Books
 Around BrockportWilliam G. Andrews links to Amazon.com The first settlers came to the Brockport area soon after 1800. Located some twenty miles west of Rochester, the towns of Sweden and Clarkson, the village of Brockport, and a college were organized between 1814 and 1835. The Erie Canal, farm implement manufacturing, and higher education fostered their growth and prosperity in the mid-1800s. At Brockport, the United States became a continental nation, the Industrial Revolution came to agriculture, and popular literature came to American women. Today, Brockport is a remarkably well-preserved Victorian village on a revitalized Erie Canal, Clarkson and Sweden are havens for farming and commuting, and the college is an 8,500-student unit of the State University of New York. Around Brockport presents more than two hundred thirty images from private and public collections, many from glass negatives. They depict such aspects of the area's history as farm life in early Sweden, stately homes at Clarkson Corners, industrial plants in Brockport, and student activities at the normal school. |  Finger Lakes Wine CountrySarah S. Thompson links to Amazon.com For more than 150 years, Finger Lakes Wine Country has played a major role in American wine history. At its heart are the four deepest Finger Lakes, part of a group of 11 long, narrow lakes in central New York. There, nestled among Canandaigua, Keuka, Seneca, and Cayuga Lakes, farmers began planting vineyards in the 1830s. In 1860, the Pleasant Valley Wine Company became America's first bonded winery, turning Keuka Lake into a busy shipping hub for fresh grapes and award-winning champagnes. Other wineries soon followed, as did railroads and basket factories. Early 20th century business was good until Prohibition forced wineries to reinvent themselves. In the 1950s and 1960s, innovators like Charles Fournier, Dr. Konstantin Frank, and Walter S. Taylor experimented with hybrid and European vinifera grape varieties. But by the 1970s, local grape growers faced extinction; it would take a grassroots movement and landmark legislation in 1976 to bring about a Finger Lakes wine renaissance. |
 Fort OntarioGeorge and Carol Reed links to Amazon.com In the earliest days when lakes, streams, and rivers served as highways through the wilderness, the nation that ruled the mouth of the Oswego River dominated North America. The convergence of the Oswego and Lake Ontario was a key point on the most navigable water route from the east into the interior of the continent. It was there that Fort Ontario was built. Just as quickly, however, the fort was destroyed, as competing armies seized control of this valuable point. Time after time the fort was rebuilt, and over the years it acquired a history as unique as its location. Fort Ontario: Guardian of the North is the first history of this remarkable and resilient fort, credited with being the oldest continuously garrisoned post in the United States. The book chronicles the many transformations of Fort Ontario from the time it was built in 1755 up to its present-day status as a New York State Historic Site. With paintings, maps, photographs, and informative text, the book brings back the fort's years as a company post, its World War I role as a major army hospital, and its World War II years as a shelter for Jews fleeing the Holocaust--the only wartime refugee shelter in the history of the United States. |  Fulton and the Oswego RiverFriends of History in Fulton links to Amazon.com Early history reveals the importance of the river to the Native Americans and the European settlers. The early settlement's strategic location at the site of the waterfalls, with dangerous rapids below, contributed to the success of various industries that harnessed the waters' power. Fulton grew, flourished, and became a city having the distinct honor of being virtually unaffected by the Great Depression. Fulton and the Oswego River contains a striking collection of hundreds of rare local photographs, together with the stories of the town, the river, and the people who have lived here. The early settlers, including blacksmith Daniel Masters and the Van Buren family come to life in these pages, as the reader imagines their early struggles. The building of the Erie and Barge Canals had a influence on the economy, as did the businesses that developed along the river: the flour mills, paper mills, and woolen mills, such as the American Woolen Mill, which made military uniforms on Oswego's banks through World War II. |
 GreeceShirley Cox Husted links to Amazon.com Greece, a community of nearly 100,000 people, lies on the south shore of Lake Ontario, opposite Toronto. It has a picturesque shoreline with a bay and more ponds than any other locality along the lake. In its early years, community life was centered around a harbor on the Genesee River at the village of Charlotte. From these simple beginnings, Greece eventually grew to become the largest township in Monroe County. Its growth was due in large part to photography leader George Eastman, whose factories became the major employer in the Rochester metropolitan area. Over the years, the township's political leaders have been recognized across the state. Its land once produced magnificent flowers, vegetable seeds, and rootstock for shipment worldwide. Greece also is the home of the Wegman families, whose food stores rank among the nation's best grocery operations. Buried in nearby Holy Sepulchre Cemetery are the remains of Dr. Francis Tumblety, inventor of patent medicine cure-alls and main suspect in London's 1888 Jack the Ripper murder investigation. Greece contains marvelous pictorial memories of the amusement park at Manitou Beach, with its poplar-lined entrance, grand old hotels reached by an open-air trolley that slowly crossed the bay and ponds, and two nearby lighthouses that guided vessels across the lake to and from Canada. |  HenriettaHelen Vollmer Elam links to Amazon.com Henrietta depicts the simpler times of a sleepy farming town in western New York State, known for its wonderful produce and staples. People knew each other by their first name and, in true neighborly spirit, pitched in to help with the plowing, harvesting, and barn raising. Henrietta stayed much the same until after World War II, when veterans returned looking for new housing, transportation improved, services expanded, business and commercial establishments opened, and suddenly it was a boomtown. The dust has not settled yet, but the community, although changed, still retains its small-town flavor. |
 IrondequoitThomas Cole Richens links to Amazon.com Irondequoit portrays the rich past of a Lake Ontario town with a name that comes from the Iroquois word meaning where land and waters meet." Originally part of the Phelps Gorham purchase of 1788, Irondequoit was established in 1839. The area, once marred by swamps and marshes, eventually became "the Garden Spot of Western New York," known far and wide for its peaches, melons, and vegetables. Later the town developed as a resort area, with attractions like Sea Breeze Amusement Park, Glen Haven Park, the Newport House, and White City, a 300-family tent colony. Irondequoit's tree-lined streets, excellent schools, and access to prime recreational areas, including Sea Breeze, Durand-Eastman Park, and Irondequoit Bay Park, continue to draw people who make it the thriving community it is today." |  MacedonReginald W. Neale links to Amazon.com Early Macedon's shops, streets, and people come to life in this selection of photographs from the town's historian, the Macedon Historical Society, and private collections. Macedonians have been at the center of important national social issues for most of the town's history, as when individuals from Macedon signed the Declaration of Sentiments in Seneca Falls that led to women's right to vote. In the late 1800s, the village of Macedon was a manufacturing center for agricultural equipment. The Bickford & Huffman Company, known locally as the Drill Works, was a major local employer, and the Erie Canal, built in the 1820s, had an enormous influence on the growth and history of the town. Macedon's agricultural machinery and produce were shipped all over the nation from its busy terminal on the canal. Macedon Academy was founded in 1841 and served the surrounding area for 50 years. Its outstanding curriculum and reputation brought in students from a wide area. The building still stands, and today it is the home of the Macedon Historical Society. Macedon shows how far the town has come and celebrates its rich history. |
 Ogden and SpencerportOgden Historical Committee links to Amazon.com The town of Ogden and the village of Spencerport were considered pioneer country when the first settlers arrived in 1801 from Connecticut, seeking more fertile farmland. The two communities witnessed the completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 and survived through the rise and fall of the importance of that waterway. Throughout much of the nineteenth century, many farms produced and sold vast amounts of produce, shipped via the canal. Since the time of their agrarian roots, Ogden and Spencerport have evolved into thriving residential suburbs. Using some two hundred stunning images, Ogden and Spencerport chronicles almost two centuries of history in pictures that highlight the past and show how it has shaped the town and village of today. As Ogden grew and Spencerport was preserved as a unique canal-side village, families, workers, and business owners came to the area and created lasting memories. Summer outings on the canal, early-twentieth-century baseball games, businesses along Union Street, and many other places, events, and people from the past can be visited in the pages of Ogden and Spencerport. |  OntarioJoAnn Meaker links to Amazon.com Nestled in the northwest corner of Wayne County, Ontario takes its name from the lake on its northern border. Through some 200 compelling photographs, Ontario traces the historical influences that helped shape this town from apples to atoms--from the distant glacial past, the land developers Phelps and Gorham, the Iroquois Nation, and the early settlers to the major industries of iron ore mining and nuclear power. It focuses on the people, places, businesses, industries, and agriculture that earned the town its motto: the Community of Good Neighbors. |
 PalmyraBonnie J. Hays links to Amazon.com Palmyra reveals the fascinating history of the place known as "the Queen of Canal Towns." Vivid photographs highlight life as it was in this Wayne County community, which is visited by more than two hundred thousand people each year. Shown are military men and abolitionists, inventors and entrepreneurs, the founder of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and the Hill Cumorah, site of the largest outdoor theater production in the United States. |  Parma and HiltonShirley Cox Husted links to Amazon.com Near the shores of Lake Ontario lie Parma, Hilton, and several other pioneer communities once connected by Indian trails. Parma was named in honor of the Italian city and province of the same name and Hilton village, once known as North Parma, was renamed after Rev. Charles A. Hilton, a Civil War veteran and Baptist minister. Before the Civil War, the area was known as the Nation's Breadbasket. It became a leading fruit production center near the end of the 19th century and attracted immigrants from around the world. Parma and Hilton uses images from throughout the century to illustrate the pioneer times, the development of government, life on the waterfront, transportation and communication, schools and churches, business and industry, and festive days of celebration. |
 PenfieldMartin M. Wamp links to Amazon.com Penfield began as a milling town in the early 1800s, evolved into a farming community by the 1850s, and grew into one of Rochester's finest suburbs in the 1900s. Within the pages of Penfield are stories of founder Daniel Penfield and why, as a successful merchant and landowner, he left eastern New York to settle in an uninhabited wilderness; of twelve-year-old "Little Nellie" Williams, who operated the town's newspaper during the Civil War; of Almon Strowger, the inventor of the dial telephone switch; and of Timothy and Lydia Bush, direct ancestors of President George W. Bush. One of the only remaining mud houses in New York State still stands in Penfield; it and many other early structures are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. |  Perinton and Fairport in the 20th CenturyPerinton Historical Society links to Amazon.com Perinton and Fairport in the 20th Century documents the transformation of this upstate New York community into a suburban center. The change began with the arrival of a high-speed electric train in 1906. After that, the era of building and invention was under way. Pictured are some of the first housing subdivisions and period buildings-which survived most of the twentieth century but were razed for urban renewal-and the people of the time, including inventors Willis Trescott and Robert Douglas, whose patents for apple processing and Certo revolutionized the fruit industry. |
 Perinton, Fairport, and the Erie CanalPerinton Historical Society links to Amazon.com The opening of the Erie Canal in 1825 saw the rise of western New York as the gateway to the West. The ease and economy of shipping by canal brought commerce and factories to many communities along the canal's route. Thus, the area that we now know as Fairport and Perinton boasted a disproportionate number of businesses in the mid- and late-nineteenth century. In Perinton, Fairport, and the Erie Canal, you will meet Daniel DeLand, founder of the DeLand Chemical Works which, beginning in 1852, shipped by canal hundreds of barrels of the leavening agent saleratus and baking soda to markets in New York City and the West. You will find out the secret ingredient of Taylor's Oil of Life and will read its endorsement by Buffalo Bill Cody. You will see the Main Street lift-bridge, which was cited several times in Ripley's Believe It or Not, and Cobb's Preserving Company, which experimented and promoted the solderless can that revolutionized food storage in America. |  PittsfordAudrey M. Johnson and Vicki M. Profitt links to Amazon.com The rich history of Pittsford began in 1789, when Revolutionary War veterans Simon and Israel Stone purchased 13,298 acres of land in Western New York. Early settlers Stephen Lusk and Caleb Hopkins, a War of 1812 hero, established prosperous farms in Pittsford that have flourished for 200 years. These men created a bustling community that enticed other families to settle here. While agriculture has been a mainstay of many area families who have resided and farmed in Pittsford for generations, others have made their marks in business and industry. Many of the photographs contained within Pittsford were shared by descendants of these early families. Through the years, the town and village of Pittsford have grown due to the desirable rolling topography, the fertile farmland, the excellence of its school system, and the quaint charm of this historic community. |
 Rails in Rochester and Monroe CountyRichard "Dick" Chait links to Amazon.com From photography to farming and from medicine to music, Rochester and the county in which it resides, Monroe County, are known throughout the world. This book brings to life the role that rail transportation had in developing an economy that made these contributions possible. By 1900, some of the county's biggest railroads had been drawn to the Rochester and Monroe County markets. They attracted people and businesses to the area and ensured the flow of products to the marketplace. Trolleys enabled people to commute to and from work as well as to enjoy the recreational resources of Lake Ontario and Irondequoit Bay. Rail transportation helped make Rochester and Monroe County truly great places to live and work. |  Rochester NeighborhoodsShirley Cox Husted and Ruth Rosenberg-Naparsteck links to Amazon.com Even in its early days, Rochester had multiple neighborhoods, small settlements with names such as Swillburg, Goat Hill and the Butter Bowl. Today, Rochester is a community of 128 neighborhoods, each happily pursuing a local identity while united together with justifiable pride in their role as New York State's third largest city outside of the New York City metropolis. Located in the Genesee River Valley just below Lake Ontario, Rochester is on an old Indian trail that once brought Seneca families here to hunt and fish. The milling industry began here in 1789 and, as it flourished, Rochester became known as the "Flour City." By the mid-1800s, the seed industry and the widespread production of flowers, trees, and shrubs had recreated Rochester as the "Flower City." Later, thanks to the Eastman Kodak Company and the Xerox Corporation, Rochester became the "Picture City" and the "World's Image Centre." Rochester was a haven on the Underground Railroad between 1830 and 1860. Always an ethnic city, it became a hotbed for inventors, reformers, educators, and spiritual leaders. Its leaders were independent, sometimes outrageous, outspoken, colorful, and courageous. Many were women-foremost among them was Susan Brownell Anthony. |
 Rochester’s Corn HillMichael Leavy links to Amazon.com When Rochester experienced the explosive growth generated by the Erie Canal, what began as a pioneer neighborhood of cabins quickly became an impressive ward of mansions for the city's social hierarchy. Today's generation knows it as Corn Hill, but it is actually the old Third Ward, an extraordinary neighborhood that rivaled Charleston, Savannah, and Natchez in elegance and importance. Rochester's Corn Hill: The Historic Third Ward offers the first comprehensive pictorial history of this ruffled-shirt district from its humble beginnings, to its Victorian peak, through its eventual decline and subsequent rehabilitation into a landmark ward. |  Rochester’s DowntownDonovan A. Shilling links to Amazon.com Downtown Rochester is defined by Main Street, State Street and the major crossroads of those streets. It is the core of one of New York State's most important cities. Rochester's Downtown recaptures the time when it bloomed as a mecca for daytime workers and shoppers and for an evening's entertainment at vibrant social centers. It celebrates the people of this great city as they progress from their early beginnings to create a dynamic business center. This excellent collection of images regenerates the excitement of riding the trolley, watching a movie at the Palace or the Capitol, window-shopping at the Duffy-Powers Store and tasting frosted malteds at Sibley's or warm doughnuts from the Mayflower Donut Shop or spoonfuls of roasted peanuts from Mr. Peanut Man. The narrative recalls Scrantom's as the place to buy books, Neisner's having the latest 78-rpm records, McCurdy's and Edward's with their special holiday displays, Eddie's Chop House for memorable dinners, and the Century Sweet Shop for after-theater sundaes among the many unforgettable venues of this great city. |
 RushSusan Bittner Mee links to Amazon.com Rush is a classic example of rural small-town America. The East Rush hamlet, now known as simply Rush, was first named Webster's Mills. Although not the first settler in the area, John Webster, who purchased the land in 1810, soon began building a town--first a sawmill and a gristmill, followed by a general store, a hotel, and a school. Other businesses followed, and more families arrived. East Rush was the primary hamlet and, along with West Rush and North Rush, comprised a hardworking, close-knit, rural farming community. By the late 1800s, it was a thriving and self-sufficient community. And, like any town, it is the individuals who built it and lived here that bring Rush's past to life. Years later, the strong family and agricultural base continues, but the bustling activity that centered around the trains and mills has quieted. |  Seabreeze ParkJim Futrell with John Norris links to Amazon.com In operation since 1879, Seabreeze Park is the fourth-oldest operating amusement park in the United States. Mixing old and new within its gates, the park's attractions range from a vintage 1920 Jack Rabbit roller coaster and a tree-lined midway to a kiddieland and waterpark. George Long Sr. came to the shores of Lake Ontario as a concessionaire in 1904, and his son assumed ownership of the park by the 1940s. Over the years, the Long, Norris, and Price families have propelled the park through changing times and perilous fires. In 1994, fire destroyed the heart of the park, its carousel. Recognizing the damage as an opportunity to revive the cherished ride, the family relied on more than a century of experience to inspire and hand-craft a new "antique" carousel. In an age of corporate theme parks, Seabreeze Park endures as one of the country's favorite family-owned and operated parks. |
 VictorBabette Mann Huber links to Amazon.com Victor tells the unique story of a historic community in the Finger Lakes region, just south of Rochester. It chronicles Victor's past as a Seneca Indian capital to the coming of Massachusetts settlers in the 18th century through to life as it was in the 20th century. With over 200 photographs, this book shows how people in rural upstate New York lived, played, studied, worked, and worshiped. The images are from the town and village archives, the Victor Historical Society, the Ontario County Historical Society, and private collections. Many are previously unpublished photographs, and several are by Fred Locke, an amateur photographer who is considered to be "the father of porcelain insulators." |  WebsterLynn M. Barton, Joan E. Sassone, and Mary Hasek Grenier links to Amazon.com The town of Webster, New York, is framed with a rugged, natural beauty that sets it apart from other local communities, and there is a spirit of independent thinking here that is valued. In 1840, the newly incorporated town was named after Daniel Webster, the outspoken statesman, who had never actually set foot in the town. Favorable soil conditions and climate tempered by Lake Ontario contributed to Webster's growth as a prosperous agricultural center for growing fruit. The production of dried apples, baskets, and food processing were all early industries. From the earliest days of Webster to the mid-20th century, this book highlights pioneer settlers such as the Constant Holt family who came in an oxcart from New England; recalls happenings such as train wrecks, fires, horse races, baseball teams, and children's flower parades through the village; and celebrates the social heritage and spirit of the town whose motto is "Where Life is Worth Living." |
 WheatlandCatherine Gilbert and Barbara Chapman links to Amazon.com The town of Wheatland lies along the west bank of the Genesee River in the southwest corner of Monroe County. In 1786, the adventurous frontiersman Ebenezer "Indian" Allan built a log cabin near the river. The Allan family soon moved on, but the settlement of the entire area west of the Genesee River had begun. The name given to the town in 1821 recognized the successful wheat crops already yielded by its fertile soil. Oatka Creek, which winds its way across town to the river, once powered flour and plaster mills that made the villages and hamlets of Wheatland thriving communities. Today Wheatland remains a rural area known for its picturesque countryside and its recreational opportunities. |
