The St. Lawrence County Historical Association Volume XLIV- Number 2 - Summer 1999 The St. Lawrence County Historical Association at the Silas Wright House The St. Lawrence County Historical Association is a private, not-for3mmemberShip organization based at the Silas Wright House in Canton, New York Founded.i~ff%7,the ~ssociation'~i~s,~vemed- .. ..... x by a constitution, by-laws, and Board of Trustees. The HiSmMir~ssociation'smembership r&etsjannually to 4F. elect its officers and trustees. +:& fq 2000 Officers: /* 2000 Trustees: President: Richard Foster, ~osd Chris Angus, Canton g Vice-President: Carl SticwL,~owood Patricia Carson, Canton Treasurer: Carol ~ohnsdhqcanton Shawn Gray, Massena Secretary: ~athlee~nXfHoro,Canton Gary Kelly, Potsdam W $fldP William Lacy, Gouverneur bgrd~) f E. Jane Layo, Waddington J Stan Maine, Pierrepont $ 2000 ~taj.. Lowell McAllister, ~euvelhn Trent$Fhlock, Executive Director Jane Subramanian, potsdad Sue'"~h,ngshore,Collections Manager Joanne Swift, Potsdam $ Mary ~lkqJones, Archives Assistunt Peter Van de Water, canto$ Will ~o~ce~kfminirnntiveAssistunt Robert Wells, Canton ij Susie Wood, Hammond :! Cay Zabriskie, Ogdensburg, 3 .$ The St. Lawrence County His is a not-for-profit membership organization ancpkuseum which serves as an educational resource for the use and '&fit of the citizens of St. Lawrence County and &hers interested in the County's history and traditions. The Associatioit.~pllectsand preserves archival material and @ifacts pertinent to the County's history. In cooperation and collaboration~ri~.~4ocal~ga~ia~tisns~~~:~~tionpromotes an understanding of and appreciation for the County's rich history through publications, exhibits, and programs. The St. Lawrence County Historical Association operates within museum standards established by the American Association of Museums. SLCHA Membership Membership in the St. Lawrence County Historical Association isopen to all interested parties. Annual membership dues are: Individual, $25; SeniorIStudent, $20; Family, $35; Contributor, $50; Supporter, $100; Patron, $250; Businesses, $50 to $1,000. Members receive the SLCHA Quarterly, the Historical Association's bi-monthly newsletter, and various discounts on publications, programs and events. St. Lawrence County Historical Association at the Silas Wright House 3 East Main Street, PO Box 8 Canton, New York 13617 (315) 386-8133 fax (315) 386-8134 e-mail: [email protected] www.slcha.org The ,'Lawrence County Historical Association The Quarterly is endowed in memory of Albert Priest Newel1 and Ella Waterman INewell. Ouarterlv Publication of Thc Quarterly is abo made possible with public funds fhn the New Volume XLIV - Number 2 - 1999 York State Council on the Arts, a State ISSN: 0558-1931 agmcl'. %.?dWAm PINYSCA ManagingEditor: CONTENTS Pamela Omimet From the Editor Pam Ouimet Adnsoly Bomd: Chris Angus, Canton Artbur Johnson, Potsdm Remembering the Town Hall 3 Herb Judd, Canton Patricia Harrington Carson May Ruth Judd, Canton I Cwght 01999 by the So Much to Tell :A Place We Call Home St. Luwenoe Counb Historical - Assoclaffon.All rights reserved. Waddington, NY 7 IExcept fw brief excerpts, no pert ofthis E. Jane Layo publication may be copied or repro- duced without the express written per- , mission of the author and the Historical The St. Lawrence River and Waddington 14 Association. The St. Lawrence County E. Jane Layo Historical Association k not nsponsibh for the statements, intqretations, and opinions of contributors to The SLCHA Local Municipal Historians in St. Lawrence County, New York The SLCHA Quarterg is published Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall each year by the St. Lawrenot County His- Itorical Association for its members and Additional capies may be obtained fiam the St. Lawrence County Historical Association, P.O. Box 8, Canton, NY 13617 at $4.00 each ($2.00 for mcm- bers), plus 3 1.00 for postage. IssueEditor: IContributions: Pamela Ournet The smQuarterly loom con- tributions. To submit a manuscript, or for further information, please contact the editor through the St. Lawrence County Historical Association. Please Cover Illustration address communications to: Managing A look at Main Street, Canton from the top of the Opera House in 1953. 1 Editor, The SLCHA Quankrb P.O. Box Courtesy: SLCIU 8, Canton,NY 13617. From the Editor Hello, I'm Pam Ouimet, the new editor of me Quarterly. I am looking forward to working with the St. Lawrence County Historical Association's staff and volunteers alike, as well as with any of you who wish to submit articles to be used in The Quarterly. 1 would like you all to know that I will be more than happy to work with you on any submissions you would care to make for the up- coming editions. Photographs are always a welcome compliment to any article submitted, or as a stand-alone item if you have some news you want to share. You can be assured all photos will be re- turned to you afier publication. Please feel fiee to send your entries along with your name, address and phone number to either the As- sociation, or directly to me at: PO Box 48, West Stockholm, NY 13696. To tell you a little about myself, I am originally from Massena and graduated with my BA in Englishlwriting from SUNY Potsdam in 1988. I worked as a Reporter for the Daily Courier-Observer for nine years, and have been the Communications Coordinator for the North Country Reference and Research Resources Council - NorthNet since February of 1999. IV.44, no. 1 Building with Potsdam Red Sandstone, the early years -- IBy S. Omohundro Author's Correction: The Alexander Brown house in Courtesy Massena Alunl~nwnHstoncal Assonabon Hermon was reported as "de- The Massena Aluminum Historical Association was recentlv recognized by molished." Although the house the RCHA.for establishing a museumfor the Aluminum industry. has been gutted, the primary Pictured (left to right); Patricia McGrath, Sue Longshore, Trent Trulock, walls are still standing. and Santo Savoca. 2 St. Lawrence County Historical Association Quarterly Remembering the Town Hall By Patricia Harrington Carson I remember the old "Town and friendliness, plus the busi- determined the time was right for Hall" with such fond memories. ness advantages offered were too the building of a new "Town It stood stately and dignified and good to be ignored. Hall." Times and needs were lent to Canton's Main Street and very different back then. aura of opulence. And it gave a On Main Street, the sidewalks There were several one room feeling of enchantment because were wooden planks and the road school houses scattered through- it looked so much like a castle. was dirt. What illumination there out the area and Canton's Union was came from gas lights. De- Free School was located on It was during a special meet- pending on the weather, horse Court Street. The current town ing in the spring of 1877 that the and carriages or horse drawn hall, which had been built in first plans to build a new town sleighs were the sole mode of 1846, was close by, situated on meeting place were formed. transportation. In my mind's eye, the corner of Court and Pearl Canton had by then been in ex- I can see the carriages streets. It was a plain, substan- istence for 70 years. To the vil- transversing the humpy roads, tial building that was often in lagers, this undertaking was an and the sleighs gliding through need of repair. exciting and rousing venture. the snow in the dead of winter. A committee was formed to A small, pastoral village lo- A number of farms sur- begin to formulate the plans for cated on the banks of the Grasse rounded the village. Farm land this greatly anticipated addition River, Canton was fast becom- was plentiful and fertile. The to Canton. One of the first deci- ing a thriving community. needs of the farmer were one of sions to be made was the loca- People were drawn to its warmth the reasons our forefathers had tion. The site, finally chosen, was Courtesy SLCIjA Canton Town Hall/Opera House St. Lawrence County Historical Association Quarterly 3 1The auditorium was the ut- most in elegance and Victorian design. The interior was walnut, . or ~aintedto look like walnut. ~h;balcony had a wooden rail- ' - -_-, ing. It had 20 foot high cathe- , , dral windows, and a huge kero- sene chandelier hung from the ceiling. It could seat 700 people. rp. " I No building in Canton is richer in memoGes than the old I Town Hall, or the "Opera House" I as it was more aptly called. From its opening, the upstairs audito- i.!,'.I rium became the center of Canton's good times. Road < <?,,nc\y \I,( I1 \ The Ellsworth IIouse shows that traveled by railway played four or five nights during Fair Week, changing shows ev- ery night. There were many lo- on the corner of Main and Miner the base of the tower that af- cal plays and Gilbert & Sullivan streets, with the Ellsworth house forded access to the auditorium, operettas as well. Touring rnin- on one side and the Miner Inn on which was complete with stage strel shows came for one night the other. and dressing rooms. The Town stands. Tickets ranged from 25 The Ellsworth house was a Hall was considered the finest to 50 cents. stately residence built of red structure in the North Country brick. It was surrounded by a red and was truly an ornament to the There were also shows by lo- sandstone wall and iron fence. Village. cal performers known as the On the opposite corner was a "Merry Monarch Minstrels." wonderfully quaint Victorian building known as the Miner Inn. It was originally built as an an- nex for guests from the Hodskin House, a large hotel a short dis- tance away. When completed in 1878, the new edifice was indeed magnifi- cent.