Town of Portage - 1827 Livingston County, New York You are the [an error occurred while processing this directive] visitor, since 11/03/97. French's Gazetteer of New York State, 1860 PORTAGE---was formed from Nunda, March 8, 1827. It is the S.W. corner town of the co., Its surface is hilly, the highest point, near Portageville, being about 200 feet higher than the R.R. The Genesee River forms the W. boundary of the town. Its banks are steep and rocky, 100 to 200 ft. high and in many places perpendicular, Coshaqua Creek flows through the E. part. The soil in the E. part is clay loam, and in the W. a sandy loam. Oakland, (p.v.) in the N.E. part, contains2 churches, a grist and saw mill, woolen factory, tannery, furnace, and 35 houses; Hunts Hollow (p.v.) 2 churches, a tannery, and 31 houses. Portage Station, on the B. & N.Y.C.R.R., is on the line of Wyoming co. Settlement was commenced by Jacob Shaver, on Lot 150, in 1810. The first church (Presb.) was formed at Hunts Hollow, about 1820. Cemeteries

Resources TOWN CLERK : Esther Howe, Portage Town Clerk, Hunt, NY 14846 TOWN HISTORIAN : Lorraine Rocker, 1283 Thompson Rd, Hunt, NY 14846 BOOKS Alden, Amie, Mary Thompson Ransom, and Marri L Ransom. Sentimental Journey, The Photography of Jason Sanford Hewitt, A nostalgic portrait of his family, friends and hometown of Portage, NY. 2006. Print. Byrnes, Thomas E. Two Centuries of Medical Care in the Town of Nunda and Vicinity. Nunda Historical Society, 2008.* Print. Cook, Thomas S. Nunda, Portage, and Genesee Falls. Arcadia Publishing, 2011.* Print. DePuy, Hope and Sally Hall, Churches in the Town of Nunda and Vicinity. Nunda Historical Society, 2007.* Print. Doty, Lockwood L., A History of Livingston County, New York. Geneseo: Doty, 1876. Print. Doty, Lockwood R. A History of Livingston County New York. Michigan, 1905. Print. Doty, Lockwood R., History of the Genesee Country. Chicago: S.J. Clark, 1925. Print. Hand, Henry Wells, Centennial History of the Town of Nunda, 1808 - 1908. reprinted by the Town Historian's Office and the Nunda Historical Society. With complete name index and errata.* Print. Smith, James H., History of Livingston County, New York. Syracuse: D. Mason & Co., 1881. Print. Thompson, Elizabeth (Mrs. Byron), Sesqui-Centennial, Town of Portage 1827-1977. 1977. Print. (Please Note: All the books marked with an asterisk are available through the Nunda Historical Society. See NundaHistory.org for ordering information.) CHURCHES Hunts Baptist Church, South Church St., Hunt, NY 14846 (585) 476-2486. Oakland Wesleyan Church, 1519 Portage Roadt., Nunda, NY 14517 (585) 468-2389. LINKS Nunda Historical Society Letchworth State Park History Updates provided by Tom Cook, Nunda Historical Society, 2011. FOOTNOTES [PORTAGE] Name derived from the portage or carrying place around the falls of the Genesee River. (back) [in 1810.] Ephraim Kingsley and Seth Sherwood settled oon Lot 169 in 1811; Joseph Dixon, above Portageville. Col. Geo. Williams, Russell Messenger, and Sanford Hunt all settled about 1814. Horace Miller taught the first school, in 1817, The first inn was kept by Prosper Adams, in 1817; and the first store, at Hunts Hollow, by Sanford Hunt, in 1818. Russell Messenger built the first sawmill, in 1816, and the first gristmill, in 1817 (back) [about 1820.] There are 4 churches in town; Presb., Meth.Prot., Prot.E., and Bap. (back)

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