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348 HERKIMER COUNTY.
loam and' clay. Russia, (p. v.,) in the s. part, contains 2 churches and 140 inhabitants;
Gravesviile, (p.v.,) in the s. w., a church and 20 houses; Poland, (p.v.,) near the s. line,
a church and 179 inhabitants; Cold Brook, (p. v.,) in the s. E., a saw set factory, cheese box
factory, gristmill, and 218 inhabitants; Booth, (p. o.,) on Black Creek, a church, grist and saw
mill, tannery, and 10 houses. It is situated north of the center of the town. The first
settlement was commenced in 1792, by Stodard Squires, from Conn.1 The first religious meetings
(F. W. Bap.) were held by Rev. Benajah Corp.2
SALISBURY3 —was formed from Palatine, (Montgomery co.,) March 3, 1797, and annexed
from Montgomery co., April 7, 1817. It lies on the e. border of the co., and extends n. into the
great wilderness. Only about one-fourth of its surface is cultivated. It is a broken and moun¬
tainous upland in the N. and billy in the s. The principal- streams are East Canada Creek, which
forms a part of the e. boundary, and Spruce Creek, which flows through the s. w. and s. parts.
The soil is a sandy and clayey loam. A bed of iron ore has been worked to some extent on Lot
105, fourth allotment of the Royal Grant. Salisbury Center, (p. v.,) in the s. part, contains
2 churches, a tannery, and 319 inhabitants; Salisbury Corners, (Salisbury p. o.,) in the
s. w., 2 churches and 30 houses; Diamond Mill, 25 houses; Devereaux, 15 houses.
Whitesburgh, (p. o.,) on the line of Fulton co., is a hamlet. Settlement was begun before
the Revolution, by tenants of Sir Wm. Johnson, who followed his lead during the war, and shared
his fate at the hands of the Commissioners of Forfeiture.4 The census reports 4 churches in town 5
SCMUYLER6—was formed from Herkimer, April 10,1792. Trenton was taken off in 1797,
Deerfield (Oneida co.) in 1798, and a part of Newport in 1806. A part was annexed from Herki¬
mer in 1808, and re-annexed to Herkimer in 1811. It lies on the w. border of the co., n. of the
Mohawk. Its surface is hilly. The Hasenclever Mts. extend through the center, attaining in this
town an elevation of 1,000 to 1,200 ft. above tide. A wide intervale extends along the Mohawk,
which forms the s. boundary. Its streams are tributaries of the Mohawk and generally flow
through narrow ravines. The flats bordering the river are annually overflowed. The soil upon
the hills is slaty and gravelly. East Schuyler, (p. v.,) in the s. e., contains 25 houses; and
West Schuyler, (p.v.,) in the s. w., a church and 25 houses. Settlement was commenced
previous to 1775, by several German families.7 There was a good carriage road in 1757, on the
hank of the river, from the crossing, where Utica now stands,8 to the Palatine village, German
Flats. There are 2 churches in town; M. E. and Meth. Prot.
STARR 9—was formed from Danube, March 18, 1828. It is the s. E. corner town of the "co.
Its surface is hilly and broken, with a mean elevation of 500 feet above the Mohawk. The prin¬
cipal streams are Otsquago and Nowadaga Creeks. Otsquago Creek flows through a narrow valley,
bordered by steep hanks 150 to 200 ft. high. The soil is generally a sandy loam in the valleys,
and sandy and gravelly on the hills. Starkville, (p. v.,) in then. e. part, contains 2 churches,
a gristmill, and 190 inhabitants; Yan Hdrnesville, (p. v.,) in the s. part, 1 church, a cotton
factory, (now in operation,) a grist and saw mill, and 228 inhabitants. Smiths Corners is a
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ran, purchasers under the Commissioners of Forfeiture, to re¬
ceive from the treasury the part, of the purchase money which
they had paid and convey hack the lands.
4 John Faville and Cornelius Lamberson settled about 1778,
near Burrells Corners; Asa Sheldon and Abijah Ford about 1793.
Abial Pratt, Stephen Todd, Jabez Ayers, Jonathan Cole, --
Bidwell', Ira Bartholomew, Atwater Cook, Amos Ives, Moses
De Witt, Low, Jonathan Hallet, and others, were early
settlers. John Ford was the first child born; Elizabeth Rice
taught the first school; Aaron Hackley kept the first inn and
store10 at Burrell’s Corners.
6 2 M. E., Bap., and Union.
® This town contains the whole of East’s Patent and parts of
Cosby’s Manor and Hasenclever’s and Walton’s Patents.
7 Among the early settlers were families named Kast, Star
ring, Widrig, Ryniour, Lintz, and Bridenbecker. Judge Henri
Staring (who is said to have granted the celebrated Yankee
pass) formerly resided in this town. A store was kept on Cosby’s
Manor in 1766.
8 In 1757, M.De Belletre, with a body of French and Indians,
traversed this road, and burned every house upon it within the
town.—Benton’s Herkimer, p. 461.
9 Named in honor of Gen. Stark, of the Revolution. Parts
of Henderson’s, L’Hommedieu’s, Vaughan’s, McNeil’s, J. Vroo-
man’s, C. Colden’s, Livingston’s, and Lansing’s Patents are in
this town.—Benton’s Herkimer, p. 453. |
1
Jonathan Millington, from Vt., Step. Smith, Earley Fuller,
Geo. Taylor, Roscum Slocum, Austin & Son, B. Hinman,
Jeremiah Smith, Jotham Carpenter, Coon, and others, set¬
tled soon after; and, in 1794, many others came in. The first mar¬
riage was that of Farley Fuller and Minerva Smith, in 1794; the
first death, that of a son of Allen, and the second, that of
Waite Robinson. The first .school was taught by More¬
house, at Graves Hollow, and another, about the same time, by
■ Steward The first inn was kept by Jotham Carpenter,
the first store by Swintburn, at Smiths Corners, in 1797.
The first sawmill was built in 1797, and the first gristmill by
Benj. Hinman^ the same year. A cotton factory was built at
Poland some years since.
2
The census reports 4 churches in town; M. E., Presb.,
Union, and Univ.
3
Named from Salisbury, Conn., whence many of the early
4
settlers came. This town includes part of the Jerseyfield Par
5
tent, and parts of the first, second, and fourth allotments of
6
the Royal Grant. Several of the Indian children of Sir Wm.
7
Johnson had tracts of land assigned to them in this part of the
Royal Grant,—viz.: William, 1,000 acres; Brant. 1,000; Anne,
3,000; Susan, 3,000; Mary, 2,000; George, 3,000; Margaret, 2,000;
8
Magdalen, -, and Elizabeth-, . Of these children, the
9
last three were convicted of adhering to the enemy; hut, no
record of conviction existing against the others, acts were
passed by the Legislature, Feb. 26,1796, and March 30,1798,
authorizing John Robinson, George Pearson, and James Coch- J
10
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