USA > New Jersey > The New Jersey coast in three centuries; history of the New Jersey coast with genealogical and historic-biographical appendix, Vol. II > Part 27
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In the councils of the nation he bore an honorable and important part in legislation, and was a worthy recipient of the confidence and friend- ship of the greatest and best statesmen of his age. Looking through the statutes and records of Congress we find the impress of his character and individuality in the evidence of his service to the sailor, the soldier and the soldier's widow and orphans. Every thought that is formulated there in philanthropic appreciation of great service and sacrifice, had his zealous advocacy and support. Broadminded and fearless as a legislator, neither the love of commendation nor the fear of criticism swerved him from the
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path of duty and conviction. By the pursuit of this path which led up to high distinction, he won the esteem and confidence of the national legis- lators and high public officials, whereby he was enabled to wield at Wash- ington a powerful influence for the good of his constituents and the coun- try at large. He had many personal characteristics which bound to him friends with bands of steel. No service in their behalf was too irksome, no sacrifice was too great. Not a survivor among his intimate personal acquaintances but remembers him for some act of personal kindness. This generous quality of his nature was conspicuous in the practice of his pro- fession. He cheerfully and gratuitously served the indigent patient and thus acquired the appellation of the "beloved physician." His acts of kind- ness in behalf of the soldier and his widow and orphan are innumerable. One case known to the writer was during the Civil war, when, by his inter- cession with President Lincoln at the instance of a wife and child, he obtained the reprieve of her soldier husband sentenced by the court-martial to be executed. His life was replete with deeds of kindness. It may be cynically said that all this merely indicated the tactful politician, but where a political life is built upon the foundations of love and humanity, the structure he raises is easily recognizable for its genuine merits, and rises above the plane of the artful politician into the realms of exalted statesman- ship.
It was a deserving tribute to the memory of the deceased, pronounced by Governor Voorhees in his proclamation announcing Governor Newell's death, that his ife brought credit to the state of New Jersey, that the people found him a fearless and upright governor, ever faithful to those who put their affairs in his keeping, and that his life's work shows forth a good example and furnishes an incentive to future generations.
MAJOR GENERAL PHILIP KEARNEY.
This splendid soldier and unflinching patriot was born June 2, 1815, in the city of New York. On the paternal side his ancestry was Irish, while his mother was partly Huguenot in descent. He was educated in the best academies of his native city, closing with the four years' course in Columbia College. After graduation he studied law, but being charmed with military pursuits, he obtained a commission as lieutenant in a cavalry regiment which had been ordered to the west. This was about 1837, and among the officers was Jefferson Davis, captain of a company. He re- mained with the command about sixteen months, during which time he studied the whole theory and practice of his profession, and availed him- self of every opportunity to perfect himself in all those branches which would constitute him a perfect tactitian.
In 1839 he was one of three officers who were sent by the government to Europe to study cavalry tactics, and, as permission had been obtained from the government of France for these officers to enter their celebrated
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military school at Saumur, he availed himself of this great privilege, and became one of the most patient and indefatigable of students. After thor- oughly mastering his profession he left the school and accompanied the French forces to Africa, being attached to the First Regiment "Chasseurs d'Afrique," and participated in two battles, wherein he displayed great bravery and gallantry, and won for himself the highest praises from his superior officers. He left France for home in 1841, and was ordered to the staff of General Winfield Scott, in which position he remained until the outbreak of the Mexican war. In the meantime, however, he had received his commission as captain of United States Dragoons ; and being permitted to raise his own company, he journeyed to the western country, where he recruited a superior body of men and horses, himself adding from his ample means an additional bounty to that offered by the government. He was thus enabled to pick his men, and the result was as he desired, his troop being the acknowledged superior of any similar body in that branch of the service. This fact was so apparent that General Scott selected it as his body guard when he reached the Mexican territory, and no opportunity for action was afforded during the march to the capital until coming within sight of the goal toward which it had been pressing for so many months. It was at Cherubusco, however, that Captain Kearney was enabed to bring his troop into action, as the commanding general temporarily relinquished his military escort. The Mexicans, being on the retreat, were pursued by the American cavalry along the narrow causeway which spanned the marsh, the causeway being protected by a battery in front of one of the city gates. Kearney seized the opportunity and pressed forward to pre- vent the enemy gaining possession of this shelter and rallying for its and their defense. Though recalled by an officer despatched for that purpose, he hastily made known the situation and was allowed to continue the course he had taken, and reached the Cherubusco gate of the capital, killing all who resisted. On rejoining the American army he was wounded by a grapeshot, losing his left arm. He was highly complimented by his su- periors in command for this dangerous and gallant exploit, and was pro- moted to the rank of major.
After the close of the war he returned with the army to the United States, and was ordered to the Pacific coast, where he was employed in operations against the Indian tribes. He resigned his commission about 1852, and, being a man of fortune, he traveled throughout Europe and the east, and finally established himself in Paris, occasionally visiting the United States, where he remained each time only for a brief period. He served with the French army in 1859, being an aide-de-camp on the staff of General Meurice, commanding the cavalry of the guard, and was pres- ent at the battle of Solferino. For bravery and gallantry displayed in that campaign. he received from the Emperor Napoleon III the Cross of the Legion of Honor.
When the American Civil war broke out, he offered his services to the government. After his arrival, early in 1861, he applied to General Scott, who referred him to the governor of his native state. But he
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failed to receive any commission from the New York state authorities, and, desiring impatiently an opportunity to enter the volunteer service, he was finally commissioned by the governor of New Jersey as brigadier general of volunteers. This was after the disaster at the first Bull Run, and he immediately entered upon his duties with extraordinary ardor. He made the First Brigade of New Jersey the flower of the troops of that state. His organization was thoroughly disciplined, for he was remrak- ably strict on that point, and, from the outset of his campaign until he fell on the field of battle, he was ever the foremost in maintaining his command in a degree of the highest excellence and standing. He was attached to the Army of the Potomac, under General McClellan, and chafed under what he considered the halting and hesitating course of that officer. In March, 1862, he was tendered the command of a division ; but, as he was unwilling to leave his brigade of Jerseymen, he declined. However, he was obliged during the Peninsular campaign, in an emergency, to assume command of a division of Heintzleman's Corps, and he relinquished his favorite troops, but not without a sigh. He participated in the battle of Williams- burg, May 5, 1862, and arrived in time to support Hooker and his New Jersey troops at a most critical period. The bravery he displayed on this occasion won for him the admiration of all beholders. So also at the battle of Fair Oaks, May 31st, he arrived on the scene immediately after the flight of Casey's division, and turned the tide of battle. He drove back the rebels, who believed themselves victorious until now, and both he and his brother officers desired permission to follow the enemy into Richmond. He foresaw the disasters which afterwards befell the Army of the Potomac ; the "change of base," as it was termed, he really called a retreat, and dur- ing the whole week which was thus occupied in transferring the immense army to the James river, he was conspicuously engaged in every skirmish which transpired. Particularly was this the case in the battle of White Oak Swamp, June 30th. Wherever danger was the greatest, he was to be found, rallying his men and inspiring confidence when all seemed dis- aster and despair. So, likewise, at Malvern Hill, July Ist, he displayed the same undaunted courage and bravery which had made his name renowned as a Bayard, "without fear and reproach." When Mcclellan failed to. order an advance on Richmond, and commanded the army to retreat to Harrison's Landing, his indignation knew no bounds, and he publicly pro- tested. in the presence of many officers, against such a course.
He had now received promotion to the rank of major-general of vol- unteers, though he had been for three months in command of a division. His predictions that Pope would be crushed by the rebels were fulfilled by the events that took place at and after the second Bull Run, August 30th. On September Ist was fought the battle of Chantilly, where General Pope, in order to save his army, looked for aid from Generals Kearney, Reno and Stevens, who promptly came to the rescue. The two latter attacked the enemy, but were compelled to retire by an overwhelming force. At this juncture Kearney placed himself at the head of General Birney's brigade, broke the rebel center, causing it to retreat in great disorder, thus saving
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Pope's army and the city of Washington. At sunset on that day, while reconnoitering the enemy's position, he suddenly came upon their lines, and his surrender being demanded, he refused. As he turned to fly, he was shot dead, his body falling into the hands of the rebels. The tidings of this fatal event flew far and fast throughout the country on the wings of the lightning, and everywhere a wail went up for the brave man thus sacrificed, and he was mourned alike by president and peasant.
JAMES A. BRADLEY. .
In that chapter of this work which relates to the resorts of the coast, the name of James A. Bradley appears in connection with that of Asbury Park, of which city he was the sole founder, and which he brought to a proud position among the cities of the state, in face of what. to his friends, appeared to be insurmountable obstacles. Therein is told the story of how he conceived the project, how he met opposition of all sorts, even to opprobium and ridicule, how he planned and labored, and how he finally succeeded. It is only necessary here to depict something of the personality of the man.
Mr. Bradley is a native of New York, born on Staten Island, in 1830. Soon 'after his birth, his parents removed to New York City, where he ob- tained his text-book education in one of the public schools, then conducted by A. V. Stout, afterwards a prominent financier of the metropolis. The instruction thus received was necessarily limited, for when he was twelve years of age he went to work in the paper manufactory of William Davies, at Plainfield, New Jersey. In thus entering upon the task of obtaining his own livelihood at so tender an age, he may scarcely be said to have abandoned his studies. He had contracted a desire for learning, and an ambition to make something more of himself than a mere laborer, and he added constantly to his store of knowledge through reading such books as he was able to obtain, and he not only succeeded in acquiring such information as to afford him ample equipment for his needs as they arose, but he had formed habits of study and observation which have remained with him throughout his life and enabled him to adorn any circle in which he has cared to move.
When sixteen years of age he became an apprentice in the brush- making establishment of Francis P. Furnald, of New York City. Here, by his industry and conscientious devotion to the duties of the calling upon which he had entered, he made rapid progress and acquired such a mastery of the trade and so won the confidence of his employer that he was made foreman of the shop when he had reached the age of twenty-one years, and he continued in that position for seven years.
During his apprenticeship he had managed to save about two hundred dollars, and the fact, of itself, is eloquent attestation of his manly quali- ties. Wages were very small in those days, and there was every temp- 17*
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tation, in the companionship which he could not avoid, to squander his little means in amusements if not in more reprehensible indulgences. But he made his small savings, adding to them as he could, by dint of close economy, and in 1857, when he was twenty-seven years of age, he estab- lished a modest brush factory upon his own account. He could not have fallen upon a more inauspicious time for his modest beginning. That year a great financial panic overwhelmed the country, paralyzing all manner of business. Again, it was the era of "wild-cat" money, and the only medium of exchange was bank bills issued in remote places, without means for redemption, and which depreciated five, ten and twenty per cent. a day until they were refused at any rate. Yet he carried his business through this crisis, and made sales amounting to eight thousand dollars. His profits were small; it is doubtful if he much more than preserved his capital, yet he had won a great success, for he had stemmed the tide of disaster, and he was newly armed to take advantage of a favorable change in the commercial and financial atmosphere. In two years he had recovered all losses, and, besides, had added considerably to his capital. In 1866 his sales had amounted to nearly four hundred thousand dollars, and his future s'as assured.
In 1869 Mr. Bradley's health failed, and he planned for a trip to Europe early in the following year in hope of rehabilitation. His purpose was changed, however, by the providential (as it appears) incident which led him to the New Jersey shore, where he gained a complete restoration and came to be known as the founder of one of the most delightful resi- dential and summer resort cities on the entire Atlantic coast.
At the time of this writing, Mr. Bradley, something more than seventy years of age, in the full enjoyment of all his powers, continues to give his personal attention to the conduct of the large brush manufacturing busi- ness of Bradley & Smith (in which firm he is senior partner ), in New York City. He maintains his residence in Asbury Park, and his influence is felt in everything that enters into the life of the city, whether in municipal gov- ernment or along commercial, religious, educational or social lines.
THE MURRAY FAMILY.
Joseph Murray, of Scotch descent, came with his mother, Elizabeth Murray, to New Jersey from Londonderry, Ireland.
The first family document known to the writer is a "Mortgage Deed" dated May 9th, 1767, on his farm in Middletown township, on "Poricy Brook," from "Joseph Murray, mason," to Lydia Compton, for £49. s9. "current money of the said Eastern Division of New Jersey." A pay- ment of £13. 57. d4. was made to "Lydia Morris" and a receipt written on the back of the mortgage.
It was finally cancelled by the excision of all signatures. The money thus raised was probably used to build his house, which is still standing.
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It is peculiarly constructed, with a high basement, and above that one story and a half. The foundation and stonework were nearly two feet thick. The one great chimney and the oven in the basement were massive enough for a very large house. The doors and shutters in the basement were of two-inch oak with wrought iron hinges and fastenings. The small barn also had a cellar and foundation of very heavy masonry.
Probably about the date of the "mortgage deed" to Lydia Compton Joseph Murray was married to Rebecca Morris by the Rev. Abel Mor- gan. Joseph Murray's oldest son was born 1771.
HOME OF JOSEPH MURRAY, JUNE 8TH, 1780.
In Book "Q. C. Deeds," Clerk's office, Freehold, is found a quit claim deed from Anna Shepherd, Martha Stillwell, Eliza Cooper and Samuel Cooper to William Murray, October 27th, 1806, which document was exe- cuted because of the loss of the deed under which Murray held title.
Joseph Murray was enrolled as a private in the First Regiment Mon- mouth Militia, recorded in Trenton as follows :
State of New Jersey, Office of Adjutant General, Trenton, March 26th. 1895.
It is certified, that the records of this office show that Joseph Murray served as a Private in the First Regiment, Monmouth County New Jersey Militia in the Revolutionary War, and that he was killed by Tories at Mid- dletown, Monmouth County, New Jersey, June 8, 1780.
[Seal.]
WILLIAM S. STRYKER,
Adjutant General.
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In Revolutionary times, the Loyalist center of operations in Monniouthì county was the Old Lighthouse Fort on Sandy Hook. Colonel George Taylor, "a deserter" from the First Regiment of Monmouth Militia, was in command, and about him gathered Tories, refugees and all slaves who could be induced to run away from their masters. They reported the hiding place of treasures and the treasonable words of neighbors and masters, who were raided upon without mercy. In the light of these facts it was but natural that Colonel Taylor would be a man bitterly disliked by the Monmouth militia.
William W. Murray, the grandson of Joseph Murray, often related to his children and grandchildren the following incident :
Joseph Murray was ordered by his officers to capture horses from the Tories for the use of the American army. One afternoon, while Edward Taylor, father of Colonel George Taylor, sat upon his porch in Middletown, Murray entered his stable, bridled a fine young horse and rode up the street. Edward Taylor, hoping to frighten it, ran out and threw his cap before the young and almost unbroken colt. Murray dismounted, picked up the cap, and, placing it on top of his own, rode away with both cap and horse. It was said that the colt belonged to Colonel George Taylor. As a refugee his property was confiscated and undoubtedly the horse was seized to prevent its being used in the service of the enemy.
Horse-stealing was at that time a crime, punishable by death. Had it been possible, the violent rebel Murray would have been charged with that crime and punished with all the rigor of the law, but military orders and the open, public, and daring capture of the horse in broad daylight, made such a charge untenable. An indictment was brought by an unnamed complainant, for "assault, trespass, &c." When the January term of the Court of General Quarter Sessions of the Peace was called in 1779, Mur- ray pleaded "not guilty," and gave bail for £50 to appear at the next term of court. One year later at the January term the defendant "being a pris- oner with the enemy," his attorney asked that no advantage be taken of the bondsmen and the suit be put off until the defendant's release from cap- tivity. The court entered an order upon the motion of Murray's attorney.
The records show that Joseph Murray was taken prisoner between January, 1779. and January, 1780. The quit claim deed given to his son to make good the partial destruction of the original deed shows that his house was raided by the refugees. This did not occur at the time of his death, for the shot which wounded him brought friends so quickly that the refugees fled in haste and were closely pursued. The deed was probab- ly partially destroyed at the time of his capture in one of the raids. The suit for "assault, trespass, &c.," was pending, and Murray was regarded by the refugees as an "obnoxious persecutor of Loyalist subjects" and a "notoriously violent rebel. By January 27, 1780, he had escaped from prison, and appeared in court to stand his trial, but no one appearing against him, the suit was dismissed by order of the court. Under the circumstances it is not probable that Murray was set at liberty or ex-
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changed. The royal authorities would have held him for trial in their own court.
On June 8, 1780, about four months after the suit for "assault, tres- pass, &c.," was dismissed, Joseph Murray was killed by three refugees from Sandy Hook. The night before, he had been ordered to "reconnoiter" on the bay shore near Sandy Hook. In the morning he received leave of absence to go home and plow his corn. His comrade, Thornas Hill, whose home was near Hedden's Corners, went with him, for it was the custom for one to watch while the other worked. He wished to attend to some busi- ness of his own, so Murray told him to go, and he would set his gun against the fence near his barn. It is said that Murray had been warned by the mother of one of the men who killed him that there was a plot to take his life. The cornfield lay between his barn and the heavily
JOSEPH MURRAY'S BARN.
X Spot where Joseph Murray was killed. His gun stood against the fence in front of the barn.
wooded banks of Poricy brook, a tributary of the Navesink river. In plowing back and forth, as 'Murray turned from the bank, he was shot from the thicket and wounded. Then two men rushed upon him with their bayonets. Being a large, powerful man, he wrenched a musket from one of his assailants and was defending himself, when a third man bay- onetted him in the back. The sound of the shot brought help so quickly that the refugees fled and were pursued down the river to the highlands. One of them was found hiding in the bushes and was shot by Mathias Conover, whose great-nephew (also Mathias Conover) sold his musket
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to the late Hon. George C. Murray, certifying to its identity. The musket is now in the possession of George C. Murray, his son and the great- great-grandson of Joseph Murray.
The late Edward Hopping, of Red Bank, informed the writer some years ago that when he was a boy he could remember his father's pointing to a large mulatto standing in his cabin door, and saying that he was one of the men who killed Joseph Murray. He was one of Colonel Taylor's slaves, and lived all his life on the Colonel's farm near Garret's Hill. The. slave was called "Yaller Corneil."
In a school house not far from Murray's home, when the deadly shot was heard, the son of a well known Tory sprang to his feet, exclaiming, "Murray's shot!" He could not see what had happened, but was expect- ing the report, and knew. Master and scholars ran to Murray's house. Judge Jehu Patterson, then a lad of fourteen years, often related the above incident to his children and grandchildren, and also told them that when he reached the house he saw the blood from Murray's wounds on the steps of the little porch. Such are the traditions and records of Joseph Murray's death.
The facts as narrated were substantiated by the following and other affidavits recorded in the office of the clerk of Monmouth county, at Free- hold, New Jersey :
This is to certifye that Joseph Murray a militia Soldier belonging to Col. Asher Holmes Rigt of Monmouth Militia under the command of Luit. Garret Hendrickson then in service was ordered to reconitor on the bay Shore near Sandy Hook on the 7th of June, 1780, and on the eighth, in the morning, had leave from me for his return to quarters to visit his family ; after being at home a few hours was killed by three refugees nigh his barn, and left a wife with four small children, as witness my hand this 25th day of April, 1788. -
GARRET HENDRICKSON, Lieut.
Thomas Hill being duly sworn upon his oath saith that he, deponent, and the above said Joseph Murray with some other persons had been on the lines of the Bay on the night of the 7th June, 1780, and in the morn- ing went home with said Murray and after a short time was a going to a neighbor's not far distance when deponent heard the report of a gun at the afsd. Murray's and in a short time after was alarmed with the news that said Murray was killed by three refugees, deponent saith he went im- mediately back, when he came, saw said Murray lay dead with his wound bleeding, who had been shot and bayneted in several places, and farther saith that Jos. Murray left a wife with four small children and that he had leave of absents from his offices. Sworn before me this 25th day of April, 1788.
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