Did You Ever Wonder How Thanksgiving Came About?

A proclamation made by President Abraham Lincoln on October 3, 1863 in Washington, D.C is as follows:

The year that is drawing towards its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the every-watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle, or the ship; the axe has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessing, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widow, orphans, mourners,or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

The Frontenac Historical Society and Museum wish you every happiness as you join with family and friends to celebrate this Thanksgiving.

James Carr Patriot Marker Dedication

This is the history of James Carr given by Jean Lanning, Village Historian, at 1pm on June 11, 2023 at the Old Quaker Cemetery in Union Springs, New York.

On this pleasant summer afternoon we are offering a fitting tribute to James Carr, Revolutionary War soldier and prisoner of war. Resting under the trees in this peaceful graveyard on a side street in this lakeside village, we are not far from a road just south of Union Springs, off Route 90, leading to the lake, named appropriately, Carr's Cove.

It is written that James Carr was born in Londonderry, NH. At about the last of July, 1780, seventeen year old Carr, at the time residing in the Town of Hoosack, Rensselaer County, entered the service of the United States as a substitute for Jacob Williamson. Carr joined a detachment of about thirty men and marched to Fort Edward, about five miles from present day Glens Falls in Washington County. He was then ordered to march to Fort Ann, in the mountains of Washington County, about ten miles from Glens Falls. He joined the company of Captain Sherwood.

It was the tenth day of October, 1780, when Fort Ann was taken by the enemy, the British. Carr marched as a prisoner of war to Fort George, near the present day village of Lake George, then to Fort Ticonderoga near the southern end of Lake Champlain. This fort had become British in 1777.

From there Carr was taken by water to St. Johns, Quebec. From St. Johns he marched to Montreal. He was detained in Montreal as a prisoner of war until November of 1782 when he was exchanged with other captured Americans. The exchange took place in Castleton, VT near the southern end of Lake Champlain, about 5 miles from the New York border. Carr was then dismissed and returned home.

He married Margaret Morrell from Cambridge, New York. They lived several years in Johnstown, NY in the Adirondacks in Fulton County. It is there that the first six of their ten children were born. After the war, Carr was given a land grant of approximately 1,600 acres and the family eventually moved 148 miles to this area south of Union Springs where an additional four children completed their family. The stately brick home residence that can be seen on the Carr's Cove Road today is the site of the log cabin which James Carr built for his family. The kitchen of this house was built around the log cabin.

In addition to the land grant, Carr purchased from the Native Americans the small area surrounding Carr's Cove. He was a great friend of the Native Americans. In 1797 he returned here, cleared some of the land and built a log cabin, returning home to Johnstown for the winter. He walked each way every spring and fall until in 1800 he returned with his wife and six children. On this final trip, they came through the wilderness by ox team with their household goods, seeds, and plant cuttings. The 148 miles took seventeen days to complete. The strength and stamina of James Carr is to be admired.

I wonder how James Carr would feel to see and hear this presentation. Proud? Humbled? Many wars have come and gone since the Revolutionary War, and conflicts continue in our world. Would that every veteran have the respect of a grateful nation.

Patriot Burial Marker Dedication

The Finger Lakes Chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution, in conjunction with the Frontenac Historical Society & Museum, will unveil a Patriot Burial Marker honoring Revolutionary War veteran, James Carr. The dedication will be held at the Old Quaker Cemetery on Grove Street in Union Springs at 1pm on Sunday June 11th.

Shortly after enlisting in the Continental Army, Carr was captured by the British near Fort Anne and transported to Montreal where he spent four years as a prisoner of war. Subsequent to his release, Carr settled on the eastern shore of Cayuga Lake in an area no known as Carrs Cove. The home built there still stands today.

The William Pomeroy Foundation funded the marker through a program with the Sons of the American Revolution (SAR). The Frontenac Museum was pleased to have provided the research and documentation which enabled the Finger Lakes Chapter, SAR, to receive this grant.