Irving Skeele (1866-1946) was the second generation of Skeele house and barn builders in southern Onondaga County. Irving kept detailed diaries starting in 1893 through 1946, up till 22 weeks before his death. His diaries contain many facts about the buildings that he contracted, his discussions on pricing, layout and wages that were paid to his workers along with his comments about local activities, transportation, especially his using the railroad for transport of materials. His father, Duane Skeele (1833-1911) was the first generation in the family building houses & barns, and worked alongside Irving until his death. The Skeele family built many barns and fine homes in Apulia, Apulia Station, Fabius, Truxton, and Tully, NY.
Scope of Project:
- Digitize and upload all diaries.
- Diaries from 1893-1902 have been transcribed by Nancy Skeele Edwards. It is our hope to type these transcribed years and have them reviewed by J. Roy Dodge (local historian southern Onondaga County), Randy Nash (expert barn construction specialist) and Bill & Joanne Casey (holders of much knowledge of local history and holders of many historical photos and book publishers).
- Publish and post online a collection of the transcribed diaries, Roy’s, Randy’s, and the Casey comments along with photos of the houses and barns constructed.
The project is now supported by a 2024 Access & Digitization Grant from Central NY Library Resources Council (CLRC). A draft of the book cover and introduction are available here. You can also access originals of the Skeele diaries on Dropbox (listed by year).
Future projects would be to utilize AI to help transcribe later years of Irving’s diaries.
Fabius Historical Society 