USA > New Jersey > Essex County > Orange > History of the Oranges, in Essex County, N.J., from 1666 to 1806 > Part 20
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NEWARK AND MT. PLEASANT TURNPIKE.
In the same year when the Township of Orange was set off, a charter was granted for the construction of a turnpike road from Newark to Morristown.
In the early years of this century, there was a gen- eral desire to facilitate the communication between the cities of New York and Philadelphia, and to open the interior of New Jersey by easier methods for the trans- portation of its agricultural and mining products to tide-water. The city of New York was liberal in the employment of its capital for all such purposes. From 1801 to 1828, fifty-four charters for turnpikes were granted by the Assembly ; thirty-five of which were
Newark and Mt. Pleasant Turnpike. 267
passed during the first thirteen years of the century. The demand for turnpikes at that time was not unlike that for railroads in these latter days. And of the whole number of turnpikes so authorized, more than half were actually constructed.
The Newark and Mt. Pleasant road passed through Orange, and was laid, for the most part, on the old highway which had been surveyed in 1705. Orange Street in Newark, from a point about four hundred feet above High Street, was then opened, as it now runs, 1 and was "worked" as far as its intersection with the old Crane Road, heretofore described. (Ante, page 47.) From the latter point, the turnpike was laid out anew for a distance of about six hundred feet, leaving the old road to the north. This part still remains open to public use, and is honored with the name of Hed- den Place. No other change was made until the turnpike reached the open space in front of St. Mark's Church, in West Orange, where it left the old route toward "Wheeler's," and, turning to the north, took a direct course to the base of the Mountain. In this way was formed the triangular plot of land, bounded by the Valley Road on the east, Condit Place on the northeast, and the turnpike on the west. The turnpike was continued to Morristown, and thence, by the Washington Turnpike, to the Delaware River. This was for many years the principal means of travel from Easton, Pa., and from Warren, Sussex and Morris Counties, to the Passaic River, and the waters of New York Bay.
Another great thoroughfare from the interior was down the Pequanac River, over the Paterson and Ham-
I. The crown of the hill has been much reduced, and the whole street graded, since about 1855 ; but the lines are unchanged.
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History of the Oranges.
burg Turnpike, to the head of Pompton Valley ; and thence by the Pompton and Newark Turnpike through Bloomfield and Newark to New York.
In the fall and winter seasons these roads, for the first three days of each week, were alive with teams and heavy Jersey wagons, carrying butter, grain, flour, pork and other farm produce to market. The last three days of the week witnessed their return, freighted with sugar, molasses, Jamaica rum and merchandise, of all kinds, for the shop-keepers in the interior.
The traffic was economically managed. The feed for the teams was carried upon the wagons, and often the food for the men who drove them. One shilling was the uniform rate, at the way-side inns, for each stabling and lodging per night, as well as for a single meal at table. The evenings at these inns were festive occasions. The bar-room was primitive in construc- tion and furniture ; but it was well warmed by stove or open fire-place, and often crowded with guests. Frequent tumblers of hot toddy,-made from apple jack or whiskey,-opened the hearts and loosened the tongues of the assemblage ; and song and story fol- lowed each other in quick succession, until the neces- sity for sleep, as a preparation for the next day's work upon the road, drove the merry-makers to their unwelcome beds.
Previous to the extension of the Morris and Essex Railroad to Phillipsburg, these caravans of Warren and Sussex wagons were a bi-weekly spectacle on the main street of the Oranges. We have been told by old residents who remember them, that they have sometimes seen as many as thirty teams in line. But the turnpikes were beaten by the railroad. The char- ters were surrendered ; the gates taken down ;"and the roads abandoned to the public. And the country tav-
THE THIRD MEETING-HOUSE ; 1813.
269
The Third Meeting-House.
erns, thus deprived of their principal source of in- come, have either gone out of business entirely, or have lost their old-time gayety and prosperity.
THE THIRD MEETING-HOUSE.
In 1811, the corporate title of the Orange Congre- gation was changed from the "Second Presbyterian Church of Newark," to the "First Presbyterian Church of Orange."
In that year, the pastor felt it to be a duty to pro- vide another and more appropriate edifice for the wor- ship of God. The needs of the town, by reason of its increasing population, seemed to him to demand it. The second meeting-house had now stood for fifty- eight years. The congregation had outgrown it ; and it was homely in style, and compared unfavorably with the churches of Newark and other neighboring places. Dr. Hillyer, thereupon, proposed the erection of a new building. Mr. Hoyt says: "Some approved, and some objected. Some thought it feasible, and some impossible. He asked certain persons of the latter class if they would favor the undertaking, pro- vided he would secure the subscription of a certain sum of money, which he named." 1
He began his effort on a Monday morning, and, before the close of the week, he had secured more than twice the sum he required. Jared Harrison subscribed $500; Aaron Harrison and Stephen D. Day, $300 each ; and six others gave $200 each. This prompt response
I. The old church building was in the middle of the street. Its west end was nearly on a line with the east line of Day street. The broadside of the building, (called the " backside," in the resolution of the parish meeting,) having two ranges of windows, one above the other, was directly opposite our present Music Hall. The entrance door was in the centre of the south side, thus fronting the site of the building now occupied by the Orange Savings Bank.
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History of the Oranges.
led to a speedy and cordial determination to build a new church; one which should be worthy of the growing town and of a prosperous congregation.
The parish, at a meeting held on May 29, 1811, em- powered the trustees to expend of the parish funds the sum of $250 for the purchase of a site on the "back- side" of the old meeting-house. The lot, (one acre
Jared Harrison
and a quarter,) was purchased of Stephen D. Day, in the same year. The price paid was $400. It is de- , scribed as bounded on the east, north and west by lands of Stephen D. Day, and south by "the Com- mons the meeting-house stands on."
Little more seems to have been done that required the action of the parish before its annual meeting, on April 9, 1812. Then the Trustees reported that the Society was free from debt, and that its assets were as follows :
Bonds and mortgages, $5,684 49
Notes against different persons, 151 56
Judgments obtained, 80 00
Arrears in tax lists, subscriptions not called in, 59 10
Money on hand,
10 96
$5,986 11
On June 4, 1812, it was resolved "to proceed to build a church, agreeable to our subscription for that purpose." Moses Dodd was appointed superintending architect ; he was to receive for his services three dol- lars a day. The corner stone was laid on September
27I
The Third Meeting-House.
15th of the same year. The work of construction was prosecuted during the summer and autumn of 1813.1 On January 7, 1814, it was dedicated to God for its sacred uses. ? The steeple remained in an unfinished Mojes Dod? state till the next year, when it was completed at an additional expense of $2,750. The parish voted, April 14, 1814, that "the overplus money raised by the sale of the pews remain in the hands of the Trustees to defray the expense of finishing the house, purchasing a bell3 and chandeliers, and fencing the lot."
I. The usual Fourth of July celebration was held in that year ; but the old meeting-house, which had heretofore served that purpose, was disman- tled, and no other place seemed to be available. A barn, however, was being built on Day Street, about two hundred feet north of Main Street, and op- posite to the rising foundations of the new church edifice. Fortunately, this barn was so near completed that shelter and standing room could be afforded to those who were disposed to honor the day. The Newark "Sentinel of Freedom," in giving an account of this celebration, informs us that Dr. Isaac Pierson was the orator of the day ; Dr. Daniel Babbit, the reader of the Declaration ; Capt. Thomas Williams, the bearer of the Cap of Liberty ; and John Lindsley, Esq., with Major Abraham Winans, the bearers of the National Standard.
2. The above named newspaper, under date of December 28, 1813, says : " The new CHURCH in Orange will be dedicated on the first Thursday in January next ; the services to begin at II o.c. in the forenoon, when a Col- lection will be made for the benefit of the same."
The same newspaper, under date of January 13, 1814, has the following : "On Thursday, the 7th inst., we are informed the NEW Presbyterian Church at Orange was opened, with an appropriate sermon by the Rev. Mr. Hillyer, in the presence of a large and respectable audience. That, on the 16th of December, all the pews, except sixteen reserved for free seats, were sold for $2,500, the same being $2,000 above the estimated expense of the house, which had been laid upon the pews by an apportionment subject to an annuity of 2} per ct. This annuity, with other funds of the Congregation, is deemed sufficient to support the Gospel among them. We are happy to add that greater unanimity was, perhaps, never witnessed on a similar occasion."
3. The bell of the old meeting-house had been broken up, and the metal was used in casting a larger one.
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History of the Oranges.
The exterior architecture of the church was after the plans of the Murray Street Presbyterian Church in New York city, which had just been built for its pastor, the justly celebrated John M. Mason, D.D., and had been opened for worship in 1812. The seats and the pulpit were in close imitation of the New York pat- tern. The pulpit was high, approached by stairs, and placed between the entrance doors, at the front of the building. The congregation thus faced the south. The floor of the auditorium was laid on an inclined plane, with a rise from the front to the rear of two and a half feet. This was, at that time, a common mode of laying the floors of churches. The inside work, un- like that of the New York model, was plain and homely. The windows were of inferior glass-the panes being only 7×9, or 8×10 inches. The walls were of common plaster, tinted with a blue wash. As far as possible, the seats of the old meeting-house were utilized.
The admirable symmetry of the room, its high walls, with plainly finished galleries on its rear end and sides, were in striking contrast with the old home. To the fathers and mothers, and to the sons and daugh- ters, too, all these improvements were things of beauty, and won their admiration and their pride.
MODERN LOCAL INDUSTRIES.
GRIST-MILLS.
For about a century, the farmers of the Orange Mountain carried their grists to Watsessing. The mill now standing, unused, on Day Street, near Washing- ton Street, was the first erected in Orange, and was built about 1780. It had, originally, four associate owners: Thomas Williams, on whose land it was placed, Isaac Williams, Joseph Hedden and Zenas
f
THOMAS WILLIAMS' GRIST-MILL; AS REBUILT BY JESSE WILLIAMS.
Leather and Tanneries. 273
Ward. The associates ran the mill "week about," in turn, and received its earnings accordingly. Needful repairs were met by equal assessments upon the four owners. Thomas Williams retained his one-quarter interest, and it descended to his heirs. The other three associates sold their respective shares ; some of which passed through many hands. They finally came into the possession of Wm. Brown Williams, who sold them to Jesse Williams, a grandson of the primitive associate, Thomas. When the mill was built, the water power was derived from Parrow and Wigwam Brooks. The latter supply was diverted from the pond, sev- eral years since, by the improvement of the meadows through which the mill-race passed.
Col. John Condit, also, built a grist-mill in the early years of the present century, upon the stream near which the chalybeate spring is situated, in Hutton Park, under the Mountain. It was run by his son, Joseph. Near to the spring and mill, his father built for him a house. The mill was abandoned about 1820, and converted to other uses. The millstones were transferred to the Day Street mill.
LEATHER AND TANNERIES.
In 1697-8, it was agreed in Town Meeting that Aza- riah Crane shall have land "out of the Common," and "enjoy it so long as he doth follow the trade of tan- ning."1 The "Common" was the "watering place." It was at the juncture of Market Street and Spring- field Avenue, in front of our present Court House. The low grounds on the east, through which Market Street is laid, became, and are now, to some extent, the centre of the leather manufacture of Newark.
I. Newark Town Records, p. III.
18
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History of the Oranges.
The first settlers by the River gave encouragement to the production of all articles of prime necessity. As their children spread over the Mountain region, the example of the fathers was not lost upon the sons.
Benjamin Williams was fourteen years of age when his father, Amos, died. He was taught the cooper's trade by his brother, Nathaniel, as directed by the
Nathaniel Williams
will of their father. When he reached full age, he took possession of his share of the paternal farm, and there built for himself a home. In connection with his brother, he dammed the Wigwam Brook, and built a saw-mill, also a cider-mill and a distillery, in the same neighborhood. During the time of the Rev- olution, or immediately thereafter, he started a tan- nery, and with it a shoe-shop, as well as a currying- shop where the leather was prepared.
The saw-mill was used in common, or "turn about," by Benjamin's sons and nephews. After his death, in 1826, his son, Joseph, inherited the land adjoining and including the saw-mill; and upon the death of the latter, which occurred soon afterwards, his children became involved in a quarrel with the other owners, and finally abandoned the mill. It then decayed for want of repairs, and disappeared about 1835.
Samuel and Amos Williams, the sons of Benjamin, were, in 1826, the owners of the tan-yard by inherit- ance. They continued the business until their deaths -Samuel in 1839, and Amos in 1843. They ground bark, and sent it abroad, as well as to Newark and other places in this country. During the War of 1812, when the fear of British privateers drove American trading vessels from the seas, they made a very profit-
275
Timber.
able business by sending black oak bark, packed in hogsheads, to England in Russian bottoms. 1
A tan-yard was built and owned by Zadoc Baldwin, on what is now the corner of Valley Road and Condit Place. The date of its construction is uncertain. Baldwin was born in 1756. He was for a short time in the War, and received a pension till his death. We believe that he carried on a tannery during the last years of the century. He was also a farmer, occupy- ing the farm on the southwest corner of the Mount Pleasant Turnpike and Condit Place. It was after- terwards owned and cultivated by Joseph Condit, who was a brother of Col. John Condit. Joseph also worked the tannery in connection with a currying- shop and a shoe manufactury, with his sons Ichabod, who died in 1840, and Stephen, who died in 1835. Joseph Condit died in 1836. The shoe manufacture was continued by his grandson, Joseph A. Condit, till 1861, when he failed in business by reason of heavy losses at the South.
A large tannery was operated, in 1812, by Col. Abra- ham Winans, on the low ground at the intersection of Parrow Brook with the Main Street. The business was abandoned as unprofitable, and the ground was allowed to grow up in willows. Some of the trees came to a large size, forming a pleasing feature on the street. In 1852, they gave the name of Willow Hall to the brick building, which was in that year erected on the site by Mr. Albert Pierson, and is now standing.
TIMBER.
The oak, in its varieties, and the chestnut, were an early source of revenue to the planters of the Orange Mountains. In the last century, and until after the
I. Family traditions and manuscripts.
2 76
History of the Oranges.
War of the Revolution, the storehouses in the lower part of the City of New York were generally built of wood. White oak timber, dressed with the broad-axe and framed, ready to be set up, was largely furnished on contract from these mountain forests. It was transported by teams to Paulus Hook, and delivered in the city. Matthias Dodd,1 whose home was in Grove Street, East Orange, was not only a prosperous farmer, but he also derived generous profits from his timber lands. Upon the delivery of the material in New York, he received his pay in silver dollars. The framed buildings below Fulton Street, and east of Broadway, in New York, were all consumed in the great fire of 1835. The making of white oak staves for pipes, and of black oak staves for hogsheads, to be sent to the West Indies, was a large and lucrative industry after the Peace of 1783.
WOOL.
From the first years of the Newark settlement, the production of wool had been encouraged and fostered. After the Peace, it was voted at Town Meeting, that the money raised by the dog-tax should "be appro- propriated to the encouragement of raising sheep and wool"? in the Township ; the vote declaring that the "increase of sheep, and the consequent production and increase of wool, being of the highest importance to the interest and prosperity of this County, and the inhab- itants of this Township being disposed to encourage and promote so laudable a design, etc." They further agreed to give to the person who shall shear, from his
I. Matthias Dodd was drowned, July 23, 1801, aged 48, at Coney Island, N. Y., in company with his daughter, Rachael, aged 19, and her cousin Stephen Mun, son of John Munn .- Dodd Genealogies, p. 66.
2. Newark Town Records, p. 194.
277
Wool.
own sheep in the spring of 1789,1 the greatest quan- tity of good clean wool, the sum of ten pounds ; for the next greatest, six pounds, down to the sixth greatest quantity, which should receive two pounds .?
The local interest in the production of wool at this time is illustrated by the organization in 1788, of a company in this neighborhood for raising sheep, and the manufacture of wool.
On July 23, 1788, Caleb Camp and Samuel Hayes purchased of Mary Ashfield two lots of land on the Mountain, described as Numbers 2 and 15, and aggre- gating 33816% acres, for £338 proc. In August ensuing the following persons met in Newark, at the house of Robert Neil, innholder, viz., Caleb Camp, Samuel Hayes, Abner Ward, Daniel Johnson, David Johnson and John Johnson. They agreed to purchase the Ash- field tract, but Mr. Camp was to take the deed in his own name, and to give to the other owners proper evi- dences of their respective interests.
The enterprise was regarded with so much favor, that, in the next year, two of the joint owners were appointed to inspect other lands adjoining their tract, and to report at the next meeting upon the expediency of leasing or purchasing the same. The property in question was situated on the north side of the Horse Neck road, and belonged to Mrs. Euphemia Ashfield. 3
I. It was in this year that LeConteulx imported the first pair of merino sheep, and presented them to Robert Morris .- Historical Magazine, V., p. 92. 2. Newark Town Records, p. 166.
3. The Ashfield tract, at Horse Neck, belonged originally to Lewis Morris Ashfield, a son of Richard Ashfield and Isabella, the daughter of Gov. Lewis Morris. This Richard Ashfield held a whole propriety in East Jersey, and was a member of Council in Gov. Morris' administration. Lewis Morris Ashfield became a member of Gov. Belcher's Council. He was charged with being favorable towards the rioters, and with having "damned the King's laws." After having been tried and acquitted, he was restored to Council, in 1753. He died "after a long indisposition," October, 5, 1769. -- New Jersey Archives, VII. 124, 4.
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History of the Oranges.
We infer that the decision of the committee of in- spection was favorable, for the reason that, in a short time thereafter, six new associates were added, and the Euphemia Ashfield portion was purchased. The new partners, viz., Col. Ward, Caleb Parkhurst, Alexander Eagles, Obadiah Meeker, Jabez Pierson and Joseph Clisby, were to be placed on equal terms with the original owners.
This account of the inception, and the earlier meas- ures of this wool company, is derived from the Conger manuscripts in the New Jersey Historical Library. But they give no information as to its subsequent history.
BOOTS AND SHOES.
The beginnings of shoe manufacture in the eight- eenth century have been noticed. The first years of the nineteenth century witnessed its large increase, and its establishment as one of the most profitable in- dustries of Orange. In 1800, in addition to the tan- neries and shoe productions of the earlier years, there were seven or more manufacturers from Centre Street to Prince Street. Jabez Freeman did custom work alone ; and six others had their market in New York, viz., Daniel Porter, Henry B. Campbell, Amos Vin- cent, Abraham Winans, Shaler Lindsley and Ephraim Perry. John Dean carried on a large and successful business, on Main Street below Prospect. A large pro- portion of the families in Orange Township derived their chief support from this source, and the assured supply of work had its influence in an increase of the population.
The little shoeshops, usually painted red, became a feature in the garden lots of numerous humble homes in various streets of the village. Many shoe-makers re-
279
Boots and Shoes.
ceived their stock from the factories, and made it up in their own residences. Those who built shops, employed a few journeymen and apprentices. When the work was finished it was returned to the factory, and the account was settled with money or store goods. There were many who conducted these little shops themselves, selling their work to the local store-keepers, or taking it in sacks to the large dealers in New York, who were mostly in Maiden Lane. A large amount of coarse work was thus made for the Southern negroes. It was known as "stogy work," being made of cow-hide, with heavy soles. When the store-keeper at home had accumulated enough of this quality of stock, it was carted to New York and sold for the best price which could be obtained. The shoes were thrown into a wagon, with sideboards, and heaped up tive or more feet high, like a load of hay. In the War of 1812, the demand for army shoes made the shoe business very brisk and profitable in this neighborhood. The finished goods were packed in hogsheads, and trans- ported by wagons direct to Philadelphia.
This industry, increasing in extent, and improving in style and quality, was carried on in Orange for about half a century. In later years, the trade was, to a large extent, directly with the Southern States, and was at one time very advantageous to those engaged in it. The financial revulsion of 1857 crippled the manufacturers seriously ; and the War of the Rebel- lion destroyed their market, and wiped out their assets. Many a manufacturer was hopelessly ruined by these losses at the South. During the War, the making of army shoes for the United States Government was car- ried on largely, and with profit. The relief was tem- porary, however, and the industry, as a feature in Orange life, soon came to an end. A few of the smaller
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History of the Oranges.
manufacturers still remain, but their entire product is trifling in comparison with the results of many a single shop, in the ante bellum days.
HATS.
We have before noticed, that the manufacture of felt hats in the American Colonies had, in 1731, excited the fears of the felt-makers in London, lest the impor- tation of hats from America should prejudice their trade; and that, at that time, there was but one hat manufactory in the whole Province of New Jersey.
We find no precise data as to when the manufacture began in Orange. In or a little before 1800, it was un- dertaken in a modest way by Cyrus Jones, a native of Orange, who died in 1870, over 99 years of age. When fourteen years old, he was apprenticed to Joseph Banks, of Newark, to learn the trade of mak- ing hats, his term of service being seven years. Mr. Banks' place of business was in Broad Street, near Trinity Church. When he had served his time, Jones set up for himself as a manufacturer, in 1790, on a lot
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