Verne Morton

Verne Morton's photos of Locke, NY are provided courtesy of the DeWitt Historical Society of Tompkins County, Ithaca, New York, from the Verne Morton Collection and are used with permission.

Verne Morton was born in 1868, at Groton, N.Y. He took many photos of rural life throughout his life until he died in 1945. Most of his pictures of Locke are not dated, but it is believed they were taken on the same day in 1907 when the Methodist Episcopal Church had a bell installed. The church was destroyed in the 1912 Locke fire and the bell was said to have rung for five years.

J. Arthur Jones

J. Arthur Jones was the publisher and editor-in-chief of The Locke Courier, an eight-page newspaper that reported both local and national news to the residents of Locke. The newspaper ran from 1907 to 1915.

His photos, dated 1915-1917, show that the small town has recovered from the devastating fire of 1912. The handwritten notes on the photos, apparently written by Mr. Jones, serve as the description of each photo.

Miscellaneous Photos