Town Historian
  Glenna Gorski,
  P.O.Box 54, 
  Williamstown, NY 13493 
  Phone: 315  964-2393

---

Information was obtained from the Historical & Statistical Gazeteer of New York State, R. P. Smith, Publisher, Syr., 1860, by J. H. French.

The first settlement was made in 1801, by Gilbert TAYLOR, Solomon GOODWIN, Ichabod COMSTOCK, Dennis ORTON, Henry WILLIAMS, and Henry FILKINS.

The first church (Cong.) was founded in 1805, by Rev. Wm. STONE.

The first marriage was that of Joel RATHBURN and Miss P. ALDEN, in Sept 1802, and the first death, that of Mrs. Sarah ORTON, in the spring of 1804.

Isaac ALDEN opened the first inn, in 1803, built the first sawmill, the same year, and the first gristmill, in 1804.

The first store was opened in 1806, by Danl. FURMAN.

The first school was taught by Philander ALDEN, in 1803.

There are now 2 churches in town; Cong. and M.E.

This was made available by Glenna J. Gorski, Town Historian  If you would like to inquire about this book, or about the resources available, you may contact her at (315) 964- 2393 or mail to:  P.O. Box 54; Williamstown, NY  13493

page 5-

After the Revolutionary War, plans were made to settle west of the Hudson River, Wealthy New Yorkers formed land companies to encourage settlement.  Land-starved New Englanders planned to make new homes where they heard there was an abundance of level, tillable land.

In 1791, a company headed by Nicholas and John ROOSEVELT purchased 525,000 acres for three schillings and one penny ( equal to about 13.5 cents) an acre.  This area covered Oswego and Oneida Counties and part of Herkimer county.

In 1794, the Roosevelt Purchase was sold to another member of the company, George SCRIBA  It became the Scriba Patent.  The land was then surveyed and divided up into townships, with Williamstown given the survey name Franklin, Township No. 5.

Ichabod Comstock settled in Franklin in 1801.  He made the first clearing in the township on Lot 155, neat what is now known as Morgan Road.  He was soon joined by Gilbert Taylor, Solomon Goodwin, Dennis Orton, and Henry Filkins, most of them being from Connecticut.

In 1802, Judge Henry Williams relocated from nearby Camden on Lots 189 and 190 near the present home of Sam and Geraldine DeMassey.   Shortly after his arrival, Franklin was renamed Williamstown in Judge Williams' honor.

The first marriage in town was that of Joel Rathbun and Miss P. Alden in September 1802.  Issac Alden opened a tavern and inn in the same year.  He also built the first sawmill (1803) which was capable of cutting a thousand feet of lumber per day.

Gilbert Taylor opened one of the first stores at "The Corners", now junction Rt. 13, Rt. 30 and Sol Davis Road.   Several dwellings sprang up in this area along with the first school, taught by Philander Alden in 1803- 04.

The town recorded it's first death in the spring of 1804, Mrs. Sarah Orton.

Williamstown was formed from Mexico, part of Oneida County, on March 24, 1804 (Oswego County wasn't formed until 1816).  Richland was taken off in 1807 and Amboy in 1830.

In 1813, the post office was established also at "The Corners,"  and William Hempstead kept a tavern which was later bought by Jessie Fish (see page 47).  However, the water power of Fish Creek drew later settlers to that area, the site of the present village.

Dr. Torbet came to town in 1804 and erected the first grist mill.  Daniel Stacey built the first carding mill in 1810.  Both were located upon Fish Creek, near Alden's sawmill.  This location later became known as Williamstown Mills.

continued on page 255

Town of Williamstown Stone Hill was a settlement of a dozen or more farms located on the southern edge of Williamstown- partly in the town of Williamstown and partly in the Amboy township.  The road being the dividing line.  It was settled about 1825 and named after WE Stone, an early settler.  There was a schoolhouse used also for church, Sunday School and community gatherings, such as box socials and square dances.  Some early settlers were Chester Hull, Godfreys, Beardsleys, Oyers, Horatio and Nathaniel Harris.  Only two of the original houses are left- all other buildings are gone.  In recent years some camps have been built along the road.  A small section is now part of the Happy Valley Game Preserve.

Taken from the Williamstown Journal 1801- 1973

In 1860, Calvert Comstock, a well-to-do business man purchased a large tract of virgin forest in the northern part of Williamstown and southern Redfield.

He and others formed a corporation known as the "Williamstown and Redfield Railroad and Forest Company".  They proceeded to build a rail line into the woods to tap these vast timber resources.  The railroad was laid of the best oak stringer and strap iron construction practices of the day.  At one time, eight million board feet of lumber was milled a year and as many as 40 carloads a day left Williamstown for Rome.  This lumber was sold to the New York Central Railroad.

A Post Office was established in 1863 and quite a village sprang up.  At one time, as many as 500 men were engaged in lumbering.  As the timber became scarcer, the railroad was extended farther into the forest.  Maple Hill was said to be the busiest lumber town in the North Country.

Gradually, the timber supply was exhausted and the whole operation including Maple Hill began to die.  The hum of the saws, which for several years had never ceased it's constant whirring, was stilled.

A few years later, 1876, the railroad was abandoned and the rails were torn up.

Cleared land, now gave way to farming and thus it continued for some 50 or 60 years.  Now, only a farm or two remains.  The old schoolhouse still stands.  Several camps have been built there recently.  Most of the area residents live there and work away.

Some of the settlers were Gillespie, Murray, Healy, Bronson, Keller and Sammons.