Old Houses in the North Country

The Watertown Daily Times (Jefferson County) ran articles written in the 1940's by reporter David Lane. Well-researched and very compact, they covered the history of still-standing, stately old homes. These homes were generally located in a four county-wide area of northern New York: Jefferson, St. Lawrence, Oneida and Lewis counties. A picture of the featured home was also included.

Mr. Lane's articles totaled 730 in number and appeared between November 1941 and July 1956. At first, they were published daily; later on, weekly. Each article told the story of the home. In doing so, they sometimes included the history of the families which had owned the home over time. An example of one of his articles is reproduced below.

A "Table of Contents" to all 730 articles can be seen by clicking on this link.

An index of (people's) names appearing in the title of the articles can be seen at this link.

=== Please be patient while the above links load...
the pages are lengthy and heavy with information. ===

Editor's Note: A complete index of all surnames appearing in the articles themselves was published in the 1992 newsletter, The Genealogical Journal of Jefferson County, New York. This index is included in our New York Ancestry database. By doing a Search for your surname, you may discover that it is found (without an accompanying given name) in the 1992 issue. If so, you are in luck! If not, then your surname does not appear in Mr. Lane's articles. To obtain more information relative to which of Mr. Lane's articles contain your surnames, you must contact the Genealogy Department at the Flower Memorial Library in Watertown, NY. At your request and for a nominal fee, they will copy the articles for you.

Old Houses of the North Country -- No. 30

     The inscription "A.L. 1830" cut in the face of a big granite stone which is laid in the upper walls of this granite house in Potsdam not only dates its construction but indicates that it   was built for a member of the Masonic fraternity. From its location on outer Le Roy street there unfolds a picturesque view of the Adirondack foothills, and the property includes a parcel of about 13 acres of land.
     Since Aug. 3, 1920, the place has been owned by Mrs. Harold (Dorothy Sisson) Castle, but originally it was part of   the David L. Clarkson estate, which estate embraced the big red sandstone mansion at the corner of Garden and Le Roy streets which later for a number of years was the residence of General Edwin Atkins Merritt.
     Much modernized with a columned portico and two heavy dormers, the house is actually a story-and-a-half structure of six rooms on the ground floor and five rooms upstairs. There   is one old fireplace left in it, but formerly there was another   one which was removed some time ago.
     Like so many of the old North Country houses its history seems to have been pretty well lost, although it is likely that it was the caretaker's residence on the David L. Clarkson estate. Mrs. Castle has been informed that it was used as an emergency hospital for returned soldiers of the Spanish-American war a half century ago and that a chapel was maintained in the wooden annex at the rear. Mr. and   Mrs. J. Kenneth Young are now tenants of the property,

the construction of which gives it a solid, rugged appearance, to which the landscaping has added an interesting beauty.
     David L. Clarkson, early owner of a large acreage of land in Potsdam, was a member of the distinguished family which played such an important role in developing the village of Potsdam. In 1836, he paid William H. Le Roy $11,200 for a large tract of which later he owned until June 29, 1863 when he sold this house and 14.2 acres to John S. Parker for $1,200.
     Parker sold off three small parcels, one to Samuel Covey in 1888, one to Callie E. Johnson in 1890 and another the same year to Elizabeth Jane Covey. In 1894, Mrs. Parker died and willed part of this property to Celia M. Parker and the rest to Celia M. Parker and Laura Parker, his children.
     On July 18, 1894, Mary J. Lamb, Laura A. Parker, Celia M. Brown, Celia Olmstead, Lucy Foster Madison, Allie Foster, Sophia Parker, Sarah Jackson, John Parker and Clark Parker sold the whole 13 acres and buildings including the house to Jennie May for $1,500. The latter retained title until April 1, 1913, when she conveyed it to John A. May for the nominal sum of $1 and on April 8, 1920, John A. Mary and wife, Johanna, disposed of it to George W. Barnett for $3,000. Mr. Barnett, however, kept it only four months when he disposed of it at a profit to Mrs. Castle.