O T S EG O C O U N TY ' NEW YO RK G e o gr a ph i c a l __d H i s t o r i c a l F R O M T H E E A R L I E S T S E T T L E M E N T T O T H E P R E S E N T TIM E . W ITH C O U N TY A N D TO W N S H IP M A P S F R O M . OR IG IN A L D R A W IN G S By W ‘ a B E D IN F . B A C ON , p . N ONEONTA, . Y. T ON ONTA H ER AL D P lis h r H E E , ub e s . 1 2 90 . P R EF A C E Th ere is a growing demand for the means of local geo a a n d u graphic l historical st dy in schools, and this little manual is intended to meet this dem and for the schools of Otsego County . It was originally prepared in manuscript for classes in the Oneonta State Normal school and now, with the approval and encou ragement of the school commissioners and teachers of ff . the county, is o ered in its present form In its preparation I have had the pleasu re of visiting every n towshipin the county , thus gaining information at first hand and from the most relia ble sources . For events previous to our a I . time, have found excellent m terial The history of the 1878 d county from the earliest times to , by D . Hamilton Hur , l I is very comp ete to that date, and have , with permission , I freely quoted from it . In addition to this have had access to ’ “ ” ’ “ Campbell s Annals of Tryon County , Beardsley s Remi ’ n i sc en c es and Anecdotes, and Halsey s Old New York Fron — t tier, three works of surpassing interest, ogether with a num ’ “ ber of local sketches, including Sawyer s History of Cherry ” ’ ’ a Ric hfield V lley , Ward s Annals of , Campbell s History “ S ’ f ’ of Oneonta, haw s History o Cooperstown, Halsey s “ ’ - Pioneers of Unadilla, and Hotchkin s History of Mary ” ' I e land . am also indebted to the supervisors of the s veral town ships and to others for careful revision of the township maps and of the text , by which the greatest accuracy has been secured . i d While mak ng this study , an opinion previously forme has i a been essentially mod fied . That opinion w s that farming in u t Otsego co n y had, owing to western competition and other be causes, ceased to profitable ;that there were many abandoned u farms, and that the rising generation tho ght only of getting away from the old homestead and seeking employment else du e where . All such views must be to the depression of f ormer th years, for they are no longer true to e facts . The increase i n rural prosperity evident throughout the state is equally apparent PR EFACE in this region . Owing to the tendency of population toward o the villages there are some abandoned farmh uses, but there u are no abandoned farm lands in the co nty , and the intelligent n and thrifty farmer is everywhere doing well . This improveme t m dai r m is ost eviden t in the line of y g, which is now the leading n r and most profitable i dgs t y. Otsego county h as a most interesting and honorable record . Its early settlers were of good New England and old England stock , and their numerous descendants here and in the west , to which many of them have gone , must read with interest the n v record of pio eer struggles, of victory over sa age and foreign i u u en foes, of heroic strife for the Un on , of modern c lt re and ter ris e p . The study of geography properly commences around the home . The perspective of world study is better from this stand u point , and the children who become thoro ghly interested in it will go on to the stu dy of their own and foreign countries with a i i clearer idea of its nature and mportance . The prevail ng inter es t in local geography is therefore to be encouraged by every m a means , and it is hoped that this little contribution to it y prove acceptable to the teachers of the county . While primarily intended as a school text book, the require ments of the business world have also been kept in view in the u a ll preparation of this work . The co nty and township maps, to da te from original drawings , are thoroughly up , and the de trav el o u lati on os t- ofli ces scriptive text concerning routes of , p p , p , newspapers, business and manufacturing interests, express , tel graph and telephone facilities, commend it to all classes , while its business - like quality can in no Wise I mpair Its usefuln ess 1 11 - the class room . E . F . B . 1 2 90 . Oneonta, New York . August, OTS E G O C O U N TY — P A R T I G E N E R A L H I S TO R Y A N D R LOCATION POLITICAL O IGIN . TS EGO COUNTY i s favorably situated upon the S highlands at the head waters of . the usquehanna u river , a little so theast of the center of the state , and i s th e f contains square miles . It bounded by : following named counties On the north by Oneida, Herkimer and Montgomery ;on the east by Schoharie ;on the south by n d Delaware ;and on the west by Chenango a Madison . w or It was originally a part of Albany county, hich was an i zed 1683 an d g in , whic h covered a large section of the state , and the whole of the present state of Vermont . In the year 1772 In 1784 Tryon county was set off from Albany county. ‘ the name Tryon was c h an ged to M ontgomery and in 1791 Otsego was set off from Montgomery with Cooperstown as its county t seat . As thus formed the coun y, although with its present : dimensions, was divided into only two townships , viz Otsego th e lying to west of Otsego Lake and the Susquehanna , and Cherry Valley to the east of those waters . With the increase of population these townships were again and again subdivided - a c c om until the number is now twenty four , as shown in the m a panying p . NATUR AL FE ATU R ES . The surface presents a great variety of hill and dale with many beautiful landscapes . In every township are found ele v ation s 250 500 of from to feet , among which flow a great num ber of small streams . The greatest elevations are in Cherry Valley town ship, where several hills rise more than feet GENERAL HIS TOR Y m r u above tide . The most i po tant water co rses are the Unadilla river , which constitutes the western boundary , the Susquehanna flowing do wn centrally from Otsego Lake and constituting a portion of the southern boundary , Wharton and Butternuts creeks , flowing into the Unadilla river ;Otego , Schenevus and creeksfl o win Cherry Valley g into the Susquehanna , and Oaks Can adara o t e creek , the outlet of g Lake , flowing also into h Sus i h n n a of u e a . q Otsego Lake , the largest body water in thi s S region , lies within the townships of Otsego, pringfield and M ddl field . i e . It is eight miles long and about one mile wide an d b It lies about feet above sea level, is surrounded y 400 500 hills that rise from to feet above its surface . It is a c lake of unsurpassed beauty , and many ex ursions are made upon b e b it v means of steam rs and other pleasure boats . Its anks are also dotted with summer camps and cottages . This lake has ’ b e een made famous as the scene of Cooper s novels , The D er “ ” and The Pioneer . IX TH E S NATIONS . This region , before the advent of the white man , has been “ a described s an Indian Paradise . It was a superb hunting ground , the home of the deer , the elk, the moose , the bear, the otter, the martin , the wolf , the fox , the squirrel, and of numer ous water fowl, while salmon and other fish abounded in the rivers and lakes . The natives belonged to a famous Indian league called by “ ” h the English the Six Nations, though the Frenc applied to “ e them the general t rm Iroquois . It is well to know something of the origin and history of this league , for the colonial settlers throughout the state had much to do with it . It is supposed to have been formed about 1600 — the year , and consisted at first of five tribes the Onon S . r dagas , Oneidas, Mohawks , Cayugas, and enecas Later it e c eiv ed u the T scaroras , who came from North Carolina . It was with the Mohawks and Tuscaroras that the white settlers had . most to do These Indians were fierce and aggressive .