Franklin County Route 16 - Part 1

I had previously noticed Franklin County Route 16 and made a mental note to take a driving tour there some day. Well, the day arrived and I began with this classic old brick house. Notice the traditional plank door:

A magnificent dairy farm. I noticed the clothes on the line and decided it was an Amish farm, but then noticed the bright colors of the clothes and the electric lights in the barn. So apparently it wasn't Amish:

A view of the same farm, but from the other side:

An old barn which had been nicely modernized. The backhoe was actively digging up the field in preparation for spring, most likely pulling out rocks and digging trenches for drainage pipe:

Another very large and prosperous looking farm, with barns, sheds, silos, grain bins and corn kernel storage bin:

This farm house looked friendly and inviting:

I think it would be fair to assume this guy likes to race cars:

Another large and modern dairy farm:

A farm house with clothes hanging on the porch, and a barn out back. But there was more to see on County Route 16, and I'll post Part 2 tomorrow:

NYS Franklin County Route 7, A Scenic Tour

Our wintry weather continued to hold off and the day's forecast called for rain instead of snow yet again. I decided to take a driving tour and headed east on NYS Route 11 into Franklin County, where I turned south onto County Route 7 in the town of Brushton. It was a lovely, scenic, rural road with history everywhere in evidence:

There were farm homes surrounded by fields and woodsy homes surrounded by trees:

Homes with many additions and extensions to accommodate a growing family:

The above home had these play houses/storage sheds in the back yard - not to mention the old wagon wheel, leaning against a tree, a picnic table and a tent. This is family life in the country:

A very small and very old cabin which no doubt once was home to a farm family:

This old home still seemed to have its original, historic front door:

A lovely old silo and barn, whose roof had been kept in good repair:

This appeared to be someone's former home and barn. It sat alone in a field, exuding history:

Two old concrete silos, one without a roof, and a row of hay bales which also appeared quite old:

I suppose this was once an equipment shed or horse barn. It's hard to tell now, as it sat alone in the rust colored grass:

These appeared to be two modern equipment barns, perhaps belonging to the town or county, but I saw no signs and no activity:

I saw this old home just before the road ended at NYS Route 11B. It did not appear to be inhabited anymore, with the owners living next door in the mobile home, but like the other old homes and barns, it evoked a history which is not as distant as some would suppose. But the day was young, so I decided to do more touring. I'll post about that tomorrow:

West Potsdam To Morley, New York - Part 1

I was on my way to the tiny town of Morley. The route was exceedingly rural, so much so that most of the scenery along the way was forest or farm fields. But there were enough lovely family farms that I began taking photos, beginning with this old farm house and barn:

This classic old barn had twin silos and a brand new, green steel roof:

There were no houses or barns near this ancient cedar split rail fence, but I'll bet there was when it was built. Cedar lasts so very long and these rails were so old that I guessed it might have been there for a hundred years:

A lovely and welcoming farm house, with garden and barn:

Very old barns and silo, still in good shape:

This house looked to have been totally renovated. The garage/carriage house may have been new - or maybe it too had been renovated:

Another very old farm house with front porch and split rail fence:

Several old outbuildings behind a fuel tank. One of them housed a tractor and one of them was falling down:

I found this house particularly interesting, with its red barn out back. The right side of it had been renovated but the left side still showed how it may have looked many decades ago. The white door in the center was of the old style, plank construction and may have been original:

I arrived in the hamlet of West Potsdam and turned onto a side road to see the sights:

Most of West Potsdam was historic:

But there were also some more recent houses. I thought this one was new, but the green barn (now a garage) out back looked old, so maybe the house was too:

This old home was being renovated. I didn't notice the weather vane until I got home and was editing photos. I'm not sure what it was, but it was fascinating. Click to enlarge the photo if you want a better view of it. But there was still a lot to see on my journey, so I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: