In 1828 Mr. Hulce began practising surveying. In 1829, with the view of building a brick house, he travelled to Binghamton, Homer, and Ithaca, to find a competent man who would do the work without whiskey. At Ithaca he found a man who agreed to come to Deposit in May, and make two hundred thousand brick, which he did. In 1830 Mr. Hulce, selling the brick, purchased of Silas Crandall and William Wheeler, for two thousand dollars, the Butler house and lot of eighteen acres, where he now lives. He planted many locust and maple trees, and named the place Locust Grove.

    On May 20, 1832, he married Eliza Ann, daughter of Gideon Curtiss, of Homer, Cortland County, N. Y. She was then twenty-two years old, six years younger than himself. They began housekeeping on the 1st of June. He followed farming, lumbering, and surveying till 1833, when he engaged in mercantile affairs, and, purchasing a printing-press, established the Deposit Courier, the first newspaper in the place, with C. E. Wright editor. From 1855 to 1859 Mr. Hulce was Postmaster of Deposit. He had before served eight years as Justice of the Peace. In 1857, owing to financial strictures, he was obliged to make an assignment of more than double the amount of his liabilities. Through the friendship and generous kindness of the Hon. Charles Knapp, he was enabled to keep his homestead. From 1857 he followed surveying, and assisted in the resurvey of the Pennsylvania and New York State line, from the Delaware to Lake Erie. When Jay Gould was preparing his history of Delaware County, he was the guest of Mr. Hulce, and was aided by him, but forgot afterward to send the promised copy of the work. After that Mr. Hulce was employed to write a considerable portion of the large "History of Delaware County." He also wrote sixty biographical and historical sketches for county papers. He never used ardent spirits or brought it forward in connection with his business, and had no difficulty in obtaining help without it.

    Deposit, in Broome and Delaware Counties, is situated on the west branch of the Delaware River, sixty miles from its source, in latitude 42 4' north, and longitude 1 39' east of Washington, D. C. It is one thousand feet above the sea, nestled among the mountains which surround it, with their summits nearly a thousand feet above the river. Until the opening of the Erie Railroad it resembled the Happy Valley of "Rasselas," with no apparent mode of ingress or egress. In early times the place was called by the whites the "Cookhouse," from the Indian name "Kookouse hacka Sepus," meaning Owl-land River. In 1811, when the village was incorporated, the name Deposit was given because vast quantities of pine boards were drawn there by sleighs in winter from the Susquehanna River, to be rafted down the Delaware to Philadelphia.

    The first white settler in the place was John Hulce, who came from Goshen, Orange County, N. Y., in the spring of 1789, and took up habitation at the north end of the present village on the west side of the river. He was descended from Dutch ancestors, a lineal descendant of the second Burgomaster of New Amsterdam, as New York City was formerly called. His wife was a granddaughter of General Herkimer, who disinherited her mother for marrying a Welshman, a Royalist --- one Williams, private secretary of Sir Henry Clinton. When John Hulce came here, he cleared off some ground, and built a log house, and in the fall brought his wife and family by way of the North and South Pennsylvania Road through the beech woods. He was a religious man, a Presbyterian; and his wife, a Baptist. He had three sons --- Sylvester, Samuel, and John W. --- and four daughters. Sally married John Pinney, Julia married Comfort Pinney, Keziah married Henry L. Hubbard, all being residents of Sanford, Broome County. Polly, the fourth daughter, married Thaddeus Benedict, a life-long, respected resident of Deposit. Sylvester Hulce inherited the homestead. Samuel and John W. had adjoining farms. All had large families.

    The next settler at the "Cookhouse" was Philip Pine, who came in the spring of 1791, with wife and sons --- Peter and Daniel --- and four daughters, namely: Sarah, who married Jonas Underwood; Nancy, who married Isaac Youmans; Elizabeth, who married Samuel Butler; and Martha, who married Matthew Brown --- all long respected residents of Deposit with large families, except Peter, who married Phebe, daughter of Conrad Edick. Before coming Pine bought four hundred acres of land, including the "Cookhouse" flats on the east side of the river. The Indians had about forty acres cleared around their council ground, which was about eight rods square. Here Mr. Pine resided till his death, in 1818, aged seventy-seven. His son Peter, who inherited the homestead, lived there till the opening of the New York & Erie Railway, when he sold it. It was subsequently purchased by Judge N. K. Wheeler, and is now owned and occupied by the son, George D. Wheeler. Peter Pine was for many years Supervisor of the town, was Associate Judge, and twice a member of the legislature. He died in 1847, aged seventy.

    Jonas Underwood before his marriage taught school in the place. Philip Pine was opposed to the marriage, and also to that of Samuel Butler; but the parties would not be thwarted. Sally Pine slipped away to the house of John Hulce, where a minister had been provided; and the knot was tied. In the case of Butler, Pine refused to make a wedding; and Butler went over the river in his working clothes in the middle of the day, was married, and returned to his work. In both cases, the union was happy. Both grooms became prominent citizens of Deposit, and raised large and respectable families; and so did Brown and Youmans.

    Captain Nathan Dean, a native of Taunton, Mass., was an officer in the Revolutionary War, near Boston. In 1778 he married Lois Snow, of Raynham, Mass., and in 1790 removed to Kortright, Delaware County. The next year, there being no roads, in June he lashed two canoes together, placed his family and goods therein, and floated them down the Delaware to the "Cookhouse," where he found an empty log cabin, which he occupied till he could provide one for his family on the place, since known as the Dean farm, consisting of two lots of two hundred acres each, now covering all that part of Deposit which is in Broome County. His cattle were driven from Kortright by his son, Nathan L., ten years old, and an uncle Joshua, on the Indian trail. During the summer Mr. Dean built a saw-mill on the Oquago Creek on the premises, and sawed out lumber with which he built a house. Into this he moved his family in December. In 1792 he built a grist-mill by the side of the saw-mill, near the present New York & Erie Depot. Mr. Dean died in 1799, at Easton, Pa., leaving his wife and four sons --- Nathan L., Joshua, Caleb, and Zenas K. --- who all married, and had families on the Dean farm. The south part of the farm and the mills were sold to John Peters, who with a large family lived thereon for many years. The only male representatives of Nathan Dean now are: Addison J., son of Nathan L.; John P. and George, sons of Zenas K.; and Edward, grandson of Caleb --- all honored citizens of Deposit. When the New York & Erie Railway was located, widow Lois Dean caused a survey of lots and streets to be made; and it was called Deansville until incorporated by statute with Deposit in Delaware County, with civil jurisdiction for both parts over each county.

    In 1812 William Wheeler, Silas Crandall, and William Butler purchased of Henry Drinker, of Philadelphia, for fifteen hundred dollars, Lot 43, Evans Patent, covering the old village west of the river, excepting a few small lots before sold. They had it surveyed and partitioned it, each holding one-third. In February, 1814, William Wheeler removed from Partridge Island, east branch, to Deposit. William Butler came two years before. He was an intelligent, liberal, and courteous gentleman. He built the Deposit Hotel in 1813, and several other houses. In 1818 he built for him the house which for sixty-two years has been the residence of Martial R. Hulce. Mr. Butler had one daughter, Emily, who married in 1820 Simon Lusk, for many years a lawyer in Deposit. Silas Crandall was an active business man, as early as 1802 engaged in mercantile affairs. He had three sons and four daughters. He died in 1831. After the estate was settled, his family moved to the West.

    William Wheeler occupied a prominent position in society. He had five sons, namely: Nelson K., a lawyer, Judge and Surrogate of Delaware County, member of Assembly, and District Judge in the city of New York; William, a banker at Olean, N. Y., and member of the legislature; Truman H., a lawyer, and Judge of the Court of Conciliation; Addison J. and George D., successful business men in Deposit. The latter has been Supervisor, and a member of the Assembly, and Postmaster. He is now a farmer, owning and occupying the Pine farm, including the old Indian council ground. He has led an active life, has long been a member of the Presbyterian church and superintendent of the Sunday-school.

    Colonel Samuel Butler came to the "Cookhouse" at the close of the last century. He married a daughter of Philip Pine, as before noted. He was a Captain in the War of 1812. He built a large house, still standing, in which he lived a long time. He was a tanner and a shoemaker. He raised a large family, and brought them up to habits of industry and usefulness. His eldest son, Samuel P., is still living in Deposit, nearly ninety years old. Two other sons are bankers in the West, where he went with his family, toward the close of life, and died there.

    Thaddeus Mather came to Deposit about 1810. He was an educated physician, and had three sons --- Richard, John C., and Calvin --- and three daughters: Caroline, who married Ira Bixby; Cornelia, married Dr. S. D. Higgins; and Sarah, married Benjamin R. Nickerson. Bixby and Higgins had each families in Deposit.

    Thaddeus Benedict came from Canaan, Conn., in 1806. He married Polly, daughter of John Hulce, who was the first child born in Deposit. Mr. Benedict had one son, E. Lysander, who became a Baptist minister. He had three daughters, one of whom married the Rev. Charles Fox. Mr. Benedict was a singularly pure-minded man, and an honored Deacon of the Baptist church.

    John Peters came from Northumberland, Pa., in the first decade of the century, and bought the southerly part of the Dean farm, including the Oquago mills, where he lived till the projected opening of the New York & Erie Railway, when he sold the property to Henry Sheldon, of New York. Mr. Peters had three sons --- Henry, John, and William --- and six daughters, all of whom married and had families in the vicinity. George Peters, a son of Henry, who married a daughter of Sylvester Hulce, lives in Detroit. John Peters died in 1847.

    William MacClure was a surveyor from Orange County, New York. He came to Sanford, Broome County, in 1786, and settled five miles west of Deposit. He built a log cabin, which he called "Castle William," where he passed the first winter after having surveyed through the summer. In February, 1791, he married in Orange County, and brought his bride and a few household goods on a one-horse sled to Castle William, where he lived till 1826, when he died, aged one hundred years. His eldest son, William, Jr., resided in Deposit many years. He was an excellent man, an accomplished surveyor, and died in 1874, aged eighty-three.

    Charles Knapp was born October 8, 1797, in the town of Colchester, Delaware County, N. Y. His father was a farmer. He received such education as the common schools of the day afforded. Having a strong and active mind, he improved himself by observation and extensive reading, storing his mind with sound information essential to him in his subsequent career. He worked on the farm. In 1815 he began his public career as a village schoolmaster, teaching winters and working on the farm the rest of the year. His earnings all went for the support of the family. At the end of a school term of six months, at sixteen dollars a month, he gave his father one hundred dollars. When twenty-one years old, he began business on his own account at farming and in the lumber trade. In 1835 he commenced store-keeping with a capital of three hundred dollars. His unblemished reputation for honesty and fair dealing soon insured success, and so ably did he direct his business in his various interests that by 1848 he had amassed a handsome fortune. In 1841 he was a member of the legislature.

    In 1848 he sold his property in Colchester, and purchased several acres in the middle of the village of Deposit, where he engaged in lumbering and farming till 1854, when he established an individual bank under the laws of New York. Ten years later he changed the institution to a national bank, an organized association with a capital stock of two hundred thousand dollars, which in 1878, on account of onerous taxes, was reduced to one hundred thousand dollars. In 1868 Mr. Knapp was elected to Congress by a large majority. At the close of his term he declined a renomination, being over seventy-three years old.

    During a long and active life he always took a lively interest in everything connected with the moral, intellectual, and commercial development of his town and country. A faithful friend and counsellor and a tender father, his public and private course was a noble example for all who would build up a fortune and honored name.

    In early life Mr. Knapp married Sylvia Radeker, of Colchester. They had ten children, five of whom were living at his death, to wit: James; Charles Junius; Herbert; and Elsie, widow of the late Addison J. Wheeler; and Josephine. James succeeded his father as President of the bank. James and Herbert have since died. James left a son, Charles, now Cashier of the bank of which Charles Junius is now President. The last-named now resides in Binghamton, and is President of the Binghamton Trust Company. He inherits his father's business faculty and his moral and intellectual qualities, and has been a member of Congress.

    On November 7, 1835, at sunrise, ground was first broken for the New York & Erie Railroad at Deposit, on the farm of Colonel George D. Wheeler, on the old Indian council ground on the east side of the river. General Erastus Root and Judge Drake, of Owego, were guests of Martial R. Hulce. The President of the company, James G. King, and many of the Directors and other distinguished men were present --- about fifty in all. The President took a spade, and shovelled earth into a wheelbarrow, when the Hon. Samuel B. Ruggles wheeled and dumped it, followed by Conrad Edick and every other person present. A memorable occasion for the southern tier of counties! Mr. King made a speech predicting the future success of the road and the great benefit it would be to the surrounding country. In 1848, after surmounting many difficulties, the road was finished to Binghamton, and on December 27 was opened by a grand excursion, in which, by invitation, Messrs. Wheeler and Hulce joined. At Deposit a great evergreen arch was erected over the road, surmounted by a noble buck with spreading antlers, which was presented to the Directors, who placed it on a car, and took it to New York. The people of Binghamton entertained the excursionists with royal hospitality. In 1851, May, 14, 15, 16, and 1y, the road was opened to Dunkirk on Lake Erie by another grand excursion of two trains. The President of the United States, Millard Fillmore, and his Cabinet were guests. At Deposit, the Hon. N. K. Wheeler, Darius Maple, and M. R. Hulce became guests.

    Slavery existed in the "Cookhouse," or Deposit, till abolished by law. Mr. Butler had two, Conrad Edick one or two, Benjamin Whitaker one, James I. White one or two. Some twenty-five or thirty of their descendants are still in Deposit. Two newspapers are published here, both of which have a good circulation. They are the Deposit Courier, published by Charles N. Stow, and the Deposit Journal, owned and edited by O. S. Wadleigh. Deposit has a Union school connected with an academy where the higher branches of learning are taught.

    The first church in Deposit was the Baptist, which was formed June 26, 1812, with thirteen members, namely: Thaddeus Benedict; James P. Aplington; James H. Coburn and Eunice, his wife; Benjamin Coburn; Stephen Stiles and Sally, his wife; John W. Hulce and Eliza, his wife; Samuel Hulce; Sally Pinney; Molly Burrows; and Penina Hulce. First Deacons, Stephen Stiles and James P. Aplington. There are now (1894) three hundred members; the Rev. Mr. Bidwell, pastor.

    The Congregational church was formed July 12, 1812, with nine members, namely: William MacClure, Aaron Stiles and wife, Catharine; Benjamin Hawley and wife, Theodocia; Bathsheba Demander; Lois Dean; Aphia Hawley; and Anne Nickerson. The legal society.

    The First Presbyterian Society of the town of Tompkins was formed February 15, 1818, William Butler, William Wheeler, and Silas Crandall, Trustees.

    The Methodist Episcopal church was organized in 1830 with twenty members; preacher, the Rev. Alexander Calder; first class leader, Hiram Banks. There are now over two hundred members.

    Each of the above-named churches has a fine brick meeting-house and a parsonage.

    St. Joseph's Church, Roman Catholic, was organized by the Rev. Father Hourigan, of Binghamton, about 1848. They have a chapel and parochial residence and a large congregation.

    Christ Church, Episcopal, was organized July 2, 1860, with twenty members, by the Rev. Edward Andrews. Church Wardens, Truman H. Wheeler and A. C. Moses. Vestrymen, N. K. Wheeler, W. L. Ford, M. I. Cannon, C. F. Sherwood, William H. Gregory, and Isaac A. Burrows. They have recently built a fine stone church, consecrated in 1893.

    The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church was organized in 1864-65. They have had a Sunday-school from the beginning, organized by M. R. Hulce, assisted by a corps of male and female white teachers for about two years. The white superintendents have been Albert Walling, G. L. Babcock, Henry Burrows, and G. N. Babcock. The church and Sunday-school have been greatly beneficial to the colored people, who have a chapel originally erected by the Episcopal society and given to them.

    Charity Lodge, A. F. & A. M., was constituted at the "Cookhouse" in 1806, and for some twenty years was in successful operation, till the opposition to Masonry initiated by the abduction of Morgan swept over the land, when it was compelled to succumb, like most others in the State. Its members were among the most influential citizens. About twenty-five years later another Lodge, No. 396, was instituted. There is also the Deposit Chapter of Royal Arch Masons, No. 187. Both have many members.

Source: pages 640-646