LYNCH – McCORMICK FARM
Compiled by William A. Greene
Long before the Lynch – McCormick farm was built it was a driving park. In 1875 a Driving Park Association was organized and built a large track on this property. Mr. L.D. Cobb was president and treasurer and H.P. Benton became secretary.
Other original stock holders were Stellman Davis, W.W.Crandall, J.J. Hill, Frank Lee, Roswell L. Cobb, Robert M. Bundy \, Samuel Ford and William Hunt. The park was located ½ mile west of the village on what is now known as the Lynch Farm.
On Sundays and holidays the locals would hook up their buggies and drive around the track.
In March of 1882 a James Wallace Richardson from Richburg purchased this property situated southwest of the village on the road to Wellsville, from an unknown and moved to Andover. We believe that Mr. Richardson was the person who built the house that now stands there.
In 1884 Mr. Richardson purchased some land from a Stellman Davis and built a large dairy barn.
In 1885 Mr. Richardson purchased more land from a Lewis Dunning.
In 1887 Mr. Richardson purchased more land from a Stephen Robison.
In 1901 the driving park was turned into a race track, with many races being held there and also on the track in Elm Valley, located on the corner of the Alfred Elm Valley Road and the Andover Wellsville Road.
Among the horse fanciers who owned and drove the animals “in the money” were John Lever, Benjamin Conley, and E.L. Early, James Raplee, John DeRemer, John Cocoman and Ernie Stearns.
It is unknown as to when these race tracks closed down.
If you get in the right spot, you can still see the outline of the tracks.
In 1909 Mr. James W. Richardson and wife Mary sold their farm to Charles C. Lynch. This was all because of health problems. He was also part owner of the “Porter and Richardson Hardware” which was located on Main Street where the post office is now located.
According to Mr. Richardson’s Obit. In the Andover News, Dated Oct. 22, 1909, Mr. Richardson sold his farm to Charles C. Lynch in Sept. 1908 and purchased a home on Greenwood St.
Charles C. and Catherine raised their family of 5 daughters and four boys on the farm. Charles passed away on June 22, 1953 after 44yrs.of farming. His wife Catherine passed away on April 21, 1978.
Norbert Lynch and Frank McCormick husband of Aquinas Lynch McCormick then took over the farm and continued to keep it up to its high standards.
On January 19th 1983 on an 18 below zero night, the cow barn burnt to the ground. Many fire departments from Allegany County and Steuben Co. assisted at the fire. This was pretty much the end of the farming business for the Lynch family.
The last Lynch family members to farm there were Shawn, Terry and Jamie McCormick. They all grew up on that farm and like all farm sons, labored many hours in the fields and in the barn.
Terry and his family have returned from Las Vegas to live on the family homestead.
Andover was a dairy town. There were dairy farms on just about every road in the town. Today there are none. The two milk plants closed years ago. Andover today isn’t anything like it used to be.
I miss the old Andover.
