USA > New York > Staten Island > History of Richmond County (Staten Island), New York : from its discovery to the present time > Part 15
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69
Nearly all the farmers had slaves in those days. These were uniformly well treated. It was customary for them to live, eat and sleep in the kitchens. After their household duties for the day were accomplished the black women were commonly en- gaged in spinning linen or twine. The men also would spin with an instrument called a " haspel" the yarn for ropes, to be taken to the rope-walks to be made up.
A list of the names of slaves, male and female, above four- teen years of age owned in the north division of Staten Island
148
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
in 1755, is still preserved. We give the list, with the names of their owners, as it appears.
" A List of The Names Male and Female belonging to Males.
Females.
Thomas Dongan
1st Thomas Tice
2d Ceaser
3d Jack
3 Hanna
4th Jack Mollato
5th Joe
6th Robbin
7th Parris
Jacob Corssen Ceneor
1: Mary
2: Sam
3: Jupeter
Jacob Corssen Juner 1 Rose
2: Nans
John Vegte
1: Bette
1: Tom
2: Primes
Gerardus Beekman
1 June
1 Bristo
In the Care of G. Beekman and Belonging to John Beekman in New York.
1: One Negro Na. Sam
2: One Negro Na. Jo
3: One Negro Na. Warwick
Antony Watters
1: One Negro Na, Sam
1: One W Leana
2: One Negro Na, Will
2: One WV Phillis
Henry Cruse
1: One W Na lade
1 One negroNa Charles
2: One W na Dina
3: One W na Sary
Cornelius Cruse
1: One WV na Dina
Simon Simonson
1: One Negro Na Napten
Johanis de Groet
1: One negro Na Jack
1: One W. Na Susanna
1st Philis 2 Peg
1: Japhory
2: Nanne
2: Jean
149
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
Joseph Rolf
1: One negro Na, sam
1: One W, Na Jude 1: One W, Na Sary
Cristeiaen Corssen
1. One Negro Na, Jack 2: One Negro Na Nenes Josuah Merseral
1: One Negro Na Flip John Deceer
1: One Negro named Jem Garret Crussen
1: One W, Na Darkis
1: One W, Na Jane 1: One W, Na mat 1: One W, Na bet
Garrit Post
1. One W, Na flore
1 one, Na Jack
1: One W Na Sary
1. one Na. forten
Richard merrill
One W Na Titie One W Na Sary
Otto Van tuyl
1 W Na Jane 2 W, Na Jude
Bastian Ellis
John Veltmon
Abraham Prall
1 Wench Na Hage 2 Dto Na Jane 3 Dto Na Bet
Charles Mecleen
1 Negro Na Ben
1 Negro Na kos
1 Negro Na Kinck
1 Negro Na Tom 2 Dto Na Cornelias 3 Dto Na harry
Margret Simonson
Joseph Lake
John Roll
1 Wench Na floar
1 Wench Na Peg
1 Wench Na Sary
1: one Negro Na Bos. John Roll Junr
Barent marteling
1. one Na Sam one na Bink
1 Negor N harry 2 Dto N John
1 Negro Tom
1 Negro Na Quam
1 Negro Na Jack 2 Dto Na Tom
150
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
Elenor haughwout
1 Wench Na Bet
Abraham Crocheron
1 Wench Na Mary
1 Negro Na Tom
1 Negro Na Sambo
David Cannon Aron Prall
1 Wench Na Bet
1 Negro Na harry
Charyty Merrill
1 Negro Na frank
Joseph Begel
1 Wench Na Philis
1 Negro Na Harry
Cornelias Korsan Wench Na Susanna
" A list of the Negroes of my division in the North Compeny of Staten Island.
" JACOB CORSSEN Jur "
While we are speaking of slavery the following copy of an advertisement dated July 5, 1756, will throw some light on the customs of the time in regard to the subject:
" Run away the 2d Instant July, from John Decker, of Staten Island, a negro Man, being a short chubby Fellow, with extraordinary bushy Hair, is bare foot, and has a Soldier's red Great Coat on. Also run away from the Widow Haugh- wout, of the said Island, a negro Wench, of middie Size, is with Child, and speaks broken English, and has a Bundle of Clothes with her. It is supposed they went together. Whoever takes up the said negro Man and Wench, and secures them so that they be had again, shall have Forty Shillings Reward, and Charges paid by the Owners, John Decker and Widow Haugh- wout."
As the life of a slave was doomed to be one of labor, intellect- ual cultivation was deemed unnecessary ; some few, however, were taught sufficiently to enable them to read the Bible, and as they were admitted to be responsible hereafter for the deeds done in this life, religious instructions in pious families were not neglected. It was not unusual to see master and slave working together in the fields apparently on terms of perfect equality, but there were lines drawn, beyond which neither
1 Negro Na Lue
Barnit De Pue
1 Wench febe
John Crocheron
151
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
males nor females dared to trespass. In the kitchen, especially in the long winter evenings, the whites and blacks indiscrimin- ately surrounded the same huge fire, ate apples from the same dish, poured cider from the same pitcher, and cracked nuts and jokes with perfect freedon.
The dwellings of the early settlers were unavoidably rude and more or less uncomfortable and inconvenient. As the so- ciety ripened into the Colonial period, however, some improve- ment was made. At first necessity compelled them to erect their houses without regard to anything but that. Log cabins were built by almost every family, and when properly con- structed, were comfortable and durable. They were one story high, with wooden chimnies and thatched roofs. In process of time, as their means increased, many of them erected spacious, and in some instances costly houses of stone, some of which may still be seen in various parts of the island, but they were almost without exception in the Dutch style of architecture- long, low and massive. The kitchen, which was usually a sep- arate structure, but connected with the main house, was fur- nished with a spacious fire-place-in some instances occupying one entire end of the apartment. It is said that some of these kitchens were furnished with doors, in front and in rear, large enough to allow a horse and sleigh loaded with wood, to be driven in at one door (the wood to be unloaded into the fire- place) and driven out at the opposite, but we will not pledge our historical veracity for the truth of the assertion. Usually a " back-log," of green wood, too large to be managed without the aid of bars and levers. was rolled into the house and placed against the back wall of the fire-place, then smaller materials were built up in front of it and ignited, and soon a bright and glowing fire was kindled, giving heat, and at night, light enough for ordinary purposes.
The materials for these houses were abundant on almost every man's farm ; stones were either quarried or found on the sur- face ; timber grew in his own woods, where it was felled and dressed ; shingles were cut and split in the same place, and the boards and planks were sawed at some neighboring mill. Of these saw-mills there were several on the island ; the ruins of one or two of them are still to be seen. The nails were made by the hands of the neighboring blacksmith. Lime of the best quality was made by burning the shells, which were found in
152
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
many places near the shores in large quantities, deposited there by the aborigines. It required much labor, and occupied much time to build a house of this description, but it was built to be occupied by generations. In the construction of houses of the better class, the chimneys were made of bricks imported from Holland, frequently as ballast, but when it was discovered that an article quite as good could be manufactured from American earth, importation ceased. Ovens were usually built outside of the house, and roofed over to protect them from the weather. The barns were low in the eaves, but very capacious, and some farmers had several of them, according to the size of their farms.
One of the most important of a farmer's out-of-door arrange- ments was his hog-pen ; the number of swine which he fattened annually was proportioned to the number of the members of his family. Beside swine, every farmer fattened a "beef," and when the season for slaughtering came round, which was in the fall, after the weather had become cold, there was a busy time both without and within doors : what with the cutting up and "corning" of the meat, the labor of making sausages, head- cheese, rollitjes, and many other articles, even the names of which are now forgotten, both the males and females of the family were occupied for a fortnight or more. After the work of "killing time " was over, the long fall and winter evenings were devoted to the manufacture of candles, "monlds" and "dips." Every farm had its smoke-house, in which hams, shoulders, pieces of beef, and various other articles of diet, were hung to be enred with smoke. With his corned and smoked meats, his ponltry, mutton and veal, the farmer's family was not without animal food the year round. Game of various kinds abounded in the forests for a long time, and was usually hunted by the younger members of the family.
With few exceptions, the people were agriculturists, and their method of cultivation did not differ materially from that of the present day. Their implements of husbandry were usually brought from the old country, and, compared with those of the present day, were clumsy and ponderous. Prior to the introduction of harrows, which is of comparatively recent date, branches of trees were used in their stead.
Every house was furnished with two spinning wheels: a large one, for the manufacture of woolen thread, and a small one for
153
HISTORY OF RICHIMOND COUNTY.
linen. A thorough, practical knowledge of the use of these instruments was deemed an indispensable part of a young lady's education; let her other accomplishments be what they might, without these she was not qualified to assume the care of a family. After the thread had been spun it was dyed; sumach, the bark of the black oak, chestnut, and other trees furnishing the materials for that purpose. Large families had looms of their own, with which the cloth for family use was woven, though there were professional weavers, whose skill was in demand when bed-spreads and other articles with fancy pat- terns were required to be made. Girls, at a very early age. were inducted into the mysteries of knitting, and were the re- cipients of many a boxed ear for " dropping stitches." Provi- dent families were well supplied with woolen and linen gar- ments, and quantities of cloth of both materials laid aside to be manufactured into household articles when they might be re- quired. The prudent housewife made it her care to provide an ample supply of clothing, not only for the living, but she had also laid aside grave clothes for the members of the household to be ready at hand when they might be required.
There were itinerant tailors, who went from house to house. spending several days at each, making overcoats and such other garments as the women of the family could not make; and itinerant shoemakers, who, once each year, went on their circuit, making and repairing boots and shoes.
People sometimes lived at great distances from each other, yet social intercourse was not neglected. On Sundays they met at church, and, both before and after service, family and neigh- borhood news was communicated and discussed. On court days the men from all parts of the county met at the county seat, where they talked over their agricultural experiences, and other matters of interest. But the most cheerful of all social assemblages, especially for young people, took place in the winter when the sleighing was good; then it was that those who were yet unmarried sought each other's society, and met at Richmond to indulge in the merry dance until the waning hours admonished them to return to their homes. The attrac- tions of these meetings have proved too powerful to be entirely abandoned, and they are still continued by the same class in society.
The early Dutch settlers on Staten Island, though not a
154
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
literary, were a pions people ; the greater part of them were able to read and write, as the Dutch family Bibles, and the beautiful chirography in many of them testify. The Walden- sian and Huguenot elements which amalgamated with them, served to intensify their religions sentiments; indeed, it could not well be otherwise, for it was to enjoy the peaceful exercise of their religion that these latter had forsaken the homes of their childhood and the graves of their fathers, and cheerfully submitted to the inconveniences and sufferings of a life in the wilderness; religions duties had a claim paramount to all others, and long before they were able to erect churches for themselves, their dwellings were thrown open for the accommodation of their neighbors, when the ministers from the city periodi- cally visited them. The language of Holland was, of course, the first in use. The Huguenots brought their French with them, but as the several nationalities mingled and intermarried. it gradually died out, and the Dutch became the prevailing tongue until after the conquest, when in its turn it succumbed to the language of the conquerors. The Dutch, however, continued to be used in social intercourse and the services of the sanctuary for a long time after the conquest, and less than half a century ago its unconth accents were still heard in some dwellings.
The Dutch were never addicted to the observance of holidays; Custydt, or Christmas, and Nieuw Jaar, or New Year, were about the only ones of a religious character in which they in- dulged ; Paas, or Easter was surrendered to the children, and Pingster or Whitsunday to the negroes. Children have not yet resigned their claim to their especial holiday in Dutch com- munities. Religious services were regularly held on Christmas, and on the first day of the New Year, on which occasion the newly elected church officers were formally inducted into their respective offices, and this ceremony was called " being married to the church."
The following extract from the records shows the process of accomplishing marriage to satisfy the requirements of the law in early times :
" Thes Are to give notes to whome It may concarn that Richard Fathfall (?) and Elisabeth Larans [Lawrence] hath bin Publeshed A Cording to Law
by DANILL STILLWELL Oversear
on this 15th day of
Jenewery 1682
155
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
" The A Bone [above] Mentioned Parsons Ar Mared [married] By Me on the 25th day of Jenewery 1682
"By order
RICHARD STILLWELL Justes OBADIAH HULMES Clarck."
It was a common practice for farmers to allow their stock to run at large in the woods and wild pastures. To provide against loss of stock and to avoid disputes in regard to the ownership of animals thus running at large two institutions of the period were brought into requisition. These were "pounds " and "ear-marks." The first record that we find of the former is the following decree of the Court of Sessions :
September 6, 1720, "Ordered that a good suffict publick pound be erected and made at or near the burying place by the Dutch Church in the North precinct ; and Ordered Likewise that there be another pound erected in some convenient place at Smoaking point in the West precinct. Whoever will be at the charge of making sd. pounds shall have all profitt, accruing by pound- age."
We do not know who built the pounds, or when they were built, or how long they were maintained.
Ear-marks were various slits and cuts in the ears of cattle and sheep, and, perhaps, some other animals that were to be turned loose, by which they could be identified. A descrip- tion of the peculiar mark of each stock-owner was registered upon the books of the town, and the entry was generally ac- companied by a rude illustration of the mark. The following entry is an illustration of the registration :
" March 30th Annoq Domini 1774
" Gilbert Tottons ear mark for his cattle & sheep &c is a slit in the end of both ears viz. from the tip end down towards the head & a half moon on the upper part of the right ear.
Entered the day and year above written by
" PAUL MICHIEAU CIK."
The following figures, showing the population of the island at different times during the Colonial period, are arranged from tables in the documentary history of the province.
Men. 328
Women. Children.
Blacks.
Total.
208
118
73
727
505
1279
156
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
White Males. White Females.
1723
640
611
255
1506
1731
686
827
304
1817
1737
777
763
349
1889
1746
856
835
38
2073
1749
887
858
409
2154
1756
862
805
465
2132
1771
1150
1103
594
2847
In 1693 the following persons were civil officers of Richmond County :
Ellis Duxbury, Esq., judge of the common Pleas. Abraham Cannor (Cannon), Abraham Lakeman (Lockman), Dennis The- unisse and John Shadwell, justices ; John Stilwell, Esq., sheriff. The militia of the county consisted of two companies of foot, 104 men in all, under the command of Capt. Andrew Cannon.
The following are the names of civil and military officers of the county of Richmond for the year 1739 :
Judges of the Court of Common Pleas. Jacob Corsen, Colonel.
John Le Conte, Judge.
Christiene Corsen, Lt. Col.
Christian Corsen, 2d Judge.
Gozen Adrianz, 3d Judge.
Nicolas Britton, Justice.
Richard Stilwell, do.
Joseph Bedell, do.
John Veghte, do
Rem Vander Beek, do.
John Latourette, do. Thomas Billop, do.
Cornelius Stoothoff, Captain. Jacob Berge, Lieutenant. Aris Rvertse (Ryerss), Ensign. West Division. Nathaniel Britton, Captain.
Cornelius Corsen, do. Joshua Mersereau, do.
Abraham Cole, do.
Barent Martling, do.
Nicholas Larzelere, Sheriff.
John Hillyer, Coroner.
Daniel Corsen, Clerk.
Thomas Billopp, Major. North Division.
John Veghte, Captain.
Frederick Berge, Lieutenant. Jacob Corsen, Jun., Ensign South Division.
Marthias Johnson, Lieutenant. Abraham Maney (Manee), Ensign. The Troop. Peter Perrin (Perine), Captain. Garret Crosse, Lieutenant. Wynant Wynants, Cornet. Danul Wynants, Qr. Master.
APTER V.
THE
ONARY PERIOD-1775 to 1783.
Events Prior to n of Independence .- The Coming of Howe .- In- cursions ar York and -The Close of the War and the Evacuation of New -Incidents of the Revolutionary Period.
D' UF .
is so c F
the e1
eriod of the revolution Staten Island was of many important events. Located as it the metropolis, it became a favorite spot for of the British army, and was made the seat
ag
of mr 1 Owing to this wealth of historic associations we :' this majoned for devoting liberal space to the notice of te island was not in a condition to defend itself rsions of any foe who might approach it with re- As an example of the poverty of its martial Ly before the war we submit the following extract rds :
12 6. 1770 then the Supervisars Examined into the ac- arms that was bought for the county and Benjamin Brought in the account of What quantity Was in hair Was in' his hands £36 -- Delivered to Captain guns and 12 hangers and guns With Bagnits to Mr. - ! one Gun With a bagnit to Cornoral Dongan."
le war clouds were gathering and the preliminary ; being taken in other parts there seems to have been . stir here in the direction of sustaining the cause of ence. The people were not unanimous in their senti- 1 it were probably held in check by nearly an equal di- tween the cause of the colonists and the cause of the
ographical situation of the island gave a direction to tical sentiments of the people. Commanding the ap- to the metropolis and the province, whatever nation d it, took advantage of its natural facilities in a mili- 1
158
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
tary point of view. The Dutch had a battery on the heights of the Narrows at one time ; the English enlarged the military works at the same important point, and the United States have not failed to improve its advan. Whoever, then, possessed this important point, before the r. 'n, to a certain extent might be said to possess, or at least control the island and the metropolis. Whilst the English 1 0 . government of the
province, the people naturally imb. ·lish sentiments ;
freedom of opinion on political subje " as the nature
and character of the government was cor ras not toler-
ated. It is not to be wondered at, then, t le who for more than a century had been taught to bell. - was little short of treason to doubt the divine origin hy, and especially of the English monarchy, should } tiously
opposed to a change which was calculated to o 1 their most cherished institutions. More than half of ation
on the island, at the dawn of the revolution, er of
English birth or descent, and few, perhaps non the idea that the rebellion could by any possit and even among the whigs themselves there wi thousands who hoped against liope.
Nearly all the descendants of the early Dutch s whigs or patriots, and those of French descent w between them and the English. Many of the Fre. settled here before the conquest of the province by t had intermarried with the Dutch, who were then the class, and had imbibed Dutch opinions, manners anc and had even fallen into the use of the Dutch lang some of the families bearing French names and of F scent, at the present day, are to be found family reco as they are, written in the Dutch language. There w ever, another and more marked difference between the of the several nationalities than mere political sentime opinions ; the Dutch were imbued with a deep religion ing ; they were not generally as well educated as the E but they could read and write, and keep their own acc vin the English had their religion, too, but they were more and less earnest and devoted than their neighbors ; the in this, as in other respects, accommodated their relig (1. that of the class with which they had amalgamated. T] wo canse throughont the country was calculated to foster re
red
159
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
enthusiasm, for, being conscious of their own weakness as com- pared with the mighty power and resources of Great Britain, they naturally looked to a higher power than that of man to sustain them in what they conscientiously believed to be the cause of right.
In February, 1775, this county was represented in the colonial assembly by Christopher Billop and Benjamin Seaman, When, on the 23d of the month, a motion was before the house "that the sense of this House be taken, on the Necessity of appoint- ing Delegates for this Colony, to meet the Delegates for the other Colonies on this Continent, in General Congress, on the 10th Day of May next," these representatives of Richmond voted in the negative.
That bad blood was being stirred up here and in the immedi- ate vicinity thus early, is shown by the following affray which took place in Elizabethtown about the time of which we have just spoken.
On the 8th of February, about noon, a Staten Island man was approaching the shore at Elizabethtown, when a party of men seized his boat, which was loaded with oysters, and forcibly dragged it up into the street and then distributed the oysters among themselves with an unceremonions and peremptory hand. The cause appears to have been that the owner of the boat was supposed to be one of a party of men from " that ever loyal Island," as a tory paper describes Staten Island, who had as- sisted in violating the order of congress prohibiting the impor- tation of goods after the first of February of that year. The man was James Johnson, of Richmond county, and he applied to a justice of the peace, who advised him to remain quiet for a few hours until the riotous collection of people who were then in the street had become more cool, which he did, and the re- sult of this caution was the aversion of any further violence. Though this affair was of but small magnitude yet it served as an occasion for "Rivington's Gazette," the leading loyal paper of the time in New York, to set forth an exaggerated account of the disorderly and lawless character of the whigs.
The people of the island assembled on the 11th of April fol- lowing, to take action in regard to sending delegates to the provincial congress which was to convene in New York soon after. The report says that the result was almost unanimously against sending delegates. The whigs must have improved
1
160
HISTORY OF RICHMOND COUNTY.
some later opportunity for gaining a representation, for when the congress convened, on the 22d of May following, we find Richmond county was represented by Paul Micheau, John Journey, Col. Aaron Cortelyou, Richard Conner and Major Richard Lawrence.
The strong tory sentiment on the island made association with the people here undesirable to the people of New Jersey at Elizabethtown. The committee at the latter place had refused to allow commerce between the two places to be carried on. We have seen the result of a disregard of that restriction, in the riot of the preceding February. The committee seem to have relented, however, for on July 17th they passed the fol- lowing order, Jonathan Hampton, a prominent "rebel" being then chairman.
" The Chairman of this Committee having received a letter from Mr. Richard Lawrence, a Delegate of Richmond county for the Provincial Congress of the colony of New York, in- forming that the inhabitants of said county had, in general, signed the Association recommended by the Committee of New York. This Committee are therefore of opinion that the in- habitants of said county be restored to their commercial privi- leges with the inhabitants of this town."
September 1, 1775, David Burger, of New York, sent a letter to the congress complaining that sundry persons in Richmond county had supplied a transport with live stock, and the matter was referred to the members of that county to make inquiry on the subject.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.