Building date: 1846
Original use:
Corner structures: Quoins are uniform blocks of gray limestone.
Mortar application and content: Horizontal and vertical similar with mortar looking square. Vertical heavy. The horizontal mortar is continuous and straight with the outer edge pointed. The vertical mortar connects from the upper to lower horizontal below its outer surface. The rear wall was composed of irregular rough stones, surrounded by flattened mortar, so that the stones gave the appearance of being set in shadow boxes. The stones do not protrude past the mortar.
Types and uses of stones: Water washed cobbles, small various colors. Vary in color, size and shape, so that various sections may vary in the number of rows of stones per quoin. In the front wall, rows of stones are usually 6 per quoin, but toward the top, the number is reduced to 5. On the right side, the number of rows at the bottom is 5 per quoin and 4 at the top. The left side has 4 rows between some quoins, while at the end of the quoin, there are 5 rows. The rear wall was composed of irregular rough stones.
Types and choice of windows: Window lintels are gray limestone.
Structures with similar masonry details: Bru-1 Weller Cay-2, Ira-1 Winks Cay-6, Wbl-2 Insurance Office
Masons who worked on building:
Unique features:
Map views courtesy Google Maps. Address is GIS Database and Google Earth confirmed; 43°08'26.58"N 76°34'06.33"W. Current owner of record, Kovach as of date (YMD) 190304.
Town of Cato and Cayuga County Maps
Additions to Schmidt's list - The house on Route 34, north of Van Horn Road, is typically Greek revival, and appears to have been originally one story. It has extensive additions made upward, and on the right side and back, making it a rather larger structure. Quoins are uniform blocks of gray limestone, and window lintels are of the same material. Stones vary in color, size and shape, so that various sections may vary in the number of rows of stones per quoin. In the front wall, rows of stones are usually 6 per quoin, but toward the top, the number is reduced to 5. On the right side, the number of rows at the bottom is 5 per quoin and 4 at the top. The left side has 4 rows between some quoins, while at the end of the quoin, there are 5 rows. The horizontal mortar is continuous and straight with the outer edge pointed. The vertical mortar connects from the upper to lower horizontal below its outer surface. The rear wall was composed of irregular rough stones, surrounded by flattened mortar, so that the stones gave the appearance of being set in shadow boxes. The stones do not protrude past the mortar. (Only one other structure has been found to have this type of composition: Wbl-2 in Ontario Co.).Roudabush Survey page 44
South of Cato is the Samuel Rockwell House at 10817 Route 34, built in 1846. Rockwell was a wealthy farmer. A nicely proportioned Greek Revival house with second-story add-ons. Rockwell died here on April 4, 1881 at the age of 81. He married Anna Rhodes on December 25, 1822. She was born in Milton, Saratoga County, October 26, 1804 and died May 9, 1882. The farm was inherited by a daughter, Phoebe Ann, who married William Grant on October 12, 1843. At one time this was a 200-acre farm. It is constructed of water washed cobbles. Richard Palmer blog.
- "Cayugas Cobblestones", by Ward O'Hara 1991
- Pages 26 - 27
¹ Image courtesy Cayuga County Historian
² Image courtesy Cobblestone Museum
³ Photography courtesy Martin and Sheila Wolfish.
4 Photography courtesy Richard Palmer.
