History of Westchester county : New York, including Morrisania, Kings Bridge, and West Farms, which have been annexed to New York City, Vol. I, Part 215

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898, ed
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.E. Preston & Co.
Number of Pages: 1354

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tion, died at Westchester 4th Sept. 1820; 9. Susanna wife of Col. Thomas Barclay and mother of Henry, de Lancey, Thomas, George, and Sir Anthony Bar- clay, and Beverly Barclay, and of Eliza wife of Schuyler Livingston, Maria wife of Simon Fraser, and Susan, first wife of the late Peter G. Stuy- vesant of New York, and Ann wife of William H. Parsons of that city ; 10. Jane wife of her cousin the Hon. John Watts Jr, for a time first Judge of West- chester County, and afterwards Recorder of New York ; 11. Warren, drowned by accident, a child ; 12. Warren, made a cornet of Horse for his gallantry at the battle of White-plains at the age of 15, he having run away from his mother's house at West-farns to join the British Army ; afterwards of New York, and subsequently of Madison County New York, where he left descendants.

Oliver de Lancey, the youngest of the sons of the Huguenot, and the third of them who left issue, born 16th Sept. 1718, died at Beverly, Yorkshire, England, 27th Nov. 1785, a merchant of New York, but more prominent in Public life, was Colonel of the Forces, and Receiver-General, of the Province of New York for many years ; Member of Assembly for the City from 1756 to 1760; Member of the Governor's Council from 1760 to 1783 ; commander of the Forces of the Province in the French War, and as such present at the Repulse of Ticonderoga; commander of the De- partment of Long Island during the whole Revolu- tionary War, for which he raised a brigade of three Regiments called " De Lancey's Battalions " of which he was the Brigadier-General. Married Phila Franks of Philadelphia in 1742, and had issue two sons and four daughters ; 1. Stephen, a lawyer born 1748, died 6 Dec. 1798 at Portsmouth N. H., Lt. Col. of one of his Father's Battalions, after the war Chief Justice of the Bahamas, and Governor of Tobago, married Cornelia daughter of Rector Barclay of Trinity church, N. Y., had one son, Sir William Howe de Lancey, K. C. B. Quarter-Master-Gencral of Wel- lington's Army in 1815, who was killed at Waterloo. The daughters of Govr. Stephen, were, 1. Susan, mar- ried 1st Col. Wm. Johnson eldest son of Sir John John-on, Bart., and 2d General Sir Hudson Lowe, K. C. B. Governor of St. Helena during the captivity of Napoleon the Great. Charlotte her only daughter by Col. Johnson married Count Balmain, the Russian Commissioner at St. Helena ; 2. Phila died, single, 3. Anne married Win. Lawson of the Island of Berbice, 4. Charlotte married Col. Child of the British Army.

2. Oliver De Lancey the second son of Brigadier General Oliver, (often confounded in histories and other writings with his Father) entered the British Regular Army, as Cornet in the 17th Light Dragoons, a youth, several years prior to the American Revolu- tion. He succeeded Andre (being then a Major) in 1780 as Adjutant-General of the British Army in America. In 1794 was made Colonel of his Regiment in succession to the Duke of Newcastle, and Barrack

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MAMARONECK.

Master General of the Empire a year or two later. Died unmarried, Colonel of his Regiment and a full General in the British Army in 1820.

The Daughters of Brigadicr-General Oliver de Lanccy were, 1. Susanna wife of General Sir Wm. Draper, the conqueror of Manilla, and the opponent of "Junius." 2. Phila wife of Stephen Payne-Galwcy of the Island of Antigua, 3. Anna wife of Col. John Harris Cruger, the gallant defender of Fort Ninety Six in Carolina, Member of the Council of the Province of New York, and as such certified to the correctness and legality of the final Partition of the Heathcote es- tate in the Manor of Scarsdale in 1774. 4. Charlotte wife of Field Marshall Sir David Dundas K. C. B. who succeeded the Duke of York as commander-in- chief of the British Army.

All the usual stores and markets, and conveniences of living are to be found in Mamaroneck, and of a class and grade not exceeded by any other village in the County. Divided from the village of Rye Neck only by the Mamaroneck river with a free bridge across it, the latter has drawn off a large portion of the population naturally belonging to Mamaroneck which is the post town for both, and has made prac- tically both places one except in voting. Hence too the different socicties of all kinds found in an Amer- ican town, social, charitable, musical, mechanical, and to some extent religious have their headquarters in Rye Neek and will be found described in the Chapter on Rye.

The village of Mamaroneck until within the last fcw ycars has suffered, from and Rye Neek has been benefited by, a singular canse as far as growth is concerned. In 1811 under a special act of the Leg- islature was incorporated " The Westchester County Manufacturing Society." 1 The Act gave this corpo- ration power to purchase, hold, and convey, lands and tenements, goods, wares, and merchandise what- soever necessary to the objects of this incorporation." Under this sweeping clause it bought two farms on the Mamaroneck side of the river belonging to Gil- bert Budd, a most honorable and respected man, one called the " Hadley " farm of about 62 acres, the other the "Homestead " of about 182 acres, or to- gether 244 aeres. This was all the land in the imme- diate neighbourhood of the mouth of the river on its west side and the village upon which the latter could grow. The company built a large dam and factory. But after a moderate success for a few years it ended in failure, and from that time till 1870 it was followed by a long succession of unsuccessful enterprises of a manufacturing character each in turn succumbing to failure, or forced sale. The consequence was that the title to the property became so involved, embarrassed, and confused, that faith was lost in it. The land bc- came unsaleable, and it remained practically dead to the great detriment of the village in every respect.

About 1870 began a change, and now it is understood that the clouds are entirely dispersed. As soon as this was found to be rcally the case, village improvement began at once, and is now going on with increasing rapidity.

Mamaroneck was without a newspaper until four years ago, its local wants being supplied by the neighbouring Journals of Rye and Portchester. In May 1882, The Mamaroneck Register was established by William E. Peters, met with very fair success and is still in existence under him as Editor and Propri- etor. It is a four page paper, of six columns to a page, and is issued every Wednesday. It pursues an independent course in politics. Several years prior to 1882 an attempt was made to publish a paper called the Investigator by George M. Forbes. But it met with no success, and after a brief exist- ence, was given up.

About 1856 an attempt to run a steamer called the Island City, between Mamaroneck and New York was made, stopping at New Rochelle and City Island, and carrying both passengers and freight. The leading man in the enterprise was the late John Griffin. Her landing place was at the foot of Bleecker now Union Avenue in De Lancey's Neck, Bishop de Lan- cey who owned the spot having at the request of Mr. Griffin and the other gentlemen obtained a grant per- mitting the building of a Dock below low water mark at that point, and leased them the privilege at a nominal rent. The enterprise failed, was subsequently re- newed by Wm. Taylor with a landing on Harbor Island, but that also failed. The "Mary E. Gordon." freight boat only, was built by Capt. Gedney, the old sloop owner in 1880, and makes trips three times a week. Her owners are Captain Joseph H. Gedney and sons. She is the first boat that has brought freight regularly to the present dock, and is the modern suc- cessor of a very long line of " Mamaroneck Sloops." Famous vessels in their day were those Mamaroneck sloops, and their day was a very long one.

Some of them were very fast, and there was a fierce rivalry between the old sloop captains of all the ports on the sound as far as New London. They carried passengers regularly as well as freight, and great was the excitement, and often high the betting, when a new and fast vessel made her first appearance from any of the little ports on the "East River."

The necessity of having a fire department was forced upon the attention of the inhabitants of Mam- aroneck by a conflagration which took place in the business part of the village on January 1st, 1884. Soon after a Hook and Ladder Company was formed, known as Union Hook and Ladder Company, No. 1, of Mamaroneck and Rye Neck. Joseph H. McLough- lin, a very active man and the leading plumber of the town, was clected foreman of the company, An- drew Coles, assistant forcman, Lewis R. Bramm, Treasurer, and Charles F. Seaman, Secretary. The apparatus was purchased by public subscription, and

1 Ch. 17 Laws of 1811.

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HISTORY OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY.

is lodged in the basement of the town hall. The number of umembers in 1886 was 25.

On January 4, 1884, application was made to the authorities of the town of Mamaroneck by Henry M. Flagler, Jabez A. Bostwick, Ambrose M. MeGregor, James M. Constable, Thomas L. Rushmore, William G. Read, David Dudley Field, David F. Britt, Joseph Hoffman, M.D., Samuel W. Johnson, Edward F. De Lancey, Charles J. Osborne, William T. Cornell and Leonard Jacob for authority to form aud organize the Mamaroneck Water Company and lay pipes through the town streets. The application was granted, the company was formed and soon after began the construction of a water works, and in the spring of 1885 water was introduced through their pipes into houses in the village. The company has a capital of $25,000. The souree from which the water supply is taken is the Mamaroneek River. The site of the old saw mill originally ereeted by Colonel Heathcote before referred to, was bought, the dam rebuilt in an enlarged form formiug a large pond, the waters of which are pumped up into a reservoir on adjacent high ground, about 117 feet above high water mark of the sound. This head is sufficient for all general purposes. The officers of the company are, President, James M. Constable; Treasurer, J. A. Bostwick; Secretary, William T. Cornell.

There are two School Districts in Mamaroneck, Nos. One and Two, well attended and in a good state of efficiency. But they suffer as does the whole school system of the State of New York, from being one of the foot balls of politics, and like all others throughout the State are therefore liable to evil in- fluences. An instance of how oppressive and unjust the School system as now administered is, upon the owners of the real estate of the Commonwealth, is furnished now by our County of Westchester. The writer is informed that the amount apportioned to this County this year, 1886, from the Common School Fund is $56,000 while the amount assessed upon and collected from its real estate last year for that fund was $75,000. No remarks are necessary, the fact speaks for itself.

The Town possesses a Town Hall, a large frame edifice on High Street near Mount Pleasant Street, which was bought and altered for its present pur- pose, from the former Methodist Society of Mamaro- neck a few years ago, when that society removed to Rye Neck. It contains a large Public Hall on the main floor, with public offices, a lock-up, and a house fire apparatus beneath it. There is also in it the Library of the Athenaeum Society, and the Safes and Cases of the Town Records in charge of the Town Clerk.

Mamaroneck is a post town and one of the oldest in the State. dating as such from the last century. The present postmaster is William A. Boyd, who has held the office and administered for very many years

past to the general satisfaction of the entire eommu- nity. The salary uow is $1100 per annum.

The New Haven Rail Road runs through the towu, but so far north of the village, the harbor aud the Necks on each side of it and the Sound, that neither can be seeu from the station. The daily trains are numerous and convenient. It is now understood that a new Rail Road will be built in a very short time, which will run near the water and across the upper edge of the harbor, and enter the City of New York over the new Bridge across the Harlem river at Second avenue.

The churches of Mamaroneck are two only, the Episcopal church of St. Thomas, and the Society of Friends. The meeting house of the latter, however, is a few fcet across the line of Mamaroneek in the adjoining town of Scarsdale, having been thrown into that towu by the town liue as fixed by the Act of 1788. The Society itself is it is believed the sec- ond oldest meeting in the County of Westchester, the first being that at the town of Westchester which was organized in 1685. The Friends came to West- chester, both the town and the County, from Long Island, those who eame to the neighborhood of Mam- aroneck, chiefly from Flushing and the country imme- diately about it. The meeting at Mamaroneck was organized in 1686 and was held at a private house.1 This house the writer believes was that of Samucl Palmer, afterwards the "Old House " of Peter Jay Munro, before referred to and its position described. They inereased so much, that in 1704 an application was made to the Court of General Sessions, Colonel Caleb Heathcote presiding, that Samuel Palmer's house at Mamaroneck be recorded as an authorized place for Quaker worship under the Act of William and Mary. The order was granted and a copy signed by Colonel Heathcote delivered to Samuel Palmer. In 1728 the meeting was made a " Preparative Meet- ing for Business," that is, for the administration of discipline, &c. On the opposite side of the Westches- ter Path, and west of Samuel Palmer's house, and at the top of the rising ground aseended by the Path or road was laid out, aud still is, the old buryiug ground of the Palmners, and adjoming it was another plot larger, and still existing and still called the Quaker Burying-Ground. The Boston Road to-day at that point is still the old Westchester Path. Both plots were directly opposite the entrance to Mr. Peter Jay Munro's grounds within which, iu 1819, he erected his splendid Country House, uow the Hotel at Larch- mont, termed the "Manor House." In the centre of the last mentioned plot, some little distanee back from the road, was built, probably the first Quaker Meeting House in Mamaroneck. The exact year is uncertain but was probably 1739,2 in which year Mr.

1 MS. letter of James Wood, the present President of the Westchester Historical Society, who has made exhaustive researchies into the history of the Friends in Westchester County.

2 Letter of James Wood.

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MAMARONECK.

Wood says a meeting house was built there, but he does not know whether it was the first. Mr. William H. Carpenter of the present meeting who at the writer's request made investigations of this point says it was "in 1735 or thereabout." 1 On that spot stood the house, and there the Meeting was held, till 1768. On the 6th of the 2d month,-February-in that year the quarterly meeting at the Purchase directed five Friends to "review" " the place near the centre of said meeting " to which it was proposed to move the Meeting House at Mamaroneck, there being some dissatisfaction.

At the quarterly niceting held at the " oblong " on the 30th of the succeeding 4th month, April, 1768, the committee made the following interesting report :

" The friends that were appointed a Committee to take a review of the place to set the meeting house on made report that they liad met the friends belong- ing to Mamaroneck weekly mceting and taken a re- view of the places proposed to set the meeting house on for Mamaroneck weekly meeting & are of opinion that a piece of land of Benjamin Palmers near & ad- joining Cornells land is the most suitable place for that purpose as being near the centre of said weekly meeting & as Benjamin Palmer offered to give half an acre of land to our Society for that use & purpose & John Cornel half an acre adjoining to it for the same use & also each of them to sell half an acre for three pounds ten shillings apiece therefore this meeting approves of having a meeting house set up & erected on said land of Benjamin Palmer, & appoints Edward Burling & Joseph Griffen to take deeds of Benjamin Palmer & John Cornel for said land, & John Cornel Edward Burling and Joseph Griffen & Benjamin Cornel, or the majority of them are appointed a Com- mittee to sell the meeting house at Mamaroneck with the ground it stands on & the land to the westward of the house adjoining the road the width of the house & give a deed for the same or remove the house to & on the land of Benjamin Palmer aforesaid-if that house should be sold the new house to be near the dimensions of the old meeting house, & to be one story high with a chimney to it, & report to be made by said Committee to next Quarterly Meeting, & said Committee or some of them are to get a subscription made by the weekly meeting of Mamaroneck & bring to next Quarterly Mceting."

The old meeting house was not sold but was taken down and apart and removed to the new location, on the beautiful and commanding hill where it stands to-day. The old plot was not sold but kept as a burying ground. Another plot beside it on the west was sokl and is now within the place of Mr. Meyers. This was the lot long known as the Locust lot from its being covered for many years with those trees. At the succeeding mecting in October, Edward Burling reported for the Committee " that the Meeting House

was removed from Mamaroneck and set on said land of Benjamin Palmer, and that the expense of removing the house and setting it up, and completing it will amount to about eighty pounds, including the seven pounds for one acre of land bought of Benjamin Palmer and John Cornell, and that a subscription was made by friends belonging to the weekly meeting of Mamaroneck amounting to Twenty-eiglit Pounds towards the expense of the said house beside the land given ; and requested the quarterly meeting to ask for and from each monthly meeting towards paying the debt. At the succeeding November meeting at Pur- ehase, six pounds, 13 shillings were reported from the Weekly meeting at Westchester " and paid in," and there was also "paid in " a subscription "from Os- wego particular meeting" of seventeen shillings and sixpence, and delivered to Edward Burling jr. It is most surprising that in 1768, a gift from Oswego then a mere frontier Indian trading station should have been sent down to the Friends at Mamaroneek ! By the 6th of 5th month, June 1769, Benedict Carpenter reported that the debt had been reduced to £18, 10, 05. In due time that was paid off, and the new Meeting house-if it may be called so-was entirely paid for. From that time to the present the meeting has con- tinued. It felt the change growing out of the move- ment of Elias Hicks upwards of sixty years since. The two parties quietly separated and another meeting was formed which erected another small Meeting House in the same grounds with the old one, where worship is also maintained.

"In 1883 the meeting house being in an almost hope- lessly dilapidated condition a movement was success- fully inaugurated to restore it, retaining however the frame of the venerated structure, which resulted in the present exceedingly comfortable and Heat house of worship. During the greater portion of its exist- ence the meeting has been large and influential, many of its members have been noted for their prom- inence in business and social circles and always for their integrity and stability. During very many years latterly there has been no acknowledged min- ister in connection with the mceting, yet it has con- tinued without it, and from present appearances al- though its members are not numerous yet it bids fair to liold its own for many years to come a continuing testimony to spiritual worship without priest or choir. It may be of interest to name a few of its adherents now living, viz. Jonathan Carpenter, William Bur- ling, David F. Britt, Samuel J. Barnes, Thos. K. Morrell, Noah Tompkins, John D. Schureman, James Griffen, George Millets and William H. Carpenter who with their families are earnest in the support of the ancient society they are proud to be connected witlı." 2

From 1693 to 1784 Mamaroneck was one of the Pre-

? Letter of William HI. Carpenter to whom and Mr. Berling I am in_ debted for copies of the Documents used and cited in the above sketch.

1 Letter of Mr. Carpenter.

872

HISTORY OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY.

cincts of the Parish of Rye, one of the two territorial parishes erected in Westchester County in the former year under the Act establishing parishes of the Church of England within the Counties of New York and Westchester passed March 24, 1693,1 an act which with several amendments made in later years continued in force till repealed by the Legislature of the State in the year 1784, just about a hundred years. The Estab- lishment of the Church of England within the Prov- ince of New York and its Parochial organization in Westchester County will be found fully described in Parts 10, and 11, of the chapter on Manors in this vol- ume.2 The Inhabitants of the Parish of Rye elected Church wardens and Vestrymen, and paid the charges authorized by law during this whole period. Their duties besides those of seeing to the proper religious Services in the parish churches, were also those in re- lation to assessments taking care of the poor, and other duties now performed by town officials. During his residence here Colonel Heathcote was usually chosen a vestryman and often a Warden. The first election under the act of 1693 we know was held pur- suant to the summons of Justice Theall under the law at Rye on the 28th February 1694-5. John Lane and John Brondig (Brundige) were elected church Wardens, and Jonathan Hart Joseph Horton, Joseph Purdy, Timothy Knapp, Hachaliah Brown, Thomas Merritt, Deliverance Brown, and Isaac Den- ham, vestrymnen.3 In 1702 is the record of another election, when on the 12th of January at a lawful town meeting in the Precinct of Rye Colonel Caleb Heathcote and the Justice Theall (who summoned the meeting of the Inhabitants for the election of 1695) were elected Church Wardens, and Justice Purdy, Justice Mott, Capt. Horton, Deliverance Brown, Hachaliah Brown, George Lane, Sen., Thomas Purdy, Thomas Disbrow, Isaac Denham, and Samuel Lane, were elected vestrymen for the ensuing year.'

These elections will be found mentioned in Baird's History of Rye, chapter 24th, from which I have taken the particulars not having had the time to examine the Rye Records personally as was intended.5 The very able and Reverend Author of that very valuable work was evidently unaware of the legal nature of the origin of the establishment of the church of England in West- chester County, and has given an eroncous view of it in that chapter, as will be seen by comparing it with that which will be found in the chapter on Manors in this work. A view based on the mistaken idea that it was the Act of 1693 which established the church

of England within New York, whereas it was estab- lished by the royal authority many years before, New York being a conquered Province. And being the only British American province so conquered from another nation by the English Crown, it was there- fore the only one in America in which that Crown, by the law of England, had the power and right to es- tablish the church of England. In 1725 Mamaroneck paid towards the tax to support the Rector of Rye under the act of 1693, £18. Later, in 1767, the amount then, was £19, 2, 6. These sums were the annual ones for those years. The amounts were an- nually fixed by board of Justices under the law.

So strong was the connection of Mamaroneck with Rye as a part of that Parish, in fact and in feel- ing, that it continued practically down to the founding of St. Thomas' Church, Mamaroneck. All Mamar- oneck people of the Episcopal Church attended at Rye church, and were married and buried, and their children baptized, by the Rectors of Rye. A very few went to the New Rochelle church but the large ma- jority went to Rye. It was simply an example of the power of faith and habit which descended to them from their ancestors.

While a youth in Yale College the late Rt. Rev. William Heathcote de Lancey first began holding Episcopal services in Mamaroneck while on his visits to his home at Heathcote Hill. He entered college in 1813 and graduated in 1817, and these ser- vices began in 1814. He met with better success than he anticipated. His Father John Peter De Lancey took great interest in the matter, as did his friend and neighbor Mr. Peter J. Munro, and Mr. and Mrs. Peter Jay, the blind Mr. Jay, of Rye. Finally young Mr. de Lancey was so successful that on April 12th, 1814, under the auspices of his Father and Mr. Peter J. Munro a parish was organized under the old act of 17th March, 1795, to which was given the name of St. Thomas. Mr. John Peter de Lancey and Mr. Peter Jay Munro Church Wardens, and Capt. William Gray, Benjamin Hadden, Henry Ged- ney, Samuel Deal, Abraham Guion, and Matthias G. Valentine Vestrymen 6 at the first election held on Tuesday in Easter week of that year. The Rev. Mr. Haskell Rector of Rye and several of the clergy of the neighbouring parishes took charge of the services, which were held in the present Town Hall, then a Methodist Church just built, by the courtesy of that Society which had just previously been organized. They were continued with much though not perfect regularity. In 1813 the Legislature passed a new " Act relating to Religious Societies " which changed and made more favorable the method of organizing Episcopal Churches. The parish continued however under the original organization of 1814, till 1817, when by the advice of Mr. Munro, a new organization

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History of Westchester county : New York, including Morrisania, Kings Bridge, and West Farms, which have been annexed to New York City, Vol. I, Part 215

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898, ed Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Philadelphia : L.E. Preston & Co. Number of Pages: 1354

Author: Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas), 1843-1898, ed
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.E. Preston & Co.
Number of Pages: 1354