Oswego County History
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Natives used the rivers and lakes as highways for centuries
On March 16, 1816, Oswego County became the 48th county in New York through an act of the state legislature. Before this incorporation, the areas now located within the county limits belonged to Oneida and Onondaga counties.
Oswego County is bounded by the Oneida and Oswego rivers, Lake Ontario and Oneida Lake. Native people used the rivers and lakes as highways for centuries and there were campsites with names such as Kah-ne-wo-nah (Iroquois) “Place of the Tall Pines” in Phoenix, Caugh-de-noy (Iroquois) “Eel Lying Down” in the hamlet of the same name, and Se-ugh-kay (Oneida) “Lake Pours Out” at the mouth of the Oneida River in Brewerton.
In 1615, Samuel de Champlain passed through the eastern part of the county in an expedition against the Onondagas. The portion of the county that lies near the mouth of the Oswego River was discovered in 1654 by French Jesuits, who established missions for the conversion of the Iroquois. In 1700, the English explored areas occupied by the Five Nations as far west as Oswego and by 1722 a trading house was built under the direction of the New York colonial government. From that period, considerable trade was carried on by the English between Oswego and Albany through the Oswego River, Oneida River and Lake, Wood Creek and the Mohawk River.
In 1727, the English built a fort on the west bank of the river, near the shore of Lake Ontario. Upon the commencement of the French and Indian War of 1753, Fort Ontario was erected the east bank of the river. The forts were destroyed by Montcalm, rebuilt and enlarged by the English making it the most important military station on the western frontier. During the Revolution it was the headquarters of the many marauding parties that decimated the frontier settlements. It continued in the possession of the British until 1796 when it was surrendered under provisions of Jay’s Treaty.
After the British departure, settlements were made in the county under the auspices of George Scriba, a New York merchant who purchased 500,000 acres. The growth of this region was severely inhibited by the lingering of English troops at Fort Ontario and later by the War of 1812. The successful opening of the Erie Canal in 1824 led to a movement for the canalization of the Oswego River. This was not only for convenience of travel, but more importantly to provide quick, easy and cheap access to the upper great lakes. By 1830, the Welland Canal was completed connecting Lakes Ontario and Erie on the Canadian side of the Niagara River. This allowed through shipping from Oswego to Cleveland, Detroit and Chicago, opening the grain trade and stimulating the milling industry as well as migration to the mid-west.
The first important settlement in the region, apart from the Oswego Harbor, was in Redfield by settlers from Connecticut. This area was settled many years before the formation of Oswego County. These people were almost wholly isolated from other communities. In 1798 there were 36 persons in Redfield and 26 in all other areas east of the Oswego River.
Agriculture, manufacturing and commerce engaged the attention of the people. Stock raising and dairying were the principal branches of agriculture. Reduction and eventual removal of tolls on the Erie Canal in the 1870’s and 1880’s made it more economical to transfer goods headed westward via Buffalo. In addition, main east-west railroads lay further south and the decline of the Canadian lumber industry adversely affected Oswego commerce. After the Civil War, manufacturing and processing industries dominated the economy. During the mid-20th century there were many paper and knitting mills along the Oswego River. After World War II many manufactures relocated and closed. Oswego State University was founded by Edward Austin Sheldon, who authored the “Oswego System” of teaching in primary school.
Oswego County continues to enchant with it’s beautiful sunsets. An additional honor paid to our county by National Geographic Society is the recognition of Oswego’s spectacular sunsets as the second most beautiful in the country.