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WYOMING COUNTY. 715
PERRT1—was formed from Leicester, (Livingston co.,) March 11,1814. A part of Covington
was taken off in 1817, and Castile in 1821. It lies on the e. border of the co., n. of the center.
Its surface is level or gently rolling. Its streams are small brooks and creeks. The foot of
Silver Lake lies along the s. border. Perry, (p. v.,) upon the outlet of Silver Lake, was
incorp. in 1829. It contains the Perry Academy,2 a newspaper office, a bank, a woolen factory,
3 flouring mills, and several churches. Pop. 935. Perry Center (p. v.) contains a church
and 40 dwellings.3 West Perry is a hamlet. The first settlement was made in 1806, on* Lot
28, by Josiah Williams, from Vt.4 The first religious services were held at Perry Center, in Dec.
1813, by Rev. Mr. Herrick, (Bap.,) when he was retreating from Buffalo. The first church (Presb.)
was organized at the Center, by Rev. Oliver Ayer and Silas Hubbard, June 28,1814.5
PIKE6—was formed from Nunda, (Livingston co.,) March 6, 1818. Eagle was taken off in
1823, and a part of Genesee Falls in 1846. It lies on the s. border of the co., E. of the center.
Its surface is a hilly and broken upland. East Coy Creek flows s. through the e. part, and
Wiscoy Creek s. e. through the center. Enory Hill, the highest point, is about 100 ft. above the
E. e. at Castile, and the lowest point, in the s. e. corner, is 200 ft. below the R. R. The soil is a
gravelly and clayey loam. There are several quarries of building stone in town. Pike, (p. v.,)
on Wiscoy Creek, near the center, was incorp. Aug. 11, 1848. It contains the Genesee Conference
Seminary,6 an iron foundery, a flouring mill, a woolen factory, and 3 churches. Pop. 581. East
Pike, (p. v.,) on East Coy Creek, contains a church, a flouring mill, an extensive paper mill, and
50 dwellings. Pike Five Corners, Griffiths Corners, and East Coy (p. o.) are
hamlets. The first settlement was made in 1806, by Peter Granger, Eli Griffith, Asahel New¬
comb, Phineas Harvey, and Caleb Powers, all from Whitehall, N. Y.7 The first church was
formed, Sept. 25, 1821, at Pike Village.8
SHELDOI—was formed from Batavia, (Genesee co.,) March 19,1808. Attica was taken
off in 1811, and Bennington and China in 1818. Its surface is a rolling upland, 400 to 600 ft.
above the valleys. Tonawanda Creek flows through the e. and several tributaries of Buffalo
Creek through the w. part. The soil upon the hills is a thin, dark loam underlaid by hardpan;
and in the valleys a gravelly foam. Strykersville, (p.v.,) in the s. w. corner of the town,
contains several mills, 2 churches, and about 400 inhabitants. Varystmrgia,9 (p.v.,) in the
N. e., upon Tonawanda Creek, contains 2 churches and 20 dwellings. Sheldon (p. o.) and
North Sheldon (p.o.) are hamlets. Johnsonshurgh (p. v.) is on the line of Orangeville.
The first settlement was made in the n. part, in 1804, by Roswell Turner, agent of Phelps and
Chipman, the original purchasers of the town.11 The first religious meeting (Bap.) was held at
the house of Roswell Turner, by Rev. Mr. Spencer. The first church was formed at the Center,
in 1808.10
WARSAW—was formed from Batavia, (Genesee co.,) March 19, 1808. Middlebury was
taken off in 1812, and Gainesville in 1814. It is an interior town, lying n. e. of the center of the
co. Its surface is a broken upland, divided into two ridges by the valley of Oatka Creek. The
declivities of the hills are steep, and their summits 700 to 1,000 ft. above the valleys. Upon Mill
Brook, a small tributary of Oatka Creek, is a perpendicular fall of 105 ft. Warsaw, (p. v.,)
the co. seat, was incorp. April 17,1843. It lies in the valley of Oatka Creek, at the center of the
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school was taught hy Miss Beulah Abell, (from Washington co.,)
in the summer of 1809. Eli Griffith kept the first inn, at Pike
Village, in 1808, and Tilly Parker the first store, in 1810, at the
same place. Eli Griffith built the first sawmill, in 1809, and the
first gristmill, in 1810, a little above Pike Village.
9 The census reports 4 churches; 2 M. E., and 1 each Cong,
and Bap.
1° Named from Wm. Vary, one of the first settlers.
11 Mr. Turner was the father of O. Turner, Esq.^author of the
History of the Holland Purchase, Phelps and Gorham Pur¬
chase, &c. Among the other early settlers were Robert Carr
and David Howard, in 1805; Seth Gates, Lemuel Castle, Levi
Street, Marvin Brace, StephenWelton, (from Eastern NewYork,)
and Uriah Persons, (from Penn.,) in 1806. The more recent set¬
tlements in the town have been made mostly by German immi¬
grants. The first child born was Chipman Phelps Turner, in
1805; the first marriage was that of Justin Loomis and Polly
Rolph, in 1807; and the first death, that of David Hoard, who
was killed by the falling of a limb of a tree, in 1805. The first
school was taught at North Sheldon, by Polly Eolph, in 1807;
the first inn was kept by Roswell Turner, in 1806, at North
Sheldon. Wm. Vary built the first sawmill, in 18O6, and the
first gristmill, in 1808, at Varysburgh.
12 The census reports 8 churches; 2 M.E., andl each Presb.,
Cong., Bap., E. W. Bap., Ref. Prot. D., and R. C. |
1
Named from Commodore O. H. Perry.
2
The academy buildings were erected by subscription of the
inhabitants, and cost $12,000. This school has been offered to
the State for a normal school.
3
* An academy was sustained here for several years.
4
Among the first settlers were Seth Canfield, Samuel and
Nath’l Howard, Amos Smith, Phicol M. Ward, and Amos Otis,—
mostly from New England. The first death was that of Nancy
Williams, in 1815. The first school was taught at Perry Cen¬
ter, in 1813, byAnn Mann, from Mass. The first inn was kept by
Amos Smith, a little e. of the Center, in 1811; the first store, by
T. & J. C. Edgerley; and the first mill was erected at Perry Vil¬
lage, by John Hamersley, in 1812.
5
* The census reports 7 churches; 2 Bap., 2 M. E., and 1 each
Presb., Cong., and Univ.
6
The seminary buildings were erected in 1856, at a cost of
$9,000; they have accommodations for 300 students. The pro¬
perty is held by a board of trustees, and is under the patronage
of the E. W. Bap. denomination.
7
The first child horn was Louisa, daughter of Asahel New¬
8
comb, in Aug. 1806; the first marriage was that of Russell H.
9
Benton and Susannah Olin, Feb. 23,1809; and the first deaths
10
sf 1807. Mr. Harvey died the succeeding autumn. The first
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