USA > New Jersey > Monmouth County > History of Monmouth County, New Jersey. Pt. 2 > Part 40
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Richard Hartshorne was not one of the original Monmouth patentees, but he became a patentee by the purchase of William Goulding's interest,1
1 The following is the deed showing the sale of William Goulding, the patentee, to Richard Hartshorne :
" NOVEMBER 25 : 1672.
" William Goulding of Graves End and Rieliard Harts- horne of Weikee in the Province of new Jearsey eame this day Deelaring their eonsents : and order to have this ffollowing Deed Recorded ; weh is as followeth : .
" This Presents wittnesseth that I, William Goulding, of Graves End upon Long Illand in the west riding of Yorkeshire : doe hereby aeknowledge absolutely to have sould : asigned : and made over : for ever : from me : my heires : Executors : Administrators : and Assigues : all my right : title : interest : and Claime : unto a certaine traet and Parcell of land liing and beeing in middleton, in the Province of new Jersey : and wch I sometimes bought of Pattentees of that traet of land : wherin the sayd middleton is ine'uled and knowne by the name of : (number 25) with the meadow Ground : and all privi- ledges : and appurteanances : there unto belonging unio Richard Hartshorne of Weikee : in the same province : above said : his heires : Exeentors : Administrators : or assignes : and for him the said Richard to possess : and enjoy : in as large and ample mannor in every respect : as I the said william : might or could by vertue of any
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HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
and the meeting of the patentees liereafter re- ferred to was evidently held at his house, which had been built before the purchase from the In- dians. The Indian deed was as follows :
May 22, 1676, Perropa Wawapa Emoras, Indians, " chiefe sachems of Ramsing, for a valuable sum of money in Indians' tradeing goods," paid by Richard Hartshorne, granted to him " a certaine parcell or tract of land lying in the province of New Jersey, being three necks of land, called by the Indians Wacake, Arowonoe, Conoskunek, and beginning at the easternmost side of Wacake Necke by the ereek, and so up along the sd creek, called Wakecake Creek, about two miles or thereabonts, till you come about a quarter of a mile about or to the southwards of a piece of Meadow, called Walter Wall's meadow, which lies on the east side of Wakecake Creek, and from thence running westerly uppon a straight line to a great roek that is a little to the southeast of the Indian path that goes from Wakecake to the Indian town called Seaperk- ameeke," and westerly to a small creek. North- west to an oak-tree which parts Wakecake and Arowonoe ; from thence southwest to a white- oak; from thence west by north across the ueek, called Arowonoe to an oak-tree, on the ercek which divides " Arowonoe, Conoskunk, and from thenee running over the ercek, west by north across Conoskunek neck till it comes to the
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purchase or grant from the said Pattentees : and further I the said William Goulding doe aeknowledge to have sould : and fully made over unto the afforesaid Richard : his heires : Executors : and assignes : all the priviledges : the wch I am at present possesed with in that pattent : that is to say : my Pattentteeshipp : for him in my place and stead : as need shall require to offieiatte : and doe with the rest of the l'attentees : and to have all such priviledges proffits : and beneffitts : as is given to mee by Pattent from his roiall highines the Duke of Yorke : and his Debuty : or by vertue of any purchase from the Indians : and in eon- sideration of the premises : I the said william : have received full and plenary satisfaction : part in hand : and part by bill : in wittnes hereof 1 have hereunto sett my hand and seale this twenty three day of the month called Aprill one thousand six hundred and seventy.
"WILLIAM GOULDING.
" Wittnesses
" JAMES BOWNE,
" JOHN STOUTT.
"This is a true Copy Extraeted out of the prineipall " By Order
" EDWARD TARTT : Town elearke."
ereck that parts Conoskunck and Chingarora, which said three uecks are bounded by the bay to low-water mark."
Of the canses and ineidents of this purchase Richard Hartshorne said, in a letter written soon afterwards,-
"The Indians came to my house and laid their hands on the post and frame of the house, and said that house was theirs ; they never had anything for it, and told me if I would not buy the land, I must be gone. But I minded it not, thinking it was Davis' land, and they wanted to get something of me; they at last told me they would kill my cattle and burn my hay if I would not buy the land or begone ; then I went to the Patentees, which were James Grover, Richard Stout, John Bound [Bowne] and Richard Gibbons; they told me it was never bought, nor had the Indians anything for it. Nichols desired of them and the Indians also only to have leave to set a trad- ing-house, and at that time they did not intend any one should have the land, but keep it for the use of the country, always giving leave for any man to trade with goods and not otherwise; but I told them I would not live on those terms, and not only so, but it was dangerous, for the Indians threatened to kill my cattle; they told me, no man had power to buy but the patentees, and they would buy it; thus it con- tinued some months. I considered the thing as well as I then was capable, and went to Gravesend and bought William Goulder out, and when I came back the In- dians were at me and I did. James Grover, Richard Stout, Samuel Spicer were at Wakecake, and paid for it, I being then a patentec as well as the rest."
He also says, in a private memorandum : "When Captain [Richard] Stout bargained with the Indians, he gave them a barrel of cyder, and I gave them an order for an anker of brandy, so that they should not drink it on the premises."
The land of Richard Hartshorne extended up Wakake Creek nearly to its head. On July 10, 1675, when the "southwest and southerd parts of Mideltowne" were bounded, the line was run "from the southerdmost part of Richard Hartshorne's meadow, which was formerly Walter Wall's, which lyes at the hed almost of Wakecake Creeke."
It will be remembered that the land embraced in the Indian deed was bounded southward by Walter Wall's meadow, so that it is evident that after 1672 he purchased land south of his original tract, which embraced Walter Wall's meadow. That Mr. Hartshorne remained at
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RARITAN TOWNSHIP.
" Weikec" until after 1700 is shown from the fact that, December 22d, in that year, the pro- prietors granted to William Lawrence, of Mid- dletown, a tract of land on the east side of Wakake Creek, bounded by the creek and lands of Richard Hartshorne and " fifteen aeres of unappropriated sedge and meadow on ye east side of said creeke, from Hartshorne residence to ye mouthi of ye creek. . .. "
During the most of his public life Mr. Harts- horne resided at Wakake; yet he was owner of a very large tract on the Navesink Highlands, which, in 1703, he gave to his son, William, who moved to, and resided at Portland, soon after which Richard Hartshorne moved to Mid- dletown village, and built a house, which is still standing, and where he died in 1722.
The lands which William Lawrence pur- chased, consisting of two hundred and eighty acres, were left by him to his son, Elisha Law- rence, who moved to the place; and it is stated that he kept a store there, which was plundered by the pirates who infested the Raritan Bay. He sold this land, in 1717, to Thomas Kearney, who lived at what is now Keyport. A tavern was kept at Wakake, in 1699, by Samuel Wil- letts. A landing was also made at the place a little distance up the creek from its mouth. Afterwards a dock or pier was built ont into the bay from the shore below the mouth of the creek. This was ealled Tanner's Landing. It was used as late as 1820, having been for many years previously the principal landing and port of Monmouth County for passengers and freight. The first steamboat which ever came to Mon- mouth County ran up to this landing and Mid- dletown Point. It was a side-wheel boat, commanded by Captain Penoyer.
The school districts of Raritan township are four in number, viz. : Keyport District, No. 49, (elsewhere more fully mentioned); Union Dis- triet No. 50; Bethany Distret, No. 51; and Granville District, No. 52.
Union School District, No. 50, has fifty-six scholars. The first school-house in this section was built by the Florence and Keyport Com- pany about 1850, soon after they began their . operations. The same house is still used.
Bethany School District, No. 51, has one hundred and thirteen school children. The first school-house in this section was built on a knoll across the road from where the old Bethany Church stood. It was built about 1800. Al- fred Walling, of Keyport, now deceased, said of it:1 "Fifty years ago I commenced my col- legiate course in that old school-house. It was eighteen feet square, with eight feet posts and double-pitched roof. It was enclosed with pine boards and shingle roof. The side was filled in with common yellow elay by letting in slots or rungs to the posts or joists about nine inches apart to keep the clay in its place. This was the inside finish. It had five small, seven by nine, six-light windows. A stationary writing- desk was made on one side of the room, and common wooden benehes without backs were the seats."
A new house was built in 1828 about one hundred yards north of the old one and on the same side of the street. This was used until the district was enlarged, taking in a part of Holmdel township. In 1871 the present school-house was built near the almshouse, and on the township line between Holmdel and Raritan.
As nearly as can be aseertained, Timothy Murphy was the first teacher in the old house. He was succeeded by Charles Kelly, a Catholic, who for many years taught a classical school in the first and second houses. He was succeeded by William Brown, Peter Van Derhoof and James McBirney. Mr. Kelly died in 1836, having taught school in this vicinity over forty years.
Granville School District, No. 52, includes a part of the township of Middletown. The first school-house was built many years ago on a lot of land donated by Andrew Wilson. It was used until 1871, when it was torn down and replaced by the present school-house. The dis- triet contains one hundred and forty children of school age.
GRANVILLE is a little village lying on the bay coast, and on the line between Raritan and
1 In an article written by him in 1879.
702
HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
Middletown townships. It contains a store, a church, school-house and several dwellings. A post office named Keansburg was established at the place November 1, 1884, of which Mrs. W. W. Ramsay is postmaster. A post-office liad been established earlier, of which Benjamin Wilson was postmaster. 'This was discontinued.
Near the place, and on the shore, are the works of the Uniontown Tile and Brick Com- pany, whose office is 145 Broadway, New York. The large buildings of this company were erected in 1883, and ninety men employed. The works are now nearly completed. A boarding-house has been erected, and it is the intention of the company to employ two hun- dred men in 1885.
There is also on the shore a fertilizer factory, owned by Charles Preston, of Green Point, L. I. The building, three stories high, was erected in 1878. From ninety to one hundred men are employed when the works are in opera- tion.
THE GRANVILLE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH was organized in 1866, and the present chapel was erected in that year. The lot was purchased by - Tout, of New York, and donated to the society. The pulpit has been supplied mostly by students from Drew Theo- logical Seminary. The pastors have been as fol- lows: 1866-67, Rev. John B. Westcott, - Mead, - Owen; 1870, A. J. Garretson ; 1874-75, W. W. Woodward; 1876, C. H. Mason ; 1877-78, W. W. Ramsay; 1879-80, A. Lowry ; 1881, J. M. Reed ; 1882, P. K. White; 1883, H. W. Cheeseman ; 1884, Edward Phreaner. The society has a membership of fifty-two.
Near Granville is the Waackaack Beacon, located on the east side of Wakake Creek. It is seventy-six feet above the level of the sea, and is supplied with a second order lens. It was built under an act of Congress approved August 31, 1852, and completed in 1856.
Hazlett Railroad Station and settlement is in the south part of Raritan township, near Old Bethany. A post-office was established there in 1876 and Rezo Schenck was appointed post- master. He was succeeded by the present post- master, Walter T. Hoff. A hotel was erected in 1882 which is now kept by Richard Worrell.
UNION CITY, on Raritan Bay, northeast of Keyport, is located on land which was owned in the time of the Revolution by Peter Snyder and Colonel Richard Poole. The land at Union City, in comparatively recent years, extended half a mile out into the bay, to the Black Rocks, and there are those now living who remember planting corn where now are the waters of the bay. Vessels, not many years ago, came up Wales' Creek to what is known as Graham's Landing.
Union City came into existence through the operations of the Florence and Keyport Com- pany, which was incorporated February 14, 1846, with a capital stock of two hundred thou- sand dollars, in two thousand shares of one hun- dred dollars each. The object of the company was to lay out a city on Raritan Bay, build docks, dwellings and roads, and establish a line of trade and travel from New York to Florence, on the Delaware River. There were fourteen stockholders, and Isaac S. Lloyd, of Florence, was chosen president. In 1852 the hotel (frame, four stories high) known as the Monmouth House was erected, a dock two thousand two hundred feet in length was built, a basin was formed for vessels, ten dwelling-houses were built, and also a large steam sawmill.
In that year also a Plank-Road Company was incorporated to build a road from Florence to Union City, and a two-mile section of the road was built. The " Armenia " steamer was chartered to run to the place from New York. The hotel was run by the company a year or two and then sold to William Quinlan, who, after a few years, leased it (in 1872) for ten years to John Mount, who kept it until 1882, since which time it has been vacant. No busi- ness is now done at Union City, and nothing remains of it but the name, the vacant hotel and a few dwellings.
THE TOWN OF KEYPORT.
Keyport, the principal town or village of Raritan township, is situated on Raritan Bay, between the mouth of Matawan Creek on the west and that of Chingarora Creek on the east. The site of Keyport was part of the large traet
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703
THE TOWN OF KEYPORT.
owned by John Bowne, one of the Monmouth patentees, On the 21st of July, 1774, he sold to Thomas Kearney, of New York, merchant, two-thirds of one hundred and forty acres, and to Michael Kearney, also a merchant, of New York, the remaining one-third of the same tract, for sixteen hundred pounds. The land is de- scribed as lying at Chingarora, commencing at the mouth of "Lupakitongue" Creek, running south by west up the creek; from there north- westerly to the bay and along the coast to the place of beginning. This traet is now known as Brown's Point, The name is doubtless a corruption of Boune, as no one now living recollects (nor is there any tradition) that any person named Brown was ever an owner or a settler there.
On the 13th of January, 1715, Thomas Kearney purchased of John Bowne a half- interest in forty aeres of meadow-land on Lu- paketongue Bay, and November 14th, the same year, he purelased a one-third interest in the one hundred and forty acres of Michael Kearney. On Angust 21, 1717, he purchased of Abraham Watson one hundred and twelve aeres for one hundred and twenty pounds, bounded east, north and west by land formerly of John Bowne. Shortly afterwards he moved from New York to this place, as is proved by deseriptions found in later deeds.
On the 19th of November, 1717, Thomas Kearney purchased of Elisha Lawrence several tracts of land for three hundred and twenty pounds,-one of two hundred and eighty acres adjoining Riehard Hartshorne, at Wakake, six acres adjoining Steven Arnold and son to the beach (this last traet was purchased by Lawrenee November 26, 1698, of John Crawford), a tract of forty aeres on the west side of the brook that leads to Wakake Creek, a traet of eight aeres and another of ten acres on the east side of Wakake Creek, and fifteen acres of sedge and meadow, also on the east side of the erecek. On the 18th of November, 1717, he (Kearney) pur- chased of Richard Salter an undivided half of an undivided twenty-fourth part of the property, then belonging to the proprietors. This interest came to Riehard Salter by will from Jolin . Bowne. On the 8th of February, 1717, Kearney
purchased of Lawrence Smith forty aeres of land in the vicinity.
These lands aggregated six hundred and forty-five aeres, which Kearney had purehased within three years. On this property he erected a house, which for generations has been known as the Kearney homestead. In a road record of 1768 mention is made of a road that led " to Major Kearney's," upon a hill called " Wolf- Pit Hill." This hill was doubtless the eleva- tion on which the Kearney house now stands, on land of Thomas Kearney's first purchase. The " Major Kearney " here referred to was the Major Philip Kearney of whom frequent mention is made in the annals of the Revolu- tion.
The lands mentioned above do not embrace the part of Keyport lying east of the Lupat- eong Creek. The Kearney estate was added to by later generations, and embraced at one time over nine hundred aeres. The Kearney plan- tation was named Keygrove Farm and was so known for many years. The point, prior to the Revolution and down to 1829 was known as " Fishing Point." It was celebrated as the home of the Chingarora oysters, which were free to all. Nearly every farmer for miles around owned clam-rakes and oyster-tongs, and obtained a part of his living from the bay.
James Kearney, a descendant of Thomas, and owner of the estate, died in Richmond County, N. Y., January 17, 1811, aged sixty-one years. He was buried on this estate, in the family vault. Edmund Kearney then came into possession, and moved to the plaee in the April following, and at liis death, December 25, 1822, was in posession of this property, then em- bracing seven hundred and eighty-one aeres. It was described as being " divided into many fields and pastures, all included by an exterior boundary fence, and by the creeks or rivulets forming with the shore on Raritan or Prince's Bay the exterior boundary thereof." A part of the estate was fine, arable land, but the greater part was covered with a heavy growth of valuable timber.
This large traet of land, by reason of its tim- ber and its coast advantages attraeted the atten- tion of business men as an excellent place to
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704
HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
establish a town. James P. Kearney 1 one of the heirs-at-law, came of age the next day after his father's death, and on the 9th of December, 1823, he mortgaged his interest to William Forman for money loaned. This not being paid in 1829, and Kearney being then in necessitons cirenmstanees, conveyed (April 15, 1829) all his right, title and interest in the property to Daniel Holmes and John W. Holmes, who made application to the Orphans' Court for a division of the estate. It is stated that the purchase by the Holmeses was for the purpose of| bringing about a sale, that a port town might be established. In accordance with their appli- cation, the Orphans' Court, at the April term of 1829, appointed James Hopping, Edward Tay- lor and Leonard Walling commissioners to divide the estate. These commissioners reported, July 10, 1829, that they had caused a map of the estate to be made, and after viewing it, were of the opinion that a division could not be made without great prejudice to the owners. Upon this report the court ordered the com- missioners to make sale of the property at pub- lic auction. The sale was made on the 3d and 4th of November, 1829, to the following- named purchasers :
Lot No. 1, 224.82 acres, Isaac K. Lippincott. Lot No. 2, 56.42 acres, Thomas Carhart. Lot No. 3, 32.85 acres, Amos Walling.
Lot No. 4, 18.43 acres, Jonathan Tilton. Lot No. 5, 59.52 acres, Ezra Osborn, Esq. Lot No. 6, 56.24 acres, Ezra Osborn, Esq. Lot No. 7, 48.46 acres, Isaac K. Lippincott. Lot No. 8, 24.11 acres, Richard C. Burrowes. Lot No. 9, 7.34 acres, Isaac K. Lippincott. Lot No. 10, 16.51 acres, Ezra Osborn. Lot No. 11, 59.13 acres, James Sproul. Lot No. 12, 26.02 acres, Thomas J. Walling. Lot No. 13, 49.42 acres, Amos Walling. Lot No. 14, 40.35 acres, Joseph Carhart.
Lot No. 15, 61.34 acres, Horatio Kearney.
The sales amounted to nineteen thousand nine hundred and forty-one dollars and nine- teen eents, deeds to be given April 1, 1830, when one-half of the purchase money was to be paid, and remainder on April 1, 1831.
At the time of this sale it was suspected that
parties from Middletown Point, fearful that Fishing Point Lot, No. 8, might be purchased for the purpose of building a dock, had come there with the intention of buying it, that it might remain unimproved, and thus leave Middletown Point without a commercial rival on Raritan Bay. Upon this, two or three men, with a view of the practicability of a dock at the place, decided to buy Lot No. 8, which was done on the second day of the sale. Others then joined with them and purchased other con- tiguons lots. No thought of a dock company was had before the sale, but circumstances rapidly developed such a project, and brought about the formation of a Doek and Improvement Company, of which the following-named were the original members . Leonard Walling, Joseph Taylor, John I. Taylor, Davis S. Bray, John Hopping, James Hopping and Isaae K. Lip- pineott. The object of this company was to se- cure Lots 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10, which was done, and others were also obtained afterwards. On the 9th of April, 1830, the place was surveyed and laid out into twenty-four lots by Leonard Walling, " near the fishing-point on the easterly side of Brown's Point Cove."
In February, 1830, a road or highway was laid out from the Middletown village and Mount Pleasant road to this new settlement and in the proposed village plat made in April following, it is laid down as passing between Lots No. 8 and 21. Lot No. 8 was known as the "Fishing Point Lot."
The lands secured by the company amounted to more than two hundred acres. In 1830 a . dock was constructed on the site of the pres- ent Keyport Dock. A large store-house was erected in the same year. The doek and the store-house were in charge of Leonard Wal- ling, who also built a residence here in 1830. In the spring of 1831 the place first received the name of Keyport. In 1832 a tavern-house was built and opened to the public. In the same year the sloop " New Jersey," of fifty tons, was built, eight miles below, on Comp- ton's Creek, and was put on to run from the doek to New York, under command of James Hopping. The next vessel was put on in 1836, and was soon followed by others
1 Edward Kearney left eight children,-Thomas, Anne, Catharine, Anastasia, Horatio, James P., John and Mary.
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THE TOWN OF KEYPORT.
which ran from Keyport to New York, earry- ing market supplies and produce, which had then begun to come in large quantities from the interior to Keyport for shipment. From this time the shipping business of the port at Middletown Point began to decline, and finally ceased altogether.
The old Kearney homestead was purchased by Isaac K. Lippincott, who owned it for many years. It is now oeenpied by Mrs. Barnes. In 1833, Isaae K. Lippineott erected tha first store of Keyport, and the same year Nimrod Bedle and Lewis Morris built dwell- ing-houses. On the 21st of May, 1832, the company divided sixteen of the twenty-four lots among the individual members. At that time the company consisted of James and John Hopping, Ezra Osborn, John I. Taylor, David L. Bray, Leonard Walling, Joseph Taylor and Isaac K. Lippineott.
In November, 1829, Septimus Stevens was landlord of a tavern at Brown's Point, which was about one-quarter of a mile from the new proposed village, and the Kearney sale was held at his house. The new tavern was ereeted on Lot No. 5.
Gordon's "Gazetteer " of 1834 says of Brown's Point (Keyport),-" There are here a good landing, two taverns, three stores and twelve or fifteen dwellings." A statement in the Monmouth Democrat of 1837 says Key- port then had less than twenty houses and about one hundred population. In 1846 Key- port eontained seventy dwellings, two stores, one good publie-house, two doeks or wharves and ten or twelve meehanie shops, besides other buildings. The property retained by the eom- pany at the division, in 1832, was sold, February 25, 1839, to Oliver Vanderbilt for seven thou- sand dollars, embraeing fifteen acres, with all the buildings and improvements.
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