swells of land, slopes and vallies, forming sites for residences overlooking Lake and Bay, and every way inviting.

The Bay enters a cove of the Lake, which is protected on either hand by head lands. It is about half a mile across its neck, gradually widening out to the extent of four miles. In length from north to south, it is nearly seven miles. A small Island in the Lake, lying opposite the entrance to the Bay, a pier connects it with the main land, and another is extended into the Lake. These public improvements, added to natural advantages, renders it the finest harbor upon all our Lake coasts. It is said of the magnificent Bay of San Francisco, that "all the navies of the world might ride at anchor in it at one time, with safety." It may be said of Sodus Bay, that all the craft that will ever navigate our Lakes, would find ample room there; good anchorage, and protection from the severest gales. Its mostly deep, still waters might at times, be passed over safely in a canoe, when a tempest was tossing the waters of the Lake. The scenery, especially upon the east side of the Bay, is less bold and rugged, but its promentories remind one of the descriptions of the Bay of Naples. With an eye for the picturesque and romantica feeling of enthusiasm in reference to all this region, - Mr. Williamson wrote to a friend in England ;- "The town" (Sodus,) "stands on a rising ground on the west point of the Bay, having the Lake on the north, to appearance as boundless as the ocean, and the Bay to the east romantically interspersed with Islands, and parts of the main land stretching into it. The first view of the place, after passing through a timbered country from Geneva, twenty-eight miles, strikes the eye of the beholder, as one of the most magnificent landscapes human fancy can picture; and the beauty of the scene, is not unfrequently heightened, by the appearance of large vessels navigating the Lake."

The "District of Sodus," was erected in the primitive division. of Ontario county into Districts, in 1789. The earliest record of a town meeting is in 1799. The district then embraced all of the present town of Sodus and Lyons. The town or district meeting was held at the "house of Evert Van Wickle" in Lyons village. The officers chosen were as follows:- Azariah Willis, supervisor, Joseph Taylor, town clerk; other town officers: - Norman Merry, Samuel Caldwell, Chas. Cameron, Moses Sill, E. Van Wickle, Timothy Smith, Joseph Wood, David Sweezy, Daniel Russell, Henry Lovewell, Wm. White, Reuben Adams, Samuel Nelson, David Sweezy, and John Van Wickle.

At a special town meeting in 1799, held "at the house of John Briggs," John Perrine, Timothy Smith, and Samuel Caldwell were chosen school commissioners.

There was at this period on the tax roll, the names of 50 persons, some of whom were non-residents; the settlers would seem to have

been located in Lyons village, on the road from Lyons to Sodus Point, at the Point, and on the Palmyra road, with the exception of Brown and Richards, on the Lake shore between the Point and Pulteneyville. In 1800, Timothy Smith was supervisor. In this year the first records of roads were made. Two dollars bounty was voted for wolf scalps "with the skin thereon;" and it was also voted that "hog yokes be eight inches above the neck." It was also voted that Elias Dickinson, who it is presumed was a Justice of the peace in Phelps, "be allowed $3 for opening town meetings two years past."

In 1799, the District gave Charles Williamson and Nathaniel Norton, candidates for Assembly, each 23 votes. In 1800 Thomas Morris had the unanimous vote of the district, 68, for representative of the Western District in Congress.

In 1801 the district "neglected to hold town meeting," but three justices of the county, Wm. Rogers, Darius Comstock and Ezra Patterson, met at the house of Oliver Kendall, and appointed John Perrine, supervisor, and Richard Jones town clerk.

Pulteneyville is upon the shore of Lake Ontario, at the mouth of Little Salmon creek. The waters of the fine pure stream that have been collecting upon the slope in Marion and Williamson, on approaching the Lake, seem to have been coy and hesitating in falling into its embrace; meandering along for a considerable distance, nearly parallel with the Lake shore, a ridge elevated from 35 to 40 feet, affords fine building ground overlooking the Lake. Two promontories put out above and below the entrance of the creek into the Lake, which, with a bluff shore, affords the means of making a very good harbor with a small comparative expenditure of money. It was a prominent locality in long years of French and English dominion the frequent stopping place for the small craft that coasted along the Lake shore. Although the locality was marked by Mr. Williamson in his plans of improvement, and is mentioned in his correspondence with his principals, no commencement was made there under his auspices.

Previous to 1806, William Waters was the only resident there. In that year, Capt. Samuel Throop, changed his residence from Manchester to Pulteneyville, accompanied by his father-in-law, Jeremiah Selby, who had settled at Palmyra as early as 1801. They erected a saw mill and grist mill on Little Salmon creek.

Capt. Throop kept the first public house at Pulteneyville. Russel Whipple, becoming a resident there in early years, built the schooner "Laura,' which was sailed by Capt. Throop. The widow of Capt. Throop, is now the wife of Major William Rodgers, of Pulteneyville. In addition to the son named in a note attached, Capt. Washington Throop, of Pulteneyville, is another son. Daughters became the wives of W. H. Rodgers and Capt. Andrew Holling, of Pulteneyville. Joseph Colt, the early merchant at Canandaigua and Geneva, was the pioneer merchant at Pulteneyville. Jacob W. Hallett, late of New York, was an early resident of Pultneyville, as was Samuel Ledyard, who is a resident there now; of both whom, especially of the latter, whose family was early identified with all the region. west of Utica, the author is in hopes to be able to say something in another connection.

CHAPTER VII..

PIONEER EVENTS IN WHAT IS NOW MONROE.

IN December, 1789, the Shaeffer family became the pioneer settlers in all the region west of the Genesee river, and in fact of the whole valley of the Genesee, if we except those who had blended themselves with the Indians, were Indian traders, or had become squatters upon Indian lands, in their flight from the Mohawk and With reference to pe 'maSusquehannah, during the border wars. nent settlement and improvement, they must be regarded as the Pioneers of the Genesee Valley.

NOTE. -A singular train of Lake disasters and deaths, is connected with this pioneer family:-Capt. Throop himself was drowned from the schooner Lark, of which he was master, while attempting to enter Sodus Bay, in a gale, in 1819. Previous to which, Mrs. Throop with two young children, in a skiff with her husband, Jeremiah B. Selby and George Armstrong, were going a few miles up the Lake; the skiff filled, the children were drowned, and Mrs. Throop barely escaped. At the early age of 18, the present well known Capt. Horatio N. Throop, of the steam boat Ontario, became a navigator of the Lake, as the master of a small schooner, which he had built himself. In 1825 on his way to Oswego, a cargo of corn with which he was laden became damp, swelled, the vessel suddenly bursting and sinking. Two lads on board drowned, and Capt. Throop himself escaped by swimming to the shore, four miles, on a door that had become detached.

Peter Shaeffer, the elder, was a native of Berks county, Pa., but emigrated from Lancaster to this region, at the advanced age of 85 years. His family who became permanent residents, consisted of himself and his sons Peter and Jacob. In July, 1789, they came first to Geneva, and then to Ganargwa creek, in Bloomfield, where they purchased 1200 acres of land of Gen. Fellows. Remaining there until December, the old gentleman apportioned that tract among his three daughters, and went upon the river with his sons. They found Ebenezer Allan, the owner of the fine tract of flats and upland at the mouth of Allan's creek, adjoining the present village of Scottsville. He had a comfortable log house, upon a gentle swell of land, which may be observed a short distance from the confluence of the creek and river. He was living then with a young white wife, whose name had been Lucy Chapman. Her family on their way to Canada, had stopped with him, and by the solicitations of Mrs. Dugan, (Allan's sister,) Lucy remained to keep her company. A sham magistrate came along soon after and made her a joint partner with some half dozen natives, in the affections of the then lord of the Genesee Valley. Mrs. Dugan, had come on some years previous, with her husband and joined her brother, and had been his housekeeper. Allan had acquired three hundred acres of land by gift from the Indians, to which he had added one hundred and seventy by purchase, from Phelps and Gorham. He had a stock of goods for the Indian trade. He had 50 or 60 acres of open flats under the plough, 20 acres of wheat upon the ground; some horses and cattle. A few years previous he had wintered seventy head of cattle on rushes. †

The Shaeffers became the purchasers of his fine tract of land, paying him the then high price of $2,50 per acre; though it must

*And "thereby hangs a tale:"- These goods were obtained of John Butler, British superintendent of Indian affairs at Niagara. They were taken from the King's store house, and were evidently intended for Indian presents upon the Genesee river; to keep the Indians favorable to the British interests, and strengthen the British claim to dominion over the whole of the western portion of this State. But the agent misapplied his trusts; he bought furs with the goods; they became oftener gifts of gallantry than those of diplomacy. Butler made a business matter of it; demanded pay for the goods; Allan contested the claim, but it was finally compromised by the intervention of James Wadsworth, Esq.

After coming upon the Genesee river, he had become a grazer and drover. Butler's Rangers and the Indians would steal cattle from the Mohawk and the Susquehan nah, and drive them to him. After keeping them upon the river, until they became good beef, they would command a ready sale at high prices, at Fort Niagara and in Canada.

be considered that sixty acres of improvement was then a valuable acquisition. Allan included in the sale, one acre of wheat upon the ground and a sow pig.* The father and sons added to Allan' household for the winter, subsisting upon the milk of two cows they brought in, and Indian pudding that Mrs. Dugan cooked for them.

Allan had erected the saw mill at the Falls, (now Rochester) in the summer previous, and had his timber out for the grist mill. The money that he realized for his farm, enabled him to push forward his enterprise. The grist mill was raised the forepart of winter. The frame was 26 by 30, of heavy timber. All the able bodied white men in the Genesee valley were invited to the raising -- and they numbered fourteen, all told. It took them two days. A trading boat happening to enter the mouth of the river, while they were raising, some rum was procured, and the backwoodsmen had a dance in the mill, and a rejoicing at the prospect of something better to prepare meal for their bread than the stump mortar.

The Shaeffers brought apple seeds with them from Pennsylvania, and planted them in December, 1799. These were the first apple seeds, (other than the old French orchard at Schlosser,) planted in the Genesee country, west of the river.

After Allan had sold his farm to the Shaeffers, he went back to Mt. Morris, purchased goods at Philadelphia, bringing them in from the back settlements of Pennsylvania, on horseback. In the season of '90, he sowed 100 acres of wheat, besides raising considerable corn. Like Alexander Selkirk, he was "lord of all he surveyed;" commanded the services of the Indians to work his fields for rum and trinkets, occasionally pressing into his service the Butler Rangers, who had stopped in the valley, in their flight from the Mohawk and the Susquehannah; paying them sometimes, but often arbitrarily adjusting their services to suit himself, as there was then no authority superior to his own. His gallantries, truthfully related, would equal the tales of eastern romance; the "turbaned turk might have yielded to him supremacy; it extended even to the employment of a purveyor, in the person of a Dutchman, Andrews. About this time, alternating in his tastes between his own and another race,

*That same sow pig cost a night's lodging in the woods. She took to the woods early in the spring, and had to be looked up when winter came again. In the search, the present Peter Shaeffer got benighted and slept in a hollow log through a winter night.