Isaac Bennett

Other Events:

• Residence: 1800, Somerset, Pennsylvania, United States; Brothersvalley
• Residence: 1830, Ridgeway, Orleans, New York, United States
• Residence: 1834, Ridgeway, Orleans, New York, United States

Notes:

Life & times of Isaac Bennett after moving to New York from Pennsylvania.

He moved from Brothersvalley, Pennsylvania after 1804 and is found in Medina, New York in 1809.

Aquilla Bennett Sr. told to his grandson, George Albert Bennett that:

?As a young child, he boiled salt in kettles with his father, Isaac Bennett, in Medina Twp, Orleans Co., NY. ?

Isaac's first attempt in the making of ?White Gold? (salt) was in 1813, but the enterprise was not sucessful. In 1818 he came into possesion of a unprofitable saltworks from the Holland Land Company. From 1818 to 1823, Isaac & family were in the business of salt production. Since Aquilla mentioned boiling the salt, it would make sense that Isaac's other son's, Jacob & Jesse also had a hand in this line of work. This saltworks was located on the east bank of Oak Orchard Creek in Oak Orchard village. Here he sunk a well 150 feet into the ground & found a good brine, which could be boiled down to get the salt.

He then contracted Israel & Seymour Murdock to furnish him with 64 kettles, which they acquired in Utica, NY and had shipped by lake, to the mouth of Oak Orchard creek. The Murdock boys then hired several teams to bring the heavy kettles to the works, arriving one day before Isaac's stipulated delivery date, once delivered they received their pay in gold. (By the end of this business venture Isaac had upwards of 70 kettles boiling.)

Making salt it seems was a labor intensive, dangerous & mundane job. After drawing the brine water to the surface it was emptied into the large boiling kettles, (some possibly set out in large bowls in the sun to evaporate). Men stood over the kettles, stirring the fetid smelling water with long wooden paddles. While this may sound like a hot job it was also very dangerous! Mention is made of men being severly scaled by the boiling brine and worse, falling in the huge kettles which ultimately led to their deaths.

Issac sold his salt for between $5-$10 a barrel ( $10 in 1825 had the same buying power as $217.90 current dollars) It appears then that Isaac was a fairly wealthy man, since it is stated about his saltworks: ?furnishing a large portion of all the salt used in this portion of the country.?

Isaac a wise businessman, could see the handwriting on the wall with the building of the Erie Canal. Once the Erie Canal was complete, salt could be shipped from Salina (now Syracuse) and purchased for a much cheaper price, which in turn would hurt his profits. He decided to sell his business in 1823 to Henry Boardman, who abandoned the business once the canal was completed.

There is much more to be found about Isaac Bennett. There is much documentation that shows he also amougst other ventures, made a pretty good living buying and selling very large tracts of land in Pennsylvania, West Virginia & New York. We think that he died around 1835 in New York....

Written by Lisa Hoffius. A huge Thanks goes to cousin David Sidney Bennett (Maryland) also a descendant of Isaac Bennett. After David's father passed away last year, he came into possesion of many notes written by his ancestors, leading to the discovery of where Isaac Bennett wandered off to after his years in Brothersvalley Twp., Somerset Co., PA.

Isaac married Hannah in Abt. 1775. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. Aquilla Bennett was born in Abt. 1775 in Virginia, United States; died in 1869 in Pennsylvania, United States.
2. Jesse Bennett was born in Abt. 1777 in Somerset, Pennsylvania, United States; died on 26 Feb 1813 in Toronto, York, Ontario, Canada.
3. John Bennett was born in Abt. 1784 in Pennsylvania, United States.
4. Hannah Bennett was born in 1785 in Pennsylvania, United States; died on 26 Jan 1859 in Scarborough, York, Ontario, Canada.
5. Jacob Bennett was born on 10 Apr 1795 in Fayette, Pennsylvania, United States; died on 1 Feb 1882 in Winterset, Madison, Iowa, United States; was buried in Bennett Cemetery, Winterset, Madison, Iowa, United States.
6. Regina Bennett was born in in Pennsylvania, United States.