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THE
HISTORY
OF
PUTNAM COUNTY, N. Y.;
WITH AN ENUMERATION OF ITS
TOWNS, VILLAGES, RIVERS, CREEKS, LAKES, PONDS,
MOUNTAINS, HILLS, AND GEOLOGICAL
FEATURES;
LOCAL TRADITIONS;
AND
SHORT BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF EARLY SETTLERS, ETC.
BY WILLIAM J. BLAKE, ESQ.,
COUNSELLOR-AT-LAW.
NEW YORK:
PUBLISHED BY BAKER & SCRIBNER,
146 Nassau Street, and 36 Park Row.
1649.
heNewYor
jbVicUbrar
Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1849,
Bv William J. Blake,
In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United Statet,
for the Southern District of New York.
This is a photographic facsimile of the original
Published by
T. EMMETT HENDERSON
Middletown, New York
1970
Trumbull Printing, Middletown, N. Y.
8. W. Benedict, Print., 16 Spruce Street.
PREFACE.
We hardly know what excuse to offer the reader,
for daring to introduce our little work into his literary
presence, and lay his time under an embargo for its
perusal. We have not written for fame or profit.
Had we done either, or both, we would have selected
a different subject than the history of a little County
like that of Putnam. What we have written is the
result of leisure hours, which might possibly have been
squandered in the pursuit of a less worthy object, pro-
ductive of no benefit to self or community. If we
have garnered up one fact that was in danger of being
lost, and which is beneficial and worthy to be pre-
served, in a historical point of view, we are satisfied
and rewarded for our labor. That our little work is
defective, no one is more thoroughly satisfied, and
ready to admit it also, than our humble self. Our
sources of information have been narrow and limited,
and in many instances defective.
A generation has passed away, in this County, from
whom valuable Revolutionary information might have
been obtained. In addition to this, the records of the
different towns in some instances have been defaced,
by accident, we presume, and become obscure by
IV PREFACE.
lapse of time ; rendering the record unintelligible and
valueless to the delver in search of the treasures of
the past.
We had intended to incorporate an outline view of
Dutchess County in our little work, but finding that it
would increase our pages beyond a given number, we
were necessitated to withhold the article already pre-
pared.
Cold Spring, 1849.
TIIK
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
GENERAL VIEW OF THE COUNTY.
Putnam was erected wholly from Dutchess, June
12th, 1812 ; and was named in honor of Major-Gene-
ral Israel Putnam, who was stationed for some time,
during the Revolutionary war, in the lower part of
this county, and at Peekskill in the county of West-
chester. It is situated on the east side of the Hudson
river, between 41° 20' and 41° 30' north latitude, and
2° 56' and 3° 26' east longitude, from Washington. It
is bounded northerly by the county of Dutchess, east-
erly by the State of Connecticut, southerly by the
county of Westchester, and westerly by the Hudson
river, which separates it from the counties of Rock-
land and Orange. Its area is about 216 square miles.
Its population in 1840, was 12,825; and in 1845, 13,258.
It contains six towns, viz. : Philipstown, Putnam
Valley, Southeast, Carmel, Patterson, and Kent. It
was originally called the South Precinct of Dutchess
county, and about 1740, the Fredericksburgh Pre-
cinct, embracing the whole of Putnam. As early as
1772, the present town of Philipstown, including Put-
nam Valley, was erected in a precinct, by the name
2
14 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
of "Philipse Precinct;" and, in 1773, the town of
Southeast was organized as a separate precinct, by
the name of the "Southeast Precinct." This left in
the Fredericksburgh Precinct, only the towns of Car-
mel, Kent, and Patterson. By the Act of March 7th,
1788, the terms precincts were dropped, and "Phi-
lipse Precinct," was called Philipstown; "Southeast
Precinct," Southeast town ; " Fredericksburgh Pre-
cinct," Frederick's town.
Philipstown is named in honor of the Philips family,
a member of which patented the whole of this county ;
Frederick's town, in honor of the christian name of
Capt. Frederick Philips, who inherited one third part
of it, and Southeast, from its geographical position
with respect to the other towns.
The geographical shape or figure of this county, is
a geometrical rectangle, having its angles right angles,
without having its sides equal. It stretches, like a
garter, from the Hudson to the Connecticut line ; be-
ing, in a straight line, about twenty miles in length,
and twelve in breadth. Carmel and Patterson were
onranized in 1795, from Frederick's town. This left
Frederick's town embracing only the now town of*
Kent, which name was given to it about this time, in
honor of the Kent family. Patterson, in 1795, was
organized by the name of " Franklin," in honor of the
old revolutionary philosopher and patriot ; but, in a
few years thereafter, it was changed to Patterson, in
honor of the family of that name, who were early set-
tlers there. Putnam Valley was erected in 1839, by
the name of " Quincy," after the town of that name
in Massachusetts, wholly from Philipstown ; but in
1840, the name was changed to the one it now bears.
GENERAL VIEW OF THE COUNTY. 15
The eastern part of the county is uneven and hilly,
vet very productive, and under a high state of culti-
vation. The central and western portions are broken
by high hills and mountain elevations. The High-
lands stretch across its west end, casting their sombre
shadows on the noble river, that laves its western
boundary. They are estimated at 1,500 feet above
the level of the Hudson. Through the central High-
lands, run two valleys, called Peekskill and Canopus
Hollows ; and between them and the Hudson lies a
beautiful vale, called Pleasant valley, extending from
the Westchester to the Dutchess line. The mountain
slopes and valleys'are productive and well-cultivated.
The Muscoot river, with the east and west branches
of the Croton, are the only streams of any importance.
There are several brooks and creeks, which furnish
sufficient water power, for the milling purpose of the
country. Iron is found in abundance in the moun-
tains; and, though "bleak and barren, as appear these
rock-ribs of earth, they are the repositories of exhaust-
less wealth, which requires but the hand of industry,
to unlock and scatter to the world."
Extract from the record of the minutes of the first Court held in
the county, after its organization.
" October Term, 1812.
"At a Court of General Sessions of the Peace, held at the
Baptist meeting-house, in the town of Carmel, in and for the
county of Putnam, Tuesday the 20th day of October, 1812.
"Present,
Stephen Barnum,
Robert Johnson,
Barnabas Carver,
Harry Garrison,
Judges and Justices
of the Peace.
"Proclamation that Sheriff return precept, and other precepts
returnable here this day.
16 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" William H. Johnston, High Sheriff of said county, returns
the , with the panel of Grand Jurors. The panel being
called, the following grand jurors appear and answer, and were
6worn, to wit, Joshua Barnum, junior, William Field, Jonathan
Morehouse, Jesse Brush, Nathaniel Forgusan, Silas Whitney,
Abijah Seely, Edward Vermilier, Joseph Cole, junior, Daniel
Thorn, Benjamin H. Miller, John Austin, Tracy Ballard, Judah
Relley, Jeremiah Hopkins, Ebenezer Boyd, Rowland Bailey,
Joshua Hazen, Abel Peck, John Hyatt, junior, Abraham Smith,
Jeremiah Conklin, and Amos Conklin.
"Proclamation, that all Justices of the Peace, Coroners,
Sheriffs, and other officers, that have taken any inquisitions or
recognizances, to hand them into Court, that the Justices of the
people may proceed thereon.
" Proclamation, that all constables appear and answer. The
list being called, the following constables appeared, and an-
swered, to wit: Robert Post, Philips; James Randal, Frederic;
Jersham Jacocks, Patterson ; Lewis Baker, Southeast ; Jesse
Hill, Carmel.
"Proclamation for those who arc bound in recognizances to
appear and answer.
"Court adjourned till half after three, P. M. Court met pur-
suant to adjournment.
"Present,
Stephen Barnum,
Robert Johnston,
Barnabas Carver,
Harry Garrison,
Judges.
"On application to this Court, of Abraham Smith, foreman of
the Grand Jury, that they have no district Attorney. Ordered
that G. W. Marvin serve as such, during this Session. Court
adjourned, till to-morrow morning at 10 o'clock.
" Wednesday, 21st October, 1812.
"Court met pursuant to adjournment.
" Present, the same Judges.
"Court adjourned till 3 o'clock, P. M.
"Court met pursuant to adjournment.
"Present the same Judges.
GEOLOGY. 17
" The People vs. Moses Northrup.
"Indictment for an assault with intent to kill. Defendant
pleaded not guilty. Ordered that this suit be suspended, till to-
morrow morning, at 10 o'clock."
" The People vs. Tartulus Russet.
'■Indictment for an assault and misdemeanor.
" Court adjourned, till 10 o'clock, to-morrow morning."
GEOLOGY.*
As might be inferred, from the geological charac-
ter of this county, its mineral productions are of much
interest. Pursuing the order which has been hereto-
fore adopted, it may be observed, that in iron ore,
this county is peculiarly rich. It contains several
beds or veins of the magnetic kind, which yield ore
of the best quality, and in the greatest abundance.
Of carbonate of lime, in the form of calcareous
spar, and marble, there are several localities. The
latter term, however, is usually applied here, to a
dolomite, similar to that of Dutchess county, and
which is found abundantly, in the vicinity of Patter-
son. The only objection to this material for con-
struction, is its friable character.f Being a com-
pound of the carbonates of lime, and magnesia, it has
been thought that the product of its calcination, is not
so valuable, as a fertilizing agent, as that which con-
tains lime alone. On this subject, however, as I have
* Dr. L. C. Beck's Geological Report, 1839.
•j- The Putnam county dolomite, often contains a large admix-
ture of tremolite.
2*
18 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
already remarked, mistaken views have been enter-
tained, as some soils which appear to have been
formed in part, of the magnesian limestone, are by no
means wanting in fertility. It may be added, that a
white crystalline limestone occurs in this county,
which is entirely free from magnesia.
A very valuable mineral product of Putnam county,
is serpentine, whicli exists in vast quantity, can be
obtained in blocks of uniform density, and is suscepti-
ble of a fine polish. But for the fact, that the quar-
ries of this beautiful material are situated at too great
a distance from water transport, they would long ago
have been extensively wrought. ' Of the precious or
noble serpentine, also, there are several localities,
where the mineralogist may obtain specimens, equal
in beauty to any that are found in the United States.
Among the objects worthy of notice in this connection,
are two localities of arsenical iron pyrites, one of
which has, at some former period, been extensively
wrought. This ore, which might be used for the ex-
traction of arsenic, seems to be abundant, but the
present condition of the mine renders it difficult to
arrive at a certain conclusion on this subject. Its re-
ported mixture with silver, is probably one of those
stories circulated for selfish purposes, and the only
ground for it, in the present instance, is, the fact that
in other countries, the arsenical ores are often asso-
ciated with those of a more valuable metal.
I should not omit to add, that a bed of limonite or
hydrate of iron, occurs in Peekskill Hollow, near the
line between Philipstown, and Carmel. Mr. Mather,
however, remarks that it seems to be too silicious to
work well alone, in the furnace. There are also
GEOLOGY. 19
several localities of peat, and probably marl will here-
after be found accompanying this substance, as it does
in several other counties. Putnam county has, for
many years, been visited by mineralogists chiefly on
account of the interesting localities, which occur at
Cold Spring and in Philipstown. The latter on the
farm of Mr. Huestis, about five miles south of the vil-
lage of Fishkill, is particularly worthy of attention,
not only for the number of interesting minerals which
it affords, but as showing the manner in which allied
species run into each other. The facts here pre-
sented, prove how important it is in many cases,
carefully to examine the localities of minerals, before
we decide with certainty upon their specific charac-
ters.
In a bed of white limestone, running parallel with
the granite, and which is of small width, and is situat-
ed about a quarter of a mile from the New York road,
we have the following minerals, viz. : precious ser-
pentine, of which there are several varieties. The
first has a conchoidal fracture, and presents various
shades of green and yellow, and is variously dissemi-
nated through the limestone, and other minerals.
2. A slaty variety, having a dark green color. It
sometimes breaks into rhomboidal prisms, and is very
hard and compact. 3. A slaty variety of a greenish
white colour, is harder than the preceding, and is fu-
sible upon the thin edges by the blow-pipe. This last
seems to approach jade or Saussurite in its characters,
but its peculiarities are probably owing to the admix-
ture of some other minerals, as all these varieties seem
to pass into each other by almost imperceptible gra-
dation.
20 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Of the magnesian carbonate of lime, several forms
occur at the locality in question. There is a thin
stratum which is snow-white, very close grained,
compact and has a semiopaline appearance. It is
sometimes described under the name of Gurhofite,
from its having been first found near Gurhof, in Aus-
tria. According to my analysis, its composition is as
follows, viz. :
Silicia,
6.50
Carbonate of lime,
66.75
Carbonate of magnesia,
26.50
Other specimens of this mineral, have fibres of as-
bestus running through them, and they sometimes
have a bluish tint, a slaty structure, and contain crys-
tals of bronze yellow iron pyrites.
Asbestus, especially in the amianthoid form, is, in-
deed, largely mixed with the minerals already no-
ticed. The beautiful silky fibres, which run through
the serpentine and magnesian limestone, in various
parts of this ridge, may belong to the picrolite of the
more recent authors. But, while I have no doubt,
that several distinct minerals have heretofore been
confounded, under the name of asbestus, I have not
satisfied myself of the identity of our mineral with
that just mentioned. Some of the specimens found
here, have a fibrous structure, and a silky lustre, but
on treating them with acids they effervesce, and after
dissolving out all the magnesian carbonate of lime,
bundles of amianthoid fibres remain. I have reason
to believe, that all the different fibrous minerals found
here, are mixtures of asbestus with serpentine or
magnesian carbonate of lime.
GEOLOGY. 21
The following, is an enumeration of the remaining
minerals found in this county :
Pyroxene. — The variety coccolite, of a white color.
It is made up of grains of various sizes, and resem-
bling dolomite — Philipstown. Diopside, or white
augite, associated with the preceding. It has a grey
color, and foliated structure.
Tremolite. — Often associated with vellowish ser-
pentine.
Chrome iron ore. — In octahedral crystals. One
specimen has a crystal with the base one-fourth of an
inch in diameter. It resembles spinelle, but its power
is attracted by the magnet, and its blow-pipe charac-
ters agree with those of the chrome ore — Philipstown.
Scapolite, in small crystals or grains. Phosphate
of lime, in very minute crystals. Both these are
found at the above locality.
Peat. — Several localities.
Graphite. — Often found in small quantities.
Arragonite. — In concretions on dolomite, near
Patterson.
Hyalite.- — Associated with iron ore, at the Philips
ore bed.
Basanite. — Loose masses on the banks of the
Hudson.
Kerolite. — Philipstown.
Brucite. — Near the Townsend ore-bed.
Hornblende. — Several varieties.
Actynolite, found at Brown's quarry. Tremolite.
— Very abundant in the dolomite near Patterson.
Asbestus, and amianthus, in long and tough fibres.
Abundant near Patterson.
Schiller spar, of Dr. Thompson. Brown's quarry.
Feldspar. — Several varieties.
22 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Albite, in largs crystals, near Patterson.
Laumonite, Still ite, and Chabusie. — Formerly ob-
taiLed at Cold Spring. The locality is believed to be
exhausted.
Epidote, in beautiful crystals, near Carmel.
Mica. — Several localities.
Zircom. — Formerly obtained at Cold Spring.
Iron Pyrites. — Associated with magnetic iron ore.
By long exposure to the weather, the iron pyrites is
decomposed, and the resulting salt washed out.
Pyritous Copper, and Green Carbonate of Copper.
— Philips' ore-bed.
Sphene. — At the Philips' ore-bed, and formerly at
Cold Spring.
Orpiment, or Yellow Sulphur et of Arsenic. — Form-
ed on the timbers of the old arsenic mine, by the de-
composition of the arsenical iron pyrites.
Copperas, or Sulphate of Iron. — Formed by the de-
composition of iron pyrites, on the farm of J. Wood,
six miles S. S. E. of Carmel.
Schiller spar, or Metalloidal Diallage.
As there is some confusion in regard to the above
names, it is proper to state that the mineral about to
be noticed, is identical with the Schiller spar of Dr.
Thompson.*
Color: dark green, almost blackish green. Frac-
ture : uneven, splintery. Sectile. Specific gravity :
2.746. It is in broad, foliated masses, which cleave
in two directions, and apparently have the primary
form of a rhombohedron. The lamina slightly curved.
One of the cleavages is easily obtained, and has a me-
tallic, pearly lustre, and a pinchbeck brown color.
* Outlines of Mineralogy and Chemical Analysis, I. 173.
GEOLOGY. 23
Hardness about the same as that of serpentine. Pow-
der, yellowish gray. Where the mineral has been
exposed to the air, it is of a tombac brown color.
Thin fragments treated by the blow-pipe are merely
rounded on the edges, but become of the same brown
color as when they have been long exposed to the air,
and are attracted by the magnet. With borax it is
fusible, though with difficulty, and the glass, when cold,
has a greenish color.
This mineral is found associated with dark-colored,
common serpentine, at Brown's quarry, near Carmel,
Putnam county. Its composition is no doubt influ-
enced by its contact with the latter substance.
Sulphate of Lime, Alumina, fyc*
In the Highlands, sulphate of lime is frequently seen
incrusting hornblende and augitic rocks. One kind of
hornblende rock is common, that is more or less dis-
tinguished by this mineral. It is formed by the de-
composition of pyrites ; and the acid combining with
the lime and crystallizing, causes the rock to crumble.
These masses, when imperfectly crumbled, generally
have a yellowish and reddish-brown color, from the
oxide and red sulphate of iron, while the interior of
the mass is filled with thin plates and crystals of the
sulphate of lime. It is very common about West
Point. Acicular sulphate of lime, very beautiful, was
found incrusting augite rocks which overlaid white
limestone, at an old mine-hole on Anthony's Nose
mountain, about three miles east of Fort Montgomery,
near the top of the mountain. Magnetic pyrites oc-
cur both in the augite and limestone.
Acicular sulphate of lime was seen incrusting mag-
* W. W. Mather's Geological Report, 1843.
24 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
netic oxide of iron, at a mine where pyrites abound in
that ore in the Philips vein, eight and a half miles
from Cold Spring, on the road to Putnam court-house,
in this county. The specimens were very delicate and
beautiful.
In this county, there is a locality of sulphate of
alumina and iron, and of sulphate of iron, in Philips-
town, on Anthony's Nose mountain, about three miles
from West Point, at an old iron mine, where the ore
contain* pyrites. The earth from this place was used
many years since, by some of the inhabitants, for dye-
ing. Another locality is near Luddington's Corners,
half a mile east, in Kent ; another in the same town-
ship, four or five miles south, near Dean Pond.
Sulphur and Carburetted Hydrogen.
In Philipstown, along the shore of the Hudson, south
of, and near, the point of Gouverneur's Cove, about
east of Gee's point, where pyrites have decomposed, a
gray or bluish-gray powder, composed almost entirely
of sulphur, is found. Another locality is about one
mile east of the above, near the locality of laumonite
and stilbite : it is in cavities in quartz, where pyrites
have decomposed.
Sulphate of Iron.
In this county, many localities of sulphate of iron
were observed.
1. An old mine-hole in hornblende rock, a quarter
of a mile east of Luddington's Corners, in Kent, six
miles north of Carmel village. Copperas effloresces,
and causes this rock to crumble to sand. The excava-
tion, which is small, is on the west side of the mill-
pond.
GEOLOGY. 25
2. In a vein of quartz, about thirty rods east of Dean
Pond, also in Kent. Several metalliferous minerals
are found here*and in this vicinity.
3. About one-fourth to a half of a- mile south-west
of Pine Pond, in Kent, at the mine of arsenical iron.
The ore, which is abundant, and situated in horn-
blendic gneiss rock, decomposes on the surface, form-
ing sulphate and arseniate of iron. The mine is called
the silver mine, and silver is said to have been obtained
from the ore. If it contains this metal, Prof. Beck will
make it known in his report containing the analysis of
the minerals.
4. Another locality was observed two miles west of
the last, half a mile to one mile from Boyd's Corners,
on the road to Cold Spring, near the turn of the road,
exposed in digging the road. This was arsenical iron,
decomposed on the surface into sulphate and arseniate
of iron.
5. At one of the excavations for magnetic iron ore,
eight and a half miles from Cold Spring in Philips-
town, on tire road to Carmel village, and half a mile,
or perhaps more, north-east from the principal of the
Philips mines, on the same vein, five or six hundred
tons of ore have been blasted from the vein. At this
locality, the magnetic oxide of iron is so much inter-
mixed with pyrites, that it cannot be used, to make
iron. In some places in the vein, the pyrites seems to
have been a paste in which the grains of magnetic
oxide of iron have been disseminated, but it does not
generally form more than one-fourth to one-sixth of
the mass of that part of the vein. By exposure to the
weather, copperas is formed, which effloresces in dry
weather, is washed away by the rains, and is succes-
3
26 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
sively formed and renewed, until the pyrites is decom-
posed and the magnetic oxide left nearly pure.
6. It is believed that sulphate of iron might be
manufactured at this place for the market. A slight
roasting would facilitate the decomposition of the
sulphuret.
7. In Patterson, several localities were observed
where pyrites decomposed and formed copperas. One
is near Mr. Robinson's farm, four miles north-east of
Carmel.
8. Another on the same road to Patterson, and
within two or three miles of the village, on the high
ground. The gneiss, about one hundred or two hun-
dred yards west from its junction with limestone, con-
tains much pyrites. The metalliferous bed seemed to
be five or six feet in thickness in the vertically strati-
fied rock, and sulphate of iron effloresced on the surface
9. Another locality, about a mile west of Patterson,
is in a ridge of gneiss, between strata of limestone.
This pyrites gneiss stratum extends a distance, it is
supposed, of several miles, and may at some time be
used for the manufacture of sulphate of iron.
10. In South-east, a locality of sulphate of iron
was examined on Mr. Jedediah Wood's farm, six miles
south-east of Carmel, on the hill west of the Croton
river. Pyrites abound in the rock on the eastern
brow of the hill, and copperas effloresces on the face
of the rocks. Many of the loose masses at and near
the foot of the hill are porous, as if once filled with
pyrites, which have decomposed and washed away.
Excavations have been made in two places where the
pyrites abound. Some of the rock crumbles by the
disintegrating action of the crystallizing salt. The
GEOLOGY. 27
rwritous stratum was traced along the brow of the
hill about two hundred yards. It has long been sup-
posed there was a lead mine in this hill ; and perhaps
it may not be inappropriate here to mention circum-
stances that serve to give countenance to that idea
among some people, who still yield implicit faith to
the miraculous virtues of the " mineral rod" and
magic glass, when used by the favored few who pre-
tend to be gifted with such peculiar powers.
It is stated by various gentlemen of the highest
veracity, that a man of high respectability came from
Connecticut to the owner of the farm, and informed
him that there was a valuable lead mine on his land,
which was worked many years before ; that it was
covered over with planks ; that a walnut stick was
lying with one end on the planks, and the other mostly
decayed near the surface ; that the earth had washed
over it about four feet deep (with other circumstances
of detail), and that he could go directly to it. He
would make no communication to indicate the locali-
ty, until the owner had executed a bond to secure a
certain portion of the profits to the informer, who had
never been to the locality, but who stated that he was
enabled to see it, and go directly to it, by looking at a
polished stone as a mirror placed in the crown of his
hat, with his face applied to the opening of his hat, to
exclude the view of other objects. He seemed a per-
fectly unassuming, quiet man, with a perfect faith in
his ability to perform what he stated. Many of the
citizens of the vicinity accompanied him in his wan-
derings, and he finally stopped near the foot of a hill
on which we have described the pyrites, and where
he directed excavations to find the mine. The walnut
2s HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
stick was found as indicated, except that there were
no planks ; and no opening, no trace of a mine, or of
any ore, could be discovered. He went away much
mortified with his failure.
A few years afterwards, a girl who was reputed to
be able to see in a magic glass, or polished stone held
in a dark place, was employed to discover the sup-
posed mine, and it was said she had never been in the
vicinity before. She looked, and walked to within a
few yards of the same spot, drove a stake in the
ground, and said the mine was there, at a depth of
thirty-five feet ; but none has been found.
A man who had moved into another part of the
country when a boy, returned when old, about thirty-
five years ago, and stated, that when he was a boy
he had been into a mine in that hill where the lead
ore had been dug, and that he had seen the ore. lie
had endeavored to find the mine, without letting the
people know the object of his search. Hearing these
stories, and many believing that there is a lead mine
in that hill, led me to make an examination of the
locality with as much care as was practicable without
excavations. The loose stones on the surface are more
or less porous gneiss, with a reddish color. Both the
porosity and color are due to the composition of
pyrites probably, for I discovered no traces of any
metal but iron. These appearances would very natu-
rally induce the idea of a mine, even without the aid
of a magic glass ; but whether any ore of any value
occurs there, is a subject for investigation. There are
no indications that seem to justify the expenditure of
capital in search of lead or other metals. The rock
near the brow of the hill abounds in pyrites, is nearly
GEOLOGY. 29
vertically stratified, ranges north-north-east and south-
south-west, and is intersected by quartz veins (that
show no metallic contents) in a south-east and north-
west direction. The great vein of magnetic oxide of
iron called the Simewog vein (in consequence of the
extensive mines of this ore that have been worked in
Simewog hill), is about one-eighth of a mile west of
this locality of pyrites, as is supposed from the great
variation of the compass near Mr. Wood's house.
The compass varies in a distance of two rods in
an east and west line from 30° to 40°, and the
centre is in the north-north-east and south-south-west
line of direction of the Simewog vein on Simewog
hill. On the north-north-west side of where the vein
seems to pass, the compass varies to the east of north
15° to 20° ; and on the south-south-east side, it varies
as much to the west of north. The stones on the
surface where the vein is supposed to pass, contains
magnetic oxide of iron disseminated ; and some lumps
of ore, and masses of magnesian garnet and epidote,
were also observed on the same line at this place, and
a mine of the magnetic ore has been opened about a
mile south-south-west. The white limestone is not
far distant on the east from the reputed lead mine.
All the geological circumstances that were observ-
ed, and that seem to have a bearing upon this reputed
lead mine, have been related. The region is a highly
metalliferous one, and it is probable some excavations
may have been made here, as in hundreds of other
places in the Highlands, by the company of miners
that was sent into this country between 1730 and
1750, under the direction of the Baron Horsenclever ;
and that traditions connected with these excavations,
3*
30 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
aided by some imagination and credulity, have been
the basis of many of the reputed silver and lead mines
in the Highlands and other parts of New York.
Many localities might be mentioned in this county,
where pyrites decomposed with the formation of the
sulphate of iron. The principal that have not been
mentioned, are,
1. An old iron mine on Anthony's Nose mountain,
about one and a half miles east of Fort Montgomery.
2. An old "silver mine" (but which, contains no
silver), on the top of the same mountain, three miles
east of Fort Montgomery.
3. On the top of a hill, about one and a half miles
east of West Point.
4. Shore of the Hudson., nearly opposite Buttermilk
Falls.
5. Shore of the Hudson, several places, nearly op-
posite West Point.
6. Shore of the Hudson, several places, between
Arden's landing and the landing above.
7. Near the post road, two or three miles east of
Arden's Landing.
The localities in this county are all in the primary
rocks, and nearly all are at or near fractures or up-
lifts, or localities of more than usual disturbance of the
strata.
Altered Taconic Rocks through the Highlands.
In crossing the Highlands, the Taconic rocks are
more or less altered. Some of the limestones in the
towns of Beekman and Fishkill, in Dutchess county,
where they approach the Highlands, are white and
grey crystalline limestones.
GEOLOGY. 31
The granular quartz rock forms a continuous strat-
um through a portion of this and Westchester county.
It is probably a continuation of the stratum described
as forming a part of Peaked and Elbow mountains in
Amenia and Dover in Dutchess county, and is proba-
bly a continuation of that described by Prof. Hitch-
cock in the western part of Massachusetts.* The
granular quartz rock crops out on the bank of Peekskill
bay of the Hudson river, about half a mile north-west
of Peekskill landing, near Hall's point. The strata
are nearly vertical, leaning a little to the west-north-
west. It ranges up the " Peekskill hollow." It is
seen in connection with the iron ore at Bradley's ore
bed in Peekskill hollow, about ten miles from Peeks-
kill ; and again it occurs near Boyd's corners, in Car-
mel, in this county. It is quarried to a small extent
near Boyd's corners, for door-steps, hearth-stones, and
other purposes. It splits out in regular slabs from
three to nine inches thick, and three to seven or eight
feet square, with an uniform plane surface, and is ad-
mirably adapted for a flagging stone for streets, cel-
lars, &c.
The locality near Hall's point belongs to , of
Peekskill. It is at the mouth of Peekskill creek, a
little north of Hall's point ; and it is believed that a
valuable quarry of flagging stones, of the granular
quartz rock, may be opened at this place. The strata
are nearly vertical, and the stones may be split off
with great ease, if the quarry be opened in a proper
* Vide Second Annual Report on the Geological Survey of
N. Y., p. 172; Hitchcock's Geological Reports of Massachu-
setts, 1833, pp. 22, 321 ; Hitchcock's Final Report, 1842, pp.
587, 593 ; Dewey's American Journal of Science, Vol. 8, &c.
32 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
manner. The flagging and curb stones used in JMew
York, and many other towns, are now brought from
the Bolton and Haddam quarries in Connecticut, and
from the Grey wacke quarries in Greene county. The
Bolton and Greene county stone are carted from eight
to sixteen miles over bad roads, and then shipped to a-
market. If stone, as beautiful and as durable, can be
dug on the shore of the Hudson, where no cartage is
required, and where the expense of quarrying is no
greater than at the quarries mentioned, and where the
business is now very lucrative, it follows that such
quarries on the shore of the Hudson would be very
valuable.
The talcose slate, distinctly characterized, is limited
in extent. It occurs in this and Westchester county,
forming a range of hills several miles in length. It
forms Blue-rock Point, on the post road, between the
crossing of Peekskill creek and Annville. The slaty
laminae are parallel in direction to the limestone and
granular quartz rock on the east, which dip at an an-
gle of from seventy-five to eighty-five degrees to the
east-south-east. This rock forms the principal mass of
the hills to the north-north-east of Blue-rock Point for
several miles. Gallows Hill (a place celebrated during
the Revolution, in consequence of the public execu-
tions), is a part of this range of rock. The rock is
generally covered by soil, except where it has been
denuded by water, or excavations for roads, etc. The
soil is of good quality, and produces fine crops. Far-
ther north-east, this rock is rarely seen ; but it passes
up Peekskill hollow, and up a valley two or three
miles west of Boyd's Corners in this county. It is
very refractory in the fire, and is used for the in-walls
GEOLOGY. 33
of furnaces. The rock is very fissile, and splits in thin
laminae of some magnitude.
The limestones of this range of Taconic rocks are
scarcely altered in some places, as at the quarries near
Blue-rock Point, near the mouth of Peekskill Creek,
and about a quarter of a mile east of Annville, in
Westchester county. In others, it is a perfect meta-
morphic white limestone, as in the valley west of Gal-
lows Hill, two or three miles north of Annville.
Limestone makes its appearance as knobs or hills,
fifty to one hundred feet high, about two or three
miles north of Annville, in the valley west of Gallows
Hill. Also the same limestone, in the same valley,
associated with talcose rocks, two or three miles north
of the last locality, near Bunnell's forge. The strata
are nearly vertical.
Metamorphic Limestones.
In tracing these limestones in Dutchess county, we
left them in Pawlings. The same granular dolomitic
limestone extends south into Patterson, where it is
well exposed to view, from the north line of Patterson
to three or four miles south of the village. It is asso-
ciated with mica slate, and a fissile, micaceous gneiss
rock. The limestone in the valley of Patterson con-
tains tremolite in some places. About two and a half
miles south of Patterson, the limestone is quarried for
lime, and forms a superior article. Sixty cords of
wood are consumed in burning; a kiln of two thousand
bushels. The price of this lime is fifty cents per
bushel.
Much of this stone seems well adapted for a building
stone. The rock is granular, strongly coherent, and
34 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
in color varies from bluish to white. The rock is not
fitted for a marble, as the tremolite would make it dif-
ficult to saw.
Another quarry has been opened within a mile of
the village of Patterson.
About a mile west of Patterson, a ridge of gneiss,
highly impregnated with pyrites, lies between strata
of limestone. The strata through this region dip to
the eastward nearly vertically.
Limestone of the same general characters occurs in
Southeast, in the valley of the Croton river. It may
be seen along the road about a mile above Owensviller
and one mile and a half west of Peach Pond.*
Serpentine Rock.
Another locality of this rock is in Philipstown, about
ten or eleven miles north-north-east of Peekskill, and
about half or three-quarters of a mile east of Horton's
Pond. The rock is of a blackish-green, fine grained,
and sometimes coarsely crystalline. It is yellow on
the weathered surfaces, and is associated with steatite.
Ten to eleven acres seem to be underlaid by this rock,
w ich might be quarried for an ornamental marble.
It is about eight miles from water transport. Another
* I may be permitted here to mention a circumstance respect-
ing ground ice. The ice in this pond attaches itself to the loose
boulders in shallow water, and floats with them attached, and
ploughs up the gravel before them as the ice is driven towards
the shore in the spring. In this way they are brought annually
nearer and nearer the shore, until they are pushed beyond low-
water mark, where they remain. Many of these boulders weigh
fifteen or twenty tons. They all seem to have come from one
general direction, viz., north-west. Mr. Stephen Ryder pointed
out the boulders and furrows, and gave the explanation to Prof.
Cassels.
GEOLOGY. 35
mass of the serpentine rock was seen about a mile
south of the one last described. The serpentine forms
knobs and hillocks at small intervals for half a mile in
length. Another locality, one that has already at-
tracted much notice, is Brown's quarry, near Pine
Pond, in this county, four or five miles from Carmel
village, and one and a quarter miles north-north-west
of the county poor-house. It is dark-colored, dark
green to black, and from compact to a coarse crystal-
line, like coarse-grained hornblende rock. Itisgranu-
larly foliated, like common white marble, polishes well,
and is perfectly black when polished. It may be ob-
tained in large blocks for sawing into slabs. Large
blocks lie on the surface in Brown's lot, and the rock
is seen in place all around the hill. In the mine lot
adjacent, good blocks may probably be obtained by
quarrying. Twenty-five to thirty acres of ground are
underlaid by this rock on the hill-side, west of the
brook, which is the outlet of Pine Pond. It is easily
accessible, and about one hundred feet above the water
level of the adjacent valley. Blocks of many tons'
weight can be easily procured ; in fact, many of this
size are now lying on the surface, and require no blast-
ing or splitting before they are put in the saw-mill.
Magnetic oxide of iron, or chromate of iron, is dis-
seminated through the serpentine in some parts of the
serpentine bed ; and this variety of the rock will not
be suitable to work, as it can neither be sawed nor
polished easily. The quarry seems to be sufficient to
supply the market, not only of our own country but
the world, with this kind of ornamental marble, for a
long time. It is really a beautiful material when pol-
ished, and it is hoped that it will be extensively used.
36 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
I have seen no other locality where such a material
can be obtained in so large blocks, sound and free
from seams and cracks. A marble of this kind was
used in ancient times, in some of the old Spanish pal-
aces, but it is exceedingly rare in Europe.
Metamorphic Li?nesto?ies of the Highlands.
These are similar to those in Orange county, only
spinelle has not been recognized in them, and brucite
is not common. Serpentine, augite, and asbestus are
more common, and garnet is more common in the as-
sociated rocks.
Local Details. — 1. Limestone was observed about
one and a half miles south of Carmel village, on the
farm of a Mr. Townsend, at two old mine holes, where
some have supposed that silver, and others that mar-
ble was the object of exploration. It is scarcely ne-
cessary to add, that no traces of silver ore could be
distinguished. Both these excavations are in a bed of
limestone, about thirty rods apart. The bed is nar-
row, perhaps twenty feet wide, and is bounded by
gneiss on each side; the strata are highly inclined to
the east-south-east. Brucite and some coccolite were
observed in the limestone of the northwardly excava-
tion. At the other locality the limestone is very white,
coarse-grained, and contains imperfect crystals of
phosphate of lime, or green augite.
2. A bed of limestone containing brucite, serpen-
tine, and asbestus, is associated with the bed of mag-
netic oxide of iron on Mr. Tilly Foster's farm, two and
a half miles south-east of Carmel village.
These were the only localities of this kind of lime-
stone seen in the eastern part of this county. In the
GEOLOGY. 37
western are two ranges of the same kind of rock.
The following localities will illustrate them, viz. :
1. A bed of limestone near Anthony's Nose point,
six miles south of West Point, which is seen again
farther north-north-east at the old silver mine ; also
at two places on the shore between that and cotton
rock ; near Mr. Arden's ; two hundred or three hun-
dred yards south-west of Philips's mill, east of West
Point ; also at Cotton Rock ; half-a-mile east of the
Highland school ; north of Davenport's tavern on the
post road ; and at Huestis's quarry. This is the wes-
ternmost range, and extends from near Anthony's
Nose point north-north-east, to near Davenport's
tavern ; and thence through the valley to Huestis's
quarry, about three miles south of Fishkill, a distance
of about ten or eleven miles. It has also been seen
farther to the north-north-east on the mountain.
2. The second range has not been observed in as
many places. It has been seen at the White mine on
the Anthony's Nose mountain, three miles east of Fort
Montgomery ; three miles east-south-east of West
Point, near the post road ; on the road from Cold
Spring to Carmel village, near Haight's tavern, five
miles north-east of Cold Spring ; and about half a
mile north of Warren's tavern, in Philipstown. This
range is nearly parallel to the other, and nearly
similar.
All these localities are supposed to be in the range
of limestone which are exposed in these various points,
and probably in many others.
1. Huestis's quarry is in the western limestone bed
above-mentioned. Some parts of the hill are granular
limestone, and a part is nearly compact magnesian
4
38 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
limestone or miemite. Serpentine is frequently inter-
mixed, forming a verd-antique marble, which may
perhaps at some future time be applied to use. Seve-
ral fine minerals occur at this locality, which were
discovered by Dr. Barrett in 1822. The precious
serpentine of this locality is perhaps not surpassed in
beauty by that of Newburyport or Easton, or even
any locality known. It occurs crystallized distinctly
with various modified forms. White coccolite, white
augite, diopside, sahlite, phosphate of lime, amianthus,
asbestus, pearl spar, pyrites, chromate of iron, mag-
netic oxide of iron, and various other minerals occur
at this locality. The mass of limestone at this place
forms a bed twenty to fifty feet thick, resting against
granite or sienite, and gneiss containing red felspar
and some epidote, on the west, while a stream flows
at the base of the hill.
2. The bed of limestone north-west of Davenport's
corners, which is on the post road five miles north-
east from Cold Spring, is similar to that at Huestis's,
but not as beautiful, and does not exhibit the beautiful
minerals of that locality.
3. This range of limestone crosses the road about
one hundred or one hundred and fifty yards west of
the locality of laumonite and stilbite in Philipstown,
about three hundred yards west of Philips mills, and
one mile and a quarter east of West Point. It is
white, and highly charged with grains of magnetic
oxide of iron. Granular hornblende, like coccolite,
also occurs with the limestone. Hornblende gneiss,
and micaceous gneiss containing pyrites and scales of
plumbago, also occur associated.
4. This bed has had excavations made in it, in two
GEOLOGY. 39
or three places, between the locality above described,
and where it reaches the shore of the Hudson about
one mile and a quarter south-west of Mr. Arden's ;
and every place where it was examined, showed im-
bedded grains of magnetic oxide of iron, and in some
places imperfectly characterized brucite and serpen-
tine.
5. The "Cotton rock," as it is called, is at the junc-
tion of this bed of limestone with diallage and horn-
blende rocks. The limestone is extremely impure from
contained minerals, so that it would scarcely be recog-
nized as limestone from its external aspect, when
weathered by one not familiar with all the protean
forms of this rock ; the calcareous matter being
removed to some depth, and the imbedded mineral
substance remaining to form a crust of some lines or
even inches in thickness exterior to the sound, unal-
tered rock. Granite occurs in the cliff a few yards
to the east, which contains imperfect crystals of black
tourmaline.*
6. An outheaved mass, as it is supposed, of this
range of limestone, occurs about a mile north of the
last locality, near the Beverly dock (the point from
which the notorious and treacherous Arnold made his
* The Cotton rock is a noted place in the Highlands. It is
on the shore of the Hudson, in Philipstown, between high and
low water mark, about three and a half miles below West Point.
The rocks here are impure verd antique (composed of limestone
and serpentine, with brucite and other minerals imbedded), ser-
pentine with diallage, and veins of asbestus, and delicate silky
amianthus, diallage rock, augite rock, and granite. Tbe amian-
thus which comes from the veins in the serpentine, has the
appearance of cotton or raw silk, and has given rise to the name
Cotton rock.
40 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
escape). This bed of limestone, which is small, lies
transverse to the general direction, viz., north-west
and south-east. The limestone is colored with serpen-
tine, and contains plumbago ; but some of it is of a
pure snow white, strongly translucent, and varies in
texture from coarse crystalline to compact, like the
finest alabaster. The white is much intermixed with
augite and quartz, so that specimens for the cabinet
can be obtained showing the characters indicated, but
not large masses. The associated rocks are mica-
ceous pyritous gneiss, and grey augite containing
hexagonal plates of plumbago. A vein of pyrophyllite,
six inches to a foot wide, traverses the grey augite
rock.
7. Some distance below the Cotton rock, perhaps
one quarter to half a mile, the limestone bed that we
have been tracing forms the shore for some rods.
The same minerals are found here as at many other
parts of the bed, viz., magnetic oxide of iron, serpen-
tine, and augite and hornblende in the vicinity, asso-
ciated with granite and gneissoid rocks. A little far-
ther south the limestone has an old mine hole in it, a
little south-east of a small bay of the river shore,
where the rock contains much magnetic oxide of iron.
8. From this place, the limestone ranges south-south-
west towards Anthony's Nose point. This part of
the range is perhaps of more interest to the geologist
than any other portion, and particularly the tract of
land between the " Old silver mine," as it is called, and
the Hudson river, about a quarter of a mile in width.
The limestone and all the associated rocks here, have
been subjected to metamorphic agency in a high de-
gree.
GEOLOGY. 41
The limestone lies at the base of the hill, adjacent
to a granite rock. It is white, highly crystalline,
contains much mica, plumbago, and various mineral
substances. The plumbago is generally diffused in
minute particles, but in some places is so abundant as
to give a bluish tinge in streaks through the rock.
The resemblance of this mineral, thus diffused, to the
sulphuret of silver in minute particles, its softness and
lustre, led to the idea that silver ore was abundant at
this place.
This mine was opened in ancient times, for what
purpose is not known. Stalactites are found in the
adit level, which is two hundred yards long, and old
tools with the handles rotted out have been found in
it. It was re-opened some years ago, with the hope
of getting silver ; the man who worked it having been
told that the scales of plumbago in the rock were sul-
phuret of silver. He is said to have spent all his
property, and to have died in a mad-house. Spene
and zircon are occasionally seen in the augitic and
calcareous rocks at this place, but they are not com-
mon.
The most interesting mineral substance in a geo-
logical point of view, found at this old mine, is quartz.
It is strongly translucent, almost transparent, like
hyalite, in irregularly round masses from the size of
filberts to that of an egg. They seem to have been
melted to assume their present form. The first pub-
lic notice of such facts, so far as I know, was by Prof.
Emmons, in the second Annual Geological Report of
New York, 1839, p. 202. I had observed the round-
ed, apparently fused quartz at the opening next the
marsh, near the south end of the adit level of the
42 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTf.
" Old silver mine," in 1825 ; but did not consider it of
any special importance as connected with the age of
these rocks, until the subject was brought before the
public by Prof. Emmons. The spinelles of some lo-
calities in Orange county have their angles rounded,
and contain spherical cavities, apparently produced
by the same cause ; and the crystals of phosphate of
lime, sent me by Dr. Crawe and Prof. Gray, from St.
Lawrence county, have their angles rounded, and
contain cavities which seem to be referable to the
same agency that has caused the crystalization of the
limestone, and the formation and crystalization of the
plumbago, and various minerals in these rocks. The
rocks at this locality of the " Old silver mine," are
well worth studying. The rock next the limestone
on the west of the adit, is composed of augite and
manganesian garnet ; sometimes one, sometimes the
other predominating. Both are crystalline, and some-
times exhibit perfect crystals. The garnet and augite
frequently assume the granular form of colophonite
and coccolite ; red for the first, and green, brown, and
purple for the latter.
The rock is very heavy, and very similar to some
of the beds at Rogers's rock on Lake George. The
rock farther west, is a gneissoid silico-felspathic rock,
containing in many places magnetic oxide of iron in
grains, and in small strings and veins parallel to the
strike of the rock ; also schorl in masses of quartz,
and sometimes crystals of allanite like those near Fort
Montgomery.
Still farther west is a range of limestone, very sim-
ilar to that at Cotton rock, but purer. It contains
an abundance of imperfectly characterized brucite,
GEOLOGY. 43
Gneissoid rocks intervene between this bed and ano-
ther of limestone seen still farther west, which has the
general characters of verd-antique, being composed
principally of limestone and serpentine ; but it con-
tains other minerals that are hard, and would prevent
its being sawed easily. This rock is at the south
point (called Marble point), and a few rods south of
the north point of this neck of land. Granite is fre-
quently seen interlaminated among the strata describ-
ed, which are about vertical. The gneiss along the
shore between the two last masses of limestone, and
west of the last mass described, along the shore, con-
tains pyrites, and by its decomposition, gives a reddish
tinge to the rocks. The same character, and arising
from the same cause, is seen in the slaty and mica-
ceous gneiss along the shore, most of the distance
from this place, north-north-east to Gouverneur's land-
ing opposite West Point.
The second range of limestone, a mile or two east
of the one we have been describing, ranges about
parallel, and nearly as great a distance.
1. The " White mine," as it is called, is the most
southern point at which the limestone of this range,
as it is supposed, was seen. It is on Anthony's Nose
mountain, about three miles east of Fort Montgomery.
The limestone is white, highly magnesian, and con-
tains some carbonate of iron, and perhaps might with-
out any impropriety be called brown spar. It is
crystalline and sometimes compact, and contains gran-
ular magnetic oxide of iron. It is associated with
augite and granitic rocks.
2. Another locality of this rock is about two miles
to the north-north-east, near the old post road, at
44 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
reputed lead and tin mine. The rock is limestone
with some serpentine imbedded, and contains grains
of the magnetic sulphuret of iron. Near this place,
where the lead is said to have been formed from the
ore in the soil by burning brush-heaps, the soil is red,
as is so commonly the case where the calciferous
sandstone has been upturned and partially altered.
The same limestone is seen still further to the north-
north-east, on the hill, but was not particularly exam-
ined. The same silico-felspathic gneissoid rocks, and
pyritous micaceous gneiss, as described near the " Old
silver mine," occur in this vicinity, and the rocks are
in some places very much confused.
3. The limestone near Haight's tavern, is similar
to that described above.
Steatite. — A locality was seen near Peckville, a lit-
tle north of the line of this county, and within Dutch-
ess county. It is there intermixed ^with serpentine,
and although abundant, and quarried in large blocks,
it was found difficult to saw it well, in consequence
of the different degrees of hardness of the steatite and
serpentine. It is beautifully spotted and clouded ;
and as steatite indurates by heat, it is possible that it
may at some future time be wrought as an ornamental
stone. Some of the masses of steatite are very pure,
soft, and easily wrought. In some parts of the bed
the rock is granular, or scaly talc, either pure or tra-
versed in every direction by crystals of actynolite.
Another locality was seen in Philipstown, in this
county, on Mr. McCabe's farm.* It is near the ser-
pentine rock before described as eight or nine miles
north-north-east of Peekskill, and half to three-quar-
* James McCabe, Esq.
GEOLOGY. 45
ters of a mile east of Horton's Pond. The rock here
graduates through every variety of aspect, from talc,
through steatite, to serpentine. I did not see proper
soap-stone or steatite rock adapted for useful purposes,
in place ; but was assured that large blocks had been
dug there, and that there was an abundance of it. I saw
slaty, steatitic rock in place, and small masses of beau-
tiful steatite scattered over the ground. Good quar-
ries of this rock are well known to be very valuable.
The blocks are worth twenty dollars per ton in market.
This bed graduates on the east into serpentine rock.
Limonite, or Hematite Ore-beds.
Bradley's Ore-bed. — A bed of limonite, containing
some oxide of manganese, occurs very near the line
between Philipstown and Carmel, in Peekskill hollow,
about ten miles north-east of Peekskill. Its thickness
is not known. Fifty to one hundred tons of the ore
may be seen in heaps on the ground. The ore was
dug many years ago, but it seems to be too silicious
to work well alone in the furnace. By proper mixture
with other ores, it might be wrought with advantage.
Isaac Lockwqod owns a part of the land underlaid by
this ore. The right of digging the mine is vested
in Nathaniel Bradley, of Connecticut, who pur-
chased a large amount of mineral property in the
Highlands some years ago. The ore is associated
with granular quartz on the east, and probably with
limestone on the west, but this latter rock was not
seen near the ore beds.
These rocks are associated in the above order at the
mouth of Peekskill Creek.
Limonite in small quantities, under the forms of
46 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
compact brown oxide of iron, hematite, and bog ore,
occurs in many places in this and Westchester coun-
ty. The loose masses scattered over the surface of
the earth seem to indicate important beds in Putnam.
If surface indications are worthy of notice, a bed of
hematite and brown iron ore will probably be found
in the hills near the county poor-house.
Copper and Silver Ores.
Several mines have been opened in Putnam and
Westchester counties, under the expectation of obtain-
ing silver. I have examined a great number of ancient
diggings in this county, where it is reported or imag-
ined that silver has been, or is to be found ; but I have
seen no indications worth pursuing, or any ore that is
known with certainty to contain silver. These ores have
not been analyzed, and it is not known that they even
contain any silver, except from the common reports
of the country that silver has been obtained from them.
Almost all the diggings are in or contiguous to lime-
stone. Many interesting mineral localities have been
opened, and an abundance of crystallized minerals dug
out, and prepared for the hand of the collector of these
beautiful productions of nature.
It is, perhaps, superfluous to go into a detail of the
numerous mining explorations in search of the precious
metals in the Highlands ; suffice it to say, that super-
stition and the mineral rod have been freely employed,
and credulous persons have permitted themselves to
be imposed on, and in some instances have expended
their all in explorations which any one versed in min-
erals, and acquainted with their associations, would
have known from the beginning were hopelessly fruit-
GEOLOGY. 47
less. Common pyrites and magnetic pyrites were re-
peatedly brought to me while I was stationed at the
United States Military Academy as an instructor of
chemistry, mineralogy, and geology, as specimens of
gold ore, silver ore, and tin ore, by the mine hunters,
or by those who had been imposed on. After exam-
ining mineral localities where lead and tin ores had
been said to have been discovered, I have seen none
in place, and have reason to believe that the specimens
shown to me did not originate where they were said
to have been found. A piece of metallic antimony
was shown to me, and was said to have been found in
this county ; but it had the peculiar foliated, crystalline
texture that is generally seen in that which has been
melted, and which is different in aspect from the na-
tive antimony.
While on this subject, I will notice another fact that
came under my observation. Coal was said to have
been discovered in the primitive region of this county.
I was shown a lump of beautiful Mauch-Chunk An-
thracite ! ! which had been buried by some means un-
known, and dug up ;* and this was the reported coal
mine. It is hoped that our citizens will no longer
suffer themselves to be duped by designing persons in-
to mining speculations, most of which have a baseless
foundation.
Copper ore has been found in several places in. this
county and Westchester, but not in such quantities as
to justify exploration. Pyritous copper and green
carbonate of copper are found in small quantities in
the gneiss rocks at Philips' mills, one mile and a quar-
* This was afterwards ascertained to have heen buried by a
designing person, with a view to get up an excitement, and or
ganize a company to dig there for coal.
48 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ter east of West Point; also at Philips' iron mine,
eight miles north-east of Cold Spring landing.
Arsenical iron occurs in several places in this coun-
ty, but the only locality known here, to which any
practical importance is attached, is about four or five
miles north-west from Carmel village, and about half
a mile south-west of Pine Pond, in the township of
Kent, near the serpentine marble quarry. This is one
of the old mine holes from which silver is reported to
have been obtained. The mine is now owned or
leased by a mining company called the Hudson River
Mining Company. It had been cleaned out when I
saw it. The shaft is forty feet deep. Yellow, pulver-
ulent sulphuret of arsenic covered the sides of the
shaft and the timbers, wherever they had been cover-
ed by water, resulting from the decomposition of the
arsenical sulphuret of iron. This latter mineral
abounds there. It forms a bed or mass in hornblendic
gneiss rock above the shaft, and is there undergoing
decomposition, forming arseniate of iron. The ore
does not, so far as I could perceive, form a vein, but
is a mass ; and from the surface indications, and from
what I saw in the mine, there is a probability of the
existence of a great quantity of this ore. The mine
goes by the name of the silver mine, and it is stated
that silver has been obtained from it, but the indi-
vidual who is said to have analyzed it has no public
name as a chemist ; and until it shall be analyzed by
a disinterested person, of reputation as an analytical
chemist, confidence ought not to be reposed in the
statement that it is a silver ore.
This kind of ore is wrought as a silver ore in Ger-
many, where it contains some of the precious metal.
GEOLOGY. 49
It is possible this may also contain it, and even
should it be argentiferous, it may not contain enough
of silver to make it worth separating. The ore con-
tains much arsenic, and it may perhaps be profitably
wrought to furnish the common white arsenic of the
shops. It is well known that large quantities of this
material are consumed for various purposes in this
country, such as the manufacture of shot, flint glass,
medicinal preparations, &,c, and the supply is at pres-
ent derived from Germany. This mine would proba-
bly supply the demands of commerce.
Titanium ore has been found in several places in
this county. At almost every locality where augite
and scapolite are found (and the localities are nume-
rous), sphene or the silico-calcareous oxide of titani-
um is also found associated. Sphene, beautifully
crystallized, was discovered by Dr. Barratt at Cold
Spring landing, in 1822, during the excavations for
the foundation of the long block of buildings next the
shore on the north side of the village.* Specimens
were obtained at that place in abundance by Dr.
Barratt, and more beautiful than any that I have seen
from any other part of the country. Titanium has,
however, been applied to but one useful purpose, and
that, of comparatively trifling importance, viz., for
tinging the enamel of artificial teeth of a slight yel-
lowish color, like the natural teeth. It has also been
found in a great number of localities in the adjoining
county of Orange. Wherever observed, it is asso-
ciated with augite, scapolite, and limestone. It seems
almost confined in the first district to those rocks we
* The long range of two-story old buildings belonging to Mr.
Philips, and known by the name of the " Barracks."
5
50 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
have described as metamorphic. An ore of cerium,
called allanite, occurs in several localities in Philips-
town, within two miles of Fort Montgomery, and
it is thought other ores of this metal were observed
some years ago. One of them was partially examin-
ed, and re-agents showed some of the traits of that
metal.
Crystallized Serpentine. — Serpentine was found
crystallized at Huestis's quarry in Philipstown, first
by Dr. Barratt in 1821, and secondly by Cadet Ward,
November 5th, 1831. By means of crystals from this
locality I have been enabled to ascertain the primary
form and its elements. November 5th, 1831, a speci-
men of serpentine was handed me for examination,
by Cadet Ward, from Huestis's quarry. I imme-
diately observed traces of crystallization, there being
numerous well characterized laminae, and showing
tolerably brilliant cleavage planes also in other direc-
tions. Much of the serpentine in some parts of the
hill-side at Huestis's quarry is granular and some is
laminated. Cadet Bailey, now Professor Bailey, at
West Point, also presented me with a specimen of
crystallized serpentine imbedded in carbonate of lime.
There were several hexagonal crystals terminated,
one of which was nearly perfect. The crystals and
crystalline masses are more perfect than any I have
seen from the eastern locality.
Primary Rocks. — The rocks of this county are nu-
merous, many of them are applied to useful purposes,
and they are everywhere abundant, and are seen crop-
ping out from the surface of almost every hill and
ravine. The same kind of rocks are found in New
York, Westchester, and Dutchess counties. The
GEOLOGY. 51
principal rocks are, 1. granite ; 2. sienite ; 3. gneiss;
4. mica slate ; 5. augite rock ; 6. green stone and
hornblende rocks ; 7. quartz rocks ; 8. talcose slate ;
9. limestone ; 10. serpentine ; 11. steatite.
The five latter rocks have already been described
as metamorphic rocks.
1. Granite. — This rock occurs abundantly in Put-
nam, Dutchess, Westchester, and New York counties.
It presents all varieties of texture, from a very coarse
grained rock, to one almost perfectly compact. In
color it varies as much as in texture. It is white, red,
grey, yellowish, and bluish-grey, according to the co-
lor of the minerals forming it. The color of the fels-
par usually determines that of the mass. It occurs in
beds, in veins, in interstratified masses, and in knots,
knolls, and protruding masses, in which no connexion
with veins or beds have been traced. The more
common mode of its occurrence is in beds ten to one
hundred feet thick, interstratified with gneiss. Some
of the granite is too coarse for use as a building ma-
terial. Some is too compact and hard, being, in fact,
erutie ; others are well adapted for building. Differ-
ent localities show a great variety in strength, and in
the ease or difficulty of dressing, as well as in the ease
of quarrying and the magnitude of the blocks that can
be procured. In the Geological Report of 1838, it
was mentioned that many places would undoubtedly
be found in the Highlands, where fine quarries would
be opened, and furnish " building materials of the best
quality, and which would endure the changes of our
variable climate for ages without decay or disintegra-
tion."
The investigations subsequent to that time have
52 HISTORY OF PUTWAM COUNTY.
verified the prediction that such localities might be
found. The materials are of the best quality, easily
quarried in large blocks, suitable for columns, cor-
nices, &c, easily dressed, enduring as time, as the
naked crags themselves will testify ; and several of
the localities, which were unknown to their owners,
are so convenient to water transport that the blocks
can be swung directly on board vessels in the Hud-
son, by means of cranes. When we consider the value
attached to the quarries in Maine, Massachusetts,
and Connecticut, where, in most places, it is necessary
to haul the stone, either on a common road, or con-
struct a railway to navigable water, a distance from
half a mile to six or seven miles, — and observe that
notwithstanding all these disadvantages, the great
outlay of capital, and the distance to the market, they
make it a profitable business, — we may begin to appre-
ciate the importance of having inexhaustible quanti-
ties of materials, as good, as beautiful, as durable, and
as easily quarried and dressed, on our own waters,
within forty or sixty miles of the city of New York,
and so convenient to shipment that no railroads and
hauling are required.
Blunts Quarry. — This is located on the south side
of Breakneck point, near the line between Putnam
and Dutchess counties. There is an inexhaustible
supply of a material of the best quality. It is a bluish
gray granitic rock, composed mostly of a dark-colored
felspar, with some hornblende, quartz, and occasionally
a little mica. It is more properly sienite than granite.
It is scarcely as dark as the Quincy granite or sienite,
while it is as beautiful, has about the same strength,
splits as well, and is as easily dressed. The stone
GEOLOGY. 53
from this quarry has been extensively used in the con-
struction of the Delaware Breakwater, of Fort Cal-
houn, and Fortress Monroe. The mountain rock has
not been quarried at this place, but only the large
masses that have tumbled from the cliffs above. It is
not possible to give an accurate estimate of the quan-
tity of.granite in this vicinity, but there may be in the
end of the mountain five hundred acres, with an ave-
rage depth of five hundred feet, or 803,640 cubic
yards to the acre, or 401,720,000 cubic yards on five
hundred acres.
Blunt's quarry is located on the immediate shore of
the Hudson river, but on account of the flats, the
stone has been hauled about sixty rods to a landing.
This quarry bids fair to become valuable ; but there
is one disadvantage that may perhaps operate as a
drawback to its advantageous position. It is over-
hung by a precipice of several hundred feet in height ;
and in the quarrying operations, the heavy blasts
may bring down hundreds of thousands of tons of
rock which can be useful only for dock stone and bal-
last.
Highland Granite Company's Quarry. — This quar-
ry is principally owned by Messrs. Howard and Hol-
dane. It is located one-fourth of a mile from the
Hudson river, and half-a-mile east of Blunt's quarry
near Breakneck point, and about two miles from Cold
Spring. It is elevated about four hundred feet above
the Hudson, in full view of the river. The stone is of
excellent quality, and splits easily into large blocks.
It is composed principally of felspar, with a little horn-
blende, and is indistinctly stratified ; or at least it lies
in thick heavy beds, with parallel seams six to twelve
5*
54 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
feet apart, and which are slightly inclined to the hori-
zon. The quarry is inexhaustible, and ought to be
very valuable. This quarry is on part of the bed of
granitic rock described under Blunt's quarry. The
stone is now hauled to the landing, about one-fourth
of a mile, at an expense of three cents per cubic foot,
or forty-two cents per ton. Much of it is sent to
Sing Sing, for the culverts and aqueduct bridges ; and
the freight to that place is four cents per foot, or fifty-
six cents per ton. It is delivered at Sing Sing in blocks
of ten cubic feet and over, at thirty-five cents per
cubic foot, or five dollars and ninety cents per ton.
The dressing of this stone for the arches, is done at
fourteen and a half cents per superficial foot ; and
about two and a half superficial feet are dressed to the
cubic foot, which make the stone dressed, ready for
the arches, cost seventy cents per cubic foot, or nine
dollars and ninety-seven and a half cents per ton.
This quarry is capable of being worked at least
seventy yards in depth, over an area of several acres ;
and allowing a profit of one dollar per cubic yard,
which is a low estimate, and 4840 square yards to the
acre, fifty yards in depth ought, in the course of work-
ing, to give a profit of 242,000 dollars to the acre.
Stony Point, one half of a mile north-west of Cold
Spring. — This is a rocky peninsula, stretching into
the Hudson about one-fourth of a mile. It is com-
posed of gneissoid rocks, except the north-west point
of the peninsula, which is a granitic rock of the same
character as that of Blunt's and the Highland Compa-
ny's quarries. About two acres of this peninsula are
covered by this rock, to an estimated mean depth of
forty-five feet above high water mark ; and it may be
GEOLOGY. 55
estimated that there are 145,200 cubic yards of granite
capable of exploration on this point. It may appa-
rently be split out in masses of any size, up to one
hundred tons or more, in regular blocks ; and it lies
immediately on the Hudson river, and with such a
depth of water that large vessels may come immedi-
ately alongside of the rocks to be quarried, so that the
blocks may be swung on board with a crane. Stony-
point is owned by Mr. Philips* of Philipstown, who
was not aware of the existence of such a location for
a granite quarry, until he was informed of it during
the progress of the survey of Putnam County in 1840.
Philips's Quarry. — This belongs to the same gen-
tleman as the preceding. It is located on the Philips
estate, about half-a-mile from the Hudson river, and
one and a half miles east-north-east of West Point.
The rock is perfectly indestructible, and would
be called granite by those who should see the
blocks without seeing the quarry. It is gneiss, in
thick layers or plates, which have a slight inclination
to the west, while the grain of the rock is nearly
vertical. It splits easily, both in the direction of the
grain and across it. It may be procured in the form
of blocks of five to ten or more feet square, and-of the
thickness of the plates of rock, which are from one to
four feet thick. Some masses were seen which had
been split off for columns for store fronts, twelve to
fourteen feet long, by one and a-half, one and three-
fourths, and two feet square.
The rock at this quarry is of a light grey color,
almost white, and is a beautiful material for building.
It is durable, of sufficient strength, easily dressed and
* Now owned by Anderson & Co.
56 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
easily quarried, and the stone can be transported to
the banks of the Hudson for three to four cents per
cubic foot.
The extent of this rock was not ascertained; but
there is an area of at least ten acres, with a mean
depth of sixty feet, or 26,136,000 cubic feet, or 968,000
cubic yards of this granitic gneiss, or about 1,900,000
tons.
There is a location suitable for quarrying in this coun-
ty, about three and a half miles below West Point, and
near the Cotton rock. The granite or granitic gneiss
is of good quality, of a light grey color, and durable.
This locality was not examined closely ; but from the
general aspect of the rock, it is believed to be a good
location for a quarry. Beautiful light grey granite
was seen in abundance from one to two and a half
miles north-west of Boyd's corners. It is as durable
as time, and may be procured in any quantity ; but its
distance from easy transportation by water or rail-
road will prevent its use at present beyond the neigh-
borhood.
It is estimated that several millions of dollars are
annually paid out of the city of New York, and the
towns on the Hudson river, for building stone brought
from beyond the limits of the State ; while we have
within our own boundaries, and near the markets,
inexhaustible supplies of equally good quality, which
can be quarried, shipped, and hauled at less expense
than the stone we now import from Maine, New-
Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. The
granites of the Hudson river must, then, soon be
wrought and sent to market, and the quarries will
become very valuable.
GEOLOGY. 57
2. Sienite.-— This rock abounds in some parts of
Putnam and Westchester counties. In Westchester
county, it approaches in its characters to the "Quincy
granite " of Massachusetts, and would probably make
as beautiful and durable a material for building as that
which is so justly celebrated. In this county the sie-
nite is generally coarse-grained, of a reddish color,
spotted with black crystalline and irregular masses of
hornblende. This rock passes into hornblende slate
and hornblende gneiss on the one hand, and into horn-
blende rock on the other. No localities were seen in
this county where this rock would be available for
economical uses, except the granitic sienite, which has
already been mentioned under the head of granite, as
occurring in Breakneck mountain, and at Stony point
above Cold Spring.*
The sienite rock of the Highlands is of two kinds.
One is a coarse granitic, aggregate of white or reddish
felspar and black hornblende, sometimes also contain-
ing epidote and grains of magnetic oxide of iron, like
that at the base of Bull-hill, one and a half miles north-
north-west of Cold Spring village, on the shore of the
Hudson ; and at the Target rock, on Constitution
island, opposite West Point ; the other is composed
* The mountain at the north-west corner of Putnam county, is
frequently called Anthony's Nose and Anthony's Face, in conse-
quence of the profile bearing a rude resemblance to the human
face, that may be seen in one position in passing it ; but Break-
neck mountain is the name by which it is generally known.
Anthony's Nose mountain is at the southwest corner of Putnam
county, opposite Fort Montgomery. Stony point, above Cold
Spring, I propose to call Quarry point, to distinguish it from
Stony point in Rockland county, a place of much notoriety in
the annals of the Revolution.
58 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
mostly of felspar of a dark greenish or sometimes yel-
lowish and brownish color, with some quartz and horn-
blende. The latter is black or green, and sometimes
passes into that described under the name of hornblende
rock, where the hornblende is arranged in stripes through
the rock. The felspar in this kind of sienite is occa-
sionally opalescent, but is distinct in characters from
that from the north part of the State, and which is
seen in boulders and blocks on the slopes of the moun-
tains in the Highlands.
3. Gneiss. — Gneiss is the predominant rock in Put-
nam, New York, and Westchester counties. It varies
greatly in external aspect and in composition, in dif-
ferent parts of the tract under investigation. Its
color is dependent upon the relative abundance of its
constituents, which are variously colored in different
localities. The felspar is white, reddish, or of a bluish
grey ; the mica is black, brown, yellow, copper-
colored, and white ; the quartz is white, grey, or
smoky. In some places mica abounds in the rock,
and it approaches to mica slate, but more commonly
the felspar is most abundant, and gives character to
the rock.
Much of the gneiss in the Highlands of the counties
under consideration is a hornblendic gneiss, in which
the mica is wholly or in part replaced by hornblende.
A range of granitic gneiss, of a light color, passes
through Putnam and a part of Westchester county.
It extends through Carmel, near Pine pond, by Ma-
hopack pond ; thence southwardly, and crosses the
turnpike from Peekskill to Danbury. Another bed
extends from Boyd's corners, and crosses the Peeks-
kill and Danbury turnpike about five or six miles
GEOLOGY. 59
from the former place. These beds are quarried, to
a small extent, for use in the vicinity ; but they are
too remote from water transport, for quarrying at
present for a more distant market. It is durable, of
a light grey color, easily split from the quarry, and
easily dressed. If these strata reach the Hudson river,
they are believed to have changed so much in aspect
and quality in building stone, as not to have been re-
cognized as the same beds.
4. Mica Slate. — This rock has a very limited dis-
tribution in Putnam county. Where it does occur, it
seems to be a modification of gneiss, the mica becom-
ing predominant, while within a short distance the
rock resumes its characters of gneiss. No locality
was observed where there is a prospect of valuable
quarries of flagging stone of this kind of rock being
opened, near water transport.
5. Augite Rock. — This rock occurs in a great num-
ber of localities in Putnam county, and in a few in
Westchester county. It is sometimes intermixed with
felspar, but more commonly it is either by itself, or
mixed with the various minerals that are usually as-
sociated with it. It occurs at most of the celebrated
mineral localities in the Highlands. It is of all shades
of color, from white through grey and green of vari-
ous shades to black, and from compact through various
grades of granular to broad foliated masses, in the
forms of fassaite, coccolite, common augite, sahlite,
crystallized augite, and diopside. This rock has not
been applied to any useful purpose.
It is believed that this rock might, with propriety,
have been described among the Metamorphic rocks.
It has rarely been found except in connection with
60 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
such rocks, and is almost constantly with scapolite,
granular limestone, and hornblende. It generally also,
in Putnam county, has magnesian garnet and plum-
bago associated. This rock forms extensive masses
between Anthony's Nose and Sugarloaf mountains,
along the eastern side of the Hudson, between the
shore and the base of the mountains. Between
the " Old silver mine " and the Hudson, about
four or five miles south of West Point, it contains
large quantities of crystallized, massive, and granular
magnesian garnet. The augite is dark green, and
sometimes black, containing plates and hexagonal
scales of plumbago. This rock scarcely corresponds
with augite rock as described in systems of geology,
as it does not generally contain felspar. Most fre-
quently it is an aggregate of augite and scapolite,
augite and carbonate of lime, or augite and magne-
sian garnet, and sometimes augite and mica.
A locality of white or rather grey augite, may be
examined on the shore of the Hudson, about opposite
Buttermilk-falls, and two miles south-east of West
Point, a little above the point from which Arnold
escaped. The augite here forms a heavy bed in
gneiss rock associated with limestone. The augite is
crystalline, grey, and contains scales and hexagonal
plates of plumbago. A vein of mineral that I suppose
to be the pyrophyllite, traverses the augite rock. The
mineral from this locality has the aspect of silvery
mica, which can be dug out at the vein in masses so
as to give plates of two or three inches in diameter,
in rhombic and hexagonal crystals like mica ; but the
plates have not so much elasticity as mica, nor so
much unctuosity as talc. The plates of this mineral,
GEOLOGY. 61
when heated, exfoliate, and spread out like the vermi-
culite of Rhode Island, so that a plate of an eighth of
an inch thick before being heated, becomes one-half
to one and a half inches thick in the fire, the laminae
all separating, but remaining still attached to each
other.
Another interesting locality of augite rock is on
Anthony's Nose mountain, at the " White mine." It
is here associated with a bed of brown spar, contain-
ing magnetic oxide of iron and plumbago. An ore of
cerium is supposed to have been observed at this
place. Rocks of augite containing scapolite and
sphene, were seen in many places on the shore of the
Hudson, at the southern base of Anthony's Nose
mountain, but the localities from which they had fallen
in the cliffs above were not traced out. Augite con-
taining sphene, scapolite, and associated with verd-
antique, diallage and hornblende, occurs at the base
of the cliffs of Bull-hill, near the shore of the Hudson ;
but the beds from which they had fallen, although
some explorations were made, were not seen. The
augite occurs under various forms, as green, yellow-
ish, grey, crystalline, crystallized granular (coccolite
of white, green, grey, yellowish, and red), fibrous, and
in acicular crystals.
Augite also occurs at Huestis's quarry in Philips-
town, as augite, white and green coccolite, diopside,
and sahlite.
Cold Spring was an interesting locality of augite
rock some years ago, but a block of buildings has
been raised over the locality where so many beauti-
ful specimens were procured. The augite rock is
there associated with gneiss and granite, and contains
62
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
scapolite and sphene in abundance. The largest and
most beautiful crystals of sphene I have ev§r seen
were obtained at this place by Dr. Barratt in 1822,
now of Middletown, Connecticut. Augite is so com-
mon a rock in Putnam county, that it is unnecessary
to multiply localities.
6. Greenstone. — This rock traverses the strata in
many places in Putnam and Westchester counties.
In some places it has the aspect of compact trap, like
basalt, but more frequently the hornblende predomi-
nates and gives its characters to the rock. It trav-
erses, and is intertruded in sheets and irregular masses
among the gneiss and other rocks, in the same way as
granite and sienite ; and many of the masses classed
with this rock would be classed with sienite, but for
the fineness of the grain, being of about the texture of
a sandstone, composed of black hornblende with
grains of white and grey felspar.
Well characterized dykes of greenstone of the ba-
saltic kind were seen in a few places in this county.
One was near the mills* north-east of Huestis's quar-
ry ; and another near the road from Cold Spring to
Davenport's corners, about two and a half miles from
the former place. The speckled greenstone in which
hornblende prevails, may be seen abundantly in al-
most every part of the Highlands of Putnam and
Orange counties.
Hornblendic Rocks. — This is a convenient reposi-
tory for those rocks that are not so perfectly charac-
terized as to be included under the preceding heads.
Hornblendic rocks form a very considerable propor-
tion of the mass of the Highlands in Putnam, and in
* Knapp's Mills.
GEOLOGY. 63
fact in Rockland and Orange counties ; but those
parts composed of sienite, hornblendic gneiss, horn-
blende slate, and greenstone, have been described.
Perhaps the remainder classed under this head might
properly have been described as greenstone, for they
have the geological relations of that rock, being evi-
dently in many instances an intrusive rock ; but very
frequently it is almost pure hornblende, and could
not, in conformity with the generally received com-
position of greenstone, be described as such.
Hornblende rock is abundant in Anthony's Nose
mountain, between Anthony's Nose and Royahook.
Hornblende forms a constituent of a large share of
the rocks of this mountain.
Hornblende is also common between Anthony's
Nose and Sugarloaf mountains. Greenstone, horn-
blendic gneiss, and hornblende rock occur at the
northern base of the hill at the laumonite locality,*
about one hundred to two hundred yards below Phil-
ips's mill, one and a quarter miles east-north-east of
West Point.
The hornblende rock is common on Bull-hill, the
mountain north of Cold Spring.
The hornblendic rocks are constantly associated
with the beds of magnetic oxide of iron, which are so
numerous in the Highlands.
* This locality of laumonite and stilbite has been said to be
exhausted. It is not. It is a vein of decomposing felspar, two
and a half to four feet wide, in which the laumonite and stilbite
crystals abound. I had a blast put in the vein in 1829, and ob-
tained an abundance of specimens, showing these small but per-
fect crystals, in groups, in the cavities of the felspar. Many
wagon-loads could probably be obtained. Much of the felspar
is dark-colored glassy felspar.
64 HISTORY OP PUTNAM COUNTY.
On the turnpike from Cold Spring to Carmel, the
rocks,, are gneiss and micaceous gneiss, hornblendic
gneiss with beds ami veins of granite, greenstone, and
hornblende rock. The gneiss on the eastern declivity
of the mountain, for some distance from the crest, is
hornblendic, and the dip is to the eastward, where it.
is not vertical.
The heavy swell of land, composed in part of talcy
slate, east of the limestone that was seen near Bun-
nell's forge, is bounded on the east by Horton's pond
and its outlet. Gneiss was frequently seen in place
after passing into the valley of the pond ; and on the
eastern side of its outlet, the rock had much the as-
pect and composition of some of the felspathic and
sienitic rocks south-east of Peekskill, though they had
more of a granitic aspect. The rocks at Cold Spring
landing1 are gneiss, hornblendic gneiss, and granite.
The strata have a north-north-east and south-south-
west direction, and the dip is vertical at the south
point.
Constitution Island, between Cold Spring and West
Point, is composed of gneiss, hornblendic gneiss, gran-
ite, and sienite. The stratification is much confused,
and some of the rocks have a strike transverse to the
usual direction, viz., north-west and south-east. This
appears to be on the transverse line of disturbance
that has been observed farther east-south-east in sev-
eral places, and on the west-north-west near the cas-
cade, and on the mountain farther west. Granite and
sienite form the Target rock, a high cliff on the south-
west side of the island, and granite forms some of the
points farther north. Hornblendic rocks (gneissoid)
form the shore a little north of the Target rock ; they
GEOLOGY. 65
lie in strata dipping at high angles to the north-east,
and some are nearly vertical.
Flat rock at Mr. Arden's boat landing, two and a
half miles south of West Point, is granite. The geo-
logical explorer can scarcely fail of finding numerous
localities of granite, gneiss, sienite, greenstone, horn-
blende rock, augite, limestone, etc, in exploring the
shores of the Hudson through the Highlands.
ORES OF THE HIGHLANDS,
Magnetic Oxide of Iron.
This ore is confined to the highlands, and abounds
in Putnam county. Several mines are already
wrought, and many more are capable of exploration.
They form masses in gneiss and hornblendic gneiss
rocks, which by casual examination would be called
beds ; but after a careful investigation of the facts, I
think they may be called veins. Their course is
parallel to the line of bearing of the strata, and they
lie parallel to the layers of the rock ; but by close
examination, it is found that in several instances, after
continuing with this parallelism for a certain distance,
the ore crosses a stratum of rock, and then resumes
its parallelism ; then crosses obliquely another, and so
on. In other places, where a great bed of the ore
occurs at some depth, only a few small stripes of ore
penetrate through the superincumbent mass to the
surface, as if the rocks had been cracked asunder, and
these small seams of ore had been forced up from the
main mass below.
The beds of veins of magnetic iron ore lie either
vertical, or dipping to the east-south-east, at an angle
corresponding nearly to the dip of the strata. One
66 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
example only was observed where its dip was to the
west-north-west, viz., at the Stewart mine. The ore
is very variable in quality. In some it is nearly pure
magnetic oxide of iron ; in others, it is intermixed
more or less with the materials of the contiguous
rocks ; in others, it is mingled with pyrites and with
other minerals. Two main veins of this ore will be
descrihed under the names of the Philips's vein and the
Simewog vein. Numerous localities are known where
this ore occurs, and where it has long been dug in
small quantities. They will be mentioned under the
head of local details-
LOCAL DETAILS.
A bed of magnetic oxide of iron has been opened
on Breakneck mountain, and several tons taken from
it. The extent of the bed is not known, and the ore
has not, it is believed, been smelted.
Another bed has been opened on the north-east part
of Constitution Island, opposite the West Point Foun-
dry. Another was opened in the middle of the island.
The ore occurs disseminated in granite near the
redoubt, above the Target rock on Constitution Island.
Magnetic oxide of iron is thickly disseminated in lime-
stone, near Philips's mill, one and a quarter miles east
of West Point ; and it is found in that stratum of
limestone in many places, from the above locality to
near half a mile south of the " Cotton rock," to a dis-
tance of three miles.
It also occurs in the granite rock that is associated
with augite and limestone rocks near the " Old silver
mine," three-quarters of a mile south-east of Conshook
GEOLOGY. 67
island, and one mile north-east of Anthony's Nose
mountain.
A bed was opened many years ago on Anthony's
Nose mountain, but it contained much pyrites and
crvstallized phosphate of lime, both of which injure
the ore for the manufacture of iron.
The brown spar at the " White mine," about one
mile east of the western summit of Anthony's Nose,
contains magnetic oxide of iron disseminated. A
locality of magnetic oxide of iron occurs on Mr. Tilly
Foster's farm, two and a half miles south-east from
Putnam Court-house.
The ore forms a large part of a hill about one hun-
dred yards long, ten to forty feet broad, and elevated
twenty to thirty feet above the ground adjoining.
Some hundreds, perhaps thousands of tons of ore can
be easily procured at this place, without digging below
the level of the hill. It is associated with serpentine,
with limestone containing brucite or boltonite, and
with green mica. The mass of ore is bounded by
gneiss on the east ; and serpentine, limestone, and
verd-antique seem to form its western boundary. It
was thought that some chromated oxide of iron was
observed here, but no examination has been made to
ascertain that point. Another ore bed was discovered
some years ago about half a mile south-west of the
preceding, on land belonging to the Misses Fowler.
Some tons were dug out, but I do not know whether
any has been smelted. The ore is here mixed with
manganesian garnet, augite, and hornblende.
The Simewog vein passes through Simewog hill, and
was traced one and a half miles south-south-west on
Mr. Jedediah Wood's farm ; and it is supposed to
68 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
continue still farther south-south-west, as ore has been
dug in that direction about one mile south-south-west
from Mr. Wood's house. This vein was formerly ex-
tensively worked at Simewog hill, and the mine is
called Townsend's mine.
This mine was the first known and first worked in
this part of the country. The ore was carted to great
distances, and shipped on the North river, to some of
the towns on Long Island sound, and various parts of
the country. The largest portion of the ore was car-
ried to Danbury in Connecticut, and was there an
article of traffic. It has not been wrought for twenty
or thirty years, in consequence of other beds having
been found in more convenient locations for smelting
and transport. Fifty thousand tons of ore, at least,
have been taken from this mine, estimating four tons
to the cubic yard ; and one hundred thousand tons
more may probably be taken from the vein in Sime-
wog hill, without going below the level of the small
stream which flows across the ore bed. Should it
ever be necessary to obtain this ore in quantity (as
is probable, from the prospect of the New- York and
Albany railroad passing up the valley on the east
side of the hill), at least one million tons may be cal-
culated on, above the water-level of the Croton river,
which flows along the base of the hill, and free from
the expense of drainage, by driving an adit level from
the level of the Croton, a distance of three hundred or
four hundred yards to intersect the vein. This vein
of ore has also been worked to the extent of several
thousand tons, near the road and north of the little
stream mentioned above crossing the vein. The vein
here is from eight to fourteen feet thick, and nearly
GEOLOGY. 69
vertical in position, between strata of gneiss and horn-
blendic gneiss which dip seventy to eighty-five degrees
to the east-south-east. On Simewog hill, one-fourth
of a mile south, the vein is from three to twenty feet
thick, associated with similar rocks and with granite.
It has been wrought on Simewog hill from thirty to
sixty feet or more in depth, over a length of three hun-
dred to four hundred yards. It is scarcely doubted,
from the observations made, that this vein is at least
two miles in length, with an average width of six feet.
Its depth cannot be estimated, but it is presumed that
the labor of ages could not exhaust it in depth, as the
bottoms of such veins have never, in any country,
been found.
In the estimates above, the calculation is based
upon the vein being wrought down to the water-level
of the adjacent valley.
This Ore bed seems to be a vein, although its strike
is the same as that of the strata. In the excavations on
Simewog or Mine hill, the bed or vein seems to have
crossed the strata very irregularly and obliquely, and
similar to the vein in the Shawangunk mountain at
the Sullivan mine, running between the strata for a
certain distance, then crossing obliquely between two
other strata, and so on.
The' Phillips' vein has been traced at short intervals
for about eight miles, and is presumed to be continu-
ous through this distance, except where it is inter-
rupted by dykes and transverse heaves of the strata.
Many mines have been opened on this vein, and seve-
ral of them are now worked.
The Cold Spring and Patterson turnpike crosses this
vein of iron ore near the crest of the mountain, about
70 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
nine miles from Cold Spring landing. There is an open-
ing near the road, and near this crossing, where some
ore has been dug. Here the ore seems injected in little
sheets, veins, and beds, through the gneiss rock, so as to
form one-fourth to three-fourths of its mass through a
horizontal thickness (as the strata are vertical) of thirty
to thirty-five feet. Pyrites abound in a portion of the
bed. The ore is easily traced along its course, as it shows
itself distinctly along the line of bearing of the strata,
disseminated, and forming black stripes in the rock.
Near the house, one or two hundred yards farther
south-south-west, another small opening has been made.
One hundred to two hundred yards farther south-
south-west on the line of the vein, a larger excavation
has been made, and five hundred to eight hundred
tons of the ore thrown out ; but it is here so much
intermixed with pyrites as to be unfit for smelting,
until the pyrites shall have decomposed. Some hun-
dred yards farther south-south-west on the line of the
vein, another opening has been made next the marsh,
and it is continued down the hill. The ore is here
more or less intermixed with the rock, with a breadth
of ten to twenty feet, and the gneiss and hornblendic
gneiss rocks associated dip to the east-south-east at an
angle of about sixty degrees. Farther down the hill
are two main openings, which go by the name of
Phillips's mine. The ore in some parts of the upper
mine is more or less intermixed with copper pyrites,
which injures the quality of the iron. The mine has
been wrought badly, timbers being used to prop the
overhanging rock, and great masses have crushed in
and filled most of the mine.
The lower mine, where the whim is placed, has a
GEOLOGY. 71
solid rock roof, a part of the ore bed having been left
in the top of the hill, while the mine has been worked
below. The ore bed is here fifteen to twenty feet
wide, and has been wrought thirty to forty feet in
depth, over a length of fifty yards, This mine is not
worked open to the day like a quarry, but a drift
crosses the strata to the mass of ore, and it is worked
at and below this level, along the course of the vein
under a cover of rock. The ore does not show itself
very distinctly in the over-lying rock. The ore here
is nearly a pure magnetic oxide of iron, and twenty
thousand to thirty thousand tons have probably been
taken from these two mines.
Other openings have been made along the line of
the vein for about a half a mile farther to the south -
south-west, and some three thousand to five thousand
tons of ore probably removed. The rock in which
this part of the vein thus far described is contained, is
mostly felspar, with some bluish quartz ; hornblende
is also common. The felspar is sometimes pearly in
lustre and gray in color, with wrinkled and bent faces,
as if it had been soft, and subjected to forces acting
in different directions.
Other openings along the course of this vein were
traced for half or three-quarters of a mile in a south-
westerly direction. Hornblende abounds in the rocks
associated with the iron ore.
The next mine that is worked to any extent on this
vein, is the Stewart mine. It is about twelve feet
thick of pure ore, and four feet more of lean ore. The
former is much used in forges, the latter in the blast
furnace. The ore at this mine is purer than that of
any other mine I have seen, and is easily worked in the
72 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
forge. It is granular, and easily broken and crumbled
into grains about the size of BB shot, and is called by
the miners " shot ore." The vein lies between strata of
felspathic gneiss, which dip to the west-north-west
about seventy degrees. This mine is on the east side
of the mountain crest, and about one hundred to two
hundred feet above a marsh, with a steep declivity,
and might easily be wrought to that depth without
drainage, by driving an adit level to intersect the vein.
About half a mile south-south-west is another open-
ing by the road-side, where some ore has been dug ;
but it is lean, and much intermixed with the gneiss
rock. About three-fourths of a mile south-south-west
of this is the Denny mine. It is about two and a half
miles east-north-east of Warren's tavern,* in Philips-
town, in a straight line on one of the crests of the
eastern ridge of the Highlands. The ore seems to
have been injected among the rocks. In some places
it forms regular stripes on the surface of the rock,
parallel to the line of bearing; in others, there are
scarcely any indications on the surface, while ex-ten-
sive masses exist a short distance below. This cap
of rock over the oi*e is frequently called by the miners
a rider, and the ore below, the horse. The mine now
at work north of the house, is about thirty feet deep,
and the vein of solid ore twenty-five feet wide, over-
laid by a cap or rider of rock which contains but little
ore. Most of the ore is very compact and pure, but
some contains hornblende. Much of the felspathic rock
contiguous to the vein is injected with thin veins of
ore from one-eighth to one inch thick. Two hundred
yards south-south-west is another opening, from which
* Now owned by Justis Nelson, Esq.
GEOLOGY.
73
much ore has been taken. This place has been exca-
vated to a depth of sixty feet, and the vein is twenty
to thirty feet wide. Twenty thousand to thirty thou-
sand tons of ore at least have been removed. Con-
tiguous to this opening is another, thirty feet deep to
the water, with a sheet of rock five or six feet thick,
between two divisions of the vein. The rocks on
each side of the vein are more or less injected with
thin veins of ore. From examining the locality, many
suppose that the ore has been injected into the cracks
and crevices of the rock when broken up by some
upheave.
This ore is deliverable at the Cold Spring furnace,
and at the wharf at Cold Spring, for three dollars per
ton ; and mined as it is, scarcely any profit can be
realized at this price. The quantity mined \vgfe is
six hundred tons per annum.*
The Coalgrove mine is about one or one and a
half miles south-south-west of the Denny mine ; it is
gneiss. The vein is narrow at the surface, but at the
depth of twelve feet it is four feet wide. The ore is
of an excellent quality, very rich, and well adapted
for the forge, and will undoubtedly make an excellent
* Here holes are dug down in this ore bed or immense vein of
iron ore, and water accumulates unless pumped out, or drawn
out by a tub and whim. By the present mode of mining, two
men, a boy and horse, are required to tend the whim for draw-
ing up water and ore ; when if properly worked, the same quan-
tity of ore could easily be wheeled out by one man or boy, or
carts could enter the mine and load, and dispense with this kind
of labor entirely. A small and short adit level from the hill-
side east of the mine, would lay the ore bed dry for a hundred
feet or more in depth for a considerable distance.
7
74 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
iron. The distance from this mine to the furnace and
Cold Spring landing, is less than from the other mines.*
The Gouverneur mine is about one and a half miles
south-south-west of the Coalgrove mine, and four
miles east of the Philips's manor house, at the south-
east corner of the " water lot." The ore is much in-
termixed in the rock, but would perhaps work well,
mixed with other ores, to flux out the felspar and other
minerals. It may probably be purer farther down.
It has been opened in several places along the crest
of the mountain to a depth from three to twelve feet.
The ore is disseminated in the gneiss and granitic
rock, through a thickness of five to twenty feet. The
strata are nearly vertical. It is on one of the crests of
the eastern ridge of the Highlands, west of Peekskill
hollow. A slight opening has been made about three-
fourths of a mile north-north-east of the Gouverneur
mine, between that and the Coalgrove mine. The
ore is titaniferous, and in lumps, and disseminated in
the rock. The vein is six to twelve feet wide. It
may perhaps be worked by picking the ore, so as to
separate the lumps from the gangue.
The mines and openings just described are the
principal ones on the Philips vein, but the ore can
be found along almost the whole line.
It follows the crest of the east ridge of the High-
lands a distance of at least eight miles. The breadth
of this vein has been mentioned at different places
from three to thirty feet wide ; its average is proba-
bly about twelve feet, and its length, as now known,
about fourteen thousand yards. If the mean average
* The Kemble mine is a short distance north-north-east of the
Coalgrove mine, and on Philips's vein.
GEOLOGY. 75
of the vein be supposed to be half its bulk of ore,
every cubic yard will contain about two tons of ore,
and would yield at least one ton of iron, or each yard
in depth would make fifty-six thousand tons of iron.
The vein, by proper working, can be mined to a
mean depth of one hundred yards, without expense of
drainage more than the proper opening of adits. We
may place the workable produce of this vein, above
the water level of the adjacent valleys, at 5,600,000
tons of iron. The phenomena of the mines in many
places on this vein induce the idea of igneous injec-
tion, connected with a powerful up-heaving force.
The felspar is often pearly, wrinkled, and with bent
laminae. The appearance of hyalite, a mineral usu-
ally associated with volcanic and trap rocks ; the ap-
parent injection in veins among the seams and crev-
ices of the rock ; the appearance of the softening of
the gneiss and bending its layers like a flowing slag
seem to point to an igneous origin of this vein. It oft-
en has the appearance of a bed, and at other times of a
vein ramifying from a main mass between the strata,
and at other times cutting obliquely across them, but
still having its out crop parallel to the line of bearing.
The Cold Spring furnace* is the only blast furnace
in operation in the counties of New York, West-
chester, and Putnam. It is supplied with magnetic
oxide of iron from the Philips mine, the Denny mine
in Putnam county, and the Townsend mine in Cant-
erbury, and the O'Niel mine in Warwick, Orange
county. These ores are mixed in certain proportions,
and flux each other easily with a small addition of the
* Discontinued.
76 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Sing Sing limestone. The produce of this furnace is
from one thousand to fourteen hundred tons of pig
iron per annum. Bunnell's forge* in Philipstown is
believed to be the only one in operation in the coun-
ties under consideration. It is supplied with the shot
ore of the Stewart mine.
Localities of Peat and Marl. — About thirty acres
of this alluvion is found near the east side of Lake
Mahopack in the town of Carmel ; five hundred acres
near Patterson ; eight acres two miles east-north-east
of West Point, in Philipstown ; twenty acres near
the head of the Sunk lot, eight miles from Cold Spring,
on the road to Carmel village ; twenty acres on the
road from Carmel village to Patterson ; six acres four-
miles south-east of Peeksville ; twenty acres in Phil-
ipstown, east of Stewart's iron mine ; ten acres in
Philipstown, half a mile south of the last-mentioned
locality ; fifty acres in Philipstown, near Davenport's
corners, five miles north-east of Cold Spring ; and
twenty acres in Philipstown, in the south-east part,
near the Hon. Abraham and Saxton Smith's. Peat
is probably abundant in the meadows near Constitu-
tion Island, though it has not been particularly ex-
amined.
The mud-fiats near Constitution Island, are all in-
creasing slowly, and from a variety of causes, such
as vegetable decompositions, the silt and mud depos-
ited from the water, and the growth and decay of
molluscous and other animals. They have increased
more rapidly during the last twenty years than before,
in consequence of the greater amount of cultivated
land causing a greater amount of earthy materials to
* Discontinued.
THE PATENT. 77
be transported by the rains and surface waters into
the Hudson. These flats will eventually become
meadows, but the time may be far distant. The flats
along the right bank of the Hudson, opposite West
Point, both below Gee's point and near Camptown,
have grown sensibly more shallow within the last
fifteen years. The same may be said of the flats be-
tween Constitution island and Gouverneur's landing,
opposite West Point, and between Constitution Island
and Cold Spring.*
THE PATENT.
This county was patented in 1697, by Adolph Phil-
ips, a merchant then residing in the city of New York.
As shown by the Patent, it included " Pollepells
Island,"' and contained more land than is now em-
braced by this county. Adolph Philips, or Philipse,
as it was formerly written, was a bachelor, and an
uncle to Capt. Frederick Philips, deceased ; and great
uncle to Mrs. Mary Gouverneur, of Highland Grange,
Philipstown. Previous to this time, a brother or
cousin to Adolph received a patent for a tract of land
* In 1822, sloops used to come in at the Foundry dock, about
half-way between Cold .Spring and the West Point foundry, to
take in their freight of cannon and other castings; but the water
has become so shoal that for some years past it has not been
possible, and they now load at Cold Spring.
78 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
in Westchester county, " originally comprising not
less than 20 miles square, bounded West by the Hud-
son, and lying south of the mouth of the Croton."
This patent was granted to Frederick Philips, in 1G80.
We at first made an attempt to trace back the gene-
alogy of this family ; but, having been informed that an
analysis of that matter would be given shortly in a work
on Westchester county, we ceased our inquiry, expect-
ing to see it more fully portrayed than our means of
information would enable us to give. Besides, it was
more proper that it should appear in a work on West-
chester, as the elder branch of the family first settled
there.
This patent in Dutchess County, covering nearly the
whole of the Highlands, was inherited by the father of
Capt. Frederick Philips, who left three children, one
son and two daughters, viz. : Frederick ; Mary, who
married Roger Morris, a major in the British army ;
and the wife of Col. Beverly Robinson, also of that
army, whose Christian name is unknown to us. The
land embraced by this patent was twenty miles in
length and twelve in breadth, and divided into three
parts and nine lots ; each child receiving one-third
part, or three lots of the patrimonial estate. They
were called, by way of distinguishing them from one
another, 1st, the River or Water lots ; 2d, the Long
lots ; 3d, the Back Short lots. The Water lots were
bounded west by the Hudson, and were four miles
square ; the Long lots twelve miles in length from
north to south, and four miles in breadth from east to
west ; the Short lots on the Connecticut line were the
same size as the River lots — four miles square. Those
lots acquired by Col. Robinson and Major Morris, by
THE PATENT. 79
marriage with the two sisters of Capt. Frederick Phil-
ips, the father of Mrs. Mary Gouverneur, were confis-
cated by the legislature ; but the reversionary interest
was not affected thereby, which the late John Jacob
Astor purchased of the heirs subsequently for 8100,000 ;
and for which, ten years afterwards, he received from
the State of New- York $500,000, in State Stock at
six per cent.
The following diagram shows the number, size, and
form of these lots, and to which of the heirs they
belonged. There is also a long, narrow strip of land,
now the subject of litigation, which we have not desig-
nated in the diagram, between the north line of Put-
nam, as it now runs, and Rumbout's and Beekman's
patents, claimed by the heirs at law of the original
patentee.
80
si
o
P
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o
CD
CO
r~t-
<D
►1
Q
o
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Hudson River.
Col. Robinson's
water lot, 4
miles square.
Capt. Frederick
Philips's water
lot, 4 miles sq.
Major Morris's
water lot, 4
miles square.
Col. Robinson's long lot, 12 miles long, 4 miles wide.
Capt. Frederick Philips's long lot, 12 miles long,
4 miles wide.
Major Morris's
back lot, 4
miles square.
Capt. Frederick
Philip's back
lot, 4 miles sq
Col. Robinson's
back lot, 4
miles square.
Ed
c
B
O
c
p
Major Morris's long lot, 12 miles long, 4 miles wide.
a
B
?»
p.
at
3
Connecticut line.
"Recorded for Mr. Adolph Philips —
"William the third by the grace of God King of England
Scotland ffrance and Ireland Defender of the faith &c To all
THE PATEN'I. 81
to whom these Presents shall come Sendeth Greeting Whereas
our Loving Subject Adolph Philips of our City of New York
Merchant hath by his Peticon Presented unto our Trusty and
welbeloved Benjamin Fletcher our Captain Generall and Gover-
nour in Chief of our Province of New Yorke and Territoryes
Depending thereon in America &c Prayed our Grant and Con-
firmacon of a Certain Tract of Land in 'our Dutchess— Scituate
Lying and being in the Highlands on the East side of Hudsons
River beginning at a Certain Red Cedar Tree marked on the
North side of the Hill Commonly called Anthonys Nose which
is Likewise the North Bounds of Collonell Stevanus Cortlandts
Land, or his Manour of Cortlandt and from thence Bounded by
the said Hudsons River as the said River runs Northerly untill
it comes to the Creek River, or Run of Water Commonly called
and known by the Name of the Great fish kill to the Northward
and above the said Highlands which is Likewise the Southward
Bounds of another Tract of Land belonging (unto) the said Coll
Stephanus Cortlandt and Company and so Easterly along the
said Coll Cortlandts Line and the South Bounds of Coll Henry
Beeckman untill it Comes twenty Miles or untill the Division or
Pertition Line between our Colony of Connecticutt and our said
Province and Easterly by the said Division Line being Bounded
Northerly jmd Southerly by East and West Lines unto the said
Division Line between our said Collony of Connecticutt and this
our Province aforesaid the whole being Bounded Westward by
the said Hudsons River Northward by the Land of Coll Cort-
landt and Company and the Land of Coll Beeckman Eastward
by the Pertition Line between our Collony of Connecticutt and
this our Province and Southerly the Mannour of Courtlandt to
the Land of the said Coll Cortlandt including therein a Certain
Island at the North side of the said Highlands Called Pollepells
Island which Reasonable Request we being willing to Grant
Know ye that our Speciall Grace Certaine Knowledge and meere
mocon We have Given Granted Ratifyed and Confirmed and
by these Presents Do for us our Heirs and Successors Give
Grant Ratify and Confirme unto the said Adolph Philips all the
aforerecited Certaine Tract of Land and Island within the
Limites and Bounds aforesaid together with all and Singular
the Woods underwoods Trees Timber Hills Mountains Valleys
82 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Rocks Quarreys Marshes Swamps Rivers Runs Rivoletts
Waters Watercourses Pools Ponds Lakes fountains Streams
Meadows fresh and salt Mines Minerals (Silver and Gold
Mines Excepted) fishing fouling hunting and hawking and all
other Royaltyes Rights Members Benefits Profites Advantages
Commodityes Priviledges Hereditaments and Appurtenances
whatsoever unto the aforerecited Certainc Tract of Land and
Island within the limites and Bounds aforesaid belonging or in
anyes Appertaining To have and to hold all the aforecited Cer-
taine Tract of Land and Island within the Limites and Bounds
aforesaid together with all and Singular the Woods Under-
woods Trees Timber Hills Mountains Valleys Rocks Quar-
ryes Marshes Swamps Rivers Runns Rivoletts Waters Water-
courses Pools Ponds Lakes fountains Streams Meadows fresh
and salt Mines Minerals (Silver and Gold Mines Excepted) fish-
ing fowling hunting and hawking and all other Royaltyes Rights
Members benefits Profites Advantages Commodityes Priviledges
Hereditaments and Appurtenances whatsoever unto the aforecited
Certainc Tract of Land and Island within the Limites and Bounds
aforesaid belonging or in any wayes Appertaining unto the said
Adolph Philips his Heirs and Assignes to the sole and only
Propper use benefite and behoofe of him the said Adolph Philips
his Heirs and Assignes forever To be holden of us our Heirs
and Successours in fFree and Common Soccage as of our Man-
nour of East Greenwick in our County of Kent within our
Realme of England Yielding Rendering and Paying therefore
Yearly and every Year unto us our Heirs and Successours for-
ever at our City of New Yorke on the feast Day of the Annun-
ciation of our blessed Virgin Mary the Yearly Rent of twenty
Shillings Currant money of our said Province in Liew and Stead
of all other Rent:-; Services Dues Dutyes and Demands whatso-
ever for the said Tract of Land Island and Premises
"In Testimony whereof we have Caused the Great Seal of our
said Province to be hereunto affixed Witnesse our Trusty and
welbeloved Benjamin Fletcher our said Captaine Generall and
Governour in Chiefe of our Province of New Yorke and Terri-
toryes Depending thereon in America and Vice Admirall of the
same our Lew : t and Commander in Chiefe of the Militia and of
all the forces by Sea and Land within our Collony of Connecti-
ROADS AND TURNPIKES. 83
and of all the forces and Places of Strength within the same cut
in Councill at our ffort in New Yorke the seventeenth day of
June in the ninth Year of our Reigne Annoy Dom 1697 —
Ben ffletcher by his Excellence's Command
" David Jamison
'• D. Secry
" I do hereby Certify the foregoing to be a true Copy of the
Original Record Part of the word unto being interlined between
the 26th and 27 lines of page 119 Compared therewith By Me
"Lewis A. Scott Secretary."
ROADS AND TURNPIKES.
On examining the early records of Dutchess county,
we find that the first road, in that part of Dutchess
which is now Putnam county, was laid out, and the
description thereof entered on the record, on the 28th
day of April, 1744, by David Hustis and Francis Nel-
son, two of the commissioners appointed for that pur-
pose. Afterwards several were laid out by Thomas
Davenport, great-grandfather of William Davenport,
Esq., of Nelsonville, and James Dickinson, who were
also commissioners, some of which terminated in
Westchester, Dutchess, and Connecticut. Many of
these roads have been discontinued, or superseded by
others more fitly located, some shortened, some ex-
tended, and some still remain but slightly altered.
Generally their description is brief, imperfect, and ob-
scure ; and the different places mentioned in their
description, with but few exceptions, are only known
to the oldest inhabitants. Hustis, one of the commis-
84 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
sioners, who signed the first entry on the record,
made his mark ; but whether from inability to write,
or some infirmity of his hand, we have not been ad-
vised. But if inability to write was the reason, it is
not to be wondered at, as the instance was more com-
mon then than now, and schools at that early day
were, like angel's visits, " few and far between." We
incline, however, to the belief, that it was owing to a
palsied arm. In all extracts from the early records,
either county or town, we, to use a lawyer's phrase,
"stick to the record" literally ; adhering to the spell-
ing and punctuation as it appears in the books, with-
out addition, correction, or diminution of " one jot or
tittle." The first entry on the record is as follows :
" Whereas by an Act of Generall assembly Passed in the
Eleventh Year of his now Majesties Reign Entitled an act for
the better clearing and further laying out public high Roads in
Dutchess County : by Virtue of the same, We Francis Nelson
and David Hustis being two of the Commissioners for laying out
Roads in the South precinct in said county appointed have at
the request of divers of the inhabitants laid out and ascertained
the following public hig Ways or Road as follow viz, Beginning
att Thomas Cercomes house from thence by marked Trees to
Epram Forgeson On Courtlandt's Manor,
" Another Road Beginning at the farm of Eli Nellson from
thence by marked Trees to Nathan Lane's on the line of Court-
landt, thence down the line to the shrub plain — also one Road
Beginning at the West Branch of Croton River at a Bridge —
from thence by marked Trees down to Joseph Travers is — then
running down the Dwivision Line through the still water to
said Forgesons — One other road beginning at the deep brook or
Roge Rill — from thence by marked Trees through pussapanun
— thence to Daton's Hills; also One other Road Beginning at
Hendrick Brewer's at pussapanun by marked Trees to Daton's
Hills; One other Road Beginning at Sibet Cronkhyt at ye Indian
Road Beginning at Joseph Jaycocks — from thence by marked
ROADS AND TURNPIKES. 85
Trees to the King's Road at Joseph Areles; one other Road Be-
ginning below Pussattanun at Joseph. Cronkhydt house by-
marked Trees to Datons Mill Performed by us said Commis-
sioners the Twenty-eighth day of April in the Seventeenth year
of his Majesties Reign Anno que Domini 1744.
his
" Dutchess ss " David X Hustis
mark
" francis Nelson
" A true Copy Examined
" by Henry Livingston Clerk"
We remark — in order to show in which of the pre-
sent towns of the county those persons resided, at
whose houses the above-described roads commenced,
and to determine the other points on their route, as far
as we have been informed by old persons — that " Ep-
ram Forgeson" and " Thomas Cercome" lived in the
now town of Carmel. " Eli Nellson" lived where
Charles Smith now does, in Putnam Valley, and " Na-
than Lane," where Robert Austin resides in the same
town. The "shrub plain" is now called Hyatt's
plain, and is about one mile below the Westchester
line. " A brige," as mentioned in the entry, we have
been informed, is now called Pine's Bridge. " Joseph
Taveersis" lived a little west of the " bridge." The
" still water" was about six miles east of Peekskill.
" Daton's Mills" are now known as Courtlandt's, and
are about one mile east of Annsville. " Sibet Cronk-
hyt" lived between Annsville and St. Anthony's Nose
mountain. " Joseph Jaycocks" lived near Annsville ;
and " Joseph Areles" lived where Reuben Turner
does at present, a short distance north-west of Conti-
nental Village.
In 1745, three new commissioners were appointed
to lay out highways, two of whom seem only to have
8
86 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
acted as such. They were " Adolph Phillips, Thomas
Davenport, and James Dickinson ;" the first did not
act. The descriptions or bounds of those first re-
corded by the clerk of the ^ounty are as follows :
" Whereas Adolph Phillips Esq. Capt Thomas Deavenport
and James Dickinson Junr ; are appointed Commissioners of ye
high ways of ye South precinct of Dutchess County. We whose
Names are here under subscribed being Two of ye Commission-
ers afforesaid have laid out ye high Ways, as is hereafter
Mentioned — A high Way Beginning at the Devition.line be-
tween Esqr. Philips pattain and Collonel Beekmans precinct
near ye east part of ye precinct where ye : path is now Used so
by marked Trees and Stakes threw ye precinct To Courtland
Pattain ; then a high Way from James Dickinson by Marked
Trees to Courtland pattain ; a high Way from James Dickinson
by marked Trees to Rigfield new purchase, a high Way begin-
ning at ye Devition of ye, Two countys near by Elihu Town-
sends at a White Oak/Tree on ye East Side of ye high way from
thence to a white Oak Tree — then to Elihu Townsend fence to
his Corner as ye fence now stands then with ye, Middle line of
ye Oblong untill it meets with Danbery high way by marked
Trees from thence by marked Trees Over Joes Hill so called
untill it meets with ye high way that comes from Wostershere
so called ; A high way Beginning at ye Bridge by John Dick-
inson so by marked Trees untill to Crane Mills from thence by
marked Trees and Stakes to ye bridge by Jeremiah Calkins — A
high way from Crane Mills by Marked To Rigfield New pur-
chase— a high Way Beginning at Edward Grays so by Marked
to ye Meeting house — from thence to ye West Branch of Croton
by Marked Trees Meeting with ye highway that has been all-
ready laid out near by Hamblins, a highway from Shaws by
Marked Trees To Frost Mills from thence to Sprages, A High
Way from ye Bridge by John Dickinson so by marked Trees to
the Meeting house from thence by Marked Trees To Elijah
Tomkins. A high Way Beginning Near by Taylors so by
marked Trees Untill it meets with ye high way that comes over
ye Great Swamp by William herns, A high Way by Marked
Trees from William herns on ye North Side of ye Barr Swamp
ROADS AND TURNPIKES. 87
so called Untill it meets with Madam Britts Line A high Way
by marked Trees from Madam Britts Line to the Horse pound
bo called from thence to Shaws and from ye horse pound To
Croton River by Marked, A high Way beginning at Joseph
Lees by Marked Trees to Wostershere high Way, A high
Way from Sam'l Fields farme to ye high Way that leads to
Danbery, A high Way from James Dickinson farme to ye
high Way that leads to Courtland Line, A high Way from
James Padocks To Connecttecut Line by Marked Trees A high
Way Beginning at Capt. Balls possettion by Connectecut Line
by marked Trees, A high Way beging at ye high Way near
byBrundedges so by Marked Trees to William Bloomers— Give
Under Our hands this tenth of May 1745
" Thomas Davenport
" James Dickinson, Jun'r.
" Dutchess County ss : A True Copy Examined
" By Henry Livingston, Clerk."
"August 23: 1745."
"Crane Mills," of which mention is made in the
above entry, were about half a mile from Sodom
Corners, and on the north side of Joe's Hill, in the
town of South-East. The " Horse Pound" was about
three miles north of Carmel village, on the road lead-
ing from it to Stormville. The Horse Pond is on the
same road, and the "pound" was immediately north
of it.
" Shaw's" residence was in the town of Carmel, just
north of the beautiful sheet of water that bears his
name.
"April ye 20 day 1747: A highway Laid out Beginning at
Abraham Smiths to by Marked Trees to the highway that Leads
from Kirkun Mills to ye peakskills four Rods wide.
" A highway laid out Beginning at James Mairude So by Mark-
ed Trees to ye highway that leads from Kirkuns Mills to the
peekkills four rods.
" A highway Laid out Beginning at a former Highway Near Ele
88 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Nelson so by Marked trees to the former highway in peeckkills
hollow four rods wide.
"A highway Laid out Beginning Near Mickell Shaw so by
Marked Trees to the highway by Mathees Roes from thence by
Marked Trees threw Mr hill farme to Kirkuns Mills four rods
wide.
"A highway laid out beginning at Kirkuns mills so by
Marked Trees to ye highway formerly Laid out that leads to the
Peackkills four Rods wide.
" A highway laid out Beginning Near Benjamin Brundeges so
by Marked trees to Josia Gregory four Rods wide.
"Dutchess be > : A True Copy examined > James DieKiNSoN
August 19-1748. By Henry Livng- Thqmas DavenPort"
ston Clerk. j
At this period of the settlement of the county, there
appears to have been but few roads, and they were
scarcely worked. A journey, therefore, to Pough-
keepsie, by the Commissioners, was something more
of an undertaking than at the present day. Some
half-a-dozen or more roads were laid out before the
Commissioners, or one of them carried a description
of them to the County Clerk to be recorded. This
accounts for their entry under one date. The next
entry is as follows :
"March ye 20 day 1746-7. A higway Laid out beginning at
Kerkuns Mill so by Marked trees to peeks kill hollow from
thence to Abraham Smith from thence to the highway that Leads
Kirkun Mill to ye peeks Kill four rods wide.
"A highway Laid out beginning at Kirkuns Mill by marked
trees to ye Highway to Eastward of Benjamin Brundages four
Rods wide
" A Highway Laid out beginning at ye peeks Kill Road so by
marked trees to Josia grigory four Rods wide.
ROADS AND TURNPIKES. 89
"A Highway Laid out beginning at James Moreds to the
peek Kill highway four Rods wide.
" Laid out by us Commissioners of ye Highways.
"Dutchess ss : A True Copy Examined ) Thqmas davenport
1748-9y g P 8j James Dickinson
The descendants of those persons mentioned in the
above-described roads, with those that follow, can
better locate these early roads, from their knowledge
of the places mentioned, than we. The next entry is
as follows :
" November ye 11 day 1748. A Highway laid out from Capt :
Wright Sawmill by marked trees to ye peac pond or to West-
chester County Line four Rods wide
" A Highway Laid out from Curhelus fullers by marked trees
Until it meets with the Road that Leads from ye Long bridge to
Dan ; 1 Grays four Rods wide
" A Highway Laid out from James Dickinson unto Court Lands
maner by marked trees four rods wide Laid out by us Commis-
sioners of the Highways
" A Highway laid out by marked Trees beginning at Croton
River near James Dickinson from thence to ye high way by
Lathams four rods wide
Dutchess: Thomas Davenport
James Dickinson.
" A true copy examined by Henry Livingston Clerk
Feb: 8: 1748-9—"
" Whereas ye Inhabitants on ye South Precinct in Dutchess
County in the province of New-York Did Request Severall High-
ways To be Laid out wee ye Said Commissioners have laid out
Several Highways as follows fiirst Begining near James Dicken-
son, from Thence by. Marked Trees To Courtland Maner by
Nathan Balys four Rods wide
"Then one more High Way Beginning by whare Doctor Cal-
kins Used to live from Thence by Marked Trees To ye Oblong.
8*
90 HISTORY OF TUTNAM COUNTY.
Thence Between Nathaniel Stevenson and Philips pattain To
Beekmans precinct four Rods Wide. One more highway Begin-
ning near More Houseis Mill by marked Trees to ye Old High
Way and ye : Old High way by Greenes House Stopt up four
Rods wide.
"One more High Way Beginning nearby Joseph Cranes from
thence by marked Trees into ye High Way by Saml : Jones
four Rods.
"One more Highway Beginning at the South End of Nathaniel
Stevensons Land from Thence East-ward in Between Stevensons
Land Joshua Burns Land four Rods Wide to ye Middle of the
Oblong
" Laid out by "us Thomas Davenport
James Dickinson
Co7nmissioners of the Highways."
"Whareas ye Inhabitants on Phillips pattain have Requested
A Highway to by laid Out from Timothy Shaws to ye Fish Kills
Through ye Mountains or over ye Mountains Which We have
Done Beginning at Timothy Shaws Aforesaid four Rods Wide by
Marked Trees to the Fish Kills as aforesaid by us Commission-
ers of the HighWays for ye south precinct of Dutchess County.
Thomas Davenport
James Dickinson
Commissioners of the High Ways
" Dutchess ss: The above are True Copys Examined by Hen-
ry Livingston Clerk
June 5 : 1752—"
" A High Way Laid out Begining at Jonathan Lanes House
from Thence by Marked Trees to Elezer Umans Mill four
Rods Wide, A High Way Begining at Timothy Shaws from
Thence Over ye Mountains To the fish Kills by Marked Trees
four Rods Wide Laid out by us Commissioners of ye highwas
of ye South precinct in Dutchess County June ye, 7th : day
1751 — " Thomas Davenport
"James Dickinson
" Dutchess : A True Copy Entred January 8 : 1775
" By Henry Livingston Clerk" —
ROADS AND TURNPIKES. 91
"November ye : 10 day 1752 South precinct of Dutchess
County A high Way Laid out from Amos Dickinson to Jere-
miah Jones by Marked Trees 4 Rods Wide One more Begin-
ning at ye Horse pound from thence to Amos fullers 4 Roda
Wide by Marked Trees, One More Begining at John Dicken-
eons Mill from thence to ye : high Way that Leads to the Meet-
ing house 4 Rods Wide
" Thomas Davenport
" James Dickinson
" Comistioners of the high Ways —
"Dutchess : A True Copy Recorded January 8 1755 By
" Henry Livingston Clerk"
"October ye 11 : day 1754 South precinct of Dutchess
County, A high Way Laid out Beginning at ye Bridg Near
Edward Halls Mill on ye : Oblong from thence by John Ryder
door to a Stake in said Ryders Meadow from thence between
James Anderson Land and said Ryders Land as far as is Con-
venant for a high Way to be made from thence as near to Rattle
Snake hill as is Convenant for a high Way to be made from
thence to the highway that Leads across Joes Hill so called Two
Rods Wide Throughout One more beginning at the high Way
that Leads to Roberts paddricks on the Top of the hill in John
Jones Possestion from thence by Marked Trees to Jacob Finch
Bridg from thence by James Quimby And from thence to
Thomas Frost 4 Rods Wide One more Beginning on ye West
Side of Quimbe farm at ye highway from thence between John
Frost And James Quimbe farms And from thence to Thomas
Townsend And from thence to the Bridg by Jeremiah Baleys 4
Rods Wide One more Beginning near Nehemiah Woods at ye :
high Way from thence to Nathaniel Byingtons Bridg four Rods
Wide
"One more Beginning at Thomas Higins from Thence a Crost
ye : hills to Daley Brook so called 4 Rods Wide by marked
Trees One more Begining at Anthony Batterson House from
thence along ye : Collony Line to ye : highway that leads to
Danbury. 2 Rods Wide
"One more Beginning at ye foot of the hill near ye: peach
pond from thence by Marked Trees and Bushes and Stakes and
92 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Stones to West Chester Line four Rods wide Throughout One
more Begining at ye : foot of a hill in Mathew Burgis Land by-
Marked to ye : Top of hill in to ye : Old highway Again 4 Rods
Wide Laid out by us
" Thomas Davenport
" James Dickinson
" Commistioneers of the High Ways
" Dutchess : A True Copy Recorded January : 8 : 1755 By
" Henry Livingston Clerk"
REVOLUTIONARY LETTERS, &c.
(Letter from Col. Ludington, Elijah Townsend, and others.)
" Dutchess County, 3d December, 1776.
"Gentn. — Nothing but the strongest necessity could induce
us to trouble you with an application of so extraordinary a na-
ture ; but if we are esteemed worthy your confidence as friends
to our struggling country, our sincerity will apologize for what
in common cases might appear indecent. Our invaded State has
not only been an object of the special designs of our common
enemy, but obnoxious to the wicked, mercenary intrigues of a
number of engrossing jockies, who have drained this part of the
State of the article of bread to that degree, that we have reason
to fear there is not enough left for the support of the inhabit-
ants. We have for some months past heard of one Helmes who
has been purchasing wheat and flour in these parts for several
months, with which the well affected are universally dissuited.
This man with us is of doubtful character, his conversations are
of the disaffected sort entirely. He has now moving from Fish-
kill toward Newark we think not less than one hundred barrels
of flour, for which he says he has your permit, the which we
have not seen. However, we have, at the universal call of the
people, concluded to stop the flour and Helmes himself, until
REVOLUTIONARY LETTERS, ETC. 93
this express may return. We ourselves think from the conduct
of this man that his designs are bad.
"We have the honour to be, your humble servts.
"Henry Ludington,
"Joseph Crane, Junr.
"Jonathan Paddock,
" Elijah Townsend."
"To the Honourable the Council of Safety for the State of
New York."
" Fredericksburgh Committee.
March 15th, 1776.
" Whereas Isaac Bates has been represented to this committee
as being unfriendly to our country, we have had him under ex-
amination and find him guilty of said charge. We, therefore,
refer him to the Honourable county committee for further exami-
nation."
" Fredericksburgh, March 15th, 1775.
" Isaac Bates, upon being taken up as a deserter, by an ad-
vertisement from Elijah Oakley, Lieutenant under Captain Com-
fort Ludington, of Colo. Jacobus Swartwout's regiment of
minute men, pleads and says that said Lieut. Oakley did release
him, in support of which plea he produced the evidences, whose
depositions are as follows :
"I, Abraham Birdsil, of lawful age, being sworn before the
chairman of the committee, do testify and say that on the 5th of
this instant March, being at the house of Cornelius Fuller, I
heard Elijah Oakley say he would give any man two shillings
that would set his name to such a paper. Whereupon Isaac
Bates said he would set his name to it ; and the said Oakley
said he would give him four shillings if he would ; and finally
said as he could not make change he would give him a six shil-
ling bill, lawful money. And as Bates took the pen Oakley
6ays if you do write your name there you shall go, and Bates
6aid I mean to go, and wrote on the bottom of the paper as I
supposed his name, but I understand by others (for I cannot
read writing) that he wrote Elijah Oakley may kiss my
Isaac Bates ; at which Oakley was mad and swore he should go.
Whereupon Bates says why you are not mad are you, I was
94 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY,
f
only in a y ke. Joke or no joke said Oakley, you shall go But
afterwards I saw Bates give Oakley the bill again, and saw
Oakley tear off a piece of paper which I suppose was what
Bates had written, and I understood by Oakley that he had dis-
charged him. Whereupon I said to Bates, since Oakley is so
fair with you, you ought to treat him, and he immediately called
grog and did treat him."
" I, John Chase, of lawful age, being sworn before the chair-
man of the committee, do testify to the whole of the foregoing
deposition ; and further that when Oakley took the bill he said
he would see if it was the same bill which he gave Bates, and
went to the light and said it was the same bill which I gave
you. Now (said I to Mr. Oakley) you and Isaac are clear, are
you not ? Yes, said Mr. Oakley we are clear, it was only a
joke."
"We do suspect the above mentioned Elijah Oakley as being
unfriendly to the country, from his conduct in enlisting Isaac
Bates who was known to be a professed tory, and taking him
out of our hands when we were about to deal with him, and
then discharged him, but at the same time positively affirmed to
us that he would make him go, and finally did advertise him,
when he never kept out of his way.
" By order of the Committee of Fredericksburgh,
"David Smith, Chairman."
" March 16th, 1776.
"4 ho. 6 m. March 28th, 1776.
" The Committee met pursuant to adjournment.
"Present — Mr. Wm. Paulding, Chairman.
" Mr. Cuyper — Orange.
"Mr. Moore— Tryon.
" Mr. Everson, Colo. Morris Graham— For Dutchess. Mr.
Lefferts — Kings. Wm. Williams — Cumberland.
"Mr. Tredwell— For Suffolk.
" Mr. Paulding — For Westchester.
"Mr. Ad. Bancker — Richmond.
"A return for a great number of Commissions from Frede-
ricksburgh, in Dutchess County, for the militia officers in that
REVOLUTIONARY LETTERS, ETC. 95
district, was read and filed, and is in the words following, to
wit :
Fredericksburgh in Dutchess County, March 15th, 1776.
" Pursuant to a resolve of the Provincial Congress of New
York, passed the 9th of August, 1775, the Committee proceeded
to call together the several companies of militia in this precinct,
for a choice of officers, as follows :
"Beat No. 1. Friday March 8th, the company did meet, and
under the inspection of Joshua Myrick, Daniel Mertine, and
David Myrick, three of the committee, did choose Ebenezer
Robinson, Capt. ; Nathaniel Scribner, 1st Lieut. ; Hezekiah
Mead, Junr. 2d lieut. ; Obadiah Chase, Ensign.
"Beat No. 2. Monday March 11th, the company met, and
under the inspection of David Waterbury and Moses Richards,
two of the Committee, did elect David Waterbury, Capt. ; Isaac
Townsend, 1st lieut. • Jonathan Webb, 2d lieut. ; Timothy Dela
van, Ensign.
"Beat No. 3. — September, 20th, 1775, the- company met, and
under the inspection of Jonathan Paddock, Simeon Tryon,
David Crosby, three of the Committee, made choice of Jonathan
Paddock, Capt. ; Jeremiah Burges, 2d lieut. ; Joseph Dykeman,
Ensign. — N. B. Simeon Tryon is since appointed a lieutenant
in the Continental Army.
"Beat No. 4. — Tuesday, March 12th, the company of
met, and under the inspection of Solomon Hopkins, David
Myrick, and David Smith, did elect John Crane, Capt. ; Elijah
Townsend, 1st lieut. ; David Smith, 2d lieut. ; and John Berry,
Ensign.
"Beat No. 5. — Wednesday, March 13th, the company met
and under the inspection of Solomon Hopkins and Joshua My
rick, two of the Committee, did elect Wiiliam Colwell, Capt. ;
Joel Mead, 1st lieut. ; Stephen Ludinton, 2d lieut. ; and David
Porter, Ensign.
"Beat No. 6. — Thursday, March 14th, the company met, and
under the inspection of Isaac Chapman and Joshua Crosby, two
of the Committee, did choose David Hecock, Capt. ; William
Calkin, 1st lieut. ; and Moses Sage, ensign.
"The above gentlemen are all persons of respectable charac-
96 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ters, have been friendly to liberty, and have signed the general
association recommended by the Congress.
"By order of the Committee,
" David Smith, Chairman, pro tempore.
" A trtfe copy, Test.
"Joshua Myrick, Clerk.
" N. B. Increas Bennet afterwards refused to serve as lieu-
tenant."
"Die Sabbali, 9 ho. A. M.
"July 20th, 1776.
" The convention met pursuant to adjournment. Opened
with prayer.
"A letter from Col. Henry Ludenton, of Dutchess County,
dated the 19th instant, was read and filed. He thereby informs
that there are many vacancies of Captains and subalterns in his
regiment, besides, that the offices of 1st and 2d major are also
vacant. He recommends, with the advice of the precinct com-
mittee, Mr. Robinson and Mr. Gee for majors, and requests 20
blank commissions by the bearer, who says part of the regi-
ment is to march to-morrow, and that they have delayed for
commissions.
"On reading the said letter from Col. Ludenton, of Dutchess
County, and considering the state of his regiment at this critical
time, Resolved, That commissions be issued to the two gentle-
men therein named, as majors of that regiment, in the order they
are named in the said letter, and that twenty other commissions
be signed by the President, and countersigned by one of the
Secretaries, and transmitted to Colo. Ludenton, to be filled up
for the Captains and subalterns of his regiment, when neces-
sary, by the precinct committee and himself ; and that the said
precinct committee and Colonel Ludenton do return to this Con-
vention an exact list of the names, rank and dates of the officers,
commissions which they shall fill up and deliver. And Re-
solved, That the sending blank commissions to a precinct com-
mittee shall not, from this instance, be drawn into precedent.
"A draft of a letter to Colo. Ludenton, was read and approved,
and is in the following, to wit :
" Sir — Agreeable to your request in your letter of yesterday,
REVOLUTIONARY LETTERS, ETC. 97
we now send you 20 blank commissions to be filled up by you,
in conjunction with the committee of the precinct, for the cap-
tains and subalterns wanted in your regiment ; and have like-
wise enclosed two commissions, appointing Mr. Robinson and
Mr. Gee majors. As the Congress were not informed of Mr.
Gee's christian name, you, together with the Committee of the
precinct are requested to insert it.
"By order.
"To Colo. Henry Ludenton."
" Die Veneris, 10 ho. A. M. Novr. 221, 1776.
"The committee of Safety met pursuant to adjournment.
" Mr. William Duer informed the Committee that large quan
tities of hay and corn were purchased by the Quarter Master-
General for the use of the Continental army in the eastern parts
of this county and the western parts of Connecticut, and that it
would be hardly practicable to convey the same to the army
unless the roads leading from the Oblong and Frelerickburg
towards Reze's Bridge and North Castle were better repaired ;
he therefore, in behalf of Gen. Mifflin, Quarter-Master-General
of the Continental army, prayed that this House would devise
ways and means of facilitating the above mentioned communica-
tion, not doubting but so necessary an expenditure would be
cheerfully reimbursed from the Continental Treasury.
"On taking the application of Mr. Duer into consideration,
Resolved, That it will be necessary to repair the following roads
in order to facilitate the cartage of forage to the Continental
army; from the house of John Miller towards the house of Col-
onel Henry Luddington, thence to Samuel Washburn's, being
eight miles ; the road which runs east from Colonel Henry Lud-
dington's to the store of Malcolm Morrison, and thence south to
the mills of Samuel Washburn, being twelve miles.
" Resolved, That Colonel Luddington detach from his regi-
ment one hundred men for the purpose of repairing that part of
the road which is first mentioned, being in distance 8 miles.
" Resolved, That Capt. H. Meade be appointed superintendent
for repairing the above roads.
"Resolved, That Colonel Field detach one hundred men from
his regiment of militia for the purpose of repairing that part of
9
98 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
the road which is last mentioned irfthe first resolution, being in
distance 12 miles.
" Resolved, That Capt. David Heacock be appointed superin-
tendent for repairing the said road."
"A letter from the Committee of Dutchess County, was read
as follows, viz :
"Dutchess County, May 6th 1776.
" Sir — It having been represented to the general committee of
this county, that the southern regiment of militia was too large
and extensive, containing twelve companies, and covering a
space of country upwards of thirty miles ir» length, we have
therefore, not only because in other respects it was expedient,
but also in compliance with the resolution of Congress prohibit-
ing a regiment to consist of more than ten companies, divided it,
and instead of one have formed the militia in that quarter into
two regiments. Enclosed you have the description of the regi-
ments, together with a list of persons nominated for field officers.
As this part of our militia will remain unregimented till the offi-
cers receive their commissions, we must request that the com-
missions be made out as soon as possible, and sent to the Com-
mittee in Rumboufs precinct, with directions to forward them to
the officers immediately.
" I remain, (by order of the committee,) your very humble
servant. Egbert Benson, Chairman."
"The description of the two regiments, enclosed in the letter
from the committee of Dutchess, was read as follows :
" One regiment, to consist of all the militia in Pauling's pre-
cinct, (except the northern company,) all the militia in Southeast
precinct, and the militia on the northern and middle short lots, in
Fredericksburgh precinct, in the county of Dutches. John
Field, Colonel ; Andrew Morehouse, lieut. Col. ; Jonathan Pad-
dock, 1st Major ; Isaac Tallman, 2d major; Isaac Crane, adju-
tant ; Reuben Crosby, quarter-master.
"The other regiment to consist of all the militia in Fredericks-
burgh precinct, (except the northern and middle short lots,) and
all the militia in Phelps precinct, (this should have been written
'Philips precinct,') in the county of Dutchess. Moses Dusen-
THE OBLONG. 99
berry, Colonel; Henry Luddington, lieut. Col.; Eeuben Ferris,
1st major; Joshua Nelson, 2d major; Joshua Myrick, adjutant;
Solomon Hopkins, quarter-master.''
THE OBLONG.
This is a tract of land one and three-fourths of a mile
in width, commencing in the town of Rye, in West-
chester county, and running north through it, Putnam,
and Dutchess ; the west side of which was, until 1731,
the boundary line between New York and Connecti-
cut. The east side of it now forms the division line of
the above-named States. It contains 60,000 acres,
and just before the death of Col. John Montgomery,
in 1731, who succeeded William Burnett, in 1728, as
Governor of the Province of New York, it was ceded
to this State in consideration of another tract near
Long Island Sound, surrendered to Connecticut.
This State drew a line through its centre, divided it
into 500 acre-lots, and sold it to emigrants, who re-
ceived a guaranty of title from the State. It was this
security of title which caused these lots to be eagerly
sought after by emigrants from Cape Cod.
100 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
On the 18th day of April, 1775, a detachment of
British troops under Colonel Smith, was sent from
Boston by General Gage, to destroy some American
stores collected at Concord, then a small village, six
miles north-west of Lexington, in Massachusetts.
Upon Lexington Common seventy men were drawn
up, on whom Major Pitcairn ordered the detachment
to fire. The order was promptly obeyed, and seven
men were killed and three wounded. There the
Wood of patriots was first shed, that was to nourish
the infant tree of Liberty, during a seven years' strug-
gle, while the ruthless elements of tyranny were war-
ring for its destruction. On the 29th day of the same
month and year, and eleven days after the bloody
tragedy at Lexington, the inhabitants of the city of
New York called a meeting of all who were opposed
to the oppressive acts of the English Parliament,
formed a general association, adopted a Pledge, and
transmitted a copy to every county in the State for
signatures.
The storm had burst, and every day was adding
fearful intensity to its force.
The proud Lion of England had lapped the heart's
blood of the descendants of the Plymouth-Rock Pil-
grims ; and their brethren of the other colonies saw
that, ere long, with a few more bounds, he would
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE. 101
leap among them. Between submission and resistance
they were called to choose ; the former they had
yielded to until it had ceased to become a virtue, and
the latter was the only alternative left to men who
were determined to wear the yoke no longer. The
British Parliament and King had as zealous partisans
and friends among us, as they had at home. It be-
came necessary, in some way, to ascertain who were
the friends of our own, and the mother-country.
The Pledge was suggested ; and, acting on a test of
divine origin, they who refused to sign it were set
down as opposed to their country and the mainten-
ance of her rights. In order to secure unanimity of
purpose and harmony of action — to ascertain who
could be relied on in the different counties, and draw
out their political sentiments on the issue joined be-
tween the unnatural Mother and her rebelling Daugh-
ters— to commit the people to one side or the other
of the question, and by united action among the
friends of the cause, to prepare for the approaching
conflict, was the object of the Pledge. If there ever
was a " time that tried mens' souls," it was when they
grasped the "gray-goose quill" to sign their death-
warrant if they failed, or their libert}' if successful.
At that period, even the most violent patriot must
have looked upon the undertaking as desperate and
almost hopeless, with but one chance out of ten in his
favor. But they were men of a by-gone and an iron
age, upon whom the world may not look again.
They had made up their minds to die rather than
submit ; and when men of such indomitable energy, of
mind once deliberately resolve, their destiny is fixed.
New York, it will be seen, moved early to ascertain,
9*
102 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
aiter hostilities, had commenced, the sentiments of her
citizens on the issue of a nation's freedom. The
Pledge was as follows ;
"Persuaded that the salvation of the rights and liberties of
America depend, under God, on the firm union of its inhabitants
in a rigorous prosecution of the measures necessary for its
eafety ; and convinced of the necessity of preventing anarchy
and confusion, which attend the dissolution of the powers of
government, we, the freemen, freeholders, inhabitants of ,
being greatly alarmed at the avowed design of the Ministry to
raise a revenue in America, and shocked by the bloody scene
now acting in Massachusetts Bay, do, in the most solemn man-
ner, resolve never to become slaves ; and do associate, under all
the ties of religion, honor, and love to our country, to adopt and
endeavor to carry into execution whatever measures may be re-
commended by the Continental Congress, or resolved upon by
our Provincial Convention for the purpose of preserving our
Constitution, and opposing the execution of the several arbitrary
Acts of the British Parliament, until a reconciliation between
Great Britain and America on constitutional principles (which
sve most ardently desire) can be obtained ; and that we will in
all things follow the advice of our General Committee respecting
the purposes aforesaid, the preservation of peace and good order,
and the safety of individuals and property."
"DUTCHESS COUNTY."
" AgreeabLe to adjournment to this day, being the 15th of Au-
gust, 1775, we met at the house of Jacob Griffin, in order to make
a return of the persons who signed the Association and those
who refused, viz : Those who signed—
Theods. Van Wyck, Dirck G. Brinckerhoff,
John Brinckerhoff, Daniel Ter Boss,
Zachs. Van Vorhees, Richard Van Wyck,
Garret Storm, William Van Wyck,
Cornelius Sebring, Joseph Horton,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
103
Johannes Wiltse,
Gores Storm,
T. Van Wyck, Jr.,
Harvey M. Morris,
Henry Godwin,
Thomas Storm,
John Adriance,
Henry Schenck,
Jacob Swartwout,
Corns. Van Wyck, Jr.,
Isaac Sebring,
Abm. Brinckerhoff,
Roelef Schenck,
Abraham Schenck,
L. E. Van Bunschoten,
Isaac Ter Boss,
Jacob Griffin,
James Snediker,
Aaron Brown,
John A. Brinckerhoff,
John Wickoff,
James Denton,
William Clauker,
George Brinckerhoff,
Adrian Brinckerhoff
Abraham Ter Boss,
John H. Sleght,
Jacobus De Graef,
John Meyer,
John G. Brinckerhoff,
John Langdon,
George Adriance,
George Elsworth,
Hendrick Boerum,
Daniel Schenck,
Jonathan Langdan,
William Tisdale,
Joseph Griffin,
Daniel Johnson,
John Meynema,
Abm. Van Voorhis,
Hendk. Hardenburg,
Moses Bedell,
Peter Ter Bush,
John Jewell, Jr.,
Alexander Turner,
James Auning,
William Ward,
Jacob Du Bois, Jr.,
Gabriel Hughson,
David Barker,
Henry Van Tessel,
Claistian Du Bois, Jr.,
Ahas. Elsworth,
Jacob Brinckerhoff,
William Holms,
Thomas Ostrander,
Godfrey Heyn,
N. E. Gabriel,
Abraham Morrell,
Geo. J. Brinckerhoff,
Christopher Rawn,
James Weekes,
Isaac Van Wyck,
Cornelius Smith,
Hugh Conner,
Andw. J. Lawrence,
Nathl. Faircbild,
Samuel Gosline,
John Berray,
James Cooper,
John Cooper,
James Barnes,
John Ter Bush,
Cornelius Adriance,
Abm. De Foreest,
Thomas Simonton,
Joseph Mc Cord,
104
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
John Cooper,
Richard King,
Jacob Van Voorhis, Jr.,
Jonathan Haight,
Israel Kniffin,
Daniel Kniffin,
Jonathan Kniffin,
Walter Heyer,
Adrian Bogert,
Moses Akcrly,
Luke Ter Boss,
James Miller,
Cornelius Osborne,
Nicholas Brower,
Matthias Clark,
Nicholas Brower, Jr..
John Wright,
Charles Brewer,
John Ackerman,
John Walters,
James Rathbun.
Seth Chase,
Adolphus Brower,
David Brower,
Cornelius Brower,
Jacob Brower,
Deriah Hogland,
William Haskin,
Peter Horton,
Jesse Bedell,
Martin Schenck,
Peter Monfoort,
Matthias Horton,
Johans. De Witt, Jr.,
Mat. Van Bunschoten.
Abm. Van Wyck,
Steph. Brinckerhoff,
Geo. Brinckerhoff,
John Scouten,
Joseph Balding,
J. Scouten, son of Jerry,
Jacobus Emans,
James Brown,
Moses Barber,
Abm. L. Losee,
Samuel Swartwout,
John Swartwout,
William Scouten, Jr.,
Daniel Rayner,
Robert Brett,
John Smith,
Jacob Balding,
Caleb Cornell,
Isaac Storm,
Henry Rosekraus,
Benjamin Rosekraus,
Stephen Osborne,
Simon S. Scouten,
Daniel G. Wright, Jr.,
Joseph Wiltse,
Geo. Van Werkeren,
Piatt Rogers,
Theo Is. Adriance,
Micah Rogers,
John Lawrence,
Jeremiah Bedell,
Joseph Fowler,
Jacob Swartwout,
Gideon Way,
Merinus V. Vlaikren,
Henry Ostrander,
John Leyster,
Timothy Saikryder.
Zachariah Boss,
John Bush, Jr.,
Josiah Hallstead,
Peter Noorstrant,
Jeremiah Martin, Jr.
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
105
Peter Snyder,
John Gray, Jr.,
Gershom Martine,
Amos Nettleton,
John Bennitt,
Elihu Einmitt,
Ab. H. Van Amburgh,
Jesse Baker,
James Thurston,
Joseph Parker,
Stephen Thaiker,
Abraham Gray,
John Baker,
Jeremiah Ranny,
David Mowry,
Joseph Lee,
Simon Bise,
William Lane,
Ezra Mead,
James Innes,
Isaac Smith,
Peter Hulst,
David Bennett,
David Horton,
William Wright,
Daniel Canfield,
Sabure Main,
Johans. Brinckerhoff,
Andw. Van Hyning,
Abm. Van Amburgh,
Moses Saikryder,
James Rosekraus,
Stephen Doxey,
Dirck Hegerman,
Jonathan Talmagee,
Solomon Saikryder,
Joshua Hicks,
Martin Smith,
Robert Rogers,
Thomas Wright,
William Baker,
Daniel Wright,
John Watts,
Johans. De Witt,
Albert Carley,
Henry Van Voorhis,
Martin Wiltse,
H. Rosekraus, Jr.,
James Kilburne,
Dirck Brinckerhoff,
Zebulon Southard,
Evert W. Swart,
John Bloodgood,
Walter Moody, Jr.,
John Johnson,
Simon Ter Bush,
Thorn Pudney,
Francis Pudney,
Abraham Ceasa,
Stephen Peudy,
Henry Carpenter,
John Ter Bush,
Abraham Schultz,
Cornelius Sebring,
John Pudney,
Cornelius Ter Bush,
David Lyons,
Edward McKeeby,
Theods. Brett,
John McBride,
Obadiah W. Cooper,
Timothy Mount,
Jonas Southard,
James Reynolds,
George Bump,
Tunis Du Bois,
James Green,
Obadiah J. Cooper,
106
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Peter Klump,
Abm. Van Tyne,
Jacob Van Voorhis, Jr.,
Myndert Cooper,
John Runnels,
Thomas Bump,
Christopher Schults,
Silvinus Pine,
Isaa H. Ter Boss,
William Somerdike,
Philip Pine,
Nathan Bailey,
John Pullick,
Austin Fowler,
David Pellet,
John Southard,
Duncan Graham,
Elesa Du Bois,
James Duncan,
Caleb Briggs,
James Osburn,
Isaac Hegeman,
Jacobus Degroff,
E. E. Van Bunschoten,
John De Groot,
Jno. Van Bunschoten,
Robert Jodd,
Bernd. J. Van Kleek,
JabObus De Gruff, Jr.,
Jacobus Sleght,
Moses Vanelin,
Adam Dates,
William Stanton,
William Teatsort,
Isaac Snider,
Thomas Lewis,
Jacob Cole,,
Abraham Sleght,
Michal Hoffman,
Teunis Wilsen,
Isaac Cole,
Peter Stienbergh,
Gideon Ver Velon,
Moses De Groff,
Henry Buys,
Peter Van Kleek, Jr.,
Jeremiah Mead,
Henry Pelts,
Jacob Backer,
Jacob Coapman,
Barent Dutcher,
Boltes B. Van Kleek,
John Leroy, Jr.,
Henry Bell,
Jurrie Hoffman,
Jacob Niffer,
P. Van Dervoort, Jr.,
Simon Leroy, Jr.,
John Leroy,
Jacob Lane,
Thomas Yeumans,
Constine Gulnack,
Johans. Hooghteling
Clement Cornwell,
Peter Deets,
Francis Leroy,
Abm. Westervelt,
Jost. Westervelt,
James Howard,
Cornelius Griffin,
William Griffin,
James Vandewater,
Dalf Swartwout,
Garret Beneway,
Jeremiah Var Velen,
Thomas Pinkney,
Henry Marten,
Barthol. Hogeboom,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
107
Charreik Van Keuren,
David Dutcher,
Deminicus Monfoort,
James Rymden,
Andrew Ostram,
John Ostram,
Frederick Rosekraus,
Peter Van Dewater,
Bareut B. Van Kleek,
Sevaris Van Kleek,
Francis Van Dewater,
John Van Valin,
Peter Polmetier,
Lawrence Conklin,
Herman Rynden,
John Rosekraus,
Thomas Johnson,
Francis Way, Jr.,
Joshua Smith,
Aaron Brown, Jr.,
Abraham Ladu,
Cornelius Swartwout,
Gilbert Lane,
William Swartwout,
James Swartwout,
Samuel Roberts,
Ebenezer Clark,
William Lane,
Joseph Totten,
Andrew Hill,
Johannes Sharrie,
Jeremiah Jones,
Lawrance Haff,
Peter Outwater,
Daniel Outwater,
T. Van Benschoten,
Samson Smith,
Albert Terhum,
Abm. Duryee, Jr.,
John Tirhum,
James Culver,
Dennis Culver,
James Culver, Jr.,
Peter Van Benschoten,
Jacob Van Benschoten,
Henry T. Wiltsey,
John Tappen,
James Davison,
Henry Burhause,
William Hogelandt,
Abijah Pattersan,
Daniel Terhum,
Abraham A. Lent,
Tunis Skeet,
Cornelius Verwie,
Hugh Laughlin,
Francis Hegeman,
John Culvert,
Abraham Cronckheit,
John Jewell,
Isaac Jewell, Jr.,
Cornelius Wiltse,
Hemming Higby,
Peter Lent,
Isaac Adrian ce,
Johannes Boss,
Richard Griffin,
Steph. Van Voorhis,
Jacob Buys, Jr.,
John L. Losee,
Jacob Horton,
Corns. Ostrander,
Richard Comfort,
Abraham Shear,
William Barnes,
Frederick Scutt,
Jerome Van Voorhis,
Kam Adriance,
108
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Kam J. Adriance,
John Devoe,
Jac's C. Swartwoudt,
Peter Robinson,
Moses Shaw,
Jacobus Van Dewater,
Zach. Van Voorhis, Jr.,
William Brock,
Jacob King,
John Hutchins,
John Darlon,
James Wildee,
William Wildee,
Richard Avery,
John Rosekians,
Isaac Hutchins,
John Yurkse,
Abm. Van Wackere
Jacob Hutchins,
Thomas Way,
Abm. De Witt,
John Philips,
Elbert Mumfort,
Danl. Van Voorhis,
George Jewell,
John Noorstrant,
Peter Schoonhove,
Joshua Griffin,
Isaiah Wilde,
Isaac Southard,
William Winslow,
John Griffin,
John Vandervoort,
Daniel Shaw,
Peter Fitz Simmons,
Nathan Burnes,
John Vermillie,
Richard Osborn,
Peter Johnson, Jr.,
Richard Jewell,
Jacob Dubois,
Jacob Van Dervoort,
Peter Meyer,
John Coffin,
Coenradd Appleye,
Joshua Bishop,
William Van Tyne,
Sylvester Bloom,
John Van Sulen,
John Kipp,
William Brooks,
Jacob Van Tassell,
Stephen Bates,
Daniel David,
Isaac Griffin,
Peter Montross,
Isaac Holmes,
Aaron Shute,
Richard Jackson,
Dirick Hardenburgh,
Peter J. Monfoort,
Timothy Talman,
Peter Depung,
William Cushman,
Garret Handenburgh,
Tobias Mabie,
John Bogardus,
Samuel Somes,
Nathan Somes,
Jonathan Terry,
Ralf Phillips,
Isaac Jewell,
George Bloom,
Benjamin Roe,
Henry Hains,
Lawrance Lawrance,
Jonas Cauniff,
Edward Churchill,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
109
Samuel Tedd,
William Roe,
James Miller,
John Phillips,
Daniel Auning,
Daniel Ward,
William Barker,
John Parks,
Peter Bogardus, Jr.,
John Davis,
William Earls,
Peter Bogart,
Francis Way,
William Fowler,
Corns. Brinckerhoff,
Dennis Mc Sheheey,
Isaac Veal,
Robert Mc Cutchin,
Robert Nichkilson,
Elias Concklin,
Jesse Purdy,
Joseph Ogden,
Andrew Renvells,
William Ardem.
A list of persons in Dutchess County who refused to sign the
Association :
Of Captain Heganaris Company :
John Tarpanning,
John Jast Snider,
John Crandle,
James Medagh,
Michas Cock,
Barent A. Van Kleek,
William Baker,
Urean Terwilger,
Jores Middagh,
Daniel Cole,
Albert Monfoort.
Henry Cailen,
Peter Burhans,
William Rogers.
Captain Stephen
John Hoisted, Lieut.,
Jacob Wright,
Joseph Morss,
Benjamin Snyder.
Oliver Peck,
William Cure,
Joseph Ferinton,
Joseph Merritt,
Johannes Devoe,
Joseph Smith,
Joseph Robison,
Ebenezer Pellit,
10
Brinkerhoof's Company:
Peter Boss,
Richard Yeats,
Jessey Baker, Jr.,
Christopher Winter,
Benjamin Ellis,
Joseph Halsted,
Thomas Martin,
John Miller, Lieut.,
of Captain Lodinton,
Ezekel Main,
Levi Winter,
Joseph Winter,
110
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Tunis Kranchite,
William Goodfellow,
Isaac Wright,
Benjamin Doty,
Jonathan Lee,
Benjamin Ogden,
David Roe,
Joshua Odle,
Semeon Losee,
Captain
Gerret Nostrand,
Johannes Voorhes,
Abraham Philps,
Henry Philps,
Peter Philps,
Jocobus Philps,
Elias Van Voorhees,
Richard Southard,
Thomas Southard,
Gilbert Southard,
Richard Southard, Jr.,
Daniel Southard,
Thomas Poyer,
Robert Bogardus,
Increase Mills,
Robert Mills,
Henry Mills,
Philip Roens,
Thomas Baker,
Johannes Storm,
Stephen Stolker,
Philip Morse,
Daniel Haasbroock,
Thomas Carman,
Zebulon Gray,
Silas Brown.
Southard's Company :
Samuel Mills,
Jesse Purdy,
Joseph Green,
Francis R. Brjtt,
Jeremiah Cooper,
Jonas Halsted,
Jacob Rider,
John Covert,
Leniah Adams,
Philip Shoaf,
Thomas Gibson,
Peter Brogardus,
Isaac Vealey,
Thomas Sprage,
Jeremiah Green,
Benjamin Munger,
Thomas Miller.
Captain John
John Bedle, Captain,
John Schutt, Lieut.,
F. Hasbrook, Lieut.,
George Van Nostrand, Ensign
James F. Way,
Endrew J. Schouten,
Benjamin Gerox,
John Linabeck,
Jacobus Jno. Schutt,
Bedle' 's Company:
Enoch Purdy,
Joseph Burroughs,
John S. Langdon,
Joseph Wood,
Joseph Carey,
Isaac Wood,
Oliver Larduex,
Thomas Craft,
Peter Dubois,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
in
Nathaniel Laduex,
Johannes Swartwout,
Joseph Winn,
Gabriel Thomkins,
William Winn,
Joseph Laine,
Benjamin Lisk,
John Lisk,
Stephen Weekes,
Abraham Maley,
Matthew Cure,
Samuel Cure,
Matthew Buis,
Nicholas Storm,
Peter Storm,
Gessom Bounds,
William Goslin,
Abraham Nefuss,
George Nefuss,
Isaac Giou,
John Wood,
Abraham Young,
John Aulgelt,
Thomas Swartwout,
Marvin Rowland,
Thomas Wood,
Joseph Post,
Samuel Kichim,
Nath'l. Gildersleeve,
John Carey, Sr.,
Abr'm Van Hyning,
Ambrose Lating,
Abraham Gerrison,
Abraham Purdy,
John J. Wood,
John J. Schouten,
Charles Venson,
Henry Schouten,
Mar. J. Van Vlaren,
Reuben Gerroson,
John Peck,
Isaac Lecore,
Simeon Mabee,
Lawrence Daily,
Abraham Travas,
John Caunef,
Sutten Bailey,
Isaac Wasbourn,
John Carey, Jr.,
Jeremiah Hett,
Benjamin Hasbrouck,
John Sloot,
Ephraim Scouten,
Henry Light,
Samuel Brown.
Matthias
Mat. Lyster, Captain,
A. Herremans, Lieut.,
A. Vanderbilt, Ensign,
John Cook,
John Thorn,
Andrew Burck,
Stephen Thorn,
Hendrick Van Vleck,
Adrian Manfort,
Lyster' 's Company:
Peter Hoff,
Andr. Herremans, Jr.,
John Herremans,
Stephen Bancker,
John Kennif,
Joshua Besship,
Jacob Johan Dubois,
Cornelius Nostrand,
Abraham Hogeland,
112
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
John Hudson,
Dirck Lyster,
John Churchill,
James Hicks,
Francis Brogardus,
Albert Monfoort,
Cornelius Lyster,
Stephen Duryee,
Abraham Lent,
Gideon Tichout,
Johannes Dubois,
John Huff,
John Carnell,
Gerret Lyster,
Abraham Duryee,
Cornel. Van Sickler,
Captain
John Brevoort,
John Van Vlaeron,
Adam Aulgett,
Joseph Brush,
John Snedeker,
John Weel,
Edward Hougen,
Isaac Lent,
Gerrardus Vermilyer,
David Vermilyer,
Charles McCrade,
Paule Hoff,
Jacob Lewis,
Samuel Livingston,
James Morgan,
Thomas Vanbrare,
Joseph Theale,
Undrel Strong,
Gilbert Strong,
Gilbert Barnes,
Walter Huson,
John Buchout,
John Ses,
John Haboun,
Peter Van Cramer,
Will. H. Harremans,
John Maufoort,
Timothy Somes.
Morton's Company:
John Wiltsee,
Peter Delany,
Joshua Duly,
Peter Depue,
Benjamin Clapp,
William Juell,
John Clapp,
Abraham Depue,
John Wilddey,
Jacob Jewill,
Abraham Huff,
Thomas Clapp.
Captain Griffin's Company:
Caleb Bishop, George Nostraind,
Matthew Obriant, Henry Underwood,
Benjamin Thurston, Henry Van Tessel, Jr.,
John Churchell, Philip Miller,
Thomas Griffin, Joshua Purdy,
Daniel Ward, James Ward,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE. 113
Joseph Anderson, Benjamin Bloom,
Henry C. Philps, Peter Dubois,
John Jay, Adrian Covenhoven,
Benjamin Ackerly, Joseph Thurston,
Solomon Woods, Philip Verplanck,
Andrew T. Schouten, Jacob Ward.
By order of the Committee,
Dirck G. Brinckerhofe, Chairman.
Fishkill, August 23, 1775.
Sir : — Enclosed is the return of the persons who have signed
the Association, and of those who have refused. In the latter
you find many erasures, occasioned by their signing afterwards.
This affair has been delayed thus long, on account of pursuing
lenient measures.
I am, by order of the Committee, your most obedient servant,
Dirck G. Brinckerhoff, Chairman.
Signers in Beekman\s Precinct, Dutchess County, July, 1775.
William Humfrey, John Forguson,
Joshua Carmen, Henry Whikmon,
Ebenezer Cary, Nuklus Omey,
Charless Piatt, Walton Huling,
William McNeal, John Huling,
William Clark, Jacob Miller,
Thomas Ley, William McDowell,
Samuel Crandel, Thomas Cornell,
Maurice Pleas, Isaac Dennis,
Thomas Nethaway, James Humfrey,
Benoni Sweet, Thomas Spencer,
Nathaniel Stevenson, William Bently, Jr.,
Nathaniel Cary, Fr. West,
Samuel Lewis, John Jenkins,
Zebulon Rosa, Aholyab Markes,
Samuel Gardiner, Arnold Reynolds,
Martin Cornell, Amos Randall,
Benjamin Noxon, John Wightman,
Elial Youmans, Whiten Parkes,
10*
114
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
Jonathan Dennis,
Gideon Hall,
Jabez Spencer,
John Eagles,
John Sweet,
James Wells,
Job Shearman,
Joseph Carr,
Daniel Uhl,
William Smith,
Samuel Sweet,
Peter Shear,
Peter Shear, Jr.,
Roger Mory, Jr.,
Isaac Yerrington,
Peter Storm,
Josiah Ingersol,
James Mc Lees,
Nathaniel Wicks,
John Weaver,
Edward Howard,
William Hall,
Joseph Carr,
Joshua Champlies, Jr.,
Isaac Vail,
John Arnold,
Job Tanner,
Johannes Delong,
Hezekiah Rogers,
Ezekiel Rogers,
Griffin Reynolds,
Peter Brill,
Samuel Cornwell,
Josep Lawless, Jr.,
Peter McClus,
John Hopim,
Zephaniah Brown,
Cornelius Van Wyck,
Joshua Carman, Jr.,
John Melony,
John Andrews,
Charles Newton,
Henry Bailey,
Francis Losee,
Daniel Smith,
William Shear,
William Champlin,
Philip Vincent,
John Vinton,
Stephen Forgoson,
Jonathan West,
John Kelly,
Benjamin Fargason,
Joseph Reynolds,
Maurice Smith,
Joseph Taylor,
Steven Johnson,
James McCollom,
Edward Weaver,
Gershom Thorn
Peter Harris,
William Brewer,
James M. Creedy,
Abraham Hyatt,
Gilbert Totten,
Edward Tredwell,
Elias Alley,
Isaac Calton,
Peter Harris,
James Vosburgh,
Jesse Oakley,
Tillinghast Bentley,
Peter Noxon,
Thomas Doxsle,
Henry Pearsall,
Garret Mill,
Johannes Lain,
Henry Smith,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
115
Lodovick Sweet,
George Sweet,
David Storm,
Salmag. Edwards,
Stephen Townsend,
Joshua Burch,
David Brill,
Nicholas Koons,
Benjamin Birdsall,
Christopher Wait,
David Sweet,
John Moon,
Nicholas Potter,
Judiah Jenkins, Jr.,
Jonathan Jenkins,
Thomas Clark,
John Hill,
Andrew Cockrane,
Timothy Force,
Clear Everit,
Ezekiel Smith,
Benjamin J. Rish,
Isaac J. Rish,
Rowland Stafford,
William Bentley,
Tabor Bentley,
Thomas Baker,
William Spencer,
John Bentley,
Nial Tripp,
Daniel Fish,
Judiah J. Rish,
Solomon Force,
Benjamin Force,
Seth Sprague,
Benjamin Spencer,
Samuel Whitman,
Matthew Coon,
Nathaniel Sweet,
Casy Eldridge, Jr.,
Johannes Lossing,
Samuel Tomson,
Benjamin Hal),
Abel Parker,
James Tanner,
Joshua Champlin,
Benjamin Force,
Abraham Denne,
Joseph Denne,
Richard Mackrill,
Jacob Lain,
John Beam,
Henry Shear,
Theophilus Sweet,
John Wooley,
William Tanor,
Charles Heayelton,
John Snider,
Seth Smith,
Jacob Esmond,
John Sweet,
Elisha Champlin,
Joseph Holloway,
Jacob Hutchins, Jr.,
John Oats,
James Eastmond,
Lewis Shear,
Israel Vail,
David Storm,
Jonathan Jenkins,
Gideon Hall,
Ezekiel Hubbard,
Joseph Booler,
John Sweet,
Joshua Mowry,
Stephen Mowry,
Cornelius Meynard,
Tobias Clements,
116
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Nathaniel Rogers,
Andrew Carman,
Albert Adriance,
James Wiltse,
Samuel Young,
Daniel Lawrence,
William B. Alger,
Job Green,
William Humfrey, Jr.,
Joseph Carman,
John Hegerman,
George Losee,
Johannes Acker,
France Wiltse,
Henry Cornell,
Abel Simson,
Zachariah Flagler,
John Reasover,
John Losee,
William Kelley,
William Barber,
Nathaniel Smith,
Caleb Townsend,
Myndert Harris,
Obadiah Cooper, Jr.,
John Hicks,
Peter Leavens,
Joel Edget,
Peter Cartwright,
George Croukhill,
Jonathan Parks,
John Fish,
Woos Dakin,
Digmus Kimee,
John Comptor,
John Lamb,
Jacob Rouse,
Elijah Forgason,
Elijah Forgason, Jr.,
Job Conger, -
David Pamer,
David Abbet,
Matthew Beckwith,
Abraham Mosher,
David Cash,
Amos Crandell,
Pardon Fish,
Sylvanus Cash,
Thomas Bullock,
Henry Birdsall,
Nathaniel Sol,
Ebenezer Sol,
David Brown,
Samuel Euery,
Addom Bockus,
Nehemiah Lester,
Jonathan Alger.
The following are the names of those persons who refuse to
sign the Association of Beekman's Precinct, Dutchess County :
Arey Delong, Richard Tripp,
James Gaslin, Richard Tripp, Jr.,
Peter Rossell, Israel Tripp,
Jacob Hasver, James Noxon,
Matthias Valentine, Barthol. Noxon, Jr.,
Richard Hcliker, Michel Woolf,
William Harris, Smighling Tripp,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
117
Peter Hogoboom,
Daniel Beadle,
John Wilkenson,
Christopher Mover,
Myndert Valey,
Henry Gidley,
John McDonald,
Samuel Smith,
Martine Easterly,
Daniel Ferris,
James Burtice,
Nathan Hyatt,
Frederick Shapher,
Thomas Brundage,
Peter Levins, Sr.,
William Bocker,
Baultis Veily,
Bartholomew Wood.
Abraham Byce, Jr.,
Peter Chatterton,
Philip Miller,
Lawrance Lossee,
Israel Titus,
John Brown,
Robert Thorn,
Stephen Lockwood,
Peter Paley,
Jonathan Thorn,
Peter Dop,
Peter Johnson,
Johannes Miller,
Jeremiah Leuderbeck,
Philip Flagler,
William Giles,
Daniel Way,
John Smith,
Garret Burtis,
Martine Overaker,
Cornberry Dayton,
Myndert Cole,
Josiah Bull, Jr.,
Charles Thomas,
Gilbert Thorn,
John Akerbry,
Cornelius Hegeman,
Jonathan Atherton,
William Woolf,
Aaron Lasey,
Crapo Lake,
Francis Delong,
John Burnit,
Stephen Dean,
Samuel Stringham,
Ichabod Bourman,
Sylvester Richmond,
James Titus,
Ephraim Horton,
Edward Adams,
Thomas Hutchings,
Robert Moon,
James Striker,
Ebenezer Worden,
Charles Vincent,
William Sleeves,
Thomas Langdon,
Peter Buyce, Jr.,
Samuel Emory,
Rowland Emory,
Jacob Brill,
Jeremiah Haxstum,
Elias Palmer,
Benjamin Kenyon,
Nicholas Mosher,
Richard Cornell,
Peter Deeyo,
James Pettet,
William Gifford, Jr.,
Capt Yerry Emigh,
118
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Peter Simson,
Lawrence Emigh
Samuel Whipple,
Isaac Veal,
Philip Emigh,
Nicholas Emigh, son of
Philip,
Hendrick Emigh,
John Ball,
Hendrick Klyn,
John Dearstine,
Abijah Ketcham,
Michal Shearman,
Amos Pine,
Nathan Hoag,
Peter Emigh,
Richardus Cornell,
Valentine Stover,
Richard Vincent,
Preserved Fish,
Joseph Losee,
Capt Joseph Harris,
Signers in Poughkeepsie,
1775:
Zepaniah Piatt,
Peter Tappen,
Samuel Dodge,
William Forman,
John Baily, Jr.,
Johannes Swartwort,
Bicter Van Kleeck,
John Freer,
Henry Livingston, Jr.,
Elias V. Van Bunschoten,
Robert North,
Lewis Dubois,
Andrew Billings,
Peter Low,
Lieut. Hey. Collins,
Ensign Barnt Veily,
Abraham Buyce,
Causper Overhiserr
William Gifford,
Roger Morey,
Samuel Crandle,
Samuel Crandle, Jr.,
Peter Kedney,
Oliver Waterman,
Jesse Thorn,
Jacob Ferguson,
Johannes Shear,
Charles Davis,
Jasper Fullmore,
Andrew Skidmore,
John Colder,
Capt. Michael Vincent
Lieut. Peter Buyce,
Ensign Steph. Hunt,
Yerry Lossing.
Dutchess County, June and July,
Ezekial Cooper,
John Schenck, Jr.,
Paul Schenck,
Jacobus Freer,
John Romyne,
Andrew Wattles,
Nathan Tray,
Barent Lewis,
Thomas Holmes,
Jacob Van Bunschoten,
Abraham Fort,
Carel Hoefman,
Henry Hoff,
Gorus Storm,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
119
Thomas Jacockes,
Barnardus Swartwort,
Francis Jaycock,
M. Van Keuren,
Azariah Winchester,
Henry Willsie,
John Willsie,
William Sawckes,
Thomas Burnet,
James Brisby
Matthew Burnett,
Gideon Boyse,
Thomas Bont,
William Lawson, Jr.,
Abr'm Van Keuren,
John Saunders,
John Briener.
Hans Berner, '
Benjamin Jaycock, 4
Thomas Rowse,
Isaac Poole,
Jonathan Johnson,
Aaron Reed,
John Pilgrit,
Peter Lossing,
Peter Horn,
William Burnett,
James Elderkin,
John Waterman,
Johannes Fort,
Simon W. Lossing,
Mat. Van Keuren, Jr.,
Silvanus Greatwaks,
Samuel Smith,
James Livingston,
Richard Davis,
Law. Van Kleek,
John Mott,
Richard V. Denbergh,
Simon Freer.
John Davis,
Robert Noa,
Isaah Bartly.
John Schenck, Jr..
Hendrick Pells,
Hendrick Pells, Jr.,
Johannes Kidney,
Jacobus Schryver,
Henry Hegeman,
George Sands,
Hobert Waddel,
Myndert Van Kleek.
Henry Ellis,
Henry Van Blercome,
Simon Leroy,
Henry Kip,
Benoni Kip,
Abraham Banlay,
M. Van Denbogart,
Isaac Kornine, Jr.,
Alexander Grigs,
Simon Bartley,
Peter Tappen,
Robert North,
Ezekiel Cooper.
William Terry,
Alexander Haire,
Thomas Poole,
Tennis Tappen,
Nathaniel Hemsted.
George Brooks,
Nathaniel Conklin.
John Townsend,
Andrew Billings,
Samuel Corey
John Tappen,
Kenry Dodge,
Jonas Kelly,
120
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Stephen Hendrickson,
Nathaniel Ashford,
Andrew Weeks,
John Ter Bush,
Cornelius Noble,
James Brisleen,
John Johnson,
Abraham Pitt,
Samuel Cooke,
James Winans,
John Seabury,
William Forman,
Henry Livingston,
S. Van Voorhees,
John Conkling,
Matthew Conkling,
Thomas Travis,
Zachariah Burwell,
Lemuel Howell,
Abraham Swartwout,
Richard Everitt,
Matthias Sharp,
John C. Hill,
John T. Van Kleeck,
Dorthir Conner, Jr.,
James Read,
Richard Warner,
William Kelly,
James Lewis,
George Shannan,
Albo. Watervell,
William Roach,
Elias Freer,
Leonard Van Kleeck,
Richard Snedeker,
F. Van Denbogart,
Gerrit Van Wagenen,
Jac. Van Kleeck,
Henry Eliss,
John Maxfield,
L. J. Van Kleeck,
Lewis Dubois,
Jacobus Frear,
John Reed,
Jacob Rhoades,
William Wilsey,
Michel Yerry,
Ephraim Adams,
Tunis Hannes,
Matthew Dubois,
E. Van Bunscoten,
Martin Bush,
Hendrick Bush,
James Luckey,
Samuel Luckey,
Abraham Ferden,
Peter F. Valleau.
Wilhelmus Ploegh,
Geleyn Ackerman,
Joel Dubois,
Peter Mullin,
Simon Leroy, Jr.,
David Dutcher,
Peter Van Dewater,
Edward Symmonds,
Cornelius Viele,
Eli Read,
Peter Low,
Larrine Lossing, Jr.,
John Dubois,
Casparus Westervelt,
Lodowick Sypher,
Christian Bush,
Silvanus Beckwith,
Alex. Chaucer,
Caleb Carmen, Jr.,
John Van Kleeck,
John Seabury, Jr.,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
121
Joshua Moss,
S. Van Denburgh,
Nathaniel Dubois,
C. R. Westervelt,
Cornelius Westervelt,
Enyamen Westervelt,
C. B. Westervet,
Peter Andes Lansing,
William Annely,
William D. Lawson,
John C. Ringland,
Gerrit Van Vliet,
Jeremiah Dubois,
Jacob V. Denbergh,
Peter Van Vliet,
A list of men's names who
ciation recommended by the
Poughkeepsie, June and July,
James Kelly,
H. Van Denburgh,
H. Van Denburgh,
H. Van Denburgh, Jr..
Nathaniel Babcock,
Felix Lewis,
Austin Crud,
Tunis Williamson,
B. Noxen,
B. Crannell,
Melancton Lewis,
Peter Dubois, Jr.,
John Ferdon,
Zachary Ferdon,
Jacob Ferdon,
Esquire Ferdon.
John Miller,
Arie Medlar,
William Lassing,
Samuel Hull,
Isaac J. Lassing.
11
Robert Hoffman,
William Jones,
Jacob Low,
Bernardus Swartwout,
John L. Van Kleeck,
Minnard Swartwout,
John Swartwout,
Frederick Van "Sfliet,
John Robinson,
John Bailey, Jr.,
Jac. Van Denbogart,
Caleb Carmen,
Jacob Ferris,
Omar Ferris.
refused to sign the General Asso-
Provincial Convention, taken at
1775:
Flemming Steenbergh,
George Ame,
Jonathan Morey,
Samuel Pinckney,
Myndert, Kidney,
Jacobus Kidney,
Jeremiah Dubois,
Evert Pelts,
Francs Pelts,
Michel Pelts,
Nehemiah Veal,
Jacob Polmatier,
Robert Kidney,
Abraham Frair,
Abraham Frair, Jr.,
Matthew Kipp,
Simon Frair, Jr.,
John Bomen,
Michael Wellding,
John V. D. Bogart,
Joseph Chaddirdon,
122
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
John Hunt,
James Latsing,
Myndert Byndirs,
Eli Emons,
John Emons,
John De Graff,
Baltis Van Bleek,
Matthew Kipp,
James Wood,
James Douglass,
Aaron Olmstead,
Henry Beyex,
Eli Read,
Ehenezer Badger,
Peter P. Van Kleek,
Gail Yelverton,
John Palmitear,
John Coopman,
Thomas Freer,
William Emott,
North-east
Seth Case, Jr.,
Charles Graham,
Benaniwell Denel,
David Harvey,
Seth Case,
Thomas Merit,
Icabod Case,
James Hodges,
John Bull,
Stephen Trusdell,
Benjamin Egelston,
Jonathan Lawrence,
Luther Holly,
John Porter,
Joshua Hamblin,
Elisha Colver,
Archibald Johnston,
Michael John Rutsen,
George Baldwin,
Hendrick Miller,
Henry Barnes,
Robert Churchell,
Isaac Baldwin,
Isaac Baldwin, Jr.,
Elias Thompson,
John Van Deburgh,
H. J. Van Deburgh,
Peter Van Deburgh,
William Barns,
Simon Noxen,
John Low,
William Low,
Thomas Pinkney,
Ezekiel Pinkney,
John Pinkney,
Henry Barns,
Peter Laroy.
Precinct, Dutchess County.
Samuel Nooly,
Simon Dakin,
Ebenezer Hartwell,
Josiah Holly,
Seth Perry,
David Lawrence,
Ebenezer King,
Abraham Hartwell,
Gilbert Clapp,
Joseph Rundel,
Jeremiah Brownel,
Uriah Lawrence,
James Atwater,
Philip Spencer,
Joseph Peck,
Samuel Roe,
Stephen Merrilt,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
123
Alex. McMullin, Adam Stevens,
John Buttolph, Thomas Knapp.
A true return of the names of those that refused to sign, given
by me.
Uriah Lawrence, Peter Knapp,
David Botolph, John Halley.
Samuel Kie,
Hugh Rea,
Elisha Mead,
Robert Orr,
John Orr,
Jehiel Mead,
Joseph Loggan,
William Smile,
John Crandle,
Hugh Orr,
Daniel Wilson,
Samuel Mott,
Ebenezer Young,
David Love,
Daniel Parks,
David Hamblen,
Peter Knickerbacker, Sen
L. Knickerbacker,
P. Knickerbacker, Jr.,
J. Knickerbacker,
Robert Wilson,
James Wilson. Jr.,
John Wilson,
John Carey,
Gulman Alitzer,
Matthew Orr,
William Rea,
Joseph Foster,
Jesse Ferris,
Wintrip Norton,
Northeast Precinct, Dutchess County.
Joseph Palmer, Jr.,
Johnynal Meton,
James Headding,
Silence Jackson,
Seth Fish,
Isaac Winan-.
Jeremiah Giffers,
James Wilson. Sen.,
Frederick Stickels.
John Link,
John Fulton,
John Rouse,
Edward Edsed,
Benjamin Soule,
John May,
J. Salisbury, Sen.,
David Bostwick,
William Parks,
John Bortell,
Stephen Edgaat,
John Avery,
George Edgeet, Jr.,
Jonathan Smith,
John Horn,
Samuel Crandell,
William Robbins,
Peleg Horten,
Michal Masheld,
Moses Fish,
John Carpenter,
124
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
Asahel Owemer,
Elijah Lake,
Barnt Van Kleek,
A list of the persons that
William Clum,
Philip Clum,
Jonathan Batreck,
William Batreck,
Jacob Loucks, Jr.,
Peter Allen,
Isaac Allen,
Jacob Drum,
Zechri Tetr,
Nicholas Row,
John Hipman,
John Drum, Jr.,
John Houk,
John Row,
John Row,
Peter Row,
John Kristr,
George Miner,
John Drum,
Zechri Philips,
John Backes,
Yerre KefFr,
Martis Kreepr,
Frederick Destr,
Jacob Row,
Peter Bitchr,
Adam Bitchr,
Andres Houk,
Peter Bosson,
Honesfelt Shaw,
Simon Killmore, Sen.,
Oliver Evans,
Joseph Palmer.
refused to sign this Association .
Jacob Killmore,
Wynat Weever,
Honthise Couse,
John Houghtaling,
Jacob Hover,
Andrew Collsou,
John White,
Joseyh Mott,
William Green,
Nehemiah Avery,
Amos Avery,
Michal Coloney,
Daniel Mead,
Elisha Davis,
William Davis,
William Davis,
Peter Couse,
Jacob Houghtaling,
Zost Hendrick,
Wise Row,
Derick Fendick,
Frederick Horn,
Elijah Forgason,
Jeremiah Forgason,
Ruban Crandell,
John Philips,
Gerret Holsop,
Frederick Stickle,
John Link,
Jacob Shaver.
Dutchess County, Northeast Precinct, July 5, 1775.
The foregoing is a true return of the names of the Inhabi-
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE. 125
tants and Freeholders in the District allotted to us, that signed
this Association, and the names of those that refused to sign this
Association.
P. Knickererbacker, Daniel Wilson,
Hugh Orr, J. Reisenberger, Jr.
Dutchess County, Northeast Precinct.
Ebenezer Bishop, Ebenezer Crane, Jr.,
Levi Stalker, Philip Lott,
Cornelius Fuller, Charles Trupell,
David Bulkley, Wheaton Robinson,
Thomas Crosby, Ebenezer Merrit,
Joseph Jackson, George Morhouse,
David St. John, Levi Rawlee,
Thomas Crosby, Jr., James Winchell,
Renel Seton, Jonathan Grenell,
Willard Seton, Joseph Stalker,
Benjamin Crosby, Ebenezer Crane,
John Seton, Thomas Townsend,
Comfort Stalker, Benjamin Covey,
Vincent Foster, James Coval,
John Wilkie, Caleb Woodard.
Dutchess County, Nine Partners,
Northeast Precinct, July 5, 1775.
The above and foregoing is a true return of the names that
were willing to sign this Association ; and the names of those in
the District that refused are on the other side of this Association
paper.
Geo. Morhouse, per Sub-Committee.
The li-t of Persons not signers :
John McAlpine, Daniel McAlpine,
Walter McAlpine, McQuin, a young man lately
Darby Lindsey, from Scotland,
Lewis Bryan, James Bryan.
Dutchess County, Northeast Precinct.
Silas Husted, Henry Wiltse,
Morris Graham, Henry Sherburne,
11*
126
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Gideon Salsbury,
Augustin Graham,
John Shirar,
John Colvin,
David Orr,
John Colupland,
John Hayes,
Asa Bullock,
William Orr,
Daniel Palmer,
Samuel Crandell,
Samuel Crandell,
John Row,
John Brown,
Israel Thompson,
Richard Estes,
John Burnet,
John Sa,
Samuel Couger,
Orra Forgoson,
John Catten,
William Stewart,
James Ralstan,
John Head,
Edward Senary,
Lemuel Winchel,
George Head,
Bernard Ostrim,
James Alit,
John Melham,
Benjamin Southard,
Benjamin Cuthbert,
J. Simmons,
George Schneyder,
Cornesa Dekmettac,
Smith Simmons,
Robert Enery,
Cornelius Wels,
Casper Rowe,
Simon Gifford,
Nathaniel Mead,
Jonathan Mead,
Kemuel Leed,
Simon G. Myer,
Lemuel Williams,
John Crandell,
Benjamin Congar,
Cornelius McDanniel,
John Crandell,
Joseph Crandell,
Phineas Rice,
James Stephens,
James Newcomb,
Adonijah Newcomb,
John Lennon,
Samuel Miller,
James Winchel,
Andrew Quick,
Aaron Darling,
Isaac Lamb,
Bostion Row,
Wm. H. C. Deny,
Claudius Delis,
George Robertson,
Caleb Norton,
Asa Bishop,
Ensley Simmons,
Garner Stuart,
John Williams,
John Hoff.
REVOLUTIONARY TLEDGE.
127
Northeast Precinct, Dutchess County,
July 5, 1775.
A true return of the names of the Inhabitants of the several
Districts allotted to us to hand about this Association.
William Stuart, Matthew Mead,
J. Simmons,
Frederic Ham.
ListT)f
Nicholas Silvernail,
George Hookingham,
Oliver Astcn,
Elisa Colvin,
Nathaniel Niles,
Abraham Osstrander.
John Van Ramp,
Jacob Brinstool,
Thomas Gray,
Henry Tcets,
Asa Brown,
Jacob Donehen,
Tenes Teelen,
Abraham Scouten,
Coonrad Melham,
Jacob Van Bramer,
John Smith.
Christopher Teal,
persons who refused to sign :
John Merrehew.
Robert Embray,
Philip Easter,
John Pitchor,
George Martin,
George Shoemaker,
Aaron Shaw,
Daniel North,
Casper Bell,
Matthew Winter,
John Wilde,
Richard Wilde,
William Wibs,
Obadiah Gefford,
William Stuart,
J. Simmons,
Nathaniel Meade.
Dutchess County,
Joseph Ketchum,
Joseph Ketchum, Jr.,
Jonathan Mapes,
Alden Ashley,
Benjamin Perry,
Josiah Perry,
William II age r,
Richard Denton,
Samuel Egelston, Sr.,
Samuel Denton,
Samuel Egelston, Jr.,
Northeast Precinct.
Ephraim Jones,
Seth Calkin,
Hezekiah Ketchum,
Moses Calkin,
Joshua Hamblin,
Joshua Dakin,
Jonathan Dolph,
Josias Denton,
Arsthoe Vancry,
Elijah Calkin,
Jared Carter,
12S
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Nathan Attwood,
Isaac Rogers,
Joseph Reynolds, Jr.,
Jonathan Close,
Joseph Rogers,
Abner Wilcox,
Ebenezer Beatch,
David Calkin,
Charles Haw,
Josiah Wilcox,
Lebbens How,
Daniel Baker,
Nathaniel Lothrop.
Northeast Precinct, Dutchess County, July 5, 1776.
A true return of the names of the Inhabitants and the Free-
holders in the Districts appointed for me to hand about this As-
sociation.
Joseph Ketchum.
Dutchess County, Amenia
Simeon Cook,
Ichabod Paine,
William Barker,
Job Mead,
Jonathan Shepherd,
Elijah Holmes,
Israel Shepherd,
Abner Gillet,
Jacob Power,
Barnabas Paine, Jr.,
Noah Hopkins,
Elias Besse,
Ichabod Paine, Jr.,
Simeon Cook, Jr.,
James Hebbard,
Samuel Shepherd, Jr.,
David Bruster,
Elihu Paine,
Asahel Sherwood,
John Brusan, Jr.,
Elijah Daily,
Thomas Cornwell,
David Gillet,
Ebenezer Mays,
Precinct, June and July, 1775.
David Rundel,
Thorn Putney,
Solomon Wheeler,
Thomas Morey,
James Palmer,
Elijah Smith,
Nehemiah Dunham,
Gardner Gillet,
Barnabas Paine,
Joseph Backus,
Elnathan Spalding,
Levi Atwater,
Benjamin Doty,
Benjamin Atwater,
Elijah Porter,
John Atwater,
Ezra Thurston,
Archibald Farr,
King Mead,
Seth Wheeler,
Robert Wood,
Zadock Buck,
Timothy Tilson,
Jacob Spuer,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
129
John Osborne,
John Mead,
Crover Buel, -Jr.,
Barnabas Cole,
Jonathan Allerton,
James Barker,
Noah Wheeler,
Daniel Garnsey,
Samuel King, Jr.,
Benjamin Brown,
Matthew Stevens,
William Finch,
Joseph Smith,
Thomas Lawrence,
Ebenezer Carter,
James Alswoith, Jr.,
Barzaleel Rudd,
Rufus Herrick,
Brinton Paine,
Judah Burton,
James Betts,
Beniamin holmes,
John McNeil,
Samuel Herrick,
Benjamin Herrick, Jr.,
William Herrick,
John Curry,
Shubal Tyler,
Samuel Dodge,
Thomas Welch,
Stephen Herrick, Jr.,
Squire Davis,
Abel Hebbard,
Elisha Adams,
Ebenezer Latimorc,
Ichabod Holmes,
Samuel Waters,
Justus Wilson,
Wm. Wynants, Jr.
Benjamin Crofoot,
Benjamin Denton, Jr.,
Joel Denton,
Benjamin Denton,
Jacob Reynolds,
James Beadle,
Benjamin Fowler,
William Knapp,
Abner Holmes,
Nathan Herrick,
Isaiah Mead,
Theoph. Lockwood,
Levi Mayhew,
John Howard,
William Ford,
Jesse Kinne,
Daniel Shepherd,
Roswell Hopkins,
Samuel King,
Abraham Paine,
John Brunson,
Jonathan Buck,
David Collin,
Zebulon Rudd,
Peter Morse,
Paul Johnson,
Nathan Spuer,
Israel Buck,
John Thayer,
Joseph De Lavergue,
Even Jones,
Joab Cook,
Jesse Smith, Jr.,
Enock Crosby,
John Mordach,
Ebenezer park,
William King,
Grover Bull,
Isaac Parks,
130
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Parrock Sherwood,
William Com well,
Samuel Cornwell,
Lewis De Lavergue,
Thomas Smith,
Gabriel Dickson,
Timothy Green,
John Holms,
Ezekiel Johnson,
William Alsworth,
John Denney, Jr.,
William Wilsey,
John Bartow,
Elijah Roe,
Isaac Marks,
James Barnet,
Gideon Castte,
Nathaniel Cook,
Benjamin Vaun,
Samuel Holmes,
Stephen Hinne,
Jabez Crippin,
Lawrence Wiltse,
Joseph Fowler,
John Denton,
Abraham Adams,
Isaac Burton,
Daniel Blaksly,
Robert Wilson,
Joel Ketchum,
Ebenezer Kinne,
Richard Brush,
Benjamin Herrick,
Edmond Perlee,
William Blunt,
Monmouth Purdy,
Jacob Elliot,
Stephen Reynolds,
Joshua Talcut,
Ezra Cleavland,
Samuel Thompson,
John Coy,
Stephen Herrick,
James Smith, Jr.,
Beriah Thomas,
Isaac Burton, Jr.,
Mayhew Dogget, Jr.,
Nathaniel Foster,
John Drake,
David Brown,
William Moulton,
Ezra Bryan,
James Allen,
Eli Burton,
Sam'l Thompson, Jr.,
John Ford,
John Thurston,
William McCollough,
Jonathan Fish,
John Farr,
John Douglass,
Joest Power,
Elijah Wood,
Reuben Wilson,
Daniel May,
Moses Harris, Jr.,
William Reynolds,
John Barnet, Jr,
James Ford,
John Jones,
William Adams,
Ephraim Ford,
Abraham Adams, Jr.,
Weight Milleman,
Daniel Davison,
James Dickson,
Elisha Latimore,
John Collins,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE. 131
John Benedict, David Waters,
Versal Dickinson, Lemuel Brush,
William Brush, Jason Hammond,
Piatt Smith, David Trusdel,
Josiah Webb, Job Milk,
Sylvester Handley, Adin Tubbs,
Elijah Kinne, Jared Rundel,
Samuel Benedict, Joel H. Thurston.
John Barnet,
I do agree to the above Association, so far that it doth not
interfere with the oath of my office, nor my allegiance to the
King. Isaac Smith.
Not to infringe on my oaths.
Abraham Becker.
June 8, 1775.
This may certify, to all people whom it may concern, that I,
the subscriber, am willing to do what is just and right to secure
the privileges of America, both civil and sacred, and to follow
the advice of our reverend Congress, so far as they do the word
of God and the example of Jesus Christ ; and I hope in the grace
of God., no more will be required. As witness my hand :
John Garnsey.
The following persons (three Tories) have neglected to sign
the Association : Joel Harvey, Jun., Philip Rowe ; John Garnsey
has signed the paper annexed. Roswell Hopkins,
Amenia, July 12, 1775.
Gentlemen : Agreeable to your request, I have procured the
persons within mentioned to subscribe the Association, together
with Mr. Samuel King and Mr. Silas Marsh, all in Amenia Pre-
cinct, in Dutchess County. The two lists of Mr. Marsh and this
have four hundred and twenty signers, and six have delayed or
refused. I am, Gentlemen, yours, &c,
Roswell Hopkins.
Dutchess County, Amenia Precinct.
132
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Abraham Slocum,
John Mead,
John Freeman,
Joel Washburn,
Nathan Gates,
Thomas Thomas,
John Seymour,
Stephen Warren,
Eleazer Gilson,
James Mead,
Alexander Hewson,
Jared Brace,
Eliakim Reed, Jr.,
Samuel Dunham,
John Torner,
Martin De Lemetter,
Joseph Doty,
Samuel Sniter,
Samuel Jarvis,
Lot Levitt,
John Boyd,
Matthew Vandeusen,
Nathaniel Swift,
Eleazer Morton,
Isaac Osburn,
Jonathan Hunter,
Samuel Swift,
Ashbel Winegar,
Reuben Doty,
William Hunt,
Nicholas Row,
Samuel Gray,
Simeon Reed,
Samuel Southworth,
Elisha Hollifler,
Benjamin Maxam,
Moses Gillett,
Lemuel Shirtliff,
Abial Mott,
Samuel West,
John Cline,
Jehea Rogers,
Robert Freeman,
Joseph Penoyer,
Samuel Johnson,
Jeduthan Gray,
Johabod Rogers, Jr.,
Elijah Freeman,
Peter Shavelean,
Joseph Doty,
Richard Shavelean,
Solomon Shavelean,
Benjamin Crippin,
David Payne,
Heth Kelly,
Nathaniel Pinney,
Ebenezer Bosse,
Joseph Gray,
Josiah Marsh,
Samuel Palmer,
Obadiah Matthews,
Daniel Sage,
James Chapman,
Daniel Harvey,
Thad. Maning,
Amos Penoyer,
Joseph Gillet,
James B. Rowe,
Abner Shabalier,
Jonas Adams,
Thomas Aily,
David Randle,
Benjamin Sage,
Moses Brown.
John Scott,
Gerardus Gates,
Elkanah Stephens,
John Mears,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
133
Andrew Stephens,
Josiah Cleavland,
John Connor,
Richard Larrabe,
Zedekiah Brown,
Henry Barnes,
Jonah Barnes,
Benjamin Johns,
Ebenezer Larrabe,
Ezra St. John,
Obed Harvey,
Robert Patrick,
Isaac De Lemetter,
Thiel Lamb,
Benjamin Delano,
Daniel Webster,
Samuel Judson,
William Mitchell,
Henry Winegar,
William Young,
John Barry,
James Reed,
John Chamberlain,
Colbe Chamberlain,
Ezra Reed,
Dan. Barry,
David Doty,
John Sackett,
Garret Winegar,
Walter Lothrop,
Ezekiel Sackett,
Increase Child,
Elisha Barlow,
Corns. Atherton,
Reuben Doty,
Sylvanus Nye,
Edmund Bramhall,
Elijah Reed,
Stephen Delano,
12
Gershom Reed,
Moses Barlow,
Solomon Armstrong,
Thomas Ganong,
Elihu Beard, Jr.,
Nathan Palmer,
John De Lemetter,
William Chamberlain,
Nathan Barlow,
Simeon Hellsy,
Zadock Knapp,
Benjamin Hollister,
John Sackett, Jr.,
Robert Hebard,
Joshua Losel,
John Marchant,
Daniel Castle,
Abraham French,
Seelye Trowbridge,
Asa Foot,
Barnabas Gillet,
Elijah Smith,
John Lloyd,
Epraim Besse,
Robert Johnson,
Jonathan Pike,
Gilbert Willett,
Thomas Mygatt,
Obed Harvey, Jr.,
Silas Roe,
Nathaniel Gates,
Seth Dunham,
Caleb Dakin,
George Sornburgh,
Frederick Sornburgh,
Isaac Darrow,
Joseph Adams,
Conrad Winegar,
Levi Orten,
134 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
William Hall, Isaac Lamb,
Robert Freehart, Elias Shavilier,
Peter Klyn, Silas Marsh,
Ledyard J. Charts, Bower Slason.
Sir : — In pursuance of your order, I have procured the above
subscribers (true Whigs), and am, Sir, with great respect, your
very humble servant, Silas Marsh.
Joseph Green, John Dunham,
Simon Whitcomb, Richard Sackett,
William Roberts, Stephen Gates,
Albert Finch, Daniel Washburn,
Joseph Benson, Jacob Dorman,
Garret Row, Seth Swift,
Nathan Barlow, Ellis Briggs,
Abell Marchant, Samuel Heart,
Rufus Seeton, Elisha Mays,
Henry Winegar, Joseph Williams,
Dier Woodworth, Silas Reed,
John Benson, Richard Hamilton,
Samuel Winegar, Judah Swift,
Daniel Lamb, Samuel Dunham, Sr.,
John Gates, Peter Slason.
Edward Bump,
The black roll of Tories. Though out of my limits, I am
compelled to remind you, Gentlemen, of James Smith, Esq., who
is notoriously wicked.
Signers in Rhinebeck Precinct, Dutchess County.
Petrus Ten Broeck, David Van Ness,
P. G. Livingston, Egbert Benson,
George Sheldon, Jacob Hermanse,
William Beam, Andrias Hermanse,
John Van Ness, Peter Hermanse,
Herman Hoffman, Zach. Hoffman, Jr.,
Ananias Cooper, Martine Hoffman,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
136
Zacharias Hoffman,
Abraham Cole,
James Everett,
William Bitcher, Jr.,
Jacob More, Jr.,
Christian Mohr,
Lodowick Ensell,
IsaacWalwork,
Samuel Green,
Peter Traver,
Andrew Simon,
Jacob Fisher,
Samuel Elmendorph,
Zacharias Backer,
Johannes Hannule,
Johannes Richter,
Levi Jones,
Isaac Cole,
Hendrick Miller,
Simon Cool, Jr.,
Frederic Weir,
John Banks,
H. I. Knickerbacker,
William Tuttle,
Stephen Sears,
Joseph Houlsworth,
Jacob Thomas,
Philip Feller,
Harmen Whitbeck,
Evert Vosburgh,
John Moore,
Philip J. Moore,
Nicholas Hoffman,
John Williams,
Joseph Lenercree,
Jacob Vosburg,
James Doglas,
John Garrison,
Nicholas Hermanse,
Philip Bonasteal,
Simon S. Cole,
Andres Michel,
John Lewis,
Christeaun Miller,
William Klum,
Johannes Miller,
Thomas Lewis,
Hendrick Livey,
Everhart Rydders,
Henry Kuneke,
George Sperling,
Elias Hinneon,
Samuel Haines,
Peter Ledewyck,
Jacob Elemendorph,
Jan Elemendorph,
Patt. Hogan,
Evert Hermanse,
John Cole,
Petrus Bitcher,
Zacharias Roob,
John Balist,
Helmes Heermanse,
Cornelius Elmendorph,
Philip Staats,
John Staats,
Peter Staats,
Isaac Beringer, Jr.,
William Waldorn,
Frederick Benner,
John Hermanse,
Stoffle Waldorn,
Johannes Benner,
George Sharpe,
Christeaun Backer,
Petrus Backer,
Johannes Backer,
Coenradt Lescher,
136
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Michael Sheffel,
Goetlieb Mardin,
Hendrick Mardin,
David Martin,
Cornelius Swart,
James Adams,
Daniel Oeden,
Jacob Schermerhorn,
Cornelius Schermorn,
Reyer Heermans,
Jacob Heermans,
William Bitcher,
Wilhelmus Bitcher,
John Hermanse,
Godfrey Gay,
Hendrick Teter, Jr.,
Abraham Teter,
Johannes Smith,
Jacob Meyer,
Edward Wheeler,
Peter Hoffman,
William Beringer,.
Conrad Beringer,
Henry Klum, Jr.,
C. Oosterhoudt,
Benjamin Myers,
John Oosterhoudt,
Peter Cole,
Simon Kool,
Jacob Maul,
Everardus Booardee.
Simon Westfall,
Jacob Tremper,
William Radclift,
H. Waldorph, Jr.,
Henrich Benner,
Jacob Moul, Sen.,
Benj. Van Steenburgh,
Johannes Van Keuren,
Tobyes Van Keurenr
John Klum,
Godfrey Hendrick,
Jacob Beringer,
Joseph Younck,
Christian Fero,
Reyer Schermerhorn,
Wilhelmus Smithr
Frederick Moul,
George Reystorf,
William Harrison,
Christoff Schneyd,
Christopher Fitch,
John Schermerhorn,
Henry Waterman, Jr.,
Jacob Waterman,
Henry Litmer,
John Mares,
Isaac Mares,
James Ostrander,
Christopher Wever,.
Peter Westfall, Jr.r
Henry Gisselberght,
John Bender,
Zacharias Whiteman,
Joseph Hobart,
William Schultzs,
John Blair,
Thomas Greves,
Michal Schatzel,.
Joseph Rogers,
Benjamin Bogardus,
Hans Kierstead,
Isaac Kipp,
Jacob J. Kipp,
Henry Beekman,
Ever^V. Wagenen,
Art. V. Wagenen,
Philip Hermanser
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
137
W. Van Vredenburgh,
Jacob Kip,
Jacob A. Kip,
John Tremper,
Henry Shop,
Peter Shopf,
Hendrick Moon,
Herick Berrger,
Johannes Turck,
John White, Jr.,
John Cowles,
Herman Duncan,
John Denness,
William Waldrom,
Cornelius Demond,
S. V. Bunscoten,
B. Van Vredenburgh,
Peter Scoot,
Jonathan Scoot,
John Mitchell,
David Mulford,
Lemuel Mnlford,
James Lewis,
Peter D. Witt,
John Pawling,
Olbarlus Sickner,
Andrew Rowan,
Martincs Burger,
Johannes Scott,
Jacob Sickner, Jr.,
Barent V. W genen,
Jacob Sickner,
J. Van Aken,
Peter Van Nauker,
Jacob N. Schriver,
Paul Gruber,
Solomon Powell,
Henry Bull,
Gaorge Bull,
William Powell,
Caspar Haberlen,
Thomas Umphry,
Abraham Scott
William Troophage,
Alexander Campbell,
Abraham Kip,
Peter Brown,
Jacob Schultz,
John Hufman,
Henry Freligh,' Jr.,
R. Vhoevanburgh,
Peter Radclif,
Simon Schoot, Jr.,
William Schoot, Jr.,
Jacob Lewis,
Jacobus Kip,
William Skepmus,
Johannes P. V. Mood,
William Dillman,
Cornelius Miller,
Simon Millham,
Lawrence Millham,
Jacob Milham,
Simon Milham,
John Weaver, Jr.,
Benj. Oosterhoudt,
Christ. Deninarh,
Abraham Westfall,
John McFort,
William Carney,
Philip Feller, Jr.,
Nicholas Binestale,
Philip Binestale, Jr.,
C. Wenneberger,
Johannes Benner,
Jacob Benner,
Jacob Folant,
John Rogers,
124
138
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Nicholas Stickle,
Jacob Tell,
John Sater,
John Haass,
William V. Prudenburghr
Rurif J. Kip,
P. Van Pradenburgh,
Dutchess County, Rhinebeck Precinct.
A return of the names of such persons as have refused to sigrc
the general Association. Egbert Benson
Chairman of the Precinct Committee _
Henry Burges, Jr.r
Ulriah Bates,
William McClureT
Joshua Chember,
Zach. Neer,
Nicholas Stickle, Jr.,
Mordecai Lester,
Peter Prosses,
Timothy Doughty,.
Adam Tibbie,
Jacob Tibbie,
Lodowick Streght,
Peter Em. Schryver,
P5Wr Freligh,
Steophanus Freligh,
Adam Ecker,
Peter EckerT
Johannes Ecker,
Adam Jury Eckerr
J. Van Vradenburgh,
Jacob Van Esten,
Zebulon Hallick,
Adam Burgh,
Mfchael Bruce,
George Stover,
George Anderson,
Zacharias Cramer,
Johannes Cramer,
Johan. Van Esten, Jr.,
Stephanus Burger,
Christian Bargh,
Christian Bargh, Jr.,
John Hallock,
Christian Bruce,
Peter Frusam,
Hendk. A. Schryver,
Marthen Schryvdr,
Marthynes Schryver,
T. Van Benschoten,
E. Van Benschoten,
Egbert Bunchoten,
Harmanus Bunchoteny
John Carnell,
John Sickner,
B. V. Vradenburgh, Jr.r
Henry Pawling,
John Schryver,
David Schryver,
John Brown,
Hendk. Ecker, Jr.,
Jacob Chafer,
John Holmes,
Philip Pinek,
John Pinek,
Philip Pinek, Jr.,
Jacob Elen,
Henry Wederwaks,
Abraham WederwakB;
Philip Loune,
Bashan Louner
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
139
Anderis Loune,
George Lament,
Jacob Loune,
John Wels, Jr.,
Benjamin Westfall,
Benjamin Wels,
John Dericks,
Jacob Hendericks, Jr.,
John Bander, Jr.,
John Tile,
Joest Schever,
Frederick Schever,
Henry Schever,
Anthony Strant,
Benj. Stienburgh, Jr.,
Hendrick Meyer,
Tunis Boutcher,
Conradt Polver,
Casper Boutcher,
Jacob Yager,
Juery Hoffman,
Nicholas Hoffman,
Johan. Righpenbergh,
Petrus Righpenbergh,
Andris Luych,
Zacharias Drom,
Hendrick Heermans,
Jacobus Kip,
Johan Van Wagoner,
Barent Van Wagoner,
Matthew Van Etter,
Cobus Van Etter,
Isaac Van Etter,
Hendrick Pelts,
Lodowick Elshaver,
Peter Nile,
Coenradt Bammas,
Martha Teel,
Lawrence Teel, Jr.,
Johannes Fraver,
Peter Fradenburgh,
Hans Zipperly,
Jose Neer,
David town,
Johannes Lown, Jr.,
Jacob Seeman,
John Seeman,
Jacob Seeman, Jr.,
David Seeman, Jr.,
Jeremiah Saeman, Jr.,
Petrus Fero,
Martin Threecarter,
Bastian Witterwax,
Hendrick Shook,
Christian Shook,
Cobus Shook,
George Shook,
Peter Freligh,
Michael Seeman,
Abraham Seeman,
Jacob Cole,
Jacob Miller,
John J. Cole,
Jacob Shomaker,
George Bennet,
Johannes Sager,
Christian Dederick,
Michael Puis,
David Puis,
Christuffal Puis,
Daniel Puis,
George Puis,
Michael Puis,
Bashan Wagor,
Powlis Wagor,
John Marguet,
Johannes Barker,
Martner Barker,
140
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Lawrence Barker,
George Marguet,
Peter Prough,
Powlis Prough,
Adam Asher,
John Asher,
Gcrrit Dedrick,
Jacob Kisel Bargh,
John Kip,
Benj. Van Ellen,
Jacobus B. Van Etten,
Jacobus Van Etten,
Jacobus J. Van Etten,
Abraham Van Etten,
Benj. Van Etten, Jr.,
John Van Etten,
Jacob Van Ellen,
Philip Traver,
Bastian Traver,
Peter Traver,
John Traver,
Jacobus Vradenburgh,
Jacs. Vradenburgh, Jr.,
Christopher Ring,
George Ring,
Johannes Ring,
David Ring,
Peter Westfall,
John V. Steenburgh,
Gradus Lewis,
John B. Kip,
Hugh Landen,
John Kcttyman,
Christian Shults,
John Shults,
Henry Ri chart,
Dowie Richart,
Philip Richart,
Johannes Richart,
William Wallace,
Henry Wallace,
Francis Nehis,
Charles Nehis,
Francis Nehis, Jr.,
Peter H. Traver,
John H. Traver,
Frederick Traver,
Jacob Traver,
Abraham Kip,
Peter Scriver,
Peter Kip,
Henry Lewis,
Jacob Kehler,
John G. Miller,
William Mackay,
Thomas Briant,
Jacob Smith,
John Tennis,
William Waldrom,
B. Van Benthysen,
Johannes Rysdorf,
Jacob S. Kip,
Cornelius Fynhout,
Corns. Fynhout, Jr.,
Petrus Rysdorf,
Lawrence Rysdorf,
Arent Kipp,
Jacobus Kip, Jr.,
Peter Elkenbergh,
Jacop Evans,
David Shaver,
Jacob Lown,
Peter Van Alen,
Petrus Cram,
Adam Shever,
Jury A. Shufelt,
William Fuller,
Lawrence Shewfelt,
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
141
Petrus Shewfelt,
Adam Shewfelt,
John Allemten,
John F. Allemten,
Frederick Slays,
P. Van Benthuysen, Sr,
J. Van Benthuysen,
Phil. S. Livingston.
Dutchess County, June and July, 1775.
Henry Sherburne,
Jonathan Lewis,
John Hibbird,
Theophilus Wadleigh,
Timothy Soaper,
Samuel Smith,
Daniel Soule,
Jacob Lesh,
Benjamin Atwater.
Titus -Mead,
David Robbins,
John Robbins,
Peter Smith,
Jesse Cornell,
Absolom Trowbridge.
Jeremiah Shaw,
Stephen Atwater,
Joseph Crary,
Isaac Smith,
Thomas Hill,
Peter Van Deursen,
Moses Golph,
Ezekiel Kie,
Ira Winans,
Lambert Morey,
Peter Smith, Jr.,
Nathan Lounsbury,
Epentus Lounsbury.
Andus Stickel,
Christian CambeJ,
Cornelius Viller,
John Schermerhorn,
B. Knickerbacker. Jr.,
Peter Van Leuven,
Caleb Reynolds,
David Fisk,
Obadiah Holmes,
John Knickerbacker,
Petrus Hommel,
Benj. Knickerbacker,
Caleb Force,
Richard Gray,
Eliphalet Piatt,
Isaac Wood,
Phineas Rice, Jr.,
Isaac Young,
James Young,
Jacob Werner,
Samuel Mabbitt,
Israel Green, Jr.,
Benjamin Terbush,
Gabriel Dowzenbery,
Wilhelm Finche,
Benjamin Crandle,
William Smith,
Motise Wilse,
John Stuart,
Adam Snider,
William Mansfield,
Michael Row, Jr.,
Philip Smith.
John Parkinson,
James Neeson.
142
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
July 5, 1775.
We, the subscribers, being duly chosen as a Sub-Committee,
to return the names of all persons who have signed the above
Association ; and likewise the persons who did not sign, on the
back.
Charles Graham,
Henry Sherburne.
A list of the Persons not signers.
John Geo. Kerrick,
Hontice Smith, Sr.,
Hontice Smith, Jr..
Nicholas Smith,
Leonard Smith,
Jonathan Griffin,
Jonathan Devall,
Tice Wisey,
Benjamin Willbor,
William Merrifield,
Jacob Melions, Jr.,
Motise Rowe,
Daniel McConalep,
William Melions,
Lockland Mcintosh,
Alexander Mcintosh,
William Mcintosh,
Andrus Pulvin,
William Rector,
Valentine Emert,
Hendk. Younklion,
John Stickel,
John Bearry,
Mical Simons,
Jacob Luke,
Cornelius Clark,
Vandil Pulvin,
John Pulvin,
Hendrick Cufin,
Peter Pulvin,
Hendrick Hoofman,
Philip Snider,
Benj. Vanleuvan,
Isaac Vanleuvan,
John Weaver,
Harry Weaver,
Hendrick Row,
Giles Weaver,
Michael Smith,
Mical Row, Sr.,
John Peter Row,
Tuce Smith.
We, the subscribers, inhabitants of the Colony of New York,
do most solemnly declare, that the claims of the British Parlia-
ment to bind, at their discretion, the people of the United Colo-
nies in America in all cases whatsoever are, in our opinions,
absurd, unjust, and tyrannical ; and that the hostile attempts of
their fleets and armies to enforce submission to those wicked and
ridiculous claims ought to be resisted by arms. And therefore
we do engage and associate, under all the ties which we respec-
tively hold sacred, to defend by arms these United Colonies
against the said hostile attempts, agreeable to all such laws or
REVOLUTIONARY PLEDGE.
143
regulations as our representatives in the Congress, or future
General Assemblies of this Colony, have or shall, for the pur-
pose, make and establish.
Samuel Whitten.
The names of those who refuse to sign the Association in
Charlotte Precinct, are :
Peter Hatfield,
Jabez Fineh,
Edward Undrel,
Daniel Sales,
Stephen Hix,
Henry Weeks,
Hendrick Bue,
John Watson,
Edward Mosher,
Matthias Brogue,
Eliphaz Fish,
Joseph Husted,
Richard Simmons,
Jonathan Lapham,
Barnard Hix,
Samuel Titus,
Richard Bartlett,
Samuel Mosher,
Ichabod White,
Uriah Hall.
PHILIPSTOWN.
This town by the Act of March 7th, 1788, entitled
" an Act for dividing the counties of this State into
Towns," is described as follows : "And all that part
of the county of Dutchess, bounded southerly by the
county of Westchester, westerly by Hudson's River,
northerly by the north bounds of the Lands granted to
Adolph Philipse, Esq., and easterly by the Long-Lot,
number four, formerly belonging to Beverly Robison,
shall be, and hereby is erected into a town, by the
name of Philipstown." Originally it embraced more
than one-third of the county, but has since been
diminished by the erection of the town of Putnam
Valley in 1839. Its central distance from the city of
New York, is about fifty-six miles, and from Albany,
ninety-four miles. Its present boundaries are as fol-
lows : On the north, by the south line of Dutchess
county ; on the east, by the west and north lines of
Kent and Putnam valley ; on the south, by the north
line of Westchester ; and on the west, extending the
whole length of Putnam, by the Hudson river. Its
face is broken by hills and mountains, presenting a
rough, rugged, and forbidding aspect. Not more than
one-fifth of it is under cultivation, and not more than
one-third could be made productive, by the most
lavish expenditure, of moneys, to the agriculturist.
Let it not be supposed by the reader that it is,
PHILIPSTOWN. 145
therefore, altogether valueless, although the plough of
the husbandman would in vain, and to little profit, be
held in its bosom. It contains those materials that
are worth more to its owners, than if it was suscep-
tible of the highest agricultural improvement. It is
covered with timber, valuable for ship building and
other purposes ; and, perhaps, from no other township
between Albany and New York, for its size, is so
great a quantity of wood and timber carried to
market. The stone quarries and mineral productions
scattered in every direction over its surface, yield a
large profit, without any expenditure to the owners of
those locations. The burning of charcoal is a profi-
table pursuit to those engaged in it. The writer has
been informed by a farmer owning about 200 acres
of land In this town, one-half of which is unfit for
cultivation, that during the last year he has realized,
from the burning and sale of charcoal alone, $1000
over and above all expenses attending the same.
Although the mountainous and rocky surface of this
town will always present an impediment to an ex-
tended culture, yet its slopes and valleys in the west-
ern part, near the Hudson, are in a good state of cul-
tivation ;. " and the agriculturist, although he has to
labor hard, receives a good return. There are but
few men of wealth here, but the inhabitants seem
to be in possession of the necessities, if not the com-
forts of life."
This town, with those now forming the county, as
we have before stated, was comprised in the patent
granted to Adolph Philipse, by the King of England,
and the land let out to those who would come and
settle on it, paying no rent for a few years, except the
13
146 HI8T0RY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
taxes. The tenants, according to the custom of early-
times, came under the operation of the feudal system,
modified, as it had been, by time and that peculiar
state of things incident to the settlement of a new
and distant country. In most instances they were
tenants-at-will ; in others for life, or for a certain
term of years. This system has exerted its legitimate
influence in this town in retarding its agricultural
development.
Improvement, at first, proceeded very slowly. No-
thing short of actual ownership of land, requiring
such large outlays of labor and expense, would stimu-
late the early settlers to an energetic and extended
culture. The tenure by which they held was too un-
certain to beget that desire for permanent improve-
ment which stimulates the husbandman when he is
sure that the profits of his labor and toil are secure to
himself and family. This state of things no longer
exists ; and nearly all of the land fit for cultivation is
now owned by industrious, enterprising men, who
have purchased it from the original proprietor, or his
descendants. The best farms are found in Pleasant
Valley ; a vale extending from the Westchester line
on the south, to Dutchess on the north, having an
average breadth of one mile. It skirts the Hudson
until it reaches the village of Cold Spring, then devi-
ates a little to the east, between Bull hill, Breakneck,
St. Anthony's Face peaks, on the west, and the cen-
tral Highlands on the east.
PHILIPSTOWN. 147
EARLY SETTLEMENT OP PHILIPSTOWN AND PUTNAM
VALLEY.
We shall treat of the early settlement of these towns
together,fas they were originally one ; the latter being
erected from the former, March 14, 1839. To us such
a course seems not only necessary but proper, as the
latter has no early history, independent of the former.
With regard to the early settlement of the towns,
we have met with more difficulty than with any other
article contained in our paper. The aged people are
few, whose memories enable them to give dates,
with ^ny degree of accuracy, except in a very few
instances.
A generation has passed away, who, twenty-five
years ago, could have furnished exact chronological
information of a very valuable character ; but the
golden period for collecting it has passed, and we
must be content with the imperfect sources that are
still left.
The Old Highland Church and Vicinity. — The
first settlement in this part of Philipstown, was made
by David Hustis, who came from England and set-
tled about half a mile north of the Highland Church —
on the road from Cold Spring to Fishkill, and where
David Hustis, Esq., now living, resides — in 1730.
He settled down with the Indians -around him, and
procured the corn, which he first planted, from them.
They had about the fourth of an acre under cultiva-
tion, the year before, on the east side of the road, a
few rods south of the house where the present David
now lives. He was the first of the name, and the an-
cester of the Hustis family, in this town. He became
148 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
a tenant-at-will, of the patentee, and rented 310 acres
of land, for which he paid a yearly rent of five
pounds, or $24, 10. He afterwards occupied 90 acres
more wesl of the first tract, all of which he afterwards
purchased. His nearest neighbor was three miles dis-
tant, to whom he was compelled to go, a few days
after his arrival, to procure fire ; his own, from neg-
lect, having gone out.
A short time afterwards, the Haights, Bloomers, and
Wilsons, came and settled in the vicinity. At the
Highland Church, one Anderson built a house on the
site now occupied by the house of S. Birdsall, in which
Thomas Davenport, Esq., now resides. A man 6T the
name of Lamoreaux settled there about the same time.
Anderson was of Dutch descent, and Lamoreaux,
French. Both removed before the Revolution. Ben-
jamin Bloomer was the next settler, who, with one
Bush, made a large purchase in the water lot of Roger
Morris, between the Church and the Hudson.
David Hustis died in the early part of the Revolu-
tion, leaving four sons, Joseph, Caleb, Solomon, and
Jonathan. Joseph had three sons, Robert, Joseph,
David ; and six daughters, Sarah, Abbey, Mary,
Charity, Phoebe, Hannah, and died in 1805. All are
now deceased, except David and Phoebe.
Caleb had two sons, William and Jonathan ; and six
daughters, viz. : Elizabeth, Esther, Anna, Rachel,
Mary, and Phoebe.
William had four sons, Samuel, Caleb, Isaac, and
Josiah, all of whom are now living.
David Hustis was one of the commissioners, who
laid out the first roads in the south" part of Dutchess
County, now Putnam, in 1744.
PHILIPSTOWN. 149
Cold Spring Village. — Thomas Davenport, great-
grandfather to William Davenport, Esq., of Nelson-
ville, came from England about 1715, and built the
first house at Cold Spring. It was burnt down while
his son William was living in it.
After his father's decease, William, grandfather to
the present William, about 1760, built a small house a
few rods distant from where it stood. Isaac Daven-
port, cousin of William, then built a house on the
foundation of the house burned down, which had been
built by Thomas, his uncle, and moved the one built
by William to it. They now form the old low house
on the hill, a few rods distant from the residence of
Marvin Wilson, Esq., on the north side of Main
Street.
Thomas Davenport had two wives. By the first
lie had two sons, William and Thomas; and one
daughter. By his second he had two sons, and two
daughters.
William, grandfather of Willliam now living, was
by the first wife, and had one son, named Thomas,
who was the father of the present William of Nelson-
ville, and two daughters, Marybee and Elizabeth.
Marybec married Thomas Sutton, Elizabeth married
Solomon Cornell, who emigrated to Kentuckv. Thomas
had one son, William, and two daughters, Sarah
and Elizabeth. Sarah married John Snouck, and is
dead ; Elizabeth married Jonathan Hustis, and is still
living. Thomas the great ancestor of the family in
this town, died the 20th of December, 1709, aged 77
years. His grandson Thomas, and father of the pre-
sent William, was born April 11th, 1750, and died
Thomas, the brother of the grandfather of the
13*
150 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
present William, built a house which stood in the
garden just north of the farm-house of Henry De
Rhams, on the road leading from Cold Spring to John
Garrison's, Esq. Oliver Davenport built the old house*
still standing in Nelsonville, opposite to the residence
of William Davenport, Esq. Isaac Davenport, the
grandfather of Capt. Cornelius and Sylvenus Davenport
of Cold Spring, was the son of Thomas Davenport,
and born in the old house at H. De Rahams.
The next house was erected by Elijah Davenport,
the son of Isaac, and father of Capt. Cornelius and
Sylvenus Davenport, and forms the rear of the house
now occupied by Asa Truesdell, Esq., on the south
side of Main Street. It was built about 1785. Elijah
Davenport kept store in it ; and in 1817 it was occupied
by the Hon. Gov. Kemble, President of the West Point
Foundry, as an office. The third house erected in the
village, now forms the rear part of the building occu-
pied by Thomas Rogers, at the north end of Foundry
Street.
The next house built, in the vicinity of the village,
was the old house now standing near Clark's brick-
yard, at present unoccupied. It was built shortly after
the Revolution by Peter Lindsey, who subsequently
sold it to Samuel W. Baird, a cooper by trade, who
kept a grocery in it.
An old log-house stood opposite to where William
Davenport now resides in Nelsonville, and on the site
of the old, low, frame-house now standing. It was oc-
cupied by Stephen, brother of the first Thomas Daven-
port mentioned above.
Thomas Davenport was one of the commissioners
for laying out roads in that part of Dutchess County,'
which is now Putnam, from 1745 to 1755.
PHILIPSTOWN. 151
Nelson's Highlands and vicinity. — John Rogers
made a settlement about 1730, where Cornelius Haight
now lives on the old post-road, a few miles north of
Continental Village. At that time there was only a
path used by the Indians, leading from Westchester
through the Highlands, to Fishkill. Having built a
log house sufficiently large for a country tavern, he
was always sure to have a traveler for his guest during
the night, if he reached the house in the middle of the
afternoon ; as none ever departed on their journey
after that time, owing to the danger of traveling
through the Highlands after night, and the difficulty
of threading such a wild, mountainous, and solitary
path. He continued to keep tavern there during the
French and Indian war ; a short time previous to
which, the old post-road was cut through the High-
lands by Lord Louden, for conveying his baggage,
stores, and troops to the North, to attack the French
out-posts. The road followed the Indian path, and is
very little altered from the original line. Rogers' was
the first house built along the path.
The next house on this road was built by James
Stanley, where Samuel Jeffords, deceased, lived
about 1750. Thomas Sarles built the next on the east
side of the road, between Samuel Jefford's, Esq., and
Justus Nelson's, at the foot of the hill, about 1756.
The next northward, was built by Elijah Budd, where
Joseph Wiltsie now lives, called the Andrew Hill-farm.
Gilbert Budd about the same time, built a house where
John Griffin, Esq., now resides. Gilbert lived there in
the Revolution, and his brother Elijah on the Hill-
farm, a quarter of a mile south.
At the south end of Peekskill Hollow, in the now
152 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
town of Putnam Valley, a family of the name of Du-
senbery and -Adams, made a settlement, but at what
period of time, we have not been able to ascertain.
On the road leading to Peekskill, where Abijah Knapp
now lives, George Lane made an early settlement, about
fourteen miles east of Continental Village. Nathan
Lane settled a little below, where the Hon. A. and S.
Smith reside. John Hyatt, who was commissioned
a Colonel in the militia in the Revolution, settled be-
tween the Lanes.
In Peekskill Hollow, a little south of where Dr.
John Tompkins resides, the Post family settled. At
what is now ealled Tompkins Cornel's, was formerly
called the Wickopee and Peekskill Hollow Corners,
those roads intersecting each other at that point.
Wickopee was the name of an Indian tribe, that lived
at Shenandoah, in Dutchess County ; and another tribe
calledvCanopus, lived in Westchester, near the line of
Putnam, and extending into the hollow which bears
their name. Up and down Peekskill Hollow these
tribes used to pass, when visiting each other. The
lower tribe, when asked by their white neighbors
where they were going, when setting'out to make one
of their- visits, would reply, " We're going to see old
Wickopee." The name, we believe, is now spelled
Wichapee, but we have been informed by old people,
that it was lbrmerly spelleS as above. The Lanes,
Posts, Dusenberys, Smiths, and Adams, were original
settlers in this town. About two miles south-east of
Tompkins' Corners, Abraham Smith, grandfather to
the Hon. A. and S. Smith, made a settlement, and pur-
chased a large tract of land from Col. Beverly Rob-
inson, about 1760, where his grandchildren, above-
named, now reside.
PHILIPSTOWN. 153
He emigrated with two of his brothers from Eng-
land, about 1720, and settled at Smithtown, on Long
Island, where they purchased a very large tract. In
1760, he removed to Putnam Valley, and died in 1763.
He had one son named Abraham, the father of the
Hon. Abraham and Saxton Smith, who reside on the
paternal estate. After having surveyed out the tract,
he gave the farm, where John and Reuben Barger now
live, to one of his chain-bearers for his services.
An early settlement was made by the Ferris family,
from New Rochelle, Westchester County. The ances-
tor of the family came from Rochelle in France, on
the repeal of the edict of Nantz, by Louis XIV., in
1685. The family before the Revolution, moved
to the vicinity in which Joseph Ferris, now living, re-
sides.
Extract from Town Records.
" At a town meeting in Philipses Precinct in Dutchess county
on day of Apr. 1772 the following officers were Chosen
John Crumpton Clark
Beverly Robinson Supervisor
Joseph Lane )
& > Assessors
Caleb Nelson )
William Dusenberry Collector
Israel Taylor )
& > Constables
Isaac Devenport )
Justus Nelson
, Poormasters
Lor s lompkins
Cor's Tompkins, Poundmaster for Peekskill Hollow
John Likely Poundmaster for Canopus Hollow
Elijah Budd Poundmaster on the Post Road
Caleb Nelson Poundmaster on the River
154 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Isaac Rhodes & Moses Dusenberry fence Viewers
Isaac Horton & John Jones do do
Joseph Haight & James Lamoreaux do do
Jacob Mandevill & Tho's Devenport do do
Isaac Rhodes Highwaymaster, for ye Road from Frediraksburg
Precinct to the Bridge over Peekskill River near Lewis
Jones —
"illiam White Highwaymaster for the Roade from William
Dusenberrys up Peekskill Hollow to the Bridge near Lewis
Jones which bridge he is to make with his hands & to con
tinue up the Hollow to the Line of Fred'sburgh Precinct—
The remainder of the entry of this Road District,
with the next one, of which Robert Oakley was chosen
Highway Master, has been nibbled away by mice.
The next in order is as follows :
John Winn Highwaymaster for the Road from the Cold Spring
Along wycopy Road to the Line of Rumbout's Precinct all
the people living north of sd Spring to belong to his Com-
pany
Reuben Drake Highwaymaster from Drake's Mills up Canopus
Hollow to the Post Road —
John Meeks Highwaymaster on the Post Road from Westchester
line to Joseph Bards. —
Elijah Budd Highwaymaster on ye Post Road from Thos Sarles
to Rumbout's Precinct
Jacob Mandivell Highwaymaster from the Post Road near
Widow Areles through the Highlands to sd Mandivell's
House from thence to Caleb Nelson's & from thence to
Christopher Fowler's and from thence to the first mentioned
Road
John Nelson Highwaymaster from Mr Robinson's Mills to hia
fathers from thence to Tho's Williamson & from thence to
mr Robinson's house
PHILIPSTOWN. 155
Thomas Devenport Highwaymaster from Caleb Nelsons to his
own house & from thence thro the woods to the post Road
near Elijah Buds —
Here, again, the mice have destroyed the entry of
the remaining road district. After which, is the fol-
lowing entry of a challenge by Uriah Drake, question-
ing the election of Cornelius Tompkins to the office
of Poormaster, and the result on a second ballot.
N. B. all the foregoing persons was chosen Unanimousley
Except Cor's Tompkins Poormaster who was opposed by Uriah
Drake who demanded a pole at the Close of which
Cor's Tompkins had 47 Votes
Uriah Drake 35 do
12 Defference
upon which Cor's Tompkins was Declared poormaster
April the 25 John Armstrong his mark a Crop of the Right
ear
May the 11 1772 John Cavery Desires his mark to Bee En-
terd In this Book Which I have Which is a Crop of the neer
ear and a Slit in the same and the off ear A Hoi and a half Pen-
ny and the Half Penny on the under side
May 11 1772 Sibit Cronkit Juneer De Sires his mark to Bee
Enterd in this Book Which I have Which is two niks in the
neer ear one on Each Side and the off Ear a Slit and a Half
Penny upon the under side.
There were thirteen road-districts in this town, then
including the town of Putnam Valley, in 1772, and
sixteen in 1773. Commissioners for laying out high-
ways were not elected previous to 1773. At the
town meeting held in the spring of that year, Joshua
Nelson, Moses Dusenberry, and Isaac Rhodes were
elected. The record does riofc^ggntain the names of
persons assessed on the different road districts, but
only the names of the path masters. The whole num-
156 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ber of days assessed on each district were put down on
the record against its overseer or master. There is an
exception to this, however, in 1783 ; and it is the only
one that we have been able to find upon the earliest
record. The entry is as follows :
" a list of amos odell's Company to work the Highway for
the present year 1783
no of Days for
Eech man to work
Amas odell 8 Day»
John Armstrong to work 8
Jacob armstrong to work 4
William Cristion To work 5
Richard Criston Jun To work 7
Henry Youman To work 4
Oliver odell To work 8
Aaron odell to work „ 4
The first road laid out by the Commissioners of
this town was in 1784 ; and the description thereof is
characterized by more than Spartan brevity. It is as
follows :
" May the 10 in the year of 1784 Then we the Comishners
Laid out a Road from Calip Nelsons to his Landon Beginin a1
his house Ceepin as near the South of the Brook as near the
Brook as Connevent as Can for us
E Lijah Budd
HENDRICK l'OAST
Isaac Rodes
The following is a list of the names which appear on the
town record, including Putnam Valley, from 1772 to 1782 :
Beverly Robinson, Israel Taylor,
John Crumpton, Isaac Devenport,
Joseph Lane, Justus Nelson,
Caleb Nelson, Cornelius Tompkins,
William Dusenberry, John Likely,
PHILIPSTOWN.
157
Elijah Budd,
Isaac Rhodes,
Isaac Horton,
Joseph Haight,
Jacob Mandevill,
Thomas Devenport,
John Jones,
James Lamoreaux,
Moses Dusenberry,
William White,
John Winn,
Reuben Drake,
John Meeks,
Samuel Warren,
John Nelson,
Uriah Drake,
John Armstrong,
John Cavery,
Sibit Cronkit,
Edward Meeks,
Anthony Field,
Cornelius Gea,
Joseph Nap,
Peter Bell,
Murty Heayerty,
Nathaniel Jager,
Stephen Lawrance,
Jedediah Frost,
Peter Dubois,
Joshua Nelson,
Justus Ones,
Peter Snorck,
Joseph Husted,
John Avery,
Thomas Bassford,
Sylvenus Haight,
Benjamin Rogers,
Stephen Conklin,
Daniel Bugbee,
14
Daniel Willsie,
John Sherwood,
Reuben Tompkins,
Stephen Devenport,
John Van Amburgh,
Ezekiel Gee,
Samuel Jenkins,
Jacob Reade,
Isaac Odell,
Capt. Israeli Knapp,
John Haight,
Hendric Riers,
Amos Odell,
Jacob Armstrong,
William Cristian,
Oliver Odell,
Aaron Odell,
Henry Eltonon,
Robert Oakley,
Thomas Smith,
Joseph Arpels,
William Wright,
Cresterfer Fowller,
Jonathan Ones,
Gabriel Archer,
Sylvenus Lockwood,
Abraham Garrison,
Joshua Mead,
Hendrick Post,
Absalom Nelson,
Peter Ryall,
William White,
Capt. George Lane,
Peter Likekey,
Gilburt Budd,
James Jahcocks,
Gabriel Archer,
Henry Wiltsee,
Petor Drak,
158
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
matheuw mcCabe,
Cornelius Tompkins Junior,
Danel Buckbee,
Comfort Chaddick,
Thomas Lewes,
Nathan Lane,
Moses Dusenberry Junior,
Joseph Garrison,
Peter Warren,
Peter Keley,
John Yeouman,
Abraham Croft,
Abraham Marling,
Joseph Bare,
Elisha Budd,
Titus Travis,
Gilbert Oakley,
John Drake,
John Edgar,
Philip Steenburk,
John Knapp,
Isaac Jacocks,
Richard Denny,
Isaac Garrison,
David Henyon,
Isaac Danford,
Thomas Williams,
John Christian,
Jessee Owen,
William Deausenberry,
Solomon Smith,
thomes Brient,
Joshua Tompkins,
Charles Cristian,
Jonathan Miller,
James peney,
Nathaniel Tomkings,
Col. Samuel Drakes."
Cold Spring Village. — This is the largest village in
the town or county, and the onl£ incorporated one in
it. The Act, incorporating it, was passed by the
Legislature, April 22, 1846. Vide chap. 102, Session
Laws of 1846. It is twenty miles from Carmel, and
one and a half from West Point. It covers a large
extent of ground, embracing what is called the Foun-
dry district. The west end of the village, from the
store of Lewis Birdsall, to the present steam-boat
landing, and some portion of it, north and south of
Birdsall's store, on Foundry Street, is made ground,
and was formerly a bay ; and by filling up, the docks
have been extended into the river to their present lo-
cation. It takes its name from a spring of water
which is unusually cold, located on the line of the low
and high grounds of the village, at the north-west cor-
ner of the door-yard of Henry Haldane, Esq.
PHILIPSTQWN. 159
It contains 4 churches, 4 clergymen, 2 attornies, 4
physicians, 10 stores, and 4 taverns. If we may be
allowed the expression, it is the commercial metro-
polis of the county, and is the principal freighting de-
pot, on the east side of the river, between the Dutchess
and Westchester line. It is the birth place of Lieut-
Col. Duncan, of the United States Army, who has
rendered his country signal service on the bloody
battle fields of Mexico. The old house in which this
gallant officer was born, is no longer standing, having
been accidentally burned down in 1841. It stood, at
the time of his birth, in nearly the centre of Main
Street, opposite to the new, large frame building,
lately erected by Oliver Elwell, Esq. ; the road or
street, at that time, running south of Main Street, as
it now is. The house, some years since, was moved
to the position it occupied when burned down, and
was used as a paint shop.
The true name of the Col. is Duncanson ; and, as
his father alleges, when he entered the army, by an
oversight, or mistake of the recording clerk in the
War Department, at Washington, his name was writ-
ten Duncan. The mistake not being corrected, the
Department, as a lawyer would say, "stuck to the
record;" and the Col., since then, in all his communi-
cations to Government, and others, has written his
surname, Duncan.
Within the last few years the village has grown
rapidly, and is still increasing as fast, perhaps, as any
other on the East Bank of the Hudson. The West
Point Foundry, located here, has been the main cause
of its flourishing condition ; and within the last five
years its building lots have doubled in value.
160 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Nelsonville. — This village is only a continuation of
Cold Spring, and is built on the reverse slope of the
hill, on which a part of the former is built. There are
a few rods of ground intervening upon the top of the
hill, but they will soon be covered with houses. The
plot, originally made, embraces both villages. The
turnpike leading from Cold Spring to Carmel runs
through it. Like Cold Spring, it has greatly increased
in population, buildings, and business, within the last
few years. It is named after the family of Nelsons,
which are numerous in this town, to which is added
mile, from the Latin li villa," signifying a village.
Davenport 's Corners. — A small collection of houses,
about four miles north of Cold Spring, on the road
leading to Fishkill. John Davenport, deceased, kept
a store and tavern there, after whom it is named. It
is sometimes called " The Old Highland Church,"
which is located there ; but it is more generally called
" Davenport's Corners." John Davenport was the
father of Elijah J. Davenport, Esq., of Cold Spring.
Griffin's Corners; — A few houses, at the intersec-
tion of the Cold Spring turnpike with the old post
road, three miles east of Cold Spring. John Griffin
resides there, in the old house, built by Gilbert Budd,
before the Revolution. It has undergone some repairs,
and additions have been made to it, but the old part
is still standing.
Break Neck. — A small collection of houses on the
east bank of .the Hudson, about two miles north of
Cold Spring, through which the River-road runs to
Fishkill Landing. Many of the best stone-quarries
in this town are located here ; also the brick-yard of
Clark, Esq., and a short distance south of it, the
PHILIPSTOWN.
161
brick-yard belonging to the estate of Daniel Fowler,
deceased. These are the only places where brick is
manufactured in this town. It takes its name from
Break Neck Hill, at the southern base of which it lies ;
the etymology of the name will be given in the des-
cription of the " Hill." Here is a dock, erected by the
Harlem High Bridge Company, who rented from
Messrs. Howard & Haldane, a few years since, their
stone-quarries and the adjacent land, from which a
greater part of the stone at this place is shipped.
Dennytown. — A settlement of French people in the
central part of the town, about one mile west of
Justis Nelson's mill. It was settled by a family of
the name of Denny, whose descendants are numerous
in this town, and who own a large tract of land in
that region. Town is derived from the Saxon word
tun, and signifying a walled or fortified pldce ; a col-
lection of houses inclosed with walls; in popular
usage it means a township. It takes its name, there-
fore, from this family of early settlers.
Hortontown. — A small settlement and district of
country in the northern part of the town, about one
mile north of the second gate on the turnpike leading
to Carmel, and so called from an old and numerous
family by the name of Horton, who resided there,
many of whose descendants still live there and in the
vicinity.
Eel Point. — A small narrow point of land, jutting
into the Hudson a few rods above Cold Spring.
There is a small bay on the north side of it, a part of
which is uncovered at low water, revealing a sandy
bottom. In 1810, Henry Haldane, Esq., built the
house now standing there, occupied by James War-
14*
162 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ren, Esq., as a dock and storehouse. The storehouse
was taken down in 1845. The Hudson River Rail-
road passes over the west end of it. It was called
" Eel Point, near Sandy Landing." Eels congregated
there, and its proximity to the sandy shoal just above
it, accounts for its name.
Continental Village. — A few houses in the south-
east part of the town, one mile from the Westchester
line. In the revolution it was the main entrance to
the Highlands in this town, and was guarded by a
detachment of American troops. Two small forts
were erected for its defence, one at the north end of
the village on the high ground, the remains of which
are still to be seen ; and one about a quarter of a
mile north-west of it, on the road leading to the Hud-
son, the foundation of which is also standing. It was
burnt by a detachment of British troops in -the early
part of October, 1777, after forts Clinton and Mont-
gomery had been taken by Sir Henry Clinton. John
Meeks was the first settler at this place. The first
grist-mill in Philipstown was built at this place by
Col. Beverly Robinson, about 1762, and stood a few
rods east of where the paper-mill now stands, on the
same stream. He also erected a saw-mill and fulling-
mill there. Gallows Hill lies to the south of it, in
full view, just across the Weschester line, on the east
side of which the British troops advanced to the
south entrance of the village. In the Revolution, a
man by the name of John Strang was caught in the
act of enlisting men for the British army, with a com-
mission in his pocket signed by one of the generals.
He was tried, condemned to the gallows, and hung
upon this hill ; hence the name.
PHILIPSTOWN. 163
Warren's Landing .—The house at this landing was
built in 1804 by John Warren, father of the Hon.
Cornelius and Sylvenus Warren, of Cold Spring. It
is opposite West Point, a little to the west of Consti-
tution Island. About 1798 George JefFord' built the
dock and a house, which was subsequently torn down.
Mead's Dock. — This place is now called Garrison's
Landing. It was built about the year 1814 by Joseph
Mead. A store was formerly kept there. It is nearly
opposite West Point.
Bross's Landing. — A dock a few rods south of
Mead's, built before the last wax by a man of the
name of Hoyt, a cooper by trade, who built a house,
shop, and constructed the dock for the accommodation
of freighters in that vicinity and to increase the faci-
lities of his own business.
Hog-back Hill. — A steep eminence at the south-
west corner of the flat on which the West Point
Foundr}r is built. It takes its name from its fancied
resemblance to the back of that animal.
Vinegar Hill and Mount Rascal. — Two elevated
ridges, lying parallel with each other; the former
on the east side, and the latter on the west side of the
West Point Foundry. They form the sides of the
Foundry brook where it empties into the Hudson. It
is said they were named by William Youngs, Esquire,
who formerly was a manager in the Foundry, after
two places bearing those names in Ireland.
Bull Hill. — A lofty peak of the Highlands just
above Cold Spring, and separated from Breakneck
peak by a narrow depression, or slope of land. Al-
though termed a hill, it, with Breakneck north of it,
is more properly a mountain. But not so thought a
164 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUiNTY.
son of Erin, who, being met on the road from Cold
Spring to Breakneck by a traveller, was asked, " What
mountain is that, my friend ?" To which he replied,
" Sure, sir, an devil a bit of a mountain is it a-tal, sir
— its Bull Hill." According to tradition, a bull had
made it his mountain home, from which, at night, he
would descend to the low grounds in its vicinity, and
commit sundry depredations in corn fields, meadows,
and grain fields. The neighbors formed an " alliance,"
offensive and defensive, against this bold and ruthless
mountain robber, determined to pursue him to his
strongholds, and effect his capture or destruction.
They chased him from this Hill to the one immedi-
ately north of it, where, being hard pressed by dogs
and armed men, he was " impelled and propelled down
a precipice and through the chaparal" by which Sam
Patch-Wkc leap, he broke his neck ; whereupon his
pursuers immediately christened the hill from which
they started him " Bull Hill," and the one where they
captured this midnight guerilla chief, " Breakneck."
The word hill is from the Saxon hyl, and means " a
natural elevation of land, or a mass of earth rising
above the common level of the surrounding land."
Break Neck. — Another lofty peak of the Highlands,
just north of Bull Hill, the name of which has been
explained in the description of that locality, above.
A tunnel is now being cut through the western flank
of this peak, for the Hudson River Railroad. The
western flank protrudes itself almost into the river,
through the centre of which runs the dividing line of
Dutchess and Putnam Counties. On the south side
of this peak, and within Putnam, within a few feet of
its apex, "St. Anthony's Face," so celebrated in the
PHILIPSTOWN. 165
history of the Hudson's scenery, once peered out and
over the rocky battlements below, gazing, as it were,
at the eternal ebb and flood of the mighty current
that breaks with unceasing fury against the lofty
parapet that supported it. Thousands of the travel-
ling community on board of steamboats, with glass in
hand, have turned their eyes on passing Break Neck,
to gaze upon the stern and rugged features of St. An-
thony's Face ; but the venerable patriarch, destined
like everything of earth, has passed away, and is num-
bered among the things that were.
In the summer of 1846, Capt. Deering Ayers, who
was engaged m the service of the Harlem High Bridge
Company, by one fell blast, detached an immense
block of granite weighing nearly two thousand tons,
and shivered in atoms the majestic brow and weather-
beaten features, of the venerable mountain hermit.
Nero, the last Roman emperor of the family of the
Caesars, set fire to Rome, merely, as it is reported, that
he might have a real representation of the conflagra-
tion of Troy, and fiddled while it was burning. We
are not informed whether Ayers, like Caius Marius
amid the ruins of Carthage, smiled over the wreck
that lay shattered around him, or evinced sorrow at
his wanton demolition of nature's sculpture ; but the
act was vandalic, in the extreme, to the true lover of
Nature's works ; and the more so, as the stone was
utterly useless to those who sought it in its mountain-
home.
" From his eyrie, that heaconed the darkness of heaven,"
and for ages, he had looked abroad upon the restless
and ever-agitated world, defying the warring elements
166 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
of nature and the tooth of time — majestic in the soli-
tude of his mountain-home, he stood an admired spe-
cimen of nature's mechanism,
" A man without a model, and without a shadow."
" O, woe to Mammon's desolating reign,
We ne'er shall see his like on earth again."
The tragedy was not ended with the destruction of
St. Anthony's Face, for with the same terrible and de-
structive agent with which the venerable saint was
hurled from his airy pedestal, the poor unfortunate
Ayers met with an untimely death. Some months
after the scene at Break Neck, Ayers was engaged on
Staten Island, blasting rocks- Having set fire to the
fusee, he retired, but the blast not going off within the
usual time, he returned to it, and having commenced
working with it, it exploded, blowing the celebrated
blaster of St. Anthony's Face into an hundred frag-
ments.
The greedy, sordid, and avaricious spirit of man is
making sad havoc among the beautiful mountain scen-
ery of the Hudson. Where it will stop, is more
than we can tell. The sound of the ax and the rail-
road excavator's pick, with the steady click of the
quarryman's hammer, is daily sounding in our ears,
and slowly, though steadily, performing the work of
demolition.
" Rock and tree, and flowing water,"
are alike the subjects of this railroad tariff — a sort of
steam custom-house tax ; and with the stereotyped plea
of utility in .one hand, the utilitarian of the nineteenth
century, with the other, grasps without remorse the
PHILIPS! OWN. 167
beauty of the richest landscape* and all that is noble
and sublime in the scenery of the natural world.
This chiseling of the Great Architect, bearing such
a striking resemblance to the human face, was named
in honor of " St. Anthony the Great ; first institutor of
monastic life ; born A.D. 251, at Coma, in Heraclea,
a towD in Upper Egypt." At the base of this moun-
tain peak, on the eastern shore of the Hudson, be-
grimed with smoke, dust, and powder, the mutilated
features of the celebrated Face of St. Anthony now
lie,
" And none so poor to do them reverence."
" Sic transit gloria mundi."
Cat Hill. — A large rocky hill, about two miles east
of Cold Spring, near Justus Nelson's mill. In the
earliest settlement of this town, it was the resort of
wild cats. As the country became more thickly set-
tled and cleared up, those animals were entirely exter-
minated ; and dropping the word wild, the people
named it as above. Its wild, rugged aspect, would
have justified the inhabitants in retaining the first
word, as the name would not have belied its appear-
ance.
Sugar Loaf Mountain. — A lofty peak of the High-
lands about two miles southeast of West Point, near
the " Robinson House." Its altitude, as taken by
Lieut. Arden, late of the U. S. Army, is 800 feet
above the level of the Hudson. Its shape is conical,
resembling a loaf of sugar, and hence its name.
Anthony's Nose Mountain. — This is the highest
peak of the Highlands, on the east side of the Hudson,
in this town. It is situated at the entrance of the
168 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Highlands, and is about 1100 feet in height. It is in
the south-west part of the town, near the line of
Westchester and Putnam, and opposite Fort Montgo-
mery, on the west bank of the Hudson. From the
base of this peak, a large boom and chain extended,
in 1776, to Fort Montgomery. This was the second
obstruction attempted in the Hudson, to prevent the
British from ascending it. The first was at Fort
Washington, below the Highlands in Westchester
County ; the third at West Point and Constitution Is-
land ; and the fourth at Pallopel's Island, at the south
entrance of Newburg Bay, extending to Plum Point,
on the west bank of the river.
From the Journal of the Committee of Safety, we
extract the following, respecting the chain at Antho-
ny's Nose and Fort Montgomery :
Nov. 30th., 1776. In perfecting the obstruction between St.
Anthony's Nose on the eastern shore and Fort Montgomery, we
endeavored to avail ourselves of the model of that which had
proved effectual in the river Delaware, and were assisted by the
advice and experience of Capt. Hazelwood, but the great length
of the chain (being upwards of 1800 feet), the bulk of the logs
which were necessary to support it, the immense weight of wa-
ter which it accumulated, and the rapidity of the tide, have baf-
fled all our efforts ; it separated twice after holding a few hours.
" Mr. Machen, the Engineer at Fort Montgomery, is of opi-
nion, that with proper alterations it may still be of service in
another part of the river, and we have, with Gen. Heath's con-
currence, directed him to make the trial. — But we have too much
reason to despair of its ever fully answering the important purpose
for which it was intended. Alike disappointment we are informed
happened at Portsmouth. Gen. Heath, on a conference with
Gen. Clinton, has been pleased to recommend the obstruction of
the navigation in this part of the river by cassoons," &c.
Gordon, in his Gazetteer, states, that the cost of this
PHILIPSTOWN. 169
chain at £50,000, continental money ; that it was
made of iron 2 or 2 1-2 inches thick, was 1,800 feet in
length, and weighed 50 tons.
From a fancied resemblance of this peak to the
human nose, and in honor of St. Anthony, it received
the above appellation before the Revolution. There
were two redoubts on this mountain, a short distance
apart. They were intended to guard the entrance of
the Hudson into the Highlands, and as an additional
security to the chain. It is said that the manufacture of
this chain, with the cost of placing it across the river,
exhausted the Continental treasury ; and so far as any
good was effected by it, Congress might about as well
have caused a roll of twine to be stretched in its stead.
Its own weight parted it twice, and when the leading
English ship struck it, it broke with the facility of a
pipe-stem.
Pine Hill. — An eminence near the Mansion House
of Mrs. Mary Gouverneur, so called from pine timber
growing upon it. Philips' Quarries are located there.
Stony Point. — A rocky peninsula, nearly half a mile
north-west of the village of Cold Spring, and stretch-
ing into the Hudson about one fourth of a mile. The
west end is an entire mass of granite rock, and has
been quarried successfully by Alex. Anderson & Co.,
to whom it now belongs.
It is steep at the west end, with a sufficient depth
of water to float vessels of the largest class navigating
the Hudson.
Whiskey Hill. — A small eminence on the old road
leading from Continental village to Garrison's Land-
ing. During the Revolutionary war, some soldiers
were carting a hogshead of whiskey from Continental
15
170 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
village to West-Point, for the use of the garrison at
that post. On reaching nearly the top of this hill, the
blocks in the hind part of the cart slid from their posi-
tions, and the hogshead, smashing the tail-board into
pieces, rolled to the foot of the hill, where coming in
contact with a large stone, it bursted to the deep cha-
grin of the soldiers, who were anticipating a hearty-
dram of it on their arrival at the post. They imme-
diately christened it " Whiskey Hill," which name it
has ever since retained.
Fort Hill. — A lofty eminence, the timber of which
has been cut off, a few hundred rods east of the man-
sion-house of Judge Garrison. Two redoubts were
erected on it in the Revolution, one at the North end
called " North Redoubt," and the other at the south
end called " South Redoubt." This redoubt may have
been the one spoken of in Gen. Heath's order of Dec.
3d, 1780, as the " Middle Redoubt." There were
works thrown up on Sugar Loaf Mountain ; and by
way of distinguishing the two, the one on the South
end of this hill may have been called the " Middle
Redoubt."
Extract from " Revolutionary Orders."
"Gen. Heath's Orders.
"Head Quarters, West Point,
Decern. 3d, 1780.
"Brig. Gen'l Huntingdon will please to assign one Regiment
of the Conn. Line to the defence of the North Redout, one to the
Middle Redout, and one to the works on Constitution Island,
which works are to be considered as the posts of those three
Regiments in case of alarm ; the other Regiments of the Line, in
such case, are to be held in readiness to act as circumstances
may require.
" The 4th Mass'ts Brigade is assigned to the defence of Fort
PHILIPSTOWN. 171
Clinton and its dependencies ; the 2nd Brigade to the defence of
Forts Putnam, Willis, and Webb ; Col. Shepard's and Col. Bige-
low's to the former, Col. Vose's to Fort Willis, and Lt. Col.
Commandant Smith's to Fort Webb : the 1st and 3d to act as
circumstances may require, and, on all alarms, to form on their
Brigade Parades, ready to receive orders.
" The Connecticut Line is to mount a Captain's Guard at the
Continental Village for the security of the public stores, and
guarding that avenue into the Highlands.'"*
The Sunk Lot. — This name is given to a tract of
land in the east part of the town, containing about
1300 acres, belonging to Joel Hamilton. Its northern
termination is near the Cold Spring turnpike, about
one and a half miles south west of Griffin's Gate, and
extends south nearly to the former residence of Joel
Bunnell, Esq. Its location is low, apparently sunk
down ; and hence the name.
•s.
Constitution Island. — This island, projecting half
way across the Hudson, forms its elbow nearly oppo-
site West Point. Its western side is formed by steep
and inaccessible precipices ; on the east, between it
and the main land, is a large marshy, flaggy meadow,
which, within a few years past, has been partly drained
by ditches cut through it. This island is, probably,
about two miles in circumference, and half a mile
wide from north to south. It is covered with timber
of an inferior kind, and uncultivated except on the
southern and eastern edges. The entire marsh mea-
dow contains about SO© acres, and the island about
250.
This island, previous to, and at the commencement
* This extract is given to show the Military localities of West
Point at that early day.
172 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
of, the Revolution, was called " Martelaer's Rock Is-
land ;" but after a fort was erected here in 1775, it
was more often called Constitution island, by which
name it is now known. The fort was called " Fort
Constitution." In the correspondence between the
officers of the army and the New York Committee of
Safety, and also with the Continental and Provincial
Congress, it is sometimes written " Martles Rock,"
and also " Martyrs Beach."
From the most accurate information that we have
been able to obtain, this island was called after a
Frenchman by the name of Martelair, and who, pro-
bably, resided on it with his family. A family, bear-
ing that name, were early settlers at Murderer's
Creek, in the town of New Windsor in Orange co. ;
and were murdered by the Indians about the year
1720. It may have been the same family who pre-
viously resided on this island, or a branch of it. The
Provincial, as well as Continental Congress, early
saw the necessity of fortifying the Hudson river to
prevent its ascent by the enemy, and thus keep opeir
the communication between the eastern and middle
States. The Continental Congress moved first in the
matter, but the published record of its proceedings
does not disclose the date.
On the 18th of August, 1775, the Provincial Con-
gress of New York passed the following resolution :
" Resolved and Ordered, That the Fortifications formerly or-
dered by the Continental Congress, and reported by a Commit-
tee of this Congress, as proper to be built on the banks of Hud-
son's River, in the Highlands, be immediately erected. Mr.
Walton dissents. And that Mr. Isaac Sears, Mr. John Berrien,
Col. Edward Flemming, Mr. Anthony Rutgers, and Mr. Christo-
PHILIPSTOWN. 173
pher Miller, be Commissioners to manage the erecting and fin-
ishing the Fortifications. That any three or more of them be
empowered to act, manage, and direct the building and finishing
thereof."'
The " Fortifications in the Highlands" embraced,
not only those to be erected on Constitution Island,
but also those afterwards erected on the north and
south sides of Poplopen's Kill, called Forts Montgo-
mery and Clinton. These were the main works,
while redoubts were built on the neighboring emi-
nences, on the east side of the Hudson ; two on
Redoubt Hill, called North and South Redoubt, just
east of Judge Garrison's residence, two on Sugar
Loaf Mountain ; and one on Anthony's Nose Moun-
tain. Col. Edward Flemming and Capt. Anthony
Rutgers, notified the Provincial Congress that they
could not attend to the duties of Commissioners ; on
the 22nd of August, in the same year, Capt. Samuel
Bayard and Capt. William Bedlow, were appointed
in their stead.
The Provincial Congress employed Bernard Ro-
mans, who held a commission as Engineer in the
British Army, to construct the " Fortifications in the
Highlands." By order of the Committee of Safety, he
commenced operations on the 213th of August, on
Constitution Island; and on the 12th October, 1775,
he applied to the former body for a commission, with
the rank and pay of Colonel.
"Fort Constitution, October 12, 1775.
" Honourable Gentlemen :
"By order from the Committee of Safety, I am up
here for the purpose of constructing this fort ; said gentlemen
gave me their words that I should be appointed principal En-
15*
174 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
gineer for this Province, with the rank and pay of Colonel. As
I have been now actually engaged in this work since the 29th
of August last, I should be glad to know the certainty of my
appointment, and therefore humbly pray that my commission
may be made out and sent. I have left the pursuit of my own
business, which was very considerable, and endangered my pen-.
sion from the Crown, by engaging in our great and common
cause. These matters considered, I hope my request will be
thought reasonable, and therefore complied with. I remain, with
the utmost respect, honourable Gentlemen, your most obedient
humble servant,
"B. Romans."
Romans and the Commissioners soon became in-
volved in an unpleasant dispute about the construc-
tion of the works on this island. Romans claimed
the right, by virtue of his office, to build the works
according to his own furnished plan ; and pointedly
told the Commissioners that they had no right to in-
terfere with his operations; that their business was to
furnish him with men and money, reserving their
condemnation or approval until the Fortifications
were finished.
The Commissioners, on the other hand, claimed the
right, as superintendents, to approve or reject his
plans, and direct the mode of operations, contending,
that his duty was to work according to their direc-
tions. They objected to his plans, as involving too
much expense to the State. A long epistolary cor-
respondence followed, with -drafts, reports, and esti-
mates, for which we have not room to gratify the
reader, as our work is limited to a given number of
pages.. A condensed view of the "Reports" and
"Plans" of the Fortifications to be erected on this
Island, made by Romans to the Commissioners, and
through them to the two Congresses, is as follows :
PHILIPSTOWN. 175
On the south side of the Island, he proposed to erect
five block houses ; barracks, 80 by 20 feet ; store-
houses and guard-room, 60 by 20 feet ; " 2,400 perches
of stone wall, each perch containing 16^ feet in length,
18 inches high, by 12 wide ;" five batteries, mounting
61 guns and 20 swivels ; a fort, with bastions, and a
curtain, 200 feet in length ; a magazine ; and esti-
mated the entire costs, materials of every description,
with " labour of, and provisions for, 150 men for four
months, 26 days to the month,- at an average of 3s.
per day, at £,4,645 4s. 4d." The cost of ordnance
was not included in the above sum.
In the Revolution, this Island belonged to Mrs.
Ogilvie and her children. She was the widow of
Capt. Ogilvie, a British officer in the French and In-
dian war; and grandmother, as we have been in-
formed, of Mrs. Mary Gouverneur. The Committee
of Safety, when about to fortify it, applied to Beverly
Robinson, offering to purchase it. The following is
the correspondence between them respecting the pur-
chase of sufficient ground to erect the works on :
"In Committee of Safety.
"New York, Sept. 19th, 1775.
" Sir — By order of the Continental Congress, founded on the
necessities of the present times, the Provincial Congress of this
Colony has undertaken to erect a fortification on your land, op-
posite to the West Point, in the Highlands. As the Provincial
Congress by no means intend to invade private property, this
Committee, in their recess, have thought proper to request you
to put a reasonable price upon the whole point of dry land, or
island, called Martelair*s Rock island ; which price, if they ap-
prove of it, they are ready to pay you for it.
" We are, sir, your humble servants.
" To Beverly Robinson, Esqr., at his seat in the Highlands."
1*76 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
"In Provincial Congress, New York, 6th October, 1775.
" A letter from Beverly Robinson, Esq., was read and filed, and
is in the following words, to wit :
"Highlands, October 2nd, 1775.
" Sir — Your letter of the nineteenth of September, I received a
few days ago, in answer to which, I must inform you that the
point of land on which the fort is erecting, does not belong to
me, but is the property of Mrs. Ogilvie and her children. Was
it mine, the public should be extremely welcome to it. The
building a fort there can be no disadvantage to the small quan-
tity of arable land on the island. I have only a proportion of
the meadow land, that lays on the east side of the island.
" I am, sir, your most humble servant,
" Bev. Robinson.
" To John Having, Esqr., Chairman of the Committee of Safety,
at New York."
The Hudson River Railroad crosses the east end of
this island, and on the south-east part of it, is cut
through a gravel hill, on which was erected abumbert
battery in the Revolution.
Opposite to West Point, embowered among trees
and shrubbery, and surrounded by the eminences on
which the " fortifications" were built, stands the
sequestered and rural country seat of Henry W.
Warner, Esq., Counsellor, &c., called " Wood Crag."
The kitchen part of this mansion is a fragment of the
old barrack erected in 1775. The remains of Fort
Constitution at the water's edge, are still to be seen.
This island, with the marsh meadow east of it, be-
longs to H. W. Warner, Esq.
Ardenia. — This beautiful country seat is the resi-
dence of Richard D. Arden, Esq., and is situated on
the east bank of the Hudson, about one fourth of a
mile north of the " Robinson House."
PHILIPSTOWN. 177
Highland Grange is the name of the mansion house
built by Capt. Frederick Philips, deceased. It is a charm-
ing spot, located on the immediate bank of the Hudson,
opposite to West Point. About half a mile north of
Highland Grange, is the summer residence of Henry
De Rhams. It is a lovely spot, with an extensive
view north, south, and west. We do not know that
it has been christened by any rural name.
Under Cliff. — This is the romantic and beautiful
country seat of the great lyric poet of our country,
Gen. George P. Morris. There is a romantic truth in
the name, for it is well-nigh under one of the bold,
rugged, and frowning cliffs of Bull Hill, at its south-
west side. Here, the lover of the grand and sublime
— the amateur of the mystic science of nature's
works — may scan, on a most stupendous scale, those
immoveable bulwarks, against which " the artillery of
a thousand armies might roar out their ineffectual
vengeance," while " the parapet would laugh in scorn
at the- power of battle.'*
From no residence in the Highlands, perhaps, can
such an extended view be had, as at Under Cliff.
" To the right, to the left, in every direction, tower
the rocky pinnacles of the Highlands, whose giant
forms seem separated by the hand of Omnipotence, to
make way for the quiet Hudson, as she hastens to pay
her tribute to her monarch, the ocean." To the right
and north, Bull Hill and Break Neck stand, like
weather-beaten sentinels, to guard the further en-
croachment of the mighty current on the east, as it
surges from the broad and ample bay above, through
the Highland pass. To the west looms up Butter
Hill and Crow's Nest, casting their sombre shadows
178 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
far into the Hudson ; while to the south, Fort Putnam,
at an elevation of 500 feet above the river, with its
massive walls, 'still venerable in its ruin, stands " to
give an ocular demonstration of the untiring industry
and hardy enterprise of the heroes of "76." The
scener}7 of the Hudson, in this vicinity, is unequalled,
and " bears nature's grandest imprint." The Rhine,
in Germany, is said to resemble it more than any
other, but does not equal it. This mansion is a few
hundred rods north of Cold Spring. Here, beside
this mighty river in its hour of glory, at sunset — ting-
ing with Eden dies the most gorgeous scenery the eye
ever rested upon — " where the rock throws back the
billow, brighter than snow" — is the spot most fitting
for the wrapt mountain-bard to tune his lyre, and
chant an anthem to the sylvan deity of the place.
Round Pond. — A small body of water located on
the land of Daniel Smith, Esq., in the south part of
the town ; and covers about three acres, containing
perch and trout. It is circular or round, and hence
its name.
Cat Pond. — A small sheet of water at the base of
Cat Hill, on the land of Mrs. Mary Gouverneur,
covering about two acres, on the west side of the
" Old Post-Road," near Justus Nelson's mill. It takes
its name from its contiguity to Cat Hill.
The Robinson House. — This mansion, around which
the stirring incidents of the revolution have flung
such an interesting and melancholy interest, is situated
in the south-west corner of this town, upon the water
lot formerly owned by Col. Beverly Robinson, about
400 yards from the Hudson, in a straight line, and at
the base of Sugar Loaf mountain. It is about two
PHILIPSTOWN. 179
miles south-east of West Point, and four miles south
of the village of Cold Spring. We gazed long and
intensely at this memorable building ere we entered
within its walls, on our first beholding it. Its grounds
and halls have been hallowed by the tread and pre-
sence of the " Father of his Country," by Knox,
Greene, Putnam, Steuben, Kosciusko, Heath, Parson,
McDougal, and many others, in " times that tried
men's souls." And even while the patriot of his own
country, and the lover of liberty from another — Lafay-
ette— rested beneath its roof, it has also held the dark,
clutching, sordid traitor, Benedict Arnold. It was
here, in the upper back room of the main building,
where Arnold began and completed those sketches
and drawings of the fortifications and works at West
Point, which subsequently cost the youthful and
accomplished Andre his life. Here he perfected and
finished the requisite evidence of his allegiance to the
British King, blackening the page of our country's
history by a perfidy that is without a parallel, and
unlike Judas, he refused to weep, but singing the song
of his own infamy, he sank " like mad Ophelia on the
wave, singing as he sank."
The confidence that Washington reposed in his
confidence was unbounded, or he would hardly have
entrusted him with so important a post as West Point,
which was the key that would unlock the southern
door of the northern department. And how could it
be otherwise ? Who could doubt the fidelity and
patriotism of the leader of that Spartan band of heroes
who marched in the depth of a rigorous winter from
the cold, bleak, and barren frontiers of Maine to the
rock-bound citadel of Quebec ? Who could enter-
180 HISTORY OP PUTNAM COUNTY.
tain a suspicion of the man, who, after marching the
foremost of his little band two hundred miles through
the snow-clad forests of Maine, over rocks and preci-
pices, and the inhospitable deserts of Lower Canada,
where the foot of the white man had never passed,
had sat down to satisfy the cravings of hunger on the
body of a dead camp dog on the banks of the Chau-
diere ? He who headed the forlorn hope at the storm-
ing of Quebec, where his leg was shattered by a
musket ball ; who had poured out his life-blood like
water on the plains of Saratoga and Stillwater for his
country ; who had fronted the cannon's mouth,
charging up to their very muzzles amid the storm of
iron hail that so dreadfully wasted his followers ; could
such a man be trusted ? Washington felt that it was
wickedness to doubt, and he gave to Arnold the com-
mand of West Point and its out-posts,
fv But when the dreadful truth was disclosed, it wrung
his great spirit with an anguish that his officers had
never before witnessed : and the question he asked of
Lafayette, " Who can we trust now," shows the extent
of confidence reposed by Washington in the patriot-
ism of that fallen hero of our early struggle — Benedict
Arnold.
The following acrostic is about as severe and sar-
castic as it is possible to express in the English lan-
guage :
" Born for a curse to virtue and mankind,
Earth's broadest realms can't show so black a mind ;
Night's sable veil your crimes it cannot hide,
Each are so great, they glut the historic page ;
Defam'd your memory shall for ever live,
In all the glare that infamy can give;
FHILIPSTOWN. 181
Curses of all ages shall attend your name,
Traitors alone shall glory in your shame.
" Almighty vengeance sternly waits to roll
Rivers of brimstone on your treacherous soul :
Nature looks back, with conscious sorrow sad,
On such a tarnish'd blot as she has made — ■
Let hell receive you riveted with chains,
Doom*d to the hottest focus of its flames."
Three buildings joined to one another compose the
mansion. Nearest to the river is the farm-house, one
story high, and connected 10 it, on the east, are the
two main buildings, two stories high, with a piazza
extending along the north, east, and southerly sides of
the building nearest the Sugar Loaf Peak, and on the
south side of the centre building. The house and
lands attached now belong to Richard D. Arden, Esq.,
and are occupied by his son, Lieut. Thomas Arden,
late of the U. S. Army, and an officer in the Florida
war.
" The same low ceiling, large and uncovered joists,
the same polished tiles around the fire-places, and the
absence of all ornament which marks the progress of
modern architecture, preserve complete the interest
which the stirring incidents of that period have flung
around the Robinson House."
In the centre building is the large dining-room,
where the traitor, with his wife, and two of Wash.
ington's aids-de-camp, were at breakfast, when a
messenger dashed up to the door and handed him a
letter, which the stupid Jamieson had forwarded by
express to Arnold, informing him of the arrest, and
discovery of the papers. We have stood within this
room, we have planted our feet upon the broad stair-
16
182 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
case that the avaricious traitor mounted " in hot
haste," after reading Jamieson's letter, as he flew to
the chamber of his wife in the second story of the
eastern main building fronting to the north, where he
" disclosed to her his dreadful position," urging her to
burn all his papers, and informed her " that they must
part for ever."
This house has been kept from dilapidation and
deca3T by repairs, when needed, but in no way has it
been changed from its original appearance. It has
been roofed from time to time, as often as the wear
and tear of the elements have rendered it necessary ;
a new piazza has been added in the place of the for-
mer one, but no alterations have been permitted,
either inside or out, that has changed, in the least, its
original shape and appearance.
Beverly Robinson, who built it about 1750, was a
Major in the British Army, under the gallant Gen.
Wolfe, in the battle upon the Plains of Abraham. The
lands, originally attached to the mansion, are of an
excellent quality, and numbered one thousand acres,
under a good state of cultivation. He married a
beautiful, amiable, and accomplished lady, a descen-
dant of the original patentee of Putnam County, by
whom he acquired large tracts of land, and then re-
tired from the army to the enjoyment of that domestic
happiness upon his estates, which a rural life and such
a partner are so well calculated to secure. He was
for several years Supervisor of this town, and took an
active part in everything that concerned its interests.
The lands he acquired by his marriage with Miss
Philips, was the water-lot, four miles square, and on
which the " Robinson House", stands ; the first long-
PHILIPSTOWN. 183
lot adjoining the water-lots on the east ; and the short-
lot in the north-east part of the county.
The reader, by turning to the diagram in the previous
part of this work, will see the form of the partition
made to the three heirs to whom it was devised, and
those lots or divisions which Col. Robinson acquired
with his wife.
While residing at " Beverly," in this quiet and se-
cluded retreat, where nought is heard but the sighing
of the breeze, the murmurs of the rolling Hudson, the
song of the robin, and the whoop of the whippo-will
— surrounded by every comfort that the heart can
desire, and dispensing a generous hospitality — the storm
that had been long gathering between the Mother-
Country and her Colonies burst forth, and he was
summoned to the field, by virtue of the right of Eng-
land's King, to demand the services of his native-born
subjects in time of need. He obeyed the call with
great reluctance, and it is said, pled hard to be al-
lowed to remain in the bosom of his family, and in the
quiet enjoyment of his rural pursuits. But the con-
stant and unceasing solicitations of his influential
and English friends, reminding him of his oath of alle-
giance to his King and country — that he was a na-
tive-born subject, and when his country had called
him in days gone by, his soldier-like heart faltered *not
on the Heights of Abraham, where he became eila-
mored of her glory — at last prevailed under a sense of
that stern system of teaching, which impresses on
the soldier, as the first duty, obedience to superior
authority.
Having removed his family to New York, he de-
parted from his long loved " VaUambrosa," to the
184 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COU5TTT.
British army, in which he received a Brigadier-Gene-
ral's commission. His family never returned to
" Beverly," where they had spent so many years of
unalloyed happiness ; but when the British army
under Gen. Clinton moved up the Hudson after the
battle of Fort Montgomery, it is said, he visited,
and for the last time, his house, to which he was de-
stined never more to return.
Such men at this day are sometimes called " Tories."
But is the charge just or true ? With a solemn re-
gard for truth, we think not. When the reader shall
have patiently examined all the facts up to the com-
mencement of the Revolution in the life of Beverly
Robinson, we think he will concur with us, that he
was not a tory, nor can he be brought within the
meaning of the word, as understood by the native-
born patriots of the Revolution. Webster says that
the word " tory" is " said to be an Irish word, denot-
ing a robber." That "in America, during the Revo-
lution, those who opposed the war, and favored the
claims of Great Britain, were called tories." But this
latter meaning and understanding of the word, as
given by Webster, was, and could only be applied to
native-born citizens of this country, and not to those
born and brought up in the Mother-Country, who had
passed more than half their lives in her standing
armies. The latter class of persons, at the breaking
out of the war, were just as much Englishmen, and
subject to the laws and government of that country,
although they had resided a few years in the colonies,
as if they had always remained in England. How
stands the case with respect to Col. Robinson ? He
was not a native-born citizen of this country, and at
PHILIPSTOWN. 185
the time he returned to the British army, we had not
a national existence. To whom then did he owe
alliegance ? not to us, for we did not exist at that
time as an independent nation ;. not to the country,
for he was not born here ; not to the land, for that he
only held in right of his wife, in whom the title was
vested ; and when it was confiscated by an act of the
legislature, the reversionary interest was not affected,
for "in 1809, John Jacob Astor bought the reversion-
ary interest of the lands acquired by Beverly Robin-
son by his marriage with Miss Philipse, and also those
of Major Roger Morris, who married Miss Mary
Philipse, sister to Col. Robinson's wife, off the heirs of
both for $100,000." For this Mr. Astor received
from the State, 10 years after, the small sum of $500,-
000 ! Besides, after the battle of Quebec, in 1759,
and the Treaty of Peace in 1763, whereby England
became possessed of Canada, he had only retired,
temporarily, as an officer, from the army, but was
liable to be called on at any time by the British
government, in case of war, to resume his rank there-
in. He had been educated to the profession of arms,
and " two generations of the Robinson family " had
held commissions in the service of their country, and
bore arms in wars waged by English kings.
All offices, civil and military, that he had occupied,
he had held under the government and laws of Great
Britain.
Had he been found at the head of an American
regiment at the commencement of the war, by its
rules and regulations, had he been taken, his govern-
ment would have caused him to be shot. But the
case is very different when applied to a native-born
citizen.
16*
186 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
If an officer of his rank had left our army and re-
sided a few years in Mexico, and during the present
war with that nation should be captured in time of
battle fighting at the head of hjs regiment, his chance
for life would be feeble before a court martial ordered
by Scott or " Old Rough and Ready." The law of
nations does not permit a man to change his allegiance
while his country is at war with another. The law
makes it his duty in such an event to return, if it be
possible, and offer his assistance in the hour of her
need. It matters not whether the war be just or un-
just on the part of his country, his inability to change
his allegiance still continues. " It is the doctrine of
the English law, that natural-born subjects owe an
allegiance which is intrinsic and perpetual, and which
cannot be divested by any act of their own." The
fact also, that some native-born citizens of Great
Britain, who had been officers in her armies, assisted
in achieving the liberties of our countrv, alters not
the case. Had they fought for their own country
instead of ours, they would not, by so doing, have
been tories. In no view of the case, therefore, ran
we regard Beverly Robinson as one.
The following extract is from the pen of the late
Dr. Timothy Dwight, who, in 1788, was Chaplain of
the army, and stationed at West Point, but resided
with Gen. Putnam, who held his head-quarters at the
" Robinson House :"
" A part of this time I resided at the head-quarters of General
Putnam, then commanding at this post ; and afterward of Gene-
ral Parsons, who succeeded him in the command. These gen-
tlemen lodged in the house of Col. Beverly Robinson ; a respect-
able native of Scotland, who married a lady of the Phillips
PHILIPSTOWN. 187
family, one of the wealthiest and most respectable of the pro-
vince of New York. With this lady Col. Robinson acquired a
large landed estate lying in Philipstown, Fredericktown, and
Franklin, as they are now called j and for the more convenient
management of it planted himself in this spot. Here he had a
spacious and convenient mansion, surrounded by valuable
gardens, fields, and orchards, yielding everything which will
grow in this climate. The rents of his estate were sufficient to
make life as agreeable as from this source it can be. Mrs. Rob-
inson was a fine woman ; and their children promised every
thing which can be expected from a very hopeful family. His
immediate friends were, at the same time, persons of the first
consequence in the province.
" When the revolutionary war broke out, Col. Robinson was
induced, contrary as I have been informed to his own judgment
and inclination, by the importunity of some of his connections,
to take the British side of the question. To him it appeared
wiser and safer to act a neutral part, and remain quietly on his
estate. The pressure, however, from various sources was so
strong against him, that he finally yielded, and carried his family
with him to New York, and thence to Great Britain. His pro-
perty was confiscated by the legislature of New York, and his
family banished from their native country. It was impossible for
any person, who finds an interest in the affairs of his fellow-men,
and particularly while residing in the very mansion where they
had so lately enjoyed all which this world can give, not to feel
deeply the misfortunes of this family. Few events in human
life strike the mind more painfully than banishment ; a calamity
sufficiently disastrous in the most ordinary circumstances, but
peculiarly affecting when the banished are brought before us in
the narrow circle of a family ; a circle, the whole of which the
eye can see, and whose sufferings the heart can perfectly realize
Peculiarly is this true, when the family in question is enlight-
ened, polished, amply possessed of enjoyments, tasting them
with moderation, and sharing them cheerfully with their friends
and neighbors, the stranger and the poor."
The circumstances attending the flight of Arnold
from this house, and the arrival of Washington soon
188 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
after, is described by one who visited ,it in 1840, and
is extracted from the Knickerbocker for Sept. of that
year :
" The Commander-in-chief, at the time of the capture, was on
his way from Hartford, and changing the route which he had first
proposed, came by the way of West Point. At Fishkill he met
the French minister, M. de la Luzerne, who had been to visit
Count Rochambeau at Newport, and he remained that night with
the minister. Very early next morning he sent off his luggage,
with orders to the men to go with it as quickly as possible to
4 Beverly,' and give Mrs. Arnold notice that he would be there
at breakfast. When the General and his suite arrived opposite
West Point, he was observed to turn his horse into a narrow
road that led to the river. Lafayette remarked, ' General, you
are going in a wrong direction ; you know Mrs. Arnold is wait-
ing breakfast for us.' Washington good-naturedly remarked :
1 Ah, I know you young men are all in love with Mrs. Arnold,
and wish to get where she is as soon as possible. You may go
and take your breakfast with her, and tell her not to wait for
me : I must ride down and examine the redoubts on this side of
the river.1 The officers, however, with the exception of two of
the aids, remained. When the aids arrived at ' Beverly,' they
found the family waiting; and having communicated the message
of General Washington, Arnold, with his family and the two aids,
sat down to breakfast. Before they had finished, a messenger
arrived in great haste, and handed General Arnold a letter,
which he read with deep and evident emotion.
" The self-control of the soldier enabled Arnold to suppress
the agony he endured after reading-this letter. He arose hastily
from the table ; told the aids that hi^ immediate presence was
required at West Point ; and desired them so to inform General
Washington, when he arrived. Having first ordered a horse to
be ready, he hastened to Mrs. Arnold's chamber, and there, with
a bursting heart disclosed to her his dreadful position, and that
they must part, perhaps for ever* Struck with horror at the
* We also visited this chamber, which remains unaltered.
Over the mantel is carved in wood-work : " G. Wallis, Lieut.
VI. Mass. Regt."
PHILIPSTOWN. 189
painful intelligence, this fond and devoted wife swooned, and
fell senseless at his feet. In this state he left her, hurried down
stairs, and mounting his horse, rode with all possible speed to
the river. In doing so, Arnold did not keep the main road, but
passed down the mountain, pursuing a by-path through the woods,
which Lieutenant Arden pointed out, and which is now called
' Arnold's Path? Near the foot of the mountan, where the path
approaches the main road, a weeping willow, planted there no
doubt by some patriot hand, stands, in marked contrast with the
forest trees which encircle and surround it, to point out to the
inquiring tourist the very pathway of the traitor.
" In our interesting visit, we were accompanied by the Super-
intendent, Major Delafield, and in the barges kindly ordered for
our accommodation, we were rowed to 'Beverly Dock,' and landed
at the spot where Arnold took boat to aid his escape. He was
rowed to the ' Vulture,' and using a white handkerchief, created
the impression that it was a flag-boat : it was therefore suffered
to pass. He made himself known to Captain Sutherland, of the
Vulture, and then calling on board the leader of the boatmen
who had rowed him off, informed him that he and his crew were
all prisoners of war. This disgraceful and most unmanly ap-
pendix to his treason, was considered so contemptible by the
Captain, that he permitted the man to go on shore, on his parole
of honor, to procure clothes for himself and comrades. This he
did and returned the same day. When they arrived in New
York, Sir Henry Clinton, holding in just contempt such a wanton
act of meanness, set them all at liberty.
"When General Washington reached Beverly, and was in-
formed that Arnold had departed for West Point, he crossed di-
rectly over, expecting to find him. Surprised to learn that he
had not been there, after examining the works he returned.
General Hamilton had remained at Beverly, and as Washing-
ton and his suite were walking up the mountain road, from
' Beverly Dock,' they met General Hamilton, with anxious face
and hurried step, coming towards them. A brief and suppressed
conversation took place between Washington and himself, and
they passed on rapidly to the house, where the papers that
Washington's change of route had prevented his receiving, had
been delivered that morning ; and being represented to Hamilton
190 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
as of great and pressing importance, were by him opened, and
the dreadful secret disclosed. Instant measures were adopted to
intercept Arnold, and prevent his escape, but in vain. General
Washington then communicated the facts to Lafayette and
Knox, and said to the former, more in sorrow than in anger,
'Whom can we trust now?' He also went up to see Mrs. Ar-
nold ; but even Washington could carry to her no consolation-
Her grief was almost frenzied ; and in its wildest moods, she
spoke of General Washington as the murderer of her child. It
seemed that she had not the remotest idea of her husband's trea-
son ; and she had even schooled her heart to feel more for the
cause of America, from her regard for those who professed to
love it. Her husband's glory was her dream of bliss — the re-
quiem chant for her infant's repose ; and-she was found, alas !
as many a confiding heart has oft been found,
" ' To cling like ivy round a worthless thing.' "
The following extract, concerning the traitor's
career subsequent to his treason, is taken from a
writer to the New Haven Palladium. The great
moral lesson which his life affords, cannot be im-
pressed too deeply upon the minds of the young and
rising generation of our country :
" The close of Arnold's ignominious career was characterized
by the loss of caste and the respect of everybody. A succession
of personal insults and pecuniary misfortunes followed hia
treason, and deep abiding retribution was fully meted out to the
degraded culprit long before he died.
" An elderly lady of cultivated mind resides in Massachusetts,
whose early social intimacy with Arnold and his family at St.
John's, New Brunswick, gave her peculiar opportunities for
knowing many details concerning the close of his miserable
career. Subsequently to the termination of the Revolutionary
war, and after the perpetration of various atrocities against his
countrymen, Arnold went to England and received a commission
in the British army. He was frowned upon by the officers, and
everywhere received with contempt, if not indignation. Various
public insults were offered to him, and in private life he was the
object of perpetual scorn.
PHILIPSTOWN. 191
" Soon after Arnold threw up his commission in disgust, and
removed to St. John's. He there engaged in the West India
trade, becoming as notorious for his depravity in business as he
had been false to his country ; his integrity was suspected at
various times, and on one occasion, during his sudden absence,
his store was consumed, upon which an enormous insurance
had been effected. The company suspected foul play, and a
legal contest was the result. During this painful scene his
family were greatly distressed, and the lady to whom allusion
has been made, and who resided near Arnold's house, was re-
quested to go and pass that trying season with them. That
request, in the fair hand-writing of Mrs. Arnold, until recentlyj
was in my possession, as well as a copy of a satirical hand-
bill, describing Arnold's life, hundreds of which were circulated
among the populace during his trial. Mrs. Arnold, in her note,
says, ' the General is himself to-day,' meaning that he bore the
insults with his usual firmness ; but she was alarmed herself,
and wished for the presence of some female friend during the
painful scene that followed.
" The proof was not enough to condemn Arnold, but there was
enough detected of foul play to vitiate his policy. From that
time the situation of Arnold at St. John's became even more un-
comfortable, and that of his family more distressing. Mrs. Ar-
nold was treated with great kindness, but he was both shunned
and despised. She was a lady of great delicacy and refinement,
with a mind cultivated with more than ordinary care; and, of
course, her sufferings were rendered acute by the imputations
against her husband's integrity, aside from his treason. They
shortly left St. John's and went to England, where Arnold be-
came lost to the public eye, and died in degradation and obscur-
ity in London, June 14th, 1801, sixty-one years of age."
Connected with the history of this house, we give
the following extract from the pen of a writer in the
New Jersey Telegi aph* Whether "Miss Mary
Phillipse " was the first love of Washington, we know
* We have recently been informed that it is from the accom-
plished pen of Gen. George P. Morris.
192 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
not ; nor have we ever before seen it stated by any
writer. The historical events related are true, and
the filling up, if from the writer's fancy, is interesting
as connected with Revolutionary scenes :
"WASHINGTON IN LOVE.
" In 175G — twenty years before the brilliant era which shines
like a rich gem in the pages of the world's history — a gentleman
named Beverly Robinson occupied a dwelling (situate in New
York), which, at that time, was considered a model of elegance
and comfort, although, according to the prevailing taste of the
present day, it was nothing of the kind. It was standing, very
little altered from its original condition, six years ago, on this
side of the Hudson river, within two or three miles of West
Point. Mr. Robinson enjoyed all the luxuries known to the
colony, and some beside, which the other colonists did not know
— for instance, a rich and massive silver tea urn, said, by the
gentleman's descendants, to be the first article of this kind, and
for a long time the only one, used in this country. In this dwell-
ing, so much admired, the space between the floors and ceiling
was exceedingly low, and in many of the rooms (set off, about
the fire-places, by polished tiles) the rafters were massive and
uncovered ; and all things else in the structure were exceedingly
primitive. In this house were born or reared a brood of the
most prominent and inveterate foes to the patriots of the Ameri-
can Revolution, and the object of that struggle, that history
mentions. Two generations of the Robinson family bore arms
and held offices in the armies of the English King, and fought
determinedly against our sires and grandsires.
"Well, in this house — which will have already attached itself
to the interest of the reader — the only victory that was ever
gained over George Washington took place.
"In 1756, Colonel George Washington of Virginia, a large
stalwart, well-proportioned gentleman, of the most finished de-
portment and careful exterior ; a handsome, imposing, ceremo.
nious, and grave personage — visited his firm and much-esteemed
friend, Beverly Robinson, and announced his intention of re-
maining his guest for many weeks. A grinning negro attend-
PHILIPSTOWN.
193
ant, called Zeph, was ordered to bring in his master's portman-
teau, additional fuel was cast into the broad and cheerful fire-
place, an extra bottle of prime old Madeira was placed upon the
table, whose griffin feet seemed almost twice the original size at
the prospect of an increase of social hilarity, and Colonel Wash-
ington was duly installed as a choice claimant of old-fashioned
and unrestrained hospitality. Seated with Mr. and Mrs. Robin-
son, overwhelmed with attention, and in possession of every com-
fort, the visitor evinced unquiet and dissatisfaction . Every sound
of an opening or closing door aroused him from apathy, into
which he relapsed when it was ascertained that no one was
about to enter the apartment. His uneasiness was so apparent
that his host at last endeavored to rally him, but without effect.
Mrs. Robinson finally came to the rescue, and addressed the
Colonel in direct terms.
" ' Pray, friend Washington, may we be made acquainted with
the cause of your dullness 1 — There is some reason for it, and
that reason lies with us. Tell it.'
" In vain the Colonel argued that nothing had occurred to
vex him — that he was not in want of any farther inducement to
present or future happiness. His entertainers would not regard
his words, but continued their pertinacious endeavors to solve
his mystery. At length, wearied by importunity, Washington —
then twenty years before his greatness — leaned over the table,
played with his glass, attempted to look unconcerned, and
whispered to Mr. Robinson the single word, ' Mary.'
"'Yes? responded Mr. R. interrogatingly, as if unable to
comprehend Washington's meaning.
" ' Is she well '? Does she still abide with you V
" ' She does,' replied the lady of the mansion.
"Washington again became apathetic and contempkitivc,
while several significant glances passed between the gentleman
and his wile. Some five minutes were spent in perfect silence,
which was only interrupted by the exit of Mrs. R. from the apart-
ment ; she speedily returned, accompanied by a beautiful joung
lady, whom Washington, with a countenance beaming joyfully,
arose to greet with becoming respect.
" The young lady was Mary Philiipse, sister of Mrs. Robinson,
and daughter of the owner of the Philiipse' estate.
17
194 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" It was, perhaps, singular ; but the time of her appearance and
the period of the return of Washington's cordiality, was inci-
dental. Strange as it was, too, midnight found this young lady
and Virginian Colonel alone, and in deep conversation. The
conjugal twain who had kept them company in the early part
of the evening, had retired to their bed-chamber. More remark-
able than all, day-light found this company still together. The
candles were burned down to the sockets of the sticks, and the
fire-place, instead of exhibiting a cheerful blaze, harbored only a
gigantic heap of ashes and a few embers. What could have
prolonged that interview ! Not mutual love ; for the parties
preserved a ceremonious distance, and the young lady evinced a
hauteur that could be matched only by her companion in after
years. And yet, the truth must be told. There was love on one
side ; the Colonel, smitten by the graces and rare accomplish-
ments of a lady as beautiful as nature's rarest works, was en-
deavoring to win her heart, in exchange for his own. He made
his confession just as the cold grey of the dawn of the morning
broke up the dark clouds in the east. He confessed, in cautious
and measured terms, it is true, the extent of his passion, and
avowed what it was his earnest hope would be the result ; that
it was the gain of her heart. The lady hesitated. Was it the
modesty of the maiden who dares not trust her lips with the
confession of affection it is her heart's desire to make ? She re-
spected, although she did not love her interlocutor, and she felt
diffident in making known to him the true state of her feelings.
At last, candor triumphed over delicacy ; she informed Washing-
ton, in set terms, that she loved another ! She refused him !
The greatest of modern men was vanquished, and by a woman !
He was speechless and powerless.
"Trembling with compressed lips, and a countenance ashy
pale, he crept from the place just as the old negress of the house-
hold entered to make preparation for the breakfast. He sought
his room, threw himself upon his couch, dressed as he was, and
lapsed into a troubled sleep. The only victory ever won at his
expense penetrated him to the soul. He was unhappy— su-
premely wretched ! The future conqueror of thousands of brave
men suffered because he had been rejected by a female. This
was his first but not his last wooing.
PHILIPS! OWN. 195
"Years rolled on upon the mighty tide of time. George
Washington was commander-in-chief of the American forces op-
posed to the royal government. The friend of his early man-
hood, Beverly Robinson, was the Colonel of the Loyal American
regiment raised in this State, and his son was the Lieutenant
Colonel. The house we have spoken of was in possession of
the ' rebels,' and was occupied by Arnold, the traitor. It was
afterwards the temporary residence of Washington* At the
same time the husband of Miss Mary Phillipse, Roger Morris,
was a prominent tory, and a member of the council of the colony.
Few of the parties were occupied by any reflections of an amor-
ous nature. Time, in its progress, had worked mutations which
had severed the closest ties, both of friendship and consanguin-
ity. Those who were most intimate previous to the commence-
ment of the war, were studied strangers, with drawn swords at
each others' breasts. Even sons and fathers were estranged and
arrayed in opposite ranks — even the child of that illustrious
statesman, Dr. Franklin, was a bitter and uncompromising tory.
It must not be supposed that the loyalist friends of Colonel George
Washington shared any better fate, so far as the acquaintance-
ship of the Father of his Country was concerned, than others.
His old Hudson River friends he had not seen for years. The
husband of Mary Phillipse was personally unknown to him.
Beverly Robinson, grown grey and care-worn, would scarcely
have been recognized.
" Andre was taken and condemned to death, and while under
General Woodhull's charge, was visited by Mr. Robinson in the
capacity of a species of a commissioner, which protected his per-
son. What was the surprise of Washington, a few days before
the time of the execution, to receive a letter from his old friend
and entertainer, referring to past events, and claiming on a score
of reminiscence, a secret or private interview. The claim was
acknowledged, and late at night Mr. Robinson, accompanied by a
figure closely muffled in a cloak, was admitted to the General's
* Before Sir Henry Clinton, or any other person knew of
Arnold's defection and Andre's projects, Beverly Robinson was
in possession of all the facts. A great grandson of his now
practices law, or did, not long ago, in this city.
196 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
apartment. For a moment these two men, their position so
widely different, gazed at each other in silence.
" Recollections of days gone by, of happy days uncorroded
by cankering care, prevailed, and they abruptly embraced.
Washington was the first to recover his self-possession. Sud-
denly disengaging himself, he stood erect and clothed in that
unequalled dignity which was his attribute, and said :
" ' Now, sir, your business.'
" ' Is,' replied Robinson, in a choking voice, ' to plead for
Andre.'
" ' You have already been advised of my final determination,'
replied Washington, sternly.
" ' Will nothing avail V asked Robinson, in smothered ac-
cents.
" ' Nothing ! Were he my own son he should pay the penalty
due his offence. I know all you will say : you will speak of
his virtues ; his sisters : his rank, and of extenuating circum-
stances : perhaps endeavor to convince me of his innocence.'
" Robinson struggled with his emotions a few seconds, but un-
able to repress his feelings, he spoke but a single word, with
such a thrilling accent that he started at the sound of his own
voice. That word was George I
"'General Washington, Colonel Robinson,' responded the
great patriot, laying great stress on each military title.
" ' Enough,' said the other. ' I have one more argument ; if
that fails me I have done. Behold my friend !'
" ' Your friend ! Who is he 1 What is his name V
" One other single word was spoken as the heavy cloak, in
which the mysterious friend was clothed, fell to the floor and
exposed the mature figure of Mrs. Morris, and that word, utter-
ed with a start by Washington, was Mary ! The suspense was
painful but brief.
" ' Sir,' said Washington, instantly recovering, ' this trifling is
beneath your station and my dignity. I regret that you must go
back to Sir Henry Clinton with the intelligence that your best
intercession has failed. See that these persons are conducted
beyond the lines in safety,' continued he, throwing open the
door of the apartment, and addressing one of his aids.
PHILIPSTOWN.
197
" Abashed and mortified, Mr. Robinson and his sister-in-law*
took their leave. The woman had gained a conquest once, but
her second assault was aimed at a breast invulnerable."
The following is an extract of a letter from a gen-
tleman, dated Tappan, October 2, 1780, and published
in the Boston Gazette under date of October 16, of
that year, " detailing the villany of Arnold and the
capture of the unfortunate Andre. It furnishes a
good and interesting account of that remarkable and
critical incident in the scenes of the war of the Revo-
lution."
" You will have heard before you can receive this, of the in-
fernal villany of Arnold. It is not possible for human nature
to receive a greater quantity of guilt than he possesses : per-
haps there is not a single obligation, moral or divine, but that
he has broken through. It is discovered now, that in his most
early infancy, hell marked him for her own, and infused into
him a full proportion of her diabolical malice.
" His late apostacy is the summit of his character. He began
his negotiations with the enemy, to deliver up West Point to
them, long before he was invested with the command of it, and
whilst he was still in Philadelphia ; after whicn he solicited the
command of that post, for the ostensible reason, that the wound
in his leg incapacitated him from an active command in the field.
It was granted to him on the 6th of August last.
" Since which he has been as assiduous as possible in ripen-
ing his plans, but the various positions the army assumed, pre-
vented their being put into execution.
"On the night of the 21st ultimo, he had an interview with
Major Andre, the Adjutant-General of the British Army. This
gentleman came on shore from the Vulture man-of-war, which
lay not far from Teller's Point, to a place on the banks of the
river, near to the Haverstraw mountain, where he met Arnold,
* " Her husband had been an aid of Braddock, and had been
the companion in arms of General Washington."
17*
198 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
who conducted him to the house of Joshua Smith (the white
house), within our lines, and only two miles from Stony Point.
They arrived in the house just before day, and stayed there until
the next evening, when Major Andre became extremely solicit-
OU8 to return by the way he came, but that was impossible, for
the two men whom Arnold and Smith had seduced to bring on
shore, refused to bring him back. It then was absolutely ne-
cessary he should return to New York by land. He changed his
dress and name, and thus disguised, passed our post of Stony
and Verplank's Points, on the evening of the 22nd ult., in com-
pany with the said Joshua Smith, brother to William Smith,
Esq., Chief Justice within the British lines; he lodged that
night at Crom Pond, with Smith, and in the morning left
Smith, and took the road to Tarry Town, where he was taken
by some militia lads about 15 miles from King's bridge. He
offered them any sum of money, and goods, if they would per-
mit him to escape, but they readily declared and inflexibly ad-
hered to it, that 10,000 guineas, or any other sum, would be no
temptation to them. It was by this virtue, as glorious to Ame
rica as Arnold's apostacy is disgraceful, that his abominable
crimes were discovered.
41 The lads in searching him, found concealed under his stock-
ings, in his boots, papers of the highest importance, viz. : —
" 1. Returns of the ordnance and its distributions at West
Point and its dependencies.
"2. Artillery orders, in case of an alarm.
" 3. Returns of the number of men necessary to man the works
at West Point, and its dependencies.
" 4. Remarks on the works at West Point, with the strength
and working of each.
"5. Returns on the troops at West Point, and their distribu-
tions.
" 6. State of our army, &c, transmitted by General Washing-
ton to Arnold, for his opinion, which state had been submitted
to all the general officers in the camp, for their opinions.
" Besides which it appears, that Arnold had carried with him
to the interview, a general plan of West Point and its vicinity,
and all the works, and also particular plans of each work on a
large scale, all elegantly drawn by the engineer at that post.
PHILIPSTOWN. 199
But these were not delivered to Major Andre, and from their re-
quiring much time to copy, it is supposed they were not to he
delivered until some future period.
" From some circumstances, it appears that it was not Ar-
nold's intention to have deserted, but that he meant to he taken
at his post, which, from his distribution of the troops, it was
very easy to have seized.
" His Excellency, the General, on his return to camp, deter-
mined to visit West Point, and in pursuance of that plan, was
viewing some redoubts which lay in his way to Arnold's quar-
ters. He had sent out servants there, and Major Shaw and Dr.
McHenry had arrived, and were at breakfast with the traitor
when he received intelligence by letter of Andre's being taken.
His confusion was visible, but no person could divine the cause.
He hurried to his barge with the utmost precipitation, after hav-
ing left word that ' he was going over to West Point and should
be back immediately.' This was about ten in the morning of
the 25th ultimo.
" The General proceeded to view the works, wondering where
Arnold should be ; but about 4 o'clock in the afternoon he was
undeceived, by an express with the papers taken on Andre. The
apostate at this time was on board the Vulture, which lay about
five or six miles below Stony and Verplank's Points.
" Major Andre was brought to the General at West Point, and
from thence he was brought to this camp. A board of general
officers have examined into his case, and upon his own most
candid confession, were of opinion that he was a spy, and ac-
cording to the custom and usages of nations, he ought to suffer
death ; and about two hours ago he was executed.
" This gentleman was in the highest degree of reputation in
the British army, of the most polite and accomplished manners,
extremely beloved by Sir Henry Clinton. His deportment while
a prisoner was candid and dignified. He requested no favor, but
to die the death of a soldier, and not on a gibbet. Rigorous policy
forbade granting a favor which at first flash seems immaterial.
Our army sympathizes in the misfortunes of the Chesterfield of
the day. But if he possessed a portion of the blood of all the
Kings on earth, justice and policy would have dictated his death.
200 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" The enemy, from hints that some of the officers dropped, ap-
peared to be inclined to deliver Arnold into our hands for Major
Andre. But they since declared it was impossible. If it could
have been effected, our desire to get Arnold would have rendered
the exchange easy on our part.
" The British army are in the utmost affliction on the account
of Major Andre, and have sent repeated flags on the subject.
Yesterday they sent General Robertson, Andrew Elliot, and Wil-
liam Smith, Esqrs. — the two latter were not permitted to land.
General Green met General Robertson ; he had nothing material
to urge — ' but that Andre had come on shore under the sanction
of a flag, and therefore could not be considered as a spy ;' but
this is not true, for he came at night, had no flag, and on busi-
ness totally incompatible with the nature of a flag. He also
said they should retaliate on some people at New York and
Charlestown ; but he was told that such conversation could
neither be heard nor understood. After which, he urged the re-
lease of Andre on motives of humanity, and because Sir Henry
Clinton was much attached to him ; and reasons equally absurd.
" I have been particular in this narration, well knowing what
strange stories you will have on the subject."
The following is a copy of a letter from Major
Andre to His Excellency Gen. Washington :
" Sir, — Buoyed above the fear of death, by the consciousness
of a life spent in the pursuit of honor, and fully sensible that it
has at no time been stained by any action, which at this serious
moment could give me remorse — I have to solicit your Excellen-
cy, if there is anything in my character which excites your
esteem ; if aught in my circumstances can impress you with
compassion ; that I may be permitted to die the death of a sol-
dier.— It is my last request, and I hope it will be granted.
" I have the honor to be," &c.
" Major Andre's Defence.
"A correspondent of the New York Daily Advertiser, who
seems to be fortunately in the possession of sundry curious old
papers and other memorials of the past, as well as of correspond-
PHILIPSTOWN. 201
ing knowledge and memory, has furnished for the columns of
that paper a document which we do not remember to have ever
seen before — the defence read by Major Andre before the Court
which condemned him to death as a spy. We have no doubt that
it will be read with lively interest by many :
" ' I came,' he said, ' to hold a communication with a general
officer of the American army, by the order of my own comman-
der. I entered the American lines by an unquestionable author-
ity— when I passed from them it was by the same authority. I
used no deception. I had heard that a provincial officer had re-
pented of the course he had taken, and that he avowed that he
never meant to go as far as he had gone, in resisting the author-
ity of his king.
" ' The British commander was willing to extend to him the
King'6 clemency— yea, his bounty — in hopes to allure others to
do the same. I made no plans. I examined no works. I only
received his communications, and was on my way to return to
the army, and to make known all that I had learned from a
general officer in .your camp. Is this the office of a spy! I
never should have acted in that light, and what I have done is
not in the nature of a spy. I have noted neither your strength
nor weakness. If there be wrong in the transaction, it is mine 1
The office of a spy a soldier has the right to refuse ; but, to
carry and fetch communications with another army, I never heard
was criminal. The circumstances which followed after my in-
terview with General Arnold, were not in my power to control.
He alone had the management of them.
• " 'It is said that I rode in disguise. I rode for security incog. ,
as far as I was able, but other than criminal deeds induced me
to do this. I was not bound to wear my uniform any longer
than it was expedient or politic. I scorn the name of a spy;
brand my offence with some other title, if it change not my pun-
ishment, I beseech you. It is not death I fear. I am buoyed
above it by a consciousness of having intended to discharge my
duty in an honorable manner.
" ' Plans, it is said, were found with ine. This is true ; but
they were not mine. Yet I must tell you honestly that they
would have been communicated if I had not been taken. They
202 HISTORY OP PUTNAM COUNTY.
were sent by General Arnold to the British Commander, and I
should have delivered them. From the bottom of my heart I
spurn the thought of attempting to screen myself by criminating
another; but so far as I am concerned, the truth shall be told,
whoever suffers. It was the allegiance of General Arnold I
came out to secure. It was fair to presume that many a brave
officer would be glad at this time to be able to retrace his steps ;
at least, we have been so informed. Shall I, who came out to
negotiate this allegiance only, be treated as one who came to
spy out the weakness of a camp 1 If these actions are alike, I
have to learn my moral code anew.
" ' Gentlemen, officers, be it understood that I am no suppliant
for mercy; that I ask only from Omnipotence — not from human
beings. Justice is all I claim — that justice which is neither
swayed by prejudice, nor distorted by passion, but that which
flows from honorable minds, directed by virtuous determinations.
I hear, gentlemen, that my case is likened to that of Capt. Hale,
1775. I have heard of him and his misfortunes. I wish that
in all that dignifies men, that adorns and elevates human nature,
I could be named with that accomplished but unfortunate officer.
His fate was wayward, and untimely was he cut off, yet younger
than I now am. He went out, knowing that he was assuming
the character of a spy. He took all its liabilities into his hand,
at the request of his great commander. He was ready to meet
what he assumed, and all its consequences. His death the law
of nations sanctioned. It may be complimentary to compare me
with him, still it would be unjust. He took his life in his hand
when he assumed the character and the disguise. I assumed no
disguise, nor took upon myself any other character than that of
a British officer who had business to transact with an American
officer.
" 'In fine, I ask not even for justice ; if you want a victim to
the manes of those fallen untimely, I may as well be that vic-
tim as another. I have, in the most undisguised manner, given
you every fact in the case. I only rely on the proper construc-
tion of those facts. Let me be called anything but a spy. I am
not a spy. I have examined nothing, learned nothing, commu-
nicated nothing, but my detention, to Arnold, that he might
PHILIPSTOWN. 203
escape if he thought proper so to do. This was, as I conceived,
my duty. I hope the gallant officer, who was then unsuspicious
of his general, will not be condemned for the military error he
committed.
" ' I farther state that Smith, who was the medium of communi-
cation, did not know any part of our conference, except that
there was necessity for secrecy. He was counsel in various
matters for General Arnold, and from all the interviews I had
with him ; and it was Smith who lent me this dress-coat of crim-
son, on being told that I did not wish to be known by English
or Americans. I do not believe that he had even a suspicion of
my errand. On me your wrath should fall, if on any one. I
know your affairs look gloomy ; but that is no reason why I
should be sacrificed. My death can do your cause no good. Mil-
lions of friends to your struggle in England, you will lose, if
you condemn me. I say not this by way of threat ; for I know
brave men are hot awed by them — nor will brave men be vin-
dictive because they are desponding. I should not have said a
word had it not been for the opinion of others, which I am bound
to respect.
" ' The sentence you this day pronounce will go down to pos-
terity with exceeding great distinctness on the page of history ;
and if humanity and honor mark this day's decision, your names,
each and all of you, will be remembered by both nations when
they have grown greater and more powerful than they now are.
But, if misfortune befals me, I shall in time have all due honors
paid to my memory. The martyr is kept in remembrance when
the tribunal that condemned him is forgotten. I trust this hon-
orable Court believes me, when I say that what I have spoken
was from no idle fears of a coward. I have done.'"
The following recapitulation of the judgment of
the Court Martial before whom Major Andre was
tried, the order by Washington approving the same,
and directing its execution, is taken from the " Revo-
lutionary Orders " of the Commander-in-Chief, edited
by Henry Whiting, Lieut. Col. U. S. Army, from the
manuscripts of his father, John Whiting, Lieut, and
Adjutant of the 2d Regt. Mass. Line :
204 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" No 80. Head Quarters, Orange Town, October 1st, 1780.
" The Board of General Officers* appointed to examine into
the case of Major Andre, have reported — 1st, That he came on
shore from the Vulture Sloop of War in the night of the 21st of
September last, on an interview with General Arnold, in a pri-
vate and secret manner ; 2ndly, That he changed his dress with-
in our lines, and under a feigned name and disguis'd habit,
pass'd our works at Stoney and Verplank's Points the evening
of the 22nd of September last, and was taken the 23rd of Sep-
tember last, at Tarrytown, in a disguis'd habit, being then on
his way to N. York, and when taken, he had in his possession
several papers which contained intelligence for the Enemy.
" The Board having maturely consider'd those facts, do also
report to his Excellency, General Washington, that Major Andre,
Adjutant-General of the British Army, ought to be considered as
a Spy from the Enemy, and that, agreeably to the law and usage
of Nations, it is their opinion that he ought to suffer death.
The Commander-in-Chief directs the execution of the above sen-
tence, in the usual way, this afternoon, at 5 o'clock."!
Beverly Dock. — This dock was built by Beverly
Robinson, whose christian name it bears, soon after
erecting his mansion. Originally it was about twenty
feet long from east to west, and ten feet wide from
north to south. It is built against the base of a small
rocky promontory projecting in a southerly direction
into the Hudson, between which and the high-grounds
on the east, is a small, narrow swale, covered with
long, rank water-grass. The mountain-road leading
* " The Board referred to consisted of Major-Gen. Greene, as
President, and Major-Generals Marquis La Fayette and Baron
Steuben."
•j- " In the ' After General Orders,' it was announced that ' the
execution of Major Andre is postponed till to-morrow.' In the
1 Evening Orders,' of the same date, it was announced, ' Major
Andre is to be executed to-morrow at 12 o'clock precisely. A
battalion of eighty files from each wing to attend the execution.' "
PHILIPSTOWN. 205
to this dock, alluded to by different writers, com-
mences about fifty rods north of the "Robinson House,"
on the west side of the road, and runs in a south-
westerly direction, crossing the high and rocky grounds
near the river, and descending into the north end ,of
the swale, winds along the eastern base of the rocky
barrier, separating it from the river, to the " Dock."
A section of the Hudson River Railroad is now being
cut through this rocky barrier, nearly grazing the
eastern side of the " Dock." This is " the mountain
road Gen. Washington and his suite were walking up
from Beverly Dock," when General Hamilton met
him, and taking him to one side, briefly informed him
of Arnold's treason, the undoubted evidence of which,
in his own handwriting, had reached " Beverly," that
morning, after Washington's departure to West Point
to see the Traitor.
We have followed the track he is said to have taken
on his departure for the " Dock." About two rods
south of the new corn-house built by Lieut. Arden,
the accomplished and gentlemanly occupant of the
premises, " whence no visiter departs, who can ever
forget the generous Highland welcome," was a gate
leading into the cleared field ; through this Arnold
dashed, and crossing the field in the direction of the
river, he passed through a second gate on its western
side, entering the woods on the brow of a very steep
and abrupt descent, and plunging down it on a gallop,
he came into the mountain-road, a few rods north of
the " Dock." His horse must have been as sure-
footed as that of Putnam's, when he descended the
steep hill at Horse Neck, to have carried him safely to
the bottom.
18
206 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
From this " Dock" Arnold entered his barge and
departed from the Highlands never more to return.
Standing upon the deck of some of the Hudson River
steamers, we have often passed this little spot of revo-
lutionary ground, and witnessed groups of travellers
surveying the eastern shore of the Hudson with the
Traveller's Guide Book in hand, eagerly inquiring,
" Which is the 'Beverly Dock ?' " " Where is the spot
where the Traitor took boat for the Vulture ?"
In a Plymouth paper, in July, 1825, appeared the
following notice of an application for a pension by
one of Arnold's bargemen, detailing the manner of his
departure from the " Beverly Dock," and copied by
the Hon. S. W. Eager, in his History of Orange
County, from which we extract it :
"Application was made this week in this town for assistance
in making out the necessary documents for a pension hy one of
the bargemen in the barge that conveyed Gen. Arnold to the
sloop of war Vulture. He was bow-oarsman in the boat, next
in rank to the coxswain, whose name was James Larvey. His
memory is remarkably accurate, and his veracity is unquestion-
able. He is a brother to Mr. James Collins of this town. The
day before the flight of Arnold, he brought him with Major An-
dre, from Lawyer Smith's, below Stony Point, to the General's
head qnarters. They conversed very little during the passage.
The General told his aid, who was at the landing when they
arrived, that he had brought up a relation of his wife. Arnold
kept one of his horses constantly caparisoned at the door of his
quarters, and the next morning soon after breakfast he rode down
in great haste with the coxswain just behind him on foot. The
coxswain cried out to the bargemen to come out from their quar-
ters, which were hard-by, and the General dashed down the foot-
path, instead of taking a circuit, the usual one for those who
were mounted. The barge was soon made ready, though the
General, in his impatience, repeatedly ordered the bow-man to
PHILIPSTOWN. 207
push off, before all the men had mustered. The saddle and hol-
sters were taken on board the barge, and Arnold, immediately
after they had pushed off, wiped the priming from the pistols,
and primed anew, cocked and half-cocked them repeatedly. He
inquired of Collins if the men had their arms, and was told that
the men came in such haste, that there were but two swords be-
longing to himself and the coxswain. They ought to have
brought their arms, he said. He tied a white handkerchief to
the end of his cane for a flag in passing the forts. On arriving
alongside of the Vulture he took it off and wiped his face. The
General had been down in the cabin about an hour when the
coxswain was sent for, and by the significant look and laughing
of the officers, the men in the barge began to be very apprehen-
sive that all was not right. He very soon returned, and told them
that they were all prisoners of war. The bargemen were un-
moved and submitted, as to the fortune of war, except two Eng-
lishmen, who had deserted, and who were much terrified, and
wept.
" The bargemen were promised good fare if they would enter
on board the Vulture, but they declined and were handcuffed, and
so remained for four days. Gen. Arnold then sent for them at
New York. In passing from the wharf to his headquarters, the
two Englishmen slipped aboard a letter of marque, then nearly
ready to sail. The others, five in number, waited on Arnold,
who told them they had always been attentive and faithful, and
he expected they would stay with him. He had, he said, com-
mand of a regiment of horse, and Larvey, you and Collins may
have commissions, and the rest shall be non-commissioned offi-
cers. Larvey answered that he could not be contented — he
would rather be a soldier where he was contented, than an officer
where he was not. The others expressed or manifested their
concurrence in Larvey's opinion. He then gave the coxswain a
guinea, and told them they should be sent back. At midnight
they were conveyed to the Vulture, and next day sent on shore.
This worthy and intelligent applicant perfectly remembers Major
Andre's dress, when they took him up in the barge, from Smith's
house to Arnold's quarters — blue homespun stockings — a pair of
wrinkled boots, not lately brushed — blue cloth breeches, tied at
208 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTF.
the knee with strings — waistcoat of the same — blue surtout, but-
toned by a single button — black silk handkerchief once round
the neck and tied in front, with the ends under the waistcoat, and
a flapped hat."
It was in the beginning of August, 1780, that
Arnold arrived at West Point, and established his
head-quarters at the " Robinson House." Washington
arrived there about the middle of September, and tar-
ried a few days inspecting the posts, while the Vulture
lay at anchor in the river below. In crossing one
of the femes with Washington and his Staff, the ves-
sel was seen at a distance, having on board, as Ar-
nold well knew, Colonel Robinson, sent by Sir Henry
Clinton to meet him. Washington watched the vessel
with his glass, whilst Lafayette jocularly remarked,
that Arnold ought to find out what had become of the
expected naval reinforcements from France, as he had
convenient modes of intercourse with the enemy. For
a moment Arnold lost his presence of mind, and made
a reply, the intemperance of which might have roused
suspicions of any other man. But Washington enter-
tained none, and the matter dropped. The next day
(19th September) Washington continued his journey
to Hartford, and Arnold was left to his unimpeded
work of villany. His first step was to advise Sir
Henry Clinton that he would be in attendance under
due precautions, the next day, near Dobb's Ferry,
ready to meet his messenger. The following hurried
letter to a forage agent in the neighborhood, has never
before been published, and bears date the day that
Washington and Arnold parted. The autograph indi-
cates hurry and agitation :
PHILIPSTOWN. 209
" To Mr. Jefferson, Fredericksburg, N. Y.
"Headquarters, Rob. House, September 19th, 1780.
" Sir — You will please to pick out of the horses you have now
in your custody, or which you may hereafter receive, a pair of
the best wagon horses, as also two of the very best saddle horses
you can find for my use. You'll send them to me as soon as
possible.
" I am, Sir, your most obedient servant,
"B. Arnold, M. General.'1*
REVOLUTIONARY HOUSES STILL STANDING.
1. The " Robinson House" built by Col. Beverly
Robinson, now owned by Richard D. Arden, Esq.
In the Revolution, it was the Head Quarters of
Arnold, Gen. Heath, and others who had charge of
West Point and its out-posts.
2. The old house now occupied by George Haight,
about one mile south-east of Philips' paper-mill, on the
road leading from John Garrison's to the Peekskill
turnpike, near Henry Croft's. It was built by Daniel
Haight, father of the present occupant.
3. The old house where Cornelius Haight now lives,
on the old post-road, about a mile south of Nelson's
mill. It was built by John Rogers, and occupied by
him during the French and Revolutionary war.
4. The house where James Croft now lives. It
was occupied in the Revolution by James Croft,
father of Henry Croft, Esq.
5. The old house now occupied by Edward Hop-
per. It was built in 1772, by Richard, father to the
present Edward Hopper, and occupied by him during
the Revolution.
* The original of this letter is in possession of Edward D. In-
graham, Esq., of Philadelphia.
18*
210 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
6. The old house now occupied by John Mills
Brown, on the old road leading from Continental Vil-
lage to Bross's Landing, about one fourth of a mile
below the mansion house of the Hon. John Garrison.
7. The old house now occupied by John Hopper,
on the old post-road, on the hill south of Nelson's
mill. It was occupied during the Revolution, by
Samuel Warren, grandfather of the Hon. Cornelius and
Sylvanus Warren.
8. The old house now occupied and owned by John
Griffin, Esq., about three miles from Cold Spring, on
the turnpike leading to Mill Town. It was built by
Gilbert Budd, who lived there in 1750, and during the
Revolution.
9. The old house where Thomas Jaycox recently
lived, on the turnpike about two miles east of John
Griffin's tavern. It was owned by James Jaycox.
10. The house now occupied by the widow Miller.
In the Revolution, it was occupied by Isaac Garrison.
11. The old house where Jacob Denike lives. It
was then occupied by Jacob Denike, deceased.
SILVER AND LEAD MINES.
By the mouth of tradition, it is asserted that a silver
mine was discovered in this town, as far back as 1763.
A man by the name of Jubar, coined money ; and it
began to be rumored, that he obtained the ore in this
town. An examination was set on foot by the King's
government and the fact established, that the money
coined by Jubar contained silver, mixed with other
metals, but not in sufficient quantity to deceive a
practised eye. If he had discovered a mine in this
town, in which silver was mixed with other metals, its
PHILIPSTOWN. 211
location was never known, but tradition places' it in
the neighborhood of the Sunk Lot. He was arrested
by order of the Colonial Government, tried at Pough-
keepsie, found guilt/, and hung about the year 1765.
A man by the name of Samuel Taylor, was associa-
ted with him ; and on the arrest of Jubar, left this
part of the country. He returned in the Revolution,
or shortly after its close, became poor, and died " on
the town." He always said that Jubar melted an ore,
from which he extracted silver.
According to tradition, the next discovery of a
silver mine in this town, was made three or four years
before the Revolution, by one Eleazer Gray, a sil-
versmith by trade, who lived in the middle of the
Sunk Lot. His father, John Gray, had a grist-
mill in the Revolution, a short distance above Bun-
ell's forge on the Sunk Lot. Eleazer put up a log
shop to work the ore in. Squire Peterson and Bev-
erly Robinson, hearing that the younger Gray had
discovered a silver mine and was melting ore, went to
his house for the purpose of ascertaining the truth of
the reports. .Robinson, who was somewhat inclined
to believe that he had discovered a mine, said to him,
" Gray put up a shop by your house, and not work
underhanded in the swamps, and you may have all
the profits of it." But no bribe could tempt him to
reveal what he professed to know respecting the
mine.
In 1780, Edward Hopper, now living, went to John
Gray's mill to get some grain ground. Gray told him
that the water was low, and if he could wait till near
night, he would then be able to grind his grain. Gray
had a younger son than Eleazer, by the name of John,
212 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
who proposed to Hopper to go, in the meantime, to
the brook above and catch a mess of trout. The
water being low, they could catch them with their
hands. They left the mill and went a mile, and
when near a swamp, young Gray said to Hopper,
" Did you ever hear anything of Eleazer's mine ?"
" Yes," replied Hopper. " We are close to it now,"
continued Gray. They came to a spot where a con-
siderable quantity of rocks had been blown out. Mr.
Hopper, now a very old man, says that there was a
ledge of rocks a little west of the place, and a spring
of water a few rods south of it. While loitering
there, young Gray said to Hopper, " This is the best
ore Eleazer ever found." Eight or nine years after-
wards Mr. Hopper visited the same spot, and found
that the blasted rocks had been removed, and the evi-
dence thereof carefully covered up.
Towards the latter part of the Revolution the
Grays, in consequence ,of a parcel of horse-thieves
having been seen at their residence, became sus-
pected, and it was thought they were leagued with
those midnight desperadoes. Their counterfeiting
operations had leaked out and gave them an unenvia-
ble notoriety.
Their neighbors burnt their house, shop, and barn
down with the view of inducing them to quit that
part of the country.
They then moved down to where James Croft now
lives. Shortly afterwards the whole family moved
down to Sugar Loaf, in Orange county, where the
elder Gray, and his son Eleazer, died.
About the year 1800, a man by the name of Henry
Holmes was arrested for counterfeiting metal money
PHILIPSTOWN. 213
in this town. It is said that he carried on his opera-
tions in a cave or hole in the rocks near, or in the
vicinity of the residence of Richard Denny. Holmes
was from Westchester county, and is supposed to
have had an accomplice who assisted him. His
money contained so little of the precious metals, that
the counterfeit was apparent to the most ordinary
business man ; and when it was thrown against a hard
body would break with the facility of a pipe-stem.
Holmes was tried, found guilty, and sentenced to
fhe State Prison for seven years. His supposed ac-
complice, who made his moulds, was acquitted in
consequence of an informality in the indictment.
In 1812, Joseph Parks, Pelick Wixon, and Nathan-
iel Tompkins, it is said, while engaged in making the
Cold Spring turnpike discovered a lead mine, along
the route of the road. They all went before Doctor
Baily, a magistrate, by previous agreement, and made
oath that neither of them would reveal the location
of the mine while two of the three should be living.
Parks, at that time, was overseer of the road. After
the road was built he went to New Orleans, built a
turnpike there, and returned to the city of New York,
where he died. Tompkins and Parks then sent John
Baily, a son of the Doctor, and the Magistrate before
whom they mutually made oath, to buy the land.
The price was agreed upon between the owner and
young Baily ; but when the deed was made out, it
contained a reservation of all mines and minerals on
the land to be conveyed, and the deed was refused.
214 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
THE TRIAL OF GEORGE DENNY,
Convicted of the murder of Abraham Wanzer, at the May term
of the Putnam Oyer and Terminer in 1844 ; and his confession
made to Benjamin Baily, Esq., his counsel.
" At the October Term of 1843, George Denny, whom it was
said was nearly eighteen years of age, but whose appearance
denoted him to be much younger, was placed on his trial, charged
with the murder of Abraham Wanzer, an old man, nearly eighty
years of age, to which he pleaded not guilty. The evidence,
which was similar to that given on the recent trial, it appears
was not satisfactory to the jury, who were discharged, being un-
able to agree. He was remanded to prison, and at the May
Term of said court in 1844, was again put on his trial for the
same charge — the Hon. Amassa J. Parktr, Judge of the Third
Circuit, presiding.
" It was shown on the part of the people by the widow of
Mr. Wanzer, that the deceased lived in a retired part of Philips-
town, in said county, in a small log-house, on a little spot of
ground, which he cultivated — that about a year before the death
of deceased, the prisoner returned a key which he acknowledged
he had stolen from him — that deceased advised him to be a good
boy, and never again be guilty of such a foolish transaction — that
on the evening of the ninth of October, 1843, about eleven
o'clock, some one raised the latch of their door ; she enquired who
was there ? and was answered a friend ; she wished to know
what a friend wanted at that time of night, and was replied to that
he wished to stay all night ; that from the sound of his voice he
appeared to be receding from their door during the conversation
— that on the next morning, the 10th, she discovered that some
one had laid in their barn the night previous — that she thought
at the time, and also remarked to her husband, it was the priso-
ner— that at intervals during the day, she heard the report of
guns in the neighborhood of their house — that about seven
o'clock the same evening, something like the gnawing of a dog,
was heard at their door — the deceased opened the door, and
called his little grand-daughter to know if it was not a neigh-
PHILIPSTOWN. 215
bor's dog — she replied no, it was a black-back dog with short
legs — that some one whistled, the dog left, and the deceased re-
sumed his seat — that shortly after, something struck the end of
their house, as if a stone had been thrown — that her husband
went to ascertain the cause. In a few moments she heard the re-
port of a gun ; and on going into their yard found deceased lying
on his back dead, and that immediately, with her two little grand-
daughters, she proceeded to the nearest neighbor, and gave the
alarm.
"The eldest of the two grand-daughters corroborated the
testimony of Mrs. Wanzer in the main ; and on producing the
dog of the prisoner in court, she said that it was the same she
saw in front of their door on the evening of the death of her'
grandfather.
" Wm. W. Johnson testified that he was a surgeon, that he
examined the body of the deceased — that he found a wound in
the left side, near the heart — that there were twenty-seven shot
holes, and one bullet hole within a space of two inches diameter
— that he extracted from the body two sizes of shot and one ball,
corresponding in size and weight with balls handed to him by
Francis Booth, which witness produced in court.
" Abraham Knapp testified that he was a brother-in-law of
the prisoner ; that on the morning of the ninth of October, 1843,
the prisoner loaned his two-barrel gun, the dog produced in
court, together with a shot bag and powder-horn, for the purpose,
as prisoner said, of hunting — that he, witness, cast some balls
the spring previous, in a mould which witness got of his father
— that some of the balls were in his house a short time before
the murder, that prisoner was in the habit of staying at witness's
house, and had access to the balls — and that he lived about nine
miles from the residence of deceased.
" Lemuel Wixon testified that he, in company with Francis
Booth, on the 11th of October, 1843, arrested the prisoner near
Abraham Knapp's house, that they found with him the dog in
court, a two-barrel gun, and a shot bag, but no powder-horn or
balls — that there were three kinds of shot in his possession, and
that the prisoner did not manifest any fears, and made no re-
sistance.
216 HISTORY OP PUTNAM COUNTY.
" Francis Booth corroborated Wixon, and further testified that
he loaned the bullet moulds produced in court, of Abraham
Knapp's father, and that he cast the balls he gave to Dr. Johnson
in said moulds.
" Thomas Davenport testified that he accompanied the pri-
soner after his examination to the County jail, that on their way
prisoner pointed out a stump about three miles from deceased's,
and said that he shot at it on the day that Wanzer was killed in
the evening— that he, witness, afterwards found three kinds of
6hot in said stump, but no ball.
" Marvin Wilson testified that in searching in an oat field on
the east and adjoining the premises of deceased, about a week
after his death, he discovered tracks made as if by some person
in the act of running from deceased's house, that he took mea-
sures to preserve them — that within five or six days he visited
the jail and found the prisoner's boots and compared them with
the tracks — that the boots were rights and lefts — that the heel
of the left one was worn off on the inside — that he compared
them with the tracks and they precisely fitted, and that the
tracks led in the direction of a crossing place over the creek in a
path leading from the deceased's to the Turnpike.
"John Garrison testified that on the day of deceased's death,
he saw a person about three miles east of his house, near the
Turnpike, going into the woods, dressed as the witnesses de-
scribed the prisoner to have been at the time of his arrest, and
having with him a double barrel gun and a little dog.
" Mary Denny testified that on the evening of deceased's
death she heard the report of a gun ; she lived about half a mile
east from his residence ; that after she had retired to rest, her dog
barked, and on looking out of the window she saw a person
passing east on the Turnpike with something like a staff or gun,
and as she also thought a dog, and dressed similar to the pri-
soner at the time of his arrest.
" Paulina Conklin testified that on the day prisoner was ar-
rested she saw him pass her house in the afternoon, going east-
erly. Witness lived a little over three miles east from the de-
ceased's.
" Joseph Derbyshire testified that three years before the pri-
PHILIPSTOWN. 217
soner told him there were three or four he wanted to shoot, and
if Mr. Wanzer did not hush up about the key he would be the
first. Witness admitted he had had a difference with prisoner.
" Peter Vantassel heard prisoner say he would have a drop of
Wanzer's heart's-blobd, but could not tell when he heard it.
" John A. Miller heard prisoner say the spring before, when
asked if he had returned the key, that he would fix Wanzer yet.
" Richard Laforce testified that about a month before the
death of deceased he was confined with prisoner in Poughkeepsie
jail — that prisoner said they had put him there for no good — that
he was studying deviltry, and that when he got out there were
three or four he meant to shoot. Witness claimed that he was
confined for stealing honey in connection with prisoner, but that
he was innocent.
^' Here the testimony on the part of the people closed. For
the following remarks as to the defence, the summing up of
Counsel, the charge of the Court, and sentence of the prisoner,
the writer is indebted to a friend, as he was not in a situation to
report proceedings.
" The prisoner proved in his defence that a person having a
gun and small black dog, and dressed similar to himself, but be-
ing a somewhat larger person, was seen on Tuesday morning
10th October, a little distance east of Cold Spring, going easterly
towards Wanzer's.
" He also showed that a neighbor was at Wanzer's house
about sunset on that evening with a gun.
" He proved also, that he stated to a person, before he was
arrested, he had been lost in the woods two or three days, with-
out anything but chestnuts or grapes to eat, that he was not
afraid, and that he was going to take the gun to Abraham
Knapp's. He also proved that he was in the habit of going fre-
quently two or three days without eating much of anything.
He also showed by the witnesses for the prosecution that he
made no attempt to escape or resist when he was arrested ; and
on this defence rested his case.
" The evidence was conducted on both sides throughout the
whole examination with the greatest perseverance and faithful-
ness.
19
218 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" The summing up was commenced by Benjamin Baily, coun-
sel for the prisoner, who in a clear and masterly speech of an
hour and three-quarters, discharged his duty in behalf of the
prisoner, in a most able, affecting, and faithful manner.
" Frederick Stone, District Attorney, spoke on the part of the
prosecution about an hour, briefly illustrating and presenting to
the Jury the most material points of evidence against the pri-
soner. He was followed by Thomas R. Lee, counsel for the pri-
soner, who, in an able and indefatigable speech of three hours'
length, reviewed all the evidence and showed with much clear-
ness the great hazard of relying upon circumstantial evidence,
which is generally more or less casual and perfidious.
" William Nelson, Counsel on the part of the People, then
closed the summing up of the cause, in a forcible and ingenious
speech of two hours' and three-quarters length.
" His Honor, Judge Parker charged the jury in a very able
and eloquent manner, clearly presenting to their view all the
most prominent and material points of the evidence given on the
trial, which were calculated, either to criminate or to show the
nnocence of the prisoner.
" After receiving their charge, which occupied about an hour,
the jury retired to their room, and in about four hours returned
with a verdict of guilty.
" On the last day of term the prisoner was brought in Court
to hear his sentence. The Court ordered him to stand up, and
asked him if he had anything to say why sentence should not
be passed upon him.
"He replied that he had nothing to say.
" The Court then said to him, they must proceed to perform
the most painful duty required by law — tjiat he had had a fair
and impartial trial — that the counsel who were engaged for him,
had defended his cause with the greatest care and faithfulness,
which was creditable to themselves and honorable to their pro-
fession— that there was no doubt of his guilt — that the evidence
clearly established it, and that a jury had pronounced him guilty
— that Abraham Wanzer, a peaceable citizen, living with his
family in a retired spot, without a known enemy, respected by
all who knew him, and advanced in old age, was called from his
PHILJPSTOWN. 219
dwelling and shot without the least provocation — that such an
act was sufficient to bring down the just indignation of every
citizen upon the perpetrator of the deed — that it was their duty
to search out the offender and inflict the full penalty of the law
upon the wretch who could thus deliberately take the life of an
inoffensive fellow-being — that it was extremely painful and
grievous to see the great indifference and unconcern which he
had manifested throughout the whole course of his imprisonment
and trials — that owing to his age and condition the Court would
give him the longest time before his execution, that the law
would allow in his sentence — that he ought to take the whole
time to reflect, and prepare himself for the judgment of another
world — that there was an All-Seeing eye who saw him commit
the deed — that he must not entertain any hopes of a pardon —
that he ought to make a full confession of his guilt, as this was
the first step towards repentance — that he ought sincerely to re-
pent and prepare for the awful change that so soon awaited him
— that he might yet find pardon before the Judge of a higher
world.
;- With these remarks, which from recollection we have briefly
attempted to sketch, the Court sentenced him to be hanged by the
neck on the 26th day of July next, between 5 o'clock A. M. and
7 o'clock P. M., until dead."
"CONFESSION OF GEORGE DENNY.
" To the Hon. Amasa J. Parker,
" Dear Sir : — A few days after the sentence of the above
named most singular and unfortunate individual, I had an inter-
view with him. I found him engaged in reading his Bible.
Having said that I was pleased to see him endeavoring to pre-
pare for the awful doom which awaited him, and from which I
presumed there was not the most distant hope of escaping, I re-
quested him, as one who had taken a strong interest in his favor
up to the time of his conviction, and who desired to lend his best
efforts towards ensuring him peace in his last moments, to frankly
and fully give me the history of himself, and especially of his par-
ticipation in the crime of which he stood convicted. As I antici-
pated, he declined. After conversing with him somewhat fur
220 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ther, he requested me to explain the meaning of the 22d verse of
the 14th chapter of Romans. I gave it as my opinion that the
passage to which he referred me was no obstacle to a confession ;
and if he desired to place himself in a situation to understand
what he read, it would be necessary for him to free his mind of
the heavy burden, which I had every reason to believe was rest-
ing upon it, by giving a full and perfect statement of the whole
transaction. He at length consented, and gave it as follows :
" I am about 18 years of age ; I was born in Putnam County.
My mother died when I was an infant, as I am informed, insane.
My father abandoned his wife and children a short time before
my birth, unprovided for and unprotected. When I arrived to the
age of eight years he returned and took with him my sister and
myself to the State of Michigan, where we remained about one
year, during which time he was convicted and sentenced to pri-
son for two years, for robbing a store. He made his escape by
digging under the walls, and returned to his suffering children.
Within a few days he was retaken and imprisoned. My Sister
about fourteen, and myself about eight years of age, without
friends or necessary means, after many hardships, returned to my
grandfather's in this county. That sister, from my infancy up
to this moment, has been my warmest, and I can almost say my
only friend, she has often given me good advice, and it is my
earnest prayer that she may yet be rewarded. Here I would say
to parents, and to all who have the charge of children, cultivate
in them habits of industry and honesty, as I have every reason
to believe, if my mind had been turned into the proper channel in
my infancy, I should not be where I am. Two or three years
after our return from Michigan, my father visited us and re-
mained about one month. His mind appeared to have undergone
a sad change since we had last seen him. He published a pam-
phlet founded on the book of Revelations, in which he repre-
sented himself as Jesus Christ. I recollect of his saying to my
grandfather one day, that Buffalo was the promised land — that
he should assemble all the people there, and amongst the number
the Queen of England. I stepped up and told him he was a
damned fool. He became very much enraged and pursued me
out of the meadow, but I got out of his reach. The first inquiry
PHILIPSTOWN. 221
he made of me was, ' George, are you old enough to handle the
sword V He left, and we have never heard from him since.
"During the time I lived with my grandfather I had an op-
portunity to attend school, but having the privilege of doing as I
pleased I seldom attended — my attendance at church came under
the above rule. My grandmother indulged me in every evil
habit, and my education in consequence is very limited. I can
make out to read by spelling some of the words, but cannot
write. When I pilfered money from my grandfather, which was
not unusual, I was sure to find protection by appealing to my
grandmother. With the boys of the neighborhood 1 bore the ap-
pellation of 'the cunning little thief,1 and many times have I been
reproached and called a fool by some of my relations for ac-
knowledging my thefts, which was usually the case if I was
accused. With the exception of some trifles, and the money I
took from my grandfather and Mr. Wanzefs key, the first I ever
stole was §4,75, from Andrew Millers trunk, which I opened
with Mr. Wanzer's key. I went on from one petty theft to
another until I was compelled to leave my grandfather's for fear
of an arrest, when I found my way to Shanandoah in the town
of Fishkill. I remained there the better part of a year, sleeping
in the barns, woods, and coal cabins of the neighborhood, until
I was arrested in connection with Richard Laforce for stealing
honey, and confined in Poughkeepsie jail. In justice to Richard
Laforce I will take the first opportunity to state that he told the
truth in his testimony, and that he was not concerned with me
in taking the honey. After my discharge from Poughkeepsie
jail I returned to Shanandoah.
" On Monday morning, the 9th of October, 1843, I took Mr.
Knapp's gun, dog, and ammunition, with five or six balls from
the same mould produced on my trial, which I had before
secured, and went into the woods with the intention of shooting
partridges. When I left Mr. Knapp's I did not think of Mr.
Wanzer, nor had any intention of going there. I strolled through
the woods on that day, until I reached the Cold Spring Turn-
pike, passing by Henry Concklin's on my way down, but they
did not observe me. I shot at the stump I showed Esqr. Daven-
port with both barrels of my gun on Monday. I followed the
19*
222
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Turnpike until I reached Thomas Jaycox's. My thoughts at this
time were very singular, and I suppose to many incredible, a
partial description of which I will give in another place. I
went to Benjamin Foreman's barn a little after dark, and slept
there till, as I should judge, about eleven o'clock at night.
There was something laying heavily on my mind. I wanted to do
something, I could not tell what. I almost unconsciously left the
barn, took a road leading to Isaac Jaycox's, and thence the road
leading to Mr. Wanzev's. I went to his door and made a noise
— took hold of the string and raised the latch. Mrs. Wanzer
asked who was there ? I answered a friend. She inquired what
a friend wanted that time of night ? I answered to stay all night.
I walked away from the door, and laid my hat under a peach tree,
about two rods distant. I stood there about five minutes, with
my gun cocked and pointed towards the door, intending to shoot
him if he opened it. He did not make his appearance, and I
retired to his barn and slept there till sunrise the next morn-
ing, when I went into the bushes and continued firing my gun
at intervals in the neighborhood of his house all the day on
Tuesday • once I shot at Mr. Wanzer's fowls. He was at work
in his garden and buckwheat the most of the day. At one
time I lay within thirty yards of him, with my gun pointed
towards him, and said to myself, ' how I will pop him over to-
night.' The family all went away at one time, and I took a
circuitous route, thinking to go in the house, but on reflection
the thought occurred to me, that they might return and find me
there. I indulged the hope that Wanzer would come in the
bushes, and I would shoot him there. As, soon as it was dark
I went to his barn and thence to his dirt cellar, and then stood
with my gun ready, thinking he would come out. He did come
around the corner of his house but went in again immediately.
I then went in front of the house, took off my hat and laid it
under the same peach tree where I laid it the night before. I
whistled to induce Wanzer to come to the door, but he did not
come. I went up to the house and looked in at the window ad-
joining the road. As I looked in, some of the family said,
'hark.' Mr. Wanzer's gun stood up against the wall, he took
it in his hand and went to the door. I stood ready to shoot him
if he came to the corner of the house. I trembled very much all
PHILIPSTOWN. 223
the time I was there. From thence I went by the dirt cellar
into the road and put my gun through the fence. I stepped into
the middle of the road, got a stone and threw it against the
house. Within a minute after I saw Mr. Wanzer coming down
the path with his gun in his arms. ' He came within a rod
and a half of where I lay. My feelings were such that I
did not take particular aim. I fired, intending to hit him in
the breast, he sprung up, threw back his head, gave a loud
groan, and fell apparently without bending, wheeling around
at the same time. I then ran into the bushes and whistled for
my dog eight or nine times — my dog followed, and I went on
through the bushes. I did not go' through the oat field — I did
not make the tracks Esqr. Wilson testified to. After a little
time I stopped to think, and O ! how bitterly I regretted that I
had shot Mr. Wanzer. I said aloud, 'How the devil will tempt
any one, but he shall never tempt me to do the like again ; I will
get my living hereafter by honest industry or die !' I felt ex-
ceedingly dizzy, and did not know what to do. I loaded my
gun, but could not recollect immediately after how it was
charged. I then drew off the charge and reloaded it, to be certain
it would go. I started and ran again, with such feelings as I
cannot describe, until I came to a brook, which was running very
rapid. Again I stopped to reflect — putting my hand on my head,
I discovered my hat was gone. I involuntarily cried out, 'What
have I done !' I made a struggle to collect my thoughts — at
length it occurred to me that my hat was under the peach tree in
front of the house. I thought it would betray me. I went up to
the road Ino, my dog, ran up in the woods and barked : he
was on the track of something. I said, ' That dog means to be-
tray me yet.' When he returned I drew up my gun to shoot
him, when the thought struck me that I should be heard. I
mashed liim down with my hand, and sat down and listened. I
pulled of my boots — left them in the road — took a circuitous route,
and got my hat from under the peach tree. No one was at the
house — the place was awfully still and solemn. I went on
the road towards Isaac Jaycox's some distance, turned up in the
woods on a side hill, and laid down all of an hour and a half.
While laying there my dog went away. I had not proceeded far
224 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
from that spot, when on feeling my pocket, I discovered that my
powder-horn was gone. I went hack to search for the powder-
horn, hut could not find the place where I had lain. Whilst
searching for the horn, my dog met me. Returning to the place
where I left my hoots, and putting them on, I followed the road
towards Isaac Jaycox's a quarter of a mile, when I struck off in
a southerly direction, expecting to come out in Isaac Jaycox's
open fields, but came out by Samuel Denny's, the husband of
Mary Denny, on the turnpike. Then I knew where I was. I
passed by Samuel Denny's, but it was all of two hours after I
shot Mr. Wanzer. I made an attempt to get in Joseph Ferris'
barn, but failed. Leaving Mr. Ferris' barn, I followed the turn-
pike to Thomas Jaycox's— took his buffalo skin, blanket, and
whip from his barn, and lay in the woods till the sun was three-
quarters of an hour high the next morning. Then taking a
southerly course, I had not proceeded far when I was induced to
stop for fear of wetting my gun, as the leaves were very damp.
Shortly after I heard a rustling in the bushes behind me, and sup-
posing it might be some one in pursuit, I proceeded on. I lay in
sight of Andrew Miller's house some time. Whilst there, Dan-
iel Ferris' boy rode up to Miller's on a horse, and told Mrs. Miller
that Uncle Wanzer was shot the night before, and that they sus-
picioned little George Denny. My object in laying there was
to get an opportunity to get something to eat, and to get what
money I could find. What Daniel Ferris' boy said frightened me.
I then went south, below John Brower's, and crossed the road-
went into Joseph Ferris' woods, and turned my course for Shan-
andoah. As I was going up I heard a wagon coming, and dis-
covered that Andrew Miller and Rufus Gillet were drawing cord-
wood, but by stepping a little one side, they did not observe me.
A little further on, I got some apples off a tree— went across
Forge Hill, and came into the turnpike a little west of Henry
Concklin's, and following the turnpike till I came to a cross road,
which I took. I came out by Elijah Horton's. I talked with
Elijah Horton. He took my gun and discharged it. I had con-
versation with Benjamin Mulcox— he told me that Wanzer was
shot the night before in his left side. He intimated that I was
suspicioned. A short distance from Mulcox, Wixon and Booth
arrested me. They said George, is this you 1 Booth looked at
PHILIPSTOWN. 225
my gun to see if it was loaded. I told him it was not. They
slapped their hands on my shoulders and said, 'You are our
prisoner.' I asked them what they meant. Booth said, you are
a good-for-nothing murderer. I answered that I had not shot
any man. They then took me to Wixon's, and thence to Wan-
zer's. As to my motive in going to Wanzer's, I do not know
what to say. When I came to Thomas Jaycox's on Monday,
many thoughts crossed my mind. At one time I thought of go-
ing to John Brower's, about three miles south-east from Wan-
zer's, to kill him and his family — to rob the house, and set it on
fire. I thought that Rufus Gillet lived close by, and he would
detect me. I also thought of robbing Uncle Joseph Ferris' house,
and of killing him and his family ; but I said some one lived
with him, and I might be detected. I turned from these thoughts.
I also thought at one time I would kill Wanzer, his wife, and
children — drag them in the house, and set it on fire ; but I have
doubts whether I was sincere in my reflections to their fullest
extent, as, after I had killed Wanzer, I thought no more of his
wife or his children. As to the witnesses who testified against
me, I have no other desire than to corroborate them all, so far as
they have stated correctly, or as far as their testimony related to
me. Peter Vantasel, who was the most suspicioned, as near as
I can recollect, told the truth. I do not recollect of telling Der-
byshire that ' I wanted to shoot three or four, and if Uncle Wan-
zer did not hush up about the key, he would be the first one.'
I told Derbyshire when I bought his gun, that the money I paid
him I took from Andrew Millef s trunk, and he promised not to
divulge it. I have no recollection of saying to John A. Miller,
'I would fix Uncle Wanzer yet.' John Garrison's testimony had
no reference to me; he did not see me. I was but a short dis-
tance from Wanzer's house all the day on Tuesday. There
were but two kinds of shot in my gun, beside the ball, when I
shot Wanzer. I picked the smaller size out when I charged it.
And I now solemnly assert, that I had no bitter feelings against
Mr. Wanzer at that time ; and possess none now against any
individual. I do not fear death, but I cannot say how much my
mind may change as the hour approaches, and I still have a de-
sire to live as long as I can."
226 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" Here closed his statement, the narration of which in his sim-
ple, but I am satisfied candid manner, occupied the space of three
hours. Discovering probably that I was anxious to leave, after
he had concluded his confession, he begged of me not to be im-
patient, but to remain with him a little longer. I assented. He
read the 2d chapter of James, and requested me to explain the
13th verse. I replied that there were several clergymen resid-
ing in and near the village, and if he desired it, I would give
them a general invitation to visit him, with which he appeared
satisfied. Here I took my leave, not, however, without promis-
ing, at his solicitation, to visit him frequently during the short
period allotted for his existence.
" Carmel, June 4, 1844."
REVOLUTIONARY ANECDOTES, REMINISCENCES, ETC.
During the year 1779 and '80, Washington fre-
quently crossed the Hudson from West Point, in-
specting its outposts, and visiting the eastern States.
Daniel Haight, deceased, kept a tavern in the old
house, now occupied by one of his sons, on the cross-
road, north of Judge Garrison's mansion, leading to
the Peekskill and Cold Spring turnpike, at Henry
Croft's house. The Commander-in-Chief was in the
habit of stopping at "Haight's tavern," to rest himself
and suite, in passing to and from Continental Village
and the eastern States. It is well known that he was
of a contemplative turn of mind, of few words, and
not given to " much speaki?ig." Mr. Haight, in speak-
ing of him, long after the war had closed, and long,
too, after the " Father of his country" had been
"gathered to his fathers," often remarked about the
silent, meditative mood evinced by him while at his
house. He said he never knew Washington to com-
mence a conversation unless spoken to, or he desired
PHILIPSTOWN. 227
something to be brought to him. He called at Haight's
house one day in the fall of 1780, and as he entered
the house, the servant girl ran up the stairs, and when
half way up, fell ; Washington broke into a hearty
laugh, and turning round, said to the host, " It is the
first time I ever saw a person fall up stairs." After
he had departed, Haight remarked to his family that
it was " the first time that he had ever seen the Com-
mander-in-Chief laugh ;" and since that time, he has
said, "that it was the last."
James Croft, the father of Henry and Stephen
Croft, Esqs., was an enlisted soldier in the Revolution.
He was attached to the northern army, and after the
surrender of Burgoyne, was discharged. While re-
turning to his home, near, or at Continental Village,
he stopped on the west side of the Hudson, near
Kingston, where some British officers where enlisting
men for their army. They wanted Croft to enlist, but
he promptly refused. On pretence of shaking hands
with him as he was about to depart, one of the officers
dropped a gold piece in his hand, and then said to him
that he had had the King's money, and " he'd be
damned if he shouldn't enlist," or pay a fine. Croft
steadily refused to do either, and told the officer that
when he enlisted again, it would " be in the cause of
his country and her rights." He had $18 in hard
money with him, it being the balance due him when
his term of enlistment expired.
The British officers forthwith, organized a drum-
head court-martial, fined him to that amount, and took
it by force from him. Thus penniless, he returned to
his home. Reader ! the incident is a small one, but
should you be ever similarly situated, stand fast to
228 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
your integrity and your country ; and remember this
little incident that records the patriotism of James
Croft.
When the unfortunate Major Andre was arrested
by Pauldings, Williams, and Van Wart, they first con-
veyed him to North Castle, in Westchester County,
where Col. Jamieson commanded. Afterwards he was
conducted by a guard of twenty men, to Salem, the
quarters of Col. Shelden. During their journev
thither, they stopped for the night at Comyen hill,
where Major Tallmadge, the commander of the guard,
tied Andre to a tree, as an additional security. From
Salem, he was brought to the Red Mills in this county,
and lodged for the night at the house of James Cox,
a Major in the Ordnance Department of the Army,
and grandfather to the wife of the Hon. John Garri-
son, of Philipstown. While here, two soldiers were
stationed at the door, and two at each window of his
apartment. Phoebe Cox, a daughter of the above-
named Major, and the mother of Mrs. John Garrison,
was then an infant, laying in the cradle when Andre
entered the room. Andre stepped to the cradle, and
the child, which had just awoke, looking up at him,
smiled. His feelings seemed immediately touched,
and, in a tone of deep melancholy tenderness, he said,
" Happy childhood ! we know its peace but once. I wish
I was as innocent as you." From the Red Mills, he
was brought by the way of Continental Village to the
" Robinson House" in this town, under a guard of
one hundred horse, by Major Tallmadge. While at
the Red Mills, and looking in a mirror in his room,
he saw a hole under the armpit of his coat, and per-
ceiving that the officer who was in attendance ob-
PHILIPSTOWN. 229
served it also, he smiled and remarked, " I presume
Gen. Washington will give me another coat." From
the "Robinson House," he was conveyed to West
Point ; from there to Stony Point ; and from thence to
Tappan, or Orange town.
The notorious Joshua H. Smith, to whose house,
two-and-a-half miles from Stony Point, Arnold con-
ducted Andre, after their midnight interview <; at* the
foot of a mountain called the Long Clove, near the
low-water mark," was arrested at Fishkill, Dutchess
County, and brought to the " Robinson House," a few
hours before the arrival of Andre at that place. He-
had furnished Andre with a coat, saddle, and bridle,
and after secreting him all day, conducted him the
night after Arnold's interview with him, to the ferry
at Stony Point, crossed over to Verplank's Point, and
slept with him at a house near Crom Pond. The next
morning they started as soon as it was light, and rode
as far as Pine's bridge, where they halted' and made a
breakfast of " support' and milk. Smith here left
Andre, and giving him some Continental money, ad-
vised him to take the road to White Plains. Six miles
beyond this, Andre was arrested. Smith was tried
before a court-martial, and imprisoned in the jail at
Goshen, Orange County ; escaped from thence to New
York, and returned with the British army to England,
where some years ago, he published a little volume
entitled " Major Andre," in which he gives an account
of his relations with Arnold and Andre, his arrest,
trial, and imprisonment ; and endeavors to show that
he knew nothing of the real business between the
British Adjutant-General and America's great traitor,
20
230 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
with an outpouring of abuse on Washington, Green,
and other patriots, that would disgust any man but an
Englishman, and an American tory. The book has
no date, but was published a few years before his
death. We quote from that part of it that relates to
his arrest and arrival at the " Robinson House," with
his interview with Washington.
" Having given him (Andre) directions about the road he was
to take upon crossing the bridge, with a message to my brother,
the chief justice, whom he knew, we parted. I proceeded on
my way to Fishkill, taking Gen. Arnold's quarters at Robinson's
house in my route : I mentioned to Gen. Arnold the distance I
accompanied Mr. Anderson, which gave him apparently much
satisfaction. His dinner being ready I partook of it, refreshed
my horses, and in the evening proceeded to Fish Kill to my
family. Here I found General Washington had arrived in the
course of the afternoon, on his return from visiting Count
Rochambeau, and I supped in his company with a large retinue,
at Gen. Scott's. The next day I went on business to Pough-
keepsie, and returned to Fish Kill the ensuing evening. It was
on the 25th of September, about midnight, that the door of the
room wherein I lay in bed with Mrs. Smith, was forced open
with great violence, and instantly the chamber was filled with
soldiers, who approached the bed with fixed bayonets. I was
then, without ceremony, drawn out of bed by a French Officer,
named Govion, whom I recollected to have entertained at my
house not long before, in the suite of the Marquis de la Fayette.
He commanded me instantly to dress myself, and to accompany
him to General Washington, having an order from the General,
he said, to arrest me. The house was the residence of Col. Hay,
who had married my sister. The family was thrown in great con-
fusion ; the female part especially were in the deepest distress ;
indeed the shock so much affected Mrs. Smith, that she never fully
recovered from it ; and, which added to my subsequent suffer-
ings, was the cause of her death. I perceived that any oppo-
PHILIPSTOWN. 231
sition would be ineffectual. Col. Hay desired to know for what
cause the arrest was made ; to which Govion would give no
satisfactory answer. I then desired the privilege of having my
servant and one of my horses to go with him to Gen. Washing-
ton, at Robinson's house, which he refused ; and I was immedi-
ately marched off, on foot, the distance of 18 miles.
" At length on my arrival at Robinson's house, I was paraded
before the front door, under a guard. General Washington soon
afterwards came into a piazza, and looked sternly and with
much indignation at me ; my countenance was the index of my
mind, and the beautiful lines of Horace occurred to me, 'si f metis
et illabiter orbis inupavidum feriunt, que ruinae,' &c.
" On his retiring, I was ordered into a back room, and two
centinels placed at the door.
" After as much time had elapsed as I supposed was thought
necessary to give me rest from my march, I was conducted into a
room, where were standing Gen. Washington in the centre, and on
each side Gen. Knox and the Marquis de la Fayette, with Wash-
ington's two aids-de-camp, Colonels Harrison and Hamilton.
'• Provoked at the usage I received, .1 addressed Gen. Wash-
ington, and demanded to know for what cause I was brought
before him in so ignominious a manner ? — The General answered
sternly, that I stood before him charged with the blackest trea-
son against the citizens of the United States : and that he was
authorized, from the evidence in his possession, and from the
authority vested in him by Congress, to hang me immediately
as a traitor, and that nothing could save me but a candid con-
fession who in the army, or among the citizens at large, were
my accomplices in the horrid and nefarious designs I had medi?
tared, for the last ten days past.
" I answered that no part of my conduct could justify the
charge, as Gen. Arnold, if present, would prove ; that what I
had done of a public nature was by the direction of that Gene-
ral, and, if wrong, he was amenable ; not me, for acting agree-
ably to his orders.
"He immediately replied, ' Sir, do you know that Arnold has
fled, and that Mr. Anderson, whom you have piloted through
our lines, proves to be Major John Andre, the Adjutant-General
232 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
of the British army, now our prisoner ? I expect him here, under
a guard of 100 horse, to meet his fate as a spy, and, unless you
confess who were your accomplices, I shall suspend you both
on yonder tree,' pointing to a tree before the door. He then or-
dered the guards to take me away.
" In a short time I was remanded into the room and urged to
a confession of accomplices, with Gen. Washington's declara-
tion, that the evidence he possessed of my being a party, wa8
sufficient to take away my life.
"The Gen. irritated by my reply, remanded me back to my
confinement.
" Some time afterwards, Col. Hamilton came to me, and com-
passionately, as he said, recommended me to declare all I knew
respecting the business of which I was accused, observing that
many were mistrusted, who, if they confessed, would be in a
worse situation ; but as he supposed this was not the case I
had now a chance to save my life, and for the sake of my
family I ought to preserve it, — with many more expressions to
the same effect, &c.
"Gen. Washington then came into the room, and questioned
Col. Hamilton why he was so long speaking to me 1 The CoK
replied, ' General, I know Smith has meant well during his agency
in this transaction, for in all our public meetings in New York
his general demeanor spoke a spirit of moderation, nor could
he be persuaded to any other opinion than that this contest be-
tween Great Britain and her colonies would be compromised, as
in the business of the stamp and other acts of which we corn-
complained to the British Government, in our petition by Gov.
Penn,1 &c.
" Gen. Washington then said in a gentle tone of voice, ' Col.
Hamilton, I am not yet satisfied ; take him into the back room ;
we must know something more about this business.' I was
then conducted into the recess from whence I was brought.
" I was about to take some refreshment, when one of the sen-
tinels, posted at the door, vowed that if I touched any of the
biscuits that were in the room, he would shoot me dead.
" The fact was that the room was a kind of a butlery, in
which Mrs. Arnold had placed her stores, and I was in the act
PHILIPSTOWN. 233
of taking a piece of the biscuits. I made no reply to the senti-
nel; but remained nearly two hours in this confinement, when I
heard the tramp of a number of horses near the place where I
was confined, and, soon after, could distinguish the voice of the
unfortunate Andre, and of Gen. Washington and his suite, who
soothed him with all the blandishments that his education and
distinguished rank demanded ; he was courted with a smile in
the face, when worse than a dagger was intended for his heart.
I distinctly heard Col. Hamilton say to a brother officer, who
came out of the same room, that Major Andre was really an ac-
complished young man, and he was sorry for him, for the Gen.
was determined to hang him.
" It was nearly dark, when a very respectable young gentle-
man entered the room, and politely desired me to accompany
him. I was in hopes this was a prelude to my emancipation,
and I requested the honor of his name ? He answered, ' It is
Washington.' I said, 'I presume, Sir, you hold the rank of
Colonel V He told me he held no rank at all. He then con-
ducted me to the back part of Robinson's house, where there
were two horses, desired me to mount one of themt and by his
guidance in a way I had never been, we soon reached the bank
of the river opposite to West Point. Here I was delivered to
the custody of a Capt. Sheppard, of the New Jersey Continental
troops, and did not observe I had been guarded by a troop of
horse until I was placed in the ferry-boat, and saw them follow
Mr. Washington up the mountain ; two boats followed us, com-
posed of the guard. If I had any inclination to throw myself
overboard, I was so well guarded, that I am certain I should
have been taken out of the water; for the main object of Gen.
Washington in detaining and trying me, was to obtain a know-
ledge of Gen. Arnold's confederates in the army, as well as in
Congress. In fact, this defection of Arnold had excited such a
general suspicion, that no one dared trust another ; and nothing
but execrations were heard from hut to hut."
John Warren, Esq. — This gentleman was of English
origin, and the son of Samuel Warren, who came
20*
234 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
from Boston to this town previous to the Revolution.
John, the subject of this sketch, was born in 1765,
and had five sons and two daughters, viz.: Cornelius,
Sylvenus, Samuel, Harry, and John, who died Octo-
ber 8th, 1840, Mary and Susan, who are both dead.
Mary married Joseph Haight ; Susan married Elijah
Davenport. He was born in the house now occupied
by John Hopper, Esq., on the hill south of the War
ren Mill, now owned by Justus Nelson, on the old
post road. His father, Samuel Warren, resided in it
during the Revolution, and the place went by the
name of Nelson's Highlands. Samuel, the father of
John, was killed at the Franklindale bridge, by being
thrown out of his wagon. Some of the planks were
off* and the horses taking a turn, he was thrown from
the wagon, through the aperture into the stream below.
John Warren was married when 17 years old, and
his wife 15 ; and, for some years thereafter, lived in a
log-house which stood in the corner of the orchard,
across the road and opposite to the residence of Justus
Nelson, Esq., which he also built with the grist mill
attached to the same property. This farm, consisting
of 300 acres belonged to him. He was a blacksmith
by trade, and served his time with Peter Warren,
father of James Warren, Esq., of Cold Spring, who
lived where Ja. Griffin, Esq., at present resides in the
lower part of this town. The first knives and forks
he had when he commenced keeping house he made
in his blacksmith shop. Shortly after he was married,
being in want of a pair of pantaloons, he went to
Peekskill and asked a merchant to trust him for the
cloth; the merchant refused, and Warren returned
PHILIPSTOWN. 235
home without making further application for credit.
He told his friends that he had made up his mind,
" that the best policy for a man was to pay as he
went." This was what the celebrated John Randolph
called the " philosopher s stone." In the midst of a
stormy debate in the House of Representatives,
Randolph arose and screamed out at the top of his
voice, " Mr. Speaker, I have found the ' philosopher's
stone " — it's pay as you go." This was the first and
the last time that John Warren asked for credit ; and
in a few years his industry and prudent habits placed
him in a condition in which everybody would have
been glad of an opportunity to trust him. During
the whole course of his life he never sued nor was
sued by any person. He began poor and died rich ;
free from debt ; and what he had acquired, he obtained
in and by virtue of that curse, originally pronounced
upon all mankind through Adam, as our federal head
and representative, " by the sweat of his brow."
He aspired to no higher distinction than that of a
plain, practical farmer, which he was. The purity
of his motives, and the honesty of his heart, were
never questioned ; and in all the relations of life he
never gave just cause of offence to his neighbor. He
died, regretted and beloved by all who knew him, in
1837, in the 72d year of his age. His children, so
far as we know them, inherit his virtues.
Capt. Samuel Jcferds. — This gentleman was born
in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1752, and entered the
Continental army at the age of twenty-three, as first
Sergeant in a company of artillery. He, served
through the war, and for three years after peace was
236 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
concluded. He was stationed two years at Fort
Stanwix, erected in the year 1758 by the English, and
named from Gen. Stanwix. " It occupied a position
commanding the carrying place between the naviga-
ble waters of the Mohawk and Wood Creek, and was
regarded as the key to the communication between
Canada and the settlements on the Mohawk." Dur-
ing the Revolution it was named Fort Schuyler. He
was afterwards stationed at Fort Putnam, West Point,
and its out-posts. He fought most gallantly in the
battles of Bunkerhill, Long Island, Brandywine, and
Monmouth. The battle of Monmouth was fought on
Sunday, and the day was intensely hot. A great
many soldiers died from over-exertion, the heat, and
drinking too much cold water.
In speaking of the engagements he had passed
through, after his retirement from the army, to his
only surviving son, Samuel Jefferds, Esq., of Philips-
town, he remarked, that, at the battle of Monmouth,
" the heat was so intense that it nearly exhausted his
nature."
Four years after the war he married the widow of
Peter Warren, who was the father of James Warren,
Esq., now of Cold Spring. After his retirement from
the army, he lived where Ja. Griffin, Esq., now resides
on the old post road in the south part of this town,
and a short distance north of Continental Village.
He was quartered here in the winter of 1779, '80.
He was plain in his manners, of a kind and gentle
disposition, but when provoked from a sense of injury,
energetic and strongly moved. He had battled long
for the liberties of his country, and doubly appreciated
PHILIPSTOWN. 237
the blessing of peace when it came. Distinguished for
strict integrity and frankness of disposition, he had no
enemies while living, and no calumniators when dead.
Amid the carnage, the smoke, and the thunder of bat-
tle, his courage never forsook him. It was of that
cool, deliberate character — not created by the occa-
sion and the excitement of circumstances — which has
its foundation in a constitutional disposition. Amid
the roar of cannon and the conflict of arms, he would
ride round and direct the operations of his batteries
with the calm steadiness of feeling, that would cha-
racterize others only at a review. He passed through
a seven years' war, and four hard fought and well
contested actions, unscathed, enjoying the confidence
of Washington, Knox, Green, Hamilton, and their
associates ; and was elected a member of the Society
of the Cincinnati, in 1785. This fact alone shows
the estimate which Washington and his compatriots,
placed on his patriotism, services, and character. It
was not every officer of the rank of captain, who
could get admission into this honorable Society of
banded brothers.
The following is a copy of his certificate of mem-
bership, now in the possession of his son, Samuel
Jeffords, Esq. :
"Be it known that Samuel Jeffords, Esquire, Captain of Artil-
lery in the late Army is a Member of the Society of the Cincin-
nati instituted by the Officers of the American Army, at the Pe-
riod of its Dissolution, as well to commemorate the great Event
which gave Independence to North America, as for the laudable
Purpose of inculcating the Duty of laying down in Peace Arms
assumed for public Defence, and of uniting in Acts of brotherly
238 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Affection, and Bonds of perpetual Friendship, the Members con-
stituting the same.
" In Testimony whereof I, the President of the said Society,
have hereunto set my Hand at Mount Vernon in the State of Vir-
ginia, this tenth Day of December, in the Year of our Lord One
Thousand Seven Hundred and Eighty Five, and in the Tenth
Year of the Independence of the United States.
" By order,
"G. Washington, President.
" Knox, Secretary."
The badge of the Society is a bald eagle suspended
by a blue ribbon, edged with white, emblematic of the
union of France and America. On the breast of the
eagle, Cincinnatus is receiving the military ensigns
from the three senators ; the implements of husbandry
are seen in the back-ground ; round the whole, Omnia
reliquit servare rempublicam,-' He relinquished every-
thing to serve the country.' On the reverse, Fame
is crowning Cincinnatus with a wreath, inscribed,
"Virtutis praemium," — "the reward of virtue," — with
other emblems; round the whole, "Societas Cincinna-
torum, instituta A. A. 1783."
This society was formed by the surviving officers
of the Revolutionary Army, to perpetuate their friend-
ship, and to raise a fund for relieving the widows and
orphans of brother soldiers who were killed during the
war. The idea of establishing it, it is said, originated
with Gen. Knox, who, as his biographer says, was the
first Vice-President, and continued such to the day of
his death. If this be so, he was also Secretarv at the
same time. The original certificate, now lying before
me, given to Capt. Samuel Jefferds, is in the hand-
writing, and signed by Knox, as Secretary. Wash-
PHILIP8T0WN. 239
ington was the first President, and held the office till
his death.
The Society was named in honor of Lucius Quinc-
tius Cincinnatus, a patrician of the Roman Republic,
who, while at his plough, was twice called to deliver
his country from her enemies ; and having done so,
resigned the supreme power which had been entrusted
to him, he returned to his little farm to continue his
rural labors.
Some republicans, at that early day, opposed the
society, alleging that it contained the elements of fu-
ture aristocracy ; and among the number was the
philosophic Franklin. There are said to be seven
State Societies, which hold a general meeting once
in three years. By its constitution, the honors of this
association were to be " hereditary in the eldest male
line of the original members, and, in default of male
issue, in the collateral male line."
Capt. Jefferds died in August, 1804, aged 52 years,
leaving one son, an only child, Samuel Jefferds, Esq.,
of this town; who inherits the honors of the Society
of Cincinnati, by virtue of the original membership of
his father.
The West Point Foundry. — This institution, one
of the largest of its kind in this country, is situated
about half a mile south-east of the steam-boat landing,
in Cold Spring. During the last war with England,
some difficulty was met with by the General Govern-
ment in procuring a sufficiency of large ordnance for
the use of the army, as but one foundry, we believe, at
that time, was in operation where the largest class of
guns were cast. We have been informed that, in
240 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
view of this fact, this institution was created and set
in operation as a matter of pride, by a dozen or more
individuals, who received assurances from the Govern-
ment, that a certain proportion of Government work
should be done in it, if the establishment was not lo-
cated nearer than fifty miles to the city of New York.
In the spring or summer of 1817, the Association
purchased 150 acres of land at Cold Spring, of Capt.
Frederick Philips, and erected a moulding-house, bor-
ing mill, a blacksmith shop for light work, pattern
shop, a drafting office, with a general office for the
use of the Association.
In the winter of 1818, the Hon. Gouverneur Kemble,
Joseph G. Swift, James Renwick, and others, peti-
tioned the legislature for an Act of incorporation ;
and, on the 15th of April, in the same year, an Act
was passed, constituting "Gouverneur Kemble, James
Renwick, Henry Brevoort, Jr., Joseph G. Swift, John
R. Fenwick, William Kemble, Henry Cary, Charles
G. Smedburg, Nicholas Gouverneur, Robert J. Ren-
wick, and William Young, and such others as might
thereafter, be associated with them, 'a body corporate,
in fact and in name, by the name of the West Point
Foundry Association.' "
Section 3rd of the Act "further enacted, That
Gouverneur Kemble, James Renwick, Henry Bre-
voort, Jr., Wm. Kemble, and Charles G. Smedburgh,
shall be the first directors ; and the said Gouverneur
Kemble shall be the first president of the said company,"
who were to hold their offices until the first Monday
of May, in the year 1819. In 1839 the finishing or
machine, smith's, and boiler branches of the establish-
PHILIPS! OWN. 241
ment, whose operations were carried on in the city of
New York previous thereto, were transferred to Cold
Spring, where large and commodious buildings were
erected. It employs from four to six hundred men,
including a few boys ; and has a foreman at the head
of each branch. Its plan, with a description of its
buildings, their size and number, are as follows, viz.:
1. Moulding House, 218 feet long, 68 feet wide,
with brick walls 16 feet thick. Roof of slate. This
building has 2 cupola furnaces.
2. Gun Foundry, 95 feet long, 75 feet wide, with
stone walls, 29 inches thick, and shingle roofed. This
building has 3 air furnaces.
3. The Boring Mill is in two buildings ; the first 57
by 63 feet; the second 47 by 54 feet. This mill
is driven by a 36 feet over-shot wheel, and has an
auxiliary steam engine. Its walls are stone, 24 inches
thick ; roof of tin. The boiler of the steam engine is
placed outside of the building, in the yard.
4. The Blacksmith Shop is 128 feet long, 54 feet wide ;
walls of brick, 24 inches thick ; roof of tin. This shop
is driven by a water wheel under an 105 feet fall of
water, but has an auxiliary steam engine. The engine
and boiler are in a separate shop at the east end of the
building.
5. Small Blacksmith Shop, 40 feet long, 30 feet
wide, with brick walls, 18 inches thick; and a tin
roof.
6. Blacksmith Shop for small forges, 52 feet long,
25 feet wide ; frame building ; and roof of wood.
These forges used occasionally.
7. Turning Shop, 60 feet long, 37 feet wide, with
brick walls and roof of tin.
21
242 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
8. Finishing Shop, 251 feet long by 54 feet wide,
brick walls, and tin roof. The Pattern Shop is on the
second floor of this building.
9. W. P. F. Office, 42 feet long by 23 feet wide ; a
frame building with shingle roof. The Drafting Office
is in the second story.
10. Boiler Shop, 100 feet long by 45 feet wide ;
frame building with shingle roof.
11. Punching Machine House, is 22 feet square;
frame building with shingle roof.
12. Coal House. — A stone building with shingle
roof.
13. Store, 14 feet by 32 feet; brick walls and shin-
gle roof. Now used by finishing department.
14. First Pattern House, 50 feet long, 36 feet wide ;
frame building with shingle roof.
15. Second Pattern House, 60 feet long, 30 feet
wide ; frame building with shingle roof.
16. Third Pattern House, 50 feet long, 36 feet
wide ; frame building with shingle roof.
17. Fourth Pattern House, 88 feet long, 30 feet
wide ; frame building with shingle roof.
18. Fifth Pattern House, 40 feet long, 30 feet wide;
frame building with shingle roof.
19. Fire Engine House, 19 feet long, 8^ feet wide ;
frame building with shingle roof.
In addition, the Association also own a large num-
ber of houses and building lots in the village, and on
the high grounds adjacent to the Foundry.
The site it now occupies was formerly a swale, at
the mouth of what was called, in old deeds, the
"Margaret Falls' brook." This brook discharged
PHILIPSTOWN. 243
itself into the shallow bay or flat, which lies between
Constitution Island and Cold Spring. The foundation
wall of the old Moulding House, on its south side,
was sunk down sixteen feet to the solid rock ; while
the north wall, resting on the same rock, was sunk
only'six feet. The dip of the rock is about forty-five
degrees.
The Blast Furnace, just north of the Blacksmith
shop, is not now in operation. Up to June, 1844,
large quantities of iron ore were smelted here, obtained
from the mines in the Highlands of this town. The
cost of quarrying, transportation, blasting, &c, was
found to be greater than purchasing it abroad, in a
state fit for immediate use.
In the Blacksmith shop there is one trip-hammer of
eight tons weight, and two tilt-hammers, — one of 1000
and the other of 500 lbs. Shafts of two feet diame-
ter have been forged here weighing fifteen tons.
The Machine Shop contains thirteen turning lathes
and one drilling machine.
The Pattern Shop has four turning lathes, a whip-
saw, and planing machine.
In the Boring Mill are eight gun-beds for boring
cannon, one slot machine, four turning lathes, two
planing machines, three drilling machines, and one
large bed for boring cylinders.
The Finishing Shop contains four vertical and one
horizontal drilling machines, and four planing ma-
chines.
In the Boiler Shop are three punching machines,
one riveting machine, and one shearing machine.
The new Boring Mill, now erecting, will contain
244 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
one machine for slotting, planing, and drilling, with
one large-faced lathe.
The consumption of the principal materials during
the year, from March, 1847, to May 1st, 1848, was as
follows:— Pig iron, $197,434; coal, $38,405; bar
iron, $62,562 ; boiler iron plate, $37,988 ; copper,
$17,392; total, $353,781.
The principal articles manufactured during that
year were, 20 steam engines ; 90 32lb. guns ; 4 12lb.
guns ; 2 9lb. guns ; 4110 tons of pipes for the Boston
Water Works; 1040 tons of large wrought iron
work ; together with a large number of rolls, wheels,
steam boilers, and machinery of various kinds.
The Hon. Gouverneur Kemble, has been the Presi-
dent of this Institution from its incorporation until
the expiration of its charter in 1843 or '44, we believe,
with the exception of four years while representing
this district in Congress : during which, that office
was filled by his brother, William Kemble, Esq.
The Vice President, for several years previous to
that time, was the Hon. Judge Parrott, late a Captain
in the Ordnance Department of the U. S. Army, who
still fills the office.
The Assdciation is now conducted by Mr. Kemble,
as lessee.
Under the supervision of these gentlemen, every-
thing moves on with the regularity of clock-work.
The men receive their wages every two weeks ; and
work but ten hours per day. If the necessity of the
work requires them to work longer, they are paid
accordingly. In the blacksmith shop, the fire is not
out of the furnaces for weeks ; one gang of men
working through the night until morning, when their
PHILIPSTOWN. 245
places are supplied by another gang during the day.
The means and appliances sometimes attempted to be
used by other manufacturing establishments to control
the political sentiments of their workmen, are not
countenanced here. From the most finished work-
man, down to the smallest boy who twists a rope of
straw, there is the most perfect freedom of thought
and action in everything appertaining to a man's reli-
gious and political faith.
This institution is the life of Cold Spring Village
and Nelsonville, and, with " more truth than fiction,"
it may be said, it feeds all, clothes all, and supports all.
Were it discontinued, those villages would soon
look like an infected district — resemble, somewhat,
the city of New York on the first day of May, when
everybody, apparently, is moving — and realize " Gold-
smith's description of a deserted village."
t Mr. Kemble has so long superintended this institu-
tion— watched it in its career of infancy, until it has
attained its present growth, that it may well be called
" the child of his affections ;" from whom it were
now, well-nigh, socially impossible to part.
A branch railroad is now constructing from this
establishment, to intersect the Hudson River Rail-
road, which crosses Constitution Island and the bay
or Jlat, a short distance west of it. A dock also is
being built from the present Foundry-dock, extend-
ing west to the channel of the Hudson.
The real and personal estate of this Foundry, in
1846, was assessed at $88,000. It probably now
amounts to $150,000.
In 1844, the United States Steam Revenue Cutter,
Spencer, of iron, was built here. During the same
21*
246 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
year another iron steam vessel called the Margaret
Kemble, to ply on one of the southern rivers, was also
constructed at this establishment.
" Machinery of the most delicate and complicated
arrangement, and the engines of the fastest steam-
boats in the world, are manufactured here.
"The following circumstance is no mean compliment
to the mechanics of the New World, and a plain
demonstration that 'Yankee ingenuity' is known
and appreciated even beyond the waves of the Medi-
terranean : The Pacha of Egypt was anxious to
obtain a machine, among several others, which would
take the hull from cotton seed. Having applied to
several mechanics of Europe without success, he re-
solved to try what American invention could effect ;
no doubt very wisely thinking, that a people who
could manufacture wooden hams ' almost as good as
the genuine article,' and baswood cucumber seeds
' so perfect that they will vegetate,' could most cer-
tainly furnish any kind of machinery which he might
want. The application was made, and in a compara-
tively short time a machine was finished at the West
Point Foundry, which, at least in the opinion of the
inventor, would answer the purpose of the Pacha.
It was shipped from New York in January, 1838, ac-
companied by an experienced engineer, who was san-
guine in the belief that the experiment would be suc-
cessful."
TOWN OF PUTNAM VALLEY.
This town lies wholly in the Highlands ; and, like
the greater part of Philipstown, from which it was
taken, is rough and mountainous. Iron ore is found
here in abundance, but its distance from the river,
and the absence of easy facilities, will prevent, for
some time to come, attempts to unlock its mountain
repositories. The valleys, Canopus and Peekskill Hol-
lows, are rich, fertile, and well cultivated. They
stretch, like a pair of garters, through the entire length
of the town from north to south. It is centrally dis-
tant about twelve miles west of Carmel. Its popula-
tion in 1840 was 1,659 : and in 1845, 1,598. Having
treated of its early settlement under the head of Philips-
town, and delineated its geological features in the ar-
ticle Geology, there remains but little to be added.
Oregon. — A small village, about three miles east of
Annsville, near the Westchester line. The Peeks-
kill Hollow Creek and the out-let of the Horton Pond
meet at this village, and form one stream.
Crofts. — A few houses in Canopus Hollow. A
store and tavern were kept here ; the latter has been
discontinued. It was formerly called Sodom.
Tompkins's Corners. — A few houses at the intersec-
tion of the old Wickopee and Peekskill Hollow road.
Hempstead Huts. — These buildings are revolutionary
relics, and are located on the farm of Harry Gillet. A
248 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
detachment of the troops of the Massachusetts Line,
with a company or two from Hempstead, Long Island,
occupied them in the winter of 1780 ; which accounts
for the name. The chimneys still' remain, but the huts
have been burnt down.
Canopus Hill. — An eminence in the south-west
part of the town, on the farm of Meeks, Esq.
It is named in honor of an Indian Chief.
Tinker Hill. — This hill is about three miles north-
east of Canopus Hill, and is owned, partly, by John
Odle, Esq. About fifty years ago an old Englishman
lived on it, named Cornelius Rick, who went about
tinkering, or doing a little at every trade ; and hence
the name.
Ponds. — There are nine ponds in this town, some
of them of more than ordinary size. The largest is the
Horton Pond. — It is located in the centre of the
town, and contains excellent Bass and Pickerel, some
of the latter weighing six and seven pounds. It is
bdunded by the lands of Lee Horton, Abijah Lee,
Charity Smith, Wesley Christian, Solomon Baxter,
Daniel Barger, Joseph Strang, and Henry Mead; and
is about If of a mile in length and 1 in breadth. It is
named after the Horton family who formerly owned
all the land adjacent to it.
Solpeu Pond. — This pond lies in the west part of
the town, about one mile from the Horton Pond ; and
was named after a person of that name who lived in
its vicinity. It is about a mile in length, and half a
mile in breadth. Like the Horton Pond, it contains
excellent Bass and Pickerel. It is circumscribed by
the lands of Mrs. Ann Horton, William Jerry, James
Likely, and William Denny.
TOWN OF PUTNAM VALLEi. 249
Barger's Pond. — This sheet of water is in the
south-east part of the town, about three-fourths of a
mile in length, and one-fourth in breadth. It takes
its name from the Barger family, who have long re-
sided in the neighborhood of the pond.
Bryant's Pond. — This pond is next in size ; and is
situated in the east part of the town, about three-
fourths of a mile north of Barger's Pond. It is half a
mile in length, nearly that distance in breadth, and is
named after Solomon Bryant.
Muddy Pond. — This body of water lies about half
a mile north of the Horton Pond, is nearly half a mile
in length and one-fourth in breadth, and is called from
the muddy appearance of its water.
Clear Pond. — This beautiful sheet of water does
not belie its name ; for a more pellucid body of water
is not found in Putnam County, or in any other. It
is in the north part of the town, has no inlet, is formed
by springs, and clear as crystal. It is about half a
mile long, nearly that distance in width ; runs south
into the Muddy Pond, which empties into the Horton
Pond,' which, in turn, empties into the Creek at Anns-
ville, just south of the Putnam and Westchester line.
Those who live near it, and are familiar with its
water, assert, that a person can see twenty feet, or
more, into it.
Jonathan Owen's Pond. — A handsome sheet of
water about half a mile long and one-fourth of a mile
broad, in the most southern part of the town, and
nearly one-fourth of a mile from the Westchester line.
It runs into the creek at Annsville above-mentioned.
The name explains itself.
Cranberry Pond. — This is the smallest pond in
250 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
■
this town, and is situated about half a mile north of
Owen's Pond. It is about one-fourth of a mile in
length and forty rods in breadth ; and located on the
land formerly owned by Philemon Smith. Immense
quantities of Cranberries grow upon the low grounds
skirting it, and hence the name. Cran is saxon ; and
berry is derived from the Saxon word beria. Com-
pounded, it means a berry that grows on a slender,
bending stalk ; also called moss-berry, or moor-berry,
as it grows only on peat-bogs or swampy land.
Peltoris Pond. — A small body of water lying north
of the Clear Pond, located in the north part of the
town, one-fourth of a mile long and about one-eighth
in breadth. It takes its name from a man who worked
an ore-bed near it, and empties into the stream run-
ning to Annsville.
Peekskill Hollow Creek. — A small stream rising
from a spring just south of Stillman Boyd's, in the
town of Kent, running the entire length of the Hol-
low, and falling into the outlet of the Horton Pond.
On this stream are the following mills, viz.: Herman
Adams's saw mill ; John Post's saw and grist mill ;
Pratt's trip-hammer, turning-lathe, and whip-saw
works ; Thomas Winter's grist mill, and John Sil-
lick's saw mill ; and the wire factory belonging to
Joseph Strang & Co.
Canopus Holloic Creek. — This stream rises near
the second Gate on the Cold Spring turnpike, runs
through the Sunk Lot, and falls into the stream at
Annsville, near Peekskill, Westchester County. On
it are Bunnell's Forge and saw mill ; a saw mill for-
merly owned by John Horton, and Mowyat's paper
mill.
TOWN OF PUTNAM VALLEY. 251
A man named Robert Oakley, who was a staunch
Whig, while his brothers were rank Tories, lived, dur-
ing the Revolution, just above the residence of Doctor
Jchn Tompkins, on the Wickapee road. His brothers
gave information to the infamous Cunningham, the
provost marshal of the city of New York, concern-
ing his opposition to the British cause, who sent a
band of Tories to waylay and shoot him. Oakley
had been absent from his house, and returned a little
before sunset in the fall of the year previous to the
hard winter, which, we believe, was in 1780. They
concealed themselves near his house, and no sooner
had he dismounted, than they shot him.
Thomas Richards, who also lived in this town, and
was a turner of wooden dishes by trade, was taken
as a rebel, and carried down to the Sugar House in
New York. His wife was left at home, and the hard
winter coming on, the snow covered his lowly cabin,
preventing ingress or egress by the door. His wife,
having first used up all the fuel inside, with the ax
broke a hole through the roof, got out and cut the
large limbs down, which hung over the small hut,
which she threw down into the garret for present and
future use. Her stock of provisions soon became ex-
hausted ; and their cow, which had been kept in the
work-shop, died. This lone woman, without a human
being for her companion, and confined in her
prison of snow, was forced to eat the dead body of
he.r cow ; and when that was gone, she lived on a
little shelled corn that was left in the garret, making
use of .some filthy, dirty brine, in the bottom of an
old pork barrel, to season it with. In this manner she
made out to live through the winter. A grandson of
252 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Richards, we are informed, is now living in Fishkill,
Dutchess County. Such iron energy and indomitable
courage, when called upon to battle with cold, hunger,
and thirst, in a dreary solitude, would be found but
rarely, if at all, at the present day. The human heart
shudders in contemplating the possibility of such a
case.
TOWN OF CARMEL.
This town was taken from Frederickstown, at that
time embracing the now towns of Kent and Patter-
son, in 1795 ; and is centrally distant from New York
City about 55 miles, 106 from Albany, 16 east of
the Hudson, and 18 from Peekskill. Its soil is a
mixture of loam and gravel, with a rolling surface,
indented with slopes and vales. It is well adapted to
grazing; and large quantities of beef, lambs, sheep,
fowls, and other species of " marketing " are produced
here for the New York market.
The New York and Harlem Railroad, which is
now being extended near its eastern boundary, will
greatly facilitate the transportation of its products to
market, and enhance the value of the land. It is
named after a mountain in Palestine, on the south-
ern frontier of Galilee, constituting a part of Leba-
non, in the pachalic of Acca.
From its supposed resemblance to Mount Carmel,
" which consists of several rich, woody heights, sepa-
rated by fertile and habitable valleys," it was christ-
ened, at ;ts organization, as above.
EARLY SETTLEMENT.
The first settlement that we have been able to as-
certain, was made in this town by George Hughson,
who located himself on the ridge just north of Lake
Mahopac, and west of the residence of Nathaniel
22
254 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Crane, Esq., about 1740. A year afterwards William
Hill, father of the present William, now living in this
town at a very advanced age, and his brother Uriah,
came up to the Red Hills, when William, who was the
younger of the two brothers, was only 12 years old.
Their father was Anthony Hill, who came from
Holland about the year 1725 ; and after remaining a
short time in New York City, removed to the Fox
Meadows, where he made a purchase and settlement.
On the voyage, the whole family, except himself
and two sisters, died. . Anthony, at about the age of
twenty, married Mary Ward, who also came from
Holland, by whom he had five sons and four daughters,
Uriah, William, Anthony, Andrew, Cornelius, Charity,
Jane, Mary, and Merriam.
Anthony Hill died at the Fox Meadows, and his
wife at the Red Mills, aged 93. He having bought a
tract of land of the Indians, near the Red Mills, he
sent his two oldest sons, Uriah and William, to clear
it up. Uriah, in some way or other, became obnoxi-
ous to the Indians, and was compelled to go back to
Westchester.
William remained, and one night going out to look
for the cow, which the brothers had brought from
their father's farm at the Fox Meadows, he was at-
tacked by some wolves. „By climbing up a tree and
remaining on it nearly all night, he escaped from them
by a circuit to the north side of Lake Mahopac,
wher§ early in the morning he came to the log-house
of George Hughson. This was the first he knew of
a white man residing there. Hughson told him that
he had settled there about a year before. At 25
William Hill married a sister of Abraham Smith, the
TOWN OF CARMEL. 255
father of the Hon. Abraham and Saxon Smith of
Putnam Valley.
William, son of Anthony, and father of the William
now living, had eight sons, viz. : Noah, Solomon,
William, Cornelius, Abraham, Andrew, two having
died in infancy without a name ; and four daughters,
viz. : Phoebe, Mary, Chloe, and Jane. Noah lived
near the Red Mills, and died there in 1830. Solomon
lived at the Nine Partners in Dutchess County.
At this time the first house erected in this town
was about one mile south of the Red Mills, occupied
by a man named Philips, where Ezekiel Howell re-
sides ; the next, north, was William Hill's ; and the
next, George Hughson's. Soon afterwards, the
Cranes, the Berrys, Hedyers, Austins, Roberdeaus,
and others, settled down in the vicinity of the Hills
and Hughsons.
Jabez Berry settled where Elijah Crane now lives,
about one mile north of Lake Mahopac. A family
of the name of Shaw soon settled at Carmel village,
on the north and south shores of the lake which still
bears their name.
A short time after the Hills and Hughsons settled,
John Carpenter came from North Castle, now called
New Castle Corners, and settled where the Hon.
Azor B. Cranes resides.
The Carpenter family were Quakers, of English
origin, and came from England to Plymouth ; but
were driven, by persecution at that early day against
the Quakers, to Long Island, from there to North
Castle, and from thence it came to this town.
John Carpenter's old house stood at the foot of the
hill, just south of the residence of the Hon. Judge
256 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Crane, on the east side of the road. The tories,
royalists, and the friends of the King, called him the
" damned old rebel." He was a patriot of the staunch-
est kind ; and if adherence to the cause of his coun-
try and her rights constituted a rebel, he was one in
every sense of the term and in the widest latitude of
the expression.
He left his farm to John Crane, who married his
daughter. John left it to his brother Joseph Crane,
who devised it to its present owner, Hon. A. B. Crane,
Judge of the Putnam County Court.
A family by the name of Hamblin settled in this
town about the same time with the Carpenters, in the
vicinity of Lake Mahopac.
In 1770, John Crane, father of Nathaniel Crane*
Esq., now living, built the first frame house in this
part of the country. It is still standing, about hak" a
mile north-east of Lake Mahopac, and owned by his
son, the above-named Nathaniel.
Gen. Scott, with his Staff", made it his head-
quarters during a part of the Revolution.
EXTRACT FROM THE TOWN RECORD.
" At the First Town meeting held in the Town of Carmel at
the house of John Crane Esqr. on the 7th of April 1795 The
following persons were chosen for officers for said town, viz. :
Robert Johnston Esqr., Moderator.
John Crane, Esqr., Town Clerk.
Timothy Carver, Supervisor.
Daniel Cole, f
Devowe Bailey, \ Assessors.
Thacher Hopkins, )
Elijah Douty, Junr., Collector & Constable.
David Travis, Constable.
TOWN OF CARMEL.
257
Devowe Bailey,
Daniel Cole,
John Crane, Esqr.,
Timothy Crane,
Thacher Hopkins,
Overseers of the Poor.
Commissioners of Highways.
Fence Viewers & Damage Prisers :
David Myrick,
Judah Kelly,
Joseph Cole,
Isaac Drew,
John Crane, Esqr.,
James Townsend,
Joseph Crane,
Wm. Webb,
John Berry,
Samuel Jenkins,
David Gregory,
Billy Trowbridge.
Pound Masters :
Stephen Fowler,
Isaac Devine.
Overseers of Highways:
Israel Pinkney,
Peter Badeau,
Gilbert Hunt,
Gilbert Travis,
Wm. Vermilyed,
Nathl. Boundig,
Job Austin,
Gilbert Adams,
Stephen Crane,
Joseph Cole,
Jeremiah Hughson,
Wm. Fowler,
Abraham Everitt,
Daniel Thomas,
John Ganung,
David Frost,
James B .
Robert Hughson,
Seth Foster,
Timothy Carver,
John Bezea,
Joseph Hopkins,
Isaac Purdy,
Philips Smith,
Peter Maybie,
Thaddeous Raymond.
David Gregory,
John Cole,
David Frost,
Benjamin Crosby,
William Haden,
Jacob Ganung,
Jonathan Whiten,
David Longwell,
Voted that a hundred pounds be raised for the support of the
poor the ensuing year. Voted that the next annual Town
meeting be held at this place.
John Crane,
22* Town Clark."
258 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
There were 37 road districts in this town in 1795,
laid out by the Commissioners of Highways.
"Whereas Joseph Gregory of the town of Carmer in the
county of Dutchess and State of New York hath proposed to
emancipate and Set free three female Negros the property of
the said Joseph Gregory agreeable to a Law of this State in that
case made and provided.
" We Robert Johnston & John Crane Esqrs. two of the peo-
ples Justices of the peace for said county and Elisha Cole and
Tracy Ballard Overseers of the poor of the town of Carmel do
hereby Certify that we think that the said female Negroes That
is one named Anglesse aged about 26 years one other 6 years
named Rose and another named Dinah aged about 3 years are
all sufficient to provide for themselves.
"Given under our hands this 3d day of January 1798.
" Robert Johnston, ) Justices of
"John Crane, ] the Peace.
" Elijah Cole, ) Overseers of
"Tracy Bullard, \ the Poor.
"John Crane, Town Clark."
Cai mel Village. — A quiet, rural, and small village,
beautifully situated on Shaw's Lake. The Court-
house, Jail, Clerk's Office, and Putnam County Bank,
are located here. Through this village, in the olden
time, ran one of the roads leading from the city of
New York to Albany, and places in its vicinity. Five
terms of the County Court, and General Sessions, and
three terms of the Circuit, Oyer and Terminer Courts,
are held here. The location is dry, elevated, and
healthy. It contains 3 churches and 4 or 5 stores. It
is named after the town in which it is located. It is
20 miles from Cold Spring, and 1G from Peekskill. A
few rods north of the village, James Raymond, Esq.,
is erecting a family cemetery on a magnificent scale.
TOWN OF CARMEL. 259
When completed, with avenues and walks laid out,
gravelled, and ornamented with appropriate trees and
flowering shrubs — with the tree of Heaven, the Baby-
lonian willow, the dark fanereal yew, and the mourn-
ing cypress — it will form a lovely and interesting ad-
dition to the suburbs of the village. The ancient
taste for erecting rural cemeteries is reviving among
us, and develops a chaste and holy feeling of our
nature. He who cherishes a sacred regard for the
dead, will prove an ornament to the living. All na-
tions, Christian and Pagan, cherish a sacred regard for
the last earthly home of those they love. The eastern
nations selected the groves and recesses of wooded
heights and secluded vales, beyond the city's serried
wall, as places of interment.
By the Laws of the Twelve Tables, in the year
454, B.C., it was prohibited to bury within the city of
Rome ; and the Potters' Field was located without the
walls of Jerusalem. The wealthy Israelites, we are
told, built their tombs in ihe mountains near Jerusa-
lem; and in a garden near the base of Calvary, Joseph
of Arimathea had prepared that memorable sepulchre,
in which was laid the body of the crucified Messiah.
The Athenians permitted no burials within their city.
In the gorges of the wooded hills on the opposite bank
of the Nile, were the catacombs of Thebes, and be-
yond the lake of Acherusia were those of Memphis,
from whence the Grecian mythologists derived their
fabulous accounts of the Elysian fields.
Those illustrious men who fell in the battles of their
country were buried in the Ceramicus — an extensive
and beautifully ornamented public cemetery, where
were the Academy and Gymnasium, with their superb
gardens. Even the rudely built tumuli of the Ameri-
260 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
can Indians, reveal the tenacity with which they
cling to the memory of their dead. The experimental
garden and rural cemetery of Mount Auburn, at
Cambridge, Massachusetts, may well vie with the
celebrated Pere La Chaise, at Paris. The Congres-
sional Burying Ground, at Washington, is another
interesting spot, where man may " seek the living
among the dead," and learn wisdom among those
mute, silent, and melancholy memorials, that testify of
his mortality here. It was Gray's Elegy, written in
a country church-yard —
"Through which the ringing earth-worm creeps,"
which, more than any other of his writings, has given
him a name and a fame in the literary world, that will
survive and live, when brass and marble shall have
crumbled to dust.
Since writing this article, we have been informed
that this cemetery is to be called the " Raymond Hill
Cemetery."*
As this sheet is about passing from our hands to
those of the compositor, we have only time to add,
that a large and beautiful building is now being built
in this village, and is to be known, as we are informed,
as " The Carmcl Collegiate Institute."
The Telegraph line from New York to Albany
runs through the village, having a station here for the
accommodation of the villagers, and those residing in
the vicinity.
Red Mills.— A small village situated on the Mus-
coot River, 8 miles south-west from Carmel. The
* As we go to press, we are informed by the Rev. H. G.
Livingston, that it has been deeded to the Trustees of the Gilead
Presbyterian Society.
TOWN OF CARMEL. 261
mill and nearly all other buildings here are painted
red ; and this fact has given the name to the place.
The first carding machine put up in this country per-
manently, was established here. It was brought to
Peekskill by an Englishman named Ellinworth, about
the year 1800. He put it up at Peekskill, where it
remained about two years, and then removed it to this
place, where it was looked upon with as much won-
der and amazement, as the elephant, old Tip, was,
when first exhibited in this county by , of the
town of South-east.
It was supposed that English Custom-house officers
were bribed to let it pass. Ellinworth brought a man
by the name of Hague, who had worked it in Eng-
land, to superintend its operations in this country.
Hague returned to England, but Ellinworth did not
dare to. It was about half as large as those made at
the present time ; and the Yankees were not slow in
their improvements upon it.
Major Roger Morris, who married Mary Philipse,
had a log mansion here. It stood about 40 rods north-
east of the Post Office. Mary, or "Madame Morris,"
as she was called by the tenants, was a remarkable
woman, who possessed not only the esteem, but the
love of the tenants of her estate. The " Long Lot,"
which Major Morris obtained with his wife, included
the Red Mills. Major Morris and his lady lived a
greater part of the year at New York and Harlem,
and at a certain season would come up and spend
some time at this place to receive rents and give di-
rections to their tenants. The gentleness of manner
and kindness of disposition manifested by Madam
262 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Morris, soon secured the affections of the tenants ;
and not as yet having a house, in the estimation of
the tenants, sufficiently large for her reception while
she stayed among them, they got together and erected
a large log-house, put up with more nicety, and
finished in a style more suited to a lady of her rank
and standing. She had ever been the friend of the
tenants, and this act, on their part, was a tribute of
their esteem and admiration for her noble and gene-
rous conduct to them. Isaac Lounsberry's house now
encloses the log-house of Madam Morris. Major
Morris is supposed to have built the first store and
grist mill at this place, but at what period, we are not
informed. Between where the log-house of Madam
Morris stood and the Post Office is now kept, the
mother of William Hill, now living, then a widow,
and familiarly called " Granny Hill," lived in a log-
house. This old lady had secured the friendship of
Madam Morris. Some years before the Revolution,
a kind of anti-rent rebellion broke out among the
tenantry of the Morris estate. We are not advised of
the true issue between the landlord and tenants, but
believe it was somewhat similar to the anti-rent trou-
ble of the present time. An association paper was
soon drawn up and circulated among the tenants,
making common cause with one another in the mat-
ter. Granny Hill asked to see the paper, and being
deceived and misled as to the objects its signers pro-
posed to secure to themselves, signed it.
The Major soon heard of it, and, calling on the old
lady, required her to take her name off it. She, still
believing that the paper contemplated nothing but
TOWN OF CARMEL. 263
what had been represented to her, refused to do so,
alleging, as the story goes, that she '' could seal it
with her blood." She was told that she must then go
out of her house ; and out she went. The matter soon
reached the ears of Madam Morris, who was informed
of the deception played off on her aged tenant. She
asked the Major what he had been doing with Granny
Hill ? He replied that she had signed " that paper,
and had refused to take her name off; and that he had
turned the old rebel out of doors." Madam Morris
could not, for a moment, believe that the old woman
would do anything wrong as her tenant, and some-
what resenting the hasty conduct of her husband, told
him that " there was an 100 acres up the road with a
log-house on it, and that Granny Hill should have a
living on it for life ;" gently reminding him that all the
land was hers in her own right, and cautioning him
not to molest the old lady again. Granny Hill ac-
cordingly received a life interest in the 100 acres;
and after the estate was confiscated, in consequence
of Major Morris taking the British side of the ques-
tion, under whose government he held a commission,
an individual who had purchased it of the State, de-
manded an absolute and full title ; but it was found
that the old lady had an interest in the land that could
not be terminated, without her consent, until her
death. When Gen. Montcalm, the Commander of the
French Army, was shot in the battle on the Plains of
Abraham, at Quebec, he was riding a large and beau-
tiful white horse. The horse was captured by the
British, and made a present to Major Roger Morris,
for the gallantry he evinced in that battle, who
brought him, after the war was finished, to the Red
264 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Mills. He was kept on the farm adjoining Nathaniel
Crane's, Esq., by George Hughson, the ancestor of
the Hughson family, in Dutchess County, at that time
an agent of Major Morris. The stock of this horse
was found here within the last fifty years.
Indian Hill. — This is a large eminence at the
south end of Lake Mahopac, cultivated to the top on
the south side, and lately owned by Abel Smith. The
Mahopac tribe of Indians occupied this region of the
country ; and hence the name.
Watermelon Hill. — This hill is about one and a half
miles south-easf of Lake Mahopac. The north side
is still covered with timber ; the south goes off with
a gentle slope, and is cultivated. It is partly owned
by Richard Dean, Esq. About 130 years since, a
great hunter from New Rochelle, Westchester Co.,
called Captain Simpkins, came up here and found
watermelons in great plenty on this hill ; whereupon
he named it as above. He was on friendly terms
with the Indians who lived there, and with whom he
bartered. In the Revolution, the cow-boys and horse-
thieves built pens on this hill, in which they put
stolen horses, until they could safely convey them to
New York for the use of the British Army. About 20
years ago the remains of these pens were still to be seen.
Battle Hill — This hill is in the southerly part of
the town, on the lands of the Ganongs, Esq.,
two and a half miles south of Carmel village. It
was formerly a great resort of Tattle-snakes. Drop-
ping the latter name, the people in its vicinity named
it as above. A young man was shot on this hill in
Revolution, and although found with a gang of horse-
TOWN OF CARMEL. 265
thieves, he was innocent of any participation in their
nefarious deeds. He lived in the town of Pawlings,
Dutchess County, had lately married, and was going
to see his wife, who, at that time, was with her friends
in the town of Bedford, Westchester County. The
gang, who had their head-quarters at Pawlings, per-
suaded him to defer his journey for a day or two, by
offering the use of one of their horses to ride, as they
were going in the same direction to one of the Ame-
rican posts on the Lines. He accepted their offer, not
doubting their representations about the horses being
for the American army. They had proceeded as far
as this Hill, where, encamping for the night, they
were overtaken and attacked by the owners of the
horses and their neighbors. The gang escaped, but the
young man, as he rose up from the ground beneath a
tree where he was sleeping, was shot through the
back. He died in 48 hours afterwards, but lived long
enough to see his wife, who was sent for, and explain
to her and those around him, how he happened to be
found in such company. He was buried a few rods
north of the hill.
Drew's Hill is a large eminence directly east of
Rattle Hill, on the land of John Craft, Esq., and
named after the Drew family.
Pond Hill is about two miles south of Carmel vil-
lage, at the north side of the Gilead Pond, at its foot.
Watts' Hill. — A small eminence just east of Pond
Hill, on the farm of Judge Watts, after whom it is
named.
Hazen Hill is about one and a half miles south-
west of Carmel village ; and named after the Hazen
23
266 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
family, who were among the earliest settlers from
Cape Cod.
Berry Mountain. — This is a large eminence, named
after Jabez Berry, to whom it formerly belonged, and
is now owned by Messrs. Wixon and Ballard. On
its summit is a tree, from the top of which, when the
woods are destitute of foliage, seven fish ponds can
be seen, five of which are visible at all times of the
year.
Hitchcock Hill, now called Prospect Hill, is about
two and a half miles north of the Red Mills. It has
been in the possession of the above-named family for
a hundred years.
Round Mountain is about one and a half miles east
of Hitchcock Hill, owned by Messrs. Hill, Pinckney,
and Barrett. The shape of this eminence is circular ;
hence the title.
Turkey Mountain is about one mile east of Round
Mountain. Formerly it was covered with white-oak
timber, and frequented by wild turkies.
Corner's Mountain. — A small eminence about one
and a half miles west of Carmel village, formerly
owned by a person of that name.
Austin Hill is about two and a half miles north-
west of the Red Mills. Job Austin's father, who
came from Germany about 100 years ago, settled on
it. It has always been in the possession of the family.
Big Hill. — This is the largest and highest ridge of
land on the east of the Peekskill Hollow range of the
Highlands, and situated about two and a half miles
south-west of the Red Mills.
Lake Mahopac. — This well-nigh unrivalled, beautiful,
and romantic^ lake, is located in the westerly part of the
TOWN OF CARMEL. 267
town, thirteen miles from Peekskill, Westchester Co. ;
five from Croton Falls in the same county; and four
miles south-west of Carmel village. It is a delightful
watering place, crowded to overflowing in the sum-
mer season with visitors from New York City and all
parts of the country. During the fashionable season
" strangers arrive here every day, and those who have
been before, never go anywhere else for recreation
and enjoyment, for they can be had here perfectly
unadulterated. This Lake is nine miles in circum-
ference, and is situated about eighteen hundred feet
above the level of the sea. It is one of the principal
sources of supply to the Croton ; and its pure and
placid waters, its wide and picturesque scenery, the
romantic resorts, its wild and wooded islands, the fre-
quent and agreeable pic-nic parties to the Dell, with
its clear and crystal spring, its rugged and precipitous
cliffs, and last, but not least, the rowing and sailing
among the islands and along the wild and rock-bound
shore are delightful, and superior to anything of the
kind in any place it has ever been our good fortune
to visit. Kirk ridge has an attraction for the curious,
in the position it occupies between two lakes, one of
which is about 150 feet below the other, both of
which can be seen on this shore.
" This Lake affords fine sport to the angler. Pick-
erel, pike, and perch are caught in abundance, and its
shores abound in all the wild game of the season, par-
ticularly woodcock, affording excellent sport to those
fond of gunning. There is one peculiar feature about
this lake, which we have never found in any other
watering place on this continent, and that is the com-
plete abs&ace of all desire for artificial amusements,
268 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
such as bowling, billiards, cards, games, and all those
things, which sojourners at such places usually resort
to for the purpose of killing time. Nothing of this
kind is required here ; the natural resources of the
place are sufficient to keep the most attractive con-
stantly engaged, and it would take weeks and months
to exhaust all the facilities the place possesses for
amusement.
" Jn all watering places, much depends upon the so-
ciety and the class of people there congregated. So
far as this important matter is concerned, Lake Ma-
hopac is particularly favored. There is no exclusive-
ness, no coteries, no codfish aristocracy, but all appear
disposed t:> make time pass as agreeably to those
around them as to themselves.
"Our watering places., generally, are the rendezvous
of fashion, and there are usually more restrictions upon
dress, and more restraint upon personal movements
than even in cities. The benefits derived from the
cool air, and the relief from c^re, a resort to the coun-
try usually gives, are not enjoyed, and everything is
sacrificed to fashionable dress and fashionable hours,
more so, if possible, than in the most fashionable city.
Sensible people do not go to such places for such pur-
poses ; it would be more sensible ^to. stay at home ;
but they go where they can get all the comforts of the
country, where they can enjoy themselves in their
own way, or in other words, do just as they please ;
for such purposes, they come to Lake Mahopac. It is
a fine place for young children, on account of the fa-
cilities for bathing, the pleasant drives and walks.
" It is a very desirable resort for all, as it is easy of ac-
cess, being only five miles from the present fexmination
TOWN OF CABMEL. 269
of the Harlem Railroad at Croton Falls, and only three
hours' ride from the city. The ride to the Lake from
the railroad is beautiful, it- being through such a wild
and picturesque country, and is really refreshing after
fifty -four miles of railroad travel.
" There are more beautiful places for summer rendez-
vous in the vicinity of the city of New York, than in
any other in the Union, and as fast as our railroads
become extended, new resorts are opened. It is only
within a few years that this place was known to any
extent by the citizens of N. Y. City, and we predict
that within a few years, it will be more generally re-
sorted to than many places which have been longer and
hitherto more favorably known."
Kirk Pond. — This handsome body of water is one
mile long, half a mile wide, bounded by the lands of
Messrs. Hill and Lounsberry. It takes its name from
an old man by the name of Kirk, who lived near it ;
and abounds in excellent fish.
Wixon Pond. — A large pond about half a mile north
of Lake Mahopac, nearly circular, and containing ex-
cellent fish. This and Seacord's pond are the only
ones in the county that originally contained white
perch. On the third day of December, 1838, Nathaniel
Crane, Esq., with a scoop-net as large as a half bushel,
scooped out of this pond eleven bushels of white perch.
Long Pond is bounded bv the lands of John Wix-
on, Allen Coles, Ebenezer Barret, and Alza Hill.
Esqs.
Cranberry Pond is south of Nathaniel Crane's,
Esq. ; bounded by the lands of Lewis Griffin, Reu-
ben Baldwin, and Coleman Rockwell, Esqs. It covers
about thirty acres, and contains perch, pike, with the
23*
270 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
more common kinds of fish. Cranberries are found
in abundance on its borders.
Shaw's Lake. — This beautiful sheet of water is
sometimes called Shaw's Pond, on the east and north
banks of which is located the quiet little village of
Carmel. Its location is a basin, as it were, scooped
out of the surrounding hills. It is about one mile in
length, three quarters in breadth, and 130 feet in depth,
containing all kinds of fish in great abundance. At its
north end, on elevated ground, is the charming resi-
dence of James Raymond, Esq., the main proprietor of
the largest collection of wild animals ever exhibited in
this country. At the south end, on a still higher emi-
nence, stands the former mansion of Samuel Gouver-
neur, deceased.
At the north end, a man by the name of Shaw re-
sided before the Revolution, after whom this Pond or
Lake was named. We have been informed that the
villagers of Carmel are about adopting a new name, by
which this noble body of water shall, in future, be
called; but, as yet, they have not published it pro forma.
Gilead Pond, formerly so called from its contiguity
to the old Gilead Church, is now known as the Crosby
Pond ; and is situated about one mile south of Carmel
Village. It is nearly a mile in length, half a mile in
breadth ; and, like Shaw's, abounds in all kinds offish.
It takes its later name from a son of the celebrated
Enoch Crosby, who owned a mill, which stood on its
out-let.
Barrett's Pond is in the north part of the town,
near the line between it and Kent, covering about ten
acres of ground. It bounds on the lands of different
members of the Barret family, after which it is named.
TOWN OF CARMEL. 271
Seacord's Pond, is half a mile wide, circular, and
named after the Seacord family, who lived close
to it.
Capt. John Crane. — This gentleman, the father of
Nathaniel Crane, Esq., now living in this town, was
born the 20th of Nov., 1742, old style. He built the
house, now occupied by his son Nathaniel, in 1772.
His ancestors were among the earliest settlers in this
county, of English origin, and of great influence and in-
telligencc, wherever located. During the Revolution,
the Crane family figured largely in those trying times
" that tried mens' souls,"' both in the civil and military
departments of the government.
Nearly all of the name, in this country, have de-
scended from John Crane, who came from Suffolk
county, in England, about 1075, and settled in Massa-
chusetts. He fought in the Indian war of 1720, at
Deerfield, and was in the fort when taken by the In-
dians. By making a passage under the logs, he suc-
ceeded in escaping with his family ; and afterwards
settled at Wilton, in Connecticut. He had two sons,
Jonathan and Jasper. Jasper settled at Elizabeth-
town, in New Jersey, and was the grandfather of Col.
John Crane, of the artillery, in the Revolution. Jona-
than had one son, Joseph, who was born 17th of May,
1690. Jonathan settled in Massachusetts : and his
son. Joseph, grandfather to John Crane, came from
Greenfield, in Connecticut, about 1755, and settled on
the north side of Joe's Hill, about one and a half miles
east of Sodom Crane. He built the mill there, called
in the old records, " Crane's Mill."
Another branch of this family, Orrin and Anson
Crane, Esqs., now living in the town of South-east, are
grandsons of Joseph Crane.
272 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
The branches of this family, in this town and South-
east, have kept regular chronological histories of the
family; and intending to insert them, we pass over
them to resume our remarks concerning that member
of the family at the head of our article. The whole
family seems to have been distinguished for integrity,
intelligence, and attachment to the cause of their
country.
In searching the continental, provincial, and mili-
tary records of the Revolution, we have not found one
of the name, adhering to the cause of England ; they
were all whigs at that day, and thoroughly "dyed in
the wool."
Joseph Crane, uncle to Jonathan, the father of An-
son and Orrin, was a Colonel of the Militia in the
Revolution, and fought in the battle at Ridgefield,
when partly destroyed by the British, after burning
Danbury. John, the subject of the present sketch,
was a Captain, and in 1803, '4 and '5, was an assistant
Judge of the Court of Common Pleas, of Dutchess
County. All of both branches of the family in New
York, as well as in New Jersey, who were old enough
to bear arms, held commissions, either in the Conti-
nental army, the militia, or in minute-men companies.
John seems to have become early the subject of hate
(and fear to the tories and friends of the King. At-
tempts were made to capture him in his own house
when alone, and shoot him when out of it ; but their
efforts were foiled by a Power that watched over the
American cause and its advocates. In the fall of 1780,
he retired to bed with his wife, having carefully se-
cured the doors and windows. About an hour after-
wards he heard a rap on the side of the house. He
TOWN OF CARMEL. 273
arose and looked out of the window, which was half
boarded up, and told his wife that he saw two men,
armed, outside. It was moonlight, and the refraction
of the moon's rays gave the appearance of two men,
when in reality there was but one. A reward of $200
had been offered for his apprehension, which he sup-
posed had induced a band of tories, who lived in the
vicinity, to pa)* him a night visit. He supposed that
there were others hard-by, secreted behind trees and
fences. He slipped out of the back door, cautioning
his wife to fasten it, intending to secrete himself in an
adjoining wood. After his departure, his wife, on
looking out of the window, saw but one man. The
man spoke to her, and begged the privilege to come
in and get something to eat, and rest himself for the
night on the floor. She asked him if there were
others with him, and he assured her, on the honor of
a soldier, that he was alone. She then asked him if
he was armed ? He said he was, and that " Washing-
ington's soldiers always went armed." She took off
the fastenings and raised the window a little, and told
him to hand in his gun breech foremost, which he
did ; and having fastened it again, she cocked the
gun, opened the door, and bid him come in, standing
a few feet back, ready to shoot him and close the
door should another make his appearance. She then
bade him fasten it, and having placed the gun in a cor-
ner, got the soldier some supper. While he was eat-
ing, Crane crept up to a back window, and seeing but
one man in the room, and he quietly eating his supper,
called to his wife to let him in again. He came in and
begged his wife to say nothing about his flight from
one man, since it had turned out so differently frore
274 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
what he expected ; but she declared that it was too
good to keep, and many a day afterwards she re-
hearsed it before him to the no small amusement of
his friends.
One night previous to this, while sitting by his fire
reading, and his wife in the corner darning stockings,
a cow-boy and tory of the name of Samuel Akerly, of
South-east, came to his window with gun in hand,
intending to shoot him. Akerly contemplated the
scene within, remembered the former friendship and
kindness he had received from Crane, (long before the
great issue was joined, that arrayed neighbor against
neighbor,) and withdrew, afterwards alleging that
" Crane was so great a friend to his country, and
so sincere in/iris actions, that he could not do it." At
another timej£apt. Crane went to his field, a few rods
west of Nathaniel Crane's house, now a meadow, to
chain his horses for the night. Akerly was lying in
wait to shoot him. Again he suspended his purpose,
alleging that his " heart failed him."
About this time, Robert Hughson, a whig and
neighbor of Capt. Crane's, went out one night on the
ridge just east of Crane's house, and was met by three
horsemen, well armed, who enquired, whether one
Capt. John Crane, did not live in the house, to which
they pointed ? Hughson told them that he did. They
then told him that he mutt go with them and assist
them to get $100 dollars in hard money, which they
said Crane had concealed in a bin of grain in the up-
per part of an old log-house, just back of his dwelling.
Hughson told them that if he must be shot, he would
rather it should be on his own land, than on the door-
sill of his neighbor, among a band of robbers; that
TOWN OF CARMEL. 275
Capt. Crane had four men with him well armed, and
that before they could get the money, some of them
would have to "bite the dust." Hughson so magnified
the force and fighting disposition of Capt. Crane, and
the danger of their all being killed before they could
get into the house, that they departed without making
an attempt.
The family Coat of Arms is now in the possession
of Nathaniel, his son, and a Record, reaching from
the great ancestor of this family, John Crane, of Eng-
land, down to the children of the subject of this bio-
graphy, and written by himself when he only lacked
six days to being 83 years of age. We extract it
entire, considering it wrong to comply with his re-
quest, so modestly expressed at its end. A majority
of the old men of the present time, who have reached
his age, can hardly do more than write their naSne,
while many of them can, at the most, only make their
marks. We doubt if there is one in a thousand, who
can write four large quarto pages, with the penman-
ship anything like as good, as that which now lays
before us, in the handwriting of Capt. John Crane:
A RECORD OF THE CRANE FAMILY.
" Carmel 29th Nov'r 1825. the following is a Reckord of the
Crane family as handed to me by my ancestors — my Grand-father
Joseph Crane was the son of Jonathan Crane of Windham in
Conecticut and grandson to John Crane from England and was
born May 17th 169G.
"Died August 28th 1781.
" Zebulon his eldest child was born Jan. 25 1721 Died Jan
24th 1789
" Joseph his 21 child was born Sep 13th 1722 Died Oct 14th
1800.
276 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" Mary his 3d child was born May 30th 1726 Died March
17th 1805 :
" Thadeous his 4th child was born March 28th, 1728 Died
Septr. 1803.
" Abijah 5th Child was born April 3d 1730 Died 3d 1806.
Anna 0th child Born April 12th 1732 Died March 25th 1805.
Stephen 7th Child Born May 13th 1734 Died May 10th 1814.
Adah 8th and last Child born Oct 25th 1736 her deth I dont re-
member, but she lived about 70 years, here ends the record of
my grand-father's family.
"here begineth a record of my Father's family — I John Crane
was born Nov 24th 1742 old stile — William was Born 1744.
Zebulon was Born August 7th 1746 Died December 31st 1814.
Elijah Born April 1st 1748. Sarah Born July 12th 1750. Mary
Oct. 8 1752— Stile altered about this time— Belden Born Nov 31
1754. Samuel Born April 11th 1757. Abigah Born May 26th
1759. Stephen born April 11th 1761. Anna born Augt. 3d
1763. Seth born march 1760. my mother was Sarah Belden —
Before mared Daughter of Wm. Belden of Wilton in Conecticut
and was a resident of the town of Dcarfield in Snoserjoseraets
at the time it was Destroyed by the French and Indians in the
winter of 1720 & 3—
" in the later part of the year 1769 my Father moved from
Bedford in Westchester County to Judeah now in the town of
Washington in Litchfield county — Soon after they Got there a
mortal sickness Came into the family, in which my mother and
five of her children died within 2 months, namely — Mary, Bel-
den, Stephen, Seth, anne — My mother had never lost a child be-
fore—
"I John Crane was born Nov 24th old stile 1742. My wife
Tamer, Daughter of John and Hannah Carpenter, was born
Dec'r 1st 1747, Died May 1st 1823. we were married on the
1st day of March 1764 By the Rev'd Eliphelet Ball the first set-
tlar and Minister of Ballstown in the State of New York — our
Eldest Child Joseph was Born June 3d 1766. 2d Child Adah
was born June 6th 1768. 3d Child Stephen Nov 1st 1770,
Died Sept 9th 1826. 4th Child John born June 6th 1773, Died
June 1st 1825. 5th Child Zillah was born Oct 3d 1775. 6th
TOWN OF CARMEL. 277
Child Nathaniel born Feb. 28th 1778. 7th Child Sarah born
June 27th 1780. 8th Child Arrabellah born 25 Decern 1784.
9th and last Child Clorinda was born Oct 2d 1787.
" I hope it will be a satisfaction to some of my Descendants to
be informed of the conduct of their ancestors throu life — my
Grand-father was Living at the commencement of the Revolu-
tionary war that separated the then 13 Collynies from the Govern-
ment of Grate Brittan — at the Commencement of that war the
People were devided into two Casses whig & tory — the whig
party ware those opposed to the black arts of the British Par-
liament— the tory party took sides with the King — my grand-
father was then about 80 years of age very strong and active for
a man of that age, and a warm whig and what is very remark-
able, his 8 children were all living and heds of familyes, had
many grandchildren and great grandchildren and not an indi-
vidual that had arrived to the years of understanding but what
took an active part of the American Cause — I was the oldest
grandchild — I had an Ensign's Commission under the King
George the 3d in the year 1775 —
" I took a Capt's Commission under the Provential Congress
of the Provence of New York — the 4th of July following our
independence was declared — George Clinton Became our Gover-
nor— then I received a Commission from him and held it through
the war — Such was the general conduct of the family which was
the cause of many of them receiving both civil and military com-
missions, not on account of our Extraordinary abilities, but as
an act of our engagedness in that blessed cause — I hope whoever
reads the foregoing will Erase the incorrectness, as I want but
six days of being 83 years of age and allmost blind.
" John Crane."
John Crane was a remarkable man ; and the record
he penned, at the age of 83, is very far from diminish-
ing the force of our assertion. He was a kind neisrh-
bor and indulgent parent, a firm friend, and unflinch-
ing patriot. He died in 1825.
Lieut. Jabez Berry. — This gentleman's ancestors
24
276 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
were from Ireland, and emigrated early to Cape Cod
in Massachusetts, where the subject of this memoir
was born. We have been able to gather but little
concerning his early life, previous to his arrival in
this country. His ancestors, himself, and his descend-
ants, were, and are still, distinguished for their gigan-
tic proportions, muscular frames, and great strength.
Jabez Berry came from Cape Cod after he was mar-
ried, and some years before the Revolution, and settled
on the farm now occupied by Elijah Crane, about one
mile north of Lake Mahopac. He was five feet
eleven inches high in his stocking feet ; a large,
powerful, robust man, with a frame knit together
more like iron than bone, and capable of the greatest
endurance. For his size, he was unmatched in
strength by any man, at that time, in the country.
Boxing was one of the amusements of the young
men at that day, very fashionable, and, as a science,
is still cultivated. He soon attained great proficiency
in it, and before leaving Cape Cod stood number one,
" solitary and alone," and without a rival. Some
years after settling in this town, a celebrated boxer
came to Cape Cod and inquired for one Jabez Berry ?
On ascertaining that he had removed to this town, he
informed one of Berry's intimate friends there that he
came to have a match with him, and offered to bet
that he could flog him. Berry's friend, well-knowing
his ability, accepted the wager ; and another person
having been chosen as the second of the boasting
bully, the three immediately set out for Berry's resi-
dence. On reaching it they found him and his wife
at breakfast. The boxer without much ceremony
entered the house, and thus accosted Berry : " Are
TOWN OF CARMEL. 279
you the man they call Jabez Berry ?" " Yes sir-ee,
and always have been," was the reply. " Well, sir,"
continued the bully, " I have come all the way from
Cape Cod to flog you." " Ah, indeed ! If you've
come all that distance to pluck a single berry from the
bush, you are entitled to a few striking tokens of my
regard as a reward for the pains you may suffer be-
fore you get back," was the reply. Out they went
into the door-yard, where he flogged his Cape Cod
antagonist to his heart's content ; received half the
bet, which he applied to curing his antagonist, who
was unable to resume his journey back for the space
of a week. There was one remarkable trait about
him that distinguished him from others who possessed
great powers and skill in pugilism ; he never made
use of it to domineer over the weak and those unable
to cope with him, nor insult any man from a consci-
ousness that his skill and strength was his protection
from punishment. He never was the assailing parly ;
nor entered a boxing combat in an angry state of feeling.
He enjoyed it with about the same good feeling that
he would relate an amusing anecdote or crack a
harmless joke. He belonged to the church ; and if
sickness or bad weather did not prevent him, never
failed in his attendance for any other cause. He was
commissioned a lieutenant in the militia, and rendered
great service in guarding this part of the country
from the midnight depredations of the cow-boys, skin-
ners, and tories. He had four sons ; John, who was
commissioned an ensign in Captain John Crane's mili-
tia company, Asahel, Jabez, junior, and Samuel, and
two daughters, His sons are all dead, but some of
his grandchildren are found in this town. Samuel A.
280 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Berry, Esq., of Carmel, whose father was Samuel,
the youngest son of Jabez, is a grandson of this early
settler. Samuel had four sons ; Charles, John, Fre-
derick, Samuel A. ; and seven daughters, Delilah, Hes-
ter, Elizabeth, two by the name of Clarissa, one hav-
ing died young, Julia and Mary.
Jabez Berry possessed a well-balanced mind, which
kept him from being disconcerted in any emergency.
Possessing an amiable and cheerful disposition, he
secured the esteem and approbation of all who knew
him, while his integrity and uprightness of pur-
pose secured him from the tongue of the slanderer.
He advocated the cause of his country with a stout
heart and a strong arm, and enjoyed the proud satis-
faction of seeing all of his sons follow his paternal
and patriotic example.
We have not been informed of the date of his
decease, but he lived many years to enjoy the fruit of
the tree of liberty which he had contributed so vigi-
lantly to guard.
We had intended giving a brief sketch of the
Churches in the county ; but on inquiry found that
they were principally of recent organization, not more
than three being organized at the commencement of
the Revolution.
The first Church erected in this county, so far as
we are informed, was built about 1735, in Southeast,
in which, about 1740, the Rev. Elisha Kent, the
grandfather of the late Chancellor Kent, preached as
the regular pastor.
St. Philips' Chapel, as it was then called, is the
Episcopal Church near the Hon. John Garrison's, and
was built in 1770, by Col. Beverly Robinson.
TOWN OF CARMEL. 281
During the Revolution, it was used as a kind of
Jail to confine prisoners. One minister preached
here every other Sabbath, and also in a Church just
south of Continental Village, across the Westchester
County line, where Col. Beverly Robinson gave the
two Churches a farm of about 300 acres as a parson-
age. A Church was built previous to the Revolution
in Patterson, but we have not obtained the necessary
facts to give a sketch of its history.
We had abandoned the idea, therefore, of saying
anything concerning the Churches, inasmuch as we
were unable to notice all, but could not forego the
pleasure of inserting the following notice of the Gilead
Church, which has been politely furnished us by the
Rev. Henry G. Livingston, its present Pastor.
THE GILEAD rRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
About the commencement of the Revolution, a
Congregational Church was organized in the vicinity
of Carmel Village, and a log building erected on the
hill a few rods north of the present residence of Ira
White, Esq., and within the limits of the town of
Southeast. The Society was familiarly known as
" Gregory's Parish," after the name of their first mi-
nister. No authentic records of the Church are found
until 1792, when a new. organization was made, and a
more commodious edifice built upon the ground now
known as the Gilead Burying-ground, a little over a
mile south of Carmel Village.
The Constitution and Articles of Faith, then adopt-
ed, are as follows :
" Frederickstown, August 9th, 1792.
" We, the subscribers, members of different churches, and of the
24*
282 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
former church in this place, now dissolved, living in the vicinity
commonly known as Gregory's Parish, considering it the duty of
Christians to join together in covenant, and form churches for
the glory of God and their mutual edification, wherever God in
his providence may cast their lot, and place them under circum-
stances convenient for that purpose ; and finding ourselves un-
der such circumstances, and no church in this parish which we
may join, and with which we can walk in the ordinances of the
Gospel according to our persuasion ; and having, as we humbly
trust, looked to the Father of lights for wisdom and direction,
and having also consulted with ministers and private Christians
concerning our duty under present circumstances, have, after
mature deliberation, judged that we ought, with the consent of
the churches to which we belong, to unite together in covenant
as a visible church, and Messrs. Ichabod Lewis, John Minor,
Amzi Lewis, and Silas Comfort, Ministers of the Gospel, hav-
ing by our request convened in order to assist us to unite and
enter into covenant with each other with solemnity and pro-
priety, we have therefore adopted and publicly received the fol-
lowing articles and covenant as the foundation of our union : —
"Articles of Faith.
"1. There is one only living, true, and eternal God, the Cre-
ator, Preserver, and Governor of the world ; infinite in all per-
fection and glory, and worthy to be loved, worshipped, and
obeyed by all rational creatures.
"2. The Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments are the
Word of God, and a sufficient and infallible rule of practice.
"3. Mankind are fallen from God, and are naturally destitute
of all holiness and inclined wholly to sin ; and therefore are
under the curse of God*s law, and deserve his eternal wrath.
"4. God purposed in himself before the foundation of the
world, to save some of the human race by a dispensation of
grace through a Mediator.
':5. This grace has been revealed to fallen man by Jesus
Christ, who, being really God, became man, and in the flesh per-
formed the work of mediation, and by his obedience and death,
opened up a way in which sinners may be freely justified by
faith, and saved according to the divine purpose.
TOWN OF CARMEL. 283
"6. The Mediator, Jesus Christ, is the appointed Governor
of the world and the final judge of the quick and the dead.
" 7. Those and those only who are chosen of God in Christ,
and renewed by the effectual operation of the Holy Ghost on
their hearts, do actually repent and believe unto eternal life.
"8. God will continue his gracious operations on the hearts
of his people until they are completely sanctified and fitted for
his Heavenly Kingdom and glory.
"9. God will overrule all things for his glory and the ad-
vancement of his Kingdom until the consummation, when those
who are united to Christ by faith will be raised and glorified,
and the impenitent and unbelieving eternally punished."
" The Covenant.
" We do this day solemnly take God for our God, Jesus Christ
for our Saviour, the Holy Ghost for our Sanctifier, and the
Scriptures for our rule and directory ; and sincerely, as far as
we know ourselves, covenant and engage by divine grace to
devote ourselves to the service and glory of God, walking in all
his ordinances, observing his commandments, living solely,
righteously, and godly in this present world, trusting in the
merits of Jesus Christ alone for acceptance with God, seeking
his Glory and Kingdom, watching over our Christian brethren
and sisters in love, studying to promote their spiritual edifica-
tion, and therefore good, endeavouring to keep the unity of
the spirit in the bond of peace, and waiting for the coming of
our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
Signed,
John Ambler, Mary Hopkins,
Matthew Beale, Desire Stone,
Philetus Phillips, Mary Haynes,
Zebulon Phillips, Lucy Cullen,
John Merrick, Bethia Trusdell,
John McClean, Esther Phillips,
Jabez Trusdell, Elizabeth Merrick."
Rebecca Hopkins,
Who were the officers appointed in 1792, does not
appear from the minutes of the Church record.
2S4 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
It is believed there was then no settled minister,
though the pulpit was occasionally supplied by .the Rev.
Mr. Lewis. At a meeting held, December 9th, of the
same year, it was resolved that the name of the So-
ciety be changed from that of " Gregory's Parish," to
that of " Gilead."
Since then, it has always been known as the " Gilead
Church." The name was derived from Scripture with,
out any special reason, I apprehend, for so appropri-
ating it. Fancy, doubtless, dictated the selection.
June 27th, 1795, Mr. John Amber was elected dea-
con of the Church, and the first who filled that office.
Soon after this period, the Church gradually lost
strength ; there being no settled pastor, and, in all
probability, no stated administration of the ordinances.
It was, therefore, thought advisable, in the year 1803,
to reorganize. The same constitution and articles of
faith and government, as before, were adopted, and
were signed by the following individuals :
Elisha Smith, Thirza Crosby,
Dorius Crosby, William Jacks,
Harvey Newell, David Travis,
Gilbert Travis, Rachel Newell,
Elizabeth Travis, Jane Woodhull,
Desire Stone, Deborah Travis,
Denny Jacks, Hannah Rimdee.
Harvey Newell, at this time, was elected Clerk, and
William Jacks, deacon. The Rev. Mr. Stephen Dodd
had been previously called to the charge of the church,
and preached here half of the time, and the remainder
at the Red Mills.
He remained here until the 15th of July, 1810.
During his ministry, a large number were added to
TOWN OF CARMEL. 285
the church, a,nd its condition was prosperous. He
was not, however, a settled pastor.
February 18th, 1804, Enoch Crosby, the supposed
hero of Cooper's novel, entitled the Spy, and so well
known for the aid he rendered his country in its time
of trial, was elected deacon; and, in 1806, David
Travis was set apart to the same office.
After Mr. Dodd had resigned the care of the church,
the pulpit was supplied by the Rev. Herman Dagget,
who was succeeded in 1812, by the Rev. Allen Blair.
Afterwards, the Rev. Messrs. James N. Austin, Abner
Brundige, Isaac Allerton, and B. Y. Morse, officiated
from 1815, until the year 1835. None of these, so far
as my knowledge extends, were settled as pastors.
The church, as it appears from the minutes, from
the year 1824 to 1831, was in a state of fearful de-
clension. The ecclesiastical body to which it belonged,
was gradually becoming extinct. Disorder and a re-
laxation of dicipline, naturally resulted from this state
of things. The preaching of the Word was feebly
sustained, and but few were added to the congregation
of the Lord. From 1831 to 1835, there was stated
preaching every Sabbath ; but the church had little
more than a name to live, although there were set
times when Zion was far advanced, and some few
made public profession of their faith. In March, 1834,
the church made the followine; declaration :
" We, the members of the Second Presbyterian Congregational
Church in the town of Carmel, and formerly having been a
branch of the Westchester Presbytery, which is now extinct, do
declare ourselves to be, as in fact we are, an independent Con-
gregational Church. Believing, however, that great benefits
may result to the Church of Christ from intimate union and fel-
lowship with each other by their mutual aid and counsel, hold
ourselves willing to unite with some ecclesiastical body when-
286 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
ever, in the providence of God, an opportunity shall present
and the way made clear."
The church, soon after this, assumed the Presbyterian
form of government, and connected itself, June 3d,
1835, with the Presbytery of Bedford. Joseph Crane,
Gilbert H. Travis, and Morgan L. Raymond, were
elected Elders. In October, of the same year, a call
was extended to the Rev. Gilbert Livingston Smith,
to become pastor of the church. The call was ac-
cepted, but before he had entered upon the active du-
ties of his office, he was suddenly translated to the
Church of the redeemed above.
In the year 1837, the society erected their present
house of worship, in the village of Carmel ; a structure
justly admired for the neatness of its finish and the
beauty of its location. The Rev. G. T. Todd was
soon after installed pastor, and the first who was ever
settled as such; and remained until May, 1844. He
was succeeded in August, 1845, by the Rev. Henry
G. Livingston, who was then ordained and installed,
and continues to fulfil the duties of the pastoral office
at the present time.
The church has gradually increased since 1835, and
has now upwards of 100 members. Though its
growth is slow, it is sure, and its friends, to whom its
past history is familiar, have every reason " to thank
God and take courage."
The present officers of the church are, Rev. Henry
G. Livingston, Pastor ; Gilbert H. Travis, Morgan L.
Raymond, Daniel Travis, and Anson Fowler, ruling
Elders. Its creed is the same as that of other ortho-
dox Presbyterian churches ; and its ecclesiastical rela-
tions are with the Presbytery of Bedford, and the
Synod of New York.
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST.
This town was organized in 1788, and, as before
remarked, takes its name from its geographical position,
being located in the south-east part of the county. Its
surface is rolling, and indented with vales and low
lands, which yield excellent grass ; and, as a town, is
better adapted for grazing than grain. The Harlem
Railroad is now being made, nearly through its centre,
from south to north, and will greatly facilitate the
transportation of its farmers' produce to market.
The main and east branches of the Croton traverse
it from north to south, and with a few other streams,
furnish sufficient water-power for milling purposes.
Nowhere in the County, except in Patterson, have
we found better roads, at least in that part through
which we rode.
Agriculture, as a science, seems here to have kept
pace with every other ; and the farm-houses, with
their out-buildings, give a pleasing evidence of neat-
ness, thrift, and good husbandry. Its population in
1840 was 1910; in 1845, 2044.
EARLY SETTLEMENT.
This town was one of the earliest settled in the
county. Adjoining Westchester on the south, and
Connecticut on the east, emigration, as it' flowed
northward from the City of New York, and westward
288 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
from Massachusetts and Connecticut, poured its tide
into this town, Carmel, and Patterson.
There were a few families who came from West-
chester and settled here, but the greater part were
from the then Colonies of Massachusetts and Connec-
ticut.
The rich fat lands of the Croton early attracted the
attention of the citizens of the above-named Colo-
nies, one generation of whom had worn themselves
out in their attempt to subdue the rough and stony
surface whereon they first settled.
The principal settlers of this town were the Cranes,
Crosbys, Halls, Moodys, Paddocks, Hanes, Howes,
Carpenters, and Dickinsons. Deacon Moody, as he
was familiarly called, was about the first settler at
Sodom Corners. He bought all the land in its imme-
diate vicinity. A short distance north of him, James
Dickinson made an early settlement. His son, James
Dickinson, jun., was one of the Commissioners for
laying out roads in 1745, with Thomas Davenport,
Esq., of Nelsonville, in Philipstown.
David Paddock, grandfather to Mrs. Richards, now
living in this town, came from Cape Cod, in Massa-
chusetts, with a family of eight children, about 1740,
and located near the Presbyterian Meeting-house.
His children were, Nathan, Foster, David, Isaac,
Mary, Susanna, Mercy, and Sarah. Isaac was killed
in the fight at Ward's house below White Plains, in
Westchester County ; and when shot, he fell against
Capt. Joshua Barnum, the grandfather of Col. Reuben
D. Barnum, Clerk of this County.
While falling, his tobacco-box fell out of his vest
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 289
pocket, which Captain Barnum picked up and eventu-
ally returned to the father of young Paddock.
Nathan, after the Revolution, caught the small-pox,
and died at Catskill, in Greene County ; Foster died
in Dorset, in Vermont ; and David died in this town
after the Revolution.
Caleb Carpenter, great-grandfather of the Hon.
Azor B. Crane, of Carmel, on his mother's side, with
twelve others, came to this town about 1730, and
located about three miles north of Sodom Corners,
where they built the old Presbyterian log Church., in
which the Rev. Elisha Kent, grandfather to the late
Chancellor Kent, first preached in this town.
Joseph Crane, grandfather of Ansin and Orrin
Crane, Esqs., came about the same time, and settled
on the north side of Joe's Hill, one and a half miles
east of Sodom Corners, where he built the mill known
in early times as " Crane's Mill."
Our article on early settlement is necessarily general
and imperfect, as the sources from which we obtained
it are limited ; and, resting in the memory of a few
aged people, they, in some instances, are not compe-
tent to give it with any great degree of accuracy.
Extracts from the Town Records.
" At a town meeting held at the South precinct in Dutchess
County 6th day of April 1773
1 John rider Was chosen Moderator
2 Isaac Elwell Clerk
3 chosen Joseph Crane Jr. Supervisor
4 was Chosen John field Sessor
5 was Chosen Samuel Bangs Sessor
G was Chosen peter hall Collector
7 was Chosen Thomas trowbridge Constable
8 mark Gage Constable
25
290 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Joseph Hull poormaster
Zebedee brigs poormaster
Daniel haviland poormaster
Thomas baldwin ) Commissioners for
Oliver he j the highways
Seth Nicknerson Commissioners
Benjamin Sears pound Keeper
Daniel haviland pound Keeper
Nathan Goreen Jr fence viewer
William Stone fence viewer
Uriah Townsend highway master N 1
peter hall path master N 2
Nathan Green is path master N 3
William Penny Jr path master N 4
hervey hopkins path master N 5
Zebede brigs path master N 6
Nathaniel foster path master N 7
" Births in South East.
Mercey Clinton Was Born August the 31 17G6
Phebe Clinton was born May the 24 day 17G8
Estr Clinton was born May the 24 day 1770
Jesse Clinton Was born July the 21 day 1772
Joshua Hinkley was born March 11th 1775
Elkane hinkley was born July 19 day 1759
•' Benjamin Tounsels Ears mark is a Crop on the Right Ear &
A Nick under it & half penny on the Under Side of the Left Ear
" Isaac Elwell Ear mark is a Crop of the Left with a hole in
the same & a Nick under the same.
•' Samuel Elwell Jr Ear mark is a Crop of the left and a hole in
the rite"
The first instance we have discovered in the records
of the towns of this county, of a master manumitting
his slaves, occurs, to its praise be it said, in this town
by Samuel Field ; and what gives it more importance,
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 291
is the fact that our fathers had just entered on the
struggle with the Mother Country, for freedom from
foreign domination.
But there is a drawback to this noble instance of
magnanimity, found on the records as late »s 1826, in
the sale of the town-poor. Slavery is a misfortune,
and poverty is not necessarily a crime ; and for
governments to treat it as such, would only be making
the rich richer, and the poor poorer.
" To all persons, unto whomsoever these Presents shall come
greeting. Know ye, that I Samuel Field of Oblong in the
County of Dutchess and Province of New York, For and in
consideration of the free rights and liberties of all mankind, and
conceiving it unlawful for a Christian to hold any of his fellow
creatures in bondage for term of life : Do hereby, from and after
the thirteenth day of the fifth month, Called May which shall hap-
pen in the year of our Lord 1780 give unto my Mulatto Man.
bred by me, Known by the name of Phillip, his full freedom, to
act k do in business for himself as of his own proper right as a
free Man — And to be free from all manner of claim or command
in any Kind of service whatsoever, either by me my heirs, execu-
tors, administrators or assigns for ever. In witness whereof, I
have hereunto set my hand & seal this tenth day of the second
Month called february in the year of our Lord 1776.
4i Samuel Field (L. S.)'*
Signed & sealed in
ye presence of us
Peter Field
Abel Close.
•' Sale of the Poor made April 22 1826
Nancy Binnit to James Hains $25,37
Abigah Crane " Henry Mead 33,50
George Dudley " Abner Gay 35,80
Ebenezer Wixon " Chancey Higgins 15,00
Birch & wife " Henry Cole 79,94
June 1 Esther Lawrance " James Hains 23,87
July 1 Joseph Leonard " James Hains 34,97 "
292 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
" At a Town Meeting held the 6th day of April 1779 it was
4 Voted that Jabez Elwell make a Pair of Stocks upon the Cost
of this precinct.' "
Sodom Corners. — A small village on the East Branch
of the Croton River, in the centre of the town, about
six miles East of the Court-houss. Barber, in his His-
torical Collections, calls it Hatsville, which name must
have been given to him by some one who desired that
the name of Sodom should be dropped. We do not
wonder, however, that any of its present peaceable
inhabitants should desire to get rid of a name, which
has connected with it such odious associations.
When we approached this quiet little hamlet, we
looked around us for Gomorrah, but failed to discover
it. And when fairly quartered in its centre, we
smelled no brimstone, but saw fire ; but that was
where it should be — in the stove. It was named
" Sodom" by way of reproach, in consequence of the
unusually wild and wayward character of some of its
B'hoys, in days long gone by. But for peace and
quietness, sobriety, and industry, so far as we could
discover, it is not now excelled by any other village in
the county. A Post Office is located here.
Milltown. — A small village about two miles east of
Sodom Corners. It is so called from a mill located
there. A Post Office is also established here.
Doansburgh. — A few houses located in the northerly
part of the town, in the neighborhood of the first Pres-
byterian church. This church occupies the site of
the old one, in which the Rev. Elisha Kent, grand-
father of the late Chancellor Kent, first preached, on
his arrival in this town, after leaving the Presbyterian
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 293
Church at Newtown, in the State of Connecticut, in
1740. It subsequently " became known as Kent's
Parish." Chancellor Kent was born at this place, in
an old house which stood about three rods distant from
the Post Office ; and which was taken down about
twenty years since. The east sill of the store-building
at this place, now covers the spot, which, in the Chan-
cellor's boyhood, was covered by a rock as high as a
man's head, of a pyramidal form, with artificial steps
in the side of it from its base to the top. The Hon.
Reuben D. Barnum, Clerk of Putnam county, some
twenty-five years ago, blasted the rock into pieces.
Shortly afterwards, the Chancellor visited the place
of his birth — the scene of his nativity — to commune
with the hallowed recollections of the past, and the
golden memories of childhood's sinless days. He
expressed his regret at its demolition, as it had been a
source of great pleasure and amusement to him in his
boyhood, to climb to its apex, and indulge in those
day dreams which characterize that sunny period of
existence. He also visited the house, and ascended to
the chamber where he was born. He seemed excited
with all the rapturous feelings of boyhood, and ex-
claimed, ': Here is the room where I uias born — the
chamber where my existence commenced." This place
is named in honor of Benjamin Doane, who lived
here.
Joe's Hill. — A beautiful and romantic eminence in
the east part of the town, the west end of which ter-
minates on the east bank of the east branch of the
Croton River. A part of this Hill belonged to David
Paddock, deceased, who came from Cape Cod, in the
State of Massachusetts, when seven years old, with
25*
294 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
his parents. The same part is now owned by his son,
David B. Paddock.
About seventy years ago, it was rumored that there
was a silver mine on the north side of this Hill.
Marvellous stories were told concerning the manner
of its discovery ; and that it was a charmed spot, to
which no man would be permitted to approach, with-
out having first taken an oath of secrecy, and become
imbued or subject to the mystic spell that rested over
the Potosi of the town of Southeast.
About sixty years ago, the excitement was at its
height. It drew within its vortex some men who
were possessed of an easy credulity, and others who,
from a knowledge of the character of their neighbors,
relied upon their statements, and trusted in their re-
ports. It having been noised abroad, that there was a
silver mine of incalculable wealth here, two or three
men from abroad, supposed, at the time, to be theoreti-
cal or practical miners, visited the hiil and took up
their residence near it. Two residents, Nathan Hall
and Jehu Miner, also became believers in the ex-
istence of the mine. They, with the others who came
from abroad, were called " Pigeon Men," by their
neighbors.
Hall pretended to know the precise locality of the
mine, and, when questioned by his friends and neigh-
bors, urged the necessity of first subscribing to a se-
cret oath. David Paddock, deceased, often conversed
with Hall about the mine, but could get nothing satis-
factory from him. Necromancy, divination, and mys-
tic charms, formed the subjects of Hall's conversation
when plied with direct questions touching the location
of the hidden treasure. While young he went to De-
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 295
marara, in English Guiana, in South America. In a few
years he returned, alleging that he knew everything
that had happened in his absence. The existence of
the mine appears to have been a delusion, which seems
to have increased with his age ; and, as a ruling pas-
sion, was strongly developed on his death-bed. In this
respect he was what is now termed a monomaniac —
deranged in a single faculty of his mind, or in regard
to a particular subject.
The elder Paddock asked him what use was it to a
man to believe what he was destined never to know ;
and how could a man believe in what everybody else,
himself, and a few others excepted, rejected as a delu-
sion? Hall told him, that if he could be led along to a
certain spot and see a stone move, which covered
steps leading to the mine, he would then believe.
"Yes,"' replied Paddock, "if I saw it with my eyes,
and descended into the mine, I should believe ; but I
do not believe I shall ever see all of that, or that you
have either."
Laboring under this delusion, which seemed ever
uppermost in his mind, he induced his wife to believe,
that in a short time there would be more silver money
in Southeast than there ever had been in all preceding
time. Mrs. Richards, now living near this Hill, asked
her what had become of the large amount of silver
which her husband had predicted would be as plenty
as berries. She replied that " Nathan had been re-
vealing something about the mine that he ought not
to have disclosed, and the mysterious spell had moved
over it."
Hall's brother told him, that when he came to die
he wished to be present; and desired that he might be
296 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
sent for in time to witness his departure. He was
sent for, accordingly, but those who caused him to be
informed that his brother's departure was near at
hand, were not awaTe of the additional and secret
reason, that had prompted Nathan's brother to desire
that he might be sent for when Nathan was about to
fjuit this world. The brother came, but Hall was so
far gone as to be unable to speak, yet conscious of
everything around him. His brother then told him,
if there was a silver mine in Joe's Hill, and he knew
it, to squeeze his hand, which he then gave him.
Hall then gave it, as far as his strength permitted, a
hard gripe ; thus ratifying on his death-bed the belief
he had taught and entertained while living. Nathan
Hall died in this town about ten years ago.
Tone's Pond. — This handsome body of water lies in
the westerly part of the town, is one mile long, half a
mile wide; and is named in honor of en old negro of the
name of Tone, who settled beside it. He was the slave
of John Warring, deceased, enlisted and served in the
Revolutionary war, on condition that he should have
his freedom at its close. Having received his freedom
after peace was declared, he married a woman half
Indian and half negro ; settled down beside this pond
which soon became a great resort for fishing sports-
men. He kept boats for their accommodation, and
furnished" them with whatever was called for in the
form of victuals and drink; a sort of fisherman's tavern,
where everything appertaining to the sport is to be
had at the shortest notice, for which liberal payment
is made, and no 'credit expected by either party. He
left quite a numerous and respectable number of des-
cendants. It is said that one of his grandsons mar-
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 297
ried a beautiful young white girl who shortly afterwards
induced him to go south with her, where she sold him
as a slave.
Little Pond is about half the size of Tone's Pond,
and about half a mile west of the Presbyterian Church
in the northerly part of the town.
Peach Pond. — This is a large sheet of water, the
greater part of which lies in Westchester County. It
is two miles long and one broad. The dividing line
of the two counties runs through the north part of it,
leaving a small portion of it in Putnam.
Corner Pond Brook. — This stream is so called in
consequence of four towns cornering on it, viz. : —
Danbury, Ridgefield, New Fairfield in Connecticut,
and this town in New York. The north-east corner
of this town is on it.
Daly Brook. — This stream empties into the Croton
near Milltown, and about one mile north of the west
end of Joe's Hill.
" Return of Militia Officers for South-east Precinct, Dutchess
County, New York :
" Dutchess County, South-east Precinct Committee,
August 21, 1775.
" Pursuant to a Resolution of Provincial Congress,
" Ordered that Thomas Baldwin, Esquire, and Mr.
Nathaniel Foster, two of the Members of this Committee, notify
the Militia of this Precinct, consisting of one Beat (lately com-
manded by John Field, as Captain), to appear on the 25th in-
stant at the usual place of parade, that the said Militia, under
the direction and inspection of the said Baldwin and Foster., may
arrange themselves into a military Company, agreeable to said
Resolution of Congress. That said Militia do then and there
make choice of military officers by a majority of votes, to take
the command of said Company ; and that the said Baldwin and
298 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Foster make return of their doings to the Chairman of this Com-
mittee.
" Joseph Crane, Chairman."
"Having duly executed the above Order of Committee, we
hereby certify that the Company of Militia of said South-east
Precinct, agreeable to said Order, did assemble ; and they have,
by a fair majority of votes, made choice of Commissioned Officers
to take the command of said Company, agreeable to the afore-
said Resolution of Congress, as follows, viz. : William Mott,
Captain ; Benjamin Higgins, First Lieutenant ; Ebenezcr Gage.,
Second Lieutenant; Nat/ianiel Green, Jun., Ensign.
"Test. "Thomas Baldwin,
"Nathaniel Foster,
" A true copy of the Return.
"Joseph Crane, Chairman."
"Return of Minute-officers in South-east Precinct. Dutchess
County, New York :
" Dutchess County, South-east Precinct Committee,
September 22, 1775.
" Ordered, That those persons who have arranged
themselves in the character of Minute-Men in this precinct, do
assemble themselves on the 2Gth instant, in order to choose out
of their Company the several officers which, agreeable to direc-
tions of our Congress, are to command such Companies : and
that Tho?nas Baldwin, Esqr., and Mr. Nathaniel Foster, Members
of this Committee, do attend and inspect said choice, and make
return thereof to the Chairman of this Committee.
"Joseph Crane, Chairman."
"South-east Precinct, Sept. 26, 1775.
"We hereby certify that agreeable to the foregoing order, the
Company of Minute-Men therein referred to did, on the 2Gth
instant, assemble, and, under our inspection, made choice of
Joshua Barnum, Jun., as Captain ; William Marsh, First Lieut. ;
Eliaakim Barnum, Second Lieut. ; and Jonathan Crane, Ensign
" Thomas Baldwin,
"Nathaniel Foster."
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 299
The following is a letter from Joseph Crane, Chair-
man of the South-east Precinct Committee, to Egbert
Benson :
" South-east Precinct, May 22, 1777.
" Dear Sir — Yesterday I saw one Allaby, a sergeant of Cap-
tain Dellman, taken prisoner at Ward's, with Major Dain ; he
made his escape from the guard-house in New York on the
evening of the 15th inst. ; gives a favourable account of the
state of the prisoners taken with him, our worthy friend, Major
Dain, excepted, who, he says, has been in close confinement
during the Avhole of his captive state ; that the only reason as-
signed therefor is, his having no commission with him ; says
he has often heard the Major lamenting the hardships to which
he is subjected on that account, wishing for an opportunity to
inform his friends thereof ; that in addition to a train of painful
circumstances consequent on a state of close confinement, the
means of subsistence was rendered much more expensive. His
supplies from home, I understand, have been much short of
what I have before understood, twenty-five dollars being the
full amount of what he has received ; he has had the small-pox
by inoculation pretty severely; is now in a good state of health.
I presume a simple relation of facts will be sufficient to engage
your attention, and that the earliest opportunity will be em-
braced for the relief of this worthy officer; anything in my
power to forward the same will be with pleasure complied with.
"I have the pleasure to hear my son is well ; has for some
time been admitted to his parole, either to remain in New York
or go to Long Island ; has chosen the former ; taken his board
with Mr. Thomas Arden ; had the small-pox favourably, and in
all respects is as happy as a state of captivity admits of. Alleby
says the enemy lost fourteen men in the action at Ward's ; six of
those they carried off wounded died between Ward*s and Wil-
liams' ; the seventh died as soon as they had got to Valentine's :
that every commissioned officer, save one ensign, was killed ;
that on their arrival at King's Bridge, the commanding officer of
that post came out of the door of his lodgings, when the prison-
ers were paraded, and says, ' Well, you have got a parcel of the
300 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
d — d rebels, have you V ' Yes,' replied the surviving ensign,
* but we have paid d — d dear for them ; I am the only officer left
alive !' to which there was no reply made.
"He further tells me, that the day before he left New York,
he read in the papers an account of the enemy's loss in Danbury
tour, estimated at between 3 and 400 men ; that he often heard
them say to one another, that the Danbury rout had been more
expensive to them, in proportion to the number of their troops,
than the Lexington tour. May Heaven grant that their cursed
enterprises may still prove more and more expensive to them,
till they become quite bankrupts.
"We are now in this quarter (as it were) lying on our arms,
every hour expecting fresh visits from the Tryonites. A number
of the enemy's ships are in the Sound. Yesterday morning up-
wards of twenty of them drew up against Fairfield, and appear-
ed to be in a landing posture ; the alarm reached us by 12
o'clock the same day ; by night we were informed they soon
came to sail again, and went westward of Norwalk.. They are
no doubt meditating another of their felonious enterprises, and
I have the pleasure to assure you our people arc evidently better
disposed, as well as better prepared otherwise, to bid them wel-
come, than ever we were before : and the general say is, that in
case Tryon is not gone to account for his former murders, 'tis
hoped he will ' again grace his murderous train with his presence,
and happily meet what Heaven has declared shall be the fate of
him in whose skirts is found the blood of men.'
" You will overlook the blunders in this hurried scrawl, and
accept the humble regard of, Sir,
"Your most obedient,
"Joseph Crane.
"To Egbert Benson, Esqr."
" Letter from Thaddeus Crane.
"Kingston, August 9th, 1777.
Gentlemen — It being my misfortune, in repulsing, the enemy at
Ridgfield, on the 26th of April last, to meet with a wound from
them, which confined me to my bed for a long time ; and I was
at great expense by loss of time and cost of doctor. I desire to
know from your Honourable Council, whether I am to receive
TOWN OP SOUTHEAST. 301
any wages or relief from the State, and where to apply to get the
6ame, if any is allowed. These from your honours' humble
servant,
"Thaddeus Crane.
'•To the Honourable the Council of Safety
of the State of New York."
JAMES KENT.*
James Kent was born the 31st July, 1763, in that
part of Dutchess County, then called the Precinct of
Fredericksburgh, now in the County of Putnam, in the
State of New York.
His grandfather, the Rev. Elisha Kent, a native of
Suffiekl, in the State of Connecticut, married the
daughter of the Rev. Joseph Moss, of Derby, and
was for some time a minister of the Presbyterian
Church at Newtown, in that State.
He removed, as early as 1740, to the south-east
part of Dutchess County, then wild and uncultivated,
but which gradually increased in population, and be-
came known as Kent's Parish.
He continued to reside there until his death, in
July, 1776, at the age of seventy-two. His eldest
son, Moss Kent, who, as well 'as "his father, was a gra-
duate of Yale College, commenced the study of the
law under Lieutenant-Governor Fitch, at Norwalk
in Connecticut, and was admitted to the bar, in
Dutchess County, in 1756. In 1760 he married the
eldest daughter of Dr. Uriah Rogers, a physician at
Norwalk, by whom he had three children, who are
now living : James, the subject of this memoir :
Moss, who was a member of the Senate of New
York for four years, afterwards a member of Con-
* National Portrait Gallery.
20
302 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
gress, and first Judge of the Court of Common Pleas
of Jefferson County, which office he resigned on being
appointed Register of the Court of Chancery in 1817;
and Hannah, who married William Pitt Piatt, of
Plattsburg. They lost their mother in 1770, and their
father died in 1794, at the age of sixty-one.
When five years old, James, the eldest son, was
placed at an English school at Norwalk, and lived in
the family of his maternal grandfather until 1772,
when he went to reside with an uncle at Pawlings,
in Dutchess County, where he acquired the first rudi-
ments of latin. In May, 1773, he was sent to a latin
school at Danbury, in Connecticut, under the charge
of the Rev. Ebenezer Baldwin, a highly respectable
Presbyterian minister. After the death of Mr. Bald-
win, in October, 1776, he was under different instruc-
tors, at Danbury, Stratford, and Newtown, until he en-
tered Yale College, in New Have:n, in September,
1777. At these different schools he was remarked
as possessing a lively disposition, great quickness of
parts, a spirit of emulation, and love of learning.
The pious Puritans among whom he lived were
sober, frugal, and industrious ; and the strict and
soberly habits of those around him had their influence
in forming his own. From their example, and the
impressions received at that early age, he acquired
that simplicity of character and purity of morals
which he ever afterwards preserved, without losing
his natural vivacity and playfulness of temper.
He has often mentioned the de'iight he experienced
on his periodical returns from school to his home, in
rambling with his brother among the wild scenery of
his native hills and valleys.
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 30o
The associations then formed rendered him an en-
thusiastic admirer of the beauties of nature ; and, in
after-life, during the intervals of business, he made
excursions into every part of his native State, through
New England, and along the borders of Canada,
visiting each mountain, lake, and cascade ; and while
gratifying his taste for simple pleasures, preserving
and invigorating his health.
In July, 1779, in consequence of the invasion of
New Haven by the British troops, the college was
broken up, and the students for a time dispersed.
During his exile, having met with a copy of Black-
stone's Commentaries, he read the work of that ele-
gant writer with great eagerness and pleasure, and it
so excited his admiration that he determined at the
age of sixteen to be a lawyer.
He left college, after taking the degree of Bachelor,
in September, 1781, with high reputation ; and after
passing a few weeks at Fairfield, to which place his
father had removed on his second marriage, he went
to Poughkeepsie, and commenced the study of the
law, under the direction of Egbert Benson, then At-
torney-General of the State of New York, and after-
terwards one of the Judges of the Supreme Court.
His strong and decided attachment to jurisprudence
could not fail to ensure his success. Besides, the
books of English Common Law, he read the large-
works of Grotius and Puffendorf, making copious ex-
tracts from them, and, as a relaxation, perusing the
best writers in English literature, of which his favorite
portions were history, poetry, geography, voyages,
and travels. He was temperate in all his habits, a
water-drinker, and entered into no dissipation, not
304 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
even joining in the ordinary fashionable amusements
of others of the same age.
He was very far, however, from being grave, re-
serve, or austere ; but was uniformly cheerful, lively,
and communicative.
The love of reading had become his ruling passion,
and when he felt the want of amusement, " he better
knew great nature's charms to prize," and sought it
in rural walks, amidst objects that purify and elevate
the imagination. In September, 1784, he took the
degree of Master of Arts at Yale College, and in
January, 1785, was admitted an attorney of the
Supreme Court. He went to Fredericksburgh with
the intention of commencing the practice of his pro-
fession there; but the solitude of that retired spot
soon became insupportable, and in less than two
months he returned to Poughkeepsie, where, in April,
1785, he married Miss Bailey, a lady a few
years younger than himself, and with whom he has
since lived in the uninterrupted enjoyment of domes-
tic felicity. He possessed at this time little or no
property, but living with great simplicity in a country
village his wants were few, and supplied at little ex-
pense. Young, ardent, and active, he felt no anxiety
for the future ; but engaged with increased alacrity
in professional business and literary pursuits, so as to
leave no portion of his time unemployed.
In 1787, he resolved to renew and extend his ac-
quaintance with the Greek and Roman classics, which
he had entirely neglected after leaving college. When
it is considered that the only Greek book, at that time,
read by the classes, in that seat of learning, was the
Greek Testament, and the only Latin works, Virgil,
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 305
the select orations of Cicero, and some parts of Horace,
we may easily imagine how imperfect must have been
that part of his education, the defects of which he was
determined to supply. He began a course of self-in
struction, with an energy and perseverance that mark
a strong and generous mind. That he might lose no
time, and pursue his various studies with method and
success, he divided the hours not given to rest into
five portions : rising early and reading Latin until
eight, Greek until ten, devoting the rest of the fore-
noon to law ; in the afternoon, two hours were applied
to French, and the rest of the day to English authors.
This division and employment of his time were con-
tinued with little variation, until he became a Judge.
By this practice, he was under no necessity of en-
croaching on those hours best appropriated to sleep, and
preserved his health unimpaired. If his mind became
weary in one department of study, he found relief in
passing to another ; " from grave to gay, from lively
to severe." He read Homer, Xenophon, and Demos-
thenes with delight. Though he afterwards relin-
quished the pursuit of Grecian literature, he continued
to read the best Latin and French authors, and many of
the former more than once. As large public libraries, if
any then existed, were not within his reach, he began
a collection of books which he has gradually increased
to several thousand volumes ; and he has often said
that, next to his family, his library had been to him the
greatest source of enjoyment. It fed, while it increased
his appetite for useful knowledge, and cherished that
love of literature that had grown and strengthened
with his growing years.
In April, 1787, he was admitted a Counsellor in the
26*
306 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Supreme Court. He soon entered with ardor into the
discussion of the great political questions which then
absorbed the attention and agitated the minds of all.
He could not long remain neutral between the two
contending parties, and after a careful examination of
the arguments of each, he, from the purest motives
and with the clearest conviction, joined the federal
side. He soon became the friend of Jay, Hamilton,
and other eminent men of that party, with whom he
uniformly acted, and to whose principles he has stead-
ily adhered to the present day.
In April, 1790, he was elected a member of the
State Legislature for Dutchess county ; and again in
1792. In the Session, held in the city of New York,
he took a zealous and distinguished part in the memor-
able question which arose in that body, on the conduct
of the canvassers of votes given in the warmly con-
tested election for Governor, in destroying those re-
turned from Otsego county, by which means Mr.
Clinton obtained a small majority over Mr. Jay, (then
Chief Justice of the United States), who was the
federal candidate. His writings, on that occasion,
attracted much attention, and he became favorably
known in the city. He was, at that time, nominated
as a candidate for Congress, in Dutchess county, but
his competitor, who adhered to the opposite party,
succeeded by a small majority. During his attendance
in the legislature, his principles and conduct were so
highly respected, that he was urged by his friends to
remove to the city, where he might find greater scope
for the exercise of his talents, and more lucrative
business in his profession.
He accordingly removed to New York, in April,
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 307
1793. The first month of his residence in the city
was embittered by the loss of an only child, and for a
time his prospects were clouded with sorrow. In De-
cember, he wras appointed Professor of Law in Colum-
bia College, and commenced the delivery of lectures,
in November, 1794. The course was attended by
many respectable members of the bar, and a large
class of students. In the following winter, he read a
second course ; but the number of his hearers having
diminished, he was discouraged from delivering an-
other. The three preliminary lectures were after-
wards published, but the sale of them did not reimburse
the expense of publication. The trustees of the Col-
lege conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws,
and he has since received similar honors from Harvard
University and Dartmouth College.
In February, 1790, he was appointed a Master in
Chancery, and there being, at that time, but one other,
the office was lucrative. In the same year, he was
elected a member of the Legislature from the city of
New York. He delivered an address before the society
for the Promotion of Agriculture, Arts, and Manufac-
tures, at their anniversary meeting in New York, on
the 8th November, 1796, which is inserted in the first
volume of the transactions of the Society. It contains
a rapid and animating sketch of the great natural and
political advantaged of the United States, and especi-
ally of the State of New York, for the advancement
of the great objects of the Society, and the progress of
the country, since that time, has more than realized
the most glowing anticipations of its patriotic founders.
In March, 1797, he was, without solicitation and
quite unexpectedly to himself, appointed Recorder of
308 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
the city. This being a judicial office, was the more*
acceptable as well as more honorable ; and being al-
lowed to retain that of Master, the, duties of both were
so great, and the emoluments so considerable, that
he gradually relinquished the more active business of
his profession, to which he was not strongly attached.
From constitutional diffidence, or habits of study, he
appeared not to feel confident in the possession of the
powers requisite to ensure pre-eminence as an advo-
cate at the bar.
In 1798, Governor Jay, who knew his worth and
highly respected his character, offered him the office
of Junior Judge of the Supreme Court, then vacant,
which he accepted. This appointment gratified his
highest ambition, ft placed him in a situation where
he could more fully display his attainments, and have
a wider field for the investigation of legal science. In
accepting the office, he relinquished, for a limited in-
come, all the flattering prospects of increasing wealth
that had opened to him during five years' residence
in the city. Though most of his friends doubted the
wisdom of his choice, he never regretted it. And all
who feel interested in the pure and enlightened admi-
nistration of justice, have found reason to rejoice that
he followed the dictates of his own judgment, in a
matter so interesting to the honor and happiness of
his after-life. On becoming a Judge, he returned to
Poughkeepsic, but in the following year he returned
to Albany, where he continued to reside until 1823.
When he took his seat on the bench of the Supreme
Court, there were no reports of its decisions, nor any
known or established precedents of its own, to guide
or direct his judgment. The English law books were
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 309
freely cited, and the adjudications of English courts
regarded with the highest respect, and, in most cases,
with the force of authority. The opinions of the judges
were generally delivered orally, with little regularity,
and often after much delay. The law was in a state
of great and painful uncertainty. He began by pre-
paring a written and argumentative opinion in every
case of sufficient importance to become a precedent
for the future. These opinions he was ready to de-
liver at the day when the judges met to consult on
the decisions to be pronounced by the court. The
other judges, pursuing a similar course, also gave their
reasons in writing, supported by legal authorities. As
he read with a pen in his hand, extracting, digesting,
abridging, and making copious notes, the practice of
writing opinions was easy and agreeable. Besides
making himself master of all the English adjudica-
tions applicable to the points under examination, he
frequently brought to his aid the body of the civil
law, and the writings of eminent jurists of the coun-
tries in which that law prevails; especially, in the dis-
cussion of questions arising on personal contracts, or
of commercial and maritime law, the principles of
which have been so admirably unfolded and illus-
trated by Domat, Pothier, Valin, Emerigon, and others.
Like Selden, Hale, and Mansfield, he thought law
could not be well understood as a science, without
seeking its grounds and reasons in the Roman law.
From that great repository of " written wisdom," he
drew largely, engrafting its sound and liberal princi-
ples on the hardy stock of the English common law.
Thus commenced that series of judicial decisions
310 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
which have enriched the jurisprudence of New York,
and shed their influence on that of other States.
In 1800, he and Mr. Justice RadclifTe were appointed
by the legislature, to revise the statutes of the State ;
and in January, 1802, was published their edition of
them, comprised in two volumes octavo. Without
venturing to change the phraseology of the laws, they
confined themselves to the single object of placing to-
gether the various acts of the legislature relative to
the same object, so as to bring the original enact-
ments, and all subsequent additions and amendments,
into one act ; and by a full and accurate index, to fa-
cilitate a reference to them.
In July, 1804, he was appointed Chief-Justice of the
Supreme Court, in which he continued to preside un-
til 1814. We shall not here attempt to enter into any
examination of the opinions delivered by him during
the time he was a Judge of that Court. They are con-
tained in sixteen volumes of Reports, from January,
1799, to February, 1814; and the judgment of the
public has long since been formed on their merit and
importance.
In February, 1814, he was appointed Chancellor.
The powers and jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery
were not clearly defined. There were no precedents
of its decisions, (if we except what might be gleaned
from a few cases heard in the Court of Errors, on
appeal, and reported by Mr. Johnson,) to which re-
ference could be made in case of doubt ; and it is a
fact„>lhat during the whole period of his sitting in
Chancery, from 1814 to 1823, not a single opinion or
dictum of his predecessors was cited. Without any
other guide, he felt at liberty to exercise such power*
TOWN OP SOUTHEAST. 311
of the English Chancery, as he deemed applicable,
under the constitution and laws of the State, subject
to the correction of the Court of Errors, on appeal.
As to the course of equity to be administered, it was
to him, in effect, as if the Court had been then newly
established. The causes before the Court were ma-
naged by a few lawyers. He opened wide its doors ;
and his kindness and affability, his known habits of
business and prompitude of decision, attracted many
to the Court. The number of causes rapidly increased,
and it soon acquired the most strenuous and unceasing
efforts of his active mind to hear and decide the cases
brought before him. Besides his attendance during
the regular terms of the Court, he was, at all times,
easy of access at his chambers ; so that no one ever
complained of delay, as to the hearing or decision of
his cause. He considered the causes in the order in
which they were presented or argued, and did not
leave one until he was fully prepared to deliver his
judgment upon it. He read the pleadings and deposi-
tions with the greatest attention, carefully abstracting
from them every material fact: and having become
familiar with the merits of the cause, he was able,
unless some technical or artificial rule was interposed,
by his own clear moral perception, to discover where
lay the equity of the case. Not content, however,
with satisfying his conscience as to the justice of his
decision, he was studious to demonstrate that his
judgment was supported by the well-established prin-
ciples of equity to be found in the decisions of the
courts of that country from which our laws have
been derived. His researches on every point were so
full, as to leave little or nothing to be supplied by
312 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
those who might afterwards wish to have his deci-
sions re-examined, or to test the correctness of his
conclusions.
Accustomed to take a large view of jurisprudence,
and considering law not as a collection of arbitrary
and disconnected rules, but rather as a science founded
on general principles of justice and equity, to be ap-
plied to the actions of men in the diversified relations
of civil society, he was not deterred, but animated, by
the novelty and intricacy of a case ; and while his
mind was warmly engaged in the general subject, he
sought, rather than avoided, difficult points, even
when the discussion of them was not essential to the
decision of the main question between the parties; so
that nothing was suffered to pass without examination.
His judicial opinions are, therefore, uncommonly
interesting and instructive to all, but especially to
those who have commenced the study of the law, and
aspire to eminence in that profession. The decisions
in Chancery are contained in seven volumes of
Reports.
On the 31st July, 1823, having attained the age of
sixty years, the period limited by the Constitution for
the tenure of his office, he retired from the Court, after
hearing and deciding every case that had come before
him. On this occasion the members of the bar resid-
ing in the city of New York, presented him an ad-
dress, from which, as coming from those most compe-
tent, by their situation, to form a just estimate of his
judicial character and services, we cannot refrain
from giving some extracts. After speaking of the
inestimable benefits conferred on the community by
his judicial labors for five and twenty years, they ob-
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 313
serve : " During this long course of services, so use-
ful and honorable, and which will form the most brilli-
ant period in our judicial history, you have, by a
series of decisions in law and equity, distinguished
alike for practical wisdom, profound learning, deep
research, and accurate discrimination, contributed to
establish the fabric of our jurisprudence on those
sound principles that have been sanctioned by the ex-
perience of mankind, and expounded by the venerable
and enlightened sages of the law.
" Though others may hereafter enlarge and adorn
the edifice whose deep and solid foundations were
laid by the wise and patriotic framers of our govern-
ment, in that common law which they claimed for the
people as their noblest inheritance, your labors on this
magnificent structure will for ever remain eminently
conspicuous, commanding the applause of the present
generation, and exciting the admiration and gratitude
of future ages.''
A similar address was presented to him by the
members of the bar in Albany, and also by those
from the different Counties of the State, attending the
Supreme Court at Utica, in August following. In
the latter it is observed, that, " In the space of little
more than nine years, an entire and wonderful revolu-
tion in the administration of equity has been accomp-
lished ;" and a reference is aptly made to the account
given by Sir William Blackstone of a similar revolution
in the English Chancery by Sir Henage Finch, after-
wards Earl of Nottingham, who became Chancellor
in 1G73. " The necessities of mankind,'' savs that
writer, " co-operated in his plan, and enabled him in
the course of nine years, to build a system of jurispru-
27
314 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
dence and jurisdiction upon wide and rational foun-
dations." In the same address, speaking of 'their in-
tercourse with him as a Judge, they called to mind
" so many instances of personal kindness — so many
scenes of delightful instruction — so many evidences
of pureness and singleness of heart — such a uniform
and uninterrupted course of generous, candid, and
polite treatment, that we are unable to express the
fullness of our feelings, and can only say that our
affection for you as a man, almost absorbs our venera-
tion for you as a Judge."
In these addresses, the bar were led to express a
doubt as to the wisdom of that clause in the political
constitution of the State, which " compelled him in
the full enjoyment of his intellectual faculties, to re-
linquish a station he had filled with such consummate
ability." And, in this case, at least, the application of
the policy of that provision might well induce them
to call in question the wisdom and expediency of so
singular a limitation.
In August, he visited the Eastern States, and on his
return home, he became apprehensive that after being
so many years actively engaged in discharging the
duties of a public station, the sudden transition to
privacy and seclusion might produce an unfavorable
effect on his health and spirits. He soon determined
to remove to the city of New York to open a law
school, and to act as chamber counsel. The trustees
of the College again offered him the professorship of
law in that institution, which he accepted ; and, in
1824, he prepared and delivered a series of law
lectures, on a more comprehensive plan than that pur-
sued in his former course. He also gave private in-
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 315
struction to students, who resorted to him from vari-
ous parts of the United State?. His parental k
ness towards the young, and the frankness and affabi-
litv of his manners, won their affection without dimi-
nishing their respect ; and his conversation and ex-
ample could not fail to inspire that ardor and emula-
tion so conducive to their progress and success. His
high reputation as a judge induced many, not only in
the city, but in distant places, to consult him on i
cult and important questions, and. instead of the brief
answers usually returned by counsel, he gave full and
"-.".umentative opinions. Many causes actually pend-
ing in Court, were, by the agreement of the parties,
submitted to his final decision. He had atinued for
some years thus usefully and agreeably occupied,
when, having discontinued his law lectures, he besran
. -\se and enlarge them for publication ; and, in
November, 1826, appeared the first volume of the
"Commentaries on American Law." This .me
includes three parts ; the Law of Nations, the Go-
vernment and Constitutional Jurisprudence of the
United States : and the various sources of Municipal
Law. The second volume was published in Novem-
ber, 1827j the third in 1523, and the fourth in 1530.
The three last comprise the law concerning the rights
of persons, and personal and real property.
He has treated the several subjects comprised un
der these extensive and most important titles — the
rights of persons and the rights of property — in a
manner more full and satisfactory than Blackstone ;
and has introduced many others, not found in the
work of -that author, with numerous references, quo-
tations, and illustrations, the result of his various and
316 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
extensive reading, highly pleasing and instructive to
the student. He has left untouched the subjects of
private wrongs, and the mode of pursuing their reme-
dies by actions in courts of justice ; of the powers and
jurisdictions of judicial magistracy; and of public
wrongs, or the law concerning crimes and punish-
ments, which occupy the third and fourth volumes of
the English Commentator.
The work of Sir William Blackstone, by the ele-
gance of its style, its lucid arrangement, and finished
execution, is so well adapted to render the study of
the law attractive, and to give a knowledge of the
constitution and laws of England, well deserving the
attention of every liberal mind, that it has been
(though, for many years, more from necessity than
choice,) very properly placed in the hands of every
student ; but as much of those admirable comment-
aries relate to the political constitution of England, so
different from our own — to its peculiar institutions,
and to rights and duties, public and private, not exist-
ing in this country — an American work, exhibiting our
own constitution, laws, institutions, usages, and civil
relations, had been long wanted. In the full maturity
of his understanding, with a mind long habituated to
legal investigations and researches, and with sound
and enlightened views of jurisprudence, no man, per-
haps, could have been found better fitted than Chan-
cellor Kent to execute such a work, and it may
diminish, in some degree, the regret felt for the loss
sustained by the public and the legal profession, in
being deprived of his valuable services on the bench,
to know how usefully to the world and honorably to
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 317
himself, he has employed his time and talents in its
performance.
The limits prescribed to this brief memoir will not
permit us, if it were proper, to go farther, or to enter
into a particular examination of the merits of this
masterly work. The first edition of the Commentaries
having been exhausted, he published a second in
April, 1832, carefully revised and greatly enlarged.
For one who has done so much for the improvement
and diffusion of legal science, and who has now ad-
vanced to the limit ordinarily assigned to the duration
of human life, it would be unreasonable to ask or ex-
pect more ; but while he appears to feel none of the
infirmities of age, or to seek indulgence or repose, we
cannot suppress a wish, that he may yet be induced
to present his view, also, of that system of equity and
jurisprudence, to the formation and illustration of which
his own judicial labors have so largely contributed.
Having been elected President of the New York
Historical Society, he delivered, by request, a public
discourse, at their anniversary meeting, on the 6th
December, 1828.
In this elegant and instructing address, he very ap-
propriately notices the principal events in the history
of the Colony and State of New York, to the end of
the Revolution, and mentions, with merited praise,
some of the eminent patriots and statesmen of New
York, who so ably assisted in achieving that Revolu-
tion, and in securing its blessings to their posterity.
If our attention could be oftener drawn from the ab-
sorbing pursuits of wealth and ambition, or the con-
tests of selfish demagogues, to the contemplation of
such illustrious examples of wisdom and virtue, we
27*
318 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
might find more perfect models . for our imitation, and
haply feel our hearts warmed with that pure love of
country which glowed in their breasts.
At the request of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, of
Yale College, a literary association formed in 1780, of
which he was an original member, and comprising the
most distinguished graduates of that seminary, he de-
livered a public address, at the anniversary meeting
of the associates, on the 13th September, 1831. This
discourse, in which he takes a historical survey of the
College, from its origin in the beginning of the last
century, and sketches the characters of its pious and
learned founders, supporters, and instructors, is replete
with generous feelings and just sentiments on litera-
ture and education. Alluding, towards the close, to
his own class, of whom twelve (out of the twenty-five)
were then living, and most of those present; he makes
this natural and striking reflection : " Star after star
has fallen from its sphere. A few bright lights are
still visible ; but the constellation itself has become
dim, and almost ceases to shed its radiance around me.
What a severe lesson of mortality does such a retros-
pect teach ! What a startling rebuke to human pride!
How brief the drama ! How insignificant the honors
and ' fiery chase of ambition,' except as mental disci-
pline for beings destined for immortality."
In the brief notice which we have taken of the
principal events in Ihe life of this eminent jurist, we
have adverted to some of the distinctive qualities of
his character ; and it will be perceived how pure, vir-
tuous, upright, and honorable, that life has been, the
full delineation of which must be reserved for some
future biographer. Though not passed in scenes that
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 319
attract the general gaze of mankind, or exite the ad-
miration and applause of the multitude, it has been
highly distinguished, affording a bright and instructive
example of industry and perseverance in the pursuit
of useful knowledge, and of unwearied diligence in
the discharge of every duty, public and private.
Chancellor Kent has three children — a son and two
daughters ; the former was admitted to the bar a few
years since. Happy in his family — amiable, modest,
and candid in his social intercourse — kind, indulgent,
and affectionate in his feelings — it would be pleasing,
if it were proper, at this time, to speak of him in those
private relations which awaken the best affections and
warmest sympathies of our nature. With a sound
constitution, strengthened and preserved by temper-
ance and moderate exercise, he has enjoyed that per-
fect and uninterrupted health which is rarely the lot
of the studious and sedentary. Possessing a cheerful
temper, and a lively consciousness of existence, that
fits him for enjoyment, he seems to have experienced,
in a high degree, those blessings for which the Roman
poet bids the rational inquirer after happiness to sup-
plicate heaven, and those gifts have not been wasted
or misapplied :
" Semita certe
Tranquillte per virtutem patet unica vitae."
Since the foregoing was copied, death has removed
this esteemed and venerable man from among us. At
the time of his death, " his family consisted of his two
daughters and an only son, the learned and well-
known Judge of the First Circuit, William Kent, who
resigned the office of Circuit Judge some years since,
320 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
and more recently gave up his Professorship at Cam-
bridge, that he might cheer the latter days of his
venerated and excellent father by his company and
personal attentions.
" Less than a year ago, Chancellor Kent was one of the pall-
hearers of his friend Timothy Dwight, and was then as erect,
hale, and active as a man of fifty. At 84, he was somewhat
deaf, but his capacity for work was still wonderful, his conver-
sation interesting and animated, and his temperament as viva-
cious as when he was thirty years younger. He was unwell
but for a short time before his death, which took place at half-
past eight o'clock, December the 12th, 1847, at his residence in
Union Square.
" The Courts adjourned out of respect for his memory, and
both Boards of the Common Council adopted resolutions in honor
of his name and character.
He was an exemplary Christian, a steadfast friend, an affec-
tionate father, a tender husband, an ardent patriot, and a true
lover and defender of his country's rights. So highly are his
works esteemed abroad, that the Lord Chief Justice of England,
Baron Denman, wrote to Judge Kent, some years since, to ac-
knowledge the indebtedness of the legal professson throughout
the world to him for his able Commentaries.
" Chancellor Kent would not allow his Commentaries to be
stereotyped, but kept watching the decisions of the tribunals of
America, England, and other parts of Europe, in matters involv-
ing important legal principles, with which he enriched his favor-
ite work from time to time."
Capt. Joshua Barnum. — The ancestors of this gen-
tleman were from England. About 1650, three poor
boys who were brothers, of the name of Barnum, emi-
grated from England to this country. They were
unable to pay their passage-money, and sold them-
selves, for a limited time, to pay the sum advanced to
the Captain of the vessel, by their purchasers. A man
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 321
of the name of Canfield, of Connecticut, bought enough
of the time of the brother who was the grandfather
of the subject of this brief memoir, and great grand-
father of the Hon. Reuben D. Barnum of Carmel, to
reimburse him for the passage-money. Canfield
proved to be a hard master, and treated the boy with
a good deal of severity. The young fellow said but
little, put up with the treatment he received, but his
countenance revealed a steady purpose, and his eye
seemed to say, " This is not to last always ; and when
it does end, what has been sauce for the goose shall be
sauce for the gander." He served his time out faith-
fully, and on the morning of his discharge, Canfield
called him into his room, and bade him take a seat be-
side him. Young Barnum, with eyes flashing at the
recollection of past wrongs, accepted the proffered
chair ; and Canfield thus addressed him : " You are
now about to leave me ; I hope you'll do well in the
world and remember the lessons I have taught you.
Upon the whole, I must say you have been a good
boy, excepting some little matters. I am satisfied ;
are you ?" Barnum, to whom every word appeared
like fresh outrage and insult, because they were given
by one whom he knew cared about as much for his
welfare as he did for the dog that barked in the kennel,
seized him by the coat-collar, and drawing him across
his lap, he gave him half a dozen "digs in the short
ribs" and elsewhere, and, throwing him from him,
said, " I am satisfied too ; I hope you'll remember the
lesson I've given you. Good bye, Sir !"
He took up his bundle and departed, again to buffet
tyranny and battle with adversity. After meeting
with some reverses, he hired himself to a respectable
322 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
farmer, whose daughter, in a few years thereafter, he
married and left issue. Of their history, we are not
informed ; and we now return to the subject of our
sketch.
Capt. Barnum came from the town of Danbury in
Connecticut, and settled where Elijah Barnum now
lives, on the west side of the east branch of the Croton
River. He had three sons, Stephen, Joshua, and
Jonathan ; the latter is the only one now living ; and
two daughters, Martha and Adah. Martha married
Reuben Done ; Adah married Jeremiah Gage ; and
both are dead. Stephen, the eldest son, was the
father of the present Clerk of Putnam county. Capt.
Barnum was in the battle at Ward's house in West-
chester, was wounded, taken prisoner, marched to
New York, and confined in one of the prison-ships,
which were stationed at the Wallabout, near Brooklyn.
There were several condemned hulks there, used for
the confinement of American citizens, soldiers, and
seamen, taken prisoners by the British. There were
two hospital-ships, called the Hope and Falmouth, in-
tended for the sick, anchored near each other, about
200 yards east of another named the " Old Jersey,"
which was the receiving ship. They were all, truly,
ships of death, for in no other prisons, either on land
or water, were so great an amount of suffering en-
dured by civilized men. Into one of these he was thrust
with a broken leg, to which but little attention was paid
by the British. Inflammation, induced by the noxious
vapors of a crowded vessel and his wounded leg, soon
destroyed his right eye ; and a small bunch of bones
dropped from his broken limb, which are now in the pos-
session of Doctor Barnum, of this town. While a pris-
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 323
oner, he and others were compelled to lie on the bare
floor, with his leg undressed. A man by the name
of John Roberts and six others died in one night, and
were unremoved for the space of twenty-four hours
by the British, although begged to do so by the whole
body of prisoners.
During his confinement he became very feeble and
debilitated, and suffered extremely from a violent head-
ache. After he was released, he got a barber to shave
his head, which relieved him. About four years before
his death, he was again attacked with the same kind
of headache ; he insisted on having his grandson, Col.
Barnum, to lather and shave his head, believing in the
virtue of the previous operation. It was done, and
the pain left him.
After the war he went to New York, where he had
business to transact, and bought half a pound of Bohea
tea, which he brought home to his wife. None, it
seems, had been used at that time in this part of the
country, and his wife was at a loss how to prepare it
for use. Here was a dilemma not anticipated by the
Capt., when he purchased the tea : and after resolves
and counter-resolves by the family, it was resolved
that the female counsellers of the neighborhood should
be called together to decide the mooted point. They
accordingly assembled, and, in high debate, proceeded
to give their separate opinions respecting the mode in
which this new comer, as yet only found in the circles of
higher life, should be treated, and its virtues disclosed.
One was for putting it in the pudding-bag and boiling
it in milk ; another was for frying it in a pan with a
little butter and water ; a third was for putting it in
324 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
the dish-kettle and boiling it. This proposition de-
termined the conclave at once in its favor ; accord-
ingly the half pound of tea was put in with a sufficiency
of water, and duly boiled. For a teapot, they made
use of a large earthen pitcher, and for tea-cups, bowls.
Some drank more and some less ; but the one who
had recommended the dish-kettle, drank by far the
largest quantity, alleging that she wanted to " dis-
kiver its aristocratic qualities, if it had any." They
went home, and the next morning the Capt.'s wife saw
the one who had drank so freely of the tea, standing
at her door, and asked her how she liked it. The re-
ply was, — " Last night I didnt sleep a wink — not one
blessed wink ! I might about as well have attempted
to sleep with a thorn under me, as that ar tea inside —
it's the plaguyest stuff I ever did drink." On inquiry
it was found that all had been in the same predica-
ment.
Captain Barnum was born in 1737, and died in
October, 1823. He came to this town about 1755,
and settled on lot No. 11, on the west side of the cen-
tre line of the Oblong. He was six feet high, strong
and muscular, and capable of enduring great hard-
ship and fatigue. During the Revolution he was ab-
sent a great deal from his farm and family.
His wife, in his absence, exercised supervision over
the farm, and with the assistance of her sons, who were
young, she managed to have it cultivated sufficiently
for the wants of the family. At this time a young
man of the name of Doty, whose family lived near
Captain Barnum, and who had enlisted in the Ameri-
can army, deserted. His mother was very much
alarmed, lest, if taken, he would be hung as a deserter.
TOWN OF SOUTHEAST. 325
In her trouble she applied to Mrs. Barnum, who, being
a mother, could well appreciate the maternal feeling
in others. By her direction, her oldest son, Stephen,
the father of Col. Barnum, and then only sixteen years
of age, took young Doty's place as a substitute, and
served one campaign. Captain Barnum possessed a
clear head and a strong mind, and was a patriot in
principle and practice. His wife was equally a re-
markable woman ; and although she could sympathize
with the innocent of her own sex, she was unwilling
that the defenders of her country should number one
less ; and with all the heroic feeling of the Spartan
mother of old, she gave her own beardless boy as a
substitute to combat tyrants, and battle for the liber-
ties of the country that gave her birth.
28
TOWN OF KENT
As we have before stated, this town was a part of the
" Fredericksburgh Precinct," which originally em-
braced the whole of the County. After the organiza-
tion of the " Philips' Precinct," which embraced
nearly one-third of the west end of the County, the
former contained this town, Carmel, Patterson, and
Southeast.
By the Act of the 7th March, 1788, the term "Pre-
cincts" was dropped, and " towns" substituted ; and an
additional town organized, which was called Southeast.
By that Act, this town, including the now towns of
Carmel and Patterson, was called Frederick's Town.
About the time that Carmel and Patterson were
taken from it, it was christened by the Legislature
with its present name in honor of the- Kent family,
who were early settlers in this County, and greatly
distinguished for their talents, intelligence, and manly
virtues.
A large part of this town is rough and unproduc-
tive ; the western part of which is covered by the
central Highlands. There is, however, some excellent
land, which is under a good state of cultivation. The
eastern part is hilly, and well adapted to grazing, to
which the farmers generally, we believe, give their
attention. It is centrally distant from New York
about 60, and from Albany about 101 miles. Far-
TOWN OF KENT. 327
mers' Mills and Coles' Mills, are the only villages in
it ; the former in the north-west, and the latter in the
south part of the town.
EARLY SETTLEMENT.
This town was settled by the Boyds, Smallys,
"Wixons, Farringtons, Burtons, Carters, Meritts, Bar-
retts, Luddingtons, with a few others from Massachu-
setts and Westchester.
Zachariah Meritt settled in this town about 1750,
and built a log-house in the meadow just east of the
residence of Stillman Boyd, Esq. He planted him-
self, as it were, in the very midst of the Indians, who
had a settlement there. We have been informed by
the Hon. Judge Boyd, that he has ploughed up on the
same meadow, more than two bushels of ovster-shells
and arrow-heads.
During the Revolution, Meritt took the British side
of the question, and his land was confiscated by the
State.
About this time a family of the name of Jones
settled in Peekskill Hollow, where John Barrett now
resides.
The Boyds are of Scotch descent. The great-
grandfather of this family in this town came from
Scotland to New York City ; and from thence to
Westchester.
Ebenezer Boyd, grandfather of Bennet and Stillman
Boyd, came from Westchester, and settled where
Stillman Boyd now lives, about 1780. There were
three brothers who emigrated from Scotland to this
country during the "Rebellion" of the partizans of
the Stewart dynasty in 1745. One of them settled
328 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
at Albany, known as Gen. Boyd, and died at the ad-
vanced age of 114 years.
Another settled in the lower part of Westchester,
and was great-grandfather of the family in this town.
The other brother settled at New Windsor, in Orange
County, and was the ancestor of the Boyd family in
that County.
A man of the name of Joseph Farrington was
about the first settler at Farmers' Mills. During the
" hard winter," a man of the name of Burton, put up
the first grist-mill at that place.
About 1760, James Smally, Reuben, Robert, and
Pelick Wixon, came from Cape Cod to this town, and
settled about a mile east of Stillman Boyd. They
were of English descent. A family of the name of
Cole were also early settlers, as we are informed ;
but are unable to say at what time they came.
Col. Henry Luddington, or " Luddinton," as ii was
formerly spelt, made a settlement in this town about
1760. He was born in Connecticut ; but his father
emigrated from England. He settled, where his son
still resides, in the north-west part of the town, known
in the Revolution as " huddintorCs Mills." A man
by the name of Carter had settled at the same place
a few years before.
Col. Luddington was one of the most active, ener-
getic, and unflinching patriots that was found in this
part of the country during the Revolution ; and much
do we regret our inability, from the want of materials,
to do justice to the character and sterling virtues of
this Revolutionary patriot. The governmental records,
however, show him, in connexion with the Barnums,
Cranes, and a few others, to have been one of the bold
TOWN OF KENT. 329
defenders of our country's rights. He left six sons
and six daughters ; of whom only two of the former
and one of the latter are now living.
Extract from " Fredericksburgh Records A."
" April ye 7th Day and first Tuesday 1747.
Matthew Roe, Clark
Supervisor Chosen Samuel Field
Constables Chosen Viz :
Joseph jacocks John Dickeson
George Huson William Bruster
Nathan Taylor Senr Colloctor
Joseph Lane Seesser
Capt : James Dickeson Seessor
High Way Masters Chosen viz :
Jacob Vandweel James Seers
Joseph Husted Joseph Crane
Richard Curry Samuel Field
Isaac Rhoades Daniel Townsend
George Curry Uriah Townsend
William Gee Barttlett
William Sweett Caleb Heason
Pounders chosen viz
Thomas Kirkkun John Gee and Amos Dickeson
Fence Viewers chosen viz
Daniel Townsend Isaac Roads
Amos Dickeson Isaac three hill
Abraham Smith John Rogers
The following named persons appear to have been
in the Fredericksburgh Precinct in 1747, who were
freeholders, or occupying land as tenants. We first
remark, however, that this precinct included, at this
time, all of the towns now embraced in Putnam
28*
330
HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
County, viz. : Kent, Patterson, Carmel, Southeast
Putnam Valley, and Philipstown. In 1772, Philips'
Precinct, embracing both Philipstown and Putnam
Valley, was erected ; and, in 1773, the Southeast Pre-
cinct was organized. By the Act of March 7th, 1788,
"for dividing the counties of this State into towns,"
the Precincts were changed to towns ; and hence
Philips' Precinct became Philipstown ; Southeast Pre-
cinct, Southeast town ; while the remaining part of
Fredericksburgh Precinct was called Frederick's town,
embraced the new towns of Kent, Patterson, and Car-
mel. Barber, in his Historical Collections, says, that
Southeast was organized in 1795; but this is evidently
a historical mistake, as the Act, above alluded to,
shows.
Cristoph fowler,
William Gee,
William Taylor,
Thomas Kirkun,
John Drake,
Rickcohus Cartwright,
Samuel Field,
John Ryder,
Jeremiah Calkin,
John Moherry,
George huson,
Isaac Roads,
Benjamin Brundage,
Vallentine Perkins,
Dan'l Townsend,
David Paddock,
Uriah Townsend,
Will Hunt,
Old Cole,
Ahraham Smith,
Joseph Lane,
Amos Dickinson,
James Kirkun,
James M. Creedy,
Uriah Hill,
George Curry,
Edward Ganong,
Richard peters,
John Williams,
Andrew Roble,
Ephraim Smith,
William Smith,
William Drake,
Zedekiah Kirkun,
Thomas Kirkun,
George Scott,
Isaac Rhoads,
John Names,
Joshua Hamblin,
Joseph Hopkins,
TOWN OF KENT.
331
Abraham Lock,
Caleb Heaz,
Michell Sloat,
Elijah tompkins,
Daniel Parish,
Edward Gray,
John Dickinson,
Absalom Smith,
Sam'll Hunt,
Jonathan Lane,
Jonathan O'Brien,
Isaach Horton,
Richard Cory,
Thomas Devenport,
Joseph Mead,
Thomas Paddock,
Gabriel Knap,
Joseph Chatoren,
Bartlit Crondy,
John Backer,
Israel Smith,
Thomas Townsend,
Benjamin Jacox,
Nehemiah Horton,
Cornoloes Tompkings,
Elisha Cangs
James Akely,
David Smith,
Isah Jacox,
Isaac treehill,
Cristefor Alley,
Moses Dusenberry,
Jeremiah JifFers,
Isaac finch,
Andres Barger,
George Feelds,
Amos fooler,
francis Beacker,
Robert fooler,
Isaac Merrick,
David Merick,
John Harick,
John Thorne,
Schirran Travis,
Joshua Parrish,
Jacob Parrish,
John Ganong,
Joseph Dewey,
Noah Burbank,
David Sturdeuant,
Thomas Crosby,
Pelig Baley,
Isaac Barton,
Thomas Colwell,
Matthes Burgus,
Israel Taylor,
James Bell,
William Stone,
Edward Rice,
John Sprag,
Isaac Smith,
Richard Rodes,
Thomas Philips,
Jonathan Briant,
John tarbe,
William Deusenberry,
Solomon Jenkins,
Josiah Forgason,
Dan'l Crawford,
Stephen faronton,
John Landon,
John Mead,
John Meeks,
Gilbert Travis,
Joseph Stateer,
Nehemiah Wood,
John Heaus,
David Sears,
332 HISTORY OP PUTNAM COUNTY.
John Larnce, Joseph Colwell,
Joseph Ganong, Jacob Ellis,
Elisha Cole, Regam Parrish,
Elnathan Gregry, Bethnell Balleau,
William Sturdeuant, John Addams,
Nathan Birdsall, Ase Parrish,
Jabez Berry, Nathaniel Nickerson,
Benamin Jackish, Zenis Nickeson.
Matthies Burns,
There were others, doubtless, who resided in this
Precinct, whose names are not found on the town
book. Beside other sources of information, we are
satisfied from the names given above, that Fredericks-
burgh Precinct, at this time, embraced the whole of
Philipstown under its original organization.
In the above extract from the Precinct Book, we
find the names of Thomas Devenport, who, at that
time, resided at Cold Spring, on the Hudson ; and
John Rogers, who kept a tavern a little south of
Justus Nelson's mill, on the old post-road.
In the above extract of names, we have written
them as spelled in the Record, using the same kind of
letters, as are there found in the commencement of
the christian and surnames.
Farmers' Mills. — A hamlet eight miles from Car-
mel, on the road leading from Cold Spring to Patter-
son. It contains 2 or 3 stores, 2 taverns, a Post-office,
a grist, saw, fulling-mill, and a tannery. Its name is
owing to the fact, that the first mill was erected for
the accommodation of farmers in that vicinity ; no
sale-work being done there at that time for other
parts of the country.
Coles' Mill. — A small collection of houses on the
road from Cold Spring to the village of Carmel, about
TOWN OF KENT. 333
three miles west of it. It contains a grist mill, saw
mill, and fulling mill. It is named after the family of
Coles who settled the place. One of the west branches
of the Croton runs through it.
Dick Town. — A small district of country lying south
of the Cold Spring turnpike, near Justice Forshay's.
A large number of persons of the name of Richard
resided there. The nickname of Richard is Dick, by
which they were generally called, and owing to the
multiplicity of the name, their neighbors called it
" Dick Town."
Smalley Hill. — An eminence about half a mile
east of Stillman Boyd's, and is named after the
Smalley family.
White Pond. — A beautiful sheet of water about
half a mile east of Farmers' Mills. It is nearly a mile
long and half a mile broad, and named after a family
by the name of White.
Forge Pond. — This pond is about sixty rods east of
Farmers' Mills. Forty years ago, a forge was erected
at the west end of it at its out-let ; and hence its
name. It was formerly a marsh. The White Pond
runs into it. It is about one-fourth of a mile long and
fifty rods wide.
China Pond. — A handsome body of water, nearly
circular, one mile south of Farmers' Mills ; and nearly
a half a mile' in length. The reason for its being so
called, we are unable to give, but believe it was
owning to the fact, that a small basket full of China-
ware was thrown into it by a wife, to spite her
drunken husband.
Pine Pond is about one and a half miles south of
White Pond, three-quarters of a mile long and half a
334 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
mile wide. Its margin was covered with pine timber,
and hence its name.
Dean Pond is about one mile south of Samuel
Townsend's, and almost round, being about 60 rods in
length and breadth. It takes its name from the family
of Deans, who lived near it. The above named ponds
contain perch, pickerel, with the more common kinds
of fish ; and are resorted to in the summer season by
the amateurs of the fishing-rod.
TOWN OF PATTERSON.
This town, as we have before remarked, was origi-
nally named Franklin, when organized in 1795. The
back short lot of Beverly Robinson embraced nearly
its whole area. Its population in 1840 was 1,349, and
in 1845, 1,289. Situated in the north-east part of the
county, its farmers are further removed from Peeks-
kill in Westchester, where the eastern section of the
county have heretofore, we believe, done their " mark-
eting," than those of Putnam Valley,Carmel, and South-
East. This inconvenience will soon be obviated by
the New York and Harlem Railroad, which passes
through this town, and which will afford a speedy
transportation of the farmer's produce to the great
metropolis of the country. Its surface is hilly, and with
few exceptions, the high grounds are cultivated and
productive. Those parts which we visited seemed
better adapted to grazing than for grain, although
some with whom we have conversed pronounce it
well-nigh equally suited to both. Every variety of
agricultural product is raised, and the soil, generally,
is as productive as any in the county.
The streams are not numerous ; the east branch of
the Croton furnishes the greatest amount of hydraulic
power, and that, at certain seasons of the year, is small.
There are but two ponds in the whole town. It is
bounded on the north by the south line of Dutchess
336 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
county ; on the east by Connecticut ; on the south by
Southeast and Carmel ; and on the west by the town
of Kent.
We should think that the agricultural wealth of this
town, in proportion to its size, is equal to that of any
other in the county. The soil in the vicinity of Patter-
son village is loam and sand : in other parts loam and
gravel predominate.
We made but a flying visit to this town, and that was
to " The City." We confess we are poorly prepared to
do it justice. Its distance from our abode, and the
wearisome ride necessary to be taken across the cen-
tral Highlands over a bad road, must be our apology
for the brief and imperfect notice it receives at our
hands.
EARLY SETTLEMENT.
This town was principally settled by Scotch fami-
lies, or their descendants. Some few came here from
Westchester and New York, but the greater number
were from Massachusetts and Connecticut. A large
number of families from Cape Cod came into this
town, Southeast, and Carmel, about the same time.
William Hunt, the grandfather on his mother's side
of Daniel Hains, Esq., came from Rhode Island and
settled down about three miles north of Haviland's
Corner, in 1745. A tavern is kept there now by a
man of the name of Sill. He had three sons, Samuel,
Daniel, and Stephen, and one daughter, Deborah.
His brother Daniel, came about two years after-
wards, and located about a mile and a half from him.
Stephen, the youngest son, was a lieutenant in the
Continental army, and was engaged in the battle at
TOWN OF PATTERSON. 337
White Plains. After the war, he settled down along
the Mohawk, and died there. The other two broth-
ers were tories, and took the " King's side ;" after the
war, one went north, probably to Canada, and the other
settled in the southern part of Ulster County.
Shortly after Hunt's arrival, two men by the name
of Bobbin and Wilmot, settled at Patterson Village;
the former was a blacksmith, and the latter a saddler.
When the war broke out, they, both went to New York,
and joined the British Army.
About this time, Capt. Daniel Heecock, and the
grandfather of James Towner, Esq., made a set-
tlement in the vicinity of the village, but at what
particular time we are not informed. Asa Hains,
who had served three years in the French War,
at its termination, came to this town and settled where
Reed Aiken now lives, about a mile east of Haviland's
Corner. Previous to which, however, he lived about
two miles south of it. He was born in Rhode Island,
and came from thence to Long Island where he
enlisted in the English army ; and was ordered to the
north. He had five sons, Enoch, Charles, William,
Archibald, and Daniel, of whom the two latter are
now living, and five daughters, Lucy, Abigail, Debo-
rah, Sarah, and Betsy. Two of whom, Abigail and
Betsey, are still living.
About 1748, Daniel Close settled at Haviland's
Corner. Where he came from, we have not been
able to learn. About the same time the Jones and
Crosbys came and settled in the southern part of the
town. Roswell Wilcox, settled about a mile south of
Patterson Village at an early day, but whether before
or after the old French war, we are not informed.
29
338 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
A few years before the French war, Matthew Pat-
terson, grandfather of James Patterson, Esq., came
from Scotland to New York city, and at the age of
eighteen enlisted as a captain of a company of artifi-
cers in the British army, under Gen. Abercrombie.
After the war he went back to the city, and a few
years thereafter he removed to where his grandson,
the above-named James Patterson, Esq., now resides.
He was a member of the State Legislature nine years
in succession, and for several, a County Judge.
He had three sons, John, James, and Alexander,
and four daughters, Martha, Jane, Susan, and Marga-
ret. All are now dead ! lie was a member of the
Legislature when Col. Beverly Robinson's land in this
county was confiscated. Having voted for the meas-
ure, probably it accounts for his refusal to become a
purchaser under the Act, from feelings of delicacy as
a legislator. He purchased, however, from one who
had derived his title from the State, 160 acres, on
which his gentlemanly descendant now resides.
About the same time, one Capt. Kidd, who came
from Scotland, settled between Patterson Village, and
Haviland's Corner.
At the time Burgoyne was attempting to force his
way down the Hudson, Washington moved three bri-
gades into this town, where they were encamped, in
order to reinforce Gates, had he been forced to re-
treat, and check the enemy. They were encamped
on the lands now owned by Judge Stone and Benja-
min B. Haviland. An aged citizen asserts that one
brigade was from Pennsylvania, one from South Caro-
lina, and one from Georgia ; the two latter we are in-
clined to think were from New Jersey or Connecti-
TOWN OF PATTERSON. 339
cut, or from the latter and Massachusetts. Washing-
ton, with his life-guards, had his head-quarters where
Legrand Hall now lives.
The few facts that we have hastily gleaned con-
cerning the early settlement of this town, so hastily
flungj together, we have obtained from Daniel Hains,
Esq., and James Patterson, Esq. Mr. Hains wants
but a few days to being eighty-four years of age ; and
a more active, healthy, and sprightly old man of his
age it has never been our fortune to encounter. His
healthful and vigorous appearance did not more sur-
prise us than the business we found him employed at.
And what, reader, do you suppose it was ? Some of
you, perhaps, who suppose a man must necessarily be
old at forty, and bed-ridden at fifty, will answer, " in
the house, or in his bed ;" you might, probably, long
before you reach his age be found there. The simpli-
city that marked the age and mode of living, when
he commenced life has long since disappeared, and
luxury, with its untold evils in its train, is sapping the
health and shortening the lives of the present genera-
tion. We found this old gentleman on a hill-side, so
steep as to require some exertion to ascend it, with a
crow-bar in his hand, engaged in raising or digging
out stones and rocks. He told me that he was very
near-sighted and somewhat deaf, but in all other re-
spects felt perfectly well.
He is a remarkable man, and we can state a fact
concerning him which probably cannot be said of any
other living man in the county ; and it is this : He
has seen five generations of his own family — his
grandfather, father, himself, his children, and grand-
children. His wife, who is still living, is about his
340 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
own age, and when we saw her, she moved about
the room unassisted by stick or cane with as much
apparent ease as a woman of fifty. Alas, for the de-
generacy of our times ! but few of us can hope to
reach the good old age already attained by this vene-
rable couple. We live too fast, and more for show
than for health and happiness. Judging from appear-
ances, they have as good a chance for living ten or
fifteen years longer as any of us.
EXTRACT FROM THE TOWN RECORD.
" At the first town meeting of the Freeholders and inhabitants
of Franklin held at the House of James Phillips on Tuesday the
7th day of April 1795.
Voted That Samuel Cornwall be town Clerk.
Voted that Samuel Towner be Supervisor.
Benjamin Haviland, )
Nehemiah Jones, > Assessors.
Stephen Heayt, )
David Hickok, Senr., )
& > Overseers of the Poor
Jabez Elwell, )
Solomon Crane, \
Elisha^Brown, > Commissioners of Highways.
Abner Crosby, )
Abel Hodges, Collector and Constable.
David Barnum, Constable.
Path Masters.
George Burtch, Esqr., Joseph Rogers,.
Benjamin Lane, Stephen Yale,
James Birdsell, Abel Hadges,.
Jabez Elwell, Isaac Crosby,
Daniel Haynes, Blackleduck Jessup,
John McLean, Elisha Brown,
TOWN OF PATTERSON. 341
Samuel Colwell, Abner Crosby,
Abraham Mabee, Sr., Jacob Read, and
Solomon Fowler, Elisha Gifford.
Fence Viewers.
Jabez Elwell, Junr., Roswell Willcox,
John Tweady, David Hickok,
Zachariah Hinman, Peter Terry,
Thomas Birdsell, Enos Ambler,
Abijah Starr, Simon Perry, and
Elijah Stone, Nathaniel Foster.
Pound Masters.
John Tweady, Roswell Willcox, &
Silas Burtch, Amos Rogers.
Voted That the next Town Meeting shall be held at the Pres-
byterian Meeting House.
Voted that the sum of sixty pounds be raised for the mainte-
nance of the Poor of this town."
Patterson Village. — This village, sometimes called
Patterson City, during the Revolution and previous
thereto was called Fredericksburg, and lies in a rich
agricultural district in the valley of the Croton. It is
about eight miles north-east of Carmel, and one mile
south of the Dutchess county line. The Post Office,
which formerly was located here, was removed to
Haviland's Corner, a little more than a mile east of it,
by the Hon. F. Stone, when he was appointed Post
Master a few years since. The country in the vi-
cinity and suburbs of the village is charming. The
land bears evidence of a neat and enlightened hus-
bandry, with taste in the appearance presented by the
houses and their appendages. The gently rolling sur-
face of the land, its freedom from stone, stumps, and
bushes — the rich verdure of the fields, and substantial
29*
342 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTT.
fences enclosing them — the smooth, excellent roads —
all combine to make a ride through this portion of the
county extremely pleasant and agreeable to a lover
of rural scenery. The New York and Harlem Rail-
road runs between this village and Haviland's Corner.
It was named after the Patterson family, which
early settled in the town, the descendants of which are
still found here.
Haviland's Corner. — This place is about one and a
fourth mile east of Patterson village ; and is named
after Benjamin Haviland, Esq., who resides there. A
Post Office is kept here. On the Post Office Register
it is called " Haviland's Hollow." The Hollow is
about one and a half miles in length, and one hundred
rods in breadth, running east and west.
Towner s. — This place was formerly called the
"Four Corners;" but is now known by the above
name, from James Towner, who lives there, and keeps
a public-house. A post office and a store is also kept
here. Two roads, intersecting each other at right
angles, caused it /to be called the Four Corners. It is
about two miles south of Patterson Village, on the
road to Carmel Village.
Cranberry Hill is a small eminence about half a
mile east of Judge Stone's residence, over which
runs the Birch road. It lies in the east part of the
town, and is partly cultivated. Cranberries grew on
it ; and hence the name.
Pine Island. — This rocky ledge or eminence lies in
the middle of the Great Swamp, about fifteen rods
west of Croton river. This swamp traverses nearly
the whole length of the town, and is narrower at the
south than at the north end of it. The Island covers
TOWN OF PATTERSON. 343
about thirty acres of the Swamp, which is about one
mile wide. This ledge of rocks rises about two
hundred feet above the level of the swamp. It abounds
in pines, and hence its appellation.
Hinckley Pond. — This large body of water lying in
the south-west part of the town, is one mile long and
half a mile broad. It contains excellent perch, pick-
erel, and other kinds of fish. Its west bank forms the
west line of the Harlem railroad. It is named after
the Hinckley family.
Little Pond — This sheet of water is in the south-
east part of the town, about four miles from the
Hinckley Pond, and contains the same kind of fish.
It is about half a mile long, and a little more than half
a mile in breadth. Its name is the consequence of its
being the smallest of the two ponds in this town. The
Croton river runs through this town from north to
south, and the town of Southeast, ere it receives the
main west branch with its smaller tributaries.
REVOLUTIONARY HOUSES STILL STANDING.
1. The old house in which James Patterson, Esq.,
now lives. It was built by his grandfather, Matthew
Patterson, a Judge of the Common Pleas, of Dutchess
County, who kept a tavern in it, in the Revolution.
2. The old 'house now occupied by James C. Hoyt,
in Patterson Vllage.
3. The house now occupied by the widow Dean,
about half-a-mile west of Patterson VTillage.
4. The old house now occupied by Cyrus II. Fletch-
er, between Patterson Village and Ilaviland's Corner.
Beverly Robinson, Jun., who was Lieut.-Col. of the
Regiment commanded by his father in the British
344 HISTORY OF PUTNAM COUNTY.
Army, called the " Loyal American Regiment," at the
beginning of the Revolution occupied a farm in this
town, which was located in Haviland Hollow, and
now owned in part, we believe, by George Stokum,
Esq. It was appropriated by the Commissioners of
sequestration as a rendezvous for military stores, and
keeping cattle, which were collected for the use of
the American Army.
"Monday Afternoon, April 21, 1777.
" The Convention met pursuant to adjournment.
Present — Col. Van Cortlandt, Vice-President ; Mr. Van Cort-
landt, Mr. Harper, Mr. Bancker, Gen. Scott, Mr. Dunscombe —
New York.
Mr. W. Harper, Mr. Newkerk — Tryon.
Colo. De Witt, Major Tappen, Mr. Cantine — Ulster.
Mr. Abm. Yates, Mr. Bleecker, Mr. Cuyler, Mr. Ten Broeck,
Colo. Livingston, Mr. Gansevoort — Albany.
Mr. G. Livingston — Dutchess.
Col. Williams, Major Webster — Charlotte.
Mr. Smith, Mr. Tredwell, Mr. Hobart— Suffolk.
Judge Graham, Colo. Drake, Mr. Lockwood — Westchester.
Mr. Stevens — Cumberland.
Colo. Allison, Mr. Clark — Orange.
"General Scott, to whom was referred the letter from Hugh
Hughes, deputy quarter-master-general, relative to the farm of
Beverly Robinson, Junior, reported as follows, to wit : That
they are of opinion that, as a very considerable lodgment of
stores in the quarter-master's department is formed at Morri-
son's Mills, in Fredericksburgh, in the county of Dutchess, to
and from which there will be much carriage, a proper farm in
in its vicinity, for supporting the cattle that may from time to
time be employed in that department of service, will be abso-
lutely necessary ; and that the farm lately in the occupation of
Beverly Robinson, Junior, will be very convenient for that pur-
pose. It is therefore the opinion of your committee, that the
commissioners of sequestration in the county of Dutchess be
TOWN OF PATTERSON. 345
directed to lease the said farm for one year to the said deputy
quarter-master-general, at such rent as they shall think proper,
notwithstanding any treaty for the same that may have been in
agitation between the said commissioners and any individual
persorr, for the use or occupation of the said farm.
" Resolved, That this Convention doth agree with their Com-
mittee in their said report."
APPENDIX
JUDGES OF PUTNAM COMMON PLEAS, FROM 1812 TO THIS TIME
1812,
u
u
(I
1813,
1815,
1818,
1820,
1821,
u
.i
u
1823,
Stephen Barnum, 1st,
Robert Johnston,
Harry Garrison,
Barnabas Carver.
Joseph Crane,
Robert Johnston,
Harry Garrison,
John Crane,
Stephen Hoyt.
Barnabas Carver,
Robert Johnston,
Harry Garrison,
Jonathan Morehouse,
John Patterson.
Harry Garrison, 1st,
Barnabas Carver,
John Patterson,
Jonathan Morehouse.
Abraham Smith,
William Watts,
David Jackson,
John Patterson,
John Hoyt.
Barnabas Carver,
Jonathan Morehouse,
William Watts,
Abraham Smith.
Harry Garrison,
1823, Barnabas Carver,
" Stephen C. Barnum,
" James Tawner,
" Edward Smith.
1829, Frederic Stone, 1st,
" Bennet Boyd,
" Samuel Washburn,
" Ebenezer Foster,
" Cyrus Horton.
1832, Harry Garrison.
1833, Bennet Boyd, 1st,
" David Kent.
1835, Stephen Pinckney.
1836, Ebenezer Foster.
1838, David Kent,
" Bennet Boyd, 1st,
" John Garrison,
1841, Henry J. Belden,
" Cornelius Warren.
1843, Robert P. Parrot, 1st,
" Azor B. Crane,
" Benjamin B. Benedict,
" Thachcr B. Theal.
1845, Nathaniel Cole.
1847, Azor B. Crane, elected
Judge and Surrogate
under the new Con-
stitution.
348
APPENDIX.
ASSOCIATE JUSTICES.
1812, Enoch Crosby, 1813, John Hoyt,
" William Watts. " Enoch Crosby,
1813, David L. De Forest, " Rowland Bailey
" Jonathan Ferris, 1815, Enoch Crosby.
LIST OF SURROGATES.
1813, Joel Frost,
1836, Walker Todd.
" Joel Frost.
1839, Howard H. White.
1819, Walker Todd.
1840, Abraham Smith.
1821, Joel Frost.
1844, Azor B. Crane.
1823, Jeremiah Hine.
1847, Azor B. Crane, elected
1827, Jeremiah Hine.
under the new Con-
1832, Walker Todd.
stitution.
1820, Rowland Bailey.
1823, Jonathan Morehouse.
1826, Jonathan Morehouse.
1829, Jonathan Morehouse.
1832, Jonathan Morehouse.
LIST OF COUNTY CLERKS.
1835, Jonathan Morehouse.
1838, William H. Sloat.
1840, Reuben D. Barnura.
1843, Reuben D. Barnum.
1846, Reuben D. Barnum.
LIST
OF SHERIFFS.
1812, William H. Johnston.
1822, Edward Buckbee.
1813, Peter Crosby.
1823, Edward Buckbee,
1814, Peter Crosby.
1826, Thomas W. Taylor
1815, Peter Warren.
1829, Joseph Cole, 2nd.
1816. Peter Warren.
1832, Nathaniel Cole.
1817, Peter Warren.
1835, Thomas W. Taylor
1818, Peter Warren.
1838, George W. Travis.
1819, Edward Buckbee.
1840, William W. Taylor
1820, Edward Buckbee.
1843, James Smith.
1821, Joseph Cole.
1846, William W. Taylor
NOTARY PUBLICS.
1816, Peter Warring. 1840, John P. Andrews.
1828, John P. Andrews. 1843, John P. Andrews.
1834, John P. Andrews. 1844, William J. Blake,
1837, John P. Andrews. " Reuben D. Barnum.
1839, John P. Andrews.
APPENDIX.
349
LIST
1818, Walker Todd.
1821, Frederic Stone.
1829, Jeremiah Hine.
1832, Jeremiah Hine.
1836, Jeremiah Hine.
1838, Frederic Stone.
OF DISTRICT ATTORNEYS.
1841, Frederic Stone.
1844, Frederic Stone.
1847, Charles Ga Nun, elected
under the new Con-
stitution.
ATTORNEYS1 NAMES.
1812, George W. Niven.
1836, Stephen D. Horton,
1813, Frederic Stone,
" Lewis Robison.
" William Nelson,
1839, Eleazer M. Swift,
" Amos Belden.
" Elijah Yerks,
1815, Walker Todd,
" Howard H. White.
" Henry B. Lee,
1840, Thomas Nelson,
" William Brown,
" Ebenezer C. Southerland,
" John Philips.
" Silas H. Hickok,
1816, Cornelius Master,
" Owen F. Coffin,
" Philo Ruggles.
" William Fullerton.
1817, William H. Johnston,
1841, J. H. Ferris.
" Edward Buckbee,
1842, Samuel F. Reynolds,
" Moses Hatch,
" Benjamin Bailey.
" Jonas Strong,
1843, John Curry,
" Isaac Hoffman,
" Charles Ga Nun,
" Robert P. Lee.
" Charles S. Jorden,
1818, E. Nye.
" William J. Blake.
1819, James Youngs,
1844, John S. Bates,
" Stephen Cleveland,
" Thomas R. Lee,
" James W. Oppie,
" James H. Dorland.
" Samuel B. Halsey,
1846, William A. Dean,
" Jeremiah Hine,
" Calvin Frost.
" Samuel Youngs,
1847, John G. Miller,
" J. W. Strang.
" James D. Stevenson,
1820, Henry B. Cowles.
" Charles M. Tompkins.
LIST OF
CORONERS.
1812, William Brown,
1819, Samuel Townsend.
" Edward Buckbee.
1820, Henry Holdane,
1813, Edward Buckbee.
" David Dingee,
1816, Joseph Benedict,
" Erastus Smith,
" Samuel Townsend.
" Orrin M. Armstrong,
1817, Joseph Benedict.
" James Dykeman.
1818, Orrin M. Armstrong,
1821, James Dykeman,
" David Mooney,
" Henry Holdane,
" Henry Holdane,
" David Dingee,
" Samuel Townsend.
" William Brown.
1819, Orrin M. Armstrong,
1822, Henry Holdane,
" Henry Holdane,
" Nathaniel Delavan,
30
350
APPENDIX.
1822, James Dykeman. 1835,
1823, Henry Holdane, 1837,
" Asahel Cole, 1838,
" William Raymond. "
1826, Benjamin Dykeman, Jr., "
" William H. Sloat, 1839,
" Edmund Burtch, "
" Nathaniel Delavan. 1841,
1829, William Raymond, "
" John Garrison. 1843,
1832, Lewis Rogers, "
" Seymour Allen, 1845,
" David Dingee, "
li John F. Haight. "
1835, Lewis Rogers, 1846,
" John F. Haight,
Stillman Boyd.
James J. Smalley.
John F. Haight,
Cornelius Nelson, Jr.,
Abraham Everett.
Amos Tompkins,
Selah Gage.
Cornelius Nelson, Jr.,
Jeremiah Dewel.
Addison M. Hopkins,
James Barker.
Hart Weed,
Elisha C. Baxter,
Cyrus Chase.
James Barker.
EXTRACT FROM THE SIXTH CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES
IN 1841.
Free White Males.
Under 5 years of age
5 and under 10
10 and under 15
15 and under 20
20 and under 30
30 and under 40
40 and under 50
50 and under 60
60 and under 70
70 and under 80
80 and under 90
90 and under 100
Total Free White Males
Free Wliite Females
Under 5 years of age
5 and under 10
10 and under 15
15 and under 20
20 and under 30
30 and under 40
40 and under 50
50 and under 60
60 and under 70
70 and under 80
80 and nnder 90
90 and under 100
1,001
860
792
755
1,144
748
561
326
213
85
26
2
6,513
927
852
699
705
1,051
688
566
298
188
126
39
5
Total Free White Females
6,144
APPENDIX. 351
Free Colored Males.
Under 1 0 years of age 34
10 and under 24 .... 27
24 and under 36 12
36 and under 55 .... 14
55 and under 100 6
Total Free Colored Males . . 93
Free Colored Females.
Under 10 years of age 17
10 and under 24 .... 24
24 and under 36 16
36 and under 55 i. 8
55 and under 100 9
Total Free Colored Females . . 74
Female Slave.
55 years of age and under 100... 1
Number of persons employed in Agriculture . . . 3,125
Commerce . . . . . . . 100
Manufactures and trades . . . . .916
Navigation of the ocean .... 92
Navigation of canals, lakes, and rivers . . 37
Learned professions and engineers ... 48
Number of Pensioners for revolutionary or military services 19
White persons — blind ...... 1
Insane and idiots — at public charge .... 3
At private charge ...... 13
Schools, &c. — Primary and common schools ... . 63
Number of scholars ..... 2,935
Number of scholars at public charge . . . 15
Number of white persons over 20 years of age, who
cannot read and write .... 638
352
APPENDIX.
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APPE NDIX.
361
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INDEX.
PAGE
Anthony's, St., Face,
. 164
Anthony's Nose, Mountain, .
167
Altered Taconic Rocks,
30
Ardenia, ........
176
Augite Rock, .......
. 59
Arragonite, ........
21
Actznolite, .......
21
Albite, ........
22
Alumnia, .......
. 23
Acicular sulphate of lime, . . . . .
23
American Precinct, Signers to Revolutionary Pledg
e in, . 128
Acrostic on Gen. B. Arnold, . . . .
180
Arnold, Gen., Letter of, to Jefferson,
. 209
" " " concerning, .
197
" Notice of, . .
. 190
Ashestus,
. , 20, 21
Areles, Joseph, ......
. 85
Andre, Major, Defence of, .
200
" " . Letter from, ....
. 200
Arsenical iron, .......
. . 48
Austin Hill, .......
. 266
Appendix,
346
Brucite, . . *- .
21
Basanite, ...
21
Bradley's Ore-bed, ......
. 45
Blunt's Quarry, .......
52
Beat No. 1, Officers of,
. 95
11 11 O 11 11
95
u u 0 u 11
. 95
11 11 A a u
<*, . , . . .
95
a u £ u u
. 95
11 11 g 11 11
95
Beekman's Precinct, Signers in, ...
. 113
" " Tories in, .
116
Break Neck Village, .....
. 160
Brass's Landing, .......
163
Bull Hill,
. 163
Break Neck Mountain,
164
Beverly Dock,
. 204
Brinkerhoofs, Capt., Company, . . . .
109
Bedle's, Capt., Company, .....
. 110
Boston Gazette, Extract from, ....
197
Barger Pond, .......
. 249
Bryant Pond,
249
364
INDEX.
Berry Mountain, ....
Big Hill,
Barrett's Pond, ....
Berry, Lieut. Jabez, Notice of,
Barnum, Capt. Joseph, Notice of,
Court of Gen. Sessions, Minutes of,
Canopus Hill, .....
Chrome iron ore, ....
Copperas, or sulphate of iron, .
Carburetted Hydrogen,
Cotton Rock, .....
Copper and Silver Ores,
Crystallized Serpentine, .
Coalgrove mine, ....
Cold Spring Furnace,
Cercome, Thomas,
Crane's Mills, ....
Cold Spring Village, Notice of,
" " Early settlement of,
Continental Village,
Cat Hill,
Constitution Island,
Cat Pond,
Collins, bargeman, Notice of
Charlotte Precinct, Signers in, .
Chabasie, .....
Commissioners' letter to Bev. Robinson
Crofts,
Clear Pond, .....
Cranberry Pond, .
Canopus Hollow Creek, .
Croft, James, Notice of,
Carmel, and early settlement of
" Extract from Town Records,
Carmel Village, . ...
Corner Mountain,
Cranberry Pond,
Crane, Capt. John, Notice of,
Crane Family, Record of,
Corner Pond Brook,
Crane, Joseph, Letter from, to E. Benson,
Crane, Thaddeus, Letter from,
Coles' Mills, ....
China Pond,
Cranberry Hill, i.
Diagram of County,
Daton's Mills,
Dutchess County, Signers to Pledge in,
PAGE
266
266
270
277
320
15
248
21
22
24
39
46
50
73
75
85
87
158
149
162
167
171
178
206
143
22
175
247
249
249
250
227
253
256
258
266
269
271
275
297
299
300
332
333
342
80
85
102
INDEX.
365
Davenport Family, .
Duncan, Col., Notice of,
Davenport's Corners,
Denny Town,
Dwight, Timothy, ....
Denny, George, Trial of and Confession
Denny Mine, .....
Drew's Hill,
Doansburgh, .
Dalz Brook,
Dick Town,
Dean Pond, .
Epidote, ....
Eel Point, .
Errrata, ....
Flat Rock, .
Fort Hill,
Foundry Dock, .
Farmers' Mills,
Forge Pond,
General view of the County,
Geology,
Ground Ice,
Granular Quartz Rock,
Granite, ....
Gneiss,
Greenstone,
Gouverneur Mine,
Griffin's, Capt., Company,
Griffin's Corners, .
Graphite,
Gilead Pond,
Gilead Presbyterian Church,
Huestis's Quarry,
Hematite Ore-beds, .
Highland Granite Company's Quarry
Hornblendic Rocks, .
Heganan's, Capt., Company,
Horton's, Captain, Company,
Hortontown,
Hog-back Hill,
Highland Grange,
Hyalite, ....
Highland Church and vicinity,
Huestis's Family, Notice of,
Hemstead's Huts,
PAGE
149
159
160
161
186
214
72
265
292
297
333
334
22
161
65
170
77
332
333
13
17
34
31
51
58
62
74
112
160
21
270
281
37
45
53
62
109
112
161
163
177
21
147
148
247
366
INDEX.
Horton Pond,
Hill, Granny, Notice of, .
Hazen Hill, ....
Hitchcock Hill,
Haviland Corner, .
Hinckley Pond,
Iron Pyrites,
Iron Mines, ....
Indian Hill,
Johnson, Wm. W.,' Testimony of,
Jefferds, Capt. Samuel, Notice of,
Joe's Hill, ....
Kerolite, ....
Kemble Mine, ....
Knickerbocker \ Extract from,
Kirk Pond, ....
Kent, James, Biography of, .
Kent, Town of, and early Settlement
" Extract from Record, .
Laumonite,
Lyster's, Capt., Company,
Dead Mines, .
Lake Mahopac,
Long Pond,
Little Pond, .
Luddington, Col. Henry, .
Little Pond, .
Mahopac Lake,
Metamorphic Limestones,
Mica Slate,
Magnetic Oxide of Iron,
Marl, Localities of,
Mud Flats,
Mead's Dock, .
Mount Rascal,
Muddy Pond, .
Militia Officers, Return of,
Northeast Precinct, Signers in,
Nelson's Highlands and vicinity, .
New Haven Palladium, Extract from
Oblong, ....
Orpiment,
Oregon,
Owen's, Jonathan, Pond,
Oakley, Robert, Notice of,
248
,
,
265
,
266
342
•
343
22
.
34
265
.
. 215
220
.
293
21
,
74
188
269
301
,
326, 327
329
.
. 22
,
111
,
210
266
t
. 269
297
#
328
343
266
33
59
65
76
76
163
163
249
297
122
151
.
190
99
.
22
247
.
249
251
INDEX.
367
Philipstown, Early settlement of,
Pyroxene, .
Peat, ....
Pyritious Copper,
Primary Rocks,
Philips's Quarry,
Peat, Localities of,
Patent,
Poughkeepsie, Signers in,
Pine Hill, .
Philipse, Mary, Notice of,
Plymouth Paper, Extract from,
Putnam Valley,
Pelton's Pond,
Peekskill Hollow Creek,
Pond Hill, .
Philips Street Chapel,
Pigeon Men, Notice of,
Peach Pond,
Pine Pond, ....
Patterson, Town of, and early settlement,
Patterson, Extract from Record, .
Patterson Village, . . . . ,
Pine Island, .....
PAGE
144, 147
21
21
22
51
55
. 76
77
. 118
169
. 193
206
. 247
250
. 250
265
. 280
294
. 297
333
335, 336
340
. 341
342
Rhinebeck Precinct, Signers in, . . • . .134
Roads, 83
Revolutionary Letters, &c, 92
Revolutionary Pledge, . . . . . . 100
Romans, Bernard, Engineer, Letter from, to Commissioners, 173
Robinson's, Col. Beverly, Answer to Commissioners, . 176
Round Pond, 178
Robinson House, Description of, . . . * . 178
Revolutionary Houses in Philipstown, .... 209
Richards, Mrs., Notice of, 251
Revolutionary Anecdotes, &c, 226
Red Mills, 260
Rattle Hill, 264
Round Mountain, «, 266
Revolutionary Houses in Patterson, 343
Sphene,
Schiller Spar,
Sulphate of Lime,
Sulphur,
Sulphate of Iron, .
Serpentine Rock,
Steatile,
22
22
23
24
24
34
44
368
INDEX.
Stony Point,
Sienite Rock, ....
Simewog Vein, ....
Stewart Mine, ....
Southard's, Capt., Company,
Sugar Loaf Mountain,
Sunk Lot, .....
Silver Mines, ....
Scapolite,
Smith, Joshua H., Notice of,
Solpeu Pond,
Shaw's Lake, ....
Seacord's Pond, ....
Southeast town, and early settlement of
" Extract from Record of, .
Sodom Corners, ....
Smalley Hill,
Talcose Slate.
Titanium Ore,
Target Rock,
Turpikes,
Tompkins's Corners,
Tinker Hill, .
Turkey Mountain,
Tone's Pond,
Towners,
Under Cliff,
Vinegar Hill,
Warren's Landing,
Whiskey Hill,
Wood Crag,
Washington in Love,
Warren, John, Notice of,
West Point Foundry,
Watermelon Hill,
Watts' Hill, .
Wixon Pond,
White Pond, .
Yellow Sulphuret of Arsenic,
Zircom, ....
PAGE
54, 169
57
67
71
110
167
171
210
21
229
'248
270
271
287
289
292
333
32
49
66
83
247
248
266
296
342
177
163
163
169
176
192
233
239
264
265
269
333
22
32
s
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