The VanSickle Era

The story of ‘Lot 43,’ the Grover Brown Cottage Lots, Sunset Bay and the Smith Farm can be considered complete only if the VanSickle family’s role is studied in detail. There is no written history to research, no verbal recollections to listen to and no newspaper accounts that document the story. Two sources offer a chronology from which the story can be constructed: property abstracts that go with the land and the Portrait and Biographical Record of Seneca and Schuyler Counties, 1895. Synching both records brings this story into focus. Using a calculator and repeatedly referencing known birth dates with recorded transactions was the only way to create this timeline.

 Garrett VanSickle (1811-1898) owned the land for 43 years. He was born in Kingwood, New Jersey in 1811, fourth generation, third child of John and Catherine Reer VanSickle. When Garrett was 21, they moved to Cayuga County in 1832 and bought a 125 acre farm near the Cayuga Bridge approximately one mile from the east side of Cayuga Lake. Garrett purchased a farm nearby, though helped his parents with their farm until their passing. At the age of 25, he married Sarah Jane Smith (1818-1885) in 1836 and set up a residence with his wife and her parents. His first child, Sarah was born there in 1837 and their son Daniel was born in 1839, followed by Mary in 1841. John was born in 1843  and Lydia in 1849. George, the youngest, was born in 1849. In 1849 the family of ten, including his parents-in-law, moved to Fayette to live on his brother Abraham’s 140 acre farm.  When Abraham was married six years later, the VanSickles moved for the last time to the town of Varick in 1855. This is where Lot 43 becomes part of the story. Garrett VanSickle purchased the 105 acre farm in the northwest corner of Varick in 1855 from John VanGieson for $4,500.00 Three years later he acquired an additional 22 acres for $950.00 This was to be his home for the next 43 years.

 The young VanSickle family had evidently needed more space.  When they arrived at their newly acquired farm, young George was 6, Lydia was 7 and John was 12. Older sister Mary was 14, Daniel was 16 and Sarah was 18. Though the children grew up and away from their childhood home, Garrett VanSickle was destined to live there for 43 more years.

 The family’s life evolved in many different directions. Sarah eventually married Moses VanSickle (a cousin)  in 1860 and continued living in Geneva. Daniel was married in Chicago and worked for the railroad. Daughter Mary married Mr. Myron VanDyne, of the neighboring farm to the north, in 1873 when she was 32.  She eventually lived in Geneva. John moved to Ohio and married Viola Sherman (who later sold and transferred the farm to Grover Brown) and was employed by the railroad. Lydia moved to Chicago. George moved to Iowa and later married in Chicago.

 In her 30^th year on the VanSickle farm, wife and mother, Sarah Jane, died unexpectedly during a trip to Chicago in 1885. Mr. VanSickle was 75. He later married his wife’s sister, Mary M. Smith (formerly married to Dr. George Strong of Ohio) who had two grown children who lived in Denver, CO.

 Garrett VanSickle died on June 2, 1898 at the age of 87. In September of that year, his son John sold the 127 acre farm to Viola VanSickle, his wife. In 1907, the VanSickle era ended when the heirs sold the farm to Henry Pond for $5000.00  The next decade consisted of many short term owners and mortgages, until it was eventually sold to Grover and Carrie Brown in 1917.

During the 43 years that the VanSickle family lived here, a resident of Sunset Bay could wonder if the VanSickles ever enjoyed their lakefront (which consisted of the entire bay). Did the children discover a few of the huge rocks as they swam in the bay and enjoy the sandy shale beaches? To what extent did they renovate or expand the residence which still stands? What impact did the Civil War have on life on Lot 43? Was the land near the bay's shoreline tilled as farmland? Why did the heirs decide not to pursue farming the land when their father passed away? What was the quality of life without iPads, Wifi, Trex, jetskis, gas grills. blue bin collection and cordless hedge trimmers? One safe presumption is that for 43 years, that family treasured, as we do, those sunrises over the east ridge, the warm summer breezes off the lake and all of those sunsets to the west.