TOWN OF THERESA
A detailed 1864 town MAP showing residents. (495K file)
An 1864 map of The Village of Theresa
1918 TOWN OF THERESA FARM MAP
A list of POSTMASTERS in the town in existing and discontinued postoffices.
Town of Theresa Chronology
Town of Theresa 1890 Census of Civil War Veterans
Civil War Soldiers Buried in the Town of Theresa
Town of Theresa Boys Drafted
THERESA
Family sketches from CHILD'S GAZETTEER for the town of Theresa.
Child's Business Directory for the Town of Theresa.
Haddock Family Sketches--Town of Theresa
Bartlett's Cemetery Inscriptions for the Town of Theresa.
Vital Records 1847-1849 for the Town of Theresa.
| OFFICE | CONTACT | PHONE | ADDRESS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town & Village Historian | LARRY HONEYWELL | 628-5429 | 126 Morgan St; Theresa 13691 |
| Town Clerk | KIM A. DELLES | 628-5046 | 103 Main St; PO Box 692, Theresa 13691 |
| Theresa Village Clerk | SYLVIA BUSH | 628-4425 | Municipal Office; PO Box 299; Theresa 13691 |
| Theresa Free Library | CHRISTINE RAJNER | 628-5972 | Main & Pine Sts; Theresa 13691 |
History of the Town of Theresa linked from Shirley Farone's Home Page taken from CHILD'S GAZETTEER OF JEFFERSON COUNTY by HAMILTON CHILDS, published in 1890, transcribed by Shirley Farone. History of the Town of Theresa from "RAY'S PLACE"transcribed from OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE by EDGAR C. EMERSON, 1898 History of the Town of Theresa, taken fromA HISTORY OF JEFFERSON COUNTY IN THE STATE OF NEW YORK by FRANKLIN B. HOUGH, A. M., M.D. linked from Shirley Farone's Home Page
Four Rivers Historical Society
P.O. Box 504Carthage, NY 13619
(315)773-5133
Organized in 1977, this society averages over 600 members, and has microfilmed the Carthage Republican newspaper. The microfilm is deposited in the Carthage Library. They have published books. Their holdings include a working chapel, and a one room school. Carthage lies on the border of Lewis County, so that the society covers part of Lewis as well as the western townships of Jefferson County. The society collects material from three central school districts, the Copenhagen Central, Carthage Central, and Indian River school districts. This area includes parts of the townships of Theresa, Philadelphia, Antwerp, Le Ray, Wilna, and Champion. Their 21 directors represent the various communities within this area.
Town History
The Town of Theresa was one of the last to be settled in Jefferson County. Covered with thick timber, and the northern part of the town studded with lakes, settlers preferred more accessible lands. Though a road was opened from Evans Mills to Theresa High Falls, no permanent settlement was made until after 1817, when James D. Le Ray began to sell lots to pioneers. Theresa lies in the northern section of the county, surrounded by the Towns of Alexandria to the northwest, Orleans on the west, Le Ray on the south, and Philadelphia and Antwerp on the southeast. Northeast is St Lawrence County.
While today the lakes of Theresa, ranging from half a mile to several miles in length, are a sportsman's delight, they impeded the establishment of farms. They include Butterfield, Grass, Moon, Hyde, Crystal, Sixberry (named for Jefferson County's famous early hunter), Millsite, Red, Muskalonge, and Lake of the Woods. Not all are wholly within the Town of Theresa, some sharing borders with the Towns of Alexandria and Antwerp.
Theresa's main watercourse is the swift flowing Indian River, which enters the town from Le Ray and flows into St Lawrence County. Its high falls provided the site for Theresa village. The town was organized from the Town of Alexandria on 15 April 1841, named for a daughter of the early proprietor, James D. Le Ray. Theresa village is the only populated area within the town.
From the 1864 Jefferson County Atlas: a summary of statistics for Theresa
ACRES OF LAND
Improved 15,667
Unimproved 9,937
VALUATION
Real Estate 357,934
Personal Property 89,380
Total 447,314
POPULATION
Males 1,208
Females 1,200
Number of Dwellings 397
Number of Families 440
Freeholders 390
SCHOOLS
Number of Districts 17
Children Taught 1,053
LIVE STOCK
Horses 486
Working Oxen and Calves 1,065
Cows 1,808
Sheep 861
Swine 859
AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS
Bushels of Grain
Winter 2,427
Spring 40,000
Tons of Hay 4,177 1/2
Bushels of Potatoes 5,057
Bushels of Apples 640
Dairy Products
Pounds of Butter 163,775
Pounds of Cheese 93,780
YARDS OF DOMESTIC MANUFACTURE 2,324
Names of the Early Settlers |
|---|
| ALLEN, BENJAMIN ASHLEY, NOAH BAKER, ARTEMAS BALDWIN, JONAS BALL, SINESA BARNES, BENJAMIN BATES, AUSTIN BAUM, Jacob BENNETT, Jonathan BODMAN, Sylvester BROOKS, JAMES, Dr CASTLEMAN CHAPMAN, DUDLEY CHEESEMAN, Anson CHEESEMAN, JEREMIAH CLARK, ERASTUS COLE, ALLEN COLE, JACOB COLE, URSULA COOK, MICHAEL CORNWELL, Isaac |
CURTIS, Abiah CURTIS, Abiah C. DOOLITTLE, JESSE EMERY, ELIPHALET EVANS, Eldad EVANS, TALMAN FISHER, ARCHIBALD FLOWER, Nathan M. HALL, SAMUEL HELMER, John G. HOUSE, Peter KEELER, Mrs LADD, Bodwell LAKE, JAMES LAWTON, Benjamin LULL, EBENEZER MILLER, JOSEPH MOREY, HENRY MORGAN, DAVID MORROW, ABRAHAM MURRAY, SEYMOUR |
PARKER, NATHANIEL POOL, ZALMON SALISBURY, ALEXANDER SALISBURY, LODOWICK SHERMAN, Jacob SHURTLIFF, HANNAH SHURTLIFF, JAMES SIMONS, Rodney SMITH, CURLEY SOPER, Augustus SPRAGUE, Charles STARKS, NATHAN STONE, ANDREW STROUGH, DANIEL STROUGH, SAMUEL W. THOMPSON, JONATHAN UNDERWOOD, KATE WHITNEY, JOB WOOD, Horace YOST, NICHOLAS D. |
If you have additional information about this town, please contact:
Nancy Dixon
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