Allen/Schneider House

35 Catawba Street

Syracuse, New York

Significance

While this house has been severely changed, it may be the oldest home owned by an African American family still standing in the City of Syracuse. The Francis and Jane Allen family was one of the earliest families to settle on Syracuse’s north side, and they remained part of the community for at least two generations. One member of this family, Harrison, was indicted for his part in the rescue of William “Jerry” Henry. Frank Allen, perhaps a cousin, was also involved. Finally, Thomas Snyder, Jane Allen’s second husband, may have been a freedom seeker himself.

Biography

Francis Allen was listed in the 1830 and 1840 censuses as a head of household of free colored citizens in the Town of Salina (now part of Syracuse). This makes him one of only a few African Americans identified as living in Syracuse in the 1820s. The 1851 city directory listed Francis Allen, a whitewasher, living at this house at 35 Catawba Street.

By 1850, at least five Allen families lived in Syracuse, including that of Francis and Jane Allen, both of whom listed their ages as fifty and their birthplaces as New York.  Five others lived in this household, probably children of Francis and Jane: Elna? Jane, aged 28; Harison, aged 18; Thomas, aged 14; James, aged 10; and Sarah C., aged 7. Francis listed his occupation as “all work.”

Another Francis Allen, this one called Francis H. Allen, also lived in the Second Ward. Aged 19, he was the son of Jane, aged  50, and Isaac?, aged 54. Nine others lived in this household, all with the last name of Allen: Namez?, aged 35; Elisa, aged; 28; James H., aged 28; Henry, aged 26; Rachel, aged 22; Thomas, aged 15; Sarah C., aged 6; and William?, aged 5.  All males aged 15 and older listed their occupations and laborers, and all members of the household listed their birthplaces as New York. We do not know whether these two Allen families were related to each other or to the other Allen families in Syracuse, but we might suppose that they were.

The Syracuse Standard noted on May 23, 1850, that Francis Allen, a colored man, was confined to the watch house for intoxication and disorderly conduct and then discharged. (Clark) We do not know which Francis Allen this was.

In 1851, Harrison Allen, aged 18 and son of Francis, was indicted for his part in the rescue of William “Jerry” Henry.  Frank Allen, a barber, was also involved. Frank and Harrison Allen may have been cousins.

While Frank Allen’s obituary noted that he was twenty-seven at the time of the Jerry Henry rescue and that he had been a barber in Fayetteville since before slavery was abolished, he was most likely the Francis H. Allen who lived in Syracuse in the 1850s. By 1855, Francis H. Allen, aged 23, lived as a barber in the Second Ward in a wood house valued at $1800. Francis H. Allen, hair dresser, was listed with an address at the Beard Hotel in Fayetteville in the Fayetteville business directory of 1868-69. In 1870, he was noted as a Fayetteville resident in an article on the Fifteenth Amendment celebration. (Journal, May 31, 1870, OHA 1870s files)

According to his obituary, Frank Allen died in Fayetteville in 1908, aged 84. He was the last survivor of the Jerry Rescue and had been an active participant in the “Underground Railway.”  (Post-Standard, February 10, 1908, noted in Clark, 1)

In 1853, Harrison Allen, son of Francis, received land from Gerrit Smith.

Francis Allen the elder seems to have died sometime between 1851 and 1855, for the census did not list his name in that year, and the 1855 tax assessment noted that taxes of $200 on a house and lot at 35 Catawba (Block 133, lot 5) were paid by the estate of Francis Allen.

By 1860, Francis’ widow, Jane, had remarried. Her new husband was Thomas Snyder (or Schneider). City directories did not list Thomas Schneider in Syracuse in 1850, but he appeared in the 1860 census as a 58-year-old laborer, born in New York. Jane Schneider, his wife, was 60, also born in New York. They lived with five children, probably Jane and Francis’s children: Thomas, aged, 22; Sarana Luisa, aged 18; James, aged 17; Sarah, aged 13; and Maria Luisa, aged 13. . (By 1860, many Germans had come to Syracuse, and census takers frequently reflected a German pronunciation.)

The 1865 census listed Jane and Thomas Snyder living with most of Jane’s adult children.  There were seven people in the household: Thomas Snyder, aged 62, birthplace not known, laborer; Jane Snyder, aged 65, born in Montgomery County, New York; Thomas F. Allen, aged 27; James Allen, aged 22; Sara C. Allen, aged 19; Susan C. Allen, aged 22; and Alsa G. Allen, aged 19. Because Thomas did not reveal his birthplace here (unlike his assertion in 1860 that he was born in New York State), he may have been a freedom seeker who chose to settle in Syracuse.

The family continued to live Francis and Jane Allen’s home. Assessments in 1860 did not include Thomas Schneider’s name. Instead, they note that the house is taxed through the “estate of Francis Allen.” City directories in 1862 and 1868 listed Thomas Schneider, a whitewasher, living at 35 Catawba Street.

Thomas Snyder became a trustee of AME Zion Church in 1862. (city directory)

Site

This house stands on its original site on Block 133 on Catawba Street between Townsend and Lodi. Historically as well as in the present, the building seems to have shared a party wall with the house facing Townsend Street. While this building has been considerably altered since its historic period, the façade shows some evidence that it once was a three bay house with the door on the façade’s left side.

Sources

Assessments

Bigelow, Bruce.

Censuses, 1850, 1855, 1860

City directories

Clark, Sylvester. “Early Black Syracusans.” Onondaga Historical Association.

Deeds

Insurance maps

Journal, May 31, 1870, OHA 1870s files.

Newman, Charles, "Memories of Fayetteville," c. 1940, courtesy of the

Fayetteville Free Library, on the web.

Future Research

Further work in deeds, assessments, and physical analysis will likely reveal a basic building chronology. While Francis Allen seemed to be paying taxes on this house, no deed has yet been found in his name or in Jane Allen’s name or Thomas Schneider’s name  Further research in census materials may also help define a fuller history of this family.