Point Rock, New York

Point Rock
hamlet
Point Rock Location of Point Rock in New York
Coordinates:
Country	United States
State	New York
County	Oneida

Point Rock is a hamlet in the northeastern corner of the town of Lee in Oneida County, New York, United States. It only consists of a few houses and a closed bar now.

Point Rock was named for a point in a rock where Point Rock Creek and Fish Creek meet. People settled in Point Rock because of the creek, the forests, and the good land for raising cattle. There were salmon and trout in the creeks. Early settlers shipped them to Fort Stanwix, Whitestown, and Fort Schuyler. By 1870 there was a post office, store, tavern, and some homes in Point Rock. In the late 19th century or early 20th century the first Methodist church was built in Point Rock.

       The village of Point Rock is located in the northwest corner of the town of Lee. Point Rock takes its name from the steep rocky points between where Fish Creek and Point Rock Creek merge. Fish Creek is the northwestern boundary of the town.

       The early settlers to this area found abundant salmon and trout in the creeks. Fish Creek provided ample fish for local consumption and enough surplus to transport them to Fort Stanwix, Whitestown and Fort Schuyler where they were sold. Along Fish Creek are extensive quarries of good building stone.

       The main enterprise of this area was logging with dairy farming commencing as the land was cleared. There were several logging camps in the area. By the 1870s there was a post office, store, a tavern and a small number of homes.

       In 1882 a Reformed Dutch Church Society began holding Sunday services at the district schoolhouse with Rev. John M. Reiner of West Leyden presiding. In the spring of 1883 Thomas Welch donated land to the Reformed Dutch Society and building of the church began. The building was dedicated September 28, 1883. It was a plain but beautiful and commodious structure 32 feet wide by 45 feet in length, with an extension in the rear. It also had a large vestibule, with a tower and a bell. The seating capacity was two hundred people. As the membership dwindled the building was sold to the Methodists in April 1901, who still worship there today, served by the Lee Center Pastor. This church sits on the hill overlooking the village. The Point Rock Methodist Church celebrated their centennial on September 25, 1983.

       The Point Rock Stage was operated by Harold Paine from 1913 to 1936. His horse-drawn stage made two daily trips from Point Rock to Lee Center to Stokes and on to Rome carrying passengers, freight and mail. The morning run took about three hours but the return trip took over four hours as he delivered mail to each home on the route. In 1926 he started using a motorized bus however it was often necessary to resort to horses for part of his route when heavy snows made it impossible to drive through the roads. Many of his passengers were students attending Rome Free Academy who would take the stage to Rome on Monday, board there during the week to attend school and return home on Friday. In 1931 Harold began to specialize in transporting school students and by 1936 he stopped operating the mail route. In 1946 his son Cletus L. Paine took over the company. Paine Bus Service is still transporting students to school.

References

• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Point Rock, New York