Village of Cazenovia
Made by Aaron White
based on the 1809 survey of Isaac Bumpus
Last Modified June 2, 2003
by Daniel H. Weiskotten
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The beauty of the Public
Square in the heart of the Village of Cazenovia is second only to the beauty
of the natural landscape of blue waters and rolling green hills that surround
us. The man-made landscape of our village is deeply steeped in over
200 years of incredible history, and telling the story of even this 3 acre
plot of land (132,261.56 square feet, including the roads and other not-so-green
areas) would be a formidable task for even the most knowledgeable historian.
The Public Square is an
original feature of the village, and is seen on the original surveys of
the early community, including the primary "Map
of the City of Cazenovia" which appears to have been made in early
1794 or early 1795, and it clearly forms the focal point of the fledgling
village as shown in a painting made by Alexandere
Autrecht in 1798 (I hope to have this posted soon).
Since little formal development had taken place in the village in the very
first years (much of the area had been cleared, houses built,
and a store and other services were provided, but formal land sales of
village lots does not appear to have occurred until 1797) the plan
of the village was of utmost importance to setting the stage for the community
that was to sprout from this spot. Knowing that most of the settlers
were to be arriving from the New England States, John Lincklaen included
a Public Square in his plan so they could carry on their practice of having
a public ground in the center of their community where cattle and other
livestock could be kept while farmers were in the village on business,
where meetings and markets could be held, and where a myriad of other community
activities could take place.
The Public Square was also
from its first days ringed by the most important features of the community.
Until the early 1830s the Public Square was the home of several
taverns including the Johnson
Tavern, The
Madison County Hotel, Cazenovia House, Samuel Forman's and Jabish
N.M. Hurd's Store, the village hay scales, a large warehouse, and several
artisans' shops and stables. Beginning about 1828 the center of business
began to expand eastward and beyond the Public Square and soon the business
district
that we know today was formed. In this period the taverns on the
Square were closed and converted to houses, the Presbyterian Church was
moved down from its remote location in the north part of the village, and
the other stores and shops soon made way for elegant houses and landscaping
improvements. The eastern end of the Public Square marked the edge
of the new business district and thus commercial enterprises, such as Bartlett
French's coverlet weaving shop, several stores, and later a large hotel
were located on its eastern margin. The pattern formed at that
time is still retained today and a picturesque landscape, developed through
two centuries of care and planning have created a pleasing boundary between
a the primary commercial district and a major residential section of the
village.
Despite the shift in use, the
Public Square remained the center of the village. By 1838 the Square
had developed many of the features that are still found today. All
but a handful of the structures still to be found on its perimeter date
from that period, and many are much earlier structures that had been converted
for a second life as a house. Henry Hart's wonderfully detailed map
1852
map of the Village of Cazenovia shows many parts of the Public Square
and its surroundings that can still be found today.
Today the Public Square
is very much intact and very much alive and in use just as the founders
of the village intended. Yes, there are parking lots and narrow paved
lanes on what should be green open space, and some of the past "improvements"
were nothing of the sort, but the vast majority of the features of the
Public Square are intact. The Pubic Square is made up of many positive
properties: architecturally and historically significant houses, maple
trees a century and a half old, lots of green grass, flag poles, memorials
to soldiers and firemen, an information kiosk, benches, a public telephone,
sidewalks, and a captured Hessian cannon mark this very important public
space in the heart of our community.
The following map, created
by Aaron White on August 1, 1885, is a detailed survey of the measurements
and features of the Public Square as it appeared in 1885. The base
map which White used is a survey made in 1809 by Isaac Bumpus. You
will note that most of the landmarks used then are still present today.
Of the 16 different structures shown on the map 13 still exist today, and
of the 28 reference points and measurements given around the perimeter
of the Square, 24 of them may still be easily used to determine and reestablish
the bounds of the square as it was originally planned and as it has been
maintained for over 200 years.
In this on-line copy of
the 1885 map I have made notations (in pencil) of the store occupants as
described by a written list or key made by White in 1885. (I
hope to soon include this written accompaniment to the map in these pages.)
I have also reproduced clearly the measurements given on the map and made
conversions of the chains and link measures that appear.
The file for this map is very large, 334 KB, and the map is reduced
here for full viewing.
To
see a more detailed view click here or click directly on the map
