USA > New York > Kings County > Williamsburgh > A history of the city of Brooklyn : including the old town and village of Brooklyn, the town of Bushwick, and the village and city of Williamsburgh > Part 15
USA > New York > Kings County > Bushwick > A history of the city of Brooklyn : including the old town and village of Brooklyn, the town of Bushwick, and the village and city of Williamsburgh > Part 15
USA > New York > Kings County > Brooklyn > A history of the city of Brooklyn : including the old town and village of Brooklyn, the town of Bushwick, and the village and city of Williamsburgh > Part 15
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After his return to Holland, Selyns remained unsettled for two years ; and in 1666, took charge of the congregation of Waverveen, near Utrecht, a rural village of no fame. In 1675, he became a chaplain in the army of the States; but with the exception of this temporary office, he seems to have passed sixteen years of his life in the obscurity of Waverveen, usefully and even contentedly employed ; for, in 1670, upon the death of Megapolensis, of New York, he declined a call from that church to become associated with Rev. Mr. Drisius in its charge. The Rev. William Nieuwenhuysen took the place thus declined, and subsequently, upon the death of both Nieuwenhuysen and Drisius, the call was so urgently renewed to Selyns that he accepted, and again left his native land to spend, as it proved, the remainder of his life in America. He arrived at New York in the summer of 1682, and was received "by the whole congregation with great affection and joy." Selyns now occupied a position among the churches of the colony which was commensu- rate with his talents. His congregation possessed not only the advantage of being a metropolitan one, but it was the largest in numbers, and the most powerful in the social and political standing of its members. The times, also, were critical in respect to the eccle- siastical affairs of the Dutch; for, during his absence in Holland, the political and ecclesiastical relations of the province had entirely
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HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
changed. British rule, while it allowed the Dutch to enjoy liberty of conscience in divine worship and church discipline, gave no legal sanction to the special authority of the Classis of Amsterdam over the churches of the Reformed Dutch faith. Still, the ecclesiastical authority of the Classis continued to be exercised and acknowledged among the Dutch themselves, as before the conquest. Ministers still received their appointment and ordination from that body, and rendered an account of their stewardship thereto. In the corre- spondence which was thus maintained between the colonial ministers and their Classis, the letters of Selyns hold no inferior position, not only for the historic light which they throw upon the public and religious affairs of the day, but for the catholic spirit which they exhibit towards other denominations and ministers. "In his confi- dential intercourse with his superiors, he might be expected to have exhibited some sectarian spirit in regard to their progress or merits ; yet we find nothing of the kind in them, but, on the contrary, expressions of satisfaction at their success ; and where he does con- demn, it is easy to be seen that he does so on no narrow or selfish grounds. A character so liberal and amiable could not help endear- ing him to those around him, and inviting their confidence. We find him, accordingly, not only beloved by his own congregation, but on terms of friendship with the heads of the government and his colleagues in the other churches in New York, and in correspondence with distinguished men in the neighboring colonies. He was prob- ably known to the ministers at Boston, at the time of his first resi- dence in New Netherland, as we find among his poems one in Latin, upon some verses addressed by the Rev. John Wilson, the first minister of Boston, to Governor Stuyvesant. But his correspondence with them after his return to New York was frequent."
Troublous days, however, came to Dominie Selyns with the revo- lutionary outbreak which placed Jacob Leisler at the head of the government. It was natural that Selyns, as well as the other min- isters, should look upon Leisler as a usurper, and that they should throw all the weight of their influence against him and his party. But they committed the error of continuing their opposition to him after his power had been fully established ; thus themselves becom- ing traitors to his government, whom he felt justified in putting
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HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
down at any cost. Dellius was obliged to escape to Boston ; Varick, the minister of the four Dutch towns of Kings county, was impris- oned, tried, and convicted of treason, and sentenced to be deposed from his ministerial functions; Tesschenmaker was massacred at Schenectady, in February, 1690; and Van der Bosch, of Kingston, had been deposed previously ; so that Selyns was, for a consider- able time, the only Dutch clergyman on duty in the province. He " had committed no overt act rendering himself amenable to the law ; but he was in such close communication and sympathy with the leaders of the opposition, that he was constantly watched. He was suspected of concealing Bayard, and his house was searched by public officers, for the purpose of discovering him. His service in church, of which Leisler was a member, was interrupted by Leisler himself, who there threatened openly to silence him. His letters to Holland and elsewhere were stopped in transit, and opened by order of the government. His feelings of hostility to Leisler were aggravated, no doubt, in a large degree by these circumstances, and were carried by him to the grave itself. He was one of those who approved and recommended the carrying into execution the sen- tence of that popular leader, when Sloughter wisely hesitated, and desired to wait until he could obtain the views of the home govern- ment on the propriety of the act. While Leisler was lying in prison, the helpless subject of a political prosecution, and the proper object of consolation from the ministers of religion, Selyns preached a sermon against him, from the verse of the Psalmist : 'I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.' This proceeding on his part was, in the mildest view of the case, most injudicious and unwise. His opposition had already estranged from him the Leislerian portion of his congrega- tion. He affected to call them men of inconsiderable influence. They, nevertheless, refused to contribute to his salary; and the refusal continued, under this fresh provocation, for several years. He appealed to the Classis to interfere, and even sought, through that body, the mandate of King William, supposing that, as a Dutch- man, he could be induced by the ecclesiastical authorities at Amster- dam to compel the payment of his arrears. He intimated that he would, in consequence of withholding the salary, be forced to give up
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HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
his ministry here and return to Holland. The Classis, in a proper spirit, advised him to pacify and win back the alienated hearts of his flock, and to suffer and forget all in love; and also addressed a letter in the same spirit to the consistory and congregation. The difficulty was thus finally arranged," although the divisions which . arose at the Leislerian era laid the foundation of the political con- troversies which troubled the colony for more than a generation afterwards.
The great object of Selyns' labors, during the later years of his life, was the establishment of the liberties of his church by the pro- curing of a royal charter confirming its rights and privileges. This was at length accomplished, May 11th, 1696, by a charter under the royal seal, for the Reformed Protestant Dutch church in the city of New York, which is still in full force, and was virtually the charter of the Low Dutch Church in America.1 Selyns had now attained his sixtieth year. "He had labored faithfully, zealously, and success- fully. Amidst all his trials, no one had ventured to breathe a sylla- ble against the purity of his life and conversation, or his fidelity to the spiritual interests of his congregation, which had increased from 450 to 650 members during his ministry among them." In 1699, he received an assistant, in the person of Rev. Gualterus du Bois, of Amsterdam ; and shortly after, in July, 1701, he died at New York, in his sixty-fifth year. "In his domestic relations he appears to have been fortunate. Of his first wife we have already spoken. Upon her death, in 1686, he married the widow of Cornelius Steen- wyck, Margaretta de Riemer, whom he himself describes as 'rich in temporal goods, but richer in spiritual.' This lady survived him several years. He had one child, a daughter, by his first wife, born while he was at Breuckelen ; but from all omission of her name in his will, we infer she died while he was in Holland."
" His character, as we are able to view it through the long vista of time, and with an imperfect exhibition of its traits, presents him in a favorable light. He was a faithful and devoted minister, honest, sincere, and capable. He was learned in his profession, pious, and
1 Liber vii. 25, Sec'y State's office. This charter antedates that of Trinity church, which was granted May 6, 1697.
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HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
pure in his life. He was free from that narrow feeling which begets prejudice from mere difference of opinion. But he was fond of the exercise of power. He was persevering, and pursued his object with determination, and sought it sometimes for the sake of
Achim Brauchen in N. Nederl! Den 9 Juin. 1664
OnderdanigftS Broodtu in Christo Feri, Honricuş Selyns .
1
" HENRICUS SELYNS."
" Your Reverences'
Use Erwarring.
FAC SIMILE OF REV. HENRY SELYNS' SIGNATURE AND SEAL.
(Translation)-" Done at Breuckelen in N. Netherland, the 9th of June, 1664.
(Addressed to the Classis of Amsterdam.)
·
" Humble brother in Christ Jesus,
success, when, perhaps, a wise regard for the feelings of others would have led him to abandon it. He may be justly regarded as one of the founders of the Dutch Church in America, who did more
151
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
to determine its position in the country than any other man ; and in this circumscribed field, in which the great business of his life was concerned, his fame must mainly rest."
Although he corresponded extensively with men of genius and of learning, he never appeared as an author in print;1 and his only literary remains are contained in a little volume of poems, of which a pleasant selection, translated by our fellow-citizen, Hon. Henry C. Murphy, has been published in one of the elegant volumes of the " Bradford Club."" We have drawn freely, in our sketch of the first pastor of Breuckelen, upon the elegant and careful memoir which Mr. Murphy has there given.
1 Except as the author of a Latin poem eulogistic of the Rev. Cotton Mather's "Mag- nalia Americana," and which may be found, together with a translation, in the Hart- ford edition of that work (i. 23).
2 Anthology of New Netherland ; or, Translations from the Early Dutch Poets of New York, with Memoirs of the Authors. By Henry C. Murphy. New York, 1865 79-183.
152
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
CHAPTER V.
CIVIL HISTORY OF BREUCKELEN.
1664-1674.
AMONG the first subjects that demanded the attention of the new authorities of the Province of New York was the formation of a uni- form code of laws for the several plantations upon Long Island, now for the first time united under one and the same administra- tion. In those communities formerly known as the " English towns" the English common law very generally prevailed, while the civil code of the Dutch towns had been modelled on that of the Father- land. Fully alive to the difficulties which were incident to such a diversity of jurisprudence, the Governor convened an assemblage of delegates from the several towns, to deliberate upon and provide for the emergency. The Convention accordingly met at Hempstead on the 28th of February, 1665 (Breuckelen being represented by Fred- erick Lubbertsen and Jan Evertsen Bout), and then and there pro- mulgated a body of laws and ordinances for the future government of the province. Of this code, called by way of distinction the " DUKE's LAWS," copies were furnished to the deputies of each town, and duly filed in the clerks' offices of the several counties, where, or in some of them, they remain to the present day. These laws, with occa- sional additions and alterations, continued in force until the first Provincial Assembly, convened by Governor Dongan in 1683. De- signed to operate in a newly settled country, and among a popula- tion composed of different nationalities, holding various and con- flicting opinions concerning law and government, it was hardly to be expected that they would be satisfactory to all; yet they were, on the whole, as just and reasonable as those enjoyed by any of the neighboring colonies.
The delegates composing this Provincial Assembly were so favor- ably impressed with the Governor, and with his representation of the liberal intentions of the Duke of York towards his new subjects,
153
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
that they prepared and presented an address to his royal highness, abounding with expressions of loyalty and esteem. The people whom they represented, however, were far from being perfectly sat- isfied with some of the laws which had been adopted, and deemed the address of their deputies as too servile in its tone. So open and severe was the censure cast upon their action, that Government felt called upon to interfere ; and, at a court of assize held in Fort James, October, 1666, it was decreed, "that whoever thereafter should in any way detract or speak against the deputies signing the address to his royal highness, at the next general meeting at Hemp- stead, should be presented to the next court of sessions, and, if the justices see cause, they should then be bound over to the assizes, to answer for the slander, upon plaint or information."
At this Convention of 1665, Long Island and Staten Island were duly erected into a shire, called, in honor of the Duke of York, YORKSHIRE, which was further subdivided into separate districts, de- nominated Ridings ;- the towns now included in Suffolk County con- stituting the East Riding ; Kings County, Newtown, and Staten Island, the West Riding ; and the remainder of Queens County, the North Riding.
Nicolls retained the government of the province until 1668, and was then succeeded by Governor Francis Lovelace.
During their terms of office, Long Island, as well as the rest of the province, enjoyed a high degree of tranquillity and prosperity, and the records of that day contain little or nothing of interest con- cerning the town of Breuckelen.
In September, 1665, Governor Nicolls commanded the Constable and Overseers of Breuckelen to make proper provision for the horses of such persons as might come to Breuckelen and the Ferry to attend the assizes.1
In 1666, the town was directed to pay over the grain, collected for its rate, to Captain Delavall, in the city.2
February 7, 1666, the town of Jamaica having purchased from Indians a tract of land called Seller's Neck, lying southwest of Jamaica, had allowed the town of Breuckelen to have one-third of
1 Council Minutes, ii. 14. 2 Ibid., 110.
8 See Annals of Newtown, p. 63 ..
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HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
it, which the latter town had been somewhat dilatory in paying for. On the above-named day they were reminded of their delinquency by a special order from the Governor, which had its desired effect, as, on the 1st of March ensuing, they paid the sum of £12, being their third of the purchase.1
February 19, 1667, in a rate levied by the Governor on the towns of the West Riding, " for a Sessions House, which long since ought to have been provided," they were rated in the following pro- portion-
£
8. 04 05 d. Breuckelen
£
8.
d.
Gravesend.
16
15 03 11
Newtown
26
02 031
Flatbush
19 03
08
Bushwick 5 11 023
New Utrecht
7 00 00
Amersfoort
13 19
071
Staten Island. 6 14 10}
Total
£110 00 00
which was to be paid to Alderman Oloff Stevens, "in good corn.""
October 18, 1607, Richard Nicolls, Governor of New York, granted to the inhabitants of Breuckelen the following full and ample patent, confirming them in their rights and privileges :
L. S. "RICHARD NICOLLS, EsQ., Governor-General under his Royal Highness James Duke of Yorke and Albany, etc., of all his Territorys in America, To all to whom these presents shall come, sendeth Greeting- Whereas there is a certain town within this government, situate, lying, and being in the West Riding of Yorkshire, upon Long Island, commonly called and known by the name of Breuckelen, which said town is in the tenure or occupation of several freeholders and inhabitants, who, having heretofore been seated there by authority, have been at very considerable charge in manuring and planting a considerable part of the lands belong- ing thereunto, and settled a competent number of families thereupon. Now, for a confirmation unto the said freeholders and inhabitants in their
1 Council Minutes, ii. 129. See also Furman's Notes, 13 (note). At the annual town meeting, April, 1823, a committee was appointed to " discover and obtain possession of all common lands and meadows belonging to the town, which are lying at a place called Seller's Neck, in the town of Jamaica, in Queen's County." (Brooklyn Town Records, 1st Book, loose page.) We are uninformed as to what was the result of their investigation. Furman states his opinion that this Seller's Neck was apportioned among the freeholders, from the fact that, on May 10, 1695, John Damen, one of the patentees of the town, sold to William Huddlestone all his interest in the said meadow. 2 Council Minutes, ii. 198.
155
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
possessions and enjoyment of the premises, Know ye, That by virtue of the commission and authority unto me given by his Royal Highness, I have given, ratified, confirmed, and granted, and by these presents do give, rat- ify, confirm, and grant, unto Jan Everts, Jan Damen, Albert Cornelissen, Paulus Veerbeeck, Michael Eneyl (Hainelle), Thomas Lamberts, Teunis Guysbert, Bogart and Joris Jacobson, as patentees, for and on the behalf of themselves and their associates, the freeholders and inhabitants of the said town, their heirs, successors, and assigns, all that tract, together with the several parcels of land which already have or hereafter shall be purchased or procured for and on behalf of the said town, whether from the native Indian proprietors or others, within the bounds and limits hereafter set forth and exprest, viz., that is to say, the town is bounded westward on the farther side of the land of Mr. Paulus Veerbeck, from whence stretching southeast, they go over the hills, and so eastward along the said hills to a southeast point which takes in all the lotts behind the swamp, from which said lotts they run northwest to the River1 and extend to the farm, on the t'other side of the hill, heretofore belonging to Hans Hansen, over against the Kicke or Looke-out,? including within the said bounds and limitts all the lotts and plantations lying and being at the Gowanis, Bedford, Walla- boucht, and the Ferry .- All which said parcels and tracks of land and premises within the bounds and limits afore-mentioned, described, and all or any plantation or plantations thereupon, from henceforth are to bee, appertaine, and belong to the said town of Breucklen, Together with all havens, harbours, creeks, quarryes, woodland, meadow-ground, reed-land or valley of all sorts, pastures, marshes, runs, rivers, lakes, hunting, fishing, hawking, and fowling, and all other profitts, commodities, emoluments, and hereditaments, to the said lands and premises within the bounds and limits all forth belonging, or in any wise appertaining,-and withall to have freedome of commonage for range and feed of cattle and horse into the woods, as well without as within these bounds and limitts, with the rest of their neighbours,3-as also one-third part of a certain neck of meadow- ground or valley called Sellers neck, lying and being within the limits of
1 According to the New York doctrine, this boundary of the town can only be correct when the tide is flood ; for, when the water is low, the town is bounded by property belonging to the Corporation of the city of New York, and not by the river .- Furman's Notes, p. 12.
2 See ante, page 113.
8 This town enjoyed this privilege in common with the other towns on Long Island, and their cattle which ran at large were marked with the letter "N."-Furman's Notes, p. 13.
156
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
the town of Jamaica, purchased by the said town of Jamaica from the In- dians, and sold by them unto the inhabitants of Breucklen aforesaid, as it has been lately laid out and divided by their mutual consent and my order, whereunto and from which they are likewise to have free egress and re- gress, as their occasions may require. To have and to hold all and singu- lar the said tract and parcell of land, meadow-ground or valley, common- age, hereditaments and premises, with their and every of their appurte. nances, and of every part and parcell thereof, to the said patentees and their associates, their heirs, successors, and assigns, to the proper use and behoof of the said patentees and their associates, their heirs, successors, and assigns forever. Moreover, I do hereby give, ratify, confirm and grant unto the said patentees and their associates, their heirs, successors, and assigns, all the rights and privileges belonging to a town within this government, and that the place of their present habitation shall continue and retain the name of Breuckelen, by which name and stile it shall be distinguished and known in all bargains and sales made by them, the said patentees and their associates, their heirs, successors, and assigns, render- ing and paying such duties and acknowledgments as now are or hereafter shall be constituted and established by the laws of this government, under the obedience of his Royal highness, his heirs and successors. Given under my hand and seal at Fort James, in New York, on the Island of Manhattat, this 18th day of October, in the nineteenth year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord, Charles the second, by the grace of God, of Eng- land, Scotland, France, and Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, etc., Annoque Domini, 1667.
" RICHARD NICOLLS.
" Recorded, by order of the Governor, the day and year above written. " MATTHIAS NICOLLS, Sec'ry."
There was, unquestionably, a General Patent or Charter of this town under the Dutch government, which is now lost. The Nicolls Charter, above given, is evidently confirmatory of some such former part; and the same is also referred to by conveyances between individuals.
Adam Brouwer, of Breuckelen, miller, being complained of by the inhabitants, constables, and overseers of the town, that he would not at all times grind corn for some of them, " on frivolous pre- tences," and being apparently forgetful of former court action on a similar charge, was warned by Governor Lovelace (November 12,
1.57
HISTORY OF BROOKLYN.
1668), that as long as he should keep the mill, he must " grind for all persons, without distinction or exception, according to custom, the first come to be first served," under penalty.1
January 4, 1668, one Robert Hollis was granted the exclusive privilege of selling strong drink in Breuckelen.2
During this year, also, the little village-hamlet of Bedford® was
1 Brouwer, although a respectable citizen, in good circumstances, seems to have been rather fractious and troublesome at times, if we may judge from this and other items recorded concerning him. In February, 1667 (-8), he had been ordered under arrest for seditious speeches ; and in September, 1669, he was fined 500 guilders for an assault on Gerrit Coosen. (Council Minutes, ii. 282, 195, 537.)
2 July 18, 1669, Robert Hollis received a patent for a piece of land in Breuckelen, "lying and being to the south of Jan Martyn's, and the north of Jan Damen's, con- taining in breadth (an east line being run on each side) 40 rod, and in length 200 rod, in bigness about 26 acres or 13 morgen," sold in 1647, by Jan Misroel, to the said Hollis. (Council Minutes, ii. 320.)
3 The settlement of the locality, which retains, even at the present day, its ancient name of Bedford, seems to have commenced in 1662 ; for on the 18th of March, in that year, Jan Joris Rapalje, Teunis Gysbert (Bogaert), Cornelis Jacobsen, Hendrick Sweers, Michael Hans (Bergen), and Jan Hans (Bergen), made a humble request to the Direc- tor and General for " the grant of a parcel of free (unoccupied) woodland, situated in the rear of Joris Rapalje, next to the old Bay road." The request was granted to the suppliants, provided that they placed their dwellings " within one or the other concen- tration, which shall suit them best, but not to make a new hamlet." (N. Y. Col. MSS., x. Part i. 88. By this grant the parties are supposed to have obtained 20 morgen (or 40 acres) of land apiece at Bedford. (See also ibid., xxii. 145, 146 ; xxiv. 60.)
Feb. 18, 1666, a patent was granted to Thomas Lamberts, to confirm to him a cer- tain parcel of land lying in the Walleboght, within the limits of a certain village known by the name of New Bedford, on Long Island, " being on the south side of the land belonging to Jan Lourensen, and on the north side of that which belongs to Michael Hansen (Bergen) ; containing in breadth, 24 rods ; and in length, upon an east line, 500 rods : which in all, by estimation, amounts to about 40 acres of ground," as granted by Governor Stuyvesant, May 15, 1664, to said Lamberts.
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