The Seneca nation of the Iroquois Confederacy proved the viability of present day Geneva as a location for successful settlement, occupying the land for almost a quarter of a century before being driven out by Sullivan’s army in 1779. Their village had grown around a stockade constructed by the British ca. 1755 to defend against the French and their Indian allies. This village, Kanadasaga, was located near the southwest corner of North Street and Pre-Emption Road, and was the successor to an earlier village on the site of the former White Springs farm. Kanadasaga grew around the stockade and both sides of Castle Creek to the lake shore, where Tory barracks provided gun and blacksmith services to their Indian allies. When Continental forces arrived to destroy the village, there were about 80 houses in the settlement.
The events between the Sullivan Campaign and the incorporation of Geneva in 1806 could fill volumes. The Tory Rangers and their Seneca allies were driven into Canada, opening this region to post-war development after extensive land negotiations and intrigue. The British-based Pulteney Associates eventually acquired the rights for development, and their agent, Charles Williamson, laid out the streets and made the improvements that would guarantee the village’s success. In 1796 alone, the Geneva Hotel was built on the public square, a Post Office was established, a commercial 40 ton sloop, the “Alexander,” was built and launched, the region’s first newspaper, the Ontario Gazette, was published, and the Geneva Water Works was incorporated to bring water from the White Springs to the public square. By 1806, the village consisted of 68 houses and three hundred and twenty five people.
Most of Geneva’s earliest settlers were from New England and Pennsylvania. In the Sullivan Campaign, 5000 men had witnessed first hand the fertile lands of the region. Many settled the land, or were given land grants as compensation for their service. They were largely Presbyterians. Williamson also actively promoted the area in the south, and
the Rose and Nicholas families arrived in 1803, bringing with them 75 of their slaves. There are still Geneva residents today who are related to this early African-American contingent, and their presence made Geneva unique in relation to other upstate communities. The southern families were Episcopal and affluent. They shared services with the Presbyterians until their individual churches were built. These two conservative Protestant congregations were largely responsible for the development of Geneva’s educational, social and cultural institutions. They were soon joined by wealthy families from New York City, who were leaving the congested conditions there in search of a healthier existence. Many of the mansions along South Main Street were built by those who had already made their fortunes and intended to live out their lives in comfort.
Geneva grew steadily, due to its location on the north end of Seneca Lake, an important connection with markets to the south. The opening of the Erie Canal in 1825, and Geneva’s connection to it by way of the Seneca-Cayuga Canal, made this location even more important. In the years following the canal’s completion, Western New York became the “bread basket” of the young nation. The Erie Canal accelerated the settlement of the Ohio Valley. This provided the incentive for the development of a lucrative nursery industry in Geneva. A steady supply of immigrant labor contributed to the nurserymen’s success, and an Irish community grew around a commons on the low land around Marsh Creek and present day Middle Street. St. Francis Roman Catholic Church was built in 1832, and a school and cemetery followed.
The canal and the development of Geneva Harbor signaled the shift of commerce from the Pulteney Park area to what is now Geneva’s downtown. The area around the Village Square would eventually transform to the unique row house residential district we have today.
With the arrival of the railroads and the Seneca Lake steamboats, Geneva’s prominence as a transportation hub contributed to its steady growth in the nineteenth century. Geneva’s industries developed on the lakeshore, close to existing transportation and labor force. Geneva grew up, rather than out, and was surrounded by nurseries. The arrival of the Fallbrook railroad in 1877 connected Geneva to the rich coal fields of Pennsylvania. This development encouraged the post Civil War growth of industry in the region, but the larger manufacturing concerns were locating in places located directly on the canal.
Geneva’s industrial base was balanced by its nursery industry, and its developing educational institutions. Geneva Academy became Geneva College, forerunner to Hobart College, in 1825. In 1834, a Medical College was established, graduating Elizabeth Blackwell as the first woman doctor in 1849, and operating until 1872. In the 1880, the NYS Agricultural Experiment Station came to Geneva, and in 1908 the first class of 19 women matriculated at William Smith College.
As the Village grew up, so did its need for infrastructure improvements. Using Italian immigrant work crews brought to this country to build the railroads, the City built storm and sanitary sewers and paved the streets in brick. An electric trolley provided transportation to the outlying areas, and new housing developments north and west of town were built on former farm and nursery land. An Italian colony in the Torrey Park development north of town became Geneva’s “Little Italy”with the construction of the Lehigh Railroad and Station. Geneva’s new industries located near the rail lines, and street grids for new construction were laid out. Geneva was ready to become a City, and did in 1898.
As demand for nursery stock in the west waned due to increased competition, local nurseries began to sub-divide its lands for housing tracts. This was made possible in large part by the introduction of the automobile. The automobile’s impact on Geneva’s development began in the 1920's when service and filling stations and car dealerships began to pop up everywhere. By World War II, parking had become a major problem.
World War II came with the construction of the Seneca Army Depot and Sampson Naval Base in Seneca County. Geneva was the nearest city, and felt most of the effects of overcrowding and congestion. Downtown boomed, and houses and buildings in the city were converted to multiple residences to meet the demand. The post-war effects of Sampson were delayed when it was converted to an Air Force base in the fifties. When the base finally closed, Geneva found itself in trouble. A State arterial bypass project rerouted traffic away from downtown, and led to the development of the Hamilton Street commercial strip. Downtown businesses left for the new Town & Country Plaza, and the remaining downtown industries began to close in favor of locations south or west. Geneva’s population began to shift to the town as the City’s housing stock declined. Urban Renewal attempts to reverse downtown decline failed in the 1950's. Geneva was faced with the need to reinvent itself.
Things began to change around the time after the Nation’s Bicentennial in 1976. New interest in history led to the establishment of the South Main and Genesee Park Historic Districts. Efforts leading to the moving of the 5& 20 arterial away from the lake began, giving the City back its lakefront. An Industrial Park was developed north of the City to attract new jobs. A Business Improvement District was formed to address the unique needs of downtown. Efforts to attract a lakefront hotel finally led to the construction of the Ramada Inn, followed recently by a Hampton Inn.
Today, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, the Experiment Station and the Hospital are major employers and give the City much of its character. The Industrial Park is home to Guardian Glass, an industry that has played a major role in Geneva’s resurgence. Seneca Lake is once again the catalyst for economic development, a key to the City’s growing tourism industry.
— Written by Steve O’Malley, lifelong resident, city historian since 1996, and former curator of the Geneva Historical Society.
Area History