A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 156

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188

USA > New York > A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time > Part 156

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In the year 1858 Mr. Foster married Fan- nie, daughter of Sylvester Miller, of Wading

Nat W. Foster was trained to business in the dry goods store of his father, and after- River. Mr. Miller was Supervisor of the

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

town for twenty years and justice of the peace for many years more. Mrs. Foster died in 1888, leaving five children: Warren W., a Justice of the Court of General Sessions in New York; Millicent F., who was educated at Wellesley College; Sylvester M., a gradu- ate of Dartmouth and the secretary of the Suffolk County Agricultural Society for some years past ; Herman D., who died in infancy ; and Fannie Estelle.

Aquebogue has more to boast of in the way of antiquity than Riverhead. It seems to have been the site of an Indian village of consid- erable size, so it is possible that the early set- tlers in the district from Southold simply took up the red man's improvements in the way of clearances and trails, and the strange temple and graves discovered in 1879 demonstrate the affection and reverence which a primitive race must have had for the territory,-possibly an older race than that which sold the ground to the white pioneers from Southold. From Lower Aquebogue, which some suppose to have been settled before any other part of the district, the comparatively modern village of James- port was formed about 1830, seemingly one of those paper cities which for a time was so common in the story of American life, and was ridiculed so mercilessly in Dickens' novel, "Martin Chuzzlewit." Dr. Prime tells us that in 1833 there was not a single house in the place and that it owed "its origin to the specu- lation fever of a single individual who ruined himself by the operation." The site was nicely mapped out, streets were surveyed, a wharf was built and a rather imposing hotel was erected. For a year or two it seemed as if the hopes which centred in it would be real- ized; one or two whaling ships made use of the wharf. But there was no earthly reason why ocean boats should seek a harbor at such a place, at the extremity of Peconic Bay, that was open to no vessels larger than coasters, and that was at all times difficult of access. So the mariners, after a trial or two, sought other and more convenient headquarters, and

Jamesport's commerce fell away and its hopes were blighted. A few years ago its beautiful situation began to attract the "summer peo- ple," and it has become quite popular with that class, so much so that at the height of the season it is rather difficult for all who desire accommodations to secure them. But that is a matter that can be remedied and there is little doubt it will be. Under these circum- stances Jamesport can look forward to a brighter future than ever was anticipated for it at its inception or that seemed possible in 1843, when the early glamor had passed and it boasted some forty houses.

At the other extremity of the township, on the boundary line dividing it from Brook- haven, is the village of Wading River, the ter- minus, for the present at least, of what is known as the Port Jefferson Branch of the Long Island Railroad. It is supposed that a settlement was effected about 1670, and in 1708 a mill was established by John Roe. Some four miles eastward is the settlement of Baiting Hollow, which is said to date from 1719. Like Wading River, it did a considera- ble business in the first half of the nineteenth century in cutting and marketing firewood, but the source of supply did not prove inex- haustible, and when it passed farming re- mained the only industry, for even to the pres- ent day the summer boarder has not discovered this region to any great extent. During the War of 1812 an exciting skirmish is said to have been fought on the shore between Fresh Pond Landing and Jericho Landing. Several sloops belonging to Baiting Hollow and en- gaged in carrying firewood, were espied on the beach by a British squadron cruising in the sound, and two boats' crews were dispatched to seize them. The local militia was, how- ever, on the lookout, and under Captain John Wells opened fire on the invaders with such effect that although they had landed and had boarded one of the sloops, they were glad to effect a retreat. It is said that the British had

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RIVERHEAD.

a cannon in each of their boats and used them, but this part of the story may well be doubted.

Manorville (380 population), Calverton (350), Northville (412), Roanoke (200), Bu- chananville (200), Laurel (197), are all farm- ing centers, and there are a number of others still more slenderly populated, of which noth- ing interesting can be said. In fact, out- side of Riverhead village, the township is al- most wholly given over to farming.

In the Fifty-sixth Congress Mr. Townsend Scudder made an effort to give a new port to Riverhead by having an appropriation for a breakwater at Northville, or rather at Luce's Harbor, where a small amount of local traffic is carried on through local efforts at harbor- making. In his speech on presenting the sub- ject to Congress Mr. Scudder said :

"Along the north shore of Long Island Sound, between Port Jefferson and Mattituck, there stretches a vast area of country which has failed to receive the attention and consid- eration to which it would seem to be entitled. Intercourse between it and the markets of the metropolis, as well as of the cities on the sound, in the State of Connecticut, are denied to it through lack of available means being afforded its people to transport their goods and products to places of sale.

"For many years the farmers of this neg- lected locality have felt the necessity of having their produce carried to city markets at a rate that would return them something for their labor. The railroad to New York was too re- mote to permit profitable carting, even if the freight rates by rail. had permitted shipments to market by that carrier. To overcome these difficulties the people of this community have constructed out into the open waters of Long Island Sound a pier. This work was accom- plished by these people with a laudable desire to improve their condition at the cost of a self-denial almost beyond description. The pier now affords a means of shipment to the city markets, weather permitting, but being unpro- tected from wind and wave, and projecting out

from an open coast, it is not always available, and is often in danger of being washed away.

"It is the pride of many of the great gov- ernments of Europe that where harbors did not exist in times past through the farsight of those having in control the reins of govern- ment now are to be found ports of great com- mercial importance, harbors of refuge, com- mercial activity, and prosperity.

"It seems to me that the case of these-Long Island farmers which I now plead demands for them some consideration. Appropriations for harbor improvements are justified by the promotion of commerce which it is assumed will result. This dock is the only place of de- barkation on Long Island Sound between Port Jefferson and Greenport, a stretch of over forty miles, excepting Mattituck Harbor, which, through failure of the National Government to complete the improvements there projected, is not available for the purposes for which the dock under consideration is used, even if it were within profitable carting distance, which it is not. This dock is open to all shippers, to all who desire to take passage from it on the vessels touching at it. Its use is unrestricted, I am told, for the greatest good to the greatest number. It will do much toward the develop- ment of a section of Long Island that has been sadly neglected, and which only requires prop- er transportation facilities to come to the front. This section of country, while one of the most productive on Long Island, is isolated and cut off from the great centers of business.

"The chairman of the committee seems to have been touched by my appeal in behalf of these people, for he tells me he will not op- pose the adoption of my amendment by the House. I submit the same in full confidence that it is a worthy object.

"I trust the survey may be made at an early date, that a favorable report will be re- ceived from the engineers, and that the next Congress will make a proper appropriation to construct the desired breakwater and thereby protect the shipping which will flow from this

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

point and bring to these hard-working peo- ple the benefits of safe transportation facilities to which they are entitled by their enterprise and sacrifices."

The early church history of Riverhead is involved in considerable doubt. A Presbyte- rian Church seems to have been organized at Upper Aquebogue, beside the now ancient cemetery, but little concerning it has been learned beyond the names of two of its early pastors, a Mr. Lee and the Rev. Timothy Symmes, and as the latter became a minister in New Jersey in 1746 the period of the be- ginning of the Aquebogue congregation must have preceded that date by several years. At Lower Aquebogue a Presbyterian Church was erected in 1731, at Baiting Hollow in 1803. None of these early churches survive. A Con- gregational Church was organized at Upper Aquebogue in 1758. In 1785 a congregation of the body known as the Strict Congregational Convention of Connecticut was organized at

Wading River, and in 1791 a similar congrega- tion was formed at Baiting Hollow, and these three bodies continue to the present time. In 1815 a Swedenborgian Church was established at Baiting Hollow and existed at least up to a few years ago, and the same people set up a congregation at Riverhead in 1839, and in 1855 erected a building for public worship.

In 1833 the first Congregationalist Church in Riverhead village was organized, and the Methodist Episcopal body in the village had its beginning the same year. Services under both these denominations had, however, been held in the court house from a much earlier date. The first mass was celebrated in 1844 in a private house at Upper Aquebogue in the presence of four persons. It was not until 1870 that the Episcopalians commenced the effort which in 1872 resulted in the erection of Grace Church in Riverhead village, and it still continues the sole representative of that body in the township.

CHAPTER LXX.

SOUTHOLD.

HE township of Southold occupies the north division of the eastern end of Long Island from the Riverhead boundary to Orient Point, a distance of twenty-three miles. At its widest part it measures only about four miles and it is said to contain 29,446 acres. On its Long Island Sound side its coast line is rugged and pre- cipitous, but that facing Peconic Bay is flat, with wide stretches of rich meadow land. The soil -in the interior is very fertile, and the cli- mate, on the whole, may be ranked as healthy and bracing. The township has several "de- pendencies" in the shape of islands,-Robin's Island, Plum Island, Fisner's Island, and oth- ers, but these can hardly be said to add either to its dignity or importance.

The story of the founding of the colony in 1640, by the Rev. John Youngs and his asso- ciates, has already been told in this work. It was never an independent colony, like that, for instance, at Huntington or at Brookhaven, but from its beginning owed allegiance to the com- monwealth of Hartford, to full association with which it was brought in 1649. But, ex- cept for the trial of grave criminal offenses and of the more important law-suits, the con- nection with the mainland was little more than nominal. The commonwealth never seems to have interfered with the town, and the town was ruled by the town meeting and the town meeting was subordinate to the church. It was a pure theocracy, and unless a man was a member of the church he was not allowed a voice in town meeting. His certificate of

church membership was his evidence of citi- zenship. If he had not such a document he was not regarded as on an equality with those who had, and his presence was not desired in the community. The town meeting attended to the highways, the cleaning of the streets, the removal of obstructions, the education of youth, the division of lands, the hunting of wolves, the marking of cattle, and the defense of the settlement. The town meeting was held every three months, and a fine of twenty shill- ings was imposed for non-attendance.

Mr. W. S. Pelletreau, the ablest living his- torian of Suffolk county, wrote the following sketch of the first settlers of Southold in 1880, and the sketch is inserted here with his permission :

Tradition and history alike unite in award- ing to Rev. John Youngs the honor of being the founder of this town. The first notice we have of this remarkable man is found in the following entry, copied by Samuel G. Drake from the original records in London and printed in his "Founders of New Eng- land," p. 49: "The examination of John Yonge of St. Margretts, suff. minister, aged thirty-five years, and Joan his wife, aged thir- ty-four years, with six children-John, Thom- as, Anne, Rachel, Mary and Josueph. Ar de- sirous to passe for Salam in New England to inhabitt." Against the above entry in the place of the date is written: "This man was for- byden passage by the commissioners and went not from Yarmouth." This entry follows six other entries, dated May II, 1637, and is fol- lowed by two entries of examination on May 12, 1637. Neal in his history of New Eng- land, published in London in 1720, mentions

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Rev. Mr. Youngs of Southold among the list of Puritan ministers "who were in orders in the Church of England, but being disturbed by the ecclesiastical courts for the cause of nonconformity transported themselves to New England before the year 1641."

In Lambert's History of New Haven, which is a work of original research and con- sidered good authority, it is stated: "Mr. Youngs reorganized his church at New Haven on the 21st of October, 1640, and. with them and such others as chose to accompany him, in the latter part of the month passed over to the island and commenced the settlement of the plantation." Moore's "Index of South- old," an invaluable work, which embraces in small compass the fruit of a vast amount of patient research, speaks of him as organ- izing a church in New Haven, to be located at Southold, October, 1640. We have no posi- tive knowledge as to who the men were who constituted this church, and any attempt to make a list of the early settlers must be based upon inference more than actual knowledge; but the following list contains the names of those persons whom we believe to have been residents of the town prior to 1654:

Robert Akerly, Richard Benjamin, Thomas Benedict, John Bayley, Jolin Booth, Thomas Brush, John Budd, Henry Case, Roger Ches- ton, Richard Clark, John Conklin, Thomas Cooper, Matthias Corwin, Philemon Dicker- son, Jeffry Easty, John Elton, Frost, Charles Glover, James Haines, Peter Hallock, (?), John Herbert, Josiah Hobart, Barnabas Horton, Thomas Hutchinson, John Ketcham, Thomas Mapes, Thomas Moore, Humphrey Norton, Thomas Osman, Isaac Overton, Peter Paine, Edward Petty, John Peakin, William Purrier, James Reeves, Thomas Rider, Will- iam Salmon, Thomas Stevenson, John Swezy, Richard Terry, Thomas Terry, Thomas Ter- rill, John Tucker, Henry Tuthill, John Tut- hill,* John Underhill, Jeremiah Vail, William

Wells, Abraham Whittier, Barnabas Wines, Rev. John Youngs, Colonel John Youngs, Jo- seph Youngs.

To give an account of each of these would take us far beyond our limits, and a brief no- tice of a few of the more important names must suffice. The leader, Rev. John Youngs, had five sons-Colonel John, Thomas, Joseph, Benjamin and Christopher-and daughters Anne, Mary and Rachel. His son. Colonel John had arrived at man's estate at the time of the settlement, and until the end of his life was the foremost man of the colony.

Barnabas Horton was without doubt one of the original company who came with Mr. Youngs. He was born at Mousely, in Leices- tershire, England, in 1600. After coming to this country he is said to have lived at Hamp- ton, Massachusetts, till 1640, when he joined the church organized by Mr. Youngs. He had sons Joseph, Benjamin, Caleb, Joshua and Jonathan, and daughters Hannah, Sarah and Mary. In 1654, 1656 and 1659 he was a depu- ty from Southold to the court of New Haven. He was admitted freeman of the Connecticut colony in 1662, and was deputy in 1663 and 1664. His name occurs as one of the pat- entees of the town in 1676, and he was inti- mately connected with all public affairs till his death. His tomb in the churchyard in South- old is covered with a slab of blue slate, said to have been imported from his native place and bearing the following inscription :

"Here lieth buried the body of Mr. Bar- nabas Horton, who was born at Mousely, Lei- cestershire, Old England, and died at South- old on the 13th day of July, 1680, aged eighty years.

"Here lies my body tombed in dust,

Till Christ shall come and raise it with the just. My soul ascended to the throne of God, Where with sweet Jesus now I make abode. Then hasten after me, my dearest wife,

*From this pioneer a recent local genealogical writer traces the descent of the late President Benjamin Har- rison, as follows:

I. John Tuthill. Jr., of Southold, son of Henry Tuthill, of Tharston. England, and Hingham, Mass., was born July 16, 1635, and married Deliverance, daugh- ter of William and Dorothy King.

II. Henry Tuthill, of Southold, born May 1, 1663, married Bethia, daughter of Captain Jonathan Horton. III. Henry Tuthill, of Southold, born 1690, mar- ried Hanna Bebee (or Crouch).

IV. Henry Tuthill. of Aquebogue, born before 1715, married Phoebe Horton.

V. Anna Tuthill, born 1741, married John Cleves Symmes.

VI. Anna Symmes married President William Henry Harrison, son of Benjamin Harrison, signer of the Declaration of Independence, and for three terms Governor of the State of Virginia.

VII. John Scott Harrison married Lucretia K. Johnson.

VIII. Benjamin Harrison, late President of the United States, born August 20, 1833, died March 13, 1901.

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SOUTHOLD.

To be partaker of this blessed life. And you, dear children all, follow the Lord ; Hear and obey His public sacred word, And in your houses call upon His name, For oft I have advised you to the same. Then God will bless you with your children all, And to this blessed place He will you call."

"Heb. xi. 4-He being dead, yet speaketh."

William Wells, who was second to none in influence, is said to have come from England June 19, 1635, in the same ship with John Bay- ley, another of the early settlers. The first notice of him on Long Island is the following entry in the records of Southampton : "March 15th, 1643, William Wells, Gent., was cen- sured for some unreverent speeches to Daniel Howe, who confessed his offence and prom- ised reformation." In 1646 his name appears in the same records among a list of men who had evidently abandoned the settlement. The exact time at which he became a settler at Southold is unknown, but he was a resident here before 1649. He was a native of Nor- wich, England, and was born in 1608. Throughout his life he was the legal authority of the town, and pre-eminently the business man of the place, and it was through him that the purchases were made from the Indians of the region of Cutclrogue, Mattituck and Ockabock, including the town of Riverhead. As the inscription on his tomb narrates, he was a "justice of the peace and first sheriff of Yorkshire," being appointed to that position by Governor Nicolls in 1664. He died No- vember 13, 1671, aged sixty-three, and left a wife Mary, who afterward married Thomas Mapes. His first wife, Bridget, was the widow of Henry Tuthill, and had the follow- ing children: William, Joshua, Mary, Bethia and Mehetabel. His tomb may still be seen in the old burial ground, and after a lapse of two centuries is in a perfect state of preserva- tion, thanks to the reverent care of his descend- ant, the late William H. Wells. The magnifi- cent genealogical work, "William Wells, of Southold, and His Descendants," by Rev. Charles Wells Hayes, contains a full account of this illustrious man and his family.

John Budd, according to Moore's "Index," was in New Haven in June, 1639, and signed an agreement as a freeman. He is reputed to have been one of the original company of settlers. The first actual knowledge we have of his presence on Long Island is in October,

1644, when we find this entry in the South- ampton records: "Mr. Jones hath the lott granted unto him which was formerly granted unto John Budd of Yeanocock" (Southold). This clearly indicates that he was a dweller there at a very early date. In 1645 "it is ordered that John Budd shall have graunted unto him 4 Acres of new ground adjoining to his other 4 acres, to make up an 8-acre lott." In 1650 he is mentioned in Southamp- ton as the owner of a water-mill and as run- ning the same, and he is called "Lieutenant." In 1651 he appears as plaintiff in a suit against John Hubbard, but after that his name occurs no more. It is certain that he was a land owner in Southold in 1649, and left a large estate to his son John, who was one of the wealthiest men in the town. In 1657 he was deputy from Southold to New Haven. He removed to Westchester county about 1660, probably on account of some difficulty with his neighbors, and died there previous to 1670. He had children John, Joseph and Judith. None of his descendants are now found in this town.

Thomas Cooper was not, as some of the historians of Southold suppose, the same per- son who was among the first settlers in South- ampton. The former died in 1658, leaving a wife Margaret and daughters Abigail and Mary, who married respectively Stephen Bay- ley and Elnathan Topping. The tombstone of Mary Topping is in the burying ground at Sagg (Bridgehampton), where she died April 26, 1704, aged sixty. Thomas Cooper left a large estate to his widow and daughters.

Matthias Corwin was doubtless an orig- inal settler. Previous to his settlement here he was a resident at Ipswich, Massachusetts. He was a man of the same rank as Colonel Youngs and Mr. Wells, and in 1656 was one of the men appointed to order town affairs, a position of great responsibility. He died in 1658, leav- ing two sons, John and Theophilus, and a daughter Mary, who married Henry Case, the ancestor of the numerous family of that name. The descendants of Matthias Corwin are wide- ly spread, and among them are to be found some who have held the highest positions in church and State.

John Conkling was not among the orig- inal company, but came here previous to 1651. Before this he was a resident of Salem. There are few families on Long Island that have ex- erted a wider influence. His brother Ananias

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

was the founder of the East Hampton family. From his son Timothy are descended the fam- ilies in the town of Huntington and the west- ern part of the county; while from his sons Jolın and Jacob are sprung the families in this town, and the name is found in all sections of our country. He is said to have been a native of Nottinghamshire, England. Tradi- tion states that lie and William Salmon, the proprietor of Hashamomack, were neighbors and playmates in their boyhood days, and this is supposed to have been the reason why after a short stay in 'Southold village he removed to the neighborhood of his former compan- ion. About 1661 he removed to Huntington, and died there about 1683, at the supposed age of eighty-three.

Few of the early settlers have left more distinguished descendants than Philemon Dickerson. In 1637 he came to America in the same vessel in which Minister Youngs had vainly attempted to obtain a passage. In 1639 he appears at Salem, Massachusetts, where in 1641 he was admitted as a freeman. He is supposed to have come to this town in 1646, but the date is unknown. He died in 1674, aged seventy-four, and left sons Thomas and Peter. From these are sprung a numerous posterity, embracing some of the most noted public men of the land. In 1651 Hon. Mahlon Dickerson, Secretary of the Navy, erected in the ancient burying ground of this village a massive monument to the memory of his an- cestors.

John Goldsmith, though not one of the first settlers, was a prominent citizen, and has left a numerous and respected posterity. He is supposed to have been the son of Thomas Goldsmith who was a resident in Southamp- ton in 1651, and was living there as late as 1677. In 1661 he bought of Richard Barrett his house and land. It was a part of this land that John Goldsmith sold to widow Margaret Cooper in 1678, in exchange for a lot in Cut- chogue. The deeds may be seen in vol. I print- ed records of Southold, p. 209, 210. He moved to this town at that time, and died in 1703, leaving children John, Richard, Nathaniel, Mary, Thomas, Daniel and Elizabeth.

Thomas Moore left England in 1635. In 1636 he and his wife Martha were admitted as members of Salem Church, and they came to Southold about 1650. In 1658 he was dep- uty from this town to the General Court at New Haven. He was appointed a Magistrate

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A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 156

Author: Ross, Peter. cn Publication date: 1902 Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1188

Author: Ross, Peter. cn
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1188