Historic Schoen Place

Historic Schoen Place. . Through much of Pittsford's history, farming and agriculture related businesses dominated the local economy. The completion of the Erie Canal in 1824 led to a local commercial boom including the construction of wharves and warehouses along the village's south canal bank. The 1834 arrival of the Rochester and Auburn railroad line and the re-alignments of the canal in the 1850s and again after 1910 resulted in the gradual relocation of most village industries to Schoen Place along the canal's north bank. The renewed interest in the canal that began in the 1970s resulted in the conversion of the old mills, barns and silos into the shops and restaurants existing today. , The barns, sheds, and homes at the west end of Schoen Place were built in the 1870s to house the H.H. Cronk Lumberyard. In the 1880s, the Schoen Brothers bought the complex and began selling farm supplies and drying friut from local arms. In the early twentieth century they began selling coal to residential and commercial customers as well as canal tugboats. The large concrete and steel tower was built in the early 1920s to store coal in elevated bins and load trucks by gravity. , The Pittsford Flour Mill is one of Pittsford's most visible and well-known landmarks. Flour milling was conducted in Pittsford for nearly 150 years. The first mill was built about 1830 near the site of the current building. , The current structure was built in 1882. The mill was enlarged and a warehouse and silos added in the early twentieth century. The 130-foot-tall grain elevator dates from 1937. In 1953, Ted Zornow converted the complex for use as part of his grain and bean wholesale business which continued until 1996. The mill and silo were rehabilitated for office use between 2005 and 2009.