Program

NYS Historic

Subject

Building, Industry & Commerce

Location

676 NY-49, Bernhards Bay, NY 13028, USA

Lat/Long

43.244167451756, -75.933963022405

Grant Recipient

Town of Constantia

As early as 1854, the “Glass Co. Store” was marked on the Oswego County Survey by Gillet, Matthews, and Co. in Bernhards Bay. Nearby is marked as “Glass Works” and “Empire Glass”. On the 1889 map by Edgar Blankman the building is marked as “store”, and nearby are the “Glass Fact.” and “United Glass Co”. In 1895 the glass works suffered a major fire, and it was reported that the glass factory had been operating at its lakeside location since 1852 (The Evening Herald, July 6, 1895).

On April 24,1894, it was announced by the Oswego Daily Times that the United Glass Co. was purchased by Potter & Marsden, business partners based in Brooklyn and Bernhards Bay. The “Potter & Marsden’s Hall” was used to host dances, raising money for charitable causes and entertaining the local youth (March 8, 1895; Sunday Herald, Nov. 15, 1896). It was also used by the “town tax gatherer” to receive taxes (Oswego Daily Times, Jan. 28, 1896).

Clayton Winn, a local businessman, owned the store between 1904 and 1925. Winn served the town as Postmaster and operated the Post Office out of the store until 1918 (Oswego Daily Palladium, July 20, 1918). In 1924, Winn sold the store to George Davis and Charles Lord, business partners (Camden Advance Journal, Jan. 31, 1924).

In 1932, Davis & Lord painted part of their store to convert it into an ice cream parlor (Oswego Palladium Times, June 27, 1932). In 1944, the Davis & Lord store was being used to conduct juror interviews (August 16, 1944). In 1963, the store was again used by the tax collector for Constantia to receive taxes (Oswego County Weeklies, Jan. 4, 1963). Edna Davis sold the store in 1989, and the store has served the community ever since as a variety of shops, including a café.