USA > New York > Queens County > History of Queens County, New York : with illustrations, portraits, and sketches of prominent families and individuals. > Part 56
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the crime committed. * * of Captain William Hallett, then one of His Majesty's justices of the peace. He was in the prime of life and had served the town in various public capacities. The event which so prematurely terminated his life and those of his family produced a strong sensation in the province, and a law was passed shortly after, making mention of the occurrence and entitled "An act for preventing the conspiracy of slaves." The dwelling where the murder was committed is still (1852) remembered by many, it having remained until the beginning of the present cen- tury. It was built of brick and stood in the hollow on the west side of the road, opposite the late residence of Mr. Marks and within a few feet of the small house now erected there. The well which belonged to these prem- ises remains still in use. With this spot the juveniles were wont to associate the idea of ghosts and hobgob- lins; it was noted as the scene of marvelous appearances witnessed by the timid traveler at the dim, mysterious hour of twilight, and was often pointed at by the passing school boy as "the haunted house." By some it is stated that the assassination of the Hallett family was only part of a plot among the slaves of the vicinity to possess themselves of the property of their masters. There must have been some evidence in support of this theory, for it is related that on Tuesday, February roth, a week and a day after the execution of the murderers, two negro men were put to death for complicity in the crime and several others had been arrested and were awaiting trial. Vet, had the murderous movement been a general one it would doubtless be recorded that still others were pun- ished. In the absence of such a statement it is fair to presume it was not.
REVOLUTIONARY INCIDENTS.
In common with other portions of Long Island the ter- ritory now embraced within the limits of the city was
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HISTORY OF QUEENS COUNTY.
the scene of stormy events during the Revolutionary war. Some of the more prominent of these are referred liam Lawrence. to herein.
On the morning of August 29th 1776 the British light dragoons from Jamaica scoured Newtown, " and while it was yet early," wrote Riker, in his "Annals of Newtown," " guided by one George Rapelye, a loyalist, came along the poor bowery and halted at Jacobus Lent's (late Isaac Rapelye's) to get some bread. Brandishing their naked swords they declared that they were in pursuit of that d-d rebel, Dr. Riker. The doctor had spent the night in visiting different sections of the town and tearing down Howe's proclamations, that none might be mislead and induced at this critical juncture to remain and accept British protection instead of hastening to the support of the American arms. The females at Mr. Lent's were terrified at the ferocious appearance of the light horse, and, observing the greediness with which they broke and ate the dry bread, Balche, a colored woman, innocently inquired of her mistress whether they would not eat them. They dashed off toward Hell Gate, but the doc. tor had escaped in a boat to Barn Island and thus eluded the demons in human form."
August 31st General Robertson, in command of a British force, was marching from Brooklyn, via Bedford and Cripplebush, to Ilell Gate to oppose General Lee, who was reported to be landing there with an army. When he arrived at Hallett's Cove, finding no enemy, he took up his quarters at William Lawrence's place (known later as Whitfield's and Halsey's) and encamped his army of 10,000 in tents on the hill and in Hallett's lot. At that time nearly the whole English army was within a few miles of there. Says Riker: " The East River now only separated these hostile legions of Britain and the army of Washington. Two such combatants were not calculated to remain inactive in such close juxtaposition longer than was required to recover from the confusion of the recent battle. Indeed, no sooner had General Robertson made an encampment at Hell Gate and his cannon arrived than a battery was planted on a point of land at Hallett's Cove, which opened on Sunday September- ist at Horn's Hook, on New York Island, and being returned in a spirited manner an incessant firing was kept up on both sides the whole day, during which the enemy threw above a hundred shells, killing one of our men and wounding several. Some of the American shot fell on the land of William Lawrence, but it is not known what damage the British sustained. This cannonading continued for sev- eral days, by which the enemy were so emboldened that on Tuesday they crossed in considerable numbers to Blackwell's Island, but the shot from our batteries prov- ing too warm for them they soon recrossed the river."
In the meantime the British troops made frequent in- cursions upon the contiguous portions of the island and a number of residents of Whig proclivities were made prisoners and subjected to detention and indignity. Gen- eral Robertson's army, a little after the middle of Sep- tember, vacated Hell Gate, which was invested by the Hessians under General De Heister, who in company
with General Clark was quartered in the house of Wil- The Hessians remained three weeks and then left to join in the movement against New York.
Late in the fall of 1780 the British frigate " Hussar," bound for New England with pay for the British army, in attempting to pass Hell Gate, struck the Pot Rock, and, floating as far as Morris Island, "there filled," ac- cording to Riker, "and sunk in deep water, carrying down several of the crew, who were drowned." In a note he added: " Since the Revolution several attempts have been made to raise and search this vessel, under the impression that the military chest had not been removed. As far as disclosed nothing has been recovered except fragments of the wreck, a few pieces of cannon, some cases of bottled wine spoiled by the sea water, etc. A specimen of canister shot taken up from the ruins is in possession of the compiler, who visited the spot during a recent attempt to explore the wreck. She lies in very deep water, has fallen to pieces, and is nearly imbedded in inud. It is said that this vessel lay anchored in Hal- lett's Cove one or two days before she attempted to pass the gate, and that circumstances favored the belief that the money she contained was smuggled ashore during that time and then the vessel purposely run upon the rocks to sink her and conceal the embezzlement. If this be true, much useless labor has been expended upon the wreck."
The Prince of Hesse's infantry, under Captain Alden- berg, were quartered in the fall of 1779 at John Morrell's at Dutch Kills. Another force of Hessians was quar- tered near Jacobus Riker's, with orders to supply itself with fuel from the lands of William Lawrence and Peter Rapelye, both of whom were patriots. The next fall and winter that part of Long Island City at Dutch Kills, once the land of John Bragaw, later William Gosman's, was the camping place of Lord Cornwallis's regiment, the thirty-third, who are known to have occupied huts on Bragaw's domain. "There is an order," wrote Riker, “ dated December 20th 1780, demanding John Bragaw and five of his neighbors to cart the provisions of said regiment till further orders. Very likely, too, they were the grenadiers called 'Macaronies,' for their neatness, who, according to Mr. Onderdonk, lay at the Kills. They are represented as large, noble-looking fel- lows; one of their captains, Hildebrand Oakes, was bil- leted in Mr. Bragaw's family, a portly, handsome man, who after the war returned to England and became a distinguished officer in the British service. The members of this regiment were destitute of the usual facings upon their coats, of which they had been deprived, it was said, for having lost their colors in an engagement. Their huts · were fifty feet long and of a rectangular form, thus being open at the south to admit the sun's rays, the roof thatched and the three sides sodded up to the eaves to keep off the northwest wind. The inner wall was of square hewn logs, and in the center of the enclosure formed by the huts the soldiers were wont to parade and perform military evolutions. Those huts were also oc- cupied for a time by the new raised corps," as were
27 1
THE BRITISH AT ASTORIA-BUSINESS BEGINNINGS.
called the provincial forces mustered by order of Sir William Howe, "to suppress the unnatural rebellion." During the spring of this year the 37th regiment of grena- diers, under Colonel Sir Eyre Coote, K. B., was en- camped at Hell Gate. In the fall of 1781 the Royal Foresters, under Colonel John Connolly, were stationed near Hell Gate. Lieutenant Barry, one of their officers, died of fever in October 1781, and was buried with the honors of war at Hallett's Cove. The Foresters passed the winter there. Also during this fall a part of the British Legion lay at Hell Gate, and a division of the Queen's Rangers went into winter quarters on the farm owned by George Brinckerhoff and later by William Bra- gaw.
Thus it will be seen that some portions of the present city were long under the sway of the British forces, and patriot residents participated in the effects of the general depredations visited by the soldiers and tories on per- sons of their way of thinking throughout Long Island. That the constant presence of the enemy was oppressive may well be imagined, yet it must not be forgotten that many leading citizens were allied to or at least favored the British cause, and that opinion was much divided in those days upon subjects of public interest. It is safe to say that royalists and patriots alike gladly hailed peace after the long period of war through which all had un- happily passed, and the absence of the soldiery was re- garded as a cause for rejoicing. One point in the present city was one of unusual interest in those days. That was the tavern of Peter Fitzsimmons, in widow Betts's house at Hallett's Cove, a hostelry much resorted to by soldiers, refugees and royalists.
EARLY BUSINESS ENTERPRISES.
The business center of the present city was at first at Astoria, or Hallett's Cove, as that locality was long called. At a quite early day William Hallett established a lime- yard at Hallett's Cove. In the same vicinity, on the north side of the ridge, clay was dug from which the Halletts made bricks in considerable quantities.
In 1753 Captain Jacob Blackwell and Joseph Hallett put up a grist-mill on Sunswick Creek, Hallett's Cove, which was furnished with two runs of stones and bolting appliances. Whether the bolting machinery was pro- nelled by water or hand power cannot now be ascertained. As the dam necessarily obstructed the passage of boats on the creek, a canal, the course of which was traceable more than a century later, was opened some distance above, across to the river, with a gate at either end for the convenience of George Van Alst, John McDonough and John Greenoak, who found it necessary frequently to pass by boat. In 1756 Captain Blackwell became sole proprietor of this mill, and some years later he sold it to Hendrick Suydam, who operated it for many years after the Revolution.
at the house of the widow Betts, on the Grant Thorburn property of a later day, which was announced in Rivington's Gazette. He informed the public that he also had the ferry on the opposite side, at Horne's Hook, and kept "horse-boats and small boats for passengers. Ferriage for man and horse, 2s .; horse and chaise, 4s .; cattle, 2s .; passengers, Is."
Henry F. Blackwell was for many years the only mer- chant in the village. Later the business which he es- tablished was carried on by Blackwell and Curtis. The first postmaster in the village was Daniel Andrews. The present manufacturing interests of the city are considered elsewhere.
Former enterprises at Astoria not now in existence were Blackwell & Co.'s turpentine manufactory, Smith, Stratton & Co.'s varnish factory, John Hunt & Co.'s hat factory and the old carpet factory which was long well and widely known. This was established about 1840, perhaps a little earlier, by Richard Clark, who occupied the stone building now a portion of the works of the " Hyde Manufacturing Company," and some wooden buildings. Soon afterward the business passed into the hands of Mr. Higgins, who conducted it until late in 1851 or early in 1852, when the wooden buildings were burned. John McAloney, who had been superintendent of the works for Mr. Higgins, re-established the business on a small scale very soon afterward, and in 1853 built the brick building yet standing, together with other buildings and improvements. Arthur Donnelly was his partner until the spring of 1854. From this date until the fall of 1857 Mr. McAloney carried on an extensive business alone; but he became embarrassed financially and did only a very small business until the fall of 1858, when he resumed the enterprise on an extensive scale, and con- tinued it with more or less success until the year 1873. This establishment was for years a very prominent busi- ness interest.
PROFESSIONAL AND WELL KNOWN PEOPLE.
The first physician at Astoria was Dr. Hersey Baylies, who died there after a practice of thirty-five years. A homœopathist came later, who in time inherited some property in Canada and removed thither. Dr. Connor, a well remembered local practitioner, died during an epi- demic of ship fever. Dr. Hutton, who also died in Asto- ria, was well known in his time. Drs. Trask sen. and jr., Dr. Baylies jr., and Drs. Chamberlain, Taylor and Baur are the later and present physicians.
Samuel Stevens, Mr. Bartow, Robert Benner and A. P. Ditmars were early lawyers in Astoria. The present res- ident members of the legal profession are Messrs. Ship- man, Larocque, Benner & Son, F. E. Blackwell & Brother, Foster, Conkling and Stearns.
Mrs. Mary Cornell, widow of Isaac Cornell, is a daugh- ter of Richard Cheeseman, the second sheriff of Queens county, and now resides in Astoria. Her husband served Mrs. Cornell is the recipient of a pension on account of said service.
Among the many refugees who came to the section during the Revolutionary war was one Peter Fitzsimmons, in the war of 1812, and was stationed at Fort Greene. a merchant, who after the war retired to St. John, New Brunswick. In the spring of 1782 he opened a tavern
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HISTORY OF QUEENS COUNTY.
Any extended reference to Astoria would be incom- plete without mention of Stephen A. Halsey, who did so much toward the improvement of the village that by many he is spoken of as having been its "father." He was born in New York city, in 1798. In 1834, having purchased a house in Flushing, he took up his residence there, and having almost daily to pass Astoria on his way to and from the city, he was led by the beauty of its situation to buy land and remove there, which he did in 1835. As soon as he was located he devoted himself vigorously to the work of public improvement. He built dwellings, put up buildings for fattories, stores, carpenter and blacksmiths' shops, and induced the mechanic, the tradesman, the baker and the butcher to occupy them and settle in the place. It was through him that the lo- cality was called Astoria, in honor of John Jacob Astor, he proposing to Mr. Astor so to nanie it on condition that the latter would make a donation to a young ladies' seminary then in course of erection there, which Mr. As- tor did. Mr. Halsey was prominent in the movement which. led to the incorporation of Astoria, and he was elected a trustee of the village for many consecutive years.
In the building of most of the churches in the village, notably those of the Reformed and Presbyterian denom- inations, Mr. Halsey was liberal and helpful. The large stone mansion on Fulton street near the ferry, now the residence of Judge Monson, was built by Mr. Halsey, of stone quarried within a few yards of where the building stands, and was finished in 1840. He purchased the ferry to 86th street, New York, called in old times Horne's Hook ferry, and improved it for the better accommoda- tion of the public. The numerous trees which beautify that portion of Long Island City were most of them planted by Mr. Halsey or through his influence. He was instrumental in securing the passage of the bill for the public school of Astoria and in putting it in operation. He died in 1875.
An early physician at Hunter's Point was Dr. L. Graves, who died there about two years since. Dr. Z. P. Dennler came at a comparatively early date, and is still living there. Dr. Burnett is a prominent resident phy- sician. The first resident practitioner at Dutch Kills was Dr. Byer, who was succeeded by Dr. De Witt Hitch- cock some three years ago.
Early attorneys at Hunter's Point were William E. Pearse and D. B. Penfield. Solomon B. Noble came early and is still practicing there. Other resident lawyers are Ralph Burnett, Lucian N. Manley, A. T. Payne and Isaac Kugelman.
REMINISCENCES OF THE LATE EDWIN MILLS.
The following, called "A Little Sketch of what Astoria was Twenty-five Years Ago," and dated October Ist 1866, was found among the papers of the late Edwin Mills, long prominently identified with the leading local inter- ests:
" Twenty-five years ago to-day I moved to Astoria, and I have occupied the same house ever since. There are
now but six families living in the same houses they then occupied, to wit: Henry Smith, Mrs. R. M. Blackwell, Mrs. Blossom (then Mrs. H. F. Blackwell), Miss Bragaw (where C. W. Strang now lives), Miss Davis, in Greenoak street, and Captain Bounty.
" There were two churches, the Episcopal, Rev. J. W. Brown rector, and the Reformed Dutch, Rev. A. H. Bishop pastor. Both pastors long since died and both churches have been cut in two and enlarged. There were two hotels, both at the ferry. Captain How kept the house now occupied by Mr. Wilson; Captain Tinker the stone house opposite. Both were well kept for those days, and did a prosperous business.
"At that time Eighty-sixth street and Third avenue were in splendid traveling condition; the teams from Flushing all coming this way, it was no uncommon thing to see ten or twenty hay and market wagons waiting for their turn to cross the ferry. It was customary then for many of the best citizens, middle-aged and even old men (not boys,, to spend a portion of almost every evening at one of the hotels, play a few games of dominoes and take one or more of Captain Tinker's celebrated brandy punches (not half a dozen glasses or a pailful of lager or ale, as is the custom nowadays). They went home and spent the balance of their evening with their families. These were all respectable, temperate men. On Christmas and New Year's eves they invariably had a raffle for poul- try and would stay a little later and indulge a little more freely. "This custom would probably be condemned at the present day as setting a bad example to the rising gener- ation, but it had this good effect-it rendered the hotels more respectable, better kept and more quiet and orderly, and kept boys from frequenting them; in fact boys at that time had not got the idea that hotels, strong drink and cigars were meant expressly for them.
"I think of but two families living west of Perrott avenue. There were living in that part of the village at that time Dan Tuttle and Sammie Fagan. Mr. Halsey was living in the house now occupied by Captain Munson; Mr. Bolles was living with him. Mr. Bishop lived in the' house now occupied by Mr. Tier; a Mr. Mount in Mr. Reboul's house. There were no other houses in Perrott avenue."
REMINISCENCES OF JOHN BRAGAW.
" The 'water-side,' now Ravenswood, was owned by William Payntar 2nd, Joseph Totten and Colonel Gibbs. The place of the latter was known as the Delafield home- stead. The owner from whom it received this name was known as Lord Delafield, and, as the stately mansion, still standing, would indicate, the farm was then a lordly place.
" Dutch Kills, which lay on both sides of the creek of that name, was as choice a spot of earth as any one need wish for. On the east side of the creek the farnis ex- tended from its bank back from half to three-fourths of a mile and comprised about 100 acres each. Commencing at Newtown Creek on the south, they were owned suc- cessively by Francis Duryea, whose farm is now included .
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OLD TIMES IN DUTCH KILLS-ASTORIA INCORPORATED.
in Blissville, Charles Debevoise and John Debevoise, until the De Witt or Brinckerhoff place was reached, and beyond that were the farms of Abraham Payntar and Abram Rapelyea. All of these places are now held by Messrs. Thompson and Foster, Union College, and R. Lennox Kennedy. In the progress of city improvements the steam plow has made sad havoc with these farms, having lowered the grade of portions of them from 30 to 40 feet. Next was the farm of William Payntar Ist. North of that was the Richard Bragaw place. On the west side of the creek were the two Van Alst places and the James Lorremore, the Gardner and the Jacob Polhe- mus farms.
" In those days Dutch Kills was an Arcadia. Each family owned and cultivated its own farm and each owned from two to four slaves. The latter were practi- tically members of the family to which they were attach- ed. They were reared with the children of their masters, and in sickness or health had a certain home and plenty to eat and wear; were well taken care of and required to do only a reasonable amount of work. The negroes had their Sunday preaching by their own preacher, gathering regularly for service in large numbers. When a slave was dissatisfied with his master he demanded a ' pass' for a certain number of days to look for a new place, and if he found one his old master and his pros- pective one settled the matter between them and the ownership of the .negro changed. When the emancipa- tion act went into effect, and the negroes got their free- dom and changed their homes and mode of living, rum and idleness soon nearly extinguished the whole local race of them.
"The farmers were very independent in those days. They had no rent or interest money to pay and taxes were light, averaging from ro to 20 cents per acre; with a fair degree of industry they were enabled to fill their barns and cellars to repletion. The old Ryerson mill was a great convenience to them, as it obviated the necessity of carrying their grists far. There was a neighborhood school-house a rod square, with the lot around it three feet larger each way, the school in my day scarcely numbering at any time as many as fifty scholars. The teacher was paid $200 per annum and boarded around. The people were compelled to go to Newtown village to church, and there was neither a tavern nor a blacksmith shop at the Kills. I am the only one of my generation, out of all the native born inhabitants of the 3d ward, living in the ward and in the house in which he was born, and there are very few of the succeeding generation similarly circumstanced.
" The communication with the city of New York was by means of row boats from the old dock near the old school-house, and in the season this was quite a mart of commerce. What with the nightly departure of the mar- ket boats for the old fly market, and the arrival of the 'manned boats' laden with manure for the farmers, it was really a lively place. The manure was mostly street dirt from New York, and for wheat, corn and grass was then considered very valuable. One other way to the city was
over the penny bridge to Grand street ferry, Williams- burgh, about four miles. The river was crossed in horse boats. I remember a voyage made by myself as captain and a negro boy as crew and all hands, to the site of the present Bellevue hospital with a boat load of rye. The place was then called ' Bridewell.' There was a tread- mill there for grinding grain for the use of the prison only. That was before the city bought Blackwell's Isl- and. In my early days we had one weekly paper, brought to us from Brooklyn by a man on horseback.
"Crime was a thing hardly known in this community. The whole machinery of the court consisted of a con- stable, who was judge, jury and executioner. The crim- inals were chiefly negroes and were few in number. There were few crimes graver than chicken-stealing. Chickens were indispensable in darkey jollifications. The thieves were readily detected and caught. The con- stable would arrest them, tie them to a tree and whip them on the bare back. As he almost invariably pun- ished them with nothing more formidable than a twig, they never suffered much, except the disgrace of being known as chicken thieves. For the support of this sim- ple judicial system the town was taxed at the rate of about $1 per day, a man's wages during harvest. There was no appeal from the decisions of the court."
ASTORIA-INCORPORATION, BOUNDARIES AND OF- FICERS.
The following is a copy of a document on file with the records of the late village of Astoria in the office of the mayor of Long Island City, entitled "An act to incorpor- ate the village of Astoria, passed April 12th 1839."
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