What's the oldest building in Canandaigua? The answer has changed over the years

Ontario County, specifically Canandaigua, is rich in history. Long before Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue, members of the Seneca Nation lived there for hundreds of years .

Following the Revolutionary War, Oliver Phelps and Nathaniel Gorham purchased 6 million acres of land from the Native Americans, on which they later laid out the town of Canandaigua, according to the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation.

A historical context statement shows that Canandaigua officially became a town in 1791. The first town meeting took place that same year and was presided over by the first supervisor, Gen. Israel Chapin. In 1794, Canandaigua became the site of the Nov. 11 signing of the Pickering Treaty, which established peace between the United States and the Six Haudesaunee Nations, also known as the Iroquois Confederacy. The village of Canandaigua was established in 1815 and later became a city in 1913.

These tales of the past live on within the wood planks, stones, and bricks that make up the historic buildings in Canandaigua’s downtown district. Whispers of those who came before can be heard in the flowing water of Canandaigua Lake, and their presence is felt on the shores.

Luckily, many of the original buildings in Canandaigua still stand today, begging the question: Which is the oldest?

Ontario County and Canandaigua City Historian Preston Pierce said that many once believed that the former Canandaigua Grange Building, once home to Chapin and now located at 24 Coy St., was the oldest in Canandaigua. Recent research though, he said, suggests this may not be the case.

What is the oldest building in Canandaigua?

According to Pierce, the oldest building in Canandaigua is likely the home on 21 Dailey Ave. Built in 1792, the building was once home to pioneer Abner Barlow, a Revolutionary War veteran.

His home formerly stood on the corner of Gibson Street, where the United Church of Canandaigua now stands. Pierce said it was moved across Main Street to Dailey Avenue around 1871. Barlow died in 1846 at the age of 94 and was buried at the Pioneer Cemetery in Canandaigua.

An obituary from the Ontario Repository dated July 1, 1846, writes, “He was one of the few remaining links which unite the present with the past generations, and it was a gratification which we shall never forget, to sit by his side and hear his living narrative of the events connected with the earliest improvements in this country.”

The current address of the Abner Barlow Farm House is listed on Ontario County’s historic site listings. It is also a stop listed on Ontario County’s Main Street Guided History Walk.

What about 24 Coy St.?

According to Pierce, some information suggests that Gen. Israel Chapin’s former home, now located at 24 Coy St., is the oldest building in Canandaigua. Although the original home was built in 1792, Pierce said that recent research suggests that the house currently standing on Coy Street is not the original.

Pierce said it is probably the third Chapin home, built between 1859 and 1860. The other Chapin homes, he said, were either attached to the original that burned down or, like in the case of 24 Coy St., built on the original foundations.

Former Canandaigua City Historian Herbert J. Ellis wrote an article published on Jun. 26, 1969, stating that the Chapin house was the oldest building in Canandaigua, Pierce said.

“I knew Herb, and he was very accurate. However, this is one case where he was wrong,” Pierce said.  “It is easy to understand at a time when many archives were not as accessible as today.”

With the dynamic evolution of technology and access to resources, who knows what other historical mysteries may be uncovered in Canandaigua and surrounding Ontario County.

— Madison Scott is a journalist with the Democrat and Chronicle who edited our Weld Street Project and also did reporting for it. She has an interest in how the system helps or doesn't help families with missing loved ones . She can be reached at MDScott@gannett.com .

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: What's the oldest building in Canandaigua? The answer has changed over the years