The following stores were checked and found to be in compliance:

Nice and Easy-Mill Pond Way, McConnellsville-no arrests

Sylvan Spirits, Main St. Sylvan Beach- no arrest

Fast Trak, 24 Main St. Camden-no arrests

Country Store, 15 Oswego Rd Camden-no arrests

Stewarts, 3 Harden Blvd. Camden-no arrests

P&C, State Route 13 Camden-no arrests

Nice and Easy, State Route 69 Taberg-no arrests

Nice and Easy, 8727 Turin Rd Rome-no arrests

The beach front in the Village of Sylvan Beach was also checked by the undercover Trooper and no underage drinking was observed.

“We are thrilled to be a very small part of a very big movie,” said Mike Bova, publisher of M3P Media, LLC.

According to promoters, the film stars mixed martial arts fighter Gina Carano as Mallory Kane, a young, tough, beautiful freelance covert operative. She is hired out by her handler, Kenneth, to various global entities to perform jobs that governments can’t authorize and heads of state would rather not know about. For all her looks and youth, Mallory is still the best in her field, and her skills are in constant demand.

After a mission to rescue a hostage in Barcelona, Kenneth quickly dispatches Mallory on another mission to Dublin. There she partners with another operative, the suave and debonair Paul. When the operation goes awry and Mallory finds she has been double-crossed, she needs to use all of her skills, tricks and abilities to escape an international manhunt, make it back to the United States, protect her family and exact revenge on those that have betrayed her.

According to information on IMDb.com, producers have signed actors Michael Douglas, Antonio Banderas, Ewen McGregor and Channing Tatum, to name a few.

Knockout, which is filming now, is being directed by Steven Soderbergh, who also directed “Erin Brockovich” and “Ocean’s Eleven.”

The movie is expected to be released sometime next year.

“This was a community-wide effort, and we want everyone to come and celebrate this remarkable achievement with us,” said John Hobika, Jr., the 2009 Campaign Chair.

The event kicks off at 5:00PM and includes great food, lots of recognition, music from Monk Rowe, and a special performance by Danceworks.

The event is open to the entire public and attendees can call 733-4691 ext 223 for reservations. The cost is $15 and can be paid at the door

This postcard from 1913 applied name is “Loading up at the Gravel Pit in McConnellsville.”  The oxen on the left belonged to Oscar Dibble. Pictured facing them and the horse and carriage to the far right belonged to James Peacock, then superintendent of highways for the Town of Vienna.

Caption: When this map was printed in 1869 the hard working citizens of Durhamville had used the power of water and the advantages of a railroad to achieve a considerable population of about 1,000.

Through investigation I think we can surmise why folks chose to settle this area in that vast unsettled virgin forest which spread across up state New York in the early 1800s. Land that would produce good crops was important so was the lumber to build homes and use as fuel, but without a doubt the most important resource was water. Good clean fresh water to nourish the land and the people; a source of food, it also provided the power to move mill stones and to turn the saws that produced tons of lumber.

In 1865 Charles Harden Jr. bought a saw mill from John Halstead. It was located on Fish Creek in McConnellsville and from that small beginning a business grew that has supported a community for many years.

A natural harbor on the northeast shore of Oneida Lake, spurred the growth of North Bay; boat building was one of the earliest businesses. In the early 1920s Harley Phelps harnessed the water power of Murray Brook to provide the hamlet with electricity.

The sandy beaches and shallow blue waters on the northeast end of Oneida Lake provided the population with a wonderland of relaxation apply named Sylvan Beach. Folks still enjoy the attractions this busy little village provides to the public.

Is it any wonder then that a water conveyance known as the Erie Canal would have such an effect on one of our neighbors? Durhamville is a dear little village near Oneida; Brandy Brook runs leisurely through the center of town.

The first settler in the area, Eliphalet Frazee, cleared a piece of land In 1811 and built a log cabin, Edber Durham built his cabin in 1826 and it is for him the village is named. 

Durham bought surplus water from the Erie Canal, created in 1817 and later upgraded in 1825; this provided Durhamville with the stuff to build a village. Water allowed the growth of a village that through the years supported a grist mill, two saw mills, a tannery, an iron foundry, a blind and sash factory, two blacksmith shops, a wagon shop, glass and pipe factories, a dry dock for building canal boats, taverns, three warehouses and nine grocery stores. The village contained four churches, Baptist, Presbyterian, Methodist and German Catholic. The Erie Canal and later the Midland Railroad provided excellent transportation for commerce as well as for the public and by 1869 there were about 1,000 folks living in Durhamville.

If you want to know more I invite you to join me on August 16, 2009 for the annual Durhamville Day celebration. As part of the festivities the Durhamville School will hold their reunion and everyone is invited to visit the original school house on Church Street, during the afternoon open house.

The Durhamville Volunteer Fire Department will be serving their delicious BBQ chicken at the firehouse starting at noon and there will be many activities guaranteed to fill your afternoon with pleasant memories. If you would like more information, contact Louis Best at 363-4631 or by email at jerrylouis36@verizon.net .  I hope to see you there.

Have a good week and God bless. ©

The Murray Brook Frog is written by Brandyann Phelps, author and Historian of the Town of Vienna.