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The first Wilmarths arrived in Pittsford
in the early 1800s and soon set up a homestead in the southern part of Pittsford
on what is known
today as Wilmarth Road. Lyman’s story began on September 7, 1865 when he
was born to James and Delyra (Gear) Wilmarth, at their home in
Pittsford.
Lyman’s father and his grandfather,
Chauncey, were both farmers, but as the only son in a family of four
children, it was expected that Lyman would follow in his father’s
footsteps and become a farmer; but Lyman took a different path. Instead,
he became a captain on a canal boat.
Although his occupation
was listed in the
1880 census as “farmer”, soon after he embarked upon the role of canal
boat captain.
Perhaps his growing family was the impetus for the career change.
In 1885, Lyman married May Putnam. Their first daughter, Laura, was born
in 1888. She was followed by Elsie in 1891. By then, Lyman had purchased
the Lewis Lawrence steam packet boat, which ran between Rochester and
Syracuse and operated until 1894.
At the time of his unexpected death in 1895, Lyman was captain and
owner of the Wiltsie, a steam packet boat that traveled the Erie Canal
carrying freight to various ports. The Wiltsie had launched just the year
before,
on April 30, 1894. She was ninety-six feet long and seventeen feet wide
and was touted as being one of the largest steam packets on the canal
at that time.
On April 23, 1895, Captain Wilmarth had gone to a store on Canal
Street in Lyons to meet some men regarding canal business. While at the
front of the store, Captain Wilmarth fell forward and gasped his last
breath. The cause of death was heart disease. His remains were removed
to undertaking
rooms in Lyons. His father, James, arrived in Lyons that afternoon to
escort the body of his only son back to Pittsford.
Lyman’s funeral took place from his Pittsford home on April 26.
He was buried at Pittsford Cemetery not far from his mother and two younger
sisters, all of whom had died within the past four years. The headstone
for Captain Wilmarth is unique, as it is shaped like a tree trunk. The
trunk symbolizes a life cut short. Lyman was just 29 years old at the
time of
his death. The Rochester Democrat and Chronicle newspaper article detailing
his final moments called Lyman Wilmarth “one of the best-known boatmen
on the Erie Canal.”
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