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Settling Western New
York
Currier & Ives
The Settlement of Western New York
After the Revolution, the five Iroquois Indian tribes that lived
across the length of New York State made peace treaties with the
American government. They ceded great tracts of land in Western New York
to a land speculator named Robert Morris. Morris turned around and sold
these tracts to a group of Dutch bankers, The Holland Land Company.
The Holland Land Company hired a suryeyor named Joseph Ellicott to
begin dividing the land up into Townships, Ranges, and Lots which could
be sold to settlers. This development allowed people living in Vermont, Eastern New York State, and the New England colonies to move West in
greater numbers.
Settlers moved westward along two well
established and protected corridors. The southern corridor went due West
from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh, and out into Tennesee and Kentucky. The
northern corridor went West from Albany, New York to Fort Oswego and then on to Fort
Niagara. Most of my ancestors used the northern corridor as they headed West.
The Shannons, Holts, and Hubbards Settle in Western New York
In 1827, a large group of my ancestors moved from an area around
Putney, Vermont and settled in the Dayton-Leon area of Cattaraugus
County, New York. This group was descended from four men who fought in
the Revolution. These four "Minute Men" were: Samuel Shannon, Benjamin
Holt, Captain Abijah Moore and his son-in-law, Elisha Copeland Hubbard.
The patriarchs and matriarchs of the group that moved to New York
were: John Shannon (58) and his wife, Mehitable Holt (49); his brother,
Samuel Shannon and his wife Dolly Holt (who was probably Mehitable's
sister); and Elisha Hubbard (47) and his wife Elizabeth Powers (44). The
marriage of brothers, John and Samuel Shannon to sisters, Mehitable and
Dolly Holt created double first cousins in the following generation.
John Shannon's son, who was also named Samuel, was in the group. He
was 28 years old and was married to Eliza Hubbard, who was 19. They had
a one year old daughter, Almira with them. Other children of John and
Methitable who were in the group were: Ruth, Sophia, Mahala, Betsy,
Alonzo, Susan, John Jr., and Benjamin.
John's brother, Samuel and his wife Dolly were accompanied by the
following children: Sally, George, Bishop, Hannah, Lorenzo, Harlow,
Elvira, and Serena. Elisha and Elizabeth Hubbard were accompanied by the
following children: John, Marshall, Isaac, Lucius, Philander, Elisha,
Rosalinda, and George.
It appears that there were at least 33 people in the party. They
must have come with at least 4 wagons in a caravan...and traveled down
the newly opened Erie Canal. There were probably oxen, horses, cows, and
maybe even pigs in the caravan. That would have been a wonderful trip to
make!
Samuel and Eliza Shannon settled just to the East of Leon, New York.
Their farm set right between the Kellogg and Alderbottom Roads. There
were many Shannon families living in and around Leon...and their in-laws
the Hubbards lived just to the North around Dayton and Cottage.
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Page from the Family Bible |
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Eliza Hubbard Shannon
1807 - 1882 |
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Samuel Shannon
1799 - 1878 |
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Graves of Elisha
and Elizabeth Hubbard |
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Graves of Samuel and Eliza
Shannon |
Source: images and paraphrased text from information
from a 1999 email from a distant relative of mine named Dave. Unfortunately, I
do not have his contact information any longer
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