Welcome to Livingston County’s Bicentennial GeoTrail!
My name is Find R. Fox. I’ll be your guide to super-sleuthing the hides at these amazing, historical locations all around our beautiful 200-year-old county!
To make your travel through history a bit easier, imagine yourself in a Time Machine (your best mode of transportation will do). Set the dial (your gps unit) to the first year (coordinates) listed below, check the waypoints for Parking and push the navigate button! Whirl your way there then switch your coordinates as needed to navigate to the geocache to sniff out the container and sign the log sheet. Good Luck & Enjoy the journey!!
Per request of the property owner for the start of this letterbox, daylight hours only.
The first Old Home Day reunion was held on August 18, 1923, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cook. It was at the third reunion, on August 8, 1925, that the reunions began to be held at the Punky Hollow School house. Here is a collection of newspaper articles which chronicle the history of the school and the Old Home Day reunions.
Punky Hollow School
From an Unknown Contributor, November 1939:
Editor’s note: I was greatly pleased to receive the following card, dated October 8, 1939:
“Mrs. Clara Mack,
Punky Hollow was named after a man by the name of Punky, an early settler. Across from the schoolhouse, the place passed from him to Peter Y. Purcell, from Purcell to Reckford, his son, father of Ella Partridge, Libbie Hyde, and Frank Purcell. The present owner is Charles Cook.
I went to school there seventy-four years ago and could name every family in that school district that far back. My father remembered the old man Punky.
Harvey Robinson, Wayland R. D. 1”
Editor’s note: It is remarkable that a man who went to school seventy-four years ago is able to write so clearly and just as remarkable that he was sufficiently interested to send this writer a card.
Thank you, Mr. Robinson.
Mrs. George Thorpe of Wayland informs me that Punky Hollow was so named because of a family of Richardson’s who resided in that section. The male head of the house was, for some unknown reason, saddled with the title of “Punky,” hence Punky Hollow.
When a new schoolhouse was erected, the good citizens wanted to change the name. They felt that the term “Punky” was too questionable and lacking in dignity. Consequently, a big sign reading “East Springwater District” was put above the blackboard so the students would get the notion of dropping the old name. But regardless of these efforts, district number 17 continues to be designated by the romantic and colorful words, Punky Hollow. Personally, I hope they never try to change it again.
Couldn’t Change Name of Punky Hollow School
From Wayland Register, August 3, 1950:
Punky Hollow schoolhouse, now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Lindsay, has been the scene of annual reunions for over half a century. Last spring, members of the district voted to sell the property, thus ending its last formal tie with education.
This building was erected in 1875, built by Seth Foster and Arthur Hunt. It replaced a building which had burned. Wesley Guile was the first teacher.
The story goes that the school and hollow got their name from a family living in the hollow district. After it had been known by the Punky Hollow title for some time, a few residents objected and tried to fasten the name of “East Springwater” school onto it. The new title didn’t take and Punky Hollow it was in the last century, and Punky Hollow it remains today.
Memories Stir at Old Home Day in Punky Hollow School
From Wayland Register, August 18, 1983:
The recent gathering of past and present Springwater residents for Punky Hollow Old Home Day was the 59th time with the first event recorded on Aug. 18, 1923, at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cook.
There were 166 present at the initial reunion and the first officers were Hugh Campbell, president; Wirt E. Wetmore, vice-president; and Jennie L. Wetmore, secretary-treasurer.
This year’s gathering was held at Harriet Hollister Spencer State Park with close to 40 attending. Daisy Conrad attended both the first and the most recent Old Home Day. At 101 years old, she was able to share memories of many past reunions she had attended. New officers elected this year were Ray Conrad, president; Tom Mitchell, vice-president; Sarah Furia, secretary-treasurer; and Greg Furia, entertainment.
History of past Old Home Days record that the third annual reunion was held at the Punky Hollow School House on Aug. 8, 1925 and 239 attended. Harry Shaver received $35.64 for the lumber used in making the tables and benches which were insured by the Ladies Aid along with the church sheds.
A letter written by Oscar Ray and recorded in the minutes of 1924 reads as follows: “In the middle of the 1840’s I commenced to attend school at Tabors Corners. Then it had mail by the Canandaigua-Dansville route.
The first master and others openly dealt out intoxicants in tree places near the school house. Dances were frequently with some fights. The old wood colored school house soon burned. While the new red one was being built, school was held in an old log house, that stood back of the old Hausen shop.” Signed: Oscar and Sarah Thomason Ray. P.S. “I forgot to quote the price of whiskey which was 25 cents a gallon.”
In 1932, a play called “The Morning Callers” was put on by Lizzie Cook, Margaret Peglow, Grace Wolfanger and children, and Helen Wolfanger. Rev. Montgomery Branch, a missionary of India surprised everyone with his presence and gave a very interesting talk.
A motion was made and seconded to buy an organ from Mrs. Slingerland to use at community gatherings in 1934.
There were 275 present on Aug. 1, 1936, recorded as having traveled from Wayland, Springwater, Atlanta, North Cohocton, Rochester, Canandaigua, Livonia, Naples, Fairport, Macedon, Waterloo, Red Creek, Andover, LeRoy, Ithaca, Hornell, and Angelica.
A $5 donation was given to the EUB Church in Wayland toward the chimes in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cook in 1956. The Cooks were members of this church. Old Home Day was held on their lawn for many years.
Yes, there is a geocache in the area of the schoolhouse that you may find and log, if you have not already done so, during daylight hours. You may also peek into the windows to see how the reconstruction is going.
Now, for the letterbox. Let's pretend that you just learned your colors and you have been given a little field test.
From the road coordinates, what color is the trim on the school?
Looking up and down the road on the same side as the schoolhouse, seek the split rail fence that is a similar color, but longer than the split-rail fence going the other direction, and skip down the road in the direction of the longer fence that crosses a stream.
On the same side of the road as the school and the fence, you will next see a large barn with a ramp to the upper story, with a wood fence alongside a field. If it is brown, continue the way you were already going. You might think it would have been a great barn for horse, so you trot past it.
If you don't think it is brown, then you might need to return to school. Turn around and scuff your feet as trudge back up to start over.
Ahead of you on the opposite side of the road, you see an object that is a similar color to the trim of the school. This object has more than 4 sides, but only has 4 letters on it. You are too young to know what the proper name for an an object with that many sides is. Hop along until you are right next to it.
Old School
Turn to face the side of the road on which the school had been. You see something with many color rocks with shiny lettering and are drawn to it. (You probably drove. There is a pull off on the opposite side. Park there while you complete the next step.)
New School
At the base of that object, you will find coordinates for the final. (You probably drove. There is a pull off on the opposite side. Park there while you complete the next step or two.)
Please replace the stamp and stamp pad in the geocache. It is NOT swag, but is part of this being a letterbox. Hope the teacher stamps your homework with a positive note!
Thanks to the Springwater Town Board member for assisting us in contacting the landowner from whom we got permission to place this cache!
This cache is 1 of 36 caches comprising the Livingston County Bicentennial GeoTrail (LivCo200) placed in the summer of 2021 in honor of Livingston County’s Bicentennial by members of the local geocaching group called the Bee Hive. For more information about Livingston County’s Bicentennial, visit the County Historian’s Bicentennial web page on the Livingston County New York website at https://www.livingstoncounty.us/1115/County-Bicentennial
