A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 74

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 74

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THE DEATH GRAPPLE OF THE STRUGGLE.

Cloth Manufacturer ; George W. Robbins, Tin Ware Manufacturer ; Charles B. Tatham, Lead Pipe Manufacturer; H. B. Whitty, Carriage Manufacturer ; R. L. Allen, Agricultural Im- plement Manufacturer ; Hiram F. St. John, Axe Manufacturer ; F. S. Otis, Hoop Skirt Manufacturer ; W. B. Higgins, Soap and Can- dle Manufacturer ; Thomas Carrell, Tobacco- nist ; David Fithian, Sash and Blind Manufac- turer; John S. Loomis, Moulding Manufac- turer ; A. G. Hicks, Pencil Manufacturer ; G. W. Hubert, Enamel Ware Manufacturer ; J. H. McWilliams, Lock Manufacturer; John Phillips, Charles H. Baxter, Whiting Manu- facturers ; Richard R. Flanders, Oil Manufac- turer ; and Julius Ives, Jr., Clothes Wringers. Eastern District: William H. Jenkins, Chair- man ; Samuel W. Truslow, Cordage; Thomas Rowland, Ship Builder; C. E. Bertrand, Su- gar; William W. Armfield, Coal and Wood; James A. Taylor, Iron; Charles W. Fellows, Gas Fixtures; Henry C. Richardson, Hard- ware; Joseph L. Heath, Builder; Eckford Webb, Ship Builder; A. Leininger, Glass Ware; William Tuttle, Brass; J. B. Wicker- sham, Iron Rails; Watson Sanford, Stoves; James Hall, Iron ; J. A. Heath, Cooper ; Joseph Wilde, Coffee; George Wiley, Machinist ; C. Dorflinger, Glass Manufacturer : W. Cabble, Wireworks; George C. Bennett, G. W. Plymp- ton, Hiram M. Warren, Joseph Reaves, Will- iam Coles and Christian Neidig.

Committee on Manufactures : Ladies- Mrs. A. Trask, Chairman ; Luke Hassington, Theo. Polhemus, Jr., John H. Prentice, Thom- as Messenger, David Wesson, A. B. Baylis, Coe Adams, Jos. Ripley, W. J. Miller, J. F. Whitney, A. F. Hazen, J. Curtis, J. P. Wick- ham, C. Baylis, A. Cruikshanks, Nathan Beers, E. E. Estes, W. Spelman, D. Caven, E. A. Biden, Smith Fancher, A. Jewett, E. L. Bush- nell, Peter Rice, L. B. Shaw, William Libby, C. H. Mills, Theodore Ovington, Miss Mary Cosnell, Mrs. F. H. Biglow, N. Curtis, E. J. Houlett, L. Burnham, Miss L. P. Henchman, Mrs. Charles Marvin, L. Thomae, P. Wyck- off, R. H. Manning, and Boyer.

Committee on Produce : Arch. Baxter, Chairman ; James P. Wallace, Sam A. Saw- yer, Smith J. Eastman, J. H. Holcomb, Curtis Noble, Seymour Burrell, George B. Douglas, Frederick Sherwood, Sidney Sanderson, Har- vey E. Hicks, Alex. E. Orr, Smith Fancher, W. D. Mangam, James G. Weld, Hugh Al-

len, Stephen W. Cary, George Tucker, Coe- Adams, and Franklin Woodruff.

Committee on Kings County Town Con- tributions: Gentlemen-John Lefferts, Chair- man; Jolın D. Prince, Tunis I. Bergen, Dr. J. L. Zabriskie, Dr. H. L. Bartlett, Robert R. Fox. William Matthews, E. H. Kimball, John L. Ryder, Robert Magan, William Couen- hoven, Benjamin. I. Hitchings, Bernardus I. Ryder, Charles R. Miller, Philip H. Reid, Rev. Mr. Van Buren, A. H. W. Van Sicklen, J. Ormiston Currie, Col. W. I. Cropsey and Sted- man Wright ; Ladies-Flatbush-Mrs. J. Van- derbilt, Chairman; J. A. Lott, J. V. B. Mar- tense, J. D. Prince, J. Lefferts, T. J. Bergen, Dr. Robinson, William Wall, J. M. Hood, W. Murphy, M. S. Scuyler. Windsor Terrace- Mrs. Hudson. Flatlands --- Mrs. A. Hubbard,. E. K. Kimball, P. Couenhoven, Doolittle, An- nie Lott. Gravesend-Mrs. M. G. Hanson, S. Garretson, E. Lake, J. Cropsy. Fort Hamil- ton-Miss Brown. Greenfield-Mrs. G. M. Close. Bay Ridge-Mrs. J. O. Perry, U. Tracy, J. Van Brunt, Fletcher, M. Musgrave, W. Sherman. East New York-Mrs. C. R. Miller, P. H. Reed, A. H. W. Van Sicklen. New Utrecht-Mrs. J. Crane and J. Van Brunt, Jr.

Committee on Long Island Contributions : Elias Lewis, Jr., Chairman; C. H. Vietor, Newtown; William Nicoll, Huntington; D. Bogart, Jr., Roslyn ; Hon. Elias J. Beach, Glen Cove; Isaac H. Cocks, Westbury ; S. B. Mes- sereau, Hempstead; James Rider, Jamaica ; C. S. Powell, Farmingdale ; W. W. & J. Rob- bins, Babylon; Havens & Prince, Shelter Island ; C. N. Brown, Sag Harbor ; J. Madison Hunting, East Hampton ; H. G. Reeve, Mat- tituck, etc .; Goldsmith & Tuttle, Cutchegen ; Hon. James H. Tuthill.

There is little need now to enter into any details of the fair : all that were interesting at the time have by the passage of the years lost their significance, and except in importance of results it differed little from similar fairs which had preceded and have followed it. Perhaps we might recall such labors as that of Dr. Storrs and Mr. Francis Williams in editing "The Drumbeat," the daily newspaper which recorded the story of the enterprise and added largely to its funds, or describe the New Eng- land Kitchen, where an old-time interior was

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

disclosed with ladies in attendance who were dressed up in the style of their grandmothers, where the spinning-wheel was seen in opera- tion, where the huge open fire, fed by logs, not only diffused warmth and thawed the most careworn face but cooked great pots of chow- der and of mush and lent its heat to side rang- es where were prepared huge dishes of pork and beans, brown bread, puddings and pies all "such as mother used to bake." But these are glimpses : to tell the story of the fair it would be necessary to use a volume, and it is only in the nature of things to confess that the telling would not repay in interest the reader, who would be wearied and certainly not much edi- fied.

But we have to deal with the.results. The fair closed on March IIth; and, when the re- turns were footed up and it was learned that $402,943.74 had been realized, it is safe to say that there was not a man or woman in Brook- lyn who did not feel proud of their city. Of the money thus realized $300,000 was at once paid over to the Sanitary Commission, and in acknowledging it the president of that body. Dr. Bellows, wrote: "As this is by far the largest amount ever put into our treasury at one time by any community, I feel that it de- serves the most marked expression of our grat- itude and wonder. * *

* Brooklyn, by the only thoroughly approvable kind of seces- sion, has henceforth declared her independence of New York. She has indicated her right and power to lead, and we shall no longer hear her spoken of as an appendix to the metropo- lis. She is, at least, entitled to be the second volume of that great work, the Commercial Capital, of which New York is the first." Certain it is that Brooklyn was no longer con- sidered by the county at large as merely an annex to the city on Manhattan Island.

The idea of cutting away from New York City fcund another expression a few days after the fair closed. Up to that time the Brooklyn contributions to the United States Christian Commission were paid through the

New York branch of that organization, an or- ganization that was doing a grand work among the soldiers and sailors in the front as well as in hospitals, forts and camps through- out the country. On March 10 a meeting was held for the organization of a branch of this . body for Brooklyn, and in this movement the following were active: Revs. James Eels, D. D .; R. S. Storrs, Jr., D. D .; John H. Raymond, D. D .; W. I. Budington, D. D .; J. B. Water- bury, D. D .; J. E. Rockwell, D. D .; Elbert S. Porter, D. D .; E. H. Canfield, D. D .; Samuel T. Spear, D. D .; Charles S. Robertson ; L. H. Mills; C. D. Foss; R. M. Hatfield; Theodore L. Cuyler; Wilbur F. Watkins; William S. Karr; E. Mills; Robert Lowery; Samuel B. Caldwell; Thomas H. Messenger ; Livingston K. Miller ; S. B. Chittenden ; Reuben W. Rog- ers; Henry Sheldon; Edward Cary; William J. Coffin, Edward A. Lambert; William A. Armfield ; James C. Southworth ; John D. Mc- Kenzie ; David Wesson; Lewis Morris; A. D. Matthews; R. L. Wyckoff; John G. Fay; Richard H. Cornwell; Benson Van Vleet ; Dwight Johnson; Walter S. Griffith. Before the close of the month these men had fully or- ganized the branch, and chosen Walter S. Grif- fith, president ; Rev. Dr. Eels, vice president ; Rev. Dr. Waterbury and William J. Coffin, sccretaries, and Samuel B. Caldwell, treasurer. It is difficult to estimate the amount of good accomplished by this organization, which was held to be representative, not alone of Brook- lyn but of all of Long Island. It was liberally sustained by gifts of money, books, newspa- pers, the work of sewing circles and by suit- able gifts of all sorts; it supplied ten chapel tents, at a cost of $5,000, each with a library, and it forwarded large collections of books to many of the hospitals; it sent Christian work- ers to the front and on the battleships, and carried the reputation of Brooklyn as a Chris- tian community right into the very fields where her sons had made the name honored for their gallantry, and it continued its mag- nificent work with unflagging zeal until the

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THE DEATH GRAPPLE OF THE STRUGGLE.

central body deemed the time had come that its labors should end.

Then there were many charitable agencies at work, showing how profoundly the local spirit of generosity was touched and how, as the war progressed, and men-under the im- pulse of patriotism, large bounties, liberal "hand" money and public as well as private payments to substitutes, and rewards even to those bringing in recruits to the recruiting stations-were being hurried to the front to meet the demand for drafts, the apparently in- satiable demand of the Government for "more," the public benevolence seemed to be- come month after month stronger and more generous and impulsive. The Woman's Relief Association continued its beneficent work with undiminished zeal, The Female Employment Society performed a rare service among the widows and orphans of deceased soldiers or among families made destitute by the removal of the bread-winner to the front, the Soldiers' Home Association also carried on a work of mercy and love, and in most of the churches were organizations-sometimes more than one -to aid the fighting man in some way to relieve the distressed, and to comfort those who mourned.

But it is no disparagement to the work of all such organizations, to the splendid achieve- ments of the Women's Relief Association, to. say that the greatest and most inspiriting power in all the charitable work of the time was the War Fund Committee. It was organ- ized on Sept. 11, 1862, and continued for three years or so after the war was over. The first members of this committee were J. S. T. Stranahan (president), A. A. Low. Hon. John A. Lott, H. E. Pierrepont, Isaac H. Frothing- ham, Cyrus P. Smith, William Marshall, J. D. Sparkman, Nathaniel Briggs, Martin Kalb- fleisch, John A. Cross, Walter S. Griffith, Conklin Brush, Seymour L. Husted, Abram B. Baylis, S. B. Chittenden, John H. Prentice and Alexander McCue. This body was afterward somewhat changed by the passage of time, but

as a whole those who were active in it at the beginning remained so to the end. Its aims were most comprehensive; its results were most effective. It raised regiments, aided dis- tress, fanned the flame of local patriotism, col- lected pensions, bounties and soldiers' pay and handed the money to the proper parties, for- warded letters to the soldiers and sent them nurses ; it aided widows and orphans, the sick and needy; it was practically an association formed to second the efforts of the Govern- ment, to assist the soldier and to help those dependent on him, and it nobly accomplished all that work. The committee may be said to have fittingly closed its mission by the erec- tion, on the plaza in front of Prospect Park, of the statue of Abraham Lincoln, which now adorns a fine site elsewhere in that beautiful pleasure ground.

The news of the assassination of Lincoln, on April 14, 1864, coming so soon after the in- telligence of the surrender of Gen. Lee's army at Appomattox on April 9 and the virtual clos- ing of the war had roused a jubilant spirit in Brooklyn, plunged the community into the deepest gloom. It was fully realized that an- other and most unexpected crisis had arisen, and all classes, all shades of political belief, joined hands in a common sorrow. Flags were everywhere lowered, public offices, courts and theatres were closed and mourning emblems were displayed on every side. On April 15 a mass meeting of citizens was held in the Acad- emy of Music under the auspices of the War Fund Committee, when the public sorrow and horror and indignation were fittingly voiced, and on the 26th a vast procession of citizens honored in spirit the obsequies of the nation's martyr.

But the keen edge of the sorrow passed, and soon the country was busy repairing in the new era of peace the ruin and havoc, the loss and sorrow, which the war had brought. In this grand work Brooklyn was as conspicuous as in the crisis she had been conspicuous in sending men and treasure withcut stint into

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HISTORY OF LONG ISLAND.

the arena. Soon the war became nothing but a hateful memory, except to those from whom it had taken near and dear ones and with whom the bitterness of the fateful years between Sumter and Appomatox remained until the end of life's weary journey. But the story of the war was to furnish in Brooklyn one more ceremony, in this case a gratifying one, and with it we may close this glorious, if tragic, section of our history.

On October 25, 1866, the city presented to each of its surviving heroes of the army and navy a simple silver medal, a trifling but sig- nificant emblem, which is now treasured as an heirloom in many a home all over the land. The presentation ceremonies were made the occasion of a grand military parade; and the entire proceedings, conducted by Mayor Booth on the historic slopes of Fort Greene, called forth all the enthusiasm of a people who in time of conflict and peril, of gloom and fore- boding, did at least what they could to aid in maintaining the honor of the Stars and Stripes and preserving the work of the fathers of the Republic. On the occasion of the presentation of these medals, three thousand veterans were "decorated" in the sense that French soldiers are decorated when they receive the ribbon of the Legion of Honor,-an idea neatly con- veyed by Mayor Booth when he said: "The medal we present bears with it that which money cannot purchase. It represents the heart and voice of 300,000 people: The small ribbon worn by the French soldier as a mark of heroic deeds is prized as highly as life itself. It bears evidence that the wearer has done something for the glory of France. The tes- timonial we present you to-day bears evidence that you have done very much for the cause of liberty and good government throughout the world." It was a day of triumph for the old soldier when he was thus honored by his fel- low citizens through their Chief Executive and in the presence of the Governor of the State (R. E. Fenton), Admiral Farragut and a host of men famous in national and local story. Dr.

Storrs delivered the inevitable oration, but it was a masterpiece of oratory, and ex-Mayor Wood, himself one of the veterans, made a fitting response on behalf of his comrades in acknowledgment of the praises which had been heaped upon them.

Gradually the war took its place in history and its public memories were confined to the ceremonies of Decoration Day, when in the various cemeteries the graves of the veterans who had passed away were decorated with flowers and the events of the days which fol- lowed the fall of Fort Sumter were recalled by orations in public places or less labored speeches beside many a little mound marked by a flag, beneath each of which rested one who had joined the mighty army above. On one of these occasions, in Greenwood, Mayor Seth Low suggested that Brooklyn should erect a memorial which should at once honor the dead soldiers of the Civil War and be a permanent reminder of Brooklyn's gratitude for the men who left her streets in the course of the conflict to fight for the Union. The sug- gestion was heartily taken up; but after several plans were talked over the matter seemed to be dropped. Finally the idea of a monumental arch struck the popular fancy and designs for such a structure were prepared by Mr. John D. Duncan, and approved. The money was readily raised, the corner-stone was laid in the Park Plaza in 1800, and the completed struc- ture was dedicated to the memory of the dead in 1892. That is to say, the arch proper was then completed, for since then it has been adorned by sculpture, notably figures by Mac- Monnies, until it now stands as one of the most beautiful memorials of its kind in the world. The Plaza, too, has been adapted to add to its effectiveness, and the scene of which it forms the most striking feature is not equalled in artistic beauty in any city in the old world, not even in Paris itself,-a city which prides itself on its wealth in stone and line and its architectural triumphs. Brooklyn truly has not proved ungrateful to or forgetful of those

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THE DEATH GRAPPLE OF THE STRUGGLE.

who represented her in the tented field or on the battleship when the fate of the Nation was at stake.

Many years have come and gone since the wage of battle between the States, but, al- though slowly dwindling, the number of sur- vivors of the terrible struggle who are still with us is considerable, and as members of the Grand Army of the Republic wield a great in- fluence not only on the well-being of those themselves to whom have come age and pov- erty, or on the well-being of the widows of those who have passed away, but upon the community in general.

The Grand Army of the Republic was founded at Indianapolis, in 1866, in the spirit of fraternity, charity, and loyalty. These con- tinue yet to he its watchword. The first Post in New York State was organized at Rochester, in December, 1866, and the fourth, Wadsworth Post, at Brooklyn, a few days later. In Brooklyn the Army has had a most beneficent influence over the fortunes of the old soldiers, procuring them employment, vot- ing them into office, and standing by them in seasons of trouble ; and, although at times the cry has been raised that the organization was lending itself to politics, it has never betrayed its watchwords to a comrade, no matter what his politics might be ; and while it has certainly sought to influence legislation the influence has

been exerted simply on matters pertaining to itself or its members. On two occasions it has come prominently before the public. The first was in the movement which culminated in the founding of the Soldiers' Home at Bath, which was started when Corporal James Tanner pledged his word that Brooklyn would raise towards such a home $10,000, and Brook- lyn made good the pledge, with some- $4,000 to spare. The second was in con -- nection with the funeral of Gen. U. S. Grant, when Post 327 of Brooklyn re- ceived his name and was part of the. guard of honor beside his bier at Mount Mc -- Gregor and held the most honorable place: around the casket containing the hero's re- mains as they were escorted through New York to the temporary tomb in Riverside Park. There are now thirty-three posts of the Grand Army in Brooklyn Borough, six in Queens county, three in Nassau county, and nine in Suffolk, making fifty-one in all on Long Island. The charitable works of these organizations. are well supplemented by those of the Wo- man's Relief Corps, of which there are sixteen on Long Island, and which render material. aid to the aged and poverty-stricken wives, mothers or widows of those New York men. who fought in the Union armies, and to the army nurses who rendered the Boys in Blue grand and never fully requited services in the hospitals and camps.

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CHAPTER XLI.

THE SPLENDID CLOSING RECORD.

MAYORS LOW, WHITNEY, CHAPIN, BOODY, SCHIEREN AND WURSTER-THE BRIDGE -SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS.

HE story of Brooklyn from 1882 until it assumed its place as one of the boroughs of the Greater New York is one that should be discussed in a volume rather than summarized in a chapter. It presents us with many details which are de- serving of thoughtful and extended study. To students of municipal government it shows the steps by which the principle of direct re- sponsibility was carried to its highest and clearest practical demonstration, and the prog- ress of the struggle between that principle and the efforts, unseen but unceasing, of the polit- ical machines to undo it. It shows a constant growth of a community in wealth, in culture, in art, in science, in education, in trade and commerce, a vast aggregation of people-the population increasing annually at a rate that seemed certain to make it in time exceed that of the "neighboring city" of New York -- and yet without any of the excrescences in the shape of open vice and looseness of morals which is generally such a blot on all great centres. A great commercial city without a stock ex- change ; a splendid water-front-large enough to serve a world's commerce and yet neglected ·except in sections. A vast storehouse of Gov- ernment property without any military or naval aristocracy, a city of churches, of shops, and of homes, a city of splendid distances, splendid buildings, honest aspirations, and yet preserving much of the characteristics of the

old village life; a city which was full of poli- ticians, but whose local affairs as a general rule were honestly managed ; a city whose mar- velous extension was immediately followed by a generous outlay, irrespective of immediate returns, so as to bring the extensions as soon as possible under city conditions, a city which could boast of all the concomitants of the high- er civilization,-all these things present them- selves for consideration along with a hundred others as we survey the closing twenty-five years of Brooklyn's civic history.

And yet over all as we read the record now, there pointed the inexorable finger of fate pointing to consolidation with the Island of Manhattan and so welding into one grand cor- porate body the two cities which had grown up side by side an 1 which, even in spite of old- time bickerings and jealousies had been helpful and necessary the one to the other. By consol- idation the city of Brooklyn disappeared and assumed the lower status of a borough, so did the city on Manhattan Island and the Greater City-the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Richmond formed a united community-a city destined to become the greatest in the whole world. Henceforth the story of Brooklyn is merged in that of the Greater New York, but its people believe that in the destinies of that grand city it will be the leading factor, the greatest of the boroughs in population and influence.

COPERINST

THEO C. MARCEAU.

Peña Lano

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THE SPLENDID CLOSING RECORD.

So we resume our study of the old city, taking up the story with the advent to power of the victor in the mayoralty campaign of 1881.

Seth Low stepped into the Mayor's office Jan. 1, 1882, after one of the most strenuously contested elections of which even the political history of Brooklyn has record. He was born in Brooklyn, Jan. 18, 1850, and belongs to a family which for over a century had held a leading place among the merchants of New York and the public-spirited citizens of Brook- lyn. He received a thorough education, com- mencing with his entry into the Juvenile High School on Washington street and closing with his graduation at Columbia College in 1870. Then he entered the firm of A. A. Low & Brothers, of which his father was then senior member, and in 1875 was assumed as a part- ner. Like so many of his family, he became deeply interested in the working out of munici- pal problems as they presented themselves in the local affairs of the city, and his naturally kindly heart led him first of all to try to effect some improvement of the work of charitable administration which was not only corrupt but inefficient and had for its real sufferers the poorest of the poor-the very class least able to help themselves. By his work and influence the Bureau of Charities was established in 1878 which strove, as it still strives, to system- atize the work of charity all over the city, to prevent deception, to aid the really deserving among the poor, to provide temporary employ- ment, to send visitors and nurses among the indigent, to investigate reports of cases of dis- tress and to promote a spirit of co-operation in charitable work among the various churches and benevolent organizations of the city. Its beneficent work is being extended year after year, it has its own lodging houses, day nurser- ies, wood-yards, laundries, and other accessor- ies and in 1900 it attended to 9,544 cases and expended on its work $21,858. It was while engaged in establishing this great experiment in charitable work that the name of Seth Low

first became prominent in Brooklyn ; and the straightforward way in which he conducted all the proceedings, the clear and logical man- ner in which he presented all the details and the business-like way in which the entire sub- ject was handled commended him to the favor of all good citizens of all shades of politics, for it was seen that one of the main issues of his plan was to separate charity from politics alto- gether. In other walks of life Mr. Low had given marked evidences of his business ability and tact, notably in committees of the New York Chamber of Commerce, and so when a desire arose in Brooklyn to take the affairs of the city out of politics and to run the munici- pality as a business institution and on a busi- ness basis it was felt that he of all men should be chosen to lead the movement to carry such ideas into effect. He accepted a nomination as Mayor on the distinct understanding that if elected he was to administer the office without regard to politics, and simply as a business man would run any trust committed to his care. The circumstances of the time were fa- vorable for such a change and the canvas pro- ceeded with much enthusiasm, its peculiar con- ditions making the calculations as to its result merely wild guesses on both sides until the ballots had been cast and counted. Mr. Low certainly fulfilled all his pledges and gave the people not only a purely business administra- tion but showed how the application of that principle meant honesty and economy all through the administrative bureaus even to the work of the humblest clerk. He was re- sponsible to the city, for his appointees and they in turn were directly responsible to him for the manner in which they conducted their offices, and that sense of personal and direct responsibility governed his entire administra- tion with splendid results. Of course his plain policy was criticized, criticized somewhat bit- terly at times, especially by the "war-horses" in both parties, but he held on in his own course and when, in November, 1885, he pre- sented himself as a candidate for re-election,

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A history of Long Island, from its earliest settlement to the present time, Part 74

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