ELIZA THOMAS. GRANVILLE, WASHINGTON COUNTY, NEW YORK.
With the old family Bible opened on the table for the consultation and verification of dates and with the reflection of a soft glow from a kerosene lamp by which to jot down a few notes, Eliza Thomas of Granville informed the Sentinel interviewer that she was born in Bangor, North Wales, May 1st, 1850, and immigrated to the United States when she was but eight years of age. She came to this country with her father and mother, Ellis and Elizabeth Lloyd and with eight other children.Her father had been to the United States and was returning this time with his family. They arrived in the port of New York on the "City of Glasgow," a sailing vessel, after a four weeks' rough journey on the ocean. During the trip, a mysterious epidemic broke out aboard ship, which resulted in the death of three hundred of the passengers.
A few months after her arrival in Middle Granville, her father opened a slate quarry in Slateville and about this time the family moved from Middle Granville to what is now known as the Whiting farm, on the Granville-Pawlet road, and where Hugh G. Williams slate quarries are now located. She attended school in the brick school house in the Blossom district, which is still in use, and also attended school in Middle Granville.
She married Hugh G. Thomas, October 23rd, 1868, and they had eight children of whom only two survive; Jenny Nichols, a teacher in the Granville school, and H. Alan Thomas, both of whom are living with their mother on Williams street.
Alan is a veteran of the World War, having served in the Coast Artillery, and now holds a commission as lieutenant in the Field Artillery Reserve in the United States Army.
Her husband was a slate contractor and held the office of postmaster during President Harrison's administration. His commission, which is framed and hanging on the wall of one of the rooms, is for a four-year term dated April 16th, 1889, and is signed by President Benjamin Harrison and countersigned by John Wanamaker, Postmaster General during the Harrison administration. The Granville postoffice was located, during Mr. Thomas' administration as postmaster, in the store now occupied by Sweet's Shoe store. Mr. Thomas died December 22nd, 1902.
Reminiscing of the old days when she was a youngster, Mrs. Thomas revealed some interesting data about her life and the tremendous changes that have taken place in this village during her life time.
Mrs. Thomas said: "I think we were the first Welsh family in Granville, although there were some Welsh people living in Middle Granville, when we came to Granville. I remember, as a little girl, I would do the shopping for mother and I would bring vegetables, eggs and other farm produce to the stores in Granville for exchange."
"What a beautiful village this was once. You can't imagine it. There were fine homes, with flower gardens all around them. The old settlers seemed to take a lot of pride in their homes." continued Mrs. Thomas. She seemed to live those early days over again as she concentrated her mind on scenes that have long passed in the dusk of her youth. "What a beautiful village this was once." she repeated "I wish I could tell the present generation of Granville what a beautiful place this was years ago." "And," she said, "there is one place that stands out in my memory, and that was the residence of Joel Potter on the corner of Church and River streets and the beautiful flower garden surrounding it."
And among the scenes and the land marks of days gone by, which Mrs. Thomas brought back to life for the brief moments of this interview, the present Granville was entirely changed: "There was an entertainment hall standing opposite the railroad station in the rear of the present N. Goldberg block. We used to go there for concerts and entertainments. My sister lived in a house which stood on the side of the present E. R. Norton residence."
Granville was then known as Granville Corners and "a beautiful house b elonging to Dr. Nelson stood about where the Lester Roberts store now is.
Continuing Mrs. Thomas said: "On the corner of Main and North Street stood a house which belonged to Nathan Lewis, father of Anna W. MacArthur: Oscar Thomson's place was located on the present site of the M. J. Hayes block, where he conducted an investment business. He dealt in stocks and bonds and did some banking. Most of the banking was then done in North Granville. The village bridges were all covered bridhes, Leonard Thorne, father of L. C. Thorne, fitted and furnished out a reading room for young men and women in a place where the Hewitt grocery store now stands." Mrs. Thomas said Mr. Thorne was a great believer in temperance and he had lecturers brought to Granville to give talks on the subject. The P. T. Barnum circus used to come to Granville regularly and set up its tent on the Thorne property on East Main street.
"The first fair I ever attended," said Mrs. Thomas, "was on the south side of Blossom's Corners and later there was a fair ground opened on the south side of William Street and it is here I remember the first reunion of the Granville Civil War veterans."
Now and then Mrs. Thomas would bring up the names of old residents gone and almost forgotten by the older generation and never known by the youngsters of today, residents who contributed a lot to the community."I remember Jay Gould, who was a railroad magnate in his latter years, as a pedlar of candlesticks, and Benjamin Williams, father of Gomer B. Williams got Jay Gould to come to Middle Granville. A hotel once stood in Middle Granville on the site of the house now owned by Gomer Williams, it was then known as Wing's hotel and was opened by Mrs. Atwood's grandfather. Mrs. Atwood's father owned and conducted a store on the site of Roy Williams's residence."
Asked if there were any old buildings now standing which she remembers of her earlier days, Mrs. Thomas said, "The only one I recollect right now is the Braymer Block in which Roy Williams conducted his cigar store and which recently burned."
Mrs. Thomas informed the interviewer that there were no Welsg churches in Granville, as Welshmen were not known in Granville in the early days. "But there were eight or twelve Welsh families in Middle Granville," she said, "and among the most active Welshmen at that time I remember Benjamin Williams and Edward Williams, father of the late Postmaster "Ted" Williams. There was as English church in Middle Granville , which was later sold to the Welsh residents of Middle Granville."
After the Civil War, Mrs. Thomas said, the stories of heroism, fighting and militarism so enthused some od the younger generation that the North Granville Academy, which was then a girls' school, and which closed because of the lack of funds, was re-opened as a military school. Mrs. Thomas remembers the late Will Hughes and Frank Betts as among some of the pupils who attended. For the lack of funds this school was again closed later, never to br re-opened.
Money was very scarce during the Civil War period and commodities were high in price. Flour sold for $20 per barrel, tea and coffee at $1 per pound.
Mrs. Thomas, for thirty-five years, lived in a house on North Street, which stood on the site of the Granville Telephone company building and then purchased her present home from S. Weinberg and has resided on Williams street ever since.
In her younger days Mrs. Thomas loved to travel and she is now, as always, a great admirer of the beauties of nature, the rivers, the mountains and the great outdoors.
In her eighty-first year, Mrs. Thomas is in fine health. She reads the newspaper daily and is active about the home, both indoors and out. She loves to go motoring and whenever the weather is good she can be seen with her son Alan out for a ride.
"Don't say too much about me in the paper," were her parting words to the interviewer, "people will think I talk too much."