By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 3 February 2016 at 12:00 am
Provided photos – Joe Willis (center), pastor of the First Baptist Church, is presented a certificate of appreciation last February by Larry Montello (left), commander of the American Legion in Orleans County, and Steve Goodrich, a past county commander.
HOLLEY – Veterans and church members will gather at the First Baptist Church in Holley on Sunday to remember four chaplains who gave up their lives to save civilian and military personnel as the SS Dorchester sank on Feb. 3, 1943.
The four chaplains gave up their life jackets when they were none left for others on the ship. The chaplains sang hymns and prayed together as the ship sank.
Larry Montello, the commander of the American Legion in Orleans County, wants to keep the story alive and remind the community – 73 years later – of the sacrifice by Methodist minister the Reverend George L. Fox, Reform Rabbi Alexander D. Goode (Ph.D.), Roman Catholic priest the Reverend John P. Washington, and Reformed Church in America minister the Reverend Clark V. Poling. All of the chaplains attained the rank of first lieutenant.
“This is history we shouldn’t forget,” Montello said. “They laid down their life for others.”
The service will include reading the biographies of each of the chaplain, lighting candles, placing wreaths, and playing taps.
The memorial service for the four chaplains will be part of the regular 9:30 a.m. service at church on Geddes Street. The Honor Guard will be there at 9 a.m. The service is open to the community and will include refreshments after the service.
The Legion has been doing the memorial service for the chaplains for about seven years, and tries to have it in a different church in the county every year. However, the Legion is back at First Baptist in Holley because Montello said the church was so welcoming last year with a big turnout.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 30 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Volume 2, Issue 5
ALBION – George W. Ough, pronounced “Uff”, was born on Feb. 12, 1827 at Cherry Valley, NY. As a child, he worked on the family farm in Otsego County until he reached the age of 14, when he moved north to Fort Plain, New York to work as a store clerk.
Following a short stay in Lockport, Ough later moved to Albion where he operated a crockery store, which he later sold to purchase the furniture business formerly owned by George M. Pullman. Ough’s eldest daughter, Jennie, later married Cassius M. C. Reynolds who would eventually take over the business located in the Ough Block on North Main Street.
By the late 1890s, Ough had the distinction of being one of the longest tenured members of the Albion Board of Education, of which he was a founding member. After he was elected to his first term as President of the Village of Albion, he resigned his position on the Board of Education. Following his second term as Village President, he moved into a position as assessor for Albion.
His time in office was brief, remaining in the position for two terms. Ough was active in numerous local organizations serving as a member of the Swan Library Association and Chief Engineer of Albion’s Fire Department. Following years of public service, he retired to a large farm located in Kent, one that was regarded as one of the best orchards in the Western New York fruit belt. He was also active in horse racing, quite frequently leasing the race track at the county fairgrounds.
After a contested horse race in 1900, Fred Parker of Elba and the National Trotting Association brought a suit against Ough and his bay gelding named Doctor H. Parker claimed that Ough purchased the respected racehorse Tally-Ho from Michigan and changed its name to disguise the horse’s race times. The Trotting Association determined that Doctor H was in fact Tally-Ho and that Ough’s winnings, totaling over $200, should be forfeited. In addition to this forfeiture, Ough was suspended until he paid for an official change of name.
Ough’s unscrupulous practice with horseracing was not his first questionable scandal. In the mid-1880s papers across New York ran front-page news about an absolute divorce suit filed against Annie Ough by her husband. Wed in 1875, George had his eyes set on Annie Cummings, a youthful and wealthy widow from Shelby.
The honeymoon phase was short-lived and issues began to surface in the relationship. Annie stated that George demanded immediate control over the wealth from her previous marriage. When she refused, she claimed that he forced her and their daughter Georgia out of the home. Naturally, George asserted that this was untrue and that his wife was adulterous in their marriage.
When news broke that Ough named several prominent men from Albion and Medina as co-respondents in the suit (men he claimed his wife had extramarital affairs with), the story spread like wildfire and “scandal-mongers” throughout the county took to spreading gossip about the couple. Among those named in the suit were the prominent entrepreneur and land owner, Charles H. Moore of Albion, proprietor of the Albion House, Marvin Warner, and the prominent and well-respected Medina attorney, Stanley Filkins.
The case was one of the first for the newly seated Judge Lambert. Represented by Hon. John Hull White, president of the Albion Board of Education, the case was delayed on numerous occasions until the judge finally issued a nonsuit, which Ough quickly appealed. Annie Ough was assisted in her defense by Stanley Filkins, the same man named by Ough in the original suit. The accusations were so damaging that Filkins’ own wife filed for divorce shortly after the case hit the papers.
Despite this scandalous dispute, Ough was regarded as one of Albion’s most prominent and well-respected citizens.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
MEDINA – Stacey Kirby created a mural on the second floor of Medina Memorial Hospital about three years ago. The mural’s dominant image highlights the Erie Canal, which runs through Orleans County.
The mural also includes paintings of the Orleans County Courthouse in Albion, an iconic structure built in 1858.
Kirby, an Albion native, also painted the former site of the hospital. Before the hospital was built in 1925 on Ohio Street, the hospital used the former home of local industrialist A.L. Swett at northwest corner of Eagle and Prospect streets. The hospital operated out of that location from 1910 to 1925.
The mural was unveiled to public in March 2011. I was at the hospital on Tuesday and thought the mural worked wonders in dressing up this hallway.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 23 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Image of Joseph Lee Bullock Brown courtesy of The Fort Dalles Museum in Oregon. His uncle, Rufus Bullock, was governor of Georgia.
Volume 2, Issue 4
Born July 26, 1822 at Albany, New York to Rufus and Margaret Bullock Brown, Joseph Lee Bullock Brown received his early education in the Albany area. He later attended the Albany Medical College where he graduated from that institution, likely in the early 1840s and shortly after the establishment of the school in 1839.
Appointed physician at Clinton Prison in 1845, the year after the institution was established, Dr. Brown remained in that position for nearly three years before he removed to Detroit, Michigan to practice surgery.
In 1849, he received an appointment as a surgeon with the U.S. Regular Army and received a commission as Assistant Surgeon from Zachary Taylor the following year. Stationed at Ft. Dalles in the Oregon Territory, Dr. Brown also served in Texas and the Washington Territory up until the start of the Civil War.
After war broke out, Brown was ordered to return to east and was assigned to the Army of the Potomac under the command of General McClellan. Commissioned as a Surgeon with the rank of Major by President Lincoln on July 4, 1861, Brown remained in service until he was assigned as Medical Director of the 4th Corps, Army of the Potomac.
After authoring a report on medical care which was later published in the Medical and Surgical History of the War of the Rebellion, he was reassigned to the Assistant Surgeon General’s Office at St. Louis and then at Louisville, Kentucky. He was active in a number of Indian campaigns throughout the course of the war.
Near the conclusion of the war he was brevetted Lieutenant-Colonel for his service and after treating patients during a cholera epidemic at Ft. Columbus in New York Harbor, he was brevetted to Brigadier General. From that point on, he was known as Gen. Brown and spent 13 more years in service with the U.S. Army as president of the Medical Examining Board in New York City and Medical Director at the Department of the Platte, a region which then contained the territories of Iowa, Idaho, Nebraska, the Dakotas, and Utah.
At the age of 64 in 1886, Gen. Brown retired from service and lived for a short period at Tarrytown-on-the-Hudson before moving to Albion in 1887 where he lived out the rest of his life at the Bullock Homestead on Liberty and W. Park Streets. After serving over three decades with the U.S. Army, Gen. Brown dedicated his life to the study of the classics and photography. He died on October 21, 1891 at his home in Albion and is interred at Mt. Albion Cemetery.
Note: Gen. Brown’s brother, Judge Robert Hewitt Brown, was a well-respected attorney and author of “Stellar Theology and Masonic Astronomy,” who later served as counsel for Rufus Brown Bullock during the investigation into his service as Governor of the State of Georgia.
Gov. Bullock and Gen. Brown were first cousins; Bullock’s father, Volkert Veeder Bullock being the brother of Brown’s mother, Margaret Bullock Brown.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 16 January 2016 at 12:00 am
This image, taken the morning after the accident occurred, shows the crowds gathered at the wreckage of the Steamboat Express. Nearby residents assisted in pulling corpses and wounded passengers from the wreckage into the early morning.
Volume 2, Issue 3
At 9:48 p.m. July 27, 1883, Orleans County experienced one of the most devastating disasters in local history.
The excursion train “Steamboat Express” was traveling eastbound on the Rome, Watertown, and Ogdensburg Railroad with a load of passengers bound for the Thousand Islands. On this particular evening a terrible storm had developed in the region bringing rain, lightening, and terrible gusts of wind.
The train departed the Lewiston station approximately 20 minutes behind schedule, departed Lyndonville’s station nearly 30 minutes behind schedule, and then proceeded on the four-mile journey to Carlyon’s station.
The train reached speeds of 25 miles per hour, normal pace for fair weather travels, and progress was on schedule despite the delay in departures from the previous two stops. As the engine steamed past the station at Carlyon, Fireman McCarthy opened the furnace door to feed the fire; the flash of light from the fire temporarily blinded Boynton.
As the engineer regained his sight, the vision of a stationary freight car appeared just a short distance in front of the engine. Boynton threw down the brakes and placed the engine in reverse but to no avail. With a full head of steam, the passenger train slammed into the freight car positioned on the main track.
The engine rolled on its side, throwing the engineer and fireman around in the cab. The heavy sleeper cars at the rear of the train pressed the light passenger cars into the engine, smashing them to pieces, and pinning passengers throughout the wreckage.
The terrible noise attracted a large crowd to the scene of the wreckage. Dr. Samuel Cochrane of Albion was dispatched to the scene as coroner and the station’s depot was temporarily turned into a triage center for wounded passengers.
The mangled corpses of 17 individuals were pulled from the wreckage that night and laid out on the station platform. The grotesque and devastating nature of the tragedy was something that local residents would recall for decades to come. Newspapers throughout New York, Pennsylvania, and Michigan covered the story, highlighting gross negligence on behalf of the RW&O Railroad.
Following the disaster, Carlyon’s Station Agent W. A. Barry fell under heavy scrutiny for the events of that evening. It was his responsibility to have the freight car moved from the main track to a section of track adjacent to the main line.
Barry insisted that he relocated the car and firmly set the brake. Investigators scoffed at the idea that even the most violent of wind gusts could blow a freight car with an engaged brake over 185 feet onto the main track.
The coroner’s inquisition gathered testimony from Albert Perry, the track watcher that evening, who claimed that just 30 minutes before the train came through, the track was clear of any obstructions.
There was no resolution to the question of who was responsible for the wreck. Barry insisted that he was not negligent in failing to set the brake on the car, instead suggesting that a group of malicious persons pushed the car onto the track.
The wreck attracted attention for years following the incident and appeared in newspapers throughout New York even 50 years later. Numerous individuals and family members of deceased passengers initiated civil suits against the RW&O Railroad, claiming that their loved ones were stripped of personal belongings, money, and one family cited the company’s refusal to allow for an open casket identification of the body.
Note: The Carlton railroad station was located on Yates-Carlton Townline Road between Ashwood and Alps Roads. The hamlet’s name was later changed to Ashwood.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 9 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Volume 2, Issue 2
ALBION – Last week’s article on Noah Davis sparked a few questions from the community regarding some of the other men in the photograph. Joseph Cornell, Julius Royce, Charles H. Moore, and Norman Field were all active members of the Albion community, involved in local politics, and respected businessmen in their professions.
This image is of Charles Henry Moore, a native of Manlius, New York who moved to Albion in 1843 at the age of 25. Initially he engaged in the mercantile business for approximately two years before he decided to pursue a career in engineering related endeavors. Moore was responsible for building the central road through Orleans County and was responsible for widening the Erie Canal in the Albion area.
Moore’s activities with the Erie Canal involved a partnership with George Pullman that allowed the men to profit from the relocation of roughly 20 buildings, all moved to make way for a wider canal prism. It was this partnership that drove Pullman and Moore venture out to Chicago. Moore followed Pullman to the “Windy City” in 1857 where both men worked together on various engineering projects.
The most notable project involved raising entire buildings to make room for the installation of a city sewer system. Built on marshland, the building foundations were dangerously close to the water table and prone to flooding. With a series of screwjacks and timbers the partners would raise the buildings over an extended period of time, usually several inches per day, until the buildings were elevated an average of six feet above the water table.
For a short period of time Moore and Pullman both tested their luck with mining in Colorado, dealing in gold dust before Pullman refocused his efforts on his Palace Car Company. Charles Moore also took an interest in railroad related ventures, involving himself with the Great Western Railroad in Canada and various railroads throughout Ohio, Mississippi, and Missouri.
Along with Julius Royce, Moore served for a period of time as a director of the Niagara River and New York Airline (Railroad) and with Joseph Cornell, served as a trustee of the Albion Union School to which he was a charter and lifelong member. Moore was heavily involved with local politics and was elected as Village President and Trustee for several terms; he also served as a commissioner of Mt. Albion Cemetery.
Charles Moore was a devout Episcopalian and staunch Democrat who also engaged locally in land speculation. The Poles in Albion purchased the land for St. Mary’s Church from the Estate of Charles Moore, which encompassed a large portion of land on the east end of the village – the origin of Moore Street.
It is worth noting that Charles Moore was the uncle of Henry Moore Harrington who was killed with Gen. Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn (vol. 1, issue 23).
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 1 January 2016 at 12:00 am
Seated (l-r): Joseph Mason Cornell, Judge Noah Davis and Norman Spafford Field. Standing: Charles Henry Moore and Julius Heath Royce.
Volume 2, Issue 1
Taken sometime in the early 1880s, this image shows five of Albion’s most prominent and well-respected citizens. Heavily engaged in commercial interests and local politics, we would consider these men as the “movers and shakers” of their time.
Seated center is the Hon. Noah Davis, one of the most notable attorneys and politicians from Orleans County. Born Sept. 10, 1818 to Noah and Freelove Davis in New Hampshire, Noah was brought to Orleans County at a very young age and received his early education in the public schools of this area.
After studying at the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary at Lima, NY, Davis studied law for a brief time in Lewiston before his admittance to the bar in 1841. Several years of practicing law at Gainesville and Buffalo concluded his endeavors in that region and he soon returned to Albion.
Following his return to Orleans County, Davis initiated a partnership with Sanford E. Church in 1844 starting a highly respected firm that would exist for nearly 14 years. The end of this enterprise concluded when Davis received an appointment from Gov. John King to the 8th District New York Supreme Court bench in 1857.
Resigning that position in 1868, Davis served a shortened term as a U.S. Representative during the 41st Congress before resigning that post to accept a position as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York on July 20, 1870.
The appointment of Noah Davis as New York State Supreme Court Justice in 1872 led to his resignation from the post provided to him by President Grant and started perhaps the most illustrious 14 years of his legal career. Almost immediately after taking the bench the case of Edward Stokes was brought before him; Stokes was accused of murdering the well-known financier Jim Fisk. Davis delivered a stay of execution of Stokes’ sentence of death, allowing for an eventual third trial that would find Stokes guilty of manslaughter, not murder.
Even more noteworthy was the case of William “Boss” Tweed, a case that represented a culmination in the battle against the Tammany Hall political machine in New York City. Through a series of court cases, Tweed’s first trial ended with a hung jury and the second resulted in convictions on 204 counts, leading Davis to quip, “more counts than in a German principality?” The court affixed a $12,750 fine and sentenced Tweed to twelve years in prison.
Finding that Davis operated beyond the reach of his power in determining the sentence, it was reduced to one year and Tweed was released following the completion of his sentence. Shortly after, New York filed a civil suit attempting to recover over $6 million in embezzled funds leading Davis to assign bail at $3 million, an unprecedented amount that Tweed was unable to pay.
Davis was considered a strong but impulsive man who was often criticized by members of the bar, even though so many applauded his efforts in bringing about an end to the Tammany Hall machine. At the conclusion of his term, Judge Davis practiced privately in New York City. Davis was an intimate friend of President Grant for many years, serving as his personal attorney before his election to the White House. Grant’s chair and desk were two of his most prized possessions, which he kept in his office at New York City.
In his later career, Davis took an interest in medico-legal questions and became a student of forensic medicine, serving as an officer of the Medico-Legal Society. Judge Noah Davis died on March 30, 1902 and his body was returned to Albion for interment at Mt. Albion Cemetery.
Photograph courtesy of Holly Canham, taken November 19, 2015 following the meeting of municipal historians. Standing (l-r): Adrienne Daniels, Matthew Ballard, Dawn Metty, Ian Mowatt, and Neil Johnson. Seated (l-r): Melissa Ierlan, Al Capurso. Missing: Todd Bensley.
By Matthew Ballard Orleans County Historian
Volume 1, Issue 39
Issue 39 marks the end of the first volume of this column. Although February marks the conclusion of my first full year as County Historian, I am amazed at the progress I have witnessed over the last 10 months. Orleans County is fortunate to have the backing of a core group of very active historians and enthusiasts who continue to devote all of their extra time to the promotion of our heritage.
On Nov. 19, we held a meeting of the local municipal historians at the Hoag Library’s Local History Room. The last gathering of this group was nearly 10 years prior and with a great deal of transitioning over the several years prior, our hope was to provide a venue for becoming familiar with one another and establishing an opportunity to develop collaborative projects. Naturally, the meeting was a huge success and showed much promise for the development of heritage tourism and local history projects in the county.
I wanted to share a few of the accomplishments of our local historians over the previous year, some highlights of things to come, and introduce our newest historians:
Al Capurso, Town of Gaines, was recently appointed to the post of town historian. With remarkable haste, Al has led efforts with the Orleans County Historical Association to acquire the Gaines District No. 2 Cobblestone Schoolhouse on Gaines Basin Road. With assistance from OCHA members and volunteers, including retired County Historian Bill Lattin, the group has restored front windows and made extensive repairs to the roof. Interior renovations will begin in the spring.
Ian Mowatt, Town of Albion, was recently appointed to the post of town historian this past year.
Melissa Ierlan, Town of Clarendon, as president of the Clarendon Historical Society and with members of that group, including Erin Anheier, have made outstanding progress on preserving the chapel at Hillside Cemetery. Most recently, the group was awarded over $125,000 in matching grant funding to start restoration work at the site.
Adrienne Daniels, Town of Barre, is in the early stages of planning the bicentennial celebration for Barre set to take place in 2018.
Heather Koch, Town of Kendall, was recently appointed to the post of town historian this past year.
Our historians are working collaboratively on updating the 2001 inventory of historic markers compiled by Neil Johnson, our long-tenured Village of Albion Historian, and Bill Lattin. Through the Orleans County Department of History, we would like to make this database of historic sites available for easy access online. Alongside of these efforts, Melissa Ierlan continues to contribute countless volunteer hours towards the restoration of many of our existing blue and gold historic markers.
Over the last year, the County Department of History has developed a website (click here) to catalog this column and host a number of digitized items from the historian’s office.
In 2016, we hope to publish the first edition of The Pioneer Record, a local history publication aimed at preserving the development of Orleans County history across all eras. Thanks to the Drake Memorial Library at SUNY College at Brockport, the publication will be hosted through their Digital Commons and available across the country. My other large project for the 2016 year is to compile a history of Mt. Albion Cemetery, consisting of biographical sketches and photography.
This article, concluding the 2015 year, would fill an entire paper if all of the preservation and heritage exploits were covered. We are a community that is forever dedicated to the continued dissemination of our cultural heritage and the scope of extensive projects occurring in our area is a testament to that. The residents of Orleans County are filled with great ideas for promoting our region and the collaboration that has developed between our “movers and shakers” shows great promise for the future.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 25 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photo courtesy of Albert Scalzo
ALBION – Albert Scalzo was 4 years old when he sat on Santa’s lap and shared his wish list for Chrstmas. That was in 1955 when Scalzo visited Santa at Christmas Park in Albion.
Charlie Howard developed the site on Phipps Road. He is pictured portraying Santa. Howard ran the world’s first Santa School in Albion from 1937 until 1966. After his death in 1966, the school was moved to Michigan. The school continues to bear his name.
Scalzo now lives on Porter Road in Medina. He sent in the photo.
“It was Christmas 60 years ago that I had the opportunity to sit on Charlie Howard’s knee,” Scalzo wrote in an email. “It was a great time to be part of our local history.”
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 21 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – Last month a new sign went up on Route 98, noting Albion is the home of “Legendary Santa” Charles W. Howard, who started the world’s’ first Santa School. Howard ran the school in Albion from 1937 until his death in 1966.
The school still bears his name, but has been relocated to Midland, Mich. It is run by Tom and Holly Valent. (Click here for more information.)
The new sign received an addition today: a large cutout image of Howard from 1965. Terri Wood, co-owner of the Lonowood Art Company, created the image of Howard from a black-and-white photo, believed to be one of the last images of Howard wearing the Santa suit.
The image of Howard is a mounted digital print on aluminum with a plastic core.
Terri Wood tightens a bolt for a bracket used to hold the image of Charlie Howard as Santa next to a new sign that proclaims Albion as home to the man who started the first Santa School.
The image of Howard is 6 feet, 2 inches. The sign is across from the Don Davis car dealership.
Howard is a revered figure in the Santa community. He was inducted in the Santa Claus Hall of Fame in 2010, part of the inaugural class. Click here for more information.
The Albion Betterment Committee paid for the new sign that is located on the property of Gil and Donna Wolcott.
Betterment Committee directors include, from left: Joe Gehl, Gary Kent and Gary Derwick.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 19 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Volume 1, Issue 38
KNOWLESVILLE – The eldest son of Benoni Grover, Lysander was born Jan. 22, 1802 at Deerfield, Massachusetts. Lysander’s father was a farmer in his early life, forced to adopt a new profession after a horrible milling accident cost him his leg. It was after this accident that he married his wife, Thankful Smith, and raised several children including Lysander.
When Lysander was all but five years of age, his father moved the family to Phelps, New York, where he attended schools and worked on area farms. Despite his rugged family genes, young Lysander’s body could no longer take the physical strain of manual labor and he was forced to establish himself in a profession that was more manageable.
Attending an academy at Geneva, Lysander attained a teacher’s certificate and proceeded to teach in the local school districts for several years. Finding the profession of a teacher quite bothersome, he sought out a new vocation. Deciding that he was neither pious enough for ministerial work nor confident enough to practice law, he decided that the occupation of physician would suffice.
Studying with Dr. James Carter of Geneva, Lysander spent the next four years learning the specifics of the medical profession. With six cents in his pocket, the eager Dr. Grover travelled to the village of Alloway in the township of Lyons where he borrowed enough money to start a medical practice.
His first year of practice in Alloway was marked by much health amongst the population of the village as he wrote, “nobody would get sick to accommodate me, or test the efficiency of my drugs, or my ability in prescribing them.” With patience and due diligence (and eventually patients), Dr. Grover established a successful practice in Wayne County.
In 1844 Dr. Grover relocated to a farm in Alexander, New York where he spent less than one year before exchanging the land for a farm located at Knowlesville. He remarks in his short autobiography in Arad Thomas’ Pioneer History of Orleans County that, “I practiced medicine but little, keeping a drug and book store, and superintending my farm.” He also writes that he operated both an ashery and distillery in the area for a portion of his time in Orleans County.
Dr. Grover died before his grandson, Dr. Edward L. Frost, graduated from the University of Buffalo’s Medical School in 1892. The son of Cecilia Grover and William H. Frost, Edward later served as an Instructor of Obstetrics at the University of Buffalo’s Medical School from 1893 to 1897.
Dr. Frost was one of four physicians who testified at the trial of Olive Sternaman, Canada’s Black Widow who was accused of poisoning her two husbands with arsenic in Cayuga, Ontario. Dr. Frost’s son, Carl Grover, attended the University of Michigan where he earned his medical degree in the specialty of Ear, Nose, and Throat.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 16 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Statuesque, New York – An occasional series
Photos by Tom Rivers
SENECA FALLS – In the spring of 1851, two women met and they would form one of the most powerful two-person teams in New York history for the next 50 years.
Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony were both leaders in the push for women’s rights, including suffrage.
They met in Seneca Falls in an encounter arranged by Amelia Bloomer, a dynamo in her own right. She also is famous for “Bloomers.” She was the first woman to wear pantaloons under her dresses, and is wearing the style in this depiction.
Seneca Falls commemorates this meeting with statues of the three women by the Cayuga-Seneca Canal. They are shown by East Bayard Street. These statues are life-size, and are slightly elevated from ground level.
The statues – “When Anthony met Stanton” – are a gift from New York State to Seneca Falls in 1998, when George Pataki was governor. The gift was made “On Behalf of the Governor’s Commission Honoring the Achievements of Women,” according to a plaque by the display.
Susan B. Anthony is at left, with Amelia Bloomer in center and Elizabeth Cady Stanton at right. The statues were dedicated on July 18, 1998. A.E. Ted Aub served as a sculptor of the statues.
Anthony and Stanton were the prime movers in the fight for women’s right. They weren’t alive when women finally achieved the right to vote on Aug. 26, 1920 with the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
Stanton for 50 years would write hundreds of letters to the editor, and give numerous speeches. She wrote articles on divorce, property rights and temperence. (She also adopted the Bloomer costume.) Anthony was a Rochester school teacher who was unrelenting in her organizational skills, lobbying and execution of the women’s rights agenda.
Seneca Falls has adopted the statue depiction as an icon for the many signs in the community directing people to historic sites and public services.
There is another series of bronze statues in Seneca Falls, home of The Women’s Rights National Historical Park. The U.S. government created the park in downtown Seneca Falls and commissioned 20 statues of the “The First Wave.”
Sculptor Lloyd Lillie created the life-size bronze statues of the five women who organized the First Women’s Rights Convention, including Elizabeth Cady Stanton at left. The display includes a few of the men who came in support of social, political, and religious equality for women. Acclaimed abolitionist Frederick Douglass is depicted in center.
Thomas and Mary Ann M’Clintock were active in the women’s rights movement, and also actively championed abolition, temperance and Native American rights. They attended the first women’s rights convention on July 19-20, 1848. The original Declaration of Sentiments was written at the M’Clintock house in nearby Waterloo.
The statues in the lobby of the Visitor Center at the National Park in Seneca Falls represent the first wave of women’s rights activists in the United States. There were more than 300 women and men who organized and participated in the first Women’s Rights Convention.
The “Declaration of Sentiments” declared that “all men and women are created equal.” The document demands equal rights for women in property and custody laws, educational opportunities, and participation in the church, professions, and politics.
Seneca Falls is about the same size as Albion and Medina. I was there over the weekend for the “It’s A Wonderful Life” festival. Bedford Falls in the famous movie is believed to be based on Seneca Falls.
The community is a vibrant place. It capitalizes on its role in U.S. history and has fun with its possible connection to one of the most popular movies of all time. I picked up a lot of ideas for how Albion, Medina and our other communities could better promote their history.
Albion could certainly do more showcasing its ties to Charles Howard and his role in shaping the look and behavior of Santa Claus through his Santa School. Albion could develop a Santa Claus museum in the downtown. It would add a lot of energy to Main Street and help nearby shops capitalize with Santa-themed merchandise. (Seneca Falls has a museum for It’s A Wonderful Life and uses the movie as a focus for a very popular community festival. I ran the 5k race on Saturday that had 4,000 runners.)
It would be interesting to see how the local government, including the county, helps with the projects in Seneca Falls. I would guess there is a nice public-private partnership with lots of volunteers. But the government probably needed to step up with money and personnel to get these projects off the ground.
The Women’s Rights National Historic Park is in a renovated downtown building in Seneca Falls.
The National Women’s Hall of Fame also is in a downtown building, but that organization is looking to create the “Great Hall of Women” in a massive former knitting mill, a $25 million project with state support. That site could open next December.
By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 14 December 2015 at 12:00 am
File photos by Tom Rivers – The chapel at Hillside Cemetery was open for tours on Sept.21, 2014, when the Clarendon Historical Society unveiled a new historical marker for the cemetery.
HOLLEY – The announcement last Thursday that New York State would provide a $126,210 grant for work on the chapel at Hillside Cemetery should show the community that the state values historic sites in Orleans County, including the old cemetery chapels.
“I hope this opens people’s eyes that other buildings are worth saving,” said Erin Anheier, a member of the Clarendon Historical Society. “I hope it inspires people.”
Anheier wrote the grant for the state application. It was a painstaking effort. Most municipalities and organizations will hire a professional grantwriter to put together the application for state funds.
“It’s exciting because it’s such a competitive grant,” she said. “It validates what we’ve said all along that this is a valuable, important building worth preserving.”
Anheier and the Clarendon Historical Society have worked hard the past five years to raise public awareness and support for restoring the site.
The state approved a matching grant for the chapel, and the Historical Society already has about $65,000 towards the local match with $20,000 from the Rochester Community Foundation, $14,500 from the Curtis Foundation, $10,000 from an anonymous donor, and $20,000 in other local contributions.
In-kind work from the Town of Clarendon can also count towards the local share.
“We are very confident we can raise the local match,” Anheier said.
The Historical Society has identified about $250,000 in restoration work for the chapel, a Gothic Revival chapel built of Medina sandstone in 1894. (It might be the only site in Orleans County with a flying buttress.)
Amy Harris plays her flute during a reception on Sept. 21, 2014 inside the chapel at Hillside Cemetery.
The chapel is the focal point of a cemetery owned by the Town of Clarendon. The town and Historical Society want to restore the non-denominational chapel and repurpose it for new public uses. Anticipated use includes concerts, historical and art exhibits, and lectures.
Anheier said the slate roof will be replaced with slate, and some of the stained-glass windows will be repaired. The project includes painting the inside, adding lighting, refinishing the floor and adding a handrail to the outside steps.
Anheier also thinks the chapel would make sense as the eastern end of a Medina Sandstone Trail in Orleans County if municipalities can get on board with that project.
Hillside Cemetery opened in 1866 and was designed in the 19th century “Rural Cemetery Movement.” That is on the eastern side of the cemetery where the gravesides are dug into the side of the hill.
The 20th century “Lawn Style” approach is seen in the western portion. The cemetery has many beautiful gravestones that are works of art, Anheier said.
She also was instrumental in the cemetery being recognized on the National Register of Historic Places.
Anheier said the Historical Society welcomes more donations and support for the chapel and cemetery. Donations can be sent to Clarendon Historical Society, “Chapel Fund” at P.O. Box 124, Clarendon NY 14429.
This picture was taken looking up from the mortuary chambers to the stairs leading to the main chapel room.
By Matthew Ballard, Orleans County Historian Posted 12 December 2015 at 12:00 am
Volume 1, Issue 37 supplement
(Editor’s Note: This week’s column for Old-Time Orleans is a supplemental issue connected to last week’s piece on the St. Mary’s Athletic Club baseball team.)
On occasion, my weekly column flushes out a piece of related local history. New photographs, documents, records, and even artifacts have surfaced thanks to the willingness of the Orleans Hub and Batavia Daily News to publish the column every week.
I greatly appreciate the feedback, both positive and negative, regarding the content of each piece and hope that the community continues to provide these responses.
Following the publication of my most recent article, I received several photographs from Clarendon Town Historian Melissa Ierlan of several baseball uniforms. The pieces were loaned to her by Larry and Brenda Swanger, who graciously allowed the uniforms to be cleaned and displayed in Clarendon.
Without a doubt, the uniforms are the exact style worn by the players from last week’s photograph so I thought it would be fitting to not only share images of these amazing artifacts, but provide some additional insight into the formation of the St. Mary’s Athletic Club in Albion.
In 1912 a local Polish Roman Catholic Union branch was established in Albion thanks to the diligent work of Frank Turski of Buffalo and Rev. Charles Mioduszewski of St. Mary’s Assumption Parish in Albion. It was on Sunday, Dec. 1, 1912 that a delegation of PRCU members from Buffalo including Turski, Antoni Kazmierczak, Frank Andrezjewski, and Jacob Graczyk arrived in Albion to install the organization’s newest branch in Western New York.
Established at Chicago in 1873 by Rev. Teodor Gieryk and Rev. Wincenty Barczynski, the PRCU was active in developing social programs aimed at supporting widows, orphans, and the needy. Nearly a decade later the organization developed an insurance program, similar to the Knights of Columbus, and led the way in promoting gender equality in fraternal organizations. Many branches, including Albion’s Branch 654, promoted local sporting events and sponsored teams throughout major cities such as Detroit, Chicago, and Buffalo.
We can see that one uniform is marked St. Mary’s P.R.C.U. A.C., representing the St. Mary’s PRCU Athletic Club, the precursor to the officially established St. Mary’s Athletic Club now located on Moore Street in Albion.
Both shirts include a patch on the left sleeve, a gold circular patch with crossed flags, a heart, and shield. The patch, the crest of the PRCU, contains a Polish flag and United States flag crossed with the Sacred Heart and Polish Falcon. The crest shows the assimilation into American society that many Poles sought while retaining their religious and cultural heritage. The St. Mary’s Athletic Club officially established itself in 1924 as a men’s social club, strange considering the height of prohibition at the time.
The organization existed as an extension of the local Polish Catholic Church until the 1940s when the Athletic Club cut ties with the Parish. Expressing distaste for the debauchery and poor behavior of those drinking at the club, some parishioners voiced a concern that many men would consume alcohol at the St. Mary’s Club, stagger uptown, and draw unwanted and unwarranted attention to the church.
The organization continues to support baseball programs locally and until recently, provided death benefits for “regular” members who could claim Polish lineage.
File photo by Tom Rivers – Genesee Community College and Orleans Hub honored four “Heritage Heroes” on April 24 during the Civil War Encampment at GCC’s Medina campus center. The following were recognized, from right to left: Doug Miller (accepting for his wife Susan Starkweather Miller), Andrew Meier, Holly Ricci-Canham, and William Menz.
Press Release, GCC
BATAVIA – Genesee Community College is eager to recognize the efforts of dedicated citizens who work hard to preserve the county’s history. The college is seeking nominations for the third annual Orleans County Heritage Heroes Awards. Nominations will be accepted through Feb. 15.
“Residents of Orleans County take great pride in their heritage,” said Jim Simon, associate dean of GCC’s Orleans County Campus Centers in Medina and Albion. “For our third consecutive year, we want to continue to recognize the time and investment of individuals who are tireless advocates for local history.”
Nominees for Heritage Heroes Awards can be any age but posthumous nominations will not be accepted. History professionals and GCC employees are also not eligible for the award, nor are those who serve on the awards selection committees. Nominees must be Orleans County residents.
Four winners were honored last year including Holly Ricci-Canham, Susan Starkweather Miller, Andrew W. Meier and William A. Menz. Because nominations are not retained for future consideration, nominees not selected to receive awards in previous are encouraged to re-submit a nomination again for this coming year.
“Many residents from all over the county work hard on restoring historic houses and protecting other community assets, including museums and churches,” said Tom Rivers, Orleans Hub editor. “The dedicated people working to preserve these treasures deserve praise for adding to the quality of life and character of our community.”
To nominate someone for the Heritage Heroes Awards, write up a brief statement outlining the person’s contributions, projects and community affiliations. Anyone sending in a nomination should provide their name (anonymous nomination packages will not be accepted), address, phone number and email address. The more in-depth the detail provided in the nomination, the stronger the submission.
Submit the nomination to:
ATTENTION: Heritage Heroes Committee
Genesee Community College / Medina Campus Center
11470 Maple Ridge Rd.
Medina, NY 14103-9675
Nominations may also be emailed to Jim Simon at jsimon@genesee.edu. Please write Heritage Heroes Nomination in the subject line.
A screening committee made up of community members, history professionals and GCC students will review the nominations and select finalists. From those finalists, a committee including GCC Associate Dean Jim Simon, Associate Professor Derek Maxfield and Orleans Hub Editor Tom Rivers will choose the Heritage Heroes.
“We’re excited to continue these awards,” said Maxfield. “When we held the Civil War Encampment in Medina for three years, it became obvious how Orleans County values its history and embraces its preservation. These efforts often go unnoticed. This is a way to shine a light on those who make many personal sacrifices in order to preserve history for future generations.”
The Heritage Heroes will be recognized during a ceremony at GCC in Medina in April 2016.
