Baker Spring Mystery (Part 2)
by Terry Berkson |
Proctor’s trough followed the first one built back in 1889 by Norman Rose Baker, the landowner, and his neighbor, Henry Schwartz. According to the Richfield Springs Mercury, it was a dry year and Baker needed the water that he also offered to the public. In 1933, Ben Bibik, of Schuyler Lake, now deceased, helped mix the cement to build a larger concrete trough that would allow a milk-can to be dipped, making more water available faster. Where the Proctor trough was stored for 13 years is not clear, but in 1946, it was taken to the Farmer’s Museum in Cooperstown by Louis Whipple, who owned the farm next to the Bakers and had a construction business that afforded him the equipment to move the six-ton trough. It remains on display in front of the museum’s creamery. After decades of use, the Bibik trough began to leak and a ribbed, galvanized metal tub was installed inside. About 25 years ago, a state road crew removed the concrete and metal troughs and installed a smaller fixture made from a cylindrical tile that stood until the spring was dismantled and closed to the public. The facility was supposedly shut down due to bacterial contamination, but some people who would rather remain anonymous think that the kind of bacteria found in the spring was “unusual” given its location. To follow their line of reasoning, a spring that has been operating for well over 100 years might suffer temporary contamination but is likely to bounce back. They feel a current test of the water would support this line of reasoning. In fact, water from the spring is still being used by the camps across the road but has been rendered unavailable to the public. To sum up suspicions, the closing of the spring was applauded by those who live near it and were bothered by people stopping off at all hours of the day and night to fill their water jugs. But, in light of the recent flooding and pollution, and the fact that people now have to drive to the supermarket to buy bottled water, a clean spring would be a godsend. It seems that the spring, which was originally given to the people by Baker, due to some kind of foul play, has been taken away by the state. The inscription on the Proctor trough at the Farmer’s Museum comes to mind. With a slight adjustment, it might now read, A MERCIFUL MAN WILL BE MERCIFUL TO HIS NEIGHBOR.”
|
|