Editors note:

The exact date that this document was written is not known at this time.

It is also not known exactly why it came about but, it's possible it was done as a High School project paper.

Feel free to submit information regarding this document. It was located on file at the Warren Memorial Library in Massena.

History and Geographical Survey of Norwood in Town of Potsdam, St, Lawrence County, New York State by Dorothy Haggett   Just before the middle of the 19th century, a large addition was made to the means of transporting the products of soil and forest to distant markets. Between the years 1847 to 1849, the Northern Railroad (now the Rutland Railroad) was built through the northern part of the town, being completed in 1850. The distance it covered in the town of Potsdam was almost six miles. At one point, very important results were immediately realized from building this road, It crossed the Raquette river on a farm of four hundred acres owned by Benjamin G. Baldwin Esquire. That gentleman conveyed fifteen acres to the company for a depot, besides the right of way through his farm. In 1850 he erected a tavern which burned down the next March. Two others were, however, erected that spring in its place. In 1852 when Norman Ashley went into business, there was one store, kept by B. G. Baldwin & Company, which carried in stock dry goods, groceries and hardware. There was a post office and three hotels, one of which was the Raquetteville House, now the new Whitney House. The other two do not exist now. Because of the good water power furnished by the Raquette River and the raw materials present, a Mr. Abbott, built a small sawmill on the west side of the river. This mill was run by Ira Bicknell & Son. There was also another sawmill, a tailor shop, a boot and shoe shop, and a meat market. In 1850 there was but one doctor, At this time there were no churches. Meetings were held in the old stone schoolhouse which was located pretty well out North Main Street. There were only three streets, Main, Park, and Railroad Streets. R. Ashley was station agent, and 0. Hull was freight agent. The first minister to be located here was Mr. Richey. The first constable was Richmond Bicknell. 'There were about thirty houses. The Baldwin flats was a cedar swamp. East of that was nearly all woods to Knapp's Station. As the history of Norwood is so dependent on the Raquette River, I will tell you where the name originated before relating any more of the history of the village. "Racquette" is a French word meaning a "snow-shoe". It is said to have been first so-called by a Frenchman named Parisein, long before settlements were begun in this quarter, and that the name was suggested by the shape of a marsh near its mouth. The Iroquois name "Ni-ha-na-wa-te" or "rapid Water", is peculiarly applicable. It is said that Col. Lewis, the Indian chief, told Benjamin Raymond, when surveying, that its Indian name meant "noisy river", for which reason it has usually been written Raquette. In 1852 a dam with an eight foot fall was erected on this river, a highway bridge was constructed a little below it, and Mr. Baldwin laid out a village to which he gave the name of Racquetteville, derived from that of the river and using the orthography which was then deemed correct but which has since been discarded. A post office was established, as was mentioned before, in 1850, with Rollin Ashley as the first postmaster. The Potsdam Plank-Road Company was formed in this year, and in October it had completed a plank road from Potsdam village to Racquetteville at a cost of $6,439. This, however, did not satisfy the needs of the people, and early in 1851 a company was organized to build a road between these two places. Other towns to the south-west became interested, so a convention was held in Watertown. Finally a large meeting was held at Gouverneur in 1852, when the Potsdam end Watertown Railroad Company was organized. In the course of the next four years, the company built a railroad from Watertown to Racquetville or "Potsdam Junction", as it was called by the railroad people. The location of the "Junction" of the two roads at Racquetville largely increased the business of the place, and for several years it grew with great rapidity. The manufacturing establishments along the Racquette River were all working to the extent of their capacity due to excellent water power, when they were seriously disturbed by the great flood in May, 1871. There had been very heavy rains and the river was steadily rising, but it was supposed that the booms and piers were sufficient to withstand all the pressure of the water. Suddenly one Friday, came the report from the south, "the reservoir dam has given way". At once there was a great commotion all along the river, Men, teams, boats and materials were mustered in hot haste, and every effort made to strengthen defenses against the flood. Owing to the long, winding course of the river below the reservoir, it was not until Saturday noon that it began to rise more rapidly. Saturday afternoon the wreck of the Ellsworth sawmill came floating down the stream being caught by the booms at the village. All Saturday night were heard the rattling of wagons, shouts of men, cries of children, squealing of pigs, and similar sounds. A thou sand wild conjectures were ventured as to how far the water would rise and how far it would be necessary to move. At daylight on Sunday, the bridges and other ports of observation were crowded with people asking, "How much has the water risen?" The trains were not allowed to cross the railroad bridges, the passengers being transferred. At noon a bulk-head in the water wall above Fall Island was crushed, and the water rushed through. Many buildings were torn down and carried away. An immense mass of lumber, logs, tools, etc. lodged against the railroad bridge, which seemed likely to be carried off, but which finally held its place. The booms above Sissonville went off with all their logs, and at Hewittville two spans of the bridge, the middle portion of the dam, and the booms, crowded with logs, wrecks of buildings, etc. But everything was held fast by the booms of Loveless & Fonda at Norwood (then Racquetteville), and most of the matter was recovered by the owners. The water gradually subsided, but it was many months before all the damage done by the great flood was fully repaired. In 1872 the village of Potsdam Junction was incorporated. The name of Racquettville had become unsatisfactory to the people and had been abandoned. "Potsdam Junction", too, sounded much as if that thriving village were a mere adjunct of Potsdam, and in 1875 this name, too, was changed by legislative enactment at the request of the people to that of Norwood. In 1875 Norwood had a population of 1200, today it has a population of 2000. Benjamin G. Baldwin was its first president and was such at the time of his death. He was succeeded by Norman Ashley and he by A. M. H. Pearson and he by Moses F, Collins. In 1878 Norwood boasted one general store, four dry goods stores, two large groceries and five smaller ones, three hardware stores, two drugstores, one jewelry store, one flour and feed store, one furniture store, three millinery stores, one Job printing office, two hotels with attached liveries, three wagon shops, three blacksmith's shops, two shoe shops, one paint shop, two meat markets, one bakery and one barber shop. There was also two lawyers, two doctors, one dentist, and two clergymen. The present business interests are as follows, one general store, three dry goods stores, five large grocery stores, two hardware stores, one drug store, one jewelry store, two flour and feed shops or mills, one furniture store, two millinery shops, one printing office, one hotel, one livery stable, two wagon and harness shops, two blacksmith's shops, two shoe shops, two meat markets, one bakery, three barbershops, two garages, one theater, one ice cream parlor, three pool rooms,butter and cheese factory, one large paper mill, one sash and door factory, one casket factory, three restaurants, one bank, and one library. Norwood has about four able lawyers, two doctors, two dentists, five clergymen, a village board and trustees, a board of health, etc. Industries grew up because of power and raw materials. The custom grist mill of H. S. Martin & Son was started in 1874. In the same building which was 80 x 56 feet and 3 stories high, was the hub factory of the same owners which employed several men and turned out about 5000 set of hubs per annum. They also made some 300,000 shingles each winter. A portion of the building was rented to Leonard Martin and used as a butter tub factory. They employed about 22 men. The power for the whole. was furnished by a 25 horsepower steam engine. The mill is still in existence but has been greatly improved and puts out a large supply of tissue paper now. It is still under the ownership and control of the Martin's. The making of butter tubs there has been discontinued for many years. The flouring mill of Herman Rodee was a four-story stone structure, which cost about $35,000. It had five run of stone and made about two hundred barrels of flour in twenty-four hours, There was a large frame store adjoining it. This mill does not exist now. Reynold's Saw mill was built by Amos Bicknell about twenty years ago, Another structure was built at the same time for a starch factory but was never used as such. In 1867, Mr. W. Reynolds bought the saw mill. He also purchased the building intended for a starch factory and changed it into a shingle mill. He also built a sash and door factory which is still in existence as such. There was a Davis Threshing Machine Factory, also built by Mr. W, Reynolds. This factory turned out from fifteen to twenty machines per year. This does not exist now. Pearson's broom handle and hoop factory was built by Enos & Macomber in 1865. It manufactured from six to seven hundred thousand broom handles per year. It does not operate as such now. Beam and Waldron's Tannery was built in 1877. It had twenty five vats and a ten horse-power steam engine, A large space on the east side of the Racquette River was occupied by the buildings and lumber yards of the Norwood Lumber Company, but it is not doing business now. The present industries are as follows There are two large mills for paper making, the larger being in Norwood and the other and smaller at Yaleville. Both of these mills employ a great deal of help. They are run by water power afforded by the Racquette River. There is a butter and cheese factory owned by Mr. Leonard. Its growth depends on the nearness of raw materials, as this is a farming section, and on the transportation facilities. There is a casket factory, of which Mr. Shepard is president, and a sash and door factory owned by Mr. White. Both are very successful businesses employing many men. The two garages also employ many men, as well as the Electric Light Co. The New York Central Railroad Company has its center for car repairs at Norwood, thus adding to the growth of the village and employing many of its men. The first school in the village of: Norwood was known as the Union School, District No. 1. It was organized as a graded school district with a board of education-in the spring of 1870. There were four grades: academic, senior, junior, and primary. Each of the higher grades had one teacher, and the primary had two. The school house was built eight years before the organization of the board. Additions have since been made to it. Now the school has eight grades and four years of high school work besides a commercial course. There are ten primary teachers, one commercial teacher, one principal, four high school teachers, and one physical director. Many new additions have been made to the school lately, The school has six rooms on the first floor and twelve on the second floor, besides a spacious gymnasium, a recent improvement. One striking thing about Norwood High School is the beautiful lawn, which is the result of Mrs. Barnard, the music teacher's efforts. In 1855 there were occasional Methodist services. During the ministry of Rev. W, G. Ball in 1868, a church was erected. This church still stands. There was a First Congregational Church of Norwood built in 1868, although they had a house of worship much before this. This church is still in Norwood today. There was a St. Andrew's Mission which is now St Andrews Roman Catholic Church. There was also a Scotch Presbyterian church. Today Norwood is proud of her four churches, Father Roach is the priest at the Roman Catholic Church, Rev. Phillips is the clergyman of Congregational Church, Rev. Carter of the Methodist church, and Rev. Wooley of the Episcopal Church. Topography A very peculiar feature of the topography of the country is the curious course which the inland streams pursue. The rivers, all rising in the highlands (which have an elevation of 2,000 feet), flow for about one half to two-thirds of their course directly toward the St. Lawrence, Then they make very acute angles and flow from thence to their union with the great river in courses almost parallel to that stream. The portion of the county in which Potsdam (also Norwood) is located is somewhat broken up by protruding masses of Potsdam sandstone. The Climatic Conditions The climatic conditions of Norwood are, as a rule, very favorable for farming, which is carried on here on a large scale. The summers are hot and the winters are cold; that is, the climate is moderate. We have four seasons, well marked: spring, summer, autumn, and winter. The greatest temperature for a number of years has been 96 degrees. The lowest temperature has been - 40. About 40 % of the days have been cloudy, and about 55% have been clear. The winds generally blow from the southwest, but sometimes we get a cold north wind. The average rainfall for Norwood is 47.79 inches per year. The land is rolling and is drained by the Raquette river. The soil is very fertile and is excellent for raising crops, which tends to draw people to raising crops and farming. The excellent water power of the Raquette river, which was the chief factor in Norwood's growth, encourages the people to carry on manufacturing. The reasons for Norwood's growth are: (1) the water power, (2) nearness to raw materials(3) demand for manufactured goods, and (4) transportation facilities.