mm' -Mrs,...A,D.,... White. Cornell University Library F 129T79 P68 Golden era of Trenton Falls / by Charlo} olin 3 1924 028 826 416 Cornell University Library The original of this book is in the Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028826416 THE GOLDEN ERA OF TRENTON FALLS THE GOLDEN ERA OF TRENTON FALLS By Charlotte J. Pitcher "StUl in oar %m the mniie of thy river Singa on, with melody that ihtill not ceaie; Thy memory in our hearts shall dwell forever Like a deep dieam of peace." UTICA, N. Y. 1915 Copyright June 4, 1915 BY Ghablotte a. Pitcher Ficrstine Printing House Utica, N. T. 1915 DEDICATED TO MY MOTHER FOREWORD THE true historic spirit has its inception and in- spiration in the study of one's local environment. This is the logical stepping-stone to research in wider fields. From a patriotic and civic standpoiat, surely, the study of history should begin at home. Fa- miliarity with one's own is of prime importance, and it is a matter for general congratulation that the his- torical and literary associations of so many sections of our country are to-day being recorded and preserved in such attractive form. Our noble hills, our lovely valleys, our streams of living water, seem fairly to speak through the written page of some faithful and enthusiastic devotee of local history. In recalling the palmy days of Trenton Falls, that "golden era" when their wondrous beauty attracted thousands of visitors from all parts of the United States and a constant procession of European trav- elers, what vivid pictures of the early days have been revealed! Perhaps we are most impressed with the marvelous changes wrought in modes of transporta- tion since the visitors to Trenton and Niagara accom- plished the long journey from Albany to Buffalo by coach or packet boat. We caimot fail to observe that the leisurely, good old-fashioned ways of traveling, made it possible to enjoy and appreciate the landscape to a degree unknown in this twentieth century epoch of speed. Incidentally these chronicles of Trenton have acquired increased value and charm through the many glimpses given of life in the olden days. Withal, the changes brought about in our own home city by Time's magic fingers are forcibly called to our atten- tion. Surely, it has been worth while to revive and pre- serve the record of Trenton's unique history, and may the contents of this volume recall exquisite memory pictures in the hearts of those with whom Trenton Falls was a favorite resort. C. A. P. WRITTEN AT TRENTON FALLS Come down! from where the everlasting hills Open their rocky gates to let thee pass. Child of a thousand rapid running rills, And still lakes, where the skies their beauty glass. With thy dark eyes, white feet, and amber hair. Of heaven and earth thou fair and fearful daughter. Through thy wide halls, and down thy echoing stair. Rejoicing come — thou lovely "Leaping Water!" Shout! till the woods beneath their vaults of green Resound, and shake their pillars on thy way; Fling wide thy glittering fringe of silver sheen. And toss towards heaven thy clouds of dazzUng spray. The sun looks down upon thee with delight. And weaves his prism around thee for a belt; And as the wind waves thy thin robes of light. The jewels of thy girdle glow and melt. Ah! where be they, who first with human eyes Beheld thy glory, thou triumphant flood! And through the forest, heard with glad surprise. Thy waters calling, like the voice of God! Far towards the setting sun, wandering they go. Poor remnant! left, from exile and from slaughter. But still their memory, mingling with thy flow. Lives in thy name — thou lovely, "Leaping Water." Frances Anne Kbmble. THE GOLDEN ERA OF TRENTON FALLS 10NG ago, before the city of Utica had won for itself the name and fame it now enjoys, there was a magnet in the vicinity which attracted strangers to its very doors. "Stopped off at Utica to visit Trenton Falls," may be found recorded over and over again by celebrated writers and tourists. It has been a labor of love to garner the praises of Trenton. "Voices of the Glen," this symposium, this treasure- trove of Uterary gems may well be called. The tide of travel, enroute to the Adirondacks or the Thousand Islands, now sweeps by this one-time much frequented resort. In the hght of its palmiest days, Trenton Falls is only a memory; but it is most entertaining and deUghtful to recall its golden age through the writings of the many distinguished vis- itors who clambered through the glen and gave to the world their impressions of its matchless beauty. I have, therefore, woven a chaplet of glowing tributes to one of Nature's lovehest shrines, for the fame of Trenton was world-wide. Once every traveler of note sought out this attractive spot in the heart of the Empire State. Its varied charms brought all enthu- siastic tourists of the early days to Utica, the gateway of Trenton the Beautiful. One Robert Hamilton, writing in 1842 in "The La- dies' Companion," a periodical devoted "to every de- 10 THE GOLDEN ERA partment of literature," says: "In the vicinity of Utica are the romantic falls of Trenton, which of late years have become the rage. This is not to be won- dered at, for more beautiful scenery cannot be found in our continent. The road to the spot is through a coimtry of extreme fertility, where some of the finest farms of the Union are to be found, hewn out within a few years from the primeval forest. Countless acres are still standing in the pride of their strength and beauty, where the remnants of the once proud and mighty race of the Oneidas hnger around the desolated homes of their fathers." John Sherman In the year 1805 the Reverend John Sherman of Connecticut, a graduate of Yale and grandson of Roger Sherman, signer of the Declaration of Independence, took the long journey to central New York to visit Francis Adrian Van der Kemp and Col. Adam G. Mappa, distinguished Dutch patriots who had settled at Olden Rameveld (Trenton village), in the wilderness of Oneida County. An ardent lover of nature, the young clergyman explored the wild and beautiful re- gion about him, penetrating the unbroken forest until he reached the brink of Kauyahoora (the Indian descriptive name for the falls, meaning "leaping wa- ter.") Mr. Sherman was captivated with the wonders of the ravine of the West Canada Creek, Kanata or Amber river, and through his instrumentality the pub- THE -V ».M»0"» S AT P • 7 or STJUWOkSE. WIIB eUMSSE OF OF TRENTON FALLS 11 Kc came to know of its remarkable series of cascades. In 1806 he was installed pastor of the Unitarian Chm-ch of Olden Bameveld, the first of this denomi- nation in the state of New York. At the close of his ministry, he established an Academy near the village which he successfully conducted for many years. Mr. Sherman's fascination for the beautiful falls in the neighborhood, led him to purchase sixty acres of land of the Holland Land Company in 1822, which included the Sherman or First Fall. He then erected a small building near the ravine for the temporary accommodation of visitors, naming it the "Rural Re- sort." The following year he brought his family to this sylvan retreat, which thereafter became their per- manent home. The first guests who slept in the house were Phifip Hone and Dominick Lynch of New York, who came to Trenton in 1824 and wished to remain over night. When Mr. Hone inquired of Mr. Sher- man why he did not erect a building of sufficient size to entertain guests, he received this reply: "Did you ever know a clergyman who had any money ?" Where- upon Mr. Hone offered his host the loan of five thou- sand dollars and the house was enlarged. Thus this popular resort was first estabhshed through the gen- erous act of that philanthropic, pubUc-spirited citizen, who was mayor of New York in 1826, the great social leader of the metropoKs in the first half of the last cen- tury, who entertained every foreigner of note, and every prominent American. In 1827 the Reverend John Sherman wrote a most i2 THE GOLDEN ERA complete and picturesque description of the falls, from which I take the following: " This superb scenery of Nature, to which thousands now annually resort — a scenery altogether unique in its character, as combining at once the beautiful, the romantic and the magnificent — all that variety of rocky chasms, cataracts, cascades, rapids, elsewhere separately exhibited in different regions — was, until within five years, not accessible without extreme peril and toil, and therefore not generally known. It is in latitude 43° 23' ; fourteen miles north of the flourishing city of Utica, the great thoroughfare of this region, situated on a gentle ascent from the bank of the Mohawk, amidst a charming and most fertile country. Here every facility can be had for a ride to Trenton Falls, where a house of entertainment is erected near the bank of the West Canada Creek, for the accom- modation of visitors, and where they can tarry any length of time which may suit their convenience. "This creek is the main branch of the Mohawk River, as the Missouri is of the Mississippi, having lost its proper name because not so early explored. It in- terlocks on the summit level with the Black River, the distsmce being only three-fourths of a mile where the waters of the one may be easily turned into the other. It has chosen its course along the highlands, making its way on the backbone of the country, and empties into the Mohawk at Herkimer. "The 'Rural Resort,' or house of entertainment at the Falls, which is at the end of the road and inclosed OF TRENTON FALLS 13 on three sides by the native forest, opens suddenly to view upon elevated ground, at the distance of a mile in a direct line of the road. From the dooryard you step at once into the forest, and walking only twenty rods, strike the bank at the place of descent. This is about one hundred feet of nearly perpendicular rock made easy and safe by five pair of stairs with railings. You land on a broad pavement level with the water's edge, a furious rapid being in front, that has cut down the rock still deeper and which, at one place in times of drought, does not exceed ten feet in width; but in spring and fall floods, or after heavy rain, becomes a tremendously foaming torrent, rising from fifteen to twenty feet and sweeping the lowest flight of stairs. Being now on the pavement, the river at your feet, per- pendiciJar walls of solid rock on each side, and the narrow zone of ethereal sky far overhead, your feelings are at once excited. You have passed to a subterra- nean world. The first impression is astonishment at the change. But recovering instantly, your attention is forthwith attracted to the magnificence, the grandeur, the beauty and subUmity of the scene. You stand and pause. You behold the operations of incalcula- ble ages. You are thrown back to antediluvian times. The adamantine rock has yielded to the flowing water which has formed the wonderful chasm. You tread on petrifactions, or fossil organic remains, imbedded in the four-hundredth stratum, which preserve the form, and occupy the place, of beings once animated like yourselves, each stratum having been the deposit U THE GOLDEN ERA of a supervening flood that happened successively, Eternity alone knows when. "At this station is a view of the outlet of the chasm, forty-five rods below, and also of what is styled the first fall, thirty-seven rods up the stream. The par- apet of this fall, visible from the foot of the stairs is, in dry time, a naked perpendicular rock thirty-three feet high, apparently extending quite across the chasm, the water retiring to the left and being hid from the eye by intervening prominences. But ia freshets, or after heavy rains, it pours over from the one side of the chasm to the other in a proud amber sheet. A pathway to this has been blasted at a considerable ex- pense, imder an overhanging rock and around an ex- tensive projection, directly beneath which rages and roars a most violent rapid. Here some, imaccustomed to such bold scenery, have been intimidated, and a few have turned back. But the passage is level, with a rocky wall to lean against, and rendered perfectly safe at the turn of the projection by chains well riveted in the side. "In the midway of this projection five tons were thrown off by a fortunate blast, affording a perfectly level and broad space, where fifteen or twenty may stand together and take a conmianding view of the whole scenery. A little to the left the rapid com- mences its wild career. Directly imderneath it rages, foams and roars, driving with resistless fury, and forc- ing a tortuous passage into the expanded stream on the right. In front is a projection from the other side. OF TRENTON FALLS 15 curved to a concavity of a semi-circle by the impetu- ous waters. The top of this opponent projection has been swept away and is entirely flat, exhibiting, from its sm-face downwards, the separate strata as regular, as distinct, and as horizontal as the mason-work in the locks of the grand canal. Here, in old time, was a lofty faU, now reduced to the rapid just described. "Passing hence on a level of twenty feet above the stream, we witness the amazing power of the waters in the spring and autumnal freshets. Massive slabs of rock he piled in the middle of the river, thrown over the falls above, weighing from ten to twenty tons. These are occasionally swept on through the rapids, and floated over the five-foot falls at the outlet of the chasm. Such is their momentum that every bound upon the bottom causes a vibration at the 'Rural Re- sort,' and their stifled thunder, amid the agitated roar of the waters, is sometimes very distinctly heard. "A few rods above this pile of rocks we pass to the left and suddenly come in full view of the descending cataract, which is known as the Sherman Fall. It has formed an immense excavation, having thrown out thousands of tons from the parapet rock visible from the stairs, and is aimually forcing ofiF slabs from the west comer, against which it incessantly pours a sec- tion of its powerful sheet. "It is diflScuIt to give a description of the scenery here. A mass of naked rock extending up one hundred and fifty feet to the siunmit of the bank, juts forward with threatening aspect. The visitor ascends by nat- 16 THE GOLDEN ERA ural steps to the throat of its yawning and, like a son of Hercules, literally shoulders the mountain above. Here he stands free from the spray in a direct line of the parapet wall, surveying at leisure the evergreens which cover in contrast the opponent bank with a rich foliage of the deepest verdure, and immediately at his feet the operation of the cataract rushing down into the spacious excavation it has formed. Back of this thick amber sheet, the reaction of the water has worn away the rock to an exact circular curve, eight or ten feet in diameter, which exhibits a furiously boiling cauldron of the very whitest foam. In the bosom of the excavation a Fairy makes her appearance at a cer- tain hour of sunshine, and dances through the mist, modestly retiring as the visitor changes his position, and blushing all colors when she finds him gazing at her irised beauties. A few rods beyond this spot a thin shelf puts out from the mountain, under which it never rains, nor snows, nor shines. In front the river hastens smoothly and rapidly to the fall below. "Leaving this rocky shelf we pass a furious winding rapid which, encroaching on the path, drives the vis- itor close under a low projecting chff that compels him to stoop, and seems to demand homage as a prere- quisite of admission to the splendid scenery just beyond. Here all ages and sexes bow, who would pass from the portico into the grand temple of Nature's magnificence, to witness the display of her sublimer glories. "This service performed, there opens upon us, when the water is low, an expansion of flat rock, where we OF TRENTON FALLS 17 are suddenly transported with a full view of the High Falls. The eye, elevated at a considerable angle, be- holds a perpendicular rock one hundred feet high, ex- tending across the opening in a diagonal line from the mountainous walls on each side rising seventy or eighty feet still higher. Over this the whole river descends, first perpendicularly about forty feet, the main body rushing to the left. On the right it pours down in a beautiful white sheet. For a short distance in the middle the rock is left entirely naked, exhibiting a per- pendicular and bold breastwork, as though reared by art to divide the beautiful white sheet on the one side from the overwhelming fury of the waters on the other. They imite on a flat below; then, with a tumultuous foEun, veer suddenly down an inclination of rocky steps, whence the whole river is precipitated into a wide, deep and dark basin forty feet underneath — mountainous walls rising on each side of the stream nearly two hundred feet — ^tall hemlocks and bending cedars extending their branches on the verge above — small shrubbery variegating here and there their stu- pendous and naked sides. On the right of the basin a charming verdure entirely overspreads a smoothly rounding and majestic prominence, which reaches half way up the towering summit, and over the whole, the sky mingles with retiring evergreens, imtil verging in perspective to the distant angle of incidence, they are lost in the ethereal expanse beyond. "Such are the High Falls which the pen may faintly describe, and of which the pencil may portray the out- 18 THE GOLDEN ERA line, but Nature reserves to herself the prerogative of giving the rapturous impression. " The view of these falls varies exceedingly, accord- ing to the plentitude or paucity of the waters. In the autumnal floods, and particularly the spring freshets, arising from the sudden hquefaction of snow in the northern country, the river is swelled a hundred-fold, and comes rushing in a vast body of tumultuous foam from the summit rock into the broad basin at the bot- tom. * * * * "Passing up at the side we mount a grand level on the top, where in dry times the stream retires to the right, and opens a wide pavement for a large party to walk abreast. Here a flight of stairs leads up to a house of refreshment, styled the 'Rural Retreat,' twenty feet above the summit of the High Falls and in a direct line with them. * * * * Here the philosopher and divine may make their sage remarks and draw their grave conclusions; the weary rest from their la- bors, and the hungry and dry recruit their exhausted spirits, the sociable of all grades and nations converse freely and unknown together; the facetious display the coruscations of their wit, and the cheerful in dis- position enjoy the innocent glee of hilarity. Greece, embeUished by immortal bards, cannot boast a spot so highly romantic. "The opening of the chasm now becomes consider- ably enlarged, and a new style of scenery commences. Forty rods beyond this is what is usually denominated the 'MiU-Dam' Fall, fourteen feet high, stretching its OF TRENTON FALLS i9 broad sheet of water from the one side to the other of the expanded chasm. This is also visible through the branches of evergreens at the 'Rural Retreat.' As- cending this fall we are introduced to another still more expanded and extended platform of level rock lined on each side with cedars, which extend down to the walking level, whose branches all crowd forward under their bending trunks, and whose backs are as naked as the towering rocky walls, concealed in contrast a rod or two behind them. "This place may be justly denominated the ' Alham- bra of Nature.' At the extremity of it is one of the most interesting scenes imaginable; a scene that no pen can describe to one who is not on the spot, and where every landscape painter always drops his pencil. It is far too much for art to imitate, or for eloquence to represent. It is the prerogative of Nature alone to do this; she has done it once, and stands without a rival competitor. Here I ought to drop my pen. A naked rock, sixty feet high, reaches gradually forward from the mid-distance its shelving top, from which descends a perpetual rill that forms a natural shower-bath. On the very verge of its overhanging summit stands a tall cedar, whose fingered apex towers aloft, pointing up to the skies, and whose thick branches elongating gradually towards the root, reach far down the pro- jecting cliff with an impenetrable shade of deepest verdure. On the left is a most wild cascade, where the water rushes over the variously posited strata in all directions, combining the gentle fall and the out- 20 THE GOLDEN ERA rageous cataract, which we term the 'Cascade of the Alhambra.' "Here the expansive opening suddenly contracts and leaves a narrow aperture, through which the eye beholds mountainous walls retiring in various curva- tures and projections. Directly opposite the specta- tor is a large perpendicular rock on the other side of the stream, at whose base the raging waters become stiU. Annexed to this is a lofty tower, rising in a vast column at its side, commanding with imposing majesty the scenery around. At your feet is a dark basin of water forty feet deep, resting from its labors in the wild cascade above, and relieved by collections of whitest foam, which frequently assemble within an eddy at the upper end, and dance to each other in fan- tastic forms and, capped like caliphs, pursue the course of all hands roimd in an eternal circle. On the right the whole river descends gently down a charming plain, untU lost amidst evergreens as it passes over the falls below. "Ascending this cascade whose thwarting, ragiag, foaming, dashing waters would seem to forbid a pass- age at its side, you are introduced to a grand amphi- theatre unseen before, where is a towering rock of threatening majesty with a siugular supporting col- umn, from whose impending cliff have fallen enormous slabs of strata, sixteen or eighteen inches thick. Be- tween this deposited pile and the base it would seem temerity to pass, lest you should be instantly crushed. This danger may be avoided by keeping near the wa- OF TRENTON FALLS 21 ter's edge. Just beyond the column is exhibited a natiural fireplace. Here, also, a riU descends, a few feet below the summit shelf. A cedar extends down within reach its elongated branches from the root, by which a sailor could as easily ascend the bank as up the shrouds of his ship; and under this shelving summit a solemnizing echo is generally heard, as of the dread- ful roar of overwhelming floods rushing from on high. It is caused by the cascade below. * * * * From this, passing a high projection, we come to a place where this wonderful chasm is fully demonstrated to be the effect of the operation of the stream. We see the process actually going on. The curvatures here, through which the water rushes for a considerable dis- tance, are as regular as if drawn by the compass. One of these is styled the 'Rocky Heart,' from its perfect resemblance to that form on cards, which is so denom- inated. In a flat rock at the side, there is nearly in contact a circular hole, named by some the 'Potash Kettle,' and by others 'Jacob's WeU.' * * * * His must be 'a forlorn hope' who can view the scenery of nature in this wonderful chasm without correspond- ing emotions of reverential piety. It is a scene where the God of Nature himseK preaches the most eloquent and impressive lectm-es to every visitor; but more es- pecially to the philosopher, whose mind is called to ascend from the wonderful operations of nature, to nature's more wonderful and incomprehensible cause; for what is Nature, but the systematic course of divine operation? 2i THE GOLDEN ERA "At the 'Rocky Heart' it is customary to stop, see- ing the passage beyond is attended with some danger, and the scenery is, to a considerable degree, charac- teristic of what follows. "On yoiu" retm'n to the 'Rural Resort' you ascend the bank immediately behind the 'Rural Retreat,' where many picturesque glimpses of the river may be had, one particularly at Carmichael's Point. Thence, carefully observing to keep the left hand footpath on the summit near the creek, you pass through the cool shade of the forest, until you arrive with a good appe- tite at the place where you landed from your carriage." Mr. Sherman adds to his description of the scenery of the glen many interesting scientific observations, which remind us that the highly fossiliferous strata of the Trenton limestone has always made the gorge of the West Canada Creek exceedingly attractive to stu- dents of geology. The cabinets of rare fossils and mineralogical specimens at the hotel are vividly re- called by every visitor to Trenton Falls in the olden days. The ideal and most worthy first resident at Trenton Falls passed away in 1828. He was laid to rest on the hilltop crowned with pines in the rear of his simple hostelry and within sound of the perpetual music of Kauyahoora. "Here is peace and loveliness ever mingled; Organ music of winds and birds and branches, And a brooding presence which makes each inoment A benediction." THE IMPERIAL CLIFF ABOVE SHERMAN FALL OF TRENTON FALLS 23 Mr. Michael Moore of New York, son-in-law of Mr. Sherman, succeeded the founder in the proprietorship of the popular inn at Trenton. He made extensive additions to the original structure and, with the open- ing of the Plank Road from Utica in 1851, the beau- tiful ravine of the West Canada Creek became more accessible to the public. Under the Moore regime the same atmosphere of culture and refinement ob- tained at Trenton which had characterized the resort from its estabhshment. Old-time patrons of Moore's Hotel recall this feature as its unique and indescribable charm. Poets, painters, scientists, nature-lovers, all came to Trenton. It was the favorite haunt of scholars and Uterary celebrities. Foreigners of note bound for Niagara did not fail to step aside at Utica to wit- ness this less grand but more lovely exhibition of fall- ing water. It was the rare combination of exquisite natural accessories which rendered the place unique and enraptured every visitor. Flowers, ferns, mosses, majestic trees adorned the great gray cliffs of the en- chanted glen. One who considered the Trenton Gorge unrivaled for picturesque beauty wrote of the view of the High Falls: "It is a picture in water colors, framed in rock, fringed with greenness, spangled with wild flowers, and canopied by the blue vault of heav- en." Trenton Falls early occupied a prominent posi- tion in the Hst of America's famous resorts. "The Fashionable or Northern Tour," a guide book pub- lished at Saratoga Springs and New York City in 1830 contains an extended account of "the renowned Tren- ton Falls" fourteen miles north of Utica. 24 THE GOLDEN ERA Before taking up the fascinating descriptions of the place which I have found in the writings of so many past worthies, I must speat of the wonderful old-time garden which once bedecked the charming vista in front of Moore's Hotel, that perfect scene of rural beauty stretching away to glorious hills and "fields of Uving green." Who that has seen it will forget the briUitint parterre of roses and peonies which bordered the long graveled walk leading down to "the rocks" where a fine view could be obtained of the stream after its tumultuous passage over the ledges? Calmly now it pm-sued its winding way to join the Mohawk, pass- ing through some of the most beautiful scenery of the state of New York. But we caimot linger in the lovely valley of the West Canada; it is time to return to the inn. Nathaniel P. Willis Let us enter the hospitable doorway and, after studying the notable paintings of the falls which grace the pleasant parlors, Ksten to what N. P. Willis says about the beauties of Trenton. He sought out this romantic spot as early as 1828 and paid repeated visits to the place. In 1851 he edited a delightful Uttle book at the request of Mr. Moore, pubUshed by George P. Putnam, entitled "Trenton Falls, Picturesque and Descriptive," from which I quote these words: "The most enjoy ably beautiful spot among the resorts of romantic scenery in our country is Trenton Falls, the OF TRENTON FALLS 25 place above all others where it is a luxury to stay — which one oftenest revisits — which one most com- mends strangers to be sure to visit. In the long cor- ridor of travel between New York and Niagara, this place is a sort of alcove aside — a side-scene out of ear- shot of the crowd. ***** "Most people talk of the sublimity of Trenton, but I have haimted it by the week together for its mere loveliness. The river in the heart of that fearful chasm, is the most varied and beautiful assemblage of the thousand forms and shapes of running water that I know of in the world. The soil and the deep-striking roots of the forest terminate far above you, looking like a black rim on the enclosing precipices; the bed of the river and its sky-sustaining walls are of soUd rock and, with the tremendous descent of the stream — forming for miles one continuous succession of falls and rapids — ^the channel is worn into curves and cav- ities which throw the clear waters into forms of incon- ceivable brilliancy and variety. It is a sort of half twilight below, with here and there a long beam of sunshine reaching down to kiss the lip of an eddy, or form a rainbow over a fall, and the reverberating and changing echoes, ' Lake a ring of bells whose sound the wind still alters, ' maintain a constant and most soothing music, vary- ing at every step with the varying phase of the cur- rent. ***** The peculiarity of Trenton Falls, I fancy, consists a good deal in the space in which 2e THE GOLDEN ERA you are compelled to see them. You walk a few steps from the hotel through the wood, and come to a de- scending staircase of a hundred steps, the different bends of which are so overgrown with wild shrubbery, that you cannot see the ravine until you are fedrly down upon its rocky floor. Yom- path hence up to the first faU is along a ledge cut out of the base of the cliff that overhangs the torrent, and when you get to the foot of the descending sheet, you find yourself in very close quarters with a cataract — ^rocky walls all round you — and the appreciation of power and mag- nitude somewhat heightened by the confinement of the place. "The usual walk (through this deep cave open at the top) is about half a mile in length, and its almost subterranean river, in that distance, plunges over four precipices in exceedingly beautiful cascades. On the successive rocky terraces between the falls, the torrent takes every variety of rapids and whirlpools and, per- haps, in all the scenery of the world there is no river which, in the same space, presents so many of the va- rious shapes and beauties of running and falling water. The Indian name of the stream (the Kanata, which means the Amber River) expresses one of its peculiar- ities and, probably from the depth of shade cast by the dark and overhanging walls 'twixt which it flows, the water is everywhere of a peculiarly rich lustre and color, and in the edges of one or two of the cascades, as yel- low as gold. Artists, in drawing this river, fail in giv- ing the impression of deep-down-itude which is pro- A CHARMING VISTA OF THE HILLS FROM THE CLIFF WALK OF TRENTON FALLS 27 duced by the close approach of the two lofty walls of rock, capped by the over-leaning woods, and with the sky apparently resting, like a ceiling, upon the leafy architraves. * * * * Subterranean as this foam- ing river looks by day, it looks like a river in cloud-land by night. The side of the ravine which is in shadow, is one undistinguishable mass of black with its wavy upper edge in strong reUef against the sky and, as the foaming stream catches the light from the opposite and moonlit side, it is outlined distinctly on its bed of darkness, and seems winding its way between hiUs of clouds, half black, half Imninous. Below, where aU is deep shadow except the river, you might fancy it a silver mine laid open to your view amid subterranean darkness by the wand of an enchanter. * * * * "Baron de Trobriand* arrived here to-day, August 10, 1848. I had been reading a French novel of which he is the author, and I am amused to see how he carries out, in his impulsive and enthusiastic way of enjoying scenery, the impression you get of his character from his buoyant and brilliant style of writing. After one look at the falls he came back and made a foray upon the larder, got a tin kettle in which he packed the sim- ple provender he might want, and went oS with his portfolio to sketch and ramble out the day. He re- turned at night with his shght and elegant features burned by the sun, wet to the knees with wading the rapids, and rejoined the gay but more leisurely and *Baron de Trobriand, a native of France, emigrated to the United States in 1841. enlisted in 1861 in the cause of the Union, and rendered gallant service throughout the entire Civil War. 28 THE GOLDEN ERA luxurious party with which he travels. Looking down from one of the cliffs yesterday afternoon, I saw him hard at work ankle deep in water bringing pieces of rock and building a causeway across the shallows of the stream, to induce the ladies to come to the edge of the falls, otherwise inaccessible. He has made one or two charming sketches of the ravine, being an admira- ble artist." The absence of display and garishness at the hotel appealed strongly to Mr. Willis, particularly the quiet, unobtrusive ejrterior. "Oh, those chalky universes in rural places," he exclaims, "what miles around of green trees and tender grass do they blaze out of all recognition with their unescapable white-paint aggra- vations of sunshine, and their stretch of unmitigated coUonade! You may as well look at a star with a blazing candle in your eye, as enjoy a landscape in which one of these mountains of illuminated clapboard sits a-glare. Mr. Moore, the landlord at Trenton, is proposing to build a larger house for the accommoda- tion of the public, but this sermon upon our Mont Blanc Hotels, with their Dover Cliff porticoes is not aimed at him. On subjects of taste he requires no counsel. The engravings a man hangs up in his parlors are a sufficient key to the degree of his refinement; and those which are visible through the soft demi jour of the apartments in this shaded retreat, might aU be- long to a connoisseur in art, and a fair example of the proprietor's perception of the beautiful. In more than one way he is the right kind of man for the Keeper of OF TRENTON FALLS 29 this loveliest of Nature's bailiwicks of scenery. On the night of our arrival I was lying awake somewhere towards midnight, and watching from my window the sifting of moonUght through the woods with the stirring of the night air, when the low imdertone of the falls was suddenly varied with a strain of exquisite music. It seemed scarcely a time, but, with the rich- est fullness of volume, one lingering and dreamy note melted into another, as if it were the voluntary of a player who unconsciously touched the keys as an ac- companiment to his melancholy. What with the place and time, and my ignorance that there was an instru- ment of this character in the house, I was a good deal surprised; but before making up my mind as to what it could be, I was 'helped over the stile* into dreamland, and made no inquiry till the next morning at break- fast. The player was our landlord, Mr. Moore, who thus, when his guests are gone to bed, steals an hoiu" of leisure from the night and, upon a fine organ which stands in one of the inner parlors of his house, plays with admirable taste and execution. ***** " Mr. Moore came here twenty years ago to enjoy the scenery of which he had heard so much; and getting a severe fall in climbing the rocks, was for some time confined to his bed at the hotel, then kept by Mr. Sher- man. The kind care with which he was treated re- sulted in an attachment for one of the daughters of the family, his present wife; he came back, wedded his fair nvu-se and Trenton for the remander of his life, 30 THE GOLDEN ERA and is now the owner and host of the very loveliest scenery-haunt in all our picturesque country." WiUis speaks of the select character of the guests whom he finds at the hotel, and he teUa of lovely walks through the forest along the edge of the cliff, and of delicious hours spent in watching the procession of visitors climbing through the ravine — every new group changing and embellishing "the glorious combination of rock, foUage and water." AU that was wanting to make the scene perfect, Willis declared, was a dash of color in woman's attire. All were clad in the colors of the rocks and wore slate-colored riding dresses and bonnets to match up the dusty highways. When a lady finally appeared accompanied by a gentleman carrying a crimson shawl, it so heighteiied the scene that he at once made a vow to appeal to the ladies of the land to carry, at least, a scarf of red, white or blue over the arm when mingling with the landscapes of our romantic resorts, thus supplying all that was want- ing at Trenton and Niagara. Margaret Fuller Trenton by moonhght! The poet Willis says he walked the ravine till the "small hours" to witness the marvelous transformation, but he would not at- tempt to reproduce such "sublimities" on paper. Margaret Fuller did, for she wrote verses upon Tren- ton Falls as they appeared early in the morning, in the afternoon, and by moonhght. June 2, 1835, when OF TRENTON FALLS 3i a guest of the Harvard Professor of Astronomy and family at Cambridge, she writes her father: "I have something to tell you which I hope, oh, I hope will give you as much pleasure as it does me. Mr. and Mrs. Farrar propose taking me, with several other delightful persons, to Trenton Falls this summer. The plan is to set out about the 20th of July, go to New York, then up the North River to West Point — ^pass a day there, then on to Trenton, and devote a week to that beautiful scenery. Oh, I cannot describe the positive ecstacy with which I think of this journey." Thomas Wentworth Higginson states, in his biography of Margaret Fuller (Marchioness Ossoli) that she did enjoy the anticipated treat, a journey rare in her day, when "Trenton Falls was accounted one of the glories of America — ^the simple days when the wonders of Colorado and the Yosemite were unknown." 32 THE GOLDEN ERA TRENTON FALLS EARLY IN THE MORNING Would you the genius of the place enjoy, In all the charm contrast and color give? Your eye and taste you now may best employ, For this the hour when minor beauties live; Scan ye the detculs as the sun rides high, For with the morn these sparkling glories fly. TRENTON FALLS IN THE AFTERNOON * * « « * A calmer grace o'er these still hours presides; Now is the time to see the might of form; The heavy masses of the buttressed sides, The stately steps o'er which the waters storm. TRENTON FALLS BY MOONLIGHT * * * * * With what holiness did night invest The eager impulse of impetuous life. And hymn-like meanings clothed the waters' strife! With what a solemn peace the moon did rest Upon the white crest of the waterfall; The haughty guardian banks, by the deep shade, In almost double height are now displayed. Depth, height, speak things which awe, but not appall. From elemental powers this voice has come. And God's love answers from the azure dome. Margaret Fuller OF rREATO-V FALLS 33 Caihebene Af »iit^ SEnbuiCfc. Catherine Marni Sedgwk^, the gifted authw of "Hie New En^oad Tale," "^Redhrood?' "HqpeLesBe," "The linvoods." the co-tHnporaiy of Irvii^ and CoQpa in the fieM of eariy Ammcan literature, iras a TieatQa entht^ast. The beautiM falls of Kaoya- hoora funiished a j^turesque <«tting for a part of her story entitled "Qareaace," fiisl puUished in 1830 oneofthemostrcHuanticctfha'numestjasnovi^ Hiat Miss Sedgwick wa^ once viddly read and pcq^ukr is proveaa by Chief Justice MaishaD, who sent her this message thrcRigh their mutual friend. Judge Stcvn. : "Tell Miss Sedinook I have read with great j^easure evoything she has written and wish she would write more," Indeed, Miss Sedgwict's name was a^sodated with that d CxM^ier's to the extent that, in a Fremji tianslati(Hi of "Redwood," which appeared in Paris in 1824, he is given coi the title page as the author. The scaie cf " Clarence" is fadd nxainly in New YcmA^ City, but the fsmuly. whose name is given the stcarx . spend much time at their charming villa near csoe ci the most beautiful rf the inland lakes of weston Xew Yoit, and from this point they "jaunt" to Traaton. In due time they arrive at the scMie -aried the vicisatudes of the journey by canal firom Albany to Buffalo by the eooploymeiit of an "Exclusive Extra." He made an arrangement with the proprietor of one (rf the regular lines of coaches who agreed to furnish him a stage ex- dusively for himself and family, all the way from Al- bany to the Falls of Niagara frar one hundred and fif- teai dollars. It was stipulated that the entire trip could be accomplished in three days or it could, if de- sired, be extended three weeks. "In no other part of America," says Captain Hall, "are there such fadh- ties for traAelling as we found on the road in question. On the 14th of June. 182T, we left Albany to proceed to the western country. Our first grand stage was Xiagara, but on the way to that celebrated spot we expected to see the grand Erie Canal, the newly set- tled disbricts alcaig its banks, and many othor intCT- esting objects besides." One of these was Trenton Falls! ■'Our first day's journey took us to Schenec- tady," says Captain Hall, "wh»e we boarded the packet boat. I cannot conceiA e a mme beautiful combination of verdure than we found along the Mo- hawk Valley and, as the winding of the canal laought us in sight of ftesh vTStas, new cultivation, new atI- 42 THE GOLDEN BRA lages, mills, scattered dwellings, churches, all span new. a boimdless vision of novel interest stretched out before us. 'Bridge, passengers, mind the low bridge,' broke in upon our day-dreams and disturbed our pleasure, as we had so frequently to step down from off the deck to pass under one of the innumer- able little bridges which cross the canal. It was at first rather amusing to hop down and then hop up, but after a time it grew wearisome and marred the tranqxiility of the day. At Caughnawaga we set out again in our 'extra stage' — one day of the canal was quite enough." Captain Hall arrived on the 18th in Utica, "a town recently built, with several chiirch spires rising over it, and standing near the canal." From this point he makes the excursion to Trenton Falls, which he declares are well worth seeiitg, but as he is not so sure of their being equally acceptable in description, he passes them by, adding, "I would by no means recommend travellers to follow such an ex- ample." Captain Hall's lifelong ambition was to see Niagara and now, when so near the goal, it must have been at considerable sacrifice of personal feeling that he detoured to visit Trenton. "When my expfecta- tions were about to be realized," he writes, "my feel- ings were akin to what I experienced at St. Helena when waiting in Napoleon's outer room, conscious that I was separated from this astounding person only by a door which was about to open. So it was with Niagara when I knew that, at the next turn of the road, I should behold the most splendid sight on earth." THE VERY TBEES AS THEY BEND FBOM THEIH WALLED BANKS SEEM IN ACT OF BEVEBENCE" OF TRENTON FALLS 43 Harbiet Martineau Harriet Martineau richly supplies what Captain Hall and certain other visitors to Trenton lack in de- scription, and I quote several pages from her "Retro- spect of Western Travel": "We proceeded by railroad from Albany to Schen- ectady (October, 1834) and there stepped into a canal boat for Utica. On fine days it is pleasant enough sitting outside (except for having to duck under the bridges every quarter of an hour, under penalty of having one's head crushed to atoms), and in dark even- ings the approach of the boat Kghts on the water is a pretty sight; but the horrors of night and of wet days more than compensate for all the advantages these vehicles can boast. The heat and noise, the known vicinity of a compressed crowd, lying packed like her- rings in a barrel, the bumping against the sides of the locks, and the hissing of water therein, like an inunda- tion startUng one from sleep; these things are very disagreeable. In addition to other discomforts we passed the fine scenery of Little Falls in the night. I was not aware what we had missed till I traversed the Mohawk Valley by a better conveyance nearly two years afterward. I have described this valley in my other work on America and must, therefore, restrain my pen from dwelling on its beauties here." One featxjre of the inns noted by Miss Martineau was the American propensity for rocking chairs — ^the ladies 44 THE GOLDEN ERA were always rocking, and rocking chairs were every- where in evidence. "It is well," she says, "that the gentlemen can be satisfied to sit still, or the world might be treated with the spectacle of the sublime American Senate see-sawing in fuU deliberation. * * " I was out early in the misty morning and was pres- ently joined by the rest of my party, all looking eagerly for signs of Utica being near. By eight o'clock we were at the wharf. We thought Utica the most extempore place we had yet seen. The streets running into the woods, seemed to betoken that the place had sprung out of some sudden need. How much more ancient and respectable did it seem, after my return from the West, where I had seen towns so much newer still! We were civilly received and accommodated at Bagg's Hotel, where we knew how to value cold water, spa- cious rooms, and retirement after the annoyances of the boat. "Our baggage-master was fortunate in securing a neat, clean stage to take us to Trenton Falls (14 miles) where we promised ourselves the pleasure of spending the whole day, on condition of being off by five the next morning, in order to accompUsh the distance to Syracuse in the course of the day. The reason for our economy of time was not merely that it was late in the season, and every day which kept us from the Falls of Niagara of consequence, but that our German friend, Mr. 0., was obliged to be back in New York by a certain day. We clapped our hands at the sight of the 'Rural Resort,' the comfortable, hospitable house of entertainment at Trenton standing in its gar- OF TRENTON PALLS 45 den on the edge of the forest, so unlike hotels on the high road." The party registered at the hotel October 8, 1834, as follows: *Miss Martineau, England. Mrs. Jeffrey, Dr. Julius, Hambiu:g, Germany. Mr. Higham, South Carolina. Mr. Oppenheim, Hamburg, Germany. Mr. Sellem, Holland. "We ordered," continues Miss Martineau, "a late dinner and proceeded to the falls. We had only to foUow a path in the pine forest for a few paces, and we were at the edge of the ravine which encloses the cascades. It is a pity that the Indian name is not re- tained. Trenton Falls are called Cayoharic (Kauy- ahoora) by the Indians. They are occasioned by the descent of West Canada Creek through a ravine, where it makes a succession of leaps from platforms of rock, six of these falls being pretty easily accessible by travellers. Much has been said of the danger of the enterprise of ascending the raArine; but I saw no peril to persons who are neither rash nor nervous. The two accidents which have happened have, I be- lieve, been owing, the one to extreme rashness, and the other to sudden terror. From the edge of the ravine the black water, speckled with white foam, is seen rushing below with a swiftness which half turns the ^During their voyage across the Atlantic, Miss Martineaa and her -com" panion. Mis. Jeffrey, made up a party to tour the State of New York with certain of their shipmates including " a German and a Dutch gentleman and the Prussian physician and young South Carolinian." 46 THE GOLDEN ERA head of the stranger. We descended five flights of wooden steps fixed against the steep face of the rock, and at the bottom found ourselves at the brink of the torrent. "I was never in so dark and chill a place in the open air; yet the sun was shining on the opposite face of the rock, lighting the one scarlet maple which stood out from among the black cedars and dark green elms. We selected our footing with a care which we were quite ready to ridicule when we came back; and were not above grasping the chain which is riveted into the rock where the shelf which forms the path is narrowest and where the angles are sharpest. The hollow is here so filled with the voice of many waters, that no other can be heard; and after many irreverent shouts had been attempted, we gave up all attempts to con- verse till we reached a quieter place. Being impa- tient to see the first fall I went on before the rest, and having climbed the flight of wooden steps, so wetted with the spray of the fall as to be shppery. as ice, I stood on the platform under a covert of rock foaming with the thunder of the waters, and saw my compan- ions, one by one, turn the angle of the path and pause in front of the sheet of liquid amber sprinkled with snow. The path on which they stood seemed too nar- row for human foot and, when discerning me, they waved their hands, I trembled lest, disregarding their footing, they should be swept away by the furious tor- rent. When we found our heads turning with the rush of the dark waters, we amused ourselves with admir- OF TRENTON FALLS k1 ing the little wells in the rock, and the drip from the roots of a cedar projecting from the top of the ravine, a never-failing glittering shower. Between the fifth and sixth fall there is a long tranquil reach of water, and here we lingered to rest our bewildered senses be- fore entering upon the confusion of rocks through which the sixth forces its way. We see-sawed upon a fallen trunk, sent autumn leaves whirling down the stream, and watched the endless dance of the balls of foam which had found their way into the tiny creeks and bays opposite, and could not get out again. "Gay butterflies seemed quite at home in this ra- vine. They flit through the very spray of the falls. It seemed wonderful that an insect could retain its frail hfe in the midst of such an uproar. When the sun in its course suddenly shone full into the glen, how the cascade was instantly dressed in glory, crowned with a rainbow and invested with all radiant huesl How the poor banished Indians must mourn when the lights of their Cayoharic (Kauyahoora) visit their senses again in the dreams of memory or of sleep! The recollections of these poor exiles was an ever-pres- ent saddening thought in the midst of all the most beautiful scenes of the New World. "When we had surmounted the sixth fall, we saw indeed that we could go no farther. A round projec- tion of rock, without trace of a foothold, barred us from the privacy of the upper ravine. The falls there are said to be as beautiful as any that we saw, and it is to be hoped that, by blasting a pathway or by some ii8 THE GOLDEN ERA other means, they also may be laid open to the affec- tions of happy visitors. They have been seen and re- ported of. A friend of mine has told me, since I was there, how Bryant the poet and himself behaved Uke two thoughtless boys in this place. Clambering about by themselves one summer day, when their wives had gone back to the house, they were irresistibly tempted to pass the barrier and see what lay beyond. They met with so many difficulties and so much beauty higher up, that they forgot all about time, till they found themselves in utter darkness. They hastened to grope their way homeward through the forest and were startled after a while by shouts and moving lights. Till that moment they never recollected how alarmed their wives must be. It was past 10 o'clock and the poor ladies had got people from the neighborhood to go out with torches, little expecting to see their hus- bands come walking home, with nothing the matter with them but hunger and shame. I hope the ladies were exceedingly angry when their panic was over. "The forest at the top of the ravine was a study to me, who had yet seen but little forest. Moss cush- ioned all the roots of the trees; hibiscus overspread the ground; among the pine stems there was a tangle of unknown shrubs, and a brilliant bird, scarlet except its black wings, hovered about as if it had no fear of us. Before we returned the moon hung like a gem over the darkness of the ravine. I spent another happy day among these falls some months after, and was yet more impressed with their singularity and OF TRENTON FALLS i9 beauty * * ♦ * \\rg igf^ t^e place a little after five in the morning, in a dismal rain. While break- fasting at Utica we engaged an 'Exclusive Extra' to carry us to Buffalo for eighty dollars, the precise route being agreed upon, and the choice of times and sea- sons to remain with us. On going out to our carriage we found the steps of the hotel occupied by a number of persons, some from Boston, who offered me wel- come to the country, and any information or assistance I might need. One gentleman put into my hand a letter of introduction to an influential friend of his at Cincinnati, as it was understood I was going there. So from this strange place, where I had spent above two hours, we drove off amid a variety of friendly greetings. "This day I first saw a log house and first felt my- self admitted into the sanctuary of the forest. These things made the day full of interest to me, though the rain scarcely ceased from morning till night. Well- settled farms were numerous along the road, but in the intervals were miles of forests; dark thronging trees with their soft gay summits. TUl now the au- tumn woods had appeared at a distance too red and rusty; these when looked into were the meeting of all harmonious colors. The cleared hollows and slopes, with the forest ever advancing or receding, are as fine to the imagination as any natural language can be. I looked for an Indian or two standing on the forest verge, within a shade as dusky as himself, but for this I had to wait another day." 50 THE GOLDEN ERA Miss Martineau paid her second visit to Trenton Falls, June 2, 1836, in company with some of the warm- est and noblest of the friends she made in America, by her fearless espousal of the Abolition cause — Mr. and Mrs. Ellis Gray Loring and Dr. and Mrs. Follen of Boston. Captain Frederick Mabryat In July, 1837, the English novelist. Captain Marryat, came directly from Saratoga Springs to Utica on a through express, to visit Trenton Falls. He says in his "Diary in America": "There is one disadvan- tage attending raikoads. Travellers proceed more rapidly, but they lose all the beauty of the country. Railroads, of course, run through the most level por- tions of the states, which are invariably uninteresting. The road from Schenectady to Utica is one of the ex- ceptions to this rule. There is not, perhaps, a more beautiful variety of scenery to be found anywhere. You run the whole way through the lovely valley of the Mohawk on the banks of the river. It was really de- lightful, but the motion was so rapid that you lamented passing by so fast. The Utica railroad is one of the best in America; the eighty miles are performed in four hours and a half, stoppages for taking in water, passengers and refreshments, included. The locomo- tive was of great power, and as it snorted along with a train of carriages of a half a mile in tow, it threw out such showers of fire, that we were constantly in danger THK "RIRM. RKTRKM N.n-