Franklin Academy - Student Yearbook (Malone, NY)

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we Richard Harison, the nominal founder of Malone, was born in New York City in 1747. He entered King's College, now Columbia University, when he was thirteen years old. Harison and John Jay, later first chief iustice of the Supreme Court, were the only members of their class. Harison was later a law partner to Alexander Hamilton. Mr. Harison's law practice brought him both distinction and wealth. Therefore, he was able to invest in the township of Malone. Here he built a manor surrounded by a beauti- ful garden on upper Webster Street. Mr. Harison originally planned and laid out the village of Malone. It was to be located entirely on the west side of the river. Main Street and Webster Street were to be the principal streets. On top of all this Harison also donated a plot of land, containing four acres, for a public school and a lot for the construction of the Congregational Church on Webster Street. Richard Harison sure was some guy, wasn't he? He certainly was. Wouldn't he be surprised to see Malone today? The entire region has changed. In his day your beautiful Adirondack Mountains were known as the Peruvian Mountains. Early French explorers had called them thus since they were supposed to have mineral deposits of a vast nature. Let me tell you how people lived in those days. Although most of the early settlers were farmers, there were such industries as a tannery and a distillery. The people were poor, but a spirit of helpfulness pre- dominated throughout the community. Anslem Lincoln once told me about this instance. A road badly needed repairs. All the foremost men of the village celebrated the 4th of July by turning out to fix it. My friend, William Wheeler, wrote an account of early life in Malone. In it he places Ashbel Parmelee at the head of the foremost files of the pioneers. Rev. Parmelee was Malone's first minister. Although he held severe religious standards and wasn't overly tolerant, he impressed all who knew him as being entirely honest and sincere. With him politics and religion were interchangeable terms. He once told Mr. Wheeler that on the day of election, he went directly from his morning devotions to the polls. He prayed for good government and did his best to secure it b voting for it. Ashbel Parmelee's name will always be inseparably linked with that of Malone. ln summer's heat and winter's cold, he carried the gospel to the remotest cabins. That's some task considering the cold, cold winters you have in Malone. The winter's weather is sort of cold in the north country, l agreed, thinking of all my woolens at home. To get back to my story: Life was not all work with no play even then. The red-letter days of the year were the annual town training day, the first Monday of September, and the general muster of the county militia. Arsenal Green was the parade ground. On the general muster day the whole county met to watch the marching and maneuvers. There were real holidays for the school children, too. Zenas Heath, one of the first teachers in these parts, gave his students an annual excursion to the GREAT town of Malone. For this, he enlisted a team and 3

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.R X R , XX I wp- -M . Q- . , vii gig I iff ri! if fs J... Illtl u Illl ii s rw 255 fihkfoffy of Malane CNE night I had a dream. In the dream I was drifting beyond the earth, way up in the heavens. Finally l saw a sign- Residence of the Good Father Time. With sudden realization, I decided this was where I wanted to go. I timidly went to the door and knocked. Almost at once a white-haired old gentleman with a long, long beard came to the door. Father Time? I asked. Yes, m girl. What can I do for you'? he replied. I have been assigned to write the History of Malone for our T952 Yearbook. I need some help, I managed to stammer. Come right in and have a seat, little lady. I'm going to help you. Gratefully I found m self a chair on a nice, comfortable cloud and settled down to listen. Now let me see: About one hundred and fifty years ago, Enos, John and Nathan Wood came from Vermont and settled within the boundaries of Malone. These persons were the first settlers. Soon others followed. Most of our early stock came here from Vermont and were, therefore, mostly of Puritan beliefs-- living simply and working hard. It wasn't until much later in T838 that many French people came to live in those parts. The'Papineau Rebellion at that time drove them from Canada. They came iust as the early Englishmen had come, lacking provisions and money. Yes, but why did they call our town Malone'? I asked. It's this way. Malone Village was first called the Center . Although there are many theories attached to this phase of the history, it has been confirmed that the name came from Edmond Malone, an Irish- Shalcespearean scholar. The name Malone dates back approximately to I8l2. Probably no town of Malone was ever intended. A man by the name of Macomb bought all of the land in this part of the state. Macomb made his great purchase of about four million acres at around eight cents an acre. A man by the name of Constable had also made some investments. In T792 a failure of the stock market caused both Macomb and Constable to lose money. Constable went to Europe to sell his interest, but Macomb' sold most of his at a great loss. E 2

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began at the west end of the district. About two miles of the trip were through dense forests with only a narrow road upon which to travel. When they reached Malone, they passed over the river on a narrow plank bridge, on eithrer side of which were placed hewn timbers for guards. To the school children, this was one of the main events of t e year. Asa Perry erected the first hotel. Foote's tavern, located where the State Armory now is, was first owned and operated by Appleton Foote. The people gathered in these places to exchange bits of gossip and news. Q ani em 'T fs., Q Q fe. if it .. K , 1: Z3 ' I I' 5 Q 3 If fi ,Q ,V -l .. F - Some events of national interest have also occurred in Malone. In 1817 President Monroe passed through the town. The people eagerly turned out to witness this marvel. This took place at the time the stone bridge was being built. The bridge wasn't far enough advanced to permit the team to cross it so the presidential party walked over and their team forded a few rods above. At later dates the following personages have visited our fair city: Martin Van Buren, Grant, Hayes, Harrison, Cleveland, Harding and both of the Roosevelts. Gee, is that all Malone ever had to do with the nation as a'whole? I asked, rather taken aback. My poor child, didn't you ever hear of the War of 1812? Malone was a part of that. In the fall of 1813, Harison House was first occupied by Maior General James Wilkinson, then in command of a large section of the northern army. In fact the first flag to be captured in a land battle was taken in Franklin County in the battle of Hogansburg. After the battle at Chrystlers Farm, part of the American troops withdrew to Malone. During the winter many of his troops died. When the Americans withdrew to eastward, they left a quantity of supplies un- protected. A visit from the British was expected, so some of the citizens hid the supplies. Soon after this had been done, the British forces entered Malone by Elm Street. The commanding officer promised not to harm the inhabitants but a thorough search was made and the supplies were discovered, Malone was iust plain lucky that time. I should say so. I guess Malone has always had fairly good fortune, I replied, feeling quite proud. No, I wouldn'tsay that. In the early days money was very scarce. After the War of 1812, when the troops had left, it became increasingly scarce. Farmers had to begin months ahead to prepare for the tax-gather. The year of 1816 has gone into history as the year without a summer. There was a frost every month that year, but the worst was in September. It killed all the cro s. A state of actual famine existed. Teams, sent to Fort Covington to wait the arrival of a boat loaded with fljour, came back empty. Clark and Weade's store was filled with men with bags, waiting to fill them with flour. When the boat didn't come, even strong, hardy men cried. They could bear the hunger but it was hard to see their children starve. Finally the boat came and the suffering was ended. That was a close shave. I agree. Yet when did Malone start to get modern, you know, like it is today? Oh yes, modern. Well, all this time Malone had been making steady progress, never fear. In 18201. Franklin Telegraph, the first local news was published. This was followed in 1835 by the Palladium and then by the present concern. T e flrst good road was built by James Lamay de Chaymont and it ran from Black River to Malone. This was accomplished in the mid-nineteenth century. Electric lights were first introduced in 1904 and come to think of it, that wasn't so long ago. The folks up around here even got modern enough to get mixed up in the Civil War and the underground railway. There were two slaves owned in our county. Gerret Smith, the great abolishionist, offered land to any slaves who came here to live. However this strife did not last long. Thank goodness! Well, I guess I know it from then on. I must be going . With a startled jump I woke up without even thanking the kind old gentler l You know the story from where he left off. Today Malone is a thriving village of about ten thousand. Her schools are among the finest in the state. Her industries are expanding. She is noted for her friendliness and hospitality. We of Malone may well look with pride upon our home town. 4