THE GENESEE ROAD
The military importance of the Mohawk Valley and strategic portage at
Rome, New York, was emphasized in our study of Portage Paths.[31]
Throughout the French and Indian War and the Revolutionary struggle the
water route to the Hudson from Lake Ontario, by way of the Onondaga,
Lake Oneida, Wood Creek, and the Mohawk, was of great moment. But only
because it was a route--a thoroughfare; not because the territory
through which it coursed was largely occupied or of tremendous value.
The French held the lakes and the English were constantly striving for
foothold there. When Fort Oswego was built on the present site of
Oswego, the first step by the English was taken; the route had been the
river route with a portage at Fort Williams (Rome). When Fort Niagara
was captured in 1759 by Sir William Johnson, the French were driven from
the Lakes; Johnson's route to Niagara was by Lake Ontario from Oswego.
It has been suggested that a volume of this series of monographs should
be given to the campaigns of the English against Fort Niagara. These
campaigns were made largely on waterways; they left no roads which
became of any real importance in our national development. Certain
campaigns of the Old French War left highways which have become of
utmost significance; only of these routes and their story should this
series be expected to treat. Despite the two wars which had created busy
scenes in the Mohawk Valley, no landward route connected it with Niagara
River and Lake Erie except the Iroquois Trail.[32] No military road was
built through the "Long House of the Iroquois." To gain the key of the
western situation--Niagara--the common route was to Oswego. There were
local roads along the lake shore, and these were used more or less by
the troops. In the Revolution no American general could get beyond Fort
Stanwix by land. Leger himself came up the Oswego River to join
Burgoyne.
[Illustration: PART OF A "MAP OF THE ROUTE BETWEEN ALBANY AND OSWEGO"
(_Parts AA' and BB' belong opposite_)
[_Drawn about 1756; from original in British Museum_]]
As a consequence, the interior of New York was an almost unexplored
wilderness at the end of the Revolution in 1783. With the opening of the
Genesee country by the various companies which operated there, a tide of
immigration began to surge westward from the upper Mohawk along the
general alignment of the old-time Iroquois Trail. Utica sprang up on the
site of old Fort Schuyler, and marked the point of divergence of the new
land route of civilization from the water route.[33] This was about
1786. In 1789 Asa Danworth erected his salt works at Bogardus Corners,
now the city of Syracuse. Geneva, Batavia, and Buffalo mark the general
line of the great overland route from Utica and Syracuse across New
York. It followed very closely the forty-third meridian, dropping
somewhat to reach Buffalo.
The Great Genesee Road, as it was early known, began at old Fort
Schuyler, as a western extremity of the Mohawk Valley road and later
turnpike, and was built to the Genesee River by a law passed March 22,
1794. In 1798 a law was passed extending it to the western boundary of
the state. It was legally known as the Great Genesee Road and the Main
Genesee Road until 1800. In that year the road passed into the hands of
a turnpike company the legal name of which was "The President and
Directors of the Seneca Road Company." The old name clung to the road
however, and on the map here reproduced we find it called the "Ontario
and Genesee Turnpike Road." It forms the main street of both the large
cities through which it passes, Syracuse and Utica, and in both it is
called "Genesee Street."
The first act of legislation which created a Genesee Road from an Indian
trail read as follows:
"_Be it enacted by the People of the State of New York, represented in
Senate and Assembly_ That Israel Chapin, Michael Myer, and Othniel
Taylor shall be and hereby are appointed commissioners for the purpose
of laying out and improving a public road or highway to begin at Old
Fort Schuyler on the Mohawk river and to run from thence in a line as
nearly straight as the situation of the country will admit to the Cayuga
Ferry in the county of Onondaga or to the outlet of the Cayuga lake at
the discretion of the said commissioners and from the said outlet of the
Cayuga lake or from the said Cayuga Ferry as the same may be determined
on by the said commissioners in a line as nearly straight as the
situation of the country will admit to the town of Canadaquai and from
thence in a line as nearly straight as possible to the settlement of
Canawagas on the Genesee river.
"_And be it further enacted_ That the said road shall be laid out six
rods wide, but it shall not be necessary for the said commissioners to
open and improve the same above four rods wide in any place thereof. And
the whole of the said road when laid out, shall be considered as a
public highway and shall not be altered by the commissioners of any town
or country [county?] through which the same shall run.
"_And be it further enacted_ That the treasurer of this State shall pay
to the said commissioners or any two of them a sum or sums of money not
exceeding in the whole the sum of six hundred pounds out of the monies
in the treasury which have arisen or may arise from the sale of military
lotts to be laid out and expended towards the opening and improving that
part of the said road passing through the military lands.
"_And be it further enacted_ That for the purpose of laying out opening
and improving the remainder of the said road, the said treasurer shall
pay unto the said commissioners or any two of them out of any monies in
the treasury not otherwise appropriated at the end of the present
session of the legislature a sum not exceeding fifteen hundred pounds
which said sum shall be by them laid out and expended in making or
improving the remainder of the said road as aforesaid. _Provided_ that
no larger proportion of the said sum of fifteen hundred pounds shall be
appropriated towards the opening and improving of the said road in the
county of Ontario then in the county of Herkemer.
"_And be it further enacted_ That it shall and may be lawful to and for
the said commissioners or any two of them to improve the said road by
contract or otherwise as to them may appear the most proper.
"_And be it further enacted_ That where any part of the said road shall
be laid out through any inclosed or improved lands the owner or owners
thereof shall be paid the value of the said lands so laid out into an
highway with such damages as he, she or they may sustain by reason
thereof which value and damages shall be settled and agreed upon by the
said commissioners or any two of them and the parties interested
therein, and if they cannot agree, then the value of the lands and
damages shall be appraised by two justices of the peace, on the oaths of
twelve freeholders not interested in paying or receiving any part of
such appraisement, otherwise than in paying their proportion of the
taxes for the contingent charges of the county which freeholders shall
be summoned by any constable not otherwise interested than as aforesaid,
by virtue of a warrant to be issued by the said two justices of the
peace for that purpose, and the whole value of the said lands so laid
out into an highway, and damages together with the costs of ascertaining
the value of the said damages of the county in which the said lands
shall be situated are levied collected and paid.
"_And be it further enacted_ That each of the said commissioners shall
be entitled to receive for their services the sum of sixteen shillings
for every day they shall be respectively employed in the said business
to be paid by the respective counties in which they shall so be employed
which sums shall be raised levied and paid together with and in the same
manner as the necessary and contingent charges of such county are raised
levied and paid and that the said commissioners shall account with the
auditor of this State for the monies they shall respectively receive
from the treasurer of this State by virtue of this act on or before the
first day of January one thousand seven hundred and ninety six."[34]
A law entitled "An act appropriating monies for roads in the county of
Onondaga and for other purposes therein mentioned," passed April 11,
1796, contained the following concerning the Genesee Road:
"_And be it further enacted_ That the said commissioners shall and they
are hereby strictly enjoined to expend two thousand dollars of the said
monies in repairing the highway and bridges thereon heretofore directed
to be laid out by law and now commonly called the Great Genesee road
from the eastern to the western bounds of the said county of Onondaga
and the residue of the money aforesaid to expend in the repair of such
highways and the bridges thereon in the said county as will tend most
extensively to benefit and accommodate the inhabitants thereof.
"_And be it further enacted_ That it shall be the duty of the said
commissioners and they are hereby strictly enjoined to cause all and
every bridge which shall be constructed under their direction over any
stream to be raised at least three feet above the water at its usual
greatest height in the wettest season of the year and to construct every
such bridge of the most durable and largest timber which can be
obtained in its vicinity, and that wherever it can conveniently be done
the road shall be raised in the middle so as to enable the water falling
thereon freely to discharge therefrom and shall pursue every other
measure which in their opinion will best benefit the public in the
expenditure of the money committed to them."[35]
In an act, passed April 1, 1796, supplementary to an "Act for the better
support of Oneida, Onondaga and Cuyuga Indians ...", it was ordered that
from the proceeds of all sales of lands bought of the Indians the
surveyor-general should pay £500 to the treasurer of Herkimer County and
a like amount to the treasurer of Onondaga County; this money was
ordered to be applied to "mending the highway commonly called the Great
Genesee Road and the bridges thereon."[36]
A law of the year following, 1797, affords one of the interesting uses
of the lottery in the development of American highways. It reads:
"Whereas it is highly necessary, that direct communications be opened
and improved between the western, northern and southern parts of this
State. Therefore
"_Be it enacted by the People of the State of New York, represented in
Senate and Assembly_, That for the purpose of opening and improving the
said communications, the managers herein after named shall cause to be
raised by three successive lotteries of equal value, the sum of
forty-five thousand dollars. That out of the neat [net?] proceeds of the
first lottery the sum of eleven thousand seven hundred dollars, and out
of the neat proceeds of the third lottery, the further sum of two
thousand two hundred dollars shall be and hereby is appropriated for
opening and improving the road commonly called the Great Genesee road,
in all its extent from Old Fort Schuyler in the county of Herkimer to
Geneva in the county of Ontario...."[37]
The western movement to Lake Erie became pronounced at this time; the
founders of Connecticut's Western Reserve under General Moses Cleaveland
emigrated in 1796. The promoters of the Genesee country were
advertising their holdings widely. The general feeling that there was a
further West which was fertile, if not better than even the Mohawk and
Hudson Valleys, is suggested in a law passed March 2, 1798, which
contained a clause concerning the extension of the Genesee Road:
"_And be it further enacted_ That the commissioner appointed in
pursuance of the act aforesaid, to open and improve the main Genessee
road, shall and he is hereby authorized and empowered to lay out and
continue the main Genessee road, from the Genessee river westward to the
extremity of the State. _Provided nevertheless_, that none of the monies
appropriated by the said act shall be laid out on the part of the road
so to be continued; _and provided also_ that the said road shall be made
at the expense of those who may make donations therefor."[38]
The mania which swept over the United States between 1790 and 1840 of
investing money in turnpike and canal companies was felt early in New
York. The success of the Lancaster Turnpike in Pennsylvania was the
means of foisting hundreds of turnpike-road companies on public
attention and private pocket-books. By 1811, New York State had at least
one hundred and thirty-seven chartered roads, with a total mileage of
four thousand five hundred miles, and capitalized at seven and a half
millions.
It is nothing less than remarkable that this thoroughfare from the
Mohawk to Lake Erie should have been incorporated as a turnpike earlier
in point of time than any of the routes leading to it (by way either of
the Mohawk Valley or Cherry Valley) from Albany and the East. The Seneca
Road Company was incorporated April 1, 1800. The Mohawk Turnpike and
Bridge Company was incorporated three days later. The Cherry Valley
routes came in much later.
The Genesee Road was incorporated by the following act, April 1, 1800:
"An act to establish a turnpike road company for improving the State
road from the house of John House in the village of Utica, in the county
of Oneida, to the village of Cayuga in the county of Cayuga, and from
thence to Canadarque in the county of Ontario.
"_Be it enacted by the People of the State of New York represented in
Senate and Assembly_ That Benjamin Walker, Charles Williamson, Jedediah
Sanger and Israel Chapin and all such persons as shall associate for the
purpose of making a good and sufficient road in the form and manner
herein after described from the house of John House ... observing as
nearly the line of the present State [Genesee] road as the nature of the
ground will allow, shall be and are hereby made a corporation and body
politic in fact and in name, by the name of 'The President and Directors
of the Seneca Road Company'...."[39]
The road was to be under the management of nine directors and the
capital stock was to be two thousand two hundred shares worth fifty
dollars each. The directors were empowered to enter upon any lands
necessary in building the road, specifications being made for appraisal
of damages. The road was to "be six rods in width ... cleared of all
timber excepting trees of ornament, and to be improved in the manner
following, to wit, in the middle of the said road there shall be formed
a space not less than twenty four feet in breadth, the center of which
shall be raised fifteen inches above the sides, rising towards the
middle by gradual arch, twenty feet of which shall be covered with
gravel or broken stone fifteen inches deep in the center and nine inches
deep on the sides so as to form a firm and even surface."
Tollgates were to be established when the road was in proper condition
every ten miles; the rates of toll designated in this law will be of
interest for comparative purposes:
_Tolls in 1800 on Seneca Turnpike, New York_
Wagon, and two horses .12-1/2
Each horse additional .03
Cart, one horse .06
Coach, or four wheeled carriage, two horses .25
Each horse additional .03
Carriage, one horse .12-1/2
Each horse additional .06
Cart, two oxen .08
Each yoke additional .03
Saddle or led horse .04
Sled, between December 15 and March 15 .12-1/2
Score of cattle .06
Score of sheep or hogs .03
The old Genesee Road passed through as romantic and beautiful a land as
heart could wish to see or know; but the road itself was a creation of
comparatively modern days, in which Seneca and Mohawk were eliminated
factors in the problem. Here, near this road, a great experiment was
made a few years after its building, when a canal was proposed and dug,
amid fears and doubts on the part of many, from Albany to Buffalo. One
of the first persons to advocate a water highway which would eclipse the
land route, sent a number of articles on the subject to a local paper,
whose editor was compelled to refuse to print more of them, because of
the ridicule to which they exposed the paper! Poor as the old road was
in bad weather, people could not conceive of any better substitute.
[Illustration: PART OF A "MAP OF THE GRAND PASS FROM NEW YORK TO
MONTREAL ... BY THOS. POWNALL"
[_Drawn about 1756; from original in British Museum_]]
When the Erie Canal was being built, so poor were the roads leading into
the region traversed by the canal, that contractors were compelled to do
most of their hauling in winter, when the ground was frozen and sleds
could be used on the snow. Among the reasons given--as we shall see in a
later monograph of this series--for delays in completing portions of
the canal, was that of bad roads and the impossibility of sending heavy
freight into the interior except in winter; and a lack of snow, during
at least one winter, seriously handicapped the contractors. But when the
Erie Canal was built, the prophecies of its advocates were fulfilled, as
the rate per hundred-weight by canal was only one-tenth the rate charged
by teamsters on the Genesee Road. The old "waggoners" who, for a
generation, had successfully competed with the Inland Lock Navigation
Company, could not compete with the Erie Canal, and it was indeed very
significant that, when Governor Clinton and party made that first
triumphal journey by canal-boat from Buffalo to Albany and New
York--carrying a keg of Lake Erie water to be emptied into the Atlantic
Ocean--they were not joyously received at certain points, such as
Schenectady, where the old methods of transportation were the principal
means of livelihood for a large body of citizens. How delighted were the
old tavern-keepers in central New York with the opening of the Erie
Canal, on whose boats immigrants ate and slept? About as happy, we may
say, as were the canal operators when a railway was built, hurrying
travelers on at such a rapid pace that their destinations could be
reached, in many cases, between meals!
Yet until the railway came, the fast mail-stages rolled along over the
Genesee Road, keeping alive the old traditions and the old breed of
horses. Local business was vastly increased by the dawning of the new
era; society adapted itself to new and altered conditions, and the old
days when the Genesee Road was a highway of national import became the
heritage of those who could look backward and take hope for the future,
because they recognized better the advances that each new year had
made.