Table Of Contents
Part I
Tales From the North: The Bristol Valley
Osage Orange Trees: Mark Obbie tells how the Osage orange trees he found clustered on the west side of his fourteen wooded acres tell a story of the land and its history in the Bristol Hills.
Elnathan Gooding’s Winter: Elnathan Gooding (1771-1841 was the first settler to winter in the Bristol Hills — an effort made possible by the Seneca man who befriended him, a man known by the name Jack Bearly or Jack Kelly (records vary).
Mother Maple: Anne Ruflin, resident of the Bristol Hills, pays homage to the Mother Tree, the biggest and oldest tree in the forest. Recent research explains the significance of such trees as anchors for forest ecosystems that, with sentience unrealized in prior generations, train and protect young trees.
Burning Springs: Alan B. Jones, who now owns the property on which Burning Springs is located, recounts the history of this unique natural landmark of the Bristol Hills to visitors each year.
The Music Lingers: Parsons’ pipe organs, renowned for their quality, have graced churches across New York for over a century. In this selection, John Holtz relates one of the lesser-known legends of the Bristol Hills.
The Talking Trees: The first record of trail marker trees appeared in a map dated 1828-1844, which included drawings and locations. These networks became the early roads of White settlers.
Father Winter: Worden Hill became Bristol Mountain in 1964, and snowmaking capabilities were added in 1965 to enhance the winter resort for skiing. In this tale, the people of the Bristol Hills eagerly adopt one of Father Winter’s chores.
The Fortune Teller of Worden Hill: Howard “Red” Meyers’ family often told a story about an old woman “who had the sight” and lived on Worden Hill. Now the location of the bustling Bristol Mountain ski resort, the woods that once concealed her cottage can still be viewed from the chair lift as you ascend.
Nighttime Hunters: For centuries humans have hunted in the Bristol Hills by day, but by night a different kind of hunter stalks the deep woods.
Part 2
Tales from the West: Honeoye & the Hills
10. Flight of the Thunderers: This retelling of the 1779 Sullivan Campaign draws on Seneca folklore. Sent by Washington to eradicate the Seneca, Cayuga, and Mohawk during the Revolutionary War, Sullivan burned the homes, fields, and food stores of over forty villages, resulting in the deaths of almost half their population.
11. The Lost Cannon: Though the cannon that the Sullivan campaign lost was never found, a rest stop on Route 20A on the hill east of Allens Hill Road affords views of the valley in which it is thought to have gone missing.
12. The Millstone: The old mill once stood in Berby Hollow near the junction of today’s Lower Egypt Road and Egypt Valley Road. The millstone now resides in a private home where it serves as a step between patio and porch.
13. Parmely Cemetery — A Horse’s Tale: Bristol Hills Historian Beth Thomas gets caught up in a bird’s-eye-view — or in this case, what a horse can see — of Parmely Cemetery to ground peaceful musings on the history of family and place.
14. The Green Man of the Sugar Bush: A sugar bush is a stand of maple trees used to collect sap for making syrup. Their abandoned copses can still be found throughout the Bristol Hills, serving as the basis for John Holtz’s observations.
15. The Hermit in the Hollow: Ann Jacobs, long-time resident of the Bristol Hills and president of the Historical Society, profiles one of Bristol Hills’ most intriguing characters, Frank Drown, a hermit who appeared in Carl Carmer’s 1936 bestseller, Listen for a Lonesome Drum.
16. Frost Town: Alexander Smith, assistant professor of Anthropology at SUNY Brockport, has been leading the effort to unearth this site with the Frost Town Archaeology field school, a grant-funded project conducted in collaboration with the Cumming Nature Center.
17. Lonely Lucy: After Frost Town declined, most folks moved on, leaving behind a ghost town full of overgrown foundations and crumbling headstones. This story from Sarah Jacoby Murphy of Cumming Nature Center is about one who stayed.
18. Rattlesnake Pete: Sarah Jacoby Murphy of Cumming Nature Center tells us how, less than a hundred years ago, if you went walking in the Bristol Hills and stumbled upon a large crowd gathered at the edge of a farmer’s field, you might have been lucky enough to see Rattlesnake Pete wrestling with a timber rattler.
Part 3
Tales from the South: The Lakeshore & Environs
19. The Grange Hall: Western New York has a long history of the paranormal dating back to the Fox sisters in 1848. Lily Dale was incorporated in 1878 as a home for mediums and nearby Palmyra has been called “the most-haunted place in the Finger Lakes.” Today, New York is the only state to have an official Haunted History Trail. The Bristol Valley is known for its supposed ghost sightings — South Bristol’s Grange Hall may soon be an additional stop.
20. The One Room Schoolhouse: The schoolhouse serving district three in South Bristol, located in Bristol Springs, was built by the Young Men’s Christian Association in 1830. Today, the children of South Bristol attend school either in Naples or Canandaigua and the schoolhouse is home to the South Bristol Fish and Game Club.
21. Glen Hollow: The Finger Lakes are fed by innumerable brooks cutting through the hills to form the signature glens of the region. Local writer/editor Christopher Bennem reveals the history surrounding one of them.
22. Bare Hill: Bare Hill on Canandaigua Lake is a sacred place in the lore of the Seneca (Onondawaga: “People of the Great Hill”). The story of its origin has many versions: this retelling draws on several.
23. Dogwood Hill: Winters are long in the Bristol Hills, and spring days alternate between sun-filled stretches and sudden snow squalls. The dogwood tree, a native of our area, is much beloved for the blossoms that are one of the first signs of spring.
24. Night Fishing: Canandaigua Lake is well known for the quality of its fishing and, in particular, the beautiful trout that roam its waters.
25. The Head in the Box: Tracey Otto, current owner of what is now The Brindle & Blonde Bed & Breakfast, regales visitors with stories of the home’s colorful past.
26. The Joseph Wood: The Joseph Wood was owned by Ronald Goodman’s great-great-grandfather John Ganyard Wood (no relation to Joseph). Every time he passes Wood’s home on County Road 12, Goodman looks out and imagines the steamboat heading south on Canandaigua Lake past Bare Hill.
27. The Last Encampment: The pancake griddle from this story can be found in the Bristol Hills Historical Society collection in the Grange Hall, South Bristol. We honor the Seneca (Onodawaga) Nation and its people and encourage all to visit the Seneca Art & Culture Center at Ganondagan to learn their history and experience their living traditions.