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People who regularly research Cortland County’s history tend to rely on an 1859 book entitled Pioneer History; or, Cortland County and the Border Wars of New York by H.C. Goodwin. This book has a fantastic amount of information about the early settlement of Cortland County by those of European descent. The author, H.C. Goodwin, had access to people who came to this area as settlers and to the first generation born here. However, just like any resource that relies heavily on oral history, it’s best to use this book as a starting point and to seek out other resources that corroborate the evidence. In theRead More →

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In 1808, Josiah Bean and his wife Dolly Dearborn came to the newly formed Cortland County from Candia, New Hampshire and settled in Solon. They located to land on what is now Syrian Hill Road. When the Bean family migrated to Solon, they had seven children in tow. Son Jeremiah (child number eight) is listed as being born in Candia on September 30, 1808, so they must have arrived sometime after that. Traveling hundreds of miles over primitive roads (probably by oxcart) with many children, including their newborn, in the late fall or early winter would not have been an easy journey. Was there someRead More →

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Since October of 1850, within the old stone walls of the peaceful Conable Cemetery, a soldier of the American Revolution lies at rest on land that was once his. Mead Merrill was born on August 22, 1762, in Goshen, Litchfield County, Connecticut, to David Merrill and Esther Howe. Little is known about Mead Merrill’s life before he came to Cortland County, however, we do know that he enlisted on February 2, 1777, in the 6th regiment of the Connecticut Line and served for four years. He was 14 years old at the time of his enlistment. He later married Anne Hotchkiss, and by 1794, theyRead More →

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One name that comes up over and over again in Homer history resources is Dr. George W. Bradford, and for good reason—he was an important part of the lives of Homer citizens, and he deserves to be remembered. Dr. Bradford was born on May 9, 1796 in the town of Otsego. His parents were Eseck Bradford and Hulda Skinner, and George Washington Bradford was the first son in their family of ten children. George was a direct descendant of William Bradford, the second governor of the Plymouth Colony. The family lived near Cooperstown, and Bradford was a contemporary of American writer James Fenimore Cooper. InRead More →

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41 Main Street is a small structure, but if I got my history right, its bones are made up of one of the oldest buildings that remain on Main Street! In 1860, brothers Isaac and Martin Edgcomb purchased the lot south of Cloyes and Garrison’s grocery to move their harness business there. Presumably, this is when the location first became occupied by a building, although I remain somewhat unsure given how the area is presented in maps. Sometimes it appears that the neighboring buildings must have been too close to allow for any kind of building to be put there, and other maps make itRead More →

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This portion of Main Street was for a long time a grocery, then department store, and finally an experimental mall in an attempt to draw business back from the suburban strip malls. In 1843, Isaac M. Seaman began a grocery and meat business at the spot, described as the only one of its kind in the village at the time. He then partnered with Leavitt Cudworth until 1847. The mantle was taken up by B.K. Aldrich, followed by G.N. Copeland. In 1852, David C. Cloyes bought out Mr. Copeland and continued the business until 1878. From this point, the building starts to be referred toRead More →

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On May 19, 1845, in the small town of Pharsalia, in nearby Chenango County, Morell M. Newton was born to Miles and Louise Crumb Newton. The Newton family had four children, and Morell would receive his education at the common schools of Pharsalia and at the Norwich Academy. Upon the completion of his education, Newton taught school in both Pitcher and Otselic for a few years, after which time he became employed at the woolen mill of George L. Crandall in Pitcher. After two years of saving his money and building his experience in the woolen goods manufacturing business, he became a partner, and theRead More →

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This is another location where the early history is something of a mystery, and I’m not even sure of the accuracy of what I did manage to find out. Smith’s “History of Cortland County” provides a date of about 1863 for an early structure, at which point the firm of Mills & Goodrich (dealers in hardware, stoves, and tinware) moved a frame building from the corner of Main and Court Street to the spot to serve as their new store. Smith indicates that in its old location, the building had been occupied for many years as a seminary. This would refer to Cortland’s female boardingRead More →

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On December 18, 1823, on a farm in Onondaga County, a son was born to Waterman Phillips and Rachel Kinney. This child was the youngest in a family of ten children, and his legacy to Homer would be one of significant importance and have a lasting impact far beyond his own lifetime. Waterman and Rachel Phillips both hailed from Connecticut, and they moved to Cortland County sometime before 1800. They initially settled near today’s Blodgett Mills, but they moved around within the county before deciding to move on to Onondaga County, where they would stay for the next 25 years. This is where George W.Read More →

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There is a collection of well-worn binders in the vault at the Cortland County Historical Society that is part of the life’s work of Lisle Cottrell. The binders mostly cover the town of Scott, but there is also information about Cincinnatus, Homer, Cottrell genealogy, and more. These handwritten documents provide great insight into the settlement of Cortland County and are just one piece of Lisle Cottrell’s legacy. Lisle Cottrell was born in Scott on July 13, 1899, to William J. Cottrell and Lizzie J. Lee. William was educated at the Homer Academy and taught at the East River School for two years before collaborating withRead More →