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{{Cleanup-afd|Wheatland Center, New York|date=February 2009}}
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'''Garbutt, New York''' is a [[Hamlet (place)#New York State|hamlet]] located between the village of [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]] and the hamlet of [[Mumford, New York|Mumford]]. It sits at the intersection<ref>http://www.multimap.com/maps/?zoom=13&countryCode=US&lat=43.01278&lon=-77.79194#map=43.01278,-77.79194|20|256&be=9872746|North&bd=useful_information&loc=US:38.8946:-77.0096:13||United%20States</ref><ref>http://maps.live.com/#JnE9eXAuZ2FyYnV0dCtuZXcreW9yayU3ZXNzdC4wJTdlcGcuMSZiYj02My45NzU5NjA5MDkxODM0JTdlLTI1LjQwMDM5MDYyNSU3ZTEwLjQ4NzgxMTg4MjA1NjclN2UtMTI5LjgxNDQ1MzEyNQ==</ref><ref>http://maps.yahoo.com/#mvt=h&lat=43.011586&lon=-77.791581&zoom=18</ref> of [[New York State Route 383|Scottsville-Mumford Road]] and [[New York State Route 259|Union Street]]<ref>In the early 1800s, many believed that the area's major metropolis would be [[Spencerport, New York|Spencerport]], not [[Rochester, New York|Rochester]], thus giving Union Street a particular importance in Wheatland.</ref> in the [[Wheatland, New York|Town of Wheatland]]. The history of Garbutt illustrates how the vicissitudes of economic fortune can reduce a thriving industrial village to a crossroads collection of a few houses with no commerce or trade. Garbutt grew rapidly through the mid-nineteenth century and then faded away as the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries brought changes that drained the life out of the local economy.
'''Garbutt, New York''' is a [[Hamlet (place)#New York State|hamlet]] located between the village of [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]] and the hamlet of [[Mumford, New York|Mumford]]. It sits at the intersection of [[New York State Route 383|Scottsville-Mumford Road]] and [[New York State Route 259|Union Street]] in the [[Wheatland, New York|Town of Wheatland]]. The history of Garbutt illustrates how the vicissitudes of economic fortune can reduce a thriving industrial village to a crossroads collection of a few houses with no commerce or trade. Garbutt grew rapidly through the mid-nineteenth century and then faded away as the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries brought changes that drained the life out of the local economy.


In its prime, Garbutt could boast a [[train station]] and [[rail yard]], service by two railroad companies, several industrial plants, a hotel, two schools, a church, [[Mining|mines]], three [[Oatka Creek]] bridges, a dam and [[Mill pond|millpond]], a [[Cooper (profession)|barrel factory]], and a number of [[general store]]s. Yet, as long ago as 1937, it was said<ref>WPA Guide to Rochester and Monroe County, 1937</ref>, "Garbutt is a hamlet so small that it would scarcely be noticed in passing were it not for the large buildings of the Empire Gypsum Company<ref>http://www.mindat.org/loc-20581.html</ref>." Now, even these (see [[#Industry|map]]<ref>"History of the Town of Wheatland", Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.224</ref> below) are gone.
In its prime, Garbutt boasted a [[train station]] and [[rail yard]], service by two railroad companies, several industrial plants, a hotel, two schools, a church, [[Mining|mines]], three [[Oatka Creek]] bridges, a dam and [[Mill pond|millpond]], a [[Cooper (profession)|barrel factory]], and a number of [[general store]]s. Yet, as long ago as 1937, it was said, "Garbutt is a hamlet so small that it would scarcely be noticed in passing were it not for the large buildings of the Empire Gypsum Company<ref>http://www.mindat.org/loc-20581.html</ref>."<ref>WPA Guide to Rochester and Monroe County, 1937</ref> Now, even these are gone.


The history of Garbutt was written by Carl F Schmidt, an architect locally noted for his histories of the area, and George Engs Slocum, a local business and civic figure whose history of the town appeared in the very early twentieth century. In 1998 (Slocum) and 2002 (Schmidt), the Wheatland Historical Association reprinted their books.<ref>http://www.townofwheatland.org/History/</ref>
===A cautionary tale===
The history of Garbutt has been admirably written by Carl F Schmidt, an architect locally noted for his histories of the area, and George Engs Slocum, a local business and civic figure whose history of the town appeared in the very early twentieth century. (The original publication of Slocum's history was by [[Vanity press|private printing]] of three hundred fifty copies in [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]], by Isaac Van Hooser. In 1998 (Slocum) and 2002 (Schmidt), the [http://www.townofwheatland.org/History/Default.asp Wheatland Historical Association] commissioned the Higginson reprints<ref>[http://www.higginsonbooks.com/ Higginson Book Company], a source of books on local history, including two on Wheatland</ref>.)

Schmidt wrote in 1952-1953, while Slocum stopped in 1906<ref>He stopped primarily because he died. He had declined to have the book published as he'd regarded it as unfinished. Subsequently, the work was completed by others. Slocum wanted the book to serve, ''inter alia'', as a foundation upon which future historians would build, and so it came to be.</ref>. Thus, some of what they relate, particularly about those yet living, will not necessarily still be true. Equally, some of the buildings and businesses characterized as current will by today have disappeared entirely. The moving hand writes...



[[Image:Wheatland_Original_Plan.jpg|thumb|center|500 px|<center>Original lots in the town of Wheatland (click image for full-sized view)</center>]]

==History==
[[Image:WheatlandNewYork.jpg|thumb|left|300 px|<center>Wheatland in the 19th century (click on image to enlarge)</center>]]
===Founding===
Prior to the [[American Revolutionary War|Revolutionary War]], what is today Wheatland was essentially [[Terra incognita|''terra incognita'']]. Inhabited by the [[Seneca nation|Seneca Indian nation]], it had seen almost no Europeans, save for the occasional French Jesuit missionary or the adventurer looking for the [[Niagara Falls#History|Falls of Niagara]]. That [[Scottsville, New York#First Contact|changed]].

<ref>Much of the information in this article was taken from ''Wheatland, New York'', by George Engs Slocum, 1908, and ''History of the Town of Wheatland'', by Carl F Schmidt, 1953, both reprinted by Higginson Book Company, Salem, Massachusetts, with whose kind permission these volumes have been used as a source.</ref><ref>For a fascinating pictorial history of Wheatland, see ''Images of America - Wheatland'', Catherine Gilbert and Barbara Chapman, 2008, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN 978-0-7385-6321-3</ref>The settlement of Wheatland began very shortly before the beginning of the nineteenth century with the appearance of one of the town's most eccentric figures, [[Scottsville, New York#Indian Allan|Ebenezer "Indian" Allan]]. He was immediately followed by the [[Scottsville, New York#Peter Sheffer|Sheffer family]] in 1789. The arrival in 1804 of John Garbutt actually begins the history of the area now bearing his name. A shoemaker by trade and born in England in 1780, John came to the New World with his father, Zachariah, his mother, his sisters, Elizabeth and Phoebe, and his brothers, William and Philip<ref>http://www.library.rochester.edu/index.cfm?page=890</ref>, when Zachariah's [[Whig (British political faction)|Whig]] political principles made getting out of town quickly the most expeditious means of preserving his hold on life. Borrowing thirty [[Guinea (British coin)|guineas]] from friends, he and his sons emigrated to America. They eventually came to the town of [[Seneca, New York|Seneca]] in [[Ontario County, New York|Ontario County]] after a short stay on the [[Hudson River]]. The family lived in Seneca for five years, during which time Zachariah's wife died. At some point during this period, Nicholas was born. John arrived in the [[Wheatland, New York|Town of Wheatland]] and purchased Lot Number 48 (on the northeast and southeast corners of the intersection of [[New York State Route 383|NY 383]] and Union Street). He promptly built the obligatory log cabin fifty yards north of [[Oatka Creek]], south of what became Scottsville-Mumford Road, and a little west of today's Union Street. Here, he was joined a year later by his father, two sisters, and two brothers (the fate of Nicholas remains unknown).

Zachariah Garbutt left the area in 1807, walking all the way to the bank of the [[Mississippi River|Mississippi]], where he died of illness.

Once established, John Garbutt worked not only as a [[Shoemaking|cobbler]] but also as a [[Farmer|farmer]], a [[Surveying|surveyor]], and a [[Politician|politician]]. Among his numerous contributions to the development of the area was [[Scottsville Free Library|The Farmers' Library]], on whose behalf he walked to [[Canandaigua, New York|Canandaigua]] and back to procure the [[Library|library]]'s first books. He built a second cabin on the north side of the road from Scottsville to Mumford, halfway between Union Street and what would become the Walnut Inn. He married Mercy Cady, the daughter of another settler, Rufus Cady, whose property contained Blue Pond and many of whose descendants still live in the county. John's sister, Elizabeth, taught in Scottsville's first schoolhouse in the summer of 1808 and married William Reed, who arrived in 1809.

John Garbutt had three daughters, Lucretia, Lydia, and Jane, as well as five sons, Zachariah, Cassius, Elmer, Volney, and William. Of all of them, only one was living in 1906<ref>"Wheatland, New York", George Engs Slocum, 1908, p.47</ref>. He raised his family in the brick house he built east of the settlement. His grandson, [http://www.gcv.org/attractions/Garbutt/GarbuttLetters.shtml James Garbutt], was the first man from Wheatland to die in the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], having enlisted in [[Monroe County, New York|Monroe County]]'s 13th Regiment.

The next settler in Garbutt was a man named McQueen, who built a cabin between John Garbutt's and the creek. He later worked as a [[Miller|miller]] for Garbutt. It is said that traces of these first two cabins may still be seen.

An incident in the very early years of Garbuttsville illustrates the sometimes forgotten fact that, at the time, two very different cultures shared the land. Although versions of the story vary, it is said that...

[[Image:Garbutt_dulcimer.jpg|thumb|left|150px|<center>Elizabeth Garbutt's dulcimer</center>]]
<blockquote>
"One of the first musical instruments in the town, excepting the [[Bagpipes|pipes]] of the [[Scottish people|Scotchmen]], was a [[Appalachian dulcimer|dulcimer]] in the Garbutt cabin in 1806. The three Garbutt brothers and their sister Elizabeth lived in the log cabin just north of the Oatka Creek. Sometimes a deer or bear would dart by, but on this morning Elizabeth was startled by a shadow which fell across the doorway. There stood an Indian in full native costume. His [[Moccasin (footwear)|moccasins]] had given no warning of his approach and he offered no greeting. Alarmed but not disconcerted she went to the dulcimer and played her liveliest tunes. As she played his face relaxed into almost a gentle expression. Then he stole away as silently as he had come. Weeks passed, then one day he came with six other braves of the [[Seneca nation]]. They pointed to the dulcimer and again she charmed them with her music."<ref>"History of the Town of Wheatland", Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.206</ref>
</blockquote>
This dulcimer is believed to be the oldest such instrument (with provenance) in the United States and may today be seen on permanent display in the Eugene Cox Memorial Local History Room<ref>http://www.scottsvilleny.org/library.php</ref> of the [[Scottsville Free Library]], the donation having been made in 1964 by Eugene Cox and his sister, Dorothy Schicker, the great-grandchildren of Elizabeth Garbutt Reed.

[[#content|top of page]]

===Evolution===
Among the institutions that have disappeared from Garbutt is its post office. Today served by Scottsville, it had its own for many years. The records show that three postmasters were commissioned, in 1880, 1882, and 1883; these may have been the first. Postmaster Frank Garbutt retired on 31 January 1940 after a twenty-two-year career, succeeded by a Mrs Hoffman. Miss Vince Shorzino became postmistress a year later. During World War 2, the government decided to close the post office. Unlike today's post office in Scottsville, which operates in an attractive and efficient building of its own, the Garbutt post office was always in someone's store.

===Education===
[[Image:Garbutt schoolhouse.png|thumb|left|200px|Wheatland school district number 3, Garbutt schoolhouse, 1900]]
Early on, the settlers of Garbutt recognized the need for education. This first took the form of a [[Scottsville Free Library|library]], in 1805. A small log schoolhouse was erected on the southwest corner of the road crossing (the only one in the hamlet), although the date of its erection cannot be ascertained (probably prior to 1813). In mid-1831, this schoolhouse was sold for $30 and replaced with a stone building on the same site for $341. Unusually for such a small town, Garbuttsville had two schools in the 1830-1852 period<ref>Slocum gives this period as 1830 to 1845.</ref>. The younger students attended primary school in the new building, and the older students took classes in the church building (item 2 on the map below) just south of the cemetery. A school journal states on 19 September 1846 "that the trustees were authorized to incur such expenses as may be necessary for the fitting up of the lower part of the church on the hill as a school room, the upper part of which is now occupied as such."<ref>"History of the Town of Wheatland", Carl F Schmidt, p.216</ref> This came to an end in 1854 when the shoddy construction of the church building finally made it unusable. The school was turfed out and the building demolished in 1856.

The [[New York Legislature|state legislature]], ever mindful of its obligation to keep things firmly under control, enacted school laws in 1813. These required the creation of local [[school district]]s by municipalities. Garbuttsville became [[Caledonia (town), New York|Caledonia]] Number 10. The [[Board of education|school board]] thus formed elected to purchase Peter Sheffer's southwest corner lot, including the log schoolhouse then under construction, paying him $74.74 for the property. They voted to raise an additional $100.00 for the completion of construction. (The historical record is, again, not clear regarding when the first schoolhouse was completed and when it first saw students.)

W H Harmon proposed to the June 1854 meeting of the school trustees a new single-story [[Framing (construction)|frame building]], measuring thirty feet by forty, to be used as a school. For reasons not currently known, the meeting was declared illegal, and numerous subsequent meetings saw no progress toward this goal. In the interim, the old stone schoolhouse was repaired sufficiently to keep it limping along. Shortly after 1850, on property on the north side of South Road between Union Street and Bowerman Road, a schoolhouse was built for District 4. The lot, purchased from Thomas A Estes, cost $35.

As these were the dark days before [[Equal Employment Opportunity Commission|anti-discrimination laws]] in employment, Almon Korben, the man teaching the advanced class, was paid $16 monthly, while the teacher of the younger students, Nancy Goodhue, received less than half this amount. The senior teacher in 1835 was [[Henry Jarvis Raymond]]. He was sixteen years old. Later, he became [[Speaker of the New York State Assembly|Speaker of the Assembly]] and a [[Member of Congress]] (although, one assumes, not simultaneously). He may even have been Lieutenant Governor of New York State for a while. Not satisfied with these accomplishments, he went on to found the [[New York Times]]. (Slocum describes the Times as "...an able and widely circulated journal."<ref>"Wheatland, New York", George Engs Slocum, 1908, p.58</ref>) Mindful of his origins, Raymond hired an old friend, Alexander Mann of Stewart Road, as one of his editorial writers. It is claimed that these [[Editorial|editorials]] influenced the policies of [[Abraham Lincoln|President Lincoln]].

In the decade of the [[Civil War]], employment discrimination continued but wages rose. For teaching the winter term of 1860, William Fraser received $52; for teaching the summer term, Miss M A McKelvey received $27.80. In 1862, coal was first used for heating the school. Three tons cost the district $23.25 paid to W F Garbutt. After the war, wages rose again, with a Miss Shirts paid $5 a week for six weeks' work.

In 1871, a frame building by Talcott Wells, creator of the highly-regarded Wells Barn style of construction<ref>http://geneseesun.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11:jillian-stevensonnews-editor&catid=26:in-the-sunlight</ref>, became the local schoolhouse immediately west of the stone school. Years of talking about a new school ended when the populace voted [[Split infinitive|to finally do]] it. Their decision to construct a brick schoolhouse did not survive the revelation by architect Isaac Loomis<ref>http://www.landmarksociety.org/tours/index.html?tourID=10000</ref> that it would be some twenty percent costlier than frame construction. In July of 1871, Wells was awarded the $2,200 contract to build. Loomis received $25 for drawing up the plans.

As happens from time to time in the building trade, the construction estimates did not survive reality any better than did the plans for a [[Brick|brick building]]; Wells claimed to have sustained on the project a loss of $125, a not inconsiderable amount at the time. At a special meeting on 1 December 1871, the trustees voted to assess the taxpayers that amount and reimburse Wells.

For the 1871-1872 school year, Miss C A Field was paid $8 a week for teaching, and Mr P Sheldon received very nearly twice as much. In the 1873-1874 school year, the woman teacher received a little more and the man a little less. By such small steps is progress toward employment equality achieved. Overall, the wages paid to teachers during the prosperous years of the early 1870s were three to four times those paid before the war. At the time, the school year consisted of two separate terms, with teachers hired by the term. The school year in 1880 began on or about 1 September, with George Jennings teaching the winter term at $10 a week and Libbie Garbutt the summer at $8.50 a week.

In another small step for progress, $250 was spent in 1907 to install a furnace in the frame schoolhouse. In 1913, the school board spent $200 on painting the floor, a concrete sidewalk, and other minor improvements. Next year, with an appropriation of $50 for the purpose, school children were first given medical examinations. The growth of industry, trade, and agriculture in the area, with its concomitant rise in population, led to increasing pressure on the school's capacity. As school boards often do, instead of building or enlarging, they elected to rent additional space for an annex, in this instance the tailor shop on the east side of the school property.

The history of public education in Garbutt came to an end at a special meeting on 13 May 1940 when there passed the resolution that $1,400 per annum be paid to [[Wheatland-Chili Central School District|Scottsville High School]]<ref>http://local.live.com/default.aspx?v=2&cp=r53snp8hmwz1&style=o&lvl=1&tilt=-90&dir=0&alt=-1000&scene=9874217&encType=1 Connor</ref> for five years to accept all Garbutt students. Thus, education in Garbutt is today nothing more than several school bus stops.

But wait, there's more. The nineteenth century favoured small local academies; several existed in nearby Scottsville for some time, with varying degrees of success and longevity. The one experiment in Garbutt did not fare well at all. Perhaps its story is best told by Slocum<ref>"Wheatland, New York", George Engs Slocum, 1908, p.60</ref>:
<blockquote>
In the spring of the year 1846 upon the farm of General Rawson Harmon, now occupied by Wm H Garbutt, was started what was advertised as the "Western New York Agricultural School." The proprietors and faculty of this institution were Lee and Harmon. Professor Daniel Lee, editor of the "Genesee Farmer," an agricultural paper published in Rochester, N. Y., was to have charge of the theoretical part, while Harmon was to give instruction in the practical work of plowing and sowing, of reaping and mowing so effectually that a class of scientific agriculturalists could be graduated each year. The expense to the pupil for room, board and tuition was one hundred dollars per year. About twenty pupils were in attendance during the summer of '46. The future prospects of the school were not encouraging and application was made to the Legislature for an appropriation in its behalf, which failed to receive favorable action. The State was then asked to take possession of the school making it a State institution. This request was also declined and in the spring of 1847 the school was removed to Ellwanger & Barry's nurseries<ref>http://www.lib.rochester.edu/index.cfm?PAGE=869</ref> south of Rochester, Mr. Barry taking the position of Gen. Harmon. But this plant was of too feeble a growth to bear transplanting. The rich nursery soil when applied to the culture of this institution, was found to have no advantage over a Wheatland farm. The first frost of Autumn put an end to its existence.
</blockquote>

[[#content|top of page]]

===Military===
Wheatland learned one Sunday morning in August of 1814 that [[Fort Erie, Ontario|Fort Erie]], then held by American forces, was threatened with attack by the [[War of 1812|British]]. The call for volunteers was answered by seventy-five men, virtually the entire adult male population of the town. Assembling on the Green (see map) the next morning, they then set out on their march to [[Buffalo, New York|Buffalo]]. On the first of September, they officially enlisted in the United States Army. The defense of Fort Erie succeeded, with two of the Wheatland men wounded and two taken prisoner (after six months' captivity in Montreal, they were sent back home).

===Industry===
[[Image:Garbuttsville.jpg|thumb|left|200px|<center>Garbuttsville at its industrial height</center>]]
[[Image:Garbutt mine workers.png|thumb|right|200px|Gypsum miners in front of the mine entrance, 1900.]]
[[Image:Garbutt Lycoming Plant.png|thumb|right|200px|The Lycoming Calcining Company plant on the north bank of the Oatka Creek, showing the bridge across the millpond from the mines in the hill.]]
[[Image:Interior block plant.png|thumb|right|200px|The interior of the Ebsary Fire Proofing and Gypsum Block Company gypsum block plant in 1917.]]
Almost invariably, the first commercial enterprise beyond farming engaged in by the settlers of any area at the time was a [[Watermill|mill]], either to process grain into [[Flour|flour]] or to shape lumber into boards. [[Scottsville, New York#Peter Sheffer|Peter Sheffer]] undertook both in or around 1810. Theretofore, the nearest [[Sawmill|saw mill]] was that of Indian Allan, on the [[Genesee River#History|Genesee Falls]] in what would become [[Rochester, New York|Rochester]]. Sheffer first built a saw mill on the north side of Oatka Creek, west of John Garbutt's log cabin. A year later, he put up a [[Gristmill|grist mill]] to the east of the saw mill. Thus, the original name of the area, Sheffer's Mills. Although the twelve-foot-diameter [[Millstone|grinding stones]] from the flour mill (fabricated from a giant [[boulder]] by a Scotsman from [[Caledonia (village), New York|Caledonia]]) are long gone, parts of the timber frame remained at least as late as the middle of the twentieth century. Particular note should be taken of the discovery made by workers excavating the foundations of Sheffer's grist mill: layers of [[Gypsum|gypsum]]. The actual commercialization of the gypsum deposits would begin circa 1820.

[[Ashery]], a trivial and ephemeral industry, exploited the [[hardwood]]s that settlers cleared from the land, since not all of the trees could be made into [[lumber]] and used for building. Philip Garbutt owned an [http://www.paulkeeslerbooks.com/Potash.html ashery] situated on an acre of land on the creek bank east of Union Street. An employee collected wood for him, using a team and wagon. The logs and branches he brought back were typically burned in large piles<ref>In stark contrast to today, when we eagerly harvest the energy and bury the ashes in landfills.</ref>, the ashes utilized to make [[potash]], a crude fertilizer worth approximately a shilling<ref>Twelve or thirteen cents.</ref> a bushel. An Englishman named John Maude, traveling through the area, observed that one ton of potash required the burning of 450 bushels of wood. Potash from an acre of land would yield $4 to $8, almost the cost of clearing the land. It might be noted that potash was not the most valuable product that could have been made, but the harsh truth of economics is that it never pays to manufacture what no one will buy, and transportation resources severely constrained what could be delivered to customers at affordable prices.

[[Cooper (profession)|Cooperage]], another minor industry, employed several dozen workers in the 1840s making barrels for the mills. A short road<ref>At the time, all roads were unpaved and only marginally improved.</ref> extended west off Union Street south of Oatka<ref>As recently as the middle of the twentieth century, this name would often be seen spelled in the aboriginal fashion, "O-at-ka".</ref> Creek along which were built five or six houses for coopers. The foreman's house remains in use and belongs to the owner of the one non-retail business remaining in Garbutt today.

Long after Wheatland's eminent position in wheat production was lost to the Midwest, it benefited from the considerable gypsum deposited when ancient seas evaporated, laying down deposits of calcium sulfate dihydrate of commercially adequate purity. These gypsum beds, as the deposits are known, were 5 to 6 feet (1.5 to 1.9 meters) thick and lay beneath virtually the entire industrial success of Garbuttsville. The nature of the exploitation of this resource depended upon the understanding of its properties.

Initially, it was thought - erroneously - to be a fertilizer. In the 1820s, it was found that crushed raw gypsum had a beneficial effect on corn during times of mild drought. The high sulfate of lime content had the effect of holding moisture in the soil, making more of it available to the crop rather than allowing it to evaporate. This worked on hay and clover, as well. By the 1830s, the demand for what was called "land plaster" had driven the mining and crushing of gypsum to economically significant levels. While the initial method was what today is considered [[open-pit mining]], subterranean mining spread, particularly where an over-layer of hard limestone made an effective mine roof. Philip and John Garbutt were among those cashing in on the burgeoning demand for land plaster. John Berrey, John W Garbutt's agent in [[Brockport, New York|Brockport]], sold over a thousand tons of land plaster to local farmers in the 1870-1876 period.

Agricultural consumption of land plaster was not the only link between gypsum and farming. Many farmers, otherwise idle in winter, worked in mining, milling, stockpiling, and transporting the material before going back to husbandry in the spring. In the Civil War years, land plaster sold for $4.25 a ton, plus one more dollar for freight.

Technology changed the Garbuttsville land plaster industry in 1887, when William Weeks built his mill on the east side of Union Street at the top of the hill. He was the first to use steam power instead of a waterwheel. A pump drew water for the steam plant up from the creek. Weeks owned property on the west side of Union Street and from it mined gypsum in surface pits. Later, like the others, he mined it underground, with the mine shaft across the road from the mill. At this point, the land plaster business was all that John Garbutt had in operation, and the price war with Weeks had a catastrophic effect on prices. The per-ton price of land plaster fell from four dollars to half that. While Weeks out-produced Garbutt four to one, his higher operating costs made his mill uncompetitive. By the 1890s, these two mills were all that was left in Garbuttsville; the flour and cement mills, the cooperage, the blacksmith, and the carpenter had all gone. Moreover, the usage of land plaster was declining.

Later in the 1840s, gypsum found usage as the raw material for the manufacture of water-lime cement<ref>http://www.centuryhouse.org/newsletr/wint2001/hwhite.html</ref><ref>http://geology.about.com/od/mineral_resources/a/cement.htm</ref>. Schmidt describes the manufacturing process:
<blockquote>
"...it was discovered that the rock gypsum could be boiled<ref>In water, of course.</ref>, left to harden, and then ground and made into a water-lime cement. A mill to grind the solidified plaster was built by Philip Garbutt about sixteen feet to the west of the mill for grinding land-plaster.

The gypsum rock was placed in cast iron kettles about two feet in diameter and two feet deep which had iron legs about four inches long. The kettles were set up on the bricks so that a fire could be built under them to boil the rock. The gypsum rock came to a boil in about thirty or forty minutes and then was allowed to settle down. It was again brought to a boil, allowed to cool, and then run off and allowed to solidify ready for grinding. At this time most of the gypsum for the Garbutt mills was dug from pits or surface mines on the south side of the creek, and to the west of the mills.

A high narrow bridge was built across Oatka Creek where the grinding mill was located. The gypsum was hauled from the pits in small wooden cars, drawn by mules, across the bridge to be boiled."<ref>''History of the Town of Wheatland'', Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.215</ref>
</blockquote>
The water-lime cement industry lasted through the Civil War but not long after. The [[Panic of 1873|crash of 1873]] brought an end to the building and construction industry's demand for this cement. John Garbutt was obliged to close his mill when his last customer, a Cleveland builder, stopped working. While the price of the cement is not known, the shipping came to ten cents a barrel.

A far better use for gypsum arrived with the new century. Called "patent plaster" at the time, it created the [[drywall]] industry, along with the manufacture of gypsum building blocks. Additionally, gypsum was utilized in [[Portland cement]] as a [[Concrete#Chemical admixtures|cure retarder]]. It even comprises [[Chalkboard|blackboard chalk]], which is no longer made of [[chalk]].

The new demand for gypsum created as many as three hundred jobs for Garbutt<ref>By this point, the name had become 'Garbutt' instead of 'Garbuttsville'.</ref> workers in the mills, mines, and rail yard. Before they were replaced by [[electric locomotive]]s, up to fifty [[mule]]s worked to haul cars out of the mines and across the Oatka Creek bridges into the plants. The companies operating in Garbutt at various times included Garbuttsville Cement Manufacturing, Garbutt Milling Company, Lycoming Calcining Company (see photo at right)<ref>In 1900, the very first telephone customer in Garbutt.</ref>, Diamond Wall Cement Company, Sackett Plaster Board Company<ref>This company held the patent for drywall sheets.</ref>, Garbutt Gypsum Company, Empire Gypsum Company, Dolomite Products Company, United States Gypsum Company, Rockwood Gypsum and Lumber Company, Pittsburgh Plate Glass<ref>They purchased William Weeks' mill in 1905. PPG intended to build a new mill on the site. Before accomplishing this, they found that the rock, which they were shipping to their Pennsylvania plant, was of inadequate quality. They abandoned their plans in Garbutt and sold the property and mining rights to Empire Gypsum Company.</ref>, Ebsary Fireproofing and Gypsum Block Company (see photo at right), and Ruberoid<ref>http://www.mesothelioma.net/gaf-ruberoid/</ref>.

The first decades of the twentieth century brought the decline of Garbutt's industry. The [[Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire]] of 1911 forever changed how commercial and industrial buildings were to be built. While Ebsary enjoyed considerable demand for its patented fire-resistant gypsum blocks<ref>Four inches by twelve by thirty, they were used for making firestops and fireproof partitions, building features required by the new codes resulting from the infamous fire.</ref>, the business doing very well during the years of World War I, Garbutt itself faded. Ebsary abandoned the Garbutt facility and built a much larger plant in Wheatland Center<ref>Today, the location of [http://www.sabinmetal.com/Pages/opening.html Sabin Metal Corporation].</ref>. Only in 1912 did Garbutt have electric power from a public utility; prior to this, [[cogeneration]] was the sole source of electricity.

While most of the gypsum companies remaining in Garbutt continued to operate in the 1920s, the [[Wall Street Crash of 1929]] stopped the construction industry dead in its tracks, destroying the demand for Garbutt gypsum. Schmidt offers the last word:
<blockquote>
"The last mill in Garbutt to shut down was the Dolomite Products Company. Water seeped into the mines so rapidly that it required constant pumping, which was too costly. The property was purchased by the Ebsary Gypsum Company in order to gain possession of the valuable mining rights. The plant was dismantled and today ruins of the walls and broken pieces of concrete mark the site of the once important industry."<ref>''History of the Town of Wheatland'', Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.230</ref>
</blockquote>

[[#content|top of page]]

===Taxonomy===
The first name given to this part of Wheatland was Sheffer's Mills, from the saw mill and grist mill built by Peter Sheffer II. Philip Garbutt married Sheffer's daughter, Nancy, in 1815 and purchased his mills, along with the gypsum beds discovered several years earlier. Thereupon, the local name became Garbutt's Mills. In 1821, [[Monroe County, New York|Monroe County]] was formed and the [[Caledonia (town), New York|Town of Caledonia]] split in two, the southern half remaining Caledonia and becoming part of [[Livingston County, New York|Livingston County]], the northern half becoming the Town of Inverness. Within two months, by the grace and power of the state legislature and allegedly at the behest of John Garbutt, a former Englishman<ref>On 12 June 1810, by action of the Court of Common Pleas of Genesee County, John Garbutt and two other local men became citizens of the United States.</ref> markedly devoid of Scottish tendencies, Inverness was on 3 April 1821 renamed Wheatland.

It is unclear when the name came into popular usage, but evidence suggests that today's Garbutt was called Garbuttsville by the 1830s. The "-ville" was dropped from the name some time around 1900. Today, few have even heard of "Sheffer's Mills", "Garbutt's Mills", or "Garbuttsville".

One observer<ref>"Wheatland, New York", George Engs Slocum, 1908, p.50</ref> of the scene proffers the theory that shortening 'Garbuttsville' to 'Garbutt' was done to satisfy the Post Office, in the interest of efficiency and economizing. Such an excision befell Mumfordville and Rochesterville, too; somehow, Scottsville escaped the [[Scott, New York|same fate]].

Although Thomas Lowry came to America with the Garbutts, he did not settle in the area 'til 1815. His property on South Road, south of Garbutt, was called [http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=43.000159,-77.779169&spn=0.027714,0.052357&t=p&z=15 Lowry's Hill] for many years. The substantial hill south of Oatka Creek on the west side of Union Street was home to a [[Cooper (profession)|cooper shop]] employing thirty to forty workers, leading to the sobriquet, Cooper Hill<ref>By this rationale, it could successfully be argued that Garbutt should be known as Gypsumville or Millersville, since as many as several hundred people were employed in the gypsum milling trade at its height.</ref>. Today, it is [[Oatka Creek Park]].

John Garbutt lived 'til the mid-1870s, having built a house on Scottsville-Mumford Road, a quarter of a mile east of Union Street. In 1880 or so, the president of [http://www.thelampworks.com/lw_companies_rochester.htm Rochester Lamp Works], James H Kelly, purchased the property and considerably improved it. The grove on this farm became a popular picnic ground, and large groups of people came to the grove from Rochester on the [[Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway]], disembarking at the Garbuttsville train station. It is rumoured that many of these parties brought their own marching bands on these outings to Kelly's Grove. Kelly died in 1900, by which time Kelly's Grove had been popular for several decades.

In 1911, the Ebsary Fireproofing and Gypsum Block Company set up a factory in Garbutt to exploit the local gypsum. Shortly after World War 1, the plant was abandoned and the operation moved west to Wheatland Center, the Ebsary name then becoming associated with that neighbourhood.

===Agriculture===
[[Image:Farm10.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Dairy farmer]]
[[Image:American_Railroad_Journal.jpg|thumb|left|200 px|<center>From the American Railroad Journal of 1833</center>]]
[[Image:Wheatland Ag Society.jpg|thumb|left|200 px|<center>Membership roster of the Wheatland Agricultural Society</center>]]
On 21 January 1822, local farmers met in the log schoolhouse and formed the Wheatland Agricultural Society. Its purpose was the improvement of all local matters agricultural. The fifty founding members subscribed dues of a dollar each and included what may well have been virtually the entire roster of local farmers. Several of the names are, to this day, represented among the local population, including one prominent local farming family.

At the 1833 Wheatland Agricultural Society [[Fair|fair]], years before [[John Deere]] developed his improved [[Plough|steel plow]], two local men, William Wallace (the design engineer for the [[Scottsville & LeRoy Railroad]]) and Ephraim Bingham (a [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]] [[Foundry|foundryman]]), exhibited metal plows described as "much improved" over those then in common usage.

The earliest days saw little of the contemporary distinction between factory and farm; the owners and operators of the grist and saw mills, the blacksmith shops, and the carpentry and masonry trades were also full-time farmers.

The town of Wheatland and parts of [[Livingston County, New York|Livingston County]] led the nation in the growing of wheat prior to the [[Panic of 1873]]. As the national economy recovered, however, the wheat production of the Midwest forever eclipsed that of the Northeast.

===Commerce and trade===
[[Image:Garbutt stone store.jpg|thumb|right|200px|The old stone store on Scottsville-Mumford Road]]
At a certain (or uncertain) point in the growth of a community, the population reaches a magnitude at which individuals can specialize in needed activities. These include the buying and selling on of goods and services, the provision of those services themselves, and the manufacture of goods. Garbutt was not atypical in this regard.

At the most basic level, people with specialized skills made them available to others, such as John Garbutt's shoemaking and his sister's teaching. Most of the specialists - the [[Miller|millers]], [[Blacksmith|blacksmiths]], [[Masonry|masons]], and [[Carpentry|carpenters]] - were also [[Farmer|farmers]]. There was a particular synergy in this, as farmers had to make many of their own implements, such as [[Plough|plows]], [[Harrow (tool)|harrows]], and [[Sickle|sickles]]. The [[Thomas Hobbes#Leviathan|Hobbesian]] harshness of rural life engendered the incentive to improve [[Agriculture|agricultural technology]] that explains why more progress was made in the nineteenth century than had been in the prior fifty centuries.

However, commerce as it's understood today requires a facility of some kind in which the [[tradesman]] or [[mechanic]] practices his business. The first known such place was the store built by the Garbutts behind the first schoolhouse. While the east half was a domicile, the west half became a trading post known by the Irish expression, "Break-of-Day", meaning "Good morning." It's thought that the house/store was built by Powell Carpenter. The Indians living in the area became customers, along with the settlers.

This store was succeeded in 1828 when Philip Garbutt built a ledge-stone structure slightly west of the northwest corner (see photo). He spent $226 on the masonry and another $165 on Moses Wells' carpentry. For years afterward, this store was the best-known establishment west of the Genesee. Garbutt purchased goods from Albany and New York City, and the store was described as the only place in the area where one could procure a silk dress or a fine "city-made" hat.

Early in the 1820s, someone built and operated a cloth [[dyeing]] business located in a house built on stilts over the creek on the north bank, east of the bridge (see Oatka Creek downstream photo), presumably without [[New York State Department of Environmental Conservation|DEC]] approval. While the identity of the dyer is not known, some of his prices are. Dyeing a red shirt cost $.38, for example. The scarcity of cash at the time meant that much of this kind of work was paid for in [[Barter|barter]]. For instance, 12½ bushels of corn was worth $4.12 worth of dyeing, and one barrel of soap could be exchanged for $4 of work by the dyer. (One imagines that he would have had an on-going and not inconsiderable need for soap.)

Another essential trade was plied in the [[Blacksmith|blacksmith's shop]]. In a bit of irony, the site of one of the very earliest Garbutt businesses, the [[Forge|smithy]] run by Joseph Robinson and Christopher Nicholson, was the site of perhaps the last business to disappear, the [http://books.google.com/books?id=ZI4-xleAptoC&pg=PA82&lpg=PA82&dq=br%26p+route&source=bl&ots=uRJpmWwF4a&sig=n2fJS3j-1HSI12bFTrhr00i8Hm8&hl=en&ei=bH-TSZbcEoOftweIhsnfCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=5&ct=result tiny general store] founded by Pasquale Pulvino in 1911 and run by his son-in-law, Joseph Ronzo, until comparatively recently.

Before the railroad network gave local farmers access to distant markets, the available means of transporting wheat to eastern markets were so slow and arduous that their costs precluded their usage. For a time, shipping a bushel of wheat to the nearest major city cost more than the wheat was worth. It was much the same with [[flour]]. Ironically, during the boom following the end of the [[War of 1812#The Treaty of Ghent|War of 1812]] with the treaty signed on 24 December 1814, [[commodity]] prices rose spectacularly, with a [[bushel]] of [[wheat]] sometimes selling for the same price that it would bring almost two hundred years later - ''not adjusted for inflation''. Even at these prices, paying a man and team to haul a wagon-load of grain to the nearest major markets - Albany, Philadelphia, or New York - simply did not make economic sense<ref>As an example, consider that freighting a ton of goods between New York and Buffalo would cost around $100 and take nearly a month. Getting the goods the 150 miles from New York to Albany accounted for less than 3% of this expense, as it was done by river. The remaining 290 miles had to be done by overland horse- or ox-drawn drayage over wretched roads.</ref>.

One solution was to convert the grain to a higher-value product with lesser volume and weight. For wheat, this meant either baked goods or whiskey, and whiskey keeps a lot better than bread does. Social mores of the time meant that whiskey consumption was a common practice, with much consumed at such gatherings as barn raisings and field harvesting. Schmidt<ref>"History of the Town of Wheatland", Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.164</ref> relates a story illustrative of the power of this custom:
<blockquote>
"An interesting story is told about Oliver Allen I, an ardent [[Prohibition|prohibitionist]], and how he was forced to supply liquor to his workmen. The mill Remington and Allen built required a large water-head to turn the water wheel. It was necessary to construct a [[Sluice|mill-race]] running southwest from the mill to what was then called "the swamp." At that time there was no machinery and all raceways were pick and shovel operations. The race was about twelve feet wide and six feet deep and required about fifty workmen. Custom at that time required an employer on such work to furnish liquor for the workmen's mid-day meal. Allen did not relish the idea, but the workmen demanded [[Distilled beverage|liquor]] or they would not work. Allen finally bowed to the custom and bought several barrels of whiskey."
</blockquote>
To exploit this, farmers often built their own [[Distilled beverage|distilleries]]. The first was John McNaughton's on Oatka Creek Road, on the west end of the town. Despite being completely free of contemporary regulation and taxation, the eight or so stills<ref>Slocum characterizes the output of these long-gone stills in these ambiguous words: "It has been stated by those who were deemed competent to judge, that the quality of the product of these early stills has never been improved."</ref> built by Wheatland farmers never proved particularly profitable, and half of them had disappeared by 1820.

Garbuttsville's boom years began with the completion of the [[Erie Canal]]. In 1832, the first hotel opened; it was a two-story brick house belonging to Jefferson Edmonds and did a flourishing trade as a resort. It later became known as the Price House. The tailor's shop (see map) built in the late 1840s was home to the very first [[sewing machine]] in Wheatland. The popular prejudice of the day maintained that sewing by hand produced higher quality and customers refused to buy machine-stitched clothing, obliging the tailor to hide the [[Singer Corporation|Singer machine]] in the rear of the shop and use it on only those seams which were not immediately visible. By some accounts, the tailor shop made uniforms for Union soldiers during the Civil War.

The general decline of Garbuttsville was accelerated by the [[Long Depression|national depression]] of [[Panic of 1873|1873-1879]]. Along with mills and factories, stores closed and people left businesses that had done well for decades. The national recovery in 1879 availed Garbuttsville little, as the [[Midwestern United States|American Midwest]] forever took away the dominance in [[Wheat#Production_and_consumption_statistics|wheat production]]. The stone store, which had served at times as the local post office, changed hands a number of times. The hotel became a private residence, and, by the end of the century, the village had lost its blacksmith, its miller, and its carpenter. Even the advent of the automobile, with its insatiable demand for gasoline, could not save Garbutt; such gas stations as were tried did not survive. A new smithy in 1909 lasted only a few years.

Anthony and Mary Balzer purchased the John Garbutt homestead in 1932 and converted it to a tavern called the Walnut Inn. Sold in 1945 to Charles Logel, this, too, eventually closed.

[[#content|top of page]]

===Economics===
While directly comparing prices across a significant span of time entails risk of misrepresenting actual economic values, it is nonetheless instructive to look at some typical numbers. In the first decade of the twentieth century, for instance, a bushel of wheat or of potatoes brought $1.00; a bushel of corn, $.60. One dozen eggs cost $.17; a pound of beef was $.03½; and a pound of pork all of $.06. Early in the nineteenth century, a blacksmith might pay $4.00 for one hundred horseshoes (installation not included) and $.07 for a pound of nails; at mid-century, he'd have paid $10.00 for that many shoes and $.30 for the nails. In return, he'd have received, in 1810, $1.00 for shoeing a horse on all fours. [[Mumford, New York|Mumford]] blacksmith Patrick Hickey, whose workday lasted far longer than eight hours, once put on eighty-one horseshoes in one day.

In the 1820s, a resident of Garbutt might have purchased:
:* a rod (16.5 feet) of ditch (excavated entirely by pickax and shovel), $.50
:* insurance for one year for a factory worth $2,000, $17.50
:* mowing an acre of pasture (by hand), $.50
:* two geese, $1.00
:* 16 pounds of honey, $1.28
:* a gallon of whiskey (presumably not from [[Scotch whisky|Scotland]] or [[Tennessee whiskey|Tennessee]]), $.38
:* a barrel of flour, $7.00
:* a cow, $12.00
:* a school teacher for one week, $1.75

===Transportation===
From the [[Great Trail|most primitive]] to the [[Interplanetary Transport Network|most advanced]], every culture relies upon transportation, almost to the extent that a living body relies upon its arteries. Typically, an early settlement arose more as a transport nexus than anything else. For Garbutt, this was the confluence of the two roads and Oatka Creek, and, later, the railway. Even the age of air transport touched Garbutt, however lightly and briefly.

====Road====
For the perhaps thirteen thousand years of the aboriginal presence in the New World, footpaths were the only roads, and these followed terrain to the degree that it afforded some convenience. Early European settlers blazed new paths where needed and built upon old footpaths as practicable. Garbutt is obviously defined by the east-west road - first known as "the road to Albright's mill" - from [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]] to [[Mumford, New York|Mumford]] and the north-south road from the [[Lake Ontario|lake]] to the [[Genesee River|river]] flats west of [[Avon (village), New York|Avon]]. Those who laid out roads occupied positions of importance in nascent local government, and John Garbutt included highway surveying among his achievements. One wrong choice in his day was the belief that Spencerport and not Rochester would become the area's dominant city, leading to Garbutt's two-story ledgestone house, still in use today, facing Union Street and not Scottsville-Mumford Road.

The roads of the day were rough and susceptible to the vagaries of the weather. As long as a wagon drawn by a team of oxen or horses could pass, it sufficed. Wagons had to be both small and well-constructed, although history does not reveal the number of miles these wagons could be expected to [[One-horse shay|last]] before collapsing. The early gypsum industry arose before rail transport arrived, with thousands of tons of gypsum products laboriously hauled out of Garbuttsville.
====Water====
A great deal of [[Wheatland, New York|Wheatland]] history centers on the [[Oatka Creek]]. Too shallow for significant transport<ref>While the average depth of the creek allowed for useful cargo boats, the depth of some commercially [[Genesee Valley Canal|significant canals of the day]] being not much more, there were too many obstructions for practicable navigation.</ref>, it nonetheless provided fresh water and power for early industries. Before [[Steam engine|steam engines]] and the [[coal]] which fueled them, [[Hydropower|water power]] was the sole realistic alternative to human manual labour and the efforts of horses and [[ox]]en, all of whom have to be fed, occasionally take ill, and eventually die. It was not at all by coincidence that all first settlements in the town were on or very near the creek.

Although not located in Garbutt, the [[Scottsville, New York#Early Transportation|Scottsville and Genesee River Canal]] contributed to Garbuttsville's commerce. Its mills were able to ship their products to Scottsville on the [[Scottsville and Le Roy Railroad]], where they would be transshipped to [[Barge|canal boats]] on the Oatka. By way of the canal, these boats would then travel east to the [[Genesee River]] and thence to Rochester or farther destinations via the [[Erie Canal]]. Although the canal lasted but two years, its value to Garbuttsville was not trivial.

The [[Genesee Valley Canal]] also contributed to Garbutt's success despite not being in the area. The growth of the land plaster industry depended upon low-cost transport, since the ground gypsum was a heavy bulk product. Many destinations along the Erie and the Genesee Valley Canals bought Garbuttsville's output.

====Rail====
For an industrial and agrarian community, rail transport plays the most significant of roles. There is no (potentially) faster or more economical means of moving people and goods across short to medium distances, all the more so in the absence of Interstate highways. One of the more poignant facets of Garbutt's decline is the disappearance of the rail yard it had during the glory days of the mills ([[#Industry|see map]]).

Rail service in Garbutt began with the most primitive of lines, [[Wagonway|horse cars on rails made of wood]].

=====[[Scottsville & LeRoy Railroad]]=====
Commercially viable rail transport<ref>The obvious success of nineteenth and twentieth century railroads notwithstanding, one must be forgiven for seeing striking parallels between the buying, selling, building, burying, and renaming of railway companies and today's daytime television dramas.</ref> in the US first appeared in the middle of the first half of the nineteenth century, and progress eventually reached [[Wheatland, New York|Wheatland]] in 1832 with the suggestion by Donald McKenzie of Caledonia in "The [[Genesee Farmer]]" that the local economy would benefit from a railroad connecting [[Le Roy (village), New York|Le Roy]] to [[Rochester, New York|Rochester]], passing through [[Caledonia (village), New York|Caledonia]], [[Mumford, New York|Mumfordville]], Garbuttsville, and [[Scottsville, New York|Scottsville]]:
<blockquote>
"After a long and general acquaintance with the western part of this state, I am convinced that a railroad from LeRoy to Rochester, along the valley of Allen's Creek (Oatka) and the [[Genesee River]], would be a public benefit, were it to serve no other purpose than to facilitate the forwarding of matrials for the building of other railroads in the western district. The inexhaustible quarries of building stone of the first quality on the banks of Allen's Creek and adjacent region, the abundant supplies of gravel for horse paths, of water [[Calcium oxide|lime]], of bog lime, plaster of paris, oak, pine, and cedar are found in various parts of Caledonia, LeRoy and Wheatland would then be easily conveyed to other sections of the State where other railroads were being built.

The consequences of which would be a great reduction in the price of these necessary materials for constructing railroads. It is worthy of remark that there are strong indications of coal and other minerals in this region, and that the oak timber is of superior quality. There are also an abundance of water privileges, where plaster, water, lime, etc., can be prepared.

::::D. McKENZIE."
</blockquote>
William and Philip Garbutt, knowing a good thing when it appeared in front of them, gave the proposal their enthusiastic support, including buying in as shareholders of the [[Scottsville & LeRoy Railroad]].

[[#content|top of page]]

=====[[Rochester & State Line Railroad]]=====
George Slocum writes in 1906<ref>''Wheatland, New York'', George Engs Slocum, 1908, p.41</ref>:
<blockquote>
"The [[Rochester and State Line Railroad]] in its inception was a Wheatland institution. At one period in its early history its officers, the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and four of the nine directors, were residents of Wheatland.

D. D. S. Brown, Oliver Allen and Donald McNaughton were active and energetic in pushing this enterprise.

This road was opened for business from Rochester to Le Roy in 1874; to Salamanca in 1878, and completed to Pittsburg at a later date. In 1872 the town of Wheatland issued its bonds to the amount of $70,000.00 to aid in its construction, $53,000.00 of which has been paid. In 1860 the control of this road passed from the hands of those who had managed it and its name was changed to the Rochester and Pittsburg R. R. Company. Later on it was again changed to the [[Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway|Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburg R. R. Co.]] which name it now bears."
</blockquote>
Schmidt says of the line (referring to Scottsville):
<blockquote>
"Soon after the war promoters proposed a railroad to extend south of Rochester to the coal fields in Pennsylvania. In 1872 the town of Wheatland issued bonds to the amount of $70,000.00 to aid in its construction. D. D. S. Brown, Oliver Allen, and Donald McNaughton were again active in promoting the railroad. Mr. Allen was vice-president from 1869 to 1876 when he was elected president, and served in that capacity until the reorganization in 1880.

Work on the railroad was begun in 1873 and progressed rapidly since there were no great engineering difficulties to overcome until the foot-hills of the Alleghany Mountains near Warsaw were reached. In spite of the financial panic of 1873 the [[Rochester and State Line Railroad]] was opened from Rochester to LeRoy in 1874. For the next two years little work was done because railroad bonds and stocks were unsalable at any price. But as industry revived and railroads were showing increased earnings, work was resumed in 1876 and the railroad completed to Salamanca in 1878. On May 15th there was a big excursion to Salamanca and large crowds attended the festivities. Ten years of work saw the completion of the railroad. The board of directors had labored faithfully and given their time and money, and this was to be their only reward.

The first locomotive was built by [[Brooks Locomotive Works|Brooks]] of [[Dunkirk, New York|Dunkirk, N. Y.]], it was named "Oliver Allen" after the man who had worked zealously in the interest of the railroad.

In 1874 the rolling stock consisted of one engine and a boxcar to operate. When necessary, chairs were placed in the boxcar for passengers. Cars were often borrowed from other railroads. At one time when the railroad was being sued, all the real property the sheriff could obtain was the engine, which he locked up with chains.

Many miles of the [[Rochester & State Line Railroad|State Line Railroad]] bed were built up with gravel from the old John C. McVean farm. The farm at that time extended west of the railroad between North Road and Scottsville-Chili Road. After the cars began operating from Rochester to LeRoy, the mail, which had previously been taken to the Erie Railroad station in [[Rush, New York|Rush]], was carried by the [Rochester and State Line Railroad]]. A new street, Maple Street, was opened up from Browns Avenue to the station to make the station more accessible to the village. The old station was located about three hundred feet north of the present one."
</blockquote>
Energy for industry at this time came from Pennsylvania [[coal]], and the existing railroads were the sole means of getting it to the Rochester area. The railroads knew this, and [[Monopoly|their pricing reflected it]]. In 1863, a ton of coal cost approximately six dollars. Two years later, it was seventeen dollars. Talk of [[Conspiracy (civil)|conspiracies]] between the coal and the railroad companies and calls for a new railroad generated ample enthusiasm. Numerous meetings in both Rochester and the surrounding rural communities led to many proposals, at least one of which came to something. Oliver Allen II of Mumford led a group of both business and government officials in promoting the project. In 1869, the [[Rochester and State Line Railroad]] was incorporated, chartered on 6 October to construct a railroad from Rochester to the Pennsylvania state line. Actual work began in either 1873 or 1874, depending upon which version of history one selects<ref>The gods themselves cannot change the past, so they invented historians.</ref>.

In 1874, the [[Rochester & Genesee Valley Railroad Museum#Site History|Rochester & State Line Railroad]] connected Rochester and Le Roy, although little traffic came to or from Garbuttsville, thanks to the [[Long Depression|Great Depression]] of 1873-1879. By the end of the depression, the railroad had reached [[Salamanca (city), New York|Salamanca]], but the return to prosperity eluded Garbuttsville.

The company was not financially successful and went into [[Receiver (legal)|receivership]]. On 29 January 1881, it was purchased by the [[Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway#Genesis|Rochester and Pittsburgh Railroad]], the line eventually becoming part of the the [[Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway]]. In 1930, the Rochester & State Line Railroad became part of the vast [[Baltimore and Ohio Railroad|Baltimore & Ohio]] system. The B&O, in turn, became part of [[CSX Transportation|CSX]].

[[#content|top of page]]

=====[[Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway]]=====
The little station in Garbutt primarily provided service on the [[Buffalo, Rochester, and Pittsburgh Railway]].<ref>[http://wnyrails.org/railroads/brp/brp_home.htm Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh Railroad]Bizarrely, this website depicts Garbuttsville in the town of Chili! No wonder their trains got lost...</ref>. This was, by far, the most successful of railroad companies to serve Garbutt. It disappeared not because it failed in the marketplace but because of the effects of [[ICC]] regulation of railroads in the early twentieth century. Today, the line belongs to the [[Rochester and Southern Railroad]], but no trains stop in Garbutt.

=====The little station that couldn't=====
In 1907, the [[Pennsylvania Railroad]] constructed a three mile long branch line from Scottsville along the south side of Oatka Creek to Garbutt, connecting it to the [[Buffalo, Rochester and Pittsburgh Railway|Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh]] siding, much improving the local mills' connection to the outside world. This branch opened on 16 September 1907 and was abandoned in 1944. No trace of it remains<ref>http://maps.google.com/?ie=UTF8&ll=43.017788,-77.747803&spn=0.003463,0.006545&t=h&z=18</ref>. Today, the Pennsy line from which this branch was built is the [[Genesee Valley Greenway]]<ref>http://www.fogvg.org/</ref>.

Sadly, train service in Garbutt went the way of many such services:
<blockquote>
"The village of Garbutt had a little railroad station, with two operators, on the north side of the railroad tracks about five hundred feet west of Union Street. After the Empire Gypsum Company's plant was abandoned, the Garbutt station, a busy place for the past twenty-five years, was discontinued as a regular station. The station was moved to Wheatland Center in 1941."<ref>''History of the Town of Wheatland'', Carl F Schmidt, 1953, p.229; Schmidt takes a small liberty in calling Garbutt a village, a status it never had.</ref>
</blockquote>
It didn't last [http://maps.yahoo.com/#mvt=s&lat=43.00367&lon=-77.820055&zoom=18 there], either<ref>The station was closed and demolished in the 1970s.</ref>.

====Air====
For a while during the twentieth century, a tiny and well-hidden private airfield existed in the large farm field on the northwest corner of the intersection. To the knowledge of the author of this article, who occasionally flew there, only a single airplane was located next to its virtually invisible grass runway, and no commercial use was ever made of the unnamed airfield.

===Notable people===
One of the residents of the old Garbutt Cemetery is Charles A Reed<ref>http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9B00E3DD1231E233A25757C1A9679D946096D6CF</ref>, the son of John Z Reed, an early settler. Charles Reed, as part of the architectural firm of [[Reed and Stem]], designed New York City's [[Grand Central Terminal]] (erroneously called Grand Central Station), having won the competition for the project. The actual work went to [[Warren and Wetmore]], who used Reed's original design and then attempted to avoid paying for it<ref>http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?res=9903E1D9173BE633A25754C1A9619C946796D6CF</ref>.

Although not a position of lasting importance, William Garbutt did serve as a [[Electoral College (United States)|presidential elector]] in the 1840 election of the unfortunate [[Whig Party (United States)|Whig]], [[William Henry Harrison]].

In one of the Garbutt family's most tawdry contributions to local history, William H Garbutt<ref>The given names, John and William, were extensively used in the Garbutt family.</ref>, while operating a grain binder on his Blue Pond farm on 2 August 1917, was shot by John H Scofield, the Scottsville postmaster, who took exception to a matter of marital betrayal between Garbutt and Mrs Scofield. Scofield fired five shots from a .32 calibre revolver, four of which the coroner deemed adequate to cause death, which came some twelve hours after the assault. Upon commission of the shooting, Scofield immediately repaired to the local police station to await the sheriff's deputy, to whom he made a confession in which he not only admitted the shooting but expressed a fervent hope that the victim not survive the attack. In his trial, evidence strongly suggested that Scofield had been of impaired sobriety during the commission of the crime. Despite pleading innocent, he was found guilty and spent several years in state prison.


==Today==
==Today==
All of the industry that made Garbutt commercially significant has gone. A local excavating contractor may be found on Union Street and a small retail antiques business on the main road, but no other businesses or employers remain. The [[United States Census Bureau|US Census Bureau]] does not maintain [[Demographics|demographic]] data for Garbutt.
The [[United States Census Bureau|US Census Bureau]] does not maintain [[Demographics|demographic]] data for Garbutt.


While out of sight, the biggest legacy of Garbutt's past is the [[Mining#Abandoned mines|network of mines]] not far beneath the surface, extending an unknown distance beyond the locations of the erstwhile factories. To this day, construction in the area is limited by the [[Subsidence#Mining-induced|threat]] posed by potential [[Mining accident|mine collapse]].
While out of sight, the biggest legacy of Garbutt's past is the [[Mining#Abandoned mines|network of mines]] not far beneath the surface, extending an unknown distance beyond the locations of the erstwhile factories. To this day, construction in the area is limited by the [[Subsidence#Mining-induced|threat]] posed by potential [[Mining accident|mine collapse]].


==Oatka Creek==
==Oatka Creek==
If any single natural feature has shaped Garbutt's history, it is [[Oatka Creek]]. Draining some 215 square miles (557 km<sup>2</sup>) of land, the Oatka is the third largest tributary of the Genesee River's lower basin. Although too shallow for any but the lightest of boats, its water provided the power for milling first lumber and grain and then gypsum products in Garbutt.
(Click on any image to enlarge it.)
<gallery>
Image:GRBN6_us.jpg|<center>Oatka Creek from Union Street bridge, Garbutt, looking upstream (to the west)</center>
Image:GRBN6_ds.jpg|<center>Oatka Creek from Union Street bridge, Garbutt, looking downstream (to the east)</center>
Image:GRBN6_gage.jpg|<center>Oatka Creek at Garbutt, the stream level gauge house</center>
</gallery>
If any single natural feature has shaped Garbutt's history, it is [[Oatka Creek|Oatka]] [[Stream|Creek]]. Draining some 215 square miles (557 km<sup>2</sup>) of land, the Oatka is the third largest tributary of the Genesee River's lower basin. Although too shallow for any but the lightest of [[boat]]s, its water provided the power for milling first lumber and grain and then gypsum products in Garbutt. Normally a tame stream barely three feet in depth, in a bed 560.89 feet above [[Sea level|mean sea level]], the Oatka has flooded to depths of more than eight and a half feet (31 March 1960 - 8.64 feet; 29 March 1950 - 8.52 feet<ref>http://newweb.erh.noaa.gov/ahps2/period.php?wfo=buf&gage=grbn6&view=0,1,1&toggles=10,7,8,2,9,15,6</ref>), while the lowest recorded depth was 2.1 feet on 11 September 1949. Its normal flow rate of 200 cubic feet per second can rise to more than 5,000 cubic feet per second in major-stage flooding. The [[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration]] ([[National Weather Service]] - [http://www.nws.noaa.gov/oh/ahps/ Advanced Hydrologic Prediction Service]) operates a flood gauge station on the right bank of Oatka Creek at Garbutt, forty feet downstream of the Union Street bridge (see photograph). The non-profit organization, [http://www.oatka.org/ Oatka Creek Watershed Committee], works to preserve Oatka Creek along its full length.

Almost sixty miles long, the Oatka rises in [[Wyoming County, New York|Wyoming County]] south of [[Warsaw (town), New York|Warsaw]] and [[Hydropower|falls]] through more than a thousand feet of [[elevation]]. Had the settlers of Wheatland not been able to tap some of the [[Hydropower|energy in this fall]], there might not have been much settlement until the advent of [[Electrification|electrification]] in 1912.

From the time the white man first saw it until 1850, it was known to the settlers as [[Oatka Creek|Allan's Creek]] (or, as on some maps, Allan Creek, or Allen Creek, or Allen's Creek, and in no way related to [http://www.corbettsglen.org/ Allens Creek] in Rochester). It was subsequently more properly known by its Indian name, O-at-ka, meaning "leaving the high lands" or "approaching an opening".

There remains today little readily visible evidence (see upstream photograph) of the [[Mill pond|millpond]] that fed the Garbutt grist, land-plaster, and [http://www.centuryhouse.org/newsletr/wint2001/hwhite.html water-lime cement] mills on the creek, nor of the bridges that carried mine cars across the creek and the pond from the mines in the hill.

Even though the Garbutt stretch of the creek has no public-access areas for fishing, the sport remains popular along [http://www.oatka.org/fishing.php much of the stream] with varieties of trout, bass, and pike. Upstream of Garbutt may be found the [http://www.cal-mum.com/fishhatchery.htm Caledonia Fish Hatchery], the oldest such institution in the New World.

[[#content|top of page]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


==External links==
*http://newweb.erh.noaa.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=buf&gage=grbn6&view=0,1,1 - flooding on the Oatka
*http://newweb.erh.noaa.gov/ahps2/hydrograph.php?wfo=buf&gage=grbn6&view=0,1,1 - flooding on the Oatka
*http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nymonroe/vr/wheatland1869.htm - business directory from 1869
*http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~nymonroe/vr/wheatland1869.htm - business directory from 1869



{{Monroe County, New York}}
{{Monroe County, New York}}



[[Category:Monroe County, New York]]
[[Category:Monroe County, New York]]

Revision as of 05:23, 19 February 2009

Template:Geobox Settlement Garbutt, New York is a hamlet located between the village of Scottsville and the hamlet of Mumford. It sits at the intersection of Scottsville-Mumford Road and Union Street in the Town of Wheatland. The history of Garbutt illustrates how the vicissitudes of economic fortune can reduce a thriving industrial village to a crossroads collection of a few houses with no commerce or trade. Garbutt grew rapidly through the mid-nineteenth century and then faded away as the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries brought changes that drained the life out of the local economy.

In its prime, Garbutt boasted a train station and rail yard, service by two railroad companies, several industrial plants, a hotel, two schools, a church, mines, three Oatka Creek bridges, a dam and millpond, a barrel factory, and a number of general stores. Yet, as long ago as 1937, it was said, "Garbutt is a hamlet so small that it would scarcely be noticed in passing were it not for the large buildings of the Empire Gypsum Company[1]."[2] Now, even these are gone.

The history of Garbutt was written by Carl F Schmidt, an architect locally noted for his histories of the area, and George Engs Slocum, a local business and civic figure whose history of the town appeared in the very early twentieth century. In 1998 (Slocum) and 2002 (Schmidt), the Wheatland Historical Association reprinted their books.[3]

Today

The US Census Bureau does not maintain demographic data for Garbutt.

While out of sight, the biggest legacy of Garbutt's past is the network of mines not far beneath the surface, extending an unknown distance beyond the locations of the erstwhile factories. To this day, construction in the area is limited by the threat posed by potential mine collapse.

Oatka Creek

If any single natural feature has shaped Garbutt's history, it is Oatka Creek. Draining some 215 square miles (557 km2) of land, the Oatka is the third largest tributary of the Genesee River's lower basin. Although too shallow for any but the lightest of boats, its water provided the power for milling first lumber and grain and then gypsum products in Garbutt.

References

  1. ^ http://www.mindat.org/loc-20581.html
  2. ^ WPA Guide to Rochester and Monroe County, 1937
  3. ^ http://www.townofwheatland.org/History/
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