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 46
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The writer of these memoirs was greatly interested by these uncommon events, and, on a favorable occasion, earnestly pressed Mr. Tennent for a minute account of what his views and apprehensions were while he lay in this extraordinary state of suspended ani- mation. He discovered great reluctance to enter into any explanation of his perceptions and feelings at this time ; but being importunately urged to do it, he at length consented, and proceeded with a solemnity not to be described :
" While I was conversing with my brother," said he, " on the state of my soul, and the fears I had entertained for my future welfare, I found myself, in an instant, in another state of existence, under the direction of a superior Being, who ordered me to follow him. I was accordingly wafted along, I know not how, till I beheld at a distance an ineffable glory, the impression of which on my mind it is impossible to communicate to mortal man. I immediately reflected on my happy change, and thought-Well, blessed be God! I am safe at last, notwithstanding all my fears. I saw an innumerable host of happy beings, surrounding the inexpressible glory, in acts of adoration and joyous worship ; but I did not see any bodily shape or representation in the glorious appearance. I heard things unutterable. I heard their songs and hallelujahs, of thanksgiving and praise, with un- speakable rapture. I felt joy unutterable and full of glory. I then applied to my con- ductor, and requested leave to join the happy throng,-on which he tapped me on the shoulder, and said, ' You must return to the earth.' This seemed like a sword through my heart. In an instant I recollect to have scen my brother standing before me dis- puting with the doctor. The 3 days during which I had appeared lifeless, seemed to me not more than 10 or 20 minutes. The idea of returning to this world of sorrow and
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trouble gave me such a shock, that I fainted repeatedly." He added, "Such was the effect upon my mind of what I had seen and heard, that, if it be possible for a human being to live entirely above the world and the things of it, for some time afterward I was that person. The ravishing sounds of the songs and hallelujahs that I heard, and the very words that were uttered, were not out of my ears, when awake, for at least 3 years. All the kingdoms of the earth were in my sight as nothing and vanity ; and so great were my ideas of heavenly glory, that nothing which did not in some measure relate to it could command my serious attention."
It is not surprising that, after so affecting an account, strong solicitude should have been felt for further information as to the words, or at least the subjects of praise and adoration, which Mr. Tennent had heard. But when he was requested to communicate these, he gave a decided negative, adding, " You will know them, with many other par- ticulars, hereafter ; as you will find the whole among my papers,"-(alluding to his in- tention of leaving the writer hereof his executor,)-which precluded any further solici- tation."*
The writer of the Life of Mr. Tennent, having requested of the Rev. Dr. William M. Tennent a written account of an anecdote relative to his uncle which he had once heard him repeat verbally, received in reply the following letter :
Abington, Jan. 11, 1806.
SIR-The anecdote of my venerable relative, the Rev. Wm. Tennent, of Freehold, which you wished me to send you, is as follows :
During the great revival of religion which took place under the ministry of Mr. White. field, and others distinguished for their piety and zeal at that period, Mr. Tennent was lahoriously active, and much engaged to help forward the work, -- in the perforinance of winch he met with strong and powerful temptations. The following is related as re- ceived, in substance, from his own lips, and may be considered as extraordinary and sin- gularly striking :
On the evening preceding public worship, which was to be attended the next day, he selected a subject for the discourse which was to be delivered, and made some progress in his preparations. In the morning he resumed the same subject, with an intention to extend his thoughts further on it, but was presently assaulted with a temptation that the Bible, which he then held in hand, was not of Divine authority, but the invention of man. He instantly endeavored to repel the temptation by prayer, but his endeavors proved un- availing. The temptation continued, and fastened upon him with greater strength, as the time advanced for public service. He lost all the thoughits which he had on his sub- ject the preceding evening. He tried other subjects, but could get nothing for the peo. ple. The whole book of God, under that distressing state of mind, was a sealed book to him ; and, to add to his affliction, he was, to use his own words, " shut up in prayer." A cloud, dark as that of Egypt, oppressed his mind.
Thus agonized in spirit, he proceeded to the church, where he found a large congrega- tion assembled, and waiting to hear the word ; and then it was, he observed, that he was more deeply distressed than ever, and especially for the dishonor which he feared would fall upon religion, through him, that day. He resolved, however, to attempt the service. He introduced'it by singing a psalm, during which time his agitations were increased in the highest degree. When the moment for prayer commenced, he arose, as one in the most perilous and painful situation, and, with arms extended to heaven, began with this outcry, " Lord, have mercy upon me !" Upon the utterance of this petition, he was heard : the thick cloud instantly broke away, and an unspeakably joyful light shone in upon his soul, so that his spirit seemed to be caught up to the heavens, and he felt as though he saw God, as Moses did on the Mount, face to face, and was carried forth to him, with an enlargement greater than he had ever before experienced, and on every page of the scriptures saw his divinity inscribed in brightest colors. The recult was a deep
* It was so ordered, in the course of divine Providence, that the writer was sorely dis- appointed in his expectation of obtaining the papers here alluded to. Such, however, was the will of Heaven ! Mr. Tennent's death happened during the revolutionary war, when the enemy separated the writer from him, so as to render it impracticable to attend him on a dying bed ; and before it was possible to get to his house, after his death, (the writer being with the American army at Valley Forge,) his son came from Charleston and took his mother, and his father's papers and property, and returned to Carolina. About 50 miles from Charleston, the son was suddenly taken sick, and died among en- tire strangers ; and never since, though the writer was left executor to the son, could any trace of the father's papers be discovered by him.
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solemnity on the face of the whole congregation ; and the house. at the end of the prayer, was a Bochim. He gave them the subject of his evening meditations, which was brought to his full remembrance, with an overflowing abundance of other weighty and solemn matter. The Lord blessed the discourse, so that it proved the happy means of the conversion of about 30 persons. This day he spoke of, ever afterward, as his har- vest-day. WILLIAM M. TENNENT.
Mr. Tennent was buried under the centre aisle of the church represented in the engraving. On a tablet beside the pulpit is the following inscription to his memory :
Sacred to the memory of the Rev. William Tennent, pastor of the first Presbyterian church in Freehold, who departed this life the 8th of March, 1777, aged 71 years and 9 months. He was pastor of said church 43 years and 6 months, faithful and beloved.
Sacred to the memory of the Rev. John Woodhull, D. D., who died Nov. 22d, 1824, aged 80 years. An able, faithful, and beloved minister of Jesus Christ. He preached the gospel 56 years. He was settled first in Leacock in Pennsylvania, and in 1779 re- moved to this congregation, which he served as pastor, with great diligence and success, for 45 years. Eminent as an instructor of youth, zealous for the glory of God, fervent and active in the discharge of all public and private duties, the labors of a long life have ended in a large reward.
Englishtown lies near the line of Middlesex co., 5 miles NE. of Freehold. It is a village of nearly the same size, containing about 40 dwellings and a Methodist church.
HOWELL.
Howell was taken from Shrewsbury in 1801. It is about 14 iniles long, 11 wide, and is bounded N. by Shrewsbury, E. by the Atlantic Ocean, S. by Dover, and W. by Freehold. The western portion is fertile, the central partially covered with pines, and abounding in marl of an excellent quality : on the seashore are some fine farms. The surface is generally level, excepting in the N. part, where there is a range of highlands called the Hommony Hills. The township contains 16 stores, 10 grist-m., 8 saw-m., 4 furnaces ; cap. in · manufac. $4,000; 15 schools, 475 scholars. Pop. 4,699.
Blue Balls is a thickly settled neighborhood in the NW. part of the township, 3 miles S. of Freehold, where there are about 25 dwellings, a Methodist and a Presbyterian church. Upper Squan- kum, near the Hommony Hills, contains a Methodist church and about 15 dwellings. Lower Squankum in the S. part is a settle- ment about the same size as the above. Squan, a village on the seashore, contains 2 stores, a neat church, and about 30 dwellings. Several coasters sail from here with wood and charcoal. This vicinity is much visited in the summer months for sea-bathing, and there are several boarding-houses for the accommodation of visitors. At the Howell Furnace, near the central part of the township, where iron has been extensively manufactured, there are about 50 dwellings, principally occupied by the workmen, and an Episcopal church. Burrsville, on the S. boundary, has 20 or 30 dwellings. New Bargain is a small settlement near Lower Squankum.
الحر
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MONMOUTH COUNTY.
The following account of an incursion of the :British into this township in the American revolution, is contained in a published letter, dated Kildare, Monmouth co., April 9, 1778.
" About 135 of the enemy landed on Sunday last about 10 o'clock on the south side of Squan inlet, burnt all the salt-works, broke the kettles, &c., stripped the beds, &c., of some people there, who I fear wished to serve them ; then crossed the river, and burnt all except Dirrick Longstreets : after this mischief they embarked. The next day they landed at Shark river, and set fire to two salt-works, when they observed fifteen horse- men heave in sight, which occasioned them to retreat with great precipitation : indeed, they jumped in their flat-bottomed boats with such precipitation they sunk two of them."
THE PINE ROBBERS.
Superadded to the other horrors of the revolutionary war in this region, the pines were infested with numerous robbers, who had caves burrowed in the sides of sand-hills, near the margin of swamps in the most secluded situations, which were covered with brush so as to be undiscernible. At dead of night these miscre- ants would sally forth from their dens to plunder, burn, and murder. The inhabitants, in constant terror, were obliged for safety to carry their muskets with them into the fields, and even to the house of' worship. At length so numerous and audacious had they become, that the state government offered large rewards for their destruc- tion, and they were hunted and shot like wild beasts, until the close of the war, when they were almost entirely extirpated.
Among the most notorious of these villains were Fenton, Fagan, Burke, alias Emmons, Williams, De Bow, and West. Fenton was originally a blacksmith, and learned his trade at Freehold. On one occasion he robbed a tailor's shop in that township. Word was sent him that if he did not restore the clothing within a week, he should be hunted and shot. Intimidated by the threat, he returned the property, accompanied by the following fiendish note-
I have returned your d-d rags. In a short time I am coming to burn your barns and houses, and roast you all like a pack of kittens.
In August, 1779, this villain at the head of his gang attacked at midnight the dwelling of Mr. Thomas Farr, in the vicinity of Im- laystown. The family, consisting of Mr. Farr and wife, both aged persons, and their daughter, barricaded the door with logs of wood. The assailants first attempted to beat in the door with rails, but being unsuccessful, fired through a volley of balls, one of which broke the leg of Mr. Farr ; then forcing an entrance at the back door, they murdered his wife, and dispatched him as he lay helpless on the floor. His daughter though badly wounded escaped, and the gang, fearing she would alarm the neighborhood, precipitately fled without waiting to plunder.
After perpetrating many enormities, Fenton was shot about two miles below the Blue Balls in this township, under the following circumstances. Fenton and Burke beat and robbed a young man named Van Mater of his meal as he was going to mill. He escaped, and conveyed the information to Lee's Legion, then at the court-
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MONMOUTH COUNTY.
house. A party started off in a wagon in pursuit, consisting of the · sergeant, Van Mater, and two soldiers. The soldiers lay on the bottom of the wagon, concealed under the straw, while the sergeant, disguised as a countryman, sat with Van Mater on the seat. To increase the deception, two or three empty barrels were put in the wagon. On passing a low groggery in the pines, Fenton came out with pistol in hand, and commanded them to stop. Addressing Van Mater, he said :-
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" You d-d rascal ! I gave you such a whipping I thought you would not dare show your head ;" then changing the subject, inquired, " Where are you going ?"
" To the salt-works," was the reply.
" Have you any brandy ?" rejoined the robber.
" Yes ! will you have some ?"
A bottle was given him ; he put his foot on the hub of the wagon, and was in the act of drinking, when the sergeant touched the foot of one of the soldiers, who arose and shot him through the head. His brains were scattered over the side of the wagon. Burke, then in the woods, hearing the report, and supposing it a signal from his companion, discharged his rifle in answer. The party went in pursuit, but he escaped. Carelessly throwing the body into the wagon, they drove back furiously to the courthouse, where, on their arrival, they jerked out the corpse by the heels as though it had been that of some wild animal, with the ferocious exclama- tion, " Here is a cordial for your tories and wood-robbers !"
Jonathan West, another of this lawless crew, in an affray with some of the inhabitants, was wounded and taken prisoner to the courthouse. His arm being horribly mangled was amputated. He soon after escaped to the pines, and became more desperate than before. He used the stump of his arm to hold his gun. Some time later he was again pursued, and on refusing to surrender was shot.
Fagan, also a monster in wickedness, was killed in Shrewsbury by a party of militia under Major Benjamin Dennis. The account here given of the circumstances leading to his death is from Mrs. Amelia Coryel, a daughter of Mr. Dennis, now living (January, 1843) at Philadelphia, and who, as will be seen in the narration, narrowly escaped death from the ruffians.
On one Monday in the autumn of 1778, Fagan, Burke, and Smith came to the dwelling of Major Dennis, on the south side of Manas- quan river, four miles below what is now the Howell Mills, to rob it of some plunder captured from a British vessel. Fagan had formerly been a near neighbor. Smith, an honest citizen, who had joined the other two, the most notorious robbers of their time, for the purpose of betraying them, prevailed upon them to remain in their lurking-place while he entered the house to ascertain if the way was clear. On entering he apprized Mrs. Dennis of her dan- ger. Her daughter Amelia, (now Mrs. Coryel,) a girl of fourteen, hid a pocket-book containing $80 in a bedtick, and with her little brother hastily retreated to a swamp near. She had scarcely left,
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when they entered, searched the house and the bed, but without success.
After threatening Mrs. Dennis, and ascertaining she was unwil- ling to give information where the treasure was concealed, one of them proposed murdering her. " No !" replied his comrade, " let the d-d rebel b-h live !" The counsel of the first prevailed. They took her to a young cedar-tree, and suspended her to it by the neck with a bedcord. In her struggles she got free and escaped .* Amelia, observing them from her hiding-place, just then descried John Holmes approaching in her father's wagon over a rise of ground two hundred yards distant, and ran toward him. The robbers fired at her; the ball whistled over her head, and buried itself in an oak. Holmes abandoned the wagon and escaped to the woods. They then plundered the wagon and went off.
The next day, Maj. Dennis removed his family to Shrewsbury, under the protection of the guard. Smith stole from his compan- ions, and informed Dennis they were coming the next evening to more thoroughly search his dwelling, and proposed that he and his comrades should be waylaid at a place agreed upon. On Wednes- day evening the major, with a party of militia, lay in ambush at the appointed spot. After a while, Smith drove by in a wagon in- tended for the plunder, and Fagan and Burke came behind on foot. At a given signal from Smith, which was something said to the horses, the militia fired and the robbers disappeared. On Saturday, some hunters, in a groggery, made a bet that Fagan was killed. Search was made, and his body found and buried. On Sunday, the event becoming known, the people assembled, disinterred the re- mains, and after heaping indignities upon it, enveloped it in a tarred cloth and suspended it in chains, with iron bands around it, from a large chestnut-tree about a mile from the courthouse, on the road to Colt's neck. There hung the corpse in mid-air, rocked to and fro by, the winds, a horrible warning to his comrades, and a terror to travellers, until the birds of prey picked the flesh from its bones and the skeleton fell piecemeal to the ground. Tradition affirms that the skull was afterward placed against the tree, with a pipe in its mouth, in derision.
MIDDLETOWN.
This township was incorporated in 1798. Its greatest length is 15 m., breadth 10 m. It is bounded N. by Raritan and Sandy Hook bays, E. by the Atlantic ocean and Shrewsbury, S. by Shrewsbury,
* This lady on another occasion came near being killed by a party of Hessians, who entered her dwelling, and, after rudely accosting her, knocked her down with their mus- kets, and left her for dead. In the July succeeding the death of Fagan, her husband was shot by the robbers Fenton and Emmons, as he was travelling from Coryel's Ferry to Shrewsbury. After the murder of her husband she married John Lambert, acting governor of New Jersey in 1802. She died in 1835.
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MONMOUTH COUNTY.
and W. by Freehold and South Amboy, Middlesex co. The soil is various, but in general fertile, and much improved by marl. Its surface is the most uneven of any in the county, and the highlands of Navisink are in the eastern part. There are in the township 33 stores, 3 lumber-yards, 2 fulling-m., 3 tanneries, 11 grist-m., 6 saw m. ; cap. in manufac. $65,250 ; 1 academy, 60 students ; 19 schools. 1,239 scholars. Pop. 6,063.
View in Middletown.
Richard Hartshorne, an English Friend or Quaker, emigrated to this county in May, 1666, and settled about that time on the Navi- sink river. This was among the first, if not the first permanent settlement made in Middletown. His place, called Portland Point, now remains in the possession of his descendants. "About this time, this part of the county was a great resort for industrious and reputable farmers. Many of the English inhabitants were from the west end of Long Island, and by degrees extended their settle- ments to Freehold and vicinity. Some Dutch and Scotch, also, early settled in the township. In 1682, Middletown was supposed to consist of 100 families ; several thousand acres were allotted for the town, and many thousands for the out-plantations. John Bowne. Richard Hartshorne, and Nicholas Davis, had each well-improved settlements here ; and a court was held twice or thrice a year for Middletown, Piscataway, and their jurisdictions."
The village of Middletown is in a fertile country, near the heart of the township, 16 m. NE. of Freehold, and 45 m. from Trenton. The engraving is a representation of the village as it appears on entering it from the east. The first building on the right, with a spire, is the academy ; the second and third, the Baptist and Reform- ed Dutch churches ; the spire on the left is that of the Episcopal church. There are in the place 3 stores, several mechanic shops, and 25 buildings The Baptist church is worthy of note, from its having been the first of this denomination established in the state. The annexed sketch of its origin is from Benedict's Hist. of the Baptists.
For the origin of this church, we must look back to the year 1667, for that was the
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MONMOUTH COUNTY.
year when Middletown was purchased from the Indians by 12 men and 24 associates. Their names are in the town book. Of them, the following were Baptists :-
Richard Stout,
John Wilson,
William Layton,
John Stout,
Walter Hall,
William Compton,
James Grover,
John Cox,
James Ashton,
Jonathan Bown,
Jonathan Holmes,
John Bown,
Obadiah Holmes,
George Mount,
John Buckman, William Cheeseman,
Thomas Whitlock, James Grover, junior.
It is probable that some of the above had wives and children of their own way of thinking ; however, the forenamed 18 men appear to have been the constituents of the church of Middletown, and the winter of 1668 the time.
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Central View in Middletown Point.
Three churches have been built by this society. The present one was erected in 1832, and the one previous had stood from 90 to 100 years. The Episcopal church has been organized more than a century. The Reformed Dutch church was erected in 1836. Jacob Beekman, John B. Crawford, and Alexander C. Millspaugh, are the names of the successive pastors.
The village of Middletown Point, is upon a narrow point of land formed by two branches of the Matteawan creek, 3 m. from Rari- tan bay, and 12 from Freehold. It was early settled by Scotch, and called New Aberdeen. The view was taken in the principal street. The large building, with a tower, is the Presbyterian church, a neat edifice ; the smaller structure, on the extreme right, is the academy. The Methodists have a church, erected in 1836, distant about 200 yards from where the view was taken. This vil- lage is a thriving business-place ; a steamer plies between it and New York. It contains a bank, 11 stores, 25 mechanic shops, and about 70 dwellings, many of them large and commodious.
PHILIP FRENEAU, the most distinguished poet of our revolutionary time, lived, in the latter part of his life, at Mount Pleasant, near this village. He was educated at Princeton. Freneau enjoyed the friendship of Adams, Franklin, Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe, and was in constant correspondence with the three last. " His patriotic songs and ballads, which are superior to any compositions of the kind then written in this country, were everywhere sung with en- thusiasm." He was a man of naturally fine feelings, but an infidel
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MONMOUTH COUNTY.
in sentiment ; and, late in life, of intemperate habits. He perished miserably, near Freehold, Dec. 18th, 1832, in the 80th year of h's age.
View of Keyport.
Keyport is beautifully situated on Raritan bay, about 2 m. from Middletown Point, and 22 from New York. There is, from the village, a splendid view of the bay, Staten Island, the Narrows, Sandy Hook, and the ocean, exhibiting on a pleasant day, when the vast expanse of waters is dotted with sails, a scene of beauty. The village was laid out about the year 1830, by a company who sold building lots. Keyport, including Brown's Point, (a smaller and older settlement in its vicinity.) contains 4 stores, 2 lime-kilns, an extensive shipyard, several mechanic shops, and about 70 dwell- ings. There is a Baptist and a Methodist church, the former seen on the right, and the latter on the left of the engraving. This is a flourishing village, manifesting the usual enterprise of a young and growing place. The chief business is with New York. Several sloops and schooners are engaged in the carrying-trade, and a daily steamboat communication is had with that city. High Point Chapel, Riceville, Chanceville, and Baptist Town, are small villages in the township, at the first of which is a Methodist, and at the last a Baptist and a Reformed Dutch church. Harmony, 12 m. NW. of the village of Middletown, contains a Methodist church and a few dwellings. Mount Pleasant, near Middletown Point, is also a small collection of houses.
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