Portable Steam Sawmill

Rennie M Elliott‎Morris, NY - Historically speaking
December 11, 2018 ·

1914 Leon Gardner (partner with Oneonta stage driver George Wilcox?) had his steam sawmill setup on the D.F. Wightman (Dugan) farm "over the knoll from the little white schoolhouse." (District 2, Elm Grove). My mother was talking with a credit union teller the other day who says she owns the school house and asked if there were any photos or records about it?
12Mason Valentine, Michael Parsons and 10 others
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Carol Nealis
Carol Nealis Neat photo, Rennie. Is the referred-to schoolhouse the building across from where Peter Pickens lived, by Bruce Norton?
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott There is one indicated there on early maps and an image in the historical collection photos used to be at the library that showed it close to a steep bank, like just up Burlingame Rd on the right. I was assuming the lady meant the later schoolhouse, the one just past the Bemis Rd intersection on the left? My Grandmother Holdridge walked to school there when she lived where you do c. 1924 - 1931. That said, I don't know if they moved the district 2 building, or replaced it? All the consolidated district records should have been at the school but I'm told c. 1980s they threw a lot of records out? School supt. reports were found in the basement at the county courthouse by "Schoolhouse John" Hall of Hartwick when he compiled a book on the district schools a few decades ago.
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Carol Nealis
Carol Nealis I know the house by Bemis, Rennie. I'm surprised that it was a school: it looks so small!
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott Kids were smaller back then.
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Joanne Long
Joanne Long Rennie M Elliott My grandfather went to school there.
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott The c. 1930 yearbooks Bob Thomas has online said Mrs. Alice Card was teacher then.
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Carol Nealis
Carol Nealis So cool! :-)
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Bob Thomas
Bob Thomas Detail of 1868 map of Morris -- shows 2 District No. 2 schools -- one around the corner from the other.
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No photo description available.
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott The 1868 map is generally regarded as "more accurate" than the previous 1856 map. So this is a bit odd to explain unless segregated by sex?
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Bob Thomas
Bob Thomas Rennie M Elliott Or perhaps the school was in the midst of a move?
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Frank Rock Smokehaven Shepherds
Frank Rock Smokehaven Shepherds The school house is the little white house 1/2 way up the hill on the left if going towards new lisbon. Back in the 50's- 70's Chris and Mary Jansen owned it.
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Bob Thomas
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Carole Heburn
Carole Heburn Franklin Mt was called called Delhi Stage. Brought milk to town too
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott What I always found interesting, is that people south of Franklin Mountain, called it "Oneonta Mountain".
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Carole Heburn
Carole Heburn That’s right
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Leona Shelley
Leona Shelley I think maybe in later years.
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Rennie M Elliott
Rennie M Elliott Dave Olds worked at Meridale Farms c. 1919 - 1944 and told me that is what everyone on that side called it. He also told the one worker who had a Hatfield (made in Sidney) needed help pushing it up steep grades, and how another had a Model T that had to be backed up really steep grades because it had gravity flow (no fuel pump).
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Carole Heburn
Carole Heburn Thanks
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