
larged and finished. The first pastor was Rev. John Fitzpatrick, 1849-52.
The first trustees were James Hayes and Patrick Condon. The succeeding
pastors were: Rev. P. Bradley, 1852; Thos. O'Brien, 1852-58; F. McKeon,
1858-59; Wm. Stephens, 1859-60; Peter Bede, 1860-66; Patricio Byrnes,
1866-75 ; M. M, Meagher, since 1875. The assistant priest is at present Rev.
John Hopkins. The present trustees are Wm. C. Barry and John Jaeger. The
pastoral residence, of brick, on the side of the church, was built in 1870.
The school-house of brick, two stories high, on the north side of the church,
was built in 1871. About 250 pupils attended the first year. At present there
are in attendance about 450 children. They are taught by eight Sisters of St.
Joseph from Nazareth convent.
St. Bridget's church is between Gorham and Hand streets. This congre-
gation was separated from St. Mary's church and organised in 1854. The
first church (now school-house), of brick, was dedicated November 5th, 1854.
The new church, on Gorham street, was begun in 1872 and finished in 1875 by
Rev. James F. O'Hare. The first pastor of the church was Rev. A. Saunier,
from 1854 to 1856. The succeeding pastors were : Rev. Thos. Flaherty, 1856 ;
D. D. Moore,' 1856-58; Peter Barker, 1858-59; Fr. McKeon, 1859-60; Wm.
F. Payne, 1860-67; Nicholas Byrnes, 1867-71 ; James F. O'Hare, 1871-76;
James O'Connor, since 1876. The present trustees are James Fee and Mi-
chael Stupp. The pastoral residence, of brick, was buih in 1857 and enlarged
in 1880.
The Catholic Churches. 283
' The old church on Hand street was converted into a school in 1875, and the
school opeiied the same year. About 250 pupils attended the school the first
year. At present there are about 320 children attending. They are taught by
eight Sisters of St. Joseph from Nazareth convent.
St. Boniface's church (German) is on Grand street. This congregation sep-
arated from St. Joseph's church and was organised in the year i860, under the
care of the Redemptorist fathers. In the year following the present building
(a temporary church and school) was opened. It was enlarged in 1870. It
is a brick building. The first story is used for the school and the residence of
the teachers. The first pastor was Rev. J. Klein, from 1861 to 1865. The
first trustees were Henry Oberlies, Christ. Rommel, Charles Schlereth, John
Beikirch, Engelbert Demmer, Lorenz Waldert and Caspar Schwalbach. The
succeeding pastors were: Rev. J. F. Payer, from 1865 to 1875, and Rev. Her-
mann Renker, since 1875. The present trustees are M. Bidenbach and J.
Burkhardt. The pastoral residence is a small frame house on the south side
of the church.
The first school-house was opened in i86f with about 100 pupils, in the
first story of the present building. Now (1884) there are about 300 children
attending St. Boniface's school. They are. taught by three Sisters of Notre
Dame.
The Holy Family church (German) is on the corner of Jay and Ames
streets. The parish of the Holy Family was separated from St. Peter and
Paul's parish and organised in 1862. The old church was of brick. It is in
the rear of the new church. It forms a part of the pastoral residence and of
the sacristy. The new church, of brick, was built in 1864. The first pastor
was Rev. Nicholas Sorg, from 1864 to 1866. The first trustees were Peter
Esse and John Behm. The succeeding pastors were : Rev. Charles Wagner,
from 1866 to 1867; Rev. Leopold Hofschneider, from 1867 to 1884, and the
present pastor. Rev. D. Laurenzis, since May 4th, 1884. The present trustees
are K. Halbleib and E. De Tambel. The pastoral (temporary) residence is in
the rear of the church, a part of the old church.
The first school was opened with the old church in 1862. It was a frame
building on the north side of the church. The present beautiful building was
erected in 1882. It is said to be one of the finest school-houses of the city.
In the first year about 120 pupils attended the school. At present (1884)
there are 420 children educated in this school by five Sisters of Notre Dame.
Most Holy Redeemer's church (German) is on Hudson street, corner of
Clifford. This church was separated from St. Joseph's church and organised
in 1867. It was under the care of the Redemptorist fathers until 1869. The
first church, of brick (now school-house), was dedicated July 23d, 1868. The
new church of brick, with two towers, was commenced in 1876 and finished in
1877. The first resident pastor is the present one. Rev. F. Oberhalzer, since
19
284 History of the City of Rochester.
1869. The first trustees were J. Leckinger and J. Armbruster. The present
trustees are James Hoff and Fr. Herbst. • The pastoral residence was built in
1870. It is of brick, two stories high.
The first school-house was opened in 1868. It formed a part of the old
church. It was enlarged in 1877, when the old church was converted into a
."ichool-house. About 130 pupils attended the school the first year. At pres-
ent there are about 500 children. They are taught by one male teacher and
five Sisters of Notre Dame.
St. Michael's church (German) is on North Clinton street. This congrega-
tion formed a part of St. Joseph's and of Holy Redeemer's parish. It was
organised in May, 1873. The Redemptorist fathers of St. Joseph had charge
over it until 1874. The church (at present church and school-house) was built
in 1873-74. It was dedicated in March, 1874. It is a large brick building.
It will be turned into a school-house as soon as the new church now in
contemplation 'has been built. The first pastor is Rev. Fridolin Pascalar since
1874, appointed in the fall of 1873. The first trustees were M. Hoefer, and
Valentine Krieg, The present trustees are Anthony Englert and Jos. Froh-
licher. The first pastoral residence was a small stone house on Clinton street.
The new residence, of brick, on the southeast side of the present church, was
built in 1878.
The school connected with this parish was opened in 1874. For this pur-
pose a part of the church (the rear) and a frame building on Clinton street are
used. About 250 pupils attended the school the first year. At present there
are about 475 children. They are taught by seven Sisters of Notre Dame.
The church of the Holy Apostles is on L)'ell avenue. A new congrega-
tion is being organised under the title of "Holy Apostles." The members
fornied a part of St. Patrick's cathedral. Rev. Timothy C. Murphy, formerly
of Livonia, has been appointed the first pastor of this church. May ist, 1884.
THE UNITARIAN CHURCH.
The First Unitarian Congregational society. — An effort was made as early
as 1829 to found a Unitarian society in Rochester. The first preaching here
was a few weeks before, in December, 1828, by Rev. William Ware, then of
New York. He was immediately followed by Rev. James D. Green, who or-
ganised a society. The same year the old wooden building which St. Luke's
(Episcopal) church had abandoned was purchased and moved to the north side
of Buffalo (now West Main) street, just west of Sophia. It was occupied only
a year or two, when it was sold together with a lease of the ground it stood on
for $200, and the society disbanded. In the next ten years there was liberal
preaching of a desultory sort, at a place called Masonic Hall on Exchange
street, in a school-house (used also by the "Christians" as a church) on the
present site of Plymouth church, and in " Carthage," as the settlement on the
The Unitarian Church. 285
east bank of the river near the lower falls was called. This work was chiefly
done by that heroic and honored citizen, Myron Holley.
In 1 841 the work of reorganisation was begun in earnest. Rev. Mr. Storer,
of Syracuse, commenced the work, and a goodly number of noble men and
women rallied to his call. Dr. Matthew Brown was made president of the
board of trustees, and George. F. Danforth, clerk. The meetings were held
in the Christian church, before referred to, and a number of ministers were
heard for a short time who have since won distinction in the denomination. In
1842 Rev. Rufus Ellis came and remained a year. Under his leadership the
society built a very comfortable church on the present site of St. Paul's (Ger-
man) church, Fitzhugh street, at a cost of about $6,000. Soon afterward Rev.
F. W. Holland was called to the pastorate and remained until 1848. The
ministers who followed Mr. Holland were : Rev. Rufus H. Bacon, Rev. W. H.
Doherty, Rev. W. H. Channing, Rev. Thomas Hyer, Rev. James Richardson,
Rev. James K. Hosmer, Rev. Mr. Fitzgerald. The latter had preached only
one Sunday when the church burned. This occurred November loth, 1859.
Shortly afterward services were suspended. In 1865 Rev. F. W. Holland
returned to Rochester, gathered the society together, and, raised the necessary
funds to build a new church. The building was erected on the east side of
Fitzhugh street, at a cost, including the lot, of about $12,000; and was occu-
pied until its sale to the United States government in 1883. Mr. Holland re-
mained in charge three years. Rev. Clay McCauley followed for one year;
then Rev. E. H. Danforth for six months. In 1870 Rev. N. M. Mann became
the pastor and still remains in charge.
Upon the sale of the Fitzhugh street property, the society purchased the
beautiful andcomhiodious stone church and chapel of the Third Presbyterian
church, occupying both corners of Lancaster and Temple streets. The build-
ings have been thoroughly restored and made attractive without and within.
The society is out of debt, as has been its rule since 1865, and is in a prosper-
ous condition. The following gentlemen constitute the present board of trus-
tees (March, 1884): J. A. Hinds, chairman; Porter Farley, secretary; S. L.
Brewster, Samuel Wilder and C. C. Morse.
During the early part of 1884 the pastor of the church was excluded from
the pulpit by an illness which lasted through several weeks. For the first Sun-
day morning his place was kindly taken by Prof True, a member of the faculty
of the theological seminary, who preached most acceptably to the congrega-
tion, recalling (without his mentioning it) the time when Prof Robinson, of the
same institution — who is now the president of Brown university — '■ occupied
the desk during an extended vacancy in the pastorate. After Prof True the
society had the ministration, for seven consecutive Sundays, of Dr. Landsberg,
the rabbi of the Jewish temple, whose sermons, as well as his conduct of the
services, will long be remembered with gratification, not only by the regular
286 History of the City of Rochester.
attendants of the church, but by the many visitors, of more than one creed,
who attended the exercises. This informal union of the two religions, and the
occupancy of a Christian pulpit for a long time by one of the same race with
the founder of the Christian faith, produced a profound impression, not only in
this city but elsewhere. Remarks unfavorable were made at first, but criticism
soon sank to silence, as it was seen that this might be the forerunner of the
establishment of a universal church.
THE LUTHERAN CHURCHES.
Zion's First German Evangelical Lutheran church. — This is the mother of
the Lutheran churches in this city, the other three being emphatically her
daughters. The first official minutes of Zion's First German Evangelical Luth-
eran church begin in 1839 and contain as an introduction a short sketch of the
past history of the church. In 1832 Rev. Miiller preached to a few families
(Ebersold, Rohr, Engel, Schwarz, Schneeberger) in the basement of the Second
Presbyterian church. In 1833 Rev. C. F. Welden, now living in Philadelphia
as pastor emeritus, came and preached occasionally. He was followed by Rev.
W. A. Fetter, of Rush, where at that time was a German Lutheran congrega-
tion. Under his administration, in 1836, the corner-stone for a church build-
ing, where the present church is now located, northeast corner of Grove and
Stillson streets, was laid. In May, 1838, Rev. J. Miihlhauser took charge of
the congregation. The church was dedicated December 14th, 1838. The names
of the first officers found in the minutes are : Chr. Traugott, C. Lauer, G. C.
Drehmer, J. Schonmaier, Jacob Maurer, J. Ebersold, J. Rohr, John Maurer, H.
Diener, B. Heidt, G. EUwanger, R. Heidt, George Maurer. The list of com-
municants goes back to October, 1834; of the first catechumens and of the
marriages to April, 183S ; of baptisms to September, 1834. March iSth, 1851,
the congregation resolved to build a new church on the old site. The new
church was dedicated January 29th, 1852 ; galleries were put in in 1856 ; the
church was enlarged to meet the wants of the rapidly growing congregation
in 1872, and is now forty-eight feet wide and one hundred and six feet long,
with a steeple one hundred and twenty-five feet high. In 1883 two doors, one
on each side of the main entrance, were broken through in the front, with stone
stairs and iron railings, and the vestibule was changed, a necessary convenience
for the numerous congregation and a decided improvement in the appearance
of the building.
The large old school-house at the corner of North avenue and Franklin
street, now used as a planing-mill, was sold in 1881 and a building for school
purposes erected in the rear of the church. The pre.sent teachers of the paro-
chial school are C. G. Schneider (German, and organist) and Miss Maggie
Hoppe (English). The commodious parsonage, number 46 Stillson street, very
near the church, was purchased by the congregation and fitted up with all
The Lutheran Churches. 287
modern conveniences in 1881. The pastors have been as follows: J. Miihl-
hauser, 1838 to 1848; J. G. Kempe, until 1862; A. Uebelacker, until i868;
F. von Rosenberg, until 1874; C. F. W. Hoppe, until 1881 ; Rev. A. Richter,
the present pastor, since July, 188 1. The present officers are: Church coun-
cil — Chr. Seel, N. Conrad, J. Traugott, elders ; J. Christ, treasurer ; A.
Scheuer, secretary; M. Schlegel, F. Bundschuh, J. Kleinow, R. Kuhn, C. G.
Kallusch, deacons; trustees — J. G. Wagner, president ; F. Schlegel, secretary ;
J. Rohr, treasurer ; Wm. Wagner, J. Margrander, J. A. Krautwurst, J. Korner.
We might add that chiefly under the auspices of Zion's church and its pastor a
" Lutheran proseminary," for the education of boys and young men as German
Lutheran ministers, was opened in October, 1883 ; now located on South ave-
nue, bidding fair for the future. A branch Sunday-school was started in the
southern part of the city in March, 1884, which numbers already nearly one
hundred scholars. The services are held under the supervision of the pastor
of Zion's church in the chapel of the Calvary Presbyterian church, on South
avenue, corner of Hamilton place.
The Evangelical Lutheran church of the Reformation, on Grove street,
between North avenue and Stillson street, the only English Lutheran church
in the city, received its name from the anniversary day on which it was organ-
ised, October 31st, 1868. The founder and first pastor was Rev. Reuben Hill.
The first services were held in Zion's church, in the evenings when there was
no German service. As soon as the organisation was started, services were
held regularly in the third story of Zion's old school-house on North avenue,
at present a planing-mill. The first board of trustees consisted of C. C. Meyer,
John B. Snyder, John S. Kratz, Wm. Steinhauser, J. W. Maser. The present
building was dedicated in the fall of 1873. In 1874 Rev. R. Hill was called to
AUentown, Pennsylvania. He was immediately succeeded by Rev. Charles S.
Kohler, who still continues in the pastoral office. At present the officers are
Church council — S. J. Kuenzi, J. W. Maser, elders ; Charles J. Wichmann
P. Schaeffer, secretary ; A. H. Weniger, treasurer ; B. Shorer, Jacob Hoehn, J
Suter, deacons ; trustees — L. P. Beck, president ; J. M. Miller, secretary ; J. M
Lauer, treasurer; J. S. Kratz, John F. Dinkey. Sunday-school superintendent, J
M. Miller ; organist. Miss Annie S. Kuenzi ; leader of choir, Wm. J. Steinhauser,
St. John's German Evangelical Lutheran church is located on the corner of
St. Joseph street and Buchan park. November 4th, 1874, Zion's church re-
solved to establish a branch Sunday-school and mission' in the northern part of
the city. In 1 873 Rev. E. Heydler was called as assistant pastor of Zion's, at
the same time to take care of the mission. The congregation was organised
through Rev. E. Heydler in August, 1873 Names of the first officers : Church
council — M. Nothacker, H. Knapp, F. Seith, elders ; A. Schnell, M. Lang, C.
Maas, deacons ; trustees — F. C. Lauer, J. Krautwurst, J. Wellner, F. Schmitt,
A. Burkhardt. The corner-stone on the lot which was pi-esented by the mother
288 History of the City of Rochester.
church was laid June 14th, 1874. The church was dedicated June 21st, 1875,
and is sixty-five feet by one hundred and nineteen. If inside and outside com-
plete and finished, it would make a building of very fine appearance. A
spacious and recently enlarged frame building in the rear of the church is for
the use of the parochial school, the teachers of which are: C. F. Frank (Ger-
man, and organist) and Mrs. B. Hysner (English). The present officers are :
Church council — J. Glatt, J. C. Bachman, elders; A. Schnell, F. Schmanke, F.
Gunkler, J. Franz, J. Grab, deacons; trustees, M. Menn, H. Herdle, J. Miller,
C. Bauer. Rev. E. Heydler was pastor until 1877. He was followed by Rev.
J. Miihlhauser. The pulpit is at present vacant*
The German Evangelical Lutheran Concordia church, corner of Helena and
Putnam streets, was organised in September, 1877, by Rev. E. Heydler. After
his death, in 1882; Rev. C. N. Conrad was elected his successor. The church
is to be enlarged this year. A large parochial school is connected with it. For
want of requested, but not sufificiently furnished information, we are unable to
give the same particulars as of the other churches.
THE GERMAN UNITED EVANGELICAL CHURCHES.
Trinity. — Of the three churches that belong to the denomination calling
itself by the name above given, the German United Evangelical Trinity church,
on Allen street, is the oldest. It began in 1842, consisting of members that were
dissatisfied with the exclusiveness of the German Evangelical Lutheran Zion's
church. The first pastor was Rev. C. T. Soldan, who began his labors in 1842.
In 1845 Rev. C. Biel became his successor. Then followed Rev. T. F. Illiger,
in 1846. After the congregation had assembled in different places for worship,
the church on Allen street was built, in 1847. ^ev. A. Barkey officiated from
1847 to 1849, when Rev. C. Haass took charge of the congregation. He was
followed in 1852 by Rev. C. Clausen, who served the congregation over eight
years, extending with his predecessors the field and influence of the church.
In 1 861 Rev. P. Conradi was called to the pulpit. After ten months' service
he left his charge and formed a new church, taking a large number of the mem-
bers with him. In 1862 Rev. C. Siebenpfeiffer became pastor of the remaining
flock. Under his pastorate the congregation grew rapidly, so that the church
had to be provided with galleries. The parochial school, which heretofore had
always one. teacher with about one hundred scholars, employed three teachers
for about three hundred scholars. After 1870 the church became too small,
and, the members not agreeing about a site for a new church, being divided
about east or west of the river, a new swarm left the old hive, taking with them
to the east side the pastor. In 1874 Rev. B. Pick was ordained pastor of the
mother flock till, in 1881, Rev. O. Bueren followed him and in 1883 Rev. Emil
Heuckell, the present pastor. The church was at different times ornamented
and has a parsonage. The church records show that since its foundation till
The Evangelical Association. 289
April last 4,970 persons were baptised, 1,373 confirmed, 1,915 couples married,
1,590 persons buried and the Lord's supper served to 16,918, communicants.
The congregation is now doing well again and promises to grow and to be use-
ful. It numbers about 300 families. The Sunday-school was for many years
under the charge of the late Mr. Parsons and after him of Thomas Dransfield.
It was conducted in the English language, but is now Germani Much good
was doubtless the result of the labors of the friends of the school. .
The German United Evangehcal Salem church is located on Franklin street,
near St. Paul street. It is one of the handsomest church buildings in the city.
It was built in 1873, costing, together with the parochial school and Sunday-
school building, nearly $70,000. It seats 1,100 persons. . The Salem congre-
gation was formed in 1873, consisting of a part of the members of the German
church on Allen street and of many families on the east side that awaited with
eagerness the organisation of a church of this denomination east of the river.
The congregation and church were built up under the management of Rev.
Charles Siebenpfeiffer, who is still the officiating clergyman. The church has
been, growing steadily, and comprises now about 450 families and about 200
persons, the number of names in the roll being over 600. During the existence
of this church 1,795 children have been baptised, 798 persons confirmed, 606
couples married and 838 persons buried. The Sunday-school was for six years
conducted by Thomas Dransfield, who has helped to advance the interests of
the church materially. Noyv the Sunday-school is superintended by the pastor,
assisted by D. S. Poppen. Miss Lottie, Weitzel has charge of the infant class.
There are now 500 Sunday-school scholars. During the first years of the
church the parochial school numbered nearly 300 children, but since the interest
in such schools is declining there are now about 100. Mr. Poppen is teacher
of the school and at the same time the organist and the leader of the choir.
The German United Evangelical St. Paul's church was started in 1862 by
Rev. Philip Conradi, at that time pastor of the German church on Allen street.
He took with him about half of the membership to organise St. Paul's congre-
gation. In the same year, the church building was erected. It stands on Eitz-
hugh street and is a nice building in a quiet, place. In 1865 Rev. Mr. Hoff-
man became pastor of the church, and two years later Rev. F. Heinle, who was
succeeded in 1873 by Rev. A. Grotrian. The pastor who has now, and has had
since 1883, charge of the church is A. Zeller. The congregation numbers about
300 families and has a Sunday-school and a day-school.
THE EVANGELICAL ASSOCIATION.
The First church of the Evangelical association, (German) was organised
about the year 1849 by J. G. Marquardt. The following are the names of pas-
tors who have served this church since its organisation : J. G- Marquardt, 1849-
50; John Schaaf, 1851; Martin Lauer, 1852-53 ; Jacob Wagner, 1854-55;
290 History of the City of Rochester.
Martin Lauer, 1856-57; Levi Jacoby, 1858 ; Aug. Klein, 1859-60; S.Weber,
1861 ; Adolf Miller, 1862-63; P- J- Miller, 1864-65; Geo. Eckardt, 1866-67;
Andrew Holzworth, 1868-69; M. Lehn, 1870-71; G. F. Buesh, 1872-74;
Albert Unholz, 1875-77; E. A. Weier, 1878-80; C. A. Wiesseman, 1881-83.
Henry Koch, the present pastor, took charge of the parish in March, 1 884.
The present officers are : John Nagel, Fred Klein, John Boiler, George Fisher,
John Loeffler. The church has a membership of 232. Its location is on St.
Joseph street, at the corner of Nassau street. In connection with the church
is a Sunday-school, which numbers 20D scholars and thirty teachers. The
present officers of the Sunday-school are: J. Btoller, superintendent: George
Fisher, vice-superintendent ; Ernst Meyer, secretary ; John Loeffler, treasurer ;
Theodore Fisher, librarian.
THE GERMAN REFORMED CHURCH.
In 1848 several German Roman Catholics established, under Rev. De L.
Giustiniani, a free German Catholic congregation. For a short time they wei-e
accustomed to meet in Minerva hall. In March, 1849, Rev. Frederick Bogan
became the pastor of the congregation, followed by Dr. Winkelmann, and he,
in turn, was followed by Rev. William Wier. In 1850 they bought a church
in Court street for $2,200, but they left the church in the same year, for the
Scotch Presbyterian society purchased it from this congregation. Then, under
severe circumstances, the society erected a church on Cherry street. On the
1 2th of March, 185 i, they reorganised themselves and were incorporated by
the name of the German Mission church, under Rev. Robert Kohler. In 1852
the name was again changed to the German Reformed Immanuel church, and
the society connected themselves with the German Reformed church in the
-United States. In 1867 the congregation sold the church on Cherry street
and erected a new one on Jefferson street, now called Hamilton place. The
following are the names of the succeeding pastors, with the date of their ordi-
nation: J. J. Stern, March i6th, 1853; A. Schroeder, September 15th, 1854;
T. Grosshush, December, 1857; Mr. Brasch, in 1865 ; Mr. Claudius, in 1867;
C. Kuss, in 1869; H. C. Heyser, in 1874; Carl Gundlach, October 6th, 1878.
Mr. Gundlach is the present incumbent. The Sunday-school superintendent
is Nicholas Kraus. There are 230 members of the congregation.
THE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCHES.
The first society of this denomination was organised in November, 1836,
under the title of the " Free Congregational church," with Rev. John T. Avery
as the first pastor, so far as is known, his name appearing as such in 1838, when
O'Rielly's history was published. It may be presumed that this organisation
soon after ceased, for the directory of 1841 makes no mention of any Congre-
gational society as then in existence. On the 30th of August, in that year.
The Jews. 291
however, the State street Congregational society was organised, its meetings
being held in Teoronto hall, and of this Rev. Shiibael Carver was the pastor in
1845, 'f "ot before. In 1847 ^^v. Henry E. Peck assumed the pastorate of
the little congregation, preaching in the small upper room of the Teoronto block
for more than a year, when, in 1848, a church was erected nearly opposite, by
the society, assisted by a few benevolent outsiders. Mr. Peck' preached in the
new church for less than four years, when he was elected to a professorship in
Oberlin college and on the lith of January, 1852, his resignation of the pas-
torate was accepted. The succeeding ministers at the State street church were
Mr. Miner and Mr. Harper, under the latter of whom the last service was held,
on the 30th of August, 1856, on the occasion of the funeral of Deacon Leon-
ard Hitchcock. The church was then abandoned and the building has since
been used as a warehouse.
Another Congregational society was organised here in 1847 ^n*^ l^^ld its
meetings on the corner of South St. Paul and Jefferson streets, with Rev. Rich-
ard De Forest as the first pastor, after whom were Rev. Wm. Dewey and Rev.
D. D. Francis. The last-named was there in 1855, and the church society be-
came extinct a very few years later.
Plymouth church. — In September, 1852, a subscription was begun for the .
erection of a new church edifice in the city of Rochester, to be located at the
corner of Troup and Sophia streets (now Plymouth avenue). After a consid-
erable sum had been pledged, a meeting of the subscribers was held in Feb-
ruary, 1853, when it was decided to give to the edifice the name of "the Ply-
mouth church of Rochester," and to devote it to Congregational worship. In
June, 1853, a building committee was appointed by the subscribers, consisting
of A. Champion, E Lyon, F. Clarke, W. A. Reynolds and W. Churchill. The
corner-stone of the building was laid September 8th, 1853, and the society was
incorporated by act of the legislature passed April iSth, 1854. A. Champion,
F. Clarke, E. Lyon, C. J. Hill, W. W. Ely, A. G. Bristol, E. H. Hollister, C. A.
Burr and E. Darrow were constituted the first board of trustees. The church
was dedicated August 21st, 1855. Rev. Jonathan Edwards was the first pastor,
his term being from February, 1856, to November, 1862. Rev. D wight K.
Bartlett was the second pastor, from February, 1865, to February, 1873. Rev.
Myron Adams is the present and third pastor; having begun his service as such
in May, 1876. In the summer of 1877 extensive irhprovements were made in
the church building. The roof was substantially slated, and the interior deco-
rated, recarpeted and upholstered. The present trustees are : D. C. Hyde, S.
F. Hess, L. P. Ross, W. S. Ely, B. H. Clark, W. S. Osgood, J. W. Robbins and
J. Farley, jr.
THE JEWS OF ROCHESTER.
According to estimate there are about 2,500 Jewish inhabitants in the city
of Rochester. It is impossible now to ascertain when they first settled here,
292 History of the City of Rochester.
but It is known that some few made this city their home as early as 1840. In
the year 1848 the necessity was first felt of organising a society to supply their
religious wants. Twelve foreigners, all natives of Germany, met in a house at
the corner of Clinton street and Clinton place and formed a Jewish congrega-
tion. Their names are : M. Rothschild, Joseph Wile, S. Marks, Joseph Katz,
G. Wile, Henry Levi, Jacob Altman, Joseph Altman, A. Adier, E. Wollf, A.
Weinberg and J. Ganz. For six months the young society held its meetings
at the same place, lintil a hall was rented for that purpose at the corner of Main
and Front streets, where a permanent organisation was formed and called
Berith Kodesh (Holy Covenant). A burial lot was purchased by the society at
Mt Hope, on May 23d, 1848, and the first board of trustees was elected on
October 8th, of the same year. The first president was Mayer Rothschild.
The congregation was incorporated on October i6th, 1854. In the year 1856
the site of the present temple was purchased of Louis Deane. The building,
formerly a Baptist church, was adapted to the wants of the congregation and
was thus used until 1876, when the building now in use was erected at an ex-
pense of $25,000 and dedicated on September iSth, 1876. The first rabbi of
the congregation was Mr. Tusky. He was succeeded by Dr. Isanc Mayer from
1856 to 1859. Then Dr. Sarner was elected, who held his position but nine
months. From i860 to 1863 there was no rabbi; in the latter year Dr. Gins-
burg received a call and remained till 1868. After another intermission of
two years and six months Dr. Max Landsberg, the present rabbi, was engaged,
on December 26th, 1870. He entered upon his functions in March, 1871,
and has filled his position ever since.
The congregation Berith Kodesh was at first strictly orthodox. The first
move in the way of reform was made in 1862, when an organ was purchased,
and in i863the first slight alterations were made in the ritual. In 1869 it was
resolved to introduce family pews in place of the old system by which the
sexes were kept strictly separate during the services. When the change was
made M. Greentree, with a few others, resigned, and in 1 870 founded the con-
.gregation EtzRaanon (Green Tree) and erected a building on Franklin park.
From this time the Berith Kodesh made constant and rapid progress, materially
and spiritually. It counts one hundred and thirty members with their families,
and one hundred and fifty-four children visit the Sabbath-school for religious
instruction, of which the rabbi is the superintendent, while a number of young
ladies and gentlemen from the congregation serve as teachers. Since Decem-
ber, 1883, a new ritual has been introduced at the services, almost entirely
consisting of English prayers, and Berith Kodesh is the first Jewish congrega-
tion in this country in which services were conducted mostly in the vernacular.
The other Jewish congregations in Rochester, all strictly orthodox, are the
following: Beth Israel (House of Israel), founded in 1879, which owns a build-
ing at 54 Chatham street; Bene David {Sons oi David), organised in 1882,
The Universalis'!- Churches. 293
whose place of worship is at 5 Hermann street; Beth Aulom (Eternal House),
a number of members who seceded from the Etz Raanon in 1883 and worship
at the former Free Methodist church, corner of Atwater and Leopold streets,
and Etz Chayim (Tree of Life), under which name the remaining members of
Etz Raanon reorganised in 1883, and continued to worship in the former
place on Franklin park.
THE UNIVERSALIST CHURCHES.
The First Universalist. — Universalist meetings were held in Rochester
before it became a city, and the first ministers of this faith were Rev. Messrs.
Sampson, Henry Roberts, Wm. Andrews, T. P. Abell, Russell Tomlinson,
Jacob Chase and Charles Hammond. Early meetings of this society were
held in a church which it purchased on the corner of Court and Stone streets.
After this property was sold, the Sabbath-school was held in the basement of
the Universalist church until the arrival of Rev. G. W. Montgomery in 1845,
when the services were resumed in Minerva hall, which were continued until
the erection of a church on Clinton street. This building has been recon-
structed and enlarged and was dedicated March 22d, 1871, Rev. Dr. Saxe
preaching the discourse. Among the founders and early members of this
church were Joseph Wood, Isaac Hellems, Schuyler Moses, J. J. Van Zandt,
J. F. Royce and N. Bingham. Rev. Dr. Montgomery was installed pastor of
the church in December, 1845, and officiated for eight years. Rev. J. H. Tuttle
served the church six years and was succeeded March ist, i860, by the present
pastor, Rev. Asa Saxe, D. D. The present trustees are I. F. Force, N. S.
Phelps and Mrs. E. B. Chace, with S. E. Brace treasurer, and Heman W.
Morris clerk. There is a Sunday-school connected with this church number-
ing about four hundred, of which George H. Roberts was the first superin-
tendent, who was succeeded by the late J. J. Van Zandt and he by the present
superintendent, William It. Cook, who has held the position for fifteen years.
This church established a mission Sunday-school in the ninth ward in 1873,
which has since developed into the Second Universalist church. Location,
South Clinton street, near Main.
The Second Universalist chiirch has grown from a mission Sunday-school
established by the First church in the fall of the year 1874. The mission
school was held in McDade's hall for a few years, then, having outgrown that
room, its present neat and commodious chapel was erected by the munificence
of James Sargent and others. Rev. L. B. Fisher was called to be the first
pastor of this church, beginning his work in October, 1883. On January 13th,
1884, a church organisation was formed^ with forty- five members and the fol-
lowing board of trustees : A. M. Brown, F. H. Cross, James S. Graham,
Thomas Gliddon, Charles Howlett.
294 History of the City of Rochester.
THE ADVENT CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
On June 22d, 1843, the first Advent meeting ever held in Rochester con-
vened in a large tent erected on the east side of the river, north of Main street,
near the stone-ware pottery. Elder J. V. Hines conducted the services, which
resulted in the gathering together of several hundred believers. He was
assisted in maintaining the services, under the name of Advent meetings, from
that time, by Elders Fitch, Barry, Galusha, Pinney and others, until 1850,
when Elder J. B. Cook was called as pastor, who remained until 1853. From
this time the interest fluctuated until 1867, when Elders Pratt and Grant
organised the "First Christian church of Rochester," with a membership of
two hundred and Elder H. L, Pratt as pastor. He retired in 1870 and the
pulpit was supplied with such men as Wm. Fenns, H. L. Hastings and other
able and talented ministers, In 1871 Elder J. H. Whitmore was called to the
pastorate, which position he held until April, 1874. During his ministrations
the definite-time-agitators gained a footing and created a division, which nearly
destroyed the society and caused the resignation of the pastor. Under the
ministry of his successor, Elder E. F. Sergisson, the interest revived somewhat,
and it continued under Mrs. L. M. Stoddard, who followed him in 1879 and
who acted as pastor for about three years. During her ministry the church
removed to the hall it now occupies, over 155 East Main street, corner of.North
avenue. After the resignation of Mrs. Stoddard, Elders Dr. Porter W. Taylor
and Wm. Ingmire acted as pastors until March 2Sth, 1883, when the present
incumbent, Elder George W. Wright, assumed the pastorate. The church at
the present time numbers one. hundred and seven members, and, as an evidence
of its prosperity, is negotiating for a lot upon which to build ,a church edifice.
Honorable mention should be made of A. G. Andrews, who was present at
the first tent meeting held in 1 843 and who remains to-day an active member
of the church in Rochester.
THE REFORMED CHURCH IN AMERICA.
The First Reformed church of Rochester, N. Y., was organised in 1852.
Its denominational connection is with the Reformed (Dutch) church in America,
which is Presbyterian in doctrine and government. - Its pastors were : Rev. A.
B. Veenhuizen, of East Williamson, N. Y. ; C. Wust, of Lodi, N. J. ; A. Krie-
kaard, of Grand Rapids, Mich.; P. B. Bahler, lately deceased. Rev. Peter De
Bruyn, the present pastor, has served the church for the past ten years. The
statistics of 1884 show a membership of nearly three hundred, a Sunday-school
of two hundred and sixty scholars. During the year $456.69 were contributed
for benevolent and religious purposes, while the sum of $2,759.94 was brought
up for regular congregational expenses. The services are mostly conducted in
the Dutch language, since the majority of the people are native Hollanders.
The Christadelphian Church. 295
The society is prosperous and united, and hopeful for the future. The church
and chapel are located on the corner of Harrison and Oregon streets.
There is another church here named the Ebenezer church, the society
belonging to the denomination or sect known as the "True Dutch Reformed,"
but the building, which is on Chatham street, is not now open for service.
THE CHRISTADELPHIAN CHURCH.
The Christadelphian Ecclesia, or " called-out-ones" took upon themselves
this distinctive name March 6th, 1870. At that time they numbered about
forty-five members. They increased in numbers to upward of sixty. Some
have died and some have moved away, so that at the present time those who
claim to be Christadelphians number about forty-seven. Those out of the city
who continue to meet in Rochester make the number still over sixty. They
claim to be a revival of that sect every where spoken against in the first cen-
tury, and they acknowledge no authority in matters of faith and practice other
than that of the "mind of Chri.st" expressed in the "written word." They
claim to be called out to "God's kingdom and glory" and to be associated with
Christ at his return, in the readjustment of human affairs by giving to the
world a righteous administration. They believe in one God, the Father, whom
no man hath seen, and who only hath immortality underived and inherent, and
in one Lord Jesus Christ, his son, who through his sufferings, death and resur-
rection opened up a "new-made way of life" to all who believe and obey his
requirements. They believe that in the "fullness of time," which they regard
as not far distant, a theocracy will be established upon the mountains of Israel
in the person of the Lord Jesus Christ and those who shall be associated with
him as kings and priests of the age ; that all believing Jews will then be re-
stored to their land, and that Jerusalem, rebuilt in splendor and glory,' will be
the metropolis of the world. They meet every first day of the week to break
bread and drink wine in remembrance of Jesus, the Captain of their salvation.
They have no paid ministers. Any members that are qualified to interest and
instruct are expected to do so as opportunity offers, and are appointed for that
and other leading duties, and are called "serving brethren." These, at the
time of organisation in 1870, were James McMillan, Orrin Morse, Augustus
Sintzenich' and J. C. Tomlin, secretary. The serving brethren at the present
time, besides the writer of this sketch, Dr. J. H. Thomas, who delivered free
lectures every Sunday evening, are Charles Morse, George Ashton, J. Walsh,
E. Eames and J. Tomlin.
296 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXXII.
the early schools of ROCHESTER. 1
Huldah M. Strong's School, in 1813 — Limited Educational Resources — Meagerness of State
Appropriation — Old District Number i, and First Male Teacher — Mill Street a Fashionable Quarter
of Rochester — Maria Allyn's School in 1820 — Fairchild and Filer's Latin and English School — Ly-
man Cobb's School, Spelling-Book and Dictionary — The Manual Labor School — The Rochester High
School — The Schools of Misses Mack and Miss Seward, West Side of the River — Rochester Female
Academy — Seward Female Seminary — Other Institutions of Learning.
♦
THE settlement of families and the formation of society in Rochester, be-
ginning about 1 8 10, progressed so rapidly that in 18 13 the need of schools
for the children was apparent. The welfare of the young town, as related
either to schools or churches or to associations for moral, social and material
advancement, was not neglected. Church organisations and public worship
began with the first settlement, and church buildings were erected in 18 16 and
1817. The Rochester Female Missionary society was formed in 1818; the
Monroe County Agricultural society in 1821, the first year of the establish-
ment of the county, and the Monroe County Bible society was organised
the same year. The Rochester Female Charitable society and the Rochester
Sunday-school Union were formed in 1822 ; the Franklin Institute, a literary
society, in 1826, and the Rochester Athenaeum, also a literary society, in 1829.
The first school — properly the forerunner of all organisations for the intel-
lectual and moral advancement of a community — began in 1813. The first
teacher was Miss Huldah M. Strong, sister of Mrs. Abelard Reynolds, and who
in 1 8 16 married Dr. Jonah Brown. The location of the school, as stated in an
article on schools published in the Monroe county directory for 1 869-70, was
in Enos Stone's barn, transformed to a school-house. Subsequently the school
was removed to a room over Jehiel Barnard's clothing store, near the corner
of Buffalo street (now West Main) and Carroll, now State street. There is not
much doubt that these are the facts as to the matter, as Mrs. Abelard Rey-
nolds in former times, as is well remembered, often spoke of the school as
having been commenced in a barn. At its opening it numbered fourteen or
fifteen pupils. It was a small number for the great following it was to have
of schools and school children in Rochester. It was not long, however, before
its numbers increased, and its usefulness and final success gave great satisfac-
tion to the citizens. '
In looking back by the aid of history to that time, now seventy-one years
ago, we perceive that it was not only an early period in educational work in
Rochester but also in the entire state of New York. School funds and state
aid to schools and colleges were then extremely limited. Until the year 1795
• 1 This article was prepared by Mr. George S. Riley.
The First School in Rochester. 297
very little attention and no legislative aid whatever had been extended to edu-
cation in this state. Although a beginning was made in that year, it was a
small beginning; $50,000 annually, for five years and no longer, was appro-
priated by the legislature. Up to 181 2 all that legislation had effected for the
advancement of education was the formation of a school fund, the gradual ac-
cumulations of which had in 1812 — which was the year Rochester began to
grow — amounted to only $151,000, yielding but $24,000 annually to be
divided among the then forty-six counties of the state.
The first school in Rochester, therefore, had to be wholly and voluntarily
maintained by its citizens ; and it is creditable to. Rochester at that time that
the school received a good degree of local public attention and substantial
support. Most of the young children of the place, of both sexes, and of all
sects, were gathered in the school. Not long after its removal to Jehiel Bar-
nard's store the school-room was inadequate, and one teacher insufficient, for
the needs of the rapidly growing town. During the autumn of 1813 the citi-
zens resolved to establish a school district and build a school-house. The build-
ing was completed soon afterward. Its dimensions were about eighteen by
twenty-four feet and one story in height. Its location was on South Fitzhugh
street, where the Free academy now stands. From that time schools and
school-teachers rapidly increased. In 1815 or early in 18 16 the population
had so increased near the high falls of the river that a school-building was
erected at the corner of Mill and Piatt streets. Schools were also opened on
the east side of the river, and there was no faltering in providing schools and
school-buildings wherever needed. There were then superior men in Roches- '
ter, many of whom afterward attained widespread reputation for ability and
philanthropy, and they early perceived the need and earnestly advocated the
policy of liberal appropriations by the state for educational purposes. The
conjoint efforts of like public-spirited gentlemen in other parts of the state, and
later like efforts of the advocates of free schools, finally established a state
policy in reference to the support of schools and created a public interest in
education greatly in contrast with the inattention and illiberality of former
times. The expenditure of the city of Rochester in 1883 for education ex-
ceeded $200,000, and the expenditure of the state of New York the same year
exceeded twelve and one-half million of dollars.
The building first and specially erected in Rochester for school uses was
known as " district school-house number i." .Its construction was aided by
the generous gift of its site, as narrated in the article on "public schools."
Aaron Skinner is said to have been the first teacher in the new school-house,
and the first male teacher in Rochester. Thomas J. Patterson, formerly mem-
ber of Congress from this congressional district, has stated that he came to
Rochester in his boyhood and resided with his kinsman, Dr. O. E. Gibbs, and
attended school in the winters of 1813-14 and 1815, and that his teachers
298 History of the City of Rochester.
were Mr. Dodge and Caleb Hammond, then a medical student here. A rela-
tive of the late Moses King states that Mr. King, who survived till 1881, always
claimed to be the first male teacher in Rochester. If the last-named three
gentlemen were not employed as teachers here anterior to Aaron Skinner,
they all, doubtless, taught schools in Rochester about the same period. Mr.
King unquestionably taught the first school in Frankfort — as the northwest
quarter of the town was then and is now called — and it is recorded in an'
early history of Monroe county that "in 1816 a spelling- match occurred on a
Saturday afternoon in the old first school-house. The teacher was Dr. Ham-
mond, then a student with Drs. Elwood and Coleman. The school was joined
by the Frankfort school taught by Moses King. The scholars chose sides,
standing as the spelHng proceeded, but whoever spelled a word incorrectly had
to take a seat. Two boys, brothers, were the last up and kept the floor till
dark, when to the younger was adjudged the prize."
Among those who at later periods were teachers in old " district number i "
were General Jacob Gould, in the winter of 1819-20; Mr. Bailey, about 1822,
and afterward Mr. Wilder, formerly a Vermont lawyer. There were also
employed there, though it is not probable that they could now be named in
correct successive order as to the periods of their services, Thomas A. Filer,
D. B. Crane, Zenas Freeman, Ellery S. Treat, Clarendon Morse, Dr. Ackley,
Mr. Spoor and others. Most of the early teachers in different periods changed
and interchanged between the different schools, public and private of the time.
The original building was also used for religious services till church buildings
were erected. Some time prior to 1820 it was enlarged, and about 1823 it
was still more enlarged or improved. It was finally supplanted by a large
brick structure in which E. S. Treat was the first teacher. After a few years
the first brick structure was also superseded . by the present large and ornate
Free academy building, the original cost of which was about $80,000 and the
whole expenditure for which, including alterations and improvements, exceeds
$160,000.
The school early established at the corner of Mill and Piatt streets was
doubtless the one aforementioned as the school in Frankfort which joined the
school in old district number i, in the spelling-match of 1816. At a much later
period the now so-called "Brown square old stone school-house" was erected
and a school opened there. Moses King was at different times teacher in both
of the schools'. In the Mill street school Jeremiah Cutler — who came to
Rochester in 1821, and in 1824 entered the county clerk's office, where he was
employed for fifty-nine years, till his death in 1883 — was a teacher previous
to 1824. Two others of the early teachers were a Mr. Barry and a Mr. Lock-
wood. The then young sons and daughters of Lyman B. Langworthy, Gard-
ner McCracken, Warham Whitneyj Dr. Matthew Brown, Hamlet Scrantom
and other prominent residents of the vicinity were pupils. One of the earliest.
Maria Allyn's School in 1820. 299
if not the first, female teacher in this school was Miss Crane, afterward Mrs.
Fisher BuUard, who taught there as early as 1818-19. This was before Jere-
miah Cutler and Mr. Lockwood were teachers there ; before Miss Maria Allyn's
hereinafter-mentioned feniale academy on Mill street had been established, and
while the old school-house was surrounded by the primitive forest, and the
swift currents of an old watercourse sped along past the school-house over the
rocks downward a hundred "feet to the river. The old yellow-painted school-
building remained in its place till within a few years. Mills, foundries and fac-
tories constructed, and various manufacturing industries in many instances con-
ducted by former pupils of the school who have arrived at manhood, together
with the tracks and traffic of the New York Central railroad, have completely
transformed Mill street and vicinity to the uses of manufactures and commerce.
, In the Brown square school, Reuben Johnson, Mr. Mclntire, Ziba Crawford,
Mr. Kinney and Mr. Boothby were early teachers. Mrs. Latham Gardner, form-
erly Miss Parsons, was also a teacher there. In both of these schools large
numbers of the young people residing in their vicinity were instructed. One
of the female .teachers in Brown square school had an admirable way of sub-
duing insubordinate pupils with music. It is regretful that her name is not
known to the writer, so that it might be mentioned here. A few years after-
ward, about 1840, before the existence of the board of education, Patrick Barry,
then an alderman, was made chairman of a committee of the common council
to provide for and introduce instruction in vocal music in all the public schools
of Rochester. Was the goodly method of the teacher aforementioned the har-
monic prelude and forerunner of the praiseworthy work accomplished by Mr.
Barry,- the good fruits of which were soon apparent in all the schools ? The
"Brown square old stone school-house" is the best remembered school-build-
ing in the northwestern part of Rochester. It was erected in the day and gen-
eration of Dr. Matthew Brown, Warham Whitney and Darius Perrin. It was
sold to and demolished by Darius Perrin about thirty years ago, or soon after
the redivision of the city into school districts under the then new and special
legislation for public schools for Rochester in 1838-39-40.
There was also a young ladies' academy established on Mill street, near the
site of the old New York Central railroad depot, about 1820. Its founder and
chief teacher was Miss Maria Allyn, ^ho came from a noted family of New
London, Connecticut. Her brother commanded the good ship Bellerophon, on
whicli LaFayette sailed to America in 1824. A sister married Prof. Olmsted,
of Yale college, and another sister was the wife of J. E. Williams, the then
wealthiest resident of New London. Miss Allyn's fine education, personal at-
tractiveness and fitting accomplishments gave her high social position in Roch-
ester and secured for her school great prestige and complete success. All the
higher branches of education were taught by the gifted principal. At that time
Mil! street was one of the pleasant and fashionable parts of the village, and
20
300 History of the City of Rochester.
among the residents of the street and vicinity were James K. Livingston, Wm.
Pitkin, Dr. Backus, Dean Mumford, Warham Whitney, Matthew Brown, Judge
Parker, Wm. Cobb, Seth Saxton, John G. Vought and other equally prominent
citizens of that period. The school was favored by these gentlemen and by
other like patrons residing in other parts of the then village and neighboring
places. Daughters of Isaac W. Stone, John W. Strong, Nathaniel Rochester,
William Fitzhugh, Charles Carroll, Mr. Pierson of Avon, Samuel J. Andrews,
Warham Whitney, Levi Ward, Enos Stone, and of other well-known gentle-
men, were pupils of the school. Pleasant memories relating to its distinguished
principal and preceptress are retained to this late day and have recently been
expressed to the writer by a number of the attendants of the school who are
yet residents of Rochester.
Another notable school, to be mentioned both for its early establishment and
long continuance, was at the north corner of North Clinton and Mortimer
streets, fronting on Mortimer .street, on property now belonging to and south
of the dwelling-house of D. A. Watson. The building was constructed for the
school as early as 1 8 1 8. The teacher for a number of years was Lyman Cobb,
the author of Cobb's spelling book and Cobb's dictionary of the English lan-
guage. Anterior to this, however, was the school in Enos Stone's barn, here-
inbefore mentioned ^nd the first school on the east side of the river. James
S. Stone, son of Enos Stone, born on the east side of the river in i8iO and
now residing near Charlotte, has recently informed the writer that he clearly
remembers attending the school in the barn ; that it was located on the north
side of Main street, between North St. Paul and Water streets, that he was a
quite young pupil, too young to remember much about the school except its
location as above stated, that the barn-door seemed very wide and that the first
teacher was a lady, He has no distinct recollection of her name, but believes
the teacher was Huldah M. Strong. Mr. Stone also states that afterward Lyman
Cobb kept a school in the same barn building before the school on Clinton and
Mortimer streets was opened and that he attended it. He also subsequently
attended Lyman Cobb's Clinton street school. Many of the attendants of the
latter school were the children of the prominent families of the east side of the
village. Among the pupils was Alvah Strong, afterward founder of the Roches-
ter 2?rt?7j' Democrat, Julius T. Andrews and Darius Perrin. Mr. Cobb was a
good teacher and his school was successful, but his spelling-book and dictionary,
though good books of their kind and much used, did not extinguish Webster's
like works. Thurlow Weed and Leonard Stillson, then young printers in
Rochester and in the employ of Everard Peck, did the press work in 1826 for
one of the editions of Cobb's spelling-book. Mr. Stillson, now nearly eighty
years of age, came to Brighton in 18 17 and now resides in that town.
In the old Clinton street school building, religious services were held on Sun-
days and frequently on secular evenings. In it the Third Presbyterian church
Fairchild and Filer's Latin and English School. 301
was organised, in 1827, and Josiah Bissell made his famous offer and engage-
ment to construct a building suitable for the religious services of the church
in six days. The building was duly completed, although the timber "of which
it was constructed was growing in the adjacent forest on the Monday morn-
ing preceding the Saturday night on which it was completed. There is a tradi-
tion that St. Luke's Episcopal church, which was formed by residents of both
the east and west sides of the river, was also, but some years previously, organ-
ised in this school-house.
There was also about the year 1820 an English and Latin school established
in a school building near St. Luke's church, by Fairchild and Filer. These gen-
tlemen stood high in the estimation of the community and their school was well
attended. In evidence of the good reputation of these gentlemen and of their
school, and also as an additional indication of the enterprise of Rochester in
making spelling-books, it may be mentioned that Elihu F. Marshall, of the old
firm of Marshall & Dean, booksellers on Exchange street, about this time pub-
lished Marshall's spelling-book and that he for many months kept an advertise-
ment in the Rochester Telegraph (Everard Peck, editor and proprietor) contain-
ing lengthy recommendations of the spelling-book from Welcove Esleeck, super-
intendent of common schools of the state of New York, dated Albany, March
22d, 1 82 1, and from Fairchild and Filer, dated October 2d, 1822. A prelude to
their recommendation, which was of course written by Mr. Marshall, states that
"Ph. P. Fairchild and Thomas A. Filer are teachers of a Latin and English
school of the highest respectability in the village of Rochester." There are no
surviving old school-boys of that period who do not remember Fairchild and
Filer's school, and some of them were their pupils.
About this period, or a short time preceding it. Rev. Comfort Williams, pas-
tor of the First Presbyterian church, and Rev. F. H. Cuming, rector of St.
Luke's church, respectively, opened schools, that of Comfort Williams being
located for a considerable time on the east side of Exchange street, nearly op-
posite the Clinton House, and at another time at his house on what is now Mt.
Hope avenue. Mr. Cuming's school occupied the chapel or a wooden build-
ing in rear of St. Luke's church. Mortimer F. Reynolds says that he attended
Comfort Williams's school when it was kept at Mr. W.'s house, and recited his
daily lessons to Mr. Williams. Very few if any persons besides Mr. Reynolds
remain in Rochester who attended these schools, and but little information in
addition to what he states in regard to them has been obtained.
There was a quite early school for young children established and for a
number of years continued at the corner of State and Jay streets by Mrs. Mary
Grifiin, an English lady who came to Rochester in 1822 and afterward was mar-
ried to Jacob Anderson, now of Exchange street. Her school was a good one
and was largely attended. A number of the former pupils of the Mill and Piatt
streets school were at different times pupils of her school. Besides the promi-
302 History of the City of Rochester.
nent families in Frankfort heretofore named, Mr. Dalzeil, Mr. Alcott, and Mr.
Draper of Gates were her patrons. Mrs. Griffin at a later period moved her
school to Allen street, near State street, and about the year 1 830 it was again
removed to the west side of Exchange street near Spring. In her school in
Allen street, sons and daughters of John Haywood, Seth Saxton and other resi-
dents of that vicinity were pupils. The school on Exchange street was discon-
tinued on the marriage of Mrs. Griffin to Mr. Anderson.
In about the year 1824 a school was opened at the corner of Buffalo and
Front streets by Rev. Mr. Mulligan, a handsome and accomplished Irish gentle-
man and scholar, who came to this country and to Rochester at the desire of
his cordial friend. Rev. Dr. Joseph Penney, the pastor of the First Presbyterian
church. Dr. Penney often aided Mr. Mulligan in teaching in the various de-
partments of the school and they together gave it great reputation and success.
Many of the best known families in Rochester and vicinity were its patrons.
Both gentlemen deserved and received great praise for their efforts to advance
higher education. Mr. Mulligan was afterward called to Scottsville as a pastor
and teacher, and Dr. Penney in after years was elected president of Hamilton
college and removed there.
Also among the good schools established in Rochester about .1824 was that
of Zenas Freeman, on the north side of Main street, nearly midway between
St. Paul and Clinton streets, and there was also at a later time, on the same side
of the street, the school of Mr. White. Mrs. Charlotte B. Rosebrugh, sister of
the late William C. Bloss, and now, although at a quite advanced age, daily
performing the duties of post-mistress of Brighton, informs the writer that she re-
turned from attending school in Massachusetts in 1824, and in 1824—25 attended
Zenas Freeman's school in Main street, to perfect herself in rhetoric and other
like studies and that the school was considered one of the best in Rochester.
J. M. Winslow was a pupil in 1827 and says that D. K. Cartter, now chief-
justice of the District of Columbia; Nelson Sage, the Wolcott brothers, of Mt.
Hope avenue ; Seth Green and sisters, T. C. Bates, Wm. Howe, A. W. Car-
penter and sister, Alexander Petrie, nephew of Elisha Johnson, and many oth-
ers then and since then well known in Rochester were also pupils. The late
Judge E. Darwin Smith, then a law student in Ebenezer Griffin's law office, was
teacher of book keeping and writing in this school.
On the opposite side of Main street, near the corner of St. Paul street, there
was a school as early as 182 1. It was attended in that year by Alvah Strong,
then a quite young boy. Mr. Strong is probably the only survivor of the
pupils of that year. His father arrived here in 1 82 1 and sent him immediately
to that school, and therefore he distinctly remembers its locality and the year.
There was also an early school on Andrews, near the southeast corner of
Andrews and St. Paul streets, in a building yet remaining there, and the school
is well remembered by a few surviving patrons and pupils. It is probable that
Prominent Early Schools and Teachers. 303
both of these schools were at different periods taught by Nathaniel Draper, and
Mr. Lockwood, previously teacher in the Piatt and Mill streets school, taught
in the Andrews street school during one year.
In the southwesterly part of Rochester, called Corn Hill, there was a school
established about 1820. The school-building was on Adams street and usually
about fifty scholars attended. A Mr. Blake was the teacher about 1823—24.
Ex- Mayor Michael Filon was then a quite young attendant of the school and
narrates interesting incidents as to Mr. Blake's methods of teaching and disci-
pline. At a much later period Dr. Bell established a school also on Adams
street which is remembered by many of the young people of the vicinity now
of mature age.
At. the corner of Plymouth avenue and Troup street, where Plymouth
church now stands, was a school-building and a succession of schools and
teachers which make the place distinguished as related to school uses. The
building was also used for religious assemblies and worship. The school-
teachers, male and female, who in various periods taught the schools, are
exceedingly numerous and of great diversity of qualifications. There were
girls in most of the schools ; and there were but few boys reared in that quarter
of the town while the building remained there, or previous to about 1850, who
did not at some time attend the schools. Filer, Tateham, Curtis, Morse,
McKee, Cook, Miles, Foster and almost all other teachers well known in Roch-
ester previous to the year above mentioned are by all the oldest inhabitants
declared to have been at some period teachers there ; but the lack of records,
and the proverbial indefiniteness of the memory of the oldest inhabitants as to
names and dates render it now nearly impossible to ascertain the names of all
of the teachers or give those that are remembered in the order in which they
taught there. The building was finally consumed by fire.
Two other schools in the third ward, also largely attended, were those of
Mr, Mctcnlf and Mr. Brayton, in St. Luke's chapel, and in Child's building on
Exchange street, opposite Spring. In these schools T. C. and H. F. Mont-
gomery, John and Henry Livingston, Nathaniel Rochester, J. H. Schermerhorn,
Norton and J. W. Strong and most of the then older boys of the third ward
and of other parts of Rochester who were at the time in pursuit of higher edu-
cation, were pupils. There were, about the same period, two schools in the
western part of Rochester which were continued for many years — one on
North Ford street, near the Erie canal, and the other on South Ford street, at
the corner of Spring street. They were also largely attended. Among the
teachers in the South Ford street school were Samuel Blake, Orson Benjamin,
Nathaniel Fitch, and in 1828 Jeremiah Cutler had a temporary vacation from
the county clerk's office and was the teacher. Among his pupils was William
N. Sage, who, twenty-eight years afterward, was' elected county clerk and Mr.
Cutler was his deputy clerk.
304 History of the City of Rochester.
Following these were the famous schools on Buffalo street, near the old
" Buffalo pump." One of these schools was in " Crane's school-building " then
so called. This was St. Luke's church original wooden building, which had
been moved from Fitzhugh street, first to the rear of the church lot and, a few
years afterward, to Buffalo street. The other school was in the old Exchange
Hotel, a stone building, which was a short distance east of St. Luke's church
building and where the Young Men's Catholic society building now stands.
Many and also famous were the teachers who taught in the two schools while
they both existed, and especially those who taught in the church building
before and after the school in the Exchange Hotel building was discontinued.
Among these teachers the names of Crane, Ford, Freeman, Benedict, Brittan,
Treat, Kelsey, Breck are renowned in the estimation of the old pupils. During
the many years that one or both of the schools continued, the pupils who
attended them were from every part of Rochester and the surrounding country,
and were in the aggregate a great multitude of boys and girls. There were
also many female teachers in these schools, one of whom, Miss Fanny Smith,
married Mr. Freeman, and another. Miss Charlotte H. Rawson, became the
second wife of Dr. Matthew Brown. Miss Crane, sister of Mrs. Bullard, also
taught in one of the Buffalo street schools.
In about the same period of time Phelps Smith, for the purpose of aiding
his sister in a good work, erected near the rear end of his dwelling-house, and
at the rear or westerly end of his lot on North Washington street, a school-
house of hewed logs. It was about twenty feet square. An alley, yet remain-
ing there, led from Buffalo street to the rear end of the lot and school-house.
This commendable enterprise of Mr. Smith was rewarded with success, and Miss
Smith's school flourished. The children of Lyman B. and W. A, Langworthy,
of Deacon Oren Sage and of many other residents of the vicinity attended the
school. Three of the pupils are now Dr. H. H. Langworthy and William N.
Sage, of Rochester, and John T. Langworthy, of Washington, D. C, first assist-
ant controller of the currency. Miss Smith subsequently married Martin Clapp,
who nearly sixty years ago was the builder of the United States Hotel, which
is yet standing on the north side of West Main street near the corner of Eliza-
beth street, \yithin a few years after its completion it was successively used
for a hotel, for the Tonawanda railroad depot, for a manual labor institute, for
Misses Blacks' and also Miss Seward's female seminaries and then for the Uni-
versity of Rochester. It is of the experiment in the United States Hotel
building of a manual labor school for Rochester, about the year 1828, that
brief mention is next to be made. The school was designed for the higher
education of young men, and for a time it had a goodly number of students.
A few hours each day school exercises were suspended and the students applied
themselves, and whatever mechanical skill they had or could acquire, to making
barrels for the flour mills of Rochester. Rev. Gilbert Morgan, an accomplished
Prominent Early Schools and Teachers. 305
scholar, was the principal. The standard of scholarship in , the institution was
high. Although it was a laudable effort to assist young men of limited means
to obtain an education, and much interest was manifested in the institution by
many citizens, it did not succeed, and Mr. Morgan subsequently engaged for a
time in teaching in the High school on the east side of the river. Afterward
he removed from Rochester to South Carolina, where he continued to reside for
many years. His decease occurred but a year or two ago.
During the period from about 1830 to 1834 there were two notable schools
established on the west side of the river for the higher education of young
ladies. The first was the school of the Misses Black, which was commenced
about 1830, in the Sill building on the west side of South Fitzhugh street, near
the corner of West Main street, and afterward removed to the United States
Hotel building. The Misses Black were English-Canadian ladies. One or both
of them had been educated at Miss Willard's famous Troy female seminary.
Both were well qualified as teachers and were in all respects accomplished
ladies. Their school was attended by many then young ladies who in after years
graced society in Rochester and in other places. Some of the peculiarities of
the school in matters of etiquette and methods of instruction were English
rather than American, but the school was a flourishing one while it continued
and was satisfactory to its patrons. Marriage, again, as in so many schools
having female teachers, occasioned an interruption to the Misses Blacks' school.
The elder Miss Black early in 1833 married a Canadian gentleman and returned
to Canada to reside.
The other school above alluded to and immediately succeeding the Misses
IMacks' school was that of Miss Sarah T. Seward, afterward Mrs. Gen. Jacob
Gould, who was also a graduate of the Troy female seminary, and who came
to Rochester from Lebanon Springs in this state early in March, 1833, and
almost immediately opened a school in the United States Hotel building. There
had also come from the Troy female seminary Miss Sayles, afterward Mrs. Wil-
liam S. Bishop. Miss Sayles became the assistant of Miss Seward, as she had
been of the Misses Black. Miss Seward's school speedily achieved great suc-
cess. After continuing in the United States Hotel for one year it was removed
to the large stone building at the corner of Plymouth avenue and Spring street,
the present site of the First Presbyterian church. During its continuance at
that place for nearly two years, and till its removal to Alexander street in the
autumn of 1835, it continued to flourish, and there followed an awakening of
the people of Rochester to an appreciation of the value of higher female edu-
cation. As the result of this awakening, two new female academies were pro-
jected and new buildings for them were erected in 1835 a"d 1836. Auspicious
and favoring circumstances attended both institutions and both were meritorious.
One was Miss Seward's Alexander street female seminary, the building for
which was completed and the school opened in October, 1835. The other was
3o6 ■ History of the City of Rochester.
the Rochester female academy, of Fitzhugh street, whose building. was com-
menced in 1835 and completed and the school opened in May, 1836.
The Fitzhugh street academy wa^ projected by leading public-spirited citi-
zens, many of whom attended a meeting to promote its establishment, held at
the office of Jonathan Child in January, 1835. , Authentic records of the ac-
tion of this meeting and the good results which flowed from it and of the action
of subsequent like meetings are contained in a book of records which has been
carefully preserved at the academy. In the following February a plan of pro-
cedure was adopted. Sixty-seven gentlemen agreed to divide among them-
selves and take 200 shares of stock of $20 value p^ share and thus raise $4,000
"to purchase a suitable lot and erect thereon a building for a female seminary
in Rochester." The lot was soon afterward purchased from Anion Bronson for
$300, subject to a mortgage to Everard Feck of $660, and a contract was made
with Nehemiah Osburn for the construction of a building for $2,890. In Sep-
tember, 183s, trustees were appointed. They were Jonathan Child, Moses
Chapin, Elijah F. Smith, James K. Livingston and William P. Stanton. In
thewinter of 1835—36 the trustees employed Miss Julia H. Jones as principal
and the Misses Araminta D. and Julia Doolittle as assistant teachers for the
commencement of a school in May, 1836. The school was duly and most au-
spiciously opened at the appointed time and it was exceedingly flourishing and
successful.
The institution was not incorporated until 1837. The trustees named in
the act of incorporation were James Seymour, Jonathan Child, Elijah F. Smith,
James K. Livingston, Moses Chapin and Henry B. Williams. After the resig-
nation of Miss Jones, Miss A. D. Doolittle became, by appointment of the
trustees, the principal and continued in charge of the institution till 1855, when
she resigned. Mrs. Curtis succeeded Miss Doolittle in that year and was the
principal of the school till 1858. In April. 1858, Rev. James Nichols and his
wife, Mrs. Sarah J. Nichols,- came to Rochester from Geneseo and assumed the
direction of the institution. The death of Mr. Nichols in 1864 left Mrs. Nichols,
aided only by her abilities and experience as a teacher and by well chosen as-
sistants, to conduct the various departments of the school. Under her wise
direction it has continued to the present day to maintain high standing among
the best schools of the city and of Western New York. The good work it has
accomplished during the nearly fifty years of its existence is of inestimable
value. Nearly four thousand pupils have been instructed in its halls, many of
whom were advanced to a high degree of proficiency in knowledge and excel-
lency of character.
Miss Seward's Alexander street seminary, a boarding and day school, so
called, was established in 1835. The school building which Miss Seward caused
to be erected in that year was large, having sixty-four feet front. It was at-
tractive in appearance, and the handsome grounds around the building were
c:;I^^^^^^^>^-«J^~-^t^ ^, ^^yl^c^cJ^nyz^'zC^
,% -l-lynPKaM':! S^;.s N^w Y:ii-7o.
Prominent Schools, 1825 to 1835. 307
four or five acres in extent. All the appointments were complete and appro-
priate to a boarding-school for young ladies. The sum expended by Miss Sew-
ard and her friends for the grounds, buildings, scientific apparatus and other
requisites to a large institution for higher female education exceeded $12,000.
The ability and skill, as teachers, of Miss Seward and her assistants were justly
appreciated not only in Rochester but throughout the state and to some extent
in other states. The first year after its establishment the school numbered
nearly a hundred pupils, many of whom were from various parts of New York
and from other states and from Canada, and Miss Seward's seminary took front
rank with the best like institutions in the country. It was incorporated in 1838.
On the marriage of Miss Seward to General Jacob Gould in September, 1841,
Jason W. Seward, a brother of Miss Seward and president of the corporation,
assumed direction of the institution. It continued its good work under his
guidance, aided by Miss Seward's former assistants, till 1848, when it was finally
discontinued, or superseded by the Tracy female institute. In 1856 the grounds
were sold to Freeman Clarke and the buildings removed to give place to the
mansion of Mr. Clarke, who now resides there. The foregoing brief histories of
the Fitzhugh street and Alexander street academies are here given somewhat
out of the proper order as to the relative time of their establishment among the
early schools of Rochester, because the two academies were so immediately the
successors of the schools of the Misses Black and Miss Seward on the west side
of the city that their histories inevitably combine and will ever flow together in
any narrative of the origin and continuance of those schools.
In now reverting to other schools of the period from 1825 to 1835 which
have interesting histories, the school of Richard Dunning may be mentioned
next. Early in 1827 a long, substantial, one-story wooden building capable
of accommodating one hundred and fifty pupils was erected on Stone street
near Main street by Czar Dunning, a well known dry goods merchant of Roch-
ester, who came here in 18 17, and his brother Richard, who was then studying
for the ministry. It was the purpose to conduct the school on the Lancasterian
or monitorial plan, then a somewhat popular method of conducting schools,
and the enterprise therefore attracted much attention. About eighty pupils
attended. Richard Dunning had previously been to Boston, specially to learn
the methods of like schools there. The monitorial plan did not prove success-
ful in this school or in other schools in Rochester where it was subsequently
attempted. In the autobiography of Richard Dunning — which his son. Czar
Dunning, who is named after the old merchant and is now a resident of Roch-
ester, has permitted the writer to examine — it is stated, as an additional reason
for the failure of the school, that "although some of its patrons were wealthy,
among whom were Josiah Bissell, James Seymour, the banker, and E. D.
Smith, a large proportion were persons of limited means, so that many tuition
bills remained unpaid and the school had finally to be discontinued." It is
3o8 History of the City of Rochester.
probable that the High school on Lancaster street, which was also commenced
in the same year, diverted many pupils and diminished the substantial patron-
age and encouragement that Mr. Dunning's school would have secured but for
this circumstance. Soon after the discontinuance of the school, the building
was disposed of for other uses by Czar Dunning, whose public spirit and lib-
erality from the beginning to the end of the matter were praiseworthy. The
teacher, Richard Dunning, soon afterward became a clergyman. Czar Dun-
ning a few years afterward removed to New York, where he largely increased
his wealth as a merchant. Both are now deceased. '
On Lancaster street, quite near to Main street, a school was opened about
1825 and continued for many years. A goodly number of the former pupils
who are yet residents of Rochester well remember it. Schuyler Moses says it
was the beginning of the present district number 1 1 public school, now at the
corner of Chestnut and James streets, and that when it was removed from Lan-
caster street it was immediately continued on Chestnut street. The most, if
not the best, remembered teacher while it was on Lancaster- street was Mr.
Shafer. Although a pretty good teacher, as the old pupils say, he had very
striking peculiarities and one thing besides the ruler that often struck the pupils
with amazement was that he would occasionally smoke his pipe during school
hours. Nathaniel and George H. Thompson, Henry S. and Charles W. ITcb-
ard, Seth Green, John Gorton and John Woollard were attendants and relate
many reminiscences of the teacher named. Some of them have recently ad-
mitted in a half-confidential manner that they had personal experiences of Mr.
Shafer's striking peculiarities which they will ever remember. At a later period
Mr. Shafer was a teacher in other early schools.
The Rochester High school was incorporated in 1827. For twenty-five
years and till its destruction by fire in 1852 it was the chief educational insti-
tution in Rochester. It was located on grounds between Lancaster and Chest-
nut streets now in part occupied by the structures belonging till recently to the
Third Presbyterian church, but now to the Unitarian church. There are few
original records relating to the school preserved to the present time excepting
the brief and formal reports required to be made annually to the regents of
the university at Albany. As to any other records it is the testimony of mem-
bers of Dr. Dewey's family that whatever records of the institution were made
were kept in the school building and were destroyed in the fire that consumed
the building. Few records of any kind have been accessible to aid in prepar-
ing a sketch of its history. The recollections of it retained by all the older
inhabitants are nevertheless enduring. It is well remembered by them that
the school and the school building were the largest of any in Rochester at the
time ; that Dr. Dewey was for a long period the principal of the institution
and Miss Mary B. Allen the chief teacher in the female department ; that the
institution flourished and at times languished for the want of greater pecuniary
The Old Rochester High School. 309
support; that under the direction of Prof. Dewey it flourished to a greater
extent than ever before, so that it had a greater number of pupils than any
hke institution in this part of the state; that the school building was destroyed
by fire and the . institution thus came to a lamented end. All the surviving
pupils have vivid and emotional remembrance of the old building and play-
grounds, the teachers, the associate pupils and the chief events and incidents in
the school during the respective periods of their attendance, and even the in-
telligent school boys and girls of all the other early schools remember the
general history of the High school; but, more than the annual reports alluded
to and these general personal recollections, and the recorded act of incorpora-
tion, and amendments to it ; a few advertisements and items as to school ex-
aminations and events occurring to the institution contained in old news-
papers; a few paragraphs in old city directories and, best of all, in Henry
O'Rielly's Sketches of Rochester, and occasional dates to be found in the city
and county records relating to the corporate transactions of the institution,
nothing remains of it or its history. The old inhabitants of Rochester and the
old pupils remaining here or residing elsewhere have attained the age when
memory falters, and they are one after another, in the voyage of life, nearing
the eternal shores from which there is no return. Unless some one shall soon
gather from them and put in proper form and place of preservation whatever
is yet remembered of the institution, the time and opportunity for writing its
history will be lost, and the old High school not many years hence will be for-
gotten. The prescribed limits of this mere sketch of its history will not per-
mit much more than the mention of the .act of incorporation and the early
trustees, and of some additional particulars as to the school building and the
teachers, and of a few Incidents and events relating to the institution.
The act of incorporation was passed by the legislature March iSth, 1827.
It directed that " school districts numbers 4 and 14 in the town of Brighton be
united in one district for the purpose of instructing youth on the system of
Lancaster or Bell, or according to any other plan of elementary education, and
that Levi Ward, jr., Obadiah N. Bush, Davis C. West, Ashley Sampson, Peck-
ham Barker, Elisha Johnson, Enos Stone, Elisha Ely, Abner Wakelee, Isaac
Marsh, William Atkinson and Salmon Schofield shall be the first trustees."
The corporate name of the institution was the " Rochester High school." In
after years the following named gentlemen and probably others were, for various
periods, trustees of the institution : Fletcher M. Haight, William W. Mumford,
Ashbel W. Riley, Levi A. Ward, H. L. Achilles, James W. Smith, William
H. Ward, Jared Newell, Nathaniel Draper, Allen Wheeler, Everard Peck,
Julius T. and Samuel G. Andrews, N. Osburn, Frederick Starr, Charles M.
Lee, William Pitkin and Harvey Humphrey. A lot of land about one and
one-half acres in extent, fronting on Lancaster street, was obtained from Enos
Stone for the construction of a large school-building. A pleasant alley-way
3IO History of. the City of Rochester.
then extended from Clinton street and terminated in Lancaster street in front
of the lot, and was used as a pathway to and from the school during all the
period the school continued. At the request of the trustees, Dr. Levi Ward
and Ashbel W. Riley went to East Henrietta to examine the quite large school-
building then recently constructed there and to adopt whatever plans of con-
struction were deemed appropriate to school uses in Rochester. The plans
recommended by those two gentlemen were adopted by the trustees. Ashbel
W. Riley constructed the building, which was placed in about the middle of
the grounds. The walls were of stone. The dimensions were eighty-five feet
in length, north and south, fifty-five feet wide, ai^d three stories in height. A
cupola, furnished with a bell, surmounted the center of the structure. There
were three large doors of entrance, one at the northerly end and the others on
the easterly and westerly sides. In the interior of the two corners of the north
end were two wide stairways with angular windings to the second and third
stories ; and also in the northerly part of the building, between the vestibules
and the large school- rooms, there were two recitation- rooms on each floor,
which were separated by north and south hall- ways. ' These hall-ways con-
nected the vestibules and the large school-rooms. The throngs of junior and
senior pupils in all the six large and six smaller rooms made the entire building,
during school hours, a vital and busy place. These minor particulars are note-
worthy, because a school of more than half a hundred pupils and a school-
building with more than one room and exceeding one story in height were,
in 1827, a great improvement and advance even for Rochester, and because
even a brief and imperfect word-picture that but faintly reproduces the old
building will awaken pleasant memories in surviving pupils and teachers. For
that early time, as related to education in Western New York, the building was
justly regarded as exceedingly spacious and the appointments complete, for
they included philosophical apparatus by which the sciences of chemistry and
astronomy could be illustrated. The large schools in the junior and senior
male and female departments were well maintained by carefully chosen teachers,
and the institution became famous among the High schools in this part of the
state.
During the course of the twenty- five years the institution existed the num-
ber of teachers in the various departments, for longer or shorter periods of
time, became quite large. In the limited time the writer could devote to
inquiry it has proved impracticable, at present, to obtain the names of all the
teachers either in the High school or other early schools, or to obtain accurate
information, except in a few instances, as to the period of time the teachers whose
names ai*e known continued in the schools in which they taught. In respect
to the High school, it is impossible at present even to place the names of the
teachers who are known in the chronological order of their connection with the
institution, or relate them, except in a few instances, to the departments in
&.
The Old Rocpf ester High School. 311
which they taught. The first teachers can, however, be named nearly with
accuracy. They were : S. D. Moore, who was the first principal, and Mr. Van
Dake and Miss Weed, who were assistant teachers. Afterwai-d there followed,
with various periods of connection with the institution, Orlando Oatman, Mr.
Bartlett, Josiah Perry, Rev. Gilbert Morgan, Daniel Marsh, Henry Stanley,
George Bartholomew, Mr. Hovey, Philander Davis, Rev. Dr. Chester Dewey,
Leander Wetherill, Lindley Murray Moore, Chauncey Giles, Lieut. Pitkin
(United States army), William Breck, Rev. Charles Fitch, Mr. Clemens, Nathan
Brittan, N. W. Benedict, Latham S. Burrows, James R, Doolittle (subsequently
United States senator from Wisconsin), Mr. Jones, Mr. Ramsay. Among
fernale teachers following Miss Weed were Miss Mary B. Allen, Amelia B.
Colton, Charlotte and Caroline Stanley, Mary Hunt, Helen Mallet, Celestia A.
Bloss, Julia Picrpont, Miss Eaton, Malvina M. Snow (who succeeded Miss
Allen as chief teacher), Cornelia M. Crocker, Miss Rogers, Miss Clemens and
Mrs. Greenough, the successor of Miss Snow, After Mrs. Greenough's resig-
nation. Miss Pierpont was the chief teacher. It is certain, and it is regretful,
that the foregoing lists are incomplete.
The female teachers are here named as they were known at the High school.
Many, if not all, of them were subsequently married. Miss Allen became Mrs.
Moses King, Miss Mallet is now Mrs. E. G. Billings, and both ladies are still
residing in Rochester. Miss Bloss established the Clover street seminary, in
Brighton, about 1846, and while principal of that institution was married to
Isaac W. Brewster. She is now deceased.
Dr. Dewey was for the longest period the principal and a continuous teacher
in the institution. Few gentlemen were more revered and loved by his asso-
ciate teachers, pupils, and all the people of Rochester than was he, and his
memory will ever be precious to all who knew hirn. He came to Rochester in
May, 1836, by a special call to the High school from its then trustees. He
was at the time residing in Pittsfield, Mass., and was the principal of the Berk-
shire institute. He had previously, from 18 10 to 1825, been one of the pro-
fessors in Williams college, Massachusetts. After the destruction of the High
school in 1852, by fire, he was appointed professor of natural sciences in the
University of Rochester, in which position he continued nearly to the end of
his life. He was ever in high repute as a scholar and naturalist, as a most
skilled and successful educator and most kindly and gracious gentleman. It
was after Dr. Dewey came to Rochester and introduced into the High school
the improved methods in teaching of the best like institutions in New England
that the High school attained its greatest reputation and usefulness, and in-
creased the number of its pupils from the previous annual average of 400 to
more than 500. In 1837 the number exceeded 560.
Miss Mary B. Allen, now Mrs. King, came to the High school as ea.rly as
1 830 and remained as chief teacher in the female department seven years. No
3 1 2 History of the City of Rochester.
other one of the female teachers was as long connected with the institution.
Under her auspices and wise direction the female department happily flourished,
and all the departments and teachers were greatly assisted by her good counsel
and her hearty devotion to the institution. Like that of Prof. Dewey, her
name will be identified with the institution as long as it is remembered. Mrs.
Greenough, also well known and greatly esteemed in Rochester, was one of the
later teachers and succeeded Miss Snow as chief teacher in the female depart-
ment. She is now a resident of Cambridge, Mass., and, like Mrs. King, has
attained more than eighty years of age. The pupils of the High school during
its long continuance numbered in the aggregate not many if any less than ten
thousand. There were biit few prominent families residing, during its exist-
ence, in any part of Rochester or the surrounding country that did not at some
time have a representative in the school. Its pupils have been travelers in
every clime and residents of the various states of the Union and countries of
the world. Of the thousands whose education and advancement were com-
menced or continued in the old High school, professional, mechanical, artistic,
political and business successes and distinction have attended a large proportion
of the boys grown to manhood ; and graceful accomplishments, high social,
literary, artistic and in many instances professional reputation and distinction
have also been attained, by great numbers of the girls grown to womanhood.
Grateful remembrances and delightful associations of the old institution and its
numerous teachers, and especially of venerable Dr. Dewey, have ever been and
will ever be retained and cherished by the pupils to the end of life.
A Catholic school in the basement of St. Patrick's church was established
as early as 1835. During the winter of 1834-35 Rev. Bernard O'Reilly, pastor
of the church, requested Father Welch, of Brooklyn, N. Y., to send a capable
Catholic teacher to Rochester. In response to this request Michael Hughes,
who arrived in America in December, 1834, was sent here early in May, 1835.
The school was immediately opened by Mr. Hughes in Dr. Hugh Bradley's
house, on North St. Paul street, near Falls field, and continued there while the
basement of St. Patrick's church was being fitted for a school-room. As soon
as' the school-room was completed the school was removed to the church and
Mr. Hughes continued its teacher for seven years, assisted by his wife, Mrs.
Margaret L. Hughes. After this period Mr. Kelly became the teacher in 1842,
and in 1843 Patrick Quin, who is now surviving in the eighty-fourth year of
his age, succeeded Mr. Kelly and continued to be the teacher till 1848. The
school was soon afterward removed to Brown street, where it is still maintained.
In addition to all the foregoing there should be mentioned many other early
schools that were more or less prorninent and were, in many instances, of
much excellence and usefulness. Various and interesting associations and
recollections as to their teachers and pupils and events relating to the schools
are yet well preserved, and it was the intention to specially mention some of
Other Early Private Schools.' 313
these schools and the incidents alluded to, but necessary limitations, which
cannot be transcended, prevent its being done. In the brief mention of them,
or many of them, hereinafter made, the order in which they are given pertains
to the years in which they existed and not to their prominence as schools.
There were many more schools in Rochester; especially during the latter part
of the period embraced in these sketches, than have been mentioned, as the
public school districts were increased soon after Rochester became a city in
1834 and district schools abounded. It may also be stated that it is not in the
scope or design of this article to narrate anything as to the later district schools,
that having been left to Mr. Ellis, the superintendent of the public schools of
the city, and, as to the other or private schools, information as to all of them
has not been obtainable. Those of which brief mention can be made — ^ giving
those taught by females first and the years of their establishment or continu-
ance as . nearly correctly as possible — are the schools of Miss Mary Burr, on
State, near Jay street, in 1822; Miss Mary Sibley, on North Sophia street,
about 1825, a seminary chiefly for the superior education of young ladies and
largely attended in its time ; Miss Eliza Weed, Main street, near Clinton street,
1825 ; subsequently Miss Weed was chief teacher in the first school opened
for young ladies in the High school; Miss Baldwin, in basement of First Bap-
tist church, formerly First Presbyterian church building. State street, 1824;
Miss Hawley, Buffalo street, near the corner of Fitzhugh street, 1826; Mrs.
Fisher BuUard, State street, near Brown street, 1826; Miss Ursula Paddock,
Main street, now East avenue, continuing in or near Josiah Bissell's ofl'ice, op-
posite the end of Chestnut street, from 1825 to 1831; Miss Hopkins, South
street, west side, near the corner of Jackson street, 1826, her old school-house
still standing; Miss Flowets, South Sophia street, about 1828, a popular aca-
demic school for young ladies, in which the higher branches of education were
successfully taught; the daughters of Gen. Jacob Gould, Ebenezer Watts, James
Seymour, Dr. John D. Henry, Wm. J. Shearman, Abelard Reynolds, John
Caldwell, and many other early and well known residents of Rochester and
vicinity were attendants; Miss Delia Stone, afterward Mrs. Bishop, missionary
to Sandwich islands, Fitzhugh street, 1825 ; Miss Belden, Spring street, 1827-28;
Miss Sadler, Exchange street, near old circus, 1828; Mrs. Harford, Spring
street, near Fitzhugh street, 1830; Miss Cleveland, South St. Paul street, west
side, near Main street, 1828, a popular school for young children, attended by
the younger daughters of Dr. Henry, Mr. Childs of Washington square, Elisha
Johnson and other gentlemen, and the sons of Elisha Ely and W. J. Shear-
man; Mrs. Spaulding, in Smith's stone building, corner of Buffalo, now West
Main street, and Exchange street, about 1830; Miss Carter, near Washington
square, about 1830; Mrs. Darrow, Fitzhugh street, near site of Rochester sav-
ings bank, 1832; Mi.ss Eliza Dickinson, east cornel" of Main street, now East
avenue, and Chestnut street, 1832; Miss Humphrey, State street, where Church
314 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
street now is opened, about 1833; Mrs. Hotchkiss, Jones street, near Dean
street, about 1835; Miss Banning, State street, east side, south of Piatt street,
1836; Miss Cornell, State street, about 1836; Miss Chichester, southwest cor-
ner of State and Brown streets, about 1837; Miss Palmer, corner of Main and
Franklin streets, also Amity street, about 1838; Miss Sarah Jane Clark, now
Mrs. Lippincott of Philadelphia, distinguished in literature as "Grace Green-
wood," North avenue, near University avenue, 1838.
There were also the so-called "charitable," or free schools, maintained, at
various times after 1820 and till public or free schools were established by law,
by the First Presbyterian church, by St. Luke's church, and by the Female
Charitable society, and charitable schools for colored children were at various
times provided. The annals of all these schools are of interest as related to
the early schools of Rochester.
Among the schools taught by male teachers were those of Rev. Mr. Miller,
school-house on Exchange street, where the Clinton House now stands, and
also in school-house where the city hall now stands, before the First church was
erected there, about 1820; Mr. Dodge, same places, after 1820; Ephraim Goss,
grammar school, Buffalo street, near corner of Exchange street, 1825—26. This
teacher was subsequently well known throughout the country as Squire Goss
of Pittsford ; Mr. Wilder, east side of North Sophia street, a largely attended
school, 1830; Smith Dunham, on or near present site of arsenal, south
side of Washington, square, about 1828 (this was a large school) ; one of
Mr. Dunham's half-humorous, half-savage, and yery frequent greetings to his
pupils was, "woe unto yoii boys!"; Mr. Haines, South St. Paul, west side,
opposite Agricultural buildings (school building yet there), about 1 830 (Mr.
Shafer and Mr. Johnson were also teachers in this building before 1830, and
Thomas R. Greening after that time) ; Mr. Mills, Spring street, near Exchange
street, about 1830; Mr. Spaulding, in Smith's stone building, corner Buffalo
and Exchange streets, about 1830; Mrs. Spaulding's school for girls was in the
same building at the same time; Mr. Comstock, in same building about 1832 ;
Mr. Elliot, assisted by Miss Cunningham, free school maintained by A. W.
Riley in the Free church, corner of Court and Stone streets, 1833-34-35 > av-
erage attendance 100 pupils; Samuel Boothby, Franklin House, subsequently
Osburn House, 1835, large school (Mr. B. formerly and subsequently taught in
Brown square and North Ford street schools and on State near Piatt street) ;
Mr. Flint, State street, near Piatt street, about 1830.
There was an early school, once on a time, and somewhere in the northwest-
ern part of Rochester, which was greatly distinguished among' either earlier or
later schools by the circumstance that its teacher frequently honed his razor,
lathered his face and shaved himself in presence of his pupils during school
hours. This cannot have been and probably never will be regarded as proper,
except when it is geographically considered as occurring in the northwestern
Prominent Schools Since 1840. 315
quarter and therefore as making a proper balance of things in the early school
system of Rochester, for it was in one of the early schools in the southeastern
part of the town, and about the same time, that a teacher frequently smoked his
pipe during school hours.
In preparing the foregoing annals of the early schools of Rochester, the line
of separation between them and the later schools was deemed to be, properly,,
the year 1 840 ; and therefore all the schools hereinbefore-mentioned were estab-
lished antecedent to that time. This will explain the seeming oversight and
omission of many once existing excellent schools which have been so long dis-
continued that they seem to be old schools, and probably would have to be so
called relatively to and in distinction from those at present existing. Among
the schools established and discontinued since 1840 maybe mentioned those of
Miss Mary B. Allen, now Mrs. King, at the corner of North St. Paul street and
Pleasant street, opened in 1840-41 and discontinued in 1844, ^""^ her Allen
street female seminary, established in 1847 and discontinued in 1869; Mrs.
Atkinson's female seminary on North St. Paul street (Carthage) afterward on
Canal street and still later at the corner of Plymouth avenue and Troup street ;
Miss Langdon's seminary in what was called the Watts building, at the north-
east corner of Buffalo and Exchange streets, and afterward in Child's block on
Exchange street, south of the canal ; Mrs. Greenough's seminary at the corner
of North and Andrews streets and finally on Plymouth avenue near Adams
.street; Satterlee's collegiate institute, at the corner of Atwater and Oregon
streets ; M. G. Peck's East avenue institute, East avenue, near the corner of
Stillson street ; De Graff's institute for boys, on East Main street, near Stone
street, and afterward at the corner of Court and Stone streets ; Mrs. Daniel
Marsh's female seminary, a day and boarding school on South avenue ; East-
man's commercial college, one of the first of the kind in the country ; Miles's
institute, corner of State and Lyell streets ; Rev. Jesse A. Aughinbaugh's
Catholic college in the Mumford block, corner of South St. Paul and Court
streets, opened in 1848 and discontinued in 1851; the Tracy female in-
stitute, on Alexander street ; the schools of Mrs.' Isabella Porter and Miss Mary
Jane Porter in the basement of the Unitarian church on North Fitzhugh street,
then of Misses M. J. and Almira B. Porter on South Washington, near Troup,
and lastly of Miss A. B. Porter in the chapel of Christ church on East avenue.
The making of the year 1840 the line or period of demarkation between the
old schools and the new,' as stated, will also explain the omission to give at least
brief histories of some of the now existing excellent schools of Rochester, which
have been so long continned that they are now often called old-established
schools. Among these superior and flourishing institutions not hereinbefore-
mentioned are Mrs. Curtis's Livingston Park seminary, at the corner of Living-
ston park and Spring street; Miss Bliss's seminary, at the corner of Spring and
Washington streets ; Miss Cruttenden's seminary, on Gibbs street, near East
21
3i6 History of the City of Rochester.
Main street, and the various Catholic schools for higher education. There are
many other private schools, so called, and institutions for male and female
students, secular, parochial and denominational, in various parts of the city, and
some of them have handsome buildings and large numbers of pupils. The
splendid reorganisation and perfection of the public schools in conformity to
the legislation of 1840-41 have made them and the Free academy deservedly
popular with all classes and the pride and the boast of all the people of the
city who have any interest in education. The University of Rochester and its
adjunct, the Rochester theological seminary, have both been steadily advanc-
ing in usefulness and power since their first establishment in 1850. The univer-
sity is now rapidly acquiring additional resources for promoting higher and the
highest education in the various departments of learning and science. Its sup-
porters and friends, who are all the intelligent people of Rochester, justly rejoice
in it as the good result of early and later work in Rochester in behalf of higher
education, and as the crown and glory of the educational system of the city and
region. The city has in truth a magnificent company of schools and educa-
tional institutions, and the people of Rochester may properly be proud of them
as the achievement mainly of their own wisdom and labors. They may be
joyous in them because of the benefits the schools and institutions have con-
ferred on children and youth and on society in time past and will continue to
confer in all time to come ; and the people of Rochester may and should be
exultant in now having in their midst this great company of schools and edu-
cational institutions as the wonderful outcome, the grand fruition, the benefi-
cent and splendid result of Huldah M. Strong's first school, in Enos Stone's
barn in the year of grace 1813.
THE CONVENT SCHOOLS.^
The Academy of the Sacred Heart was established for higher studies for
girls, by the ladies of the Sacred Heart, in 1855. Mother Kennedy '.opened
the first house in 1855, on South St. Paul street, assisted by nineteen Religious.
The first year they had about thirty-five pupils. In 1863 they removed to the
present place on Prince street. The old building on the premises was enlarged
in 1866 and it was finished in its present form in 1875. It is of brick, three
stories high, with a basement for kitchen, dining-room, etc. At present there
are thirty-six Religious in the convent, Mother A. Pardow being superior.
The pupils number about sixty (twenty-five boarders and thirty-five day
scholars). A Christian free school is connected with the academy. It num-
bers one hundred and twenty scholars, with two teachers.
Academy of the Sisters of Mercy. — In this house on South street, near St.
Mary's church, a convent for the Sisters of Mercy, an academy, an industrial
school, and a children's home are combined. The Sisters of Mercy were called
1 This article was prepared by Rev. D. Laurenzis, under the supervision of Bishop McQuaid.
The Convent School. 3 ' 7
into the city of Rochester from Providence, by Bishop Timon, of Buffalo, in
the year 1857, Father McEvoy being pastor of St. Mary's church. The first
building they occupied was a private dwelling-house of brick on the present
site. Five Sisters opened the house, Mother Baptist being superior. The
building was enlarged in 1876 and the present beautiful structure was finished
in 1882. It is three stories high, with a basement for kitchen, dining-room,
etc. There are now twenty-seven Sisters in the house, Mother Frances being
superior. They teach St. Mary's parochial school, and conduct a select school
or academy with about fifty pupils. The industrial school connected with the
convent was established in 1872. It numbers about fifty pupils. The children's
home was established in 1882. Its object is to take care of small children
while their mothers are at work. It numbers about twelve children.
Academy of Nazareth convent, on Jay street, corner of Frank, is the mother
house of the Sisters of St. Joseph. It was opened in 1871, Mother M. Stanis-
laus being superior. The Sisters of this community teach the parochial schools
of St. Patrick's cathedral, St. Bridget's church and the Immaculate Conception
church in this city and nearly all the parochial schools of the diocese. The
house was opened with about twenty Sisters. The building was enlarged in
1871—72, and the present building was finished in 1876. It is of brick, three
stories high, with a basement for kitchen and dining-room. The academy con-
nected with the convent was opened in 1872; it numbered then about thirty
pupils. At present there are about one hundred pupils, twenty boarders and
eighty day scholars. There are about sixty Sisters in the house. Mother M.
Agnes is the present superior.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
THE I'UHLIC SCHOOLS. 1
'I'lie I'irst Hoard of Education — 'I'lie School Cen.sus in 1841 — Tlie Modern High School — Free
Schools Eslablislied in 1849 — Opposition to the System — The UilTiculties Surmounted — The Com-
mon Schools of the City — A Sketch of Each One.
THE first board of education of the city of Rochester was organised in 1841.
Only a few meager facts are obtainable in reference to the history and
condition of the common schools previous to that time. That they were much
inferior to the private schools established and conducted in those early years of
the city's young life, seems clear from a flattering notice of the private schools
in O' Rielly's History of Rochester. The only reference he makes to the com-
1 This sketch was prepared by Mr. S. A. Ellis, the superintendent of public schools.
3i8 History of the City of Rochester.
mon schools is the following. After speaking of the old Rochester High school
— not a free school — the female seminaries on Fitzhugh and Alexander streets,
he says : —
" In addition to the seminaries already mentioned, there are several select schools in
the city, the whole numher of this class being eighteen. Besides these, there are thir-
teen common school districts and two half districts within the city limits, in one of which
districts a spacious and beautiful edifice has been erected — the building next north of
St. Luke's church — which might be advantageously used as a model for similar struct-
ures in other districts."
The proprietors of the land constituting the site of the village of Rochester
— Messrs. Fitzhugh, Carroll and Rochester — set apart, as a free gift, lots for a
court-house, jail, church and school-house. The lot upon which the first school-
house was erected was a part of the site now occupied by the Free academy
building. It was a plain, one-story building, with desks arranged around the
room on three sides, in such a manner that the pupils faced the walls. There
was an open fire-place at one end. The entrance was on the side next to St.
Luke's church. The seats were mostly constructed of slabs, with the flat sur-
face uppermost, and with legs driven in the opposite side, on which they were
supported, and were without backs.
A census of school children was taken in January, 1841. The number of
children of school age reported was 4,343, with an average attendance in the
pubHc schools of 1,050, with twenty teachers, while 1,226 are reported as in at-
tendance upon thirty-three private schools. There were, at that time, twelve
school districts in the city. Of school-houses, there were three good, and four
poor, while five districts were without buildings. A report of that year says :
"The public schools have not the public confidence. The best citizens do not be-
lieve that their children can obtain in the common schools that thorough mental disci-
pline, that culture of their moral principles, and that attention to their habits and man-
ners, wliich they deem indispensable to their welfare."
On the 22d day of June, 1841, the first board of education was organised,
of which Levi A. Ward was made president. I. F. Mack was elected the first
superintendent of schools and proved himself a capable and efficient officer.
He held office from 1841 to 1846, and was succeeded in turn by Samuel L.
Selden, B. R. McAlpine, Washington Gibbons, Daniel Holbrook, R. D. Jones,
J. Atwater, I. S. Hobbie, P. H. Curtis, C. N. Simmons, S. A. Ellis and A. L.
Mabbett ; of these Daniel Holbrook served two terms and C. N. Simmons three
terms. The present incumbent, S. A. Ellis, is serving his second term. The
longest continuous term of office held by any of the foregoing was by S. A.
Ellis, and was for seven years. Henry E. Rochester was elected the first county
superintendent of common schools for Monroe county and rendered eff(;ctive
service in the cause of education.
Previous to the organisation of the board of education, the mayor, aldermen
and assistants were, by virtue of their office, commissioners of common schools,
The Public Schools. 3 '9
in and for the city; and were authorised to perform all the duties of such com- .
niissioners. In January, 1842, there were fifteen school districts in the city and
seven school buildings. One of these, a brick building, is still standing, at the
corner of Reynolds and Tremont streets, and is used as a dwelling-house. The
board were about to erect two other buildings. The report for that year says :
"The public schools are far superior to the select schools they have supplanted."
At that time 2,300 children were in regular attendance, with thirty-four teach-
ers. The total cost of the schools for the year was $13,000. A report made
June 19th, 1843, gave the number of districts as fifteen, with eight commodious
brick school-houses, the average attendance of pupils as 2,500, and annual cost
of the schools as $19,000. In the second annual report of the board, made by
Superintendent Mack in January, 1844, the average attendance of males was
2,161, of females 2,085. During this period each district was assessed to meet
the larger amount of the expenses incident to the administration of the school,
the other portion being an appropriation by the state. Many honored names
of the citizens of Rochester are found in the list of those who, from the first,
took a prominent part in the administration of the affairs of the public schools.
On the 26th of March, 1849, the act establishing free schools throughout
the state was passed by the legislature. After the passage of the act, strenu-
ous efforts were made by the enemies of free schools to secure its repeal. On
the lOth of July a free school convention, consisting of delegates from every
section of the state, met at Syracuse. Wm. C. Bloss and Frederick Starr were
the delegates from this city, and zealously championed the cause of free schools.
The attempt to secure the repeal of the law was signally defeated. In 1850
the school districts were consolidated and the schools made free to all children
between the ages of five and sixteen.
To Rochester belongs the distinguished honor of having first conceived and
given shape to the idea of the modern free "high school." In the year 1830
a committee, consisting of Joseph Penney, D. D., O. C. Comstock, D. D.,
Matthew Brown, jr., Levi A. Ward and Heman Nprton — appointed by the
citizens of Rochester at a large and enthusiastic meeting, held for the purpose
of memorialising the state legislature on the subject of our common schools —
presented, in April of that year, a memorial and a plan for their improvement.
This seems a most remarkable document, read even in the light of more than
half a century of progress in the public school system of the country. Fol-
lowing the direction of public opinion, it indicated, in no uncertain way, the
various improvements that have followed, and which have tended to the infu-
sion of new life into the whole system. Among -the improvements recom-
mended was the establishment, in each town, of a central high school, or higher
school of the most approved standard of excellence, so connected with all the
other schools in the town as to exert the most salutary influence upon the gen-
eral interests of education, and aid in the preparation of well qualified teachers.
320 History of the City of Rochester.
As the result of this memorial, in 1 840, in the larger towns and cities of the
state, union and high schools were established, and in successful operation. It
was out of such convictions as these men expressed in their memorial that the
modern high school grew. By the act of the 28th of April, 1834, the com-
mon council, as commissioners of common schools of the city, were authorised,
upon the consent of any number of school districts, to organise one or more
"high schools." This power, by the act of the 20th of May, 1841, was trans-
ferred to the board of education. Superintendent Mack, in his second annual
report in 1844, makes an eloquent plea for a school where "talented and am-
bitious youth of our city could have all the facilities necessary for a thorough
education." His successors in office continued to urge the establishment of
such a school, and various committees made it the subject of report and recom-
mendation, alleging that the " pubHc schools of Rochester would never arrive
at that degree of perfection, or accomplish fully their design, until a high
school should be established." All these reports, arguments and recommend-
• ations finally culminated, and the enterprise was inaugurated by the board of
education in the spring of 1857, and the school opened November 1st, occupy-
ing a part of the lot on which the Free academy building now stands. In Sep-
tember of that year, at the first entrance examination, two hundred and six-
teen candidates made application, of whom one. hundred and sixty-five were
admitted. The first staff of teachers consisted of C. R. Pomeroy, A. M., prin-
cipal ; Edward Webster, A. M. ; Frederick G. Surbridge, A. M. ; Mrs. Mary J.
Pomeroy, preceptress ; Miss Emma M. Morse and Miss Susan E. Butts. Prof
Pomeroy, shortly afterward, resigned; Prof Webster succeeded him as prin-
cipal and held this position until the close of the school year in 1864, when he
resigned. Dr. N. W. Benedict succeeded him, and was at the head of the
school until the close of the school year in June, 1883, when he was succeeded
by Prof Z. P. Taylor, A. M., who is now the principal of the school.
The school has had its vicissitudes and its struggles. For several years
after its establishment its enemies — fo.r it had them — sought to create a pub-
lic sentiment against it. But its early friends — such men as Frederick Starr,
Wm. C. Bloss, Dr. Kelsey, S. D. Porter, Edwin Pancost, George W. Parsons,
Levi A. Ward and a host of others — rallied to its support, and saved it.
Whenever the people have spoken, they have said in. no uncertain terms that
the High school was "here to stay." The school having grown too large to
be accommodated in the old building, the legislature, in 1872, passed an act,
authorising the city to raise by public tax the sum of $75,000, for the purpose
of erecting a new building. An additional lot was purchased directly north of
the old one, plans were drawn and accepted, and the work of construction was
pushed rapidly forward. When the building was partially finished, it became
apparent that the appropriation would not complete it, in accordance with the
plans. Several members of the board of education were in favor of changing
The Public Schools. 321
the plans, so as to complete the building and still keep within the appropria-
tion. Other counsels prevailed, however, and during the following session of
the legislature an act was passed, authorising the raising of an additional $50,-
000. During the interval, and while the building was in progress of construc-
tion, the school was accommodated with quarters in the Masonic block. The
building was completed and furnished in March, 1873, and on the 23d of that
month the school took possession.
The building is not only handsome and substantial in architecture, but ad-
mirably adapted to the purpose for which it was constructed. It is in French
Gothic style, with pavilions on either side, terminating in turrets. It has a
French roof, and its appearance is greatly improved by the trimmings and
window-caps, which are of Ohio and Gainesville stone. It stands in a lot which
has a frontage of ninety-nine, feet and one hundred and sixty- five feet in depth,
having been enlarged by an addition of thirty- three feet front, to the same
depth as above. The building, as it now stands, is four stories in height, with
basement, and is eighty-three feet in width, by one hundred and thirty in depth.
There are seven entrances — three in front and two on each side. The central
entrance leads to the superintendent's office. The other two lead to the halls
and stairways, which are in the pavilions. The principal rooms on the first
floor are one on the north side thirty by thirty-seven, occupied by the Central
library, and one on the south side, used for the meetings of the school board,
which occupy the central part of the building. The superintendent's offices are
in the front, and are twenty-four by thirty- two, and thirty- two by sixteen,
respectively. There are two rooms in the rear, of the same size, one of which
is a committee room and the other is used as a dressing room by the young
ladies' department. On the second floor, besides the halls, there are three
recitation rooms, the principal's room, a large study room for the boys and two
room.s occupied by the professor of natural sciences — one as a recitation room
and the other as a laboratory. The main rooms are thirty by sixty-seven and
the recitation and other rooms twenty-four feet square. On the third floor
there are two recitation rooms in front and two in the rear, while the central
space, sixty-one by sixty-seven feet, is occupied as a study room for the young
ladies. The fourth floor has an assembly room, which is sixty-one by ninety
feet with a room in rear twenty-four by forty-eight, at present seated and
occupied by the business department of the school. The rooms are all high
between joists, and nearly all well lighted. The building is heated by steam,
and is one of the best ventilated structures in the city. The entire cost of
building and furniture, with the additional lot purchased, was about $150,000.
The school itself, almost with its organisation, took rank among the first of
its class in the state. Since that time it has steadily grown in public favor, by
the high character of its work, until, to-day, it has probably no superior of its
kind in the country. There are four courses of study — the classical and col-
322 History of the City of Rochester.
lege preparatory, the English, the scientific and the business. The first three
are four years in length, each, while the last is one year. In each course are
named some optional studies. The academy has three annual scholarships in
the University of Rochester, the gift of the board of trustees of that institution
to the board of education. Thus it is that the university, although an endowed
institution and supported by private enterprise, becomeii practically, by the
opportunities it offers to our young men, a part of our free school system, and
completes the system from foundation to cap-.stone.
The following are the instructors in the Free academy, with their depart-
ments : Z. P. Taylor, principal — Latin, political 'economy, civil government,
commercial law; F. E. Glen — Latin and Greek; Dr. Forbes — physics,
geology, physiology and drawing ; Alexander Trzeciak — German; L. H. Miller
— Latin and book-keeping ; Amelia L. Brettell, preceptress — general history,
English literature and English ; Mary E. Gilman — algebra and arithmetic ;
Marion Lowry — geometry and algebra reviews; Clara E. Budlong — elocu-
tion and composition. ■ There are, at present, registered as members of the
school, 426 pupils, about two-thirds of them young ladies. The total number
of pupils enrolled but once during the year 1883-84, to date (June, 1884), is
427. The number belonging is 347. The number of daily attendants is 334.
School No. I — Industrial school. Intermediate and primary ; was organ-
ised as a public school in July, 1877, and occupies rooms in the Industrial
school building on Exchange street, nearly opposite Court street. It is made
up partly of "day pupils" — those who are there only during school hours —
and partly of the "house children," or those who have their home there. The
latter are mostly orphans or those forsaken by their natural parents. Out of
school hours the children are cared for by the lady managers of the institution
and are clothed by them as necessity requires. The day pupils are furnished
with their dinners. There are no district boundaries, and pupils are admitted
to the school from all parts of the city. The salaries of the teachers and of the
janitor, the rent of the school-rooms and the cost of fuel for the use of the
school are paid by the board of education. The number of scholars enrolled but
once in the month of March was 213 and the average daily attendance was 92.
Faculty — Mrs. C. E. Pugh, principal, and Misses E. C. Wilson, J. Kostbahn
and A. E. Jennings.
School No. 2 — Madison school. Intermediate and primary; previous to
the year 1843 occupied a small building on Ford street. During the year 1843
a lot was purchased on King street, facing Mechanic square on the south — now
Madison park — and a two-story brick building, forty by sixty-four feet, erected
at an expense of $3,000. In 1872 this gave way to a larger and finer struct-
ure of brick, two stories in height, containing six class-rooms and an assembly
room. The cost of the present building was about $20,000. Number of pupils
enrolled, 314; number in daily attendance, 251. Faculty — Miss Emma A.
The Public Schools. 323
C. Hayes, principal ; Misses F. A. Reichenbach and F. A. Merriam, Mrs. Mary
K. Bassett, Misses Anna W. Lathrop, L. J. Bidwell, C. E. Sanborn.
School No. 3 — Tremont school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this district was erected in 1842, and was located on a part
of the present site, on what was then known as Clay street. This structure was
replaced by another building, erected in 1854. In 1877 ^^ addition was pui'-
chased to the lot, which now extends from Tremont through to Edinburg street
and is 235 feet deep. The same year the building was enlarged and in 1882
it was remodeled throughout. It is two stories in height and contains twelve
class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 743, number in daily attendance 519.
Faculty — James M. Cook, principal; Misses Mary A. Sterling, N. E. Echte-
nacher, Miriam F. Richmond, Grace A. Badger, Aggie M. Stewart, L. E. Gil-
lis, Nellie E. Gregory, Libbie S. Van Doom, Annie Shaffer, Julia E. Gilson, '
Mary E. Abbott, Franc L. Carhart, E. A. B. Chapman, A. P. Couch.
School No. 4 — Genesee school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this school was erected in 1842. It was a two-story brick
and was located on the corner of Reynolds and Clay (now Tremont). streets.
The total cost was about $2,500. A new building was erected on South Fran-
cis street in 1857 ; destroyed by fire in December, 1873 ; rebuilt in 1874. In
1879 it was enlarged by the addition of two wings. It is three stories in height
and contains eighteen school-rooms. Steam heating and ventilation was intro-
duced in 1882. Number of pupils enrolled 923, number in daily attendance
696. Faculty — Samuel C. Pierce, principal; Misses Ella I. Munson, E.J.
Munson, L. M. Qualtrough, E. Delia Brown, D. E. Clark, Ainelia L. Leahy,
Hattie E. Perry, Nellie E. Spies, L. C. McClelland, Mary J. Frazer, L. J. Con-
nell, Julia G. Lyndon, Libbie M. Clements, Mary A. Derrick, Emma M. Mat-
thews, A. B. Edwards, A. L. Mabbett, E. T. Wooden, E. P. Wetmore, Ida V.
Rogers.
School No. 5 — Central school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this school was of brick, two stories high, and was erected
in 1842 and located on what was then Center square, between Jones and Frank
streets. The total cost was about $5,000. In 1876 a new lot was bought, on the
corner of Jones and Dean streets, and a new two-story brick building erected.
It contains ten school-rooms and cost, with lot, about $32,000. Number of pu-
pils enrolled 475, number in daily attendance 338. Faculty — N. C. Parshall,
principal ; Misses E. E. Young, N. C. Lathrop, I. L. Monroe, M. Crennell, M.
L. Hanvey, I. M. Banta, A, M. Enright, K. W. Evans, F. V. Wright, Mrs. M.
A. Morgan.
School No. 6 — Franklin school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this district was erected on Smith street, in 1841-42, at a
total cost, with lot, of $4,000. Th e present building is located between Lyell
and White streets, with the front on Lyell street, was built in 1852 and enlarged
324 History of the City of Rochester.
in 1857 ^nd remodeled and enlarged in 1881. It is two stories high and con-
tains fourteen class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 737, number in daily
attendance 581. Faculty — J. L. Townsend, principal; Misses M. A. Clack-
ner, M. E. De Poe, Clara Stace, C. E. Servoss, E. R. Clackner, E. I. Ikown,
L. M. Kane, M. H. Johnston, E. S. Alleyn, L. J. Brown, M. O. Brown, C. E.
Leavenworth, S. J. McGoveron, E. J. Bennett, M. E. Denny, Anna Toaz, M.
A. Bell.
School No. 7 — Glenwood school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The present building, which is of brick and two stories in height, containing
eight school-rooms, was erected in 1859. It is«located on Lake avenue, in
what was formerly know as McCrackenville. Number of pupils enrolled 41 1,
number in daily attendance 289. Faculty — Mrs. A. M. Lowry, principal;
Misses E. A. Laraby, Libbie C. Reiser, S. L. DeLano, M. G. Weed, M. E.
Connell, E. S. Bell, Fannie Aiken, Jennie McBurney, Annie F. Boyd.
School No. 8 — Carthage school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building was of wood, and was located on Railroad street, in what
was then known as Carthage. The present building is of brick and erected in
1855, remodeled and enlarged in 1881. It is located on North St. Paul street,
about two miles from the center of the city. It is two stories in height. The
second story is unfinished. There are two good-sized class-rooms and a reci-
tation room. Number of pupils enrolled 159, number in daily attendance 100.
Faculty — Miss L. M. Daniels, principal; Misses J. A. Lynn, Mary W. Lee,
Alice A. Clarke.
School No. 9 — Andrews school. Grammar, intermediate and primary ;
was first held in rented rooms on Emmett street. The first building was
erected on the present site, on St. Joseph street, in 1841. It was of brick and
one story in height. This was blown down during a severe wind storm, or
cyclone, while the school was in session, in June, 1846. Many of the pupils were
severely injured, and others met with very narrow escapes. It was rebuilt that
same year and replaced by a new two-story brick building, in the shape of a letter
L, in i860. There were seven school-rooms on each floor, separated by sliding
glass partitions, which were at that time very popular. It was entirely re-
modeled in 1 88 1, and, as it now stands, is three stories in height and contains
sixteen .school- rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 771, number in daily at-
tendance 598. Faculty — L. R. Sexton, principal; Misses Isabella Rogers,
Jennie T. Lennon, Ella E. Geraghty, Laura B. Southard, Matilda H. Oswald,
Rosa G. Goddard, J. L. Joy, Julia T. Madden, Katie A. Cunnean, Lottie M.
Weitzel, Mattie Beattie, Lucy A. Fitzgerald, N. G. Mahoney, Laura E. Leland,
Leona Hoyt, Mary L. Baird.
School No. 10 — Atwater school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building was of stone, two stories in height, and was located on An-
drews street. In 1842 it was enlarged and improved. The building now oc-
The Public Schools. 325
cupied by the school was erected in 1853 and is located on North Clinton
street, near Andrews. A third story was added in 1866 and finished in 1 870.
It was enlarged in 1878, and steam-heating and ventilation were put in in 1880.
The building is of brick and contains thirteen school-rooms. Number of pupils
registered 525, number in daily attendance 420. Faculty — V. M. Colvin,
principal; Misses C. A. Page, A. M. Galbraith, Susie A. Moore, F. B. Gregory,
M. C. G. Houghtahng, Bertie O'Rorke, H. L. Ball, O.A. Home, A. B. Glea-
son, H. L. Rapalje, A. E. Oviatt, S. L. Keyes, S. L. Epstein.
School No. 1 1 — Chestnut school. Intermediate and primary. The first
building was erected on Chestnut street in 1841, at a cost of about $3,500.
The present building was erected in 1876, on the same lot. It is of brick and
two stories in height. It contains four class-rooms. Number of pupils en-
rolled 245, number in daily attendance 170. Faculty — M. A. Hayden, prin-
cipal; Misses Mary Purcell, Helen F. Samaine, Emma E. Home, Jennie Cran-
dall, Alice M. Kirby.
School No. 12 — Wadsworth school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The building in this district was erected in 1841 and is located on the north
side of Wadsworth square. The lot and a suitable philosophical apparatus
were the gift of General Wadsworth, of Geneseo. The present building was
erected in 1857, enlarged in 1872 and remodeled in 1882. It contains ten
class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 519, number in daily attendance 384.
Faculty — W. H. Bosworth, principal; Misses D. Pierce, Jean Shaw, Jessie F.
Booth, Helen C. Mudge, Etta C. Miles, E. M. Shaw, Eva C. Skinner, C. E.
Millman, Lizzie Pierce, Julia M. Baker.
School No. 13 — Munger school. Grammar, intermediate and primary;
occupied rented rooms on South St. Paul street in 1843. The school building
was erected in 1845, on the present site, extending from Hickory through to
Munger street. It was enlarged in 1852 and again in 1866, and remodeled in
1871. Steam-heating and ventilation were introduced in 1880. The building
is of brick and two stories in height. There are ten class-rooms, separated by
sliding glass partitions. Number of pupils enrolled 653, number in daily at-
tendance 475. Faculty — A. G. Knapp, principal ; Misses E. M. Watson, L,
L. Lamoureux, L. A. Manvel, N. A. Monaghan, J. B. Foote, R. G. Bolles, M. J.
Lennon, C. M. Gillett, A. R. Page, H. E. Hoyt, Julia McNab, E. A. Phillips,
A. L. Donivan, Sarah Reeves, C. M. Gillett.
School No. 14 — Riley school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this school was erected previous to the organisation of
the board of education and was built pardy of brick and partly of stone. It
was enlarged in 1842. The present building, which is of brick and three stories
in height, was erected in 1850, and remodeled and enlarged in 1877. It con-
tains fifteen class-rooms. It is located on the east side of Scio street, where
the first building was erected. Number of pupils enrolled 708, number in daily
326 History of the City of Rochester.
attendance 516. Faculty — John G. Allen, principjil ; Mrs, J. R. Hill, Misses
Una Stillson, E. Manvel, E. J. Eaton, Blanche Randall, L. W. Van Dake, E.
H. Duryee, S. W. Howe, N. E. Lucas, M. F. Logan, T. Van Bergh, S. Van
Bergh, T. McMahon, Amy Tamblingson, Lottie C. Merrell.
School No. 15 — Monroe school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The first building for this school was erected in 1 842. It was of brick and one
story in height. It was located on Alexander street, near Monroe avenue. In
1873 the city obtained the title to the old cemetery lot on Monroe avenue near
Alexander street. The lot contained nearly two acres. Consent of the owners
of lots having been obtained, the remains of the l^Jried were removed to other
burial grounds, and a new building of brick, three stories in height, was erected.
It was completed in 1874. The school, however, occupied it but a few years,
for on February 2d, 1 881, it was destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt the follow-
ing year. The building, which is of brick, three stories in height, and furnished
with steam- heating and ventilation, is the finest grammar school building in the
city. . There are twelve class-rooms, four on each floor. Number of pupils
enrolled 663, number in daily attendance 448. Faculty — J. W. Osborn, prin-
cipal ; Misses A. M. Perry, Emily Hanford, Lilian Whiting, Josephine Row,
C. M. Lear, C. S. Betteridge, L. M. Lanksbury, Fannie Goss, Millie Grover,
Kittie A. Butler, Bell Grover, Maggie Townson, Emily Niven, Francos Decker.
School No. 16 — Hudson school. Intermediate and primary. The build-
ing for this school was erected on North street, the lot extending through to
Hudson street, in 1850. It was remodeled in 1871 and enlarged and remodeled ,
in 1 88 1. It is built of brick and two stories in height, and contains eight class-
rooms, six of which are separated by sliding glass partitions. Number of
pupils enrolled 396, number in daily attendance 308. Faculty — Miss Lizzie
A. McGonegal, principal; Misses Bell Tait, A. M. Wells, E. M. Patterson,
Sarah Hanna, H. F. Edgar, Effie La Trace, Minnie A. Sontag, M. E. Archer.
School No. 17 — Whitney school. Grammar, intermediate and primary;
it first occupied rented rooms on Orange street in 1855.. The* building
now occupied by the school, which is of brick and two stories in height, is
located on the corner of Orange and Saxton streets. It was built in 1858, and
remodeled and enlarged in 1878. It contains fourteen class-rooms. Number
of pupils enrolled 652, number in "daily attendance 467. Faculty — G. H.
Walden, principal ; Misses M. J. McGorray, E. Freeland, M. E. Malone, Mag-
gie M. Wallace, A. K. McPherson, Mary Niven, A. M, McAnarney, G. A.
Blackman, S. Hoekstra, M. L. Levis, A. E. Roche, Mary L. Coughlin, Sarah
L. Coughlin, I. Smith.
School No. 18 — Concord school. Grammar, intermediate and primary.
The building first occupied by this school was erected in 1867. It was first
located on the corner of Draper street and North avenue. The present building
occupies a large lot on Bay street, extending through, from Concord to North
The Public Schooi.s. 327
avenue. The building was enlarged in 1873. It is a two-story brick structure,
and contains fourteen class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 944, number
in daily attendance 6^$. Faculty — Miss Sarah Shelton, principal; Misses
Mary Filer, Minnie R. VanZandt, Emma M. Moser, Cora M. Coote, Sophie A.
Nash, Cornelia R. Jennings, E. Fannie Cowles, H. A. Robinson, Mary A.
O'Niel, Laura E. Schminke, N. E. Farber, Minnie Henry, Anna J. Tomlin,
Emma S. Webster, C. B. Millard, A. A. Plass, Lois E. McKelvey.
School No. 19 — Seward school. Intermediate and primary. The building,
which is of brick, and two stories in height, was erected in 1869. The lot,
which is pentagonal in form, contains more than two acres, having its shortest
sides on Reynolds and Magnolia streets, and another side on Seward street.
There are six class- rooms in the building, separated by glass partitions. Number
of pupils enrolled 298, number in daily attendance 210. Faculty — Miss M. E.
Westfall, principal ; Misses Minnie C. Bergh, Amelia L. Wegman, Fannie F.
Westfall, Nettie Sellinger, Anna Tailing, Kate Levis.
School No. 20 — Oakman school, grammar, intermediate and primary, is
located on Oakman street, near Clinton street. The building was erectfcd in
1872 and enlarged in 1883. As it now stands, it is two stories in height, sur-
mounted by a mansard roof and tower. It is of brick, and contains twelve class-
rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 535, number in daily attendance 463. Fac-
ulty— Miss Delia Curtice, principal; Misses H. M. Kermode, Louise McKear-
ney, Julia Nelligan, Lottie Snell, Eliza J. Rogers, H. Alida Spinning, Annie J.
Simpson, Clara A. Foote, Mary C. Hogan, E. L. Alexander, C. A. Parsons.
School No. 21 — Jay street school, intermediate and primary, was organ-
ised in 1874, and for several years occupied a little one-story wooden building
on Jay street. A new lot was purchased and a new building erected, on Wack-
erman street, in 1880. It is of brick, two stories in height, and contains six
class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 315, daily attendance 233. Faculty
— Miss Elizabeth J. Kewin, principal; Misses Lulu M. Hyland, Prudence J.
Coakley, Anna M. Moloney, lilla G. O'Meara, E. A. Redmond, M. E. Colburn.
School No. 22 — Norton school, intermediate and primary, from 1874 to
1882 occupied a one-story brick school-house on the corner of Norton and St.
Joseph streets, that was taken into the city when its boundaries weee extended
in 1874. In 1882 a lot was purchased on St. Joseph street nearer the center
of the city, and a new one-story brick building, with two class-rooms and a
recitation room, erected. Number of pupils enrolled 104, in daily attendance
87. Faculty — Miss Florence A. Havill, principal; Misses Frankie E. Burns,
Rosemarie DowUng.
School No. 23 — Brighton school, intermediate and primary, with the build-
ing it occupied, was taken into the city limits, when the boundaries were en-
larged in 1 874. The building was of wood, one story in height, with two rooms.
In 1883 a new brick building one story high and with three school-rooms, was
328 History of the City of Rochester.
erected in rear of the old building. This was constructed with reference to an
addition in the future, which will complete the building. Number of pupils
enrolled 187, in daily attendance 142. Faculty — Miss E. J. Jewett, principal;
Misses Emma E. Smith, Helen A. Wedd, L. A. Nourse, Flora E. Marshall.
School No. 24 — Ellwanger and Barry school, intermediate and primary,
is located on the corner of Meigs and Yale streets. The building is of brick
and two stories in height, and contains six class-rooms. Number of pupils en-
rolled 396, in daily attendance 288. Faculty — Miss Nellie F. Cornell, prin-
cipal ; Misses M. S. Dunn, L. H. Rowley, A. M. MuUan, Fannie E. Roworth,
L. G. Connolly, L. L. Leavenworth, C. A. Farrington.
School No. 25^ — Intermediate and primary, is another of the schools taken
into the city by the enlargement of its boundaries. The building, which is of
brick, one story high, contains two school-rooms. It is located on the corner
of Bay and Goodman streets, in the sixteenth ward. It was built in 1876.
Number of pupils enrolled 120, in daily attendance 71. Faculty — Miss Jen-
nie M. Brown, principal ; Miss Kate Graham.
School No. 26 — Intermediate and primary, is located on the corner of
Clifford and Thomas streets. The building was erected in 1879, but was not
completed at that time. In 1883 an addition was made that completed the
building according to the original plan. It is of brick, two stories in height,
and contains twelve class-rooms. Number of pupils enrolled 530, number in
daily attendance 408. Faculty — Miss E. L. Carter, principal ; Misses Katie
Trant, Susie Tuohey, Lottie C. Hoppe, Dora Michelson, M. E. Irving, E. M.
Hoppe, M. J. B. Nicholson, Lucy H. Clarke, Mary S. Clarke, Edna D. Willson,
Minnie Bemish.
School No. 27 — Intermediate and, primary, was organised in September,
1882, and at first occupied rented rooms on the corner of Central park and
Hubbard streets. In 1883 a new building was erected on Central park. It is
of brick, one story high, and contains three school-rooms. Number of pupils
enrolled 299, in daily attendance 239. Faculty — Miss Jesse Utley, principal;
Misses Gertie B. Fay, E. Haag, F. E. Heath, Minnie T. Kellogg.
The city is divided into twenty-seven districts, in all but one of which there
are one or more school buildings, while in numbers 4, 6, 10, 13, 17, 24 and 27,
rooms are rented in which are accommodated the overflow of pupils from those
schools. Members of the board of education, sixteen in number, are elected
on the general city ticket, and serve for two years. The even wards elect one
year, and the odd wards another. The funds to meet the expenses of main-
taining the schools are provided for by a state appropriation and by an appro-
priation by the common council from the results of the annual tax levy. These
funds are deposited with the city treasurer and are drawn out on an order
of the board, and by a check signed by the president of the board and the su-
perintendent. All bills against the board are referred in open board to the
The Public Schools. '329
various committees, are examined by them, and, if approved, are referred to
the financial committee, who recommend their payment upon the order of the
board. The monthly salaries of teachers and other employees of the board are
passed upon by the salary committee and, if approved, are recommended to the
board for payment. The regular meetings of the board are held on the first
and third Mondays of each month, in their rooms in the Free academy building.
In addition to the superintendent, who acts as clerk of the board and as libra-
rian of the Central library, the board elect annually a superintendent's clerk,
policeman, carpenter, assistant librarian, engineer and janitor of the Free acad-
emy building and a messenger. These hold office for one year, and are elected
on the first Monday of April in each year. The superintendent is elected for
two years, at the second meeting in June, his term of office beginning July i Sth.
The public schools of this city are divided into four departments — namely,
primary, intermediate, grammar school, and Free academy. The primary
schools include the ninth, eighth and seventh grades. The intermediate schools
include the sixth, fifth and- fourth grades. The grammar schools include the
third, second and first grades. The time required for doing the work laid down
in the course of study is between nine and ten years. Pupils are promoted from
grade to grade, annually, upon a written examination held in all the schools at
the same time. Pupils are transferred from grade to grade whenever their
scholarships will warrant it: There are ten male and seventeen female princi-
pals, in the employ of the board, and eighty assistants, exclusive of those in
the Free academy, who are appointed annually, at the close of the school year,
their time of service to begin the following September. A new enrollment of
pupils is made each year, and no names of pupils are retained after they have
permanently left the schools. By a decision of the Supreme court, the board
of education are required to pay the teachers in the orphan asylum, on condi-
ti(Mi that the same course of study and text-books in force in the public schools
be pursued in them. Under this arrangement the salaries of teachers in the
Protestant, St. Mary's, St. Joseph's and St. Patrick's orphan asylums and the
Church Home are paid by the board. The entire cost of maintaining the pub-
lic schools during the year 1883-84 was $233,899.35, which amount includes
an extra appropriation of $30,000 for buildings, in order to relieve the over-
crowded buildings.
In June, 1875, by a vote of 1 1 to 5, by order of the board all religious exer-
cises in the public schools, including the reading of the Bible " without note or
comment," was discontinued. An effort was subsequently made to reconsider
the action on the matter, but it was unsuccessful.
In 1883 the forenoon and afternoon recesses were discontinued in all the pub-
lic schools, and the daily sessions were shortened one hour. A year's trial has
won for this plan almost universal approval and has, apparently, proved of practi-
cal, mental and moral advantage to the pupils. By a regulation of the board of
330 History of the City of Rochester.
education, adopted in 1884, all cases of discipline requiring the infliction of cor-
poral punishment were referred to' the principal, in each school. In 1883
what is called " the Philadelphian fire drill " was introduced into the schools.
In September, 1883, by order of the board, a normal and training-class for
the purpose of training applicants for positions as teachers, for their work, was
organised, which is under the direction of the superintendent. As a normal
class the work has been a discussion of the philosophy of education and the
best methods of instruction and school management. The plan is to study by
topics indicated by questions printed on slips of paper and distributed at one
meeting and to discuss these topics at the next meeting. The following have
been discussed : Education, and how to teach intelligently and successfully.
Mental philosophy, applied to teaching. Physical education, and the responsi-
bility of the teacher. Moral training and school discipline. How a teacher
may best develop those traits which make a true and noble manhood and
womanhood. Education. Teachers' qualifications. Sketches of the " lives
and educational principles of Pestalozzi and Froebel " have been written by
the members of the class. Methods of teaching reading, writing, numbers,
geography, language and object lessons have been discussed in connection
with the laws of mental science and educational principles. As a training-
class, the work has been the visitation of schools for the purpose of observing
the practical workings of the graded school system in the hands of experienced
teachers. In some cases the members have been employed as assistants.
Much attention is just now being paid to the sanitary condition of the school
buildings, their heating and ventilation. A committee consisting of members
of the board of health is making a careful examination of all the buildings,
and at the close of its work will make a report upon their condition, together
with recommendations for their improvement. The amount annually appro-
priated during several years past has been insufficient to meet the increasing
demands for more school accommodations. The result is overcrowding in sev-
eral of the more populous districts, some of which have been relieved by the
renting of additional rooms in the neighborhood. The public schools to-day
command the respect and confidence of all classes. The rich and the poor, the
high and the low, children from humble homes and elegant mansions, meet
together, on terms of republican equality, to enjoy the privileges and oppor-
tunities for a thorough education.
The Medical Profession. 33'
CHAPTER XXXIV.
THE MEDICAL PKOFESSION.i
Health of Rochester in the Early Days — Longevity of the Pioneers — Efficient Sewerage in the
Village — Dr. Jonah Brown, the First Practitioner — High Tone of the Profession at That Time —
Formation of the Monroe County Medical Society — Its Officers and its Members — Stringent Provi-
sions of its Constitution — Biographical Sketches of Deceased Physicians.
WHERE human beings congregate, there the healer follows, in obedience
to the most urgent of necessities. We find, accordingly, in this town of
Rochester, whose inception was so recent, that when but few were gathered
around the Genesee falls the physician appeared among them. It is a marvel-
ous fact that the very first settlers on the spot that soon came to be known as
Rochesterville have furnished a large number of persons who have attained to
a very remarkable period of longevity, leaving the standard of three score and
ten far in the background, many reaching to the age of eighty, ninety and even
a hundred years. This is the more remarkable, inasmuch as the town was
first planted on the west side of the river in a black ash swamp. That the
inhabitants suffered from malarial diseases in a very great degree, is undoubt-
edly true. It is also true that the form of its manifestations was often severe.
But they early learned the value of drainage and sewerage, which was under-
taken and carried out much earlier in this place than in any other town of its
size in the country. Such works, which from a superficial view would seem
to be in direct opposition to the interest of the members of the medical profes-
sion, have always been urged by them, with the greatest earnestness, upon the
communities they live among. The physicians, who were the first advisers of
the people, were zealotis in the good work and succeeded in convincing the
laity that the prominent cause of their suffering would be best relieved by drain-
ing the soil to the rock upon which the future city was to stand. The first
experiment in this direction was so convincing by its effects that sewerage has
always been largely carried out in this city. The methods were those univers-
ally employed in older towns, and, although modern knowledge of sanitary
measures has demanded better structures, the early inhabitants executed what
was then regarded as good work.
The planting of a village on the site of the city of Rochester was later than
that of most villages in the county of Monroe. Where the pioneers pushed
forward into the dense forest that clothed the soil of Western New York, they
very naturally chose the higher lands as more easy of reduction to the condi-
tions necessary to the production of food. The village became the out-
growth of the neighboring settlement of the farmers. But Rochester was the
result of a conviction that a larger town would be developed by the presence
1 This chapter was prepared by Dr. E. M. Moore, sr.
22
332 History of the City of Rochester.
of the fine water-power of the Genesee. When the village was laid out; high
hopes were entertained of its future, a belief that it was not to be merely the
incident of a near farming community but that of the necessities of a wide area.
Such views naturally attracted members of the profession of medicine. The
first house was erected in 1812, and in the succeeding year we find the name
of Dr. Jonah Brown as the first practitioner in the village of Rochesterville.
Dr. Brown died soon after his removal to his new home. Others soon followed,
and we find them numerous enough to undertake the formation of a county
medical society in 1821.
At this period the laws of the state gave special privileges to members of
the county societies, permitting them to collect their fees, a right which no one
else possessed who practised medicine. Hence the construction of these soci-
eties was regulated by law, and it may be observed, in passing, that the law
still regulates the construction and action of the medical societies, but has with-
drawn from them all privileges. At the time when the first society was formed
in Monroe county, medical colleges were remote and the labor and time occu-
pied in traveling rendered the city of New York as difficult to reach as the
schools of London and Paris are by the student of to-day. It was then the
law and custoni for the aspirant to medical practice to derive all his informa-
tion from the teaching of his preceptor. Men were admitted to practice after
passing the ordeal of examination by censors appointed by the county medical
societies. In this way they realised in a rude manner the strong desire of the
profession at the present day for an independent board of examiners. That
the teaching was often crude and especially imperfect in the foundation of all
medical learning — viz., anatomy — must be confessed. But at various places
men of strong intellectual characteristics gathered around them numerous stu-
dents and became to them teachers who impressed their personality with great
power upon the student of medicine, oftentimes with greater distinctiveness than
that which is brought to bear on a large class by a more finished teacher at the
present time. Of such character were Dr. Joseph White of Cherry Valley, and
Dr. Mclntyre of Palmyra. It will be readily seen that the early establish-
ment of a county society would become a necessity to the medical profession,
independent of the natural desire for association for social and professional pur-
poses. Accordingly we find that a meeting of the physicians and surgeons of
the county of Monroe was held pursuant to notice on the 9th of May, 1821, at
the house of John, G. Christopher in Rochesterville. Alexander Kelsey was
chosen chairman, and John B. Elwood secretary, when a resolution was adopted
appointing a committee to draft a code of by-laws. The physicians whose
credentials were approved by the chairman were the following : Joseph
Loomas, Nathaniel Rowell, James Scott, Allen Almy, Daniel Durfee, Daniel
Weston, Isaac Chichester, Alexander Kelsey, John Cobb, jr., John G. Vought,
Chauncey Beadle, Theophilus Randall, F. F. Backus, M. D., Ebenezer Burn-
The Medical Profession. 333
ham, jr., Samuel B. Bradley, Ezekiel Harmon. These gentlemen immediately
proceeded to the election of officers, and the gentlemen whose names are
hereby given were chosen to fill the offices as stated : Dr. Alexander Kelsey,
president ; Dr. Nathaniel Rowell, vice-president ; Dr. Anson Coleman, treas-
urer; censors — Freeman Edson, John B. Elwood, Frederick F. Backus, Eze-
kiel Harmon, Derick Knickerbocker. This meeting, although the first, was
hardly considered other than preliminary, and accordingly a committee was
appointed, composed of Drs. Harmon, Rowell and Bradley, to revise the by-
laws and report at the next meeting. At the meeting held the 9th of May,
1822, the following gentlemen presented their credentials and were added
to the society : Anson Coleman, Ezra Strong, David Gregory, William H.
Morgan, M. D., William Gildersleeve, John B. Elwood, B. Gillett, Linus
Stevens, O. E. Gibbs, James Holton, George Marvin, M. D.,' Barzillai Bush,
M. D. The small number of men who wrote their names with titles gives at
a glance the relation between those who had received their instruction in med-
ical colleges and been graduated by them and those who were licensed by the
censors of the county societies. The committee on constitution and laws made
an elaborate report containing thirty-six distinct articles, defining the offices
and the duties of their incumbents ; also, the mode of admitting members and
defining their duties. It is of course not necessary to repeat these details, but
I may call attention to article 21, which heads tKe list with reference to the
duties of members, which invokes the aid of every member to support the honor
and dignity of .the medical profession and to execute his respective duties with
justice and fidelity. I also cite, entire, article 26 : —
" Art. 26. — It shall be highly disreputable for any member to assume or hold the
knowledge of any nostrum or palm any medicine or composition on the people as a
secret, and every such member shall be deemed unworthy to belong to the society, and
the members thereof shall hold no medical correspondence with such characters, nor
consult with them in any medical case whatever, and all pretenders to nostrums shall be '
deemed proper subjects for expulsion from this society."
I will also call attention to these three articles : —
"Art. 32. — Candidates for license to practise physic or surgery shall give notice
thereof to the president and censors fifteen days previous to examination, and before
any one can be admitted to examination he must produce to the cen.sors satisfactory proof
that he is twenty-one years of age and of good moral character, that he has studied the
time required by law with one or more reputable and legal practitioners and has appro-
priated that time solely to the study of physic or surgery. If he is a candidate for the
practice of physic he shall be examined in materia medica and pharmacy, anatomy and
physiology, and on the theory and practice of physic. Candidates for the practice of
surgery shall be examined particularly on anatomy and surgery.
"Art. 33. — No student shall be examined unless a majority of the censors be pres-
ent, and said censors shall report their opinion to the president, whether he be qualified
for the priactice of physic or surgery or both.
"Art. 34.— This society may try any of its members for malpractice, extortion or
speaking disrespectfully of the society with intent to injure it, and it shall be the duty
334 History of the City of Rochester.
of each member of this society to accuse any other member thereof for any misde-
meanor that he deems contrary to the true intent and meaning of the act of the legisla-
ture incorporating this society or contrary to the by-laws thereof, and the accuser shall
make the statement in writing of the misdemeanors aforesaid and lay them before the
president of the society. The president shall issue a summons to the accused to appear
before the society at its next meeting, stating the time when and place where it is to be
held, to defend himself, if he sees fit, against the accusation. A copy of the accusation
and summons shall be left with the accused or at his usual place of abode at least
twelve days before such meeting, and the accuser shall cause such summons to be served
and returned to the society on the first day of the meeting. If the accused shall refuse
or neglect to appear in person or by proxy, and no satisfactory reason is offered for such
neglect, he shall be expelled from the society, and if he be convicted of any of the
charges alleged against him he may be punished by fine, suspension or expulsion, pro-
vided the fine for any one offense shall not exceed twenty dollars.''
From these articles it will be seen that the tone of the society was high ;
also, that the law might be executed preventing any one from practising with-
out a license, thereby rendering him incapable of collecting the reward of his
labors. Hence we find this year a committee of one in each town in the
county delegated to report the number of persons practising with and without
a license in their respective towns.
Of the large number of physicians who lived in the village and afterward
the city of Rochester it would be idle to attempt biographical notice. The
time is too distant, the sources of information cannot be reached and space
can only be given to those who acquired some special distinction. Many whom
we cannot notice would be found quite as deserving as those that we have
spoken of, when measured by the standard of duties especially pertaining to
the relation of physician and patient. A few, however, of those that have passed
away will be specially noticed, as giving tone and character to the whole.
Among the earliest comers we may note the name of Anson Coleman. He
was born at Richfield Springs, N. Y., March 17th, 1795, and commenced his
professional studies when about seventeen or eighteen years of age, in his na-
tive town, with a Dr. Palmer, but he afterward went to Cherry Valley and com-
pleted his studies with the celebrated Dr. Joseph White. He was among the
first who organised the county society, in the year, 1 821. He was among the
foremost and most active practitioners of the village, full of the ambition that
carves out success, high-toned in his feelings and contemptuous of the char-
latanry that has always and will always hang on the skirts of the profession.
This often provoked an exhibition of temper which could ill conceal a disgust
for the mean. When the cholera first made the invasion of Europe, the dread
accounts that came by the slow methods of sailing navigation filled the whole
country with a fear that has never had its parallel on this continent. The ap-
parent futility of quarantine at every point in the Old world produced the
belief that nothing we should do would avail. The first appearance at the
North was in Montreal. The authorities of the village requested Dr, Coleman
DR. E. M. MOORE.
The Medical Profession. 335
to go to that city at their expense and bring back such information as he could
gather from the experience of the health authorities and the physicians of that
place. It is needless to say that the cholera advanced along the routes of travel,
or to add that the experience of later times has shown the contagiousness of this
dread disease to be real. The apparently unexplained circumstance that the
disease would pass by the close attendants, and seize upon those that were not
apparently exposed at all, gave color to the belief that there was an epidemic
that through the atmosphere defied hygiene in any form. The therapeutics
then adopted have never been improved. We only excel our, ancestors in the
profession in our improved methods of prevention. Dr. Coleman was elected
a professor in Geneva medical college, but declining health prevented his occu-
pancy of the chair. He died at the early age of forty-two, of aneurism of the
abdominal aorta, July 17th, 1837.
Dr. John B. Elwood was born in the township of Minden, Montgomery
county, N. Y., March 3d, 1792. He became a pupil of Dr. Palmer in Rich-
field Springs, but afterward pursued his studies both in New York and in Phila-
delphia. He commenced practice in Rochester in the year 1817, forming
a copartnership with Dr. Coleman, which relation was continued for many
years. In analysing the mental qualities of the men who have made their
mark in the communities they live in, we find that the most enduring success
falls to the lot of those who possess the much-vaunted and rarely-possessed
quality of common sense. This allusion may contain the germ of Dr. Elwood's
relation to his fellows during a long life. His culture was moderate in any
direction, but by common consent his position in the profession was the one that
commanded the highest confidence. He sought wealth in other than profes-
sional lines. He became the postmaster at a time when it added largely to his
income. During the fierce speculations of 1836 we find him almost the only
man in his town who was unmoved by its fascinating delusion, selling his prop-
erty and not buying. The end of the crash found him richer than at the be-
ginning. In the year 1839 he visited Europe. On his return, in 1840, he be-
came the owner of an orange plantation in Florida, where he had gone for the
restoration of impaired health. While there he. received a fall which so in-
jured his spine that he was brought home on a bed and only recovered after
several years of suffering. In 1849 he was elected mayor of the city, by a sort
of common consent, the opposition of his party opponents being of a per-
functory character. It will be seen that Dr. Elwood had desired to withdraw
from the profession, but he was sought out by those who knew him, in spite
of bis efforts. He was never married and died May 23d, 1877, in his eighty-
fifth year.
Dr. F. F. Backus was born June iSth, 1794, and died November sth, 1858.
He was graduated from Yale college in 1 8 1 4. In the year 1 8 1 5 he was licensed
to practise medicine and took up his residence in the village of Rochester, where
336 History of the City of Rochester.
he lived until the day of his death. Few knew Dr. Backus without acquiring
a high esteem for him, both as a man and as a physician. Well supplied with
learning and drilled in the professional knowledge of his day, he naturally filled
a large space in the medical profession and in the best associations of New York.
Dr. Backus was a man with an acute sense of humor, which issued in pleasant
sallies of wit. The extreme unfortunates of humanity must always bless his
memory. To his untiring efforts when in the Senate of the state was due the
establishment of the asylum at Syracuse for the care of idiots. This is, perhaps,
the most important of the public works that he may be said to have founded,
but he was largely interested in other benevolent. institutions, especially in the
House of Refuge.
Dr. W. W. Reid was born in Argyle, Washington county, in the year 1799.
He graduated at Union college in 1825 and commenced the study of medicine
with Dr. A. G. Smith. He continued his studies in 1828 at Boston medical
college, Cambridge university. He occupied a prominent position in the com-
munity and a respected one among his brethren. His mind was acute with the
elements of genius. If his fellows feared his hasty conclusions as marking too
rapid a judgment to be safe, he had the advantage over them in striking out in
a bold manner, which resulted in the complete triumph of a method of reduc-
ing dislocations of the hip on the dorsum illii, which had only been seen as
"through a glass darkly." Dr. Reid never claimed to have made a discovery
of the method by manipulation de novo. He asserted that the descriptions of
the plan, as laid down, could not be carried out, and then described the one that
has been the settled usage since. The finish of the surgical mancEuvre, as. Dr.
Reid left it, has justly attached his name to it as descriptive — "Reid's method
of manipulation." If the development of an original idea can be fairly ascribed
to one man, it may be regarded as an ample result for one life. It is one new
idea for the use of mankind for all time. This is a great gift and would justify
to the world the support it should give to many lives. As may well be sup-
posed. Dr. Reid filled a large space in the medical associations of his day. He
died December 8th, 1866.
Dr. J. D. Henry was born October 19th, 1782, at Stonington, Connecticut.
He studied his profession at Cherry Valley, with Dr. Joseph White, and grad-
uated at the University of Pennsylvania. In the year 1822 he removed to
Rochester and at once took his place among the first of his day. Those who
remember him will do so largely from the recollection of his genial temper and
high standard of professional duty — a true gentleman by associations and from
the still truer source of conduct befitting the appellation, that of the heart. He
died November 13th, 1842.
Dr. E. G. Munn was born in Munson, Massachusetts, April 7th, 1804. Af-
ter practicing a few years ih Scottsville, intending to keep himself en rapport
with general practice, he found himself overwhelmed with the duties of an oc-
The Medical Profession. 337
ulist. In the year 1837 he removed to Rochester and gave himself up to the
practice of opthalmology. The country was still new and his fame spread far
and wide. It is doubtful if any man during the few years included between
1837 and 1847 had so many patients and gathered from so large a territory.
Although not. drawing his clientele from any large cities, this was enormous.
It is true the people in a new country are apt to be poor. This was far more
striking at the time we consider than in any country now going through the
process of settlement. Much of this great following came from the genial and
generous disposition of Dr. Munn. He was literally the friend of the poor and
needy. There were no hospitals to divide with him the care of those who suf-
fered. While there was money in his purse the common boarding-house was
the hospital, where this physician treated the patients and often paid their bills,
and after their recovery paid for their passage to their homes. The whole of
this marvelous activity and benevolence may be recognised by a statement of
unpaid services at the time of his death amounting to $80,000 This was the
sum of fees of the most meager kind. He died December 12th, 1847, pos-
sessed of small estate, but loved by the warmest of friends, whose afifection had
no taint of benefits received. This is truly a marvelous history of a short pro-,
fessional life.
Dr. Hugh Bradley was born in the county of Antrim, Ireland, in the year
1796. He pursued his studies in the University of Glasgow and took his de-
gree in medicine in that institution in the year 1825. After practising his pro-
fession for several years in his native country he came to America and settled
in the city of Rochester in the year 1834. He at once joined the medical so-
ciety and continued in its membership until the time of his death, which oc-
curred May 6th, 1883.
Dr. Freeman Edson was born in Westmoreland, N. H., September 24th,
1 791. He died at Scottsville, Monroe county, N. Y., June 24th, 1883, aged
ninety-one years and nine months. Although never practising in this city, his
close proximity and connection with it seem to require some notice in view of
his extraordinary age and the long period of his labors in the profession. His
primary and academic education were acquired near his home and at Keene.
He became a student in the office of Dr. Amos Twitchell, a celebrated physi-
cian of Keene. He afterward entered Yale college and graduated in medicine
from that institution in the year 18 14. Heat once removed to Scottsville,
where he continued the practice of medicine until his death, during a period of
over sixty-nine years. He was a man of clear mind and positive convictions.
This, with a constitution of remarkable endurance, eminently fitted him for this
marvelous career.
Dr. E. W. Armstrong was born at Fredericksburg, Canada. He was grad-
uated at Dartmouth and afterward from its medical school, and still later re-
ceived instruction at Philadelphia. He moved to Rochester in 1837, after the
338 History of the City of Rochester.
close of the so-called "Canadian rebellion." In this city he continued to prac-
tise medicine until the year 1877, dying suddenly at the advanced age of eighty-
eight years. Dr. Armstrong was remarkable for his marvelously equable
.temperament, which never allowed him to be ruffled by the ordinary vexations
of life. He maintained all through these forty years of practice a reputation
absolutely unsullied.
Dr. H. W. Dean was born in Madison county, N. Y., in 1818. He became
a pupil of Dr. Frank H. Hamilton in the year 1839, ^nd graduated at Geneva
medical college in 1842. He long filled a large space in the estimation of the
people of Rochester. With a physique of remarkable manly beauty, he added
the graces of nature's gentility to an untiring devotion to his duties, both in his
attendance on his patients atid in the study of his profession. Unlike Dr.
Reid, who had preceded him, one could not trace any of the elements of genius.
There was nothing so erratic as this in his mental structure. Dr. Dean's work
was pursued with constant patience ; surely, however, he followed his inquiries
to the end, with a conscience that ever kept him in right lines. As might be
expected, his clientele was large and attached to him with a tenacity of uncom-
mon force. He was a contributor to the labors of the medical societies, of
which he was a member and always an efficient one. He died suddenly on
the 13th of January, 1878.
Dr. William Watson Ely was born April 30th, 1812, at Fairfield, Conn., and
died at Rochester on the 27th of March, 1879. He was graduated at Yale
medical college in the year 1834. After residing at Manlius, Onondaga county,
N. Y., for five years, he came to Rochester, where he lived during the remain-
der of his life. The winter of 1837, however, was spent in Philadelphia, during
which time he attended the instructions of the Jefferson medical college. In
regarding the life and career of Dr. Ely, we are struck with the modest de-
meanor of a very fine mind. With fine talents, which were shown in many
ways, we find nothing- erratic. His most striking characteristic may be said to
have been intellectuality. This guided his pursuits. He wrote with taste, but
confined his productions to the eyes of friends, restrained from public notice
by the extreme modesty of his nature. The University of Rochester conferred
on him its highest degree, and it has never been more properly bestowed.
Dr. Theodore Francis Hall was born October 20th, 1827, at Whitehall, N. Y.
After graduating at Union college at the age of twenty- three, he applied him-
self to the study of medicine and took his degree of M. D. at the college of
Physicians and Surgeons in the city of New York in 1854. He commenced
the practice of his profession in this city in the year 1856. When the war
called for the aid of surgeons, he entered the 140th New York volunteers, with
which regiment he remained until the close of the war. He died March 5th,
1869, in the forty-second year of his age. In estimating his character we find
a fine mind with good culture, moved by impulses of the most generous kind.
The Medical Profession. 339
These carried him on to the performance of duties that might be regarded as
fault)' by excess. The attention that professional propriety demands of the
physician, when caring for the patient, was extended, to the devotion of his
strength and life, with utter recklessness of the expectation of reward, which
was constantly forgotten by himself and very often by the recipients of his care.
But no one had warmer friends and admirers among those who also remem-
bered the honorarium.
Dr. Benjamin F. Gilkeson was born in Bristol, Bucks county, Penn., Decem-
ber 8tli, 1 8 19. He becarne a pupil of Professor James Webster in the year
1838. He sought medical knowledge in both Philadelphia and Geneva, grad-
uating from the college of the latter place in the year 1841. For the succeed-
ing forty-two years he led an industrious life in the constant practice of his
profession, although during the last ten years he was much enfeebled by sick-
ness. Dr. Gilkeson was a man of great energy and very attentive to the duties
of his profession and remarkable for the independence of his character. He
was contemptuous of all pretense and possessed that most enc^uring of all tal-
ents — common sense.
Dr. Louis A. Kuichling was born December 29th, 1807, at Walsum, on the
Rhine, and died June 4th, 1883, at Rochester, N. Y. He was the son of a
physician and pursued his studies with such ardor that when graduating, al-
though the youngest man in his class, he carried off the first prize in surgery
and the second in therapeutics. From Wurtzburg he went to Heidelberg,
where he continued his studies for a year. From thence he went to Paris and
attended the lectures of Hahnemann and afterward practised homoeopathy about
two years in Kehl. This, however, he abandoned. The liberal tendency nat-
ural to his profession caused him to become compromised in the revolution of
1848, for which he was imprisoned and his property confiscated. He escaped
from prison, and after staying in New York for a couple of years, made Roch-
ester his home during the remainder of his life. It can be said of him that he
occupied the very first rank among the German practitioners in this country.
With these few sketches of character I close what I have to say of the med-
ical profession. There are many of whom I should like to speak, but space
forbids, and I repeat what was said above, that I merely desire to mark a few,
especially of the early comers. The triumphs in this profession in life are local,
and if discovery is made it remains only understood anc} fully appreciated by
the physicians themselves. It requires a special education to understand the
bearings that a true discovery will have upon the art of heaUng. This unfort-
unately gives scope to the wildest theories, as well as to the grossest decep-
tions of charlatans. Until the wide diffusion of knowledge in natural science
shall fit every one to judge of the methods of medical men, this condition of
society must remain.
340 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XXXV.
homceopathy a\d denti.stry.
Early Homoeopathic Physicians — Their Advent and Influence — The Practice of Dentistry —
Advance of the Art.
THE absence of an article upon the homoeopathic practice in this city, whicli
had been positively promised and was expected up to a late period of this
work, compels the editor to make up an incomplete record from what scattered
data he has been able to collect. Dr. Augustus P. Biegler was undoubtedly
the first physician of this school to practise in Rochester. Many of the older
inhabitants have inclined to give the priority to Dr. Taylor, but the former is,
in all likelihood, the pioneer, as the directory of 1841 gives his name, locating
his office at number 6. Spring street and his boarding-house at 31 on the same
street, while the other doctor is not mentioned at all in the small volume. The
address was, perhaps, only partly correct, and may have been intended to refer
for both office and residence, to the house on the northeast corner of Spring
and Fitzhugh streets. This was certainly the house where Dr. Taylor, when
he came here within a year of that time — either before or after — had his
abode and dealt out the pleasant pellets which at first met with much ridicule
but soon found their way, through the mouths, to the hearts of the rapidly in-
creasing number of patients. Dr. Moses M. Mathews came here from Canan-
daigua in the fall of 1844 and for fourteen years occupied the house mentioned
above, succeeding Dr. Taylor therein, whose residence must have been limited
to two years, or three at the utmost, as his name does not appear in the direc-
tory of 1845, while that of his successor does. Of these first three homoeo-
pathic physicians, all of whom even in that early day, obtained an extensive
and lucrative practice among the intelligent class of the community, not one
was brought up in the school of Hahnemann, but all had been practitioners
in the old, or "regular" school, before they embraced what were then the new
principles. Dr. Mathews died in 1867, having won the confidence of all who
came under his professional ministrations, the respect of all who knew him and
the affection of the many who were aided by his kindness and benevolence.
To his integrity of character he added a rare gentleness and benignity which
will be remembered by all those who ever came in contact with him. Dr. Ed-
win H. Hurd, who is now the oldest homoeopathic physican in Rochester, came
here in 1850, and after studying awhile with Dr. Mathews entered into a part-
nership with him, which continued for about a year. There were here prac-
tising, at that time. Dr. A. P. Biegler, Dr. Hilem Bennett, Dr. George Lewis,
Dr. George W. Peer — all of whom are now dead — and Dr. Thomas C. Schell,
who was in the ofiice of Dr. Mathews and who is now practising at Minneapolis.
The Monroe County Homoeopathic society was organised on the 2d day of
HOMCEOPATIIY AND DENTISTRY. 34I
January, 1866. It has now a membership of thirty-seven, and the officers for
this year are as follows: President, Dr. C. R. Sumner; vice-president, Dr. S.
W. Hartwell ; secretary. Dr. B. A. Hoard ; treasurer. Dr. T. C. White. Of
the success of homoeopathy in curing diseases, and of its still greater victories
in overcoming the unreasoning prejudice with which it long had to contend,
this is not the place to treat, but one illustration will show the progress that
the liberalising tendencies of the age have enabled it to make. For some years
after the foundation of the City hospital the managers of that institution re-
fused to allow homoeopathic physicians to practise within its walls, even in the
case of private patients. It was no change of heart, but the pressure of public
opinion, that impelled them eventually to so modify their rules as to perniit
practitioners of this school to treat private patients, but they had to confine their
attentions to those who were fortunate enough to be able to pay for them. The
exclusion of this class of physicians from general practice in the hospital keeps
away a large revenue that would otherwi.se accrue to the institution, for more
than one purse is ready to open wide when the prejudice shall be broken
down and the independency which is so potential in the realms of religion and
politics shall have equal sway in the domain of medicine.
THE DENTAL PROFESSION. 1
The history of dentistry in Rochester is so closely connected with its history
throughout the country that, for the better comprehension of its rise, progress
and advancement, I deem that a short sketch of its general growth will not be
inappropriate here. As early as 1828 gold foil for filling teeth came into use
to a limited extent. It was at that date made to order, but not kept on sale.
My old preceptor, after canvassing New York city for some, found only two
sheets, and they were number 12. Tin foil had previously been used. Amal-
gam was introduced in New York in 1830, by two Frenchmen.
Just about fifty years ago,- gold and silver plates for mounting artificial
teeth were introduced. Previous to this, plates and teeth had been made from
ivory, or the bone of the sea-horse tooth, both plates and teeth being carved
from the same piece. Partial sets were fastened to the natural teeth with gold
wire. Full Sets were also made from the same material and held in the mouth
by spiral springs. Comparatively very few, however, were made. For many
years a large proportion of pivot teeth were set on old roots. At first human
teeth and the teeth of some animals were used for this purpose, then they -were
carved from ivory. In 1835, with the introduction of gold and silver plates,
came also porcelain teeth. The first of this kind came from France, and these
were plain teeth — that is, without gums — and cost fifty cents each. Stock-
ton, of Philadelphia, was the first man in this country to make porcelain teeth,
both plain and gum teeth. Soon after followed Dr. Allcock, of New York.
1 This article was prepared by E. F. Wilson, D. D. S.
342 History of the City of Rochester.
He was the first to manufacture and arrange them in sets of fourteen, as we
have them to-day, though they were at first quite inferior to the porcelain teeth
of the present.
During the first twenty-five years of the past fifty, dentistry moved slowly.
Dentists of ingenuity made their own instruments, the " turnkey " being the
general favorite for extracting. George Tieman was the first man in this coun-
try to manufacture forceps and other dental instruments. Then came Chevalier,
of New York, tlien Biddle, of New York, then Kern, of Philadelphia. By 1850
we had a fair assortment of instruments. It is surprising to note the improve-
ments and inventions in dental appliances from 1850 up to the present time. I
will mention here only two among the scores of improvements that stand re-
corded in our dental catalogues of to-day. These are the Burr engine and the
rubber dam, the most important improvements of the age, the friends of the
patient as well as the dentist. No first-class dental office of to-day is properly
equipped without them. Gold and silver continued for about twenty-five years
to be the chief materials used for plates. Block teeth, with and without plates,
were used somewhat. Some supposed improvements were brought out ; con-
tinuous gum plates were the most important of these. They were of porcelain,
baked on platina. Clean, pretty and healthful in the mouth, they were also
heavy, expensive and liable to break if dropped. They never came into gen-
eral use. Then came Blandy's metal, a compound of silver and tin, and cast
to the plaster model. This was not long-lived. Following these came rubber,
which has very nearly superseded all other material for plates, though it has
its faults. Then came celluloid, which has been the strongest competitor with
rubber, but this has reached the height of its success.
The latest improvement is the lining of rubber plates with metal. This is des-
tined to bring it nearer perfection and restore its early success. There have been
attempts to introduce still other materials, but I will mention only one other.
This is what is called mineral plate, both plate and teeth of the same material.
It is clean and healthful in every respect, and has perhaps fewer faults than any
other that has come into use. Being more expensive than rubber, the latter
will no doubt continue to be used by the masses," while the well-to-do people
will avail themselves of the best thing to be had. Up to 1845, ^s nearly as I
can recollect, beeswax was used for taking impressions ; about that time Dr.
Westcott, of Syracuse, introduced plaster of paris, which continues to be the
principal thing used for full sets, though in some cases of partial sets a combi-
nation of paraffine and wax makes a good substitute.
Fifty years ago there was but little gold used in the filling of teeth. Now
the 17,000 dentists in the United States use annually about $1,000,000 worth
of the precious metals. The demand of the day is for some material for filling
the teeth, which will assimilate with the bone of the tooth and take the place
of gold, be better for the teeth and save this great expense to the country,
The Press. 343
Then, with proper education and training in the care of natural teeth, the next
generation will need fewer artificial teeth.
With all the improvements of the last fifty years the science of dentistry is
yet in its youth, and the coming fifty years will undoubtedly develop still greater
improvements. Rochester has kept pace with all these improvements, and
what is true of dentistry in other places is true here. In early days the physi-
cians extracted most of the teeth, always carrying in their pill-bags a pair of
turnkeys for this purpose. A directory of Rochester published in 1827 does
not mention a dentist, so it is fair to conclude that there were none here at that
time. I incline to the opinion that Dr. Bigelow was the first man to practise
dentistry in Rochester, doing his work at the hotels where he stopped. He was
well known at the old Eagle Hotel, and in various towns in Monroe county, as
well as other parts of Western New York. He was a man of fair ability, for
the time. Some of his work stood for over twenty years. Dr. S. W. Jones
came a little later as an itinerant practitioner. Without doubt Dr. L. K. Faulk-
ner, who died last autumn, was the first settled dentist here; he had not prac-
tised dentistry for some years previous to his death. Dr. H. N. Fenn, who was
a graduate in medicine and had been a druggist, opened an office in this city
for the practice of dentistry about the year 1840. When I came to Rochester,
in 1847, there were here Drs. Faulkner, Fenn, Haines, Beers, Mills, Wanzer,
Proctor, Allen and perhaps one or two others, whose names I do not now recol-
lect. Others were studying, who soon after commenced practice. Of all those
who were here then all are dead except Dr. Proctor and myself From that
time until the present the number of dentists in the city has increased, until
there are now about thirty-five — enough to do the work for a population of
200,000.
CHAPTER XXXVI.
THE PRESS OF ROCHESTER, i
Early Journalism — The Gazette — The Telegraph — The Advertiser, with its Various Absorptions
— Sketch of the Union and Advertiser — Notices of its Representative Men — The Anti-Masonic In-
quirer and Thurlow Weed — The Democrat — The American — The Chronicle — Continued History
of the Democrat and Chronicle — Sketches of Those I'rominently Associated with It — Various Dead
Newspapers, from 1828 to 1884 — The Express and Post-Express — The Morning Herald — Sunday
Journalism in Rochester — German Journalism — Agricultural Publications — Religious Papers —
Papers Connected with Institutions — The Labor Reformers — Concluding Observations.
IT is a distinguishing feature of American civilisation that, along all the lines
of settlement, journalism is among the pioneers of immigration, and one of
the principal forces in the development of the life of infant communities. Al-
1 Tliis article was prepared by Mr. Charles E. Fitch.
344 History of the City of Rochester.
most every hamlet has its newspaper, the prompt and industrious chronicler
of local events, and the chief medium of communication with the world out-
side. With each day's outreach of the Pacific railways, the printing press was
set up, like mile-posts, to mark their progress, and scarcely were the treasures
of the Cceur d'Alene discovered in the mountains of Idaho before the reporters
on the ground announced the fact, and gave the ruling quotations of stocks.
In a modified degree this ubiquity of journalism was as pronounced seventy
years ago as it is to-day. From various causes the beginning of this century
witnessed a decided impetus to the expansion, not less than to the freedom
of the press. New York city had already sei^eral daily newspapers, and a
number of weeklies were in existence in the eastern part of the state. The
territory west of Utica had, however, but recently been opened to settlement,
and even in i8i6, when Augustine G. Dauby, our pioneer, began the publica-
tion of the Rochester Gazette, not more than eight or ten papers had been
printed in the entire section. Among these may be mentioned the Lynx, at
Onondaga Valley, upon which Thurlow Weed learned the rudiments of his
art ; the Times, at' Manlius ; the Register, at Onondaga Valley, begun by
Lewis H. Redfield in 1814; the Gazette, at Geneva; the Repository and the
Messenger, since consolidated, at Canandaigua; the Citizen, at Perry; the
Cornucopia, at Batavia, and the Gazette, at Buffalo.
When Mr. Dauby, who had been an apprentice in the office of the Utica
Patriot, came here he found a population of about 300 persons. Rochester
was then a small and insignificant hamlet, but, with its natural advantages and the
zeal and sagacity of its founders, it was not without the promise of future growth
and prosperity. Mr. Dauby's undertaking was a bold one, and he never himself
quite knew the exact consideration that determined him to cast his lot here.
He had left Utica on a prospecting tour, and had almost decided to locate in
Geneva, but finally took up his abode in Rochester. The Gazette was first
issued from a building on almost the identical site now occupied by the Demo-
crat & Chronicle. The building, according to Edwin Scrantom, was unfinished,
lathed inside, but not plastered, the lower story being occupied by Smith &
Davis as a butcher's stall. The printing-office occupied the second story. The
structure stood some fifteen feet or more south of the west end of the bridge
over the Genesee river and below it, and the entrance to the office was by a
platform running from the bridge. The Gazette was, after a short time, re-
moved to Abrier Wakelee's building on West Main (then Buffalo) street, over
Austin Stewart's meat shop, and from thence to Exchange street, into a build-
ing afterward known as Filer and Fairchild's school-house. It was there that
Edwin Scrantom, so long and so honorably identified with Rochester journalism,
and whose reminiscences under the nom de plume of "An Old Citizen" form
the basis of this review, began his apprenticeship. In the spring of 1817 the
Gazette was transferred to West Main street, near {he entrance of the present
The Press. 345
Reynolds arcade. Associated with Mr. Dauby, for about ten months, was John
Sheldon, who removed to Detroit; and, for a few months also, Oran Follett,
subsequently a publisher in Batavia and prominent in the politics of Western
New York, was a partner. The business was comparatively well established,
although having the active competition of the Telegraph, when the fire of De-
cember 5th, 1 8 19, destroyed the office, with a number of adjacent buildings.
Recovery from this misfortune seemed attended by insuperable obstacles, but
Mr. Dauby had made some -earnest friends, who helped him with means and
credit, and the Gazette, after intermitting publication for about three months,
resumed in March, 1820, greatly improved in type and paper. But it did not
prove remunerative to its owner, and in March, 1821, he sold it to Derick and
Levi W. Sibley and returned to Utica, where he was long the editor and pro-
prietor of the Observer, upon which he exhibited excellent qualities as a writer
and where, secure in the esteem of hife fellow-citizens, he held a number of
offices of trust and honor, acquired the competence he desired, lived to a very
advanced age, and died a few years since. Upon taking possession of the Ga-
zette, the Messrs. Sibley changed the name to the Monroe Republican and con-
tinued in charge until November, 1825, when it passed into the hands of Whit-
tlesey & Mumford who, in connection with Edwin Scrantom, conducted it until
1827, when it was merged with another paper. Both Derick Sibley and Fred-
erick Whittlesey were intimately connected with the politics of the section, Mr.
Sibley representing his district in the Assembly for three successive terms, and
Mr. Whittlesey, one of the ablest lawyers, as well as politicians of his day, serv-
ing two terms in Congress, a number of years as vice-chancellor and dying in
1 85 I, at a comparatively early age. Everard Peck, a native of Berlin, Con-
necticut, having learned the book binder's trade in Hartford, began business in
Albany, but, not finding it as profitable as he hoped, moved to Rochester in
1 8 16, where he engaged in the double business of book-binding and book-sell-
ing. On the 7th of July, 18 18, Everard Peck & Co. issued the first number of
the Rochester Telegraph, the mechanical department being under the charge
of the Messrs. Sibley. In 1824 an enlargement was effected and Thurlow
Weed became the editor. This marks the "beginning of the active, political and
journalistic career of that able and adroit man, which was to continue for nearly
sixty years, as a controlling agency in state affairs and as a potent influence in
national administration. It was here and then that Mr. Weed formed those
close associations with William H. Seward and Frederick Whittlesey and others
whose leadership for thirty years gave vitality and direction to the various par-
ties with which they were associated and compassed so many personal ambitions.
In 1825 Mr. Weed purchased the establishment and Mr. Peck gave his exclu-
sive attention to the book business, which he continued until 1831, when he en-
gaged in banking, became identified with the various religious, benevolent and
educational institutions of the city, especially with the university and the orphan
346 History of the City of Rochester.
asylum, and died in 1854, universally beloved and respected. After purchas-
ing the Telegraph, Mr. Weed formed a partnership with Robert Martin, and
the paper was issued as a semi-weekly until 1827, when Mr. Weed sold out,
and during the following year it was published as a daily, Mr. Martin mean-
while having consolidated with it the Rochester Albttm, which was started in
October, 1825, by Marshall, Spaulding& Hunt, and had maintained a separate
existence for nearly two years. The Telegraph was itself merged with the
Advertiser in 1829.
October 25th, 1826, witnessed the birth in this city of what is now, after a
number of consolidations with and absorptions of other journals, the oldest
daily newspaper in the United States, west of Albany. Upon the date
indicated Luther Tucker & Co. began the publication of the Roch-
ester Daily Advertiser, issuing in connection with it a weekly called
the Rochester Mercury. In 1829, as already said, the Telegraph and the
Advertiser were consolidated ; the firm name was that of Tucker & Mar-
tin, and the weekly edition was known as the Rochester Republican. In
1830 Hoyt & Porter succeeded Tucker & Martin, and Henry O'Rielly was
made the editor, a position he continued to fill until 1838, when he retired
on becoming postmaster, and Thomas W. Flagg assumed control of the
editorial department. In 1840 Thomas H. Hyatt bought the establish-
ment, retaining it until May ist, 1842, when it passed into the hands of Hiram
Bumphrey and Cephas S. McConnell. On the ist of January, 1844, Joseph
Curtis bought the interest of Mr. Bumphrey and in October, 1845, McConnell
and Curtis sold to Isaac Butts, who thus became sole proprietor. A year later,
however, Harvey L. Winants was admitted as a partner, and the paper was
conducted under the name of I. Butts & Co. Beginning with the summer of
1 848 the history of the Advertiser becomes very interesting as related not less
to the disturbances and divisions in the Democratic party, with the general
lines of the policy of which the Advertiser had been in consistent accord, than
to its own fortunes. The introduction of the Wilmot proviso in Congress, and
the various issues growing out of the anti-slavery agitation, had made a dis-
tinct line of demarkation between the conservative and " free soil " elements in
the Democratic party, especially in the state of New York, where the two
wings were known respectively as Barnburners and Hunkers. The Barn-
burners had refused to support Cass and Butler, the regular nominees of the
Democratic party, and had united with the Free Soilers, who had at Buffalo
placed Martin Van Buren and Charles Francis Adams in nomination for the
offices of president and vice-president. The Advertiser, then under the man-
agement of Mr. Butts, declared in favor of the Buffalo ticket. This course
brought into being the Daily Courier, as an organ of the conservatives or
Hunkers and the champion of Mr. Cass.. It was published by J. M. Lyon and
Horatio G. Warner, Judge Warner doing the principal editorial work. At the
The Press. 347
close of the campaign, which resulted, through Democratic dissensions in the
election of General Taylor, the Whig candidate, Mr. Butts sold the Advertiser
to the Hunkers, who merged the Courier in it, retaining the name of the older
paper, which thus became, for the time being, the only Democratic organ in
this section of the state. The publishing firm was known as J. Medbery &
Co., and consisted of Joseph Medbery, Samuel L. Selden, Joseph Sibley, E.
Darwin Smith and Horatio G. Warner — a rare combination of executive ability
and editorial talent. Mr. Smith, ^afterward eminent as a justice of the Supreme
court, was the chief editor, but he was constantly and efficiently assisted in his
work by his associates, especially by Judge Selden and Judge Warner.
The attitude of the Advertiser was an uncompromising one, however, and
greatly offended the Free Soil wing, which had the numerical superiority, if
not the larger ability in leadership, of the party in this locality. Accord-
ingly it was soon threatened with rivalry, and Royal Chamberlain, J. W.
Benton and George G. Cooper, who had a job printing-office, issued a pros-
pectus for a new paper, to be called the Daily ISTews, but just before its prom-
ised issue a compromise was effected, which resulted in the abandonment of the
News enterprise, the acceptance of its projectors as partners in the Advertiser,
and a readjustment of the editorial force. The publishing firm became that of
R. Chamberlain & Co. Mr. Smith continued as editor, and George G. Cooper
as associate editor began his long and useful career upon the press of Roches-
ter. Judge Warner retired altogether. A few months later, or early in 1849,
Mr. Butts purchased an interest in the Advertiser and again became its editor.
Heretofore the paper had been issued in the morning, but it was now changed
to an evening publication, as which it has since remained. In 185 I Thomas
H. Hyatt, a former proprietor of the Advertiser, returned from Amoy, China,
where he had been for a number of years United States consul, and purchased
a controlling interest in the Advertiser, Mr. Butts retiring and Mr. Hyatt tak-
ing his place as editor. Shortly after this change, Mr. Curtis, who had been
for some six years a resident of Milwaukee, as publisher of the Daily Wiscon-
sin, also returned to Rochester, became a partner in the Advertiser and its
business manager. Mr. Cooper left the Advertiser about this time, and estab-
lished, in connection with Mr. Chamberlain, the Daily Times, which was the
outgrowth oi \ht Daily Herald ^uhWshed in 1850 by L. R. Faulkner as a penny
paper. Mr. Cooper did not long remain with the Times, being succeeded in
its management by Calvin Huson, jr., a lawyer of bright promise, afterward
district-attorney of the county, and numbered among the early dead. The
Times had but a brief existence, being discontinued after a few months.
The year 1852 marks a new departure in Democratic journalism in Roch-
ester. It was the year of the presidential campaign, which resulted in the elec-
tion of Franklin Pierce by a majority of 2 1 2 in the electoral colleges over Gen-
eral Winfield Scott, and the practical extinction of the Whig party. The Dem-
23
348 History of the City of Rochester.
ocrats were flushed with anticipated victory and a number of local leaders con-
cluded, not unreasonably, that with the political prospects before them and the
increasing population and prosperity of Rochester, the place would sustain an-
other Democratic daily. In pursuance of their project a joint stock company
was formed, twenty or more persons becoming shareholders, and on the i6th
of August, 1852, the first number of the Rochester Daily Union was issued, with
J. M. Hatch and Orsamus Turner as editors of the political department and
George G. Cooper in charge of the local columns. It rapidly obtained a com-
manding position in the political field, but the financial results were not entirely
satisfactory and, accordingly, after the election of President Pierce, it was sold
to Isaac Butts and Joseph Curtis, the latter of whom had been president and
business manager of the Union company, Mr. Butts again putting on the edi-
torial harness. In 1857 it was united with the Advertiser, then in the hands
of John E. Morey and, as the Rochester Union & Advertiser, it is still pub-
lished. During the twenty-seven years of its joint existence, several changes
have occurred in its business and editorial management, which will be briefly
specified. The original publishers were Isaac Butts, Joseph Curtis and John
E. Morey. In December, 1864, Mr. Butts retired permanently from the news-
paper business, selling his interest to William Purcell, George G. Cooper and
Lorenzo Kelly. The firm was known as Curtis, Morey & Co., and William
Purcell became editor-in-chief, a position he still holds. On the 1st of
January, 1873, the Union & Advertiser company was organised, with a capital
of $300,000, including all the rights, titles, franchises and good will of the
former newspaper and job establishments, as well as the Livingston paper mills,
situated at Dansville. The officers of the company were: Trustees — Joseph
Curtis, John E. Morey, William Purcell, George G. Cooper, Lorenzo Kelly ;
president and treasurer, Joseph Curtis; secretary, Lorenzo Kelly. This organ-
isation obtained for nearly twenty years, but quite recently Eugene T. Curtis
has become a trustee, as representing the estate of his father, and George Moss
has entered the board, having purchased the interest of George G. Cooper. The
present officers are: John E. Morey, president and treasurer; William Purcell,
vice-president, and Lorenzo Kelly, secretary. William Dove is superintendent
of the job department. The editorial force is constituted as follows : William
Purcell, editor-in-chief; George Moss, managing editor with special supervis-
ion of the city department; George C. Bragdon, news editor; David L. Hill,
Charles P. Woodruff" and George C. Seager, reporters, and Pierre iPurcell, tele-
graphic editor. The Union & Advertiser has long ranked among the ablest and
most influential Democratic journals in the state, and its. business management
has been attended with uniform prosperity. Connected with it is a large and
thoroughly equipped job office, and it was the first paper in the state outside
of the metropolis to make use of a four-cylinder Hoe press, which it purchased
as early as 1861. The publication of its weekly edition, the Repjiblican, has
The Press. 349
been continued without intermission since it was originated by Tuclter & Mar-
tin in 1829.
From this review of the history of the Union & Advertiser it will be noted
that there have been associated with it, in both business and editorial capacities,
a number of men of mark in their day and generation. A brief allusion to
some of these will be of interest. Luther Tucker, after leaving the Advertiser,
established the Genesee Farmer, to which more specific reference will be made
hereafter, and continued it until 1839, when he removed it to Albany, united it
with the Cultivator and, under his guidance, the combined paper became the
highest agricultural authority in the northern states. He was a man of many
virtues, and died in Albany about ten years ago. Henry O'Rielly is entitled
to enduring recognition for his Sketches of Rochester, published in 1838 The
diligence of the author and his thorough identification with his subject have
made his work a storehouse of accurate information, and Rochester is under a
deep obligation to him for his unselfish labors. The book has become very
rare and is jealously treasured by all who are fortunate in the possession of a
copy. The name of Mr. O'Rielly is also honorably identified with the early
developirient of the magnetic telegraph. He has spent a number of his later
years in the city of New York, engaged in literary pursuits, but has recently
returned to this city, where he is passing his declining days attended by the
esteem and affection of his fellow-citizens. Robert Martin died in Albany,
many years ago, while connected with the Daily Advertiser & Gazette of that
city. Thomas H. Hyatt, after leaving Rochester, was associated with the Daily
Globe in New York and subsequently published an agricultural paper in San
Francisco. Samuel L. Selden was one of the most eminent jurists the state
has produced, serving successively as county judge of Monroe, justice of the
Supreme court and judge of the court of Appeals. He has been dead some
eight years. Joseph Medbery accumulated a handsome fortune and died some
two years since. Horatio G. Warner was a vigorous writer and a formidable
controversialist. He was elected a regent of the university of the state of New
York in 1 871 and died in 1875. The long and honorable career of E. Darwin
Smith was ended by death in 1883. For over twenty years he adorned the
bench of the Supreme court by his profound learning, his invariable courtesy
and his unswerving integrity, but he was also distinguished, during his associa-
tion with the press, as an exceedingly well-informed writer, sincere in his con-
victions and apt in their expression. He became a Republican, at the outbreak
of the war, and contributed many patriotic articles to the local press, particu-
larly to the Democrat, the larger proportion of which were published as editorial
matter, and, until the day of his death, he maintained the most cordial relations
with the craft. The writer of this article came to Rochester several years after
the late Isaac Butts had severed his connection with the Rochester Union, but
no one familiar with the journalism of the state can fail to appreciate the great
350 History of the City of Rochester.
ability of Mr. Butts. In breadth of knowledge, in fidelity to his thought, in
courage of expression and in terseness of style, he has had few superiors. Of
economic issues as viewed from his stand-points, he was a master, and his work
on Protection and Free Trade, whether we agree or disagree with his views,
must be admitted to be one of exceeding force and perspicuity. His habit of
frank utterance, in trying national periods, provoked enmities, bitter for the
moment, but none of them survive his death, and his name remains as con-
spicuous as his work was able and persuasive. In business management Joseph
Curtis was as honorable as he was successful, keen in his sympathies, affable in
his demeanor, catholic in his charities, and sincerely beloved by an extended
circle of friends. His death occurred in the fall of 1883.. Nor can I close
this sketch of the Union & Advertiser, without a brief reference to one who,
although still living, has been withdrawn from active journalism for the last
twelve years. George G. Cooper was, by the concurrent testimony of his con-
temporaries, one of the most accomplished city editors that provincial journal-
ism has known. In his day, the city editor was not commander of a body of
reporters. He was in himself all in all. He was a news- gatherer, commen-
tator and critic- Mr. Cooper fulfilled his triple functions with rare industry,
fidelity and sagacity and with a singular measure of public esteem. Obliged
by impaired health to resign his position, he has retained his interest in the
progress of local journalism, and to his exact and comprehensive knowledge
of local history its conductors are indebted for much valuable information.
Nor should the name of George H. Lane, for many years the city editor of the
Union, be ignored. He was a faithful worker and, although now retired from
active journalism, enjoys an enviable reputation for his past service.
In chronological sequence, the next paper started in Rochester, after the
Advertiser, was the Balance, by D. D. Stephenson, in January, 1828. It was
brought into being by the Anti-Masonic excitement. Its name was soon
changed into that of the Anti- Masonic Inqidrer, and Thurlow Weed and Sam-
uel Heron became its proprietors. In February, 1829, Mr. Heron sold his
interest to Daniel N. Sprague, and upon Mr. Weed's retirement on March
30th, 1830, Mr. Sprague assumed the entire ownership, and conducted it until
October 20th, 183 1, when Erastus Shepard transferred the Western Spectator
from Palmyra, consolidated it with the Inquirer, purchasing Mr. Sprague's
interest, and published the united paper in an enlarged form. In Novem-
ber, 1832, Alvah Strong became a partner, and the paper was published by
Shepard & Strong until it was merged, on the 1 8th of February, 1834, in
the National Republican, which, begun as a weekly by Sydney Smith in
1 83 1, became a daily in 1833, and was bought by Shepard & Strong at
the time already indicated. These gentlemen changed the name of their
weekly to the Monroe Democrat and began the publication of the Roch-
ester Daily Democrat, which has since been continued. The Anti-Masonic
The Press. 351
Inquirer was very famous in its day ; its mission is still remembered viv-
idly by the older residents of Western New York, and it played a very
important part in the politics of the day. To it and the party of which
it was the organ, Mr. Weed gave his youthful fire and energy and achieved
a reputation which secured his invitation to Albany as editor of the Even-
ing Journal. The history of the Morgan abduction and the events which
succeeded it are narrated elsewhere in this work, and it is sufficient here
to simply allude to them, but it may be said, at this distance from their occur-
rence, that the fierce passions of the time, the family feuds, the public fury
which they stimulated, seem utterly disproportioned to the crime which, at
the most, is to be referred to the mistaken zeal of a few individuals. At the
present. time it would, of course, be impossible to build a powerful political
party upon such narrow foundations as those upon which the Anti-Masonic
party rested. It would have been impossible then had there been exigent
national issues of importance. The absence of these made it comparatively
easy for men of exceptional abiUty to create an organisation which had its
impulse only in perversions of fact and prejudices against a very innocent and
worthy fraternity, which has survived the tempest that well nigh over-
whelmed it, and which now numbers in its ranks thousands of the best cit-
izens of the country.
When the Rochester Democrat began its career the genesis of the Whig
party was also announced. That party, formed from the Anti- Masonic and
National Republican elements, was already making serious efforts to contest,
with the Albany regency, the control in state affairs, but it was not until four
years later that it obtained a decisive victory in the election of William H.
Seward as governor, a circumstance that was the forerunner of the national
triumph, in 1840, which elevated General Harrison to the presidency.. With
the onward sweep of the Whig party, the Rochester Democrat was promi-
nently and influentially identified. In 1836 George Dawson purchased a pro-
prietary interest, became the editor and so continued until 1839, when he dis-
posed of his interest to Shepard & Strong and removed to Detroit. In April,
1842, he returned to Rochester, purchased Mr. Shepard's interest and again
assumed the editorial management. He thus remained until November, 1846,
when he sold to Henry Cook and Samuel P. Allen, the firm ,name being
Strong, Cook & Allen, with Henry Cook as editor and Samuel P. Allen as as-
sociate, the latter succeeding as editor-in chief upon the death of Mr. Cook.
In December, 1857, '* absorbed the Rochester American, the new daily being
known as the Democrat & American, the weekly still retaining the name of the
Monroe Democrat. The Rochester American, which thus lost its separate
identity, was established December 23d, 1844, by Leonard W. Jerome and
Josiah M. Patterson, with Alexander Mann as editor. In July, 1845, Law-
rence R. Jerome was admitted to the business firm, and the paper was pub-
3S2 History of the City of Rochester.
lished by J. M. Patterson & Col until January ist, 1846, when it became the
exclusive property of the Jerome brothers. In September of the same year
Dr. Daniel Lee was associated with Mr. Mann in the editorial department, and
in 1847 Reuben D. Jones, now on the staff of the Democrat & Chronicle, be-
came also an editor. In 1856 and 1857 Chester P. Dewey was the editor-in-
chief The American, as the distinctive exponent of the American or " Know-
Nothing" party, was an able champion of the principles it represented, was
distinguished for its editorial talent, and had its fair share of prosperity. The
reason for its being ceased with the decadence of the party for which it stood,
and its absorption with the Democrat, then the^organ of the rapidly growing
Republican organisation, with which it affiliated upon the dissolution of
the Whig party, was the natural result of the political conditions that ob-
tained.
The various publications of the Democrat were continued by the firm of
Strong, Allen & Huntington, formed upon the union with the American, Sam-
uel P. Allen remaining as editor until April ist, 1864, when William S. King
& Co. became proprietors. D. D. S. Brown & Co. purchased ^e. Democrat on
January 1st, 1865, and Robert Carter was installed as managing editor. Mr.
Carter was in charge for the ensuing four years and was succeeded by Reuben
D. Jones, W. D. Storey, Rossiter Johnson and others, until the consolidation
with the Chronicle on the ist of December, 1870. A brief notice of the Chron-
icle is here in order. The Chronicle grew out of certain local disturbances in
the Republican party, and was established by Lewis Selye, representative in
Congress, in 1868, as a direct rival of the Democrat for the patronage of the
party. Charles S. Collins was the editor, and with him was a staff of bright
young journalists, including Isaac M. Gregory, William F. Peck and Henry
C. Daniels. It was the first representative in Rochester of that crisp and con-
densed style of modern journalism, which now prevails so largely; it attained a
large circulation and popularity. It was seen, however, that two Republican
morning papers in Rochester were unnecessary and were detrimental to each
other, and, the factional controversy being composed, measures were taken to
effect a consolidation. Accordingly Freeman Clarke, who succeeded Mr. Selye
in Congress, purchased the Chronicle, the proprietors of the Democrat — then
being D. D.. S. Brown, Nathan P. Pond and W. H. Mathews -^ retaining their
interest, and the two papers were joined in one, the first number of the Demo-
crat & Chronicle being issued December ist, 1870, with Stephen C. Hutchins,
late of the Albany Journal, as managing editor, and Isaac M. Gregory as as-
sociate editor. Of the publishing company known as the Rochester Printing
company, D. D. S. Brown was president, Nathan P. Pond secretary and L.
Ward Clarke treasurer. Since 1872 the officers have been ,W. H. Mathews,
president; Nathan P. Pond, secretary, and L. Ward Clarke, treasurer. The pres-
ent board of directors consists of L. Ward Clarke, Freeman Clarke, Nathan P.
Pond, W. H. Mathews and Charles E. Fitch.
The Press. 353
Since the consolidation, the career of the Democrat & Chronicle has been
one of uniform prosperity. It has a large editorial force and a very extended
circulation throughout Western New York. It is the only Republican morning
paper between Syracuse and Buffalo. It publishes daily, semi-weekly, weekly
and Sunday editions, and about the first of August will be issued as an eight-
page paper, metropolitan in size and in the variety of the news. In addition
to its news branch, it has one of the best appointed job offices in the state, un-
der the immediate supervision of Mr. Mathews. It is still Republican in its
political bias, but aims to be fair and independent in the discussion of all pub-
lic questions. Mr. Hutchins was managing editor until January, 1873, when
Joseph O'Connor, now of the Buffalo Courier, took charge until the fall of that
year. On the 13th of November, 1873, Charles E. Fitch, formerly editor of
the Syracuse Standard, was invited to the management and has since been con-
tinued therein. The present editorial force is as follows : Charles E. Fitch,
managing editor; Frank P. Smith, associate editor;, Henry C. Maine, news ed-
itor; Reuben D. Jones, corresponding editor; Fred C. Mortimer, telegraphic
editor; Ernest R. Willard, city editor; Frank L. Murray, assistant city editor;
John Dennis, jr., Henry T. Braman, Richard A. Searing, J. Henry Tholens and
Allen D. Willey, reporters, and Homer Rowell, commercial editor. Thomas
Gliddon, Thomas A. Raymond and W. Barron Williams are also editors of
special departments in the Sunday edition, which began publication July 29th.
1879. The office of the Democrat has been three times destroyed by fire, but
its issue has been intermitted but a single day, and that on March 17th, 1865,
occasioned by the flood of that year, which filled the basement containing the
engine and boiler and press-room with water.
Pursuing the plan adopted in regard to the Union &" Advertiser 1 allude to a
few of those who, either in a business or in an editorial capacity, have been iden-
tified with the Democrat and the journals which have been incorporated with it
during the fifty years of its being. Alvah Strong is now the oldest printer in
Rochester, and is probably more familiar than any one else with the rise and
progress. of the art in this section. He has been for, some years retired from
active business pursuits, but enjoys a serene old age, in the consciousness of a
life well spent in the service of God and his fellow-men, with unusual cause for
gratitude in the career of his children and with the cordial respect of the entire
community attending him. Next to that of Thurlow Weed, the name most
widely known as connected with the Rochester press is that of George Dawson.
After making his mark here, he was invited by Mr. Weed to a position in the
Albany Journal and remained with that paper until his death, a period of over
forty years. He soort obtained a proprietary interest and on the retirement of
Mr. Weed, in 1862, became the editor-in-chief, as which he remained with em-
inent success for several years, being recalled to it in 1880 after the resignation
of Charles E. Smith and only resigning a few months before his death, early
354 History of the City of Rochester.
in 1883. Mr. Dawson was a terse writer and a conscientious politician. His
advice to party leaders was highly esteemed and his life is a fitting illustration
of what industry, prudence and courtesy may achieve. Withal, he was an ar-
dent disciple of the "gentle Isaak Walton," and his articles upon trout and sal-
mon fishing, contributed to the Journal and afterward published in book form,
are piscatorial classics. Samuel P. Allen, whose death was chronicled but a
few years since, was a good example of the journalist of the old school, strong
in his party attachments, earnest in controversy and clear, but not ornate, in his
style. Before coming to Rochester he published the Republican at Geneseo,
to which he returned after various vicissitudes, and was part proprietor and ed-
itor thereof when he died. He held a number of public offices, the chief being
the collectorship of internal revenue for this district and the clerkship of the
state Senate. Leonard W. Jerome went from Rochester to New York, where
he has since become very prominent in financial and social circles, and is the
father-in-law of Lord Randolph Churchill, one of the leaders of the Conserva-
tive party in the British house of Commons. I wish the material were more
full for a biography of Alexander Mann, who was one of the best equipped and
most conscientious of Rochester journalists, but the data concerning him are
most meager and unsatisfactory. After leaving Rochester he was for some time
an editorial writer on the New York Times and highly regarded by Henry J.
Raymond, but he rapidly succumbed to pulmonary disease and died in Florida
many years since. His widow afterward married the late Isaac Hills, and his
son Parker Mann is a promising artist, now living in Nantucket. Chester P.
Dewey is a son of the late Professor Chester Dewey and has been a journalist
since his graduation from Williams college in 1846. He left Rochester when
the American ceased publication, and as editor of the New York Commercial
and the Brooklyn Union won an excellent standing among the journalists of the
metropolis. He is now with Orange Judd & Co. William S. King is a resi-
dent of Minneapolis and one of the best-known citizens of the Northwest.
He has been postmaster of the national house of Representatives and a repre-
sentative in Congress from Minnesota. Had Robert Carter's ambition been
equal to his acquirements he could have greatly distinguished himself as a man
of letters. As he was, without invidious discrimination, he was unquestion-
ably the man of the most varied scholarship and serviceable memory who has
ever adorned the press of Rochester ; Boston bred, he was the friend of Lowell
and Holmes and Longfellow and associated on terms of equality with all that
was best in the culture of the "modern Athens." He was a perfect cyclopedia
of information, there being no subject upon which he could not throw a flood
of light and had apparently exhausted. He was, during the latter years of his
life, one of the editors of Appleton's Nezv American Cyclopedia. Lewis Selye
was a man of rough manners, but of extraordinary energy. He filled various
local offices, and was, for one term, a member of Congress. He was especially
The Press. 355
proud of the Chronicle and the brilliant corps of editors who conducted it, and,
to the end, regretted its discontinuance. He died about two years ago, being
considerably over seventy years of age. Freeman Clarke, after a life prominent
both in business and in political circles, is still a resident of our city. He is re-
garded as one of the best financial authorities in the country. He has been a
presidential elector, member of the constitutional convention of 1867, repre-
sentative in Congress, for three terms, and controller of the currency. Some
years since he sold the major part of his stock in the Democrat & Chronicle to
his son, L, Ward Clarke. Stephen C. Hutchins was an exceedingly industrious
journalist. Coming to Rochester with a thorough training on the Albany Jour-
nal, his executive ability was of essential service to the consolidated papers of
which he had the editorial control. He infused his own energy into every col-
umn and assured success from the start. Returning to Albany, he was for five
years editor of the Argus, then contributed to the editorial page of the Express,
and at the time of his death, early in 1883, was employed upon Osgood & Co.'s
magnificent work The Public Service of the State of New York. Mr. Hutchins
also compiled several editions of the Civil List and was generally recognised
as one of the best-informed men of his day upon the history of this state from
the earliest colonial times to the present. He was especially known as an en-
thusiastic advocate of the primacy of the Dutch in the evolution of the civil
and religious liberties of the American continent.
Among others also who may be mentioned in connection with the Demo-
crat & Chronicle are Francis S. Rew, for many years editor of the Rochester
Express ; Charles S. Collins, now chief editorial writer of the Troy Times ;
Henry C. Daniels, late local editor of the Rochester Sunday Times ; William
F. Peck, afterward editor of the Sunday Times and the Sunday Tribune, and
now the editor of this volume ; Isaac M. Gregory, with a national reputation
as the " Current Topics " man of the Democrat & Chronicle, who, since leaving
here in 1878, has been on the editorial staff of the Buffalo Express, editor of
the Elmira Free Press, and is now editor-in-chief of the New York Graphic;
Rossiter Johnson, the editor oi Little Classics; W. D. Storey, of Santa Cruz,
California; John H. Young, who went from here to the Detroit Tribune;
Joseph O'Connor, whose journalistic career comprehends service on the Indian-
apolis Sentinel and the New York World, and who is now the accomplished
editor of the Buffalo Courier ; William A. Croffut, well-known as poet, wit and
literateur, author of the Bourbon Ballads in the New York Tribune ; Charles
A. Dewey, M. D., of this city; Charles E. Caldwell, of brilliant promise, who
died in 1865 ; Henry F. Keenan, of the Indianapolis Sentinel, Chicago Times,
Philadelphia Times, Philadelphia Press, and now editor of a paper in Wilkes-
barre, a very bright journalist ; Rev. Joseph A. Ely ; Jacob A. Hoekstra, now
city editor of the Rochester Morning Herald; Thomas J. Neville, clerk of the
executive board ; George W. Elliott, with H. H. Warner & Co. ; and Edward
356 History of the City of Rochester.
L. Adams, for several years city editor of the Democrat & Chronicle and now
editor-in-chief of the Elmira Advertiser. Among correspondents and special
contributors may be mentioned the Rev. Washington Frothingham ("Macau-
lay"), Sidney Andrews and Colonel Richard J. Hinton, Washington corre-
spondents ; Rev. F. F. Ellinwood, D. D., Myron G. Peck, John Mcintosh,
Judge E. Darwin Smith, Prof. S. S. Cutting, Edwin Scrantom, E. Peshine
Smith, Prof Chester Dewey and President Anderson.
Pursuing the chronological order heretofore followed, reserving the group-
ing of certain publications in distinctive classifications, a number of papers,
more or less ephemeral, are here to be notedt The Craftsman, a Masonic
journal, begun in 1828, by E. T. Roberts, was moved, after a single year, to
Albany, and soon afterward died. In 1828, also, Peter Cherry established a
literary paper called the Western Wanderer, which soon passed into the hands
of Edwin Scrantom, who changed the name to the Rochester Gent, and issued
it until 1833, when he sold it to John Dennis ; in 1834 it became the property
of Shepard & Strong and was discontinued by Strong & Dawson in 1843.
Shortly before his death Mr. Scrantom attempted to revive the Gem, but his
effort was unsuccessful and was abandoned after one or two numbers. The
Spirit of the Age, semi-monthly, was published in 1830 by Ames & Barnum,
and the Rochester Morning Courier in the same year by E. J. Roberts. The
Rochester Mirror -was issued in 1832 by Edwin Scrantom, with Dr. Codery
Holstein as editor. The Age was also issued during this year. The Botanist
had a brief existence in 1833. In 1834 the Rights of Man, a semi-weekly,
was published by the Anti-Slavery society. Dr. Reid editor. ■ In 1838-39 Mc-
Kenzie's Gazette was published by Alexander McKenzie. The Daily Sun
was published a few months in 1840 by Alfred Oakley, and the Rochester
Daily Whig, by William A. Wells, was a campaign paper during the same
year. In 1841 the American Citizen was published here and at Perry, Wyo-
ming county, by Gen. William L. ChapHn, the famous abolitionist. In 1841, also,
was started and published for a number of years, the Watchman, by Delazon
Smith. It was a bold and uncompromising champion of atheism and assailed
the Christian religion violently. Smith subsequently made quite a figure in
politics and was sent by President Tyler as minister to Ecuador. The Jeffer-
sonian was a daily publication by Thomas L. Nichols in 1842, E. S. Watson,
editor. The Evening Gazette was published in the same year by R. L. B. Clark, a
brother of " Grace Greenwood." E. S. Watson published the Rochester Herald
as a daily in 1 844, and the Clay Bugle was published as a campaign paper
from the Democrat office. The Temperance Journal ^2& published a short time
in 1846. The Genesee Olio, a literary paper, was published in 1847 by Frank-
lin Courdray, as also was the Star of Temperance by Mr. Merrill, as an organ
of the Sons of Temperance, then in the plenitude of their power and influence.
The Youth's Temperance Banner, monthly, was published by the committee of
The Press. . 357
the Youth's Temperance society, in 1848, and the Medical Truth-Teller, A&-
voted to the Thomsonian practice, by Dr. Justin Gates, during the same year.
C. H. Sedgwick published the Washingtonian in 1848, and, in the following
year, the Rochester Germania, the Groninge Courant, the Christian Sentinel
and Brewster's Insurance Reporter, all of which were exceedingly short-lived.
The North Star, afterward Frederick Douglass s Paper, was established in 1848,
as a weekly organ of the Abolitionists and as such had a national reputation.
Some of Mr. Douglass's best work, as a champion of the anti-slavery cause,
was done on this paper. It was discontinued in i860 The Rochester Daily
Magnet v/3iS published in 1849 by Lawrence & Winants, C. H- McDonald &
Co., proprietors, and discontinued in 1850. The latter year witnessed the
birth and death of the Investigator, the Annunciator, the Cygnet, the Flag of
Freedom and the Youth's Instructor. The Evening News was issued for a. few
months in 1852 by R. Chamberlain & Co., ■6.nA\!ac National Reformer was also
published a short time during the same year. Snow & IngersoU issued the
Rochester Daily Tribune in 1855-56, and in the latter year John N: IngersoU
published a campaign paper called the Rochester Daily Free Press. C. H.
McDonnell issued the Mercantile Journal m 1856; and in 1858 the Evening
American, a campaign paper, was published by A. H. St. Germain. The New
York Eclectic Medical and Surgical Journal -wa^s 'puhWshe.d rnonthly in 1853
and 1854 by William W. Hadley, M. D. The Children's Friend, a monthly,
was issued from 1851 until 1854 inclusive by O. R. L. Crozier. The Journal
of the Home was published from 1861 to 1869. The Daily Programme, a
theatrical advertising sheet, with some reading matter, was published by George
M. Elwood in 1868 and 1869. The Mtcsical Times, a monthly, was issued by
J. P. Shaw from 1870 to 1874. Woman and Her Work, with Mrs. E. S. Jen-
nings as editor, was an organ of the Woman's Christian association in 1872,
and the Helper's Friend, by the same editor, appeared in 1873. The Arrnor-
^frtnT was started June 15th, 1876, as a monthly publication, by the Young
Men's Christian association in its interests of the churches of Rochester; it was
discontinued in 1879. The Herald of the Morniitg was published by N. H.
Barbour in 1878 and 1879. In the spring of 1882 a syndicate of bright
young journalists, Edgar O. Odson, Nathan B. Heath, now city editor of the Pitts-
burg Times, Charles P. Woodruff, now of the Rochester Union, David Healy,
member of Assembly in 1883, and one or two others, started the Evening
Telegram and continued its publication about three months, but insufficient
capital and the fact that the ground was fully occupied caused its suspension.
It also was independent, with Republican leanings. The Redmond brothers,
well known journalists of the city, published the Saturday Evening Journal
during a portion of 1882 and 1883.
In 1859 the third of the four principal English dailies was started in a very
unpretentious way. liarly in the autumn of that year Charles W. Hebard, who
35 8 History of the City of Rochester.
had been in business as a marble-cutter, but who had considerable literary abil-
ity, and a decided taste for journalism, began the publication of a small evening
paper called the Times, the name of which was soon changed to the Evening
Express, which was devoted to the interests of the workingmen and sold for
one cent a copy. It had a fair field and its success was immediate. Mr. Heb-
ard soon associated with himself Clark D. Tracy, as business manager, and
William H. Beach, a practical printer, to superintend the composition depart-
ment and the job office which was attached to the concern. Under these
auspices and at the price mentioned, the Express continued to be published
until April, i860, when Francis ,S. Rew, an experienced journalist, who had been
a legislative reporter on the Albany Journal and, for some twelve years, on
the editorial staff of the Democrat, was admitted as a partner and installed as
editor-in-chief The paper was enlarged, new type procured, the price raised
to two cents a copy, and it became Republican in its tone, earnestly advocating
the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency. During the war the Express
was admitted to membership with the New York Press association, received
the dispatches of that corporation, and became recognised as an enterprising
and influential newspaper. In 1861 William J. Fowler became a member of
the firm and a political writer for the-columns of the paper. In 1865 A. Car-
ter Wilder, who had previously been the representative in Congress from Kan-
sas and who afterward became mayor of Rochester, bought, with his brother D.
Webster Wilder, now a prominent journalist in Kansas, a one-half interest.
During a portion of 1867 the Express published a morning as well as an even-
ing edition, being inspired thereto by factional disturbance within the Repub-
lican party, and the promise of assistance from local politicians, the promise, as
is usual in such cases, being wholly unredeemed. The expense occasioned by
this enterprise was a serious embarrassment to the Express and contributed to
the financial difficulties with which it contended for years, but it continued to
be enterprising and retained a considerable hold upon the patronage of the Re-
publican party and citizens generally. It was always distinguished for its neat
and tasteful typographical appearance. After the Wilders withdrew, Tracy &
Rew continued publication until 1874, when a stock company was organised,
consisting of Clark D. Tracy, Francis S. Rew, George H. Ellwanger and Wil-
liam C. Crum. Mr. Rew remained as editor-in-chief, Mr. Ellwanger beca'me
managing editor, and the local staff was enlarged and strengthened, John M.
Brooks soon being announced as city editor. Mr. Brooks subsequently became
city editor of the Union &" Advertiser, and died some four years ago, in the
service of that paper. Mr. Crum's connection with the paper was not of long
continuance, his stock being bought by Mr. Ellwanger. On the 2d of June,
1882, the property and franchises of the Express having been sold, a stock com-
pany was formed, with the following gentlemen as trustees: E. Kirke Hart,
George Ellwanger, Daniel T. Hunt, William D. Ellwanger and Joseph M, Cor-
The Press. 359
nell. The name was changed to the Post-Express and Daniel T. Hunt was
made business manager, with the title of secretary and treasurer. Mr. Rew re-
tired from the editorship, after an industrious service of twenty-two years, and
is now upon the staff of the Oakland (Cal.) Daily Tribune. George H. EU-
wanger was made managing editor, and shortly afterward Albert P. Blair, now
editor of the Saratogian, was engaged as principal editorial writer. In the
summer of 1882 Mr. Ellwanger retired and the staff was reorganised with
George T. Lanigan, late of the editorial staff of the New York World, as edi-
tor-in-chief The present editorial force is constituted as follows: George T.
Lanigan, editor-in-chief; Isaac D. Marshall, managing editor; George S. Crit-
tenden, news editor; William H. Samson, commercial editor; William M. But-
ler, Edward Angevine, William H. Lewis, William A. Whitelocke and Frank L.
Hughes, reporters.
The youngest of the English dailies in the city is the Morning Herald,
which made its first appearance on the 5th of August, 1879. It was started
and has since been conducted by a stock company, composed principally of
men experienced in the newspaper business who have, from the first, been
actively engaged in the several departments of the paper. At the organisa-
tion of the company and staff of the Morning Herald, Samuel D. Lee was
elected president ; Frank T. Skinner, secretary and treasurer ; Samuel H.
Lowe, formerly of the editorial staff of the Express, editor-in-chief; Samuel
D. Lee, managing editor ; and C. Smith Benjamin, for a number of years city
editor of the Express, city editor. Mr. Benjamin retired from the paper about
three months after it was started, and Jacob A. Hoekstra, formerly of the
Democrat & Chronicle and more recently associate editor of the Buffalo Courier,
became the city editor. The present staff embraces, in addition to the names
given, the following reporters : J. W. Stanley, Irving Washington, J. W. Dick-
inson, F. R. Swift and Edward E. Tucker. For about two years and a half
the Morning Herald ''N^.z published in Smith's arcade under many disadvantages,
resulting from the unsuitableness of its quarters for its increasing business. In
March, 1882, the offices and the machinery of the establishment were removed
to the building now occupied by them on Exchange street, which, with the
exception of the ground floor, had been specially fitted up for the use of the
Herald. About the time of its removal it made arrangements for the purchase
of a Scott perfecting press, and on the 2d day of the ensuing September it was
printed from the new press built expressly for its use. The Herald claims to
be independent in its politics, although leaning rather, to the Republican side.
Its financial success seems to be well assured. It publishes a weekly edition
and has recently enlarged to an eight-page form. Since the establishment of
the Herald all the English dailies have, from time to time, reduced their price,
and, although they all print fully as much matter as papers of other cities cor-
responding in size and importance to Rochester, they are sold at the uniform
36o History of the City of Rochester.
price of two cents a copy, or five dollars a year. So far as I am informed, all
have thus far experienced only the best results from the lowering of their price,
although, of course, the policy is yet somewhat experimental and may result
in " the survival of the fittest." With the cheapness of white paper, however,
and the excellent advertising patronage, of which Rochester is the center, there
should be a good field for all of the existing dailies.
The Sunday papers have become a prominent feature of Rochester journal-
ism. I cannot, in this connection, discuss the ethics of this species of journalism.
Under the stimulus of the time it exists and will continue to exist, and the chief
desire of good citizens, as well as that of its conductors, should be that it may
be conformed to pure and exalted standards and thus discourage those sensa-
tional and corrupting Sunday publications which disgrace too many American
citizens. Happily, it is a pleasure to speak in high terms of Rochester in this
regard. Its Sunday papers are enterprising, but not demoralising. One prom-
inent Sunday journal, after an honorable career, checkered, however, by many
vicissitudes, died about two years ago. After the union of the Chronicle with
the Democrat, Charles S. Collins, who had been the editor of the first- mentioned
paper, published and edited the News Letter, after which he went to Troy, and
the paper was followed by the Sunday Times, under the successive partnerships
of William S. Foster & Co.; Hynes, Foster & Co.; Hynes, Daniels & Co.,
Daniels & Peck, and Daniels & Phillips. In 1878 it passed, into the hands of
Cyrus D. Phillips and Abraham E. WoUf, and its name was changed to the
Sunday Tribune ; it soon passed wholly into the hands of A. E. Wollf, then
into that of Clifton & Marshall, after which Asa T. Soule owned it, selling to
Flannery & Hill. It was the exclusive property of Mr. Flannery when it was
discontinued in 1882. The Sunday Morning Herald, which is distinct from
the daily, was started December 3d, 1876, by Barber & lienjamin. It is now
the property of Barber & Luckey, with Joseph L. Luckey as editor. The
Herald is an eight-page paper, independent in politics, well edited and has .a
large circulation and deserved prosperity. The Democrat & Chronicle, as al-
ready noted, began the publication of a Sunday edition July 29th, 1879. The
Sunday Truth, now nearly two years old, is a bright and entertaining paper,
edited with fairness and ability by Hume H. Cale, and is especially devoted to
the interests of labor reform. It is frank and fearless in its utterances, clean in
its style, and is held in well deserved esteem by the class to which it is partic-
ularly addressed.
German journalism in Rochester dates from 1848, when the Allgemeine Han-
delsblatt had a brief existence. The Anzeiger des Nordens, weekly and tri-
weekly, was established in 1852 by Kramer & Felix, with Lewis Hurz as
editor. It afterward became the property of L. Mailings and was abandoned
in 1 86 1. The Rochester Beobachter — the first German paper to assume per-
manency— was commenced as a weekly April loth, 1852, under the name of
The Press. 361
Beobachter am Genesee. It was published as a weekly by H. Blauw and JH.
G. Haass. Its editor was Rev. Mr. Haass, brother of H. G. Haass. In 1854
Mr. Haass became its proprietor and issued it as a weekly. In September,
1855, Adolph Nolte became editor of the paper and, in 1856, proprietor.
Two years afterward it was issued as a tri-weekly under the name of the
Rochester Beobachter, and in \Z6\- it was published as a daily, a weekly
being also issued from the same office. In 1873 it was greatly enlarged and
improved. It was uniformly Republican in politics. On the first of February,
1883, ^ consolidation was effected with ^^ Abend- Post, which came into exist-
ence in 1882, as an independent paper, with Julius Stoll as proprietor and
Herman Pfafflin as editor, the paper now being known as the Abend Post und
Beobachter. Messrs. Pfafflin and Nolte are the editors. It is independent in
its politics, with Republican tendencies. It is published every afternoon. There
are also issued from the same office, the Sontagsblatt, on Sunday, and the
Rochester Volksblatt weekly. Von Nah und Fern was a sprightly weekly
publication, from 1874 until 1878, by G. Feuchtinger, jr. The Rochester
Volksblatt was started as a Democratic daily, in 1853, by W. L. Kurtz, and,
after passing through several hands, cime into possession of Louis W. Brandt,
who continued it until his death in July, 188 1. It was carried on by his
widow until May 1st, 1883, when it was bought by Edward H. Makk, a trained
journalist who had had large experience in newspaper work in other cities.
Dr. Makk conducts it as an independent paper. There are connected with it
a weekly edition and a Sunday edition — the Sunday Journal. The Roch-
ester Haiisfreund was published as a weekly in 1873 by Charles E. Ockelmann
& Co., Mr. Ockelmann being the editor and Mr. Feuchtinger printer. In
connection with the Haiisfreund there were a literary Sunday paper and the
Rochester Agriculturist, a monthly journal. None of these survived beyond
the year. The Sontag und Wochen-Blatt famous for its controversies with
Bishop McQuaid, was conducted by Frederick Donner, in 1878 and 1879.
It was a Roman Catholic paper. The Rochester Katholische Volkszeitung,
a weekly Roman Catholic journal, was established by Joseph Schneider in 1878
and is still published.
Rochester, the center of a rich farming section and with a national reputa-
tion for its achievements in horiculture and arboriculture, has been for years
the home of some of the best and most widely known agricultural papers in the
land. The Genesee Farmer, a weekly journal was established in 1830, by L.
Tucker & Co., and edited by Naaman Goodsell. In 1832 it was enlarged and
published monthly. Mr. Goodsell. about this time severed his connection and
started Goodsell' s Genesee Farmer. This soon went into the hands of Shepard
& Strong, who discontinued it. Mr. Tucker continued the Genesee Farmer,
under the editorial management of H. L. Stevens, then of Willis Gaylord, of
Otisco, Onondaga county, a man of singular taste and refinement, as well as
362 History of the City of Rochester.
of extensive agricultural information. During this period John J. Thomas
was the associate editor, on the ground. In 1839 Mr. Tucker removed his
paper to Albany and united it with the Ctiltivator. Coincident with this
change Elihu F. Marshall and Michael B. Bateham started the New Genesee
Farmer, with the latter as editor, an arrangement which was continued until
1841, when Henry Coleman became editor and eventually owner of the estab-
lishment. In 1842 Charles F. Crosman purchased the paper and disposed of
one-half thereof to Mr. Shepard. It was issued by Crosman & Shepard until
1844, when it became the property of Benjamin F. Smith and James P. Fogg.
In 1845 Daniel D. T .Moore, afterward mayor of Rochester, became the pro-
prietor, and Dr. Daniel Lee editor, with Patrick Barry — who had, in connec-
tion with George Ellwanger, laid the foundations of his immense nurseries,
some five years before — as conductor of the horicultural department. Mr.
Moore was succeeded in time by James Vick as proprietor, and later the paper
came into the proprietorship and editorial control of Joseph Harris, by whom
it was eventually sold to Orange Judd, who remove'd it to New York and con-
solidated it with the American Agriculturist, of which he was the owner.
Moore's Rural Neiv Yorker, still one of the most widely circulated of weekly
agricultural journals, was started here, in 1850, by D. D. T. Moore and was
issued from Rochester until 1868, when it was removed to New York and has
since hailed from that city. The Rural Home is entitled to be considered the
legitimate successor of the Genesee Farmer: On the removal of the last-named
paper to Albany, a monthly of a similar style,' entitled the American Farmer,
was continued by John Turner, who had been in the employment of Mr.. Tucker.
This was bought by John R. Garretsee, who, a year later, merged it with the
School Visitor and issued the combined paper as a semi-monthly under the
name of the American Farmer & School Visitor. In 1870 Mr. Garretsee sold
out to A. A. Hopkins who associated with himself Glezen F. Wilcox, and these
gentlemen, who had been co-editors on the Rural New Yorker, began publishing
the American Rural Home, a weekly journal, the object of which is indicated by
its title. In 1872 Mr. Wilcox disposed of his interest to Piatt C. Reynolds, and
the paper has since been published by Hopkins & Reynolds and by the Rural
Home company, which succeeded that firm, with these gentlemen as editors.
It has a large circulation and is highly esteemed by its patrons. The Fruit
Recorder &• Cottage Gardener, a weekly, was started in 1869 by A. M. Purdy,
editor and proprietor. In 1871 it was greatly enlarged. It is devoted exclu-
sively to fruit-growing, flowers and vegetables, and, in its special department,
is recognised as the leading authority in the country. It is now dated from
Palmyra, where Mr. Purdy resides, although printed by the Democrat &.
Chronicle office. Vick's Illustrated Monthly, in the interest of floriculture, was
begun early in 1878, by the late James Vick and is now in its seventh volume.
Charles W. Selye has been the editor in charge from the beginning. The Em-
The Press. 363
pire State Agrictiltnrist, monthly, began publication in 1880, with A. C. Allyn
as manager and John R. Garretsee as editor. It was sold in 1884 to M. H.
Disbrow, the present publisher. The Wool Grower & Stock Register, monthly,
was started in 1848, with T. P. Peters and D. D. T. Moore editors. In the follow-
ing year it was merged in the Rural New Yorker. Tyx^ Horticulturist, a monthly
publication begun elsewhere by the late Andrew J. Downing, was transferred
to Rochester in 1853, with Janles Vick as proprietor and Patrick Barry as ed-
itor. In the subsequent year it was removed to Philadelphia and the active
connection of Rochester parties with it ceased. The Rural Annual & Horti-
culturist Directory ^zs published by Joseph Harris from 1859 until 1867 in-
clusive.
Religious journalism in Rochester begins with the Observer, a semi-monthly,
first issued in 1827 by the Rev. Mr. Sill and printed by L. Tucker & Co. In
1828 it was published for Samuel Chipman by Elisha Loomis. In 1830 it was
printed by Albert G. Hall, and in 1832 was sold to Hoyt & Porter, who soon
transferred the subscription list to the New York Evangelist. The American
Revivalist Sf Rochester Observer was published in 1833 by N. C. Saxton. The
Family Journal & Christian Philanthropist was issued in 1834 by W. W. Van
Brunt, and the Liberal Advocate, a semi-monthly, appeared for a time during the
same year. In 1842 the Christian Guardian was published by Rev. T. Whit-
ney. The Voice of Truth & Glad Tidings of the Kingdom at Hand, a weekly
Second Advent paper, was started by Rev. Joseph Marsh, February ist, 1844.
In 1848 it was changed to the Advent Harbinger & Bible Advocate, and in 1855
to the Prophetic Expositor & Bible Advocate, and so continued until 1859,
when it ceased. The Genesee Evangelist was established in the spring of 1846
by Rev. John E. Robie, being the first religious weekly in the United States
published for one dollar a year. Samuel Chipman subsequently became the
editor, with John C. Merrell as publisher. Passing into the hands of R. W. Hill,
it became a semi-monthly and in 1859 was removed to New York. The West-
ern Luminary, a Universalist weekly paper, published here in 1848, was re-
moved to Buffalo. The Christian Offering was published for a short time in
1 847 by S. B. Shaw, as also was the Penny Preacher, by Erastus Shepard. The
Advent Review & Sunday Herald was published in 1850. The Earnest Chris-
tian & Golden Rule was started in Buffalo in 1 860 by its present editor and pro-
prietor, Rev. B. T. Roberts, and was transferred to this city, where it is still pub-
lished, in 1 884, The Free Methodist was published by Rev. Levi Wood in 1 868
and 1869. Our Church Work was started as a weekly, December 1st, 1877,
by the clergy of the Rochester parishes of the Protestant Episcopal church and
so continued until December 27th, 1879, when, in connection with the Orbit, a
monthly church paper published at Buffalo, it was merged in the Kalendar,
which is published here, is the official diocesan paper and is edited by a board
appointed by t;he bishop of Western New York. It is now in its fifth volume.
24
364 History of the City of Rochester.
The Exponent, a religious family weekly, was established by Rev. B. F.
McNeil in December, 1878. In March, 1880, it was bought by Rev. C.
Strong and in November 1881, Rev. E. Lansing Newman became the editor
and proprietor with Mr. Strong as corresponding editor. The Signet has
been published monthly, since 1879, by the Young People's Christian as-
sociation of the First Methodist Episcopal church, and the Lighthouse, by a
similar association of the Asbury Methodist church, is in its second volume.
The Occult World is a paper recently started in the interests of the Theosoph-
ical society and for the dissemination of mental literature. Mrs. Josephine Ca-
bles is the editor. The Casket is published by A. H. Nirdlinger & Co., monthly,
with Thomas Gliddon as editor. It is the principal publication in the United
States which makes the business of undertaking a specialty. The Industrial
School Advocate is a monthly of eight pages, published in the interest of the
Industrial School association. It was first issued in 1865, was edited until 1870
by Mrs. George T, Parker, and since then by Mrs. Seth H. Terry. It is printed
at the job office of the Democrat & Chronicle. The Hospital Review is a monthly
of sixteen pages issued in behalf of the Rochester City hospital. It is under
the direction of a publishing committee consisting of Mrs. Maltby Strong, Mrs.
N. T. Rochester, Mrs. Wm. H. Perkins and Mrs. M. M. Mathews. It was first
published by Wm. S. Falls August iSth, 1864, when the care of the sick and
wounded soldiers was a principal feature of hospital work. It then contained
but eight pages, but in January, 1865, it assumed and has since retained its
present proportions. Mrs. T. C. Arner was the first editor. She was succeeded
in 1 87 1 by Miss E. G. Mathews, who was followed in 1873 by Miss Frances J.
Hunger. Mrs. Seth H. Terry has acted as editor since March, 1876.
Labor Reform journalism deserves specific mention, and I shall endeavor to
sketch its history as concisely as possible, noting that it has been somewhat in-
timately connected with Sunday journalism, to which reference has already-
been made. The unavoidable omissions in that branch will here be made good
as far as possible. The Workingman s Advocate, a daily, was started in Roch-
ester, October 19th, 1839, and was the offspring of a strike among the journey-
men printers of the city. A press, type and other materials were purchased of
Delazon Smith by George T. Frost and Cornelius S. Underwood, and by them
placed at the disposal of the typographical association. The establishment was
committed to the care of Frost, Underwood & Falls and the editorial manage-
ment to Henry C. Frink, who, at the same time, discharged the duties of fore-
man in the book and job office of William Ailing. A weekly paper was also
issued from the same office. About April ist, 1840, it was purchased by James
Vick, jr., and George T. Frost, and published as the Evening Advocate. Mr.
Frost- afterward disposed of his interest to Alonzo Bennett, who continued it
about one year. It then passed into the hands of John I. Reilly & Co., and
was merged in the Evening Post. This firm continued the Post, in connection
The Press. 365
with a large weekly, called the Western New Yorker, until January, 1843, when
they came into the hands of Erastus Shepard, who discontinued them the en-
suing November. The National Reformer v/a.?, started in 1848, with George
G. Cooper as editor. It was devoted to land reform, homestead exemption,
the ten-hour system, etc., measures then advocated extensively. It was dis-
continued at the end of a year, the principal objects for which it contended hav-
ing received legislative sanction. The Daily Herald, in 1850, and the Daily
Times, its successor, already alluded to in connection with the Union £r Adver-
tiser, advocated the demands of the workingmen, during their e;xistence. The
Rochester Mechanic, monthly, was started in 1875 and continued through that
and the succeeding year by C. R. Tompkins & Co. Its object was to diffuse
a more extended knowledge of mechanics among the class who own and use
wood-working machinery. In the summer of 1877, at the time of the great
railroad strikes, John Mcintosh started a weekly paper called, the Striker. A
short time afterward it was merged in the Indepetident Worker, which was pub-
lished under the auspices of a stock company of which Leonard Henkle was
president and John Dowling was secretary, Mr. Mcintosh being the editor. It
was afterward edited by Charles W. Hebard, who was succeeded by Christo-
pher Kane. It died in November, 1878. In 1877, also, Edwin T. Marsh be-
gan the publication of the Trtte Blue as a literary journal, and so ran it for about
a year. For the year following, it was, as a weekly, an organ of the National
party. It was then enlarged to a ten-column paper under the name of the
True Blue & Sunday Call, but after about four months was discontinued. The
Liberty Bell was started in April, 1881, and ran as a weekly until November of
the same year. The Sun, started as a weekly by J. M. Deyo and continued
for a short time as a daily by Alfred Oakley, and the Star, by William W.
Malay, were also labor reform publications belonging to this period. The La-
borer's Advocate was begun as a weekly in the spring of 1882 by Coffee &
Webb, Webb subsequently selling his interest to Coffee, and Henry E. Leonard
acquiring a proprietary interest shortly afterward. Mr. Leonard disconnected
himself from the paper when the Telegram, with which he was associated,
started, and the paper passed into the possession of district number 44 of the
Knights of Labor, which sold it to David Healy, who conducted it until Jan-
uary, 1883. At that time it was bought by a stock association and Hume H.
Calc became editor. In December, 1882, it incorporated with itself the Sun-
day Morning Mail, which had been started the previous August by W. E.
Rathbun. It was published as the Laborer's Advocate Sf Sunday Mail, with
Mr. Cale as editor, when it was merged in the Sunday Truth.
I have thus reviewed, as fully as space would permit and as accurately as I
was enabled to do by my sources of information, the journalism of Rochester,
from its feeble beginning in 18 16 to its present magnificent proportions, and
have noted its continued expansion and increasing enterprise and influence.
366 History of the City of Rochester.
from the time when Augustine G, Dauby made his modest venture, with his
crude Ramage press, in the village of 300 inhabitants, until now, when, with
the swift and nimble fingers of Hoe and Scott and Bullock — those marvels of
modern mechanism — it reaches out from this fair city of over 100,000 people,
covers with its palm over ten counties in Western New York, and touches, every
day, the pulse of the world. I am aware that the sketch I have attempted must
be imperfect, for it is impossible to preserve the names of all the dead news-
papers, whose numbers are like those of the butterflies of summer, and their lives
as fleeting. To preserve the record of all these is like trying to decipher the
inscriptions in an ancient graveyard, some of which can be faintly traced, while
others are moss-covered, and still others have been gnawed into shapelessness
by the tooth of time. The mortality of newspapers is one of the saddest fea-
tures of the history of the press. ■ It represents so much of shattered hopes, of
wrecked ambitions and ruined fortunes ; but the press, to its devotees, is like
the coquette to her victims — it fascinates the newer train, unmindful of those
who have dared their fate and lost. Let us be grateful that so goodly a num-
ber here have conquered the adversities of the profession, and illustrate so well
the prosperities that may attend patient waiting and sustained endeavor. In
conclusion, I wish to express my obligations, not only for many of the facts,
but also for some of the expressions of this article to the very full and, in most
respects, trustworthy review of Rochester journalism contained in the History
of Monroe County, pubhshed by Everts, Ensign & Everts in 1877. I have
already acknowledged any indebtedness to that store-house of valuable data
contained in the papers of the late Edwin Scrantom.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
ROCHESTER JUDGES AND LAWYERS. 1
Early Days — The First Lawyer — ICrection of the County — liuilding of the First Courl-llousc —
Earliest Sessions of Court — Circuit-Riding — The Circuit Court — The Vice-Chancellor's Court —
The Court of Appeals — The Supreme Court and its Justices — The County Courts and Judges —
Special County Judges — The Surrogate's Court — Mayor's Court — District-Attorneys — The Roch-
ester Bar — A List of its Members.
A PRELIMINARY word as to the scope of this chapter seems to be requisite,
that the reader may be informed what it is intended to embrace and what
is by design omitted. And, first, it is «^/ contemplated to give a history of the
Rochester bar. That mode of treatment, which would by custom embrace a
biography of all its prominent members, with notices of the more important
1 This 'article was prepared by Mr. Frederick A. Whittlesey,
Judges and Lawyers. . 367
litigations in which they had been engaged, was forbidden as well by the limits
of the space and time accorded, as by the lack of reliable information as to the
facts in the lives of many of the more prominent whose biographies should be
included, and the difficulty of selecting from the names thus to be noticed.
Precluded by these reasons from the adoption of the ordinary method of treat-
ment, the compiler decided to give in its stead a sketch of the different courts
held in the city and the changes made in their structure and jurisdiction, with
a list of the judges and the dates of their appointment or election. In con-
nection with this are short notices of the various offices held by those of this
bar who have been on the bench either of the old Circuit or the old Supreme
court or of the court of Appeals and who are not now living or have retired
from professional pursuits. There is added a complete catalogue of the bar of
the city from the earliest settlement to the present year. This is therefore a
history of the Rochester bar in that sense only in which the record of admin-
istrations and rulers is a history of a nation. As that is, after all, the method
in which history is oftenest written, no apology is needed for the course here
adopted.
The year 18 12, in which the bridge across the Genesee river was completed,
and the One-hundred-acre tract was surveyed and mapped, is the period which
is generally recognised as the beginning of settlement of the locality now oc-
cupied by the city of Rochester. It was then a hamlet of small proportions,
with a single store and a post-office, which paid a revenue of three dollars and
forty-two cents for the first quarter of its existence. The settlement was not
promising in its beginnings. At the expiration of its third year of life it had but
3 3 1 inhabitants. From that date ( 1 8 1 5), however, it began to feel the tide of west-
ward settlement and the effects of the declaration of peace, and in three years more
even its population was trebled, whilst its business prosperity had increased in
larger proportions. As the first clergyman came, and the first newspaper was
published here in 1816, it may be confidently assumed that there were lawyers
in the community at or before that time. The attorney would naturally be
looked for in a population so thriving and so busy, and he is rarely slow in
availing himself of an opening which gives the least promise of employment.
Whether or not there was a demand for the services of the bar it is at least
certain that there was a supply, for we learn that very early, and probably
about 18 1 5, the pioneer lawyer appeared here in the person of John Mastick.
He had been located first at the settlement at the mouth of the Genesee river,
then known as Charlotteburgh, whither he had been attracted doubtless by a
belief in its future as a lake port. The increasing growth of the hatnlet at the
falls, however, caused his change of location and he was for a time the only
practitioner in his new residence, and indeed for all the territory now embraced
within the hmits of the county of Monroe. He died here about 1826, in which
year he was a trustee of the village. As there are two sides to every law-suit,
368 History of the City of Rochester.
it soon became obvious to the villagers that there was need of a second lawyer
to manage the previously unrepresented defendant in such litigation as the first
had initiated, and Hastings R. Bender appeared to supply that necessity. Of
his career here there are two dates which can be fixed with certainty, for in
May, 1 8 17, he is recorded as receiving an appointment of clerk of the board
of trustees which was chosen at the first election under, the charter of the vil-
lage of Rochesterville enacted by the legislature of that year. He was reelected
to the same position by the board of the year 1822, and some years thereafter
he removed to the West. Somewhat later than these two pioneer attorneys
came Roswell Babbitt, Joseph Spencer and Enog Pomeroy, the latter of whom
lived to an advanced age and afterward removed to the neighboring county of
Wayne, where he died many years ago. He was surrogate of the county from
1840 to 1844 and discharged the duties of that office with dignity and ability.
Prior to the erection of the county of Monroe (1821) the law business of
this locality was to a great extent of that petty nature of which justices of the
peace have jurisdiction, the small litigations of a small and poor community.
Such cases of larger importance for the determination of which a court of record
is the proper tribunal were of necessity tried at either Batavia or Canandaigua,
the. county seats of Genesee and Ontario counties respectively, in both of which
jurisdictions the village was situated, the Genesee river being the division line.
Under circumstances so unpropitious it was not to be expected that the mem-
bers of the bar would be tempted to choose this locaUty as a residence, unless
they should do so in the hope of a future growth which would necessitate the
establishment here of a court of larger jurisdiction and powers than the inferior
tribunals which were then in existence.
Those of them who settled here with that trust were not many years in see-
ing its realisation. It became evident to all the villagers and the neighboring
population that the convenience and well-being of all demanded the erection of
a new county, having its center at Rochester. The project encountered much
resistance from the counties sought to be reduced in territory, and in particular
from John C. Spencer, the assemblyman from Ontario. The manifest justice
of the project, however, overcame all opposition and on the 23d of February,
1 82 1, an act was passed erecting the county of Monroe with its present bound-
aries. Morris S. Miller, Robert S. Rose and Nathan Williams, the commis-
sioners therein designated, located the county buildings on a lot in the village
given for that purpose by the proprietors of the One-hundred-acre tract, and
on September 4th of that year the corner-stone of the court-house was laid.
In 181 3, when there were but three houses on the west side of the river, this
lot was cleared and sowed with wheat and afterward was used as a pasture down
to the year 1821. The old court-house yard was divided into two platforms —
the first on the level with West Main street, the other in the rear, raised some
six feet above the former and divided from it by the court-house and two wing
Judges and Lawyers. 369
walls which preserved the ground at a level with Fitzhugh street on the west.
The First Presbyterian church fronted this yard on the south, occupying the
ground now covered by the city hall. The court-house stood seventy- five feet
from the street and was constructed of blue stone quarried on the spot, with
trimmings of red sandstone taken from the river bank at the lower falls. It
was fifty-four by forty-four feet, with two stories and a high basement. Each
front had a projecting portico, ten feet in width, flanked at the east and west by
stone steps and with four fluted Ionic colums surmounted by an entablature
and crowned by a balustrade which was continued along the whole front. From
the center of the building arose an octagonal belfry terminating in a cupola.
The basement was used for a police office and clerk's office. The first floor
was divided into supervisors' and jury rooms, the former of which was also used
by the common council when the city charter was granted. The whole of the
second story was devoted to the court-room, with the bench on the north side.
The whole building was a very creditable specimen of a public edifice of those
days, both in its proportions and construction. A few years subsequent to the
completion of this building, Drs. Elwood and Coleman erected a small stone
office of the Doric order in front of the court-house and on the corner of West
Main and Fitzhugh streets, and Vincent and^Selah Mathews constructed a sim-
ilar building on the corner of Irving place and Main street, which they occu-
pied as a law office. The county subsequently obtained the former for the
office of the clerk, and a portion of the latter for the use of the surrogate, and
they continued to be so occupied until the erection of the present court house.
The first court of record ever held in the village was a session of the United
States district court on the 2ist of September, 1820, and presided over by
Judge Roger Skinner. There are no accessible records as to its sitting, but it
is difficult to conceive that two days were occupied in the disposal of the meager
business coming within its jurisdiction at that remote period and from a sparsely
settled agricultural region. The first judicial officers of the new county were :
Elisha B. Strong, first judge (the name by which the presiding justice was then
designated), Timothy Barnard, sen., Levi H. Clarke and John Bowman, associate
judges; Elisha Ely, surrogate, and Timothy Childs, district-attorney. The
latter gentleman was at the time a resident of Canandaigua, and his appoint-
ment was vehemently opposed by the local bar on the not unnatural ground
that it should have been made from their own members. Mr. Childs, however,
soon overcame any ill feeling arising from this source, and by his abilities justi-
fied the wisdom of the choice. He was twice elected as member of Assembly
from this county and was a representative in Congress from this district for
four terms, serving with great acceptance in both capacities. The first county
clerk was Nathaniel Rochester, and the first sheriff was James Seymour.
The first state court of record was held on the 8th day of May, 1821, in
the upper story of the tavern kept by A. Ensworth on the site of the present
370 History of the City of Rochester.
Powers block. The court-hou.se was completed in the following spring and the
first Circuit court was then held by Jonas Piatt, one of the justices of the old
Supreme court, as organised under the first constitution of the state, adopted
in 1777, under which the judges sat both in banc and at the circuit. In his
charge to the grand jury on this occasion the judge said : "The splendid edifice
in which we are is itself a monument of the enterprise and public spiirit of the
citizens of the new county of Monroe." This was the day of small things, for
the edifice in which these words were spoken was built at the total cost of
$8,000, and they were moreover entirely accurate, for that sum in those times
was great enough and hard enough to raise to be a monument of public spirit.
By the provisions of the state constitution which went into effect January ist,
1823, the Supreme court was remodeled, the number of its justices reduced
from five to three, who sat in banc, and eight circuits were constituted, in each
of vyhich a circuit judge was appointed who presided at all civil and criminal
trials in that court and had jurisdiction both in law and equity. No judge was
qualified to sit after the sixtieth year of his age. The county of Monroe was
included in the eighth circuit, together with the counties of Genesee (which
then embraced its present territory, together with that of Wyoming), Orleans,
Niagara, Erie, Chautauqua, Livingston, Allegany and Cattaraugus. The three
latter were afterward set. off" to the sixth circuit. The English custom of riding
•the circuit prevailed in the earlier years of the century and had not entirely
ceased at the erection of this county, in which for the first decade of its exist-
ence there are traces of the habit. Counsel eminent for their learning and elo-
quence accompanied the circuit judges in their progress through the district,
prepared to assist in the trial of the issues on the calendar. Whilst sometimes
retained beforehand, they were more often employed while the court was in
session, in which event they neccessarily relied solely upon the case prepared
for them by the local attorney who selected them. This practice was particularly
noticeable in the trial of the numerous cases arising out of the anti-Masonic
excitement, which for many months absorbed the larger portion of the time
of courts and juries and enlisted the best talent of the bar of this portion of the
state.
The judges appointed for this (8th) circuit under the constitution of 1822
were: i823,WilHam B. Rochester; 1826, Albert H. Tracy; 1826, John Birdsall;
1829, Addison Gardiner; 1838, John B. Skinner ; 1838, Nathan Dayton. The
first of these, Judge Rochester, resided at Angelica, at the time of his appoint-
ment, but shortly thereafter removed to this place. He resigned the judgeship
in 1826, on his appointment to the congress of Panama. He was in the same
year nominated for governor, but was defeated by De Witt Clinton. Afterward
being appointed to the presidency of the United States branch bank of Buffalo,
he removed to that city and was lost at sea in the wreck of the steamer Pulaski,
June, 1838. There was a bitter strife over the appointment of his successor.
^7 JQy\di
iyP'LC^*'
M^ A. F;ri.jr-d,,.,,n| i;u [yy
H. l,y [<-, .^
Judges and Lawyers. 371
Heman J. Redfield, of Batavia, was vehemently urged for the position, but
Gov. Clinton finally nominated Albert H. Tracy, of Buffalo, and this appoint-
ment was confirmed by the Senate, but was immediately declined by Mr. Tracy.
Moses Hayden and Ashley Sampson (who had been recently "first judge" of
Monroe county) were then successively nominated but were rejected by the
Senate, Finally, on April i8th, 1826, John Birdsall of Chautauqua was nomi-
nated and confirmed. Addison Gardiner of this city was nominated to succeed
Judge Birdsall by Gov. Throop, and the Senate then in session in the city of
New York as a court of errors was convened in special session there by procla-
mation on the 29th of September, 1829, and confirmed the nomination. This
selection met with universal approval from the people of this circuit, and was
more than justified by the admirable manner in which Judge Gardiner dis-
charged the duties of his office. No trial judge in this commonwealth has ever
surpassed him in the qualifications of temperament, legal knowledge and lucidity
of exposition which he carried to the bench. He served with the greatest
acceptance to both bar and litigants for nine years, resigning his office in 1838
and resuming practice. He was elected lieutenant-governor in 1844 and re-
elected to the same position in 1846, although Silas Wright, the candidate for
governor of his party, was defeated. During his first term the Senate was also
a court and he there discharged his judicial duties in the most admirable man-
ner. He resigned this office on his election as a judge of the court of Appeals
in June, 1847, ^t ^^^ ^'^^^ election under the new constitution of that year. He
served with the highest ability in that court the full term of eight years, and
declining the nomination of his party, which was equivalent to an election, he
retired from public life, refusing many, conspicuous positions of power which
were tendered to him. He passed the remainder of hjs life in this city, his
time being divided between the care of his suburban farm and the trial of
the many and important cases referred to his decision by the courts. He died
here, June 5th, 1883.
John B. Skinner, of Wyoming, was appointed to fill the vacancy in the cir-
cuit court caused by the resignation of Judge Gardiner, but he declined the po-
sition and on the 23d of February, 1838, Nathan Dayton, of Lockport, received
the appointment. He was the last occupant of that bench, and the court was
abolished by the constitution of 1846 and replaced by the new system of courts
with elective judiciary. During the later years of the old circuit court it was
found that the business of.vthis district had increased to such an extent as to have
become incapable of dispatch by a single judge, and in 1839 a new officer was
created by the legislature for the 8th circuit (as it had been previously in
the city of New York), to whom, under the title of vice-chancellor, the equity
business of the circuit was transferred. In all the circuits (except the first and
eighth) the circuit judges continued to sit in both legal and equitable cases, dur-
ing the existence of the old system. There was much competition between
372 History of the City of Rochester.
the cities of Rochester and Buffalo in the selection of the new official, Millard
Fillmore being urged upon the governor as the choice of the latter, but after a
fortnight's deliberation and on April i6th, 1839, Frederick Whittlesey of this
city was appointed to the position. He had been a resident here since 1823,
had been city attorney, and representative in Congress from this district for two
successive terms from 1831 to 1835, ^nd had conducted with ability a large and
varied law practice. He entered upon the discharge of official duty with a vigor
and intensity of application which speedily cleared away the accumulations of
the calendar, and thenceforth kept fully up to the great demands upon the court,
arising from the large and increasing amount of business coming before it for
decision. The division of jurisdiction had been made none too soon, for the
time of both the vice-chancellor and circuit judge was wholly occupied by the
trial and determination of the cases arising in the two branches of procedure.
The constitution of 1846 put an end to the existence of this new court. Mi'.
Whittlesey was nominated by his (the Whig) party for judge of the court of Ap-
peals at the first election (June, 1847) of judicial officers under that constitution,
but was defeated, and immediately appointed by Gov. Young to the office of
justice of the (old) Supreme court in place of Judge Jewett, elected to the court
of Appeals. This was the last year of the old, supreme court of jurisdiction
and on July ist, 1848, it went out of .existence. With that date ended the pub-
lic life of Judge Whittlesey, although he was solicited to fill several positions,
among others that of commissioner of the civil code, all of which he declined,
and devoted his time mainly to the management and construction of railroads.
He died in this city, September 19th, 185 i.
The terms of the Supreme court, as constituted under the constitution of
1 82 1, had been held only in the cities of New York, Albany and Utica, but in
1841 the October term was by statute directed to be held in this city, and
thenceforth, and until its extinction, the court was held in those four cities only.
The court for the Correction ,of Errors held a term in the court-house here in
October, 1846, its members receiving much attention and hospitality from
prominent citizens.
The constitution of 1846 cither entirely abolished or greatly remodeled all
the courts then existing. In place of the court of lirrors, the court of Appeals
was constituted as the tribunal of last resort, composed of four elected judges
and four taken by rotation from the justices of the Supreme court. At the first
election of judges of the new court, Addison Gardiner, as before mentioned,
was chosen, who, after serving his full term of eight years, was succeeded, in
1856, by Samuel L. Selden of this city. Mr. Selden was born in Lyme, Con-
necticut, in October, 1800, and removed to this city in 1821, becoming a stu-
dent in the office of Addison Gardiner, with whom, after his admission to prac-
tice, he became a partner. He was appointed first judge of the Monroe Com-
mon Pleas in 1831, which he held for eight years; he held also the position of
Judges and Lawyers. 373
master and clerk of the court of Chancery. In 1847 he was nominated for the
office of justice of the Supreme court by his (the Democratic) party, which,
though in a hopeless minority in the district, succeeded in electing him by the
assistance of the votes of his political opponents, who were more concerned
that judicial capacity was obtained for the bench than that it should be occu-
pied by a political ally. The three candidates nominated with Judge Selden on
the party ticket were defeated. He served his full term in this capacity and
gave evidence of the poisession of such consummate judicial aptitude that in
185s he was elected judge of the court of Appeals in place of Judge Gardiner,
who declined reelection. Here he served with the most conspicuous ability
until, to the great regret of his brethren of the court, and the bar of the state,
the condition of his health induced him to resign his seat July .1st, 1862. He
passed the remainder of his life in retirement in this city, where he died Sep-
tember 20th, 1876.
Henry R. Selden was appointed to fill the vacancy caused by the resigna-
tion of his brother from the court of Appeals. He was born in 1805 at Lyme,
Conn., and came to this then village in 1825 and studied law in the office of
Gardiner & Selden, being admitted to practice in 1830. He began his profes-
sional life as partner of Simeon B. Jewett, of Clarkson, where they c^onducted a
large and successful practice for many years. He removed to this city in 1859,
having for some years previous had an office here. In 1851 he was ap-
pointed reporter of the court of Appeals, and after publishing- six volumes of
reports his term expired in 1854. In 1856 he was elected lieutenant-governor
of the state and served his full term of two years. Appointed in 1862 judge of
the court of Appeals, to fill a vacancy as above stated, he was afterward elected
for a full term, but resigned in January, 1865, and went to Europe in search of
his health, which had become seriously impaired. He returned in 1867, very
greatly improved by his journey, and resumed practice in connection with his
son-in-law, Theodore Bacon. In 1870 he was nominated by the Republican
party for the office of chief judge of the newly organised court of Appeals, but
failed of an election, and in 1879 was compelled by impaired health to relin-
quish all busiriess. He is followed in his retirement from professional life with
the love, admiration and respect of all his fellow- citizens, for those moral and
intellectual qualities which made him easily first among the lawyers of Western
New York.
In 1869 the court of Appeals was reorganised, and constituted with a chief
judge and six associates. At the first election for judges (1870) the Rochester
bar furnished the two opposing candidates for chief judge, Henry R. Selden
and Sanford E. Church, the latter of whom was chosen. Born in 1815, Mr.
Church early became a resident of Albion, where he speedily establishfed him-
self as an able practitioner. Although a member of a party which was in a
minority in the county of Orleans, he was in 1842 elected as member of As-
374 History of the City of Rochester.
sembly therefrom and was subsequently, in 1845, district-attorney. In 1850
he was elected lieutenant-governor, although his party candidate for governor
(Seymour) was defeated. In 1852 he was chosen to the same office for a sec-
ond term and in 1857 was elected comptroller of the state. Chosen as member
at large of the constitutional amendment convention of 1867, he was prominent
in the discussions elicited by the proposed amendment to the judiciary article
of the constitution, which were finally adopted by the convention and ratified
by the popular vote. This amendment established the new court of Appeals,
and, as has been above stated, he was in 1870 chosen as the first chief judge.
In this position he gave evidence of the possession of the highest judicial ability,
discharging his duty with an ease, readiness and vigor which was the admir-
ation of the bar. He was successful in infusing his associates with a portion of
his own energetic application to duty and thus was enabled to keep abreast
with the enormous business of that court. He was stricken in the midst of
these labors and died May 14th, 1880. For some years previous to his eleva-
tion to the bench he had an office and partners in this city, where he transacted
all his legal business and finally, in 1868, removed his family and became a
resident here. He afterward returned to Albion. In 1878 George F. Dan-
forth, of this city, was elected associate judge of the court of Appeals, a posi-
tion which he still holds.
In place of the old supreme court of judicature and the circuit court, the
constitution of 1846 established a new Supreme court, and the state was divided
into eight judicial districts, in each of which were four justices, who together held
general terms in each district and singly presided at circuit courts, etc. The
boundaries of the judicial districts were very similar to those of the old circuits,
but as Buffalo and Rochester had become too populous to be placed together,
as heretofore, in the same jurisdiction, Monroe county was judiciously severed
from the eighth and placed in the seventh judicial district, with Cayuga, Liv-
ingston, Ontario, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne and Yates counties. As a matter
of course one of the justices has always been a resident of this city, the busi-
ness transacted before the court and at chambers here being probably as great
as that of all the other counties combined, and hence a resident justice has been
rather a necessity than a convenience. The first justice, elected in 1847, was
Samuel L. Selden, who, after serving his term of eight years, was succeeded in
1856 by E. Darwin Smith, who held the position for twenty years continuously,
having been twice reelected, and who, having attained the constitutional limit-
ation of age, was succeeded in -1877 by George W. Rawson, who died in De-
cember of that year. To fill the vacancy thus occurring, the governor ap-
pointed James L. Angle, who served during the year 1878, at the end of which
he gave place to the present incumbent, Francis A. Macomber, chosen for a
full term at the election of that year. The constitution having been amended
in 1882, increasing the number of justices in the district to six, James L. Angle
Judges and Lawyers. 37s
was chosen at the election of 1883 to fill one of the new positions. The district
general terms were abolished by the same amendment which remodeled the
court of Appeals (1869), and in their place four departments were created for
the state and three justices selected by the governor to hold general terms in
each department. The fourth department was composed of the fifth, seventh
and eight districts, and two of its sessions have annually been held in this city.
Justice E. Darwin Smith was appointed to the general term and held this posi-
tion at the time of his retiracy from the bench in 1876. By the amendment
of 1882 the number of the departments was increased to five, and this and the
eighth districts are placed in the new fifth department. The appointments to
this department have been made of justices not resident in Rochester.
The jurisdiction next in importance to that of the old circuit and present
supreme courts is that of the county court, consisting at first of a first judge
and four associates. This was styled on its civil side the court of Common
Pleas, the criminal being known as the court of General Sessions of the Peace.
The judges of this court have always and of course been selected from residents
of the county, and as its sittings were much more frequent than those of the
circuit it attracted the larger share of the ordinary litigation of the county. It
was considered to be especially the court of the people, its bench being occu-
pied by judges, one or more of whom was certain to be an acquaintance if not
a neighbor of every litigant before the court The first judge was the great
man of the county and was selected with care from the higher ranks of the pro-
fession, and with the design of securing for the position not only legal learning
and experience, but broad common sense and knowledge of human nature.
The first judges of these courts under the old system were: 1821, Elisha B.
Strong; 1823, Ashley Sampson; 1826, Moses Chapin; 1831, Samuel L. Sel-
den ; 1837, Ashley Sampson; 1844, Patrick G. Buchan. Under the constitu-
tion of 1846 the county courts were remodeled and their jurisdiction somewhat
modified, the civil side of the court being held by a single judge, whilst in crim-
inal trials he is to be associated with two justices of the peace and they jointly
hold the court of sessions. Under this arrangement the following judges have
been elected by the voters of the county to preside in the Monroe county courts:
1847, Patrick G. Buchan; 185 i, Harvey Humphrey; 1855, George G. Munger;
1859, John C. Chumasero; 1863, John C. Chumasero; 1867, Jerome Fuller;
1 87 1, Jerome Fuller; 1877, William C. Rowley; 1883, John S. Morgan. Judge
Munger resigned in April, 1859, and Judge Chumasero was appointed in his
place and afterward elected, as above stated, for two full terms. The term of
oflSce of county judge, which was established at four years by the constitution,
was by amendment thereto, adopted 1869, increased to six years. Since 1864
officers have been elected in this county under a law passed pursuant to that
clause of the constitution which authorises the legislature to " provide for the
election of local officers, to discharge the duties of county judge and of surro-
376 History of the City of Rochester.
gate in cases of their inability or of a vacancy." Under this law George W.
Rawson was chosen at the elections of 1864, '6t, '70, Pierson B. Hulett at those
of 1873, 'y6, John S. Morgan at those of 1879, '82. The latter resigned on
being elected county judge in 1883, and Thomas Raines was appointed by the
governor to fill the vacancy.
The surrogate's court has continued without substantial change .since the
erection of the county to the present time, and the offige of surrogate has been
filled by the following: 1821, Elisha Ely; 1823, Orrin E. Gibbs; 1835, Morti-
mer F. Delano; 1840, Enos Pomeroy ; 1844, Mortimer F. Delano; 1845,
Simeon B. Jewett; 1847, Moses Sperry; 1851, Denton G. Shuart; 1855, Henry
P. Norton; 1859, Alfred G. Mudge; 1863, William P. Chase; 1867, W. Dean
Shuart, who was twice reelected, in 1871 and 1877, and succeeded by Joseph
A. Adlington, elected in 1883.
The court next in importance, although purely local to the city in character,
was the mayor's court of Rochester, which was created under the first city char-
ter and was much resorted to by litigants. It had both civil and criminal juris-
diction. Its presiding judge, styled "recorder," was a member of the common
council, of which body he officiated as chairman in the absence of the mayor, a
system admirably adapted for giving efficiency and coherence to the acts and
ordinances of the council which thus had a legal adviser always in attendance.
The recorders were : Isaac Hills, Selah Mathews, Washington Gibbons and
Ebenezer Griffin. The court was aboHshed in 1849. Timothy Childs was, as
has already been stated, the first district-attorney. His successors in that office
were as follows, but the dates of appointment of the earlier ones are not easily
ascertainable : Vincent Mathews, Hestor L. Stevens, Horace Gay, Abner Pratt,
Jasper W. Gilbert, Nicholas E. Paine; 1847, William S. Bishop; 1850, Martin
S. Newton; 1853, Edward A. Raymond; 1856, Calvin Huson, jr.; 1859, Joseph
A. Stull; 1862, William H. Bowman; 1865, Christopher C. Davison; 1868,
John M. Davy; 1871, '74, George Raines; 1877, '80, Edward B. Fenner; 1883,
Joseph W. Taylor.
The old court-house bridged over the period of the existence of the con-
stitution of 1 82 1. Within its walls had been held the sittings of the old Su-
preme court of 1777, the circuit courts, organised in 1821, had been held there,
and it witnessed the first sessions of the new courts provided for by the present
constitution of 1846. It had been found, however, quite inadequate to the in-
creasing business of this wealthy county, and in 1850 it was removed, and the
present building erected in its place, the corner-stone being laid in June of that
year. The county clerk's and surrogate's offices were moved into the new
edifice and the small buildings in its front, up to that time occupied by them,
were removed. Down to the year 1874 the new building was occupied both as
city hall and court-house, but at that date the city completed, and removed to,
its building in the rear, and since then the court-house has been occupied ex-
Judges and Lawyers. 377
clusively by the county. It has ah-eady become inadequate for the large and
increasing business there transacted and must shortly in its turn give place to
an edifice of greater capacity,' and more in accord with the requirements of the
public affairs of this growing and wealthy community. It will be none too
spacious if it is made double the size of its predecessor.
The bar which has had the conduct of the litigation of this city, and from
whose ranks the benches of the courts above noticed have been recruited, has
not been unlike in its composition the bars of the other cities in the state.
Like them it has had men of all degrees of capacity in its ranks, the very good
and the undeniably bad, with all the different grades of excellence or the lack
of it which are comprised between those two extremes. All this goes without
the saying, but at the same time it should be added that, whether through a
freak of fortune or owing to the superior abilities of its members of the first
rank, this bar makes an unparalleled record as a possessor of the higher judicial
honors of the state. In this matter the civil list shows that two of its members
had a seat on the old circuit court for twelve years of its existence, a longer
period than it was occupied by the residents of any other county in the circuit.
From it was selected the only vice-chancellor who ever sat as a separate court
in the district. It also furnished the only judge of the old Supreme court who
was ever appointed from any city of the state west of Utica. As to the court
of Appeals, the record is remarkable in the fact that from its ranks have been
nominated by one or the other of the great political parties no less than six of
its members (two of whom were twice so nominated) for a position on its bench,
and that there has been no time since the creation of the court in 1847 when
some one from its number has not either occupied or been entitled to occupy
a seat there. The only break in actual occupancy was a period of five years
after the resignation of Judge Henry R. Selden in 1865, when there was no mem-
ber of this bar in the permanent part of the court, but the time for which he was
chosen did not end until after the accession of Chief Judge Church in the newly
modeled court, and ever since that time there has been an uninterrupted occupa-
tion by some judge from this city of a seat on the bench of that court. No
other city of the state can produce a record so remarkable.
The following list embraces, it is believed, every name upon the roll of the
bar of this city. The years under which they are arranged are not meant to
indicate that those are the dates upon which the lawyers whose names are ap-
pended began practice here, but simply that at those periods the names first
appear in a directory or the persons are otherwise known to have been ad-
mitted to the bar : —
1 812-2 1. — John Mastick, Hastings R. Bender, Roswell Babbitt, Joseph
Spencer, Jesse Dane, Enos Pomeroy.
1821-27. — Daniel D. Barnard, Rufus Beach, Selleck Boughton, Moses
Chapin, Timothy Childs, Palmer Cleveland, John Dickson, Addison Gardiner,
378 History of the City of Rochester.
James H. Gregory, Ebenezer Griffin, Fletcher M. Haight, Isaac Hills, Anson
House, Harvey Humphrey, Richard C. Jones, Charles M. Lee, Vincent Math-
ews, Richard N. Morrison, William W. Murhford, Charles Perkins, Ashley
Sampson, Samuel L. Selden, Elisha B. Strong, Theodore F. Talbot, W. C. Van
Ness, Ephraim B. Wheeler, Frederick Whittlesey.
1834. —William S. Bishop, Patrick G. Buchan, D. K. Cartter, Isaac R.
Elwood, Simeon Ford, Horace Gay, Theodore B. Hamilton, Orlando Hastings,
E. Smith Lee, Thomas Lefiferts, D, C. Marsh, Selah Mathews, Samuel Miller,
Wm. R. Montgomery, George H. Mumford, John C. Nash, Henry E. Roch-
ester, E. Darwin Smith, Hestor L. Stevens, A. W. Stowe, Ariel Wentworth,
S. T. Wilder.
1838. — Graham, H. Chapin, John C. Chumasero, Carlos Cobb, Mortimer
F. Delano, James R. Doolittle, Joseph A. Eastman, Jasper W. Gilbert, Simon
H. Grant, Sanford M. Greene, Robert Haight, Alba Lathrop, Hiram Leonard,
Abner Pratt, E. Peshine Smith.
1 841. — Charles Ayrault, S. W. Budlong, Charles Lee Clarke, B. W. Clark,
Samuel B. Chase, John B. Cooley, John W. Dwindle, I. S. Fancher, Washing-
ton Gibbons, Joseph D. Husbands, Ethan A. Hopkins, Elisha Mather, James
M. Schermerhorn, E. T. Schenck, Hiram A. Tucker, Delos Wentworth, Henry
M. Ward.
1844. — Leonard Adams, Joel B. gennett, William Breck, Daniel Burroughs,
jr., James C. Campbell, George F. Danforth, George Dutton, jr., Alfred Ely,
Heman B. Ely, Lysander Farrar, Hiram Hatch, Thomas B. Husband, H^nry
Hunter, Nathan Huntington, Erastus Ide, Henry C. Ives, Hiram K. Jerome,
Leonard W. Jerome, Alexander Mann, Belden R. McAlpine, Thomas C. Mont-
gomery, Chauncey Nash, Martin S. Newton, John W. Osborn, Nicholas E.
Paine, Stephen M. Shurtliff, L. Ward Smith, Sanford J. Smith, John R. Stone,
William C. Storrs, John Thompson, jr., James S. Tryon, John C. Van Epps,
Horatio G. Warner, David L. White, Daniel Wood.
1845. — ^James Abrams, James L. Angle, Charles Billinghurst, Seymour
Boughton, Rufus L. B. Clark, Frederick L. Durand, Samuel B. Dwinelle, Almon
Gage, Christopher Jordan, George E. King, Daniel Marsh, Lewis H. Morgan,
Hiram C. Smith, James E. Squire.
1849. — Truman Abrams, Horace B. Adams, James Ames, Daniel B. Beach,
Oliver M. Benedict, Samuel S. Bowne, Charles A. Bowne, James S. Bush, Wil-
liam P. Chase, Charles H. Clark, James C. Cochrane, William F. Cogswell, Zimri
L. Davis, Frederick Delano, Alexander Ely, Lorenzo D. Ferry; Edward W.
Fitzhugh, Thomas Frothingham, Truman Hastings, Luther H. Hovey, Calvin
Huson, jr., D. Cameron Hyde, Kasimir P. Jervis, Byron D. McAlpine, Benja-
min G. Marvin, Alfred G. Mudge, Thaddeus S. Newell, Chauncey Perry, Charles
T. Porter, Edward A. Raymond, William A. Root, Henry Sargent, Henry R.
Selden, Ebenezer B. Shearman, Anson Sherwood, Eliphaz Trimmer, Chauncey
Tucker.
Judges and Lawyers. 379
1851.— William L. Brock, Philander M. Crandall, John B. Curtiss, Charles
R. Davis, Gideon Draper, jr., William A. Fitzhugh, Albert M. Hastings, Jarvis
M. Hatch, James G. Hills, Henry T. Johns, William H. McClure, John H. Mar-
tindale, George W. Miller, James M. Miller, George G. Munger, Sylvester H.
Packard, jr., William J. Parker, Charles H. Peirce, John N. Pomeroy, John L.
Requa, W. Dean Shuart, John W. Stebbins, Matthew G. Warner, jr., Frederick
A. Whittlesey.
1853- — John J. Bowen, Phederus Carter, Philip I. Clum, Charles P. Crosby,
Caleb B. Crumb, George Ely, George Gardner, Issachar Grosscup, George H.
Humphrey, Charles G. Loeber, John McConvill, George E. Mumford, George
Murphy, Oliver H. Palmer, George W. Rawson, George P. Townsend, Henry
E. White, Robert A. Wilson.
1855. — George B. Brand, Isaac S. Hobbie, Charles W. Littles, D. W. Sher-
wood, Wells Taylor, Seth H. Terry, John Van Voorhis, Albert G. Wheeler.
1857. — Theodore Bacon, Michael Canfield, Wm. R. Carpenter, Byron G.
Chappell, Andrew J. Ensign, Edward Harris, John H. Jeffres, G. W. Johnson,
ICdgar Knickerbocker, E. S. Llewellyn, A. G. Melvin, Wm. J. McPherson, George
T. Parker, Charles J. Powers, Charles K. Smith, Vincent M. Smith, T. Hart
Strong, Joseph A. Stull, Seymour G. Wilcox, Charles C. Willson.
1859. — William H. Andrews, Daniel L. Angle, Almon B. Benedict, Henry
C. Bloss, T. B. Clarkson, Johri Craig, Oscar Craig, S. C. Crittenden, George P.
Draper, James S. Garlock, Pierson B. Hulett, A. H. Jones, James W. Kerr,
David Laing, Chas. P. Landers, J. H. McDonald, John A. McGorray, B. G.
Marvin, Henry S. Redfield, George E. Ripsom, William C. Rowley, T. D.
Steele, J. W. Tompkins, George Truesdale, Quincy Van Voorhis, J. B. Vosburg,
H. H. Woodward.
1 86 1. — Charles S. Baker, Thomas K. Baker, Hiram S. Barker, J. D. Brown,
Wm. S. Campbell, D. L. Crittenden, Samuel J. Crooks, Joseph Deverell, Seth
W. Eldridge, De Witt C. Ellis, H. B. Ensworth, Philip Hamilton, Byron M.
Hanks, Frank W. Hastings, H. S. Hogoboom, K. J. Holmes, Walter Hurd,
Wm. S. Ingraham, Henry B. James, Francis A. Macomber, Abel Meeker, Wm.
Powell, D. P. Richardson, Wm. H. Rogers, Jesse Shepherd, Theron R. Strong,
Andrew J. Wilkin.
1863. — Charles P. Achilles, Wm. H. Bowman, Chas. H. Cherry, Martin
W. Cooke, Wm. Graebe, W. W. Hegeman, Francis J. Mather, Wm. F. Peck,
Charles F. Pond, James Rau, Archibald Servoss, W. S. Staples, George S.
Tuckerman.
1865. — Wm. M. Bates, George W. Blackmore, Lyman W. Briggs, Sanford
E. Church, James L. Clark, John M. Davy, C. C. Davison, J. Felix, C. Hap-
good, A. C. Hogoboom, Ralph O. Ives, J. L. Luckey, John C. O'Brien, Samuel
S. Partridge, O. H. Robinson, Richard H. Schooley, Wm. J. Sheridan, O. H.
Stevens, Homer Stull, Edward Webster, Wm. H. Webster, M. Van Voorhis.
25
380 History of the City of Rochester.
1S66.— C. W, Baker, O. M. Benedict, jr., M. Campbell, J. W. Kerr, H. H.
Mason, W. S. Oliver, E. S. Otis, Samuel Stevens, J. C. Wells, Henry Widner.
1867.— W. G. Ashby, E. Burke Collins, G. S. Cutting, D. C. Feely, John M.
Dunning, W. H. Fish, F. B. Hutchinson, John W. Kelly, Donald McNaugh-
ton, P. Mclntyre, George Raines.
1868.— A. S. Barton, Josiah H. Bissell, Milton H. Davis, C. G. Hapgood,
James S. Mathews, S. R. Robinson, Wm. H. Shepard.
1869.— John W. Deuel, Edward B. Fenner, L. J. Goddard, A Frank Max-
son, J. Breck Perkins, Edward Witherspoon.
1870. — Charles M. Allen, John Clark, jr., Ephraim C. Fish, J. E. Cheney,
jr., John E. Roe, J. P. Varnum, J. W. Wilson, L. M. Wooden.
1 87 1. — Henry N. Allen, J. Sherlock Andrews, James M. Angle, W. H.
Crouchen, Charles F. Dean, Charles H. Gorham, Daniel L. Johnston, W. H.
Mitchell, Milton W. Noyes, J. C. O'Regan, Jacob Spahn, D. D. Sully, A. D.
Walbridge.
1872. — Wm. A. Combs, Joseph N. Crane, J. R. Fanning, James A. Jor-
dan, John J. Palmer, James B. Pike, George W. Thomas, Wm. K. Townsend,
Thomas E. White, William H. Yerkes.
1873. — Wm. E. Edmonds, George W. Fisher, John S. Morgan, George F.
Jackson, Chas. J. McDowell, Edward F. Stilwell, George W. Sill, H. D. Tucker.
1874. — Nathaniel Foote, jr., William S. James, Merritt G. McKinney, Mar-
cus Michaels, Eugene H. Satterlee.
1B75. — Walter W. Adams, L. C. Benedict, Horace L. Bennett, George A.
Benton, S. D. Bentley, M. H. Briggs, S. J. Budlong, Paris G. Clark, Pomeroy
P. Dickinson, E. B. Fiske, L. H. Gillette, Richard H. Lansing, E. A. McMath,
T. P. O'Kelly, Wm. W. Webb, Richard E. White, Solomon Wile, Isaac A. Wile,
Byron C. Williams, Charles M. Williams.
1876. — George Armstrong, Wm. H. Baker, Wm. R. Carpenter, J. A. Col-
well, Henry R. Curtis, F. A. Hitchcock, Angus McDonald, W. H. Olmsted,
William H. St. John, John C. Simons, Henry J. Sullivan, Josiah Sullivan, S.
Wheeler, George F. Yeoman.
• 1877. — J. Aaron Adams, Joseph A. Adiington, John N. Beckley, Walter
Buell, Darius L. Covill, Edward O. Dowd, J. H. Hopkins, W. S. Hubbell,
Thomas A. Hungerford, W. Martin Jones, J. Horace McGuire, Heman W.
Morris, M. F. O'Dea, H. G. Pierce, W. G. Raines, T. F. Stark, Samuel H.
Torrey, George E. Warner, T. D. Wilkin, Wm. H. Whiting.
1878. — Louis A. Amsden, Frank M. Bottum, Wm. L. Brock, G. F. Bau-
sum, Frederick L. Churchill, J. Ewing Durand, Frank W. El wood, F. Hebard,
Marcus Hirschfield, Robert Jarrard, D. E. Parsons, Arthur C. Smith, J. T. Pin-
gree, Ivan Powers, H. J. Sampson, George B. Selden, W. H. Shuart, Herbert
L. Ward, C. E. Yale.
1879. — W. B. Crittenden, A. N. Fitch, G. W. Lamb, Edwin A. Medcalf,
The Secret Societies. 381
James H. Montgomery, W. F. Rampe, Edward M. Redmond, Joseph Welling,
Wni. E. Werner.
1 880. — James Briggs, John A. Burgess, Isaac W. Butts, P. Chamberlain,
jr., Fred H. Church, Walter S. Coffin, Adalbert Cronise, Henry G. Danforth,
J. Desmond, F'rank W. Dickinson, George D. Forsyth, frank M. Gofif, George
W. Hall, Henry J. Hetzel, Joseph S. Hunn, Wm. W. Jacobs, Bartholomew
Keeler, C. D. Kiehel, Henry M. McDonald, Samuel P. Moore, James B. Nellis,
Fred. P. Nutting, Wilber F. Osborn, Thos. G. Outerbridge, Thomas Raines,
C. B. Rebasz, S. L. Selden, Allen R. Sheffer, John G. Snell, G. C. Wolcott.
1 88 1. — Adoniram J. Abbott, John B. Abbott, John H. Bishop, Geo. M.
Cone, Wm. D. Ellwanger, Chas. C. Herrick, John H. Keefe, Edmund Lyon,
Spencer S. Markham, Frank W. Miller, William S. Servis, John M. Steele,
Holmes B. Stevens, Edward F. Turk, E. F. Wellington.
1882. — F H. Baker, Angus Cameron, E. S. Clarke, W. N. Cogswell, H.
W. Conklin, W. H. Davis, Edw. W. Hall, W- A. Hawthorn, ■ David Hays,
David Herron, Henry M. Hill, F. J. Hone, J. L. Hotchkiss, J. D. Lynn, E.
W. Maurer, W. A. Sternberg, H. J. Tuttle, Roy C. Webster, C. S. Wilbur,
Casterline Williams, John W. Wilson.
1883. — D. C. Barnum, J. A. Bernhard, Myron T. Bly, F. H. Bowlby,
Selden S. Brown, C. J. Browning, Ralph Butler, P. A. Costich, Raleigh Far-
rar, Seward French, William Johnson, C. H. Kingsbury, G. R. Losey, ,L. B.
Marcy, H. L. Osgood, Earl B. Putnam, A. J. Shaw, G. Fort Slocum, G. J.
Trcnaman, R. B. Wickes, Charles H. Wiltsie.
CHAPTER XXXVni.
THE SECRET SOCIETIES OF ROCHESTER.!
I'reemasonry in the Village — Institution of Wells Lodge in 1817 — Growth of the Order — History
of the Lodges, Chapters, Councils, etc. — Monroe Commandery — Its Drill Corps — Cyrene Com-
niandery — The Scottish Rite — Lodges of Perfection — Masonic Relief Association — The Odd FeU
lows — History of the Lodges of this City — The Good Work of the Order — The Knights of Pythias
— Ancient Order of United Workmen — Tlie Foresters — The Elks — Other Secret Societies.
THE pioneer settlers of Rochesterville (as this locality was first called) were
prominent in the introduction of Freemasonry into this section of the
Genesee valley. Early in 1817 Wells lodge, number 282, was instituted,
working under a charter from the grand lodge of the state of New York. This
lodge flourished for about eleven years, and then succumbed, with the other Ma-
1 This article on Freemasonry was prepared by Mr. Thomas Gliddon.
382 History of the City of Rochester.
sonic bodies of this locality, to the adverse elements of Anti- Masonry, which
broke out during the year 1829, and the name of Wells lodge became obsolete.
Its records are undoubtedly lost, but tradition gives us the names of Levi H.
Clark, William Neafus, William Cobb, Davis C. West, Samuel J. Andrews,
Glover Fenn, William Brewster and Abelard Reynolds as the principal mem-
bers and officers. From the same source we get the information that the as-
sembling place of the earliest of the secret society men was in the building
owned by Abelard Reynolds, on Buffalo (now' West Main) street, the site of
the Reynolds arcade.
The second step in the history of Freemasonry was the organisation of
Hamilton R. A. chapter, number 62. Of this body we have authentic inform-
ation, for luckily its records are intact. During the year 18 18 eleven breth-
ren, namely, Levi H. Clark, William Neafus, Chauncey Dean, William Cobb,
William Johnson, Solomon Close, Davis C. West, Samuel J. Andrews, Benja-
min Abel, Chauncey Cobb, Glover Fenn, members of Wells lodge, associated
together for procuring in the usual form legal authority to work in the capitular
rite. The papers were properly prepared, and at the annual convocation of
the Grand R. A. chapter at Albany, February 3d, 1819, the warrant was given
to Levi H. Clark, William Neafus and Chauncey Dean. The nearest chapters
established at that early date were located at Richmond, Geneva and Canan-
daigua in Ontario county, and LeRoy in Genesee county. For reasons not
stated, the convocations of Hamilton chapter were generally held during the
first years in the afternoons. The 17th of March, 18 19, was probably the first
distinguishing day to the citizens of the village, and therefore is memorable in
the annals of the fraternity. " Hamilton chapter and Wells lodge formed in
procession," is the quaint phraseology of Benjamin Austin, the secretary, " ac-
companied by the Rochester band of musick, and marched to the meeting-
house, where an oration was pronounced by our M. E. Comp. Levi H. Clark."
After the oration. Rev. Alanson Welton, P. H. P. of Richmond chapter, duly
installed . the officers elect of Hamilton chapter — Levi H. Clark, high priest;
William Cobb, king ; Chauncey Dean, scribe ; Benjamin Abel, captain of host ;
Davis C. West, principal sojourner ; Benjamin Austin, secretary ; William At-
kinson, treasurer. From this time onward the chapter continued its meetings,
but nothing of general interest in the record is observable till the death of
William Johnson is announced. He was present at the convocation held
August 4th, when he- acted as secretary /w tern., and jotted down in the min-
ute book the regular proceedings. He was the first Mason that had died in
the village, and doubtless the brethren of Wells lodge took occasion to attend
his obsequies in accordance with the time-honored custom of the fraternity.
Rev. Comfort Williams, the earliest resident Christian minister of Rochester,
had been attached to Hamilton chapter through exaltation February 1st,
1819 — Ebenezer Watts, William Brewster, Augustine G. Dauby, Benjamin
The Secret Societies. 383
Austin, Oliver Culver and Ira West being among the other candidates of that
day — and acted as an officer, but he did not remain long here. Jacob Gould,
Hamlet Scrantom, Charles J. Hill, Abelard Reynolds and Warham Whitney
are mentioned in quick succession as exalted R. A. Masons, and filled impor-
tant duties in the chapter.
In examining the early records of Hamilton chapter, we get occasional
glimpses of the cordiality existing between the companions and the brethren
of Wells lodge. Both bodies met in the same rooms, and, if changes were
desirable, a full discussion took place in lodge and chapter before accomplishing
anything. William Cobb, the second of the pioneers, died in the summer of
1 82 1. The next year Orlando Hastings, Burrage Smith and Jacob Howe are
among the newly admitted members, and a little later were added the names
of Rev. F. H. Cuming, Jonathan Child, Robert Martin, Bill Colby, Charles G.
Cumings, Jehiel Barnard and Elbert W. Scrantom. During 1827 and 1828
the adversaries of Freemasonry were gaining strength, especially throughout
Western New York, in consequence of the supposed abduction of Morgan by
prominent Masons residing within a radius of twenty or thirty miles of Roch-
ester, and, in view of the morbid condition of public sentiment, Hamilton
chapter voted to discontinue its meetings.
The introduction of the orders of Christian knighthood occurred in 1826,
and the chief instrumentalists were the men we have named above, who were
zealous in the work of the lodge and chapter. The first date in the original
record book relating to the organisation of Monroe encampment (old style) of
Knights Templars is June 14th, 1826, and "pursuant to a notice given," the
sir knights assembled in first regular conclave on the loth of July and com-
pleted the organisation by the election and appointment of the following:
Rev. Francis H. Cuming, grand commander ; Jonathan Child, generalissimo ;
Abelard Reynolds, captain-general ; Jacob Gould, prelate ; Edward Doyle,
treasurer ; Henry B. Williams, secretary ; Simeon P. Allcott, senior warden ;
Ebenezer Watts, junior warden; Charles G. Cumings, standard-bearer ; Joseph
Frazer, sword-bearer ; Charles C. Lathrop, warder ; Hezekiah Eldridge, cap-
tain of guard. Burrage Smith, James Truesdale, John Whitney and George
Fisher were the additional members present. The above-named officers were
publicly installed July 13th, 1826. The minute book contains this very brief
and quaint record : —
" Pursuant to previous arrangements the installation of the Monroe encampment
took place at the Episcopal church,' by the M. E. Grand Commander Nathan Beers,
assisted by Captain-General Beers and the grand prelate, the Rev. Mr. Gear, of the
Ithaca encampment."
Remarkable prosperity and unanimity attended the conclaves of this
knightly body, which had been legally warranted by the grand encampment
1 This was the original .St. Luke's church on Fitzhugh street, near the Erie canal, of which Rev.
F. H. Cuming was rector.
384 History of the City of Rochester.
of the state of New York as a subordinate, numbered 12, which has never been
changed, although at one time the early numbers were re-arranged for the en-
campments stationed in the eastern portion of the state. Members were added
from the prosperous class in the village, and really bright was the outlook for
the chivalrous Christian gentlemen thus banded together. Unfortunately "the
war between Masonry and Anti-Masonry" broke out in 1828, and fiercely did
the battle rage. The officers and members of Monroe encampment, number
12, on February 27th, 1829, rather than intensify the rancor, concluded to re-
turn their charter and abstain from their regular meetings. This action was
the practical disbanding of the Masonic bodies in Rochester, and for over six-
teen years the fraternity had no abiding place nor a chance to vindicate
itself from the attacks of wily politicians who were so noisy in denouncing
it as a "wicked institution." The changed feeling in the community, or rather
a more healthy tone concerning the fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons,
was the excuse in 1845 for reviving the institution in this city, which had grown
to such proportions as to reasonably assure the success of a good working
lodge, with the prospects of one or more offshoots within a reasonable length
of time.
Valley lodge was chartered at the annual communication of the grand lodge,
June 8th, 1846. Lyman B. Langworthy, a survivor of the membership
of old Wells lodge, was instrumental in getting together the brethren lo-
cated in the city for a preliminary consultation some time in 1845, ^"^
hoped to procure the old charter, and thus resuscitate the lodge of former days.
The archives of the grand lodge were examined for the original document, but
it could not be found. Hence the organisation under the new name, Valley
lodge, number 109. Continuously to the present time this lodge has pursued
its course, and all the time occupied a conspicuous place in the annals of the
craft, leading in numerical strength on the roll of the grand lodge, a position it
still holds. We append the list of past masters: Wm. A. Langworthy, 1845;
Samuel Richardson, 1845; Asahel S. Beers, 1846; Chas G. Cumings, 1847
-48; Nicholas E.Paine, 1849; Sylvester H. Packard, 1850; EbenezerT. Oat-
ley, 1851, 1854-59; Edward Whalen, 1852; Jacob Howe, 1853; Roswell H.
Smith, i860, 1866-70; John W. McElhinny, 1861-62; Solomon M. Benjamin,
1863-65, 1871 ; John Alexander, 1872, 1884; John M. Brown, 1873, 1875;
William C. Brown, 1874; Henry J. Durgin, 1876; William B. Mather, 1877;
JohnH. Bird, 1878, 1880; Fred. H. Beach, 1879; B. Frank La Salle, 1881-82;
John W. Merriam, 1883. Clifton C. Gifford was raised a M. M. in this' lodge
April 2d, 1855; at the same communication was elected secretary, and has con-
tinued to fill that office acceptably ever since — doubtless an unprecedented
case in Masonic history.
Yonnondio Lodge. — The success which marked the early years of Valley
lodge encouraged a few of the brethren to assume the burden of organising a
The Secret Societies. 385
new lodge early in the year 1 850. Consent was given (in accordance with
custom) to carry out the project by Valley lodge on the first of April, and
William Brewster, Chas. G. Cumings, Nicholas E. Paine, Wm. E. Lathrop,
Cornelius G. Palmer, Nathaniel Clark, Wm. F. Holmes, Lansing B. Swan and
Abram Karnes became the charter members, all of whom received demits
from the mother lodge for the purpose indicated. The course of events in this
lodge has not been dissimilar to the onward march of the elder lodge. Just at
present it enjoys distinction as having a special charity fund set apart by reso-
lution gf the lodge, and its finances are in the most satisfactory condition. The
past masters are: Nicholas E. PainCi 1851 ; William E. Lathrop, 1851-58;
Charles Vaill, 1859; William W. Brufif, 1860-61 ; Alvah M. Ostrander, 1862-
.64; William F. Holmes, 1865 ; Charles W. Watson, 1866; Henry B. Knapp,
1866-68; William S. Coon, 1869-71; James T. Southard, 1872; Fred. F.
Boorman, 1873; John Mitchell, 1874; David K. Cartter, 1875 ; Thomas L.
Turner, 1876-77 ; Henry M. Plant, 1878 ; Willard S. Bradt, 1879 ; John A.
Davi.s, 1880; William J. McKelvey, 1881 ;' Robert Salter, 1882; Alonzo D.
McMaster, jr., 1883; William H. Jones, 1884. Through the exertions of Wm.
H. Jones a grand reunion of Yonnondio lodge was held in the Masonic temple,
March i ith, 1884, when the third degree was worked in full by the fourteen
surviving past masters of this lodge, on five well-known young citizens, in the
presence of Deputy Grand Master William A. Brpdie, and D. D. G. M. Henry
C. Lathrop. At the close of the ceremonies the large assemblage of breth-
ren were marshaled into the banquet hall to a superb collation, and speeches
were made commemorative of the interesting event by William A. Brodie,
Samuel C. Pierce and Thomas Gliddon, May ist, 1884. Yonnondio lodge
reported 375 members.
Genesee Falls lodge was organised August 14th, i860, with the following
charter members : Wm. E. Lathrop, John F. Whitbeck, Charles Vaill, Wm. H.
Burtis, Hiram D. Vosburg, Fred. DeLano, A. B. Rapalje, John T. Fox, Oliver
Culver. At the annual communication of the grand lodge in June, 1861, Genesee
Falls lodge, number 507, was voted a charter and has enjoyed constant pros-
perity during all the succeeding yeans. The names of those who have served as
ma.ster are appended: William E. Lathrop, 1860-61; John F. Whitbeck, 1862,
1864; Hiram D. Vosburg, 1863; Jefifrey W. Vary, 1866; William Shelp, 1868;
L. J. W. Vary, 1870; George F. Loder, 1871; Everett C. Bradstreet, 1872;
Franklin S. Stebbins, 1873; Julius L. Townsend, 1874; Daniel T. Hunt, 1875;
Walter Liddell, 1876; William H Bosworth, 1877, 1884; Samuel C. Pierce,
1878; Varnum M. Colvin, 1879; W. Lincoln Sage, 33°, 1880; Thomas A.
Raymond, 1881; John H. Putnam, 1882; William H. Whiting, 1883. Of the
above, William Shelp served as district deputy grand master of this Masonic
district for two years, and George F. Loder for one year. W. Lincoln Sage,
33° (now residing in Boston), was respectively junior grand deacon, and grand
marshal on the stafifs of Grand Masters Anthony, Taylor and Flagler.
386 History of the City of Rochester.
Rochester lodge, number 660, was the result of the activity of the late Ed-
ward M. Smith, and was organised February i6th, 1867, with the following
charter members: John W. McElhinny, William Carson, E. Meigs Smith, Thomas
Leighton, Nicholas Tamblingson, Philander Cunningham, Harvey P. Lang-
worthy, Andrew J. Warner, Charles A. Gardiner, Levi S. Fulton, William H.
Moore, Samuel Oothout, Chauncey W. Clark, Russ Coats, B. Frank Enos,
Alexander Scott, James Wing, Vincent M. Smith, Daniel Richmond, Cornelius
R. Parsons, John McConvill, Samuel W. D. Moore, John Fisk, Lewis H. Dur-
land, William H. Crennell, George W. Stebbins, Jacob G. Maurer, David Up-
ton, R. K. Gould, Maurice Smith, James H. Kelly, Luther C. Spencer, Cyrus
Beardsley, John G. Baetzel. The past masters have been : John W. McElhinny,
1867-68; Wm. Carson, 1869; Roscius K. Gould, 1870; Wm. Carson, 1871;
Jacob G. Maurer, 1872; Edwin A. Loder, 1873; John E. Morey, 1874; Thos.
Brooks, 1875; Edwin B. Chapin, 1876; Daniel S. Benjamin, 1877; Frank
Taylor, 1878; Jno. W. Stebbins, 1879; Frank J. Craigie, 1880; Andrew J.
Hatch, 1881; Marcus Hirshfield, 1882; Frank E. Glen, 1883; James H.
Kelly, 1884.
This lodge had apartments, in conjunction with Cyrene commandery, Ionic
chapter and Germania lodge, in the old Union & Advertiser building on West
Main street. In the spring of 1878 these bodies abandoned the above quarters,
and for five years held their meetings in the Masonic temple on Exchange
street. During the summer of 1883 a new suite of rooms were fitted up in the
Cox building on East Main street, for Rochester lodge, Ionic chapter and
Cyrene commandery, and these bodies are now meeting in that place. B.
Frank Enos was elected secretary on the organisation of Rochester lodge, and
has continuously held the office to the present time. In numerical strength and
financial resources this lodge makes a most splendid showing, and has a remark-
able record in the archives of the grand lodge. Jacob G. Maurer served for
three years as district deputy grand master for the 22d Masonic district, com-
prising the counties of Monroe, Livingston, Genesee and Wyoming.
Germania lodge, number 722, was organised March 7th, 1872. As its
name indicates, its membership was to be of citizens of the German tongue, and
much credit is due to the succeeding corps of officers for the unflagging inter-
est they have manifested in keeping up the high standing of the fraternity in
this city. Charter members : George F. Merz, John Neun, Vincent Aman,
John C. Ganger, Fred Zimmer, J. Geo. Baetzel, John Lutes, August M. Koeth,
Charles Vogel, John Reichenbach, George Gucker, Henry Aman, Charles T.
Wolser, Charles Gilbert, John Dismeyer, August Witzell, Francis Boor, C. F.
Weissinger, Christian J. Shaeffer. This is the most recent of the blue lodges
organised in this city. The restricted nature of the material from which it
draws its membership has necessarily limited its numerical strength. It has,
however, been fully as prosperous as the bodies working in the English tongue.
The Secret Societies. 387
George F. Merz was the first master of Germania lodge. He was succeeded
by J. George Baetzel, and John Neun and John Viehmann' have also filled
acceptably the presiding chair. John Hilficker is the present master, 1884.
Hamilton Chapter. — The particulars of the organisation of this Royal Arch
chapter have already been briefly stated. It is of the resuscitation that we are
now concerned. William Brewster, Ebenezer Watts, Erastus Cook, Charles
G. Cumings, H. A. Brew.ster, William E. Lathrop, Samuel Richardson,
Charles C. Lathrop and Luther A. Allen met February 6th, 1846, and effected
a preliminary organisation, and on the 17th of March subsequently the chapter
was fully intrusted with all the rights and privileges warranted by the grand
chapter, with the original charter restored, and William Brewster, H. P. ; Eben-
ezer Watts, K. ; Erastus Cook, S. ; Luther A. Allen, secretary ; Charles C.
Lathrop, treasurer. Unexampled prosperity has attended the workings of
this chapter, and, in the annals of the grand chapter, Hamilton chapter, number
62, has long held its place at the head of the roll, both in membership and in
contributions to the treasury. We give the entire list of high priests, from the
organisation in 1819: Levi H. Clark, 1819-20; William Cobb, 1821-22; Wil-
liam Brewster, 1823-26; Burrage Smith, 1827; Jacob Gould, 1828; Robert
Martin, 1829-30; William Brewster, 1846-48, 1854; Charles G. Cumings,
1849-50; Asahel S. Beers, 1851 ; William E. Lathrop, 1852, 1855, 1863;
Sylvester H. Packard, 1853, 1856; Wm. S. Thompson, 1857-59; Wm. F.
Holmes, 1860-62; Charles W. Watson, 1864-65; Francis H. Marshall, 1866-
68; William Shelp, 1869-71; George Hamblet, 1872-73; George Hamilton,
1874; James T. Southard, 1875 ; John W. Merriam, 1876; Thomas Seed, 1877
Varnum M. Colvin, 1878; Samuel C. Pierce, 1879; Julius L. Townsend, 1880
John A. Davis, 1881 ; William J. McKelvey, 1882; Frank H. Vick, 1883
Jacob G. Maurer, 1884. At the annual convocation in December, 1865, John
Alexander was elected secretary, and has through devotion, fidelity and effi-
ciency merited the unanimous reflections which have been accorded him. For
more than twenty years John H. Kialbfleisch has been organist of this chapter,
and for a like period in Monroe commandery and Valley lodge. He is at pres-
ent also the organist for Yonnondio lodge, Genesee F'alls lodge and Doric coun-
cil. James T. Southard held the office of grand master of second vail for two
years in the grand chapter, and William J. McKelvey for the same length of time
as grand principal sojourner. Comp. McKelvey is now (1884) assistant grand
lecturer for the sixth district, comprising the counties of Cayuga, Livingston,
Monroe, Ontario, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne and Yates. On the 14th of Octo-
ber, 1875, while the grand commandery of Knights Templars was in session in
the a.sylum of Monroe commandery, stationed in this city, James T. Southard,
H. P., who was also at that time a grand officer, ordered a grand banquet in
honor of the grand R. A. chapter officers, which was enjoyed by more than
200 distinguished companions of the jurisdiction then sojourning in the city.
388 History of the City of Rochester.
The history of this chapter has been fully written by. Thomas Gliddon, for
which he was satisfactorily compensated by being unanimously voted a life
membership.
Ionic Chapter. — A numerously signed petition from the membership of Ham-
ilton chapter, headed by William F. Holmes, was laid before the grand high
priest, Seymour H. Stone, of Syracuse, to grant a dispensation to organise Ionic
chapter during the year 1867. In February, 1868, the warrant was granted
to William F. Holmes, H. P., George W, Stebbins, K., and Albert G. Wheeler,
S., and their associates, to hold a chapter at Rochester, to be known as Ionic
chapter, number 210, with the following charter members: Wm. F. Holmes,
John M. Fisk, Wm. S. Thompson, Edwin H. Hurd, James S. Garlock, A. G.
Wheeler, H. P. Langworthy, E. B. Jennings, George W. Stebbins, Wm. H.
Gorsline, Wm. H. Moore, James Wing, George N. Deming, S. N. Oothout,
Andrew J. Ross, Wm. Carson, B. Frank Enos, C. A. Gardiner, W. Dean
Shuart, N. Tamblingson, Maurice Smith, George A. Reynolds, J. W. McEl-
hinny, Edwin Taylor, Frank J. Amsden, Abram Karnes, D. Copeland, jr.,
Andrew J. Warner. The following companions have served Ionic chapter as
high priest: Albert G.Wheeler, 1869-71; Hiram Wood, 1872-73; John
D. Robinson, 1874; Roscius K. Gould, 1875; Edwin A. Loder, 1876; Byron
HoUey, 1877-78; Andrew J- Hatch, 1879; Frank Taylor, 1880; Solomon
Wile, 1 881; James H. Kelly, 1882; William K. Barlow, 1883; Frank A.
Parker, 1884. George G. Cooper was the first candidate initiated, February
1st, 1867. Ionic chapter now meets in the Cox building. East Main street, on
the second and fourth Tuesdays in each rpohth, and has a membership exceed-
ing 200. Hiram Wood has been the efficient and courteous secretary of Ionic
chapter, and to him the writer hereof desires to return his cordial thanks for
valuable assistance.
Doric Council. — The movement for the organisation of this council of " royal
and select masters" occurred in i860, and the following were the charter mem-
bers : William F. Holmes, W. W- Bruff, Wm. H. Burtis, A. J. Warner, Dan-
iel Warner, William S. Ailing, John Haywood, jr., George Shelton, Charles
Vaill, Samuel C. Steele, William E. Lathrop, L. C. Spencer, John Lutes, R.
K. Lothridge, Nathan P. Stone, E. Trimmer, George W. Aldridge, Nicholas
E. Paine, George B. Redfield, John C. Holyland. Under the management of
the following presiding officers, this council has prospered beyond any other
in the jurisdiction: William E. Lathrop, 1860-61, 1863-64; Andrew J.
Warner, 1862; Charles W. Watson, 1865-67; W. B. Crandall, 1868-69; William
Shelp, 1870-73; Henry M. Plant, 1874-75 ; Thomas Seed, 1876; James T.
Southard, 1877; Charles Norman, 1878; Thomas Gliddon, 1879, 1883; John
W. Merriam, 1880; William C. Brown, 1881 ; Eastman C. Peck, 1882 ; Wil-
lard S. Bradt, 1884. In September, 1878, the late Charles Norman was
elected grand principal conductor of work in the grand council of the state
The Secret Societies. 389
of New York, and was reelected at the annual assembly in New York the fol-
lowing year, although at the time he was dangerously ill at his residence in
Rochester. His death occurred unexpectedly the following morning, Septem-
ber 14th, 1879. The grand master, George M. Osgoodby, of Buffalo, i-ssued
his dispensation to Doric council, number 19, to proceed to the election of a
"thrice illustrious master to fill the vacancy for the unexpired term," which re-
sulted in the choice of Thomas Gliddon. This act was supplemented by the
appointment of Comp. Gliddon to fill the office of grand principal conductor
of work of the grand council pro tern., made vacant by the death of the lamented
Norman. By successive promotion in the grand council of royal and select
masters, Thomas Gliddon has been called to the presiding chair, and is this
year (1884) filling the important office of grand master.
Monroe Commandery. — The early triumphs and trials of this commandery
of Knights Templars have already been recounted in this chapter. The revival
and the success which has attended its long career must now be briefly alluded
to. December 27th, 1847, a petition was signed by Robert King, Erastus
Cook, C. C. Lathrop, E. W. Scrantom, Wm. E. Lathrop, Chas. G. Cumings,
Ebenezer Watts, Wm. Brewster, Samuel Richardson and Abelard Reynolds,
praying for a return of the warrant of Monroe, number 12. This was in due
time complied with, through an official order from R. R. Boyd, grand master,
dated January 7th, 1848, and from that time onward a career of almost unex-
ampled prosperity in chivalric history marks its annals. The record of May
2Sth, 1848, reveals an interesting incident There were present at that special
conclave, William E. Lathrop, Charles G. Cumings, Robert King, Abelard
Reynolds, E. W. Scrantom, Nicholas E. Paine, Ebenezer Watts, William F.
Holmes, Henry A. Brewster and Asahel S. Beers — a galaxy of the brightest
Masonic lights of that day in Western New York. It was on this occasion
that the distinguished John L. Lewis received the orders of knighthood. He
forthwith engaged in the work of forming Jerusalem encampment, number 1 7,
stationed at Penn Yan, the warrant for which was granted June 8th, 1850, and
he installed as first generalissimo. John L. Lewis was that same year elected
grand captain-general of the grand commandery of the state of New York.
A short time prior to this, Salem Town encampment, number 16, at Auburn, re-
ceived a dispensation, and was subsequently warranted while William E.
Lathrop was grand generalissimo. He, with Hubbard S. Allis, Jarvis M. Hatch
and others of Monroe number 12, went to Auburn and took part in the formal
work of instituting that chivalric body. John L. Lewis, of Penn Yan, was also
present.
The place of meeting from the reorganisation till this time was in the build-
ing on Exchange street, opposite Spring street, and then owned by Jonathan
Child. Then followed a ten years' occupancy of the upper floor of the old
Burns block, corner of State and West Main (formerly Buffalo) street ; thence
39°
History of the City of Rochester.
to the upper chamber of the opposite corner in the Wilder block. In the fall
of 1872 the asylum of Monroe commandery was again changed to the Ma-
sonic temple on Exchange street. Three commanderies are the offspring of
the parent organisation — namely, Batavia commandery, January i8th, 1865;
Cyrene commandery, February 4th, 1 867 ; Zenobia commandery (at Palmyra),
April 24th, 1867. On the 26th of May, 1876, Sir Knights Thomas Gliddon,
Lewis Sunderlin, Edward A. Frost, John H. Kalbfleisch and Fred F. Boorman
were appointed a committee to prepare for a suitable commemorative service of
the semi-centennial anniversary (June 14th, 1876) of this commandery. The
principal feature of the celebration was a sumptuous banquet.
In the annals, of the grand commandery of the state of New York we find
that, in its long list of officers, the following have been chosen from among our
local fratres : 1827 — Rev. F. H. Cuming, grand prelate; 1848-49 — William
E. Lathrop, grand generalissimo; 1850 — William E. Lathrop, deputy grand
nnaster; 1851-54 — Wilham E. Lathrop, grand master; 1851-52-53 — Jarvis
M. Hatch, grand captain- general; 1857 — Carlton Button, grand junior war-
den ; 1858 — Carlton Button, grand senior warden; 1858 — William F. Holmes,
grand warder; 1859 — William F. Holmes, grand senior warden; 1859 —
Aaron Carver, grand standard-bearer; i860 — William H. Burtis, grand cap-
tain-general ; 1861-62 — William H. Burtis, grand generalissimo ; 1863 — Wil-
liam H. Burtis, dep. grand commander; 1864 — Horace Tuller, grand junior
warden; 1865 — Horace Tuller, grand senior warden ; 1867-68 — William B.
Crandall, grand junior warden ; 1875 — Samuel R. Carter, grand captain of
guard ; 1874 — Simon V. Mc Bowell, grand warder, and, by successive promo-
tion, 1 88 1 — Simon V. McBowell, grand commander.
TABLEAU OF THE OFFICERS OF MONROE COMMANDERY.
YEARS. EMINENT COMMANDER. GENERALISSIMO.
1826 Rev. Francis H. Cuming.
1827 Edward Doyle.
1828 Jonathan Child.
1848 William E. Lathrop.
1849 William E. Lathrop.
1850 William E. Lathrop.
1851 William E. Lathrop.
1852 William E. Lathrop.
1853 William E. Lathrop.
1854 William E. Lathrop.
1855 William E. Lathrop.
1856 Carlton Dulton.
1857 William F. Holmes.
1858 William H. Burtis.
1859 William H. Burtis.
i860 William H. Burtis.
1861 Charles Vaill.
1862 Horace Tuller.
1863 Horace Tuller.
1864 John F. Whitbeck.
Jonathan Child.
Jonathan Child.
Abelard Reynolds.
.Samuel Richardson.
Samuel Richardson.
C. T. Chamberlin.
C. T. Chamberlin.
C. T. Chamberlin.
Jarvis M. Hatch.
Jarvis M. Hatch.
Jarvis M. Hatch.
Robert King.
Charles Vaill.
Charles Vaill.
Charles Vaill.
Horace Tuller.
Horace Tuller.
John F. Whitbeck.
Charles W. Watson.
Charles W. Watson.
CAPTAIN-GENERAL.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Robert Martin.
Charles G. Cumings.
Charles G. Cumings.
Nicholas E. Paine.
Nicholas E. Paine.
Nicholas E. Paine.
Nicholas E. Paine.
C. T. Chamberlin.
Robert King.
Wm. S. Thompson.
Heman Miller.
Harrison S. Fairchild.
Thomas Granniss, jr.
Daniel Warner.
Robert K. Lothridge.
S. A. Hodgman.
Wm. B. Crandall.
Geo. W. Aldridge.
PRELATE.
Jacob Gould.
Rev. Francis H. Cuming.
Edward Doyle.
William Brewster.
Asahel S. Beers.
Asahel S. Beers.
Jarvis M. Hatch.
Jarvis M. Hatch.
C. T. Chamberlin.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
The Secret Societies.
39'
YKARS. EMINENI- COMMANDER.
1865 Will. B. Craiidall.
1866 Will. B. Crandall.
1867 Charles \V. Watson.
1868 Charles W. Watson. •
1869 Francis H. Marshall.
1870 Francis H. Marshall.
1871 William Shelp.
1872 William Shelp.
1873 Henry M. Plant.
1874 Simon V. McDowell.
1875 George F. Loder.
1876 W. Lincoln .Sage.
1877 Daniel T. Hunt.
1878 John B. Southworth.
1879 Wm. J. McKelvey.
1880 Geo. F. Loder.
1881 Fred. F. Boorman.
1882 Samuel C. Pierce.
1883 John A. Davis.
1884 Thomas C. Hodgson.
GENERALISSIMO.
Charles W. Watson.
Henry B. Knapp.
Koswell H. Smith.
Roswell H. Smith.
Geo. H. Goodman.
Geo. H. Goodman.
Henry M. Plant.
Henry M. Plant.
CAPTAIN-GENERAI..
Henry B. Knapp.
Cieo. W. Stebbins.
William Shelp.
William F. Holmes.
L. D. Patterson.
L. D. Patterson.
Simon V. McDowell.
Simon V. McDowell.
PRELATE.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Beynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
Abelard Reynolds.
John G. Allen.
John G. Allen.
John G. Allen.
John G. Allen.
John G. Allen.
John G. Allen.
Simon V. McDowell. George F. Loder.
George F. Loder. James L. Brewster.
James L. Brewster. W. Lincoln Sage.
Daniel T. Hunt. Isaiah F. Force.
John B. .Southworth. Wm. J. McKelvey.
William J. McKelvey. Fred F. Boorman.
Fred. F. Boorman. Samuel C. Pierce.
Fred. F. Boorman. Samuel C. Pierce.
Samuel C. Pierce. John A. Davis.
John A. Davis. Thomas C. Hodgson.
Thomas C. Hodgson. Frank P. Crouch.
Franklin S. Stebbins. John W. Hannan.
This record would be singularly incomplete without a brief narrative of
the famous Monroe commandery drill corps. As early as the year 1873, mainly
through the exertions of George F. Loder, the sir knights met for the special
purpose of instruction in the tactics and drill. This was then a novel feature
in Templar display, but it had already some enthusiastic advocates. The
movements had been formulated by the lamented Orrin Welch, and received
the sanction of the grand commandery. Commander Loder soon discovered
the necessity of some organisation of the Templars who would be willing to
devote sufficient time to acquire proficiency, and from this grew the Monroe
commandery drill corps, acting with the cordial approval of the commandery.
When the sixty-second annual conclave of the grand commandery was held in
Rochester October, 1875, a great number of sir knights from all over the state
were gathered here, and the most magnificent Templar procession that ever
graced our streets occurred Wednesday, October 13th, 1875. On the Roch-
ester driving-park there was a spirited contest for the possession of a Templar
banner between St. Omer's, number 19, stationed at Elmira; Central City, num-
ber 25, stationed at Syracuse, and Hugh de Payens, number 30, stationed at
Buffalo. The decision of the judges was in favor of Hugh de Payens, com-
manded by Christopher G. Fox, and the banner went to Buffalo. Loder's
command, sixty strong, gave an exhibition drill the same afternoon, winning
the enthusiastic plaudits of an immense crowd of spectators. The next year
(June 24th, 1876) the commandery made a short pilgrimage to Buffalo, in
honor of the dedication of the new Masonic temple in that city. ■ The drill
company, forty-eight men in line and ten oflScers, for the second time displayed
its proficiency. Its more noted pilgrimages since then have been to Cleveland,
to Chicago, to Poughkeepsie, to Binghamton, and to New York city and Al-
bany, in each of which places the drill corps gave complimentary exhibitions.
392
History of the City ok Rochester.
Loder has had command of the corps from its organisation. This corps has
also assisted in benevolent enterprises — notably on the Rochester driving-park
for the benefit of the Rochester orphan asylum (1878), for the benefit of Milton
H. Smith (1878), and for the benefit of the flood sufferers (1884) in the state
arsenal, on the invitation of the Red Cross society. A full history of this
commandery was published in 1882, by Thomas Gliddon, in a neat little volume
of 200 pages.
Cyrene Commandery. — The prayer of the petitioners to organi.se Cyrene
commandery was granted by resolution in Monroe commandery, number 12,
December 2 1st, 1866. On the 4th of Februajry, 1867, Grand Commander
Pearson Mundy issued the dispensation to John McConvill to act as eminent
commander ; William H. Cumings, generalissimo, and William Carson, cap-
tain-general, with the following sir knights as charter members : Luther C.
Spencer, Charles A. Gardiner, John F. Whitbeck, Abram Karnes, John Mc-
Convill, Harvey P. Langworthy, William H. Cumings, Jesse W. Gifford,
William Carson, William H. Gorsline, William S. Thompson, Egbert B. Jennings,
William H. Briggs, James B. Wing, James E. Lattimer, George W. Donnelly,
Levi S. Fulton, Edwin Taylor, Charles M. St. John, George N. Deming, An-
drew J. Warner, John Barker, Chauncey B. Woodworth, George W. Stebbins,
W. Dean Shuart, , George A. Reynolds, Robert Boyd, John M. Fisk, Cyrus
Beardsley, Orrin E. Castle, Charles Vaill, Bernard Hughes.
EAR.
EMINENT COMMANDER.
GENERALISSIMO.
CAl'TAlN-UENEKAl..
186-7
John McConvill.'
W. H. Cumings.
Wm. Carson.
1 868
.< '
it
"
1869
"
"
"
1870
((
"
a
:87i
John F. Whitbeck.
Wm. Carson.
E. B. Jennings.
1872
((
Hiram Wood.
Pierson B. Hulett.
1873
Albert G. Wheeler.
Byron Holley.
Edwin A. Loder.
1874
Hiram Wood.
'F E. Witherspoon.
Henry C. Daniels.
1875
"
W. E. Witherspoon.
Wm. M. Quimby.
1876
Andrew J. Hatch.
J. Clinton Hall.
S. P. Robins,
1877
"
S. P. Robins.
John C. Smith.
1878
ti
((
"
1879
"
Frank Taylor,
Wni. G. Raines.
i88o
Wm. G. Raines.
Henry S. Mackie.
John C. Smith.
1881
Frank Taylor.
Byron Holley.
"
1882
Byron Holley.
Henry S. Mackie.
Curtis II. Ilaskin.
1883
Andrew J. Hatch.
Chas. R. Pratt.
S. S. Eddy.
1884
"
"
"
Charles M. St. John was elected recorder at the time of the organisation of
Cyrene commandery, and reelected continually until retiring April 25th, 1884,
when he was succeeded by Byron Holley. The record of Andrew J. Hatch,
as commander, is indeed a most honorable one. For a longer period than any
other elective officer he has labored zealously and effectively for this comman-
dery, and his merits have been recognised by the officers of the grand com-
mandery, who have claimed his services for the important post of assistant
The Secret Societies. 393
grand inspector, which office he still holds. An interesting little pamphlet,
containing the detailed history of this commandery, was published in 1883 by
Andrew J. Hatch.
The Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite. — The four coordinate bodies of this
ancient rite of Freemasonry have brought great Masonic renown to this city.
Just when the initiatory steps were taken to organise a lodge of Perfection here,
we have no information. The late George W. Stebbins was probably the most
active of the brethren in the preliminary movement. A dispensation was pro-,
cured from Orrin Welch, 33°, of Syracuse, who was then the deputy of the
supreme council for the state of New York, February 24th, 1866. With this
instrument for authority, the organisation proceeded to confer the ineffable
grades and inaugurate the popularising of the Scottish rite throughout all this
section. The desire immediately took form to add as soon as practicable the
coordinate bodies, so that the Orient of Rochester would be the seat of the con-
ferring of the historical, doctrinal and philosophical grades up to and including
the 32°. This request was acceded to by the supreme council of the northern
Masonic jurisdiction for the United States of America, and charters were granted
May 1 6th, 1867, to Rochester grand lodge of Perfection, Rochester council
Princes of Jerusalem, Rochester sovereign chapter of Rose Croix, Rochester
consistory S. P. R. S. The following are the names of the first class of candi-
dates who received the degrees of perfection in this city, February 24th, 1866,
from the personal instructions of Orrin Welch, Charles T. McClenachan and J.
H. Hobart Ward, eminent brethren of the Scottish rite, and of the 33° : George
W. Stebbins, G- W. Aldridge, F. H. Marshall, W. H. Gorsline, C. W. Watson,
John T. Fox, F. H. Crafts, C. A. Gardiner, Jeffrey W. Vary, W. S. Thompson,
J no. F. Whitbeck, W. B. Crandall, Martin Taylor, James H. Gould, Wm. Car-
son, W.. S. Sherman, L. J. W. Vary, John Boyce, S. C. Steele, Wm. R. Dryer,
John Lutes, Walter W. Jerome. Rochester lodge, of Perfection was on the same
day fully organised with the following officers : George W. Stebbins, T. P. G.
M. : Jeffrey W. Vary, H. of T. D. G. M. ; John F. Whitbeck, S. G. VV. ; Wm.
B. Crandall, J. G. W. ; Samuel C. Steele, grand treasurer ; Wm. R. Dryer,
grand secretary. On the death of the lamented Stebbins, George W. Aldridge,
33°, was chosen as his successor. Then followed in succession as presiding offi-
cers P. Strong Wilson, William Shelp and William H. Whiting. The last-
named served several years, retiring February, 1884, when William Shelp was
again elevated to the office of T. P. G. M. In Rochester consistory the office
of commander-in-chief is held for three years. General William E. Lathrop
was the first incumbent, succeeded by Otis Cole, 33°, and by W. Lincoln Sage,
33°, and he by William G. Raines, the present incumbent.
There is a lodge of Perfection and a council of Princes of Jerusalem at
Buffalo, but no chapter of Rose Croix or consistory in that city ; hence it is
that Rochester has an extended jurisdiction west of Syracuse to the. boundary
394 History of the City of Rochester.
line. A careful examination of the roll of both Rochester chapter of Rose
Croix and Rochester consistory will reveal a large membership throughout
Western New York, including many influential citizens of Buffalo, Lockport,
Albion, Batavia and Dunkirk. The number of S. P. R. S. owing allegiance to
our local consistory is how about 500. Early in the year 1876 the brethren of
Palmoni lodge of Perfection, at Buffalo, and Rochester and Germania lodges
of Perfection, in this city, voted permission for the establishment of a new lodge
of Perfection at Lockport, to be called Lock City lodge of Perfection, with
John Hodge as first T. P. G. M. This organisation was effected and has been
remarkably successful. For the devotion and zeal displayed by Bro. Hodge,
who is a member of Rochester consistory, in the successful work done at Lock-
port, he was subsequently honored by the supreme council with the honorary
degree of sovereign grand inspector-general, 33°.
On the 20th day of April, 1881, the council of deliberation of the state of
New York, by virtue of the call of Robert M. C. Graham, 33°, deputy for the
state, met in this city for the transaction of the business of the annual meeting.
Never before or since has so distinguished a company of brethren eminent in
the dissemination of the work of the Ancient Accepted Scottish rite been as-
sembled in this city. There was also in attendance at the grand reunion exer-
cises of the local coordinate bodies, then being held, ten illustrious brethren of
Ohio consistory namely, Stith M. Sullivan, 33°, Rev. Thomas J. Melish, Ed-
ward W. Masterson, H. 11. Woodward, William Michie, John A. Wiltsie, Jacob
Henderson, William B. Melish and A. L. Laurie.
Restricted space compels us to merely mention that Rochester council
Princes of Jerusalem and Rochester chapter of Rose Croix have necessarily
enjoyed corresponding prosperity with the other coordinate bodies. For the
year 1884 Courtland Avery is the presiding officer in the council, styled M. E.
S. P. G. M., and Robert C. Titus in the chapter, styled M. W. and P. M. With
the exception of an insignificant period, Samuel C. Steele has been the treas-
urer of all four bodies since the organisation in 1867, and for the past five
years Thomas Gliddon has been the secretary. '
Germania lodge of Perfection is the only body of the Ancient Accepted
Scottish rite that has ever been chartered by the supreme council of the north-
ern Masonic jurisdiction of the United States with permission to work in the
German language. To encourage it in the organisation some others than of Ger-
man ancestry are found among the names of the charter members, which are
appended: Otis Cole, John Lutes, Emil Kiiichling, August M. Koeth, Fred
Cook, Andrew Kaltenbach, Chas. Vogel, D. L. Johnston, Henry B. Baker,
Adolph Roda, Fred Zimmer, John Dufner, C. F. Wolters, John Hohenstein,
Geo. F. Merz, Henry Aman, W. Guggenheim, Casper Wehle, A. Stern, Albert
Schiffner. Fred Stade, Francis Boor, Max Levison, Joseph Shatz, John Straub,
Chas. E. Rider. The date of the charter is August 19th, 1874, and under the
The Secret Societies. 395
supervising care of August M. Koeth, 33°, and his associate officers, it has
prospered beyond expectation.
Western New York Masonic Relief Association. — ^^The articles, of associa-
tion under which this mutual life insurance society was organised May 25th,
.1871, were signed by Wm. F. Holmes, Francis H. Marshall, Wm. Carson, L.
D. Patterson, Wm. Roades, J. W. McElhinny, Wm. Shelp, Wm. W. Bruff, Ed-
ward M. Smith, S. M. Benjamin, Jeffrey W. Vary, E. T. Oatley, Porter W.
Taylor. The association took form under the statutes, but was avowedly
" formed for the purpose of more effectually aiding and assisting worthy brethren,
their widows and orphans." This benevolent characteristic has never been lost
in the management by the succeeding boards of trustees, but its history is in
every respect similar to the numerous mutually insuring societies that have been
carefully managed during the past dozen years. Officers for 1884-85 : Jacob
G. Maurer, president; John W. Stebbins, vice-president; Newman S. Phelps,
treasurer; Clifton C. Gifford, secretary; Dr. Byron I. Preston, medical adviser.
Trustees. — Valley lodge, number 109, William G. Congdon, 1885; John Sid-
dons, 1886; John M. Brown, 1887. Yonnondio lodge, number 163, John
Mitchell, 1885; John B. Southworth, 1886; Thomas Gliddon, 1887. Genesee
Falls lodge, number 507, Alfred H. Cork, 1885; James C. Gray, 1886; Samuel
C. Pierce, 1887. Rochester lodge, number 660, George Weldon, 1885; Curtis
H. Haskin, 1886; Hiram Wood, 1887. Germania lodge, number 722, J.
George Baetzel, 1885; John Neun, 1886; John Viehman, 1887.
Many incidents of purely local character must necessarily be omitted in this
narrative, yet we cannot fail to notice May 28th, 1873, when the fraternity
turned out en masse, and, after parading our principal streets, assisted Grand
Master Christopher G. Fox, of Buffalo, in laying the corner-stone of the city hall
with full Masonic ritual. A few organisations known as Masonic in their char-
acter have been started in this city at various times by a number of enthusiastic
brethren, only to live for a few years. It is hoped that the two chapters of the
order of the Eastern Star, named respectively Ruth, number 56, and Monroe,
number 57, will have a different fate. The former meets in the Masonic tem-
ple. Exchange street, and the latter in the Cox building, East Main street.
AMERICAN ODD FELLOWSHIP.^
For the first successful organisation of a subordinate lodge of the Independ-
ent Order of Odd Fellows in America we are indebted to Past Grand Sire
Thomas Wildey, who was born in the city of London on the 15th of January,
1772, and was initiated in lodge number 17, of the London order of Odd Fellowsin
1 804, in which he served in every capacity, from the humblest to the highest. In
July, 1817, he embarked for America and landed at Baltimore, in September fol-
lowing. The prevalence of the yellow fever, thatautumn, exciting his benevolent
1 This article was prepared by Mr. Isaac Loomis, P. D. D. G. M.
26
396 . History of the City of Rochester.
sympathies, convinced him of the urgent necessity of an order of Odd Fellows.
Meeting with his countryman and brother, John Welch, they mutually agreed
to endeavor. to organise a lodge in Baltimore. They caused a notice to be in-
serted in a paper for a meeting March 2d, 1819, for four weeks, which drew
only two other Englishmen, when three were necessary. The call was re-
newed for the 13th of April, when John Duncan, John Cheatham and Richard
Rushworth (three other Englishmen) met with them, and the preliminary ar-
rangements were made for the organisation of Washington lodge, number i,
upon the 26th of April, 1 8 1 9, to work after the London order of Odd Fellows.
A charter was sought and obtained through Tast Grand John Crowder, of
Duke of York lodge, Preston, England, February 1st, 1820. It was issued in
due form October 23d, following, and the work changed to that of the Man-
chester Unity of Odd Fellows. Franklin lodge, number 2, I. O. of O. F., was
instituted; also Columbia lodge, number 3, in November, 1823, which was
the first subordinate lodge chartered by the grand lodge of Maryland and the
United States. On February 21st, a day selected as the anniversary of the
birth of Washington, the committee of past grands assembled at the lodge
room on Frederick street. The noble grand of Washington lodge then made
his appearance, and in a formal manner surrendered into their hands the war-
rant received by the lodge from the Duke of York lodge, Preston, England.
He then retired, whereupon the committee proceeded to organise as a grand
lodge, under the style and title of " the grand lodge of Maryland and of the
United States. "
The new body was put in motion by the installation of the following officers :
Thomas Wildey, grand master (coach-spring maker) ; John P. Entwistle, dep-
uty grand master (printer) ; William S. Couth, grand warden (currier) ; John
Welch, grand secretary (house and ship painter) ; John Boyd, grand guardian
(mahogany sawyer) ; William Larkman, grand conductor (cabinet-maker) —
all of number i. The session being now open, the first business transacted by
the grand lodge was the adoption of the following : " Resolved, that a dispen-
sation be presented to Washington lodge, num'ber i, of Maryland, as a subor-
dinate lodge." In April, 1824, a circular letter, signed by G. S. and approved
by G. M. and D. G. M., was sent to the brethren in England, giving the status
of the order in America, as follows : " In the United States at present we
number five grand lodges, and eight subordinate lodges. " The grand lodge
of New York was organised in 1823. On the 26th of April, 1826, a final
and successful effort was made, fixing the anniversary of the order on that
day.
From 1828 to 1834, when the tragical disappearance of William Morgan, a
master Mason, caused such a furor as to drive every secret society out of ex-
istence in Western New York, tiie young men, for the want of other social in-
tercourse, for several years had attached themselves to the several fire companies
The Secret Societies. 397
and "ran with the machine." In the winter of 1841 itbecameknown that organ-
isations for the promotion of the principles of friendship, love and truth were in
active working order in New York city, Albany and Buffalo, known and distin-
guished as Odd Fellows, and in March of that year a notice from a member
of the brotherhood, Daniel Curry, appeared in the Rochester Daily Democrat,
requesting any Odd Fellow, or others who were favorably inclined to organise
a lodge of Odd Fellows, to meet him at the Eagle Tavern at the time men-
tioned. At the time appointed Wm. H. Perkins, George Peck, A. K. Ams-
den, Wm. Penfield, Hiram A. Tucker, D. M. Dewey and others responded to
the call, to ascertain what were the necessary requirements to organise a lodge
of Odd Fellows in Rochester. They found that, besides those members of the
order residing in the city, four persons would have to be initiated into its mys-
teries. After duly canvassing the matter, it was voted that Messrs. Perkins,
Amsden, Peck and Tucker should proceed to Buffalo and qualify for that pur-
pose. Accordingly they took passage in the old stage coach in April for
Buffalo, and, after riding over logways and laboring through the mud, at the
close of the first day made Batavia, where the)' rested the first night,- and next
morning, after starting on another day's pilgrimage, arrived at its close in the
city of Buffalo, more wearied in body and mind than a trip to California would
cause at the present time. In a few days they were duly initiated into the
mysteries and rites of Odd Fellowship and duly proclaimed qualified to become
charter members.
In due time a petition was prepared, asking the grand lodge of the state
of New York for a charter at its session upon the fifth day of May, 1841, to
be called the "Genesee Home lodge," signed by William H. Perkins, Alonzo
K. Amsden, Daniel Curry, William Penfield, George Peck and Hiram A.
Tucker, which was granted and the name changed to "Genesee lodge, number
51, I. O. of O. F., Rochester, N. Y ." This lodge was duly instituted upon the
second day of June following, at 2 p. m., by Nelson Small, grand master,
accompanied by his associate grand officers. The first officers of the lodge
were : William H. Perkins, N. G. ; Hiram A. Tucker, V. G. ; Alonzo K. Ams-
den, quarterly scribe; George Peck, treasurer; Daniel Curry, conductor; Fran-
cis G. Macy, warden; William Penfield, I. G., and William Barker, O. G. None
of the charter members are now living. A. K. Amsden died November iSth,
1872. Daniel Curry became a dormant member in 1844 and the other original
members withdrew by cards in 1842 and 1846 to become charter members in
Teorontoand Rochester City lodges in Rochester, and D. M. Dewey is the only
brother known to be living at the present time who was initiated in 1841.
In May, 1871, A. K. Amsden offered a resolution that "every Odd Fellow
ever initiated into Genesee lodge, also all ancient and. venerable Odd Fellows,
be cordially invited to be present as its guests, it being the first anniversary
the lodge has ever held." The N. G. appointed the following named past
398 History of the City of Rochester.
grands to constitute the committee to make suitable arrangements therefor:
A. K. Amsden, Isaac Loomis, George Underhill, Charles Wells and Charles
M. Syme. On Friday evening, June 2d, 1871, Genesee lodge had a large
gathering and the proceedings throughout were unusually interesting.
By request of the chairman of the committee the brothers joined in sing-
' ing the following ancient ode : —
" Attend, most ancient brothers.
For honor o'er us hovers ;
Attend, most ancient brothers.
For honor's court is here. •
The man that honor binds not
A welcome with us finds not;
The man that honor binds not
Can never enter here.
The man that honor holds dear
Alone a welcome finds here ;
The man that honor holds dear
Alone can enter here.
Our mottoes, ' mirth and harmony.
Friendship, truth and unity;'
Our mottoes, ' mirth and harmony.
In brotherhood combined.' "
The success of Genesee lodge having become established, in the year 1842
Teoronto lodge was organised and permission given to occupy the same lodge
room. Its charter members were : H. A. Tucker, G. G. Clarkson, H. S. Stevens,
R. Keeler, I. F. Mack, T. B. Hamilton, B. R. McAlpine, H. Banker, George A.
Gibbs and N. B. Northrop.
The rapid growth of the order soon revealed the fact that there should be
still another lodge, and within five years from the first organisation the third
lodge was demanded and Rochester City lodge was instituted, its charter mem-
bers being : Wm. H. Perkins, John W. Dwindle, Rufus Keeler, James M. Fish,
C. T. Amsden, H. S. Fairchild, L. A. Allen, B. R. McAlpine, J. I. Robins, George
B. Harris, Hervey Warren, John Craigie, Wm. C. Prindle, N. B. Northrop,
W. H. Cheney, S. E. Alden; G. B. Redfield, Lucius Bell, Richard H. Wells,
Hiram C. Smith, John L. Fish, John F. Hoyt, Thomas E. Hastings, Sanford
J. Smith, J. H. Goodman, Samuel Wilder, James Brackett, James W. Sibley,
Charles W. Sibley, Charles J. Hill, John B. Robertson, J. A. Lay, Cornelius A.
Burr, Erastus Cook.
The continued growth and prosperity of the order demanded that there
should be another lodge, pne in which our German fellow-citizens should receive
. the benefit of Odd Fellowship. In January 1851, Humboldt lodge was organ-
ised, with L. Garson, George Siebert, John Bcehm, Louis Bauer, Joseph Bier,
The Secret Societies. 399
Solomon Ran, Jacob Ragel, G. August, George Bohnlein, and J. Levy as char-
ter members.
In May, 1866, Monroe lodge, at Brockport, was instituted, and in 1868
Parma lodge was instituted, with five charter members.
In March, 1871, Orient lodge was instituted, with 124 charter members,
most of whom took cards from Teoronto lodge for that purpose. In June, 1871,
Floral lodge was instituted, with thirty charter members who took cards from
Genesee lodge for that purpose. In February, 1874, John G. Klinck lodge was
instituted, with thirty-four charter members, who took cards from Genesee lodge
for that purpose.
In August, 1 87 1, Kcerner lodge (German) was instituted, with twenty-one
charter members, who took cards from Humboldt lodge for that purpose.
In December, 1873, Scottsville lodge was instituted, with sixteen charter
members.
December 4th, 1874, Temple lodge, 412, was instituted, with 135 charter
members.
In October, 1877, Aurora lodge, 466, was instituted, with 79 charter mem-
bers, mostly from Orient lodge.
The following compose the higher branch of the order in this district:
Mount Hope encampment, number 2, with 216 members; Gore encampment
(Brockport), number 47, with 68 members; Glide encampment, number 75,
with 89 members ; King Solomon encampment, number 82, with 86 members.
The subordinate lodges have 1,85 1 members in good standing . Their rev-
enue during the past year was $13,003.00, and the amount they paid for relief
-in the same time was $4,292. The revenue of the encampment branch was
$1,692.50, and amount paid for relief was $383.25, making a sum total of over
$4,675 paid by the order of Odd Fellows in Monroe county for the relief of
the sick and burial of the dead in one year, as by the last report.
In January, 1882, as the lease held by the encampment and four old lodges
meeting in "O, F. Hall," at the corner of North St. Paul and Main streets,
would expire with the year, a committee was appointed to look up other apart-
ments, which a month or two later reported that the Phoenix club building, sit-
uated upon North Clinton street, would be sold in March to meet incumbrances
upon the same. After due consideration the committee was authorised to pur-
chase said building for the use of the order, which it did, meeting with a lively
contestant in the Eureka club. The building is fifty-three feet front on Clinton
street, extending back sixty-two feet, with an area of four and a half feet in the
rear for light, four stories in height, exclusive of basement, containing two stores,
two lodge-rooms, ante-rooms, wardrobes and closets, library, ladies' parlor, dress-
ing-room and closet, dining-room and kitchen, with a large French range, with
ten-feet hall from the street up to the fourth story, where there is a splendid hall
fifty feet square, with an eighteen-feet story, a stage with footlights, drop cur-
400 History of the City of Rochester.
tain, beautiful scenery all nicely arranged. A few months later, the committee
learning that the adjoining lot, of twenty-six and one half feet front on Clinton
and sixty-six feet on Division street, was for sale, it was ordered purchased.
A five-story building, the full size of the lot, from drawings by Loomis & Rich-
ardson, architects, is now in process of erection — containing one store, three
lodge-rooms, one encampment room, with ante-rooms, water closets, basins and
water-coolers in each story, with fire-proof safes for preservation of records, a
platform stair-case from the entrance on Division street up to the fifth story,
with hydraulic elevator to run to the roof (all to be heated by steam), with a
tower twenty-four feet square at the base, rising to a height of io8 feet from
the sidewalk, with crestings, failings and balconies — and is to be completed
in December next, when the Odd Fellows of Rochester will have, probably,
the best building for their work of any in the state. The whole property is
valued at $70,000.00, divided into sixty shares, which are held by the follow-
ing named organisations: Mount Hope encampment, number 2, two shares;
Genesee lodge, number 3, twenty shares; Teoronto lodge, number 8, eighteen
shares; Rochester City lodge, number 66, two shares; Humboldt lodge, num-
ber 138, fourteen shares; John G. Klinck lodge, number 378, four shares.
Upon the 2d day of September, 1869, the Odd Fellows' Mutual Aid and
Benefit association of the county of Monroe was organised. George W. Har-
rold, P. G., was its president for two years, wh6n Jacob Fonda, P. G. P. (who was
initiated in Mohawk Valley lodge, number 12, in 1843, at Schenectady^ N. Y.),
wis elected as its president and has been unanimously reelected every year up to
the present time. • Its board of directors consists of thirteen, elected at the annual
meetings in January of each year, who serve faithfully without salary or- fees of
any kind, with the exception of the financial secretary, who shall keep just and
true accounts between the association artd its members and of all financial
transactions of the association, and shall send all notices of assessments. He is
required to give security in such amount as the directors shall require. For
such service he has been paid $100 per year. Within sixty days after proof of
the death of any member in financial standing, the president and treasurer makes
a draft on the treasury for a sum representing $2 per member, less the amount
reserved according to the length of time the deceased brother had been a mem-
ber of the association as fixed in the schedule and published in the by laws. Since
its organisation there' have been eighty-two assessments levied upon its mem-
bers for the benefit of the families of deceased brothers, as aforesaid. The treas-
urer's last annual report shows that during the year he had paid $3,894.20 as
benefits to the widows of deceased brothers; amount received $4,828.05 ; cash
on hand in savings banks $5,185.85. By the above it appears that the I. O. O.
F. in Monroe county paid for the burial of brothers and relief of families alone,
in one year, according to the last official report, the sum of $8,569.45, no in-
significant sum for a brotherhood of about 2,000 members to contribute of their
funds in one year for the amelioration of the condition of mankind.
The Secret Societies. 401
THE KNIGHTS OF PYTHIAS.
There are two lodges of this order now in the city — the Aurora Grata and
the Bllicher. The former, of which J. S. Beach is now the chief chancellor,
was established in 1871 ; the latter was instituted in 1873; John J. Karle is the
present chief chancellor. Besides these, there is an "endowment section," which
was organised in 1876; the president is Christian Mannes, the vice-president
J. S. Beach, the secretary and treasurer George Karle. It is an insurance as-
sociation, in which the survivors of a member receive $1,000, $2,000 or $4,000,
according to his policy.
THE ANCIENT ORDER OF UNITED W^ORKMEN.
This association, which is in its nature both beneficiary and fraternal, has
been in existence in this city for nearly seven years. During the illness of any
member an amount of money regulated by the necessities of the invalid and
determined by a committee is given to him every week, and at his death $2,000
is paid to the person whom he may have designated to receive it, that inherit-
ance being, by law, exempt from execution. There are now not far from a
thousand members of the order in this city, and the average annual cost to each
is in the neighborhood of fifteen dollars. Of the seven lodges here, the oldest
is the Rochester lodge, which was instituted November 13th, 1877, and has
now a membership of 113; the next was the Lincoln, organised in the same
year; then the Genesee Falls in 1878; then the Americus on the 29th of Jan-
uary, 1879 ; then the McChesney, the next day, the name of which was changed
to the Garfield on the loth of November, 1881, by authority of the grand lodge ;
then the Occident, established January 26th, 1880, and finally the Monroe,
which was instituted on the 23d of February in that year. Besides these there
are the Laniberton legion and the Rochester legion, composed of members of
the lodges who have undergone a more rigid examination than the others.
THE FORESTERS.
Two courts of this order now hold sway in this city — the court of William
Tell, instituted in 1877 and having now about thirty members, and the court of
Prosperity, established in 1878 and having thirty menibers. It is in the nature
of an insurance company, having three classes, of, $1,000, $2,000 and $3,000
each.
THE EMPIRE ORDER OF MUTUAL AID.
This order is restricted to the state of New York and is duly incorporated
by the legislature of the state. Its object is to improve the moral and social
condition of its members, to aid and assist their families in case of sickness, and
to provide for the payment of a beneficiary fund at their death. Prior to De-
cember, 1878, the Independent Order of Mutual Aid had attained quite a mem-
402 History of the City of Rochester.
bership in this state, but dissatisfaction in the management of the supreme lodge
caused the New York lodges to withdraw. They assumed the present name of
" Empire Order Mutual Aid." Two lodges had been instituted in Rochester
prior to the secession — Flour City, number 5, and Security, number 9, both
of which were instituted early in 1 878. Upon the first organisation of the grand
lodge at Buffalo, December I2th, 1878, S. A. Ellis, of Rochester, was elected
vice-president. The order now has six subordinate lodges in Rochester, with
a membership of 400. Each lodge holds weekly meetings, the sessions being
secret and conducted according to a ritual adopted, by the grand lodge. All
applicants for membership are subjected to a rigid medical examination, which
must also be approved by a state medical examiner. The heirs or designated
representatives of the deceased member are paid $2,000 upon due proof of
death. This is raised by assessments of one dollar each, made from time to
time, as necessary, upon the entire membership of the state. The present
membership is about 8,000. The grand lodge met in Rochester in January,
1872, and the Flower city has also been designated as the place of the annual
meeting for 1885. Herbert M. Dayfoot, M. D., of Rochester, is the present
grand medical examiner; John M. Steele is chairman of the committee on laws,
and Henry T. Braman ^ is a member of the finance committee of the grand
lodge and district deputy of Monroe county.
THE BENEVOLENT PROTECTIVE ORDER OF ELKS.
Rochester lodge, number 24, was organised January 4th, 1 884, and officers
were in.stalled by Thomas W. Keene, district deputy exalted grand ruler at
large, January 6th. The officers of Rochester lodge are: Exalted ruler, George
F. Loder ; esteemed leading knight, Henry F. Plant ; esteemed loyal knight,
Samuel C. Pierce; esteemed lecturing knight, Frank H. Vick; esquire, George
C. Gray; secretary, Thomas Gliddon; treasurer, Elmer E. Almy; trustees —
Frank L. Murray,^ Edgar O. Rogers, Darwin W. Truss. The order of Elks
was established about seventeen years ago. The objects are benevolence and
protection and social enjoyments. There is a mutual benefit association con-
nected with the order. All lodges in existence are subordinate to a grand
lodge, which meets in New York once a year. The membership of the order
is composed largely of actors, managers, journalists and professional men.
Rochester lodge meets every Tuesday evening at the New Osburn House. A
social session is held once a month.
1 This .sketch was furnished by Mr. Braman.
2 This sketch was furnished by Mr. Murray.
The City Hospital. 403
CHAPTER XXXIX.
CHARITY AND IJENEVOLENCE.
The City Ilo.spital — St. Mary's Hospital — The Female Charitable Society — The Monroe County
liible Society — The Rochester Orphan Asylum — The Catholic Orphan Asylums — The Jewish Or-
phan Asylum — The Home for the Friendless — The Industrial School — The Church Home — The
Home of Industry — The Deaf Mute Institution — The Humane Society — The Alms House — The
Insane Asylum.
THE Rochester City hospital 1 is a daughter of the Rochester Female Char-
itable society. The parent society, feeling the pressing need of a suitable
place for the sick poor who could not be properly cared for in their own homes,
agitated the subject of providing the city with a hospital, and, in 1845, ap-
pointed a "hospital committee." The Rochester City hospital was incorpo-
rated May 7th, 1847, and the following directors are named in its charter: J.
B. Elwood, Wm. Pitkin, I. Hills, T. H. Rochester, P. Kearney, F. Starr, R.
Lester, E. M. Moore, J. Williams, E. F. Smith and D. R. Barton. Twelve
others were elected June nth, 1847: J.Webster, W. Brewster, L. A. Ward, J.
H. Thompson, J. Child, E. Peck, A. Champion, J. Newell, A. Kelsey, J. Gould,
F. F. Backus and H. F. Montgomery. Of these, E. M. Moore and H. F.
Montgomery are the only survivors.
In 185 I the common council of Rochester conveyed to the directors of
the City hospital the Western cemetery lot, a tract containing about three acres,
on condition that the directors should immediately inclose it and extinguish the
rights of the lessees of the burial lots. The terms were accepted, the grounds
inclosed, but as many of the lessees had died, or left the city, and others would
not surrender the leases, negotiations were necessarily slow. In 1855 the com-
mon council agreed to transfer to the directors of the hospital $7,000, the
residue of the alms house fund, if they would raise $5,000. The directors
applied to the Charitable society, and the ladies raised nearly $6,000 and placed
it in the directors' hands. In 1857, having failed to secure a title to the ceme-
tery lot by negotiations, the directors applied to the legislature, and by an act
of that body acquired a perfect title, and, the conditions of the transfer being
complied with, the residue of the alms house fund was then given to the direc-
tors. Plans were made for the hospital, the central portion of the present edi-
fice put under contract and building commenced. The erection of the hospital
wings was to depend on future needs.
In i860 the directors received from the Charitable society $500, a legacy
of Everard Peck, and $700, the avails of a lot donated by Colonel William
Fitzhugh, and for these gifts they conferred on the Charitable society the right
to a perpetual free bed in the hospital. In the autumn of 1862 the exterior of
the hospital was nearly completed, but funds were exhausted. An unsuccess-
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. Seth H. Terry.
404 History of the City of Rochester.
ful attempt was made to obtain a state appropriation; the civil war made large
draughts on the citizens and work was suspended.
In the summer of 1863 the trustees of the Rochester Collegiate Institute
donated $1,000, and it was decided to provide ten or fifteen beds and open the
hospital for patients, if the Charitable society would assume its management. At
its annual meeting, November, 1863, in response to a communication from G.
H. Mumford, president of the hospital board of directors, the Charitable society
appointed two committees, an executive and a visiting committee, to confer
with the directors and devise plans for completing and furnishing the hospital.
These committees were to make their own arrangements, fill vacancies and
report to the society. The executive committee met with the directors, a solic-
iting committee was appointed, the ladies raised five thousand dollars, work
was resumed, and the building completed. Churches and individuals responded
to appeals, and generously and tastefully furnished wards and private rooms.
The directors appointed physicians, and requested the Charitable society to
take the entire management of the hospital, with the exception of the medical
department. The trust was accepted, and delegated to the executive and vis-
iting committees, who were to incur no pecuniary responsibility for the society,
and make to it an annual report. The members of these two committees are
the present lady managers of the hospital association.
January 28th, 1864, the hospital was dedicated, with appropriate exercises.
An address was made by G. H. Mumford, from which, and the records of the
society, we have gleaned many of the preceding facts. On the 1st of Febru-
ary it received the first patient. The edifice was fifty by sixty feet, four stories
high, with two entrances and a central hall. In the basement were kitchen and
laundry ; on the first floor, two female wards, an accouchement room, parlor
and matron's room ; on the second, a male ward, private rooms, resident phy-
sician's room and dining-room ; on the third, private" rooms and wards; above
all, the dome. Dr. Henry W. Dean was physician ; Dr. H. F. Montgomery,
surgeon ; Dr. C. E. Rider, resident physician ; John M. Sly, superintendent ;
his wife, matron ; Miss Frances E. Hebbard, our present matron, was assistant.
The directors were G. H. Mumford, E. M. Smith, H. F. Montgomery, J. B. lilwood,
J. H. Thompson, E. M. Moore, A. Kelsey, R. Keeler, S. D. Porter, E. F. Smith,
J, Gould, B. R. McAlpine, L. A. Ward, A. Erickson, W. Pitkin, W. Brewster, F.
Starr, A. Champion, I. Hills, J. Williams, J. Brackett, D. R. Barton, J. Thomp-
son, jr., and Samuel Wilder. The lady managers were Mrs. M. Strong, Mrs. G.
H. Mumford, Mrs. J. Craig, Mrs. W. H. Perkins, Mrs. M. Rochester, Mrs. M.
M. Mathews, Mrs. E. D. Smith, Mrs. A. Bronson, Mrs. I. R. Elwood, Mrs. W.
W.. Carr, Mrs. N. T. Rochester, Mrs. F. Starr, Mrs. E. M. Smith, Mrs. C. F.
Smith and Mrs. L. A. Ward. Six of these directors survive ; James Brackett
and Samuel Wilder are still members of the board of directors. Eight of the
original lady managers are living; Mrs. M.. Strong has always been their pres-
_^„,-«-:!^^
«%h.
-<'
^^Jraj^
^
1
1
^d
R
** <
'i-
N^
^^^^^^P^''r' ''''!^
■
f
W jn
pR'
'■ ■■//
/
1
* ^
7
/
^' ^. ^ C<yi^..c/c^^
■Ej,fdi^j^_Bj^^ll.^ g^^.^ yt^a-ifc^.
The City Hospital. 40S
ident ; Mrs. M. M. Mathews their corresponding secretary, Mrs. W. H. Per-
kins their treasurer, except during a short absence from the country, when
George Breck, superintendent, kept the accounts ; Mrs: M. Rochester, the first
recording secretary, remained in office till March, 1867; Mrs. N. T. Rochester
is still a member of the board.
Three months after its dedication, the hospital was thrown open to the sick
and wounded soldiers ; every available place, except the two female wards, was
given up to them ; between June 7th, 1864, and September, 1865, 448 were
received. In 1865 the east wing was completed; it was eighty feet long,
with a transept forty by twenty-five feet ; three stories high, including base-
ment, with room for sixty or seventy beds ; the mansard roof has since been
added. In 187 1 the west wing was completed, and private rooms in the
third story were attractively furnished by churches and individuals, as also
were those ip the east mansard, which were finished in 1879; some of these
are memorial rooms. In 1880 a morgue was built ; in 1882 the hall pavilion
was erected. In 1883 another pavilion was built, from funds contributed by
three of the medical staff, Drs. W. S. Ely, E. V. Stoddard and J. B. Whitbeck.
An elevator, donated by A. J. Johnson, was also introduced into the building,
twelve new rooms were constructed in the dome, and the sewerage was made
as perfect as possible.
The hospital grounds extend from West avenue to Troup street. The build-
ings can accommodate 150 patients. The wards are large, light, well ven-
tilated, heated by steam, and designed for medical and surgical cases of both
sexes. The private rooms are well furnished and attractive, reached by ele-
vator, and the patients choose their own physician, who may be of any school.
The sanitary condition of the building is considered perfect. Contagious dis-
eases are treated in isolated buildings. A training school for nurses has been
in successful operation three years. There is a chapel service Sunday after-
noon. St. Luke's flower mission make weekly offerings. On the first floor
of the present central edifice are parlor, office, operating-room, dispensary and
resident physicians' rooms ; on the second, the chapel, matron's room, dining-
room, bath-room and linen room; on the third, private wards and rooms; in
the. dome, rooms for nurses. In the east wing are the male medical and sur-
gical wards ; in the west, the female medical, surgical, arid lying-in-wards ; in
both mansards are private rooms. The kitchens, laundry, some dining-rooms,
store rooms, etc., are in the basement.
The hospital has an endowment fund from gifts, bequests, memorial offerings
and free beds,' the interest of which only is available ; it has an income from
private city and county patients, but these sources are inadequate to its sup-
port, for which it relies largely on the cash receipts at its annual donation fes-
tival in December. Three of the faithful physicians, whose services long
blessed the hospital, have died; Henry W. Dean died January 13th, 1878;
4o6 History of the City of Rochester.
W. W. Ely, March 27th, 1879; John F. Whitbeck, December 8th, 1881.
Two of these have sons on the medical staff. H. F. Montgomery, the first
surgeon, has always been on the surgical staff. The Hospital Review, pub-
lished monthly, reports the work and needs of the hospital. It was first issued
August, 1864, and edited till 1871 by Mrs T. C. Arner; from then till 1873
by Miss E. G. Mathews; from then till 1876 by Miss Frances J. Munger;
since then by Mrs. Seth H. Terry.
The hospital is now under the direction of the following persons: Directors
— D. W. Powers, president; M. F. Reynolds, vice-president; H. S. Hanford,
secretary and treasurer; J. Brackett, S. Wilder, E. S. Ettenheimer, C. C. Morse,
J. H. Brewster, G. H. Perkins, J. L. Angle, J. E. Pierpont, G. H. Thompson,
C. F. Pond, G. E. Mumford, L. P.- Ross, J. J. Bausch, S. J. Macy, N. Stein, A.
S. Hamilton, W. H. Gorsline, W. S. Kimball, S. Sloan, R. A. Sibley. Lady
managers — Mrs. M. Strong, president; Mrs. W. H. Perkins, treasurer; Mrs.
M. M. Mathews, corresponding secretary; Mrs. D. B. Beach, recording secre-
tary; Mrs. N. T. Rochester, Mrs. G. F. Danforth, Mrs. G. J. Whitney, Mrs. A.
D. Smith, Mrs. J. H. Brewster, Mrs. C. Johnston, Mrs. H. H. Morse, Miss A.
S. Mumford, Mrs. F. Clarke, Mrs. M. Adalms, Mrs. M. Landsberg, Mrs. H. F.
Smith, Miss A. E. M. Wilde, Mrs. L. S. Chapin, Mrs. A. S. Hamilton. At-
tending physicians — William S. Ely, M. D., E. V. Stoddard, M. D., John W.
Whitbeck, M. D. ; attending surgeons, H. F. Montgomery, M. D., David Little,
M. D., H. H. Langworthy, M. D. ; special — C. E. Rider, M. D., ophthalmic
and aural surgeon; assisting visiting physician and surgeon, C. A. Dewey, M.
D. ; resident assistants, F. H. Welles, M. D., H. H. Bingham, M. D. ; matron,
Miss Frances E. Hebbard; recorder, Mrs. Mary A. Gilman; supervising nurse,
Miss L. A. Markham.
During the year ending October ist, 1883, 478 patients were received at
the hospital, there were nineteen births, 447 were dismissed, fifty-five died,
seventy-two remained, twenty-eight were supported entirely by charity.
St. Mary's hospital^ was established September 8th, 1857. ^^ had a very
small beginning, indeed, but through the energy of its first superior (Sister
Hieronymo), through the hard labors of the Sisters, through the charitable do-
nations of the people of Rochester and through the blessing of Almighty God,
it has grown to be the most prominent house of charity in the city, a monu-
ment of hard work and sacrifices, and an ornament to the city. It is situated
on West avenue, corner of Genesee street. Rt. Rev. Bishop Timon of Buffalo
obtained in 1857 three Sisters from Emmettsburg, Maryland, and Rev. M.
O'Brien, pastor of St. Patrick's church, bought for them a lot on -West avenue,
the present site. Two stone stables on the premises were converted into a hos-
pital by Sister Hieronymo and on September 8th, 1857, she opened the house
1 This article was prepared by Rev. D. Laurenzis, under the supervision of Rt. Rev. Bishop Mc-
Quaid.
z;.,^ U^ '/;,'/.,",.; ;.: M-.^^/i.-i'
The Female Charitaule Society. 407
for the admission of patients. Sister Hieronymo remained superior until Sep-
tember, 1870. I
The first year (1858) about 250 sick people were received and cared for in
the small hospital. The building being too small for the wants of the sick, Sis-
ter Hieronymo, trusting in divine providence, commenced in 1858 the east
wing of the present building and finished it the same year. In 1861 she began
the erection of the present edifice and finished it in 1865. The whole building
is of Medina stone, from four to four and a half stories high.
As God often turns evil into good, so the time of our civil war was a great help '
to. the hospital, it being filled with wounded soldiers,. for several years. Many
a donation was made to the institution, by the poor sick soldiers on account of
the kind treatment they received from the hands of the Sisters. The wounded
soldiers came in by the hundreds, so that the superior was obliged to erect sev-
eral pavilions in the yard in order to accommodate them. On June 7th, 1864,
nearly three hundred arrived. During the war about 3,000 soldiers found a
kind home in the hospital. The number of patients now averages about 210.
Last year 529 were received and discharged. Since its establishment about
22,500 have been received. The present superior (sister servant) is Sister Ella
Rose, assisted by about fifteen Sisters. The hospital is supported by the city
and county, by the fees of private patients and by donations.
The Rochester Female Charitable society, ^ the mother of many of our city
charities and beneficent institutions, was organised February 26th, 1822, at the
house of Everard Peck; Mrs. Levi Ward was elected president; Mrs. E. Peck,
treasurer ; twelve directresses and fifteen visitors were chosen, and the village
was divided into fifteen districts. This was the origin of district visiting in this
city, and the city of New York soon followed this example, as we have been
assured by one of the first trustees. The object of this society was the relief
of indigent sick persons, and the establishment of a charity school. Previous
to 1822, a charity school had been taught in a room on State street, gratuitously
granted by Josiah Bissell, on premises now occupied by the' Flour City bank.
The educational wants of the poor, and other destitutions consequent upon
sickness in a new country, prompted, for more efficient action, the formation of
this society. Nutritious food, bedding, clothing, and other comforts for the
sick poor were then and ever since have been provided, as necessity required.
In the charity school the elementary branches and sewing were taught; the
children were clothed by the ladies. In 1824 a lot was presented to the society,
by Colonel William Fitzhugh, on the outskirts of the village, near the forest,
now North Washington street, upon which a small building was erected and
used for a charity school. This school was continued until the common schools
were established ; the building was then used for a sewing- school,, and in 1847
rented to the city for a school for colored children. The lot was sold in 1849,
and the money invested for future use.
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. Maltby Strong.
4o8 History of the City of Rochester.
The records from 1822 to 1827 were unfortunately lost, but the original
constitution is preserved ; only one person of those whose names are affixed
is now living, Mrs. Abelard Reynolds, who September 23d, 1884, completes
her hundredth year. The business was conducted by the entire society until
1827, when it was delegated to a board of managers. The Charitable society
was incorporated April 3d, 1855, with S. G. Andrews, L. A. Ward, John Wil-
liams, N. Osburn, Moses Chapin and W. N. Sage, trustees; previously J. T.
Talman, E. Peck and S. D. Porter had charge of the investments.
In reviewing the history of this association, we find the germs of several
institutions. In 1844 this society sent to the common council the first peti-
tion for a work-house. "This subject was at once entertained and never
dropped," until our penitentiary and adjacent buildings were erected. In 1845,
being unable properly to care for some of the sick, in their own homes, it ap-
pointed a " hospital committee," to consult with the physicians and other gentle-
men of the city, in reference to building a hospital, and in the meantime to
furnish some place where the sick could have suitable attention. The Home
for the Friendless accepted the charge for one year, being paid for their care
by the Charitable society, that afterward, for a short time, rented rooms and
provided nurses. In May, 1847, the City hospital was incorporated. In 185 i
the Charitable society petitioned the common council for the Western cemetery
lot, for the purpose of erecting a hospital, intending to appropriate toward it
$700, the avails of the charity school lot, and a gift from Jenny Lind. At the
close of the year the lot was conveyed to the directors of the hospital, on cer-
tain conditions, which were accepted, but a clear title could not be secured till
acquired by an act of the legislature, in 1857. In 1855 the common council
agreed to transfer to the hospital directors the residue of the alms house fund,
$7,000, if they would raise the additional sum of $5,000, for building a hospital.
The directors applied to the Charitable society for aid. The ladies speedily
raised nearly $6,000 ; they afterward appropriated $500, the legacy of E. Peck,
and $700, the avails of the charity school lot, and placed this money at the
disposal of the directors, thus securing to the Charitable society a perpetual free
bed in the City hospital. After the title to the cemetery grounds was secured,
the central portion of the present edifice was commenced, but not completed as
designed, the funds being exhausted. In 1861 this society petitioned the leg-
islature for a House of Refuge for girls.
In November, 1863, at the annual meeting of the Charitable society, a
communication from G. H. Mumford, president of the board of directors of
the City hospital, was presented, requesting that a committee from the Char-
itable society be appointed, to confer with them and devise plans for complet-
ing and furnishing the hospital. An executive and a visiting committee were
appointed, with full power to make their own arrangements, fill vacancies, and
report progress to the society. The executive committee were Mrs. M. Strong,
The Female Charitable Society. 409
Mrs. G. H. Mumford, Mrs. W. H. Perkins, Mrs. J. Craig. The visiting com-
mittee were Mrs. F. Starr, Mrs. N. T. Rochester, Mrs. L. A. Ward, Mrs. M.
M. Mathews, Mrs. A. Boody, Mrs. I. Elwood, Mrs. A. Bronson, Mrs..!. Butts,
Mrs. W. W. Carr, Mrs. E. M. Smith, Mrs. C. F. Smith, Mrs. M. Rochester.
Mrs. W. H. Perkins, treasurer of the Charitable society, was appointed treas-
urer of the hospital committees. The executive committee conferred with the
directors; a soliciting committee was appointed, $5,000 was raised, and churches
and individuals were appealed to, who generously responded by furnishing
private rooms and wards. The directors appointed the medical and surgical
staff and requested the Charitable society to take the entire management of
the hospital, with the exception of the medical department. The society ac-
cepted the trust, delegating it to the executive and visiting committees (now
called the board of lady managers of the City hospital), on condition that the
society should incur no pecuniary responsibility, and receive an annual report
from the hospital committees.
The sick poor are not the only ones that have been aided by this society.
It decided who should partake of the Thanksgiving dinner given by the Whig
party to the city poor in 185 1 ; it dispensed, through its visitors, the funds raised
for the relief of the sufferers by the flood in 1865, and by the Front street fire in
1868 ; it distributed two hundred barrels of flour, donated, in 1869, by Aaron
Erickson, and also a gift of wood by Brackett H. Clark. The managers of
this society were, many of them, prominent in organising the Rochester orphan
asylum, the Home for the Friendless, the Industrial school and the Church
Home, and we find in all these boards ladies who have been and still are en-
gaged in the work of this society, which has revealed to them the need of the
other organisations.
The endowments of the Charitable society consist of legacies and memorial
gifts, many of which are from ladles who have been faithful workers in this
charity. As the interest of these investments only can be used, the society is
largely dependent on funds contributed In response to Its annual appeals, for
means to give the needed assistance. The society has no buildings and no
salaried oflScers; its annual and monthly meetings are held In some central
location, gratuitously loaned for the purpose. With the exception of a trifling
sum paid for printing, everj' dollar given to the treasury goes to the relief of
the sick poor. The managers meet every month to hear the reports of the
visitors and make appropriations. The visitors, ninety-five in number, are
selected in proximity to their districts, of which there are seventy-five, and are
expected to ascertain and relieve the wants of the sick poor within them, and
with rare exceptions expend the money themselves.
We cannot report in this record of sixty-two years the money disbursed,
suffering relieved, evil prevented, or good accomplished, nor does space per-
mit us to give the names of the early managers, but they were from the families
4IO History of the City of Rochester.
of the founders and prominent citizens of Rochester, whose benevolence and
energy have been transmitted to their children and grandchildren, as evinced
by their efficiency in this and kindred associations. The following is a list
of the presidents, previous to 1859: Mrs. L. Ward, Mrs. J. K. Livingston,
Mrs. S. O. Smith, Mrs. H. Norton, Mrs. J. F. Talbot, Mrs. M. Scoville,
Mrs. A. Sampson, Mrs.' F. F.' Backus, Mrs. N. Goodsell, Mrs. H. Ely, Mrs.
J. Strong, Mrs. W. Atkinson, Mrs. J. Bissell, Mrs. .W. Mumford, Mrs. S.
L. Selden, Mrs. S. Mathews, Mrs. W. Pitkin, Mrs. J. Webster, Mrs. J. R.
Gregory and Mrs. C. Dewey. The following early officers of the society are
now living : Mrs. F. Whittlesey, Mrs. C. M. Lee^ Mrs. W. W. Reid, Mrs. E.
W. Armstrong, Mrs. J. T. Talman, Mrs. E. N. Buell, Mrs. C. Gates, Mrs. Wm.
Pitkin, Mrs. S. Hamilton, and Mrs. H. Humphrey.
In 1859 Mrs. M. Strong, who had been an officer in the society since 1836,
was elected president, and has held the office since then. Mrs. F. Clarke has
been vice-president since 1865, Mrs. A. Morse since 1869, Mrs. W. C. Rowley
since 1873; Mrs. Oscar Craig has been secretary since 1869; Mrs. N. B.
Northrop was assistant treasurer sixteen years. The following directresses,
now in office, have been so many years : Mrs. J. G. Whitney, Mrs. S. G.
Andrews, Mrs. D. M. Dewey, Miss C. L. Rochester, Mrs. A. McVean, Mrs.
S. H. Terry and Mrs. W. H. Ward.
The following is a list of the corporate officers for the present year : Trus-
tees— W. N. Sage, F. A. Whittlesey, Oscar Craig, G. E. Mumford, W. H.
Ward, M. F. Reynolds; officers of the society — Mrs. Maltby Strong, presi-
dent ; Mrs. Freeman Clarke, first vice-president ; Mrs. Adolphus Morse, sec-
ond vice-president; Mrs. W. C. Rowley, third vice-president; Mrs. Oscar
Craig, secretary ; Mrs. H. P. Brewster, treasurer ; Miss Louisa Northrop, as-
sistant treasurer ; directresses — Miss C. L. Rochester, Mrs. G. G. Clarkson, Mrs.
N. A. Stone, Mrs. G. T. Frost, Mrs. J. M. Smith, Mrs. G. J. Whitney, Mrs. E.
B. Chace, Mrs. C. H. Webb, Mrs. S. H. Terry, Mrs. H. Montgomery, Mrs." J.
E. Baker, Mrs. W. H. Ward, Mrs. J. B. Perkins, Mrs; D. M. Dewey, Mrs. S.
G. Andrews, Mrs. T. Bacon, Mrs. A. McVean, Mrs. A. M. Bennett.
THE MONROE COUNTY niDI.E SOCIETY.
This society, which is auxiliary to the American Bible society, was organised
in March, 1 821, having for its object the supplying of every family in the city
and county with the Holy Scriptures. The Bible society is the oldest organis-
ation in the city of a character at once religious and benevolent, and it has,
from its beginning to the present day, fulfilled all the- high expectations that
entered into the minds of the founders. Since its organisation nine different
explorations of the city and county have been made. The ninth canvass, com-
pleted in 1872 (the semi-centennial year of the society), was more than usually
thorough and effective. This event was celebrated by its officers and friends
The Monroe County Bible Society. 41 1
of the society at a public meeting held at the First Presbyterian church.
Many were the congratulations, as the results of fifty years' faithful sowing of
the seed were made to appear. Among the notable presidents of the county
society, who, during the past sixty years, have rendered valuable services, are
the names of Levi Ward, who was the first president, Henry Brewster, of Riga,
Vincent Mathews, Ashley Sampson, James Seymour, Everard Peck, James K.
Livingston, Frederick Starr, William S. Bishop, Emmett H. Hollister, Samuel
D. Porter, and William Ailing, who was elected March 27th, 1875. Dr. Ches-
ter Dewey was for many years its able and faithful corresponding secretary.
Samuel D. Porter was also an important factor for over thirty years as record-
ing secretary, director.and president. George A. Avery, William Ailing and
Oliver D. Grosveuor have held the office of treasurer and librarian from ten to
twenty years each, doing acceptable service for the Master. During these
many years annual reports were made, from time to time, in some one of the
local churches to large and interested congregations. In October last, after an
interval of ten years, and with a desire to unite with the national society in
their fourth general canvass of the whole country, this society determined upon
another supply of the county — the tenth — and, to make it thorough and
effective, employed an agent who has had large experience in several counties
of this state to take charge of the work. It is estimated that it will require
two years and will cost, to supply the destitute and meet the incidental ex-
penses of the canvass, about $3,000. This, it is believed, the church and in-
dividual offerings will cheerfully meet.
As an illustration of the work of the society in supplying the destitute with
the Scriptures, the following brief extracts from a report of the agent employed
are given: During three months of labor a portion of four different wards of
the city and one entire village were faithfully visited, house by house and family
by family, and the work and claims of the society were presented in eleven dif-
ferent churches and congregations, and the contributions and cooperation of
many benevolent individuals were personally solicited. The City hospital was
visited, many patients purchasing and the needy being supplied gratuitously.
A supply of Bibles was also given by the society to the inmates of the Monroe
county penitentiary, upon the application of the chaplain of that institution.
Many cases of special interest were met with of families without a copy of the
Bible, of poor laboring people, scarcely earning their daily bread, who were
eager to buy the Scriptures, and others still more destitute in whose hands the
society was enabled to place the book as a gift. Such cases and many others
arc found and gratuitously supplied by the society's agent in the thorough visita-
tion now in progre-ss. The generous contributions of our churches and the be-
nevolent public will be solicited during the present year for carrying on and
completing this tenth revisitation and supply of the entire city and county with
the Holy Scriptures. The officers for the present year are: William Ailing,
27
412 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
president; Rev. J. P. Sankey, vice-president; Prof. A. H. Mixer, corresponding
secretary; Rev. David Dickey, recording secretary; O. D. Grosvenor, treasurer
and librarian; C. J. Hayden, A. S. Hamilton, J. E. Pierpont, D. Copeland, C.
A. Davis and Hiram Davis, directors.
THE ROCHESTER ORPHAN ASYLUM.^
The Rochester orphan asylum was organised by the benevolent ladies of
Rochester, February 28th, 1837, "fo"" the purpose of protecting, relieving and
educating orphan and destitute children in the city." A constitution was
adopted and the following officers were electeS: First directress, Mrs. David
Scoville; second, Mrs. Thomas H. Rochester; third, Mrs. J. K. Livingston;
fourth, Mrs. Wm. Atkinson; secretary, Mrs. Samuel D. Porter; treasurer, Mrs.
Everard Peck; board of managers, Mrs. Lindlay Murray Moore, Mrs. Silas O.
Smith, Mrs. Elon Galusha, Mrs. Ira West, Mrs. W. W. Reid, Mrs. E. F. Smith,
Mrs. John F. Bush, Mrs. Selah Mathews, Mrs. Wm. Emerson, Mrs. Pharcellus
Church, Mrs. Caleb Hammond. These officers were representative ladies from
every religious denomination in the city. But two of the number are now living
— Mrs. W. W. Reid of Rochester, and Mrs. Pharcellus Church, now of Tarry-
town. A committee was appointed to solicit aid, a small house on Adams
street was rented, Mrs. Tobey was engaged as matron, and in April the house
was opened for the reception of children. The first inmates were nine little ones
taken from the alms house by Mrs. W. W. Reid and Mrs. L. M. Moore, with
the stipulation that the same amount should be paid for their support in the
asylum that was allowed the keepers of the county poor. During the first year
forty-six children were the recipients of this charity.
By a special act of the legislature passed March 23d, 1838, the .society was
incorporated under the name of "the Rochester Orphan Asylum." In April,
1840, the charter was amended to authorise "the election of seven trustees (of
whom the mayor of the city of Rochester shall, ex-officio, be one) to manage
the estate and financial concerns of the institution." In April, 1871, this act
was further amended, increasing the number of trustees to ten. The first trus-
tees elected were : Thomas H. Rochester, Everard Peck, Silas O. Smith, Silas
Cornell, David Scoville and Moses Chapin. In June, 1839, John Greig of Can-
andaigua gave to the asylum an acre and a half of land fronting on Hubbell
park and extending from Greig to Exchange street ; afterward Alonzo Frost
planted it with shade trees, and finally Hiram Sibley inclosed it with. a substan-
tial fence. On this site the central building of the present structure was erected
in 1843 and '44, and in April of the latter year the children were removed to
their new home. In 1869 the managers decided to extend their work by re-
ceiving children under two years of age, a class for whom no provision had
been made by any institution in the city. More room was required for the
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. William N. Sage.
Rochester Orphan Asylum. 413
proper care of these little one's and in 1870 the east wing was built for their ac-
commodation, at a cost of over $10,000. The two upper stories furnished
pleasant day and night nurseries for the children under five years of age, while
the basement gave to the older ones ample bath-rooms, fitted up with basin,
towel, soap and brushes for the hair and teeth, for each child, a luxury to which
they had before that time been strangers. In 1873 a low wooden building
used for laundry, school-room and dormitories was found to be so much out of
repair as to be unsafe. It was torn down and replaced by a substantial brick
structure, known as the west wing. The roof of the main building was raised
and another story added. The new wing and improvements on thfe main build-
.ing, the introduction of steam heating and Hemlock water, furnishing, etc.,
cost $21,169. Of this amount $7,500 was received by a grant from the state
legislature for this special purpose, which, with $1,000 given a few years be-
fore, constitutes the entire sum received by the asylum from the state treasury.
Less than a decade of years had passed when the steady growth of. her
asylum, with its corresponding demands, forced upon the managers the con-
viction that still more room must be provided. The school-room was crowded,
the laundry was no larger than one required for a private family, and the hos-
pital was a small room, poorly ventilated and without bath-room or water.
The necessity for additional room was evident, but the managers saw no way
of raising the money. In the midst of their perplexity, a venerable citizen,
the late Henry S. Potter, nobly came to their relief, and to his liberal gift of
$12,000 the asylum is indebted for the " Potter memorial building," erected in
1 88 1. The improvements which were required to adapt the west wing to the
new edifice, a new building for boilers, coal-house and drying-room, steam
heating, plumbing and gas cost about $6,000. This amount was taken from
invested funds which the asylum could legally use for permanent improve-
ments. During the forty-seven years of its existence the asylum has received
by legacies $44,416, and has expended from this source, on buildings and
grounds, $21,433, leaving $22,983 now invested in bonds and mortgages.
Since the organisation of the asylum 3,734 children have been sheltered
withinits walls. Some of these little ones have had a temporary home for a
few weeks or perhaps months, while their parents were sick or out of work
and unable to care for them; when better days returned the children were taken
home, carrying with them some new ideas of life, prompting them to make
their homes more comfortable by putting into practice a little of the order and
neatness which they had been taught at the asylum. A large number were
orphans or half orphans and many have been rescued from homes of destitu-
tion and from the cruel abuse of intemperate or vicious parents. An important
feature of the institution is procuring permaneni homes for the children. The
asylum is designed as a temporary home, a stepping-stone to something higher
and better. While in the institution the children receive motherly care and
414 History of the City of Rochester.
moral and mental instruction designed to fit them to become members of re-
spectable families. Great care is taken in giving out children to choose those
who are adapted to the homes they are to enter ; those qualified by nature to
fill only subordinate positions are placed in such, while for those more highly
gifted, and especially for the younger children, are sought homes by adoption.
Since the organisation of the asylum more than five hundred children whose
only seeming inheritance was poverty and degradation have been thus ab-
sorbed into the better classes of the community and educated under the disci-
pline of well ordered family life. During the ten years ending October ist, 1883,
two hundred and forty-nine children have b^n provided with permanent
homes; one hundred and forty-one of these were legally adopted by people of
means, and will be given every advantage of education and culture enjoyed
by those born under more auspicious circumstances ; the other one hundred
and eight are in respectable families, where they will receive a good common
school education, be trained to habits of industry and be fitted to become self-
supporting citizens. The great number of children thus placed in homes is
one of the most efficient means of breaking up hereditary pauperism, and has
done more toward reducing the " poor tax " than all the city and county have
ever paid for the support of children in the asylum. The average number of
children in the asylum during the last five years was 10 1 ; the present number
is 103.
Children are received from the county for $1.50 per week, and from the city
for $1.60. These prices were fixed by the board of supervisors and by the
common council in 1876, and include board, clothing, schooling and every ex-
pense of whatever nature. For the thirty-nine years previous to 1876 the city
and county had paid but $1.00 per week for the support of children in the
asylum. The average expense of maintaining a child in the asylum is $2.00
per week. The children of poor mothers, who by reason of the death, intem-
perance or desertion of their husbands have been compelled to put their chil-
dren in the asjdum and go out to service or to daily labor, are received for
$1.00 per week and in some instances where there are several children in one
family they are taken for seventy-five cents each, and for many children no
compensation is received from any source. The amount received from all
these sources averages less than one-half the cost of maintenance ; the remain-
der, or about $5,000 a year, must come from voluntary contributions in money
and supplies.
An annual "donation" is held at the asylum on the second Thursday in
November, the receipts averaging $2,500. In December, bags capable of hold-
ing about half a bushel are freely distributed in the city and neighboring towns;
Christmas week the bags are returned to the asylum, bountifully filled with
food and clothing, fruit, nuts, confectionery and toys. The flour, sugar, pota-
toes and other household supplies contained in these " Christmas bags " fur-
nish a valuable supplement to the November 'donation.
^ ' St. Patrick's Orphan Asylum. 41 S
The school room occupies the entire first floor of the Potter building ; it is
well lighted and ventilated and fitted with every needed appliance for school
work. The school is under the direction of the board of education, by whom
the teachers are appointed and paid. The course of study and text books are
the same as in the public schools. All expenses of the schools, except teachers'
salaries, are paid by the asylum.
The older children attend church regularly on Sunday morning. In the
afternoon, Sunday school exercises are held in the school rooms. Everard Peck,
Samuel D. Porter, William R. Seward, Horace McGuire, Frank Ellery and Prof
Forbes have successively served as superintendents. Prof Forbes, of the Roch-
ester Free academy, and Mrs. Forbes are still rendering valuable service.
During the early years of the asylum rotation in office seemed to be the
rule. Among the exceptions may be found the name of Mrs. Chester Dewey,"
who with occasional intervals served as president twenty-five years, her first
term of office dating from 1840 to 1850, and her last from 1857 to 1870, when
failing health compelled her final resignation. She was succeeded by Mrs. Ly-
sander Farrar, who filled the office acceptably until October, 1883, when she
declined reelection, on account of contemplated absence from the city. Two
secretaries have served ten years each— ^ Mrs. S. H. Terry, from 1856 to 1866,
and Mrs. Martin Briggs, from 1873 to 1883. Mrs. E. N. Buell acted as treas-
urer seventeen years, from 1845 to 1862. She was succeeded by Mrs. William
N. Sage, who served in that capacity until November, 1883, a period of twenty-
one years, when she declined reelection. The present officers are : President,
Mrs. E. H. HoUister; vice-president, Mrs. Geo. G. Clarkson ; secretary, Mrs.
Martin Briggs ; treasurer, Mrs. Joseph Curtis ; trustees — C. R. Parsons, mayor
of the city (ex-officio) ; William N. Sage, president of the board ; Jonathan E.
Pierpont, secretary ; Ezra R. Andrews, Thomas C. Montgomery, James L.
Angle, H. Austin Brewster, Charles F. Pond, David Copeland and Henry F.
Smith.
ST. PATRICK'S ORPHAN ASYLUM.l
The incorporate title of the asylum is "The Roman Catholic orphan asylum
society of the city of Rochester." This asylum for girls is situated on Frank street,
corner of Vought. It is a brick building, three stories high, with a basement
for kitchen, dining-rooms, etc. It was commenced in 1841 by a society called
the " Orphan Asylum society." The orphans were under the care of matrons
hired by the society. At a meeting called by Rev. B. O'Reilly September 17th,
1843, the society was reorganised. It was resolved to hold meetings every first
Sunday of the month, and that the board of managers consist of the officers of
the society, viz., president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer. Father
1 The articles upon the three Catholic orphan asylums and the Home of Industry were prepared by
Rev. D. Laurenzis, under tlie supervision of Bishop McQuaid.
4i6 History of the City of Rochesteu.
O'Reilly remaining president, Rev. Charles D. French was elected vice-presi-
dent, George A. Wilkin treasurer and P. Barry secretary. At a meeting Feb-
ruary 9th, 1845, it was resolved to have the society incorporated by an act of
the legislature. May 14th, 1845, under the above-mentioned name. The first
trustees were : Rev. Bernard O'Reilly, Rev. Charles D. French, Rev. Lawrence
Carroll, Hugh Bradley, Patrick Doyle, Patrick Barry, James O'Donoughue,
James Gallery and Michael Mullen. On July 13th, 1845, ^ code of by-laws
was adopted. Meetings were to take place once a month, elections yearly, in
June. Membership could be obtained by paying monthly twelve and a half
cents, or membership for life by paying fifty dollars into the funds. The pastor
of St. Patrick's church was president ex officio. The asylum was supported by
the fees of members, Christmas collections in the churches, and fairs. The or-
phan boys were sent to Lancaster and afterward to Lime Stone Hill and paid
for by the society, until 1864.
In March, 1844, the managers of the asylum' applied for Sisters of Charity
to take care of the orphans. They petitioned the superior at Emmettsburg
(St. Joseph's House), Maryland. But they were not obtained until the spring
of 184s, when they arrived from Emmettsburg. The first superior was Sister
Martha. The building was enlarged in 1847, and a wing put to it in 1864-
65, along Vought street. At a special meeting called November Sth, 1863, it
was resolved to give to the Sisters of Charity the entire management of the in-
stitution, and a meeting of the society was called for the first Sunday of Decem-
ber, 1863, to adopt this resolution. The change was effected June 2Sth, 1864,
when at a special meeting the resignations of Rev. M. O'Brien, A. B. Hone,
Thomas Flannery, Philip Little and George A. Wilkin were accepted and Sis-
ters of Charity elected in their places. Sister M. Beatrice was elected president
and treasurer. The Sisters of Charity managed the asylum until the end of the
year 1870, when they resigned. Bishop McQuaid then put the Sisters of St.
Joseph in charge of the asylum, the first superior being Sister M. Stanislaus.
The present superior is Sister M. de Chantal; she is assisted by about ten
Sisters. The present number of orphans is seventy-eight. The total number
of orphans received since the foundation of the asylum is 2,004. The institu-
tion is supported by the city and county, by the Christmas collections in the
English-speaking Catholic churches in the city, by a yearly fair and concert and
by private donations. Two teachers. Sisters of St. Joseph, are paid for by the
city.
ST. MARY'S ORPHAN BOYS' ASYLUM.
The Catholic orphan boys of Rochester were, for many years, sent to Lan-
caster, N. Y., and Lime Stone Hill, near Buffalo. They were paid for in these
institutions by the Roman Catholic orphan asylum society of Rochester, which
took care of the St. Patrick's orphan asylum. In the year 1 864, however, Rt.
St. Joseph's Orphan Asylum. 417
Rev, Bishop Timon opened an asylum for boys near St. Mary's church on South
street, in a house which now is a part of the convent of the Sisters of Mercy.
The orphan boys then were withdrawn from Lime Stone Hill and sent to this
place. Nine sisters of the congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph came to
this city and took charge of the asylum, Mother M. Stanislaus being the superior.
In 1 868 a new site was bought for the asylum, and in the same year the
institution was opened on the present lot, in the old building, on the corner of
Genesee street and West avenue. The old house being too small to accommo-
date the orphans, a new building was erected in 187 1, which is the present
asylum. It is of stone, three stories high, with a basement for kitchen, dining-
room, etc. The old building is now used for a branch school of St. Patrick's
parochial school, for the care of the orphan babies during the day, and for a
bakery. The large frame building in the rear is used for a laundry.
The present number of orphans is about one hundred. About nine hundred
have been received since 1864. The first superior was Sister M. Stanislaus.
The present superior is Sister M. Xavier, assisted by sixteen Sisters. The in-
stitution is supported by the city and county, by a Christmas collection in the
English-speaking churches of the city, by a yearly fair and concert and by pri-
vate donations. Two teachers. Sisters of St. Joseph, are paid for by the city.
ST. JOSEPH'S ORPHAN ASYLUM.
The incorporate title of this institution is " the St. Joseph's German Ro-
man Catholic orphan asylum of Rochester and Monroe county." This asylum
is situated on Andrews street, near Franklin. Its object is to take care of the
German Catholic orphans of this city and county. It is under the manage-
ment of the Sisters of Notre Dame. Mother Caroline came from Milwaukee
in 1854, with two Sisters, to teach St. Joseph's parochial school. She left Sister
Ignatia the first superior. In course of time some members of St. Joseph's
church formed a society to take care of the German Catholic orphans. They
formed a corporation under the above-mentioned name and obtained the incor-
poration act April 23d, 1863. The first members mentioned in the act were:
Joseph Hoffman, John Groh, John Wegman, M. Weigel, Bernard Klem, Louis
Ernst, Roman Schlitzer, Vitus Saenderl, Joseph Schutte, John Soeder, B. Gom-
menginger and E. Weigel. The affairs of the society are transacted by a board
of trustees, annually elected. The pastor of any German Roman Catholic con-
gregation in which a branch of this society shall be organised is a trustee ex
officio. Members must pay monthly twenty-five cents.
The society owns a large tract of land at the terminus of North street,
which is rented pr sold for the benefit of the orphans. About 1866, the asy-
lum took its beginning in a frame house on the present site, Sister Angelica be-
ing superior. Then two small adjoining buildings were used for the accommo-
dation of the orphans and sisters. In 1874 the main part of the present build-
41 8 History of the City of Rochester.
ing was erected, four stories high, of brick, with a basement for dining-room,
etc. The building was enlarged in 1882. In the first year six orphans were
received.
At present there are nearly one hundred orphans (boys and girls) in the
asylum. To the present day about five hundred children have found shelter
in the institution. Sister M. Paula is superior at present, assisted by about
twelve Sisters. The asylum is supported by the city and county, by a Christ-
mas collection in St. Joseph's church, by a yearly eiitertainment and by private
donations. Two teachers are paid for by the city.
THE JEWISH ORPHAN ASYLUM.
The Jewish Orphan Asylum association of Western New York, which was
started in November, 1877, to accumulate a fund for the erection of an orphan
asylum, has its office at Rochester, and the asylum is permanently located in this
city, although it has not yet had a home of its own. A place has just been pur-
chased on North St. Paul street, between Scrantom and Evergreen, and the
building now standing there is to be put at once into a proper condition for an
asylum. The association is formed by the three Jewish orphan asylum societies
of Rochester, Buffalo and Syracuse. There are six hundred and forty-one mem-
bers of the association, of whom two hundred and eighty are in Rochester ; the
accumulated capital is $55,913.70, of which $9,758.89 is cash in the treasury,
$4,727.30 of this amount being in this city, deposited in two of the savings
banks. Members pay an annual contribution of $4.00 or more. The society has
now under its charge seven orphans, which are placed with a family. Rev. Dr.
Max Landsberg is the secretar)' of the association, Lewis Stern the financial
.secretary and E. S. Ettenheimer the Rochester trustee of the consolidated fund.
A number of benevolent societies are maintained by the Jews. The oldest
and largest is the Hebrew Benevolent society, existing since 1850, which counts
over 300 contributing members. Its work is supplemented by the Ladies'
Hebrew Benevolent society since 1865, the Hebrew Ladies' Aid and Hospital
society, founded in 1871, and the Young Ladies' Sewing society in 1883.
THE ROCHESTER HOME FOR THE FRIENDLESS. '
The Rochester Home for the Friendless, whose substantial building stands
upon the corner of East avenue and Alexander street, was one of the first
benevolent institutions established in Rochester, having been founded in the
year 1849. I" point of time it was preceded only by the Female Charitable
society and the Protestant orphan asylum. Like all beneficent plans, which,
unaccompanied by selfish, personal motives, seek to uplift and bless others, it
had a humble beginning ; but its germ was divine, being an emanation of the
spirit of Him whose coming to earth brought good will to men. It is impos-
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. Charles H. Webb.
The Home for the Friendless. 419
sible now to ascertain whose kind heart first conceived the project, but by the
united interest of several of Rochester's earnest, superior women it overcame
its many early difficulties, and by gradual growth secured a permanent found-
ation. Its organisation was effected in April, 1849, ^^ the house of Mrs. Chas.
Church, under the name of "the Rochester association for the relief of home-
less and friendless females." Its first board of managers were: Mrs. Samuel
L. Selden, president; Mrs. Charles Church, treasurer; Mrs. Samuel D. Porter,
secretary. Mrs. Selah Mathews, Mrs. S. L. Selden, Mrs. E. Scrantom, Mrs.
Ingersoll, Mrs. Dr. Mathews. Mrs. J. H. Gregory, Miss M. G. Porter, Mrs.
Samuel Hamilton, Mrs. Roby, Mrs. Dr. Jonah Brown, Mrs. R. Lester and Mrs.
Stoddard were its first directresses. Its original design was to provide a tem-
porary home, for virtuous, unprotected females, while seeking employment in
the city, and it was intended to make the institution, as far as practicable, self-
supporting, by the industry of its transient inmates in such labor as the public
need demanded, by washing, ironing or needle-work. Its first location was
the half of a tenement house, upon Edinburgh street, for which a rental of
$50.00 a year was paid. Mrs. Alvin Ingersoll was its first matron. These
were its struggling days, when faith and zeal supplemented its feeble treasury
and encouraged the patient workers. The following year the society occupied
a small house on Monroe street, and in 1851 a house was purchased on Adams ,
street of Ebenezer Ely, for the sum of $1,400, $200 being being paid at once,
and six annual payments of the same sum promised. In this year they received
their first legacy of $50, by the will of Mrs. Everard Peck, a warm friend of
the new society, which, in the words of the record, "greatly relieved the em-
barrassed treasurer." In August of this year also Nicholas E. Paine, the mayor
of the city, sent the association $300, a part of the proceeds of a concert given
by Jenny Lind. In 1852 a board of trustees was elected, consisting of J. W.
Bissell, A. G. Bristol, E. Scrantom, A. A. Morse, H. A. Brewster, E. Ely, J.
H. Martindale, Wm. Pitkin, W. A. Reynolds and S. D. Porter.
In 1853, through the agency of Mr. Bissell, the present location, upon
which then stood a small and inferior building, was selected and by gradual
payments purchased. The removal took place the following spring, and the
new quarters were gratefully appreciated. Children were now received, and
cared for until suitable homes were found for them with adopted parents, to
whom after careful investigation they were indentured. A teacher was pro-
vided, who gave them daily instruction, and a sewing-school was conducted by
young lady friends, for the education of the girls. Day scholars were received
into this school and taught to sew, and prizes given to promote efficiency.
An employment exchange was also established, by which householders could
obtain servants, and servants secure situations.
Meanwhile the new institution grew silently, and steadily gained the con-
fidence and sympathy of the public. The records tell how resident clergymen
420 History of" the City of Rochester.
delivered lectures for its benefit, amateur musicians played and sang in its be-
half, concerts were given in private drawing-rooms, literary men contributed vol-
umes from their own libraries to furnish reading for the inmates, and surrounding
towns sent to the institution boxes of clothing and bedding, supplies of veget-
ables and gifts of money. In 1855 the society was incorporated under the
name of the Rochester Home for the Friendless. Its board of trustees con-
sisted of S. G. Andrews, Selah Mathews, H. A. Brewster, J. W. Bissell, S. D.
Porter, Edwin Scrantom, E. Ely. In this year, too, its first donation day was
observed, when the house was thrown open to receive visits and gifts from its
friends. This has since been an annual custom and forms an important source
of revenue.- In 1857 the managers undertook the publication of a monthly
paper, called the journal of the Home, whose object was to acquaint people
out of the city with the aims and needs of the institution. Its first editress
was Mrs. Alexander Mann, who was succeeded by Mrs. E. G. Robinson, Mrs.
N. S. Barnes, Mrs. T. C. Arner, Miss Caroline Kendrick, Miss Mary Bliss and
Mrs. Isaac Hills. The paper was continued for eighteen years. During this
year by the efforts of John T. Lacy, the city's representative, an appropriation
of $500 was obtained from the legislature.
In 1859 the constitution was amended by a proviso that the institution, in
addition to its care of the homeless and friendless, should become a permanent
home for aged women, and as such it is now distinctively known, although it
still receives friendless and homeless women, to its temporary shelter and pro-
tection. The care of children was gradually relinquished, after the establish-
ment of the Industrial school, as it was no longer a necessity, but the nurture
and education of children, which was begun in the Home for the Friendless,
and continued for many years, was the suggestion and origin of the present
Industrial school. Before the erection of the City hospital, the Home for the
Friendless also received and cared for some of the sick poor, who were pension-
ers of the Female Charitable society. By large and special gifts from individual
friends, the building has been twice enlarged and remodeled. On the first of
these occasions we read, that the managers "thanked God and took courage."
During thirty-five years of the Home's existence it has had but six presiding
officers, namely: Mrs. Samuel L. Selden, Mrs. Selah Mathews, Mrs. Frederick
Starr, Mrs. D. R. Barton, Mrs. C. E. Robinson and Mrs. Samuel Porter. Mrs.
Selah Mathews twice held the office, the last term covering a period of twenty
years. The prescribed limits of this sketch forbid the enumeration of the names
of noble women who have been identified with the work of the institution, whose
characters have established its reputation and influence. They are recorded in
an immortal book.
The present number of inmates in the Home is fifty-four. Its conditions of
admission require the applicant to be at least sixty-five years of age, and the
payment of a sum of money proportioned to her age,' by which an agreement
The Home for the Friendless. 421
is made to provide for her a comfortable home through life, and Christian
burial. The interest upon any property which she possesses, aside from the sum
required for her admittance, is devoted to her exclusive use during life, and after-
•ward belongs to the Home. In no other way do the inmates contribute to the
support of the institution. The Home is under the constant and immediate
supervision of a wise and judicious matron, whose duties are systematised and
lightened by the stated visits and counsel of the several committees in their dif*
ferent departments of care. The character and influence of the Home are en-
tirely parental; indeed it is like a large household over which a kind mother
presides, yet each inmate can in her own room enjoy the peace and seclusion
of a separate home. Their wants are generously supplied, they are cheerfully
cared for in health, and tenderlj' nursed in sickness, receiving the visits of an
appointed physician. The institution is not denominational, and religious ser-
vices are regularly observed on the Sabbath. It is a source of much comfort
to the old ladies, and one that often finds expression, that at the end of their
long journey of life they will receive respectful Christian burial in sacred Mount
Hope. Two burial lots have been given to the Home by the commissioners of
that cemetery. Upon the first stands a monument donated by friends, and the
monument for the latter is the generous gift of Peter Pitkin.
The present board of managers of the Home consists of Mrs. Samuel Porter,
president; Mrs. J. R. Chamberlain, first vice-president; Miss L. E. Guernsey,
second vice-president; Mrs. C. F. Pond, recording secretary; Mrs. C. H. Webb,
corresponding secretary; Mrs. E. B. Chace, treasurer. Its directresses are
Mrs. J. L. Angle, Mrs. J. M. Babcock, Mrs. F. B. Bishop, Mrs. E. Y. Blossom,
Mrs. Horace Brewster, Mrs. Amon Bronson, Mrs. L. S. Chapin, Mrs. Curtis
Clarke, Mrs. David Gordon, Mrs. C. E. Hart, Mrs. J. C. Hart, Mrs. J. E. Hay-
den, Mrs. E. S. Hayward, Mrs. H. E. Hooker, Mrs. L. Hotchkiss, Mrs. Dr.
Hovey, Mrs. J. H. Howe, Mrs. J. S. Killip, Mrs. A. Lindsey, Mrs. A. S. Mann,
Mrs. A. G. Mudge, Mrs. E. W. Osburn, Mrs. J. W. Oothout, Mrs. D. W. Pow-
ers, Mrs. Asa Saxe, Mrs. E. V. Stoddard, Mrs. A. C. Wilder, Mrs. W. Wither-
spoon. Dr. J. W. Whitbeck is its appointed physician. Mrs. M. S. Putnam
is its matron. Its board of trustees comprises D. W. Powers, Theodore Bacon,
Franklin Ritter, E. O. Sage, D. A, Woodbury and James L. Angle. The fol-
lowing is the list of donors to the endowment fund of the Home for the Friend-
less: Hathaway memorial fund, $i,ooo; Edwin Pancost memorial fund, $2,-
000; Reynolds memorial fund, $2,000; Mrs. Robert Hunter's legacy, $1,000;
Mrs. Rhoda Craig's legacy, $2,000; Joseph Field's, $5,000; Mrs. Mary R.
Brown's $414; Elizabeth Bliss's, $140; Mrs. Fellows's, $521.90; Harvey Hall's,
$500; legacies from life members and others in small amounts, $1,146.50; in
all, $15,722.40. By the will of the late Henry S. Potter the Home is to receive
$2,500. The endowment fund being quite limited, the institution is still mainly
dependent upon the support of the public, and the devotion of its friends; but
422 History of the City of Rochester.
as its record of thirty-five years has proved it to be not only a blessing to indi-
vidual lives, but an honor to the city to which it belongs, it is believed that its
future permanency is assured. It is not in the power of human balances to es-
timate the value of its ministry. The hearts that have been comforted, the
tears that have been wiped away, the fears that have been dispelled, the peace
that has been bestowed, the good that has been accomplished through the in-
strumentality of the Home for the Friendless, can alone be computed by Him,
who weighs motives as well as deeds.
the industrial SCHOOLiOF ROCHESTER.^
We are indebted to the late Mrs. Ebenezer Griffin for the germ of this
charity. In the autumn of 1856 she witnessed, in Brooklyn, N. Y., the suc-
cessful working of an industrial school, and returned home imbued with a desire
to establish a like institution in Rochester. In cooperation with Mrs. Henry
A. Brewster she called an informal meeting of ladies, at the house of the latter,
on the northwest corner of Spring and South Washington streets, to discuss the
feasibility of such an enterprise, and on December 17th, 1856, another meeting
was held in the lecture room of Plymouth church, when the Industrial School
association was organised and the following officers were elected; First direc-
tress, Mrs. David C. Ailing; second directress, Mrs. Alfred Ely; treasurer,
Mrs. George H. Ely; corresponding secretary, Mrs. Seth H. Terry; recording
secretary, Mrs. Gilman H. Perkins. At a subsequent meeting, an executive, a
school, a work, and a house and furnishing committee were appointed.
On the isth of April, 1857, the society was incorporated, and the following
persons formed the first board of directors: Henry A. Brewster, president;
E^win Scrantom, secretary; Ebenezer Griffin, chairman of the law committee;
Adolphus Morse, Aristarchus Champion, Samuel P. Ely, Henry R. Selden,
Aaron Erickson, Elias Pond, Samuel D. Porter, John M. French, Edward M.
Smith and Joshua Conkey. In January, 1858, A. Morse and A. Erickson re-
signed, and Charles J. Hayden and Seth H. Terry were elected in their places.
C. J. Hayden has from that time been president of the board. Edwin Scran-
tom was secretary twenty-three years.
As defined by the second article of its constitution, "the objects of this as-
sociation are to gather into the school, vagrant and destitute chil{iren, who, from
the poverty or vice of their parents are unable to attend the public schools, and
who gather a precarious livelihood by begging or pilfering ; to give them ideas
of moral and religious duty ; to instruct them in the elements of learning and
in different branches of industry, and thus enable them to obtain an honest and
honorable support, and to become useful members of society." This organ •
isation had its birth in a winter of unusual severity ; there was a great pressure
in the money market, and everything was conducted on an economical basis.
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. Seth H. Terry.
<_S^aytr/?fy (b/U^M:^-^/'//
'/,,'■■> .',,//; &,. c/l', , '::
The Industrial School. 423
Contributions of money and supplies were made by our citizens, John M.
French gave the free use of rooms in the old Rochester House, Exchange street,
where on Christmas, 1856, more than three hundred children partook of a din-
ner, and on January Sth, 1857, a school was opened for the needy children
of Rochester. A matron, cook and teacher, were hired ; all other services were
gratuitous. A class of neglected, destitute, filthy, lawless children were soon
collected, and a large and efficient board of managers strove to raise them above
pauperism. They were instructed in the elementary branches, in sewing, and
in housework. The managers collected funds, provided supplies, assisted in the
school and sewing classes, visited the children at their homes, made and repaired
garments for them, and gave them a substantial dinner.
It was not the original design of this society to retain the children in the
house after school hours ; but exceptional cases soon demanded temporary
homes .for some of them. Frightened children sought shelter to escape the
abuse of intemperate parents, and were harbored till the hour of peril was over;
sick children needed warm quarters, care at night, and nursing; little ones,
whose parents were sent to the penitentiary, required protection, and thus,
gradually, a home family, that now nunibers fifty- six, has been gathered at the
Industrial school. During the first year 264 girls and 272 boys were connected
with the school ; the average attendance was seventy-five ; ten children were
provided with homes; 704 garments, 119 pairs of shoes, and twenty-one pairs
of rubbers were distributed, and the cash expenses were $946.58. The need
of some place where vicious girls could be reclaimed and kept from harming
others, became so apparent that in 1858 and i86i this society used its influence
and memorialised the legislature to provide a house of refuge for girls.
For the more efficient prosecution of its work, the association, in 1858, pur-
chased of Mrs. Albert G. Smith, for $2,800, the central portion of the present
Industrial school premises, "]& Exchange street ; alterations were made in the
house, and an airy dining-room and school- room provided, in a two-story wing,
fifty-four by twenty- three feet, erected west of the building. In 1866 the pur-
chase of a large lot on the north, for $2,500, supplied an ample playground. A
small lot bought in 1871, south of the original purchase, enabled the managers
the following year to build new nurseries and dormitories and provide a day
nursery for the children of working women. In 1880 two donations, $5,000
each, from Hiram Sibley and Don Alonzo Watson, led to the taking down of
the west wing and the erection of the large Sibley- Watson wing, that now forms
the western portion of the Industrial school building, and is also a lasting
memorial to the beneficence of two of our liberal-hearted directors.
This charity has at times received state appropriations ; there are some
memorial legacies and bequests, the interest of which is available ; the board
of education has for some years hired the school-rooms and supplied teachers ;
the city pays a small sum for the board of some children, and parents for others ;
424 History of the City of Rochester.
but the society depends largely for its support on the contribution of the char-
itable. From 1858 to 1876, inclusive, a strawberry festival was held each June,
and since 1864 there has been an annual, autumnal donation reception, and
the liberal responses of our citizens testify to their appreciation of the Industrial
school. An annual meeting for the election of officers is held on the Saturday
following the first Friday in January. An annual report is printed in pamphlet
form, and monthly the Industrial School Advocate makes known the work and
needs of this charity. This paper, first issued in 1865, was edited by Mrs.
George T. Parker till 1870, when she was succeeded by Mrs. Seth H. Terry,
its present editress. Mrs. George Gould has been treasurer of the paper since
1874.
Of the early directors, five survive : Charles J. Hayden, Samuel P. Ely,
Henry R. Selden, Edward M. Smith and Seth H. Terry. Of the original
female officers, five are still members of the association, viz : Mrs. Oilman H.
Perkins, who has ever been the recording secretary ; Mrs. Nehemiah W. Bene-
dict and Mrs. Alfred Ely, who are vice-presidents; Mrs. Elvira Allen, who
serves on the children's committee, and Mrs. Seth H. Terry, on the paper
committee. Mrs. George F. Danforth, now president of the board of managers,
succeeded Mrs. David C. Ailing in 1865 ; Mrs. Gerard Arink has been corres-
ponding secretary since 1862; Mrs. Lewis H. Morgan was treasurer from
January, 1864, till her death, in December, 1883.
The industrial school is now in successful operation. Its ample, well ven-
tilated school-rooms, nurseries, dormitories, dining-rooms and hospital, its bath-
rooms, piazzas and play grounds, adapt it to the work for which it is designed.
Three teachers are employed in the school-rooms, where last year the average
attendance was ninety-two. There is a "day nursery, and the home family
numbers fifty-six children. ■ Volunteer teachers give instruction two afternoons
in the week in sewing, and there are lessons twice a week in the kitchen gar-
den department. Last year 1,456 garments and 293 pairs of shoes were dis-
tributed.
The following are the present corporate officers : . Directors — Charles J.
Hayden, Henry R. Selden, Edward M. Smith, 1 Seth H. Terry, Oilman H.
Perkins, Jacob Anderson, Daniel W. Powers, D. A. Watson, Hiram Sibley,
F. L. Durand, Fred Turpin, Charles F. Pond, George S. Riley, Jesse W. Hatch,
Lewis P. Ross, William S. Kimball, Charles W. Trotter, Charles Salmon ; pres-
ident of the board, C. J. Hayden ; treasurer, Mrs. Oscar Craig ; secretary, S. H.
Terry ; law committee, H. R. Selden, S. H. Terry, F. L. Durand ; finance com-
mittee, G. H. Perkins D. A. Watson, C. F. Pond; building committee, C. J. Hay-
den, Jacob Anderson, C. W. Trotter. The following are the officers of the asso-
ciation for the year commencing January 5th, 1884: President, Mrs. George F.
Danforth; first vice-president, Mrs. Nehemiah W. Benedict; second vice-presi-
1 Edward M. Smith has died since this article was written.
The Church Home. — The Home of Industry. 425
dent, Mrs. Hiram Sibley ; third vice-president, Mrs. Alfred Ely ; fourth vice-
president, Mrs. J. W. Oothout ; treasurer, Mrs. Oscar Craig; corresponding
secretary, Mrs. Gerard Arink ; recording secretary, Mrs. Oilman H. Perkins.
THE CHURCH HOME.
This institution, which was incorporated July 24th, 1 869, was the outgrowth
of a long-felt conviction that the Episcopal church should possess and control
a "home" where destitute children might be taught and aged communicants
sheltered in old age. The meeting to perfect an organisation was held on the
1st of June, 1868, there being present four ladies from each parish, who were,
appointed by the rectors of their respective churches. The officers elected at
this meeting were: Mrs. George H. Mumford, president; Mrs. D. M. Dewey,
vice-president; Mrs. Edward M. Smith, corresponding secretary; Miss Mary
J. Clark, treasurer. On the 2d of July a letter was received from George R.
Clark and George E. Mumford, proposing to give for the purposes of the
Home a house and lot on Mount Hope avenue, with an assessed valuation of
$5,300, which offer was gratefully accepted. On the 20th of April, 1869, the
corner-stone of the. Home was laid by Rev. Dr. Anstice, and on the i6th of
the following October the building was formally opened, all the city clergy
taking part in the exercises. The total cost of the structure, was nearly $15,000.
The practical management of the Home was placed in the hands of the lady
managers, subject to the direction of the following officers, elected July 24th,
1869: President, George R. Clark; vice-president. Rev. Dr. Foote ; secre-
tary, George H. Humphrey ; treasurer, John H. Rochester. The Home is
supported by monthly collections and individual donations. There are, how-
ever, funds held by trustees amounting to $8,787, the income of which is ap-
plicable to the purposes of the Home. The present officers of the board of
of lady managers are as follows: Pi'esident, Mrs. D. M. Dewey; vice-presi-
dent, Mrs. Hiram Sibley ; corresponding secretary, Mrs. M. M. Mathews ;
recording secretary, Mrs. W. C. Rowley; treasurer. Miss C. L. Rochester.
THE HOME OF INDUSTRY.
This institution was established on Edinburgh street by Sister Hieronymo
in 1873. Its object is the protection of young girls, to teach them trades, to
find employment or homes for them. Three Sisters of St. Joseph opened the
house. In 1874 they bought the present place on South St. Paul street. The
buildin"- was enlarged in 1875. A laundry is connected with the institution.
At present there are about seventy- five inmates, under the care of six Sisters,
Sister Hieronymo being the superior. It is supported by the industry of the
inmates, by the labor of the Sisters and by charitable friends.
426 History of the City of Rochester.
THE western new YORK INSTITUTION FOR DEAF MUTES. 1
This institution was organised on the 4th of February, 1876. The orig-
inal trustees and incorporators were : President, E. Darwin Smith ; first vice-
president, Geo. G. Clarkson; second vice-president, S. A. Ellis; secretary, Ed-
ward P. Hart; treasurer, Gilman H. Perkins; Oscar Craig, C. E. Rider, S. A.
Lattimore, M. F. Reynolds, Thos. Gallaudet, Aaron Erickson, Lewis H. Mor-
gan, William S. Ely, S. D. Porter, Seth H. Terry. Z. F. Westervelt, of New
York, was appointed principal. The institution was soon after (May iSth) recog-
nised by the legislature in an act authorising ^state and count)' officers to ap-
point pupils to the institution under provisions of existing laws, which make
the education of the deaf substantially a part of the public school system. The
proper officers ascertain that candidates, on account of their deafness, are of the
class for whom these special schools are provided. The expenses of their edu-
cation, under the statute, are not provided for by general taxation, as is the
method of obtaining support for public school children, but by special per capita
appropriation upon appointments.
At the time the institution was organised here, the school for the deaf in New
York city, though the largest school of its kind in the world, did not provide,
together with the three other deaf-mute schools of New York, for many more
than half of the deaf children of school age within the state. It had been ascer-
tained from the state census, by correspondence and by personal visitation, that
there were over two hundred children at that time in Western New York for
whom there was no adequate provision in the institutions of the state, and it was
for these that this school was established. On the 4th of October the school
was opened in the Mumford block, on the' corner of South St. Paul and Court
streets, with twenty-three pupils. All the teachers and officers employed had
had experience as instructors of the deaf Among those well known in Roch-
ester who have been engaged as instructors are Sylvanus A. Ellis, Edward P.
Hart, Mills Whittlesey and Ward T. Sutherland.
So rapid was the growth of the school that before the end of the second
year it became evident that enlarged accommodations must be provided. At
this time the city property on North St. Paul street, which had been used as a
"Home for Idle and Truant Children," but which had been abandoned for a
year, was offered at a low rent to the trustees of the institution. The property
was leased and a portion of the school occupied the building immediately.
During the summer additions were made to the building, and at the beginning of
the third year the entire school was brought together in the new location. The
prosperity of the school met with no check until the summer vacation after the
close of its fifth school year. The large family had dispersed to their homes,
when, on July 30, 1882, the shops and a portion of the addition to the main
building, all of which had been erected by the institution, were destroyed by
1 This article was prepared by Mr. Z. F. Westervelt.
The Humane Society. — The Alms House. 427
fire. The loss was about $10,000, a little over half of which was covered by
insurance. The buildings damaged or destroyed were at once rebuilt and two
additional buildings — a school house and a building used to accommodate the
kindergarten — were also erected. At 'the present time, at the close of the
eighth school year, there are 162 pupils in attendance; the total attendance
has been 226. '
THE HUMANE SOCIETY.
On the 20th of November, 1873, "the Bcrgh association of Rochester"
was organised, with William H. Cheney as president, its object being to pre-
vent or mitigate the practice of cruelty toward animals. In 1880 a society
for the prevention of cruelty toward children was brought into existence, and,
as the officers of both the organisations were essentially the same — Rev. N.
M. Mann being the president — they naturally merged into one and adopted
the title of "the Humane society." Its objects are: "To provide effective
means for the prevention of cruelty to animals and children; to inforce all
laws which now are, or hereafter may be enacted for the protection of dumb
animals and children, and to secure by lawful means the arrest, conviction and
punishment of all persons violating such laws; also, the prevention of all cruelty
by humane education." The officers for this year are : President, David Cope-
land; vice-presidents, Mrs. J. L. Angle and Rev. J. H. Dennis; corresponding
secretary. Miss E. P. Hall ; recording secretary^ Mrs. J. W. Stebbins ; treas-
urer, Henry S. Hanford.
' THE ALMS HOUSE.
The first Monroe county alms house, located about three miles southeast
from Rochester, was erected in 1826. It was constructed of brick and would
accommodate from seventy-five to one hundred persons. The institution was
under the management of five superintendents and had in 1827 thirty-five
occupants, about twenty of whom were employed in useful labor. In 1855 a
school was taught there by Miss Benedict, which contained some forty scholars.
A school-house was finished in 1859. It contained two stories, the lower being
for a school- room, the upper for a dormitory. Miss Gorton was employed as
teacher, and Miss Flynn as assistant teacher. Miss Pepper succeeded Miss
Gorton, and Miss Flynn in turn became the teacher. In i860 a building was
set apart for infirm old men. In 1872 the building had become so dilapidated
that it became necessary to erect new ones, which was done by George H.
Thompson and John W. McElhinny. The building was constructed of brick,
partitions being of the same material, and the cornice of iron, thus rendering the
structure nearly fire-proof Its dimensions are 188 feet fronting on South
avenue, with wings on the north and south ends, running east one hundred feet
from the front wall, and forty-eight feet wide each. A third wing is situated
28
428 History of the City of Rochester.
back from the center of the main building, in extent sixty-eight feet and width
thirty feet. The main building is three stories high, with a cupola rising from
the center. There are accommodations for 400 persons. The number of
paupers supported in 1883 was 837 ; born in the house during the year, 15;
died, 94; discharged, 549; 227 were natives of America and 255 were natives
of Ireland. The expenses for the year ending October 1st, 1883, were $17,-
939.13. Of the chaplains have been H. A. Brewster, J. Mandeville, Dr. Sam-
uel Luckey, J. V. Van Ingen, John E. Baker, George F. Linfield and D. P.
Babcock. Dr. Azel Backus is the present physician, George E. McGonegal
superintendent, and A. J. Hoyt warden.
THE INSANE ASYLUM.
In the early part of 1856 the insane of Monroe and surrounding counties
were confined in the alms house. At this time the condition of the institution
was truly deplorable. The cells, which were four and a half by seven, were
low and unwholesome, and in this small space were often confined as many as
four persons in different stages of madness. In the.years 1856 and 1857 a new
building was erected, at a cost of somewhat over $3,000, which was opened for
patients in the spring of 1857, and the accommodations for fprty-eight persons
were fully, occupied. The . institution was placed under the supervision and
management of Colonel J. P. Wiggins and wife. An addition was completed
by October, 1859, at a cost of $26,791.57, which, although somewhat of a re-
lief to the patients, served more as an accommodation to the superintendent and
employees. The need of better accommodations was yearly stated, but un-
heeded, while the numbers steadily increased. In 1 870 the demand for relief be-
came imperative, and consequently a wing was erected, giving accommodation
to twenty-five persons. The number of inmates rose in 1871 to one hundred,
while there were rooms for but seventy with single occupants. In 1872 a main
building was erected, at a cost of $18,000. The patients in the asylum for the
year ending September 30th, 1883, were 238; discharged, 39; died, 18. M.
L. Lord, M. D., is the warden and physician, liaving been elected in 1868.
The Home Guard. 429
CHAPTER XL.1
THE HOME GUARD.
A Glance at the Rochester Militia, from the Earliest Days Down to the Present Times — The First
Rifle Company and Regiment — The Irish Volunteers — The Pioneer Rifles and the Battle of " Tod-
Waddle " — The Grays and Cadets, and the liattle of Lyell Bridge — Other Organisations and Blood-
less Encounters — The Militia During the War — The Disbandment in 1881.
THAT Rochester can boast of no minute-men, such as at Concord and Lex-
ington "fired the shot heard 'round the world," is not her fault, but the
fault of the times which held her destiny. Settled long after the heroes of '76
were enshrined in the hearts of their countrymen, the Flower city is without
Revolutionary glory, but not without later evidence, in the pioneer stage of her
development, of that same rugged patriotism which distinguished the American
nation and made it free. It is a significant fact that not only her founder but
his associates who came with him to make the wilderness bloom and establish
a mighty city among the cataracts, bore distinguished military titles. That the
band of pioneers they drew about them was of that mettle admired so much in
classic song and story may be judged from an incident during the war of 1812,
when the entire male population of the hamlet stood ready to defend home and
country with their lives. In the hasty march to Charlotte, on a beautiful May
day in 1 8 14, to repel the British invaders or die in the attempt, we have the
first important military operation in the history of the place. The valor of the
thirty- one who planted their modest eighteen-pounder against the fleet of Ad-
miral Yeo, and the successful strategy of the leaders in that famous exploit, are
treated of at length in another portion of this work and can only be briefly al-
luded to here.
We pass on to the time when the military spirit engendered by the war of
1812 was caught by the young men of Penfield, who as early as 1818 formed
the first uniformed rifle company of militia. The organisation at once spread
to the village of Rochesterville, which had been incorporated the previous year.
The country at that time was in so unsettled a condition that the state still kept
the names of all able-bodied men on the military registers, and once a year, as
a matter of form, a review was held, an affair usually so destitute of military
appearance and discipline that those who presented themselves in answer to the
roll-call were sportively designated as the "barefoot militia." A striking con-
trast to the neglected state "troops " was afforded by the brilliant trappings of
the first rifle company, with its eighty members in their neat uniforms of gray
cloth. Each man had a powder horn hanging from his neck by means of a
yellow string. John Shoecraft was their captain, Jonathan Baker first lieuten-
ant, and John Culver second lieutenant. Ashbel W. Riley (still, at ninety years
of age, an honored citizen of Rochester) was the orderly sergeant, and was after-
1 This article was prepared by Mr. William Mill Butler, of the Rochester Post-Express.
430 HlSTORV OF THE CiTY OF ROCHESTER.
ward promoted to lieutenant and commander. The company was made up of
residents on the east side of the river. Rifle companies also sprang into exist-
ence at Lima, Bloomfield and elsewhere, making four companies in all, from
which, with the addition of companies from Genes'eoand other places, a battal-
ion was formed. It was known as the " First rifle battalion of the state of New
York," Major Barron being the commanding officer. Additional material was
subsequently found in villages south and east of Rochester, and in 1820 there
were enough riflemen to form the First rifle regiment of the state of New York,
with headquarters at Lima. Its leading officers were Colonel Bacon, Lieut. -
Col. Cady and. Major Cole. In the same year an independent rifle company
was formed on the west side of the river, oflficered by Captain Benjamin H.
Brown, First Lieut. James Frazer, and Second Lieut. Samuel Stone. Constant
additions to the company were received from Clarkson, Ogden, Greece and
other places, until the four companies from the east side joined with them and
formed the Twenty-second regiment of riflemen, of which Benjamin H. Brown
was elected colonel, A. W, Riley lieutenant-colonel, and Mr. Andrews major.
The first militia law of any consequence was passed in 1823, and under the
same the private, like the officer, had to provide everything he needed, even
his musket. His only privileges were exemption from jury duty and from
taxation of property to the amount of $500. The ages between which able-
bodied men were to serve in the militia were from eighteen to forty-five years.
The officers were all elected except the members of the governor's staff", the
members of each general officer's staff" appointed by the general officer, and the
major-generals at the head of militia divisions. The state was at this time
divided into grand and subordinate military districts. The grand districts were
supervised by general officers and the subordinate districts by field officers. Each
district was sure of its officers, but it not unfrequently happened that a district
had nothing but officers, the latter being without their complement of men.
Such was the state of the general militia when in 1825 Col. Brown and Lieut. -
Col. Riley and their fine-looking Rifles escorted General LaFayette from
Rochester to Canandaigua, where occurred a- grand demonstration by the happy
villagers, who had sent a special invitation to the great Frenchman asking him
to stop and enjoy their hospitality for a short time.
In November, 1828, the Irish volunteers, a company which long reflected
credit on the nationality which it represented, was organised in Rochester and
attached to the 178th regiment of infantry.
In 1830 a general reorganisation of the militia was provided for and the amount
of serviceable military material was increased by a change which provided that
all able-bodied men between the ages of eighteen and sixty should be used to
fill up the ranks. This helped to make less painfully apparent the bald spots
in the military districts. The men were now obliged to report at least once a
year (under officers elected by themselves), on "general training-day," as it
■,, ■''^|f Hn Halls ,?.>/!.!• Nik Toil
The Home Guard. 431
was called. Owing to the fact that the privates were still obliged to arm and equip
themselves, no progress in the appearance of the general militia was possible.
Where the captain had inordinately large companies, for which there were not
uniforms enough, he was often driven to the expedient of allowing a single uni-
form (in sections) to serve two or three men. Things went from bad to worse,
until training-day became a farce. It must have been quite a relief, therefore, for
Governor Marcy, when, it 1832, he came to Rochester, on invitation of Col.
Riley (who had succeeded to the command, owing to the death of Col. Brown),
and reviewed the Twenty- second regiment of riflemen. He pronounced it far
ahead of any state military organisation ; in fact it was, he said, the finest regi-
ment he had ever seen. At that time Samuel Stone was lieutenant-colonel
and Mr. Case major. Among Col. Riley's captains were Captain Latta, of
Charlotte, commanding a company of eighty men. Captain A. C. Rowe, of the
Ridge road. Captain Fuller, of Greece, and Captain Hammond, of Wheatland,
(afterward brigadier-general).
It was in 1832, also, that an anti- tariff convention in South Carolina issued
the famous nullification ordinance, which, on the i6th of December, brought
out President Jackson's proclamation, followed by the sending of United States
vessels of war into Charleston harbor, with good effect. During the events
which led to this excitement Col. Riley called his regiment together in front
of the court-house, and proposed that the services of the regiment be tendered
to President Jackson. The proposal was received with enthusiasm. Every
man was willing to follow his colonel. President Jackson appreciated the
prompt offer of services, and, although it did not become necessary to accept
the same, he expressed his warm thanks to Colonel Riley afterward. This is
the nearest the regiment ever came to a fight. It was never called upon for
active service. In 1833 Colonel Riley was appointed brigadier general of rifle-
men, and in 1834 he succeeded Major-General Bowen Whiting, of Geneva, as
major-general, which position he held until the brigade went out of existence,
several years later.
Before that event took place, however, there was organised and added to
Gen. Riley's command, in 1835, the Rochester Pioneer Rifles, among whose
commanders were George Dawson, a veritable "fighting editor," and Judge
Buchan. This company fought the famous bloodless battle known among the
veterans as "Tod-Waddle." The writer, in an interview with D. M. Dewey,
one of the participants and an officer of the company at the time, obtained the
following account of the affair. It appears that at the time when the building
of the Genesee valley canal was under headway, news reached Rochester, of an
outbreak among the laborers, at the Rapids. The sheriff ordered the Pioneers to
quell the riot and the organisation at once marched to the scene of the supposed
disturbance under command of Captain Dawson. Upon arriving at the Rapids
not a rioter or laborer of any kind could be found, the rumored approach of the
432 History of the City of Rochester.
military having caused a general stampede. Disappointed in their search for
gore, the Pioneers prepared for the homeward march, when they espied a negro
in front of a tavern, and seizing him formed a hollow square with their captive
in the center. Thus they came into the city, and that solitary, badly frightened
darkey was the only prisoner of war that met the gaze of the expectant and
excited populace. They gave the gentleman of color his liberty in front of the
court-house, amid the shouts and laughter of the people. Out of the Pioneers
afterward two other organisations were formed.
At this time there was still in existence "Van Rensselaer's cavalry," organ-
ganised about 1834. It had been preceded by Colonel William Charles's cav-
alry, which was the first organisation of the kind hereabouts. The other was
first organised as a company of mounted dragoons, with K. H. Van Rensselaer
as captain. He was the host of the famoiis Eagle Tavern. Finally three more
companies were raised, and a battalion was formed with Captain Van Rens-
selaer as major. He was succeeded by Major Mortimer F. Reynolds, who was
the leading oflficer until the disbandment of the battalion.
The so-called Canadian rebellion of 1837 furnished the Rochester militia
with an opportunity to face public opprobrium rather than an armed enemy.
Excitement ran high here when it became known that British soldiers had on
the night of December 29th seized the steamboat Caroline on the American
shore and sent her all ablaze Over Niagara fall's. The people sympathised with
Mackenzie, the leader of the insurrection, and his Canadian compatriots on Navy
island, and, when it .was wildly rumored that the "redcoats" had sent the
passengers of the Caroline to destruction with her, the indignation on this side
of the border became so great that the president deemed it best to issue a proc-
lamation (January 5th, 1838) enjoining neutrality upon all American citizens.
General Scott was ordered to the frontier to preserve peace, and the states of
New York and Vermont were required to furnish militia to disperse those on
this side in arms against the government of Canada. The Twenty-fifth regi-
ment of artillery, commanded by Col. Joseph Wood, went from Rochester, in
obedience to orders, and, traveling as far as Batavia by rail, marched from there
to the frontier. Other officers of the regiment were Lieutenant-Colonel Wil-
hams and Captains Francis X. Beckwith, Amos Soper, Evan Evans and Frank-
lin Robb. So thoroughly in sympathy with the "Patriots" were the people
that the regiment was hissed at various places, and the proprietor of a public
house refused to furnish them food until they threatened him with summary
vengeance. Luckily the expedition led to nothing more serious, and, finding
that Navy island had been evacuated, the militia returned home.
The warlike spirit augmented by these events found vent in the near future
in the formation of several crack companies. Two of these, " Williams's light
infantry" and the Rochester Union Grays, were formed out of the Pioneer
Rifles and other members of the old rifle regiments. The light infantry, or-
The Home Guard. 433
ganised August 2d, 1838, was composed of those who favored the carrying of
muskets. The Grays, organised on December nth of the same year, were all
decidedly in favor of rifles. The leading spirits who formed the Grays were
the staff officers of the old regiment — Gen. Lansing B. Swan (who, with Gen.
Burroughs, codified the military laws of the state). Colonel Horace Gay, Col-
onel Ariel Wentworth, Adjutant Jesse W. Hatch and Major H. P. Daniels,
who joined as privates. At the first election, held June 1 8th, 1839, Lansing
B. Swan was elected captain. In 1840 the company was reviewed by Presi-
dent Van Buren on Brown square. Up to the time of the formation of the
veteran corps (which was organised December 3d, 1855, and included all
those who joined in 1838 and who had been members up to January, 1854)
the captains of the company had been as follows : Lansing B. Swan, John G.
Gray, Charles G. Lee, Nathaniel Thompson and William M. Lewis. Among
the first officers' of the veteran corps were Gen. Lansing B. Swan, captain ;
Captain John G. Gray, first lieutenant, and Col. James L. Angle (at present
one of the new justices of the Supreme court for this district), second lieutenant.
The Grays, although originally formed as a rifle company, subsequently adopted
the infantry drill and still later became an artillery company.
The " battle of Lyell Bridge, " an illustrious military engagement, occurred
shortly after the organisation of the Rochester City Cadets, September 19th,
1839. This was at first a small militia company composed of about thirty
clerks. It soon trained in the 178th regiment, and Lieut. Pitkin was secured
as drill-master. James Elwood was elected the first captain. The uniform of
the company was a blue roundabout and bellows cap, silver trimmings and
white pantaloons. This was changed to scarlet coat, blue trousers and plumed
hat, some time after the company had been reorganised as the Rochester Light
Guards, prior to 1 849. H. S. Fairchild was the first captain elected, and the
others in succession were : Captains Updyke, D. M. Dewey, Taylor, Munger,
Force, Graham, Fredenburg, Madden, I. F. Force and James S. Graham (the
last in 1884, the company having been reorganised December i8th, 1881).
Sixty five members of the Light Guard entered the army at the outbreak of
the rebellion, as company A, Thirteenth regiment. Sixty members arrived at
more or less distinction; thirty-four held commissions from lieutenants up to
colonels and brigadier- generals. The io8th regiment, the Eighth cavalry and
the 140th regiment also found recruits among the Light Guards. But to re-
turn to the " battle of Lyell bridge." It grew out of a misunderstanding re-
garding the music of the day. There was a United States company stationed
here, at the time, its barracks being in the old jail building on Fitzhugh street.
The company had a martial band and the Grays had been in the habit of
.securing the same for parade, but the officers of the Cadets had two or three
weeks previously secured the band for the general training, in which both or-
ganisations were to appear. After the review on the field beyond, the Lyell
434 History of the City of Rochester.
bridge, the Grays demanded the music, and the Cadets refused to give it up.
They submitted to the band the question as to what company it belonged to.
The band decided in favor of the Cadets. After the review the latter marched
off with the music. When they reached Lyell street, however, a platoon of
the Grays in single file crossed over the fence into the road and charged bayo-
nets. A parley followed and it was ascertained that the bass drum which the
musicians were using belonged to the Grays. The drummer was ordered to
give it up and he promptly kicked it into a mud puddle. The Grays, having
recovered their property, marched up to the city, lustily beating the drum, and
the Cadets followed with joyful sounds made by the snare drum and fifes. The
"battle of Henpeck " also belongs to the Union Grays. In 1855 news came
that laborers repairing the canal at "the wide-waters" were on a strike and had
begun a serious riot The sheriff ordered the Grays out and they promptly
left for the scene of trouble and restored order after making several ar-
rests.
On April 15th, 1840, the German Grenadiers, the first German company
in the city, was formed. Major Joseph Erbelding has to-day in his possession,
as a highly prized relic, their first flag.
The Rochester Artillery was organised June 30th, 1840, in time to partici-
pate with the Williams Light infantry, the Union Grays, City Cadets and German
Grenadiers in the imposing ceremonies with which the remains of Revolutionary
soldiers, exhumed in Livingston county, were interred in Mount Hope, in 1841,
as detailed in another chapter.
The Rochester City Guards first appear in the records of 1844, ^nd the
German Union Guards were organised October 25th, 1847. I" the same year
Captain Wilder organised a company here for service in the Mexican war.
The Rochester City Dragoons, organised in 1850, were the heroes of one
of the comical " battles " that have been told and retold at reunions and camp-
fires. The scene of the exploit in question was on Lake avenue, in front of
an old toll-gate. The toll-gate keeper, knowing that he could not compel the
militia to pay toil, was in no mood to exert himself very much in behalf of so
many "dead-heads." Their demands that he raise the gate were regarded
with disdain, and a charge on the obstinate obstruction and its regulator was
at last found necessary.
The Fifty-fourth regiment of infantry (organised a year or two previous)
was in 1851 commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel Charles D. Titus, and its dis-
trict was the county of Monroe lying west of the Genesee. The county east of the
river, and part of Ontario and Wayne, were under the protection of the Fifty-
third regiment. Col. Robert Hall commanding. In 1853 Gen. Lansing B. Swan
was brigadier- general of the Twenty-fifth brigade, N. Y. S. M., with headquar-
ters at Rochester. Captain Hubbard S. Allis was aide-de-camp ; Major C. Gold
Lee, brigade inspector; Major John Thompson, jr., judge-advocate; Major
The Home Guard. 435
Charles R. Babbitt, engineer ; Major George Hand Smith, surgeon ; Captain
James E. Cheney, quartermaster, and Captain Edward M. Smith, paymaster.
The Fifty-third regiment was commanded by Colonel James L. Angle, with
IDcllon M. Dewey, lieutenant-colonel ; Truman T. Morse, major, and Lieut.
George W. Martin, quartermaster.
In 1855 the Fifty-fourth regiment included all of Monroe county and \yas
commanded by Colonel Harrison S. Fairchild ; Belden R. McAlpine was lieu-
tenant-colonel ; John T. Griffin, major ; Captain Henry H. Langworthy, sur-
geon ; Captain Ely S. Parker, engineer, and Lieut. William H. Ward, pay-
master. The regiment was composed of the following companies: A (Roch-
ester Union Grays), C. Gold Lee, captain ; B (German Grenadiers), Frederick
C. Miller, captain ; C (Light Guard), Scott W. Updike, captain ; D (German
Union Guards), G. Seibert, captain ; E (Citizens' Corps), Gilbert S. Jennings,
captain; F (First City Dragoons), James Brackett, captain. In 1861 the reg-
iment included Monroe and Wayne counties, and the companies were as fol-
lows : A, from Lyons ; B, Rochester, Fred Miller, captain ; C, Rochester,
Warner Westcott, orderly ; D, Rochester, Lorenzo Sellinger, captain ; E, F, G
and H were vacant ; I, Rochester, James Brackett, captain ; K, Rochester, N.
B. Ellison, first lieutenant. In 1863 we find Colonel Charles H. Clark in com-
mand of the regiment, which was mustered into the service of the United
States for one hundred days, July 26th, 1864, and the next day left for Elmira,
where it guarded rebel prisoners, until November lOth. The regiment had at-
tached to it the Rochester Dragoons, which also performed guard duty.
The departure of the regiment had left Rochester in an almost defenseless
condition, and it was not long before rumors of dark intentions of rebel sym-
pathisers began to circulate. These rumors finally reached the government
and under date of November 2d William H. Seward, secretary of state, wrote
to the mayor of Buffalo, stating that " this department has received information
from the British provinces to the effect that there is a conspiracy on foot to set
fire to the principal cities on the northern frontier on election day." This hast-
ened the return of the Fifty-fourth, and that its presence reassured the citizens
may be gathered from the address made to them by Mayor Brackett, who
alluded to the threatened raids and the feeling. of security which had been re-
stored. That there was a dangerous element right at honie is apparent from
the fact, suppressed at the time, that the regiment upon reaching Rochester
loaded with ball cartridge and, while marching through the streets with fixed
bayonets, was received not alone with loyal cheers but with secession hisses.
Company K and another company, together with some of Major Lewis's artil-
lery were next stationed at Charlotte, where they overhauled every incoming
vessel for invaders or munitions of war. The mayor had on November 5th
received word from United States, agents in Canada that rebel refugees were
preparing to burn Rochester and Buffalo before the 9th, and this fresh confirm-
436 History of the City of Rochester.
ation of previous warnings caused not only the sharp lookout at the port of
Genesee, but the formation of vigilance committees and special police in the city.
Of the militia organisations which rendered good service to the Union
cause in the late war, none can show a better record than the Rochester Union
Grays, whose heroic services will be found described elsewhere. Those of the
Grays who did not go to the front became the First battalion of light artillery,
N. G. S. N. Y., commanded by Major William M. Lewis, which three times
offered its services to the United States government. They were not accepted,
however, until 1864, when, for 128 days from August 2d, the battalion helped
to guard rebel prisoners at Elmira, leaving here shortly after the Fifty-fourth.
It had previously, in 1863, left to assist in quelling the New York draft riots,
going as far as Albany, where it was detained for guard duty for a time. In
1864 Michael Heavy was captain of battery A, and M. R. Quinn captain of
battery B. The battalion numbered 164 men, rank and file.
The home guard received a most creditable addition during the war in the
formation of the Rochester Union Blues, a fine, well-equipped organisation of
patriotic citizens. The officers for 1 863-64 were as follows : Charles B. Hill,
captain; Cornelius Waydell, first lieutenant; L. A. Pratt, second lieutenant;
Charles A. Brackett, first sergeant; Frank B. Mitchell, second sergeant ; Charles
A. Dewey, third sergeant; William B. Burke, fourth sergeant; Frederick W.
Hawley, fifth sergeant; Frank Blossom, first corporal; Cyrus F. Paine, second
corporal; Fred. B. Watts, third corporal; John L. Sage, fourth corporal^ Rev.
George D. Boardman, chaplain. The civil officers were : President, Edwin O.
Sage; vice-president, Alexander McVean; secretary, S. A. Ellis; treasurer,
C. F. Paine.
There were no sweeping changes made in the militia laws imtil after the
close of the war, unless the reorganisation in 1846, of regiments with one field
and no staff officer, be deemed such. Other amendments of note which had
come up since the time of the nondescript militia were an increase of exemp-
tion from taxation of militiamen's property to $1,000, and state appropriations
for heating and lighting the armories. In 1865 an agitation was begun in re-
gard to what afterward figures in the militia statutes as a uniform fund, $500
being appropriated for each regiment, which sum the regiment earned by doing
a specific amount of military duty each year. This in 1870 was replaced by
an arrangement whereby the privates and non-commissioned officers were pro-
vided for more liberally. In lieu of uniforms and equipments furnished by the
state, it was enacted that there should be paid by the state to the military fund
of each regiment, battalion and separate troop, battery or company of infantry
a sum equal to $7 for each man who had paraded at least seven times during
the previous year. This amount was increased to $8 under the arrangement
of 1878. To meet general expenses each regiment was allowed $1,000 if lo-
cated in New York city, and' $500 if in the rest of the state. This amount
The Home Guard. 437
was finally increased to $1,500 per regiment, and to meet the expenses of the
division headquarters $1,000 was allowed and $500 more to brigade head-
quarters. After the war Captain Fred. Miller's troop of cavalry was organised,
through the instrumentality of Henry Brinker, the last major-general of this
division. On May 4th, 1871, the Fifty- fourth and the Light artillery rendered
excellent service in quelling a riot among strikers on the canal near the "Ox-
bow," and in 1877 both these organisations and Miller's cavalry were on duty
along the line near Hornellsville during the railroad strikes.
In 1880 'one of the most notable courts- martial in the history of the Fifty-
fourth took place by order of Gen. Brinker. The principal previous courts-
martial were those of Brigadier- General Charles H. Clark, who was dismissed
from the service in 1870 for mismanagement of $15,000 funds for the building of
a fence around the state arsenal, and of Colonel George A. Begy, who was found
guilty of utterance of false audits, but whose sentence was reversed by Gov-
ernor Robinson in 1877. The subject for the court-martial April 19th, 1880,
was Jacob Spahn, major and engineer of the twelfth brigade, seventh division.
He was convicted of the charge of writing certain defamatory articles in the
military column of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle (whose military editor
he was), violently attacking the Fifty-fourth regiment. He was cashiered July
4th, 1 880, but on the 3 1st of the same month the civil courts granted a writ of
certiorari in the proceedings. Subsequently the sentence was reversed and
Major Spahn reinstated by order of Judge Macomber. Adjutant-General
Townsend appealed to the general term of the Supreme court, which affirmed
the decision. A further appeal was taken to the court of Appeals, where it is
still pending.
The state is now divided into four military divisions — in place of the eight
divisions and fourteen brigade departments formerly existing — with headquar-
ters at New York, Brooklyn, Albany and Buffalo. In December, 1880, the
Fifty-fourth regiment was disbanded, only one company being continued —
namely, company E, Captain Henry B. Henderson commanding, which was at-
tached to the division headquarters at Buffalo, and is now known as the Eighth
Separate company. A month before that Captain Miller's troop of cavalry had
been disbanded, and the artillery battalion was first consolidated from two bat-
teries into a single battery, and then likewise disbanded. The officers and men
of all these organisations were mustered out at the arsenal,' January 27th, 1881.
438 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XLI.
THE CEMETERIES OF ROCHESTER.i
The Early Cemeteries of the Village and the City — The Burial- Places on the East and West
Sides — Negotiations for a New Ground — Abandonment of the Old Places, and Transfer to Mount
Hope — Description of the Cemetery — The Old Catholic Hurial-G round — Necessity for a New Place
of Interment — Purchase of the Land and Consecration of the Ground — Description of the HolySep-
ulcher Cemetery.
THE resting-place of the dead is a very near object of interest and affection
to the waiting .sojourners. Almost the first object of their search, it is not only
a subject of anxious solicitude, but serves more quickly than any other human
need to unite with links of intercourse and sympathy those wayfarers who
gather to form new homes and who sometimes become, and perhaps unexpect-
ingly, the founders of large and prosperous communities. It is a sure sign of
enlightened hope when men halt to carefully choose their place of sepulcher
and bestow upon it that care and beautifying which make it a place of pleasant
contemplation, which seem to relieve the mortal struggle of many of its moan-
ing sorrows and make the shadow of the grave a welcome garment, not remote
from either life. Surrounded with leaves, flowers and landscape of hill and
valley, it becomes a spot where family and kin not unwillingly lie down and
await that summons which will cause them again to know, even as they are
known.
In the struggle of the early emigrants in this then western wild — their need
of unremitting toil for the living, subduing the harsh features of rock and forest
and noisome swamp, bringing them into subjection that their expectation of
happy homes might be realised and visible — they at no time lost sight of that
spiritiial comfort which was fostered by the affectionate remembrance of those
who had heralded the way to the better land. And so, neither neglect nor
sacrilege chilled these affections or aspirations, and as human population in-
creased beyond their foretellings they reverently carried their dead from their
first resting-place, until their other home became Mount Hope, "beautiful for
situation," and, they might fondly picture, "the joy of the whole earth."
The primitive burial spots on each side of the Genesee river, in the two
towns of Gates and Brighton — the one in Genesee, the other in Ontario county
and soon forming the hamlet, first, of Genesee Falls, and then of Rochester-
ville were, however remote, in very central portions of what is now the city of
Rochester. Upon the west side of the river, at the junction of Falls street
and Sophia street — now Spring street and Plymouth avenue — the early pro-
prietors of the so-called One-hundred-acre tract, Colonel Rochester, Major
Carroll and Colonel Fitzhugh, set apart for burials one-half acre and conveyed
the land to the village, free of cost, in June, 182 1. It was so far intentionally
1 The first article in this chapter was prepared by Mr. Jonathan H. Child.
Beginnings of Mount Hope Cemetery. 439
predesigned for this us^ that even more was designated on the public map. We
do not find that burial lots were sold by the village, but the ground was free.
Upon the east side of the river, where is now East avenue, upon its south side
and opposite Gibbs street, Enos Stone made a gratuitous dedication of a burial
plot. No deed was executed, but space was free.
Few years, however, elapsed, before the unexpected growth of the settle-
ment made it incumbent that more distant grounds should be obtained. There
were secured westerly three and one-half acres, September i8th, 1821, in even
exchange for the Sophia street ground, upon the Buffalo road, where now stands
the Rochester City hospital. There were purchased, easterly, two acres on
June loth, 1827, for $100.00, upon the then-called "state road," and now Mon-
roe avenue, where now stands public school number 15. These two acres,
although purchased June loth, 1827, of Chester Bixby,- had been by him re-
served from a sale of contiguous land to William Cobb and others on October
27th, 1822, and especially excepted from that conveyance and also described
on an accompanying map, as a "burying-ground." There is no doubt that it
had been used for burials several years prior to its purchase by the village of
Rochester. The bodies resting upon the Sophia street lot were transferred to
the Buffalo street new ground, and those upon East avenue to the Monroe
street new ground, and in the case of Enos Stone's benefaction the disused
ground reverted to the donor. These two new grave-yards — the bne called the
Buffalo street burying-ground, the other the Monroe street burying-ground —
supplied for many years the requirements of the village. Yet they did not
suffice. In time, about 1835, they were found inadequate and the movement
began which culminated in what became Mount Hope cemetery.
It had been more than fortunate that the Buffalo street and the Monroe
street grounds were in use, for the mortality from cholera in 1832 was so ex-
treme, even in the then small village, that the unoccupied land was all required,
and this gave impetus to the belief that the usefulness of these grounds
would soon end. Yet both these cemeteries had become very dear to the citi-
zens. They contained the dead of those first settlers whose names are familiar
by tradition or public service, and in the after- satisfaction which reconciled
their friends to the more attractive Mount Hope it is not to be forgotten that
for. years the hesitation and reluctance to remove their dead was both sorrowful
and deep, even if the increasing, surrounding throngs, made year by year more
apparent the distasteful, yet unavoidable, intrusions upon what, in earlier days,
they fondly thought would give them place for secluded and peaceful rest. But
the necessity for ampler grounds became pressing. The first movement was
made by individual, citizens. There appears to be no public record of the fact,
but it nevertheless was, that, after personal consultation, a meeting was called,
the object approved, and a committee appointed. A public allusion to this
meeting is found in a preamble to a resolution offered by Alderman John Hay-
440 History of the City of Rochester.
wood, in the common council, December 20th, 1836, in which he, calling at-
tention to this subject, refers " to a meeting of citizens previously held." Who
were its active movers, and when held, does not seem to appear, but the recol-
lection exists that the committee made diligent examination in the suburbs for
suitable cemetery grounds. Their searches were extended not only to the hills
south and east of the city, but northerly on the river slopes, and upon the
banks of the Irondequoit bay.
It may not be inopportune here to note that William A. Reynolds, one of
Rochester's most public-minded and influential citizens, ceased not to regret
what was, in his judgment, the error of not locating the cemetery, and one of
large extent, upon the western bank of Irondequoit bay. The citizens' com-
mittee, however, made report recommending the purchase of the first fifty-three
acres of Mount Hope. It was also recommended that the city corporation be
invested with the title and control. The ease, as it now exists, of obtaining
legislative authority for private corporations did not then obtain, and the diffi-
culty and uncertainty of securing it cannot now be readily appreciated. This
was the supposed obstacle to a private cemetery corporation and was the in-
spiring cause for seeking the cooperation of the municipal government. The
common council favorably responded. In accordance therewith, Alderman
David Scoville, August 24th, 1836, offered a resolution "that a committee be
appointed to inquire into the expediency of purchasing Silas Andrus's lot on
the east side of the river, or any other lot in the city, for a burial ground and
report at a future meeting of the board." This was adopted and the chairman.
Mayor Abram M. Schermerhorn, appointed Aldermen David Scoville, Manley
G. Woodbury and Warham Whitney as such committee. On the 20th of De-
cember Alderman Haywood, in the resolution before alluded to, moved that
the common council approve of the recommendation, both of the citizens and
of the committee, that the city purchase the ground of Silas Andrus for such
purpose, which was adopted, and on December 27th the common council made
provision for paying for the land by authorising an issue of city bonds for
$8,000, which loan was negotiated at par by the mayor.
On January loth, 1837, John McConnell was directed to devise a plan for
laying out the grounds, but this was supplemented, if not superseded, June 22d,
1838, by appointing Aldermen Elias Pond, Joseph Strong and Isaac F. Mack;
the new mayor, Elisha Johnson, and the city surveyor, Silas Cornell, a com-
mittee to procure and submit plans for such purpose. This committee had
some correspondence with Major David Bates Douglass, LL. D., a distin-
guished officer in the United States army, a professor of civil and military en-
gineering at West Point, a president of Kenyon college, Ohio ; a professor of
mathematics and civil engineering at Hobart college, Geneva, N. Y., and who
laid out the grounds at Greenwood cemetery, the Albany cemetery and the
Protestant cemetery at Quebec. A difference in judgment was found to exist
Mount Hope Cemetery. 441
between the common council committee and Major Douglass, concerning the
manner of developing the new cemetery, and the result was that his valuable
services were not obtained. The report of the committee to the common council
was made on the 3d of July, next after, and was adopted.
Silas Cornell, city surveyor, a member of this committee, proposed the
name " Mount Auburn " for the new cemetery. One William Wilson, a
laborer, presented to the common council several accounts for services in 1838,
which bills recited that the labor was performed on " Mount Hope. " The
latter phrase gratified the public ear and satisfied its judgment. " Mount
Auburn " made a feebler impression, and without formal adoption, that can
be found, " Mount Hope " was accepted and applied. In October following.
Mount Hope cemetery was dedicated in solemn manner, before a large as-
semblage, and the Rev. Pharcellus Church, pastor of the First Baptist society,
delivered the oration. In acknowledgment of Mr. Church's address the com-
mon council tendered him the following vote of thanks : " In common council,
city of Rochester, October i6th, 1838, on motion of Alderman Abelard Rey-
nolds, Resolved : That the bokrd present a vote of thanks to the Rev. Mr.
Church for his appropriate and able address delivered at the dedication of
Mount Hope cemetery, and that he be requested to furnish the common coun-
cil with a copy for publication and that a committee of two be appointed for
that purpose. Carried, and the mayor, Elisha Johnson, and Alderman Rey-
' nolds were appointed such committee. "
The first sexton of Mount Hope, as the keeper was called, was William G.
Russell, appointed by the common council in July, 1838. The first interment
was of William Carter, who died August 17th, 1838. He was a venerable,
exemplary, humble Christian, and had through life adorned the Baptist com-
munion with his devotion. It was fit that Mount Hope should have been set
apart for its solemn use by giving its first shelter to the remains of so good a man.
Since then, to March ist, 1884, there have been buried 35,345 bodies, includ-
ing 1,600 transferred from the Buffalo and Monroe street grounds. The num-
ber of lot owners, to the same date, is 9,3 13, besides 3,000 graves used without
charge by those unable to buy.
It is interesting, here, to pause a moment, and trace the history of Mount
Hope in earlier conveyances of its land. The first sale of the original plot of
fifty-three and eighty- six hundredths acres was April 30th, 1817, when Elijah
Northrop sold it to Eli Stillson, father of George D. Stillson, afterwards its
superintendent, and grandfather of George D. Stillson, its present superinten-
dent, for $367. Eli Stillson sold it to John Mastick July 12th, 1821, for '$262,
thus incurring a loss of $105, and which George D. Stillson, his son, remem-
bered that his father deemed a severe misfortune. On January ist, 1822,
John Mastick sold it to Silas Andrus of Hartford, Conn., for $287, pocketing
$25 in less than six months, and, fifteen years afterward, Mr. Andrus sold it
442
History of the City of Rochester.
to Mount Hope cemetery for $5,386, a profit of more than $5,000, which
perhaps sharply exhibits the increase of supposed values prior to the commer-
cial revulsion of 1837. Including this land, the purchases to the present day
have been : —
WHEN BOUGHT.
ACRES.
COST.
GRANTORS.
1837, January :i,
53-86
$ 5,386.00
Silas Andrus.
1837, December 9,
1. 21
( Wm. Hamilton exchanged
.89
Nominal.
< with city, 10 adju.stbound-
-32
l ary lines.
1839, August 22,
9-39
1,878.00
David Stanley.
1841, April 15,
9.02
902.00
Moses Hall.
1 861. July 29,
4-2"57
3,000.00
lillwanger & Barry.
1864, June, 13,
S-33<Jo
1,440.90
Caleb Pierce.
" 21,
7.8288
1.947-79
Caleb I'ierce.
1865, January 2$,
3-66
3,000.00
Eleazar Conkey.
" May I,
52.17
20,864.00
A. F. & G. P. Wolcott.
" November 3,
22.74
9,096.00
15enj. F. & Maria Hall.
1870, May 4,
„-^5
1,200.00
George W. Kintz.
1872, April 3,
18.30
14,640.00
Wm. Hamilton.
1873, April 29,
.62
3,780.00'
CJeorge W. Kintz.
1881, October 14,
.05
450.00
A. F. & Kstate G. P. Wolcott.
187.76
$67,584.69
From its establishment in 1838 to now, a period approaching fifty years,
Mount Hope cemetery has received from that portion of the citizens of Roch-
ester who use and maintain it a loving attention and personal watchfulness
which have mainly developed its beauty, given shape to its picturesqueness,
made charming its scenes, whether in lengthening vista or in half-concealed and
unexpected bank of buds or vine; in contrast of hill and dell, or distant
glimpses of the Bloomfield hills with exquisite tints reposing as if upon the
sky, or, again, catching through the opening groves, sights of Ontario's waters
from east to west, fading in the northern horizon, with, at times, wonderful
mirage floating in the air. All this grace has reacted upon its voluntary servi-
tors and brightened their hopes and made winning the call which beckoned
through such a portal to an enduring habitation. It has not been mere official
direction and money expenditure which have made so satisfying a God's-acre,
but, from the natural ornamentation of lawn and leaf, the shadow of the glen
and the sun reflection on the hill-side, no regrets exist that its means were not
diverted to erect inharmonious exhibitions of stone and iron to compare with
those whose pride, and not whose gentler instincts, guided their ways. And
it seems appropriate here to offer a passing tribute to the character and services
of a few of those who have more immediately directed Mount Hope, and left
their impress upon its natural loveliness.
The venerable William Brewster, whose form was seen for so many years
in our streets, in his daily goings out and in, and whose character was fragrant
with the purest qualities of Christian manhood, was for years the active trustee
who gave his time a freewill offering to Mount Hope. It was his quiet firm-
ness which repelled plans that meant improvidence. It retained Mount Hope
Mount Hope Cemetery. 443
ill that condition which made it possible in after years to give it fit develop-
ment. In 1865 the opportunity came. George D. Stillson, a civil engineer
of unusual capacity, a man peculiarly urbane in demeanor, of the precise taste
and judgmentneeded to unfold its beauties, became its superintendent and re-
mained in charge until his death, a period of nearly sixteen years. There
were features requiring his dexterous art. In portions, drainage was needed;
Mr. Stillson tunneled hills and obtained it. In other portions his engineering
aptitude converted low grounds into bright ponds; he made waste places utile.
Those features appearing in a" succession of hills and valleys, which need a
master's hand to reclaim from inutility to attractive use, found that master's
hand in his consummate skill. At the base of the hills were covert springs,
all unused. At his bidding they clambered upward and wandering among the
paths and road-sides freshened the grass and flowers. The birds received pro-
tection from the fowler, and the charm of their summer warblings when dawn
appears bestows an ecstacy which can receive no adequate portrayal. To all
this he added a demeanor .so considerate, so in harmony with the homage due
the surroundings that he was universally beloved and his death universally de-
plored. The commissioners of Mount Hope offered this appreciative tribute
to his memory : —
Mount Hope Cemetery,
Rochester, N. Y., February 21st, 1881.
By commissioner Newell A. Stone.
Whereas, Our beloved superintendent has fallen asleep and gone to that unknown
land whose outlines we see only faintly, it is fitting and just that the commissioners of
Mount Hope should, in a formal way, recognise his fitness by nature and cultivation
for the place he has so long honored, and bear testimony to the good judgment, skill,
and fidelity of their late friend and superintendent, George D. Sdllson. Thousands have
been comforted in their afflictions by his kind words, thousands have been assisted by his
willing hands, and tens of thousands can bear testimony to the genUe sway he ever had
in the last rites to the buried dead.
Resolved, That to the widow and son we can only say that our sorrow is second only
to theirs, and while in all the future they will miss his presence and love, we shall also
miss his counsel and judgment in the affairs .of that sacred and beloved place where our
friends and kindred lie.
Resolved, That these resolutions be published in the daily papers and sent to the
family of the late superintendent.
Frederick Cook, George H. Thompson, Newell A. Stone,
Commissioners of Mount Hope cemetery.
It has been a pleasant incident in Mr. StilLson's superintendency that the
commissioners of Mount Hope uniformly and cordially sustained him. To
faithfully apply the resources to the administration of the trust, maintaining the
understood but unwritten determination of its legal custodians that debt should
never be incurred except for land purchase ; to do this year by year without
faltering, repelling designs of pillage-seekers, is no ordinary proof of continuing
29
444 History of the City of Rochester.
fidelity. Mr. Stillson's heart and judgment were fixed in upholding this laud-
able principle, and his path was eased by the warm cooperation of those who
were in a legal sense his official superiors.
It is justice to record here the important relation of Commissioner George
G- Cooper to the welfare of Mount Hope. Mr. Cooper gave his generous, un-
recompensed attention for many years as one of the trustees. His services and
those of Mr. Stone were had when faithful services were needed. A true
memoir of Mount Hope should say that Commissioners Cooper and Stone and
Superintendent Stillson guarded Mount Hope from designs to load it with lia-
bilities, and this protection enabled their successors to maintain it unharmed
from the consuming cancer of debt.
The annual report of the Mount Hope commissioners, March i.st, 1884,
shows that there have been appropriated and contributed to these funds, and
of general moneys of the cemetery on hand, the following: —
Repair fund _ $18,605.00
Perpetual contracts . 7,308.81
General fund , 7,218.26
$33.i32-°7
Invested as follows : — -
Monroe County Savings Bank $12,927.00
Rochester Savings Bank __ 6,387.33
East Side Savings Bank 5,658.38
Mechanics' Savings Bank '. . 4,159.36
City of Rochester Water Works bonds 3,000.00
City of Buffalo and Erie County bonds i ,000.00
$33.'32.o7
There was earned as interest during that year: —
Repair fund $ 738.96
Perpetual contracts _ 360.44
General fund :.. 369.48
$1,468.88
Resides this, let it be again .said, no debt exists, and unused land remains suf-
ficient for ordinary requirements for years.
It is a most creditable and satisfactory feature of the administration of Mount
Hope that it has never cost the city a dollar. The money originally borrowed
upon the city credit for its first land purchase was reimbursed from its receipts
and from that time it has been maintained without loan of money or credit. Its
means have been supplied by that portion of the community who voluntarily
use it, and it has, as before stated, gratuitously supplied ground for 3,000 burials.
Within a few years the foundation for two distinct permanent funds has been
laid for its maintenance and betterment. In one, a percentage is withdrawn
from the general receipts, and invested for the production of annual interest for
repairs. A clause in the city charter provides as follows: —
Mount Hope Cemetery. 445
" The commissioners of Mount Hope cemetery shall cause a fund to be provided
from the receipts of the said cemetery, by appropriating annually not less than ten per
cent, of the gross receipts, which shall be applied ... to create a re-
l)air fund, which shall not exceed $50,000, which shall be invested, and, as soon as it is
of sufficient amount, the interest shall be applied solely to the repairing of roads, lawns,
hill-sides, monuments, abandoned lots and public grounds, and such repair fund shall
never, under any pretext or evasion, be diverted from this declared purpose, and the
interest thereof shall be used annually, as heretofore directed."
In the other, the municipal government has provided by ordinance for the
cu.stody of voluntary contributions of money frcfm lot-owners for the perpetual
care of lots. This gives hopeful promise of large advantage.
Moiint Hope has received name and fame, widespread, not only for its
loveliness of aspect, but from the confidence that no fiscal embarrassment would
cause neglect that would dim its beauty or make insecure its possession. And,
from far and near, Rochester's pilgrim children turn their parting thoughts to
Mount Hope, and breathe their desire to be buried within its gates. Among
its sleeping inhabitants is one whose memory might well give lofty dignity to
the most noble scpulchor. It is not invidious to say that the monument to
Myron Holley, the founder of the Liberty party, marks the grave of its most
notable man. Upon a plain obelisk, under a head cut in cameo, is inscribed : —
MYRON HOLI.KY,
HORN IN SAUSBUrV, CONN.,
Al'RIL 29, 1776.
DlKl) IN ROCHKSTKR, N. Y.
MARCH 4, 184I.
UK TRUSTKI) IN COU
AND
I.OVEl) HIS NEIGIinuR.
Upon its reverse is this : —
THE LIIIERTY PARTY
OF THE
UNII'KI) STATES OF AMERICA
HAVE ERECTED THIS MONUMENT
TO THE MEMORY
OF
MYRON HOI.I.EY,
THE FRIEND OF THE SLAVE
AND THE MOST EFFECTIVE
AS WELL AS
ONE OF THE EARLIEST OF THE
FOUNDERS OF THAT I'ARIY.
This tribute of grateful appreciation was dedicated in June, 1844, before a
gathering of six thousand people, with an oration by Gcrrit Smith, and a hymn
for this special occasion by Rev. John Pierpont.
In i84t a well-intended desire was conceived to establish a suitable place
on Mount Hope for soldiers of the Revolution. The idea embraced not only
the obtaining a plot of fair proportions, but in a conspicuous locahty, and to be
surmounted with an imposing monoh'th. There were a few graves of Revolu-
tionary soldiers scattered in obscure places, which, from lack of headstones,
were becoming lost to observation and remembrance. These could be gathered
446 History of the City of Rochester.
and with them obtained the remains of about twenty soldiers, a detachment of
General Sullivan's army which had been especially organised by Congress in
1779 to disperse the savages, British allies, whose homes and refuge were in
Western New York; and largely in the Genesee valley. These soldiers were
ambushed and massacred near the head of Conesus lake. Their commander,
Lieutenant Thomas Boyd, and a private named Parker were tortured in the
valley nearly opposite Geneseo. In the case of Lieut. Boyd, so terrible was
the torture that the recollection of his sufferings was vivid for more than sixty
years, aroused the keenest anguish, and could not be related without shuddering.
The desire to establish the patriotic burying-'Jilace met widespread approval,
and at once took form and effect. The Senate of the state of New York, as-
sembled in Buffalo as the court for the Correction of Errors, passed a resolu-
tion of commendation and made this record August 19th, 1841 : "That the
Senate duly appreciate and fully approve of this patriotic movement of their
fellow-citizens." Public meetings were held in neighboring towns, commending
and cooperating with the project. Preparations were made to constitute the occa-
sion one of historic importance. The spot chosen upon Mount Hope was a con-
ical hill, rising in regular form about sixty feet, and overlooking the Genesee river.
The ceremonies of dedication and funeral honor to the remains of Lieut. Boyd
and his comrades were held August 21st, 1841. Three survivors of Sullivan's
army were present — Major Moses Van Campen, aged eighty-five; Captain El-
nathan Perry, aged eighty-one, and Mr. Sanborn, aged seventy-nine, the last
of whom " first discovered the mangled bodies of Boyd and Parker in the
grass." There were present other Revolutionary soldiers. The governor,
William H. Seward, delivered the oration. The burial service of the Protestant
lipiscopal church was. offered by Rev. Elisha Tucker, as a representative of
Rev. Dr., afterward Bishop, Whitehouse. There were, besides the civic author-
ities of Rochester, the citizens' committees of adjoining towns, the military, the
adjutant-general of the state, various civil organisations, and an assemblage of
thousands of citizens.
In this manner was begun, with well-intentioned and patriotic purpose, a
Revolutionary soldiers' burying-place at Mount Hope. The remains qf Lieut.
Boyd and his men, collected with care and with some difficulty, were deposited
in a temporary wooden urn upon the surface of the ground upon "Patriot hill."
During the period which elapsed from the beginning to the termination of this
enterprise, disputes had arisen, partly from personal envy and partly from po-
litical antagonism, which became serious and of newspaper notoriety. The un-
fortunate result was, it is necessary to state, that no interrene burial of these
bones was made, no monument erected. They remained in the wooden re-
ceptacle for twenty years, until, racked by summer's heat and winter's blasts, it
fell, and the few bones remaining, after years of open exposure, were collected
and removed, together with a few soldiers' bodies which had been interred upon
Mount Hope Cemetery. 447
the hill, to a spot which was at least better protected, and "Patriot" hill was
razed. Better would it have been had Livingston county erected, as was its
noble design, pyramids of earth over these dead, as its tribute of honor, than
to have beheld this not creditable result. ,
The benevolent and eleemosynary institutions of Rochester have generally
obtained burial lots at Mount Hope. There are now represented : The Prot-
estant Episcopal church, the Hebrews, University of Rochester, Firemen's Be-
nevolent association. Free and Accepted Masons, Independent Order of Odd
Fellows, St. Andrew's (Scottish) society, Rochester Gity hospital, Protestant
orphan asylum, Home for the Friendless,. Industrial school. House of Refuge.
Among the conspicuous citizens of Rochester buried at Mount Hope, the
body of Colonel Nathaniel Rochester, the founder of the city, is one of its pos-
sessions. Of the thirty-seven mayors of the city during its fifty years of char-
tered existence, twenty-six are dead ; of these, two are buried out of Rochester,
and the remaining twenty-four at Mount Hope. They are : Jonathan Child,
Jacob Gould, A. M. Schermerhorn, Thomas Kempshall, Thomas H. Rochester,
Samuel G. Andrews, Elijah F. Smith, Charles J. Hill, Isaac Hills, John Allen,
William Pitkin, John B. Elwood, Joseph Field, Levi A. Ward, Hamlin Stil-
well, John Williams, Maltby Strong, Rufus Keeler, Charles H. Clark, Samuel
W. D. Moore, Hamlet D. Scrantom, John C. Nash, Edward M. Smith and A.
Carter Wilder.
The future satisfactory maintenance of Mount Hope cemetery may depend
upon the degree to which the endowment funds receive the approbation of lot-
owners. As the grounds extend, the maintaining expenses increase. When
but a few acres were occupied, the roadways and paths were few. Nearly two
hundred acres are now within the limits, of which about one hundred and fifty
are used and require care. No taxes are imposed; its support is met by sales
and improvements of lots and interments. . Its largest source of income, the
sales of lots, will, of course, in time cease. The law requiring a ten per cent,
reserve from current receipts should, ultimately, furnish means for the protec-
tion of roads, and the ordinance permitting the perpetual deposit of special
funds by lot-owners ought to receive such approbation and cooperation that
time, death and forgetfulness will do no harm. To the first of April, 1884,
there have been deposited under this ordinance $7,662.15.
Mount Hope has been provided with becoming structures for its needs.- An
office and awaiting-rooms of pleasing appearance, erected at a cost of $15,000,
meet the visitor. A chapel for burial services, and, connected with it, a sepul-
criim, are constructed at a cost of $10,000. A residence for the superintendent
is built at a cost of $5,000. In convenient places are a few cottages for labor-
ers. The public street cars carry visitors to the entrance.
The trustees having in charge the cemetery are three, called commissioners
of Mount Hope. One is elected annually for a period of three years by the
448 History of the City of Rochester.
common council. They serve with no compensation. It has been the practice
of that board to retain the commissioners in office, term following term, without
regard to politics. The commissioners, by statute, control the cemetery. They
appoint the superintendent and laborers and determine their pay. The city
treasurer is the treasurer of Mount Hope. The funds are deposited by him in
the savings banks and drawn subject to the counter-signatures of the commis-
sioners. These funds are kept distinct from the city funds.
At the present time the officers are: Comrnissioners — Newell A. Stone,
Frederick Cook, George H. Thompson; superintendent, George T. Stillson.
THE CATHOLIC CEMETERIES.^
The cemetery on the Pinnacle, on the southeast line of the city, is the oldest
Catholic cemetery of Rochester. It was bought by the trustees of St. Patrick's
church from Richard Christie in 1838. It contained about twelve acres of land
and cost about $1,200. It was bought for all the Catholics of the city, but the
German Catholics soon after established a separate cemetery. On the loth of
April, i860, fifteen additional acres were bought from Gideon Cobb at $200
per acre, and at the same time four acres were sold of the cemetery grounds on
Monroe avenue for $1,000. The Pinnacle was the burying-place for all the
English-speaking Catholic congregations of the city, until 1871, when it was
abandoned, except for families owning lots. In that year Rt. Rev. Bishop Mc-
Quaid established a new cemetery on Lake avenue, large enough to bury the
dead of all the CathoHc churches of the city. No burials take place now in the
Pinnacle cemetery, except a few of the nearest relatives of the families that own
lots on the ground.
St. Joseph's Cemetery. — The German Catholics of the city, all members of
St. Joseph's congregation, established a Catholic cemetery about 1840 on Lyell
avenue. The land (two acres) was given as a present by Mr. Thiel. When St.
Peter's and St. Paul's congregation was formed this church bought a separate
cemetery on Maple street. St. Joseph's church also abandoned the cemetery
on Lyell avenue and opened a new one on New Main street, then outside the
city limits. The land was given by Bernard Klem in 1843. This cemetery
was closed in 185 1. Another cemetery was opened near the Central road, on
Main street, in 1852. This one also was abandoned in 1871, because it was
wanted by the railroad, and the bodies were removed to Holy Sepulcher cem-
etery, on Lake avenue road.
St. Peter's and St. Paul's cemetery was opened on Maple street in 1847.
It contained about two acres of land. It was closed for burials, by municipal
authority, in 1877.
Holy Family Cemetery. — The burial-place for the deceased of Holy Family
1 The article on the Catholic cemeteries was prepared by Rev. D. Laurenzis, under the supervision
of Bishop McQuaid.
The Catholic Cemeteries. 449
church was opened on Maple street in 1864. It is still used for the members
of this congregation only. About 760 bodies are buried here.
St. Boniface's cemetery was opened in 1866, near the Pinnacle. It is for
members of this parish only. Some members even now prefer to bury their
dead in Holy Sepulcher cemetery.
Holy Sepulcher cemetery, is situated on both sides of Lake avenue road,
now the boulevard, about four miles from the center of the city. Rt. Rev.
Bishop McQuaid, seeing that the various cemeteries of the parishes. were- too
small and that on account of the lack of funds they could not properly be cared
for, judged it proper to establish one common cemetery for all the Catholic
parishes of the city. Accordingly, he purchased about one hundred and ten
acres of land on the Lake road in 1871. Under his personal supervision about
thirty-five acres were laid out in lots for burials the same year. The first in-
terment.took place September i8th, 1871. It was that of a child of Walter B.
Duffy, of this city. In 1873 about thirty additional acres were bought, so that
the whole cemetery contains about one hundred and forty acres, of which about
forty-five acres are consecrated — thirty-five on the east side of the boulevard
and tcii on tlic west side. The part on the west side was consecrated in 1880.
The "Holy Sepulcher cemetery" was incorporated April 24th, 1872. The
first directors were: Rt. Rev. Bernard J. McQuaid, Very Rev. James M. Early,
Very Rev. George Ruland, Rev. Patrick Byrnes, Rev. Fr. H. Sinclair, D. D.,
Patrick Barry, A. B. Hone, Louis Ernst, Patrick Rigney, John B. Hahn, Daniel
Scanlin, Patrick Mahon, John E. Watters and Julius Armbruster. The mort-
uary chapel (on the east side), of stone, was built in 1875-77. Mass is offered
up for the repose of the souls of those who are buried in the cemetery, every
Sunday, and several times during the week in the month of November. In the
course of time a chaplain will reside at the cemetery to accompany the remains
of the dead to the grave and daily to offer up the holy sacrifice for the souls
of all who are buried in this cemetery. The beautiful gate-houses on the east
side were built in 1882. In the future an entrance will be made to the west
side similar to this. A stone wall will be built around the cemetery ; it is
already partly furnished. Last year about 700 bodies were interred in the cem-
etery. Since the opening, about 8,000 Catholics have found a resting-place in
this beautiful ground. About 2,000 bodies were removed to this place from
other cemeteries, mostly from St. Joseph's and from the Pinnacle. Thus, in
1884, the remains of about 10,000 Catholics rest in the Holy Sepulcher cem-
etery.
The present board of directors consists of the following members : Rt. Rev.
B. J. McQuaid, Rev. Fr. H. Sinclair, D. D., Rev. James F. O'Hare, Rev.
Jos. Froehlich, Rev. James Kiernan, Louis Ernst, A. B. Hone, John E. Watters,
Patrick Rigney, John B. Hahn, Julius Armbruster, Val. Dengler, James O'Don-
oughuc, Charles FitzSimons and William C. Barry. Pierre Meisch has been
450 History of the City of Rochester.
, 1
superintendent since the opening of the cemetery. His residence is on the cem-
etery grounds, as. is also the residence of the assistant superintendent. Both
houses are of frame, on the west side of the boulevard. A large green-house
on the west side, under the special care of Mr. Meisch, supplies the cemetery
and the lot-owners with flowers. The cemetery is watered from three large
tanks in a tower near the Genesee river. The water is drawn from a pond sup-
plied by springs above the banks of the river. It is pumped into the tanks by
steam power.
CHAPTER XLII.
AMUSEMENTS IN ROCHESTER, l
The Entertainments of Early Days — Tlie First Circus — Its Cliange into a Play-House — The First
Theater— Mr. Whittlesey's Prize Address — Edmund Kean's Appearance and his Speech — Dean's
Theater — The Rochester Museum — Concert and Other Halls — Corinthian Hall and Academy of
Music — The Grand Opera House — The Driving-Park — The Exploits of the Track — .Slate Fairs
and Shoots.
IN the days of village life in Rochester the people were chiefly dependent
upon home effort for amusement. There was no lack of fairs, festivals, con-
certs and amateur entertainments. The periodical canvas shows of the men-
agerie and circus came around with each returning summer. At periods not
far apart, some showman would put in an appearance with a small company
and give a series of stage exhibitions in the ball-room of a village tavern or in
a vacant store and reap a harvest of "York shillings" from the pockets of the
villagers and people from the adjacent country. Among the entertainments of
this sort that could be expected year after year with no abatement of interest
was one known as "Sickels's show," or "the Babes in the Wood." Sickels, with
his wife and other assistants, would unfold in some tavern or hall the affecting
spectacle of the dying babes which the birds were covering with leaves, to an
,iudience who testified their emotion by tears and sobs. When the village be-
came large enough to sustain a more expensive class of amusements the veteran
Sickels retired to the neighboring villages, and long after Rochester became a
city his little show-bills decorated the bar-rooms and barn doors of the towns
about. As late as 1836 he gave a series of exhibitions at Hanford's Landing,
which is now in the corporation limits of the city.
To arrive with accuracy at the dates of the establishment of permanent
places of amusement in the village is difficult, for the reason that the news-
papers, chiefly weekly issues, gave very little attention to such matters, and the
1 This article was prepared l)y Mr. Ceorge G. Cooper.
Amusements IN Rochester. 451
same remark may apply to local news generally. The columns of the papers
of those days were filled with foreign news thirty or forty days old, brought
across the Atlantic in sail craft. The editors and news gleaners of the village
were compelled to cater to the wants of the people of influence in this locality,
and the "influential" class was chiefly composed of emigrants from the New
England states, who still retained the prejudice of their Puritanic ancestors who
regarded all amusements as sinful, and the theater and circus as the special in-
ventions of Satan to entrap the unwary. So dominant was this prejudice that
it was with great difficulty that a permanent theater or play-house could be es-
tablished and sustained in Rochester. The efforts of the early managers of the
circus and theater were a continual struggle against this prejudice, often at-
tended by disaster and but rarely rewarded by any degree of success.
In 1838, four years after the incorporation of the city, Mr. O'Rielly pub-
lished his Sketches of Rochester, in which he gives a few lines to the subject of
amusements, which indorse fully what has been said above in respect to the
feeling adverse to amusements. He says :
"Theaters and circuses cannot now be found in Rochester. The buildings form-
erly erected for such purposes were years ago turned to other objects. The theater
was converted into a livery-stable and the circus into a chandler's shop. The distaste
for such exhibitions that prevails in New England has much influence here, where the
population is so largely composed of emigrants from that region."
The first circus established in Rochester was in the building referred to by
Mr. O'Rielly as "converted into a chandler's shop." It was established about
the year 1824 and was located on the east side of Exchange street, with its
rear on the mill race, near the jail. It was a large wooden structure, and the
premises, rebuilt, are now occupied by a builder. While this establishment was
best known to the public as a circus, the managers did not confine it exclu-
sively to equestrian exhibiting, but after a season they erected a stage and in-
troduced dramatic exhibitions of the lighter sort. The following, taken from
the Republican, a weekly paper of that time, gives an idea of the institution on
Exchange street: —
"September 27th, 1825. — Rochester Circus. — The proprietor most respectfully in-
forms the ladies and gentlemen of Rochester and vicinity that the circus will be open
every evening this week, in the course of which will be brought forward a great
variety of new and interesting performances. This evening the performance will com-
mence, for the first time in this place, with the comic scene of 'the Miller's Frolic' "
Six weeks later, so popular had the dramatic feature become, the equestrian
feature was abandoned and Thespis held the boards alone. The Republican of
November 8th contains the following in relation to this establishment : —
"Mr. Davis, late of the firm of Gilbert, Davis & Trowbridge, respectfully announces
to the ladies and gentlemen of Rochester and vicinity that he has fitted up the circus
as a theater and will open it this evening, Wednesday Nov. 9th, 1825, with an efficient
company. He assures the public that no exertion will be spared to render the perform-
ances in every way worthy of their patronage. During the season a number of the most
admired melodramas will be brought forward."
4S2 History of the City of Rochester.
The first play under this management of which any record is given was en-
titled "the opera of the Mountaineers," and this was given on Wednesday,
November 9th, 1825, with the following cast: Octavian, Mr. Davis; Bnlcasin,
Mr. Trowbridge; Killmallock, Mr. Gilbert; Sadi, Mr. Smith; Florenthe, Mrs.
Gilbert; Agnes, Mrs. Thompson. At the conclusion of the play a number of
songs were rendered and the entertainment concluded with the farce entitled
"the Weathercock." Performances were given at this place for about three
months when it was abandoned as a place of amusement.
A short time afterward a theater was constructed and opened, with a part of
the Exchange street company, on Buffalo street (now West Main). The site
of this theater was later occupied by a building known as the Exchange Hotel.
It is now the site of the building of the Young Men's Catholic association.
This theater was practically opened on the 28th of March, 1826, with the melo-
dramatic, spectacular piece entitled " the Forty Thieves." The formal open-
ing did not take place, however, until the following April. At the opening the
manager presented Shakespeare's tragedy of "Richard HI." This was probably
the first attempt to present a Shakespearian play in Rochester. The following
was the cast: King Henry, Mr. Gilbert; Prince of Wales, Mrs. Davis; Richard,
Mr. Davis; Buckingham, Mr. Trowbridge; Lord Mayor, Mr. Smith; Queen
Elizabeth, Mrs. Smith; Duchess of York, Mrs. Baldwin; Lady Antic, Mrs.
Gilbert. This theater was closed in a few weeks, as the, venture does not ap-
pear to have been a success in that locality. This, the first attempt to establish
the legitimate drama in Rochester, was a decided failure. The love of the sen-
sational in theatrical seems to have taken the patrons of the drama at that time
quite as firmly as it has in times more recent.
The next attempt to establish a play-house was made in State street, on a
site nearly opposite Market street. The structure erected there was of more
commanding proportions than anything in the same line that preceded it. The
building was of wood, but, it was not very ornamental in its architecture. The
following notices of the establishment are found in the Republican of May 9th,
1826 : "New theater. — This building is nearly completed, and, as will be seen
by an advertisement in our paper, will be opened on Monday evening. May
15th. Something splendid will be expected." This appears to have been the
first editorial notice of a theater that appeared in a Rochester newspaper.
Those which subsequently appeared were few and short. The advertisement
referred to in the notice is as follows: —
"Theater. — Opposite the Mansion House, the ladies and gentlemen of Rochester
and vicinity are respectfully informed that the manager intends opening the new theater
on Monday evening next, with new and splendid scenery, dresses and stage decorations.
Scenery painted by Mr. Hardy. Previous to the play the 'prize address' will be
spoken by Mr. Browner, after which will be performed Tobin's elegant comedy of 'the
Honey Moon.' "
R. H. Williams, the manager, sustained the leading part, that of Diike Aransa.
Amusements in Rochester. 453
The afterpiece on this occasion was what was called in the bills "the opera
of the Poor Soldier." The "prize address" spoken on this occasion was written
by a lawyer and prominent citizen, Hon. Frederick Whittlesey. It is a cred-
itable little poem. Mr. O'Rielly, in his Sketches, gives a few lines of the ad-
dress, omitting all relating to the occasion for which it was written. It is now
produced entire : —
" PRIZE ADDRESS
" iVrilkn hy FredcricklVhittlesey, and spoken at the opening of the Rochester theater. May 15///, 1826.
"Scarce thrice five suns have rolled their yearly round,
Since o'er this spot a dreary forest frowned :
Where none had dared with impious foot intrude
On nature's vast, unbroken solitude;
When its rude beauties were unmask'd by man,
And yon dark stream in unknown grandeur ran;
When e'en those deaf'ning falls dashed all unheard,
Save by the timid deer or startled bird.
Behold a change which proves e'en fiction true —
More Springing wonders than Aladdin knew !
How, like a fairy with her magic wand.
The soul of enterprise has changed the land !
Proud domes are rear'd upon the gray wolf's den,
And forest beasts have fled their haunts for men !
On yon proud stream, which with the ocean's tide
Joins distant Erie, boats triumphal glide ;
These glittering spires and teeming streets confess
That man, free man, hath quelled the wilderness,
Before him forests fell, the desert smiled —
And he hath rear'd this city of the wild.
Nor these alone — the useful arts here flourished
Those arts which his free energies have nourish'd ;
And science, learning and tlie drama, too.
Here find their votaries in a chosen few ;
As this fair dome so quickly rear'd can tell
How many loved the drama, and how well ;
And how this ville approves in early youth.
The drama's morals, and the drama's truth.
Immortal Shakespeare ! Thou the drama's sire,
Who wrote with pen of light and soul of fire,
Smile on this effort to extend the stage.
To mend the manners and improve the age ;
To you who promptly lent your lib'ral aid
With fervor let our thanks be next repaid ;
If we deserve your smiles be liberal still ;
If not, your frowns can punish us at will ;
Should we prove worthy of the drama's cause
We find our high reward in your applause."
454 History of the City of Rochester.
The prize offered by the manager for this address was an elegant copy of
Shaltespeare. It was awarded to Mr. Whittlesey by a committee of citizens.
It appears by a subsequent notice in the Republican that the address was
spoken by Mrs. H. A. Williams, the wife of the manager, and not by the gen-
tleman announced on the bills. On the Thursday evening following the open-
ing, Payne's melodrama, "Theresa, or the Orphan of Geneva," was presented
to a large and delighted audience. During the season many of the noted ac-
tors appeared on this stage, among them Edmund Kean, who appeared July
15th, in " the Iron Chest." The papers say that the applause was loud and
frequent on the occasion. At the conclusion Mr. Kean was called before the
curtain and addressed the audience as follows : —
" Ladies and gentlemen : The very flattering applause you have been pleased to
bestow this evening is as grateful as it was unexpected. When an actor is fortunate
enough to obtain respect for a private action, the most ardent wish of his heart is grati-
fied. This is the first time I have had the honor of appearing before a Rochester au-
dience, but I may be allowed to indulge the hope that within the lapse of a twelve-
month I shall be able again to enjoy the satisfaction. In the meantime accept my
thanks for the very grateful reception I have experienced this evening."
Notwithstanding the auspicious opening of the first temple of the drama,
that was at all worthy of the name, its success was not of long duration. The
following year the enterprise was abandoned and the building was devoted to
other objects. This was the theater to which O'Rielly alludes as having been
converted to a livery stable. For such it was long used by the Messrs. Chris-
topher and Charles, who are remembered by all old citizens as actively engaged
in the business in this city. In the succeeding years up to the time a city
charter was obtained, and for a few years following, spasmodic attempts were
made to revive the drama, but with only partial success. So long as the
churches frowned upon the stage, and those who aspired by religious profession
or wealth to give tone to society insisted that the players were not respectable
and that play- goers could not be admitted to the best society, it was idle to
think of maintaining a theater in Rochester. The press partook of the pre-
vailing sentiment and gave no countenance to the drama. Even as late as
1849, when the writer of this was connected with the Daily Advertiser, the
stockholders and directors of that concern, in solemn conclave assembled, for-
bade the editors to notice theaters or circuses in the editorial columns, and the
reason assigned for this action was that a contemporary had insisted that a news-
paper which noticed such amusements was unfit to be introduced in a respect-
able family.
Despite this feeling toward the drama, as the city increased in population,
and strangers began to comment on the absence of such amusements as other
towns, of even less population, offered to visitors, managers from abroad came
here from time to time and sought to establish theaters. About 1840 Edwin
Dean, a veteran manager, who was then conducting the Buffalo theater, came
Amusements in Rochester. 455
here resolved to establish a play-house to be run in connection with the Buffalo
concern. He took what was then known as Concert hall, in the upper story
of the " Child Marble building," on the east side of Exchange street, and fitted
up a modest little theater. By his energy and good management he sustained
himself, or rather induced the public to sustain him. In time another story of
the building was added to the theater, so that a dress circle and pit were pro-
vided for the audience. A worthy class of actors was employed for the stock
company and many popular stars were engaged. Among others were Edwin
Forrest, who played an engagement of a week, when the price of tickets was
put up to one dollar, and the house was crowded nightly. It was in this theater
that manager Dean's daughter Julia, who afterward became distinguished as an
iictrcss, made her first show of promise in the profession. She was a child,
and took inferior parts, such as those of pages and messengers. She was always
perfect in the text and made of her part all that it would bear. The patrons
of the Rochester theater in those days may have enjoyed in later times the
satisfaction of believing that the encouragement they gave the youthful actress
helped her to scale the ladder of fame and take the proud position she subse-
quently held.
The Rochester Museum was for many years a resort for strangers and cit-
izens who sought amusement. It was established in the upper stories of a
building on Exchange street, on the site of the present building of Smith &
Perkins, wholesale grocers. The museum was started in 1825 by a Mr. Bishop,
who conducted it for about twenty-five years. It contained a rare collection
of curiosities for the time it was in operation. In the latter years of Mr. Bish-
op's management he annexed to the museum a cosy little theater to accommo-
date six or seven hundred people and with a small company gave vaudevilles,
farces and pantomimes. A year or more later, museum and theater gave way
to the march of trade, and in 1852 the prernises were occupied by the company
which, in that year, started the Daily Union newspaper.
That period in the history of Rochester extending from 1845 to 1855 was
marked for the absence of interest and effort in theatricals. There was nothing
attempted in this direction that is worthy of mention. The principal entertain-
ments for the people were concerts, fairs, exhibitions of jugglery, mesmerism,
etc. Negro minstrelsy was then in its infancy, but was extremely popular in
the city. Next to a circus a minstrel show was best patronised. The principal
place of amusement in those days was Minerva hall, on the corner of Main and
South St. Paul streets. The building was subsequently destroyed by fire, and
when rebuilt the hall was not replaced.
During this period when there was so much indifference to theatricals there
was a large influx of Germans, and they, being a people given to amusements,
devised such for their own taste. It was then that a German play-house was
opened on North Clinton street, in a suburb largely inhabited by that people.
45 6 History of the City of Rochester.
The Turn-verein, a society for gymnastic exercises, erected a building for a club-
house and a theater. Here for some years there were given German plays, but
on Sunday evenings chiefly. The place was conducted in an orderly manner,
and the authorities did not interfere. The reader will observe that it was in the
Puritanical city of Rochester — nearly the last of all the towns to recognise thea-
ters as legitimate places of resort for moral people — that the first Sunday thea-
ter was established and maintained without protest from press or pulpit.
In 1849 ^ citizen of Rochester distinguished for his enterprise and liberality,
and long since deceased, conceived and executed a plan to redeem from filth
and neglect a very central locality. This gentleman, W. A. Reynolds, erected
the large building on Exchange place, north of the Arcade, and through his in-
fluence the streets in that locality were improved and thus his new edifice,
known for many years as Corinthian hall, became the popular resort of the peo-
ple for instruction and amusement. In this hall, with a capacity for 1,600
people, the citizens gathered to listert to the most eloquent and instructive lec-
turers and renowned singers, and to witness the popular hall exhibitions there
offered. Popular as was this place of resort, it did not meet the demand of a
largely increased population. Mr. Reynolds began to make some additions, but
ere his designs were carried into execution he sold the property in 1865 to Sam-
uel Wilder, who continued the work until Corinthian hall became an attractive
place for theatrical and other scenic ' performances, and in 1879 it was reorgan-
ised and called the Corinthian Academy of Music. A large dress circle and
spacious gallery were arranged to accommodate 1,800 persons. With ample
stage appointments, this place has continued to meet the wants of the play-go-
ing public. The most famous members of the dramatic profession have ap-
peared here, and the traveling combinations have here presented their specialties
with more or less popular favor. Still further enlargement and improvements
to increase the capacity of the house are contemplated and will doubtless be
completed in the near future.
About the year 1855 another attempt was made to establish a theater in
Rochester. This, like previous efforts, was made by Buffalo managers. Messrs.
Carr and Warren, of the Buffalo theaters, came here and induced the manager
of the Enos Stone estate to construct a hall in the new building at the corner
of Main and South St. Paul streets. This place was fitted up at considerable
expense for a theater by these gentlemen, who conducted the establishment
for several years. Mr. Carr succeeded to the management, a regular stock
company was employed and stars were engaged from time to time. After Mr.
Carr, came other managers who conducted the establishment with more or
less success, but none with overburthened pockets. On the morning of No-
vember 6th, 1869, this theater was destroyed by fire. On the night previous
E. L. Davenport had played to a large audience in a piece called "the Scalp
Hunter, " and his entire wardrobe and personal effects were destroyed. Pre-
Amusements in Rochester. 457
vious to the fire the property had passed into the hands of Judge Finck of
Brooklyn, who in due time caused the erection of a building on this site, of
large proportions and better adapted to the drama. The auditorium would
seat 1,600 persons. The new theater became popular and was largely patron-
ised in the succeeding years. It is still a theater, known as the Grand Opera
House.
The changes in the methods of doing business of most kinds in this country
have included the theatrical business. Unless it be in the great metropolitan
cities, there are no theaters, in the proper sense of the term. There are' no
managers who direct and control all the performances, who employ actors,
select plays and cater to the wishes of the public.^ There are no stock
companies, and the patrons of what are called theaters do not meet night
after night the same old faces on the stage, with only a change of costume and
character. The " combination " is now the style in theatricals. Companies
arc formed to hippodrome the country arid present one piece, of which the
manager has exclusive control. Most of the pieces thus presented are highly
sensational, and while many are largely patronised and while these so-called
theatrical representations may " make the unskillful laugh, they cannot but
make the judicious grieve." The two theaters of Rochester are now con-
ducted by a single manager, who rents them to " combinations " which ap-
pear one after another in succession, before the public. It may be said, perhaps
without injustice to anybody concerned in presenting this class of amusements,
that those are best patronised which rtake the most attractive display of inci-
dents and characters on the bill boards in the public streets. Merit of play or
player seems to have little to do with the problem of success or failure. If a
theater and the legitimate drama have no place in Rochester it is not to be as-
sumed that the citizens are wholly indifferent to pastimes or totally absorbed
in the business of money-making. The higher order of art is not neglected.
Painting, music and sculpture have their votaries here, who lose no oppor-
tunity to gratify their taste. The great artists from abroad do not pass this
city, and when they call Jthey are patronised by intelligent and critical audi-
ences. While there are sundry musical associations -maintained by amateurs
as well as professionals, there are many individuals and circles devoted to the
study of painting. The Powers gallery of art is an institution of which Roch-
ester is proud. In view of the fact that this is the result of the efforts of one
individual, it may be truly said that it is without a rival in excellence.
Those who are given to the amusements of the turf find in this city a driv-
ing-park entirely worthy of the name. The company controlling this institu-
tion are liberal in their offer of purses, and they draw to the regular exhibitions
the most noted horses of the country. It was on this park that Vanderbilt's
•'Maud S." made the display of speed that placed her at the head of the turf
and made her the property of the wealthie.st citizen of the United States The
458 History of the City of Rochester.
driving- park is located on high ground in the northwestern part of the city,
easy of access by steam and horse railways. The grounds are spacious, with
an excellent mile track, ample buildings and structures adapted to the place.
The grand stand will cover and seat ten thousand persons. The State Agri-
cultural society holds its annual fair on these grounds, and the Western New
York agricultural society also holds its fairs here at times. Ball-playing, prize
shooting, bicycle exhibitions and other out-door amusements are held on the
grounds. Skating is a popular amusement and exercise with the youth of both
sexes in Rochester. In the winter, when the ice king is in full reign, the Erie
canal is divided in sections across the city and skating-rinks are crowded with
the votaries of this pastime. There are also other ice rinks in different local-
ities. In summer roller-skating is a popular amusement, and there are several
halls devoted to the exercise. These are multiplying in number and all are
well patronised. In conclusion it may be said truly that Rochester is not
wanting in the number and diversity of its amusements. Enterprising citizens,
who believe that the present rapid growth of Rochester in population and mate-
rial wealth must continue, are contemplating a great extension of amusement
facilities. At least two companies of citizens are considering propositions to
erect large opera-houses or theaters to meet the prospective demand for more
and better places for musical and dramatic entertainments.
CHAPTER XLIII.
THE UNl)ER(;ROUNn R.-MLROAl).'
The Flying Bondmen — Their Miseries in Servitude, their Privations while Escaping — Their Arrival
in Rochester and tneir Transit to Canada — The First Rendition of a Fugitive — Her Rescue, her Re-
capture and her Liber.ition by Suicide — No other Slave Ever Returned from Rochester — Scenes and
Incidents of the Harboring of Negroes — General Reflections.
A HISTORY of Rochester would hardly be complete without some reference
to the wonderful " Underground railroad," which was kept in active opera-
tion as long as slavery of the negro race continued. The secresy of its construc-
tions, its marvelous origin, the great number of passengers, the amount of freight
transported thereon, can never be told. All its work was done in the dark.
Although it had its depots, stations, passenger agents and conductors in every
state in the Union, daylight never shone upon it. Its stations had no electric
lights, and the passengers no guide aside from that blessed light in the heavens
known as the North star. Ignorant as these people were of book-learning,
1 This article was prepared by Mrs. Amy Post.
The Underground Railroad. 459
they all knew where to find the luminary which, they had learned, would lead
them to that long-wished-for goal, Canada. Sad to say, this starry guide was
sometimes shrouded by clouds, and they would be obliged to hide in some
friendly cave or sickly swamp unless they were so fortunate as to reach some
one of those hospitable depots that were scattered all along their devious way.
Owing to these delays, their journeys were long and tedious. They were obliged
to subsist principally upon nuts, roots and such, fruit arid berries as they chanced
to find in the woods ; thus, they invariably reached this end of the journey in
in a pitiable condition, footsore and weary, half starved, and faint for want of
sustenance appropriate to their needs. Their backs were generally covered
with scars, and frequently with unhealed wounds inflicted by the relentless slave-
driver's lash ; often, unable to go further, they were obliged to lie by, several
days, for rest and recuperation.
These detentions were fearful to both parties. To them belonged the ever-
harrowing dread of being discovered and dragged back to such bondage as
none but a slave can describe and dread ; to us the terrible consciousness, ever
present, that we could never insure them perfect safety, even in our homes, pur- '
chased with our own earnings. After all this, we were liable to the encroach-
ments of the minions of slavery every hour, for the fugitive slave enactments
had become the law of our hitherto boasted land of freedom, and to disobey it
was to risk our lives, our freedom and our fortunes. Our houses were some-
times surrounded by hideous yells of madmen, and terrible were the battles
fought in the efforts to save the poor fleeing fugitives from the grasp of their
alleged masters. In these cases the masters were always assisted by legal com-
missioners, and their willing dupes who are too. often found in every city.
As we recall the incidents connected with the work of the Underground
railroad in Rochester, we cannot but think that history furnishes nothing more
replete with deeds of heroic daring than the bold, constant and efficient help
rendered to these fleeing fugitives by the colored men and women of this city.
They were always ready to fight for a fugitive slave, and, if they failed to res-
cue one here, they would form a company of stalwart men and follow the party,
spy out where they were stopping for the night, and, generally finding the
watchman asleep, they only failed once to return in triumph with their rescued
brother or sister. This failure — • as related by Rev. Thomas James of this city,
now eighty years of age — was in connection with the very first rendition of a
fugitive slave from Rochester, which took place in 1823. The victim was a
woman who had escaped from her owner at Niagara Falls and had been living
in this city for some time with her husband, who was a barber here. The judge,
before whom the hearing was had, decided that she should be returned to her
master. The colored people, to the number of fifteen or twenty, gathered at
the entrance of the court-house, and, as she was brought out by the sheriff and
his assistants, they succeeded in overpowering the officers, got possession of her
30
460 History of the City of Rochester.
and carried her. some distance before they were overtaken. In the meantime
the officers had received reinforcements and succeeded in getting her into their
clutches again. They then threw her into a wagon, when the officers and a few
other ruffians mounted guard and drove off toward Buffalo. This was prior to
the time of telegraphs and railroads. The colored men took a conveyance and
followed on as fast as possible. After getting a number of miles they found
they were on the wrong track, and, as the officers with their victim had so much
the start of them, they were obliged to give up the chase. The poor woman
was carried to Buffalo, put on board a steamboat bound for Cleveland, to be
taken from there to Wheeling, Virginia, where her owner lived. The thought
of being forever separated from her husband and from her baby, nine months
old, and the dread of the tortures and terrible punishments she would be sub-
jected to, was too much for her, and she ended the tragedy by cutting her
throat, preferring to lie down to rest in death.
The second case of seizure, which occurred in 1832, terminated more fortu-
nately for the slave. A woman who was almost white was stopping at the Clin-
ton House with her master and mistress, who were here with their family, in-
tending to spend the summer. In her first attempt to escape she was caught
by her master just as she was leaving the hotel. Her owner, thinking his prop-
erty not very safe here, packed up immediately and that afternoon started for
the East. As they were obliged to travel by stage they stopped at Palmyra
for the night, where the colored men who had followed at a safe distance found
them about midnight. As they attempted to enter the hotel they were fired
upon, but they were in such numbers and so well armed that the occupants fled
to. the back part of the house, leaving the slave chained to a bed-post in an up-
per room, where her rescuers found her. It was but the work of a moment to
cut the chain with an ax, and she was immediately hurried to Sodus Point.
One warm and beautiful Sunday morning, three very gentlemanly-appear-
ing colored men drove up from the railroad depot to number 36 Sophia street,
in a carriage. They bore no appearance whatever of being fugitive slaves, so
different from any we had ever seen before, in dress, language and deportment.
We quite readily acceded to their strong desire to stay and abide in Rochester,
having but little fear of even their nationality being detected ; therefore they
freely walked the streets and attended church with the colored people. They
soon found employment, which they faithfully and steadily filled. All went
well with them for several months, and all concerned were feeling happy over
the experiment, when, at an evening session of one of our anti-slavery conven-
tions at Corinthian hall, it was whispered around among us that a Southern
slave-master, claiming that these noble, intelligent men belonged to him, was
then in- the United States commissioner's office (not exactly in the same build-
ing, but within a few feet of it), getting authority to drag them back to unre-
quited toil. Think of it, ye lordly men, who either were silent, or voted for
this inhuman law, called the " fugitive slave act." Think, too, of those who bore
The Underground Railroad. 461
the persecutions in the form of foul slander against character, bitter denuncia-
tions both public and private, and social and religious ostracism. This was our
reward for obeying the dictates of common humanity, " and for remembering
those in bonds as bound with them." This was not strange, for the church and
the clergy, ministers and ciders of nearly all religious denominations, had become
the abettors and apologists of slavery.
Those in the hall, doubly watched, had to- avoid the least appearance of
fright or anxiety in countenance or movement, but the time for action was at
hand — something must be done, and that immediately, for one of the very
fugitives was then in the meeting, listening for the first time to the refreshing
national language of "every man's right to life, liberty and the pursuit of hap-
piness." He seemed to be just realising this bopn of freedom, when Frederick
Douglass's tall figure appeared before us. Stepping into the broad aisle, he
beckoned the fugitive to him, speaking something which no one else heard.-
They quietly left the hall, and the present agony was past. The next day we
found they were secreted, separately, though very anxious themselves to be to-
gether. I called to see one of the three nearest by us and found him just at the
top of a flight of stairs, defying the approach of officers or master, with abun-
dant implements of warfare at his command, and he told me he would never go
back alive. I told him I hoped he would not take the life of any one, but his
freedom, so lately found and enjoyed, seemed to outweigh all things beside.
" My old master must not come up those stairs if he wants to live ; he is not fit
to live, though he is not as cruel as some of them." The three were brought
together on the third day of anxiety. Disguised by wearing Quaker bonnets
and thick veils, and seated on the back seat of a covered carriage, they were
quietly driven to a steamer bound for Canada, a haven they at first so much
dreaded, now hailing with joy. They were soon engaged as hack drivers to
and from Niagara falls, but when they last visited us they were going to Aus-
tralia, hoping for an easier and quicker way of gaining wealth.
Many other stories of narrow escapes might be written; one must suffice.
One Saturday night, after all our household were asleep, there came a tiny tap
at the door, and the door was opened to fifteen tired and hungry men and
women who were escaping from the land of slavery. They seemed to know
that Canada, their home of rest, was near, and they were impatient, but the
opportunity to cross the lake compelled their waiting until Monday early in the
morning. That being settled, and their hunger satisfied, together with a com-
fortable and refreshing sleep, they became so elated with their nearness to per-
fect and lasting freedom that they were forgetful of any danger either to us, or
to themselves, so that they were obliged to be con.stantIy watched through the
day to keep them from popping their heads out of the windows and otherwise
.showing themselves. The husband of the eldest woman was a slave, while his
wife, and mother of the children, was a free woman, but both sons and daugh-
ters had married slaves, so that they were all in danger of being sold or sepa-
462 History of the City of Rochester.
rated. The mother of the children seemed to be much more intelligent than
her husband, who had been obliged to work on his master's plantation some
distance away from her home. She said the South had " all gone mad after
money," and she had a great deal of trouble to keep them from being stolen
away and sold into slavery. For a long time she had not dared to sleep with-
out some white witness in the house, and when she failed to get one she
would take them all and stay on the outside of some white people's house. No
colored person's testimony could be allowed in court, to prove that they were
free people, which reduced her to this necessity. She said she owned quite a
large farm, and, having three grown-up sons to help her carry it on, she had
several horses, cows and pigs to sell, but the white folks would not buy them
of her. If she could have sold them for what they were worth she said they
should have had enough to come all the way on the railroad; '"but," she said,
" I don't care now; they may have them all, I am going where I can work for
more, and I have got all my children and my husband, too, thank the Lord."
The welcome Monday morning came, and after a hearty breakfast, and a lunch
for dinner, they left the house, with all the stillness and quietness possible, and we
soon saw them on board a Canada steamer, which was already lying at the dock;
with them on board, it immediately shoved out into the middle of the stream,
hoisted the British flag, and we knew that all was safe; we breathed more freely,
but when we saw them standing on deck with uncovered heads, shouting their
good-byes, thanks and ejaculations, we could not restrain our tears of thankful-
ness for their happy escape, mixed with deep shame that our own boasted land
of liberty offered no shelter of safety for them.
It is. safe to estimate the number of those who found their way to Canada
through Rochester, as averaging about 1 50 per year, and thus the work went
bravely on, with varying success, till the issue between freedom and slavery had
to be fairly met by the American people. The time for compromise was past.
The South appealed to the sword and was answered with equal firnmess and
bravery by the North, but it was not till many a fair field was drenched with
blood that this government was willing to concede to the colored people their
rights. And now, in looking back through the vista of years to this long and
terrible struggle between freedom and slavery, we would laise an enduring
monument to those noble souls who risked all that life held dear in defending
the downtrodden and helpless against a giant wrong, and, as they look across
the dark valley to the bright land beyond, their greatest glory will be that they
helped to break the fetters that bound the bodies and souls of their fellow-men.
Note. — Of the systematic and efficient laljors of the Ladies' Anti-Slavery society — the fairs tliat it
held in Corinthian hall and elsewhere (the first being given on the 22d of February, 1842, in a store in
the Talman block, on Buffalo street), the lectures that were given under its auspices during several
winters, and the various other means that were taken to raise money and to promote public interest in
the cause of abolition — enough might be said to make another chapter, but it does not form a necessary
part of an article upon the subject of the Underground railroad.
The Banks of Rochester. 463
CHAPTER XLIV.
THE BANKS OF ROCHESTER, i
IJanking Facilities in Early Days — Establishment of the Bank of Rochester — The Bank of Mon-
roe — The Rocliester City Bank — The Bank of Western New York — The Commercial Bank — The
Farmers' & Mechanics' Bank — The Rochester Bank — The Union Bank — The Eagle Bank —
The Manufacturers' Bank — The Traders' Bank — The Flour City Bank — The Monroe County Bank
— The Perrin Bank — The Bank of Monroe — The Bank of Rochester and the German American
Bank — The Commercial National Bank — The Merchants' Bank — The Private Banks — The Sav-
ings Banks.
PRIOR to 1824 the banking facilities which the inhabitants of the village
of Rochesterville were able to secure were granted by institutions in the
neighboring towns — at Canandaigua by the Ontario bank, at Geneva by the
Bank of Geneva, at Batavia by the Bank of Genesee, etc. Ebenezer Ely,
whose office was located on the west side. of Exchange street, represented the
Ontario bank, and it was his practice to receive paper for discount, forward it
to Canandaigua by such convenient means as offered, receive and pay over the
proceeds and also to act as the agent of the borrower, in receiving and forward-
ing payment for maturing paper. The business, of necessity, was limited and
uncertain, but in some measure supplied the place of a local bank for two or
three years prior to the organisation of the Bank of Rochester. The subject
of an application to the legislature for a bank charter was first mooted in 18 17
by the publication of the following notice : —
"The subscribers and their associates hereby give notice that they shall make appli-
cation to the honorable the legislature of the state of New York at the next session, to
be incorporated as a banking company under the name of the bank, with a
capital stock of five hundred thousand dollars. Rochester, December 2d, 1817. H.
Montgomery, Josiah Bissell, jr., Elisha Johnson, Azel Ensworth, Hervey Ely, D. D.
Hatch, James G. Bond, Elisha Ely, Ira West, A. Hamlin, Silas Smith."
In 1823 a similar notice was published. In both instances the applications
were opposed through the influence of the neighboring banks, especially of the
Ontario bank, and were defeated. In the spring of 1824 a third application to
the legislature was successful (through the efforts of Thurlow Weed, who was
sent down there for that purpose), and on the 19th of February of that year a
charter was granted to the Bank of Rochester. Matthew Brown, jr., Nathaniel
Rochester, Elisha B. Strong, Samuel Works, Enos Pomeroy and Levi Ward,
jr., were named as 'incorporators. The capital was fixed at $250,000, and
commissioners were appointed to receive subscriptions to the stock. The bank
was soon after organised by the election of the following board of directors:
Elisha B. Strong, Levi Ward, jr., Matthew Brown, jr., Abelard Reynolds, James
Seymour, Jonathan Child, Ira West, Charles H. Carroll, William Pitkin, Fred-
1 This article was prepared by Mr. George E. Mumford. Most of the information relating to banks
now in existence was furnished to him by the officers of those institutions.
464 History of the City of Rochester.
erick Bushnell and William W. Mumford. Elisha B. Strong was elected pres-
ident, A. M. Schermerhorn cashier, and John T. Talman teller. The hours of
business were from ten to two. The population of the village at this time was
about S.ooo souls and it had already begun to attract attention as a manufac-
turing point. The business of the bank gradually increased, so much so that
in September, 1825, it was enabled to declare its first dividend of two dollars
per share. In 1830 Levi Ward, jr., became its president, and James Seymour
cashier. In 1838 Mr. Seymour was elected president and David Scoville cash-
ier. The place of business of the bank was on Exchange street, in the build-
ing now occupied by the Bank of Monroe. Tl^e original charter of the bank
expired in 1840, and was renewed and extended by act of legislature, in the
face of much opposition, to the year 1846, when the bank wound up its affairs
and ceased to exist.
The second bank established in this city was the Bank of Monroe, which
was organised under a special charter in the year 1829, with a capital of $300,-
000. Its first directors were : Henry Dwight, John Greig, Henry B. Gibson,
James K. Livingston, Jacob Gould, Elisha Johnson, Elijah F. Smith, Charles J.
Hill, Eben. Ely, Alexander Duncan, James K. Guernsey, Abraham M. Scher-
merhorn and Edmund Lyon. It was located, soon after its organisation, on the
corner of West Main and State streets, and continued to do a successful busi-
ness for twenty years. A. M. Schermerhorn was its first president. He was
succeeded by Alexander Duncan. Moses Chapin afterward occupied that po-
sition, as also James K. Livingston. John T. Talman was the first cashier, and
he was succeeded by Ralph Lester. Upon the expiration of its charter in 1 849
the affairs of the bank were wound up by Ralph Lester, E. B. Elwood, Elias
Pond and Thomas Beals, who were appointed trustees for that purpose.
In May, 1836, the legislature passed an act incorporating the Rochester
City bank, with a capital of $400,000 and appointed commissioners to receive
subscriptions to the capital stock, directing them to open books at the Eagle
Tavern and to allot the stock among subscribers. There had been for some
time an urgent demand for an increase of banking facilities ; public meetings
had been held and the legislature memorialised on the subject. The demand
for the stock was very general. No subscriptions for more than twenty-five
shares were, received, but before the books closed there were 1,150 subscribers
to the stock, representing nearly two and a half millions of dollars. Thomas
Hart and Jacob Gould were the first subscribers. The $400,000 capital was
allotted among these subscribers at the discretion of the commissioners, sub-
jecting them naturally to a great deal of criticism for the course adopted, and
the allotted shares at once commanded a handsome premium. The first board
of directors consisted of H. B. Williams, Joseph Field, Henry Martin, Nathan-
iel T. Rochester, R G. Tobey, E. F. Smith, F. M. Haight, E. M. Parsons,
Derick Sibley, P. Garbutt, A. Baldwin and Robert Haight. Mr. Williams was
-H^
Eiiy''-h,fH.B.I{allk SoiTS. .mwYorlc
The Banks of Rochester. 465
elected president. In 1832 the bank was established in its building on State
street, which it continued to occupy during the entire period of its existence.
Thomas H. Rochester succeeded Mr. Williams as president, and held this po-
sition until the year 1858, when he resigned and Joseph Field became presi-
dent. Fletcher M. Haight was cashier for a number of years, and was suc-
ceeded in that position by Christopher T. Amsden and afterward by B. F.
Young, who, in April, 1862, resigned his position as cashier after a continuous
service of twenty-three years, and in July, 1863, Charles E. Upton was elected
cashier. In 1864 the capital stock was reduced to $200,000, and in October
of that year the affairs of the bank were wound up, and the First National bank
organised in its place. The stock and a' small surplus was returned to the
shareholders and it appeared that during the twenty- eight years of its exist-
ence the bank had paid to its shareholders an average of about nine per cent
per annum. When the bank closed the directors were : Joseph Field, presi-
dent ; Levi A. \yard, Ezra M. Parsons, Isaac Hills, Alfred Ely, E. Darwin
Smith, Edmund Lyon, Robert M. Dalzell, Ebenezer Ely, G. W. Burbank, E.
F. Smith, B. F. Young and C. E. Upton.
The First National bank, which succeeded the Rochester. City bank, occu-
pying the same building, was organised in October, 1864, with a capital of
$100,000, Ezra M. Parsons being president and C. E. Upton cashier. In Jan-
uary, 1865, the capital was increased to $200,000 and again in August, 1 871, to
$400,000, at which time the assets of the Clarke National bank were purchased
and that bank absorbed. During the war of the rebellion and the few years
succeeding that time, a period of great speculative activity, this bank con-
ducted a very successful business, dividing to its shareholders in regular and
special dividends during the twelve years of its existence an average of eleven
per cent, per annum on its stock, until August, 1872, when it went into vol-
untary liquidation, and transferred its assets to a new corporation, organised
under the state laws and styled the City. bank of Rochester. This last-named
corporation, with a capital of $200,000, continued the business in the same
locality as its predecessors, Ezra M. Parsons being its president and Charles
E. Upton its cashier. Thomas Leighton succeeded Mr. Parsons as president,
and subsequently Mr. Upton became president and so continued until Decem-
ber, 1882, when the bank failed, and passed into the hands of a receiver, by
whom its alfairs were wound up.
The fourth bank organised in this city, and the first one organised under
the general banking law of 1838, was styled the Bank of Western New York,
was established in 1839 ^"^ was located in the Rochester. House building on
Exchange street, south of the canal.- Its nominal capital was $300,000 and
actual capital $180,000. Its directors were James K. Guernsey, Gustavus
Clark, Henry Hawkins, Frederick Whittlesey and Ezra M. Parsons. Mr. Guern-
sey was its president and Mr. Clark its cashier. This bank was an outgrowth
466 History of the City of Rochester.
of, and closely connected with, a corporation known as the Georgia Lumber
company, and, upon the failure of this latter company, was forced into liquid-
ation and passed into the hands of a receiver, after a troubled existence of
about two years. One peculiarity of the business at this time was the author-
ity possessed by banks to issue drafts payable at a future time and apparently
without any limit, and the Bank of Western New York is supposed to have
suffered from over-confidence in parties to whom it had intrusted these drafts
to a very large amount.
In the year 1839 was also organised the Commercial bank of Rochester,
with a capital of $400,000 and a board of thirty directors, namely : Hervey
Ely, Everard Peck, Thomas H. Rochester, Asa Sprague, Selah Mathews,
Thomas Emerson, Henry S. Potter, Henry P. Culver, Isaac Moore, Harvey
Montgomery, Oliver Culver, Seth C. Jones, Silas Ball, Charles Church, William
Kidd, Erasmus D. Smith, A. M. Schermerhorn, Jonathan Child, Frederick
Whittlesey, Rufus Keeler, John McVean, Isaac Lacey, Preston Smith, John
McNaughton, Thomas Kempshall, Nehemiah Osburn, H. Hutchinson, Roswell
Lockwood, Jacob Graves and Alexander Kelsey. Hervey Ely was the first
president, Everard Peck vice-president (continuing as such until his death, in
1854), and Thomas H. Rochester, cashier. In 1840 Asa Sprague was elected
president, and in 1843 George R. Clarke was elected cashier; in 1854 Mr.
Clarke was made vice-president and H. F. Atkinson, cashier, all of whom re-
tained these positions as long as the bank continued to exist. The Commercial
bank commenced its business in the second story of the building on Exchange
street then occupied by the Bank of Rochester and now by the Bank of Mon-
roe, where it remained until 1841, when it purchased and erected a banking-
house on the south side of West Main street now occupied by a part of the
Masonic block. Upon the destruction of that building by fire, in 1856, it sold
its site and erected a new banking office on Exchange street, to which it re-
moved in 1856, where it continued to do business until its dissolution in 1866.
The bank was managed with great ability and proved to be a profitable invest-
ment for its owners, making regular and frequently large special dividends to its
shareholders. The change in the character of business and the onerous taxes
imposed upon the shareholders furnished the reasons for the closing of its affairs.
In the year 1839 the Farmers' & Mechanics' bank of Rochester was organ-
ised, with a capital of $100,000. Its first directors were A. G. Smith, Elon
Huntington, Frederick Starr and Charles J. Hill. A. G. Smith was the first
president, and Elon Huntington cashier. In 1857 the capital was reduced to
$50,000, and Jacob Gould became the president. Subsequently the capital
was increased to $100,000, and various unsuccessful efforts were made to place
it upon a satisfactory basis. Some six years ago it was forced into the hands
of a receiver, by whom its affairs were closed up.
In the year 1839 a bank styled the Exchange bank was also organised, with a
The Banks of Rochester. 467
capital of $100,000. G. W. Pratt was the president, and James H. Pratt,
cashier. Its name appears and then disappears, with nothing to show what it
accomplished, or whether its existence was more than nominal.
In July, 184s, Freeman Clarke, then late cashier of the Bank 'of Albion,
opened a banking office in the Irving hall building and in 1847 organised the
Rochester bank, with a capital of $100,000, of which Mr. Clarke was president,
and P. W. Handy cashier. The operations of the bank were carried on in the
building on Exchange street formerly occupied by the Bank of Rochester. In
1853 Mr. Clarke retired from the management of this institution, and was suc-
ceeded by H. S. Fairchild and a short time later the bank went into liquidation
and its affairs were closed.
The Union bank of Rochester was organised on the 20th of January, 1853,
with a capital of $400,000. Its first directors were Aaron Erickson, George
H. Mumford, Ezra M. Parsons, Azariah Boody, Edward Roggen, John M.
French, Ephraim Moore, Rufus Keeler, Lewis Brooks, William Garbutt, William
Churchill, Melancton Lewis, Nehemiah B. Northrop, James W. Sawyer, Asa
Sprague, Elisha Harmon, William Ailing and Samuel Rand. Mr. Erickson
was the first president and continued to hold that position during the existence
of the bank. In June, 1853, the capital was increased to $500,000, but in May,
1864, by reason of the increase in taxation was again reduced to $400,000. In
August, 1853, a savings department was established, as distinct from the reg-
ular discount and deposit department, and continued until the state legislature
compelled its abandonment. The affairs of the bank were so successfully man-
aged that an average dividend of eight per cent, per annnm was returned to
the stockholders during the twelve years of its existence. In June, 1865, the
bank passed into the national system, and so continued under substantially the
same management, until 1872. In that year it went into voluntary liquidation,
returning to its stockholders the amount of their stock with an addition of
twelve per cent., and was succeeded by the firm of Erickson & Jennings as
private bankers. The business has been conducted in the same manner to the
present time.
In August, 1850, the Eagle bank of Rochester was organised, with a capi-
tal of $100,000, G. W. Burbank being the president and Charles P. Bissell the
cashier. Its place of business was on the corner of East Main and South
Water street. In 1857 it was removed to the Masonic hall block, corner of
West Main and Exchange streets. William H. Cheney became president, and
John B. Robertson cashier, and the capital increased to $200,000.
In 1856 the Manufacturers' bank was organised, with a capital of $200,000,
G. W. Burbank being the president, and R. S. Doty the cashier. The place of
business was on East Main street. For various reasons it failed to meet with
the success which its projectors anticipated, and, its capital becoming impaired,
an act was passed by the legislature in the spring of 1859, authorising the
468 History of the City of Rochester.
Eagle bank and the Manufacturers' bank to consolidate and to form a new in-
stitution under the title of the Traders' bank of Rochester, with a capital of
$250,000. The first directors of the new bank were George H. Mumford, John
Crombie, John Haywood, Araunah Moseley, Ralph Lester, George C. JBuell,
Henry S. Potter, Melancton Lewis, Roswell Hart, David R. Barton, Owen Gaff-
ney, Horatio N. Peck, John H. Brewster, Joseph Hall and James W. Russell.
The first officers were: President, George H.' Mumford; vice-president, John
Crombie ; cashier, James W. Russell. Mr. Mumford soon after resigned and
Mr. Russell became president, who in turn was succeeded by Simon L. Brew-
ster, who has since continued to be the presidAit of the bank. The bank oc-
cupied rooms in the Masonic hall block for many years, until it removed to
its present quarters on State street. In 1865 this bank was reorganised as a
national bank, with the same officers and directors. The bank has been pru-
dently and successfully managed and besides making regular dividends has ac-
cumulated in surplus and undivided profits about $330,000 and reports a
deposit of about one million.
In February, 1856, the Flour City bank was established. It commenced bus-
iness in a back room on the second floor of the Corinthian Academy building.
The organisation was effected chiefly through the efforts of Francis Gorton, who
became its first president and held that position till his death, in May, 1882.
The original directors of the bank were Francis Gorton, Ezra M. Parsons, Sam-
uel Rand, Patrick Barry, Oliver H. Palmer, Mortimer F. Reynolds, Romanta
Hart, Lewis Brooks and Samuel Wilder. Shortly after its organisation the
bank was removed to the ground floor of the Union bank building, on State
street, where it remained until that building was destroyed by fire in 1868, soon
after which it was removed to rooms in the Powers block, where it remained
until November, 1883, at which date it took possession of a new building which
it had erected on the site of the old Rochester city bank, on State street. In
June, 1865, the bank passed into the' national system and became the Flour
City National bank. Upon the death of Mr. Gorton, Patrick Barry became
the president of the bank. The capital of the bank was originally $200,000, and
in 1857 was increased to $300,000. Besides paying regular dividends it has dur-
ing the twenty-eight years of its existence accumulated in surplus and undivided
earnings about $235,000, has a deposit of one million and over, and by its pru-
dent, conservative management has at all times commanded the confidence of
the business public.
In 1857 the Monroe County bank was organised, with a capital of $100,000,
Freeman Clarke being the president. It occupied the building on State street
formerly belonging to the Rochester savings bank, and in 1 866 was reorganised
under the national system by the title of the Clarke National bank. In 1871
the affairs of this bank were wound up and its assets transferred to the First Na-
tional bank.
'///
/■/.,'/ '/,/,'//:' iV'/i S. V .-J-.-.v/JX
The Banks of Rochester. 469
In 1857 Darius Perrin established an individual bank under the title of
the Perrin bank, with a capital of $200,000 and conducted the business of the
bank on State street for some years, when it was discontinued.
In 1867 the Bank of Monroe was organised under the general banking act
with a capital of $100,000, and established in business on Exchange street in
the building originally occupied by the Bank of Rochester. Jarvis Lord was
the president, and William 'R. Seward cashier, of this bank from its organisa-
tion until the year 1878, \vhen it passed into the control of Hiram Sibley, who
afterward became its president, Mr. Seward remaining cashier. The bank has
accumulated a surplus of about $200,000.
In 187s the Bank of Rochester was organised, with a capital of $100,000,
afterward increased to $200,000, its place of business being the old Rochester
savings bank building, on State street. This bank succeeded to the business
of the firm of Kidd & Chapin, private bankers, Charles H. Chapin becoming its
president and continuing to hold that position until his death, in 1882. Early
in 1884 the name of the bank was changed to the German-American bank, and
Frederick Cook became its president.
In 187s the Commercial bank of Rochester was organised, with a capital of
$100,000, which was subsequently increased to $200,000, H. F. Atkinson be-
ing its president. In 1878 it was reorganised under the national system as
the Commercial National bank, under which title its businesss is still continued,
its office being located on West Main street.
Late in 1883 the Merchants' bank of Rochester was organised, with a cap-
ital of $100,000, George E. Mumford being its president and William J. Ashley
its cashier, and located its business office on the corner of East Main and St.
P^ul streets.
In the fore'going list no mention has been made of the private bankers.
From its earliest history Rochester has been favored as the residence of many
business men of this character, men whose enterprise and capital have largely
contributed to the growth and development of the city. Ebenezer Ely was
the pioneer of this department, and he was succeeded by Geo. W. Pratt, John
T. Talman, Bissell & Amsden, Abram Karnes, Daniel W. Powers (whose
business was established in 1850), Ward & Bro., AUis, Waters & Co., Fair-
child & Smith, Erickson, Jennings & Co., Stettheimer, Tone & Co., Raymond
& Huntington, Kidd & Chapin, and others whose names will be recognised as
being identified with the business interests of the city.
The sixth savings bank incorporated by the legislature of this state, and
the first one east of Albany, was the Rochester savings bank. Its original
charter was prepared by Vincent Mathews and Isaac Hills, and in 1829 an in-
effectual effort was made to secure its passage by the legislature. The follow-
ing winter, however, the bill was passed and on the loth of May, 183 1, the
incorporators met at the Mansion House for the purpose of organisation.- There
47° History of the City of Rochester.
were present Levi Ward, Jacob Graves, Everard Peck, William S. Whittlesey,
David Scoville, Edward R. Everest, Willis Kempshall, Jonathan Child, Ezra
M. Parsons, Ashbel W. Riley, Albemarle H. Washburn, Joseph Medbery,
Lyman B. Langworthy, Elihu F. Marshall and Harvey Frink. Levi Ward
was elected president, Harvey Frink treasurer and David Scoville secretary.
The bank was opened for business in the old Bank of Rochester, on Exchange
street, of which the secretary, Mr^ Scoville, was cashier, where it remained
until 1841, when it removed to a building on State street. In 1853 it com-
menced the erection of, and in 1857 occupied, the banking house on the cor-
ner of West Main and Fitzhugh streets, where'it is now located. In 1875 the
building was considerably enlarged and improved. Since its organisation, and
including its present board, the bank has had sixty-five trustees, all prominent
representatives of the business interests of the city from its earliest history to
the present time. The business of the bank for the first three months after its
organisation was represented by nine accounts, amounting to $114; the first
deposit of $13 having been made on the ist of July, 1831, by Harmon Taylor.
On the 1st of January, 1832, the total deposit was $3,429.82, representing
forty-two accounts, and the entire receipts for the month of February, 1832,
were $17. Its first dividend, of $67.10, was paid July ist, 1832. From this
small beginning the growth of the bank has been constant and steady, keep-
ing pace with the growth of the city. It reports on the first day of January,
1884, after an existence of fifty-two years, accounts on its books to the number
of 22,912 and deposits amounting to $10,358,304.87.
The Monroe County savings bank was incorporated on the 8th of April,
1850, under the title of the Monroe County savings institution, and commenced
business on the 3d of June of that year, in the office of the Rochester bank on
Exchange street. The first board of trustees consisted of Levi A. Ward, Ever-
ard Peck, Freeman Clarke, Nehemiah Osburn, Ephraini Moore, David R.
Barton, George W. Parsons, William W. Ely, William N. Sage, Alvah Strong,
Martin Briggs, Thomas Hanvey, Lewis Selye, Moses Chapin, Ebenezer Ely,
Daniel E. Lewis, Amon Bronson, Joel P. Milliner, Charles W. Dundas, George
Ellwanger and Theodore B. Hamilton. Everard Peck was the first president,
and Freeman Clarke the first treasurer. In 1854 the bank was removed to the
building on Bufialo street then known as the "city hall building, " and in 1858
again removed to the Masonic hall block, corner of Exchange and Buffalo
streets. In 1862 the premises on State street now occupied by the bank were
purchased and a handsome, substantial building was erected. In 1867 addi-
tional ground was secured and the building greatly enlarged and improved to
meet the steadily increasing business of the bank. This bank occupies a prom-
inent position among the savings institutions of the state and has always num-
bered among its trustees some of the most conservative and successful business
men of the city. In January, 1884, it reported $6,039,399 on deposit and
11,135 depositors.
The Banks of Rochester. 471
In the year 1854 the Six-Penny savings bank was organised and located on
North St. Paul street, near East Main street. Its first trustees were Ira Belden,
Nehemiah Osburn, Rufus Keeler, John B. Elwood, Hiram Sibley, Romanta
Hart, Nehemiah B. Northrop, James H. Gregory, Elon Huntington, William
Burke, David R. Barton, Horatio N. Curtis, Samuel G. Andrews, Andrew J.
Brackett, Samuel P. Gould, Philander G. Tobey, Alexander Williams, John C.
Nash, Simon L. Brewster, George Peck and Gideon Cobb. After a struggle
of four years it became evident that the business of the city did not warrant the
continuance of this bank and it was discontinued, Levi A, Ward having been
appointed receiver of its assets, by whom its affairs were wound up; ninety-five
per cent, of the deposits in all having been returned to the depositors.
In April, 1867, the Mechanics' savings bank was incorporated and com-
menced business on the ist of June of that year. Its first trustees were George
R. Clarke, Patrick Barry, Lewis Selye, Thomas Parsons, George J. Whitney,
George G. Cooper, Jarvis Lord, Samuel Wilder, Martin Reed, David Upton,
Charles H. Chapin, Gilman H. Perkins, Hamlet D. Scrantom, Oliver Allen,
Edward M. Smith, Abram S. Mann, Charles J. Burke, Chauncey B. Wood-
worth, A. Carter Wilder, James M. Whitney and E. E. Sill. George R. Clarke
was the first president, and John H. Rochester the first secretary and treasurer.
This bank at its organisation became the owner of the building on Exchange
street, previously occupied by the Commercial bank, and has continued in that-
location to the present time. It secured at once a very considerable deposit,
which has been steadily increasing until it now reports a deposit of about $I,-
500,000 with 2,771 depositors.
In April, 1869, The East Side savings bank, the youngest of the existing
savings banks of the city, was incorporated and commenced business in Novem-
ber of that year. Its first trustees were Isaac F. Quinby, Horatio G. Warner,
Henry S. Hebard, Hiram Davis, Michael Filon, William N. Emerson, Hector
McLean, Edward Ocunipaugh, James Vick, Elias Wollf, Truman A. Newton, .
J. Moreau Smith, Pliny M. Bromley, William A. Hubbard, Araunah Moseley,
Abner Green, David R. Barton, Erastus Darrow, Henry Lampert, Louis Ernst
and Lucius S. May. Its business office has been, since its organisation, on the
corner of Main and Clinton streets, though it has recently purchased a lot on
the opposite corner, on which it is erecting a banking-house. The career of
this bank has been successful and its growth steady and constant. It now re-
ports deposits amounting to about one and a quarter millions, and depositors to
the number of 2,599.
472 History OF the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XLV.
THE RAILROADS OF ROCHESTER, i
The Beginning of Railroads — The First One Laid in America — The Rochester & Carthage Rail-
road — The Tonawanda Railroad — The Auburn & Rochester Road — The Niagara Falls Road — The
Rochester & .Syracuse Road — Consolidation into the New Yorlc Centr.ll — The Elevated Tracks —
The Genesee Valley Road — The Rochester & Pittsburg Road — The Hay Railroad — The IJelt Rail-
road — The Valley Canal Railroad — The Street Railroad.
AS a rule all important inventions have had very humble beginnings, and
railroads are no exception to this rule, for in the tramways which were
used at an early date in several parts of England we find the germ of the mod-
ern railway. These roads exhibited little or no progress until the year 1716,
when the rough wooden rails were covered with thin plates of malleable iron
and numerous other improvements made, all tending toward the reduction of
friction, which effected considerable economy in horse-power. But this method
was both slow and expensive, and what was needed was some mechanical ap-
pliance suitable to the purpose of railway traction which would obviate the dif-
ficulty. Inventors advanced various schemes to accomplish this end, with little
success, and it was not until George Stephenson built his first locomotive that
anything like practicability was attained, and although this was an improve-
ment on all preceding locomotives it was nevertheless a somewhat clumsy and
awkward affair.
In the year 1815 Stephenson constructed another locomotive engine, in
which he attempted to remedy the defects of his first endeavor. In this he was
to a certain degree successful, but as the mechanical skill of the country was
not adequate to the forging of the necessary iron work he was compelled to re-
sort to a substitute less complicated and within the ability of the workmen of
the day. Some time after this the attention of Mr. Stephenson was called to
the application of steam power to purposes of passenger traffic. Accordingly,
after many difficulties, a road was surveyed and built from Liverpool to Man-
chester, which was the first successful passenger railroad ever built. From this
time forward the success of the railroad system was assured, and although many
obstacles presented themselves they were surmounted by the untiring efforts of
Mr. Stephenson, justly called the father of railroads.
The first railroad (qr, more properly speaking, tramway) in the United States
was built it 1826, by those interested in the erection of Bunker Hill monument,
and was used for the transportation of granite from the quarries at Quincy to
the harbor at Boston, a distance of four miles. In 1827 a similar tramway was
built at Mauch Chunk for the transportation of coal from the mines to the
Lehigh canal.
The first passenger road was the Baltimore & Ohio, fifteen miles of which
1 This chapter was prepared by Mr. Morley B. Turpin.
The Railroads of Rochester. 473
were opened March 22d, 1830. Although locomotives were common in Eng-
land, and in fact two or three had been imported into America, this road con-
tinued for nearly a year to be operated by horse-power. There would be no
useful end gained in tracing further the history of railroads outside our own
city, but suffice it to say that after the. great trunk lines were built they were
united with other roads, forming a network whose meshes extend over the
continent of America in all directions, connecting the east with the west, the
north with the south, and giving to every farmer in the land a market for his
products at his own door.
In the latter part of the year 1825 a company consisting of Elisha Johnson,
Josiah Bissell, Everard Peck, John T. Trowbridge, Eleazar Hills and others was
organised under the name of the Rochester Canal and Railroad company, with
a capital stock of $30,000. On the 26th of March, 183 1, an act was passed
by the legislature empowering them to construct a railroad with a single or
double line of track, connecting the head of ship navigation on the Genesee
river with the Erie catjal in the city of Rochester. Work was beguri in 183 1 ;
the road was completed and in use in January, 1833, costing about $10,000
per mile. The line was located by Daniel Bates, surveyor, and had its south-
ern terminus at the canal near the south end of Water street, thence running
north along the east side of said Water street to a point near Andrews street,
crossing the latter at an angle about half-way between Water and St. Paul
streets, following the last mentioned street until it reached a point opposite
what is now Lowell street, where it turned slightly to the west and followed the
high bank of the river, at some points passing within a few feet of its edge. The
northern terminus was at the village of Carthage, four miles distant from its
starting point. Through this distance it had a descent of 254 feet and 6 inches,
156 feet and 9 inches of which was within 1,000 feet of the termination. The
coaches in use on this road resembled somewhat a modern street car, although
they were much larger. They were open at the sides and drawn by two horses
driven tandem, the driver's seat being on the top of the car. An incline was
located at Carthage, up and down which passengers were conveyed by means
of a novel arrangement. Two tracks were laid side by side ; upon one was a
car loaded with stone, which, in descending, was made to draw up the passen-
ger car on the other track, the car loaded with stone being in its turn drawn
up by a windlass. The president of the company was John Greig, of Canan-
daigua, the treasurer A. M. Schermerhorn, and the secretary F. M. Haight.
The road was leased by Horace Hooker & Co. The office of the company
was located at the southeast corner of Main and Water streets, in the building
now standing at the northwest corner of St. Paul and Court streets. The road
continued in operation until about 1843, when it was abandoned.
The Tonawarida railroad was the first road using steam as a motive power
running out of Rochester. It was chartered in April, 1832, for a period of fifty
474 History of the City of Rochester.
years, with a capital stock of $500,000 in shares of $100 each. At the first
election of the company the following officers were chosen:' President, Daniel
Evans ; vice-president, Jonathan Child ; treasurer, A. M. Schermerhorn ; sec-
retary, Frederick Whittlesey. The road entered the city from the west, cross-
ing the Erie canal a short distance south of the present New York Central bridge,
thence following the north bank of the canal to a point opposite what was then
the United States Hotel, subsequently the University of Rochester, and now
occupied as a tenement house, situated oh the north side of West Main street,
directly opposite the north end of Caledonia avenue. The route was surveyed
by Elisha Johnson and completed as far west 'as South Byron in 1834, to Ba-
tavia in 1836 and to Attica in 1842, a distance of forty- three miles. '
The first locomotives used on this road were built at Philadelphia, and ar-
rived in this city in 1836. Locomotive number 3 was known as the Batavia
and was shipped from Paterson, N. J., where it was built, to Rochester, via
the Hudson river and the Erie canal. The fourth engine was built at Phila-
delphia and arrived in this city via the Auburn & Rochester railroad. The
two roads not being then connected, the engine was hauled from the Auburn
railroad depot on Mill street to the Tonawanda terminus by means of horses.
These locomotives had but one driving-wheel on each side, and were without
pilots, whistles or bells. The building in which these engines were housed was
situated oa Brown street, at the crossing of the New York Centiral railroad.
The passenger cars in use on this road, which were constructed in this building,
were about fifteen feet in length and held about twenty-four persons, three or
■ four of whom were accommodated in an upper story in the center of the
coach, the space beneath the car being reserved for baggage. The first train,
in charge of conductor L. B. Vandyke, ran April 4th, 1837, and consisted of
a mixture of freight and passenger cars. On the 3d of May, 1837, the first
regular passenger train left Rochester for Batavia. On the same day a meet-
ing was held in this city, presided over by Silas O. Smith, and the following
gentlemen were appointed a committee to make arrangements for the celebra-
tion of the event : Messrs. Sage, Barton, Haight, Daniels and E. D. Smith.
The excursion took place on the nth of May, 1837, and is thus described in
the local newspaper of the day : —
"On no occasion have we participated in a more pleasant excursion than that en-
joyed yesterday upon the event of the completion of the Rochester and Tonawanda
railroad. The morning was delightful, and at the hour designated for the departure of
the cars they were thronged with our citizens, desirous of participating in the celebration
of an event so important to the interests of our city. When we reached the depot, the
engine was panting like an impatient war-horse; and at a given signal it sped forward
'like a thing of life.' Hearty cheers from the multitude scattered along the line of the
road greeted its progress and gave a thrilling animation to the scene. In forty minutes
we were at Churchville. Its inhabitants gave us a cordial welcome. As we bade adieu
to their kind gratuladon.s, the waving of handkerchiefs showed that the ladies also par-
ticipated in the hilarity of the scene and appreciated the important influence which the
Tpie Railroads of Rochester. 475
road would have upon the prosperity of their pleasant village. Five minutes carried
us over the three miles and a half that intervened between Churchville and Bergen.
Here too we were most heartily welcomed. The inhabitants for miles around had con-
gregated to witness and participate in the festivity of the day. In a few minutes we
were at Byron, where our reception was peculiarly pleasant. Passing through one of
the most delightful sections of the country the eye ever beheld, we were soon at Ba-
tavia. Here all was animation. The road for a mile was lined with citizens whose
cheers were long and loud, and the thunders of the cannon called into requisition on
this occasion responded to the 'three times three' which was elicited from the cars by
this reception. At the place of landing, the company was received by the corporation
and a committee of citizens of Batavia, and escorted to the Eagle, whqre a most sump-
tuous dinner was served. The mutual gratulations of the citizens of Rochester and
Batavia, thus assembled to celebrate the completion of a work so important to the in-
terest, of both towns, were most cordial. Our neighbors felt that with them it was es-
pecially a proud day, and warmly and appropriately did they evince their joy. After a
few hours' tarry at Batavia, passed in a pleasant interchange of good wishes, the party
returned, delighted with the excursion and pleased with themselves."
The first accident occurred on the 1st of May, 1848, in the vicinity of Ber-
gen, about twenty miles west of this city. The locomotive of a western bound
train, in charge of William Putnam, struck a snakehead and was thrown com-
pletely off the track. The engineer, J. Guile, and the fireman, J. H. Backus,
were considerably injured by bruises but were able to assist in putting the en-
gine on the track.
The Rochester & Tonawanda railroad company was consolidated with the
Attica & Buffalo railroad in 1850. At a meeting held in December of the same
year the following directors were chosen : Dean Richmond, Henry Martin, F.
H. Tows, Gaius B. Rich, W. Tomlinsbn, Joseph Field, Frederick Whittlesey,
Asa Sprague, George H. Mumford, Heman J. Redfield, James Brisbane, Sam-
uel Dana and W. F. Weld. At a meeting of these directors Joseph Field was
elected president. Dean Richmond vice-president, Heni-y Martin superintend-
ent, F. Whittlesey secretary, J. C. Putnam treasurer. Trains ran from Roch-
ester to Buffalo in 1852, and a year later the road was consolidated with others
to form a part of the New York Central.
The bill authorising the construction of the Auburn & Rochester railroad
passed the Assembly April 27th, 1836. Some two years later ground was
broken, and the line was completed to Auburn, a distance of ninety-two miles,
about 1840. The cost of construction was $1,012,783, including fences, de-
pots, locomotives, etc. Subscription books were opened at several villages along
the line, with the following results : Rochester $58,000, Canandaigua $141,-
700, Geneva $168,500, Seneca Falls $122,900, and from various other sources
$184,500; total $595,600. A meeting of the stockholders was held at Geneva
March 19th, 1837, and the following board of directors was appointed: Henry
B. Gibson, president ; James Seymour, of this city, vice-president ; Henry
D wight, secretary; Robert C. Nichols of Geneva; James D. Bemis, Alexander
31
476 History of the City of Rochester.
Duncan and Peter Townsend, of Canandaigua ; Henry Pardee, of Victor ;
David Short, of Manchester; David McNeil, of Phelps; John Sinclair, of
Waterloo ; Samuel J. Bayard, of Seneca Falls, and others.
Meanwhile work was pushed rapidly forward under the directions of Messrs.
Vedder, Vedder & Co., who held a contract for grading the first seventeen
miles. Hiram Darrow, "a Seneca farmer in Ontario," was the overseer, and
Bartholomew Vrooman, formerly of the Albany & Schenectady, was employed
as track-layer and foreman. The first locomotive, the Young Lion, was
brought via the Erie canal and used for construction. The first engineer was
Asa Goodale, and the first fireman Joseph Hoffman. The other engines,
Ontario and Columbus, were received later and placed in charge of William
Hart and Newell. The first time-table was issued September loth,
1840, announcing trains to leave Rochester for Canandaigua at 4 a. m. and 5
p. m., and returning leave Canandaigua at 6 a. m. and 7 p. m. A train left
Rochester, as announced, on the loth of September, in charge of engineer
Wm. Failing. On the 22d of September, 1840, a second time-table was pub-
lished. Three trains were to leave Rochester, at 4:30 a. m., 10 a. m. and 5
p. m. The road was completed as far as Seneca Falls in July, 1841, the bridge
across Cayuga lake was finished the last of September and the road opened to
Albany the following Vnonth. The construction of the road was of the rudest
description. The strap rail was then in use, which was merely a strip, of iron
two inches wide and three-fourths of an inch thick, spiked to a six-by-six scant-
ling. These rails were used until 1848, when iron ones were substituted. The
depot in this city, which was erected in 1840, stood on the east side of Mill
street, occupying what is now Central avenue and the present embankment of
the New York Central, extending from Mill street to the Genesee river. It
was a long wooden structure, within which were six tracks; a single one ex-
tended toward Canandaigua and to the west one, after the Tonawanda road
became consolidated with the Buffalo & Attica. The superintendent was
Robert Higham. The agent in this city was John B. Robertson ; George Leet,
first paymaster, and John Sholtus, depot master.
The Niagara Falls branch of the New York Central, formerly known as the
Lockpprt & Niagara Falls railroad, was organised April 24th, 1834, with a
capital of $175,000. In 1850 it was purchased by a company of New York
capitalists and extended from Lockport eastward to Rochester. At a meeting
of the stockholders the following directors were chosen : Joseph B. Varnum
and Edward Whitehouse, of New York; Watts Sherman, of Albany ; Freeman
Clarke, Silas O. Smith and Azariah Boody, of Rochester; Alexis Ward and
Roswell W. Burrows, of Albion ; and Elias B. Holmes, of Brockport. At a
later meeting J. B. Varnum was elected president ; Alexis Ward, vice-presi-
dent, and Freeman Clarke, treasurer. The length of the road is seventy-seven
miles and was opened in 1852.
The Railroads of Rochester. 477 ,
The Rochester & Charlotte railroad was organised on the 3d of May, 1852,
with a capital of $100,000. Shortly after its completion it was merged into
the New York Central.
The Rochester & Syracuse railroad was chartered in August, 1850, with a
capital of $4,200,000, consolidated in 1853 to form a part of the New York
Central.
The New York Central & Hudson River railroad was the result of the con-
solidation of the Tonawanda road, the Auburn & Rochester road, the Niagara
Falls, Lockport & Rochester road, the Rochester & Charlotte road and the
Rochester & Syracuse road, effected May 17th, 1853, with a united capital
stock of $23,085,600 and debts assumed to the amount of $1,947,815.72. The
depot in this city occupied the former site of the Auburn & Rochester depot
and was built by C. A. Jones in 1851, and torn down in 1883.
In 1882 the business of the Central railroad had increased in so large a
degree that the passing of trains became a continued source of annoyance and
danger to the citizens of Rochester. So many accidents had occurred and so
many lives had been lost that it became necessary to provide some means
whereby the street crossings might be rendered safe. A committee was ap-
pointed by ^ the city, consisting of Patrick Barry, George C. Buell, Emory B.
Chace, Frederick Cook, Henry H. Craig, Frederick Goetzman, James H. Kelly,
Wilham Purcell, James E. Booth, Martin Briggs, Freeman Clarke and Charles
J. Hayden, who were to confer with the railroad authorities and endeavor to
come to some understanding regarding the matter. After some consideration
it was resolved to elevate the track above the street crossings. Accordingly,
ground was broken for this great work March i8th, 1882, and it was prosecuted
with great energy until September, -1883, when it was virtually completed.
Although the undertaking was of great magnitude it was successfully carried
on without hindrance to a single train or an accident of any importance. Huge
retaining walls were built, the river, the mill-race and the streets were spanned
with durable iron bridges, millions of yards of earth were filled in between the
walls, and the tracks were changed and thrown over, all in less than a year.
As a matter of information we give the various amounts of material used in the
work up to the last of September, 1883 : Earth excavated, 54,898 yards; loose
rock excavated, 3,793 yards; solid rock excavated, 375 yards; earth filling,
exclusive of excavation, 379,820 yards; masonry, 39,812 yards; timber and
plank, 11,670 feet; wrought iron, 61,323 pounds; cast iron, 31,307 pounds;
spikes and nails, 12,977 pounds; brick, nearly 2,000,000. The contractor for
most of the work was James Smith, of Easton, Fa. The new train house was
built by George H. Thompson and is imposing in appearance and finely fin-
ished throughout. It is 682 feet in length and extends from Clinton to St. Paul
street. It contains seven tracks (four tracks being outside of it) and is 130
feet in width. The work of erecting this building began June 29th, 1882, and
478 History of the City of Rochester.
was finished in the summer of 1883, at a cost of $150,000. The amounts paid
to contractors to October 15th, 1883, were as follows: James Smith, $377,-
910.49; Cragie,Rafferty& Yeoman, $195,952.5 1 ; Alden & Lassig,.$i25,ooi.l2;
George H. Thompson, $180,731.73 ; Cheney & Marcellus, $45,706. 10; total,
$925,301.95.
The Rochester & Genesee Valley railroad extends southward from Roch-
ester to Avon, a distance of eighteen and a quarter miles. The movement to
construct a road was made at a meeting held December 27th, 1850. John
Vernon was chosen president, Wm. Cuyler vice-president, and B. T. Howard
and J. R. Bond were chosen secretaries. At an adjourned meeting, held in the
village of Mount Morris on January 15th, 185 1, articles of association were
drawn and adopted and a board of thirteen directors appointed. On March
19th, 185 1, the following directors were chosen: James Faulkner, Charles H.
Carroll, James S. Wadsworth, John Vernon, Daniel Fitzhugh, Allen Ayrault,
Elijah F. Smith, William Pitkin, Azariah Boody, Amon Bronson, Levi A.
Ward and Freeman Clarke. The directors elected James S. Wadsworth pres-
ident of the board, and Freeman Clarke secretary and treasurer. It was agreed
by articles of association that the capital stock should be $800,000 and the title
the Rochester & Genesee Valley railroad company. Work was begun Septem-
ber 30th, 1852, and the road opened to Avon in 1854. Some time later it
was leased by the New York, Lake Erie & Western railroad for a term of
ninety-nine years. The road at present is in a very poor condition, the rails
are of iron and are much battered and worn. The depot, a small one-story
brick structure, is no credit to the company. Improvements, however, are soon
to be made in the way of rebuilding the road. What has been decided to be
done about the depot and terminal facilities in this city has not been made pub-
lic, but it is said that the prospects are that a passenger depot will be erected
worthy of the name.
The Rochester & State Line railway was incorporated in 1869 and extends
from the city of Rochester to the village of Salamanca, in Cattaraugus county,
a distance of one hundred and eight miles. The work of confetruction was
begun in 1872 and on the 15th day of September, 1874, the road was opened
for traffic to the village of Le Roy, twenty-five miles from Rochester. August
6th, 1877, it was completed to Warsaw, forty-four miles, and on September i8th
of the same year to Gainesville, fifty-four miles from Rochester. The road was
finally completed to Salamanca and opened for regular through freight and
passenger business on the 16th of May, 1878. In July, 1879, the majority of
the stock was owned by William H. Vanderbilt and the road was practically
owned and controlled by him until that year. At that time suits were brought
against the railroad company by the city of Rochester to recover $600,000
which had been contributed toward the construction of the road. The suits
were decided against the city and in favor of the company. Mr. Vanderbilt
The Railroads of Rochester. 479
dropped out of the management and the road was unable to pay the interest
on the first mortgage bonds, which fell due on the first of January, 1880, when
the road was sold and purchased by Walston H. Brown and others. A com-
pany was organised under the name of the Rochester & Pittsburg railway
company, and the line extended to Pittsburg, Pa., A large and handsome
depot was erected on the corner of West avenue and Ford streets, and the
terminal facilities were largely increased. The following is a list of the officers :
President, Walston H. Brown, of New York ; treasurer, F. A. Brown, of New
York ; secretary, Thomas F. Wentworth, of New York ; general manager,
George E. Merchant ; chief engineer, William E. Hoyt.
The Bay railroad was completed in the year 1879 from Rochester to the
junction of Irondequoit bay with Lake Ontario, a distance of six miles. The
terminus of the line is in the northeastern part of the city. This is a very pop-
ular road, as it affords an opportunity for cheap and rapid transit to one of the
most delightful regions in the country. The present officers of the company
are: President, Michael Filon; vice-president/ N. H. Galusha; secretary and
treasurer, N. B. Ellison.
The Rochester & Ontario Belt railroad was begun in the year 1882 and
completed as surveyed by R. J. Smith in 1883. It passes through one of the
most picturesque sections of the county and is destined to become a very im-
portant road both for pleasure and for freight traffic. The portion now finished
extends from the northern part of Rochester to Lake Ontario, a distance of
about six miles, and is generally known as the Windsor Beach railroad. In the
latter part of 1883 the road was purchased by the Rochester & Pittsburg rail-
road company and has since then been operated as a pleasure road in connec-
tion with the latter.
The Genesee Valley Canal railroad was commenced in the latter part of
1 88 1 and was in use in the spring of 1883. It runs through the bed of the
abandoned Genesee Valley canal and traverses a delightful and fertile section.
The building of this road brings into closer communication the thrifty farming
communities along its line, and as Rochester is the natural metropolis of the
Genesee river it cannot fail to be greatly benefited by any new development
of enterprise in any part of the territory. Business relations that have hereto-
fore been confined to Buffalo and Elmira will now in most cases be transferred
to Rochester, as easier of access and affording in some respects better chances
for good bargains. The road for its entire length, from Rochester to Olean,
extends through a rich and productive agricultural district, and where were only
dullness and inactivity a few months ago we now find active business. New
buildings are being erected, farms improved and all the signs of a prosperous
community are to be seen. The road is yet in its infancy and it will take time
to show all that the Genesee valley is tapable of receiving in the way of im-
provement. The road enters the city from the south and has its terminus upon
480 History of the City of Rochester.
West avenue at the corner of Trowbridge street. It is controlled by the Buf-
falo, New York & Philadelphia company. The following are the officers: Pres-
ident, J. W. Jones, of Philadelphia; treasurer, F. J. Buell, of Buffalo; general
superintendent, George J. Gatchell; superintendent of Rochester division, R.
M. Patterson.
THE STREET RAILROAD.
The first line of track to be laid by the Rochester City and Brighton railway
company was the Mount Hope route, work upon which was begun January 1st,
1 863, and concluded in July of the same year. ^ The first car, in charge of Dan-
iel Warner, passed over the road from the company's depot at the corner of
State and Center streets, to Mount Hope and return, July 9th, 1863. It was
driven by Jerome Dowd and had for passengers the directors of the road. Cars
were not regularly run on this route until the 22d of July. The Lake avenue
route went into operation at the same time with the Mount Hope line. The
first car passed over the West Main street branch September 22d, 1863, and was
in charge of Mortimer F. Stilwell. December 8th car number 6 made the
first trip over the East Main, Alexander and Monroe streets route, but it was
not until the 31st of that month that cars were run regularly on this line. It
was on the morning of .April 3d, 1873, that the North St. Paul and Clinton
streets line was opened for business. The first trip was made to the Osburn
House, where the four cars on the line were met by Mayor Wilder, the direc-
tors, members of the press, and others, who joined in the excursion over the
new route. On November 14th, 1874, the first trip was made over the South
avenue route, which was opened for general business four days later. In Feb-
ruary, 1878, the North avenue line was finished. The first car was driven over
the entire St. Paul street line September 28th, 1878. The Allen and Jay streets
route Was built in the spring of 1880, and the Park avenue and Monroe avenue
extensions were made in the summer of 188 1, at which time the Alexander
street loop was cut. In 1883 the Clinton street route was built from Main to
Ward street. The Lyell avenue and New York Central depot lines were built
and in operation in the latter part of the same year. The Caledonia avenue
line, connecting with that of North St. Paul street, was begun in the fall of
1883, and finished recently. The company have in daily use eighty-eight cars
and four hundred and twenty-four horses, and employ two hundred and twenty-
five men. The present officers are: President, Patrick Barry; secretary, C. C.
Woodworth; treasurer, C. B. Woodworth; superintendent, S. A. Green.
Rochester's German Element. 481
CHAPTER XLVI.
ROCHESTER'S GERMAN ELEMENT, i
The First CJerman Immigration to the Genesqe Valley — Indentured Colonists Followed by Volun-
tary Immigrants — The Settler's Career of Industry ^ His Social and Religious Life — He Becomes a
Citizen and a Soldier.
A COMPLETE review of the progressive developtnent of our Flower city
could not fittingly ignore the German element of its population, for the
immigrants from the Fatherland have as steadily contributed to the upbuilding
of this busy and beautiful metropolis of the Genesee valley as they have every-
where else in the United States fully shared in the mighty trials and labors that
resulted, within a few brief centuries, in raising our people to the highest plane
of civilisation.
When, therefore, we purpose casting a retrospective glance upon the road
traveled, and to mark the share the different constituents of its citizenship have
had in its progress, it is meet to recall to the immigrant of German extraction
not only what he himself and the earlier settlers of his race have added to the
general advancement and the common weal, but also the opportunities that
have here been set before him ; thus a realising sense of these mutual relations,
which connect him with the soil into which he has been transplanted, may waken
his patriotism, strengthen his self-reliance and confirm his public spirit and love
of liberty.
This sketch lays no claim to completeness, and on this score the indulgence
of the reader is asked. Scarcely any written material concerning German im-
tnigration being obtainable, it became necessary to collect with painstaking care
the reminiscences of the descendants of a generation now passed away and the
experiences of pioneers still among us, to compare, sift and verify them, so as
to present the reader a resume of the subject at least in a measure clear and
correct. Should an abler pen than that of the compiler of this imperfect essay
be animated by it to gather up the scattered threads of investigation, so as to
present a full picture where he has but drawn a brief outline, he will feel amply
repaid for the time and trouble expended.
The beginnings of German immigration into the Genesee valley are to be
found in 1792, when, according to Friedrich Kapp {History of German Immi-
gration into America, volume I.), two ship-loads of German emigrants arrived
at New York, whose passengers were bound to the Genesee Land company, and
were forwarded to the western part of the state. The male immigrants, in re-
payment of advances made to them, were indentured to the company for six
years of service at an annual wage of thirty-four and a half Spanish dollars, and
1 This article was prepared, in German, 1)y Mr. Hermann Pfafflin, and translated by Mr. Max
Lowenthal.
482 History of the City of Rochester.
a further compensation, at the end of their term, of twenty-five acres of land,
a cow and calf, a pig and some poultry (subject to deduction for expenses in-
curred)— providing they had allowed four dollars per annum of their pay to
remain with the company. Unfortunately it has not as yet been definitely as-
certained at what point the grants of land were made to the new-comers, or
what was their subsequent fate. It seems probable, however, that many of them,
on the completion of their term of service, settled at Rush, for a German colony
at that point is mentioned early in the century. Doubtless these beginnings of
German immigration into the Genesee country were the first links between the
newly colonised regions and the old fatherland, which afterward drew the stream
of German emigration to Rochesterville. In the period from 1792 to 1815 the
continent of Europe was torn by wars, which found their bloody counterpart in
. the frontier lands of North America, and for a long time discouraged immigra-
tion and deterred the few arrivals from pushing on to the western part of the
state ; therefore Rochesterville saw but few Germans until the final conclusion
of peace.
During the nineteenth century German immigration became distinguished
from that of the preceding era by its voluntary character. Instead of the whole-
sale importation of cheap laborers, who formerly did menial service in the new
settlement, frequently under oppressive and unjust conditions, there now ap-
peared an element that had voluntarily, and for objects of their own, relin-
quished their former homes, to found new ones in a new world. And now im-
proved methods of navigation increased the facilities of communication between
the colonists and their friends and relatives in the old home, while greater ac-
tivity in journalism and Hterature and the constantly spreading reports of the
success achieved by those who had sought the western world awakened a grow-
ing longing for the new Eldorado in all who were dissatisfied with the state of
affairs in their native country. The peasant, groaning under the load of taxes
and feudal observances ; the mechanic, hemmed in by the laws of the guilds ;
the workman, despairing of becoming a "master" in his own right — they all
grasped the pilgrim's staff, to journey to that land of liberty, where each had
the prospect of independent ownership and of reaping the fruits of his own
toil, and thus the immigrant of the nineteenth century reached the free soil of
America, a free man, to pursue happiness and acquire fortune, at his own risk
and in his own way. For the most part the only capital these immigrants pos-
sessed was a knowledge of agriculture and trades, and the willingness and ability
to work. And work they found to do, as also opportunities for enterprises of
their own, at nearly every landing-place, whereas settlements like Rochester, as
yet in the earliest stages of growth, offered few attractions to any but hardy
frontiersmen or speculators in land. Hence it was that not until the industries
of the village had become somewhat diversified, did the stream of German im-
migration begin to pour hither. But this stream grew, in an ever-increasing
Early German Settlers. 483
volume, when Western New York became so far developed that it was neces-
sary to create an industrial highway — the Erie canal — to connect it with the
east.
Until the year 1830,. however, we cannot trace to exceed six German fam-
ilies, whose names have been preserved to us, namely : those of Hau, Klem,
Aman, Helben, Eichhorn and Meier. The first German inhabitant of Roch-
esterville was Jacob Hau (Howe), whose parents left Wurtemberg for Nova
Scotia when he was a mere lad. In his fifteenth year he went to Boston, where
he learned the baker's trade and subsequently married, removing with his fam-
ily to Rochesterville in 18 14, establishing himself in business there. Leaving
his fatherland at so tender an age he readily adapted himself to the customs
and opinions prevailing in his new home, yet retained even in old age an attach-
ment to his native language and his countrymen, and many of the earlier im-
migrants found a ready adviser and interpreter in him. He died in 1845, widely
respected for his honorable character.
Considering language, and not territorial division, to be the distinguishing
factor, the Klem family rank as German pioneers, they emigrating in 181 5, from
Klittersdorf, near Strassburg(then under French dominion). Passing their first
year on American soil in Montreal, they came to Rochesterville in 1816. The
little settlement was as yet in a primitive condition ; hence the arrival of a fam-
ily of whom none spoke an Engli.sh word was quite an event, which called out
all the villagers. Father Klem purchased a plot of land in what was then still the
open country, now corner of East avenue and Goodman street, which with labor
he cleared off and turned into a productive farm. Upon this land he raised
the first garden fruits that were marketed in Rochesterville ; thus he may be
considered the father of our nursery industry, which has since obtained so great
a growth in the immediate vicinity of its starting-point. Bernhard Klem, who
died in 1879, was his oldest son; his parents brought him to the Genesee
country when he was seven years old. An incident of his boyish life gives a
vivid idea of the hardships of a settler's career and the enormous exertions
made necessary by it. A christening calling his mother and him to Albany,
they made the trip thither and return on foot. Soon after he walked to New
York, meaning to earn his support there — a notable undertaking for a little
ten- year-old, in the then condition of the roads and the country. He lived
to be seventy years old, and dying January 21st, 1879, left considerable prop-
erty to his seventeen children. Klem was a devout Catholic and bequeathed
respectable amounts to various Catholic institutions; among them St. Joseph's
orphan asylum and the Catholic Young Men's society received $1,000 each.
In Bernhard Klem died one of those pioneers who may be said to have grown
up with the growth of our city and whose persevering labors to change the
wilderness into a flourishing community deserve honorable mention.
Another old settler, J. Jager, who came to Rochesterville in February, 1831,
484 History of the City of Rochester.
from Hauenstein in the Palatinate, relates his experiences and the condition of
the immigrants in a life-like manner : —
" The trip from Wurtemberg to Havre was made in a canvas-covered cart, and took
eighteen days. In Havre we went on board a sailing vessel, in which, according to the
custom of the day, we had to furnish our own rations, and landed in New York after a pas-
sage of thirty-four days. The journey thence to Rochester by canal boat occupied twelve
days. Our arrival, like that of all German immigrants, created quite a sensation, call-
ing together the American residents, who came in crowds to look at a real Dutch family,
and to be amused at their foreign costumes and unintelligible language. Our complete
ignorance of English caused us much trouble; however, a German who could act as our
interpreter was soon found. Formal introductions were unknown ; the German simply
held out his hand to his countryman, and a friendship was formed. Although the few
German families lived widely scattered they met in their leisure hours, for recreation, with
song and music. Then no differences of rank, condition or religion were known, and the
progenitor of many a family, now anxious to acquire aristocratic airs, amused himself
more heartily at improvised dances than would now be possible in a modern fashionable
ball-room. At the same time the German families were esteemed by their American
neighbors, who had learned to know and appreciate them as honest, faithful and indus-
trious."
This Jager took an active interest in the Free Soil movement and bestirred
himself in organising a club of this party in his ward. The call for the first
Free Soil caucus in it was written by him and he asserts that he never attended
one since that was so orderly and harmonious. It happened that but one
American citizen besides Jager appeared and they organised strictly in accord-
ance with parliamentary, practice. The one native American accepted the elec-
tion to the presidency, and Jager was unanimously chosen to be . secretary,
whereupon a delegation of ten was nominated for the convention with like har-
mony and chosen without serious opposition.
Beginning with 1830, there was a marked increase of German immigration
into this country, and Rochesterville received its share ; when, therefore, in 1834,
the city was incorporated there were, according to the estimate of the pioneers
of that period, about three hundred German citizens, which number, we have
reason to believe, was more than doubled by 1 840.
The manufacturing interests of Rochester were still in their infancy up
to 1837; flour, lumber and grain were, the principal products. A, large
proportion of the inhabitants, especially of the newly-arrived immigrants, eked
out an existence as laborers on farms, or as wood-choppers in the employ of
the. numerous saw-mills. As all mechanical industry was confined to supply-
ing the local market, it found but a very limited demand ; coopers, ship-
builders and millwrights received the best wages, and among them the German
contingent was pretty numerous. Up to 1838 the number of Germans en-
gaged in trade was insignificant. The business directory of that year shows
the bakers, Howe and Himmel, Schehle, a shoemaker, and scarce another Ger-
man name. A partial explanation of the omission of German names may pos-
sibly be found in the national predilections of the compiler, yet it seems to
Early German Organisations. 485
prove that at that time the business enterprises carried on by Germans were of
no importance, and again, many a German name may have been translated,
obUterating the evidence of its derivation — thus we find the name of the
baker, Himmel, transmogrified into Hebbens. The want of acquaintance with
the language of the country naturally proved a great hindrance to the German,
and exposed him to all sorts of fraud. A day laborer's wages in the thirties
were from five to six shillings a day, and " find himself; " mechanics earned
$1.00 to $1.50, of which but half was paid in cash, and for the remainder store
orders were given, by means of which the workmen were fleeced of a large
share of their wages. There were instances when a man in time of need, in-
sisting on cash payment of the entire amount due him, was compelled to sub-
mit to d "shave" up to nine per cent. The store-keepers on whom the "or-
ders " were made took, for the most part, full advantage of the German's ig-
norance of the language and of his inability to protect himself; thus one of the
settlers of that day, when the yearly accounting was had with a merchant,
found an entire barrel of syrup charged him, which it was claimed he and his
family had consumed. The necessaries of life were then very cheap ; meat
cost from two to two and a half cents per pound, flour from three to four dol-
lars per barrel. Land was low in value and, unless specially productive, many
considered it of no account. Thus Adam Weiss, who died a farmer in Pen -
field, was once offered three acres of land where Vick park now is, as pay for
one summer's work. He refused the offer, thinking it inadequate. Another
German, Franz Goldsam, known as " Nasenfranz " — that is " Nosey" Frank —
was tendered a quantity of land on William street, in payment for sawing and
•splitting a lot of wood ; he declined acceptance, as having no use for it.
The scattered German families occasionally met together in their homes, to
amuse themselves with music and song, and to partake of a thin, small beer,
brewed by the host and sold by him to the company by the gallon, to do
which no license was then needed. Such gatherings, however, were isolated
affairs, for a higher motive that might serve as a bond of union was lacking.
This want was noticeably felt, and in the.decennium from 1830 to 1840 various
attempts were made to supply it. The better educated among the German in-
habitants now and then assembled their countrymen for a prayer- meeting,
where the part of preacher was taken by any thought capable ; at other times
a minister from abroad would visit them, to address a small circle in some hall
or church rented for the occasion. These opportunities to satisfy their rehgious
feelings were gladly embraced by the little band of settlers, without regard to
creed or position. As the German population grew in numbers this want be-
came more urgent and a plan to found a German church, after having been
discussed as early as 1830, finally met realisation a few years later.
The first signs of a social organisation for other than religious purposes are
found in 1832, when a mihtia company was formed, under the style of the
486 History of the City of Rochester.
" German Grenadiers. " They wore a green uniform, with red facings, and
bearskin caps. Dr. Klein, their first captain, drilled them in the old market
building, on Front street. George EUwanger, now one of the proprietors of
the extensive Mount Hope nurseries, was first lieutenant; George Fleck, who
kept an inn on South St. Paul street, was the second lieutenant. The com-
pany's roster contains a number of other well-known names, as S. Meier, Sell-
inger. Wolf, Jager, Yaumann and Knopf Besides the above company the
younger portion of the Germans were attracted to the volunteer fire depart-
ment, especially to the hook and ladder and engine number 2, which had sev-
eral German members. Number 2 was knbwn as "Torrent, " and was con-
sidered the crack company of thCday. The first German fireman whose funeral
received the honors of the department was Valentine Klein, a member of the
hook and ladder company, buried at Mount Hope in 1843.
The German churches formed the most important factor in the develop-
ment of the German-American population. They were the centers around
which the scattered German element rallied ; in them the German language
and German character were cultivated and preserved. Transplanted into
strange surroundings, where different views and opinions obtained, expressed
in religious forms foreign to him, and with which he was but rarely able to be-
come completely affiliated, the German immigrant, whose religious feelings
were rooted in the training of the fatherland, felt a longing for the venerable
religious forms of his old home. Wherever, therefore, a sufficient number of
Germans were settled, the desire was manifested to provide for religious wants
which American churches were unable adequately to supply. In consequence
of this, German churches were founded, in which the spiritual and intellectual
life of the immigrant German found characteristic expression. The influence
of the churches, therefore, radiated far beyond forms and institutions of an ex-
clusively religious nature, for inasmuch as their membership felt themselves
isolated in the midst of an American population, whose points of view and con-
ceptions differed diametrically from their own, they clung closer together, in
order to guard their political and social rights.
It would, therefore, be an ungrateful task to deny the German churches the
important share they have exercised in molding the social and political devel-
opment of the German-American element. About 1830 effiarts were made to
form a congregation from the German families settled here. Pastor Miiller oc-
casionally preached in the basement of the Presbyterian church, but none are
left of his hearers, nor, of all the aged pioneers whom the writer consulted, can
any recall these services. However, a record made by Pastor Miihlhauser, and
kindly furnished to us, contains a list of names of the principal participants. It
shows that the nucleus of a church organisation under Pastor Miiller's guidance
was formed by the three families Engel, Schwarz and Schneeberger in 1832,
and that in the following year a congregation was regularly founded under the
^^^-^-r
'^^^^
^'^__
Biographical. 487
style of the "United Evangelical church." The first minister was Pastor Wel-
dcn, who was succeeded in 1834 by Pastor Fetter. The first church register
kept dates from the latter year. From it subsequently grew the German Lu-
theran Zion's and the St. John's church, and, according to O'Rielly's Sketches,
Pastor Fetter estimated the number of his communicants to be eighty in 1837.
The Rev. J. Probst organised a German Catholic congregation in 1835,
which worshiped in rooms in Ely street, until the building of St. Joseph's
church, while quite a number of German families remained with St. Patrick's.
In addition to the foregoing must be counted those who either joined American
or no churches whatever, wherefore it seems but a moderate estimate to place
the entire German population of Rochester at 600 at the close of the thirties.
The social and industrial condition of the immigrants in the period just
spoken of is best illustrated through biographical sketches which the compiler
has been able to gather. These first German settlers were truly pioneers, for
each of them, by means of the intercourse which he maintained with his old
home, attracted an ever-increasing stream of immigration, which has not ceased
to flow to this day. Alsatians, Palatines, Swabians, men from the Rhine and
Baden, formed the principal contingent of Rochester's German population, as
indeed of the entire country. For the means of communication and the dif-
ficulties interposed by the vexatious customs regulations of the numerous petty
German states were such in the first forty years of the current century, that the
short cut by way of Havre offered facilities for emigration which other parts of
Germany were deprived of, and these were of importance when the limited
means of the intending emigrant are considered. As the new-comer naturally
sought out former neighbors for aid and counsel, a grouping by clans was
formed, which may still be traced in certain parts of our city, though it is now
beginning to disappear before the advance of industry and the fusing process
of nationalisation gone through by the younger generations.
Among the earlier pioneers was Joseph Yawman, who had settled at Sche-
nectady in 1832, and there carried on a saw-mill in partnership with John
Lutes, afterward Rochester's German mayor. The machinery of the establish-
ment was decidedly primitive ; it consisted solely of a couple of hand-saws
worked by the busy hands of their owners. The enterprise resulted in quite a
success, the income of the business growing daily, for the sawing of a cord of
wood realised the extraordinary sum of half a dollar. After six months of this
labor, the Yawman family once more took up their pilgrimage and arrived in
Rochester in 1832, at a sorry time, for the cholera ravaged the place at such a
rate that scarce men enough could be found to bury the dead. Hardly had
the breath left the body when the victims of the scourge were placed in rude
coffins and were buried in the woods, without further ceremony. Yawman's
parents were among those carried off by the cholera. Yawman established a
bakery, in which the first cracker machine used in Rochester was operated.
488 History of the City of Rochester.
Andreas Kiefer, a millwright, came here in 1833. Many of the mills in
Rochester were furnished with improved modern machinery by him, among
them the Clinton, Granite, Jefferson, Washington and Crescent mills. Kiefer's
labors connect him closely with the advancement of the milling interests, to
which Rochester owes its rise.
Among the immigrants in the thirties was Louis Bauer. He made the bolts
for two iron canal boats then building, doing away with the necessity of sending
elsewhere for them, he being the first such craftsman here. All the iron needed
for the boats had to be hauled from New York in wagons. During the long
period of his residence in Rochester, Louis Baijer has been prominently iden-
tified with many industrial enterprises and occupied various positions of trust
upon the organisation of the Rochester German fire insurance company, becom-
ing its first president.
John Lutes (originally Lutz) came to Rochester in 1835,' working as mill-
wright for various firms, later in an establishment of his own. His election as the
first mayor of Rochester of German birth took place in 1870, and his honest
and energetic administration bore witness to the fact that he appreciated and
labored to deserve the confidence shown him by his fellow-citizens. An effort
was at that time made in the common council to dispose of the bonds of the
Genesee Valley railroad, owned by the city, for $300,000, and Mayor Lutes
was offered $5,000 if he would consent to the sale, but he rated duty, con-
science and the obligations of his official oath higher than the acquisition of
money meanly got, and consequently vetoed the resolution of sale, thus secur-
ing to the city an income of $18,000 per annum, which the bonds are now
earning. To enable the city effectively to guard its interests in the directory of
the road, the mayor bought for it a number of the shares, then down to 30,
owing to the watering of stock, which had been used as a means to force the
city to surrender its bonds. They are now worth 1.15. This circumstance
well entitles him to the enduring esteem of his fellow- citizens.
As showing the increase of the German-speaking population of Rochester
the circumstance is recalled that in 1835 Johann Schweitzer, acting as agent
for the New York Staats-Zeitung, had secured for that journal a hundred Roch-
ester subscribers.
The Meyer family are among the pioneers of 1836, the father and eldest
sons engaging in boat-building from the day of their arrival, while the younger
boys, sent to a school in Brown square, were led rather a sorry life by the
native scholars, who regarded them as a species of savages. The sons, Fred-
erick, Philip, John A. and C. C, have continued at boat-building and now own
all the boat-yards in the city, save one. The boats they have built have played
no inconsiderable part in enhancing the prosperity of the city.
Anton Lerch is closely connected with one of the chapters in the history
of Rochester's earlier Germans. He was by turns shipwright, cabinet-maker,
Social Progress. 489
grocer, farmer, cooper and lumber-dealer, but is of interest on account of the
prominent position he held in a celebrated church-war that agitated the city
for nearly a decennium from 1843 on, and was prosecuted with great bitterness.
This quarrel of the "Blacks and the Bacon brethren," as the opposing parties
were dubbed, concerned the tide-deeds to the real estate of St. Peter's (Catholic)
church. They were held in trust by officers of the congregation for some time
after the completion of the new church, when Pastor Krautbauer demanded
their surrender, causing intense indignation among the members. The trustees
were determined in their refusal, and one of them, Joseph Vogele, vowed that
"his hand should wither sooner than sign a surrender." Pastor Krautbauer,
however, gradually obtained the assent of the majority of the members to his
demands, the lapse of time, as usual in such cases, wearing out their opposition.
This result roused the "Blacks" to angry demonstrations, and the pastor was
a number of times forced to call in the police for protection against his oppo-
nents, who stormed the church and proceeded to auction off the seats. Vogele,
notwithstanding his vow, had finally joined the "Bacon brethren" and was so
seriously maltreated in a tavern-row that he died a few weeks later. The law-
suits, which had been carried on for nine and a half years with great acrimony,
were at the last compromised by the attorneys of both parties, the result being
that the pastor received the title-deeds but agreed to defray the total legal ex-
penses incurred.
The period from 1 8 14 to 1835 may fitly be characterised as the pioneer
stage of the German population, devoted primarily to daily toil in pursuit of nec-
essaries and the preparation of new homes. Then begins a new era, developing
a characteristic German-American social life, and resulting in organisations of a
permanent nature. The immigrant no longer sets foot in a strange world, but on
reaching Rochester is received with the sounds of his native tongue; the social
usages and customs of his former home, as developed on the soil of freedom,
greet him and link him indissolubly to the new fatherland. He begins to take
an active and more independent part in affairs and stamps his impress on the
progress of his adopted country.
Six German church organisations were founded from 1835 to 1850: St.
Joseph's, 183s; Zion Lutheran, 1838; Trinity, 1842; Sts. Peter and Paul's, 1843;
First German Baptist, 1848-49; German Methodist, 1849. These churches
formed the centers of settlements in which the language and learning of Ger-
many were fostered, the older settler proving the adviser and instructor of the
new-comer, to whom were pointed out the principles and institutions of his
adopted country. The combination of German industry with technical knowl-
edge gradually brought forth industrial enterprises that rank with the most im-
portant in the city. Among them is deserving of mention, as a pioneer in a
branch of manufactures that since became of great note here — the brewery of
George Marburger. The march of improvement has already swept it away,
490 History of the City of Rochester.
but from 1841 till the New York Central railroad in 1882 demolished it, to make
room for its new depot, |t stood high in its line.
As before mentioned. South Germany furnished the chief contingent to the
immigrant host, until the famine years 1846 and 1847 and the non-success of
the revolutionary movement of 1848 forced large numbers to leave middle and
northern Germany. Among the many revolutionary refugees who congregated
in the principal eastern cities an organisation was formed, called "the Sons of
Hermann," which was copied in Rochester, under the name of Genesee lodge
O. S. H. It was, with the exception of the Grenadiers, the first non-reUgious
association of the Germans and soon numbered among its members the most
capable of the settlers. The social instinct, which is so strongly developed
among Germans, the similarity of their views and aims, and the necessity of
cooperating for the attainment of common objects, led to the formation of
many societies for purposes of mutual aid, amusement and instruction, which
still flourish and exert marked influence in shaping the social, intellectual and
political life of our German-American population. While at first they ap-
peared utterly strange to the native-born citizen, there is now gradually and
quietly going on in their own midst a part of that great process of amalgama-
tion which is to form one homogeneous nation from out of races originally
diverse in habit, sentiment and opinion. By the example set him in American
organisations the German learned the typical American principle of self-help,
self-control, the voluntary subjection to laws of his own making, readiness in
debate and in public speaking. On the other hand our German-American
school organisations familiarised the native-born population with the educational
principles and methods of Pestalozzi, Froebel and others, while German musi-
cal-societies introduced the master- pieces of German harmony and awakened
the love for them. To-day the American and German are united in the devo-
tion to music and song, and cultivate them in common.
Another class of societies which have taken root in this free soil, that of
the Turners, has secured attention to the claims of bodily training, which am-
bition to excel intellectually or greed of gain had caused to be neglected. To
them may justly be given credit for the introduction of calisthenic exercises in
our public schools and the systematic drill in athletic clubs and gymnasiums.
Above all, these German- American associations serve to foster love of the new
fatherland and to unite their members to the common country and its people.
The years from 1850 to i860 form a period in which our German- Ameri-
can element reached maturity and began to take an active part in the interests
of the community. During this time eight representatives in our civic councils
were taken from its ranks; three German journals were founded, as well as
additional, societies for benevolent, educational, military and musical purposes,
showing vigorous efforts to advance the social and material conditions of life, as
well as to satisfy intellectual wants. Whereas many of the German societies
German Societies. 491
appeared opposed to one another by reason of differences in religious affiliations
and tendencies, they met on common ground in their desire for friendly inter-
course, their love of the German language and enthusiasm for the productions
of German genius. Popular festivals were made the occasions for renewing old-
world customs, as far as they were found consonant with the institutions of the
country. One of these, held June 28th, 1858, was participated in by the Ger-
man Grenadiers, Union Guards, Sharpshooters, Rifle Guards, Turn-verein,
Mannerchor, Hermann's Sohne and Freimanner-verein, who indulged in marks-
manship, gymtjastic and musical exercises, an address being delivered by Adolph
Nolte, editor of the Beobachter. The program of the day shows in how far these
features of life in the old fatherland had become accHmated in the new.
Another of the diversions of German social life found its way to Rochester
in 1853 in the shape of amateur theatricals, given at the Jefferson House, on a
stage of primitive sort by a small company of performers. These entertain-
ments paved the way for performances of more merit, the chief actors in which
are still held in grateful remembrance, among them talented amateurs like R.
Sauerteig, H. Geek, Mrs. Warncke, and professionals of note, like von Osten,
von Alvensleben, Scherer, Neitmann, Baureis, Fortner, Mesdames Miller- Krause,
Schaumburg, Becker- Grahn and others. Thus it is to be seen that toward the
close of the fifties the social and intellectual life of our Rochester German pop-
ulation had reached quite a full stage of development. His language and cus-
toms having taken firm root in the Flower city it had become a home to the
German immigrant to which he was dearly attached, which fact the years 1 861
and thereafter gave him abundant opportunity to prove and to show his readi-
ness to repay his debt of gratitude, even to the offering up of life and limb.
Of additional German organisations may be mentioned the First German
Baptist church, formed in 1851 ; Humboldt lodge, I. O. O. F., 1851 ; the Bru-
dertreue lodge and Schiller lodge, order of Harugaris, both in 1859. From
1850 on, societies for mutual aid, and under the patronage of the various Cath-
olic churches, were organised, as the St. Peter's, St. Alphonsus, St. Boniface, St.
Joseph's, St. Paul's.
The Turn-verein was constituted in 185 i and occupied a hall erected on
leased ground in August of the same year. It has owned and rented different
buildings, and, after meeting with a loss by fire in 1872, was forced to relinquish
the stately building it had erected. Since 1883 it has again owned a hall built
for its use, on North Clinton street, opposite Ward, which is devoted to a ra-
tional system of bodily exercises, to the end that all the faculties may be culti-
vated and a generation raised up that shall be sound, physically and mentally.
Pursuing these objects, the Turn-verein has played no inconsiderable role in
the development of the German-American element of the city, for many years
maintaining a school which subsequently became the Real Schule under the
superintendency of Dr. Rudolph Dulon, widely known as a liberal speaker and
identified with the introduction of the German- American school system.
492 History of the City of Rochester.
The first German singing-society of note was founded in 1854, being the
Mannerchor, to which is due the credit of having aroused an interest in the arts
of music and song in our city. It has, under its various accomphshed direc-
tors, E. Gundelsheimer, F. Meyering, F. Haack, O. L. Schulz, G. Ganzel, L.
Bauer, and notably under the direction of A. Sartori and Henry Greiner, pre-
sented to our community the choicest works of the musical composers, by means
of concerts, oratorios and operatic performances. Its leading achievements are
the Schiller-jubilee, celebrated in 1859; the competitions at the singing-festival
which took place at Columbus in 1865, Chicago 1868, Cleveland 1874; the
Sangerfest held in Rochester in 1869 and the jubilee festival, commemorating
the first quarter-century of its career, in 1879, which was participated in by all
musical organisations of this city and vicinity. Its high standing in musical
circles is evidenced by the fact that it returned from the singing-contest at Co-
lumbus, crowned with the second prize. The founding of the Mannerchor
marked a mile-stone on the road of progress of our German community and it
remains to this day a pillar in its social and intellectual life.
The first German newspaper published in Rochester appeared in 185 I, being
the Beobachter am Genesee (^^ Observer on the Genesee") G. G. Haass and H.
Blauw, proprietors, which in 1855 became the property of A. Nolte, who issued
a daily and weekly edition. For many years he made it a leading German or-
gan of the Republican party in Western New York and an uncompromising
advocate of advanced principles. Since 1883 this journal appears as the Abend-
post und Beobachter, having been merged with the newspaper named first in its
composite title. The Anzeiger des Nordens, a weekly originally edited by Dr.
Kurz in 1853, passed to L. W. Brandt, who added a daily edition, styled Roch-
ester Volksblatt, and also issued the Sonntags-jonrnal. Upon Mr. Brandt's
death in 1881 his widow disposed of her interest to Dr. Makk, who now edits
and publishes these journals.
This sketch has now reached a period in which German life had taken per-
manent root in Rochester and had stamped an impress on this its new home.
However many-sided its development proved, and though the adaptation of
old-world customs and habits to the free institutions of the republic became
more general, the relations which linked the immigrant to the new fatherland
grew closer and firmer still, and his patriotism became ingrained, as he triumph-
antly proved when facing the fiery ordeal of the civil war. This decisive era
offered to the German population of Rochester an opportunity to pay a debt
of gratitude to its adopted country ; on many a battle-field, by a baptism of
blood and fire, it demonstrated a liberty-loving, self-sacrificing citizenship. Long
anterior to the outbreak of hostilities the abolition movement had found ready
sympathy in Germany ; the pulpit, schools and press — above all, Uncle Tom's
Cabin had served to implant deep-seated loathing of the barbaric institution of
slavery. When, therefore, the time came for the final struggle between the
The Germans in the Union Army. 493
Union and the slaveholders, the German immigrant, with scarce an exception,
sided with the former, and his aid was of appreciable service, since the training
of his native country had made him apt for military life and inured him to its
hardships.
President Lincoln's call for volunteers, issued April 15th, 1861, roused the
Germans of Rochester to a high pitch of enthusiasm for the cause of the Union.
The Thirteenth regiment, which was organised by the 25th of the same month,
contained two hundred Germans, among them one purely a German militia
company, the first one in Monroe county, which had previously been organ-
ised and drilled by Captain Adolph Nolte. The One Hundred and Eighth and
One Hundred and Fortieth volunteer regiments, which were raised in 1862,
also contained German companies, in addition to the numerous German citizens,
who were scattered through the various detachments of these regiments, as
well as of Brickel's artillery. Mack's battery, the Eighth and Twenty-second
cavalry. All these organisations were repeatedly under fire, and, of the wreaths
of victory which they have won, our citizens of German birth may justly claim
a share.
The German companies in the above-named regiments were as follows :
Thirteenth. — Co. C, Captain A. Nolte; 1st Lieut. John Weiland ; 2d Lieut.
J. Fichtner; 64 privates. Of the total number of Germans in the regiment,
stated at 200, thirteen were killed in battle, ten died in hospital of wounds re-
ceived, thirteen were taken prisoners and twenty-nine wounded. One Hun-
dred and Eighth. — Co. I, Wilhelm Graebe; ist Lieut. John Fellman; 2d
Lieut. Chas. Amiet (fell at Gettysburg, July 3d, 1863). The regiment num-
bers 162 Germans, of whom twenty were killed. One Hundred and Fortieth.
— Lieut.-Col. Louis Ernst; Co. B, Capt. Chr. Spies; ist Lieut. Aug. Meier;
2d Lieut. G. Klein (died of wounds in hospital). Number of German soldiers
190, of whom twenty-three were killed. One Hundred and Fifty-first regi-
ment. — Co. E, Capt. Peter Imo; 64 Germans, fourteen of whom were killed.
Brickel's artillery contained 70 Rochester German soldiers ; Mack's battery 10;
Eighth cavalry 52 ; Twenty-second cavalry 97.
During the war the German- Americans had learned to appreciate their own
power. German regiments had borne their part on the battle-field ; German
commanders directed moves in the sanguinary game ; the blood of Germans
fertilised the soil upon which was to bloom a new harvest of freedom and pro-
gress. The. exultation at the triumph of the righteous cause awakened a self-
dependent spirit in the German- American; he took a place on equal footing
alongside his fellow-citizen of Anglo-Saxon descent. The intellectual inher-
itance brought with him from the old fatherland he contributed to the blend-
ing of nationalities in progress in our great republic, and, rightly judging that
the process of nationalisation would be carried out by thfe younger generations,
the liberal elements gave special attention to educational matters. Many
494 History of the City of Rochester.
schools were founded in which it was sought to supplement the American by
the German system of instruction, to mutual advantage, to the end that citizens
might be trained, uniting within themselves the best characteristics of the
Anglo-Saxon and the Teuton. To enable the German element to contribute
its share to the realisation of this aim, the maintenance of its language — its
medium of intellectual exchange — is indispensable ; hence this purpose remains
a leading one. The movement made itself felt in Rochester ; the parochial
schools, which formerly valued instruction in German only so far as it enabled
them to teach morals and religious doctrine, in many instances broadened their
field of usefulness to include German art, science and literature. In 1866 a
school was, founded, patterned after the German real-schulen, which, while en-
tirely free from sectarian bias, sought to impart a thorough German education
in addition to the ordinary English branches. Opposed by intolerance and a
mistaken conception of its purposes, its benefits remained confined to a com-
paratively narrow circle until in 1883 the Kochester real-sch^/e was abandoned.
Yet it deserves the credit of having introduced object lessons in our gity, of
demonstrating the feasibility of instruction carried on in both English and Ger-
man, as also of technical training, its kindergarten being the first one opened
in Rochester and among the earliest in the country at large. Its first director
was Dr. Rudolph Dulon, on whose death in 1870 Hermann PHifflin succeeded.
Amid manifold efforts to improve their new home the love for the old was
still cherished by the German-Americans. The changes which the events of
the years 1866 to 1871 wrought were therefore watched with closest interest;
the exultation at the displacement of the Lilliputian principalities by a Germany
occupying an honored place among the powers found hearty responses here,
and Rochester's German societies and families participated freely in the humane
work of relieving the sufferings of the wounded soldiersof the fatherland. The
conclusion of peace was celebrated by a festival, again renewing the spiritual
cords that bind together the old land and the new. The movement for the
introduction of the German language as a study in the public schools, which
had been active in the leading cities of the country, reached Rochester in 1872
and was brought to a successful conclusion. However, the want of proper
supervision of the new branch of study, the dislike with which it was regarded
by some of those in authority, the indifference of one part of the German pop-
ulation, and opposing intere.sts on the other hand, speedily made an end of the
subject in our public schools. Notwithstanding the protests of German mass-
meetings, and with effective aid of a German renegade, the tuition of German
was abolished in 1877, although the board of education did not take the trouble
to offer any but the flimsiest pretexts for their action. The national festival
celebrating the centennial of the proclamation of American independence elec-
trified all classes of our population, by the memories it aroused of the blessings
dating from that event. Preparations were made by citizens of German birth
Centennial Celebration of German Colonisation. 49s
to typify their patriotism and gratitude to the land of their adoption in a char-
acteristic manner. On the dismissal of the procession — which had united all
trades and professions, all official bodies and private corporations — the German
societies formed a column anew and marched to Franklin square. The singers,
intoning a festive hymn, inaugurated a solemn rite which it was a custom of
the fatherland to observe in order to perpetuate the memory of important occa-
sons — namely, the planting of a German oak. Said the orator of the day, H.
Pfafflin : —
"The German tree on American soil is to be a living witness to our successors of
our thoughts and aspirations on our republic's day of honor, and to awaken in the
hearts of the rising generation the principles which animate the participants in this festi-
val. Strong and powerful, like the oak, may the Union brave all storms! Steadfast and
inseparable as its roots, may she ever be grounded in the soil of truth and right! Firm
and tenacious, like the fiber of the oak, may she withstand the gnawing worm of internal
dissensions, and spread. her mighty branches without stint in all directions, harboring in
their shade only free and happy citizens ! And, like the oak, durable, may she stand un-
yielding in storm and stress, outlasting generations and centuries ! "
The ties of consanguinity and common feeling, which link the old German
fatherland with her sons across the sea, again grandly asserted themselves in
1882. When the swollen streams carried destruction to Germany's fairest fields,
when the specter of hunger and want hovered threateningly over the valleys
of the Rhine and its tributaries, then Rochester's German community were
among the first to reach a brotherly hand to their sorely tried kinsmen, to alle-
viate misery and distress entailed by nature's devastating power. A whole
people united to wind a wreath of gratitude to our adopted country — many a
leaf falling on our Flower city, whose German citizens vied with each other in
noble rivalry in this work of mercy. The 8th of October, 1883, witnessed a
demonstration such as had but seldom been equaled in extent arid imposing
features in our busy city; it commemorated the second centennial of the first
German colonisation within the boundaries of the United States. The celebra-
tion wasintended to impress this event on the minds of the German-American
of to-day, causing him to realise his part in the building-up of the country and
strengthening his attachment to it. Nearly all German societies and leading
industries took part in a procession, which was estimated to have contained
5, 000 participants. The enthusiasm called out by this pioneer- festival resulted
in a permanent organisation of German societies and a large body of citizens,
under the style of the " German- American society of Rochester," whose object
is " to further and aid German imipigrants, by assisting them to obtain work,
rendering legal advice, providing for the poor and needy, by the establishment
of schools and such other institutions as may tend . to educate intelligent and
useful German-American citizens."
In keeping with that development of Rochester's German population, as
roughly outlined above, was their rate of progress in social, industrial and po-
496 History of the City of Rochester.
litical fields. Churches and societies flourished in large number, and the enter-
prise of German- American citizens created various industrial and financial in-
stitutions of considerable magnitude. New singing-societies established during
this latter period are the Liedertafel, the Liederkranz and the Germania, to
which should be added the two Swiss societies, whose members, while not Ger-
mans, according to existing political divisions, yet are allied by identity of lan-
guage and community of feeling with the immigrants from Germany. They
are the Switzer Mannerchor and the Helvetia Mannerchor.
Rochester's German press was largely remodeled during the period from
1870 to 1884, the various changes culminating in a consolidation of rival dailies
under the title of the Rochester Abendpost und Beobachter, published by the
German Printing and Publishing company, under the joint editorship of Adolph
Nolte and Herman Pfafflin. Another German journal is the Katholische Volks-
Zeitung, published and edited by Joseph A. Schneider.
A feature of significance called into activity during this last- described space
of time is the organisation of a German department of the theological seminary,
on Alexander street. From the ranks of his students, now'increased to fifty, Pro-
fessor Rauschenbusch, whose ardor in the course of German culture has not
lessened with increase of age, yearly sends forth apostles imbued with his devo-
tion to the learning of the fatherland. Since the fall of 1883 there also exists
a pro-seminary for German clergymen, which effectually aids in the preserva-
tion of the German language.
Our intention to append to this sketch a statistical summary of Rochester's
German population has been frustrated by the neglect of various church and
school boards to furnish the information needed — some, indeed, were unable
to do so. The authorities of eleven of the German churches very obligingly
gave the desired facts, and by their aid, and analogous estimates based upon
them, we are enabled to make an approximate calculation, which gives as a re-
sult the estimate that Rochester's German-speaking population numbers from
30,000 to 33,000, or nearly one-third of its entire citizenship.
Western House of Refuge. 497
CHAPTER XLVn.
REFORMATORY AND CORRECTIONAL.
The Western House of Refuge l — Full Description of tlie Institution — Its History from the Be-
ginning — The Monroe County Penitentiary — The County Jail.
ON May 8th, 1846, the New York state legislature passed an act authorising
the establishment of the Western House of Refuge. First, the act pro-
vides that "during the (then) present session of the legislature the governor
shall appoint three commissioners to locate the Western House of Refuge and
to procure by gift. or purchase a site therefor." Second, the act further pro-
vides that within two months after the location shall be settled and the site
procured, the governor, lieutenant-governor and comptroller shall appoint three
other commissioners to erect and inclose the building. Third, that the gov-
ernor, lieutenant-governor and comptroller shall appoint fifteen discreet men as
managers, and divide them into three classes of five each ; that the term of
office of the three classes shall expire on the first Tuesday in February of the
first, second and third years respectively after appointment; that whenever
vacancies occur they shall be filled by the governor with the consent of the
Senate ; that the term of office of guch managers shall be three years as near
as may be, and that the term of office of one-third thereof shall expire on the
first Tuesday of February of each year ; that the managers shall appoint the
superintendent and such other officers as they deem necessary for the interest
of the institution, and shall have power to make all such rules, ordinances,
regulations and by-laws for the government, discipline and management of the
said House of Refuge, its inmates and officers as to them may appear just and
proper ; and, finally, that the managers shall make to the legislature a detailed
report of the performance of their duty on or before the fifteenth day of Jan-
uary in each year.
In accordance with the first provision of the act, the governor appointed
Daniel Cady, Abram Bockee and W. F. Havemeyer as commissioners to locate
the institution. In June following, the commissioners located the Western
House of Refuge at Rochester, and purchased a site comprising forty-two acres
of land — paying therefor the sum of $4,200, being at the price of $100 an
acre. Of this purchase money the state paid $3,000, and citizens of Roches-
ter paid $1,200. The commissioners appointed to erect the building were
William Pitkin, D. C. McCallum and Isaac Hills, under whose supervision the
house was erected and inclosed.
The managers whose names first appear in the report of the house are
Frederick F. Backus, William Pitkin, Isaac Hills, Orlando Hastings, Alexander
1 The article on the Mouse of Refuge was prepared by Rev. William Manning, the chaplain of the
institution.
498 History of the City of Rochester.
Mann, Samuel P. Allen, John Greig, Elijah F. Smith, Abraham M. Schermer-
horn, Samuel W. D. Moore, Heman Blodgett, Jacob Gould, Joseph Field,
Edward Roggen and Aristarchus Champion.
The managers appointed Frederick F. Backus president, and Isaac Hills
secretary and treasurer, adopted ordinances, rules and by-laws for the govern-
ment of the institution; elected Samuel S. Wood superintendent, H. W. Dean,
M. D., house physician, H. H. Goff teacher, Elizabeth A. Taylor seamstress,
and on August nth, 1849, the Western House of Refuge was opened for the
reception and reformation of juvenile delinquents.
On February 26th, 1850, an act was passed (Erecting the several magistrates
having criminal jurisdiction, and who shall hold courts in the fourth, fifth, sixth,
seventh and eighth judicial districts of the state (which districts embrace forty-
three counties), to order all juvenile delinquents by them respectively sentenced,
to be removed to the Western House of Refuge for juvenile delinquents in the
city of Rochester. By an act establishing the institution, each county from
which delinquents should be committed thereto was required to pay to the
treasurer thereof the sum of fifty cents a week for the support of each delin-
quent thus committed. By an act passed April i6th, 1852, this requirement
was repealed ; since which date provision for the support of the institution has
been made by the legislature in the annual appropriation bill.
The act establishing the house authorised the commitment thereto of male
delinquents under eighteen years of age and of female delinquents under the
age of seventeen. By an act passed April loth, 1850, the law was so changed
as to restrict the commitment of males to those under sixteen years of age, and
repealing the clause which authorised the commitment of feipales to the West-
ern House of Refuge.
When first opened, the house could furnish room for only about fifty in-
mates. In the second year a wing was added, increasing the capacity to two
hundred. This wing was opened September ist, 1852. A second wing was
completed and opened in 1855, increasing the capacity to four hundred, and
subsequent alterations and additions have enlarged the capacity until six hun-
dred boys can be comfortably accommodated. The superintendent and family
have from the first resided in the house, and a number of the overseers besides
the assistant superintendent have also occupied rooms in the building.
The first president of the board of managers was Frederick F. Backus, who
held the office nine years, until his death, in 1858. He was succeeded by William
Pitkin who held the office ten years. The third president was Levi A. Ward, who
held the position but one year, and was followed by Thomas Cornes, who was
president three years. The fifth president was George J. Whitney, who was
continued in office eight years, until his death. William Purcell succeeded Mr.
Whitney. Mr. Purcell held the office one year, and was succeeded by Henry
S. Hebard, who held the office one year, and was in turn succeeded by William
Western House of Refuge. 499
N. Sage. Mr. Sage held the office of president two years, when his term as
manager expired, and William Purcell was again elected president, which office
he holds at the present time. Isaac Hills was first elected to the double office
of secretary and treasurer, and held the office nineteen years. Alfred Ely was
the second secretary and treasurer, holding the office one year. William C.
Rowley followed as the third secretary and treasurer, and after fourteen years'
service he is still filling the office most efficiently and acceptably. The names of
the first board of managers have been given on a preceding page. Their suc-
cessors'in the order of their appointment are as follows: Amon Bronson, Isaac
Hutts, Gideon Cobb, Samuel G. Andrews, James P. Fogg, Elias Pond, William
H. Briggs, Samuel Richardson, Myron H. Clark, William A. Reynolds, Addi-
son Gardiner, John W. Dwinellc, Charles J. Hill, William S. Bishop, Patrick
Barry, Hamlin Stilwell, Levi A. Ward, William C. Rowley, Andrew Brennan,
D. Cameron Hyde, George J. Whitney, Ambrose Cram, George W. Rawson,
Abram Karnes, Thomas Cornes, Alfred Ely, George S. Riley, William S.
Thompson, Louis Chapin, Louis Ernst, James S. Graham, John O'Donoughue,
Jerome Keyes, William Purcell, John Williams, Ezra R. Andrews, P. Malone,
Mortimer F. Reynolds; William N. Sage, Charles H. Monell, William Otis, Wil-
liam C. Slayton, D. D. S. Brown, Henry S. Hebard, J. D. Decker, Emory B.
Chace, Fred Cook, Daniel W. Powers, Louis J. Billings, A. M. Semple, Jonas
Jones, Ira L. Otis, Valentine F. Whitmore, Thomas Raines, Isaac Gibbard, J.
Miller Kelly.
Samuel S. Wood was the first superintendent, with David Dickey, assistant
superintendent. Deacon Dickey held the office of assistant superintendent
about six months, when, much against the wishes of the superintendent and
managers, he resigned. Artemas W, Fisher was appointed to the position thus
made vacant. Mr. Wood performed the duties of his position with fidelity and
success, piloting the institution through the trials and perils of its infancy and
youth until its weakness changed to strength, and it stood among the established
institutions of the state. After nineteen years of faithful service he yielded to
other and younger hands the burden and responsibility he had carried so long.
Elisha M. Carpenter succeeded Mr. Wood as superintendent, with Mr. Fi.sher
remaining assistant. At the end of Mr. Carpenter's first year, Mr. Fisher left
the institution, having held the office of assistant superintendent nineteen years.
Francis A. Baker succeeded Mr. Fisher as assistant. Mr. Carpenter held the
superintendency not quite two years, and in 1 870, Levi S. Fulton was elected
superintendent, with Francis A. Baker remaining assistant. Mr. Baker con-
tinued assistant fourteen years, until 1883, when he resigned, and Samuel P.
Moulthrop was appointed first assistant, and Albert S. Little second assistant,
Mr. Moulthrop's duties being confined to the second division, composed of the
larger boys, and Mr. Little's duties being with the first division composed of
the smaller boys. Each assistant superintendent was also principal of the school
Soo History of the City of Rochester.
in his division. In practice it was found that this division of the duties and re-
sponsibilities of assistant did not work satisfactorily, and in December, 1883,
the appointments were reconsidered, and Samuel P. Moulthrop was appointed
deputy superintendent, which office he now holds Elizabeth A. Taylor was
appointed seamstress in 1849 at the opening of the house. She performed her
duties quietly, faithfully and conscientiously for thirty-three years until 1882,
and died at her post at the age of eighty-four years. Very soon after Mr. Ful-
ton was elected superintendent, he commenced to improve the condition and
surrounding of the inmates. The long dining-tables were changed for short
ones running crosswise in the dining-halls, the pewter or tin plates were ex-
changed for white earthenware, the tin cups for drinking at the meals were sup-
planted by glass tumblers, table-cloths were supplied to the tables, and the
quality and variety of food was correspondingly improved. These improve-
ments have been continued to the present time. For fourteen years Captain
Fulton has discharged the duties and borne the responsibilities of superin-
tendent, and he still "holds the fort" as chief executive officer of the institution.
From the beginning the managers comprehended the necessity of separat-
ing the comparatively innocent boys from the adepts in vice and crime. The
subject was anxiously discussed, and in 1863 it formed a part of the managers'
report to the state legislature. Some effort was made to solve the difficult
problem of how to do it. In 1856 the schools were graded as first and second
grade, but no other separation was effected. In 1869 a solid stone wall was
built through the center of the large yard which forms the play-ground, and
in 1 870, very soon after Mr. Fulton became superintendent, the boys were sep-
arated into first and second divisions, the first division, composed of younger
boys, occupying the south side, and the older boys, composing the second divis-
ion, occupying the north side, of the division wall. The schools, work-shops,
and play- grounds have from that date been kept apart, so" that the boys of the
two divisions, at work, in school, and at play, are entirely separated. This sep-
aration, though based tipon age and size, rather more than upon moral charac-
ter and condition, was an advance in the right direction, giving a better chance
to protect the younger boys from vicious and criminal examples and influences.
The graduating department, of which more will be said, if wisely conducted
should give another advantage in the same direction.
From the opening of the house, school privileges have been enjoyed by all
the inmates. The school-rooms have been enlarged and otherwise improved
as necessity or opportunity occurred. Since 1870 they have been furnished
with the best modern seats, blackboards and other convenient apparatus. Each
division has a male principal, with two female assistants in the first division,
and four female assistants in the second division. Each female teacher in the
first division has a recitation room, to which her classes are sent, but in the
second division the large hall used for school purposes is divided by sliding glass
Western House ok Refuge. 501
doors into five school- rooms, one being occupied during school hours by the
principal and the other four by his assistants. A primary department has been
maintained since 1862, with a lady principal. Three rooms are now given to
this department of the school. The first lady principal was Mary A. Montrose,
who held the place two years. Mary A. Logan was the second principal and
held the position three years. In 1867 Anna M. Hollenbeck received the ap-
pointment and holds it at the present time. The principals of the first division,
with their time of service, have been Albert G. Morey, one year; Hiram D.
Vosburg, two years ; Albert Backus, fifteen years ; Robert 0. Fulton, one year ;
Samuel P. Moulthrop, six years ; Albert S. Little, who now holds the position.
The principals of the second division, with their time of service, have been
John M. Denton, four years ; Elisha M. Carpenter, nine years ; Peter Brad-
ley, one year ; Clark P. Hard, one year ; Henry C. Woods, two years ; Francis
A. Baker, seven years ; William H. Whiting, six years ; Daniel C. Rumsey,
two years ; William B. Mather, one year; Samuel P. Moulthrop, eight months,
and Louis F. La Point, who is the present principal.
For many years the school hours were from 5 to 8 p. m. In 1883 the
hours in the first division were from 7:30 to 10 a. m., and from 6:30 to 7:45 p.
m. A recent change has made the school hours for both divisions the same,
viz., from 2:30 to 5:15 for the afternoon school, and from 6:30 to 7:45 for the
evening session, the evening session being devoted to oral and object teaching,
and to preparing the lessons for the next day.
Many of the boys when admitted were unable to read, a milch larger num-
ber were unable to write, while the large majority knew nothing or next to
nothing of arithmetic or geography. Nearly all when discharged have been
able to read and write fairly, and a large proportion have gone out with a good
degree of proficiency in arithmetic and geography, while many have obtained
by oral instruction a rudimental knowledge of grammar, natural philosophy
and physiology. A library of entertaining and instructive books has been free
of access from the beginning, to which additions have been made from time to
time, and more recently a large number of papers and magazines have been
added, coming fresh as they are issued. The list includes from ten to twenty-
five copies of the following : The Youth's Companion, Harper's Young People,
Harper's Weekly, Harper's Monthly Magazine, Golden Days, Pansy, Our Little
Men and Women and others of a similar character. When these periodicals
are received they are placed in files and passed around, till all who desire have
had the reading of them. No dime novels or flash story papers are ever dis-
tributed or allowed among the children.
The influence of faithful moral and religious teaching has from the first
been appreciated, and, with only one short interval in 185 1, a chaplain has con-
stantly been emplyed to look after this most necessary element in the reforma-
tion of these unfortunate children. The first chaplain's name does not appear in
S02 History of the City of Rochester.
the reports, though the fact is mentioned that there was such an officer. In 1852
Rev. Mr. Perrin was chaplain, in 1853 and 1854 Rev. John H. Raymond held
the position, in 1855 Rev. M. B. Anderson, LL.D., was appointed chaplain and
continued to discharge his duties until i860, when Rev. James Nichols re-
ceived the appointment, which he held until 1864, and was succeeded by Rev.
D. W. Marsh, whose term of office was one year, followed by Rev. J. W. B.
Clark. At the end of one year Rev. Thomas H. Morgan was appointed, hold-
ing two years, followed by Rev. Jacob Miller, who held the office one year, and
was followed by Rev. Wayland R. Benedict, who also left at the end of his first
year. In 1870 Rev. J. V. Van Ingen, D. D.,-was appointed chaplain, holding
the position four years. He was succeeded by Rev. T. C. Reed, D. D., who
remained two years. In 1876 Rev. Wm. Manning received the appointment
of chaplain, which he .still holds.
From the opening of the institution no religious or sectarian distinction or
division existed among its inmates, all of whom were under the care and in-
struction of the chaplain ; assembling in school-room and chapel for moral and
religious instruction and devotion. But in 1874 the managers appointed a
Roman Catholic priest as chaplain to the inmates whose parents or guardians
desired for their children the ministrations of that church. An immediate di-
vision was effected, a line being drawn between Catholics and Protestants, in
all their religious meetings. The Roman Catholic church service was intro-
duced and is continued. The first priest appointed to this duty was Rev.
George I. Osborn, who held the position four years, and performed his duties
so unobtrusively and courteously as to command the esteem of all who were
connected with the institution. In 1879 he was sent to another field of labor,
and Rev. William McDonald was appointed his successor. Mr. McDonald is
now occupying the position.
Mrs. Sarah J. Nichols was employed as Sunday-school tep-cher for sixteen
years, from i860 to 1876. Her Sunday-school was composed of the smaller
boys, and much good was accomplished by her faithful labor among them.
During the last eight years a Sunday-school service has been held with the
boys from 9 to lO a. m., every Sunday, the chaplain giving instruction, and at
2: 30 p. m., each Sunday, a general religious service, with sermon or address,
has been held in the chapel, the chaplain conducting the exercises. At 9 a. m.,
every Sunday, mass has been said with the Catholic children in the chapel, and
at 2:30 p. m. the priest has met the boys in the school-room, for such instruc-
tion as he desired to give.
From the beginning, the inmates have been favored with excellent provis-
ions for the preservation of health, and with excellent physicians, for the pre-
vention and cure of sickness. Dr. Dean, the first house physician, held the
office one year, and was succeeded by Dr. Frederick F. Backus, who discharged
its duties during six years. Dr. H. D. Vosburg held the position two years, with
Western House of Refuge. 503
Dr. W. H. Briggs as consulting physician, after which Dr. Briggs held the office
one year. In i860 Dr. Azel Backus became the house physician, and has filled
the office for twenty-four years with signal ability and success. Dr. Backus still
holds the office.
In the year 1867 a number of the ladies of Rochester sent to the legislature
a memorial setting forth the need of some place of refuge for young girls, who
by misfortune or crime were brought into evil associations and practices, and
who had become, or were becoming criminals. The matter rested without re-
sult until 1 87 1, when Levi S. Fulton, then recently appointed superintendent
of the Western House of Refuge, supported by William Purcell and others, re-
newed the agitation of the subject. Through their efforts, the press in nearly
all the important towns of Central and Western New York was induced to take it
up, and to advocate the establishment of an institution so greatly needed. The
attention of the legislature was again and persistently directed to the matter,
and under this influence an act was passed on May 1st, 1875, providing for the
establishment of a female reformatory in connection with the Western House
of Refuge. The building was completed in the following year; Mrs. M. K.
Boyd was appointed matron. Miss Lilla Hammond teacher, Mrs. J. A. Mor-
doff housekeeper, Miss M. E. Neely hospital nurse. Miss M. Cook seamstress,
and on October 3d, 1 876, the reformatory was opened for the reception of in-
mates. The building was arranged for the accommodation of 100 girls, and
was rapidly filled beyond its utmost capacity, the number in the third year
reaching 149. In 1879 a second building, designed as a primary department,
was erected, and occupied by the smaller gii-ls'in 1880. The appointment of
the matron has proved most fortunate for the institution and for ihohe who
have been committed to its care. None could have done better, few could have
done so well, in the difficult and trying duties and responsibilities of the office.
Mrs. Boyd still holds the position. In the beginning of the second year after
the opening, according to the original design the inmates were separated into
two divisions, on a basis like that which had been adopted with the boys. Miss
Hammond became teacher of the first division, and Miss E. A. Kavanaugh
was appointed teacher of the second division. In 1878 Miss Kavanaugh was
compelled by failing health to resign the duties of teacher, and MissAHce
E. Curtin was appointed teacher, a position which she is still filling to the sat-
isfaction of all her associates. Miss Hammond filled her position until 1882
faithfully and successfully, when after six years of service she resigned, and
was succeeded by Miss L. Pierce, who now fills the office. In 1878 Miss Ada
C. Fyler was appointed teacher of the primary department, holding the office
two years. She was followed in 1880 by Miss CM. Joslyn, who still holds the
position. The superintendent, deputy superintendent, physician and chaplain
hold the same relations to this department as to the male department. The
chaplain holds a Sunday-school or Bible class with the girls in their assembly
504 History of the City of Rochester.
room from 11 to 12 a. m., every Sunday, and at. 2:30 p. m. The girls attend
the chapel service, occupying the convenient and spacious gallery. The re-
sults thus far accomplished in the reformation of those committed to this re-
formatory have been very encouraging to its friends and to the friends of this
unfortunate class of children. Not all, but many, have been saved frqm a life
of crime and shame and restored to virtue and usefulness, thus vindicating the
wisdom of its establishment.
The whole number of boys received from the opening of the house, on
August nth, 1849, to March ist, 1884, was 6,221. Of this number 5,514
have been returned to their homes, or furnished with homes elsewhere. One
hundred and fifty have escaped, ninety-four have died in the house and 463
are still inmates. The female department, from its opening, October 3d, 1876,
to March ist, 1884, has received 365 girls. Of this number 260 have been re-
turned to their homes or sent to new homes, six have died and ninety-nine
remain inmates of the house.
From this statement it appears that the deaths among the boys during the
period of about thirty-four years have been about one and one-half per cent,
and less than one and three- fourths per cent, among the girls. When we con-
sider that a very large proportion of the inmates of both sexes have from their
infancy been exposed to surroundings, privations and habits unfavorable to
health, and that many of them when brought to the house were suffering from
inherited or contracted disease, the mortality is much less than might reasonably
be expected, and reflects credit both upon the careful sanitary provisions and
precautions maintained, and upon the faithfulness and skill of the house physician.
The offenses for which the male inmates have been committed have been
recorded as follows: For petit larceny, 3,764; vagrancy, 545; burglary and
larceny, 419; grand larceny, 299 ; assault, or assault and battery, 64; disorderly
conduct, 53 ; malicious mischief or malicious trespass, 36 ; arson, 32 ; rape or
attempt at rape, 23; truancy, 17; robbing post-office, 16; forgery, 10; high-
way robbery, 10; assault with intent to kill, 8; manslaughter, 7; robbery, 5 ;
obtaining money or property under false pretenses, 5 ; obstructing railroad
track, 4; pocket- picking, 3; threat to stab, 3; intemperance or drunkenness,
4; unlawful riding on cars, 3; indecent exposure, 3; unmanageable, 2; em-
bezzling letter, 2; receiving stolen goods, 2; counterfeiting, 2; murder in sec-
ond degree, i ; perjury, i ; breaking into post-office, i ; keeping house of pros-
titution, I ; stabbing, i .
The offenses for which the female inmates have been committed are recorded
as follows: For petit larceny, 130; vagrancy, 95; prostitution, 71; disorderly
conduct, 42; incorrigibility, 5; grand larceny, 3; street begging, i.
Of the whole number of boys committed, the nativity of parents is recorded
as follows: American, 2,148; Irish, 1,931; German, 838; EngHsh, 442;
French, 248; Scotch, 91; Canadian, 43; Welsh, 16; Italian, 7; Poles, 7;
Western House of Refuge. 505
Hollanders, 6; Swiss, 5; Spaniards, 3; Russian, 2; Swede, i; Hungarian, i.
The colored boys have been classed as Americans, and have numbered 199.
Indians are classed the same and have numbered 5. Of the whole number of
girls committed, the nativity of parents is recorded as follows: American, 153 ;
Irish, 78; German, 54; Canadian, 23; English, 22; Scotch, 3; Welsh, 3;
French, 3 ; Swiss, 2 ; Prussian, i ; Finn, i ; Pole, i ; Hollander, i ; unknown 20.
The colored girls are classed as Americans, and have numbered 9.
The Western House of Refuge for juvenile delinquents is one of the finest
specimens of architecture in Western New York. It is situated one and one-
half miles north from the central part of the city on a farm of forty-two acres,
which is owned by the state, and forms a part of the establishment.
The center building of the male department is eighty-six feet in length, by
sixty-four in depth, and four stories high above the basement. Two wings extend
north and south, each one hundred and forty- eight feet long and thirty-two feet
deep, and three stories high above the basement. The whole building is three
hundred and eighty-two feet in length, fronting east on Backus avenue. Two
other wings, extending westward and of the same dimensions as those described,
are connected with the front at the extremities. The building with its wings
affords room for the superintendent and. family, several overseers and six hun-
dred boys.
Directly south of the boy's department, and separated therefrom by a solid
stone wall twenty-two feet in height, stands a beautiful building in the Norman
style of architecture, with a frontage of two hundred and seventy-six feet. This
building, with another and somewhat smaller one situated two hundred feet in
rear of the first, constitutes the female department of the institution. The two
buildings are conveniently arranged and thoroughly furnished for the residence
of the matron and her assistant officers, and for the comfortable home of two
hundred girls.
Directly north of the boy's department already described, and correspond-
ing in distance therefrom, and in external appearance with the female depart-
ment, is the graduating house for boys. This is designed as the temporary
home of such boys as by good behavior shall be entitled to such promotion
previous to being discharged from the institution. This department will be
occupied by such boys only as shall be found trustworthy, and an honorable
discharge therefrom would be equivalent to a certificate of good character.
This building is not yet occupied, but much is expected when it shall be opened,
and its beneficent influence shall become active to awaken and encourage
healthy ambition and self-respect. The three buildings standing in line pre-
sent a frontage of nine hundred and thirty-four feet on Backus avenue. The
total cost of all the buildings comprising the Western House of Refuge, as they
now stand, is $372,469.26. This noble monument of state beneficence is now
in the thirty-fifth year of its history. It is believed that thus far it has fairly
So6 History of the City of Rochester.
; ,
met the just expectations of its founders and friends. The purpose of its cre-
ation, and the motive for its support is to reform and to save the children who
could not or would not be otherwise reformed or saved. May this noble pur-
pose inspire and control the management of this sacred trust to the end !
THE MONROE COUNTY PENITENTIARY.
In 1853 Joshua Conkey, Samuel H. Davis, Ezra B. True and Lewis Selye
were appointed a committee for the erection of a work-house, where men might
be better prepared for freedom by a habit of constant, hard labor. The con-
tract price of erecting the building was $22,707.60. Ninety-two cells were
suitably furnished and Z. R. Brockway was appointed superintendent. The
institution began business with a capital of $7,000, and in 1854 the income
was $4,000. In 1856 there were seven hundred and fifty-four commitments,
of whom four hundred and ninety were foreigners. In 1859 two workshops
were erected, and a south wing was built, having thirty-two cells. In the fall
of i860 the business of barrel-making was changed to that of finishing staves,
shoemaking, however, being continued as the chief employment. The policy
of receiving convicts from other counties was found advantageous, and con-
tinued. The total income for i860 was $22,729.30, a gain of $3,235.28, and
the second instance in history of realising a profit from a penal institution.
The buildings were destroyed on the 5th of January, 1865, by fire, the
damage amounting to nearly $20,000. ' Again, on the night of October 1st,
1868, a fire destroyed the frame warehouse and other structures and destroyed
the shops, to the amount of $10,000. In 1873 a two-story brick workshop, one
hundred and eighty by thirty-four and a half feet, was built, at acost of $9,000.
The penitentiary proper is a four-story brick building, with two wings. In the
north wing are the cells for males, the females being in the south wing. One
story of the latter comprises the female department for the manufacture of
shoes. A high brick wall, inclosing shops, bounds the prison yard.
The income of the penitentiary for the year ending September 30th, 1883,
was $23,413.87 ; the expenditures were $26,289.42. The number of prisoners
in confinement was two hundred and seventy-four. There was an average of
one hundred and fifty men employed in the shoe manufacture, which is the
principal industry. Z. R. Brockway served three terms as superintendent, and
then resigned to take charge of the Detroit House of Correction. Captain
William Willard, of Connecticut, ably supplied his place during the last of his
unexpired term. Captain Levi S. Fulton long and efficiently filled the position,
which requires peculiar qualifications. Alexander McWhorter is the present
superintendent. Benjamin F. Gilkeson, a former physician, was succeeded by
Dr. J. W. Whitbeck. Rev. H. A. Brewster first served as chaplain, without
salary; Dr. Samuel Luckey served till his death, October nth, 1869, and Rev.
John Baker has satisfactorily performed the duties of the office since then.
The Jail. 507
THE JAIL.
This establishment, more than half a century in age, has long been the dis-
grace of Monroe county, being condemned by one grand jury after another,
but still remaining as impregnable to all moral assaults from without as it would
be to those material, though from within it is not so difficult to force a passage,
as has been shown by the many escapes that have been made from there in
other years. The walls are strongly built of stone, and could probably be used
to advantage in the enlargement of this building, if that course were taken in
preference to erecting a new structure on another site, but one of the two ac-
tions is imperatively necessary and will, it is hoped, be performed before the
year is over. In early days the vicious and hardened inmates were separated
from those confined for lighter offenses, but for a long time past all have been
herded together, even those perfectly innocent persons who are detained as
witnesses being thrown into contact with those who are awaiting trial for crimes
of all descriptions. No censure is to be cast upon either the sheriff, the jailer
or any of the deputies, either at this time or in any previous term, for all those
oflficials seem to have done as well as possible with so decayed and miserable a
structure, their vigilance being necessarily increased by the neglect of succes-
sive boards of supervisors, who have failed in their duty to provide a decent
and safe place of temporary confinement for the continually increasing number
of those who, for a variety of causes, have to be placed under lock and key.
The building is, of course, under the control of the sheriff of the county, Frank
A. Schoeffel, who is nominally the jailer, but it is in immediate charge of the as-
sistant jailer, John Cawthra; the physician is Dr. E. H. Howard, and the chap-
lain William Harris. Six executions have taken place within the inclosure of
these gloomy walls, which, though mentioned elsewhere in the history of the
city, may be recapitulated here: Octavius Barron was hanged July 25th, 1838 ;
Austin Squires November 29th, 1838; Maurice Antonio June 3d, 1852; Ira
Stout October 22d, 1858; Franz Joseph Messner August nth, 1871, and John
Clark November 19th, 1875.
So8 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER XLVni.
THE ROCHESTER RAPPINGS. i
Sounds Heard at Hydesville — The Fox Family — Doings on March 31st, 1848 — First Supposed
Intelligent Response — Mrs. Leah Fish and Her Investigations — The Fox Girls Separated — Ra]>-
pings on the Boat — Investigation in Rochester and Use of the Alphabet — Public Investigation Urged
— Committees Selected — Corinthian Hall Investigation — Reports of Committees, etc.
THE name of this city is so widely associated with a philosophy or rehgious
belief known as Spiritualism, that a history of Rochester would be in-
complete without some account of the origin of modern spiritualism. The
"Rochester rappings" have been discussed in the last thirty- five years in all
civiHsed lands, by believers and unbelievers, and the believers are said to num-
ber millions.
Important events and the rise of religious sects have made notable many
towns in history. Stratford-on-Avon and Shakespeare are thought of together;
Salem and witchcraft coine to mind when the historian talks of either; Mecca
and Mahomet are associated together, as are Nazareth and the carpenter's son.
The sounds which soon came to be known as " Rochester rappings" were
first heard in Hydesville, a little hamlet in Wayne county, New York. The
house was occupied in 1848 by John D. Fox and wife, and their youngest chil-
dren, Margaretta and Catharine, aged twelve and nine years respectively. Prior
to the occupancy of this house by the Fox family, peculiar noises, it was said,
had been heard on the premises. The dwelling was owned by a Mr. Hyde, a
large farmer living in the immediate vicinity. The house is now owned by A.
W. Hyde, a son of the former proprietor. The tenant who occupied the house
in 1843-44 complained of hearing unusual noises, and one Lucretia Pulver, a
girl residing in the family, reported that she occasionally heard pounding and
other noises for which she could not account. Some young people, whom Lu-
cretia invited on one occasion to remain with her over night, also reported that
they heard noises whiph sounded Hke the footsteps of a person passing from the
bed-room to the pantry, then down the cellar stairs, where a few steps were ap-
parently taken, then the noise suddenly ceased. The wife of the tenant fre-
quently stated to the servant girl that she was "sick of her life; that she often
heard footsteps of a man walking about the house all night."
In 1846 and for a part of 1847 the house was occupied by Michael Week-
man. His story was that he heard, on various occasions, strange noises. He
stated that one evening, about nine o'clock, he heard a rapping on the outside
door; no one was to be seen. This was repeated several tirhes, and though
Mr. Weekman opened the door instantly, after hearing the rap, he saw no one.
He could hear the heavy blows, feel the jar of the door, but could find no per-
son that caused it. A little daughter of Mr. Weekman was greatly disturbed
1 This article was prepared by Mr. R. D. Jones.
The Rochester Rappings. 509
and alarmed by the noises at intervals, and sometimes in the night she ran
screaming to her parents.
In the fall of 1847 John D. Fox and family moved from Rochester to New-
ark in Wayne county. Circumstances soon after led Mr. Fox to rent the
Hydesville house, and he succeeded Mr. Weekman as a tenant on the nth of
December, 1 847. The family consisted, as before stated, of Mr. and Mrs. Fox
and their two young daughters, Margaretta, aged twelve years, and Catharine,
aged nine years. Mr. Fox was a blacksmith, and he rented a shop in Hydes-
ville. Mr. and Mrs. Fox were devout members of the Methodist church, and
were held in esteem as conscientious Christian persons by the church of which
they were members, and by their acquaintances in Rochester and in Wayne
county. Mr. Fox's ancestors were from Germany. Mrs. Fox's family were of
French origin. The name of Mrs. Fox's father was Rutan, and both on the
paternal and maternal side there were traditions that several of their ancestors
possessed what has been called " second sight." These traditions had no effect
to weaken the religious faith of Mr. and Mrs. Fox. Neither believed in ghosts
or haunted houses. The first night the family of Mr. Fox spent in the Hydes-
ville house, strange and unaccountable noises were heard, which alarmed Mrs.
Fox and the children. Mr. Fox at first quieted the alarm by saying that the
shoemaker across the way was probably pounding leather, but when the noise
seemed to be nearer, and in the house, he said it must be rats. The sounds
continued, and were heard nearly every night. Soon the noises appeared to
come from tables and chairs, and then the father charged the children with
causing them. But when he saw the little girls pale and trembling with fright,
and heard the noises on the walls of the room, and on furniture distant from
the children, the idea that the little girls were playing tricks was abandoned.
The sounds continued through January and February, though varying in char-
acter. Sometimes the inmates of the house affirmed that the noises were like
the sawing of wood, and fearful groans were heard; occasionally a heavy body
seemed by the noise to be dragged through the rooms, down the cellar stairs,
followed by a sound like shoveling in the cellar; the parents saw nothing, but
the children frequently complained that some invisible thing touched them, like
a hand, and they asserted that there must be a dog about the bed. The mother
slept with the girls and tried to quiet their fear. Mr. and Mrs. Fox daily united
in prayer that this affliction might pass from them — that they might live in
quietness. They hesitated to inform the neighbors of their annoyance, dread-
ing their ridicule; the mother, however, informed- her son, David, who resided
about three miles from his parents. He listened with incredulity and tried to
convince his mother that it was all imagination, and that the real cause "of
their annoyance would soon be discovered and then she would laugh at her
foolish fears."
On Friday evening, March 31st, 1848, the family, completely worn out by
5IO History of the City of Rochester.
the disturbances, proposed to retire early, and if possible obtain needed rest.
The children were sent to bed and charged to " lie still," and not notice the
sounds. The parents before retiring tried the windows and doors, not only to
see if they were perfectly secure, but also to ascertain if the noises could be
made from the outside. As they shook the windows, they affirm, the noises
seemed to be louder and more persistent, as if in mockery. The children could
not sleep and left their beds to be near their parents. Catherine — or Kate, as
she was called — having become so familiar with the sounds, was not particu-
larly frightened when in a lighted room and with her parents. This evening,
the mother said, she was uncommonly indiflferent, and in childish glee com-
menced talking to what they called invisible disturbers, and merrily snapping
her fingers called out : " Here, Mr. Splitfoot, do as I do." The parents sai'd
the response was instantaneous ; the invisible rapper sounded the number of
times the girl snapped her fingers. She made other motions, and the number
was immediately sounded by raps. At length, in great glee, Kate cried out :
" Only look, mother, look, it can see as well as hear." Mrs. F"ox conceived
the idea that whatever could see and hear, and intelligently respond to queries,
must be possessed of something in common with humanity. She said to the
unseen intelligence: "Count ten." There were ten raps. She asked the age
,of Margaretta and of Kate, and the sounds responded correctly, as she affirmed
they did to other and more difficult questions. Then she asked: " Are you a
man that knocks ? " No response. " Are you a spirit ? " Then there were
loud and distinct rappings. Again : "Will you rap if the neighbors are called
in?" and there was loud rapping, which was taken as an affirmative answer.
Mrs. Fox then went for a Mrs. Redfield ; she came, but could not solve the
mystery, and other neighbors were summoned.
Among the persons who called at the house by request on the evening of
the 31st of March was William Duesler, residing in the neighborhood. He
made what investigation he could that night, and in company with others con-
tinued for three days his efforts to solve the mystery. Twenty-two persons
besides Mr. Duesler were engaged in this investigation during this time, and all of
them signed a statement of the transactions and declaring their inability to de-
tect any trick or fraud in the production of the sounds. This statement, with
other alleged facts, was soon after published at Canandaigua by E. E. Lewis.
This pamphlet of forty pages was entitled " A report of the mysterious noises
heard in the house of John D. Fox in Hydesville, Arcadia, Wayne county.
Authenticated by the certificates and confirmed by the statements of the citi-
zens of that place and vicinity."
Mr. Duesler, in his investigation of the sounds, asked if a spirit was making
the noises, and if it was an injured spirit, and received what was understood to
be affirmative answers. At this time loud and repeated sounds were interpreted
to mean Yes, and silence, No. The respqnses indicated that the sounds were
The Rochester Rappings. S i •
made by the spirit of a man who had been murdered in that house for his
money, by a former occupant, and that the body was buried in the cellar. Mr.
Duesler says: —
" I went into the cellar with several others, and had them all leave the house over
our heads, and then I asked : ' If there has been a man buried in the cellar, manifest it
by rapping or by any. other sign.' The moment I asked the question there was a sound
like the falling of a stick about a foot long and half an inch through, on the floor in the
bedroom over our heads. It did not seem to rebound at all ; there was but one sound.
I then asked Stephen Smith to go up and examine the room and see if he could dis-
cover the cause of the noise. He came back and said that he could discover nothing,
that there was no one in the room or in that part of the house. I then asked two more
questions and it rapped in the usual way. We all went up stairs and made a thorough
search but could find nothing."
On the 3d of April David Fox and others commenced digging in the cellar
to determine if a body had been buried there. Water flowed into the cellar so
freely, in consequence of heavy rains, that, after digging down two or three
feet, the digging was suspended for a time. During the summer it was resumed
and the result was the finding of a plank, beneath it a vacant space, some crock-
ery (supposed to be portions of a wash-bowl), charcoal, quick lime, human hair,
and a portion of a human skull Such were the only evidences found to cor-
roborate the affirmations made. During the few days of investigation following
the 31st of March the alphabet was used in trying to ascertain names, and on
one occasion the name of Charles B. Rosna was obtained, with the assertion
that he was the murdered man. At the time indicated a peddler had suddenly
disappeared from the neighborhood, and the man who lived in the house at
the time of the disappearance of the peddler, when he heard the results of the
digging, promptly visited Hydesville. He produced a certificate of character
numerously signed by those who knew him, declaring they " had never known
any thing against his good character, and believed him to be a matt of honest
and upright life, incapable of committing the crime of which he was suspected."
There was therefore no further investigation of the indicated murder, or attempt
to find the perpetrator of the alleged crime.
Mrs. Leah Fish, a married daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Fox, was a music-
teacher who lived in Rochester, and had not resided with her parents for some
years. On first hearing of the disturbance in her father's home she gave little
heed to it, thinking it a matter that would soon be explained. Continuing to
hear of the disturbance and of the distress it caused her parents, she went to
Hydesville, fully believing that she could solve the mystery. She believed her
pious and truthful parents were cruelly slandered when charged with the de-
ception and practices imputed to them. She commenced an investigation ; she
daily heard the noises, but could not account for them. She thought, how-
ever, that she had made some discoveries in regard to the circumstances under
which the rappings were most distinctly heard, and the responses to questions
most accurate. She observed that when the family was gathered about the
$12 History of the City of Rochester.
table at meal time the rappings were more distinct, and that the presence of
Margaretta and Catharine were requisite for the more positive manifestations.
She declared herself convinced that there was no fraud, no conscious action on
the part of her little sisters that produced the sounds, though the knockings were
increased .and more intensified in their presence. Mrs. Fish became convinced
there must be some change in the family to stop the proceedings, and said :
"Mother, the girls must leave home for a time, and then all will be quiet and
you can rest in peace." She thought it would be wise also to separate the girls.
Accordingly, arrangements were made to send Margaretta to visit the family
of E. W. Capron, a friend residing in Auburn.* Mrs. Fish said she would take
Catharine to Rochester. She went on board a canal-boat with Catharine, then
a common way of traveling, and congratulated herself that she had succeeded
in securing quiet for the family, and in putting a stop to the noises which had
been the occasion of so much annoyance. The boat had proceeded but a few
miles, when suddenly the same Hydesville rapping, loud apd distinct, was heard
on the floor of the cabin. Mrs. Fish was startled and greatly annoyed. The
raps were heard at intervals all the way to the city. On reaching her home
the knockings loudly greeted her unwilling ears. She catechised the sounds,
and learned that "the spirits," as the invisible intelligences affirmed they were,
did not intend to cease their manifestations.
Mrs. Fish was greatly perplexed and called together a few friends for con-
sultation. George Bush and wife had been to Hydesville and had heard the
sounds, and they were among the number whose counsel was sought. Lyman
Granger, a prominent citizen, called at the house of Mrs. Fish, and he was con-
sulted. The few persons to whom the case was made known concluded to hold
some meetings, quietly, and see what .they could find out. Very soon Isaac
and Amy Post heard that some of their friends were listening with interest to
what had now come to be called "spirit-rappings," and they thought these well
known persons were losing their good sense. One of the investigators called
at Mrs. Post's with Catharine Fox, and these staid friends could not suppress
their smile of incredulity when it was suggested that then and there they should
sit down and listen to "spirit-rapping." They heard, they questioned, and
soon joined the little band of investigators. Rev. A. H. Jervis, a Methodist
clergyman, about the same time also became an investigator and he and Lyman
Granger asserted that they had spiritual manifestations at their own residences
early in 1 849, without the presence of any of the Fox family.
After their first so-called intelligent responses were obtained in March, 1 848,
until near the close of 1849, comparatively few persons paid any attention to,
or were interested in the rappings. A few individuals in Auburn and in Roches-
ter continued to be deeply interested, and occasionally a person from a distance
would go and listen tb the mysterious rappings. What purported to be the spirits
controlling the manifestations in the summer and early fall months of 1849
The Rochester Rappings. 5 1 3
(and Franklin and Swedenborg were generally mentioned in this connection)
expressed a desire to have some public demonstration. The manner of com-
munication was by calling the alphabet, the raps responding to different letters,
which, put together, formed words and sentences. This method, though once
or twice used in the Hydesville excitement, was not thought of again until sug-
gested in the summer of 1848, by Isaac Post. After that it was the adopted
custom of getting the communications. The Fox family, and their friends,
strongly objected to the idea of a public demonstration. Mrs. Fish said the
odium they had already suffered was as much as they could bear. To this, the
spirits are reported to have replied "they could not always strive with them"
and that unless they consented they should leave them and in all probability
withdraw until a wiser generation and more willing agents would listen to and
heed their advice. One evening, after these repeated requ.ests and refusals, the
intelligences announced they were about to depart and that in twenty minutes
they should leave. At the expiration of the time, these words were spelled out
in the usual manner:* "We now bid you all farewell." The raps ceased and
the family said: "We are glad to be rid of you."
For days not a sound or rap was heard. The change was so great that Mrs.
P''ish and others said they began to feel that instead of a good riddance they had
met with a loss. The friends who had been accustomed to holding converse
with the rappings, and who thought they had through them communicated with
departed relatives and friends, assembled and besought the invisibles to give
token of their presence. There was no response. "The spirits have left us"
was the daily answer of Mrs. Fish to those who called. On the twelfth day of
the silence, E. W. Capron, of Aubu);n, and George Willetts, of Rochester, called
on Mrs. Fish and their questions in regard to the rapping were answered as
usual — "The spirits have left us." Mr. Capron said: "Perhaps they will rap
for us, if not for you." They formed a circle and on putting the often- repeated
question, "Will you rap for us?" they said they were greeted with a perfect
storm of the old familiar sounds, and that the family, who had earnestly prayed
that the rappers would depart from them, now earnestly besought the invisible
friends, "never to leave nor forsake them."
Immediately on the return of the rappings, the communications again urged
the importance of a public demonstration. Mrs. Fish and the few friends upon
whom it is said this subject was pressed dreaded the odium of taking so prom-
inent a position ; the rappings urged, and the answer was : " The cross is too
great to bear." Then these words' were given : "The greater will be your tri-
umph." At this time Catharine had gone to Auburn, and Margaretta was
with Mrs. Fish in Rochester. The sounds were equally strong in the presence
of either of the young girls. One evening in the fall of 1849 ^ circle was held
at the house of Isaac and Amy Post. Amy, being occupied, did not at first
join in the sitting. The subject of the public meeting was spoken of, and the
514 History of the City of Rochester.
sounds called for the alphabet, (five sounds in rapid succession had come to be
understood as such a call), and these words were spelled out, "Call Amy."
Mrs. Post came into the room and the communication continued: "Amy, in-
vite sixteen persons to your house on Thursday evening next to hear the rap-
ping." Amy asked: "Whom shall I invite?" The names of sixteen promi-
nent gentlemen of the city were spelled. Mrs. Post still sought direction and
said: "How shall I invite theni?" The answer, given as before, by the spell-
ing of words, letter by letter, was: "Through the post-office." "What shall I
say to them?" queried Amy, again. Then the form of the invitation was
given as follows: —
"Mr. , you are invited by the spirits to call at the house of Amy
and Isaac Post, next Thursday evening, at eight o'clock, to hear spirit-rapping."
Mrs. Post sent the invitation precisely as dictated to each of the gentlemen
named, all of whom responded except ■ one prominent physician. When the
company assembled on the evening named, the rapping commenced. Some
of the party went into the cellar; the sounds were above them; those in the
parlor said the raps seemed to proceed from the cellar. The rappings were
unusually loud. Some proposed to ask questions. The raps spelled out: "We
did not invite you to get communications, but hear the sounds," and no ques-
tions were asked. Another meeting was appointed for the next week, at the
house of George Willetts, and the same gentlemen were invited. The result
of this gathering was the same as before ; loud rappings were heard in all parts
of the room. A third meeting was held. Then there was inquiry as to the
object of the meetings and why these strangers to the manifestations were in-
vited. The answer was: "We wanted pro^iinent persons to hear the sounds
who should know they were not the result of trick or deception, for the influ-
ence they may exert on the public meeting; and more than all, to give the
friends confidence in our ability to make the sounds in a public meeting."
A meeting of a few friends more familiar with the rappings was then called
at the house of Isaac Post. Some felt that a public meeting was important,
yet all shrank from being prominent actors in it, and silently prayed that " this
cup might pass from them." The invisibles were persistent; they said the
meeting must be held, and held in Corinthian hall, and proceeded in the usual
way to give directions. November 14th, 1849, was appointed as the time for
the meeting. E. W. Capron, of Auburn, who was familiar with the phenomena
from the first, was selected to give the audience a history of the manifestations,
and to ask for a committee of citizens to make an investigation. Isaac Post
and George Willetts were appointed to attend to the general business arrange-
ments, Rev. A. H. Jervis, Nathaniel Draper, Lyman Granger, Amy Post and
Mrs. Pierpont to go on the platform with Mrs. Leah Fish and the medium,
Margaretta Fox. When the names of the above mentioned persons were
spelled out and their duties assigned, a witness of the proceedings said, "con-
The Rochester Rappings. ' 515
sternation was visible on every countenance." To be known as believers in
what the public stigmatised as a vile and wicked deception was incurring, they
thought, sufficient odium, and now to be placed in a prominent position before
an iftcredulous public seemed a burden too great to bear. The rapping ceased,
and upon the chosen few "fell fear and trembling." At length Rev. A. H.
Jervis arose and said: "I will go; I am not afraid to face a frowning world."
The others then agreed to perform their assigned duty.
The meeting was held on the evening of November 14th, 1849. All the
persons were present on the stage, as designated. Mr, Capron gave a concise
history of the rappings from the commencen\ent to that time. The audience
paid profound attention; occasionally during Mr. Capron's remarks a distinct,
though muffled, sound of the raps was heard. At the close of the lecture a
committee of investigation composed of five prominent citizens was appointed,
with instructions to report on the subsequent evening, to which time the meet-
ing adjourned. The committee nominated by the audience we're A. J. Combs,
Daniel Marsh, Nathaniel Clark, A. Judson and Edward Jones. The committee
spent the following day in the investigation, and on the evening of November
15th a very lar'ge audience assembled in Corinthian hall to hear the report.
The committee reported substantially as follows:^
"That, without the knowledge of the persons in whose presence the manifestations
are made, the committee selected the hall of the Sons of Temperance as the place for
the investigation; that the sounds were heard on the floor near where Mrs. Fish and
Margaretta stood, and that some of the committee heard the rapping on the wall behind
them. A number of questions were asked, which were answered, not altogether right
nor altogether wrong. In the afternoon they went to the house of a citizen, and while
there the sounds were heard on the outside (apparently) of the front door, and when in
the house on the door of the closet. When a hand was placed upon the door, and when
the rapping occurred, ajar was sensibly felt. One of the committee placed one of his
hands upon the feet of the ladies and the other hand on the floor, and though the feet
were not moved there was a distinct jar of the floor. When the ladies were separated
at a distance no sound was heard, but when a third person was interposed between them
the sounds .were heard. On the pavement and on the ground the same sounds were
heard. The ladies seemed to give every opportunity to the committee to investigate
the case fully, and offered to submit to a thorough examination by ladies if desired. All
the members of the committee agreed in reporting that the sounds were heard, but they
had failed to discover the means by which they were made."
The audience, which had now become somewhat excited, had expected a
different report — one that would effectually explode "the foolish humbug."
Considerable discussion ensued, and some asserted that the investigation had
not been sufficiently thorough. The meeting therefore resolved to adjourn to
the next evening and to appoint -a committee that "will find out the deception."
The following named persons were appointed such committee: Dr. H. H. Lang-
worthy, Frederick Whittlesey, D. C. McCallum, WilHam Fisher, and Judge A.
P. Haskell, of LeRoy.
5i6 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
To avoid all possibility of fraud or collusion the investigations of this second
committee were conducted at the office of Chancellor Whittlesey, who was one
of the committee. Mrs. Fish and Margaretta were placed in various positions
in the room, and in most instances the sounds were heard ; sometinies on the
floor, on the wall, table, chairs and on the door. Dr. Langworthy, by the
stethoscope, tested the possibility of the sounds being produced by ventril-
oquism, and the committee were unanimously of the opinion that neither ven-
triloquism nor machinery produced the sounds. The response to questions ex-
hibited an intelligence that puzzled them. Toward the close of the day's in-
vestigations Chancellor Whittlesey happened to be standing with Margaretta
near the door of his office, when loud raps were sounded upon the door. He
placed his hand against it and feeling a perceptible jar he suddenly opened the
door to see who was upon the outside, but he saw no one. "Judge Haskell,"
he said, " will you step outside the door and see that no one touches it?"
Judge Haskell went into the hall, closing the door after him. Immediately
there were heavy raps, and the jar or shaking of the door was again distinctly
felt. The chancellor called Judge Haskell to return, and said : "Judge Haskell,
did you touch the door while on the outside ? " " I did not," said the judge.
"Did anyone else?" "No one, " was the answer. This last performance
was such an astonishment that Mr. Whittlesey took his hat and immediately
left the room, and did not return to further aid the committee.
By the evening appointed to hear the report of the second committee,
Rochester was ablaze with excitement. A crowd packed Corinthian hall.
When the committee made their report and stated that they had failed to solve
the mystery, there was a stormy and excited discussion in regard to methods
of investigation. W. L. Burtis said if he could be on the committee he would
give one hundred dollars if he could not expose the humbug. L. Kenyon
said if he could not find out the trick he would throw himself over Genesee
falls. It was resolved to have another committee, and Messrs. Burtis and
Kenyon were appointed members of it. In addition the meeting appointed on
the committee Dr. E. P. Langworthy, Dr. Justin Gates and William Fitzhugh.
The third committee met at the rooms of Dr. Gates in the old Rochester House.
They selected several ladies to assist in the examination. The ladies took Mrs.
Fish and Margaretta to a private room and there made the most thorough
search of their shoes, stockings and of every garment they wore, but found
nothing by which the rappings could be made. The committee of ladies cer-
tified that after the examination of the clothing they placed the women " on pil-
lows, with a handkerchief tied around the bottom of their dresses tight to their
ankles; still the rapping was heard on the wall and floor distinctly."
The men on this third committee, knowing the almost universal belief that
there was trick or deception somewhere, and a part of them having denounced
the other committees for lack of shrewdness and thoroughness, conducted the
The Rochester Rappings. S^7
examination with rigor and extreme severity. At the close they said they
could not detect the fraud. Before the evening meeting it was rumored that '
the third committee had been no more successful than the others, and the ex-
citement was intense as the crowd gathered in Corinthian hall. Dr. Lang-
worthy made as full a report of the investigation as the excited state of the au-
dience would permit. Notwithstanding all these precautions, he reported, the
sounds wfcre heard ; they were heard when the women stood on large feather
pillows, without shoes, when standing on glass, and when placed in other posi-
tions. Each member of the committee separately confirmed the report of their
chairman.
At this last public meeting there was fearful excitement. Torpedoes had
been distributed among "the boys, " and the rowdy element of the city was
largely represented in the hall. Refusing to listen to the statements of Dr.
Langworthy, on the suggestion of some one there was a rush for the platform
and for the "rappers." At this juncture S. W. D- Moore, then police justice,
who was present with a few members of the poUce force, and with them was
seated near the stage, jumped upon the platform with .his aids and ordered
back the surging crowd. His official character and powerful voice for a mo-
ment checked the rush, but such madness had seized the audience that they
again rushed forward, the rowdies uttering the vilest language and bitter de-
nunciations. The powerful arm of 'Squire Moore, aided by a portion of the
policemen, beat back the crowd, until other officers piloted the women by a
rear door to a place of safety.. Thus ended the famous "Corinthian hall in-
vestigation. " Mrs. Leah Fish, the elder sister, was not aware at the time of
the investigation, her friends said, that she possessed any of the powers of her
younger sister. Soon after the public meetings she became what was known
as a "medium," the knockings coming suddenly and with much force, in the
absence of the young girls.
Catharine returned to Rochester immediately after the public investigation,
and private investigations were continued by various parties. Public attention
was called to the phenomena, and the house of Mrs. Fish was visited by per-
sons from many distant localities. Among the persons who systematically
pursued the investigation after the Corinthian hall meetings was Judge Has-
kell, of LeRoy. He had served on one of the committees, and, though then
unable to solve the mystery, he believed that a more thorough and systematic
investigation would enable him to do so. As the Fox family and their im-
mediate friends challenged the strictest scrutiny, he determined to ascertain and
expose the mystery. In an extended account of his investigations, which he
subsequently published, he says: "I commenced the work as I would a diffi-
cult problem in mathematics, determined that I would not be deterred by any
appearances of the supernatural nor by the jars and 'humbugs' of the material
world." He had many sittings, and under varied conditions. He called to
5i8 History of the City of Rochester.
his aid scientific and professional men from Rochester and other places in
Western New York. At some of the sittings the judge called for evidences
of the power of "spirits" over matter, and in answer he saw "tables, chairs
and bureaus move at different places and sometimes against the apparent efforts
of several gentlemen, and in the daytime without anything to obstruct the
sight." In answer to the question, "What is your mission ? " the reply was:
" We come to benefit mankind, by imparting important truths," and the pre-
diction was, "We shall soon be permitted to commune through many persons
and in different ways."
The sisters remained in Rochester some months, and then visited New York,
Philadelphia and many other localities, affording to the curious the opportunity
to hear the sounds and to witness other manifestations. At this writing (May,
1884) the three sisters are still living. Leah, now Mrs. Underbill, resides in
New York city ; Margaretta (Mrs. Kane) makes her home in Brooklyn, and the
youngest, Catharine, is living in London, England, and is the widow of an
English barrister, by the name of Jenkin. The sounds, as in 1848, are still
heard in their presence. Other and varied manifestations are said to occur in
all parts of the world, having been developed by what in 1 849 was designated
as "Rochester rappings." From these rappings as a commencement has orig-
inated modern Spiritualism.
CHAPTER XLIX.
THE FINE ARTS IN ROCHESTER.i
Sketches of the Early Painters of Rochester — Art Exhibitions here in Former Days — The Sculp-
tors and the Architects — Engraving on Wood, Copper and Stone — Photography — Music and the
Musicians — The Art Club and the Art Exchange.
THE personal recollections of the writer must date from the year 1833, as I
came to this place at that time ; the principal facts relating to the fine arts,
previous to that date, have been given by Henry O'Rielly in his invaluable work
on the early history of Rochester and Western New York.
The Painters. — The first resident artist in Rochester, so far as I am able to
learn, was Paul Hinds, who practised the art of portrait and miniatvire-painting
about the year 1820. How long he remained here, and what was the charac-
ter of his work, I have not been able to ascertain. In 1823 Horace Harding
(brother of the celebrated painter by that name) practised the art of portrait-
l This article is in great part the reproduction of an article by Mr. D. M. Dewey, which appeared in
another work a few years ago^ It has been altered to the form here given, mainly by Mr. Dewey him-
self, and brought down to the present time.
The Fine Arts IN Rochester. 5^9
painting here. He was recognised as an artist of fair ability. Among his
heads was one of the late Isaac Moore. In 1825 George Arnold made his res-
idence here, and devoted himself in part to ornamental and figure-painting. He
produced many figure-pieces which evinced fine talent. Among the best in
that line, I remember well the painting for the banner of the " Rochester City
CadetSj" afterward the " Rochester Light Guards." This was painted about
1840, and attracted universal admiration for its artistic beauty. It was painted
for the ladies of the city, and presented to the company by them with unusual
public ceremonies. Mr. Arnold still resides here, enjoying the respect of all
who know him. J. L. D. Mathies, of whom Mr. O'Rielly speaks, came here about
the year 1825 to 1828, accompanied, as I am informed, by his nephew — the now
famous artist William Page, of New York — both of whom were portrait-paint-
ers. They opened a studio and art gallery, consisting of their own paintings.
Their plan seems to have been to accumulate a number of paintings for the art
gallery, which would prove of sufficient interest to attract visitors. Mr. Page
painted some historical pieces — one, the "Children of Israel crossing the Red
Sea;" also, the head of an "Old Roman in Chains." They did not secure pat-
ronage sufficient at that early day to warrant the enterprise of the gallery, and
gave up the idea. Mr. Page remained here about one year and then returned
to New York, where he had formerly resided. Mr. Page has long been recog-
nised as one of the greatest American painters. Mr. Tuckerman, in his work
entitled Book of the Artists, says of him: " Of all American painters, William
Page is the most originally experimental. He has studied his art in theory as
well as practice; he has idealised in a wide range of speculations as regards the
process, the methods, and the principles of adapting them." Mr. Mathies, hav-
ing practised painting more as an amateur than an artist, sooff after laid aside
his pencil and easel and embarked in a patent- right business, which proved
more successful in a pecuniary way. He was proprietor for some years of the
"Arcade restaurant; " also landlord of the Clinton Hotel when he died, about
the year 1834. One of Mr. Mathies's most celebrated portraits is that of the
Indian chief Red Jacket, now in the possession of Mrs. H. G. Warner of this
city. About 1827, a Mr. Tuthill erected his "easel here as a portrait-painter,
and executed several paintings. Among them were portraits of the late Dr.
Matthew Brown and his wife; also, the father and mother of the late William
Atkinson. It was in this year that Daniel Steele, a portrait-painter of no mean
ability, came here. Mr. Steele was a man of very pleasing address, and soon
placed his pictures in the parlors of a large number of our best families. Among
his best pictures was one of Horace Gay; also one of General Vincent Mathews,
which is now hanging over the judge's'bench in the court-house. Mr. Steele
remained here about seven years. Philip Boss came to Rochester about 1830,
from the town of Clarkson, in this county. Possessing some talent for portrait-
painting as an amateur, he began the practice of his art here, and produced
quite a number of very satisfactory portraits.
S20 History of the City of Rochester.
Grove S. Gilbert graduated with honor at the Middlebury academy, about
the year 1825. While there, his genius manifested itself in drawing very life-
like pen and pencil sketches of his school-mates. His first essays in portraiture
were made in the village of LeRoy, from whence he removed to Niagara, Can-
ada, where he spent one winter in teaching school. He removed to this city
in the year 1834, when he was twenty-nine years of age. He at once opened
a studio, and erected his easel as a portrait-painter. Without the advantage of
foreign travel, or even a knowledge of the works of the best masters, and hav-
ing seen but few examples worthy of study, he seems to have invented his own
methods, and by intuitive genius to have worked out a system of his own, pro-
ducing results which have challenged the admiration of the best masters in the
country. During the past fifty years Mr. Gilbert has produced a very large
number of excellent portraits, including those of many" of our old citizens. He
still resides here, highly respected as an artist and as a gentleman. Roy Audy,
a portrait-painter of rather feeble talent, made his temporary residence here in
the year 1836. He painted a few pictures, among which \Vas a full length por-
trait of Elisha Johnson, one of our most prominent citizens. This was a very
showy work, and attracted some attention. Mr. Audy soon left, and has not
since visited the city professionally. Vincent P. Shaver, a portrait- painter of
more than ordinary talent, resided here from about the year 1833 to 1838. He
had a remarkable eye for color, his pictures were well drawn, and he generally
succeeded in giving true expression of the character of his subjects. He painted
the head of General Vincent Mathews for the members of the bar, which was
engraved on steel, and presented to Mr. O'Rielly for his Sketches of Rock
ester, and appeared in that work. Alvah Bradish practised the art of portrait-
painting here from 1837 to about 1847. He painted a large number of heads.
He was a man of decided ability, and produced works of great merit. He may
be regarded as the peer of any artist who has ever made his residence here.
Among some of his best heads are those of Silas O. Smith, Dr. Levi Ward and
Orlando Hastings. R. B. Smith was a contemporary of Mr. Bradish, and is still
a resident of the city. He has for many years practised portrait-painting, and
has produced many good likenesses. Mr. Smith has high claims for respect as
an artist, as he has thorough theoretical knowledge of his profession, and is a
lover of art. Colby Kimball came here about 1835, having in charge an exhi-
bition which was given in the old court-house, at twenty-five cents admission.
The show consisted of several paintings. The most attractive feature of the
show, however, was a live alligator. Mr. Kimball concluded to remain here,
and soon began painting portraits. He was an indefatigable worker. Of the
sixty portraits of the old pioneers now hanging in the court-house, I think he has
painted the largest number. As likenesses they are generally conceded good.
Thomas LeClear had a studio in the Arcade about 1858 or 1859. While here
the artist gave indications of that talent which has since placed him at the head
The Fine Arts IN RocHERTER. 521
of his profession in this country. He painted a few heads. The only one I can
now recall is that of Hubbard S. Allis, who was at that time a clerk in the post-
office, nearly under LeClear's studio. As LeClear became identified with our
city in his early efforts, I copy from Tuckerman a few lines in reference to his
s;.iccess as an artist : —
" Among the comparatively few American portrait-painters who have steadily pro-
gressed in their art is Thomas LeClear. To his native faculty for imitation, LeClear
now unites a remarkable power of characterisation, a peculiar skill in coloring, and mi-
nute accuracy in the reproduction of latent as well as superficial personal traits."
John Phillips, the now celebrated artist of Chicago, was in his youth a
farmer-boy on the farm of H. N. Langworthy, in the town of Greece, in this
county. He was a pupil of LeClear in 1839. He soon left for the West,
where he has succeeded in his profession to an eminent degree. He has visited
us for a few months at intervals, and has done a considerable number of fair
heads. He paints with a rapid, free and bold hand, often producing remark-
ably fine effects in relief. I have known him to paint a portrait in five hours
which would require as many days, if not weeks, with some artists. When he
chooses to devote his time to the careful expression of draperies, he can hardly
be excelled. As a successful Rochester boy, he deserves honorable mention in
our sketches. Eugene Sintzenich, a landscape-painter, came here about 1840.
He possessed fair talents as an artist, and was also considered a good teacher in
drawing and painting. He was employed by Mr. Reynolds to paint views of
Niagara on the walls of the entrance to the Arcade. These paintings for many
yeais attracted much attention. He died here in the year 1852. John Bow-
man came here in 1841, from Pennsylvania, and opened his studio as a portrait-
painter in the Arcade. He was an artist of more than ordinary abilit)^ He
painted a few very fine heads ; among which was one of Rev. Dr.' Whitehouse.
Harry B. Brent came here about 1840. He painted several fine landscapes
from nature; one in particular attracted great attention, "the residence of
Webster, at Mafshfield." Another, a composition of singular merit, represented
an imaginary view of the scenery of the Genesee at Rochester, one hundred
years ago. James Cleveland practised the art of landscape-painting here about
the year 1840. He also taught drawing and painting. He was a man of fine
ability, arid did much to increase the taste as well as to develop a knowledge
of his art in the higher sense of the term. James Harris came here about the
year 1845. He opened a studio in the Arcade as a landscape-painter and
teacher, where he remained for many years. He had many pupils at different
times ; in fact, for years was the only permanent teacher here. He had the
singular faculty of inspiring the minds of his .pupils with the idea that he was
a master in his profession ; hence he was quite successful as a teacher. He was
modest and retiring in his manner. He died here, having the personal regard
of his pupils and acquaintances. T. G. Gale practised his art as a portrait and
figure-painter here about the year 1843, ^^d for four or five years later. He
522 History of the City of Rochester.
had great versatility of talent. He practised nearly all branches of painting,
often attempting large historical and Scriptural works. A. D. Beecher came
hereabout 1863. He received his early instruction from Colby Kimball. Pos-
sessing native genius, he soon took to his own methods in painting. He was
an excellent colorist, and produced pleasing pictures as well as excellent like-
nesses in portraits. His genre paintings, fruit and flower pieces showed talent.
Isaac E. Wilbur was born near Avon, Livingston county. He early exhibited »
talent as an artist. He came to Rochester about i860, and commenced the
practice of landscape-painting in which he steadily progressed until he attained
an enviable position as an artist.
Miss Helen R. Searle, the daughter of Henry Searle, early evinced a de-
cided talent for painting. About 1865 she began painting small fruit and game
pictures. These early attempts were thoroughly artistic, and soon gave her a
reputation as a careful student of nature. She was selected as a teacher in
drawing and painting for the Bryan female seminary, at Batavia, where she
remained for several terms, filling her position with rare ability, and continually
progressing in her art studies, until her ambition to place herself in the front
ranks of her profession caused her to seek instruction in European schools of
art. She had excelled in fruit-painting, and hence she left for Europe to find
in Preyor — the leading artist in Germany in that line of art — at Diisseldorf,
a master under whose fostering care she could acquire the practice she so ear-
nestly desired. Her talent was appreciated by her master, and by her devotion
t(t) her chosen profession she soon produced works of exceeding beauty and
delicacy, truthful to nature, exquisite in drawing and color, and of such thorough
artistic character as to command large and remunerative prices. She is a fin-
ished artist, and reflects great credit upon her native city, and as a represent-
ative of the female artists of our country. Miss M. Louise Wagner, a native
of Norwich, N. Y., received the rudiments of art from her brother Daniel Wag-
ner. They removed to Rochester and opened a studio in the Arcade, in 1873.
They have applied themselves mostly to portraiture in oil, and landscape, fruit,
and flower-painting, and are strictly conscientious in all that pertains to their
profession. Christopher W. Forkel is a portrait-painter. He is a Rochester boy,
who, after spending several. years in New York and Europe, 'has returned here
and become a resident artist. He paints pictures of fruit, etc., which reflect
credit on him as a promising young artist. John W. Miller, a resident artist,
has acquired an enviable reputation as a painter of flowers from nature. He is
also a fresco-painter, and executes work in that department of art with great
skill and refined taste. Horatio Walker, one of the youngest of our artists,
has within a few years developed great talent as a painter of figure-pieces, both
of men and of animals. His merit is well recognised away from home, so that
he has had many commissions from New York and elsewhere for pictures of all
sizes. Harvey Ellis, James Somerville, James H. Dennis, John Z. Wood, Al-
The Fine Arts in Rochester. 523
fred Perkins and D. W. Norton are promising young artists. W. J. Lockhart,
who died a few years ago, was a painter of rare merit for one of his age.
Early Art Exhibitions. — It was the custom, some thirty or forty years ago,
to have meritorious works of art carried about the country and exhibited. Long
before any suitable exhibition hall was erected here, the court-house and the
ball-rooms of our hotels were used for such purposes. About the year 1843 a
fine collection of European paintings, including a full-length portrait of George
IV., by Sir Thomas Lawrence, was exhibited in the court-house. A little later,
the great painting known as Page's "Venus" was exhibited in the National
Hotel ball-room. Still later, the first piece of sculpture ever exhibited here,
Powers's "Grfeek Slave," was shown in a small hall in a building where the
Flour City bank now stands. Powell's great painting, "De Soto discovering
the Mississippi," which now adorns the rotunda of the capitol at Washington,
was exhibited in Corinthian hall soon after it was opened; Peale's "Court of
Death" was also exhibited in the same place. A few years since the late Wil-
liam A. Reynolds, who was not only a cultivated amateur and lover of art, but
a liberal patron, interested himself in establishing an art gallery in the large hall
over the Rochester savings bank. A Mr. Humphrey, who had long been en-
gaged in other cities in art exhibitions, took the general management and pro-
cured a large number of fine paintings for the exhibition, including Church's
"Under Niagara," Bierstadt's " Light and Shadow," and other celebrated works.
The exhibition for a time proved successful but was finally closed for want of
sufficient patronage. D. W. Powers, in 1876, soon after the Powers block was
fully completed, determined to finish the upper suite of rooms in his building
for a spacious permanent gallery. He entered upon this enterprise with his'
usual enthusiasm, determined that it should be an honor to Rochester, as well
as creditable to himself He paid a flying visit to Europe, in company with
connoisseurs of art competent to aid him in the selection of suitable pictures.
In a very few months, probably the finest suite of rooms anywhere to be found
in this country — devoted to art proper — were completed, and the walls filled
with creditable works of the old masters, as well as many originals of great
merit, together with several pieces of fine sculpture, forming altogether a pict-
ure-gallery of rare merit, for which Mr. Powers is entitled to the gratitude not
only of all lovers of art, but of the citizens generally of Rochester and Western
New York. In the parlors of our citizens may now be found large numbers
of valuable works of art, exhibiting a cultivated taste as well as appreciation of
art. Art feeling and art culture here have been greatly stimulated during the
past few years by some few persons who have labored efficiently for that object,
among whom no man is entitled to greater credit than M. B. Anderson, president
of our university, who is an accomplished connoisseur. His course of lectures
before the graduating classes of the university, which he has often kindly opened
to those interested in art, have proved of great value. It should be stated here
34
524 History of the City of Rochester.
that he was the first college president in the United States to inaugurate a sys-
tem of elementary instruction in the theory and practice of the fine arts, espe-
cially engravings, for the young men committed to his care, as a starting-point
in art culture from which they could easily, in after-life, by study and observa-
tion, become intelligent amateurs and art critics.
The Sculptors. — Edward C. Clute came to Rochester in 1854, and re-
mained about two years. He was the first to model and execute in marble a
life-size bust, in Rochester. His bust of the late James Chappell excited the
admiration of art critics at that time. He also executed small basso-relievos,
medallions, etc., of exquisite finish and beauty. This city not furnishing patron-
age, he sought employment for his genius in other climes. Johnson M. Mundy,
a native of New Brunswick, New Jersey, came to Rochester in 1863 and opened
a studio in the Arcade, after seven years of study in the studio of Henry K.
Brown, of Brooklyn. After 1863 he permanently resided in Rochester till
within two years. He has executed in marble a large number of busts of
leading citizens of Rochester and Western New York, among which are those
of Bishop De Lancey, Dr. Anderson, Dr. Chester Dewey, William A. and
Abelard Reynolds, Pliny M. Bromley, Fred Douglass, etc. Among other
works which have added largely to his reputation are designs for a soldiers'
monument, a memorial monument to Charles Sumner, "the Reaper," and
several figure-pieces. His products, whether from chisel or pencil, exhibit a
careful, patient study of nature which stamps him a conscientious worker. J.
Guernsey Mitchell is a young sculptor of great promise, who is now in Paris,
perfecting himself in the plastic art. . He is the maker of the colossal image
of Mercury, surmounting the tall chimney of Kimball's tobacco works, and he
has executed many beautiful busts in marble.
Architects and Architecture. — The first resident architect was Captain
Daniel Loomis, who came to Rochester in 1820. He furnished plans and built
the first county jail on North Fitzhugh street, and twenty years later the stone
jail on the " island. " He was also the builder of the old " Center market " at
the foot of Market street, of many of the best residences of the third ward
erected prior to 1840, and many of the business blocks erected at an early day,
among which was the old Rochester bank building. He died in 1864, and
was succeeded by his son, Isaac Loomis, who has practised this profession all
his life. The latter is the architect of several churches, including the church of
the Epiphany, and many residences, etc., in this city and the towns of Western
New York. W. H. Richardson is in partnership with him. Tinker, Bolt &
Ryan date from the year 1828. St. Paul's church was designed and erected
by them, with its spire two hundred and twenty-eight feet high, which when
nearly completed was blown down, and the present tower substituted. Jason
Bassett was considered the leading architect of the city from 1832 to 1840, the
period of his residence here. He had a penchant for the pure classic Grecian
The Fine Arts in Rochester. 525
style of architecture, of which the old City bank building was a good example.
Mervvin Austin came here about 1845, and exerted a large influence on public
and private architecture for years, at a time when the city was growing very
rapidly and more attention was being paid to modern styles. The old court-
house was torn down, and the present one erected by him. He was the arch-
itect of Plymouth church ; he also introduced the Gothic cottages for residence
in the suburbs. He left Rochester some time since.
A. J. Warner settled here in 1847. He has acquired an enviable reputa-
tion at home as well as abroad. His work has been done mainly during a
period of great financial prosperity, when large wealth had been accumulated
and our rapidly increasing population warranted the investment in more costly
and elegant buildings, hence his work is eminently more commanding in ap-
pearance than that of many of his predecessors. Among the fine and costly
buildings of which he is architect here may be named the Powers block, the
city hall, the Free academy, the First Baptist and First Presbyterian churches,
etc. He has also furnished plans for many private and public buildings
throughout Western New York, such as the Soldiers' Home, Bath; the city
hall, Erie county jail and hospital, at Buffalo, all of which are fine specimens
of architecture and have given him a wide reputation. Frederick A. Brockett
and J. Foster Warner are now associated with him. Charles Coots was for
many years a partner with A. J. Warner, and, though a young man, acquired
a fine reputation as an architect. D. C. McCallum practised his profession in
Rochester about the year 1840, and for a few subsequent years. He was an
accomplished architect, and held a high position in his profession. Among the
prominent buildings erected by him are the House of Refuge, St. Joseph's
church, St. Mary's hospital and the Odd Fellows' Hall building. He did much
to improve the general architecture of the city. His drawings and studies
were carefully made, and his plans well adapted to location. Henry Searle
came here in the year 1844, and for some twenty-three years was profession-
ally engaged as an architect. Among the public buildings erected by him
are the Rochester savings bank, in pure Grecian style and of rare beauty; the
old Third church,. which nas located on Main street, corner of Stone, a Gothic
structure ; the Central church, on Sophia street; the Monroe county workhouse,
the Rochester City hospital and Corinthian hall. For the last-named building
he invented a new and valuable method of ventilation, which has been largely
adopted elsewhere, reflecting great credit on him as a genius in his profession.
He acquired a large reputation throughout Western New York, and designed
the court-houses of Lyons, Canandaigua and Binghamton. He also furnished
designs and erected the House of Refuge for the state of Michigan, located at
Lansing. Mr. Searle removed from here, in 1867, to Washington, D. C. His
son Henry, who for eight years was engaged with his father as an architect,
removed from here to Washington, D. C, in 1865, and established himself
526 History of the City of Rochester.
there as a professional architect. He was commissioned to make drawings and
plans for the improvement and enlargement of our Rochester savings bank, of
which his father was the original architect, which plans were adopted, and in
which he has succeeded admirably in preserving and carrying out the original
exquisite Grecian designs of the original. The plans nearly double the original
height, adding about sixty feet ; they also enlarge the building on the ground.
John R. Thomas commenced the practice of his profession here in 1866. He
introduced the Mansard roof, which was first applied to private dwellings, and
has made a specialty of the study of Gothic art, believing that it will be the
architecture of the future in this country. H^ designed the Rochester theolog-
ical seminary buildings, Sibley hall, on the university grounds ; the Opera
house, the Monroe county alms house, the University of Virginia, at Char-
lottesville, Virginia, and the New York state reformatory buildings, at Elmira.
In 1874 he received an appointment from Governor Dix as one of the state
architects, and was assigned at once to the charge of the Reformatory at El-
mira. J. G. Cutler has, for some years, been one of our most popular archi-
tects, having designed many beautiful buildings, reflecting credit on his skill,
among which the Elwood block is the most conspicuous. The Ellis brothers,
among our younger architects, are highly esteemed for their artistic skill. They
have, already, produced many fine structures, and are now engaged on the
•government building, (post-office, etc.), the designs for which exhibit quite
practical utility as well as beauty. Putnam & Block have designed many fine
edifices here, and the name of Louis P. Rogers is associated with the Warner
building, on St. Paul street, of which he is the architect. Henry B. Gleason
has a high reputation in the profession, while Oscar Knebel and Otis & Cran-
dall are deservedly popular. The latest comers are Jay Fay and John R.
Church.
In Gothic architecture we have two fine churches, designed by the cele-
brated architect of Trinity church. New York, Mr. Upjohn. These buildings
are worthy of mention in this article as creditable alike to the parties who
caused them to be erected and to our city. The Unitarian church, on Temple
street, in the pure pointed Gothic style, is an exceedingly handsome edifice in
its proportions and style. St. Peter's church, on Gibbs street, which is in the
Romanesque Gothic, presents another very handsome ecclesiastical building.
Engraving on Wood arid Copper. — The earliest wood-cut engraver here was
Martin Cable. He made a few coarse wood-cuts of our early newspaper offices,
for show-bills, etc. He has left no record by which his fame could be perpet-
uated. V. R. Jackson commenced engraving here about 1835. He engraved
on copper and wood; also the first copper-plate map of the city was made by
him about the year 1840. He did a large amount of work on wood, and was
a man of decided talent in his profession. About 1845 Charles Mix came here
and formed a copartnership with John Miller, under, the name of Miller & Mix.
The Fine Arts in Rochester. 527
This firm for a number of years were the only engravers here. They executed
first-class work on steel, copper and wood, and acquired a good reputation as
artists. Miller moved away, and Mix continued the business for a time, when
he was succeeded, in 1850, by George Frauenberger, who, as engraver on
wood or copper, as a draughtsman in mechanical drawing, and as a horticul-
tural draughtsman from nature, has acquired an enviable reputation. George
D. Ramsdell and E. M. Sasseville are also good engravers, with plenty of work
on hand.
Lithography. — The first attempt at lithography was made by John T.
Young, whose name is mentioned by Mr. O'Rielly and who made the drawings
for his history of Rochester. Young was a teacher of drawing, and an excellent
draughtsman. He made drawings of the upper and lower falls, which were sent
to New York to be lithographed. He had other fine drawings which he thought
he could lithograph here, and for that purpose purchased a lithographic press
and the material for lithographing, which was established in a room in the Ar-
cade. He obtained the services of a New York lithographer, and commenced
business. He died soon after. In 1865 the business was established again by
Adolph Nolte, who employed four hand-presses and the requisite number of
men to keep them running by hand. The business went on with varied success
until the year 1871, when it passed into the hands of C. F. Muntz & Co. This
firm greatly enlarged the business, introduced modern steam-presses as well as
all the modern improvements in the art, obtained the best artists in this country
and from Europe, and soon began to produce lithography, plain and in colors,
equal in every respect to anything seen in this country. The firm name was
changed in 1875 to Mensing, Rahn & Stecher, and the business is now done
under the title of "the Lithographic and Chromo company of Rochester, New
York.'' This firm have recently erected a large building on North St. Paul
street for their increasing business. The present firm name is Mensing &
Stcchcr. Another establishment is that of Karle & Co.
Photography. — Daguerreotypes were made here as early as the year 1841
by Thomas Mercer, who opened the first daguerreotype gallery. It was situ-
ated in the Arcade. During the few succeeding years quite a number of
daguerreotype galleries were started, until tjie photographic process was in-
vented, when an extensive photograph establishment was opened. Mr. Powel-
son about this time opened the photograph gallery on State street. He was
succeeded by Wm. Roberts, and subsequently by J. H. Kent, who may be said
to have done more than any other artist in that line to establish the artistic
character of the photograph. He has recendy received the highest award from
the American photographers' association. Jacob Barhydt commenced the bus-
iness of photography about the year 1870. He associated with him Sherman
Gregg, who, since Mr. Barhydt's death, has conducted the business alone and
ranks high. At the annual meeting of the United States Photographic society
528 History of the City of Rochester.
these parties received the prize offered for the best collection of photographs,
an honor conferred upon Rochester art through their skillful operations. A
number of photograph galleries have been opened here, of which it would be
proper to speak, but for want of sufficient data their names only can be men-
tioned. Among the most skillful artists who may be named among the early
men were Mr. Appleby, Chauncey Perry ; of the later ones, Taylor & Bacon.
This firm was succeeded by Mr. Bacon, an estimable artist, who still continues
the business. M. Monroe, G. W. Godfrey, B. F. Hale, L. Sherman, John W.
Taylor, R. H. Furman, B. P. Grossman, A. E. Dumble (with whom is B. F.
Mixer, an artist in water-colors) and others are now carrying on the work.
Music. — The following extracts are taken from my address entitled Musical
Reminiscences of Rochester, delivered at the opening of the Rochester Acad-
emy of Music in 1 863 : —
" The occasion which has called us together seems a fitting one on which to review
the past musical history of our city. From this evening we may date a new era. The
earlier village history, so far as it relates to music, must, for want of an historian, remain
shrouded in mystery. I may say, however, that before any churches or church bells
were seen or heard here, on Sundays the villagers were called together at the school-
house for public worship by the music of an old-fashioned tin dinner-horn. I begin with
the first introduction of a church organ here, in the year 1825, at St. Luke's church. I
believe that Daniel Clark was the first organist here. He was employed to play the or-
gan and lead the choir at St. Luke's until a regular organist could be employed. The
earliest organist and composer of note was Rev. William Staunton, doctor of divinity and
musical doctor, now of the city of New York (this title of musical doctor has only been
conferred upon some three or four Americans). Mr. Staunton, then recently from Bos-
ton, while preparing for the ministry, had charge of the choir and organ at St. Luke's.
He i)ossessed rare musical abilities as an organist and composer. The late Benjamin
Hill was among our earliest and best teacliers of the piano-forte, and practised his pro-
fession from about the year 1830 to 1858. He was organist at Saint Paul's church for
many years, and was highly esteemed not only as an accomplished teacher, but as a per-
fect specimen of the 'fine old English gentleman.'
" The earliest effort to establish a musical society upon a grand scale was made about
the year 1833. It resulted in the organisation of a society called the ' Rochester Acad-
emy of Music' Its principal officers were Hon. Addison Gardiner, president; James M.
Fish, secretary ; and General L. B. Swan, treasurer. The society immediately engaged
the celebrated ballad singer and composer, Henry Russell, as leader and conductor. Mr.
Russell possessed rare qualities as a vocalist. The great secret of his wonderful success
as a ballad-singer lay in his clear and distinct enunciation of words, together with a pe-
culiarly clear and musical voice. The society fitted up rooms in the Child block, oppo-
site the old Rochester House, on Exchange street, which for several years was used for
musical purposes, under the name of Concert hall. About 1839 some eight young
ladies and gentlemen, former members of the Academy, organised a musical club, for the
practice of glees and Hght music. This club had for its conductor Lucius Bell, and for
pianist Miss Marian McGregor. The first soprano was the late Mrs. Dalzell, of Wheel-
ing, Virginia, then Miss Harriet Williams. The club gave several amateur concerts, the
proceeds of which were given to the Female Charitable and local societies. The last
The Fine Arts in Rochester. 529
concert given was for the purpose of raising a fund with which to erect a monument to
the late Prof Samuel Cooper. The monument was erected in Mount Hope, and was
the first erected on these grounds. About 1840 the Rochester Union Grays gave a
series of invisible concerts at the National Hotel — the singers being placed behiild a
screen. Knoup,- one of the most wonderful players in the world upon the violoncello,
accompanied by Madame De Gone on the guitar, gave a concert at the National Hotel.
The Rainer family of Tyrolese minstrels sang in the same hall. JBraham, the great
English tenor, also sang in this hall. The first negro-minstrel concert was given by the
renowned Christy, at the Eagle Hotel.
"The first public hall designed for concert purposes was erected by Anson House,
on the corner of St. Paul and Main streets. It was called Minerva hall, and was opened
by Mr. Dempster in one of his ballad concerts. About the year 1840 Leopold De
Meyer, the 'lion pianist,' gave his wonderful performance in that hall. Henry Herz, the
Parisian pianist, and Sivori, the'renowned violinist and direct successor of Paganini, also
gave their performances at this hall. Several musical societies have been organised since
that time. An attempt was made about 1843 to reorganise the Academy of Music.
Robert Barron was selected as leader, and rehearsals were had at the session-room of
the First Presbyterian church. It, however, proved short-lived. The next effort in the
way of a society was the organisation of what was called the 'Rochester Harmonic so-
ciety,' under the leadership of the late Prof. Charles Wilson, a deservedly popular and well
known music-teacher. Robert Barron also assisted as musical conductor. Its principal
first soprano was Mrs. Hattie Brown Miller, whose musical talent is too well known and
appreciated to need any praise from me. This society was for a while quite successful,
and gave several popular concerts. It, however, had its day, and passed off the stage
about the time that the Jenny Lind furor and the rage for concerts by foreign artists
commenced. Mr. Perkins, the father of the present band-leader, Perkins, was among
our earliest musicians, and a band-master of more than ordinary talent, and for many
years he furnished our band- music. Captain Cheshire, a well-known bugle-player, for
many years occupied so prominent a position that he should not be forgotten. About
the year 1840 Captain Adams organised his celebrated brass band. Captain Alexander
Scott succeeded him. These two bands were so celebrated at home and abroad as to be
worthy of notice.
"The first regular music store, for the sale of sheet-music and musical instruments, was
opened about 1834 by B. C. Brown, who carried it on for a few years. Harvey Warren,
about 1837, opened an extensive music store for the sale of music, piano-fortes, and mu-
sical instruments generally. He was a vocalist and a good choir-leader, and had charge
for a year or two of the music of St. Luke's church. He finally sold his business to the
late Rev. George Dutton, who carried it on for several years, when he closed the estab-
lishment in 1853. The late James Murray, a vocalist and choir-leader, practised his
profession for over thirty years in Rochester and Western New York. The late B. W.
Durfee was for many years an acceptable teacher of vocal music, and a choir-leader
here, and for some time had charge of the music in our public schools. About i860 the
late Prof Fred Miller took up his residence here. He possessed fine musical talent and
culture, and played well upon most musical instruments. In 1849 Mr. Reynolds erected
his Corinthian hall building. The success of this hall, and the benefit it has conferred
upon the musical community, are well known. Completed at a time when concerts by
first-class artists had become popular it has for sixteen years been the popular place for
music of all kinds. This hall is remarkable for being the most perfectly constructed for
530 History of the City of Rochester.
acoustic effects of any in this country, and it has been visited by architects from Boston
and other cities, specially to get its proportions for perfect sound. In 1859 Prof. J. S.
Black took up his residence here, and commenced the practice of his profession as a
teacher of vocal music, his specialty being the culture of the voice. In the course of a
year he had gathered around him many pupils and admirers. He conceived the idea
of a new musical society for the practice of a higher order of music. A class was readily
formed, and the practice entered upon with all that zeal which usually characterises new
societies. The board of directors of the Rochester savings bank, in the construction of
their noble edifice for a banking-house, and in a spirit of devotion to art, wishing to con-
fer upon the community a munificent gift which should reflect credit alike upon the city
and the institution they represent, had designed and»constructed this magnificent hall as
a perpetual gallery for purposes of art and art-culture. Already had a grant of incor-
poration been obtained from the legislature, and an organisation been perfected under
the title of 'the Rochester Academy of Music and Art.' To perfect and carry out the
plans of this institution, it remained only to organise the society under these officers and
take possession of these rooms."
The Rochester Academy of Music went on successfully for two or three
years, when Prof. Black removed from the city to Indianapolis, and Prof. Henri
Appy was called from New York as musical director of the institution. Mr.
Appy came to this country with the Jenny Lind troupe bi-ought over by P. T.
Barnum, of which he was the leading violin soloist. The Academy prospered
under his administration for a time, but was finally given up, when Mr. Appy
concluded to establish his permanent residence here. John H. Kalbfleisch, an
accomplished teacher, organist and pianist, has done much to elevate the stand-
ard of music here. He organised the Philharmonic society, and has been prom-
inent in musical circles for many years. Herve D. Wilkins has been a success-
ful teacher here on the organ and piano for several years past. He is regarded
as an accomplished organist as well as pianist. He has had charge of the or-
gans of several of our leading churches for years. He has spent some time in
European schools of music, especially in Leipsic, in fitting himself as a teacher,
and now ranks among our best artists. Mrs. C. S. P. Gary, a lady pianist and
music-teacher, who for some years past has been connected with the Philhar-
monic society as pianist, is justly regarded as one of our best musicians. R. F.
C. Ellis had a fine reputation as music- teacher on the piano as well as organ.
He for many years had the organ in St. Luke's church, and composed some
music for the chants, etc. The Rochester Philharmonic society, organised about
ten years ago, met with varied financial success, the public patronage not being
at any time what it should be. The gentlemen composing the society labored
hard to keep it in existence. It did much to elevate the character of our in-
strumental music, as well as to cultivate the public taste, by giving each winter
a series of concerts, under the direction of Professor Henri Appy as leader.
The Mannerchor, a most successful German musical society, has been in exist-
ence here for ten years or more. It has given many concerts, and afforded
great satisfaction to all lovers of German chorals and songs. The society
The University and the Theological Seminary. 531
adorns the cause of music. We have at present several musical societies, all of
which deserve meritorious mention. Among the most prominent are the Ora-
torio society, the Orchestra society, the Mendelssohn vocal society, the Arion,
the Liedertafel and the Liederkranz.
The Rochester Art club had its origin in meetings begun in 1872, for the
purpose of drawing from life, but the club was not actually formed until 1879.
The following were the first officers : President, James H. Dennis ; vice-presi-
dent, Miss Emma Lampert; secretary, W. F. Reichenbach ; treasurer, John Z.
Wood. The object of the society is the cultivation and advancement of the
industrial and fine arts and the promotion of social intercourse among its mem-
bers. In 1882 the club was incorporated, the charter members being James
H. Dennis, Harvey Ellis, J. Guernsey Mitchell, James Somerville, Horatio
Walker, John Z. Wood. Exhibitions are held in the spring of every year which
are patronised by the best artists of the country. The club has a high reputa-
tion away from home, and many of the productions of its members and its stu-
dents have been hung on the walls at exhibitions in New York and have found
a ready sale in that city. The officers for. the present year are : President, Har-
vey Ellis ; vice-president, John Z. Wood ; secretary, Horatio Walker ; treas-
urer, James Somerville.
The Art Exchange, was organised February ist, 1881, by the election of
the following officers : President, Miss Lois E. Whitney ; manager, Mrs. E. P.
Reed. The object of the association is the advancement of the artistic in-
dustries. Instructions are given in drawing, engraving and water-color paint-
ing and cooking by competent teachers. The officers for the present year are:
President, Miss Lois E. Whitney ; treasurer, Mrs. Elmer Smith ; recording sec-
retary. Miss Stella Shuart ; corresponding secretary. Miss Belle Watson ; foreign
secretary, Miss Belle Clarke. The rooms are in the Powers building.
CHAPTER L.
the university and the theological seminary. 1
Madison Universily — Plans for its Removals A New University Established at Rochester — Its
Founders and Trustees — Its Influence on the City — Its Course of Study — Its Lectures, its Library
and its Museums — Its Benefactors and its Buildings — The Theological Seminary — Full Description
of the Institution.
AS early as 1820, when the Baptists of the state of New York numbered but
28,600, they established at Hamilton, in Madison county, a college which
"had one object only and exclusively — namely,. to furnish means for the edu-
cation of young men who shall give evidence of a call to the ministry." ^ In
1839, against considerable opposition and. mainly through local influences,-''
1 The article on the university was prepared by Prof. J. H. Gilmore.
2 First Half Century of Madison, p. 39. ' Ibid., p. 42.
532 History of the City of Rochester.
other than candidates for the ministry were admitted to this college, but it re-
tained, until very recently, something of the character given to it by its found-
ers. In the lapse of time, some of the trustees and instructors of Madison
university, and still more of the members of the Baptist denomination through-
out the state, became dissatisfied with this singleness of purpose. The idea
was dawning upon the Baptists of the state of New York that, if education is
a good thing for the clergy, it is a good thing for the laity, and that even those
who "give evidence of a call to the ministry" will be none the worse preach-
ers and pastors for rubbing and filing their minds, during their college course,
against those who have law, medicine, or mercantile life in view. Meanwhile
many deemed Hamilton an unsuitable site for such an institution as the Baptists
of the state of New York would, inevitably, demand. However attractive the
rural beauty of its surroundings, however free from temptations and well
adapted to purposes of study, Hamilton — the Hamilton of that day — was
difficult of access, altogether apart from the rushing tide of human thought and
activity, and quite too much engrossed in the affairs of the "university," which
played an important part in church and village politics. Such considerations
as these induced many thoughtful and devout Baptists in different parts of the
state of New York to regard the removal of Madison university from Hamilton
as absolutely essential to the growth and prosperity of that institution — nay,
to its continued existence.
The causes which have just been indicated resulted in a strenuous effort to
secure the removal of Madison university to what some deemed a more favor-
able locality. Rochester was convenient of access to the east and west and
partook alike of the refinement and culture of the one, the bustling activity of
the other. It sustained intimate relations to Canada on the north, and was
rapidly assuming, intimate relations with Pennsylvania on the south. It was a
city noted for the intelligence and piety of its people, the center of a rich agri-
cultural region which was, at that time, almost entirely destitute of facilities for
higher education. There was, west of Cayuga bridge, a district nearly as large as
the state of Massachusetts, and with a population estimated at 530,000, which
contained only one college, and that comparatively insignificant. Of this re-
gion Rochester was the natural center. The Baptists of Rochester wanted a
college (a desire which their fellow-citizens of other denominations abundantly
shared) and were willing to work for it, pray for it, give to it. Such were the
considerations by which the Baptists of Western New York convinced their
brethren in the eastern and central part of the state that, if Madison university
was to be removed at all, Rochester was the place for it. They were weighty
considerations — considerations which had twice before led other denominations
to contemplate the establishment of a college in the Flour city. It is in some
respects unfortunate that the reasons which determined the new location were
so strong. That location was substantially settled before any decision had been
■ The University Chartered. 533
made upon the general question of removal. It was naturally, therefore, left
to the Baptists of Rochester and vicinity to take the initiative in agitating the
question of removal ; and equally natural that, if they did so, they should be
accused of being actuated solely by self-interest. Heedless of the imputation
to which they subjected themselves, "a meeting of the friends of Madison uni-
versity" assembled at the First Baptist church in Rochester, September 12th,
1847, ^fid a motion was unanimously carried "that it be regarded the sense of
this meeting that Madison university be removed to Rochester. " At a meet-
ing of the citizens of Rochester, held in the city hall, October 28th, 1847, the
idea of establishing a university in Rochester was emphatically indorsed, and
pecuniary assistance was freely pledged to it by leading men of various de-
nominations.
The action taken by the Baptists of Rochester was indorsed by a majority
of their brethren thoughout the state, but legal obstacles were thrown in the
way of the projected removal of Madison university to the banks of the Genesee.
Application was, accordingly, made for a charter authorising the establishment
of a new university at Rochester, and, at the suggestion of William L. Marcy
(who had from the first, been an earnest promoter of the new enterprise), this
application was made not to the legislature, where it would have undoubtedly
met with strenuous opposition, but to the regents of the university. ^ In
response to this application a provisional charter was granted by the regents,
January 31st, 1850, which sanctioned the establishment of the University of
Rochester, provided that $130,000 be subscribed for this purpose in two years,
of which sum $30,000 was to be invested in sites and buildings, and $100,000
in permanent endowment. On the 2d of December, 1850, the petitioners sub-
mitted to the regents " satisfactory proofs that suitable buildings had been pro-
vided for the use of said institution, and also that funds to the amount of $100,-
000, with which it is intended to provide for such institution or college, have
been secured by valid subscriptions of responsible parties. " Whereupon, the
regents, February 14th, 1851, issued the charter under which the university is
at present organised — which still, however, contained the proviso that, within
five years, the regents must be satisfied that at least $100,000 had been per-
manently invested, in state or national bonds or in mortgages on unincumbered
real estate worth double the amount of the mortgage, in order that the charter
might become perpetual — a provision complied with in 186 1, when the charter
became perpetual.
The charter thus granted (which is, in all respects, similar to the old charter
of Columbia college in the city of New York) simply invests the corporation of
the university "with all the privileges and powers conceded to any college in
1 Not only did the idea of such an application to the board of regents originate with Governor Marcy,
but it was largely due to his personal influence that that body was induced to grant even a provisional
charter to an institution which had ndt a foot of land nor a dollar in money, and no very definite ideas
as to when either was to be obtained.
534 History of the City of Rochester.
this state, pursuant to the provisions of the sixth section of the statute entitled
'an act relative to the university,' passed April 5th, 18 13." The charter did
not vest the control of the university in any religious denomination. It simply
created a self-perpetuating board of trustees, twenty-four in number, who hold
office for life, but who may be removed, by vote of their associates, for non-at-
tendance at three successive annual meetings. Twenty of the trustees named
in the charter ^ were Baptists, and the Baptists have thus maintained an effective
control over the university, though different religious denominations have always
been represented in its board of trustees and its faculty of instruction, and a
majority of its students are generally from other than Baptist families. In its
chapel and recitation rooms Baptists, Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians,
Romanists and Jews meet on a perfect equality.^ The religious convictions of
each are respected, in so far as this may be done consistently with a dominant
purpose to impart instruction, in every department of study, from a thoroughly
evangelical point of view.
The university maintains no separate preaching service, deeming it wisest
and best that its students associate themselves with the religious communities
in the city and receive, from week to week, such religious instruction as is
adapted to an ordinary congregation. The Christian men of the university are,
however, associated for religious work in a Young Men's Christian association.
This association holds a weekly prayer-meeting, in which all the students par-
ticipate, and a class prayer-meeting is held by each class at the close of the
Saturday morning's lecture.
The university has no connection with either the state or the general govern-
ment. In 1857 the state of New York granted the university $25,000 toward
the erection of a permanent building for library, chapel and recitation rooms,
upon condition that the friends of the university raise a like sum for its benefit.
This condition was met by General John F. Rathbone, of Albany, who gave
$25,000 to constitute a library fund for the institution. With this exception,
the university has received no aid from either the state or the nation. It has
no organic connection with the public school system of the city of Rochester ;
and yet it is, practically, the cap-stone of that system, and its influence is felt
1 The names of those citizens of Roche.sler who have 1)een members of the board of trustees are ; John
N. Wilder, 1850-1858; Frederick Whittlesey, 1850-1851; William Pitkin, 1850-1869; Everard Peck,
1850-1854; David K. Barton, 1850-1871 ; E. F. Smith, 1850-1879; Elon Huntington, 1850-; Edwin
Pancost, 1850-1867; WiUiam N. Sage, 1850-; Azariah Hoody, 1853-1865 ; Jacob Gould, 1854-1867;
Gideon W. Burbank, 1854-1873; Henry W. Dean, M. D., 1859-1878; Edwin O. Sage, 1867-; Hiram
Sibley, 1868-; William A. Reynolds, 1870-1872 ; Martin W. Cooke, 1871-; Francis A. Macomber,
1871-; Freeman Clarke, 1872-; Edward M. Moore, M. D., 1872-; Rev. Charles J. Baldwin, 1878 -;
These names are certainly a guarantee both of the catholicity of the university and of its eminent re-
spectability.
2 In illustration of this point — four difierent denominations are, at present, represented in the board
of trustees, and four in the faculty. The students reported in the catalogue for 1884-85 are connected
either personally or by family ties, with the following denominations : Baptists, 74 ; Presbyterians, 34 ;
Methodists, 11; Episcopalians, 7; Congregationalists, 2; Universalists, 2; Catholics, 2; Jews, 2;
Unitarians, i : Free Methodists, i ; Disciples, I ; Evangelical Lutherans, I ; German Lutherans, i.
OjlGANISATION OF THE UNIVERSITY. 535
to the lowest grade of our primary schools. Three scholarships, yielding free
tuition in the university, are awarded, each year, to students fitted for college
in th-e public schools of the city; and thus through the existence among us of
the university an intelligent and industrious young man can secure, free of cost,
a college education. The first time these city scholarships were awarded (in
185 1) Patrick O'Rourke (a Catholic), Thomas Dransfield (a Presbyterian) and
Simon Tuska (a Jew) were the recipients. O'Rourke subsequently received an
appointment to West Point, and Ephraim Gates (a Baptist) took his place. ' But
for the city scholarships, none of these men would have received a college edu-
cation. Mr. Tuska (who died in 1872, while in charge of the Jewish syna-
gogue in Memphis, Tennessee) was one of the most learned and most liberal
men ever graduated by the university.
It may be stated that 440 Rochester boys and three Rochester girls have
availed themselves of the privileges of the university, and that 181 Rochester
boys have completed a course of study and received degrees. The three Roch-
ester girls point toward coeducation, and it is certainly worth mentioning that
the late Lewis H. Morgan left his entire estate to the university (after the de-
cease of his wife and son) to provide facilities for the higher education of wo-
men. It will be safe, therefore, to predict that, fifty years hence, the catalogue
of the university will make a better showing so far as the gentler sex is con-
cerned, but the figures that we give show that it has already proved itself a
benefit and a blessing to the city of Rochester. Probably not one quarter as
many Rochester boys would have received a college education but for the ex-
istence of a college at their very doors ; and, meanwhile, the University of
Rochester has done much, in a general way, to elevate the tone of Rochester
society. Its officers — and especially President Anderson — have been fore-
most in every literary, social, patriotic and religious way.
The -trustees of the new university met, informally, at Rochester May 13th,
1850, and appointed a committee of seven to mature a plan of instruction. The
first duly called and notified meeting of the trustees of the University of Roch-
ester (which, it may be said in passing, is the legal title of the institution — not
"Rochester university," nor " Mr. Anderson's school") was held in the commit-
tee room of the First Baptist church, September l6th, 1850. The trustees or-
ganised, under the provisional charter granted by the regents, by the election
of John N. Wilder, president ; Wm. N. Sage, secretary, and Edwin Pancost,
treasurer. The committee on course of instruction — appointed May 13th,
1850 — reported at this meeting and their recommendations were substantially
adopted. Six professorships (with a salary of twelve hundred dollars) were
created — of which five were filled by the following appointment : A. C. Ken-
drick, D. D. — Greek language and literature ; John F. Richardson, A. M. —
Latin language and hterature; John H. Raymond, A. M. — history and belles
lettres ; Chester Dewey, D. D. — the natural sciences ; Samuel S. Greene, A.
536 History of the City of Rochester.
M. — mathematics and natural philosophy. The chair of intellectual and moral
philosophy (the presidential chair) was not at this time filled. The executive
duties of the president were subsequently discharged by Dr. Kendrick ; while
Rev. John S. Maginnis, D' D., professor of theology in the Rochester theolog-
ical' seminary, gave instruction in this department. Rev. Thomas J. Conant,
D. D., also connected with the theological seminary, was subsequently secured
as instructor in elementary Hebrew.^
The trustees further voted, at this meeting, that the new institution should
go. into active operation on the first Monday in November, 1850, and authorised
the executive board to lease and fit up for the temporary use of the university
a building on Buffalo (now West Main) street, formerly known as the United
States Hotel. Suitable rooms for chapel exercises, recitations, etc., were fitted
up in the building designated ; the under-graduates of Madison flocked to the
temporary quarters which the building afforded them ; and, on the day pre-
scribed, the University of Rochester was an accomplished fact. Its first cat-
alogue reported eight instructors and seventy- one students. In July, 185 i, it
graduated a class of ten. The progress of the new institution was so sudden
and so wonderful that Ralph Waldo Emerson, according to Mr. Wilder, used
it as an illustration of Yankee enterprise — saying that a landlord in Rochester
had an old hotel which he thought would rent for more as a university,
so he put in a few books, sent for a coach-load of professors, bought some
philosophical apparatus, and, by the time green peas were ripe, he had grad-
uated a large class of students.
The university started on its career of usefulness with two literary societies
— the Delphic and Pithonian — which, for some years, maintained a vigorous
existence. The "Greek letter" societies were, at once (1850), represented by
the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity, which was followed, in 1851, by the Delta Psi;
in 1852 by the Delta Upsilon (at first the "Equitable fraternity"); in 1856
by the Delta Kappa Epsilon; in 1858 by Psi Upsilon; in 1867 by the Theta
Delta Chi (since defunct); in 1884 by the Chi Psi. The university has never
antagonised these societies; but has sought — and that successfully — to make
them an adjunct to instruction and discipline. The first commencement was
held in 185 1. A sermon was preached before the Judson society of Inquiry
by Rev. William R. Williams, D. D., of New York; an oration and poem were
delivered, before the literary societies, by Henry Ward Beecher and Park Ben-
jamin. The papers of current date say that "the procession was the largest
and most imposing civic procession ever seen in the streets of Rochester, and
Corinthian hall was crowded to its utmost capacity."
1 Of the professors named above, Dr. Kendrick had been connected with Madison university since
1832, Dr. Conant since 1835, Dr. Maginnis and Prof. Richardson since 1838, Prof. Raymond since
1840. Prof. Greene did not accept the appointment tendered him, and the chair of matliematics was
temporarily filled by E; Peshine Smith, afterward interpreter of international law at the court of Japan.
The other appointees entered upon the duties of their respective departments at the opening of the uni-
versity. The name of Albert H. Mixer also appears in the first catalogue as tutor in languages.
President Anderson. — Numerical Data. 537
In 1853 Martin B. Anderson — the first, and, thus far the only, president
of the university — entered upon his duties. He was born at Brunswick,
Maine, February 12th, 1815; graduated at Waterville college (now Colby
university) in 1840. The following year he spent in theological studies in New-
ton Center, Massachusetts. In 1841 he was recalled to his alma mater zs tutor.
In 1843 he was appointed professor of rhetoric. In 1850 he resigned and be-
came editor of the New York Recorder, then the leading Baptist paper of the
country. His personal history since that date has been identified with that of
the university over which he has so ably presided. In the same year it was
voted to accept the gift of eight acres of land, valued at $10,000, which was
tendered to the university as a permanant site by Azariah Boody. The land
thus secured was that on which Anderson and Sibley halls now stand. Seven-
teen acres in addition to Mr. Boody's gift were subsequently purchased, with
the idea of laying it out in house-lots, by the sale of which the endowment of
the university might be promoted. This idea was abandoned after lots enough
had been sold to seriously mar the beauty of the campus. Many objected to
the location as too remote from the center of the city. Others would have
been satisfied with a location equally remote — on the west side. Among the
other sites mentioned were Lake View, the Wadsworth tract, the Munger tract.
Brown square, and the Warner property, opposite Mt. Hope. Anderson hall,
subsequently erected on this ground by R. Gorsline & Son, cost (including fur-
niture) $39,521.12. The building was occupied in 1861.
In 1 861 the war of the rebellion broke out and Professor Quinby raised a
regiment for two years' service — the first two years' regiment raised in the
state; though mustered in as the Thirteenth New York volunteers. In the
fall of this year Professor Quinby resigned his colonelcy and resumed his chair,
which had been temporarily filled by Alonzo J. Howe (of the class of '56). In
1862 he was, however, appointed brigadier- general of volunteers and was ab-
sent in command of a division in the army of the Mississippi, till January, 1864.
The existing classes were, during this and the following years, almost broken
up, and the entering classes were naturally small, through enlistments in the
Union army.
The number of admissions to the university is uniformly in excess of the
number in the Freshman class; some years very largely so — thus, while the
number admitted as Freshmen in 1875 was thirty-eight, the entire number of
new students was fifty-five. It will be noticed that the attendance at the uni-
versity fluctuates with the prosperity or adversity of the nation. In 1856 the •
entering class numbered forty-seven and the entire number of students was 163.
In 1857, the year of the great panic, the Freshman class dropped to thirty-four,
and the next year to twenty-eight. In 1 860 the university recovered, its lost
ground. It had forty-five Freshmen and a total attendance of 168. Then the
rebellion broke out, and, through the absorption of a generation of students in
538 History of the City of Rochester.
the army and the tendency given toward practical rather than sedentary life,
the , Freshman class gradually drops to nineteen. The numbers regularly in-
crease until 1873, when the university touches high-water mark, reporting fifty-
three Freshmen and 173 in all. Then another financial crisis breaks upon us,
and the numbers again diminish.
The University of Rochester has two courses of instruction : I. The class-
ical course, extending through four years, at the expiration of which time these
who have satisfactorily met the requirements of the faculty are admitted to the
degree of bachelor of arts. II. The scientific course, extending through four
years and requiring the Latin of the classical course as essential to the success-
ful prosecution of the modern languages and the mastery of scientific terminol-
ogy. In the place of Greek, a more extended course of study is prescribed in
the physical sciences and in other departments promotive of general culture.
Those who satisfactorily complete this course are admitted to the degree of
bachelor of science. Two thousand, two hundred and sixty hours are spent in
the recitation- room by a student during his entire course. These 2,260 hours
are apportioned, in the case of a classical student, as follows : Latin language
and literature (including Roman history), 256 to 320 hours; Greek language
and literature (including Greek history), 246 to 356 hours; French language
and literature, 130 to 152 hours; German language and literature, 1 16 to 186
hours; English language and literature, 96 hours; comparative philology, 1 1
hours; pure mathematics, 232 to 257 hours; applied mathematics, 202 hours;
natural sciences, 252 to 407 hours; logic and rhetoric, no hours; elocution,
37 hours; intellectual and moral philosophy, 94 hours; history, 121 hours;
political economy and constitutional law, .71 hours; general jurisprudence (op-
tional), 70 hours; history of art and principles of art criticism, 14 hours. It
will be seen that the university cannot be accused of giving undue attention to
Latin, Greek and the pure mathematics — especially when it is remembered
that these studies are mainly pursued early in the course, when a student's
time is less valuable than it is after he has attained to greater discipline and
maturity.
Following the example of Madison university, the University of Rochester,
when first organised, established intimate relations with a private school which
had been already established in the city (the "Rochester collegiate institute ") ;
and, for a few years, that school was distinctly recognised in the catalogues as
"the university grammar school. " In 1854 all connection with that school
(which has since ceased to exist) was severed. In 1856 the university, hoping
thus to create a feeder for itself, advanced $10,000 (which has since been repaid,
principal and interest) toward the " Brockport collegiate institute, " now the
Brockport Normal school. With these exceptions, the University of Rochester
has had no connection with any " preparatory department, " and is not likely
to have. Ample facilities for fitting boys for college are afforded by the public
and private schools of Rochester and its immediate vicinity.
PhofD by i^-ant, Rocha iKir H Y.
/Mianlrc Poblishinq &. Loqravn-i LJoNV
^.fJ.J^
The Faculty. 539
The same impulse that gave birth to the University of Rochester gave
birth, also, to the Rochester theological setninary. The two institutions were
established in the same year and, mainly, through the instrumentality of the
same men. At first they occupied the same building (that of the university),
and it was supposed that they would ultimately erect permanent buildings on
the same lot. There was from the first, however, no organic connection be-
tween the two institutions ; and to-day — though cordially sympathising and
cooperating with each other — they have separate corporations, separate treas-
uries, separate local habitations and separate faculties of instruction. The ex-
istence in Rochester of a well endowed and thoroughly equipped theological
seminary, under the auspices of the Baptist denomination, has, however, as a
matter of course, precluded all thought of a theological department in the
university. Nor has there been serious thought of the establishment of depart-
ments of law and medicine. Indeed, overtures looking to this end have been
rejected, with the idea that it is wise to fully supply the demand for academic
instruction before attempting to train men in special departments of study.
Neither the Baptists of New York nor the citizens of .Rochester feel the need
of a law school or a medical school, as they felt the need of a college thirty-
odd years ago ; and, until they do feel this need, it is hardly wise to attempt to
supply it. A school of applied science is, undoubtedly, already demanded by
the Baptists of the entire country and the people of Western New York ; and
it is hoped that the university may, at no distant day, supply that want. Had
the state of New York divided the land grants of the United States be-
tween existing institutions, instead of concentrating them upon the founda-
tion of a new institution, such a school would have been now in successful
operation in Rochester, and would be sustained as only a great agricultural
and manufacturing center can sustain such an institution. The foundation of
such a school has, indeed, already been laid in the ample cabinets of the uni-
versity and in its chemical laboratory.
The faculty, as at present constituted, consists of Martin B. Anderson, LL. D.,
president, Burbank professor of intellectual and moral philosophy; Asahel C.
Kendrick, D. D., LL. D., Munro professor of the Greek language and litera-
ture; Lsaac F. Quinby, LL. D., Harris professor of mathematics and natural
philosophy; Samuel A. Lattimore, Ph. D., LL. D., professor of chemistry;
Albert H. Mixer, A. M., professor of modern languages ; Joseph H. Gilmore,
A. M., Deane professor of logic, rhetoric and English literature; Otis H. Rob-
inson, A. M., professor of mathematics, and librarian; William C. Morey, Ph.
D., professor of history and pohtical science; Henry F. Burton, A. M., professor
of Latin ; Harrison E. Webster, A. M., professor of geology and natural history ;
George M. Forbes, A. M., assistant professor of Greek; Herman K. Phinney,
A. M., assistant librarian. Among those who have been connected with the
faculty in the past, and whose names have not, hitherto, been mentioned, are
35
S40 History of the City of Rochester.
Prof. S. S. Cutting, D. D. (1855-68), and Prof. Henry A. Ward (1861-75), both
of whom have done much — though in widely different directions — to pro-
mote the welfare and reputation of the university.
The university campus is twenty-three and a half acres in extent, and is
situated in the northeastern part of the city, about a mile and a half from the
business center. The buildings of the university are three in number. Ander-
son hall, which was completed in 1861, is a severely plain, but extremely sub-
stantial, structure of brown stone, one hundred and fifty feet in length by sixty
in breadth, with a central projection of fifteen feet in front and rear and orna-
mental projections at either end. It is three stories in height, with a basement
— which appears as such in front but constitutes an additional story when the
building is viewed from the rear. This building (which could not, to-day, be
erected for less than $75,000) is devoted to chapel and recitation-rooms.
In 1 87 1 Hiram Sibley of Rochester promised the university a fire-proof
building, to cost not less than $75,000, for the accommodation of its library.
In i872 the foundations for the building were laid. In 1877 it was made the
receptacle of the library, and in 1883 the geological and mineralogical cabinets
were transferred to the upper story. The building is situated on the college
campus, fronting, like Anderson hall, on University avenue, but between that
structure and Prince street. Its dimensions are one hundred and twenty-five
feet by sixty, with a projection of twenty feet in the center of the front. The
building has only two floors — though the walls are fifty-two feet in height,
from the water-table to the cornice — but each story is ultimately to be divided
by iron galleries so that the structures will really furnish four stories in two.
The upper story is used for the cabinets of the university, the lower .story, which
will afford shelf-room for 90,000 volumes, being ample for library purposes for
some time to come. The building is absolutely fire proof and cost not less than
$100,000, the whole expense being assumed by Mr. Sibley, who stipulated
merely that it be open for a free reading library forever to the citizens of
Rochester.
The president's mansion is not situated upon the campus, but on a lot of
land, four acres and a half in extent, upon the corner of University avenue and
Prince street. This lot was purchased, with funds subscribed by the citizens of
Rochester, in 1868. There was then standing upon it a substantial brick resi-
dence, which had been built but a few years. This building was considerably
enlarged, and entirely remodeled and refitted, so as to adapt it to its present
purpose. The grounds, also, were tastefully improved and rendered at once
attractive and useful. This property (which is owned by the university, but
occupied, rent free, by the president) is valued at $48,000.
The library of the university is, as yet, comparatively small, but is more
valuable than many larger libraries, from the fact that it has been acquired
mainly by purchase. It contains more than 20,000 volumes, in the purchase
The Library and Cabinets. 54^
of which preference has been given to those works that arc demanded by the
officers and students for the successful prosecution of their inquiries in the
various departments of study. A fund of $50,000 (the gift of Gen. John F.
Rathbone and Lewis Rathbone of Albany) is devoted to the maintenance and
increase of the library ; and a card catalogue, which is accessible to every vis-
itor, makes its contents easily available. All the students may draw books from
the library, and are aided in consulting it by the librarian and other members
of the faculty. The library is also, through the generosity of Hiram Sibley,
accessible, as a free reading library, but not as a lending library, to the general
public. The library is open daily, throughout the year (excepting on Sundays
and legal holidays), from r to 5 p. m., and the officers in charge will show every
attention to visitors.
The cabinets of geology and mineralogy were collected by Professor Henry
A. Ward during ten years of extensive foreign travel and during many careful
visits to the most fruitful American localities. They were purchased in 1862
by the citizens of Rochester for $20,000 (a sum- much less than their estimated,
value,) and presented to the university. Dr. Torrey, of Columbia College, New
York, says that "no geological cabinet in the United States can compare in
magnitude and value with this," and that the mineralogical cabinet, "although
it is not the best in the United States, is excelled by very few and is admirably
selected for the purpose of instruction." "For fullness and perfection of speci-
mens," says President Loomis, of Lewisburg university, "it is superior to any
cabinet which I have ever seen." Professor Sillman, jr., characterises it as
" the most extensive geological museum in the United States " and predicts
that it "will ultimately attract students from all parts of the country" — a pre-
diction which is already realised. These cabinets have recently been transferred
to the upper story of Sibley hall, and are now being arranged in new cases of
the most improved construction.
Through the liberality of the late Lewis Brooks, of this city, the foundation
has been laid for a cabinet of archaeology by the purchase of a small but well au-
thenticated collection of flint and bronze instruments from the drift region of
Abbeville and St. Acheul, in France. To this cabinet have been added a very
choice collection of stone implements from the vicinity of Copenhagen, an equally
choice collection of North American stone implements, and numerous specimens
of pottery from the tomb of the Incas.
Something has also been done toward establishing an art gallery. In 1871
President Anderson began to give lectures to the Senior class on the history of
art. These lectures were at first delivered between the final examinations of
the class and the annual commencement, and attendance on them was optional.
They were, in 1872, transferred to the fii-st term of the Senior year, becoming
a regular Saturday morning exercise. In 1874 the Saturday mornings of the
first and second terms of the Senior year were devoted to this purpose ; and
542 History of the City of Rochester.
the course was extended so as to cover a historical outline of the growth of the
several fine arts and some general principles applicable to each. An incentive
to this enlargement of the course was found not only in the obvious advantages
of such a course of instruction to the student but in the interest manifested by
the general public, who tested the capacity of President Anderson's recitation-
room to the utmost. This course of instruction naturally created a demand for
illustrative material, a demand which has been, to some extent, supplied (through
the liberality of various friends of the university, but especially of John Fahy
of the class of '66) by the purchase of a collection of engravings, chromo-litho-
graphs and autotypes illustrative of the masterpieces of architecture, sculpture
and painting, This collection has been gradually and carefully made with a
view not only to the significance of the subjects illustrated, but also to the ar-
tistic skill displayed in handling those subjects so that an engraving, for instance,
shall not only illustrate a masterpiece of painting, but be itself a masterpiece of
engraving. Illustrative material of another kind, in the shape of models, casts,
etc., is imperatively demanded, in order to give the highest efficiency to the
course of art instruction ; and we mention what has been accomplished in this
direction partly in the hope that some lover of art may help the university to
do something more and better. Its friends indeed have not forgotten the £es-
thetic wants of the university, though their benefactions have not always taken
the form of illustrative material for class-room use. The alumni have presented
to the university a marble bust of President Anderson, chiseled by Johnson
Mundy, of Rochester. The sons of Robert and William Kelley have presented
portraits of their revered fathers, painted by Huntington of New York, and at-
tractive as works of art even to those who had not personally known and hon-
ored the men whom they represent. This example led to the presentation, by
the alumni, of portraits of President Anderson and Professors Kendrick and
Quinby. In 1876 a portrait of Prof John F. Stoddard, the founder of the Stod-
dard prize medal, was added to the collection; and still more recently the walls
of the faculty room have been adorned with a fine portrait of President Ander-
son, painted by Eastman Johnson. The library has, also, been made the recep-
tacle of a fine bust of Frederick Douglass, chiseled by Johnson Mundy, and its
reading-room contains a series of eighty choice lithographs, illustrative of arch-
itectural subjects, which have been colored (with scrupulous attention to his-
torical accuracy) by the most eminent English water colorists. The value of
this absolutely unique collection is estimated at $5,000, and it was given to the
university by Rev. E. L. Magoon, D. D., of Philadelphia. In books illustrative
of the department of art, the library is — thanks to the benefactions of Hiram
Sibley, Rezin A. Wight, of New York, and Dr. Magoon — exceptionally rich.
The cabinets and art collection of the university are open to the public every
afternoon from i to 5.
In 1868 a chemical laboratory was temporarily fitted up in the basement of
Facilities for Instruction. 543
the university. The accommodations thus afforded being found insufficient,
the laboratory was, in 1873, transferred to the first floor of the university
and considerably enlarged. It still, however, affords tables for only twenty-
four students, and undergraduates who desire to take analytical chemistry
(which is an elective study during the Junior and Senior years) are sometimes
compelled to apply for this privilege a year in advance. The pressure upon
the laboratory is also considerable from students of medicine and pharmacy,
and even from farmers and mechanics who desire to fit themselves for the in-
telligent pursuit of their vocation. The laboratory is as well fitted and equip-
ped as is possible in view of its temporary nature and crowded condition, and
is so conducted by Professor S. A. Lattimore as to command the unqualified
respect of those who are familiar with its workings. A building to be devoted
entirely to the natural sciences is, however, absolutely necessary, in order to
give to this department that development which it already claims.
During the past year a room, near the chemical lecture room in Anderson
hall, has been suitably arranged for a chemical cabinet, which consists of such
raw and manufactured articles as may serve to illustrate the application of
chemical processes to the industrial arts, and it is hoped to make this cabinet
an especially attractive and valuable adjunct to the work of instruction.
The university is fairly well supplied with apparatus for the illustration of
applied mathematics and the physical sciences, though much, of the most use-
ful apparatus represents a greater outlay of the instructor's skill and ingenuity
than of money. In these departments the attempt is made first to develop
in the mind of the student distinct conceptions of scientific principles. Class-
room illustrations of those principles are then given to such an extent as may
be necessary to classify those conceptions and impress them on the memory.
In giving instruction in physiology and zoology, which are taught mainly as
comparative sciences, the extensive private collections of Prof Henry A. Ward
are at the disposal of the instructor and are freely used in the class-room.
The university has never contemplated the establishment of an astronomical
observatory, believing that such an establishment does not render any service
to general education which is at all commensurate with the vast expense which
it entails, and that the country is already supplied with such institutions even
in excess of the demands of special scientific discovery and investigation. The
need was felt, however, of a telescope which should enable the classes in as-
tronomy actually to observe the phenomena which are described in their text
books, and practically to apprehend at least the simpler processes of the trained
observer. On mentioning this want to John B. Trevor, the president of our
board of trustees, he promptly agreed to supply it, and, after consultation with
Dr. Wm. Harkness of the Washington observatory (a member of the class of
'58), an instrument which can be made serviceable not only for class instruction
but even for purposes of special investigation, was ordered of Alvin Clarke &
Sons, of Cambridgeport, and permanently mounted in a building specially
544
History of the City of Rochester.
erected for that purpose. This instrument is mounted equatorially, has a focal
length of seven feet six inches and a six-inch object glass, is supplied with right
ascension and declination circles and so arranged that clock-work can be added,
at slight expense.
In 1 849-50,. when the question of an establishment of a college at Roch-
ester was pending, $130,000 was subscribed — partly by residents of Roches-
ter and vicinity, partly by members of the Baptist denomination in other parts
of the state to secure this end. Of this subscription, all but about five per cent,
was paid into the treasury. In 1862 $20,000 was raised in Rochester and its
vicinity, for the purchase of the Ward cabinet of geology and mineralogy.
Lewis Brooks headed the subscription list with the sum of $5,000. The other
principal Rochester subscriptions were: Levi A. Ward, $1,500; Freeman-
Clarke, $ 1 ,000 ; William A. Reynolds, $1,000; Aristarchus Champion, $500;
John W. Dwindle, $500; Aaron Erickson, $500; Samuel L. Selden, $500;
Hiram Sibley, $500; Addison Gardiner, $350; Isaac R. Elwood, $250; Fred-
erick Starr, $250; Don Alonzo Watson, $250.
In 1865 an attempt was made to raise $100,000 among the members of
the Baptist denomination, for the more adequate endowment of the university.
This movement was conducted by Dr. Cutting, and the entire amount was
pledged, but only about $80,000 was paid into the treasury. In 1867-68
$19,650 was raised by the citizens of Rochester to purchase a residence for the
president of the university, which sum was augmented by a donation of $12,-
500 from John B. Trevor, of New York. In 187 1 another attempt was made
to add $100,000 to the permanent endowment of the university. This effort,
which was conducted by Rev. Edward Bright, D. D., of New York (editor of
the Examiner & Chronicle, President Anderson's old paper), was entirely suc-
cessful. A similar attempt was made in 1876, but it resulted in but slight im-
mediate addition to the endowment fund. Meanwhile the expenses of the
university largely exceeded, year by year, its receipts, and were steadily eating
up all subscriptions for its support that were not definitely designated as trust-
funds. Strenuous efforts were necessary to place the university on a sound
financial basis, and those efforts were crowned with success in 1880, when,
through the instrumentality of President Anderson, the addition of $256,800
to the permanent endowment fund was announced. The names of the givers
were : —
John H. Deane, New York, .
John B. Trevor, New York, .
Jeremiah Millbank, New York,
John D. Rockefeller, Cleveland, O.,
Lewis Rathbone, Albany,
John F. Rathbone, Albany, .
Col. Wm. H. Harris, Cleveland, O.,
Mrs. Stillman Witt, Cleveland, O.,
.Samuel S. Constant, New York, .
William A. Cauldwell, New York, .
$100,000
Col. James T. Griffin, London, Eng.,
$5,000
50,000
Charles J. Martin, New York, .
1,000
25,000
Rev. Edward Bright, New York,
1,000
25,000
Rev. Robert B. Hull, New York, .
1,000
12,500
Robert Colgate, New York,
1,000
12,500
Byron E. Huntley, Brockport, .
1,000
6,000
Jacob Hayes, New York,
500
5,000
Benjamin R. Jenkins (estate), Toledo, 0.,
100
5,000
Rev. Elias H. Johnson, Providence, R. I.,
100
5,000
Sargent & Greenleaf, Rochester,
100
Financial.
545
Of this sum $45,000 was designated to endow the Deane professorship of
logic, rhetoric and English; $50,000 was set apart as the John H. Deane fund
for the assistance of the sons of Baptist ministers; and $25,000 went to increase
the Rathbone library fund. Rochester names are ponspicuous by their absence
in this last subscription; but let it not be forgotten that Rochester and its im-
mediate vicinity had, previous to 1876, contributed to the support of the uni-
versity the sum of $228,239. The names of all those who, up to the date of
this history, have subscribed $5,000 or more toward the purchase of lots,
erection of buildings, furnishing of library and cabinets, permanent endowment,
or current expenses of the university, is as follows: —
$120,275.00
112,538.06
102,279.00
* John B. Trevor, Yonker.s,
* John H. Deane, New York, .
Hiram Si1)ley, Rochester, .
*John F. Rathbone, Albany, .
* William Kelley, Rhinebeck, .
* Charles Pratt, Brooklyn,
* Tracy H. Harris, New York .
'Joseph B. Hoyt, .Stamford, Conn.,
* Jeremiah Millbank, New York,
* John I). Rockefeller, Cleveland, O
.State of New York, .
*J. F. Wyckoff, New York, .
"James B. Colgate, Yonkers, .
* Gideon W. Burbank, Rochester,
* Lewis Rathbone, Albany,
* Oren Sage and family, Rochester,
44,425.00
. 33.5SO-°o
32.438-33
30,250.00
30,100.00
25,000.00
25,000.00
25,000.00
24,280.0c
20,000.00
17,500.00
14,075.00
12,865.00
" Lewis Roberts, Tarrytown,
Hon. Azariah Boody, Rochester,
" Mrs. Stilhnan Witt, Cleveland, O.,
"John N. Wilder, Albany, .
* Col. Wm. H. Harris, Cleveland, O.
* Thomas Cornell, Rondout,
* Rev. E. L. Magoon, D. D., Phila., Pa,
" John Munro and family, Elbridge,
* Rezin A. Wight, New York, .
Isaac Sherman, New York, .
* Roswell S. Burrows, Albion, .
* Samuel S. Constant, New York,
* William A. Cauldwell, New York,
Lewis Brooks, Rochester, .
* Col. James T. Griffin, London, Eng,
* Mrs. Ann E. Waters, Brooklyn,
$10,925.00
10,250.00
10,000.00
10,000.00
9.591-38
8,087.48
, 8,397.08
6,500.00
5,300.00
5,200.00
5,000.00
5,000.00
5,000.00
5,000.00
5,000.00
5,000.00'
We have marked with an asterisk, in this list, those who, by personal or family
ties, are connected with the Baptist denomination, in order to give a partial
answer to the question why the University of Rochester regards itself as a
Baptist college. As the result of the subscriptions that have been given in
detail, the university reported, on the ist of June, 1883: —
Unproductive property to the value of . . . . $435,275.48
Productive property to the value of .... 449,006.99
Total, . . $884,^82.47
The expenses of the university for the year ending June 1st, 1883, were
$35,797.37; the income was $39,135.88, showing a balance on the right side
of $3,338.51. This state of things has existed ever since the subscription to
the endowment fund made in 1880 ; and, that the balance may not immediately
be on the wrong side, John B. Trevor and John D. Rockefeller have recently
pledged $1,000 apiece per annum for five years to help to meet current ex-
penses. If their subscriptions are not needed for this purpose, they will go to
swell the endowment fund. Meanwhile the friends of the university already
contemplate such additions to its permanent endowment as will greatly enlarge
its sphere of usefulness.
The expenses for a student at the university are, for tuition twenty dollars
a term ; for incidentals (including janitor's salary, and use of library) five dollars
546 History of the City of Rochester.
a term — making the amount payable to the college seventy- five dollars a year,
or just about one- third of what the education of a student costs. The univer-
sity has no dormitories — conforming, in this respect, not to the English, but
to the German model, which is yearly growing in favor in the United States.
In a city of the size of Rochester suitable accommodations for more students
than the University of Rochester is likely soon to number can readily be found.
It is not necessary, then, to lodge the students in barracks. Nor is the idea of
monkish seclusion which is typified by the English quadrangle (an institution that
results in a seclusion anything but monastic) adopted by the trustees of Roches-
ter as a necessary condition of student life. • They believe, instead, that it is —
physically, mentally and morally — better for the student to be subjected, so far
as may be, to the influence of a Christian home ; and to learn to regard himself
as an integral part of the community in which he resides. Meanwhile it is
found, by careful comparison, that dormitories (which are objectionable on every
other ground) can not be vindicated on the plea of economy ; and that our
poor students would be better off if the amount invested in creating and main-
taining an abnormal and unhealthy condition of student life were devoted to
relief funds. The average price paid at Rochester for a furnished room, suit-
able -for two students, is about two dollars per week — which is less, on the
average, than dormitory accommodations would cost the students in money, to
say nothing of morals. Boarding can be obtained in private families for from
three dollars and a half to five dollars per week.
Forty scholarships yielding free tuition (sixty dollars a year) are open to
candidates for the ministry who are approved by the Union for Ministerial Ed-
ucation and by the president of the university. Twelve similar scholarships
(three each year) are awarded as prizes for excellence in the studies in the Roch-
ester city schools preparatory to college ; and four similar scholarships (one
each year) are, through the generosity of John H. Deane, open to competition
by graduates of the Brockport Normal school. Twelve other scholarships (en-
dowed by various individuals at an expense of $i,ooo each) afford free tuition
to any student who shall be approved by the faculty as especially worthy of
assistance. There is, also, a fund of $50,000 contributed by John H. Deane,
of New York, the interest of which is to be devoted to the assistance of the
sons of Baptist ministers who require aid in procuring an education — prefer-
ence being given, other things being equal, to students from the states of New
York and New Jersey. The university has received from Isaac Sherman, of
New York, the sum of $5,000 as a permanent endowment for a post-graduate
scholarship in the department of political economy, and John P. Townsend, of
New York, has pledged the income of the same sum to endow a similar schol-
arship in the department of constitutional law and the history of political insti-
tutions. These scholarships are awarded to those two members of each grad-
uating class who, during the third term in the Senior year, pass the best and
The University. 547
the second-best examination, respectively, on some French treatise on political
economy, and some German treatise on political history, to be designated by the
faculty. The sum of one hundred and fifty dollars is paid to each of the suc-
. cessful competitors, at graduation ; and an additional sum of one hundred and
fifty dollars, if he shall, within two years after graduation, present to the faculty
a thorough and exhaustive written discussion of some specially assigned eco-
nomic or political theme.
The prizes of the university are sufficient to stimulate its undergraduate
members to healthful activity, though not of such a nature as to render them
much pecuniary assistance. Thirty-five dollars is divided among the best two
or three speakers out of the first twelve men in point of scholarship, in the Soph-
omore class — these prizes being endowed by Dr. Beadle, of Philadelphia, in
commemoration of his friend Dr. Dewey. The university has received from
one of its alumni. Rev. R. B. Hull, of New York, the sum of $1,000 to endow
a prize which is given to the member of each Senior class who shall present the
best essay — not exceeding 3,000 words in length — upon a subject selected by
the faculty. A medal of the value of one hundred dollars in gold (endowed by
John F. Stoddard) is given to that member of the Senior class who passes the
best examination on some text book work, assigned by the faculty, in extension
of the regular mathematical course; and presents the best dissertation on some
mathematical topic assigned for special investigation. Two gold medals, of un-
equal value but amounting in the aggregate to sixty dollars (given by Isaac
Davis, of Worcester, Massachusetts), are awarded for the best and the second-
best graduating oration — tiiought, expression and delivery being taken into
account. In addition to these endowed prizes small gratuities are open to com-
petition by the Freshman class in the department of mathematics; by tlfe Soph-
omore class in the department of Latin; by the Junior class in the department
of Greek. The custodians of the university are disposed to render all the assist-
ance in their power to poor but worthy young men who are in pursuit of an
education. Such men, if approved by the society for ministerial education, may
expect one hundred dollars a year toward their expenses from that source.
Other students are occasionally aided from funds at the disposal of the presi-
dent; though bis means in this direction are altogether too limited. It is felt
to be a duty, however, to provide for the sons of the rich as well as for the
children of the poor. While due honor is paid to those who are struggling, in
adverse circumstances of poverty and want, to secure an education, and every
effort is made to help them, honor is paid also to those who are struggling in
adverse circumstances of luxury and affluence for the same end. It is believed
that rich and poor should meet together in perfect equality in the recitation
room, receiving from the instructor that consideration and respect which their
diligence and correctness of deportment may deserve. It is intended to have
regard, in the organisation of the university, to the wants of the rich and poor
548 . History of the City of Rochester.
alike; and see to it that wealthy Baptists shall not be able to plead the lack of
a college of their own which is fully up to the demands of the age, as an excuse
for sending their sons to Yale or Harvard.
The number of students who have, since the organisation of the university,
completed the classical course and received the degree of A. B. is 753. The num-
ber who have completed the scientific course and received the degree of B. S. is
44. The whole number of graduates, down to and including 1883, is 797. The
name, residence, and occupation of the alumni of the university — together
with some facts respecting their personal history — are indicated in the last
general catalogue. It will be seen from an inspection of this list that of 797
graduates more than 200 (including such names as Bridgman, of New York ;
Goodspeed, of Chicago ; Crane, of Boston ; Sage, of Hartford ; Fulton, of
Brooklyn ; Telford and Chilcott, of China ; Jameson, of Bassein) have entered
the Christian ministry; while nearly 150 (represented by Henry Strong and J.
M. Bailey of Illinois, Judge A. W. Tourgee of North Carolina, E. S. Chitten-
den of Minnesota, and Judge F. A. Macomber of our own city) have studied
law. Some twenty-five have studied medicine, and nearly as many (including
Manton Marble of the World, Joseph O'Connor of the Buffalo Courier, and
Rossiter Johnson of Appleton's Cyclopedia) have filled the editorial chair.
More than 100 have, as teachers, transmitted the influence of the university to
other institutions of learning. Among the latter we may mention Galusha
Anderson, D. D., LL. D., president of the University of Chicago ; Lemuel
Moss, D. D.,LLD., president of Indiana university ; Merrill E. Gates, LL. D.,
president of Rutgers college ; Truman J. Backus, LL. D., principal of the
Packer institute, Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Wm. C. Wilkinson, D. D., professor of
rhetori? in the Rochebter theological seminary ; Wm. Wirt Fay, professor of
moral philosophy in the United States naval academy ; Prof William Hark-
ness, of the United States naval observatory ; Norman Robinson, professor of
natural history and chemistry in Bethel college, Ky. ; Norman Fox, professor
in William Jewell college, Mo. ; A. J. Howe, professor of mathematics, and J:
C. Clarke, professor of Greek, in the University of Chicago; D. H. Robinson,
professor of mathematics in the University of Kansas; Otis H. Robinson, pro-
fessor of mathematics; Wm. C. Morey, professor of history, and George M.
Forbes, professor of Greek, at Rochester; Milton G. Potter, professor of an-
atomy in Buffalo medical college; Carl T. Kreyer, professor in Kauchang
Miau ' college, China; Albert T. Barrett, professor of mathematics in Mary
Sharpe college, Tennessee ; John C. Overhiser, professor in the Brooklyn Poly-
technic institute; Malcolm McVicar, LL. D., of the Potsdam Normal school;
F. B. Palmer, LL.D., of the Fredonia Normal school; Wm. J. Milne, LL.D.,
of the Normal school at Geneseo; Frank S. Capen, of the Normal school at
Cortland; J. F. Forbes, of the Brockport Normal school.
It is not alone in the learned professions, however, that our graduates are
The University. 549
found. They may be met with on the farm, at the counting-house, in the ma-
chine-shop, and wherever met they evince an independence of thought, a
breadth of culture and an adaptation to the exigencies of practical life, which are
equally essential to success in secular and sacred callings.
When the war for the suppression of the rebellion broke out, the alumni of the
university numbered (including the class then about to graduate) 198, Of this
number, twenty-five (or about one in eight) entered the Union army. A large
number of the undergraduates also enlisted — five of whom came back, at the
expiration of the war, to complete their studies, but most of whom never re-
turned. Three undergraduate members of the university and seven of its alumni
fell in the service of their country: Brig. Gen. J. C. Drake, 1852 ; Capt. Sidney
E. Richardson, 1853; Capt. Wm. E. Bristol, 1856; Lieut. Theodore E. Baker,
1857; Sylvanus S.Wilcox, i860; Capt. Chas. H. Savage, 1861 ; Lieut. Joseph
Webster, 1861 ; Lieut. Wm. C. Hall, 1863; Lieut. Wm. E. Orr, 1864; Capt.
J. Harry Pool, 1865. The memory of those who thus perished is perpetuated
by a memorial tablet in the university chapel. The Interpres for 1865 con-
tained a list of Rochester students, fifty-four in number, who served during the
rebellion. So far as it is known, only one graduate of the university entered
the Confederate army; he was faithful to the Cause that he espoused an,d sealed
his devotion by his death.
On the whole, the friends of the University of Rochester may well congrat-
ulate themselves on what it has accomplished during the first twenty-four years
of its existence, and yet those years have been rather a struggle for existence,
a preparation for real life, than life itself The board of trustees and the faculty
of instruction count not themselves to have attained the end which they set
before them at the outset; neither do they deem the institution which has been
the object of such tender solicitude and such earnest toil altogether perfect.
The foundations of such a university as shall be a blessing to every citizen of
Western Now York have been laid, and laid solidly and well. The superstruct-
ure begins to show a little, just enough to indicate what the design of the edi-
fice is ; but it still remains to rear the stately walls and crown the completed
structure with its ample dome. Looking forward and pointing upward, the
friends of the university devoutly adopt the legend which is inscribed upon its
seal and say: " God helping us, we hope for better things than these." Strong
in the affection of a noble band of alumni who are yearly increasing in influence
and in wealth, freed from the inexorable necessity of providing for daily neces-
sities at whatever sacrifice of permanent advantage, blessed with intelligent and
powerful friends, who already have its prospective wants under thoughtful con-
sideration, the University of Rochester may well hope for better things. Its
friends fix their eyes to-day upon the future rather than the past.
And yet the past is fraught with precious memories, which, in surveying
the history of the university, can hardly fail to press upon us. Many who have
5 so History of the City of Rochester.
toiled most earnestly and prayed most fervently for the University of Roches-
ter have passed away. Of the living — of Anderson and Kendrick, of Sage
and Rathbone, and of that noble band of benefactors who have recently ral-
lied to the support of the university, Trevor and Deane, Sibley and Rockefeller,
Wyckofif and Hoyt, Millbank and Pratt — we may not now speak as they de-
serve. But, to John N. Wilder and Oren Sage; to Frederick Whittlesey and
Everard Peck ; to William L. Marcy and Ira Harris ; to the brothers Rob-
ert and William Kelley ; to Chester Dewey and John F. Richardson ; to Gideon
W. Burbank and Tracy H. Harris the university owes a debt of gratitude
which may well find fuller expression evert now. No man was more active
with tongue and pen in pleading the cause of removal and advocating the fit-
ness of Rochester to become the seat of a great university than John N. Wilder.
His earnest, shrewd and practical spirit infused life into the friends of the uni-
versity and enabled him to render it service which was fully recognised by
placing him at the head of the board of trustees. Back of John N. Wilder —
and a power nearer to the throne >vhich determines the failure or success of any
undertaking — was Deacon Oren Sage, a man whose interest in the cause of
education was all the more intense from his own scanty opportunities and a
man who, perhaps, did more than any other to enlist the Baptists of Western
New York in the new enterprise. Fellow-citizens of Deacon Sage, but iden-
tified with other denominational interests — the one an Episcopalian, the other
a Presbyterian — were Chancellor Whittlesey and Everard Peck, both of them
trustees of the university and each largely instrumental in conciliating to the
new institution that confidence and support which 'it has ever received from the
people of Rochester. The services of Governor Marcy and Judge Harris were
largely in the line of their profession and have already been specifically men-
tioned. Both of them were, till the close of life, keenly alive to the interests
of that university which they had done so much to found. The brothers, Rob-
ert and William Kelley were men who combined with the practical shrewdness
of Wilder and the sturdy good sense of Marcy something of the devout and
winning spirit of Deacon Sage. Robert, especially, was a man of generous
culture and did much to shape the course of study in the university. When,
in 1856, he resigned his position on the board of trustees (in order to accept
an appointment to the board of regents), he was succeeded by his brother,
William, who, On the death of Mr. Wilder, was appointed president of that
body, a position which he filled for fourteen years. During all that time he
rendered services to the university which few men of his means and social po-
sition would have cared to undertake. Among its friends the university has
known none truer and better than Robert and William Kelley. The grave,
sweet smile, which gleams from the canvas that perpetuates their memory, falls
upon us above the dusty volumes in our library, like a benediction. Dewey
and Richardson brought to the university reputations already matured, and gave
The Theological Seminary. 551
to it the ripest fruits of years of culture. Their memory is still cherished by
generations of students whom they influenced for good, and lingers even yet
in college halls. The name of Gideon W. Burbank must ever be associated
with the presidential chair, which he endowe.d at a sacrifice that he did not
realise at the time, but which he never regretted ; and with his name is linked
that of Tracy H. Harris, the noble young merchant whose lamented death cut
short a career of beneficence that bid fair to have few equals ever among the
Christian laymen of America. Truly the university which at the end of its
first generation can recall such benefactors as these has a heritage in the past as
well as a hope for the future.
ROCHESTER THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY.^
Rochester theological seminary was founded in 1850. Up to this time the
only Baptist school for literary and theological training in the state of New
York was Madison university, situated at Hamilton. In 1847 many friends of
education throughout the state, with a view to securing for this university a
more suitable location and a more complete endowment, sought to remove the
institution to Rochester. This project was opposed by friends of Hamilton,
legal obstacles were discovered, the question was carried into courts, and the
plan of removal was finally abandoned as impracticable Not so, however, the
plan of establishing a theological seminary and university at Rochester. Rev.
Pharcellus Church, D. D., with John N. Wilder and Oren Sage, devoted much
time and energy to awakening public sentiment in behalf of the new enter-
prise. A subscription of $130,000 was secured for the college. Five professors
in Hamilton — Drs. Conant and Maginnis of the seminary, and Drs. Kendrick,
Raymond, and Richardson of the university — resigned their places, and ac-
cepted a call to similar positions in the new institutions at Rochester. In No-
vember, 1850, classes were organised in the Rochester theological seminary as
well as in the University of Rochester, and instruction was begun in temporary
quarters secured for the purpose. Many students came with their professors
from Hamilton. The first class graduated from the theological seminary num-
bered seven members, and the first published catalogue, that of 1851-52, en-
rolls the names of two professors and of twenty-nine students.
Although the early history of the seminary was intimately connected with
that of the University of Rochester, and the two institutions at the beginning
occupied the same building, there has never been any organic connection be-
tween them, either of government or of instruction. While the university has
devoted itself to the work of general college training, the Rochester theological
seminary has been essentially a professional school, and has aimed exclusively
to fit men, by special studies, for the work of the ministry. . It has admitted
only college graduates and those who have been able successfully to pursue
1 This article was prepared by Rev. Ur. A. H. Strong, the president of the seminary.
SS2 History of the City of Rochester.
courses of study in connection with college graduates. Beginning, with the
two professorships of theology and of Hebrew, it has added professorships of
ecclesiastical history, of New Testament Greek, of homiletics and pastoral the-
ology, and of elocution. Besides its two original professors — Rev. Thomas J.
Conant, D. D., and Rev. John S. Maginnis, D. D. — it has numbered in its
faculty the names of Ezekiel G. Robinson, John H. Raymond, Velona R.
Hotchkiss, George W. Northrup, Asahel C. Kendrick, R. J. W. Buckland,
Horatio B. Hackett, William C. Wilkinson, Howard Osgood, William Arnold
Stevens, Albert H. Newman, T. Harwood Pattison and Benjamin O. True.
To Rev. Ezekiel G. Robinson, D. D., LL. B., however, professor in the semi-
nary from 1853 to 1872, and from 1868 to 1872 its president, the institution
probably owes more of its character and success than to any other single man.
His successor in the presidency and in the chair of Biblical theology is Rev.
Augustus H. Strong, D. D., who has .now (1884) for twelve years held this
position.
In 1854 a German department of the seminary was organised. The Ger-
man Baptist churches of the country, which in 1850 were only ten in number,
have now increased to more than one hundred. This constant growth has oc-
casioned a demand for ministers with some degree of training. The German
department is designed to meet this necessity. In 1858 Rev. Augustus Rausch-
enbusch, D. D., a pupil of Neander, was secured to take charge of this work,
and in 1872 Rev. Hermann M. Schaffer was chosen as his colleague. The
course of studies in the German department is four years in length, and being
designed for young men who have had little preparatory training, is literary
as well as theological. This course is totally distinct from the regular course
of the seminary, which is accomplished in three years.
When the seminary began its existence it was wholly without endowment,
and dependent as it was upon the churches for means to defray its current ex-
penses as well as to support its beneficiaries, the raising of a sufficient endow-
ment in addition was a long and arduous work. The first securing of sub-
scriptions for the maintenance of instruction in theology, and for the support
of beneficiaries, was done by Rev. Zenas Freeman. It has required thirty years
of effort since that time to bring the endowment of the seminary to a point
where it is sufficient to meet the necessary annual expenses of the institution,
even apart from rhe support of beneficiaries. The sum first sought to be se-
cured was $75,000. This was not obtained until after ten years had passed.
In 1 868 the funds of the seminary had reached $100,000; in 1874, including
subscriptions of $100,000 yet unpaid, they amounted to $281,000; in 1884,
including subscriptions of $79,006 yet unpaid, they amount to $485,000.
Adding to this sum the real estate of the seminary, valued at $123,000, its
library valued at $32,000, and other property to the extent of $6,500, the total
assets of the institution may now be stated as amounting to $647,000, from
The Theological Seminary. 553
which, however, is to be subtracted an indebtedness of $10,000, leaving its
net property $637,000. When all subscriptions are paid in and its debts are
cancelled, the institution is expected to have a productive endowment of
$450,000, an amount sufficient to maintain its operations only upon condition
that the churches shall continue to provide, as they have hitherto done, by
annual contributions, for the support of students preparing for the ministry.
Although much still remains to be desired in the way of enlargement of its
facilities, and although large sums may still be wisely invested in buildings,
lectureships and scholarships, whenever the generosity of its friends shall pro-
vide the means, its present condition is greatly encouraging. This compara-
tive prosperity of later years has been due, under Providence, to the wise and
liberal gifts of a few tried friends of the seminary, among whom may be men-
tioned the names of John B. Trevor, ofYonkers, N. Y. ; Jacob F. Wyckoff, of
New York city; John D. Rockefeller, of Cleveland, O. ; William Rockefeller,
of New York; Charles Pratt, of Brooklyn; Joseph B. Hoyt, of Stamford, Conn. ;
James O. Pettengill, of Rochester, N. Y. ; John H. Deane, of New York;
Charles Siedlcr, of Jersey City, N. J.; William A. Cauldwell, of New York;
Mrs. Eliza A. Witt, of Cleveland, O., and Jeremiah Millbank, of New York.
The seminary instruction was for some years given in the buildings occupied
by the yniversity of Rochester. In 1869, however, the erection of Trevor hall, at
an expense of $42,000, to which John B. Trevor, of Yonkers, was the largest
donor, put the institution for the first time in possession of suitable dormitory ac-
commodations. The gymnasium building, adjoining, erected in 1874, and cost-
ing, with grounds, $12,000, was also a gift of Mr. Trevor. In 1879 Rockefeller,
hall,_costing $38,000, was built by John D. Rockefeller, of Cleveland, O. It con-
tains a spacious fire-proof room for library, as well as lecture-rooms, museum,
and chapel, and furnishes admirable and ample accommodation for the teaching
work of the seminary. In addition to these buildings the German Students'
Home, purchased in 1874, at a cost of $20,000, furnishes a dormitory and"
boarding-hall for the German department.
The library of the seminary is one of great value for theological investiga-
tion. It embraces the whole collection of Neander, the great German church
historian, which was presented to the seminary in 1853 by the late Roswell S.
Burrows, of Albion, N. Y. It also contains in great part the exegetical appa-
ratus of the late Dr. Horatio B. Hackett. Valuable additions have been made
to it from the "Bruce fund" of $25,000, subscribed in 1872 by John M. Bruce,
of Yonkers, and further additions from this source are hoped for. The generous
subscription in 1879 of $25,000, by William Rockefeller, of New York city, has
furnished means for extensive enlargement, so that the library now numbers-
over 20,000 volumes, and it is well provided in all the various departments of
theology. In 1 880 the " Sherwood fund," contributed by the late Rev. Adiel
Sherwood, D. D., of St. Louis, Mo., furnished the means for beginning a mu-
554 History of the City of Rochester.
seum of Biblical geography and archaeology, intended to provide, in object les-
sons, valuable aids for the study of the Holy land, its customs and its physical
features.
Thus the Rochester theological seminary has grown from small beginnings
to assured strength and success. Its early years were years of trials and finan-
cial struggle ; but, founded as it was in the prayers and faith of godly men, it
has lived to justify the hopes of its founders. Of those who took a deep inter-
est in its feeble beginnings should be mentioned the names of Alfred Bennett,
William R. Williams, Justin A. Smith, Zenas Freeman, Alvah Strong, Friend
Humphrey, E. E. L. Taylor, E. Lathrop, J. S. Backus, B. T. Welch, William
Phelps, Lemuel C. Paine, H. C. Fish, A. B. Capwell, N. W. Benedict, G. C.
Baldwin, G. D. Boardman, A. R. Pritchard, Henry E. Robins. All these have
been officers of the New York Baptist Union for Ministerial Education or mem-
bers of its board of trustees. The financial management of this board has been
such that no loss of funds, of any significance, intrusted to its care, has ever
occurred.
The results of the work of the seminary can never be measured by arith-
metic. As its purpose has been to make its graduates men of thinking ability
and of practical force, as well as students and preachers of the word of God, it
has leavened the denomination with its influence, and has done much to give an
aggressive, independent, manly tone to our ministry The names of its former
students are enough to show that its training has combined in equal proportions
the intellectual and the spiritual, the theoretical and the practical. During the
thirty-three years of the seminary's existence, and up to the present year ( 1 884),
84s persons have been connected with the institution as students, of whom 660
have attended upon the English and 185 upon the German department. Of
the 660 in the English department, 484 have been graduates of colleges, and
84 have pursued partial courses in colleges. Seventy different colleges and 44
different states and countries have furnished students to the seminary. Of stu-
dents, 402 have completed the full three-years' course, including the study of the
Hebrew and Greek scriptures; 239 have pursued a partial course, or have left the
seminary before graduating. The average number of students sent out each year
has been 19. The number of students during the last seminary year has been
87, of whom 5 1 were in the English department. Of its former students, 44
have filled the position of president or professor in theological seminaries or col-
leges; 35 have gone abroad as foreign missionaries, and 33 have been mission-
aries in the West; 22 have been secretaries or agents of our benevolent socie-
ties, and 5 have become editors of religious journals. With such a record in
the past, and in the present more fully equipped than ever before for its work,
there seems to open before the seminary a future of the utmost promise. It
remains only to state that the Rochester theological seminary is maintained and'
controlled by the New York Baptist Union for Ministerial Education, a society
The War Record. 555
composed of contributing members of Baptist churches, and that th^ actual
government and care of the seminary is In its details committed to a board of
trustees of thirty- three members, eleven of whom are elected by the Union an-
nually. The present president of the board of trustees is John H. Deane, of
New York, and the corresponding secretary is Rev. Samuel P. Merrill, of Roch-
ester, N. Y. The corresponding secretary will furnish, on application, copies
of the annual catalogue, containing a full list of the officers of the Union, of the
faculty, of the seminary, and of the present students of the institution, together
with a complete account of the curriculum of studies, and of the methods of
beneficiary aid to those who need it in their course of preparation. From all
who are purposing to study for the ministry, as well as from all who are willing
to contribute in large or in small sums to its work, the institution invites cor-
respondence.
CHAPTER LI.
THE WAR RECORD.l
What Rochester Did to Save the Nation — The Regiments and Other Organisations Raised in the
City and Sent to the Field — A Brief Account of their .Service — Their Achievements and their Losses
— The General Officers from the City — The Grand Army of the Republic.
IN chapter XXI. allusion has been made to the state of public feeling at the
breaking out of the great rebellion — the intense excitement, which deep-
ened into an enthusiasm unparalleled in the history of the community. Refer-
ence has also been made to the noble and generous response in money and
moral support so freely given by our business men, aided by the city and county
officials. Aside from the amoimt of money contributed by the city for boun-
ties and to promote enlisthients, added to the almost fabulous amounts paid by
individuals during the war for substitutes, the rapidity with which local regi-
ments and other organisations were filled by eager recruits in 1861 and '62
attests the patriotism of Rochester. During the first year enlistments were
made by officers authorised by the governor. Early in 1862, however, recruit-
ing was under the supervision of a "war committee" of citizens of Monroe
county, commissioned by the governor of the state to assist him in the work
of raising and organising troops under the call for "three hundred thousand
more." Judge J. C. Chumasero was chairman and Captain S. W. Updike sec-
retary of this committee. Dr. M. B. Anderson, Gen. John Williams and others
1 This chapter vi'as prepared under the supervision of a committee of George H. Thomas post, G.
A. R., of which Capt. A. L. Mabbett was chairman. The' various descriptions of different organisa-
tions, regimental and otherwise, were furnished by officers conhccted with those commands, respectively.
36
S56 . History of the City of Rochester.
were efficient members. Among other functions it exercised that of selecting
the officers raised under its supervision and nominated them to the governor,
who then issued to the officers their commissions.
The real test of patriotic devotion of any community to the country, in this
hour of its deepest need, was demonstrated in the number of men it furnished
for the army. Nearly or quite 5,000 recruits were credited to the city of Roch-
ester during the war. The average total vote cast in Rochester in the years
1860-1— 2— 3 arid 4 was 7,176. Thus it will be seen that the number of men
the city furnished to suppress the rebellion was more than equal to two-thirds
of its entire voting population. In the subjoined history of the organisations
raised in Rochester and its immediate vicinity we have only space to narrate
briefly the more prominent incidents in their service. Many of these com-
mands, representing one or more companies from this city, have been barely
alluded to, a fuller history being precluded by our limited space, and in some
instances a lack of data from which to compile it. It will be understood that
all the organisations are of New York volunteers and that the regiments are in-
fantry, unless otherwise specifically designated.
The Thirteenth Regiment. — This, known as the "Rochester regiment" was
recruited in April, 1861, in Rochester and vicinity, with the exception of two
companies — B, from Dansville, and K, from Brockport. The first impulse
given toward the birth of the "Old Thirteenth" came from the Rochester Light
Guard (company C, S4th N. Y. S. M.), captain R. F. Taylor, many of whose
members did gallant service in the army during the civil war. Immediately
after President Lincoln's proclamation, calling for volunteers, members of the
Light Guard met in their session-room in the old armory on Exchange street,
signed the roll volunteering their services, and began the organisation of a com-
pany* which became the nucleus of the Thirteenth New York volunteers. Other
companies were soon raised and on April 25th five companies, having obtained
the required number of men and passed inspection, took the oath of allegiance
and entered the service of the state for two years unless sooner discharged.
The companies first organised were raised by Captains Robert F. Taylor, Leb-
beus Brown, Adolph Nolte, Francis A. Schoeffel, H. B. Williams. Then fol-
lowed those of Captains Hiram Smith, George W. Lewis, Wm. F. Tulley, Hor-
ace J. Thomas and Carl Stephan. One company was wholly German, the oth-
ers were of mixed nationality, about three-fourths being American- born. The
companies thus recruited took their departure May 4th for Elmira, N. Y., the
place designated as the military rendezvous for Western New York, and were
there organised as a regiment, which, on the 14th of May, numbering 780 offi-
cers and men, was mustered into the United States service for the period of
three months. The regimental officers were : Prof Isaac F. Quinby, of Roch-
ester university, colonel ; Carl Stephan, of Dansville, lieutenant-colonel ; Oli-
ver L. Terry, of Rochester, major ; David Little, of Rochester, surgeon ; George
The War Record. 557
W. Avery of Rochester, assistant surgeon ; Montgomery Rochester, of Roches-
ter, quartermaster; Charles J. Powers, of Rochester, adjutant; J. D. Barnes, of
Binghamton, chaplain. At Elmira, clothing, arms and equipnients were i.ssued
to the men. On the 29th of May the regiment, uniformed in a baggy suit of
gray shoddy and armed with muskets (old flint-locks altered over), took its de-
parture for the seat of war, as told in chapter XXI. The train was stopped just
outside of Baltimore, and the regiment alighted. Orders were given to load,
and each man was supplied with three rounds of cartridges. With bayonets
fixed and muskets at half-cock, led by Colonel Quinby, they took up the
line of march through the city. The company on the right and the one on the
left marched in full company front, sweeping the street from curb to curb, the
other companies marching in column by fours. This formation was made to
guard against and repel any attack which the Baltimore roughs might feel
inclined to make. The sidewalks were crowded by spectators, but no dem-
onstration on the part of the "Plug-Uglies" was made, though curses and
threats, muttered low and deep, were frequently heard. Arriving in Washing-
ton on the 31st, the Thirteenth went into camp on Meridian hill the next day,
and remained there until June 3d, when the regiment crossed the Potomac to
Fort Corcoran, Va., and engaged in camp and picket duty until July i6th.
Before this time some changes in the regimental staff and company officers had
taken place. Several officers had resigned, Captain R. F. Taylor (Co. A)
had been promoted to be colonel of the Thirty-third, and Lieut. George C. Put-
nam was promoted captain in his place. The regiment was brigaded under
General W. T. Sherman, Tyler's division. On July i6th, with three days' ra-
tions, the regiment started for Manassas, reached Vienna and bivouaced there
that night, and the day following marched beyond Fairfax Court-House. Early
on July 1st it came on the Bull Run battle-ground, filed into the woods and
slung knapsacks, each company in a pile by itself, and started across the field
in light marching order, soon coming under fire in support of Griffin's battery.
In the afternoon the regiment, led by Col. Quinby, advanced to the attack and
was immediately engaged under a sharp fire. Troops in other parts of the
field began to give way, and were shortly in full retreat. The Thirteenth was
ordered to fall back, which it did in good order and was about the last regiment
to leave the field, having a perfect organisation around the colors. The strength
of the regiment in action was 600, killed 12, wounded 26, missing and taken
prisoner 27. The men returned to the Potomac and went into camp near Fort
Corcoran three miles from the river. On August 2d Col. Quinby resigned.
The three months for which some of the regiment were sworn into the United
States service, only, had expired, and great dissatisfaction prevailed among the
men because the government had decided to hold the regiment for two years.
The regiment also became reduced by discharge under the "minor act." On
August 27th John Pickell, of Frostburg, Md., formerly of the United States
558 History of the City of Rochester.
army, assumed command, having been appointed by Gov. Morgan. About
January 1st the regiment was strengthened by about 300 recruits. During the
winter many promotions tool< place from the ranks of the regiment and a num-
ber were transferred to the Twenty- fifth (a New York regiment in the same
brigade), which had become totally demoralised and its colonel (James E. Ker-
rigan) dismissed from the service. All through the winter the regiment re-
mained at Fort Corcoran, guarding that and other forts and doing severe mili-
tary duty.
On the 1 6th of March, 1862, the advance "on to Richmond" was begun.
Going to Alexandria, the Thirteenth embarked there, reached Fortress Mon-
roe on the 24th and arrived at Yorktown April 5th under command of Lieut-
Col. Carl Stephan, Col. Pickell having been discharged from the service about
that time. During the siege of Yorktown the regiment was engaged in doing
picket duty and digging trenches. April 24th Col. E. G. Marshall assumed
command of the regiment. May 4th a detail of lOO men from the regiment
were on picket before Yorktown, and early in the morning, discovering that
the enemy had evacuated the place, they overran the fortifications and town.
On April 8th the regiment joined Franklin's division at West Point on the York
river. At Old Church it destroyed some bridges across the Pamunky river
and at Hanover Court-House, on May 27th, it was engaged in the battle, routing,
with the assistance of a section of Griffin's battery, two North Carolina regiments
which left 27 dead and wounded and 90 prisoners captured. On May 30th it re-
joined the brigade (Martindale's) at the Chickahominy, and on June 26th
marched to Mechanicsville and remained on the skirmish line at that battle dur-
ing the afternoon and on picket that night. The next day (the 27th) it was
hotly engaged in the battle of Gaines Mills, repulsing, twice, an attack from a
large superior force which, after the regiment had been subjected to a severe
artillery fire, charged with great impetuosity and bravery. The Fifth Ala-
bama, directly in front of the Thirteenth, was repulsed with great loss, its
battle-flag being captured by the Thirteenth. The strength of the regiment in
that battle was about 400; loss loi men killed, wounded and taken prisoners.
The remainder crossed the Chickahominy that night and White Oak swamp
the next day. Through all the rest of the combined fighting and retreating
which constituted the famous "seven days' battles" the Thirteenth bore its full
share of danger and of exposure, gaining glory and losing in every engage-
ment a number of its force. After participating in the battles of Turkey Bend
and Malvern Hill, in both of which it repulsed the rebels at every attack, the
regiment left the peninsula on the 14th of August. Its subsequent career em-
braced the bloody battles of the "second Bull Run," Antietam and Fredericks-
burg, and in all of these terrific struggles the Old Thirteenth sustained the bril-
liant reputation which it had previously acquired. Its losses in all its fights
amounted to 465 in killed, wounded and taken prisoners. It came home on the
The War Record 559
2d of May and was received with an ovation by its fellow-citizens, who wel-
comed it with open arms. Its officers on its return were : E. G. Marshall,
colonel ; Francis A. Schceffel, lieutenant-colonel ; George Hyland, jr., major ;
Job C. Hedges, adjutant; Samuel S. Partridge, quartermaster; David Little,
surgeon ; Charles E. Hill and Isaac V. Mullen, assistant surgeons ; E. M.
Cooley, Mark J. Bunnell,- Jerry A. Sullivan, John Weed, Charles C. Brown,
A. Galley Cooper, Henry Lomb, captains; James Hutchison, E. P. Becker,
Homer Foote, J. Elliott Williams, J. M. Richardson, J. H. Wilson, John Marks,
Edward Martin, W. R. McKinnon, first lieutenants ; James Stevenson, James
D. Bailey, Thomas Jordan, John Cawthra, Gustav Spoor, W. J. Hines, E. F.
Hamilton, D. S. Barber, E. C. Austin, second lieutenants.
The Twenty-fifth. — The Twenty-fifth has a warm place in the hearts of
Rochester soldiers, from having been brigaded with the Thirteenth from shortly
after the battle of Bull Run to the expiration of its time of service, from which
regiment it received Lieut. -Col. E. S. Gilbert, Major Sheppard Gleason, Cap-
tains B. F. Harris, Thomas E. Bishop, J. S. Graham, W. W. Connor and Albert
W. Preston and First Lieutenants Thomas Coglan and W. W. Bates, all of
whom had been non-commissioned officers or privates in the Old Thirteenth,
and who applied for and passed examination before Gen. Martindale and were
transferred and promoted into the Twenty- fifth. The regiment became noted
for its discipline and management and was engaged at Yorktown and Hanover
Court- House, where it lost nearly half its numbers, thirteen commissioned offi-
cers out of twenty-four being killed or wounded. Col. C. A. Johnson being
wounded in the thigh at Mechanicsville. Its other battles were : Gaines Mills,
White Oak Station, Malvern Hill, Second Bull Run, Antietam, Shepard's Ford,
Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville. It was mustered out in New York city in
July, 1863.
The Twenty-sixth. — This was organised at Elmira, where it was mustered
in, and was known as the "Utica regiment." Company G (captain, Gilbert S.
Jennings, who was soon promoted to the rank of major) and company H (cap-
tain, Thomas Davis) were recruited in Rochester. It was a two-years' regiment,
under command of Col. Wm. H. Christian. The regiment served most of the
time in the defenses at Washington, until the spring of 1862. It was engaged
at Bull Run, Centerville, Antietam and Fredericksburg. It returned to New
York in the spring of 1863 and was mustered out May 14th.
The Twenty-seventh. — This was raised to serve two years, with Col. H. W.
Slocum as its commander and J. J, Chambers lieutenant-colonel. The regi-
ment contained one company (E) which was raised in Rochester — captain,
George G. Wanzer ; lieutenants, Charles S. Baker and E. P. Gould. It was
mustered into the service May 29th, at Elmira; was in the first fight at Bull
Run, where it was the second regiment to engage the enemy, charging them
with fixed bayonets and driving them back. It suffered very severely here,
56o History of the City of Rochester.
being at short range and holding the rebels in check until forced to fall back.
Here its colonel was badly wounded. On the promotion of Col. Slocum, James
J. Bartlett was placed in command. Operations commenced in the spring of
1862 with a sharp fight at West Point and then on through the Peninsula cam-
paign, where the Twenty-seventh bore a prominent and gallant part, covering
itself with glory at Mechanicsville and Gaines Mills, Gen. Slocum commanding
the division to which it. belonged and Col. Bartlett their brigade, Lieut.-Col.
Adams commanding the regiment. It was present and engaged at Antietam
and at Fredericksburg. Its term of service having expired, it returned home
and was mustered out May 21st, 1863. Captein Wanzer had been promoted
major, and E. P. Gould captain of the company. Henry L. Achilles, jr., now
of this city, commanded company K, which was raised at Albion.
The Twenty -eighth. — This was recruited principally in neighboring coun-
ties, though a large number enlisted from Rochester, distributed through its dif-
ferent companies, Captain Charles H. Fenn of this city raising a portion of his
company here. He entered the service as first lieutenant, but was soon pro-
moted to the command of his company (F). The regiment was engaged at
Winchester on May 24th, 1862, but its greatest achievements were at Cedar
Mountain on August 9th, 1862, where, with the Forty-sixth Pennsylvania, it
bore the brunt of the battle. Three successive times Crawford's brigade, in
which it was serving, with these two regiments in the advance, was hurled des-
perately against the enemy's lines before their advance could be checked. This,
however, was at a terrible sacrifice, and at the close of the action but 150 men
could be mustered from the gallant Twenty- eighth. At Antietam and Chan-
cellorsville the regiment also won distinction. At the latter place a portion of
the command were taken prisoners, being flanked by superior force. The colo-
nel, Dudley Donnelly, was killed at Cedar Mountain. He was succeeded by
Lieut.-Col. Edwin F. Brown, who commanded the regiment during the remain-
der of its service. Being a two years' regiment it was mustered out June 2d,
1863.
The Thirty-third. — Although no company organisations in this regiment
could be claimed as distinctively belonging to Rochester, a large number of
men were enlisted here. In September, 1862, 240 recruits from this city joined
the regiment, which was raised mainly in the counties of Livingston, Ontario,
Seneca, Yates and Wayne. It was mustered into the service at Elmira, May
22d, 1861, eight days after the Thirteenth, from which regiment its colonel was
chosen — Captain Robert F. Taylor. He was an excellent officer and soon had
the Thirty-third in efficient condition. In the Peninsula campaign the regiment
participated in nearly all of the engagements ; particularly distinguishing itself
for bravery in charging and repulsing the advancing enemy at Williamsburg,
for which the command was warmly complimented by Gen. McClellan person-
ally. At Mechanicsville, Gaines Mills, Savage's Station and Crampton Gap the
The War Record. 561
Thirty-third bore its part with honor, and at Antietam a heavy loss was sus^
tained. In storming the heights at Fredericksburg, it was also, hotly engaged
and won distinction. The term of service was for two years, and the regiment
was mustered out May I2th, 1863.
The One Hundred and Fifth. — This was organised at Rochester and Le
Roy, the men being, mainly, recruited in the counties of Monroe, Niagara, Gen-
esee and Cattaraugus ; companies G, Captain McMahon ; H, Captain Bradley,
and I, Captain Purcell, enlisted in Rochester and vicinity. James M. Fuller, of
Le Roy, was its colonel, Henry L. Achilles, sr., its first lieutenartt-colonel,
Howard Carroll, of Rochester, succeeding him on the consolidation of this with
the Ninety- fourth New York, which occurred in March, 1863. John W. Shedd,
of Lc Roy, was major, and Daniel A. Sharpe, of Rochester, adjutant. The
regiment was mustered into service at Camp Upham, Le Roy, the i6th of No-
vember, 1 86 1. The men of Monroe county were mostly of the Irish nation-
ality, possessing zeal and patriotism. They were ordered to Washington soon
after their organisation in the spring of 1862, and brigaded with cavalry, artil-
lery and other infantry, the brigade comprising some 2,500 men, and com-
manded by Gen. Duryea. They were present at Manassas, May 26th, and
from May 24th to June 3d, when they arrived at Front Royal, they endured
severe and successive marches over bad roads, without baggage or tents — ex-
periences often more trying to the courageous soldiers than fighting itself
About the middle of June they left Front Royal, and were ordered to move
forward when Pope was engaging Jackson at Bull Run. They did not reach
the field until late in the day, when they received a volley from the rebel artil-
lery, but- no loss. August 30th, 1862, they were in the battle of Centerville.
In this action Gen. Duryea was wounded in the hand, but retained his position
in the field. After preliminary firing, and some heavy skirmishing, they were
surprised toward night, by a concealed battery, supported by infantry, which
opened upon them. They charged nobly, but were overpowered by the enemy,
and forced to retire. The battles of this staunch regiment coniprised Cedar
Mountain, Rappahannock, Thoroughfare Gap, Second Bull Run, Chantilly,
South Mountain and Antietam. Colonel Fuller resigned, and Colonel Carroll,
who succeeded, was fatally wounded at this last battle, and died a month later.
Also, at Bull Run, company I was badly cut up, coming out with only thirteen
men out of thirty-three. In October Major John W. Shedd was commissioned
colonel. They again participated in another battle, that of Fredericksburg,
December 13th. The regiment was subsequently consolidated with the Ninety-
fourth. Captain John McMahon, of this city, afterward raised the i88th regi-
ment and was commissioned its colonel.
- The One Hundred and Eighth. — The first three regiments organised in this
state under the call for 300,000 troops were to be honored as the banner regi-
ments. The 1 08th was the second of these regiments, being mustered in at
562 History of the City of Rochester.
Rochester August i8th, 1862. It had been recruited in less than a month, the
107th having been mustered at Elmira five days earlier. The field and staff
were : Colonel, O. H. Palmer ; lieutenant-colonel, C. J. Powers ; major, George
B. Force; adjutant, John T. Chumasero; quartermaster, Joseph S. Harris;
surgeon, J. F. Whitbeck ; assistant-surgeon, W. S. Ely ; chaplain, James
Nichols. The companies were commanded as follows ; Company A, Capt. H.
B. Williams ; B, Capt. H. S. Hogoboom ; C, Capt. Wm. H. Andrews ; D,
Capt. J. G. Cramer ; E, Capt, A. K. Cutler ; F, Capt. F. E. Pierce ; G, Capt.
T. B. Yale ; H, Capt. E. P. Fuller ; I, Capt. Wm. Graebe ; K, Capt. Joseph
Deverell. The regiment left Rochester August 19th, reached New York the
2 1st and was tendered a grand ovation on its way to the barracks in the city
hall park. It left the next day for Washington, going into camp on the ground
occupied by the Old Thirteenth the year before. August 30th the first sound
of cannonading was heard in the direction of Bull Run and Centerville ; and
September 4th the men had their first experience of a call " to arms " for active
service. Orders were soon received to "fall in," and after several days' march
they were, near Keetysville, on the i6th, under fire all day. On the 17th,
opposite the Dunkers' church, they opened on the enemy not thirty rods dis-
tant with a rapid determined fire. All day they held their stand before the
enemy's batteries, and on making a charge captured the colors of a North Car-
olina regiment with 166 prisoners. The regiment suffered severely, 26 killed,
124 wounded, 47 missing, a total of 197 men. Among the killed were Major
Force and Lieutenants Tarbox and Holmes. In the death of Major Force the
regiment suffered a severe loss. He was a superior drill officer, as well as a
gallant soldier, and to him the regiment owed largely the rapid progress it had
made in drill and discipline. From Antietam to Harper's Ferry, fording the
river waist deep, camping at Bolivar Heights, on October 29th the regiment
marched across the Shenandoah, thence to Snicker's Gap, where friend and com-
rade exchanged welcome greetings with the boys of the Thirteenth and the
140th. December 12th they crossed the Rappahannock, and the order was
given for an advance upon the works at Fredericksburg. Their division —
French's, of Sumner's corps — was in line for the charge, the io8th at the front.
Here their heroism won for them immortal honor. To take the first position
of earthworks, they must be carried at the point of the bayonet. They rushed
forward, under a raking fire ; faltered but soon re-formed, advanced at double-
quick, under a solid fire of artillery and infantry which was overpowering ;
halted, rallied again, and reached the stone wall at the base of the rebel works,
on the other side of which lay the determined foe. Gen. Sumner brought all
his cannon to bear, but the attempt to dislodge the enemy proved futile. Under
cover of the night the regiment was withdrawn, and returned to its camp at
Falmouth, where it remained for the winter. On the resignation of Col. Palmer
in March, 1863, Charles J. Powers was promoted colonel. In his case, to the
The War Record. 563
thorough soldier were added fine discipUnary powers, great care and love for his
men, at the same time imparting that zeal and courage which brought them
to the highest rank. I-Je was specially distinguished for great personal bravery
and remarkable coolness in action. At this time Major F. E. Pierce was made
lieutenant-colonel, Capt. H. S. Hogoboom being major. When Jackson with
a large force swept down upon the eleventh corps near Chancellorsville, and the
brigade advanced into the wild conflict, Col. Powers's appeal " not to lose their
former prestige" gave inspiration and helped to maintain their well-earned
fame.
During the first day's fight at Gettysburg, July ist, the regiment made a
forced march of thirty- eight miles to reach the battle-field. Here their brav-
ery was also prominent. They supported Rickett's old battery, which was
doing effective service among the rebels. These, under the rebel general
who recognised the battery, attempted its capture, but were repulsed by the
108th. With the men at the battery being rapidly swept away, the horses
killed, the io8th gallantly assisted in working the guns. The struggle was in-
tense. As the conflict raged, their regiment was singled out by Gen. Hayes as
an example of bravery in a warm compliment bestowed. Here they lost in
commissioned officers, three killed and nine wounded ; in the ranks 146, of
whom 14 were killed, the rest wounded or missing. The regiment was en-
gaged in Meade's fall campaign, Lieut.-Col. Pierce losing an eye at Morton's
Ford, and was in all the battles of the Wilderness. In the second day's fight.
Col. Potvers, while leading the command, was shot through the lungs, but re-
covered. At Spottsylvania, under cover of a heavy fog the, second corps cau-
tiously gained the rebel works and with a shout rushed on, taking part of
the main line, with a capture of two general officers, and 6,000 prisoners. On
May 18th the regiment lost nine killed, and nearly 100 wounded, but the rem-
nant never faltered. Captain Deverell was placed in command of the regi-
ment. In the charge at Cold Harbor, on June 3d, he was wounded, and Lieut.
Kinleyside killed. Here Lieut. P. C. Kavanagh took temporary command.
At Petersburg it was employed on the fortifications until the last of Septem-
ber, when it was assigned the front line in Fort Hell, and as the besieged en-
emy held on with dying grip through weary months, the regiment became dec-
imated to a mere handful, less than 100 men being on duty. " During the
three years of active service, with the losses it sustained, and the few recruits
received, the io8th maintained the qualities which earned for it the reputation
of a "fighting regiment." From the time it went to the front it was engaged
in all the battles and skirmishes of the army of the Potomac, numbering twenty-
seven. On the 1st of June, 1865, it returned to Rochester, when 169 hardy
soldiers were escorted by military and other societies to the court-house, where
a generous welcome was extended by Mayor D. D. T. Moore, with a banquet
following. The following officers came home in command of, or were mus-
564 History of the City of Rochester.
tered out with, the regiment : Charles J. Powers, colonel ; F. E. Pierce, lieu-
tenant-colonel ; F. B. Hutchinson, quartermaster ; Reuben H. Halstead, ad-
jutant ; F. M. Wafer, surgeon ; Robert Stevenson, assistant-surgeon ; John B.
Kennedy, W. H. Andrews, Samuel Porter, J. G. Cramer, S. P. Howard, A. J.
Locke, A. J. Boyd, captains ; W. H. Raymond, Jay W. Smith, John O. Jewell,
Chris. Traugott, James Westcott, Alfred Elwood, H. F. Richardson, Solo-
mon Fatzer, . first lieutenants ; Alfred B. Hadley, John Galvin, second lieu-
tenants.
The One Htmdred and Fortieth. — This regiment was organised in the latter
part of the summer of 1862. Company A was raised at Brockport, but all the
other companies were raised in Rochester, although a large number of their
men were residents of the surrounding country towns of Monroe county.
When the regiment was full it went into quarters at Camp Fitzjohn Porter,
where, on September 13th, 1862, it was formally mustered into the United
States service for three years. Two days after, at the residence of Henry L.
Fish, a number of young ladies of Rochester presented a flag to the officers of
the regiment. On Friday, September 19th, it left Rochester by the Northern
Central railroad for Washington. The day is memorable above all others in
the history of our city, as one in which the most serious feelings of the public
mind were profoundly stirred. The news of the battle of Antietam had that
morning reached' the city, and the air was rife with wild rumors of losses in the
Rochester regiments already in the field. Nearly every family in the city had
a representative or a relative in the ranks of the 140th, and the whole popula-
tion turned out to bid them good-bye. The roster of the first officers of the
regiment was as follows: Field and staff" — Colonel, Patrick H. O'Rorke;
lieutenant-colonel, Louis Ernst; major, Isaiah F. Force; adjutant, Ira C. Clark;
quartermaster, Wm. H. Crennell; surgeon, Theodore F. Hall; first assistant-
surgeon, Wm. C. Slayton; second assistant-surgeon, O. Sprague Paine ; chap-
lain, Charles Machin; sergeant-major, W. S. Coon; commissary sergeant,
John Hume; quartermaster sergeant, J. Sidney Munn; hospital steward, Joseph
F. Moon. Company officers: Co.' A — capt., Milo L. Starks; ist It, Jo.seph
M. Leeper; 2d It, J. D. Decker. Co. B — capt, Christian Spies; ist It,
August Meyer; 2d It, Chas. P.Klein. Co. C — capt, W. J. Clark; ist It,
Bartholomew Crowley; 2d It, John Buckley. Co. D — capt, Elwell S. Otis;
1st It, Henry B. Hoyt; 2d It, Alex. H. McLeod. Co. E^capt, Monroe M.
Hollister; ist It, Patrick A. McMuUen; 2d It, Benjamin Ridley. Co. F —
capt., B. F. Harmon; ist It, James H. Knox; 2d It, Isaac Simmons. Co. G
— capt. Perry B. Sibley; ist It, Henry E. Richmond; 2d It, Porter Farley.
Co. H — -^capt, W. S. Grantsynn; 1st It, Joseph H. Suggett; 2d It, Chas. H.
Burtis. Co. I — capt, Wm. F. Campbell; ist It, Addison N. Whiting; 2d It,
Lewis Hamilton. Co. K — capt, Patrick J. DowHng; ist It, Patrick H. Sul-
livan; 2d It, Hugh McGraw.
The War Record. 565
The regiment left Rochester in command of Lt.-Col. Ernst, was armed at
Elmira and reached Washington late at night on September 22d. The next
afternoon it marched over the long bridge which crosses the Potomac, and
went into camp on Arlington heights. September 29th it was moved by rail
up to Frederick, Md.; thence, October 5th, to Sandy Hook, Md. There,
October 8th, its first colonel, Patrick H. O'Rorke, joined it and took com-
mand. Space forbids any but the most meager recital of the experiences of
this organisation. After it entered upon active service it was permanently
connected with the fifth army corps. It was present at the battle of Fred-
ericksburg and formed part of the force which occupied the town from the
evening of the 13th till early morning of the i6th of December. 1862, and was
in the last brigade which left the city. It was not actually engaged, but lost
a few men wounded, while lying as a reserve for other troops. It was present
and slightly engaged at Chancellorsville, May ist to 4th, 1863. It lost several
men in this campaign by the shells and bullets of the enemy. At Aldie, in
Virginia, on the 24th of June, 1863, the depleted ranks were reinforced by
scvcnty-six enlisted men and one officer, Capt. WiUard Abbott, who had be-
longed to the Thirteenth regiment. That was a two-years' regiment and its
time had expired, but these men had belonged to two companies which had
been raised for the Thirteenth during its second year and they had been mus-
tered in for three years.
On the 2d of July of the same year, on the rocky slopes of Little Round
Top, on the historic field of Gettysburg, the regiment rendered a service and
suffered a loss by which it earned the gratitude and applause of all the loyal
North. In a sharp action, into which it was thrown unexpectedly and without
a moment's notice, it gallantly helped to repel the charge by which the enemy
so nearly gained a footing on Little Round Top. Col. O'Rorke was shot by a
bullet through the neck and fell dead without uttering a word. It is not too
much to say that he was the most illustrious sacrifice which during those bloody
years of war this community was called upon to mourn. He was the foremost
soldier of Monroe county, one who possessed great gifts by nature and who
had cultivated his talents with an industry which had placed him conspicuously
the leader of all his associates. Capts. Starks, Spies and Sibley and Lieuts.
Klein and McGraw were all severely wounded, the last two fatally. Twenty-
five enlisted men were killed and eighty-four wounded. The command of the
regiment devolved for some weeks upon Lieut.-Col. Ernst, and, after his resig-
nation, for some two weeks upon Major Force, when it was assumed, August
29th, by Col. George Ryan, a regular army officer, a captain in the seventh in-
fantry. During the following winter the regiment, in common with the brig-
ade to which it belonged, adopted the zouave style of dress — red fez cap, with
white turban, blue jacket and sash, both trimmed with red, immense baggy
blue trousers, gathered by a band just below the knee, leather leggins and linen
gaiters. It retained this dress during the remainder of its term of service.
$66 History of the City of Rochester.
Under Col. Ryan the regiment reached a high degree of discipline and
military efficiency. It participated in the bootless Mine Run campaign in the
latter part of November, 1863. During the winter following it lay in camp at
Warrenton junction, on the Orange & Alexandria railroad. Its camp was
a model of neatness, and in point of comfort a great contrast with that of the
previous winter at Falmouth. Its location upon the railroad, its picturesque
dress and high discipline, proved attractive and elicited the admiration of many
visitors, both military and civilian, who inspected its quarters and witnessed its
drills and parades. On the 30th of April, 186^, it broke camp and moved down
toward the Rappahannock river to join the main body of the army on the
bloody overland campaign. It started out on that march more than 600 strong,
composed of men all inured to hardship, splendidly disciplined and equipped.
There was no finer organisation in the army. On the sth of May it went into
action in the wilderness in the very opening of the fighting of that terrific cam-
paign. In an engagement of not more than half an hour it lost in killed,
wounded and missing a total of eleven officers and 257 enlisted men. On Sun-
day May 8tli, in the action near Spottsylvania Court- House, the regiment again
lost five officers and sixty enlisted men. Among the killed in this action were
Col. Ryan and Major Starks, both men of the truest fiber, who deserve remem-
brance among the bravest of those who met death in the defense of the national
cau.se. Thus'in three days after the opening of this campaign the splendid 140th
regiment, which had started over 600 strong, had been reduced to a compara-
tive handful, 333 men having been lost in two successive actions. Considerably
over half its strength had melted away, and by far the greater part of those
whom it had lost were never to return. The command of the regiment now
devolved upon Lieut.-Col. E. S. Otis. During the next three weeks there were
losses by men being wounded while on picket or skirmish duty or by stray
shots which came into the lines. On the 2d of June, in the action at Bethesda
Church, there was a further loss of fifty-four men and two officers, making a
total in a space of less than a month of 41 1 out of a force of a little more than
600. This is a record of losses in battle unsurpassed by any organisation from
this region, and perhaps hardly equaled during the war. The regiment formed
part of the investing force during all the operations about Petersburg, took
part in the actions at the Weldon railroad, Hatcher's Run and Five Forks ;
was present at Lee's surrender at Appomattox, took part in the grand review
at Washington, where, June 3d, 1865, it was mustered out of service, and
reached Rochester June 6th, 290 strong, under command of Col. Wm. S.
Grantsynn.
Tke One Hundred and Fifty-first. — This regiment was organised at Camp
Church, Lockport, N. Y. It was mustered into the service of the United States
October 22d, 1862, and left that city the following day, under the command of
Colonel William Emerson. The regiment was quartered in Baltimore during
The War Record. 567
the following winter. On the 22d of April, 1863, it was ordered to West Vir-
ginia and narrowly escaped sharing in the disastrous defeat of the Union forces
under General Milroy at Winchester. It was at Frederick City, Md., when the
battle of Gettysburg was fought, after which it was merged in the army of the
Potomac. Company E of this regiment was raised in Rochester. Peter Imo
was in command as captain and went with it to the field. John C. Schoen was
first lieutenant, and, on the resignation of Captain Imo, was promoted to the
command of the company and was killed while bravely leading his men in the
charge at Cold Harbor on the 3d of June, 1864. At the close of the war his
remains were brought back and interred at Mount Hope. The regiment was
engaged at Wapping Heights, and at Mine Run in 1863. In the spring of 1864
it moved across the Rapidan and participated in the battles of the Wilderness,
Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor and Petersburg. On the 6th of July, 1864, the
third division of the sixth corps, to which the regiment belonged, was ordered
to Washington. This regiment suffered severely in the battle of Monocacy,
when, overwhelmed by a largely superior force, it was compelled to retreat.
Twenty-one were killed and more than one-half of the remainder wounded or
missing. It was engaged in all the brilliant campaign of General Sheridan in
the valley of the Shenandoah, the Opequan, Fisher's Hill and Cedar creek. In
November the regiment was consolidated into a battalion of five companies. A
battalion being entitled to no higher officer than lieutenant-colonel. Col. Emer-
son was mustered out, Captain Charles Bogdrdus succeeding him. Early in, the
winter of 1 864-65 the sixth corps was ordered back to Petersburg. The regi-
ment was in the line that broke through the rebel defenses on the 2d of April,
was in the battle of Sailor's creek on the 6th, was in at the death of the rebel-
lion, when Gen. Lee surrendered to Gen. Grant on the 9th of April, 1865, and
shared in the jubilant demonstrations of that memorable day. The regiment
was mustered out on the 26th of June and reached Rochester on the 1st of
July, with 21 officers and 308 enlisted men. They were warmly welcomed by
the citizens, and company E was given a dinner at the Brackett House and ad-
dressed by the mayor. Of the members of this regiment now living in Roch-
ester may be mentioned Colonel Emerson, who made it one of the best drilled
organisations in the service. He had command of the first brigade, third divis-
ion, sixth corps, from the day following the battle of Monocacy till he was mus-
tered out. George J. Oaks went out with company E as second lieutenant.
He was twice promoted, and brevetted major, and came home in command of
the company. He was for some time on the staff of General Morris, who was
in command of the third division of the sixth corps. Edward Heller went out
with the company as an enlisted man, but came home as lieutenant. Julius
Armbruster received a cohimission, but was not mustered. He was hit at the
batde of Winchester, directly between the eyes, the ball passing through and
coming out at the back of his head. The surgeon said that the wound
568 History of the City of Rochester.
was fatal, but in a few weeks he was back in the ranks, doing duty as a soldier.
It is one of the most remarkable cures that occurred during the war. C. W.
Wall, who enlisted as a private in company D, of this regiment, was soon ap-
pointed commissary sergeant, afterward made quartermaster sergeant, and was
commissioned as quartermaster near the close of the war.
The Third Cavalry. — This was recruited in the summer of 1861, the mus-
ter extending from June 14th to August 27th. Companies A, Captain Charles
FitzSimons ; C, Capt. Alon?o Stearns ; F, Capt. Judson Downs ; H, Capt.
John M. Wilson, and M, Capt. Nathan P Pond, were raised in Monroe county.
Captain Geo. W. Lewis, of the "OldThirteetith," was transferred with his com-
pany late in the summer of 1861 and it became company K. The field and staff
were : Colonel, James H. Van Allen; lieutenant-colonel, Simon H. Mix; sur-
geon, Wm. H. Palmer; assistant-surgeon, Frederick Douglass; regimental ad-
jutant, Samuel C. Pierce, subsequently promoted lieutenant-colonel. It is
claimed that this regiment should have been the First New York cavalry,
which would have been its number if it had not persistently held on to the
name of its first colonel, and been known for some time as the "Van Allen
cavalry." It is a matter of history, in which much pride is taken, that A and
B companies (the former raised here and the latter in Syracuse) were the first
volunteer cavalry mustered into the service of the United States. It was not
until after the battle of Biill Run that Gen. Scott would concede the need of
cavalry, and every obstacle possible to recruiting for this branch of the service
was imposed by the government. For instance, every recruit must be at least
five feet five inches tall, pass a very rigid examination by the surgeon and
mustering officer, and must furnish his own horse and equipments, for which,
however, the government agreed to pay him forty cents per day and to supply
forage. In addition to this, each horse must be bay in color, with long tail,
not less than fifteen and a half hands high, and worth at least $175. These
restrictions, however, were in force only during the recruiting of A and B com-
panies. Major John Mix was sent to them, being promoted from the reg-
ular army. The command entered upon active service in the fall of 1861.
Their work of scouting, picket duty and skirmishing extended through the
winter of 1 861-62. In April, 1862, they joined Gen. Burnside in North
Carolina, their subsequent service being mainly in operations connected with
the army of the James. Upon the resignation of Col. Van Allen in April,
1862, Lieut.-Col. S. H. Mix was promoted colonel, Major John Mix lieutenant-
colonel and Captain George W. Lewis ranking major. The junior majors were
Charles FitzSimons, Jephthah Garrard and George W. Cole ; Alonzo Stearns
and Israel Henry Putnam were subsequently promoted majors. The regiment
here won great distinction. One of the most brilliant achievements was that
of Private White, of company A, previously an engineer on the New York
Central, who captured a railroad train ; galloping alongside the locomotive, he.
The War Record. 569
sprang from his horse into the cab, put his pistol to the head of the engineer,
reversed the lever, and brought the train, loaded with a detachment of the
enemy and an immense quantity of stores, into the Union lines. Capt. Pond
was afterward made lieutenant-colonel of the First U. S. colored cavalry, and
other Rochester men who gained promotion were Major Maurice Leyden, Ad-
jutants George D. Williams and William L. Ogden, Captains Walter S. Joy
and James R. Chamberlain, Lieutenants Sherman Greig, John Gregoi-y and
Milton H. Smith. The regiment participated in. the following battles and skir-
mishes : Ball's Bluff, October 21st, 1861 ; Winchester, March ist, 1862 ; Trent
Road, N. C, May isth; Rail's Mills, November 7th; Kingston, December
(4th; Whitehall, December 1 6th ; Goldsboro', December 17th; Jacksonville,
January iSth, 1863; Trenton, January 30th ; Trent Road, March 14th ; Blunt's
Mills, April 8th; Peletecr's Mills, April i6th ; Leard's Creek, April 20th;
Belleview Cross Roads, April 23d ; Warsaw, July 4th ; Tarboro', July 20th ;
Street's Ferry, July 25th; Bottom's Bridge, Va., February 7th, 1864; Stonj'^
Creek, May 7th; Nottaway Bridge, May 8th ; Chula Station, May I2th ; Blacks
& Whites, May 14th; before Petersburg, May iSth; South Quay, June 2d;
Staunton Bridge, June 25th; Roanoke Bridge, June 26th; Ream's Station,
June 29th ; Malvern Hill, July 27th; Yellow Tavern, August 25th; Prince
George C. H., September iSth; Johnson's Farm, September 29th and Oc-
tober 7th ; Charles City Pike, October 20th and 27th ; South Quay, Decem-
ber 1 2th.
The Eighth Cavalry. — This regiment was organised for three years' serv-
ice under Col. Samuel J. Crooks in the autumn of i86l. Lieut.-Col. Chas. R.
Babbitt, Majors W. L. Markell and W. H. Benjamin and Chaplain Van Ingen
were among the officers. The regiment was ordered to Washington and drilled
while in winter quarters. In the spring it was sent to Gen. Banks, then in the
Shenandoah valley. Col. Crooks having resigned in February, the regiment,
under Lieut.-Col. Babbitt, had, in May, a sharp contest with the enemy, while
guarding the Winchester & Potornac railroad. In June Captain Benjamin F.
Davis, of the regular army, was made its colonel. Active recruiting had been
going on at home, and in September the regiment, reinforced by 600 men, was
mounted, equipped and well disciplined. Very, soon it met with a lively ex-
perience, surrounded by Stonewall Jackson's force at Harper's Ferry. A sur-
render was demanded of Col. Miles, in command there. Col. Davis, foreseeing
that it could not be held, sought permission to escape with his regiment, but
was refused. At midnight on September 14th, having made known his plans
to his officers, he led the men to the Maryland side, where the column almost
literally flew through the rebel camp, regarded by the Confederates as a porr
tioh of their own cavalry. The following day the regiment captured Long-
street's ammunition train on its way to Antietam, toward which McClellan was
advancing. In October it pursued the rebel army up the Shenandoah ; en-
S70 History of the City of Rochester.
gaged at Snicker's Gap, Phillemont, Union, Upperville, Barber's Cross-roads
and Amosville, and picketed along the Rappahannock, until after the battle of
Fredericksburg, when the regiment went into winter quarters until April, 1863.
In the figlft at Chancellorsville, in June, a prominent part was taken, and heavy
loss sustained. At Beverly Ford, while leading the column, Col. Davis was
killed by a secreted rebel, who in turn was killed by saber stroke at the hand
of Adjutant Parsons. At Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania the Eighth were on
the alert and moved on toward Gettysburg, where they fired the first gun, and
by their courage in charging the enemy gave protection to the infantry, fight-
ing not only on horse, but dismounted. In September the squadrons of the
Eighth advanced with Buford's division on Culpeper. One squadron, in cap-
turing a battery, was surrounded by the noted Hampton Legion, a furious
hand-to-hand fight following, when, under a shower of balls, the troopers dashed
through the enemy. After a number of engagements in the fall of 1863, the
regiment encamped at Culpeper Court- House for the winter.
In the spring of 1864 the Eighth could report but 600 men for duty. Two
hundred returned on furlough as re-enlisted veterans; 300 were killed or
wounded. Besides their colonel, Captains Foote, Cutlef, Efner and Follett, and
Lieutenants Reeves and Smith were killed, and Major Pope held as prisoner.
The regiment had been in thirty-three actions. Later they participated in
Sheridan's raid toward Richmond; as well as Wilson's raid out from Peters-
burg. During this famous cavalry expedition, after days and nights of constant
fighting and marching, they were finally surrounded, but the Eighth made good
their escape, losing five officers and thirty-five men captured. They took a
prominent part with Sheridan in his memorable fight at Winchester, and for
their gallantry received, with the rest of his division, congratulations from Gen.
Custer. Among the tokens of this victory were five battle-flags. A number
of prisoners, including a major-general, with fifty pieces of artillery, were cap-
tured within ten days. The Eighth wintered at Winchester, and the records of
1864 were finished by a close fight on the last day, when a great number were
wounded. In 1865 the regiment, in command of Major Compson, charged .
upon the entrenchments of Gen. Early at Waynesboro', capturing them in the
face of rebel cannon, with ten battle-flags, six guns and caissons and 1,300
prisoners. Early just escaped, his horse being shot by Major Compson, who,
for this, was honored as the bearer of dispatches to the secretary of war ; carry-
ing, also, seventeen battle-flags, of which ten were taken by the Eighth. Prior
to the surrender at Appomattox in April, they were on active duty, receiv-
ing the flag of truce on the 9th. They took part in the grand review in
Washington on May 22d, and reached Rochester on June 28th, in command of
Col. Pope. The actions inscribed upon their battle-flag numbered over sixty,
in which they lost one colonel, eleven captains, two lieutenants and a color-
bearer. They were disbanded in July. Col. Markell succeeded Col. Davis,
The War Record. 571
and commanded at Gettysburg and until August following, when Col. Ben-
jamin assumed command and held it till 1865. Cols. Pope and Benjamin were
breveted brigadiers.
The Twenty-First Cavalry. — Four companies — G, Captain John S. Jen-
nings ; L, Captain Wm. Godley ; M, Captain David A. Signor, and H, Captain
J. S. Graham — were from Rochester. The regiment was mustered into the
service during the fall of 1863. Col. W. B. Tibbitts, of Troy, Lieut- Col. Chas.
FitzSimons of Rochester and Majors C. G. Otis and G. V. Boutelle were the
original field officers. The regiment was in a fight at Moorfield, West Va. ; in
the battle of New Market, Va. ; with Hunter in his raid under Sigel, when
Early swept down the valley and threateiied Washington in 1864, hanging on
his flanks and rear at Frederick City, Md., and in Loudon county, Va., when
the regiment cut out and captured fifty-two wagons from Early's train and
burned many more. A few days later the regiment charged across the Shen-
andoah river at Ashby's Ford, in the face of rebel infantry and artillery, suffer-
ing a heavy loss. Lieut-Col. FitzSimons was wounded. July 24th, 1864, at
Kernstown and Winchester, Va., the regiment was sharply engaged for two
days, the last day covering a retreat of our infantry and artillery, bringing off"
two guns which had been abandoned by our troops. Hard fighting and march-
ing had nearly dismounted the regiment and it was sent to Cumberland, Md.,
to remount and refit. In November, 1864, it was again in the valley. While
enjoying Thanksgiving dinner, Mosby attempted a surprise but was quickly re-
pulsed. In December, 1864, the regiment held the advance in a raid of 2,500
cavalry toward Gordonsville, and again in February, .1865, in a heavy recon-
noissance under Merritt, up the valley. It was left in the valley when Sheridan
moved on Richmond, and after Lee's surrender was sent to Washington and
from there to Colorado, when it was mustered out in detachments. The fol-
lowing officers were from Rochester or the immediate vicinity: Lieut-Col.
FitzSimons, Major John S. Jennings; Captains W. M. Godley, David A. Sig-
nor, J. S. Graham; First Lieutenants W. H. Joslyn, N. H. Meldrum, E. B. Col-
lins, Wm. E. Hoyt; Second Lieutenant S. H. Draper. Band-master Alex.
Scott and nearly all the regimental band (said to have been the best in Sher-
idan's command) were from Rochester. Many of the men of the four Roches-
ter companies were veterans who had served in the Thirteenth, Twenty-sixth,
Twenty-seventh and other two-years' regiments.
The Tiventy-secmid Cavalry. — A number of companies in this regiment
were raised in Rochester, being mustered in in February, 1864. While in the
service it was brigaded with the Eighth cavalry, in Custer's famous third divis-
ion, participating in all of their brilliant achievements. Its first colonel was
Samuel J. Crooks, but the most of its fighting was done under Major Caleb
Moore, detailed from the Eighth cavalry, and the following Rochester men served
as officers : James H. Nellis, A. K. Tower, Jacob Fisher, Frank A., Callister,
37
572 History of the City of Rochester.
Michael McMullen, R. E. Ellerbeck, Charles C. Brown, John Wrenn, George
Sperry, .Isidore E. Prevost, Chris. C. Bruton, James W. Weeks, Henry P. Starr,
Patrick R. Glerman, Clark S. Nellis.
Battery L, First N. Y. Light Artillery, or Reynolds's Battery. — At the or-
ganisation of the Old Thirteenth, in April, 1861, the Rochester Union Grays,
an artillery company attached to the Fifty-fourth regiment, volunteered as a bat-
tery of artillery. Their services, however, were declined. Three months later,
Guilford D. Bailey, then a lieutenant in the regular army, was authorised to
raise a regiment of light artillery, to consist of eight batteries. He wrote to
John A. Reynolds, then captain of the Union Grays, asking him to raise a com-
pany for this regiment. Recruiting was commenced early in September, Cap-
tain Reynolds, Lieuts. E. A. Loder and G. H. Reynolds with eight men, mem-
bers of the Grays, forming the nucleus; the list filled rapidly and in the latter
part of September the company left for Elmira, whence they were sent to Al-
bany and forward to Washington. On Capitol Hill they joined the regiment
. under Col. Bailey and received the designation of Battery L. The battery was
here furnished with six three- inch rifled regulation, or Rodman guns. In Feb-
ruary, 1862, it was ordered to Baltimore, where, on Sunday, May 2Sth, it was
ordered to the front. Banks had been repulsed and driven back to Harper's
Ferry. That place was reached the next day, when the battery crossed the
river and moved to Bolivar heights. It was soon after assigned to Cooper's
brigade of Sigel's division, and marched to Front Royal, where it was assigned
to King's division of McDowell's corps. On August 21st, 1862, orders came
to take a position in which one of the Union batteries had been disabled; here its
first real engagement with the enemy opened. At White Sulphur Springs, which
followed, a sharp artillery duel occurred. Then followed Gainesville, a sharp,
bloody battle, lasting till long after dark. Next came "second Bull Run,"
where position was taken after dark. The next day the infantry moved off to
the right, leaving the battery in position, with Weed's regular battery on its
.right; and a volunteer battery on its left. Soon after, the enemy opened with
artillery, to which the three batteries replied ; the infantry near them, suffer-
ing severely from the enemy's artillery, with no opportunity to return the fire,
withdrew to be out of range. Soon after the other two batteries withdrew,
leaving Battery L alone and unsupported. A general officer ordered Captain
Reynolds to hold the position and keep the enemy back in front. He sent one
of the batteries back, and gave also infantry support, but neither remained long.
Soon the rebels charged over a field, completely through two of our batteries,
leaving the guns still in position in their rear, the drivers having escaped with
the limbers. Being so hotly engaged. Captain Reynolds did not realise his po-
sition, with all support withdrawn, until he was notified that the enemy's skir-
mishers were working in on his flank and rear, and had already shot down some
of the horses. Hurriedly the caissons were ordered back out of range; the
The War Record. 573
pieces limbered up and withdrawn a short distance, talting position just in time
to repel with canister a charge of the rebel infantry intended for their capture,
the lieutenants dismounting and assisting to work the guns. This repulse of
the enemy was a gallant achievement, of which both officers and men were justly
proud, greeting the rebels with cheers as they withdrew beyond range. The
battery held this position till nearly sunset, when ordered quietly to withdraw
and join its command. Captain Reynolds had been left all day, to rely solely
upon his own judgment, except as two general officers happened to come that
way, and give such orders as the movement called for. The battery joined its
brigade the next day at Centerville; then back to Washington, having been
three weeks without baggage- wagons, tents, or change of clothing; fighting or
marching every day, with no shelter in stormy weather but to crawl under the
gun pawlins — a hard campaign for the men, but a harder one for the horses,
who were frequently in harness for days at a time, with scanty or no forage.
Then followed South Mountain and Antietam. After a long halt near Sharps-
burg the battery again crossed the Potomac, into Virginia. Then came the
battle of Fredericksburg. The famous " mud march " followed. The bottom had
completely dropped out of the whole country; the wheels could go no deeper
on account of the axles, and the depth to which a horse would sink was meas-
ured by the length of his legs. Progress was impossible, and they returned to
camp for winter quarters at Waugh's Point.'
Their campaign in 1 863 opened with a fierce artillery duel below Fred-
ericksburg. Then came the march to Chancellorsville, halting in rear of the
battle-field, to protect the crossing on the withdrawal of the army across the
river during the night. Next morning Battery L returned to its old quarters at
Waugh's Point. As an illustration of this march, read the following: Some
one discovered a pair of ears projecting slightly above the surface of the muddy
road; nothing more was visible. Operations were begun; soon a head, and
finally the whole body of one of Uncle Sam's mules in harness was exhumed.
By the united efforts of a dozen men, he was lifted to his feet, supported long
enough to get his blood in circulation, and gradually acquiring the use of his
limbs was triumphantly taken to camp. Early in May, 1863, Captain John
A. Reynolds was promoted major and left the battery. He was twice brevetted
for meritorious service, became assistant chief of artillery of the first corps at
Gettysburg, and afterward chief of artillery of the twelfth corps, going with
that command to reinforce General Thomas after the battle of Chickamauga.
At the opening of the battle of Lookout Mountain he was, by General Hooker,
appointed his chief of artillery, remaining with him till relieved, and afterward
accompanying Gen. Sherman on his march to the sea, and subsequently through
the Carolinas as chief of artillery of the army of Georgia. Lieut. G. H. Rey-
nolds was commissioned captain, and assumed command of Battery L.
Preliminary to the battle of Gettysburg, the battery, being attached to
574 History of the City of Rochester.
General Wadsworth's division of the first corps, reached Gettysburg among the
earliest of the Union forces. In the fight of July 1st, when the enemy attacked
and took the place, the battery fell back with the army, though repeatedly re-
pulsing the furious charges of the foe. • Captain G. H, Reynolds was wounded
and taken prisoner, but was recaptured by our forces, not having been paroled.
In the meantime Lieut. Breck commanded the battery. It was here that it
suffered the first and only loss of a gun. Lieut. H. F. Wilbcr was failing back
with a section, when a terrific volley of musketry from the enemy killed all the
horses attached to the piece, as well as the horse he was riding. The enemy
were almost within bayonet thrust, and the gun had to be abandoned. During
the remainder of the battle, extending until the 4th of July, the battery held
position on the right slope of Cemetery, hill, closely engaged with both infantry
and artillery which nearly encircled it with terrific fire. As to the loss of the
piece Gen. Hunt said: "Artillery can sometimes be lost with honor," adding,
"so it was with you on that disastrous day.'' It is proper here to add that
this identical piece was recaptured and restored to the battery and has been
donated by the war department to the battery organisation which is still kept
up, and this gun has for a number of years had a place in line on Memorial
day and other parades. In November a winter campaign was attempted,
leading to a sharp engagement by Battery L, with other artillery, at Mine
Run. At the Wilderness, Reynolds's battery was present, but not engaged.
On May 7th lit moved with Griffin's division, fifth corps, in advance toward
Spottsylvania, aiding to repel a charge of the enemy, and contending with a
rebel battery. On the 1 2th it was hotly engaged, and the men acquitted them-
selves with honor. On May 23d they reached the North Anna, and engaged
a body of infantry, who were driving the Union forces. Among the troops
thuk driven was the " Iron brigade," and as evidence of the close fight, with
the assistance of L and other batteries, the rebels were fully met and driven
back in turn. In the several actions following, the battery participated, and
on August 2 1st assisted in sustaining the position of the Union troops at the
Weldon railroad. It was afterward assigned to the ninth corps, and stationed
at various points before Petersburg, and, when the place was taken, was placed
in the artillery reserve. With 137 men it reached Rochester, having been
mustered out June 17th, 1865. On returning, the following were the officers:
George Breck, captain and brevet major; Wm. H. Sheldon, D. M. Perrine,
Frederick Dietz and E. O. Kinne, lieutenants.
The Fourteenth Heavy Artillery. — This was formed at Rochester, and
comprised many veterans of the Old Thirteenth. It was raised in detach-
ments. Col. E. G. Marshall had been ordered to raise a regiment of heavy
artillery. At the time of the New York riots, in July 1 863, out of 300 men, en-
listed and in camp, about 200 were hastily dispatched to New York to re-
store order. By the first of September, Henry R. Randall had enlisted 150
The War Record. 575
more. Two other companies went on to New York in December of that
year. Its officers were, besides Col. Manshall, Lieut. -Col. Clarence A. Corn-
ing, Major Wm. H. Reynolds, Adjutant Job C. Hedges. They crossed the
Rapidan in May, 1864, their first action occurring at Spottsylvania. In the
charge upon the works at Petersburg, the Fourteenth was placed in line, sec-
ond to the first brigade, which led the division. The men were ordered to fix
bayonets and take the breastworks. In the face of a cutting fire, which scat-
tered the first line, they marched over them, advanced, and scaled the fortifi-'
cations, capturing a general, 300 prisoners and a battle-flag. They held the
works two hours, when, the enemy being reinforced and their own ammuni-
tion failing, they were forced to leave the stand they had so nobly gained.
Here Col. Marshall was wounded and Major Hedges was killed at the head of
his battalion. He was succeeded by Joseph P. Cleary. Of the 930 men who
entered the action, only 649 came out. When the works were subsequently
retaken, they were honored with a position in the front line. Other memor-
able actions were at Cold Harbor, Weldon railroad. Poplar Spring Church and
Hatcher's Run.
Mack's Battery, or the Eighteenth Light Artillery. — This was first re-
cruited as a part of the io8th infantry, but was subsequently organised as an
independent battery, never being attached to any artillery regiment. It was
mustered into the service September 13th, 1862, and left Rochester November
1 8th. The officers on leaving were : Captain, Albert G. Mack ; first lieuten-
ants, George H. Mumford and George S. Curtiss ; second lieutenant, George P.
Davis. Franklin V. Van Dake was promoted first lieutenant, Stalham L. Wil-
liams, A. B. McConnell and D. W. McConnell were made second lieutenants.
The battery was armed with six twenty-pound Parrott giins. It served in the
department of the Gulf, joining Banks's expedition, which sailed from New York
December 2d, 1862. After a stormy passage on the steamer Illinois, they
reached New Orleans on the 13th. In February they were sent to Baton
Rouge, joining in the feint upon Port Hudson in March, 1863, to enable Ad-
miral Farragut to run his flag-ship, the Hartford, with the Albatross, into the
upper Mississippi. Early in April they joined Banks's expedition through
Western Louisiana. Their first fight was at Bisland on the 12th and 13th
of April. In his report of this battle, Gen. Arnold, Banks's chief of artillery,
says :
" The Eighteenth New York battery under Captain Mack, was first posted in the
right center, but subse(iuently removed to the front, and attached to Payne's brigade
at the request of Gen. Emory. In this last position it performed most admirable serv-
ice, and delivered its fire with astonishing accuracy and effect, under a galling and cross
fire from the enemy, silencing the battery in its front in a very short time. Too much
praise cannot be bestowed upon this command in its first engagement."
The battery was with the expedition through its entire march of between
400 and 500 miles. It was not again engaged until the investment of Port
576 History of the City of Rochester.
Hudson, May 24th, 1863. Here it rendered efficient service during the siege
and until the surrender of tliis rebel stronghold on the 8th of July. The right
section of the battery was next engaged at Comite Bridge, May 3d, 1864. It
was assigned to garrison duty at different points, until the early spring of 1865,
when it left for Mobile bay and assisted in the capture of Spanish Fort, which
fell April 8th, and the next day it joined In the assault on Fort Blakely, which
was taken that night. The battery was next taken to Montgomery, Ala., and
finally returned to New York on the Illinois, the same vfessel in which it had
sailed, under sealed orders, two and a half years before. The battery was mus-
tered out July 20th, 1865.
In addition to the organisations described above, portions of other regi-
ments were raised and organised here — such as the Sixth, Twenty- fourth,
and First Veteran cavalry, the Eleventh battalion of artillery, the Twenty-
sixth battery, the Fiftieth engineers, and the Sixty-seventh, Seventieth, Sev-
enty-eighth, Eighty-ninth, Ninety-fourth, 104th and i88th infantry — and
many Rochester men enlisted and served as officers and privates in regiments
that had no recruiting station in this city. Their names cannot be set forth
here, but it will be competent to give, in closing, the names of those citizens
who during the conflict attained to the rank of general officers. They were :
Isaac F. Quinby, John H. Martindale, Elisha G. Marshall, Charles J. Powers,
Harrison S. Fairchild.
The Grand Army of the Republic. — This is composed of those who served
in the army or navy during the rebellion, and have an honorable discharge
therefrom. Its purposes are to keep alive the memories of those days and to
. assist needy and deserving soldiers and the widows and orphans of those who
died. The organisation was started in Illinois, in 1866. The first post in this
state was organised in our city soon afterward, and was named after the gallant
Col. O'Rorke, who was killed at Gettysburg. After several years the second
post here (number 106) was organised, composed exclusively of Germans,
adopting the name of a worthy German soldier, Col. Peissner. In 1875 was
organised another post (taking number 4, which had been surrendered), which
adopted the name of that noble old hero. Gen. Geo. H. Thomas. Within the
past year two new posts have- been organised — the C. J. Powers post (391)
and the E. G. Marshall post (397), taking the names of two gallant soldiers of
our city. The five posts now number 500 men, each of whom has a proud
and honorable record. There are about 500 posts of the Grand Army in the
state, with a membership of 30,000; that throughout the United States is
about 250,000.
The First Veteran Brigade. — This is composed of the five Grand Army
posts, together with the veteran regimental and company organisations of the
Thirteenth, io8th and 140th regiments, the Third and Eighth cavalry. Battery
L First New York hght artillery, and Eighteenth Independent battery. The
The Rochester Water Works. 577
brigade was organised in January, 1879, for the purpose of uniting all the
above organisations in the proper commemoration of Memorial day. The
brigade commander is elected in January, appoints his staff and holds the po-
sition for one year. At the organisation Gen. J. A. Reynolds was elected com-
mander, and reelected the ensuing year. Col, H. S. Greenleaf was elected in 1882
and reelected in 1883. Gen. John McMahon, elected in 1884, is now in com-
mand of the brigade.
CHAPTER LII.
THE ROCHESTER WATER WORKS.i
The Necessity of a Water Supply for the City — Early Plans for Furnishing it — The Company of
1852 — Its Failure and the Report of the Expert — Works Finally Constructed by the City — Full
Account of their Operation — Tests Made in 1874 — A Remarkable Exhibition — Sources of a Water
.Supply — The Lakes and the Reservoirs — The Molly Works, the Pump House and the Machinery —
The Telephone to Hemlock I^ake — Total Cost of the Work — Analysis of the Water.
ONE of the earliest experiences of all civilised communities is the need of
a convenient and abundant water supply for use in the protection of houses
and manufactories from destruction by fire. The need of a supply of water
for domestic uses usually makes itself felt at a later period, when the population
becomes compact and the soil saturated with foul matters of nameless varieties
and constituents, so' that the watercourses beneath the surface become the car-
riers of what may be fairly termed diluted sewage to the springs and wells
of the town. The adjacent streams, if any, also, from kindred causes, cease to
be fit for domestic uses.
The necessity for a, supply of water for use in the suppression of fires was
appreciated at an early date in the history of Rochester and long before it took
on its corporate existence as a city. Up to the close of the year 1824, which
marked the completion of the Erie canal, when the population of Rochester
was about 5,000, the water for this purpose was obtained principally from wells
and from the Genesee river. The Erie canal, from the date of its completion
until the introduction of the city's present water supply, remained an important
factor in the problem of furnishing a supply of water for protection from fires.
During the season of navigation the water was obtainable without expense,
and in the winter it was retained for the purpose, by the yearly construction
of dams in its channel, and at a later date the water was conducted in iron
pipes at considerable expense to artificial reservoirs beneath the surface of the
1 Tliis article w.is prepared 1)y Mr. Nelson J. Tubbs, the engineer in charge of the water works
and under whose supervision they were constructed.
578 History of the City of Rochester.
various streets, located at points convenient for use in cases of conflagration.
At an early period, also, the subject of a supply of pure water for domestic
uses was largely agitated and discussed by the citizens, resulting in the passage
of a law by the legislature of the state, designated as chapter 175, laws of 1835,
and entitled "an act to incorporate the Rochester Water Works company."
By said act, the capital stock of the company was fixed at $10,000, divided
into four hundred shares of $25 each. James Seymour, Isaac Hills, I. R. El-
wood, George W. Pratt and Charles J. Hill were designated as commissioners
to receive subscriptions to the capital stock. A company was organised under
this charter, but nothing was -accomplished oy it, and again, in 1852, another
company was chartered under the same name, which expended, as it was au-
thorised to do, the avails of $800,000 in bonds and the same amount of stock.
The condition of the work performed by this company is fairly set forth in a
report made to the stockholders December 2d, 1871, by McRee Swift, a civil
engineer, from which the following extracts are taken : —
"I went to that city (Rochester) on the 21st of November, and spent three days on
the works, examining into the condition of the .same, to enable me to give an opinion upon
the present condition and value to any party desiring to complete them. The general
plan of the works is a good one. A series of lake^, Honeoye, Canadice and Hemlock,
388 feet above, and about thirty-three miles distant from Rochester, furnish reservoirs of
water, excellent in quality and abundant in quantity. These lakes are supplied by springs
and the rain-fall of a large district, and unite in discharging their waters into the Hon-
eoye outlet, a large stream which empties into the Genesee river, fourteen miles south of
Rochester. The water is diverted from this stream at a point near Smithtown, sixteen
and one fourth miles from the system of distributing pipes on the outskirts of the city of
Rochester, and from this point of diversion it was to have been carried to Rochester by
wooden conduit twenty-four inches in diameter. An ingenious weir is constructed at
Hemlock lake, by which that lake, seven miles long by one third to one half mile wide,
can be made to serve as a reservoir to the deptli of three feet, thereby providing for all
possible contingencies of low water and any damage that could ensue to the mills on the
stream, by reason of the diversion at Smithtown. The works, so far as completed, consist
of:—
" First — a canal eighteen hundred feet long by twenty feet wide, by .seven deep at
the lake, with the weir partially constructed, as above referred to.
"Second — a wooden conduit twenty-four inches in diameter by sixteen and one
fourth miles.
"Third — a reservoir about two-thirds completed near East Henrietta. This reser-
voir measures, at the middle of the embankment, seven hundred by eight hundred feet
and is twenty-one feet deep, and, when completed and filled to within three feet of top,
will contain 70,000,000 gallons, a supply for twenty days at a full estimate for consump-
tion.
" Fourth — a small distributing reservoir on the outskirts of the city, too small for
purposes of a reservoir, and which when completed can only be useful to relieve the head
of water or pressure on the city distribution (not essential), or to screen the water, should
leaves or debris be brought down by the conduit.
" Fifth — seven and one half miles of cast iron distributing pipe in the city, and six
The Rochester Water Works. 579
miles of wrought iron (lined with and laid in hydraulic cement) distributing pipe, all with
partial appendages of gates, hydrants, etc.
" Sixth — a farm of one hundred and ten acres near the lake, with mill and houses
upon it, and which cost $21,000, upon which $10,500 is paid.
" Seventh — a plat of fifty acres near East Henrietta, upon which the large distrib-
uting reservoir is located, and lasdy the right of way across private property, at the
upper end of conduit for a distance of about four and one half miles.
" From the examination I was enabled to make, I am forced to conclude that the
wooden pipe can not be relied upon. I do not think you should calculate to use more
than two and one fourth miles of it, mostly at the upper end. In the tests made, the
difficulty encountered was in preventing leakage so overwhelming that the water could
not be forced through the depressions at Sibley ville in sufficient quantity, to overcome
the adjoining elevations at Halleck's hill. In some cases during the trial, the water was
forced through imperfections in the staves themselves, such as knots etc., and some of
the iron bands were also broken. I find the interior slope of the Henrietta reservoir to
be one and one half horizontal to one vertical, not flat enough to resist the action of
waves which may be looked for on so large a surface of water. My calculations for fin-
ishing this reservoir involve the alterations of this slope to a slope of two horizontal to
one vertical."
The following estimates were submitted by Mr. Swift :
Estimated present value of work done : —
Canal and works at the lake $ 2,750
Reservoirs at Henrietta and Mt. Hope, including gate chamber 53,ooo
Seven and one half miles cast iron pipe laid in district. ' 75,456
Six miles wrought iron and cement " " " " 51,794
Gates and hydrants connected with above 2,978
Hoppaugh farm, etc., near the lake, less $10,500 due thereon 10,500
Right of way for about four and one half miles of conduit 2,S°o
Two and one fourth miles twenty-four inch wooden conduit laid .. 23,760
Total $222,738
Estimated cost of completing the work ready for use: —
Amounts due on Hoppaugh property at that lake $ 10,500
Mr. Marsh's estimate at the lake - 1,200
Thirty-seven thousand feet of wrought iron and cement pipe twenty inches
diameter between inlet and reservoir 149,1 10
Thirty-seven thousand feet wrought iron and cement pipe twenty-four inches
diameter between reservoir and city .: 1 93,880
Completion of Henrietta reservoir - 3'i35°
Additional hydrants for present distribution 4,500
Engineering, superintendence and contingencies in construction of present dis-
tribution on west side of city _. 19,527
Total - $410,067
Thus it will be seen that after a corporate existence of nineteen and one half
years, and the issuing of $1,600,000 in stock and bonds, and the entering into the
repeated contracts with the city of Rochester, all of which were violated by the
company, the report of an expert shows that all of the work performed by the
company, including its property of all sorts, has a substantial value of less than
s8o History of the City of Rochester.
$223,000, and that to introduce water into the city with twenty miles of dis-
tribution pipe would require an additional expenditure of $410,000, although
said expert proposed to finish the construction of the works with the cheapest
pipe which was procurable, and which experience had shown would hold water
under ordinary pressures, and the water to be taken from Honeoye creek near
North Bloomfield.
The bondholders evidently came to the conclusion that they had been badly
swindled, and proceedings were commenced to foreclose the mortgage on the
water works property, given to secure payment of the bonds. It appears that
the sale had been fully consummated early m 1872, as on the 28th day of May,
1872, Thomas B. Rand and associates presented a memorial to the common
council, representing that they had become the owners of the lands, property,
estate, reservoirs, pipes, rights of land and water, water works, fixtures and ap-
purtenances and the rights and franchises of the Rochester Water Works com-
pany. In this memorial it is stated that they have become satisfied that the
wooden conduit pipe laid from Smithtown to the city is not sufficient, and needs
to be relaid of iron, and they offered to thus relay said conduit during the year
1872 and also to construct a line of metallic, brick or other proper conduit, from
Smithtown to Hemlock lake, and complete the same during the year 1873;
also to lay an additional amount of pipe in the streets in 1872 to make a total
of thirty miles, and enough in 1873 to amount to forty miles of distribution ; to
connect hydrants thereto each four hundred feet, and supply water to. them and
to ten public fountains and to all public buildings, on such terms as might be
deemed just and fair. A contract was finally drawn and presented to the com-
mon council for ratification, which provided that the compensation to be paid
to the city for such use of water should be $70,000 per annum for four hundred
hydrants and $100 per annum for each fire hydrant exceeding that number.
It is believed that this contract would have been duly executed, had not the
board of water commissioners, then recently appointed, procured the service of
an injunction on the common council preventing such action. This last pro-
posed contract met with great favor with the then common council and witli
many citizens, and was also strongly advocated by at least one of the daily
newspapers. It is perhaps sufficient comment on the propriety of the proposed
action to say that the number of fire hydrants now (April, 1884) in use in the
city is 1,220, and that with the same number set by the company under the said
contract the city would now be paying a yearly rental for the same of $152,-
000, and that for inferior hydrants connected with inferior pipes and works gen-
erally.
Thomas B. Rand and associates, soon after their purchase of the assets of
the old company, organised a new company under the title of the Rochester
Water company. The new company, finding that the newly appointed water
commissioners were making vigorous efforts for furnishing a supply of water
The Rochester Water Works. 581
to the city from Hemlock lake, on an entirely different plan and by a different
route from that proposed by the company, and that, if successful, no part of the
property owned by it would be necessary to the city, with the exception of the
right of way over the Hoppaugh mill property at Hemlock village, thencefor-
ward made strenuous attempts to dispose of its property to the said commission-
ers at prices ranging from $250,000 to $90,000, and, failing in this, used every
means to embarrass the operations of the commissioners, by litigation and other-
wise, until the period arrived when success had crowned the efforts of the water
commissioners in introducing water into the city. Finally, on the 1 8th of Au-
gust, 1882, the city made a purchase of all the property of the Rochester Water
company which \yas regarded as of any account, for the sum of $26,000, a sad
falling off in value even from the $223,000 estimated by McRee Swift in 1871.
The writer has no desire to criticise the motives of the managers of the
Rochester Water Works company, previous to the time when the control , and
management of its affairs went into the hands of Alexander Easton. During
this person's administration, it may be safely asserted, the Rochester Water
Works company was in the hands of a Philistine. The wooden conduit pipe
laid by him was so notoriously unfit for the purpose that it was a common re-
mark among the farmers, as they saw it manipulated, that it would not hold
"white beans," much less convey water under heavy pressure. The cast iron
pipes laid in the streets of the city were largely gas pipes and cuUings from the
yards of the pipe manufacturers, and the wrought iron, cement-coated pipes were
of poor quality and careless workmanship, as proven wherever they have since
been exposed to give room for other improvements. The hydrants and gates
used were the crudest and cheapest to be procured, and the source from
which the water was proposed to be taken was very objectionable. The effort
of Mr. Easton seemed to be to make such a showing of work as would enable
him to find sale for his bonds and to entangle the city into making such ad-
vances as would compel it to complete the works and enable him to step out
with large gains. While it is usually very detrimental to the best interests
of a city to remain until it has reached a population of 70,000 Avithout an
abundant supply of wholesome water, yet, to use a homely phrase, it was the
result more of "luck than good management" that the city did not have in-
flicted upon it a system of water works, supplying water objectionable in quality
and inadequate in quantity and pressure, and at prices for public use, which
would at this date have proved more burdensome than is now the taxation re-
sulting from the construction of the very satisfactory and effective system in use.
Many of the citizens of Rochester had by this time become convinced that
a supply of water would not be obtained by a private company, such as would
be pure in quality, abundant in quantity and in other important respects satis-
factory to the city. Application was therefore made to the legislature for the
passage of an act allowing the city to construct a system of water works at its
582 History of the City of Rochester.
own expense. The result of this application was the passage of chapter 387,
laws of 1872, entitled "an act to supply the city of Rochester with pure and
wholesome water." By this act the mayor was directed to appoint five per-
sons to constitute a "board of water commissioners," who were to employ
engineers and other persons to assist them in determining upon a plan for the
said water works and to make estimates of the cost thereof These plans and
estimates were to be submitted to the mayor, and, if approved by him, the
commissioners were to proceed with the work of construction, and were author-
ised to borrow, from time to time, on the credit of the city, an amount not
exceeding the arhount of their estimate, to pay for said work. Mayor A. Car-
ter Wilder appointed as such commissioners the following citizens : Roswell
Hart, Edward M. Smith, William H. Bowman, Charles C. Morse and Oilman
H. Perkins. Mr. Hart was elected permanent president of the commission and
retained his position until October, 1876, when it expired by statute limitation.
Mr. Smith was elected temporary treasurer and Mr. Bowman temporary sec-
retary. At a later period John Williams, city treasurer, became the treasurer
of the commission and Colonel Christopher T. Amsden its secretary. Messrs.
Perkins and Morse were reappointed at the expiration of their terms and re-
mained members of the board until said board ceased to exist, as above stated.
Mr. Smith soon resigned and Phny M. Bromley was appointed in his place.
Mr. Bromley died October 4th, 1874, and John Bower was appointed for the
balance of his term, which expired April 29th, 1876. Maurice H. Merriman
was appointed as the successor of Mr. Bower and served until October of the
same year. Mr. Bowman's term expired April 29th, 1875, and he was suc-
ceeded by James C. Cochrane.
Soon after the organisation of the board, at a meeting held May 7th, 1872,
J. Nelson Tubbs was appointed chief engineer and Isaac F. Quinby consulting
engineer for the commission. Surveys and examinations were soon com-
menced, to determine the best and most feasible source of supply for the city.
A large proportion of the citizens had already settled in their own minds, as
the result of the previous examinations and public discussions resulting from the
operations of the water works company, that the water should be taken from
one of two sources, either Lake Ontario or Hemlock lake, with a large prepon-
derance of intelligent opinion in favor of the latter. There was another, al-
though not numerous class, consisting of a few wealthy and therefore influential
real estate owners, who deprecated the large taxation which would result from
the adoption of either of these sources of supply, and who themselves felt the
need of a water supply simply for fire purposes, who advised and insisted that
the water should be taken from the Genesee river at or in the vicinity of the
rapids dam. This class, for a considerable period, very much embarrassed the
operations of the commissioners, by consolidating local opposition, by attempts
at adverse legislation and expressions both public and private, questioning the
The Rochester Water Works. 583
constitutional soundness of the laws under which the water commissioners acted
and therefore of the financial value of the water works bonds.
Various legal proceedings against the board of commissioners were from
time to time commenced, includjng one at a later period in the Supreme court
of the United States, which were intended to embarrass and if possible prevent
the progress of the work. Notwithstanding, all obstacles, the commissioners
had so far progressed with their examinations that on the 15th of November,
1872, they presented a report to the mayor, containing a detailed statement of
their plan, as required by law. Said report contained also an elaborate report
from the chief engineer in relation to the general subject of water works con-
struction and also a special discussion of the necessary requirements for a sup-
ply of water to the city of Rochester. S. A. Lattimore, professor of chemistry
in the University of Rochester, also added a very interesting paper on the
chemistry of water, and the relative merits of different waters, for the supply of
Rochester.
The plan proposed by the commissioners may be summarised as follows:
To furnish from Hemlock lake a supply of 4,500,000 gallons of water per day
through an iron conduit, or one of iron for the greater part of the distance and
the balance of brick, with a storage reservoir in the town of Rush and a dis-
tributing reservoir on the Mt. Hope range of hills near the city; also, to furnish
a supply of water from the Genesee river by direct pressure on the Holly direct
pressure plan, for the furnishing of light power and for suppression of fires in
the compactly built business portions of the city, the water to be distributed
through forty miles of cast iron pipes in the streets of the city. The estimated
cost of the combined system was $2,184,000.
The mayor promptly approved of the plan proposed by the water commis-
sioners, and on the official receipt of such approval they immediately directed
the chief engineer to prepare plans, specifications and notices for a public letting
of the whole work. Soon thereafter Emil Kuichling, who had just completed
an engineering course of study in the Polytechnic school at Carlsruhe, in Ger-
many, was appointed principal assistant engineer, a position which he has re-
tained to this date, giving evidence during the whole period of service of most
excellent training and a remarkable aptitude for his profession and great ability
in the practical working-out of the ever- varying problems of water works con-
struction and management. On the I2th day of April, 1873, proposals were
received for the construction of the works on the plan proposed, and the con-
tract was awarded to James McDonald, of Willsborough Falls, Essex county.
A contract for the construction and setting in place of the pumping machinery
in connection with the Holly system had been previously executed — February
27th, 1873 — with the Holly Manufacturing company of Lockport, N. Y. Geo.
H. Thompson & Co. were selected to erect the pump house and the machinery
foundations by the day's work, under the direction of the engineer department
584 History of the City of Rochester.
and of A. J. Warner, the architect of the building. A plot of land for the dis-
tributing reservoir was purchased of Messrs. Ellwanger and Barry and the es-
tate of David Stanley, on the Mt. Hope range of hills east of South avenue,
and one of about thirty acres in the town of Rush, from the farms of Benjamin
Titus and George F. Martin, for the storage reservoir. Work was commenced
on the first of these reservoirs about July ist, and on the second about June ist,
1873. Special drawings for new and improved styles of hubs and specials were
prepared, and the work of casting the same was commenced by Jesse W. Starr &
Sons, at Camden, N. J.; R., D. Wood & Co., at Florence and Millsville, N. J.;
McNeal & Son, at Burlington, N. J., and the* Warren foundry at Phillipsburgh,
N. J. A small amount was also cast at Bricksburgh, N. J.
The work of laying the mains in the streets was commenced early in the
summer of 1873, and continued up to about January 1st, 1874. In cases where
both Holly and Hemlock mains were laid in the samestreet they were laid in
the same trench, the Hemlock on a bench sufficiently above the Holly to allow
the branches from either to pass over or under as the case might be. Fre-
quent connections were made between these two systems of pipes, by the
use of branches, curves and gates, .so that the two systems might at will be
thrown into one. The Holly system was so far completed that on and after
January 1st, 1874, it was brought into use for the extinguishment of fires, all
the pipes laid in each system being kept filled with water under pressure from
the Holly pipes.
On the 1 8th of February, 1874, an official test was made of the Holly ma-
chinery with the following results : The hydrants used for throwing fire streams
were located on. East and West Main streets, between the Erie canal and North
street. The first test consisted in throwing fourteen fire streams at once, alter-
nately by the pumps operated by water power and by steam, the change from
one to the other set of machinery not being observable by those watching the
streams. The height of these streams, determined by instrumental observa-
tions, varied from 131 to 152 feet. During this test the pressure at the pumps
was maintained at 120 pounds per square inch. The second test of fire streams
consisted in throwing thirty streams, at once. In making this test, the steam
rotary pumps were used in addition to the two water sets. The height of the
streams was about the same as in the previous test and the pressure main-
tained at the pumps was 135 pounds per square inch. Water was discharged
at the rate of 8,220 gallons per minute. The third test consisted in throwing
a two-inch stream in front of the court-house. Although at no time fully ver-
tical, yet, when it most nearly approached that condition, the observations
showed an elevation of 210.34 f^^^. The pressure maintained at the pumps
was 165 pounds per square inch and the discharge was at the rate of 1,215 gal-
lons per minute. The fourth test was a three-inch vertical stream, thrown
from a point near the corner of State and West Main streets, during which a
The Rochester Water Works. 585
pressure of 175 pounds per square inch vas maintained at the pumps. The
discharge was at tiie rate of 2,778 gaIlon.s per minute and the elevation reached
by the stream was 285.98 feet.
Another test consisted in throwing a four- inch vertical stream to an eleva-
tion of 294.4 feet. The rate of discharge was 4,938 gallons per minute and the
pressure at the pumps was 175 and at the stand pipe 165 pounds per square
inch. A second test of the four- inch stream consisted in throwing the same
horizontally a distance of 465 feet, only the solid jets of water being measured.
The final test consisted in throwing a five-inch vertical stream to an elevation
of 256.8 feet, discharging at the rate of 6,463 gallons per minute. As this
stream was intended to show volume and not height the pressure at the pumps
was only raised to 140 pounds. Nq accident of any kind occurred during the
progress of the test. It is believed that this was the most remarkable exhibi-
tion of large streams ever made in any country, and as such it attracted wide-
spread attention from hydraulic engineers, compelling the introduction of
larger factors in the hydraulic formulas used to determine the resijlts to be ob-
tained from large streams, with liberal-sized pumping mains.
On the 1st of January, 1875, the water commissioners reported that they
were at that date pumping water from the Holly works into 50.76 miles of pipes,
connected with 478 hydrants, and that every fire district, except one, was
then embraced within the protection of the water pipes. They also reported
that fires had been extinguished by streams of great power, from hydrants
1,700 feet distant, although the machinery was then pumping into over fifty
miles of pipes, where it was only designed originally to supply from eight to
ten miles. During the years 1873 and 1874 the commissioners had deter-
mined to increase the capacity of the conduit from Hemlock lake, above that at
first contemplated. With this view a wrought-iron thirty-six inch conduit was
provided for a distance of about ten miles from the lake northward, where the
grade was light, and for the balance of the distance a cast-iron conduit twenty-
four inches in diameter, which would give a supply from the lake double in
quantity to that contemplated in their original plan. The wisdom of this change
is not now questioned, although at that time it was sharply criticised. The official
functions of the board of water commissioners ceased on the 1st day of Octo-
ber, 1876. The following extracts from their final report to the common coun-
cil indicate the extent and condition of the work at that time: —
" The time has arrived when by provision of law the term of our office expires. The
work entrusted to our charge is done, and we trust and fully believe commends itself to
the approval and pride of our fellow-citizens. That we should have been criticised at
times with severity and censured with bitterness, was naturally to be expected, as our re-
sponsibility was grave indeed. The magnitude of the work was without precedent in
our city affairs, the required expenditure enormous, the plans of construction original and
the pecuniary condition of the country straitened and depressing. Opinions were di-
vided as to whether the city was in need of water works at all; whether, if needed, they
586 History of the City of Rochester.
should not be cheaply constructed and only for the wants of the present generation,
whether the future wants of our rapidly increasing city should not likewise be regarded,
and also as to the sources of supply.
" Our earliest estimates were based upon a supply of 4,500,000 gallons of water daily
from Hemlock lake. But upon maturer consideration it was deemed wiser to increase
the supply to an amount sufficient to meet the probable requirements of the populations
of the future as in fact upon them was to fall the burthen of the payment of the cost.
While the cost was therefore increased about fifty per cent., the supply was doubled and
the capacity of the reservoirs .largely increased. Over eighteen miles more of distribu-
tion pipes have been laid in the streets and one hundred and twenty-one more hydrants
have been put in place than were contemplated. ,In fact, if we deduct the cast of the
additional eighteen miles of distribution pipes laid, together with hydrants, and valves
connected therewith, amounting to about $145,000, the laying of service pipes to the
curb not anticipated at the start, amounting to over $60,000, the value of pipes, gates,
hydrants, etc., turned over to the Executive board, costing over $52,000, together with
many other items of lesser amounts, it will be found that we have actually completed the
work which was proposed on the enlarged plan for something less than $3,000,000.
"On the first day of June, 1873, ground was first broken for the work and on the
23d of January, 1876, after a period of less than two years and eight months, the waters
of Hemlock lake were coursing through the pipes in the streets of Rochester and into
the houses of its citizens. Twenty-eight and a half miles of conduit, with all the stop-
gates, air valves and blow-oflfs required, and with a capacity of 9,000,000 gallons daily,
had been laid over hills and down through valleys from Hemlock lake. Two great res-
ervoirs with united capacity of 120,000,000 gallons of water had been constructed and
three gate-houses built ; fifty-eight miles of distribution pipes had been laid in the streets
of the city, with five hundred and twenty-one hydrants and seven hundred and forty-five
stop-gates placed in connection with them. A large pump house had been constructed,
in which were powerful pumps worked by a large .steam engine and two water engines,
with a united pumping capacity of 7,000,000 gallons of water daily."
The report closes with very strong expressions of obligations to the chief
engineer, and confidence in his professional skill and executive abilities. Let
us now consider the characteristics of the Rochester water works as constructed,
and also of the sources of the water supply. Under the various acts of the leg-
islature the city of Rochester is authorised to take water for the supply of the
city from Hemlock and Canadice lakes.
Hemlock lake lies in the county of Livingston, about twenty-eight miles a
little to the east of south of the city of Rochester. The foot of the lake lies
wholly in the town of Livonia. It is six and seven-tenths miles in length and
an average of six-tenths of a mile in width, with a water surface of 1,828 acres.
Its elevation is three hundred and eighty-eight feet above the Erie canal aque-
duct in Rochester, about nine hundred feet above the tide, and it has a maximum
depth of one hundred feet. The lake is situated in a retired rural district, in a
deep, narrow valley, above the lime formation and in the Marcellus shale. Its
shores are mostly bold bluffs, which cannot be tilled. The beach is also a shale/
and the water is mostly supplied from springs, which prevents it, even near the
shores, from becoming to any extent muddy in times of greatest flood. The
The Rochester Water Works. 587
drainage area is 42.39 square miles. The character of the soil on this area ren-
ders it in fact a great natural filter bed for the purification of the water.
Canadice lake lies in a narrow valley east of and adjacent to the Hemlock
valley and is wholly in the county of Ontario. The two are similar in natural
characteristics and the quality of their waters. The latter lake is three and
one-tenth miles in length, about one-third of a mile in width and has an area
of water surface of 648 acres. Its elevation is about five hundred feet above
the Erie canal aqueduct. The outlet from this lake passes through a rich but
narrow valley, for a distance of about one and a half miles from the lake, and
from thence through a very narrow and rocky gorge, into the valley of the
Hemlock outlet. Many years ago the outlet of Canadice lake discharged its
waters directly into Hemlock lake. Now and latterly it has discharged into
Hemlock outlet by two channels, one about twelve hundred feet, and one eight-
een hundred feet from the foot of Hemlock lake, the latter being at the head
of the Slab City mill pond.
The water works conduit commences in Hemlock lake one thousand feet
from shore and sixteen hundred feet from the foot of the lake at the outlet. It
passes thence through the alluvial deposit forming the valley, to Hemlock lake
village, and through the rocky ridge which crosses the valley at that point, and
which no doubt once formed the northern boundary of the lake, and thence
follows the valley of the outlet, crossing under the bed thereof thirteen times,
until Frost Hollow or the village of Richmond Mills is reached, near which
point the outlet makes a great detour to the east, during which it receives the
waters of Honeoye lake, and is thenceforward, until it discharges its waters in-
to the Genesee river at Rush Junction on the Erie railway, designated as Hon-
eoye creek.
At Richmond Mills the conduit leaves the valley of the outlet and passes
up and on to an elevated plateau to the west. It passes for about four and a
half miles across this table-land, which is very broken, and intersected with
numerous ravines of great depth, locally called "gulls," which have been worn
and washed out of the clay soil by numerous watercourses having their source
among the hills to the west and their termination in Honeoye creek to the east.
The conduit then passes along the east side of the three Lima ponds and still
over a very rough table land, to the old state road leading from Canandaigua
westward through Lima, and crossing said road about two and a half miles east
of the village of Lima. Thence it crosses the fields, to the road leading to
North Bloomfield, thence along the road to the farm of Amasa Martin, and
thence again across the fields to the Honeoye creek, which it crosses just west
of the highway bridge which spans that stream on the road leading from Hon-
eoye Falls to North Bloomfield. From this road it passes still across the fields
to the village of Honeoye Falls, crossing one of the main streets of said vil-
lage near the residence of Dr. Miner, thence northerly through a broad valley
588 History of the City of Rochester.
to the high ridge known as Davis hill, thence over the crest thereof and down
again into the valley of Honeoye creek on the east side, thence rising again
upon the table land to the eastward over a broken and rolling country in a
direct course to Rush reservoir, a distance of about twenty miles from Hemlock
lake. From this reservoir the conduit passes across the fields for a distance of
about one and a half miles, to a point near the location of the old water works
company's storage reservoir, and from thence follows the highway leading from
Lima to Rochester, to the distributing or Mount Hope reservoir.
The lake end of the conduit is i,000 feet from shore in thirty feet depth of
water. The pipe, which is of wrought iron, thirty-six inches in diameter, ends
in a tapering mouth-piece about sixty inches in diameter at the outer end.
This mouth-piece is built into the walls of a timber-crib and projects into an
inclosed chamber or reservoir, formed by building a rectangular box with
double walls of timber, around the outside, with spaces between the timber
walls for the reception of stone filling. Over the top of the crib, strips of oak
are spiked, two inches apart, to prevent the entrance of any large object. The
crib thus formed is about twelve feet long by twelve feet wide and ten feet high,
and this is sunk to the bottom of the lake. The pipe thence passes to the shore
and through the south foundation wall of the gate-house, discharging the water
into a reservoir under the same. Across this reservoir is first inserted a screen
bulkhead, with arrangements for double screens, so that either set can be re-
moved and cleaned or repaired at pleasure. In front of this is inserted the
gate bulkhead, by which the flow of water is regulated or shut off from enter-
ing the thirty-six-inch pipe which again commences at the inside face of the
north foundation wall of the gate-house, and thence passes on without break
to the Ruish reservoir. A brick house with frame addition is built over these
bulkheads and is occupied by the gate-keeper and his family. The house is
built on a plat of land on the lake shore owned by the city, about six hundred
feet south of the highway. The pipe is located at such grade that the surface
of the lake may be drawn down eight feet if desired.
At the foot of Canadice lake the city owns about twelve acres of land,
covering the outlet from the same as far down as its junction with the highway.
Across the head of the outlet, on the lake shore, is constructed a timber bulk-
head with abutments and piers of cement masonry, in which are twelve gates
for the purpose of passing water from the lake. This construction, together
with the deepening of the outlet, allows the drawing down the surface of the
lake eight feet. It will be seen by simple computations that these constructions
at the two lakes would enable the city to draw upon them as reservoirs at the
rate of 17,000,000 gallons per day for a year, providing it had a conduit of
sufficient capacity, even though no water should be received into them from
any source, except a sufficient amount to balance evaporation. The minimum
flow from these lakes is very small, but the maximum flow is enormous in quan-
Tjie Rochester Water Works. 589
tity, thus rendering them peculiarly fitted for use as immense reservoirs for the
storage of flood waters, for use during the dry season, for water works supply
and for power for mills.
Characteristics of the conduit. From termination of pipe in crib in Hemlock
lake to inside face of south wall of well-house on shore of lake is 1,000
linear feet of 3-16 inch vvrought-iron pipe 36 inches in diameter 1,000.00
From inside face of north wall of gate-house on .shore of Hemlock lake to
commencement of 24-inch wrought-iron pipe is 3-16 inch wrought-iron
pipe 36 inches in diameter. -. 50,776.00
From end of 36-inch wrought-iron pipe to commencement of the 24-inch
cast-iron pipe is 3-16 inch wrought-iron pipe 24 inches in diameter 1,913.65
From end of 24-inch by 3-16 inch wrought-iron pipe to commencement of
24-inch by 1-4 inch wrought-iron pipe is cast-iron 24 inches in diameter, 30,549.75
From end of 24-inch cast-iron to where cast-iron 24-inch pipe again com-
mences is 1-4 inch wrought-iron pipe 24 inches in diameter 13,809.38
From end of 1-4 inch wrought-iron pipe to outside face of south wall of gate-
house at Rush reservoir is cast-iron pipe 24 inches in diameter 4,212.27
From outside face of south wall of gate-house of Rush reservoir to inlet well
in bottom of reservoir is cast-iron pipe 24 inches in diameter. 1,010.00
Total from inlet well in Rush reservoir to end at crib in lake 102,271.05
The conduit between Rush and Mount Hope reservoir is of cast-iron 24
inches in diameter. The distance from face to face of gate-houses of
the reservoirs is.. ._^ 46,064.00
Total conduit from face of gate-house at Mount Hope reservoir to end of
pipe in lake, including the inlet in the bottom of Rush reservoir 148,335.05
Making a total of 28.09 miles.
Rush reservoir is located in the town of Rush, on the town line road be-
tween that town and Henrietta, and about 1,000 feet west of the highway from
Rochester to East Rush. The lot on which it is built contains about thirty
acres. The depth of this reservoir is twenty- three and a quarter feet from bot-
tom to top bank and it is designed to hold eighteen feet depth of water. The
outside and inside slopes are two feet horizontal to one foot vertical, with a
horizontal bench of five feet midway of the inside slope. Below the inside
horizontal bench spoken of, the bank is faced with loose stone two feet thick,
and above the bench with a slope wall of field stone eighteen inches thick.
The area of water surface when the water is eighteen feet deep, is 13.702
acres, and the capacity of the reservoir at that depth is 70,033,589 gallons.
The elevation of the bottom of said reservoir is 223.84 feet above the Erie
canal aqueduct. On the outside of this reservoir is laid a by-pass pipe with
gates, by which the Rush reservoir may be shut out of connection, and the flow
of water continued past it directly into Mount Hope reservoir, or into the city
distribution if desired, with the consequent pressure due to the head of Hem-
lock lake.
Mount Hope distributing reservoir is located on the Mt. Hope range of
S90 History of the City of Rochester.
hills on the east side of the Genesee river, a few hundred feet east of the junc-
tion of South and Reservoir avenues, about one and three-fourths miles from
the city hill. It isconstructed on a lot owned by the city and containing about
eighteen acres. The banks are constructed after the same plan and with the
same slopes as the Rush reservoir, heretofore described, and with a gate-house
outside the banks, containing a nest of seven large gates which control the
whole circulation of water, and so arranged that the reservoir can be quickly
shut out of connection, and the pressure due to the elevation of Rush reservoir
placed upon all the Hemlock pipes in the city in a few moments. This is done
at every alarm of fire, a gong being placed in the gate-house to give the notice
for that purpose. The height of the banks of this reservoir is twenty feet above
the bottom. It is intended to hold sixteen feet depth of water. When the
water is at this depth the area of water surface is 5.517 acres, the bottom area
being 3.887 acres, and the reservoir contains 24,278,101 gallons. The eleva-
tion of the bottom of the reservoir above the top of the Erie canal aqueduct is
109.4 feet. From the bank of this reservoir a magnificent view of the sur-
rounding country is obtained, extending southward and eastward for a distance
of more than twenty miles, and to the northward is spread the broad surface
of Lake Ontario, dotted here and there with the steam and sailing vessels which
navigate its waters.
In the center of Mt. Hope reservoir is constructed a most beautiful fountain,
in the form of a frustum of a cone and composed of hard burned brick and cut
stone. The water is conducted to it beneath the bottom of the reservoir,
through a cast-iron pipe of twenty-four inches internal diameter, which is turned
upward through the masonry to a point a few feet above the surface of the
water in the reservoir, where it spreads oufinto a dome-shaped top, with a cen-
tral opening six and one-eighth inches in diameter, with two concentric circles
of openings of various diameters around it, numbering twenty-one in all. These
openings are so arranged that they may be adjusted to various-sized jets, thus
rendering it possible to change the general aspect of the fountain into many
forms of symmetry and beauty. During the summer season all of the water sup-
plied to the city is thrown high into the air, in jets from this fountain, perform-
ing the function of thoroughly aerating the water as well as constituting a most
beautiful and conspicuous object, visible to a distance <:f twelve to fifteen miles
in different directions. It is said that nowhere else in the world can be wit-
nessed the continuous operation of a fountain where the water in such vast vol-
ume is thrown to such elevations. The height of the jets is due to the elevation
of the surface of the Rush reservoir. A single jet through the central opening
has been thrown one hundred and six feet in height. When the whole twenty-
one jets are in operation, discharging at the rate of about 5,000,000 gallons per
day, the elevation attained by the water is from sixty to seventy feet. During
the very cold weather of winter this fountain is not used, as the masonry is Ha-
The Rochester Water Works. 591
ble to be injured by the formation of immense masses of ice. During that pe-
riod the reservoir is fed through a twenty-four inch pipe, which discharges in
the bottom near the east end.
In laying the distribution pipes in connection with the Hemlock system, a
supply main for the west side of the river was carried under the bed of the river
nearly opposite the Vacuum Oil works, and it became necessary also to con-
nect the east and west sides with a pipe main at or in the vicinity of Main
street. The extrados of the stone arches of the bridge were so near the surface
of the roadway that there was no room to lay the pipes over them. The most
obvious method therefore, and the favorite one with many people, was to ex-
cavate a tunnel under the bed of the two races and the river, in which to lay
the water main. In turn this tunnel would be required to be drained by an-
other leading to a lower elevation. This would have involved an enormous ex-
pense and also great delay in completion. The engineer, therefore, boldly
adopted the plan of cutting away sections of the stone arches and replacing the
same with cast-iron ribs, carried up so as to form a complete double box, in
which four wrought-iron mains are packed in fine charcoal and convey the
water of both systems across the river. The whole expense of this construc-
tion was about $17,000. This construction is said to have been the first of its
kind in this country and met with much local distrust at the time, but meets
with full concurrence in its propriety now.
The lot on which the pump house is located is known as the south part of
lot number 5 of the Griffith tract on Brown's race. It has a frontage of fifty feet
on the race and extends back to the Genesee river. There are five water rights
connected with the property, which entitles it to use about one-sixteenth of the
water supplied by the race. In preparing for the foundations of the walls and
machinery, the earth and the upper and partly decomposed strata of rock were
removed, until a layer of sound rock was reached, upon which the foundations
were built. The side walls of the building up to the level of the street are from
four to five feet thick at the bottom, battering up to two and a half feet at the
top. The arrangement of the several blocks of masonry inclosed by the side
walls, on which rest the boilers, pumps and engines, are too complicated to be
understood without the aid of a diagram. The superstructure of the engine
house is of brick, with walls twenty-one inches thick, rising to a height of about
fifty feet and entirely fire proof The roof girders are very strong and capable
of supporting the weight of material which might fall upon it by the toppling
over of adjoining structures. Heavy manufactured iron beams are inserted over
each piece of machinery to enable them to be readily hoisted in and out of
place. Above the roof, towers a graceful octagonal chimney to a height of
about one hundred feet above the street. In the middle of the facade of the
building is a cut stone tablet, bearing the inscription, "Rochester waterworks,"
and above the cornice is a small pediment on which is the date " 1873."
592 History of the City of Rociiestkr.
The machinery consists of three distinct parts. The first is a set of four
combined steam piston engines, the cyHnders being sixteen inches in diameter
and twenty-seven inches stroke, with variable expansion gear so arranged as to
either condense the used steam or else to run by high pressure and exhaust
into the chimney. To these four engines four double-acting pumps ten inches
in diameter and twenty inches stroke are attached, so that the piston rod of
each steam cylinder also becomes the piston rod of the corresponding pump
cylinder, although these rods are in two pieces, which may be coupled or un-
coupled at pleasure by means of keys or wedges. The crank rods of the steam
engine are connected in a similar manner tolihe crank pins, so that any of these
engines, with its corresponding pump, may readily be detached and isolated
■from the remainder of the set. The four engines and their pumps are engaged
on the two sides of a substantial and graceful arched frame of cast iron, sup-
porting on its top the crank shaft, which bears the large fly wheel, a gear wheel
and the eccentrics for the operation of the slide valves. The two cranks at the
end of this shaft are at right angles to each other, and as two engines arc
coupled to one crank pin, one piston of this pair will be at the middle and the
other at the beginning or end of its stroke, and hence it follows that in one rev-
olution of the balance wheel there will be eight successive discharges of four
double-acting pumps, which serves the purpose of imparting as nearly as prac-
ticable a steady pressure and uniform flow of water in the pipes and mains of
the city. The second part of the machinery consists of a rotary steam engine
placed in front of the above-described steam set, operating two rotary pumps.
The third part is the water set, which consists of eight double-acting pumps
arranged in two sets, each having four cylinders nine inches in diameter and
twenty-four inches stroke, mounted on heavy cast-iron arched frames similar to
the steam set. The power used to operate these two water sets is derived from
two turbine water wheels, working under a head of about ninety feet. The
steam for the steam engines is furnished by three boilers located in the front
portion of the building, any one of which may be used separately or all of them
together. They are five feet in diameter, sixteen feet long, and furnished with
fifty- eight heating tubes three and a half inches in diameter. The water to feed
them is supplied from a donkey engine and pump in the engine room. The
four combined steam engines will develop a power equal to that of three hun-
dred horses, and the rotary engine a power of one hundred and fifty horses ;
their pumping capacity is guaranteed to be not less than 3,000,000 gallons in
twenty-four hours, while that of the two pumping sets is rated at 4,000,000
gallons.
Water is supplied to the two turbines through a huge wrought- iron tube
four and one half feet in diameter and formed of plates one- fourth of an inch
thick, the bottom, of which rests upon a solid piece of masonry at the surface
level of the river. The wheels are located at either side of this iron flume, and
The Rochester Water Works. 593
are supplied through two smaller tubes branching out into the water- tight cases
inclosing the turbines. The wheel pit is an immense excavation down through
the Solid rock, of an elliptical form, with a larger diameter of about sixteen feet
and a lesser diameter of about ten feet. This excavation is carried down to
about one foot below the level of medium low water in the GeneSee river, thus
utilising all the head furnished by the upper fall of the same in the city. To
secure a supply of water to the pumps, when Brown's race is drawn off for re-
pairs, a twenty-four inch wrought-iron supply pipe is extended from the Car-
roll and Fitzhugh race south of Main street, and two water rights were pur-
chased thereon. This will not only furnish water for the pumps, but will in
case of necessity operate one turbine. This supply pipe is also connected with
the Hemlock main in Main street, so that in case the water is drawn from both
of these races at the same time, the Holly pumps may receive a supply from
the Hemlock system.
During the year 1877 a first-class telegraph line was constructed from Roch-
ester to Hemlock lake, to be operated as a private line, to facilitate the man-
agement of the water works. It was built under the personal supervision of
Henry L. Fish, then chairman of the executive board, which board took charge
of the water works after the term of office of the board of water commissioners
had expired in October of the preceding year. The line required the use of
809 white cedar poles twenty-five feet long. The highway was followed the
whole distance and was a little over thirty miles long. The cost as reported by
Mr. Fish was $3,139.32. Stations are established atthe fire department build-
ing on Front street, at the water works office in the city hall, at Mt. Hope res-
ervoir, at Rush 'reservoir, at Honeoye Falls, at Richmond Mills and at the gate
house, at Hemlock lake. At first the Morse instrument was used, but in a
short time replaced by the Bell telephone and transmitter, which have worked
admirably, enabling the chief engineer to give the most minute directions at all
times for the care and management of the pipe conduit. At the time of its
construction it was regarded with considerable curiosity, as being the long-
est telephone line then in constant use for commercial or other purposes.
The wrought iron conduit was regarded as an innovation from the received
methods of water works construction, at least in the eastern part of the United
States. Although several miles of this conduit had already been laid by the
Spring Valley water company of San Francisco, and another line to supply
Virginia City from Marlctte lake, with a pressure upon it in one part of the
canyon through which it was laid, of seven hundred and fifty pounds to the
square inch, yet hydraulic engineers at the East looked upon it with suspicion
and had never dared to use it in water works construction. As the introduc-
tion of this pipe to the extent to which it was finally used in constructing the
Rochester works would save about $750,000, the chief engineer after careful in-
vestigation recommended its use, and time has proved the wisdom of the plan.
594 History of the City of Rochester.
The pipes were made of boiler-plate iron, riveted and caulked in lengths of
about twenty-eight feet, in the same manner as for steam boilers. They were
then heated, and plunged in a bath composed of a mixture of native asphal-
tum and deodorised coal tar, heated to a temperature of about 300 degrees
Fahrenheit. After remaining therein from twenty to thirty minutes they were
removed and allowed to drip, and then transported by rail and road wagons to
the points where they were to be laid. Three of these lengths were then riv-
eted together and the resulting length of about eighty-four feet lowered into
the trench by the aid of two derricks, and the bell and spigot ends connected
with hot lead joints to provide for contraction'and expansion. The bells were
of cast iron and were riveted to the wrought-iron pipes, as were also the
spigots, where the pressure was heaviest. As previously stated, there was laid
of this pipe 66,499 linear feet, a portion of it being under a constant head of
about 340 feet.
The following table will show the cost to April ist, 1884:
Proceeds of waterworks bonds issued for constructing . — $3,18.2,000
Recovered by contractor, including interest, in a suit against the city 50,000
Paid for two additional water rights on Brown's race 7>5oo
Property purchased at Hemlock lake and village 26,000
House and barn at Rush reservoir (about) i ,800
Addition to house and new barn at Hemlock lake (about) - 1,000
Raised by tax in 1876 for pipe extensions in city • 75,000
" " " " 1877 " " " " " 30,000
" " " " 1878" " " " " 50,000
« " " " 1879" " " " " 3S,ooo
« " ' " 1880 " " " " " --- 3S,ooo
" " " •' 1881 " " " " " 37,749
" " " " 1882 " " " " " 50,000
" " " " 1883 " " " " " 75,000
Total $3,656,049
The pipes laid in the city streets are cast iron, of sizes varying from four in-
ches to twenty-four inches in diameter. None of the fire hydrants have less than
two discharges, and at important points they have three. The total length of
pipe mains laid in the city is 142.69 miles. The number of fire hydrants set is
1,220. The number of gates .set is 1,426. The number of services to con-
sumers is about 15,000. The average daily use of water from the Hemlock
lake supply is about 4,500,000 gallons. The average daily use of water from
the Holly system is about 1,500,000; making a total of 6,000,000 gallons.
Since the construction of the water works system the attention of the cit-
izens of Rochester and surrounding towns has been strongly attracted to the
beautiful natural scenery about Hemlock lake and the purity of the atmos-
phere along the surrounding hills. As a consequence, it has become a pop-
ular resort for our citizens during the hot summer weather, and more than one
The Rochester Water Works. 595
hundred cottages have been erected along the shores of the lake, many of
them very tasty in design and convenient in arrangement. There are also
several hotels or summer boarding-houses for the accommodation of transient
visitors. Owing to the careful surveillance exercised by the cottages and the
water works authorities in regard to the disposal of organic wastes, no appre-
ciable pollution of the lake from this cause has yet occurred.
^ During the waterworks construction a considerable number of suits of some
importance were instituted and sharply contested, but the more important liti-
gations have occurred since the board of water commissioners finished their
work. The first suit of any importance arose out of the dissatisfaction, of George
D. Lord, the attorney or assignee of the contractor for the work, with the final
account rendered by the chief engineer and adopted by the water commission-
ers. He therefore commenced a suit against the city for the recovery of the
sum of $600,000. After several trials, continuing through a series of years, the
case was settled by the city paying to him $50,000.
The next suit of importance was brought against the city by an association
of over thirty millers, interested in the water power along the outlet of Hemlock
lake and Honeoye. creek. They claimed that, as riparian owners, they were
entitled to the use of all the water naturally discharged from Hemlock and
Canadice lakes. The city claimed that Hemlock lake was navigable water, and
that the water as well as the land underneath was the property of the state of
New York, and that the grant by the state for a public use, such as the water
supply of the city of Rochester, was entirely within its province and jurisdic-
tion. The millers asked for a permanent injunction to restrain the city of
Rochester from diverting any of the waters of either lake to its use, and for
such other relief as the court might grant. The case was first tried before the
late justice David Rumsey, who held in effect that in the settlement of the ques-
tion of the respective rights of the state of New York and the commonwealth
of Massachusetts to the tract of land including the said lakes, the fee of the
land was ceded to Massachusetts and the " sovereignty " and government to the
state of New York, that Hemlock lake was navigable water and that the "sov-
ereignty " carried with it the ownership of the water as well as the land under
water in said lake and therefore that the state of New York had a perfect right
to grant the water as it did to the city of Rochester for public use, and that
the riparian owners on the outlet below were entitled only to the water which
might reach them after the water granted by the state for public use had been
abstracted. The plaintiffs appealed to the general term, which affirmed the
decision of the court below. The case then went to the court of Appeals, which
ordered a new trial and held that any actual damage resulting to the mill own-
ers, in consequence of the diversion of the water by the city, must be paid by
the defendant. To avoid frequent and vexatious suits for the recovery of pre-
tended or actual damage, the city has determined to commence proceedings for
596 History of the City of Rochester.
the condemnation of the right to use for all time such an amount of water as
can be conveyed by the present conduit from the lakes — to. wit, 9,000,000
gallons per day. The papers in the case are being prepared at the present
writing.
Professor A. R. Leeds, of the Stevens Institute of Technology at Hoboken,
N. J., made an analysis in 1882 of the waters supplied to the principal Ameri-
can cities by their water works. He rated Hemlock lake water as number 2,
in purity, with Brooklyn heading the list as number i. The following is his
analysis, the results being given in grains per gallon : Analysis of a sample of
Hemlock lake water received on July 23d, 1882, by A. R. Leeds from J. Nel-
son Tubbs of Rochester, chief engineer of water works.
1 — Free ammonia : — 0.00087
2 — Albuminoid ammonia -- — 0.013
3 — Oxygen required - - 0.46
4 — Nitrites - -none
5 — Nitrates- - _ °-i^l
6 — Chlorine : o. 1 1 3
7 — Total hardness 3-2°
8 — Permanent hardness
9 — Temporary hardness -
10 — Total solids 5.83
11 — Mineral matter 2.33
12 — Organic and volatile matter 3.50
The following is a reference to all the laws relating to the Rochester water
works :
Chapter 175. laws of 1835 — Incorporates the first Rochester water works company.
Chapter 356 laws of 1852 — " " second
Chapter 275 laws of 1853 — Amends chap. 356 laws of 1852.
Chapter 78 laws of 1856— " " "
Chapter 430 laws of i860 — Authorises sale of stock of G. V. R. R. and aid to the water
works company.
Chapter 140 laws of 1863 — Amends charter of company.
Chapter 155 laws of 1867 — Authorises city to aid in construction.
Chapter 232 laws of 1868 — Repeals chapter 430 laws of i860.
Chapter 207 laws of 1868 — Ratifies proceedings of water works company.
Chapter 255 laws of 1869 — Authority to increase the issue of water works bonds.
Chapter 387 laws of 1872 — An act to supply city with water.
Chapter 771 laws of 1872 — An act to amend the several acts relating to city.
Chapter 754 laws of 1873 — Restricting and defining powers of water commissioners.
Chapter 649 laws of 1874 — Authorising the issue of $3,000,000 of city bonds.
Chapter 33 laws of 1875 — In relation to taking property adversely.
Chapter 39 laws of 1875— "
Chapter 563 laws of 1875 — In relation to care and custody of water works.
Chapter 593 laws of 1875 — In relation to issuing bonds to pay interest.
Chapter 561 laws of 1875 — To investigate proceedings of water commissioners.
Chapter 37 laws of 1876 — Creating executive board and giving it charge of water
works. ,
The Rochester Water Works. 597
Chapter 213 laws of 1877 — Allowing exchange of registered bonds.
Chapter 464 laws of 1877 — To acquire lands adversely.
Cha])ter 190 laws of 1879 — Water works and fire board constituted.
Chapter 537 laws of 1879 — Confers additional powers on water works and fire board.
Chapter 29 laws of 1881 — To acquire lands adversely.
Chapter 120 laws of 1882 — Three-cent frontage tax instituted.
The writer of the foregoing history, having designed and supervised the
construction of the present system of water works for Rochester, has also had
the gratification of retaining his official connection with the work as chief en-
gineer up to this date, enabling him to counsel and advise as to the methods of
managment, to perfect the rules, regulations and rates, and to settle the general
policy of the city in reference to its water works. This intimate connection
with the design, construction and development of our water works system to a
certain extent precludes him from exercising to a full extent the rights and priv-
ileges usually assumed as part of the functions of a historian. He has, therefore,
endeavored to confine himself to a bare statement of facts and figures, without
stating conclusions which might in any way seem to be prompted by A desire
to manufacture a present or posthumous professional reputation for himself He
however feels that he should have signally failed in the performance of his trust
should he omit to say of the gentlemen who at various times constituted the board
of water commissioners, and who in spite of all sorts of opposition projected and
conducted to a successful issue a work of so great magnitude and one from
which has resulted a career of substantial prosperity for the city of Rochester
not previously dreamed of by the most enthusiastic citizen, that they are enti-
tled to the confidence and gratitude of every person who enjoys the result of
their completed efforts — a supply of pure and wholesome water. Many per-
sons occupying subordinate stations in the conduct of the great work served
faithfully and well, and, while the Hmits of this article will not admit of an
enumeration of their names and services, both are preserved in the archives of
the water department, and their connection with the great work will ever be
remembered by them with pride and gratification. The citizens of Rochester
are also to be commended for the pride they have in their water works, the care
with which they foster them and the cheerfulness with which all consent to tax-
ation, that the blessing of a full and copious supply of pure water may be made
easily accessible to every citizen.
598 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAPTER LHI.
ROCHESTER MANUFACTURES, i
Diversified Nature of her Industries — Early Prophecies Fulfilled, with some Variation — Her Wa-
ter Power and Flouring Mills of Minor Consideration in the List of Enterprises — Clothing, Shoes,
Iron Work, Machinery, Wood- Work, Flour, Beer and a Wide Range of Miscellaneous Articles in
the List.
THE Stranger who arrives in Rochester at meridian of a June day in 1884,
or who passes through the city upon the elevated track of the New York
Central & Hudson River railway, cannot but say it must be a place of numer-
ous industries. As his train crosses the river within a few feet of the upper
Genesee falls, if he casts his eyes northward, he will see upon the west bank
the long line of stone structures which mark the progress of the first industry
giving the place a name now falling into disuse — the Flour city. Upon the
east bank, in bold relief, the vaulted and towering .structures bespeak the bev-
erage with which the dusty miller of the opposite bank can clear his throat if
not content with pure Hemlock water. Next on he sees the river spanned from
high bank to high bank by a bridge one hiindred feet from the water. Tlie
■bridge, which is of iron, rests upon stone abutments and remains a monument
to the founder of the East Rochester bridge and iron works — Thomas Leigh-
ton. The east and west sentinels are the Bartholomew brewing company, and
the Rochester brewing company, while, just below, the stream winds around
the gaping wounds of a dead enterprise — Kelsey's flats — the excavated sluice -
ways of which the inexorable hand of time has converted to natural gullies.
The plateau just beneath the east abutments is occupied by the East side gas
works, while in the immediate foreground upon the east brink of the falls
stand the time and' mist- worn walls of the old mill erected by Palmer Cleveland
in 1 8 1 8, and upon the west brink towers the imposing brick edifice of the Steam
Gauge and Lantern company, whose increasing business is to be accommodated
by the one hundred by fifty feet additional structure just erected. The old
saw-mill has given up the ghost with the foolhardy jumper who made its loca-
tion famous. The declaration of Sam Patch that "some things can be done as
well as others" is demonstrated in the immediate vicinity in a multitude of
ways by the appliances and machinery not only not dreamed of in the days of
Patch, but employed in the manufacture of goods, the use of which were not
kno'vn to the late lamented Samuel. or his compeers. To the left are the Roch-
ester cotton factory, the Rochester car wheel works, R Whalen's tobacco works,
Wm. Gleason's machine works, the Kidd building with A. J. Johnson & Son's
shoe factory. Within a strip bounded by tlie river wall on the east, State street
on the west, the Central railroad on the south and Furnace street on the north,
are clustered industries which give employment to over three thousand persons.
1 This chapter was prepared by Mr. Henry C. Daniels.
Rochester Manufactures. S99
Looking to the south from the same locality the solid blocks of Mill street
strike the eye upon the right, and upon the left the equally solid structures of
North Water street, where are concentrated nine-tenths of the shoe manufac-
turing houses. The Stewart building, with its tenantry of mixed labors, and
the Rochester gas-light company are the east and west approaches of Andrews
street bridge. At noon or at the close of labor this bridge is thronged with
thousands who pour .from the various shops and factories. A similar daily
scene is enacted at Central avenue — an improvement secured by the elevation
of the New York Central track adjoining — at Vincent place and at Court street.
The increase of the manufacturing interests of Rochester also calls for an addi-
tional crossing between Vincent place and the high falls. It has been much
talked of and will be a fact before this publication becomes old. An inquiring
visitor to Rochester will ask: "What are the principal industries?" The gen-
eral answer gives clothing first place, then shoes, then flour, then iron and the
metals, then wood and its accompaniments of furniture, frames, etc., then possi-
bly beer and a host of miscellaneous industries. The aggregate of the latter
have contributed more to the growth and prosperity of the city than any large
special industry. It is indicative of the solid nature of a large number of these
miscellaneous enterprises that they originated in small ways and were gradu-
ally nursed into proportions exceeding the growth of the city in extent. For
instance, the Archer chair works, commencing with the making of one chair
at a time strictly by hand ; the Farley & Hofman show-case works, Stevens
& Son, box makers; the Vacuum oil company, the Cunningham carriage works,
the J. C. Lighthouse collar works, the A. V. Smith harness company, J. G.
Cramer, paper bag manufactory, Bausch & Lomb, optical works, and others
which can be more properly classified with special, rather than miscellaneous,
industries. It is nowise strange that saw-mills and flouring- mills should break
the stillness of a new country or lend accompaniment to the music of the cat-
aract of Falls town ; nor that with the completion of the Erie canal, when the
Genesee country was " out west," the famous cereal should become a standard
article of the market — when nature furnished the power that was tireless, cease-
less and inexpensive. Neither is it strange with the opening of the waterway
to tidewater that the building of canal boats should come in demand and that
along the banks of the Erie the sound of the caulker should be heard in the
land. Though canal boats are still in demand their necessity so far as Roch-
ester is concerned has passed. The railroad brings raw material to its doors,
and carries products from its mills, shops and factories with the quickened
speed compliant with the requirement of a later day. The building of canal
boats has died out gradually, and within the past five years scarcely as many
boats have been constructed.
6oo History of the City of Rochester.
THE MILLING ANli CONTINGENT INTERESTS.
It is an old story that Rochester first acquired repute with the outside
world through her flouring mills, and that long before her fame as the Flour
city was heralded, a number of mills were erected, commencing with the In-
dian Allan mill on the west bank of the Genesee in 1798, on or about on the
site of the mill now occupied by Chace & Co., on Aqueduct street. Nearer
the high falls, in 1807, Charles Hanford built a small mill. In 18 14, Elisha
and Hervey Ely and Joseph Beach built a large mill where E. R. Andrews's
large printing establishment now stands. It was burned in 1837. In 1817
two mills were built — one by Wm. Atkinson on the upper (east side) race and
the other by E. Strong, H. Norton and E. S. Beach on the lower race. In
1818 Palmer Cleveland erected the millat the east brink of the high falls, which
passed into different hands successively and rapidly until abandoned to furni-
ture, turning-shops, etc. In 1 82 1 Thomas H. Rochester and Harvey Mont-
gomery put up a mill north of the Beehive, and Hervey Ely erected the ''Ely
mills" at the east end of the aqueduct. A small mill built by Elias Shelmire
in 1826 was demolished to make room for the new aqueduct in 1829, and in
the same year the big mill (capacity sixteen run of stone) was erected on the ■ site
of the Beehive building by E. S. Beach, Thomas Kempshall and Harvey Ken-
nedy. These parties took thirty-two of the seventy-six water rights to the
upper race-way, projected in 18 17 by Nathaniel Rochester, Charles Carroll and
WilHam Fitzhugh. In 1818 Elisha Johnson built the upper race-way on the
east side and Matthew Brown constructed Brown's race about the same time.
Thus it will be seen that large transactions and large enterprises, for those days,
were the order from 18 18 to 1828. In 1826 Matthew Brown built the mill run
by Warham Whitney. ^ In 1828 a flouring-mill was built by F. Babcock at
the lower falls. This brings us to a point where the successive construction of
remaining mills are mentioned later on in the notes upon each of the separate
mills of the present day.
The first canal boat loaded with flour left Hill's basin, on the east side of the
Genesee, for Little Falls, on the Mohawk, on October 29th, 1822. The first
boat-load of flour that crossed the old aqueduct from the western side was
shipped from the warehouse of Daniel P. Parker, who also received the first
consignment of merchandise from the east over the same work. The first cargo
of wheat from Ohio to Rochester was brought in 1831 by the old Hudson
and Erie line, on consignment to Hervey Ely. On the opening of navigation
1 Warham Whitney is probably to be credited with the construction of the first grain elevator in
America. In this year he constructed a strap and bucket elevator for carrying wheat into the bins of
a warehouse erected on the site of E. B. Parsons & Co.'s malt-house opposite the present Whitney
elevator on Brown street, at the canal. A good boat-load of wheat then was 300 bushels, drawn by
one horse, the horse being utilised as power to elevate the wheat. The property bounded by State
and Brown streets in front of the Whitney mill was used as a mill-yard. Mr. Whitney also built a dis-
tillery north of and adjoining the mill.
Rochester Manufactures. 6oi
in the spring of 1823 there were shipped during the first ten days ten thousand
barrels of flour from Rochester eastward. In 1826 the output of the several
mills in Rochester was 150,160 barrels. In 1853 there were twenty-two mills
in the city, with one hundred run of stone and a capacity for grinding 20,000
bushels per day. Since that day the entire business has changed with the pro-
cesses of making flour. In the old days Rochester made her reputation for best
flour from white Genesee wheat, which was transported on floats down the Gen-
esee river, was hauled in wagons or later on was boated down the Genesee Val-
ley canal. Among the extinct mills of the prime milling days of Rochester are
the City mill, Phoenix mill, Shawmut mill, New York mill, Granite mill and Clin-
ton mill. These are ail converted into other manufacturing establishments,
with the exception of the New York, which was burned and its ruined walls or-
nament the site to-day. The City mill, on Aqueduct street, was erected in 183 1
by Erasmus D. Smith and passed into the hands of General E. S. Beach, from
whom it was purchased in 1854 by Louis Chapin. Mr. Chapin came to Roch-
ester in 1 83 1 and prior to his purchase of the City mill was connected with
Beach & Kempshall in their mill enterprises here, at Akron, Ohio, and at Port
Byron. He conducted the City mill until 1866, when the building passed into
the hands of George N. Gallagher, who converted it into a turning-shop. Just
prior to this transfer it was conducted for a year or so as a mill by A. & A. Bur-
bank. Charles J. Hill commenced the milling business in 1831 in the stone
mill which then and for many years thereafter stood on South Water, nearest to
Main street. He afterward took the adjoining mill and for a time in company
with David S. Bates (one of the engineers who were engaged in surveying the
route of the Erie canal) continued the business under the name of Hill & Bates.
About 183s he purchased a mill at the lower falls and continued the business
there in his own name until 1840. In 1847 he resumed the manufacture of flour
in the mill on South Water street now nearest to Main street, where he contin-
ued until February 22d, 1876, when he finally retired from business, having
been associated the last twenty-six years of that period with his son Charles B.
Mill, under the name and firm of C. J. Hill & Son. In 1827 Everard Peck con-
ducted a paper-mill in a portion of the above-mentioned structure.
The Clinton building was built in 1837, ^s a flouring mill, by James K. Liv-
ingston, and sold to Jesse Hoyt, of New York city, who rented the same to
John Bradfield and J. O. Hall. John Bradfield purchased the same in 1847 for
$18,000. The original building was added to on the east end to increase the
dimensions. The east wall of the new part had its foundation on a level with
the river bed. and is four feet thick, decreasing in thickness to the top, which is
eighteen inches thick and 150 feet high. In the new part were located three
iron overshot wheels, twenty-one feet six inches in diameter, and eight feet
buckets so arranged that the water passed from one wheel to the other in suc-
cession, the water being used three times before leaving the building. This
6o2 History of the City of Rochester.
feature in water power was considered quite an innovation and advance in those
days. The mill at that time was considered the model mill of the state and was
planned by Joseph Qualtrough, who was at that time (1852) foreman for Mr.
Bradfield, continuing in that capacity until 1869, when the mill passed from
John Bradfield to Joseph Putnam, then to Wm. A. Brown of New York city,
then to John Smith, and finally to H. L. & L. C. Pratt, who are the owners
at the present time. It was burned out and remained idle for some time until
it was occupied as a machine shop during 1872 and 1873 by Marvin Otis and
since April, 1874, has been occupied by J. S. Graham & Co., as a machine shop
for the manufacture of wood-working machiifiery. John Kane, the junior part-
ner of Graham & Co., who now conduct a large and successful business, points
with pride to the fact when a boy he was a barrel nailer in the same building.
The Phoenix mill, the site of the first mill built on the lower race, has been
converted into machine works by F. P. Michel, who purchased the property.
The Shawmut mills, conducted by Moses B. Seward, James M. Whitney, after-
ward Whitney & Pond, is now occupied by the Van de Carr spice works. The
Granite mill was built by H. B. Williams in 1835, owned and managed by Gen.
Beach and H. B. Williams until 1849. Subsequent owners were William Rich-
ardson, George J. Whitney, Ely Brothers and Jarvis Lord & Son. It is now
converted into a machine storage shop, and was until recently used in the pro-
duction of power for electric lighting. The Revere mill was built by Edmund
Lyon and William Churchill in 1839,. and in 1840 was purchased by Joseph
Field. From 1850 to 1856 a Boston firm were partners with O. L. Angevine,
who commenced as clerk for Mr. Field in 1840. In 1858 the mill was sold to
the D. R. Barton tool company. The ^Etna mill was established in the Curtis
block, corner of Main and Water streets, in 1849, and continued to 1856, Ben-
jamin Hickok, Thomas Young and H. N. Herrick, William Pringle, Hoyt &
Gould and O. L. Angevine being successive owners. The Ontario mill. North
Water street, was conducted from 1876 to 1880 by G. Wilson, then by Wil-
son & Ashton. The Eagle mill. Race street, conducted from 1881 to 1884 by
Richardson & Niven, ceased to exist April ist, 1884, the room being taken by
the extension of E. R Andrews's printing business. The Central mill, J. R.
Pentecost & Co. proprietors, on Main street {Democrat & Chronicle building),
was burned with that building in 1874 and rebuilt. Operations ceased in 1882.
The development of wheat-growing in the West and the increased trans-
portation facilities offset the reduced acreage in Western New York. With the
failures of the local crop, notably in 1853 and 1855, it became imperative to
look west for the grain. Michigan commenced to produce a fine grade of
white wheat, and no inconsiderable amount of Canada white wheat was imported.
Canal-boats were enlarged, elevators were erected and the shipments of wheat
from the West became enormous. A severe blight upon the millers' profits
was the inforced handling and sale of the flour by New York commission mer-
Rochester Manufactures.
603
chants, while, the bulk of the product being shipped by canal, the returns upon
the same were speculative and uncertain; rendered more so by the opportunity
afforded the commission merchant to report sales or "no sales" according to the
fluctuations of the market. The savings and earnings of a lifetime were often
swept away in a season and the business came to be looked upon as unsafe and
undesirable. Following this state of things, with the improvement of rail ship-
ment (which it was expected would give Rochester millers a better control of the
marketing of their own flour), came the most unjust discrimination in freight
rates. There were whole seasons when flour could be shipped from St. Louis to
tidewater for one-fourth the cost per car of the cost from Rochester. St. Louis at
this stage had become the flour city of the country, with Minneapolis crowding
rapidly to the front. This discouraging state of affairs brought the interest to a
low ebb for several years. Then came the roller process of making flour, which
changed the whole machinery of flour-making. The white winter wheat, consid-
ered so necessary for the production of first quality flour, became secondary to
the spring wheat of the West by the gradual roll process. Burr millstones were
put aside and the rolls substituted. This developed Minneapolis as the first
flour city of the world, Rochester dropping to third in rank. All this time the
freight discrimination against Rochester continued. But farsighted men who
were still "grinders at the mill" foresaw the possibility of freight equalisation
by legislation and made a combined move in that direction, which succeeded
in the second year of the effort. Charles S. Baker, the city's representative at
Albany, is deserving of credit for his valuable assistance. The detail of this
move and its results is a history of itself Meanwhile the new process was
seized upon and adopted and in the twenty mills of the present day nearly all are
roller mills, as will be seen by the annexed table, showing ownership, process,
and capacity in barrels per day.
OWNERSIIll'.
Farley, Ferguson & Wilson,
Boardman, Sherman & Co.,
Mosely & Motley,
NAME.
Whitney Mill,
Frankfort Mills,
Flour City Mills (A),
" " " (B),
Irving Mills,
People's Mill,
Washington Mill,
Jefferson Mill,
Arcade Mills,
Excelsior Mill,
Union Mills,
Empire Mill,
Hill Mill,
Crescent Mills,
Model Mills,
Ely Mill,
Stone & Campbell,
George Merz,
J. A. Hinds,
J. G. Davis & Son,
Chase & Co.,
Elwood & Armstrong,
James Cornell,
Gerling Brothers,
Joseph H. Pool,
W. S. McMillan & Co.,
George Wilson,
James Wilson & Co.,
'ROCF.SS.
IIHLS. PER DIEM,
Roller,
250
U
200
11
250
li
250
Stone,
IOC
a
100
Roller,
225
((
225
((
200
Stone,
100
(<
100
Roller,
200
it
150
n
17s
C(
175
l<
200
Total daily capacity -- 2,900.
6o4 History of the City of Rochester.
-■ I
The capacity above given is not extreme and is equivalent to the present
output. There is no better machinery in the world than that of the Rochester
mills and with the equalisation of freight rates and no disadvantages in the
market the Rochester product now stands A number i and all the mills in the
city are being run to full capacity, with but slight chance for discontinuance
from any cause. Herewith given is a condensed sketch of the separate mills
of the present day.
Whitney mill, Brown's race, built by Matthew Brown in 1826 and run by
Warham Whitney, in 1841 by George J. Whitney, 1850 by John Williams,
1854 by Williams & Whitney, 1853 by G. J.*Whitney, 1858 by James Gallery
and John Williams, 1859 by John Williams ; 1870 by Joseph H. Pool, and in
1874 it was purchased by the present proprietors, Joseph Farley, jr., Alex. Fer-
guson and David C. Wilson. It was originally a four-stone mill, and in 1882
the present owners changed.it to a roller mill of the largest capacity, putting in
$22,000 worth of machinery.
Frankfort mill, Brown's race — rebuilt in i860 by Rufus W. Main, origi-
nally Main & Chapman, afterward Smith & Chester, now Boardman, Sherman
& Co., George Motley and others also operated the mill for a time.
Flour City mills A and B, Brown's race — two very large later-day mills,
one of brick and one of stone, both erected since 1875, B mill on the site of the
Boston mill (owned by James ConoUy and burned in 1867). George Motley
and Araunah Mosely were the founders of the business, Jirah B. Mosely suc-
ceeding his father. Charles E. Angle and E. A. Webster are members of the
present firm of Mosely & Motley. These mills are fitted up with the most im-
proved roller appliances for both winter and spring wheat, and the products have
a large local as well as outside trade with unsurpassed reputation as to quality.
Irving mill. Brown's race — founded in 1840, successive owners J. C. Stone,
E. W. Carr & Co., James Campbell, and now controlled by a son of the latter and
a son of one of the still earlier owners under the firm name of Stone & Camp-
bell. It is devoted to products for the local trade, including rye and graham
flour. People's mill, Brown's race — constructed in 1857 by E. Bradfield, after-
ward run by George Moulson and in 1872 purchased by George F. Merz.
Washington mill. Brown's race — erected by Hiram Smith in 1835, present
owner J. A. Hinds. Jefferson mill. Brown's race — also erected in 1835 by
Hiram Smith, and conducted by him for many years. Jennings, Davis & Co.,
Were proprietors in 1876, and J. G. Davis & Son are present proprietors. Ar-
cade mills, Aqueduct street, near site of the first Allan mill and old Red mill
built by Nathaniel Rochester in 1821 ; present mill built in 1870 by Chase, Ford
& Smith ; afterward Chase & Smith ; Chase, Bristol & Viele ; now Chase &
Bro. Excelsior mill. Race street — originated. 1876, Elwood & Armstrong
proprietors, exclusively custom.
Union mills, North Water street — James Cornell, proprietor, established
RoCIIESTliR MaNUFACTURKS. 605
1 876, exclusively custom. Empire mill, North Water Street — constructed in
1840 by P. W. Jennings as a tannery and warehouse for sale of hides and wool
by Erickson & Jennings. M. B. Oviatt converted it into a flouring mill, taking
S. L. Oviatt into partnership. In 1865 it passed into the hands of Ellis & Ha-
seltine and in 1872 was bought by Jacob and Valentine Gerling, who now con-
duct it. Since its purchase by Gerling Bros., it has been converted into a roller
mill, with capacity greatly enlarged. It is devoted to merchant milling and also
to the retail trade.
Hill mill. South Water street (see preceding reference to C. J. Hill) — taken
possession of by Joseph H. Pool in October, 1878. Mr. Pool conducted the
Granite mill from '62 to '68, the Jefferson mill from '68 to '71, and the Whitney
mill from '71 to '75, and built the "B" mill purchased by J. B. Mosely. Cres-
cent mill — built in 1835 by Jacob Graves and Thomas Emerson. In 1846 it
was sold to Gideon W. Burbank, who in 1870 transferred it to George W. Car-
penter and Chauncey Young and they in 1871 sold to W. S. McMillan & Co.,
the present owners. Model mills, South Water street — built in 1849 by Joseph
Hall, passed into the hands of James Wilson .and Stebbins, Wilson & Ross,
Smith & Elwood, Wilson & Pond, the present owner George Wilson, taking
possession in 1878. Ely mills — rebuilt in 1844 and conducted by Bostwick
& Kennedy, passing into the hands of Aaron Erickson, who sold to the present
owners, James Wilson & Co., George Wilson being the junior partner. The
mill was burned and rebuilt in 1872. A small mill on Lake avenue known as
the Hygienic mills, drawing power by cable from the lower falls, until recently
has been conducted by Kelly & Bennett, and now by Mr. Bennett. A new
mill is in process of building in the same locality for Mr. Kelly.
The business contingent upon milling flourished apace, cooperages, stave
mills, millwrighting, boat-building, etc. Among the earliest coopers were
Ephraim Moore, John Densmore, Mark Daniels, S. W. D. Moore, the Put-
nam brothers, John Wall, John Daniels, John McKelvey and brothers, W. F.
Sterritt, W. B. Geddes, Frank Skuse and others. Among the earliest boat-
builders may be mentioned James Doolittle and Seth C. Jones. General A.
W. Riley in 1834, '35 and '36 had a boat-yard at the east end of Court street
bridge. Colonel John Histed also had a boat-yard and saw- mill in close prox-
imity, and the state in taking the ground for the new aqueduct boug'ht Col-
onel Histed out. In the same section Jeremiah Hildreth and Wm. W. Howell
conducted the business. As early as the spring of '27 Seth C. Jones built boats
at the yard now bounded by the Erie canal and Allen and Warehouse streets.
Hildreth, Howell and Ambrose Cram all learned their trades with S. C. Jones.
Ezra Jones was associated with S. C. in these enterprises and, the latter retir-
ing in 1848, Ambrose Cram was taken in as partner. In 1857 Henry B.
Knapp took the place of Ezra Jones, and this partnership continued until 1867.
From '62 to 'dy this firm had two yards — the Jones yard and that now par-
6o6 History of the City of Rochester.
tially occupied by the Municipal gas works at the junction of Canal street
and West avenue. Charles Magne built boats on the site of the present
Whitney elevator in an early day. Joel P. Milliner and W. Barron Williams
established a yard at Oak street in 1848, and continued to 1851, Mr. Wil-
liams retiring. Robert Barrett succeeded Mr. Milliner some ten years later.
An event of considerable moment in 1850 was the construction of a steamboat
for California coast service at the Milliner yard. This boat was made in sec-
tions; was about 22 feet beam ; of light draft and was shipped to California in
sections, where it continued in service a long time. Zina H. Benjamin was a
boat-builder of some note at Canal street from '48 to '60. The Oothout malt-
house is the site of the early Howell boat-yard. Lucius Dubois, William W.
Smith and George Silence were followers of Howell, who was the brother of
Richard Howell, a boat-builder of later days. Officer John Dana of the Roch-
ester police force, who learned his trade of the elder Howell, was engaged in
boat-building during the brisk days of the business. Ex-mayor Henry L.
Fish, an industrious forwarder for many years ranging from 1840 to i860,
says that though not a boat-builder he built one hundred boats and wore them
out. Walter Barhydt was a successful boat-builder in 1847-58 in a yard near
Hill street. In 1837 Lars Larson had a dry dock and boat-yard on Caledonia
avenue, where West Main street crosses the Erie canal. The last of the build-
ers and the only ones of any particular extent were Philip J. Meyer, 1 849-1 882,
and his brother C. C. Meyer, i860— 1882. They followed the rise and fall of
the industry and were among the latest to put boats on the Erie canal. A sol-
itary scow for transporting brick represents the interest to-day, for, as has
been before stated, the facilities for shipment by rail has ruined this industry.
The erection of mills called for services of the millwright. Prior to
1830 Robert M. Dalzell was depended upon for the several mills then con-
structed. He was the first to supplant the old-fashioned wooden gearing with
iron. Following Dalzell came John Eggleston, Marcus Jewell and John Lutes,
the present worthy overseer of the poor. Lutes came to Rochester in May,
1835, having just completed service on the first railroad in America from Al-
bany to Schenectady, a wooden tram road. He worked for Dalzell many
years and in 1850 commenced forhimself, continuing about twenty years. Jo-
seph Cowles, Mill street, is the principal millwright of the present day and has
followed the business twenty- five years or more.
THE CLOTHING INTEREST, 1820-1884.
In 1820, when Canandaigua was a place of much more importance than
Rochesterville, Jehiel Barnard enjoyed two distinctions — one of being the first
man to enter matrimony and the other of being the only knight of the shears
in the place. Soon after Patrick Kearney hung out a sign from a wooden
building on State street, located about where the Flour City bank now stands.
Rochester Manufactures. 607
This sign read : " Good clothing for sale cheap here." In 1822 Charles Thomp-
son, the first New York cutter, dame into the field and found employment with
Mr. Kearney. This was sixty- two years ago, and Charley still sits cross-legged
in the Smith block and plies the needle and shears. At the time Kearney
flourished there were three houses on the west side of State street from Bufifalo
street to Ann street — now West Main and Allen streets. Charles Taylor in
1825 ventured to open a tailor-shop on the site of the Reynolds arcade. After
that, came Stoddard, Jennings, Smith & Horin (who carried on a large business
for the then fast-growing place), George Byington, to be succeeded by an after
generation ; Joseph Kavanaugh, W. T. Preston, George A. Wilkin, George
Shelton and then the Front street' and bridge crowd, including Greentree, Wile,
the Coxes, Meyer, Michaels, Caufmann and others. Meyer Greentree was the
founder of the wholesale manufacture of clpthing about 1850. He was closely
followed by the Seligmans, Wiles, Altmans, Stettheimer, Wollf & Bachman and
the score of manufacturers continuing to the present day. Rochester is the
fourth city in rank for bulk of business, following New York, Philadelphia and
Chicago, while for quality and make of goods it stands decidedly first. The in-
vestment is over $3,000,000, with nearly three times that amount in buildings.
The annual sales are $9,000,000, and $1,500,000 is paid for labor, feeding 15,-
000 mouths. Whole streets, notably in the fifth, sixth, eleventh and thirteenth
wards, are devoted to work on clothing, and there is a system of sub- employ-
ment where from fifteen to forty persons (including in many cases all except the
the extremely young members of a family) are grouped in a single house, work-
ing with machines and by hand. There is also a thorough system of inspection
of work, together with sufficient local rivalry to produce the best goods to be
found in the market anywhere. This is evidenced in the fact that Rochester
clothing sells very largely in the great clothing centers. There are a dozen
houses with sales of half a million dollars or more annually, and the business
formerly centralised in Mill street but within the past three years has divided,
a good portion moving to North St. Paul street, where are magnificent build-
ings devoted to the interest. It is a great interest and brings a considerable and
increasing revenue to the city.
Simon Hays & Sons, Mill street, manufacturers of men's, youths' and boys'
clothing (in the trade there is a distinction between youths and boys), present
firm organised in December, 1883. Between 300 and 400 hands are employed.
Strouss, Moore & Beirs (Elias Strouss, Louis W. Moore, Sigmund Beir and
Isaac J. Beir); partnership was formed in 1876, doing business on Mill street.
In 1882 the present large and commodious building on North St. Paul street,
built by Frank Little, was taken. Five floors are occupied, the first for case
goods and cutters, the second, third and fourth for ready-made goods and the
fifth for manufacturing. The specialty is boys', youths' and children's clothing.
Employment is given to 500 or 600 hands and the annual sales are $500,000.
6o8 History of the City of Rochester.
Garson, Meyer & Co., originating in 1862 with M. Garson. In 1870 Mo-
ses Garson, Theobald Meyer and Morris Meyer organised the present firm,
which moved -in 1881 to the present building on North St. Paul street, occu-
pying, five floors and giving employment to between 400 and 500 hands in the
manufacture of youths' clothing.
Weber, Shell, Rosenbaum & Co. (Joseph Weber, Frank J. Shell, Isaac Ro-
senbaum, John A. Spiess) ; location on Andrews street, organised in 1881 ; spe-
cialty, boys' and children's clothing; give employment to 250 hands. Henry
Schwartz & Co., Mill street, organised in 1865 as Schwartz Bros. & Co. ; a spe-
ciality of fine clothing from imported fabrics is made by this house ; employ-
ment 175. Hays & Thalheimer, Mill street, originating with M. & S. Hays;
specialty, a better class of men's and boys' clothing ; employment 300.
Michaels, Koch & Co., Mumford and Front streets ; originating with Henry
Michaels in 1863. This house is one of the largest, occupying a magnificent
building. Full lines of men's and boys' clothing are manufactured and the house
does not market in New York city ; employment 600 to 700.
Cauffman, Dinklespiel & Co., North St. Paul, originating in 1880, formerly
Cauffman, Strouss & Co. ; specialties, fine lines of men's, youths' and boys'
goods ; employment is given all the year round to 600 to 800 persons. This is
exceptional, as most houses have three to four months' cessation between sea-
sons. Market for goods extends as far west and south as Colorado and Texas.
L. Adler, Bros. & Co., North St. Paul street, Lamberton block, have just
taken the store recently occupied by Gallagher, Johnson & Co. The latter firm
went out of business this spring, and L. Adler & Co. occupy the whole of this
immense double building; specialty, youths', boys' and children's fine clothing;
wholesale merchant tailors and importers of woolens and tailors' trimmings ;
goods manufactured on the premises as well as outside ; ernployment 800 to
900. Leiser & Weinberg, Mill street; specialty, youths', boys' and childrens'
wear; employment 200. A former member of this firm is F. S. Leseritz,
actuary of the clothiers' association of Rochester, of which Simon Stern is
president and J. Michaels is secretary and treasurer. Rosenberg, Wolff &
Blum, Mumford and Mill streets; organised in 1864 under name of Kolb,
Rosenberg & Co. ; specialty, men's fine goods only; employment 350.
Wile, Brickner & Wile, originating from Greentree & Wile, the first retailers
to engage in wholesale manufacture, about 1850; Mill and Mumford streets;
specialty, men's clothing of medium and better grade ; employment 800 to 900.
Kolb, McMahon & Best; Mill street, specialty, men's wear. The senior
member of this firm, Michael Kolb, was one of the early retailers, and among
the pioneers in wholesale manufacture; employment about 400.
Stein, Bloch & Co., North St. Paul street; specialty, boys' and children's
wear ; employment 700 to 800. This house and that of Levi, Adler & Co. .
are divisions of the former extensive house of Stein, Adler & Co., then the larg-
Rochester Manufactures. 609
est house in its line in the country. Levy, Schwartz & Co., North St. Paul
street, specialty, men's wear; employment 500. L. Garson & Co., North St.
Paul street ; employment not stated.
Joseph W. Rosenthal & Co. was the first house to locate on North St. Paul
street in the Archer building, corner of Mortimer street, carrying on a very ex-
tensive business in boys' and children's wear ; employment varying from 600 to
1,000. The partnership now is J. W. Rosenthal and Max Mock; This com-
pletes the list of manufacturing clothiers, with the exception of J. A. Briten-
stool, who manufactures pants and vests exclusively, on Mill street. Besides
the interest in the manufactures in Rochester, many of the firms own, control or
have large interests in extensive clothing stores in different parts of the country,
notably the Cleveland clothing house, Cleveland, Ohio ; Excelsior, Cleveland ;
Excelsior, Baltimore, Maryland ; Rochester clothing house, Albany ; Excelsior,
Saginaw, Michigan ; Model, IndianapoHs, Indiana ; Garson's, Denver, Colo-
rado.
Rochester clothing is shipped to every state and territory, and to every city
of prominence in the United States.
the shoe manufacturing interest.
The four greatest shoe manufacturing cities in the United States are Lynn,
New York, Philadelphia and Rochester. Ranking fourth, Rochester has about
$2,500,000 capital employed in this industry, which gives employment to about
5,000 persons ; sales, $6,500,000 annually. While not so large a business is
done as in some eastern cities — for instance, Lynn, Mass., with its 200 manu-
facturing firms — still, Rochester is pushing to the front among the prominent
cities where the wholesale manufacture of boots and shoes affords employment
to an army of workers of both sexes. Perhaps we can glorify somewhat on
the fact that, though not the first in quantity, our goodly city acknowledges
no superior in the quality of the article produced. Western dealers hold the
work of our prominent manufacturers in such high esteem that they display
conspicuously the placard, " Rochester-made shoes sold here,", as though they
would indicate to their customers that this is an inducement which cannot be
gainsaid. . No more agreeable hour could be expended than that occupied
in an interview with one of the old-time shoemen of oiir city, who are still dev-
otees of the last, and who can give points upon the various advances made in
this important branch of the, industrial arts, step by step, as it were, from the
primitive stoga of cow-hide to the elegant boot of to-day; the one hammered
out by all hand labor, the other finished throughout by machinery ; the one
occupying two good days to make; and the other turned out at the rate of
\ ,^00 pahs per diem. There are those in our midst who have been through
all the phases lying between these two extremes, and who are still engaged in
the trade ; men who have lived long and useful lives in this community, and
6io History of the City of Rochester.
who are entitled to the escutcheon which gives the producer the only rank
known in this country of civil equality. The first shoemaker in Rochester was
Abner Wakelee, 1812, and soon after came Jesse Congdon and Wm. I. Han-
ford. Jesse W. Hatch, who worked at the bench in Rochester village in 183 1,
is still in business as a large manufacturer of the most recent invention in shoes,
viz., an all- machine-sewed child's shoe, giving flexibility to the sole and pro-
tection to the toe. He has been prominently connected with a great number
of improved methods and improved machines. At a county fair held in this
city (in 1853, we think) the Singer sewing-machine was exhibited with regard
to its adaptability for shoe stitching, and, failing to work satisfactorily, it was
taken to Mr. Hatch's shop, where it received alteration at his hands which led
to the general and universal introduction of sewing-machines in connection with
the wholesale manufacture of leather work. From this period the use of ma-
chines received an impetus of wonderful extent.^ Our worthy townsman has,
in various other ways, contributed to the perfectionof valuable improvements in
the art, has made and lost a great deal of money, has given employment to
thousands of hands, and with the same tireless energy is still carrying out prac-
tical projects, with every promise of ultimate success. Besides, he has lived
to see his only three sons all prosperously engaged, directly and indirectly, in
the shoe trade. Surely, when he lays aside the busy cares of this life, his
reflections must be of a pleasing and satisfactory nature. John Cowles, in
early years connected with Mr. Hatch, established a reputation as clutter, some
time before the Mexican war called from this patriotic city its quota of volun-
teers. Henry and Lyman Churchill were early retailers and among the first
to engage in the wholesale manufacture. Deacon Oren Sage, deceased, was
one of the first shoemen in Rochester. Gen. Jacob Gould, deceased, was a
partner with Samuel P. Gould, and afterward with George Gould, long before
the establishment of the Farmers' & Mechanics' bank, of which the general
was president. The late John Ailing was in the shoe trade on the east side
of the river a great many years ago. He was at one time a large dealer, but
reverses drove him back to the bench and lapstone, and he died in the harness.
S. Y. & L. H. Ailing kept a shoe store forty-five years ago, where Post's drug
store is now located. The late James Vick, of prominence in the floral world,
was a vender of boots and shoes many years ago. E. H. Grover and William
Roades were among the pioneers in the craft. Ex-Mayor Bradstreet and his
brother, N. F. Bradstreet, were in the trade more than a quarter of a century
ago. William N. Sage has been for many years identified with the interest
in all its branches. Ebenezer T. Oatley, who filled the position of city assessor
so long and acceptably, went into office after years of experience in the shoe
trade, on the site of the Elwood Memorial block. The late Randall Andrews,
father of Eza R. Andrews, lived to a good old age to " make and repair " for
1 See annexed sketch of the introduction and progress of shoe manufacturing machinery.
Rochester Manufactures. 6ii
many in the vicinity of Frankfort who have been long since gathered to their
fathers. His name brings up emotions of veneration and respect.
Aside from the fifty wholesale firms, there are upward of fifty retailers who
employ help. There are 1 50 makers, each having shops, and employing more
or less help. Besides, there are a diversity of trades adjunctive to the shoe
trade. There are the tanners, the leather workers, the machine makers, the die-
cutters, the last-makers, etc. There are also private shops and " teams " who
make for one shop or another, that would not be counted in. In 1865 the an-
nual product was 18,000 cases; in 1871 it was 80,600 cases, and now the pro-
duct is over $6,000,000 worth. Three prominent firms aggregate a business
of over $1,000,000 annually. The oldest wholesale manufacturing house is that
of Pancost, Sage & Morse, dating its foundation back as far is 1826, although
the wholesale manufacture was not commenced until 1852. This house sold
out in January, 1884, to the Huiscamp Bros., large manufacturers, of Keokuk,
Iowa. This house contracts for the penitentiary labor of about 150 hands.
Hatch Flexible shoe company, river front, Andrews street, J. W. Hatch
being the head of the company, has a specialty of children's flexible shoes, with
the protection toe, made under a Hatch patent. They are bought and sold all
over the country and are made under royalty, by large manufacturers particu-
larly in the East. Associated with the senior is Charles B. Hatch ; direct em-
ployment is given to one hundred hands.
The Hatch patetit crimper company, river front, is conducted by A. J. &
J. L. Hatch, and manufactures, under its own letters patent, what is known as
the Hatch Rochester counter — a crimped waterproof stiffening. They are sold
to manufacturers and the trade in them increases annually. About one hun-
dred hands are employed.
Patrick Cox has been one of the principal wholesale manufacturers, on North
Water street. The business is now invested in the "P. Cox shoe manufactur-
ing company," P. Cox president, and E. Holland secretary. Employs four
hundred and fifty hands in the specialty of ladies', misses' and children's ma-
chine-sewed shoes. Nearly $200,000 are disbursed annually for labor.
A. J. Johnson & Co. (J. I. Robin.s) founded by A. J. Johnson in i860;
Kidd building. Center street, where 350 hands are employed. The specialty
is ladies' machine-sewed shoes; output 1,500 pairs daily and capacity 2,000
pairs. The principal market is west and south.
Reed & Weaver, South St. Paul street. The specialties of the house are
ladies' and misses' McKay sewed, Goodyear welt and turned shoes, all fine
work ; employment 250 to 300 hands;' principal market south and west.
Wright & Peters, North Water street ; specialty, ladies' fine shoes ; em-
ployment 250 hands; market general.
D. Armstrong & Co., North Water street ; specialty, ladies' fine shoes ; em-
ployment 100; market general.
6i2 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
Williams & Hoyt, North Water street, originated in 1873; specialties, boys',
youths', misses' and children's machine- sewed and Goodyear welts, also a line of
children's turned shoes; employment 300 to 350 hands all the year round, with
an output of 1,200 to 1,500 pairs daily. Williams & Hoyt have an eastern
salesroom and stock depot in New York, where the trade of that city, Brooklyn
and all the surrounding cities and towns is supplied.
Byrnes, Dugan & Hudson, North Water street, specialty, boys', youths',
men's and children's exclusively fine shoes; employment 100 hands; output
400 to 500 pairs each day ; market general with branch store in New York.
Brooks & Reynolds; organised in 1872; specialty, women's and misses'
shoes; employment 140 to 150 inmates of the Western New York reformatory
(House of Refuge) and thirty to forty outside ; output 300 pairs daily.
Thomas Bolton, Andrews street, corner Water, originating in 1872 with Phe-
lan & Bolton ; specialty, McKay sewed, hand-sewed welts and hand-sewed
turns ; employment 260 to 300 ; capacity 900 pairs daily.
Jeremiah Phelan, North Water street ; specialty, exclusively fine hand-turned
ladies' shoes; employrtient 140 to 150 hands; output 250 pairs daily. Market
general from Portland, Maine, to Portland, Oregon.
Curtis & Wheeler, Mill street, originated in 1870 with George Gould, Son
& Co.; specialty, men's and women's fine goods, Goodyear welts; employment
250 to 300 hands; output 600 pairs daily.
Cowles Bros. & Co. (E. H. and E. W. Cowles and Thomas Ashton), Mill
street ; specialty, misses' and children's shoes ; employment 80 hands, Behn
& Young, corner Water & Andrews streets ; specialty, ladies' and misses' ma-
chine-sewed shoes ; employment 70 hands.
Wheeler & Smith, Brown's race ; specialty, ladies' machine sewed fine shoes,
employment 40 hands; output 120 pairs daily.
J. H. Byrnes, State street; specialty, ladies', misses' and children's hand-
turned and McKay sewed shoes ; employment 200, capacity 900 pairs daily.
L. E. Dake is a manufacturer for the trade in the Beehive building.
A. C. Eastwood, corner Mill and Factory streets ; specialty, men's, boys'
and youth's fine shoes ; employment 60 hands.
Goodger & Naylor, North Water street ;• specialty, ladies' hand-turned,
hand welt and McKay sewed fine shoes; employment 120 hands; output 200
pairs daily. Mr. Goodger commenced shoe manufacturing in 1858.
Griffin & Hoyt are manufacturers of children's turned shoes on West Main
street.
Hason & Ratelle are manufacturers of men's fine boots and shoes, hand and
machine-sewed ; corner Water and Andrews streets.
Hough & Ford, State street ; specialties, ladies', misses' and children's hand
and machine-sewed shoes ; employment 200 hands.
H. Howard & Co., River street ; specialty, machine and hand-sewed ladies'
fine shoes ; employment 75 hands, capacity 200 pairs daily.
Rochester Manukactukes. 613
Hennessy Shoe company, South St. Paul street; T. Hennessy, president,
W. M. Purcell, secretary ; specialty, ladies' and misses' hand and machine-
sewed shoes ; employment 75 hands, capacity 250 pairs per day.
John Kelly, corner Water and Andrews street^s, established 1872; spe-
cialties, ladies', misses' and children's McKay sewed, Goodyear welt and hand-
turned fine shoes; employment 160 hands, Mr. Kelly is one of the earliest of
the later-day manufacturers,
Levis & Broxholm, North Water street, employ about twenty-five opera-
tives in turning out ladies' and misses' McKay sewed shoes.
Eugene McEntee employs about the same number in the same line as
above, on River street.
Robinson & Cole, corner Court and South St. Paul streets ; specialties,
misses' and children's, boys and youths' machine-sewed and standard (screw)
fastened shoes ; employment forty to sixty-five hands ; capacity 200 to 300
pairs per day ; market general.
Ross, Levis & Pfeiffer, South St; Paul street; specialties, ladies', men's
and children's fine shoes, hand-welt, hand-turned and McKay sewed ; em-
ployment 60 hands. L. P. Ross, of this firm, has for years conducted a
large jobbing trade on State street. His sales closely approximate a million
dollars annually.
D. H. Westbury & Co. and Boor & Co. are likewise wholesale manufactur-
ers of average capacity.
The Rochester Shoe company, John Vogt president, manufacture misses'
and children's fine shoes on River street ; capital stock $20,000.
C. R. Richards, web slipper and insole manufacturer, North Water street;
business established in 1874; this is the largest web slipper factory' in the
United States; capacity 5,000 cases or 500,000 pairs per annum. Mr. Dick-
inson, a former partner, is also engaged in the manufacture of a superior grade
of men's, women's, misses', children's, boys' and youths' cork and imitation
cork insoles ; capacity 100,000 dozen a year. The trade is exclusively whole-
sale with the principal jobbers of boots, shoes and findings throughout the
entire country. There is also a trade with Canada, England, France and Ire-
land. Employment is given to fifty operators. Mr. Richards, who is a na-
tive of Rochester, has been in the business upward of fifteen years.
The Rochester Slipper company (Henry Utz and William Dunn) gives
cniployment to about 100 operatives in the manufacture of slippers.
James H. Phelan, corner of Furnace and State streets, manufactures
hand and machine-sewed shoes ; employment thirty to fifty men ; he has
for a number of years also conducted a retail business in Mumford street.
Hooker, Gardner & Co., river front ; established in 1877; specialty, men's
hand and machine-sewed fine shoes ; employment forty to fiftj' men ; out-
put 125 pairs daily.
6 14 History of the City of Rochester.
Williams & Merrill established in 1822 the tannery on North Water street,
which in 1855 passed into the hands of S. Y. & L. H. Ailing, the former of
whom has been an active business man in Rochester sixty-three years. The
firm conduct a large tannery at Campbell, Steuben county, where are tanned
annually 15,000 hides.
J. K. Hunt, North Water street, established in 1870, has built up an
immense business in the manufacture of paper boxes, principally shoe boxes,
having almost a monopoly of this work for the shoe factories of Rochester.
Colonel S. S. Eddy, North Water street, conducts quite an extensive busi-
ness in the manufacture of morocco, established by him in 1869.
The early tanners of Rochester were Jacob Graves, R. Trenaman, P. W.
Jennings, L. & H. Churchill, S. Y. & L. H. Ailing and Austin Cross. Oliver M.
Cross & Sons and W. H. Cross are successors to the elder Cross, Front street,
in leather belting, the scraps from which are largely used in the manufacture of
leather board and shoe heels. The shoe manufacturing of Rochester does not
now call for local tanneries, and all the manufacturers import their stock from
the principal manufacturing centers. The only extensive tannery now in Roch-
ester is that of J. C. Lighthouse, extensive manufacturer of United States mail
bags, and horse collars. Mr. Lighthouse's business is of sufficient extent and
importance to receive extended mention.
The original last-maker of Rochester was Horace Wing, who established in
the Curtis block on East Main street and the river in 1822. In 1832 W. W.
Shepard learned the trade of Wing, and followed the business continuously until
the present day and now carries on a shop on North Water street, nestled among
the shoe houses. Mr. Shepard has seen all of the few changes in the process
of last- making in the fifty- two years he has followed it. He has the modern
automatic last turner and special appliances that his own experience has sug-
gested.
John Dufner is also one of the old last-makers of Rochester, though not
dating baclc quite so far as Mr. Shepard. He now carries on an extensive busi-
ness on South St. Paul street, under the firm name of John Dufner & Son.
Thomas and Charles Boddy are last-makers in the Stewart building. The shoe
factories also call for the work of the die-cutter and the case-maker, who will
be mentioned under other headings.
The following is a condensed sketch of the introduction and progress of
shoe-making machinery, for which we are indebted to John W. Banker : —
"The first pegging machine was used in 1859 at the penitentiary, by L. & H.
Churchill, contractors for women's shoes. The first McKay sewing-machine was started
in 1863 by Pancost, Sage & Morse. It was used for sewing women's shoes, and was
chained and locked when the operator was not using it. J. W. Hatch and the Churchill's
soon adopted it in improved form. It has since been greatly improved. The old peg-
ging machine gave way to the New Era spring-pegger and to the New Era cam-pegger.
Then came the McKay heeler used by J. W. Hatch in 1866. An improvement upon
Rochester Manufactures. 615
this was adopted by J. T. Stewart and afterward by Johnson, Jaquith & Reed. At that
time it would shave but 300 pairs per day, but with the Power shaving attachment it
now does 700 pairs per day. Then came the rotary heel-trimmer used by J. W. Hatch in
i86g. It is now called the King trimmer. Next came the soap-stone heel burnisher,
the Tabley hot kit burnisher, on which subsequent improvements were made, enabling it
to do 300 pairs daily ; adopted by all shoe men. The next machine of importance was
the Union edge-setter, for burnishing the edges of Soles. It was first used by A. J. John-
son & Co., in 1871 ; capacity 250 pairs daily and used on fine or coarse work. This •
was replaced in 1881 by the "puzzle" edge trimmer, which is in use in all the factories.
The McKay sewing-machine is improved so it will sew 600 pairs per day and is in use
in all sewed shoe factories for sewing soles on the uppers. A "channeler" goes, with it
and is essential to its use. The cable screw wire nailing machine was adopted by Johnson
& Co. in 1874. The latest valuable machines are the Goodyear welt, first introduced by
Cowles, Curtis & Co., in 1879, and now in general use. It produces an exact imitation
of the best hand-sewed shoe. Hundreds of men are employed on the above-mentioned
machines and have become experts, who know nothing of other parts of shoe manufac-
tures. There are, besides, the machinery of the fitting-room, the ordinary sewing-ma-
chines, revolving .sole-cutters, button-hole machines, etc.''
IRON AND OTHER METALS — MACHINERY.
It is quite likely that the interest connected with the uses of iron in Roch-
ester manufactures outweighs in importance that of any of the special industries
heretofore mentioned. There has been a gradual and uniform growth which
has more than kept pace with the population, and there are no local causes for
variation. Manufactures in this branch took on something of a boom in 1882
by the removal of the freight discrimination which so materially affected the
milling interests. The same water power that drives the mills is useful for the
shops, factories and foundries that are sprinkled along the upper and lower race-
ways, and in the stretch along Brown's race the power is cabled for no inconsider-
able distance. The iron interest is valuable to Rochester in more senses than one,
and in one particular sense that, with the excellent facilities for obtaining iron
and coal, the value is created from the raw material — i. e., $100 worth of iron
might be used for making a machine many times that amount in value. This
idea does not obtain with flour, with clothing or with shoes. The actual pros-
perity of Rochester, then, is more effectively enhanced by the iron and its at-
tendant industries, because there is less of an outgo for the raw material and
more of an income for the product. The early knights of Vulcan in Rochester
were Lewis Selye, Martin Briggs, C. H. Bicknell, D. R. Barton and Aaron
Erickson, all of whom are now deceased. Mr. Selye, when he first came to
Rochester in 1 824, had a shop where the Democrat & Chronicle ofiSce now stands.
The principal ironwork of that day was the making of mill irons and scythes.
In 1832 Mr. Selye began the manufacture of fire engines at the Selye buildings,
now occupied by the Judson pin works and Kelly lamp works. He was suc-
ceeded by Israel Angell, who commenced working for Mr. Selye in 1830.
6i6 History of the City of Rochester.
Afterward Angell formed a partnership with Lewis Kenyon until 1850. After-
ward the firm became Angell & Son.
Martin Briggs opened a business of iron railings at an early day, taking on
the manufacture of safes, and building up a very extensive business, which is
still carried on by his son, Hamlet S. Briggs. Kempshall & Bush established
a foundry and furnace on the site of the present Rochester car-wheel works,
next north of the Jones cotton mill. Seth C. & Ezra Jones established a foundry
a slight remove to the north on Brown's race. Alcott & Watts had a furnace
on Exchange street in the building called "the circus" — because it was built
for a permanent circus — which still stands'and which was subsequently used
many years ago as a foundry by J. M. French & Co. The first stove-founders
in Rochester who made a business of shipping their wares were Henry Bush
and Bro., on West Main street, site of Babcock's coal-yard, and V. R. Rowe,
the founder of the Cheney furnace on St. Paul street. The furnace of Kemp-
shall & Bush passed into the hands of Wm. Kidd in 1836. Mr. Kidd was an
enterprising young merchant in Rochester. He established the machine-shop
now occupied by Wm. Gleason, and with C. H. Chapin, his son-in-law, con-
tinued the Kidd foundry and steam engine company. The name was after-
ward changed to "Kidd iron works." In I871 Wm. Gleason became a stock-
holder and superintendent of the works and in '74 he purchased the business of
the machine-shop. He employs from sixty to seventy hands and his specialty
is the manufacture of machinists' tools. His work is largely sought for in large
manufacturing centers and he is constantly changing and improving his patterns
and devices. He owns a number of patents on improved machinery and his
work is of the most substantial nature. His theory is and has been that iron
machinery can not be made too strong or heavy, and within the past five years
machinery has come to be fifty per cent, heavier for the same class of work.
Mr. Gleason was an active participant in the effort to remove freight discrimi-
nation.
The most extensive establishment in Rochester devoted exclusively to the
building of horizontal stationary engines and boilers is that of Woodbury,
Booth & Pryor, whose extensive shops, located on Mill street, consist of
a number of substantial buildings erected by the firm and perfectly adapted to
their business. The most important of these are the machine-shop, a three-
story stone structure, the stone boiler-shop, with a brick annex, the foundry,
the pattern shop and the blacksmith shop. The products of the works are hor-
izontal stationary steam engines and boilers which enjoy a high national repu-
tation. These are made in a number of sizes, in a thoroughly workmanlike
manner, of the best materials and with strict regard to true mechanical prin-
ciples. These works have produced over 200,000 horse power of horizontal
stationary engines and boilers, which have been shipped to all parts of the United
States, and in every instance have justified all claims made for them by the
Rochester Manufactures. 617
manufacturers. This house was founded in 1851 by D. A. Woodbury, and it
has grown to be one of the largest concerns of the kind in the Empire state.
The individual members are D. A. Woodbury, Jas. E. Booth and Henry H.
Pryor; this was the first establishment in the world devoted exclusively to the
making of such work a thoroughly systematic manufacturing business. It also
led in the introduction of the horizontal cylindrical boiler with tubular return
flues, a type of boiler that has been growing in popularity ever since they were
introduced. These parties advocated from the commencement a short stroke
engine with high rotative speed, features which have also had a continuous
growth in the estimation and practice of engineers.
The Rochester iron manufacturing company was incorporated January ist,
1 868, capital stock $200,000. The company has an extensive blast furnace at
Charlotte. Subsequently Henry C. Roberts, an extensive coal miner, shipper
and dealer of Rochester, obtained possession of the furnace and it has been suc-
cessfully conducted since, a new stock company, capital $100,000, having been
formed. The ores come from Canada and Wayne county, and the output is
20,000 tons annually..
The Co-Operative Foundry. — No little public interest has been evinced in
this institution, and its progress from incipiency through subsequent years, in-
volving, up to the date of the compilation of this work, nearly two decades,
has probably attracted as much attention. as that of any other single enterprise
in the city. What occasioned this concern requires no sophistry to explain to
the most casual observer. The system of cooperation has been, in the minds
of many, the plan which might finally tend to harmonise the apparently con-
flicting interests of capital and labor, and therefore the success or failure of this
institution was thought by not a few to predicate either a great increase in the
number of similar enterprises, or their abandonment altogether. The result,
however, has not tended to encourage the organisation of many concerns on a
.similar basis, possibly because, although the Co-Operative Foundry company
has met with unprecedented success, many other cooperative societies in other
sections of the country failed entirely to obtain this hoped-for result. The Co-
operatives organised and were incorporated in the summer of 1867 with a paid-
in capital of $30,000 and purchased the John M. French foundry on Hill
street, which was more familiarly known as the old Novelty Works property,
where they have since conducted the manufacture of stoves. Henry Cribben
— now one of the largest manufacturers of foundry products in Chicago, Ill-
inois, was president, and John O'Donaghue secretary. Nicholas Brayer was and
has since been the superintendent, although succeeding Mr. Cribben in the pres-
idency in 1873. The office of secretary and treasurer has, since 1869, been filled
by the present incumbent, E. W. Feck. The employees of the company original-
ly numbered fifty, all being stockholders. The number is now. 200, although
only about the original number remain as stockholders, no discrimination being
6i8 History of the City of Rochester.
made against employment of those not financially interested. The capital
has increased to $100,000, and a contingent fund has been accumulated in ad-
dition thereto of some $70,000. The future of this organisation bids fair to be
as favorable as the past, and to be productive of benefit to its members and of
credit to the city.
J. S. Graham & Co., Mill street and Brown's race, are manufacturers of
wood-working machinery for use in planing and molding mills, sash, blind and
door factories, furniture and piano establishments, agricultural and car works,
comprising a complete line of planing and matching, and surfacing machines,
re-sawing machines and sawing machines of various kinds and sizes, variety
molding machines, power feed molders, wood-turning lathes, tenoning, mortis-
ing machines, etc. The firm is composed of J. S. Graham and John Kane,
both practical engineers and machinists of Hfelong practical experience, and
their machines are classed the best built in the United States as regards design
and construction in all the details and for rapid production of the various kinds
of work for which the machines are intended. They build the largest planing
and matching machines in the country, weighing six tons and over. They also
build the widest planing machines in the world, used for the purpose of plan-
ing sounding-boards (sixty inches wide) for pianos. These machines combine
many patents, improvements and valuable features not to be found in those of
any other manufacturer. The market for this machinery extends from Maine
to Washington territory, and occasionally to foreign countries. The Mechan-
ical Engineers' association of England complimented Graham & Co. on exhib-
iting what they called " the best type of American wood-working machinery "
at the centennial exhibition, and asked for drawings- showing the principal
features, which were afterward copied in England. They were also compli-
mented by the mechanical commission of Sweden and Denmark in the same
manner. The founder of this house left the work bench for the war, at the
close of which he resumed the business. John Kane is the junior partner;
about 50 men are employed.
Little, Heughes & Rowe is the firm conducting the Cheney furnace on
South St. Paul street, founded by V. R. Rowe in 1839, afterward Cheney,
Hunter & Rowe. Frank W. Little and F. L. Heughes are the partners at the
present writing ; employment is given to about 50 hands. The business is
that of general foundry and architectural castings, columns, etc. F. L. Heughes
was the contractor for 600 tons of castings for the Powers Hotel, the work of
the new iron viaduct on North Water street, etc.
J. Emory Jones is the successor of his father in the Jones foundry and has
conducted the business for twelve years. Attached to the foundry is a large
machine-shop where contract work is done. He enjoys the advantages derived
from this combination and has a very valuable plant. About 75 men are em-
ployed and the output is about ten tons daily.
Rochester Manufactures. 6ig
N. H. Galusha has an extensive foundry in Court street, which was estab-
lished by Joseph Hall about 1840. It was afterward run by Kidd & Co., and
in 1857 it came into the possession of Mr. Galusha; specialty, stoves and
ranges; employment 100 men.
Connell & Dengler, corner of Furnace arid Mill street, organised in 1867 ;
specialty, everything in the line of later-day wood-working machinery ; em-
ployment 35 men.
The Rochester axle company have a large shop at the junction of East
Main street, Goodman street and the railroad, where carriage axles are the sole
article of manufacture. The goods are in local and foreign demand and find
ready sale. H. H. and J. H. Sperry and E. W. Williams are the partners ;
employment 40 to 50 men.
The Eureka steam-heating company (H. E. Light), located at the corner
of Piatt and State streets ; use 200 by 100 feet of space in the manufacture of
steam- heating apparatus, generators, radiators, etc.; employment 100 men;
the product is shipped to all the principal cities in the country.
The Sill stove works — James Brackett, president; Frederick Will, secre-
tary — are located on Oak street near its intersection by the Charlotte railway.
This industry originated with Mr. Sill, about 1854, on West Main street. In
1879 the present company was organised; specialty, stoves and ranges; em-
ployment 1 50 hands. The establishment is a very complete one in all respects.
F. P. Michel manufactures machinists' tools on Brown's race at the foot of
Piatt street (the site of the first mill erected on Brown's race in 1820), the pres-
ent building being the old Phoenix mill which was burned, and afterward re-
constructed by Mr. Michel. The business originated in 1864, and in 1868 F.
P. Michel became sole owner; employment 35 hands.
The Rochester machine tool company (G. W. Davison, E. R. Bryant, J. Buck-
ley and Elias Mapes) ; specialties, drills, cutters, planers, etc. ; location Brown's
race, foot of Furnace street. L. S. Graves & Son, Center square, occupy a
large building built on the site of Trinity church, corner of Frank and Center
streets, specially for the rapidly growing business of this house. The specialty
is freight and passenger elevators, for which Graves & Son have a national rep-
utation. The business was established in 1863 by L. S. Graves. A good por-
tion of the hydraulic elevators in use in business places in Rochester were built
by Graves & Son. Coupled, with the business is also a department for the
manufacture of shafting, pulleys and hangers; employment 35 hands.
The AUden & Lassig bridge and iron works were founded in East Roches-
ter, contiguous to the New York Central & Hudson River railroad, in 1872, by
Thomas Leighton, of whom mention is made in the opening of this chapter.
Mr. Leighton came to Rochester as early as 1855 and was always engaged in
bridge-building. For a term of years the firm was Fowler & Leighton ; subse-
quently Mr. Leighton established the above works and remained in business
40
620 History of the City of Rochester.
until 1882. Upon retiring, the works passed into the hands of the above firm.
The firm manufacture railway and highway bridges, iron viaducts, trestles, plate
girders, roofs, turn-tables and iron water pipe. The iron bridge over the Con-
necticut river at Springfield was made at these works. They have executed
much work for the Chicago & Northwestern railroad, and built many bridges
and viaducts for the new West Shore railroad, from New York to Buffalo. In
addition to these, extensive contracts have been executed for the Delaware &
Hudson Canal company, Boston & Maine, New York Central and many other
railway companies. Portions of the roof and the iron tower of the houses of par-
liament at Ottawa, Canada, are from these works. The members of the firm are
J. F. Alden and Moritz Lassig. The former is a resident of this city, and the
latter resides at Chicago. Mr. Alden was for a number of years the chief en-
gineer in charge of the works, before the organisation of the present firm.
Employment 400 to 500 hands.
Goggin & Knowles, East Main street, junction of Stillson, established 1877,
are manufacturers of ornamental work for buildings, including cornices, finials,
weather vanes, crestings, ventilators, window and chimney caps, gutters and con-
ductors, hip and ridge moldings, tin, iron, copper and slate roofing, etc. Also
oil tanks, oil cans, milk cans, galvanised iron pails, ash barrels, etc.
A. M. Bristol, Exchange street, is manufacturer of hot-air registers and
ventilators; established in 1853 by Dr. Bristol, father of the present owner,
who succeeded to the business in 1877. The output is 20,000 registers an-
nually.
James Flint founded the Flint saw works in 1847, in the -shop on State
street, now brushed by the elevated track of the Central, employing from 12 to
20 men since that time. His saws have an extended general and local reputa-
tion, and he is and has been the only manufacturer to any extent in Rochester.
The Steam Gauge and Lantern company of Rochester, New York, is one of
the most complete manufacturing institutions in the United States. It is sit-
uated upon the historic brink of the high falls where stood for years the saw-
mill erected by Seth C. Jones and afterward conducted by Thomas Parsons.
The building has about 1 30,000 superficial feet of floor room and represents a
hollow square, lacking one side. The specialty is lamps and lanterns (princi-
pally tubular) for railway, governmental and general use. An annex 50 by
100 feet, six stories, is now (June, 1884) being erected. The employment is
300 hands, which is to be increased about lOO by the new feature just added,
that of the manufacture of a patented oil stove for domestic purposes. The
system and thoroughness of this establishment are known only to those who
visit it. The goods are sent everywhere, and each January the stockholders
divide a handsome surplus. C. T. Ham, president, gives his undivided time in
directing the affairs, and F. D. W. Clarke is secretary and treasurer. There is
over $100,000 worth of machinery in the plant. The annual consumption of
Rochester Manufactures. 621
tin and wire, alone, is enormous, 12,000 boxes of tin, and 24,000 bundles of
wire. The refuse tin dumped over the bank has made an artificial embank-
ment reaching from the river bed below the falls to the foot of the building.
The power for running the machinery is obtained principally from Front street
outlet sewer, there being two turbine wheels of 190 horse power each. This
furnishes one of the strongest imaginable contrasts between the old time and
the new ; a large and extensive factory on the very brink of the falls and Gen-
esee river furnished with power by water from a lake 28 miles south of the city
— the wastage from one of the most complete water systems of the world.
The building of locomotives and the extensive repair shops inaugurated
with the construction of the Niagara Falls branch of the Central railroad, in
1849, were discontinued in 1877 by the removal of the shops to Syracuse and
Buffalo. Several hundred mechanics were employed in these shops.
Mahlon Gregg & Son (J. N. Gregg) are manufacturers of cooper's tools on
the flat foot of the falls; employment 15 to 20 hands.
John Greenwood & Co. (S. Teal) are extensive manufacturers of barrel ma-
chinery in, the Greenwood building. Mill street; employment 50 to 60 hand.s.
Shorer & Taillie are foundrymen in North Water street; specialty, iron columns,
lintels, cornices, etc.; employment 30 hands.
One of the few men in the same business since 1834 is John Snow, of the
Exchange street wire works. At that time he commenced in a small way, .
making sieves, screens, etc. The business kept pace with the city and he now
conducts a large concern in the identical building first occupied by Dean's thea-
ter, afterward the armory of the Fifty-fourth regiment N. Y. S. M., before the
new arsenal was built. Mr. Snow purchased the building, and manufactures
wire goods of all description. There are looms for weaving wire and other me-
chanical appliances. The wire flooring for the Oothout and for the E. B. Par-
sons malt house were made by Snow.
Munn, Converse & Anstice are foundrymen, corner' of River and North
Water street; business founded in 1872 by H. N. Hemingway, who retired in
1882 and the firm took the above title. The specialty is small casting, nickel-
plating and japanning. About 100 men are employed, forty of whom are
molders.
The manufacture of files is no small item in the iron interest of Rochester.
The principal makers' are J. S. Irwin, Mill street, and Stott Bros., River street.
Jioth of these establishments use the latest automatic machinery and give em-
ployment to 30 or 40 hands each. James Haddleton is no inconsiderable man-
ufacturer of wire goods, forms, designs, trellises, hanging baskets, railings etc.
He is located on State street.
J. H. & J. F. Gordon are patentees of improvements in grain binders, which
patents are in use by the principal manufacturers of the country and from which
they derive princely royalties, They have an experimental factory on South
St. Paul street.
622 History of the City of Rochester.
J. C. Heughes & Co. are extensive die-cutters in Mill street and have re-
cently absorbed the Rochester die-cutting establishment that was located at the
corner of Piatt and Mill streets ; employment 50 hands.
Charles S., jr., and E. W. Hall are engaged in the manufacture of agricul-
tural implements in the machine-shop on South Water street erected many
years ago by Joseph Hall; employment 20 men.
H. J. Howe & Co. manufacture the Howe scales in the Stewart building,
Andrews street; employment 25 hands.
Junius Judson & Son are manufacturers of governor valves in Brown's race,
rear of Mill street. The specialty of this establishment is governor valves for
steam engines, under patents taken out some years ago by Mr. Judson, who is
one of the pioneer machine men of Rochester.
Upon the two upper floors of the (Selye) Judson building, corner of Mill
and Furnace street, admissible to no visitors, strangers or reporters, are the Jud-
son pin works, where seventy to eighty hands are employed in the manufacture
of pins. There are, we are informed, but eight other establishments of this kind
in the entire country and they monopoHse the making of this essential article.
The plant contains somewhere in the region of $100,000 worth of special and
intricate machinery. There are machines in which the heads are made at
the same time the wire is cut the proper length, machines which put the points
against emory wheels to sharpen them automatically, hopper-like machines into
which pins are fed to be forced a row at a time into continuous rows of indented
paper. The entire manufacture is controlled by the national association of which
this concern is part. Mr. Judson manufactured trip hammers here in 1837.
Upon the corner of Court and Stone streets is the lock factory of Sargent
& Greenleaf, established in 1867. It is a long, three-storied brick building, and
the locks from this establishment are used all over the world. The specialty is
bank and burglar-proof locks, automatic and combination locks and chronom-
eter time locks, which are set only to open at a given hour. These require
perfected and delicate machinery in the manufacture. The plant is a very val-
uable one and the business adds materially to the manufacturing reputation of
Rochester. About lOO hands are employed. The proprietors are James Sar-
gent, well known among inventors, and H. S. Greenleaf, the present member
of Congress from the thirtieth district.
The James Cunningham, Son & Co. carriage manufactory was founded in
1838. It is located upon Canal and Litchfield streets and the works combined
cover an immense territory. Employment 550 men, and having branch repos-
itories in New York, St. Louis, San Francisco and other cities. Unlike many
other establishments in a like business, this concern makes from the raw mate-
rial almost every part that goes to make a perfect vehicle. There is an exten-
sive forge for the iron work and running gear, and in fact as many departments
as there are parts of a carriage, even to grinding-rooms for beveling the plate
Rochester Manufactures. 623
glass, and nickel-plating rooms for the ornamental portions, an upholstering de-
partment, etc., etc. The utmost system prevails and the coaches, carriages,
hearses, etc., from this establishment are rarely equaled b)' the product of any
similar factory. In July, 1882, articles of incorporation were filed, the company
consisting of James Cunningham & Son and Rufus K. Dryer.
The K. A. Hughson carriage works on East avenue, just beyond the city
limits, is an extensive establishment occupying the buildings originally built for
and used by the Glen & Hall agricultural works. About 250 men are em-
ployed.
Thomas G. Palmer is an extensive manufacturer of iron railings on Front
near Mumford street. For some time previous to the flood of 1865 Cox &
Walker were manufacturers of safes in the Stewart building. The flood
carried their establishment over the falls, including twelve' or fifteen safes, val-
ued at $9,000 to $10,000. James D. Cox, of this firm, drove the first hotel
omnibus in Rochester and received the first passengers arriving in Rochester by
railroad.
A. H. Shipman is the originator of a peculiar manufacturing business which,
from small beginnings in the Stewart building in 1876, has grown to propor-
tions requiring a large building in Bismarck place, 45x100 feet. The specialty
is amateur tools, scroll saws, lathes and miniature steam engines where light
power is used. The industry was entirely original with Mr. Shipman, who by
advertising and push is now sending his products to all parts of the United
States. He employs from 40 to 50 hands.
John Siddons is another Rochesterian who from small beginnings has
worked up a very extensive business. He makes a specialty of iron roofing
and galvanised iron architectural work, a great deal of which has of late years
come in use for cornices, etc. All of the large buildings now put up have
more or less of this work, of which Mr. Siddons, who is located on East Main
street, still makes a specialty. The immense (copper) statue of Hermes which
surmounts the smokestack of the Peerless tobacco works was fashioned at Sid-
dons's shop, it being necessary to make an opening through the upper floors to
do it.
The Rochester car wheel works adjoin the Rochester cotton mill on Brown's
race on the site of the Kidd foundry (mentioned elsewhere). The present en-
terprise originated with the late Charles H. Chapin in 1877, and is now. called
the Rochester car wheel company ; W. K. Chapin and C. T. Chapin pres-
ident and secretary, and E. J. Campbell foreman. Capacity 1 50 wheels per
diem.
One of the pioneers in the manufacture of wood-working machinery is
C. R. Tompkins, Mill street, near Brown. He established the business in
1855 and has constantly employed from 60 to 100 men. Frank H, Clemens,
in the Greenwood building on Mill street, is also a manufacturer of wood-
working machinery and employs about thirty men.
624 History of the City of Rochester.
The Kelly lamp-works in the Judson building, corner of Mill and Furnace
street, arises from the Snook & Hill lamp-works, the present officers being
James H. Kelly, president ; Frank S. Upton, treasurer, and J. Miller Kelly,
secretary. Mr. Kelly became interested in these works many years ago (about
1856) through business connection with Thomas Snook. When Mr. Snook re-
tired a stock company was formed and before merging into the present organ-
isation there were several changes. Among the stockholders have been the
late J. H. Martindale, the late O. M. Benedict, C. T. Ham, David Upton, R.
S. Kenyon, J. H Isbister, D. T. Hunt and others. Mr. Kelly's executive abil-
ity and systematic ways have had their effect in taking a crude business and
building it up to one of the best conducted and most important enterprises in
the city. The specialty is railway headlights and lanterns, particularly high
grade conductors' lanterns. From 50 to 60 skilled artisans are employed and
the product calls for the work of many trades, the sheet iron workers, the cop-
persmith, the electro and nickel plater, the wireworker, the woodworker, the
painter, the glass engraver, etc., etc. The goods are shipped to every state
in the Union, and the business has been and is now a very prosperous one.
Mack & Co., manufacturers of edge tools. Mill, corner of Furnace street;
specialty, edge tools; employment 150 hands; founded in 1832 by D. R. Bar-
ton, and conducted continuously through one or two fires and the flood of 1865
until the demise of Mr. Barton. In 1874 Mack & Co., the present firm, suc-
ceeded to the business, which occupies the large three-story brick building
corner of Mill and Furnace street and the Revere mills on Brown's race. From
the outset to the present day these tools have had a standard reputation all
over the world. Aside from the general trade in the states, including California
and Oregon, shipments are made to many foreign countries and command
higher prices than English tools.
J. S. Irwin & Co., Mill street, are extensive manufacturers of files, employ-
ing about 30 hands; established in 1865.
The Rochester machine screw company was organised in 1 87 1 ; C. P. Bos-
well, president ; George C. Clark, superintendent ; Hiram W. Smith, secretary.
The specialty is milled machine-set and cap screws, taps and finished and case-
hardened hexagon nuts principally for machinists, engine-builders and agricul-
tural implement makers, which are catalogued and sold in all parts of the coun-
try. The work is mostly automatic and consequently accurate ; employment
about 50 men.
Trotter, Geddes & Co. are extensive manufacturers of heating furnaces on
Exchange street. The business was organised in 1872 under the name of
Trotter, Stone & Co. ; employment is given to 20 men.
F. Erdle, Mill street, makes a specialty of perforated sheet metals for grain
sieves, etc., etc.
Rochester Manufactures. 625
LUMBER — WOOD AND ITS PRODUCTS.
Rochester originally sawed its way into existence contemporaneously with
the mills that ground out its first advertisement as an abiding-place for the
settler. With the first allotment of the "hundred-acre-tract" was a saw-mill.
Adjacent to the site of the first flouring- mill, in Aqueduct street, was also the
first saw- mill, which subsequently (in 1845) was taken by Jonathan Child and
afterward for several years conducted by his son. The saw- mill is now the
Disbrow box-factory, where for one patent medicine concern alone (besides a
general box-making business) are turned out over 1,000 boxes daily, nailed by
patent nailing machines and the title of the all-healing medicine printed with a
press upon the wood, like unto the work of a job printing-press, the same
press in its most perfected form being the work of Rochester mechanics — Cou-
ncil & Dengler. The old saw-mill upon the brink of the high falls erected in
1827 has disappeared and now nearly all of the large lumber dealers do their
own sawing, planing and matching. Moses Dyer constructed a saw- mill at
the big dam, Exchange street, in 1828, the firm afterward becoming Dyer &
HoUister, the partner being the grandfather of Granger and G. A. HoUister,
who now conduct the lumber business upon the same site. Subsequently
Emmett H. HoUister, William Churchill and Amon Bronson jointly and sep-
arately conducted the lumber business in the same locality. Amon Bronson,
jr., in 1882 disposed of the bu.siness (to which he had succeeded and which his
father established in 1832) to the New York, Lake Erie & Western railway,
the tracks of which were pushed further north, taking up the space occupied
by the Bronson yard. HoUister Brothers monopolise the lumber business in
that locality now. During 1865 M. M. HoUister and John D. Fay, who had
established a lumber yard in Court street contiguous to the river, had their en-
tire stock carried off in the flood, rendering no inventory necessary in winding
up the business. J. D. Bell, after that, established a planing-mill upon the bank
of the river at Court street bridge, and in i88o the firm became J. D. Bell &
Son. They conduct a snug and satisfactory business and the name in the com-
munity, with business men particularly, is the synonym of all that Quaker up-
rightness implies. The ax and saw made timber scarce in this locality and for
the past few years Michigan and Canada have contributed the major part of
the pine lumber. Michigan furnishes the best pine and ash, Pennsylvania and
Southern New York furnishes pine and hemlock. The Erie, the B. N. Y. & P.
and the Rochester & Pittsburg railway, especially, do a large freightage of
lumber to Rochester. In the old days some lumber was rafted down the Gen-
esee river. Walnut, butternut and white ash come from Missouri and Indiana,
cherry comes principally from Pennsylvania and Indiana, and red cedar from
Florida. One house, the Stein casket works, uses millions of feet annually of
the latter wood for burial caskets. Within recent years a degree of extrava-
626 History of the City of Rochester.
gance in the construction of dwellings has been indulged in, and where the means
warranted there have been large outlays for American and foreign woods in
constructing the floors, ceilings, wainscotings and ornamental portions of dwell-
ings and business places. The island formed by the river and feeder from the
canal weighlock to Hamilton place became the location of saw-mills and plan-
ing-mills at an early date. It remained for the Crouches to develop the business
to its present large extent, laying out large capital in making new ground, so
that their business covers several acres, outside of the yard in Griffith street.
They do a large wholesale and retail business, employ 70 to 80 hands and
handle many million feet of lumber annually, shipping many car-loads without
re-handling. Timbers for ship-building are sent to Philadelphia, Chester, Penn.,
and Baltimore. To George W. & Charles T. Crouch belong the credit of open-
ing up Crouch's island for lumber business. They established a saw mill on
the island in 1866, constructed the basins for storing logs with a capacity of
three million feet, afterward purchased the Bentley, Myer & Southwick saw-
mill and now do four million feet of sawing annually. George W., jr., Frank
P. and Charles H., sons of G. W. and C. T. Crouch, are connected with the
business; Recently (1884) George W., jr., has established for himself at East
Rochester.
John F. Lovecraft in 1849 established a saw and planing-mill on the island,
and S. J. Lovecraft, his son, conducted the same business in that locality until
1 88 1. Commencing in 1868, the senior Lovecraft followed the business in
various localities. Two or more times, notably in 1858 and in 1871, his mills
were swept away by fire. In 1855 R- ^- Edgerton established the lumber
business on the island in proximity to the establishments above mentioned.
He died in 1867 and his son, Hiram H. Edgerton, continued the business up
to 1883, when he sold to Chase & Otis, who previously had conducted the
lumber trade on Court street next to the upper race for several years. The
present plant covers over four acres, with several hundred feet of dockage on
the Erie canal. Michigan pine and hemlock are the specialties. Mr. Edger-
ton, after disposing of the lumber business, engaged in the coal trade and now
conducts a large business in that line.
Emory B. Chace, Warehouse street, is the successor of an extensive lum-
ber business established many years ago on the site of the Rochester House
ruins by Luther Gordon , in 1884 he assumed actual control. There is ample
dockage on the canal and shed room with all the latest conveniences for the
economical handling of lumber, and the planing-mill on the premises is kept
busily employed on work for the local trade. Mr. Chace is a native of Wy-
oming county, and, though but fifteen years a native of Rochester, has won
position in public and private life.
Wm. B. Morse & Co. are quite extensive lumber dealers on West avenue,
next to the Rochester & Pittsburg railway station. Bigelow & Osborne have
Rochester Manufactures. 627
a lumber yard at the corner of Piatt and State streets. This ground was the
first used in Rochester for the tent show or circus.
H. H. Craig, formerly of the firm of Craig & Crouches, has an extensive
yard, mill and dry kiln upon the New York Central railway, east of Goodman
street. The plant embraced nearly fourteen acres with a storage capacity for
25,000,000 feet of lumber. There are side tracks for loading and unloading
and a planing-mill for dressing bills of lumber as desired. This is one of the
latest and most extensive enterprises in the city; the employment is about lOO
hands. In 1836 Andrew Meyer, an honest German boat-builder, was landed
with his family of four boys and four girls on the dock at the Rochester House,
and the next day commenced work at his trade. The four sons, Philip, Fred,
C. C, and John A., became boat-builders and followed the business until 1882,
first as employees and finally as employers, and many of their boats now carry
freight on the canal. In 1884 C. C. Meyer & Son secured a tract at the east-
ern widewater, where they have established a saw- mill, the plant being valufed
at $25,000, exclusive of the lumber in stock.
As early as 1845 Charles J. Hayden advertised furniture on State street,
where the Monroe County bank now stands. Upon the corner of State and
Furnace streets and extending to Mill street is a five-story brick structure con-
ducted by C. J. Hayden & Co. (C. A. Hayden), having a frontage of seventy-
five feet on State street and J90 feet in depth. The Mill street portion was
first constructed as an up-town factory, after which the State street portion was
purchased and the two buildings were joined. Over 2,000 lights of glass are
required to furnish light for the Furnace and State street sides. The business
takes in the widest range 6f wholesale and retail furniture and interior decora-
tions, including the manufacture of the same. The establishment is most sys-
tematically conducted and contains all the latest and most improved appliances.
Aside from the local trade, which is not inconsiderable, there is a large outside
demand which is supplied by car-loads. Connected with the business is an
extensive factory at the lower falls. Four hundred and fifty hands are employed,
aside from the labor of a number of inmates of the N. Y. S. reformatory, who are
employed in cane-seating chairs for Hayden & Co.
The Hayden & Havens company was organised as successor of J. E. Hay-
den & Co. In 1882 the new building, five floors, corner of Court and Ex-
change streets, was occupied. This building was constructed expressly for the
business, the specialty being exclusively fine furniture. Part of the ground
taken for the structure was Child's basin, which was abandoned as a canal slip
in 1880. Employment is given to about 150 hands, in the manufacture of ex-
clusively fine furniture, and the trade extends to all of the leading cities in the
United States. Interior fittings for hotels, saloons, etc., are also a feature.
The officers are : J. Alex. Havens, president; G. W. Havens, treasurer, and
J. W. Allen, secretary. J. E. Hayden, the founder, started in business on
628 History of the City of Rochester.
Front street in 1 849, afterward moving to State street and occupying the block
that was taken up by Church street in 1882. In 1855 he entered upon the
wholesale manufacture, establishing a shop on Hill street The present build-
ing is quite a monument of the progress of manufactures in Rochester.
I. H. Dewey (established by-Burley and Dewey 1869) is a wholesale and
retail dealer and manufacturer of furniture, having a large store on State street
extending through to Mill street and a factory on Hill street; employ-
ment 100 hands, including salesmen. Mr. Dewey succeeded to the business
in 1877.
Next north of the historic Ely mill on South Water street is a large stone
building in which is the factory of Minges & Shale, manufacturers of furniture.
They have a store on State street, extending to Main street, and are in the first
rank in their line. The factory is of recent construction and has all of the latest
and best wood- working machinery and appliances for the work. The firm was
organised by Joseph Shantz, Fred S. Minges and Fred A. Shale; in 1882 the
business passed into the hands of Minges & Shale. One of the specialties is
interior fittings, and a large number of the public places in Rochester show
elegant specimens of their work. Upward of 60,000 feet of floor room is
required for the store and 30,000 for the factory ; employment 40 hands.
Copeland, Hall & Co. are extensive manufacturers of certain lines of fur-
niture, particularly extension tables, which are supplied to local dealers and to
the trade in all the states. The factory was founded about twenty years ago
by P. M. Bromley & Co. The factory is on the south side of the Erie canal,
at Jay street, and is a three-story building, forty by 200 feet. H. O. Hall &
Co., came into possession about 1873 ; afterward the firm changed to Cope-
land, Hall & Co. One hundred and twenty-five hands are employed.
Edward and William Brooks are manufacturers of chamber furniture, on
West street near the Erie canal, where they have a factory four stories in
height ; employment 75 hands. F. Ritter for several years has conducted an
extensive furniture factory on River street.
F. Ruckdeschel occupies two floors in the Parsons building, foot of Center
street, in the manufacture of furniture for the trade. The business was founded
in 1867, by Paul Michelson ; in 1880 Mr. Ruckdeschel came in possession of
the entire business ; thirty hands are employed.
Perrin Bros, are also manufacturers of couch and chair frames in the Warren
building. North Water street.
Rochester's pioneer cabinet-maker was Frederick Starr, who was born in
Warren, Conn., in May, 1799. He learned his trade in Litchfied, Conn., about
1817; afterward worked at it for a few montlis in Troy, N. Y., and then for
about three years in New York city. While employed as a workman there he
was prominent in helping to secure a law changing the legal hours of a day's
work from fourteen hours to twelve hours. He removed to Rochester from
Rochester Manufactures. 629
New York in the spring of 1822 and opened a shop for the manufacture of
furniture on the corner of Main and South Water street, where Haass's drug
store now is located, at first employing one assistant. The tools and lumber
that he needed, and for which he paid by the savings of his wages earned in
New York, were hauled over the rough corduroy roads in high wagons drawn
by eight pairs of oxen from Albany to this then village. In 1823 or early in
1824 he bought the property on the northeast corner of Liberty street and
East Main street. At the time he bought this property its east end was built
into the bank, while its west end rested on piles some twenty feet high — as
then Main street just west of St. Paul street descended abruptly as a hill at that
point. His building was partly destroyed by fire in 1844 and again in 1849.
He then entirely rebuilt the edifice, which structure stands to-day, as then ;
the store (built in 1849 ^"d now occupied by Gibbons & Stone as a piano
forte salesroom) was then considered by far the best store in town. Mr. Starr
occupied this location first in 1824 and within a few years had secured for those
days a very large trade, employing about fifty workmen. About 1844 he
added to his furniture manufactory the manufacture of piano fortes, and about
1849 oi" soon thereafter entirely discontinued the cabinet business, devoting
himself entirely to the manufacture of piano fortes. He then interested him-
self, again successfully, in the effort to make the legal hours of a day's work
ten hours instead of twelve. After a successful s.eries of years in the manufac-
ture of piano fortes, about the year 1861 he began to discontinue the active
manufacture thereof — in 1862 he sold his building to Owen Gaffney, and in
1867 he discontinued his office, enjoying a quiet life thereafter until his de-
cease, on November 29th, 1 869. Thus he was closely identified with the busi-
ness interests of Rochester from 1822 to 1869, having his office in one location
for forty-three years.
The pioneer .wholesale box-maker in Rochester was J. B. Stevens, estab-
lished in 1856 at the foot of Furnace street. The industrial interests of Roch-
ester up to this time had grown to such an extent that many establishments,
notably the seedsmen, required packing-boxes in large numbers. Formerly
the ordina.ry carpenter had supplied hand-made boxes. Mr. Stevens utilised
machinery and his business grew apace with the increasing business interests
of the city. In 1867 Alvarado Stevens was admitted as partner. More room
became necessary, and the large building erected by Thomas Parsons at the foot
of Center street next to the Rochester cotton factory was taken, new and im-
proved machinery was constantly added, all calculated to reduce the cost of
labor. There are dove- tailing machines which join 100 boxes in less time than
a carpenter could join one ; there are nailing machines which do the work of
eight men, and buffers which smooth a box by rotative machinery in the place
of sand-papering by hand. There are also sawing and re-sawing machines
which save considerable raw material, and the crowning triumph is found in
630 ■ History of the City ok Rochester.
the printing press, which prints trade-marks or advertising designs upon the
boxes in the same manner that handbills are printed upon a Gordon or Univer-
sal press. They da a business of over $100,000 annually and consume over
2,000,000 feet of lumber yearly ; employment fifty hands.
An industry in which Rochester vies with the principal cities of the Union is
that of frames and moldings, the business amounting to about three-fourths of a
million dollars annually. The leading manufactories are those of the Empire
molding works and J. W. Gillis. The former was founded by Newell & Turpin
(and Thomas H. Turpin is the originator of nearly all the salient features of the
present style of business in this line). The Empire works, now conducted by
George H. Newell, are located on Gorham street, in a large stone building
owned by him. The works employ . upward of 200 hands and there is in use
all of the later-day machinery for turning out the work at a saving of time and
cost. The picture frame of the present day could not have been made in
1834, nor a few years later, when Moses Dyer was a "gilder and picture-frame
maker" in "hatters' row" on State street, or when Adam Elder made picture-
frames in the Reynolds arcade. Aside from machinery not then known, new
methods and substances have been discovered, cheapening yet beautifying the
frames beyond comparison with those of an earlier day.
James W. Gillis established his business in a small way in 1873 on Allen
street. In 1874 he obtained the national photographers' association gold medal
for best frames. His store was then located in the Walbridge block, but in-
creasing trade caused him to build the large and elegant block, corner of Troup
and Exchange streets, expressly for the business, in 1879. He employs from
100 to 140 men, and his specialty is artistic and elaborate picture-frames. The
excellence of his goods may be judged from the fact that his largest sales are
in the principal cities, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Cincinnati, Chicago, St.
Louis and other cities further west. There are several minor establishments in
the same line, but, as this is a history and not a directory, further particularisation
is unnecessary. Wood flooring made in mosaic blocks and patterns is one of
the later-day uses of wood. Runyon & Co., in the Beehive, Aqueduct street,
conduct quite an extensive business in this line, employing 10 or 15 men.. These
goods are very fine and. require extensive and expensive machinery. There
are several cigar- box factories in the city, employing from five to fifteen hands
each. The aggregate of the boxes made in a year is considerable.
There are seventeen cooper shops in the city, with an aggregate employ-
ment of 200 to 225 hands. The principal output is flour barrels — 300,000 to
350,000 annually. About 25,000 beer and ale barrels are made annually.
C. J. Robinson & Co., Canal street, are extensive makers of tight cooper-
age. There are several firms in the city making specialties of wood brackets —
notably. Hicks & Vance, Corser & Runyon and the Rochester bracket works.
In 1850 John F. Bush established a stave mill on the Erie canal at Lyell ave-
Rochester Manufactures. 631
nue. In 1858 it passed into possession of Brackett H. Clark, who occupies
about four acres for mill sheds and yard. From 40 to 50 men are employed,
and the output is about six million staves annually. Burt & Brace, organised
April 1st, 1877, are extensive rtianufacturers of cane seat chairs, on South St.
Paul street; employment seventy- five hands. In April, 1884, Mr. Burt retired,
and C. W. Brace now conducts the business. The Rochester wheel company,
located on Elizabeth and Hill streets and Erie canal, established in 1856 by
Hough, Corris & Co., manufactures wheels, spokes, felloes, etc., for carriage
makers ; employment about 50 hands.
BREWING AND MALTING.
There are sixteen breweries in Rochester and two extensive malt-houses, one
of the larger breweries (Bartholomay) doing its own malting, producing, in
1883, 250,000 bushels.
The E. B. Parsons malting company owns the large stone building, corner
of Brown and Warehouse, built upon the site of the original warehouse and ele-
vator built by Warham Whitney in 1830, the first grain elevator erected in
America. George J. Whitney, who had built the capacious elevator on the
North side of Brown street, rebuilt the old warehouse for a malt-house and
in 1 87 1 sold it to Colonel E. B. Parsons, who subsequently added a large and
modern malterie, equipping it with the latest and most improved machinery,
and then organised a stock company, $100,000 paid in, E. B. Parsons president,
John Kiley secretary. The output is about 300,000 bushels, Canada barley
being used, as it is considered superior to home-grown barley for the purpose
of brewing. Colonel Parsons has just completed a malt-house, capacity 500,-
000 bushels, at Sod us bay, where the harbor is excellent, and the most direct
communication is had with the Bay of Quinte barley district, Ontario. The
market is principally in the East.
Samuel N. Oothout, for many years a brewer in South Water street, con-
ducts a malt-house at the junction of the Erie canal and Mt. Hope avenue. The
bulk of the malt is used by the Rochester brewing company.
In 1 8 19 the existence of a very pure spring of water near the river bank
was made the excuse for founding a brewery by parties whose names are out
of history. About twenty years later Samuel Warren came in possession of
the property and continued the brewing of ale, developing the City springs
until his son E. K. Warren went into the business. It is now conducted by
E. K. Warren & Son, and the product, which has become quite large, has a
widespread reputation. The spring still flows and furnishes strikingly pure water
for the purpose. The property has augmented in value by the recent changes
of grade on North St- Paul street, on which it fronts, extending to North Water
street. The railroad changes about there have all contributed to make the old
City Springs brewery quite a valuable plant.
632 History of the City of Rochester.
About 1830 or 1832 John and Gabriel Longmuir commenced brewing on
North Water street, doing their own work and selling the product, which was
only a few barrels a year. In 1858 the brewery was destroyed by fire and re-
built in the succeeding year, on a much larger scale. In 1864 it was sold to
Charles Gordon and in 1865 he was joined by H. H. Bevier. In August, 1869,
H. B. Hathaway came into the business and the firm added largely to their
capacity by erecting a large building on the east side of the street, tunneling
under Water street, connecting the two cellars. Two years later a large stable
was built to accommodate thirty-two horses, the first stable in Rochester where
horses were stabled on the second floor. In 1872 Mr. Bevier died, since when the
business has been conducted by Hathaway & Gordon, who frequently do as
much in a single day as was done in the first year of the brewery's business,
fifty- three years ago.
In the opening of this chapter the breweries with their rock-walled vaults
that ornamented the river banks at Vincent place and below were alluded to.
The first low-fermented, or lager, beer was sold in Rochester December 7th,
1852, by Henry Bartholomay and Philip Will, who founded the present Bar-
tholomay brewery in that year. The capacity was 3,000 barrels annually. The
limestone rock forming the abrupt bank of the river afforded fine opportunity
for cellars, which are fifty feet deep and capacious, and the business increased
rapidly until 1874, when a stock company was organised, capital stock $250,-
000. The output for 1883 was 130,000 barrels (four' quarter- kegs). The reg-
,ular force of employees numbers 130, but there is constant work for coopers,
builders, drivers, etc., etc., which swells the amount paid for labor very mate-
rially. The ice consumed annually is 30,000 tons. Forty draught horses are
needed and the company take considerable pride in keeping superior animals
of noticeable size and beauty. The officers are : H. Bartholomay, president; F.
Cook, vice-president ; George Arnoldt, secretary, and W. J. Niederpriim, treas-
urer. Mr. Bartholomay, the president of the company, came from a family of
brewers, and before coming to America was the manager of the brewery at
Heidelberg, besides being connected with other famous breweries of the Old
world.
The Rochester brewing company covers eight acres on the west bank of the
river at Cliff street. The company was established in 1874, and has an output
of about 75,000 barrels annually. The officers are: E. K. Hart, president;
John Keiser, vice-president; Wm. N. Oothout, secretary and treasurer; em-
ployment 75 hands. The structures are of brick.
The Miller brewing company, on Lake avenue, of which Fred Miller is pres-
ident and Solomon Wile is secretary, originated in 1856, with Fred Miller. The
company, organised in 1881, employs 35 men, with an output of about 35,000
barrels. Both ale and lager are brewed here. The present structure was put
up in 1873. Attached to the plant, which covers five acres, is an ice pond on
Rochester Manufactures. 633
the flats below, which connects with the Genesee river by stop-gates, enabling
the company to secure its ice on the premises. An elevator takes it to the
building.
The Genesee brewing company's brewery — M. Kondolf president, Chas.
Heusner secretary, Charles Rau, treasurer — on the east bank of the river, at
Bismarck place, is the latest extensive structure erected ; capacity 60,000 barrels.
One of the early brewers of Rochester was Jacob Baetzel, who had a small
brewery on North Clinton street. His sons, J. George Baetzel & Bro., have
now an extensive brewery further north on the street; capacity about 20,000
barrels.
The Lion brewery, corner of Hudson and Channing streets, is conducted
by Meyer, Loebs & Co., and was established in 1856; capacity 20,000 barrels. .
We are indebted to John A. Davis of the internal revenue office for the an-
nexed accurate statement of production of ale and beer in the past ten years :
1874 — 86,730 barrels; 1875 — 101,408 barrels; 1876 — 107,356 barrels;
1877 — 124,314 barrels; 1878 — 141,749 barrels; 1879 — 183,190 barrels;
1880 — 209,623 barrels; 1881 — 221,606 barrels; 1882 — 259,827 barrels;
1883 — 285,045 barrels.
TOBACCO.
Among the early tobacconists of Rochester were W. Barron Williams,
Abram Van Slyck, Richard Ketchum, Walter Griffith, John Disbrow, James
H. Kelly, Henry Suggett and R. D. Kellogg. Of these but two are living,
and but one (Kellogg) remains in the business to-day. Mr. Kellogg (1845)
conducts the manufacturing and wholesale and retail business on State street,
at the head of Andrews street, where he still manufactures and sells the " Peer-
less" chewing, the right to the trademark being secured at the end of six years'
protracted and expensive litigation with other parties claiming the same. •
One of the principal tobacco works in the United States is that of Wm. S.
Kimball & Co., Court street, upon the strip of land bounded by the upper
raceway, the aqueduct, the river and Court street, covering two and a half
acres. The works were constructed especially for the business by this firm,
and the expense of preparing the bare foundation is said to have been upward
of $25,000 before a brick was laid. About 1,000 operatives are employed and
the trade extends all over the world. The frontage on Court street is 224 feet,
with two wings running back a little over 200 feet on the raceway and river
sides, respectively, with a court in the center. A chimney, 182 feet in height
— surmounted by Mercury, the god of commerce as well as of other things,
the figure being twenty-one feet in height — is a most striking object and can
be seen from any elevated part of the city. This figure is in the highest degree
a work of art and was designed by J. Guernsey Mitchell, a young Rochesterian,
and made in sheet copper by John Siddons, of this city. This house was
634 History of the City of Rochester.
founded in 1846 by Henry Suggett and became Suggett & Kimball in 1863.
In 1867 James C. Hart became a partner, Mr. Suggett retiring, and the firm
became Wm. S. Kimball & Co. Numerous prize medals, home and foreign,
attest the exellence of the goods made and the house not only leads in the
matter of quantity, but also in taste and originality of the packages. One of
the recent features is the printing of ornamental designs on tin before it is
formed into boxes. A leading specialty is the manufacture of cigarettes,
averaging nearly a million a day.
At the junction of the Erie canal and Exchange street, upon the site of the
old Rochester House, is the five-story building of S. F. Hess & Co., costructed
especially for the business. Mr. Hess succeeded, in 1867, to the business
established in 1838 by John Disbrow. In 1877 the firm became S. F. Hess &
Co. (S. V. McDowell). The number of operatives is 300 and the specialties
are fine-cut chewing tobacco and cigars. Of the latter 5,000,000 are manu-
factured annually. This is the only house in the state,. outside of New York
city, manufacturing plug tobacco. The goods are sold universally, even in
London, and about 4,000 dealers are on the firm's books.
Richard Whalen is one of the few in the business now who commenced
upward of forty years ago, as a boy in the employ of W. Barron Williams.
He was also in the Van Slyck or Disbrow factories when they were located on
Brown's race. Afterward R. & T. Whalen established quite a local jobbing
business in the Hayden building, corner of State and Furnace streets, which in
1883 was left in the hands of T. Whalen, who still conducts it, while R. Whalen
& Co. (J. L. & R. T. Whalen) established an exclusive manufacturing and job-
bing buisness in the Kidd building, Brown's race, with an office on Mill street.
This house was not long in establishing a very large local and surrounding
trade. The goods have the advantage of being made under the personal in-
spection of a veteran tobacconist, which is a guarantee of their excellence.
The employment is about 50 hands.
The Allison Brothers company are cigarette manufacturers on North Water
street, using machines (the invention of A. W. Allison) which make 150 cigar-
ettes per minute. The business originated with the Allison brothers in 1882.
In 1883 a company was formed, with F. De W. Clark, president; A. W. Al-
lison, vice-president; F. P. Allen, treasurer, and J. A. Allison, secretary. From
30 to 40 operatives are employed, representing about 200 operatives, where
machines are not used.
There are from 80 to 90 cigar-makers and tobacconists in the city, employ-
ing from 3 to 30 hands.
Mr. Davis furnishes the annexed tables for 1873 and 1883, showing the
number of pounds of tobacco manufactured, and number of cigars and cigar-
ettes made in the years named. It is an interesting exhibit of the growth of
the industry and of government receipts for the same. ' There were no cigar-
Rochester Manufactures. 635
ettes manufactured in 1873. The double figures in 1883 show amounts at the
old tax and the reduction : —
1873-
Tobacco — i,o3g,s53-Lf lbs. at 20c $207,910.75
Cigars — 7,730,050 " at $5.00 per M 38,650.25
Total for 1873, $246,561.00
1883.
Tobacco — 467,898^ lbs. at i6c -- $ 74,863.70
1,467,3161 " at 8c ., 117.385-29
1 .935.2 Hi $ 192,248.99
Cigars— 5,041,725 at $6.00 per M $30,250.35
" 12,240,750 at $3.00 per. M.. 36,722.25
17,282,475.. $66,972.60
Cigarettes — 41,189,050 at $1.75 per M ^ $72,080.85
95,808,500 at soc. per M 47,904.25
136,997.5 5° - - - $119,985.10
Total for 1883,.. ..$379,206.69
MISCELLANEOUS MANUFACTURES.
Some Peculiar Industries. — It has been stated that the aggregated mis-
cellaneous industries of Rochester outweigh, in ' importance and amount of
business done, any of the special features for which the city is famous. There
are also many peculiar industries, not to be found in cities even larger than
Rochester. Among them may be enumerated the following productions : Pins,
gelatine dry plates, optical instruments, gold foil, mail bags, dental chairs, safes
and safe locks, steam-cooked food, wood-carpeting, thermometers, artificial stone,
artificial limbs, etc., etc. A leading industry is that of the Archer manufacturing
company, commenced in 1857 by R. W. and J. W. Archer, who purchased
the patent of Justin Ask's dental chairs. In 1864 George W. Archer suc-
ceeded to partnership with R. W., the firm name continuing R. W. Archer &
Bro., until the death of Robert in 1873. Up to 1881 the business was con-
ducted by George W., when John W. was readmitted. In 1884 it was incor-
porated a company, G. W. Archer, president ; John W. Archer, vice-presi-
dent ; Henry C. White, secretary and treasurer. Commencing on State street,
the brothers being the only workmen, the business has grown to $130,000 an-
nually, with 100 employees, aside from employment given in foundry work, etc.
The specialty is dental and barbers' chairs, and besides all the cities and prin-
cipal towns in the United States the goods are shipped regularly to England,
Ireland, Scotland, France, Germany, Austria, Australia, New South Wales,
West Indies and South America. The works are located on North Water
636 History of the City of Rochester.
street, in building owned by W. Archer, who is the builder and owner of three
of the wholesale clothing buildings on North St. Paul street.
Another example of rapid business progress is the career of J. C. Light-
house. He commenced the manufacture of horse-collars on Exchange street,
and a few years ago bought and added to the building on State street now
occupied by him, and also the tannery of the late Henry Lampert on Ply-
mouth avenue ; capacity 65,000 sides of leather annually and employment forty
hands. In the winter of 1880-81 he received the contract for manufacturing
all the leather mail bags used by the United States post-office department.
This building is 305 feet in length, one-half five, and the remaining half four,
stories in height; the business calls for the labor of 125 hands aside from those
at the tannery, producing $500,000 worth of goods annually. The tannery
and outbuildings cover two acres of ground, and are equipped with all the
modern machinery. The capital invested is upward of $180,000. The man-
ufacturing specialties are horse-collars, flag collars, and "Maud S. halters"
which are jobbed to all parts of America.
In November, 185 1, David Kendall and George Taylor, under the firm of
Kendall & Taylor, commenced the manufacture of thermometers and barom-
eters in a small way in the old Novelty Works building, corner of Hill and
Ford streets, in this city. Mr. Kendall came from New Lebanon, N. Y. ; Mr.
Taylor from New Hampshire. Kendall had been engaged in the same busi-
ness at New Lebanon with his father, who was the first maker of these goods
in this country. The old firm lasted but about one year. George Taylor
succeeded in the business. Since 1871 Taylor Bros., (George and Frank
Taylor) have conducted the business in a building on Hill street, constructed
expressly for the purpose.
L. C. Tower commenced 'the manufacture about 1861, and has since con-
tinued on Exchange street. Several others have at different times manufac-
tured them in a small way and for a short time, but to xio great extent. This
industry has increased largely, particularly within the past ten years. More
thermometers are made now in a single day than were formerly turned out in
a month. They are sent almost everywhere and are exported quite largely.
There are four other manufacturers of these goods in this country, and proba-
bly more in number and value are made in this city than in all the other facto-
ries in the United States. The work was formerly done by hand ; now most of
it, particularly the most exact and delicate parts, is done by machinery made
specially for the work. The reputation of Rochester thermometers and barom-
eters is of a high order, second to none made elsewhere. Mr. Tower not only
manufactures thermometers to quite a large extent but does an extensive job-
bing business in confectionery. He is a practical thermometer- maker and has
established works in other cities. One of his specialties is a chemical weather
prognosticator, accompanied by a thermometer.
Rochester Manufactures. 63 7
James Field succeeded to the peculiar business of E. C. Williams (founded
in 1843) in 1858. He is now located on Exchange street, where four floors
and the help of thirty men are required in the manufacture of awnings, tents,
sails, flags, wagon covers, banners, etc. Mr. Field is practically alone in the
business, and seems to be a necessity in Rochester, in which he located in 1831.
The trade is not only local but his goods go to other cities.
' The Eastman Dry Plate company (George Eastman and H. A. Strong) was
established in 1880. A brick building, in Vought street, near State, with
boiler-house adjacent, is used for the manufacture of gelatine dry plates for pho-
tographers. These plates facilitate the taking of pictures and have opened up
great possibilities for amateur and field photography. This house is pioneer in
this enterprise in the United States and does an enormous business, said to be
$300,000 annually. Much secresy is used in the detail of the business. Thirty
or forty hands are employed. Since the Eastman Dry Plate company was es-
tablished Reed & Inglis and Dumble & Co. have entered the same business.
The first plows in Rochester were made by a man named Jackson. He
was succeeded by Pardon D. Wright, and in 1836 Robert Perrine commenced
employment under Mr. Wright. In 1855 Perrine, with Samuel Stewart, com-
menced the manufacture of wagons and fire apparatus which eventually became
a famous business and gave employment to a large number of men. The hose
carts used by the city were manufactured by Perrine & Stewart, also the hook
and ladder trucks. Various cities and towns in the country became customers
for their productions, which have always been unexcelled. In 1884 the busi-
ness passed into the hands of Zimmer & Schwab, who now conduct it, at the
corner of Front and Mumford street (rear).
Another peculiar business is that of J. C. Schaeffer, Mill and Piatt streets,
who makes hydrostatic presses and lifts, and glass molds, being the only manu-
facturer of glass molds nearer than New York or Pittsburg.
Another peculiar industry in Rochester is the fruit- canning as carried on by
Curtice Bros., who have an extensive factory on Livingston street, built ex-
pressly for the business. They pack and can fruit and in the fruit season em-
ploy several hundred hands, manufacturing their own cans and ship the goods
to all points.
The Vacuum Oil company was projected in 1865 by H. B. Everest. The
actuary is C. M. Everest. Lubricating and illuminating oils are made and a
business of $650,000 annually is done. The works occupy eight acres of
ground on Mansion street, adjoining the Erie and B., N. Y. & P. railway tracks.
Five acres of buildings, tracks, etc., are required, besides warehouses, con-
nected by underground pipes with the works. The produce has a large local and
general sale, including the foreign countries. The company is incorporated,
capital stock nominal, being a close corporation. It has down-town branch
offices and warehouses in New York, Boston, Baltimore, Montreal, Quebec,
and Liverpool, England.
638 History of the City of Rochester.
Francis L. Hughes is the successor of Jacobs & Hughes. Aside from an
immense jobbing trade in toys, Mr. Hughes makes a specialty of manufactur-
ing baby carriages, in which he does $100,000 business annually, employing
thirty hands.
Gibbons & Stone, by a singular coincidence, occupy as a music store the
original store of Frederick Starr, the first piano-maker in Rochester. This
house makes a piano which has much more than a good local reputation and
sale. The business originated with Dwight Gibbons in 1861, and his sons, D.
C. and A. J., and Lyman L. Stone formed the present copartnership in 1864.
They have a factory in Hill street, employing about 30 hands.
The Bausch .& Lomb optical instrument company, J. J. Bausch president,
H. Lomb secretary, was organised in i860 for the manufacture of spectacles,
eye-glasses, lenses, microscopes, telescopes and other optical instruments. The
factory at Vincent bridge. North St. Paul street, was constructed especially for
the business and is equipped with some very fine machinery. A depot is
maintained in New York city, to which the manufactured goods are sent for
the trade. About 200 men are employed.
Albrecht Vogt is a manufacturer of trimmings in a building on North St.
Paul street built by him expressly for the business, which was established in
1874. The specialty is exclusively fine silk trimmings, fringes, tassels, cord-
ings, chenille, etc. He has expensive machinery, looms; etc;, and employs
about 50 skilled operatives. There are few such establishments in this country
— in fact all of them could be counted on the fingers' ends — and his goods
are sent to all the fashion centers in America.
James Laney & Co. are extensive manufacturers of tin and peddlers' ware,
in a five-story building running through from Elm to Lancaster streets. They
are heavy purchasers and shippers of rags and junk and large jobbers in paper.
From thirty to forty peddlers obtain their supplies and sell their truck to
Laney & Co. Employment over 100 hands. Levi Hey, who has a building
on State street, opposite Factory street, does about a quarter of a million dol-
lars worth annually in rags and peddlers' goods, employing about 50 hands.
James H. Wickes, car superintendent of the Merchants' Dispatch compan)',
came to Rochester nearly three years ago, for the purpose of having the office
more centrally located and establishing shops for light repair of cars and for
their refrigerators under his patent. A shop 250 feet long has recently been
erected here for the painting of the cars. The success of the refrigerator cars,
and the fact of their being adopted by the Merchants' Dispatch as the best of
the kind in the country, suggested the idea of using the same principle for
houses and other similar purposes, so that a company was formed last year
with that idea, the officers being as follows : President, Judge William Rum-
sey ; vice-president, James W. Whitney ; treasurer, H. H. Craig ; secretary,
E. M. Upton ; executive committee — J. H. Wickes, Ira L. Otis, H. H. Craig.
Rochester Manufactures. 639
The company has already met with great success, their refrigerators being built
into many private houses, hotels and markets.
Thomas Swift & Sons (H. R. and T. R.) are manufacturers of gold leaf, on
Exchange street, where several skilled workmen are employed in reducing
chemically pure gold leaf, for gilders' uses. The gold is melted into ingots,
rolled and cut into thin pieces about an inch square, when the beating com-
mences, first upon the gold then upon skins enfolding the sheets. These are
beaten until they become transparent, when they are cut into squares and
booked. A pound of gold, value $250, yields about 29,000 leaves.
The Standard Sewer-pipe company was organised in January, 1883, with a
capital of $75,000, which, later in the year, was increased to $100,000. The
officers are : President, Mathias Kondolf ; vice-president and superintendent,
R. W. Lyle ; secretary, F. N. Kondolf; treasurer, Isaac Wile. The office is
on Caledonia avenue, adjoining the canal, and the works" are on Rowe street,
intersected by the New York Central railroad and the Erie canal ; they cost
about $50,000, cover some ten acres and have half a mile of Central track in
the yards ; the capacity is $275,000, with orders for all the pipe that can be
made ; about 60 hands are employed. The pipe is made of clay — of which
the company owns a large bed — thoroughly vitrified and salt-glazed.
The Rochester Sewer-pipe company (formerly Otis & Gorsline) has exten-
sive works on Oak street, with still larger capacity than the Standard ; but the
inability to obtain further information makes it impossible to say any more.
Woodbury, Morse & Co. for twelve years have been engaged in the manu-
facture of colors and zincs in Race street, rear of their store on East Main street.
The market is local and extends to Western and Central New York and Penn-
sylvania, together with some western trade. The business was founded in 1843
by M. F. Reynolds. About thirty years ago the Weddle Bros, were paint man-
ufacturers in Rochester.
For a number of years Rochester show-cases have had a reputation as stand-
ard as Rochester flour, Rochester flowers, Rochester shoes or Rochester cloth-
ing. The Stein show-case was known throughout the country, and, compared
with other makes, was possessed of recognised superiority. Farley & Hofman
(Joseph Farley, sr., & John Hofman), who now. manufacture these cases, make
a specialty of every known variety of show-cases and concomitant store fixtures.
Machinery plays an important part in the production of the goods. The arms
which form the rounded frames of show cases are made from straight-grained
wood, which, when passed through a molding machine, are placed in a tank
into which is let very hot moist steam. When thoroughly steamed, and while
as pliable as wire, they are fastened to wood forms and passed to the dry kilns
below and thoroughly dried. Even re-steaming will not make the wood resume
its original shape unless the ends are released from the patent joint which unites
the parts. This joint has a fixed screw which passes through the conjoined
640 History of the City of Rochester.
parts. On the reverse side is a sliding clutch with teeth, which are firmly em-
bedded by turning the nuts that cap it. In no case have these connections
ever come apart; Cases may be shivered to atoms but these joints hold. In
the cheaper grades they are made of cast iron but usually are of bell-metal,
brought to a high polish by emery, oil and buffing, with a special substance of
the nature of rouge^
The whip business was established as early as 1837 by Myron and William
Strong, on Main street. Strong, Woodbury & Co. (H. A. Strong and E. F.
Woodbury) are extensive manufacturers of whips, corner Allen and Washing-
ton streets in a large building constructed es^ressly for the business and equipped
with all the latest machinery. They employ 90 hands, do nearly $200,000
worth of business annually, and, besides shipping products to all the states in
the Union, have trade in England, Australia and the West Indies.
Clark & Co. (William H. Jones) are extensive manufacturers of whips, on
Exchange street, near the canal.
Yawman & Erbe are manufacturers of optical and surveying instruments,
employing about 40 operatives, some of whom are, from the fine nature of the
work, great artisans. The house is located on St. Paul street.
The Johnston Graphite lubricating axle oil company have works in East
Rochester ; organised as a stock company, capital stock $250,000, Clark John-
ston president, Theodore Lane secretary, Wm. S. Thompson superintendent.
The first dyeing in Rochester was done by Francis Peacock in 1823, who
established on State street, afterward (1828) moving to the corner of Mill and
Piatt streets, continuing until 1842, when he died. Mr. Peacock's death was
the first in the city from the ranks of the Odd Fellows. Daniel Leary, who
commenced in 1837, succeeded to the business in 1842 and now conducts it to
conform to the progress of the times, employing more than a score of hands.
Mr. Leary's business is one that has felt the improved mail and express facili-
ties to a large degree, sending his goods, up to four pounds, by mail to all the
states.
Hulbert H. Warner came to Rochester in 1 870 and commenced the sale of
safes. In twelve years he sold ten million dollars' worth. In 1879 he en-
gaged in the medicine business, and before it became self-sustaining he expended
$1,500,000 in advertising. He now advertises in 9,000 papers, at an annual
expense of nearly half a million dollars. He is a customer for internal revenue
stamps at the rate of $150,000 annually. For certain months in the year his
postal expenses are $800 daily. In 1 883 he built the eight-story iron and fire-
proof building corner of St Paul and Pleasant streets at a cost of nearly half a
million dollars. The system and labor-saving devices in the business are akin
to the wonderful — especially the advertising department, at the head of which
is H. L. Ensign. In 1884 he disposed of the safe business to Mosler, Bowen
& Co., whose headquarters are in the Warner building. He is the founder of
Rochester Manufactures. 641
the Warner observatory and patron of Dr. Swift, a local astronomer of world-
wide repute.
The Rochester cotton mill was built bySeth C. Jones in 1845-46, who con-
ducted it personally a short time, afterward forming a stock company known
as "The Jones Cotton Mill." In 1853 it was leased by John Vickery and
afterward purchased by him and run to 1863, when it was bought by Thomas
Garner. It is now conducted by the Garner estate. Garner & Co. are the
largest manufacturers of print cloths in the world, and the world is their
market. This mill has 10,000 spindles and runs without cessation except on
Sundays.
The Stein manufacturing company is the pioneer in manufacturing cloth-
covered burial caskets to sell to the trade ; has branch houses in New York,
Boston, Chicago and St. Louis. The business amounts to a half a million dol-
lars annually. The amount paid yearly for fabrics is $150,000. Two hundred
men are employed at the works, a very ornamental structure, corner of Court
and Exchange streets.
The Hop Bitters manufacturing company — A. T. Soule, president, Wilson
Soule, secretary — is located on Mill street, occupying four floors. The trade
is general, including England, France, Belgium, Holland, Australia and South
America. The annual advertising bills are $170,000 to $180,000. The
glass bill (for bottles) is $40,000 to $50,000 yearly, and from 70,000 to
80,000 boxes are used in the shipment of goods, which are handled by 30,000
dealers.
Patrick Joyce, on West Main street, is the inventor, patentee and manu-
facturer of a pivotal bier, which is in extensive use in churches, cathedrals, chap-
els, etc., all over the country.
Charles J. Lighthouse is a manufacturer of horse-collars in North Water
street, employing from fifteen to twenty hands.
P. H. Curtis has a factory on Favor street, for the making of artificial stone
walks, caps, sills, etc.
Haseltine, Dunlap & Co. are manufacturers of underwear, in Exchange
street. This house, among the pioneer concerns in this branch of industry,
has built up an unrivaled trade until its sales now cover every state in the
Union. The present members of the firm are all practical men at the busi-
ness, furnishing employment to 150 skilled operatives. The house manufac-
tures over 450 different styles of garments.
The Stewart building, extending from Andrews street to Central avenue,
is notable for the various industries conducted therein. As a matter of cu-
riosity we give the names and business of the occupants, with hands employed :
A. Wiseman, shoemaker tools, 10; A. Leggett, buttonhole maker, 20; G. J.
Michaels, machinist, 5 ; J. G. West, machinist, 5 ; D. M, Anthony, baker, 20 ;
Hatch flexible shoe company, loo; Hatch crimper company, 125; Chas.
642 History of the City of Rochester.
Boddy, shoe lasts, 25; Behn & Young, shoes, 75 ; Henry Kohlmetz, machinist,
I S ; Abbott & Bradstreet, ladies' underwear, 50 ; H. H. Occor, sash and
blinds, 30 ; A. Elliot, elevator gates, 20 ; Anthony. & Sauer, grinders, 3 ; J.
G. Smith & Son, faucet manufacturers, 15 ; American archery company, 50;
J. J. O'Connor, sash and blinds, 25 ; Davis, Ley & Co., furniture, 15 ; Hason
& Rattelle, shoes, 25 ; Judson & Co., fishpoles, 10; John Kelley, shoes, 150;
R. W. Hood, buttonhole maker, 15 ; E. K. Warren, brewery (storage),
nominal; Cole & Co., printers, nominal; Mr. Lipskie, clothing manufacturer,
25; L. L. Clark, baking powder, 10; Goble & Vredenberg, printers, 15 ; Ulscht
& Linn, machinists, 10; Thomas Boddy, shoe la.sts, 20; George F. Flannery,
printer, 10; H. Howe & Co., scales, 25; Rochester scale company, Forsyth
& Co., 25 ; Brettell, general machinist, 15 ; electric light company, 20; C. T.
Horton, edge tools, 10; J. J. Ziegler, . auger manufacturer 10; J. Madden,
plumbing, etc., 10; total number employed, 983.
A similar building to this, having for tenantry a dozen different manufac-
turing industries, is " the Beehive," site of the old Beach mill. The old build-
ing was destroyed by fire in 1880 and the present brick structure was put in
its place the following summer by the present owners — the Butts estate.
The extensive trunk manufacturing business of Henry Likly & Co. (founded
in 1844 by A. R. Pritchard) calls for the employment of about 125 men. A
factory built especially for the business is located on the south bank of the Erie
canal at Lyell avenue, the site of one of the early German breweries erected
by Louis Bauer. They have a store and wareroom on State street extending
through to Mill street, and their goods are sold and used in every part of the
United States and in foreign parts, as well. The trunk of the present day,
made almost exclusively by machinery, bears strong contrast to the accoutre-
ments of our fathers.
Rochester was not compelled to go abroad to secure pyrotechnics for its
semi-centennial celebration. They were furnished by James Palmer's Sons,
who are the leading manufacturers in the world and whose peculiar wares are
shipped to the most remote cities of the continent. The works are on New
Main street and were founded in 1840 by James Palmer.
Peter Pitkin is a large operator in cut stone, marble work, monuments, etc.,
and occupies the building on West Main street formerly used by the Sill stove
foundry. The upper part of the building is devoted to the manufacture of the
Arnold steam cooker, a culinary utensil. Whitmore, Rauber & Vicenus, on
South St. Paul street, are also large operators in cut stone, for flagging, sills,
street curbs, etc., besides being extensive contractors of public works. The
same may be said of McConnell & Jones, Exchange and Spring streets.
The Flour City soap company has for officers : J. S. Walters, president ;
D. Walters, vice-president and secretary; N. B. Randall, treasurer; capital,
$30,000 ; location, Front street ; specialty, laundry soaps, in which the Palmer
Rochester Manufactures.. 643
patent saponifier is used, super-heated steam retaining the glycerine ; output,
two tons daily. The early soap and candle men in Rochester were Moses
Dyer, Jacob Anderson, John and William Mcintosh and the Moulsons, the last
being still in business here. W. & J. Aikenhead are the successors of the
Mclntoshes and do a large business in Front street. Henry Goetzman & Son
are also wholesale manufacturers.
A comparatively new industry in Rochester, introduced within the past five
or six years, is that of machine carpet-beating and cleaning. There are several
institutions of the kind, including the American Chemical Co., J. D. Cox,
Theodore Batterson and Charles Bailey. An enterprising Rochester inventor
is now experimenting on a machine to clean and beat carpets without taking
them off the floor.
The Rochester paper company at the lower falls manufactures nine tons
daily of print paper, made principally of poplar wood ground into pulp in the
Fickett machine. The inventor, Albert Fickett, is a lifelong resident inventor.
In all probability the first book-binder in the city was Everard Peck, who
carried on the book-bindery business in connection with other enterprises some
time before 1825. The first firm, however, to make a specialty of binding
books was that of C. & M. Morse, who began, business at an early date. Ac-
cording to Henry O'Rielly, there were in this city in 1838 three book-binders,
named Samuel Drake, David Hoyt, William Ailing. Some time after this the
business of Morse Bros, passed into the hands of Owen Morris, who controlled
it until 1853, when it came into the possession of John C. Moore, who still
continues to operate it. There are in the city this year eight book-binders :
John C. Moore, E. R. Andrews, T. Benford, Creed & Wilson, Robert G.
Newbegin, C. P. De Neve, Kohler & Parry, W. T. Kunhert.
Alfred Wright, Clifton street, C. B. Woodworth & Sons, West Main street,
and Adolph Spiehler are manufacturing perfumers. The first manufactures a
very high grade of goods, which have a London and Paris reputation. Wood-
worth & Sons have quite an extensive trade and employ about 125 hands.
Spiehler is a practical maker and enjoys a fine trade and reputation.
In contradistinction to this business the Rochester blood and bone phos-
phate company (Keeler & Ellison) manufacture annually about $75,000 worth
of fertilisers and bone black, at the junction of the Erie canal and eastern wide-
water, which are sold in all agricultural sections.
Sidney Church conducts a ropewalk on West avenue, established fifty-four
years ago.
SCRAPS OF HISTORY TOUCHING UPON THE MANUFACTURING INTERESTS.
In the year 1830 Lewis Selye commenced the manufacture of scythes oh
what was then known as the " trip-hammer lot," on the corner of State and
Furnace streets. Subjecting his scythes to the "sledge-hammer" test, they
644 History of the City of Rochester.
soon won their way to public favor, by reason of their form, strength and dura-
biHty, among the farmers of the western country. Shortly after he added to
his business the manufacture of fire engines and fire hose. In 1837 his engines
were sold as far as the city of Cleveland on the west, and Albany on the east,
when the factory was destroyed by fire. Rebuilding his factory on the site of
the present Selye and Judson buildings, on the corner of Mill and Furnace
streets, he soon recuperated his fallen fortunes and continued in the manufac-
ture of fire engines until 1849, when his factories were again destroyed by fire.
Henry O'Rielly makes the following allusion to the Selye fire engine works: —
" While Rochester . . . engines and hydraulions can be furnished from her
workshops to protect half the towns in the land against the ravages of the devouring ele-
ments, Selye's fire engine factory is not only supplying many of the towns even into the
'far West,' but is actually making headway eastward against the competition of older
establishments in the Atlantic cities. Several of the Rochester engines have been bought
in Schenectady. The corporation having previously tested the excellence of the Selye
machines, formally resolved that they were ' best adapted to the wants of the city on ac-
count of the facility with which they threw water and the perfect ease with which thev
are kept in repair so that in every emergency they can be relied upon with entire confi-
dence ' — a compliment equally handsome and well-deserved to the ingenuity and enter-
prise of our townsman Lewis Selye, who has established this and other branches of busi-
ness, through the force of his own skill and perseverance unaided by any stock companies.
This fire engine factory was recently completed and an order for ten of the best quality of
engines for the United States government, to be distributed among the fortifications on
the Atlantic and westward. Those who reflect on the value of such a manufacture to the
city of Rochester will see that it contributes more to the solid wealth of a place than
would several wholesale stores, owing to the greatly increased value placed by labor on
raw material and the consequent ability to sustain a large portion of an industrious pop-
ulation without the use of so much capital."
Ailing & Cory, paper dealers,, celebrated at the beginning of the year the
fiftieth year of the existence of the house by entering the new building erected
for them on Exchange street, near the canal. William Ailing, the senior mem-
ber of the firm, first entered the employ of Marshall & Dean, Quaker booksell-
ers, in 1 83 1, at the old stand on Exchange street. Three years later he be-
came a proprietor, the firm name being William Ailing & Co., David Hoyt and
Samuel D. Porter being partners. After three years the last two retired, and
Mr. Ailing conducted the business alone. In 1859 he took in two of his clerks
as partners — David Cory and William S. Ailing. The latter died in 1872,
and about two years ago his youngest son, Joseph T. Ailing, was made a mem-
ber of the firm.
Of the 300 inmates of the Monroe county penitentiary (250 male and 50
female) 200 are employed. Of this number 1 50 are employed on shoe work
for Huiscamp Manufacturing Co.
The commercial rating of the combined manufacturing concerns in Roch-
ester is a little over $20,000,000.
Rochester Manufactures. 645
George Oliver has since 1855 been employed in the manufacture of mill
machinery. He is located at Mill and Brown streets and conducts a large bus-
iness in the specialty of bran-dusters and grain separators, which are, through
their tried excellence.nn demand with millers in all parts of the country.
In 1844 Thomas Snook succeeded to the fire engine business established
in 1830 by Mr. Selye. Mr. Snook enjoyed the distinction of being the first
locomotive engineer to run a night train in America. He was the inventor and
patentee of the locomotive headlight of the present day, excepting such im-
provement and simplification as have been made. He was the founder of the
extensive business now conducted by the Kelly locomotive lampworks, and in
his day was a marked character in Rochester, a mechanic of great genius, a
good citizen, a warm, whole-souled friend and capable of the keenest repartee
in a discussion. He died in 1867.
Junius Judson manufactured trip-hammers in 1837, ^"^^ in 1849 Bernard
and Daniel Hughes, auger-makers, were engaged in the manufacture of atmos-
pheric trip-hammers, of which B. Hughes was the inventor and patentee. Daniel
Hughes was the inventor of a screw paddle-wheel which afterward came into
extensive use.
In 1827 there were in Rochester 124 shoemakers, 20 hatters, "ji coopers,
23 clothiers, 20 millers, 21 mill-wrights, 24 wheelwrights, .304 carpenters and
joiners, 17 coachmakers, 6"] blacksmiths, 14 gunsmiths, 10 chairmakers, 95
masons, 25 cabinet-makers, 21 saddlers, 8 tallow-chandlers, 23 tinners, 29 tan-
ners, 14 bakers, 16 goldsmiths, 8 book-binders, 31 printers. In 1827 Alcott &
Watts, Exchange street, next to Buffalo street " kept on hand boat stoves, lamp
oil and boat lamps and also manufactured all kinds of copper, tin, and sheet iron
wares ; also, all kinds of castings done at their furnace, including castings, spin-
dles, screws and other irons necessary to supply complete at very short notice
either grist-mills or saw-mills." S. S. Alcott conducted a cotton-mill, employ-
ing eighty youth and children who were liberally offered the advantages of a
school five evenings a week at the expense of the employers. Following is a
list of miscellaneous manufactories and industries (1827): 3 furnaces, 2 trip ham-
mers, 2 breweries, 2 distilleries, 3 tanneries, i oil mill, 9 saw-mills, i nail, 2
stone and earthenware factories, 3 scythe and edge tool factories, 5 tin and
sheet iron factories, 3 soap and candle factories, 2 morocco factories, i comb-
maker, I machine maker, 3 coppersmiths' shops, 3 gunsmiths' shops, 2 plough-
makers' shops, 2 iron- turners' shops, 4 diairmakcrs' shops, S cabinet-makers'
shops, 4 hatters' shops, l paper mill, 3 book-binderies, 6 printing offices 4 sad-
dlers' shops, 14 cooper shops, 17 blacksmith shops, i sash factory, i shoe last
shop, I boat shop and i pail and tub factory. The four last- mentioned are
spoken of by the historian of that day as "beautiful specimens of the ingenuity
and mechanical talents of our countrymen, both lucrative and creditable to the
inventors;" 25,000 pails were produced the past season (1826). March 1st Har-
646 History of the City of Rochester.
vey Raymond was an advertising shoemaker on the west side of Carroll (State)
street, one door south of E. Peck's book-store ; John H. Thompson was a man-
ufacturer and wholesale and retail dealer in gilt and mahogany- framed looking-
glasses. Elihu Marshall was a plain and ornamental printer and book-binder,
and the quality both of the printing and binding still in existence verifies all
that Mr. Marshall claimed in 1827. In 1834 Edward & Henry Lyon were
woolen manufacturers ; Louis Merrill was a manufacturer of leather, on Main
street near the bridge ; Joseph Medbery was a gunsmith ; Marcus Morse was a
book-binder; Samuel W. Lee was a silversmith; W. E. Lathrop was a harness
and trunk-nlaker; Kempshall & Bush (J. F.) were mill-furnishers on State street,
iron founders on Mill street and burr millstone-makers on Washington; Seth C.
Jones was a boat-builder and merchant ; Barton & Babcock were cutlers and
blacksmiths at Buffalo street, river bridge ; Moses N. Barnard was a millwright ;
David Bates was a merchant miller on Water street; Beardslee & Austin were
wool-carders and cloth-dressers ; Elisha Bryan was a builder of fanning mills ;
Henry Burnett made a specialty of dressing deer skins ; James Cole was a mill-
wright; Ambrose Cram was a boat-builder at Oak street ; Olmstead Cutting was
a coach-maker in Pindell alley; Nason Danforth was a last-maker; Wm. Brew-
ster had a cabinet shop on State street; Reuben Doolittle was furnaceman; Sam-
uel Drake was a book-binder on Exchange street ; Converse Dyer was a chand-
ler on Mason (Front) street ; Horace Dyer, Amon Bronson and G. A. HoUis-
ter werelumber dealers on Exchange street; Harvey C. Fenn was a cabinet-
maker; Smith Gardner was a manufacturer of threshing machines; Abijah Gould
was a coach-maker at Sear's cabinet shop on Main street; Daniel and Ja-
cob Graves were leather makers ; Griffith Bros. & Son were not only wholesale
grocers but were soap and candle-makers at the circus ground on South
Exchange street; J. Harvey & Co. were silk, cotton and woolen dyers on
South St. Paul street. At the close of 1833 statistics show: —
Cash invested in mills and flouring machinery was, $ 290,000
Amount paid for wheat, barrels, etc.,.. 1,413,000
Barrels of flour manufactured, 300,000
IjWESTMKNTS. amount I'ROniJCT.
Cotton and woolen manufacturers, $157,000 $197,000
Leather and skins, 31,000 152,000
Boat-building,!.. 25,500 80,400
Iron castings,, tools, guns and rifles,. 27,250 80,000
Soap and candles, 9>393 47j389
Other manufacturers in wood, stone, iron, etc., 69,000 215,450
In 1845 Henry Wray advertised a lock manufactory and brass foundry on
State street. Subsequently he entered the locomotive headlight business, con-
tinuing the lock and brass foundry business, which is still conducted by Wray
& Elwood. In the same year Joel P. Milliner, corner of Oak and Smith streets.
Biographical. , 647
and Z. H. Benjamin, Ohio basin, were advertising boat-builders in the same
year {1845); Daniel Stocking advertised wooden purhps, corner of Monroe
and Alexander streets, and Duryee & Forsyth were extensive manufacturers
of scales on Buffalo Street in rear of Barton &,Belden's edge tool factory.
In 1847 Isaac Doolittle advertised that he was "the proprietor and agent
for divers states and territories of Crossett's patent stave machine at Lyell
street bridge, which machine would cut 1,000 staves an hour from any timber
that is sawed tolerably straight grained and free from knots."
In 1849 Frederick Starr advertised as a manufacturer of furniture at 49
Main street (up stairs) ; Wm. Jewell was an advertiser of saddles, bridles and
military trappings ; James Cunningham advertised an "omnibus and coach fac-
tory at Canal street, near the corner of Buffalo; " S. Richardson was a ma-
chinist at number i Buffalo street, and made engine and hand lathes of all
descriptions; Alfred Judson was a brass founder and turner on State street and
a manufacturer of school-house, factory and town bells; A. M. Badger was a
manufacturer of refrigerators on Hill street.
CHAPTER LIV.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
FREEMAN CLARKE was bom in Troy, N. Y.,on the 22d day of March, 1809.
His father was Isaac Clarke, and his mother Elizabeth Brown, both of Rensselaer
county, N. Y. Having pursued the usual school course in his native place until he was
fifteen years old, the young man began business for himself as a grocer and dealer in
country produce. In the year 1827, when only eighteen years of age he removed to Al-
bion, Orleans Co., N. ¥., taking with him a large stock of goods, bought mostly on
credit, where he engaged in mercantile business, the manufacture of flour and other sim-
ilar enterprises, which were generally successful. In the year 1837 he was elected cashier
of the Bank of Orleans, which was the first public step in a long career in which his
extraordinary financial capacity was demonstrated to an unusual degree. This bank was
incorporated under the safety fund system of the state of New York, and Mr. Clarke had
held the office of director in it, before being called to the position of cashier.'
After eight years of faithful and successful service as cashier at Albion, Mr. Clarke
removed to Rochester, where he subsequently became largely interested in banking and
organising railroad, telegraph and other large corporations. He organised a bank for him-
self (the Rochester bank) under the general banking law of the state of New York, which
was a successful institution. He was soon chosen one of the trustees and treasurer of the
Monroe county savings bank, and in 1857, during the panic of that year, he organised
and became president of the Monroe County bank, which office he held until he was ap-
pointed comptroller of the currency. This bank was subsequently changed to a national
648 ■ History of the City ok Rochester.
bank and in Mr. Clarke's honor was called the Clarke National bank. In these posi-
tions Mr. Clarke acquired at least a local reputation as a financier of more than ordinary
capacity.
With the inception and growth of the railroad system of this state, Mr. Clarke be-
came early and prominently identified. He was one of the first directors and the treas-
urer of the Lockport & Niagara Falls road, and when that corporation was compelled
to sell out its stock and franchises they were bought almost entire by Mr. Clarke and
Mr. Washington Hunt. In spite of general opposition, snfficient interest in this under-
taking was developed by the two owners, and stock subscriptions obtained to secure the
building of the road and its subsequent extension to Syracuse. Mr. Clarke was also di-
rector and treasurer of the organisation for the latter named purpose. He was president
from the first organisation of the Genesee Valley railroad company, and its treasurer, and
subsequently became largely interested in other railroad enterprises in different parts of
the country.
Mr. Clarke was one of the very first to interest himself in the promotion of the tele-
graph interests of the country. He took stock in both the House Printing Telegraph
company, and the Magnetic Telegraph company, using the Morse patents, both of which
organisations were afterward consoHdated to form the nucleus of the great Western Un-
ion company. While these different offices and positions of trust and responsibility are
not all to which Mr. Clarke was called before he had reached middle life, they will .serve
to indicate the degree of confidence felt in his financial and executive capacity by his
fellow-citizens and business associates.
Mr. Clarke has always, felt a commendable degree of interest in politics, not as an
avenue through which to attain position or preferment, but as a means of securing good
and efficient government. Up to the year 1837 he was identified with the Democratic
party, and subsequently with the Whig and the Republican parties. He was vice-pres-
ident of the Whig state convention in 1850, being then but forty-one years old; it was
in this convention that his friend, Washington Hunt, was nominated for governor. The
president, Hon. Francis Granger, with a portion of the delegates, seceded to organise the
Silver Gray and Know-Nothing parties, and Mr. Clarke was called to act as president.
In 1852 he was a delegate to the Whig national convention, which nominated General
Scott for the presidency. He was vice-president of the first Republican state conven-
tion of the state of New York, in which Myron H. Clark was nominated for governor
and Henry J. Raymond for lieutenant-governor. In 1856 he was chosen presidential
elector on the Fremont and Dayton ticket. In 1862, at the most critical period of the
nation's history, he was elected a representative from New York to the thirty-eighth
Congress, declining a reelection at the expiration of his term, to accept the appointment
in 1865, of comptroller of the currency. It was in this imf)ortant office, when the finan-
cial affairs of the country were much distracted and the credit of the government was at
its lowest ebb, that Mr. Clarke's innate financial ability and tact were recognised by his
official associates and fully demonstrated by the important acts that followed, for which
he was principally responsible. It was during his administration that the national cur-
rency act was passed, which taxed and legislated the old state banks out of existence,
and compelled all banking institutions to invest heavily in government bonds for deposit
as security against their issue of bills, thus creating a demand for the bonds and reestab-
lishing the credit of the government on a firmer basis. The importance of this measure
PATRICK COX,
Freeman Clarke. — Patrick Cox. 649
at that time can scarcely be over-estimated, and Mr. Clarke's instrumentality in its con-
smnraation was freely acknowledged by Secretary of the Treasury Chase and other mem-
bers of the cabinet.
Mr. Clarke resigned the oflice of comptroller of the currency and was in 1867
elected a member of the New York state constitutional convention, of which he was
one of the leading members. In 1870 he was reelected a representative from New
York to the forty-second Congress, in which he served on the committee on appropri-
ations, and was again reeelected in 1872 to the forty-third Congress, serving on the
committee on foreign affairs.
If anything further is needed in evidence of the fact that Mr. Clarke might have
attained almost any political preferment to which his ambition was directed, it is sup-
plied in the statement that during the impeachment trial of Andrew Johnson, and when
it was generally believed he would be impeached, arrangements were quietly made by
which, in that event, a new cabinet could be organised without delay. For the office
of secretary of the treasury Mr. Clarke's name was brought forward, first by Thomas
W. Olcott, the eminent financier, in a letter addressed to Edwin D. Morgan and Roscoe
Conkling, strongly recommending Mr. Clarke for the position. This letter was endorsed
by bankers and financial men of New York city representing more than four hundred
millions of dollars. After the failure of the impeachment proceedings, this letter was
returned by Governor Morgan to Mr. Clarke and is now in his possession.
Although a large portion of his life has been passed outside of his adopted city, Mr.
Clarke has been honored by his fellow-citizens at home, though often feeling compelled
to decline honorable distinction. He acted as one of the commissioners appointed by
the city to supervise the elevation of the New York Central railroad tracks through the
city, a work demanding qualifications of a high order on the part of the commission.
He is now a trustee of the Rochester university, was formerly a member of the First
Presbyterian church and now of St. Peters' church, in both of which he held office.
Personally, Mr. Clarke is a gentleman of dignified, yet courteous demeanor ; easy
of approach by the humblest ; prompt and terse in speech ; an excellent judge of men
and a warm and true friend to those to whom he becomes attached. What is greater
than all the rest, in his long private and public career, much of the time being custodian
of vast interests, financial and otherwise, he has not only been uniformly successful, but
has won a reputation extending far beyond the boundaries of the state for unusual
capacity and unquestioned integrity.
In 1833 Mr. Clarke was married to Miss Henrietta J. Ward, the youngest daughter
of Dr. Levi Ward. They have had ten children, seven of whom are now living. Mr.
Clarke occupies one of the most attractive places of residence in the city of Rochester,
with ample grounds and beautiful surroundings ; it is situated on Alexander street.
PATRICK COX is the second .son of Dennis and Mary Cox and was born in the
county town Longford, Ireland, January ist, 1842. When eight years of age he
was brought to Monroe county by his parents, together with his two brothers and four
sisters, and the family located in Rochester. Patrick attended the number 9 public
school, were he made good progress in his studies ; he left school provided with the
solid foundation of a good practical business education. He then served an apprentice-
6so History of the City of Rochester.
ship to the shoeniaking trade and for several years worked on the bench, proving him-
self proficient in the business.
In 1862 when the manufacture of shoes by "teams" was adopted, he was employed
by L. & H. Churchill and given the foremanship of one of their "teams," being then
dnly twenty years of age. Two years later he removed to New York city and there
began manufacturing shoes on his own account and meeting with fair success until 187 1,
when the labor troubles caused so many manufacturers to leave the metropolis. In that
year he returned to Rochester and opened a factory on North Water street a few doors
from his present location. He continued in business alone until 1876, when he took in
with him his brother Joseph, the firm being then P. Cox & Brother, and remaining thus
until January ist, 1883. At that time Joseph retired from the firm and a stock com-
pany was formed under the name of the P. Cox Shoe Manufacturing company, with
Patrick Cox as president.
By constant adherence to principles of integrity in the make-up of their goods and
their remarkable energy and excellent business capacity, the firm has steadily increased
its product, until they turn out in fine shoes three-quarters of a million dollars annually
and give employment to four hundred and fifty hands. Their goods are to be found in
every city and state in the Union and their trade mark is everywhere acknowledged to
be a guarantee of excellence of quality. The firm is one of the foremost of the shoe
manufacturing interest in Rochester.
Mr. Cox is president of the Rochester & Charlotte turnpike road company and also
a director of the Merchants' bank. He was married in 1874 to Gertrude Gallery and
they have had five children, four of whom are living. He has recently purchased what
is known as the Hooker residence on East Avenue, with about two acres of nursery
grounds attached, where he will make his future home.
CHESTER DEWEY,' D. D., LL. D., at the time of his death emeritus professor in
the University of Rochester, was in two respects a representative man. He was not
only a typical teacher, but he also held a distinguished position among the few who at
an early day cultivated and organised the study of natural science in America.
Dr. Dewey was born in Sheffield, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, October 25th, 1784.
His father was a man of strong character and clear head, who seems to have had the will
and the capacity to give his son a most symmetrical training, both moral and intellectual.
In this work the father was aided by a wife of singular piety, cheerfulness and moral
excellence. It was doubtless to these early formative influences that Dr. Dewey owed
much of that moral completeness which adorned the whole of his subsequent life. After
a youth spent in alternate labor on the farm and study in the common school, he fitted
himself to enter the college at Williamstown, Massachusetts, in his eighteenth year. He
graduated in 1806, taking rank as a scholar among the first in his class. During his resi-
dence in college he became the subject of those deep religious convictions, by which he
ever after ordered his entire life. After graduation he lived and studied with Dr. Stephen
West, who was an eminent theologian of the time, and for sixty years pastor of the church
in Stockbridge, Mass. In 1807 he was licensed to preach by the Berkshire association
1 This sketch is condensed from the Smithsonian Report for 1870, for wliich ihe original was prepared
by Dr. M. B. Anderson, President of Rochester university.
Chester Dewey. 65 1
(Congregational). After teaching and preaching for a few months at West Stockbridge
and Tyringham, Mass., he was appointed a tutor in Williams college. Although he thus
entered on a new field of labor, he never really retired from the pulpit. For fifty years
he accepted frequent invitations to preach, in scores of churches in many places, and did
nearly as much work of this kind as if preaching were his only occupation, and he had
no other regular and pressing duties to perform.
After two years service as tutor he was elected (at the age of twenty-six) professor
of mathematics and natural philosophy. He held this position till 1827, a period of
seventeen years. During. this time the college was poor and struggling for life. Of
necessity, a heavy burden of labor and cesponsibility rested upon tVie officers of instruc-
tion. Among these Dr. Dewey bore a distinguished part. In times of confusion and
internal disorder, his influence over the students is said to have been most salutary and
powerful. According to the custom of the time, his department of instruction included
not only mathematics and physics, but the whole range of chemistry and the natural
sciences.
He entered upon the work of accumulating and organising the apparatus and collec-
tions requisite for the study of chemistry and natural history with great zeal and enthusi-
asm ; while he was equally earnest in giving instruction in the severer portions of the broad
department for whose cultivation in the college he was responsible. He fitted up a lab-
oratory and commenced making collections for the illustration of botany, mineralogy and
geology. This was accomplished mainly by personal labor and exchanges with those
engaged in similar pursuits in our own and other countries. These labors gave the initial
impulse to the cultivation of the natural sciences in Williams college and laid the found-
ations of its now large and valuable illustrative collections.
In 1827 Dr. Dewey resigned the chair which he had so long held. The friends of
education in Western Massachusetts had been impressed with the necessity of providing
more systematic and vigorous instruction for young men preparing for college and im-
mediate business pursuits. An opportunity for public service of this sort of more imme-
diate usefulness, as it seemed to him, than was afforded by his college chair, was found
in the establishment of a Gymnasium at Pittsfield. He removed to Pittsfield, where
from 1822 he had been engaged as professor of botany and chemistry in the Medical
college, and became principal of this institution. He remained in Pittsfield nine years,
at the same time occupying the chair of botany and Chemistry in the Medical college
there. His connection with tiiis medical school was retained after his removal to Roch-
ester, until about 1850. From 1841 he lectured for about nine years also at the Medical
school in Woodstock, Vermont. In 1836 he removed to this city, and took charge of
the collegiate institute. This institution in connection with Professor N. W. Benedict
and others, he conducted with high success for fourteen years. In 1850, at the estab-
lishment of the University of Rochester, he was elected professor of chemistry and nat-
ural history in that institution, and continued to discharge the duties of that chair for a
little more than ten years. He retired from active duty in 1861, at the ripe age of sev-
enty-six.
Dr. Dewey was always ready to aid those who were honestly working to acquire an
education. Many of his pupils who became eminent in the scientific world were glad
to attribute their success largely to the inspiration of his enthusiasm, fullness of knowl-
edge and willingnes? to teach. In his chosen profession of teacher he was an enthusiast.
6s 2 History of the City of Rochester.
His whole life was absorbed in obtaining knowledge and imparting it to others. In the
street, in the social circle, in the professor's chair, he was always the teacher. No per-
son could come within the sphere of his influence without carrying away some new fact
or thought, or being inoculated with new love for moral or natural truth. In his mind
new truths seemed to fall spontaneously into the form adapted for presentation to the
learner. He always conceived of nature and man as belonging to a common system,
related to each other in every part and designed to illustrate a common moral purpose.
This naturally led him to estimate new investigations and discoveries to be important
mainly as they served to set forth the moral dignity of man, to promote his happiness
and elevate his character. His intellectual life was a beautiful commentary on the re-
mark of Gibbon, that " It is a greater glory to science to develop and perfect mankind,
than it is to enlarge the boundaries of the known universe." He was utterly free from those
petty jealousies which so often manifest themselves among scientific men. He rejoiced
in scientific progress, to whomsoever it was due, and was always most generous in his
estimate of the achievements of others. To his mind there was no broad separation be-
tween the moral and the material order. But he was intensely averse to that false phi-
losophy which seeks unity at the expense of reducing all thought and volition to dynamics,
making no distinction between man and a crystal. To his mind, the whole scheme of
material things was ever throbbing and quivering with Divine life, benevolence and
power. This profound recognition of God in the modes in which he has revealed him-
self, rounded and completed his moral and intellectual life and made him, by way of
eminence, the good teacher.
As a man of science. Dr. Dewey belongs to a class whose abilities and public serv-
ices are liable, in our time, to be overlooked or underrrated. Reference is here made
to those men who were pioneers in the work of cultivating and popularising natural sci-
ence in our country. When Amos Eaton, Parker Cleveland, Robert Hare, Benjamin
Silliman, Edward Hitchcock and Chester Dewey began their labors, the natural sciences,
as they are now understood, had, in this country, hardly an existence. Since that time
the discoveries and investigations upon which they rest have in great part been made or.
matured.
Dr. Dewey left college in 1806. Just about this period that remarkable impulse was
given to scientific inquiry, resulting in almost simultaneous development of chemistry,
zoology, crystallography, botany and geology, which rendered the first half of the nine-
teenth century so supremely illustrious.
In connection with his labors in giving instruction in colleges, medical schools and
academies. Dr. Dewey was not unmindful of his obligations to make some additions to
the sum of scientific knowledge. He was for forty years a constant contributor to Sil-
liman's Journal. He always studied with pen in hand and was a constant writer on
scientific subjects' for the newspaper press. He became early in life an enthusiastic
student of botany and contributed very largely to the scientific knowledge of the carices.
Dr. Asa Gray, our great botanist, classes Dr. Dewey with Schweinitz and Torrey, and
speaks of his writings on caricography as "an elaborate monograph patiently prosecuted
through more than forty years." He further says: "In connection with the two botan-
ists above mentioned, he laid the foundation and insured the popularity of the study of
the sedges in this country." Unfortunately, Dr. Dewey did not write any systematic
treatise on this subject, but his numerous short articles represent the progress of his own
Chester Dewey. — Addison Gardiner. 653
observations and studies and give a history of the progress of that department of bo-
tanical science. Dr. Dewey wrote a History of the Herbaceous Plants of Massachusetts,
which was published by the state. He contributed, also, the article on carices, to Wood's
Botany. Up to the last year of his life, his mind showed the vigor and enthusiasm of
his early years, and he was constantly writing on scientific topics, mainly for reviews.
His last publications of any length were two review articles, one entitled The True
Place of Man in Zoology ; the other. An Examination of Some of the Reasonings against
the Unity of Mankind. These articles were read first before a literary association in
Rochester, of which the doctor was one of the founders. They displayed a full and in-
telligent familiarity with all the most recent discoveries and speculations bearing upon
these difficult and complicated questions. His last labors were the orderly arrangement
of his large collection of sedges, which had been for so many years accumulating on
his hands, and copying out his meteorological journal. Just before his death, while en-
gaged upon his journal, his hand became unable to hold a pen, and, calling for the aid
of his daughter, he placidly remarked that this would be his last report to the Smithson-
ian Institution. He died calmly, of old age, on the 15th of December, [867, in his
84th year. He had the control of his faculties to the last, sustained by an unfaltering
trust in a blessed life hereafter.
Dr. Dewey married Sarah Dewey of Stockbridge, Mass., in iSio. She died in
1823. Of their five children all are now dead. In 1825 he married Olivia Hart, eldest
child of Lemuel Pomeroy, of Pittsfield, Mass. Mrs. Dewey still lives, with her daugh-
ter, Mrs. William H. Perkins, in this city. The other surviving children are Chester P.
Dewey, of Brooklyn, and Mrs. Henry Fowler, and Dr. Charles A. Dewey, of Rochester.
HON. ADDISON GARDINER, formerly lieutenant-governor, and judge of the
court of Appeals, of the state of New York, was born at Rindge, New Hampshire,
Marqh 19th, 1797, and died at his home in the city of Rochester, June 5th, 1883. He was
a grandson of Isaac Gardner, of Brookline Mass., one of his majesty's justices of the
peace in the colonial times, who was killed at the first outbreak of the revolution, and
of whom the historian, Bancroft, says : "Isaac Gardner, one on whom the colony rested
many hopes, fell about a mile west of Harvard college." The patriot marched with the
Brookline minute men for Lexington, on the 19th, of April, 1775, and, meeting the re-
treating column near Watson's Corner, was instantly killed in the skirmish which ensued,
receiving no less than a dozen wounds. His son, William Gardner, born at Brookhne
in 1761, married Rebecca, a daughter of Dr. Raymond, an Englishman, and settled in
Rindge, New Hampshire. He was a man of ability and pleasing manners, and in suc-
cession occupied the principal civil and military offices. He was colonel of the regiment
of which the militia of the town was a portion; was for three years a member of the state
legislature, and was selected for many other important positions. In 1809 Colonel Gard-
ner took up his residence for a time at the city of Boston, but soon after removed to
Manlius, Onondaga county, N. Y., where he was a successful merchant and manufac-
turer; he died in 1833. His wife, a lady of superior mind and accomplishments, sur-
vived him about seven years. Colonel Gardner's sons, of whom Addison was the third
restored the original spelling of the name, in which for several generations the second
vowel had been omitted. Addison Gardiner, having studied law, commenced practice
6S4 History of the City of Rochester.
at Rochester in 1822, the same year in which the court-house was built, and the year
after Monroe was separated from Ontario and Genesee as a separate county. The vil-
lage was growing rapidly in population and importance, and he soon secured a lucrative
practice. He was Rochester's first justice of the peace." Samuel L. Selden, afterward
judge of the court of Appeals, became his partner, and Henry R. Selden, afterward lieu-
tenant-governor and judge of the court of Appeals, was a student in the law office of
Gardiner & Selden. In 1825 Mr. Gardiner was appointed district-attorney for Monroe
county, and performed the duties of the office so satisfactorily, that on the 25th of Septem-
ber, 1829, he received the appointment, from Governor Throop, of circuit judge for the
eighth circuit of the state, consisting of the counties of Allegany, Erie, Chautauqua, Mon-
roe, Genesee and Niagara. Besides holding circuits for the trial of causes, he was ex-officio
vice-chancellor of the same territory. The Anti-Masonic excitement, growing out of the
disappearance of Morgan, had now commenced, and perhaps the most important case that
came before Judge Gardiner, while on the bench of the circuit court, was that of the
people against Mather, who was tried at the Orleans circuit, within two months after his
appointment, for conspiracy in the abduction of Morgan. A multitude of questions were
raised upon the trial, which was remarkable for its length, it being made a matter of
special mention in the reports, that it occupied ten days, though, in these days of tedious
trials, the profession and the public might naturally expect that such a case would occupy
nearly as many weeks. After the acquittal of the defendant, a motion for a new trial was
made in the Supreme court. The case is to be found in the fourth volume of Wendell's
reports, page 220. The head notes, giving the disposition of the various questions raised,
occupy four pages. On many of the points it has ever been a leading case. All the
rulings of the judge were sustained by the Supreme court, and these, and other decisions,
gave him the reputation of the model circuit judge. Resigning his judicial office in Feb-
ruary, 1838, he returned to the practice of his profession at Rochester, and was recog-
nised as one of the foremost of the bar of Western New York. In November, 1844, he
was elected lieutenant-governor of the state on the Democratic ticket, with Silas Wright
for governor. Many important questions came before the Senate while he presided. It
was the period of the anti-rent disturbances, and various preventive and remedial meas-
ures were discussed. The enlargement of the canals, and other questions of internal
improvement, received attention. One of the most important bills, passed after long and
animated discussion, provided for the call of a state convention for the formation of a
new constitution. As president of the Senate, Lieutenant-Governor Gardiner was the pre-
siding officer of the court for the correction of errors, and then the court of last resort,
consisting of the president of the Senate, the senators, chancellor, and judge of the Supreme
court. Not very many cases were carried to this tribunal, litigation usually ceasing with
the decision of the Supreme court or that of the chancellor, so that most of them were
important in principle or amount. Those decided during his presidency will be found
in Denio's reports. As illustrative of his written opinions and methods of reasoning,
we select Miller v. Gable (2, Denio, 492), on charitable uses, holding that chancery,
under its general jurisdiction over trusts, will interfere, on behalf of members of a relig-
ious corporation to which a fund has been granted, to prevent it from diverting the fund
to promote the teaching of doctrines essentially variant from those designated, but not
as to lesser shades of doctrine; Mayor of New York v. Baily (2 Denio, 433), holding
that an action on the case for malfeasance will be against the corporation ; if the city be
Addison Gardiner. 655
empowered by statute to construct works, the state reserving the power to appoint com-
missioners to superintend the construction, the acceptance of the act by the city renders
it liable for injuries arising for want of skill, or neglect, in building the works. At the
close of his term of office Judge Gardiner was reelected lieutenant-governor over Ham-
ilton Fish, the Whig candidate, by 13,000 majority, although, in the political complica-
tions of the time, John Young was elected governor by the Whigs, by a majority of more
than 11,000 over Governor Wright. The lieutenant-governor resigned the position the
following year. The new constitution, which had been adopted by a majority of 130,-
000, changed the judicial system of the state, and the new court of Appeals was, as its
name implies, the court of last resort. Upon its organisation, in 1847, Judge Gardiner
was elected one of the judges, and held the office until the close of his term, December
31, 1855, when he voluntarily retired, declining a renoraination, which, in the state of
parties, was equivalent to a reelection. The other judges, elected to the court of Appeals
on its organisation, were Judges Bronson, Jewett and Ruggles, who were succeeded, be-
fore the retirement of Judge Gardiner, by Judges Foot, Denio and A. S. Johnson.
Among the judges of the Supreme court who were ex-officio members of the court of
Appeals were Judges Cady, Gridley, Wells and S. L. Selden. In this distinguished
judicial circle Judge Gardiner occupied a conspicuous position. No opinions were
quoted with more respect than his. Short and terse, they go directly to the heart of the
question. They are reported in Comstock's, Selden's and the first three volumes of
Kernan's reports. Among them are the cases of Danks v. Quackenbush (i Comstock,
129), in which he dissented, with three Others of the judges, constituting one-half of the
court, from the opinion of the four others, that the act of 1842, extending the exemption
of personal property from the sale under execution, is unconstitutional and void as to
debts contracted before its passage; Leggett z/. Perkins (2 Comstock, 267), holding that
a trust to receive and pay over the rents and profits of land was valid, under the statute
authorising a trustee to receive the same and apply them to the use of any person ; Peo-
ple V. Schuyler (4 Comstock, 173), reversing the decree of the Supreme court, and hold-
ing that if the sheriff, after the jury have found for a claimant, refuses to deliver the property,
the surety on his official bond is liable, though the creditor does not indemnify him, and,
where he requires and receives indemnity before selling and judgment is afterwards re-
covered against him for the erroneous seizure, his sureties, on payment of the judgment,
are entitled to be subrogated to the indemnity; Chautauqua Co. bank v. White (2 Sel-
den, 236), holding that an assignment by the debtor to the receiver of all his real prop-
erty leaves no residuary interest in the debtor, and reversing the decree of the Supreme
court, and affirming that of the vice-chancellor; Nicholson v. Leavitt (2 Selden, 510), re-
versing with the concurrence of all the judges, the judgment of the Superior court of the
city of New York, and holding that an assignment by insolvent debtors of their property
to trustees for the benefit of their creditors, with an authorisation to the trustees to sell
the assigned property upon credit, is fraudulent and void as against the creditors of the
assignees; Talmage v. Pell (3 Selden, 328), on the powers of banking associations, re-
versing the judgment of the Supreme court; Kundolf w. Thalheimer (2 Kernan, 593),
on the powers of county courts, reversing the judgment of the Supreme court. The in-
tellectual and moral qualities which especially characterised Judge Gardiner, as a judge,
were his directness, comprehensiveness, and vigor, and his intense devotion to the right.
With the justice of the case clearly in view, he never failed to find satisfactory reasons
656 History of the City of Rochester.
to establish it. A strongly sympathetic nature, though it never swerved him from pro-
nouncing the law as he found it, made him swift to lay his hand upon iniquity, to redress
the wrongs of the injured, and to vindicate the right. Although Judge Gardiner retired
from the court of Appeals before he had reached his sixtieth year, it was not to a life of
intellectual inactivity. As a referee he continued to lend his aid in the administration
of justice, and it may well be' doubted whether he did not, for twenty years, hear more
important causes than any judge upon the bench of the Supreme court. Judge Gardiner
was a modest, unassuming man. The path of higher political preferment was open to
him, but he never put himself forward. He was at one time spoken of for the national
presidency, and if he had had the ambition of less competent persons, he might have re-
ceived the nomination. Passing the evening of his life on his farm, and taking pleasure
in outdoor exercise, he preserved both his mental and physical vigor up to his final ill-
ness. In 1 83 1 he was united in marriage to Miss Mary Selkrigg, of Scotch descent;
their children are Charles A. and Celeste M. William Gardiner, Judge Gardiner's oldest
brother, born in 1787, resided several years in Lowell, Mass., when he removed to Texas,
where he died upon his plantation near San Antonio, about 1855. Another brother,
Charles, born 1789, who was a merchant in New Orleans, died in i860. His sister
Rebecca, born in 1791, married Oren Stone, a merchant, and the partner of Governor
Seymour's father; they removed to Watertown, where she died about 1818. Another
sister, Dorothy,' married Thomas A. Gould, a lawyer of Pittsfield, Mass., where she died
in 1857. The youngest sister, Andu Lucia, born about 1800, married Hon. Elijah
Rhoades, of Manlius; a merchant and state Senator. She now resides with an adopted
daughter in Brooklyn, New York.
JESSE W. HATCH. — Prominent among the pioneers of Rochester, and for many
years one of the leading manufacturers, is the subject of this sketch. Jesse W. Hatch
was born in Granville, Washington county, N. Y., on the 20th day of May, 1812, and
is directly descended from a family who came to this country immediately after the
Puritans in 1632. His ancestors, paternal and maternal, did honorable service for their
country in the revolutionary struggle, and his father was engaged in the war of 1812.
When he was ten years of age his parents -removed to Monroe county. Two years later
he made his first advent into Rochester, then but a small hamlet.
The young man obtained such education as was offered in those early days, attend-
ing school at least a portion of each year until he was fifteen, when he left home to learn
the tanning, currying and shoemaking trades, those three industries then being looked
upon as constituting but one trade. The firm with whom he was apprenticed was Lin-
nel & Foote, who had an establishment at Palmyra and another at Pittsford, through
both of which Mr. Hatch pursued his way with industry and success, becoming a thor-
ough master of all the details of the business.
In the spring of 1831, being then nineteen years old, he came to Rochester, where
he has ever since resided. Although the fact is neither to his credit nor his discredit,
still it is a fact that he was possessed of very limited capital when he reached the vil-
lage, the amount, to speak with precision, being just nineteen cents; but he had the
good sense to look upon his trade at its true worth. He found employment at once as
a journeyman boot-maker, in which particular branch of his trade he excelled. He
Jesse W. Hatch. 657
succeeded in pleasing his employers and gaining a reputation as a workman of unusual
ability. Two years later his ambition to advance in the world led him to embark in
business for himself, and he opened a small retail boot and shoe store on Main street.
He prospered fairly for three years, when, owing to circumstances beyond his control, he
was compelled to give up business and again go to work at his trade. This did not,
however, continue long, for he was soon again in business in the same line, which he
conducted successfully until the summer of 1842, when he formed a copartnership with
Henry Churchill, under the firm name of J. W. Hatch & Co. Three years later, Lyman
C, a brother of Henry Churchill, was admitted to the firm, the style remaining the
same. A successful business was carried on by them until 1855, when Mr. Hatch sold
his interest to his partners, and formed a copartnership under the same style, with David
McKay which continued three years. The firm of J. W. Hatch & Son was then formed
in the same line of trade (J. W. & Chas. B. Hatch). When the financial stringency of
1857-58 came, Mr. Hatch was unprepared to meet it and he saw almost his entire pos-
sessions swept away, leaving him for the second time to begin business life anew. This
he did with renewed energy, as a manufacturer, which he has continued until the presr
ent time.
It is one of Mr. Hatch's proudest triumphs that he was the pioneer in the United
States (probably in the world) in introducing the sewing-machine into the manufacture
of shoes ; he was the very first man to make it a success, and thus revolutionised the
business, doing more, perhaps, than any other one person to forward the manufacture
of foot-wear from the old and slow methods, to the present mighty industry. Mr.
Hatch is a natural mechanic, and hence it is not wonderful that his attention was at-
tracted to the Singer sewing-machine when it was first exhibited in Rochester at the
state fair of 1852. He had not long witnessed its working before he resolved to apply
it to the manufacture of shoes. He secured a machine and tried the experiment (being
then in partnership with the Messrs. Churchill); the experiment was only partially suc-
cessful, chiefly from the imperfection of the stitch and the tension of the lower thread,
as it was drawn from different points on the bobbin. Mr. Hatch was advised by the
agent of the machine to go to New Jersey, where he said two manufacturers were using
it. He did so, but found that one of the men had discontinued using the machine,
while the other was still behind Mr. Hatch in results. He returned and finally over-
came the difficulty referred to by using a larger thread on the bobbin than the one in
the needle; this plan resulted in a pronounced success and has since been adopted
wherever the sewing-machine is used for shoe-work. Other improvements and changes
were made in the machine at his suggestion, to better adapt them to shoe manufacture,
and it was not long before he had samples on exhibition at the oflSce of the Singer Sew-
ing-Machine company in New York which attracted much attention for the perfection
and beauty of the stitching. Hence Mr. Hatch is entitled to the credit of being the
real beginner in the revolution of shoe manufacturing — a revolution almost unparalleled
in any branch of business, and which has built up in Rochester, especially, one of its
largest and most important industries.
But Mr. Hatch did not stop here. In 1853, he, in company with Henry Churchill,
invented and patented the celebrated revolving die power sole-cutter, which came into
extensive use in the United States and portions of Europe. In 1871-72 he invented
and patented a machine for crimping and molding " counters '' for boots and shoes at
658 History of the City of Rochester.
one operation, a device which turns out three thousand "counters" per day and is des-
tined to supersede the old and more costly methods. This machine is now controlled
by his sons, Andrew J. and James L. Hatch, under the name of the • Hatch Patent
Crimper company ; they have already built up a large and lucrative business.
Mr. Hatch is responsible for various other improvements in shoe manufacturing, de-
signed to advance the methods, make it more profitable and improve the quality of the
product, but which could not be protected by patent and need not be further alluded to.
A later patented invention is the Hatch flexible shoe, for children, which is designed to
give ease and comfort to the wearer and especially to admit of a natural flexible action
of the growing foot. In making these shoes the insole is shortened and cut away from
the shank around the fore part of the foot, sewing through the upper and outsole only, leav-
ing the shoe perfectly flexible. There is no insole to cut away the upper and the shoe, con-
sequently, wears much longer. For the manufacture of these goods the Hatch Flexible
Shoe company was organised, Mr. Hatch and his son, Charles B. Hatch, being given
its management. The demand is large and consequently increasing as the merit of the
article becomes better known.
From 1874 to i'878, Mr. Hatch, associated with Henry G. Thompson, of Milford,
Conn., was engaged in inventing and experimenting with improvements in lasting-ma-
chines, on which he was granted several patents. These inventions showed remarkable
ingenuity in overcoming obstacles, to surmount which other inventors had expended
more than half a million dollars, and with only unsatisfactory results. Mr. Hatch made
improvements that are vital to any successful lasting-machine and have resulted, when
consolidated with other improvements, in the now perfect machine made solely by the
McKay-Copeland Lasting-Machine association, to which his patents have been trans-
ferred.
The reader of the foregoing pages need not be told that Jesse W. Hatch is entitled to a
foremost position among the shoe manufacturers of the world, while as an inventor he is
worthy of much credit. All this is given him by his friends and acquaintances in Roch-
ester and New England, where his general business standing, his unquestioned integrity,
liberal. public spirit and genial social qualities are fully appreciated.
A few words upon Mr. Hatch's military career will not be out of place here. When
he arrived in Rochester he joined the rifle company commanded by Captain Samuel
Drake, and at the second drill meeting was elected second sergeant. This company
was a part of the Eighteenth Rifle regiment, and when Horace Gay became its colonel,
vice Colonel A. W. RUey promoted to brigadier-general, Mr. Hatch was given the office
of adjutant on Colonel Gay's stafi"; this office he held until the disbandmeut of the
regiment. At the organisation of the Union Grays in 1837, chieffy through the energy
of Lansing B. Swan, brigade inspector on Gen. Riley's staff", Mr. Hatch joined the
company and is now a member of the Veteran Grays, an organisation for perpetuating
the memory of old times and which pays proper respect to those of the old company
who are called from earth.
Mr. Hatch has never been an office seeker in any sense of the word, and has often
declined proflfered positions of honor, chiefly through a lack of taste for such duties and
the demands of his own enterprises. He acted as a member of the board of education
in 1846. He has been a member of the Brick Presbyterian church for forty-two years,
one of its Sunday-school teachers for forty-one years, an elder in the church since 1859,
Jesse W. Hatch. — Charles J. Hill. 659
trustee from 1854 to 1876, and was Sunday-school superintendent one year, declining
the office to which he was reelected a second year.
Mr. Hatch was married to Harriet E. Flint, of Boston, Mass., October nth, 1832.
She died in 1867. His second wife was Mrs. Mary A. Frye, of Brockport. From the
first union eight children were born, five of whom are living. His oldest son, Jesse W.
Hatch, jr., died in 1865 ; his third son, Edwin B. B. Hatch, died in the battle of Gaines's
Mills, 1862 ; his daughter Harriet E. Hatch married Rev. A. J. F. Behrends, and died
in January, 1882 ; his daughter Adelaide married A. M. Lindsay, of the firm of Sib-
ley, Lindsay & Curr, of Rochester, and his daughter Emma lives at home. The sons
Andrew J. and James L. have been referred to and Charles B. is in business with his
father.
CHARLES J. HILL was born at Woodbury, Conn., April 13th, 1796. His father,
Jonathan Hill, was a New England farmer, born at Bethlehem, Conn., March 25th,
1769. He afterwards removed to Woodbury, where he married Sarah Judson, daughter
of Jonathan Judson, and where Charles Hill was born, and later still, about the year
1818, he with his family emigrated to "the Genesee country," and settled upon a farm
in Geneseo, on the west shore of the Geneseo lake, where they remained nearly thirty
years, removing thence to Lima, N. Y., where Jonathan Hill died, January 6th, 1849,
at the age of eighty years, his wife having also died there, April 4th, 1847, at the age
of seventy-five.
At the age of twelve Charles J. Hill was taken into the family of Noah B. Benedict,
of Woodbury, Conn., a lawyer of distinguished merit. Undoubtedly close association
with a mind cultivated, refined, and experienced as was Mr. Benedict's had a lasting and
beneficial influence upon the character of Mr. Hill. Four years were passed at a select
school, and at the age of sixteen a choice of future occupation was given him — to study
for the practice of law or to engage in trade.. The latter was chosen and the youth be-
came a clerk in a store in the neighboring village of Bethlehem, and there remained
until 1816, when his employer, ceasing to do business at that point, Mr. Hill came west-
ward to seek a new field for the activities of business life. The small settlement of
Rochester, an undrained swamp, in an almost unbroken wilderness, presented a, dis-
couraging prospect to him, and he retraced his steps as far as Utica, where he remained
for a few months, and again determined to cast his lot with the inhabitants of Rochester.
Returning there in November, 1816, he engaged as book-keeper with the firm of Bissell
& Ely, remaining with them two years. In November, 1818, in company with Andrew
V. T. Leavitt, he engaged in a general mercantile business on his own account, their
store being a few rods east of the present Reynolds arcade. The firm of Leavitt & Hill
continued until 1825, when Leavitt became a silent partner and C. J. Hill conducted
the business in his individual name for three years, and then took Lewis J. Peet as a
partner, the firm of Hill & Peet continuing until 1831.
This jjeriod of thirteen years was marked by the extension of trade to other counties.
Enjoying the respect and confidence of the community, Mr. H ill's store was a favorite
resort, and his trade became of large extent.
In 1831 Mr. Hill commenced the milling business in the stone mill which then, and
for many years thereafter, stood on South Water street, near Main. He afterwards took
66o History of the City of Rochester.
the mill adjoining on the south, in company with David Bates, and for a time the firm
of Hill & Bates continued the business there. Subsequently Mr. Hill purchased a mill
at the lower falls and continued there in his own name the manufacture of flour until
1 83 1 , a disastrous year for Rochester millers, owing to financial disturbances, most of whom
then saw their accumulations swept away, Mr. Hill among the number, although he had
at that time acquired a handsome property. For several years after that he was engaged
in other pursuits until 1845 when he again commenced the manufacture of flour, in the
mill on South Water street, now nearest to Main, being the same which he relinquished
when taking that at the lower falls. He now determined to produce a superior quality
of white winter wheat flour, which should secure and retain the confidence and patron-
agfe of consumers desiring flour of uniform excellence, at home and in eastern markets,
and the " C. J. Hill flour" soon became a favorite article with housekeepers in Roches-
ter and throughout New York and New England. On the first of January, 1850, Mr.
Hill toqk his son Charles B. into partnership, and the business was continued by C. J.
Hill & Son for twenty-six years, the partnership being dissolved February 22d, 1876,
by the retirement of Mr. Hill, who had then reached the age of eighty years, sixty-four
of which had been devoted to active business. Covering a term of nearly fifty years
the " Hill " flour was a well-known brand, and, especially, during the last thirty of that
period it was appreciated and sought after by consumers, desiring excellence and uni-
formity of quality, throughout a wide extent of country.
On the completion of the Erie canal to the east side of the Genesee river at Roch-
ester, Mr. Hill erected the first warehouse for storage and forwarding in the city, near
the site of the present weighlock, and soon engaged in a heavy business of exporting.
He built and resided in the first brick house in the city, on the present site of the resi-
dence of William Ailing, on South Fitzhugh street. He afterwards built a residence on
Plymouth avenue (then South Sophia street), where he dwelt for nearly fifty years, re-
moving thence, in 1868, to his spacious and comfortable home, corner of Prince street
and University avenue, where his last days were spent.
Mr. Hill was a trustee of Rochesterville from 1820 to 1822 ; a supervisor of the sec-
ond city election in 1835 and at other periods since ; county clerk from 1844 to 1847 ;
he was elected mayor in 1842 on the Democratic ticket; he was appointed commissioner
of deeds by Governor Bouck and the Senate in 1843, and elected president of the Pioneer
society of Western New York for one year. In 1823 he was commissioned as quarter-
master of the twenty-third division New York state militia, the law at that time requir-
ing the major-general with his staff to review at least one regiment annually. Mr. Hill
was recjuired to traverse several counties to discharge his oflicial duties. During the
same period Daniel D. Barnard was in commission. Mr. Hill was at one time president
of the Western House of Refuge. Prior to the organisation of a bank in Rochester, he
was a director in the Geneva bank and has served as a trustee in the old Rochester
savings bank. In pursuance of a legal requisition to destroy a certain class of bank
paper, he was appointed to that office by the comptroller and served in this locality. In
the early days of Rochester's history he was a prominent and active member of the vol-
unteer fire department and, at the time of his death, the last surviving member of that
organisation. In politics he was a life-long Democrat. In sympathy with Masonry, he
was a knight templar and a warm friend of the free common school system for educating
the masses. A church member since 1821, he was for twenty years an elder in the
Charles J. Hii.i.. — Schuyler Moses. 661
First Presbyterian church and subsequently an incorporator of Plymouth (Congrega-
tional) church, in which he was president of the board of trustees for a number of years,
consecutively, and until his death. He was a pioneer in establishing Sunday-schools
in this city and vicinity, often serving as superintendent, and was vice-president of the
Genesee Sunday-school union.
Mr. Hill was a remarkably industrious man and probably gave more hours per day
to the demands of his business than any other miller, in the city. He regarded public
and official life more as a duty than a pursuit, and various official positions held were
the result of acquiescence in the desire of others and were not of his own seeking. ' Had
disposition favored, there is every evidence to show that honorable position was at his
command, as well as ample capacity to do himself justice.
Mr. Hill was married at Rochester, January isth, 1823. to Salome Morgan, of
Brimfield, Mass., by Rev. Joseph Penney, D.' D., pastor of the First Presbyterian church,
a union which was destined to remain unbroken for a period of sixty years, until his
death, which occurred July 19th, 1883, at the age of eighty-seven years.
Mr. Hill possessed many of those sterling traits of character which the sons of New
England carried with them and developed in the West — germs of usefulness, honor
and success. He was reared to industrious, healthful and thrifty habits, and unswerving
business and personal integrity, and throughout his prolonged active life he realised to
the full extent in these respects the promise of his youth. His business character was
founded upon a solid and thorough basis; untiring industry, uncompromising rectitude,
a systematic and careful attention to details and courtesy of manner characterised his
entire business life. Thoroughly unselfish, he was fair and liberal in his dealings, and
those who transacted business with him generally came to be his warm personal friends.
Mr. Hill was genial and sympathetic, and quick to feel for the sorrows and misfor-
tunes of others. It was his habit to respond to the solicitation of the suffering and the
unfortunate unostentatiously and cheerfully, and, in his quiet and unobtrusive manner,
he often lightened the burdens of others and gained the good wishes and prayers of
many grateful souls, though his generosity was unrecorded in earthly annals. He had
a personal magnetism and habitual deference and consideration for others, which at-
tracted many to him, and a refined and pleasing thread of humor was woven into the
fabric of his conversation, which gave it a certain charm, while he displayed it so deli-
cately that it never wearied nor gave offense.
Mr. Hill found Rochester a small hamlet with an uncertain future before it, but,
with an unwavering trust in Providence and a firm reliance upon his own capabilities,
he cast in his lot here, with other earnest pioneers, and for sixty-seven years his life was
identified with its history; he lived to see it become a flourishing city and closed his
eyes at last upon its activities and its attractions, respected and honored by all who
knew him.
SCHUYLER MOSES. Many of the inhabitants of the town of Windsor, Conn.,
can trace their ancestry back to the small flock who, under the pastoral charge of
the Rev. Mr. Warham, left England in 1630 and after remaining a short time in Dor-
chester, near Boston, removed in the fall of 1635 and spring of 1636 to Windsor. The
first grant of land in that town, of which any record exists, was made to twenty-eight
662 History of the City of Rochester.
persons, among the names of whom appears that of John Moses, son of John Moses,
who came from England in 1632, who is supposed to have been married before he em-
igrated to America. ' The second John Moses was married to Mary Brown May 13th,
1653. His children were John, born June 15th, 1654; William, born September ist,
1656; Thomas, born January 14th, 1658; Mary, born May 13th, 1660; Sarah, born
February 2d, 1662; Margaretta, born December 2d, 1666; Timothy, born February
— , 1670 ; Martza, born March 8th, 1672; Mindwell, born December 13th, 1676.
Timothy Moses (of these children) had a son, named Timothy, jr., born in 1700; he
had a son named Elisha, born in 1738, who was the grandfather of Schuyler Moses, the
subject of this notice. Elisha had a son, Elisha, jr., born in 1761. His children were
Hannah Araarilla', born August ist, 1788, died April i6th, 1866; Elisha D., born Feb-
ruary 12th, 1790, died October 19th, 1871; Ormenta, born March 22d, 1791, died
March ist, 1825; Arden, born September 6th, 1792, died April 12th, 1842; Timothy,
born August 9th, 1794, died September 4th, 1823; Phoebe, born February 23d, 1796,
died January i8th, 1820 ; Betsey, born August 6th, 1797, died June 8th, 1857 ; Schuyler,
(the subject of this sketch), born December 31st, 1798; Marcus, born September 30th,
1800, died December 9th, 1880; Edmund, born November nth, 1801, died September
22d, 1864; Aurelia, born September 23d, 1803; Flavia, born July 25th, 1805, died July
3d, 1858.
Schuyler Moses was born in Canton, Hartford county. Conn., on the date above
given (December 31st, 1798). In 1810, when he was eleven years old, his parents re-
moved to Lenox, Madison county, N. Y., and in August, 1817, came to Rochester. He
was then in his nineteenth year and describes the place as " a little hamlet in the woods,
of perhaps six hundred inhabitants." His educational advantages were limited to the
years previous to the removal, of the family from Lenox. After his arrival in Rochester
he learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed as a journeyman, contractor, or
builder, until about 1855, when he retired frop the business, to devote his entire atten-
tion to his own real estate of which he is a large owner.
Mr. Moses has never sought public office, but his fitness for it was recognised by his
fellow-citizens as early as 1837, when he was elected alderman of the fourth ward. He
is now the only living member of that board. He was also honored with the same office
in 1851-52. He was elected supervisor in 1843, and has held all the ward offices ex-
cept constable.
Mr. Moses is among the oldest of the pioneers of Rochester, having voted in his
ward for sixty years, and has Uved on the site of his present residence on Chestnut street
fifty-nine years. He was a Democrat in politics until the beginning of the late war,
when he gave his influence to the Republican party and the preservation of the Union,
He has been a member of the Masonic order for sixty-three years and became one of
the charter members of the Valley lodge in this city in 1845. He is one of the oldest
members of the order in Western New York. Himself and one sister are the only liv-
ing members of his parent's family.
In July, 1824, Mr. Moses was married to Elsie Carpenter. Two children were born
of this union — William Schuyler Moses and Elsie A. Moses, both of whom now live in
Cahfornia. His first wife died July i6th, 1836. On the 22d of March, 1837, he was
1 This John Moses was a blacksmith and brought with him from England, in 1632, a set of tools,
which have remained in the Moses family down to the present time, a period of tsvo hundred and fifty-
two years;, the anvil bears the date of 1632. The tools are now at the homestead in Mt. Morris.
c /lu^^M^/?/^'
^ W ■'ii, /-/S.Y.M. S:;, . Aa%,t
Schuyler Moses. — Nehemiah B. Northrop. 663
married to Susan Morgan (widow), daughter of Gaius Lane, one of tiie early pioneers
of Rochester. She died on the 9th of November, 1838, without children. December
4th, 1840, he married Bertha Callender, who died May 24th, 187 1, by whom he has tvyo
children, Fred A. and Martha A. Moses, both of whom reside in Rochester.
During the long life of Mr. Moses' in Rochester he has enjoyed the confidence and
respect of all with whom he has come in contact and has earned the gratitude of many
by his kindly nature and generous deeds. In the decline of life he is enjoying the com-
petence which his industry has provided and may look back upon years well spent:
NEHEMIAH B. NORTHROP. The history of some lives, although they may have
been filled with generous deeds and made beautiful by innumerable acts for the ben-
efit of humanity, must ever remain, to a large extent, unwritten. Such is the case with
that of the subject of this notice — Nehemiah B. Northrop. While he was widely known
and respected in his life and sincerely mourned in his death by the many who were
proud to call him their friend, still his career was not a public one in any considerable
degree; his life was one of peaceful quiet, suited to his retiring nature, and hence fur-
nishes little striking material for the biographer.
Mr. Northrop was born in Trumbull, Fairfield county, Conn., September 17th, i8oi.
When he was ten years old his father removed, with a large family of children, to Perin-
ton, Monroe county. His early years were passed as were those of most others at that
period, in manual labor, alternated with attendance at the common school, where he se-
cured whatever of education was then available. About the year 1830 he removed to
and permanently located in Rochester. Years before he had accompanied a surveying
party over this region and, as he often related, jumped from log to log to avoid immersion
in the swampy depths on the site of Powers block. In this place Mr. Northrop became
engaged in the transportation and forwarding business, established the national trans-
portation line on the canal and lakes and built up a large and lucrative business.
Mr. Northrop's natural inclination to retirement prevented his seeking after public
office or distinction of any kind, but he was prevailed upon to permit the use of his name
for alderman of his ward in 1849-50 and was elected, filling the office with dignity and
sound judgment. ^
About the year 1854 he became interested in banking and was a member of the firm
of Belden, Keeler & Co. In 1865 he was elected a trustee of the Rochester savings
bank, which office he honored until his death. In his extended business career Mr.
Northrop gained a reputation for integrity and general uprightness upon which no breath-
of suspicion or reproach ever fell.' He'was for many years a consistent member of St.
Luke's church, where the influence of his daily life was potent for good.
On the loth day of January, 183 1, Mr, Northrop was married to Miss Louisa Hart-
well, of Pittsford, N. Y. She died in March, 1839, and in September, 1840, he married
Miss Elizabeth C. Langdon, of Portsmouth, N. H. Four children were born to the first
union — two sons and two daughters. Both the sons are dead, and the daughters now
reside in Rochester.
Such is a there outline of Mr. Northrop's active life ; but it conveys no knowledge
of the noble Christian character and the estimable personal attributes which gained him
a large circle of friends in the community. These are more vividly delineated by the
664 History of the City of Rochester.
pen of one of his most intimate friends, who wrote of him as follows, at the time of his
death : —
"His was not a mere negative virtue; it was the virtue of a many-sided and l)ene6cent activity.
His character was quiet but it was positive, and he was ever ready with the word, and tlie advice and
tlie act whicli the exigency required. He was warmly interested in all public objects, and his jirivate
charities were numerous and liberal. He gained the confidence and afTection of the numerous persons
whom he employed, both by his liberality in compensating them, and the unaffected and hearty interest
which he evinced in their welfare. Among the marked traits in his character was one which his wife once
happily characterised as a hospitality of mind. He threw open the doors of his mind as we do the doors
of our houses to entertain the interests of others, .many of whom h.id no special claims upon him. He
would listen patiently to the stories of the difficulties of the poor and the humble, and bring his ripe
experience and excellent judgment to bear upon the case in sound and judicious advice. Almost num-
berless are those who have thus gone from his doors with their hearts lightened and their perplexities
relieved. .But I took up my pen for no extended portraiture and chiefly to say a word in tribute to Mr.
Northrop's beautiful domestic character. It was within the sacred precincts of home and among his
chosen circle of friends that he was most advantageously known and most thoroughly loved. . . He
was tender and thoughtful as a woman of all that could add to the joy and attractiveness of home, with
all a man's capacity for realising his plans. The cordial grasp of his hand gave unmistakable welcome
to the friend that crossed his threshold and the kindly light of his eye and the benignity of his smile
seemed to pervade the domestic circle like an atmosphere. In his withdrawal from that circle a beau-
tiful light has been suddenly extinguished."
And no one who knew Mr. Northrop will say that this high praise was not all de-
served. The following resolutions were adopted by the trustees of the Rochester savings
bank on the occasion of his death : —
" Resolved, That in the death of Nehemiah B. Northrop, the trustees of this bank deplore the loss
of an active, useful and honest citizen, and an able and efficient colleague. In social and business life
he was eminently genial and honorable in his intercourse with men. As a trustee he was intelligent,
independent and faithful in the performance of every duty, and firm and decided in his opinions. His
large experience in the valuation of real estate enabled him torender services especially valuable to this
bank.
••Resolved, That we share in the sorrows which have overtaken his family and shall long cherish
his memory, endeared to us by the associations of many years."
Mr. Northrop died suddenly of apoplexy while visiting at the Mineral Springs at
Slaterville, N. Y., on the ist of October, 1878. His remains rest in the family inclosure
at Mt. Hope.
EVERARD PECK died on the 9th of February, 1854. It is deemed best to present,
instead of a continuous sketch of his life, this extract from one of the daily papers
of the city on the day after his death : —
" Mr. Peck was born in Berlin, Conn., on the 6th of November, 1 791, and was in the sixty-third
year of his age at the time of his demise, having been a resident of this city some thirty-eight years.
At the age of seventeen he went to Hartford, Conn., where he learned the book-binder's trade. Hav-
ing completed his apprenticeship, he went to Albany, N. Y., where he established himself in his occu-
pation. Not finding business promising there, he came to Rochester, bringing with him, besides the
implements of his handicraft, a small stock of books. This was in 1816. He found Rochester an in-
considerable village, numbering some three or four hundred inhabitants. Seeing, through the discom-
forts and rudeness of the settlement, indications which promised n prosperous future, he opened his
slender stock of books and tools, and set up the double business of book-selling and book-binding.
Being prosperous in business, he enlarged his facilities by opening a printing-office and commencing,
in 1818, the publication of the Rochester Telegraph, a weekly journal. He afterward erected a paper-
mill, which he operated with great success until it was burned. Mr. Peck left the book business in
1831. After three or four years, in which he was out of health — so that for recovery, he was obliged
EvERARD Peck. — Ashbel Wells Riley. 665
to spend one or two winters in Florida and Cuba — he engaged in the banking business and was connect-
ed successively with the Bank of Orleans, the Rochester City bank and the Commercial bank of Roch-
ester, being the vice-president of the last-named institution at the time of his death. Immediately on his
taking up his residence here, Mr. Peck gave his warm support to the infant charitable and religious en-
terprises of the place, and from that time to this has been the warmest friend of all such institutions.
'!"() public office he did not aspire, but labors for the iioor, the suffering and the orphan he never
shunned. The successful establishment of the University of Rochester was in a large measure owing to
his exertions in its behalf. The friends of that institution accorded to him merited praise, and they will
ever respect his memory. Up to the time of his death he was a member of its board of managers.
, He was one of the zealous promoters and founders of the Rochester Orphan asylum, which has now
become permanently established and is one of the most excellent of our public charities. Our citizens
have been accustonied to rely upon his judgment in all alfairs of moment pertaining to the common
weal, and he always exhibited a sagacity and solicitude for the welfare of the people which entitled hint
to the public confidence. He was thrice married — in 1820, to Chloe Porter, who died in 1830; in
1836, to Martha Farley, who died in 1851 ; in 1852, to Mrs. Alice Bacon Walker, who survives him. 1
For more than two years past Mr. Peck has been suffering from a pulmonary complaint, and he spent
the winter of 1852-53 on the Bermudas, but without obtaining relief from his disease. He has since
his return been secluded in the sick-room, gradually declining, until he expired, surrounded by his
wife and all'of his surviving children."
The Albany Evening Journal oi February 21st, 1854, container! an article by the
pen of 'I'hurlow Weed, then at tlie head of that paper, in which, after copying a long
biographical sketch of Mr. Peck from the New Haven Daily Palladium of a few days
before, Mr. Weed remarks : —
"This deserved tribute to the memory of 'a just man made perfect ' comes from one who knew the
deceased well. The editor of the Palladium grew up under Mr. Peck's teachings, and was long a
member of his household — a household whose memories are hallowed in many grateful hearts.
" In another paragraph the editor of the Palladium alludes to our own relations to Mr. Peck, but
in a spirit of kindness which excludes all but the following from these columns ; —
" ' Mr. Weed, of the Albany Evening Journal, began his career in the Rochester Telegraph office,
lie was a young man wholly without means when he applied for employment. We remember Mr.
Weed's application, as if it'were but yesterday. Mr. Peck at first declined his offer, but there was
something in Mr. Weed's manner that touched a sympathetic chord in Mr. Peck's bosom, and he called
him back and gavS him a post of assistant editor where he soon made the Telegraph one of the most
popular journals in Western New York.'
" The heart upon which the memory of its early benefactor is engraven will glow with gratitude
until its pulsations cease. We were, indeed, ' wholly without means,' and with a young family de-
pendent upon our labor, when, thirty-two years ago, we applied to Everard Peck for employment. He
did not really want " journeyman, but his khully nature prompted an effort in our behalf. It was
agreed that in addition to the ordinary labor, as a journeyman in the office, we should assist Mr. Peck,
who had the charge of his book-store and paper-mill, in editing the Telegraph. But our friend did
not content himself with giving employment. We enjoyed, with our family, the hospitalities of his
mansion until a humble tenement (tenements were scarce in Rochester in those days) could be rented.
The compensation agreed upon was four hundred dollars per annum. That year glided pleasantly and
]ieacefully away, teaching lessons to which memory recurs with pleasure, and in forming ties that have
linked us through after-life to dear and cherished friends. At the close of the year Mr. Peck added
one hundred dollars to our sal.iry, with expressions of confidence and regard which enhanced the value
of his gratuity. And ever after, through whatever of vicissitudes and change we have passed, that
good man's counsels and friendship have helped to smooth and cheer our pathway."
ASHBEL WELLS RILEY. Prominent among the living pioneers of the city of
Rochester, is the subject of this sketch, General A'shbel Wells Riley. He was born
in Glastenbury, Conn., on the 19th day of March, "1795, and has, therefore, now
1 Mrs. Alice B. Peck died December 2d, 1881.
666 . . History of the City of Rochester.
reached the great age of almost ninety years. While he was an infant his parents
removed to Rocky Hill, directly across the Connecticut river from the place of his birth.
There his father died while his son was still in early youth. A discharge from the rev-
olutionary army, signed by George Washington, and yet preserved, certifies that his father
faithfully served six years in the revolutionary army. The early life of the son and a
younger brother was quietly passed at Rocky Hill, devoted to the assistance of his
mother in rearing her family, and the acquirement of such education as was available in
the common schools of the neighborhood. When he had reached a proper age, although
a choice was offered hini of a college education, through the kindness of a relative, or
of entering the navy under favorable auspices, his mother deemed it best that he should
learn a trade; he accordingly learned the carpenter's trade, finishing it when he was
about eighteen years old, at which time he removed with his mother to the town of
Preston, Chenango county, N. Y. There he engaged in teaching school, being the first
person in that town to be examined for the work under the existing school laws. After
about a year in Preston he went to Cayuga county, where he remained about a year in
the town of Scipio and the village of Auburn, and then, in company with his mother,
made a tour of several of the eastern states, visiting their former home at Rocky Hill.
Following this he went to Buffalo, where he worked at his trade about six months, and
then spent a similar period in attendance at the West Bloomfield academy. At the
close of his studies, he removed permanently to Rochester, in the year 1816, when there
were but three hundred inhabitants in the village. During the greater portion of the
succeeding seven or eight years he worked here at his trade, and, as a contractor, built
many large buildings, among them the Rochester High school, in 1827.
In the year 1827, Mr. Riley, in company with the late Josiah Bissell, purchased a
large tract of land on the east side of the river, embracing two hundred and forty acres,
now mostly covered by a populous portion of the city of Rochester. The price paid
for the tract was $35,000. Mr. Bissell died about two years after the purchase was
made, and the property passed into the sole possession of Mr. Riley. He was chosen
one of the first five trustees of the village, and was also elected in 1834 as one of the first
board of aldermen of the city ; he is now the only living member of both these bodies.
Mr. Riley's military career, in which he gained the honorable title by which he has
been known so many years, began soon after he reached his majority, when he enlisted
as the first foot soldier from the village, joining a company that was raised in the vicin-
ity of Penfield; this company was a portion of the First rifle regiment, which subse-
quently became the Eighteenth. Mr. Riley was made sergeant of his company, from
which office he rapidly advanced. In 1825 he was elected lieutenant-colonel of the First
regiment of riflemen, (afterward the I'wenty-third), of which Benjamin H. Brown was
colonel, and in 1831 was placed in command of the regiment. He was afterward
elected brigadier-general over the three regiments located in this vicinity, and finally
was appointed major-general, succeeding General Bowen Whiting, the distinguished
attorney, of Geneva. He and his associate officers were .selected to act as escort to the
Marquis de La Fayette on his journey from Rochester to Canandaigua, and the Twenty-
third regiment became, under General Riley's command, one of the most efficient mili-
tary organisations in this section of country. Indeed, it received from Governor Marcy,
who reviewed it in 1832, the compliment of being the best regiment in the state.
While under his command, the regiment volunteered to General Jackson (then president
Asi-iBEi. Wells Riley. 66-j
of the United States) to go south and aid in quelling the nullification troubles. For this
prompt offer of service General Riley subsequently had the satisfaction of receiving the
personal thanks of "Old Hickory" in the capitol at Washington.'
At about the beginning of his military career, General Riley also began to take a
practical interest in the advancement of the cause of temperance, the anti-slavery move-
ment, and other reforms — -a work to which he ever afterward gave up a large share of
his time, his means, and his best efforts. He first made his influence felt for temperance
in the different military organisations which he commanded, never accepting an oflice in
any of them except upon a temperance basis, This resulted in almost eradicating in-
temperance from the regiment and brigade which he commanded. Neither did he hes-
itate from lifting up his voice, whenever and wherever it seemed most effective, against
the curse of slavery, and that, too, during a period when it was anything but a source
of honor to oppose the institution. From about the year 1826, during a period equal
to the lives of most men, General Riley has devoted himself, heart and soul, to these
reforms. In the cause of temperance he has traveled in most of the English-speaking
countries of the world, going always at his own expense, making no request for com-
pensation or aid, and often offering to pay those who differed with him for their time
spent in listening to his potent arguments.^ He spent about a year and a half in Great
Britain, and considerable time on the continent, delivering in those countries about four
hundred lectures, while those of his different tours throughout America are almost in-
numerable. He procured the dies and had an appropriate medal struck, of which he
has distributed more than six thousand to persons who would sign his pledge. Many
of these persons he has met and heard from years after their pledge, in the enjoyment
that always comes with temperate living. The influence of this life-work, to which
General Riley has always made worldly riches and advancement subject, is simply in-
estimable for the general good and morality of humanity. As an eminent writer once
said of him, "He has been to reforms what the white caps are to the waves — always in
the ascendant." General Riley speaks extemporaneously, and, although not an orator in
the polished and educated sense, he never fails to hold the interest of his hearers. In a
series of Pen Portraits of Illustrious Abstainers, written by George W. Bungay, we find
the following terse criticism of General Riley's eloquence and platform manner : —
"Gener.1l Riley's speeches were strings of beads, coral, common glass, and gold, with here and
there a rare jewel, and even diamonds in the rough. The thread of his discourse shone and sparkled
with wit, humor, sarcasm, pathos, and eloquence when he shook the brilliant rosary before an audi-
ence. His hearers laughed and cried alternately. Sometimes they were ready to shout his praises, at
other times to pelt him with showers of unmerchantable eggs. Without trying to think in a direct
line, or caring to speak logically, his lectures as a whole were arguments. He would leap over the
laws of rhetoric, in his eager earnestness, as a blooded steed would a five-barred gate to get into good
clover or good company."
It will also be appropriate to quote from remarks made by General Riley himself at
1 More extended details of Cjeneral Kiley's military career will be found in the chapter of this work
devoted to that branch of the history of Rochester.
2 In this connection the following copy of one of General liiley's peculiar handbills' will be of inter-
est: "One thousand able-bodied men wanted I to hear an address in behalf of drunkards' wives and
children, by General Riley, of Rochester, N. Y., late one of the vice-presidents of the New York state
temperance society. He will pay wholesale dealers and owners of distilleries and breweries that are
now in operation, 25 cents an hour; retailers of liquors 18J cents per hour, and other able-bodied men
l%\ cents per hour, if they are not satisfied at the close of the meeting."
668 History of the City of Rochester.
a reform meeting held in the spring of 1883, in Rochester, where he spoke as follows
relative to his life-work : —
" I have long been a business man and property holder in Rochester, but I have never paused to
weigh the consequences of doing right in a plain case, to the business which I chanced to be in. My
mother taught me when a child the lesson of the modern ditty, ' Dare to do right ; ' and I have ever
obeyed her injunction. And though I have suffered in the world's estimate for doing right and oppos-
ing wrong ; though I have sometimes lost money, and sometimes reputation by opposing Masonry,
liquor-selling and slavery in past years, my family have not suffered hunger, — and I own a residence in
this city now as good as my neighbors, and have means to live in it,
" It is ever best in the long run to do right, though the words of our Savior were true when he
warned us that men would hate us for doing right. ' If ye were of the world, the world would love
his own, but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the
world hateth you.' There never was a man in the city of Rochester so thoroughly hated as was Josiah
Bissell ; find yet there never was so general mourning at any other funeral as at his. His life was one
protest against Sabbath-breaking, liquor-selling, slavery and the secret lodge, and hence he was hated
while living, and universally honored and lamented when he was dead." l
It does not, perhaps, need further details to show that the reform work carried on by
General Riley has been eminently unselfish. He has pursued it for neither glory nor
for gain, but because he believed it the right thing to do, even if at his financial loss.
He has, moreover, been a Christian but little less radical than in his reform labors. He
was nurtured in the Congregationalist faith, but has long been a member of the First
Presbyterian church in Rochester. He was chairman of a meeting held here many
years ago, having for its object the abolition of mail carrying on Sunday. While the
measure did not succeed upon a basis of its Christianity, it did subsequently result in
mail carrying but six days in the week upon all except the great through lines, because
it would save one-seventh of the expense to the government. In this line of reform
General Riley established a line of boats on the canal, in 1835, to run six days each
week. This enterprise cost him $20,000, which he considered an excellent investment.
For the cause of religion as a whole he has done much in this city, building one early
church at his own expense, and giving substantial aid to others. One wooden church,
40 by 80 feet in dimensions, for which there was an imperative necessity through a division
in the Third Presbyterian church in the village, was erected on General Riley's garden,
and in the short space of five weeks. This will serve to indicate the man's energy.
Once having decided that it is necessary and right for him to do a certain thing, it is an
insurmountable obstacle that can prevent its consummation.
It is not as reformer alone that General Riley has lifted his hand and opened his
heart. When the cholera epidemic broke out in Rochester in 1832, he was the youngest
member of the board of health, and a large share of the repulsive labor connected with
the terrible scourge fell to him. The first victim (an unknown tramp) was buried in the
night, General Riley performing the work almost single-handed. Out of it6 deaths by
the dread disease, he placed eighty of the bodies in their coffins, eleven of which were
1 As an interesting incident. General Riley relate his casual meeting, at a dinner table in Rome,
Italy, with the Rev. J. W. Ayre, M. A., vicar of Saint Mark's church, London, and their succeeding
short acquaintance. When General Riley arrived in London, at a later date, he called, by invitation,
on the distinguished divine, who honored him with the unusual invitation to speak on temperance in
his church. This was done, and with excellent effect, as is vouched for by the editor of the Sf. Mark's
Monthly Parish Paper, a little sheet published in the interest of the church, a copy of which was sent
to General Riley after his return to America. It contains a very complimentary reference to his ad-
dress and its influence.
AsHBEL Wells Riley. — Nathaniel Rochester. 669
in one day. But he never shrank from nor complained at the labor. He accepted it
as his duty, and did it, passing through the ordeal unscathed.
In his semi-centennial historical address, delivered in Rochester in June, 1884, Hon.
Charles E. Fitch made the following beautiful allusion to General Riley's unselfish labor
during the cholera epidemic : —
" 1 had thought to observe faithfully the proprieties, by refraining from anything like eulogy of
living citizens, but I am sure you will pardon an allusion to one who, amid that dreadful scourge, bore
liiniself with a dauntlessness, before which that wliich faced the Redan battery or climbed the frowning
crest of Molino del Key pales and grows weak; who met the pestilence with equanimity, when others
fled before it; whose step never faltered, and whose hand never trembled in the ordeal; who w.as as
gentle in his bedside ministrations as he was fearless in the chamber of death, and who, with his own
hands, placed over eighty victims in their coffins. ,\h ! that is a sublimer type of courage which walks
undismayed in the footsteps of the plague than that which rushes upon the foemen's serried ranks in
the frenzy of battle, amid the plaudits of a n.ition. And the citizen-hero. General Ashbel W. Riley,
the sole survivor of the whole body of village trustees — for he was a trustee sixty years ago — and the
only living member of the first board of aldermen, although the frosts of nine decades have silvered his
locks, still walks our stieets, erect in form, stately in his bearing, with his mind yet vigorous, and the
blood of health still coursing his veins, as the results of temperate habits and cleanliness in living.
" Serus in caelum redeat. "^
This sketch has already exceeded its |)rescribed limits, and perhaps enough has been
said to enable the reader to picture to himself the life and character of General Ashbel
W. Riley. He is a reformer ; but, unlike many aspiring to that title, he has always
backed his theories not only with the utmost fearlessness, but with all his might and
means. This means a great deal and has won for him the respect of those who differ
with him, as well as those who are in sympathy with him. He is now one of the oldest
citizens of Rochester, and in spite of the fact that he has spent more than one liberal
fortune in support of what he believes to have been his duty, he still enjoys a compe-
tence for his declining years.
General Riley was first married in 1S19, to Betsey Ann Stillson, of Brighton. She
died four years later, and in 1827 he married her sister, Charlotte Stillson. She died in
1870 and in the following year he married his third wife, in the person of Mary E. Hoyt,
of Rochester. There were born to him by his first wife two children, but one of whom,
his son George, is living. By his second wife he had two sons Ashbel W., jr., and Jus-
tin Gamaliel, and one daughter, Anna H. His youngest son, J. Gamaliel, died in 1873.
His daughter married Cyrus Bentley in 1853, a lawyer then and now residing in Chi-
cago. One of his surviving sons is in the treasury department at Washington, and one
is George S. Riley, of Rochester.
NATHANIP2L ROCHESTER, second son of John Rochester, was born on the
2ist day of February, 1752, in Cople Parish, Westmoreland county, Va., on the
plantation on which his father, grandfather and great-grandfather had lived. When he
was two years old his father died, and when he was seven his mother married a Mr.
Thomas Critcher, who, in 1763, removed with the entire family to Granville county,
N. C. " During his childhood the opportunities for a liberal education were extremely
limited. The varied and practical information for which he was distinguished in private
1 For further reference to General Riley's work as a member of the board of health at this time, see
preceding pages upon the cholera in Rochester.
670 History of the City of Rochester.
intercourse, as well as in the public trusts he so honorably filled, was the fruit of the
later application of a, clear and vigorous mind, in the intervals of leisure afforded by a
life of no ordinary activity and vicissitude."
In the autumn of 1768, when sixteen years old, he entered the mercantile establish-
ment of James Monroe, in Hillsboro', N. C. (forty miles from hotne), as a clerk, where
he remained till 1783, when he entered into partnership with his former employer and
Colonel John Hamilton, who was consul for the British government in the middle states
after the close of the revolution. In 1770 he was clerk of the vestry of Hillsboro'. In
1775 the partnership was dissolved by the breaking out of the revolution, and the same
year (being only twenty-three years old at the time) he was appointed a member of the
committee of safety for Orange county, N. C, whose business it was, to use his own
words, " to promote the revolutionary spirit among the people, procure arms and ammu-
nition, make collections for the people of Boston, whose harbor was blocked up by a
British fleet, and to prevent the sale and use of East India teas."
In August of the same year (1775) he attended, as a member, the first provincial
convention in North Carolina, and at that time was made paymaster (with the rank of
major) for the North Carolina line, which at the time consisted of four regiments.
About the same time he was also made justice of the peace.
At the reassembling of the convention, in May, 1776, the North Carolina line was
increased to ten regiments; and in the proceedings of the convention, on Friday, May
loth, 1776, it was ^'■Resolved, That Nathanial Rochester, esquire, be appointed deputy
commissary-general of military and other stores in this county for the use of the Conti-
nental army, and that he be allowed the same allowance as provided by the Continental
congress for such officer; and that he give security in ^10,000 for the faithful discharge
of the trust reposed in him."
On the adjournment of the convention he entered upon the active duties of provid-
ing food and clothing for the army ; the fatigue incident to which, accompanied by
unusual exposure in unhealthy districts, brought on disease so permanent in its charac-
ter as to compel him to resign, in accordance with medical advice. Returning to Hills-
boro' he found that he had been elected a member of the legislature, in which he soon
took his seat; thus becoming a member of one of the earliest legislative bodies organ-
ised and assembled in defiance of British claims to dominion. During this session he
was appointed lieutenant-colonel of militia, and in the following spring was made clerk
of Orange county, which office had been held for many years by General F. Nash, who
was killed at the battle of Germantown.
In 1777 he was appointed commissioner to establish and superintend a manufactory
of arms at Hillsboro', the iron for which had to be drawn in wagons from Pennsylvania,
a distance of over four hundred miles.
Resigning the office of county clerk, "because the fees of the office would not pay for
the, postage," he was appointed one of a board of three to audit the public accounts, and
was also promoted to be colonel.
In 1878 he again embarked in mercantile pursuits with Colonel Thomas Hart (fath-
er-in-law of Henry Clay) and James Brown (afterwards minister to France). In 1783
he and Colonel Hart began the " manufacture of flour, rope and nails, at Hagerstown,
Md."
On the 20th day of April, 1788, he married Sophia, daughter of Colonel Wm. Beatty,
of Frederick, Md. She was born in Frederick, Md., Jan. 25th, 1768.
Nathaniel Rochester. 671
While living at Hagerstown, Md., he successively filled the offices of member of
Assembly of Maryland, postmaster at Hagerstown, judge of the county court, and, in
1808, was chosen a presidential elector (with Dr, Jno. Tyler, of Fredericktown, Md.),
in favor of James Madison for president (Frederick, Washington, and Allegany counties
forming the district).
In 1808 he was the first president of the Hagerstown bank. A portrait taken while
he held that position is now in the possession of the bank, and is highly prized. All this
time he was carrying on extensive manufacturing establishments in Hagerstown, and
had in operation two mercantile establishments in Kentucky.
In 1800 he first visited the "Genesee country," where he had previously made a
purchase of 640 acres ; and in September of that year, associating with him Major
Charles Carroll, Colonel William Fitzhughand Colonel Hilton, made large purchases of
land in Livingston county, near Dansville; In 1802, with Colonel Fitzhugh and Major
Carroll, he purchased the " loo-acre or Allan mill tract" (in what now is called Roch-
ester, at that time called Falls Town), for seventeen and a half dollars per acre. In May,
1810, having closed up his business in Maryland, he first became a resident of Western
New York, and, removing to Dansville with his family, occupied his purchase there.
Here he remained five years, and erected a large paper-mill, and made many improve-
ments.
In 1815, having disposed of his interests in Dansville, he removed to a large and
well improved farm in Bloomfield, Ontario county. After staying here for three years,
during which time he constantly visited the falls of the Genesee and his property there,
laying it out into lots to be brought into the market, he, in April, 1818, took up his resi-
dence there, the town in the interim having been called after him, ." Rochester."
In 1816 he was a second time an elector of president and vice-president.
In January, 1817, he was secretary of the important convention at Canandaigua
which urged the construction of the Erie canal. During this year he went to Albany,
N. Y., as an agent of the petitioners for the erection of what is now known as Monroe
county, but was not successful till the year 1821 in' obtaining its accomplishment. He
was the first clerk of the new county, and also its first representative in the state legisla-
ture, 1821-22. In 1824 he was ofie of the commission for taking subscriptions to the
capital stock of the Bank of Rochester, and, upon the organisation of the institution, was
unanimously elected its president. He resigned this position the December following
on account of an impaired physical constitution and the increasing infirmities of age.
This was the last of his numerous public and corporate trusts. From this time he
retired from active duties, but was always a good and willing counselor to those in the
young and thriving town which was rapidly growing up around him. He had always
been attached to the Protestant Episcopal churcii, and was one of the founders of St.
Luke's church, Rochester. It was the will of God to remove him by a most painful
disorder, forbidding him even an hour's troubled repose ; but the end finally came, and
the pain ceased, and there was quiet and peace that was so gradual that those about
him scarcely knew the moment of his final departure ; he died on the morning of the
17th of May, 1831.
Starting in life with but few advantages, thrown upon his own resources at the early
age of sixteen, with energy and integrity of purpose, and a fearless self-reliance, he had a
long career of usefulness. His country demanded his services, and he freely gave them,
6/2 History of the City of Rochester.
alternating in its financial, military and legislative work. Its exigencies terminating, he
was a zealous co-worker in all that related to the beneficial uses of free government.
Almost constantly filling important public trusts, he was at the same time the founder
of business establishments, the promoter of public prosperity, and, finally, the founder of
a city.
His wife, Sophia Beatty, was a descendant of John Beatty, who was born in Scotland
in 1660, from which, on account of religious persecutions, he emigrated to Ireland, and
from thence to England, where he married Susanna Affordby. He then went to Hol-
land, and about 1700 came to America, and settled at Esopus, New York, where he
died, leaving six sons and two daughters. His widow removed with the children to
Maryland about the year 1728, where she purcliased a large tract of land. Their son,
whose name was William, was born about the year 1693, and died in 1757, leaving one
son, William, and five daughters. The son William, was born January 17th, 1739, and
married Mary Dorotha Grosh (daughter of Jno. Conrad and Maria Sophia Grosh, of
Mayence, on the Rhine, who settled in Frederick, Maryland, in 1757). He died April
25th, i8oi, and his wife on August 2d, 1810. They had sixteen children, of whom Sophia,
born January 25th, was the sixth.
Col. Nathaniel Rochester and Sophia his wife had twelve children : William Beatty
Rochester, Nancy Barbara Rochester, John Cornelius Rochester, Sophia VMza Roches-
ter, Mary Eleanor Rochester, Thomas Hart Rochester, Catharine Kimball Rochester,
Nathaniel Thrift Rochester, Anna Barbara Rochester, Henry Elie Rochester, Ann Cor-
nelia Rochester, Louisa Lucinda Rochester.'
JASON W. SEWARD was born in New Lebanon, Columbia Co., N. Y., on the 23d
day of December, 1806. Like the great majority of pioneers of Central and West-
ern New York, he came of the sturdy New England stock whose descendants played
such an important pa^t in subduing the wilderness and advancing the general interests
of the new communities. - His father was Abram Seward of Durham, Conn., and his
mother Sarah Bostwick, who came from near New Milford, Conn. ; she was a daughter
of Elijah Bostwick, who was a militia captain in the revolutionary war and gave his coun-
try seven years of honorable service during that struggle for liberty.
Mr. Seward's boyhood and young manhood were passed at his parental home, where
he attended school in the winter months and did his share of farm labor during the re-
mainder of the years. It is, perhaps, worthy of mention that his first school teacher was
Isaac Hills, a graduate of Union college, and in later years one of the prominent law-
yers of Rochester, where he recently died. Mr. Seward was an apt student and, fortu-
nately for hirn, his father was a believer in the value of education ; consequently the
young man was sent to the Oneida institute during the years 1828-29, ^' ^^^ ^^^ °f
which period, still unsatisfied with his acquired education, he entered Williams college,
Mass., in the class of 1833, where he graduated with honor. Leaving college he came
directly to Rochester, to which village his sister, T. Seward, had received an invitation for
the purpose of establishing a school for young ladies. While the field did not at that time
appear especially promising to Mr. Seward, he decided to remain and bear the heavier
iThis biographic sketch is taken from a pamphlet, Early History of the Rochester Family in America,
compiled by Nathaniel Rochester, of Buffalo, 1882.
Jason W. Seward. 673
burdens of the new educational undertaking, for whicii he felt that his sister, although a
self-reliant woman, was scarcely adapted. The boarding-school and young ladies' semi-
nary was accordingly founded (1833), first occupying apartments in the old United States
building, on Main street. After beginning the school, Mr. Seward returned to Williams-
town and received his diploma from the college. In the winter cJf 1837 and 1838 the
institution was incorporated by act of legislature and became subject to the visitation of
the Regents of the University of the state. The seminary was successful from the first
and for its better accommodation a building was erected in 1835 on Alexander street,
on the premises now occupied as a residence by Freeman Clarke. Here the school was
continued, with far greater success in point of numbers of pupils and its general charac-
ter as an educational institution, than in a financial sense, until 1841, when the founders,
Miss Seward and the subject of this sketch, withdrew from it as instructors. This action
on the part of its founders was due chiefly to the necessity then existing for much more
extensive accommodations for the attendance already assured, and their inability to erect
buildings and make the other improvements without which they felt the school could
not be made what it should be. The institution was continued, however, for a number
of years by Miss L. Tracy, as principal, and others, with varying success.
After leaving the school Mr. Seward engaged in mercantile business, becoming quite
extensively employed in the purchase and sale of grain, flour and similar products. In
this business, through the persevering energy for which he is known, his native ability
and his correct and honorable methods, he succeeded in acquiring a competence, in the
full enjoyment of which he has passed his life since the year 1856, when he retired from
active pursuits.
As a teacher he was eminently successful — a success due, undoubtedly, to some extent,
to the fact that he lov.ed the profession for its own sake, for the good which he could
accomplish in it. He was always a student and has familiarised himself with the so-
called learned professions and with many subjects demanding brain power, applica-
tion and studiousness, not so much that he expected to make direct use of such knowl-
edge for the advancement of his material position, as in gratification of his natural and
acquired love of study. He pursued the study of law in Rochester for about two years
and might, had he so elected, have made an honorable career in that profession. But
his chief interest has always centered in the cause of education, in recognition of which
fact his fellow-citizens have placed him in several positions of trust connected with the
schools of Rochester. He was prominently instrumental in organising the free school
system of the city; was made superintendent of schools of the county of Monroe and
was also a member of the board of education of the city where his influence was potent
for the good of the cause of education. His contributions to the press in the same direc-
tion have been numerous and valuable. He was elected alderman of his ward (the sev-
enth) in 1861-62 and in 1867 was made supervisor; the duties of these offices, it need
scarcely be said, were discharged with fidelity and ability.
In the year 1855 Mr. Seward was married to Ruth Ann Bedell, of Greene Co., N. Y.
They are without children, and still reside on premises adjoining those where the seminary
was formerly located, enjoying the respect of the community at large.
674 History of the City of Rochester.
CHAUNCEY B. WOODWORTH. — Among the pioneers of Monroe county was
the family of Spencer Woodworth, who came from South Coventry, Tolland county,
Conn., to the town of Gates in the summer of 1819. They located about one and one-
half miles west of the city of Rochester, on what is known as the Chili road. Their
journey from Connecticut to Rochester was made in one of the large covered wagons
used in early days, there being then no other means of travel in this section. On the
9th day of June, 1819, they arrived at the tavern of Oliver Culver, in Brighton, .where
they halted for the night. The following day was entirely spent in reaching their new
home, so little had been done towards opening a road ; they traveled by way of " the
rapids," following as best they could a line of marked trees.
In the family of this pioneer was an infant. son, who was born on the 25th day of
February, 1819, and consequently, at the time of the migration to Monroe county, was
about four months old. This was Chauncey B. Woodworth, now one of the leading
citizens and business men of the city of Rochester and the subject of this notice. He
remained at the parental home, devoting a share of each year to the acquirement
of such education as was then available, until he was twenty-one years of age^ when he
engaged in the grocery business on the corner of East Main and North St. Paul streets,
on the site of the Osburn House block, thus for the first time identifying himself with
the business interests of the city that has since felt in so many ways the influence of his
energies.
About the year 1841 Mr. Woodworth abandoned the grocery business and purchased
a farm at Irondequoit and established a large saw-mill which he operated several years,
supplying the lumber for many of the buildings erected in Rochester in early days.
In 1853, together with Jones & Osburn, he built the Crystal Palace block on Main
street. About the same time he removed to his present place of residence, 41 South
Washington street.
Down to this time Mr. Woodworth had, by virtue of industry, energy and unusual
business sagacity and judgment, met with success in all of his undertakings; he now
engaged in the business that has ever since occupied a large share of his attention and
has made his name familiar throughout the country ; this is the manufacture of per-
fumery and extracts. For this work he in 1856 associated with Reuben A. Bunnell,
and the manufacture of glass-ware was subsequently added. Three years later (1859)
Mr. Woodworth succeeded to the entire business, which has since been developed into
one of the largest, most successful and honorable of the kind in the country.
On the 5th of January, 1841, Mr. Woodworth was married to Martha Jane Smith,
a daughter of Clark Smith, of Boston, Mass. They have had five children, three of
whom are sons. One of these, Harry S. Woodworth, is now in college, and the others,
Chauncey C. Woodworth and Frank E. Woodworth, are associated with their father in
business, the firm being C. B. Woodworth & Sons. Their manufactures are known
throughout the country and the standard of their reputation is the highest.
The present extensive and efficient street railroad system of Rochester is largely the
outgrowth of Mr. Wood worth's enterprise. In the year 1868, when the Rochester City
& Brighton railro'ad company's property and franchise was sold under a mortgage fore-
closure, Mr. Woodworth purchased it entire. He then joiiied with the present board of
directors, reorganised the company, extended its tracks and other facilities until now
there are few cities in the country more thoroughly and satisfactorily supplied with street
r %r.rr/yyy >: /^/^///f/y
Chauncey B. Woodworth. — George J. Whitney. 675
car accommodations than Rochester. Mr. Woodworth has been treasurer of the com-
pany since its organisation.
Mr. Woodworth is not without clearly defined political convictions, but he has never
sought public office. In 1852 he was induced to accept the nomination for sheriff of
the county of Monroe on the Whig ticket, and was elected. It is, perhaps, unnecessary
to add that the duties of the office were faithfully and capably discharged.
Mr. Woodworth has been a trustee of the Mechanics' savings bank and a trustee of
the Rochester Theological seminary. Since 1864 he has been a director and is now vice-
president of the Flour City National bank. In these several important trusts he has
enhanced his well-deserved business reputation and has added to the high estimation in
which he is held by his associates. He has been a member of the Second Baptist church
for about thirty-one years, and one of its trustees about thirty-three years. In all
measures for the general advancement and well-being of Rochester he has always ex-
hibited a deep interest and an active public spirit, while in his social and family rela-
tions he enjoys the esteem of the community.
GEORGE J. WHITNEY. Among the pioneers who exerted a marked influence
upon the village and city of Rochester was Warham Whitney, who came to Monroe
county from Oneida county in the year 1819, and settled in that part of Rochester
known as Frankfort. He there built a mill, which he operated with unqualified success,
his brands of flour attaining a wide reputation for uniform excellence. He also became
a large owner of real estate in this vicinity and was a prominent man in all the public
relations of life. He was the father of four daughters and three sons, of whom George
J. Whitney, the subject of this sketch, was one. He was born on the 26th of January,
1819, and was brought to Rochester by his parents while an infant. After spending his
early life in school, alternated with various kinds of labor, he took charge of the farm
upon which his father died in March, 1840, and remained there a year or two. In 1842
he was married to Julia BuUard. For a short time he conducted a store at Frankfort,
after which he engaged in the milling and grain business, which he followed until his
death, becoming an operator on a scale of great magnitude and known throughout the
entire country. In the milling business he was for a time at first associated with the late
General John Williams, and here his business capacity seemed for the first time to
find a field broad enough for its successful development. He built in the year 1857 the
large elevator in Rochester which still bears his name and is operated by his son, James
W. Whitney, and also had the charge of the New York Central elevators in both Buffalo
and New York. In this enterprise and in his position as director of the New York Cen-
tral and Hudson River railroad, he was brought in immediate business relations with
Mr. Vanderbilt, and had he lived would undoubtedly have been one of the chief instru-
ments in the establishment of the proposed steamship connection across the Atlantic, one
of the most stupendous enterprises ever projected. As a director of the Central railroad,
his services were considered of such value and his counsels were so generally wise and
judicious, that he was continued in the office through three different administrations —
those of the Richmond-Corning regime, then under the Keep organisation, and finally
under the Vanderbilt management. He was not retained by Mr. Vanderbilt the first
year of Vanderbilt's reign, but was put in the second year (being dropped the first year).
6j6 History of the City of Rochester.
He was the only director in the previous organisations who was retained by Mr. Van-
derbilt when he became president of the road — the highest compliment to his worth in
that position that could have been paid him. He became practically the manager of
the western division of the road and at the time of his death was in absolute control of
all the transportation, storage and delivery of grain which passed over the Central rail-
road from Buffalo to New York. The writer of an obituary of Mr. Whitney, in allud-
ing to this portion of his business life, said " he was the only resident director in this
part of the state, and how ably he discharged the manifold duties resting upon him, his
record speaks with an eloquence that will not be hushed for years to come." Mr. Van-
derbilt said of him, when apprised of his death, " men like Mr. Whitney are not very
plentiful. As a husband, as a father, as a friend, he was equally admirable and relia-
ble, and as a business man he was exceedingly capable. The New York Central will
keenly feel his loss."
Mr. Whitney will be most vividly remembered for his farseeing sagacity, his strong
determination, his prompt and vigorous action in all emergencies, his wise judgment and
remarkable executive ability. In these respects he was not surpassed by any of his
contemporaries. His insight into all business details was wonderfully clear and com-
prehensive ; his plans were quickly devised and then followed with resolution and unfal-
tering vigor to the end. Obstacles were recognised by him only to be surmounted. He
was, in short, the ideal successful business man.
Mr. Whitney never had time, and probably little inclination, for political preferment ;
the bent of his genius was in other directions. He did once permit the use of his name for
alderman (by one party ; the other party also nominated him and when election day came
no tickets had been printed each party thinking the other would do that), but only that
he might serve his neighbors and friends in the city, which he did to their eminent satis-
faction. He was for ten or twelve years a member of the board of managers of the
Western House of Refuge, and for eight years of the time its president; and it was said
of him at the time of his death that it would be " difficult to name any enterprise of
large proportions that did not owe the greater part of its success to the foresight and in-
defatigable industry of George J. Whitney." He was mainly instrumental in establish-
ing the driving park, and, as president of the institution, gave it the prestige it has always
retained.
Mr. Whitney was a man of social disposition and a genial, warm-hearted, kindly na-
ture. He drew around him many sincere friends, whose companionship and regard was
dearer to him than any practical worldly success. To those who knew him intimately,
what has been called " the home side of his nature" was his best side.
James W. Whitney, of Rochester, is his only son, and he had three daughters. He
died December 31st, 1878.
MARTIN B. ANDERSON, LL. D. — Of the men who have been identified with the
intellectual and moral growth of this city, there is, perhaps, none who holds a more
prominent place than Martin B. Anderson. For the last thirty-one years he has been
president of the University of Rochester, and in this position he has become conspicuous
by his efforts to advance the cause of education. And by his broad common sense, his
rugged force of character and his positive moral convictions, he has naturally become
Martin B. Anderson. 6tj
recognised as a leader or, at least, adviser in nearly every enterprise of a benevolent
and philanthropic nature. His life has been a constant and earnest effort to elevate
the intellectual and moral tone of the coiiimunity in which he has lived.
Dr. Anderson was born in Brunswick, Me., February 12th, 1815. The influence
of his Scotch-Irish descent has left a strong impress upon his mind and character. In
early life he was thrown largely upon his own resources; and while yet a boy he was
compelled to think and act as a man. Among the first impulses given to his intellectual
life was his contact with a few men of mature age and experience who had organised
themselves into a society for the purpose of discussing questions relating to politics and
other topics of general interest. He then became an omnivorous reader, and acquired
a taste and talent for public speaking. At the age of twenty-one he entered Waterville
college (Colby university) where he was graduated in 1840. In college he acquired
a reputation for great industry, breadth of knowledge, and thoroughness of research,
especially in subjects relating to philosophy and the sciences. After graduation he
spent a year in the theological seminary at Newton, Mass., preaching sometimes in
neighboring towns. In 1841 he was appointed tutor of Latin, Greek and mathematics
in Waterville college; and in 1843 he was promoted to the chair'of rhetoric in the same
institution. Besides rhetoric he taught also Latin and history, and delivered a course
of lectures on the origin and growth of the English language — probably the first course
on this subject delivered in an American college. In 1850 he resigned his professorship
and removed to New York city, where he became editor-in-chief and joint-proprietor
of the New York Recorder, a weekly Baptist journal. His editorials were marked by
extensive learning, vigor of thought, and frequently by keen controversial acumen. In
1853 he received a unanimous call to the ])residency of the University of Rochester.
This institution had but recently been established, and the work of laying securely its
foundation and of determining its future character was, in a great measure, placed in his
hands. So fully has he identified himself with the cause of the university that whatever
reputation and success it has achieved may be attributed greatly to his personal efforts
and influence. 'The largest and most valuable part of his hfe has been devoted to its
interests and to the cause of higher education which it represents.
His success as an educator has depended largely upon his extensive and varied
accjuirements as a scholar, his high conception of the functions of the teacher and his
unusual capacity for administration. In his scholarship he is broad and liberal. He
has pushed his investigations into many departments of human knowledge, and has
organised the results of his investigations into lectures and courses of study suited to
the students under his charge. These lines of instruction have included intellectual
and moral philosophy, history and constitutional law, pohtical economy, social science,
jurisprudence, art criticism, the history of the fine arts, etc. In connection with these
studies he has frequently used his pen for the promotion of interests of a scientific and
educational character. His writings are comprised for the most part in newspaper
editorials, article for reviews, discourses and essays upon education, religious addresses,
papers on social science, official reports and articles for encyclopaedias. These writings
are characterised by vigor of thought, directness of expression, breadth of learning and
earnestness of purpose.-
But it is not as a mere scholar that his power and success are to be measured. It
is rather as a teacher, or, better still, as a guide and an inspiration to young men that
678 History of the City of Rochester.
his influence has become permanent. His power is, by way of eminence, personal
power, and is due to imparting his own ideas and spirit to others. The young man
who cannot be aroused by his magnetic appeals is dead beyond the possibility of resur-
rection. His greatness is most fully seen within the walls of his own class-room, and
is shown not so much in mere instruction, or the exposition of scientific topics, as in
the transmission of mental and moral vitality, and in revelations of the practical signifi-
cance of human life.
But his energies have not been entirely restricted to the institution and to the young
men immediately under his charge. He has freely given his aid to enterprises of a
social and political nature. During the war he was ardently patriotic, writing editorials
and delivering speeches in favor of the natiorfel cause. In 1868 he was appointed a
member of the New York state board of charities; and while a member of this board he
wrote several valuable reports to the legislature, chief among which are those upon
Out-Door Relief s.T\A Alien Paupers. As a recognition of his ability as an economist, he
was chosen as an honorary member of the Cobden club of England. An appreciation
of his judgment in matters relating to public improvements was shown by the governor
in appointing him a member of the Niagara Falls commission. And his willingness to
assist in carrying out the benevolent purposes of his fellow-citizens is shown by his ac-
ceptance of the position as president of the board of trustees of the " Reynolds Library."
To those who are best acquainted with President Anderson he appears at once as a
raan of thought and a man of action. As a scholar he syni[)athises with all honest
efforts to enlarge the sum of human knowledge. As a man of affairs he is willing to
lend his aid to any cause which tends to increase the sum of human happiness and to
improve the general well-being of society.
HON. ERASMUS DARWIN SMITH, LL. D., ex-justice of the Supreme court
and of the court of Appeals of the state of New York, was born at DeRuyter,
Madison county, on the loth day of October, 1806. De Ruyter, the southwestern town
of Madison county, was settled about the commencement of the present century.
Among its pioneers was Dr. Hubbard Smith, who removed from Stephentown, Rens-
selaer county, in 1801 or 1802, having previously married Eunice Jones, of that place,
one of a family of ten children. Dr. Smith was engaged in an extensive practice at
De Ruyter for more than forty years. He was the first postmaster, a justice of the
peace, and for several terms one of the judges of the court of Common Pleas of Madi-
son county. At the outset of his professional life, the celebrated Dr. Erasmus Darwin,
the father of the still more celebrated Charles Darwin, was in the full tide of success
and popularity as a poet and philosophical writer, and Dr. Smith gave to his son the
name of the author. Erasmus Darwin Smith was studious and relf-reliant, and, having
received a good common schooleducation, at the age of fifteen years became a school
teacher, following the avocation for five successive winters, and using his earnings to
secure a classical education. During three summers he pursued preparatory studies at
Hamilton academy, and in the fall of 1826 entered Hamilton college. Soon occurred
the long controversy between Dr. Davis, the president of the college, and the trustees,
in consequence of which no students were graduated in 1829 and 1830. The advan-
tages of study were so much impaired that most of the students left in 1828. In the follow-
Erasmus Darwin Smith. 679
ing winter Mr. Smith commenced the study of the law in the office of Gregory & Hum-
phrey, at Rochester, which he continued with Ebenezer Griffin, esq., of the same place,
until his admission to the bar at the October term in 1830, when he went into partner-
ship with Mr. Griffin, whose daughter, Janet Morrison, he afterwards married. The
year 1828 was a presidential year, and Mr. Smith, being somewhat active in politics as
a supporter of Gen. Jackson for the presidency, came into collision with an old merchant
of Rochester, of the family of Smith, who as an individual was also distinguished by
the name of the English physician. This Erasmus Darwin Smith was opposed in poli-
tics to Gen. Jackson, and not at all incHned to indorse the acts and sayings of the
youthful partisan of the same name. The latter was accommodating, and, having no
desire to appear to sail under another's colors, avoided the difficulty by agreeing to
suppress a portion of the prenomen, and has ever since written his name E, Darwin
Smith. The interruption which he had encountered in his studies was compensated for
by his private reading and reflection, and he became well qualified for legal practice.
His professional connection with Mr. Griffin, which continued for several years, was
terminated by the removal of that gentleman from Rochester, when Mr. Smith formed
a new copartnership with Hon. Samuel L. Selden, afterwards an eminent judge of the
court of Appeals. Subsequently Mr. Smith was associated in practice, for many years,
with Henry E. Rochester, esq. In 1832 he was appointed master in Chancery, and
continued to hold the office for three successive terms of three years. Soon after this
appointment he was designated, by Chancellor Walworth, as injunction master for the
eighth district, of which Monroe county, including Rochester, was a portion. In the
year 1841 he was appointed by the chancellor clerk in Chancery for the eighth district,
a position not only unsolicited, but accepted with much hesitation. His practice in all
the courts, especially in the court of Chancery, was then extensive. The office pre-
cluded practicing in that court; he therefore formed a partnership with E. Peshine
Smith, esq., who conducted that part of his legal business. He continued to act as the
clerk of the Chancery court until it was abolished July ist, 1847, under the provisions
of the constitution which had been adopted the year before. During a portion of this
period he resided in the town of Gates, adjoining Rochester, to which he moved in
1839. Returning to Rochester, five years later, he was chosen for various local offices,
"serving one year as health commissioner, and for several years as school commissioner.
His services were ofteii required as a public speaker on political and other topics, and
he made many addresses on social topics, and Fourth of July orations in different places.
Twice he was nominated for member of Assembly, and once for Congress, but, his party
not being in the ascendancy in the district, he shared the fate of his fellow candidates.
As a delegate to the Democratic national convention held at Baltimore in 1848, he co-
operated in the nomination of Gen. Lewis Cass for the presidency, whom he supported
actively during the canvass, being an earnest and effective speaker. The Democratic
party in the state was now divided, and the Daily Advertiser of Rochester supported
the Van Buren or Free Soil movement. The conservative Democrats established the
Daily Courier, which supported Cass. After the campaign was over, Mr. Smith united
with Judge S. L. Selden, Joseph Medbury, Joseph Sibley, and H. G. Warner in the
purchase of the Daily Advertiser, with which the Courier was merged. He became,
soon after such purchase, the political editor, and wrote most of the leading articles for
the paper during the year 1849. The Free Soil wing of the party afterwards decided to
68o History of the City of Rochester.
establish a new paper, and the prospectus of the Daily News was issued ; but a com-
promise was effected, in consequence of which its projectors abandoned their enterprise
and bought the stock of some of the partners in the Advertiser, which was continued
under the editorship of Mr. Horatio Gates Warner until Mr. Isaac Butts, the former
editor, repurchased an interest, and united the Advertiser with the Rochester Union, a
journal then recently established. Pursuing his profession, he was engaged in many im-
portant litigations, and in the autumn of 1855 was nominated by the conservative Demo-
crats as a justice of the Supreme court. The American party also gave him its support.
He was elected by a small majority, and commenced a judicial course which was to re-
flect credit on his personal and legal character, and continue for the remainder of his
active life. Until the breaking out of the war of the rebellion he had always been firm
in resisting any attempt to interfere with the rights of the Southern people ; but, after
they appealed to arms, he acted with the war Democrats and subsequently with the Re-
publican party. On the call of the government for troops he put himself into sympathy
with the movement, addressed public meetings on the subject, and took an active part
generally in encouraging enlistments. In his official capacity as a judge he was
prompted by the same patriotic impulse, and, in his addresses to the grand jury, incul-
cated the duty of every citizen to give an active and earnest support to the government
in. the prosecution of the war. In 1863 he was reelected to the bench of the Supreme
court, and again in 1871, continuing to hold the office until January ist, 1877, when he
had reached seventy years of age, the constitutional limitation of the tenure of a justice
of the Supreme court. Under the provision making the judges of the Supreme court
having the shortest period to serve ex-officio members of the court of Appeals, Judge
Smith was a member of that court in 1862, and again in 1870. He was designated by
Governor Hoffman, in December, 1872, on the death of Judge Johnson of the fourth
department of the Supreme court, to take his place, and sat in that department, as gen-
eral term justice, until 1877. His. judicial decisions have been marked by research,
lucidity, and logical precision. The opinion which he wrote in the case of Freeman
Clarke v. the City of Rochester (24 Barbour's Reports, p. 446) was the first to settle
really the question of the power of cities to take stock in corporations. The opin-
ion in the legal tender case of Hague v. Powers, extending from the 427th to the
479th page of the 39th volume of Barbour's Reports, was of the greatest importance,
settling the question of the power of the federal government to issue paper money as a
means of self-preservation in time of war, and as a war measure. Chief Justice Chase,
of the U. S. Supreme court, remarked to Judge Johnson of this state that the decision
was, in its influence on the credit of the government, equal to a victory in the field. It
relieved the whole country from a position of extreme embarrassment. Other important
opinions will be found in the cases of the People v. the Albany & Susquehanna Railroad
Company (55 Barbour, 344); the habeas corpus case, "In the matter of Jordan," (2
American Law Register, p. 749) ; and the People v. the Central Railroad Company of
New Jersey (42 N. Y., 283), a decision rendered in the court of Appeals. Many opin-
ions written in the fourth department are to be found in Cook & Thompson's and
Hun's Reports. The degree of doctor of laws was conferred upon Judge Smith while
on the bench of the Supreme court, wholly unsolicited and without any knowledge on
his part. Since Judge Smith left the bench he has been employed in closing litigated
cases as counsel, and has acted as referee in quite a number of important cases, but has
Erasmus Darwin Smith. — Hulbert Harrington Warner. 68 i
rarely appeared in the courts. He is enjoying a vigorous old age. Though in his sev-
enty-seventh year, he has lost little of the stamina and alertness which characterised his
whole mature life. He coinmands universal respect as an upright and enlightened
citizen who manifests his concern for the welfare of his fellow men ; a sincere desire to
be helpful to every one who may claim his friendship or enlist his solicitude. His ex-
tensive and important labors on the bench have gained him the highest esteem of
contemporaries and entitle him to the respect of his successors, who will benefit by his
painstaking elucidation of controverted questions. Those who have come into the pro-
fession and grown up under his long administration of justice applaud his fidelity, and
acknowledge the uniform courtesy, the helpful kindness which have encouraged them
in times of difficulty and aided in overcoming obstacles that impeded their advancement.
The house in which Judge Smith resides, a commodious and elegant mansion, was built
by Ira West, a prosperous merchant of Rochester, who opened the first store there on
the settlement of the village in 1812. Having lost his first wife in 1877, Judge Smith
married Mrs. Emily Perkins Smith in 1879. Of his five children by the first wife three
are living: Vincent M. Smith, attorney at law at Rochester; Cora E., wife of Isaac E.
Sheldon, of New York; and Erasmus D. Smith, law clerk and stenographer.
HULBERT HARRINGTON WARNER. When the British fleet was making its
deadly assault on 'the city of Oswego, during the war of 181 2, the echo of the
guns, resounding through the rolling lands of Central New York, fell upon the ear of a
stalwart farmer in Onondaga county, and, like Cincinnatus of old, he left his plow, un-
limbered his horses, and, with a quick good-bye to his family, shouldered his gun and
hastened to the defense of the beleagured city. This man was Captain Seth Warner,
the grandfather of Hulbert Harrington Warner, the subject of this sketch. -He would
not have been true to his name or lineage, had a second summons been necessary to
urge to the doing of a patriotic duty.. The Warner line is graced with many examples
of genuine, stalwart, heroic manhood, illustrating to the full the significance of the motto
of an English branch of the family, in their " pluck and persistence."
Hulbert Harrington Warner traces his ancestry through nine generations, in this
country, to 1650. The family originated in Kent, Essex, and Leicester, England. In
this country one branch started from Ipswich, Mass., another from Woodbury, Conn.,
and another from New Hampshire. The line to which the subject of this sketch be-
longs originated in this country in Woodbury, Conn., and is thus delineated : ist, John;
2d, John; 3d, John; 4th, Dr. Ebenezer; 5th, Thomas; 6th, Samuel; 7th, Seth; 8th,
William; gth, Hulbert. The Seth of the seventh generation was' first cousin of Colonel
Seth Warner, the famous Vermont hero of the revolution, and was christened by him.
Samuel of the sixth generation served in the war of 1776, was wounded, and drew a
pension for life. Seth of the seventh generation was a captain in the war of 181 2. Dr.
Ebenezer of the fourth generation was one of eight in his line who won excellent repute
in the practice of medicine, and on Hulbert, though he himself is not a physician, the
mantle of the healing art has descended genealogically and gracefully.
WiUiam of the eighth generation was born in Van Buren, Onondaga county, N. Y., in
1807, and Electa Harrington, his wife, was born in the same town, November 13th, i8iO.
682 History of the City of Rochester.
They were married May 3d, 1827, Hulbert being the seventh child and the fourth son.
William died in 1877, his widow surviving him and residing in Rochester, N. Y.
Electa Harrington was a direct descendant in the fourth generation of t\>e Rev.
Jones, a Baptist minister who came to this country soon after the arrival of the
Mayflower. Her grandfather, Silas Brown, served with honor in the revolutionary war,
and her father, Dr. Lionel Harrington, won fame and an untimely death in the war
of l8l2.
Hulbert Harrington Warner was born in Van Buren, Onondaga county, N. Y.,
January 19th, 1842. He was trained in the common schools of the town, and after-
wards spent several years in the famous academy , of Dr. T. K. Wright, at Elbridge,
N. Y. His grandfather, Seth, moved into Van Buren in 1807 from Stockbridge, Mass.,
settling near the village of Warners, which, in consideration of the character of himself
and his two brothers, Heman and Henry, was given the family name.
With an honored lineage on both the paternal and maternal sides, Hulbert began his
career with the strong advantage of good blood. Tiring of farm life, his father, seeing
that he was determined to " strike out for himself," apprenticed him to the tinsmith trade
in Memphis, Onondaga county, when he was fifteen years of age. In 1865 young War-
ner " went west," conducting the stove and hardware business until 1870 in Michigan,
when he returned to New York and settled in Rochester. If life in the great west did
nothing else for him, it quickened his early-formed purpose to succeed despite all obsta-
cles, and the better fitted him for the extraordinary business career which was about to
open. In 1870, having secured the general agency of the Mosler, Bahmann & Co. fire
and burglar-proof Safe, manufactured at Cincinnati, O., he began a record in the safe
business which has had no parallel in this country or in any other country. At that time
the excitement in the oil regions of Pennsylvania ran high. Towns sprang up in a night.
Great men and great opportunities met. Personally taking the field he disposed of sev-
eral hundred safes in a few weeks, and acquired that intimate insight into the business
which ever after made him master of its details and a good judge of the requirements
of successful safe salesmen. This mission gave him his first substantial success, and in
a short time he had safe warehouses all over the land, and had over a hundred men in
the field. He thus early realised the ambition of his boyhood, which was to see his
name associated with a widely-extended and successful commercial enterprise. Even
in his youth his ideas were all on a large scale, and his later life has demonstrated that
he is, in all things, a man of maxima.
The panic of 1873 overtook him with plans and purposes of continental extent. In
that stupendous crisis strong men were unmanned, and weak men were undone. While
his competitors did not dare to assume the risk of holding the territory until the return
of better times, he, with pluck' and sagacity, determined at whatever sacrifice to take no
steps backward. It was a severe financial and physical strain, but the end justified him.
The tide turned in 1876. The territory which he had held had now become exclusively
his own. Concentrating all his energies,- making Rochester his sole basis of opera-
tions, he sold in less than eighteen months over two and a half million dollars' worth
of safes, had not only made good all the losses of the three years of business depression,
but had also acquired a handsome competence. It is said that circumstances often
make men great, but in this case the man of " pluck and persistence '' wrested success
out of most adverse circumstances. In the past twelve years he has sold over 70,000
HuLBERT Harrington Warner. 683
safes, aggregating $15,000,000. In 1884, owing to the extraordinary demands made
upon his time by his other enterprises, he disposed of the safe business to Mosler, Bowen
& Co., of Rochester, N. Y.
Like too many other energetic men, Mr. Warner exhausted in his business energy
his stock of vitality, and when commercial success had rewarded him, and the pros-
pect of an easy future dawned upon hira, he was quite broken in health; — so much so
that his physicians thought he could not live a year. But when they had exhausted all
known means for his recovery, by providential suggestions he was led to the use of a
simple compound which was reputed to be a specific for the kidney disorders from which
he suffered. In less than a year it cured him. Grateful for his own release, and with a
characteristic generosity, he determined to devote a part of his accumulated capital to
the manufacture of this compound, for the benefit of others who might be suffering as
he had suffered without hope. When he learned that the medical profession had no
other curative for extreme kidney and liver disorders, and that the compound was per-
fectly safe to use, he had it scientifically perfected and gave it to the world under the
name of " Warner's Safe Cure." In process of time he added " Warner's Safe Diabetes
Cure," "Warner's Safe Nervine," "Warner's Safe Pills," "Warner's Safe Rheumatic
Cure," " Warner's Tippecanoe," and "Warner's Safe Throatine." The formulae of these
preparations are all of the very highest order, and the preparations themselves have only
been manufactured in obedience to a strong public demand for them, the character of
"Warner's Safe Cure " being so high as to commend to public patronage any prepara-
tion manufactured by H. H. Warner & Co.
This personal experience explains why, in addition to conducting the largest safe
business in the world, he assumed the proprietary medicine business. The enterprise
grew with astonishing rapidity, and what was begun in 1879 as a testimonial of gratitude,
has at length absorbed almost his entire personal and financial attention. The gross
sales amount to over $2,500,000 per annum. In five years he was obliged to make three
removes ta accommodate his growing business, and in 1884 he erected the largest and
completes! medicine laboratory in the world. -It is built of wrought iron and brick,
is absolutely fire-proof, and cost a half million dollars. It contains over 4 1-4 acres of
flooring. It is eight stories high, is of very imposing appearance, and is located on North
St. Paul street, Rochester, N. Y.
In the early part of 1879 Mr. Warner casually met Mr. Swift, the famous comet
finder. With his customary liberality, being interested in the man and his work, he
assured him that if he would raise the money to purchase a large telescope, he would
build him an observatory ; and in January, 1883, the Warner observatory was completed,
finished and furnished at an estimated expense of $100,000. Dr. Swift was appointed
director, at a handsome salary paid by the founder. This observatory is the finest
private institution of the kind in the world, and is located on the corner of Arnold Park
and East avenue. It is built of Lockport white sandstone, rough ashlar, and is finished
throughout with the rarest native hardwoods. The telescope was made by the Clarkes,
of Cambridge, Mass., is a little over sixteen inches in diameter, twenty-two feet long,
with its mountings weighs over three tons, and cost about $13,000. The fund for its
purchase was raised by Dr. Swift among the public-spirited citizens of Rochester.
The Warner observatory is the only private astronomical observatory in the world
which is open to the public, Mr. Warner being determined that it shall minister pleasure
684 History of the City of Rochester.
and profit to the greatest possible number of people. The Vienna Academy of Sciences
in 1880, having abandoned the giving of medals for cometary discovery, he at once offered
two hundred dollars in gold to any American astromomer who should discover a tele-
scopic, unexpected comet. The prize has been renewed every year since. , In 1882 it
was extended to Great Britain, and in addition thereto one of two hundred dollars in
gold was offered for any meteoric stone containing organic remains, and fifty dollars for
any meteoric stone seen to fall during that yeah In 1881 he offered a prize of $200 for
the best essay on Comets, their Composition, Purpose, and Effect on the Earth. This prize
was won by Dr. Lewis Boss, of the Dudley observatory, Albany, N. Y., and his essay is said
to be the finest monograph extant on the subject of comets. Since the establishment of
the Warner observatory eighteen hundred dollars have been awarded in prizes. For his
distinguished patronage of astronomy, Mr. Warner in 1882 was elected a member of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science, at the Montreal session.
His sympathies move quickly, and his generosity does not lag. He believes in giv-
ing judiciously, and has often said that every dollar properly given away has come back
to him in fourfold measure. He does not give for the public fame, for in countless
ways he illustrates to the full the Scriptural injunction not to allow his left hand to
know what his right hand doeth.
Mr. Warner when he works, works with extraordinary energy. When he rests, he
enters into all diversions with a like zest. He is very fond of fishing and hunting, and
yachting, and spends several weeks of each year on board his handsome steam yacht,
the Siesta, cruising up and down the St. Lawrence and the chain of great lakes. True
to inherited instinct, he is a successful sportsman, and owns as fine a dog kennel as can
be found in the land. In his stables also can always be seen horses of the choicest
blood.
He owns a fine summer residence on one of the Thousand Islands of the St. Law-
rence, and his city residence, on the comer of Goodman street and East avenue, is one
of the most striking houses in the city. It was erected in 1879, of brick and stone, and
with the grounds cost about $150,000. It is sumptuously furnished, its walls being
adorned with many notable paintings, among them several of Henry Mosler's earliest
works — an artist whose genius Mr. Warner discovered and liberally "encouraged"
long before the French government conferred upon him the coveted honor of its patron-
age — the first distinction of the kind conferred on an American artist.
Mr. Warner is a conservative Republican in politics, and though he has never sought
political preferment, he was unanimously elected a delegate to the national Republican
convention which met in Chicago on the 3d of June, 1884. With his customary trait
of doing whatever he attempts on a large and generous scale, he chartered two Pull-
man cars and invited over a hundred of his friends to accompany him to the convention
city, as his personal guests.
He is of a marked domestic habit, and, though connected with many social and fra-
ternal organisations, he finds his greatest pleasure, when the duties of the day are done,
in the pleasant companionship of his family. He is vestryman of St. Paul's Protestant
Episcopal church, and is a generous contributor to all the church enterprises.
December 19th, 1864, Mr. Warner married Miss Martha L. Keeney, of Skaneateles,
Onondaga county, N. Y. She was bom in Auburn, June 18th, 1842, and died Jan.
24th, 1871.
EDWIN PANCOST.
HuLBERT Harrington Warner. — Edwin Pancost. 685
October 29th, 1872, he married Miss Olive Emily Stoddard, in Oneida, N. Y. She
was born in Livingston county, Mich., August loth, 1847, ^"d belongs to a family of
distinction. Her line begins with John of Weathersfield, Conn., who came to America
somewhere between 1630 and 1640. The family includes some of the most distinguished
names in American history and literature, and originated in England, the pioneer ances-
tor going to England with William the Conqueror, and being attached to his court. To
the well-equipped mind, excellent judgment and wise counsels of his wife, Mr. Warner
attributes much of the success which he has won.
Mr. Warner is about six feet one inch high, weighs 250 pounds, is of light complex-
ion, with blue eyes and dark brown hair. He has great physical vigor, and belonging
to a line of long-lived ancestors, bids fair to live to a ripe old age. He is one of the
most thoroughgoing citizens of Rochester, public-spirited, enterprising, charitable —
such a citizen as every city delights to claim and honor.
EDWIN PANCOST. The subject of this sketch was born in Scipio, Cayuga county,
N. Y., on the ist of June, 1812, and died June 22d, 1867, at the age of fifty-five
years. He was the youngest of a family of fourteen children. After spending a por-
tion of his early life at school, feeling a desire to start in. life for himself, he obtained
permission from his parents to leave home. He accordingly went to Auburn, in his
native county, where he was employed in a dry goods store. In 183 1, when he was
nineteen years of age, he came to Rochester, where for a time he served as clerk in the
store of Kempshall & Bush. Three years later (1834) he married the eMest daughter
of the late Oren Sage. He soon after began the boot and shoe business on his own ac-
count. In the following year he formed a copartnership with Mr. Oren Sage who had
been in the same business since 1827. The firm continued as Sage & Pancost until
1856, when E. O. Sage was admitted. Under the name of Sage, Pancost & Co., the
firm did business until i860, when Oren Sage retired and Wm. N. Sage was admitted.
This partnership, under the name of Pancost, Sage & Co., continued until the death of
Mr. Pancost in 1867. The firm was for some years one of the largest manufacturers
of boots and shoes in the country.
Mr. Pancost always occupied a conspicuous position among the prominent business
men, and in the social and official circles of the city. Though never seeking political
office, he was often entrusted with positions of responsibility, where his strict business
habits and well known integrity rendered him especially useful. He was elected alder-
man of the first ward for two years, and held the office of school commissioner one or
two terms. Always foremost in promoting the cause of education, he was made a mem-
ber of the board of trustees of the Rochester university from its first establishment.
He also evinced a deep and practical interest in the Theological seminary. He was a
trustee of the Monroe County savings bank, a director of the First National bank of Roch-
ester, and a prominent member of the board of trade. These institutions united in pay-
ing tribute to Mr. Pancost's worth in appropriate resolutions passed after his death. He
was for many years a member of the First Baptist church, in which he held the offices
of deacon and trustee ; he was also superintendent of the Sabbath-school for seven years.
It was said of Mr. Pancost by one who knew him well, that an indomitable will
was a prominent characteristic of his life. He was an independent thinker, and when
686 History of the City of Rochester.
he had once reached a conclusion, it was difficult to turn him from the purpose he had
formed. His mind was clear, comprehensive and well-balanced, and he was in the
habit of cultivating it by constant and critical study. Mr. Pancost's benevolence was
earnest, practical and discriminating, and his benefactions were both large and well
bestowed, while they were so modestly made that few were aware of their extent. His
Christian character and perfect uprightness pervaded all the acts of his life, gaining for
him the unqualified respect of the entire community. His life and character were cor-
rectly portrayed by one of the speakers in a meeting of the board of trade after Mr.
Pancost's death, in the following words : " He has perfectly fulfilled the command to be
' fervent in spirit, diligent in business, serving the Lord.' "
JONATHAN CHILD was always unobtrusive; always true to his convictions in
sunshine or storm. He was unaffected by envy ; not dazzled by prosperity; not
demeaned by reverses. He indulged in no man-worship for the exalted, or disdain for
the lowly. He was a self-respecting. Christian man.
These were his personal characteristics. To this may be added — his temper was
genial; his manners courteous ; his presence marked.
Mr. Child was born in Lyme, N. H., January 30th, 1785. Lyme is directly on the
Connecticut river, opposite Thetford, Vt. His father's home was in Thetford, but own-
ing, and temporarily occupying, a farm in Lyme, Mr. Child there first saw the light,
surrounded by the bears and wolves. His early life was spent in Thetford, upon a
charming plateau ; upon the foot hills of the White Mountains; 1,500 feet above the
sea. He was prepared for Dartmouth college, at Hanover, an adjoining town in New
Hampshire, but, owing to a fracture of his knee, severely painful and slow of recovery,
his expectations of a college education were relinquished. When he was twenty-one
years old, in accordance with the then New England custom, his father gave him a saddle-
horse and one hundred dollars, and, thus equipped, he started westerly to make his way
through life. He reached Utica, N. Y. ; secured a position as school teacher ; sold his
horse, and remitted to his father the proceeds with the one hundred dollars given him,
and thus began his career, feeling unshackled with that slight pecuniary obligation.
This self-reliance was in his blood. It was, perhaps unconsciously, a part of his
muscle. Wendell Phillips says that a despised opinion of 1620 was soon a precedent;
then a statute; ended by being incorporated into the blood, bones, minds and souls of
the babies.
His New England parentage was pure and his lineage wholly Puritan. His ances-
tors were among the English emigrants to America, under Governor Winthrop, in 1630
— ten years after the Pilgrim fathers. The historical record is: " In 1630, about three
hundred of tlie best Puritan families came to New England. They were virtuous, well
educated, courageous men and women, who left comfortable homes with no expectations
of returning." Among them were General Grant's ancestors. Among them, too, was
listed as a passenger Oliver Cromwell. The English government prevented his de-
parture. It was providential. He remained to cut off the head of Charles I., a tyrant.
Both New and Old England were then doing duty in advancing liberty. The one
by creating a state with civil and religious freedom ; the other — by wielding a heads-
man's axe.
Jonathan Child. — Wh^liam Henry Gorsline. 687
Peaceful farmers in New England, Mr. Child's ancestors yet obeyed all calls which
summoned thera to war. When trouble came, they shouldered their flint-locks, and in
King Philip's and other Indian massacres, protected their homes as became Christian
braves, and then quickly returned to their cornfields.
In the battle of Lexington twenty-two of the family, whose names and memories are
honored by their descendants, fought and bled in driving back the British slayers.
The grandfather of Jonathan Child, his namesake, gave himself and eight sons.
Green Mountain boys, during the revolution, as patriot soldiers. He fought at Ben-
nington, at Bunker Hill, in Pennsylvania, in New York, at Lake Champlain, there re-
sisting the same red coats with whom he was an ally in 1755, at Quebec, when he, hold-
ing the commission of King George IL as a British officer, fought the French when
Montgomery and Montcalm fell. At the close of the revolutionary war, with, liberty
won, he returned to his Vermont home, bearing a colonel's commission in the patriot army.
Such were the progenitors of Jonathan Child. As for himself, he served his country
during the war of 1812, and was in the engagement at Fort Erie, the most sanguinary
battle fought on this continent prior to the rebellion.
Mr. Child moved to West Bloomfield, Ontario county, from Utica, and while
there was twice elected member of Assembly — in 1816 and '17. He, for a while, was
in business at Charlotte, the mouth of the Genesee, shipping produce to Mlontreal,
and was there poistmaster. In 1820, he removed to Rochester which thenceforward
was his home. He was a merchant, forwarder, and contractor. He constructed the
first locks on the Erie canal at Lockport. In 1834, when Rochester became a city, he
was its first mayor. During the second year of his mayoralty, disagreeing with the
common council on the propriety of giving licenses to sell intoxicating liquors, he re-
signed his office, although the board offered to relieve him from the necessity of signing
them by appointing a special officer for that purpose. He declined to accept the favor,
thinking it an evasion of his official duties, and an indirect way of countenancing and
effecting what his judgment disapproved, yet avoiding the responsibility.
As to his domestic life, he married a daughter of Colonel Nathaniel Rochester, one
of the founders of the city. Tlieir married life continued, until severed by death, for
over thirty years. His own death occurred October 27th, i860. "As he was closing
his eyes in death he heard of the successful election in Pennsylvania which gave assur-
ance of the election of Mr. Lincoln to the presidency, and then, as if spiritual prescience
w;us illuminating his last moments, he thanked God that slavery would die."
Such are a few outlines of a good man's useful career. Jonathan Child was a val-
uable citizen; respected by the community; beloved by his family and. friends.
WILLIAM HENRY GORSLINE, a well known contracting builder and business
man of Rochester, was born in that city on the 12th of July, 1829. Richard
Gorsline, his father, who was of French extraction, resided for some years at East Bloom-
field, whence he removed to Rochester in 1816. He was a builder by profession, and
many substantial and costly specimens of his work, still standing, testify of his genius
and skill. The ponderous stone aqueduct which crosses the Genesee river, reviving, by
its solid masonry and graceful arches, recollections of old time bridges over more classic
streams, was built by him, He was a typical specimen of the race from which he
688 History of the City of Rochester.
sprang, being sprightly and vivacious, and possessing the artistic temperament in a
marked degree, as well as a fine physique and great capacity for hard work. He lived
to a good old age, dying in 1870, and was survived by his wife, whose maiden name
was Aurelia Rice, about seven years. For some years preceding his death he was a dea-
con in Dr. Shaw's Presbyterian church in Rochester, and his name heads those inscribed
on the memorial slab to the founders of that edifice. William Henry Gorsline, the sub-
ject of this sketch, was brought up and educated in his native place. The school he
attended was presided over by one of those fiery-tempered village pedagogues, now,
fortunately, less frequently found in such responsible positions, who was commonly
known as " old Perry," and who is doubtless remembered with unpleasant associations
by many other citizens of Rochester. " Old Perry " was much more given to flogging
than to education, and, his harshness growing unendurable, young Gorsline abandoned
the school at the age of fourteen years, and associated himself with his father, then bus-
ily engaged in prosecuting his profession. With him he obtained the most excellent
training to which he could have been subjected; for, besides being a willing and active
boy, he inherited his parent's taste for everything pertaining to architecture and build-
ing. On attaining to manhood he became invested with responsibility as his father's
trusted associate, and acquitted himself with credit both to himself and his industrious
and painstaking parent. As he became older he became intensely interested in munici-
pal affairs, and engaged in politics with all the warmth of an enthusiastic nature. After
some little experience, his fellowrcitizens, who readily appreciated his capacity for public
business, nominated him for alderman of the city. His election followed, and he served
one term, at the close of which, feeling that he had discharged his share of public duty,
he devoted himself exclusively to business pursuits. Mr. Gorsline's acknowledged ex-
cellence in his business has naturally led to his being intrusted with the construction of
many important buildings, — both public and private ; and it may be said that the large
number of the fine structures, for which the city of Rochester is famous, have been
erected by him. Among the most noteworthy of these are the University of Rochester,
the Rochester Theological seminary, Rockerfeller hall, the High school, tiie City hall,
the Arsenal, the Rochester savings bank, Powers commercial building. Powers Hotel,
Warner's fire-proof building (one of the finest in the city, which was built in six months),
the Cunningham carriage factory, the First Presbyterian church, the Central church, the
Brick church (Dr. Shaw's) and the Jewish synagogue. Besides these, Mr. Gorsline has
constructed many large blocks of buildings devoted solely to business purposes, and a
number of the most magnificent private residences in the city. 'I'o give an idea of the
magnitude of the operations in which Mr. Gorsline has been engaged, reference need
only be made to some of the principal buildings he has constructed. Probably foremost
among them stands Powers commercial building, situated in the very heart of Roches-
ter's business district. This structure is said to be unsurpassed, either in magnitude,
convenience, or elegance, by any similar edifice in this country. Quadrangular in shape,
it has a total frontage of over five hundred feet, and is eight stories in height, exclusive
of the basement, with a French roof of tile and slate twenty-five feet high, above which
rises a tower for sixty feet,- averaging thirty feet long by twenty-four feet wide. The
structure is fire-proof throughout, and so perfectly secure that no insurance has ever been
deemed necessary. The ground flopr of this edifice is occupied by Powers banking
house and fifteen spacious stores, while' the upper parts contain about two hundred and
I'linli 13/ K.nu. r'.oe.53'.f?i:, ir '/.
AtUnlic FiibksliLiig SiEugra-viri^ Co. N Y^
William Henry Gorsline. 689
fifty rooms. Everything demanded by the most improved systems of modern comfort
are combined in this building, including, of course, thorough ventilation, steam-heating
apparatus, and water facilities in every apartment, and two steam elevators. Constructed
on the tubular plan, every room in the edifice is amply hghted from without; while the
halls and corridors, paved with Vermont and Italian marble and wainscoted with the
latter, are airy, spacious, and elegant. The basement, which is furnished in keeping with
the rest of the structure, contains the drums and hoisting apparatus for the elevators,
steam enghie, powerful steam pump for forcing water throughout the entire structure,
eleven steam boilers employed in supplying heat, and all the necessary mechanism for
making changes and repairs in so colossal an establishment. Some idea of the solidity
of the edifice may be gained from the fact that it is calculated to resist a pressure of two
hundred pounds to the .square foot on every floor. More than one-half of the upper
floor of the building is devoted to a superb art gallery. A striking evidence of the con-
fidence reposed in the integrity of Mr. Gorsline is afforded by the fact that all the pay-
ments made by Mr. Powers for his splendid hotel, just completed (which was finished
in eleven months from the day of commencement), passed through his hands. The limits
of a biographical sketch do not permit of a more extended allusion to Mr. Gorsline's
labors. In conclusion, however, it is pertinent to say that each succeeding task in which
he found himself engaged, proved in a still greater, degree his claim to preeminence in
his calhng. Whatever he undertook to accomplish, he entered upon with zeal and pros-
ecuted with all the vigor of an enthusiast. The larger the undertaking the niore it
seemed to develop his capabilities, and, even though sometimes threatened with loss, he
never relaxed his efforts to make his work as perfect as all his great skill and all the mod-
ern appliances and inventions would permit. No confidence reposed in him ever proved
unfounded, and his name has become synonymous, in the city where he has spent his
whole life, with all that is honorable and reliable in business transactions. In 1874 Mr.
Gorsline entered into partnership with Ira L. Otis, a gentleman of Uberal education and
fine business capacity, for the manufacture of salt-glazed pipe. The factory of the con-
cern has become one of the foremost of its kind in the country. The firm now have
four clay mills, two presses and ten kilns for burning pipe, in active operation, the entire
plant occupying a .space of three acres on Oak street. The superior quality of this com-
l)any's manufactures has commended them to general use, and from the company's retail
yard in New York city shipments are now made to all parts of the globe. The annual
product for some time past has averaged about one hundred and fifty miles of pipe yearly.
The success of this enterprise is largely due to the inventive genius of Mr. Gorsline.
From the various facts given in this sketch it can be seen that Mr. Gorsline's life has
been an exceedingly active one, and that his business operations have always been more
or less on a gigantic scale. Yet, despite the wear and tear imposed by the important
undertakings and enterprises to which he has devoted his life, his energy is in no way
abated and his activity promises much more in the future. Unlike many upon whom
fortune has smiled, he does not allow his heart to become hardened by success and
wealth, and vanity finds no place in his nature. With cordial respect for every deserv-
ing fellow-being, and an active .sense of justice to all, he is rarely met in any other than
an agreeable mood, and his face is seldom without the smile that comes of a goofd con-
science, and a contented mind. His well known reliability, industry, and thorough prac-
tical knowledge of his profession, place him in the front rank among the first-class busi-
690 History of the City of Rochester.
ness men of Rochester. Mr. Gorsline is a trustee of the Brick church, of which the
Rev. Dr. Shawls pastor. His domestic relations are exceedingly happy, and he has
the proud satisfaction of seeing a family of five promising sons growing up around him,
the eldest of whom, named Russell, is a youth of 20 years. The other sons are Walter,
Ralph, William Henry, and Richard aged, respectively, 18, 17, 6, and 4 years.
ABELARD REYNOLDS. It has been well said that "to write the history of Abel-
ard Reynolds is to write the history of Rochester." He came to the place when
no building marked its site, other than one log hut on the west bank of the river, and
here his long and useful life was passed, until thfe great busy city took the place of the
woodman's clearing.
Abelard Reynolds was born October 2d, 1785, at a place called Quaker Hill, near
Red Hook, Duchess county, N. Y. His father was a saddler by trade, and the son was
apprenticed to the same vocation. The family hved successively at Stringer's Patent, in
New York, and at Groton, Montville, and Windsor, Conn. When Abelard reached his
twentieth year he was given the remaining year of his apprenticeship by his father, and
he went to Manchester, Vt. Here he worked at his trade until he accumulated his first
hundred dollars. Returning home he found his father- in pecuniary difficulty, which he
at once assumed and also purchased a farm and began the saddler's business on his own
account, at Washington, Berkshire county, Mass. He removed from there to Pitttsfiekl,
where, on the ist of October, 1809, he was married to Lydia Strong, with whom he was
permitted to enjoy a wedded life of seventy years.
In the fall of 181 1 Mr. Reynolds determined to make a western tour of observation,
with a view to subsequent permanent removal. He loaded a one-horse wagon with
saddlery ware, and traveled through Lowville, Watertown, Brownsville, and to Sackett's
Harbor, but returned to Pittsfield without having satisfied himself as to a place for per-
manent settlement. He started again, however, upon a still more extended tour through
Western New York, Northern Pennsylvania, to Warren, Ohio, to which place he was
strongly attracted. He returned to Pittsfield, and on the 6th of April, 181 2, again
started westward with the intention of making Warren his future home. He came
through Rome, Manlius, Skaneateles, Geneva and Canaiidaigua, and halted at Bloom-
field, where he was informed of the bright prospects of Charlotte. He immediately
started for that place. At " the falls " he met Enos Stone, one of the pioneers of Roch-
ester, of whom he learned of the purchase of 100 acres of land by Messrs. Rochester,
Carroll and Fitzhugh, who had laid out the tract in lots and offered it for sale. Mr.
Stone was their agent. After thorough examination of the distinctive features of Char-
lotte and Rochester, and comparison of them with his impressions of Warren, he finally
decided in favor of Rochester and immediately purchased lots 23 and 24 (the site of
the Arcade) and erected the first frame house on the " loo-acre tract." In August of
the same year (181 2) Mr. Reynolds returned to Pittsfield, disposed of his interest there
and arranged for permanent removal to his new home. While absent he was appointed
the first postmaster of the village, holding the office eighteen years.
In February, 1813, he removed his family to the litde hamlet and soon after opened
his dwelling as a public house, the first in the place. Mr. Reynolds Hved in the dwell-
ing on the Arcade site until 18 17, when he removed to a hou.se which he had built on
Abelard Reynolds. 691
the corner of Buffalo and Sophia streets, having leased the " tavern" to a Mr. Skinner. In
the spring of 1819, the lease having expired, he returned to his first dwelling, where he
remained two years, and then removed to a house that stood on the site of the pres-
ent city hall. There he lived but one year, returning to his own house on Buffalo
street, where he remained until he removed to his farm in the western part of the
city, in 1836. In 1828 he erected the Arcade then the. largest and most expensive
building in the United States west of Albany. In 1838 he purchased a house on North
Sophia street, where he lived until 1847, when he occupied his residence on South Fitz-
hugh street. There he died on Thursday, December igthj 1878, aged ninety-three years.
Such is a brief review of the business and domestic incidents in the life of Abelard
Reynolds. In this place little more can be said of him. He was a Whig and Repub-
lican in politics, but never sought political preferment, only twice consenting to the use
of his name for public office. He was member of Assembly in 1827 and represented
the first ward in the board of aldermen in 1838. He was one of the founders of the
Athenaeum — Rochester's first public library — and furnished a room specially for the
library when the Arcade was erected. He was for nearly sixty years a member of the
Masonic order, in which he always exhibited a deep interest and warm pride. He
passed through the various grades of the order and in 1854, when a member of Monroe
commandery, Knights Templar, he was exalted to the high office of Prelate, which he
administered for more than twenty years. It was said of him, at the time of his death,
that he had " probably received more templars at the altar than any other prelate in the
United States."
Mr. Reynolds was a man of public spirit and identified himself unselfishly with ev-
ery measure having for its object tlie growth and welfare of Rochester, while his char-
acter was broadly founded upon principles of justice, probity, benevolence and kindness.
Six children were born of this marriage already alluded to, four of whom only reached
maturity. William A. the eldest, was born at Pittsfield; Mortimer F. (the first white
child born in Rochester) ; Clarrissa R., who married Dr. Henry Strong, of CoUinsville,
111., and Mary E., who married B. D. McAlpine, of Rochester. Of these children, only
Mortimer F. is now living of whom mention is made below.
It is eminently proper to make personal reference to the wife of Abelard Reynolds,
who was born in Pittsfield, Mass., September 23d, 1784, and still survives at the great
age of one hundred years. For a period longer than the lives of most people, she shared
her husband's labors, his trials and his success, and has witnessed the entire growth of
Rochester from its first beginning. Their wedded life was one long season of mutual
love and helpfulness. In his own language, " She' has well performed her share of the
burdens which devolved upon us, as a helpmeet.'' Her children and her home were
her world, and to the rearing of the one and the beautifying and making hospitable the
other, she ever gave her unselfish devotion. The following beautiful allusion was made
to Mrs. Reynolds by Chas. E. Fitch in his address at the celebration of Rochester's
semi-centennial ; —
" Mrs. Abelard Reynolds came to Rochester, a young wife and mother, to share in the toils of the
frontier settlement, and to rear her family in ' the nurture and admonition of the Lord.' What pano-
rama of dissolving woods', of opening thoroughfares, of artificial water-ways, of iron fingers with
friendly clasp of distant communities, of ascending walls enshrining peaceful homes or uplifting dome
and tower and steeple, of hammers swinging and wheels revolving, of varied industries unfolding and
expanding, of hospitals and asylums evoked by the gentle genius of charity, of the confident tread of
692 History of the City of Rochester.
the sons pressing upon the tottering steps of the fathers, has passed before her eyes. Mother in
Israel ! we greet thee, to-day, with reverence and love, grateful that thou hast been spared to witness
all these wonders, and earnestly imploring that upon the rounded cycle of thy hundred years, now
so near its consummation, health and peace and mercy may descend in benediction. "
WILLIAM ABELARD REYNOLDS, eldest son of Abelard and Lydia Reynolds,
was born in Pittsfield, Mass., September 2d, i8io, came to Rochesterville with
his parents in February, 18 13, as above noted. When about six years old he met
with an accident, which rendered him a lifelong cripple, necessitating his use of a
crutch. He was educated first at the Mid^lebury academy, Wyoming county, and
after\vard at the academy in Geneseo where he finished his education. His first business
enterprise (aside from assistance rendered his father in the post-office) was in the seed
trade, in connection with M. B. Bateham. This business was soon extended by the ad-
dition of green-houses and nurseries, and formed the nucleus of the now gigantic nurse-
ries of Elhvanger & Barry, who were in Mr. Reynolds's employ and to whom he trans-
ferred the business, and of the world-renowned seed house of Hiram Sibley & Co.
From 1838 to 1845 Mr. Reynolds had the management of the large Livingston
flouring mills in Penfield, near Rochester.
January 12th, 1841, he was married to Sophia Clark, of Penfield, whose death oc-
curred about fifteen months later. She was a woman of excellent traits of character,
and her death was a blow which left upon him a lifelong impression. He was never
afterward married.
In 1845 he assumed control and management of the Arcade, built by his father in
1829. This property was greatly enlarged and improved by him, and it continued in
his hands until his death. " The Arcade stands to-day a fitting monument to the far-
seeing judgment of his father in its erection and to the liberal and untiring industry of
the son in his judicious and unstinted expenditures in its completion."
In 1848 he erected the Corinthian hall, which he managed many years, until his
duties became so onerous that he felt compelled to dispose of it.
Mr. Reynolds was, as far as Rochester is concerned, a public man, although he never
sought and seldom accepted station of any kind, except as he felt that by identification
with various institutions and enterprises, he could promote the general welfare of the
city. He was for three years a member of the common council and was a delegate to
the last constitutional convention (1867). He was for many years a trustee of the
Rochester savings bank and its president when he died. He was president of the board
of managers of the Western House of Refuge. He was president and trustee, and one
of the foremost patrons of the Athenaeum and Mechanics' association, an institution in
which he always felt pride and deep interest. With a few others he organised the West-
ern New York Agricultural society, which held its annual fairs in Rochester. He was
also a trustee of the Rochester university and was a liberal supporter of the public
library, while all worthy charities received his countenance and generous aid.
Mr. Reynolds died on the 12th of January, 1872, aged sixty-one years. The event
was mourned by the community at large, and local societies and institutions, some of
which have been mentioned, united in spontaneous tributes of respect to his memory,
through resolutions of eulogy.
William Abelard Reynolds. 693
It will, perhaps, more fully delineate Mr. Reynolds's character to quote briefly from
the remarks made by President Anderson of Rochester university at the funeral ; —
" He was a lender, constant and faithful son. Indeed, he may be said to have spent his life in
caring for the wants and watching over the happiness of these venerable and aged parents. Surely
never a parent's l)lessing crowned with its priceless garland the head of a more exemplary son.
" lie W.1S an eminently faithful man in the discharge of all liis obligations. Whatever duties arose
out of his relations to his fellow-men, or were voluntarily assumed l^y him, never failed of perfor'mance.
This promi>tness and fidelity in the expenditure of time, or thought, or physical .strength, were a part
of his nature, and were hardened into habits of life by the action of a steady and unwavering will.
Whatever he promised to do was done well and done promptly and thoroughly.
" He was honest and fair in all his business transactions. Few men had better illustrated the
sound maxim of morals and economy combined, that no bargain is in the broadest and highest sense a
good one, which is not beneficial to all the parties concerned. His numerous tenants became his per-
sonal friends. If they were young or inexperienced he gave counsel, encouragement, patronage and
aid. IIow many objects of charity have received his bounty as the landlord of Corinthian hall ! In
all moneyed transactions, in all public trusts, he retained through life the unbounded confidence of this
entire community. '
" He was preeminently a gentleman in his social relations, and in his intercourse with all classes of
men. With him courtesy took on the value and dignity of a Christian virtue. It was not that super-
ficial varnish of word and manner which often conceal a mean spirit and a hard and vulgar nature,
llis bearing among men was the natural outgrowth of a benevolent heart and a sincere respect for the
rights and feelings of all, without regard to rank or social position. He was endowed with that broad
good sense, quick syin])atliy and delicacy of apprehension which enabled him to say the right word at
the right time, and do the right act in the right place. I have never known a truer gentleman than he.
"He was an eminently public-spirited man. I remember to have remarked on some former occasion,
that our city was fortunate in the character of the formative forces of its early civil and social life.
Take away from Rochester what has resulted from the benevolent feeling, Christian principle and un-
paid labor of its public-spirited pioneers, and how morally meagre would be the residue. Among
those who have done work for our city, with no motive but the public good, with no reward but the
consciousness of duty performed, we can hardly find a brighter record than that of our departed friend.
It seems to me that the noble body of men who, up to this time, have given commercial credit, moral
tone and an honorable reputation to our city is fast passing away. There are gathered around this
cofRn to-day those men in whose hands must lie the well-being of our beautiful city in these coming
years. All may not have hi.s capacity to plan and execute for the public good, but all may emulate
the simplicity of his aims and the purity of his motives.
"All these virtues of the man seemed to me to spring from deep-rooted moral convictions and
Christian feeling. Of his personal religious life I have little knowledge, but I have learned that the
spirit of Christianity is most clearly shown in the love and service of our fellow-men. All sin is in-
volved in the control of the character by selfishness, in the disposition to make all social, civil and per-
sonal relations subservient to lust or avarice, ambition or love of power. Too often this selfishness
describes the ' course of this world,' and the life of men. The aim of Christ is to reverse all this —
so to change the current of the moral life, that, spontaneously, the citizen shall serve the city, the
Christian the church ; that the learned shall serve the ignorant, the rich shall serve the poor ; that
the strong shall serve the weak, that the good shall serve the bad. For many years our friend has
been in your homes and streets, and every day, like all of us, has been tried by this test. How he has
passed this trial you all know. The verdict of this community is expressed in the spontaneous utter-
ances of affection and respect which are springing from every heart and dwelling on every tongue."
The above remarks of President Anderson are not only a just estimate of, but a
deserved tribute to the character of Mr. Reynolds, and picture the man as he was so
well known in the community where he spent his life. In closing a lengthy obituary to
Mr. Reynolds, the editor of the Rochester Democrat (f Chronicle wrote as follows : —
" Mr. Reynolds was a man of extraordinary executive ability. This quality showed itself in every
enterprise to which he gave his attention. It was this which made him the real head of every public as
well as private undertaking to which his mind was directed. He was a man who worked. He was
694 History of the City of Rochester.
incapable of indifference upon any subject when it had once excited his interest. He gave the most
patient attention to every detail. A man of such qualities is rare, and his importance to a young and
growing community cannot be exaggerated. But, however closely Mr. Reynolds gave his attention
to business undertakings and however much his mind was burdened with the cares of public oflices, he
found time to advance the moral and intellectual interests of the city. lie was active in all reforms
and emphatically in our educational institutions. His death is a public loss."
The Union fir* Advertiser gave him, in the course of its lengthy tribute, the following
high praise : —
" Mr. Reynolds, perhaps as much as any other man, has been closely identified with the career of
Rochester, and during his lifetime had as much influence in shaping her affairs as any citizen. The
decease of Mr. Reynolds is indeed a public calamity and will be so regarded by all."
MORTIMER F. REYNOLDS. On the 2d of December, 1814, there was born, in
the narrow " clearing '' that skirted the ford of the Genesee river, the first child
of white parents to see the light upon that " Hundred-Acre Tract " which was the primi-
tive site of the present city of Rochester. Perhaps in no manner could the amazing de-
velopment of that infant community be brought home so effectively to the apprehen-
sion of a denizen of the old world, as by the statement of the concrete fact that the
earliest offspring of that colony, having seen in twenty years its incorporation as a city,
finds himself now, while still in splendid vigor, surrounded by a population of more than
a hundred thousand souls. The emphasis of this fact might, however, be heightened
by the further circumstance, that his mother also survives to see the wilderness rejoicing
and blossoming as the rose.
Of individuals it may be said, as it has been of nations, that that one is happy that
has no history. An uneventful, orderly and peaceful life has been this one, coeval
hitherto with that of the community in which it began. A struggling infancy, subject to all
the hardships and limitations of a raw and poor society, was followed by a maturity of
hard and successful labor, and that in turn by intelligent and not indolent repose in the
enjoyment of the accumulations of a life-time. The story of Abelard Reynolds has al-
ready been told in these pages. That he, of whom we speak, was the son of Abelard
and the younger brother of William is that which, more than anything else in his life,
would seem to him vi^orthy of record.
Mortimer Fabricius Reynolds was the name given, for family reasons, to the first-
born of this backwoods settlement. To say that the young child's boyhood was dili-
gently trained at home and in such schools as were accessible, would only be to reiterate
the averment of the Puritan New England origin of his parents. Beyond this not inuch
could be added, but that for thirty years of mature life the man engaged in active com-
merce in his native city. Withdrawing in 1872, with a competency, from the business
in which he had acquired it, he devoted himself thenceforth to the assistance of his
venerable father in the management of the large estate left by his elder brother, and
which not long afterward devolved almost entirely upon him. But during all this time
the interests of the city which had grown up with him engaged his constant observation
and his active aid. In many corporate and charitable trusts, in the promotion of public
improvements, and in the exercise of that private virtue which bears the name of " pub-
lic spirit," the time and the means of Mr. Reynolds have been liberally expended. But
it is with a foundation but just now laid, upon which is to rise in the future an institu-
tion more beneficent, perhaps, than all others established here by private liberality, that
he has chosen to link his name and that of his family.
r
^^^^.,,
R \ "~"
.
hb^9
jflj
^^Hi^n^^l
i'^B
i
^
\
> s^.
_-
Ar' i/ y/'9//,<//i San^.-yr--. n ',■
Mortimer F. Reynolds.^- ArI-hur G. Vates. 6I9S
The large estate which had grown out of the purchase of village lots by Abelard
Reynolds in i8i2 had descended to his son, the sole Survivor of the father's six children ;
the sole descendant, himself childless, who bore the family name of which he was justly
proud. Before him father and elder brother had, from the beginning, interested them-
selves profoundly in the intellectual and moral advancement of the community in which
they lived. The subject of this sketch determined, therefore, to establish with that
estate an enduring memorial of his family, which should also be a perpetual benefaction
to the city. In order, therefore, that there might be a body competent, when the time
shall come, to receive and. administer such a trust, the legislature of 1882 was applied
to for a suitable charter.
It is not agreeable to recall the criticism which met this disclosure of Mr. Reynolds's
purpose, upon the publication of the bill. This work is not devoted to disparagement
of the people of Rochester, or of any part of them. It is enough, therefore, to say that
the bill, as signed by the governor, was such in its terms as to be unanimously rejected
by those named in it as trustees. In 1884, however, there was passed "An Act to in-
corporate the Reynolds Library,'' which is chapter 9 of the laws of that year. It declared
the purposes of the corporation which it created to be " to establish and maintain a
public library and reading-room," and " to promote the mental improvement of the in-
habitants of the city of Rochester by means of lectures, discussions, courses of instruc-
tion, collections of objects of art and science, and other suitable means."
To this body Mr. Reynolds at once turned over a collection of some 12,000 vol-
umes, which, at liis own cost, he had some years before rescued from the wreck of the
old "Athenaeum" which his father and brother had so liberally and efficiently sustained,
as a nucleus for the far greater collection which must grow up around it. And it is
publicly announced that he has made such disposition that, at his death, the splendid
estate known as the " Arcade " and the " East Arcade," together with his superb home-
stead and its adjoining grounds on Spring street, will pass to the Reynolds Library for
its perpetual endowment.
Thus, as it was said of another that Providence denied him children that a nation
might call him father, it might, with slight change, be written of the first-born child of
the new city. And when the stately figure of the last surviving child of the pioneer
Abelard Reynolds shall be no more seen upon the streets of Rochester, a grateful city
will perpetuate the memory of the extinct race.
ARTHUR G. YATES, the subject of this sketch, was born at Factory ville (now
East Waverly, N. Y.), December i8th, 1843. He is the second son of Judge Ar- '
thur Yates and grandson of WiUiam Yates, M.D., who was born at Sapperton, near
Burton-pn-Trent, England, 1767. He studied medicine but never practiced it. Being
the eldest son, he inherited a large estate with the title of baronet. His marked char-
acteristics were great benevolence. He erected and conducted at his own expense an
insane asylum for paupers at Burton-on-Trent, for treating the insane upon the humane
plan, and he is spoken of in his biography as a great philanthropist. He was a cousin
of Sir Robert Peel, the statesman, and John Howard, the philanthropist. He sailed,
for Philadelphia in 1799 and was the first to introduce vaccination in America, expend-
ing much time and money to introduce this great boon to humanity. The following
year he returned to England, and then again returned to America, and from Phila-
696 History of the City of Rochester.
delphia ascended the Susquehanna valley with Judge Cooper, General Morris and Judge
Franchot. He met a daughter of one of the leading settlers of the Butternuts valley,
married her, and immediately sailed for England. After two years' absence he returned
to America. After having disposed of Sapperton to his brother Harry, he purchased a
large estate in Butternuts (now the town of Morris), Otsego county, N. Y., and during
his life he disposed of a large fortune to carry out his benevolent ideas. He died in
his ninetieth year greatly respected and widely known as a great philanthropist.
Judge Arthur Yates was his eldest son, born in Butternuts, Otsego county, N. Y.,
February 7th, 1807. He obtained his education in the common schools, and in 1832
left Otsego county and settled in Factoryville (now East Waverly, N. Y.), where he en-
gaged in the mercantile and lumber business, which he continued extensively for thirty
years, doing much to build up and beautify the present village of Waverly. He was
appointed by the governor judge of Tioga county in 1838. All his life he was prom-
inently identified with the church, school, and banking interests. In January, 1836, he
was married to Jerusha, daughter of Zeba Washbon of Otsego county, and died in
1880, widely known and greatly respected. He had seven children, the fourth of whom
was Arthur G. Yates. He obtained his education principally in his native town and
finished it in various academic institutions.
In March, 1865, at twenty-two years of age, he came to Rochester to accept a
position with the Anthracite Coal association. Two years later he engaged in the
coal business on his own account, continuing it at the present time, developing it to a
remarkable degree — his personal anthracite coal business extending over all the Northern
and Western states and Canadas and aggregating over 350,000 tons annually ; while
the shipping interests at Charlotte are now being developed by the immense shipping
docks recently erected by him, making Rochester headquarters for the distribution of
vast quantities of coal.
In 1876 the firm of Bell, Lewis & Yates, of which he is a member, was formed for
the purpose of mining and shipping bituminous coal. Their success has been remark-
able, the tonnage having reached 650,000 tons or more, annually. He is a director in
the Bank of Monroe, trustee of the Mechanics' savings bank, and for many years a
warden of St. Paul's church, and is a director in various coal and other companies and
interests outside of the state.
He has never accepted poHtical office, but prefers to give his undivided attention to his
large and increasing business interests. Mr. Yates is high principled and honorable in
all his dealings, and is in the broadest sense one of the most honorable and foremost of
the business men of Rochester. Having developed the coal trade in so few years to
such enormous proportions, he has, at the same time, acquired a reptutation most en-
viable as a man of ability and integrity.
He was married December 26th, 1866, to Jennie L. Holden, daughter of Roswell
Holden, esq., of Watkins, N. Y. They have had six children, Frederick W., Harry,
Florence, Arthur (deceased), Howard L. (deceased), and Russell P.
THE MUMFORD FAMILY. The Mumford family was of English extraction.
Thomas Mumford, of South Kingston, R. I., emigrated to this country about 1650.
The family afterward settled in New London and Groton, Conn. In 1758 David Mum-
ford, the grandson of Thomas, married Rebecca Saltonstall, granddaughter of Gover-
The Mumford Family. 697
nor Saltonstall and great granddaughter of Governor Thomas Dudley, of Connecticut.
The sixth child of this marriage was Thomas Mumford, the father of William Woolsey,
and George Huntington Mumford.
David Mumford was one of a family of six sons, mentioned in the accounts of
that locality as distinguished for their size, being of the average height of six feet, or
according to familiar report, " thirty-six feet of Mumford in one family." Early in
the disputes between America and the mother country this family took a decided
stand in favor of the claims of the colonies, and prior to and during the revolution-
ary war, were prominent and enthusiastic in their assertion of these claims. It is
related that shortly after the commencement of the revolution, the Rev. Mr. Graves, the
rector of the Episcopal church at New London, had been respectfully requested to de-
sist from reading that portion of the liturgy containing the prayers for the king and royal
family ; " but with this request," the chronicle goes on to state, " he declared' that he
"could not conscientiously comply. It was then intimated to him that if he persisted,
it was at his peril, and he must abide the consequences. Accordingly the next Sunday
a determined party of whigs stationed themselves near the door with one in the porch to
keep his hand on the bell-rope, and as soon as the minister began the obnoxious prayer,
the bell sounded and the throng rushed into the house. They were led by the broth-
ers Thomas and David Mumford, both men of commanding aspect and powerful frame,
who ascended the pulpit stairs and taking each an arm of the minister, brought him
expeditiously to the level of the floor." The account, however, goes on to relate how
he was rescued by two " resolute matrons" who protected him from violence and es-
corted him to a place of safety.
The name of Thomas, son of the David here referred to, apears in the list of alumni
of Yale college as a member of the class of 1790. • In January, 1795, he was married
to Mary Sheldon Smith and shortly thereafter moved from Connecticut, and established
himself at Cayuga Bridge at the head of Cayuga lake, in this state, where he continued
to reside during the remainder of his life. Here were born in November, 1795, William
Woolsey, and in July, 1805, George Huntington.
William Woolsev Mumford was prepared for college at Utica and graduated at
Yale in the class of 18 14, numbering among his classmates and friends Samuel B. Rug-
gles, Daniel Lord and others who afterward became conspicuous in various professions.
He studied law at Litchfield, then the most prominent law school of the country, and
about 1818 established himself at Rochester in the practice of his profession. He became
extensively interested in real estate, and either as owner or agent of his father, controlled
a large amount of land adjoining the Genesee river, on the west side, and particularly
in that portion of the city which was for many years known as Frankfort. To the im-
provement of this real estate and the advancement of the growth of the city he devoted
his time and means. About 1828 he erected on South St. Paul street the first brick block
for residences of any considerable size constructed in the city, and resided in one of these
houses to the time of his death. For many years in partnership with Mr. Frederick Whit-
tlesey, the firm of Mumford & Whittlesey conducted an extensive law business through
this portion of the state. He was one of the directors of the old Bank of Rochester ;
was deeply interested in educational matters and was instrumental in organising the old
High School, and for many years one of its trustees. About 1830 he retired from active
practice of the law and devoted himself principally to the care of his real estate. During
this time he was extensively engaged in milling, particularly in the villages of Mumford
698 History of the City of Rochester.
and Lima. During a life of thirty years here he was a witness of the marvelous growth
of the town — a. growth, in fact.that far exceeded his most sanguine predictions. He
saw during these years a mere hamlet expand into a city of upwards of 50,000 souls.
He died in January, 1848, at the age of fifty-two years. He \yas twice married and left
three children.
George Huntington Mumford was the fifth child of the family of six. He grew
up at the hospitable old family mansion at Cayuga Bridge, then on the direct line of
travel between Albany and Buffalo, and at which most of the prominent men in the state
were entertained in their journeyings back and forth. At an early age he entered Union
college, from which he graduated in the class of 1824. Soon thereafter he came to Roch-
ester and entered the law office of Mumford & Whittlesey as a student. After his admis-
sion to the bar and the retirement of his elder brother from practice, he formed a business
connection with Mr. Whittlesey, and the firm of Whittlesey & Mumford was for many
years one of the leading law firms in Western New York. He remained in the active
practice of his profession until about the year 1855, when the state of his health induced
him to relinquish it. Few men have commanded confidence, public and private, to a
greater degree than did Mr. Mumford, or more thoroughly deserved it. The various
positions he was called upon to fill, unsolicited by him, and often against his protest,
testify to the confidence reposed in him. Though he studiously avoided public posi-
tions, he was for years a member of the board of supervisors ; for nearly thirty years he
was a trustee of the Rochester savings bank and at times its president and attorney; he
was trustee and president of the Rochester City hospital from its organisation to the time
of his death ; he was director in the old Bank of Monroe, and in the Commercial bank ;
he was one of the originators of the Union bank, a director during its entire existence,
and at one time its financial officer ; he was director and president of the Manufactu-
rer's bank, and the first president of the Trader's bank. In the early history of railroad
construction in this, state he had become interested in the organisation and construction
of the Tonawanda railroad, and after its absorption into the Buffalo & Rochester rail-
road was for many years one of its directors and the secretary of its board. He took a
deep interest in the development of the telegraph system of the country and early
foresaw its value and importance; was identified with the Western Union telegraph
company in its early struggle, and later triumphs, and up to shortly before his death was
one of its directors, and at times an officer. There were few enterprises of a public na-
ture in this locality, during the busy period of his active life, with which he was not
identified, and to which his sound judgment and perfect integrity did not add weight
and character. He was a man of earnest religious convictions, and for many years .senior
warden of Grace church.
Hedied in this city in September 1871, at the age of sixty-six years. His wife, a
daughter of Mr. Truman Hart, of Palmyra, and four children survived him.
AARON ERICKSON was notable among those pioneers whose sturdy industry and
purity of life left durable impress upon the new settlement of Rochester.
For nearly sixty years he. made this city his home and the varied occupations which
engaged him all bore direct relation to productive employments which alone create
human wealth and substance and, in their best forms, supply those natural requirements
which, untrammeled, maintain enlightened civilisation. When such a man passes away.
Aaron Erickson. - 699
the results and influence of his life remain to mold and give pattern to human enterprise
and, too, with that fragrance which arises from the " remembrance of the just."
It is due to the memory of one who tempered the manly and successful resolves of a
strong intellect with the gentler guidings of religious subjection, that the man himself
should not be forgotten, even though his example remains a beacon to those who come
after.
Mr. Erickson was of Scandinavian origin, and a descendant of the historical Swedish
colony which was planted in New Jersey, near Trenton Falls, about the year 1632. In
1626, Gustavus Adolphus, the illustrious king of Sweden, issued his proclamation grant-
ing substantial advantages to colonists. The German war delayed the mission, but it
finally departed, provided with ships and necessaries, and also ministers of the Gospel,
which latter were required by the king, not only to attend to the spiritual needs of the
colonists, but, in the words of the edict, to plant the Cliristian religion amongst the
heathen. The descendants of this colony largely remain along the Delaware to this day.
Mr. Erickson was born at Freehold, N. J., not far from Trenton Falls, directly in sight
of the battle-field of Monmouth, on the 25th of February 1806, and, as it was his pride
to avow, of patriotic revolutionary ancestry. But, honorable and gratifying as was this
birthright, he was permitted to know still greater than this, that the earliest historical
knowledge of tl^^is North American continent was due to the fearless and brave ambition
of his progenitors.
In the year 984, five hundred years before Columbus set foot upon San Salvador, the
Norsemen, under the leadership of Eric, with the stars for guidance, discovered New-
foundland ; and, in the year 1000, Leif Eric-son, son of Eric, sailed westerly into the Sea
of Darkness, as the Atlantic was called, and, coasting, discovered this continent, landing
near Fall River, Mass.; and, in the year 1002, Thorwald Ericson, brother of Leif
sailed to Fall River, remained three years, was killed, and, an inteUigent fancy suggests,
it was his skeleton in armor, discovered in 1832, that was the foundation of Longfellow's
poem. This is a record which. inspires justifiable pride in a genealogical history both
remote and distinguished, and the story, too, that of bold discovery attained by the high-
est exhibition of human daring.
This inherited trait of resolute purpose marked Mr. Erickson's successful life. He
came to Rochester in 1823, when seventeen years old, poor and indomitable. First a
superior iron-worker, possessing a versatility of adaptation to the various demands in his
toil, so needed in new communities, and always marking a skillful from an inefficient
worker, he then engaged in the wool business, and not content with merely buying and
selling, he acquired such knowledge of the trade of the world in wool; of its annual
supply ; of the effects of tariffs ; of British prohibition of exportation ; and other dis-
turbing elements in the prices and uses of this commodity, that his views became of
recognised public value, and were asked by statesmen , such as Robert J, Walker, secre-
tary of the treasury, and Henry Clay. When mature life was reached and worldly com-
petence obtained, he established a. large moneyed institution, and through it greatly
advanced the industries which gave the city of Rochester prosperity. His business life
was spent in promoting legitimate, productive employments, by which all wealth is
created, and is removed by infinite distance from the speculative gambling of idlers and
chance-seekers.
Such was Mr. Erickson's business career. It was the natural consequence of a
strong, personal individuality, guided, first, by conscience, and then by sound intellectual
reasoning, enlightened by the best self-culture.
700 History of the City of Rochester.
In private life he was beloved by all in whom he reposed such confidence as gave
access to his home and heart. Always courteous and hospitable, in the genial atmos-
phere of his fireside the graces of a self-respecting, manly character shone with delight-
ful impress. In foreign travel he equipped himself with such acquisition of useful lore
that hours were passed in unalloyed enjoyment at his clear recital. At his home, his
extensive grounds gave opportunity for such indulgence in tree, and lawn, and shrub
that they made entrance there to a delightful, unfading recollection. And here, sur-
rounded by an elegant sufficiency, his welcome and kindly greeting, made more marked
by his patriarchal form, gave a happiness to the wayfarers which made life sweeter and
helped dissipate earthly disappointments.
Mr. Erickson's death, which took place January 27th, 1880, called sincere tributes
to his honored. Christian character. His unostentatious charities were somewhat divulged ;
his offerings to the Rochester City hospital ; his unexepected gift in the winter of 1869 of two
hundred and fifty barrels of flour to the sick poor, through the Female Charitable society;
his friendly help to the young desiring education ; to others seeking start in business life;
to help needy, humble friends ; and. in a manner delicate and unobtrusive, all these
were recounted with warm recollections of the well proportioned outlines in strength and
kindliness of their benefactor's life.
Such a man was Aaron Erickson, fearless, just, merciful.
GEORGE ELLWANGER. The hfe and character of Mr. George Ellwanger illus-
trate the truth that an honorable and successful career — one that wins domestic
happiness, sincere friendships, public confidence and private esteem, — in a word, every-
thing that renders life desirable, is the result, in most cases, not so much of great genius
and brilliant intellectual gifts, as of early training, persevering industry, integrity of pur-
pose and a sincere regard for virtue and purity of life. These qualities command respect
and deserve success, and generally gain them.
Mr. Ellwanger was born December 2d, 1816, at Gross- Heppach, in the Remsthal,
one of the many beautiful valleys that extend in everj' direction through the kingdom
of Wurtemberg in Germany, called the " Garden of the Fatherland." In accordance with
the law and practice in his native country, he passed the period of his youth at school.
The intervals of study, vacations, etc.-, he spent with his father and brothers in the
vineyards' which constituted the family patrimony, the raising of grapes and manufacture
of wine being the chief sources of revenue and support for the inhabitants of this favored
valley.
The love of nature and taste for flowers and horticultural pursuits that was developed
by the associations and occupations of his home decided him to learn, practically and
scientifically, all that was possible relating to plants and flowers, fruits, shrubs, soils, etc.
Accordingly, he entered a leading horticultural establishment at Stuttgart, where he re-
mained four years till he had perfected himself in all the arts of horticulture and land-
scape gardening.
This education constituted his whole capital, his "stock in trade." He then sought
a proper sphere for its profitable use. His intelligent mind was quick to profit by the
information, then first spreading in Germany, of the great possibilities of the New world.
The limit for achievement in the Fatherland no longer satisfied his restless, growing
ambition ; and he resolved to leave old friends and home and make his career and win
George Ellwanger. 7°!
fortune and distinction, if possible, in America. He sailed for this country and arrived
in New York in 1835. He did not come as a parasite, to live off its bounty, but brought
with him the wealth of a strong purpose, well disciplined mind and habits, and the knowl-
edge that was to help develop the resources of the country of his adoption. Pushing
westward he settled first in Ohio, at Tiffin, then a mere hamlet, but now a large and
flourishing city. His expectations not being fully realised at this point, he recalled the
many attractive towns lie had passed on his way through Central New York. Among
them Rochester had most favorably impressed him, from its beauty of location, its thrifty
vegetation and apparently prosperous condition.
The wisdom of his resolution to settle here has been amply proved by the results.
He did not wait until tlie position he most desired presented itself, but accepted the 'first
occupation that offered, and then, in the spring of 1835, entered the horticultural estab-
lishment of Reynolds & Bateham. From his industry, his quick perception of the re-
quirements of such a business, and a complete knowledge of the modus operandi oi\iX<y^-
agation, etc., he was intrusted with tlie entire management of the establishment. In
1839 he began business for himself He saw the opening offered in this then new coun-
try, for planting fruit and ornamental trees, and bought out the horticultural establish-
ment of Reynolds & Bateham, the first of its kind in Rochester. He also purchased
eight acres of land on Mt! Hope avenue, the soil being in its primitive state, and natur-
ally well suited to the growth of nursery stock. This was the commencement of the
Mt. Hope nurseries, so widely known, and so justly celebrated, and now covering nearly
600 acres in extent.
Seeking then, as always and everywhere since, for all kinds of information relating
to the propagation of fruits and flowers, Mr. Ellwanger examined the lists of the few
horticulturists to be found in the United States. From that of Mr. Kendrick, near Bos-
ton, Mass., he riiade his first collection of fruit trees from which to cultivate and sell
specimen stock. This, he often says, proved one of his " best investments."
In 1840 he made the acquaintance of his present partner, Mr. Barry; and their
views being in accord, they entered into a copartnership which has continued without
interruption ever since.
Mr. Ellwanger made many business trips to Europe in the interest of his establish-
ment, collecting trees and plants previously unknown in this country, thus advancing
public taste and greatly enlarging the scope of his business. He imported the first dwarf
apples and i)ears, and drew public attention, prominendy, to the advantages of growing
fruit trees with low heads, in contrast to the old method of pruning away the lower
branches.
Mr. Ellwanger has been a constant student and careful observer of all that has been
written and accomplished in horticulture, and has visited all the best establishments in
the Old world. He has introduced, grown, and disseminated a greater number and
variety of trees throughout the United States, than any other person. In this way he
has added greatly to the comfort and convenience of living, and shown what taste and
refinement can accomplish in embellishing our American homes.
Immediately after the formation of the partnership of Ellwanger & Barry, the united
enterprise of these two gentlemen projected and put into execution numerous other
business plans. The Toronto nurseries, in Canada, were established by them, and, later,
the Columbus nurseries, in Ohio, both of which' have since become famous.
702 History of the City of Rochester.
Through extensive correspondence with leading horticulturists in Europe, the house
of EUwanger & Barry has been enabled to add everything valuable, new or old, suited
to our climate, to their own constantly increasing collections. Nothing has been spared
in time, money and pains to make the Mt. Hope nurseries the most complete and largest
in the world, and worthy of the famed valley of the Genesee, called the " Garden of the
great state of New York." They were the first in this country to plant complete col-
lections of fruit trees to propagate from, and produce new varieties. This system has
been continued till their specimen grounds are of very large extent. They have also a
complete arboretum for their own personal satisfaction, and .serving, at the same time, as
a school for their friends and patrons. Most of the old orchards of choice. fruit, in the
western states and California, have been furnished by this establishment. For many
years nurserymen in all parts of the country were supplied from it, and its productions
are in demand all over the world. They make shipments to Europe, Australia, New
Zealand, Japan, and even to Jerusalem. The Japanese government honored it with an
unlimited order for a complete collection of fruit trees, shrubs and plants, to be accom-
panied also by a horticultural instructor.
- Rochester had previously only been known as a city at the falls of the Genesee, with
a good water-power turning the wheels of a dozen mills for grinding wheat, and ambi-
tiously called the " Flour city." But the constantly extending fame of the horticultural
establishment of Messrs. EUwanger & Barry, first, and chiefly, attracted the attention of
people of taste and refinement, at home and abroad, to visit their extensive grounds
and conservatories. These visitors, witnessing the effects produced in this city, by sur-
rounding the homes scattered along its well shaded avenues, with beautifully planted
grounds, gave it the more appropriate name of the " Flower city."
When Messrs. EUwanger & Barry first established their nurseries in Rochester, money
was scarce, trade was limited, and there were no manufactories to attract labor and create
wealth. But their business soon expanded into a vast industrial establishment, employ-
ing several hundred hands. These had to be housed, and provided with all the require-
ments of life, and the money earned, and paid out for labor, soon circulated among the
merchants, and gave new life to business. The enterprise of this establishment, and the
industry and economy of its employees, showed a most beneficent result in the numerous
comfortable homes that, year after year, were planted around, and encroached upon the
grounds of the Mt. Hope nurseries. Most of these were built for the employees by Messrs.
EUwanger & Barry on easy terms of payment that encouraged saving by their workmen,
in the prospect of soon possessing homes of their own. Many more costly houses of
tasteful architecture have been built by the firm, on streets laid out and improved by
themselves, bordering the grounds of their large estate.
For a long time Mr. EUwanger has been identified with the banking interests of the
city, having been successively director in the Union bank, the Flour City bank, and
trustee in the Monroe County savings bank, and the Safe Deposit company, since their
organisation. He is also a director in the Rochester Gas company, and in the Rochester
& Brighton street railroad company. He and his partner, Mr. Barry, own half the stock
of this latter company, and it has been pushed forward with great rapidity, till its tracks
run to every part of the city, and are constantly extending, as the increase of population
in new sections, renders it necessary. The money he has given, without ostentation or
publicity, to churches, charitable institutions, schools, etc., of Rochester would amount
George Ellwanger. 703
to many thousands, and would surprise those accustomed to see gifts and bequests pa-
raded before public attention. His many acts of personal kindness, and generosity to
friends, are known only to those who have been the recipients of them.
While Mr. Ellwanger has been looked upon as a successful and accomplished horti-
culturist, and has kept the details of this vast business always well in hand, as also
of various other business enterprises that have occupied his attention and helped him in
the accumulation of his large fortune, he has found time for extensive reading, study and
intercourse with the most intelligent men of the day. Not only is he familiar with the
rich literature and varied and interesting history of his own country, Germany, but he is
well informed in the political, social and financial history and literature of America, and
has kept pace with the scientific discoveries, inventions and improvements of the times.
In architecture his taste is carefully correct, and his knowledge of the best methods for
building is as good as that of professional architects and builders. He has a fine artistic
sense, a critical judgment and practised eye, in ancient and modern art, formed by fre-
quent visits to the most celebrated galleries and studios in Europe ; during his travels
abroad he has purchased many fine original paintings and pieces of statuary.
As a citizen of Rochester Mr. Ellwanger has constantly exercised a helpful and
elevating influence on its material prosperity and busine.ss integrity. He is always ac-
tive and prominent in every public enterprise, giving freely of his time and means, if the
object is to promote the general good.
In 1846 Mr. Ellwanger married a daughter of General Micah Brooks, one of the pio-
neers of Western New York. Four sons were born of this marriage, who received the
advantages of education afforded in the best schools and colleges of this country, and
of extended study and travel in Europe.
Breadth of culture, variety of knowledge, and experience and contact with the world,
especially with refined, cultivated people, and correct, moral principles,- have always
been, in Mr. EUwanger's opinion, the surest foundation for usefulness and success in life.
These lessons he has always inculcated in the minds of his children, and his rapidly ac-
cumulating fortune has been freely used in procuring for them these advantages. The
same satisfactory results have followed his ambition for his children that have come from
his business enterprises.
The eldest son, George H. Ellwanger, is a gentleman of extensive and varied
literary accomplishments, and he was, till recently, the editor of the Rochester Post-
Express.
The second son, the late Henry B. Ellwanger, ranked with the first horticulturists of
the day in scientific attainments, and was widely known in Europe and America for his
interesting and instructive writings upon rose culture.
The third son, William D. Ellwanger, after graduating at Yale college, and the
Albany law school, has entered upon the practice of law in this city.
The youngest son, Edward S. Ellwanger, is possessed of literary tastes, and is
engaged in the book trade.
In his social and domestic life Mr. Ellwanger is genial and entertaining, and is never
happier than when he welcomes his friends to his 'beautiful home. This is always a
scene of the most generous and gracious hospitality. People of cultivation and distinc-
tion are constantly received and entertained by him, with a refined and graceful courtesy
that gives an added pleasure to social intercourse.
704 History of the City of Rochester.
In the attainment of his ambitions he has added to the wealth, and increased the at-
tractiveness, of the city of his adoption. The avarice of accumulating and hoarding
material wealth, he has been quick to see, enriches no one ; while a selfish absorption of
the property and labor of others, without the just return which leaves every man with
capital and means equal to his ability and opportunities, impoverishes both the indi-
vidual and the community, and reacts on those whose only conception of riches is to
possess all themselves.
In how many respects, and how beneficially, his fine taste, his practiced eye and
skilled hand have turned the waste places — the highways and byways — into teeming
fields and blooming gardens, those have seen, who have stood with him on the elevation
south of Rochester and looked at the extensive vineyards he has planted, and fields of
grain sweeping southward that he annually cultivates, and hundreds of acres of fruit
trees, shrubs, and flowers he has planted in this section.
Those who have known him through the busy, active years, during which he has ac-
complished so much work, and amassed a princely fortune, have seen how strongly he
has impressed his character on the business enterprises of Rochester, and reflected his
taste for out-of-door adornment on this thriving and prosperous city. His vigorous, and
determined purpose, have made him one of the foremost among our citizens, and won for
him the distinction of being universally respected and honored; While active and suc-
cessful in business, however, he has retained his early love for nature, and his faith in the
precept that " much of the purest happiness of life is found in active employment in
the garden."
Whatever else he has createdj or become, he has always remained the true artist
among flowers — a landscape gardener without a superior, his skill in creating an effective
picture rivaling that of the best landscape painter. Indeed, his knowledge of the har-
mony and contrasts of color, of light, and shade, of distance and perspective, and their
proper treatment for producing fine effects, in a given space, enables him to paint the
lawn with nature's actual colors, and dispose the trees, shrubs, and plants — even the
sky itself, with its gleams of light and depths of shadow — into pictures, as pleasing to
the eye, and satisfying to the taste, as the most accomplished artist can put on canvas.
Downing was a genius in landscape art, and Mr. EUwanger seems also to have been en-
dowed with this rare gift, fostered and nourished among the hills, and valleys and varied
and beautiful scenery of his native land.
Some twenty years since the writer of this sketch had the good fortune to make an
extended tour of travel with the subject of it, through the states of Germany. We
went along the Nekar and Rhine valleys, to Frankfort, the great commercial center
where the Rothschild family originated, and on to the picturesque region of Eisenach
and the Wartburg, to Leipzig, and thence to the art city of Dresden. We spent a week
at Berlin, the ambitious city extending along the banks of the river Spree, and then
went to Potsdam, visiting the numerous palaces and villas of Prussian kings and queens.
Everywhere Mr. EUwanger was an intelligent and instructive companion. The art,
history, associations, political and social condition of Germany were subjects on which
he was as well informed as if he had not already been twenty years a citizen of the
New world. At Munich, then first developing into the great art emporium of Germany,
his appreciation and enthusiasm for its new schools of modern art gave him great
pleasure in visiting the royal galleries, and the studios of the best living masters.
//. j.L^^^u^
.■ , r. lI,.. I...... -c'-' ■■•■
George Ellw anger. — Halbert Stevens Greenleaf. 70S
From Stuttgart, the capital of Wurtemberg, we went, during the October vintage, to
the Remsthal, the early home of Mr. Ellwanger. Here it was easy to realize how ):he
scenes and incidents surrounding his youth, had influenced his whole life and character, in
America — how, in his case, "the child" was emphatically "the father of the man."
The peaceful spirit of rural life reigns in this beautiful valley. Hills covered with the
lavish bounties of nature hem it in, and purple mists, and gray shadows, fall deep into
the furrows between them. We climbed up, through the vineyards, meeting the vin-
tagers bearing the luscious fruit to the wine-press. At the summit we walked along the
crest of the hills, among a profusion and variety of flowers growing wild, and free, such
as only the most careful culture could produce, in a less favored locality. From this
elevation we looked across the smiling valleys below, and down upon the scenes that
had been the daily contemplation of the child, and the cherished remembrance of the
man, in maturer years. The industry and thrift, apparent on every hand, had become
both precept and example with him ; and united with taste, ambition and ardent love
of nature, had enabled him to repeat these pictures of surpassing beauty, in his work
as a landscape artist, and to attain so honorable and prominent a postion, in the land
of his adoption.
HON. HAI.BERT STEVENS GREENLEAF, of Rochester, member of the Forty-
eighth Congress of the United States, representing the thirtieth congressional
district of New York, was born in Guilford, Vermont, April 12, 1827. The descent of
the Greenleaf family of New England " is undoubtedly to be traced," says the com-
piler of the Greenleaf genealogy, "from the Huguenots, who, when persecuted for their
religion, fled from France about the middle of the sixteenth century." The name was
originally Fuillevert, anglicised Greenleaf, in which form it occurs in England towards
the close of the sixteenth century. The common ancestor of the Greenleaf family of
America was Edward Greenleaf, a silk dyer by trade, who was .born in the parish of
Brixham, in the county of Devonshire, England, about the year 1600. He married
Sarah Dole, by whom he had several children in England, and with his wife and family
came to this country, settling first in Newbury and afterwards in Boston, Mass., where
he died in 1671. A number of the family have distinguished themselves in New Eng-
land by their intellectual attainments, which have been of a high order. One of these,
Jeremiah Greenleaf, the father of the subject of this sketch, was the author of what was
known as Greenleaf s Grammar, and devoted a large part of his life to study, author-
ship, and instruction in this special branch of education. He was also the author of
Greenleaf s Gazetteer, and Greenleaf s Atlas, both excellent works of their kind, and
highly esteemed at the time they appeared. True to his instincts and patriotism as a
"Green Mountain boy," Jeremiah Greenleaf took an active part in the war of 1812,
enlisting as a private and winning his commission as an officer. He married Miss
Elvira E. Stevens, the daughter of Simon Stevens, M. D., of Guilford, Vermont — "a
true and noble woman, of no small degree of culture." Thus the subject of this sketch
combines in his nature, as in his name, the elements of two characteristic New England
families of the old school. His career has been in many respects a most varied and
remarkable one. The son of educated parents, it was quite natural that he should
receive a good education, which was received in part, of course, at home, and in
7o6 History of the City of Rochester.
part at the common schools and academy of his native New England. His boy,-
hood and youth were spent in farm life, but from his nineteenth to his twenty-third
year, he taught district and grammar schools in the winter months, and during one
season — so as to add as much as possible to his funds — worked in a country brick-
yard. At the age of twenty-three, he made a six month's sea voyage in the whaling
vessel, Lewis Bruce, serving before the mast as a common sailor. On the 24th of
June, 1852, shortly after his return from sea, he married Miss Jeannie F. Brooks, the
youngest daughter of John Brooks, M. D., of Bernardston, Mass., and, in the month of
September following, removed to Shelburne Falls, Mass., where he obtained employ-
ment as a day laborer at the bench in a large cutlery establishment. A few months after
engaging in this work, he found a position in the office of a neighboring manufactory,
and in a short time became manager of its growing business, and subsequently a mem-
ber of the firm of Miller & Greenleaf On the nth of March, 1856, he was commis-
sioned by the governor of Massachusetts a justice of the peace, and was one of the
youngest, if not the youngest, magistrate in the state not a member of the legal pro-
fession. In 1857, a military company having been formed in Shelburne Falls, the
young men composing it selected Mr. Greenleaf as their captain, and he continued in
command of the organisation from the 29th of August in that year, until the 3d of
March, 1859, when, owing to pressure of business duties, he resigned his captain's com-
mission. The same year he became a member of the firm of Linus Yale, jr. & Co.,
in Philadelphia, and went to that city to live, remaining in business there until 1861,
when he returned to Shelburne Falls, and organised the Yale & Greenleaf Lock com-
pany, of which he became business manager. Making the best disposition he could of
his business, he enlisted as a private soldier in the Union army in August, 1862, entering
the 52d Massachusetts regiment, to the organising and recruiting of which he devoted
both his money and energy. He was commissioned captain of Co. E, September 12th,
1862, and, on the 13th of October, was unanimously elected colonel of the regiment,
which was soon afterwards ordered into service under General Banks, in the department
of the Gulf During Banks's first Red River expedition Colonel Greenleaf was com-
mandant of the post at Barre's Landing, Louisiana, and for a brief period in command
of the second brigade of Grover's division. At the head of his regiment he participated
in the battle of Lidian Ridge, and performed gallant service at Jackson Cross Roads;
and in the grand assault on Port Hudson, June 14th, 1863, and in the subsequent siege
operations resulting in the surrender of that important confederate .stronghold, he bore
a conspicuous part, and distinguished himself by his coolness, judgment, and bravery.
The following brief extracts from the pages of the graphic little work entitled The Color
Guard, from the pen of Rev. James K. Hosmer, a member of the 52d Massachusetts
regiment, attests the gallant service of that corps, and the bravery of its commander, to
whom the volume is inscribed, as follows: "To Halbert Stevens Greenleaf, late Colonel
of the 52d Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteers, a resolute soldier and noble man, this
volume is respectfully inscribed by one who has witnessed his courage and experienced
his goodness." The author, (now professor of English and German literature, Wash-
ington university, St. Louis, Mo.) is describing the operations of the command on those
eventful days in June, and thus graphically pictures its share in the assault on Port
Hudson : —
"Toward the end of that Saturday (June 13th, 1863) afternoon, the explicit orders came. The as-
sault was to be made the next morning, and our regiment was to have a share in it. Before dark we
Halbert Stevens Greenleaf. 707
were ordered into line, and stacked our arms. Each captain made a little speech. 'No talking in the
ranks ; no flinching. Let every one see that his canteen is full, and that he has hard bread enough for a
day. That is all you will carry beside gun and equipments.' We left the guns in the stack,
polished and ready to be caught on the instant, and lay down under trees. At midnight came the cooks
with coffee and warm food. Soon after came the order to move; then slowly with many halts, nearly
five hundred strong, we took up our route along the wood paths. At length it was daybreak; and,
with every new shade of light in the east, a new degree of energy was imparted to the cannonade. As
we stood at the edge of the wood, it was roar on all sides. In a few minutes we were in motion again.
We crossed a little bridge over a brook thickly covered with cotton to conceal the tramp of men, and
noise of wheels ; climbed a steep pitch, and entered a trench or military road cut through a ravine,
passing some freshly made rifle-pits and batteries. We were now only screened from the rebel works
by a thin hedge. Here the rifle balls began to cut keen and sharp through the air about us; and the
cannonade, ,as the east now began to redden, reached its height — a continual deafening uproar, hurling
the air against one in great waves, till it felt almost like a wall of rubber, bounding and rebounding
from the body — the great guns of the Kichmond, the siege-Parrots, the smaller field batteries ; and,
through all, the bursting of the shells, within the rebel lines, and the keen, deadly whistle of well-
aimed bullets. A few rods down the military road the column paused. The work of death had begun ;
for ambulance men were bringing back the wounded ; and, almost before we had time to think we were
in danger, I saw one of our men fall back into the arms of his comrade, shot dead through the chest.
The banks of the ravine rose on either side of the road in which we had halted ; but just here the
trench made a turn ; and in front, at the distance of five or six hundred yards, we could plainly see the
rebel rampart, red in the morning light as with blood, and shrouded in white vapor along the edge as
the sharji-shooters behind kept up an incessant discharge. Between us and the brown earth-heap,
which we are to try to gain to-day, the space is not wide ; but it is cut up in every direction with
ravines and gullies. These were covered, until the parapet was raised, with a heavy growth of tim-
ber; but now it has all been cut down, so that in every direction the falling tops of large trees inter-
lace, trunks block up every passage, and brambles are growing over the whole. It is out of the
question to advance here in line of battle; it seems almost out of the question to advance in any order;
but the word is given, ' Forward ! ' and on we go. Know that this whole space is swept by a con-
stant patter of balls ; it is really a 'leaden rain.' We go crawling and stooping; but now and then be-
fore us rises in plain view the line of earthworks, smoky and sulphurous with volleys ; while all about
us fall the balls, now sending a lot of little splinters from a stump, now knocking the dead wood out
of the old tree-trunk tliat is sheltering me, now driving up a cloud of dust from a little knoll, or cut-
ting off the head of a weed just under the hand as with an invisible knife. I see one of our best cap-
tains carried off the field, mortally wounded, shot through both lungs, — straight, bright-eyed, though
so sadly hurt, supported by two of, his men; and now almost at my side, in the color company, one
soldier is struck in the hand, and another in the leg. 'Forward ! ' is the order. We all stoop; but llie
colonel dots not sloop ; he is as cool as he was in his tent last night when I saw him drink iced lemon-
ade. He turns now to examine the ground, then faces back again to direct the advance of this or that
flank."
Continuing liis description of the sub.sequent siege operations, Professor Hosmer
adds : —
" We advanced in the battle as skirmishers, as I have written ; and when the roar and heat were
over, and the tide of federal energy and valor had ebbed again from off the field — leaving it wet with
red pools and strewn with bloody drift — it was given to our brigade to stay in our steps, to hold the
tangled ravines and slopes we had conquered under the daily and nightly volleys of the Mississippi,
Alabama, and Arkansas regiments, who, we hear, hold the breastwork in our front. Now and then
we lose a man, killed or wounded, l)Ut we believe our loss would have been quadrupled, were it not
that our colonel has handled his command so prudently and skillfully."
At the expiration of his term of military service, Col. Greenleaf was offered, and ac-
cepted, the command of the government steamer Col. Benedict, on the lovcer Mississippi.
Soon after the close of the war, he took charge of the extensive salt works on Petite Anse
Isle, St. Mary's parish, Louisiana. In June, 1867, he removed to Rochester, N. Y., and,
the ist of July following, the firm of Sarg«nt & Greenleaf, of which he is the junior
7o8 History of the City of Rochester.
member, was organised. The firm of Sargent & Greenleaf manufacture, under patents
held by them, magnetic, automatic, chronometer, and other burglar locks ; combination
safe locks, padlocks, drawer, trunk, house, chest, store, door, and other locks, night-
latches, etc., and so successful has the firm been, that to-day their locks of every
description have made their way to every part of the civilised world. The factory in
which the locks are made consists of a main building three stories in height by 125 feet
in length, and an extensive foundry adjoining, and is one of the best organised and
most thriving in Rochester. The tools and machinery used by the firm are highly valu-
able; nearly all having been made for, and expressly adapted to, their use. In the
presidential campaign of 1880 Colonel Greenleaf devoted himself with energy to the
support of General Hancock, the Democratic caiylidate, and organised and commanded
the '' Hancock Brigade" — a political military organisation opposed to the Republican
organisation of similar character, knowns as the " Boys in Blue." In the early part of
February, 1882, he was elected commander of the First New York veteran brigade,
with the rank of brigadier-general, and unanimously reelected to that position in Janu-
ary, 1883. He is likewise president of the military organisation in Rochester, known
as the " Greenleaf Guard," which was named after him, and which is composed of an
active corps of sixty-five young men of the highest respectabihty, and an honorary corps
of one hundred of the leading busine.ss men of that city. It is a uniformed and well-
disciplined command, and is organised as a battalion of two companies. Although he
did not seek the honor, in the fall of 1882 the Democratic Congressional convention,
for the 30th district, at Rochester, nominated Col. Greenleaf for Congress by acclama-
tion, and he was elected to the Forty-eighth Congress as a Democrat, receiving 18,042
votes, against 12,038 for John Van Voorhis, Republican, and 1,419 for Gordon,
Prohibitionist.
HON. HIRAM SIBLEY, of the city of Rochester, a man of national reputation as
the originator of great enterprises, and as the most extensive farmer and seedsman
in this country, was born at North Adams, Berkshire county Mass., February 6th, 1807,
and is the second son of Benjamin and Zilpha (Davis) Sibley. Benjamin was the son
of Timothy Sibley, of Sutton, Mass., who was the father of fifteen children — twelve
sons and three daughters : eight, of these, including Benjamin, lived to the aggregate
age of 677 years, an average of about seventy-five years and three months. From the
most unpromising beginnings, without education, Hiram Sibley has risen to a position
of usefulness and affluence. His youth was passed among his native hills. He was a
mechanical genius by nature. Banter with a neighboring shoemaker led to his attempt
to make a shoe on the spot, and he was at once placed on the shoemaker's bench. At
the age of sixteen years he migrated to the Genesee valley, where he was employed in
a machine shop, and subsequently in wool carding. Before he was of age he had mas-
tered five different trades. Three of these years were passed in Livingston county.
His first occupation on his own account was as a shoemaker at North Adams ; then he
did business successfully as a machinist and wool carder in Livingston county, N. Y. ;
after which he established himself at Mendon, fourteen miles south of Rochester, a
manufacturing village, now known as Sibleyville, where he had a foundry and machine
shop. When in the wool' carding business at Sparta and Mount Morris, in Livingston
Hiram Sibley. 709
county, he worked in the same shop, located near the line of the two towns, where
Millard Fillmore had been employed and learned his trade ; beginning just after a fare-
well ball was given to Mr. Fillmore by his fellow-workmen. Increase of reputation and
influence brought Mr. Sibley opportunities for office. He was elected by the Democrats
sheriff of Monroe county, in 1843, when he removed to Rochester; but his political
career was short, for a more important matter was occupying his mind. From the
moment of the first success of Professor Morse with his experiments in telegraphy, Mr.
Sibley had been quick to discern the vast promise of the invention ; in 1840 he went
to Washington and assisted Professor Mor.se and Ezra Cornell in procuring an. appro-
priation of $40,000 from Congress to build a line from Washington to Baltimore, the
first ])Ut up in America. This example stimulated other inventors, and in a few years
several patents were in use, and various lines had been constructed by different compa-
nies. The business was so divided as to be always unjjrofitable. Mr. Sibley conceived
the plan of uniting all the patents and companies in one organisation. After three years
of almost unceasing toil he succeeded in buying up the stock of the different corpora-
tions, some of it at a price as low as two cents on the dollar, and in consolidating the
lines which then extended over portions of thirteen states. The Western Union tele-
graph company was then organised, with Mr. Sibley as the first president. Under his
management for sixteen years, the number of telegraphic offices were increased from
132 to over 4,000, and the value of the property from $220,000 to $48,000,000. In
the project of uniting the Atlantic and Pacific by a line to California, he stood nearly
alone. At a meeting of the prominent telegraph men of New York a committee was
appointed to report upon his proposed plan, whose verdict was that it would be next to
impossible to build the line; that, if built, the Indians would destroy it; and that it
would not pay, even if built, and not destroyed. His reply was characteristic : that it
should be built, if he had to build it alone. He went to Washington, procured the
necessary legislation, and was the sole contractor with the government. The Western
Union telegraph company afterwards assumed the contract, and built the line, under Mr.
Sibley's administration as i)resident, ten years in advance of the railroad. Not satisfied
with this success at home, he sought to unite the two hemispheres by wayof Alaska and
Siberia, under P. McD. CoUins's franchise. On visiting Russia with Mr. Collins in the
winter of 1864-65, he was cordially received and entertained by the Czar, who approved
the plan. A most favorable impression had preceded him. For when the Russian
squadron visited New York in 1863 — the year after Russia and Great Britain had de-
clined the overture of the French government for joint mediation in the American con-
flict— Mr. Sibley and other prominent gentlemen were untiring in efforts to entertain
the Russian admiral, Lusoffski, in a becoming manner. Mr. Sibley was among the
foremost in the arrangements of the committee of reception. So marked were his per-
sonal kindnesses that, when the admiral returned, he mentioned Mr. Sibley by name to
the Emperor Alexander, and thus unexpectedly prepared the way for the friendship of
that generous monarch. During Mr. Sibley's stay in St. Petersburg he was honored in
a manner only accorded to those who enjoy the special favor of royalty. Just before
his arrival the Czar had returned from the burial of his son at Nice, and, in accordance
with a long honored custom when the head of the empire goes abroad and returns, he
held the ceremony of " counting the emperor's jewels;" which means an invitation to
those whom his majesty desires to compliment as his friends, without regard to court
7IO History OF THE City OF Rochester.
etiquette or to formalities of official rank. At this grand reception in the palace at
Tsarskozela, seventeen miles from St. Petersburg, Mr. Sibley was the second on the
list, the French Ambassador being the first, and Prince GortschacofF, the prime minis-
ter, the third. This order was observed also in the procession of 250 court carriages
with outriders, Mr. Sibley's carriage being the second in the line. On this occasion
Prince Gortschacoff, turning to Mr. Sibley, said; "Sir! if I remember rightly, in the
course of a very pleasant conversation had with you a few days since, at the state de-
partment, you expressed your surprise at the pomp and circumstance attending upon
all court ceremony. Now, sir ! when you take precedence of the prime minister, I
trust you are more reconciled to the usage attendant upon royalty, which were so re-
pugnant to your democratic ideas." Such aij honor was greatly appreciated by Mr.
Sibley; for it meant the most sincere respect of the "Autocrat of all the Russias" for
the people of the United States, and a recognition of the courtesies conferred upon his
fleet when in American waters. Mr. Sibley was duly complimented by the members
of the royal family and others present, including the ambassadors of the great powers.
Mr. Collins, his colleague in the telegraph enterprise, shared in these attentions. Mr.
Sibley was recorded in the official blue book of the state department of St. Petersburg,
as "the distinguished American," by which title he was generally known. Of this book
he has a copy as a souvenir of his Russian experience. His intercourse with the Russian
authorities was also facilitated by a very complimentary letter from Secretary Seward to
Prince Gortschacoff. The Russian government agreed to build the line from Irkootsk
to the mouth of the Araoor river, .^fter 1,500 miles of wire had been put up, the
final success of the Atlantic cable caused the abandonment of the line at a loss of
$3,000,000. This was a loss in the midst of success, for Mr. Sibley had demonstrated
the feasibility of putting si telegraphic girdle round the earth. In railway enterprises
the accomplishments of his energy and management have been no less signal than in
the establishment of the telegraph. One of these was his connection in the manage-
ment of the important line of the Southern Michigan & Northern Indiana railway
for three years. His principal efforts in this direction have been in the Southern states.
After the war, prompted more by the desire of restoring ainicable relations than by
the prospect of gain, he made large and varied investments at the South, and did much
to promote renewed business activity. At Saginaw, Mich., he became a large lumber
and salt manufacturer. He bought much property in Michigan, and at one time owned
vast tracts in the Lake Superior region, where the most valuable mines have since
been worked. While he has been interested in bank and manufacturing stocks, his
larger investments have been in land. Much of his pleasure has been in reclaiming
waste territory and unproductive investments, which have been abandoned by others as
hopeless. The satisfying aim of his ambition incites him to difficult undertakings, that
add to the wealth and happiness of the community, from which others have shrunk, or
in which others have made shipwreck. Besides his stupendous achievements in tele-
graph and railway extension, he is unrivaled as a farmer and seed grower, and he has
placed the stamp of his genius on these occupations, in which many have been content
to work in the well-worn ruts of their predecessors. The seed business was commenced
in Rochester thirty years ago. Later Mr. Sibley undertook to supply seeds of his own
importation and raising and others' growth, under a personal knowledge of their vital-
ity and comparative value. He instituted many experiments for the improvement of
Hiram Sibley. 711
plants, with reference to their seed-bearing quaHties, and has built up a business as
unique in its character as it is unprecedented in amount. He cultivates the largest
farm in the state, occupying Howland Island, of 3,500 acres, in Cayuga county, near
the Erie canal and the New York Central railroad, which is largely devoted to seed
culture; a portion is used for cereals, and 500 head of cattle are kept. On the Fox
Ridge farm, through which the New York Central railroad passes, where many seeds
and bulbs are grown, he has reclaimed a swamp of six hundred acres, making of great
value what was worthless in other hands, a kind of operation which affords him much
delight. His ownership embraces fourteen other farms in this state, and also large
estates in Michigan and Illinois. The seed business is conducted under the firm name
of Hiram Sibley & Co., at Rochester and Chicago, where huge .structures afford ac-
commodations for the storage and handling of seeds on the most extensive scale. An
efficient means for the improvement of the seeds is their cultivation in different climates.
In addition to widely separated seed farms in this country, the firm has growing under its
directions, several thousands of acres in Canada, England, France, Germany, Holland
and Italy. Experimental grounds and greenhouses are attached to the Rochester and
Chicago establishments, where a sample of every parcel of seed is tested, and experi-
ments conducted with new varieties. One department of the business is for the sale of
horticultural and agricultural implements of all kinds. A new department supplies or-
namental grasses, immortelles, and similar plants used by florists for decorating and for
funeral emblems. Plants for these purposes are imported from Germany, France, the
Cape of Good Hope, and other countries, and dyed and colored by the best artists
here. As an illustration of their methods of business, it may be mentioned that the
firm' has distributed gratuitously, the past year, $5,000 in seeds and prizes for essays on
gardening in the Southern states, designed to foster the interests of horticulture in that
section. The largest farm owned by Mr. Sibley, and the largest cultivated farm in the
world, deserves a special description. This is -the "SuUivant farm,"- as formerly desig-
nated, but now known as the "Burr Oaks farm,'' originally 40,000 acres, situated about
one hundred miles south of Chicago, on both sides of the Waba.sh, St. Louis and Pacific
railroad. The property passed into the hands of an assignee, and, on Mr. SuUivant's
death in 1879, came into the possession of Mr. Sibley. His first step was to change
the whole plan of cultivation. Convinced that so large a territory could hot be worked
profitably by hired labor, he divided it into small tracts, until there are now rriany hun-
dreds of such farms ; 146 of these are occupied by tenants working on shares, or cash
rent, consisting of about equal proportions of Americans, Germans, Swedes, and French-
men. A house and a barn have been erected on each tract, and implements and agri-
cultural machines provided. At the centre, on the railway, is a four-story warehouse,
having a storage capacity of 20,000 bushels, used as a depot for the seeds grown on
the farm, from which they are shipped as wanted to the establishments in Chicago and
Rochester. The largest elevator on the line of the railway has been built at a cost of
over $20,000; its capacity is 50,000 bushels, and it has a mill capable of shelling and
loading twenty-five cars of corn a day. Near by is a flax-mill, also run by steam, for
converting flax straw into stock for bagging and upholstery. Another engine is used
for grinding feed. Within four years there has sprung up on the property a village con-
taining one hundred buildings, called Sibley by the people, which is supplied with
.schools, churches, a newspaper, telegraph office, and the largest hotel on the route be-
712 History of the City of Rochester.
tween Chicago and St. Louis., A fine station house is to be erected by the railway
company. The Sibley Fireproof Warehouses} (A, B and C), the finest, as well as the
largest warehouses in the city of Chicago, have a frontage on Clark street of 189 feet,
by 240 feet deep (or river front of 240 feet). The river front is ten stories high, the
Clark street front eight stories, with basement and sub-basement. The whole construc-
tion is fireproof. The exterior is all faced with Addison pressed brick, with terra cotta
details. The Clark street front is planned for stores of the most modern design, with
large plate-glass windows, stained glass transoms, light iron divisions for the doors, and
iron girders spanning each store-front. Above the stores, the several floors are used
for general offices. The north 60 feet of first floor is elaborately fitted up for the busi-
ness of Hiram Sibley & Co. Immediately back of the portion used for offices are the
great warehouses, ten stories high, each floor estimated in the construction to hold a
weight of five hundred pounds per foot. In estimating such a weight as before men-
tioned for the full ten stories, few would imagine the great pressure the footings or foun-
dations would have to sustain, On the river front piles are driven. The other piers or
walls come on the natural earth. In looking at the foundation plan the footings of piers
or walls seem to nearly cover the whole area. Mr. Edbrooke carefully estimated every
pound as near as possible, and proportioned the base or bearing accordingly, as well as
the supports above, columns, girders, etc., to the roof. The river front is 240 feet long
by ten stories high. The design of the river front is somewhat plainer in style than the
Clark street front, but it has a grandeur and solid repose about it that is not surpassed
by any commercial building in the country. The long, broad pilasters starting from the
basement story and terminating in arches at the top, seem to increase the apparent
height. The architect utilised this feature and made the principal lines in the design
perpendicular, which is highly satisfactory and far more effective than to have used
horizontal string-courses, to diminish the height. The openings generally are arched.
The whole exteri >t is of pressed brick and terra cotta. This warehouse was constructed
to accomr.iodme the western seed business of Hiram Sibley & Co., and for bonded
and genera) warehouse purposes, and is an enduring monument to Hiram Sibley, and a
giant among the many large buildings of Chicago, as well as a magnificent architectural
production. The cost of this building was $500,000. Mr. Sibley is the president and
the largest stockholder of the Bank of Monroe, at Rochester, and is connected with
various institutions. He has not acquired wealth simply to hoard it. The Sibley col-
lege of mechanic arts, of Cornell university, at Ithaca, which he founded, and endowed at
a cost of $100,000. — which sum he has largely increased and is now extending and en-
larging the present buildings — has afforded a practical education to many hundreds of
students; 443 have reported their present residence and occupation — they reflect high
credit upon Sibley college and demonstrate the practical usefulness of this institution.
Sibley hall, costing more than $100,000, is his contribution for a public library, and for
the use of the university of Rochester for its library and cabinets ; it is a magnificent
fireproof structure of brown stone trimmed with white, and enriched with appropriate
statuary. Mrs. Sibley has also made large donations to the hospitals and other charit-
able institutions in Rochester and elsewhere. She erected, at a cost of $25,000, St.
John's Episcopal church, in North Adams, Mass., her native village. Mr. Sibley has
one son and one daughter living : Hiram W. Sibley, who married the only child of
1 George H. Edbrooke, Chicago, Architect.
A^r(>N UKONSON.
Hiram Sibley. — Amon Bronson. 713
Fletcher Harper, jr., and resides in New York, and Emily (Sibley) Averell, who resides
in Rochester. He has lost two children : Louise (Sibley) Atkinson and Giles B. Sibley.
A quotation from Mr. Sibley's address to the students of Sibley college, during a recent
visit to Ithaca, is illustrative of his practical thought and expression, and a fitting close
to this brief sketch of his practical life : " There are two most valuable possessions
which no search warrant can get at, which no execution can take away, and which no
reverse of fortune can destroy : they' are what a man puts into his head — knowledge :
and into his hands — skill."
AMON BRONSON. A truthful repre.sentation of a worthy life, is a legacy to hu-
manity. As such we present an outline of the business and official character of
Amon Bronson, — a resident of Rochester for forty-four years, identified with all its in-
terests, and a prominent, successful business man. He was born in the town of Scipio,
in Onondaga, now Cayuga county, on the 23d of March, 1807. Little indebted to
schools for education, his application to study was none the less efficient and advan-
tageous. His authors were few and well chosen ; their teachings were understood, assim-
ilated, and utilised. In his library history and science predominate, and fiction has
no place.
Thrown upon his own resources at an early age, he removed to Avon, Livingston
county, where he acquired and practised the trade of a carpenter, whereby he learned of
an open field in the lumber trade, in which he engaged with ardor as his pursuit for life.
In the year 1832 he came to Rochester, purchased the lumber yard on Exchange street,
and gave his mind, with untiring energy and unwearied patience, to carve for himself a
pathway to unexceptional, yet undoubted success. The first to establish the lumber bus-
iness in the city of Rochester, he sustained for a period of forty-four years a leading
position among those engaged in the same branch of trade, and was frequently approached
for advice, assistance, and counsel, which uniformly reflected credit upon himself and his
associates.
His life was characterised by untiring energy, strict integrity, and honorable dealing.
Enterprising, thorough, and reliable, his trade became extensive and lucrative. Exact,
and yet generous, his many employees saw in him a man of strong mental power, supe-
rior, genial, and considerate, regardful of all in interest, and actuated by innate sympathy
for the unfortunate and esteem for the high-minded.
In all dealing he was never known to oppress a debtor. To those without means or
credit he supplied both, with a knowledge of men rarely found deceptive. Himself just,
upright and honorable, he influenced others to like action — emulative of his virtues,
dreading his reproachful look. His honesty shone conspicuous, unshadowed by the
slightest cloud of distrust. His fidelity to right was equaled only by his ability to per-
ceive it. None questioned his word, whether given during the routine of business tran-
saction or expressed in the ordinary relations of society; it was as good as his bond.
Long and assiduously devoted to one pursuit, skill, caution and method combined
to safety, harmonious action and eminent success. Familiarised with the minutest detail of
his concerns, punctual to the moment in meeting an agreement, lenient to the unfortu-
nate, he was accorded genuine respect ; the entire community gave him their confidence,
and his assured progress was observed without envy. He labored from a love of activ-
714 History of the City of Rochester.
ity, and not alone for acquisition of wealth. He had in view no ultimate elegant leisure.
With unselfish motive he plied his vocation, and gave of well-won means to the benefit
of the public and the needy. A mind less active would have sought recreation, ease,
and rest where he centered all thought and time on business. Confident of self,\ impatient
of dictation or obligation, he sought no partnership, but conducted his affairs with a cer-
tainty and regularity not the less assured from the absence of noise and bustle.
Amon Bronson was more than a business man. All enterprises having for their object
the advancement of the people, the city, and the welfare of the country obtained his
hearty commendation and support. He was to an eminent degree a public-spirited and
benevolent man. His benefactions are mainly known to their recipients. Of a disposi-
tion which shrank from notoriety, he was. unostentatious in the alleviation of distress, and
generous of his gifts. Many are the poor wlio, but for his substantial aid, would have
lacked their now comfortable homes. It has been said of him, " The blessing of him
that was ready to perish came upon him, for he caused the widow's heart to sing for joy;
he delivered the poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to help him."
Kind and sympathetic, his heart responded to appeals for charitable and benevolent
objects, and the philanthropic institutions of the city found in him a sincere and liberal
friend. He was deeply interested in the City hospital, to which he contributed largely,
and in the Industrial school and other laudable institutions.
In person Mr. Bronson was above the ordinary height. His deep, dark eyes twinkled
with merriment, anticipating and enjoying a witticism, or spoke a volume of reproof to
misstatement or maladministration. His habits were temperate and abstemious. So-
cially, he was reticent, yet genial and courteous, winning and retaining the regard of those
with whom he came in contact. His gait was an index of the man — never hurried, but
uniform. To and from office and house he traveled day after day for years, with a reg-
ularity marked and proverbial.
A believer. in the elevating tendency of religious influences, he aided in the upbuilding
of the churches which adorn the city. For many years he was an attendant at St. Luke's
church, and was during his entire life one of the most thoroughly practical Christians to
be found in any community.
Capable and efficient in the management of his own affairs, he was called to engage
in various offices of trust. For years he was a trustee of the Monroe County Savings
Bank, and was for a time a director in the City bank. In the former institution he had
been a prominent member from its first organisation, and the board of trustees, at a
meeting held July 29th, 1876, entered upon their record the following: "We hereby
record our appreciation of his unquestioned integrity of character, and of the benevolence
and generosity of his disposition, so constantly manifested, not only in his relations to
this board, but in all his social and public relations in this community where he has lived
so long."
Political advancement Mr. Bronson never sought, and many solicitations to accept
public preferment were courteously yet firmly declined. He was an alderman for one
term, and was elected supervisor from the third ward from 1859 continuously to 1867.
At elections he received the cordial support of both political parties, and their unanimous
action was a high personal tribute to his worth.
In the board of supervisors he served as chairman on most of the important com-
mittees, and performed the duties of the position ably and acceptably. To older citizens
Amon Bronson. — E.M.Moore. 715
his signal services during his term of office are well known. In unearthing fraud his
sagacity and business ability were of great service. By a searching investigation into
the accounts of a defaulting treasurer, deficits were discovered and losses exposed.
During the civil war he was on the committee of bounties, and frequently advanced
large sums from his own purse for the use of the county. He was known as a war Dem-
ocrat, and, without stint, threw his influence in behalf of a government imperiled by re-
bellion. A consistent Democrat, he was never a bitter partisan, and when, in 1865, an
unsought nomination for senator had been accepted through the urgent request of many
prominent citizens, it was a proof of popularity, and confidence of capacity and worth,
that he ran largely ahead of his ticket in a senatorial district hopelessly Republican.
He was married in 1840 to Miss Ann Emerson, daughter of Thomas Emerson, and
in 1848 built the residence on Plymouth avenue, where he resided till the close of
life. In domestic relations the testimony is uniform and emphatic as regards colisidera-
tion, kindness and indulgence. When in the full enjoyment of physical and intellectual
vigor he was stricken with paralysis, on November 13th, 1869, and incapacitated for other
than general supervision of business affairs. A second shock in July, 1876, was final, and
under its influence he gradually passed away, retaining his mind to the last. His funeral
was attended by many friends, who followed his remains to Mount Hope Cemetery. The
Rochester board of lumber dealers closed their places of business and attended the fu-
neral in a body, and the employees of Mr. Bronson formed part of the funeral train.
Resolutions of respect were passed by the Rochester board of lumber dealers, by the
ernployees of the firm, by the board of trustees of the Monroe county savings bank, and
by the board of supervisors at their regular meeting on October i ith, 1876. The follow-
ing resolution, introduced by Supervisor Pond, was put to motion and adopted unani-
mously, by a rising vote : " Desiring to recognise in a suitable and appropriate manner
the great loss which the county of Monroe has sustained in the death of Amon Bronson,
who died July 28th, 1876, we hereby record our high regard and reverence of his char-
acter and ability as a citizen and public officer. His honesty of purpose, his strength of
mind, his breadth of thought, together with his noble, generous heart, will ever be a
bright, conspicuous example to this community and in this board, where he so long lived
and labored, giving so liberally of his time and best effort for the good and interest of
his fellow-citizens."
DR. E. M. MOORE is descended from ancestors who came to this country in the
middle of the seventeenth century. He was a son of Lindley Murray Moore and
Abigail L. Moore, nee Mott. His father' was a native of Nova Scotia, of English origin,
and a teacher by profession. His mother was a native of New York, of French-Hugue-
not extraction. He received a classical education at his father's school and afterward
attended the Rensselaer Polytechnic institute at Troy, N. Y., while it was purely a sci-
entific institution, under the prosperous regime of Prof. Amos Eaton. He commenced
the study of medicine in Rochester in 1835 and attended his first course of medical lec-
1 L. M.'s father removed form New York city, at the close of the Revolutionary War, to Nova
•Scotia. His ancestors came from England between 1625 and '30, and had lived in New York or New
Jersey up to the time of L. M.'s father removing to Nova Scotia. '
E. M. Moore was born in Rahway, N. J., July 15th, 1814.
7l6 HiSORY OF THE CiTY OF ROCHESTER.
tures in the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York city. The remainder of
his student life was spent in the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia, where he
graduated in 1838, having been, during the last year of his course, resident physician of
Blockley hospital, then, as now, a celebrated school for clinical knowledge. He after-
wards held the same position for nearly two years, in the Insane asylum at Frankfort,
Philadelphia county, and then removed to Rochester where he has since lived.
Dr. Moore was elected professor of surgery in the Medical college at Woodstock,
Vt., in the spring of 1843, since which time he has taught surgery continuously in that
and other institutions. For the last twenty-five years he has occupied the" position of
professor of surgery in the Buffalo Medical college.
Dr. Moore is a permanent member of the American Medical association and in 1874
he was president of the Medical society of the. state of New York. He is also a mem-
ber of the board of trustees of the University of Rochester, which institution has con-
ferred upon him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. Dr. Moore's contributions to
literature have been mainly on medical and surgical subjects and consist of essays and
papers published in medical journals and in the transactions of the State Medical society
and the American Medical association.
HON. CORNELIUS R. PARSONS, mayor of Rochester, was born in the town of
York, Livingston county, N. Y., on the 2 2d of May, 1842. His father, Hon.
Thomas Parsons, was a native of Berkshire, England, where, after an elementary educa-
tion, he commenced, in boyhood, earning his livelihood in shepherd life. Coming to
this country in 1832, when eighteen years old, in advance of his parents, he was drawn
to the rich valley of the Genesee, and worked as a farm hand in Wheatland, Monroe
county, for four years, at the wages of seven dollars a month " and found." This labor
was rendered with fidelity, a distinguishing trait of his character. In 1836 he began a
series of efforts at Rochester, which resulted in gradually yielding him the means for
larger operations. Availing himself of the facilities on both sides of Lake Ontario, he
embarked in the lumber trade, in which he became one of the most extensive merchants
and exporters; procuring supplies, especially of oak and other heavy timber, for ship
building, from land purchased from time to time, principally in Canada. His sterling
character and energy of purpose introduced him into public life. In 185 1 he was
elected, by the Democratic party, alderman for the sixth ward of the city of Rochester,
and, in 1853, alderman for the tenth ward, and again in 1857. He served as an Assem-
blyman in 1858, and was the originator of the "pro rata railroad freight bill," designed
to compel the railroad companies to carry freight for local shippers as low in proportion
to distance as the rates charged to'citizens of other states; this caused much opposi-
tion among railway officials, but the measure was zealously advocated by Mr. Parsons,
and the bill was engrossed for a third reading, and only failed for want of time. Under
the agitation of the grievance thus begun and continued by others in after years, these
discriminations were essentially modified. Disagreeing with his party on the national
questions, he sustained the administration of President Lincoln and in 1865 was elected
by the Republicans to the state Senate by a decided majority. As a member of the
canal committee he carefully fostered the waterways of the state, and his mercantile ex-
perience rendered his' opinions of value on all commercial questions. He was a mem-
(yi^^^d--^--^ ,
Cornelius R. Parsons. T^I
ber of the committees on engrossed bills and on privileges and elections. His leg-
islative services were ably and faithfully performed and cemented the ties which
bound him to his political friends. Without his solicitation he was appointed United
States collector for the port of Geneseo, and, in 1 868 and 1869, filled the requirements
of the 6ffice acceptably. After an honorable and Christian career he died in 1873, leav-
ing, as his survivors, his wife, who was a daughter of Richard Gorsline, and five chil-
dren — Cornelius R., Clifford W., Frank G., Julia L., and Charles B. Parsons. An
elder son, James W. Parsons, who followed the paternal pursuit as a lumber dealer, and
was, for a number of years, a member of the common council of Buffalo, died about a
month before his father, at Erie, Penn. When our subject, Cornelius R. Parsons, was
three years old, the residence of his parents was changed to Rochester, where he was
trained in the excellent public schools of the city, enjoying the instructions of experi-
enced teachers, especially John R. Vosburg, an accomplished scholar who, in 1868,
established Vosburg's academy in East Main street, for the purpose of preparing pupils
for mercantile pursuits. At the time of reaching his majority his father's lumber business
had growfi to vast dimensions. I'homas Parsons had extended the sphere of his activity
beyond the localities of Western New York and, from the boundless forests of Canada,
was not only supplying ship timber to the American markets, but exporting large quan-
tities to Great Britain. He had a mill near the upper falls at Rochester, and other
manufacturing establishments ; so that the details of purchase, manufacture, sale and
export required unceasing attention at widely separated points. The son grew into the
business of his father, and, while the latter passed his time chiefly in the dominion, Cor-
nelius R. Parsons conducted operations at Rochester._^He was admirably adapted by
an enterprising and stirring nature for this pursuit, and was speedily recognised by the
citizens as a business man of superior abilities. Uniting with/ these qualities courtesy
and public spirit, he was an available candidate for a position at the council board of
the city, and in 1867, at the early age of twenty-five years, was elected alderman of the
fourteenth ward. He was reelected in 1868, and was regarded by his associates of both
parties as a good choice for the presidency of the board; he sustained their estimate by
rulings unsurpassed in promptness and accuracy. A record creditable and satisfactory
caused his selection again as alderman and presiding officer in 1870, and, on the expira-
tion of his term, his colleagues expressed their appreciation of his services by a valuable
testimonial. His anxiety for the city's advancement and welfare was manifested in
private walks as well as in official place, and he was ever ready to devote time to such
objects without remuneration. Having removed to the seventh ward, he was chosen
in 1874. to represent that constituency in the board of aldermen. This long experience
and his popularity with the masses led to his elevation to the mayoralty in 1876. Dur-
ing his official connection with the municipal government some of the most important
improvements had been conducted under his immediate supervision. Rochester was
now a large city. In about sixty years the unsettled forest had been covered by thir-
teen thousand residences, the homes of nearly eighty thousand persons. The five wards,
originally dividing the city when it was incorporated in 1834, had expanded to sixteen
of much larger average area and population. There were sixty churches, and twenty-
three public schools, having more than eleven thousand registered pupils. The list of
real and personal estate, at a low as.Sessment, exceeded $60,000,000, on which a tax of
$1,000,000 was collected. 7'he small frame building in which the local government waS
;i8 History OF THE City OF Rochester.
originally carried on had long before given place to a large and beautiful court-house
and city hall, with granite front, erected at a cost of $80,000. The chief magistracy of
such a city was a coveted prize to many aspirants. The leaders of the two parties
sought the strongest candidates. The canvass was spirited and not without detraction
on both sides, but the unblemished public record of Mr. Parsons and the purity of his
life could not be gainsaid, and he was elected by a majority of more than twenty-three
hundred over his opponent of the Democratic party, a man of ability, character and in-
fluence. The message of the new mayor supported his reputation, and among his
recommendations were many which have been adopted and proved of public advantage.
In exercising the appointing power he selected good men, without reference to party
connection, and as police commissioner he acted with vigor and discretion in the gov-
ernment of the swelling masses. He has. been since four times reelected to the office
of mayor. Thus, during a period of some fifteen years, he has been closely linked with
the growth and prosperity of a city — the fifth in rank in the state — substantial in its
wealth, beautiful in its public and private structures, and attractive in its parks ; its
streets lined with trees, and the gardens and ornamental grounds of the citizens. No
city is better governed or enjoys a higher promise of the future.
In his official position as head of the municipal government of the city, Mr. Parsons
was one of the leading spirits in the work of preparation for the celebration of the semi-
centennial of Rochester on the 9th and loth of June, 1884. In a brief and pertinent
address he opened, the literary exercises on the 9th. He delivered the address of wel-
come to Governor ICleveland-andjihis, staff and other guests, at the reception on the
second day of thelcelebration, and also. proposed the various toasts at the banquet at
Powers Hotel;, in the performance, of .these duties he secured the unqualified approval
of his fellow-citizens...5jMuch,of the success of this important event may be credited to
Mayor Parsons, and without reflection upon any other person.
Mr. Parsons is a ready, interesting, and able public speaker, while his official com-
munications are. likewise models of terse and effective English. With substantial and
well acknowledged merit as a worthy, progressive citizen and public official, and com-
bining a frank and cordial nature with courteous, unassuming, yet dignified manner, he
has attained exceptional popularity in social as well as public life, and can hardly fail to
develop increasing honor and usefulness in the coming years of his career. His religious
course, as a member of St. Peter's Presbyterian church, has been consistent. He has
been a trustee of the society, which numbers over three hundred and fifty members.
Mr. Parsons is a member of the' Masonic order, as well as that of the Odd Fellows.
He was married in 1864 to Frances, daughter of Dr. J. F. Whitbeck, a skillful and ex-
perienced physician of Rochester, now deceased. His children are Mabel W. and
Ethel M. Parsons; a promising Httle son, Warner Parsons, died in the spring of 1879.
GEORGE RAINES is the fourth son of Rev. John Raines and Mary Remington,
and was born November loth, 1846, at Pultneyville, Wayne county, N. Y. His
father is of English descent and comes of the family which still has many representa-
tives at Ryton, Yorkshire, where the old family homestead has been entailed for many
generations to the eldest son, and still remains in their possession, known as Ryton
Grange. The grandparent, John Raines, in 1816-18, gathered together the remnant
1 L li LFis TsrtrToilt
^^^l-Z^^^ytZ^
George Raines. 719
of a fortune invested in shipping interests, well nigh destroyed by the French wars en-
suing upon the escape of Napoleon from Elba, and traveled through Pennsylvania and
Western New York to select a location for business investment. After a few years' res-
idence in Philadelphia, about 1830 a farm was purchased near Canandaigua. Near by
and overlooking Centerfield was the home of Colonel Thaddeus Remington, the mater-
nal grandparent, who had given his own name to the hill upon which he had built his
log-house in 1798. Colonel Remington was the eldest of three brothers who came from
Vermont, where the traditions of the family run back until they are lost to record, By
his solicitations two younger brothers, who had come from Vermont to Connecticut,
were induced to come west to make a settlement, and one of them selected Henrietta
and the other Mumford, in Monroe county. From these brothers are descended the
Remingtons whose branches are numerous in the localities named. John Raines, the
father of George, after his marriage to Mary Remington, entered the Methodist minis-
try as a member of the East Genesee conference, and received an appointment to the
station of Pultney ville, after which he was a stationed pastor for periods of two or three
years, according to the custom of the denomination, at Dansville, Hma, Victor, Geneva,
Lyons, Newark, St. John's church in Rochester, Hedding church in Elmira, Corning,
and Alexander street church in Rochester.
George Raines, in 1854-56, was a pupil in number 14 and number 10 of the district
schools of Rochester, and afterwards prepared for admission to college in the Free
academy at Elmira in 1861-62. In the early fall of 1862, at the age of fifteen years,
he entered college at Lima, N. Y., but after a few weeks, on account of a change of the
residence of his father to the city of Rochester, he entered the University of Rochester
and remained a member of the class of 1866 until he graduated with the class. It was
the custom of the college to award prizes to be competed for by the members of classes
who chose to labor in that direction, and a fair proportion of such honors fell to him.
First prizes in Latin and Greek studies, for declamation and for the senior essay were
awarded to him, but in no case was the competition in the class general, though the
rivalry of the contestants was very sharp and the labor of preparation considerable.
Leaving college with a fair standing in scholarship he entered the office of J. & Q. Van
Voorhis, in Rochester, as a law student, in the summer of 1866, wHere he remained
until admitted to the bar in December, 1867, at the age of twenty-one years. During
the fall of 1866 a bitter political contest for Congress, in which Lewis Selye and Hon.
Roswell Hart were opposing candidates, was decided by the election of Mr. Selye.
Through the natural sympathy of a young man with a cause in which his preceptors were
enlisted, he became a supporter of Mr. Selye and made his first political speeches. Mr.
'Selye conceived a strong liking for his young friend, and in the spring of 1867, upon
the request of Mr. Van Voorhis, procured for him a government position, the salary of
which was of great service in enabling him to continue his law studies, while, at the
same time, he served full hours in his office duties. He had previously taught in the
Real school of Rochester for about eight months under the respected Dr. Dulon as
principal. Mr. Selye aided him otherwise by furnishing employment at his own charge,
so that it may justly be said that in the day when young Raines needed a staunch friend
as much as at any time in his life, Lewis Selye stood at his back to encourage and as-
sist him as few men would have done. Upon admission to the bar he entered the law
office of H. C. Ives as a clerk, at the salary of five dollars a week. After a year of
720 History of the City of Rochester.
service as clerk, Mr, Ives offered him a partnership, which was accei)ted and continued
down to the fall of 187 1, when Mr. Ives was compelled to cease the active work of his
profession by ill-health, at the same time that Mr. Raines was elected as the Republi-
can candidate to the office of district attorney of Monroe county. He had tried very
few cases in court at that time, and was of the age of twenty-four years. His only
trials of criminal cases had been the defense of a negro upon a charge of abduction,
which had resulted first, in a disagreement of a jury, and next, in a verdict of guilty.
He had tried several civil causes at the circuit under the supervision of Mr. Ives, who
intrusted him with the summing up of all cases. When the youth and inexperience of
Mr. Raines were urged against him in the canvass, Gen. J. H. Martindale came to his
rescue with most positive assurances of his confidence in the successful administration
of the office, and to this powerful endorsement Mr. Raines has never failed to attribute
much of the confidence shown by the voters in electing him. At the same election a
brother, Hon. Thomas Raines, of Rochester, was elected state treasurer, and in 1873
was reelected to the same office. Another brother, Hon. John Raines, has been twice
a member of the legislature from Ontario county.
The duties of the office of district attorney were laborious and required close appli-
cation. The session of courts continued daily for weeks, and frequently the nights were
consumed in the preparation of bills of indictment, or of cases for trial, on the ensuing
day. No labor was spared to, bring causes to a successful issue when justice required
it, and no public clamor influenced the discharge of duty. Among the notable cases
of the first term of office of Mr. Raines was the prosecution of Stephen Coleman for re-
ceiving stolen goods with knowledge that they were stolen. Coleman was charged with
enlisting boys in stealing pig-iron at foundries, and many of the boys were used as wit-
nesses; but the convincing testimony on the various trials, which lasted each about two
weeks, was that of merchants who had lost the iron or bought it of him, and of the de-
tectives who, in spite of orders from the chief of police to cease their inquiries, had pur-
sued the investigation to the end of conviction. J. C. Cochrane, J. M. Davy and other
counsel defended Coleman with ability and secured a reversal of one conviction in the
court of Appeals, by which court a second conviction was affirmed and Coleman served
his sentence. An undercurrent of religious prejudice ran through the trials as Coleman
drew upon all the friends with whom, as an influential member of a Protestant church,
he had been identified to save him, while the prosecutors were Catholics. It is to be
said, however, that the general sentiment of the community, which had been for and
against Coleman at different times, finally remained against him and was content with
his conviction and sentence. The other most notable act of the district attorney in his
first term of office was the destruction of a corrupt ring in control of the police depart-
ment of the city. Being assured by Mr. J. A. Hoekstra, local editor of the Democrat
fir" Chronicle, of unflinching support in his columns, Mr. Raines wrote out and presented
to the grand jury findings and resolutions based upon evidence given before them of in-
terference with the course of justice by the chief of police. The grand jury adopted the
findings and resolutions, and Mr. Hoekstra in his columns, with the aid of Mr. Raines
as to facts, precipitated the downfall of the chief of police by a general arraignment of
his conduct as such officer, and a demand for his removal. The chief of police, upon
the second day, tendered a resignation, written for him by Mr. Raines, and the ring
which had seemed so powerful as to defy public opinion, disappeared from prominence
in the police department.
George Raines. 721
In the fall of 1874 Mr. Raines was reelected to the office of district attorney as the
candidate of the Democratic party. His second term of office was filled with difficult
and important trials. The Clark, Ghaul, Stillman and Fairbanks murder trials, in which
Howe & Hummel, of New York, L. H. Hovey, of Rochester, and Gen. J. H. Martin-
dale conducted the defenses as chief counsel, required great labor and energy to bring
about convictions. The Stillman trial occupied about two weeks, and a most elaborate
defense by Gen. Martindale on the ground of insanity was urged with all the ingenuity
and power of this most eloquent advocate at the Monroe county bar. Justice Dwight
became thoroughly convinced that the mental capacity of the prisoner was not such,
though not within the legal definition of insanity, as to warrant the infliction of the
death penalty, and after the verdict of murder in the first degree, joined with Gen. Mar-
tindale in procuring a commutation of the penalty to imprisonment for life. The Clark
trial will long be cited as a remarkable case in Monroe county, as strenuous efforts were
made by able counsel, by applications and arguments before seven justices of the Supreme
court in remote parts of the state, and before the Albany general term to secure a re-
view of the verdict of the jury. But the sentence was executed upon Clark after the
expiration of a respite granted by Gov. Tilden for the purposes of such applications.
At the end of his second term as district attorney Mr. Raines was nominated by the
unanimous vote of the Democratic convention as a candidate for Senator for the district,
then composed of Monroe county, and was elected over a gentleman who had served
one term as Senator with ability and was renominated by the Republican party. Mr.
Raines had become identified with the special supporters of Gov. Tilden by his polit-
ical associations, and in tJiis canvass received the bitter opposition of the enemies of
Gov. Tilden in the Democratic party led by ex-assemblyman George D. Lord. The
newspaper organ of the party had little to say in his behalf, and his canvass was further
embarrassed by the sudden development of strength by a third party, called the Labor
Reform party, which drew from both the Republican and Democratic parties, chiefly
from the latter however, 3,818 votes for its candidate for Senator. In his office of Sen-
ator Mr. Raines became at once a leader of the supporters of the reform policy of Gov.
Robinson in the Senate, and was identified with every effort to forward legislation in
that interest. He continued his professional work, and in this period of his life was em-
ployed in numerous important trials in Western New York. For three weeks the in-
volved issues of the Pontius-Hoster trials in Seneca county, engaged the eflforts of Gen.
Martindale on the one side and of Mr. Raines on the other, with associate local coun-
sel. Forgery, arsenical poisoning, and assault with intent to kill were mingled in the
case, so that either side accused the other of each offense and each offense had to be
tried to get to the final verdict, which rested in favor of the prosecution, for which Mr.
Raines was employed. It is the most celebrated case of the criminal courts of Seneca
county. The Boyce-Hamm, Hyland and Hickey murder trials in Monroe county, and
the Williams murder trial in Wayne county were exacting in their demand of great
labor, and in each verdicts were rendered in favor of the theories supported by Mr.
Raines.
In the fall of 1881 Mr. Raines was again presented by the Democratic party by
unanimous nomination for the office of Senator. Three years before a Republican
legislature had added Orleans county to the senatorial district, with the purpose, by
putting its 1,200 Republican majority with the 1,500 Republican majority of Monroe
722 History of the City of Rochester.
county, which, in ordinary political years, might be expected to render the election of a
Democratic Senator impossible. By this means the district was made almost the largest
in the state, and the contest appeared almost hopeless for any Democrat as against a
powerful and skillful opponent. Hon. E. L. Pitts, who had been Senator the previous
term, and was the ablest debater and conceded leader of his party in the Senate, was
renominated by the Republican party. Mr. Raines was met with the argument that his
law business consisted largely of litigations against corporations, especially the New
York Central & Hudson River railroad company, and his defeat must be secured in
their interest. The powerful influence of that corporation and of the shippers who en-
joyed its favors by special rates alone prevented his election. He was favored by Re-
publican voters to an extent that placed him about three thousand ahead of his asso-
ciates upon his party ticket in Monroe county, and upwards of two hundred more in
Orleans county, but Mr. Pitts, by keeping within about two hundred of his party ticket
in his own county of Orleans had about nine hundred majority in Orleans county to
offset the seven hundred majority of Mr. Raines in Monroe county. The Democratic
party suffered a general defeat in the state by a tidal wave vote, which was apparent
in this district, as the Republican party received for its state ticket a majority of up-
wards of one thousand more than was usual in the district in any but presidential elec-
tions. Since the canvass for Senator in 1881 Mr. Raines has been stricriy attentive to a
large and lucrative law practice, in which he is associated with his brothers, under the
firm name of Raines Bros. He has occasionally, however, made public addresses for
societies and on public holidays. He was selected as semi-centennial orator at the
celebration of that event in the history of the city of Rochester, June 9th, 1884, and
delivered the oration. But a mass of important litigations of a civil and criminal nature
engage the attention of his firm to the exclusion of other labors. Perhaps the most
satisfactory to Mr. Raines of a long list of trials in its incidents and results was the
celebrated case at the city of Watertown, known as the Higham homicide. Higham
was tried in December, 1883, for the murder of Fred. W. Eames, the inventor of the
Eames vacuum brake. At the commission of the offense Higham could hardly name
a friend in that cit)'. He was a skilled mechanic, and Blames was rich and powerful.
By what was supposed to be Eames's inventive genius, the people were led to believe a
great manufacturing enterprise was being built up in Watertown, and the city looked
upon him as one of its public spirited citizens. He was shot by Higham when, at the
end of severe litigations, Eames was entering into possession of his shops by the ap-
proval of the courts. A Baptist minister, Mr. Townley, was the witness of the prosecu-
tion, whose credit was excellent, whose spirit was revengeful, and whose story spoke
murder in every word. After a two weeks' trial, at nine o'clock on Christmas day, Mr.
Raines commenced the summing up of the defense and continued until five o'clock,
being followed in an able argument by ex-Senator Mills for the prosecution, and the
charge of the court on the following day. The jury acquitted Higham, and it was
found that the testimony of the chief witness of the prosecution. Rev. Mr. Townley,
was discredited by the jury as to all its essential criminating details. The verdict was
accepted by the people of Watertown with pleasure, and Higham was restored to the
position he lost in the community when he shot Eames in self-defense. Hon. W. F.
Porter, prepared the cause for trial, and largely conducted it and Mr. Raines attributed
to his patient and skillful work the victory in this most important case. Mr. Raines is
George Raines. — Lewis Henry Morgan. 723
now in the prime of life, devoted to his profession and content with its rewards. He
points when he has occasion with pleasure to the increase of favor from political op-
ponents, when he has been a candidate at the polls, as ascertained by comparison of
his vote with that of candidates for state offices upon his party tickets. He led his
party ticket for district attorney in 1871, 798; for district attorney in 1874, 1,322; for
Senator in 1877, 1,610; for Senator in 1881, 3,200. In each canvass he carried his
own county of Monroe, but is often heard to say that he will never test the loyalty of
his friends again by any candidacy for office.
HON. LEWIS HENRY MORGAN, LL. D., president of the American association
for the advancement of science, and one of the foremost ethnological and archaeo-
logical scholars and authors of his time, the son of Jedediah and Harriet Morgan, was
born at Aurora, Cayuga county, N. Y., November 21st, 1818, and died at his home in
Rochester, December 17th, 1881, in the sixty-fourth year of his age. The following
sketch of his life, from the pen of F. W". Putnam, is taken from the J^oceedings of the
Amerkaft Academy of Arts and Sciences, Vol. XVII., May, 1882 : —
The Hon. Lewis H. Morgan was made a fellow of the academy in 1868. His
parents were of old New England stock, and of this he often spoke with feelings of
satisfaction. His father was descended from James Morgan, who settled near Boston
in 1646, and his mother from John Steele, who had a home near Cambridge in 1641.
At the time of his birth, November 21st', 1818, his parents resided in the village of Au-
rora, Cayuga county, N. Y. He had the advantage of an excellent preliminary educa-
tion, and was graduated at Union college in 1840. He afterwards studied law, and
was admitted to the bar. Making his home at Rochester, N. Y., his zeal and honesty
soon secured him a large and profitable practice in his profession. In business he was
associated with his classmate. Judge George F. Danforth. In 1855 he became inter-
ested in the projected railroad from Marquette to the iron region on the south shore of
I>ake Superior, and in the development of the iron mines. The management of these
enterprises, from which he derived a considerable property, caused him gradually to
withdraw from the practice of his profession, and induced him to make excursions into
what was then the wilderness of northern Michigan. It was during these explorations
that he became interested in the habits and works of the beaver — a study which he
followed for several years as opportunities offered, and the results of which he gave to
the world, in 1868, in an octavo volume entitled The American Beaver and his Works.
This is a most thorough and interesting biological treatise, of which the late Dr. Jeffries
Wynian remarked that it came the nearest to perfection of any work of its kind he had
ever read. It is, however, to his labors in anthropology that Mr. Morgan owes his
widespread fame, and it is of interest to note the probable cause of his turning his at-
tention to the study of Indian life. On his return from college he joined a secret
society, known as the " Gordian Knot," composed of the young men of the village.
Chiefly by his influence, this society was enlarged and reorganised, and became the
" New Confederacy of the Iroquois." The society held its councils in the woods at
night. It was founded upon the ancient confederacy of the Five Nations ; and its sym-
bolic council fires were kindled upon the ancient territories of the Mohawks, the Onei-
das, the Onondagas, the Cayugas and the Senecas. Its objects were to gather the
724 History of the City of Rochester.
fragments of the history, institutions, and government of the Indians, and to encourage
a kinder feeling towards them. A friend writes that " many of its members have since
become distinguished in various walks of life, but upon none of them was its influence
so persuasive and so permanent as upon Mr. Morgan. It gave direction to his thought,
and stimulus to his energies. In order that it might be in conformity with its model,
he visited the tribes in New York and Canada, even then remnants, but retaining, so
far as they were able, their ancient laws and customs. These he investigated, and soon
became deeply interested in them." On his removal to Rochester his studies of Indian
institutions were continued, and in 1845 he attended day after day a grand council of the
Indians at the Tonawanda reservation; and in April of the same year he went to Washing-
ton to plead in behalf of the Indians against the^reat injustice done them in taking away
some of their lands. While on this journey he attended a meeting of the New York
Historical society, of which he had been elected a member, and read his first public
paper on the subject to which he had given so much time and thought. This paper
is not printed in the Proceedings of the Society, but is referred to as "an essay on the
constitutional government of the Six Nations of Indians." The substance of it is
probably included .in the series of fourteen " Letters on the Iroquois,'" addresssd to
Albert Gallatin, LL. D., the president of the society, and published in the several num-
bers of the American Review (a Whig journal of politics, literature, art, and science,
Vols. V. and VI., New York 1847), from February to December, 1847, under the www rt'if
plume of Skenandoah. These letters were followed by sevei-al instructive reports to the
regents of the university of the state of New York, upon Indian remains in that state,
and on the Fabrics of the Iroquois, all bearing evidence of his great interest and activity in
the study of Indian life and institutions. These several papers were afterwards rewrit-
ten and enlarged, and published in book form in 1851, under the well known title of
League of the Iroquois. This work at once attracted general attention, and secured for
its author a well earned position in literature. It contains a careful analysis of the
social organisation and government of the powerful and famous confederacy, with many
details relating to Indian life. In 1847 Mr. Morgan again attended a council of the
Iroquois, and on October 31st, 1847, he was regularly adopted into the Hawk gens of
the Senecas, and given the name of Ta-ya-da-wah-kugh (one lying across). The mean-
ing of this name is that he was to put himself in the pathway of communication, and
preserve friendship between the two races, as the son of Jemmy Johnson, the inter-
preter, and grandson of the famous Red Jacket. As a member of the Seneca tribe he
was better able than before to continue his studies of the social institutions of the rem-
nants of the tribes forming the ancient confederacy. Ten years after this, at the Mon-
treal meeting of the American association for the advancement of science, he read a
paper on The Laws of Descent of the Iroquois, which furnished the basis of one of
the most important generalisations in relation to American ethnology. In 1858, in, an
encampment of the Ojibwa Indians at Marquette, he found that their system of kinship
was substantially the same as that of the Iroquois. The conclusions which he drew
from this discovery are clearly given in the paper which he read before the academy at
its meeting on February nth, 1868, entitled A Conjectural Solution of the Origin of
the Classficatory System of Relationship. [ This paper is printed in full in the Pro-
ceedings of the Academy, Vol, VII. pp. 436-437.] This paper is in fact a resume o{ his
great work, which was then passing through the press, and appeared as a thick quarto
Lewis Henry Morgan. _ 725
volume of the Smithsonian contributions to knowledge, published in 1870, under the
title of Systems of Cotisanguiniiy and Affinity of the Human Family. This volume is
literally one of facts, from which most important conclusions are constantly being drawn.
As Mr. Morgan states, it contains the systems of relationship of " four-fifths, numerical-
ly, of the entire human family." During the years in which these materials were being
collected, Mr. Morgan was not idle, but was gradually obtaining information for future
contributions, both by study in his well stored library and by personal expeditions
among the Indian tribes of the West and of Hudson's Bay territory. This was also the
most active period of his literary life, several of the papers, which were afterwards re-
vised and printed, having been sketched during this time. Among the most important
of these were contributions to the North American Review, from 1869 to 1876, under
the titles of The Seven Cities of Cibola, Indian Migrations, Montezuma's Din-
ner, and the Houses of the Mound Builders. Probably the paper pi 1876, entitled
Montezuma's Dinner, is the most characteristic of what has been called the " Morgan
school" of ethnology. In it he showed that the commonly received statements re-
lating to the Aztec civilisation were founded on misconceptions and exaggerations, and
that the Mexican confederacy, reviewed in the light of knowledge derived from a study
of the social and tribal institutions of the Indians of America, would be found to form
no exception to the democratic, military and priestly government founded on the gentile
system common to the American tribes. Mr. Morgan always chose forcible language
in expressing his ideas, and he held fast to theories which he believed to be well founded.
The recent extended investigations, which have brought many additional facts to light,
will naturally lead to the criticism of some of the theories which he formed, from the
facts at his disposal, during the active period of his literary work ; but, while such as
were constructed of loose materials will fall (and none would have been more ready
than he to pull them down in the cause of truth), the great principles which liif researches
have brought out are so apparently beyond controversy that they will ever stand as the
rocks against which the wild and sensational theories will be dashed, and as foundations
upon which to build in the further study of American archaeology and ethnology. Mr.-
Morgan's last excursion was to the ancient and modern pueblos of Colorado and New
Mexico in 1878, and was undertaken primarily for the purpose of confirming his con-
ceptions in relation to the development of house-life among the Indian tribes. In
House-Life and Architecture of the North American Indians, expressing his views of
communal living among the village Indians, we. particularly notice the persistency with
which he clung to his early theories on this subject. This was his latest work, pub-
lished only a few weeks before his death. While his Systems of Affinity aud Consan-
guinity, League of the Iroquois, and paper on the Mexican civilisation will ever stand as
monuments of his industry and research, and give to him enduring fame, he will be
most widely known by his more popular volume of 1877, Ancient Society, or Researches
in the Lines of Human Progress from Savagery, through Barbarism to Civilisation,
which is, in fact, the embodiment of the most important of his researches — the grand
summing up of many years of industrious labor and deep thought. A thorough evolu-
tionist in his treatment of the subjects of his volume, he commences the preface with
the statement that "The great antiquity of mankind upon earth has been conclusively
established," and goes on to state that " this knowledge changes materially the views
which have prevailed respecting the relations of savages to barbarians, and of bar-
726 History of the City of Rochester.
barians to civilised men. It can now be asserted, upon convincing evidence, that sav-
agery preceded barbarism in all the tribes of mankind, as barbarism is known to have
preceded civilisation. The history of the human race is one in source, one in experi-
ence, and one in progress." He then, on the second and third pages, writes that " In-
ventions and discoveries stand in serial relations along the lines of human progress, and
register its successive stages, while social and civil institutions, in virtue of perpetual
human wants, have been developed from a few primary germs of thought. They ex-
hibit a similar register of progress Throughout the latter part of the period of
savagery, and the entire period of barbarism, mankind in general were organised in
gentes, phratries and tribes The principal institutions of mankind originated
in savagery, were developed in barbarism, arid are maturing in civilisation. In like
manner the family has passed through successive forms and created great systems of
consanguinity and affinity, which have remained to the present time The idea
of property has undergone a similar growth and development. Commencing at zero
in savagery, the passion for the possession of property as the representative of accumu-
lated subsistence has now become dominant over the human mind in civilised races."
He then writes that " The four classes of facts above indicated, and which extend them-
selves in parallel lines along the pathways of human progress from savagery to civilisa-
tion, form the principal subjects of discussion in this volume." These quotations are
sufficient to convey an idea of the substance of the volume and the principles which its
author has set forth. To follow his scholarly statements and call attention in detail to
the important deductions he has drawn, particularly to American ethnology, would be
impossible in this brief notice of the labors of one who has done so much.
In the Popular Science Monthly for November, 1880, there is a good portrait of Mr.
Morgan as president' of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, ac-
companied by an account of his life, written by Major J. W. Powell. In this short
sketch no attempt has been made to mention all the publications of which Mr. Morgan
was the author. A full list of his papers is desirable, as they are widely scattered, and
several are but little known, and difficult to obtain. The following list gives the titles
of those which have come under the writer's notice : —
Letters (1-14) on the Iroquois, "by Skenandoah," addressed to .\lbert Gallatin, LL. D., presi-
dent of the New York historical society. (The American Review : A whig journal of politics, litera-
ture, art and science. Volumes V, VI. February-December, 1847). New York. 8vo.
Communications to the regents of the New York stale university: An account of Indian pipes, for-
tifications, etc., in New York, 1848. (Second annual report of the regents of the university of the
state of New York, 1849). Albany. 8vo. Illustrated.
Report upon the articles furnished the Indian collection, 1849. (Third annual report of the regent.s
of the university of the state of New York, 1850). Albany. 8vo. Illustrated.
The fabrics of the Iroquois. ( Reprint in part of report to the regents of the New York state uni-
versity. Stryker's American Register and Magazine, July, 1850, Vol. IV). Trenton. 8vo. Illus-
trated.
Schedule of articles obtained from the Indians in western New York and on Grand River, Canada.
Abstract of report. (Third and fifth annual reports of the regents of the university of the state cabinet
of natural history). Albany, 1850, 1852. 8vo.
League of the Ho-d6-no-sau-nee, or Iroquois. Rochester, 185 1. 8vo. Illustrated.
Report on the fabrics, inventions, implements and utensils of the Iroquois. (Fifth annual report of
the regents of the state of New York, 1851). Albany, 1852. 8vo. Illustrated.
List of [198] articles manufactured by the Indians of western New York and Canada West, with
their Indian names. (Catalogue of the cabinet of natural history of the state of New York). Albany,
1853. 8vo.
Lewis Henry Morgan. 727
Laws of descent of the Iroquois. (Proceedings of the American association for the advancement of
science. Montreal meeting, 1857). Vol. XI. Cambridge, 1858. 8vo.
The Indian mode of bestowing and changing names. (Proceedings of the American association for
the advancement of science. Springfield meeting, 1850). Vol. XIII. Cambridge, 1866. 8vo.
Circular in reference to the degrees of relationship among different nations. (Smithsonian miscel-
laneous collections. Vol. II). i860. 8vo.
Suggestions relative to an ethnological 'm^P of North America, thirty-six by forty-four inches.
(Annual report of the Smithsonian institute for 1861). 1862. 8vo.
A conjectural solution of the origin of the classificatory system of relationship. (Proceedings of
the American academy of arts and sciences, February, 1868). Vol. VII. Boston, 1868. 8vo.
The American beaver and his works. Philadelphia, 1868. 8vo. Illustrated.
The ",Seven Cities of Cibola." (North American Review, Vol. CVIII, April, 1869). Boston,
1869. 8vo.
Indian migrations. (North American Review, Vol. CIX, October, 1869; Vol. CX, January, 1870).
Boston, 1869, 1870. 8vo.
The stone and bone implements of the Arickarees. (Twenty-first annual report of the regents of the
university of the state of New York on the state cabinet of natural history, 1868). Albany, 1871. 8vo.
Illustrated.
Systems of consanguinity and affinity of the human family. (Smithsonian cdntributions to knowl-
edge, 218). Washington, 1871. 4to.
Australian kinship. From original memoranda of Rev. Lorinier Fison. (Proceedings of the Amer-
ican academy of arts and sciences, March, 1872, Vol. VIII). Boston, 1873. 8vo.
Ethnical periods. (Proceedings of the American association for the advancement of science. De-
troit meeting, 1875, Vol. XXIV). Salem, 1876. 8vo.
Arts of subsistence. (Proceedings of the American association for the advancement of science.
Detroit meeting, 1875, Vol. XXIV). Salem, 1876. 8vo.
Houses of the Mound Builders.- (North American Review, Vol. CXXIII, July, 1876). Boston,
1876. 8vo.
Montezuma's dinner. (North American Review, Vol. CXXII, 1876). Boston, 1876. 8vo.
Ancient society, or researches in the lines of human progress from savagery, through barbarism, to
civilization. New York, 1877. 8vo.
On the ruins of a stone pueblo on the Animas river, in New Mexico; with a ground plan.
(Twelfth annual report, Peabody museum of American archteology and ethnology). Cambridge, 1880.
8vo.
Objects of an expedition to New Mexico and Central America. (Statement presented to the arch-
reological institute of America, March, 1880). Boston. 8vo.
A study of the houses of the American aborigines, with a scheme of exploration of the ruins in New
Mexico and elsewhere. (First annual report of the archieological institute of America). 1880. 8vo.
Illustrated.
Houses and house life of the American aborigines. (Contributions to American ethnology. Vol.
IV). Department of the interior, Washington, 1881. 4to. Illustrated.
In social life Mr. Morgan was much beloved for his kind and genial ways, and at
Rochester his house with its large hall, in which were his library and collections, was
often the gathering place of scholars and scientists, and there the well-known literary
club, of which he was one of the founders a quarter of a century ago, often met. Ever
active as a citizen in all good works, he was twice honored by public offices: in 186 1
he was a member of the state Assembly, and in 1867 and 1868 he was a Senator. In
both these capacities he was distinguished as the uncompromising foe of all vicious
measures, and his fair name was never sullied by even the insinuation of corrupt or
double dealing. From his great interest in the Indian tribes and from his knowledge
of the natural course of the development of civilisation, he always took to heart the
unfortunate condition of the Indians and the unnatural methods which were pursued
by government in relation to their civilisation, and often urged, as occasions arose, the
desirability of leading the Indians to civilisation by making them self-sustaining as a
pastoral people, writing several letters to the press, particularly to the NaHon,'m which
are presented forcible reasons for following such a plan.
728 History of the City of Rochester.
Mr. Morgan was a member of numerous historical and scientific societies, and
in 1879 he was elected president of the American association for the advancement of
science, and presided over the meeting held in Boston the following year. At this time
it was noticed that his strength was failing, and, although he had much enjoyment at
the meeting, he remarked that it would probablyhe the last time he should meet with
the association, and that he should so much the more appreciate the honor which had
been conferred upon him. From that time he slowly declined, and died at his home,
at the age of sixty-three, on December 17th, 1881. Mr. Morgan was married in 1851
to Mary E., daughter of the late Lemuel Steele, of- Albany, N. Y., who, with one son,
survives him.* The death of his two daughters, in 1862, was a sad calamity, and as
Mr. Morgan was much interested in plans for the higher education of women, he en-
deavored to establish in Rochester a college for women, to which he proposed to make
a memorial endowment ; but his efforts were not entirely successful. He then resolved
to leave the whole of his property for the purpose after the decease of his wife and son,
hoping that others will unite in making the fund ample for such an institution. In pur-
suance of this object he has left his entire and considerable property in trust to the
University of Rochester, for the final establishment of a college for women. *
Union college conferred upon Mr. Morgan the degree of A. B., July 226, 1840, and
that of LL. D., July 2d, 1873. He was made a member of the New York Historical
society, April, 1846 ; of the American Ethnological society, January, 1849; of the
Natural History society of Williams college, February, 1850; the State Historical society
of Wisconsin, March, 1854; Michigan Historical society, September, 1857; American
Antiquarian society, Worcester, Mass., October, 1865; Academy of Natural Sciences,
Philadelphia, December, 1865; Buffalo Historical society, December, 1866; Marquette
Historical and Scientific association, August, 1867 ; Maryland Historical society, Octo-
ber, 1867 ; American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Boston, May, 1868 ; Boston
Academy of Natural History, January, 1869; Associadad Anxiliad Orada Industria
Nacional, Rio de Janeiro, September, 187 1 ; Wisconsin Academy of Arts and Sciences,
February, 1874; National Academy of Sciences, Washington, April, 1875; Academy
of Natural Science, Davenport, Iowa, April, 1877; Institution Ethnographique, Paris,
D^16gu6 Correspondant pour I'fitat de New York, August, 1880; and of the Royal
Historical society, Grampion lodge. Forest Hill, S. E., London, October, 1880, which
latter was declined. Mr. Morgan left an extensive and carefully selected library, and a
most interesting and valuable collection of Indian relics. The library building is 44
feet long, 25 feet wide, and 15 feet high, with ceiling in panels of black walnut and
bird's-eye maple, modeled after the ceiling of a room at Abbotsford, with panels
much enlarged. In the center of the ceiling is a skylight of stained glass, i2x 12 feet,
and raised two feet above the ceiling. A triple bay-window on the east end, and glass
doors on the corresponding opposite end give the only additional light to the room.
The library is chiefly a working collection of books, histories and ethnological works,
such as were in constant use by the owner. The rarest volume in the collection is a
Spanish dictionary, published in the city of Mexico in 1576, parts of which have been
1 Since this memoir was written by Mr. Putnam, Mrs. Morgan's death has occurred. She survived
her husband not quite two years. Greatly esteemed and beloved by all who knew her, she died at
the family residence in Rochester, December 1st, 1883.
2 Mrs. Morgan also bequeathed her separate estate, after the death of her son, to the same purpose.
Both estates amount to more than one hundred thousand dollars.
Lewis Henry Morgan. — Henry Rogers Selden. 729
destroyed and since replaced line by line, with great skill. Mr. Morgan ascertained,
when in London some years ago, the value of this very old and rare volume to be esti-
mated at $350 per copy. The cabinet of relics and antiquities was in a large measure
collected by Mr. Morgan. The most interesting American Indian article is the gorget
of Joseph Brandt (Thayandanega), copper, plated with gold, presented to him in Eng-
land, with the royal arras in relief upon it. Articles of Indian manufacture are numer-
ous and choice — and veritable ones — many of them having been made specially for
Mr. Morgan, by the best skilled Indian workers. The Rochester Democrat b" Chron-
icle prefaced a long obituary of Mr. Morgan the day after his decease, with the follow-
ing statement : —
" In the death of the Hon. Lewis II. Morgan, which occurred at his residence in this city last
evening, his family has lost a trusted and an a(Tectionate head, Rochester an old and a valued citizen, and
the state one who had rendered it good and patriotic service. Science, for which he had labored effi-
ciently and conspicuously, will mourn one of its brightest lights extinguished; for he was among the
foremost investigators of his time; had definitely settled some of the most perplexing questions in
archteology, and had achieved a world-wide reputation as a scholar — a reputation perhaps more bril-
liant even in Europe than in America."
The many letters of inquiry and condolence that followed Mr. Morgan's death sug-
gested to his surviving family the appropriateness of a memorial containing the funeral
address of the Rev. J. H. Mcllvaine, D. D., his intimate friend and pastor for many
years. This was accompanied also by a memorial card giving the simple record of the
progress of his works. The members of the Rochester Literary and Scientific club, of
which he was one of the founders, attended the funeral in a body and acted as honorary
pall-bearers, and their sons carried the casket to the family tomb ^ at Mount Hope
cemetery.
HENRY ROGERS SELDEN figured for more than half a century among the agen-
cies which were wholesomely active in Rochester, and contributed invaluable forces
toward its material and municipal growth. Now, by reason of the feebleness of ad-
vanced years, relegated to repose from toilsome labors and a life of remarkable public
achievements, the venerable form of the eminent jurist may still be seen nourishing its
declining years in the vigor of the open air upon pleasant sunny days. He has reached
his seventy-ninth year. Until five years since he was still actively engaged in the duties
of his profession and continuing to win encomiums from the bench and bar and plaudits
from the public press as the Nestor of his calling.
Born of Puritan stock at Lyme, Conn., October 14th, 1805, he followed his brother,
Samuel Lee Selden to Rochesterville (as the then insignificant town was denominated)
in 1825. There he entered the office of a man, Addison Gardiner (who died in June,
1883), who during a long and eventful life was conspicuous as one of the most notable
figures among the Democratic party, while an eminent legal authority in the jurispru-
dence of the state of New York. Samuel Lee Selden, Henry's brother was the law part-
ner of Addison Gardiner, so it came about that the younger Selden received more than
even a cordial welcome in the office of the noted firm. By this adventitious circumstance,
three men were brought together, all of whom, for a significant period, adorned the bench
of the court of Appeals, and occupied the position of the chief judgeship thereof, besides
figuring among the noted lawyers of the century in the Empire state.
730 History of the City of Rochester.
When the subject of this sketch was in his twenty-fifth year he was admitted to the
bar, and thereupon immediately entered upon the practice of his profession at Clarkson,
upon the western border of Monroe county. In 1830 the eye of no man was yet quite
farseeing enough to determine exactly which of the several thriving places within the
limits of the county enfolded a future city and was destined to spread its arms over the
acreage of the territory and be absorbed in and under the manifold ramifications of a
great municipal corporation. Clarkson bid as fair to become a commercial center as
any other in the county, and the village of Carthage, stretching upon the east and west
banks of the Genesee clear along toward the mouth of the beautiful stream, most delu-
sively promised a prosperity it never fulfilled, and that just escaped the locality by pass-
ing south and clustering about a goodly area of territory between the rapids and the
lower falls. That territory became, and to-day substantially is, the teeming, seething
Rochester from which Henry Rogers Selden was to ascend the bench, and to carry,
with John A. King, the banner of the Republican party in its initial effort for political
ascendency during the Fremont and Dayton campaign of 1856. The national leaders
in this campaign suffered defeat ; but John A. King, who headed the state ticket, was
triumphantly elected governor, and Henry Rogers Selden lieutenant-governor, the first
two members of the new party to enter upon the performance of grave and lofty public
duty under a new, and, as they believed, better political regime in the nation. It is
worth mentioning that during the gubernatorial canvass Judge Selden was in Europe
upon professional business ; but his personal popularity carried him through the struggle
with a very handsome inajority. Throughout the state he was known and recognised
as an honest man, over and above the place he held as a very able and profound lawyer.
As presiding officer of the Senate at a time when skilled parliamentarians belonging to a
party hostile to the Republicans were among the influential and powerful members of
the state legislature, none of his rulings ever suffered the reproof of dissent. There was
confidence as firm in his good judgment as in his honesty and legal acumen. The
urbanity with which he presided in Senate had so noticeable a judicial cast, that in July,
1862, upon the retirement of his brother, the late Samuel Lee Selden, from the chief
judgeship of the court of Appeals, Governor Edwin D. Morgan appointed Henry Rogers
Selden to the vacancy.
Honorable Hiram Denio, then eldest associate judge, would, under the constitution
of 1846, have succeeded as chief judge-in course but for the governor's appointment.
This fact the generous-hearted appointee recognised, notwithstanding his clear right to the
chief judgeship, and very characteristically deferred to, by waiving everything in Judge
Denio's behalf and permitting that eminent jurist to go into and occupy the exalted judi-
cial place at once, himself content to take the subordinate place of associate judge.
Henry Rogers Selden remained upon the court of Appeals bench continuously from
that time to the close of 1863, and his opinions may be found from volumes 25 to 31,
inclusive, of the N. Y. Reports, while his work in reference to the compilation of the
massive monument of leading precedents represented by these reports is included be-
tween the 4th and nth volumes of the same, with a small volume Of addenda, known
as Selden's notes, all of which were the product of his toil and learning while court of
Appeals reporter.
From 1830 until the summer of 1879 he continued, with the exceptioh of the time
spent upon the bench and a year or more occupied in the search of health in Europe,
Henry Rogers Selden. 731
lu the active and incessant practice of his profession. But he was never without interest
in every reasonable plan for the advancement of mankind in civilisation and happiness.
In 1845, when Professor S. F. B. Morse was knocking vainly at many doors in the
interest of patents in telegraphy that have since become world-famous, he found a will-
ing ear and the heartiest co-operatijon in Henry R. Selden. In conjunction with Mr.
Henry O'Riely, a former journalist of Rochester, who entered into a contract with the
Morse patentees, Henry Rogers Selden, inaugurated a movement whereby a number of
public-spirited citizens convened with the view of forming a company to build a section
of 40 miles of telegraph (then considered a most visionary scheme), between Lancaster
and Harrisburgh in Pennsylvania. The sole subscribers to this stock were Henry R.
Selden, Samuel L. Selden, Jonathan Childs,,(the first mayor of Rochester), Elisha D.
Ely, Hugh T. Brooks, and Micah Brooks, (the philanthropist), Alvah Strong and George
Dawson, (the journalist), John S. Skinner and Hervey Brooks. These gentlemen were
associated as the Atlantic, Lake & Mississippi Valley telegraph company, of which
Henry Rogers Selden became president. At a later period the Selden brothers acquired
an interest in the New York and Mississippi Valley printing telegraph company, organ-
ised under the House patent. This company eventually developed into that gigantic
corporation known as the Western Union telegraph company. In the manner here re-
counted the Seldens were among the pioneers of telegraphy in this country and in the
world.
In January, 1865, the subject of this sketch was solicited to accept the nomination
for the Assembly in the second district of Monroe. He was elected and, though in en-
feebled health, entered upon the performance of his duties as earnestly and as modestly
as though he had never occupied the chair of the state Senate and the bench of the
court of Appeals. In 1870, on the reorganisation of the court of Appeals, he consented
to be a candidate on the Republican ticket against the late Sanford E. Church for the
chief judgeship of the court of Appeals ; knowing full well that political conditions at
the time precluded the possibility of Republican success. He was one of the callers of
the celebrated Cincinnati convention of 1872; but, dissatisfied with its results he has
never since engaged in politics. His health, which had so often been an impediment to
active exertions in politics and public life, compelled him to retire from professional life
in 1879, since which he has resided quietly in Rochester, in a large and roomy mansion
at the comer of Gibbs street and Grove place. He was, like his brother Samuel Lee
Selden, a liberal contributor of both time and means to local charitable institutions, offi-
ciating as a manager of several of them, and according all the benefit of his sound judg-
ment, shrewd common sense, and professional knowledge. The life work of the two
jurist brothers stands out in bold relief as a notable part of the leading political history
of the Empire state and constitutes a source of just pride to every one of its citizens.
Mr. Selden was married September 25th, 1834, at Clarkson, to Laura Anne, daughter
of Dr. Abel and Laura (Smith) Baldwin, who is still living. They have buried seven
children, and have living three sons and two daughters. The eldest son, George Bal-
dwin Selden is practicing patent law at Rochester,. and is already recognised as a noted
authority in his difficult branch of the profession. Arthur Rogers Selden is in the em-
ploy of the great manufacturing company of D. S. Morgan & Co., at Brockport, N. Y.
The youngest son is Samuel Lee Selden, a lawyer, practicing in Rochester. A daughter,
Julia, is the wife of Theodore Bacon, a distinguished member of the Rochester bar.
The youngest daughter is Miss Laura H. Selden, who resides with her parents.
INDEX.
Aborigines of America, 13, 21, 27.
Academy of science, 222.
Active hose, 209.
Adams, John Quincy, 117, 135.
Advertiser, Daily, 346.
Age of the virorld, 13.
Agricultural journals, 361.
Aldermen of the city, 185.
Alert hose, 208.
Allan, Ebenezer, 76, 77, 79, 80, 84.
Allan's mill-stones, 76, 78, 87.
Allen, John, mayor, 136, 147.
Allen, Samuel P., 354.
Alms house, 427.
Alexander street seminary, 306.
America the Old world, 12, l6.
American, Daily, 351.
Ancient fire-place under the lake ridge, 15, 19.
Antiquities of the Genese.e Country, 15, 21, 24,
26, 46.
Andrews and Atwater, loi, H3.
Andrews, Samuel G., mayor, 145, 151.
Amusements in Rochester, 450.
Anti-gambling, society formed, 136.
Anti-Masonic excitement, 122, 124, 350.
Anti-slavery, society formed, 133 ; meetings, 136,
146; lectures, 145, 462.
Appeals, court of, 372. .
Aqueduct, the old, 115, 116; the new, 135, 235.
Architects and Architecture, 524.
Arsenal built, 157.
Art exchange, the, 531.
Art exhibitions, 523.
Art club, the, 531.
Artillery, Rochester, 434.
Assembly, members of, 200.
Assessors of the village, 109.
Asylums, orphan, 41 2; insane, 428.
Athenaeum, the, 217.
Atkinson, William, 109.
Attorneys, list of, 377.
Auction, sale of real estate, 136.
Backus, Dr. F. F., 108, 122, 147, 335..
Balloon, first ascension, 130.
Band, the first here, 109.
Banking institutions, 463.
Barnard, Jehiel, 107, 108.
Barron, his murder of Lyman, 132.
Battery L, First N. Y. Light artillery, 572.
Bazaar in the war time, 151.
Beach, Gen. E. S., 139.
Bible society, Monroe county, 410.
Boyd and Parker, 71, 134.
Brewer's Landing, 23, 39, 41 .
Bridges, 98, III, 113, 118, 130, 145, 146, 150,
156, 161, 166, 170, 172.
Brown, Dr. Jonah, 166, 332.
Brown, Francis, loi, 108.
Brown, Matthew, jr., loi, 104,105, I41.
Brown square school, 298.
Brownlow, Parson, 150.
Burglaries, 163, 166.
Burnet, Governor Wm., 65, 66.
Butler's Rangers, 40, 44, 71, 72.
Butts, Isaac, 162, 349.
Catlin, fate of, 125.
Cable, first Atlantic, 147.
Canadian rebellion, 131, 432.
Canal, Erie, 113, 136, 157, 163, 226.
Can^l, Genesee Valley, 237.
Carter, Robert, 354.
Carthage, settlement of, 107, III; famous bridge
at. III; last bridge, 145.
Casualties, 130, 146, 147, 148, 156, 163, 213, 214.
Cathedral, opening of, 156.
Catholic cemeteries, 448.
Catholic orphan asylums, 415
Catholic schools, 278, 312, 316.
Celebration, centennial, 164 ; semi-centennial, 1 74.
Cemeteries, Mt. Hope, 438; Catholic, 448.
Central library, 219.
Census of Rochester, 107, no, 114, 116, 119,
136, 140.
Champion, Aristarchus, 159, 235.
Chapin, Judge, 107, 154.
Charier of city, 128, 138.
Charitable society, female, 127, 407.
Charlevoix, Father, 64, 75, 79.
Charlotte, attack upon, 102, 104.
Cheney, first furnace, 133.
Chinese, first voter, 171.
Child, Jonathan, inaugurated mayor, 129; resigns,
130; dies, 148.
Childs, Timothy, 122, 234.
Cholera, 127, 139, 142.
Chronicle, Daily, 352.
Church home, 425.
Church, Sanford E., 373.
Churches, the First, 109, 118; the Presbyterian,
243; Episcopal, 254; Friends, or Quakers,
260; Baptist, 261; Methodist, 268; Catholic,
277; Unitarian, 284; Lutheran, 286; United
Evangelical, 288; Evangelical association,
289; German Reformed, 290; Congregation-
al, 290; Jewish, 291 ; Universalist, 293;
Advent Christian, 294; Reformed Dutch,
294; Christadelphian, 295.
Circus, the first here, 451.
City building, 161.
City hall, corner-stone laid, 161 ; finished, 163.
City hospital, 151, 163, 403.
City, incorporation of, 128.
City officials for 1884, 179.
City supervisors, 194.
Index.
733
City tax levy, i8i.
City treasurers, 193.
Civil list of the city, 184.
Civil Service Reform association, 226.
Clark, John, his murder of Trevor, 163.
Clay, Henry, 136, 137.
Clinton, DeWitt, 103, 226, 230, 232, 237.
Clubs, Pundit, 221 ; Fortnightly, 221 ; Browning,
222 ; Shakespeare, 222 ; Rochester, 223 ;
Whist, -223; Phoenix, 224; Abelard, 224;
Mutual, 224 ; Celtic, 224 ; Commercial Trav-
elers', 225; Lincoln, 226; Riverside, 226;
Canoe, 227.
Coal, first used, 138; its supply, 241.
Coldest weather known here, 144.
Coleman, Dr. Anson, 334.
Commerce of the village, 1 10.
Congress, members of, 200.
Convent Schools, 316.
Corinthian hall, 139, 456.
County clerks, 199.
County court, 375.
County erected, 114.
County officials for 1884, 183.
County treasurers, 200.
Court-house, 115, 139, 141, 368.
Court, first of record, 114, 369.
Courts, state, 370; county, 375.
Culver, Oliver, 23, 39, 67, 86.
Cutler, Jeremiah, 173,298.
Dam, its construction, 109.
Dauby, Augustine G., 107, 344.
Dean, Dr. H. W., 338.
Deaf mute institution, 426.
Debt of the city, 180.
Deed, Allan's, 81, 82, 84.
Deed, first in the county, llj.
Deeds, Indian, 63, 67.
De Lave, he crosses the falls, 147.
Democrat, Daily, 351.
DeNonville's expedition, 50, 53, 57, 60.
Dentistry, 341.
Dewey, Dr. Chester, 146, 155, 308, 311.
Directory of the villagCi first, 124.
District-attorneys, 376.
Doctors, early, 332.
Douglas, Stephen A., 141, 148.
Draft in this city, 151.
Driving-park, the, 457.
Duel, on Pinnacle hill, 135.
Eagle Hotel, 131, 140, 150.
Eastwood, Martin, trial for murder, 144.
Eighteenth Light artillery, 575.
Eighth cavalry regiment, $6g.
Elks, order of, 402.
Electric Light companies, 240.
Elwood, John B., mayor, 165, 335.
Ely, Dr. W. W., 338.
Ely, Elisha, 104.
Ely, Hervey, 104, 106, 120, 127, 150.
Empire order of Mutual Aid, 401.
Engravers in Rochester, 526.
Executive board, 182,
lixhibitions of art, 523.
Expeditions, English, 66, 68, 69.
Expeditions, French, 50, 62.
Expeditions, Indian, 34, 62.
Express, Evening, 358.
Factory, first, 107.
Female academy, 306.
Female Charitable society, 127, 407.
Fenians, 154, 155, 157.
Field, Joseph, mayor, 167.
Fifty-fourth regiment, IJ I, 159, 165, 434.
Fillmore, President, visit of, 140.
Financial crisis of 1837, IJI.
Fine arts in Rochester, 51°-
Finney, Dr., revivals under, 145.
Fire alarm telegraph, 210.
Fire department, 109, 201.
Firemen's Benevolent association, 211.
Firemen's monument, 212.
Fires, notable, 213.
First Veteran brigade, 576.
Fish-culture, Seth Green's experiments, 156.
Floods, of 1835, 130; of 1857, 146; of 1865,
153; of 1867, 155.
Foresters, the, 401.
Fort Bender, 104.
Fortifications, ancient, 39, 41, 42, 45.
Forts, French, 50, 52, 53, 63.
Forts, Indian, 56, 57, 59.
Foundry, first, 133.
Fourteenth Heavy artillery, 574.
Fox, Louis, mysterious disappearance, 155.
Fox sisters, the, 508.
Frankfort laid out, loi.
Franklin institute, 2i6.
Free academy, 321.
Freemasons m Rochester, 381.
Frost, Alonzo, 98.
Fugitive slaves, 459.
Gardiner, Addison, 130, 173, 371.
Garfield, President, mock funeral, 168.
Gas, first burned here, 138; present companies,
240.
Gazette established, 107, 344.
Genesee country, 30, 32, 73, 88.
Genesee falls, 64, 78, 79, 87.
Genesee Indian castle, 33, 70, 71.
Genesee river, 17, 19, 22, 23, 26, 33, 75.
German churches, 486, 489.
German element of Rochester, 481.
German Grenadiers, 434, 486.
Germans in the war, 493.
German newspapers, 360, 492.
German insurance company, 242.
Geology, surface, 16, 23.
Giants, remains of, 22, 25, 26, 27.
Gould, Jacob, mayor, 130, 155, 298.
Grand Army of the Republic, 576.
Greek, donation to the fund, 117.
Hall, Dr. A. G., 159.
Hall, Dr. T. F., 338.
Hammond, Caleb, 298.
Hanford's Landing, 26, 40, 86, 88, 110.
Hardenbrook, Dr., trial of, 139.
Hawley, Jesse, 114, 135.
Herald, Morning, 359.
High school, 308.
Hill, Charles J., mayor, 115, 138, 173, 201.
Hills, Isaac, mayor, 130, 168.
Holmes, William F., 143, 165.
Holley, Myron, 134, 230, 234, 445.
Holy Sepulcher cemetery, 449.
Home of Industrjf, 425.
Home for the Friendless, 418.
Homoeopathic physicians, 340.
Horticultural society formed, 127; exhibition, 137.
Hospitals, St. Mary's, 150, 406; City, iJl, 163, 403.
734
Index.
House of Refuge, 497.
Howard riot, 159.
Humane society, 427.
Humphrey, Harvey, 127, 165.
Improvemeiits in 1883, 172.
Incorporation of the village, 108; of the city, 128.
Industrial school, 422.
Indians, Attiwandaronk, 30, 31, 47.
Indians, Neutral, see Attiwandaronk.
Indians, Seneca, 21, 28, 30, 32, 33, 48, 54, 61, 63,
68, 69, 72, 74, 75.
Indian traditions, 21, 28, 29.
Indian trails 26, 34, 37, 47, 60.
Indian sacrifice, 40.
Indian legend of the lower Genesee, 41.
Indian population, 61, 75.
Indian reservations, 74, 75.
Insane asylum, 428.
Insurance, local companies, 241.
Irish nationality, 135; famine, 137; National
league, 225.
Irondequoit landing, 34, 39, 44, -66.
Irondequoit bay, ig, 34, 36, 45, 49, 52, 63, 67, 70.
Iroquois, 28, 3', 38, 49, 61, 69, 70.
Irrepressible conflict, 147.
Jail, the old, 116; the hew, 166, 507.
Jemison, Mary, 21, 75, 76.
Jesuits, 31, 35, 47, 50, 56, 60.
Jewish hospital, 418.
Jewish orphan asylum, 418.
Jews, 147.
Johnson, Andrew, 155.
Johnson, Elisha, mayor, 109.
Judges and lawyers, 366.
Keeler, Rufus, mayor, 136, 164.
Kemble, Fanny, 139.
Kempshall, Thomas, mayor, 154.
Knights of Pythias, 401.
Know-Nothing party, 144.
ICiiichling, Dr. L. A., 339.
Labor Reform journals, 364..
Lake Erie, 14, 18, 63.
Lake Ontario, 14, 18.
LaFayette, visit to Rochester, 119.
La Salle, 48, 49, 67.
Lawyers, list of, 377.
Law library, 219.
Lectures, 139, 142, 143, 144.
Literary Union, 220.
Liberty party formed, 133.
Libraries, 216.
Light Guards, 433,
Lincoln, Abraham, 149 ; mourning over his death,
154.
Lind, Jenny, 140.
Lithography in Rochester, 527.
Locomotive explosions, 14S, 156.
Loomis, Daniel, 152, 524.
Lyell bridge, battle of, 433.
Lyman, murdered by Barron, 132.
Lyon, Caleb, III.
Mackenzie, Navy island raid, 131.
Mack's battery, 575.
Mails, early, 90, lo6.
Mannerchor, the, 166, 492.
Manufacturers of Rochester, 598.
Maps, early, 34, 35.
Masonic bodies in Rochester, 381.
Masonic excitement, 122.
Mastick, John, first lawyer, 367.
Mathews, Dr. M. M., 340.
Mayors of the city, 185.
Medical society, Monroe county, 332; Homceo-/
pathic, 340.
Meridian of Rochester, 141.
Mexican war, 137.
Microscopical society, 222.
Militia organisations, 429.
Mills, Allan's, 76 to 86.
Mill, first, 106.
Moore, Emma, mysterious disappearance, 144.
Moore, Lindley Murray, 135.
Moore, S. W. D., mayor, 158.
Morgan, William, his abduction, 119; sentence
of his abductors, 121 ; his subsequent fate,
122.
Morgan, Lewis H., 168.
Mormon Bible, first appearance, 126.
Monroe County Bible society, 410.
Mount Hope cemetery, 162, 438.
Mounds, ancient, 23, 25, 39, 45, 46,
Mound-builders, 13, 20, 23, 25,
Muniford, George II., 102, 159.
Municipal court, 181.
Munroe, Timothy, body claimed to be his, 123.
Murders, 132, 133, 141, 146, 154, 156, 163, 164.
Museum, the old, 455.
Music in Rochester, 528.
Mutual Aid, Empire order, 401.
Mysterious disappearances, 138, 144, 155.
Nash, John C, mayor, 154.
Navy island raid, 131, 432.
Newspapers, the first, 107; all other papers here,
343.
Newton, Col. Aaron, 161.
Nullification, movement against, 431.
Odd Fellows, 395.
Oil speculation, 152.
One-hundred-acre tract, 76, 78, 80, 84, 88.
One Hundred and Fifth regiment, 561.
One Hundred and Eighth regiment, 561.
One Hundred and Fortieth regiment, 563.
One Hundred and Fifty-first regiment, 566.
Orphan asylums, Rochester, 412.
O'Rielly's Sketches, 133, 349.
O'Reilly, Bishop Bernard, 145.
O'Rorke, Colonel, 565.
Ox-Bow, canal break at, 158.
Paper-mill, the first here, no.
Parnell, Charles S., visit of, 167.
Pastor, first, 107.
Patch, Sam, his leap, 125.
Patriot soldiers, burial of remains, 134, 446.
Peck, Everard, 108, iio, 127, 144, 345.
Penitentiary, the, 506.
Perkins, William H., 147.
Phelps and Gorham purchase, 73, 97.
Phillips, J. W., runs steamboat, 129.
Photography in Rochester, 527.
Pierce, Porter P., mysterious disappearance, 138.
Pioneer Rifles, 431.
Pioneers, junior, society of, 145.
Pioneers, society of, 138.
Pioneer settlement, 97.
Pitkin, William, mayor, 136, 157.
Pneumonia typhoides, 98.
Police board, 182.
Police justices, 194.
Pond, Elias, 164.
Powers, Colonel, 562.
Index.
73S
Population of Rochester, 95, 107, 1 10, 1 14, 1 16,
119, 136, 140, 173.
Porter, S. U., 133, 168. .
Post-Express, Daily, 359.
Post-Oflice, 90, 96.
Postmasters, 94, 96.
Presbyterian, Old school, assembly, 148 ; New
school, assembly, 155.
Press of Rochester, 343.
Printers, celebration of, 137.
Private schools^ 296.
Protectives, 205.
Public schools, 317.
Pulteney estate, 73, 85, 88.
Railroads, the great strike, 165 ; construction
of, 166 ; description of, 473.
Rappings, Rochester, the, 508.
Real school, the, 161, 494.
Rebellion, war of the, 149.
Refuge, House of, 497.
Rcid, Dr. W. W., 336.
Religious journals, 363.
Reynolds, Abelard, 91, 94, loi, 104.
Reynolds arcade, 94, 95.
Reynolds's battery, 572.
Reynolds library, 84.
Reynolds, Mrs. Abelard, 91, 176.
Reynolds, William, 92, 94, 160.
Richardson, Samuel, mayor, 173.
Ridge, the lake, 14, 16, 18, 23, 102.
Rifle battalion, first, 430.
Roads, early, 90, 93.
Rochester, Col. Nathaniel, 88, 91, 107, 127, 176.
Rochester, elevation of, 18 ; as a village, 108 ; as
a city, 128; meridian of, 141.
Rochester, Thomas H., mayor, 162.
Rochester knockings, 508.
Rochester, Mrs. Nathaniel, 137.
Rochester orphan asylums, 412.
Rochester, William B., 119, 370.
Ryan, Colonel George, funeral of, 158.
Ryan Zouaves, 160.
Sam Patch's leap, 125.
Savings banks, run on, 165 ; sketch of, 469.
Schools, parochial, 278 ; early private, 296 ; con-
vent, 316; public, 317.
Schuyler, Captam Peter, 66, 68.
Scrantom, Hamlet, 99, 139; Edwin, 99, 167,
344; Hamlet D., mayor, 99, 171; Mr?. Ed-
win, 158.
Sculptors in Rochester, 524.
Secret societies, 381.
.Selden, Henry R., 373.
Selden, Samuel L., 372.
Selye, Lewis, 146, 173, 354.
Semi-centennial of Westerii New York, 134.
Semi-centennial celebration, 174.
Settlement of Rochester, 97.
Seward, William H., 135, 144, 147, 155.
SheriUs, 199.
Sibley, Levi W., 136, ,345.
Skinner, Aaron, 297.
Small-pox, 160, 169.
Smith, E. Darwin, 160, 173, 349.
Smith, Edward M., mayor, 173.
Smith, Elijah F., mayor, 167.
Smith, E. Peshine, 171.
Smith, Silas O., loi, 151.
Snow-storms, 145, 166.
Speculation, in oil and in telegraph stock, 152.
Spiritualism, 143.
Squires, murder of his wife, 133.
State senators, 200.
Steamboat Ontario, no; Genesee, 129; Caro-
line, 131.
Steam fire engines, no.
Stilwell, Hamlin, mayor, 143, 158.
St. Joseph's orphan asylum, 417.
St. Mary's hospital, 150, 406.
St. Mary's orphan asylum, 416.
St. Patrick's day in 1833, 128.
St. Patrick's orphan asylum, 415.
Stone, Enos, 89, 100, 138, 141.
Stone, Isaac W., 104.
Street cars, 150.
Street railroads, 480.
Strikes, 159, 165, 170, 171.
Strong, Huldah,, 92, 296.
Sullivan's campaign, 70, 72, 134.
Sullivan, Captain, 160, 171.
Sullivan, Major, funeral of, 151.
Sunday journals, 360.
Surrogates, 376.
Swan, Gen. L. B., 141, 149.
Tavern, the first here, loi, 107.
Tax levy for 1884-85, 181.
Taylor, funeral procession, 139.
Telegraph, the newspaper, no, 345.
Telegraph, Western Union, speculation in, 152;
construction of, 238.
Telephone, 239.
Temperance, 136, 137.
Theater, the first.here, 451.
Theological seminary, 551.
Third cavalry regiment, 569.
Thirteenth regiment, 149, 160, 204, 493, 556.
Thirty-third regiment, 560.
Tod- Waddle, battle of, 431.
Tolls on the Erie canal, 236.
Totiakton, 56, 57.
Trustees of the village, 108, 184.
Tryon's Town, 39, 88, 90.
Turners, German, the, 491.
Twenty-first cavalry regiment, 571.
Twenty-second cavalry regiment, 571.
Twenty-fifth regiment, 559.
Twenty-sixth regiment, 559.
Twenty-seventh regiment, 559.
Twenty-eighth regiment, 560.
Typhoid pneumonia, 98.
Underground railroad,-458.
Union Blues, 436.
Union, Daily, 348.
Union Grays, 144, 433.
United Workmen, 401.
University of Rochester, 140, 531.
Village, incorporation of, 108.
Vincent place bridge, 161.
Ward, Dr. Levi, 107, 149.
Ward, Levi A., 168, 217, 242.
Warof 1812, 102; Mexican, 137; Civil, 149, 555.
War record, the, 555.
Warner, Horatio G., 163, 164, 349.
Water works, 162, 210.
Water works, the, 577.
Webster, Daniel, 140, 143.
Wedding, the first, 106.
Weed Thurlow, 116, 123, 126, 345.
Western House of Refuge, 497.
Western Union, speculation in, 152.
736
Index.
West, Ira, lOl.
" White Woman," see Mary Jemison,
Whittlesey, Chancellor, 135, 141, 345, 372, 453, 516
Wilder, A. Carter, mayor, 161, 164.
Williams, Comfort, first clergyman, 107; school
teacher, 301.
Williams, John, mayor, 150, 163, 164.
Williams Light infantry, 432.
Wolf, last in the county, 127.-
Woman's rights, 138, 144.
Yacht club, Rochester^ 165.
Yellow mill, 109.
Yeo, Admiral, I02, 104.
Young Lion of the West, 145, 233.
Young Men's Catholic association, 220.
Young Men's Christian association, 219.
This preservation photocopy was made at BookLab, Inc.
in compliance with copyright law. The paper
is Weyerhaeuser Cougar Opaque Natural,
which exceeds ANSI Standard
Z39.48-1984.
1992