Old Views

[dgriffin]

At the Boston Store around 1959, Santa was played by Bobby Collea, a 15 year old fellow classmate with a deep voice. Small for his age, he was put in a 4x4x8 box shaped like "Santa's Workshop At The North Pole." Dressed up in red with a fake beard, he spoke with children via a system of mirrors and lenses, so that it appeared he was on television. Bobby lost ten pounds in sweat during the few weeks he was entombed at this part time job. Today, the Boston Store would be charged with endangering a minor.

[dgriffin]

Utica Catholic Academy and St. John's Orphanage

John C. Devereux was the pioneer in the movement to establish the first Roman Catholic Church West of Albany, and the fourth in New York State. Through his efforts, Father Michael O'Gorman came to Utica and on January 10, 1819 said mass in the old Court House and Academy on Chancellor Square. On January 25th, 1819 a meeting was held in the home of Devereux and "the first Catholic Church in the Western Districk of New York" was incorporated. Father Farnam became the first pastor and his residence was a small wooded house on the East side of the quare. John and Nicholas Devereux donated $1, 125 to start the church. Also, in 1830 John C. Devereux donated a piece of property on upper Steuben Street to St. John's Church to be the first Catholic Cemetery. In the year 1834, John C Devereux and his brother requested the Sisters of Charity to conduct a Catholic orphanage and day school in Utica. As a result, three Sisters were sent from the Mother House at Emmitsburg, Maryland. Tradition has it that they arrived, with their scant belongings, by canal boat on May 1st, 1834. The Sisters were lodged in Devereux's home on Broad Street until the first building could be completed for their use. Each of the Devereux brothers contributed $5000.00 and they opened the first orphanage in a small frame dwelling house in the center of the lot just South of St. John's Church on John Street. In December of that year, three children were received in the small story and a half house, which number soon increased to eight. John C. Devereux, a kindhearted man, a lover of children although he had none of his own, visited the orphanage daily. The institution was incorporated in 1848. A day school, the predecessor of Utica Catholic Academy, was opened a short time later in an adjourning building on Burnet Street 4.
aohdiv1utica.org/john_c_devereux




This is the John St. side of Utica Catholic Academy, as it existed at the time of the photo, taken probably in the 1950's or early 1960's. I attended UCA in the building from 1957 to 1960, when it was closed and then torn down a few years later. My father attended "St. John's School" (elementary) in the building from 1916 to 1924, and then across the street at Assumption Academy, labeled "R.C. Academy" on the 1883 map.

[jon hynes]

St John's Orphan Asylum


I went by there the other day and it's hard to see the building from the front, being overgrown with trees.

I went up Beverly and found the building's side. It was just a parking lot all fenced in. I turned back and finally got near the back. Looked like a lot of cars there but didn't go any closer for now.

[jon hynes]

Assumption Academy

[dgriffin]

Jon, thanks for above two photos. I just noticed them as I was doing link maintenance. I had never seen a photo of Assumption before.

I used to ride my bike up Beverly and around the orphanage in the early Fifties. I don't think there were any kids there at that point in time, and UCA hadn't moved there yet, of course.

[dgriffin]

Here's a fun place to go for old magazine covers. As you may know, I love illustration art. (Scroll down for the index.)

www.ellisparkerbutler.info/epb/coverart.asp?p=Radio+News

[dgriffin]

If you were an eagle, soaring over The Eagle, this is what you would have seen ... when? Can you date the photo? How? I don't know when this photo was taken, but certainly after the Wright Bros. Aren't those the tennis courts below?

[dgriffin]

Here's another photo I found somewhere that was labeled Utica In Snow. It certainly looks like Utica, but can you tell us where? What's that large building in the center of the photo? And that looks like a school building down toward the bottom of the frame, a little bit right of center. Date?


www.windsweptpress.com/images/utica in snow.jpg[/img]

[dgriffin]

Utica, 1848. Is that Bagg's up at the far end of the square? This print shows why it was eventually called Baggs "Square." The hotel attached to the Railroad Station in the illustration has the word "house" in its name. I can barely make that word out in the name painted on its upper wall.

This scan has good detail. You can click it twice and count the people in the square. Squares seemed to have been important in 19th century cities. Possibly they were planned as assembly areas for lectures, gatherings, and celebrations. Eventually, many became flower parks, such as Steuben Park, Chancellor Park, etc. The small parks of Utica, today called parks, were labeled as "squares" (e.g., Chancellor Square) on the maps in the first half of the 19th century.





"Downtown" Utica was here, of course, and to the left (east) where most of the businesses were, including the retail stores. Eventually, the retail action moved south up Genesee St. toward the Busy Corner. But until rather late in the 1800's, Genesee Street from the Busy Corner south was filled with mansion like homes. Then hotels took over. Then retail.

I wish we had a historian aboard to fill in the details.

[jon hynes]

Aug 31, 2009 23:53:31 GMT -5 @dgriffin said:

The hotel attached to the Railroad Station in the illustration has the word "house" in its name. I can barely make that word out in the name painted on its upper wall.

Looks kind of like AVHRELL HOUSE

Notice at the Top Right of the picture is the State Hospital Complex.

I think Bagg's Hotel is on the Left Second building from the bottom.

Is this a sketch ?

[jon hynes]

Bagg's Hotel

On Right Looking North

[jon hynes]

Bagg's Hotel

Looking East

[jon hynes]

Bagg's Square Looking South

The building on the Left, which is the building in the Center of Dave's picture.

Lewis House on the left and Trask's Cigar Store on the right of the building.

John Street on the Left of the building and Genesee Street on the Right.

[jon hynes]

Bagg's Hotel Looking North on Genesee Street

[jon hynes]

Bagg's Hotel Looking East