An Accident In Troy
by George Holcomb • Transcribed by Betty McClave • Edited by Alex Brooks
Wednesday, September 2, 1846: This morning at twelve o’clock I started for Troy. I had with me my wife and daughter Sarah and my sister Miriam Campbell and her son Henry and Susan Brown, they three are returning home to New Hartford and Mr. John Russel and wife and grandson John Franklin are going west on a visit and on the way going to Troy we stopped at Sand Lake to Sliter’s Tavern and I had some gin and sugar and a cup of tea for my wife and I paid twelve cts and I took on a passenger by the name of Finch at Sand Lake and carried him to Troy and he paid me 25 cts.
When we got to Troy there was no boat going out and I went over to West Troy with my team and carried my friends to take a boat. I bargained with an agent to carry my sister and her son and Susan Brown to Utica for two dol and 50 cts and they board themselves, and Mr. John Russel paid me one dol for carrying three of them to Troy. Mr. Russel bargained with the same agent to be carried to Syracuse and have their board and pay six dol and 25 cts and then I and my wife and daughter returned over to East Troy and my wife got frightened for I was in contact with the cars or partly, on the track and could not get off for the crowd of teams and my wife and daughter jumped from the wagon and my wife lamed her feet by going or falling onto the pavement. She was badly hurt nor could not stand. I lifted her into the wagon and went to Elder Jason Smith in Fourth Street No. 101 and there we took dinner, and called in a surgeon by the name of Skelton and he examined the ankle joints and only found them sprained. He gave directions to bathe in salt and vinegar and wormwood and I paid him 25 cts for calling.