Note 013 — Chapter I

Olean is situated at the head of navigation of the Allegheny, at the mouth of Olean Creek, in Cattaraugus County, New York. The first settlers came prior to 1805. It was the southern terminus of the Genesee Valley canal (begun in 1836), until in the fifties when that waterway was extended to the Pennsylvania line. The growth of Olean has been rapid since the inception of the oil industry; it now being one of the most important storage and shipping points in the oil fields.—Ed.