USA > New Jersey > Gloucester County > Newton in Gloucester County > Sketches of the first emigrant settlers in Newton Township, old Gloucester County, West New Jersey > Part 8
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The most noticeable of these was Joseph, who erected a large brick house on the Carpenter tract, and there lived. There were several children by his first marriage, all of whom
II Lib. AAA, 382.
12 Lib. A, 08.
13 Lib. No. 3, 173.
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WILLIAM COOPER.
died young, except Mary (and she before her father), who married Jacob Howell. She left two daughters, Hannah, who married John Wharton, and Mary, who married Benjamin Swett in 1762." Joseph Cooper, in his will, gave a tract of land, situated on the south branch of Cooper's creek, in Water ford, now Delaware, township, to these children, subject to the life estate of his second wife, Hannah, which, after her death in 1754, was divided between them. This tract of land, in the old papers called the "Wharton tract," many years since passed out of the family; it is now divided into several valuable farms, among which is one owned by the widow of Charles H. Shinn, deceased ; and on it stands the old mansion, built before 1728, at which time it was occupied by George Ervin, a tenant of Joseph Cooper, the son of the first settler.
Hannah Dent, the second wife of Joseph Cooper, whom he married in 1735 in Philadelphia, was a minister among Friends, and came from England to New Jersey in 1723. The memorial published by the monthly meeting of Haddonfield, after her death in 1754, shows her to have been held in much esteem by that religious society. There were no children by this marriage.
Joseph Cooper died in 1749.14 During his life he was an active business man. He was a member of the Legislature of this State for nineteen consecutive years, which shows that he represented the people of Gloucester county in a manner satis- factory and acceptable, and, although more than one hundred years have passed away since that time, yet no like confidence has been extended to any representative of the constituency of this region. He held other official trusts in the county, which he discharged with fidelity; and he seems to have been universally respected. The Haddonfield Monthly Meeting also noticed his death, and left on record evidence of the estimation in which he was held by the Society of Friends.
Daniel Cooper, the youngest son of William, came to New Jersey when about seven years of age. There was no portion of his life of which his recollections were so vivid as that occupied in coming here. Alive to every object about him,
14 Lib. No. 6, 274.
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in the novel position in which he then was, he could never forget them, and he doubtless in after years could enter more into the details of the voyage, than any other who shared it with him.
Without a regret, he looked happily forward, and, amid ever changing scenes, did not share the sorrow of his seniors in parting from friends and home. Of an age to attract atten- tion, he doubtless made the acqaintance of all on board, ventured into every part of the ship, and was soon on social terms with the crew. Their odd dress, wonderful sea stories, and quaint ballads, excited his childish curiosity, and impressed upon his plastic mind things there to remain as long as he should live.
Daniel was twice married. In 1693, to Abigail Wood, a daughter of Henry and Hannah, who lived near by his father's place, but on the opposite side of Cooper's creek. At that time he took possession of the Roydon ferry, previously pur- chased by his father, and continued the same under the license granted to Roydon by the court sitting at Gloucester.
The license, as granted, is a curious document, but it embodies everything necessary to be said, either by way of explanation or for the exercise of authority in exacting tolls. No better history can be given of it than an entire copy from the record.
" WHEREAS, at a court held at Gloucester upon ye first day of ye first month in ye year one thousand six hundred and eighty-seven it was presented to ye Bench that a constant and common ferry was very usefull and much wanted from Jersey to Philadelphia, and also that William Roydon's house was judged a place convenient, and ye said William Roydon a person suitable for that employ; and therefore an order from ye court was then granted for ye establishment and fixing of ye same. Whereto ye bench did then and there assent, and refferred to ye Grand Jury ye methodizing of ye same, and to fix ye rates thereof, which was by them agreed and con- cluded upon as hereunder follows :
"Therefore we permit and appoint that a common passage or ferry for man and beast be provided, fixed and settled in
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WILLIAM COOPER.
some convenient and proper place between ye mouths or entrances of Cooper's creek and Newton creek, and that ye government, managing and keeping of ye same be committed to ye said William Roydon and his assigns, who are hereby empowered and appointed to establish, fix and settle ye same within ye limits aforesaid, wherein all other persons are desired and requested to keep no other common or public passage or ferry.
"And ye said William Roydon shall prepare and provide good and sufficient boats, with other conveniences suitable to ye said employ, to be in readiness at all times to accommodate people's actions, and shall take no more than six pence per head for such persons that shall be by him ferried over ye River, and not more than twelve pence for man and horse or other beast, and so not exceeding twelve pence per head for any sort of beast so ferried over, as above said; except swine, calves and sheep, which shall pay only six pence per head and no more.
"Given under our hands and seals at ye Court held at Gloucester for ye Jurisdiction thereof, this ye first day of ye first month, in ye year of our lord one thousand six hun- dred eighty and eight.
FRANCIS COLLINS, CHRISTOPHER WATKINS,
ANDREW ROBESON, SAMUEL SPICER.
JOHN WOOD,
"Entered, Examined and Recorded this 24th day of April, Ano 1689,
per me, JOHN READING, Recorder." 15
The accommodations at this ferry were nothing more than open boats fitted with oars, and occasionally with sails, which occupied much time in crossing, to say nothing of danger and exposure to passengers. A few trips each day were all that could be made in fair weather, and during a storm communi- cation ceased altogether. Abigail Cooper, the wife of Daniel, died in a short time after their marriage, and without children, for, in 1695, he married Sarah, a daughter of Samuel and Esther
15 Lib, GI, 110.
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Spicer, who also lived on the north side of Cooper's creek near Pyne Point. On the 6th day of the second month, 1695, William Cooper conveyed to Daniel, the ferry, with one hundred and fourteen acres of land attached, and by the same deed other real estate in Gloucester county.16 Daniel and Sarah Cooper's children were three sons, -William, who married Mary Rawle, of Philadelphia; Samuel S., who married
-, and Daniel, who married
Daniel Cooper died intestate, in 1715.17 The appraisement of his personal property amounted to four hundred and fifty pounds, including two ferry boats, showing that he resided at, and kept the ferry at the time of his decease. His real estate was large, and he was, no doubt, one of the wealthiest men of his day. In 1730, William Cooper, the son of Daniel, petitioned Lord Cornbury, then Governor, for a license to keep a ferry "where one had been kept for more than forty years ;" which license was granted, "with the exclusive right of ferry for two miles above, and two miles below, so long as he accommodated the people, upon the payment of one shill- ing yearly on the fast day of St. Michael the Archangel."18 This charter was certainly a liberal one, extending beyond the limits of the present city of Camden, without any time fixed for its termination, and with a tax that, by the face of the document, was to be but nominal. It was a monopoly so far as regarded these privileges, within the distance named, but in after time it became modified, and finally was abandoned. The exact position of this ferry upon the river front is not now known; it was probably between Cooper street and Market street, as Royden's survey extended but a short distance above the first named street.
The amount of business done at this river crossing may be inferred from the number of inhabitants in this region in those days. The census of Gloucester county, taken in 1737, shows a population of three thousand two hundred and sixty-seven, including one hundred and twenty-two slaves.19 A large pro- portion of these lived near some navigable stream, depending
16 Lib. A, 39.
17 Gloucester Files.
18 Lib. AAA, 249. 19 Lib. GH, I.
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WILLIAM COOPER.
upon boats as a means of travel; and, in going to Philadelphia, they would use their own transportation and not cross either at Gloucester or Cooper's ferry. Also it has been seen that, in 1715, Daniel Cooper had but two ferry boats, no doubt of ordi- nary size and without capacity for carrying many people; which kind of evidence goes very far to prove that the means, though scanty, were sufficient for the wants of the public. .
Daniel, the youngest son of Daniel, in 1728, settled near the head of the north branch of Cooper's creek, on the farm lately owned by William Hooten, deceased. He was a farmer, but was sometimes called a drover. This latter occupation was only occasionally indulged in, to procure cattle from along the sea shore for himself and neighbors. These were bred upon the meadows, and in the endless forests abounding there in those days. Wild and nearly unmanageable, it required much tact, patience and woodcraft to control them.
The first William Cooper deceased in 1710, leaving a will, in which he named his children and disposed of the remainder of his property.20 His personal estate amounted to upwards of seven hundred pounds sterling,-a large sum for the times, but of small account in these days of wealth and pretension. Under the residuary clause of his will, parts of the estate passed to his grandchildren, who, at the time of his death, were John Cooper, Hannah Mickle, Mary Thackara, Joseph Cooper, Benjamin Cooper, Isaac Cooper, Lydia Cox, Hannah Thackara, Sarah Raper, Samuel Cooper, Daniel Cooper, Jonathan Wool- stan, Samuel Woolstan, Mary Bunting, Sarah Borton, Elizabeth Wills, William Cooper, Rebecca Smith, Hannah Nicholson, and Elizabeth Mickle.
It is scarcely necessary to say that William Cooper was an eminent member of the Society of Friends, and participated in everything that went to the advancement and stability of the church whose tenets he had espoused. He was a preacher among them, and lived at a time when the expounders of such doctrines were especially obnoxious to the mass of the people of Great Britain; he, therefore, like others, suffered much thereby ; but, before his death, he saw the success of these
20 Lib. No. 1, 260.
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doctrines and their free development in the land of his adop- tion. He had much to. do with the political management of the colony, being a member of the first Legislature that sat for the framing of laws. This was a work of great labor, but, in the end, it showed good judgment and practical com- mon sense.
Adopting the statutes of England as the basis, they made the new features of their system conform thereto, so far as was consistent with the rights of the settlers. Inducements were held out for emigration, and the system of jurisprudence made as liberal as possible to accomplish that end. Through the several sittings of this session William Cooper was present, and participated, no doubt, discharging his duties acceptably. He was appointed one of the commissioners to divide land, and also one of the committee to devise means for raising money for the use of the colony. The next year he was con- tinued a member. In 1684, when the trouble with Edward Byllynge in regard to the government was taken up, and Samuel Jennings and Thomas Budd sent to England as commissioners therefor,21 the sum of one hundred pounds was allowed to each for expenses ; and to William Penn was to be paid a like sum for services in the same matter. To assure the payment of these several sums, William Cooper, with nine others, joined in a bond as security therefor.
In 1685, he was again returned as a member of the Leg- islature, and also continued commissioner for the division of land. In 1696, he was appointed one of the judges of the. several courts of the county of Gloucester ; he also filled many other minor appointments in a township capacity.
The remaining part of his original survey, being a small tract of land fronting on Cooper's creek and adjoining William Roy- don's survey, William Cooper conveyed to two of his grand- sons, John Cooper, son of William, and Joseph Cooper, son of Joseph ;22 this was the last of the real estate held by him in Newton township. He had made other surveys in different parts of Gloucester county, some of which he conveyed, and some passed by his will.
21 Leaming & Spicer', Laws,
22 Lib. A, 25.
99-100
WILLIAM COOPER.
Parts of this real estate, particularly those within the city of Camden, still remain in the family, and have followed the blood of the first owner, under the proprietors, from genera- tion to generation, for nearly two hundred years.
This is remarkable where the laws regulating the descent of real property are so liberal, and where the third generation seldom hold the land of their ancestors. Ability to possess, and a desire to perpetuate, family estates, are commendable traits; they deserve emulation and should become to a greater extent characteristics of Americans. Yet, in our haste to get gain, all things else become secondary, and the exceptions are among those who are not willing to venture the paternal acres in fortune's lottery. .
WILLIAM ALBERTSON.
T HE name of Albertson, or Albertsen, as it is sometimes written, may be found among those of the earliest Dutch emigrants to New Amsterdam, who came here to barter with the natives for furs and the few other commodities which they had among them for trade.1 As early as in 1650, the records of births and baptisms in New York, indicate that Albert Albertson had a child baptized in the church of that place, and that others of this name had the same rite administered to their offspring. Other records of that date show this family to have had several representatives in the colony, some of whom were men of considerable estate and influence.
At this period a few small dwellings of the humblest char- acter stood close around the fort at the outlet of Hudson river, where the Hollanders had a small garrison for protection against the natives, and where also were collected the articles of exchange that made the little commercial trade about that spot.
It was at the time when each Dutchman had his farm or bowery, somewhere within the busiest part of the present city of New York, and drove his cow to pasture along the tortuous paths leading to his lot; some of which same paths are now among the most crowded thoroughfares of the metropolis of America. It was in the good old times of sour-krout and wild tobacco, when a promising cabbage patch and a small quantity of smoked herring, rendered each inhabitant happy for the
I Manual of Common Council, N. Y., 740, Library N. Y. His. Soc.
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FIRST EMIGRANT SETTLERS.
coming year at least ; and these were the days when the ances- tors of the Knickerbockers sought the Battery to enjoy a quiet smoke, and to listen to the merriment of the negroes at Communipaw.
As the town enlarged, the family in question also increased, and their names may be found in various relations as time went on. True to their native blood, litigations and difficulties grew out of their stubbornness; and the court minutes show how . tenaciously any supposable right was adhered to, and how often these troubles ended in a law-suit. The Dutch settlements upon the Delaware would naturally be the cause of more or less intercourse with those upon the Hudson river ; and persons and families can be traced from the one to the other, they, doubt- less, changing their abodes to improve their condition and advance their estate.
In 1656, Hans Albertson purchased a patent for a tract of land at Fort Casimir, on South (Delaware) river, whereon he settled.2 In 1672, Derick Albertson had built a mill near the same river, one-half of which was claimed by William Toms. This claim had to be settled by a suit at law.3 This was pre- vious to the establishment of any court on South river, and, as a consequence, the parties were forced to appear before their High Mightinesses at New York, taking thereto all their wit- . nesses and proofs at much expense, a practice yet character- istic to the last degree. By this it may be seen that members of this family found their way to the colony on South river, and made permanent settlements; yet there can be no question of their nativity, or of their arrival on the shores of America.
In the progress of events William Penn became the owner of the territory of Pennsylvania, which included all the Dutch and Swedish settlements on the west side of the Delaware river. The doctrine of ethics, laid down by him as the basis of his government, destroyed very much of the litigious element that formerly existed, and produced a new state of things among the inhabitants. Quarrels and disputes that previously had ended in court, were now disposed of in a manner much less conspicuous, and more satisfactory to those interested.
2 Dutch Manuscripts, 383.
3 Dutch Manuscripts, 350, Library N. Y. His. Soc.
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WILLIAM ALBERTSON.
Differences of opinion that often led to estrangements between families and among neighbors, were settled within the quiet precincts of the church, where the outside world was prevented from meddling, and where good advice and restraining influ- ence prevailed.
Gradual, yet positive and well defined, was the progress of the teachings of Quakerism among the older settlers; and its footsteps may be discovered from time to time, until the new dispensation pervaded the communities within its bounds, and but slight traces of the old order of things could be seen.
On May 2d, 16S2, William Albertson located a tract of land in Newton township, between the south and the middle branch of the creek that bears that name, and settled thereon.+3 It does not appear whence he came, but the probability is that he was of Dutch extraction, as before named, and that his parents were among the Hollanders of New York. The house which he built-no doubt, a small one-stood by the middle branch, and nearly fronting the little settlement called Newton ; but in a few years it entirely disappeared. He was a mar- ried man with a family when he came there; shortly after he removed to Byberry, Pennsylvania, and gave the possession of the estate to his son William. This occurred before 1692, for, in that year, he purchased a tract of land in the town bounds of Gloucester, the deed for which names him as then a resident of the place above mentioned.6
Upon the setting apart of a lot of land at Newton whereon to build a meeting house, he was one of the persons who accepted the trust therefor, and no doubt took an active part in the erection of that place of . worship.7 This_ trust was continued until 1708, when other and younger men were called to occupy the same position.
He made several locations and purchases of land, while a resident here; but his removal so soon from this neighborhood leaves but little of his history among us, yet, so far as his record goes, he was a person much respected in his day and generation. In 1685, he was returned as a member of the
4 Lib. T, 353, O. S. G.
6 Lib. S6, 405, O. S. G.
5 Lib. G3, 141.
7 Sharp's Book, 50, O. S. G.
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Colonial Legislature ; he also held other minor county and township offices during his settlement here .*
His children were William, who married Esther Willis, daughter of Henry and Mary, of Westberry, Long Island, N. Y., in 1695 ;9 Abraham, who married Hannah Medcalf ; 10 Rebecca, who married Joseph Satterthwaite; Ann, who mar- ried Walter Forrest11 and John Kaighn ; Cassandra, who mar- ried Jarvis Stockdale; Benjamin, who married SARAH WALTON and Josiah, who married Ann Austin of Evesham, Burlington county, N. J.
At the time of his decease, he resided at Poquesin, in Bucks county, Pennsylvania, where he owned grain and saw mills, and considerable other property. He died soon after the execution of his will (1709), survived by his widow Hannah, and by all his children except Ann.12
To his son William, in the year 1698, he deeded the home- stead property, whereon he remained until his decease in 1720.13 This was a valuable estate, and he improved it by enlarging and banking the meadow attached to the property, which, at that time, was the only soil from which hay and pasture were derived. The artificial grasses now used upon the upland, had not then attracted the attention of agriculturists, for which reason the meadow and marsh lands along the streams commanded much the higher price, and were considered as a necessary appendage to every farm. The meadow land on each of the branches of Newton creek, was, no doubt, the attraction that brought the settlers first to this place, and was, in fact, the only means they had for sustaining their cattle.
To avoid expense and to secure the land from the overflow of the tide, William Albertson placed a dam across the south branch, and reclaimed much of the marsh above the same. In this dam there were tide gates, the construction and utility of which need not be explained here.14 These were kept in use until the dyke was put across the mouth of the creek, at the river, in 1786, when all the improvements on the several
8 Leaming & Spicer's Laws.
Friends' Records, Long Island.
10 License Book, 25. Lib. No. 7, Salem Records, 156.
11 Lib. No. 6, Salem Records, 32.
12 Philadelphia Records. Lib. M, 75, O. S. G. 13 Lib. A, 104. Lib. G3, 139. Lib. No. 2, 139. 14 Albertson Papers.
1
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WILLIAM ALBERTSON.
tributaries of the same were abandoned. The utility of this manner of making meadow, in a sanitary point of view, is very questionable ; the miasma arising from the stagnant water and from exposed vegetable matter, incident to the system, is una- voidable ; it spreads disease through the entire neighborhood, and very much lessens the value of property within its baneful influence.
The owner erected a substantial brick house, which, at the time it was built, ranked among the best in this section ; but, when compared with the present system of architecture, it appears insignificant enough. This house still stands, and shows at a glance the many years that have passed away since its erection.
In front of and at a short distance from it, may be seen the ditch and bank that surrounded the park for deer, which cov- ered many acres of land and extended to the south branch of the creek. On the bank stood a high and substantial fence, that effectually prevented the game from escaping when once within its bounds; and there the owner and his invited friends could find excellent sport at any season of the year.
Connected also with the place was a race course, where the speed of the pretentious horses in the neighborhood could be tested, and where, doubtless, the conceit was often taken out of various owners and backers, who resorted thither to fleece a jockey disguised as a greenhorn.
All these prove not only that the owner was a man of wealth, but also that, in its enjoyment, the drift of his inclination brought around him a class of associates that had similar tastes.
William Albertson was an active man in the affairs of the colony, and, besides holding other positions of public trust, was returned as a member of the Assembly in 1685.15 He was for several years a member of the council of proprietors, and at a time when men of the best judgment were called upon to act in that capacity. 16 In the affairs of the township his name is often seen, which shows that he looked after the interests of his neighbors as well as the enjoyments of his own estate.
15 Leaming & Spicer's Laws.
16 Minutes of Council, O. S. G.
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He died in 1720, leaving a widow and the following named children : John ; Abraham, who married Sarah Dennis; Wil- liam, Jane, Mary and Esther.17
Part of this estate descended under the name of William Albertson through four generations to a daughter Sarah, the only child of the last William, who married David Henry, in whose name a portion of the same still remains; thus continuing part of the original property in the line of blood for nearly two hundred years; one of the rare occurrences of lineal inher- itance touching landed property in New Jersey.19
Abraham settled on the tract of land which his father pur- chased of Andrew Robeson in 1692, situated in the town bounds of Gloucester and on the south branch of Newton creek, which his father conveyed to him in 1698.19
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