Pultneyville, New York

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Pultneyville is a hamlet located in the Town of Williamson, Wayne County, New York, USA. Framing the mouth of Salmon Creek, it is on the northern border of the town, the southern shore of Lake Ontario. The hamlet was originally laid out in 1806 and is listed with the National Register of Historic Places. At one time it was a significant Great Lakes trading port, it now is a quiet, Western New York bedroom community.

Contents 1 History 2 Geography 3 Demographics 4 External links

[edit] History

In the latter part of the 17th century the French traded with the Indians at the mouth of Salmon Creek, but no permanent settlement was established until circa 1800. Pultneyville is named for Sir William Pulteney, a British baronet who was an English land speculator. Pulteney and his partners purchased a 1,000,000 acres of the former Phelps and Gorham Purchase in 1790. There is some ambiguity as to when settlement first occurred: some sources refer to Dan Russell as being the first white inhabitant of the area in 1794, others cite "Yankee" Bill Waters in 1804. Waters' cabin was located on the peninsula just north of the harbor inlet.

In 1806 Jacob W. Hallet, a land agent for Pulteney, acquired 1,000 acres of the "Pulteney Estate". In 1806 the first Post Office was established with Hallet as its postmaster. Most of the early settlers were of English and Scotch descent. In subsequent years the Dutch immigrated to this area.

During the early years of the 19th century, activity in Pultneyville focused on agricultural commerce from the surrounding region (as far south as Canandaigua) and the maritime trade on the Great Lakes. This traffic extended to the Atlantic Ocean ports on America's northeast coast via the St. Lawrence Seaway, including New York City. Pultneyville was Wayne County's only port until the opening of the Erie Canal. In 1865, it was home to nearly 30 lake captains, many with last names of Throop and Pallister. In 1874 the first railroad appeared and the center of trade moved to Williamson and Pultneyville's siginificance as a commerce center sharply declined.

[edit] Geography

Pultneyville is located at 43°17′00″N, 77°10′00″W (43.279, -76.186)^GR1

[edit] Demographics

The population of Pultneyville was 400 in 1990.

[edit] External links

• Pultneyville Historical Society
• Wayne County History
• Maps and aerial photos Coordinates: 43.279° -77.186°
  • Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
  • Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
  • Topographic map from TopoZone
  • Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA