Rome Free Academy - De O Wain Sta Yearbook (Rome, NY)

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THE of history the Wood Creek valley was covered with a lake. This lake re- ceded at the time of the Glacial Epoch, and is now Lake Ontario. The Adiron- Catskills con- and once a was no were there dacks and Sane chain, Mohawk Valley. a belt of destructible rocks running east and west, and known as the Utica Shales. These had been wearing away for a long period, and when the ice covered the country, the waters of the Great Lakes, which flowed through Rome, rapidly dug out a valley in these rocks, until, at the close of the Glacial Age, the waters were diverted to their present course in the St. Lawrence, leav- ing the valley to become a channel of human intercourse and a natural pass across the mountains. This pass thus leads to the great west. Its highest point here at Rome being only 445 feet above sea level and only 198 feet above Lake Ontario, shows how easy it was for the waters of the Great Lakes to dam back as far as this. A casual survey of any map will show the import- ant fact that this is the only natural pass over the Appalachians. ‘Such is Rome’s geographical posi- tion. If geography makes history, it must be true that this geographical posi- tion has had an influence upon the location and history of Rome, and per- haps even upon the history of New York State, and the whole ¢ountry. How has this influence shown itself ? “In the first place the influence was felt by the Indians and first settlers, who early discovered the practical advant- ages of the local geographical arrange- ments to commerce and travel. They would come from Lake Ontario up the Oswego and Oneida Rivers, across Oneida Lake and up Wood Creek to the site of Rome. Then with a short carry of their canoes, down the present Its presence is due to SENIOR ANNUAL. 11. line of Dominick street, they would enter the Mohawk River and descend- ing the Hudson would reach New York. In fact, we find that the Iroquis, the most advanced and enlightened race of Indians of our country, inhabited this very region. That they were the most skilled in the arts of agriculture, war- fare and diplomacy, is, no doubt, largely to be explained from the fact that on account of controlling this natural pass through Rome, they had the easiest communication wit h the Atlantic sea- board, and thus came under the most direct influence of European civiliza- tion. In the pioneer days, ambitious immigrants found here the only path to their goal—the Great West. We see evidence of these immigrations in the settlements left in the vicinity of Rome. “This ‘carry,’ then, made the best kind of a site for building a settlement and it was the most natural thing that Rome was founded here. Boats could come from east and west, but here they were forced to stop and carry. Here storehouses and taverns were built and a community gathered, forming a nu- cleus for the later village and city of Rome. ‘Rome's position became of the greatest importance in the Revolution. jjust as, in times of peace, the Mohawk Valley had offered an easy and natural path for commerce and immigration, so in times of war, this great pass became the most enticing and strategic avenue of approach for the enemy. The idea of the valley’s importance strategically had been grasped by the early settlers, who, as early as the French War, had constructed Fort Stanwix and Fort Bull. The British also saw the importance of capturing this ‘carry’ at Rome. So in the campaign of 1777 Rome stepped into a prominent place in the Revolu- tion. A series of most important events,

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THE SENIOR ANNUAL. Jones, Anna. Leary, Agnes, Latin Honor. LEABERRY, Nellie, Scientific Hon- or; Miss Threedice in play. Meap, Mary E., Essay Honor; Mrs. Gobbo in class play. OLNey, Florence, Valedictorian; Assistant Editor of Annual. PILLMORE, Susan, Winner of first prize Slingerland contest, ’05. SILVERNAIL, Verna, Vice Presi- dent of class. SmitTH, Elizabeth. WALDO, Ethyl, Boys’ Prophet. WELLER, Grace, Assistant Editor of Annual; Nerissa in class play. WHEELER, Class His- torian. class Helen, President’s Address Bipot. Faculty, and Students: The class of 1905 bids you one and all a most cordial welcome to these, our class day exercises. It is with mingled feelings of pleasure and sadness that we come to this most eventful time of our lives. We look back with pleasure at the many happy days spent in the Rome Free Academy, at the good times we have enjoyed, and the firm friendships we have made, while pangs of sorrow and sadness come knocking at the door of our hearts as we realize that now we must break loose from the ties that have held us for the past four years and go out into the world relying upon our own responsibilities. Members of the faculty, as we enter into the more difficult problems of life we will miss your ready advice and aid, but you will always hold a lasting place in our memory. To-night we have diverged from the time honored custom of class day exer- cises and will present for your entertain- ment a farce comedy, The Merchant of Venice Up-to-Date.’’ Notice the “Up-to-Date.” The class of 1905 is up-to-date in all respects, and so could not be satisfied with Shakesveare’s own work, but have had it revised for the occasion. But remember if this play is pleasing to you, that praise is not due to the class alone, but to the teachers who have been so ready to help us and have shown so great an interest in our success. And now, once again, I bid you all a cordial welcome. Davis First Prize Essay. INFLUENCE OF RoOME’S GEOGRAPHY Upon Her History. ¢ HE prize of $35 provided by the will of the late Mrs. Moses M. Davis (nee Slingerland) to be awarded to the Rome Free Academy student writing the best essay was won this, the first, year by Miss Leota Fuller, daughter of ex-Alderman Elmer B. Fuller. She wrote over the nom de plume of ‘‘ Eldora Jayne,” and her sub- ject was “The Influence of Rome's Geography Upon Her History.” The full text of the essay follows: “The city of Rome is located in the centre of Oneida County, at the head of the Mohawk Valley, on the low divide between Wood Creek and the Mohawk River. The river flows south- easterly through the eastern part of the city, and Wood Creek flows west through the northwest part. These streams approach within half a mile of each other. The intervening ground is low and covered with a deep alluvial deposit, showing that before the dawn

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12. Tur SENIOR ANNUAL. such as the advance’ of St. Leger, the battle of Oriskany, and the siege of Fort Stanwix took place here, which checked the British right at the turning point of the war. These events are all too little noticed by historians. “It was Burgoyne’s plan to cut the thirteen colonies in two. He was to come from Montreal down Lake Cham- plain and force his way to Albany, there to meet General Clinton, who was to come up the Hudson from New York. Colonel St. Leger was to come by way of Lake Ontario to Fort Stanwix. Here he was to capture the fort, then pass down the Mohawk and join General Burgoyne. With the events that fol- lowed we are only too familiar. Every schoolboy and girl knows of the siege of Fort Stanwix by St. Leger and of his defeat; the relief force that came from Fort Dayton under the leadership of General Herkimer, and the ambush into which they fell at Oriskany, and the decisive battle that was fought there. We likewise know of the second relief party, coming as far as Fort Dayton, which captured the Tory youth, Han- yost, and of how he was sent to St. Leger’s camp to give an exaggerated account of the patriot forces, and of how the British fled from the fort in con- fusion when they heard the news. “Fort Stanwix was thus left un- harmed. What if events had not hap- pened the way they did and the fort had fallen? St. Leger would then have swept down the Mohawk Valley with fire and sword, and joined Burgoyne at Saratoga. That general then might never have been defeated, but his plan of separating the colonies would have been carried out. So we still might be British subjects, and never have heard of peace and liberty. How true it is that the history of the Revolution was determined far more than we realize by the physiography of Rome. “The influence of Rome’s geographi- cal position is still more clearly shown by the enormous industrial and com- mercial development of New York State since the Revolution. The great- est instance is the building of the Erie Canal. This was made possible simply because of the low divide at Rome. It is an interesting fact to know that this is the only canal across the Appalachian Mountains between the Atlantic and Great Lakes. It was here in Rome, the highest point of the canal, only 445 feet above the sea, that Dewitt Clinton’s men threw the first shovelful of dirt from the canal in 1817. The low divide also explains the location of the lines of the New York Central and West Shore Railroads. It is also the physiography of Rome that will make it possible for the people of New York State to build the barge canal. It really is due to the fact that the canal and railroads have such a great advantage over other rail- roads, on account of their position here, that New York is the Empire State. The summit of the New York Central at Rome, like the canal, is only 445 feet above sea level, while the Pennsylvania Railroad has its summit at 2,161 feet, the Baltimore and Ohio at 2,620, the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western at 1,932 feet. ““Where do we find the great cities of New York State? Right along the Erie Canal and New York Central Railroad. Most of all, the low divide at Rome accounts for the greatness of New York city. The enormous commerce of the Great Lakes and of the west, with its corn and wheat belts, has found its nat- ural outlet over the Erie Canal and the railroad through Rome, and this fact has made New York the metropolis of America. With the barge canal and