Historic Moment: Sidewalks
By Jorge Batlle
Skaneateles Village Historian
Sidewalks in the Village are first mentioned as far back at 1844, when Munson Thorpe the ‘overseer of highways’ also called the ‘path master’ expressed concern about keeping the snow covered walks passable. Early Skaneateles sidewalks were made of wooden planks. A 4 foot wide, V-shaped plow sufficiently weighted on the rear end to guide it, was drawn by one horse. This plow materially aided the householders in cleaning their walks.
In 1867 legislation was passed by the Village giving the Trustees the duty to see that winter snow and ice was removed from these Village sidewalks, keeping at least one sidewalk on each Village street free from snow. $200 will be set aside from highway tax funds to pay for this program. E.N. Leslie, President of the Village stated “There is no other expenditure of money received from taxation that all the residents of the village get more comfort from, than the cost of scraping the snow from sidewalks here in the Village.” Leslie goes on to say “This grand scheme of clearing the sidewalks of snow and ice during the winter season is not known or practiced in any other village in the State. It is purely a Skaneateles Invention.”
Leslie also said that there are 8 1/2 miles of Village Streets or what could be 17 miles of sidewalks. Only about 4 miles of walks were cleaned. For Genesee Street, walks were cleared on the north side from the old school on Onondaga Street (Onondaga & East Streets) down through the Village and west a short distance to the present Lutheran Church’s location. The south side of Genesee Street was maintained from Legg Hall west to the Lutheran Church. State Street, Jordan Street and Academy Streets were also attended to.
Materials for these walks ranged from wood planks, brick, gravel, and locally mined slate. In 1867, F.G. Jewett opened a flagstone quarry near Stag Horn Point in the Town of Spafford. The first flagstone walk was installed in November of 1867 in front of the Legg Block. In 1868, flagstones is being installed in front of the stores from Legg Hall west to the bridge. There are still a few of these flagstones in existing Village sidewalks.
May 6, 1875, a notice in the Skaneateles Democrat newspaper stated that “walks are ordered to be laid in this village, all gravel walks must be at least 4 feet wide.” West Genesee Street 5 feet wide. Elizabeth Street walks on both side with gravel 6 inches deep. Existing walks to be re-laid and/or repaired. Railroad Street (Fennell Street) gravel 6 inches deep, stone walk in front of the Mill. A stone walk on the west side of Jordan Street up to the Catholic Church. Academy Street stone or tar on the south side and gravel on the north side. Leitch Avenue from Elizabeth to Academy a 4 foot wide plank walk. Onondaga Street, from East Street to the Corporate line gravel, 4 foot wide and 6 inches deep. Existing stone and gravel walks on south side re-laid or repaired. Syracuse Street (State Street) gravel walk on east side from Elizabeth Street to Corporate line. East Genesee Street, gravel to east Corporate line. Austin Street for a gravel walk on the north side from Jordan St. to Railroad Street (Fennell Street).
Concrete sidewalk installations started around 1905.
April 21, 1885, the village passed a Local Law with many subsections dealing with sidewalks. Section 40 dealt with the homeowner’s responsibility to clear the walk of snow and other obstructions. This became Section 12-13 of the Skaneateles Code and brought forward to today’s Section 183-6 A. Section 12-12 of the old Skaneateles Code is brought forward to today’s’ Section 183-5 Duty to maintain sidewalks in a good state of repair.
May 21, 1923 the State of New York passed a law regarding construction of sidewalks in certain villages. It states “the Board of Trustees of any village of the first class or second class within a county of more than one hundred and twenty thousand inhabitants….may cause a notice to be served upon the owners of lands adjoining and public street, highway or road within such village requiring them to construct in front of such lands a sidewalk of specified width of stone, cement or brick or similar substance at their own expense within 30 days from the time of service of such notice and such board of trustees may cause such sidewalk to be so constructed and assess the expense thereof upon the adjoining land as provided in Section 166, This shall take effect immediately.
Remembering and paraphrasing the quote of former President (Mayor) Leslie “There is no other expenditure of money received from taxation that all the residents of the village get more comfort from” Sidewalks are a Village asset that all residents gets ‘comfort from.’
