USA > New Jersey > Passaic County > Passaic > The Passaic valley, New Jersey, in three centuries.. Vol. 1 > Part 23
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"SUNNYSIDE ": WASHINGTON IRVING'S HOME.
other appliances for educational purposes was erected in 1870, at a cost of fourteen thousand dollars. Irvington has a population of 5,255 and Clinton 1,325.
Franklin and Belleville are the two northeastern town- ships of Essex, and are both washed on the whole length of their eastern boundaries by the Passaic River. Franklin is situated in the extreme northeast, and is bounded north by Passaic County, east by Passaic River, south by Belleville, and west by Bloomfield. The landscapes presented in this township are delightful to one sailing up or down the river. A rolling country is presented to the view, with two or three ranges of slightly elevated eminences. It is a resi-
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FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP
dential locality, although at one period in its history its manufacturing interests were large, but those are now in a great measure abandoned from circumstances which conk! not be con- trolled, appar- ently, by the owners.
The changes which meet the eye from farm and cont- fortable farm house. with its surround- ings, to the beautiful country seat, adorned by taste, nestling amid trees and foliage. front- ing on the riv- er, from the beautiful vil- lage with its ient dwellings for workmen and their fam- HALL OF THE KNIGHTS, BINNENHOF, HOLLAND, ilies, to the oc- casional forest, all delight and charm the beholder.
The history of Franklin is so recent in date that very little can be said about it. It once, in the very carly history
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of Newark, was attached to that colony. In 1812 Bloom- field was separated from Newark, and then incorporated within its bounds both Belleville and Franklin. In 1839 Belleville was created, being then separated from Bloom- field, and included Franklin, which was taken by an act of the Legislature passed February 18, 1874, from Belleville, and made an independent township. It was then that its separate history began.
There does not seem to have been an immigration from Newark, certainly not from the first settlers, into this part of the territory of that colony. But immigrants came from Acquackanonk and perhaps from Bergen. This supposition is supported by the quaint character of many old residences still standing and some of which were in existence fifty years ago. They were of the character usually adopted by the early Holland immigrants --- structures of massive stone walls, one story, in some instances a story and a half, high, with a piazza or porch across the whole front of the build- ing. Several of these dwellings had the date of their erec- tion carved into a stone tablet over the front door. One of these is dated 1702, another 1738, and one of these tab- lets, on a house which took the place of a very old edifice, bears the date 178S. The presence of Dutch names borne by residents many years ago in the territory of Franklin also testifies to the truth of the assertion that this part of the country was settled by former citizens of Acquackanonk and Bergen. Occasionally, after the time that Franklin be- came a township, some of these names appear in the list of township officers, such as Van Winkle, Van Riper, Post, Garrabrant, Kierstead, and Hopper.
There are three villages or hamlets in the township: Avondale, Nutley, and Franklin. Avondale was once called North Belleville, and is situated a short distance above
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AVONDALE, FRANKLIN, AND NUTLEY
Belleville and on a deelivity near the river. Here there are extensive quarries of red sandstone of the very best quality, large quantities of which have been excavated and sent in many different directions. Avondale is a new locality, and with Nutley and Franklin is indebted for its growth to the Erie Railroad, which passes through the entire length of Franklin. Stations have been established at each of these localities, affording such easy and prompt facilities of travel that many citizens of New York and other business centers have been induced to build dwellings in this section of New Jersey.
Franklin lies more to the west and farther north in the county, and in the valley of Third River, sometimes called Yanticaw, which at this point has quite a descent and was once largely used for water power for mills. Here many years ago were the Dun- can woolen mills, conducted by the Duncan brothers, Scotchmen,-excel- VIRTUS SIBI lent, worthy citizens, who desired to MUNUS make more of their employees than VAN CORTLANDT ARMS. mere workmen. They provided schools for their children, erected a church, and in the winter sea- sons they asked men of talent and learning to come and lecture for their benefit. They are all now dead, their works are abandoned, but Franklin still thrives.
Nutley is nearer to the Passaic River, and is a thriving residential locality. It owes its existence to Thomas W. Satterthwaite, a wealthy gentleman, who many years ago erected a stately residence on the banks of the river now in- corporated within the bounds of Nutley. He owned many hundred acres here, and he and his family divided the
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property into building sites, and, offering inducements to those disposed to settle here, in this manner formed the nucleus for a thriving, populous town. Nutley was the name given by Mr. Satterthwaite to his country seat, and it was adopted by the citizens as the title to the new town thus reared. It has a population of over three thousand. Some idea may be gained of the progressive spirit and liberality of its citizens from the fact that a school house costing thirty thousand dollars has been erected in the village.
Belleville is an old town, being in existence long before the township bearing its name was incorporated. It has a large infusion of Holland stock, as is witnessed by the pres- ence for so many years of a strong and flourishing Reformed congregation and also by the presence now and for several generations of so many Dutch names, such as Jerolamon, Schuyler, Rutgers, Spier ( or Speer as it is now written), Van Cortlandt, Coeyman, and Ackerman. The town was a bust- ling, active community more than fifty years ago, and it has retained those characteristics to the present. Docks were built on the river and craft of quite large draft were coming and going, passing to and fro up and down the stream, carrying the manufactured products of the mills and factories in the town and in the surrounding country to market and goods of different kinds for home consump- tion. But the steam whistle of the locomotive was heard, the river trade gradually died out, and the freight was brought in and carried away by the railroad. The town, however, has steadily increased and is still increasing. The population of the whole township in 1890 was 3,487; in 1900 it had grown to 5,907, an increase of forty and more per cent. The people outside of the town number very few, and this increase is due almost entirely to the town. A pecul- iarity not often found in a locality where the increase in
STREET IN AMSTERDAM: HOLLAND.
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population is due to immigration more than to natural canses exists here in the permanence of the inhabitants. The people, especially the representatives of the old element, rarely change. The town is mostly situated between the river, and quite an extensive range of eminences lying west- ward and running north and south nearly parallel with the stream. The houses were chiefly confined a few years ago to one single street, running along the west bank of the river and not far from it, spreading north and south for more than a mile. But now they have climbed the eminences and nearly covered their heights. A very large part of the population of Belleville is engaged in manufac- AN OLD FARM HOUSE. turing. The Hendricks
copper works are situated near the west side of the town on Second River. These works are very extensive, have been established for more than seventy-five years, and are still in successful operation. John Eastwood and others are engaged in large manufactures in the town. For a cen- tury and more an important industry in Belleville has been connected with the quarries of red sandstone. This has been extensively and profitably followed.
The Reformed Church at Belleville is one of the oldest
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BELLEVILLE AND VERONA
in the State. It was organized certainly prior to 1725, as is proved by the fact that in the records of the church in that year it is recorded that measures are being taken to secure the building of a " new church " for worship. From that date until now this organization has been in operation with unvarying success. About fifty years ago the church was rebuilt, and in this substantial stone building the con- gregation gathers from time to time. A commodious par- sonage has also been erected. These two buildings are situated on the main street in the center of the town, and add much by their presence to the beauty of the locality. The Rev. T. De Witt Talmadge was at one time a pastor of this church. There are three other churches at Belleville : a Methodist, an Episcopalian, and a Roman Catholic.
Belleville is situated on the Second River, and in its early history was called after the name of that stream. Its pres- ent title is truly descriptive of the town and its situation.
Nestled in the valley of Peckman's River, between the First and Second Mountains, lies the township of Verona, the last municipality created in Essex. It was taken from Caldwell in 1892 and made an independent township. Its population in 1900 was 2,137. It has two villages within its borders: Verona and Cedar Grove. In the vicinity of Verona village during the eighteenth and nineteenth cen- turies there were several families of the Condit stock, who were mostly agriculturists. Some of the race still remain here. Jonathan Condit, a captain in the Revolutionary Army, resided here on a farm at the breaking out of the war. Near him were other families of the same name, all of whom were influential members of the community. A small in- fusion of Dutch blood found its way here about a hundred years ago, the most prominent name being that of Jacobus.
Verona village was until a few years ago a quiet hamlet
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of a few dwellings, inhabited by a staid and steady popula- tion, mostly farmers. A large factory for brushes of all varieties, conducted by a member of the Jacobus family, gave some life to the place. Some enterprising citizens of other localities awoke to the desirability of the village for residences, and a few built dwellings here, among whom may be mentioned the Hon. John L. Johnson, formerly a judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Essex and now a prominent lawyer with his office in Newark. Others have followed his example and have become permanent residents of this community.
Cedar Grove is a small hamlet in the northern part of the township. Peckman's River, a tributary of the Passaic, emptying its waters into that river at Little Falls, runs through the entire length of the township and forms the valley. At the southern end of the township this stream has formed a lake covering many acres. In the beginning of the nineteenth century this sheet of water, called Verona Lake, was utilized for milling purposes, and was much re- sorted to by the farmers of the vicinity. But now it is a place of resort for pleasure seekers, who find there every appli- ance for their delight and recreation. The water is of pure spring origin, unpolluted as are so many of the streams of the State for sewage purposes. It lies sheltered by the sur- rounding hills from storm and destructive winds, so that tourists who seek its quiet waters are safe. It is nearly a mile in length, and every drop of its pellucid waves comes from mountain springs issuing from the eminences which surround it and seem to be the guardians of the spot. The park and lake are under the most excellent management, while every possible appliance is furnished for the pleas- ure of those who come there for rest. The most fastidious may be assured that nothing will be found to offend or
VIEW OF VERONA LAKE AND PARK.
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molest. It is under the charge of an association of gentle- men, residents of the village and its vicinity, who, them- selves fully alive to the importance of the preservation of good morals and purity in the community, have adopted such rules for the regulation of the conduct of visitors and for the preservation of the quiet of the place that no offence can possibly be given to any one. The lake is easily reached by trolley cars from all parts of the adjoining country. Art has aided nature and, combining the natural scenery of the lake and its surroundings with other environments, has made this beautiful sheet of water most desirable. It is fitted up with boat houses, a lawn decorated with shrub- bery, tables for picnics, and settees for the weary. Con- venient boats, safely arranged so as to prevent accident, are always at command. For Sunday schools and other like associations this is a most desirable resort. The names of its managers, David H. and John W. Slayback, Charles A. Williams, and Anson A. Voorhees, are guarantees that every promise made will be faithfully performed.
There are three churches at Verona : a Presbyterian, Con- gregational, and Methodist.
Caldwell is the largest township in the county, and in some respects it is one of the most interesting. It was the gateway for immigration from Essex into Morris County at the beginning of the eighteenth century. An adven- turous man climbed to the top of Second Mountain, looked down upon the scene spread out before his feet, and took in some of its beauty. But the men of his time were more realistic and utilitarian in their views than those of this age, and this particular adventurer partook of the char- acteristics of his time. He returned to Newark, informed the town meeting of what he had seen, and advised that an instant purchase should be made of the land. This was,
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CALDWELL TOWNSHIP
so near as can be ascertained, about the year 1700. The purchase was made, and into Horseneck, as the locality was at first called from its fancied resemblance to a horse's arched neck, flowed, slowly at first, but in larger volume afterward, an immigration which later appropriated the whole valley. Soon it was intimated that iron was to be found over the river beyond its western banks, and before the first quarter of the eighteenth century Morris County began to be peopled by hardy settlers from Essex. Prior to this time, in 1679, an Indian deed was made to some Hol- landers of land, a portion of which by its description was clearly within the bounds of the present township of Cald- well :
Lying west and north of a straight line drawn from the mouth of Pine Brook a little to the north of Cedar Grove extending to the village of Acquackanonk.
This includes only a small portion of the northern ex- tremity of Caldwell. The deed was signed by Captahem, whose name often appears in deeds of that time, and was confirmed by the lords proprietors. Within its bounds is now to be found the hamlet of Fairfield, where is an okl established Reformed Church. Several Dutch families set- tled at this locality soon after the making of this deed, and quite a large number of the descendants of these Hollanders are to-day to be found among the residents of Caldwell.
In 1699 two citizens of Newark were appointed a com- mittee by the town meeting to negotiate the purchase of the " tract lying westward of our bounds to the Passaic River." The purchase, however, was not then made. In 1701, June 10, Sir Thomas Lane and others, representing the West Jersey Society, obtained letters patent for " land lying at Horseneck." How definite was the description of the land intended to be granted by these letters patent is not known, but as indefinite as that just given may be
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it is evident that it refers to land west of First Mountain and extending to the river. Nothing, however, seems to have come out of this conveyance, and it also appears by subsequent events that all parties acquiesced in the title acquired by Newark except the proprietors.
In 1702 the lords proprietors surrendered the right of sovereignty over New Jersey, secured to them by the orig- inal grant to Berkeley and Carteret by the Duke of York, but retained the title to the land. The independent colo- nists of Newark frequently disregarded the claim set up by the proprietors to the exclusive control over the land within the Province, who insisted that any Indian titles acquired by any purchase should be confirmed by them. The set- tlers in Newark claimed that the Indians were the sole own- ers of the country. Accordingly in 1702, setting at naught the proprietors, they bought from the Indians this land " westward or northward of Newark within the compass of the Passaick river and so southward unto Minisink path, viz : all lands as yet unpurchased of the heathen."
The deed was executed by several chiefs of the tribes resi- dent within New Jersey, was dated March, 1701-02, and was afterward, on the 14th day of March, 1741-42, confirmed by some Indians calling themselves kings, and others as chiefs, of the tribes, heirs and successors of the grantors of the deed executed in 1702. The proprietors claimed that the settlers should pay them for the lands they occupied. This was sturdily disputed and the demand denied except by one in- dividual. This led the proprietors to take legal measures to secure what they considered were their just dues and lawful rights. Defendants in these suits were committed to prison and the jails were stormed by the citizens headed by some of the most respectable inhabitants. In the end the pro- prietors were successful. Many purchasers who had paid
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CALDWELL TOWNSHIP
for their property were dispossessed, several were reduced to poverty, and great distress and loss were sustained. The controversy lasted several years, and was fought with great pertinacity by both parties. This statement of facts does not apply alone to Caldwell. but to other parts of the county.
Caldwell Township is situated in the northwestern part of Essex, and is bounded north and west by the Passaic River, which separates it from Passaic and Morris, east by Verona and West Orange, and south by Livingston Town- ship. It contains 18,194 acres, of which about 7,000 are still forest. The whole western portion bordering on the river is enveloped by swampy land. That in the north- west of the township. at the loop of the river as it turns to flow towards Little Falls, is called the Great Piece: the oth- ors are known as Little Piece and Hatfield Meadows. These meadows cover many hundred acres. They are useful, however, to their owners, and are being gradually drained. They are sometimes entirely submerged by the overflow of the river, but they rarely fail to render to their owners some reumeration in their crops of hay and in the pasturage they furnish for cattle. Some timber is grown upon them and of good quality. The flow of the river at this point is exceedingly sluggish, the descent in some instances being only one inch to the mile.
The township was incorporated on the 16th of February, 1798, and the following bounds defined :
Beginning at Cook's bridge on Passaic River then running down the old Canoe brook road along the Springfield line until it come to where said line turns off to Keen's Mills, from thence on a straight line to within five chains to the west of Joel Condit's quarry on the Springfield road near the top of Second Mountain, thence north fifteen degrees east twenty chains along said mountain, thence on a straight line to the top of First Mountain to where a certain road laid out along the line of lands of Stephen Crane, deceased, intersects the top of said mountain, thence along the same until it comes to the Paterson line, thenee along the said
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line to the Passaiek River, thence up the middle of the stream to the place of Beginning.
This territory since the formation of the township has been depleted by the creation of other municipalities. The township was named in honor of the Rev. James Caldwell, the " fighting parson " of the Revolutionary Army. Two boroughs, Caldwell and North Caldwell, have been carved from the township, both of small extent. The population of the township proper in 1900 was 1,619, of Caldwell bor- ough 1,367, and North Caldwell 297.
The village of Caldwell is beautiful for situation. It has three churches : a Presbyterian, a Baptist, and a Methodist. There are four hamlets in the township: Fairfield, Clinton, Franklin, and Westville, of which Fairfield is the oldest. The Reformed Church at Fairfield was organized nearly one hundred and fifty years ago, and has aided many struggling churches of the same denomination in its vicinity. It was, of course, supported by the Holland immigrants who early in the eighteenth century made their way across the Pas- saic into Caldwell.
CHAPTER XXX
ESSEX COUNTY -- CONCLUDED
IVINGSTON TOWNSHIP has no peculiarly striking history. It was a part of Newark until 1797, when it was separated from that town. Its population has been and is now almost entirely devoted to agriculture. There are, however, a few hat factories of limited facilities situated on the river. The permanency of the inhabitants is quite remarkable. They generally live on, generation after generation, in the same locality, fre- quently in the same honse. A single case is perhaps one of many. T. Rowland Toed, a lad of fourteen years of age, was born in the same house in which his great-great-grand- father was born, and in which every successive generation down to this youth was also born, many of them in the same room. The Teed family for many decades have been prominent and influential in public affairs, many of them filling township offices, several acting as county officials, and some as members of the Legislature.
The township is bounded on the north by Caldwell, on the east by West Orange and Milburn, on the south by Milburn and the Passaic, and on the west by the Passaic. The low grounds which envelop so large a part of Caldwell pass over into the territory of Livingston on the bank of the river.
The names which have always been prominent in the his-
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tory of this township denote quite conclusively their origin. The most of them came from Newark and settled in the fertile fields of this municipality. They are Ward, Tomp- kins, Harrison, Williams, Dodd, Condit, Teed, Force, and others. A few influential names can not be traced to the parent colony. Some undoubtedly came from Elizabeth- town.
There are five villages and hamlets in the township : Liv- ingston, West Livingston, Northfield, Squiertown, and Rose- land, formerly called Centerville. Of these Roseland is the largest and most prosper- ons. It is near a railroad with a station, and bids fair to be- come more populous in the future. Roseland has two churches : A COUNTRY HOME. Presbyte - rian and Methodist. West Livingston also has a Methodist Church, and there are two Baptist Churches, one at North- field and one at Livingston.
Livingston was named in honor of William Livingston, governor of New Jersey during the Revolution. It has 11,148 acres, of which about 5,000 are still forest land. Its population in 1900 was 1,412.
Milburn is situated in the southern part of the county on the line of Union. It formed at one time part of Spring- field when that township was united with Essex County, but when Union was created Milburn was separated from
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MILBURN TOWNSHIP AND VILLAGE
Springfield and remained united to Essex. This was in 1852. It is bounded north by Livingston and West Orange, east by Springfield and Sonth Orange, south by Union Coun- ty, and west by the Passaic River, which separates it from Morris County. It is much broken by different ranges of hills-the White Oak Ridge in its central part, a higher elevation in its northern part near Livingston, and Short Hills in its southern portion. On the Passaic there are some lowlands, and toward Springfield there is quite an extent of level plain. The Passaic River washes its western side, Canoe Brook comes into the township from Livingston, and the east branch of the Rahway River rises in West Orange and flows through Milburn into Springfield.
Sixty-five years ago Milburn vil- lage was a mere hamlet, and was known by various names, such as Rum Brook, Riverhead, Vauxhall. and Croton. There was an attempt made at one time to call it Millville. but when it was incorporated and a postoffice established there the name A COLONIAL CHATELAINE. was definitely settled as Milburn, and very appropriately, as it was situated on a stream fulty entitled to that name for its facility in affording mill sites. It became at one time a large manufacturing center, de- voted particularly to papermills and hat factories. Shortly after the Revolution Samnel Campbell, a Scotchman, estab- lished a papermill a short distance above the village of Milburn on the Rahway River, which continued to be oper-
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