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1570367 


GENEAL-OCY 


.L.:ZCTION 


N.TY  PUBLIC  LIBRARY 


1833  02248  3439 


William  Stewabd. 


GOULDTOWN 


A  VERY  REMARKABLE  SETTLEMENT  OF 
ANCIENT  DATE 


STUDIES  OF  SOME  STURDY  EXAMPLES 
OF  THE  SIMPLE  LIFE,  TOGETHER  WITH 
SKETCHES  OF  EARLY  COLONIAL  HIS- 
TORY OF  CUMBERLAND  COUNTY  AND 
SOUTHERN  NEW  JERSEY  AND  SOME 
EARLY  GENEALOGICAL   RECORDS 


BY 

WILLIAM  STEWARD,  A.M., 

AUTHOR  OF  "JOHN  BLTE,"   "  CBIP,"  "tHECHILD  OF  THE  AU^ET,' 
"WAt/TEB  GORDON,"    AND  OTHER  STORIES 

AND 

Rev.  THEOPHILUS  G.  STEWARD,  D.D., 

Chaplain  U.  S.  Army,  Retired 

AUTHOR  OF  "genesis  REREAD,"   AND   OTHER  BOOKS 

^^H.HoXy  PRESS  OF 

G-  73  ^    J.  B.  LIPPINCOTT  COMPANY 

PHILADELPHIA 
1913 


COPYRIGHT,    1913 

BY    WILLIAM    AND    T.    G.    STEWARD 


1570367 


FOREWORD 


It  has  long  been  in  mind  to  prepare  and  put  in  book 
form  the  oral  traditions,  as  well  as  such  authenticated 
facts,  as  could  be  collected  from  records  and  pubhc 
documents  of  the  remarkable  settlement  of  people  of 
color,  which  has  here  been  attempted. 

The  study  of  the  three  original  families  herem  set 
forth  in  this  county  (Cumberland)  and  a  fourth  famUy 
connected  to  a  degree  with  them,  of  Salem  county 
origin,  is  a  subject  of  some  interest.  That  it  is  of  more 
than  local  interest  has  been  shown  by  lengthy  newspaper 
articles  in  many  metropolitan  journals  durmg  the  last 

thirty  years.  ,  -  i  •  ^    •    i 

The  settlement  was  made  the  subject  of  historical 
allusion  more  than  three-quarters  of  a  century  ago ;  and 
while  many  of  those  periodical  articles  have  been  based 
upon  very  insufficient  information,  the  writers  havmg 
been  attracted  to  the  subject  by  the  historical  allusions 
above  referred  to,  they  have  been  of  a  character  in- 
dicating estimation.  j  i.-  i.    • 

To  preserve  these  traditions,  records,  and  histories 
as  weU  as  some  of  more  enlarged  interest,  is  the  object 
here  had  in  view.  W.  and  T.  G.  S. 


CONTENTS 

CHAPTEE  PAGE 

I.  Gouldtown:  Its  Tradition;  Its  People;  Its  Gen- 
eral History 9 

II.  Fenwick;    English    History;    His    Sailing    and 

Landing;  His  Colony 20 

III.  Fenwick    Colony;    Land    Grants    and    Primary 

Government 35 

IV.  Copies  of  Very  Ancient  Parchment  Deeds  in 

Possession  of  a  Bridgeton  Attorney 43 

V.  Gould  Traditions;  Evidences;  Descent;  Benja- 
min Gould's  Will 49 

VI.  The  Early  Goulds  and  their  Associations;  the 
Pierces  and  Murrays;  the  Three  Foundation 
FaiMILies 57 

VII.  Origin  of  the  Pierce,  Murray  and  Cuff  Families    62 

VIII.  Importance  of  Genealogical  Research;  Some  of 
the  Original  Family  Genealogies  of  Salem 
AND  Cumberland  Counties;  Compilation  of 
Thomas  Shourds 67 

IX.  Rural    Sociological    Examples,    Suggested    in 

THIS  Life  of  Simplicity 81 

X.  Gould  Genealogies;  Probability  of  Origin  of 

Name  of  Settlement 88 

XI.  The  Cuffs  of  Salem;  their  Probable  Origin; 
THEIR  Ultimate  Connection  with  the  Gould, 
Pierce,  and  Murray  Families 113 

XII.  Genealogical  Sketch  of  John  Murray's  and 
David  Murray's  Families  and  Some  of  the 
Pierce  Connections 118 

XIII.  Family   Eugenics   and    Longevity;    the    Gould, 

Pierce  and  Murray  Estates 133 

5 


6  CONTENTS 

XIV.  Organization  of  the  Church;  Early  Religious 

Affiliations  of  the  People 140 

XV.  The  People's  Patriotism;  Ready  to  Bear  Arms 

for  the  Country 154 

XVI.  Social  Life;  Some  Typical  Social  Events;  Two 

Golden  Weddings;  a  Social  Study 157 

XVII.  Educational  Facilities  of  the  Neighborhood..   170 

XVIII.  Some  Literary  Efforts  of  Gouldtown  Youth 

Thirty  and  Fifty  Years  Ago 180 

XIX.  A  Story  in  Blank  Verse 193 

XX.  Some  Present  Real  Estate  Possessions  of  the 

Inhabitants  of  Gouldtown 211 

Index 223 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

PAGE 

William  Steward Frontispiece 

The  Village  of  Gouldtown 10 

Lummis-Gouldtown  School  House 14 

Bishop  Benjamin  F.  Lee 18 

Judge  Lucius  Q.  C.  Elmer 50 

Old  Stone  Church,  Fairfield 84 

Tamson  Cuff 90 

Abijah  Gould 90 

Mrs.  Lydia  Sheppard 92 

James  Steward 94 

Mrs.  Rebecca  Steward 94 

Anthony  Gould 96 

Mrs.  Sarah  Gould 100 

Mrs.  Hannah  Gould 104 

Mrs.  Sarah  Dunn  Pierce 108 

Jonathan  Freeman  Pierce 122 

Holmes  Pierce 122 

Mrs.  EUzabeth  Stewart 126 

Gouldtown  Graveyard 136 

Rev.  Ethan  Osborn 140 

Miss  Prudence  F.  Gould 140 

Gouldtown  A.  M.  E.  Church 146 

Jonathan  Gould 146 

Rev.  T.  Gould 150 

Group  at  Gould  Family  Reunion 158 

Steward  Family 158 

Rev.  T.  G.  Steward 162 

Mrs.  William  Steward 166 

Jacob  Wright  and  Wife 166 

Absalom  Wilson 172 

Gouldtown  School  House 172 

Bentley  W.  Rogers 176 

Horace  Bishop 176 

A  Gouldtown  Woman  and  Her  Driving  Horse 214 

Cottage  of  Stephen  S.  Steward 214 


GOULDTOWN 

A    VERY    REMARKABLE    SET- 
TLEMENT OF  ANCIENT  DATE 

CHAPTER  I. 

GOULDTOWN;   ITS   TRADITION;    ITS   PEOPLE;   ITS   GENERAL 

HISTORY. 

In  Judge  Lucius  Q.  C.  Elmer's  history  of  Cumber- 
land County,  New  Jersey,  written  in  1865,  occurs  this 
statement : 

"  Gouldtown — partly  in  the  Northern  part  of  Fair- 
field, and  partly  in  Bridgeton  Townships — although 
never  more  than  a  settlement  of  mulattoes,  principally 
bearing  the  names  of  Gould  and  Pierce,  scattered  over 
a  considerable  territory,  is  of  quite  ancient  date.  The 
tradition  is  that  they  are  descendants  of  Fenwick." 

Judge  Elmer,  a  distinguished  Supreme  Court  Jurist 
of  New  Jersey,  was  the  son  of  General  Ebenezer  Elmer, 
who  was  an  officer  in  the  Revolutionary  Army,  first  as  an 
ensign,  and  shortly  after  as  lieutenant  in  a  company,  and 
later,  being  a  physician,  serving  as  a  surgeon ;  he  served, 
in  all,  during  the  war  of  the  Revolution,  a  period  of 
seven  years  and  eight  months.  In  1814,  he  commanded 
a  brigade  of  militia  called  out  for  the  defence  of  Phila- 
delphia against  the  British,  and  was  ever  after  that 
known  as  General  Elmer.  Judge  Elmer  was  born  soon 
after  the  close  of  the  Revolution  in  1793,  and  had  ample 


10  GOULDTOWN 

opportunity  and  ability  for  research  in  his  native  county. 
He  died  in  1883. 

Much  interest  has  always  been  taken  in  the  com- 
munity of  Gouldtown  by  the  neighboring  communities, 
and  this  was  always  of  a  friendly  character;  in  early 
times  because  of  its  traditional  descent,  and  later  because 
of  the  ethnological  features  recognizable. 

General  Elmer  and  his  son  were  accustomed,  on 
Sunday  afternoons  to  meet  in  a  schoolhouse  and  cate- 
chize the  children  of  Gouldtown,  in  the  neighborhood, 
in  the  years  following  the  Revolution.  These  children 
and  youth  would  not  all  be  mulattoes  (the  term  "  mulat- 
toes  "  is  used  in  this  book  in  its  general  significance, 
applying  to  the  people  of  color  of  mixed  blood)  how- 
ever, for  in  the  conmiunity  were  pure  white  families 

as  for  instance  the  WoodruiFs,  the  Luptons,  the  Fullers, 
the  Seeleys,  and  the  Whites,  and  others;  traces  of  whom 
are  to  be  found  only  in  the  farms  they  left,  which  were 
known  by  their  names  as  the  "Fuller  Fields,"  the 
"  White  Fields,"  the  "  Jay  Fields  ";  the  names  remain- 
mg  a  century  or  more  after  their  owners  had  vanished. 
Only  one  of  these  names  has  been  perpetuated  in  a 
village,  and  that  of  recent  date  and  several  miles  distant 
from  the  original  location.  This  is  Woodruffs,  about 
three  or  four  miles  northward  from  Gouldtown.  It  is  a 
wealthy  farming  settlement  on  the  line  of  the  Central 
Railroad,  and  has  a  Methodist  Church  and  a  school- 
house  and  post-office. 

Gouldtown  is  comprised  in  two  sections— following 
the  two  family  names  of  Gould  and  Pierce,  which  were 
always  known  by  their  separate  names,  Gouldtown  and 
Piercetown,  but  both  known  comprehensively  as  Gould- 
town. It  is  remarkable  in  that  it  has  perpetuated  its 
family  name  in  its  locahty  for  nearly  two  hundred 
years ;  also  because  it  is  a  community  of  mulattoes  who. 


The  A'illage  of  Gouldtown.     Sketched  by  16-year-old  Gouldtown 
School  Girl. 


GENERAL  HISTORY  11 

contrary  to  the  pet  theory  of  some  astute  ethnological 
scientists,  have  perpetuated  themselves  generation  after 
generation  for  almost  two  centuries;  remarkable,  too, 
for  the  known  longevity  of  its  people,  who  do  not  begin 
to  grow  old,  as  is  often  said,  until  they  come  to  three- 
score years,  and  a  number  of  whom  have  reached  the 
century  mark,  one  of  whom  (Ebenezer  Pierce  Bishop) 
is  still  living,  at  this  writing,  who  is  one  hundred  and 
six  years  old,  and  one  of  whom  (Mrs.  Lydia  Gould 
Sheppard)  was  buried  in  the  year  nineteen  hundred 
and  eleven,  at  the  age  of  one  hundred  and  two,  in  the 
Gouldtown  Cemetery,  and  a  number  of  others  who  are 
still  living  at  ages  between  seventy  and  ninety-five 
years. 

Kellenberger's  Pocket  Gazetteer  of  New  Jersey 
says ;  "  Gouldtown — a  post  hamlet  in  Fairfield  Town- 
ship, Cumberland  County,  three  miles  southeast  of 
Bridgeton,  the  county  seat,  which  affords  the  nearest 
banking  and  shipping  facilities,  and  is  connected  by 
daily  stage  (now  by  trolley  cars).  Here  are  two 
churches  and  a  store.  Population  one  hundred  and 
fifty.'^ 

Formerly  it  had  a  post-office,  but,  since  the  opening 
of  a  trolley  line,  that  has  been  abolished  for  lack  of 
patronage,  and  its  first  postmaster,  Seneca  Bishop, 
whose  mother  was  a  Pierce,  was,  perhaps,  the  first 
colored  postmaster  in  this  country.  At  his  death 
Mordecai  C.  Pierce  was  made  postmaster;  he  was  suc- 
ceeded by  his  widow,  Mrs.  Anna  Gould  Pierce,  at  his 
death,  and  she  held  the  position  when  the  ofiice  was 
abolished. 

The  actual  village  is  situated  two  and  a  half  miles 
east  from  Bridgeton,  the  county  seat  of  the  County  of 
Cumberland,  but,  as  Judge  Elmer  states  in  his  history, 
it  is  "  scattered  over  a  considerable  territory,"  extending 


12  GOULDTOWN 

in  a  line  of  contiguous  properties  owned  by  the  Goulds 
and  Pierces  and  their  connections  from  the  farm  of 
William  C.  Gould  (inherited  from  his  father,  Furman 
Gould,  Jr.),  on  East  Avenue,  Bridgeton,  eastward  to 
the  farm  of  Stewart  Haines  Pierce  near  Carmel  (in- 
herited from  his  father,  Adrian  Pierce),  a  distance  of 
almost  seven  miles;  this  long  stretch  of  properties  ex- 
tends in  width  from  one  to  three  miles. 

Several  of  the  earlier  Goulds  and  Pierces  as  well  as 
Murrays  intermarried  with  whites,  and  members  of  their 
immediate  offspring  went  away  and  lost  their  identity, 
they  and  their  descendants  becoming  white ;  while,  from 
those  who  still  maintained  their  identity  as  people  of 
color,  there  have  come  many  who  have  reached  dis- 
tinction, and  in  whom  their  native  County  shows  merited 
pride,  as,  for  instance,  a  Methodist  bishop,  a  chaplain 
in  the  United  States  regular  army,  a  physician,  a 
lawyer,  a  distinguished  dentist,  teachers,  writers, 
journalists;  and  in  the  industrial  arts,  carpenters, 
masons,  blacksmiths,  wheelwrights,  painters,  carriage 
builders,  woolen  spinners  and  weavers;  brickmakers, 
machinists,  engineers,  electricians,  printers,  factory 
men,  sailors,  ministers  of  the  Gospel,  and  farmers;  in 
fact  none  of  its  sister  villages  has  produced — taking 
equality  of  environment — more  or  better  or  more  credit- 
able individualities  than  has  this  settlement. 

Surrounding  Bridgeton  and  from  one  to  seven  miles 
distant  are  the  post  towns  and  villages  of  Roadstown, 
Cohansey,  Shiloh,  Deerfield,  Carll's  Corner,  Wood- 
ruffs, Fairton,  Gouldtown  and  Bowentown,  the  two  last 
having  no  post-offices. 

The  Bridgeton  and  Millville  Traction  Company's 
trolley  line  passes  through  Gouldtown,  along  the  beauti- 
ful Bridgeton  and  Millville  Turnpike;  the  distance 
between  the  two  cities,  Bridgeton  and  Millville,  is  ten 


GENERAL  HISTORY  13 

miles, — Gouldtown  two  and  a  half  miles  from  the 
former  and  seven  and  a  half  miles  from  the  latter  city, 
with  hourly  car  traffic  connection  with  each.  The  settle- 
ment is  an  ancient  one,  the  inhabitants  tracing  their 
ancestry  back  to  earliest  colonial  times. 

The  commmiity  possesses  two  churches  situated 
about  a  mile  apart,  one  a  Methodist  Episcopal,  and  the 
other  an  African  Methodist  Episcopal;  the  latter  being 
in  the  village,  the  former  in  that  part  of  the  neighbor- 
hood now  called  Fordsville,  the  congregation  of  which 
is  dominated  by  the  Pierce  family,  while  the  Goulds  are 
the  dominating jTamily  in  the  African  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church. 

This  settlement,  comprising  all  the  families  and  both 
churches,  is  important  for  many  reasons  other  than 
those  before  enumerated.  That  it  does  not  abound  in 
wealth  and  culture  is  due  in  great  part  to  the  fixed 
habits  of  the  people  and  to  the  fact  that  they  have  been 
aU  these  years  domiciled  upon  poor,  timber-exhausted 
lands.  The  same  labor,  economy,  and  thrift  which  they 
have  practised  here,  employed  in  homes  upon  a  more 
productive  soil,  would  long  ago  have  placed  many  of 
the  industrious,  sober,  and  self-denying  families  of 
Gouldtown  in  circumstances  of  substantial  comfort,  if 
not  of  affluence.  They  are  not  as  slothful  and  back- 
ward farmers  as  one  might  presume  from  the  neglected 
appearance  of  too  many  of  their  homes  and  their  teams ; 
but  their  poor  land,  coupled  with  the  increased  cost  of 
living,  compels  them  to  give  their  attention  to  pressing 
necessities,  to  the  neglect  of  the  things  which  would  add 
to  appearances.  They  are  interested  in  agriculture, 
close  observers,  and  hard  workers;  and  considering  the 
conditions,  obtain  from  their  fields  fair  crops.  They 
have  estates  ranging  from  $1000  to  $15,000  or  $20,000. 

As  far  back  as  1860,  a  large  audience  assembled  to 


14  GOULDTOWN 

listen  to  a  well-prepared  paper  on  agriculture  delivered 
in  the  Gouldtown  schoolhouse  by  a  young  man  of  the 
neighborhood,  who  had  not  then  reached  his  majority. 
In  that  paper  he  cited  methods  of  cultivation  practised 
in  China;  dealt  with  the  pulverization  of  the  surface; 
descanted  upon  the  value  of  "  compost,"  and  spoke  of 
utilizing  mud  and  forest  leaves  as  fertilizing  agencies. 
A  half  century  ago  there  was  a  Moral  and  Mental 
Improvement  Society  in  Gouldtown,  and  it  was  from 
this  society's  library  that  the  youth  borrowed  and  read 
Dick's  Works  and  by  those  books  was  inducted  into 
the  primary  mysteries  of  natural  philosophy.  Many 
simple  experiments  were  made  by  the  boys  of  the  com- 
munity after  the  models  given  by  that  interesting  writer. 
This  library  contained  many  volumes  of  standard 
works. 

The  "  Saturday  Evening  Post  "  was  regularly  read 
by  the  principal  families,  as  were  also  some  of  the  early 
magazines.  Such  books  as  the  History  of  England; 
Burns'  Poems;  Pilgrim's  Progress;  Robinson  Crusoe; 
Josephus;  Plutarch's  Lives,  Milton,  and  Shakespeare, 
were  among  those  owned  and  read  by  the  families. 
Perhaps  few  books  were  more  highly  prized  by  the 
devout  than  Baxter's  "  Saints'  Rest " ;  but  works  of 
fiction  were  eagerly  read  and,  we  might  say,  studied,  by 
many  inhabitants  of  Gouldtown  two  and  three  genera- 
tions ago.  In  my  early  childhood  I  heard  the  "  Last 
Days  of  Pompeii "  discussed  by  women  of  Gouldtown. 
Had  they  possessed  the  means  and  received  the  en- 
couragement, several  persons  of  the  community  would 
have  made  commendable  progress  in  literature.  Despite 
their  surroundings,  the  generations  that  have  passed 
away  contained  within  them  several  who  could  be 
classed  as  well-read. 

The  principal  institutions  outside  of  the  family  were, 


Lummis-Gouldtown  School  House. 


GENERAL  HISTORY  15 

and  are  still,  the  school  and  the  church.  Up  to  1860 
these  both  occupied  the  same  building,  the  circuit 
preacher  getting  around  once  every  three  or  four  weeks. 
In  the  interval  the  pulpit  was  supplied  by  local 
preachers,  among  whom  was  "  Uncle  Furman  Gould," 
the  first  preacher  of  any  kind  known  among  the  Goulds. 
The  preaching,  both  of  the  circuit  preacher  and  of  the 
local  preacher,  occupied  itself  exclusively  with  the 
eternal  themes  of  "  fleeing  the  wrath  to  come,"  and 
securing  a  home  in  heaven.  The  hardships  of  poverty, 
and  homes  on  earth,  had  no  place  in  their  sermons. 
They  had  no  lessons  to  give  save  such  as  might  tend  to 
make  the  "  souls  "  of  their  hearers  "  prosper."  The 
preachers  as  such  had  nothing  to  contribute  to  aid  the 
people  in  making  their  homes  more  attractive  and  sani- 
tary, or  their  farms  more  productive. 

The  same  with  even  more  emphasis  could  be  said  of 
the  school.  The  Gouldtown  school  was  a  typical 
"  Districk "  school  with  its  own  Board  of  Trustees. 
These  trustees,  three  in  number,  with  very  little  knowl- 
edge of  school  books  or  methods,  hired  the  schoolmaster 
who,  without  examination  or  license,  started  in  on  the 
appointed  day  to  "  keep  scliool."  These  schoolmasters 
never  had  one  word  to  say  as  to  the  purpose  of  educa- 
tion, and  never  related  it,  except  in  "  ciphering,"  to 
anything  in  the  actual  lives  of  the  scholars.  They  were 
taught  to  spell,  to  read,  to  write,  and  to  cipher;  but  were 
taught  nothing  on  life,  conduct,  and  character — nothing 
that  might  aid  or  inspire  youth  to  advance  materially 
or  even  intellectually.  The  idea  of  the  general  improve- 
ment of  the  student  did  not  seem  to  be  present.  It  is 
painful  to  say,  but  nevertheless  true,  that  neither  the 
church  nor  the  school  as  they  existed  in  Gouldtown 
under  the  old  methods  contributed  anything  directly 
to  the  material  or  moral  growth  of  the  community. 


16  GOULDTOWN 

That  the  church  contributed  powerfully  indirectly,  by 
the  stress  it  put  upon  conscious  spiritual  life,  must  be 
admitted;  and  that  the  school  did  the  same  by  its  almost 
mechanical  methods  of  teaching  children  to  read  and 
write;  but  both  failed  to  enter  into,  to  improve  or 
brighten,  the  every-day  life  of  the  people  as  they  might 
have  done.  Nothing  that  either  taught  had  the  slightest 
bearing  upon  their  most  burning  question.  How  to 
wring  a  living  out  of  poor  land?  Their  actual  situation, 
crying  as  it  was,  called  forth  no  sympathetic  response 
from  either  church  or  school.  The  teachers  were  almost 
always  white  men,  and,  it  must  be  said,  did  their  best. 
Nevertheless,  the  people  have  held  on  to  their  land 
from  generation  to  generation;  have  bought  and  cleared 
land ;  reared  families  and  developed  character.  It  must 
be  said  also  that  much  of  the  land  held  by  the  Gould- 
towners  of  to-day  is  of  but  little  more  exchangeable 
value  than  it  was  fifty  years  ago,  though  more  pro- 
ductive now  than  it  was  then.  Thus,  instead  of  rising 
on  a  tide  of  general  increase  in  the  values  of  real  estate, 
their  fate,  through  no  fault  of  their  own,  has  been  just 
the  opposite.  Instead  of  an  unearned  increment  en- 
hancing their  holdings,  there  has  fallen  to  them  an  un- 
merited decrement,  taking  from  them  as  by  the  stealth 
of  night  the  modest  fortunes  they  had  acquired.  The 
changes  in  farming  and  living  which  have  come  over 
the  country  within  recent  years,  and  especially  the  de- 
velopment of  market  gardening,  and  market  farming  in 
the  South  with  the  cheap  and  abundant  facilities  for 
transportation,  have  very  seriously  affected  the  Jersey 
farmer.  He  has  had  to  make  the  most  thorough  re- 
adjustment of  both  means  and  ends.  In  the  early  days 
the  average  Gouldtown  farmer  had  but  the  one  end  in 
view,  namely,  to  produce  enough  from  his  farm  to  fur- 
nish food  for  his  family  and  provender  for  the  stock  that 


GENERAL  HISTORY  17 

he  kept.  He  managed  usually  to  have  tough  horses, 
and  fattened  his  hogs  well;  but  his  cattle  were  of  the 
comparatively  milkless  wandering  "  breachy  "  variety 
that  no  one  would  have  to-day.  The  corn,  wheat  and 
oats  from  his  farm  coupled  with  salt  hay  from  the  marsh, 
with  potatoes,  turnips  and  cabbage  and  a  little  clover 
hay ;  a  few  by-products,  with  a  fair  sowing  of  buckwheat 
and  rye,  furnished  rations  for  man  and  beast  and  fat- 
tened the  hogs  from  which  an  ample  supply  of  well- 
cured  hams,  pork  and  lard  was  made,  and,  with  many, 
a  fatted  beef  was  annually  killed  and  salted  down.  In 
some  cases,  wool  from  their  own  sheep  made  their  cloth- 
ing, and  rags  from  worn-out  clothes  were  woven  into 
the  carpets  that  covered  their  floors. 

Modernism  has  compelled  the  farmer  of  Gouldtown 
to  adopt  different  aims,  and  to  farm  for  the  market,  or 
rather  for  the  middleman  who  stands  in  the  market 
gate.  In  some  cases  he  raises  tomatoes  and  other  articles 
to  be  delivered  directly  to  the  canners  on  contract,  but 
often  his  goods  go  to  the  commission  man  for  whose 
labor  and  skill  the  farmer  pays  on  one  end,  and  the 
consumer  on  the  other.  Entering  the  markets  the 
Jerseyman  finds  liimself,  as  has  been  previously  inti- 
mated, in  the  presence  of  growers  from  the  South;  and 
their  cheaper  labor  and  earlier  seasons,  again  call  for 
readjustment  of  methods  so  that  his  goods  may  appeal 
to  customers  through  their  quality  and  appearance.  It 
is  to  the  credit  of  the  Jersey  farmer  that  it  can  be  said 
he  has  weathered  the  storm  and  has  not  been  crowded 
out  of  the  markets.  Jersey  products  and  poultry  hold 
the  highest  rank  in  our  great  Eastern  markets. 

The  people  of  Gouldtown,  especially  the  Goulds, 
have  never  been  very  ardent  lovers  of  money ;  they  have 
rather  placed  stress  upon  the  development  of  the  social 
and  spiritual  nature.    Despite  their  very  severe  condi- 

2 


18  GOULDTOWN 

tion  they  have  kept  up  from  earliest  times  those  customs 
of  social  enjoyment,  indoors  in  winter  and  outdoors  in 
summer,  which  have  made  them  famous  for  generous 
hospitality.  All  the  instruction  which  they  received  for 
generations  both  with  regard  to  the  work  of  their  fields 
and  the  manner  of  entertaining  guests,  was  that  which 
came  down  from  parent  to  child  by  oral  tradition, 
until  the  coming  in  of  modernism  with  its  Farm  and 
Home  Journals  and  the  like;  yet  they  have  maintained 
themselves  well  socially. 

Several  years  ago  in  the  city  of  Washington  an 
official  from  New  Jersey  in  a  public  speech  referred  to 
the  sterling  character  of  individuals  of  Gouldtown  and 
of  their  general  good  deportment.  "  I  can  remember 
well  when  a  schoolboy  there,  that  there  was  not  a  boy  in 
school  who  swore;  and  I  remember  noting  at  one  time 
there  was  not  a  child  in  school  who  could  not  read." 
[T.  G.  S.]  Few  inhabitants  of  Gouldtown  proper, 
from  earliest  times,  were  actually  illiterate,  although 
none  was  highly  educated.  The  following  quotation 
from  a  recent  Bridgeton  paper  will  show  in  what  light 
the  community  is  regarded  by  its  neighbors. 

GOULDTOWN  HONORED. 

There  is  no  section  of  our  County  more  highly  honored  than 
is  Gouldtown,  from  which  men  have  .gone  forth  to  become  widely 
known  and  honored. 

Bishop  Benjamin  F.  Lee  was  for  some  time,  before  he  was 
made  a  Bishop,  President  of  Wilberforce  University  at  Wilber- 
force,  Ohio,  of  which  he  is  now  a  member  of  the  Advisory 
Board.  He  is  a  man  of  solid  piety,  an  able  preacher  and  highly 
honored  by  all  who  know  him,  as  well  as  by  those  of  his  own 
church. 

Another  is  Theophilus  G.  Steward,  who,  for  many  years  was 
chaplain  of  the  United  States  Army  and  now  since  being  on  the 


^^^^^^^^^^^|^^^j^r]pP^|PBiPT\7^^^^^'j^^^^^| 

^^P%^ 

Bishop  Benjamin  F.  Lee. 


GENERAL  HISTORY 


19 


retired  list,  ably  fills  a  professorship  at  Wilberforce  University. 
He  is  a  preacher  of  far  more  than  ordinary  ability  and  able  to 
acceptably  fill  any  pulpit  in  the  land. 

Yet  another  is  Theodore  Grould,  who  is  a  member  of  the 
Philadelphia  Conference  of  his  church  and  for  several  years 
has  acceptably  filled  the  office  of  presiding  elder.  He  also  is  a 
man  of  noted  piety  and  of  much  ability  as  a  preacher. 

We  doubt  if  there  is  another  section  of  the  County  from 
which  three  more  highly  honored  and  useful  men  have  gone 
forth. 


CHAPTER  II. 

FEN  WICK  ;  ENGLISH  HISTORY ;  HIS  SAILING  AND  LANDING ; 

HIS  COLONY. 

The  restoration  of  the  Stuart  monarchy  in  1660,  was 
followed  by  the  war  with  the  Dutch  during  wliich  the 
King,  Charles  II,  granted  to  his  brother  James,  Duke 
of  York,  all  the  lands  the  Dutch  had  held  in  America. 
The  grant,  as  formally  stated,  included  a  large  portion 
of  the  Province  of  Maine,  and  the  country  from  the  west 
side  of  the  Connecticut  River  to  the  east  side  of  Dela- 
ware Bay.  This  grant  included  Martha's  Vineyard, 
Nantucket,  all  Long  Island  and  the  whole  of  the  terri- 
tory of  New  Netheiiand. 

The  next  month  after  the  grant  was  made  a  fleet  of 
four  ships,  with  a  force  of  three  or  four  hundred  men, 
under  the  command  of  Colonel  Richard  Nicolls,  as  the 
lieutenant-governor  of  the  Duke,  sailed  from  England. 
With  Nicolls  were  joined  as  commissioners  Sir  Robert 
Carr,  Sir  George  Cartwright  and  Samuel  Maverick, 
with  extraordinary  powers  for  settling  all  difficulties  in 
the  New  England  colonies,  as  well  as  to  take  possession 
of  the  Dutch  province  and  reduce  its  inhabitants  to 
obedience. 

No  sooner  was  the  province  fairly  in  English  hands  than 
new  names  were  given  to  different  portions,  its  boundaries  were 
as  far  as  possible  defined,  and  grants  of  land  were  made  to 
Englishmen.  That  region  lying  between  the  Hudson  and  the 
Delaware  was  named  Albania,  and  grants  and  purchases  were 
made  within  its  boundaries  from  Sandy  Hook  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Raritan,  and  from  the  Raritan  to  the  Achter  Cul,  now  Newark 
Bay.  But  before  Nicolls,  in  the  name  of  the  Duke  of  York, 
had  taken  possession  of  all  New  Netherland,  the  Duke,  in 
20 


FENWICK;  HIS  COLONY  21 

anticipation  of  that  event,  granted  in  June,  1664,  the  whole 
comitrj,  from  the  Hudson  to  the  Delaware  and  from  latitude 
41  °  40  '  to  Cape  May,  to  two  favorites  of  the  Court,  Lord 
Berkeley  and  Sir  George  Carteret. 

To  the  new  province  of  New  Cesarea,  the  name  of  New 
Jersey  was  given,  in  commemoration  of  Carteret's  defence  of  the 
Channel  Island  of  Jersey  against  the  forces  of  the  Common- 
wealth in  1649. 

Of  this  grant,  however,  Nicolls  knew  nothing  till  June, 
1665,  when  Captain  Philip  Carteret  arrived  as  Governor  of  the 
new  province.  There  was,  of  course,  no  alternative  but  to  re- 
ceive with  courtesy  one  coming  armed  with  such  credentials, 
though  Nicolls  represented  to  the  Duke  that  he  had  hastily 
given  away  the  fairest  portion  of  his  dominion. 

A  storm  had  driven  Carteret's  ship,  the  Pliilip,  into  Chesa- 
peake Bay,  but  in  July  she  arrived  at  New  York,  and  a  few- 
days  later  anchored  off  the  point  now  known  as  Elizabethport, 
New  Jersey,  and  landed  her  thirty  emigrants.  At  the  head  of 
these  people,  Carteret,  with  a  hoe  over  his  shoulder,  marched 
to  the  spot  he  had  chosen  for  a  settlement,  two  or  three  miles 
inland,  and  to  wliich  in  honor  of  the  Lady  Elizabeth,  the  wife 
of  Sir  George  Carteret,  he  gave  her  name.  He  found  at  the 
point  where  he  and  his  people  landed,  four  families  who  had 
taken  possession  of  lands  under  the  grant  wliich  had  been  made 
by  Nicolls.  The  newcomers  brought  with  them  the  title  of  a 
new  English  province,  and  though  more  than  one  settlement  had 
been  earher  made  by  the  Dutch  on  this  side  of  the  Bay  of  New 
York,  this  was  the  actual  beginning  of  the  State  of  New  Jersey 
at  Elizabeth. 

Four  years  before,  the  West  India  Company  had  discerned 
and  sought  to  take  advantage  of  the  discontent  and  apprehen- 
sion felt  by  so  many  of  the  English,  both  at  home  and  in  the 
colonies,  at  the  restoration  of  Charles  11.  The  directors  invited 
them  to  settle  on  the  Raritan,  or  in  its  neighborhood,  and  offered 
them  most  favorable  terms.  Three  of  the  magistrates  of  New 
Haven,  where  this  discontent  was  very  .general,  Matthew  Gilbert, 
the  Deputy  Governor,  Benjamin  Fenn,  and  Robert  Treat 
entered  into  negotiation  with  Stuyvesant  upon  the  subject,  on 


22  GOULDTOWN 

behalf  of  some  New  Haven  people,  and  found  no  difficulty  in 
getting  from  the  Dutch  Governor  the  promise  that  a  hearty 
welcome  would  be  given  and  religious  freedom  be  secured  to  any 
Puritan  Colony  that  should  plant  itself  within  the  Dutch  juris- 
diction. But  the  English  asked  also  for  political  independence, 
and  the  negotiations  were  suspended.  The  question  of  civil 
relations  Stuyvesant  felt  must  be  referred  to  his  superiors  at 
home. 

Even  that  concession,  he  was  instructed,  the  Directors  were 
disposed  to  make  to  almost  any,  provided  that  Dutch  su- 
premacy was  acknowledged  in  the  last  appeal.  The  New  Haven 
people  were  the  most  eager  to  set  up  anew  for  themselves  when 
the  Winthrop  charter  brought  them  within  the  jurisdiction  of 
Connecticut,  and  they  would,  perhaps,  had  there  been  time 
enough,  have  yielded  somewhat  in  their  demands.  But  while 
diplomacy  hesitated  events  made  no  halt.  Before  any  agree- 
ment could  be  reached  satisfactorjj^  to  both  parties,  New  Nether- 
land  ceased  to  be  a  Dutch  colony,  and  the  Duke  of  York  had 
granted  to  its  new  proprietors  the  whole  region  from  the 
Hudson  to  the  Delaware.^ 

The  land  gi-anted  by  the  Duke  of  York  to  Berkeley 
was  soon  after  sold  by  him  to  John  Fenwick,  who  in 
turn  was  obliged  to  part  with  nine-tenths  of  it  to  Wil- 
liam Penn,  Gauen  Laurie,  and  Nicholas  Lucas,  to 
satisfy  certain  serious  obligations,  leaving  for  himself 
but  one-tenth,  or  "  ten-hundredths,"  as  it  was  called. 
This  John  Fenwick  was  the  second  son  of  Sir  William 
Fenwick,  Baronet  of  Northumberland,  and  had  already 
attained  a  degree  of  celebrity.  The  story  of  his  life 
as  related  by  John  Clements  is  as  follows : 

He  was  second  son  of  Sir  William  Fenwick,  Baronet, 
who  represented  the  County  of  Northumberland  in  the 
last  Parliament  under  the  Conmionwealth  (1659),  and 
one  of  four  brothers,  Edward,  John,  Roger  and  Ralph. 

*  Scribner's  History  United  States,  vol.  ii,  page  320,  et  seq. 


FEN  WICK;  HIS  COLONY  23 

In  1640  Sir  William  had  his  residence  at  Stanton  Hill, 
of  Stanton  Manor,  in  the  parish  of  Horsely,  Cumber- 
land, where  he  had  considerable  landed  estate.  The 
mother,  Elizabeth,  was  perhaps  of  one  of  the  border 
families,  and  brought  to  her  husband  additional  proper- 
ty, increasing  his  wealth  and  influence.  John  was  born 
in  1618,  at  Stanton  Hall,  but  the  day  of  the  month  is  not 
known.  In  1636  he  was  styled  Knight  and  Baronet,  and 
five  years  after  that  time  he  married  Ehzabeth,  daughter 
of  Sir  Walter  Covert,  Knight  of  Slaughan,  Sussex. 
This  lady  was  mother  of  his  children,  and  from  her 
came  the  direct  and  collateral  branches  in  New  Jersey. 
The  family  was  of  Saxon  origin,  and  formed  a  powerful 
clan  in  Northumberland.  Their  ancient  fastness  was 
in  the  fenny  lands  about  Standfordham,  a  small  town 
near  the  Southern  boundary  of  the  shire  before  named. 

The  tower  of  Fenwick  at  Widdington,  in  Northum- 
berland, near  the  coast  of  the  North  Sea,  shows  its 
antiquity  in  its  rude  strength  and  scanty  limits  similar 
to  those  built  by  the  Saxon  invaders  during  the  fifth 
and  sixth  centuries.  Tliis  was  probably  the  fii*st  seat  of 
the  family  after  their  coming  over,  and  whence  it  may  be 
traced  through  many  of  the  shires  of  England. 

In  the  ninth  j^ear  of  the  reign  of  Edward  III  (1334) 
an  inquisition  was  had  of  New  Castle,  and  Johannes 
Fenwick  was  twice  appointed  Sheriff.  During  that  time 
it  was  much  enlarged  and  strengthened,  being  an  im- 
portant point  of  protection  and  defence  against  the 
Scotch.  In  those  warlike  times  this  place  had  no  com- 
mercial importance,  but  had  grown  to  be  one  of  the 
largest  ports  in  England. 

The  enmities  of  former  generations  have  passed 
away,  and  what  was  once  a  necessary  appendage  to 
every  town  is  now  visited  by  the  curious  to  see  the  means 
of  defence  in  a  barbarous  age.    In  the  twelfth  century. 


24  GOULDTOWN 

Sir  Robert  Fenwick  of  Northumberland  endowed  the 
Abbey  of  New  Minster,  in  the  same  shire,  with  two 
parts  of  his  villa  of  Irdington,  in  Cmnberland,  thus 
showing  his  liberality  towards,  and  his  adherence  to, 
the  CathoHc  Church. 

John  Fenwick  having  passed  through  liis  law  studies 
at  Gray's  Inn,  London  (1640),  abandoned  Ms  pro- 
fession for  a  season  and  accepted  an  appointment  in 
the  Parliamentary  Army.  His  first  commission  reads 
as  follows: 

You  are  hereby  ordered  and  required  as  Major  under  Colonel 
Thomas  Barwis  in  his  regiment  of  cavalry  which  was  raised  in 
the  County  of  Westmoreland  to  assist  the  garrison  of  Carlisle, 
and  to  exercise  the  officers  and  soldiers  under  his  command 
according  to  the  discipline  of  war.  And  they  are  hereby  re- 
quired to  yield  obedience  unto  you  as  Major  of  said  regiment. 
And  all  this  you  are  authorized  unto,  until  the  pleasure  of  the 
Parliament  of  the  Lord  General  be  known. 

Given  under  my  hand  and  seal  at  Bernard  Castle,  27th  day 
of  October,  1640. 
To  John  Fenwick,  Major,  These.  O.  Cromwell. 

In  the  same  year  he  was  ordered  by  the  Parliament, 
with  horse  and  dragoon  to  relieve  Holy  Island  Castle  in 
Durham.  It  was  besieged  by  the  royal  troops  and 
well  nigh  captured,  when  he  appeared  and  defeated  the 
enemy.  He  was  an  active  and  efficient  officer,  having 
the  confidence  of  the  Parliament  and  the  Protector. 
After  the  trial  and  sentence  of  the  King,  he  was  detailed 
as  commander  of  cavalry,  in  conjunction  with  the  foot 
troops  under  Colonel  Hacker,  Colonel  Hanks,  and 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Phayor,  to  attend  the  execution. 

The  order  ran  in  this  wise: 

These  are  therefore  to  will  and  require  you  to  see  the  said 
sentence  executed  in  the  open  streets  before  Whitehall,  upon 


FENWICK;  HIS  COLONY  25 

the  morrow,  being  the  thirtieth  of  tliis  instant,  month  of 
January,  between  the  hours  of  ten  in  the  morning  and  five  in 
the  afternoon  of  the  same  day,  with  full  eiFect.  And  these  are 
to  require  all  officers  and  soldiers  and  others  the  good  people  of 
this  nation  of  England  to  be  assisting  unto  you  in  this  service. 
Given  under  our  hands  and  seals,  etc.,  etc. 

This  warrant  was  signed  by  all  the  members  who 
sat  as  judges  upon  his  trial,  and  the  most  of  whom 
witnessed  the  carrying  out  the  sentence.  In  the  dis- 
charge of  this  important  and  delicate  duty  the  most 
reliable  officers  and  the  best  disciplined  troops  were 
selected,  which  placed  John  Fenwick  among  the  first 
of  those  in  the  army  about  London  at  that  time. 

The  religious  status  of  John  Fenwick  during  this 
period  is  doubtful  and  contradictory.  While  he  was 
with  the  army  he  became  a  convert  to  the  opinions  of 
George  Fox,  and  by  a  certificate  dated  February  11, 
1649,  he  is  shown  to  have  been  a  member  of  the  Inde- 
pendents, a  denomination  of  Christians  more  Presby- 
terian than  Quaker.  Be  that  as  it  may,  he  eventualty 
adopted  the  principles  and  practices  of  Friends  and 
adhered  to  them  until  his  death.  The  narrative  goes  on 
to  recite  what  has  already  been  stated  as  follows: 

After  the  restoration,  Charles  II  granted  to  his  brother, 
James,  Duke  of  York,  "  All  that  main  land  with  several  islands 
near  New  England  called  New  Cesarea  or  New  Jersey  in 
America  "  and  James  granted  the  same  lands  and  premises  unto 
John  Lord  Berkeley,  Baron  of  Stratton,  and  Sir  George 
Carteret,  Knight  and  Baronet.  Berkeley  soon  after  sold  his 
half  of  the  lands  to  John  Fenwick,  and  Fenwick,  as  has  been 
said,  was  obliged  to  part  with  ninety  one-hundredths  of  this  land 
to  William  Penn,  Gauen  Laurie,  and  Nicholas  Lucas,  keeping 
to  himself  but  ten-hundredths  of  the  original  purchase.  After 
having  relieved  himself  from  his  pressing  debts  he  set  out  to 
occupy  these  possessions. 


26  GOULDTOWN 

There  was  a  want  of  unity  in  his  family,  growing  out  of  a 
second  marriage,  and  so  deep  rooted  was  it  that  his  wife  was  not 
willing  to  go  with  him  beyond  the  sea.  His  daughters,  not 
realizing  the  perils  incident  to  the  settlement  in  a  new  country, 
but  filled  with  the  spirit  of  adventure  and  buoyant  with  the 
prospect  of  a  change,  required  no  persuasion  to  follow  the  lead 
of  their  father,  and  join  heartily  in  the  work  of  breaking  up 
their  homes  and  leaving  their  native  land  forever.  The  parent 
had  infused  the  children  with  liis  notions  of  success  and  they 
were  proud  to  know  he  was  head  of  such  an  enterprise;  that  his 
anticipations  and  promises  were  not  visionary,  but  would  be 
more  than  realized,  and  that  he  would  in  the  future  be  held  to  be 
a  public  benefactor.  The  letters  of  his  wife,  though  generally 
of  a  business  character,  show  some  attachment  to  him  and  re- 
gard for  his  affairs,  which  were  in  much  confusion  after  his 
departure.  No  mention  is  made  of  the  daughters,  with  whom 
in  all  probability  the  bad  blood  existed.  Her  advice  to  him  in 
his  business  relations  is  good,  and  if  followed  more  closely, 
would  have  saved  him  much  vexation. 

In  making  preparations  for  his  departure  it  was 
decided  that  "  only  such  articles  as  were  actually 
necessary  to  supply  the  wants  of  the  emigi'ants  could 
be  transported,  leaving  those  of  convenience  and  luxuiy 
out  of  the  question.  Implements  of  husbandry,  tools 
for  mechanics,  material  for  building,  medicines  for  the 
sick,  and  sustenance  for  the  healthy,  together  with  a 
scanty  supply  of  furniture  and  household  goods,  must 
find  a  place  in  the  ship.  The  ship  Griffin,  Robert 
Griffith,  master,  was  chartered  and  brought  to  London 
for  repairs  and  to  receive  the  cargo  and  passengers. 
An  entry  made  by  John  Smith  in  one  of  the  books  of 
record  (Salem  No.  4)  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of 
State,  Trenton,  N.  J.,  shows  part  of  the  persons  that 
came  at  that  time:  they  were  John  Fenwick,  his  three 
daughters,  Elizabeth,  Ann,  and  Priscilla ;  John  Adams, 
husband  of  Elizabeth  of  Reading,  in  Berks,  weaver, 


FENWICK;  HIS  COLONY  27 

and  three  children;  Elizabeth,  aged  eleven  years,  Fen- 
wick,  nine  years,  and  Mary,  four  j^ears;  Edward 
Champneys,  husband  of  Priscilla  of  Thornbury,  Glou- 
cestershire, joiner,  and  two  children,  John  and  Mary. 
John  Fenwick  brought  ten  servants,  Robert  Twiner, 
Gervis  Bywater,  William  Wilkinson,  Joseph  Worth, 
Michael  Eaton,  Elinor  Geere,  Sarah  Hutchins,  Ruth 
Geere,  Zachariah  Geere,  and  Ann  Parsons. 

Besides  these  he  was  accompanied  by  Mary  White, 
the  faithful  nurse  of  his  children,  who  had  lived  in  his 
family  several  years  before  coming  to  America.  Her 
attachment  for  the  three  daughters  showed  itself  in  her 
resolve  to  share  their  good  or  bad  fortune  in  a  strange 
land.  Their  father's  house  was  her  home,  where  she 
had  entire  charge,  and  so  continued  until  his  decease. 
These  traits  of  character  were  fully  appreciated  by  the 
Patroon,  as  he  gave  her  a  title  in  fee  for  five  hundred 
acres  of  land,  and  five  days  before  the  date  of  his  will 
executed  a  lease  to  her,  as  "  Mary  White,  late  of  the 
parish  of  Bromble,  in  the  County  of  Wilkes,  spinster, 
now  of  Fenwick  Grove,"  for  Fenwick  Grove,  con- 
taining three  thousand  acres ;  to  continue  during  her  life 
and  the  life  of  her  husband,  "  if  any  she  have  when  she 
decease."  In  his  will  he  makes  frequent  mention  of 
her  name,  continuing  his  liberality  and  always  ex- 
pressing the  utmost  confidence  in  her  honesty  and  up- 
rightness ^  .    .    . 

' "  To  say  that  he  [John  Fenwick]  was  not  a  half  brother  to  Charles 
II,  king  of  England,  would  perhaps  be  assuming  too  much,  although  nothing 
appears  to  prove  the  affirmative  of  this  assertion.  The  gallantries  of  the 
king  were  proverbial;  hence  the  plausibility  of  the  story  and  which  by 
many  came  to  be  accepted  as  true.  If,  however,  the  royal  blood  colored  his 
veins  and  infused  into  his  character  and  disposition  the  idea  of  exclusive- 
ness  and  authority,  so  palpable  in  many  of  his  acts  during  life,  it  came 
from  the  first  and  not  the  last  of  these  monarchs.  The  chance  of  such  a 
story  being  true  is  too  apparent  to  be  denied,  but  may  be  accounted  for  in 
this  wise.     The  first  son  of  Charles  Second,  not  recognized  by  law,  was 


28  GOULDTOWN 

The  effect  of  the  coming  of  this  ship  up  the  Dela- 
ware is  thus  described  in  Clement's  Life  of  John  Fen- 
wick.  The  account  shows  that  the  local  political  affairs 
were  somewhat  mixed. 

While  thus  contemplating'  the  development  of  his  enter- 
prise, a  cloud,  darker  and  more  portentous  than  any  before, 
showed  itself;  and  from  a  direction  not  altogether  unexpected 
by  the  chief  proprietor  or  those  who  had  accompanied  him 
across  the  sea.  The  coming  of  a  ship  into  the  Delaware  River, 
in  1675,  was  not  an  event  to  pass  unnoticed  by  the  Conunander 
at  New  Castle,  who,  with  the  Justices,  represented  Governor 
Andros  and  his  council,  appointed  by  the  Duke  of  York  under 
his  second  patent  from  the  King.  The  instructions  to  the 
Commander  were  to  keep  strict  watch  over  the  interests  of  His 
Royal  Highness  on  both  sides  of  the  river,  and,  if  anything 
should  occur,  to  report  at  once  to  the  authorities  at  New  York. 
The  ship  in  question  proved  to  be  the  Griffin,  anchored  at  Fort 
Elseborg,  with  English  emigrants  from  London  under  the 
leadership  of  John  Fenwick,  who  held  the  title  to  part  of  the 
territory  on  the  Eastern  shore,  with  the  right  of  government 
derived  through  John  Lord  Berkeley  and  the  Duke  of  York 
from  the  King.  Further  inquiry  developed  the  fact  that  these 
people  proposed  to  occupy  the  land  on  the  Eastern  side  of  the 
river,  and  establish  a  government  for  themselves  under  the 
right  before  named.      This  being  properly  brought  to  their 

James,  Duke  of  Monmouth,  beheaded  1685,  whose  mother  was  Lucy  Walters. 
James  married  Anne  Scott,  heiress  of  Buccleugh,  whose  second  son  married 
Elizabeth  Fenwick,  thus  connecting  the  family  with  the  blood  royal,  but 
several  removes.  Nothing  short  of  a  careful  examination  of  the  family 
genealogy  in  England  will  settle  this  point,  which  for  the  neglect  may  always 
remain  a  mooted  question." 

The  above  is  quoted  verbatim  from  John  Clement's  Life  of  John 
Fenwick.  Charles  II  was  born  in  1630,  at  which  time  John  Fenwick  was 
twelve  years  of  age,  he  having  been  born  in  1618;  hence  Charles  II  is 
eliminated  from  the  ancestry  of  Fenwick.  The  remark :  "  The  gallantries 
of  the  king  were  proverbial,  etc.,"  refer  to  Charles  II,  and  hence  have  but 
little  bearing  upon  this  question.  By  "  the  first "  and  "  last "  of  these 
monarchs,  the  writer  evidently  means  Charles  I  and  Charles  II.     To  be  a 


FENWICK;  HIS  COLONY  29 

knowledge,  a  court  was  convened  in  the  fort  at  New  Castle,  and 
after  due  deliberation  it  was  decided  to  forward,  by  express,  the 
necessary  information  to  the  authorities  at  New  York,  and 
await  orders  therefrom.  The  express  was  no  doubt  a  swift- 
footed  Indian,  selected  for  the  purpose,  who  forded  the  river 
at  the  falls  ( Trenton )  and  continued  by  land  through  the  forest 
to  Conmiunipaw ;  thence  by  water  to  the  fort  at  New  Amsterdam, 
where  the  message  was  dehvered  to  his  excellency,  Governor 
Andros.  The  information  was  received  December  5,  1675,  and 
somewhat  stirred  the  bile  of  the  new  executive,  who  held  his 
commission  direct  and  fresh  from  the  Duke  of  York;  and 
following  the  spirit  and  letter  of  his  instructions,  could  not 
recognize  any  equal,  or  superior  authority,  within  the  limits  of 
his  jurisdiction.  The  Governor  consulted  his  council,  and  an 
order  was  returned  that  John  Fenwick  and  his  followers  be  not 
recognized  as  having  any  rights,  but  be  allowed  to  remain  and 
occupy  suitable  portions  of  land  under  this  government.  The 
same  express  carried  the  reply,  which  the  Commander  at  New 
Castle  soon  forwarded  to  John  Fenwick  and  the  adventurers 
and  emigrants  who  were  with  him ;  intimating  very  strongly 
that  they  were  regarded  as  intruders  and  enemies.  That  the 
title  to  the  soil  of  New  Jersey  and  the  right  of  government 
as  well,  which  was  claimed  to  have  passed  by  the  grant  from  the 
Duke  to  Carteret  and  Berkeley,  and  under  which  John  Fenwick 
held,  was,  by  the  Dutch  conquest  rendered  inoperative  and  void ; 
that  the  second  patent  of  the  King  to  the  Duke  restored  the 

half-brother  of  Charles  II,  Fenwick  would  have  to  be  a  son  of  Charles  I. 
Charles  I  was  born  in  1600  and  hence  was  eighteen  years  of  age  when 
John  Fen^vick  was  born.  So  far  as  I  have  seen  there  is  no  trace  of 
relationship  existing  between  him  and  the  mother  of  Fenwick.  John  was 
the  second  son  of  Sir  William  Fenwick,  baronet,  the  brothers  being 
Edward,  John,  Roger,  and  Ralph. 

The  testimony  of  historians  generally  is  to  the  effect  that  Charles  I 
was  a  man  of  "strict  decorum  of  conduct";  a  man  in  "his  private 
character  of  cultivated  mind,  kind,  and  of  irreproachable  life,"  and  that 
"Ills  personal  morality  was  of  the  highest."  To  assume  that  Fenwick 
might  be  the  illegitimate  son  of  Charles  I  because  Charles  II  was  dissolute 
is  altogether  gratuitous.  Besides,  if  it  were  so,  Fenwick  would  have  become 
the  executioner  of  his  own  father,  which  is  preposterous. 


30  GOULDTOWN 

original  elements  of  title  and  government  as  by  him  held  in  the 
first  patent,  and  that  like  grants  must  come  from  His  Royal 
Highness,  as  in  the  former  case,  to  make  any  rights  good  on 
the  Eastern  shore  of  the  Delaware  River ;  that  the  government, 
as  by  Governor  Andros  and  his  council  administered,  was  the 
only  legitimate  one  within  the  boundaries  given  in  his  commis- 
sion, and  that  he  should  expect  all  persons  living  therein  to 
submit  to  the  laws  or  suffer  the  penalty  of  transgressing  them. 
To  all  this  the  Chief  proprietor,  as  the  owner  of  the  terri- 
tory, made  a  dignified  response,  showing  whence  he  derived  his 
title  both  to  soil  and  government,  which  he  regarded  as  suflScient 
and  by  which  he  determined  to  stand  or  fall.  He  insisted  that 
his  right  to  establish  methods  of  government  and  the  enact- 
ment and  enforcement  of  laws,  emanated  from  the  same  fountain 
as  that  of  Governor  Andros,  had  the  advantage  of  priority  in 
date,  and  needed  no  confirmation  or  endorsement  by  Governor 
Andros  as  the  representative  of  the  Duke  of  York.  That  these 
prerogatives  had  been  before  exercised  and  not  questioned  by 
the  Crown,  and,  therefore,  had  nothing  to  concede  or  rehnquish 
touching  the  demands  made  by  the  government  at  New 
Amsterdam.^ 

After  two  years  of  wrangling,  in  which  the  judg- 
ment of  the  courts  were  at  first  against  Fenwick,  the 
controversy  finally  subsided,  leaving  him  in  control  of 
the  land  he  had  purchased  and  the  colony  he  had 
founded.  His  recognized  independence  dates  from  the 
latter  part  of  the  year  1677. 

Thus  far  he  had  continued  to  reside  at  Fenwick 
Grove  until  Salem  County  was  organized,  and  indeed, 
until  his  death,  which  occurred  in  December,  1683.  Mr. 
Clements  has  the  following  remarks  and  reflections 
upon  the  concluding  period  of  his  life:  "  On  the  second 
day  of  the  third  month,  1683,  John  Fenwick  was  re- 
turned as  a  member  of  the  Colonial  Assembly  from  the 

•  Clement's  Life  of  Fenwick. 


FEN  WICK;  HIS  COLONY  31 

Salem  tenth;  but  on  account  of  ill  health,  which  con- 
tinued until  his  decease,  he  never  sat  as  a  member  of 
that  bod5\  In  this  act  is  shoAvn  the  complete  absorp- 
tion of  the  political  rights  and  franchises,  incident  to 
the  estate  held  in  the  ten  lots,  by  the  colonial  authori- 
ties of  West  New  Jersej%  and  which  appears  to  have 
been  brought  about  peacefully  and  for  the  evident  good 
of  all  concerned.  This  end  was  foreshadowed  in  the 
previous  signing  of  the  concessions  and  agreements  by 
very  many  of  the  land  owners,  who  held  titles  from  Fen- 
wick,  and  who  had  heretofore  given  their  adherence  to 
his  government  as  established  in  1675,  but  joined  their 
fortunes  with  the  more  numerous  colony  and  made 
common  cause  in  advancing  religious  and  political 
equality;  to  be  enjoyed  by  all  who  ventured  across  the 
sea  and  fixed  their  homes  within  the  limits  of  West 
New  Jersey." 

Here  terminated  the  first  form  of  a  representative 
government  established  by  the  people.  Rude  and  ill- 
defined  as  it  was,  sufficient  appears  to  show  that  only 
time  and  occasion  were  wanting  to  develop  its  several 
parts,  and  secure  to  all  the  blessings  to  be  derived  from 
like  institutions.  The  government  established  by  the 
owners  of  the  ninety  parts  was  like  in  substance,  but 
yielded  to  the  people  no  greater  privileges,  nor  more 
enlarged  rights.  This  cannot  but  be  interesting  to 
those  who  care  to  trace  the  beginning  of  our  present 
political  institutions,  and  study  the  gradual  but  positive 
development  of  a  system  that  has  its  foundation  in  the 
hearts  of  the  people;  to  discover  that  no  retrograde 
step  had  been  taken  in  the  fundamental  doctrines  of 
private  or  public  rights  and  that  a  jealous  care  had  been 
exercised  that  none  be  infringed. 

The  Patroon,  in  his  manner  of  living,  was  more 
pretentious  and  aristocratic  than  any  of  his  neighbors. 


32  GOULDTOWN 

His  houses  at  Ivy  Point  and  at  Fenwick  Grove  were 
well  appointed;  proving  that  he  had  an  eye  to  the 
creature  comforts  as  well  as  to  dignity  and  exclusive- 
ness.  The  day  had  not  come  for  wheeled  carriages  in 
the  Salem  tenth,  but  his  stable  included  good  saddle 
horses,  with  everything  complete  for  the  equestrian.  A 
favorite  road  animal,  "  Jack,"  he  makes  special  mention 
of  in  his  will,  and  puts  him  in  care  of  his  trusty  servant, 
Mary  White,  "  who  I  desire  to  take  care  of  him  and 
see  that  he  be  not  wronged  as  long  as  he  liveth."  His 
education  as  a  cavalry  officer  in  the  army  of  the  Com- 
monwealth now  served  him,  and  however  much  he  may 
have  wished  to  discard  the  memories  of  his  fighting 
days,  yet  in  the  saddle  his  grace  and  confidence  as  a 
rider  could  but  be  noticed.  The  library  of  books  at 
each  place  he  regarded  with  much  interest,  and  directed 
their  preservation  after  his  decease;  and  touching  his 
private  papers  he  charges  his  executors  with  their  care, 
and  especially  that  they  be  not  taken  out  of  the  colony. 
His  agreement  with  the  resident  purchasers  he  wished 
to  have  religiously  carried  out  and  was  anxious  that  his 
executors  should  see  to  the  discharge  of  every  obliga- 
tion. His  plantation  at  Fenwick  Grove  had  many 
attractions  for  him,  it  being  several  miles  from  Ivy 
Point,  where  he  could  enjoy  his  leisure  and  look  after 
his  farming  interests.  He  was  systematic  in  his  business 
affairs  and  always  knew  from  his  accounts  whether  a 
matter  in  hand  was  profitable  or  otherwise.  For  the 
day  in  which  he  lived,  his  agricultural  operations  were 
extensive  and  yielded  a  fair  return.  He  does  not 
appear  to  have  had  any  slaves,  but  employed  several 
persons  about  the  estate,  the  whole  being  under  his 
general  superintendence.  In  the  autumn  of  1683,  his 
health  failing,  he  accepted  an  invitation  from  his  favor- 
ite daughter,  Ann,  and  placed  himself  under  her  care 


FEN  WICK;  HIS  COLONY  33 

at  Hedgefield,  where  he  died  in  December  of  the  same 
year.  Her  devotion  to  him  remained  the  same  through 
all  the  vicissitudes  of  his  life,  and  with  filial  affection 
she  cared  for  him  on  his  dying  bed. 

Although  in  the  depths  of  an  American  forest,  and 
far  from  the  land  of  his  nativity,  yet  there  were  those 
around  him  in  whose  veins  flowed  his  own  blood,  whose 
sympathies  were  enlisted  for  his  welfare,  but  who  were 
soon  called  upon  to  mourn  his  death.  In  liim  passed 
away  one  of  the  most  remarkable  men  of  his  day  and 
generation.  His  early  manhood  was  spent  in  the  ex- 
citements and  participations  of  a  war  that  overthrew 
the  govermnent,  and  well  nigh  destroyed  the  nation; 
while  his  middle  life  and  latter  days  were  occupied 
in  an  enlarged  philanthropy  to  benefit  his  fellow  man, 
by  giving  scope  to  his  energies,  with  the  certainty  of 
reward  to  himself,  and  through  him  to  his  descendants ; 
with  the  title  of  his  land  freed  from  the  tenures  of  the 
feudal  system,  and  without  restraints,  save  those  based 
in  equity  and  good  government. 

In  relation  to  the  final  disposition  of  his  remains,  he 
requested  in  his  will  that  they  be  interred  at  Fenwick 
Grove.  For  some  reason  this  was  not  complied  with, 
as  he  was  buried  in  "  Sharp's  family  burying  ground," 
long  since  abandoned  for  that  use,  and  now  nearly  lost 
sight  of.  It  is  located  near  the  present  almshouse 
property  of  Salem  County,  overgrown  with  briers,  and 
known  to  but  few  as  the  last  resting  place  of  the  founder 
of  Fenwick  Colony. 

Nearly  two  centuries  have  passed  away,  and  not  the 
rudest  monument  has  been  placed  to  show  where  his 
bones  are  laid.  Generation  after  generation  of  his  kin 
have  neglected  even  to  preserve  a  mound  of  earth  to 
show  his  grave,  and  at  this  day  "  no  man  knoweth  the 
place  of  his  sepulchre."     But  a  more  enduring  monu- 

3 


34  GOULDTOWN 

ment  has  survived  him.  His  landed  estate  is  covered 
with  an  industrious  and  happy  people,  in  the  enjoyment 
of  free  institutions,  with  no  religious  or  political  re- 
straints ;  advanced  in  agriculture,  commerce  and  manu- 
factures, and  participant  in  a  degree  of  civilization  that 
has  no  parallel  in  the  world. 

In  his  will,  which  is  a  curious  and  characteristic 
document,  and  bears  date  the  seventh  day  of  August, 
1683,  John  Fenwick  makes  no  mention  of  his  wife,  who 
was  living  in  London  at  the  time  it  was  executed,  and 
who  appears  to  have  had  a  separate  estate  which  she  used 
for  her  own  comfort  and  convenience.  This  separation 
produced  an  indifference  toward  each  other,  which 
ended  in  a  complete  estrangement  of  feeling,  and 
mutual  disregard.  Neither  is  there  anything  to  show 
that  she  made  claim  on  his  estate  or  received  from  his 
executors  or  devisees  any  money  arising  therefrom. 
Nothing  more  is  known  of  this  relation,  the  lapse  of 
time  having  obliterated  every  tradition  in  regard  to  it. 


1570367 


CHAPTER  III. 

FENWICK    colony;   LAND   GRANTS   AND    PRIMARY 
GOVERNMENT. 

The  extensive  grant  of  territory  made  by  Charles 
II,  the  English  king,  to  his  brother,  the  Duke  of  York, 
was  by  royal  charter  dated  twentieth  of  March,  1664. 
Upon  the  twenty-third  of  June  in  the  same  year,  the 
Duke  conveyed  a  portion  of  this  territory  to  two  other 
persons — John  Lord  Berkeley  and  Sir  George 
Carteret.  The  conveyance  to  these  individuals  was 
made  by  an  instrument  in  form  as  follows : 

This  indenture,  made  the  three-and-twentieth  day  of  June, 
in  the  sixteenth  year  of  the  Raigne  of  our  Sovreign  Lord 
Charles  the  Second,  by  the  Grace  of  God,  of  England,  Scotland, 
France  and  Ireland,  King,  Defender  of  the  Faith — Anno 
Domini,  1664,  between  his  Royal  Highness,  James,  Duke  of 
York  and  Albany,  Earl  of  Ulster,  Lord  High  Admiral  of  Eng- 
land and  Ireland,  Constable  of  Dover  Castle,  Lord  Warden  of 
the  Cinque  Ports  and  Governor  of  Portsmouth  of  the  one  part, 
John  Lord  Berkeley,  Baron  of  Stratton  and  one  of  his 
majesties'  most  honorable  privy  Council  and  Sir  George 
Carteret  of  Sattrum  in  the  County  of  Devon,  Knight,  and  one 
of  his  majesties'  privy  Council,  of  the  other  part,  Witnesseth 
that  said  James,  Duke  of  York,  for  and  in  consideration  of  the 
sum  of  ten  shillings  of  lawful  money  of  England,  to  him  in 
hand  paid,  by  these  presents  doth  bargain  and  sell  unto  the  said 
John  Lord  Berkeley  and  Sir  George  Carteret,  all  that  tract  of 
land  adjacent  to  New  England,  and  lying  and  being  to  the 
Westward  of  Long  Island,  bounded  on  the  East  part  by  the 
main  sea,  and  part  by  Hudson's  river,  and  hath  upon  the  West 
Delaware  Bay  or  river,  and  extendeth  Southward  to  the  mam 
ocean  as  far  as  Cape  May  at  the  mouth  of  Delaware  Bay,  and 
to  the  Northward  as  far  as  the  Northermost  branch  of  said  bay 

35 


36  GOULDTOWN 

or  river  of  Delaware,  which  is  in  forty-one  degrees  and  forty 
minutes  of  latitude,  and  worketh  over  thence  in  a  straight  line 
to  Hudson's  river,  which  said  tract  of  land  is  hereafter  to  be 
called  bj-^  the  name  or  names  of  Nova  Cesarea,  or  New  Jersey.^ 

Lord  Berkeley  and  Sir  George  Carteret,  thus  be- 
coming the  proprietors  of  New  Jersey,  formed  a  consti- 
tution for  the  colony,  and  this  was  the  first  constitution 
of  New  Jersey.  This  instrument  was  entitled,  "  The 
concessions  and  agreement  of  the  Lords  Proprietors  of 
the  province  of  New  Cesarea  or  New  Jersey,  to  and 
with  all  and  every  of  the  new  adventurers,  and  as  such 
as  shall  settle  or  plant  there."  ^ 

Lord  Berkeley,  soon  becoming  dissatisfied  with  his 
adventure,  offered  his  share  for  sale,  and  this,  as  before 
stated,  was  purchased  by  John  Fenwick  and  Edward 
Byllinge,  members  of  the  Society  of  Friends.  The 
conveyance  was  executed  to  John  Fenwick,  in  trust 
for  Edward  Byllinge,  for  the  sum  of  one  thousand 
pounds,  and  the  tract  thus  purchased  was  afterward 
known  as  West  New  Jersey. 

Besides  the  emigrants  before  mentioned,  who  arrived 
in  the  ship  Griffith  with  John  Fenwick,  were  also 
Edward  Wade,  Samuel  Hedge,  Samuel  Wade,  John 
Smith  and  wife,  Samuel  Nichols,  Richard  Guy,  Richard 
Noble,  a  surveyor,  Richard  Hancock,  also  a  surveyor, 
John  Pledyer,  Hipolite  Lufever,  and  John  Matlock. 
These  came  over  in  this,  the  first  English  ship  that  came 
to  West  Jersey  and  none  followed  for  nearly  two  years. 

From  this  little  group  descended  many,  whose 
families  are  scattered  over  this  part  of  the  State,  but 
who  can  now  hardly  trace  their  descent  back  to  them. 

*This  appears  to  be  the  first  instrument  in  which  the  bounds  of  New 
Jersey  are  regularly  defined. — Historical  Collections  of  New  Jersey. 

"Printed  in  Salem  Records,  in  N.  J.  archives  from  the  original  parch- 
ment brought  over  from  Europe  by  John  Fenwick  in  1675. 


LAND  GRANTS  37 

John  ^latlock  is  said  to  have  been  the  son  of  Abram 
Matlock,  founder  of  ^latlock  College  in  England,  and 
from  him  descended  the  3iatlock  families  of  this  and 
Gloucester  Counties.  In  Gloucester  County  some  of 
the  members  still  retain  the  name  of  Matlock,  while  in 
this  county  the  name  is  spelled  Matlack.  E.  L.  Mat- 
lack,  an  auctioneer  and  farmer  of  Cumberland  County, 
is  said  to  be  a  lineal  descendant. 

Fenwick  and  Byllinge,  becoming  sole  proprietors, 
were  styled  "  Lord  Proprietors,"  and  when  Fen  wick's 
tenth  was  set  off  to  him  and  his  connection  with  Byllinge 
became  dissolved  he  became  "  Lord  Proprietor "  of 
West  New  Jersey,  and  was  so  styled,  and  the  Goulds' 
tradition  a  hundred  years  ago  was  "  We  descended  from 
Lord  Fen^vick."  [The  writer  of  this,  now  over  three- 
score and  ten  years  of  age,  has  heard  the  words  from 
his  grandparents,  and  other  of  the  Goulds  who  were 
born  and  lived  in  the  close  of  the  eighteenth  century.] 
That  there  is  pretty  conclusive  ground  for  giving 
credence  to  this  tradition,  will  be  shown  later. 

The  proprietors,  increasing  in  numbers  by  purchase 
of  land  from  trustees  under  arrangements  with  William 
Penn,  Gauen  Laurie,  and  Nicholas  Lucas,  agreed  upon 
a  form  of  government  comprising  many  of  the  pro- 
visions of  the  instrument  formed  by  Berkeley  and 
Carteret,  together  with  others  originating  with  them- 
selves. This  was  styled  "  The  concessions  and  agree- 
ments of  the  proprietors,  freeholders  and  inhabitants 
of  the  province  of  West  New  Jersey."  An  extract  from 
this  instrument  (Chapter  III)  reads: 

That  hereafter  upon  the  furthest  settlement  of  the  said 
province,  the  proprietors  and  inhabitants,  resident  upon  the 
said  province,  shall  and  may,  at  or  upon  the  first  and  twentieth 
day  of  the  month  called  March,  which  shall  be  in  the  year, 
according  to  the  EngHsh  account,  one  thousand  six  hundred  and 


38  GOULDTOWN 

eighty;  and  so  thence  forward  upon  the  said  day,  assemble 
themselves  together,  in  some  public  place  to  be  ordered  and 
appointed  by  the  Commissioners  for  the  time  being,  and  upon 
default  of  such  appointment,  in  such  place  as  they  shall  see 
meet,  and  then  and  there  elect  of  and  amongst  themselves,  ten 
honest  and  able  men,  fit  for  government,  to  officiate  and  execute 
the  place  of  commissioners  for  the  year  ensuing,  and  until  such 
time  as  ten  more,  for  the  year  then  next  following  shall  be 
elected  and  appointed;  which  said  elections  shall  be  as  follows; 
that  is  to  say,  the  inhabitants  each  ten  of  the  one  hundred 
proprietors,  shall  elect  and  choose  one,  and  the  one  hundred 
proprietors  shall  be  divided  into  ten  divisions  or  tribes  of  men. 
And  the  said  elections  shall  be  made  and  distinguished  by 
balloting  trunks,  to  avoid  noise  and  confusion,  and  not  by 
voices,  holding  up  of  the  hands,  or  otherwise  howsoever,  which 
said  commissioners,  so  yearly  to  be  elected,  shall  likewise  govern 
and  order  the  affairs  of  the  said  province  (pro  tempore)  for 
the  good  and  welfare  of  the  said  people,  and  according  to  these 
our  concessions,  until  such  time  as  the  general  free  assembly 
shall  be  elected  and  deputed  in  such  manner  and  wise  as  is  here- 
after expressed  and  contained.^ 

The  Swedes  and  Finns  had  settled  in  what  became 
Salem  and  Gloucester  Counties  long  before  the  arrival 
of  Fenwick,  superseding  the  Dutch,  who  had  largely 
disappeared  from  the  section.  There  was,  no  doubt,  a 
considerable  sprinkling  of  this  population  occupying  the 
territory  before  Fenwick  arrived.  Johnson,  in  his 
History,  says  "  The  Swedes  and  Finns  arrived  in  1627, 
the  Dutch  having  left  the  country.  In  1631  they  built 
a  fort  at  Finn's  Point."  Judge  Elmer  states  in  his 
History  of  Cumberland  County,  "  A  few  of  the  New 
Haven  people,  who  as  early  as  1641  made  a  settlement 
on  the  creek  called  by  the  Dutch  Varchen's  Kill  (now 
Salem  Creek),  may  have  wandered  into  the  limits  of 

•  Historical  Collections  of  New  Jersey. 


LAND  GRANTS  39 

Cumberland,  thus  becoming  the  pioneers  of  the  con- 
siderable number,  who  about  fifty  years  later  came  from 
Connecticut,  Rhode  Island,  and  Long  Island." 

Fenwick  arrived  in  1675  in  the  English  ship, 
"  Griffith "  bringing  with  him  the  persons  some  of 
whom  have  been  already  named,  as  follows:  "Arriv- 
ing after  a  good  passage,  he  landed  at  a  pleasant,  rich 
spot,  situated  near  Delaware,  by  him  called  Salem,  prob- 
ably from  the  peaceable  aspect  it  then  bore.  He 
brought  with  him  tliree  daughters  and  many  servants; 
two  of  whom,  Samuel  Hedge  and  John  Adams,  after- 
ward married  his  daughters.  The  other  passengers  were 
Edward  Champness,  who  married  Priscilla,  Fenwick's 
third  daughter  (this  name  Champness  will  appear  in 
connection  with  the  Goulds),  Edward  Wade,  Samuel 
Wade,  John  Smith  and  wife,  Samuel  Nichols,  Richard 
Guy,  Richard  Noble,  Richard  Hancock,  John  Pledger, 
Hipolite  Lefever,  and  John  Matlock.  This  was  the  first 
EngHsh  ship  which  came  to  West  Jersey,  and  none 
followed  for  near  two  years,  owing  probably  to  a  differ- 
ence between  Fenwick  and  Byllinge." — Historical  Col- 
lection of  New  Jersey. 

Before  the  arrival  of  the  second  ship  from  London, 
the  "  Kent,"  Gregory  Marlow,  master,  the  constitution 
or  form  of  government  before  referred  to  was  made, 
which  was  entitled:  "The  concessions  and  agreements 
of  the  proprietors,  freeholders,  and  inhabitants  of  the 
province  of  West  New  Jersey."  This  constitution  is 
witnessed  and  signed  in  the  following  manner,  according 
to  "  Historical  Collections  ": 

In  testimony  and  witness  of  our  consent  to  and  affirmation 
of  these  present  laws,  concessions,  and  agreements,  we,  the 
proprietors,  freeholders,  and  inhabitants  of  the  said  province 
of  West  New  Jersey,  whose  names  are  underwritten,  have  to  the 
same  voluntarily  and  freely  set  our  hands,  dated  this  third  day 


40  GOULDTOWN 

of  the  month,  commonlj'  called  March,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord, 
one  thousand  six  hundred  seventy-six. — Gawen  Lawrie,  Wm. 
Penn,  Wm.  Euily,  Josh.  Wright,  Wm.  Haig,  Wm.  Peachee, 
Rich.  Matthews,  John  Harris,  Francis  Collins,  Wm.  Kent, 
Benj.  Scot,  John  Penford,  Tho.  Lambert,  Tho.  Hooten,  Henry 
Stacy,  Edw.  Byllinge,  Rich.  Smith,  Edward  Thelthorp,  Dan. 
Wills,  Thomas  Olive,  Tho.  Rudgard,  William  Riddle,  Robert 
Stacy,  John  Farrington,  Wm.  Royden,  Rich.  Mew,  Percival 
Towle,  Mahlon  Stacy,  Tho.  Budd,  Sam,  Jennings,  John  Lam- 
bert, Will.  Heulings,  George  Deacon,  John  Thomson,  Edward 
Bradway,  Richard  Guy,  James  Nevell,  William  Cantwell,  Fospe 
Outstout,  Machgijel  Baron,  Casper  Herinow,  Turrse  Psese, 
Robert  Kemble,  John  Corneliesse,  Gerrat  Van  Jumne,  William 
Gill  Johnson,  Mich.  Lackerouse,  Markus  Algus,  Evert  Aldricks, 
Hendrick  Everson,  Jilles  Fonieson,  Caas  Jansen,  Paul  Doequet, 
Aert  Jansen,  John  Surige,  Tho.  Smith,  James  Pearce,  Edw, 
Webb,  John  Pledger,  Richard  Wilkinson,  Christe  Sanders, 
Renear  Van  Horst,  William  Johnson,  Charles  Bogler,  Samuel 
Wade,  Thomas  Woodruff,  John  Smith,  Tho.  Pierce,  William 
Warner,  Joseph  Ware,  Isaac  Smart,  Andrew  Thompson, 
Thomas  Kent,  Henrj^  Jennings,  Richard  Wortsaw,  Christopher 
White,  John  Maddocks,  John  Forrest,  James  Nickory,  William 
Rumsey,  Richard  Robinson,  Mark  Reeve,  Thomas  Watson, 
Samuel  Nicholson,  Daniel  Smith,  Richard  Daniels,  William 
Fenton,  William  Darine,  Robert  Zane,  Walter  Peiterson, 
Anthony  Page,  Andrew  Bortheson,  Wooley  Woollison,  Anthony 
Dixon,  John  Derme,  Thomas  Benson,  John  Pain,  Richard 
Brillington,  Samuel  Lovett,  Henry  Stubbins,  Wilham  Willis, 
George  Hazelwood,  Roger  Pedrick,  William  Hughes,  Van 
Highst,  Hipotas  Lefever,  William  Wilkinson,  Andrew  Shen- 
neck,  Lanse  Cornehcus,  Samuel  Hedge,  William  Mossier,  John 
Grubb,  John  Worlidge,  Edward  Meyer,  Thomas  Borton,  Robert 
Powel,  Thomas  Hording,  Matthew  Allen,  Bernard  Devenish, 
Thomas  Stokes,  Thomas  French,  Isaac  Marriott,  John  Butcher, 
George  Hutchinson,  Thomas  Gardner,  Thomas  Eves,  John 
Borton,  John  Paine,  Eleazer  Fenton,  Samuel  Oldale,  William 
Black,  Anthony  Woodhouse,  Daniel  Leeds,  John  Pancoast, 
Francis  Belwicke,  William  Luswall,  John   Snowdon,  Richard 


LAND  GRANTS  41 

Fenemore,  Gruna  Jacobson,  Thomas  Scholey,  Thomas  Might, 
Godfrey  Hancock,  John  Petty,  Abraham  Heuhngs,  John  New- 
boald,  John  White,  John  Roberts,  John  Wood,  John  Hosling, 
Thomas  Revell. 

These  numerous  signatures  clearly  show  that  there 
was  a  considerable  population  already  in  the  country, 
but  with  regard  to  the  lands  of  Salem  County,  if  not  of 
the  major  part  of  this  section  of  west  New  Jersey, 
Fenwick  was  doubtless  the  sole  proprietor.  He  made 
deeds  and  sold  lands  in  the  province,  both  before  and 
after  his  arrival  in  the  country.  An  original  parch- 
ment deed,  now  in  the  possession  of  Orestes  Cook,  Esq., 
of  Bridgeton,  New  Jersey,  shows  that  he  either  executed 
this  deed  in  England,  or  else  he  arrived  in  America 
before  June,  1675.  This  deed,  a  copy  of  which  follows, 
was  written  and  executed  jNIay  tenth,  sixteen  hundred 
and  seventy-five,  and  it  was  signed  and  sealed  with 
FenAvick's  own  hand  and  before  the  witnesses  named. 
This  deed  was  for  five  hundred  acres  of  land  contained 
in  "  all  that  Moyetie  or  half  part  of  the  tract  of  land 
called  New  Cesarea  or  New  Jersey,"  which  Fenwick 
bought  of  Lord  John  Berkeley  by  "  Indenture  bear- 
ing date  the  eighteenth  day  of  March,  sixteen  hundred 
and  seventy-three,"  and  conveys  the  said  five  hundred 
acres  to  Richard  Hancock  (who  became  Fen  wick's 
surveyor  general  at  first).  This  deed  does  not  locate 
the  land  sold  to  Hancock. 

It  is  a  curious  manuscript,  beautifully  written  and 
well  preserved. 

Out  of  this  tract  Richard  Hancock  sold  one  hundred 
acres  to  John  Denn,  by  deed  dated  February  twelfth, 
sixteen  hundred  and  eighty-two;  this  land  is  located 
by  butts  and  bounds,  as  will  be  seen,  and  is  along  Allo- 
way's  Creek.  This  original  parchment  is  also  in  the 
possession  of  Mr.  Cook. 


4^ 


GOULDTOWN 


Both  deeds  are  given  in  full  in  Chapter  IV.  They 
will  probably  find  their  way  soon  into  the  Cumberland 
County  Historical  Society. 

There  is  also  still  in  existence  a  deed  of  Fenwick's 
son-in-law,  John  Adams,  to  Samuel  Bacon  for  two 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  land,  in  Bacon's  Neck,  made 
by  Adams  in  sixteen  hundred  and  eighty-two.  This 
John  Adams  was  the  father  of  Elizabeth  Adams,  the 
mother  of  the  original  Gould,  the  founder  of  Gould- 
town.  He  later  purchased  one  thousand  acres  in  AUo- 
way's.  The  deed,  Fenwick  to  Hancock,  and  Hancock 
to  Denn,  follows  in  the  next  chapter. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

COPIES  OF  \TERY  ANCIENT  PARCHMENT  DEEDS  IN 
POSSESSION   OF  A  BRIDGETON   ATTORNEY. 

DEED. 

John  FENW^CK         ^ 

to  >  May  10,  16T5. 

Richard  Hancock.  ) 

To  all  people  to  ■whom  this  present  writing  shall  come: 

John  Fenwick,  late  of  Binfields,  in  the  County  of  Berkshire, 
within  the  Kingdom  of  England,  Esquire,  and  Chiefe  Proprietor 
of  the  Moyetie  or  half  part  of  the  tract  of  land  within  the 
Province  of  New  Cesaria  or  New  Jersey — in  America — sendeth 
greeting. 

Whereas,  the  Honorable  John  Lord  Berkeley  of  Stratton, 
one  of  his  Majesties  most  honorable  Privy  Counsell,  by  his 
Indenture  bearing  date  the  eighteenth  day  of  March,  one  thou- 
sand six  hundred  seventy  and  three — did  grant,  bargain,  sell, 
alien  and  enfeoff  and  confirm  unto  the  said  John  Fenwick,  his 
heirs  and  assigns  forever,  all  that  Moyetie  or  halfe  part  of  the 
tract  of  land  called  New  Cesaria  or  New  Jersey,  and  also  the 
rivers,  rivolets,  mines,  mineralls,  quaries,  woods,  royalties, 
profits,  franchises,  conditions,  comodities  and  other  heredita- 
ments whatsoever,  in  the  said  Indenture,  particularly  mentioned, 
as  in  and  by  the  same  rela^on  being  thereunto  had  may  appear. 

Now  know  yee,  that  for  and  in  consideration  of  the  summ 
of  Sixty  Shillings,  lawfuU  money  of  England  to  him,  the  said 
John  Fenwick  in  hand  paid  by  Richard  Hancock,  of  Bromley, 
Neer  Bow,  in  the  County  of  Midd'x,  upholsterer  at  and  before 
the  ensealing  and  delivery  hereof,  the  receipt  whereof  is  hereby 
assured,  bargained  and  for  other  diver  considerations,  him,  the 
said  John  Fenwick  hereunto  moving,  he,  the  said  John  Fenwick, 
hath  granted,  bargained,  sold,  aliened,  enfeoffed  and  confirmed 

unto  the  said  Richard  Hancock  and ^his  wife,  and  the  heirs 

43 


44  GOULDTOWN 

and  assigns  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  forever,  Five  Hundred 
acres  of  land,  to  be  taken  out  of,  sett  forth  and  surveyed  out  of 
all  such  part  of  the  said  tract  of  land  within  the  Province  of 
New  Cesaria  or  New  Jersey,  the  said  John  Fenwick  hath  re- 
served to  him  and  his  heirs  forever,  hereafter  to  be  called  Fen- 
wick Colony,  and  alsoe  all  river,  rivolets,  mines,  mineralls, 
quarries,  woods,  proffits,  commodities  and  hereditaments,  what- 
soever, to  the  said  Five  Hundred  Acres  belonging  and  all  the 
estate  right,  title,  interest,  property,  claim  and  demand  what- 
soever of  him,  the  said  John  Fenwick,  of,  in,  or  to  the  said  five 
hundred  acres,  and  premises  herein  before  men9oned  or  intended 
to  be  bargained  and  sold  or  any  part  or  parcell  thereof  and  the 
rendition,  renditions,  remainder  and  remainders  thereof  to  have 
and  to  hold  the  said  Five  Hundred  acres  of  land  and  all  and 
singular  the  premises  herein  before  men9oned  intended  to  be 
granted,  bargained,  sold,  ahened,  enfeoffed  and  confirmed,  with 
the  appurtenances  and  every  part  and  parcel  thereof,  unto  the 
said  Richard  Hancock  and  Margaret,  his  wife,  and  the  heirs  and 
assigns  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  forever  to  the  only  use 
and  behoof  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  and  Margaret,  his  wife, 
and  the  heirs  and  assigns  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  forever, 
yeeilding  and  paying  therefor  the  yearly  rent  of  ears  of  Indian 
com  on  the  nine  and  twentieth  day  of  the  seventh  month,  called 
September,  and  the  said  John  Fenwick,  for  himselfe,  his  heirs, 
executors,  administrators  and  assigns,  doth  covenant  and  grant 
to  and  with  Richard  Hancock  and  Margaret,  his  wife,  and  the 
heirs  and  assigns  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  by  these  presents 
— that  they,  the  said  Richard  Hancock  and  Margaret,  his  wife, 
and  the  heirs  and  assigns  of  the  said  Richard  Hancock,  shall 
and  may  hold  and  enjoy  the  said  Five  Hundred  acres  and 
premises  and  receive  and  have  the  rents,  issues  and  proffits 
thereof  from  time  to  time  without  the  let,  erection  or  disturb- 
ance of  him  the  said  John  Fenwick — John  Lord  Berkeley — 
Sir  George  Cartaret — Knight  and  Baronet — Chief  Proprietor 
of  the  other  Moyetie  of  the  said  tract  of  land  or  any  or  either 
of  them,  their  or  any  or  either  of  their  heirs  or  assigns,  or  of, 
or  by  any  other  person  or  persons  claiming  or  to  claim  by,  from 
or  under  him,  them  or  either  of  them  and  for  and  in  respect  of 


ANCIENT  DEEDS 


45 


any  right  or  interests  which  he  or  they  or  any  or  either  of  them 
shall  or  may  have  or  claim  unto  said  Five  Hundred  acres  of  land 
soe  granted  as  aforesaid,  or  any  part  or  parcell  thereof,  and  not 
otherwise  freed  and  discharged  or  otherwise  suffitionly  saved 
harmless  of  and  from  all  incumbrances  whatsoever  done  or 
suffered  by  him,  them  or  any  or  either  of  them  in  the  meantime. 

In  witness  whereof,  the  said  John  Fenwick  hath  hereunto 
set  his  hand  and  seale  this  tenth  day  of  the  third  month  called 
May,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  Christ,  One  thousand  six  hundred 
seventy  and  five  and  in  the  twenty-seaventh  year  of  the  Reyne 
of  King  Charles  the  second,  over  England,  Scotland,  France  and 
Ireland,  &c. 

{Fac  simile) 

BACK. 

Signed,  sealed  and  delivered 

in  the  presence  of  us  John  Elridge, 

Edward  Wade, 
Edmund  Warner, 
Thomas   Anderson, 
Edward  Bradway, 
Richard  Noble. 

Enrolled  in  the  Register  Book  of  Deeds  and  conveyances 
belonging  and  Fenwick  Colony  in  the  Province  of  New  Cesaria 
or  New  Jersey  in  America,  in  the  third  month  called  May, 
MDCLXXV.  GARFIELD. 


DEED. 


February  12,  1682. 


Richard  Hancock  and  ' 
Margaret,  his  wife, 

to 
John  Denn  and 
Margaret,  his  wife. 

To  all  people  to  wJiom  this  present  writing  shall  come: 
Richard  Hancock  of  Alloway's  Creek,  in  the  Province  of 
West  New  Jersey,  Yeoman,  sendeth  greeting. 


46  GOULDTOWN 

Whereas,  John  Fenwick,  late  one  of  the  Proprietors  of  the 
said  Province  by  his  Deed  PoU,  bearing  date  the  tenth  day  of 
May,  sixteen  hundred  and  seventy-five,  did  grant,  bargain,  sell, 
alien,  enfeofFe  and  confirme  unto  said  Richard  Hancock,  late  of 
Bromley,  County  of  Midd'x,  upholsterer,  to  five  hundred  acres 
of  land  to  be  taken,  set  forth,  and  surveyed  out  of  that  tract  of 
land,  which  he,  the  said  John  Fenwick  had  referred  to  him  and 
his  heirs  forever.  Within  the  said  province  and  also  the  rivers, 
rivoletts,  woods,  quaries,  mines,  minerals,  profitts,  commoodies, 
hereditaments,  whatsoever  unto  the  said  Five  Hundred  acres  of 
land  belonging  in  the  said  deed  particularly  mentioned  as  in 
and  by  the  same  relation  being  had  may  appeare. 

Now  know  yee,  that  for  and  in  consideration  of  sum  of  Five 
pounds,  warrant  pay  of  Delaware  River  to  him,  the  said  Richard 
Hancock,  in  hand  paid  by  John  Denn,  of  Allowayes  Creeke,  at 
and  before  the  ensealing  and  delivery  thereof,  the  receipt 
whereof  is  hereby  acknowledged  and  for  divers  other  causes  and 
considerations  him,  the  said  Richard  Hancock  thereunto  mov- 
ing, the  said  Richard  Hancock,  hath  granted,  bargained  and 
sold,  aliened  and  enfeoffed,  and  confirmed  unto  the  said  John 
Denn  and  Margaret,  his  wife,  and  to  the  heirs  and  assignes  of 
the  said  John  Denn  forever,  one  hundred  acres  of  land,  part  and 
parcel  of  the  said  five  hundred  acres,  butted  and  bounded  as 
foUoweth,  (viz)  Beginning  at  a  great  Tree  standing  neere 
Munmouth  River,  alis  Alloway's  Creeke  aforesaid,  mark't  with 
R.  U.  K.  and  J.  S.  from  thence  by  North  and  by  East  upon  a 
Strait  lyne  and  by  the  markt  trees  that  leads  to  a  tree  with 
J.  D.  three  hundred  and  twenty  pearches ;  from  thence  upon  a 
straite  line  West  and  by  North  to  a  tree  markd  J.  D.  fifty 
pearches;  from  thence  South  by  West  by  the  marked  treese 
that  leeads  to  the  middle  of  the  highway  or  lane  the  parte  of 
the  plantations  and  so  downe  the  midle  of  the  highway  to  the 
said  creek  or  riverside,  three  hundred  and  twenty  pearches, 
from  thence  Easterly  up  the  said  Creeke  or  river  to  the  first 
mentioned  tree  fifty  pearches,  within  the  bounds  are  contained 
one  hundred  acres  of  fast  land,  marish  and  swamp,  be  it  more 
or  lesse  as  by  a  certificate  and  in  the  hand  of  the  said  Richard 
Hancock,  bearing  date  eighth  day  of  February,  last  appear. 


ANCIENT  DEEDS  47 

And  all  the  house,  improvement,  woods,  rivers,  creeks,  quaries, 
mines,  mineralls,  profitts,  commodities,  and  hereditaments  what- 
soever, to  the  said  one  hundred  acres  belonging  and  all  the 
estate,  right,  title,  interest,  property,  claime  and  demand  what- 
soever of  the  said  Richard  Hancock  and  Margret,  his  wife,  of, 
in,  or  to  the  said  one  himdred  acres  of  land  and  premises  herein 
before  mentioned  or  intended  to  be  granted,  bargained,  sold, 
aliened,  enfeofed  and  confirmed,  any  part  or  parcel  thereof. 

And  the  rever9on,  rever9ons,  remainder  and  remainders 
thereof  to  have  and  to  hold  the  said  one  hundred  acres  of  land, 
house,  improvement,  woods,  rivers,  creeks,  quaries,  mines, 
minerals,  profitts,  comodities,  and  hereditaments,  thereunto 
belonging  herein  and  hereby  granted,  bargained,  sold,  aliened, 
enfeoffed  and  confirmed  every  part  and  parcel  thereof  unto  him 
the  said  John  Denn  and  Magret  his  wife,  and  to  the  heirs  and 
assignes,  of  him,  the  said  John  Denn  forever,  to  the  only  use 
and  behoofe  of  him,  the  said  John  Denn  and  Margret,  his  wife, 
their  heires  and  assigns  forever,  yeilding  and  paying  therefor 
yearly  and  every  yeare  unto  the  said  Richard  Hancock,  his 
heires  and  assignes,  the  yearely  rent  of  one  eare  of  indian  come 
on  the  nine  and  twentieth  day  of  September,  if  demanded,  and 
the  said  Richard  Hancock,  for  himselfe,  and  Margret,  his  wife, 
and  for  his  heires  and  assignes,  doth  covenant  and  grant  to  and 
with  the  said  John  Denn  and  Margret,  his  wife,  by  these 
presents,  that  he,  the  said  John  Denn  and  Margret,  his  wife,  and 
the  heires  and  assignes  of  the  said  John  Denn,  shall  and  may 
hold  and  enjoy  the  said  one  hundred  acres  of  land  and  premises, 
and  receive  and  take  the  rents,  issues  and  profits  thereof  from 
time  to  time  without  the  let,  erection  or  disturbance  of  him,  the 
said  Richard  Hancock  and  Margret,  his  wife,  and  the  said  John 
Fenwick  or  any  or  either  of  them,  their  or  any  or  either  of  their 
heires  or  assignes  or  of  any  other  person  or  persons,  claiming 
or  to  claime  by  or  under  him,  them  or  any  or  either  of  them 
for  or  in  respect  of  any  right,  title  or  interest,  which  they  or 
any  or  either  of  them  shall  or  may  have  or  claime  upon,  or  to  the 
said  one  hundred  acres  of  land,  house,  improvements  and 
premises  so  granted  aforesaid,  or  any  part  or  parcel  thereof 
freed  and  discharged  or  otherwise  well  and  sufficiently  saved 


48 


GOULDTOWN 


harmless  of  and  from  all  incumbrances  whatsoever,  done  or 
suffered  by  him,  them  or  any  or  either  of  them  in  meantime. 

In  "witness  whereof,  the  said  Richard  Hancock  for  himself 
and  for  Magaret,  his  late  wife,  deceased,  hath  hereunto  set  his 
hand  and  seals,  this  twelfth  day  of  February,  sixteen  hundred 
and  eighty-two. 

Signed  Richard  Hancock. 

Signed,  sealed  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of 


James  NEViLii 
Edward  Wade. 


Comr's. 


endorsed 
John  Denn's  deed  for  100  acres  from  Rich'd  Hancock. 

This  deed  indicates  the  location  of  Hancock's  five 
hundred  acres  conveyed  by  the  first  deed. 


CHAPTER  V. 

GOULD  traditions;  evidences;  descent;  benjamin 
Gould's  will. 

Extract  from  Fenwick's  will:  "  Item,  I  do  except 
against  Elizabeth  Adams  of  having  any  ye  leaste  part 
of  my  estate,  unless  the  Lord  open  her  eyes  to  see  her 
abominable  transgression  against  him,  me  and  her  good 
father,  by  giving  her  true  repentance,  and  forsaking 
yt  Black  yt  hath  been  ye  ruin  of  her,  and  becoming 
penitent  for  her  sins;  upon  yt  condition  only  I  do  will 
and  require  my  executors  to  settle  five  hundred  acres 
of  land  upon  her."  (Lucius  Q.  C.  Elmer,  History  of 
Cumberland  County,  N.  J.,  1869.) 

Judge  Elmer  was  born  in  1793  and  died  in  1883; 
he  was  the  son  of  General  Ebenezer  Elmer,  who  was 
born  in  1752  and  died  in  1843;  he  was  the  youth  who 
accompanied  his  father.  General  Elmer,  on  Sunday 
afternoons  to  the  little  school  house  in  Gouldtown 
which  was  also  used  as  a  church,  in  which  the  Goulds, 
Pierces,  and  Murrays,  mulattoes,  and  Woodruffs, 
Westcotts,  Seeleys,  Batemans,  and  Fullers,  white,  held 
religious  worship.  The  house  is  still  standing,  though 
moved  to  another  locality.  The  children  were  cate- 
chized here;  and  Judge  Elmer  has  often  related  how 
he  once  asked  Othniel  Murray,  one  of  the  small  boys, 
what  was  the  first  thing  he  did  when  he  arose  in  the 
morning,  and  the  boy  replied,  "  I  go  to  my  traps." 
The  expected  answer  was  an  allusion  to  his  morning 
devotions. 

In  Evarts  and  Peck's  "  History  of  Salem,  Cumber- 
land, and  Gloucester  Counties,"  published  a  few  years 
ago,  a  sketch  of  Gouldtown  appears  which  says : 

4  49 


60  GOULDTOWN 

Gouldtown  is  a  settlement  of  colored  people,  many  of  them 
nearly  white,  about  three  miles  east  of  Bridgeton.  The  families 
there  mostly  bear  the  names  of  Pierce  and  Gould.  Some  of 
them  are  active,  industrious  farmers,  and  have  accumulated  con- 
siderable property.  A  tradition  believed  by  many  is,  that  they 
are  descended  from  Elizabeth  Adams,  the  granddaughter  of 
Fenwick — who  directed  in  his  will  that  his  executors  settle 
five  hundred  acres  of  land  upon  her  on  conditions  stated.  Fen- 
wick made  his  will  and  died  in  1683.  The  tradition  among  the 
inhabitants  of  Gouldtown  is  that  Elizabeth  married  Gould  from 
whom  they  descended  and  that  the  five  hundred  acres  of  land 
was  settled  upon  her  and  they  inherited  it. 

From  these  statements  it  will  be  seen  that  a  per- 
sistent and  well  spread  "  tradition  "  prevailed  that  the 
Goulds  were  descendants  of  Fenwick. 

John  Adams  who  had  married  Elizabeth  Fenwick 
had  a  daughter  Elizabeth,  who  was  eleven  j^^ears  old 
at  the  time  of  the  arrival  of  the  family  in  Jersey  and 
who  consequently  was  nineteen  years  old  at  the  time 
Fenwick  made  his  will  excepting  against  her  having 
any  share  of  his  property  unless  she  should  repent  of 
her  sins  and  forsake  "  that  Black  that  hath  been  the 
ruin  of  her." 

Johnson's  History  of  Fenwick's  Colony,  written  in 
1835,  and  published  in  1839,  says:  "Among  the 
numerous  troubles  and  vexations  which  assailed  Fen- 
wick, none  appear  to  have  distressed  him  more  than  the 
base  and  abandoned  conduct  of  his  granddaughter, 
Elizabeth  Adams,  who  had  attached  herself  to  a  citizen 
of  color.  By  his  will  he  deprives  her  of  any  share  in 
his  estate,  '  unless  the  Lord  open  her  eyes  to  see  her 
abominable  transgression  against  him,  me  and  her 
good  father,  by  giving  her  true  repentance  and  forsak- 
ing that  Black  which  hath  been  the  ruin  of  her  and  be- 
coming penitent  for  her  sins.'     From  this  illicit  con- 


Judge  Lifius  Q.  C.  Eliiek. 


TRADITIONS;  DESCENT  51 

nection  has  sprung  the  famihes  of  the  Goulds  at  a  settle- 
ment called  Gouldtown,  in  Cumberland  County." 
Later,  this  same  liistorian  in  a  memoir  of  John  Fen- 
wick  wrote:  "  Elizabeth  Adams  had  formed  a  connec- 
tion with  a  negro  man  whose  name  was  Gould."  ^ 

This  John  and  Elizabeth  Adams  continued  to  live 
in  what  is  now  Cumberland  County  after  the  death  of 
Fen  wick;  but  the  historians  give  no  further  mention 
of  Elizabeth  Gould,  if  indeed  she  ever  took  the  name 
of  Gould.  John  and  Elizabeth  Adams  possessed  land 
in  what  is  now  Bacon's  Neck  in  Cmnberland  County 
acquired  through  John  Fenwick  and  in  the  year  before 
the  death  of  the  latter,  sold  two  hundred  and  sixty  acres 
to  Samuel  Bacon,  a  Quaker  and  seaman  from  Wood- 
bridge,  New  Jersey;  hence  the  name  Bacon's  Neck.  The 
deed  for  this  property  is  still  in  existence  among  the 
papers  of  the  late  Mrs.  Kate  Knight  and  now  in  the 
possession  of  Ephraim  J.  Cook,  of  Port  Norris,  N.  J. 

John  Adams  appears  to  have  been  unable  to  write, 
as  all  the  public  documents  signed  by  him  are  by  "  his 
mark."  Then  Elizabeth  Adams,  senior,  according  to 
this  will,  was  living  in  1682,  although  John  Clements 
supposes  she  had  died  before  her  father's  will  was  made 
in  1683.  This  supposition  is  based  upon  the  fact  that 
she  is  not  mentioned  in  the  will  and  that  the  devises 
therein  made  are  directly  to  her  children.  John  Adams 
died  in  1700. 

The  name  of  the  Gould  whom  Elizabeth  married  is 
not  known,  nor  is  the  date  of  her  death,  or  the  place 
where  she  is  buried.  We  have  the  record  of  only  one 
son,  and  of  him  we  have  but  two  authentic  records. 

In  the  oldest  register  of  the  Gouldto^vn  graveyard 
the  spot  is  marked  where  is  laid  away  the  remains  of, 

'R.  G.  Johnson,  Memoir  of  John  Fenwick,  in  New  Jersey  Hist.  Soc. 
Publ.,  1849. 


52  GOULDTOWN 

"  Benjamin  Gould  and  Ann,  his  wife."  Swedes  and 
Finns  had  been  settled  in  some  parts  of  what  is  now 
Salem  and  Gloucester  Counties  before  Fenwick's 
arrival,  and  this  Benjamin  Gould's  wife,  Ann,  was  a 
Finn. 

The  following  is  his  will.  The  name  is  spelled  Gold, 
Goold  and  Gould,  in  the  records. 

WILL   OF   BENJAMIN   GOULD. 

SECRETAEY  OF  STATe's  OFFICE,  TRENTON,  NEW  JERSEY, 
BOOK  18  OF  WILLS,   PAGE   516. 

In  the  Name  of  God,  Amen,  the  ninth  day  of  May,  in  the 
year  of  our  Lord,  1T77. 

I,  Benjamin  Gold,  of  Fairfield,  in  the  County  of  Cumber- 
land and  in  the  State  of  New  Jersey,  yeoman,  being  sick  and 
weak  in  body,  but  of  perfect  mind  and  memory,  blessed  be  God 
therefor,  calling  unto  mind  the  Mortallity  of  my  body  and  know- 
ing that  it  is  appointed  unto  all  men  once  to  die  do  make  and 
ordain  this  my  last  will,  that  is  to  say,  principally  and  first  of 
all  give  and  recommend  my  soul  into  the  hands  of  God,  who  gave 
it  and  for  my  body  I  recommend  it  to  the  Earth  to  be  buried  in 
a  Christianlike  and  decent  manner  at  the  discretion  of  my 
executors,  nothing  doubting  but  at  the  general  Resurrection  I 
shall  receive  the  same  again  by  the  mighty  power  of  God  and 
as  touching  such  worldly  estate  wherewith  it  hath  pleased  God 
to  bless  me  in  this  life  I  give,  devise  and  dispose  of  in  the 
following  manner  and  form: 

Imprimis :  It  is  my  will  and  I  do  order  that  in  the  first  place 
all  my  just  debts  and  funeral  charges  be  paid  and  satisfied  in 
some  convenient  time  after  my  decease  by  my  executors. 

Item:  I  give,  and  bequeath  unto  my  well  beloved  wife,  Ann 
Gold,  the  one-third  part  of  all  my  moveable  estate  to  her  and 
her  heirs  forever  and  also  the  third  part  of  the  profits  of  my 
plantation  on  which  I  now  dwell  at  the  West  end  of  my  land. 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  imto  my  daughter,  Sarah  Goold, 
one  small  feather  bed  to  her  and  her  heirs  forever. 


TRADITIONS;  DESCENT  53 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  unto  my  eldest  son,  Anthony 
Goold,  the  sum  of  Fifteen  pounds  to  be  paid  to  him  out  of  nty 
moveable  estate  to  him  and  to  his  heirs  forever,  and  I  do  order 
that  a  Vendue  shall  be  made  of  all  my  moveable  estate  and  when 
my  debts  are  paid  out  of  it  and  my  wife  has  got  her  thirds  out 
of  it  as  aforesaid,  the  remainder  of  my  moveable  estate  to  be 
equally  divided  between  my  two  sons,  Samuel  Goold  and  Abijah 
Goold. 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  unto  my  two  sons,  Samuel  Goold 
and  Abijah  Goold  One  hundred  and  thirty-six  acres  of  my  land 
on  the  East  end  to  be  equally  divided  between  them.  I  give  it  to 
them  and  to  their  heirs  forever. 

Item:  I  give  and  bequeath  unto  my  youngest  son,  Elisha 
Goold,  all  the  remainder  of  my  land  to  him  and  his  heirs  for- 
ever. And  I  do  constitute  make  and  ordain  Thomas  Joslin  with 
James  Hood  my  only  and  sole  executors  of  this  my  last  will  and 
testament  and  do  hereby  utterly  disallow  revise  and  disallow  all 
and  every  other  former  testaments,  wills,  legacies  and  executors 
ratifying  this  and  no  other  to  be  my  last  will  and  testament. 

In  witness  whereof,  I  have  hereunto  set  my  hand  and  seal 
the  day  and  year  above  written. 

Benjajon  Gooi-d.         (Seal) 
Witnesses 

James  Sayre,  Joshua  White, 

her 

Anna   X   Sayre. 

mark. 

The  date  of  probate  is  not  given,  but  the  preceding 
was  proven  June  27,  1777.  The  account  of  the  execu- 
tors was  approved  February  13,  1779  (Book  22,  page 
69).    It  amounted  to  £  148  5  s.,  personal. 

Anthony  Gould  left  a  will  (Book  40,  page  508), 
dated  June  23,  1803.  Witnesses,  Jeremiah  Smith, 
Abner  Smith.  It  directs  all  property  to  be  sold — ^to 
daughter  Phebe  Gould  $6.  Remainder  to  be  divided 
between  two  daughters,  Christiana  and  Martha.    Jona- 


54  GOULDTOWN 

than  Bowen,  Executor,  and  guardian  of  daughters, 
Christiana  and  Martha  until  they  are  eighteen.  Will 
proved  September  27,  1803.  Anthony  Gould  was 
Benjamin's  oldest  son. 

From  these  four  sons,  mentioned  in  the  above  will, 
descended  all  the  Goulds  of  Gouldtown,  and  from  them 
the  place  derived  its  name. 

When  Benjamin  Gould,  the  founder  of  Gouldtown, 
grew  up,  it  is  quite  probable  there  were  no  girls  of  his 
own  color  with  whom  he  could  associate  had  he  desired 
to  do  so;  that  he  had  brothers  and  sisters  to  grow  to 
maturity  has  not  been  established,  but  the  tradition 
handed  down  through  his  sons  is  that  his  parents  had 
five  children,  one  of  whom  was  a  son  named  Levi;  all 
the  others  died  young,  and  all  trace  of  Levi  was  lost 
before  the  death  of  Benjamin.  It  was  held  that  Levi 
was  older  than  Benjamin. 

Benjamin  married  a  Finn,  whose  name  was  Ann; 
he  got  none  of  the  Fenwick  land,  nor  any  of  the  lands  of 
his  mother's  father,  John  Adams,  so  far  as  can  be 
learned. 

There  were  other  descendants  of  both  Fenwick  and 
Adams,  for  Samuel  Hedge  and  Edward  Champness, 
as  well  as  John  Adams,  married  daughters  of  Fenwick. 

Judge  Elmer,  in  his  history  of  Cumberland  County 
says:  "Benjamin  Champneys  (thus  he  spells  the 
name)  a  descendant  of  Fenwick,  studied  with  Ebenezer 
Elmer  in  1793,  and,  after  a  few  voyages  at  sea,  married 
a  daughter  of  Colonel  Potter,  and  settled  as  a  physician 
in  Bridgeton.  He  was  much  esteemed,  but  died  young 
in  1814." 

The  "Widow  Champneys,"  mother  of  the  Dr. 
Champneys  mentioned,  kept  the  Pole  Tavern,  one  of 
the  ancient  landmarks  of  South  Jersey;  Dr.  Champ- 
neys was  her  son.    Colonel  Potter's  sons,  whose  sister 


TRADITIONS;  DESCENT  55 

Dr.  Champneys  married,  kept  a  general  store  in  Bridge- 
ton,  at  which  the  Goulds,  as  well  as  the  general  pubHc, 
dealt.  One  of  the  sons  of  a  member  of  the  firm  has 
often  repeated  this  little  incident  as  showing  that  the 
claimed  descent  of  the  Goulds  from  Fenwick  was  known 
then  as  the  common  and  undisputed  tradition.  He  said 
that  Dr.  Champneys  was  connected  with  the  store,  and 
among  those  who  had  become  indebted  to  the  store  was 
Benjamin  Gould,  second,  the  grandson  of  the  founder 
of  Gouldtown.  This  Benjamin  Gould  was  a  dealer  in 
cord-wood  and  hoop-poles,  to  a  considerable  extent. 

The  firm  sued  him  for  the  amount  of  an  indebtedness 
which  he  had  contracted  with  them.  This  made  him, 
Gould,  very  angry,  and  he  hastened  to  the  store  in  great 
wrath  that  he  should  be  treated  with  such  indignity. 
After  he  had  given  vent  to  his  feelings  and  had  cooled 
off  so  he  could  be  talked  to  in  a  pacific  manner.  Dr. 
Champneys  said:  "  Well,  Benjamin,  we  knew  it  was  a 
mean  thing  to  do,  and  we  hated  to  do  it,  but  we  need 
money  very  badly  and  we've  got  to  sue  people  to  get  it 
in,  and  we  didn't  know  who  to  begin  on ;  so  we  thought 
we  would  begin  on  our  o\vn  relations  fii'st,  then  other 
people  wouldn't  mind  it  so  much." 

The  explanation  was  entirely  satisfactory  and  the 
account  was  settled.  This  incident  was  told  to  the 
writer  by  the  son  of  the  member  of  the  firm  alluded  to, 
who,  at  the  time  of  relating,  was  the  acknowledged 
historiographer  of  local  events  and  traditions,  and  a 
reliable  local  genealogist.  The  Benjamin  Gould, 
second,  was  the  grandfather  of  the  writer;  he  was  born 
in  1779,  or  two  years  after  the  death  of  his  grandfather, 
Benjamin,  first,  and  was,  at  the  time  of  this  incident, 
about  thirty  years  old.  He  was  the  son  of  Abijah 
Gould,  who  died  in  1806,  who  was  born  about  1730 
or  1735. 


56  GOULDTOWN 

Benjamin  Gould,  the  founder,  was  born  between 
1700  and  1705;  his  mother,  EHzabeth  Adams  Gould, 
being  then  a  little  more  than  thirty-five  years  of  age. 

Comparatively  nothing  is  known  of  his  early  life; 
it  is  believed  that  he  was  the  youngest  of  the  five  chil- 
dren. He  must  have  been  a  hardy  man  of  thrift,  and  a 
man  much  nearer  white  than  mulatto,  as  indicated  by 
his  descendants.  His  will  shows  that  he  had  accumu- 
lated considerable  property,  which  is  still  in  the  hands 
of  his  descendants,  who  have  added  to  it.  The  in- 
ventory of  his  personal  property,  consisting  of  cattle, 
sheep,  oxen  and  the  like,  aggregated  £  148  5  s.,  which 
was  quite  a  sum  for  those  days. 

His  will  left  £  15  to  his  oldest  son,  Anthony.  Why 
this  was  so  does  not  appear,  unless  it  was  because  he  con- 
sidered him  already  provided  for,  or  had  previously 
helped  him,  for  all  records  in  the  County  Clerk's  Office 
show  that  Anthony  Gould  owned  property  on  the  road 
from  Bridgetown  to  Beaver  Dam,  or  Maurice  River 
Bridge,  which  he  had  purchased  from  John  Page,  by 
deed  bearing  date  1767. 

Benjamin  Gould  had  three  other  sons  and  one 
daughter ;  the  other  sons,  as  given  in  the  will,  and  whose 
descendants  are  all  easily  traced,  were  Samuel,  Abijah 
and  Elisha;  the  daughter,  Sarah,  died  unmarried, 
shortly  after  the  death  of  her  father.  The  early  life 
of  these  four  boys  was  not  altogether  monotonous,  they 
had  plenty  of  companions  among  the  hardy  woodmen 
of  those  times,  for  the  country  was  forest-covered,  the 
principal  source  of  industry  being  the  cutting  and  haul- 
ing of  logs,  rails  for  fencing,  cord-wood  and  timber. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  EARLY  GOULDS  AND  THEIR  ASSOCL^TIONS ;  THE 

PIERCES   AND   MURRAYS;   THE   THREE   FOLTNDA- 

TION  FAMILIES. 

In  "  Historical  Collections  of  New  Jersey,"  it  is 
related  that  Fenwick  made  three  purchases  from  the 
Indians  of  the  lands  included  in  the  tract  out  of  which 
Salem  and  Cumberland  Counties  were  made;  the  first 
and  second  purchases  included  all  the  country  between 
the  Cohansey  and  Salem  creeks,  and  the  third  purchase 
included  all  which  lay  between  the  Cohansey  and 
Maurice  River.  These  purchases  were  made  in  the 
years  1675  and  1676.  "  Emigrants  were  now  arriving 
and  Fenwick,  having  become  sole  proprietor  of  this 
large  tract  of  country,  which  he  called  Fenwick's  colony, 
sales  were  rapidly  made  of  large,  as  well  as  small  tracts 
of  land,  and  so  continued  until  his  death." 

The  following  is  extracted  "  From  the  First  General 
Order,  as  agreed  upon  by  Fenwick  and  the  first 
purchasers  " : 

And  as  for  the  settling  of  the  town  of  New  Salem,  it  is  like- 
wise ordered  that  the  town  be  divided  by  a  street;  that  the 
Southeast  side  be  for  the  purchasers,  who  are  to  take  their 
lots  of  sixteen  acres  as  they  come  to  take  them  up  and  plant 
them,  as  they  happen  to  join  to  the  lots  of  the  purchasers 
resident,  who  are  to  hold  their  present  plantations,  and  aU 
of  them  to  be  accounted  as  part  of  their  purchases,  and  the 
other  part,  on  the  North  and  by  East  and  by  South  is  to  be 
disposed  of  by  the  chief  proprietor  for  the  encouragement  of 
trade;  he  also  giving,  for  the  good  of  the  town  in  general,  the 
field  or  marsh  that  lieth  between  the  town  and  Goodchild's 
plantation;     .     .     .     and  lastly,  we  do  leave  all  other  things 

57 


58  GOULDTOWN 

concerning  the  setting  forth  and  surveying  the  said  purchases 
unto  the  chief  proprietor,  to  order  as  he  sees  fit. 

Signed  accordingly,  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  the  fourth 
month,  sixteen  hundred  and  seventy-six. 

Fenwick. 

Edward  Wade,  John  Smith,  Richard  Noble,  Samuel  Nichol- 
son, John  Adams,  Hypolite  Lefevre,  Edward  Champness, 
Richard  Whitacar,  William  Malston,  Robert  Wade. 

John  Fenwick  held  much  the  same  relation  to  this 
section  of  New  Jersey — especially  to  Salem  and  Salem 
County — as  William  Penn  did  to  Philadelphia  and 
that  portion  of  Pennsylvania. 

We  have  now  to  do  mainly  with  the  lines  of  the  tliree 
families  whose  names  are  mentioned  in  the  opening 
chapter  of  this  book.  The  beginning  of  the  Gould 
family  has  been  outlined  sufficiently  now  to  introduce 
the  beginning  of  the  two  other  families  already  named — 
the  Pierces  and  the  Murrays. 

The  Pierces  were  next  in  point  of  early  intelligence 
and  importance  to  the  Goulds.  Benjamin  Gould  and 
his  four  sons  showed  considerable  broad-mindedness, 
and  intelligence,  as  will  appear  in  further  detail;  they 
accumulated  property,  and  maintained  a  life  of  inde- 
pendence, self-reliance,  and  manhood  for  the  times  in 
which  they  lived  and  the  naturally  poor  soil  and  country 
which  they  inhabited.  The  white  people  who  inhabited 
the  contiguous  localities  fared  no  better  than  they,  and 
those  of  them  who  achieved  any  greater  success  in  life 
than  did  the  Goulds  of  those  early  days,  changed  their 
locality  before  changing  their  mode  of  living.  Before 
the  material  advancement  in  life  and  standing  of  these 
families  now  detailed,  the  entire  country  between  what 
is  now  Bridgeton  and  Millville,  had  been  surv^eyed  and 
cut  up  into  smaller  holdings. 


FOUNDATION  FAMILIES  59 

Judge  Elmer's  history  shows  that  Richard  Hancock, 
who  was  Fenwick's  first  Surveyor-General,  came  to  what 
is  now  called  Bridgeton  in  1686  and  erected  a  sawmill 
on  the  stream  then  called  and  ever  since  known  as  Mill 
Creek,  which  runs  along  bj''  the  Dix  ^vrapper  factory 
and  is  the  outlet  of  East  Lake  and  the  Indian  Field 
Run.  This  land,  covered,  as  it  then  was,  with  hea^y 
cedar,  pine,  and  oak  timber,  was  included  in  an  eleven- 
thousand-acre  survey,  located  about  this  time  for  the 
West  Jersey  Society.  This  Society  was  formed  by 
several  large  proprietors  living  partly  in  London  and 
partly  in  the  provinces.  Probably  Hancock  obtained 
title  to  his  holdings  from  them,  says  Judge  Elmer. 
Continuing  he  says :  "  It  does  not  appear  that  he  ever 
lived  here,  his  residence  being  at  the  place  in  Salem 
County  named  after  him  Hancock's  Bridge,  where 
there  still  remain  some  of  his  descendants."  From 
Hancock's  sawmill  much  lumber  was  sawed  up  and 
sent  away — for  Thomas,  a  historian,  states,  says  Judge 
Elmer,  "  a  goodly  store  of  lumber  went  out  of  the 
Cohansey  to  Philadelphia." 

Writing  of  the  eleven-thousand-acre  survey,  before 
mentioned,  and  as  appears  in  Elmer's  History,  the 
records  show  that  "  on  the  east  side  of  the  Cohansey  a 
large  tract  of  eleven  thousand  acres  was  surveyed  by 
Worlidge  and  Budd  for  the  West  Jersey  Society  in 
1686,  and  this  was  resurveyed  and  recorded  in  1716. 
East  of  that  tract  a  large  survey  was  made  for  the  heirs 
of  William  Penn,  which  extended  to  the  Maurice 
River.  It  has  been  asserted  that  the  holdings  of 
Benjamin  Gould  and  his  compatriots  came  originally 
from  the  West  Jersey  Society  out  of  this  eleven- thou- 
sand-acre survey.  Elmer's  History  declares :  "  It  may  be 
safely  said  that  four-fifths  of  the  land  included  in  Cum- 
berland County  was  covered  by  surveys  before  1700." 


60  GOULDTOWN 

The  first  proprietors  of  the  land  within  the  bounds 
of  what  is  now  Cumberland  County  were  principally 
Friends;  but  few  of  the  actual  settlers,  however,  were 
Friends ;  these  people  being  mostly  confined  to  Green- 
wich, and  later,  a  few  on  Maurice  River,  about  Buck- 
shutem  and  vicinity  and  finally  about  where  Millville 
now  is. 

It  requires  some  stretch  of  imagination  to  under- 
stand how  those  hardy  people,  those  pioneers  and  early 
settlers,  made  a  living, — yet  those  who  are  now  ad- 
vanced to  near  the  fourscore  mark  of  their  years  can 
form  a  pretty  good  conception  of  their  modes  of  life, 
as  they  gathered  it  from  the  traditions  and  conversa- 
tions, jokes,  anecdotes,  and  pleasantries  of  their  own 
gi'andsires  and  granddames.  The  grandsires  would  tell 
about  their  daily  life  in  clearing  their  lands,  burning  the 
logs  or  hauling  them  to  the  sawmill  with  their  oxen; 
about  sowing  the  rye  for  the  rye  bread,  or  the  flax  to 
grow  their  own  clothing;  instruct  how  to  pull  the  flax, 
heckle  it,  spin  it  into  thread  and  weave  it  into  coarse 
tow  cloth;  how  some  raised  sheep,  sheared  the  wool, 
spun  it,  and  had  it  woven  into  the  coarse  "  linsey- 
woolsey  "  cloth,  from  which  the  granddames  could  make 
the  heavy  warm  clothing  of  "  homespun  "  and  "  bobin- 
ette."  They  would  tell  also  of  the  leather  breeches  of 
calfskin  and  the  under  jackets  made  of  deerskin;  and  of 
splint  chairs,  home-made,  bottomed  with  the  deerskin, 
the  splint  brooms  with  which  they  swept  the  floors  of 
their  humble  homes,  many  of  them  mere  cabins;  the 
"  noggins  "  and  the  "  piggins  "  with  which  to  measure 
small  commodities;  some  would  tell  how  they  reaped 
the  grain  with  the  sickle,  walking  their  oxen  over  it, 
treading  out  the  grain  on  the  threshing  floors  to  winnow 
out  afterward  in  the  winds. 

All  these  things  I  have  heard  related,  and  so  have 


FOUNDATION  FAMILIES  61 

you,  who  have  lived  your  threescore  and  ten  years  in 
Cumberland  County.  Such  as  this  was  the  hardy  and 
independent  life  of  the  early  inhabitants  of  Gouldtown. 
The  great  forests  fell  beneath  the  strokes  of  their  axes ; 
the  logs  were  hauled  to  the  sawmill  and  the  cord- wood  to 
the  landings  on  the  Cohansey  River,  whence  they  were 
taken  in  vessels  either  as  lumber  or  cord-wood  to  Phila- 
delphia ;  or  the  wood  was  burned  to  charcoal  and  taken  to 
Philadelphia  and  New  York,  in  those  early  days.  There 
was  but  little  charcoal,  however,  shipped  from  the  land- 
ings on  the  Cohansey;  most  of  tliis  commodity  was 
hauled  to  the  landings  on  the  Maurice  River  and 
shipped  to  New  York,  as  that  was  the  better  market. 
There  were  landings  on  the  Cohansey  known  as  "  The 
Bridge,"  afterward  called  "  Cohansey  Bridge  " — now 
Bridgeton.  "  Free  Landing,"  a  point  between  the 
Dailey  farm  and  the  Donaghay  farm,  and  also  at 
"  Bumbridge  " — now  Fairton.  Hundreds  and  thou- 
sands of  cords  of  wood  were  hauled  from  the  country 
east  of  the  Cohansey  to  those  shipping-points  and 
freighted  to  Philadelphia. 

The  ring  of  the  woodman's  axe  was  heard  all  winter 
long  through  the  forests,  and  the  year  around  teams, 
both  of  oxen  and  horses,  were  seen  upon  all  the  roads 
leading  from  the  forests  to  the  river-docks.  The  people 
who  did  all  this  work  were  not  all  Goulds,  Pierces,  and 
Murrays,  but  there  were  Garrisons,  Elmers,  Clarks, 
Woodruffs,  Batemans,  Lummises,  Facemires,  Pages, 
Steelings  and  hosts  of  others,  whose  names  are  still 
prominent  among  their  descendants  in  this  county. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

ORIGIN   OF   THE   PIERCE,    MURRAY,   AND    CUFF   FAMILIES. 

Tradition  says  that  the  Pierces  originated  from  two 
mulattoes  who  were  brought  here  in  a  vessel  from  the 
West  Indies,  w^ith  which  the  Colony  had  early  trade, 
vessels  from  the  West  Indies  arriving  at  Greenwich 
and  also  coming  up  as  far  as  to  what  is  now  Bridgeton. 
These  two  men  were  Richard  and  Anthony  Pierce, 
brothers.  It  was  the  custom  in  those  early  days  for  the 
landowners  to  pay  the  passage  of  immigi'ants  who  came 
to  this  country  and  were  unable  themselves  to  pay, 
and  those  immigrants  would  be  indentured  to  the  land- 
owners for  a  term  of  years,  or  if  they  were  females,  the 
landowners  might  make  wives  of  them.^ 

Anthony  and  Richard  Pierce  paid  the  passage  of 
two  Dutch  women,  sisters,  from  Holland;  their  names 
were  Marie  and  Hannah  Van  Aca.  The  last  name 
speedily  degenerated  into  Wanaca,  and  was  made  the 
Christian  name  of  a  son  of  one  of  them.  From  these 
descended  all  the  Pierces  of  Gouldtown.  They  came 
to  the  colony  of  West  New  Jersey  before  the  middle  of 
the  eighteenth  century. 

The  Murrays  originated  in  Cape  May;  they  claim 
an  Indian  ancestry.  The  first  Murray  of  whom  there 
is  trace  in  the  vicinity  of  the  earliest  settlements  of 
Gouldtown,  was  Othniel  Murray.  He  claimed  to  be 
a  Lenapee  or  Siconessee  Indian,  and  came  from  Cape 

*  Professor  Kalm,  writing  from  Rancocas,  N.  J.,  December  18,  1743, 
relative  to  the  powers  of  a  clergjTnan  respecting  the  performance  of  the 
marriage  ceremony,  said:  "He  cannot  marry  such  strangers  as  have  bound 
themselves  to  serve  a  certain  number  of  years  in  order  to  pay  their  passage 
from  Europe,  without  the  consent  of  their  masters." — New  Jersey  Archives. 
62 


FAMILY  ORIGINS  63 

May  County.  The  Lenapees  resided  in  the  loeahty  of 
Cohansey  (or  Bridgeton)  and  had  quite  a  settlement 
at  what  became  known  as  the  Indian  Fields,  at  a  run 
still  known  as  the  Indian  Field  Run.  This  Othniel 
Murray  married  Katharine  (last  name  unknown),  a 
Swede.  They  had  five  children,  three  sons  and  two 
daughters,  INIark  JSIurray,  David  Murray,  and  John 
Murray,  and  JMary  Murray  and  Dorcas  Murray.  From 
these  descended  all  the  Murrays  of  Gouldtown. 

We  have  now  outlined  the  three  chief  families  of 
Gouldtown,  viz.:  Benjamin  Gould  and  Ann,  his  wife 
(they  had  Elizabeth  and  Benjamin,  Jr.,  who  died 
young).  TJieir  other  children  were  Sarah,  Anthony, 
Samuel,  Abijah,  and  Elisha;  Sarah  died  unmarried. 
Anthony  Pierce  and  Marie  (Mary)  had  many  children; 
their  sons  were  Menon  Pierce,  Richard  Pierce,  Anthony 
Pierce,  Jr.,  Jesse  Pierce,  1st,  John  Pierce,  Benjamin 
Pierce,  and  Wanaca  Pierce,  and  two  daughters,  Hannah 
Pierce  and  Elizabeth  Pierce.  Richard  Pierce,  Sr.,  and 
Hannah,  had  but  one  son,  Adam  Pierce,  but  they  had 
four  daughters,  viz.:  INIary,  Rhumah,  Hannah,  and 
Elizabeth. 

These  four  families — ^the  children  of  Benjamin  and 
Ann  Gould,  the  children  of  Anthony  and  Mary  Van 
Aca  Pierce,  the  children  of  Richard  and  Hannah  Van 
Aca  Pierce,  and  the  cliildren  of  Othniel  and  Katharine 
Murray,  rapidly  intermarried  before  the  Revolution. 
They  also  intermarried  with  white  people.  ' 

Benjamin  Gould's  oldest  son,  Anthony  Gould, 
married  Phoebe  Lummis,  a  white  girl — one  of  the 
Lummises,  before  named.  Her  father  is  believed  to 
have  been  James  Lummis.  Benjamin  Gould's  second 
son,  Samuel  Gould,  married  Rhumah  Pierce,  daughter 
of  Richard  and  Hannah  Pierce.  Benjamin  Gould's 
third   son,   Abijah   Gould,   married   Hannah   Pierce, 


64  GOULDTOWN 

daughter  of  Richard  and  Hannah  Pierce.  Anthony 
Pierce's  daughter,  Elizabeth  Pierce,  married  Josiah 
Hicks,  of  Gloucester.  Benjamin  Gould's  fourth  son, 
Elisha  Gould,  married  Elizabeth  Pierce,  daughter  of 
Richard  and  Hannah  Pierce.  Hannah  Pierce,  born  in 
1767,  married  Reuben  Cuff,  of  Salem,  the  minister. 
These  all  lived  in  colonial  times ;  Adam  Pierce,  the  only 
son  of  Richard  and  Haimah  Pierce,  and  Richard  Pierce, 
Jr.,  and  Anthony  Pierce,  Jr.,  served  in  the  Revolution- 
ary War;  they  were  Revolutionary  pensioners  until 
their  deaths,  between  1836  and  1850,  at  a  great  age. 

One  of  the  sons  of  Othniel  Murray  and  Katharine, 
his  wife,  was  also  a  soldier  of  the  Revolution  and  was 
a  deserter.  It  is  told  of  him  that  an  officer  from  Gen- 
eral Joseph  Bloomfield's  command  came  after  him,  and 
he  refused  to  go.  The  officer  drew  his  sword  and  said : 
"  I  demand  for  the  last  time  that  you  go  with  me  and 
return  to  your  company;  will  you  go? "  Young  Mur- 
ray saw  determination  in  the  officer's  attitude  and  he 
reluctantly  replied,  "  I  will  go."  He  returned  to  the 
army  and  served  till  the  end  of  the  war. 

Wanaca  Pierce,  son  of  Anthony  and  Mary  Van 
Aca  Pierce,  married  Mary  Murray,  daughter  of  Othniel 
and  Katharine  Murray.  Adam  Pierce,  son  of  Richard 
and  Hannah  Van  Aca  Pierce,  married  Mary  Murray's 
sister,  Dorcas  Murray. 

In  the  early  days  the  settlements,  Gouldtown  and 
Piercetown,  were  somewhat  like  those  of  the  Jews  and 
Samaritans  about  which  we  read  in  the  New  Testament. 
Each  settlement  had  its  own  church,  its  own  school- 
house,  and  its  own  family  and  social  customs.  The 
differences  in  appearance,  in  manners,  in  pronunciation 
and  in  their  general  habits  and  views  were  marked ;  and 
there  was  no  small  degree  of  antipathy  or  at  least 


FAMILY  ORIGINS  65 

mutual  disregard  existing  between  the  two  races. 
Happily,  with  the  blending  of  the  schools  and  the 
general  advance  of  intelligence,  much  of  this  mutual 
disregard  has  passed  away  and  the  people  are  now 
much  nearer  unification. 

Not  to  go  at  length  into  particulars,  we  may  re- 
mark that  in  the  early  times  the  Pierces  exhibited 
greater  fondness  for  flowers,  for  bright  colors  in  dress, 
amd  for  music  than  did  the  Goulds.  They  cared  less 
for  home,  were  more  given  to  hunting  and  fishing  and 
evinced  greater  love  for  amusement.  While  among 
the  Pierces  the  old  time  "  fiddle  "  survived  and  frolics 
were  held  in  some  far-away  cabin  of  a  home  where  men 
and  women  performed  some  kind  of  dance,  during  the 
same  period  there  was  not  a  musical  instrument  or 
musician  among  the  Goulds.  It  is  doubtful  if  there 
was  a  Gould  of  Gouldtown  who  could  dance  a  step. 
Many  of  the  Pierces  also  had  fine  musical  voices  and 
good  ear  for  music,  while  the  Goulds  were  markedly 
defective  in  both  respects. 

The  Pierces  were  more  devoted  to  working  in  the 
woods  and  in  the  marshes,  caring  less  for  farming; 
while  the  Goulds  in  the  earliest  times  manifested  strong 
interest  towards  farming,  raising  hogs  and  securing 
good  horses.  In  manners  the  Goulds  were  usually 
brusque  or  blunt;  the  Pierces  suave  and  plausible. 

There  was  a  stronger  belief  in  signs,  in  ghosts,  in 
witches  and  "  conjurors "  among  the  Pierces  than 
among  the  Goulds,  to  be  traced  to  their  Dutch  origin 
in  part;  the  Goulds,  however,  were  not  entirely  free 
from  these  superstitions.  But  the  great  regard  for  the 
moon  and  the  deviation  of  the  wind  in  relation  to  sow- 
ing and  planting  was  usually  found  coupled  more  with 
the  Pierce  or  Murray  element  of  the  population  than 
with  the  Gould. 


66  GOULDTOWN 

The  Pierces  and  Murrays  had  more  of  the  elements 
which  go  to  make  musicians,  poets,  orators,  and  singers, 
than  the  Goulds.  The  congregation  which  assembled 
in  Piercetown,  a  century  or  more  ago,  would  produce 
much  better  singing  and  was  much  more  eloquent  in 
speech  and  prayer  than  the  congregation  in  Gouldtown. 
The  older  Pierces  and  Murrays  could  sing,  making 
melody  with  their  voices,  while  the  older  Goulds  could 
not.  Indeed  one  of  the  earliest  circuit  preachers  who 
came  to  Gouldtown  reported  that  there  was  not  a  man 
there  who  could  sing  "  Praise  God  from  whom  all 
blessings  flow ! " 

The  Goulds  ranked  well  in  sturdy  and  steady-going 
ways.  They  knew  how  to  work  from  year's  end  to 
year's  end.  They  were  persevering  and  frugal,  with  a 
commendable  zeal  for  learning.  What  they  lacked  of 
the  showy  talents  they  more  than  compensated  for  in  the 
homely  virtues. 

The  Goulds  of  the  early  generations,  as  well  as  the 
Murrays,  were  fair-skinned,  ^vith  blue  eyes  and  light 
hair.  The  Pierces  were  darker  complexioned  with 
black  hair  and  black  eyes.  The  young  women  were 
noted  for  their  good  looks  and  regular  features.  The 
Cuff  family  origin  will  be  given  later.  It  properly 
belongs  to  Salem  County. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

IMPORTANCE  OF  GENEALOGICAI.  RESEARCH ;  SOME  OF  THE 

ORIGINAL  FA^IILY  GENEALOGIES  OF  SALEM  AND 

CUMBERLAND  COUNTIES ;  COMPILATION  OF 

THOMAS   SHOURDS. 

TiHE  "Magazine  of  American  History"  says: 
"  The  gi*owing  interest  in  ancestry  indicates  that 
Americans  are  fast  coming  to  believe  that  it  is  of  some 
consequence  to  know  from  whom  they  are  descended. 
Long  lines  of  ancestry  are  revealed  in  every  person. 
Pride  in  ancestry  deserves  encoiu'agement.  One  can- 
not know  too  much  about  himself.  Genealogy  is  the 
most  fascinating  branch  of  history." 

The  late  Thomas  Shom'ds,  liistorian  of  Salem 
County,  nearly  forty  years  ago  compiled  a  long  line  of 
Salem  and  Cumberland  County  genealogy,  which  well 
deserves  to  be  put  in  permanent  form.  With  that  end 
in  view,  a  portion  is  given  here,  wliich  relates  to  some 
of  the  most  prominent  families  in  Cumberland  County. 
It  embraces  the  Sheppard  family,  from  which  came  the 
first  Mayor  of  Bridgeton,  the  Bacons  of  Bacon's  Neck, 
the  Wheatons  of  Greenwich,  the  Mulfords,  the  Bate- 
mans,  the  Holmeses,  and  many  more.    He  wrote: 

The  Sheppard  family  is  the  most  numerous  of  any,  except- 
ing the  Thompsons,  in  the  ancient  County  of  Salem.  There 
were  three  brothers,  David,  Thomas  and  John  Sheppard ;  they 
came  from  Tipperary,  Ireland.  On  their  arrival  in  America 
they  resided  for  a  short  time  at  Shrewsbury,  East  Jersey.  In 
1683  they  settled  in  what  is  now  Cumberland  County,  on  the 
south  side  of  the  Cohansey,  it  being  a  neck  of  land  bounded  on 
the  north  by  the  Cohansey  River,  on  the  south  by  a  small 
creek,  called  Back  Creek.     It  is  not  improbable  that  they  gave 

67 


68  GOULDTOWN 

it  the  name  of  Shrewsbury  Neck,  after  the  township  in  East 
Jersey  where  they  first  settled.  The  Sheppard  family,  I  have  no 
doubt,  were  English;  their  name  implies  as  much.  The  Shep- 
pards  were  members  of  the  Baptist  Church  of  Cleagh  Keaton, 
in  the  County  of  Tipperary,  Ireland.  They  were  also  among 
the  few  persons  that  organized  the  First  Cohansey  Baptist 
Church,  in  1690,  at  Shrewsbury  Neck.  David  Sheppard's  first 
purchase  was  fifty  acres  of  land  of  Captain  William  Dare;  he 
afterward  purchased  one  hundred  and  fifty  acres,  on  which  he 
lived  and  died.  I  have  no  doubt  he  became  the  owner  of  a  large 
quantity  of  land  in  the  Neck. 

The  Sheppard,  Westcott  and  Reeves  families,  during  the 
last  (eighteenth)  century  and  the  fore  part  of  the  present 
(nineteenth),  were  the  principal  owners  of  Back  and  Shrewsbury 
Neck.  David  Sheppard,  Sr.,  agreeably  to  the  most  authentic 
account,  had  six  children:  David,  bom  1690;  John,  Joseph, 
Enoch,  Hannah,  and  Elizabeth  Sheppard.  Hannah  married  a 
young  man  named  Gillman.  She  died  in  1722,  leaving  one  son, 
David  Gillman.  John,  the  son  of  David  Sheppard,  Sr.,  died 
about  the  year  1719,  without  issue,  leaving  his  property  to  his 
brothers  and  sisters.  David,  the  eldest  son  of  David  Sheppard, 
the  emigrant,  was  born  about  the  year  1690,  and  inherited  the 
homestead  property  of  his  father,  in  Back  Neck.  He  married 
in  1719.  The  children  of  David  Sheppard,  Jr.,  and  his  wife, 
Sarah  Sheppard,  were  Philip,  bom  1720 ;  Ephraim,  bom  1722 ; 
David,  1724 ;  Joseph,  1727,  and  Phoebe  Sheppard.  Philip,  the 
eldest,  inherited  a  large  landed  estate  in  Back  Neck,  on  which 
he  resided.  The  property  is  now  owned  by  one  of  the  heirs  of 
the  late  Ephraim  Mulford.  Philip  was  twice  married;  his  first 
wife  was  Mary,  his  second  Sarah  Bennett.  He  was  considered 
one  of  the  largest  and  most  successful  farmers  in  that  neighbor- 
hood. Tradition  has  it  that  he  was  the  first,  in  that  section, 
that  owned  a  covered  wagon.  I  do  not  suppose  that  it  was 
an  elliptic  spring  carriage,  but  plain  as  it  was,  I  have  no  doubt 
it  was  considered  by  the  inhabitants  a  great  innovation.  It  was 
then  the  custom  to  travel  on  horseback.  Philip  died  January 
5,  1797,  aged  seventy-seven,  leaving  a  large  real  and  personal 
estate  to  liis  children.     His  widow,  Sarah  Sheppard,  married 


GENEALOGIES  69 

John  Remington,  in  1801.  Philip  was  buried  in  the  Baptist 
cemetery,  near  Sheppard's  mill ;  he  was  a  deacon  in  the  cliurch, 
and  was  considered  one  of  the  most  prominent  citizens  in  that 
section  of  Cumberland  County.  The  inventory  of  his  personal 
property  at  the  time  of  his  death  amounted  to  £580  6s.  His 
children  by  his  first  wife,  Mary,  were  Amos,  Hannah,  Mary  and 
Naomi  Sheppard.  By  his  second  wife,  Sarah  B.  Sheppard, 
Ichabod,  Henry,  Phoebe,  and  William  Sheppard.  Ephraim,  the 
son  of  David  Sheppard,  Jr.,  born  1722,  was  married  three 
times.  His  first  wife  was  Kesiah  Kelsey ;  his  second  was  Sarah 
Dennis ;  third,  Rebecca  Barrett.  He  lived  in  Hopewell  Town- 
ship, on  the  road  from  Bowentown  to  Readstown,  and  was 
owner  of  a  large  landed  estate  in  that  section,  leaving  at  his 
death  large  farms  to  all  four  of  his  sons,  all  adjoining  one 
another  on  the  straight  road  from  Bridgeton  to  Readstown. 
He  was  a  highly  respected  citizen,  and  like  his  brother  Philip, 
was  one  of  the  deacons  of  Cohansey  church.  He  died  May  8, 
1783,  aged  sixty  years,  and  was  buried  in  the  Baptist  yard 
adjoining  the  church,  near  Sheppard's  mill,  by  the  side  of  his 
wife,  Sarah  Dennis,  who  died  1st  mo.  21st,  1777.  She  died  in 
her  fifty-first  year.  His  third  wife,  Rebecca  Barrett,  survived 
him  twenty  years.  She  was  buried  at  Shiloh,  being  a  Seventh- 
day  Baptist.  Ephraim  had  ten  children,  all  by  his  second  wife, 
Sarah  Dennis.  The  oldest  was  Joel,  bom  1748,  Abner,  bom 
May,  1750;  James,  born  December  25,  1752;  Hannah,  and 
Rachel.  Phoebe  married  Wade  Barker,  who  was  the  grandson 
of  Samuel  Wade,  Jr.,  of  Alloway's  Creek.  She  died  young, 
leaving  no  issue.  Wade  was  buried  in  the  old  Baptist  yard  at 
Mill  Hollow,  near  Salem.  Sarah,  Elizabeth,  and  Hope  Shep- 
pard, who  afterward  married  Reuel  Sayres,  were  the  other  chil- 
dren. Sayres  subsequently  moved  to  the  State  of  Ohio.  Eph- 
raim's  youngest  child  was  Ephraim  Sheppard.  David,  the  son 
of  David  Sheppard,  Jr.,  was  born  in  the  year  1724.  He  married 
Temperance  Sheppard,  daughter  of  Jonadab  and  Phoebe 
Sheppard.  They  lived  in  the  Township  of  Downe,  Cumberland 
County.  He  was  a  member  of  Cohansey  church,  as  was  also 
his  wife,  and  both  became  constituent  members  of  the  Dividing 
Creek  Baptist  Church  at  its  constitution,  May  30,  1761;  at 


70  GOULDTOWN 

that  time  he  became  deacon  of  the  church  and  afterward  a 
colleague  of  the  pastor,  Samuel  Heaton.  David  Sheppard  died 
June  18,  1774,  aged  fifty  years ;  his  widow  subsequently  married 
a  man  by  the  name  of  Lore.  She  was  born  in  1731  and  died 
July  28,  1796,  aged  sixty-five  years ;  she  and  her  first  husband, 
David  Sheppard,  were  buried  at  Dividing  Creek  Baptist  grave- 
yard. The  following  are  the  names  of  David  and  Temperance 
Sheppard's  children;  Hosea,  David,  Owen,  Jonadab,  Tabitha, 
Temperance  and  Mary  Sheppard.  Joseph  the  son  of  David 
Sheppard,  Jr.,  was  born  in  1727 ;  he  married  a  Say  re.  They 
lived  in  Back  Neck  and  owned  a  large  quantity  of  good  land^ 
which  he  left  to  his  children. 

I  have  been  informed  that  most,  if  not  all,  of  said  land  has 
now  passed  out  of  their  possession.  He  also  left  a  large  per- 
sonal estate  for  that  time,  amounting  to  £647  12s.  He  and  his 
wife  were  members  of  the  Cohansey  church.  It  seems  he  was  a 
prominent  man  in  that  section.  He  was  chosen  December  22, 
1774,  one  of  the  committee  of  safety  for  the  County  of  Cumber- 
land, to  carry  into  effect  the  resolution  of  the  Continental  Con- 
gress, and  on  whose  hands  rested  the  supreme  authority  after 
the  war  commenced,  until  the  formation  of  the  new  State  Govern- 
ment gave  an  organized  power  in  New  Jersey.  He  died  1st 
mo.  8th,  1782,  aged  fifty-four  years,  and  was  buried  on  his  own 
farm  in  an  old  family  burying  ground,  now  long  disused.  His 
wife,  Mary  Sayres  Sheppard,  was  buried  in  the  same  yard.  She 
died  in  1819,  aged  fifty-eight  years;  their  daughter,  Lydia, 
also  lies  there;  all  three  of  them  have  tombstones  at  the  head 
of  their  graves.  This  family  graveyard  is  an  exception  to  the 
general  rule.  It  was  the  practice  in  the  early  settlement  of 
Fenwick's  colony,  to  have  family  burying  grounds,  but  the 
plough  has  passed  over  nearly  all  of  them,  so  no  man  knoweth 
where  many  of  our  ancestors  la}^  I  have  been  informed  that 
the  ancient  Swedish  family,  the  Sinnicksons,  cleared  their  old 
family  graveyard  during  last  year,  in  Obisquahasett,  and  their 
intentions  are  to  keep  it  in  good  order — a  noble  deed.  Dr. 
George  B.  Wood  has  likewise  recently  caused  to  be  erected  a 
monument  to  his  great-grandfather,  Richard  Wood,  who  died 
in   1759,  in  the  family  graveyard  in  Stoe  Creek  Township, 


GENEALOGIES  71 

County  of  Cumberland.  Joseph  Sheppard,  the  year  before  his 
death,  built  a  large  brick  house  on  his  property,  and  died  sooii 
afterwards;  the  house  is  still  standing,  and  the  place  is  now 
owned  by  that  enterprising  citizen,  Richard  Laning,  the  son  of 
John  Laning.  The  following  are  the  names  of  Joseph  Shep- 
pard's  children :  David,  Ijpm  1758 ;  Lydia,  1760 ;  Ruth,  Isaac, 
Mary,  and  Lucy  Sheppard. 

Lucy,  the  daughter  of  Joseph  and  Mary  Sheppard,  born 
November,  1773,  married  Isaac,  son  of  Isaac  and  Judith 
Wheaton,  in  1792 ;  Isaac  was  born  September,  1769.  By  that 
connection  there  were  seven  children — Joseph,  the  eldest,  born 
in  1795,  died  March  3,  1871,  never  married.  Their  second  son, 
Providence  Ludlam  Wheaton,  bom  April  21,  1798,  died  3d  mo. 
1st,  1867 — his  wife  was  Ruth  Foster — they  had  one  son,  Andrew 
Evan  Wheaton,  who  resides  at  Greenwich  with  his  mother,  Mary 
Sheppard  Wheaton.  The  eldest  daughter  of  Isaac  and  Lucy 
S.  Wheaton  was  born  November  20,  1799;  she  was  the  second 
wife  of  Henry  Mulford.  Their  three  oldest  children  were  Anna 
Maria,  Hannah,  and  Isaac  W.  Mulford.  William  Wheaton, 
the  son  of  Isaac  and  Lucy  Wheaton,  was  born  April  18,  1801, 
is  living  in  Hopewell  Township,  and  has  a  large  family  of  chil- 
dren. Isaac  Wheaton  born  February  26,  1803,  died  July  6, 
1846,  leaving  no  children.  Hannah,  the  daughter  of  Isaac  and 
Lucy  S.  Wheaton,  born  in  1805,  married  in  1823  Gabriel  Davis 
Hall,  of  Bacon's  Neck,  son  of  Ebenezer  Hall.  Gabriel  and  his 
wife  had  several  children.  She  died  August  31,  1849.  Amos, 
the  son  of  Philip  Sheppard,  bom  about  1750,  subsequently 
married  Hannah  Westcott,  and  died  in  1788,  at  middle  age; 
his  widow  married  John  Mulford.  Josiah,  the  eldest  son  of 
Amos  and  Hannah  W.  Sheppard,  born  September  14,  1778, 
his  wife  was  Charlotte  Westcott,  daughter  of  Henry  and  Jane 
Harris  Westcott.  He  died  October  4,  1850.  His  son,  Henry, 
was  born  June  3,  1808,  married  and  lives  in  Stone  Creek  Town- 
ship, near  Jericho;  they  have  a  family  of  children.  Jane,  the 
daughter  of  Josiah,  born  in  1811  and  died  a  young  woman  in 
1828.  Hannah,  the  daughter  of  Josiah  and  Charlotte  W.  Shep- 
pard, bora  10th  mo.  23rd,  1813,  married  Ephraim  Glaspey; 
they  have  a  family  of  children,  and  reside  near  the  city  of 


72  GOULDTOWN 

Bridgeton.  Harriet,  the  fourth  child  of  Josiah  and  Charlotte 
W.  Sheppard,  bom  February  19,  1816,  married  James  Shep- 
pard  Kelsay  in  1837;  they  have  seven  children.  Martha,  the 
daughter  of  Amos  and  Hannah  W.  Sheppard,  born  in  1780, 
subsequently  married  Charles  Westcott,  of  Sayre's  Neck, 
Cumberland  County.  She  and  her  husband  afterward  moved  to 
Covington,  Kentucky,  where  she  died  in  the  winter  of  1868, 
having  children.  Hannah,  daughter  of  Philip  and  Mary  Shep- 
pard, married  Ephraim  Shaw;  they  had  three  children, 
Harvey,  Mary  and  Lydia.  Lydia,  the  youngest,  in  1810, 
married  Henry  Whitaker.  They  reside  at  Millville  and  have  a 
large  family  of  children,  most  of  whom  are  married.  Mary, 
daughter  of  Philip  and  Mary  Sheppard,  never  married,  and 
died  May  17,  1799,  aged  about  fifty  years. 

Naomi,  daughter  of  Philip,  married  William  Conner;  they 
had  three  children,  Abigail,  the  eldest,  born  August  31,  1754, 
married  Thomas  Brooks  in  1789;  they  had  ten  children. 
Thomas  died  September,  1829,  and  his  widow,  Abigail  Brooks, 
died  August  19,  1841,  aged  seventy-seven  years.  Prudence,  born 
1766,  whose  first  husband  was  James  Sheppard,  son  of  Elias 
and  Susanna  Sheppard  (James  was  a  nephew  of  Mark  Shep- 
pard, who  was  one  of  the  first  of  the  Sheppard  family  that 
became  a  member  of  the  Society  of  Friends).  Prudence  had 
one  child  by  her  first  husband,  James  Sheppard,  which  died  in 
infancy.  Her  second  husband  was  William  Johnson,  William 
and  Prudence  Johnson  had  eight  children.  She  died  9th  mo. 
5th,  1869;  her  last  husband,  William  Johnson,  died  2nd  mo. 
17th,  1831.  Ichabod,  son  of  Philip  and  Sarah  Bennett  Shep- 
pard, bom  December  11,  1769,  married  Ruth  Sheppard, 
daughter  of  Joel  and  Hannah  Jenkins  Sheppard  (Joel  was  a 
cousin  to  Ichabod,  being  the  son  of  Ephraim  Sheppard). 
Ichabod  and  his  wife  had  two  children,  Phoebe  and  Naomi. 
Ichabod  died  April  22,  1799,  and  his  widow,  Ruth  Sheppard, 
married  David  Bateman,  a  minister  in  the  Baptist  denomina- 
tion; they  had  three  sons,  Isaac,  Daniel  and  David  Bateman. 
Ruth,  their  mother,  departed  this  life  July  29,  1806.  Soon 
after  that  event,  David  Bateman  and  his  three  sons,  Isaac, 
Daniel   and  David,  removed   to  Ohio.      Phoebe,   daughter  of 


GENEALOGIES  73 

Ichabod  and  Ruth  Sheppard,  married  on  March  28,  1819,  John 
Reeves.  There  were  two  children  by  that  connection — one 
daughter  living  at  this  time  in  the  city  of  Bridgeton,  and  a  son 
residing  near  Shiloh.  Naomi,  second  daughter  of  Ichabod  and 
Ruth  Sheppard,  born  September  17,  1800,  and  in  1817  she 
married  Jonathan  Young,  who  was  afterward  drowned  at  sea; 
they  had  five  children,  all  of  whom  died  young,  excepting  Lewis 
Young,  who  is  a  resident  of  Bridgeton  and  was  the  old  Court 
Crier. 

Harvey,  son  of  Philip  and  Sarah  B.  Sheppard,  married  in 
1797  Hannah  Smith  of  Greenwich,  daughter  of  Isaac  and 
Cynthia  Smith;  he  had  one  daughter,  Hannah,  by  his  first 
marriage.  She  married  in  1818  John  Test,  the  son  of  Francis 
Test,  Jr.  John  and  his  second  wife,  Hannah  S.  Test,  removed 
to  Indiana.  He  studied  law,  and  was  elected  to  Congress  during 
Andrew  Jackson's  administration.  He  was  an  uncle  to  Joseph 
Test,  who  resides  in  Salem.  The  wife  of  Harvey  Sheppard,  2d, 
was  Ruth  Ogden,  daughter  of  Elmer  and  Charlotte  Ogden,  of 
Fairfield  Township;  they  had  three  children,  Philip,  Abbie  and 
Ruth.  The  wife  of  Harvey  Sheppard,  3rd,  was  Amelia  Davis, 
of  Shiloh;  he  and  his  last  wife  went  West  in  1818.  Phoebe, 
daughter  of  Philip  Sheppard,  married  Joseph  Newcomb,  they 
lived  in  Back  Neck,  and  had  two  children,  Joseph  and  Sarah 
S.  Newcomb.  William,  son  of  Philip  Sheppard,  born  November 
29,  1778,  married  in  1802  Matilda  Westcott,  daughter  of  Henry 
and  Jane  Harris  Westcott;  they  had  six  children,  Ichabod, 
William,  Sarah,  Harris,  Phoebe,  and  Elmer  Ogden  Sheppard. 

Joel,  son  of  Ephraim  and  Sarah  Dennis  Sheppard,  bom  in 
1748,  married  Hannah  Jenkins,  who  was  born  in  1749  and  died 
in  1807;  she  left  seven  children,  Dennis,  Ruth,  Sarah,  Lydia, 
Amy,  Elizabeth  and  Reuben  Sheppard.  Joel's  second  wife  was 
Letitia  Platts,  widow  of  David  Platts  and  daughter  of  David 
Gillman ;  they  had  no  issue.  His  third  wife  was  Sarah  Davis, 
of  Shiloh ;  they  had  no  children.  Joel  was  a  deacon  in  the  old 
Cohansey  Church,  and  was  a  large  farmer,  living  in  Hopewell 
Township,  and  was  a  prominent  citizen.  Dennis,  son  of  Joel 
and  Hannah  Sheppard,  married  a  young  woman  by  the  name 
of  Ayres.     They  moved  to  one  of  the  Western  States  in  1817. 


74  GOULDTOWN 

Ruth,  daughter  of  Joel  Sheppard,  married  Ichabod,  son  of 
Philip  and  a  cousin  of  her  father.  Sarah,  daughter  of  Joel  and 
Hannah  J.  Sheppard,  bom  1774,  married  in  1799  Samuel 
Bond  Davis,  son  of  Elnathan  and  Susanna  Bond  Davis. 
Elnathan  was  the  greatest  surveyor  in  his  generation  in  this 
section  of  the  State  for  many  years  after  the  Revolution.  The 
late  Josiah  Harrison,  of  Salem,  who  died  aged  over  ninety  years, 
who  was  a  surveyor  in  his  early  life,  told  me  a  short  time 
previous  to  his  death  that  he  regarded  Elnathan  Davis  as 
captain  general  of  the  surveyors  of  Salem  and  Cumberland 
Counties.  Samuel  B.  and  Sarah  Davis  had  several  children, 
one  of  whom,  Jarmin  A.  Davis,  lives  in  Shiloh,  and  is  a  Justice 
of  the  Peace.  Lydia  Sheppard,  daughter  of  Joel,  married  in 
1804*  Oswell  Ay  res ;  they  had  children  but  they  are  all  deceased. 
Amy,  daughter  of  Joel  and  Hannah  Sheppard,  born  February 
15,  1780,  in  1803  married  Oliver  Harris,  son  of  Robert  Harris. 
Oliver  and  Amy  Harris  had  four  children — Hosea,  Hannah 
S.,  Mary,  and  Eliza.  The  latter  was  born  October  14,  1808, 
and  in  1826  married  Hezekiah  Johnson ;  they  moved  to  Oregon 
and  are  still  living.  One  of  their  children  is  Franklin  Johnson, 
D.D.,  pastor  of  a  Baptist  church  at  Newark,  N.  J.  He  is  the 
author  of  several  commentaries  on  the  International  Sunday- 
school  Lessons,  now  in  general  use.  Samuel,  another  son  of 
Oliver  and  Amy  Harris,  born  November  24,  1813.  Elizabeth, 
daughter  of  Joel  and  Hannah  Sheppard,  in  1805  married  Eli 
Beveman.  Soon  after  their  marriage,  they  moved  to  Highland 
County,  Ohio ;  they  had  issue.  Reuben,  son  of  Joel  and  Hannah 
Sheppard,  married  Elizabeth  W.  Dare,  Reuben  and  his  wife 
moved  t'>  Ohio  in  1817 ;  they  had  one  son,  William  Alfred 
Sheppard,  who  was  a  physician  at  New  Vienna,  Clinton  County, 
Ohio.  He  died  in  1871,  leaving  children;  Henry  A.  Sheppard 
is  a  lawyer  at  Hillsboro,  Ohio ;  Abner,  second  son  of  Ephraim 
and  Sarah  Dennis  Sheppard,  born  May  28,  1750 ;  his  first  wife 
was  Mary  Dowdney,  who  died  about  fifteen  months  after  their 
marriage,  leaving  one  child.  Abner's  second  wife  was  Ruth 
Paullin;  she  died  1797.  His  third  wife  was  Mary  McGear, 
widow  of  John  McGear;  she  died  in  1809,  and  his  fourth  wife 
was  Elizabeth  Fithian.   Abner  was  a  farmer,  and  lived  in  Hope- 


GENEALOGIES  75 

well  township  the  greater  part  of  his  life.  At  the  time  of  the 
American  Revolution  he  was  in  the  militia,  and  was  in  Colonel 
Hand's  regiment  at  the  fight  of  Quinton's  Bridge  and  took 
part  in  the  battle ;  he  died  March  2,  1824.  The  following  are 
the  names  of  his  children:  Mary,  Ephraim  (who  died  young), 
Henry,  Temperance,  Phoebe,  Prudence,  Delanah,  Lafayette, 
Ruth,  Mary,  and  Ephraim  Elmer  Sheppard.  James  Sheppard, 
the  son  of  Ephraim  and  Sarah  Dennis  Sheppard,  was  bom 
December  25,  1752.  His  first  wife  was  Hannah  Brooks,  whom 
he  married  January  23,  1774;  she  died  in  1777.  His  second 
wife  was  Keziah  Barber;  they  were  married  in  1778,  She  died 
June  11,  1824  and  James,  her  husband,  June  3,  1825.  He  was 
a  deacon  in  Cohansey  Baptist  Church,  a  farmer  and  a  large 
landowner  in  Hopewell  Township,  and  had  an  excellent  char- 
acter for  uprightness  in  his  dealings  with  his  fellowmen,  and 
was  greatly  respected  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  had  eleven 
children. 

The  children  of  James  and  Hannah  B.  Sheppard  were  David 
and  Phoebe  Sheppard,  and  by  his  second  wife,  Keziah  Barber 
Sheppard,  Hannah,  Rachel,  Mary,  Joseph,  William,  Prudence, 
Rebecca  and  Phoebe.  Most  of  those  children  lived  to  grow  up 
and  marry.  William,  the  son  of  James  Sheppard,  bom  July, 
1785,  married,  March  3,  1808,  Ann  Husted,  daughter  of  Henry 
and  Ann  Sheppard  Husted,  of  Shrewsbury  Neck.  William  was 
an  ordained  minister  of  the  Baptist  denomination,  but  never 
had  charge  of  a  church.  He  was  a  farmer,  and  preached  as  he 
had  opportunity.  They  had  tliirteen  children.  Hannah,  the 
daughter  of  Ephraim  and  Sarah  Sheppard,  born  about  1754, 
married  Daniel  Moore;  she  died  in  1784.  Rach>il,  another 
daughter,  born  in  1761,  married  James  Sayre,  who  was  wounded 
at  the  massacre  at  Hancock's  Bridge  in  1778.  Ephraim,  son  of 
Ephraim  and  Sarah,  moved  to  Salem,  and  married  Elizabeth, 
widow  of  John  Challis,  and  mother  of  John  and  James  Challis ; 
(the  latter  afterward  became  an  ordained  minister  among  the 
Baptists).  Elizabeth  Milbank,  mother  of  these  children,  was 
bom  at  Waltham,  England,  May  2,  1770.  Ephraim  and  his 
wife,  Elizabeth  M.  Sheppard,  had  one  daughter,  Mary  W., 
bom  in  1809. 


76  GOULDTOWN 

David,  son  of  Joseph  and  Mary  Sheppard,  born  1758, 
married  in  1783,  Phoebe,  daughter  of  Providence  and  Sarah 
Ludlam;  she  died  in  1799,  leaving  six  children.  Sarah,  the 
eldest  child,  married  in  1803,  William  S.  Walker,  a  resident  of 
Upper  Alloway's  Creek,  Salem  County ;  they  had  three  children. 
Phoebe  Walker,  their  eldest  daughter,  married  Thomas  Bilder- 
back,  of  Allowaystown ;  they  left  children.  William  Sheppard,  a 
son,  married  Ann  Stow,  and  lived  on  the  homestead  farm  until 
his  death;  since  that  event  his  widow  and  his  daughters  have 
resided  in  Salem.  Charles  H.  Walker  owns  and  resides  upon 
the  homestead  farm. 

Joseph,  the  son  of  David  and  Phoebe  L.  Sheppard,  born 
January  9,  1786,  was  elected  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist  Church 
at  Salem,  in  1809,  and  was  pastor  of  said  church  until  1829, 
and  then  removed  to  Mount  Holly,  where  he  continued  as  pastor 
seven  years,  but  his  health  failing  him,  he  resigned  his  pastoral 
charge  and  moved  to  Camden.  He  never  took  another  pastoral 
charge,  but  preached  occasionally  when  health  permitted;  he 
died  in  Camden  in  1838,  in  the  fifty-second  year  of  his  age. 
His  wife  was  Hannah  F.  Budd ;  they  had  four  children,  Mary, 
Phoebe  Ann,  Hannah  and  Josephine  Sheppard ;  they  all  married 
but  Hannah.  Phoebe  Ann  lived  in  the  State  of  Georgia. 
Josephine  lived  in  Washington,  D.  C,  but  died  about  two 
months  since.  David  Sheppard's  second  wife  was  Miriam 
Smith,  widow  of  Isaac  Smith;  she  died  in  1815,  and  David  in 
1827.  He  was  a  deacon  of  Cohansey  Church,  and  was  a 
prominent  citizen.  For  many  years  he  lived  on  the  homestead 
farm  in  Fairfield  Township,  but  in  later  years  he  moved  to 
Bridgeton,  and  built  a  large  brick  mansion  on  the  west  side  of 
Cohansey,  where  his  son,  Isaac  A.  Sheppard,  lived  and  died. 
The  dwelling  is  now  known  as  Ivy  Hall  Seminary  for  ladies. 
Providence  Ludlam,  son  of  David  Sheppard,  born  February 
21,  1788,  married  Mary  Letson,  of  New  Brunswick,  New  Jer- 
sey. One  of  their  children,  Ebenezer  L.  Sheppard,  lives  in 
Pittsgrove  Township,  and  is  a  member  and  clerk  of  the  Pitts- 
grove  Baptist  Church.  He  has  recently  written  and  published 
a  historical  sketch  of  that  church.  William  and  David  Ludlam 
were  twin  sons  of  David  Sheppard,  and  were  born  June,  1790. 


GENEALOGIES  77 

William  died  in  1823  and  never  married.  David,  his  brother, 
studied  for  a  physician,  but  died  suddenly  about  the  time  he 
was  ready  to  commence  the  practice  of  his  profession. 
Ercurious,  the  son  of  David,  married  Martha  Lupadius,  of 
New  Brunswick.  She  is  still  living,  but  Ercurious  is  deceased. 
He  left  two  children,  Mary  and  Martha.  Ebenezer,  the  son  of 
David,  bom  July  23,  1798,  died  June,  1814.  Mary,  the 
daughter  of  David  and  Miriam  Sheppard,  his  second  wife, 
married  in  1824  Jonathan  J.  Haun;  they  had  two  children, 
Maria  and  Mary  Haun.  The  latter  married  Joseph  Moore, 
homoeopathic  physician,  of  Bridgeton;  she  died  in  1860. 
Isaac  A.  Sheppard,  son  of  David,  bom  in  1806,  married,  1st 
of  April,  1828,  Jane  H.  Bennett;  she  died  1839,  aged  thirty- 
five  years.  Isaac's  second  wife  was  Hannah  B.  McLean,  whom 
he  married  in  1841,  but  she  only  lived  a  little  over  a  year.  His 
third  wife  was  Margaret  E.  Little,  who  is  still  living ;  they  were 
married  in  1850.  Isaac  A.  Sheppard  died  suddenly  in  his 
office  in  1863,  having  been  found  sitting  dead  in  his  chair.  He 
was  a  deacon  of  the  First  Baptist  Church  of  Bridgeton.  His 
oldest  son,  Isaac  A.,  born  in  1829,  died  April  11,  1832.  Jane 
B.,  daughter  of  Isaac  A.  Sheppard,  born  in  1821,  married,  in 
1868,  Horatio  J.  Mulford,  the  eldest  son  of  the  late  Henry 
Mulford,  of  Bridgeton.  Horatio,  with  his  brother,  Isaac  W., 
and  his  sisters,  were  the  originators  and  principal  benefactors 
of  the  South  Jersey  Institute,  a  school  for  both  sexes,  located 
in  Bridgeton.  The  cost  of  the  building  has  been  estimated  at 
$60,000.  It  has  a  fine  corps  of  teachers,  and  has  been  in 
operation  four  years,  during  which  time  it  has  established  a 
reputation  equal  to  the  best  educational  institutions  in  the 
country.  Horatio's  wife,  Jane  Mulford,  like  her  father,  died 
suddenly,  and  was  found  dead  sitting  in  her  chair,  on  the 
evening  of  February  9,  1874.  She  was  a  woman  of  great 
usefulness  in  the  church  and  in  the  community,  and  her  loss 
was  deeply  felt  by  all.  She  left  one  child,  a  son,  Horatio  Jones 
Mulford,  bom  1869.  There  were  eight  other  children  of  Isaac 
A.  Sheppard's,  Miriam,  Theodore,  Francis,  Charles,  Eliza- 
beth, Frank,  Frederick,  and  LiUian,  widow  of  Mayor  Smalley. 
Isaac,  son  of  Joseph  and  Mary  Sheppard,  bom  in  1776, 


78  GOULDTOWN 

married  Sarah,  daughter  of  Jeremiah  Bennett;  she  died  in 
1797.  Isaac's  second  wife  was  Jane  Harris  Westcott,  the 
widow  of  Henry  Westcott,  and  daughter  of  Ephraim  and 
Jane  Harris,  of  Fairfi)eld  Township,  His  third  wife  was 
Abigail  B.  Husted,  widow  of  Henry  Husted,  and  daughter  of 
Ichabod  Bishop.  Isaac  Sheppard  died  December  16,  1815. 
He  had  five  children :  Isaac,  the  eldest,  never  married ;  Henry, 
the  second  son  of  Isaac  and  Sarah  Sheppard,  married,  March 
27,  1811,  Eunice  Westcott.  Soon  after  their  marriage  they 
moved  to  one  of  the  Western  States,  and  Henry  died  there.  His 
widow  returned  to  her  native  State  and  died  in  1868.  They 
had  a  family  of  children.  Sarah,  daughter  of  Isaac  and  Sarah 
Sheppard,  bom  November  23,  1797,  married,  March  17,  1819, 
Elmer  Ogden ;  they  live  in  Greenwich,  and  have  several  chil- 
dren. Ephraim,  the  son  of  Isaac  and  Jane  H.  Sheppard,  bom 
August  15,  1801,  married,  in  1819,  Jane,  daughter  of  Jehicl 
and  Mary  Westcott;  she  died  in  1823.  His  second  wife  was 
Mary,  daughter  of  John  and  Mary  B.  Westcott,  of  Fairfield; 
she  died  in  1842,  and  Ephraim  Sheppard  died  July  9,  1848. 
His  children  by  his  first  wife  were  Ephraim,  the  eldest,  who 
went  West,  and  died  there;  and  Ehas  Sheppard,  who  died 
young.  Mary  Jane,  daughter  of  Ephraim  and  Mary  Shep- 
pard, married  Charles  Campbell.  Isaac  Alpine  Sheppard,  son 
of  Ephraim  and  Mary  Sheppard,  went  to  Philadelphia  to  live, 
and  subsequently  was  elected  a  member  of  the  Pennsylvania 
Legislature  for  several  sessions.  Isaac  is  the  head  of  the  great 
stove  fimi  of  J.  A.  Sheppard  &  Company.  Joseph,  the  son  of 
Ephraim  Sheppard,  married  Sarah  Flanagan,  of  Sculltown; 
they  now  live  in  Camden  County,  between  Haddonfield  and 
Camden.  Henry,  son  of  Abner  and  Ruth  Sheppard,  was  born 
in  1787,  and  married,  the  first  of  December,  1815,  Margaret 
Lummis ;  she  died  in  1817.  Henry's  second  wife  was  Sarah  B. 
Ogden,  widow  of  John  B.  Ogden.  They  were  married  in  March, 
1819;  she  died  in  1858,  and  her  husband,  Henry  Sheppard,  in 
July,  1867.  He  was  a  hatter,  and  followed  the  business  many 
years  in  Bridgeton,  where  he  settled  early  in  life.  He  was 
postmaster  for  several  years  in  that  town.  All  his  children  were 
by  his  second  wife,  Sarah  B.  Ogden.     Jane  Buck,  daughter  of 


GENEALOGIES  79 

Henry  and  Sarah  B.  Sheppard,  born  December  11,  1819, 
married  in  1840,  to  Lorenzo  Fisler  Lee;  he  died  July  17,  1848, 
leaving  a  widow  and  four  children.  Henry  Sheppard,  Jr., 
born  November  8,  1821,  married  April  3,  1845,  Rhoda  S. 
Nixon,  daughter  of  Jeremiah  Nixon.  A  short  time  after  their 
marriage  they  moved  to  Springfield,  Green  County,  Missouri; 
and  he  has  prospered  there.  For  many  years  he  and  his 
brother,  Charles,  did  the  leading  mercantile  business  of  the 
place,  but  both  have  now  retired  from  active  business.  Henry 
commanded  one  of  the  regiments  of  the  militia  of  the  State 
and  was  out  several  times  during  the  Rebellion.  That  part  of 
the  State  suffered  much  from  the  war.  They  have  six  chil- 
dren, Francis,  Henry,  John  Nixon,  Mary  Thompson  and 
Margaret  Sheppard.  Charles,  son  of  Henry  and  Sarah  Shep- 
pard, born  September  5,  1823,  married  November  5,  1856, 
Lucy  Dow,  daughter  of  Ira  and  Mary  Dow,  of  East  Hard- 
wick,  Vermont.  Charles  and  his  family  are  living  at  Spring- 
field, Mo. ;  he  being  cashier  of  Green  County  National  Bank. 
There  are  three  more  children  of  Henry  Sheppard,  Sr.,  Sarah, 
Margaret,  and  Joseph  Ogden,  who  I  believe  reside  in  Bridgeton. 
Joseph  is  a  physician,  and  during  the  Rebellion  for  a  time 
served  as  a  surgeon  in  the  army.  Ephraim  Elmer,  son  of 
Abner  and  Mary  Sheppard,  born  October  2,  1804,  married  in 
May,  1828,  Jane  Elizabeth  Dare,  daughter  of  David  and 
Rebecca  Fithian  Dare.  They  resided  near  Bridgeton.  Ephraim 
was  elected  Clerk  of  the  County  of  Cumberland  in  1852,  and 
served  to  1857.  He  was  appointed  a  Judge  of  the  Court  of 
Common  Pleas  for  said  County  in  1853,  and  reappointed  in 
1868,  and  was  elected  Mayor  of  Bridgeton  in  the  spring  of 
1873.  His  term  expired  in  1876.  Ephraim  and  his  wife  had 
eight  children.  Ephraim  Elmer,  Jr.,  born  March  19,  1830, 
married  in  April,  1856,  Linder^nlla  Maxon  Bonham,  daughter 
of  Hezekiah  Bonham,  of  Shiloh.  They  have  had  seven  chil- 
dren, four  of  whom  are  living.  They  reside  at  Elmer,  Salem 
County.  Elizabeth  R.  Sheppard,  bom  April  6,  1832,  married 
in  1850  George  W.  Elwell.  They  live  in  Bridgeton,  and  have 
one  son,  Albert  Sheppard,  born  March  17,  1853,  who  is  a 
druggist   in   Philadelphia.     Ruth   N.   Sheppard,   daughter  of 


80 


GOULDTOWN 


Ephraim,  bom  December  21,  1834,  is  not  married.  David 
Dare  Sheppard,  son  of  Ephraim,  bom  1836,  married  October 
18,  Cornelia  Albertson,  daughter  of  Amos  Buzby,  of  Piles- 
grove.  He  was  in  the  dry  goods  business  in  Bridgeton  until 
1870,  when  he  moved  to  Springfield,  Mo.,  and  went  into  business 
with  his  brother,  William  Sheppard. 

John  Caldwell  Calhoun,  son  of  Ephraim  Sheppard,  bom 
in  1840,  married  in  1861,  Jane  Elizabeth  Smith,  of  Philadelphia, 
and  resides  in  that  city. 

William  E.  Sheppard,  son  of  Ephraim,  born  February  28, 
1842,  married,  March  18,  1869,  Josephine  M.  Trull,  daughter 
of  Nathaniel  Trull,  of  North  Tewksbury,  Mass.  They  moved 
to  Springfield,  Mo.,  in  the  fall  of  1866,  and  he  is  in  business 
with  his  brother,  David  Sheppard. 

Enoch  Fithian  Sheppard,  son  of  Ephraim,  bom  August 
21,  1844,  died  is  1846.  Charles  E.,^  son  of  Ephraim  and  Jane 
Elizabeth  Sheppard,  born  November  1,  1846.  He  is  a  lawyer 
and  resides  in  Bridgeton. 

•At  this  day  (1913)  nearly  everybody  in  Cumberland  County  knows 
Charles  E.  Sheppard,  the  lawyer,  so  prominently  connected  with  the 
prosecution  of  violators  of  the  law  regarding  the  sale  of  intoxicants. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

RURAL  SOCIOLOGICAL  EXAMPLES,  SUGGESTED  IN  THIS  LITE 
OF  SIMPLICITY. 

John  Murray,  son  of  Othniel  Murray  and  Kath- 
erine  Murray,  was  born  in  1751,  or  twenty-six  years 
before  the  death  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st. 

His  wife,  T'abitha  Lupton,  a  white  woman,  was  born 
in  1763.  They  lived  neighbors  to  Benjamin  and  Ann 
Gould. 

John  Murray  died  in  1853,  at  the  age  of  one  hundred 
and  two  years,  and  his  wife  Tabitha  died  November, 
1859,  aged  ninety-six  years.  The  writer  of  this  wa^ 
born  in  1840  and  is  the  grandson  of  Benjamin  Gould, 
2nd,  and  great-grandson  of  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  and 
great-great-grandson  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st. 

I  have  been  many  a  time  to  the  home  of  John  and 
Tabitha  Murray,  when  a  boy;  it  was  but  a  mile  from 
the  home  of  my  great-great-grandfather.  I  was  but 
thirteen  years  old  at  the  time  of  the  death  of  John 
Murray,  and  nineteen  when  Tabitha  Murray  died. 
Their  great  grandson,  Eli  Gould,  became  the  husband 
of  my  sister  Mary. 

The  four  sons  of  Benjamin  Gould  were  associates 
of  John  Murray  and  his  brothers  and  sisters  in  their 
boyhood  and  early  manhood  days.  Ehsha  Gould, 
youngest  son  of  Benjamin,  was  born  in  1755,  but  he 
died  in  1804,  aged  forty-nine  years.  The  other  sons 
of  Benjamin,  as  well  as  Sarah,  the  daughter,  were  much 
older  than  Elisha.  Anthony  Gould  was  the  oldest;  then 
came  Samuel,  and  Abijah.  The  sons  and  daughters  of 
Anthony  and  Richard  Pierce  were  also  companions  of 
the  sons  of  Benjamin  Gould. 

6  81 


82  GOULDTOWN 

It  is  not  hard  to  see  how  the  tradition  of  Goulds, 
as  well  as  the  Pierces,  could  be  handed  down  by  even 
John  Murray,  who  lived  during  the  last  twenty-six 
years  of  Benjamin  Gould  's  life,  and  well  into  the  early 
lives  of  his  descendants,  as  well  as  those  of  the  Pierces. 

As  I  have  related,  I  have  seen  John  Murray  and 
been  to  his  house  many,  many  times ;  he  was  a  brusque, 
eccentric  old  man,  and  had  had  both  feet  cut  off.  His 
farm  was  infested  with  sand  burrs  and  working  in  his 
fields  in  his  bare  feet,  he  got  the  burrs  in  his  feet, 
gangrene  ensued,  and  both  of  his  feet  were  amputated. 

He  used  to  put  himself  in  the  third  person  much 
when  talking  and  he  "  swore  a  little  "  in  his  general 
conversation.  In  those  days  surgeons  did  not  use 
anaesthetics  in  their  operations,  and  it  was  related  of 
Mm'ray  when  Dr.  Jonathan  Elmer  was  cutting  off  his 
feet,  that  the  patient  became  impatient  and  blurted  out 
in  anger  to  the  doctor,  "  Hum,  damn,  if  John  had  his 
old  saw,  I'd  'a'  had  them  legs  cut  off  long  ago." 

I  have  myself  seen  him  sitting  in  his  doorway  in  the 
sunshine;  this  was  his  favorite  place  when  the  weather 
suited  him.  He  would  sit  there  and  mark  by  the 
shadows  cast  in  the  doorway  (marking  on  the  bare  floor) 
the  ascension  and  descension  of  the  sun  during  the 
seasons ;  and  also  note  the  progression  and  retrogression 
of  the  moon,  and  the  progress  of  the  stars.  As  a  little 
boy,  I  thought  it  a  rare  treat  to  go  to  see  "  Uncle 
Johnnie  and  Aunt  Tabitha."  She  was  a  gentle,  lovable 
old  lady;  and  while  I  had  heard  stories  of  how  "  Uncle 
Johnnie  "  would  fire  his  crutches  across  the  house  at 
Aimt  Tabitha  when  angry,  I  never  saw  anything  of  the 
kind. 

He,  like  others  of  Gouldtown,  owned  a  large  body 
of  salt  marsh  along  the  bay  and  river  shores,  where  they 
would  mow  and  gather  the  salt  hay  for  their  cattle, 


RURAL  EXAMPLES  83 

oxen,  and  horses,  and  haul  it  the  ten  or  twelve  miles  to 
their  homes. 

It  was  the  custom  for  those  of  Gouldtown  to  go 
upon  the  marshes  on  Monday  and  remain  day  and  night 
until  Saturday,  where  they  would  mow  "  shallop  "  loads 
of  the  salt  hay  and  stack  it  up  to  haul  home  in  the 
winter  time. 

It  was  related  of  John  Murray  that  he  would  go 
with  his  sons  and  the  other  men  down  to  the  marshes, 
where  all  would  work  in  common,  helping  each  other 
get  the  hay,  each  having  his  own  body  of  marsh.  Miu*- 
ray  would  stay  upon  the  wagons  and  "  load  "  the  hay 
as  the  men  would  pitch  it  up  to  him,  and  when  driven 
up  to  the  stacking  place,  he  would  pitch  it  off  the  wagon. 

One  time  his  ox  team  was  proceeding  to  the  hay- 
stack with  a  load  of  hay,  when  a  savage  bull,  roaming 
over  the  marsh,  made  attempt  to  attack  the  ox  team. 
The  old  man  seized  his  pitchfork  and  hurled  it  into  the 
animal's  flank;  the  bull,  in  torture,  dashed  away  across 
the  marsh,  the  pitchfork  finally  falling  from  the  beast. 
"  Hum,  damn,"  his  favorite  expletive,  "  Hum,  damn, 
John  made  him  fly!  "  he  cried  out  to  the  men  in  glee. 

A  study  of  the  rural  sociology  of  the  times  of  this 
generation  would  be  no  less  interesting,  surely,  than 
their  ethnology;  in  the  blood  of  these  was  the  Celtic, 
Teutonic,  African  and  Indian,  with  sundry  subdivisions, 
as  shown  in  the  pure  English,  Dutch,  and  local 
admixtures. 

The  Quaker  solidity  and  quiet  dispositions  inherited 
by  the  Goulds  may  be  traced  to  this  day;  the  Dutch 
superstitions  are  still  apparent  in  the  Pierces;  and  the 
Indian  love  of  "  firewater  "  has  been  ever  noticeable  in 
the  Murrays.  The  Goulds  were  never  addicted  to 
excessive  use  of  liquor,  while  the  Pierces  and  Murrays 
were  more  liberal  in  its  indulgence. 


84  GOULDTOWN 

These  branches  had  all  large  families;  how  they 
managed  to  support  them  is  an  interesting  question; 
and  yet  they  lived  in  comfort  and  in  happiness,  as  com- 
pared to  much  that  is  seen  in  rural  life  nowadays. 
Money  was  an  almost  unknown  commodity  in  those 
days  and  yet  property  was  accumulated. 

Reared  in  the  woods,  as  we  look  at  it  in  these  days, 
those  people  were  almost  "children  of  the  forest"; 
they  cut  down  the  forests  and  made  their  farms;  they 
populated  the  wilds  and  made  a  living.  The  times 
from  the  marriage  of  Benjamin  and  Ann  Gould,  about 
1725,  to  that  of  their  death  in  1777,  were  not  as  prosper- 
ous as  they  were  in  localities  westward  from  the  Co- 
hansey;  the  march  of  population  had  hardly  proceeded 
from  Salem  across  the  Cohansey  and  northward  from 
New  England  town;  what  population  there  was  had 
been  pushed  out,  as  it  were,  from  among  those  of  the 
early  settlers  who  had  been  at  Greenwich,  crossed  the 
Cohansey  at  that  place  and  stretched  outward  into  Fair- 
field, Shrewsbury  Neck,  and  about  New  England  town. 

There  were  no  schools  in  Gouldtown  yet;  there 
were,  however,  some  sources  for  getting  information; 
some  of  the  Gould  children  learned  to  read  and  write. 
Anthony  Gould,  oldest  son  of  Benjamin  Gould,  could 
write — for,  to  a  deed  made  by  him  in  1802  for  a  piece 
of  property  he  had  purchased  in  1767,  he  had  signed: 
"  At'ty  Gould,"  abbreviating  his  name  with  his  own 
hand. 

Fancy  a  gathering  of  the  young  people  of  the 
names  of  Gould,  Pierce,  Murray,  Lummis,  MuUica, 
Gates,  Hand,  and  others,  known  to  have  populated  that 
section  of  territory,  and  imagine,  if  possible,  their 
occupations  and  recreations. 

Their  nearest  church  was  the  "  Old  Stone  Church  " 
at  New  England  cross-roads;  they  went  to  this  church 


Old  Stone  Church,  Fairfield. 


RURAL  EXAMPLES  85 

when  they  went  anywhere  to  meeting,  and  in  its  adjoin- 
ing cemetery  some  of  them  were  afterward  buried; 
probably  they  went  to  "  meeting  "  there  once  or  twice 
a  year.    It  may  have  been  oftener. 

Socially,  they  met  in  apple-cuttings,  quiltings,  and 
hog  killings  and  beef  killings.  A  favorite  gathering 
with  them  was  the  "  chopping  frolic,"  where  the  men 
would  show  their  prowess  in  felling  and  "  logging " 
into  cord-wood  the  primeval  trees.  These  "  chopping 
frolics  "  were  attended  with  hard  cider,  or  apple-jack 
drinking;  while  the  wives  and  sisters  of  the  choppers 
would  gather  at  the  home  for  whose  benefit  the  chop- 
ping was  made,  have  a  quilting  and  spinning  party,  all 
to  be  topped  off  towards  night  with  a  big  supper  and 
plenty  of  doughnuts  and  pies.  I  have  been  told  that 
these  wood-choppers  would  vie  with  each  other  to  be 
first  at  the  chopping  in  the  woods  in  the  morning  and 
often  by  noon  the  long  tiers  of  wood  would  be  ranked 
up,  and  the  laughing  choppers  would  wend  their  way 
to  the  homestead,  where  a  substantial  dinner  would 
await  them.  In  such  cases  the  afternoon  would  be 
given  over  to  sport  and  "  waiting  on  the  women."  The 
boys  and  young  men  would  have  jumping,  running  and 
wrestling  matches,  and  have  as  much  of  a  good  time 
as  do  the  boys  of  the  present  day.  Such  are  the  pictures 
which  have  been  handed  down  by  my  ancestors. 
Drunkenness  was  not  countenanced,  and  the  man  who 
got  too  much  apple-jack  lost  his  respectability. 

How  did  these  old  men  support  their  families? 
Benjamin  Gould  with  his  sons,  Anthony,  Samuel, 
Abijah,  and  Elisha,  together  with  the  daughter,  Sarah 
— all  these  children  born  between  1730  and  1755, — and 
the  many  sons  and  daughters  of  Anthony  Pierce; 
Menon,  Richard,  Jesse,  Benjamin,  John,  Anthony,  and 
Wanaca,  together  with  the  two  daughters,  Hannah  and 


86  GOULDTOWN 

Elizabeth;  and  the  son  of  Richard  Pierce,  Adam,  and 
the  four  daughters,  Mary,  Rhuniah,  Hannah  and  Eliza- 
beth; and  the  three  sons  and  two  daughters  of  Othniel 
Murray:  Othniel,  Jr.,  David  and  John  (whose  name 
begins  this  chapter),  and  daughters:  Mary  (Polly)  and 
Dorcas,  all  born  and  mostly  grown  up  before  the 
Revolutionary  War.  Their  home  life  as  handed  down 
in  oral  tradition  is  a  study.  The  high  price  of  food  and 
clothing  may  have  been  felt  by  them  then,  as  by  us  now, 
but  a  study  of  their  habits  and  resources  does  not  make 
it  appear  so. 

Take  for  instance,  the  crop-gathering  time — the 
haying  before  alluded  to,  when  the  wife  and  daughters 
would  bake  up  the  great  loaves  of  rye  bread  in  the 
ovens,  and  the  huge  pies,  and  boil  the  "  chunks  "  of  fat 
pork  and  the  big  pot  of  vegetables,  and  bake  the 
molasses  cake  with  which  to  put  up  a  supply  of  food 
for  the  men-folks  to  take  to  the  marsh  the  next  week 
to  last  them  from  Monday  to  Saturday — but  this  is  all 
over  with,  when  the  time  for  gathering  in  the  fall  crops 
arrives.  The  cabbage,  potatoes,  turnips,  apples  and 
pumpkins  are  gathered  and  stored;  the  apples  are 
buried  in  the  apple-hole  in  the  ground;  the  potatoes 
and  turnips  are  buried  in  the  same  way;  the  cabbages 
are  put  in  the  cabbage-house ;  a  sort  of  shack  made  over 
an  excavation  a  couple  of  feet  deep,  and  eight  or  ten 
feet  long,  over  which  tent-like  poles  are  placed,  covered 
over  with  cornstalks  and  trash,  and  then  all  covered 
with  earth,  making  an  A-shaped  shelter,  open  at  the 
south  end,  and  tightly  closed  everywhere  else.  In  this 
the  cabbages  are  stowed  away,  the  door  closed  up 
temporarily,  and  everything  is  safe  within  for  winter 
use.  The  rye  and  wheat  have  been  stacked  up  or  put 
in  the  barns,  to  be  threshed  out  with  flail  in  the  winter. 

The  fatted  hogs  are  killed  and  the  supply  of  pork 


RURAL  EXAMPLES  87 

salted  down;  a  fat  beef  slaughtered,  and  the  beef 
"  corned  " ;  and  the  family  now  has  no  fear  of  a  shortage 
of  rations  during  the  winter.  As  for  fresh  food,  the 
woods  abound  with  deer,  squirrels,  rabbits,  coons,  'pos- 
sums, quail,  and  pheasant,  which  are  shot  or  trapped, 
at  pleasure.    There  were  no  game  laws. 

Fuel  is  no  object  of  worry;  it  is  had  for  the  labor  of 
chopping  and  hauling  from  their  own  grounds ;  and  the 
big  fire-place  uses  up  a  large  quantity  during  the  cold 
weather.  The  great  back-log,  which  has  been  hauled 
up  to  the  door  of  the  "  cottage  " — generally  a  log 
"  cottage  "  at  that — is  ready  to  be  put  in  place;  a  log 
chain  is  extended  through  the  house  from  front  door  to 
back  door,  a  yoke  of  oxen  hitched  to  one  end  of  the 
chain  while  the  other  end  is  fastened  to  the  log;  skids 
and  round  sticks  for  rollers  are  placed,  and  the  word 
given:  "  Whoa-haw,  Buck  and  Berry,  Gee  up,  gee — 
whoa!  "  and  the  log  is  hauled  by  the  oxen  into  the  house, 
where  it  is  now  rolled  into  the  back  of  the  great  fire- 
place. 

Everything  is  thus  ready  for  the  winter's  coming. 
All  that  remains  to  do  thereafter  is  to  cut  and  haul  logs 
and  cord-wood  to  the  landings  for  the  spring  shipments. 
Such  was  mostly  the  family  life  of  the  early  inhabitants 
of  Gouldtown.  The  women  folk  kept  up  their  portion, 
in  spinning,  knitting,  and  making  the  garments  for  the 
household. 


CHAPTER  X. 

GOULD  genealogies;  probability  of  origin  of  name 

OF  THE   SETTLEMENT. 

When  Gouldtown  was  first  given  its  name  does  not 
yet  definitely  appear.  It  was  called  "  Gouldtown,  an 
ancient  settlement "  many  years  ago,  and  records  show 
that  it  was  called  "  Gouldtown  "  when  Bridgeton  was 
called  "Bridgetown"  or  "The  Bridge";  old  records, 
before  1800,  make  mention  of  "  on  the  road  from  Gould- 
town to  Bumbridge  " — meaning  what  is  now  Fairton. 
A  chronicle  of  the  Gould  families  just  before  and  just 
following  the  Revolutionary  War  discloses  good 
grounds  for  calling  the  settlement  "  Gouldtown  "  dur- 
ing that  period. 

The  New  Jersey  archives  at  Trenton  attempt  to 
give  the  record,  among  other  things,  of  the  marriages 
in  the  State  in  colonial  times,  and  in  the  times  immedi- 
ately following  the  close  of  the  war  of  the  Revolution; 
but  the  reports  are  woefully  inadequate,  or  else  they 
are  not  published  in  those  archives.  Among  the  few 
dozen  marriages  recorded  from  Cumberland  County  is 
noted  that  of  Anthony  Gould  and  Phoebe  Lummis, 
dated  May  16,  1781.  This  is  the  first  and  only  Gould, 
of  Gouldtown,  whose  marriage  is  thus  recorded. 

Anthony  Gould  must  have  been  well  advanced  in 
years  at  this  time — though  not  an  old  man.  He  was 
the  oldest  living  son  of  Benjamin  and  Ann  Gould,  and 
their  youngest  son,  Elisha,  born  in  1755,  was  twenty- 
six  years  old  at  the  time  of  his  brother  Anthony's  mar- 
riage, but  Anthony  was  a  man  and  had  bought  and 
owned  land  at  least  fourteen  years  before  this,  as  is  to 
be  seen  in  the  record  of  a  deed  he  made  to  Jacob  Steel- 

88 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  89 

ing  in  1802,  the  year  before  his  death.  This  deed  was 
made  April  10,  1802,  between  Anthony  Gould  and 
Jacob  Steeling,  and  recites  the  sale  by  Gould  to  Steel- 
ing of  twenty-eight  and  a  quarter  acres  of  land  for 
$113:  "  Beginning  at  a  red  oak  corner  standing  by 
the  present  highway  leading  from  Bridgetown  to  the 
Beaver  dam  or  Maurice  River  bridge;  thence  .  .  . 
binding  on  (other)  land  of  Anthony  Gould  to  a  black 
oak  corner  standing  in  the  line  between  David  Seeley 
and  said  Gould  .  .  .  containing  twenty-eight  and  a 
quarter  acres  of  land,  be  the  same  more  or  less,  which 
lot  or  piece  of  land  the  said  Anthony  Gould  purchased 
of  John  Page  and  Thomas  Gentry  as  by  Page's  deed, 
dated  the  fifth  day  of  November,  1767;  as  by  Gentry's 
deed  dated  November  the  thirtieth  day,  1796,  recourse 
thereto  being  had  may  more  at  large  appear."  Anthony 
Gould  had  34^4  acres  besides,  which  was  sold  by 
Jonathan  Bowen,  his  executor. 

There  is  no  record  of  the  date  of  Anthony's  birth, 
but  it  must  have  been  about  1735,  for  Benjamin  land 
Ann  were  married  and  had  two  children  before 
Anthony,  as  has  been  already  shown.  Anthony  sold 
this  land  in  1802;  his  wife  had  previously  died;  he 
signed  the  deed  by  his  own  hand  "  At'ty  Gould." 

He  died  in  1803,  leaving  a  will  which  was  proved 
September  27,  1803.  He  left  three  daughters,  Phoebe, 
Martha  (transcribed  in  the  record  in  Trenton  "  Ma- 
thila  ")  and  Christiana,  or  "  Kitty  "  as  she  was  known. 
The  settlement  was  called  Gouldtown  before  this,  and 
as  the  venerable  Judge  Elmer,  then  a  lad  of  ten  years, 
said  "  is  of  quite  ancient  date."  Martha  was  the 
youngest.  Phoebe  was  over  eighteen  years  old  at  the 
time  her  father  made  his  will,  for  by  his  will  Jonathan 
Bowen,  who  resided  at  the  Beaver  Dam,  was  made 
guardian  for  Chi'istiana  and  Martha  only.    These  girls 


90  GOULDTOWN 

were  very  fair,  and  Phoebe  shortly  after  her  father's 
death  went  to  Philadelphia,  where  she  married  a  man 
who  became  mayor  of  that  city,  and  she  no  doubt  be- 
came the  mother  of  children  whose  descendants  have 
become  distinguished.  She,  of  course,  lost  her  identity. 
*  Christiana  married  first  her  cousin,  Charles  Gould,  son 
of  her  youngest  uncle,  Elisha  Gould,  and  they  had  three 
sons,  Daniel  Gould,  Aaron  Gould,  and  Anthony  Gould, 
2nd.  Daniel  Gould  was  the  oldest,  and  in  early  man- 
hood, went  to  Massachusetts  (returning  to  Goiddtown 
but  once,  which  was  in  1852  or  1853) ,  losing  his  identity 
as  colored.  Aaron  was  born  in  1810,  and  died  in  1894, 
aged  eighty-four  years.  AnthoRy  was  born  in  1813  and 
died  in  1891,  aged  seventy-eight  years.  After  the  birth 
of  these  three  sons,  Charles,  the  husband  and  father, 
died;  a  few  years  later,  the  widow,  "Kitty,"  married 
Furman  Gould,  another  cousin  of  hers,  the  son  of 
Abijah  Gould,  1st,  her  father's  brother.  They  had  five 
sons  and  two  daughters.  The  sons  were  Jonathan 
Gould,  Furman  Gould,  Jr.,  Alfred  Gould,  Theophilus 
Gould,  and  Charles  Gould.  Theophilus  died  a  young 
man.  Of  the  daughters,  Martha  and  Christiana,  the 
last  is  the  only  one  now  living  and  she  is  nearly  ninety 
years  of  age. 

Samuel  Gould,  the  son  of  the  Founder  of  Gould- 
town,  married  Rhumah,  second  daughter  of  Richard 
and  Mary  Pierce.  They  had  one  son,  Samuel,  Jr.,  and 
two  daughters,  Hannah,  and  Anna.  Anna  became  the 
last  wife  of  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff.  Samuel,  Jr.,  married 
his  cousin,  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  his  uncle,  Elisha,  and 
had  one  son,  Samuel,  3rd.  Samuel,  2nd  died  early  in 
life,  and  his  widow,  Elizabeth,  married  Daniel  Siro, 
son  of  Simon  Siro  and  Mary  Pierce,  oldest  daughter 
of  Richard  and  Mary  Pierce. 

Samuel,  3rd,  when  a  young  man,  went  to  Pittsburgh, 


Tamson  Cuff,  Daughter  of 
and  Phoebe  Gould. 


Abijah  Gould,  Son  of  Benjamin  Gould,  and  Grand- 
son of  Abijah  Gould  I. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  91 

then  counted  to  be  in  the  far  west,  and  all  trace  of  him 
was  lost.  Daniel  and  Elizabeth  Siro  had  one  son, 
Andrew.  Then  Daniel  died  and  Elizabeth  was  again 
left  a  widow.  Hannah  Gould  went  to  Philadelphia, 
where  she  married  an  East  India  sailor,  named  Charles 
Gonzales  Smith.  They  had  two  children,  Ann  Smith  and 
another  who  died  an  infant,  and  was  buried  at  Gould- 
town.  The  husband,  Smith,  was  lost  at  sea.  She  after- 
wards became  the  wife  of  Thomas  Wester. 

Andrew  Siro  went  to  New  Bedford,  and  became  a 
whaler,  making  many  voyages  to  the  northern  seas.  He 
came  home  annually  until  1854,  since  when  nothing  was 
ever  heard  from  him  and  it  is  supposed  he  perished  at 
sea.    He  never  married,  so  far  as  known. 

Abijah  Gould,  second  son  of  the  founder,  married 
Hannah,  born  in  1756,  the  third  daughter  of  Richard 
and  Mary  Pierce.  They  had  five  sons  and  one  daughter, 
Sarah;  she  never  married  and  died  a  young  woman. 
The  sons  were  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  born  in  1779, 
Richard  Gould,  born  in  1783,  Abijah  Gould,  Jr., 
Leonard  Gould  and  Furman  Gould,  the  youngest. 

Samuel  Gould,  the  third  son  of  the  founder,  sailed 
in  the  privateer  schooner,  "  Governor  Livingston," 
which  was  built  at  Cohansey,  and  sailed  in  1780.  She 
made  one  successful  trip,  when  Gould  seems  to  have 
tired  of  the  sailor  life  and  left  her.  On  her  second  trip 
she  was  captured  by  the  British. 

Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  married  Phoebe  Bowen,  of 
Salem  County,  who  was  born  in  1788.  Their  living 
descendants  in  1910  are  given  in  pages  succeeding. 
Their  children,  nine  in  number,  were  Oliver,  Tamson, 
Lydia,  Jane,  Abijah,  Sarah,  Rebecca,  Phoebe,  and 
Prudence. 

Benjamin  Gould  died  in  1851,  aged  seventy-two 
years;  his  widow,  Phoebe,  died  in  1877,  aged  eighty- 


92  GOULDTOWN 

nine  years.  Oliver  Gould  married  Rhuhamah,  the 
daughter  of  Mordecai  Cuff,  of  Salem.  They  had  a 
number  of  children,  all  of  whom  are  now  dead,  except 
one,  the  youngest  son,  Abijah,  4th.  The  oldest  son, 
Benjamin  Gould,  3rd,  went  to  Boston  when  a  young 
man,  and  nothing  was  heard  from  him  after  the  first 
year  or  two  after  he  went  away.  Tamson  Gould 
married  William  Cox,  an  Indian  half-breed.  They 
resided  on  a  farm  in  Dutch  Neck;  and  William  Cox 
was  the  first  dairyman  to  sell  milk  in  Bridgeton.  They 
had  three  sons,  William,  Jr.,  Isaac,  and  Levi. 

William,  Jr.,  ran  away  and  went  to  sea,  and  the 
last  ever  heard  from  him  was  a  letter  mailed  from  the 
Golden  Gate,  California.  Isaac  also,  after  growing  up 
"  followed  the  water  "  for  several  years,  went  to  Europe 
at  the  outbreak  of  the  Civil  War  and  became  a  blockade 
runner,  carrying  English  goods  into  the  Southern 
States.  Levi  also  went  to  sea  and  finally  became 
boatswain  on  a  ship  trading  between  Liverpool  and 
China.  He  died  suddenly  on  his  vessel's  deck  in  Liver- 
pool. His  effects  were  sent  home  to  his  mother,  then  a 
widow  for  the  second  time,  and  residing  in  Philadelphia. 

William  and  Tamson  Cox  had  also  four  daughters, 
Mary,  Hannah,  Phoebe,  and  Caroline;  the  last  died  a 
little  girl,  and  William  Cox,  the  husband  and  father, 
died.  When  the  children  were  all  grown,  Tamson  again 
married — this  time  she  married  Reuben  Cuff  of  Salem, 
son  of  the  minister;  they  resided  on  a  large  farm  in 
Salem  County,  and  kept  a  big  dairy.  Mrs.  Cuff  was 
noted  for  her  fine  cheeses.  This  Reuben  Cuff  died  in  a 
few  years  (they  had  no  children)  and  Mrs.  Cuff  re- 
moved to  Philadelphia,  where  she  became  housekeeper 
for  two  Quaker  women  with  whom  she  spent  the  rest 
of  her  life.  She  died  in  1877,  in  her  own  house  in  Gould- 
town,  which  she  had  built,  her  death  occurring  three 


Mrs.  Lydia  Sheppard,  Daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Phoebe  Gould,  Who  Lived  to  be 
102  Years  Old,  and  Was  the  Head  of  Her  Son's  Household  Till  the  Last  Day  of  Her  Life. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  93 

days  before  the  death  of  her  mother,  which  was  on  May 
twenty-sixth  of  that  year  at  the  old  Gould  homestead. 

None  of  Tamson's  sons  ever  married  so  far  as 
known;  the  oldest  daughter,  INIary,  married  Thomas 
Almond,  a  barber,  who  removed  from  Philadelphia  to 
Bridgeton,  where  he  carried  on  the  business  for  several 
years.  He  died  in  Philadelphia;  they  had  two 
daughters,  Caroline  and  Phoebe  (Mrs.  White),  the 
latter  still  living  as  is  also  her  widowed  mother,  both 
residing  together  in  Philadelphia.  Caroline  is  dead, 
one  daughter  surviving  her.  Mrs.  White  has  no  chil- 
dren. Hannah  Cox  married  Charles  Wilson,  of  Salem, 
who  engaged  in  tenant  farming,  but  died  in  a  few  years ; 
they  had  no  children.  Hannah  then  married  Hiram 
Cuff,  a  cousin  of  her  first  husband  who  was  also  a  Salem 
County  farmer,  residing  as  tenant  farmer  on  a  three- 
hundred  acre  farm  for  many  years ;  they  had  no  children 
and  Hannah  died  in  1907. 

Phoebe  Cox  married  Tliomas  W.  Almond,  of  Phila- 
deljDhia,  a  relative  of  her  sister  Mary's  husband ;  he  was 
an  undertaker.  He  died  suddenly  and  his  widow  and 
son,  William,  succeeded  to  the  business.  Phoebe  in  a 
few  years  also  died  suddenly,  and  the  son,  William,  and 
his  son,  succeeded  to  the  business.  William  died  two 
years  ago,  and  now  his  widow  and  their  son  succeed  to 
the  same  undertaking  business  in  Philadelphia. 

Lydia  Gould,  born  October  22,  1809,  the  third 
daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Phoebe  Gould,  married 
David  Sheppard,  of  Port  Elizabeth;  they  made  their 
home  in  Millville.  There  were  born  to  them  Tamson, 
who  married  Joseph  Wilson  of  Salem,  she  died  in 
1874,  age  thirty-five,  leaving  no  children;  Thomas,  still 
residing  in  Millville;  Sarah,  wife  of  B.  F.  Pierce  of 
Fairton,  and  David,  born  two  weeks  after  his  father 
died.    David  died  about  six  years  ago,  aged  sixty-two 


94  GOULDTOWN 

years,  leaving  no  children.  Lydia,  the  mother,  died  in 
November,  1911,  a  short  time  after  she  had  passed  the 
one  hundred  and  second  anniversary  of  her  birth. 
Thomas  has  two  sons  and  one  daughter.  Sarah  has 
six  daughters  and  one  son. 

Jane  Gould  married  Daniel  Webster,  and  they  had 
many  children,  all  of  whom  are  dead  but  one  son, 
Charles.  The  father,  Daniel,  died  many  years  ago,  and 
the  mother,  Jane,  died  in  1868,  aged  fifty-six  years. 

Abijah  Gould,  3rd,  married  Emily  Gould,  daughter 
of  Jesse  Gould;  they  had  three  children,  Elizabeth, 
Josephine,  and  Dr.  Jesse  Gould,  of  Philadelphia. 
Abijah  died  in  1892,  aged  seventy-seven.  His  wife  had 
died  a  few  years  before. 

Sarah  Gould  married  Abel  Lee;  they  had  six  chil- 
dren; three  daughters  and  three  sons,  B.  F.  Lee  (Bishop 
Lee) ,  William  Cox  Lee,  and  Abel  Lee.  The  daughters 
are  Ehzabeth,  Jane,  and  Isabel.  Abel  Lee,  the  father, 
died  in  1852,  his  widow,  Sarah,  died  a  few  years  ago, 
over  ninety  years  of  age.  Two  sons,  William  and  Abel, 
are  dead. 

Rebecca  Gould,  born  May  2,  1820,  married  James 
Steward  in  1838;  they  also  had  three  sons  and  three 
daughters,  all  still  living.  They  are  Margaret,  William, 
Mary,  Theophilus,  Alice,  and  Stephen.  Rebecca  died 
three  weeks  after  the  death  of  her  mother,  Phoebe,  and 
sister  Tamson,  in  1877.  Tamson's  house  was  but  a  few 
hundred  yards  from  the  home  of  her  sister,  Rebecca 
Steward,  while  the  aged  mother's  home  was  nearly  two 
miles  from  both.  Mrs.  Steward,  dividing  her  time 
between  the  bedside  of  her  mother  at  one  extreme,  and 
that  of  her  sister  at  the  other,  was  prostrated  after  the 
double  funeral,  and  died  three  weeks  after,  aged  fifty- 
seven  years. 

James  Steward  was  a  man  of  sterling  character,  and 


James  Steward.     Taken  when  \'isiting  His  Daughter,  Mrs.  Felts,  in  Wilmington, 

Delaware. 


Mrs.  Rebecca  Steward,  Daughter   of   Benjamin   and  Phoebe  Gould,  Wife  of  James 
Steward,  and  Mother  of  the  Steward  Group  of  Three  Sons  and  Three  Daughters. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  95 

of  more  than  average  intelligence,  as  was  also  his  wife. 
He  was  a  bound  boy,  indentured  to  a  man  named 
Reeves,  in  Back  Neck,  who  ill-treated  him  so  much  that 
he  ran  away  from  him  before  he  was  nine  years  old,  and 
went  to  live  with  Elijah  Gould,  the  father  of  Rev. 
Theodore  Gould.  His  parents  had  gone  to  Santa 
Domingo  in  the  Bowyer  expedition  of  1824,  leaving  him 
with  Mr.  Gould,  his  only  remaining  relative  here 
being  a  little  dead  sister  lying  in  the  Gouldtown 
graveyard. 

It  was  learned  that  his  parents  engaged  in  coffee- 
gi'owing  in  Santa  Domingo,  but  in  a  few  years  no  more 
was  ever  heard  from  them. 

James  Steward,  the  husband  and  father,  died  in 
May,  1892,  aged  seventy-seven  years  and  three  days. 
He  was  a  mechanic  and  had  been  employed  in  the  works 
of  the  Cumberland  Nail  and  Iron  Company  fifty-one 
years.  The  last  thirty-five  years  he  had  been  foreman 
of  the  sheet-iron  mill. 

Phoebe  Gould  the  next  to  the  youngest  daughter, 
married  Nathan  Gould,  son  of  Abijah  Gould,  Jr.,  2nd. 
They  resided  opposite  where  is  now  the  reservoir  on 
the  Bridgeton  and  Millville  Turnpike,  on  the  farm  now 
owned  by  George  T.  Pearce.  They  had  three  sons  and 
two  daughters.  Two  sons,  Joseph  and  Clarence,  are 
still  living,  and  Nancy,  the  youngest  daughter,  wife  of 
George  W.  Gould,  still  lives,  residing  in  Atlantic  City. 
The  other  daughter,  Amanda,  wife  of  Edward  Cruise, 
is  dead.  The  last  daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Phoebe 
Gould,  Miss  Prudence  F.  Gould,  ex-schoolteacher,  and 
dressmaker  for  all  the  neighborhood,  beloved  by  every 
one,  dwells  now  at  the  old  homestead  where  she  was 
born,  and  which  she  owns — ^that  land  bequeathed  by 
Benjamin  Gould,  1st,  to  his  son  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  who 
was  the  grandfather  of  Miss  Prudence. 


96  GOULDTOWN 

Richard  Gould,  second  son  of  Abijah  Gould  1st, 
married  Charlotte  Gould,  daughter  of  Elisha  Gould. 
They  had  five  sons  and  three  daughters.  Richard  Gould 
was  born  in  1783  and  died  in  1855,  aged  seventy- two 
years.  His  wife,  Charlotte,  was  born  in  1786  and  died 
in  1876,  aged  ninety  years.  Their  sons  were  Norton, 
Andrew,  Elijah,  Robert  and  Richard,  Jr.  The 
daughters  were  Rhumah,  Sarah  and  Hannah.  Norton 
died  in  1892,  aged  seventy-eight  years,  and  left  a 
number  of  descendants,  one  of  whom  is  Mrs.  Ruth 
Tudas,  of  Bridgeton.  Andrew  Gould  left  a  number  of 
descendants;  his  two  sons,  Charles  and  Robert,  reside 
in  Bridgeton.  His  wife  was  Ann  Smith,  daughter  of 
Hannah  Gould  and  Charles  Gonzales  Smith,  the  East 
Indiaman.  Robert  Gould,  the  third  son,  went  to 
Canada,  where  he  resided  several  years,  and  afterwards 
returned  to  Michigan,  where  he  probably  died.  Richard, 
Jr.,  died  in  Salem;  his  wife  was  Martha  Emery  of 
Salem.  They  left  a  number  of  children.  Rhumah  Gould 
married  John  Hammond.  They  had  a  number  of  chil- 
dren, some  of  whom  still  survive.  Hannah  Gould 
married  William  Jones.  They  had  no  children.  Some 
of  John  Hammond's  and  Rhumah's  children  reside  in 
Bridgeton,  and  two  sons,  Charles  and  Arthur,  reside 
somewhere  in  the  far  West;  Arthur  at  Saginaw, 
Michigan. 

Furman  Gould's  children  were  Jonathan  Gould, 
Furman  Gould,  Jr.,  Alfred  Gould,  Charles  Gould,  and 
Theophilus  Gould.  Furman's  first  wife,  the  mother  of 
these  boj^s,  and  two  daughters,  Martha  and  Christiana, 
was  Christiana  or  "  Kitty,"  the  widow  of  Charles  Gould, 
son  of  Elisha  Gould.  TJiough  "  Kitty  "  was  the  mother 
of  ten  children,  three  by  her  first  husband  and  seven  by 
Furman,  she  died  in  1841  at  the  age  of  thirty-seven 
years.     Furman   Gould,    Sr.,   became  the   first   local 


Anthony  Gould. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  97 

preacher  of  Gouldto^vn.  He  died  in  1855,  aged  sixty- 
nine  years.  His  stepchildren  were  Daniel  Gould,  who 
went  to  Massachusetts,  Aaron  Gould,  and  Anthony 
Gould,  2nd.  Aaron  Gould  married  Catherine  Pierce, 
daughter  of  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st.  They  had  four  chil- 
dren, Timothy,  still  living;  Thomas,  dead;  Lydia  Ann, 
the  wife  of  Job  Cuff,  of  Hancock's  Bridge,  and  Aaron 
Paul,  still  living.  Catherine  died  in  1887,  aged  seventy- 
six  years.    Aaron  died  in  1894,  aged  eighty- four  years. 

Anthony  Gould,  2nd,  born  in  1813,  married  Almeda, 
daughter  of  Jesse  Pierce  and  Christina  Stoms,  a  Dutch 
woman  from  Salem  County.  (It  is  said  Anthony  re- 
sembled his  grandfather  Anthony,  1st.)  They  left 
numerous  descendants,  a  grandson  being  Anthony 
Pierce,  the  well-known  electrician  and  foreman  of 
electrical  wiring  for  the  Bridgeton  and  Millville  Trac- 
tion Company.  The  children  of  Anthony  and  Almeda 
Gould  were  Phoebe,  William,  Elizabeth,  Christina, 
Christiana,  and  Almeda;  the  oldest,  Phoebe,  and  the 
youngest,  Almeda,  still  survive;  all  the  others  are  dead. 

Phoebe  is  now  nearing  her  eightieth  birthday.  Wil- 
liam was  a  soldier  in  the  war  of  the  Rebellion,  and  died 
two  years  ago.  Phoebe  married  Francis  L.  Pierce,  of 
Canton,  who  is  dead.  They  had  four  daughters, 
Prudence,  wife  of  Charles  H.  Pierce,  engineer  at  the 
Ferracute  Machine  Works;  Marietta,  wife  of  Robert 
'Pierce;  Dorothy,  wife  of  Rev.  Alex.  W.  Pierce,  and 
Phoebe  Jane,  wife  of  Fenwick  Wright.  These  last 
have  a  musical  family,  who  unite  in  orchestral  perform- 
ances by  string  or  wind  instruments.  The  sons  of 
Francis  L.  and  Phoebe  Gould  Pierce,  are  Anthony,  the 
electrician,  Francis,  Jr.,  a  barber,  at  Bristol,  Pa. ;  Amos, 
also  a  barber  at  Coatesville,  Pa.,  and  Harold,  a  hotel 
chef,  now  at  Commercial  Hotel,  Bridgeton. 

William  Gould  married  Hannah  Caroline  Gould, 

7 


98  GOULDTOWN 

daughter  of  Elisha  Gould,  Jr.  They  had  two 
daughters,  LueEa,  wife  of  John  Coombs,  and  Melissa, 
wife  of  George  Cuff,  of  Salem  County.  William  and 
his  wife  are  both  dead. 

Elizabeth  Gould  married  Archibald  Cuff,  Jr.  They 
have  two  sons  and  one  daughter  living.  The  sons  are 
Edmund  and  Reuben,  both  married,  and  the  daughter 
is  Fanny,  wife  of  Luther  D.  Gould,  a  former  corporal 
in  the  Tenth  Cavalry,  U.  S.  Army,  who  served  among 
the  Indians  and  in  Cuba,  where  he  figured  in  rescuing 
Colonel  Theodore  Roosevelt  and  his  Rough  Rider  regi- 
ment of  Volunteers  at  Las  Guasimas,  Cuba. 

Christina  Gould  married  Robert  Dunn;  they  had 
two  daughters,  Estella  and  Almeda.  Both  Robert 
Dunn  and  his  wife  have  passed  away.  Estella  married 
Rev.  Burgojnie  Cuff,  2nd.  He  died  early,  leaving  no 
children.  After  the  death  of  her  mother,  with  whom  she 
resided  many  years  after  the  decease  of  her  father  and 
her  husband,  Estella  married  Howard  Stewart.  They 
own  a  farm  in  Gouldtown  upon  which  they  reside,  and 
have  no  children.  Almeda  Gould,  the  other  daughter 
of  Robert  and  Christina  Dunn,  married  Joseph  Gould, 
grandson  of  Rev.  Furman  Gould,  who  resides  on  the 
farm  where  once  his  grandfather  lived.  They  have 
several  children. 

Christiana  Gould  married  Mordecai  Pierce,  a  black- 
smith of  Canton,  N.  J.  They  had  two  sons,  Belford,  at 
present  a  blacksmith  in  Bridgeton,  and  Warner  K.,  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Education  of  Fairfield  Town- 
ship. Christiana  died  early,  and  Mordecai  later  married 
Anna,  daughter  of  Jonathan  Gould.  TJiey  had  two 
sons  and  two  daughters,  Mordecai,  Sylvester,  Lucette 
and  Madge.  Sylvester,  a  cigar-maker,  died  a  young 
man;  Mordecai  resides  in  Pennsylvania;  Lucette  is 
principal  of  the  Gouldtown  public  school,  and  Madge 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  99 

is  a  student  in  the  Bridgeton  High  School.  Anna,  the 
mother,  was  the  postmistress  at  Gouldtown  until  the 
post-office  there  was  abolished. 

The  wife  of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd,  AJmeda,  died  in 
1844,  aged  thirty- three  years.  Many  years  after  this 
he  remarried — his  oldest  daughter,  Phoebe,  having  been 
his  housekeeper  all  these  years,  and  characterized 
as  the  "Little  Mother"  of  the  family  by  the 
whole  neighborhood.  Anthony  Gould  at  this  time 
married  Harriet  Gould  Cuff,  daughter  of  Leonard 
Gould,  and  widow  of  Ephraim  Cuff.  There  were  born 
to  them  Ajithony  Gould,  3rd,  Preston  Gould,  Harriet, 
Cynthia,  and  Ida.    Only  Preston  and  Ida  survive. 

Ajithony  Gould  died  in  1891,  aged  seventy-eight 
years;  Harriet  Gould,  his  widow,  in  1895,  aged  seventy- 
two  years.  She  left  children  by  her  former  husband 
Ephraim  Cuff:  three  sons,  Quinton  Cuff,  Lambert 
Cuff  and  Theodore  Cuff;  the  last  now  dead.  Quinton 
resides  in  Chester,  Pa.,  and  Lambert  in  Gouldtown. 

Furman  Gould,  Sr.,  the  Furman  Gould  of  whom 
we  have  spoken,  was  something  of  a  blusterer  in  his 
early  days.  During  the  war  of  1812,  it  is  told  he,  to- 
gether with  a  man  named  David  Cams,  were  chartered 
to  take  a  four-horse  load  of  commissary  stores  down  to 
Cape  May  for  the  garrison  located  there.  One  of  the 
lead  horses,  belonging  to  Gould,  had  the  name  of 
"  Spaddle  Ham  "  on  account  of  being  spotted  on  his 
rump.  A  British  ship  had  got  too  far  in  shore  at  Cape 
May,  where  she  grounded  when  the  tide  went  out.  As 
the  commissary  team  was  approaching  the  island,  the 
man-o'-war  fired  a  broadside  from  her  port  guns.  The 
shot,  of  course,  went  way  inland.  "  By  Goose, 
Dave"  (his  favorite  swear-word),  "by  Goose,  that 
sounds  wus'n  thunder,"  said  Gould,  with  some 
agitation.    Driving  on  a  little  further,  the  ship  blazed 


100  GOULDTOWN 

away  with  another  broadside.  This  time  the  shot  cut 
off  the  tops  and  branches  of  trees  all  around  them. 
"  Hold  on,  Furm;  stop,  I  must  get  out  o'  here!  "  cried 
out  David  in  terror.  "  Peddee — whoa,  come  about  here, 
Spaddle  Ham!"  yelled  Furm  to  his  horses,  and  with 
lines  and  whip  he  brought  the  team  to  a  right-about- 
face;  and  they  tell  to  this  day  that  Furm  Gould  and 
Dave  Cams  ran  their  horses  from  Cape  May  to  Dennis- 
ville  before  they  stopped  them.  Whether  this  tale  is 
true  or  not,  it  is  a  fact  that  Furman  Gould  was  given 
by  the  United  States  Government  a  quarter  section  of 
land  (160  acres)  in  the  State  of  Illinois,  for  serving  in 
the  war  of  1812.  This  land  was  sold  in  1855  to  Henry 
Gould,  who  had  gone  to  Illinois  the  year  before. 

Furman  Gould,  Jr.,  married  Hester  Cuff,  sister  of 
Jonathan  Gould's  wife.  They  had  four  children,  two 
sons  and  two  daughters.  The  two  sons,  Albert  and 
William  C.  Gould  survive;  of  the  two  daughters. 
Prudence,  who  became  the  wife  of  Stephen  S.  Steward, 
died  in  1890,  aged  forty- two  years;  Martha,  the  second, 
went  to  Illinois,  with  an  uncle  and  aunt,  lost  her  identity 
of  color,  married  a  wealthy  farmer,  and  has  an  interest- 
ing family  of  distinguished  westerners.  Furman  Gould, 
Jr.,  died  in  1883  aged  sixty-six  years;  his  widow,  Hester 
Gould,  passed  away  in  1893,  aged  seventy- two  years. 

Jonathan  Gould  married  Hannah  Ann  Cuff,  the 
daughter  of  William  Cuff,  of  Salem,  son  of  Rev. 
Reuben  Cuff.  They  had  three  children,  Lorenzo  F. 
Gould,  Hannah  Ann,  wife  of  Rev.  Jeremiah  H.  Pierce, 
and  Anna  Rebecca,  wife  of  Mordecai  C.  Pierce.  These 
three  are  all  living  and  have  numerous  children.  Jona- 
than Gould  the  father  died  in  1893,  aged  seventy-seven; 
his  widow,  Hannah  Ann,  died  a  few  years  ago  aged 
over  eighty. 

Alfred  Gould  married  Sarah,  a  daughter  of  Elijah 


Mrs.  Sarah  Gould,  Widow  of  Alfred  Gould  and  Sister  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  101 

and  Hannah  Murray  Gould.  Tihey  had  three  children, 
Eugene  Gould,  Mary  E.  Gould  and  Alice  Gould.  Alice 
died  of  typhoid  fever  after  graduating  from  the  Second 
Ward  public  school,  Bridgeton,  and  teaching  school  in 
Gouldtown.  She  was  a  young  woman  of  high  accom- 
plishment. Eugene  and  Mary  are  still  living  on  their 
old  homestead,  a  rich  and  beautiful  farm,  both  unmar- 
ried, with  their  widowed  mother,  now  in  her  ninetieth 
year.  She  is  a  sister  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  who  is 
long  past  his  eighty-second  birthday.  Alfred  Gould 
died  in  1902,  aged  eighty  years.  He  was  born  May  13, 
1822. 

Charles  Gould,  the  youngest  son  of  Furman  Gould, 
Sr.,  married  Susan,  the  daughter  of  Abijah  Gould,  2nd. 
They  had  a  number  of  children,  most  of  whom  still  live. 
Joseph,  the  second  of  their  sons,  resides  at  the  old 
homestead  of  his  father,  which  was  also  the  home  of  his 
grandfather  and  a  part  of  the  original  Gould  tract;  he 
is  a  thrifty  farmer,  and  has  an  interesting  family.  His 
wife  was  Almeda,  daughter  of  Robert  and  Christina 
Gould  Dunn.  Martha  Gould,  oldest  daughter  of  Fur- 
man  and  "  Kitty  "  Gould,  married  Elmer,  oldest  son  of 
Abijah  Gould,  2nd,  and  had  several  children,  most  of 
whom  are  dead.  Elmer  died  in  1866.  Furman,  3rd, 
their  son,  went  West  before  the  war  of  the  Rebellion; 
lost  his  identity  of  color,  became  a  thrifty  farmer  and 
at  last  lost  himself  to  all  his  people  in  the  East. 
Christiana  Gould,  the  remaining  daughter  of  Furman 
Gould,  Sr.,  married  Menon  Pierce,  3rd,  and  is  still 
living  in  Gouldtown.  They  never  had  any  children. 
Menon,  who  was  a  carpenter,  died  in  (  ) .  This  dis- 
poses of  the  immediate  descendants  of  Furman  and 
"  Kitty  "  Gould;  and  "  Kitty  "  and  Charles  Gould. 

Abijah  Gould,  2nd,  married  Rachel  Hicks,  daughter 
of  Josiah  Hicks  and  Elizabeth  Pierce;  they  resided  on 


102  GOULDTOWN 

a  part  of  the  patrimony  of  his  father,  Abijah  Gould,  1st, 
who  had  received  it  by  will  from  Benjamin  Gould,  1st. 
The  house  was  located  on  the  Buckshutem  road,  and  is 
now  owned  by  Joseph  Gould,  a  grandson  of  Abijah 
Gould,  2nd.  They  had  five  sons  and  four  daughters. 
The  sons  were  Elmer,  Nathan,  Mason  Mulford,  Joseph 
and  Moses ;  the  daughters  were  Elizabeth,  Maria,  Susan 
and  Caroline. 

Elmer  married  Martha  Gould  (as  shown  on  another 
page).  Elizabeth  (Betsy),  married  Adam  Pierce,  3rd, 
and  Maria  married  Smith  Gould,  as  has  been  also 
shown,  and  Caroline,  the  youngest,  married  Timothy 
Gould,  son  of  Aaron  Gould.  Caroline  is  dead,  but  her 
husband  survives.  They  had  two  sons  and  two 
daughters,  who  are  still  living  here.  Susan  married 
Charles  Gould,  as  appears  on  another  page.  Nathan 
Gould  married  Phoebe,  daughter  of  Benjamin  Gould, 
2nd ;  they  are  both  dead,  but  two  sons  and  one  daughter 
remain.  Their  names  are  Joseph  Gould,  Clarence 
Gould,  residing  in  Gouldtown,  and  Nancy,  wife  of 
George  W.  Gould,  with  a  home  in  Atlantic  City.  Mason 
Mulford  Gould  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Richard 
and  Amelia  Pierce,  who  lived  on  the  road  to  Roads- 
town,  owning  the  farm  now  owned  by  Gottleib  Gos- 
man.  They  had  seven  daughters  but  no  son.  The 
daughters  are  all  living  and  married,  excepting  one, 
the  wife  of  E.  P.  Wilson,  of  Pleasantville,  N.  J.  She 
died  several  years  ago.  Joseph  died  as  a  young  man; 
Moses  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Adrian  Pierce. 
Both  are  dead.  Their  only  son,  Mitchell  H.  Gould,  is 
their  sole  survivor;  Mitchell  Gould  has  only  one 
daughter,  the  wife  of  Smith  Gould,  Jr.,  of  Bridgeton. 

Leonard  Gould,  the  youngest  son  of  Abijah  and 
Hannah  Pierce  Gould,  married  Almeda,  daughter  of 
John  and  Tabitha  Murray.     They  also  resided  on  a 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  103 

sixty-acre  patrimony  of  the  original  Gould  estate,  just 
south  from  the  farms  of  his  brothers  Benjamin  and 
Furman  and  eastward  and  adjoining  that  of  his  other 
brother,  Abijah,  and  southeast  from  his  brother 
Richard  Gould.  They  had  three  sons,  Jeremiah  Gould, 
Clayton  Gould  and  Ephraim  Gould.  Clayton  is  still 
living,  a  very  old  man — of  ninety-one.  They  also  had 
six  daughters,  Eliza  Ann,  Rachel,  Emeline,  Mary, 
Harriet,  and  Clara.  Harriet  became  the  second  wife 
of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd,  as  already  shown.  Jeremiah 
married  Louisa,  daughter  of  Richard  and  Amelia 
Murray  Pierce;  Clayton  married  Harriet  Pierce, 
daughter  of  Anthony  and  Sarah  Jones  Pierce ;  Ephraim 
went  away  and  married  among  colored  people;  Eliza 
Ann  became  the  second  wife  of  Daniel  Lee  of  Salem, 
and  had  several  sons,  among  them  being  Benjamin  F. 
Lee  of  Flemington,  N.  J.;  Rachel  married  Jonathan 
CufF,  and  resided  on  a  farm  in  Salem  County;  her  hus- 
band died  many  years  ago,  and  she  resides  with  one  of 
her  sons  on  a  large  farm  in  Salem  County.  She  is  now 
eighty-eight  years  of  age.  Mary  married  Francis 
Cuff,  of  Salem;  he  was  a  son  of  Archibald  and  Lydia 
Gould  Cuff.  They  were  always  successful  Salem 
County  tenant  farmers  residing  on  large,  well-stocked 
farms  among  Quakers.  They  had  a  numerous  family, 
and  both  are  now  dead.  Emeline  married  Reuben 
Pierce,  Jr.,  son  of  Reuben  Pierce  and  Ann  Cuff  Pierce 
— they  resided  in  the  city  of  Salem,  and  had  one  child, 
but  all  three  are  dead.  Clara  married  Jacob  Coombs, 
and  has  always  resided  in  Gouldtown.  Jacob  Coombs* 
mother  was  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Anthony  Pierce, 
2nd,  his  father  was  William  Coombs,  a  Philadelphian. 
Jacob  and  Clara  Coombs  had  several  children.  Jacob 
died  suddenly  about  two  years  ago,  over  eighty  years 
of  age.    Clara,  his  widow,  is  living. 


104  GOULDTOWN 

The  youngest  son  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st,  was 
Elisha  Gould,  who,  as  has  been  already  shown,  married 
Elizabeth,  youngest  daughter  of  Richard  and  Hannah 
Van  Aca  Pierce.  Elisha  was  born  in  1755,  and  Eliza- 
beth, who  died  in  1836,  was  a  few  years  younger,  being 
born  about  1760.  Their  children  were  Pierce  Gould, 
born  1785;  Charlotte,  1786;  Elisha,  1788;  Elijah,  1790; 
Jesse,  1792;  Elizabeth,  1794;  Sarah,  1795. 

Pierce  Gould  married  Sarah  Murray,  widow  of 
Menon  Pierce,  2nd,  who  had  one  child,  Maurice,  who, 
when  he  grew  up,  went  to  Mount  Holly.  This  Sarah 
was  the  daughter  of  John  and  Tabitha  Murray.  Pierce 
Gould  and  his  wife,  Sarah,  had  children,  Elizabeth, 
Caroline,  Augustus,  Fanny,  and  Frederick.  The  latter 
is  the  only  one  alive. 

Elizabeth  married  Charles  Cato,  of  Salem;  they  had 
but  one  child,  Elizabeth,  still  living  in  Bridgeton,  but 
who  never  married.  Caroline  married  Robert  Pierce, 
son  of  Jesse  Pierce  and  Christina  Stoms  Pierce,  and 
they  had  two  children;  one  of  whom  survives  and  is  the 
second  wife  of  the  aged  Clayton  Gould.  Her  first  hus- 
band was  Isaac  Wood,  a  white  man  residing  on  a  farm 
on  the  road  from  Indian  Fields  to  Rosenhayn.  Fanny 
married  Elijah  Gould,  2nd,  son  of  Richard  Gould,  and 
had  two  daughters,  Julia  and  Malvena.  Julia  married 
Andrew  Pierce  of  Salem,  and  Malvena  married  Abijah 
Gould,  4th,  now  residing  in  Gouldtown;  he  is  the  only 
survivor  of  the  family  of  his  father,  Oliver  Gould,  son 
of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd. 

Charlotte  Gould,  oldest  daughter  of  Elisha  Gould, 
married  Richard  Gould,  as  has  been  already  related. 

Elisha  Gould,  2nd,  married  Mary  Cuff,  and  their 
descendants  have  already  been  detailed  in  part,  but  it 
is  well  to  say  here  that  the  present  Smith  Gould,  the 
barber  in  Bridgeton,  who  is  the  only  son  of  Smith 


Mrs.  Hannah  Gould,  Widow  of  Elijah  Gould,  and  Mother  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould. 
She  Was  the  Daughter  of  John  and  Tabitha  Murray. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  105 

Gould,  Sr.,  who  was  the  only  son  of  Elisha  Gould,  has 
one  child,  an  only  son,  who  might  be  called  a  complete 
Gould  as  to  immediate  descent.  This  boy,  Lenhart 
Gould,  is  the  son  of  Smith  Gould  and  Beatrice  Gould. 
Beatrice  Gould's  parents  were  Mitchell  Gould  and  Ann 
Gould.  Mitchell  was  the  son  of  Moses  Gould  and 
Elizabeth  Pierce,  daughter  of  Adrian  Pierce,  while 
Ann  was  the  daughter  of  Augustus  Gould  and  Mary 
Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Adam  Pierce,  2nd.  Mitchell 
was  an  only  son,  and  Moses,  his  father,  was  the  brother 
of  Maria  Gould,  wife  of  Smith  Gould,  1st,  therefore, 
little  Lenhart's  mother  and  father  were  both  Goulds; 
the  mother  and  father  of  Smith  Gould,  2nd,  were  both 
Goulds,  and  the  parents  of  Beatrice,  his  wife,  are  both 
Goulds. 

Elijah  Gould  married  Hannah,  daughter  of  John 
and  Tabitha  Murray ;  the  descendants  of  these  two  were 
perhaps,  the  most  distinguished  of  all  in  Gouldtown, 
in  the  times  they  lived.  The  children  were  Henry  and 
Ann,  twins.  Henry  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of 
William  and  Prudence  Murray  Cuff,  of  Salem.  They 
went  to  Illinois  in  1854.  They  never  had  any  children 
to  live,  and  both  are  dead.  Ann  married  J.  Freeman 
Pierce,  son  of  Wanaca,  and  brother  of  Holmes  Pierce. 
Both  have  passed  away. 

The  other  sons  were  John,  Theodore  (Rev.  Theodore 
Gould),  and  Eli  Gould.  John  and  Theodore  married 
sisters,  who  were  also  sisters  to  their  brother  Henry's 
wife,  Elizabeth.  John  married  Sarah,  and  Theodore 
married  Caroline,  both  daughters  of  William  and 
Prudence  Murray  Cuff.  Eli  married  Mary,  daughter 
of  James  and  Rebecca  Gould  Steward. 

The  other  daughters  were  Hannah  (married  Robert 
D.  Stewart),  Ruth  (married  Moses  Pierce),  Sarah 
(married  Alfred  Gould).    All  of  these  have  left  well 


106  GOULDTOWN 

known  descendants.  Of  the  two  sons  of  Rev.  Theodore 
Gould,  one  is  a  printer  in  Philadelphia;  the  other  is  an 
electrical  engineer  in  Boston. 

When  Henry  and  John  Gould  were  young  men  they 
built  an  oyster  schooner,  and  engaged  in  carrying  oysters 
from  Maurice  River  Cove — this  industry  then  in  its 
infancy — to  Philadelphia,  also  from  the  Chesapeake 
Bay  to  Baltimore.  After  the  close  of  the  oyster  season, 
they  engaged  in  carrying  produce  and  peaches  from 
Delaware  and  Maryland  to  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia. 
This  was  long  before  the  War  of  .the  Rebellion,  and  was, 
of  course,  hazardous  in  those  times,  had  their  color  been 
suspected.  John  Gould  after  this  became  a  carpenter, 
and  with  his  cousin,  Enoch  Gould,  whose  father,  Jesse, 
was  a  carpenter,  they  employed  a  gang  of  workmen  and 
erected  many  buildings.  In  those  days  it  was  the  custom 
for  a  carpenter  to  build  a  house  from  cellar  to  roof ;  they 
would  do  the  mason  work,  laying  the  cellar  walls  and 
foundations,  and  lath  and  plaster  the  walls.  All  those 
trades  were  to  be  found  in  practice  among  the  Gould- 
town  men  in  those  times.  Abijah  Gould,  2nd,  was  a 
millwright,  an  occupation  for  which  there  is  now  but 
little  use. 

Jesse  Gould,  the  carpenter,  married  first,  Mary 
Lippincott,  a  Leni-Lenape  Indian;  they  had  two  sons, 
Enoch  and  James,  both  of  whom  became  carpenters,  and 
one  daughter,  Abigail.  Mary  Lippincott  died.  Jesse's 
second  wife  was  Hannah  Pierce,  daughter  of  Menon 
Pierce,  1st.  To  this  union  were  born  Emily,  and  Anson. 
Anson  died  young.  Emily  married  Abijah  Gould,  3rd, 
father  of  Jesse  Gould,  M.D.,  now  of  Philadelphia. 
Hannah,  this  wife,  died,  and  Jesse's  third  wife  was 
Hannah  Pierce  again — this  time  a  daughter  of  Wanaca 
Pierce — who  was  killed  by  lightning  in  August,  1819. 

To  Jesse   Gould  and  this   third  wife  were  born 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  107 

Matilda,  who  became  the  wife  of  Rev.  James  V.  Pierce ; 
Freeman,  who  also  became  a  carpenter  and  who  married 
Miriam,  daughter  of  Elisha  Gould,  of  Salem ;  Hezekiah, 
also  becoming  a  carpenter,  and  afterwards  a  machinist, 
learning  this  trade  with  the  Moore  Brothers,  who  had  a 
machine  shop  between  what  is  now  South  Avenue  and 
Grove  Street.  Hezekiah  married  Malinda,  daughter  of 
Ajnos  and  Jane  Murray  Pierce.  In  1862-63,  they  went 
to  Michigan,  where  Hezekiah  became  an  organ  manu- 
facturer; he  left  two  children,  and  died  in  the  West. 
His  widow  still  survives,  residing  with  her  daughter  and 
son-in-law  in  Canada. 

Hezekiah  was  born  at  the  old  Jesse  Gould  home- 
stead, now  owned  by  John  Stout,  at  the  tollgate  in 
Gouldtown.  He  and  Matilda  were  the  youngest.  At 
their  home  the  well  from  which  they  drew  the  water 
was  very  deep,  and  is  still.  One  day  Hezekiah,  when  a 
boy,  drew  up  a  bucket  of  water  with  the  old  style  of 
^vindlass:  leaning  over  to  dump  the  bucket,  the  wind- 
lass broke  out  of  the  curb,  and  windlass,  bucket,  and  boy 
went  in  a  bunch  down  to  the  bottom  of  the  well.  Matilda, 
a  half-grown  girl,  began  screaming ;  and  Hezekiah,  from 
the  bottom  of  the  well,  hallooed  up,  "  Till,  you  needn't 
cry;  I'm  a  comin'  up." — and  sure  enough,  by  bracing 
arms  and  legs  to  the  sides  of  the  well,  he  scrambled  to  the 
top,  but  little  the  worse  for  his  terrific  plunge.  The 
writer  of  this  looked  down  the  well  that  night  on  the  way 
home  from  school. 

Enoch  Gould  married  Sarah  Ann,  daughter  of 
Elisha  and  Mary  Cuff  Gould,  of  Salem;  they  had  an 
interesting  family  of  girls  and  but  one  son,  Elisha,  3rd, 
who  graduated  from  Lincoln  University,  but  shortly 
afterward  died.  Two  daughters  of  Enoch  Gould  are 
still  living;  Henrietta  Shords  and  Olivia  Dickinson. 

James  Gould  married  Charlotte,  daughter  of  Norton 


108  GOULDTOWN 

Gould,  both  have  deceased,  leaving  no  issue;  Abigail 
married  Seneca  Bishop,  and  they  had  one  child,  Joseph, 
also  a  graduate  of  Lincoln  University  and  who  also 
deceased  soon  afterward,  having  never  married.  Lydia 
Gould,  as  has  been  detailed,  married  Archibald  CufF, 
and  afterwards  Rev.  Furman  Gould,  becoming  his  third 
wife,  his  second  being  Hannah  Gould  Wester.  Charles 
Gould,  1st,  married  "  Kitty  "  Gould  and  had  three  sons, 
as  before  told. 

Sarah  Gould  married  Thomas  Dunn,  of  Salem; 
their  children  were  Sarah,  who  married  Jacob  Wright 
and  has  a  large  family;  Elizabeth,  who  married  a  man 
named  Green  and  left  no  children;  Robert  Dunn,  who 
married  Christina,  daughter  of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd, 
and  left  two  daughters;  and  Ercurious,  who  left  three 
sons  and  one  daughter,  one  son  is  now  a  minister.  After 
the  death  of  Dunn,  Sarah  married  Anthony  Pierce,  3rd. 

Elizabeth  Gould  married  Samuel  Gould  at  first,  as 
has  been  stated,  and  becoming  a  widow  married  Daniel 
Siro.  This  woman  became  blind,  but  she  was  a  remark- 
able woman.  Blind  as  she  was,  she  knew  all  the  news 
of  the  neighborhood,  could  detect  any  one  whom  she  had 
once  met,  by  their  step,  and  could  tell  whether  it  was  a 
man,  woman,  or  child  and  whether  a  large  person  or 
small.  She  was  a  great  plyer  of  the  knitting  needles 
and  forever  busy  in  darning  and  mending  wherever  she 
lived  or  visited.  She  stayed  quite  a  time  in  the  family 
of  the  writer's  parents,  and  when  we  were  all  at  home 
she  was  to  us  a  source  of  pleasure  and  amusement,  join- 
ing in  our  pranks  with  as  much  relish  as  if  young  and  not 
sightless,  but  woe  to  us  if  we  carried  our  sports  too  far. 

One  night  having  been  more  full  of  fun  and  frolic 
perhaps  than  usual,  we  were  sent  off  upstairs  to  bed. 
Our  noise  and  laughter  continued  after  we  got  upstairs, 
and  soon  "  Aunt  Elizabeth,"  as  we  used  to  call  her. 


Mrs.  Sarah  Drxx  Pierce,  Mother  of  Mrs.  Jacob  Wright. 


ORIGIN  OF  NAME  109 

came  to  the  foot  of  the  stairs  and  called  out  "  If  you 
young'uns  don't  make  less  noise,  I'll  come  up  there  and 
lick  you  like  six !  "  That  was  a  new  word  to  us  then  and 
"  lick  you  like  six  "  was  passed  around  among  us  (but 
out  of  her  hearing)  for  many  a  day. 

DESCENDANTS  OF  BENJAMIN  GOULD,  2^D,  OF  GOULDTOWN, 

NEW  JERSEY,  LIVING  AT  PRESENT  AND  CELEBRATING 

THEIR  Ai^NUAL   REUNION   ON   THE   ORIGINAL 

HOME  PLACE,  AUGUST  18TH,  1910. 

PEDIGREE  OF  BENJAMIN  GOULD. 

1.  Benjamin  Gould,  I,  immediate  descendant  of 
John  Fenwick,  through  his  granddaughter,  Elizabeth 
Adams. 

2.  Abijah  Gould,  I,  a  son. 

3.  Benjamin  Gould,  II,  a  grandson. 

CHILDREN. 

1.  Lydia  Gould  Sheppard     2.  Prudence  F.  Gould 
(Two  children  now  living.) 

GRANDCHILDREN. 

1.  Almond,  Mary  13.  Lee,  Benjamin  F.,  Bishop 

2.  Cruse,  Amanda  B.  Lee 

3.  Felts,  AHce  S.  14.  Pierce,  Sarah  S. 

4.  Gould,  Abijah  15.  Pierce,  Isabella  L. 

5.  Gould,  Jesse,  M.D.  16.  Sheppard,  Thomas 

6.  Gould,  Margaret  S.  17.  Steward,  William 

7.  Gould,  Mary  S.  18.  Steward,   Theophilus   G., 

8.  Gould,  Joseph  Chaplain  Steward 

9.  Gould,  Josephine  19.  Steward,  Stephen  S. 

10.  Gould,  Clarence  20.  White,  Jane  Lee 

11.  Lloyd,  Elizabeth  L.  21.  Webster,  Charles 

12.  Gould,  Nancy 

(Twenty-one  grandchildren  now  living.) 


110 


GOULDTOWN 


GBEAT-GRANDCHILDREN. 


1. 

Almond,  William 

37. 

Gould,  Nathan 

2. 

Bond,  Bert 

38. 

Gould,  Viola 

3. 

Bond,  Berne 

39. 

Gould,  Phoebe 

4. 

Cuff,  Thomson  W. 

40. 

Gould,  Eva 

5. 

Gary,  Kate  S. 

41. 

Gould,  Carlton 

6. 

Dixon,  Mary  F. 

42. 

Gould,  lona 

7. 

Drain,  Florence  M. 

43. 

Gould,  Edwin 

8. 

Durisoe,  Emma  J. 

44. 

Gould,  Milford 

9. 

Felts,  Maggie 

45. 

Gould,  Benjamin 

10. 

Felts,  Leo 

46. 

Gould,  Walter 

11. 

Felts,  Justin 

47. 

Glass,  Maud  L. 

12. 

Felts,  Phoebe,  Teacher 

48. 

Gould,  Jonathan 

13. 

Felts,  Albertina 

49. 

Gould,  Grace  D. 

14. 

Gould,  Rudolph 

50. 

Felts,  Harriet  Webster 

15. 

Gould,  Marie 

51. 

Jones,  Jennie 

16. 

Gould,  Leander 

52. 

Jones,  Sara  L. 

17. 

Gould,  Emily 

53. 

Lively,  Lizzie  M. 

18. 

Gould,  Cleon 

54. 

Lloyd,  Frank 

19. 

Gould,  Elizabeth 

55. 

Lloyd,  Henry 

20. 

Gould,  Jesse,  2nd 

56. 

Lloyd,  Leon 

21. 

Gould,  Menon 

57. 

Lloyd,  Arabella 

22. 

Gould,  Filbert 

58. 

Lee,  Sarah 

23. 

Gould,  Lavinia 

59. 

Lee,  Frances  A. 

24. 

Gould,  Percival 

60. 

Lee,  B.  F.,  Jr. 

25. 

Gould,  Emily 

61. 

Lee,  EfBe 

26. 

Gould,  Ann  E. 

62. 

Owens,  May 

27. 

Gould,  Jennie  B. 

63. 

Pierce,  Ethel 

28. 

Gould,  Isabella 

64. 

Pierce,   Cora 

29. 

Gould,  Roberta 

66. 

Pierce,  Tamson  M. 

30. 

Gould,  Edna 

66. 

Pierce,  Clifton 

31. 

Gould,  Luther  D. 

67. 

Pierce,  Myrtle 

32. 

Gould,  Agnes,  Teacher 

68. 

Pierce,  Clara 

33. 

Gould,  AUce 

69. 

Pierce,  Hilda 

34. 

Gould,  Sydney 

70. 

Pierce,  Austin  R. 

35. 

Gould,  Edgar  E. 

71. 

Pierce,  Rebecca 

36. 

Gould,  Leslie  S. 

72. 

Pierce,  Ella  W. 

ORIGIN  OF  NAME 


111 


73.  Sheppard,  Floyd 

74.  Sheppard,  Ernest 

75.  Sheppard,  Lydia 

76.  Steward,       Charles      G., 

Dentist 

77.  Steward,  Frank  R.,  Law- 

yer 

78.  Steward,     Benjamin     G., 

M.D. 

79.  Steward,  T.  B. 

80.  Steward,  G.  A. 

81.  Steward,  Clara 

82.  Steward,  Wilmon 

83.  Steward,  Fred  K. 

84.  Steward,  Edwina 

85.  Steward,  Esther 


86.  Steward,  Thaddeus 

87.  Steward,  Charlotte 

88.  Thoroughgood,  Jane 

89.  Wallace,  Louisa 

90.  Webster,  Joseph 

91.  Webster,  William 

92.  Webster,  Louis 

93.  Webster,  Daniel 

94.  Webster,  Eli 

95.  Webster,  Frank 

96.  Webster,  Russel 

97.  Webster,  Gertrude 

98.  Webster,  Earl 

99.  Wright,  Lillie 

100.  White,  Phoebe 


(One  hundred  great-grandchildren  now  living.) 


GREAT-GREAT-GRANDCHILDREN. 

1.  Almond,  William,  Jr.  19.  Gould,  Pearl  L. 

2.  Almond,  Clarence  20.  Gould,  Clayton 

3.  Almond,  Thomas  21.  Grould,  Harry 

4.  Almond,  Maud  22.  Gould,  Eva 

5.  Almond,  Rosell  23.  Gould,  Leonard 

6.  Coombs,  Bertha  24.  Gould,  Leland 

7.  Coombs,  Elizabeth  25.  Gould,  Lester 

8.  Coombs,  Jacob  26.  Gould,  Martha 

9.  Jackson,  Justin  27.  Gould,  Sarah 

10.  Jackson,  Agnes  28.  Gould,  Charlotte 

11.  Gould,  Raphael  29.  Gould,  Sarah 

12.  Gould,  Constance  30.  Gould,  Elvira 

13.  Gould,  Rex  31.  Gould,  Raymond 

14.  Gould,  Madeline  32.  Gould,  Susan 

15.  Gould,  Douglas  33.  Gould,  Livola 

16.  Gould,  Stanley  34.  Gould,  Oscar 

17.  Gould,  Grace  35.  Gould,  Prudence 

18.  Gould,  Byrel  36.  Gould,  Clifford 


112 


GOULDTOWN 


37.  Gould,  Inez 

38.  Gould,  Elizabeth 

39.  Gould,  Helen 

40.  Gould,  Jeanette 

41.  Gould,  Eli 

42.  Gould,  Marie 

43.  Gould,  Herschel 

44.  Gould,  Lamont 

45.  Lively,  Lavinia 

46.  Lively,  Eliza 

47.  Lively,  Mary 

48.  Lively,  Walter 

49.  Lloyd,  Frank,  Jr. 

50.  Lloyd,  Walter 

51.  Lloyd,  Raymond 

52.  Lloyd,  Harry 

53.  Lloyd,  Anna 

54.  Miller,  Leah 

55.  Miller,  Hannah 

56.  Miller,  Carl 

57.  Pierce,  Florence  Lloyd 

58.  Pierce,  Cortland 

59.  Pierce,  Ashton 

60.  Pierce,  Lawrence 

61.  Pierce,  Lorenzo 

62.  Pierce,  Oliver 

63.  Pierce,  Margaret 

64.  Pierce,  Annabel 

65.  Pierce,  Dora 

(  Ninety-four  great-great- 


66.  Pierce,  Roy  K. 

67.  Pierce,  Earl  G. 

68.  Pierce,  Romaine  I.  H. 

69.  Pierce,  Jessie  H. 

70.  Pierce,  Vernon  Philip 

71.  Pierce,  Hartley  Rupert 

72.  Pierce,  Terrance  Claire 

73.  Pierce,  Irving 

74.  Sheppard,  Thomas,  Jr. 

75.  Steward,   Stephen,  Jr. 

76.  Steward,  Raymond 

77.  Steward,  Leon 

78.  Steward,  Harold 

79.  Webster,  Eva 

80.  Webster,  Ruth 

81.  Webster,  Oscar 

82.  Wright,  Ethel 

83.  Wynder,  Cora 

84.  Webster,  Virginius 

85.  Cuff,  Vivian 

86.  Cuff,  Grafton 

87.  Cuff,  Mildred 

88.  Cuff,  Russel 

89.  Cuff,  Gertrude 

90.  Felts,  Mary  Alice 

91.  Felts,  Ruth 

92.  Felts,  George  W. 

93.  Jones,  Elizabeth 

94.  Lee,  Benjamin  F.,  Ill 

grandchildren  now  living.) 


To  this  list  might  be  added  the  names  of  eight  little 
great-great-grandchildren,  who  are  living, — babies  at  the 
time  of  this  writing, — making  a  total  of  two  hundred 
and  twenty-three  from  one  grandson  of  Benjamin 
Gould,  1st. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

THE  CUFFS  OF  SALEM;   THEIR  PROBABLE  ORIGIN;  THEIR 

ULTIMATE  CONNECTION  WITH  THE  GOULD,  PIERCE, 

AND  MURRAY  FAMILIES. 

The  Cuff  family  was  of  slave  origin,  though  in  a 
time  quite  remote;  Cuff,  a  slave,  was  owned  by  a  man 
named  Padgett.  Padgett  had  three  daughters,  and  he, 
by  some  means,  got  into  the  Continental  Army,  in  the 
French  and  Indian  War,  and  was  killed. 

Cuff  took  care  of  the  widow,  and  she  finally  married 
him.  He  was  called  "  Cuffee  Padgett " ;  they  had 
three  sons,  and  when  these  went  to  school  they  were 
taunted  by  the  other  boys  as  being  the  sons  of  "  Old 
Cuffee  Padgett;  "  so  they  would  have  their  father  drop 
the  Padgett  and  take  the  name  of  Cuffee  Cuff.  The 
names  of  these  sons  were  Mordecai,  Reuben,  and  Seth. 
The  grave  of  Cuffee  Cuff  is  in  the  colored  burying- 
ground  at  Canton,  N.  J.,  the  land  for  which  was  given 
by  his  oldest  son,  Mordecai,  and  his  is  the  first  grave  in 
it.  Mordecai  dug  the  grave  himself  for  his  father,  and 
while  digging  it,  his  little  daughter,  Dorothy,  was  play- 
ing about;  on  the  fence  nearby  she  found  a  gold  chain 
hanging,  which  it  was  supposed  was  lost  by  some  young 
people  from  Philadelphia  who  had  been  there  the  day 
before.  She  kept  this  chain  for  years  and  before  her 
death  gave  it  to  her  son,  Jacob  B.  Pierce,  of  Gouldtown, 
an  old  man  now,  who  still  has  it  at  this  time  (December, 
nineteen  hundred  and  twelve). 

These  three  brothers,  sons  of  Cuffee  Cuff,  became 
farmers;  but  later,  Reuben  became  a  preacher  in  the 
Methodist  Society,  and  organized  a  church  in  Salem, 
and  was  one  of  the  founders  of  the  African  Methodist 

8  113 


114  GOULDTOWN 

Episcopal  Church  in  America.  Reuben  kept  a  Bible 
record  of  his  own  family.  The  Bible  is  now  in  posses- 
sion of  Wm.  A.  Cuff,  of  Bridgeton. 

This  record  shows  that  he  was  born  in  Salem,  March 
28,  1764,  and  he  left  numerous  descendants,  for  he  had 
a  large  family.  His  brother,  Seth,  married,  and  had 
three  daughters,  Mary,  Sarah,  and  Emma  Ann;  the  two 
last  died  young.  Reuben  Cuff,  the  preacher,  married 
Hannah  Pierce,  the  record  states.  She  was  born  Novem- 
ber, 1767.  They  were  married  March  3,  1790.  She 
was  the  daughter  of  Richard  Pierce,  1st,  of  Gouldtown. 
Their  children  were  Anthony,  born  December  18, 1790; 
Jonathan,  June  20,  1792;  Reuben,  April  4,  1794,  died 
very  young;  Richard,  March  28,  1796;  Alley,  1798,  died 
September  11,  1799,  aged  one  year,  nine  months,  and 
twenty-one  days;  Anna,  December  29, 1799;  Elizabeth, 
February  21,  1802;  Reuben  (named  after  the  one  who 
died),  March  7,  1804.  Hannah,  the  wife  and  mother, 
died  April  23, 1804,  a  little  more  than  a  month  after  the 
birth  of  her  last  son. 

Reuben  Cuff,  the  father,  on  November  28, 1805,  took 
for  his  second  wife,  Lydia  Her,  widow  of  Morris  Her. 
To  them  were  born  Burgoyne,  October  12,  1806,  and 
Archibald,  date  not  given,  also  one  daughter,  Caroline, 
who  married  Daniel  Lee,  uncle  of  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee, 
but  she  died  early,  childless.  Lydia,  the  second  wife  of 
Reuben,  the  preacher,  died  May  2,  1814,  and  two  years 
after  this  he  married  Ann  Gould,  daughter  of  Samuel 
Gould  of  Gouldtown,  May  1,  1816.  In  this  year  Rev. 
Reuben  Cuff  attended  the  convention  in  Philadelphia 
as  a  delegate,  in  the  organization  of  the  African  Metho- 
dist Episcopal  Church,  as  before  stated. 

Anthony  Cuff,  the  oldest  son,  married  Martha,  the 
second  daughter  of  Anthony  Gould,  1st,  of  Gouldtown. 
She  was  the  granddaughter  of  Benjamin  and  Ann 


CONNECTED  FAMILIES  115 

Gould,  founders  of  Gouldtown.  Their  children  were 
Mordecai,  Anthony,  and  William  CufF,  and  Phoebe 
Hannah,  and  another  daughter,  who  died  early  in  life. 
Their  youngest  son,  Wilham  Cuff,  still  dwells  in 
Bridgeton  and  is  now  (1912)  in  his  seventy-fifth  year. 
He  has  one  daughter  living.  Phoebe  Hannah  married 
Hosea  Pierce,  son  of  Reuben  Pierce,  and  greatgrandson 
of  Anthony  and  Mary  Van  Aca  Pierce.  Three 
daughters  were  born  to  them;  she  died  early  in  her 
married  life.  Jonathan  Cuff  married  Mary,  daughter 
of  John  and  Tabitha  Murray  of  Gouldtown.  Their 
children  were  Jonathan,  Jr.,  Oliver,  Margaret,  Jane, 
Leonard,  IVIary,  Ai*tie,  and  Thomas.  Richard  Cuff  mar- 
ried Rebecca  Tliompson.  Three  sons  and  three  daugh- 
ters are  still  living;  one  son,  Hiram  Cuff,  a  farmer, 
resides  in  Salem  County,  one  daughter,  Hannah,  wife 
of  Charles  Cuff,  resides  in  Salem  County,  another,  wife 
of  Jeremiah  Harris,  resides  in  Holly  Beach,  New 
Jersey,  and  the  other  two  sons  reside  in  East  Jersey. 
Rebecca,  the  youngest,  resides  in  Bridgeton. 

Elizabeth  married  William  Wilson,  a  noted  Salem 
County  farmer  in  his  day.  They  had  several  sons  and 
but  one  daughter,  all  of  whom  are  now  dead,  except 
William  and  Joseph,  both  over  eighty  years  old  and 
residing  in  Philadelphia. 

William  Wilson,  Jr.,  married  Anna,  daughter  of  his 
mother's  brother,  Archibald  Cuff.  Two  sons  and  one 
daughter  are  also  living,  but  Anna  died  many  years  ago. 
Joseph  Wilson  married  Tamson  Sheppard,  daughter  of 
Lydia  Gould  Sheppard  (daughter  of  Benjamin  and 
Phoebe  Gould) ,  the  woman  who  recently  died  at  the  age 
of  one  hundred  and  two.  Tamson  had  but  one  child, 
which  died  an  infant,  and  she  deceased  in  1874,  aged 
thirty-five. 

Reuben    Cuff    married    Tamson    Cox,    widow    of 


116  GOULDTOWN 

William  Cox,  of  Indian  descent,  if  not  a  half-breed. 
There  were  no  children  born  to  them.  She  also  was  the 
daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Phoebe  Gould,  and  died  in 
1877  in  Gouldtown. 

Burgoyne  married  Prudence,  daughter  of  Benjamin 
Pierce,  of  Gouldtown.  He  was  a  well-to-do  farmer  near 
Quinton.  They  had  but  one  child,  Burgoyne,  Jr.,  who 
became  a  preacher,  but  died  early  in  life.  He  married, 
however,  Estelle,  daughter  of  Robert  Dunn,  of  Gould- 
town ;  they  had  no  children. 

Mordecai  CufF,  brother  of  Rev.  Reuben  and  Seth 
Cuff,  married  Margaret  ("  Peggy  ")  Thomas,  sister  to 
David  Murray's  wife,  and  had  three  daughters,  Ruha- 
mah.  Prudence  and  Dorothy.     Ruhamah  became  the 
wife  of  Oliver  Gould,  oldest  son  of  Benjamin  and 
Phoebe  Gould,  and  resided  in  Gouldtown.     Prudence 
married  Lewis  Pierce,  son  of  Anthony  Pierce,  of  Gould- 
town, and  resided  in  Harmersville,  where  he  kept  a 
general  store.    After  Prudence's  death  Dorothy  became 
Pierce's  second  wife  and  had  children.    She  became  the 
second  wife  of  Elisha  Gould,  Jr.,  of  Gouldtown,  and 
died  in  1894,  aged  eighty- four.    They  had  no  children. 
Archibald  Cuff,  Rev.  Reuben's  son,  married  Lydia 
Gould,  daughter  of  Elisha  Gould,  and  they  had  sons 
and  daughters.    Their  sons  were  Seth,  still  living,  and 
now  over  ninety  years  old;  Elisha,  Burgoyne,  Reuben, 
Francis,  Daniel,  Ai'chibald  and  Charles ;  and  daughters, 
Anna  and  Caroline.    Anna,  Caroline  and  Francis  are 
dead,  all  the  others  survive.    Archibald  Cuff  erected  a 
small  home  on  land  left  to  his  wife  by  her  father  Elisha 
Gould,  which  stood  in  front  of  where  the  Gouldtown 
church  now  stands.    It  was  burned  down,  and  the  family 
then  removed  to  Salem,  where  he  engaged  in  farming 
until  his  death.    His  widow,  many  years  after,  became 
the  second  wife  of  her  cousin.  Rev.  Furman  Gould. 


CONNECTED  FAMILIES  117 

The  Bible  record  has  become  so  dulled  by  age  that 
some  of  the  dates  are  undecipherable.  A  son,  William, 
one  of  the  older  children,  but  not  the  oldest,  has  his 
record  entirely  obliterated.  He  married  Prudence 
Murray,  daughter  of  John  and  Tabitha  Murray,  of 
Gouldtown,  and  became  a  tenant  farmer  in  Salem 
County,  residing  on  the  same  rich  farm  until  he  had 
raised  a  large  family,  when  he  died,  and  his  son  Job 
succeeded  him  on  the  same  farm  until  he  also  raised  a 
large  family,  and  now  lives  retired  in  Hancock's  Bridge. 

Five  of  William  and  Prudence  Cuff's  daughters  be- 
came the  wives  of  Goulds:  one,  Hannah  Ann,  was 
married  by  Jonathan  Gould,  residing  in  Gouldtown; 
Filizabeth,  another,  married  Henry  Gould,  and  removed 
to  Illinois,  where  she  died;  another,  Hester,  married 
Furman  Gould,  Jr.,  and  resided  in  Bridgeton;  another, 
Sarah  J.,  married  John  Gould,  the  well-known  carpen- 
ter and  builder  in  his  day,  and  another,  Caroline,  is  the 
wife  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  of  Philadelphia.  They 
had  four  sons,  William,  Jr.,  Joseph,  Job,  and  David. 
William  married  Maranda  Murray,  daughter  of  his 
mother's  brother,  Oliver  Murray,  of  Gouldtown;  Job 
married  Lydia  Ann,  daughter  of  Aaron  Gould,  of 
Gouldtown;  Joseph  never  married  and  died  an  old 
bachelor  several  years  ago,  and  David  went  away  some 
thirty  years  ago  or  more,  and  lost  his  identity. 

Elisha  Gould,  Jr.,  married  Mary,  daughter  of  Seth 
CuiF;  they  had  one  son.  Smith,  who  married  Maria, 
daughter  of  Abijah  Gould,  Jr.,  and  Rachel  Hicks 
Gould,  and  four  daughters,  Sarah  Ann,  who  became  the 
wife  of  Enoch  Gould,  Miriam,  who  married  Freeman 
Gould,  Isabelle,  who  married  Burgoyne  Cuff,  and 
Hannah  Caroline,  the  wife  of  William  H.  Gould. 

Thus  the  Cuff  family  became  united  with  the  Gould 
and  Murray  as  well  as  the  Pierce  families  of  Gouldtown. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

GENEALOGICAI.   SKETCH   OF   JOHN    MURRAY^S  AND   DAVID 

MURRAY^S  FAMILIES  AND  SOME  OF  THE  PIERCE 

CONNECTIONS. 

John  Murray  married  Tabitha  Lupton  (white). 
Their  children  were  John  Murray,  2nd,  OHver  Murray, 
Silas  Murray  (deceased — leaving  no  issue),  Hannah 
Murray,  Sarah  Murray,  Almedia  Murray,  Mary  Mur- 
ray, Prudence  Murray,  Hester  Murray,  Jane  Murray. 

Oliver  Murray  married  Amy  Murray,  daughter  of 
David  and  Sarah  Murray;  their  children  were  Maranda, 
who  married  William  CufF,  Jr.,  of  Salem ;  Adeline,  who 
became  the  wife  of  the  Rev.  Jehu  Pierce;  Tabitha,  who 
married  Jeremiah  Pierce,  of  Salem ;  Silas,  2nd,  Wesley, 
and  David  Murray,  Jr.;  Sarah  Murray,  who  married 
William  Murray,  son  of  John  Murray,  2nd;  Rachel 
Murray,  who  married  Moses  Pierce,  2nd;  Cynthia 
JNIurray,  who  married  David  Pierce.  Silas,  Wesley,  and 
David  are  dead. 

John  Murray,  2nd,  married  Mary  Hand  (white). 
Their  children  were  John  Murray,  3rd,  Zachariah 
Murray,  Ebenezer  Murray,  Henry  Murray,  Hiram 
Murray,  William  Murray,  Lewis  Murray,  and  daugh- 
ters, Mary,  Elizabeth,  Julia,  Harriet.  All  are  gone, 
excepting  Mary  (Mrs.  Frederick  Gould),  and  Eliza- 
beth, who  is  single  and  resides  with  Mary,  and  Henry. 
Lewis  never  married,  and  died  in  Millville,  where  he 
had  resided  since  coming  home  from  the  Civil  War,  in 
which  he  and  three  of  his  brothers  served.  These  four 
boys  served  in  the  Civil  War,  as  white  soldiers.  Three 
of  them,  Hiram,  Henry,  and  Ebenezer,  served  in  Co. 
B,  2nd  Regt.,  N.  J.  Vol.  Infantry. 

118 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  119 

Hannah  Murray  married  Elijah  Gould,  as  detailed 
in  preceding  pages ;  Sarah  Murray  married  first  Menon 
Pierce,  2nd;  had  one  son,  Maurice,  and  after  the  death 
of  Menon  married  Pierce  Gould;  Almeda  Murray 
married  Leonard  Gould,  youngest  son  of  Abijah  Gould, 
1st,  as  has  been  before  shown.  Mary  Murray  married 
Jonathan  Cuff,  of  Salem,  already  detailed.  Prudence 
Murray  married  William  Cuff,  Sr.,  of  Salem.  This 
has  been  before  given. 

Hester  Murray  married  Jacob  Pierce,  son  of 
Wanaca  Pierce.  They  had  a  numerous  family.  One 
of  the  sons  was  Jacob  Pierce,  who  went  West  before 
the  war;  went  to  the  war,  rose  to  the  rank  of  Captain 
in  a  regiment  from  the  State  in  which  he  resided.  After 
the  war  he  married,  and  became  owner  of  several  large 
farms.  In  a  letter  received  from  him  by  the  writer, 
some  sixteen  years  ago,  he  stated  he  and  his  boys  were 
in  the  height  of  their  wheat  harvest ;  the  letter  set  forth 
that  he  was  running  eight  wheat-headers,  four  horses 
each  in  his  wheat-field  at  home,  harvesting  their  grain. 
He  said  the  price  of  wheat  at  that  time  was  ninety  cents 
per  bushel.  Of  course,  he  and  all  his  family  were  white 
people.    He  died  about  three  years  ago. 

The  other  sons  were  Jehu,  a  Methodist  minister; 
Israel,  now  deceased,  leaving  one  child;  Freeman,  who 
married  a  daughter  of  Mason  M.  Gould;  Ephraim,  who 
married  Mary  Pierce,  daughter  of  Moses  Pierce,  1st; 
and  Fayette,  who  married  Anna  Billingsly,  of  Phila- 
delphia. The  daughters  of  Jacob  and  Hester  Pierce 
were  Elvira,  who  married  Aaron  Pierce  (both  are  dead, 
but  left  several  children)  ;  Hester,  who  married  William 
Coombs,  Jr.  (she  is  dead,  leaving  two  sons) ;  Hannah, 
who  married  Leonard  Cuff,  of  Salem,  who  left  several 
sons;  Eliza  Jane,  wife  of  Horatio  Pierce  (dead,  no 
children  surviving) ;  Almedia  Jones — now  a  widow  with 


120  GOULDTOWN 

one  son;  Cynthia,  who  married  Robert  Pierce,  who  died. 
She  is  now  second  wife  of  William  Coombs,  Jr. 

Jane  Murray,  the  yoimgest  daughter,  married  Amos 
Pierce,  son  of  Anthony  Pierce,  2nd.  Their  children 
were  Malinda,  who  married  Hezekiah  Gould;  Gideon 
Pierce,  the  well-known  boss  carder  in  the  East  Lake 
Woolen  Mills,  in  their  palmy  days;  Robert  Pierce,  the 
boss  spinner  in  the  same  works,  and  Lorenzo,  twin 
brother  of  Robert,  the  "  picker  "  in  the  same  business; 
Ruth  Pierce  (Mrs.  Valentine) ;  Sarah  Jane,  wife  of 
William  Cuff,  3rd  (she  is  deceased) ;  Margaret,  widow 
of  Eh  Lee,  of  Salem,  and  now  the  second  wife  of 
Stephen  S.  Steward,  and  Elizabeth,  widow  of  Phineas 
Pierce  of  Salem. 

John  Murray  and  Tabitha  Lupton,  his  wife,  were 
born  and  lived  between  the  years  of  1750  and  1852,  John 
dying  at  a  little  over  one  hundred  and  two  years  of  age, 
and  his  wife  at  ninety-six.  The  youngest  of  their 
descendants  named  in  these  preceding  pages  is  Eliza- 
beth, the  youngest  daughter  of  Jane  Murray — youngest 
daughter  of  John  and  Tabitha  Murray. 

There  has  been  but  little  of  drama  in  all  the  lives  of 
these  generations,  above  that  of  hard  struggles  to  make 
a  living;  but  as  it  can  be  traced,  there  was  much  of 
romance,  some  pathos,  and  plenty  of  humor  throughout. 
John  and  Henry  Gould,  the  oystermen,  had  much  fun 
among  themselves  when  they  would  arrive  home  from 
carrying  peaches  and  grain  from  slaveholding  territory; 
they  would  regale  their  friends  at  home  with  their  ex- 
periences and  relate  to  them  the  possible  consequences 
should  they  be  discovered  to  maintain  a  trace  of  the 
colored  people's  blood  in  themselves.  Isaac  Cox,  when 
penetrating  into  the  heart  of  Georgia,  as  far  as  Augusta 
during  the  Civil  War,  as  an  English  blockade  runner, 
found  much  romantic  food  to  feast  on  when  taken  into 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  121 

the  homes  of  those  proud  Georgians  and  feasted  as  an 
Englishman.  Another,  who  had  been  a  clerk  in  his 
father's  country  store,  and  later  in  a  Salem  city  store, 
went  to  a  large  western  city  and  became,  and  is,  a  lead- 
ing dry-goods  merchant.  But  these  bits  of  romance 
carry  their  terrors.  This  same  merchant,  now  very  old, 
sent  his  children  (he  had  married  there)  to  the  fashion- 
able schools.  One  day  his  children  came  home  and  in 
their  lively  prattle,  related  how  some  new  scholars  had 
come  to  their  school  and  said  they  had  come  from  Salem, 
New  Jersey,  where  they  knew  people  of  the  same  name 
as  theirs, — "  But  papa,"  said  the  children,  "  they  said 
these  people  were  colored  people."  Instantly  terrified 
at  a  possible  discovery,  the  father  made  immediate 
arrangements  to  have  his  children  placed  in  an  advanced 
and  more  select  school. 

Tliis  American  prejudice  is  a  terrible  handicap  to 
intelligent  aspirations  and  effort.  For  people  of  the 
conditions  herein  attempted  to  be  described  to  amount  to 
anything  of  recognized  worth  and  escape  the  galling 
effects  of  this  trait  of  the  American  character, — to 
escape  humiliation  and  even  insult  and  injury,  unfair 
and  even  brutal  treatment, — they  must  leave  this 
country,  their  home  for  generations  and  go  to  some 
Latin  country  to  the  southward  or  else  to  Europe.  None 
can  appreciate  this  situation,  except  those  who  have 
lived  in  it  and  felt  its  stifling  atmosphere.  "  Where 
ignorance  is  bliss  'tis  folly  to  be  wise,"  is  a  saying  that 
goes ;  these  early  children  of  the  woods  and  forests  knew 
but  little  of  this  ill  thing  in  the  early  days.  It  has  come 
with  the  advance  of  civilization;  where  they  were  in 
ignorance  of  the  outside  world  they  were  not  hurt  by  its 
rough  edges.  To  chop  their  logs,  plough  their  grounds, 
live  on  their  own  lands  and  dig  their  sustenance,  meagre 
as  it  may  have  been,  from  their  own  forests,  they  lived 


122  GOULDTOWN 

in  peace  and  simple  happiness,  undisturbed  by  those 
things  which,  with  education  and  culture,  civilization  and 
accomplishments  and  increasing  sensitiveness,  become  so 
galling  and  unbearable.  It  is  only  the  clannish  love  of 
"  the  old  home  "  which  keeps  such  people  here.  To  be 
distinguished,  they  must  go  to  Paris,  like  H.  O.  Tanner, 
or  to  Berlin,  like  J.  G.  Bias,  or  to  Rome  or  Naples,  like 
others  connected  with  these  people  this  book  aims  to 
describe  and  illustrate  in  their  humble,  simple  lives. 

In  1802  Wanaca  Pierce  purchased  from  Abraham 
Sayre  forty-five  and  a  half  acres  of  land  out  of  the 
Abinadab  Westcott  estate,  out  towards  the  Beaver 
Dam,  for  which  he  jjaid  <£  70.  John  Pierce,  his  brother, 
purchased  from  the  David  Westcott  estate  out  of  the 
Pamphylia  Tract,  fifty  acres  near  Wanaca's  tract,  for 
which  he  paid  £  100.  This  was  in  1802  also.  Abraham 
Sayre  also  bought  of  Benjamin  Pierce  a  tract  of  land 
in  the  same  locality,  which  Benjamin  had  purchased  of 
his  brother  John.  Menon  Pierce,  another  brother,  pur- 
chased of  Jacob  Steeling,  administrator  of  Anthony 
Gould,  1st,  in  1803,  thirty- four  and  one-quarter  acres 
of  land  of  which  Anthony  Gould  died  seized;  this  was 
contiguous  to  other  lands  which  Menon  Pierce  owned 
and  also  adjoining  lands  purchased  by  his  brothers, 
Wanaca,  John  and  Benjamin.  These  lands  went  out 
towards  the  Beaver  Dam,  in  what  was  long  known  as 
Lebanon  Neck.  Richard,  their  brother  had  purchased 
land  just  north  from  Gouldtown.  Another  brother, 
Anthony,  2nd,  had  already  owned  a  measure  of  land 
close  to  the  lands  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st. 

From  these  six  brothers  descended  that  branch  of 
Pierces,  the  progeny  of  Richard  and  Hannah  Wanaca 
Pierce.  They  were  born  between  1750  and  1770. 
Richard  and  Anthony  were  in  the  Revolution.  They 
intermarried  mostly  with  the  Murrays  and  Goulds. 


Jonathan  Freeman  Pierce,  Son  of  Wanaca  and  Mary  Pierce. 


Holmes  Pierce. 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  123 

Wanaca  Pierce  married  Mary  Murray,  daughter  of 
Othniel  Murray.  They  had  children,  Adrian,  born  in 
1802,  Peleg,  Jacob,  Jesse,  Wanaca,  Jr.,  all  older  than 
Adrian,  and  Isaiah,  J.  Freeman,  and  Holmes,  all 
younger  than  Adrian;  and  daughters,  Hannah, 
Catherine,  Lydia,  and  Mary.  Wanaca  and  Mary — 
father  and  daughter — were  killed  by  lightning  while 
standing  in  the  door  of  their  home  in  August,  1819. 

Adrian  Pierce  married  Rachel  Stewart,  daughter  of 
Cato  and  Elizabeth  Stewart.  Rev.  Jeremiah  H.  Pierce 
was  one  of  their  sons.  Stewart  H.  Pierce  of  Carmel, 
who  resides  on  the  old  homestead  of  his  father,  is  the 
only  one  of  the  family  now  living.  Jacob  Pierce 
married  Hester  Murray,  and  their  descendants  have 
been  given  in  preceding  pages.  Jesse  Pierce  married 
Ruth  Pierce  Duck,  a  widow,  who  was  his  cousin,  and 
daughter  of  his  uncle,  Benjamin  Pierce.  They  had  no 
children,  but  Ruth  had  two  children,  Amos  and  Pru- 
dence Duck,  by  her  former  marriage.  Peleg  was  un- 
married. Isaiah  married  Jane  Pierce,  daughter  of 
Richard  Pierce,  3rd,  and  had  one  child;  Mrs.  Jane 
Keen,  residing  in  Bridgeton,  is  a  granddaughter. 

J.  Freeman  Pierce  married  Ann  Gould,  daughter  of 
Elijah  Gould,  1st;  one  daughter  and  one  son  are  still 
living.  Holmes  Pierce  married  Mary  BaraclifF,  a  Ger- 
man woman;  they  left  several  children,  prominent  of 
whom  is  the  enterprising  farmer  and  wood-dealer, 
George  T.  Pierce,  or  Pearce  as  he  spells  his  name. 
Holmes  always  spelled  his  name  in  the  same  way,  de- 
claring that  was  the  original  name.  Holmes  Pierce  was 
an  energetic  and  enterprising  man  and  left  quite  a  for- 
tune when  he  died  a  few  years  ago.  Hannah  Pierce 
became  the  second  ^vife  of  Jesse  Gould,  as  previously 
related,  and  Catherine  married  Aaron  Gould;  Lydia 


124  GOULDTOWN 

married  Rev.  Henry  Davis,  and  left  no  children;  both 
died  years  ago. 

Adrian  Pierce  owned  about  seven  hundred  acres  of 
woodland  and  farm  land — ^most  of  it  woodland,  but  it 
has  nearly  all  been  sold  off  by  his  heirs.  Holmes  Pierce 
left  much  property  in  farm  land  and  woodland,  besides 
several  houses  in  Bridgeton;  he  left  each  of  his  sons, 
Peter,  John,  Holmes,  Jr.,  and  George  a  farm,  and  his 
only  daughter,  Sophia,  a  portion  in  cash. 

George,  the  most  enterprising  of  the  sons,  has  added 
largely  to  his  patrimony,  both  in  woodland  and  in  city 
property.  He  also  owns  the  homestead  farm,  where 
his  father  resided  before  retiring  and  moving  into  the 
city.  George  also  owns  his  father's  city  home,  on  East 
Commerce  Street,  near  which  he  has  recently  purchased 
the  seventy-acre  farm  and  residence  owned  by  the  late 
Nathan  Gould,  now  within  the  city  limits  of  Bridgeton. 

Wanaca  Pierce,  1st,  left  considerable  property, 
mostly  timberland,  which  was  divided  by  his  adminis- 
trators among  his  children.  Jacob  Pierce,  J.  Freeman 
Pierce,  Wanaca  Pierce,  Jr.,  as  well  as  Adrian  and 
Holmes,  all  added  considerably  to  their  original  patri- 
monies, but  the  others  did  not.  Wanaca  Pierce,  Jr., 
purchased  a  farm  eastward  from  Fairton,  where  he 
lived  and  died,  and  after  his  death  the  farm  was  pur- 
chased by  John  Gould. 

Holmes  Pierce  was  the  youngest  son,  and  seemed 
to  have  inherited  the  shrewd  instinct  of  his  father  for 
progressiveness,  more  than  the  others,  judging  by  the 
traits  of  his  father's  character  as  handed  down.  Holmes 
early  started  out  to  make  money,  as  his  father's  death 
occurred  when  he  was  quite  young.  Having  a  fair 
education  he  taught  school  for  a  short  time,  and  then  he 
became  a  medicine  peddler,  but  this  was  too  slow  to  suit 
his  notion  of  making  money,  and  he  went  into  buying 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  125 

and  selling  cattle;  purchasing  a  farm,  he  went  into 
horse-breeding.  Soon  he  became  one  of  the  heaviest 
dealers  in  the  county  in  cord-wood,  hoop-poles  and  salt 
hay.  No  man  around  the  county  employed  more  men 
in  these  enterprises  than  did  Holmes  Pierce.  Next 
to  him  in  the  cord- wood  and  hoop-pole  business  in  those 
contemporary  times,  however,  were  Oliver  and  Abijah 
Gould,  3rd,  who  engaged  many  men  and  teams  in  these 
industries  a  half  century  ago  and  more.  The  salt  hay 
which  Holmes  Pierce  dealt  in  was  mostly  used  for 
packing  hay  in  the  glass-works  in  South  Jersey  and  in 
Philadelphia  and  in  the  pottery  works  at  Trenton, 
where  hundreds  of  tons  were  sold  annually. 

SKETCHES  OF  THE  DAVID   AND   SARAH    MURRAY   FAMH^Y. 

The  children  of  David  and  Sarah  Thomas  Murray 
were  Othniel,  2nd,  Jeremy,  Amy,  Sarah,  Patience, 
Charity,  Hope  (the  last  three  were  triplets),  Elizabeth, 
Amelia,  Nancy,  Enos,  Mary,  Margaret. 

Othniel  Murray,  2nd,  married  Angeline  Pierce, 
daughter  of  Richard  Pierce,  2nd,  and  Tabitha  Pierce, 
daughter  of  Adam  Pierce,  1st,  the  Revolutionary 
soldier.  Othniel  and  Angeline  had  several  children ;  one 
daughter  and  one  son  are  still  living,  and  one  of  the 
son's  sons,  Othniel,  3rd,  is  now  in  the  United  States 
Army,  stationed  at  Fort  Reno,  at  this  writing.  The 
daughter  and  son  who  survive,  reside  in  Bridgeton. 

Jeremy  lived  a  bachelor  until  quite  an  old  man,  when 
he  married  a  widow,  who  came  from  Tennessee ;  both  are 
long  dead,  leaving  no  children.  Ajmy  Murray  married 
her  cousin,  Oliver  Murray,  and  had  a  number  of  chil- 
dren, who  have  been  heretofore  enumerated.  Sarah 
Murray  married  Charles  Lloyd,  a  manumitted  black 
slave,  who  used  to  drive  a  team  in  the  great  gangs  of 


126  GOULDTOWN 

freight  wagons  which  conveyed  merchandise  from 
Baltimore  to  Pittsburgh,  before  the  days  of  railroads. 
Their  children  were  William,  Adelia,  Sabia,  George, 
Charles,  Lydia,  Emily,  Amanda,  Alexander,  Jonathan, 
Lewis,  and  Albert.  Of  these  Charles,  George,  Jona- 
than, and  Albert  of  the  boys,  and  perhaps  Lydia, 
Emily,  and  Amanda,  are  still  living. 

Patience  Murraj'^  married  Clement  Pierce,  stepson 
of  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st.  They  had  many  children;  all 
are  dead  or  gone  away.  Charity  married  a  man  named 
David  Baily,  and  resided  in  Salem  County.  They  had 
two  children,  David  J.  Baily  and  Nancy.  Nancy  be- 
came the  wife  of  Levi  Harmon,  of  Back  Neck.  Both 
David  and  Nancy  are  dead.  Hope  Murray,  the  last 
of  the  triplets,  was  drowned  when  a  young  man. 
Amelia  married  Richard  Pierce,  3rd,  son  of  Richard, 
2nd,  and  Tabitha  Pierce,  and  resided  on  a  farm  which 
they  owned  on  the  Roadstown  road — now  owned  by 
Gottlieb  Gosman. 

Elizabeth  Murray  married  John  Keen,  a  white  man. 
They  were  married  by  the  venerable  Ethan  O shorn, 
pastor  of  the  "  Old  Stone  Church "  in  Fairfield,  in 
January,  1839.  Their  children  were  John  Keen,  Jr., 
who  became  a  shoemaker;  Joseph  and  Levi,  who  went 
to  Virginia  and  settled  after  the  war,  as  white  men,  and 
Jacob  Jones,  who  died  in  Gouldtown;  Marietta,  a  very 
beautiful  girl,  long  dead,  and  Margaret,  wife  of  Aaron 
Paul  Gould,  now  living ;  Marietta  was  the  wife  of  Jacob 
B.  Pierce — she  left  no  children. 

Nancy  Murray  married  a  colored  man  in  Salem. 
Enos  died  young.  David  married  a  daughter  of  Simon 
and  Mary  Siro,  but  died  without  issue. 

The  children  of  John  and  Tabitha  Lupton  Murray 
have  been  enumerated.  The  children  of  David  and 
Sarah  Thomas  Murray  have  also  been  enumerated. 


Mrs.  Elizabeth  Stewart,  One  of  the  Organizing  .Members  of  Gouldtown  Church. 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  127 

Mark  Murray  married  Hannah  Gates,  August  23, 
1810.  All  of  these  women  were  white.  Mark  resided 
on  what  was  long  called  "  The  Mark  Fields,"  which  are 
beyond  Gouldtown  and  a  little  northward  from  the  old 
Dick  farm  on  the  Millville  trolley-line.  The  Mark 
fields  are  now  owned  by  George  W.  Coombs.  Mark 
Murray  ran  away;  what  became  of  his  wife  is  not 
known.  They  left  no  children.  The  children  of  the 
sister,  Mary  Murray,  who  became  the  wife  of  Wanaca 
Pierce,  1st,  have  been  given  with  their  descendants. 

Dorcas  Murray,  the  remaining  sister,  became  the 
wife  of  Adam  Pierce,  the  Revolutionary  soldier,  who 
was  the  only  son  of  Anthony  and  Mary  Van  Aca  Pierce, 
as  has  been  stated. 

The  children  of  Adam  and  Dorcas  Pierce  were 
Matthias,  Andrew,  Asa,  and  Adam,  and  three 
daughters.  Asa  died  young;  Matthias  went  as  a  sailor 
in  a  vessel  belonging  to  John  Trenchard  of  the  original 
Trenchard  family,  of  Fairfield,  and  in  one  voyage,  on 
which  a  son  of  Trenchard,  the  owner,  was  a  sailor,  the 
vessel  was  lost  with  all  on  board  and  nothing  was  ever 
heard  from  her  or  any  of  her  crew. 

Andrew  Pierce  got  in  a  scrape  by  cutting  the  spokes 
out  of  the  wagon  wheels  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd;  and, 
to  avoid  arrest,  ran  away  and  never  came  back. 

Adam  Pierce,  the  youngest  son,  was  born  in  the  year 
1800;  his  wife  was  Juliann,  daughter  of  Cato  and 
Elizabeth  Hicks  Stewart.  They  had  six  sons  and  two 
daughters.  The  daughters  were  Mary  Elizabeth,  wife 
of  Augustus  Gould  (both  now  dead)  ;  Sarah  Rachel, 
^wife  of  the  present  writer;  Edward,  who  married 
Rebecca  Bustill,  of  Philadelphia;  Alexander,  who  went 
West,  and  died  several  years  ago  in  TIacoma,  Washing- 
ton, leaving  a  widow  but  no  children ;  John  C,  who  died 
in  Bridgeton,  leaving  two  sons ;  Calvin  B.  and  Warren 


128  GOULDTOWN 

W.  Pierce;  Benjamin  F.,  who  resides  at  Fairton  and 
whose  wife  is  Sarah,  second  daughter  of  Lydia  Gould 
Sheppard,  who  died  recently  in  Millville  at  the  great 
age  of  one  hundred  and  two  years.  Charles  Jones,  the 
next  of  the  brothers,  died  in  Cedar  Rapids,  Iowa,  leav- 
ing a  widow,  but  no  children.  Hosea,  the  youngest 
child,  died  a  youth. 

Edward  Pierce  left  three  sons,  one  daughter,  and  a 
widow  still  surviving.  Two  sons,  the  daughter  and  the 
mother  reside  in  Philadelphia,  while  the  oldest  son, 
Edward  Pierce,  Jr.,  resides  in  Washington  and  has 
been  for  many  years  in  the  Government  employ.  Benja- 
min F.  Pierce  has  six  daughters  and  one  son,  all  living ; 
one  daughter  resides  in  Tacoma,  Washington. 

The  daughters  of  Adam  and  Dorcas  Murray  Pierce 
were  Sarah,  who  married  John  Flemmings,  of  York- 
town;  Violette,  who  married  David  Pierce,  son  of 
Richard  Pierce,  2nd,  and  Louisa;  and  Tiabitha,  who 
became  the  second  wife  of  Richard  Pierce,  2nd,  the 
father  of  her  sister's  husband,  David  Pierce,  and 
Hannah,  who  married  Abram  Winrow,  of  Stowe  Creek. 

David  and  Violette  Pierce  lived  on  a  farm  in  Dutch 
Neck,  where  they  reared  a  large  family.  Their  sons 
were  Adam,  3rd,  Moses,  Asa,  Hosea,  and  the  daughters 
Matilda,  Hester,  Caroline,  and  Priscilla. 

Adam  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Abijah 
Gould,  2nd,  and  Rachel  Hicks  Gould,  and  had  numer- 
ous children,  many  of  whom  are  still  living;  Moses 
mai'ried  Ruth,  daughter  of  Elijah  Gould,  1st,  and 
Hannah  Murray  Gould:  Moses  lived  on  a  farm  he 
owned  out  near  where  Rosenhayn  is  now  located;  he 
had  several  daughters  and  two  sons,  most  of  whom  are 
yet  alive;  Asa  Pierce  died,  leaving  no  issue;  Hosea 
married  Sarah,  daughter  of  Robert  Anderson:  Hosea 
was  a  soldier  of  the  Civil  War — ^he  and  his  wife  are  both 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  129 

dead,  but  numerous  children  and  grandchildren  survive 
them ;  Matilda  became  the  wife  of  Norton  Gould,  son  of 
Richard  and  Charlotte  Gould,  and  many  of  their  chil- 
dren still  survive;  Hester  Pierce  became  the  wife  of 
Smith  Pierce,  of  Salem;  she  had  one  daughter  and  two 
sons,  still  living;  Caroline  Pierce  married  a  man  in 
Bushtown  and  vanished  from  her  relations;  Priscilla 
never  married  and  died  an  old  maid.  David  and 
Violette  Pierce  were  married,  July  12,  1811,  the  cere- 
mony being  performed  by  Squire  James  Clark  of  Fair- 
field; in  the  same  year  David's  father,  Richard  Pierce, 
married  his  second  wife,  Tabitha,  who  was  Violette's 
sister.  This  marriage  ceremony  was  performed  by  the 
venerable  Ethan  Osborn,  of  the  Old  Stone  Church. 

WANACA  Pierce's  (2nd)  family. 

Wanaca  Pierce,  2nd,  married  Margaret,  daughter 
of  Richard  and  Tabitha  Pierce.  He  resided  on  the  farm 
he  bought  eastward  from  Fairton ;  he  had  sons,  Wanaca, 
3rd,  Cornelius,  Richard,  3rd,  and  one  daughter,  Mary. 
They  are  all  dead. 

Wanaca's  wife,  Margaret,  died  and  he  again 
married;  this  time  an  English  woman,  Fanny  Horton; 
they  had  two  daughters  (one  of  whom  is  dead) ,  and  one 
son  now  living. 

THE   BENJAMIN   PIERCE    (3rd)    FAMILY. 

Benjamin  Pierce's  (3rd)  wife  was  Margaret  Mur- 
ray. They  had  a  numerous  progeny;  their  sons  were 
Elam,  John,  Henry,  Benjamin,  Jr.,  Leonard,  and 
Charles;  and  daughters  Margaret,  Mary,  and  Ruth. 

Ruth  and  Mary  died  unmarried;  Margaret  married 
Stratton  Hicks,  son  of.  Andrew  and  Sarah  Pierce  Hicks 
(one  son,  Andrew,  lives) ;  Elam  Pierce,  growing  up 


130  GOULDTOWN 

into  a  fine  large  man,  over  six  feet  tall,  went  away  and 
was  lost  to  his  family;  John  Pierce  married  a  daughter 
of  Clement  Pierce,  and  resided  in  the  vicinity  of  Seeley's 
Mill ;  they  had  several  children,  most  of  whom  have  left 
this  part  of  the  country;  Henry  married  and  resided  in 
Elmer;  his  children  are  in  Camden,  Philadelphia,  and 
Salem  County;  Leonard  and  Charles,  the  remaining 
sons,  died  unmarried. 

MISCELLANEOUS   BRANCHES   OF   PIERCE  FAMILIES. 

The  Pierce  families  scattered  about  Salem  County 
are  the  descendants,  mostly,  of  Anthony  and  Marie 
(Mary)  Pierce.  They  are  spread  about  Salem  City, 
Canton,  and  Quinton;  also  formerly  in  Penton  and 
latterly  in  Seeley  and  Elmer,  New  Jersey.  Those  who 
descended  from  Anthony,  through  Anthony,  2nd,  were 
those  about  Canton,  the  descendants  of  F.  Lewis  and 
Reuben  Pierce,  sons  of  Anthony,  2nd. 

Reuben  had  three  sons,  Reuben,  2nd,  Smith, 
Thomas,  and  one  daughter,  Elizabeth.  Reuben,  2nd, 
married  Emeline,  daughter  of  Leonard  Gould,  of 
Gouldtown ;  they  had  but  one  daughter,  Emeline :  they 
resided  in  the  city  of  Salem,  where  they  had  a  pretty 
home.  Both  Emeline  and  her  daughter  were  of  re- 
markable beauty,  and  Reuben,  the  husband  and  father, 
was  a  handsome  man,  both  in  form  and  features;  his 
appearance  was  that  of  a  Spaniard.  They  were  a 
devoted  family  to  one  another,  and  their  happy  home 
was  the  subject  of  comment  among  their  friends  a  half- 
century  or  more  ago.  Death,  it  is  said,  loves  a  shining 
mark,  and  all  these  died  young;  and  in  the  sixties  the 
entire  family  was  obliterated,  leaving  no  descendants. 

Smith  Pierce  married  Mary  Cuff  and  left  several 
children,  Jeremiah,  a  Salem  carpenter  being  the  princi- 


MURRAY  AND  PIERCE  131 

pal  one  now  living.  Thomas  Pierce,  the  other  son  of 
Reuben,  Sr.,  married  in  Camden;  but  they  left  several 
children  surviving,  some  of  whom  lately  removed  to 
Bridgeton  where  they, now  reside.  Elizabeth  married 
a  man  named  Bond,  in  Camden,  where  she  still  resides, 
though  advanced  in  years.  She  was  a  beautiful  girl  when 
young.    Her  husband  is  dead. 

The  children  of  John  Pierce,  at  least  some  of  them, 
settled  in  Salem,  about  Canton  and  Quinton.  From 
these  came  George  Pierce,  who  married  Julia  Noble, 
and  Andrew  Pierce,  who  married  Lydia  Cornish. 
Anthony  Pierce,  3rd,  son  of  Menon  Pierce  of  Gould- 
to\Mi,  also  went  early  into  Salem  County,  where  he 
married  and  had  several  children,  one  of  whom  is  Menon, 
4th,  and  from  this  branch  came  William  H.  Pierce,  the 
well-known  express  carter  of  Bridgeton. 

Benjamin  Pierce's  ^vife's  name  was  Ruth  (last 
name  unknown) ,  a  German  woman.  She  was  of  a  very 
lovable  character;  devoted  to  her  family  and  generally 
beloved  by  the  neighborhood  in  which  she  lived,  and 
familiarly  called  "  Aunt  Ruth."  Their  children  were 
Benjamin,  Jr.,  Andrew,  Ruth,  and  Sarah.  Benjamin, 
2nd,  married  Margaret,  daughter  of  David  Murray. 
Ruth  married  Charles  Duck,  and  Sarah  married  An- 
drew Hicks,  son  of  Josiah  and  Elizabeth  Pierce  Hicks. 

The  children  of  Sarah  Pierce  and  Andrew  Hicks 
were  Catherine,  who  married  Hiram  Pierce,  and  this 
family  is  now  extinct;  Rachel,  who  married  a  colored 
man  of  Salem;  Sarah  Ann,  who  went  blind;  Stratton, 
who  married  his  cousin,  INIargaret,  daughter  of  his  Uncle 
Benjamin  Pierce,  his  mother's  brother;  and  Isaiah,  who 
became  a  city  barber  in  Philadelphia,  and  if  he  ever 
married  it  is  not  known,  as  he  died  a  young  man. 

The  youngest  of  the  children  of  Andrew  and  Sarah 
Hicks  was  Prudence,  who  became  the  wife  of  William 


132  GOULDTOWN 

Hendrickson.  Both  of  them  are  dead,  leaving  only  an 
adopted  daughter,  to  whom  they  left  their  little  home 
on  South  East  Avenue,  Bridgeton,  N.  J.  Andrew 
Hicks  of  Bridgeton  is  the  sole  survivor  of  the  family  of 
Andrew  and  Sarah  Hicks.  The  family  of  Ruth  Pierce 
Duck  is  extinct. 

The  families  of  John  Pierce  (who  married  a 
daughter  of  Clement  and  Patience  Pierce)  resided 
about  Seeley,  and  have  drifted  away;  Henry  resided  in 
Salem  County;  his  descendants  are  all  white. 

There  is  another  branch  of  the  Jesse  Pierce  and 
Christina  Stoms  Pierce  family  not  yet  mentioned.  That 
is  the  family  of  their  son,  William  Pierce.  Jesse  and 
Christina  Pierce  had  three  sons  and  two  daughters ;  the 
daughters  were  Almeda  (wife  of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd) 
and  Mary,  who  left  the  neighborhood  and  vanished  from 
the  community;  the  sons  were  William,  Ephraim,  and 
Robert.  The  descendants  of  Robert  were  mentioned. 
James  R.  Pierce,  of  Burhngton  Avenue,  and  Ephraim 
Pierce,  Jr.,  of  East  Commerce  Street,  are  sons  of 
Ephraim  and  Louisa  Pierce.  Thus  two  sons  and  two 
daughters  of  Jesse  and  Christina  Pierce  are  accounted 
for.  William  Pierce,  the  remaining  son,  married  Char- 
lotte Ogden,  of  Hopewell  Township.  They  had  numer- 
ous children  but  there  are  only  one  son  and  three 
daughters  of  that  family  now  living :  the  son  Jesse,  2nd, 
lives  alone  in  a  small  house  of  his  own,  while  of  the 
daughters,  one,  Elizabeth,  the  widow  of  John  Murray, 
3rd,  resides  with  her  daughter  in  Fairton.  Another, 
Roseann,  lives  at  Bayside,  the  wife  of  Emanuel  Pierce ; 
and  Mary,  the  last  remaining  daughter,  is  domiciled  in 
Greenwich.  She  is  the  widow  of  the  late  Jedediah 
Pierce,  and  has  one  son,  Isaac  Pierce,  and  one  daughter. 
Rosette,  now  widow  of  Clayton  Gould,  2nd,  and  residing 
in  Greenwich. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

FAMILY  EUGENICS  AND  LONGEVITY;  THE  GOULD^  PIERCE^ 
AND  MURRAY  ESTATES. 

The  hygienism  of  the  Goulds,  Pierces,  and  Murrays 
was  of  the  most  simple  kind,  and,  it  may  be  said,  the  most 
effective  for  the  preservation  of  their  health  and  the 
promotion  of  longevity;  as  has  before  been  stated,  all 
three  of  the  families  were  noted  for  their  natural  length 
of  life.  Families  of  six  to  ten  children  would  live  to 
reach  mature  j^ears,  and,  in  many  cases,  all  would  live 
to  reach  old  age.  Hereditary  disease  was  unknown 
among  them,  except  as  will  be  stated  further  on,  unless 
it  may  be  here  and  there  in  sporadic  character,  and  not 
in  direct  heredity. 

All  the  common  infantile  and  youthful  ailments  were 
prevalent,  such  as  measles,  whooping-cough,  chicken- 
pox,  and  such  like,  which  were  almost  always  treated 
with  such  domestic  remedies  as  herb  teas,  called  *'  yarb 
tea,"  and  poultices — according  to  the  nature  of  the  ail- 
ment. So  far  as  can  be  ascertained,  no  case  of  smallpox 
or  other  virulent  disease  was  ever  known  in  the  com- 
munity. They  took  no  sanitary  precautions ;  their  main 
treatment  was  to  keep  cool  in  summer  and  warm  in 
winter,  with  plenty  of  solid  and  wholesome  food,  but 
little  or  no  luxuries  or  high  living.  The  woods  afforded 
them  the  chief  ingredients  of  their  home-made  medicines 
and  salves  and  ointments,  which  were  used,  internally  or 
externally,  for  all  manner  of  complaints  with  which,  in 
their  simple  lives,  they  were  attacked. 

Pulmonary  troubles,  except  as  will  be  explained 
later,  were  unknown;  bad  colds  were  treated  with  *'  yarb 
tea,"  fevers  were  dosed  with  home-made  "  yarb  "  febri- 

133 


134  GOULDTOWN 

f uge ;  measles  were  helped  by  infusions,  and  the  patient 
kept  out  of  a  draft;  for  whooping-cough  emetics  and 
syiTips  of  molasses  and  onions  were  given.  Consump- 
tion, now  and  always  such  a  dreadful  disease,  was  only 
known  sporadically,  until  intermarriage  with  one  branch 
of  the  Cuff  family.  Its  heredity  seems  to  be  positively 
traced  in  this  branch,  but  its  origin  seems  to  be  obscure. 
The  Goulds,  Pierces,  and  Murrays  intermarried  into 
the  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff  family,  and  also  the  families  of 
his  brothers,  Mordecai  and  Seth  Cuff — these  two  last 
had  married  white  women.  No  tuberculosis  has  been 
traced  to  the  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff  family  directly,  except 
in  one  instance,  but  from  the  families  of  Mordecai  and 
Seth  the  trace  is  apparently  well  marked,  and  the  infer- 
ence leads  to  the  opinion  that,  if  hereditary,  it  must  be 
by  way  of  their  marriage.  Oliver  Gould  married  a 
daughter  of  Mordecai  Cuff,  and  had  a  large  family  of 
children;  all  but  one  grew  to  maturity  and  all  but  one 
died  with  consumption.  One  is  still  living.  Elisha 
Gould,  2nd,  married  a  daughter  of  Seth  Cuff.  Con- 
sumption afflicted  his  children  and  carried  off  many  of 
his  grandchildren,  especially  the  family  of  Enoch  Gould, 
who  married  Sarah  Ann,  the  oldest  daughter  of  Elisha 
Gould,  2nd.  Some  sporadic  cases,  with  two  or  three 
deaths,  came  through  the  family  of  Anthony  Cuff, 
whose  wife  was  Martha  Gould. 

THE  GOULD  ESTATES. 

The  original  Gould  estate,  as  given  documentarily 
in  the  will  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st,  was  devised  to  his 
three  sons,  Samuel,  Abijah,  and  Elisha.  The  oldest 
son,  Anthony,  was  devised  his  portion  in  cash.  To 
Samuel  and  Abijah,  the  founder  gave  one  hundred 
and  thirty-six  acres  of  land  to  be  divided  equally  be- 
tween them,  and  to  his  remaining  son,  Elisha,  he  gave  the 


LONGEVITY;  ESTATES  135 

residue  of  his  land.  The  surrogate's  office  does  not  show 
any  division  of  the  lands  left  by  Samuel  Gould,  though 
he  left  considerable.  Abijah  and  Elisha  added  to  their 
patrimony  by  purchase. 

The  estate  of  Elisha  Gould  was  divided  among  his 
ten  children,  by  order  of  the  Orphans'  Court  in  1808,  by 
three  commissioners,  Jedediah  Davis,  Jonathan  Coney, 
and  Enoch  Burgen.  The  sons  and  daughters  were 
Charles  Goidd,  Pierce  Gould,  Jesse  Gould,  Elijah 
Gould,  Elisha  Gould,  Jr.,  Charlotte  Gould,  Elizabeth 
Gould,  Sarah  Gould,  Lydia  Gould,  and  Ajina  Gould; 
the  last  being  a  minor,  and  dying  before  coming  into  her 
patrimony.  The  estate  was  divided  into  sixteen  lots  or 
parcels  by  the  commissioners,  and  the  total  aggregated 
two  hundred  and  one  and  a  half  acres.  The  report  was 
approved  by  the  Court  August  15,  1808. 

The  estate  of  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  had  been  consider- 
ably increased  before  his  death.  His  estate  was  also 
divided  in  1808  by  order  of  the  Cumberland  County 
Orphans'  Court,  by  these  commissioners:  James  Clark, 
James  Westcott,  and  David  Clark.  It  was  divided  into 
twenty-three  lots.  No.  1  to  No.  23  inclusive.  Hannah, 
the  only  daughter  of  Abijah,  was  given  Lot  No.  1  of 
fifty  acres  and  sixty-seven  hundredths  of  an  acre.  She 
died  young.  The  report  of  these  commissioners  was 
approved  by  the  court  October  12,  1808.  The  five  sons 
were  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  Richard  Gould,  Abijah 
Gould,  2nd,  Furman  Gould,  and  Leonard  Gould.  In 
this  estate  was  also  a  considerable  quantity  of  salt  marsh 
about  Dixon's  Island  in  Back  Neck,  fifty-six  acres  in 
all,  and  eight  and  a  half  acres  of  cedar  swamp  in  Manu- 
musken  swamp,  in  Millville  Township.  The  real  estate 
of  Abijah  Gould,  which  was  divided  among  his  five 
sons  and  one  daughter,  was  three  hundred  and  eighty- 


136  GOULDTOWN 

nine  and  forty-seven  hundredths  acres,  besides  the  salt 
marsh  and  cedar  swamp. 

The  lands  of  Samuel  Gould,  second  son  of  Benja- 
min the  founder,  equalled  those  of  Abijah,  1st.  This 
estate  went  to  his  son,  Samuel,  Jr.'s,  widow  Elizabeth, 
afterward  Elizabeth  Siro,  and  his  daughters.  Most  of 
it  is  now  owned  by  Mrs.  Joseph  Stewart,  a  large  tract. 

While  the  two  estates  of  Abijah  and  Elisha  Gould 
were  thus  divided  among  their  heirs  over  one  hundred 
and  four  years  ago,  the  main  bodies  of  those  lands  still 
remain  in  the  possession  of  the  descendants.  Upon  the 
land  set  off  to  Pierce  Gould  is  the  "  God's  Acre  "  where 
repose  the  bones  of  his  grandparents,  his  parents,  and 
himself — the  ancient  family  burying  ground.  The  deed 
for  this  burying  ground  was  later,  in  1827 — January 
23rd — made  by  Pierce  Gould  and  Sarah,  his  wife,  to 
Adrian  Pierce,  Jesse  Gould,  and  Benjamin  Gould, 
trustees,  and  their  successors  forever,  for  the  sum  of  one 
dollar,  for  a  burying  ground.  Also  out  of  this  same 
estate,  and  out  of  that  part  set  off  to  Lydia  Gould,  was 
sold  one  acre,  deeded  to  Anthony  Pierce,  Furman 
Gould,  Reuben  Pierce,  Elijah  Gould,  and  Daniel  Siro, 
trustees,  and  their  successors  forever  for  the  sum  of 
four  dollars  for  a  schoolhouse,  and  it  is  still  used  by  the 
Fairfield  Board  of  Education  for  that  purpose.  Out 
of  the  portion  set  off  to  Sarah  Gould,  the  Trinity  A. 
M.  E.  Church,  in  1860,  purchased  a  half  acre,  upon 
which  the  church  was  built  and  where  it  now  stands,  the 
deed  being  made  to  certain  trustees  and  their  successors, 
according  to  the  form  prescribed  in  the  Book  of  Disci- 
pline of  that  church.  The  trustees  at  the  time  of  the 
purchase  and  erection  of  the  church  were  James 
Steward,  Abijah  iGould,  Anthony  Gould,  Enoch 
Gould,  and  Holmes  Pierce,  and  the  minister  in  charge 
was  the  Rev.  Joseph  Smith,  a  man  of  great  piety  and 


GouUltown  Grave.xard. 


LONGEVITY;  ESTATES  137 

peculiarly  able  administrative  ability.  The  New  Jersey 
Conference  of  the  A.  M.  E.  Church  was  not  yet  or- 
ganized and  this  charge  was  still  under  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  Philadelphia  Conference,  as  a  circuit,  as  it  had 
been  since  the  organization  of  the  denomination  in  1816, 
up  to  this  time,  1860,  when  it  became  a  station. 

The  estate  of  Elisha  Gould,  1st,  was  divided  by  the 
commissioners  among  these  ten  children,  all  of  whom 
were  adults  except  Anna,  who  was  under  the  age  of 
twenty-one  years,  as  follows:  To  Charles  Gould,  30 
acres;  to  Pierce  Gould,  29  acres;  to  Jesse  Gould,  23.55 
acres;  to  Elijah  Gould,  30  acres;  to  Elisha  Gould,  2nd, 
31.25  acres;  to  Charlotte  Gould,  13.50  acres;  to  Eliza- 
beth Gould,  12.75  acres;  to  Sarah  Gould,  11.25  acres; 
to  Lydia  Gould,  10.50  acres ;  to  Anna  Gould,  10  acres, 
total,  201.80  acres.  These  divisions  are  recorded  in 
Book  "  D  "  Division  of  Lands,  pages  322  to  331  in- 
clusive, in  the  Cumberland  County  Surrogate's  OfRce. 

The  estate  of  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  was  divided  into 
twenty-three  lots,  or  parcels,  and  aggregated  in  acres 
as  follows:  Among  his  five  sons  and  one  daughter — • 
to  Benjamin  Gould,  51.43  acres;  to  Richard  Gould, 
65.63  acres;  to  Abijah  Gould,  2nd,  79.65  acres;  to  Fur- 
man  Gould,  62.73  acres ;  to  Leonard  Gould,  79.60  acres ; 
to  Hannah  Gould,  50.67  acres ;  total  389.71  acres.  This 
estate  had  also  57-50  acres  of  salt  marsh,  and  this  was 
divided  among  the  sons  as  follows:  To  Benjamin  nine 
and  a  half  acres;  to  Richard  seventeen  acres;  to  Abijah, 
Jr.,  twenty-three  and  a  half  acres ;  to  Furman  four  and  a 
half  acres ;  to  Leonard  three  acres ;  there  was  also  a  tract 
of  eight  and  a  half  acres  of  cedar  swamp  in  Manu- 
muskin  swamp,  below  Millville,  and  one  and  seventy 
hundredths  acres  of  this  went  to  each  of  the  sons.  As  all 
this  estate  was  left  unencumbered  to  his  children,  it  is  evi- 
dent that  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  was  a  pretty  thrifty  man. 


138  GOULDTOWN 

From  this  it  is  shown  that  those  two  ancient  Goulds 
left  to  their  sons  and  daughters  almost  six  hundred  acres 
of  land.  Anthony  Gould's,  1st,  land  was  but  a  small 
tract  and  was  sold  by  his  administrator,  Jonathan 
Bowen.  Samuel  Gould's  estate  was  of  not  much  value, 
and  was  mainly  bush-land  of  about  one  hundred  acres, 
making  in  all  seven  hundred  acres. 

While  most  of  these  lands  are  still  in  the  possession 
of  the  descendants,  much  has  been  added  to  them.  Like- 
wise as  to  old  estates  of  the  Murrays  and  Pierces,  espe- 
cially the  latter,  it  is  not  far  wide  of  the  mark  to  say 
that  the  people  of  color  of  what  is  commonly  known  as 
Gouldtown,  possess  in  the  neighborhood  of  five  thou- 
sand acres  of  land,  the  accumulations  of  themselves 
and  their  ancestors. 

The  possessions  of  the  original  Goulds  were  to  the 
southward  and  westward  of  those  of  the  original  Pierces 
and  Murrays,  and  this  led  to  the  northern  portion  being 
designated  "  Piercetown  "  (now  called  Fordsville) . 

Contiguous  to  the  land  of  the  eastern  portion  of 
Benjamin  Gould  the  Founder's  plantation,  Richard  and 
Anthony  Pierce,  the  two  brothers,  had  acquired  a  con- 
siderable number  of  acres.  Anthony  Pierce,  2nd,  and 
Wanaca  Pierce,  1st,  sons  of  Richard,  had  over  two 
hundred  and  twenty-five  acres  of  farm-land  and  timber- 
land  between  them ;  the  southern  line  of  Anthony's  land 
bounded  on  the  northern  line  of  that  part  of  the  Gould 
land  falling  to  Abijah  Gould,  1st.  Anthony's  holding 
in  this  tract  was  over  one  hundred  acres. 

To  the  northward  of  this  tract  was  a  considerable 
scope  owned  by  the  original  Murrays,  while  to  the  north 
and  west  of  this  was  one  hundred  and  twenty-two  acres 
owned  by  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st.  This  was  originally  a 
beautiful  plot  of  farm-  and  timber-land,  nearly  square  in 


LONGEVITY;  ESTATES  139 

shape ;  that  is,  it  was  a  little  more  than  one  hundred  and 
seventy-four  perches  long  by  one  hundred  and  twelve 
perches  in  width.  This  is  the  Wanaca  Pierce  who,  with 
his  young  daughter  Mary,  was  killed  by  lightning  in 
1819.  This  man  left  a  widow  and  nine  other  children; 
the  oldest  at  that  time,  Wanaca,  2nd,  being  but  twenty 
years  old.  Their  mother  lived  many  years  after  this,  in 
the  old  homestead. 

The  estate  of  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st,  was  divided  in 
1832,  by  commissioners  appointed  by  the  Orphans' 
Court  as  follows:  To  Wanaca  Pierce,  2nd,  nine  and 
a  half  acres;  to  Adrian  Pierce,  nine  acres;  to  Peleg 
Pierce,  five  and  three-quarter  acres ;  to  Freeman  Pierce, 
sixteen  acres ;  to  Jesse  Pierce,  six  acres ;  to  Jacob  Pierce, 
fourteen  acres ;  to  Isaiah  Pierce,  eleven  acres ;  to  Holmes 
Pierce,  fifteen  acres;  to  Hannah  Pierce  (wife  of  Jesse 
Gould)  eleven  and  a  quarter  acres;  to  Catherine  Pierce 
(wife  of  Aaron  Gould)  thirteen  and  a  half  acres;  to 
Lydia  Pierce  (wife  of  Rev.  Henry  Davis)  twelve  and  a 
half  acres;  aggregating  one  hundred  and  twenty- two 
acres. 

Between  this  and  Anthony's  land  was  the  estate  of 
John  Murray  and  his  brother,  David  Murray,  while  to 
the  eastward  was  that  of  Mark  ^lurray;  these  lands 
were  of  considerable  extent. 

Westward  from  the  Wanaca  Pierce  estate,  extend- 
ing a  mile  or  more,  was  the  estate  of  Richard  Pierce,  1st, 
and  his  other  sons,  Richard  and  John  and  Benjamin, 
while  another  son,  Menon,  owned  a  considerable  tract 
further  northward  leaidng  at  his  death  a  hundred  acres 
or  more  of  farm  and  woodland  out  near  Lebanon  Neck. 

Nearly  all  of  these  lands,  together  with  additions, 
are  still  owned  by  the  descendants  of  those  Colonial 
pioneers. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  CHURCH;  EARLY  RELIGIOUS 
AFFILIATIONS  OF  THE  PEOPLE. 

Like  most  others  of  this  section  of  New  Jersey,  the 
inhabitants  of  Gouldtown  held  to  the  Calvinistic 
doctrines,  with  a  leaning  towards  Presbyterianism.  In- 
deed, their  early  religious  training  was  received  from  the 
Presbyterians.  It  is  not  unlikely  that  the  first  Benjamin 
Gould  listened  to  the  religious  admonitions  of  Rev. 
Daniel  Elmer,  who  came  from  Connecticut  and  was 
installed  pastor  of  the  church  at  New  England  town 
(now  known  as  Old  Stone  Church)  in  1729.  The 
records  of  this  old  church  were  lost  by  a  fire  which 
destroyed  the  church.  The  earliest  Goulds,  as  well  as 
the  Pierces  and  Murrays,  attended  this  church  under 
the  administrations  of  Rev.  Daniel  Elmer;  he  died  in 
1755,  the  same  year  that  Elisha,  the  youngest  son  of 
Benjamin  Gould,  the  Founder,  was  born.  They 
attended  this  church  also  under  the  administrations  of 
Rev.  William  Ramsey,  who  was  pastor  of  this  church 
from  1756  and  served  as  pastor  until  his  death  in  1771. 

The  Elmers  always  took  a  deep  and  cordial  interest 
in  Gouldtown;  the  descendants  of  Rev.  Daniel  Elmer 
being  familiarly  known  to  the  people  of  Gouldtown 
until  the  present  time ;  the  last  Daniel  Elmer,  who  died 
a  few  years  ago  (the  seventh  oldest  son  in  the  line  of 
lineal  descent),  the  son  of  the  late  Charles  E.  Elmer, 
Esq.,  no  less  so  than  those  who  had  preceded  him.  Dr. 
Jonathan  Elmer,  a  son  of  Rev.  Daniel  Elmer,  born  in 
1745,  and  also  his  brother  General  Ebenezer  Elmer, 
also  a  physician,  practised  among  the  early  residents  of 

140 


Rev.  Ethan  Osborx.  Died 
May  1,  1858,  in  his  100th  year. 
Pastor  Presbyterian  Church, 
Fairfield,  55  years. 


Miss  Prudence  F.  Gould. 


THE  CHURCH  141 

Gouldtown,  as  did  also  later,  Dr.  Rush  Bateman  of 
Cedarville.  These  physicians  were  all  Presbyterians, 
adherents  of  the  New  England  town  church,  and  they, 
especially  the  Elmers,  did  not  fail  to  sow  the  seeds  of 
their  faith  among  the  rustic  people  among  whom  they 
practised;  Dr.  (General)  Ebenezer  Elmer,  with  his 
son,  spending  many  a  Sunday  afternoon  in  the  first 
little  schoolhouse  in  Gouldtown,  catechizing  the  children. 
This  is  the  first  actual  known  religious  teaching  given 
in  the  community.  The  son  became  the  distinguished 
Supreme  Court  Justice — Lucius  Q.  C.  Elmer.  The 
solid  character  of  this  father  and  son,  as  well  as  of  those 
of  their  descendants, — Dr.  William  Elmer,  Dr.  Henry 
Elmer,  Dr.  Robert  Elmer,  John  T.  Nixon,  later  U.  S. 
Judge  (a  son-in-law  of  Judge  Elmer,  always  familiar 
with  the  rural  community) ,  made  its  impress  upon  these 
people  to  a  lasting  degree. 

When  Rev.  Ethan  Osborn  became  pastor  of  the 
church  in  1788,  he  gave  the  same  care  to  this  community 
that  he  did  to  others;  he  performed  their  marriage  cere- 
monies and  attended  the  burial  of  their  dead.  Although 
a  Presbyterian  church  was  organized  in  "  Bridgetown  " 
in  1792,  the  people  of  Gouldtown  did  not  transfer  their 
attendance  from  Fairfield. 

Rev.  Michael  Swing,  the  pioneer  of  the  Methodists 
in  Fairfield,  beginning  with  his  advent  into  the  com- 
munity in  1799,  made  some  impression  upon  the  Goulds 
and  Pierces.  He  built  what  was  known  as  "  Swing's 
Meeting  House  "  in  Herring  Row,  about  1819,  for  a 
long  time  the  only  Methodist  meeting  house  in  Fair- 
field. He  united  in  marriage  several  Gouldtown  people 
and  held  service  at  their  funerals,  but  the  relations  of  the 
Goulds  with  the  Methodists  were  not  cordial. 


142  GOULDTOWN 

The  centenary  of  a  church — any  church — is  always  a 
notable  event,  and  the  Trinity  A.  M.  E.  Church  at 
Gouldtown  will,  in  a  few  more  years,  celebrate  such  an 
anniversary. 

The  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff,  of  Salem,  who  had  become 
a  Methodist  minister,  under  the  ministrations  of  Dr. 
Benjamin  Fisler,  who  travelled  the  Salem  circuit,  which 
then  extended  from  Salem  to  Cape  May,  married  into 
the  Gould  family — Shaving  wed  Anna  Gould — ^was,  of 
course,  a  frequent  visitor  in  Gouldtown,  where  he  often 
held  meetings  in  the  early  part  of  the  last  century. 
Phoebe  Bowen,  the  wife  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  was 
reared  in  his  family.  Many  of  these  meetings  were  held 
in  the  barn  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  on  the  old  Gould 
homestead.  The  barn  was  then  larger  than  it  is  now, 
for  it  has  been  reduced  in  size  within  the  writer's  recol- 
lection ;  it  had  a  large  threshing  floor  where  the  flail  was 
used  in  the  winter  time,  or  the  grain  would  be  trodden 
out  by  the  horses  (which  I  have  seen  done). 

This  Benjamin  Gould  was  much  of  a  wag — though 
later  becoming  a  class  leader — but  at  these  meetings  he 
was  not  converted.  His  brother,  Furman,  afterward  a 
local  preacher,  was  with  others  converted.  On  one  occa- 
sion the  minister  and  the  religious  ones  of  the  meeting 
tried  earnest  persuasion  upon  Benjamin  (my  grand- 
father) to  induce  him  to  join  the  meeting  (it  was  not 
called  church  in  those  days).  With  much  earnestness 
and  vehemence  they  persuaded,  bringing  to  bear  all 
their  arguments  about  everlasting  damnation;  making 
it  exceedingly  warm  for  Benjamin  with  their  beseech- 
ings.  They,  at  last,  told  him  of  the  hot  place  awaiting 
all  sinners!  Slowly  shaking  his  head  he  candidly  re- 
plied, '*  I  have  found  that  out  by  present  experience." 

Benjamin  later  professed  religion  and  joined  the 


THE  CHURCH  143 

meeting.  At  one  time,  in  prayer-meeting,  he  was  called 
on  to  pray.  He  coolly  called  back,  "  Call  on  Furm,  he 
can  pray."  It  was  long  asserted  that  his  reply  was 
"  Call  on  Furm,  he  can  pray  like  the  De'il,"  but  this  has 
alwaj^s  been  denied.  Let  this  be  as  it  may,  Benjamin 
Gould  lived  after  joining  the  meeting  a  consistent,  up- 
right life,  walking  in  the  paths  of  piety,  dying  in  1851, 
as  he  had  lived,  a  humble  Christian. 

The  church  in  Gouldtown  was  brought  together  be- 
tween 1816,  when  the  denomination  was  formed  in 
Philadelphia,  and  1820.  It  was  organized  in  Benjamin 
Gould's  barn,  but  in  1823,  the  Westcott  schoolhouse  was 
purchased  and  moved  into  the  neighborhood  for  the 
schoolhouse,  where  the  meetings  were  afterwards  held 
until  the  present  church  was  built  in  1860. 

Miss  Prudence  F.  Gould,  the  youngest  daughter  of 
Benjamin  and  Phoebe  Gould,  from  papers  in  her  pos- 
session left  by  her  father,  gives  this  very  clear  history 
of  the  church  at  Gouldtown,  with  incidents  of  local 
interest,  together  Avith  a  complete  list  of  the  preachers 
who  have  served  as  pastors  from  its  beginning.  She 
writes : 

The  records  show  that  the  first  church  was  the  old  school- 
house  which  stood  on  the  old  road  from  Fairton  to  Millville,  on 
a  lot  near  to  where  Lorenzo  Gould  now  resides.  This  school  was 
used  also  as  a  meeting  house  by  the  Presbyterians  and  Metho- 
dists alternately,  by  the  Westcotts,  Bennetts,  Seeleys,  Wood- 
ruffs, and  Hands  (white),  and  by  the  Goulds,  Pierces,  and 
Murrays  (colored).  It  was  where  most  of  the  community 
attended  meeting  in  the  early  part  of  the  century  (19th). 

Rev.  Reuben  Cuff,  who  had  organized  The  Methodist  So- 
ciety in  Salem  before  this  time,  and  whose  first  wife  was  a 
Hannah  Pierce,  of  Gouldtown,  was   a   frequent  visitor  here. 


144  GOULDTOWN 

My  mother,  Phoebe  Bowen,  had  been  brought  up  in  his  family 
in  Salem  from  a  child  of  four  years  old, — her  mother,  Lydia 
Bowen,  having  died  when  she  was  a  baby,  and  her  father  Levi 
Bowen,  passing  away  when  she  was  at  the  age  of  four, — and 
Rev,  Reuben  was  a  welcome  visitor  at  our  house. 

After  the  organization  of  the  African  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  in  Philadelphia,  our  people  thought  to  become  attached 
to  this  denomination.  By  this  time  a  series  of  meetings  had 
been  held  at  private  houses,  and  a  religious  revival  had  sprung 
up.  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff  suggested  the  organizing  of  a  society 
here.  This  was  in  1818,  and  Elder  Jeremiah  Miller  was  then 
on  the  newly  appointed  Salem  circuit,  so  Pastor  Cuff,  with  the 
assistance  of  Rev.  Mr.  Miller,  organized  our  society.  The  formal 
meeting  was  held  in  the  home  of  Elizabeth  Gould,  widow  of 
Elisha  Gould;  her  house  stood  just  north  of  the  graveyard  on 
the  lot  now  owned  by  Albert  Lloyd.  The  first  class  was 
organized  with  these  fourteen  members,  namely:  Benjamin 
Pierce,  Furman  Gould,  Christiana  Gould,  Benjamin  Gould, 
Phoebe  Gould,  Anthony  Pierce,  Sarah  Pierce,  Charlotte  Gould, 
Elizabeth  Gould,  David  Murray,  Sarah  Murray,  Wanaca 
Pierce,  Mary  Pierce,  and  Elizabeth  Stewart.  Benjamin  Pierce 
was  appointed  the  first  class  leader.  The  society  was  attached 
to  the  Salem  circuit  and  Elder  Jeremiah  Miller  was  the  first 
preacher  in  charge  of  this  appointment. 

The  houses  being  too  small  to  accommodate  the  attendance, 
meetings  were  held  in  my  father's  barn,  and  the  first  Quarterly 
Meeting  was  held  in  June,  1819,  also  in  my  father's  barn.  It 
was  a  great  meeting,  lasting  two  days,  and  people  crowded 
not  only  the  bam  floor,  but  climbed  up  in  the  mows. 

The  school  building  called  the  Westcott  schoolhouse,  which 
had  been  formerly  used,  and  purchased  by  the  society  in  1823 
and  moved  to  the  present  schoolhouse  lot,  served  the  purpose 
of  school  and  meeting  house  until  the  purchase  of  the  Lummis 
schoolhouse  in  1834.  The  first  (Westcott)  schoolhouse  was 
sold  to  David  Murray,  who  converted  it  into  a  dwelling. 

The  Lummis  schoolhouse  was  moved  to  the  site ;  the  removal 
of  this  building  was  an  event  in  the  neighborhood, — several 
days  were  required  to  move  it,  and  the  women  cooked  dinners 


THE  CHURCH  145 

and  took  the  meals  to  the  men  on  the  road.  This  schoolhouse 
was  dedicated  as  a  church  by  Rev.  Peter  D.  W.  Schureman,  and 
the  name  given  it  was  Ebenezer.  It  was  so  used  as  church  and 
school,  until  the  erection  of  the  present  Trinity  A.  M.  E. 
Church,  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  road — the  Bridgeton  and 
Millville  turnpike. 

Under  the  second  pastorate  of  Rev.  Jeremiah  Beulah,  in 
1841  a  split  in  the  church  occurred,  resulting  in  the  withdrawal 
of  a  number  of  the  members  who  established  a  Methodist  Episco- 
pal Church  in  Fordsville.  When  the  conference  sent  Rev.  Mr. 
Beulah  to  the  appointment  for  the  second  time,  a  portion  of 
the  church  were  bitterly  opposed  to  him,  and  barred  the  door 
against  him.  Quite  a  mob  was  assembled  to  keep  the  preacher 
out  of  the  church,  Benjamin  Gould  and  David  Murray  took 
the  preacher  up  on  their  shoulders,  and  while  others  pressed 
back  the  crowd,  carried  him  bodily  into  the  church.  Once  in 
the  church,  the  opponents  could  not  get  him  out.  A  lawsuit 
was  entered  into  by  his  opponents  to  oust  him;  but,  as  the 
trustees  of  the  church  were  in  his  favor,  nothing  came  of  it, 
and  the  opponents  were  thrown  out  of  court. 

These  people,  headed  by  Jacob  Pierce  and  Freeman  Pierce 
and  their  families  and  followers  (excepting  Freeman's  wife), 
left  the  church  in  a  body  and  in  1841  a  schoolhouse  and 
meeting  house  combined  was  built  in  Fordsville,  where  now  they 
have  a  respectable  church  and  a  stationed  pastor,  and  though 
of  different  denominations,  the  Gouldtown  church  and  Fords- 
ville church  hold  cordial  and  harmonious  relations. 

The  pastors  who  have  been  in  charge  of  the  Gouldtown 
church  from  its  organization  are  as  follows: 

1818.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Miller. 

1820.  Rev.  William  Paul  Quinn  (afterwards  Bishop). 

1821.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Ridley. 

1822.  Revs.  J.  P.  B.  Eddy  and  I.  B.  Dorsey  (two  cir- 

cuit  riders). 
1823-25-26.  Rev.  Joseph  Harper. 
1826-28.  Rev.  Richard  Williams. 
1829.  Revs.  J.  A.  Shorts  and  Viley  Reynolds. 
10 


146  GOULDTOWN 

1830.  Revs.  William  Richardson,  John  Cornish,  and 

Israel  Scott. 

1831.  Revs.  L.  Cook  and  Samuel  Enty. 

1832.  Rev.  John  Boggs. 

1833.  Rev.   John   Cornish. 

1834-35.  Rev.  Peter  D.  W.  Schureman. 

1836.  Revs.  Noah  C.  W.  Cannon  and  Henry  Turner. 

1837.  Revs.  William  Moore  and  I.evin  Tilgman. 

1838.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Beulah. 

1839.  Rev.  John  Cornish. 

1840.  Revs.  Clayton  Durham  and  Henry  C.  Turner. 

1841.  Rev.  Jeremiah  Beulah. 
1842-44.  Rev.  George  Greenly. 

1845.  Rev.  John  L.  Armstrong. 

1846.  Revs.    A.    W.    Waymen    (afterwards    Bishop 

Waymen)    and  A.   C.   Crippin. 

1847.  Revs.  J.  R.  V.  Morgan,  and  I.  B.  Parker. 
1848-50.  Rev.  Richard  Barney. 

1851.  Rev.  I.  B.  Parker. 
1852-53.  Rev.  Sheppard  Holcomb. 

1854.  Revs.  Peter  Gardner  and  Isaac  Stamford. 

1855.  Rev.  Caleb  Woody ard. 

1856.  Revs.  Henry  Davis  and  L.  Jackson. 
1857-58.  Rev.  E.  J.  Hawkins. 

1859.  Rev.  Andrew  Till. 

1860-61.  Rev.  Joseph  H.  Smith.    At  this  time  new  Trinity 

Church  built,  at  a  cost  of  $1,600. 
1862.  Rev.  J.  H.  Henson. 
1863-65.  Rev.  Joshua  Woodlin. 

1866.  Rev.  William  Watson. 

1867.  Rev.  Joseph  Nelson. 
1868-70.  Rev.  Benjamin  Darks. 
1871.  Rev,  Leonard  Patterson. 
1872-75.  Rev.  Jos.  H.  Smith  (second  time). 

1876.  Rev.  Redmon  Faucett. 

1877.  Rev.  Samuel  B.  Williams. 
1878-79.  Rev.  E.  Hammitt. 
1879-80.  Rev.  T.  C.  Chambers. 


(:;(.ul(ltown  A.  M,  ]•:.  Clmr 


Jonathan  Gould. 


THE  CHURCH  147 

1882.  Rev.  Geo.  A.  Mills. 

1883.  Rev.  Israel  Derrick. 

1884-85.  Rev.  Alfred  Garrison  (who  died,  and  Rev. 

James  V.  Pierce  filled  out  his  term). 
1886-87.  Rev.  Wilson  Peterson. 
1888.  Rev.  H.  P.  Thomas. 
1889-91.  Rev.  M.  M.  Dent. 

1892.  Rev.  G.  A.  Mills. 

1893.  Rev.  E.  M.  Harper. 

1893.  Rev.  Geo.  A.  Woodson  (now  Dean  of  Payne 
Theological  Seminary,  at  Wilberforce,  Ohio). 
1895-96.  Rev.  H.  H.  Pinkney. 
1897-98.  Rev.  J.  H.  Mowbray. 
1899.  Rev.  A.  B.  Cooper. 
1900-03.  Rev.  Jas.  A.  Groves. 
1904-05.  Rev.  Wm.  W.  Johnson. 
1906.  Rev.  L.  A.  Generette. 
1907-08.  Rev.  Aaron  A.  Collins. 
1909-10.  Rev.  Geo.  T.  Watkins. 

1911.  Rev.  W.  W.  Middleton. 

1912.  Rev.  J.  H.  Robinson. 

During  the  years  1851-52,  under  the  pastorate  of  Rev. 
Sheppard  Holcomb,  a  wonderful  revival  of  religion  occurred, 
which  was  most  marked  among  the  heads  of  families ;  it  swept 
the  whole  community,  in  a  measure,  and  a  large  acquisition 
was  made  to  the  church.  A  few  years  later,  during  the  ministry 
of  Rev.  Jos.  H.  Smith,  in  1860,  there  was  another  awakening, 
when  the  church  membership  was  increased  by  over  a  score. 
The  greatest  revival  in  the  history  of  the  church,  however, 
was  during  the  winter  of  1912—13  under  Rev.  J.  H.  Robinson, 
when  in  three  weeks  116  were  united  with  the  church,  the  great- 
est part  of  whom  came  out  of  the  Sunday-school. 

THE   SUNDAY-SCHOOL. 

From  the  earliest  times  of  its  history,  Gouldtown  has  had 
a  Sunday-school.  Even  before  the  days  when  General 
Ebenezer  Elmer  and  his  son  catechized  the  children,  in  the 


148  GOULDTOWN 

little  old  Westcott  schoolhouse,  Sunday  instruction  was  given 
the  youn.g  children  of  the  neighborhoods  in  the  same  school- 
house.  It  was  not  long  after  the  regular  organization  of  the 
church  when  a  Sunday-school  was  kept  up  in  the  school  and 
meeting  house.  This  was  not  altogether  for  religious  instruc- 
tion exclusively,  but  the  children  were  taught  to  spell  and  read 
and  were  catechized. 

Jesse  Gould,  a  cousin  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  is  believed 
to  have  been  the  first  regularly  appointed  Sunday-school  super- 
intendent, which  position  he  held  several  years.  After  him  was 
his  son,  Enoch  Gould,  who  filled  the  position  for  a  number  of 
years  very  ably  and  acceptably.  The  best  loved  and  most 
devoted  Sunday-school  superintendent  of  nearly  a  half  century 
ago  was  Jonathan  Gould,  son  of  the  preacher  Rev.  Furman 
Gould.  To  him  the  children  looked  up  as  to  a  kind  and  gentle 
father.  He  was  a  great  lover  of  little  children,  and  a  friend 
to  everybody.     He  knew  every  little  child  in  the  neighborhood. 

Under  the  superintendency  of  Jonathan  Gould,  the  Sunday- 
school  was  in  a  very  flourishing  condition ;  it  became  the  banner 
Sunday-school  in  the  township,  and  had  a  reputation  of  the 
very  highest  order.  As  a  country  Sunday-school  it  is  safe  to 
say  that  it  was  difficult  to  find  its  equal.  There  were  several 
causes  which  might  be  cited  to  lead  to  this  condition,  but  one 
of  some  importance  was  the  clannish  love  of  home  and  home 
ties  which  pervaded  the  community.  As  at  country  meeting 
houses  generally,  the  farmers  met  on  Sundays  to  greet  each 
other,  chat  a  little  after  church,  confer  about  the  plans  for 
work,  arrange  their  brief  business  affairs  with  each  other,  and 
engage  help  if  needed  in  their  work  and  for  their  business ;  but 
the  Sunday-school  was  where  the  young  people  met  and  had 
their  little  talks  and  salutations,  and  many  a  love-match  was 
made  in  the  long  walks  home  from  the  Sunday-school,  and  these 
love-matches  and  the  resultant  weddings,  years  afterwards, 
always  turned  out  well,  as  was  readily  attested  by  the  families 
which  grew  up  from  them. 

The  clannish  disposition  of  the  people  made  them  delight 
in  these  Sunday  assemblings,  where  they  could  see  so  many  of 
their  relatives  at  a  single  gathering  (all  in  this  community 


THE  CHURCH  149 

were  more  or  less  related),  and  a  few  words  of  greeting  would 
leave  a  lingering  pleasure  through  the  following  week. 

The  Sunday-school  would  be  begun  with  the  singing  of  one 
of  the  old  Union  Hymn-book  hymns,  reading  a  chapter  in 
the  Bible  by  the  superintendent,  prayer,  and  then  the  classes 
with  their  teachers  would  read  a  chapter  or  two  in  the  Bible, 
recite  the  hymns  or  verses  of  Scripture  which  had  been 
"  learned  by  heart,"  and  the  blue  and  red  tickets  given  them 
for  merit.  These  tickets  would  be  taken  in  exchange  for  a 
Bible  or  a  hymn-book,  and  many  a  Bible  went  into  a  family 
for  "  so  many  red  tickets."  Thus  the  classes  were  taught  by 
reading  the   Scriptures,   learning  the  catechism   and  hymns. 

For  twenty-one  consecutive  years  Jonathan  Gould  was 
superintendent  of  the  Gouldtown  Sunday-school,  first  in  the 
old  schoolhouse  and  then  in  the  new  church.  He  died  in 
1890,  aged  77  years,  beloved  by  his  Sunday-school  and  by  the 
whole  neighborhood.  Since  his  retirement  from  the  Sunday- 
school  it  has  lost  nothing  in  its  standing,  in  fact  it  has  pro- 
gressed continually.  It  has  at  all  times  had  a  good  library 
and  has  had  a  number  of  good  superintendents  and  always 
maintains  a  corps  of  good  teachers.  In  the  old  times  there  were 
no  lesson-helps,  but  now  every  such  accessory  quickly  finds  its 
way  to  the  Gouldtown  Sunday-school. 

REV.  THEODORE  GOULD. 

GRANDSON  OF  ELISHA  GOULD  AND  GKEAT-GRANDSON  OF 
BENJAMIN    GOULD,    THE    FOUNDEB. 

Of  the  family  of  Elijah  and  Hannah  Murray  Gould 
Rev.  Theodore,  their  son,  became  the  most  distinguished. 
He  was  born  August  12, 1830,  and  is  still  living,  and  at 
next  birthday  he  will  be  eighty-three  years  of  age.  As 
a  lad  he  was  a  studious  but  sturdy  youth ;  he  went  to  a 
private  school,  kept  by  Miss  Eliza  Sheppard,  but  his 
schooldays  were  few,  for  his  parents  had  a  large  family 
and  it  was  necessary  for  him  to  contribute  to  their  sup- 


150  GOULDTOWN 

port,  which  he  did,  as  a  boy,  by  working  in  a  glass 
factory  near  his  home  in  Bridgeton. 

In  1847,  he  was  converted  and  united  with  the 
Church  of  his  parents — the  Gouldtown  A.  M.  E. 
Church.  Four  years  later  he  became  an  exhorter  in  this 
church,  and  two  years  after  this  he  was  licensed  to  preach 
and  joined  the  Philadelphia  Annual  Conference,  to 
which  the  church  at  Gouldtown  belonged. 

After  becoming  an  itinerant  preacher,  he  was 
ordained  local  deacon  in  the  Philadelphia  Conference  in 
1859,  being  ordained  by  the  then  venerable  Bishop  Wil- 
liam Paul  Quinn,  and  was  sent  to  the  Danville  Circuit, 
Pennsylvania.  Many  of  the  old  residents  of  Danville, 
Bloomsburg,  Wilkes-Barre,  Abington  Centre,  and  other 
Circuit  points,  remember  the  work  of  this  earnest  and 
pious  young  pastor,  who  travelled  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles  to  reach  all  the  points  of  his  circuit. 

Mr.  Gould  was  then  sent  to  the  Princeton,  New  Jer- 
sey, Circuit,  which  he  served  from  1860  to  1863,  and 
afterwards  was  stationed  at  many  points  in  New  Jersey. 
He  was  then  transferred  to  the  New  York  Conference, 
where  he  filled  many  appointments.  In  the  New  York 
Conference  he  ministered  to  Bethel  Church,  Sullivan 
Street,  two  years,  which  were  remarkably  successful  in 
church  progress.  After  this  he  was  sent  to  the  New 
England  Conference,  where  he  held  some  of  the  largest 
charges,  especially  the  Charles  Street  Church,  Boston, 
Avhere  he  served  three  years  most  acceptably.  He  has 
been  twice  pastor  of  Bethel  Church,  Sixth  Street,  Phila- 
delphia, the  first  church  organized  by  the  African 
Methodist  Episcopal  connection  and  styled  the  "  Mother 
Church."  He  has  been  appointed  Presiding  Elder,  an 
office  now  called  District  Superintendent,  many  times. 


Rev.  T.  Gottld,  Pastor  of  Belliel  A.  .M.  E.  Church,  .Sixth  Streel  below  Pine,  Philadelphia, 

Pa.,  1896. 


THE  CHURCH  151 

He  was  business  manager  of  the  Church  Publication 
Department,  publisher  of  the  "  Christian  Recorder,"  the 
church  paper,  and  the  various  other  church  publications. 
His  management  of  this  department  was  eminently 
successful. 

The  following  by  the  late  Bishop  B.  W.  Arnett  was 
published  in  the  Church  Budget  in  1884  concerning  Mr. 
Gould;  "Rev.  T.  Gould  has  been  in  public  life  for  a 
number  of  years.  He  is  affable  in  manner,  agi'eeable  in 
society,  honest  in  his  dealing  with  his  fellow-men,  a  great 
revivalist,  and  a  consistent  Christian  gentleman;  con- 
secrated to  the  work  of  saving  souls,  exemplary  in  his 
life  and  conversation,  the  friend  of  young  men,  sound  in 
theology  and  a  good  preacher." 

Mr.  Gould  was  and  is  a  sound  business  man — a  kind 
so  rare  among  preachers  generally.  In  Bridgeton  he 
owns  two  dwellings  and  a  store  on  South  Avenue,  and  a 
double  dwelling  on  East  Commerce  Street,  besides  a 
farm  of  about  one  hundred  acres  with  a  fine  large  farm- 
house on  the  Buckshutem  Road,  in  Gouldtown.  He  was 
in  the  itinerary  fifty  years  and  still  preaches  ably.  He 
is  a  man  of  whom  his  kinfolk  in  Gouldtown  are  de- 
votedly proud. 

He  has  three  children,  Howard,  a  printer  in  Phila- 
delphia, Theodore,  Jr.,  an  electrician  in  Boston,  and 
Carrie  (Mrs.  Albert  Rumsey).  The  last,  with  her 
husband,  removed  this  spring  from  Philadelphia  to  her 
father's  farm,  just  alluded  to  above,  where  they  will 
supplant  a  tenant  farmer. 

Mr.  Gould  still  has  one  sister  living,  who  is  Sarah, 
widow  of  Alfred  Gould,  now  eighty-nine  years  old  and 
residing  on  her  own  farm  in  Gouldtown  with  her  only 
son,  Eugene,  and  only  daughter,  Mary,  both  unmarried. 


152  GOULDTOWN 

"  Short  are  the  annals  of  a  happy  people  "  wrote 
Hawthorne.  The  descendants  of  Anthony  Gould,  1st, 
son  of  Benjamin  and  Ann  Gould,  are  those  who  came 
from  the  daughters  "  Kitty  "  and  Martha, — that  is  to 
say,  the  children  of  "  Kitty  "  and  Charles  Gould,  who 
were  Aaron  and  Anthony,  2nd  (Daniel  having  gone  to 
Massachusetts,  and  become  lost),  and  the  children  of 
"  Kitty  "  and  Furman  Gould.  Of  Aaron's  descendants 
there  remain  Timothy  Gould,  and  his  two  sons  and  two 
daughters,  and  Aaron  Paul  and  his  two  sons.  Of 
Anthony's  descendants  (who  was  said  to  have  greatly 
resembled  his  grandfather,  Anthony)  there  remain  the 
children  of  his  son,  William,  deceased,  and  daughters, 
Phoebe  Pierce,  still  living,  the  two  sons  and  one  daughter 
of  Elizabeth  CufF,  deceased,  the  two  sons  of  Christiana, 
deceased  (Btelford  and  Warner  K.  Pierce) ,  and  the  two 
daughters  of  Christiana,  together  with  one  son,  Lewis, 
and  one  daughter,  Barbara,  of  Almeda, 

TJie  descendants  of  "  Kitty  "  and  Furman  Gould, 
viz.:  the  sons  and  daughters  of  Furman,  Jr.,  Jonathan 
and  Alfred  and  Charles,  2nd,  number  a  great  many. 
The  children  of  Furman's  daughter  Martha  also  left 
many  descendants,  but  Christiana,  who  is  still  living, 
had  no  children. 

The  living  representatives  of  the  descendants  of 
Samuel  Gould,  1st,  are  very  few,  being  only  those  who 
came  through  his  daughter,  Hannah,  one  of  whom  is 
Mrs.  Emma  Robinson,  the  wife  of  Rev.  J.  H.  Robin- 
son, now  pastor  of  Gouldtown,  her  grandmother  being 
Hannah  Gould,  who  married  a  Wester ;  and  the  children 
of  Hannah's  daughters,  Hannah  Jane,  and  Caroline, 
the  latter  being  the  wife  of  Daniel  Cuff,  of  Newark, 
N.  J.  Two  sons  of  Hannah  Gould  Wester  reside  in 
Camden  County,  where  they  had  children,  who  are  now 


THE  CHURCH  153 

living  in  New  York,  Brooklyn,  etc.  The  Rev.  Wm.  W. 
Johnson,  a  minister  in  the  New  Jersey  A.  M.  E.  Con- 
ference, is  a  son  of  Hannah  Jane,  above  mentioned. 

The  surviving  descendants  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd, 
were  given  as  up  to  1910,  in  preceding  pages.  The 
living  descendants  of  Elisha  Gould,  1st,  are  most  dis- 
tinguished in  the  persons  of  his  grandson,  Rev.  Theo- 
dore Gould,  and  his  granddaughter,  Mrs.  Sarah  Gould, 
and  their  children.  There  are  still  other  representatives 
of  the  families  of  Furman  Gould,  in  the  persons  of 
Albert  Gould  and  William  C.  Gould,  farmers,  etc. 
From  these  families  in  their  short  annals  were  produced 
such  preachers  as  Rev.  Furman  Gould,  the  first  local 
preacher.  Rev.  Theodore,  as  above  noted.  Rev.  James 
V.  Pierce,  son  of  Richard  Pierce,  3rd,  Rev.  Jehu  Pierce, 
son  of  Jacob  Pierce,  1st,  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee,  a  former 
President  of  Wilberforce  University,  Rev.  Theophilus 
Gould  Steward,  chaplain  for  many  years  in  the  United 
States  army,  now  Professor  of  History,  French,  and 
Logic  in  Wilberforce  University,  Rev.  Alex.  W.  Pierce, 
of  the  New  York  A.  M.  E.  Conference,  Rev.  Jeremiah 
H.  Pierce,  deceased,  a  member  in  his  lifetime  of  the 
New  Jersey  Conference. 

All  of  these  were  men  of  more  than  ordinary 
eminence,  and  those  still  living  are  quite  distinguished. 
With  the  exception  of  Rev.  Jehu  Pierce  they  all  came 
out  of  the  Gouldtown  church. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE  people's  patriotism  ;  READY  TO  BEAR  ARMS  FOR  THE 

COUNTRY. 

The  people  of  Gouldtown  were  not  backward  to 
respond  to  the  call  of  their  country.  They  were  early 
devoted  to  the  cause  of  American  freedom,  and  heartily 
hoped  for  the  success  of  the  colonial  arms  in  the  War  of 
the  Revolution.  Three  or  four  out  of  the  commimity 
enlisted  in  the  War  of  the  Revolution  and  served 
shoulder  to  shoulder  with  other  Americans  during  the 
conflict.  Anthony  Pierce,  Richard  Pierce,  Adam 
Pierce,  Mark  Murraj'-,  all  served  in  the  Revolution. 

There  do  not  appear  to  have  been  many  of  the 
people  of  this  community  in  the  War  of  1812.  Furman 
Gould  and  a  man  named  Levin  Wright — not  closely 
connected  with  the  community — did  some  service  in  it; 
Gould  as  using  his  team  in  conjunction  with  David 
Cams'  team  in  hauling  supplies  to  the  troops  at  Cape 
May.  But  when  the  War  of  the  Rebellion  came,  the 
young  men  of  Gouldtown  made  haste  to  get  ready  for 
war.  Feeling  that  the  combat  just  about  to  open  meant 
the  death  of  slavery,  they  were  more  than  willing  to  join 
in  the  conflict. 

During  the  presidential  campaign  of  Lincoln, 
Douglas,  Breckenridge  and  the  other  candidates,  their 
interest  and  sympathies  were  with  Lincoln,  and  seeing 
and  believing  that  his  election  meant  strife  between  the 
North  and  the  South,  they  were  ready  at  the  call.  One 
of  the  young  men  of  Gouldtown  was  in  Trenton  when; 
Lincoln  made  the  first  call  for  75,000  troops.  This 
young  man  hastened  to  a  recruiting  officer,  enlisted,  and 
was  ready  to  go  to  the  front,  but  having  a  physical  de- 

154 


PATRIOTISM  155 

feet  from  a  broken  leg  when  a  boy  he  could  not  pass 
muster. 

By  means  of  a  copy  of  Upton's  Tactics  a  company 
was  formed  in  Gouldtown  and  drilled.  They  made  the 
offer  to  the  government  to  raise  a  regiment  of  colored 
men  for  the  service.  Our  people  remembered  the  heroic 
conduct  of  the  black  and  colored  soldiers  at  the  battle  of 
Red  Bank  during  the  Revolution,  in  which  they  gloried, 
and  thej^  thought  to  emulate  the  example  of  those  men. 
The  offer  was  not  accepted,  and  the  people  felt  such  a 
rebuff  that  they  decided  to  wait  until  they  were  really 
wanted  before  again  attempting  to  go  to  war.  So  eager, 
however,  were  some  of  them,  especially  some  of  the 
Murrays,  that  they  went  as  white  men  and  served 
through  the  conflict.  When  colored  soldiers  were 
wanted  by  the  government  meetings  were  held  at  the  old 
schoolhouse  and  orators  came  from  Fairfield  township, 
offering  large  bounties  for  substitutes  to  volunteer.  The 
young  fellows  did  not  feel  so  much  like  going  to  war 
as  they  had  felt  before  the  rebuff  and  they  informed  the 
orators  that  they  were  not  going  to  stop  bullets  in  their 
places;  they  would  not  go  as  substitutes,  but  would  go 
on  their  own  footing,  which  they  did  when  drafted. 

Of  those  who  served  in  the  Rebellion  were  Hosea 
Pierce,  William  H.  Gould,  Wanaca  Pierce,  Robert 
Goldsboro,  JNIark  Pierce,  Jedediah  Pierce,  Lewis  Mur- 
ray, William  Murray,  Ebenezer  Murray,  Hiram  Mur- 
ray, Lorenzo  F.  Gould,  Charles  Lloyd,  Charles  Pierce, 
Ephraim  Pierce  and  Henry  JVIurray. 

Tliey  were  represented  in  the  War  with  Spain  by 
Luther  D.  Gould,  in  the  regular  army,  and  in  the 
Philippines  by  Capt.  Frank  R.  Steward,  in  an  Illinois 
volunteer  regiment,  and  by  Othniel  INIurray,  in  the  regu- 
lar army,  as  well  as  by  Chaplain  Steward,  who  was 
many  years  in  the  regular  army,  and  who  was  govern- 


156 


GOULDTOWN 


ment  superintendent  of  schools  in  the  province  of  IjU- 
zon,  in  the  Philippines. 

iThe  people  of  Gouldtown  lacked  nothing  in  patriot- 
ism from  the  very  earliest  period  of  the  government; 
they  were  always  devoted  to  their  country,  their  state 
and  their  homes;  always  loved  her  institutions  and  de- 
lighted to  obey  her  laws.  They  were  not  in  the  war  of 
1848 — with  Mexico;  there  was  no  call  for  their  services 
in  this  war,  but  they  took  keen  interest  in  its  progress 
and  General  Winfield  Scott  was  their  hero.  I  myself 
have  heard  the  elderly  men  of  Gouldtown  talk  of  the 
achievements  of  General  Scott  when  he  was  in  that  war, 
and  I  would  sit  and  listen  to  their  reading  of  the  news 
from  the  war  and  hear  their  talk  of  the  battles  of  Che- 
pultepec,  the  storming  of  Monterey,  and  the  capture  of 
slippery  one-legged  Santa  Anna,  the  commander  of  the 
Mexican  Army.  They  did  not  side  cordially  with 
General  Jackson,  however,  because  of  his  politics. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

SOCIAL  life;  some  typical  social  events;  two  golden 
weddings;  a  social  study. 

The  people  of  this  community  were  always  noted  for 
their  hospitality  and  love  of  company.  In  the  early 
days,  as  well  as  at  the  present  time,  the  summer  season 
brought  visitors  to  the  place  from  Philadelphia,  New 
York,  and  elsewhere,  and  on  Sundays  the  church  would 
be  filled  with  those  anxious  to  see  and  meet  the  visitors 
to  the  neighborhood. 

Some  social  events  in  the  neighborhood  are  here 
given  from  clippings  from  the  Bridgeton  daily  papers 
as  reported  at  the  time  of  happening  which  illustrate 
the  social  life  of  the  village  in  those  days : 

dinner  party. 

AT    THE   HOME    OF    STEPHEN    S.    STEWARD,    GOULDTOWN. 

An  enjoyable  dinner  party  was  given  by  Stephen  S. 
Steward,  at  his  residence  on  the  Buckshutem  road.  Covers 
were  laid  for  ten  and  dinner  served  in  banquet  style,  the  tables 
being  laden  with  fried  bluefish,  stewed  chicken,  salads,  tomato 
and  apple  sauce,  hot  rolls  and  coffee,  followed  by  cake,  ice 
cream  and  sugared  peaches. 

Those  present  were  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eli  Gould,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Lorenzo  F.  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Steward,  Mrs. 
Felts,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stephen  S.  Steward,  and  Chaplain  T.  G. 
Steward  of  Nebraska. 

Reminiscences  and  jokes,  with  watermelon,  finished  the 
evening. 

Miss  Florence  Lee,  Miss  Edwina  Steward,  Mrs.  Alice  S. 
Felts  and  Mr.  G.  A.  Steward  proved  themselves  efficient  helpers 
for  the  occasion. 

157 


158  GOULDTOWN 


THE  GOULD   REUNION. 


One  hundred  and  thirty  took  dinner  at  the  Gould  family 
reunion  yesterday,  and  the  Gould  descendants  were  present 
from  the  surrounding  country,  from  Salem  County,  Camden 
County,  Philadelphia,  New  York,  Boston,  Atlantic  City,  Cape 
May,  Millville,  and  from  the  West. 

There  was  an  abundance  of  chicken  pot  pie,  fried  chicken, 
roast  meats,  etc.,  and  melons,  fruit,  grapes,  and  ice  cream,  and 
a  delightful  day  and  evening  were  spent.  Service  took  photo- 
graphs of  the  group. 


GOULDTOWN,  N.   J.,   ITEMS  OF  INTEREST. 

THE  REUNION   OF   THE  GOULD  FAMILY  A  GREAT  EVENT  ;  REV.  DR. 
T.  G.  STEWARD  THE  CENTRAL  FIGURE. 

GouLDTOwN,  N.  J.  (Special).  Rev.  T.  G.  Steward,  Chap- 
lain U.  S.  Army  and  son.  Captain  Frank  R.  Steward,  U.  S. 
Army,  attended  service  at  Trinity  (A.  M.  E.)  Church.  Rev. 
Mr.  Generette,  the  pastor,  preached. 

Rev.  Dr.  Steward  will  preach  to-morrow  to  the  young  men 
of  the  town  and  vicinity. 

The  great  family  reunion  of  the  Goulds  took  place  at  the 
old  homestead,  which  has  been  in  the  possession  of  this  family 
for  nearly  two  hundred  years,  inherited  from  Benjamin  and 
Ann  Gould,  of  which  Rev.  Dr.  Steward  is  a  descendant. 

Mrs.  Lydia  Sheppard,  who  is  ninety-five  years  of  age,  and 
Miss  Prudence  Gould,  are  the  only  two  living  who  are  the 
direct  descendants  of  the  above-named  couple.  Over  one 
hundred  and  seventy-five  were  present  at  the  reunion  and  of  this 
number  one  hundred  and  eighteen  were  direct  lineal  descendants 
of  the  Gould  family.  They  were  represented  by  families  as 
follows : 

Oliver  Gould  and  family,  Lydia  Sheppard  and  family, 
Tamson  Cuff  and  family,  Jane  Webster  and  family,  Abijah 
Gould  and  family,  Sarah  Lee  and  family,  Rebecca  Steward  and 
family,  Phoebe  Gould  and  family,  Clayton  Gould  and  family. 

It  was  a  day  of  rare  pleasure  and  the  event  was  greatly 


SOCIAL  LIFE  159 

enjojed  by  all.  The  most  amusing  feature  of  the  afternoon  was 
to  see  a  team  of  baseball  composed  of  young  ladies. 

As  a  whole  it  was  just  one  of  the  greatest  outings  the 
residents  here  have  ever  had.  Miss  Prudence  Gould  deserves 
much  credit  for  the  plans  of  this  happy  event,  at  the  close  of 
which  a  picture  of  all  was  taken,  as  a  group. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Rutledge  Miller,  of  Magnolia,  N.  J.,  were 
here  attending  the  reunion. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Howard  Gould,  of  Philadelphia,  attended 
services  at  Trinity,  Sunday  morning. 

Miss  Lucetta  Pierce,  who  has  been  for  sometime  teaching 
school  in  Somerville,  N.  J.,  will  at  the  opening  of  the  September 
term  teach  in  Atlantic  City,  N.  J.  She  is  spending  her  vacation 
with  her  mother,  Mrs.  Anna  Pierce. 


GOULD  FAMILY  EEUNITED. 

Bridgeton,  N.  J,,  August  17.  The  descendants  of  Benja- 
min Gould  are  holding  a  family  reunion  to-day  at  the  home  of 
Miss  Prudence  Gould,  near  here.  Among  the  descendants 
present  to-day  are  Bishop  Benjamin  F.  Lee  and  Chaplain 
Theophilus  G.  Steward,  of  the  U.  S.  A. 


PRETTY  WEDDING  OCCURRED  TO-DAY. 

A  very  pretty  wedding  ceremony  took  place  this  morning 
at  the  residence  of  Mrs.  Alice  S.  Felts,  No.  592  East  Commerce 
Street,  when  her  daughter,  Miss  Mary  Felts,  became  the  bride 
of  Charles  S.  Dixon,  of  Boston. 

The  ceremony  was  perfomned  by  the  Rev.  Theophilus  G. 
Steward,  U.  S.  A.,  an  uncle  of  the  bride,  and  the  beautiful  and 
impressive  ring  ceremony  was  used. 

The  parlors  were  crowded  by  a  company  of  guests,  con- 
sisting of  the  bride's  uncles,  aunts,  and  cousins,  of  Gouldtown. 

The  bride  was  gowned  in  a  gown  the  like  of  which  was  never 
seen  in  this  city  before,  doubtless.  It  was  of  the  famous  Philip- 
pine Jusi  cloth  (pronounced  Hoosie)  a  fine  silk.  It  was  the 
gift  of  her  uncle,  the  chaplain,  who  brought  it  from  the  Philip- 


160  GOULDTOWN 

pines.  It  was  very  beautiful,  and  she  carried  a  fan  of  sandal- 
wood, brought  by  her  cousin.  Captain  Frank  Steward,  from 
Japan. 

The  Mendelssohn  wedding  march  was  played  by  Miss 
Phoebe  Felts,  a  sister.  There  was  no  bridesmaid,  but  the 
groom's  father,  John  R.  Dixon,  of  Washington,  D.  C,  stood 
up  with  his  son. 

After  the  congratulations  were  over  a  very  elaborate 
wedding  breakfast  was  served. 

The  happy  couple  left  on  the  8.00  p.m.  train  for  Boston, 
where  they  will  reside. 

A  SOCIAL  STUDY. 

My  mother  belonged  to  a  family  of  seven  daughters  and 
two  sons,  all  of  whom,  excepting  herself,  lived  to  advanced  age. 
She  died  at  fifty-seven.  Two  of  her  sisters  are  still  living,  one 
having  celebrated  her  one-hundredth  birthday  October  24, 1909. 
The  other  never  married,  consequently,  her  age  is  untellable; 
but  I  am  sure  she  is  not  far  from  eighty.  She  has  never  be- 
come an  old  maid,  but  has  passed  her  life  in  deeds  of  kindness, 
and  is  beloved  by  all. 

Eight  of  the  family  married  and  together  have  had  forty- 
six  children,  about  equally  divided  between  girls  and  boys.  I 
have  the  names  of  all  of  them  before  me  as  I  write.  Forty-five 
of  these  children  reached  maturity,  only  one  dying  before  that 
period — a  girl  who  died  at  fifteen.  Two  young  men  of  them 
left  the  neighborhood  quite  early  in  life  and  became  lost  to 
their  relatives.  The  remaining  forty-three  are  accounted  for 
as  follows: 

Four  died  between  the  ages  of  thirty  and  forty  (women)  ; 
three  lost  their  lives  by  accident,  one  at  sixty-five,  one  at  sixty, 
and  one  in  his  twenties.  Two  died  between  forty  and  fifty; 
four  between  fifty  and  sixty ;  seven  between  sixty  and  seventy ; 
two  between  seventy  and  eighty,  and  twenty-one  are  still  living. 

Of  the  twenty-one  now  living  all  are  over  sixty  but  one; 
and  five  are  over  seventy.  Thus  we  have  a  case  where  eight 
families  had  forty-six  children,  an  average  of  nearly  six  to 


SOCIAL  LIFE  161 

the  family  and  reared  all  of  thera  to  maturity,  except  one  girl. 
Of  these  forty-six  persons,  thirty-one  of  them  have  lived  over 
sixty  years,  and,  up  to  the  present,  ten  have  passed  over  the 
seventieth  mark.  Not  one  of  the  forty-six  ever  became  rich, 
ever  became  a  drunkard,  or  a  criminal ;  and  no  one  ever  became 
a  pauper  or  a  beggar.  To  have  forty-six  children  and  rear 
forty-five  of  them  to  maturity  and  to  have  about  three-fourths 
of  them  (thirty-one)  to  pass  sixty  years  is  a  matter  of  no 
little  importance;  to  have  this  whole  body  never  cost  the  State 
a  penny  either  as  criminals  or  paupers  is  also  of  some 
consequence. 

Inquiring  into  the  conditions  surrounding  this  group,  the 
first  remark  to  be  made  is  that  all  the  families  were  poor;  but 
among  them  was  no  inherited  tendency  to  disease.  In  only  one 
family  was  there  the  slightest  weakness,  and  it  was  in  precisely 
this  family  that  the  premature  death  occurred,  and  that  three 
others  died  comparatively  young.  The  families  were  all  of 
sound  health  and  untainted  blood.  They  lived  in  thinly  built, 
cold  houses,  dressed  poorly,  ate  coarse  food,  the  meat  being 
chiefly  pork,  an  abundance  of  vegetables,  potatoes,  bread  and 
molasses,  with  plenty  of  fruit  in  season,  some  poultry,  fish,  and 
game.  They  knew  nothing  of  sanitation  or  hygiene;  the  boys 
did  rot  wear  overshoes  or  overcoats;  the  girls  wore  hoods  and 
shawls.  Woolen  underclothes  were  seldom  worn  by  the  boys. 
It  was  no  uncommon  thing  in  winter  to  find  snow  in  our  bed- 
rooms as  we  leaped  out  of  bed  shouting  and  ran  through  fireless 
rooms  and  down-stairs  for  our  jackets,  shoes,  and  stockings. 
If  asked  the  secret  of  our  power  of  resistance  I  should  answer 
thus :  first,  and  best,  we  had  honest  fathers  and  mothers,  who 
married  early  in  life,  and  gave  their  offspring  the  strength  of 
their  physical  and  moral  natures.  We  were  not  children  of 
broken-down  "  daddies."  Second,  we  were  allowed  to  eat  in 
the  most  natural  way — all  that  our  appetites  required.  We 
were  not  allowanced,  hectored,  nor  guided;  but  permitted  to 
obey  the  wisest  mother  of  all.  Nature,  within.  We  ate  by  in- 
stinct until  we  were  satisfied,  our  mothers  attending  only  to  our 
manners. 

So  much  for  the  physical.  But  our  social  life  has  also 
11 


162  GOULDTOW^ 

been  free.  We  have  kept  up  a  life  of  considerable  fun  and 
frolic;  and  have  not  sold  our  birthright  for  dollars  nor  fame. 
We  have  lived  close  to  nature.  To  us  plants  and  trees  have 
their  likes  and  dislikes ;  horses  and  cows  their  morals,  and  hens 
vary  from  suffragettes  to  queens. 

One  more  fact  I  must  state  about  these  forty-six  cousins, 
forty-five  of  whom  came  to  maturity  and  thirty-one  having 
passed  sixty,  a  fact  that  interferes  with  much  science  and 
philosophy  that  I  have  studied,  and  that  fact  is  this:  While 
all  these  people  are  truly  Americans  of  several  generations, 
they  are  all  of  mixed  European  and  African  descent — they  are 
all  colored  people. 

The  total  number  of  this  family  now  known  to  be  alive  is 
two  hundred  and  twenty-five. — Statement  written  by  Rev. 
T.  G.  Stewaed  in  1910. 

CHRISTMAS  ZVIEMORIES  AND  BEFLECTIONS. 

The  return  of  the  Christmas  season  calls  my  mind  back  to 
the  open  fireplaces,  sometimes  smoky ;  the  large  wood  stoves ; 
the  plain  chairs  and  settees  which  were  to  be  found  in  the  happy 
homes  of  my  childhood:  homes  varying  but  little  in  their 
material  outline  and  scarcely  at  all  in  their  coloring  of  spirit 
and  manner  of  expression.  Such  homes  were  plentiful  three- 
fourths  of  a  century  ago,  and  the  land  still  abounds  with  them. 

In  all  of  these  homes  of  my  childhood,  the  children  were 
cheerfully  welcomed  and  greeted  with  joyous  words  and  warm 
embraces.  There  were  no  carpets  too  good  for  them  to  walk 
on ;  no  chairs  too  rich  for  them  to  sit  on ;  no  curtains  or  linens 
too  fine  for  them  to  touch,  and  as  Christmas  approached,  the 
sphere  of  the  child's  liberty  greatly  expanded.  Stories  of 
Kris  Kringle  (not  Santa  Claus),  and  his  reindeer  and  sleigh- 
bells  were  told  to  us  by  Grandmother,  Aimt,  or  Mother,  just 
as  real  as  the  love  of  their  hearts  could  make  them. 

After  long  waiting  Christmas  eve  comes;  the  ground  is  all 
white  with  snow;  the  big  crockery  jars  are  well  filled  with 
doughnuts,  still  warm  from  the  frying  and  covered  down  with 
heavy,  clean  white  cloths  that  none  of  their  nectar  may  escape; 


Rev.  T.  G.  Steward,  D.D.,  Chaplain  U.  S.  Army,  Retired:  Professor  of  History,  Logic 
and  French,  Wiiberforce  University,  Ohio. 


SOCIAL  LIFE  163 

the  red  apples  are  snugly  hiding  away  in  their  comer  in  the 
cellar  'neath  their  blanket  of  salt  hay;  and  the  mince  pies 
are  serenely  cooling  on  the  swinging  shelf  while  distant  mice 
grind  their  teeth  with  rage.  Without  may  be  heard  the  ring 
of  the  sleigh-bells,  interrupted  occasionally  by  the  report  of  the 
overloaded  Christmas  gun. 

The  people  are  not  trying  to  be  happy;  still  less  were 
they  going  through  the  solemn  silly  farce  of  trying  to  make 
themselves  or  their  neighbors  believe  they  were  happy.  The 
joy-beams  on  their  faces  were  genuine  scintillations  from  bound- 
ing hearts.  Their  wants  were  few;  tastes  simple,  and  the 
slightest  manifestation  of  kindly  interest  met  with  liberal 
responses. 

Christmas  morning  dawns  with  its  breakfast  of  sausage 
and  straw-cake,  and  its  flourish  of  "  Christmas  presents,"  of 
so  little  cost  and  of  such  measureless  value.  Mother  gets  a 
warm  hood  from  laughing  daughters  who  slip  it  on  her  head; 
it  has  been  knit  by  their  own  hands  in  secret;  father  gets  a 
cap  with  heavy  ear  covers,  or  a  warm  neck  wrap ;  and  the 
little  boys  and  girls  (there  were  no  "  kids  "  in  our  home)  re- 
ceived their  presents  of  useful  things  silvered  over  with  toy 
candies.  Everywhere  on  older  faces  could  be  seen  the  reflected 
halo  of  a  childhood  past  blending  itself  with  the  effulgent  light 
of  the  reigning  hour. 

At  Christmas  time  the  Child  is  King,  and  little  ones  for  a 
moment  rise  to  a  kinship  with  the  divine. 

The  day  broadens  and  brightens ;  the  boys  go  gunning  or 
skating;  or  it  may  be  gather  around  the  stove,  crack  hickory 
nuts  and  walnuts,  while  girls  pop  corn  or  make  molasses  candy. 
The  dinner  just  grows  into  shape  amid  all  this  merriment,  and 
is  over,  the  scene  changes.  The  girls  bedeck  themselves  a  little 
moi*e ;  the  boys  depart  to  seek  other  homes.  "  Sis's  "  beau 
comes,  to  the  disgust  of  little  Johnny,  who  cannot  go  out  with 
his  big  brother.  To  Johnny,  who  does  not  see  any  sense  in 
"  Sis's "  having  a  beau,  this  halting  lump  of  sleek-headed 
adolescence  is  a  puzzle.  Mary  has  a  different  notion,  however, 
and   Christmas  night  is,  not  infrequently,  popping  question 


164  GOULDTOWN 

time.    Why  shouldn't  it  be?     It  is  the  symbolic  season  of  the 
union  between  Heaven  and  Earth,  "  a  time  of  love." 

As  the  panorama  of  my  childhood  Christmas  passes  before 
me  I  can  almost  hear  the  voices  commingling  from  old  age  to 
babbling  infancy  into  a  chord  as  uni-colored  as  the  green  that 
cheers  the  day,  proclaiming  in  tones  fountained  by  hearts 
divinely  touched :  "  Christmas  has  returned,  let  the  Heavens 
rejoice;  Christmas  has  returned,  let  the  Earth  be  glad."  And 
as  the  mantling  canopy  of  benevolence  extends  itself  from  the 
distant  past  covering  my  track  of  three  score  years  and  more, 
and  the  present  year  with  all  its  myriads  glides  under  its 
folds,  there  comes  to  me  the  sweet  murmurings  from  trustful 
humanity ;  "  God  is  love."  "  It  is  good  to  be  here."  Our 
tabernacle  is  already  builded,  and  we  dwell  with  Him  Imanuel. 
With  us  Christ  is  not  only  born  but  abides;  one  of  us,  one 
WITH  us,  through  the  possession  of  generations  in  their  career 
through  the  ages. 


TWO  NOTABLE  FAMILY  EVENTS:  GOLDEN  WEDDINGS  OF 
BROTHER  AND  SISTER. 

MR.    ELI    GOULD    AND    WIFE,    MARY   STEWARD    GOULD,    CELEBRATE 
FIFTIETH  WEDDING  ANNIVERSARY. 

Fifty  years  ago  last  Saturday,  Eli  Gould  and  Mary 
Steward  were  married  at  the  home  of  the  bride's  parents,  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  James  Steward,  at  the  Steward  Farm  on  the  Millville 
turnpike.  That  was  March  12,  1860.  Last  Saturday,  the 
fiftieth  anniversary  of  that  event — their  golden  wedding — was 
celebrated  at  their  home  on  Burlington  Avenue.  The  festivities 
were  from  three  until  eight  p.m.  Though  the  day  was  a  most 
inclement  one,  nearly  a  hundred  of  their  relatives  and  friends 
responded  to  the  invitation  to  make  merry  with  them  and  a 
very  enjoyable  gathering  it  was  made.  Besides  those  of  their 
friends  about  the  neighborhood,  there  were  guests  from  Salem, 
Millville,  Philadelphia,  and  elsewhere,  and  remembrances  from 
relatives  in  New  York  and  Boston. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Gould  both  trace  their  ancestry  back  to  the 


SOCIAL  LIFE  165 

earliest  Colonial  times,  and  have  always  resided  in  this  com- 
munity. The  Goulds  and  Pierces  practically  constitute  one 
family  and  the  gathering  on  Saturday  showed  a  good  many  of 
their  names.  There  was  an  abundance  of  good  cheer,  the  most 
"  spirited  "  of  which  was  plain  orangeade.  The  tables  were  set 
for  dinner  before  nightfall,  and  between  the  time  of  nine  o'clock, 
six  tables  of  about  sixteen  persons  each  were  served  with 
chicken  salad,  fried  oysters,  sandwiches,  oranges,  cakes,  Nea- 
politan ice  cream,  coffee  and  tea.  Very  nearly  one  hundred 
persons  were  served.  Principal  among  those  present  were  Dr. 
G.  T.  Watkins,  pastor  of  the  bride  and  groom,  Chaplain  T.  G. 
Steward,  brother  of  the  bride,  and  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee,  a  cousin 
of  the  bride,  and  the  bride's  only  two  living  aunts,  Mrs.  Lydia 
Sheppard  of  MiUville,  who  was  one  hundred  years  old  last 
October,  and  Miss  Prudence  F.  Gould,  Mrs.  Sheppard's  sister. 

Many  beautiful  presents  were  received  by  the  couple  in- 
cluding, in  part,  a  solid  gold  thimble  and  a  pair  of  solid  gold 
cuff-buttons  from  Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  P.  Almond,  of  Phila- 
delphia ;  a  five-dollar  gold  coin  from  Chaplain  Steward,  a  comb, 
handkerchiefs,  and  handkerchief  basket  from  Mrs.  Steward, 
eleven  $2.50  gold  coins  from  different  guests,  and  a  one-dollar 
gold  coin  from  Miss  Prudence  Gould,  currency  from  Mrs. 
Frank  Pierce,  Mrs.  Hattie  Pierce,  Mrs.  R.  M.  Seeley,  and 
others,  and  large  picture  in  gilt  from  Mrs.  Phoebe  White,  of 
Philadelphia,  and  berry  spoon,  cold-meat  fork,  gold-lined  ladles, 
glass  berry  dishes,  fruit  dishes,  celery  dishes,  cake  dishes,  bread 
plates  in  many  varieties,  rich  and  beautiful  table-cloths,  linen 
napkins,  water  pitcher,  Japanese  teapot  with  cream  pitcher 
and  sugar  bowl,  and  many  other  articles  and  "  gold  "  clock 
from  Mr.  Howard  Gould,  of  Philadelphia. 

The  table  was  decorated  with  gold  ribbons  extending  from 
an  artificial  lake  in  the  center  of  the  table  to  the  ceiling  of  the 
dining-room.  The  lake  was  surrounded  with  smilax  interspersed 
with  water  lilies,  and  in  its  center  were  two  columns  represented 
by  two  large  glass  vases  filled  with  daisies,  between  which  was 
suspended  a  large  gilt  "  50 " ;  about  the  lake  were  golden 
candlesticks,  altogether  making  a  very  pretty  effect.  The  lake 
itself  was  a  large  mirror  laid  upon  the  table.     As  the  guests 


166  GOULDTOWN 

entered  the  house  a  little  wedding  bell  was  pinned  on  each  one 
by  an  attendant. 

Among  those  present  were  Eli  Gould,  the  groom,  Mary 
Steward  Gould,  the  bride,  Dr.  George  T.  Watkins,  their  pastor. 
Chaplain  T.  G.  Steward,  L.  F.  Gould  and  wife,  Stephen  S. 
Steward  and  wife,  William  Steward  and  wife,  Mrs.  Alice  S. 
Felts,  brothers  and  sisters  of  the  bride;  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee, 
Eugene  Gould,  Miss  Mary  Gould,  Misses  Lizzie  and  Emma 
Stewart,  William  Cuff,  Mrs.  Mary  Pierce  and  Miss  Helen  Pierce 
of  Salem;  Mrs,  Lydia  Sheppard  and  son,  Thomas,  of  Millville, 
and  Mrs.  Sheppard's  granddaughter,  Mrs.  Lydia  Sheppard,  II, 
of  Haddonfield,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ernest  Sheppard  of  Millville, 
Mrs.  Alice  Almond  and  Mrs.  Phoebe  White  of  Philadelphia, 
Howard  Gould,  of  Philadelphia,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Joseph  B. 
Stewart,  James  Pierce  and  wife,  James  Wynder  and  wife, 
Murray  Wynder  and  wife,  William  B.  Gould  and  wife,  Mr.  and 
Mrs.  Harold  Pierce,  Mrs.  Harriet  Pierce,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Menon 
Gould,  Mrs.  Ephraim  Pierce,  Miss  Lizzie  Cato,  Miss  Prudence 
Gould,  Miss  Clara  Steward,  Miss  Madeline  Gould,  Mrs.  Ella 
Pierce,  Miss  Dora  Pierce,  Miss  Constance  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Frederick  Steward,  Miss  Edwina  Steward,  Mr.  and  Mrs* 
Leslie  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Edgar  Gould,  Mr.  Oscar  Pierce, 
Eli  Gould,  Jr.,  Miss  Inez  Gould,  Herschel  Gould,  Mrs.  Lizzie 
Gould,  Miss  Jeanette  Gould,  Miss  Marie  Gould,  Miss  Helen 
Gould,  Miss  Lucetta  Pierce,  Miss  Nellie  Goldsboro,  William 
Goldsboro,  Mrs.  Harriet  Goldsboro,  Mrs.  Mary  Chase  Beckett, 
of  Holmesburg,  Pa.,  Walter  Hubbard,  Samuel  Lively  and  wife, 
Miss  Maggie  Felts  and  some  others,  whose  names  were  not 
secured. 

Chaplain  Steward  in  an  address  said :  "  This  is  my  first 
opportunity  to  attend  a  golden  wedding  and  although  this  put 
me  to  considerable  trouble  and  expense,  I  could  not  afford  to 
miss  it.  There  are  in  this  community  four  or  five  other  people 
who  have  lived  out  their  half-century,  but  have  not  celebrated 
it.  Our  good  brother  and  sister  have  seen  fit  to  celebrate  theirs 
and  invite  us  to  join  them.  It  is  an  event  that  ought  to  be 
celebrated.  When  two  people  have  lived  together  fifty  years 
and  have  thus  set  an  example  for  the  stability  of  family  life. 


Mrs.  V\  rLLlAM  Steward. 


Jacob  Wright  and  Wife. 


SOCIAL  LIFE  167 

they  have  a  right  to  announce  the  fact  and  their  friends  do 
well  to  congratulate  them.  On  behalf  of  the  whole  community 
I  tender  to  this  couple  my  congratulations.  As  a  community 
we  are  not  speechmakers,  but  I  am  sure  we  can  all  join  in  the 
expression  of  our  high  appreciation  of  this  example  of  solid 
•family  life." 

With  some  other  pleasantries  he  concluded  his  address  with 
wishing  both  bride  and  groom  continued  health  and  prosperity. 

Mrs.  Gould  then  in  a  few  words  thanked  their  friends  for 
the  kind  response  to  their  invitations  and  also  for  their  gener- 
ous help  in  making  the  entertainment  so  successful. 

ANOTHER  GOLDEX  WEDDING !  MR.  AND  MRS.  WILLIAM 
STEWARD  MARRIED  FIFTY  YEARS. 

MANY  GUESTS  WERE  PRESENT  ;  HAPPY  OCCASION  AT  THEIR  HOME 

AT  EAST  BRIDGETON;  LARGE   NUMBER   OF   BEAUTIFUL  AND 

USEFUL    GIFTS    RECEIVED. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  William  Steward  celebrated  the  fiftieth 
anniversary  of  their  marriage  last  Saturday,  at  their  home  at 
East  Bridgeton.  The  exact  anniversary  occurred  last  Monday, 
but  as  a  matter  of  convenience  the  Golden  Wedding  was  held 
on  Saturday.  The  hours  were  from  three  to  ten  o'clock  and 
many  of  their  relatives  and  friends  called  during  that  time  to 
tender  their  congratulations  and  join  in  the  festivities  of  the 
occasion.  Among  the  guests  were  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eli  Gould, 
the  latter  Mr.  Steward's  sister,  who  celebrated  their  golden 
wedding  over  a  year  ago.  Mr.  Steward  has  two  brothers  and 
three  sisters,  the  youngest  or  "  baby  "  of  the  six  being  sixty- 
two  years  old.  The  house  was  decorated  with  flowers,  the  pro- 
fusion of  golden-glow  being  especially  appropriate  and  many 
crimson  ramblers  adding  their  beauty.  Music  was  furnished  at 
intervals  by  Misses  Phoebe  Felts,  Constance  Gould,  Mildred 
Pierce,  and  Harold  Pierce,  on  piano  and  violin,  and  there  was 
also  some  vocal  music.  A  collation  was  served  of  sandwiches, 
chicken  salad,  olives,  coffee,  NeapoHtan  block  ice  cream,  and 
cake.     An  elaborately  iced  wedding  cake  adorned  the  table. 


168  GOULDTOWN 

Many  beautiful  gifts  were  received.  Among  those  who 
sent  congratulations  and  remembrances  were  the  following: 
Mrs.  Sarah  Gould  and  Miss  Mary  Gould,  Dresden  celery  dish ; 
Rev.  and  Mrs.  M.  M.  Middleton,  salad  bowl;  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Reuben  Cuff,  gold  thimble  and  fountain  pen;  Miss  Edwina 
Steward,  salad  bowl;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  W.  W.  Hubbell,  of 
Brooklyn,  bonbon  dish;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ernest  Sheppard, 
Dresden  and  gold  mustard  cup ;  W.  L.  Evans,  salad  bowl ;  Mrs. 
Anna  and  Miss  Lucette  Pierce,  silver  cream  ladle ;  Mrs.  George 
F.  Bundy,  of  Philadelphia,  gold  belt  buckle;  Mrs.  Jane  C. 
Pierce,  gold-lined  bonbon  dish ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Charles  F.  Dixon, 
West  Somerville,  bonbon  spoon;  Captain  and  Mrs.  WiUiam 
Jerrell,  cut-glass  berry-bowl;  Miss  N.  P.  Elmer,  handkerchief 
box;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Walter  Durisoe,  of  Philadelphia,  bonbon 
plate;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Harold  Pierce,  drawn-work  centerpiece; 
Misses  Lizzie  and  Emma  Stewart,  embroidered  towel  and  watch 
fob ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Roy  Pierce,  tumblers ;  Miss  Albertine  Felts, 
Somerville,  Mass.,  congratulation  card;  Mrs.  Phoebe  White, 
Philadelphia,  gold  cuff-buttons,  Mrs.  Mary  Almond,  Philadel- 
phia, brooch;  Mrs.  J.  L.  Titus,  New  Brunswick,  cuff-buttons 
and  brooch;  Rev.  and  Mrs.  Theodore  Gould,  gold-lined  olive- 
spoon  ;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Calvin  Pierce,  berry  spoon ;  Mrs.  S.  Maria 
Steward,  M.D.,  of  Wilberforce,  Ohio,  three  handkerchiefs, 
collar,  and  gold  comb;  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Eli  Lee,  meat  fork,  Wil- 
liam A.  Cuff  and  family,  cuff-buttons ;  employees  of  the  Pioneer, 
gold-lined  table  spoons ;  Publisher,  gold  clock ;  Miss  Lizzie 
Cato,  gold-lined  teaspoons,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Belford  Pierce,  salad 
fork. 

Gold  and  silver  coin  and  notes:  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Edgar 
Gould,  Thomas  J.  Sheppard  and  family,  of  Millville;  Mrs. 
Alice  and  Miss  Agnes  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Warren  Pierce; 
Chaplain  T.  E.  Steward,  of  Wilberforce,  Ohio;  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Edward  Pierce,  of  Washington,  D.  C;  Stephen  S.  Steward, 
Mr.  and  Mrs.  Howard  W.  Jerrell,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Menon 
Gould,  Mrs.  Rebecca  and  Miss  Pierce,  of  Philadelphia;  Mr. 
and  Mrs.  Eli  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Leslie  Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Ambrose  Russell,  of  Pittsburgh;  Mrs.  Alice  S.  Felts  and 
family;  Miss  Ethel  M.  Pierce,  of  Longport;  Miss   Susanna 


SOCIAL  LIFE  169 

Pierce,  Mrs.  Lydia  Sheppard,  Mrs.  Hortense  Klose,  of  Phila- 
delphia; Mr.  and  Mrs.  James  R.  Pierce;  Miss  Prudence  F. 
Gould,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  B.  F.  Pierce. 

The  celebration  of  two  "  Golden  Weddings  "  in  the 
same  family,  as  were  the  two  which  have  been  here  re- 
lated, is  of  very  rare  occurrence ;  yet  in  Gouldtown  there 
have  been  several  golden  weddings  passed  without 
general  recognition.  Jacob  Wright  (whose  mother  was 
a  Pierce)  and  his  wife,  Anna  Gould  Wright,  passed 
their  sixty-ninth  wedding  anniversary. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

EDUCATIONAL  FACILITIES  OF  THE  NEIGHBORHOOD. 

In  the  colonial  times  in  which  the  early  population 
of  this  community  lived,  it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  the 
facilities  for  education  were  very  common.  The  people, 
however,  even  in  those  times,  endeavored  to  give  their 
offspring  the  rudiments  of  learning.  They  were  mostly 
taught  to  read  and  to  write,  with  some  idea  of  calcula- 
tion. The  Presbyterians  connected  with  the  "  Old  Stone 
Church  "  in  Fairfield,  then  generally  called  New  Eng- 
landtown,  took  active  interest  in  giving  aid  to  schooling 
the  children  throughout  Fairfield  township,  in  which 
Gouldtown  was  situated.  At  a  very  early  day  a  school- 
house  was  erected  on  property  belonging  to  a  Hosea 
Shaw  on  the  road  leading  "  from  Gouldtown  to  Bum- 
bridge,"  where  a  pay  school  was  kept,  for  many  j^ears, 
previous  to  1800. 

Here  the  early  Goulds,  Pierces,  and  Murrays,  to- 
gether with  the  Westcotts,  Batemans,  Fullers,  and 
others  got  their  schooling.  This  schoolhouse  was  about 
a  mile  from  the  residence  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st. 
About  two  and  a  half  miles  northward  from  this  ancient 
Gouldtown  schoolhouse  was  another  called  the  Lummis 
schoolhouse.  Here  the  Lummises,  Bowens,  Woodruffs, 
Parvins,  and  Garrisons  went  to  school,  but  the  school- 
house  that  those  from  Gouldtown  and  others  nearer 
"  Bumbridge  "  attended  was  the  one  standing  on  the 
Shaw  property.  Who  or  of  what  character  the  teachers 
were  who  taught  here  has  not  been  recorded.  In  1807, 
on  January  8th,  Hosea  Shaw  and  Rachel,  his  wife,  made 
a  deed  for  the  "  School  house  and  lot  of  land"  (the 
metes    and    bounds    being    given),    "containing    one 

170 


EDUCATIONAL  171 

hundred  and  thirty-five  square  perches  "  to  "  Robert 
Hood,  James  Hood,  James  Westcott,  Peter  Sleesman, 
Robert  McGee,  and  Ephraim  McGee,  for  the  sum  of 
One  Dollar."  The  deed  does  not  say  that  the  school- 
house  and  lot  sold  to  those  men  was  for  school  purposes, 
but  it  seems  to  be  self-evident  that  they  were  trustees 
of  the  school.  The  deed  simply  conveys  the  property  to 
them  and  their  heirs  and  assigns,  but  the  consideration 
being  but  One  Dollar  is  proof  it  was  not  for  their  own! 
personal  use. 

Robert  Hood  resided  on  the  farm  on  Reeves  Road 
now  owned  by  the  brothers  Servais,  and  Peter  Sleesman 
resided  on  the  farm  about  a  quarter  of  a  mile  north  of 
the  present  Gouldtown  church,  lately  owned  by 
Nathanial  H.  Atkinson.  James  Hood  probably  resided 
with  Robert  Hood,  but  later  moved  into  Bridgeton. 
Peter  Sleesman  afterward  moved  into  Bridgeton  also, 
and  by  his  will  left  one  thousand  dollars  for  the  schools 
of  Bridgeton;  the  sum  being  still  invested  and  the 
interest  paid  to  the  school  fund  of  Bridgeton.  West- 
cott, and  the  McGees,  resided  near  Fairton. 

In  1809  Isaac  W.  Crane,  a  young  and  brilliant  but 
later  rather  eccentric  lawyer,  came  from  Salem  and 
settled  in  Bridgeton,  where  he  practised  law  for  thirty 
years ;  during  this  time  he  found  leisure  to  teach  school 
in  this  schoolhouse  where  the  Goulds  attended.  He  was 
a  tall,  fine-looking  man  and  was  always  called  "  Law- 
yer "  Crane.  When  teaching  school  he  endeavored  to 
get  the  Goulds  to  make  suit  for  what  he  alleged  to  be, 
by  right,  their  inlieritance  in  the  Fenwick  and  Adams 
estates,  but  they  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  the 
proposition. 

The  Academy  on  Bank  Street,  Bridgeton,  was 
erected  in  1795-1797  and  incorporated  by  a  joint  stock 
company.     The  names  of  the  stockholders  and  incor- 


172  GOULDTOWN 

porators,  which  were  those  of  the  best  and  most  promi- 
nent citizens  of  the  town,  are  recorded  with  the  articles 
of  incorporation  in  the  Cumberland  County  Clerk's 
office,  dated  in  1797.  So  liberal  were  the  incorporators 
with  their  educational  facihties  that  a  number  of  the 
young  men  of  Gouldtown  attended  school  there  in  the 
years  following,  and  long  before  the  building  of  the 
Bank  Street  public  schoolhouse ;  among  those  so  attend- 
ing from  Gouldtown  were  Enoch  Gould,  who  became  a 
carpenter  and  builder,  Abijah  Gould  (3rd),  James 
Steward,  Freeman  Gould,  Anthony  Gould  (2nd)  and 
others.^" 

As  was  previously  stated,  the  Gouldtown  school  was 
under  the  moral  direction  of  Presbyterians;  the  old 
Gouldtowners  being  inclined  to  that  denomination  and 
attended  the  "  Old  Stone  Church."  The  old  women  of 
the  locality  have  many  a  time  related  how  they  walked 

"The  Bank  Street  Academy  was  built  jointly  by  individual  stock- 
holders and  Brearly  Lodge  No.  9,  A.  F.  &  A.  M.  under  the  following 
ancient  agreement,  made  one  hundred  and  twenty  years  ago  in  February, 
nineteen  hundred  and  thirteen,  on  file  in  the  County  Clerk's  Office  of 
Cumberland  County: 

"Memohandum  of  an  agreement  entered  into  and  agreed  upon  by  each 
and  every  of  the  subscribers  each  one  severally  and  individually  of  the  one 
part  with  the  others  jointly  of  the  other  part,  as  followeth,  viz.: 

"1.  It  is  mutually  agreed  that  the  subscribers  hereto  shall  form 
themselves  into  a  society  for  the  promotion  of  Literature  agreeably  to  an 
act  of  the  Legislature  in  such  case  made  and  provided. 

"2.  In  order  to  carry  the  designs  of  this  institution  in  full  and  com- 
plete effect,  it  is  agreed  that  suitable  buildings  for  the  reception  of 
scholars   be   immediately  erected. 

"3.  Whereas,  the  members  of  Brearly  Lodge  No.  9  have  proposed 
and  made  the  following  offer,  to  wit:  That  they  will  be  at  the  one-third 
part  of  the  whole  expense  of  erecting  and  enclosing  a  building  of  forty 
feet  by  twenty-two,  two  stories  high,  with  a  cellar  under  the  same  and  two 
chimneys  and  two  floors  laid,  and  in  the  same  proportion  to  bear  the 
expense  of  painting  the  outside  and  the  putting  up  of  a  lightning  rod, 
and  of  enclosing  the  lot,  and  of  paying  and  bearing  in  the  same  proportion 
in  all  needful  and  necessary  repairs  to  the  said  building  which  may  here- 


Absalom  Wilson,  School  Teacher. 


Gouldtown  School  House. 


EDUCATIONAL  173 

the  long  distance  on  Sundays  from  Gouldtown  to  that 
church,  when  they  were  young.  For  better  accommoda- 
tion, a  small  frame  church  (also  used  for  a  school)  was 
built  northward  of  Gouldtown,  before  alluded  to  as  the 
Lummis  schoolhouse,  on  the  road  leading  from  Gould- 
town to  Deerfield  at  the  intersection  of  what  is  now  the 
road  to  Carmel.  Becoming  dissatisfied  with  the  arrange- 
ment, the  people  of  Gouldtown  in  1823  purchased  the 
Westcott  school  building,  at  the  same  time  securing  the 
lot  where  the  Gouldtown  schoolhouse  is  now  located, 
and  moved  the  building  upon  it. 

This  lot,  comprising  one  acre,  belonged  to  the  estate 
of  Elisha  Gould,  youngest  son  of  Benjamin  Gould,  1st, 
and  in  the  division  of  his  estate  was  a  part  set  off  to. 
Lydia,  his  daughter.  She  had  married  Archibald  Cuff, 
and,  for  the  sum  of  four  dollars,  they  made  a  deed  dated 
March  13,  1823,  to  Anthony  Pierce,  2nd,  Jesse  Gould, 

after  arise — the  windows  in  the  lower  story  excepted — and  also  to  make  the 
stairway  out  of  the  lower  story  to  the  upper  at  their  sole  and  entire 
expense; 

"  And  wheeeas  the  said  proposal  will  not  only  lessen  the  expense  of 
erecting  said  building  on  the  part  of  the  subscribers  but  will  add  ornament 
and  beauty  to  the  same,  it  is  hereby  agreed  that  the  same  be  accepted. 

"4.  That  the  said  building  be  erected  on  a  lot  given  by  John  Moore 
White,  Esq.,  for  the  purpose,  and  that  the  lower  story  of  the  house  be 
appropriated  to  the  use  of  a  school  or  other  purposes  as  the  majority  of 
the  subscribers  present  at  their  stated  meetings  shall  agree,  except  the 
entry  which  shall  be  for  the  joint  use  of  the  subscribers  and  the  members  of 
the  said  Lodge;  that  the  subscribers  sheill  occupy  the  whole  cellar  except 
that  part  which  shall  be  under  the  library  room,  and  that  the  members 
of  said  Lodge  shall,  at  all  times  and  forever  hereafter,  have  the  sole  use 
and  occupation  of  the  upper  story  upon  the  terms  and  conditions  afore- 
said, and  it  is  hereby  understood  and  agreed  that  each  party  shall  be  at 
the  expense  of  completing  and  finishing  the  stairs  by  them  respectively  to 
be  occupied  at  their  own  expense,  except  as  is  before  excepted. 

"6.  The  costs  and  expenses  of  building  and  finishing  said  house  on 
the  part  of  the  subscribers  hereto  shall  be  divided  into  one  hundred  equal 
shares  or  parts  and  each  subscriber  to  pay  in  proportion  to  the  number  of 
shares  he  subscribes. 


174  GOULDTOWN 

Reuben  Pierce  (son  of  Anthony),  Elijah  Gould  (son 
of  Elisha) ,  and  Daniel  Siro,  Trustees,  to  them  and  their 
successors  in  office,  for  school  purposes.  On  this  spot 
the  school  of  Gouldtown  has  ever  since  been. 

In  this  schoolhouse  many  teachers  have  taught  school. 
Among  them  were  Jeremiah  Sayre,  Nathaniel  Bateman 
of  Fairfield,  Josiah  Bennett  of  Fairton ;  Jeremiah  Carll, 
Hiram  Carll  from  Deerfield;  three  of  the  daughters  of 
Benjamin  Gould  (2nd),  one  of  whom,  Miss  Prudence 
Gould,  is  still  living.  Absalom  Wilson  of  Salem,  his 
brother  Charles  Wilson,  and  still  another  brother 
Reuben,  and  David  CufF — all  of  Salem.  Horace 
Bishop  of  Herring  Row,  who  was  a  favorite  teacher  of 
that  generation ;  Seth  Husted,  Albino  Davis,  and  James 
Barrett  of  Shiloh, — all  these  taught  in  the  little  old  one- 
story  schoolhouse;  Benjamin  T.  Bright  and  B.  W. 
Rogers  were  the  last  who  taught  in  it.    Since  then  the 

"  6.  That  if  the  whole  number  of  shares  are  not  subscribed  by  the 
third  day  of  March  next  that  then  and  in  such  case  the  unsubscribed  shares 
shall  be  divided  into  as  many  shares  as  are  subscribed  and  each  subscriber 
shall  take  the  residue  in  proportion  to  the  shares  by  him  subscribed. 

"  7.  That  on  the  said  third  day  of  March  the  subscribers  shall  meet 
at  the  new  store  house,  opposite  the  store  of  Seeley  and  Merseilles,  at  six 
o'clock  in  the  afternoon  of  said  day  and  appoint  a  committee  who  shall 
have  full  power  and  authority  to  erect  and  build  said  house  in  conjunction 
with  a  committee  to  be  appointed  by  the  Lodge  upon  the  terms  and  condi- 
tions aforesaid,  and  for  that  purpose  the  said  committee  are  hereby 
authorized  to  make  contracts  and  do  all  needful  and  necessary  things  for 
the  purposes  contemplatetl  by  the  subscribers  hereto;  to  receive  all  moneys 
which  may  be  subscribed  and  pay  out  the  same  as  occasion  may  require, 
and  that  it  is  the  meaning  of  the  subscribers  that  the  said  committee  pro- 
ceed to  complete  the  building  in  such  manner  as  they  shall  think  best  for 
the  interest  and  advantage  of  the  subscribers  and  without  any  further 
meeting  of  the  said  subscribers  unless  a  majority  of  said  committee  deem 
it  proper  and  call  a  meeting  accordingly. 

"9.  That    no    subscriber    shall    transfer    any    of    the    shares    by    him 
subscribed  until  all  shares  are  subscribed. 

"  10.  That  all  persons  holding  a  share  or  shares  by  transfer  shall  be 
entitled  to  the  same  privileges  as  the  original  subscribers  have  and  enjoy. 


EDUCATIONAL 


175 


teachers  have  been  many;  instead  of  one  there  have  been 
two,  one  down-stairs  and  one  up-stairs.  The  old  Board 
of  three  or  five  ti-ustees  has  been  legislated  out  of  office, 
the  schools  being  now  school  district  No.  1,  under  the 
Fairfield  Township  school  board,  with  always  one  or 
two  members  from  Gouldtown  on  it. 


A  TEACHER  FOURTEEN  YEARS. 

RECOLLECTIONS  OF  GOULDTOWX  AND  VICINITY  IN  FOURTEEN 

YEARS. 

The  writer,  B.  W.  Rogers,  was  called  upon  about  the  year 
1866,  by  Mr.  Benjamin  Bright,  to  finish  out  his  term  as 
teacher  in  the  Gouldtown  school,  as  Mr.  Bright  wanted  to  start 
a  grocery  store  on  Commerce  Street  near  the  bridge.  It  was 
a  new  business  to  me,  teaching  school,  and  Mr.  Bright  had  to 
do  some  coaxing  to  get  me  to  go,  but  I  soon  became  so  well 

"  11.  That  the  subscribers  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  in  proportion  to  the 
number  of  shares  they  hold  at  the  time  of  voting. 

"  12,  That  each  subscriber  shall  pay  on  each  share  by  him  subscribed 
the  sum  of  Four  Dollars  on  the  first  day  of  April  next  and  the  sum  of 
Three  Dollars  on  the  first  day  of  June  following  and  the  remainder,  if  any, 
as  soon  as  called  for  after  the  house  is  completed. 

"Done  at  Bridgeton,  February  21st,  1797." 

The  subscribers,  whose  names   are  recorded,  were: 


JoHK  Moore  White 
DAvro   Seeley 
Enoch    Book 
Enos   Johnson 
Ebenezer  Seeiey 
Abraham  Satre 
Zachariah  Lawrence 
Jonas  Keen 
Jeremiah  Buck 
Reuben  Burgin 
Robert  Smith 
Smith  Bowen 
Joseph  High 


Eden  Merseilles 
Jajees  Burch 
Abel  Corson 
Jonathan  Holmes 
John  Pierson 
Mark  Riley 
Reuben  Pierson 
Davto  Potter,  Jr. 
John  Brown 
John  Mulford 
James  Giles 
Josiah  Parvin 
Benj.  Champneys 


Charles  Howell 
Abel  Randolph 
Clarence  Mulford 
Mosheck  Sapp 
Ephraim  Seeley 
Manoah  Lummis 
Nathan  Middleton 
Eli  Elaier 
John  Woodruff 
Walter  Robinson 
Joel  Zapp 
John  Irelan 


The  entire  100  shares  were  subscribed  by  them. 


176  GOULDTOWN 

pleased  with  the  job  that,  with  the  exception  of  two  winter  terms 
which  I  taught  at  the  Loder  School,  I  remained  at  the  Gould- 
town  School  nearly  fourteen  years. 

The  old  schoolhouse  was  one  story  and  no  vestibule,  and 
very  annoying  it  was  if  children  came  late,  when  removing 
their  wraps  and  putting  up  their  dinner  kettles  in  the  school- 
room. It  was  hard  on  the  teacher;  and  besides  there  were  no 
grades ;  aU  in  the  same  room  from  o  fe  c  up  to  algebra ;  but  I 
got  along  and  the  children  liked  me  and  I  liked  them. 

The  opening  exercises  consisted  of  singing,  reading  a 
chapter  in  the  Bible,  and  most  of  the  time  I  had  an  organ  to 
help  with  the  music,  and  it  gave  pleasure  all  around;  and  I 
must  say  that  these  years  of  schoolteaching  were  the  happiest 
in  my  life.  There  were  many  things  very  unpleasant  for  the 
teacher,  of  course,  but  my  heart  was  in  the  work,  and  besides 
I  had  a  good  set  of  trustees  who  stood  by  me  and  they  saw  I 
was  trying  to  do  my  very  best  to  get  the  children  to  learn; 
if  any  were  unruly  and  had  to  be  corrected,  and  the  parents 
complained  to  the  trustees,  they  passed  it  by, — knowing  as  they 
did,  that  in  nine  cases  out  of  ten  the  correction  was  proper.  I 
shall  always  think  kindly  and  have  respect  for  the  memory  of 
these  men;  Mr.  Abijah  Gould,  Mr.  Andrew  Gould,  and  Mr. 
Holmes  Pierce  who  were  trustees  most  of  the  time. 

About  the  year  1871  or  1872  the  city  of  Bridgeton  was 
induced  to  give  five  hundred  dollars,  and  Fairfield  township  to 
give  a  like  amount,  and  they  employed  Mr.  Enoch  Gould  to 
remodel  the  old  schoolhouse,  put  on  another  story  and  eight 
feet  in  front  for  a  vestibule.  Mr.  Gould  did  a  good  job  and 
anyone  else  would  have  charged  at  least  twelve  hundred  or 
fifteen  hundred  dollars. 

Mr.  Enoch  Gould  could  do  more  work  in  one  day  than  any 
man  in  Gouldtown,  and  it  is  said  that  he  was  known  to  walk 
two  or  three  miles  out,  when  he  had  no  carpenter  work  in 
winter  and  cut  his  two  or  three  cords  of  wood  per  day;  Mr. 
Gould  was  about  one-quarter  Indian.  It  is  said  that  he  was  a 
hustler  at  anything  he  went  at.  He  raised  quite  a  family  and 
lived  near  the  schoolhouse.  All  his  children  were  well-behaved 
and  they  had  a  good  mother  to  instruct  them,  and  what  I  say 


Bextlev  W.  Rogers,  School  Teacher,  and  Retired  Capitalist. 


Horace  Bishop,  School  Teacher. 


EDUCATIONAL  177 

of  this  family  I  can  truthfully  say  of  many  other  families  in 
Gouldtown — they  were  God-fearing  and  honest  in  their  deal- 
ings and  transactions,  and  remarkable  for  their  hospitality. 
One  winter  I  taught  a  singing-school,  and  on  Thursday  evening 
did  not  go  home,  but  stayed  with  some  near-by  family  to  supper, 
and  the  invitations  were  two  and  three  weeks  ahead  for  me  to 
take  supper  at  their  house — I  shall  never  forget  their  kindness 
of  heart. 

In  looking  back  some  thirty-five  years,  I  can  tell  of  some 
very  severe  winters  and  the  snow  and  ice  and  difficulty  of  getting 
to  and  from  school.  One  winter  I  remember  was  an  icy  one 
and  the  boys  would  skate  along  the  pike  just  as  on  a  mill-pond; 
I  was  overturned  in  my  sleigh  once  going  to  school,  and  my 
dinner  spilled  out  in  the  snow.  Once  the  old  schoolhouse  got  on 
fire  and  such  a  scampering  to  get  out  you  never  saw!  It  was 
in  the  roof,  and  was  soon  put  out  with  a  few  buckets  of  water. 
If  the  many  born  and  raised  in  Gouldtown  could  be  brought 
back  again,  the  population  of  the  place  would  amount  to 
twenty  or  thirty  thousand,  for  go  whore  you  wiU,  you  can 
always  find  someone  raised  in  Gouldtown. 

Yes,  they  were  happy  times  and  I  wish  I  could  have  them 
over  again;  but  it  cannot  be,  and  sooner  or  later  I  too  shall 
be  gone  to  the  "  Land  beyond  the  River  "  to  j  oin  the  loved 
ones  gone  before. 

I  must  not  forget  to  mention  my  good  wife  and  the  service 
she  rendered  in  hearing  the  younger  ones  recite  in  their  classes, 
and  if  she  was  absent,  then  I  had  the  assistance  of  some  of  the 
older  scholars  and  to  them  I  was  greatly  indebted.  Some  of 
the  names  I  recall  were  Mary  Pierce,  Mary  Gould,  Josephine 
Gould,  Miss  Pierce,  daughter  of  Mrs.  Phoebe  Pierce,  and  others. 
I  may  also  mention  the  fact  that  during  the  fourteen  years 
I  got  up  fourteen  exhibitions  and  every  one  was  a  success.  The 
money  received  from  two  of  them  was  used  for  a  library.  Any- 
one familiar  with  the  vast  amount  of  work  getting  up  an 
exhibition  must  realize  that  my  heart  was  in  the  work,  and  that 
it  was  one  of  the  bright  spots  in  my  life.  I  must  give  due 
credit  to  the  scholars:  some  in  particular  like  Rev.  Isaac 
Showel,  Rev.  Alex.  Pierce,  Holmes  Pierce,  Jr.,  Paul  Gould, 
12 


178  GOULDTOWN 

Josephine  Grould,  Mary  Gould,  Anna  Gould,  Hannah  Gould, 
Dorothy  Gould,  Anson  Gould,  Samuel  Gould,  Harriet  Gould, 
and  others ;  I  cannot  recall  their  names  now. 

Favorable  mention  should  be  made  of  the  distinguished 
talent  turned  out  from  Gouldtown,  such  as  Bishop  Lee,  Chap- 
lain Steward,  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  Dr.  Jesse  Gould,  Rev. 
Jeremiah  Pierce,  Rev.  Isaac  Showel,  Rev.  Alex.  Pierce,  and  a 
few  other  names  not  recalled. 

The  natural  soil  of  the  place  is  first  class  for  crops  of  any 
kind,  and  the  climate  is  delightful. 

Respectfully,  B.  W.  Rogers. 

Mr.  Rogers  is  a  retired  capitalist  of  ample  fortune, 
and  wealthy  at  the  time  of  teaching  school,  as  he  has 
described;  his  wife,  who  assisted  him,  was  a  woman  of 
culture;  and  Benjamin  Bright,  whom  he  succeeded,  was 
a  man  of  some  wealth  also,  his  father  having  left  him  an 
estate  of  eighty  thousand  dollars.  He  was  for  many 
years  an  active  and  energetic  member  of  the  Bridgeton 
Board  of  Education  and  a  prominent  citizen.  He  is  now 
deceased. 

Those  school  teachers  did  not  receive  the  almost 
princely  (in  comparison)  salaries  now  paid  to  in- 
structors, even  in  the  rural  districts.  Captain  Jeremiah 
Carll,  who  was  captain  of  a  sloop  in  summer  months, 
walked  to  and  from  the  school,  a  distance  of  five  miles 
daily,  kept  school  from  eight  o'clock  in  the  morning 
until  four  o'clock  in  the  afternoon,  with  one  hour  inter- 
mission at  noon,  and  for  this  service  he  received  about 
thirty-five  dollars  a  month.  School  was  also  kept  every 
other  Saturday,  but  on  those  Saturdays  it  "  let  out "  a 
half  hour  earlier  at  night.  Albino  Davis  walked  from  his 
home  in  Shiloh — three  miles  west  of  Bridgeton — ^to 
Gouldtovm — a  full  five  and  a  half  miles,  and  taught 
school  the  same  number  of  hours  daily,  and  received  the 
same  pay.    Horace  Bishop  taught  many  winters.    He 


EDUCATIONAL  179 

was  the  beloved  teacher  of  those  who  attended  the 
Gouldtown  school  sixty  years  ago ;  he  drove  a  horse  and 
sulky,  sometimes  a  buggy,  from  his  home  in  Herring 
Row,  two  miles  below  Fairton,  and  he  got  no  more 
salary  than  the  others.  Absalom  Wilson  and  several 
others  boarded  in  the  neighborhood. 

There  were  singing-schools  also  in  those  days.  The 
first  teacher  of  "  singing  by  note  "  in  Gouldtown  was 
Alphonso  Sumner,  a  colored  barber.  He  would  walk 
from  Bridgeton  to  the  home  of  James  Steward,  and  here 
he  would  meet  a  class  of  children  and  young  people,  and 
put  them  through  the  do-re-mi,  the  breves  and  semi- 
breves,  the  "  Scotland's  Burning,"  the  crescendo  and 
diminuendo  to  the  fullest  extent.  He  was  a  good 
teacher  of  the  rudiments  of  music.  Professor  CoUister 
Morton,  a  peripatetic  music-teacher,  who  had  a  circuit 
of  singing-schools  from  Cedarville  to  Deerfield,  gave  one 
night  a  week  to  a  Gouldtown  class,  who  were  as  much 
delighted  to  hear  his  "  fiddle  "  lead  the  strains  and  give 
the  pitch  as  they  were  to  learn  music  from  his  teaching. 

There  was  no  choir  in  the  Gouldtown  church  until 
after  the  erection  of  the  new  church  in  1860;  since  then 
they  have  always  had  a  choir,  with  organ,  in  both  the 
church  and  the  Sunday-school;  and  there  have  been 
graduates  from  the  Gouldtown  school  attending  the 
South  Jersey  Institute,  in  both  voice  culture  and  instru- 
mental music.  There  are  now  good  pianists  and  violin- 
ists, as  well  as  good  singers,  among  the  Gouldtown 
people.  The  first  female  schoolteacher  in  Gouldtown 
was  Mrs.  Sarah  Lee,  mother  of  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee.  Then 
her  sister,  Mrs.  Rebecca  Steward,  taught  one  or  two 
summers.  Then  Miss  Prudence  Gould,  another  sister. 
Mrs.  Enoch  Gould  kept  the  school  one  or  two  summers. 
Miss  Anna  Hoover,  of  MillvHle,  and  Miss  Emma  Sink, 
of  Fairton,  were  also  teachers  several  summers. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

SOME  LITERARY  EFFORTS  OF  GOULDTOWN  YOUTH  THIRTY" 
AND  FIFTY  YEARS  AGO. 

These  are  offered — ^not  because  of  their  merit — to 
indicate  a  literary  taste  in  the  community.  It  is  thought, 
however,  that  these  examples  are  not  altogether  without 
merit.  They  could  be  increased  by  many  such  speci- 
mens which  are  to  be  found  in  the  neighborhood. 

The  chapters  which  follow  are  taken  at  random, 
from  a  story  written  and  published  in  a  newspaper  many 
years  ago,  and  indicate  clearly  the  habit  and  thought  of 
this  community  two  or  three  generations  earlier.  The 
people  at  that  time  had  very  pronounced  notions  of 
propriety,  morality,  religion;  and  were  independent 
though  considerate  to  others,  in  expressing  and  impress- 
ing their  own  opinions  and  predilections.  It  may  be 
said  here,  that  the  hero  of  the  story  was  Hezekiah  Gould, 
the  son  of  Jesse  Gould,  the  carpenter  and  housebuilder. 
Hezekiah  learned  the  trade  with  his  father,  but  he  was 
a  very  energetic  and  ambitious  youth,  with  a  positive 
genius  for  mechanical  investigation.  After  completing 
his  trade  he  became  a  machinist  and  ranked  with  the  best 
in  the  city  of  Bridgeton  in  this  trade.  His  career  has 
been  before  mentioned.  The  heroine  was  the  girl  he 
married.  Both  were  mulattoes,  but  were  pictured  as 
black  (for  obvious  reasons  at  that  time)  by  the  author. 

JOHN  BLYE:  OR  TRIALS  AND  TRIUMPHS  OF  A 
WHITEWASHER'S  SON. 

By  "Will,"  Author  of  "The  Gem  of  the  AUey,"  etc. 

After  supper  the  family,  with  their  guests,  returned  to  the 
parlor.     The  old  folks — that  is,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Blye  and  Mrs. 
Voulons — entered  into  a  general  conversation,  which  dwindled 
180 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  181 

down  to  personal  reminiscences.  Mrs.  Voulons  informed  her 
host  and  hostess  that  she  was  a  Pennsylvanian  by  birth  and 
ancestry — that  her  progenitors  had  lived  among  the  quiet 
Quakers  for  several  generations,  but  that  her  husband  was  a 
West  Indian  of  French  extraction. 

Somehow  or  other  young  folks  will  get  together,  no  matter 
how  bashful  they  are,  and  by  this  time  John  was  getting  along 
first  rate  with  Miss  Eteline ;  and  though  they  sat  a  little  apart 
from  the  old  folks,  they  were  quite  close  together  themselves — 
possibly  so  that  the  noise  of  their  conversation  might  not  dis- 
turb their  parents — and  laughing  and  chatting  like  old  school 
mates. 

"  Please  don't  call  me  '  Mr.,'  just  call  me  *  John.'  " 

"  Well,  '  John,'  then,"  said  Eteline,  "  are  you  fond  of 
music.''  " 

"  Yes,  I  am  very  fond  of  vocal  music." 

"  Do  you  sing.''  " 

"  Oh,  no,  indeed.     I  wish  I  could !  " 

"  But  you  play,  I  suppose.''  " 

"  Not  well,  I  have  taken  some  lessons  on  the  piano,  but  you 
know  you  can't  have  the  advantages  of  professional  teachers 
here  that  people  in  the  large  cities  have." 

"  Your  instrument  is  a  very  nice  one." 

"Yes;  won't  you  favor  us  with  a  song.''" 

"  Oh,  my ! "  smiling  archly,  "  I  am  an  Episcopalian,  and 
the  songs  I  would  sing  might  be  too  naughty  for  Methodist 
ears." 

"  If  you  are  a  Christian  you  will  not  sing  what  you  ought 
not  to  sing,"  said  John,  gravely. 

"  There,  now,  I  did  not  mean  to  wound  you  with  my  leArity. 
Of  course  I  am  a  Christian — a  member  of  the  High  Church. 
But  which  is  your  church.''  " 

"  We  are  Methodists,"  said  John. 

"  Then  I'U  have  a  chance  to  go  to  a  new  church.  Will  you 
have  time  to  show  me  around  town  any  while  we  are  here?  '* 

"  I  will  try  to.  The  evenings  are  moonlight  now,  and  per- 
haps you  and  your  mamma  would  like  to  visit  the  iron  works 
and  the  glass  works  in  the  evening.    We  often  go  and  look  in 


182  GOULDTOWN 

on  them.  It  is  a  very  pretty  sight  to  see  the  red,  molten 
iron,  and  the  sparks  flying  and  the  great  engines  puffing  and 
wheezing ;  and  at  the  .glass  works  to  see  the  red  globes  of  glass 
being  blown  out  into  large  cylinders  for  window  panes,  or 
dropped  into  the  moulds  and  blown  out  into  jars,  bottles, 
goblets,  etc." 

"  Oh,  yes,  I  would  like  to  go.  I  am  fond  of  moonlight 
walks  anyhow.    Do  you  have  any  parties  or  social  gatherings  ?  " 

"  Not  much.  There  are  but  few  colored  families  in  this 
town,  and  they  are  mostly  poor,  hard  working  people,  and 
have  but  little  time  for  recreation." 

"  What  do  you  do  then — just  go  to  workshops  days  and  to 
prayer-meetings    evenings,   eh.^ " 

"  We  don't  have  theatres  and  operas  as  you  do  in  the  city, 
so  we  take  up  the  time  in  reading  and  studying." 

"  Oh,  now  you  are  chiding  our  city  doings.  Now  you  had 
better  cease.  I  won't  have  you  finding  fault  with  our  city 
amusements,  so  there  now !  " 

"  I  was  not  finding  fault  with  them ;  I  don't  like  them, 
though,  and  I  don't  think  they  are  any  good  in  the  world ! " 

"  Don't  think  they  are  any  good  in  the  world !  Only 
hark  at  you!  Why,  what  would  we  do  without  the  fine, 
classic  music  of  the  great  masters  as  rendered  by  the  most 
wonderfully  endowed  artists  at  the  operas.''  And  the  wonderful 
imaginative  genius  of  the  great  play  writers  would  be  the 
merest  drudgery  to  read  if  it  were  not  for  the  theatres. 
Such  things  are  good;  they  stimulate  and  bring  out  the  latent 
or  half  awakened  powers  of  human  exertion." 

"  Oh  well,  now,  I  am  not  going  to  argue  the  matter  with 
you.  Anything  that  is  bad  can't  be  good,  and  I  have  yet 
to  be  convinced  that  society  is  any  better  by  having  theatres 
and  such  things  than  it  would  be  without  them.  Of  course 
I  don't  know  anything  about  them — hope  I  never  shall;  but 
you  do,  and  if  I  undertake  to  argue  with  you,  you'll  get  the 
better  of  me.'? 

"  That's  because  your  side  is  weak.  But  I  don't  go  to 
theatres  and  operas.  Mamma  is  very  strict  in  that  regard. 
It  is  not  fashionable  in  Philadelphia  for  colored  people  to  go 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  183 

to  such  places.  Only  the  low  and  vulgar  go,  for  the  better 
class  do  not  like  to  be  insulted  as  they  would  be  by  the  whites,  if 
they  should  go.  They  are  not  allowed  to  enter  the  same  part 
of  the  house  with  white  ladies  and  gentlemen,  but  are  put  aside 
with  the  lowest  classes  of  low  whites." 

"  Well,  I  suppose  the  colored  people  don't  own  any  of 
them,  so  they  can't  say  much.  The  theatres  belong  to  the 
whites,  and  I  am  satisfied  they  shall  have  them;  but  I  fear 
you  will  become  lonesome  in  our  silent  village  and  soon  want 
to  be  going  back  to  Philadelphia." 

"  Oh,  no,  indeed.  I  see  you  have  some  rare  books  to  me, 
and  I  was  saying  to  Mamma  awhile  since  that  I  should  have 
a  rich  feast  in  perusing  them.     I  am  so  fond  of  reading." 

John  went  to  bed  that  night  with  a  new  sensation  in  his 
heart.  The  evening's  conversation  with  Eteline  and  her 
mother,  enlivened  as  it  had  been  with  some  choice  songs  by 
Eteline,  who  had  a  really  fine  voice  of  good  culture,  had 
awakened  a  fluttering  that  was  new  to  him. 

Eteline  was  pretty,  of  majestic  form,  elegant  carriage, 
educated  and  refined,  and  entirely  different  from  the  kind  of 
girls  of  his  own  race  with  whom  he  had  hitherto  associated. 
She  was  evidently  of  aristocratic  breeding  according  to  John's 
notions,  and  he  felt  himself  exalted  beyond  measure  by  the 
notice  he  had  received  from  the  young  lady,  and  her  mother. 

The  next  day  John  found  himself  hastening  home  from  his 
work  with  a  little  more  than  his  usual  eagerness,  and  the 
next  it  would  have  been  plain  to  any  one  in  the  secret  that 
there  was  an  attraction  to  impel  him  homeward  after  the 
close   of  his    day's    labor. 

Ah,  John,  the  sturdiest  boy  has  a  weak  spot  when  he  gets 
to  be  about  your  age,  but  go  on;  the  bird  that  flutters  and 
warbles  before  your  eyes  is  worth  catching.  Only  be  careful 
that  you  make  yourself  worthy  of  the  prize! 

"  Mr.  Needles,"  said  Absalom  Wheeler,  while  John  was 
rather  absently  comparing  a  pattern  with  his  draught,  "  I 
am  convinced  that  boy  can't  put  up  this  engine  an'  run  it." 

"  Who,  John.?    Why  not.?  " 

"  Cause  he's  too  young  and  inexperienced  for  one  thing. 


184  GOULDTOWN 

and  then  he's  careless  and  lazy.  Why,  I  have  to  watch  him 
like  a  cat  would  a  mouse  all  the  time  for  fear  he'll  get  some- 
thing wrong." 

"  Does  he  ever  get  anything  wrong?  " 

"  No,  but  I  don't  know  where  he  would  go  to  if  he  was  let 
go  on.  I  measure  and  try  every  piece  of  the  machinery  to 
be  sure  that  no  mistake  is  made." 

"  I  am  glad  you  do  so ;  it  will  be  all  the  better  for  John 
as  well  as  be  a  further  assurance  that  everything  is  right." 

"  Oh,  I  mean  to  have  every  thing  put  up  right,  for  I  expect 
I  shall  have  her  to  run,  and  I  want  her  to  run  like  a  top." 

"  I  believe  it  is  Mr.  HoUoway's  intention  to  have  John  to 
run  her.  He  has  always  taken  a  great  interest  in  him,  and 
I  guess  almost  considers  him  as  one  of  his  family.  I  think 
John  is  a  very  smart  boy  and  of  remarkable  genius.  It  is 
seldom  you  meet  with  a  boy  of  his  years  who  has  so  steady  a 
head  on  his  shoulders.  I  believe  Dr.  HoUoway's  sister,  little 
Teeny  Holloway,  has  given  a  good  deal  of  her  personal  atten- 
tion to  his  education,  and  is  very  much  attached  to  him." 

"  Well,  they're  a  gay  couple,  I'm  sure !  She's  as  ugly  as 
the  pillar  of  salt,  and  John's  as  black  as  Egypt's  darkness. 
Well,  I  don't  believe  he'll  ever  run  that  engine,  that's  all. 
I  don't  believe  it's  in  'im." 

"  We'll  see  after  we  get  her  up,"  said  Mr.  Needles,  turn- 
ing away. 

"  Yes,  we  will  see.  John  Blye  nor  no  other  black  Blye 
shall  run  that  engine  while  my  head's  hot,"  muttered  Absalom. 

"  John's  very  young,  but  my !  I've  seen  several  boys  running 
engines  and  making  good  engineers,  who  were  no  older  than 
John,  and  hadn't  near  his  theoretical  knowledge.  I  am  glad 
Absalom  has  been  such  a  friend  to  him,  though.  It  has  been 
well  for  John,  and  it  has  been  well  for  Absalom,  for  I've 
never  seen  him  so  careful  and  exact  before,"  said  Mr.  Needles 
to  himself. 

That  was  Saturday,  and  the  men  were  allowed  to  "  knock 
off  "  earlier  on  Saturdays  than  on  the  other  days  of  the  week, 
and  in  addition  to  stopping  work  at  three  o'clock,  now,  Mr. 
Needles  told  John  he  could  have  two  or  three  days  off  the  next 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  185 

week,  as  the  moulders  were  up  with  the  pattern  makers,  and 
the  machinists  had  to  wait  for  some  brasses. 

John  was  glad  of  this,  and  began  to  lay  off  a  good  time  for 
himself  with  Miss  Eteline  and  her  mother. 

There  were  several  places  to  visit  of  more  or  less  import- 
ance in  the  rural  districts  as  well  as  some  families  upon  whom 
they  should  call,  and  he  hastened  home  to  acquaint  his  mother 
of  his  plans  for  entertaining  their  guests  and  to  enlist  her 
cooperation. 

As  he  neared  his  residence,  Eteline  was  standing  upon  the 
piazza,    and   commenced    calling   out   to   him — 

"  Oh,  John,  I've  been  on  an  exploring  expedition — a  voy- 
age of  discovery — to-day,  and  I've  found  just  the  sweetest 
place  where  you  must  take  mamma  and  me  to-morrow." 

"  To-morrow !  To-morrow  is  the  Sabbath,  and  we  should 
not  take  pleasure  excursions  on  the  Sabbath,"  said  John, 
smilingly. 

"  Oh,  dear,  I  wish  I  had  been  brought  up  a  Puritan,  then 
I  would  always  have  my  thoughts  about  me,  too,"  said  Ete- 
line, with  pleasant  gaiety. 

"  Do  you  approve  of  such  things  ?  "  asked  John. 

"As  Puritans?  Certainly  I  do,  only  I'm  glad  they're  all 
dead,"  replied  Eteline,  laughing. 

"  Oh,  pshaw !  No.  I  mean  Sunday  walks  for  pleasure," 
said  John. 

"  Generally  I  don't.  Mostly  I  think  they  are  real 
naughty,"  said  Eteline  with  mock  gravity.  Sunday  walks  or 
week  day  walks  are  rarely  pleasure  walks  to  me,  but  a  Sunday 
walk,  to-morrow,  will  be  pleasant,  because  you  will  go,  and  to 
balance  the  thing  I  shall  take  my  prayer-book  and  whenever 
you  show  any  signs  of  jollity  I  shall  read  you  '  Gloria  in 
Excelsis.' " 

"I  have  something  better  than  that  to  tell  you,"  said 
John.  "  I  shall  not  be  at  work  three  days  next  week,  and  I 
hope  to  spend  a  good  deal  of  time  with  you." 

"  Oh,  that's  nice !  I  won't  say  anything  more  about  go- 
ing to-morrow,  only  I  hope  it  will  rain  all  day,  now,  so  we 


186  GOULDTOWN 

won't  have  to  go  to  church  and  I'll  have  you  to  laugh  and  talk 
to  all  day,"  said  Eteline. 

John  felt  as  if  his  head  was  getting  wrong  side  about  or 
something.  What  could  Eteline  mean  by  saying  a  walk  would 
be  pleasant  because  he  would  go  and  what  could  she  mean  by 
wanting  to-morrow  to  be  a  rainy  day  so  she  could  have  him 
all  day  to  laugh  and  talk  to?  Was  she  in  earnest  or  was  she 
only  joking  him  to  make  him  feel  flattered?  Fie,  fie,  it  was 
nonsense  to  believe  that  Etehne  Voulons,  the  rich  city  lady, 
should  think  anything  of  him, — only  to  pass  away  the  time 
while  she  was  away  from  her  gay  city  circle.  What  was  he, 
compared  to  the  brilliant  and  polished  gentleman  who  followed 
in  her  train  when  at  home.  He  would  banish  all  nonsensical 
thoughts — that  he  would,  for  she  would  soon  return  to  the 
city  and  he  would  be  forgotten ! 

"  Mamma,"  said  Eteline,  as  they  retired  to  their  chamber 
that  night,  "  the  longer  we  stay  here  the  better  I  like  it.  I 
am  surprised  and  delighted  beyond  expression  to  find  such 
culture  and  refinement  among  people  of  our  own  race." 

"  Yes,  daughter,  it  is  a  delightful  satisfaction.  These 
people,  no  doubt,  had  a  very  humble  beginning  and  they  are 
very  modest  still,  but  without  any  sycophantic  fawning.  What 
we  see  here  is  genuine  gentility,  and  I  am  pleased,  my  dear, 
that  you  find  pleasure  in  staying  here,"  said  Mrs.  Voulons. 

"  Indeed  I  do,  mamma.     Mr.  Blye  is  one  of  those  men  who 
can   be   characterized    as    of   solid   worth,    and   Mrs.    Blye's 
intelligence  is  of  that  common-sense  sort  that  I  could  wish 
myself  possessed  of,"  said  Eteline. 

"  Mrs.  Blye  is  a  lady  whose  character,  habits  and  piety  I 
am  sure  can  well  be  emulated.  Though  always  serene  and 
happy,  she  tells  me  that  she  has  known  sorrow  and  has  passed 
through  the  fires  of  affliction.  Of  five  babes  she  buried  four, 
and  only  one — John — has  been  spared  to  her,  and,  like  your 
poor  mother,  my  Eteline,  her  struggles  have  ever  been  to 
guard  against  making  an  idol  of  her  boy,"  said  Mrs.  Voulons, 
feelingly. 

Eteline  came  to  her  mother's  side  and  putting  her  arms 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  187 

about  her  neck  with  tender  caress  she  kissed  her  cheek  and 
brow  with  sincere  affection,  saying, 

"  John  Blye  is  much  more  worthy  of  being  idolized  than 
your  worthless  daughter,  and  I  think  my  own  mamma's  piety, 
and  habits,  and  character  are  as  worthy  of  emulation  as  any 
saint's  on  earth." 

"  You  are  partial,  my  dear,  and  cannot  see  your  mother's 
shortcomings." 

"  No,  because  she  has  none.  I  think  my  mamma  and  papa 
are  the  best  people  in  the  whole  wide  world;  and  the  nearest 
people  like  them  are  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Blye,"  said  Eteline. 

"  Do  not  form  your  opinions  too  quickly ;  sometimes  ap- 
pearances are  deceptive,  but  it  is  a  very  high  mark  of  excel- 
lence that  these  people  have  worked  their  way  from  modest 
beginnings  up  to  a  position  of  respect  and  comparative  wealth," 
said  Mrs.  Voulons. 

"  I  suppose  we  shall  accompany  the  family  to  their  church 
to-morrow,  shall  we  not,  mamma  ?  " 

"  Yes,  we  will  go  with  them.  I  do  not  approve  of  wor- 
shipping with  their  denomination,  but  if  our  desire  to  wor- 
ship God  and  reverence  His  name  be  sincere  it  matters  little 
what  may  be  the  denomination  with  which  we  worship,  and 
we  must  also  accord  their  opinions  the  same  respect  we  shall 
want  for  our  own,"  said  Mrs.  Voulons. 

The  next  day  was  the  Sabbath  and  quite  a  sensation  was 
manifested  in  the  Methodist  church  when  two  elegantly  attired 
and  strange  looking  black  ladies  were  noticed  with  the  Blyes 
at  the  services,  as  it  did  not  turn  out  to  be  a  rainy  day. 

ANOTHER  CHAPTER  FROM  "  JOHN  BLYE." 

John  wasted  no  time  over  Absalom,  who  had  regained  his 
feet  boiling  over  with  rage.  A  half  dozen  men  had  got  between 
him  and  Dr.  Holloway  and  prevented  any  further  assault  by 
either.  Dr.  Holloway  was  paying  no  attention  to  him.  Point- 
ing to  the  wedge,  John  said: 

"  This  accounts  for  all  the  trouble.  The  wedge  that  be- 
longs there  has  been  removed,  and  another  inserted  for  the 


188  GOULDTOWN 

purpose  of  throwing  the  machinery  out  of  line.  I  do  not 
wonder  it  would  not  run,  but  it  is  astonishing  I  did  not  dis- 
cover it  sooner." 

"  Do  you  think  that  was  done  purposely  to  prevent  the 
engine's  running.'' " 

"  Yes,  it  could  not  be  for  any  other  purpose,"  said  John, 
proceeding  to  unscrew  the  bolts  and  remove  the  wedge. 

Absalom  had  by  this  time  left  the  mills  in  a  great  rage 
not  to  return,  so  we  will  dismiss  him  here. 

Removing  the  wedge,  John  began  a  search  for  the  one  that 
belonged  there.  Going  to  a  rude  "  cupboard  "  where  Absa- 
lom kept  his  towel,  soap,  hair  brush,  etc.,  he  found  it  wrapped 
up  in  stout  paper. 

After  the  adjustment  of  the  machinery  again,  which  occu- 
pied an  hour  or  two,  steam  was  turned  on,  the  engine  started, 
and  everything  worked  with  the  precision  and  nicety  of  its 
former  action. 

The  facts  of  the  matter  had  by  this  time  become  known 
among  the  employees  and  John  became  the  hero  of  the  mills, 
while  indignation  was  loud  and  strong  against  the  absent 
Absalom. 

Anyone  in  the  village  after  that  having  anything  to  say 
against  John  Blye — the  engineer,  was  advised  to  "  sing  it 
small  "  as  his  friends  soon  numbered  the  entire  population  of 
the  place. 

But  events  of  a  more  stirring  nature  began  to  agitate  both 
the  home  of  Dr.  Holloway  and  the  little  village  of  Edgefield. 

The  first  event  was  the  marriage  of  Dr.  Holloway  and 
Miss  Grace  Harris.  This  can  as  well  be  imagined  as  described. 
It  came  off  during  the  Christmas  holiday  season  and  of  course 
was  the  event. 

Girls  are  singular  things,  and  when  they  "  take  a  notion," 
they  will  have  their  own  way  and  carry  out  that  "  notion." 
There  is  nothing  a  woman  cannot  do  when  she  has  once  deter- 
mined she  will,  for  with  her  it  is  preeminently  true  that  "  where 
there  is  a  will  there  is  a  way." 

Teeny  Holloway  had  determined  to  have  Miss  Eteline 
Voulons  at  this  wedding,  for  during  Eteline's  visit  at  the  Blyes 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  189 

she  had  made  many  friends;  by  her  elegant  manners  and  the 
intelligence  of  her  conversation  as  well  as  by  her  warm  and 
sympathetic  heart,  she  had  won  the  esteem  of  all  with  whom 
she  had  become  acquainted. 

In  addition  to  a  formal  card,  Teeny  had  sent  a  personal 
letter  urging  her  to  come  down,  coupled  with  one  from  Mrs. 
Blye.  The  result  of  this  was  that  Eteline's  commanding  form 
was  seen  among  the  gay  guests  at  the  home  of  Judge  Harris 
on  the  wedding  day.  She  was  not  alone,  for  the  young  engineer, 
John  Blye,  was  also  an  honored  guest.  As  has  been  before 
intimated,  John's  musical  abilities  were  considerable  and  he 
was  not  unaccustomed  to  mingling  with  the  best  social  circle 
of  the  place,  so  his  presence  among  the  guests  occasioned  no 
surprise — unless  it  was  among  those  from  neighboring  towns. 

The  festivities  passed  off  happily.  The  great  event  was 
over,  and  Dr.  Holloway  and  his  young  bride  settled  down  like 
sensible  folk  in  their  new  home,  settling  themselves  to  making 
each  other  happy. 

As  the  winter  drew  on  towards  spring  a  dark  and  sombre 
foreboding  began  to  shadow  the  land. 

"  I'll  bet  there'll  be  a  war  yet,"  said  some,  while  others 
laughed  and  said,  "  They  ought  never  to  let  '  Old  Abe '  take 
the  Presidential  chair." 

Ominous  misgivings  were  rife  in  the  nation  during  the 
whole  winter,  but  when,  at  last,  Abraham  Lincoln  arrived  in 
Washington  from  the  growing  and  buoyant  West,  and  was 
peaceably  inaugurated  President  of  the  United  States,  the 
people  breathed  freer  and  began  to  feel  that  the  prospective 
trouble  had  passed  over. 

This  feeling  was  soon,  however,  dispelled.  Fort  Sumter 
was  fired  upon  at  last,  two  months  and  two  days  after  the 
firing  upon  the  "  Star  of  the  West,"  off  the  city  of  Charleston. 

The  Southerners,  maddened  at  first  by  the  John  Brown 
raid  in  October,  1859,  looked  upon  the  turn  of  affairs  as 
the  culmination  of  Abolition  aspirations.  The  sound  of  the 
drum  began  to  be  heard  all  over  the  land.  Volunteers  were 
called  for  and  preparations  warlike  began  to  be  made. 


190  GOULDTOWN 

A  few  months  rolled  by  and  the  whole  nation  is  plunged 
into  a  bloody  civil  war. 

Even  the  little  town  of  Edgefield  shared  in  the  general 
excitement.  The  shrill  scream  of  the  fife,  and  the  roll  of  the 
drum  called  up  the  loyal  villagers,  and  the  "  squad  "  was  soon 
drilled  and  ready  to  march  to  the  front.  Soon  the  mills  and 
the  fields  began  to  be  depleted  of  laborers.  "  Call  "  after 
"  call "  for  volunteers  to  supply  the  sinews  of  war  was  made 
by  the  President. 

New  Kfe  began  to  be  infused  into  the  wheels  of  industry. 
Contractors,  speculators,  "  shoddy  mills "  and  greenbacks 
soon  became  known,  and  men  pocketed  fortunes  of  the  Nation's 
wealth  in  a  day. 

John  worked  steadily  at  the  mills  for  a  while,  but  at  length 
a  new  industry  sprang  up  at  the  Eagle  Works.  The  govern- 
ment wanted  iron  bedsteads  for  the  soldiers,  and  iron  latches 
and  hasps  for  transportation  chests,  etc.  The  Eagle  Works 
had  secured  a  "  contract,"  and  new  machinery  to  be  made. 
The  lumber  business  had  fallen  off  at  Edgefield,  and  John's 
services  being  in  so  much  demand  at  the  works,  the  saw-mills 
were  stopped — the  laborers  going  to  war — and  John  was  given 
the  important  position  of  assistant  to  the  engineer-in-chief, 
Mr.  Needles.  Nearly  two  years  had  elapsed  since  John  had 
exposed  Absalom  Wheeler's  trick  at  the  Edgefield  mills,  and 
so  signally  defeated  the  plan  so  cunningly  laid  to  prevent  his 
running  the  engine.  During  all  that  time  of  John's  trial  and 
mortification,  Mr.  Needles'  confidence  in  him  had  never  failed, 
and  when  John's  triumph  came,  Mr.  Needles'  satisfaction  was 
intense. 

Still  came  the  calls  for  "  three  hundred  thousand  volun- 
teers."      Recruiting    officers    were   in    every    hamlet,    visiting 

every  store,  ofiice  and  workshop.     One  day  the  Hon.  Mr. , 

a  member  of  the  Legislature  of  John's  native  State,  visited 
the  Eagle  Works,  recruiting  volunteers  for  a  State  regiment. 
While  talking  eloquently  to  a  knot  of  mechanics,  some  of  whom 
had  already  given  him  their  names,  one  of  the  men  said, 
"  Here's  Mr.  Blye,  let  him  go,  too." 


LITERARY  EFFORTS  191 

The  honorable  recruiter,  with  gushing  loyalty  for  his 
country  and  exaltation   for  the  soldier,   replied: 

"  Yes,  if  I  had  my  way  he  might  go  along ;  if  I  had  my 
way  black  men  should  go  along  to  carry  you  boys'  guns  and 
water  cans,  and  wait  on  you  and  black  up  your  shoes,  and  you 
should  do  nothing  but  march  and  fight." 

John  was  a  general  favorite,  respected  and  beloved  by 
every  man  in  the  works,  and  at  these  remarks  the  men  said  no 
more  but  hung  their  heads  in  shame — shame  for  the  man  who 
did  not  know  their  John,  and  shame  for  their  state  and 
country  which  made  it  possible  for  the  utterance  of  such  *^ 
remarks  with  all  they  might  imply,  and  one  by  one  they  slunk 
away  to  their  work. 

But  at  last  came  the  Proclamation  of  Emancipation — 
then  came  calls  for  enlistment  of  the  contrabands  and  freed- 
men  and  finally  calls  for  colored  volunteers  all  over  the  country. 

Spring  Bottom  shared  in  the  new  excitement.  Like  magic, 
almost,  strange  colored  recruiting  officers  appeared  in  the 
hamlet,  and  soon  here  and  there  a  blue  suit  and  blue  cap 
appeared  in  the  streets. 

The  war  fever  seized  upon  John  also;  but  he  did  not  like 
the  idea  of  going  to  war  for  his  state  or  country  as  a  mere 
hireling.  He  was  perfectly  willing  to  go  to  war  as  a  state 
volunteer,  for  he  felt  that  to  go  any  other  way  would  be  an 
acknowledgment  on  his  part  that  he  was  not  a  citizen  of  a 
state.  Spring  Bottom  raised  a  pretty  strong  club  of  stay- 
at-homes  under  the  hireling  rule  of  the  government,  declaring 
they  would  not  go  to  war  unless  they  could  be  accredited  as 
volunteers  to  the  state  to  which  they  belonged.  John  joined 
this  club  and  was  elected  captain  of  it.  The  more  the  drums 
beat  to  arms  the  more  anxious  were  its  members  to  go  to  war. 
At  length  so  urgent  became  the  colored  people  of  that  and 
the  adjoining  counties  to  go  to  war,  and  so  popular  had 
John  become  among  his  own  people  that  he  was  induced  to 

"  An  actual  occurrence,  the  remarks  being  made  by  the  Hon.  P.  L., 
now  dead,  in  the  presence  of  "  Will."  Instead  of  the  words  "  black  men," 
however,   the  word   that  was   used  may   be   guessed. 


192  GOULDTOWN 

take  the  initiatory  steps  towards  raising  a  regiment.  The 
success  in  this  undertaking  was  so  promising  that,  at  the 
instigation  of  some  of  the  leading  colored  men  he  wrote  the 
following  letter  to  the  Secretary  of  War : 

"  Hon.  Edwin  M.  Stanton,  Sec.  of  War,  Washington,  D.  C. 

"  Sir  :  I  have  the  honor  to  inquire  if  a  regiment  of  black 
men  would  be  accepted  by  the  War  Department  and  credited 
to  this  State;  and,  if  its  officers  of  black  men  would  be  com- 
missioned to  command  it  as  are  the  volunteer  officers  of  other 
volunteer  regiments,  with  the  same  pay  and  rations  for  privates 
and  officers. 

"  Very  respectfully,     John  Blye." 

This  letter  was  endorsed  at  the  War  Department  "  John 
Blye,  Esq.,  of  [Gouldtown,  N.  J.]  makes  inquiries  concern- 
ing raising  a  colored  regiment,"  and  returned  with  the  follow- 
ing letter: 

"War  Dept.,  Washington,  D.   C, 1863. 

"  Sir  :  The  government  accepts  the  services  of  colored 
men  as  United  States  Colored  Troops.  They  are  allowed  a 
compensation  of  $6.00  per  month  for  privates  and  $8.00  per 
month  for  non-commissioned  officers.  It  is  not  deemed  advis- 
able to  allow  colored  men  to  command.    I  have  the  honor  to  be 

"  Very  respectfully,  A.  A.  G.^^ 

The  result  of  this  correspondence  was  to  disband  the 
various  clubs  that  had  been  organized,  the  men  declaring  they 
would  wait  for  a  draft  and  see  if  the  government  would  draft 
those  whom  it  would  not  recognize  as  citizens. 

Soon,  however,  came  the  clarion  voice  of  glorious  old 
Massachusetts,  and  the  country  remembers  yet  what  she  said. 

John  at  once  determined  to  become  a  Massachusetts  soldier. 

^This  correspondence,  in  substance,  was  an  actual  occurrence  and  the 
letters  are  verbatim  et  literatim. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 


A  STORY  IN  BLANK  VEESE. 


In  Stowe  Creek  township,  near  Flax  landing  on 
Stowe  Creek  about  a  century  ago  stood  a  brick  house.  It 
still  stands  there  and,  though  modernized,  is  now  owned 
by  either  Frank  Ridgeway,  or  the  estate  of  Captain 
Miller.  It  was  said  to  have  been  erected  in  Colonial 
times,  and  the  tradition,  in  early  days  was  that  it  was  the 
rendezvous  of  pirates;  and  was  finally  made  the  prison 
of  a  fair  captive  of  the  pirate  chief.  Seventy-five  years 
ago  the  natives  used  to  call  it  "  Joe  Compton's  Haunted 
House,"  because  nobody  would  live  in  it. 

(The  following  story,  in  blank  verse,  was  founded 
upon  this  legend,  by  a  Gouldtown  boy,  then  about  20 
years  old,  and  who  is  still  living.  The  name  of  the 
writer  is  assumed,  and  this  same  boy  wrote  many  things 
in  prose  and  verse  under  assumed  names,  one  of  which, 
as  I  now  remember  was  "  Ichabod." 

This  story  of  "  Luilla  "  was  written  about  1860. 

luilla:  the  coesair's  victim. 

A  TAI.E  OF  SOUTH  JERSEY  BY  "  OLIVER  TWEEDLE." 

I'll  tell  the  tale,  as  it  was  told  to  me; 
But  yet,  to  'hellish  with  a  little  grace, 
Must  weave  in  fancy;  for  it  would  not  do 
To  give  it  in  the  rough  with  no  carving — 
For  meats  are  always  better  with  seas'ning; 
In  earlier  times,  'tis  said,  wild  daring  men. 
Devoid  of  fear  of  law,  or  punishment 

For  crime,  t'  increase  their  wealth  would  band  themselves, 
And  choose  a  chieftain  whom  they  would  obey: 
A  sharp,  sagacious,  cunning  man  'twould  be, 
13  193 


194  GOULDTOWN 

Most  apt,  and  young,  and  handsome,  too,  to  boot, 
With  good  address ;  one  who  could  probe  right  well 
The  gentleman;  could  visit  the  abodes 
Of  wealth — to  mingle  with  the  high  and  gay; 
To  be  the  greatest  sport  in  sporting  scenes, 
To  be  the  most  solemn  where  things  devout 
Are  wont  to  be  enacted,  and  to  pry 
The  inmost  secrets  of  the  haunts  of  wealth 
And  find  the,  to  his  band,  most  harmless  way 
To  possess  it  and  to  escape,  uncaught; 
And  this  while  being  the  admired  of  all 
Admirers,  and  the  star  of  all  who  gaze. 
And  deeds  by  such  were  done  that  froze  the  blood ; 
Deeds  of  plunder  that  would  end  in  murder. 
And  sometimes  worse  than  murder, — death  outright 
Is  better  oft  than  torture  to  compel 
The  victim  to  disclose  some  secret  place 
Where  wealth  and  plunder  might  be  stored  away; 
Or,  some  fair  victim,  who,  by  luckless  fate 
Had  fallen  in  their  power,   to  be   forced 
To  yield  her  virtue  to  th'  unhallowed  care 
Of  such  men-monsters ; — so  much  had  I  learned 
Before  my  narrator,  an  aged  man. 
Began  his   story  in  this  wise,  to  wit: 
"  Jean  Paul  Retour  was  born,  no  matter  where. 
It  might  be  France,  or  Spain  or  Italy, 
In  some  large  city  or  a  country  town; 
He  might  have  been  a  duke's  son  or  a  clown's, — 
It  matters  not,  his  younger  days  I  knew 
But  little  of,  nor  care  I  more  to  learn. 
'Twas  in  his  early  manhood  that  I  knew 
Aught  of  him,  and  to  know  him  then  was  but 
To  love  and  to  admire   and  to   revere; 
For  he  was  grand  and  noble,  good  and  true. 
His  own  descent  would  count  for  nothing,  for 
His  own  proud  blood  could  found  a  family; 
Tall,  upright  was  his  form,  and  conscious  pride 
Of  his  own  person  gleamed  forth  from  his  eye. 


LUILLA  195 

His  raven  hair  in  curling  locks  hung  o'er 

The  square  and  lofty  shoulders ;  and  the  brow 

Was  high  and  haughty,  and  the  jet  black  eyes 

Showed  nought  of  fear  of  danger  seen  or  not; 

The  straight,  thin,  well-set  and  transparent  nose 

Showed   restlessness   of  disposition,   and 

The  small  square  chin  and  thin  compressing  lips 

Showed  cruel  firmness  in  a  purpose  set — 

And  he  was  handsome,  aye!  surpassing  all; 

No  door  was  closed  to  him,  but  all  were  glad 

To  win  his  smile,  and  gain  a  passing  word, 

But,  ah!  a  spell  hangs  o'er  him  and  would  break 

In   vengeance! — Foul    crimes    had   been    committed 

And  murders  done  that  baffled  inquiry. 

Merchants  and  banks  were  robbed  by  one  Pedro, 

'Twas  said,  a  bandit  with  a  bandit  band; 

And  church  and  convent  shared  alike  their  fate. 

And  all  attempts  of  sheriffs,  high  or  low. 

To  trap  the  desperadoes   were  in   vain. 

For  none  could  tell,  or  give  a  clue  where  might 

Be  found  the  hiding  place  of  band  so  bold; 

And   other  robberies,  and  murder  e'en. 

Had  been   committed  where   'twas  thought  that  ev'n 

The  bold  Pedro  could  not  have  found  the  scene. 

At  last  a  man  was  robbed  and  left  as  dead, 

A  merchant  he  with  stores  of  golden  coin 

Locked  in  his  house  secure,  with  double  bolts, 

And  all  his  family  gone  to  while  the  time 

Of  evening  at  theatre  or  church ; 

But  he,  well  knowing  where  his  treasure  was. 

Remained  to  guard  as  'twere,  and  if  perchance 

A  passing  friend  should  enter,  to  beguile 

In  pleasant  talk  the  lonesome  hours  away. 

The  time  would  be  well  spent  in  sweet  converse. 

Jean  Paul  did  enter,  welcomed  ev'rywhere, 

A  no  less  welcome  did  he  now  receive, 

With  adroit  skill  he  plied  his  host  with  words, 

About  the  fair  Ilene  or  bold  Henri ; 


196  GOULDTOWN 

With  artless  queries  learned  he  that  they 

With  all  the  servants,  save  one — Olao — 

Had  gone  to  seek  amusement,  or  devote 

An  hour  to  worship.     How  a  fire  did  gleam 

From  the  black  eye  of  Jean,  as  Olao 

With  tray  of  viands  rich  entered  the  room 

And  placing  them  upon  a  table  paused, 

As  if  to  hear  command;  his  eye  did  meet 

The  hurried  gaze  of  Jean  for  one  instant, — 

It  was  enough,  a  magic  spark  had  caught 

The  tinder  sleeping  in  his  own  gray  eyes 

It  blazed  and  lashed  itself  into  a  flame; 

Demons  held  carnival  therein  as  if 

A  scheme  t'  increase  their  demoniacal  joy 

In  dreadful  orgies  were  consummated. 

And  Olao  smiled ;  his  very  soul  shone  out 

In  frightful  blackness  through  his  vicious  eyes; 

He  placed  himself  behind  his  master's  seat 

And  said,  "  My  Lord,  the  viands,  see,  are  here 

For  you  and  for  your  noble  friend,  and  I, 

Your  slave,  am  here  to  do  your  bidding;  and 

The  wine  will  loose  your  brain  and  make  your  thoughts 

More  free." 

One,   two,    and   yet    another   glass 
Was  quaffed,  Jean  rose  as  if  to  go,  but  stayed; 
Then  quick  as  thought  a  dagger  pierced  the  breast 
Of  the  rich  merchant  and  he  fell  to  earth. 

"  He  dies !  "  said  Paul,  with  one  triumphal  look, 

"  Olao,  at  the  spoil,  or  else  the  herd 
Of  sniffling  women  will  be  here  and  then 
The  clue  is  given  e'er  we  could  escape." 
One  last  look  as  he  left  the  house  Paul  gave 
To  see  that  life  had  left  the  body,  and 
No  tales  were  likely  to  be  told  of  him. 
He  looked  too  hasty — for,  when  he  had  gone 
And  faithless  Olao  had  followed  him, 
The  bleeding  man  revived,  and  to  the  crowd 
Assembled  cried :   "  It  was  Jean  Paul  Retour, 


LUILLA  197 

He's  the  bold  bandit  Pedro,  and  his  band 

Are  Jean  Paul's  men,"  and  closed  his  eyes  and  died. 

It  was  a  subterranean  chamber  where 

Were  congregated  many  stalwart  men, 

Each  clustering  round  a  common  centre 

Paying  deference  to  a  manly  form 

Who  had  just  entered,  who  recounted  low 

An  adventure.     List,  now !  a  spring  is  touched, 

Another  form  admitted;  'tis  a  maid 

Or  vixen,  as  you  will;  her  look  was  wild 

And  agitated,  and  she  paused  as  if 

She  feared  to  break  the  silence. 

"  Speak,   hussy !  " 

Said  a  thundering  voice  from  out  the  crowd, 

And  stepping  nearer  to  the  bending  form 

Of  him  who  seemed  to  be  the  chief,  she  said 
"  Pedro,  my  chief,  you  did  your  work  too  soon. 

For  he,  your  dagger  pierced,  died  not  until 

He  had  revealed  your  name ;  so  have  a  care 

How  that  you  mingle  in  the  throng  of  men. 

They'll  seek  your  life — for  now  they'll  know  who  'tis 

That  leads  the  band  of  Pedro." 

'Twas  midnight! 

The  dim  light  of  the  tapers  shone  athwart 

The  corridors;  the  massive  pews  of  that 

Great  church:  its  holy  furniture  showed  dark 

And  rich  in  the  dull  glare  of  taper  light. 

Its  beautiful  images,  and  the  robes 

Of  absent  priests,  melted  and  modified 

The  scene,  and  there  amid  the  tapestry 

That  overhung  the  image  of  Mary, 

The  Mother  of  our  Lord,  knelt  the  fair  form 

Of  woman,  and  a  step  was  heard  close  by. 

She  started  up,  a  dagger  met  her  gaze, 
"  Luilla,"  said  a  voice  she  knew  full  well. 

And  joy  and  gladness  lighted  up  her  face, 
"  'Tis  you,  my  only  love,"  she  feebly  said, 


198  GOULDTOWN 

"  For  you  I've  prayed  the  Virgin  all  the  night, 
Now  tell  me — ^but  the  dagger,"  and  she  fell 
Pale,  trembling  to  the  ground — 

"  Was  pointed  at 
The  heart  of  any  found  who  would  tell  tales," 
Said  Pedro,  for  'twas  he,  and  as  he  raised 
The  drooping  girl,  repeated  in  her  ear, 

"  I  cannot  strike  the  heart  of  one  like  you, 
Nor  can  I  trust  you  out  among  the  world ; 
I  am  a  robber  chief,  but  not  so  bold 
As  put  my  neck  within  the  halter  noose, 
So  you'll  away  with  me." 

"  No,    strike    me   dead ! 
Take,  take  the  bloody  hand  I  blindly  loved 
And  slay  me  here,  I  am  prepared  to  die, 
For  nought  is  stronger  than  a  woman's  love 
But  her  despair," — thus  said  the  stricken  girl 
In  accents  weak. 

The  robber  chief  would  not. 
But  bore  her  off  unto  his  den  of  thieves. 
And  thought  by  words  of  flattery  to  win 
Again  the  love  that  lived  but  once  and  died. 
He  swore  by  the  "  Lord  George  "  she  should  be  his. 
And  that  by  her  consent,  for  if  he  would, 
Could  he  not  break  her  to  his  will,  for  she 
Was  in  his  pow'r,  what  could  she  do  but  yield.'* 

CANTO  II. 

Sometimes  such  bold,  wild,  daring,  reckless  men 
Found  helpmates  for  their  profit,  who  would  share 
Their  plunder,  on  the  sea ;  who  were  as  bold 
In  crime  as  they,  and  cared  no  more  for  laws 
Of  men  or  nations,  or  a  higher  pow'r. 
'Twas  well  sometimes  to  ship  his  spoils  away. 
So  Pedro  thought,  to  sell  in  other  climes. 
So  he  had  leagued  himself  with  pirates  too. 
And  they  with  each  exchanged  their  ill-got  goods. 


LUILLA  199 

And  profited  thereby; — a  rendezvous 
For  both  their  gangs  was  made,  to  seek  ashore: 
The  sea  beats  madly  'gainst  the  broken  rocks 
And  dashes  its  white  foam  amid  the  clouds 
And  roars  and  surges  like  a  giant  bound — 
And  bound  it  is ;  the  tow'ring  rocks  above 
Stay  its  proud  waves,  they  can  no  farther  go ; 
A  ship  at  anchor  in  the  distance  shows 
By  the  wan  gleam  of  starlight,  and  the  crew 
Pull  a  small  boat  towards  the  breaking  shore 
Where  none  but  madmen  dare  to  risk  their  lives ; 
But  at  the  helm  a  swearing  steersman  sits 
Who  knows  the  path — has  traversed  it  before, 
And  safely  runs  the  boat  to  a  small  light 
High  up  the  cliff.     The  boatmen  give  a  sharp, 
Short  whistle,  and  a  door  springs  open  wide: 
A  sentry  stands,  the  password  now  is  given, 
A  scaling  ladder  falls  into  the  boat. 
And  captain,  crew,  and  plunder  soon  are  safe 
Within  the  den  so  cunningly  devised. 

An  inn,  a  common  covmtry  inn,  along 

A  sparsely  traveled  road,  'tween  no  great  towns, 

Is  filled  with  country  folk — a  brawling  set. 

Who  for  amusement  congregate  to  spend 

An  hour  or  two  in  drinking  and  in  chat, 

And  high  their  humor  runs ;   and  loud  uproar 

Is  mixed  with  vulgar  laughter. 

But  a  hush — 
The  scene  is  stilled — a  new  arrival's  made: 
A  coach  and  'tendants  fill  the  open  space 
In  front  the  house;  a  tall  and  graceful  man 
Alights,  bearing  the  seraph  form  of  one, 
Who  seems  to  be  a  maiden  lost  in  grief. 
For  ever  and  anon  a  sigh  escapes, 
But  the  veiled  features  are  not  let  to  view. 
And  slapping  his  fat  thighs  brave  Loraine  says : 
Ha !  Pedro,  now  I  have  it,  well  you  know 


200  GOULDTOWN 

That  I  will  aid  you,  if  I  can,  to  'scape 
And  take  your  dainty  cargo  with  you,  too, — 
I  know  a  port  where  none  as  yet  do  come 
To  lade  their  ships,  but  where  I  have  e'er  this 
Unladen  mine  of  gold  and  buried  it, 
Now  go  you  there,  since  this  is  not  the  place 
For  you  to  stay,  and  spend  a  quiet  life, 
What  say  you.  Eh?  " 

"I  say  I  will  away 
To  any  place  where  I  may  but  possess 
This  object  of  my  passion." 

"The  New  World 
Is  then  your  home." 

Then   springing   to   his    feet 
Pedro  called  out :    "  Ten  men  of  you  I  want. 
By  lot,  to  be  the  agents  of  a  man. 
Unknown ;  to  guard  his  wealth,  tenant  his  lands, 
And  build  a  mansion  house  for  him  when  he 
Shall  come  to  hold  them;  and  again  I  want 
Two  others,  but  by  choice,  to  guard  a  charge 
That  I  shall  give  them — Alberto,  your  wife, 
And  you,  I  shall  make  use  of  for  this  trust 
And  Irish  Bill,  a  better  is  not  found." 
It  was  a  motley  crowd — from  verdant  youth 
To  hoar  age  the  lot  impartial  took; 
I'll  not  describe  them  all,  but  merely  tell 
Of  the  main  agents,  who  were  chosen  out: 
Orlando  Conara,  a  dashing  youth. 
Was  first  appointed  over  all  the  rest, 
And  they  must  do  his  bidding  as  they  would 
Were  he  their  chief ;  in  faith,  a  gallant  chief 
He'd  make,  his  tall,  commanding  form  and  mien 
Showed  he  was  not  of  common  parentage. 
The  keeper  of  the  house  is  all  aglow 
With  smiles  and  blandishments,  the  gaping  crowd 
Bow  and  cringe,  and  give  way  to  the  pair, 
Who,  as  the  landlord  says,  "  are  shown  their  room," 
And  then  indulge  in  comments ;  some  one  says. 


LUILLA  201 

"  He  is  a  bridegroom  with  his  dainty  bride, 

Spending  a  honeymoon."    And  others  say 
"  She  is  his  sister  and  they  two  have  met 

A  sad  bereavement,  for  did  you  not  see 

How  sad  he  looked  and  how  she  seemed  to  sigh?  " 

But  Piano,  the  old  steward,  put  in  his  voice 

And  said:    "It  is  the  Maestro,  he  who  owns 

The  house  and  lands  and  all  that  here  surrounds. 

He  comes  and  goes  whenever  'tis  his  will, 

And  none  dare  question  him,  but  I  do  think 

As  Albro  says,  'tis  a  young  bride  who  now 

Accomp'nies  him  " — 

You  know  the  man,  my  friend, 

I  do  not  doubt,  and  know  the  maiden  too, 
'Tis  none  but  Pedro  and  the  Luilla, 

And  Pedro's  men  compose  th'  attending  train. 

We  wiU  not  follow  through  the  vaulted  way 

Long  leading  from  the  chamber  where  they  go 

Unto  the  den ;  but  meet  them  there  amid 

The  scenes  of  revelry. 

An  hundred  lamps 

Illume  a  spacious  hall  well  thronged  with  men. 

And  women  too  are  there  and  not  a  few, 

And  strains  of  music  fill  the  smothered  air. 

A  table  groans  with  viands  and  repast 

Of  richest  odors  show  a  sumptuous  feast 

Is  ready  for  some  honor'ble  event ; 

The  pirate  chief  and  robber  chief  discuss 

A  topic  strong  and  stronger  cup  of  wine. 

Yet  so  it  was ;  a  helpmate  he  possessed, 

Who  outvied  him  in  hideous,  horrid  looks — 

A  short  and  crumpled,  humpbacked  thing  was  she, 

I  cannot  call  her  woman,  nor  do  I 

Believe  that  she  was  woman ;  for  a  fiend 

Would  be  most  likely  to  put  on  her  shape. 

Her  chin  was  sharp  as  any  eagle's  beak 

Yet  blunted  off;  her  mouth  from  ear  to  ear 

Encircled  half  her  head,  which  dev'lish  thing 


202  GOULDTOWN 

Sat   squattily  between   the  humpy  things 

She  called  her  shoulders  and  two  other  things 

She  called  her  back  and  breast,  I  wonder  not 

That  such  a  face  had  such  a  hooked  nose, 

Or  such  green  eyes  matched  such  red,  grizzly  hair. 

Now  "  Irish  Bill  "  in  turn  deserves   a  glance ; 

Although  not  prominent,  he  holds  a  place 

In  the  selected  comp'ny,  which  must  care 

For  the  selected  charge. 

A   short    spare   man, 
Of  light  but  withy  form,  and  sinewy 
Was  he,  with  skinny  face  that  wrinkled  up 
From  chin  to  brow  when  but  he  chanced  to  smile 
Or  speak,  or  even  wink  his  ej-^es,  which  orbs 
Were  large  and  full,  protruding  from  their  seats 
Like  any  hare's,  but  which  he  could  not  help; 
His  hair  of  yellow  hue  was  short  and  curled. 
And  when  he  spoke  a  spasm  seemed  to  jerk 
His  entire  frame — his  lungs  would  fill  and  heave 
And  vi'lent  splutter  make,  as  from  his  mouth 
His  thick  and  smothered  voice  found  utterance. 
I  said  the  other  nine  were  common  men. 
And  it  was  so;  but  one  deserves  a  space 
Of  notice.    Diff'rent  from  the  rest  in  hue. 
Yellow  and  curling  were  his  massy  locks 
And  mild  and  placid  was  his  sky-blue  eye, 
A  ready  smile  awaited  all  who  chose 
To  address  him;  courteous  and  polite, 
He  was  cut  out  and  stamped  a  gentleman. 
But  now  and  then  a  quick  electric  flash 
Shot  from  those  placid  orbs ;  the  quick  expanse 
And  flutter   of  that   thin,   straight   waxen   nose, 
And  hasty  motion  of  the  head  and  hand. 
The  constant  watchfulness,  all  tend  to  show 
That  there  is  something  lurking  still  within. 
No  wonder  is  it  that  the  like  of  him 
Is  found  in  such  a  band — 'tis  just  his  place, 
The  other  men  were  nought  but  common  men. 


LUILLA  203 

Of  various  dispositions,  as  you'll  find, 

In  any  comp'ny;  but  Albertero — 

Alberto  and  his  wife  were  two,  the  like 

Of  whom  I  think  'tis  very  hard  to  find: 

Tall  was  the  man  and  gaunt  and  sinewy, 

With  grayish  hair  and  straight  and  lank  the  locks. 

And  sunken  eyes  of  piercing,  stinging  black. 

And  hollow  cheeks  with  yellow,  wrinkled  skin; 

A  deep  mouth  reaching  well  around  and  filled 

With  snags  of  teeth,  with  eyeteeth  long  and  sharp; 

A  broad,  flat  chin  with  stubbed  beard  beclad — 

Like  frost  just  oozing  from  the  glazier's  mouth. 

And  nose  of  three-inch  measure,   fuU  and  hooked 

The  end,  to  keep  the  superficial  curve — 

And  'tis  the  truth,  my  friend,  he  looked  more  fit 

To  be  companion  for  the  wildest  apes 

And  ogres  too,  of  largest  size,  to  stay 

The  dread  and  terror  that's  inspired  by  him, 

Than  be  companion  of  the  womankind. 

Reclining  calmly  on  the  deck,  Pedro 
Watched  with  the  pirate  captain  every  move, 
And  seemed  to  study  with  his  strongest  will 
To  weigh  her  thoughts,  divine  her  inmost  heart. 
And  he  succeeded,  too,  somewhat,  'twould  seem, 
For  turning  to  the  pirate  in  a  tone 
Of   mingled  bitterness   and  joy,  he  said, 
'  Fairest  of  all  the  fair  ones  is  my  bride 
That  is  to  be, — yet  'tis  the  greatest  crime 
That  I've  committed  thus  to  bear  her  off 
From  friends  and  kindred  and  a  pleasant  home. 
To  share  the  fortunes  of  a  wretch  like  me — 
In  faith  my  heart  reproves  me  more  for  this 
Than  plunging  my  stiletto  in  the  heart 
Of  my  best  friend.     Does  she  not  look,  Loraine, 
Like  some  fair  goddess  weeping  o'er  the  fate 
Of  some  fair  protege?     If  I  could  but  ' 

Induce  the  girl  to  overlook  my  crimes 


204  GOULDTOWN 

And  see  that  they  were  necessary,  then 

She  might  forget  her  past  life  and  her  home, 

And  bow  to  fate  before  it  breaks  her." 

"  You'd 
Break  her,  then,"  said  Loraine,  "  or  bends  she  not?  " 
"  By  heaven!  she's  mine,  I'll  do  just  what  I  will!  " 
And  a  low  chuckle  glided  o'er  the  sea. 

CANTO  III. 

Days,  weeks,  and  months  successive  pass  away. 

But  still  Luilla's  home  is  on  the  sea, 

But  not  in  the  same  ship  she  started  with ; 

For  Pedro  showed  his  skill  so  much  the  first 

Attack  upon  an  unarmed  merchantman 

That  Loraine  did  divide  his  stock  of  war. 

Some  heavy  guns  and  small  arms  without  stint. 

With  him,  and  fitted  up  the  captured  ship 

For  chasing  harmless  prizes,  and  the  crew 

That  was  found  in  her  had  their  choice  to  swear 

Allegiance  to  Pedro  or  drink  the  deep. 

Some  turb'lent  ones,  of  course,  were  murdered  straight, 

For  they  might  give  him  trouble,  and  perhaps 

Might  cut  his  throat  if  they  became  too  strong 

By  numbers  joining  to  them. 

Thus  Pedro, 
Augmented  by  his  twelve  disciples,  who 
Were  chosen  by  the  lot  to  do  his  will — 
Became  a  corsair  bold,  and  dreaded  much 
By  shipping  merchants  in  full  many  ports. 
Cinara  was  his  mate  and  quite  as  bold. 
And  Hilo  Maenon  was  his  cabin  steward 
And  he  with  Albertero  and  his  wife. 
Old  Zaniffe,  had  the  charge  of  Luilla, 
Who,  in  a  private  cabin  fitted  up 
With  great  luxuriance  and  artful  taste, 
Was  closely  guarded — though  it  seemed  not  so. 
For  he,  the  wily  corsair,  would  not  seem 


LUILLA  205 

To  govern  harshly,  nor  e'en  would  he  seem 

To  hold  her  is.  his  ship  as  with  his  will — 

But  fain  would  make  her  think  with  fluent  words, 

He,  of  necessity,  a  virtue  makes. 

How  that  the  changes  came,  it  is  not  need 

That  I  should  tell  you,  Sir,  but  come  they  did. 

And  Conara  received  instructions  full 

To  follow  out  the  plans  by  Loraine  laid 

For  Pedro's  guidance  ere  they  parted  ships. 

And  as  you  do  not  know  them,  I  will  tell 

In  what  they  did  consist  in  my  own  way. 

But  quite  at  home  among  them,  and  they  seemed 

To  pay  deference  even  to  him,  like 

As  if  he  had  some  trait  that  would  command 

Respect — and  so  he  had,  for  though  his  skin 

Was  black  as  night,  true  brav'ry  dwelt  beneath. 

As  well  they  knew  in  many  plund'ring  scenes. 

Of  Afric's  ebon  race  he  was  a  son — 

And  well  might  Afric  pride  herself  to  own 

A  son  so  noble  in  his  form  and  mien: 

His  name  was  Hilo  Maenon,  and  the  lot 

Had  chose  him  with  the  rest. 

The  night   drew   on 
To  morning  and  the  feast  was  well-nigh  done, 
The  pirate  and  the  bandit  chief  had  made 
Their  plans,  quick  work  must  now  be  done  to  move 
The  bandits'  necessary  stores  unto 
The  anchored  ship  as  yet  the  morning  light 
Lingered  and  danced  not  o'er  the  rippling  wave, — 
Great  chests,  and  heavy,  filled  the  lab'ring  boats, 
As  to  and  from  the  ship  the  sturdy  tars 
Bent  their  strong  oars;  and  stores  of  merchandise 
Of  best  and  finest  quality,  the  spoil 
Appropriated  from  some  wealthy  son 
Of  commerce.    But  we  next  will  turn  our  eyes 
To  Pedro,  who,  unconscious  of  the  noise 
And  bustle,  seems  to  be  absorbed  within 
Himself,  and  thus  he  muses :  "  I'll  become 


206  GOULDTOWN 

A  corsair,  too,  for  lucky  have  I  been 

On  land ;  I've  heaped  up  gold  and  silver  bright — 

Yon  chests  contain  my  treasures,  all  but  one; 

I'll  be  a  corsair  and  I  wiU  possess 

That  other  one — she  can't  escape  me  now; 

The  sky  and  sea  shall  be  our  boundaries, 

The  ship  our  home — I'll  win  her  to  myself, 

And  when  those  fellows  do  perform  their  work, 

I'll  bear  her  to  my  mansion  where  the  past 

Will  be  forgotten — ^but  if  she  resist 

My  wiles  of  love,  what's  left  me  then  to  do? 

Nor  will  she  either,  for  she  loved  me  once. 

And  what  has  been  can  well  be  o'er  again; 

I'll  soothe  and  caress  her  with  gentle  words. 

And  make  her  love  me  by  her  own  proud  will." 

The  morning  sun  beheld  the  gallant  ship 

Swift  driving  o'er  the  blue — no  trace  of  land 

Was  visible;  the  sporting  flying-fish 

Darted  across  her  bow  in  multitudes. 

And  ever  and  anon  a  screaming  bird 

Hovered  o'erhead  awhile,  then  hied  away; 

The  gentle  breeze  crested  the  distant  wave 

And  swelled  the  canvas  of  the  lab'ring  ship ; 

It  moaned  and  sighed  amid  the  loose  cordage, 

And  fanned  the  cheek  of  Luilla,  my  friend, — 

For  she  was  there  and  leaning  o'er  the  waists 

Look'd  into  the  deep  sea  and  thought  of  home, 

And  friends,  and  childhood's  early  scenes,  I  think; 

Her  mass  and  pray'r,  her  spir'tual  adviser — 

Of  all  she  loved  and  all  she  thought  lov'd  her — 

Ah,  then,  the  tears  unbidden  'gan  to  flow ; 

The  breeze  now  playing  with  her  ringlets  black 

That  cluster  o'er  her  snowy  shoulders,  and 

Her  crimson  cheeks  receive  the  kisses  light 

Of  the  majestic  sun.     A  form  she  stands 

Of  unsurpassed  beauty,  e'en  among 

The  fairest  daughters  of  the  sons  of  men. 

Her  fragile  form  is  gently  rocked  and  swayed 


LUILLA  207 

By  the  soft  motion  of  the  sailing  ship; 

One  waxlike  hand  the  ships  gunwale  supports 

The  other  grasps  her  cherished  rosarie. 

In  South  New  Jersey  e'en  unto  this  day 

There  is  a  weird  place  where  many  tales 

Are  told  of  Bluebeard,  once  a  pirate,  too. 

And  money  holes  abound  in  plenty,  where 

'Twas  said  that  he  had  buried  stores  of  gold 

And  anxious  diggers  searched  with  hushed  voice, 

To  gain  the  treasure,  which,  'twas  often  said 

Was  heard  to  rattle  'neath  the  cov'ring  stone ; 

And  many  vouched  when  they  had  digged  a  ways, 

They  found  the  iron  chest  which  held  the  prize. 

But  being  so  o'ercome  with  dreadful  awe, 

They  spoke!  and  down  the  chest  immediate  sunk — 

For  'twas  a  legend  that  old  Bluebeard  called 

A   stalwart   stripling   from   his   pirate   crew, 

More  wicked  than  the  rest  and  steep'd  in  crime, 

And  charged  him  thus :     "  Son  of  the  sulph'rous  pit, 

Seest  thou  this  gold?    I  leave  it  now  to  thee, 

To  guard  until  I  do  return — Dost  hear? 

See  that  thou  guard'st  it  well ;  and  if  perchance 

The  hand  of  man  should  seek  and  find,  the  fiends 

Of  hell  in  their  black  arts  assist  to  guard ! 

And  if  a  human  voice  dost  hear,  raise  all 

The  powers  of  hell  to  bear  it  off.  Spirits 

Of  darkness  keep  their  vigils  near  to  thee !  " 

A  charmed  bullet  pierced  the  young  man's  brain. 

He  died  while  standing  upright ;  yet  no  mark 

Or  wound,  'twas  said,  was  seen;  they  buried  first 

The  gold,  then  stood  the  corpse  upright  upon 

The  chest,  then  filled  the  pit  and  laid  a  great 

Flat  stone  upon  it. 

This   Bluebeard  was   none 
But  Loraine,  pirate  of  the  Southern  Seas ; 
He  found  the  place;  a  quiet,  sheltered  cove, 
A  few  miles  up  the  Bay  of  Delaware, 


208  GOULDTOWN 

Had  landed  many  times  and  stored  his  spoils, 

Among  a  band  of  servile  padders,  who 

Inhabited  the  country  and  by  stealth 

Surreptitious  conveyed  them  to  the  town 

Of  Quakers,  where  they  might  be  sold  for  coin. 

This  is  the  place  of  which  Loraine  had  told, 

Jean  Paul  Retour  the  night  he  left  the  den 

And  he  had  made  his  plan  to  this  effect, — 

That  Conara  and  his  associates 

Should  seize  upon  the  land  as  best  they  could, 

And  build  a  mansion  house  and  till  the  soil 

And  keep  communication  with  the  town 

Of  Penn,  from  whence  to  import  luxuries, 

And  thus  to  make  a  home  adapted  to 

A  foreign  lord  and  lady  when  they  came. 

And  so  it  was;  a  beautiful  abode 

Was  finished  with  the  most  exquisite  taste, 

And  flow'rs  and  forest  trees  adorned  the  lawn 

Which  stretched  expansive  from  the  edifice; 

And  carriage-drives,  well  gravelled  and  laid  off, 

And  shaded  by  the  tow'ring  oak  and  pine — 

In  truth  it  was  a  home  that  would  invite 

The  most  fastidious,  for  the  corsair  gave 

Command  that  no  expense  be  spared  to  make 

His  home  full  worthy  of  his  bride. 

Three  years 

Were  passed — the  time  drew  near  at  which 
He  said  he  should  be  done  of  robbing  ships — 
And  should  forsake  the  deep  and  land  his  prize, 
And  enter  in  the  social  walks  of  life 
And  as  exiled  nobleman  from  lands 
Where  prisoners  of  state  were  forced  to  leave 
Their  home  and  kindred — was  thus  much  his  plan. 
"  And  now,  my  friend,"  my  narrator  kept  on, 
"  We  must  return  our  thoughts  unto  the  ship, — 

Plunging  and  ploughing  through  the  restless  main, 

A  thing  of  beauty,  she,  a  thing  of  life. 

And  freighted  with  the  spoils  of  many  lands. 


LUILLA  209 

Of  captured  ships  the  burthen,  and  her  decks 
Were  always   trimmed   for  action.      Pedro  knew 
'Twas  better  to  prevent  confusion  than 
To  cure  th'  effects  by  losing  in  the  fight. 
Thus  was  the  home  of  Luilla,  but  not 
Of  Luilla  alone;  for  merchantmen 
Oft  carried  passengers  of  female  sex, 
And  so  it  chanced  that  Pedro  had  run  down 
And  taken  a  rich  commerce  ship  of  France, 
With  two  French  ladies  who  became  his  spoil — 
For  any  one  he  thought  to  be  of  use 
He  failed  to  put  on  shore  at  liberty 
But  pressed  them  to  his  service ;  so  it  was 
With  those  two  ladies ;  he  had  reckoned  well 
That  Luilla  desired  company 
Of  her  o^vn  sex ;  how  to  provide  for  her 
And  not  endanger  his  designs  had  been 
A  subject  often  pondered  in  his  mind. 
Not  that  he  feared  she  could  escape  from  him, 
Or  any  plots  she  might  with  comp'ny  make 
Would  foil  the  least  his  foul  intentions,  for 
He  knew  she  was  secure,  such  trusty  guards, 
Were  Albertero  and  his   old  hag  wife — 
But  he  did  fear  the  slightest  counterpoise 
Would  alien  her  affections ;  to  this  end 
Was  strict  forbiddance  made  for  any  one 
Save  the  old  guards  and  Maenon,  the  black  steward. 
To  hold  converse  or  say  a  word  to  her. 
It  happened  lucky  then,  so  Pedro  thought, 
That  these  two  maidens  spoke  another  tongue — 
So  henceforth  were  they  her  associates. 
Their  names  were  Lizzette  and  Enfronica, 
And  Lizzette  bore  a  striking  likeness  to 
The  fair  Luilla,  so  much  so  that  one 
With  slighting  gaze  would  not  the  difference  tell. 
The  only  'stinguishment  between  the  two 
Was  in  their  hair — Lizzette's  was  golden  hue. 
The  night  was  dark  and  stormy  and  the  wind 
14 


210  GOULDTOWN 

In  fitful  howls  swept  through  the  taut  cordage ; 
The  good  ship  rocked  and  swayed  before  the  gale 
Now  upon  beams,  now  bows  beneath  the  waves. 
Onward  she  hastens,  glad,  she  seems  to  near 
A  port  at  last,  so  tossed  and  beat  by  seas 
Her  oaken  sides  delight  themselves  to  find 
A  harbor  is  before;  with  sturdy  ribs 
They  check  and  dash  the  billows  back  upon 
Their  own  revengeful  heads. 

The  quiet  Bay 
Of  Delaware  is  seen  athwart  her  prow; 
The  surging  sea  is  stayed  at  last,  the  calm 
Smooth  waters   of  the  Creek  of  Stowe 
Bear  on  their  bosom  Paul  Retour's  proud  ship 
And  through  the  murky  night  a  friendly  beam 
Starts  from  a  watchful  signal-light  hard  by 
And  signal  answers  signal;  by  the  ship 
The  cables  run,  the  good  ship  winds  around. 
At  last  she  ceases  in  her  progress,  rests — 
From  years  of  weary  toil  she  rests  at  last ! " 

In  the  poem  there  follows  the  description  of  the  life 
in  the  Haunted  House,  referred  to  previously. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

SOME  PRESENT  KEAL  ESTATE  POSSESSIONS  OF  THE 
INHABITANTS  OF  GOULDTOWN. 

The  Western  extremity  of  Gouldtown  extends  to 
Southeast  Avenue  at  the  corner  of  Pamphylia  Avenue, 
in  the  second  ward  of  the  city  of  Bridgeton,  New  Jersey. 
At  this  point  is  the  home  of  William  C.  Gould,  a  de- 
scendant of  Rev.  Furman  Gould.  His  wife  is  Elizabeth, 
daughter  of  George  Pierce  of  Salem.  She  is  a  de- 
scendant of  Menon  Pierce,  1st,  of  Gouldtown.  This 
home  of  William  C.  Gould  consists  of  a  farm  of  twenty 
acres,  which  he  inherited  from  his  father,  Furman  Gould, 
2nd.  It  extends  eastward  along  Pamphyha  Avenue 
until  it  joins  an  eleven-acre  lot  belonging  to  Cleon 
Gould,  which  Cleon  inherited  by  will  from  his  mother's 
father,  Abijah  Gould,  3rd.  Cleon's  lot  extends  east- 
ward, still  along  Pamphylia  Avenue  until  it  joins  the 
farm  of  Eugene  Gould's  fifty  acres.  This  farm  was  left 
to  Eugene  and  his  sister,  Mary  Gould,  by  their  father, 
Alfred  Gould,  and  their  mother,  Mrs.  Sarah  Gould, 
still  resides  with  them  and  has  her  widow's  right  in  the 
farm.  South  of  this  farm,  divided  from  it  by  Pam- 
phylia Avenue,  is  the  hundred-acre  farm  of  Eli  Gould 
(lately  deceased),  where  reside  his  widow,  Mary  Stew- 
ard Gould,  her  son,  Edgar  S.  Gould,  and  family.  This 
farm  extends  eastward  along  this  same  avenue,  up  to 
Burlington  Avenue,  still  in  ward  two  of  Bridgeton. 

The  farm  of  Eugene  and  Mary  Gould  (these  two 
are  unmarried,  brother  and  sister  living  with  their 
mother)  extends  northward  until  it  joins  the  seventy-* 
acre  farm  of  George  Pierce  of  Gouldtown  (not  the 
Salem  George  previously  mentioned).     This  farm  of 

211 


212  GOULDTOWN 

George  Pierce,  which  is  his  home  farm,  as  he  owns 
several,  extends  northward,  crosvsing  the  Buckshutem 
road  and  extending  to  the  Bridgeton  and  Millville  turn- 
pike, where  his  handsome  dwelling  stands ;  the  farm  also 
extends  eastward  to  Burlington  Avenue,  which  runs 
north  and  south,  and  to  which  also  extends  the  Eli  Gould 
farm,  a  half  mile  south.  Between  the  Pierce  farm  and 
the  Eli  Gould  farm  is  a  twenty-acre  lot  owned  by  T,  R. 
Janvier,  which  joins  on  the  east  end  of  that  much  of  the 
Eugene  Gould  farm.  East  of  the  Eli  Gould  farm,  from 
which  it  is  separated  by  Burlington  Avenue,  is  the 
twenty-eight-acre  lot  of  Chaplain  T.  G.  Steward,  and 
eastward  and  northward  of  this  lot  is  the  more  than 
hundred-acre  farm  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  and  his 
beautiful  country  home ;  this  farm  fronts  on  the  Buck- 
shutem road,  there  being  a  ten-acre  lot  at  the  northwest 
corner,  belonging  lately  to  Henry  Dare,  which  separates 
that  portion  from  Burlington  Avenue. 

Joining  the  northwest  portion  of  the  farm  of  Eugene 
and  Mary  Gould,  from  which  it  is  separated  by  the 
Central  Railroad,  is  the  f ourteen-acre  farm  and  home  of 
Wilham  Steward,  which  extends  almost  to  Southeast 
Avenue,  before  mentioned,  and  between  this  and  the 
eleven-acre  lot  of  Cleon  Gould  is  another  eleven-acre 
lot  owned  by  a  lawyer.  So  that,  as  is  thus  shown,  all 
this  square  territory  lying  between  Southeast  Avenue, 
Pamphylia  Avenue,  Burlington  Avenue  and  the  Bridge- 
ton  and  Millville  turnpike  and  trolley  line,  as  is  here 
indicated,  as  well  as  the  farm  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould, 
east  of  Burlington  Avenue  (with  the  exception  of  the 
lawyer's  lot  and  the  Janvier  lot) ,  is  owned  by  the  Gould- 
town  people,  though  the  territory  is  within  the  limits  of 
Bridgeton;  these  lands  are  all  contiguous,  divided  only 
by  roads  and  the  Central  Railroad  of  New  Jersey. 

To  keep  up  the  contiguity,  on  the  north  side  of  the 


REAL  ESTATE  213 

Bridgeton  and  Millville  turnpike,  we  step  across  this 
road  at  the  northeast  corner  of  the  George  Pierce 
seventy-acre  farm  where  we  can  join  the  property  of  the 
estate  of  Francis  L.  Pierce,  occupied  by  his  widow  and 
her  son,  and  his  family;  this  is  twenty  acres,  off  which 
building-lots  have  been  sold  on  Burlington  Avenue, 
which  is  on  the  west  side ;  this  property  extends  eastward 
along  the  turnpike  until  it  joins  the  twenty-eight-acre 
farm  belonging  to  Bishop  B.  F.  Lee.  Bishop  Lee'3 
property  still  extends  eastward  along  the  turnpike  until 
it  joins  the  seventy-acre  Steward  farm,  formerly  the 
home  of  James  Steward,  where  the  Steward  family, 
whose  picture  is  shown  in  this  book,  spent  their  child- 
hood and  youth.  This  farm,  which  extends  on  both  sides 
of  the  turnpike,  is  now  owned  by  Leslie  S.  Gould,  a 
grandson  of  James  Steward,  the  original  owner. 

We  are  now  almost  one  and  a  half  miles  eastward 
from  the  starting  point,  at  the  west  side  of  the  home  of 
William  C.  Gould,  which  fronts  on  Southeast  Avenue. 
Going  back  to  the  Steward  farm,  we  cross  this  to  the 
south  side,  where  we  join  the  farm  of  the  late  Anthony 
Gould's  heirs ;  it  is  separated  by  a  road,  running  north- 
eastwardly from  the  Buckshutem  road,  in  front  of  Rev. 
Theodore  Gould's  residence,  to  the  turnpike  before  men- 
tioned, where  it  terminates  at  the  toll  gate,  which  is  the 
actual  beginning  of  the  village  of  Gouldtown  from  the 
western  direction. 

The  Anthony  Gould  farm,  as  well  as  the  westerly 
portion  of  the  part  of  the  James  Steward  farm,  joins 
on  other  lands  of  Bishop  Lee  and  his  three  sisters — ^the 
estate  of  their  parents.  This  Anthony  Gould  farm  con- 
tains over  forty  acres,  and  extends  south  to  the  Buck- 
shutem road.  To  the  west  of  this  and  extending  along 
the  Buckshutem  road  westwardly,  which  divides  it  from 
the  farm  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  is  the  home  and 
twelve-acre  lot  of  Stephen  S.  Steward,  the  carpenter  and 


214  GOULDTOWN 

builder.  South  of  the  Anthony  Gould  farm  and  on  the 
south  side  of  the  Buckshutem  road  is  the  farm  of  Milton 
Pierce  (unmarried)  comprising  some  thirty  acres;  this 
joins  the  farm  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould,  on  the  west, 
farms  (two)  of  Lorenzo  F.  Gould  on  the  south,  and 
other  farm  lands  of  Bishop  Lee  and  his  three  sisters  on 
the  east.  These  Lee  lands  also  lie  on  both  sides  of  the 
Buckshutem  road,  and  join  on  the  southeast  that  por- 
tion of  the  Anthony  Gould  farm.  To  the  east  of  the 
Anthony  Gould  farm  lies  the  farm  of  William  H. 
Gould,  his  son  (deceased)  and  this  joins  the  James 
Steward  farm  at  its  southeast  corner,  and  the  lands  of 
Preston  Gould,  Reuben  CufF,  and  Frank  Webster, 
which  lie  between  the  road  which  goes  to  the  tollgate  be- 
fore mentioned  and  the  turnpike. 

William  Gould's  lands  also  join  the  lands  of  the 
estate  of  Pierce  Gould,  inherited  from  his  father,  EHsh^ 
Gould,  1st,  and  which  are  now  owned  by  Anna  Gould, 
granddaughter  of  Pierce  Gould  and  daughter  of  Au- 
gustus Gould.  This  Pierce  Gould  tract  extends  out  to 
and  across  the  main  road  from  Fairfield  to  Woodruff, 
terminating  at  a  distance  of  two  and  a  half  miles  from 
our  first  starting  point,  and  all  are  contiguous  proper- 
ties ;  but  within  this  large  territory  is  a  plot  of  fifty- two 
acres,  belonging  to  the  Stevenson  estate,  which  lies 
between  the  farm  of  Rev.  Theo.  Gould  on  the  south  and 
the  estate  of  Francis  L.  Pierce  on  the  north,  and  another 
plot  of  ten  acres  formerly  owned  by  Gideon  Pierce,  but 
now  owned  by  a  white  man.  These  two  plots  lie  be- 
tween Burlington  Avenue  and  the  James  Steward  farm 
and  Lee  estate,  on  the  south  side  of  the  turnpike.  These 
two  plots,  comprising  sixty-two  acres,  are  entirely  sur- 
rounded by  the  farms  of  George  T.  Pierce  on  the  west. 
Rev.  Theodore  Gould  on  the  south,  James  Steward  and 
Lee  estates  on  the  east,  and  farm  of  Bishop  Lee  and 


A  Goiildtown  Woman  and  Her  Driving  Horse.     Photo  by  Her  Grandson. 


Cottage  of  Stephen  S.  Steward. 


REAL  ESTATE  215 

Francis  L.  Pierce  estate  on  the  north.  South  of  the 
farm  of  Rev.  Mr.  Gould  are  lands  of  the  Jonathan 
Gould  estate,  Lorenzo  F.  Gould's  farms  (he  also  owns 
the  farm  of  Jonathan  Gould,  his  father) . 

From  the  northern  point  of  the  Steward  farm,  going 
to  the  southern  point  of  the  Rev.  Gould  farm,  crossing 
lands  of  the  estate  of  Anthony  Gould  and  to  the  south- 
ern line  of  L.  F.  Gould's  farms  is  a  distance  of  one  and 
a  half  miles.  Still  further  south,  and  still  contiguous, 
are  lands  of  William  Wilson  (whose  mother  was  a 
Gould)  and  Jacob  Coombs  (whose  mother  was  a 
Pierce),  comprising  nearly  one  hundred  acres. 

To  the  eastward  of  these  last  tracts  comes  the  ancient 
estate  of  Elisha  Gould,  1st,  which  has  been  before 
alluded  to,  as  well  as  lands  comprising  the  old  Gould 
possessions  of  the  heirs  of  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  Samuel 
Gould,  1st,  and  Elisha  Gould,  1st,  as  bequeathed  in 
the  ancient  will  of  Benjamin  Gould  of  1777. 

To  the  eastward  and  northward  of  these  ancient 
estates  and  the  ancient  estates  of  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st, 
and  his  brothers,  Anthony,  Menon,  John,  and  Benja- 
min Pierce,  are  hundreds  of  acres,  now  owned  by  Goulds 
and  Pierces,  with  now  and  then  a  Murray — the  latter, 
however,  being  small  possessions. 

The  only  survivor  of  the  family  of  Adrian  Pierce 
is  Steward  Haines  Pierce,  who  resides  on  the  old  home- 
stead farm  of  his  father  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  settle- 
ment of  Carmel.  Adrian's  estate  was  about  seven  hun- 
dred acres,  and  was  divided  among  his  heirs.  Most  of  it 
has  been  disposed  of  by  them,  before  their  deaths. 

From  the  home  of  William  C.  Gould  at  Bridgeton 
on  the  west  to  the  farm  of  Stewart  H.  Pierce  on  the 
east  is  a  distance  of  seven  miles  and  a  person  can  go 
from  one  extremity  to  the  other  and  be  continuously  on 
the  lands  of  the  colored  residents  of  Gouldtown.    This 


216  GOULDTOWN 

immense  territory,  comprising  over  five  thousand  acres 
at  the  present  time,  is  composed  of  both  farm  lands  and 
woodlands,  but  the  greater  portion  of  it  is  woodland, 
and  a  large  increase  to  the  original  holdings.  The 
largest  holders  of  these  woodlands  are  William  C. 
Gould,  Albert  Gould;  heirs  of  Benjamin  Gould;  heirs 
of  Holmes  Pierce;  George  T.  Pierce;  Peter  Pierce; 
Holmes  Pierce,  Jr.,  Charles  Lloyd;  John  Murray,  4th, 
heirs  of  Jacob  Pierce,  and  others. 

SOME  LEADING  FAMILIES  AND  THEIR  LINE   OF  DESCENT. 

Of  the  present  descendants  of  the  inhabitants  of 
Gouldtown  may  be  found  family  branches  in  all  parts 
of  the  country  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  Coast. 

Some  of  these  branches,  for  obvious  reasons  founded 
on  well-known  American  prejudice,  will  not  be  given 
here.  They  are  white  people  and  happy,  prosperous, 
and  some  of  them  distinguished,  and  it  would  add  noth- 
ing to  the  happiness  or  comfort  of  them  to  let  their 
children  even  know  of  their  descent.  I  received  last 
week  a  letter  from  a  lady  in  the  West,  the  daughter  of 
a  man  who  was  a  close  boyhood  friend  in  our  boyhood 
days,  asking  me  if  I  knew  her  father's  relatives.  She 
had  heard  her  father  speak  of  me  often  before  his  death 
a  few  years  ago.  I  had  kept  track  of  him;  he  was  a 
brave  soldier  and  a  heroic  officer  for  over  three  years  in 
the  Union  Army  in  the  Civil  War.  He  was  not  the  only 
one  from  this  place  (Gouldtown)  whom  I  had  known 
in  the  same  capacity,  who,  having  gone  West,  lost  their 
identity  of  color,  and  become  soldiers  and  officers  in  the 
war,  and  had  raised  honored  families.  Others  I  have 
known  in  other  spheres  of  life  as  well.  If  their  posterity 
can  be  called  '*  deceived  "  I  would  not  undeceive  them. 

There  are  two  sisters,  daughters  of  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
B(.  F.  Pierce,  the  one  recently  residing  on  the  Atlantic 


REAL  ESTATE  217 

coast,  at  Longport,  Atlantic  City,  the  other  at  Tacoma, 
Washington.  They  are  Miss  Ethel  Pierce  and  Mrs. 
Jennie  Jones.  They  are  descendants  of  Benjamin 
Gould,  2nd,  on  the  mother's  side,  and  Adam  Pierce,  the 
Revolutionary  soldierj  on  their  father's  side. 

The  family  of  Lorenzo  F.  Gould  is  conspicuous  for 
its  general  intelligence;  two  daughters,  Miss  Agnes 
Gould  and  Miss  Alice  Gould  (now  Mrs.  Clifton 
Mosely),  were  schoolteachers  in  Atlantic  and  Camden 
Counties.  Miss  Lucette  Pierce,  niece  of  Mr.  Gould,  is 
principal  of  the  Gouldtown  public  school  and  has  been  a 
teacher  in  SomerviUe,  and  Atlantic  City,  and  else- 
where. They  are  Normal  graduates.  They  are  de- 
scendants of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  and  Rev.  Furman 
Gould,  and  of  Anthony  Pierce,  2nd. 

Leslie  S.  Gould  and  Edgar  E.  Gould,  sons  of  the 
late  Eli  Gould,  are  prominent  farmers.  They  are  de- 
scendants on  their  father's  side  from  John  Murray,  1st, 
and  Elisha  Gould,  1st,  and  on  their  mother's  side  from 
Benjamin  Gould,  2nd.  Timothy  Gould  and  Aaron 
Paul  Gould,  farmers  and  truckers,  are  descendants  on 
their  mother's  side  of  Wanaca  Pierce,  1st,  and  Mary 
Murray,  and  on  their  father's  side  of  Charles  Gould, 
son  of  Elisha  Gould,  1st. 

Joseph  Gould,  the  farmer,  who  resides  on  the  home- 
stead of  his  grandfather.  Rev.  Furman  Gould,  is  a 
Gould  on  both  sides,  his  mother  being  a  daughter  of 
Abijah  Gould,  2nd.  Furman  and  Abijah  were  brothers, 
sons  of  Abijah  Gould,  1st.  One  of  his  grandmothers 
was  "  Kitty  "  Gould;  the  other  was  Rachel  Hicks. 

Bishop  Benjamin  Franklin  Lee,  extensively  known 
all  over  the  United  States  and  in  Europe,  who,  as  well 
as  his  interesting  family,  has  been  quite  distinguished, 
is  a  descendant  of  Benjamin  Gould,  2nd,  on  his  mother's 
side,  and  of  Abel  Lee,  of  Salem  County.    Bishop  Lee 


218  GOULDTOWN 

was  a  member  of  the  great  Ecmnenical  Council  which 
met  in  London  a  few  years  ago,  and  of  other  great  re- 
ligious bodies.  Bishop  Lee's  mother  was  Sarah, 
daughter  of  Benjamin  and  Phoebe  Gould.  His  only 
son  is  a  distinguished  student  of  sociology,  and  his 
daughters  are  accomplished  teachers  in  Wilberforce 
University,  of  which  their  honored  father  was  once 
president,  and  in  which  their  mother,  then  Miss  Ashe 
of  Kentucky,  was  a  teacher.  Two  of  his  sisters  aire 
well-known  residents  of  Gouldtown,  and  the  other  re- 
sides in  Philadelphia. 

The  Steward  family  has  ifigured  so  often  in  this  book 
that  a  mere  mention  is  all  that  is  here  necessary.,  Wil- 
liam (that  is  my  name)  is  the  writer;  he  has  been  erip 
gaged  in  newspaper  work  for  a  generation  and  more; 
he  is  the  oldest  of  the  brothers.  Theophilus  Gould 
Steward  has  been  a  clergyman  since  1861;  was  first 
stationed  in  Camden,  New  Jersey.  He  graduated  from 
an  Episcopalian  Theological  Institute.  He  was  sent 
South  immediately  after  the  close  of  the  war  to  estab- 
lish the  African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  where,  for 
several  years,  he  accomplished  very  successful  labors. 
Being  a  French  scholar  he  was  sent  to  establish  the 
African  Methodist  Episcopal  Church  in  Port-au-Prince, 
Haiti,  which  he  successfully  accomplished.  He  has 
served  most  acceptably  some  of  the  largest  churches  of 
his  chosen  connection  in  the  United  States.  He  was 
appointed  a  chaplain  in  the  regular  United  States  army 
by  President  Harrison,  the  appointment  coming  to  him 
unsought,  and  as  a  surprise.  In  this  service  he  spent 
many  years  among  the  Indians  on  the  far  western 
frontiers.  In  the  war  with  Spain  he  was  sent  to  the 
Philippines,  making  several  trips  across  the  Pacific. 
Reaching  the  age  limit,  he  was  retired  from  the  army 
with  all  the  honors  that  go  with  it.    He  has  travelled 


REAL  ESTATE  219 

since  in  Mexico,  and  made  two  summer  trips  to  England 
and  the  Continent. 

Joseph  Gould,  son  of  Charles  and  Susan  Gould, 
resides  on  the  farm  owned  by  his  father.  This  farm 
came  to  Charles  Gould  in  the  division  of  the  estate  of 
his  father,  Rev.  Furman  Gould,  who  inherited  it  from 
his  father,  Abijah  Gould,  1st,  who  inherited  it  from  his 
father,  the  original  Benjamin  Gould  who  died  in  1777. 
This  Joseph  Gould  is  a  lineal  descendant  of  the  original 
Gould  on  both  paternal  and  maternal  sides,  his  mother, 
Susan,  being  daughter  of  Abijah  Gould,  2nd,  and 
Rachel  Hicks.  Joseph's  wife  is  Almeda,  granddaughter 
of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd,  and  Almeda  Pierce. 

Lorenzo  F.  Gould,  member  of  the  Fairfield  town- 
ship school-board,  has  Gould,  Murray,  and  CufF  de- 
scent. His  father  was  Jonathan  Gould ;  his  mother  was 
a  daughter  of  William  CufF  and  Prudence  Murray 
Cuff.  William  Cuff  was  the  son  of  Rev.  Reuben  Cuff 
and  Hannah  Pierce.  Lorenzo  F.  was  a  soldier  in  the 
Civil  War,  and  his  son.  Corporal  Luther  D.  Gould,  was 
a  soldier  in  10th  United  States  Cavalry,  and  served  in 
the  War  with  Spain  in  Cuba. 

Albert  Gould  and  William  C.  Gould  are  sons  of  the 
late  Furman  Gould,  2nd,  and  Hester  Cuff,  daughter  of 
the  before  mentioned  William  Cuff.  There  were  two 
sisters  of  Albert  and  William  Gould.  One  became  the 
wife  of  Stephen  S.  Steward  and  is  deceased,  and  the 
other,  having  been  taken  West  by  her  uncle  and  aunt, 
grew  up  a  white  person,  married  and  has  a  fine,  pros- 
perous, and  intelligent  family. 

Frederick  Gould  is  the  last  surviving  member  of  the 
large  family  of  Pierce  Gould  and  his  wife  Sarah,  who 
was  a  Murray ;  he  has  sons,  Henry,  John  and  Theodore, 
and  one  daughter;  his  wife  was  a  daughter  of  John 
Murray,  2nd. 


220  GOULDTOWN 

Frederick  is  now  seventy-eight  years  of  age ;  several 
years  ago  he  was  run  into  by  a  trolley  car  when  crossing 
the  tracks  with  his  mule  team  and  a  load  of  wood.  His 
mule  team  was  killed,  both  his  legs  were  broken,  one 
of  them  in  two  places,  and  he  was  otherwise  terribly 
injured.  It  was  thought  by  all  that  he  could  not  sur- 
vive, but  such  was  his  life  tenacity  (characteristic  of  the 
family  of  Ms  name)  that  he  completely  recovered,  and 
had  for  years  worked  as  usual.  Elizabeth  Lloyd,  wife 
of  Charles  Lloyd,  sister  of  Bishop  Lee,  is  a  highly  in- 
tellectual woman,  and  though  always  in  humble  life  has 
read  more  widely  than  many  of  wealth  and  culture. 

James  R.  Pierce,  the  son  of  the  late  Ephraim  and 
Louisa  Pierce,  is  descended  from  Richard  Pierce,  3rd,  a 
son  of  Richard  Pierce,  2nd.  His  wife  is  Isabella, 
another  sister  of  Bishop  Lee. 

Jonathan  Gould  had  but  three  children,  one  son, 
Lorenzo  F.  and  two  daughters,  Hannah,  widow  of  Rev. 
Jeremiah  H.  Pierce,  of  Trenton,  and  Annie,  widow  of 
Mordecai  C.  Pierce;  she  was  Gouldtown's  last  post- 
mistress. Her  daughter.  Miss  Lucette,  is  principal  of 
the  Gouldtown  public  school. 

Belford  Pierce,  the  blacksmith,  is  a  descendant  of 
Anthony  Pierce,  1st,  and  also  of  Anthony  Gould,  2nd; 
his  mother  being  Christiana,  first  wife  of  Mordecai  C. 
Pierce.  Warner  K.  Pierce,  another  member  of  the 
Fairfield  School  Board,  is  his  brother. 

Two  brothers  of  Bishop  Lee  met  accidental  deaths. 
Both  were  unmarried,  and  both  over  sixty  years  of  age. 
Their  names  were  William  C.  and  Abel.  William  C. 
left  a  considerable  estate. 

Joseph  and  Clarence  Gould,  sons  of  Nathan  and 
Phoebe  Gould,  are  full  Goulds,  both  their  parents  being 
of  that  name.  Nathan  was  the  son  of  Abijah  Gould,^ 
2nd,  and  Phoebe  was  the  daughter  of  Benjamin  Gould, 
2nd.    Joseph  and  Clarence  are  both  widowers. 


REAL  ESTATE  mi 

Clarence  has  one  daughter,  Phoebe,  wife  of  Philbert 
Gould,  son  of  the  late  Thomas  Gould,  who  was  the  son 
of  Aaron  Gould. 

Preston  Gould  is  the  only  son  living  of  Anthony 
Gould,  2nd;  he  has  no  children. 

A  brother  of  Joseph  and  Clarence  Gould  met  an 
accidental  death  when  a  young  man  by  a  cave-in  in  a 
sand  pit  on  his  father's  farm.  A  sister,  Nancy,  wife  of 
George  Gould  (nephew  of  Rev.  Theodore  Gould),  re- 
sides in  Atlantic  City. 

Besides  the  descendants  of  the  original  Gould, 
Pierce,  Murray,  and  Cuff  families  residing  in  Gould- 
town  at  the  present  time,  there  are  numerous  branches 
in  Salem  County,  especially  of  Cuffs,  and  scattered  in 
many  parts  of  the  United  States  and  in  Canada. 

If  the  writers  of  this  book  should  attempt  to  write  to 
all  their  living  relatives,  they  would  write  addresses  to 
every  State  in  the  Union  nearly,  to  most  of  the  princi- 
pal cities  in  the  country  and  several  of  the  larger  ones 
in  the  Dominion  of  Canada.  They  would  also  direct 
to  London,  Liverpool,  Paris,  Berlin,  and  Antwerp. 

As  we  now  close  the  pages  of  this  humble  volume, 
we  send  it  forth  with  kindly  greetings  to  all  our  relatives 
wherever  their  eyes  may  behold  it,  and  to  our  posterity 
that  the  love  of  the  home  life — the  family  life  and  all 
its  sacred  ties — the  love  of  the  old  home  and  its  tradi- 
tions may  be  cherished  and  fostered,  prospered  and  im- 
proved upon,  and  the  sterling  qualities  of  our  forbears 
as  we  now  recall  them,  recount,  and  look  back  upon 
them,  may  be  intensified  in  the  coming  generations. 

To  look  back  for  two  centuries  on  the  name  which 
founds  this  community  and  be  able  to  say  in  general 
terms,  that  it  is  a  name  unsmirched  in  the  court  annals 
of  this  county  by  crime,  or  by  a  drunkard  or  a  pauper, 
is  a  heritage  in  which  any  community  might  rejoice, 
however  poor  it  may  be  in  material  wealth. 


INDEX 


Abbey  of  New  Minster,  24 
Academy,  Bridgeton,  171,  172 
Achter  Cul.  20 
Adams,  Elizabeth,  27,  42,  49,  50 

Fenwick,  27 

John,  26,  39,  42,  50,  54 

Mary,  27 
African  M.  E.  church,  13,  113-114,  142. 

144.  145,  150,  218 
Albania,  20 

Alloway's  Creek,  41,  69 
Almond,  Caroline,  93 

Mary,  93,  168 

Phoebe,  93 

Thomas,  93 

Thomas  W.,  93 

William,  93 

William  P.,  165 
Anderson,  Robert,?128 

Sarah,  128 

Thomas,  45 
Andros,  Governor,  28-30 
Amett,  Bishop  B.  W.,  151 
Assembly  to  be  elected,  38 
Ayres,  Oswell,  74 

Back  Creek,  67 
Back  Neck,  68 
Bacon,  Samuel,  42 
Bacons  of  Bacon's  neck,  67 
Bacon's  neck,  42,  51 
Baily,  David,  126 

Nancy,  126 
Baptist  Church,  FirstTCohansey,  68 
Baracliff,  Mary,  123 
Barber,  Keziah,  75 
Barker,  Wade,  69 
Barrett,  James,  174 

Rebecca,  69 
Bateman,  Daniel,  72 


Bateman,  David,  72 

Isaac,  72 

Nathaniel,  174 

Dr.  Rush,  141 
Batemans,  61 
Beaver  Dam,  56 
Bennett,  Jane  H.,  77 

Jeremiah,  78 

Josiah,  174 

Sarah,  68,  78 
Berkeley,  Lord,  21,  22,  25,  28,  29,  35,  41 
Bethel  Church,  Philadelphia,  150 
Beulah,  Rev.  Jeremiah,  145 
Beveman,  EH,  74 
Bias.  J.  G.,  122 
Bilderback,  Thomas,  76 
Billingsly,  Anna,  119 
Binfields,  Berkshire  (Eng.),  48 
Bishop,  Abigail,  108 

Ebenezer  Pierce,  11 

Horace,  174,  178,  179 

Ichabod,  78 

Joseph,  108 

Seneca,  11,  108 
Bonham,  Hezekiah,  79 

Lindervilla  Maxon.  79 
Bowen,  Jonathan,  54,  89 

Levi,  144 

Lydia,  144 

Phoebe.  91.  142.  144 
Bowentown.  69 

village.  12 
Bowyer  expedition  of  1824,  95 
Bradway,  Edward,  45 
Bridgeton.  69 

Township.  N.  J.,  9.  11.  12.  41,  50 
54,  55.  58,  59,  61 

first  Mayor  of,  67 

and  Millville  Traction  Company's 
trolley  line,  12 

223 


224 


INDEX 


Bridgetown,  now  Bridgeton,  56,  88 
Bright,  Benjamin  T.,  174,  175 
Brooks,  Abigail,  72 

Hannah,  75 

Thomas,  72 
Buckshutem,  60 
Budd,  Hannah  F.,  76 
"Bumbridge,"  now  Fairton,  61,  88 
Bustill,  Rebecca,  127 
Buzby,  Amos,  80 

Cornelia  A.,  80 
Byllinge,  Edward,  36,  37 

Campbell,  Charles,  78 
Cape  May,  35 

county,  62 
Carll,  Hiram,  174 

Jeremiah,  174,  178 
Carll's  Corner,  village,  12 
Carmel,  N.  J.,  12 
Carpets  woven  from  worn-out  clothes, 

17 
Carr,  Sir  Robert,  20 
Carteret,  Sir  George,  21,  25,  29,  35 

Captain  Philip,  21 
Cartwright,  Sir  George,  20 
Cato,  Charles,  104 

Elizabeth,  104 
Cattle,  the  variety  that  no  one  would 

have  to-day,  17 
Challis,  Elizabeth  M.,  75 

James,  75 

John,  75 
Champness,  Edward,  39,  54 
Champneys,  Benjamin,  54 

Edward,  27 

John,  27 

Mary,  27 

Priscilla.  27,  39 
Charcoal  shipped  to  New  York,  61 
Charles  II,  King,  grant  of  lands  by,  20, 

25,  27,  28,  29,  35 
Chopping  frolics,  85 
Christmas    memories    and    reflections, 

162-164 
Church  organization,  140  et  seq. 


Clark,  James,  129 

Clarks,  61 

Clement's  (John)  Life  of  John  Fenwick, 

22,  28,  30 
Cohansey  Church,  76 
Cohansey  River,  57,  59,  61,  67 

village,  12 
Colonial  Assembly,  30 
Colored  men    offer    their    services    aa 

soldiers,  155,  192 
Colored    people,    American    prejudice 
against,  121 
distinguished   descendants  of, 
12 
Commission  man,  the,  17 
Commissioners,  election  of,  38 
Concessions  and  agreements,  37,  39 
Connecticut,  settlers  from,  39 
Connecticut  River,  20 
Conner,  Abigail,  72 

Thomas,  72 

William,  72 
Constitution  of  New  Jersey,  36,  39 
Cook,  Ephraim  J.,  51 

Orestes,  41 
Coombs,  Clara  G.,  103 

George  W.,  127 

Jacob,  103,  215 

William,  103,  120 
Covert.  Elizabeth,  23 
Cox,  Caroline,  92 

Hannah,  92,  93 

Isaac,  92,  120,  121 

Levi,  92 

Mary,  92,  93 

Phoebe,  92,  93 

Tamson,  92,  93,  115 

William,  92,  116 
Crane,  Isaac  W.,  171 
Cromwell,  O.,  the  Protector,  24 
Cruise,  Edward,  95 
Cuff,  Alley,  114 

Anna,  114.  115,  116 

Anthony.  114,  115,  134 

Archibald,  98,  103,  108,  114,  115, 
116,  173 


INDEX 


225 


CuflP,  Artie,  115 

Burgoyne,  98,  114,  116,  117 

Caroline,  105,  114,  116,  117 

Charles,  115,  116 

Cuffee  (Padgett),  113 

Daniel,  116 

David,  174 

Dorothy,  113,  116 

Edmund,  98 

Elisha,  116 

Elizabeth,  105,  114,  115,  117 

Emma  Ann,  114 

Ephraim,  99 

Estelle  Dunn,  98,  116 

Fanny,  98 

Francis,  103,  116 

George,  98 

Hannah,  93,  114,  115 

Hannah  Ann.  100,  117 

Hester,  100,  117,  219 

Hiram,  93,  115 

Jane,  115 

Job,  97 

Jonathan,  103,  114,  115,  119 

Lambert,  99 

Leonard,  115,  119 

Lydia  Gould,  103,  173 

Maranda  M.,  118 

Margaret,  115,  116 

Martha,  114,  134 

Mary,  104,  114,  115,  117,  130 

Mordecai,  92,  113,  115,  116,  134 

Oliver,  115 

Phoebe  H.,  115 

Prudence,  105,  116,  117,  119,  219 

Quinton,  99 

Rachel,  103 

Rebecca,  115 

Reuben,  64,  90,  92,   98,  100,   113, 

114,    115,   116,    134,    142,    143, 

144,  168,  214,  219 
Richard,  114,  115 
Ruhamah,  116 
Sarah,  105,  114,  117 
Seth,  113,  114,  116,  117,  134 
Tamson,  158 

15 


Cuff,  Theodore,  99 
Thomas,  115 
William,   100,   105,   115,  117,  118, 

119,  120 
William  A.,  114 
Cumberland  County  genealogy,  67 
Cumberland  County  Historical  Society, 

42 
Cumberland  County,  New  Jersey,  9,  38, 

39.  49,  54,  59 
Cumberland  Nail  and  Iron  Co.,  95 

Dailey  farm,  61 

Dare,  Captain  William,  68 

David,  79 

Elizabeth  W.,  74 

Henry,  212 

Jane  Elizabeth.  79 

Rebecca  F.,  79 
Davis,  Albino,  174,  178 

Elnathan,  74 

Henry,  124 

Jarmin  A.,  74 

Lydia.  123-4 

Samuel  Bond,  74 

Sarah.  73 

Susanna  Bond,  74 
Deeds,  early  original,  41-43  sq. 
Deerfield  village,  12 
Defence,  means  of,  in  a  barbarous  age, 

23 
Delaware  Bay,  20,  21,  35 

River,  35 

warrant,  pay,  of,  46 
Denn,  John,  41,  45,  sq. 

Margaret,  45 
Dennis,  Sarah,  69 
Descendants  of  leading  families.    109, 

216-221 
Dividing  Creek  Baptist  Church,  69,  70 
Dix  wrapper  factory,  59 
Dixon,  Charles  S.,  159 

John  R.,  160 
Donaghay  farm,  61 
Dow,  Ira,  79 

Lucy,  79 


226 


INDEX 


Dow,  Mary,  79 
Downe,  Township  of,  69 
Duck,  Amos,  123 

Charles,  131 

Prudence,  123 

Ruth,  123 
Dunn,  Almeda,  98,  101 

Christina  G.,  98,  101 

Elizabeth,  108 

Ercurious,  108 

Estella,  98 

Robert,  98,  101,  108 

Sarah,  108 

Thomas,  108 
Dutch  jurisdiction,  20-22 

settlers,  38 

East  Lake,  59 
Ebenezer  chvu-ch,  144 
Educational  facilities,  170 
Elections  by  balloting,  38 
Elizabethport,  New  Jersey,  21 
Elmer,  Charles  E.,  140 
Daniel,  140 
Dr.  Ebenezer,  9,  49,  54,  140,  141, 

147 
Dr.  Henry,  141 
Dr.  Jonathan,  82,  140 
Judge  L.  Q.  C,  9,  49,  89,  141 

History  of  Cumberland 
County,  N.  J.,  9,  49 
Dr.  Robert,  141 
Dr.  Wilham,  141 
Elmers,  61 
Eh-idge,  John,  46 
Elwell,  Albert  S.,  79 

Geo.  W.,  79 
Evarts  and  Peck's  "History  of  Salem, 
Cumberland  and  Gloucester  Coun- 
ties," 49 

Facemires,  61 

Fairfield  Township,  N.  J.,  9 

Fairton,  12,  61 

Family  eugenics  and  longevity,  133 

Farm  and  Home  Journals,  18 


Farming,  16 

Felts,  Alice  S.,  157,  169,  166 
Mary,  159,  160 
Phoebe,  160,  167 
Fenwick,  Ann,  26,  32 
Elizabeth,  26,  28 
John,  22,  24,  25,  26,  sq. 

commands  the  cavalry  at  the 
execution  of  the  Eling,  24,  25 
death  of,  33 
deeds  by,  41  sq. 
descendants  of,  9 
grave  of,  unknown,  33 
wife  of,  26,  34 
Priscilla,  26,  39 
Sheriff  Johannes,  23 
Sir  Robert  of  Northumberland,  24 
Sir  William,  22 
Fenwick  Grove,  27,  30,  32 
Finn's  Point,  38 
Firewater,  Indian  love  of.  83 
Fisler,  Dr.  Benjamin,  142 
Flemmings,  John,  128 
Fordsville  M.  E.  church,  13,  145 
Fort  Elseborg,  28 
Foster,  Ruth,  71 
Fox,  George,  25 
"Free  Landing,"  61 
Friends,  25,  60 

Game  plenty — no  game  laws,  87 
Garfield,  45 
Garrisons,  61 
Generette,  Rev.  Mr.,  158 
Gentry,  Thomas,  89 
Gillman,  David,  68 
Glaspey,  Ephraim,  71 
Gloucester  County,  37,  38 
Gold,  Gool.    See  Gould 
Golden  wedding,  164-169 
Goodchild's  plantation,  57 
Gould,  the  original  founder  of  Gould- 
town,  42 

Aaron,     90,     97,    102,     117,    152, 
220 

Aaron  Paul,  126,  152,  217 


INDEX 


227 


Gould,  Abijah,  53,  55,  56,  63.  81,  85,  91, 
92,  94,  95,  96,  101,  102, 103,  104, 
106,  117,  125,  128,  134, 158,  176, 
215,  217,  219 
Agnes,  168,  217 
Albert,  100,  153,  216,  219 
Alfred,  90,  96,  100,  101,  106,  151. 

152,  211 
Alice,  101,  217 
Almeda,  99,  102,  219 
Almeda  D.,  98,  101 
Almeda  P.,  97,  119 
Amanda,  95 
Andrew,  96,  176 
Ann,  52,  54,  63,  81,  88,  89, 105, 114, 

152,  158 
Ann  Smith,  96 
Anna,  90,  98,  142,  178,  214 
Anna  Rebecca,  100 
Anson,  106,  178 

Anthony,  53,  63,  81,  85,  88-90,  97, 
99,  103,  108,  114,  122,  134,  152, 
213,  219 
Augustus,  104,  105,  127,  214 
Beatrice,  105 

Benjamin,  52-56,  58,  63,  81,  88,  89, 
91-93,  95, 102, 103, 104, 109, 114, 
115,  116,  122,  134,  142-144,  145, 
148,  152,  158,  219 
Benjamin,  will  of,  52 
Caroline,  102.  104,  105,  117 
Carrie,  151 
Catherine  P.,  97 
Charles,  90.  96,  101,  102,  108,  152, 

217,  219 
Charlotte,  96,  104,  107,  129,  182, 

144 
Christiana  (Kitty),  53,  90,  96,  97, 

98,  101,  144,  152 
Christina,  97,  98,  108 
Clara,  103 

Clarence,  95,  102,  220 
Clayton,  103,  104,  132,  158 
Cleon.  211,  212 
Constance,  167 
Cynthia,  99 


Gould,  Daniel,  90,  97 
David,  117 
Dorothy,  178 
Edgar,  168,  211,  217 
Eli,  81, 105,  157,  164,  166,  167,  211, 

212,  217 
Elijah,  95,  96,  100,  104,  105,  119, 

128,  149,  174 
Elisha,  53,  56,  63,  81,  85,  90,  96,  98. 
104,  105,  107,  116,  117,  134,  153, 
174,  216,  217 
Eliza  Ann,  103 
Elizabeth,  63,  90,  94,  97,  98,  102, 

104,  108,  117,  128,  144,  211 
Elizabeth  Adams,  56 
Elmer,  101,  102 
Emeiine,  103 
Emily,  94,  106 
Enoch,    106,    107,   117,    134,    148, 

176 
Enoch  (Mrs.),  179 
Ephraim,  103 
estates,  134,  138 
Eugene  101,  151.  211,  212 
Fanny,  104 
Fanny  Cuff.  98 
Frederick,  104,  219 
Freeman,  107,  117 
Furman,    12,   90,   91,  96,  97,  98- 
100,  101.  103,  108,  116.  117,  142, 
144,    148,    152,    153.    211,    217, 
219 
genealogies,  88,  109-112 
George,  221 
George  W.,  95,  102 
Hannah,  90,  91,  96.  102,  105,  178, 

220 
Hannah  Ann,  100.  117 
Hannah  Caroline,  97,  117 
Hannah  M.,  101,  149 
Harriet,  99,  103,  178 
Harriet  G.  C,  99 
Henrietta  S.,  107 

Henry.    100.    105.   106,    117,    120 
Hester  Cuff.  100 
Hezekiah,  107,  180 


INDEX 


Gould,  Howard,  151.  159,  165 
Ida,  99 
Isabelle,  117 
James,  106.  107 
Jane.  91,  94 
Jeremiah,  103 

Jesse,  94,  104,  106,  173,  178,  180 
Job,  117 

John,  105,  106,  117,  120,  219 
Jonathan,  90,  96,  98.  100,  117,  148, 

152,  215,  219,  220 
Joseph,  95,  98,  101,  102,  117,  217, 

219,  220, 
Josephine,  94,  177,  178 
Julia,  104 

Kitty.  90.  96.  101,  108,  217 
Lenhart,  105 

Leonard,  91,  99,  102.  119.  130 
Leslie,  168,  213,  217 
Lorenzo  F.,  100,  155,  157,  214,  215. 

217,  219,  220 
Luella,  98 
Luther  D.,  98,  155 
Lydia,  91,  93,  94,  108,  116 
Lydia  Ann,  97,  117 
Mai  vena,  104 
Maria,  102,  105,  117 
Martha,  53,  89.  90,  96.  100,  101, 

102,  134,  152 
Mary,  81.  103,  107,  151,  164,  166, 

168, 177-8 
Mary  E.,  101 
Mary  S.,  164 
Mason  M.,  102,  119 
Matilda,  107 
Maurice,  104 
Melissa,  98 
Miriam,  107,  117 
Mitchell  H.,  102,  105 
Moses.  102,  105 
Nancy,  95,  221 
Nathan.  95,  102,  220 
Norton,  96,  107-8,  129 
Oliver,  91,  92,  104.  116.  125.  134, 

158 
Olivia  D..  107 


Gould,  Paul,  177 
Philbert,  220 
Phoebe,  53,  89,  91,  93-95,  97.  99, 

102,  115,  116,  142.  144,  158,  218, 

220 
Pierce,  104,  119,  214,  219 
Preston,  99,  214,  221 
Prudence,  91,  100,  158,  159,  165, 

174,  179 
Prudence  F.,  95,  143,  165,  169 
Rachel,  103,  117 
Rebecca,  91,  94 
reunion,  158,  159 
Rhuhamah,  92 
Rhumah,  90,  96 
Richard,  91,  96,  103,  104,  129 
Robert,  96 
Ruth,  96,  105,  128 
Samuel,  53.  56.  63.  81.  85,  90,  91, 

108,  114,  134,  178,  215 
Sarah,  56,  63,  81,  85,  91,  94,  96.  100, 

104,  105-6,  108,  117,  134,   151, 

153,  168,  211,  218 
Sarah  M.,  104 
Smith,  102,  104,  105,  117 
Susan,  101,  102 
Tamson,  91.  92,  94 
Theodore,  19,  95, 101, 105,  117, 149, 

150.  151.  153.  168,  178,  212,  214, 

219.  221 
Theophilus.  90.  96 
Thomas,  97,  220 
Timothy.  97.  102.  152.  217 
traditions,  49 
William,  97,  117,  152 
William  C,  12,  100,  153,  213,  215, 

216 
William  H.,  117,  155,  214 
Gouldtown,  church,   pastors  of,   1818- 

1912,  145-147 
founder  of,  42 

graveyard,  oldest  register  of,  51 
honored  by  its  neighbors,  18 
origin  of  name,  88 
school,  170-179 
sketch  of,  49,  50 


INDEX 


229 


Gouldtown  Sunday-school,  147-149 
Gouldtown  and  Piercetown,  64 
Government,  representative,  first  form 

of,  31 
Governor  Livingston,  schooner,  91 
Greenwich,  60,  71 

Griffin  (or  Griffith),  ship,  26,  28,  39 
Guy,  Richard,  36,  39 

Hall,  Ebenezer,  71 

Gabriel  Davis,  71 
Hammond,  Arthur,  96 

Charles,  96 

John.  96 

Rhumah,  96 
Hancock,  Margaret,  44,  sq. 

Richard,  36.  39,  41,  59 
Hancock's  Bridge,  59 
Harris,  Amy  S.,  74 

Eliza,  74 

Ephraim,  78 

Hannah  S..  74 

Hosea.  74 

Jane.  78 

Jeremiah.  115 

Mary.  74 

Oliver.  74 

Robert.  74 

Samuel.  74 
Harrison,  Josiah,  74 
Haun,  Jonathan  J.,  77 

Maria,  77 

Mary,  77 
Haunted  house,  Compton's,  193,  210 
Haying  time,  83,  86 
Heaton,  Samuel,  70 
Hedge,  Samuel,  36,  39,  54 
Hicks,  Andrew,  129,  131,  132 

Catherine,  131 

Elizabeth  P.,  131 

Isaiah,  131 

Josiah,  64,  101.  131 

Prudence,  131 

Rachel,  101,  131,  217 

Sarah  Ann,  131 

Sarah  Pierce,  129,  131 


Hicks,  Stratton,  129,  131, 

Historical  Collections  of  New  Jersey,  36, 

39,  51,  57 
Holcomb,  Rev.  Sheppard,  146,  147 
Holy  Island  Castle  in  Durham,  24 
Hood,  James,  53 
Hoover,  Anna,  179 
Hopewell  Township,  69.  71 
Hubbell,  W.  W.,  168 
Husted,  Abigail  B.,  78 

Henry.  78 

Seth,  174 

Independents,  Christian  denomination, 

25 
Indian  ancestry,  Murrays,  62 
Indian  Field  Run,  59,  63 
International    Sunday-school    Lessona, 

commentaries  on,  74 
Irdington,  in  Cumberland,  24 
Ivy  Hall  Seminary,  76 
Ivy  Point,  32 

"Jack,"  a  favorite  road  horse,  32 
James,  Duke  of  Monmouth,  28 
James,  Duke  of  York,  20,  22,  25,  28, 

35 
Janvier.  T.  R.,  212 
Jenkins,  Hannah,  73 
Jericho,  71 

Jersey  farmer,  injured  by  southern  com- 
petition, 16,  17 
Jersey  products  and  poultry,  17 
John  Blye;  or.  Trials  and  Triumphs, 

180-193 
Johnson,  Franklin,  D.D.,  74 

Hezekiah,  74 

Prudence,  72 

William,  72 

Rev.  Wm.  W.,  153 
Johnson's  History  of  Fenwick's  Colony, 
50,51 

Memoir  of  John  Fen  wick,  38,  50,  51 
Jones,  Jennie,  217 

William,  96 
Joslin,  Thomas,  53 


@30 


INDEX 


Kalm,  Professor,  62 
Keen,  Jacob  Jones,  126 

Jane,  123 

John,  126 

Joseph,  126 

Levi,  126 

Margaret,  126 

Marietta,  126 
Kellenberger's  Pocket  Gazetteer  of  New 

Jersey,  11 
Kelsay,  James  S.,  72 
Kelsey,  Kesiah,  69 
Kent,  ship,  from  London,  39 
King,  the,  trial  and  sentence  of,  24 
Klose,  Mrs.  Hortense,  169 
Knight,  Mrs.  Kate,  51 

Lands,  poor  and  timber  exhausted,  13, 

16 
Laning,  John,  71 

Richard,  71 
Laurie,  Gauen,  22,  25,  37 
Lee,  Abel,  94,  217,  220 

Benjamin  F.,  103 

B.  F.,  bishop,  18,  94,  153,  159.  165, 
179,  213,  214,  217,  220 

Daniel,  103 

Eli.  120 

Elizabeth,  94,  220 

Isabel,  94 

Jane,  94 

Lorenzo  F.,  79 

Sarah,  94,  179 

William  C,  94,  220 
Lefever,  Hipolite,  36,  39 
Lenapee  Indians,  62,  63 
Levi,  54 

Libraries  of  John  Fenwick,  32 
Lippincott,  Mary,  106 
Literary  efiForts,  180  et  seq. 
Little,  Margaret  E.,  77 
Lloyd,  Adelia,  126 

Albert,  126 

Alexander,  126 

Amanda,  126 

Charles,  125,  126,  155,  216,  220 


Lloyd,  Elizabeth,  220 

Emily,  126 

George,  126 

Jonathan,  126 

Lewis,  126 

Lydia,  126 

Sabia,  126 

William,  126 
Long  Island,  35 

Long  Island,  immigrants  from,  89 
Longevity  —  Gould,   Pierce,    Murray, 

133 
Lord  Fenwick,  37 
"Lord  Proprietor"  of  West  New  Jersey, 

37 
Lucas,  Nicholas,  22,  25,  37 
Ludlam,  Providence,  76 

Sarah,  76 
Luilla:    The  Corsair's  Victim,  a  tale  of 

South  Jersey,  193-210 
Lummis,  James,  63 

Phoebe,  63,  88 

schoolhouse,  144,  173 
Lummises,  61 
Lupton,  Tabitha,  118 

McLean,  Hannah  B.,  77 

Magazine  of  American  History,  quoted, 

67 
Maine,  Province  of,  20 
Market  gardening,  and  market  farm- 
ing in  the  South,  16 
Marriages  in  colonial  times,  88 
Matlack,  E.  L.,  37 
Matlock,  Abram,  37 

College  in  England,  37 

John,  36,  37,  39 
Maurice  River,  57,  59-61 

Bridge,  56 
Maverick,  Samuel,  20 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  13 
Middleman,  the,  17 
Mill  Creek,  59 

Hollow,  69 
Miller,  Rev.  Jeremiah,  144,  145 

Rutledge,  159 


INDEX 


231 


Millville,  12,  58,  59,  72 
Money,  lack  of,  84 
Moore,  Daniel,  75 

Joseph,  M.D.,  77 
Moral  and  Mental  Improvement  Soci- 
ety, 14 
Morton,  Collister.  179 
Mulford,  Anna  Maria,  71 

Ephraim,  68 

Hannah,  71 

Henry,  71,  77 

Horatio  J.,  77 

Isaac  W.,  71,  77 

Jane,  77 

John,  71 
Murray,  Adeline,  118 

Almeda,  118,  119 

Amelia,  125,  126 

Amy,  118,  125 

Charity,  125,  126 

Cynthia,  118 

David.  63,  86,  118,  125.  126.  144. 
145 

Dorcas,  63,  86,  127 

Ebenezer,  118,  155 

Elizabeth,  118,  125,  126 

Enos,  125,  126 

estates,  138-139 

Hannah,  105,  118.  119,  127 

Harriet,  118 

Henry,  118,  155 

Hester,  118,  119 

Hiram,  118,  155 

Hope,  125,  126 

Jane,  118,  120 

Jeremy,  125 

John,  63,  81,  82,  86,  102,  105.  115, 
117,  118,  120,  126,  216,  217,  219 

Julia,  118 

Katherine,  63,  81 

Lewis,  118,  155 

Maranda,  117,  118 

Margaret,  125 

Mark,  63,  127,  155 

Mary,  63.  86.  115,  118,  119,  125. 
127 


Murray,  Mary  Hand,  118 

Nancy,  125,  126 

Oliver,  117,  118,  125 

Othniel,  49,  62,  81,  86,  125,  155 

Patience,  125,  126 

Prudence,  117,  118.  119 

Rachel.  118 

Sarah.  118,  119,  125,  144 

Silas,  118 

Tabitha,  81, 102, 115, 117, 118, 120, 
126 

Wesley,  118 

William,  118,  155 

Zachariah,  118 
Murrays,  12,  58 

Neville,  James,  48 
Newark  Bay,  20 
New  Cesarea,  21,  25 
Newcomb,  Joseph,  73 

Sarah  S..  73 
New  England,  35 

colonies,  20 
New  England  Cross-roads  church,  84 
New  Haven  (Conn.),  discontent  at,  21,22 

immigrants  from,  38 
New  Jersey  archives,  88 
New  Netherland,  20,  22 
New  Salem,  57 
New  York,  Bay  of,  21 
Nichols,  Samuel,  36,  39 
NicoUs,  Colonel  Richard,  20 
Nixon,  Jeremiah,  79 

John  T.,  141 

Rhoda  S.,  79 
Noble,  Richard,  36,  39,  45 
Northumberland,  County  of  (Eng.),  22. 

23 
Nova  Cesarea  or  New  Jersey,  36 

Ogden,  Charlotte,  73,  132, 

Elmer,  73,  78 

John  B.,  78 

Ruth,  73 

Sarah  B.,  78 
Osborn,  Rev.  Ethan,  129,  141 


232 


INDEX 


Padgett,  Cuffee,  113 
Page,  John,  66,  89 
Pages,  61 

Parliamentary  Army,  24 
Patriotism  of  Gouldtown  people,  154 
Pearce,  George  T.,  95,  123 

Holmes,  123 
Pedigree  of  Benj.  Gould,  109 
Penn,  WUliam,   22,  25,  37.  58,  59 
Pierce,  Aaron,  119 

Adam,  63,  86,  102,  105,  125,  127, 

128,  154,  217 
Adeline,  118 

Adrian,    12,   102,    105,    123,    124, 

215 
Alexander,  127,  177,  178 
Alex.  W.,  97,  153 
Almeda,  97,  132,  219 
Almedia  Jones,  119 
Amelia,  102,  103,  126 
Amos,  97,  107,  120 
Andrew,  127,  131 
Angeline,  125 

Anna,  11,  98,  99,  159,  168.  220 
Ann  Cuff,  103 
Anthony,  62,  64,  85,  97,  103,  108, 

115,  116,  120,  122,  130,  131,  144, 

154,  173,  215,  217,  220 
Asa,  127,  128 
Belford,  98,  152,  220 
Benjamin,  63,  85,   116,   122,   123, 

129,  131,  144,  215 
B.  F.,  93,  128,  169 
Calvin  B.,  127 
Caroline,  128,  129 
Catherine,  97,  123 
Charles,  129,  130,  155 
Charles  H.,  97 
Charles  Jones,  128 
Christiana  G.,  98,  220 
Christina  S.,  104,  132 
Clement,  126,  130,  132 
Cynthia,  120 

David,  118,  128,  129 
Dora,  166 
Dorcas,  127,  128 


Pierce,  Dorothy,  97 
Edward,  127,  128 
Elam,  129 
Eliza  Jane,  119 
Elizabeth,   63,   86,    101-103,   105, 

120,  130,  131,  132,  211 
Elizabeth  (2d?),  63 
Ella,  166 
Elvira,  119 
Emanuel,  132 
Emeline,  130 

Ephraim,  119,  132,  155,  220 
estates,  138,  139,  211,  sq. 
Ethel,  217 
Fayette,  119 
Francis  L.,  97,  213,  214 
Frank,  Mrs.,  165 
Freeman,  119,  145 
F.  Lewis,  130 
George,  124,  131,  211-213 
George  T.,  95,  123,  214.  216 
Gideon,  120,  214 
Hannah,  63,  64,  85,  86,  91, 106,  114, 

119,  122,  123,  128,  143,  219 
Harold,  97,  166 
Harriet,  103,  166 
Henry,  129,  130,  132 
Hester,  119,  123,  128 
Hiram,  131 
Holmes,   105,   123,   124,   125,   176, 

216 
Horatio,  119 
Hosea,  115,  128,  155 
Isaac,  132 
Isabella  L.,  220 
Isaiah,  123 
Israel,  119 

Jacob,  119,  123,  124,  145,  153,  216 
Jacob  B.,  113,  126 
James,  107,  132,  153,  166,  220 
Jane,  123 
Jane  M.,  107 
Jedediah,  132,  155 
Jehu,  118,  119,  153 
Jeremiah,  100,  118,  123,  130,  153, 

178,  220 


INDEX 


233 


Pierce,  Jesse,  63,  85,  97,  104,  123,  132, 
J.  Freeman,  105,  123,  124 
John,  63,  85, 122, 124, 129, 130,  131, 

132,  215 
John  C,  127 
Julia  Noble,  131 
Juliann  S.,  127 
Leonard,  129,  130 
Lewis,  116 
Lorenzo,  120 
Louisa,  103,  128,  220 
Lucette,  98,  159,  168,  217,  220 
Lydia.  123.  131 
Madge,  98 
Malinda,  107,  120 
Margaret,  120,  129,  131 
Marietta,  97 
Mark,  155 
Mary,  63,  86,  90,  91,  115,  119,  123, 

129.  130,  132,  144,  177 
Mary  E.,  105,  127 
Matilda,  128,  129 
MatUda  G.,  107 
Matthias,  127 
Maurice,  119 
Melinda,  120 
Menon,  63,  85,  101,  106.  119,  122, 

131,  211,  215 
Mordecai,  98 
Mordecai  C,  11,  100,  220 
Moses,  118,  119.  128 
Peleg,  123 
Peter.  124,  216 
Phineas,  120 
Phoebe.  97,  152,  177 
Phoebe  Jane,  97 
Priscilla.  128,  129 
Prudence,  97.  116 
Rachel  S.,  123 
Reuben,  103,115,130,174 
Rhumah,  63,  86,  90 
Richard,  62,  63,  64,  81,  86,  90,  91. 

102.  103,  114,  122,  126,  128,  129, 

153.  154 
Robert.  97.  104,  120,  132 
Roseann,  132 


Pierce,  Rosette,  132 

Ruth,  120,  129,  131 

Sarah,  128,  131,  144 

Sarah  Jane,  120 

Sarah  Rachel,  127 

Smith,  129,  130 

Sophia,  124 

Stewart  H.,  12,  123,  215 

Sylvester,  98 

Tabitha,  125,  126,  128,  129 

Tabitha  M.,  118 

Thomas,  130,  131 

Violette,  128,  129 

Wanaca,  63,  85,  97,  106,  122,  123, 
124,  129,  144,  155,  215.  217 

Warner  K..  98,  152,  220 

Warren  W.,  127-128 

William,  132 

William  H.,  131 
Pierces,  58 

Pierces,  belief    in    signs  and  witches, 
65 

fondness  for  flowers  and  music,  65 
Piercetown,  10 

Pittsgrove  Baptist  Church,  76 
Platts,  David,  73 

Letitia,  73 
Pledger  (Pledyer),  John,  36,  39 
Potter,  Colonel,  54 

Quinton's  Bridge.  6ght  of.  75 

Ramsey,  Rev.  William,  140 

Raritan  River,  20,  21 

Readstown,  69 

Real  estate  possessions,  present,  211- 

216 
Reeves,  John,  73 

Religious  and  political  equality,  31 
Remington,  John,  69 
Restoration  of  the  Stuart  monarchy, 

20 
Reunion,  annual  (of  Goulds),  109 
Rhode  Island,  immigrants  from,  39 
Roadstown,  village,  12 
Robinson,  Rev.  J.  H.,  147 


INDEX 


Rogers,  B.  W.,  174, 175, 178 
Royal  charter  of  1664,  35 
Rumsey,  Albert,  151 

Carrie  Gould,  151 
Rural  amusements,  85 

sociological  examples,  81  sq. 

Salem  County,  30 

genealogy,  67 

Creek,  38,  57 

New  Jersey,  26,  31,  39 

Records  in  N.  J.  archives,  36 
Salt  marsh  haying,  17,  83 
Sand  burrs,  gangrene  of  feet  caused  by, 

82 
Sandy  Hook.  20 
Sayre,  Abraham,  122 

Anna,  53 

James,  53 

Jeremiah,  174 
Sayre's  Neck,  72 
Sayres,  Reuel,  69 
School  boards,  15,  175 

trustees,  15 
Schoolmasters  of  Gouldtown  school,  15 
Schools,  170-179 

singing-schools,  177,  179 

Sunday-schools,  147,  149,  179 
Scott,  Anne,  28 

Scribner's  History  United  States,  22 
Seeley,  David,  89 
Servant  of  John  Fenwick,  27 
"Sharp's  family  burying  ground,"  33 
Shaw,  Ephraim,  72 

Harvey,  72 

Lydia,  72 

Mary,  72 
Sheppard,  Abbie,  73 

Abner,  69,  74,  79 

Amos,  69,  71 

Amy,  73,  74 

Charles,  77,  79 

Charles  E.,  80 

Charlotte  W.,  72 

David.  67,  68,  70,  71,  76,  80,  93 

David  Dare,  79 


Sheppard,  David  L.,  76,  77 
Delanah,  75 
Dennis,  73 
Ebenezer  L.,  76,  77 
Elias,  72,  78 
Eliza,  149 

Elizabeth,  68,  69,  73,  74 
Elizabeth  R.,  79 
Elmer  Ogden,  73 
Enoch,  68 
Enoch  F.,  80 

Ephraim,  68,  72,  74,  75,  78,  79 
Ephraim  E.,  79 
Ercurious,  77 
Ernest,  168 
Francis,  77 
Frederick,  77 
Hannah,  68,  69,  71-76 
Harriet,  72 
Harris,  73 
Harvey,  73 
Henry,  75,  78,  79 
Henry  A.,  74 
Hope,  69 
Hosea,  70 

Ichabod,  69,  72,  73,  74 
Isaac  A.,  76,  77,  78 
James,  69,  72,  75 
Jane  B.,  77,  78 
Jane  H.,  78 
Joel,  69,  72,  74 
John,  67,  68 
John  C.  Calhoun,  80 
John  Nixon,  79 
Jonadab,  69 

Joseph,  68,  70,  71.  75,  76 
Joseph,  committee  of  safety,  70 
Joseph  Ogden,  79 
Josephine  S.,  76 
Josiah,  71,  72 
J.  A.  &  Company,  78   ' 
Lafayette,  75 
Lillian,  77 
Lucy,  71 

Lydia,  11,  70,  71,  73,  74,  93,  94, 
115,  158,  166,  169 


INDEX 


235 


Sheppard,  Margaret,  79 

Mark,  72 

Martha.  72,  77 

Mary,  68-72,  75-77,  79 

Miriam,  77 

Naomi,  69,  72,  73 

Owen,  70 

Philip,  68,  69,  71-74 

Phoebe,  68.  69,  72,  73,  75,  76 

Providence  Ludlam,  76 

Prudence,  72,  75 

Rachel,  69,  75 

Rebecca,  75 

Reuben,  73,  74 

Ruth,  71,  72-75 

Ruth  N.,  79 

Sarah,  68.  69,  72-74,  76,  78,  79,  93, 
94 

Susanna,  72 

Tabitha,  70 

Tamson.  93,  115 

Temperance,  69,  70,  75 

Theodore,  77 

Thomas,  67.  93,  94,  168 

William,  73,  75,  76 

Waiiam  A.,  74 

Wilham  E.,  80 
Shiloh,  69 

village,  12 
Shourds,  Thomas,  historian  of  Salem 

County,  67 
Showel,  Rev.  Isaac,  177,  178 
Shrewsbury,  East  Jersey,  67 

Neck,  68 
Siconessee  Indian,  62 
Sink,  Emma,  179 
Siro,  Andrew,  91 

Daniel,  90,  108,  174 

Elizabeth,  91 

Elizabeth  G.,  108 

Simon,  90 
Smalley,  Mayor,  77 
Smith,  Abner,  53 

Ann,  91,  96 

Charies  G.,  91,  96 

Cynthia,  73 


Smith,  Hannah,  73,  96 

Isaac,  73,  76 

Jane  Elizabeth,  80 

Jeremiah,  53 

John,  and  wife,  26,  36,  39 

Joseph  H.,  147 

Miriam,  76 
Social  enjoyment,  indoors  and  outdoors 
— hospitality,  18 

study,  a,  160 
South  Jersey  Institute,  77,  179 
Stanton,  E.  M.,  Sec.  of  War,  letter  to, 

192 
Stanton  Manor,   Cumberland,   (Eng.) 

23 
State  Government,  organized,  70 
SteeUng,  Jacob,  88,  89 
Steelings,  61 
Steward,  Alice,  94 

Clara,  166 

Capt.  Frank  R.,  155,  158,  160 

Edwina.  157,  166,  168 

G.  A.,  157 

James,  94,  95,  105,  164,  179,  213, 
214 

Margaret,  94 

Mary,  94,  105,  164,  166 

Rebecca,  94,  105,  179 

Stephen,  94 

Stephen  S.,  100,  120,  157, 166, 168, 
213,  219 

Theophilus.  94 

Rev.  Theophilus  Gould,  18,  153, 
155,  156,  157,  158,  159,  162,  165, 
166,  168,  212,  218 

WUliam,  94,  157,  167,  212,  218 
Stewart,  Cato,  123,  127 

Elizabeth,  123,  127,  144 

Emma,  168 

EsteUa  D.,  98 

Hannah,  105 

Howard,  98 

Juliann,  127 

Lizzie,  168 

Rachel,  123 

Robert  D.,  105 


236 


INDEX 


Stone  Creek  Township,  71 

Stow,  Ann.  76 

Stowe  Creek  Township,  70 

Sumner,  Alphonso,  179 

Sunday-school,  Gouldtown,  147-149 

Swedes  and  Finns,  38 

Swing,  Rev.  Michael,  141 

Tanner,  H.  O..  122 
Test,  Francis,  73 

Hannah  S.,  73 

John.  73 

Joseph,  73 
Thomas,  Margaret,  116 
Thomas,  a  historian,  59 
Thompsons,  67 
Titus,  Mrs.  J.  L.,  168 
Trenchard,  John,  127 
Trinity,  A.  M.  E.  church,  145,  146 
Trull,  Josephine  M.,  80 

Nathaniel,  80 

Unearned  increment,  lack  of,  16 
United  States  Army,  chaplain  of, 
18 

Van  Aca,  Hannah,  62 

Marie,  62 
Varchen's  Kill,  38 

Wade,  Edward,  36,  39,  45,  48 

Samuel,  36,  39,  69 
Walker,  Charles  H.,  76 

Phoebe,  76 

William  S.,  76 
Walters.  Lucy,  28 
Wanaca,  62 
Warner,  Edmund,  45 
Watkins,  Dr.  G.  T.,  165 
Webster,  Charles,  94 

Daniel,  94 

Frank,  214 

Jane,  94 
Weddings,  159.  164,  167 
Wescott,  Charles,  72 

Charlotte,  71 


Wescott,  Eunice,  78 

Hannah,  71 

Henry,  71 

Henry.  73.  78 

Jane  Harris,  71 

Jane.  73,  78 

Jehiel.  78 

Mary,  78 

Mary  B.,  78 

Matilda.  73 
Westcott  estates,  122 

schoolhouse,  143,  144,  173,  174 
Wester,  Hannah  Gould,  108,  152 

Thomas,  91 
West  India  Company,  21 
West  Indies,  vessels  from,  62 
West  Jersey  Society,  59 
West  New  Jersey,  36 
Wheaton,  Andrew  Evan,  71 

Hannah.  71 

Isaac,  71 

Joseph.  71 

Judith.  71 

Lucy  S.,  71 

Mary  Sheppard,  71 

Providence  L.,  71 

WUliam,  71 
Wheatons,  the,  of  Greenwich,  67 
Whitaker,  Henry,  72 
White,  Joshua,  53 

Mary,    child   nurse   of   Fenwick's 
daughters,  27 
Widdington,  (Eng.),  23 
Wilberforce  University,  18,  218 
Will  of  John  Fenwick,  33,  34 
Wilson,  Absalom,  174,  179 

Anna  C,  115 

Charles,  93,  174 

E.  P..  102 

Joseph,  93,  115 

Reuben.  174 

Tamson,  93.  115 

William,  115,  215 
Winrow,  Abram,  128 
Winthrop  charter,  of  Connecticut, 

22 


INDEX 


237 


Wood,  Caroline,  104 
Dr.  George  B.,  70 
Isaac,  104 
Richard,  70 

Woodbridge,  New  Jersey,  51 

Woodruffs,  10,  12,  61 

Wright,  Anna  Gould,  169 


Wright  family,  97 
Fenwick,  97 
Jacob,  108 
Phoebe  Jane,  97 

Young,  Jonathan,  7S 
Lewis,  73 


2188