Browse Items (27 total)

Two photographs taken by Martha Blow Wadsworth (wife of Herbert Wadsworth) show the building of a dam to power a mill at Ashantee, roughly where Littleville Road crosses Conesus Creek. The captions read: "Upper side of dam at Ashantee in process of…

At nearly 100 feet in height, the "High Falls" were a determining factor in the location of Rochester. Mills took advantage of the drop and the Genesee River's water flow in the form of mills, beginning in 1807 and especially in the years following…

Five miles downstream from here, the Genesee River empties into Lake Ontario at Charlotte, and the base of the falls has been a major spawning ground for salmon and lake trout until non-native fish like the alewife reduced their numbers. The…

At the time of this photograph wooden structure was at least 70 years old, having been constructed in 1830 by a Mt. Morris contractor named Russell Daboll. Its design was somewhat unusual in that wood was used even for the abutments upon which the…

Postcard view of waterfall in the town that is seat of government in Allegany County. Originally named Philipsville, its population grew rapidly following construction of an Erie Railroad line--pictured at left--in 1850. As of 1860 there were two…

Postcard shows view of a decrepit water wheel, almost certainly located at the outlet of Conesus Lake where it becomes Conesus Creek. If so, then the photograph shows remnants of what had been a broom-handle factory operated by L.P. West, then…

Located along the Silver Lake Outlet near the town of Perry, NY, this photograph of early milling operation shows seven people posing--two of them young boys. A caption on reverse side reads: "Silver Lake Mills--before being steam powered. George…