USA > New York > Warren County > Queensbury > A history of the town of Queensbury, in the state of New York : with biographical sketches of many of its distinguished men, and some account of the aborigines of northern New York > Part 37
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2 Brandt ex dem Walton and others, against O. and D. Ogden, Caines's Reports, vol. III, p. 6, 1802. The question in issue seems to have been whether Fort Miller falls, or Baker's falls were the third fall on the Hudson river. At this trial Fort Miller was decided to be the third fall ; but at the next trial the decision was re- versed, and it was afterward irrevocably established that Baker's falls was the third fall on the Hudson river, which agrees with the field books and maps of early surveys. A rock at this point conspicuously marked as a monument was the starting point of the triangulations and surveys. See Brandt ex dem Walton against O. and D. Ogden, Feb., 1806, 1st Johnson, p. 156.
3 " Kayaderosseras is the name of the creek which flows into Saratoga lake, and of the mountain in which it arises, west of South Corinth, and of the colonial pa- tent covering creek, mountain, and a large tract of adjacent land, including about half of Saratoga county, and some of Warren."-Letter to the author from Judge Hay.
Copy of a Description of Kayaderosseras Patent from the Wing MSS.
" Kayaderosseras alias Queensbury, granted by Queen Anne, the 2d day of Nov., 1708 beginning at a place in Schenectady river about three miles distant from the south westerly bounds of Nistigione, the said place being the south-westerly corner of the patent then lately granted to Nanning Harmanse, Peter Fauconier, and others, thence along the said Schenectady river westerly to the southeasterly corner of a patent lately granted to William Apple, thence along the easterly, northerly and westerly lines of the said William Apple's patent down to the above said river, thence to Schenectady bounds, or the south-westerly corner of the said patent on the. said river, so along the easterly northerly and westerly bounds
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354
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF QUEENSBURY.
obtained in 1702 from two Mohawk sachems named Ter-jen-nin- ho-ge, or Joseph, and De-han-och-rak-has, or Hendrick. The grantees were Robert Livingston and David Schuyler; and the consideration, sundry goods, wares and merchandise. It was soon afterward alleged that the purchase was fraudulent, the chiefs signing the deed being intoxicated for that purpose, and in no way authorized by their tribe to dispose of the lands em- braced in the purchase, and that much more territory was claimed and subsequently granted by patent than was embraced even by this fraudulent conveyance. For upwards of sixty years, this transaction was a prolific source of anxiety to the Indians, and of reproach and trouble to the whites. At a council held with the lower castle of the Mohawks at Albany, Thursday, June 27, 1754, Lieut. Gov. James De Lancy presiding, the speaker in behalf of the Indians said :
" Brother, we are told a large tract of land has been taken up called Kayaderosseras, beginning at the half moon,1 and so along up the Hudson river, to the third fall and thence to the Cack- nowaga or Canada creek which is about four or five miles above the Mohawk, which, upon enquiry among our old men, we can- not find was ever sold, and as to the particular persons, many
1 thereof down to the said river again, thence along the said river up westerly to the south-easterly bounds of a tract of land then lately granted to Ebenezer Wil- son, and John Abeel, and so along the patent round to the south-westerly corner thereof up the said Schenectada river then continuing to run westerly up said Schenectada river to a place or hill called Tweetonondo being five miles distant or thereabouts from the south-westerly corner of the Wilson and Abeel's patent, thence northerly to the northwesternmost head of a creek called Kayaderosseras about fourteen miles more or less, thence eight miles more northerly, then easterly or northeasterly to the third falls on Albany river about twenty miles, more or less thence along the said river down southerly to the northeasterly bounds of Saratoga thence along the said Saratoga northerly, westerly and southerly bounds on the said river, thence to the north-easterly corner of Anthony Van Schaik's lands on the said river, so northerly and westerly along the said Van Schaik's patent to the north-east corner of the above said patent granted to Naning Har- manse, Peter Fauconier and others thence along the northerly and westerly bounds thereof down to the above said river of Schenectada it being the place where it first began, which said tract of land we have divided into twenty-five allotments viz : Allotment No. 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25, are controverted, and the remaining allotments, viz .: Allotment No. 1, 2, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, and 20, are not controverted, also the lots No. 1 and 2, distinguished in the map by the red stain, which together contain 21,350 acres we have set apart for defraying the charges of the partition."
(Not signed.)
1 " The arable land immediately above, (the Cohoes fall), they (the Dutch), de- noted as the Halve maan, the half moon, from its crescent like form along the hill on the western side."-Judge Benson in Munsell's Annals of Albany, vol. 2, p. 226.
355
THE KAYADEROSSERAS PATENT.
of them live in this town,1 but there are so great a number, we cannot name them."
This purchase was confirmed by letters patent from the crown in 1708 to thirteen patentees and contained by estimation about . 800,000 acres lying between the Hudson and Mohawk rivers. A great proportion of the land titles in Saratoga county, as also the western part of Warren county, are predicated upon this grant.2 The points in controversy were amicably settled in 1768, by the recession to the natives of a portion of the disputed ter- ritory lying near the Mohawk river,3 and the payment by the proprietors of 5,000 dollars for the remainder, extending on the Hudson (with the exception of two small patents previously issued) to the falls at Sandy Hill.
The word Kayaderosseras, is derived from the creek of that name, and signifies the crooked stream, which graphically de- scribes it.
Among the ancient landmarks connected with the survey of this tract, were a rock on the west side of the river near the foot of Baker's falls; a point near the Big falls in the town of Luzerne, Warren co .; and a towering pine, whose lofty crest, is at all seasons of the year conspicuous from the summit of the Palmertown mountain, about two miles north from Doe's Corners in the town of Wilton. The swerve of the river out of its general direction, from the Queensbury west line, to Baker's falls, left a gore containing upwards of two thousand acres, be- tween the north line of the Kayaderosseras patent, and the Hud- son river at and below Glen's Falls.
This tract afterwards became known as the Glen patent? It was at one time petitioned for, as appears by documents on file in the secretary of state's office at Albany, by Simon and John Remsen, on the 14th of September, 1769, and an order was issued in council for its conveyance on the 29th of Sep- tember, 1770. In the mean time, however, other claims were asserted as appears by the following :
1 Albany, where the council was being held.
2 In one of the road surveys, for the town of Queensbury for 1820, the north boundary of the Kayaderosseras patent is made the line of a newly relayed road .- Town records, p. 210.
3 "On the 15th of Jan'y, 1793, the legislature of this state appointed a commis- sion consisting of Egbert Bensen and Peter Curtenius of Dutchess, Samuel Jones of New York, Jesse Woodhull of Orange and Cornelius C. Schoonmaker of Ulster counties, to ascertain and settle the boundaries of the patent of Kayaderosseras and Half Moon.
356
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF QUEENSBURY.
" We the undermentioned subscribers do hereby certify that we, being associates in a certain purchase made from the Indians of the Mohawk Castle by John Glen jr., Philip Van Petten, Simon Schermerhorn, for all the vacant lands lying between Sacondago, Kayaderosseras and the river to the third falls,1 we hereby allow and agree, that John Glen jr. (a), is to have that part lying near the third falls on Hudson's river containing about fifteen hundred acres, we hereby allow, and agree with the said John Glen jr., that he may take out a special patent for the said tract of land.2
Seymen Schermerhorn,
Philip V. Van Petten,
Cornelius Cuyler,
Johannis Schermerhorn,
John Cuyler jr.,
Ryckart Vanfranken,
Cornelius Glen,
John Roseboom,
Henry Glen,
Chris. Yates, for myself and Jellis Fonda,
Abrm. C. Cuyler,
Seymon Joh's Veeder,
Harms. H. Wendell,
Deryk V. franken,
Aaron Van Petten."
Reyier Schermerhorn,
This petition was endorsed as having been granted on the request of Peter Remsen, in his own behalf and for Simon and Peter A. Remsen, and was succeeded by the following applica- tion :
" To the Honorable Cadwallader Colden, Esq., lieutenant governor, and commander in chief in and over the province of New York, etc., etc., etc. In council, Humbly showeth That your Petitioner and associates have made a purchase of all the vacant lands lying between the patents of Kaya- derosseras, Sacondago, and Hudson's river to the third falls on said river, your petitioners therefore Humbly Pray your Excellency will be pleased
1 Baker's falls on the Hudson river. A long and costly law suit in the early part of the century, hinged upon the question whether the third fall on the Hudson river applied to Baker's falls or the falls at Fort Miller. The question was ulti- mately decided to apply to the former, an opinion abundantly corroborated by all the earlier maps and surveys.
2 This tract had been petitioned for by John Glen and others as early as May 6th 1761, thus taking precedence in priority of the Queensbury patent. - Vide Calendar of N. Y. Land Papers,.p. 303.
(a) The original immigrant to this country bearing this name was Sander Leen - dertse Glen, who " was a servant of the West India Company at Fort Nassau, in 1633; received a grant of land there in 1651 ; also received a patent for a lot in Smit's Valey, New Amsterdam, in 1646, which he sold in 1660 ; was then called Coopman, of Beverwyck. In 1665, he obtained a patent for lands in Schenectady, which land, he called Nova Scotia, and became his permanent residence. He owned real estate in divers parts of Albany, and was a considerable trader with
357
THE GLEN PATENT.
to grant them a Patent for a small part thereof. Beginning at the third falls on Hudson's river, and so up the river till it joyns the line of Kaya- derosseras Patent and so along the line thereof to the third falls aforesaid, being the place of beginning, together with all the Islands in the said river opposite. And your Petitioners shall ever pray.1
JOHN GLEN JR. HENRY GLEN.
The Burnham family of this village have, in their possession, a lease engrossed on parchment, in which, on the 5th of Feb., 1772, John Glen conveys to Christopher Yates, the use for one
the Indians. His wife was Catalyn Doncassen or Dongan," by whom he had three sons, Jacob ; Sander ; and Johannes. He died 13th Nov., 1685.1
Capt. Johannes, son of the above, was born 5th Nov., 1648. / He " settled in Schenectady ; married firstly, Annatie, daughter of Jan Peek, May 2d, 1667. She died 19th December, 1690. He married secondly Diwer, daughter of Evert Janse Wendel, and widow of Myndert Wemp, June 21, 1691, in Albany. She died April 10, 1724; he died Nov. 6th, 1731. He built the present Sanders mansion in Scotia, in 1713, and occupied the same until his death. His property was spared when Schenectady was burned, by order of the governor of Canada, for kindness shown to French prisoners captured by the Mohawks." 2
Col. Johannes Glen, after whom our village was named, was the son of Jacob who was the son of Johannes jr., who was the son of Jacob, the eldest son of the original immigrant, and brother of Capt. Johannes Glen of Schenectady. Accord- ing to Prof. Pearson's record," he was born 2d of July, 1735, and baptized in Albany where his father lived and died. His mother's maiden name was Elizabeth Cuyler. He " was quartermaster in the French and Revolutionary wars, stationed at Schenectady ; in 1775 bought lands on the Hudson, above Fort Edward, of Daniel Parke, which tract was afterwards called Glen's Falls. He built and occupied the house now owned by Mr. Swortfiguer, in Washington street, (Sche- nectady). He married Catharina, daughter of Simon Johannese Veeder. She died October 22d, 1799, aged 57 years, 9 months, 26 days, he died at Schenectady, Sept. 23, 1828, aged 93 years. They had seven children, the oldest of whom was Jacob, who was baptized Jan. 25th, 1761. Of him the same record 4 states that " in 1795, he was in business at, and owned the Glen's Falls ; removed to Chambly, Canada, as early as 1806, where he died Nov. 27th, 1843, aged 82 years, 10 months, and 4 days. He married Frances Stenhouse, and had three children. Prof. Pear- son, already largely quoted, adds in a communication to the author, that the colonel, towards the close of his life, became poor and was supported by kind friends in no way connected with the family.
His financial embarrassments are conjectured to have resulted from his connec- tion with public affairs, and the consequent neglect of his private interests.
This and the preceding document, through the courtesy of the Hon. Diedrich Willers, secretary of state, I have been permitted to copy from the originals in the State Archives:
1 From First Settlers of Albany County, by Professor Jonathan Pearson, p. 53.
2 Genealogies of the First Settlers of Schenectady, by Jonathan Pearson, p. 76.
3 Genealogies of the First Settlers of Schenectady, p. 77.
4 lbid, p. 78.
358
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF QUEENSBURY.
year of part of two islands in the Hudson river and a tract of land on the west side of Hudson's river, the same being a part, as the instrument states, of a patent granted to John Glen and Henry Glen. The islands referred to, are those lying near the eastern boundary of the town of Queensbury, and elsewhere referred to, as owned first, by the Jessups, and afterwards by Daniel Jones.
More space is here devoted to the consideration of the Glen tract than would otherwise be given it, from the fact that the name of Glen's Falls is derived from one of the patentees, the circumstances connected with which have been presented to the public in such distorted shape, as to require a new and thorough explanation.
According to a tradition of the Parke family, whose descend- ants still reside in our neighborhood, a portion of the Glen estate, embracing the extensive water power at South Glen's Falls, was purchased of Elijah Parke 1 the original settler in that neighborhood.2 After the revolutionary war Glen rebuilt the mills, destroyed during that struggle, manufactured lumber to some extent, and spent some weeks every summer season with his horses and colored servants, at a cottage originally built by
1 Some confusion has arisen by reason of the different modes of orthography followed in spelling this family name. The family claims affinity with the Parke family of Virginia so nearly allied to the Curtis and Washington families. The autograph of Daniel Parke shows that he also followed this spelling.
According to the Parke family legend, a grant of this valuable tract was ob tained shortly prior to the revolution. This title was procured by Elijah Parke, the father of Daniel Parke, mentioned in a subsequent chapter, who, in 1773, made a clearing, commenced a settlement, and erected the first mills at this point.
By permission some years since, I copied the following inscription from the fly-leaf of the Parks family Bible, which affords some support to the foregoing statement :
" I, S. Parks and Susannah my wife was married in 1789, May. I was 24 years old March 5, 1789. I was born in the town of Half-Moon now in the village of Waterford, when I was 2 months old my father moved his family to the town of Sharon in the St. of Connecticut. We lived there until 1773 and May the 10 and then my father moved his family to what was then called Wing's falls and now called Glen's falls and there built the first mills that was ever built there. And we suffered a great deal in that struggle for liberty we lost our lives and property and became poor and weak.
S. PARKS."
This statement in relation to the purchase by Glen from Parke, is corroborated by Prof. Jonathan Pearson of Union College, who, in a communication to the author, states that his authority is in a conveyance to be found in vol. x, p. 199, Book of deeds, Albany county, clerk's office. The title however seems to have been in Daniel Parke, Elijah's son.
359
PARKE FAMILY TRADITION.
one of the Parke family, and which stood on the hill overlooking the site now covered by the paper mill. Here, if tradition be of any worth, he maintained a state and style of opulence and splendor, superior to any in all the vicinity. It was during one of these visitations, that in a convivial moment, it was proposed by him to pay the expenses of a wine supper for the entertain- ment of a party of mutual friends if Mr. Wing would consent to transfer his claim and title to the name of the falls. Whether the old quaker pioneer thought the project visionary, and imprac- ticable, or whatever motive may have actuated him, assent was given, the symposium was held, and the name of Glen's Falls was inaugurated.1
Mr. Glen hastened to Schenectady, and ordered some hand bills printed, announcing the change of name. These were posted in all the taverns, along the highway, and bridle paths from Queensbury to Albany, and the change of name was effected, with a promptitude that must have been bewildering to the easy going farmers of the town in those days. The fol- lowing letter, written in elegant running hand, and still exist- ing among the Wing MSS., is believed to determine the date of this enterprise.
" Mr. Glen's compliments to Mr. Wing, and requests the favor of him to send the advertisement accompanying this by the first conveyance to his friends at Quaker Hill.
" Mr. Glen hopes Mr. and Mrs. Wing and the family are all well. Glen's falls, April 29th, 1788."
Superscribed " Mr. Wing, Queensbury."
After various preliminary applications, dating from Jany., 1760; and originally asking for a grant of a township six by eight miles in extent, on the thirty-first day of March, 1762, Daniel Prindle, Elihu Marsh, Thomas Hungerford, Samuel
1 Of Col. Glen's kind heart and genial disposition, something of a glimpse may be caught from the following extract :
" 27th, Dec., 1780.
" I alighted at Colonel Glen's, (in Schenectady), the quarter master general of this district, a lively, active man. He received me in the politest manner; an excellent ffre, and two or three glasses of toddy, warmed me, so as to enable me to ask him some questions, and to return immediately, for night was coming on, and the Vicomte de Noailles expected me at dinner at five o'clock. Colonel Glen . lent me horses to return to Albany, and was so good as to conduct me himself into the Indian village."- Chastellux's Travels in North America, Eng. translation, vol. I, p. 401.
360
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF QUEENSBURY.
Hungerford, John Buck, Daniel Tryon, Amos Leach, Bonja- min Seelye, Anthony Wanser, Jonathan Weeks, John Page, Elihu Marsh, junior, Abraham Wanzer, Benjamin Elliot, John Seeley, Aaron Prindle, Thomas Northorp, Ezekial Pain, Jede- diah Graves, David Commins, Ebenezer Preston, David Preston and Joshua Agard, twenty-three petitioners in all, agreeably to the instructions of his majesty, who to prevent monopoly of the then wild land of the province, had restricted individual grants of land, to one thousand acres to each bona fide grantee, applied to the provincial council of New York, presided over by the Hon. Cadwallader Colden, lieutenant governor of the province, (and then acting governor in the place of Monckton who had returned to England) for a grant of twenty-three thousand acres of land lying on the Hudson river, west of lands then recently surveyed for James Bradshaw 1 and others, called Bradshaw's township, and named in the patent the township of Kingsbury. These twenty-three thousand acres embraced a territory of six miles square, and in the original survey of the township, due allowance was made for sundry ponds of water contained therein, as also for highways to be constructed and a due re- gard to the profitable and unprofitable acres " so that the actual area of the township probably contained over thirty thousand acres. The application having been favorably received, the patent was duly granted on the 29th day of May following, it being in the second year of the reign of King George the third, and was named Queensbury in honor of his then lately wedded consort.1 This grant was at the time of its issue included in the limits of the county of Albany, whose undefined boundaries then included all the northern part of this state and nearly all the western part of the state of Vermont. This grant was made subject to all the royal quitrent provisoes, as also the annual payment of two shillings and six pence sterling for every hundred acres therein. It reserved to the crown, all mines of gold and silver, and also all white or other pine trees fit for masts, of the growth of 24 inches diameter and upwards at 12 inches from the earth. It is very doubtful whether the crown ever profited by these reservations, although the entire township was covered with a heavy growth of timber, the principal part of which was
1 James Bradshaw was a resident of New Milford, Litchfield co., Conn., which place was also the home of the greater portion of the applicants for the Queens- bury patent, and contiguous to Quaker Hill, Beekman precinct, and the Oblong, from whence most of the early settlers of Queensbury emigrated.
361
QUEENSBURY PATENT.
first growth of yellow pine of magnificent dimensions, from which was manufactured in the early days of the town, lumber of a very superior quality. Among the conditions of the patent was the stipulation for the erection of the town into a body po- litic, providing for the annual election by the inhabitants of one supervisor, two assessors, one treasurer, two overseers of the highways, two overseers of the poor, one collector and four con- stables, the election to take place on the first Tuesday in May, at the most public place in the town, which was forever there- after to be the place for such elections. The patent also was to be vacated, in case three acres for every thousand acres so granted should not be planted or placed under cultivation, within three years from the termination of the war then pend- ing between France and England. The face of the town at that time presented an undulating surface of wilderness, but slightly broken by the numerous streams and ponds within its circuit, whose volume has been greatly diminished by the clear- ing up of the forests and swamps from whence they derived their supplies.
Three small clearings at the three picket forts previously named, barely served to break the monotony of the old military road which led from near the intersection of Glen and Warren streets, in an almost direct line to the lot well known in the early part of the century as the Mallory place. The banks of the river, fringed with forest verdure, the island, the falls, then appeared in their native and undisturbed grandeur. The site of the village was broken by three deep gullies, or ravines, stretching for some distance from, and running at right angles with the river. One of these ravines now forms the principal sewer of the village, running down past the steam furnace of Messrs. Dix and Knox, and in that early day opening upon the river precisely at the [point occupied by the Glen's Falls Com- pany's Grist Mill. In the upper part of this ravine, John A. Ferriss constructed a fish pond of considerable size, which in 1802 was well stocked with trout, and was then considered one of the ornaments of the place. The second ravine may to this day be distinctly traced commencing at Cross street and running parallel with Elm, crossing Park street, reissuing through the old Berry estate, and finding its outlet in the river just at the . head of the falls. At a later period Judge Hay built a fish pond in this ravine, and Mr. Cushing erected a diminutive water
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362
HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF QUEENSBURY.
power in connection with the old red market, on the old Spencer place, now the residence of S. L. Goodman. The third followed the course of Basin street, and after effecting a junction with two small rivulets at the basin, opened on the river nearly opposite the steam saw mill. Each of these ravines were in those primeval days the channels of rivulets, which, fed by springs, and supplied by the wash and drainage of the ad- jacent table lands, lent their constant supply to feed the waters of the Hudson.
It will be borne in mind that the patent was granted May 20, 1762, and yet by a record of a proprietor's meeting held on the 18th of June, less than a month following, it appears that the ownership of the patent had almost entirely changed hands, only four of the original patentees being retained among the proprietors. This rapid transfer of so large, and apparently important a grant, gave it the appearance of a prearranged bargain and sale, in which influential men of the colony had lent their names to obtain the grant for the benefit of those who proposed becoming actual settlers. At the meeting above men- tioned, a vote was passed by the proprietors authorizing Abraham Wing to keep and preserve the certificate and patent for the township for the benefit of the proprietors. These are now in the possession of one of the descendants of the late Mr. Ashahel Wing, formerly cashier of the Fort Edward National Bank.
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