The Gaines Centennial Parade held in Childs in September 1909 included a team of oxen.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian – Vol. 2, No. 6

The struggles encountered by the first settlers in this area are well documented – the long arduous trip from New England or southern New York State, the rough terrain, the hard work required to clear the land.

Their first-person accounts, which are chronicled in the 1871 book Pioneer History of Orleans County by Arad Thomas, describe their struggles and achievements.

But none of those accomplishments would have been possible without oxen. It was ox-power that pulled the laden wagons. It was ox-power that hauled tree stumps out of the ground and logs to the mills.

Oxen, being slow, steady and sure-footed, were more suited to the journey west than horses. They could pull heavier loads than horses, and having more stamina, they could pull steadily for longer periods of time.

Oxen are castrated male cattle, four years old, who have been trained to work. They are referred to in the Bible and were used throughout Europe in medieval times. Oxen are not native to this country, but were brought here by Edward Winslow, a Plymouth Pilgrim who was sent back to England for supplies. He returned in 1624 with three Devon heifers and a Devon bull.

The early travelers to this area generally had one team of oxen, though Andrew Weld of Vermont came in a wagon pulled by three yoke of oxen. The journey generally took a month.

Seymour B. Murdock’s account is one of the more colorful of the Pioneer reminiscences:

“In the transit from Dutchess County, we had a hard time, traveling with an ox team, with a family of twelve persons. We were little more than a month on the way.

From the Genesee River to Clarkson Corners was one dense wilderness.

The roads, if they could properly be called, were completely impassible.

At the crossing of Otter Creek in Gaines, fire had consumed the logs…. which left an almost perpendicular ascent for us to rise. To accomplish this, we took off our oxen and drove them up the old road, and then with teams on the hill, and chains extending from them to the tongues of the wagons below, we drew our wagon up. In doing this, at one time, the draft appeared too much for the team, the oxen fell and were drawn back by the load, and the horn of one of the oxen catching under a root, was torn entirely off.”

The early years were difficult for all, particularly 1816, “The Year with No Summer.”

Adin Manley recalled:

“We had three yoke of oxen and nothing for them to eat, this was the worst of all. We turned them into the woods and cut browse for them, but the poor cattle suffered much.”

Later, when the settlers were more established, oxen played a role in the well-earned “mirthful enjoyment” enjoyed by the younger people. William C. Tanner recounted:

“As cold weather approached, our season for evening parties commenced.

We sometimes went four or five miles to an evening party, on an ox sled, drawn by two yoke of oxen, with as many passengers as could pile on, and as far as appearances would prove, all enjoyed both the ride and the dance first rate.

The first regular ball we attended was held at what is now Millville, in Shelby, July 4, 1819.”

This ball was held in the upper room of a new store, presumably the location of what was later the T.O. Castle store and Post Office, on the corner of Maple Ridge Road and East Shelby Roads.

Oxen were used in Orleans County for quite some time. The Ballou diaries, written in the early 1850s in the Town of Carlton refer to their oxen:

October 21, 1851: Got the oxen shod.

May 24, 1852: One of the oxen is sick.

October 12, 1852: Hosea traded the oxen off today for a horse.

The Agriculture Society of Ridgeway and Shelby’s Fourth Annual Competition held in Medina in September 1861, included a category for Working Oxen “Particular reference will be made to the matching and docility of the animals.”

The Orleans County Agricultural Society Fair held in Albion in June 1871, also included a category for Working Oxen, one for the Best Pair of Working Oxen and one for the Best String of Ten Yoke of Oxen.

Once their laboring days were past, oxen were suitable for providing beef at the age of eight. Ox tongue, oxtail and ox tripe could also be enjoyed while roasted ox heart was an old English classic dish. Ox or cow foot soup was yet another thrifty use of the humble ox. Ox hides were used to make leather.

Despite their stellar qualities, oxen were superseded by horses, as Arad Thomas observed:

“A little progress, and pride and ambition substituted horses and lumber wagons as the common vehicles of travel, in place of the oxen and sleds.”

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 2, No. 4

Name a site where you could easily purchase any item under the sun, at a competitive price, allowing you to buy goods without going to a store and then have that item expeditiously sent to your home, availing of the most up-to-date transportation methods?

Yes, you guessed it: Sears, Roebuck and Co.!

A Sears, Roebuck catalog from 1902 was recently donated to the Orleans County History Department. The catalog highlights the similarities between Sears, Roebuck and Amazon.

Sears started in 1886, selling watches by mail-order, then a new purchasing method. In 1994, Amazon began selling books online, also a new concept. In both instances, the combination of energetic leadership, fortuitous timing and a particular combination of socio-economic and demographic factors facilitated their explosive growth and market dominance.

Richard Sears and Alvah Roebuck issued their first catalog, 322 pages in 1891. At that time, 65% of the population lived in rural areas and were required to travel to often distant post boxes to pick up their mail, or to pay carriers for delivery.

The Rural Free Delivery Act was passed in 1894 to provide mail delivery, free of charge, to all. Naturally, the legislation had encountered the opposition of the paid carriers and of the store owners who rightly feared the prospect of mail-order shopping.

The Sears catalog which has been donated to the History Dept. is a hefty tome, 1,208 pages, offering every item imaginable. All the items are listed in the eight-page index, from Abdominal Belts to Zitho Harps.

The catalog included a comprehensive range of dress and work clothing for the entire family

Suddenly, the floodgates of consumerism were open, everyone could buy anything, conveniently and privately. Thanks to Sears’ inspired privacy policy, people could shop “incognito” as the company vowed that every transaction would be strictly confidential, that their name and address would not appear on any article of merchandise. One can well imagine that this would have been appreciated especially by customers in small communities.

The catalog is printed in black and white, but carpet, floor linoleum and oilcloth patterns were shown in color.

This was not a free catalog – the cloth bound edition cost $1, and the paperback edition 50 cents. These prices may seem inexpensive to us, but at the time, one could purchase one pair of men’s very best quality German knit socks for 40 cents and three pairs for $1.20.

Sears’ justification for the charge was very logical: the cost of sending free catalogs to everybody was a waste of paper and money, and a cost which was passed on to the customer. Providing the catalog only to those who intended to buy reduced waste and cost and ultimately benefitted the customer. Unfortunately, paper and money are still being wasted on the mailing of multiple copies of unsolicited magazines.

Spades, shovels and tools for every task.

The Sears catalog provides an insight into the daily life of the era, the items that people wore and worked with, the items that surrounded them in their homes: furniture, kitchen items, guns, musical instruments, horse tackle, door locks, heating stoves, clothing, footwear. Then, there are the more unexpected items: tents, power windmills, ploughs, tombstones.

Every page of this catalog is a fascination – the descriptions, the terminology that would be unacceptable today: “underwear for fat men,” the outrageous items, and the outrageous claims:

“WHITE STAR SECRET LIQUOR CURE:

Makes them stop drinking forever.

Drunkards cured without their knowledge.”

The 60-gauge current Heidelberg Belt “seeks the weak, diseased parts at once…cures vital weakness, nervous debility or impotence”

From a historian’s point of view, the catalog is an invaluable resource to help identify items, since so many are no longer familiar to us. It can also be used to help date photographs by comparing clothing and background items.

This 120-year-old catalog is in remarkably good condition. It was originally owned by Herbert C. Hill of Shelby. A printing press which he operated was previously donated to the Cobblestone Museum. We thank the Hill family for their generosity.

‘Corduroy’ and ‘Plank’ roads, and ‘Path Setters’ were thoroughfares through community, including the swamp

This photo taken in 1898 shows the toll house which stood near the Edwin McKnight farm between Medina and Shelby. H. Justin Roberts recalled riding through this toll gate as a young boy, in a lumber wagon, with his aunt and uncle.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans – Vol. 2, No. 3

The diary of Hosea Ballou presented in the previous two columns have led to some questions.

A reader inquires if the diarist, Hosea Ballou, was related to Major Sullivan Ballou, of the 2nd Rhode Island Infantry whose poignant last letter to his wife featured prominently on The Civil War, a PBS series produced by Ken Burns. Major Ballou was killed at the Battle of Bull Run in 1861.

Sullivan and Hosea Ballou were both fifth generation descendants of James Ballou, son of Maturin Ballou (1627 – 1661), an Englishman of French descent, who was an early settler of Rhode Island. He had six children, three of whom lived to have families of their own. A family genealogy published in 1888 contains a remarkable listing of over 8,000 descendants.

In his 1851 diary, Hosea Ballou mentioned working on the roads in the Town of Carlton in the spring – this topic has also generated some discussion.

Prior to centralized government and mechanization, towns were responsible for roads. A road tax was assessed, eligible males were required provide labor or pay the tax. In addition to local labor, locally available materials: wood, stone, and later, quarried stone, were used.

H. Justin Roberts (1893-1991), a Shelby farmer, provided a very clear explanation of that system in an Oral History interview conducted by Anna Roberts Bundsuch in 1989:

“A farmer with a small farm in each town was appointed road commissioner. In addition to the road commissioner, there were path masters scattered throughout the town. Each farmer wanted to be path master because he could get the road improved past his farm. My father tried it for one year. The road past our house got a new topping.”

He explained that the road commissioner was salaried, but the path masters were not. The road commissioner would travel around the town in his horse and buggy to check the condition of the roads. Farmers would spend four or five days each year working on the roads, generally in the spring after the crops had been sown.

“There was no department – there was just the commissioner who worked with the path masters. When a road needed repair, the farmers along the road worked their highway taxes. They didn’t have anything to use but gravel. A farmer would be assessed so much money for road work. He’d take a dump wagon and haul for so many days to pay his taxes. A man who didn’t have horses would do the shoveling and use a pick. The gravel had to be shoveled onto the wagons.

Two or three big farms in a town, their assessment would be quite high, and they would put two teams and two wagons on.

The dump trucks were an ingenious affair. The bottom was made up of 4 x 4’s, there were side boards and end boards. The wagon would be filled up with gravel and then there would be a man on the road to assist in the unloading. He’d grab a crowbar and lift up the first 4 x 4; then as the wagon moved along, the gravel would fall out.

There were two gravel pits in the Town of Shelby. The town would pay the owner of the pit a little something for the gravel.”

He continued and explained the term “corduroy road”:

“I used to hear my father tell this story. In the early days, the road south of Medina was impassible through the swamp. So, they cut trees along the right of way: cut logs and laid them side by side all the way through. You bumped over each log and that is why they called it a corduroy road.”

Many of the early roads were called Plank Road, for example the Alabama Plank Road which led to the Sour Springs Hotel. Medina’s Main Street was originally referred to as Plank Road.

Mr. Roberts also described winter road work:

“In the winter, sleighs were used, but wherever snowbanks crossed the road, the snow was shoveled by hand. Mostly the farmers took care of their own roads. Farmers had 50 gallon kettles to heat water and maybe to boil beans to feed the hogs. They’d put a chain around one of those kettles and hitch it behind the bobsleigh and get a big heavy man to ride in the kettle. They’d drag that down one side of the road and the other side coming back to make a track.”

Since bone-chilling temperatures are forecast, another Oral History account from the Orleans County History Dept. Collection may be of interest. In an interview with Clifford Wise in 1969, Mrs. Minnie Allis described how one kept warm when traveling on a sleigh or cutter in winter:

“They had soap stones and these big buffalo robes to put on your lap; they had heavy underwear and top buttoned shoes and they put overshoes on and bundled your head up; fur mittens; they used to carry ear muffs to put your hands in.”

Burt Dunlap of Shelby, in a cutter, c1908. From the Scott Dunlap Collection, Medina Historical Society

This print, 13×18 inches, which has hung in the Ward House at the Cobblestone Museum for years is entitled, “Neapolitan Boy.” It is a chromo-lithograph printed on textured paper to resemble canvas. Also noted on this copy is “copyright 1881 by E.G. Rideout NY” and “Cadwell Lith. Co.”

By Doug Farley, Cobblestone Museum director, and Bill Lattin, retired museum director

Vol. 2 No. 48

GAINES – This is the first in a series of articles about four paintings/prints in the Cobblestone Museum collection that were very popular long ago. For many years now, the print shown above has hung in the Museum’s Ward House.

This image is also known as “Neapolitan Fisher Boy.” Our black and white copy shows the original painting from which this was taken. The artist that created this was Gustav Richter who was born in Berlin in 1823. He studied painting in Berlin, Paris and Rome, making frequent trips to Italy during his career. The following quote is taken from an art book published in 1899 entitled, “The Crown Jewels of Art.”

“The sketch for this picture lay for years in the artist’s studio uncared for. When at last made into a picture and placed on exhibition, it won not only public admiration and praise but the approbation of artists and critics. The large soft eyes of the beautiful boy, which seem to possess seer-like powers in their angelic sweetness, and his half-forlorn, half-happy expression, call forth feelings of both love and sympathy.”

It is believed the painting was completed in 1870 when Richter was considered to be an outstanding portrait painter.

Gustav Richter (1823-1884) and his wife, Cornelie, Wikipedia Commons

In this black & white 1899 reproduction of the original painting through a half tone process of engraving we see an exact likeness. All other pictures in this article show slight variations.

In 1876, Richter sent this portrait for exhibition at the Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia. It immediately won great acclaim and immense popularity with the American public. Consequently, this image was wildly copied by both Sunday Painters and professionals, alike.

Print makers, likewise, seized on to this picture and thereby thousands of copies were made. It was a fad! We can only wonder in today’s world what there was about this “pretty boy” with wind swept hair, necklace and earring that so infatuated the aesthetic senses in people during the late 1870s and 1880s. (Surely no American boy of that time would have had an earring.) The public must have simply passed this off as “old-world,” a term much more frequently used in 19th century America.

A small litho card 4×5 inches which was probably a complimentary gift.

Thanks to Dee Robinson for research of facts about the artist. We are going to conclude this article with examples for the Neapolitan Fisher Boy which are in the collection of Bill Lattin. He states that in antiquing this picture occasionally appears in antique shops.

Oil painting on canvas, 14×18 inches, probably by a Sunday Painter, circa 1880

Oil painting on canvas, 13×17 inches, circa 1880. We note here the boy is facing to the right. This indicates that the artist who copied this may have worked form a print. In the printing process the image could have reversed.

Painting on porcelain in original brass frame, 5” high, circa 1885. In today’s antique market, a painting like this should retail for around $300.

Painting on porcelain in Florentine frame, 1 ½” high, circa 1885

Detail from map of Carlton, NY, 1850

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 2, No. 1

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

CARLTON – Can you imagine living at a time when you would distinguish between “chopping wood at the door” and “chopping in the woods”?

Diaries written by Hosea and Sarah Ballou from 1851-1853 give an intriguing glimpse into their daily lives. Then in their mid-20s, they lived on a farm on the Oak Orchard River Road in the Town of Carlton.

Diaries are typically started with great resolve at the beginning of the year. With the passage of time, they provide a unique resource for historians as they chronicle the daily lives of ordinary people. In the 1800’s, diaries were small, and the entries brief: a listing of the day’s activities or travels, a record of purchases and sales. Early diarists had neither the time nor space for introspection.

The Ballou diaries were transcribed by Helen E. Allen, the late Town of Carlton Historian, and were published in the Albion Advertiser in 1961. We plan to share them with you over the next few months.

Journal of the Year 1851

January 1: Snow two feet, six inches deep. Snowed in the morning and blows all day. Went to the Day place to do chores and went down home. Came back and found Ralph here and went home with him to eat roast turkey. Staid (sic) all night.

(The Day place was on Kendrick Road. Hosea’s brother lived at Two Bridges. Ralph Brown was Hosea’s brother-in-law, he lived at the Brown homestead.)

January 2: Went from Ralph’s to do my chores at the Day place. Christopher brought Sarah home. Keen air.

(Christopher was another brother of Sarah’s)

January 3: Weather moderated a little. Chopped wood at the door. No one in the woods on account of the snow. Snowing quite steady.

January 4: Wind from the west and the roads drifted very bad. Snow flies all day. No work outside. George Stillwell came here in drifts up to his waist to pay me $4.50 for pork.

January 5: Weather more moderate. It began to snow at 11 a.m. Wind SW. Snow coming from the south at bedtime.

January 6: Milder, snow settles quite fast. Went to The Bridges and got an overcoat made by C.C. Wilder, costing $14.

January 7: Continued warmer and smoky with prospect of rain, depth of snow in the woods 3 feet on the level.

January 8: Warm for the season. Sold Orsenius Reed timber to the amount of twelve dollars and fifty cents.

January 9: Commenced raining and it rained till 10 o’clock. Snow settles fast, rain again at bedtime.

January 10: Colder, snow settles, freezes towards night.

January 11: Grows colder. Went to Garbutt’s sale. Paid 69 cents school tax and 72 cents letter and postage. Bid off nothing.

January 12: Warmer and thaws considerably.

January 13: Thaws fast. Snows some. Went to Waterport and from there to Lawrence’s to inquire about some hay.

January 14: Quite warm, thaws. Chopped in the woods. Mr. Thompson and wife and Mr. Littlefield and wife were here visiting this evening.

January 15: Very warm, smoky, thaws very fast. Went to Lawrence’s about some hay, then went chopping.

January 16: Staid (sic) all night down to Ralph’s.

January 17: Clear but very cold with high winds.

January 18: High winds and very cold. Got my sheep hoe from the Day place.

January 19: Cold and windy, no travel. Very dull.

January 20: Warmer with wind from the south. Chopped in the woods. Ralph brought some mackerel.

January 21: Thaws a little. Went to N.F. Simpsons after tallow but it was not ready. Make a hen coop.

January 22: Drawed (sic) some wood, sled length. Thaws fast.

January 23: Carried Sarah home to Mother’s. Carried hams to be smoked. Got 17 ¾ lbs. tallow at N.F. Simpsons, 1 ½ bushels of apples at G.C. VanRiper. Went down after Sarah, carried her to Hank Collins and got hens that I had left him.

(Tallow was used to make candles)

January 24: Went to Lawrences and got ten hundred hay and paid him five dollars.

January 25: Went to the Bridges and got some camphor. Belinda and Helen here avisiting (sic).

(Camphor was used for respiratory ailments and to ease muscle pain)

January 26: Warm and pleasant

January 27: Some colder. My birthday. Chopped a little wood at the door. Sarah went down on the flat after cattails to make candle rods.

January 28: Very cold, chopped wood at the door.

January 29: Very cold and stormy. Hardly keep warm in the house.

January 30: Very cold, stormy weather. No work out of doors.

January 31: More moderate, chopped wood at the door.

We have observed that diarists in general begin their entries with a reference to weather, which is not surprising as it so effects the tenor of the day. Weather conditions, particularly in January, would have been central to Hosea’s livelihood and indeed survival. Chopping wood was a daily necessity. We infer that he could go to the woods to chop wood when the weather was not severe, while “chopping wood at the door” indicated more inclement conditions.

We can all identify with Hosea’s January 19 entry:

Cold and windy, no travel, very dull.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans – Vol. 1, No. 33

ALBION – Hanging their stockings with care on Christmas Eve in this 1955 photograph from the William Monacelli collection at the Orleans County Dept. of History are from left: Barbara (9), Eileen (8), Charlotte (7) and Patricia (5), children of Mr. & Mrs. Lee Ward.

The photograph was taken at the home of their grandmother, Celestina Galluce, at 214 West Bank St. in Albion.

Patricia remembers the occasion vividly. Now Patricia Farone, she lives in Albion, as does her sister, Eileen Whiting. Charlotte Mann lives in Rochester and Barbara Haynes lives in Delaware.

This Christmas postcard from 1925 features church steeple in an alpine setting against the background of a starry sky.

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 1, No. 31

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

A collection of Christmas cards sent to Mr. & Mrs. Smith Sanborn of East Center Street in Medina between 1923 and 1927 is one the quiet treasures housed in the Medina Historical Society Museum. These simple but elegant cards reflect the artistic style of the era and contrast with the larger, louder cards we have become accustomed to.

Sources credit Sir Henry Cole for creating the idea of the Christmas card in England in 1843 and the custom of exchanging greetings soon became part of the Christmas tradition.

Many of the Christmas cards in this small collection are postcards, with the image and verse on the front, the address and space for a brief message on the reverse. Postcards could be mailed with a one-cent stamp – though this example shows a two-cent stamp.

Another interesting feature of this greeting is the Christmas seal stamp. Most of the postcards and envelopes in this collection sport this seal, and several of the envelopes have two or three seals affixed.

The double barred red cross was the logo of the National Tuberculosis Association. The 1925 design with two bright candles signifies how far a little candle can throw light, and by inference how powerful the purchase of a penny Christmas Seal stamp could be.

By 1925, sales of the penny seal stamps had garnered $25,000,000 to help build hospitals and promote prevention thorough education. During the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, tuberculosis, commonly referred to as TB, was the leading cause of death in the United States.

The imagery is largely secular, snowy scenes, quaint houses, holly, poinsettia, skaters.

The cards in this collection are all single sided, with the image and verse on one side. The reverse is blank, there is no indication of the printer or publisher. Some of the cards are printed on pastel hues that we would not associate with Christmas today. Many have matching envelopes.

Greetings are short and spare – generally just the senders name, with brief good wishes. Only one of the envelopes includes a house number (407 East Center), the others simply list the street and village.

Since the collection spans a few years, we can see that the Smith Sanborns regularly received Christmas greetings from the same cousins in Barker, NY, Titusville, Fl, and Los Angeles, Ca.

Local businesses recognized the benefits of acknowledging their customers at Christmas time. The Boyd Coal Company and Rowley and Reynolds, also a coal company sent warm greetings, as did the Union Bank.

No doubt there are other Christmas cards from previous decades languishing in attics and closets throughout the county, just waiting to be enjoyed again. Their greetings and artwork reflect their moment in time.

The Boyd Coal Co. was located on West Ave., on the site currently occupied by Lee-Whedon Memorial Library. Rowley & Reynolds was located at 611 Main St., Medina.

Estimated 25,000 letters a week sent from soldiers with YMCA stationery

Letter from Fort Dix, NJ, 1917

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 1, No. 29

MEDINA – While reading the World War 1 letters of Dan Burns, (Ill. Orl. V.1, No. 28) it was intriguing to note the stationery he used. Almost all his letters were written on paper provided by the YMCA. The envelopes also carried the YMCA logo. The design of the letterhead confidently aligns the YMCA with the war cause.

Formed in London in 1844 to strengthen Christian principles by developing “mind, body and spirit,” the YMCA had rapidly grown into a worldwide welfare organization. The first version of the Y’s visual identity was a circle, with multi-layered words and images.

The simpler and more striking red triangle was proposed in 1891 by a Dr. Gulick. Some of the early versions include the words “Mind, Body, Spirit” engraved on the sides of the triangle. The triangle image was so powerful that YMCA personnel were sometimes referred to as “triangle people.”

Letters from Fort Dix, NJ, 1918.

The precedent of civilian aid to wartime soldiers was established during the Civil War when the YMCA provided physical and spiritual aid through a group named the United States Christian Coalition. They distributed food, clothing, medical supplies, and books. Volunteers wrote letters for the sick and wounded and provided postage for mailing correspondence.

This service was continued during the Spanish-American War, when they also began providing stationery. In fact, early letters from Roosevelt’s Rough Riders were written on YMCA stationery.

President Wilson quickly accepted the Y’s offer of service when war was declared in 1917. The logistics of mobilizing, training, and securing essential supplies and equipment for over one million soldiers in a short time were daunting.

This letterhead from France shows that the YMCA was actively associated with the war effort abroad. Indeed, the Y’s contributions during the war were considerable:

• 26,000 YMCA staff and 35,000 volunteers served in the US, Europe, Africa, Asia.

• 1,500 canteens provided hot drinks, personal supplies

• 4,000 “huts,” the only places of respite for soldiers on the front lines

• 26 leave centers in France offered wholesome activities

• 286 YMCA personnel were injured, 6 died while serving

The morale and welfare services provided to the military by the YMCA were vital to the success of the campaign. Writing in a fundraising pamphlet in 1918, General Pershing observed that:

 “Nine men who are happy and entertained can outfight ten who are homesick and lonesome. It is the business of the “Y” to add this extra ten per cent to the fighting efficiency of our armies; to maintain that indefinable quality which wins wars – morale.”

Sometimes a hot drink, a smile, a quiet place to sit, some words of understanding, made all the difference between going on and giving up.

At that time, letters were the only form of contact between soldiers and their families. It is estimated that some 25,000 letters on YMCA stationery were written each day. One can imagine that the arrival of an envelope with the red triangle logo on an envelope was a welcome sight for worried families. No doubt, they too positively associated the “triangle people” with ministry and concern for the minds, bodies, and spirits of their loved ones.

Far better the red triangle of the YMCA than the Red Cross – or the dreaded telegram.

A soldier’s letters sent home, saved since WWI

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 1, No. 28

MEDINA – He was an ordinary guy.

Born in Holley in 1887, he attended Holley schools. His family had moved to Medina by 1908. His father, who served in the Civil War and survived Libby and Andersonville prisons, owned a quarry.

Daniel F. Burns, WWI soldier

At the time of the 1915 Census, Daniel F. Burns, then aged 26, lived at home at 110 State St., with his mother, sister and niece. He was a stone contractor. He probably gave little thought to news of events a continent away which were to change his life.

On 2 April 1917, President Woodrow Wilson appeared before a joint session of Congress to ask for a declaration of war against Germany. The Selective Service Act of May 1917 made all resident males between 21 and 30 liable for registration and draft. This was expanded to the ages of 18 and 45 in August 1918.

In 1917, Dan was enlisted in Co. I, 309th Infantry, 78th Division and was sent to Fort Dix, New Jersey for training. He wrote home regularly. His letters were straightforward: he would reassure the family of his well-being, refer to the weather, one or two general sentences, greetings to an aunt and niece.  He did not dwell on emotional issues, though in one letter written in early January 1918, he wrote that he was lonesome on returning from Christmas leave at home.

On several occasions, he mentioned that they had not been paid, that their pay had been delayed. His mother sent him money a few times. Later, he sent money home. He mentioned an outbreak of measles which necessitated a three-week quarantine, He worked at the Mess Hall for a short time, an advantageous position as he could secure better rations.

He described a life insurance policy which was available:

“The Government has an insurance. You pay $5.70 a month on $10,000. If anything happens to you, your people get $56 a month for twenty years.”

He mentioned meeting people that he knew:

Letter from Camp Dix, not dated, 1918:

“Met the fellow that put in bricks in the road in front of the house in Medina. (State St.)”

Letter from Camp Dix, not dated, 1918:

“Saw Dean Hinckley yesterday. Herbert Housel is in the same Co.”

Letter from Camp Dix, Nov. 26, 1917

“Stanley Pahurch (Pahura) from Holley is here.”

The troops were shipped overseas in May 1918. In an early letter from that time, he wrote:

“I met the Snyder boy from Medina yesterday. He worked at the freight house with Gert….Great many dying with flu in England. Does not seem to be as much of it in France. The fellows all want to get back before the States go dry.”

Postcards showing For Dix, New Jersey, with a capacity of almost 43,000, was one of the largest training camps in the northeast.

There are few letters from the summer of 1918. Co. I, 309th Infantry, 78th Division participated in the Battle of Saint Mihiel which took place from the 12-16 Sept. 1918 and in the Meuse-Argonne offensive which was fought from Sept. 26 – Nov. 11, 1918, when the Armistice was signed. This was the largest and deadliest campaign in US history, a series of final confrontations in the Alsace-Lorraine area of northwest France which helped end the war. Over one million American soldiers participated, 26,277 were killed and 95,786 were wounded, among them Dan Burns.

Dijon, Dec. 4 1918, a letter to his mother:

“I was shot in the arm on the 16th of October at the battle of Grandpre….about half the men I came out with are killed or wounded.

Jan. 21, 1919, a letter to his sister:

“I wrote and told you I was wounded on the 16 October. I was in the hospital about a month. I was shot in the arm. I was very lucky. They lost about 2/3 of the company. Many of the Lockport fellows were killed. I saw George Harmer when he got hit. He did not live long.”

France, May 18, 1919:

“Just a few lines to let you know I am in a hospital about two weeks. I had a lame leg and a little heart trouble.

I have been in France a year; it seems like five.”

Postcard showing soldiers boarding for trip to Europe.

Upon his return to the US in June 1919, he was hospitalized at Camp Stuart Embarkation Hospital in New Port News, Va. and later transferred to the Fort McHenry base hospital in Baltimore, Md.

He returned home to Medina and was employed by the New York State Dept. of Canals. He did not speak about his experiences. Family lore recalls that:

“He was never the same. He was always cold. He just wanted to be warm and have good food.”

Like so many of the other soldiers who returned, he suffered from the lingering effects of his harrowing wartime experiences. Depression, insomnia, nightmares were common, many returned soldiers were unable to cope, and little assistance was available. As we observe Veterans Day, we recognize those who perished as well as the physically injured and the inwardly scarred.

He died in 1956 and is buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery, Medina.

Photographed in Carl Munzel’s grocery store in Jeddo in 1915 are: Mr. Merchant, Mr. Singleton, Mr. Morton, Mr. Beck, Lena Grier, 3 unknown gentlemen, Mr. Tuck and Mr. Schilling.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans – Vol. 1, No. 27

JEDDO – The group gathered around the pot-bellied stove, the cat dozing on the gentleman’s lap, the box of biscuits for the cracker barrel, the packed shelves, the tin ceiling – our photograph contains all of the standard features of a general store in rural America early in the twentieth century. It could be any store.

However, at some point in time, a wise and thoughtful person took a few moments to note the location, date and names of the people in the store, details which add immeasurably to the historic interest of the photo.

Lacking first-hand knowledge, but armed with location, date and names, we can unearth more details using resources such as the 1915 Census and cemetery records from the invaluable Orleans County GenWeb site (click here)  and digitized newspapers at www.nyshistoricnewspapers.org. The 1913 Atlas of Orleans County map of Jeddo also provides some clues.

Lena Grier: Lena is the only female in the group. According to the 1915 Census, Lena was 16, she was employed as a Clerk at the store and lived with the Munzel family: Carl (28), his wife Ella (27) and their son Colton aged 4. We learn from a 1914 Medina Daily Journal article that she was Ella Munzel’s sister. From a 1980 Journal-Register obituary, we learn that Lena married Harry Saxton and they operated a general store in Royalton for 31 years, retiring to Medina in 1960, they lived at 119 North Ave.

Josephine Tuttle, longtime Jeddo resident, recalled in a 1978 Journal-Register article that the store had been built by Albert Mietz in 1895. His nephew, Carl Munzel, who had worked with him for four years, purchased the store in 1915 and operated it for twenty-eight years. She wrote:

“In the evening, some of the gentry gathered among the barrels and nail-kegs to discuss the affairs of the day. Usually, the conversation was genial, but, on occasion, it became as heated as the pot-bellied stove around which they sat.”

Mr. Merchant: The gentleman with the cat on his lap was most likely Theodore Merchant, aged 66. He and his wife, Vinnie, lived next door to Munzel’s store, but owned a farm on the Ridge Road corner of County Line Road, just west of Jeddo. Mr. Merchant was one of the many “sunworshippers” from the North who later wintered in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Mr. Singleton: William Singleton, aged 59, was a plumber who also lived close by the store. His wife Arla was 63 and their adopted daughter Matilda aged 22 lived with them (1915 Census). William held the office of constable for several years.

Mr. Morton: A chance reference in the Journal-Register may provide the identity of Mr. Morton. Announcing that the Rev. Hugh Q. Morton would speak at the Jeddo Community Church in August 1975, it was noted that his father, also Rev, Hugh Q. Morton, was pastor of that Church from 1911 to 1915.

Mr. Beck: The map of Jeddo shows a W.W. Beck living in Jeddo. A William W. Beck is buried in West Ridgeway Cemetery. An obituary for William W. Beck in 1950 notes that he was a longtime resident of Jeddo and had worked as a painter for many years.

Mr. Tuck: Josiah Tuck was 82, and was born in England. He died in 1921 and is buried in West Ridgeway Cemetery with his wife Betsey.

Mr. Schilling: Lacking a first name, we cannot determine with certainty the identity of Mr. Schilling. An Elmer Schilling, aged 28, lived in Shelby in 1915.

The photograph was taken by W. C. Eaton, who dealt in “General and Commercial Photography, Farm Life, Buildings, Groups, Children, Stock, Post Cards, etc.” He lived in Jeddo, Mr. Singleton and Mr. Merchant were his immediate neighbors, while the Munzel store was just two doors to the west of his home.

As the evenings darken and lengthen, we suggest a photograph sorting and labeling project. It would be enjoyable, and greatly appreciated by future generations.

Irene Gibson also wrote book on early historic sites in Orleans County

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 1, No. 22

Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

CLARENDON – At the recent Orleans County Historical Association Tour of Hillside Cemetery, Melissa Ierlan, Town of Clarendon Historian, referenced a remarkable lady who is buried there.

Irene Gibson

Irene Gibson (1898-1994) graduated from Holley High School in 1914. She received a Regent’s scholarship and a Cornell University competitive scholarship. She majored in foreign languages. She taught French and Spanish at Lynchburg College in Virginia from 1920-23 and then studied for a master’s degree at Denison University, Ohio. She joined the editorial staff of the Silver-Burdett Company, a textbook publisher, where she was modern languages editor and social studies editor from 1925-1941.

She enlisted in the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps in 1942. She instructed French cadets in navigation, instructing them in French on how to read flight charts, and draw wind-drift diagrams. She attended Officer Candidate School in 1945 and became a Second Lieutenant in July of that year. After the war, she worked for the United Nations, and by 1956 was head of the U.N. Division of Foreign Affairs which prepared printed documents for the Economic and Social Council.

She returned to Holley in 1958 to care for her mother and sister. She taught French and Spanish at Holley High School from 1960-1965. She was particularly interested in history and soon was involved with the Orleans Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), and served as chairman of the Orleans County Historical Association (OCHA).

In 1979, the OCHA and the DAR published her book “Historic Sites in Orleans County, New York”, a listing and description of sites “that have historic connections with the Revolution or with the first twenty-five years of existence of Orleans County, the period before 1850.” Remarkably, there are fifty such sites. Arranged by town, they are as follows:

• CLARENDON: Farwell’s Mills marker, Universalist Church, Lemuel Cook grave, Robinson Burying Ground, Clarendon stone store, Colonel Shubael Lewis residence
• MURRAY: Smith-Pierce Cemetery, Murray marker, Baptist Church, Holley, Stone House, Holley, Budd-Phillips House, Hulberton, Balcom’s Mills marker, Transit Line marker
• KENDALL: Norwegian Sloopers’ marker
• CARLTON: Kenyonville Methodist Church, Stebbins Homestead
• GAINES: Gaines Cemetery, First Church building in Orleans County marker, Gaines Academy marker, Cobblestone Church, Childs, School House, Childs, Bullard-Lattin House, Eagle Harbor Methodist Church
• ALBION: Courthouse Square, Christ Episcopal Church, Swan Library, Presbyterian Chapel, Warner-Phelps House, Blott-House, Tousley-Church Home, Joseph Hart Home, Ebenezer Rogers House
• BARRE: Barre Center Presbyterian Church, Elisha Wright House, Old Lime Kiln, Cobblestone School House, Pine Hill
• SHELBY: Millville Academy, Quaker Meeting House, Fort Shelby, Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge, Cone-Dewey Cobblestone House
• RIDGEWAY: Oldest barn in Orleans County, Servoss House, Culvert Underpass, Masten-Cardone Stone House, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Hunt-Sentiff House
• YATES: Mudgett-Weld Homestead, Cobblestone House, Main St., Tarbox Six-sided House.

As one would expect, given her military experience and publishing background, the book is thorough and meticulous. The details, connections and stories she includes help bring the early years in Orleans County to life, as she populates it with people rather than just names and dates.

One such example is her account of the Clarendon Stone Store, a familiar but overlooked building at the corner of Routes 237, 31A and the Upper Holley Road in Clarendon. Built in 1836 by David Sturges, “a self-made man, who, had he lived would have been one of the millionaires of the country,” the lower floor housed a dry goods and grocery store and was a place for settlers to warm themselves by the fire and exchange news. An open room on the second floor was used for early church assemblies and lively political meetings. Ownership of the building passed by marriage to the Copeland family. A son, David Sturges Copeland, completed the “History of Clarendon” in 1889, having thoroughly explored its “groves and swamps…. meadows and dales.”

This book would be an ideal guide for a leisurely exploration of these sites, on a fall afternoon drive during Heritage Season perhaps? It is available from the OCHA, or the Historian’s Office for the modest sum of $10.

Provided photo: Todd Bensley, Medina’s village historian, is shown leading a dedication ceremony in September 2016 for the new historical marker at Boxwood Cemetery. The cemetery on North Gravel Road was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. Bensley will lead a tour of Boxwood on Sept. 25.

There will be many local tours, programs and discussions celebrating local history and cultural attractions in September and October as part of “Heritage Season.”

The County History and Tourism departments teamed with local organizations and businesses for the lineup of lectures, luncheons, concerts, walking tours, mystery events, workshops and a French- inspired market. Click here to see the full schedule.

The programs are building off the former Orleans County Heritage Festival and has been extended over two months instead of two weekends.

“A wealth of topics will be explored: historic quilts, the 19th century kitchen, the Orphan Train children,” said Catherine Cooper, county historian. “Genealogy workshops will be held in Carlton. The Oak Orchard Lighthouse Mystery event sounds intriguing. Self-guided tours of Medina’s historic sites and architectural gems may be undertaken at your convenience. Guided tours of the Cobblestone Complex buildings will be available. The Holley-Murray Historical Society Museum will be open to visitors.”

The lineup of events started on Sunday with St. Rocco’s Italian Festival in Hulberton and with genealogy workshops led by Holly Canham at the Carlton Town Hall, 14341 Waterport-Carlton Rd. Canham will be at the Town Hall on Saturdays and Sundays, every weekend in September and October, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for genealogy and local history workshops.

Some of the programs during Heritage Season include:

Oak Orchard Lighthouse Mystery Tour Fundraiser: Sunday, Sept. 12 from noon to 3 p.m. at 14357 Ontario St., Kent. The event includes a mystery tour at four Lake Ontario lighthouses. For $35 the event includes t-shirt, box lunch and commemorative sticker. A $20 option includes a picnic at the Point with a box lunch. Visiting the four lighthouses at your leisure is $10 and includes a commemorative sticker. Click here for more information.

Cobblestone Museum programs at 14389 Ridge Rd., Albion

• Saturday, Sept. 25 at 3 p.m. – Cobblestone Fiddlers Concert at the Cobblestone Museum
• Saturday, Oct. 2 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. – Fall Open House featuring guided tours of 8 buildings, artisans at work, antiques appraisals, and a Weidner’s Chicken BBQ.
• Thurs. Oct. 7 at 7 p.m. – “With Womanly Weapons Girt”: Women’s Volunteerism and Quilts of the Civil War. Quilt historian, Lynne Zacek will discuss the quilts and other textiles that women created to declare their patriotism and other support from the homefront. Registration required at www.cobblestonemuseum.org or call 585-589-9013.

Tour Boxwood Cemetery “Beyond the Book” on Saturday, Sept. 25, from 11 a.m. to noon at the cemetery on North Gravel Road in Medina. Interesting Stories Not in the Book hosted by Todd Bensley and Friends. Bensley has written a 314-page book, “Boxwood Cemetery: Where the Past is Present.”

Hurd Orchards Heritage Luncheons at 17260 Ridge Rd., Holley, from noon to 2 p.m. Reservations required by calling 585-638-8838. Details at www.hurdorchards.com.

• Thursday, Sept. 23 – The 19th Century Kitchen
• Friday, Oct. 15: A Taste of Time: Recipes from an English Threshing Barn

Hoag Library Lecture Series in the Curtis Room, 134 S. Main St., Albion. Free will offering will be accepted.

• Sat., Sept. 4 at 12:30 p.m. – A Short Visit to Oak Orchard of Olden Days with Dick Anderson
• Sat., Sept 11 at 12:30 p.m. – A Brief History of the Swan Family with Ian Mowatt
• Tues., Sept 14 at noon – Tea With Dee: “The Phipps Diploma”
• Wed., Sept 15 at 6 p.m. – Local Author Presentation & Book Signing – “Hellmira” by Derek Maxfield

Holley-Murray Historical Society Museum will be open every Saturday in September from noon to 3 p.m. at Geddes Street Ext., Holley. Visit the 1907 NY Central Depot restored to a museum including the Halloween Bell cast “1894 October 31st”. Free will offering accepted.

The Medina Historical Society presents “Abandoned: the Untold Story of the Orphan Train” with Michael Keene, Monday, Sept. 27 at 7 p.m. at the Lee- Whedon Memorial Library, 520 West Ave., Medina.

Medina Railroad Museum Train Excursions on Thursday, Oct. 28, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at 530 West Ave., Medina. Reserve a seat aboard the vintage rail cars and for a 2-hour round trip from the Medina Railroad Museum to Lockport along the historic Erie Canal. Enjoy relaxing music and seeing our crew dressed in period attire. Contact the Railroad Museum directly to reserve your seats at a discounted rate using the code: “Heritage.” Admissions and train fares are listed at www.medinarailroadmuseum.org.

The Market at Maison Albion at 13800 W. County House Rd., Albion. A French inspired market with over 50 local vendors in an historic mansion reimagined. $15 admission. Reserve tickets at www.maisonalbion.com/market.

• Sat., Oct. 2 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Sun., Oct. 3 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

At your leisure and self-guided tours:

• Medina Sandstone Society Hall of Fame: Open Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at City Hall on Main Street, Medina.
• Medina Sandstone Architectural Walking Tour: Explore local architecture made of Medina Sandstone. Download the map by clicking here.
• Medina Historical Interpretive Signs: Learn about Medina’s history around historic downtown Medina. Download by clicking here.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

“Illuminating Orleans” – Vol. 1, No. 20

There are many stories “buried” along with their protagonists in our local cemeteries. The key to one forgotten tale of passion, murder, daring escapes and an eventual karmic tragedy may be found in the following entry in the Knowlesville Cemetery listing:

Asa, aged 47, Amos, aged 3 and Sarah, aged 24, all with the same death date. What could have happened? The Medina Tribune of 28 June, 1888, provides the answer:

A Sad Drowning Accident

Asa Broughton and His Wife and Baby Drown Together

The article records that Mr. Broughton had just completed building a “handsome but rather cranky little row boat.” On that Monday evening, he took his wife and little boy, and his wife’s sister, Rosa Train, aged nine years, out on the canal for a pleasure ride.

After rowing about for some time, a canal steamboat towing another boat came along, and Broughton rowed between the two, with the evident intention of grasping the tow line and being towed a short distance up the canal. The captain of the steamer warned Broughton that he should not attempt to catch the line so near the steamer’s wheel, but he paid no attention.

As Broughton stood up in his boat to seize the line, it suddenly capsized, throwing the entire party into the water. Rosa Train, who was able to swim a little, managed to reach the overturned rowboat, clung to the side and was rescued by James Stork. Broughton desperately tried to save his wife and son, but, sadly, all three perished.

The last paragraph of the article references a more intriguing tale:

“The sad affair caused great excitement. Broughton will be remembered as the man who, on May 14, 1879, shot and killed Levant Bancroft and fled to Canada, crossing the cables of the old suspension bridge at Lewiston, in the night, hand over hand. His capture in Canada by Captain Beecher, and subsequent daring escape from the Albion jail, his trial and imprisonment, are too well known by our readers to need rehearsal here. Since his release from prison, Broughton has been a quiet, industrious man, and was a prominent worker of the Salvation Army during its stay in this place.”

And indeed, the headline of the article in the Medina Tribune May 15, 1879, reads:

MURDER! Asa Broughton shoots and kills Levant Bancroft

Apparently, jealousy was what prompted the deed. Following a quarrel over the attentions Levant Bancroft was paying to his wife, Mrs. Broughton left the house. Since she did not return in the evening, Asa Broughton sent their son to learn her whereabouts. The son returned with the information that she was at Bancroft’s, whereupon Broughton went to Bancroft’s house, and requested him to step outside. Angry words ensued, and then shots were fired. Bancroft exclaimed:

“I’m shot! Asa Broughton did it!”

He expired fifteen minutes later, “of two frightful wounds.”

A reward of $300 was offered for the apprehension of Broughton. However, he proved rather elusive. He made his way west to the home of a cousin in Hartland, where he worked for a day. But his cousin read of the crime he had committed from the Lockport paper and refused to shelter him.

Broughton then proceeded to the Niagara River, and amazingly:

“He performed the perilous feat of crossing on wires suspended upwards of a hundred feet above the river at Lewiston. (The wires referred to are those left of the old Suspension Bridge at that place, and it is said no one ever dared to cross them before).” – Medina Tribune

The Buffalo Weekly Courier of June 4, 1879, provides additional details:

“Hand over hand, suspended in the air 100 ft. above the river, he made his way to the opposite shore. The wire swayed to and fro with his weight. Several times he had to pull himself up and clasp his legs and arms round the wire to rest his hands, which were badly blistered and cut.”

Broughton then walked sixty-five miles to his sister’s home in Hagersville, Ont. where he was apprehended on May 22nd by Deputy Sheriffs Beecher and Rice who received the $300 reward. He was placed in the Albion jail but escaped from there on August 4th by cutting a hole through the wooden door above the water closet and then through the wall. A $200 reward was offered.

This time, Broughton made his way to Genesee County, and while in a drug store in Corfu, a constable came in with a copy of the printed reward which included his photo. Fearful of being recognized, Broughton set out for Oakfield, where he worked two days in a harvest field. He left there for Medina and spent three hours at the residence of his wife. He set off for Middleport and thence to Lewiston, where he again crossed to Canada on the wires of the old bridge. He wandered about, visiting relatives, but was captured by Deputy Fuller on August 17.

The murder trial commenced on October 13, 1879. The defense pleaded self-defense with partial insanity at the time of the murder. After a trial of nearly a week, the jury rendered a verdict of manslaughter in the third degree. Giving the highest penalty he could, the judge sentenced Broughton to four years hard labor in Auburn prison. Many people felt that a stronger verdict and sentence were deserved.

It is intriguing to note that the tragic drowning accident nine years later which claimed Broughton, his young wife and son, occurred two days before George Wilson was hung in Albion for the murder of his wife.