Hitching Posts

Hitching posts were the parking spaces of the pre-automobile era, and Albion and the 14411 zip code still has many of them, perhaps more of these historic relics from the horse-and-buggy era than anywhere else. , We have about 40 of the hitching posts in Albion and Gaines. Many are by the side of the road in front of cobblestone and other historic homes in the community. , We also have an impressive collection of carriage steps and mounting blocks that were used to climb in and out of the horse-drawn carriages and sleighs. Many of these blocks bear the names of prominent families from the 1800s. , Albion and Gaines benefitted from a superior building material Medina Sandstone. The stone was an abundant resource locally, and skilled stone cutters turned many of these hitching posts into works of art. , The Albion community grew quickly after the Erie Canal opened in 1825. The downtown district emerged and livery stables, blacksmith shops, hitching posts and watering troughs lined Main Street. , [picture captions] , A hitching post stands in front of a cobblestone home on Zig Zag Road in Albion. , The mounting block 1878 was moved from a torn-down house on East State Street next to the Free Methodist Church to this spot. The hitching posts are former property markers. Residents donated money to have rings made and attached to four hitching posts that were added to the downtown in 2014. , There are several hitching posts at the Cobblestone Society Museum, including this one in front of the harness shop just south of the intersection of routes 98 and 104. , A carriage step remains on East State Street in front of one of the many historic homes in the community. , Panel design by Lake Country Pennysaver. Photos and text by Tom Rivers. C.W. Lattin, consultant.