USA > New York > Geography of the state of New York. Embracing its physical features, climate, geology, mineralogy, botany, zoology, history, pursuits of the people, government, education, internal improvements &c. With statistical tables, and a separate description and map of each county > Part 20
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In 1674, however, the English sway was resumed, and in 1676 the county came under the government of the colony of New York. In 1699, the pirate Kidd secreted a portion of his
* Mr. Gardiner was a man of fine education, and exerted a powerful influ- ence over the Indians, and the white settlers on the island. Wyandanch, the powerful sachem of the Montauks, regarded him with the utmost reverence and affection.
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ill-gotten treasures on Gardiner's Island, in this county. These were seized by order of the Earl of Bellomont, the same year ..
During the revolution, the people of Suffolk county were de- cidedly patriotic in their sentiments, and though under the dom- ination of the British, they maintained their affection for their country, and consequently suffered severely from her enemies.
It deserves to be recorded, to the honor of East Hampton, that every man in the town, capable of bearing arms, signed a solemn pledge, on the 6th July, 1775, not to. submit to British taxation. The other towns were nearly unanimous in their resistance to oppression.
On the 21st of May, 1777, the British having collected a con- siderable quantity of provisions and military stores at Sag Har- bor, General Parsons formed the design of destroying them, and committed the enterprise to Lieutenant Colonel Meigs.
That officer proceeded directly to Guilford, but on account of the roughness of the weather, could not embark till the 23d, when he left Guilford, at one o'clock, P. M., with 170 men, in thirteen whale boats. They arrived at Southold about six o'clock, P. M., transported their boats over land to the bay, and arrived, at twelve o'clock at night, within four miles of Sag Harbor. Securing their boats under a guard, they marched di- rectly for the village, and attacking the outposts with fixed bayo- . nets, they proceeded immediately to the shipping.
An armed schooner, with twelve guns and seventy-nine men, lying here, fired upon them for three-fourths of an hour, but without effect. Twelve brigs and sloops, (one of which was the vessel above referred to), 120 tons of hay, corn and oats, ten hogsheade of rum, and a large quantity of merchandise, were completely destroyed; six of the enemy were killed, and ninety taken prisoners. Not one of Colonel Meigs' force Was either killed or wounded.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, he returned to Guilford, hav- ing been absent only twenty-five hours. Congress voted a sword to Colonel Meigs, and Washington addressed him a let- ter of thanks, through General Parsons.
In retaliation for the capture of Major General Silliman, by the British, in May, 1779, a party of twenty-five volunteers set off from Bridgeport, Conn., on the 4th of November of the game year, to capture Hon. Thomas Jones, then judge of the supreme court, who was noted for his attachment to Great Britain. They succeeded in their object, and captured three other pris- oners. These were exchanged. in May, 1780, for Major Gen- eral Silliman, and other prisoners.
On the 21st November, 1780, Major Benjamin Tallmadge at- tempted an enterprise against Fort St. George, a British stock- ade post near Mastic, on the southern shore of the island, in the town of Brookhaven. Embarking at Fairfield, Conn., with
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eighty men, he crossed the sound to Old Man's harbor, where he remained concealed through the day, and at night marched for the fort, which he reached about two o'clock in the morning, and carried immediately, at the point of the bayonet, taking fifty-four prisoners, and destroying several vessels laden with stores. On his return he stopped at Corum, and burned three hundred tons of hay, which had been collected by the British. He arrived at Fairfield, on the evening of the 22d, with his prie- oners and booty, without the loss of a single man.
In October, 1781, Major Tallmadge attacked Fort Slongo, a British post at Tredwell's bank, in Smithtown, and destroyed it, taking a number of prisoners.
During the late war with Great Britain, the enemy repeatedly seized vessels in Long Island sound, and on the coast, and either wantonly destroyed them, or demanded an exorbitant price for their ransom. In one of their incursions 'for this pur- pose, at Riverhead, in May, 1814, they were repulsed by the militia, with severe loss.
VILLAGES. RIVERHEAD, the seat of justice for the county, is a small village on Peconic river.
Sag Harbor, the largest whaling port in the state, and the most populous village in the county, is situated on the boundary line between Southampton and East Hampton, the larger por- tion of it being in the former town. Its site is sandy and sterile, but its harbor is excellent. It was first settled in 1730.
In 1845 there were sixty-one ships and barks belonging to this port, engaged in the whaling business, employing a capital of more than $2,000,000, and a number of smaller vessels in the home fisheries and coasting trade. It suffered severely, from a disastrous fire in 1845, but was soon rebuilt, in a better man- ner than before. Population 3621.
Greenport, the terminus of the Long Island railroad, has sprung up since 1827, and has had a more rapid growth, than any other village in the county. It had twelve ships, engaged in the whaling business, in 1845. Population about 1200.
Huntington, in the town of the same name, is a small but an- cient village, with an incorporated academy. It has a fine harbor.
Oyster Ponds, or Orient, and Southold, are growing settle- ments.
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VI. RICHMOND COUNTY.
Square Miles, 63. Organized, 1683.
Population, 13,673. Valuation, 1845, $1,373,279.
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TOWNS.
1 .- Castleton, 1758.
2. Northfield, 1788.
3. Southfield, 1788. 4. Westfield, 1788.
Bays. A. New York Bay. a. The Narrows. b Arthur Kull Sound. c. Staten Island Sound. q. Newark Bay. w. Raritan. x. Lower Bay.
Forts. Tompkins. . Richmond.
Villages. RICHMOND. New Brighton. Tompkinsville. Factory- ville.
BOUNDARIES. North by Newark bay and Arthur Kull sound ; East by New York bay and the Narrows; South by the Lower bay and Raritan bay ; and West by Staten Island sound. It em- braces Shooter's island, and the islands of meadow on the west side of Staten island.
SURFACE. Richmond county is quite elevated and much bro- ken. There are a few miles of marsh, however, on the west- ern coast, extending back from Newark bay. The northern shore of the island is very bold, affording some delightful pros- pects and beautiful sites for building, some of which are.occu- pied. The southeastern extremity is more level.
BAYS, &c. New York bay on the north connects with New-
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ark bay by means of the Arthur Kull sound. Staten island sound, seldom exceeding half a mile in width, bounds it for fif- teen miles on the west. New York bay on the east is contracted at Signal hill into the Narrows which divide it into the upper and lower bays. That portion of the upper bay lying northeast of the island is known as the quarantine ground, where vessels from warm climates are obliged to lie at anchor, under quaran- tine regulations, till permission is given by the health officer for them to proceed to the city.
CLIMATE. The climate is less subject to extremes than in many sections of the state. The sea-breezes moderate alike the heat of summer and the cold of winter. Its inhabitants are healthy.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. Staten Island is based upon prim- itive rock, which rises near its centre into a ridge, running lon- gitudinally through it, with a breadth of from one to two miles. Boulders of green stone, sand-stone, gneiss, granite, &c., appear in some sections sparingly, but on the northeast part of the island in considerable abundance.
Steatite, containing veins of talc, amianthus, and alabaster, covers the granite of the ridge. This approaches in many places within one and a half feet of the surface. Brown hematitic iron ore, of a superior quality, is abundant, as well as a granular oxide of iron. Chalcedony, jasper, lignite, crystalized pyrites, asbestos, amianthus, dolomite, Brucite, Gurhofite, talc and serpentine, are the other prin- cipal minerals.
There is a single chalybeate spring, of no great strength, in the county. Ma- rine fossils have been found in the alluvial portions of the island.
SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. The soil of the county: with proper culture produces fair crops, particularly of oats, corn and grass. Land, however, commande a high price per acre, even when taken in farms.
Oak, hickory, walnut, and chestnut trees are abundant on the ridge, but they are small, and chiefly of after growth.
PURSUITS. The attention of the people is divided between ag- riculture, manufactures and commerce. Manufactures are al- most entirely confined to the dyeing and printing of cloths.
Fisheries are a source of sustenance and profit to many of its inhabitants. Large quantities of fine oysters and clams, shad, herring and mossbonkers, or white-fish, are annually taken from its waters.
Many of its citizens are engaged in business in the city of New York.
. SCHOOLS. . The public school-houses are fourteen. The schools were taught in 1846 on an average ten months, and were attended by 1915 scholars. The wages of teachers amounted to. $5425; the libraries contained 4462 volumes. There are twenty six private schools with 716 pupils.
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RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS, Methodists, Episcopalians, Bap- tists, Dutch Reformed and Roman Catholics. There are twenty-one churches and twenty-four clergymen.
HISTORY. Staten Island was purchased from the Indians, in. 1630, by Wouter Van Twiller, as agent for Michael Paauw, one of the directors of the Dutch West India Company, together with a large tract of land in Bergen county, New Jersey. Paauw named his "Colonie" Pavonia,* probably from the abundance of wild turkeys, regarded by the first settlers as a species of peacock.
For some reason, Paauw seems soon to have relinquished his claim to the island, and it reverted to the company. In January, 1639, David Pieterszen De Vries, the pioneer in the settlements on the Delaware, commenced a colony on the island. Through the short sighted policy of Governor Kieft, in regard to the In- dians, their revengeful disposition was roused, and in the ab- sence of De Vries, his colony was cut off.
In 1641, Cornelis Melyn, an unprincipled adventurer, claimed the island under an alleged grant from the West India Compa- ny, and commenced a colony upon it, but the settlers were soon dispersed by the Indians. In 1651, the Indians sold it again to Augustin Herman, and in 1657, to the Baron Van Capellan, who founded a colony, which was broken up by the Indians.
In 1655, during Governor Stuyvesant's invasion of the Swe- - dish settlements on the Delaware, the Indians made a descent upon Staten Island, and massacred sixty-seven persons, which must have embraced nearly the whole white population.
In 1658, Melyn obtained the exclusive title to the island, and claiming to be independent of New Amsterdam, gave Governor Stuyvesant and the colonists much trouble. In 1659 he convey- ed his rights to the company.
- In 1664, the county, together with the rest of the colony, fell into the hands of the English, and soon became the home of numerous emigrants. In 1667, the first court of justice was established here. In 1670, it was once more purchased of the Indians by Governor Lovelace. In 1683, it contained 200 fami- lies. It was then organized as a county. Soon after this time it received an accession of inhabitants from the Huguenots, who fled from their native land on account of persecution.
On the fourth of July, 1776, Sir William Howe seized the island, and issued from thence his proclamations to the inhabit. ants of Long Island; and on the 22d of August, landed his troops without opposition, on the Long Island shore, opposite South- field. The island was held by the British, during the whole revolutionary struggle.
. Pavonia signifies the land of peacocks.
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On the 21st of August, 1777, Gen. Sullivan, with a force of about 1000 men, undertook an expedition against the English forces on Staten Island. He captured about 150 prisoners, but, from the terror of the boatmen who conveyed his troops to the island, he was pressed by the British and thirteen of his men killed, and the rear guard of one division numbering 136 men, taken prisoners, before they could effect a passage to the main land.
In November, 1777, another surprise was attempted by Gen- eral Dickinson, and in the winter of 1779-80, a third by General Stirling ; both were unsuccessful.
Preparatory to the war of 1812, Forts Tompkins, Richmond and Hudson, were erected at the Narrows, which completely command the entrance to the upper bay. On Signal hill, baek of the forts, is a telegraph, communicating with New York city.
From the time that the English obtained possession of this island, up to the year 1833, a controversy had existed between New York and New Jersey, relative to the jurisdiction over it. This controversy was at length happily terminated in that year, by commissioners, who decided in favor of New York, but yield- ed to New Jersey the jurisdiction over a portion of the adjacent waters.
VILLAGES, &C. RICHMOND, the county seat, is a small village in the town of Westfield, near the centre of the county. Cas- tleton, upon the Kills and New York bay, is the most hilly town in the county. The great beauty of the prospects, the salubrity of climate, and purity of water which its great elevation secures, - and the convenience of access to New York city, has within the last few years much increased the value of its lands. It has three considerable villages, all finely situated; Tompkinsville, New Brighton and Factoryville.
Tompkinsville contains three hospitals connected with the Quarantine department, and the country seat of the late Vice President, D. D. Tompkins. New Brighton has a young ladies' seminary and a boarding school for boys. It is distinguished for its beautiful country seats. At Factoryville is an extensive dyeing and printing establishment.
In Northfield is located the " Sailors' Snug Harbour," founded by Robert R. Randall, in 1801, who left for this purpose twenty- two acres of land, in the fifteenth ward of New York city. The principal edifice, with its wings, is 225 feet in length, and is usually the home of about 100 infirm and aged seamen. Con- nected with it is a farm of 160 acres. An elegant monument to the memory of the founder fronts the edifice.
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VII. WESTCHESTER COUNTY.
Square miles, 470. Organized, 1680.
Population, 47,578. Valuation, 1845, 019,036,317.
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TOWNS.
1. Bedford, 1798.
2. Cortland, 1788.
3. East Chester, 1788.
14. Scarsdale, 1788.
4. Greensburgh, 1788.
15. Somers, 1788.
5. Harrison, 1758.
16. Westchester, 1788. .
6. Mamaroneck, 1783.
17. White Plains, 1788.
7. Mount Pleasant, 1788.
18. Yonkers, 1788.
8. New Rochelle, 1788.
19. Yorktown, 1788. .
9. North Castle, 1788. 20. New Castle, 1791.
10. North Salem, 1788.
21. Lewisborough, 1788.
11. Pelham, 1788. 22. Ossinsing, 1845.
Mountains. T. Southern termination of the Matteawan mountains. Rivers, &c. C. Hudson. B. East. S. Croton. a. Harlaem. e. Bronx. d. Sawmill creek.
Bays, &c. D. Long Island Sound. h. Tappan Bay. i. Haverstraw- k. Peekskill.
Ponds. f. Croton.
Forts. Fort Schuyler.
Battle-fields. Verplank's Neck. Stoney Point. White Plains Villages. - WHITE PLAINS. BELFORD. Singsing. Peekskill. Tar- rytown. Dobb's Ferry. ..
BOUNDARIES. North by Putnam county ; East by the state of Connecticut and Long Island Sound; South by East river and Harlaem river; West by the Hudson river.
SURFACE. The surface of Westchester county is hilly, being broken by numerous ridges, generally of no great elevation. 'The general course of these ridges is from south-west to north- east. The Matteawan mountains . enter the north-western corner of the county, and from thence cross the Hudson.
A high ridge, forming the watershed of the county, passes from Mount Pleasant on the Hudson, eastward through New Castle,. Bedford, Poundridge and Salem, into Connecticut. The south-eastern portion of this county, upon the Sound, be- comes more level.
RIVERS, &c. The East river, and Long leland Sound wash the south-eastern shore of the county, and the Hudson the western. The other principal streams are the Croton river, which furnishes a supply of water to New York city, Bronx and Sawmill rivers, and Mamaroneek creek.
BAYS. Tappan, Haverstraw and Peekskill bays are only ex- pansions of the Hudson, upon the western boundary of the county.
PONDS. Croton Pond is a beautiful little lake, five miles in length, formed by the Croton dam, which was erected for the purpose of forming a reservoir, for the water conducted to New York by the Croton aqueduct.
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12. Poundridge, 1758.
13. Rye, 1788.
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RAILROAD. The Harlaem railroad extends through the county to its northern boundary.
CLIMATE. Its climate is mild and healthy.
GEOLOGY AND MINERALS. This county is wholly primitive in its formation. Gneiss and primitive limestone are the prevail- ing rocks ..
The latter furnishes in vast abundance, an excellent building material, which, under the name of Singsing marble, is extensively used in New York city, Brook- lyn, Albany and Troy. . It is liable, however, to become stained by the action of the sea air, owing in part to its containing minute graine of iron pyrites.
Magnetic iron ore, iron and copper pyrites, green malachite, sulphuret of zine, galena and other lead ores, native silver in small quantities, serpentine, garnet, beryl, apatite, tremolite, white pyroxene, chlorite, black tourmaline, Sillimanite, monazite, Brucite, epidote and sphene, are the principal among the numerous min- erals found within its borders. Peat is found abundantly, and of good quality, in Bedford.
SOIL AND VEGETABLE PRODUCTIONS. As the county is based upon primitive rock, its soil is naturally sterile, but by skillful husbandry it has been rendered. productive. It is not adapted to wheat: summer crops succeed well, and by the use of plaster it yields good returns in grass. Much of the land is devoted to the raising of market vegetables.
"The timber of the county is principally oak, chestnut, hickory, maple, &c.
PURSUITS. Agriculture, and particularly Horticulture, is the pursuit of a majority of the inhabitants. But little wheat is raised; corn is extensively cultivated, and carried in large. quantities to New York city, in the ear.
Rye, oats, potatoes and turnips are also largely produced, as well as the garden vegetables adapted to the New York market. The rearing of calves, lambs, pigs and fruits for the same market, is also a source of great profit to the agriculturiste. Butter and milk are also produced in considerable quantities.
· Manufactures. The facilities for manufacturing in this county are very generally improved, but there is not as much: variety in the manufactures as in some other counties of the state. Iron, woollen goods, fleur, leather and paper are the principal articles.
Commerce. A considerable coasting trade is carried on be- tween the ports on the Hudson and on the Sound, and New York city. Much of the produce of the county is also trans- ported to New York by the Harlaem railroad, and by steamers on the Hudson.
Mines. Under this head we may enumerate the extensive marble quarries at Singsing, Kingsbridge, and a copper mine in Mount Pleasant, formerly extensively wrought, but now abandoned.
STAPLE PRODUCTIONS. Corn, oats, rye, pork, calves, lambs, fowls, garden vegetables, butter and milk.
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SCHOOLS. There are in the county 149 district school-houses. In 1846, schools were taught an average period of nine months, and 8512 children received instruction, at an expense of nearly $23,000. The number of volumes in the district libraries was · 26,485.
The same year there were eighty-nine private schools, with 1354 scholars ; five academies, and two female seminaries, with 196 pupils, and St. John's College, a collegiate school, with thirteen instructors and 115 students.
RELIGIOUS DENOMINATIONS. Methodists, Episcopalians, Pres- byterians, Friends, Baptists, Dutch Reformed, Roman Catho- lics, Congregationalists, and Universalists. Total number of churches, 111 ; of clergymen, 101.
HISTORY. The first settlement in this county was probably made in 1642 or 1643, by Mr. Throgmorton, and thirty-five asso- ciates, in the town of Westchester. Mr. Throgmorton emigra- ted hither from New England, and commenced his settlement with the approbation of the Dutch, who named it Eastdorp. The promontory on which Fort Schuyler now stands, received its name of Throg's point from this gentleman. In 1648, the territory now included in the town of Yonkers, was granted to Jonge Heer Van der Donk .*
The boundary line between New York and Connecticut was the cause of almost incessant bickering during the Dutch and the earlier part of the English colonial administration. This settlement of Eastdorp, as well as others in this county, were claimed by Connecticut.
In 1681, a settlement was made in Bedford, at a place called the Hop Ground, under a Connecticut license, and in 1697, a patent was issued for the town by the Connecticut Colonial As- sembly. In 1700, however, the settlement was attached to New York by order of King William. A patent was granted to Frederick Philips, for the tract known as Philips' patent, which was south of the Croton river, and was about twenty miles square.
In 1689, Governor Leisler purchased the manor of Pelham, . including the present town of that name and New Rochelle, from the heirs of Thomas Pell, to whom it had been granted in 1666, for the Huguenots, who fled hither from France, on account of persecution.
Governor Leisler was warmly supported in his administration by the citizens of this county, and particularly by those of East Chester.
In 1697, the two tracts of land, known as the Cortland manor, ' lying in this county, and consisting of more than 86,000 acres, were granted to Stephanus Van Cortland. This patent, as
* Probably Adriaen Van der Donk, the words Jonge Heer being merely the title of the individual.
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usual at that time, gave to the manor the right of representation in the assembly.
Passing over the period from 1700 to 1775; during which few incidents of interest are recorded by historians, we find this county deeply concerned in the events of the revolution. After the disastrous battle of Long Island, and the evacuation of New York city by the American army, in September, 1776, General Washington had entrenched himself in a strong position at Kingsbridge.
Finding it impossible to dislodge him from this post, General Howe, the commander of the British forces determined to cut off his communication with the eastern provinces, and then, if he declined an engagement, to shut him up on the island of New York, or its immediate vicinity, whence it would be impossible for him to retire without serious lose.
Accordingly leaving a sufficient force in New York city, the British General embarked with a large body of troops, for Throg's point. Landing there, and having remained a few days, to receive further reinforcements, and remove obstructions from the roads over which he intended to pass, he marched to New Rochelle, where he left a corps of German troops, to secure the lower road leading to Connecticut. He, himself, proceeded slowly and cautiously towards White Plains, the post of the Highlands, which commanded the other road leading to the east.
Meantime General Washington's army occupied a position parallel to and west of the river Bronx, extending from Kings- bridge nearly to White Plains. During the progress of the British army, he sent out frequent parties to skirmish with the enemy, and thus accustomed his troops to meet a foe, who had hitherto inspired them with dread.
Upon their approach, however, the American commander called in all his troops, and took a strong position near White Plains, on the west side of the Bronx. His right wing, being more exposed than the remainder of the army, was protected by a battery, erected on a hill, about a mile distant from the camp.
On the morning of the 28th of October, the English army ad- vanced in two columns, and having driven in the outposts, at- tacked the American camp. Perceiving the importance of the battery which protected the right wing of the Americans, the British commander resolved to capture it. After a desperate conflict and severe loss on both sides, it was carried by the enemy.
Night put an end to the conflict. Washington improved the interval in strengthening his entrenchments, and the next morn- ing awaited an attack. The British general delayed for further
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