Historic Site Stories
Former Railbed

Gypsum

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John Decker Robison

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Melvin Hill

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Melvin Hill Baptist Church

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Oaks Corners

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Oaks Corners Park

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Old Stone Shop

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Orleans

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Phelps Historic District

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Phelps Methodist Episcopal Church

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Pioneer Cemetery

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Revolutionary War Soldiers
Lexington Minute Man
Pioneers
Slave graves in Pioneer Cemetery
Revolutionary War Soldiers
Lexington Minute Man
Pioneers
Slave graves in Pioneer Cemetery
Redfield Common

The following is a copy of the section in Village of Phelps Minutes Book regarding the donation of Redfield Common to the people of Phelps by Lysander Redfield, endorsed by his wife Mary, and signed before Enoch O. Marsh, Justice of the Peace in Phelps, Ontario County, and dated February 22, 1884. It contains restrictions, reservations and conditions on its use and care.
“REDFIELD COMMON”
The grounds herein after described were acquired for the sole purpose of carrying out a project which I have had in mind for some years last past, and that was, after they were suitably fitted up and put in proper condition, to set the same over to the public to be used for all demonstrations and gatherings of the people free unrestricted and unrestrained from any person or persons, body or bodies corporate, to go upon on all such occasions, and for all purposes that do not conflict with existing laws, or which may hereafter be enacted for the government of the commonwealth, and for which the outdoor and open field is desirable during the warm season of the year.
The grounds are well chosen, conveniently located, and easily reached, and are in all respects well adapted for all the purposes for which they are designed: - partaking partly of the nature of the grove: and partly of the open and unobstructed field. It is such a place as every hamlet, village, town or city should possess for the accommodation of its own and all the people of the adjacent and surrounding country to go upon with perfect freedom, on all such occasions.
The name by which said grounds may hereafter be known shall be the plain and unpretentious one of “Redfield Common”.
In view of the foregoing, and the further consideration that Phelps is my birth-place, and within its borders nearly my whole life has so far been spent, I do hereby, by these presents, donate and set over for the use of the public in perpetuity, (subject, however to the reservations, restrictions and conditions as are hereinafter mentioned), all that tract, piece or parcel of land, situated, lying and being in the Village of Phelps, in the county of Ontario, and State of New York, bounded and described as follows, to wit: - Commencing in the centre of Park Street at a point where said Park Street forms a junction with the centre of Church Street: - thence Westerly through the centre of said Park Street to the North West corner of land, heretofore conveyed by Samuel H. Verplanck as Trustee, to Lysander Redfield (it being also the North East corner of lands heretofore in the occupation of Edward Laughlin) - thence a continuation of said line Westerly through the center of said Park Street two rods; - thence Southerly from the centre of said Park street on a line parallel with the West line of said lands heretofore conveyed by said Verplanck, as Trustee, to said Redfield, and two rods distant from said West line along the whole width thereof, eighteen rods: - thence Easterly on a line parallel with said Park Street and eighteen rods distant from the center thereof to a point directly opposite to the centre of Church Street: - thence Northerly in a direct line to the centre of Park Street, distance, eighteen rods, the place of beginning: - The distance between the East and West lines of the foregoing boundaries, along the South line of Park Street being about thirty four rods. Excepting from out the Northeasterly corner of the foregoing described lands, running to the centre of Park and Church Streets about two fifths of an acre as being a portion of the old Public Square as laid out and opened by Judge David McNeil in the spring of 1839.
Forty one feet in width along the whole West line of the foregoing lands, extending from the South line of Park Street for a distance of sixteen and a half rods, is hereby set apart for a side walk and roadway, to be known and designated as Hamilton Avenue or Street: - and forty one feet in width along the whole South line of the foregoing land, commencing on the East line of said Hamilton Avenue or Street and extending to the West line of Church Street is also hereby set apart for a side walk and roadway to be known and designated as Willard Avenue or Street.
The donor reserves to himself, his “agents or servants”, the right at all times during his naturallife, to go upon said lands and premises, to make any improvements, or do any thing upon said grounds which is calculated to help the same in good order and condition: - and also the right to have cut, taken and carried away any hay or grass that may grow thereon, for and during his natural life as aforesaid.
That no misapprehension may occur as to the intent and meaning of the right of the public to go upon and use the said grounds, it is intended to include religious, social and political meetings, festivals, fairs, picnics, association and military drills, parades and exercises, holiday and recreation pastimes, games and sports, - playgrounds and place of resort for young and for others at all stages of their life, - and in fact, all gatherings of the people that do not conflict with law and order.
Between the inner shade trees next to the fence, extending about fourteen rods, North and South, on said Commons, and about twenty one rods East and West, on the same, no permanent erections to be made, in order that such gatherings as require an open and clear field for their exercises and recreations, shall not be prevented or interfered with by such obstructions.
The Trustees of the Village of Phelps, or by whatever designation these officers shall hereafter be named, shall so far have control over the said grounds as will enable them to enact and enforce by-laws, with penalties not to exceed six dollars for each and every violation thereof, besides costs of action (to be sued for and collected in the same manner as other penalties are enforced for violations of any other by-laws put in force by the Trustees of said Village), in any and all of the following offenses, to wit: -
To prevent and prohibit the injuring, tapping, mutilating, or making hitching places of the shade trees on said Common, or trees bordering the side walks around the same.
To prevent and prohibit the running at large, or herding of animals of the horse, cattle, sheep, swine, or goat species, or geese or ducks of the fowl kind, on said grounds.
To prevent and prohibit the cutting and carrying away of sod or turf: - the bringing upon and depositing thereon of any brush, garbage, or refuse materials of any kind: - the bringing upon and depositing or burying of dead carcasses: - on the said Common.
To prevent and prohibit the fighting of the human brute and fowl kind on the said grounds.
To prevent and suppress gambling with cards, dice, roulette or any kindred kind or name of games on said Common.
To prevent and prohibit the killing, injuring, or molesting of the bird or squirrel species that may harbor on the trees or grounds of said Common, or side walks bordering the same.
To prevent and prohibit the shooting at glass balls, or birds spring from traps, commonly termed trap shooting on said grounds.
To prevent and suppress any interference or protesting of any public meeting or gathering on said grounds by intoxicated, disorderly or evil disposed persons.
Field or tent shows and exhibitions, traversing the country for gain and profit, shall have the right to go upon said grounds and not be excluded, for which they shall be required to pay the sum of not to exceed sixteen dollars for the first day, and not to exceed six dollars for each consecutive day thereafter. All moneys received from this source shall be paid to the Village Treasurer of Phelps Village and the moneys received, or so much thereof as shall be necessary, shall be expended under the direction of the Village Trustees, in having cleared off refuse substances, filling up holes and leveling any uneven surfaces that may be left or caused by such exhibitions, in order that the grounds may present as near as may be, the same surface as before such exhibitions went upon said grounds.
It is the intent of the donor of these grounds, that they shall not be a source of pecuniary profit to himself or to the Village in its corporate capacity, and that no extortion shall be practiced upon any assemblage that may wish to go upon the same. All sums which may be received from field or tent exhibitions, and penalties for violations of the foregoing mentioned provisions, shall be paid into the Treasurer of the Village of Phelps, and expended under the direction of the Trustees of the village in keeping the said grounds in good order and condition as far as such funds will permit. The donor trust to the generosity and liberality of the public of the future for such contributions as will keep such grounds in a respectable and fair order - and which sums or contributions at most cannot be but trifling in amount.
It is expected that Committees having the management of any public gathering, will at least see that the grounds are properly cleared off after occupying the same.
The area of the enclosed part of the foregoing grounds, not at any time hereafter to be abridged or shorn of its dimensions: - nor roadways cut through or across the same.
In all actions at law, in which said Common shall come in question shall be brought in the name or defended in the name of the Trustees of the Village of Phelps or by whatever designations these officers shall hereafter be termed.
A few works to the public of the present and the future: - Use your rights and privileges on the said grounds discreetly and prudently, so as not to abuse them: - Be on your guard and defend in all lawful ways, your rights and privileges as herein expressed, against the designing and unscrupulous who under some specious pretext of acting under motives for the public good and interest would deprive or abridge you of any of your rights and privileges on the said Common.
This instrument shall be recorded in the Clerk’s office of Ontario County: - and also upon the Town Book of the Town of Phelps and upon the Village Book of the Village of Phelps.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed my seal at the town of Phelps, in Ontario County, and State of New York, on this twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty-four.
Lysander Redfield (seal)
I, Mary H. Redfield, wife of Lysander Redfield, do hereby endorse and approve of the action of my said husband, as set forth in the foregoing instrument, and I do hereby revise, release, and relinquish all rights I know or may hereafter have in the grounds described herein, as the wife of said Lysander Redfield.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed my seal on this twenty second day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty-four.
Mary H. Redfield (seal)
State of New York) County of Ontario)SS
On this twenty second day of February, A.D., one thousand eight hundred and eighty four, before me personally came Lysander Redfield and Mary H. Redfield, his wife, to me known to be the same persons described in and who signed and executed the foregoing instrument and who severally acknowledged that they executed the same for all the uses and purposes therein mentioned.
“REDFIELD COMMON”
The grounds herein after described were acquired for the sole purpose of carrying out a project which I have had in mind for some years last past, and that was, after they were suitably fitted up and put in proper condition, to set the same over to the public to be used for all demonstrations and gatherings of the people free unrestricted and unrestrained from any person or persons, body or bodies corporate, to go upon on all such occasions, and for all purposes that do not conflict with existing laws, or which may hereafter be enacted for the government of the commonwealth, and for which the outdoor and open field is desirable during the warm season of the year.
The grounds are well chosen, conveniently located, and easily reached, and are in all respects well adapted for all the purposes for which they are designed: - partaking partly of the nature of the grove: and partly of the open and unobstructed field. It is such a place as every hamlet, village, town or city should possess for the accommodation of its own and all the people of the adjacent and surrounding country to go upon with perfect freedom, on all such occasions.
The name by which said grounds may hereafter be known shall be the plain and unpretentious one of “Redfield Common”.
In view of the foregoing, and the further consideration that Phelps is my birth-place, and within its borders nearly my whole life has so far been spent, I do hereby, by these presents, donate and set over for the use of the public in perpetuity, (subject, however to the reservations, restrictions and conditions as are hereinafter mentioned), all that tract, piece or parcel of land, situated, lying and being in the Village of Phelps, in the county of Ontario, and State of New York, bounded and described as follows, to wit: - Commencing in the centre of Park Street at a point where said Park Street forms a junction with the centre of Church Street: - thence Westerly through the centre of said Park Street to the North West corner of land, heretofore conveyed by Samuel H. Verplanck as Trustee, to Lysander Redfield (it being also the North East corner of lands heretofore in the occupation of Edward Laughlin) - thence a continuation of said line Westerly through the center of said Park Street two rods; - thence Southerly from the centre of said Park street on a line parallel with the West line of said lands heretofore conveyed by said Verplanck, as Trustee, to said Redfield, and two rods distant from said West line along the whole width thereof, eighteen rods: - thence Easterly on a line parallel with said Park Street and eighteen rods distant from the center thereof to a point directly opposite to the centre of Church Street: - thence Northerly in a direct line to the centre of Park Street, distance, eighteen rods, the place of beginning: - The distance between the East and West lines of the foregoing boundaries, along the South line of Park Street being about thirty four rods. Excepting from out the Northeasterly corner of the foregoing described lands, running to the centre of Park and Church Streets about two fifths of an acre as being a portion of the old Public Square as laid out and opened by Judge David McNeil in the spring of 1839.
Forty one feet in width along the whole West line of the foregoing lands, extending from the South line of Park Street for a distance of sixteen and a half rods, is hereby set apart for a side walk and roadway, to be known and designated as Hamilton Avenue or Street: - and forty one feet in width along the whole South line of the foregoing land, commencing on the East line of said Hamilton Avenue or Street and extending to the West line of Church Street is also hereby set apart for a side walk and roadway to be known and designated as Willard Avenue or Street.
The donor reserves to himself, his “agents or servants”, the right at all times during his naturallife, to go upon said lands and premises, to make any improvements, or do any thing upon said grounds which is calculated to help the same in good order and condition: - and also the right to have cut, taken and carried away any hay or grass that may grow thereon, for and during his natural life as aforesaid.
That no misapprehension may occur as to the intent and meaning of the right of the public to go upon and use the said grounds, it is intended to include religious, social and political meetings, festivals, fairs, picnics, association and military drills, parades and exercises, holiday and recreation pastimes, games and sports, - playgrounds and place of resort for young and for others at all stages of their life, - and in fact, all gatherings of the people that do not conflict with law and order.
Between the inner shade trees next to the fence, extending about fourteen rods, North and South, on said Commons, and about twenty one rods East and West, on the same, no permanent erections to be made, in order that such gatherings as require an open and clear field for their exercises and recreations, shall not be prevented or interfered with by such obstructions.
The Trustees of the Village of Phelps, or by whatever designation these officers shall hereafter be named, shall so far have control over the said grounds as will enable them to enact and enforce by-laws, with penalties not to exceed six dollars for each and every violation thereof, besides costs of action (to be sued for and collected in the same manner as other penalties are enforced for violations of any other by-laws put in force by the Trustees of said Village), in any and all of the following offenses, to wit: -
To prevent and prohibit the injuring, tapping, mutilating, or making hitching places of the shade trees on said Common, or trees bordering the side walks around the same.
To prevent and prohibit the running at large, or herding of animals of the horse, cattle, sheep, swine, or goat species, or geese or ducks of the fowl kind, on said grounds.
To prevent and prohibit the cutting and carrying away of sod or turf: - the bringing upon and depositing thereon of any brush, garbage, or refuse materials of any kind: - the bringing upon and depositing or burying of dead carcasses: - on the said Common.
To prevent and prohibit the fighting of the human brute and fowl kind on the said grounds.
To prevent and suppress gambling with cards, dice, roulette or any kindred kind or name of games on said Common.
To prevent and prohibit the killing, injuring, or molesting of the bird or squirrel species that may harbor on the trees or grounds of said Common, or side walks bordering the same.
To prevent and prohibit the shooting at glass balls, or birds spring from traps, commonly termed trap shooting on said grounds.
To prevent and suppress any interference or protesting of any public meeting or gathering on said grounds by intoxicated, disorderly or evil disposed persons.
Field or tent shows and exhibitions, traversing the country for gain and profit, shall have the right to go upon said grounds and not be excluded, for which they shall be required to pay the sum of not to exceed sixteen dollars for the first day, and not to exceed six dollars for each consecutive day thereafter. All moneys received from this source shall be paid to the Village Treasurer of Phelps Village and the moneys received, or so much thereof as shall be necessary, shall be expended under the direction of the Village Trustees, in having cleared off refuse substances, filling up holes and leveling any uneven surfaces that may be left or caused by such exhibitions, in order that the grounds may present as near as may be, the same surface as before such exhibitions went upon said grounds.
It is the intent of the donor of these grounds, that they shall not be a source of pecuniary profit to himself or to the Village in its corporate capacity, and that no extortion shall be practiced upon any assemblage that may wish to go upon the same. All sums which may be received from field or tent exhibitions, and penalties for violations of the foregoing mentioned provisions, shall be paid into the Treasurer of the Village of Phelps, and expended under the direction of the Trustees of the village in keeping the said grounds in good order and condition as far as such funds will permit. The donor trust to the generosity and liberality of the public of the future for such contributions as will keep such grounds in a respectable and fair order - and which sums or contributions at most cannot be but trifling in amount.
It is expected that Committees having the management of any public gathering, will at least see that the grounds are properly cleared off after occupying the same.
The area of the enclosed part of the foregoing grounds, not at any time hereafter to be abridged or shorn of its dimensions: - nor roadways cut through or across the same.
In all actions at law, in which said Common shall come in question shall be brought in the name or defended in the name of the Trustees of the Village of Phelps or by whatever designations these officers shall hereafter be termed.
A few works to the public of the present and the future: - Use your rights and privileges on the said grounds discreetly and prudently, so as not to abuse them: - Be on your guard and defend in all lawful ways, your rights and privileges as herein expressed, against the designing and unscrupulous who under some specious pretext of acting under motives for the public good and interest would deprive or abridge you of any of your rights and privileges on the said Common.
This instrument shall be recorded in the Clerk’s office of Ontario County: - and also upon the Town Book of the Town of Phelps and upon the Village Book of the Village of Phelps.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed my seal at the town of Phelps, in Ontario County, and State of New York, on this twenty-second day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty-four.
Lysander Redfield (seal)
I, Mary H. Redfield, wife of Lysander Redfield, do hereby endorse and approve of the action of my said husband, as set forth in the foregoing instrument, and I do hereby revise, release, and relinquish all rights I know or may hereafter have in the grounds described herein, as the wife of said Lysander Redfield.
In witness whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed my seal on this twenty second day of February, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and eighty-four.
Mary H. Redfield (seal)
State of New York) County of Ontario)SS
On this twenty second day of February, A.D., one thousand eight hundred and eighty four, before me personally came Lysander Redfield and Mary H. Redfield, his wife, to me known to be the same persons described in and who signed and executed the foregoing instrument and who severally acknowledged that they executed the same for all the uses and purposes therein mentioned.
Redfield Common Gazebo

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Redfield Common Monument

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Red House Observatory

The Red House Observatory
“A Hole in the Ground”
About 50 feet south of the Harold Harland residence on the Lester Road, just outside the village of Phelps, is a small depression in the ground. It once served as the cellar for a little red house, but, in the passing years, the house has long since gone and the cellar has gradually become filled until only this grass-covered hollow remains.
It would be safe to say that nine out of 10 people who pass by scarcely notice it, and the story back of it is remembered by fewer still.
In Maidstone, England, in the year of 1844, a son, William R. Brooks, was born to a Baptist minister and, when the boy was 13 years old, his family came to America.
Before coming to America, however, young William, while on a trip to Australia, used to watch with fascination the ship’s captain take daily observations. This gave the boy his first desire to take up astronomy.
He had not been in America a year when he made his first telescope. He lacked most of the tools for his work and had to trudge many miles each day to the home of a friendly cabinet maker to work on his hobby. His first telescope was finished in time for him to catch a glimpse of Donati’s comet in 1858.
At 17, William Brooks was delivering lectures on astronomy in his father’s church, and, with ambition driving him ever on, he studied photography in order to coordinate it with astronomy.
He married at the age of 24 and in 1870 went to live in Phelps, where he became the village photographer. He built a second telescope and then a third. It was with this last instrument that he received the thrill of his life, for he discovered his first comet October 4, 1881, in the constellation of Leo.
Astronomy now beckoned him in earnest, and he forsook photography and moved to a little red house just outside the village of Phelps…to the spot mentioned at the beginning of this story.
Across a creek to the south, at the corner of an apple orchard, he built a small platform and post, which he used as a base for his telescope. To this crude open platform, he gave the name of Red House Observatory, in honor of his little home. And, this little Red House Observatory became famous throughout the world.
The most brilliant part of his career opened with the completion of his fourth telescope. With his home-made instruments, in the heat of summer and the cold of winter, he discovered comet after
comet. He set an astronomical record when he discovered three comets in the short space of one month in 1886. Other astronomers in all parts of the world, working with costly equipment and watching for the same phenomena, were in every case beaten by the man working in the primitive Red House Observatory.
This amazing man chalked up eleven comets to his credit while in Phelps and when his long career finally came to an end years later, he had accounted for 27 of these heavenly visitors — more than has ever since been discovered by any one man.
His work brought William Brooks every honor given by this branch of the scientific world. In 1888, he went to nearby Geneva where an observatory had been built for his use and where he discovered the last 16 of his 27 comets.
Now known as Dr. William R. Brooks, “The Comet Finder,” he became a professor of astronomy at Hobart College, Geneva. All of his honors came to a great climax when he was made a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The rule of this Society — that no man can become a member and a fellow at the same time — was suspended for the first time in its history for Dr. Brooks.
His long labors, however, finally took their toll and Dr. Brooks’ great career came to an end on May 3, 1921, at Geneva. Long hours spent in preparing to photograph an approaching comet proved too much for his physical self, but the end came while he was at the work he loved so well.
And so — his name lives on in the realms of science and many a comet in the outer reaches of space bears the name of this man.
The little red house at Phelps is no more. It has long since been gone and forgotten. The spot today bears no monument to Dr. William Brooks…no monument, that is, except a little grass-covered hole in the ground.
Thank you to the Ontario County Historical Society, which allowed us to publish this narrative. Visit the historicalsociety’s website at www.ochs.org.
by A. Glenn Rogers; This story was originally published in 1953
Learn more about William R. Brooks at Wikipedia.
“A Hole in the Ground”
About 50 feet south of the Harold Harland residence on the Lester Road, just outside the village of Phelps, is a small depression in the ground. It once served as the cellar for a little red house, but, in the passing years, the house has long since gone and the cellar has gradually become filled until only this grass-covered hollow remains.
It would be safe to say that nine out of 10 people who pass by scarcely notice it, and the story back of it is remembered by fewer still.
In Maidstone, England, in the year of 1844, a son, William R. Brooks, was born to a Baptist minister and, when the boy was 13 years old, his family came to America.
Before coming to America, however, young William, while on a trip to Australia, used to watch with fascination the ship’s captain take daily observations. This gave the boy his first desire to take up astronomy.
He had not been in America a year when he made his first telescope. He lacked most of the tools for his work and had to trudge many miles each day to the home of a friendly cabinet maker to work on his hobby. His first telescope was finished in time for him to catch a glimpse of Donati’s comet in 1858.
At 17, William Brooks was delivering lectures on astronomy in his father’s church, and, with ambition driving him ever on, he studied photography in order to coordinate it with astronomy.
He married at the age of 24 and in 1870 went to live in Phelps, where he became the village photographer. He built a second telescope and then a third. It was with this last instrument that he received the thrill of his life, for he discovered his first comet October 4, 1881, in the constellation of Leo.
Astronomy now beckoned him in earnest, and he forsook photography and moved to a little red house just outside the village of Phelps…to the spot mentioned at the beginning of this story.
Across a creek to the south, at the corner of an apple orchard, he built a small platform and post, which he used as a base for his telescope. To this crude open platform, he gave the name of Red House Observatory, in honor of his little home. And, this little Red House Observatory became famous throughout the world.
The most brilliant part of his career opened with the completion of his fourth telescope. With his home-made instruments, in the heat of summer and the cold of winter, he discovered comet after
comet. He set an astronomical record when he discovered three comets in the short space of one month in 1886. Other astronomers in all parts of the world, working with costly equipment and watching for the same phenomena, were in every case beaten by the man working in the primitive Red House Observatory.
This amazing man chalked up eleven comets to his credit while in Phelps and when his long career finally came to an end years later, he had accounted for 27 of these heavenly visitors — more than has ever since been discovered by any one man.
His work brought William Brooks every honor given by this branch of the scientific world. In 1888, he went to nearby Geneva where an observatory had been built for his use and where he discovered the last 16 of his 27 comets.
Now known as Dr. William R. Brooks, “The Comet Finder,” he became a professor of astronomy at Hobart College, Geneva. All of his honors came to a great climax when he was made a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. The rule of this Society — that no man can become a member and a fellow at the same time — was suspended for the first time in its history for Dr. Brooks.
His long labors, however, finally took their toll and Dr. Brooks’ great career came to an end on May 3, 1921, at Geneva. Long hours spent in preparing to photograph an approaching comet proved too much for his physical self, but the end came while he was at the work he loved so well.
And so — his name lives on in the realms of science and many a comet in the outer reaches of space bears the name of this man.
The little red house at Phelps is no more. It has long since been gone and forgotten. The spot today bears no monument to Dr. William Brooks…no monument, that is, except a little grass-covered hole in the ground.
Thank you to the Ontario County Historical Society, which allowed us to publish this narrative. Visit the historicalsociety’s website at www.ochs.org.
by A. Glenn Rogers; This story was originally published in 1953
Learn more about William R. Brooks at Wikipedia.
South Street Bridge

South Wayne Street used to be called South Street in the 1800s. It remained a dirt road until 1929. About three tenths of a mile south of Main Street, the street crossed a brook called by some accounts Swale Brook. John Parmelee spelled the brook “Swayle” in his compilation of facts and stories “It Happened in Phelps.” Another spelling according to Helen Ridley in “When Phelps was Young” was “Swaile”. More recently some have referred to the creek as “Vienna Brook” after the name of the village prior to 1855. The first stone bridge was apparently constructed in 1809. The “09” can be seen in the photograph from Mabel Oaks’ book “Phelpstown A Continued Story” page 19 and can be seen more easily in the watercolor on a stone on the upper side of the bridge.
The 1904 map of Phelps shows the foot bridge that ran parallel to the stone bridge on the east side. There are some today who remember the foot bridge. The photo and watercolor pictures above show the foot bridge.
Over the years, work has been done to widen the bridge. The stone, seen below, is part of a previous renovation of the bridge and will be located near the bridge on the west side upon completion of an area that the author calls “Woodpecker Hollow” through which Vienna Brook flows. (The word “Woodpecker” is a reference to an early Vienna commentary. Woodpecker City referred not to the bird but to all the hammering that sounded like woodpeckers in the 18th century construction of homes and businesses.) As the village widened the bridge in the mid-20th century, the foot bridge was no longer necessary.
Over the years, work has been done to widen the bridge. The stone, seen below, is part of a previous renovation of the bridge and will be located near the bridge on the west side upon completion of an area that the author calls “Woodpecker Hollow” through which Vienna Brook flows. (The word “Woodpecker” is a reference to an early Vienna commentary. Woodpecker City referred not to the bird but to all the hammering that sounded like woodpeckers in the 18th century construction of homes and businesses.) As the village widened the bridge in the mid-20th century, the foot bridge was no longer necessary.
The replacement of the bridge in 2018-19 revealed the stonework from the 1809 bridge. The structure was in remarkably good shape after 211 years. Below on the left is a picture of the Old Stone Bridge taken by the author in 2018 before it was taken down. On the right is a picture of the current bridge built by Ken McAllister and his team in 2019. They did nice work on the South Wayne Street bridge.
Article, photography and artwork by Dr. Ronald Grub
St. John's Episcopal Church

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Unionville

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