Many Events Planned for Memorial Day<\/p>\n
(Town of Eaton, NY – May 2013) The Hamlet of Eaton will be opening the Old Town of Eaton Museum for the first time after major repairs and new display completion on Memorial Day Monday May 27 from noon until 5 p.m. with the bake sale stating at 10 a.m.<\/p>\n
The Museum located on River Road in the Hamlet of Eaton is in the oldest stone structure in the town dating to about 1806-1817.<\/p>\n
The building that was once a tannery became the home of the Sprague Family for over 100 years and eventually fell to vacancy before being turned into the museum for the community by the private community based not-for-profit group called Old Town Folks.<\/p>\n
The completed museum will host tours, a pie and ice cream social with bake sale, speakers, book sale, and of course a full dose of \u201cHistory.\u201d Available for sale will be a number of history books on the Town of Eaton and Back Street Mary will be on hand to speak and answer questions.<\/p>\n
The theme of this year the special \u201cEaton Day\u201d will be honoring Col. Joshua Leland and his family.\u00a0 Leland was one of the first settlers of Eaton.\u00a0 The Leland family, which arrived here from Sherburne, Mass. at one time, owned one-seventh of the Town of Eaton.\u00a0 Leland purchased a huge tract of land from Col. William Smith and his wife Abigail Adams Smith (President Adams daughter).<\/p>\n
Leland owned inns, businesses and today a piece of his property is preserved as a NYS fishing site – Upper and Lower Leland Pond. In its day the pond area was the fishery for the Oneida Indian Nation.<\/p>\n
As a highlight for this special day the Leland Family will be loaning the museum Leland\u2019s actual sword. There will also be a Postal Cancellation honoring him from 1 to 3 p.m. at the museum.<\/a><\/p>\n Eaton was once the home of the famous Wood, Taber & Morse Steam Engine Works, home to missionaries and writers like Melville Landon, Emily Chubbuck Judson (Fanny Forester), Rev. William Dean, Rev. Jonathan Wade, Nathanial Kendrick\u2019s and more.\u00a0 Famous inventor Samuel Chubbuck who devised the key and sounder for S F B Morse\u2019s telegraph, and was the man who inspired a young Thomas Edison.<\/p>\n Eaton\u2019s history is on display and includes the Madison County Poor House (today\u2019s Gerrit Smith Infirmary), Morrisville College, the many Reservoirs that fed the Chenango Canal and so much more. Over 120 photographs are on display.<\/p>\n There will be a free self-guided tour of the historic Eaton Cemetery with a commemorative book available while supply lasts.<\/p>\n