This house at the corner of Hamilton Road and Route 5 in Elbridge is of Gothic cottage architecture. It was designed by English architect Thomas Atkinson and was built for John Munro in 1850-51. It was built with washed cobblestones brought by wagon from the shore of Lake Ontario near Oswego, and was built with a slate roof.
Story of the Munro Cobblestone House
By Richard Palmer
On a hill well hidden behind a row of cedar trees on the north side Route 5 just west of the village of Elbridge, New York is one of the finest cobblestone houses of Gothic Revival architecture in the country. It was built for wealthy landowner John Munro in 1850-51 and was designed by internationally acclaimed architect, Thomas Atkinson, who came from England at Munro's request. He resided with the Munros for two years while it was constructed. It is believed Atkinson based his design on the British publication"Designs for Cottage and Villa Architecture," by S.H. Brooks. Later Atkinson lived in Auburn, N.Y., where he built a Gothic Cottage at 24 Van Anden St. That house is now gone.
The Munro house has been meticulously preserved through the years. Laid out on an H plan, the house is covered by a steep slate roof, pierced in the center by a small gable. The multiple flues of the square chimneys are set diagonally and blend with the diamond-shaped glass panes preserved in all the windows. The cobblestone masonry is of superior quality, consisting of lake-washed cobblestones laid six rows to a quoin with a "bead" joint between the rows. Cobblestones, picked off the shore of Lake Ontario near Oswego, are well preserved. There are a few red sandstone cobbles mixed in, but the general tonality of the walls is greenish-gray. The home is a testament to Atkinson's skills.
The original woodwork and fireplaces are still preserved. Although some minor changes were made in order to install modern heating and other conveniences, owners have taken great care to preserve the original character and details. The book Architecture Worth Saving in Onondaga County, identified the cobblestone house as "perhaps the most important Gothic Revival building in Onondaga County." It said:
"This cobblestone Gothic Revival building, standing amid century-old hard maples on an expansive site, crowning a gentle rise with a skyline of gables and chimneys, is more than a farmhouse; it must be included with Whig Hill and Roosevelt Hall as one of three county country houses in the grand manner, the tradition of the great country estates."
The late Mary Munro, who grew up there, was the last of the family to live there. When interviewed in the mid 1960s, her white hair, sparkling eyes, dignified bearing, and gentle manner reminded one that advancing years bring charms of their own.
Not the least of those charms was the ability to recall the distant past. As a Munro, she was frequently consulted by historical researchers, but she modestly referred most queries to her more historically-minded cousins in Marcellus and Baldwinsville.
But while studying at Columbia Teachers College, she wrote a paper for a sociology class that is interesting document of local history. Entitled Quarter Century with a Central New York Farmer: 1846 - 1871, the paper tells the story of life on the Munro farm.
The principal reference sources for the paper were farm journals kept by John Munro, the grandson of Squire Munro and her grandfather.John Munro built the cobblestone house in 1850. In this still-magnificent home, now owned by Dr. and Mrs. William B. Drake, Mary Munro grew up.
Pondering her grandfather's reasons for building the 17-room house, Mary Munro wrote:
When one considers that 11 men were probably lodged and boarded, and that there were also, in all likelihood, two, or perhaps three hired girls, one can see why larger quarters were desirable. Evidently, also, grandfather had political ambitions, and perhaps felt the need of a more pretentious home as one fitting his position. His family was growing. Much entertaining was done, and he no doubt felt that this would increase as his children grew older.
The book Architecture Worth Saving in Onondaga County, offered a different hypothesis: "Perhaps the reminiscence of aristocratic English country life is less attributable to the pretentiousness of Yankee farmer John Munro than to the taste of English architect, Thomas Atkinson."
The cobblestones were drawn from Lake Ontario by sleigh, according to Miss Munro, and the wood was all taken from the farm. The woodworking was done on the premises.
This was working farm. John Munro was a "gentleman farmer," to be sure. He had hired men to do the farm work. But the Munros were not the "idle rich. " John Munro kept busy attending to the many details of his large household and his many enterprises.
Miss Munro wrote that her grandfather spent a good deal of time making purchases in surrounding villages. "Evidently no one community was adequate for all needs" she wrote. "On the same day he frequently went to three different places for as many purchases, as on one day he went to Jordan for groceries, to Elbridge for the mail, and to Mottville for cultivator teeth."
John Munro also spent a good deal of time at the sawmill owned by him and his brother Daniel. "Collections and deliveries were necessary," she wrote, "and calls were made to notify people that their lumber was ready. Notes were paid, and money loaned to other neighbors…"
That is not to say that social life was neglected. "He and Eveline, his wife, would go to town for groceries but spend the afternoon visiting with some friend, perhaps 'staying for tea,'" she wrote."…very large parties were quite common, especially on anniversaries or special holidays…fifty or sixty people attended those gatherings, and grandfather states that they 'had a very enjoyable time.'"
John Munro was very active in church work. "Probably there is no one thing outside of this work which is mentioned oftener," Mary wrote. Besides attending services and prayer meetings, he devoted a great deal of time to soliciting and collecting, attending conventions, and making out reports. Miss Munro recorded many other activities of her grandfather: "
As trustee of the one-room school in 1858, he hired the teacher for $4.75, she agreeing to board herself. Then, too, there were miscellaneous tasks which claimed his attention—many of which today would be performed by a lawyer, or other specialist. He drew up deeds and mortgages, made contracts, and surveyed land. He went to Syracuse to see about revocation of a tavern license. He sat on a local jury when offenses were tried, a man being fined $800 for selling boys strong drink, and another man being declared incompetent because he was an "habitual drunkard." Munro was also a member of the "Society for Detecting Horse Thieves" and once went to help look for a murderer.
"As supervisor in 1860, he had the job of doctoring the poor. From 1860 to 1871, grandfather seemed to become more and more interested in public affairs."
All of this was in addition to the household chores, which Munro evidently helped with: "putting down" hams and beef in salt, drying apples, boiling cider, making soap, gathering bark for coloring, helping with dyeing, having rugs woven, gathering herbs for medicine, dipping candles, doing the wash, making clothes, slaughtering livestock and making sausage, household repairs, tending the garden—all were chronicled in John Munro's farm journal.
The farm must have been a vast enterprise. Munro raised and sold grass seed, millet, flax, buckwheat, broomcorn, oats, barley, wheat, rye, and corn. Sheep were raised for wool. Large numbers of cows and hundreds of pigs were on the farm, as well as turkeys, geese, and chickens.
In December, 1851, Munro recorded the sale of about 300 pounds of chickens and turkeys plus 31 geese. In 1856, he mentioned having 500 hogs.
Munro also tried raising unusual crops. In 1864 the journal noted sugar cane was "cut and the juice extracted, there being three pails full which boiled down to four quarts of syrup. " He raised tobacco from 1851 on and "at one time he hired men to make his tobacco into cigars. " The farm hands gathered hickory nuts, black walnuts, butternuts, and chestnuts, and bees were kept for several years.
Miss Munro remarked on the low wages paid hired men: "In 1847 he paid $1.00, $8.00 and $10.00 a month to different men. The following year he paid $12.00 and $13.00. Even as late as 1900 we know men worked for $25.00."
She also noted that bartering was common. "Goods were seldom paid for by giving cash, and some of the exchanges seem very peculiar. In 1857, a harness bought at $32, was payable in wood at $3 a cord."
She quoted a notation about another exchange: "I have taken from Mr. Shanahan the pony which satisfied the judgment I obtained against him for damages by his hogs and cattle. I traded the pony for a two-horse wagon made from an old stage coach."
"Later he traded a pair of mules for a horse, thirty-seven pounds of salt, seventy-two pounds of candles, and one hundred thirty-two pounds of hard soap!" Miss Munro wrote.
John Munro died in 1900, having moved into the village of Elbridge. The year before he had turned the farm over to his son Frank, Mary's father. Mary, then 7, called that house home until 1963, when the farm was sold out of the family.
Miss Munro had a long career as a school teacher. She graduated from Geneseo Normal School and spent several summer sessions at Columbia Teachers College in New York City. From about 1914 to 1918 she taught at the Hart Lot School; she spent the next four years teaching fifth, sixth and seventh grades in Elbridge.
Then she taught at Baldwinsville and finally went to Cazenovia, where she taught for 17 years. She spent most summers at the Elbridge farm. After she retired from teaching in New York State, she went to Colorado where she taught for 12 years. Miss Munro remembered that there were about 30 students in a class and that "they were no particular trouble. "
Mary's brother, LeRoy, took the farm over from their father and raised purebred Holsteins. After the death of LeRoy's wife in 1962, Miss Munro moved home from Colorado to keep house for her brother.
In 1963, they sold the farm and moved up the road to a new house. Miss Munro died Dec. 20, 1981, at the age of 90.
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  William Prior house at 6229 Laird Road, Elbridge, has been somewhat remodeled, stripping it of much of its architectural interest. Prior was a farmer who also had an apple orchard and made cider and vinegar. He died in 1881. The property then went to his wife, Elita J. Prior. It was built circa 1850.    1860s period house at 137 Main St., Elbridge with cobblestone foundation, made of multi-colored field stones. Strickland house in Camillus ______ 
William T. McCracken built this house at 167 Bennett Road, Camillus, in 1850. His father, William McCracken Sr., was a Revolutionary War veteran. He and his wife, the former Hannah Younglove, settled here about 1800. The same family occupied this house and farm until 1946 when it was purchased along with neighboring properties by Carrier Corporation with the intent of building a manufacturing plant. This was never done and the McCracken farm was sold to the late Frank and Helen Quick. It is the only cobblestone house in the town of Camillus.
Interesting design detail on quoins.
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Syracuse Herald, May 26, 1929
Stricklands Participate in Rural Life With Zest
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If every family had the same love of rural life as that of Mr. and Mrs. Claire Strickland, whose farm on the Camillus-Amboy Road has been in the same family for more than100 years, the ever pressing problem of how to keep young people on the farm would be solved.
The pretty old cobblestone house in which they live was built by J.D. McCracken, Mrs. Strickland's maternal grandfather, more than 80 years ago. It stands on a grassy slope, surrounded by fine old shade trees, breathing out an air of solicity and comfort.
Mrs. Strickland and their two daughters, Helen and Alice, not only do their part of the farm work enthusiastically but are leaders in junior project work in that art of the the county.
Alice Strickland, at 15, is one of the outstanding project workers among the girls of Onondaga County. She has captured more than 35 ribbons and many money prizes with show animals and by her judging ability. When she was 10 her father gave her a pure bred Guernsey heifer calf. From that calf she has a pure bred herd of four. With part of her prize money she bought a pure bred Cheviot ewe lamb. She now has 11 sheep and lambs.
Mrs. Strickland and Miss Helen Strickland, the older daughter, teach boys and girls of the entire Amboy section, having several project classes each, in which homemaking, canning, preserving, sewing, animal care and other potent agricultural phases are studied.
And they find time to do all this in addition to the work that falls to them on their own farm.
Twenty minutes from Syracuse theaters by automobile, they can get to a show quicker than many Syracusans who depend upon trolley cars.
With the radio, the telephone, motor transportation, rural free delivery, the life of the farmer has been completely revolutionized and the Stricklands are unanimous in preference for rural over urban life.
Strickland house in the early 1900's. Clair Strickland stands in the doorway. A second story was later added over the porch.
Camillus Historical Society collection
This is how the Strickland's mowed their lawn.
Camillus Historical Society collection Camillus Advocate
August 30, 1995
The McCracken Family Home is a Camillus Landmark
By Ralph Sims
When driving on Bennett Road in the town of Camillus, one has to take notice of the cobblestone home located on the north side of the road. This is, indeed, a beautiful home and one of a kind in the town. It is difficult to believe that this fine, well kept home is 145 years old.
To give you a background on this house, we have to take you back in time to the beginning of the 19th century. It was shortly after 1800 that former Revolutionary War soldiers David and William McCracken first settled in the town of Camillus. David settled in the village of Amboy with William settling on Bennett Road.
William, born in 1764, had first settled in Washington County and married Hannah Younglove. His first son, William T., was born in 1794. A few years later, William and Hannah moved to Camillus where a second son, John W. was born in 1802.
It appears that some time after the birth of the second son, Hannah died. In 1812 William married a widow, Mary Thompson, who had two daughters from her previous marriage. From this marriage a son, Joseph, was born in 1813.
In 1830 William McCracken died at the age of 66. Land records indicate that starting in 1812 and for the next 40 years William and his children made several purchases of farm land mainly along Bennett Road.
William T., son of William and Hannah, married Polly Hubbard around 1820. From this marriage there were two sons and three daughters.
In 1850 William T. built the present cobblestone house on Bennett Road. This was to be the residence of the McCracken family and their descendants for approximately the next 100 years. Of the two sons of William T. and Polly, Hollan J., born in 1829, was to stay on the family farm. He married L. Jane Ellis, daughter of a prominent family residing in Camillus. Hollan J. and Jane were the parents of three daughters - Fannie, Minnie and Ida. Ida was the youngest of the daughters and married Merrill Slingerland, son of Storm Slingerland.
In 1883 Polly died at the age of 86. William T. passed away in 1888 at the age of 94. They are buried in Belle Isle Cemetery. Ida and Merrill Slingerland had three children: Charles, Mable, and Merrill Jr. Shortly before the birth of Merrill Jr. in 1884, his father, Merrill Sr., passed away leaving the three children without parents.
The three children came to live with their grandparents, Hollan and Jane, on the family farm. Unfortunately, Jane passed away in 1898, leaving Hollan in charge of the children. Mable Slingerland, born in 1882, continued to live with her grandfather ager reaching adulthood. In 1902 Mabel married Clair Strickland, whose family lived and managed a grocery store in Warners. For many years, before and after her marriage, Clair was very active in this grocery business.
Because of Hollan'a advanced age, Mabel and Clair lived on the farm, looking after Hollan's interests until his death. Hollan passed away in 1925 at age 96. He and his wife Jane are buried in Belle Isle. Clair and Mable had four children, Gladys, born in 1903; Gerald, born in 1905; Alice, born in 1909; and Helen, born in 1913.
Mable Strickland was probably one of the most active women in the town of Camillus. She was a strong Republican, active, not only locally, but in county and state as well. She also represented the Farm Bureau, Home Bureau, and 4-H clubs at state meetings.
In 1846 Carrier Corporation purchased the McCracken farm as part of a future manufacturing plant. This plan did not develop since the former General Electric plant on Thompson Road in East Syracuse became available to Carrier.
With the passing of the farm out of the family, son Gerald built a home for his parents, Clair and Mable, at Onondaga Hill. In 1962, Clair passed away with Mable passing away in 1972 at age 90. They are buried in Memorial Park Cemetery.
In 1971 Frank and Sheila Quick purchased the farm house, barn, and approximately one acre of land. The larger portion of the farm has since been developed into housing. Although Frank Quick passed away several years ago, Sheila has to be complimented in continuing the work that has been done in keeping this fine landmark in the excellent condition that it is in. The town of Camillus can point proudly to this home and what it represents as part of past history.
 
Camillus Historical Society collection
Note: The late Ralph Sims was a founding member of the Town of Camillus Historical Society. He credited Alice Keller and Alice Strickland Nutting for information used in this article.
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Justus Newell House in Cardiff
 
This house at 2303 Route 11A, Cardiff, was built by Justus Newell (1807-1885) who came from a large family residing in the vicinity of Cardiff. He purchased 20 acres where this stands, in April, 1843. The house was built about 1845. It was sold to William Spencer in November, 1850. It was built of field cobbles. Newell moved to Syracuse where he became a prominent businessman. There he built the first cement block house which still stands. (See below). A later owner, William Stearns, restored the cobblestone house in the 1930s.
The Deep Greek Roots of Cobblestone Construction
By David Hanna, PhD
The cobblestone house in Cardiff is somewhat unusual in that it carries not only the usual sill with its band of cut stones providing a solid flat base over the foundation on which to build a square and level house, but also a solid cut stone band at mid-point up the wall above the windows, and again, partially, above the second floor windows as well.
As a technique, placing a course of cut stones around each level of a building goes back to structural techniques in ancient Greece (the ancient Egyptians and Babylonians used a different technique, preferring instead walls leaning inward). It is called a "string course". It adds considerable structural strength to a structure by tying it together at each level with a band of heavy cut stones. In modern architecture, we typically place a band of steel beams around each floor of a high-rise structure; same idea, But those incredible mathematical Greeks thought of it first.
Still, it is rare in housing architecture because typically these structures are small and don't require the added strength it brings. The builder of this house understood the technique and wanted to make sure this structure stood firm forever. Think of how difficult this is, given the manual building techniques of house construction of the day, hoisting up such large sections of cut stone with pulleys, block & tackle. In contrast, mortaring together a bunch of small cobblestones row by row, working from flimsy scaffolding, is a cinch.
Stylistically, the house is Early Greek Revival, not Federal or Neo-Classical, given its Greek temple-front orientation together with its plain flat detailing, as opposed to the fine carved mouldings typical of the previous Neo-Classical phase. The heavy coffered door, while probably new, is perfect for the house, being totally Greek in style.
One last link with the past, although nobody would have been aware of this in 19th century upstate New York, is that ancient Greek houses some 2500 years ago, employed small fist-sized rubblestone wall construction quite similar to, though less organized than the cobblestone technique. All ancient Greek houses had a pebbly stone exterior framed in cut stone much like our cobblestone houses (but with a simple sloped clay tile roof, not the neat temple-style roof our houses carry).
The seafaring Greeks (mainly the Athenian Empire) spread the technique all over the ancient World from the Black Sea (future Russia and Turkey) to the western Mediterranean (future Italy, France and Spain) through their many coastal colonies, well before the Romans came along. Once planted throughout Europe, the technique spread north through Germany and into England, mostly due to the later Roman Empire. These techniques survived the collapse of these empires by being transmitted from builder to builder over the centuries.
Organizing the cobblestones in neat rows is a refinement introduced by medieval England in the south-east and north-west of England around 1300 at the height of medieval prosperity. Cobblestone masons in New York (many of them, we suspect, hailing from England) carried the refinement even further such that upstate New York represents the ultimate expression in cobblestone building.
It is always amazing how ideas are carried and transmitted through time by simple builders just doing what their forbears did, while introducing little refinements along the way. It is probably safe to say that an ancient Greek builder from Athens around 500 B.C., if teleported to this house today, would actually recognize both the style and structural method, while being impressed at the surface treatment of the cobblestones.
Justus Newell, who built the cobblestone house in Cardiff, built this Italianate-style house in 1872 at what is now 1622 South Salina Street. This was the first house built in Syracuse with an early form of concrete blocks devised by Newell, having learned the process of mixing and forming cement to produce building blocks. He owned a nearby sand and gravel bed.
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Esop Kinne house in Eastwood
  Esop Kinne, a local farmer, built this house at what is now 1832 James St. It has been greatly altered from its original appearance with a second story added in the 1890s. It is now an apartment house.  _______
Bert Farm Stone Barn
 Partial cobblestone barn stands at the rear of 6268 Randall Road, DeWitt, opposite Christian Brothers Academy. The Berts were a prominent local family.  This is the same barn before siding was applied. Photo by Glenn Hinchey 
This Greek Revival house 112 Old Stone Road off Nottingham Road in DeWitt, was built in 1848-49 by Adam Ainslie (also spelled “Ainsley”) who had an extensive farm operation here. It was later known as the Thomas Alexander farm. Stone is said to have been gathered from what is now Kirk Park in Syracuse. The mortar came from two local lime kilns.
Ainsley’s father, John, began buying land in that part of the town as well as in Manlius in 1806. Between then and 1832 he made five land purchases and the farm grew to 600 acres. This property is in the vicinity of what was known as Ram’s Gulch, named for a hydraulic ram used to pump water from a nearby brook to the house.Adam Ainslie sold the farm in 1876 to Alfred A. Howlett and Hiram Kingsley. Later Kingsley bought Howlett out. His daughter, Mrs. Damon D. Ormsby, later became owner of the farm. Edwin and William Nottingham purchased it in 1911. Thomas Alexander purchased it in 1920 from Nottingham Farms, Inc. In the late 1960s it was feared the house would be in the way of the proposed Route 481. But that did not occur. But during actual construction some minor damaged to the house occurred during blasting for the highway. The cobblestone work on this house is some of the finest to be found anywhere, using the tiniest of cobbles in neatly laid rows. The Greek Revival styling is also very fine, right down to the very elegant Ionic columns framing the entrance.    
Smokehouse on the old Blaney farm, 1031 Apulia Road, Fabius. Initials inside read:“W.B.,D.B.,1887.”Webster Blaney was the builder.
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Cobblestone Schoolhouse on Collamer Road
This is the old DeWitt District #3 cobblestone school house at 6541 Route 298 in Collamer between Shuler and Loucks roads. It dates from the 1840s and is not readily visible due to a later wooden frame classroom addition on the front facing the highway. It was closed about 1954 when it was consolidated with Courtview School.
It is believed it was the last functioning cobblestone schoolhouse in Onondaga county. For awhile it housed Simon Parise Post 9596, Veterns of Foreign Wars, as well as a meeting place for the local Boy and Girl Scout groups. An auction was ordered by the New York State Education Department which was held on July 12, 1958. The highest bidder was 1055 James St. Inc., a real estate company, for $5,950. Since then it has been a private dwelling.
Facing east
 Facing west 
Facing north
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Cobblestone smokehouse at 215 East Main St., Elbridge
The Squire M. Brown barn, 1133 Route 5, Elbridge, was built about 1850. For many years it has been a garden center. Brown settled in Elbridge in 1816 and was supervisor for several years. He also served in the New York State Legislature and was a very active in public life. Brown was a prosperous farmer and for several years was president of the Onondaga County Agricultural Society. He died in 1864.
The receiving vault at Elbridge Rural Cemetery, Route 5, east of village of Elbridge, was built in 1879 - long after traditional cobblestone construction had ceased. It was once known as the “Campbell Vault.”
 
The Greek Revival Alexander Hamilton Allen house, 2891 Oran-Delphi Road, Pompey, was built about 1847. Allen (1805-1875) lived there until 1866 when he moved to Syracuse. The Allen family owned the farm from 1793 to 1866. It is the only cobblestone house in the Town of Pompey. It presents an unusually high standing Greek Revival styling, with a recessed umbrage entrance located in the one-story wing, a feature found on some cobblestone houses.
Kitchen facing south
Allen house in 1911. (Photo courtesy of J. Roy Dodge)
Cobblestone milk house, built in 1915 by Byron Griffin at 1136 Berry Road, Apulia Station. This is now the William Casey farm in the town of Fabius.
The Jonathan Garrett house at 911 E. Molloy Road, Mattydale, was built ca. 1852. This house presents an unusual profile: somewhat Greek, yet with a Gothic pitch to the roof, all done rather crudely and since stripped of much of its ornamentation. Also it features red brick instead of stone quoins.
The Hoyt house, 6834 Buckley Road, Salina was built about 1852. Its long side facing as the front betrays a very traditional vernacular Neo-Classical form, despite its late date for that style. For many years it has been the office of the Melvin law firm. It is of Greek Revival design. The elaborate door frame was added later.
Jonathan P. Hicks built the National Hotel at 400 First St., corner of Tulip Street, in 1839. H.& W. Clark were the architects. They created it in an attractive Greek Revival mansion style with a large low hipped roof, large frieze with frieze windows. Modernization makeovers have added nothing to its original attractive appearance. These include the fake stone veneer, clapboard frieze, glass blocks and a neon sign which have greatly altered its original architectural integrity.
Liverpool Public Library collection
Liverpool Public Library collection
The Greek Revival style Jonathan P. Hicks mansion at 609 Vine St., Liverpool, is one of the most impressive cobblestone houses in Onondaga County. It was built about 1854. Note the unequal spacing of the columns on the two-story portico. Hicks also built the nearby Cobblestone Hotel. Note the somewhat awkward unequal spacing of the columns on the two-story portico. The Ionic columns are all the more unusual in that the ram’s horns on the capitals are oversized and the fluted columns flare out toward the bottom.
Detail of Greek revival doorway on Hicks house.
Receiving vault at Cicero Center Cemetery, at rear of house at 602 Route 31. Built in 1859 by Nathan Whiting. These were used to store caskets during the winter months for spring burial.
  Close up view of the receiving vault showing courses of different sized cobblestones. The builder started with very small small stones, then perhaps decided to hurry the project along by using larger ones. Roof is made of large slabs of slate. 
Date stone over door of vault.
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The Seth Spencer house at 7023 Route 298, near Shepp’s Corners, East Syracuse, is of Greek Revival style. It was built prior to 1852 and has a large wood frame addition built in the 1890’s.
     
Farmer Michael Hutchins, who came to what is now Fayetteville in 1818, moved to the site of this off North Manlius Street and built this cobblestone house prior to 1850. It is of Greek Revival architecture and was known as “Stone Cottage.” Although the address is 5498 James St., it faces North Manlius St., also known as Route 257. At the time it was built it overlooked the Fayetteville feeder of the Erie Canal. The house, out buildings and grounds are immaculately maintained. Originally there was a small frame house on the site on to which the cobblestone portion was added.
Syracuse Post-Standard March 3, 1976 Old House Leads Owners into The Past By Ramona B. Bowden To enter the cobblestone house on the corner of N. Manlius and James streets, Fayetteville, is a step into tranquility. Under the skilled hands of Mrs. Virginia Denton, architectural designer for Syracuse University, and Antje B. Lemke, professor of informational studies at SU, the nearly 150-year-old house has been rescued from the gnawing ravages of time and weather. Over the years, the house has passed through many hands which imposed the dignity of comforting modernization or the slovenliness of neglect. Now it is experiencing a renaissance and is gratefully reflecting the spirit of its new owners. Built by Michael Hutchins, a prosperous farmer and businessman, it is the only one of its kind in Fayetteville. Despite the predominance of limestone rocks and ledges in this area, in some sections cobblestones abound, making arable land difficult to cultivate. Many a man, now in rocking chair retirement, can recall his boyhood job of picking up stones, measuring their size by dropping them through holes cut in boards or through a “beetle ring.” When Hutchins first acquired the farm, it had a small wooden structure built about 1810. As he became more prosperous, he decided to build a large, more commodious residence to escape the noises of traffic. The Erie Canal had been opened in 1825. Stone masons had come from New England and Pennsylvania to work in the canal building, and they used their craft either for themselves as they settled near the canal or found a ready market unbuilding houses for farmers. So, from Albany to Buffalo there is a wide swath of cobblestone houses, built with the sturdiness and style that remain to grace the land. Many had “witches’ screens” built into the attic as guards against predatory spirits. Prof. Lemke and Mrs. Denton, women of perception and taste, were quick to see the charm of the house and its possibility for restoration, so they purchased it. Stone houses have certain traits in common, even though they were built in different styles, ranging from traditional American rural to Greek Revival. Among these common traits are the granite quoins (large stone blocks used to form the corners), deep-set windows indicative of two-foot-thick walls, circular staircases and door and window moldings of special design. The carpenter, competing with the stone mason, insisted that he determine the style of the inside trim. His contract usually specified that each room have a different moulding pattern, according to historical record. “When we moved into the cobblestone house, at Thanksgiving time in 1969, we planned to restore it over a period of years,” Prof. Lemke said. “We did not have any preconceived picture of 19th century farm houses, but rather decided to let the house lead us into the past,” she continued. “Thus, Mrs. Denton began with great care to peel of layer after layer of superimposed material to find the original structure. “We discovered that under the wallpaper and plaster in the dining room , the original doo between this room and the kitchen had been closed, with a new door cut closer to the fireplace, The opening is now in its first location, using the original jam and casing. Examples of original mouldings have survived, giving a pattern for new ones, Prof. Lemke said, adding that many were cut by hand to match the old ones. The maple flooring was removed to reveal the choice, sideboard floors so characterizing of early farm houses. As the two women excavated, many interesting relics have come to light, such as early hand-stenciled wallpaper and a fragment of the 1815 Albany atlas taken from one wall. Also found was scrap of a Boston newspaper in which Mayor Bigelow denounced the newspaper’s reporting his conversation at the Revere House with Jenny Lind, P. T. Barnum’s Nightingale. Under the tireless hands of Mrs. Denton and Prof. Lemke, he house is practically finished. Who says women can’t use hammers and saws? “He who loves an old house never loves in vain. How can an old house, used to sun and rain, To lilacs and larkspur and an elm tree above, Ever fail to answer the heart that gives it love?” 
This house at 1408 (originally 373) Spring St., Syracuse, is believed to have been built between 1839 and 1845 by Nelson and Betsy Phillips. In 1845 it was sold to Elizur Clark, a local entrepreneur. who came to Salina in 1823. He was involved in many businesses including banking to operating sawmills.
Clark participated in the California Gold Rush as well as the Nicaragua Transit Co., predecessor of the Panama Canal. It was later the home to who may have been his son, William G. Clark, a grocer and salt manufacturer. It was built at the time this area was in the village of Salina.
 While the overall styling is an Italian Villa of the 1870s, with its huge brackets and overhanging low hipped roof, the original cobblestone house was probably designed as a Greek Revival mansion, similar in style to the National Hotel in Salina. Unfortunately it fell on evil times and the original porch and cupola were removed. Tully This small cobblestone Greek Revival house at 26 and 30 State St. in Tully was built in 1835 by M.T. Tolman. By 1860 it was owned by Ebenezer Bryant; and by C.A. Hodge in 1874. In the 1870s it was a boarding house. Later owners included Carrie Gallinger and the Rev. Timothy Willis. Over the years it has been extremely altered. It served as the school library, tea room and antique shop. Wings flanking on each side were later additions. It has two unusual features: the round oculus in the gable, and the brick sill course at the foundation level.     Residence of C.A. Hodge in 1878. Tully Area Historical Society collection  Same house looking north on State Street, Tully.
Tully Area Historical Society collection
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The Greek Revival Daniel Peck house at 5142 Peck Road, DeWitt, was built of field cobblestones in the 1840s. It has been extensively remodeled over the years. The Greek detailing is modest but the triangular attic vent is a typical signature detail. Noticeable changes have been made since this photo was taken.
Photo by Glenn Hinchey  
Like many cobblestone houses the walls are two feet thick. The slender cornice profile is decidedly Neo-Classical, not Greek. The side wing also features many later add-ons, such as the Colonial Revival dormers, the solarium entrance, and the side-wall bay window.
Date stone near right corner Bostwick house
The stuccoed cobblestone workshop at rear was once used as a bee house with hives inside. Later it was Herbert Rand’s workshop where he built grandfather clocks.
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Oliver Bostwick moved to Onondaga Valley when the Onondaga Reservation opened up. He bought a portion of “Webster’s Mile Square" from the Ephraim Webster estate. While Nathaniel, Oliver’s son, did most of the work, the Bostwick family lived in a stone dwelling which is now part of the back of the house.
Working from the plans of an itinerant architect from Ohio, the Bostwick home was begun about 1838 and completed in 1840. A house on Delphi Falls Road near Route 20, is of similar design and construction and is believed to have been designed by the same architect. Cobblestones for the house came from surrounding fields. A foundation was laid of local stone, with a dirt floor and a root cellar,
as a base for the house. The walls were two feet thick and there were 20 rooms in the main house. A cornerstone was laid at the right side of the door bearing the construction date.
Building a cobblestone house was challenging as Herbert Rand, a later owner, discovered when there was a moderate earthquake in the Valley during the 1930’s. Stones fell from the back of the house. He said he decided to replace them himself. He tried different mortars and spent an entire summer replacing the fallen stones. He found that he could lay no more than three rows at a time, then had to wait for that to set, or all his work would fall down.
The house was built with a kitchen area that included a large fireplace for cooking and heating. A room off the kitchen had no windows and was used as a cold room, with shelves to raise the cream.
There were several outer buildings on the property - a chicken coop, a small house later used by Rand as a workshop, and a large barn that still stands behind the house with a later addition to it. There was also once a cobblestone barn between the house and the pond. Since this was a working farm, there
were mangers and stanchions for the horses and cattle. The hay to feed them was raised on some of the 100 acres which comprised the property.
The farm passed down in the Bostwick family to Mr. and Mrs. Sanford Clark, the last relatives of the Bostwicks to farm the land. During their ownership the property was maintained with the help of work crews from the Onondaga Reservation. There were working fountains in the yard, which were pumped from the nearby hillside in back. There were also beautiful formal gardens and a trimmed lawn. The farm produced feed for the animals, as well as melons and berries.
When her husband died, Mrs. Clark lived alone in the house until she died in 1922. Then it was purchased by Rand, who taught music at Syracuse University and played with the Syracuse Symphony. He taught violin and viola and Mrs. Rand taught piano. During the summer the Rands would travel with a group that entertained at vacation resorts.
For several years the farm was tended by a tenant farmer who lived in the Ephraim Webster house on the Rand property. Since the house had no running water, the family drew their water from Kimber Brook which ran though the property. After several years the cows belonging to the tenant farmer were found to be tubercular and the herd and that operation came to an end.
During the 1920’s, the Rands, like many others, thought that boom times would last forever. Rand planned to subdivide the land no longer being farmed and filed plans for this with the city. Maps were printed with mythical lots on mythical streets. When the Depression struck, Rand was taxed for his mythical development called the “Rand Tract” but was unable to pay. He lost the land to the city, leaving him only the house and about two surrounding acres.
Times were hard so Rand altered the house into three apartments. Sometimes the three families shared a meal when there wasn’t enough food for all. Rand had a friend who knew some bootleggers who a spot for a really big still and bootlegging operation. The barn seemed ideal, and they cut a hole in the floor and built chimney through the roof. Sometimes they would stoke up the fire until it was so hot
flames would come from the roof and the people on the next street would call the fire department. The large still ran for several years without any interference from authorities.
When the bootleggers learned they were going to be raided, they took all the two gallon tins of alcohol and the alcohol with gin flavoring added, (bottled as “Golden Wedding Gin,") and put them in the cellar of the Rand house. When the Treasury agents raided and found only the still they were so angry that they chopped down the still, cow stanchions, mangers and stalls in a fit of rage. When the Depression began to ease, Rand rented the barn to a man who tried to raise riding horses and gave hayrides as a sideline.
Pat Rand Brooks, daughter of Mr. Rand who inherited the house after he died, said that the story of farm machinery winding up at the bottom of Webster Pond and the tale that the pond suddenly appeared overnight, were untrue. She claimed that there had been no farming on that land since 1928 and the water appeared long after that date. The pond was formed when a nearby creek silted up. However, there may have been some equipment used with the horses that was left around and was covered with water.
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    This is the old Gifford farm house with a cobblestone foundation at 5731 Thompson Road in the town of DeWitt. The architecture features of this house would indicate it was built in the 1830s.  House with cobblestone foundation at 6679 Route 31, Cicero.
Extinct Onondaga County Cobblestone Buildings
This Gothic cottage style cobblestone house at 1024 Court Street, Syracuse was built about 1852 by Elijah Clark, a local farmer and city property assessor. In 1864 the house and the chapel attached on the right were part of a property sale to the Sisters of the Third Order St. Francis for $7,500. and became the first St. Anthony Motherhouse and chapel. The Sisters replaced the chapel with a larger one in 1879 and demolished Clark’s cobblestone house in 1896, using the leftover stones to erect a stable and barn which was demolished in 1959. The Sisters are known locally for operating Maria Regina College, an outgrowth of their Sisters’ Teacher Training/Normal School which they had established in 1905 on Court Street. Clark was born in the town of Onondaga in 1803 and later served as a trustee for the Village of Salina and as a property assessor for the City of Syracuse. He died in East Syracuse in April 1889.
During leadership meetings held in May and November 1864, the Sisters voted to buy “…new pews for the chapel of St. Anthony Convent”. The Sisters had only just moved into the house on June 13 186. There is proof in other meetings that they had already over-extended their finances on property purchases and jumpstarting ministries, so it seems unlikely that they could also afford to build a brick chapel interiors that also seem to support this theory.
 Note how in the suspected 1864-1878 chapel there are windows on only one side of the chapel, which is consistent with how the chapel appears to be attached to the cobblestone house in the 1864-1878 photo. Then note how in the 1879 chapel there are windows on both sides. That chapel wasn't attached to any structure, because when the cobblestone house was demolished in 1896, it would have suffered structural damage (which it didn't). Congregational Archive, Sisters of St. Francis Syracuse, N.Y. Collection. www.sosf.org.
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The Jerome Briggs House
[Information and photos from: The Greek Revival in Syracuse - An historical survey and analytical study of the architectural developments in Syracuse, New York, between the years 1820 and 1855. by Leslie O. Merrill Jr. - Thesis for a degree in Bachelor of Fine Arts in Interior Decoration (Syracuse University) April 15, 1943.]     The stately Jerome L. Briggs house at 100 1/2 Buckley Road, Liverpool stood on a knoll east of the Will & Baumer Candle factory. It was built in 1840 and demolished prior to 1975. Briggs was a District Attorney 1836-1841.
Above the shores of Onondaga Lake sprawls the most outstanding product of the Greek Revival in Syracuse. Lacking but five columns to gain a completely encircling colonnade, this house is technically the extent reached by the classic spirit, its 18 columns the closest approach to the ideal temple form
Jerome Briggs was a district attorney who built this house of native cobblestones in 1840 and here died in 1865. The hand-carved winding stairway and the fireplaces in each room are worthy of mention but it is, of course, the exterior that deserves most attention.
With difficulty the colonnade is disregarded to note the typical small attic windows which were probably at one time closed with grilles, the platform on the roof, and the doorway pilasters with their delicate anthemion carvings.
The most obvious inconsistency lies in the failure of the roof to extend to the extremes of the colonnade as they should in the true temple form. This is rather a roofed walk built around an inner structure. The builder must however be admired for his forthrightness in lowering the colonnade and thereby introducing second story windows to their share of light.
Jerome J. Briggs was born in Adams, Mass. on February 25, 1806. When nine years old the family moved to Schoharie where he received his early education. He then attended Hamilton College in Clinton and graduated with honors. He then commenced reading law in Utica. He completed his law studies with attorney John G. Forbes of Salina. He was appointed Onondaga County District Attorney in 1834. After about eight or 10 years he discontinued practicing law and built the large cobblestone house at Green Point and became involved in salt manufacturing and farming.
In 1852 he was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention that nominated Franklin Pierce as President. In 1853 he lost the nomination for the post of superintendent of the Onondaga Salt Springs. He died August 7, 1865 at his home and is buried at Onondaga Hill Cemetery. He married Charlotte, daughter of Hezekiah Strong of Onondaga. They had two sons, Jerome B. and Thomas Briggs and a daughter, Mary E., who married Thomas D. Newcomb.
Syracuse Post-Standard, September 24, 1930
Landmark Overlooking Lake Hemmed in by Factories
Vista Disappearing
Encroaching Industries Shot off
View from Old Home
Above Onondaga
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Bit by bit the beautiful vista once had from the pillared veranda of the cobblestone house just east of the junction of Buckley and Liverpool roads has been going as industry advanced and factory buildings encroached on the former salt lands shutting out the view of Onondaga lake.
"But we can still see the hills across the lake," was the optimistic comment of Mrs. Peter Egloff, who has lived in the house since 1907. The Will & Baumer company has owned the property since 1904.
The house attracts attention. The main part is of cobblestone, although there is a large brick addition in the rear. On three sides of the house is the pillared veranda. There is a hand-carved winding stairway, fireplaces in several of the rooms and all the ear-marks of early architecture and the prosperity of the man for whom it was built.
Jerome L. Briggs was district attorney from 1836 to 1841. He built it. He acquired the land from the state in 1835, with an addition of many more acres in 1842. His father, Olney Briggs, was born in Cheshire, Mass., January 8, 1780, and died at Esperance, Schoharie county August 16, 1856. He was appointed to the county bench in 1816, and served 16 years. His son followed in the same profession, came to Syracuse and died in the cobblestone house in 1865.
Simon Stevens acquired the house and the acres around it December 1, 1865, from the Briggs heirs. Simon Stevens' daughter, Florence, married Robert Young, on March 26, 1869. Young purchased the property from the Stevens estate after Simon Stevens' death for $50,000.
Robert Young's daughter, Florence Louise Young, born in the house, is the widow of Edward I. Rice. The cobblestone house was her girlhood home. Robert Young died April 7, 1901, when he was 74 years old.
The house went with the acreage purchased by the Will & Baumer Candle Company on March 1, 1904. The Will & Baumer plant on West Jefferson street, on the west side of Onondaga creek, was burned September 11, 1901, and after that fire the company moved its factory to Greenploint, as it was known, junction of the Liverpool and Buckley roads, where the was a tollgate and where Nate Sawmiller had his coal yard in those days. The cobblestone house is in back of the candle factory.
Old Milk House in Van Buren
This is the old cobblestone milk house on the Albert Howe farm on Sheet Road south of Hoag Road in the Town of Van Buren near Memphis. Children are Fred, Mary and Hannah Hoag. Women are unidentified.
Shacksboro Schoolhouse Museum collection
Photographed at the same location with their “bicycle built for two” were, from left, Fred, Hanna and Emily Sears.
Shacksboro Schoolhouse Museum collection
Randall House, North Syracuse   
The Isaac Randall cobblestone house at 445 Church Street in North Syracuse was built in 1856. Cobblestones were hauled from the shoreline of Lake Ontario to the site by oxcarts. H. Crofford and H. Sherwood were the builders according to the date stone. Bellwood Baptist Church eventually acquired the property and used the house for religious classes. It was demolished in 2011 following a fire and a new church was built on the site. Last photo as it appeared in 1962.
Photos taken in 1992 by Glenn Hinchey
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George Washington Cobblestone School in Cicero
Records show in December 1840 the decision was made by the trustees of School District 8 in Cicero to build a new school house at the corner of what is now Pine Grove and Thompson Roads. This would be known as George Washington School. The district covered a territory of 2,378-acres. A quarter of an acre was purchased from Andrew Abbey for $45.
The school house measured 22 by 26 feet and a wood house measuring 10 by 12 feet. The trustees decided to build it of cobblestone as it would be as cheap but more durable than a wooden one. The new school house was completed and opened by the end of 1842. The date stone also contained the names of the trustees - T. Loomis, J. Mead, D. Smith, and “W.A.C. and ‘J.T.” as the builders.
Box seats were used, fastened to the floor. The entrance way was a hobnail door four inches thick. The stove was placed in the center of the room. In his 1899 book, Light Among the Shadows, the Rev. Almiron Smith, a blind evangelist minister, recalled he was a very good speller. Several schools would compete in spelling matches. He wrote: I never failed but once of taking a prize in that school when one was offered.” Later he returned as a teacher and recalled using the Bible as a textbook.
  
Cobblestone District No. 8, "George Washington" School, built 1842. It was on the north side of Grove Road at Thompson Road in Cicero. It was torn down and replaced by a wood frame school house (below) in 1915. Actual address is 7863 Thompson Road. It is now a private home. Old photos from collection of Thomas Mafrici of Cicero.
Blacksmith Shop in Tully
Andrew Strail's blacksmith Shop, on the west side of North Street, Tully was built about 1852. From left are George Brier Jr., Clarence White and George Brier Sr. Picture taken circa 1905-06.
Tully Area Historical Society collection
This blacksmith shop was once owned by Grazier G. Dean who was also a veterinarian. He is shown here holding the reins of a nicely groomed horse. Photo was taken in 1894. Years later the building used for automotive purposes and was demolished in 1954. It was replaced by a cinder block building which was also later razed.
Tully Area Historical Society collection
The Sidney Smith house, (also known as the Dietz house) was located on the west side of Lake Road, Tully. It built in in 1846 and burned on July 29, 1933. Limestone was used for the lintels and quoins. They were quarried at Onondaga Valley and hauled to the site. Smith’s name and the date, 1846, were carved on the date stone.
This house was similar to the Justice Newell house still standing on Route 11a in Cardiff. It had continuous bands of limestone that formed the lintels over the windows and door. Smith and his wife, Dolly, lived there there for many years. The property passed through several owners before it was purchased by E.G. Dietz in 1927. On the afternoon of Saturday, July 29, 1933, hay in the large barn behind the house caught fire from spontaneous combustion. The barn was quickly engulfed in flames and was gone within 15 minutes. The wind spread flames to an adjacent building and the roof and back wing of the cobblestone house. The heat was so intense and the fire spread so rapidly that all the buildings were lost. Some antique furniture in the house was saved, but much of it was destroyed.
Tully Area Historical Society collection
This was District 14 School on Pompey Hollow Road, south of 2nd East Road, Oran. It was built by 1855 and later used as a garage.
  The old cobblestone school house on Pompey Hollow Road in 1976 
The Patrick Molloy house, at the southwest corner of Town Line Road, Mattydale, was built in 1850 and burned in July, 1954. It was taken for the air base in 1942 and used by the military. From an old newspaper clipping.
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Others also gone
Norman Morehouse house, Morgan Road, east side, just south of the Clay line. Burned April 10, 1894.
Rufus Stanton house, East Genesee Street, east of Allen Street, Syracuse. Built by 1855. Demolished before 1920.
Merriman house, Vine Street, Liverpool, It was demolished when Electronics Park was developed, about 1955.
Isaac Randall house, 445 Church St, North Syracuse. Built 1856 by H. Crofford & H. Sherwood (according to date stone). The Bellwood Baptist Church was built to the east side of the house, attached to it. After a car accident and fire destroyed the sanctuary, both buildings were demolished in 2011 to build the new church.
Original Stone Arabia School, north side of Route 31, west of Whiting Road, Cicero Center. Built ca. 1854. Demolished for a new school that serves as Cicero Historical Society museum.
Mills house, north side of Route 370, east of Fenner Road, Baldwinsville. Demolished.
B. Davis Noxon house, Buckley Road, Liverpool, west side, south of 7th North St, Built by 1852, Demolished circa 1961.
Milk house, Harrington farm, Sheets road, Memphis, collapsed
Jabez Hawley house, 316 Pearl St. (formerly 49 Pearl St), Syracuse. It was destroyed by a 3 a.m. fire on August 27,1856. It was apparently rebuilt/repaired. It operated as "McCaw's Cobblestone Inn", a saloon, in 1916, but was torn down by 1924 for the addition to the Nettleton Building.
Oswego Bitters School (Camillus Schoolhouse # 1), northeast corner of Bennett's Corners and Bitters Roads. It was replaced by a wood frame school, across the road, c. 1865.
A lengthy article in the Baldwinsville Gazette and Farmers’ Journal on February 7, 1918 entitled “On the Edgewood Road” states: “And then there was the old Cobblestone schoolhouse, on the corner of Edgewood road and the thoroughfare that leads from ‘the Kingdom’ past the Loverage place and the Brooks place…”
This was known as "the stone pile school". Edgewood Road is now called Connor Road. The 'thoroughfare' (also known as Bangall Road in the 19th century), is now called West Dead Creek Road. The school stood on the southwest corner and was replaced with a wooden building prior to 1920. The wooden school still stands and is a residence. The school served residents of "The Kingdom", as it is still called today. The last school was closed in 1955 and sold as a private residence.
J.W. Pennock house, East Genesee Street near Allen Street, demolished.
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King house, 310 Willow St. (possibly 68 Willow before renumbering), Syracuse. It stood next to (west side) the old Prescott School. Built prior to 1851. It was purchased by Dr. James Douglas from Ambrose McGuire. The city of Syracuse purchased it in 1911 and the following year it was demolished to make way for
a playground adjacent to the then new school.
Cobblestone Society collection
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Wednesday, March 7, 2018
Cobblestone Buildings in Onondaga County
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