The German Bullock House

The German Bullock house in Second Milo.  Taken on July 8, 2001.

NEWSPAPER ARTICLE - SEPTEMBER 1929 - OCTOGENARIAN RECALLS EARLY DAYS ON OLD YATES COUNTY FAIR GROUNDS

The following article was copied from the scrapbook of Catharine Spencer and provided through the courtesy of the Yates County Historical Society. This story appeared September 1929 in Penn Yan's Chronicle Express. A copy was given to me by Esther Rector.

German Bullock, a native and lifelong resident of Yates County, who recently made his home with his daughter, Mrs. Floyd E. Fletcher, of Second Milo, but who has been living since the first of April with another daughter Mrs. George D, Lambert of 3779 Lake Ave., Rochester, celebrated the 80th anniversary of his birth Tuesday of this week. Mr. Bullock well remembers eventful days of his past life.
German Bullock was born in Barrington Sept. 10, 1849, on what was then the Samuel Miller place, now owned by Dr. John Miller of Coming. His parents, Calvin and Lucinda Simpson Bullock, came to Warsaw, Barrington, from Columbia County, and moved about considerable from one farm to another with their large family of five girls and four boys, of which German, the youngest, is now the only survivor. His grandfather* served in the War of 1812, and his father was captain of the Home Militia of Columbia County. His sword is now in the possession of Homer Bullock** a great nephew.. When he was five years old his family moved to Merritt place in Chubb Hollow, where Homer Merritt now lives. A year later, he went to school, of which his father was a trustee, with a man 35 years old from Ireland, who worked for his father, and was just learning his letters. Children of this Mr. Killgrew now live in Dundee. When not busy with school he used to help his mother at her weaving, at which she put in most of her time, the girls doing the housework. Two of the children, one on each side of the loom, would pass the shuttles wound with carpet rags of different colors, through the warp. After eight years here his parents purchased from Joseph McCane, George Bullock's grandfather, his place on the Bath road about seven miles from Penn Yan. "We were there 14 years", Mr Bullock narrates. Father was a thorough and particular person about his work and taught us to be the same when we went by ourselves. I remember my elder brother*** enlisted the night of his 21"' birthday in the 126" Regiment, Co.B. He was wounded and had both hands crippled in the Battle of Gettysburg. Henry and Herman**** attended Penn Yan Academy and also took two terms at Starkey Seminary. Father died in 1868, and Herman took charge of the place. Mr. Bullock, in the 60s, and some other boys were helping the Barrington Baptist Church. The flooring put in by a former contractor, was a little too thin and suddenly gave way under the gang of men as they were lifting the heavy beam for the roof. Nine of the men crashed through the floor as the big beam came hurtling down. German was later rescued from the debris unconscious, he had struck his head against a stone well.
Nearly drowned in Keuka Lake - One day in 1872 he realized that he must be carrying the proverbial horseshoe in his pocket. He was working then for George Fenton on the east side of Lake Keuka near Crosby. While cutting corn in the field, the old steamer "Steuben" came near shore to land a lady passenger. Since there were no docks in the vicinity, he started out in a rowboat to take the lady ashore. Mr Bullock was not an experienced oarsman, and the waves from steamer capsized the small craft. For nearly 20 minutes Captain Archibald Thayer, who was in charge of the steamer, and members of the crew searched for the boat and its occupant. But even though the steamer had drifted several feet from the scene of the accident they saw no sign of either. Capt Thayer was just about to give the signal for his boat to proceed when he happened to think of the paddle wheel house. Investigating the shore side he found the rowboat turned upside down and an arm reaching out from under it to cling to a blade of the steamers side wheel. It took another 20 minutes of work to rescue Mr Bullock and revive him. He was rescued from his burning home and had to be revived again when he fell through the ice in Keuka Lake. On Jan 6,1874 he married Delia B. Wright, daughter of Dr Samuel Wright of Jerusalem. They built and started housekeeping. In 1880, Mrs Bullock purchased the Amasa Tuell estate on the corner of Lake and Main streets, in Penn Yan. Mr Bullock erected a cement building here and began making grape baskets. In 1882, the "Cor??es" company purchased the canal rights and claimed up to the "blue line" which placed his building two feet within their property. This stopped his business and proved a loss. In 1884 his wife sold the property and bought the B. F. Freeman farm of 46 acres, 3 miles north of Warsaw. Mrs Bullock died on Oct 29,1916.
The Old Fairgrounds - "I remember being at the fair in Penn Yan, when the grounds were in the vicinity of Keuka Street north of Elm Street, but I cannot give the exact locality and outlines" reminisces Mr Bullock. "The race course was on the north lot of the Pines". The entrance was at the southeast corner and the grandstand halfway between the outlet and the entrance. One horse which ran was a sorrel from Waterloo. On the first round this horse, as he neared the entrance, stopped short, and threw his rider over his head. The jockey rolled over three times, got up, mounted the horse, and won the race, which required twice around the half-mile track. As usual sweet cider and lemonade were sold. The man who owned the cider had a tent and the barrel rolled to the back of it. He had his hands full for quite a while, when all of a sudden his patronage stopped. A friend of his came and told him what the trouble was. Another friend, who was fond of a joke, had tapped the other end of the barrel and was selling for three cents a glass from that end, while the owner was trying to sell for five cents at his end. Mr and Mrs Bullock had three daughters Eva, born April 10,1878 married Paul Birr of Rochester; Mary Joanna born Feb 9,1883 married George Lambert, of Rochester; and Florina born April 8,1889 married Floyd E. Fletcher, of Penn Yan. His three brothers were : Reuben who died 1889; Henry, who died some 22 years ago and was the father of Alfred Bullock of Penn Yan, Charles of Geneva, and Emma of Rochester. Herman, his brother was the father of Edgar Bullock of Isle of Pines, Homer of Waterloo, Joseph of Penn Yan, William of Manchester, Mrs Edith Elliott of Wycombe, Pa, and Mrs Hugh Brown of Hastings on Hudson, NY.

Notes by Phil Bullock in 1998
* German's grandfather was David Bullock
** Sword now in the possession of Phil Bullock
*** German’s oldest brother, wounded at Gettysburg, was Reuben Bullock, Homer's uncle.
**** Herman Bullock was my grandfather.
I remember "Uncle Germ" walking between his Second Mile home and the Fletcher home. He lived in the second house east of Route 14 4 on the South side of the road. He was quite bent over as if he had "Osteoporosis" and always walked with his hands clasped behind his back. I don't remember ever talking with him. When I knew him he was 75+ years of age.
PGB 1998