History of Orange County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 91

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 91

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in brushes is about $60,000. The enterprise is next to the largest in the country of its kind, and occupies the largest brush factory in the United States. The firm manufacture all varieties of brushes, which are sold principally in the large cities.

Mr. James McCord is the head of the concern, and to his enterprise, business tact, and administrative ability much of its present prosperity is due. He con- fines himself closely to his business, leaving all out- side enterprises alone, and avoids politics and public life. He is looked upon as one of the successful, self- made manufacturers of Newburgh, who has achieved success through the only sure road to attain it-by perseverance, honest toil, temperate and economical habits, and an intelligent attention to business matters.

Mr. McCord was married in July, 1848, to Hester M., daughter of Felix Shurter, of Duchess County. She died on Nov. 8, 1873, leaving five children, viz., Alexander, James Luther, Mary Rosella, Hester Jane, and Nellie. In June, 1874, Mr. McCord married for a second wife, Sarah A. Shurter, a sister of his first wife, who died without issue Jan. 15, 1880.

MONTGOMERY. .

I .- SITUATION, BOUNDARIES, AREA, TITLE.

THIS is the central town of the three which border upon Ulster County. It is bounded north by that county, east by Newburgh and New Windsor, south by New Windsor, Hamptonburgh, and Wallkill, and west by Crawford.

The area of Montgomery is 30,8213 aeres. The total assessed valuation of the town (1879-80) was $2,017,710, and the total amount of taxes levied on that sum was $26,003.47.

This town is a part of the original John Evans Patent, which was set aside for indefiniteness and for other reasons.

The territory embraced in the present town was originally (1714) covered by the precinct of Shawan- gunk, in which relation it remained until 1743, when it was constituted a part of the precinct of Wallkill, at which time it embraced the following patents :

Cadwallader Colden, April 9, 1719, 2000 acrea.

John Johnson, Jr., Feb. 3, 1720, 1000 acres.

Thomas Brazier, March 17, 1720, 2000 acres. Henry Wileman, June 30, 1712, 3000 acrea. David Gallatian, June 4, 1719, 1000 acres. Edward Gatehonse, Jan. 22, 1719, 1000 acres. James Alexander, April 0, 1719, 2000 acrea. Archibald Kennedy, April 9, 1719, 2000 acrea. James Smith, Dec. 15, 1722, 2000 acres. Patrick McKnight, April 9, 1719, 2000 acres. Thomas Noxon, May 28, 1720, 2000 acres.

Francis Harrison & Co., July 7, 1720, 5000 acres. Jeremiah Schuyler & Co., Jan. 22, 1719, 10,000 acres. Philip Schuyler and others, July 20, 1720, 8000 acres. Jacobus Bruyn and Henry Wileman, April 25, 1722, 2500 acres. Frederick Morris and Samuel Heath, Jan. 24, 1736 .. Thomas Ellison and Lawrence Roome, Nov. 12, 1750.

Cadwallader Colden, Jr., and David C'olden, June 20, 1761, 720 acres.

Upon a part of these patents Rev. Mr. Dickson, in his recent work on the Goodwill Church, makes the following remarks with reference to their location and settlement :

"Taking our stand at the point where the Goodwill church was after- wards built, we are within the limits of the patent to James Smith, Sec- retary of the province of New Jersey, dated Dec. 15, 1722. This tract was a somewhat irregular strip, extending from a point about half a mile east of the village of Montgomery to the Colden property (afterwards Coldenham).

" The northern boundary of our parsonage farm is on a line with the northern limit of Smith's Patent. To the south of this, extending through what is now termed Neelytown, Thomas Noxon owned, by letters patent dated May 28, 1720, 2000 acres. Immediately east of thia, extending from the Smith tract in a southerly direction, was Patrick McKnight'a 2000 acres, patent dated April 0, 1719, North of Jamea Smith's Patent was that of Archibald Kennedy, dated April 9, 1719; and north of that again the patent of James Alexander, dated April 9, 1719; while to the west of Noxon'a Patent waa a 5000-acre tract, extending beyond the Wallkill, granted by letters patent dated July 17, 1720, to Francia Harrison, Oliver Schuyler, and Allan Jarrat."

II .- NATURAL FEATURES.

The distinguishing characteristic of this town is the valley of the Wallkill, which extends from the south-

James Mcbord

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MONTGOMERY.

west to the northeast, and for a part of the way in nearly a straight course. The Tinn Brock, with its long, sinuous course, is the most important tributary. This rises south of Coldenham, in New Windsor, flows in its general course north and then west, and enters the Wallkill below Walden. In the southeast are the head-waters of the Beaver Dam, a stream which flows south into the town of Hamptonburgh. Its source is a spring of several yards in diameter, and of unknown depth.

The Muddy Kill is a small sluggish stream, which has its rise in the eastern slope of the Comfort Hills, north of the turnpike, runs south, draining the meadows, and enters the Wallkill.

The surface of the country may be described as a billy upland. The Comfort Hills, on the west border, rise to 600 or 800 feet above tide-water. The town, with its fertile alluvial flats and its valuable high- lands, constitutes an agricultural section of great pro- ductiveness.

III .- EARLY SETTLEMENT.

This can be introduced in no way more clearly and more satisfactorily to the people of Montgomery than in the following paragraphs from Rev. Mr. Dickson's " History of the Goodwill Church :"

" The settlement by lleury Wileman north of the village of Walden was of very early date. It was made on his patent of 3000 acres soon after its purchase. (See Patents, and also additional account below.)

" With reference to the Ilarrison Patent we may state the following facts. The year after this patent was granted; or May 25, 1721, the name of Oliver Schuyler was dropped from the number of the patentees, and with Francis Harrison and Allan Jarrat were associated six others,- Adolphus Phillips, George Clark, Johannes Lansing, Henry Wileman, Jacobus Bruyn, and William Sharpas. The whole tract was surveyed, an extensive village was laid out, and arrangements were made to give deeds to several who were actual settlers on the land. The date of the indenture that recites this is Dec. 22, 1722. The parties named therein as actual settlers were Hans Newkirk, Hendrick Newkirk, Matthias Slim- mer, Peter Kysler, - Kraus, -- Brandos. These were l'alatines, , and as their community increased they erected a log church within the limits of their village, thonghi neither the village nor the church attained to any size. The site of the church is indicated by the remains of the graveyard attached thereto on the east side of the Goshen road leading from Montgomery village, opposite the road which runs towards the Wallkill, between the lands of Hasbrouck Decker and l'eter Miller. It is marked on the old maps as the ' Harrison Meeting.'

" But leaviog Wilemantown and the Palatine settlement (Germantown, ns then the village wns called), we return to the ' people of Wallkill.' Their incoming we may date from nhout 1724-25, but as we attempt to trace it we are met with the difficulty that the early deeds of their lands were not recorded at the time they were executed, and but few of them were recorded afterwards. These few, however, are invaluable as guides. From them we learn that on the 4th of May, 1721, Thomas Neely, of Westchester County, purchased from Patrick McKnight 200 acres of land, and about the same time, or a little later, the exact date not ascertained, Samuel Neely purchased from Thomas Noxon 400 acres. Among the witnesses whose names appear on McKnight's deed to Thomas Neely we find that of John McNeal.

" The Neelys were still io Westchester County. When they came here we cannot definitely ascertain, but from the above, in connection with what follows, we can hardly fail to recognize in them and John McNeal, with the patentees, the men who were specially active in bringing in the colony.

" In 1727, according to family tradition, Archibald, James, and Robert Hunter came to the precinct. The former purchased 200 acres of land from James Alexander, including the farm now occupied by Henry Suy- dam. In 1728, Cadwallader Colden occupied land in tho region still known as Coldenham.

" A manifestly defective list of the freeholders in the precincts of High- lands and Shawangunk, made in 1728, contains the names of Alexander Neely and John McKneal ( McNeal, Jr.), with others not mentioned above, who no doubt belonged to the 'people of Wallkill.'

" These are but hints at the incoming population. In the years imme- diately following other names appear. In 1731, James Munell purchased land from Thomas Noxon in the neighborhood of where Charles Miller, the senior elder of Goodwill Church, resides ; and as witnesses to the deed we find the names of William and Robert Neely. ..

The above observations are based upon early docu- ments, as there is no other source from which reliable information can be obtained with reference to the remote period under discussion.

The first settlement upon the patent of 5000 aeres to Schuyler & Co. was by Jeronomous Weller & Co. in 1721, and on the patent of 10,000 acres by a com- pany of whom Johannes Mingus and his son Jerono- mous and Mattias Miltzbagh were a part ; the agree- ment being, in the case of each patent, that any number of families, from ten to fifteen, might be located, to each of whom a tract of 100 acres should be given. Johannes Mingus built the mill, which was the nucleus of the old village of Ward's Bridge. The following original paper, furnished by Mr. Rut- tenber, refers to this settlement :

" NEW YORK, May 25th, 1721. "GENTLEMEN,-We hereby Desire, Authorize and Impower you or either of you to Contract and Agree with any Number of Persons and Families to settle upon and Improve part of a certain tract of Ten Thou- sand acres of Land lying in Ulster Conuty upon the Paltz Creek (which was granted unto Jeremiah Schuyler and Company nixler the great seal of this Province the twenty-second day of January, 1719), upon such Terms and Conditions and under such acknowledgments, reuts, cove- nants and restrictions as you or either of you shall think most for our advantage and for the speedy settling and improvement of the said lands:

" We shall be willing to grant One Thousand, Twelve hundred, or Fifteen hundred acres of said tract of land to you or twelve or fifteen families, that is to say one hundred acres to each family who will imme- diately settle and improve the same, to them their heirs and assigns for- ever, on the like conditions that Jeronintus Weller and Company are to be settled on the five thousand acres contiguous to the said ten thousand acres of land ; and that upon such contract and agreement, to be by you or either of you made, we will execute conveyances accordingly.

" We desire you will be as expeditious herein as you possibly can and remit to us the contract and agreements you or either of you shall so make in order grants be executed without delay according to the pur- port and teuor thereof. We also desire (if such contract and agreement be made) that Capt, Iarrat do survey and lay out one thousand, twelve hundred or fifteen hundred acres of the said lands in one entire field or one hundred acres for each family that shall so settle and improve the snine, from the l'altz creek aforesaid backwards to the hills or mountains to the westward thereof.

" What troubles and expense you are at we shall readily pay and satisfy with a handsome gratuity for your services. Your diligence herein will very much oblige,

" Gentlemen, " Your Humble Servants,

" GEO. CLARKE,

" ADOLPHI PHILIPSE, " WILL. SHARPAS, "J. V. CORTLANDT.

" To JACOBUS BRUYN, Esq.,

and Capt. ALLANE JARRAT.

" A True Copy

" Pr me J. BRUYN.

" Memorandum :- No meadows are to be granted bnt remaine in com- mon."

INDOASED.

" Pursuant to the within Power, Jacobus Bruyn and Allane Jarrat did contract with and lay out for Johanuls Mingus and his son Jeronimus

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HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY, NEW YORK.

Mingus each of them one hundred acres, which they accordingly settled and improved and built a Mill thereon wherein the said Johannis Min- gus misfortunately happened to be killed soon after, before they had grants for the land, whereon a dispute arising between the said Jeronimus Mingus (who being the oldest son claiming the whole as heir at law) and the widow of said Johannis Mingus, the proprietor refused giving grants until an agreement was made, the same not being done in time and the children being under age it was neglected until the decease of some of the Patentees, since which Mattis Miltzbagh, having married the widow, hath purchased some of the proprietors' rights, and also the one half of Jeronimus Mingus' right, who is removed from the place.

" Mattias Miltzbagh has also satisfied the children of Johannis Mingus, deceased, for their right in said land. The widow is lately dead."

As the result of this arrangement, Henry Crist, Stevanus Crist, Matthias Millspaugh, and others made a settlement on the opposite side of the Wallkill from the present village of Montgomery. The lot known as the Crist mill-lot of 200 acres was a valuable piece of property. Indeed, these lands generally were the best in the town. The proprietors, soon after reaching here, immediately entered actively upon the work of clearing and cultivation. The names of these Ger- mans generally appear in the account of the forma- tion of the Reformed Church, given below. They were a vigorous and enterprising people. They soon made for their families comfortable homes, and secured ample farms, portions of which may doubtless still be found in the hands of their descendants. Gradually they ventured out from the Wallkill Valley, located farms upon the slopes of the Comfort Hills, and finally in the territory now constituting the town of Crawford beyond.

It must also be stated here that the Scotch-Irish element was very soon intermingled with the Germans through all this section. Together they laid the foundations of churches and schools, and opened up this fair country to all the advantages of civilization.

Of the Crist families a few notes should be added. The agreement to settle a number of families was made in 1721, as shown in the original paper, but that does ' Mr. Bookstaver saw the light of heaven and heard

not determine the precise date at which the various settlers entered upon their lands. It was, however, within a few years following that date.

The pioneer Henry Crist had one son, Jacob. He ' Hendrick Christ, Stephanes Christ, Larens Christ,

was the father of William, Jacob, and Henry, well- known citizens of former years. Of these, William died without issue; Jacob was drowned in the Hud- son going to or returning from New York, where he had been to get his wedding clothes; and thus Henry heired all the property with one-half of the mill-lot. Turning to another of this family, we find that Ste- vanus Crist was the father of Christian, Jonathan, Simeon, and David. The lands owned by Stevanus Crist were afterwards the property of Dr. Joseph Whalen, and descended to his son, Joseph V. Whalen.

There was a third pioneer Crist, the father of Mar- tinas and William Crist, of a later generation. His lands were subsequently owned by William P. Decker. Henry Crist, of the early emigrants, built at the foot of the hill east of the Dutch church and north of the turnpike, where there used to be an old orchard.

Town-meetings were held here in the early years. His son Jacob built on the hill opposite the village ot Montgomery, at the mill where his son Henry resided during his life. The place was afterwards the resi- dence of Daniel W. Waring, Esq.

Stevanus Crist built his first house about half-way from the end of the bridge to the residence in after- years of Joseph V. Whalen. Town-meetings were held at this place, and there the turnpike-gate upon the Cochecton road first stood, though it was after- wards removed west and became known as Has- brouck's gate.

Among these settlers may be also mentioned Mr. David Bookstaver, who located a mile or two north of the Dutch church; Jacob Bookstaver, Frederick Sinsabaugh, and Johannes Youngblood, who also located in that vicinity. They bought a tract of 800 aeres, and it has been said that they cleared the first land in that vieinity, but this is not correct, in view of the facts brought out in the original agreement given above. They were from Germany, and their names are conspicuous in the early annals of the Re- formed Church.

To erect even a log cabin was out of the question : their neighbors, few and far between, and but little better off than themselves in facilities to accommo- date them,-like the inhabitants of the regions of the north, and the earlier settler, Johannes Miller, on the hill at the Wallkill, hereinafter mentioned,-they con- cluded to excavate a resting-place for the winter in the side of a hill, and abide there till spring, with its genial influences, should dissolve the snow-drifts and permit them to go abroad and bestow some labor upon family comforts. This location was in the side of a gravelly hill, just east of the old brick church, and north of the Newburgh and Cochecton turnpike, and there, in that humble dwelling, the first-born of the howlings of the winter's storm.

The Assembly of 1735 naturalized the following- named persons among others: Matys Milsbagh, Philip Milsbagh, Jacob Sinsebagh, Jacob Booch Staber, and Johannis Jong Bloet .*

Johannes Miller settled on the Harrison Patent in 1727. He was a German, and came to this country about 1700. He resided for a time in Ulster County. IFis location was on the hill where in later years Mr. Elinor Miller, one of his descendants, lived. "The old square stone house stood on the crown of the hill like some fortified baronial castle of the olden time, with two doors in front to enter adjoining rooms, and windows like port-holes." This was in the ancient Harrison settlement, begnn before Mr. Miller's ar- rival, interesting particulars of which are given in

* Mr. George W. Millspaugh, of Goshen, states that the tradition in the family indicates the settlement to have been earlier somewhat than the above date. The orthography of the names is from the original.

the

eri

th jo

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MONTGOMERY.

the General Ilistory and in the paragraphs from Rev. Mr. Dickson's work.

Among the settlers may also be mentioned Fred- erick Shafer. This old gentleman, before his death, manifested a laudable desire to protect and perpetuate the buried ashes of his German brethren, and en- joined it on his heirs, as a dying request in his will, to keep up and preserve this yard forever. ITis chil- dren religiously observed the dying injunctions of this pious patriarch.

Mr. Shafer was a tanner, and the first to set up a yard for that purpose in this part of the town. The place where he settled and conducted his trade was just south and east of where the turnpike erosses Comfort's Hill, on a fine durable stream that comes foaming and tumbling down through a gorge in the hill from the flats beyond, passing in its rapid and headlong descent the old residence of Mr. Jonathan Miller and of his son, Wickham Miller. Daniel Shafer, a son of Frederick, established a new yard nearer the kill and on the flat below. It was a fortu- nate circumstance for the early settlers that many of them were brought up to trades of the most useful and necessitous character, that they might exercise them in their new locations for their own benefit and that of others.

The name of some of the other settlers were Oolis Shulp, Ilanse Jerry Smith, Jacob Rickey, Jacob Pitts, Matthew Newkirk, Dederick Shafer, and Mr. Fillmore.

Of the Wileman settlement, already mentioned, the following particulars are added : The location was on the east bank of the Wallkill, a mile below the village of Walden, at the mouth of the Tinn Brock. The patent was divided into lots in 1712. In the history of St. Andrew's Church it appears that Mr. Wileman was a member of that congregation as early as 1733. This church is said to have been built on his land, of logs, and it was standing in 1775, as appears from the town record. There was a graveyard attached to it, and some of the gravestones remained in a field plowed over for half a century. This was the beginning of St. Andrew's Church, now at Walden. It was a mis- sionary station, and their third minister, in 1744, was the Rev. Hezekiah Watkins. The farm on which the church stood afterwards belonged to Peter IIill, Esq., and Samnel Monell, deceased, and subsequently to Lucas E. Millspaugh. One of these gravestones had this inscription on it : " Here lies the body of Mary, wife of John Green, who died June 17, 1752, aged 57."

Mr. Wileman was an Irishman, noble and open- hearted. Ile was a Freemason. Either to found a lodge or perpetuate one already formed, Wileman built a house on his farm for its accommodation, where they met during his life. After his death the institution, having lost its principal patron, went down.

During the Revolution, in 1782, a portion of the

American army, consisting of a part of the Virginia line and some others, laid encamped on the farm owned in modern times by Mr. Peter Neaffie, about one mile north of the village of Walden, and on tlie north bank of the Tinn Brock, then known as the Wile- mantown farm .* The forces-a portion of the army at New Windsor-wintered at the place to protect a number of baggage-wagons, cannon, and other mu- nitions of war, sent for safety, and more abundant subsistence, in the country during winter. One cold night in the latter part of October, 1782, John Mc- Lean, afterwards commissary-general of this State for many years, was sent as a special messenger from this encampment to the commander-in-chief at Newburgh on some important business. While on his way, and where Stony Brook crosses the Shawangunk road, he was waylaid, seized, taken from his horse, gagged, tied to a tree, and the papers relating to his mission taken away from him. Here he was left to the mercy of accident, to be relieved by the first neighbor or traveler who should pass that way. As good luck would have it, he was fortunately relieved during the ensuing morning, although ahnost perished by the cold of the night. This incident, no doubt, together with a familiarity with the Clinton family soon after the war, contributed to aid the political preferment of this gentleman. The individuals who perpetrated this outrage on Mr. McLean at the time were sus- pected to be some of the gang of Claudius Smith. He had been executed, yet his band of maranders were still alive. The rascals were not content with infliet- ing this personal violence, but stole his horse, and Mr. MeLean afterwards claimed and received com- pensation from the proper authority.t

At the time we speak of there was a large brick dwelling-house on the farm, which the troops used as an arsenal. Many years afterwards, in 1806, when taken possession of by another proprietor, several gun- barrels and an old wrought hand-grenade, with other warlike implements, were dug up in the cellar, where they had laid undisturbed for twenty years. The sol- diers for some cause, perhaps to make musket-balls, tore off the lead which secured the pediment and roof of the building, which, being untenanted for many years after the war, and unobserved, caused it to leak, and brought the edifice to a premature decay. It was torn down about the year 1809. Among the soldiers were two Scotchmen, who were directed to cut down, for camp purposes, a large white-oak tree, which they effected by cutting it around on all sides. When the tree was about to fall the two men ran away from it,

* This is a long-standing tradition, but there is no documentary proof of it.

+ Extract from the Journal of the Committee of Safety, Dec. 13, 1777.

" The account of John McLean for riding four days to Poughkeepsie- from thence to New Windsor and Little Britain and returning, to wit: 1st, 2nd and 3rd days of December to convey a letter to Maj. Gen. Gates, aud two other letters to Brigadier Gen. George Clinton.

"Ordered, That the Treasurer pay John McLean £4 16s. in full of said account."

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HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY, NEW YORK.

but having no idea, from the manner cut, which way it would fall, both ran along the same snow track and were killed. The stump, showing the manner in which the tree had been cut down, remained unde- vayed and visible for many years. The army, while here, cleared about twenty acres of woodland.

This Wileman farm was confiscated after the war as the property of Peter DuBois, who was a loyalist, and abandoned the place at the opening of the war. In consequence of some conveyance made by him be- fore he left to evade a forfeiture, and a claim founded upon it by the Schuyler or Livingston family, who were good Whigs, the confiscation was revoked or never carried into effect.

The Committee of Safety appointed and employed several persons as riders to convey despatches, letters, ete., from place to place. John McLean, Abraham De Lamater, and John Van Duzer were three of them. These were very useful and important officers, as they were trustworthy and always at the direction of the committee.

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History of Orange County, New York, with illustrations and biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 91

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