USA > New Jersey > Passaic County > Paterson > History of Paterson and its environs (the silk city); historical- genealogical - biographical > Part 20
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46
The only documentary evidence the author has found of the existence of any mine in this region is in an agreement, dated April 10, 1787, wherein and whereby John Cosaart, of Bergen county, quit-claims unto Henry Gar- ritse and Cornelius Van Winkle, of Essex county, "the two Equal Ninth Parts of a Certain Mine or Mineral which the sd John Cossaart Hath Dis- covered on the Lands of the sd Jacob Van Winkle Caty his Wife and Mary Naffie." This "mine" was probably on Totowa, back of St. Joseph's Orphan
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THE EARLY WHITE SETTLERS
Asylum, and not unlikely in the mountain at the rear of the farm afterwards owned by John Joseph Blauvelt. There are no indications, nor is there any tradition, that any mine was ever opened there. Doubtless the purchasers of the "two Equal Ninth Parts" did not share the sanguine belief of the "dis- coverer" to the extent of advancing the necessary funds for the purpose.
About 1870 an attempt was made to sink an iron mine in Garret Moun- tain, near the Notch, the adventurers having been misled by the attraction at the surface; but after going down ten or twelve feet it was found that the attraction was no greater, and the venture was abandoned.
That the early settlers and their descendants for many generations were superstitious there can be no doubt. But such matters were not to be talked of, save in whispers, and hence but little knowledge of their beliefs in the mysterious has come down to us. From the earliest times there was legisla- tion on the statute books of New Jersey directed against the practice of witchcraft and wizardry, fortune-telling and the like; but to the credit of our State be it said, there is no record of any trial for witchcraft within our borders. And yet there was scarcely a neighborhood that did not have some unfortunate woman whose eccentricities of behavior, whose peculiarities or unfortunate personal appearance or physical defects did not make her an object of suspicion, dread or dislike, so that she came to be regarded as a "witch." There was that strangely afflicted woman living in the gap for- merly traversed by the Hamburgh turnpike, above Doremus street, who fell a victim to "Sele" Van Giesen's silver bullet. At Lower Preakness an old woman lived alone in a small house near the roadside. It was noticed that it was almost impossible to drive a lot of cows or sheep past her house unless she stood in the doorway and gave pleasant greeting to the persons in charge of the herd or flock. When she died there was no longer any trouble in get- ting safely by that spot. A witch could not pass a sign, composed of twigs, formed something like the figure 4, and carefully laid in the middle of the road. Many a group of mischievous boys would play this trick on a reputed witch, and after laying the mystic figure in the way, would hide behind a con- venient clump of brush or trees, to watch her come unsuspectingly along, only to be disconcerted and dismayed, and turn about at beholding it.
The farming operations depended so largely on the weather, and the planting and harvesting were regulated to such an extent by the seasons and the moon's changes, that it was not strange that to the moon and the seasons was ascribed an undue influence on the crops and on the cattle. Horses and other animals were subjected to certain treatment only when the moon was in the third quarter.
If difficulty was experienced in "fetching butter," when churning, it was usually attributed to the malevolent influence of witchcraft. This was coun- teracted by thrusting a red-hot horseshoe into the churn. A still more effec- tive expedient was to take a whip in the left hand and swing it around the churn eight (nine?) times, which always drove away the lurking witches.
When a house or other building was to be erected, and water was greatly desired in its vicinity, but no spring was visible, some person was
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called on who had the valuable gift of discovering the existence of hidden watercourses, after the fashion of Moses when he smote the rock with his rod. In these modern instances the "divining rod" consisted of a forked twig or branch of a tree, usually a hazel or a peach tree. The person held a fork in each hand, the thick branch being kept horizontal with the ground, and as he walked along this end was drawn toward the ground when he came to running water, even though it was at a considerable distance under ground. Some very remarkable stories are told by the old people about the singular success which attended the efforts of these "diviners" to discover water just where it was most needed.
And what shall we say of those still stranger beings who had the power of healing by magic? The story-apparently perfectly authenticated-is handed down of an old gentleman who was suffering excruciating torture from a felon, and who in his extremity was persuaded, much against his will, being utterly incredulous in such matters, to visit a man who was re- puted to have singular power over diseases. The man took the burning hand in his own, held it a moment, muttered a brief incantation over it, breathed on it, and lo! the pain was gone, and straightway the hand began to get well.
Ghosts? Why, at an evening gathering, in the fitful glare of the log fire on the hearth, more than one person present would tell with bated breath, of weird sights seen on the homeward way late at night, when phantom shapes flitted shadowless across the path, and sorrowful sighs went moan- ing among the desolate branches of dead trees that shook their naked arms at the belated traveler. Naturally enough the unshrived souls of the suicide, of the murderer, and eke his victim-unjust as that might seem-were known to haunt the spots of their untimely taking off, and no sane man would of deliberate choice pass anywhere near such places, especially at midnight !
With the progress of the settlement, land became more valuable, and again there was trouble about the boundary line between Acquackanonk and Newark. Messrs. Henry Garritse, Jr., and Paul Powlison were appointed a committee on behalf of the Acquackanonk Patentees and their descend- ants and grantees to prosecute a suit of ejectment against some persons who had settled north of the boundary line, under claim of title derived from a survey made by virtue of a warrant to Robert Yong, February 20, 1695, at the mouth of the Stone House Plain brook. The two men named retained David A. Ogden, of Newark, January 14, 1792, paying him thirty shillings as a fee. They engaged a surveyor to run the line, and in September took their witnesses to Newark, to attend court. The result of the trial, or whether there was a trial, has not been ascertained. But that the party was not a dry one is evidenced by this bill of Newark's famous tavern keeper, Archer Gifford, paid by Mr. Garritse, October 15, 1792:
Sept. 17th 1792 Mr Garrison To Bill Cash 13s 6d wine Is Brandy 4s Super 2s £ I 0 6 3
Wine Is 6d Bed Is Hay 2s Oats 9d 0 5
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THE EARLY WHITE SETTLERS
20th Gin Is 6d wine Is 2d diners 4s Spirits 6d Hay 2s Oats 2S 0 II 0
21 Gin 6d 22th Hay Is Oats Is 6d wine 6d 0
3
6
24th Gin 6d Spirits Is Slings 3s 7d diners & Club 22s
I
6 6
Hay Is Grog 6d october 16th 2 Diners 3s Spirit Is
5 6
Hay & Oats 3S 0
3 0
£3 15 3
John Ludlow took an equally thirsty party with him to Newark on the same occasion, and on the same business. His bill charges him with: I gal- lon rum, 9s. 6d; 5 "Supars," 7s. 6d .; 16 Dinners, £1, 4s .; 6 "brefast," 6s .; 5 "loging," 2s. 6d .; I "bexfast," Is .; I supper, Is .; "lofe" sugar, 2s. 3d.
Another action was begun three years later, by Francis Van Winkle and others, against Abraham Van Riper, also involving the question of the boundary line.
The boundary line between Totowa and the lands beyond became in- volved in a dispute in 1807, and on February 21, of that year, John Van Gie- sen, Richard Van Houten, Roelof I. Van Houten, Henry Courter, Robert Van Houten and Simon Y. Van Ness entered into an agreement, offensive and defensive, against Richard Dey, "for Cuting or Boxing the tree Between the Line of Tunes Ryerson and the pairties" thereto. It was covenanted between them: "the pairties Do a gree with Each Other that they pay unto Robert Van Houten the Sum of two Dollars Each and to pay * Such Sums from time to time as Long as the said Robert Van Houten is in want of the Sum to prosecut the sd Richard Dey * the pairties Do a gree that the pairties are to have and Eaqul Share of the Proffits." This quaint document is endorsed : "a Artikel between the people of totaweay." It does not appear that any dividend was ever declared out of the "Proffits" of this transaction.
CHAPTER IV.
From the cradle to the grave-The domestic life of the early settlers. Courtship with the assistance of bundling-Wedding days-The bringing up of the next generation-Funeral customs.
They that creep and they that fly, Shall end where they began. Alike the Busy and the Gay But flutter thro' life's little day, In fortune's colours drest : Brush'd by the hand of rough mischance, Or chill'd by age, their airy dance They leave, in dust to rest. "On the Spring."-Gray.
The coming of the baby was looked forward to with the fond anticipations which have ever heralded the arrival of a new being all pure and spotless on this earth of ours, seamed and scarred with the sins and sorrows of countless ages. When he arrived the whole neighborhood was speedily apprised of the fact, if, indeed, the entire neighborhood-the female portion of it-was not on hand at the time. Of course, he was lifted up before he was laid
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down, in token of his future ascending career in the world. Care was taken to carry him over the doorstep, also, to avoid injurious collision with any evil spirits that were supposed to be lying in wait for the chance to do him hurt. He was dressed in homespun linen, made long before his coming, and his little head was encased in a linen cap, lined and quilted with loving stitches, and then he was laid in a quaint little cradle, broad and solid, like his Dutch parents, and with a protecting roof over it, suggestive of a minia- ture Noah's Ark, especially if he was the first baby, for then he held all the world of his doting mother. Very substantial were those old-fashioned Dutch cradles, often made by the prospective father himself, who spared neither wood nor labor in their construction. Just as soon as possible, often within a few days, and invariably within a month, the baby was taken to church, decked out in his christening robes, into which had been stitched how many loving thoughts of the fond mother as she bent over it day after day, full of brooding tenderness. The parents were accompanied by the Compeer and Peet-godfather and godmother-according to the earliest Acquackanonk church records. About 1750 this practice was discontinued, and the persons who attended the baptism were merely called Getuygen- witnesses. The rule was to have a man and a woman present at the cere- mony, often a grandfather and grandmother of the child, or other relatives of the parents, or some friend after whom the child was to be named. The first boy was named after the paternal grandfather; the second after the father; the third after the maternal grandfather; others were given the name of an uncle. This rule as to naming the first and second sons was very seldom disregarded. The custom as to naming the female children was not so settled ; usually, the first girl was named after either of its grandmothers, or after the mother ; others were given the name of some other relative, or some friend of the mother. On returning home there would be something of a repast for all the assembled friends. As the child grew older he was entranced with the singing of that famous lullaby, of which he never grew tired :
Trip a trap o' troontjes ! De vaarkens in de boontjes- De koeien in de klaver- De paarden in de haver- De eenden in de waterplas, Plis ! Plas ! Zoo groot mijn kleine Derrick was!
Even before he could comprehend the words, the little fellow under- stood the significance of the motion as he was danced up by fond arms, up and up the steps to the top of the throne of a loving mother's heart; and he enjoyed the pretended alarm with which he was informed that the pigs were rooting among the beans, and the cows were in the clover, and the horses in the oats, and the ducks splashing in the water puddle, the whole being cleverly acted in pantomime, until he was tossed away up on high to indicate how great-in his mother's estimation-her little Derrick was!
Or, with the fingers of both hands twirling merrily before his eyes, he would be reminded of hot waffles dripping with butter :
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THE EARLY WHITE SETTLERS
De Radjes ! De Radjes ! Als mijn mommie wafeltjes bakkt, Dan loopt de boter door de gatjes ! De Radjes ! De Radjes !
By the time he was two years old he had to yield possession of his throne and his cradle to a new comer-that was another rule in well regulated families in the last century, and then he was given a place in a trundle-bed, which by day was rolled out of sight under the high four-posted bedstead. As a succession of new claimants for the cradle came along, the trundle-bed was filled up with little folks, and as the boys grew older they were banished to the attic. In many a dwelling in the olden time, the boys would wake up in the morning to find their beds surrounded by snow which had drifted in through the open shingles of the roof. When they were big enough to work in the fields, the boys accompanied their father to do their share in the out- door work of the farm.
The girls were taught to knit as soon as they could hold the implements in their little fingers, and many a child of eight or nine years would knit stockings as long as herself, being given a regular gezetwerk, or stint, which must be finished each day. Fancy such a child working for her aunt at five cents a day, spinning, and imagine her delight, if you can, when her father brought home for her a dark blue calico, with a light blue figure in it, for which he paid fifty cents a yard-ten days of her earnings for a single yard ! Do you wonder that the memory of that first calico dress lingered for eighty years in her recollection? There was sewing to be done, cooking and baking, too, as the girls grew older. Nor were their labors confined to the house. They had to take their turn with the boys in the field, working barefooted all day, hoeing the corn, and doing other light work. Even when they assisted in preparing the family meal, the girls as well as the boys had to content themselves with a "piece" taken from the table, dipped in gravy, and eaten in a corner. When you look at some of the tables which served families in the olden days, you see how impossible it must have been for a dozen children to sit down to a table barely four feet square. Although there were usually enough live babies in the household to occupy the atten- tion of the girls, they nevertheless had their very own dolls to cuddle. These were always of home manufacture, of course, generally of rags, sometimes with a wooden head and rudely carved face, but a thing of beauty ever to the fond possessor.
With what joy the children hailed the coming of a holiday, or a corn husking, or a spinning-bee, or other frolic that would give them the oppor- tunity to mingle with each other, and with grown folks! Life was indeed full of toil, but it had its compensations, even in those days of humble begin- nings in Old Acquackanonk.
The time came when the home nest was full to overflowing, when the irksomeness of the home life, with its narrow constraints, was grievous to be borne; when the desire for a home nest of their own began to pervade the bosoms of the young people. From the very nature of things, the young
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men and maidens of adjacent farms naturally fell in love with each other. They knew each other's ways, from long association, and there were pru- dential considerations of securing portions of the paternal acres for the new homesteads. As large farms were divided among successive generations of children the cousins thus settled near each other often married. But it not infrequently happened that a young man went afar for his bride, because he had secured employment in her neighborhood, or because he had met her at some country party or dance. If he had a horse he could ride to see her ; if it was not too far he would walk thither, and like Mercury his feet were equipped with wings-the wings of love. Perhaps he came too long a dis- tance for him to return the same evening. Then he had to be kept over night. But in a house with perhaps not more than two rooms the accommo- dation of a guest was often a severe tax upon the hospitality of the most genial host. Moreover, in such a small house what opportunity had the lovers of that sweet solitariness which is so dear in the earlier stages of the tender passion? It was by way of solving these perplexing problems, the author submits, that the singular practice of "Bundling" came into vogue in the primitive American settlements. Thus they could, undisturbed, discuss those sweet nothings which mean so much to young lovers. Perchance the wearied wooer might fall asleep, but if so, he would awake refreshed, and set off betimes on his journey to his daily toil, fitter for his work than if he had sat up half the night before the kitchen fire, alternately freezing and roasting. As a Yankee balladist of the last century said, in defence of this custom :
Nature's request is, grant me rest, Our bodies seek repose ; Night is the time, and 'tis no crime To bundle in your clothes.
The practice of "bundling" is undoubtedly ancient, and of European origin. It was very general in New England, where it died out about the close of the Revolution. In New York and New Jersey it was by no means confined to the Dutch. There has lately come to light an odd series of papers on the subject, showing that the custom prevailed among the English-speak- ing residents of Bridgeton, New Jersey. The word itself is English, evi- dently signifying to tumble into bed, as is said of one who retires with his clothes on. In Sewel's Dutch dictionary, published at Amsterdam in 1691, he gives the Dutch word queesten, which he defines to be "an odd way of wooing, usual in some sea-towns of Holland," and from his added explana- tion it appears to be almost precisely the same as the American custom re- ferred to above. The literature on the subject is naturally very scanty, and the documentary references still more so. Indeed, about the only allusion to it which the author has found in the early records is in a letter from Jacob Vosburgh, of Livingston Manor, New York, in 1723, addressed to Governor William Burnet, wherein he complains of a former lover of his daughter, and with a feeling quite excusable under the circumstances, speaks of this "wicked and base custom of those parts." The Rev. Andrew Burnaby, traveling through America in 1759-60, describes the practice as he found it
·
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THE EARLY WHITE SETTLERS
in New England. It continued in vogue in this immediate vicinity as late as 1835, but was evidently falling into disrepute for many years before that. Those who have described the custom to the author have always insisted that it was perfectly harmless in its consequences. Said the late Benjamin Geroe, of North Main street, about 1866: "Bundling was so commonly practiced when I was a young man, that nobody thought anything of it. Upon one occasion when I was a youth I was entrusted with the care of a beautiful girl of sixteen, to take her to her parents at Scranton, Penn. We were on the road five or six days, and I 'bundled' with her every night, at wayside tav- erns, and she came to her parents as pure as when she left home. It would have been strange only had it been otherwise." An aged resident of Passaic, of the highest respectability, in reply to questions by the author, in 1895, answered: "Did I ever know anything about 'bundling?' Of course I did. Everybody 'bundled' when I was young, and no harm ever came of it. If a young man had misbehaved he would have been horsewhipped out of the community. J 'bundled' with my present wife a year before we were mar- ried, or even engaged, and I never dreamed of anything wrong about it. But young people are not to-day what they were then." And then this de- fender of "bundling" added in all sincerity: "But I'll tell you what I would not let a daughter of mine do to-day. I would not let her ride a bicycle !" The late John R. Van Houten once related to the author an occurrence show- ing how the rising generation of girls, even in his young days, were indis- posed to countenance the ancient custom. A party of young people had gone on horseback one afternoon or evening to a dance at a tavern at Paramus, the girls riding behind the young men. After the dance the party proceeded to retire, but one of the young women declined to follow the example of the others. In vain her partner (urged on by the other harum-scarum young fellows, who threatened to chastise him if he did not make his girl "bundle") tried to convince her that he and she also would be the butt of ridicule for the others if they did not do as the rest. She insisted that if he did not take her home at once she would never speak to him again. And she had her way, of course. Mr. Van Houten chuckled gleefully, as he recalled the incident of sixty years ago: "Kate was high-strung and wouldn't 'bundle.'" That the custom was by no means as devoid of harm as is claimed for it, appears too plainly from the church records of Acquackanonk, Totowa and Paterson.
As a rule, the wedding ceremony was celebrated in Old Acquackanonk at the Dominie's house. Among the plain people the custom was for the bride and groom, accompanied by a few friends, to repair to the parsonage, and after the marriage the party returned to the home of the bride's family, where all their friends were gathered to partake of a handsome supper, and to enjoy a merry time. The next day the wedding party journeyed to the home of the bridegroom's parents, where similar festivities took place. On the third day the young couple had a house-warming in their own home, pre- pared in advance for their occupancy, and where their friends and relatives were gathered to welcome them. The rest of their honeymoon was enjoyed by themselves in their new abode.
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The belief is almost universal among aged persons, that in former days the young people married much earlier than is the custom now. An exami- nation of many pages of genealogical data indicates that the reverse of this popular belief is true. For example, the details thus obtained show that the average age of 186 men married prior to 1800 was 24 years and six months, while the average age of 124 men married since 1800 was 23 years; of the women, 161 married prior to 1800 averaged 21 years, and 123 married since 1800 averaged 20 years and four months at the time of marriage. In other words, the men married in this century were on the average a year and a half younger than those who became benedicts in the former days, and that the women were eight months younger than were their grandmothers at the time of marriage. Further: before 1800, only about one man in twelve was married under 21 years, while in this century the number has been as one in seven. Similarly, as to the women, the number of early marriages has been greater proportionately since 1800 than before that period. Of young brides, it may be noted that before 1800, of 161 women married, three were under sixteen years, one being fifteen years two months; another two months older, and a third lack- ing ten days of her sixteenth birthday; four others were under seventeen ; eight more were under eighteen, and eighteen had just reached that age. On the other hand, of 123 women married since 1800, one was two months under fifteen ; four others were under sixteen ; three more under seventeen ; twelve others under eighteen.
Perhaps one reason for the later marriages in the last century was the law passed by the New Jersey Legislature, March 27, 1719, requiring all per- sons under twenty-one years of age to have the written consent of their par- ents or guardians before they could be lawfully married ; upon presenting this consent to an officer appointed by the Governor, they were further required to enter into bond, with two sureties, in the sum of £ 500, that there was no lawful impediment to their marriage, and thereupon they were given a license authorizing any competent person to marry them forthwith. They might also produce the written consent and give bond to the county clerk, whose duty it was thereupon to post a notice of the intended marriage at three of the most public places in the county, and unless objection was made to him within three weeks thereafter, he could then give the young couple a certifi- cate, which would authorize their marriage. It appears to have been the practice in the Dutch churches in the earliest times, to give notice of intended marriages from the pulpit three weeks before the ceremony took place. The frequent mention in the records of marriages "by license" is thus explained.
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