When William Merrill erected his log house in the projected settlement at which is now Plessis, he had no thoughts that he would be making an inn of the place, or of what might take place within its walls only a few years hence. It was the first hour in Plessis and the year before, 1817, Mr. LeRay had caused to be erected a gristmill on Plessis creek, feeling that his proposed settlement, well in the center of Alexandria (the township of Theresa was a part of Alexandria at that time) would be the foremost trading post in the township.

Directly came such leaders as William Shurtleff, William Tanner, James Carter, and the above mentioned William Merrill, who had already constructed his log house. In two years Lull & Walton started the first store, but were discouraged over the outlook. Settlers didn’t seem to care greatly for the place and ten years after Plessis was said to have but four families residing in the confines of what would be the settlement.

Because there was a demand for an inn at the settlement, Mr. Merrill turned his log house into a tavern, making some additions to the structure. If people were passing through, or looking for a place to make a home, they could stay at the Merrill inn until they could make a survey of the surrounding sections.

In 1826 there came the first major crime to the settlement. It was in the Merrill inn, that a party by the name of John Powell, reported to be somewhat maddened by drink, got in a fight with Mr. Merrill and so injured him that, in spite of good medical aid, the hotel keeper died. Mr. Merrill, a peaceful man, and a member of the Plessis Presbyterian church, was greatly mourned by his friends and neighbors by his friends and neighbors. Powell was sentenced 14 years’ imprisonment for the crime.

It is quite possible that two of the four families to be living in the settlement of Plessis ten years after the first store was built were my ancestors, the Hosners and Sweets. However, they apparently did not own land, so I can’t prove this. Would be interested to know if these families were positively sighted there in in 1825. (by Shirley Farone - twiggs1@verizon.net)

Plessis, June 22. -- The recent installation of a modern front on the Makepeace store of this community marks the 75th anniversary of the store, owned and operated continuously for 75 years by members of the Makepeace family. The present owner, Claude J. Makepeace, is the third generation of his family to operate the business.

A little bit about Plessis in the Town of Alexandria, Jefferson County, where two of my ancestral families lived. The chronology and facts make for confusing reading if one is to read through these; however, I am hoping that the articles will provide a sense of time and place. (by Shirley)

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From Hamilton Child's Gazetteer of Jefferson County, New York, pub. 1890, pp. 249-250, under Town of Alexandria.

“PLESSIS (p.o.) is situated midway on the old Alexandria and Theresa plank-road, three miles from Redwood. It derived its name from a place in France. It is familiarly known as "Flat Rock," from the prevalence of the Potsdam sandstone formation in the vicinity, which presents a considerable portion of naked rock. In 1817 Mr. Le Ray erected a grist-mill here on Plessis Creek, which was purchased by Jason Clark and William Shurtleff and rebuilt in 1830. The first store was opened by Lull & Walton, in 1820. The first log house was erected by William Merrill in 1818, and was afterwards by him converted into an inn. Here, in 1816, he was murdered by one John Powell, who was sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for the crime. The first frame house was erected by William Tanner, and was used by him as a dwelling and a store. The first church edifice was the Union building erected in 1833. A tannery was erected near the village on Plessis Creek in 1821, by James Carter. A school-house was built in 1826, after the formation of the districts. The chief manufactories in the vicinity of Plessis are the grist, saw, and shingle-mills of John H. Cline, and the saw-mill of Horace P. Hoyt.

Spafford wrote in 1823 of Alexandria in 1821, when it was erected as a township: Alexandria Bay had several houses, a tavern, store, and forwarding house. On Mullet Creek there was a saw-mill, and on Plessis Creek a saw-mill and a grist-mill. The population was estimated at 150 families, the census being included in that of Le Ray and Brownville.

The first improvement in this town was made about 1811, by Mr. Le Ray, who caused a clearing to be made at Alexandria Center, to afford facilities to first settlers by supplying them with grain until it could be raised by themselves. He paid $12 per acre with the ashes, and half the first crop, for these jobs, and built a log barn. In 1811 the proprietors made the Morris and Hammond road, extending from Hammond village to the Red Tavern, near Theresa, where it intersected another road, from the river to Philadelphia. The former was cleared four rods wide, bridged and seeded with grass, but had become nearly closed up when it was opened as a part of the Military road, in 1820-23.

Cranberry Creek, about three miles from its mouth, was, during the War of 1812, the scene of an engagement that is detailed in the County Chapter under the heading, "War of 1812."* Sales of land commenced in this town in 1816. The first contracts were made payable in seven years, and required the settlers within one year, to build a house, equal to a log house 18 feet square, and to clear one twenty-fifth part of the land contracted in a farmer-like manner. Prices began at $3 per acre, and after 1820 mineral reservations were inserted in contracts and deeds. James Carnagie, Samuel Youngs, William Martin, Moses George, Leicester Hoadley, ____ Root, John W. Fuller, Jerre Carrier were early settlers. The town continued to increase in population rapidly until 1828, when a sickly season checked its growth, and gave it a reputation for unhealthfulness from which it was slow in recovering.”

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