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HISTORIAN’S CORNER
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PHELPS HISTORY
From "The Early History of the Village of Clifton Springs"
By Frederick Gifford
The Native Americans & The First "White" Men
Probably the first White Men to make their way into this part of New York state were the French traders or priests. But for the fact that, during the War of Independence, the five Indian Nations in Central NY sided with the English, we might all today be speaking in French. The early struggle between the English and the French for control of this vast territory went on for many years and we find that the Native Americans were surprised when Englishman took up arms with Englishman.
Following the American revolution, these Five Indian Nations (known as the IROQUOIS) continued to be a thorn in the side of the New Nation that was being born. For this reason, General George Washington sent General John Sullivan, supported by General James Clinton, into the Indian Territory to destroy crops and villages. This mission was accomplished by the Fall of 1779.
All of this area was at that time part of the State of Massachusetts. This land, comprising 2,600,000 acres, was known as the Phelps-Gorham Purchase. It was sold to Judge Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham in 1787 by the State of Massachusetts which claimed title through settlements at the close of the Revolution. The tract of land reached from Lake Ontario on the North, to the Pennsylvania border on the South, and was bordered on the West by the Genesee River and on the East by the Preemption Line. For the territory the Natives were paid a sum of $5,000 in cash and an annuity of $500 forever.
Two years later Oliver Phelps had opened the first regular land office at Canandaigua and before the middle of 1790 about 50 townships of this newly surveyed purchase had been sold to individuals or companies.
A captain Charles Williamson was selected to assist in some of the land sales in the 1790's and did much to assist in bringing new families into the area prior to 1800. He was widely traveled and by the spring of 1794 he was active in Geneva and the building of the Geneva Hotel. Capt. Williamson was also instrumental in the laying out and construction of several new roads through this soon to be settled territory.
The First Settlers At Sulphur Springs
A few years after this area was opened for settlement by the Phelps-Gorham representatives, early settlers moved into the area from the east and the south. Interest was especially high with several families from Frederick Co. in Maryland.
In the summer of 1799, a Benjamin Shekell in company with Elias Cost and Abraham Simmons, all of Frederick Co, Md., set out on horseback to see for themselves the possibilities of the area. They explored the area between present day Canandaigua and Geneva, and there came upon a large sulphur springs and numerous clear water springs which is today Clifton Springs. The land looked rich, the game was plentiful and the area was then heavily wooded. Later that summer, Messrs. Cost and Simmons returned to Maryland, but Mr. Shekell remained to further investigate the site. As he started south in December of 1799, he found the people of the different towns holding funeral services for General and President George Washington, who had passed away on the 14th of that month.
Benjamin Shekell returned to Sulphur Springs (Clifton Springs) in the middle of the following year (1800) and settled on the farm just west of the stream called "Rocky Run" (now the Ralph Tears Farm). Mr. Shekell was a joiner and carpenter by trade and used the jack plane and broad axe to clear the land and assist others in the same task. Survival of these early settlers demanded much, especially that they help one another in the early part of their clearing the land and raising the fist crude log homes.
In the years 1801-1802, the rest of the Shekell family followed Benjamin's steps and Benjamin's father, John Shekell, Sr., bought from Oliver Phelps 135 acres of land on the east hill above the sulphur springs. The cost of this land was $540 and did not include the "brimstone or sulphur springs." He, together with another son, John Shekell, Jr., built the first log house within what is now the Village of Clifton Springs. The location of this first log house would be the southeast corner of the property where now stands St. John's Episcopal Church. This home was gradually enlarged during the next year into a tavern to accommodate travelers through this area.
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