Cobblestone Buildings of North America: Cobblestone Buildings in Monroe County

Cobblestone house at 357 Gallup Road, Town of Sweden

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Lockwood-Alhart House

(Last cobblestone house in the city of Rochester)

Carl Schmidt collection, SUNY-Geneseo

Built about 1835 by Roswell Lockwood, this house at 1090 Culver Road is the only surviving cobblestone structure in the city of Rochester. The mason was Alonzo Bradley. It is built of fieldstones of various shapes and sizes. It is believed Bradley also built the similar McDonald House that once stood nearby at the corner of Main Street East and Culver Road that was demolished in the late 1930's.

Originally located in the town of Brighton, this handsome residence was once surrounded by a 100-acre farm. By the early 1900s, the neighborhood has been annexed into the city and many new residential streets were created. By the late 1940s, the Alhart family had purchased the house and subsequently built a retail plaza next door. Later, the house was converted into apartments.

With its unique character and prominent location, this historic house is a major landmark in the Culver-Merchants-Beechwood area. The Landmark Society of Western New York feels its renovation could serve as an important catalyst for further revitalization in this historic neighborhood.

Alonzo Bradley’s obituary in the Monroe County Mail of Thursday, August 12, 1897, stated he died August 4 at his home in Avon at the age of 84. He had formerly lived in the towns of Irondequoit, Victor and Henrietta. He and his wife had one son, C.S. Bradley. “Mr. Bradley, in his younger days was a stone mason, and many of the houses in Monroe county known as cobble stone are the work of his hands. About 20 years ago the family moved to a large farm in Avon. Mr. Bradley married a second time, and his wife, son, and four grandchildren, survive him. The funeral was held at Mt. Hope chapel on Friday morning.”

Rochester Times Union

March 6, 1924

OLD ROCHESTER HOMES

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Lockwood House Fine Example of Cobblestone Work

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The house shown above, which still standing in Culver near Parsells avenue, was built about 1835 for Roswell Lockwood. It is one of the finest specimens of cobblestone construction in this part of the country and is believed to have been the work of a young man named Slo Enzo Bradley who built yo a reputation for his skill in this work, and who also built the Schank house at Culver road and Main street east,

In 1820 Roswell Lockwood bought a tract of nearly 100 acres extending from Hazelwood terrace on the north to a point some distance beyond the line of the present Glen Have railroad on the south and beyond the Merchants road on the east, The land was formerly owned by Eli and Betsy Stilson. Mr. Lockwood paid $1,200 for this tract.

The first building on the present site of the cobblestone house was a frame dwelling which was used as a wing when the stone house was built. There was also a long frame building added in the rear but all this wooden structure was removed some years ago and the cobblestone house with its hand-hewn stone insets at the corners now stands in all the dignity and beauty of its plain, straight lines.

The interior of the house shows a sturdy construction to match its exterior, the beams being hand-hewn from solid baulks of timber and the partitions being of unusual thickness.

In 1863 the property was sold by Mr. Lockwood to Henry D. Schank, youngest son of Hendrik V. Schank. It has now passed into other hands but still remains a very attractive and interesting landmark.

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Rochester Daily Union

October 22, 1949

Culver Rd. Structure Regarded as Fine Example of Old Art

A battered survivor of the golden Age of cobblestone architecture in upstate New York is this house at 1090 Culver Road in Rochester. It was once written: “It is its plain, simple dignity that makes each cobblestone house a tribute to man’s determination to form a beautiful and lasting homestead from materials at hand.”

The builder who painstakingly fashioned it 114 years ago couldn’t have been much prouder than are those who live in it today. Divided by a recently owner into a double, the house is tenanted on the left by Mr. and Mrs. William C. Wogast; on the right by Mr. and Mrs. G. Robert Alhart.

Mrs. Wolgast smooths the hand-hewn beams as other women m might handle an exquisite length of fabric. She never tires of admiring the airy flight of stairway, fire place, parlor windows and interior doors that make the inside a pattern of great beauty.

It is the exterior masonry, carpentry and joinery, however, that make the building one of the finest specimens of cobblestone construction in this part of the country.

Mrs. Wolgast, through a file of old clippings and records, has pieced together the history of the famous Lockwood house, built of smooth fist-size fieldstones, laid in horizontal rows. In 1820, according to Mrs. Wolgast, Roswell Lockwood bought a tract of almost 100 acres for $1,200. The tract extended from Hazelwood Terrace on the North to a point beyond the line of the Old Glen Haven Railroad on the south and beyond Merchants Road on the East.

The house was painstakingly fashioned by 1835. Whoever its builder was (It is thought to have been a young man named Alonzo Bradley) he was an artist in masonry. The hand-hew stone insets at the corners, the careful recessed joints, the beauty of form and texture of the old landmark still brings pause to passersby.

In 1863 Lockwood sole the property to Henry D. Schank. Since then it has passed through the hands of several others and now belongs to the Alhart Electric Co. The Alhart brothers have no immediate plans for use of the corner, considered a prize commercial location.

The house, in the Greek Revival style, is typical of the middle period of cobblestone architecture. Queried on why the dwelling so powerfully attracts her, Mr. Wolgast will refer you to the writing of the late Claude Bragdon, who she will tel you, said it better. Bragdon said of cobblestone architecture:

“Austere and humble as these buildings are, they show a beauty and integrity of a kind which made this country great, and should serve as an inspiration to us of today.”

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University of Rochester Memorial Art Gallery Archives

[From the Rochester Times Union, March 4, 1924, one in a series of features called "Old Rochester Homes]
The cobblestone house at the corner of Culver Road and Main Street East in Rochester was built in 1839 by Alonzo Bradley for Hendrick vanBrunt Schanck, eighth son of Captain John Schanck of Monmouth county, N.J., a soldier in the Revolutionary War.

The house was built of stones gathered on the farm and the timbers were all of oak, hand-hewn and fastened together with wooden pegs and with hand-forged nails. The cellar walls are three feet thick to give support for the massive superstructure. Both the original oak floors and the cobblestone walls are in perfect condition.

Mr. Bradley, the builder, was noted for his skill in cobblestone construction and he also built, in 1844, the cobblestone schoolhouse farther north on Culver road. This building was torn down a few years ago. Mr. Bradley married a daughter of Mr. Schanck.

The Schanck house was built in the center of the east line of the farm which extended north to the present lines of the Glen Haven trolley line and south nearly to the New York Central Railroad. Mr. Schanck made a trip to New Jersey in 1839 and brought back a load of young peach trees, which were the first to be planted in this vicinity and he also planted a large cherry orchard.

The house was occupied for some time by Chester Dewey Url Hobbie, a grandson of Hendrick Dewey Urr Hobbie, and is now owned by Captain John P. McDonald of the Rochester police department.
[Note: Int is believed it was demolished in the late 1930s and a gas station was built on the site.]

Brighton

64 Cheswell Way, Brighton

The Rochester Times Union on June 5, 1915 reported that the old cobblestone school house on Culver Road near Bay Street was being razed to make room for the extension of Bay Street to Spencer Road. The building had been erected in 1844.

Chili

This house at 95 Sheffer Road was built about 1840.

The Sheffer family resided here for nearly a century.

Cobblestone House Still Sound as a Brick

[Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, May 2, 1962]

By Marilyn Rice

The Frederick R. Bean family at 95 Sheffer Road, Scottsville, live in a home that needs no air conditioning, soundproofing or repairs. The large cobblestone house has sen a comfortable home for about 130 years and undoubtedly would last another century without any changes.

The two-story cobblestone house was built for Peter Sheffer II in the early part of the 19th century, explained Mrs. Bean. The Beans bought the house 19 years ago and since have added oil heat, a mourn kitchen and a bay window but they have not changed the original plan of the house.

The wide board floors - hemlock downstairs and pine upstairs - are original as is most of the plaster throughout the house.

"You can't nail pictures up on these walls," remarked Mrs. Bean, as she pointed out the two-foot thick wall through the center of the house. The mortar and stone walls act as soundproofing ("You can't even hear the children practicing their instruments") and insulation ("The house is always cool in the summer").

"Plumbers and carpenters don't like to work in this house because the walls and floor are so thick," said Mrs. Bean.

Ceiling fixtures provide the light upstairs because of the difficulty in putting in wiring for electrical outlets. The floor boards, more than two inches thick, could be sanded for years without any damage.

The window sills throughout the house are 24 inches deep and the panes in the front windows are the original glass.

The floor plan of the home includes a living room at the left of the center entrance way with entertaining room for the children, (aged 14, 16, 19, 21) and a laundry room at the right.

A family room - dining room is across the middle of the house, with the kitchen at the back. Upstairs are four bedrooms, a bath and two storage rooms. The upstairs room at the back of the house has open handout beams in the ceiling covered with big nails that used to hold hams and vegetables for drying.

The only fireplace in the house is in the family room that was once the kitchen. The house had to be heated by some other means, explained Mrs. Bean, but no one is positive what was used. The dutch oven over the right of the old fireplace had been bricked up by former residents. A cupboard at the left may have been used as the pantry.

A bay window in the dining room was built after the Beans had the old wood dining room, once used for hired hands, ripped down.

This building at 22 West Buffalo Street in Churchville was originally a school house. It has had various uses over the years and now serves as a community center. It is known as the Raymond C. Adams Cobblestone Hall.

1000 Scottsville-Chili Road

1001 Scottsville-Chili Road

This house at 860 Ballantyne Road was built in 1845.

745 Ballantyne Road

286 Archer Road was possibly a carriage house or

blacksmith shop. It is now a garage.

61 Stuart Ave., Chili

1834 House is a Treasured Part of Chili’s Past, Present

[Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, March 17, 2016]

By Emily Morry

The handsome cobblestone residence at 61 Stuart Road in Chili was built for one of the town’s earliest residents, Joseph Sibley.

Though his name is perhaps not as well known locally as members of the Hiram Sibley line, Joseph Sibley nevertheless had a significant impact on the development of southwestern Monroe County.

Hailing from Sand Lake in Rensselaer County, Sibley relocated to western New York in 1804, when the area was still a veritable wilderness.

Initially settling in Rush, he later moved to Riga and was among the group of pioneers who cleared the forest that once flourished where the village of Churchville now stands.

In 1811, Sibley built a sawmill and a gristmill along Black Creek, which he managed for several years, taking a break to serve under Col. Philetus Swift in the War of 1812.

The following decade, the town of Chili was formed out of Riga, and Sibley was nominated as its first supervisor. He would later go on to become the area’s first county judge.

Seeking a residence that would befit his stature, the prosperous man of note commissioned an established stonemason from England named William Emmons.

Emmons constructed Sibley’s Federal-style mansion using fieldstones gathered on the property, completing the 4,300-square-foot estate in 1834.

The carefully crafted home featured three staircases and 13 rooms, including an upstairs kitchen, a dining room with floor-to-ceiling cabinets, and a generous living room enclosed by double doors.

In 1875, the elegant residence became home to the first of five generations of the Stuart family. Like Joseph Sibley, the Stuarts also made their mark on the local landscape, providing the name for the road on which the home currently stands. The last members of the Stuart line to occupy the house, Raymond and Edna, lived there well into old age.

As such, they unfortunately let the building languish. By the early 1990s, when both Stuarts died, the house was in complete disrepair. Holes peppered the roof, while rodents and other wildlife had taken up residence in the historic abode.

The home certainly qualified as a “fixer-upper” when Mary and Brian Dillenbeck came across it while house hunting in 1993. They purchased the residence, banking on the assistance of their home-improvement-savvy parents. It took six months of upgrading the structure, fixing leaks, and repairing the damage caused by the building’s erstwhile rodent residents to make the house a habitable home.

In the years since, the Dillenbecks have spent a considerable amount of time rehabilitating, renovating, and refurbishing their residence. The endeavor proved trying at times, but for the Dillenbecks, the end result was worth it. As Brian informed The New York Times in 2008, “It’s a shame when these places fall into disrepair. When they’re gone, they’re gone forever.”

Thanks to the Dillenbecks’ efforts, the 182-year-old house that once belonged to one of Monroe County’s pioneers remains a treasured part of Chili.

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Built in 1840, the cobblestone school on Rush-Lima Road at Sibleyville was used as a school until 1945. It then became the private residence of the Roy Hetzler family and was later sold to James Millikens.

Chili Cobblestone District #4, now a museum,

2525 Scottsville Road, Route 383.

Clarkson

7785 Ridge Road

3727 Redman Road

3567 Sweden Walker Road

7528 Ridge Road - old blacksmith shop

7816 Ridge Road, built 1837

Crowell House, 9626 Ridge Road, built in the 1830s.

House and smoke house, 9787 Ridge Road.

Allen House at 9787 Ridge Road was built in the 1830s.

Former school house, 9410 Ridge Road

Gadaway House, 9996 Ridge Road

2892 Sweden Walker Road

3255 Sweden Walker Road

Greece

978 North Greece Road

A Rare and Treasured Home in Greece

By Ernst Lamothe Jr

(From Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, February 20, 2014)

It's very difficult to find a cobblestone house in Greece. Their unique feature — the stones are used on the exterior, like siding — attracted Helen Brodie Pollok and Bill Pollok 60 years ago because there are only four of that style remaining in Greece.

"Whenever someone sees the house, they are amazed because it is so unique," Bill Pollok said of the property at 978 N. Greece Road. "My wife's parents bought the homestead during World War I, and she took it over during World War II, and we were in that house ever since. There are few houses like this, and we knew that."

The other three cobblestones in Greece are at 149 N. Greece Road, 543 Mill Road and 4350 W. Ridge Road.

The Pollok home is listed on the National and State Register of Historic Places and was the very first designated town landmark in 1998, said Gina DiBella, chairwoman of the town of Greece Historic Preservation Commission. It was the hard work of the Polloks, especially Helen, who brought awareness to the home. She purchased the property in 1946 after her father's death.

"My wife was always into history. She could talk about it for hours. She really wanted the home on the National Register listing before she passed away," said Pollok, 88. "When she died, I continued the work and requested that it be a local landmark. She lived in that home almost all her life, so I'm just happy we were able to get it done because I am so proud of this home."

Constructed in 1832 by William Covert, the home sits on almost 15 acres of land in the southwest quadrant of town. The Covert family were early settlers and farmers. The family of the late Helen Pollok, who also were farmers, purchased the home in 1914.

The construction involved laying cobbles in horizontal rows, bonded with limestone mortar. Cobblestones were shaped and deposited in the area after the Ice Age and were collected by settlers who were clearing land and preparing fields for planting, according to the Landmark Society of Western New York.

"Cobblestone construction is unique to the central and western New York area of the United States," said DiBella. "Ninety-eight percent of all cobblestone buildings in our country are found within a two-hour drive of Rochester.

"What is unique about the Covert-Brodie-Pollok House in particular is that it has been recognized both nationally and locally," said DiBella. "Bill Pollok applied for local landmark designation because he wanted to ensure that this property would be protected from demolition or inappropriate changes no matter who owned it in the future. Only local landmark designation can allow that form of protection."

DiBella said she is thankful for the foresight of the Polloks in wanting to protect the property and historic resources for centuries to come.

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149 North Greece Road and smoke house

Henry Joel Bagley (1851-1942) resided in this house 86 years.

Greece Post

December 24, 1970

The old cobblestone house on the hill

By William Aeberli

On an abrupt rise where Frisbee Hill Road meets North Greece Road, a 19th century cobblestone landmark stands as a reminder of a particular period in our rural past. The property’s elevation permits a lovely uninterrupted panorama of the wide, green plain below, leading the eye across the countryside to the Ridge and beyond to the horizon.

The old cobblestone farm house, more than 125 years of aging charm, is the home of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Hazen, 149 N. Greece Rd. Here on this site in 1845, one Edwin Davis patiently gathered, sorted and laid up a unique form of stone wall masonry and contributed, probably unwittingly, to the phenomenon of our Western New York cobblestone architecture.

ln 1856, Lucius Bagley purchased the house from Davis and brought his wife and three children from Kendall to settle and farm the surrounding 100~acre tract. Great grandfather Lucius’ descendants occupied the cobblestone house continuously for 97 years. Mrs. Rosella Bagley Flint, who lives next door at 141 N. Greece Rd., and her cousin, Harold Nellis, are responsible for the historical resources I am fortunate to be using.

Great grandfather Lucius had three children, twin sons Henry Joel and Hendrick, and a daughter, Lorraine. Henry Joel worked the farm and lived here until his death at the age of 90 in 1942. Grandfather Henry also had three children: two sons, Lucius and Fay, and a daughter, Ruby. Fay Bagley, born in the cobblestone house in 1882, was Roselle Bagley Flint‘s father. He built the

house she occupied next to her grandfather’s cobblestone dwelling.''

Daughter Ruby married Morton Nellis; they had two sons, Henry and Harold. Fay married Anna Rowley, having but one child, daughter Rosella. Lucius Bagley never married. Lucius Bagley was the custodian at Greece Town Hall for many years and was one of the first volunteers in the county to enlist in the U. S.Navy during World War 1, serving at Norfolk, Virginia, the battleship U.S.S. Iowa.

Grandfather Henry Joel was a Deacon and life~long member of First Baptist Church in Hilton.

Nellis told me his grandfather never missed a Sunday service, even when the mud was up to the hub caps of his buggy wheels. Henry Joel would often relate the tale of an old Civil War veteran by the name of John Stothard, who paid frequent calls at the cobblestone house. The old soldier was proud to tell one and all that he helped collect the cobblestones for Davis when a small boy many years before.

The original farm bordered line (now private residential property) and squared around to the woods in the west and back. There was an orchard below for years until 1922, when unrelenting subzero temperatures wiped out the trees. A. new orchard was planted on the hill - cherry and peach trees were added.

There were eight cows pastured and the farm grew beans, corn, wheat and hay. The barn in the rear of the property was destroyed by fire in 1968. Ironically, the barn had replaced previous one destroyed by flames years ago.

Nellis remarked that it was a standing tradition among the Bagley descendants to celebrate Christmas Day with grandfather Henry Joel at the old cobblestone farm house. He can still remember the traditional oyster bucket placed in a comer of the front porch in freezing weather to keep until supper time. Also, the times he would watch his grandfather salting and preparing bacon and hams

to hang in the cobblestone smokehouse that remains by the driveway today.

Little school children would come down from the school on Frisbee Hill with pails to fetch their drinking water from the pump by the front porch. Their teachers were often boarded at the cobblestone house during the school season.

After the death of Henry Joel Bagley in 1942, daughter Ruby and husband retuned to the cobblestone house to live. The Lane family purchased the old farm house in 1953-4 and lived here until the Hazens obtained the dwelling in 1958.

The cobblestone house on top of' the hill, one of the three remaining in the Town of Greece (the Christian Church on Latta Rd. was demolished) has not changed its appearance since 1845. The Hazens, charter members of the Cobblestone Society, added a west wing in 1961 to the rear of the two-story portion. The wing can be seen only from the south coming towards the property; the addition seems to enhance and add to the rustic appearance of the old stone walls.

The Hazens must be commended for their perseverance in tastefully preserving their historical home both to the exterior and interior portions. They fully realize their cobblestone dwelling is a never-to-be-duplicated architectural phenomenon; the deed to this house is also a deed to tangible history.

Cobblestone masonry began around 1825, blossomed during the 1840s and finalized during the Civil War years. Field stones and cobblestones (of various sizes and shapes) from farm land, creek beds, gravel pits and the lake shore were gathered and used as the material for laying up a new and specific kind of a wall; not merely for the foundation but the whole structure of a house or church.

Born of the mason’s mind, enhanced by his craftsmanship and ingenuity, a great share of his secrets went with him to the grave. Many people, such as the Hazens, are helping to preserve what remains of the old time mason’s genius. Peculiar to Western New York, many other cobblestone houses still dot the scenes of our countryside -- east and south of Rochester and along the Ridge Road (and side roads) into Orleans and Niagara counties to the west.

Space does not permit more than a short description of the exterior and interior renovations and additions of the Hazen house. Yet (as usual) it begins with the kitchen. The old wood shed area was not attached to the house but was always located within at the far end of the one story wing. There was an entrance way here and the old doorway and steps heading to the basement. This area is now the kitchen with all the modern conveniences, built-in oven, etc.

The old kitchen pantry are is now the dining room. A charming pre-colonial fireplace was erected with Dutch oven. The fireplace acts as the brick-walled separation between kitchen and dining room. The mantelpiece of the fireplace is a large hand-cut square timber removed from the attic.

A large bay window was added to the west rear wall permitting an unlimited amount of sunshine to bathe the dining area. The bay window was built over a stone foundation made from stones removed from the wall , it does not detract from the original wall on the exterior side.

The west rear walk was laid up with large fieldstone and flush mortar joints common to cobblestone masonry work. The smaller, selected stones are found on the sides of more intricate work on the front facing the road.

The exterior rear was allowed to remain exposed when building the west win addition, although the room is not flat but peaked. Also, the exterior wall was not plastered over from within, adding a rustic and natural effect to the first bedroom’s decor.

The Hazens enlarged their cellar area under the addition with outside entrance by means of a recessed door with steps covered with steel bulkhead. The casing of the old rear window was used for the shell of the doorway into the hallway to the two bedrooms and entrance to the cellar.

All the floors are the original 4” to 6” wide pine planks (many of the upstairs floor boards are 9”) and were sanded down completely and covered with fresh finish, revealing the natural hue of the wood.

The old parlor is now the Hazen’s living room. Although the outside entrance to this area remains, the door was moved from the inside to the outside casing; the space behind the door became a closet. Built-in shelves in the closet are closed off from the living room by means of louvered doors.

Book shelves were built along the west partition of the living room and window casings extended from 2" to 4" to allow for insulation. The walls around the cobblestone house vary in thickness from 14" to 16”; 19" under the two-story portion. One basement wall is 4 feet thick.

There is a new first floor bathroom between the living room and west wing addition. The entrance hall between the dining room and living room contains a large closet; the ceiling of the closet has covered opening to permit access to attic by means of a step ladder. The one story wing‘s attic is independent of the two-story attic section.

The second floor has been redecorated and especially the second floor bathroom, once part of a second bedroom off the main bedroom. The original decayed floor boards of the recessed porch were removed and new planks were nailed into place.

The original small bedroom north of this recessed part was remodeled into a study. New floor boards had to replace the old because the sills were found to have dry-rot and the only way to get at the sills was removal of the floor boards.

Another example of preserving the exterior decor was the utilization of the. old chimney on the one-story wing. Adding a new, modern heating system as well as the fireplace would have called for two chimneys. The Hazens solved this by rebuilding the original chimney with two flues - one for the exhaust from the heating system, the other for the fireplace. The old chimney on the two-story portion was allowed to remain but sealed off.

Thus, the old cobblestone farm house retains its rural, exterior dress, yet tasteful planning has transformed the dwelling into a modern up-to-date home. There is a definite feeling of preservation from within with no sacrificing the conveniences of utility, interior decorations and livability we demand today in our homes.

543 Mill Road shortly before being demolished

following a fire on August 11, 2016. Courtesy
of Greece Historical Society. Garage still stands.
Below is the house as it appeared prior to the fire.

Little is known about this one and a half-story farmhouse at 4350 Ridge Road West in Greece, other than its architectural characteristics which could date it to as early as the 1830s. It is built of fieldstones of various colors, shapes and sizes which are laid five courses to a adjoin height. Significant are the unusually “12 over 12” windows. Also, the first floor is four and one-half feet above the grade, requiring a flight of seven steps to reach the entrance. “J. Westfall” resided there in 1852; D. Rowland” in 1872;“A. Hooper” in 1902; “B. Hooper” in 1924; Charles and Emma Priestly in 1930; and Raymond W. Mercer from the 1940s to the 1960s, according to maps and directories. As it appeared in 2007 and 2018.

Courtesy of Greece Historical Society.

Hamlin

1350 Monroe Orleans Road

1560 Monroe Orleans Road

25 Morton Road

District 8 school, 308 Church Road

1486 Sweden Walker Road, Walker

Henrietta

This cobblestone house at 636 Telephone Road is one of three built by Andrew Bushman, an early settler, in the 1840s. This was originally a five bay neo-classical house typical of the 1840s but modifications have been made altering its original appearance. Bushman also built two other cobblestone houses on Rush-Henrietta Townline Road for his sons.

Bushman House at 830 Telephone Road

877 Telephone Road

Tinker Homestead and Farm Museum, 1585 Calkins Road. The house was built in early 1830s by James Tinker who came here from New Haven, Conn. with his wife, Rebecca, and six children, in 1812, first living in a log cabin. The family resided here for six generations until the property was sold to the Town of Henrietta in 1991. The house was built by mason Michael McCanty.

Same house as it appeared in 1912.

Blacksmith shop, 593 Pinnacle Road, later

used as a garage.

Smoke house at rear of 687 Pinnacle Road.

4495 West Henrietta Road

5582 West Henrietta Road

5121 West Henrietta Road

5375 West Henrietta Road

The Alexander Williams cobblestone carriage shop on West Henrietta Road built in 1835. Now gone.
Henrietta Historical Society

There was once a cobblestone school house known as District No. 2, on the northwest corner of Lehigh Station and Pinnacle Roads. It was built in 1837 by Wright Fields, near the present site of the Rush-Henrietta Central Junior High School, at a cost of between $250 and $300. The original District 2 school house was built in 1809 near Calkins Road and Pinnacle Road (then Wadsworth Road). It burned in 1814, replaced by a wooden frame structure; and in 1837 by the cobblestone building. In 1873 the trustees considered running three iron rods through the building to stabilize it, the rods to be made 3/4 inch thick with iron straps on the outside walls. But in 1875 it was demolished and replaced by a new wooden frame school house.

This house at 255 Tobin Road was built about 1828 and is one of the oldest cobblestone houses in the area.Bricks instead of limestone quoins were use.

It was built by a Mr. Matthews.

"Liberty Hill," 2205 Lehigh Station Road, Henrietta,

built in 1839 by Liberty Ansel Hanks.

283 Castle Road

5015 East River Road

Irondequoit

This house at 2523 St. Paul Boulevard shows the combination of fine Neo-Classical lines, mixed with heavy piers, and decorated with lacey cast-iron trim. These are all hallmarks of the Regency style (generally 1800-1840 period), as developed in England and spread to both the U.S. and Canada by British architects.

The Cobblestone House

[Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, September 11, 1930]

Renovation and modernizing of an old cobblestone house on St. Paul Boulevard, under direction of the Better Homes Department of the Democrat and Chronicle, has brought to light some of the possibilities of such houses for continued service. There are many houses of similar construction in the lakeside communities.

When the cobblestone era was at its height, construction of farm dwellings from the materials offered by beaches and sandbanks was developed to a fine art. Members of pioneer families tell of the immense labor involved in selecting just the right sort of rounded, lake-washed cobbles from the beds where waves and rocked and polished the stones for untold centuries.

The cobbles were drawn in wagons to the site selected for the house, and then came the work of sizing them for the various courses. As may be seen by inspection of some of the dwellings, every stone was set in the cement with as great care as if the wall were a work of art, as indeed it was when finished.

Cobblestone houses were well planned and were built to last. Time was of little consequence to the builders, so that there was no skimping of effort to produced a finished job. Materials were cheap, except for the labor of gathering and sorting them. The preservation of such dwellings and their adaptation to modern needs is well worth while, for they are one of the native architectural features of the lake counties.
Abstract of Title

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Cobblestone blacksmith shop at 1200 Titus Ave.

was built in 1830 by Ransford Perrin and moved

to this site in 2008. Perrin, a farmer, moved to this

in 1805. Walls are two feet thick.

This 10-room cobblestone house at 180 Pardee Road was built in 1847 by Hiram Pardee. Henry Clark of Webster was the mason and Alexander Wilson was the carpenter. Stones were gathered from the lake shore near Irondequoit Bay Outlet and the remainder from the beach at Webster Park. Originally this house included a 100-acre farm.

Rochester Times Union

February 2, 1940

Pardee Home Changes Hands in Irondequoit

Purchase of the century-old Pardee home at 180 Pardee, Irondequoit, by Ormond J. Daily, 110 Hawley, has been announced by the Lum Real Estate Co.

Built by the Pardee family, early settlers of the region, on their 100-acre farm, the structure is one of the outstanding examples of early cobblestone artistry. It has remained in the family until now, although sale of parcels from time to time has dwindled the property to a lot 100 by 140 feet. At present it is occupied by Herbert Pardee.

One of the features of the 10-room house, is the spacious 16 by 32 feet living room a large fireplace.

Old cobblestone school house in Irondequoit.

Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, June 21, 1913

Puzzle Found in Clause of Deed

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Says Land Must Be Used for School Purposes

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Building a Real Landmark

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In a Few Instances Three Generations of Families Received

Their Early Training in Cobblestone House That Soon Will Be Razed

_____

When John McGonegal, on June 1, 1844, sold to the town of Irondequoit the site for the cobblestone schoolhouse that now stands, unoccupied and idle. opposite the end of Bay street, he did not foresee the development that years would bring to that section. It was a rural community, and the city limits were two miles away. If he had known perhaps he would not have inserted a provision in the deed to the school district trustees that has prevented any transfer of the land up to this time.

“Provided,” says the deed, “that said land shall be always kept and used for the purpose of a school and a school-house shall be always kept on said land.”

The original school in that district stood at the corner of Merchants and Culver road, on the site of the present Costick house. It was a wooden structure, and along in 1843 it became evident that a new building was necessary. The school trustees were farsighted enough to see that the corner would in time be a center of activity and they wanted the school kept in the immediate vicinity. So they purchased the site opposite the end of Bay street, and moved part of the old school to it. They erected the cobblestone building without delay, and it was occupied by the first pupils in the fall of 1844 or the winter of the same year.

Cracked, but Serviceable

Three generations have attended school in the building, which is cracked and scarred why time and fire, but still standing as serviceable as ever. The cobblestones are in rows, with about forty-two rows between the foundation and the top of the side walls. In the south wall is a crack that developed many years ago and was repaired, while the front was scarred by the fire that occurred in the building several months ago. Because the building is not in use, the scars remain.

Among the pupils in the early days were Henry B. McGonegal, who was later a member of the Board of Supervisors for several years, and George E. McGonegal, who was elected to the Assembly. After his service in Albany he was elected superintendent of the poor, and retained the office longer than any other man that has held the place in recent years.

Then there was Chisholm Smiles, who differed from the McGonegal boys in that he was denominated by the spirit of the nomad, and after he was graduated from the cobblestone school-house, turned towards the setting sun, crossed the plains in the Indian days and eventually became a resident of Nevada and California, according to the recollections of those who knew him, and attained fame as a civil engineer.

Another early pupil was Winfield Wood, who also became a supervisor. He was a member of one of the few families that have been represented in the school by three generations. is daughter, Winifred Wood, attended school there, and afterward married Henry Schenck, who was a pupils with her, and their daughter, Janet Schenck, was the representative of the third generation that studied there.

Three Generations of Pardees

Another family represented by three generations in the school was that of Edward Pardee. He was the first of the family to enter the cobblestone school as a pupil, and in the course of time was followed by his three sons, Hiram, Charles and Herbert Pardee, The third generation was represented by Edna Pardee, daughter of Charles Pardee.

Among the girl pupils in the old school in the early days were Mary E. Smiles, Jeannette Smiles and Anna Smiles, sisters. They were not related to Chisholm Smiles, so far as known. Mary E. Smiles married Henry B. McGonegal and Anna Smiles married Winfield Wood, so that, in those families, both husband and wife saw their children and grandchildren to to the school in which they themselves had been pupils. Among the Waring children, Mary, who did not marry, and Hattie, who became Mrs. Chipman, of Began, and Isaac and Elias Waring.

At the time the site of the school was purchased it was the seventh district of Irondequoit. Later it became the sixth and is now the first district. The original district remained practically unchanged until 1875, by which time Rochester, as a city, had “got into its stride,” and, reached out, absorbed the country to the center line of Culver road, thus lopping off a considerable area formerly tributary to the school. But the population thus cut off was made by new settlers in Irondequoit, so that with a slight rearrangement of boundaries, the district remained about as large, in number of children, as ever.

Growth of Population

The population continued to grow, and three or four years ago a new impetus was given by the opening of the Rogers farm. People began to say the district had outgrown the cobblestone building where their fathers and grandfathers had attended school, and last year the new building on Clifford Avenue was opened. The impetus given to the neighborhood three or four years ago has now been increased by the opening up of the Culver road tract, directly opposite the old school. This has again brought up the question of disposing of the school and its site.

When the matter first came up nothing was known of the provision deed, but it is believed that the obstacle can be surmounted. They say if all of the heirs of John McGonegal, who inserted the provision, will consent to the sale of the property, permission to sell will be granted upon application to the proper court. The matter has been under discussion for some time, but no line of action has been decided upon.

Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, June 5, 1915

The old cobblestone school house in Culver Road near Bay Street is being razed to make room for the extension of Bay Street to Spencer Road. The building had been erected in 1844 to serve children in the Town of Boyle.

Mendon

3871 Clover Road (now 1 Dixon Woods) served as

an inn during the mid-19th century and was a

popular stopover for farmers delivering grain on

the road from Canandaigua to Rochester.

Roswell Whitcomb House, 437 Pond Road,

built ca. 1847. It was placed on the National

933 Mile Square Road

District 12 School House, built 1840, at 7027

Rush-Lima Road (Route 15A) and date stone.

Old photo of same school house. Courtesy

of Diane Ham, Mendon Town Historian

This house at 10 Douglas Road in Mendon Ponds Park

was built by Jeremiah Stewart in 1835. It has been

owned by Monroe County since 1928.

21 Mendon Ionia Road

Mendon Academy building at 16 Mendon-Ionia Road is a Federal style cobblestone structure built about 1835. This school was started in 1836 by Rev. and Mrs. Marcenus Stone. In 1839 it was purchased by the District No. 2 School. It is constructed of medium-sized field cobbles and is one of 10 surviving cobblestone buildings in Mendon. The building was used as a school for about a century. It was acquired in 1950 by the Mendon Fire Department and remodeled for use as a fire hall. It is now houses the Mendon Co-op.

Frederick Hubbell House, 683 Quaker Meetinghouse

Road, ca. 1830s.

The K.C. Livermore or “Quaker Hill Farm” at 4389 Clover St. was built prior to 1840. The frame addition came about 1879. Luther Gates purchased the land in 1832 and is believed to have built the house. William Cornell, a Quaker, purchased it in 1842. His son, John, a noted Quaker preacher, inherited it in 1877. It was purchased by Fred Lord in 1896 who sold it to Livermore in 1920.

Charles Foote House, 1312 Pittsford Mendon Road,

ca. 1830s.

Jeremiah Gates Palmer house built in 1831 at what is now the intersection of Sheldon and Lyons Roads in the town of Mendon, Monroe county. The photo was taken about 1883. From left are Palmer’s daughter, Fannie; sons, Charles and Frank, his wife, Nellie, dog, Bess, son George, and Jeremiah imself holding his horses, Ned and Doll, who lived to be 32 and 33 years old respectively. It was demolished in the 1940s. Below is all that remained of the house at that time.

Ruins of the Palmer house (now gone)

Mendon-Honeoye Falls-Lima Sentinel

December 18, 2003

Mendon - The Early Years

The Cobblestone House of Jeremiah Gates Palmer

The exact year that Jeremiah Gates Palmer arrived in the Town of Mendon is not known. His name appeared in the 1820 Federal Census as a resident and in the 1825 Tax Assessment Roll as an owner of property in the Town.

However, it had to be subsequent ti 1817 as his son, also named Jeremiah Gates Palmer, born on June 17 of that year, accompanied his parents on the trip. When the family arrived in Mendon, formed as a township May 26, 1812, it was still part of Ontario County, joining Monroe County when the county was established February 23, 1821.

The Palmer family traveled from the Village of Hunter, Greene County, located in the Catskill Mountains of eastern New York State. Their covered wagon was drawn by two red oxen, Star named for the white star on its forehead and Line, named for a white line down its back. A pair of ox shoes, belonging to one of these animals, has been donated to the Honeoye Falls/Mendon Historical Society by Lucille Palmer Pattison, great-great-great-granddaughter of Jeremiah Gates Palmer. The trip to Mendon was most likely made during the winter months when the frozen ground and creeks provided a firm surface for sleighs and wagons.

The first challenge facing settlers in Mendon, as elsewhere, was to provide shelter for their families. In many cases the husband would travel by himself to the land he purchased, build a log cabin, and then return home for his family to take them to their new home. The 1855 New York State Census lists over fifty families living in log cabins in the Town of Mendon.

There is no information on how the Palmer family survived in its early years in Mendon. We do know that in 1831 a house was built for them on the 140 acres of land that Jeremiah purchased in Lot 30 of the Catlin and Ferris Tract in the northwestern part of the Town. (Note: Lot 30 is located on the present Sheldon Road at the intersection of Lyons Road). The Greek Revival style house was constructed of cobblestones from the nearby fields. The only known original photograph is published above and was donated to the historical society by Mrs. Pettison.

On a cold Sunday afternoon in March, 1996 Byron Palmer, brother of Lucille, invited me to his farm on the Mendon Ionia Road to view the keystone that had originally been placed over the front door of the cobblestone house. (Note: a keystone is a semi-circular piece of limestone that forms the upper part of an arch over a door opening). The initials “JGP” can be seen at the top of the keystone, a Masonic symbol in the center, and the year 1831 at the bottom.

Byron also showed me several quoins from one of the corners of the house. It is possible that they are from the corner that appears in the photo of one remaining corner. (Note: Quoins are rectangular pieces of limestone, stacked in a criss-cross fashion at the four corners of cobblestone house to contain rows of stones about them. Byron Palmer passed away at his home on September 17, 2003.

Believing that the Honeoye Falls-Mendon Historical Society would be the appropriate repository for the artifacts from her ancestors’ cobblestone house. Lucille has generously donated the keystone and three of the quoins to that organization’s museum. She also donated other articles with a Palmer family provenance that will be included in an exhibit in the Museum.

Upon the death of Jeremiah Gated Palmer on June 16, 1863, the cobblestone house and the 140-acre farm passed to his son, Hiram Fellows Palmer, who was born in Mendon March 24, 1829. Jeremiah’s first-born son, Jeremiah Jr., was already living on a 90-acre farm he had purchased on Boughton Hill Road just east of Quaker Meetinghouse Road. He died June 6, 1905 passing ownership to his son, Louis Palmer. In 1920 this farm became part of the extensive land holdings acquired by the Chase Brothers Nursery Company.

In the early 1880s, Hiram Palmer sold his farm to his neighbor, Isaac C. Sheldon, for whom the road was named many years ago. This purchased added the Sheldon farm to the one he had inherited from his grandfather, Isaac Colvin. Hiram them moved his family two another farm located in the Sodus ares of Wayne County. He died in Sodus July 26, 1892.

Isaac C. Sheldon continued to live in the family homestead and did not require the cobblestone house as his primary residence. A lithograph of his large early 1800s farmhouse appears in the 1877 History of Monroe County. He also owned a tenant house on his original property and did not require the stone house for that purpose.

An article in the March 31, 1892 issue of the Honeoye Falls Times mentions that the cobblestone house was occupied by a Henry Hill who earned a living as a hunter and trapper of small animals whose furs he sold to a local fur buyer. Whenever a horse or cow died on a local farm, the owner would have him skin the animal for its hide and dig a hole in which to bury the remains. His “job description” also included removing boulders from farmers’ fields by the use of dynamite, which might be a possible explanation for his wooden leg.

Hank Hill came to the attention of the Honeoye Falls Times again when an article in the January 17, 1918 issue reported that he had been kicked in the head by a horse. Henry was described in the article as a well-known sportsman and dynamiter and as a one-legged single man who for many years has lived in the “Bleak House” in the western part of town.

On January 25, 1906 Isaac C. Sheldon advertised his farm for sale and that it could be subdivided into 30, 60, 90, and 110-acre parcels. The 110-acre parcel, which included the cobblestone house, was purchased by Alfred Treat who built a new house and barn on the property. Apparently, the stone house, proudly built by Jeremiah Gates Palmer in 1831, was already in a deteriorated state when Alfred Treat acquired it as part of his farm purchase.

Alfred Euler grew up on a nearby farm on Sheldon Road, remembers that, in the early 1920s, he used to play with Alfred Treat’s son, Carl, at the Treat farm. The cobblestone house was in poor condition at that time and the children were not allowed to go near it. He also recalls that Hank Hill lived in the house and still practiced his trade of dynamiting boulders in farm fields.

Alfred related to me one experience, still fresh in his mind, is the day he watched Hank Hill place the dynamite to remove a boulder from a field on his father’s farm. Hank, after igniting a long fuse attached to to the dynamite, ran so fast from the scene that, even with his wooden leg, Alfred could not keep up with him. Hank Hill was eventually placed in a rest home in Rochester and the cobblestone house was taken down in the early 1930s.

Byron Palmer and Lucille Palmer Pattison grew up on the 74-acre farm on Mendon-Ionia Road that their father, Elliot Whiting Palmer, purchased in 1932. The farm, abandoned at the time, probably due to the bad economic times of the Great Depression, was then in the hands of a bank in Holcomb, n.Y. The farm had been located by Elliott’s father, Charles Hiram Palmer, who determined that the soul on the farm was suitable for fruit trees.

Orchards were planted on 30 acres of the farm, 20 acres in peaches; the remainder in apples, cherries, pears, apricots, plums, prunes, and one quince. The fruit from these trees was sold by the family at a roadside stand in front of the house until about about 1960 when the trees became unproductive.

The farmhouse, located on a steep hillside in the Hopper Hills area of Mendon at the highest point in Monroe County, is now offered for sale.

Sources

Alfred Euler

Lucille Palmer Pettison

Palmer Family Records

Graves Family Records

Honeoye Falls Times

Mew York State and U.S. Census Reports

1877 History of Monroe County

Monroe County Director, 1869-1870

1825 Mendon Tax Assessment Roll

Parma

This house at 1191 Manitou Road was built by Isaac Chase about 1850. Stones were collected for years before the house was built. A nephew, James Darwin Chase, said he assisted in gathering the stones from the nearby lake shore which were hauled by wagon to the construction site.

The Chase house as it appeared in 1877.

Sketch of the entrance of the Isaac Chase

house by Carl F. Schmidt

Parma Cobblestone Church

in 1877

Chronology of Parma Cobblestone Church

1834 - Parma Greece Church was born on August 23 with 14 charter members that met in a little red school house on Burritt Road. They took the Scripture of Truth for their only rule of faith and practice.

1841 - In April, Sunday School was organized.

1843 - Since attendance had increased over the years, the group incorporated and adopted the name “Christ Church of Parma and Greece”.

1844 - Isaac Chase donated land and a chapel was erected at the site of the present church. It was called “Cobblestone Church”.

1845 - The Cobblestone Church was dedicated, In June, membership was up to 111.

1903 - The Cobblestone Church was torn down and the present structure was built on the very same foundation as the Cobblestone Church. The windows of the Cobblestone Church were put in the nave of the sanctuary. On November 22, “Parma and Greece Christian Church” was dedicated.

Barn, 293 Parma Center Road

4968 Ridge Road

District School House No. 8 at 5346 Ridge Road

Thrall House, 4929 Ridge Road West, Spencerport, was built between 1845 and 1847. It is a splendid example of Greek Revival architecture and is immaculately maintained. A smoke house still stands at the rear of the house.

From: The Boundary Pusher

Rochester, N.Y., February 10, 2016

Colossal Cobblestone in the Country

4929 West Ridge Road, Parma

By Christopher Brandt

Stretching over 300 miles, the Erie Canal was a feat of civil engineering unlike any seen before. Along its path many villages and towns grew and prospered. Some such as Rochesterville grew so considerably that they became cities within a mere decade or two.

In the 1820s, a farmer named Ralph Thrall, attracted by the fertile lands of the Genesee region, likely emigrated from his home in Connecticut to the Town of Parma near the village of Spencerport and the canal. He son married, started a family, and established a successful farm on some 140 acres. In 1845, after years of success, he built the substantial Greek Revival style home seen today.

Lovingly cared for by the current family since 1972, the Thrall House is one of about 100 cobblestone structures in the greater Rochester region still standing. The entirety of its 3,320 square feet was built at once, with the finest and most regular stones used for the imposing facade. A generous entry porch provides cover to the vault-like original walnut front board, complete with original hardware and doorbell pull.

Stepping over the broad stone threshold, a grand foyer with soaring ceilings, abundant woodwork, and graceful staircase greets you. Directly ahead, a paneled door with broad Greek moldings leads to the large dining room. To either side are the front parlors, the more formal of which features an original colonnade leading to a smaller sitting room.

In nearly every room light streams in from the large windows onto glowing pine plank floors. The dining room is the first room of the rear wing of the house and is the heart of the home with doors at front to the parlors and foyer, at rear to the pantry/laundry and kitchen, and to the wide, open side porch.

Passing by a large arched alcove and powder room, the kitchen has plentiful storage and access to the original carriage doors, cellar stair, and rear patio. A more recent servant’s stair leads to a partial finished storage room above.

The second floor features five bedrooms, many with generous closets, glowing pine floors, high ceilings, and multiple large windows, and a shared full bath. The two front bedrooms are nearly as gracious as the parlors beneath them. The walk-up attic is vast and showcases the house’s heavy-timber internal structure. The basement is tall and dry with beautiful stone walls, updated mechanics, and the original window shutters awaiting reinstallation. A carriage house with loft and original cobblestone smokehouse complete the property.

From its sandstone foundation and corner quoins, to the six-over-six double-hung windows and plentiful original millwork, the Thrall property has aged gracefully.

{Note: At the time this article was published this property was for sale for $239,000].

204 Curtis Road

221 Peck Road

823 Peck Road

1019 Peck Road

Penfield

District 11 (1840) school house, 1586

Webster-Fairport Road

Perinton

2543 Huber Road

1 Fieldston (cq) Grove

437 Macedon Center Road (Route 31F)

_______

Pittsford

476 Mendon Center Road

563 East Street

17 Church St.

__________

3 Cross Meadow Lane, Pittsford

( The oldest house in Pittsford includes a

cobblestone side wall!)

This home at 3 Cross Meadow Drive (previously 784 Stone Road) exemplifies the roots of Pittsford’s past. With all the charm and functionality of a pioneer home and the ease of modern updates, it includes original wide plank floors, blown glass windows, early wrought iron hardware, hewn beams, and an unusual cobblestone wall. This home is occasionally on historic house tours. It was built by Simon Stone II, nephew of Simon Stone, as a four-room house with two bedrooms. After falling into disrepair it was restored by new owners in the 1940s. It is part of the Town of Pittsford Mile Historic District.

53-55 South Main St.

Riga

6710 Chili-Riga Road

Smokehouse at 6710 Chili-Riga Road

280 Bettridge Road

253 Bettridge Road

1035 Johnson Road

Rush

30 Lyons Road

512 Fishell Road

42 Rush - West Rush Road

889 Rush-Henrietta Townline Road

791 Rush-Henrietta Townline Road

Sweden

357 Gallup Road

Webster

This is the Dean House at 93 West Main St., Webster. Lewis Stratton purchased an 84-acre plot of land from the Phelps an Gorham Tract in 1832. Olive Reynolds, a pioneer doctor and investor bought it in 1835. In 1839 the one-acre plot was purchased by Aaron VanWormer who it is believed built this house. In 1868 it was sold to Eugene and Eduah Dean, and it remained in that family for about 70 years. Dean’s Spring was located just north of this property. It was a spring fed artificial pond that served as the water supply for a canning factory until the village water system was installed in 1909. It was used for swimming and ice skating. Porches are 20th century additions.

Former church building at 109 West Main St.

Same building as it originally appeared.
Webster historian

Webster Baptist Church at 59 South Ave., Webster, was built

In 1856-57. It is believed this is the largest cobblestone church

ever built.

Rochester Democrat & Chronicle November 13, 2015

Congregation built Webster church

By Emily Morry

One of the largest cobblestone structures in western New York, the Webster Baptist Church has stood at 39 South Ave. for 158 years.

The church’s congregation predated this structure. Founded in the 1830s as the North Penfield Baptist Church (it changed names following the establishment of Webster in 1840), the institution’s first home was a modest wooden frame building. After membership swelled to 250 people in the 1850s, the old church was moved to make way for a new one.

Construction was a community effort. The women of the congregation sorted through cobblestones on the lakeshore, passing them through rings to ensure they chose stones of uniform size. The stones were then transported to the church site five miles away by horse and wagon.

The resulting Greek Revival building, endowed with a dome supported by eight Corinthian columns, was dedicated on Jan. 1, 1857.

The church’s bell was the village’s first. It rang each Sunday to draw followers to service and sounded for funerals, announcing the age of the deceased by the number of bell tolls.The church chimer was cracked by a group of local boys in the 1860s during the course of their raucous July 4 celebrations. Several years passed before Webster’s residents heard it ring again.

The church’s other main musical feature, an eight-pipe Aeolian organ, graced the site in 1938. Donated by William and Elizabeth Chapin of Rochester, the cumbersome instrument made an arduous journey to Webster from the Chapin’s family home on South Fitzhugh Street in Rochester.

The following decade, the nearly 100-year-old church began facing spatial and architectural deficiencies.By 1955, the edifice could no longer accommodate the congregation’s growing Sunday school population. As a temporary solution, a trailer was drawn to the church every week to serve as a mobile classroom. Two years later, Webster Baptist’s education building opened, while the church itself underwent a full renovation in 1965.

The following year, the church launched its Open Door Book Shop. It proved a welcome addition since at the time, Webster had a library, but no bookstore. Beyond offering religious reading materials, Open Door sought to carry a wide range of both fiction and nonfiction books. As the Rev. Adamczyk explained in 1966, “We will specialize in titles on some of the controversial issues facing us, such as Viet Nam, race relations and the ecumenical movement to help those interested to explore both sides.”

The church’s leadership in the 1960s also sought to engage the local community with music.

In 1967, Webster Baptist hosted a “Pop” Saturday night Easter service featuring a local group named the Cult performing hit songs with the aim of highlighting their biblical themes. The program’s director, Mahlon Gilbert, said: “We have found more in the Beetles (sic) and the Monkees than just electrified noise. The Youth Council sees part of the Gospel … in the secular and famed pop songs known to every school lad.”

The Webster Baptist Church continues to be a welcoming space for both congregants and community residents today, offering social gatherings, cultural events and classes in addition to religious services within its historic cobblestone walls.