Early settlers from the Curtiss family cleared and laid down the roads from Ransomville to Youngstown to the West (NY 93), along the ridge to the South (NY 104) and Lake Ontario to the North (CR 17). In 1876, The Rome, Watertown and Ogdensburg Railroad took over the Lake Ontario Shore Railroad and extended track, connecting Ransomville with Lewiston to the West and Syracuse to the East. This was later incorporated into the New York Central Railroad. A year later, Gilbert Curtiss built the Excelsior Elevator across from the rail depot. The Curtiss' agricultural business would grow to include a poultry farm that was considered the largest in the nation by the early 20th century.