Fall 1998

About the Fall 1998 Issue

Note from the Editors

Abigail Hackett's diary continues in this issue with chores, visits, sickness, injury, worry, exhaustion, and neighborhood support in September 1865. It has been transcribed from the original by George Dickey who lives in a house on a farm close to where Abigail and her family lived on The Swale in the Town of Canisteo, Steuben County.

Herbert A. Wisbey, Jr. relates the recognitions awarded Halsey C. Ives who was born in Havana (now Montour Falls) and who became the art director of the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, and the St. Louis World's Fair. Prof. Wisbey supplied pictures of Ives' birthplace and tombstone. Wilbur Rittenhouse obtained the copy of the portrait of Ives from the Saint Louis Art Museum. Herbert Wisbey was the founder director of The Center For Mark Twain Studies at Quarry Farm.

Robert Gregory tells us all about seeing, hearing, and smelling the Chemung County Airshow of 1996 from his own farm with an almost birdseye view of the event. He grew up on a family farm near Horseheads and now lives in New Zealand and teaches at Massey University there. His essay "Reflections on a Barn" was in the Summer 1998 issue.

The Middlesex Historical Group reopened the Overacker Corners Schoolhouse this summer completing ten year's of all volunteer work putting the building back into shape. Members and friends celebrated with a picnic. Ruth Clark and Janet Read had compiled a history of the schoolhouse that was read at the gathering.

Stephen Lewandowski describes the natural history of the western Finger Lakes from the time of the last glacier through the habitation of tribal peoples, followed by the rapid transformation by the settlers of the existing ecology from forest cover to cleared land. Stephen Lewandowski is a naturalist and he cautions us that we need to be caretakers of the soil, the green mantle, the streams and lakes, and the atmosphere.

David Minor records significant events in burgeoning New York State for the years 1791 and 1792 continuing his Timeline of the state's history. He presents these capsules of a year on Simon Pontin's Salmagundi broadcast from WXXI-FM (91. 5). David can be heard on the same station Saturday mornings at 11 speaking on aspects of world history.

The operations of the entrepreneurs who built the mills along the two streams that join and flow into the southern end of Crooked Lake are told in The Mills At Cold Spring by Joseph E. Paddock. In addition to the text, he provided pictures with descriptive captions, and an 1873 map brought down to date with changes in roadways and property ownership. Joe Paddock lives in Bath now, retired from forty years as a practicing veterinarian.

Richard Palmer contributed an early Geneva newspaper advertisement of George McClure announcing his trading business on Crooked Lake, Dick, who also supplied background information on McClure's venture, is a frequent contributor. He lives in Tully, New York.

Richard Sherer, who is Steuben County Historian, supplied copies of surveyors' descriptions and plans of properties along the Crooked Lake inlet that were being transferred to George McClure, William Skinner, and Lazarus Hammond. These images will be posted shortly.

Donovan A. Shilling writes this time about the visits of members of the New Society of the Genesee to Branchport and The Friend's House, and to the Rockwell Museum. Don lives in Penfield and is Chronicler for the Society.

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