 Peter and CatharineThe year is 1831. Tenant farming under British landlords meant small plots and insecure leases. The potato famine had not yet hit; however, crop failures were occurring and the political landscape was volatile at best. Back in the Americas, life was hopeful, opportunities were there for the taking if you were willing to look for them. Life in Minerva was becoming more run of the mill and less working to create an existence in the wilderness. In fact, the grist and saw mills had been operating for 30+ years, there was an established church and school as well as several general stores. The Champlain Canal had been completed in 1823, which opened up areas like the Adirondacks that had been difficult to get to and to trade with. Compared to existence in Ireland, the Americas would have seemed like a golden opportunity to the Irish people. That is not to say that there were no hardships, there were. America itself was new and raw, there were challenges in governance, indigenous peoples' claims, financial instability and a surging population that was fast looking for more land. To the Dougherty family, life in America compared to existence in Ireland was a risk they were willing to take. The chance of land ownership and a future for their children was more than enticing; it was a necessity. And so, the Doughertys made the leap and became part of the early wave of Irish settlers to America. Those who came in the early to mid-1800s did not arrive hungry and penniless. They arrived with a plan, with means, and with every intention of living what would later be called the American Dream — land, stability, and a future secured by their own labor. Building a Life in OlmstedvilleWe will never know how the Doughertys settled on Minerva as their go-to destination. The area of Minerva known as Irishtown had been settled in 1823 by Irish immigrants, it would not be a stretch to believe that the family had relatives or friends already here. Whatever the reason, they arrived in 1831 when Peter Dougherty was 9 years old. There is nothing in the history books about Peter’s family, what they did for a living or where they lived. Peter himself does not appear in a large way in our history but there are a few things we know about him. He is listed in several of the early census records as a farmer. Our records indicate he was also a lumberman, and a postal delivery person. He delivered the mail between Pottersville and North Creek. Peter and Catherine Farley, also an Irish immigrant and teacher, married in 1853. Together they built a life in Olmstedville raising nine children. Catherine, unlike many women of the time, chose to continue to work after marrying Peter and went on to have a successful teaching career over a span of 45 years. She was a graduate of Mt. St. Vincent Academy in New York city and was a domestic nurse, caring for community members in a time when doctors were scarce. Six of Peter and Catherine’s children taught at some point in their lives. Isabelle, Catherine, and Alice all taught in several of the area one-room schools houses between 1884 and 1901. Children of Peter and Catherine
A Store at the Four CornersAt some point, Peter built a store in the Four Corners area of Olmstedville. The details are blurred by time. No photograph survives. No business ledger has surfaced.
But decades later, children would cross a boardwalk over a stream to attend classes in a building known as St. Onge's Academy Today, almost no one remembers that name. It appears in old newspapers as St Onge Hall. It lingers in student recollections. It is listed in a 1979 historical survey simply as: Number 9 – Not Applicable. Somewhere between memory and record, the story slipped. Next: Annie and Alex.
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