USA > New York > Kings County > Brooklyn > A history of the city of Brooklyn and Kings county, Volume I > Part 10
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BEFORE THE REVOLUTION
breed among the negroes at times a spirit of rebellion. They committed many murders in retaliation for injuries received.
At Newtown, in 1707, an entire family was murdered by the slaves. On being appre- hended, the murderers acknowledged their offense, and gave as a reason for committing the crime that they had been prevented from going out on Sunday. The punishment in- stituted for the murderous acts of slaves was calculated to fill them with fear and dread. They were even " tied to stakes and burned alive, broken on wheels, or suspended to the limbs of trees and left to perish." Seldom in the world's history has so much inhumanity been manifested towards slaves as in the early days of the colonies.
In 1706, Lord Cornbury issued the follow- ing proclamation to the justices of the peace in Kings County : -
By his Excellency, Edward, Lord Viscount Cornbury, Captain General and Governor in Chief of the provinces of New York and New Jersey, and the territories depending thereon in America, and Vice Admiral of the same, etc .: Whereas, I am informed that several negroes in Kings County have assembled them- selves in a riotous manner, which if not pre-
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vented may prove of ill consequence; you and every one of you are therefore hereby required and commanded to take all proper methods for seizing and apprehending all such negroes in the said county, as shall be found to be assembled in such manner as aforesaid, or have run away or absconded from their masters or owners, whereby there may be reason to sus- pect them of ill practices or designs, and to secure them in safe custody, that their crimes and actions may be inquired into; and if any of them refuse to submit themselves, then to fire on them, kill, or destroy them, if they can- not otherwise be taken; and for so doing this shall be your sufficient warrant. Given under my hand at Fort Anne, in New York, the 22d day of July, 1706.
CORNBURY.
Furman, in his " Antiquities," refers to the condition of slaves on Long Island, and bears testimony that as a general rule they were peaceable and well behaved. He says that they were much attached to the families to which they belonged. Many now living can bear testimony to this fact. When slavery was abolished in New York it was provided that all who had reached a certain age should remain with their owners and be provided dur- ing life with proper support and care. The
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BEFORE THE REVOLUTION
writer can now call to mind many old negroes who never obtained their freedom. They loved to talk of "massa " and the boys. They considered themselves a part of the family, and often idolized their owners. The master had in them true, warm friends, ever ready to fight his battles and take his part.
The aged negroes loved to sit in the chim- ney corner and tell to the children the history of the family. They would narrate in glowing language the incidents of the past, and always had eager listeners. They were rarely sold or separated from the family. When a son or daughter was married, a slave became a por- tion of the dowry or outfit. At times when estates were divided it became necessary to dispose of them. Furman says "that in an inventory taken on the 16th of December, 1719, in Kings County, of the estate of a de- ceased person, a negro wench and child were valued at {60, while five milk cows, five calves, three young bulls, and two heifers were col- lectively valued at {20."
New York was visited during the time of Lord Cornbury with that terrible scourge of the human race, yellow fever. It was brought from St. Thomas and spread rapidly. Physi- cians seemed powerless to prevent its ravages.
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It was an epidemic long remembered and dreaded by the citizens of New York. All who could get away fled either to Jersey or Long Island. Lord Cornbury, with his reti- nue, took up his residence in Jamaica, Long Island. In order to afford suitable accommo- dations for so high a dignitary as the Gov- ernor, the Presbyterian minister of the village cheerfully gave up his parsonage to his use, removing himself to a smaller and less preten- tious house.
In return for this act of kindness, Cornbury was guilty of a very contemptible trick toward the Presbyterian minister and church. The Governor was an uncompromising supporter of the Established Church of England, and was ready at all times to advance her interests. The Presbyterian church of Jamaica was strong and prosperous. Its popularity made the few Episcopalians in the village jealous and anxious to secure the property. The presence of Cornbury induced them to take possession of the building on a Sunday after- noon between services. This act resulted in violence between the parties, each of which claimed title. The pews were torn out, and the turmoil was only quelled by the appear- ance of the Governor, who decided that the Episcopalians were entitled to possession.
BROOKLYN CHURCH AND DUFFIELD HOUSE, 1776
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BEFORE THE REVOLUTION
A law suit followed, and the Episcopalians kept possession until 1728. The sheriff also seized the parsonage and land, and leased it for the benefit of the Episcopal Church. Corn- bury, having been kindly treated by the minis- ter, rewarded the act of courtesy by surrender- ing the house into the hands of the Episcopal rector, who took possession and occupied the house when Cornbury returned to New York.
Cornbury was succeeded in 1710 by Robert Hunter, who was a man of fine abilities, good character, possessed of excellent business quali- ties, and of a varied experience. He was one who in our day would pass for a very good Yankee. He was born of humble Scotch par- ents, who had not the means to supply him with an education. He was in a great mea- sure a "self-made " man. When very young he was apprenticed to an apothecary. This employment not suiting his taste, he ran away and enlisted in the army as a private. Possess- ing honesty and perseverance, and withal hav- ing a desire to please his superior officers, he soon gained their affection and good will, and was placed in the line of promotion. His manliness gained him friends everywhere, and in a short time the poor Scotch lad rose to the rank of a brigadier general. He was now
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thrown into the society of the cultivated and refined.
Hunter married an heiress, through whose instrumentality he was appointed Lieutenant- Governor of Virginia. He started for his new field of labor in 1707, was captured by a French cruiser and taken back to Europe as a prisoner. He was exchanged after having been a prisoner only a short time. What at first seemed to be a hardship in his case proved a blessing, and the precursor of higher honors. Upon being released the Queen re- moved the gall from the bitterness he had en- dured by bestowing upon him the position of governor of the provinces of New York and New Jersey.
Hunter considered it a paramount duty on his part to enforce the requirements of the Crown. In acting in accordance with their wishes he was compelled to oppose every man- ifestation of republican feeling on the part of the people, and to ally himself with the aris- tocratic party. He chose his councillors from this party, but was careful to select men of in- telligence and power. Among his first advisers might be mentioned Gerardus Beekman, Rip Van Dam, an honest and successful Dutch merchant; Killian Van Rensselaer, whose
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family were patroons on the Hudson. The Huguenots were represented in his Cabinet by John Barbarie and Frederic Philipse. Hunter was deeply interested in the Huguenot ele- ment of the population.
Governor Hunter had a fixed desire to acquire additional territory for his Queen. He projected an expedition to conquer Canada, and used his influence to induce New Eng- land to join in the enterprise. This was in 17II. It was a measure which met with hearty acquiescence in New York. The attention of the Assembly was brought to the subject, and at once an appropriation of ten thousand pounds was made to defray the necessary ex- penses. The Assembly issued bills of credit, and they may be said to be the beginnings of paper money in our country, as such notes had never before been used in the colony.
In 1712, after the failure of the expedition for conquest, rumors of an intended negro rebellion were heard on every side. It was noticed that the movements of the slaves were mysterious, and the general opinion was that the slaves intended to cause a riot ; and a nat- ural alarm spread through the communities on Manhattan Island and on the Brooklyn side of the river. These fears were not unfounded.
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The smouldering fire burst out into a flame. Property was destroyed, one house was burned, and several white men were killed. It was re- solved to make a general arrest of the negroes. Nineteen were taken, tried, and executed for their connection with the disturbance.
In 1713, the war between England and France terminated by the treaty of Utrecht, which put an end to the effort to conquer Canada.
Hunter's health failing, in 1719, after a term of nine years, he was obliged to seek a change of climate, and returned to England, leaving the administration of affairs in the hands of his trusty friend, Peter Schuyler. He bade adieu to New York in July, 1719, bearing with him the good wishes of the people.
Schuyler's official career was short, lasting but one year. His long residence and connec- tion with public matters proved of service to himself and the people he governed, and ren- dered his short administration eminently suc- cessful. He exercised great influence with the Indians, having ever shown himself to be their friend and protector, and having on many occa- sions interceded with them, and thereby saved the settlement from invasion and destruction. One of his principal and most worthy acts was
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the restoration of friendship between the whites and Iroquois Indians, which gave him deserved popularity.
The next governor was William Burnet, a son of the celebrated Bishop Burnet. He arrived on the 17th of September, 1720, imme- diately assumed control and entered upon his duties as governor of the combined provinces of New York and New Jersey. He was a man of education and ability, and above all things else was thoroughly honest. He readily saw that the wisdom and prudence of Hunter had been beneficial to the colony, and he resolved to follow the same course his predecessor had pursued. One of his first acts was to con- tinue the Assembly which had been convened by Hunter, and he kept it in existence for eleven years. The Assembly manifested its confidence and gratification by voting him a revenue for the succeeding five years.
It was soon after the opening of Burnet's ad- ministration that the people of Brooklyn and Kings County began to give signs of annoy- ance and agitation over encroachments made by private owners upon the king's highway leading from the ferry, and now represented by Fulton Street. This highway, as we have seen, had been laid out in 1704, by the duly
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constituted commissioners, and it was pro- vided " that it was to be ffour rod wide and to continue forever."
In April, 1721, the General Sessions of the Peace for Kings County held its term, and, after a due consideration of the question, in- dictments for encroaching on the "common highway of the King leading from the ferry to the church," were found against John Rapalje, Hans Bergen, and others. It appears very singular that these indictments were obtained at the instance and upon the complaint of two of the indicted parties.
The complaint on which this indictment was obtained was as follows : -
Flatbush, April 19, 1721. John Rapalje and Hans Bergen of the fferry desires of the Grand Jury that the Commissioners own being should be presented for not doing there duty in laying the King's highway according to ye law, being the King's highway is too narrow from the ferry to one Nicolus Cowenhoven living at Brooklyn, and if all our neighbours will make ye road according to law, then ye said John Rapalje and Hans Bergen is willing to do the same as aforesaid, being they are not willing to suffer more than their neighbors. As witness our hands the day and year first above written.
JAN RAPALJE. HANS BERGEN.
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These men were governed by a desire that all should fare alike, demanding that the law should be enforced without fear, favor, or par- tiality.
Some of the persons indicted, in connection with others who felt aggrieved and feared that they also might be placed in a similar un- pleasant position, applied to the Colonial Leg- islature, and secured the passage of a law on the 27th of July, 1721, "to continue the com- mon road or King's highway from the ferry toward the Town of Breuckland, on the Island of Nassau, in the Province of New York." The preamble was as follows: " Whereas, Sev- eral of the inhabitants on the ferry on the Island of Nassau, by their petition, preferred to the General Assembly, by setting forth that they have been molested by persecutions, occa- sioned by the contrivance and instigations of ill and disaffected persons, to the neighbor- hood, who would encroach upon the buildings and fences that have been made many years, alledging the road was not wide enough, to the great damage of several of the old inhabit- ants, on the said ferry, the said road as it now is, has been so for sixty years past without any complaint either of the inhabitants or travel- lers."
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The remaining sections of the law estab- lished the road " forever," as it then existed, from the ferry upward to the town of Breuck- land, as far as the swinging gate of John Rapalje, just above the property belonging to James Harding. The unwillingness of the early settlers to part with their land, when land was so cheap, accounts in a great meas- ure for our present narrow and crooked street. These early settlers, in their opposition to the widening of the street, might have desired to preserve some favorite fruit or shade tree. It has been given as a reason why Broadway, New York, makes a turn or diverges at Grace Church, that a Dutchman had a favorite cherry tree on the line of the thoroughfare as pro- posed, and, if the street was continued in a direct line, the tree would have felt the wood- man's axe.
Another provision of this enactment was the privilege it gave that, if a majority of the in- habitants of the town should "adjudge that part of the road near to the ferry to be too narrow and inconvenient," they could take proceedings to have it widened. In order to secure this improvement, " they might cause the sheriff to summon a jury of twelve men to appraise the value of land to be taken, and the
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amount of value so ascertained should be levied upon the towne, and collected and paid to the owners of the land so appropriated to street purpose."
This provision of the law was never en- forced. The people seemed to rest content with their narrow, winding, crooked lane, which in those days resembled a cow-path. The " swinging gate " referred to, is said to have been located on the rise of the hill at or near the junction of Sands and Fulton streets.
The commissioners of highways laid out another important highway or road on the 28th of March, 1704. It led to the public landing place at the mills of Nehemiah Den- ton at Gowanus. The record of this road is as follows : -
" One common highway to Gowanus Mill, to begin from the northeast corner of Leffert Peterses ffence, and soe along the road west- erly as it is now in use, to the lane yt parts the lands of Hendrick Vechte, and Abraham Brower and Nicholas Brower, and soe all along said lane, as it is now in ffence to the house of Jurian Collier, and from thence all along the roade, now in use to the said Gowanus Mill, being in all four rod wide to the said lane, and that there be a convenient landing place for all persons whatsoever, to begin ffrom said
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southermost side of said Gowanus Mill house, and ffrom said house to run ffour rod to the southward, for the transportation of goods, and the commodious passage of travellers; and that said highway to the said Gowanus Mill ffrom said house of said Jurian Collier, shall be but two rod only, and where it is now in use said common highway to be and continue forever ; and ffurther that the ffence and gate that now stands upon the entrance into said mill neck, shall soe remain and be alwayes kept soe enclosed with a ffence and hanging gate; and the way to said mill to be thorou that gate only, and to be alwayes shutt or put to, by all persons that passes thorou."
In 1709 another road 1 and landing place had been laid out at or near the mill of John C. Friecke.
Brooklyn's political fortunes were at this period so intimately connected with those of New York city that the political history of one is, in general, the political history of the other; yet Brooklyn and Kings County held suffi-
1 The description of this road in the records is as follows : " One common highway to begin ffrom the house of Jurian Collier to the new mill of Nicholas Brower, now sett upon Gowanus Mill neck soe called, as the way is now in use, along said neck to said mill to be of two rods wide, and that there shall be a landing place by said mill in the most convenient place ffor the transportation of goods, and the commodious passing of travellers ; and said highway and landing place to be, remaine and continue forever."
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ciently aloof to justify the omission of any particular chronicle of the administration of Burnet and its quarrels with the French, or the circumstances attending the Governor's transfer to Massachusetts by George II.
The next Governor, John Montgomerie, was instructed to continue the policy of Hunter, but he had not the firmness to do so.
The principal event in Montgomerie's ad- ministration, and one which is held in lasting remembrance in New York, was the grant of an amended charter to the city in 1730. This charter, as well as the Dongan charter, of which it was an amendment, is one which has always been of interest to Brooklyn, as it claimed to fix the limits of the city of New York. The limits thus embraced in the char- ter extended to low-water mark on the Long Island shore.1
On the death of Montgomerie, in 1731, the Governorship passed temporarily to Rip Van Dam, senior member of the Council, in whose accession the Dutch elements in New York and Kings County rejoiced greatly.
Colonel William Crosby, who became Gov- ernor in 1732, was guilty of infamous tyrannies and usurpations, as in the Van Dam trial, and
1 For comment on Brooklyn's claims, see appendix.
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later in the persecution of John Peter Zenger, publisher of the "Weekly Journal," a news- paper started in opposition to the adminis- tration " Gazette" and to voice the popular opposition.
Under Crosby's instigation the Council pro- mulgated an order directing that the papers containing the obnoxious articles should be burnt by the hangman at the pillory. When this order was presented to the Quarter Ses- sions the Aldermen protested strongly against it, and the court thereupon refused to allow it to be entered on the records. The Re-
corder, Francis Harrison, was the only one who attempted to defend it, and he based its regu- larity upon former English precedents. The court also refused to allow the hangman to execute the order, and it was carried into effect by a negro slave, hired for the purpose. The negro did his work in the presence of the Re- corder and other partisans of the government. The magistrates, with great and commendable unanimity, refused to attend, and evidently con- sidered that the whole proceeding was but on a par with the former actions of the adherents of the Crown.
The burning of the papers did not satisfy the aristocratic party. They desired to be
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avenged, and, thirsting for a victim, shortly after caused the arrest of Zenger on the charge that he had been guilty of publishing treasonable and seditious libels against the Government and her representatives. He was imprisoned on this complaint, and, while in jail awaiting the action of the grand jury, was treated in a cruel and inhuman manner by his jailers. The ordinary courtesies usually granted to uncon- victed men were denied him. He was even refused the use of pen, ink, and paper. The jail of the city at that time was in the City Hall, in Wall Street. Here Zenger was im- prisoned.
Application was made by his friends to have him submitted to bail, and for the purpose of having the amount fixed, he was brought be- fore the court on a writ of habeas corpus. The court required him to give bail in the sum of £400, with two additional sureties in the sum of {200 each. This was virtually a denial of bail, as he could not procure the requisite amount. In his endeavor to get his bail re- duced, he swore that he was not worth, exclu- sive of his trade tools, the sum of £40. On this affidavit he was remanded to his place of confinement.
The trial of Zenger occasioned great excite-
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ment on both sides of the East River. The acquittal brought immense enthusiasm and lavish honors on Andrew Hamilton, who bril- liantly defended the popular publisher.
In the Assembly called in 1737, under Gov- ernor Clarke, Kings County was represented by Samuel Garretson, Abraham Lott, and Johannis Lott.
Brooklyn's population in 1738 was 721. In the same year the population of the other set- tlements was as follows: Flatbush, 540; Bushwick, 302; New Utrecht, 282; Flat- lands, 268; Gravesend, 235.
The breaking out of virulent smallpox in New York brought the Assembly of 1745-46 to Brooklyn, a matter of momentous interest to the little hamlet. The house of "Widow Sickle " was honored by the Assembly as a place of meeting, and its great room was so occupied for several months.
During Governor Clinton's term smallpox appeared a second time in New York (in 1752), and the Colonial Assembly again sought quar- ters in Brooklyn in which to hold their delib- erations. The Legislature chose a house on Fulton Street near Nassau. It was at this im- portant session that, on the 4th of June, 1752, the Colonial Commissioners canceled bills of
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BEFORE THE REVOLUTION
credit, issued by the Colony of New York, amounting to the sum of £3,602 18s. 3d. The Assembly manifested no little acrimony toward the Governor and displayed a grow- ing feeling of independence.
This independence of the representatives of the people appeared with increasing frequency, and signs of it so preyed upon gloomy Sir Danvers Osborne, who succeeded Clinton, that he hanged himself with a handkerchief in his garden, shortly after his inauguration, leaving Lieutenant-Governor DeLancey1 to assume control of the government.
1 To DeLancey belongs the honor of signing the charter of Columbia College in New York, first known as Kings College, an institution in which Brooklynites have always taken a deep interest. Among her graduates from Brooklyn may be men- tioned the ex-mayor, ex-senator, and ex-minister to the Hague, Henry C. Murphy, who graduated in 1830. The Hon. Alex- ander McCue, of the City Court, was the valedictorian of the class of 1845. Ex-supervisor William J. Osborne, Henry C. Murphy, Jr., George I. Murphy, Richard M. De Mille, John Lockwood, of Lockwood's Academy; George W. Collard, the erudite professor of languages in the Polytechnic ; Stewart L. Woodford, and Edgar M. Cullen all graduated from Columbia. Beside these might be mentioned John L. Lefferts, Van Brunt Wyckoff, ex-mayor Edward Copeland, who graduated in 1809; the late Samuel E. Johnson, ex-county judge, who graduated in 1834, and the late Rev. Stephen H. Meeker, who for fifty years was pastor of the old Bushwick Church. Among the clergy who enjoyed her academic shades might be men- tioned the late Rev. Dr. Dwight, who for many years was pas- tor of the Joralemon Street Dutch Church; the Right Rev. Henry Ustick Onderdonk, at one time rector of St. Ann's Church and subsequently bishop of Pennsylvania ; Rev. Dr.
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Meanwhile one phase of Long Island's re- lations to New York should not escape notice. The position of Long Island made it natural that New York should look to it as in a mea- sure a bulwark against attack from the sea, and various governors displayed an interest in repairing those harbor fortifications which rested on the Island.
Governor Clarke addressed the Legislature, in 1741, in the following terms: "There is great reason to apprehend a speedy rupture with France; your situation ought therefore to awaken you to a speedy provision against that event, in fortifying the town in a better manner than it is at present by erecting bat- teries in proper places upon some of the wharves facing the harbor, others upon the side of the Hudson River adjoining the town, and one at Red Hook, upon Long Island, to
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