Great Genesee Road

United State] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go t] [[United States Migration Internal|Migratio] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go t] [[US Migration Trails and Roads|Trails and Road] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go t] [[New York Genealogy|New York [[Image:Gotoarrow.png|go t] [[Great_Genesee_Road|Great Genesee Road]]

The Great Genesee Road, also known as Mohawk Trail, Iroquois Trail, Great Indian Trail, and Seneca Turnpike, was built starting in 1794 by New York State to connect Fort Schuyle (now [[Utica, New York]) on the Mohawk Trail and Mohawk River with Canawaugus (now Caledonia), Livingston County, New York on the Genesee River. In 1798 the legislature authorized a road extension to Buffalo, New York on [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Erie Lake Eri. The original Indian path also went to Fort Niagar on the border with [[Canada Genealogy|Canad. [[Image:Great Genesee Road.png|border|right|400px|Great Genesee Road.pn] Each end of the Great Genesee Road connected to other important migration pathways. The length of the road from Utica to Buffalo was 205 miles (330 km).

Historical Background
As westward expansion began after the American Revolution, the only central New York pathways west of Fort Schuyle ([[Utica, New York]) were rivers and a footpath which was a western fork of the Mohawk Trail or Iroquois Trail that went to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Niagara Fort Niagar. The land companies which began developing large tracts of land for settlement started clamoring for the state to make better roads for their customers.

In 1794 the state legislature authorized the Great Genesee Road from Fort Schuyler to Canawaugus to help settlers reach the [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Military_Tract New Military Trac. This eight county tract was set aside to allow 500 acres of bounty land to pay each New York Revolutionary War veteran for his service. The new state road followed the route of a fork of the old Mohawk Trail part of the way. In 1797 a weekly stagecoach began service between Utica and Geneva on the Seneca/Ontario county line. Each leg of the round trip took three days. A state road extension to Buffalo was authorized in 1798.

However, the road construction was spotty and in places incomplete. In 1800 the legislature chartered the Seneca Road Company to charge tolls (originally six cents per mile) for improving the road. The road was macadamized to reduce pot holes. High-quality, privately-maintained, toll roads were called turnpikes. This one was completed in 1808 and was called the "Seneca Turnpike," 157 miles (253 km) from Utica to Canandaigua, longest such road in New York. In 1805 the western extension to Buffalo was changed from a public road to a private turnpike. This "Ontario and Genesee Turnpike" was completed in 1813. In 1806 the Seneca Road Company began developing a more northerly alternate route to the Seneca Turnpike (Great Genesee Road) through Syracuse. In time this became the more popular route west.

The completion of the Erie Canal in 1825 reduced traffic on the turnpikes. Also, in the 1840s railroads began to compete for traffic. Reduced revenue on the turnpikes made the road companies unprofitable. By 1852 the Seneca Road Company was dissolved and the company's turnpikes became public roads again.

Route
The counties along Great Genesee Road (east to west) were as follows:


 * [[Oneida County, New York Genealogy|Oneida Count]
 * [[Madison County, New York Genealogy|Madison Count]
 * [[Onondaga County, New York Genealogy|Onondaga Count]
 * [[Cayuga County, New York Genealogy|Cayuga Count]
 * [[Seneca County, New York Genealogy|Seneca Count]
 * [[Ontario County, New York Genealogy|Ontario Count]
 * [[Livingston County, New York Genealogy|Livingston Count]
 * [[Genesee County, New York Genealogy|Genesee Count]
 * [[Erie County, New York Genealogy|Erie Count]

Farther west the original Fort Niagara fork of the Mohawk Trail footpath apparently followed a more northerly line toward Fort Niagara:


 * [[Wayne County, New York Genealogy|Wayne Count]
 * [[Monroe County, New York Genealogy|Monroe Count]
 * Genesee County
 * [[Niagara County, New York Genealogy|Niagara Count]

Connecting trails. The Great Genesee Road linked to other trails at each end.

The migration pathways connected at the east end in [[Utica, New York|Utic] included:


 * Mohawk Trail (or Iroquois Trail) a pre-historic footpath that connected [[Albany, New York|Alban] to [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Oswego Fort Osweg
 * Great Genesee Road 1794 from [[Utica, New York|Utic] to [[Caledonia, New York|Caledoni] and later [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal]
 * Erie Canal 1825 from [[Albany, New York|Alban] to [[Utica, New York|Utic] to [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal]

The migration pathways connected at the west end in [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal] included:


 * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Erie Lake Eri
 * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niagara_River Niagara Rive
 * [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lake_Ontario Lake Ontari
 * Great Genesee Road 1794 from [[Utica, New York|Utic] to [[Caledonia, New York|Caledoni] and later [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal]
 * Erie Canal 1825 from [[Albany, New York|Alban] to [[Utica, New York|Utic] to [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal]
 * Shore Line Path from Buffalo, New York to [[Cleveland, Ohi]
 * pathways into [[Ontario Genealogy|Ontari], Canada

Modern parallels. The modern road that roughly matches the Great Genesee Road and its extension to Buffalo is New York State Route 5 from [[Utica, New York|Utic] to [[Buffalo, New York|Buffal].

Settlers and Records
Early settlers in central New York most likely traveled there via Alban]. Albany was a hub of pathways from [[New York City, New York|New York Cit], [[Vermont Genealogy|Vermon], [[Connecticut Genealogy|Connecticu], [[Massachusetts Genealogy Guide|Massachusett], [[Pennsylvania Genealogy|Pennsylvani], and [[Quebec Genealogy|Quebec. Probably the largest group to settle were New Englanders, many from Vermont. But people from almost every part of the eastern seaboard and Europe also were common in the area.

No complete list of settlers who used the Great Genesee Road is known to exist. Nevertheless, local and county histories along that trail may reveal pioneer settlers who arrived 1794 to 1850, and therefore who were the most likely candidates to have traveled the Great Genesee Road or Seneca Turnpike.

For partial lists of early settlers who may have used the Great Genesee Road, see histories like:

Cayuga County


 * Elliot G. Storke, and James. H. Smith, History of Cayuga County, New York, 1789-1879 : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers (Syracuse, New York : D. Mason, 1879). [http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/7094856 WorldCat entr..

Cortland County


 * H. C. Goodwin, Pioneer history, or, Cortland County and the border wars of New York : from the earliest period to the present time (Photocopy of original published: New York : A.B. Burdick, 1859). [http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/38851880 WorldCat entr..

Onondaga County


 * W. Woodford Clayton, History of Onondaga County, New York: with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of the prominent men and pioneers (Syracuse, N. Y. : D Mason, 1878)..

Other Wiki Pages

 * United States Overland Travel 1784 to 1839, Great Genessee Road, Seneca Road, Catskill Turnpike, Old Kanawha Trail, Nashville Road (National Institute)