Historian
Jean Hennessy - Historian
email: [email protected]
SPECIAL MESSAGE FROM HISTORIAN
WE ARE INTERESTED IN MEETING ANYONE INTERESTED IN DAY HISTORY. WE COLLECT PERSONAL AND FAMILY STORIES, RESEARCH TOPICS, AND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE AT THE MUSEUM. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT Jean Hennessy.
A Brief History of Day
November 2013
By Lauren Roberts, prior Day Town Historian
Our town was formed in 1819 with lands taken from the Towns of Edinburg and Hadley. The Town of Concord (that’s right Concord, not Day) was created by the New York State Legislature on April 17 and included lands from two separate patents, Palmers Purchase and the John Glen Patent. Eliphaz Day, a prominent local businessman, was elected the first supervisor of the town and held the position for six years until he was drowned while driving logs on the river. Around that time it was discovered that there already existed a town named Concord in New York State, so the citizens voted to change the name of the town to Day in honor of their late supervisor.
Though the official creation of the town wasn’t until 1819, it appears that white settlers were moving into the area sometime around the early 1790s. This land was used as the hunting and fishing grounds of Native Americans many years prior to permanent white settlement and they continued their presence in the area throughout the French and Indian War and the Revolution. As late as the War of 1812, settlers were still unnerved by rumors of hostile Native Americans in the area looking to cause harm in the Sacandaga Valley, with some settlers going as far as fleeing their homes to take shelter in places like Schenectady.
The main attraction to the area by early settlers was timber. Trees were used in many different pursuits in the area and proved quite profitable for many in Day. Hemlock bark was used in the tanning processed and many tanneries were established in the town, some of the largest were the Crowe and Kyne Tannery (later run by Henry Poor & Sons) located in Croweville along Sand Creek, and the Lynwood Tannery of Conklingville, run for a time by Gurdon Conklin. Local lumber was also used in producing numerous woodenwares in the town including clothespins, broom handles, wooden measures, barrel staves and washboards to name a few. Though there were others, the largest woodenware factory in Day was located in Conklingville and was managed by Benjamin Jenkins, and later his son Benjamin S. Jenkins.
There were no incorporated villages within the town though there were distinct hamlets, mostly along the river. West Day or “Huntsville” as it was referred to, was located near the town’s border with Edinburg; Day Center or Day Corners was located in the vicinity of the current Town Hall; East Day, better known as Conklingville was near the border of Hadley, with the hamlet spilling over into the neighboring town. All of these hamlets are now located beneath the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake. One small hamlet, Croweville, was located along Sand Creek, and was abandoned when the tannery shut down, before the turn of the 20th century.
Day was a thriving rural community in the mid 19th century. The population of the town reached its peak around 1880, after which it began to decline. Some of the contributing factors to this exodus were the depletion of the natural resources which were once so plentiful, the creation of a chemical process to produce tannin meant hemlock bark was no longer needed in the tanning process, changes in transportation of goods to market, and the early conversations about damming the Sacandaga River to manage flood control for downstream communities along the Hudson River.
In the 1920s, the long talked about and proposed plans for the Conklingville Dam came to fruition and preparations began for the flooding of the valley. The Hudson River Regulating District was formed and landowners who owned property below the proposed flow line began to make plans for their future. The land below this line, commonly known as “the taking line” was sold to New York State and many of the residents moved out of the area to find work elsewhere. A few buildings were moved to higher ground to avoid destruction. Others were demolished or burned. Close to 4,000 graves were exhumed and re-interred in new cemeteries created by the Hudson River Regulating District. One church, the First Christian Church of Day, was relocated and was the only religious establishment to be saved from the flooding.
In 1930, the newly completed Conklingville Dam closed its gates and the community of Day was changed forever. From this point forward, timber ceased to be the main draw for the town, the new pull was tourism. Many people began purchasing small parcels of land along the newly created reservoir and constructing seasonal camps for summer getaways. While the year round population remained small, the summer population blossomed year after year and available lakefront property became harder to find.
Currently, tourism remains the main economic force in the town. Residents and non-residents alike enjoy not only the Great Sacandaga Lake but also the smaller lakes and creeks, beautiful mountains and serene country the town has to offer. Because the town has undergone such significant changes in the past 100 years, it is important to collect and preserve the rich history of the community and celebrate the people who lived here and shaped the story of our past.
email: [email protected]
SPECIAL MESSAGE FROM HISTORIAN
WE ARE INTERESTED IN MEETING ANYONE INTERESTED IN DAY HISTORY. WE COLLECT PERSONAL AND FAMILY STORIES, RESEARCH TOPICS, AND VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE AT THE MUSEUM. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT Jean Hennessy.
A Brief History of Day
November 2013
By Lauren Roberts, prior Day Town Historian
Our town was formed in 1819 with lands taken from the Towns of Edinburg and Hadley. The Town of Concord (that’s right Concord, not Day) was created by the New York State Legislature on April 17 and included lands from two separate patents, Palmers Purchase and the John Glen Patent. Eliphaz Day, a prominent local businessman, was elected the first supervisor of the town and held the position for six years until he was drowned while driving logs on the river. Around that time it was discovered that there already existed a town named Concord in New York State, so the citizens voted to change the name of the town to Day in honor of their late supervisor.
Though the official creation of the town wasn’t until 1819, it appears that white settlers were moving into the area sometime around the early 1790s. This land was used as the hunting and fishing grounds of Native Americans many years prior to permanent white settlement and they continued their presence in the area throughout the French and Indian War and the Revolution. As late as the War of 1812, settlers were still unnerved by rumors of hostile Native Americans in the area looking to cause harm in the Sacandaga Valley, with some settlers going as far as fleeing their homes to take shelter in places like Schenectady.
The main attraction to the area by early settlers was timber. Trees were used in many different pursuits in the area and proved quite profitable for many in Day. Hemlock bark was used in the tanning processed and many tanneries were established in the town, some of the largest were the Crowe and Kyne Tannery (later run by Henry Poor & Sons) located in Croweville along Sand Creek, and the Lynwood Tannery of Conklingville, run for a time by Gurdon Conklin. Local lumber was also used in producing numerous woodenwares in the town including clothespins, broom handles, wooden measures, barrel staves and washboards to name a few. Though there were others, the largest woodenware factory in Day was located in Conklingville and was managed by Benjamin Jenkins, and later his son Benjamin S. Jenkins.
There were no incorporated villages within the town though there were distinct hamlets, mostly along the river. West Day or “Huntsville” as it was referred to, was located near the town’s border with Edinburg; Day Center or Day Corners was located in the vicinity of the current Town Hall; East Day, better known as Conklingville was near the border of Hadley, with the hamlet spilling over into the neighboring town. All of these hamlets are now located beneath the waters of the Great Sacandaga Lake. One small hamlet, Croweville, was located along Sand Creek, and was abandoned when the tannery shut down, before the turn of the 20th century.
Day was a thriving rural community in the mid 19th century. The population of the town reached its peak around 1880, after which it began to decline. Some of the contributing factors to this exodus were the depletion of the natural resources which were once so plentiful, the creation of a chemical process to produce tannin meant hemlock bark was no longer needed in the tanning process, changes in transportation of goods to market, and the early conversations about damming the Sacandaga River to manage flood control for downstream communities along the Hudson River.
In the 1920s, the long talked about and proposed plans for the Conklingville Dam came to fruition and preparations began for the flooding of the valley. The Hudson River Regulating District was formed and landowners who owned property below the proposed flow line began to make plans for their future. The land below this line, commonly known as “the taking line” was sold to New York State and many of the residents moved out of the area to find work elsewhere. A few buildings were moved to higher ground to avoid destruction. Others were demolished or burned. Close to 4,000 graves were exhumed and re-interred in new cemeteries created by the Hudson River Regulating District. One church, the First Christian Church of Day, was relocated and was the only religious establishment to be saved from the flooding.
In 1930, the newly completed Conklingville Dam closed its gates and the community of Day was changed forever. From this point forward, timber ceased to be the main draw for the town, the new pull was tourism. Many people began purchasing small parcels of land along the newly created reservoir and constructing seasonal camps for summer getaways. While the year round population remained small, the summer population blossomed year after year and available lakefront property became harder to find.
Currently, tourism remains the main economic force in the town. Residents and non-residents alike enjoy not only the Great Sacandaga Lake but also the smaller lakes and creeks, beautiful mountains and serene country the town has to offer. Because the town has undergone such significant changes in the past 100 years, it is important to collect and preserve the rich history of the community and celebrate the people who lived here and shaped the story of our past.