By:
On:
In: Places

  (This story was written prior to our Streets of Cortland series and was part of our “Forgotten Places of Cortland County” series from 2019.) Have you ever wondered where the name “Port Watson” came from? We have both a street and a bridge that are called Port Watson, but there is certainly no port to be found. Would you believe that there actually was a bustling port on the Tioughnioga River and the surrounding community was called Port Watson? It is an interesting story that begins around 1800 before Cortland County was even established as a county in its own right. We were aRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

  According to the list I’ve been using that gives some provenance for the streets in Cortland, James A. Calvert is the only person to have two streets named after him. James Alexander Calvert was born on April 5, 1815, to John Calvert and Isabell Storey. His father John came to the United States at 18 years old. He and two brothers came over from Scotland. They eventually moved to this area and settled in Virgil in 1800. They had a 300-acre farm which included Virgil Corners. When they moved here, there were about 30 people living in Virgil and only 3-4 houses in theRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

    Orris U. Kellogg owned a 700-acre farm on the west bank of the Tioughnioga River where he bred and raised cattle and racehorses. His cattle were some of the most highly prized stock in the United States, and he had a racetrack on his property in order to indulge his love of light harness racing. Kellogg purchased the farm in 1876 and called it Riverside Farm. If you have ever driven down Kellogg Road, headed towards Blodgett Mills, there was a gorgeous barn standing with two houses. This was the O.U. Kellogg Farm. .O.U. Kellogg was born in Taylor on September 19, 1848,Read More →

By:
On:
In: Places

These two streets have more in common than being in the same neighborhood. They were named after James S. Squires’ sons, James Duane and Earl Frank. You might remember when we learned about James Squires that he was married three times. James and Earl were children from his first marriage and his two oldest sons. Our files had more information on James, so we will start with him. James Duane Squires was born in 1855. He went to school at the “old academy” (possibly Cortland Academy) and was one of the first Normal School pupils. He graduated from the Normal School at 17. After graduation,Read More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Squires Street received its name from James S. Squires, a gentleman we learned about last June. Take a look at the link to his story to learn more about this entrepreneur who was responsible for the original clocktower building. https://www.facebook.com/CortlandCountyHistoricalSociety/posts/3160045764063047 (James S. Squires post from June 9, 2020) Today I’d like to talk a little bit about why Squires Street was named after Mr. Squires. By looking at the 1888 map of the village of Cortland, I found that he owned a number of lots on Tompkins, Owego, Squires, Park, and Duane Streets. In her book on the city of Cortland, former CCHS Director MaryRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Some folks asked about Wheeler Avenue after our post about Dr. Edith Flower Wheeler. Wheeler Avenue was not named after her, but it was named after Benson H. Wheeler. Mr. Wheeler was born on January 19, 1849, in Pitcher, and in 1880, he married Carrie E. Weaver, also from Pitcher. They moved to Cortland not long after their marriage, and they lived on Adams Street (now Homer Avenue) in 1883. The 1888 map of Cortland shows B.H. Wheeler as owning a property that has two different houses on it, one house appears to face Adams Street, and the other looks to be their home onRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Clayton Avenue was opened in the latter half of 1881 between land owned by Moses Rowley and James R. Schermerhorn. Moses Rowley had been farming in South Cortland before purchasing the property which had been previously owned by successive Randalls. The building, which today houses the Cortland County Mental Health Department, was built as a residence by William Randall in 1820. In 1825, he sold the property to his brother Roswell. Roswell lived there until his death in 1871. In 1865, Roswell conveyed the property to his son Henry S. Randall, and after his father died, Henry moved into the mansion until his own deathRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Hamlin Street was named after the United States Vice President Hannibal Hamlin. Hamlin was the vice president under Abraham Lincoln during his first term. In the 1864 election, Andrew Johnson was chosen to run as vice president. Our story could end there, but the original name of Hamlin Street was Gazlay Avenue. Why? Dr. Henry Champion Gazlay (1818-1900) was a physician in Cortland for many years. He graduated from the Eclectic College in Syracuse and began his practice in Truxton in 1841. He moved to Fabius until 1847, returned to Truxton, and then moved to Homer in 1857. He was a partner with Dr. EzraRead More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Grace Street is a tiny side street that started off life as Schermerhorn Street. I do not know why the names were changed, except that the news article that tipped me off on how to find out more about Grace Street had incorrect information, so that’s a reminder to always take newspaper information with a grain of salt! The article said Grace Street was named after Grace Walrad “whose father, C.P. Walrad, opened the street.” Right off the bat, I recognized Grace Walrad’s name and knew that C.P. was her husband, not her father because earlier this year I did some research on this family.Read More →

By:
On:
In: Places

Today we are taking a look at Reynolds Avenue, that crooked little street between Tompkins and Union Streets. Reynolds Avenue takes its name from Judge Joseph B. Reynolds (1775-1864), an early Cortland County settler to Virgil. When I started reading about Judge Reynolds, I couldn’t help but wonder why, if Reynolds started off in Virgil, was a street in Cortland named after him? Joseph B. Reynolds was born in Easton, Washington County, NY, and he came to Cortland County in 1808 at the age of 24. The only resources he had for his big adventure were the two cows he drove here. Once in Virgil,Read More →