Hammondsport is a village in Steuben County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, Hammondsport had a population of 583. First settled in 1792 the village is located at the south end of Keuka Lake, one of the Finger Lakes. Beginning in the 1790s the village began to take form, which included a courthouse and a jail. In the 1850s vineyards and the wine industry began to emerge in and around Hammondsport. Pioneer aviation engineer and pilot Glenn Curtiss was born in Hammondsport, where he built several types of aircraft, and the first seaplanes, which were tested in Keuka Lake. Hammondsport features a village square, historic buildings, wineries, breweries and museums. Nearby municipalities contain vineyards, and wineries and grape-packing have played a major role in the economy. In 1935, heavy rains lasting three days resulted in mudslides and major flooding, ruining or damaging many homes and structures in Hammondsport, situated at the hillside. A number of buildings surrounding Pulteney Square make up the Pulteney Square Historic District and are listed in the National Register of Historic Places
History
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Hammondsport was settled beginning in 1792 by Samuel Baker, Mr. Aulls and Capt. Amos Stone, and was originally called "Cold Spring Valley", due to its icy-cold spring that emptied into Keuka Lake (then called Crooked Lake) It was also known as Pleasant Valley.
In 1802, General George McClure purchased several hundred acres of land in Pleasant Valley just south of Hammondsport where he built a saw mill, fulling mill, flour mill and carding machine. During this time he opened a store on the site of Hammondsport, which sold goods produced by the mills, thus laying the foundation for future business there. The village was later renamed for Lazerus Hammond, a settler who arrived in 1810 from nearby Dansville. The first building constructed in the valley is still standing. Hammond officially founded the village around 1826, and it was incorporated in 1856. William Hastings, a member of the Presbyterian church, erected the first store, and started a mercantile business. The village became a center for the New York wine industry. In July 1831, Reverend Isaac Flagler, a Presbyterian, arrived and began religious services. On July 25, a Presbyterian religious society was established, and on September 14 a Presbyterian church, consisting of eight members, was organized, by a committee from the Presbyterian church in Bath, consisting of Reverend Isaac W. Piatt, Reverend Samuel White, with the assistance of two elders. During the 1830s other preachers began arriving and established other churches in Hammondsport, receiving financial assistance and guidance from the American Home Missionary Society.
Wine industry
Reverend Bostwick planted the first grapevines in a garden at his rectory in 1830. He soon discovered that the surrounding region would be ideal for growing imported grape vines and planted the first vines in the slopes around Keuka Lake, which established the wine country and its subsequent wine industry in the western Finger Lakes region. The first townspeople to take vine cuttings from Bostwick's vines were John Poppino, Lemuel Hastings and George McClure. Beginning with Andrew Swartout in 1852, grapes from vineyards around the lake were being shipped by boat to Hammondsport, then by wagons, and then by the Bath & Hammondsport Railroad to where it connected to the Erie Railroad at the Bath railroad station and transported to New York. Subsequently, the demand for fresh grapes in New York increased dramatically, which in turn greatly promoted the wine industry in and around Hammondsport. By 1870, Hammondsport had 3000 acres of vineyards; by 1879, 5000 acres; and by 1889, 14,500 acres.
The Crooked Lake Canal, after much deliberation with state officials, and labor disputes, was completed in three years and opened in 1833, connecting Hammondsport and the Town of Urbana to the Erie Canal. At a width of 42 feet, the canal was built to accommodate the same size boats in use on the Erie Canal. With access via the Seneca Canal to the Erie Canal, which led to the Hudson River, it became possible to ship goods between Hammondsport and New York City by boat. In 1858 a private academy opened in a stone building at the corner of Main and Lake Streets in Hammondsport. The structure was later purchased by the Hammondsport school district around the beginning of the 20th century. Later additions were added to the building on both sides, and thereafter it continued to serve as the Hammondsport school until 1935.
In 1836 Mallory Mill was built by Meridith Mallory on Pulteney Street in Hammondsport. Four stories in height, the stone structure was the second largest free-standing building in New York. It had three water wheels used to power a grist mill. During the winter months, however, operations at the mill stopped due to the freezing water. Subsequently, its life as a grist mill was short lived and after 1840 it was used as a warehouse until 1880 when it was used as a winery by the Glen Wine Company. In 1901 William H. Hallock, owner of the Hallock Bank in Bath, acquired the property. The structure is listed in U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Among the first physicians to practice medicine in Hammondsport were Dr. Ezekiel B. Pulling, Dr. Amasa Church, Dr. C. E. Campbell, Dr. Moses T. Babcock, and Dr. Oliver H. Babeock. Among the first lawyers to live and practice in the village, were Benjamin Bennitt, Benjamin F. Drew, and Monroe Wheeler, Esqs. The first election of village officers was held November 22, 1856, which included William Hastings as senior trustee, and Orlando Shepard, as the town assessor.
The Hamondsport Advertiser, first published in 1838, and the Hammondsport Herald, first published in 1874, were Hammondsport's first newspapers. In 1931 the Hammondsport newspaper, the Keuka Grape Belt, combined with the Hammondsport Herald and Bath Plaindealer, and operated from 1931 to 1940. Published by the Keuka Grape Belt Co., its circulation served Hammondsport and Steuben County.
thumb|upright|St James Episcopal Church, built in 1895
In 1895 the Saint James Episcopal Church was built. it was the third church, replacing the Episcopal churches that were built in 1833 and 1877. The cornerstone contains documents, including photographs and an 1886 Prayer Book formerly in the cornerstone of the second building.
In 1917, the first telephone office was built in Hammondsport which was needed to accommodate the Curtiss Manufacturing Company with its many business involvements.
Steamboats
Hammondsport, on the shore of Keuka Lake, had several docks that accommodated lake-faring vessels that were typically used for trading and ferrying, transporting people and goods between Hammondsport and Penn Yan. The first vessel to set upon the waters of Keuka Lake was a schooner called The Sally, built in 1808 at Hammondsport by George McClure for the purpose of transporting wheat and other goods from Penn Yan to Hammondsport, where it would be shipped to market in New York. McClure played a fundamental role in Hammondsport's business development. In the latter half of the 1800s Hammondsport became the home to various steamboat manufacturers which included A. W. Springstead and the Union Dry Dock Company. In 1892 the Dry Dock company built the Mary Bell, considered "The Queen of Lake Keuka", which was the largest steamboat ever to operate on the lake. Some steamboats met an unusual fate while docked at Hammondsport. The Steuben sank while docked there from a hull that developed leaks due to engine vibration. In 1909 the Cricket caught fire and was damaged beyond repair while docked at Hammondsport. By 1921, with the increased use of gasoline powered trucks and cars, large boat traffic on the lake was no longer economically feasible: The Mary Bell was the last large vessel to make the run between Hammondsport and Penn Yan on opposite ends of the lake.
thumb|upright=0.9|Hammondsport historical map, with listing of businesses
Civil War
During the American Civil War, with President Lincoln calling for 300,000 volunteers, the 107th New York Infantry Regiment (nicknamed the Campbell Guards), was mustered. Young men from Hammondsport, Bath and Elimra who volunteered for service were assigned to Company G of the regiment which was organized in Elmira, NY. The regiment was mustered into service for three years and left the state to serve on August 13, 1862.
Morris Brown, Jr., a once Hammondsport resident, received the Medal of Honor posthumously on March 6, 1869, for his service in the Union Army at the Battle of Gettysburg, where he daringly captured the Confederate flag. He died in action almost a year later in Virginia. Brown, Jr. was interred at Lakeview Cemetery in Penn Yan at the northern end of Keuka Lake.