1897, Mrs. Skinner’s New Shingles

by Louise Smith Posted on October 18, 2011

The old shingles were worn some, having been put on her house just 101 years ago.
Mrs. Mary Skinner, who lives in Wayne County, Pa., across the Delaware River from this Village [Cochecton], has been having her house shingled and repaired.

There would be nothing strange about this, but for the fact that this is the first time the house has been repaired or reshingled since 1796, when the dwelling was built. It is known in the Skinner family as the new house, because it took the place of the old house which was built in 1765 and was burned by the Indians in 1777. The old barn is still standing, though it was built in 1777, and needs no repairs.

The locality where these buildings stand was one of the first places where white people settled in the Delaware Valley, the Skinner family having gone thither in 1754. Continue reading →

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Echo Hill Farm House Rules

by Louise Smith Posted on October 14, 2011
Rules and Regulations for Echo Hill Farm House, courtesy of Kevin M.

Echo Hill Farm House was the original home of Sherman Buckley and Charlotte Ingram Leavenworth, my Leavenworth great-great grandparents. By 1900 it was the boarding house of my Leavenworth great-grandparents, Sherman S. and Maria Myers Leavenworth.

The original house may have been a bunk house for lumbermen as there was a sawmill nearby. Sherman B. was a lumberman. Charlotte was the cook for the lumbermen, or that is the story told. You can read a bit more about Sherman Buckley and Charlotte Leavenworth and the bunk house, sawmill, and property in The Mill on Halfway Brook.

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1894, The Waning Season at Yulan

by Louise Smith Posted on October 12, 2011

The Last Dance the Jolliest One of the Summer
The season drawing to a close has been the most successful ever known in this section of Sullivan County, and the boarding house keepers are correspondingly happy.

Washington Lake is the center of attraction for the boarders in this neighborhood, and its mirror-like surface is dotted daily with merry rowing parties and the more sober fishermen luring from the depths the pickerel and black bass.

Last Wednesday evening at Prang’s Lake View Farm House was given what will probably prove to be the last barn dance of the season and it was pronounced by all to be the jolliest. The barn was prettily decorated with autumn foliage, sumach and golden rod, but these were far outshone by the bevy of pretty girls…

Refreshments were served after the dance. The music was by Professor Kinley.—Brooklyn Daily Eagle, September 9, 1894.

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1890s Recreation for Summer Guests

by Louise Smith Posted on October 11, 2011
The Bluff looked down over the Delaware River and Erie R.R. Postcard courtesy of Kevin M.

There was boating (canoes were popular) and swimming (bathing). Some places offered archery, croquet, dancing, bowling, lawn tennis, or perhaps a piano for guests to play.

Picnic grounds and sometime a playground for children were available. Arrangements could
be made to visit other points of interest—complete with a picnic lunch.

Shohola Glen was one place to visit. Or maybe a trip to Port Jervis with a stop near the Hawk’s Nest for a view of the Delaware River.

The Bluff which also looked down over the Delaware River and across to the Erie Railroad was another favorite site to visit. There vacationers carved their initials into the shale, took photos, or smooched. If you weren’t from the area, a guide from the resort would help you locate the hard-to-find Bluff.

Hayrides, ice cream socials, church bazaars, dances, plays, and town fairs were other events for the summer guests.

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Chapter 5: Sublime Scenery, Town of Highland Boarding Houses, 1890

by Louise Smith Posted on October 10, 2011

Sublime scenery beckoned summer visitors to boarding houses and hotels in the hamlets of Highland and other villages along the Delaware River as the 19th Century came to a close.

The 1890s would see the decline of the D&H Canal which had been responsible for the growth of the area since 1828.

Trains, which transported passengers and goods such as petroleum, livestock, lumber, and dairy products, were not so limited by winter weather, droughts, and floods.

Summer tourists and boarding houses would flourish into the 1960s. If the boarding house was not on a lake, or stream, there was one not far away. Visitors to picturesque Highland’s boarding houses (summer homes) in Barryville, Eldred, Venoge, or Yulan would have a healthy, enjoyable vacation—just as advertised in both newspapers and railway booklets.

Meals would be made from fresh farm ingredients—milk, butter, eggs, and produce. Farms were close by, and many of the proprietors were also farmers. The many apple trees meant there would be cider to look forward to in the fall.

Whether you stayed at Bodine’s and enjoyed French gourmet cooking, or at a home that featured typical local fare (like the Leavenworth’s), you could plan on excellent meals.

The sportsman could hunt for deer, bear (sometimes), rabbit, and wild pigeons; or fish for trout, perch, pickerel, and bass. Hunting dogs were available for a fee. Some places had horse stables.

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Bear in Eldred, October 2011

by Louise Smith Posted on October 8, 2011

A bear in Eldred, October 2011, courtesy of Cousin Cynthia.

The first chapter of The Mill on Halfway Brook, mentions the abundance of wildlife in what was once the Town of Lumberland.

Starting in 2008, Cousin Cynthia took photos of the current animals in the area—many deer, turkeys, and eagles. She promised me that one day she would get me a shot of a bear. And recently, when she visited Eldred, she did see a bear as she and friends were looking at Echo Hill and Mountain Grove.

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