History of Orange County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 181

Author: Ruttenber, Edward Manning, 1825-1907, comp; Clark, L. H. (Lewis H.)
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1336

USA > New York > Orange County > History of Orange County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 181

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The present board (November, 1880) consists of George Armstrong, James Bennett, John Caskey, M. C. Everitt, W. P. Hornbeck, John B. Layton, Abram Swartwout, L. N. Stanton, Solomon Van Etten, Eli Van Inwegen, C. F. Van Inwegen, Henry B. Wells, Alexander Gordon.

ELI VAN INWEGEN .- Mr. Van Inwegen is identi- fied not only by birth, but by business associations with Port Jervis, the village of his residence. He is the youngest child of Benjamin and Charity Cole Van Inwegen, and was born April 23, 1816, in the town of Deerpark.

His maternal grandparents were Cornelius W. and Hannah Gumaer Cole, of the same township, with whom his early life was spent. During this period the common schools of the neighborhood afforded him the only education he acquired, his time being also partially employed in labor upon the farm.

Mr. Van Inwegen succeeded to a portion of his grandfather's estate, which influenced him to con- tinue his farming pursuits until the year 1860, when the sale of much of his land enabled him to retire from active labor. During 1870, Mr. Van Inwegen became identified with the Port Jervis Savings-Bank as its president, and the year following was elected its treasurer, which position he now fills. He has also been for several years the vice-president of the First National Bank of Port Jervis. These responsible offices indicate in a marked degree the integrity and business capacity which has marked his career through life, and which inspires the confidence of all citizens. Mr. Van Inwegen is a Democrat in his political pref- erences, and though not an aspirant for official honors, has served both as supervisor and justice of the peace of his native town. He is a regular attendant upon the services of the Reformed Dutch Church, though not a member. He was married Dec. 30, 1841, to Miss Elizabeth M., daughter of Crissy Bull, of Pike Co., Pa. They have had three children,-Julia, Cor- nelius, and Charles F. The latter, the only surviving child, was born in the year 1849, and graduated at Rutgers College, New Brunswick, in 1871. He is now cashier of the First National Bank of Port Jervis.

THIE PORT JERVIS SAVINGS-BANK

was opened for business March 1, 1870, having been organized a few weeks preceding that date. The first trustees were as follows: Eli Van Inwegen, Charles W. Douglass, Wm. C. Rose, James H. Norton, Peter Wells, E. A. Brown, E. P. Gumaer, James Shay, Peter P. Swartwout, William Fossard, Abraham J. Cudde- back, F. R. Broadhead, John 1. Westbrook, Jacob May, Frank Kunkel, Simon Westfall, Orville J. Brown, H. R. Stewart, Thomas J. Lyons, Andrew Cuff, Charles S. Burrell.

Eli Van Inwegen was chosen president ; Horace K. Stewart, Peter P. Swartwout, vice-presidents; Peter Wells, secretary and treasurer. The first depositor was Jacob Brandt. Business was at first done in the store of Everitt & Rightmeyer, corner of Sussex and Front Streets ; also for a time on Pike Street, in the Walsh block; afterwards at the corner of Ball and Sussex Streets, opposite the present First National Bank. Horace K. Stewart succeeded Eli Van Inwe- gen as president, and the latter became secretary and treasurer. At the present time (November, 1880) the business of the bank is being closed and the deposit- ors paid off in full.

X .- PLACES OF SPECIAL NOTE OR OF HIS- TORIC INTEREST.

TRI-STATES ROCK.

Considerable interest attaches to this solid land- mark. The boundary lines of three States-New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania-intersect at this point. By standing over the copper bolt sunk in the rock a person may be in the three States at the same instant. The rock is at the extremne point of the tongue of land lying between the Delaware and the Neversink, at the mouth of the latter. The whole formation is rocky, and will stand the wear of the floods for centuries to come as it has for centuries past. Visitors will find the rock by an easy walk from Port Jervis, entering the gate of Laurel Grove Ceme- tery and traversing its quiet paths. The well-known name, Carpenter's Point, arose from the early settle- ment of the Carpenter family upon the opposite shore of the Neversink. The old homestead was the present Coonrad Snyder place. The early dwelling- house, and the pioneer store in connection with it, were upon the site of the present residence. The early burials of the Carpenter family were in the orchard upon this place. After the opening of Laurel Grove Cemetery, Mr. John D. Carpenter purchased a lot near to the extreme point. The remains were re- moved to this lot. Carpenter's Point is therefore now rightly named in a double sense, both of settlement and burial. The old ferry upon the turnpike from New- burgh to Milford crossed the Delaware at this point. The exact position of the Tri-States Rock as deter- mined by officers of the United States Coast Survey, given in a report bearing date May 14, 1874, is the following : Latitude, 41º 21' 22.63"; longitude, 74°

740

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY, NEW YORK.

41' 40,70""; azimuth of boundary line, 300° 45' 38"". (See annual report of State geologist of New Jersey for 1874.)

THE SITE OF THE OLD DUTCH CHURCH.

within the limits of Port Jervis, is suggestive of olden memories. The precise location was opposite the old burial-place, on the other side of the street, just south of and not far from the present residence of Charles Van Inwegen. Here the early families came to wor- ship in those times when perpetual vigilance was not only the price of liberty but of personal safety. Here stood the humble log "meeting-house" of 1743, in which was offered as acceptable worship as ever arose to heaven from the costly cathedrals of the Old World, or the elegant churches of our own modern times. Here came Brant, the great Indian leader, in July, 1779, and with his savage forces burned this pioneer house of worship, its flames rising to heaven in ap- pealing protest against the wanton sacrilege. Up to this beautiful hill, pleasant even then in the wilder- ness, came the fathers and mothers, bringing their children for the baptismal blessing. Ilere the mar- riage ceremony was solemnized, founding new house- holds of the faithful. Here the dead were brought for the last service of the church, and from its open doorway there moved many a sad procession to the burial-ground near by, led by the beloved pastor, pro- nouncing the same words of Christian consolation that now fall upon bereaved and mourning hearts.

THE VAN ETTEN SCHOOL-HOUSE,

from which the teacher, Jeremiah Van Auken, was taken out and cruelly murdered by Brant's expedi- tion in July, 1779, was located on the old Levi Van Etten farm, now the property of Mark Vau Etten. Its exact site was about one-fourth of a mile north of what is known as Black Rock Cut, on the Erie Rail- road, and very near to the present Mark Van Etten dwelling-house .*

THIE FORTS

mentioned in all the early annals gather about them- selves most of the traditions of Indian attacks, and their location is a matter of considerable interest. In the upper neighborhood there was one fort at the house of Jacob Rutsen DeWitt. This was near Cuddeback- ville, on the west side of the Neversink, at the present Tillotson place. The exact position is said to have been between the present house and the small build- ing at the corner of the roads. This fort was just at the foot of the hill where the Suckapack valley joins the main valley of the united streams, and admirably situated for observation and defense.

Another of the forts in the upper neighborhood was at the Gumaer place, now the Godfroy estate. Here the old stone building is still standing, and in excellent

preservation. It occupies a commanding position, and the place is very suggestive of early history, of thrilling incidents in the border wars of this region. The entire property here, comprising a large estate, is now owned by Mr. Godfroy, a wealthy German of New York, who has erected a handsome residence not far from the old fort. He has made many im- provements. A latest specimen of wind-mill now pumps the water from the historic old spring around which the colonists of 1690-95 located their early cabins. Large and convenient barns have been erected, and with rare sporting taste Mr. Godfroy has a collection of dogs that may well delight the eye of a fancier. The man in charge, Mr. John Conroy, delights to exhibit his pets, and with true Hibernian courtesy shows his visitors through the clean, neat dog quarters, the feed-kitchen, and the ample yards where the dogs have their daily exercise.

Besides these two forts there was still another in the upper neighborhood, probably just over the line in Sullivan County, at Westbrookville. Another still is mentioned as having been at the house of Mr. Depuy.

Of the forts in the lower neighborhood we have the following items :

In the account of incidents occurring during the time of the Old French War, it is stated that on one occasion the Indians lay in ambush to take " the lower fort at Mr. Westfall's." This was probably the one located in what is now Germantown, which has special mention below. It may, however, have been Further down the river.

In the lower neighborhood it is said that Brant's expedition first attacked "the fort at Major Decker's." This was the George Cuddeback place of late years, on the east side of the Neversink, abont three miles from Port Jervis. Another fort was at the house of Daniel Van Auken, near the present brick house, the resi- dence of the late James D. Swartwout. Another still is mentioned by Peter E. Gumaer "at the house of Peter Coykendall, in the present village of Port Jervis."

THE OLD STONE HOUSE IN GERMANTOWN.

This venerable building is thus described by a local writer : The present structure, rebuilt in 1793, occu- pies the site of a fort or block-house built some time anterior to the Revolution, and occupied as a dwelling and trading-post by a family of the name of Hayne, who emigrated from the lowlands of Holland in 1760, and carried on a thriving trade with the Indians for many years.

Capt. Westfall, who married one of Mr. Hayne's daughters, is said to have lived in this house during the Brant invasion of 1779. Capt. Westfall, together with the other inhabitants of the neighborhood, was away scouting against an expected attack of the Indians from the South, but the latter came in from another way. A trusty negro buried the valuables

* It seems necessary to say that the incident alluded to here, as well as several others given below, rest on no official reports made at the time, and must be regarded largely as matters of family tradition.

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DEERPARK.

belonging to the house, brought a horse to the door which the captain's wife mounted and made her escape to the high hills on the Jersey shore, near Carpenter's Point. The first child born in the old trading house to Capt. Westfall was a daughter, Alice, who became the wife of Peter Decker.

The old fort was one and a half stories high. The front half story was solidly constructed of stone hewn from the mountain rocks, with alternate layers of logs lapping and interlapping each other, the crevices being filled with mud and improvised mortar until the de- sired height was reached. The structure was then covered with an incongruous roof of saplings ingeni- ously twined together and overlaid crosswise with those of larger growth, the insterstices being filled with dirt and gravel, and the whole cemented with a thick coat of river clay, rendering it secure against ingress and impervious to the action of the elements. Loop- holes serving in the capacity of light and for defense were constructed in different parts of the fortress. The foundation walls of the present building and a small portion of the upright wall are said to be the same as those of the early fort. Martinus Decker su- perintended the rebuilding, and lived there afterwards. It has had many subsequent owners, and is a genuine historie building.

INDIAN BURIAL-PLACE.

The Port Jervis Gazette, June 6, 1869, has the fol- lowing article :

" A few days ago two young gentlemen residing in this village, while strolling along the bank of the Neversink River about three miles east of l'ort Jervis, on the lands of Mr. Levi Van Etten, discovered parts of two skeletons which had become unearthed by the caving in of the bank. The parts found consisted of two skulls, thigh, shin and arti- bones, and two shoulder-blades, all in a partially decayed condition. An under-jaw, with a full set of teeth io sound condition, was also found ; also an Iudian arrow-head. It is a well-known fact that there is an old Indian burying-ground on the farm of Mr. Van Etten on the east bank of the Neversiok at the place above mentioned, the graves occupying an area of about ten acres. A large rock jutting out in the bend of the river has caused a wearing away of the bank by the action of the water making inroads on the burying-ground year after year until about six acres only remain. From time to time remains of the aborigines buried there have been unearthed, and many more have been carried down the stream. The existence of this burying-ground has been traditionally known for years, but the first exhumation of bodies was made about thirty years ago by Isaac Clark, a workman in the employ of Mr. Van Etten, who, while digging a hole in the ground in which to bury pota- toes, struck with his spade what proved to be the skull of an Indian war- rior. Isaac was somewhat startled on first making the discovery of human remains, but speedily recovering his self-possession he con- menced making further researches, which resulted in bringing to light the perfect skeleton of an Indian in a sitting posture, with his face turned towards the west as if to watch the departing rays of the setting sun, this being the position in which the Indians place their dead for burial. The articles found deposited in the grave were a tomahawk, arrow-barbs, a huge sheet-iroo tobacco-box well filled with the comforting weed. A similar box contained a pocket-bandkerchief covered with ludian de. vicea, which had probably been presented by some white person. All the bodies found were in the same position as the above. It is probable this burial-ground belonged to the Minisink Indiaus, who once roamed through this valley."

In connection with the above we would mention the " Willchoosa" or Indian house, as it was called by the early Dutch settlers of the valley,-a cavern dug out

of a rock on the side of Shawangunk Mountain not far distant from the burial-ground. This cave contains three departments about the size of an ordinary room.

XI .- INDUSTRIAL PURSUITS.

It might be expected that in this town, with its sev- eral streams and with so enterprising a village as Port Jervis, there would exist various large manufac- turing enterprises. This is not the case. The indus- trial interests of the town are of a varied character. In the valleys along the streams there are alluvial lands, where many valuable farms are found. Upon the higher lands there are also portions which are capable of cultivation, yielding fair returns for labor. There are also numerous farms of excellent grazing capabilities. The agricultural productions of the town to be shown in the forthcoming report of the Jast census will doubtless compare favorably with other towns in this vicinity.

Along the line of the Delaware and Hudson Canal there are various interests connected with boating and transportation which have tended to develop growth and prosperity. The opening of the canal was an event of great importance to this town as well as to all others along its route. It was, however, the open- ing of the Erie Railroad which was the real source of the modern growth of Port Jervis, and the devel- opment of the material interests of the town. By the location of the Erie works at this point,-the machine- shops and the round-houses for two important divi- sions of the road,-a large number of employés settled here immediately. This in turn developed trade. Buildings were required, and to build these demanded other laborers, and so by a combination of circum- stances the village of Port Jervis grew rapidly both in business and population. The Erie Railroad is the chief factor in producing this result. There are two foundries doing a business of considerable extent ; there are glove manufactories, a boot- and shoe-manu- factory, a furniture-factory, a sash- and blind-factory, and other similar enterprises ; no one of them of very large proportion, but together constituting quite an addition to the business of the place. The trade ne- cessary to supply the incoming population became an important enterprise, and as it increased from this source in the first place, it soon drew to Port Jervis as a common business centre the people of the sur- rounding country for some distance.

GLASS MANUFACTURE

has become an industry of considerable importance. The factory near the canal in Port Jervis proper is owned by Wm. Pountney. It was established by the firm of Pountney & Brox, and was managed for a time by that firm. Afterwards Mr. Brox retired, and Mr. Pountney has carried on the same alone for eight or ten years. The principal line of work con- sists of lamp- and lantern-globes and castor-bottles. About 100 hands in all, men and boys, are employed.

742

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY, NEW YORK.

The glass-works in Germantown were established in 1873 by Mr. Brox, who had retired from the above- named firm. Soon after Mr. Wade Buckley was asso- ciated in the business, and the firm-name became Brox & Buckley, as it remains at present. The line of work is the same as that made at the Pountney establishment. About the same number of hands are employed, and the business done may be approxi- mately stated at $100,000 a year. Brox & Buckley have their buildings very conveniently situated near to the Erie Railroad, with a branch track, so that their coal is dumped directly into their sheds and all their shipments made with facility and promptness.

THIE ERIE MACHINE-SHOPS,

with the round-house and the other buildings neces- sary to their immense business, cover a large area of ground. This station is the dividing point between two important divisions of the road. The place is a very hive of busy industry. The arrival and depart- ure of numerous trains, the continual switching to be done in the yard, the great locomotive stable, where each fiery steed has his appointed "stall," the machine- shops, the station buildings, with their varied offices, together constitute a business of vast proportions. The business of the "Delaware Division" of the Erie and its branches, Lackawanna to Honesdale, Susquehanna to Carbondale, is done at these yards. Three hundred and ninety-four men are employed.

GLOVE MANUFACTURE.

F. W. Stowells engaged in this branch of industry some years ago; Edward H. Allen also for a time ; Charles Chant commenced making gloves in 1874, and continues in the business at the present time, employing several hands, and making an excellent line of goods. His establishment is upon Pike Street, Port Jervis. On Front Street, C. F. Blizzard is en- gaged in the same business to some extent.

SASH- AND BLIND-FACTORY, PORT JERVIS.

This business was opened in 1861 by Turner & Brother, and soon after Swinton & Wells purchased the establishment. In 1863-64, J. M. Cago entered the ·firm in the place of Mr. Swinton. In 1874, Mr. Wells sold out, and J. M. Cago became the sole pro- prietor, and is still carrying on the business. The buildings are conveniently situated, and a fine qual- ity of work is manufactured.

FOUNDRY OF SWINTON, SHIMER & CO.

This was established in 1862 or 1863 by Swinton Bros. Subsequently, in 1870, or about that time, the firm became changed to its present form. An exten- sive business is done, especially in the manufacture of stoves. A great variety of other castings are also made, and agricultural implements to some extent. The firm have a very large store on Front Street, where their stoves are sold at wholesale and retail,

together with an extensive line of general hardware; about twelve hands are employed.

FOUNDRY OF ST. JOHN & MALVEN.

This old and well-known establishment, 39 and 41 Front and Jersey Avenne, is engaged in an extensive manufacture of stoves, agricultural implements, and miscellaneous castings. In the hardware-store (of late years under separate management) the produc- tions of the foundry are kept for sale, together with all varieties of goods common to this business.

THE STONE GRIST-MILL AT PORT JERVIS

was built in 1834 by Dr. Ball, of Brooklyn. The water-power is supplied by the overflow of the Dela- ware and Hudson Canal. It has done a large and ex- tensive business from the beginning to the present time. It is now a part of the estate of the late H. H. Farnum, and the lessee is Thomas Sharp.

A. B. GOODALE'S FURNITURE-FACTORY,

on Jersey Avenue, corner of Fowler Street, has been a marked feature of Port Jervis for many years. In connection with this are extensive salesrooms, located near the post-office.

PRESERVATION OF GREEN FODDER.

An experiment (it can hardly yet be called an in- dustrial enterprise) has been made by Mr. Wade Buckley, of the Germantown Glass-Works. The theory is one developed recently in French agricul- tural publications, and tried last year to some extent in Massachusetts. Mr. Buckley has two pits,-one twenty-two feet long, fifteen feet wide, and nine feet deep, and another eight and a half feet deep, with the same length and breadth as the other. The fodder (sowed corn or anything similar) is cut into small pieces and then packed close in the pits. It is then pressed down by weights, the intention being to ex- clude the air substantially, as in the case of domestic canned fruit. The theory supposes that after a few months this may be taken out in excellent preserva- tion, and with even better qualities for feed than when first packed. Mr. Buckley is supposed to be the first one to try this process in the State of New York.

XII .- MILITARY.

FRENCHI WAR OF 1755.

The Indians are said to have mostly retired from this section of country before the opening of this war, but the settlement in the Mamakating Valley was in a perilous position, owing to their known hostility. To insure greater safety a majority of the women and children were removed to Rochester, Wawarsing, or New Paltz. At the commencement of the war there were probably about thirty families within the limits of the present town of Deerpark. At this time the settlement was in two parts, known as the "upper neighborhood" and the "lower neighborhood." The former may be said in general terms to have been

743

DEERPARK.

north of the "old county line ;" the "lower neigh- borhood" was south of that line, being the present place of Port Jervis and vicinity.

In the upper neighborhood three small forts were erected,-one on the Neversink, at the northwest end; one at the house of Peter Gumaer, in the central part, and the third at the southwest end, near the residence in later years of Peter Swartwont.

In the lower neighborhood there were also three built. Their locations are not so definitely known,* but they gave protection to about eighteen families, while those of the upper neighborhood sheltered about twelve families.

Incidents of these troubled times are given in the General History. (Ante, p. 53.)

THE WAR OF THE REVOLUTION

brought its additional Indian hostilities upon the in- habitants of these towns. The Indians returned to the old settlement as enemies to the whites. Their first incursion was in 1777, when they attacked the family of Mr. Sprague, who lived in the northern part of the town. The next year they attacked the family of Mr. Brooks, some of whom they killed and took others of them prisoners.

Previous to the above date little danger had been apprehended, and at the time the militia of the town were doing duty elsewhere. Capt. Cuddeback, Ger- ardus Swartwout, Cornelius Swartwout, and Gerardus Van Inwegen, on whose personal presence and exer- tions the people chiefly relied for protection, were at Fort Montgomery when it was taken; and though the others returned, Van Inwegen never did. The Swartwouts escaped and Van Inwegen was killed. They were a part of Col. Allison's Goshen militia.

These Indian attacks alarmed the people, and the Committee of Safety, who had the charge of home military defenses, began to act with vigilance. They directed scouting-parties from time to time to look over and scour the frontier, in doing which they swept over the woods as far as Cochecton, a distance of forty miles, where a few families had settled before the war. Persons suspected of aiding the enemy were apprehended and imprisoned by them or dis- charged. The militia of the town were permitted to remain at home to guard that frontier. They ordered the erection of three forts in the neighborhood of Peenpack,-one at the house of Jacob Rutsen De- Witt, one at the house of Benjamin Depuy, Esq., and the third at the house of Ezekiel Gumaer.

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History of Orange County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 181

Author: Ruttenber, Edward Manning, 1825-1907, comp; Clark, L. H. (Lewis H.) Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck Number of Pages: 1336

Author: Ruttenber, Edward Manning, 1825-1907, comp; Clark, L. H. (Lewis H.)
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, Everts & Peck
Number of Pages: 1336