(Left) A stylish seasonal design adorned the cover of the Christmas 1926 issue of Albion High School’s Chevron. (Right) Snowstorm, Christmas, 1919.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 2, No. 41

ALBION – A century ago, Albion High School students produced several annual Christmas editions of their literary magazine, The Chevron. The covers feature student submitted artwork evocative of the 1920s.

The Chevron was first published in 1912. The editorial in that first issue acknowledged that the name “Chevron” was new and unfamiliar and explained that it had been selected because it symbolized an ideal.

(Left) A wintry scene, Christmas, 1920. (Right) The third Wise Man was enroute, no doubt.

In medieval times apparently, a knight’s shield would be adorned with a representation of the rafters of a house to signify an accomplishment. Later, this inverted V-shaped design was used on badges or insignia to denote rank, hence the selection:

“As the chevron of old meant honor to a knight, so we hope to make this paper an honor to the school.”

Santa Claus reads his mail, 1925 issue

Students contributed the material included in these publications. Their youthful optimism and humor shine through.

The Literary Section contains whimsical, imaginative fiction and poetry. There are club notes, alumni roundups, poetry, sports summaries and even several pages of jokes which tend to rely heavily on puns:

Teacher: Name the Tudors

Student: Front door and back door (1925)

Chester Sledzinski contributed The Faculty Banquet, a brave parody of Longfellow’s Song of Hiawatha to the 1925 issue:

By the shores of Lake Ontario, by the shining big lake water,

Stood the Superintendent Bergerson, big chief of the Albion High School.

Dark behind him rose the forest, rose the black and gloomy pine trees….

The poem describes a fictional banquet organized by Chief Bergerson and his wife to make the teachers “better natured”, and “appease their savage tempers”. Name references to the teachers throughout the poem would no doubt have amused the readers and, one hopes, the teachers.

The 1925 issue also includes a stirring account of a football game between the “fighting Albion” team and Medina, it’s “ancient foe”, held in Medina on Thanksgiving Day, under perfect weather conditions and before a record crowd of 2,000. The Albion team met “a not inglorious defeat” but vowed with grim determination to seek future triumph.

Among the many treasurers we discovered in these early Chevrons was a poem in the 1916 issue which conveys the worries and darkness of that time. It was composed by a then 18-year-old Cary Lattin, who was later Orleans County Historian, from 1958-1974.

Poem by Cary Lattin, published in the 1916 edition of The Chevron, Albion High School’s literary magazine.

Goodnow wrote several textbooks to advance nursing profession

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 2, No. 39

Chad Fabry recently found this poster in the attic of the Swan Library building.

ALBION – Miss Minnie Goodnow was no stranger to the audience assembled at the Court House in Albion on Monday, September 10, 1917, to hear her speak about her experiences as a nurse in France.

Minnie was born in Albion on July 10, 1871, the daughter of Franklin and Elizabeth (Arnold) Goodnow. The 1887 Directory lists Frank as a builder, the family home was at 28 Clinton St.

(According to the Goodenow Family Association, five Goodenows immigrated from the south of England in 1638 on the ship Confidence and settled in Sudbury, Massachusetts. The name is spelled various ways including Goodenough, Goodnough, Goodno, and Goodnow among others.)

Minnie attended Albion schools. The family moved to Denver, Colorado, where she trained as a nurse. At the age of 44, she was a member of the second contingent of the Harvard Surgical Unit who volunteered to provide medical assistance during World War I. Under the leadership of Dr. David Cheever, the group of 30 physicians and 36 nurses sailed on the Noordam in November 1915 and arrived at the General Hospital winter quarters at Wimeraux in France on Dec. 2. The first intake of wounded soldiers from the front lines arrived on Dec. 15. The unit treated 1,400 patients over the next three months.

In a letter to friends in Decatur, Ill., Minnie wrote:

“It is utterly impossible to tell you or make you realize what it is like over here. War is the business of the country, and it is organized on a remarkably permanent basis. Everything is affected by it. France is drained of her able-bodied men, and the work of the country is being done by boys, old men, and women.”

The Orleans Republican of March 22, 1916, published a request from Minnie for writing paper and envelopes for the soldiers in hospital who wanted to write to their families. She also requested drawstring bags, about 9” by 12”, made of plain material, in which soldiers could store personal items.

Reporting on the Unit’s service in the April 1916 Harvard Alumni Bulletin, Dr. Cheever wrote:

As would naturally be expected in the winter season, probably one-half the cases were sick rather than wounded…. The wounds were almost entirely due to high explosive shell fire, machine-gun and rifle fire, and bombs, the proportion of injuries by shrapnel being comparatively low, owing to the fact that there is a great preponderance in the use of high explosive shells over shrapnel.

During her distinguished career, Minnie held executive posts at several hospitals: Directress of Nurses, Milwaukee County Hospital, Superintendent of the Women’s Hospital, Denver, of the Bronson Hospital, Kalamazoo, and of the Children’s Hospital in Washington, D.C., the Newport Hospital (R.I.) and the Pratt Diagnostic Hospital in Boston.

She was considered a pioneer in the fields of nursing education and nursing history and was the author of several textbooks which were published by W.B. Saunders of Philadelphia:

• The Nursing of Children, 1914

• Outlines of Nursing History, 1916

• War Nursing: a Textbook for the Auxiliary Nurse, 1918

• Practical Physics for Nurses, 1919

• Ten Lesson in Chemistry for Nurses Saunders, 1919

• First Year Nursing, 1920

• Nursing History in Brief, 1943.

Minnie maintained her Albion connections and visited the area frequently. The Holley-Standard of May 24, 1894, listed her as among those who had attended the laying of the cornerstone of the Pullman Church. When visiting, she stayed with her sister, Mrs. Adeline Porter, or with her friend Lillian Achilles, Director of the Swan Library.

Minnie travelled extensively. Returning from a two-year round-the-world trip in 1937, she lectured frequently on her observations. Locally, she addressed the Union Evening of the Protestant Churches in Albion in November 1937 on the topic of “Zionism in Palestine and Christianity in Asia”. Having acquired first-hand information on international affairs during her travels through forty countries, she outlined the facts of the Jewish-Arab-English situation in Palestine and the underlying issues of the Sino-Japanese conflicts “in an interesting and charming manner” (Orleans Republican, 11/10/1937)

She died in Boston at the age of 80 and is buried at Blossom Cemetery in Hamlin, along with her family.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 2, No. 35

This photo shows the front view of the Delusion Mouse Trap built in 1877. This device is on display at The Medina Historical Society.

KENDALL – At this time of year, it is not uncommon for mice to invite themselves into our homes in anticipation of winter.

Many inventive minds have attempted to design effective mousetraps. In 1894, Illinois native William C. Hooker patented a spring-loaded trap. Shortly thereafter, in 1898, British inventor, James Henry Atkinson invented the “Little Nipper”, which featured a wooden base, a spring trap and wire fastenings, this is still the standard version in use.

The Delusion Mousetrap, photographed in this article, has some interesting links to Orleans County as Kendall natives Claudius and David L. Jones were instrumental in its production and promotion.

They were the sons of David Jones, who was the second person to settle in Kendall. The Jones family chose to leave their home in Pembrokeshire, Wales in 1801, “having keenly felt the humiliation of their race, when Wales, through treachery and oppression was permanently united with the British Crown.” (Landmarks of Orleans County/Signor).

Jones recounted that he was poor when he settled in Kendall in 1815. He bought 400 acres of land on credit and worked for 15 years to pay off the debt. His oldest son, Claudius, was born in Kendall, on June 30, 1826. He farmed for some years, “but owing to a feeble constitution, he was compelled to leave the farm.”

He moved to Chicago in 1859 and “engaged in business.” He moved to Monmouth, Illinois in 1870 and assisted in the organization of the First National Bank. He then moved to the agricultural county of Seward in southeastern Nebraska in 1873, and established the State Bank of Nebraska, which he sold in 1879.

This photo shows an interior view of Delusion Mouse Trap.

During this time, Claudius made the acquaintance of John Morris who in 1877 had received a patent (No. 195,632) for his improved version of a unique mousetrap. As the name implies, the idea was to delude the mouse into entering the trap.

Once inside, the mouse could not exit, and the entry platform would reset for additional rodent guests. Recognizing the trap’s lucrative potential, the astute Jones bought the patent. His younger brother, David L. assisted with the business venture.

The Delusion was the first American animal trap registered as a trademark (No. 5116).

It was manufactured by the Lovell Manufacturing Company, in Erie, Pa. and claimed to have sold over 1,500,000 units. A creative employee composed a sixteen-verse poem in which the mice discuss the various traps:

“But David L. and Claudius Jones

Have got a trap that breaks no bones;

The mouse goes in to get the bait

And shuts the door by his own weight.

“And then he jumps right through a hole

And thinks he’s out; but bless his soul

He’s in a cage, somehow or other

And sets the trap to catch another.

“Then all the mice in the convention

Began to talk of this invention

And David L. and Claudius Jones

And the wonderful trap that breaks no bones”

Following the mousetrap venture, David L. returned to Kendall. He expanded the family farm to 710 acres and served as Town Supervisor in 1889 and 1890. He died in 1898. The Jones family is buried at Mt. Albion Cemetery.

Claudius remained in Seward, Nebraska. In 1883, he established the Jones National Bank which is still in operation. He was president of the bank until 1895. At the time of his death in 1896, he was one of the wealthiest men in the area. In addition to being an astute financier, he had also purchased farms in Seward and neighboring counties. He was buried at Greenwood Cemetery, Nebraska.

A Delusion Mouse Trap is on view at the Medina Historical Society Museum.

(Incidentally, “musophobia” is the term for a fear of rats and mice, from the Greek “mus” for mouse.)

S.A. Cook & Co. in Medina is shown after the fire a week ago.

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 2, No. 36

MEDINA – The red-brick structure on East Avenue in Medina now stands roofless and forlorn.

A recent fire has prompted calls for demolition of the 70,000-square-foot complex.

Built in 1911 to house the expanding S.A. Cook & Co. factory, the building once housed the largest industrial maker of rockers and chairs in the northeast.

Employing as many as 600 workers at one time, the company could rightly claim in a 1913 advertisement that “it was responsible in no small degree for the growth and advancement of Medina.”

(Editor’s Note: The 70,600-square-foot manufacturing site has been sold multiple times through the property tax auction, including in 2016 when it only fetched $100. The current owner – Open the Windows of Heaven, Apostolic Ministry – doesn’t have insurance on the building. The church group also doesn’t have the resources to make extensive repairs or to demo the site, village officials said. Medina is seeking state and federal funding to assist with the demolition of the three-story site.)

The plant’s location, adjacent to the railroad, facilitated the delivery of lumber and other raw materials as well as the shipping of finished products. The plant had its own boiler and drying kilns.

S.A. Cook & Co. furniture factory building plans

Over 5,000,000 feet of lumber were cut and used in the manufacturing process in 1912 and seventy-five carloads of coal were burned. It was estimated that one finished product was produced every 45 seconds and that the entire annual production would fill 564 freight cars. (Atlas of Niagara and Orleans Counties, 1913)

S.A. Cook & Co., 525 East Ave., Medina, 1920s view

S.A. Cook & Co., 525 East Ave., Medina, late 1930s view

Furniture sales declined drastically during the Depression. S.A. Cook survived this period but production and empoyment declined. The impact of World War II further affected sales.

In 1965 J. Michaels Inc. of New York city purchased  S.A. Cook & Co. to manufacture furniture for its stores. Production increased and employment rose to about 100. But the business model for the industry changed. North Carolina became the new center of furniture production and the cost of shipping lumber and raw materials to the northeast became prohibitive.

The company employed skilled upholsterers and craftsmen.

The Dunlap Tire & Rubber Co. of Buffalo introduced latex foam for use in seats and cushions in the 1930s.

The company had its own delivery trucks boasting S.A. Cook’s products as “hygienic upholstered furniture cushioned with Dunlopillo – life’s lasting luxury.”

Later delivery truck

Furniture manufactured at the plant is still in use in homes across the country as it was of high quality.

The Medina Historical Society continues to receive requests each year for information about the company’s distinctive version of the Morris Chair. Patented for the company in 1901 by George A. Bowen, it had an adjustable back rest and featured carved griffin’s heads on the arms, turned spindles and claw feet.

Twenty-five employees were laid off when the S.A. Cook & Co. closed in August 1984, having been in operation for almost 90 years.

A series of colorful posters created by graphic artist Lester Beall was used to promote the Rural Electrification Administration. The images featured in this article are from the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs collection, www.loc.gov. The poster at left shows farmers organizing to arrange for power.

‘Electric power proved to be our greatest assistance to modern living. It gave us light, pumped our water supply into our homes enabling us to enjoy a bathroom, it preserved our food from spoiling, heated water and cooked our food.’

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans, Vol. 2, No. 34

As previously mentioned, a 160-mile-long electrical power transmission line, which stretched from the Niagara River to Syracuse and traversed through Orleans County, went into service on July 7, 1906.

However, it was quite some time before area farmers had access to electricity, since running wires to far-flung farms was an expensive proposition. By the 1930s only 10% of rural America had electric power. Those who did have power had arranged for it themselves by forming local co-operatives, an involved and costly process.

The Medina Daily Journal of May 10, 1924, noted that:

“The people of Millville are to have electric lights and power. Since they were unable to secure sufficient subscribers on Maple Ridge, they will connect with the electric line which comes within a mile of the village on the east.”

Homer L. Waldo of the Town of Barre remarked in a 1983 Oral History interview that:

“At that time, you had to provide the right of way for the electric company to put their poles down. You had to get signers for the right of way for them. You had to guarantee them $70 a month for every mile they extended the line.”

Some farmers were reluctant to join, Waldo mentioned that they had to convince a reluctant farmer on Pine Hill Road to join.

J. Howard Pratt also recalled the difficulty of getting the required number of signers to co-operate. Acquiring the right of way to pass wires overhead was also an issue. His own family’s access to power was delayed two years on account of recalcitrant neighbors who would not co-operate. His home was finally supplied when the power company set up their poles along another farm to bring the desired current to the Pratt household.

(Left) A farmer uses an electric power sharpener. (Right) A woman is content while sitting her home.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Rural Electrification Administration in 1935. A year later, the Rural Electrification Act made provisions for a lending program to fund the formation and operation of not-for-profit, consumer-owned electric cooperatives. The loans were to be re-paid within 30 years.

In 1935, the Niagara, Lockport and Orleans Power Company announced plans to bring service to over 1,400 rural customers in Orleans County and parts of Niagara and Monroe counties. The minimum monthly charge to customers was to be reduced from $7 to $2.

Power company officials noted that the success and speed of the program would depend on how soon rural customers would wire their homes and equip them with fixtures. To this end, they collaborated with agencies such as the Farm Bureau.

On January 13, 1936, over one hundred people braved icy roads and bitter winds to attend a program about electrifying their farms. The session which was held in Albion, was arranged by the Farm Bureau and the Rural Electrification Committee of Orleans County. Committee members included Harry DeLano of Barre Center, H.G. Butler of Kenyonville, Miles Luttenton of Albion, J. Stanley Pratt of Gaines, Mrs. William Blackburn of County Line and George Snaith of Medina.

C.N. Turner of the Cornell Agriculture Engineering Dept. advised farmers on wiring plans for the home, yard, barn, poultry house and other buildings, the correct type of wire to use, how to figure the load of current and determine the size of wire and fixtures.

Miss Orilla Wright of the Home Economics College advised on home lighting, outlet locations, convenience outlets and direct service wires. Farmers were advised to request service plans from Power Company agents and to stick to those plans regardless of what contractors might suggest.

By the 1950s, over 90% of rural homes had access to electricity.  Finally, rural Americans could enjoy the benefits of electric power.

J. Howard Pratt remarked in Memories of Life on the Ridge:

“Electric power proved to be our greatest assistance to modern living. It gave us light, pumped our water supply into our homes enabling us to enjoy a bathroom, it preserved our food from spoiling, heated water and cooked our food.”

By Catherine Cooper, Orleans County Historian

Illuminating Orleans – Vol. 2, No. 31

Sharon Kerridge

Sharon Kerridge, who was recognized as a Legendary Local of Orleans County in 2011, passed away at her home in Ocala, Florida on July 14, 2022. The listing of Legendary Locals was compiled by Hollis Canham and Andrew Canham.

Though her name may be unfamiliar, Sharon was a true unsung heroine, a pioneer in the field of online genealogy research. She devoted countless hours behind the scenes to input, verify and organize cemetery listings for the Orleans County GenWeb site.

Sharon’s interest in cemetery records began in the early 1990s, when she was assisting her sister, Donna, on a family research project which involved diligently deciphering headstones in the Town of Gaines and Town of Carlton cemeteries. Her interest coincided with the advent of online technology.

The USGenWeb project was established in 1996 by a group of genealogists who wished to provide free online resources for research. Online access to cemetery records and census information fueled a huge interest in family research.

The Orleans County GenWeb site went online in June 1997 and soon was the envy of many researchers from other areas who did not have access to such a resource. It was maintained by unheralded volunteers who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to input content and update information. Sharon was involved from the beginning and continued in her role as coordinator even after her move to Florida.

“In the early days, Sharon spent many hours photographing headstones,” said her sister, Donna Miller Gordon. “She devoted countless hours to working on the website, it was her passion. She did not look for accolades or acknowledgement. She had a good heart and felt empathy for the families of those whose information she was entering, particularly for the families of those who died at a young age.”

The homepage at www.orleans.nygenweb.net is familiar to any person who has searched for information on deceased Orleans County residents. It is a portal to an absolute treasure trove of information: census records from 1830 – 1930, military records, family histories.

It also provides access to cemetery listings for Orleans County cemeteries – pure gold for any family researcher. As an added bonus, the site does not require registration, login or passwords.

Using information supplied by cemetery staff and local funeral homes, Sharon continued to update the cemetery listings until shortly before her death. Colleague, Jim Friday, has indicated that the site will be continued. We very much hope so.