Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. I, Part 21

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa.
Number of Pages: 1482

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CHILDREN OF JOHN AND MARGARET (PAXSON) RICHARDSON.

I. Sarah T., born February 15, 1815, died June 18, 1861, married, January 24, 1856, Edward T. Bellach, no issue; II. Anna, born August 11, 1816, date of death unknown, married, October 6, 1842, Joseph Bringhurst, of Wilmington, had three children; III. Wil- liam P., born July 22, 1818, married, Febru- ary 16, 1865, Mary W. Forst, of Bristol, Pa., no issue; IV. Elizabeth, born May 19, 1820, married November 9, 1853, Joseph C. Turn- penny, of Philadelphia, no issue: V. Mary,

born December 31, 1821, married June 22, 1843, Charles Warner, of Wilmington, has two children; VI. John, born February 2, 1824, married June 12, 1856, Martha An- drews, of Darby, Pa., has three children; VII. Joseph P., born December 16, 1825, married November 13, 1856, Sarah Andrews, of Darby, Pa., has seven children.

The genealogy of this remarkable and his- torical family might be continued down through the sixth and seventh generations, which would bring it to the present time, but the foregoing must suffice. A decline in the number of male members will be noticed, which, if continued during the next half cen- tury, will end the line. This is remarkable, when it is remembered how prolific the fam- ily was one hundred years ago.

VAN DYKE.

Hon. Nicholas Van Dyke, for so many years representing the State of Delaware in the United States Senate, was born at New Castle December 8, 1770, the eldest son of Nicholas Van Dyke, one of the governors of the State. He entered upon his collegiate course at Nassau Hall, Princeton, then under the direction of the celebrated Dr. Wither- spoon. After the normal period he graduated with honor, and in a short time began the study of law under the direction of Hon. Ken- sey Johns, and was admitted to practice in 1791. Within a short period he married, and having but a slender patrimony, applied him- self with the utmost diligence to the duties of his profession. He rose rapidly and at- tained high distinction as a lawyer. He be- came a member of the House of Representa- tives of Delaware in 1799, was transferred to Congress in 1809, and in 1815 was elected to the Senate of the State, taking his seat at the January session in 1816. In 1817, Mr. Van Dyke was elected to the United States Senate, and from that period until his death he con- tinued to be a member of that honorable body, with the intermission of but a few years. ITe was very attentive to his duties, and when called on to give his views on questions of im- portance, was distinguished by clean and im- pressive powers of argument, united to an easy and persuasive eloquence. His health finally broke down under the severe strain of his

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STATE OF DELAWARE

official duties, and his disease assuming an chief justice of Pennsylvania, and died at Lan- acute form, he suffered greatly. In the spring caster in March, 1817. of 1826 he showed signs of rapid decline and was only able to reach home with difficulty. Ile lingered until May 21, 1826, when he ex- CAPTAIN EDWARD ROCHE. pired in the fifty-seventh year of his age.

JASPER YEATES.

Jasper Yeates, grandfather of the distin- guished jurist of the same name, was born in Yorkshire, England, and died near New Castle, Delaware, in 1720. When quite a young man he emigrated to the West Indies, but did not remain there long. He came to Penn- sylvania soon after William Penn. Not long after his arrival he married Catherine, daugh- ter of James Sunderland, the elder. Ile was one of the early settlers at Upland, and bought in 1697 a tract of land lying on Naaman's Creek. There he built and lived in a plain mansion, which was still standing a few years ago, and was long regarded as one of the ven- erable landmarks of early times, because it was afterwards owned by Mrs. Deborah Logan. IIe also built a mill on the creek, in Brandywine hundred, and at the same time erected a granary and store house, and car- ried on an extensive business for the time.

As early as 1696, Mr. Yeates was admitted to a seat in the Provincial Council of Pennsyl- vania, and in 1700 he was elected a represen- tative of New Castle county in the General Assembly of the province; after the separa- tion of the lower counties on the Delaware, he was chosen a representative and speaker of the Assembly. In 1701 he was appointed by William Penn one of the four burgesses of Chester, and 1703 he was elected chief bur- gess. Hon. Jasper Yeates was evidently pop- ular as a public official, for from 1707 to 1710, and from 1717 until the time of his death, he served as chief justice of the three Delaware counties under the colonial and state govern- ments. It is a source of regret that so little of the early history of this prominent and rep- resentative citizen of Delaware has been pre- served. His death occurred before May 2, 1720, as his will was probated at New Castle on that date. Col. John French succeeded him as chief justice July 25, 1720. He had several children, and his grandson, Jasper, born in Philadelphia, April 9, 1745, became

Edward Roche, who became a prominent citizen of Delaware in early days, was born in County Cork, Ireland, April 10, 1754. Hle was a son of Lawrence Roche and Mary, (daughter of James Manning), his wife. Ac- vording to family records, the father of Ed- ward Roche was of French descent, emigrated from Ireland to this country soon after the birth of his son, and settled in New Castle county. Here his son grew to manhood and became one of the best known personages in the State of Delaware in the past century, as well as in the early part of the present one, by reason of his public services. lle served all through the Revolutionary war, being com- missioned second lieutenant in Colonel Hall's Delaware regiment of the Continental Line, April 5, 1777, and made paymaster of the regiment, September 10, 1778. He was in both northern and southern campaigns and was taken prisoner at the battle of Camden, S. C., August 16, 1780, and paroled to the close of the war.

On his return home Captain Roche settled in Wilmington and there spent the remainder of his life. On April 18, 1800, he was ap- pointed a notary public and justice of the peace, and held the office for nearly twenty years, being so commissioned in 1807, and re- commissioned in 1814 and 1821. He was also second burgess of Wilmington in 1806. His place of residence was at No. 90 Market street in 1814, though he doubtless lived at other places in the meantime. Captain Roche died April 6, 1821, and was buried in the historic graveyard of Old Swedes' Church, but the spot where his ashes repose is now unknown. In former times his grave was marked by a stone, which has long since fallen and been re- moved.

Captain Roche was also treasurer and secre- tary of the original Delaware State Society of the Cincinnati from its organization in 1783 to its so-called dissolution in 1802. The last certificate issued by authority of the society (the transfer of Colonel Allan McLane to the Pennsylvania Society), bears the signature of Edward Roche as secretary. He was engaged

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BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

with other prominent citizens in promoting works for the public good of Wilmington, no- tably in the procuring of a water supply from "Cool Spring." He was, in 1802, one of the officers of the "Veteran Corps of Delaware," composed of officers and soldiers of the Revo- lution, and also of its re-organized successor as a "Veteran Home Guard" for the defense of Wilmington during the war of 1812.

Captain Roche was an orator of no mean ability; his discourses before the Delaware Cincinnati at Dover, in 1791, and at Wil- mington on February 22, 1800, in commemo- ration of the death of General Washington. prove his eloquence as well as his patriotism.

From the genealogical collections of Cap- tain Bellas it is learned that Captain Roche was married to Elizabeth Brinckle April 1, 1782, in Red Lion hundred, by Rev. Samuel Aiken. She was born in 1762 and died in 1818, having preceded her husband by three years. They had issue as follows:

I. George Edward, died in infancy; II. Eliza Maria; III. Edward Brinckle, born March 6, 1787. He married Maria Gurney and they had issue: i. Francis Gurney, born 1812 and died 1892; ii. James, died 1879, leaving no issue; iii. and iv. two daughters, one of whom married Mr. Cromwell, but had no issue, and the other died unmarried. Fran- cis Gurney Roche (No. 1 of this family) served in the Confederate Army from 1861 to 1865. Ile married Amanda Payne, of the Methodist Church, in Tennessee, and had four sons and five daughters; IV. James Manning, born April 5, 1791, died January 11, 1855. He married Ann Cornelison, and had issue, i. Ed- ward Manning, born March 30, 1815, died 1889, married Hannah Hedges Conaway, of Wilmington, and they had two sons and five daughters; ii. James Lawrence; iii. George Washington; iv. Ann Eliza, born November 20, 1823, married Mr. Larzelere and had two daughters, one of whom married Leon C. Ross, of Tahlequah, Cherokee Nation, Indian Ter- ritory, and the other, Kate A., William A. Duncan, the present representative to Con- gress of the Cherokees. Mrs. Larzelere still survives, with an intellect unimpaired. The commission of Captain Roche, as justice of the peace, is said to be in the hands of Mrs. Lar- zelere, his granddaughter. Captain Roche also had four daughters: Marietta, Annette,

Emma, first and second, all of whom died un- married.

Manning Brinekle, the ninth and youngest child of Captain Roche, was born December 5, 1796, and married --. He died in 1847, leaving two sons, John and Edward. The latter died without issue. The father of these boys became a minister of the Protestant Episcopal Church, but later in life adopted the medical profession, and practiced in New Bedford, Mass., whither he had removed from Philadel- phia.

It is said that the portrait and sword of Cap- tain Roche-the latter formerly belonged to a Hessian officer-are now the property of his great-grandson, William Ford Roche, of Me- Veytown, Pennsylvania. His certificate of membership in the Society of the Cincinnati is in the possesion of his great-grandson, Sam- uel S. Roche, of Nashville, Tennessee.

GOVERNOR NATHANIEL MITCHELL.

Nathaniel Mitchell, one of the early gov- ernors of Delaware, was an ardent patriot and distinguished soldier and officer of the Revo- lution. He was born in 1753, at, or near, what is now Laurel, in Sussex county, Delaware, son of James and Margaret (Dagworthy ) Mitchell, and nephew of Gen. John Dagworthy, of Del- aware. Little is known of his early life or op- portunities for securing an education. He was commissioned adjutant in Col. John Dag- worthy's Delaware battalion of militia in 1775; captain in Col. Samuel Patterson's. Delaware battalion of the "Flying Camp," from June to December, 1776; captain in Col. William Grayson's Additional Continental regiment, January 20, 1777; major in the same regiment from December 23, 1777, when he was transferred to Col. Nathaniel Gist's Additional Continental regiment, April 22, 1779. Ile was brigade major and inspector- to Gen. Peter Muhlenberg, 1779-81. Retired from service January 1, 1781, prisoner of war- 1781, and paroled.

Major Mitchell was a delegate from Delaware to the Continental Congress in 1786-88, and governor of the State from 1805 to 1807. (See sketch of the governors). He was a delegate to the general meeting of the Society of the Cincinnati at Philadelphia in May, 1787. He died at Laurel, Delaware, February 21, 1814,

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STATE OF DELAWARE

and was buried in the cemetery of the old Broad Crock Episcopal Church, near that town. Major Mitchell left descendants, but little is known of them or of his wife.

Many interesting reminiscences of the life and character of this ardent patriot have been preserved, but after such a long lapse of time have almost been lost sight of. In a fragmen- tary copy of "The Constitutionalist, or the Defender of the People's Rights," published September 19, 1804, is found a long tribute to his memory, by "An Old Officer," from which much that is interesting is gleaned. This writer says that he was not one of those modern patriots, noisy and boisterous after danger has passed, who sheltered themselves in hiding places and courted the clemency of their foes; nor was he one of your wild enthu- siasts who thought that the Americans knew nothing about freedom, and that it was a notion imported into the country by foreign- ers. No; he was one of those men who fought and suffered for his country; who was a true friend in its most perilous moments; who be- lieved that his countrymen knew what liberty was, when they wasted their fortunes and shed their blood to procure it.

This same writer relates some events in his career as an officer in the army, which shows the material of which he was made. In 1776, when about twenty years of age, he forsook his family and the improvement which he was making, to fly to his country's standard to aid in defending the right. . He first joined the "Flying Camp" and the regiment was sta- tioned at Amboy and remained till the time for which the men enlisted had expired. Dur- ing this period frequent skirmishes between our troops and the British and Hessians took place. On one of these occasions Captain Mitchell particularly distinguished himself. A body of the enemy was sent over to attack our outposts. Captain Mitchell happily dis- covered the enemy approaching. He rallied his company, and although he had a smaller number of men, he succeeded in capturing nearly the entire detachment of British and Hessians.

When the force composing the "Flying Camp" was discharged Captain Mitchell was commissioned captain of a company in the re- giment directed to be raised by Congress, and to be commanded by Colonel Grayson, of

Virginia. A warm friendship existed between him and the Virginia colonel. Captain Mitchell addressed himself to the work of re- cruiting the company he was to command, and so great was his zeal and activity that his quota of men was seenred long before the re- giment could be formed. In 1777 they were marched to Philadelphia, where they remained till they were inoenlated for the small pox. Upon the recovery of the men they proceeded to camp, and, Grayson's regiment not having joined the army, they were attached to the Delaware troops. As soon as his own regi- ment arrived, Captain Mitchell was united to it, and his company fought gallantly at the battle of Brandywine. He was frequently seen encouraging his men, and bravely ex- posing himself, among the foremost, to the fire of the enemy. He greatly endeared him- self to his men by his anxiety to secure and re- move the wounded.

Not long after this affair Captain Mitchell was prostrated by a dangerous illness, sup- posed to be camp fever, which reduced him to great extremity, and from which he recover- ed slowly, owing to the hardships and priva- tions of camp life. Ile was in this condition when the battle of Germantown took place, and was therefore unable to take part in that engagement.

Captain Mitchell shared the horrors of the rigorous winter at Valley Forge when the American army lay there, watching the British in Philadelphia. During that terrible season, Captain Mitchell was entrusted with highly important duties. He was placed at the head of a company in General Scott's brigade, with orders to guard a dangerous outpost, and was constantly exposed to great danger, as the com- manding general depended on him for infor- mation relating to any movement on the part of the enemy, so that the camp might not be surprised. Ile was also frequently called on to make sudden and dangerous incursions into the country to surprise or watch foraging de- tatchments of the British, which made his duties at all times full of peril.

At the battle of Monmouth, he was in the advanced guard under the command of Gen- eral Lee, who attacked the rear of the British army in their retreat across New Jersey. Upon this occasion, Colonel Grayson com- manding the brigade, the command of the re-

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BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

giment was given to Captain Mitchell. It was exposed to the hottest fire of the enemy, and by a desperate resistance against a heavy column of their army, afforded time for the American troops to form, which were ad- vancing hastily under an impression that the enemy was retreating. The regiment sus- tained a heavy loss in this engagement, but it nobly maintained the reputation of the American arms.

At the end of the New Jersey campaign, the Virginia troops, to which Captain Mitchell belonged, were ordered to the southward. In the winter of 1779-80 he was appointed bri- gade major and inspector under General Muh- lenberg; and in the succeeding summer he was stationed at Fredericksburg for the pur- pose of promoting and superintending the re- cruiting service. Having raised and organized a regiment at Chesterfield Court House, he received from Congress the commission of major. It was about this time that General Leslie invaded Virginia, committing great de- predations throughout the country. Major Mitchell was ordered to join General Muhlen- berg, and received the appointment of adju- tant general. General Muhlenberg marched into Suffolk, and during the campaign was employed in watching and repelling the in- cursions of the British from Norfolk. The country was greatly benefited by this service, though it afforded no occasion to the troops to distinguish themselves.

When Arnoldl invaded Virginia in 1781, wasting everything with fire and sword, Major Mitchell was appointed to the command of the advance guard, which opposed the advance . : the British army. This handful of men fre- quently engaged with the enemy, and nearly one half was killed or wounded. He succeeded however, in cutting off several maranding parties, making a number of prisoners.

An anecdote of Major Mitchell ought not to be forgotten. Early one morning, being at the head of a scouting party, the principal object of which was to gain intelligence, he came up to the farm house of a poor widow, whose husband had lately fallen in battle, and found her bathed in tears, with several small children crying about her. He inquired into the cause of her distress, generously offering any relief in his power. She told him a party of British had just left her home, and had plundered her of everything necessary for the

subsistence of her family, leaving her no food for her children, and she knew not how to pre- vent them from starving. "Be of good cheer," replied the Major, "and I will try and make the plunderers restore to you their booty." Ile instantly pursued, and fortunately soon came up with the party, consisting of about twenty men, who being encumbered with the pillage of several houses were able to move but slowly. He fell too suddenly upon them to allow any to escape; and they were marched back to the widow's with their stolen goods. The poor woman was desired to name the pro- perty that belonged to her, which was imme- diately restored; and for any article missing the plunderers were compelled to pay the full value. The major left the house with the prisoners, loaded with the blessings of the widow.

. When the British had returned from Peters- burg, he was ordered to throw a bridge of boats over the Appomattox, to remove and secure a quantity of flour, which was in danger of falling into the enemy's hands. A party of militia was stationed to cover the operation. The duty committed to the major was of the most laborious nature. From the small force allowed for its accomplishment, the service re- quired incessant attention, and no diligence was spared to perform it. In the night, how- ever, between the 10th and 11th of May, 1781, the militia having neglected to guard their posts, the British were enabled to sur- prise the major and his party, and captured him together with Major Mure and six other officers, who remained prisoners until the treaty of peace was signed.

Major Mitchell ever enjoyed the reputation of an active, brave and enterprising officer. He was always among the foremost upon dan- gerous occasions, and his operations were con- ducted with equal address and courage. He was a strict disciplinarian, but while he was exact in requiring attention to duty on the part of his men he was careful to supply their wants, and to protect them from every species of outrage and injustice. ITis condnet always manifested his warm attachment to the inde- pendence of his country, and before the un- fortunate event which threw him into the power of the enemy, and for which he was not answerable, no evertion was omitted which could promote the Revolutionary cause. If other men were in higher stations and enabled

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to render more conspicuousservices than Major Mitchell, it cannot be said that they were more zealous and faithful in the discharge of their duties.

In reviewing the military history of this brave and efficient officer, it may be mentioned as a singular historical fact that not far from the spot where he was captured by the British in the month of May, 1781, eighty-four years afterwards all that section of country border- ing on the Appomattox, was the theatre of tremendous military operations, which culmi- nated in the surender of the Confederate army under General Lee to General Grant, and the greatest civil war of modern times was brought to a close.

Some time after the close of the Revolution Major Nathaniel Mitchell was married, but it is greatly regretted that the maiden name of his wife has not been preserved, nor is it known how many children, if any, they had. About this time he was appointed prothonotary of Sussex county, Delaware, and entered upon his duties with the same alacrity which marked his military career. His office soon became remarkable for the orderly arrangement of court records, his diligent attention to public business and the prompt execution of all his duties.

When Major Mitchell was named as a candi- date for governor of Delaware, the people generally recognized his fitness for the posi- tion, and his nomination was well received. The country was sparsely settled at that time and politics did not enter into contests for of- fice then as sharply as they do now. He en- countered some opposition, of course, but was triumphantly elected and entered upon the duties of his office in January, 1805. Ilis administration was quiet, but marked with the same diligence, method, and carewhich charac- terized him while performing the humbler duties of prothonotary; and he retired from its cares with the consciousness of having per- formed his duty to the best of his ability and leaving behind a clean record.

The private life of Governor Mitchell, as we learn from contemporary writers, was un- exceptionable and exemplary. He had the easy gentlemanly manners of an old time offi- cer who had mixed much with the world. Ilis hand was always stretched out to every honest man, without regard to dress or appearance.

The integrity of his character was unblem- ished, and calumny never ventured to attack it.

GOVERNOR BENNETT.

Capt. Caleb Prew Bennet, who served as the first governor of Delaware under the con- stitution of 1831-32, was born in the southern part of Chester county, Pa., near the state line, November 11, 1758, and died at his home in Wilmington June 11, 1836. His father, Capt. Joseph Bennett, was a shipping mer- chant and owned and sailed a merchant vesssl to India; and he was the first man who brought the first umbrella ever seen in Wilmington. He gave it to Lydia Ferris. On the next trip he brought one to Miss Betsy Montgomery, and one for his daughter Mary.

Captain Bennett married Mary Boone, a sis- ter of Daniel Boone, who is claimed by Ken- tucky as her great hunter. Boone was a Penn- sylvanian by birth, and he and his sister Mary both had birthrights in the Birmingham Friends' Meeting, of Delaware county, Penn- sylvania. Mary Boone married Johnson, who, at one time, owned all the property on West streets, Wilmington, below Third, adjoining what was known as the Warner property, where Joseph Bringhurst rebuilt.

Captain Joseph Bennett purchased and took possession of what was known as the old West property, Wilmington, November 11, 1758, the day on which his distinguished son was born. The property came to his mother, Mary Gilpin. Captain Bennett is represented by carly writers as a very handsome old man. He stood six feet in height, and his general appear- ance was striking. He wore low shoes, silver knee and shoe buckles, long silk stockings, white kid breeches, blue coat, brass buttons, ruffled shirt bosom, and powdered hair, which was done up in queue.

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Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. I, Part 21

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa. Number of Pages: 1482

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa.
Number of Pages: 1482