USA > New Jersey > Historical collections of the state of New Jersey : containing a general collection of the most interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, etc. relating to its history and antiquities, with geographical desciptions of every township in the state. > Part 30
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HUDSON COUNTY. 1.
HUDSON co. was formed from the southern part of Bergen co., Feb. 22d, 1840. This is the smallest county in the state, contain- ing only 75 sq. m. Its extreme length is 14 m., greatest width 7 m. It is bounded N. by Bergen, E. by Hudson river and New York bay, S. by the Kill Van Kuhl, separating it from Staten Island, and Passaic river, dividing it from Essex co., and W. by the Passaic, separating it from Essex and Passaic cos. On the east, the Closter mountain extends through the township of North Bergen and part of Bergen. The remainder of the county is generally level. In:
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the valley of the Hackensack river, which courses centrally through the county, dividing it into two nearly equal parts, is an extensive tract of salt marsh and swampy land, occupying about one third of the area of the county. The cultivated parts of the county are fertile, and considerable quantities of vegetables are raised for the New York market. There were produced, in 1840, wheat, 2,360 bushels ; rye, 5,335 ; Indian corn. 10,875 ; buckwheat, 3,508 ; oats, 9,141. Cap. employed in manufac. $411,850. It is divided into the following townships, viz :-
Bergen, Harrison, Jersey City, North Bergen, Van Vorst. The population of the county, in 1840, was 9,436; the same ter- ritory, in 1830, contained only about 5,300 inhabitants.
BERGEN.
Bergen has been much reduced from its original limits. It now comprises a small strip of land 72 m. long, and from 1 to 3 broad. It is bounded N. by North Bergen, E. by New York bay, S. by the Kill Van Kuhl, and W. by Newark bay and Hackensack river. The soil is fertile, and it is inhabited by a thriving agricultural population.
Bergen is supposed to be the oldest European settlement in New Jersey. The village of Bergen is presumed to have been founded about 1616, by the Dutch colonists to New Netherlands, and to have received its name from Bergen in Norway. For several years it was probably merely a trading post, to which the Indians resorted for the sale of their game and fur. On the 30th Jan., 1658-9, the Indians sold to " the Noble Lord Director-general, Pie- ter Stuyvesant, and Councill of New Netherlandt," a tract lying on the west side of North river, " beginning from the great Clip,* above Wiehachan, and from there right through the land above the Islandt Sikakes, and therefrom thence to the Kill Van Coll, and so along to the Constables Hoeek, and from the Constables Hoeek again to the aforesaid Clip above Wiehachan." . In consideration for this tract, which included all the lands between the Hacken- sack and North rivers, and the Kills, the Indians received SO fath- oms of wampum, 20 fathoms of cloth, 12 brass kettles, 6 guns, 2 blankets, 1 double brass kettle, and one half-barrel of strong beer, and agreed to remove the first opportunity.
On the 22d Sept., 1668, a charter was granted by Gov. Carteret and his council, " to the Towne and the Freeholders of Bergen, and to the Villages and Plantations thereunto belonging ;" and the boundaries fixed in the deed then given, remained unchanged until the recent act of the legislature constituting the new county of Hudson, when Jersey City was set off. The township, in the deed,
· Dutch for stone-referring to the Palisades
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was estimated to embrace 11,520 acres, (perhaps not more than half the actual quantity.) and it was about 16 miles long, by 4 in width, including "the said towne of Bergen, Communipaw, Ahassi- mus, Minkacque, and Pembrepock," bounded on the E., S., and W. by New York and Newark bays, and Hackensack river. The con- ditions of this charter were admirable. By it, "the Freeholders within the said Jurisdiction," were bound " to pay the Lords Pro- prietors and their successors, on every 25th day of March, £15," - as a quit-rent forever. They had power "to chuse their owne magistrates to be assistants to the President or Judge of the Court, and for the ordering of all Public Affaires within the said Jurisdic- tion." They were also enjoined to provide for religious worship, "to chuse a minister for the preaching of the Word of God, and the administering his Holy Sacraments,"-" to lay out such a pro- portion of Land for him, and the keeping of a Free School for the Education of Youth, as they shall think fit; which Land is to re- maine and to continue forever without Tax or Rent." No person was to be molested for religious opinions, provided they did not "extend to Licentiousness," &c., &c .*
The first settlement was doubtless at the village of Bergen, 2 miles west of Jersey City, on the summit of Bergen ridge, which now contains about 30 dwellings and a Reformed Dutch church. " The names of some of the early settlers in this region were, Pin- horne, Eickbe, Berrie, Kiersted, Van Horne, Van Winkle, Edsall, Van Guellin, Van Vorst, &c. ; and their descendants have continued to occupy the country to the present day, retaining much of their primitive habits, their language, industry, cleanliness, and general economy."
The following is a description of this country in 1680, taken from Smith's History of New Jersey :-
Near the mouth of the bay, upon the side of Overprook creek, adjacent to Hackensack river, several of the rich valleys were then (1680) settled by the Dutch ; and near Snake hill was a fine plantation, owned by Pinhorne and Eickbe, for half of which, Pinhorne is said to have paid £500. There were other settlements upon Hackensack river, and on a creek near it, Sarah Kiersted, of New York, had a tract given her by an old Indian sachem, for services in interpreting between the Indians and Dutch, and on which sev- eral families were settled ; John Berrie had a large plantation, 2 or 3 miles above, where he then lived, and had considerable improvements ; as had also near him, his son-in-law, Smith, and one Baker, from Barbadoes. On the west side of the creek, opposite to Ber- rie, were other plantations ; but none more northerly. There was a considerable settle- ment upon Bergen Point, then called Constable Hook, and first improved by Edsall, in Nicoll's time. Other small plantations were improved along Bergen neck, to the east, between the point and a large village of 20 families, (Communipaw.) Further along lived 16 or 18 families, and opposite New York about 40 families were seated. Southward from this, a few families settled together, at a place called Duke's Farm ; and further up the country was a place called Hoebuck, formerly owned by a Dutch merchant, who, in the Indian wars with the Dutch, had his wife, children, and servants murdered by the Indians, and his house and stock destroyed by them ; but it was now settled again, and a mill erected there. Along the river-side to the N. were lands settled by William Law- rence, Samuel Edsall, and Capt. Beinfield ; and at Haversham, near the Highlands, Gov. Carteret had taken up two large tracts ; one for himself, the other for Andrew Campyne and Co., which were now but little improved. The plantations on both sides of the neck,
* For this deed in full, see the Jersey City Advertiser of Feb. Ist, 1842.
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to its utmost extent, as also those at Hackensack, were under the jurisdiction of Bergen town, situate about the middle of the neck ; where was a court held by selectmen or overseers, consisting of 4 or more in number, as the people thought best, chose annually to try small causes, as had been the practice in all the rest of the towns at first ; 2 courts of sessions were held here yearly, from which, if the cause exceeded £20, the party might appeal to the governor, council, and court of deputies or assembly.
Bergen, a compact town which had been fortified against the Indians, contained about 70 families ; its inhabitants were chiefly Dutch, some of whom had been settled there upwards of 40 years.
The following interesting facts, relating to the ecclesiastical his- tory of the village, are from a manuscript historical discourse by the / Rev. B. C. Taylor, D. D., Bergen :-
In 1663, the inhabitants agreed to be taxed for a place of worship, and in 1664, the church records commenced, and have been regularly kept ever since. About that period the church was constituted, being the first church of any denomination in the state, and one of the first Dutch Reformed churches in the Union .* Untit 1680, public worship was held in a rude structure, probably of logs, which, tradition says, stood on the hill within what is now known as the old graveyard. That year, the first regular church
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Ancient Reformed Dutch Church, Bergen.
difice was erected. It was built of stone, octagonal in form; with pews around the wall, solely occupied by the males, while the remainder of the floor was covered with chairs for the females. A belfry rose from the roof, and when ringing, the sexton stood m the centre of the church. In 1773, this church was taken down, and a new one (shown in the annexed view) was erected, which stood until 1841, when the present splendid church edifice, standing 15 or 20 rods south of the old one, was built. On it is the appropriate inscription-" The Lord our God be with us, as he was with our fa- thers : let him not leave us or forsake us." The territory over which the congregation
was originally scattered, comprised the whole of the ancient township of Bergen, in which, for 162 years, it was the only organized church. On the hallowed spot where the late house of worship stood, there was, at least for 140 years, the only house of wor- ship. There, for over 160 years, successive generations worshipped the living God. There are now, (1843,) in the same limits, 15 temples in which public worship is held, 4 of which are in this township, viz : 1 Reformed Dutch and 2 Methodist churches at Bergen neck, and 1 Reformed Dutch at Bergen.
The congregation, from its organization, was supplied with preaching from the Reform- od Dutch church at New York. In 1750, a call was made by the consistories of Staten
. Previous to this, there had been organized a church of this denomination at Albany. one at New York, one at Kingston, and one at Flatbush.
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Island and Bergen, on one Petrus De Wint. He commenced as a candidate, and en- deavored to procure his ordination as a minister, and installation as a pastor, of these churches, from the party known as the Cætus .* The call, however, was referred to the Classis of Amsterdam for approval, from which body a letter was subsequently received, declaring De Wint to be an impostor ; upon which he was discharged by the congrega- tions. In 1752, the two churches unitedly called Wm. Jackson, a young theological student, whom they sent to Holland to complete his education.
In 1757 he returned as an ordained minister, with a commission appointing three cler- gymen of the Dutch church in this country to install him pastor over these churches ; which took place Sept. 10, 1757. He was an able and devoted minister. On the 10th of December, 1789, the Classis of Hackensack recommended to him the propriety of re- turning his call, by reason of sore mental affliction. The church then secured to him, through life, the parsonage and adjacent lands ; and administered to his wants until his death, July 25, 1813, at the age of 82, and nearly 24 years after his release from the church. On the 28th of November, 1792, this church united with that of English Neighborhood in a call on the Rev. John Cornelison, which he accepted, and continued in the double charge until December 1, 1806 ; from which time until his death, March, 1828, he was pastor of this church alone. On the 1st of July, 1828, the present pastor, the Rev. Benjamin C. Taylor, D. D., entered upon his labors. It is a fact worthy of no- tice, that there are now in this congregation 35 pew-holders with the prefix of Van to their names ; of these there are 22 of the name of Van Vreeland. Other very numerous names are the Van Winkles, Van Horns, Van Reypens, Van Boskircks, Newkirks, and Cadmuses. Previous to the settlement of Cornelison, and during part of his ministry, the services were in the Dutch language ; and the church records, until 1809, were in Dutch
In the war of the revolution Bergen village was frequently suc- cessively occupied by American and British troops on the same day; and there was much skirmishing between them. A fort was erected by the Americans, about 200 yards E. of the centre of the village, on land belonging to Garret G. Newkirk ; and one by the British, on Van Vorst's hill, about a mile SE. They were simply earthen breastworks covered with sod, with trenches in front. The accompanying extract from an ancient newspaper, relates to the murder of Stephen Ball by the refugees, Feb. 15th, 1781. Ac- cording to tradition, he was hung on a small persimmon-tree, near the tide-mill on Bergen Point. After he was dead the refugees cut the rope, and his corpse fell into a grave dug by them. He was subsequently reburied at Newark.
This unfortunate man was deluded by a declaration made by the commanding officer on Staten Island, that all persons who would bring provisions should have liberty to sell the same, and return unmolested ; in consequence of which declaration Ball carried over four quarters of beef, with a full assurance of being well treated, and expected to return andiscovered by his countrymen ; but soon after his arrival on that island, he was seized by Cornelius Hetfield, who commanded a party of six or seven men, and was carried be- fore Gen. Patterson, who refused to call a court-martial to try him. From thence he was carried before Gen. Skinner, in order for trial; but he also refused, pretending to shudder at the thought of trying and executing a person who came to bring them relief. Nevertheless, the said Hetfield and his party, being lost to every sense of humanity, af- ter robbing their prisoner of what property he had with him, carried him across to Ber- gen Point, and without even the form of a trial, immediately informed him that he had but ten minutes to live, and accordingly put their horrid design into execution, notwith- standing the prisoner strenuously urged that he came with provision, agreeably to the above mentioned declaration. And when he found they were determined to take his life, he begged for a few minutes longer, but was answered that his request could not be
* The Cætus party were those who advocated the ordination of ministers in this country,-the Conferentie party, those who would receive none but such as were ordain- ed in Holland.
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HUDSON COUNTY.
granted ; but if he had a desire any person should pray with him, one of their party should officiate. When he was near expiring, James Hetfield, one of the banditti, put a knife in his hand, and swore that he should not go into another world unarmed. The persons who perpetrated this cruel act were Cornelius Hetfield, Job Hetfield, James Het- field, sen., James Hetfield, jr., Elias Man, and Samuel Man-all late inhabitants of Elizabethtown ; and Job Smith, late an inhabitant of Bergen. When Ball's father be- came acquainted with the tragical death of his son, he solicited a flag, which he ob- tained, for the purpose of bringing over the corpse; but the enemy, with savage brutal ity, would not suffer them to land.
At the close of the revolution, Cornelius Hetfield, the principal in this murder, fled to Nova Scotia. In 1807 he returned to this state, and was arrested for the crime. After his incarceration in the Newark jail, he was shortly brought before Judge Pennington, on a writ of habeas corpus. He was finally discharged by the judge, who was of opinion, by the spirit of the treaty of 1783, that he was not answerable for the transaction.
Communipaw is a small settlement, consisting of 12 or 15 houses, facing the sea, on the shore, about 2 miles below Jersey city ; and inhabited principally by fishermen. It was very early settled by the Dutch ; and its inhabitants have long been noted for their tenacity to the customs of their ancestors. Washington Irving, in his history of New York, humorously describes this place.
HARRISON.
Harrison was recently formed from the southern part of Lodi. Its extreme length is 9, and average breadth about 3 miles. It is bounded N. by Lodi, Bergen co .; E. by Hackensack river, dividing it from Bergen and North Bergen ; S. by Newark bay and Passaic river, the latter separating it from Newark ; and W. by the Passaic river, separating it from Newark and Belleville, Essex co., and Acquackanonck, Passaic co. Pop. 1,173. The surface is mainly level ; and more than half of its territory (that bordering on the Hackensack river) is a salt marsh. On the west, along the mar- gin of the Passaic, extends a strip of fine arable and well-culti- vated land, nearly 2 miles in width. Pleasantly situated on the bank of the river, are a number of handsome country-seats. sur- rounded by highly cultivated grounds, descending with a gradual slope to the water's edge.
The New Jersey railroad crosses the southern part, and the Pat- erson and Hudson railroad the northern portion of Harrison. The Schuyler copper-mine is in the W. part of the township, near Belleville. It was discovered about the year 1719, by Arent Schuyler. It is a valuable deposit of superior copper ore, and has been extensively worked, with varied success, at different times.
JERSEY CITY.
JERSEY CITY lies on the west bank of the Hudson, opposite New York, on a peninsula, the Indian name of which was Arese-heck
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It was sometimes called, by the Dutch, Areseck-Houck. Soon after the arrival, in 1638, of William Kieft, Director-general of the Dutch West India Co., he had in his possession a farm, described as a lot of land called Paulus Hoeck, which is the first application of the name of Paulus Hook to this peninsula.
Powles Hook, from a very remote period, belonged to the Van Vorst family ; and in 1804 was vested in Cornelius Van Vorst. On the 10th Nov. 1804, an act to incorporate the Associates of the - Jersey Co. was passed by the legislature of the state, to whom the title by this time was conveyed. On the 28th Jan. 1820, an act to incorporate the City of Jersey, in the county of Bergen, was passed ; under which, and the various supplements and amendments there- to since passed, this city has continued to this time.
The city, although small, is well laid out, with wide and com- modious streets, and contains many large and elegant dwellings. It is the seat of justice for Hudson co., and a port of entry, annexed to the collection district of New York, together with all that part of New Jersey lying north and east of Elizabethtown and Staten Island. It was a mere village at the time of its incorporation, in 1820, containing only about 300 inhabitants. It has since been . very thriving, and now has a population of about 4,000. It con- tains 5 churches, of which the first-named is the oldest-1 Episco- pal, 1 Reformed Dutch, 1 Congregational, 1 Methodist, and 1 Cath- olic ; a female academy, in fine repute, (Misses Edwards, princi- pals ;) an excellent high-school for males, (W. L. Dickinson, Esq., principal ;) the American Pottery Co., who make beautiful delft- ware ; the Jersey City Glass Co., conducted by Phineas C. Dum- mer & Co., which employs 100 hands, and manufactures plain and cut glass ; 1 newspaper printing-office, 3 lumber-yards, 2 iron- foundries, and many stores and mechanic shops. The city is well lighted with street-lamps.
This is now the principal starting-point of the great line of south- ern travel. The New Jersey railroad commences here, and, in con- nection with other railroads, extends to Philadelphia. The Pater- son and Hudson railroad also commences at this place, diverging from the New Jersey railroad at Bergen Hill; thence running to Paterson, a distance of 162 miles. This road will ultimately ex- tend and unite with the Erie railroad, in which event this city will be vastly benefited. The Morris canal also terminates at Jersey City, after pursuing a circuitous route. from the Delaware river, of 101 miles. In its course it has a total rise and fall of 1669 feet, which is overcome by locks and inclined planes. The summit level is 915 feet above the Atlantic ocean. From the magnitude of the public works terminating at this point, Jersey City must fast increase in importance and population, being closely allied to New York, (distant one mile,) with which communication is had every 15 minutes, by a line of excellent ferry-boats, nowhere surpassed.
In the war of the revolution, the spot where Jersey City now stands was an outpost of the British army, during their occupancy
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of New York. Their fort on Powles Hook, as the place was then called, was located near the building lately used by the Morris Canal and Banking Co., for their banking-house, at the corner of Grand and Greene sts. The graveyard was near the site of the Episcopal church. In grading the streets, a few years since, in that neighborhood, human remains were disinterred, together with a variety of military relics. In the latter part of the summer of 1779, this fortress was surprised by Maj. Lee ; the following ac- - count of which is from Marshall's Life of Washington :
While Sir Henry Clinton continued encamped just above Haerlem, with his upper posts at Kingsbridge, and the American army preserved its station in the Highlands, a bold plan was formned for surprising a British post at Powles Hook, which was executed with great address by Maj. Lee.
This officer was employed on the west side of the river, with directions to observe the situation of the British in Stony Point, but, principally, to watch the motions of their main army. While his parties scoured the country, he obtained intelligence which sug- gested the idea of surprising and carrying off the garrison at Powles Hook, immediately opposite the town of New York, penetrating deep into the river. On the point nearest New York, some works had been constructed, which were garrisoned by four or five hundred men.
A deep ditch, into which the water of the river flowed, having over it a drawbridge connected with a barred gate, had been cut across the isthmus, so as to make the Hook, in reality, an island. This ditch could be passed only at low water. Thirty feet within it was a row of abattis running into the river; and some distance in front of it is a creek, fordable only in two places.
This difficulty of access, added to the remoteness of the nearest corps of the Ameri- can army, impressed the garrison with the opinion that they were perfectly secure ; and this opinion produced an unmilitary remissness in the commanding officer, which did not escape the vigilance of Lee.
On receiving his communication. Gen. Washington was inclined to favor the enter- prise they suggested ; but withheld his full assent until he was satisfied that the assail- ants would be able to make good their retreat.
The Hackensack, which communicates with the waters of the Hudson below New York, runs almost parallel with that river quite to its source, and is separated from it only a few miles. This neck is still further narrowed by a deep creek which divides it, and einpties into the Hackensack below Fort Lee. West of that river runs the Passaic, which unites with it near Newark, and forms another long and narrow neck of land. From Powles Hook to the new bridge, the first place where the Hackensack could be crossed without boats, the distance is fourteen miles ; and from the North river to the road leading from the one place to the other, there are three points of interception, the nearest of which is less than two miles, and the farthest not more than three. The British were encamped in full force along the North river, opposite to the points of in- terception. To diminish the danger of the retreat, it was intended to occupy the roads leading through the mountains of the Hudson, to the Hackensack, with a select body of troops.
Every preparatory arrangement being made, the night of the 18th of August was fixed on for the enterprise. A detachment from the division of Lord Stirling, including 300 men, designed for the expedition, was ordered down as a foraging party. As there was nothing unusual in this movement, it excited no suspicion. Lord Stirling followed with 500 men, and encamped at the new bridge.
Maj. Lee, at the head of 300 men, took the road through the mountains, which ran parallel to the North river ; and, having secured all the passes into York island, reached the creek which surrounds the Hook, between two and three in the morning. He passed first the creek, and then the ditch, undiscovered, and about three in the morning en- tered the main work; and, with the loss of only two killed and three wounded, made 159 prisoners, including three officers. Very few of the British were killed. Maj. Suth- erland, who commanded the garrison, threw himself, with 40 or 50 Hessians, into a strong redoubt, which it was thought unadvisable to attack, because the time occupied in carrying it might endanger the retreat. Wasting no time in destroying what could easily be replaced, Maj. Lee hastened to bring off his prisoners and his detachment.
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