History of Monmouth county, New Jersey, Part 12

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Swan, Norma Lippincott. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Philadelphia, R. T. Peck & co.
Number of Pages: 1148

USA > New Jersey > Monmouth County > History of Monmouth county, New Jersey > Part 12

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1 .. In the old Dutch records the Navesink Highlands are sometimes called Rensselaer's Point or Hook, and some- times Rensselaer's Pier. This last name no doubt origin- ated from the appearance of these hills to a vessel far out at sen. The adjoining lowlands lying below the horizon, the hills project boldly and squarely out and resemble a pier or wharf. to those on a vessel far out on the ocean."-

HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.

worth, 'I told them the same before, that they should not do it.' Govert Loockermans told them then : 'ye are a party of traitors, and you act against the Government of the State.' They said 'the King's patent is quite of another cast.' Loockermans asked 'from whom have you your pass ?' and they answered 'from the Manhat- tans.' Looekermans retorted, 'Why do you act, then, against the State?' To which Charles Morgan answered : 'Sek noty bey affet.'

"The English had their savage with them, who was of the Newasings, and had a hand in the murder of Mispath's Kil,1 as our savage in- formed us, whom we had taken with us in our sloop and carried hither, and his name was Quikems, living on the Newasing River at the land called Townsing. We left the English along shore and went up the river about four miles, along the shore under the West Hills, where the country is very mountainous. On the opposite side, as the savage informed us, the soil was very poor, but some good land, - old [Indian] corn-fields and some planting-ground, which I had before explored with Courtelyou. Then we crossed the hilly part, about nine miles, and pereeived by a sign on board that Chris- topher Elsworth with his sloop and the English had entered the River. We remained before it during the night. December 11th .- The wind being southwest, we resolved to sail towards the Manhattans, which we did."

In this account it is noticeable that the Eng- lish people, by their sneering retort to the Dutch, who areused them of being traitors,-viz. : "the king's patent is quite of another cast," -- showed a fore-knowledge that the English sovereign was about to make a grant of the country to the Duke of York, and to send a fleet and land force to place him in possession of it. It is also to be noticed that both the Dutch and the Eng- lish were distrustful of the Indians, the Dutch having a guard of ten soldiers, and the English being there in strong foree and armed. That the Dutch were familiar with the region ad- jacent to the rivers and other navigable waters is evident through the whole narrative, and

especially where the writer mentions the old Indian corn-field " and some planting-grounds, which I had before explored with Courtelyou." They had sailed up and down the rivers and kills in pursuit of their vocation as traders, but they had made no attempt to plant any settle- ments there. On this occasion they told the English that they (the Dutch) had already purchased the greater part of the lands from the Indians; but this was false, and was only told for the purpose of driving the English away. The Dutch had bought no land of the Indians in this region, nor is anything found tending to show that they had ever thought of such pur- chase ; but when they found that the English were here for that purpose, their jealousy became aroused, and they at once sent their "Indian John" up the river with the message "that if the Sachems of the Newasings wished to sell some land, they should come to us and we would talk it over with them." The tenor of the entire narrative shows plainly enough that at that time there were no permanent settlements of white people within the region referred to.

Among the names of the men composing the party of land-seekers from Long Island, as given in the preceding account, are those of William Goulding, John Bowne, "Sergeant Gybbings " (Richard Gibbons), Samuel Spicer and others, who soon afterwards became land-owners and settlers within the territory of Monmouth County. They made two or three other journeys from Long Island to the south shore of the bay, and finally concluded the purchase from the sachems of the three "necks" of land known by the Indian names of Newasink, Navarumsunk and Pootapeck, the first-named being bought first, and the two others included in a subsequent pur- chase.2 Newasink was the region lying between

2 The tract of Newasink was purchased from the chief, Poppamora, and his people. All the expense of the pur- chase, including the payment to the Indian in money, black and white peague, guns, one anchor of brandy, tobacco, clothing, wine, the services of men and boats for several voyages made, and for the recording of the deeds in New York was £149 6s. 10d.

The second purchase,-of Navarumsunk and Pootapeck Necks from several sachems-amounted to £359 10s. in the same kind of outlay as the first. The account was ren- dered to the patentees and associates July 6, 1670.

1 The murder, previously referred to, of lert Theunissen Van Patten, who was killed by Indians in October, 1643, while on a trading expedition.

EARLY SETTLEMENTS AND LAND TITLES.

the bay and Navesink River, and extending northeast to the Highlands of Navesink,1 em- bracing the site of old Middletown. Navarum- sunk was the " neck" lying between the Nave- sink and Shrewsbury Rivers, including the place where the Shrewsbury settlement was afterwards made, frequent references to "Shrewsbury on Navarumsunk" being found in old records. The " neck" of Pootapeck is supposed to have been that lying south of Shrewsbury River. The western and southwestern bounds of these Indian purchases were too vaguely defined to be iden- tified at the present day.

Soon after the surrender of New Netherlands by the Dutch to the English, and the establish- ment of the authority of the Duke of York by his Governor, Colonel Richard Nicolls, the latter i-sued (in the fall of 1664) a printed proclama- tion, which he caused to be widely distributed, for the purpose of promoting the formation of new settlements in the country under his jurisdiction. It was as follows :

" The Conditions for new Planters in the Territories of his Royal Highness, the Duke of York.

" The Purchases are to be made from the In- dian Sachems, and to be recorded before the Governour.

" The Purchaser- are not to pay for their Liberty of Purchasing to the Governonr.

" The Purchasers are to set out a Town and inhabit together.

"No Purchaser shall at any Time contract for himself with any Sachem without consent of his Associates, or special Warrant from the Governor.

" The Purchaser- are free from all manner of Assessments or Rates for five Years after their Town Platt is set out, and when the five years are expired they -hall only be liable to the pub- lick Rates and Payments, according to the cus- tom of other Inhabitants, both English and Dutch.

" All Lands thus purchased and possessed shall remain to the Purchasers and their Heirs as free Lands, to dispose of as they Please.

" In all Territories of his Royal Highness Liberty of Conscience is allowed, provided such Liberty is not converted to Licentiousness, or the Disturbance of others in the Exercise of the Protestant Religion.

" The several Townships have Liberty to make their particular Laws, and deciding all small Causes within themselves.

" The Lands which I intend shall be first Planted are those upon the West side of Hud- son's River, at or adjoining to the Sopes ;2 but if any number of Men sufficient for two or three or more Towns shall desire to Plant upon any other Lands, they shall have all due Encourage- ment, proportionable to their quality and under- takings.

"Every Township is obliged to pay their Minister according to such Agreement as they shall make with them, and no man to refuse his Proportion, the Minister being elected by the Major part of the Householders, Inhabitants of the Town.

" Every Township hath the free choice of all their Officers, both Civil and Military, and all Men who shall take the Oath of Allegiance, and are not Servants or Day Labonrers, but are admitted to enjoy a Town Lot, are esteenied free Men of the Jurisdiction, and cannot forfeit the same without due Process in Law.

" R. NICOLLS."

The people from Long Island and the New England settlements who had commenced their negotiations with the Indian sachems in Decem- ber, 1663, and subsequently concluded the pur- chase from the natives of the tracts of Newasink, Navarumsunk and Pootapeck, having thus already complied with the first of the conditions prescribed for such as wished to obtain lands, under Nicolls' proclamation, made early applica- tion to the Governor for a grant to cover the In- dian purchases which they had made and others which they intended to make of adjacent lands; upon which, in April, 1665, the Governor issued to them a patent, as desired, of which the follow- ing is a copy :

" To all to whom these presents shall come, I, Richard Nicolls, Esq., Governor, under His

1 A tract at the Highlands was reserved by the Indians. it being the same on which Richard Hartshorne afterwards located.

2 E-opus.

HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.

Royal Highness, the Duke of York, of all his Territories in America, send greeting : Whereas, there is a certain Tract or Parcel of Land within this Government lying and being near Sandy Point upon the Main; which said parcel of Land hath been with my Consent and Ap- probation bought by some of the Inhabitants of Gravesend, upon Long Island, of the Sachems (chief proprietors thereof), who before me have acknowledged to have received Satisfaction for the same; to the end the said Land may be planted, manured and inhabited, and for divers other good Canses and Considerations, I have thought fit to give, confirm and grant, and by these Presents do give, confirm and grant unto William Goulding, Samuel Spicer, Richard Gibbons, Richard Stont, James Grover, John Bown, John Tilton, Nathaniel Silvester, Wil- liam Reape, Walter Clark, Nicholas Davies, Obadiah Holmes, Patentees and their Associ- ates, their Heirs, Successors and Assigns, all that Traet and Part of the main Land, begin- ning at a certain Place commonly called or known by the Name of Sandy Point, and so running along the Bay, West North West till it comes to the Mouth of the Raritan River ; from thence going along the said River to the Westermost Part of the certain Marsh Land which divides the River into two Parts, and from that Part to run in a direct South West Line into the Woods Twelve Miles, and then to turn away Sonth East and by South until it falls into the main Ocean ; together with all Lands, Soils, Rivers, Creeks, Harbours, Mines, Minerals (Royal Mines excepted), Quarries, Woods, Meadows, Pastures, Marshes, Waters, Lakes, Fishings, Hawkings, Huntingsand Fowl- ing, and all other Profits, Commodities and Hereditaments to the said Lands and Premises belonging and appertaining, with their and every of their appurtenances, and of every Part and Parcel thereof. To Have and to Hold, all and singular, the said Lands, Hereditaments and Premises, with their and every of their Ap- purtenances hereby given and granted, or here- inbefore mentioned to be given and granted, to the only proper Use and Behooff of the said Patentees and their Associates, their Heirs, Sue- cessors and Assigns forever, upon such Terms

and conditions as hereafter are expressed, that is to say : that the said Patentees and their As- sociates, their Heirs or assigns, shall within the space of three years, beginning from the Day of the Date hereof, manure and plant the aforesaid Land and Premises, and settle there one Hun- dred Families at the least ; in consideration whereof I do promise and grant that the said Patentees and their Associates, their Heirs, Suc- cessors and Assigns shall enjoy the said Land and Premises, with their Appartenances, for the Term of seven years next to come after the Date of these Presents free from Payment of any Rents, Customs, Excise, Tax or Levy whatsoever ; But after the expiration of the said Term of Seven years the Persons who shall be in the Posses- sion thereof shall pay after the same Rate which others within this, his Royal Highnesses Territories, shall be obliged unto. And the said Patentees and their Associates, their Heirs, Suc- eessors and Assigns, shall have free leave and liberty to erect and build their Towns and Vil- lages in such Places as they in their Diseretions shall think most convenient, provided that they associate themselves, and that the Houses of their Towns and Villages be not too far distant and scattering one from another; and also they make such Fortifications for their Defence against an Enemy as may seem needful. And I do likewise grant unto the said Patentees and their Associates, their Heirs, Successors and Ax- signs, and unto any and all other Persons who shall Plant and Inhabit in any of the Land aforesaid, that they shall have free Liberty of Conscience, without any Molestation or Disturb- ance whatsoever in their way of Worship. And I do further grant unto the aforesaid Patentees, their Heirs, Successors and Assigns, that they shall have Liberty to eleet by the Vote of the Major Part of the Inhabitants five or seven other Persons of the ablest and discreetest of the said Inhabitants, or a greater Number of them (if the Patentees, their Heirs, Successors or Assigns shall see canse) to join with them, and they together, or the Major Part of them, shall have full Power and Authority to make such peculiar or prudential Laws and Constitn- tions amongst the Inhabitants for the better and more orderly governing of them as to them

EARLY SETTLEMENTS AND LAND TITLES.

shall seem meet ; provided they be not repug- nant to the publiek Laws of the Government ; and they shall also have Liberty to try all Causes and Actions of Debt and Trespass arising amongst themselves, to the Value of Ten Pounds, without Appeal, but that they remit the hearing of all Criminal Matters to the As- sizes of New York. And furthermore I do promise and grant unto the Patentees and their Associates aforementioned, their Heirs, Succes- sors and Assigns, that they shall in all Things have equal privileges, Freedom and Immuni- ties with any of his Majesty's subjects within this Government, these Patentees and their As- sociates, their Heirs, Successors and Assigns rendering and paying such Duties and Ac- knowledgements as now are or hereafter shall be constituted and established by the laws of! this Government, under the Obedience of his Royal Highness, his Heirs and Successors, pro- vided they do no way infringe the Privileges above specified. Given under my Hand and Seal at Fort James, in New York, on Manhat- ans-Island, the 8th Day of April in the 17th year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord, Charles the Second, by the Grace of God, of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, &c., and in the year of our Lord God, 1665.

" RICHARD NICOLLS.

"Entered in the office of Record in New York, Coggeshall, Edward Cole, Jacob Cole, Joseph the Day and Year abore written.

" MATHIAS NICOLLS, Secretary."

This grant by Governor Nicolls was and is known as the "Monmonth Patent." It em- braced parts of the present counties of Middle- sex and Ocean, and all of what is now the county of Monmouth, except the township of Upper Freehold and the western part of Mill- stone. The patentees and their associates commenced their settlements immediately 1 at Middletown and Shrewsbury, and during the summer and fall of 1665 a large number of people, nearly all of whom were from the

Long Island and Rhode Island settlements, had made their permanent homes at these points. During the succeeding four years their muim- bers increased quite rapidly, so that in the year 1670 there were at Middletown and Shrews- bury and in the region to the westward and northwestward of those places, within the limits of the present county of Monmouth, more than the requisite number of one hundred families .? The following list embraces nearly all those who were at that time settlers or owners of shares of the lands of the Indian purchases. A few of those who were owners of lands did not settle on them, but the greater part of the names here given were those of heads of families, and the remainder, except the few non-resident share-owners, were single men, but actual set- tlers. The list of names, giving also, so far as known, the previous residence of each, is as follows:

From Massachusetts Bay .- George Allen, William Gifford, John Jenkins, Richard Sadler, Edward Wharton.

From Rhode Island3-John Allen, Chris- topher Allmy, Job Allmy, Stephen Arnold, James AAshton, Benjamin Borden; Richard Bor-' den, Francis Brindley, Nicholas Brown, Abra- ham Brown, Henry Bull, Robert Carr, George Chutte, Walter Clarke, Thomas Clifton, Wil- liam Coddington, Joshna Cogge-hall, John Coleman, John Cook, Nicholas Davis, Richard Davis, William Denell, Benjamin Deuell, Thomas Dungan, Roger Elli- and son, Peter Easton, Gideon Freeborn, Annias Gauntt,

> It appears that there were about that number settled at the two towns and vicinity as early as 1668. At a " General Assembly" of the settlers, held at Portland Point (the Highlands) on the 4th of June in that year, it was :

"Ordered, upon full debate hereof, that noe more per- sons whatsoever, either purchasers, townsmen or others, sball hereafter be admitted or taken in, there being in numbers about 100, as near as att present can be found ; or if it be found there are not soe many, yet notwithstand- ing noe moor are to be from henceforth admitted as afore- said."

3 Many of the settlers who came to Monmonth County from Rhode Island and Long Island had previously lived in the colony of Massachusetts Bay, and had left there on account of the religious perseention to which they had been subjected,

1 John Bowne, Richard Stout and three others, with their families,-five families in all,-eame and made their settlement in the spring or summer of 1664, nearly a year before the patent was issued.

HISTORY OF MONMOUTH COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.

Zachary Gauntt, Israel Gauntt, Daniel Gould, John Havens, Robert Hazard, Samnel Holli- man, Obadiah Hohes, Jonathan Holmes, George Hulett, Richard James, William James, William Layton, James Leonard, Henry Lip- pett, Mark Luear (or Luker), Lewis Mattux, Edward Pattison, Thomas Potter, William Reape, Richard Richardson, William Shaberly, Samuel Shaddock, Thomas Shaddock, William Shattock, William Shearman, John Slocum, Edward Smith, John Smith, Edward Tartt, Robert Taylor, John Throckmorton, Job Throckmorton, Edward Thurston, Eliakim Wardell, George Webb, Bartholomew West, Robert West, Robert West, Jr., Thomas Win- terton, Emannel Woolley.

From Long Island .- John Bowne, Gerrard Bowne, James Bowne, William Bowne, Wil- liam Compton, John Conklin (carlier from Sa- lem, Mass.), Thomas Cox, John Cox, Richard Gibbons, William Goulding, James Grover, James Grover, Jr., William Lawrence, Barthol-

omew Lippincott, Richard Lippincott, Richard John Coggeshall, Nicholas Davis (patentee),

Moor, Thomas Moor, John Ruekman, Nathaniel Sylvester, Benjamin Spicer, Samuel Spicer, John Stout, Richard Stout, John Tilton, Peter Tilton, Nathaniel Tompkins, John Townsend, John ; Wall, Walter Wall, Thomas Wansick, Thomas Whitlock.

Previous residence unknown except where men- tioned .- John Bird, Joseph Boyer, William Cheeseman, Edward Crome, Daniel Estell, Ralph Gouldsmith, John Hall, John Hance (Westchester, N. Y.), John Hanndell, Thomas Hart, John Hawes, James Heard, Richard Harts- horne (England), Tobias Handson, John Horabin, Joseph Huet, Randall Huet, Randall Huet, Jr., John Jobs, Robert Jones (New York), Gabriel Kirk, Edmund Lafetra, Francis Masters, George Mount, William Newman, Anthony Page, Joseph Parker, Peter Parker, Henry Percy, Bartholomew Shamgungue, Richard Sissell, Robert Story, John Tomson, Marma- duke Ward, John Wilson, John Wood, Thomas Wright.

On the 8th of July, 1670, the patentees met at Portland Point and voted to admit as associ- ates "a convenient number of purchasers who were the first and principal in the purchase of

the three neck>: Newasink, Navarumsunk and Pootapeck, . . . henceforth to have a full interest, right and claim in ye Patent given and granted to ye Patentees by Richard Nicolls, Esq"., late Governour of New York." The associates then chosen were William Bowne, Thomas Whit- lock, John Wilson, John Ruckman, Walter Wall, John Smith, Richard Richardson, John Horabin, James Bowne, Jonathan Holmes, Christopher Allmy, Eliakim Wardell, Bartholomew West, John Haunce, James Ashton, Edward Pattison, William Shaddock, Thomas Winterton, Edward Tartt, Benjamin Burden (Borden). On the 31st of May, 1672, Richard Lippincott and Nicholas Browne were added to the list of associates.

Of the persons mentioned in the foregoing list, the following named, though owners of shares in the Indian purchases (and some of them being also original grantees in the Mon- mouth patent), did not become settlers here, viz. : Henry Bull, Robert Carr, Walter Clarke (pat- entee), William Coddington, Joshua Coggeshall, Zachary Gauntt, Daniel Gould, Edward Thurs- ton and Obadiah Holmes (patentee), all of Rhode Island; Nathaniel Sylvester (patentee), of Long Island; and John Jenkins and Edward Whar- ton, of Massachusetts Bay. The last named had been imprisoned and publicly whipped as a Quaker in the Massachusetts colony, and he came to Monmonth County probably with the intention of making it his permanent home; but after a brief stay he returned to New Eng- land, for some reason which does not appear.

Henry Bull, Walter Clarke, William Cod- dington and John Coggeshall were Governors of Rhode Island.1 Robert Carr soll his share to Giles Slocum, of Newport, R. I., for his son, John Slocum, who became a settler. Zachariah Gauntt sold his share to his brother, Annias, who became a permanent settler on the Mon- mouth purchase.

Joshua Coggeshall, Edward Thurston and Daniel Gould were Deputy or Lieutenant-Gov- ernor, of Rhode Island, as were also several others, who became permanent settlers, viz. :

1 Coggeshall in 1647 and 1668 ;< Clark in 1676, 1686 and 1699; Coddington in 1683-85 (died 1688): Bull in 1685 and 1690.

EARLY SETTLEMENTS AND LAND TITLES.

Francis Brindley, William Reape, Edward Smith, Stephen Arnold, Job Allmy and Christopher Allmy.

Nicholas Davis (patentee) was living in the Massachusetts Bay colony at the time when the Quakers began preaching there, about 1656, and he soon afterwards became a member of that society, for which offense he was indicted in April, 1659, and in July of the same year he was sentenced to death. Mary Dyer,' William ; Robinson and Marmaduke Stevenson were also sentenced at the same time, and they were hung at Boston. Davis' sentence was commuted to banishment, and he removed to Newport, R. I., where he was living when he became interested in the Monmouth patent. He was drowned about the year 1672.

The Rev. Obadiah Holmes, one of the twelve patentees of Monmouth, was living in 1639 at Salem, Mass., where he was engaged with Law- rence Southwick and Ananias Conklin (descend- ants of both of whom became settlers on the Monmouth purchase) in the manufacture of glass, they being among the first, and probably the first, in that business in America. Mr. Holmes afterwards joined the Baptists and he- came a prominent minister in that denomina- tion, for which offense he was indicted at Ply- mouth, in October, 1650, with Edward Smith, John Hazell and William Deuell, and tried before Governor William Bradford, Captain Miles Standish and other dignitaries, the result of which trial is not very clearly to be under- stood from the record. In the following year (July, 1651) the Rev. Obadiah Holmes, John Clarke and John Crandal went to Lynn and there held services at the house of William Witter, he being an old and feeble man, unable to journey far to hear the Gospel preached. While engaged in services at Witter's house they were arrested, and thence taken before Magistrate Robert Bridges, who committed them to jail in Boston, where, on the 31st of July, Holmes and Clarke were brought before the court (presided over by His Excellency, Governor

1 lIer son, Henry Dyer, was among the early settlers in Monmouth County, though his name does not appear in the foregoing list.

John Endicott), found guilty2 and sentenced to pay each a fine of £30 or be "well whipt." A friend of Clarke's paid his fine for him, but Mr. Holmes " refused to pay, though able to do so. He deemed a payment of the fine to be an ar- knowledgement of error, and he chose rather to suffer than to 'deny his Lord." " So he suffered the punishment-thirty lashes "with a three- corded whip"-without a murmur, praying to the Lord the while to forgive his persecutors for their sin and ernelty. "Mr. Holmes," says Backus, in his " History of the Baptists," " was whipt thirty stripes, and in such an unmerciful manner that in many days, if not some weeks, lie could take no rest but as he lay upon his knees and elbows, not being able to suffer any part of his body to touch the bed whereon he lay." After this outrage he lived more than

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History of Monmouth county, New Jersey, Part 12

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Swan, Norma Lippincott. [from old catalog] Publication date: 1885 Publisher: Philadelphia, R. T. Peck & co. Number of Pages: 1148

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885; Swan, Norma Lippincott. [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1885
Publisher: Philadelphia, R. T. Peck & co.
Number of Pages: 1148