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ONEIDA COUNTY.
This county was formed from Herkimer, March 15, 1798. Lewis
and Jefferson were taken off in 1805, and a part of Oswego in
1816. Portions were annexed to Clinton in 1801 and to Madison
in 1836. A portion of Chenango was annexed in 1804.1 It lies
near the center of the State, 100 mi. from Albany, and contains
1,215 sq. mi. A broad Talley, nearly level, extends e. and w. through
the center of the co., and from it, both n. and s., the surface rises
into a broken and hilly region. The highlands which occupy the
s. part are arranged in ridges extending n. and s., the highest sum¬
mits, on the s. border, being 600 to 1,000 ft. above the valley of the
Mohawk. North of the central valley the surface rises abruptly to
a height of 800 tp 1,200 ft., and spreads out into a nearly level
plateau, broken by the ravines of the streams. The e. part of the central valley is drained by the
Mohawk, flowing e., and the w. part by Wood Creek, flowing w. This valley affords a natural
road from the Hudson to the great lakes, and is the lowest pass through the Appalachian Mt.
system. The Mohawk rises upon the n. border of the co., and flows in a southerly direction to
Rome, and thence s. e. to the e. border of the co. Its principal tributaries from the n. are Nine
Mile Creek and Lansing Kil, and from the s. Sauquoit and Oriskany Creeks. Black River flows
across the n. e. corner of the co. East Canada Creek forms a portion of the e. boundary; the
head branches of the Unadilla and Chenango drain the s. border, and Oneida, Wood, and Fish
Creeks drain the w. part. Oneida Lake, extending several mi. along the w. border, is the only
large body of water in the co. In the extreme n. e. comer are several small lakes and ponds.
The rocks of this co. include nearly the whole series lying between the gneiss, which covers the
N. e. part, and the Hamilton group, which outcrops on the s. hills. The Trenton limestone, Utica
slate, Oneida conglomerate, and Clinton group have received their names from being so distinctly
developed in this co. Of useful minerals the co. has the lenticular clay iron ore of the Clinton
group, bog ore in the swamps near Oneida Lake, and, probably, magnetic ore in the n. e. part.
Marl and peat have been found in some places. Waterlime and gypsum quarries have been
wrought to some extent. Building stone in great variety and of superior quality has been exten¬
sively quarried. Mineral springs are found in several places. The soil in the n. e., derived from
the disintegration of the primitive rocks, is light and sandy, and is capable of producing only a
scanty vegetation. This region is sparsely settled, and is not capable of supporting many in¬
habitants. The central valley is one of the most fertile portions of the State. The soil is a fine
quality of sandy and gravelly loam and alluvium, finely tempered with lime and gypsum. The
highland region s. of the river has a soil composed of clay and sandy and gravelly loam, and is
best adapted to pasturage. The richness and diversity of the soil make this co. one of the best
agricultural regions of the State. The people are chiefly engaged in agriculture, the principal
branches of which are grain raising in the valleys and dairying and stock raising upon the hills.
Hops are largely cultivated in the s. towns. The manufactures of the co. are extensive, though
principally confined to Utica and the villages along Oriskany and Sauquoit Creeks.
The county is a half-shire, the co. buildings being respectively located at Utica and Rome.2
The courthouses and jails at both places are well built and conveniently arranged. The clerk's
on the Bridgewater Plank Road, about a mi. s. of Utica.—1
Jones’s Oneida, p. 840; Rules and Regulations of the Utica
Cemetery Asso. 1849, p. 33; Senate Doc. 1846, No. 24, p. 46;
Schoolcraft's Hist. Condition and JProspects of Indian Tribes, I,
p. 176.
2 The co. seat of Herkimer co. was originally lrcated at
Whitestowm; and upon the division of the co. the records were
retained by Oneida. The act erecting Oneida co. directed the
first courts to be held at the schoolhouse near Pert Schuyler,
(Rome,) and required the courthouse to be built within 1 mi.
of the fort. By an act of April 6, 1801, Thomas Jenkins and
Ilez. L. Hosmer, of Hudson. John Thompson, of Stillwater, and
Dirck Lane, of Troy, were appointed to locate the courthouse
and jail of Oneida co. These buildings were completed several
years afterward, and the courts were held here and at Whites-
boro’ during many ypars. The courthouse and jail at Rome
were burned about 1848, and rebuilt within 3 yeaf-s after. The
clerk’s office was removed to Utica in 1816, and the academy at
1
Montgomery, Herkimer, and Oneida counties originally ex-
tended in long, narrow strips to the St. Lawrence. In 1801,
2
of Macomb’s Purchase were intended by this arrangement to
belong to Clinton; but in 1802 they were annexed to St. Law¬
rence co. Oneida co. was named from the Oneida Indians, who
inhabited and owned this and some adjoining counties. The
word Oneida signifies “ the people of the stone.” The Indians
had a strange tradition concerning a certain stone, which fol¬
lowed them in their wanderings and finally rested on the sum¬
mit of one of the highest hills in the eo., from which their
beacon fires could be seen to a great distance, and upon which
they assembled to hold council or prepare for war. A boulder
of gneiss, which tradition identified as this palladium of
the Oneidas, a few years since was taken from the farm of
James II. Gregg, in the town of Stockbridge, and placed in a
prominent position near the entrance of the Utica Cemetery,
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