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Natural Dam

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Just west of Gouverneur on NY 58, there is a hamlet named Natural Dam.

County: St. Lawrence
Town: Gouverneur
USGS Map: Natural Dam
Waterway: Oswegatchie River
Latitude: N 44° 20' 03.38"
Longitude: W 75° 30' 15.50"
Drop: NA
Type: Dam
Region: East of Gouverneur
Parking: NA
Trail type: NA
Length of hike: NA
Difficulty: NA
Accessibility: Private - Mill
Name: Common

Eagle Bay Quadrangle

We would like to extend our thanks to Joe Laurenza, long-time Gouverneur area resident and educator, who is now Curator of the Gouverneur Museum.  Conversations with him have confirmed that there was indeed, once a waterfall at this location. 

He has provided us with the following account.  In 1805 when the first settlers came here the thought was to have the original settlement at Natural Dam, probably because of the natural dam and falls there. Gouverneur Morris had his home built there for that reason. He never lived here, only visited two or three times. His land agents lived in the house. The early settlers decided that the settlement should be where the present village is and moved. A sawmill and flour mill were erected in Natural Dam in 1808, and there has been some type of mill there for over 200 years. His house still stands in very poor condition and is abandoned at this time I believe. We have no early photos of Natural Dam except of the house.

There is still a waterfall below the dam.  Property on the south side of the river is private so it appears that the only way to actually see the waterfall is to access it through the mill property.  We are working on that possibility.

If anyone has any information or pictures of this area, please contact us.

The Oswegatchie River flows to the St. Lawrence River in Ogdensburg.

Last update:  June 7, 2016

Hover on any of the thumbnails to see an enlarged image

Natural Dam

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