USA > New York > Columbia County > Hudson > History of the city of Hudson, New York : with biographical sketches of Henry Hudson and Robert Fulton > Part 8
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The following note from the Right Reverend William Croswell Doane, Bishop of Albany, will enhance our in- terest in the fiery young editor:
Bishop's House, Albany.
April 16, 1908.
I have no relationship by blood with the Croswells, but Dr. William Croswell of Boston, a son I think of the Rev. Harry Croswell, was my father's most intimate friend, and was my God-father, and I was named after him. What you tell me of the suit in Hudson is most interest- ing.
Believe me,
Always very faithfully, Nr. 600ane
After the entry of Rev. Harry Croswell upon the minis- try, his first sermon was preached in Christ Church in this city. The occasion drew out a large attendance of his former political friends and acquaintances, and Mr. Croswell solemnly addressed them, telling them "they
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
had seen how well he had served his political masters, and should bear witness how much more faithfully he should follow the new master, upon whose service he had en- tered."
The old Court House at Claverack was the arena for many a battle royal between the rival lawyers of the day; men whose names are synonymous with legal lore, keen wit, and scathing invective, there met foemen worthy of their steel.
The first sentence to the penitentiary was in 1798 "two years for grand larceny, and to remain in County Jail until prison is completed."
Robberies and horse stealing seem to have become so common that a resort was had to death sentences. On April 2, 1788, three men were sentenced for horse steal- ing; in the curious words of the Court, "that having been respectively convicted of the felonies you have severally committed, you shall be taken to the place of execution, and there be severally hanged by the neck until you be respectively dead." A man who stole a bee-hive fared better, his case being put over from term to term and ending finally in an acquittal, notwithstanding the swarm of witnesses. Another item found in the early records of the County Courts, though not particularly connected with Hudson, is worthy of note because of a general in- terest in everything concerning President Roosevelt. On Jan. 12th, 1789, John Bay, attorney at Claverack and the first Clerk of this City, confessed judgment for 45 pounds six shillings, and costs, against Joseph Lee, in favor of James Roosevelt, who kept a country store at Chatham. Mr. Roosevelt married a sister of Peter Van Schaack, the founder of the old family of that name in Kinderhook, and soon afterward removed to New York, where he amassed a fortune in the iron business. Wishing to know
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whether Mr. James Roosevelt was a relative of President Roosevelt, inquiry was made at "The White House." The reply was prompt and characteristic.
The White House, Washington.
May 6, 1908.
I think that was my great-grandfather. Indeed I am pretty sure so, because my great-grandmother was a Miss Van Schaack.
With all good wishes.
Sincerely Yours,
Theodore Rooseoly
Although the calm of the erstwhile peaceful village of Claverack, must have been rudely broken by the whipping- master, and frequent executions, they still clung to the prestige of being the County Seat. It was not until after strong opposition, and considerable contention, that the courts were removed to Hudson in the year 1805, by an act passed by the Assembly entitled, "An act altering the place for holding the courts, in the County of Columbia."
The County buildings at Claverack were sold and the proceeds were expended on the Court House and jail at Hudson.
The City Hall was at once re-modeled, and the Com- mon Council appropriated it to the County, to be used as a Court House.
They also voted the sum of 2,000 dollars, and a lot of land for the erection of a new jail. The present office of the Hudson Register and Gazette is located in the building, that was then erected for a County prison.
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The first session of the courts was held in January, 1806, but the Court House was still used for all public assemblages, and was the home of each religious orga- nization in its infancy, until its purchase by the Presby- terian Society.
1806, Jan. 11th. Benjamin Birdsall was voted by the Common Council, forty dollars for his services as com- mitteeman in procuring a change of the County seat. In the year 1800, the population of Hudson was 3,664, rank- ing third in the state in commerce, and fourth in manu- factures.
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
CHAPTER XI.
Transportation.
In 1785, a committee was appointed to rent and regu- late the ferry, which at an earlier date was in the hands of Conrad Flock. Possession was not obtained by the city until 1790, when scows with sails, so constructed that teams could enter from either end were adopted. The keeper was required to furnish "two scows with four able bodied men to each, and on reaching the landing at Loonenburg, it was the duty of some one of the ferrymen, to blow a shell or trumpet, to give immediate notice of their arrival, and to remain there fifteen minutes."
A committee was appointed in April, 1803, to confer with the citizens on the west side of the river respect- ing a "Canal through the Flats," but they seem to have been apathetic on the subject, and nothing was done until 1816, when the work was performed under the direction of Robert Jenkins, Oliver Wiswall and Judah Paddock, a committee appointed by the Common Council, funds be- ing provided by a lottery. The scows continued in use until displaced by the horse-boat, which was built by William Johnson at a cost of six thousand dollars.
Its introduction was a great event in the history of the city. The Mayor, Robert Jenkins, and a portion of the Council made a trial trip around the flats, when the pilot not yet accustomed to the management of his new craft, collided with 'a vessel so forcibly, as to bring the official party to a level with the deck.
In 1858, to the great relief of everyone the steam ferry- boat was substituted.
Before the year 1807, all freight and passenger traffic was carried on by means of sloops, of which there were a
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number of lines, owned by Coffin, Hathaway, Edmonds, Hogeboom, Van Hoesan and others.
Samuel Edmonds had been with Col. Van Alen, and at his death had succeeded to his business. Captain John Hathaway was an enterprising man of English puritan descent. He advertised that "his sloops had better ac- commodations than any others on the river," and also said "that would be pleased to have any body to whom he was in debt, call on him and get their pay, if they wished it." The journey to New York was made by sloops, under the most favor- able conditions of wind and tide in twenty-four hours, but more frequently required four or five days an aver- age trip being from two to three days. Fare was three dollars, the Company finding board and lodging, or one dollar and fifty cents, the passengers "finding themselves."
In 1806, two packets were built exclusively for pas- sengers, not even a package of goods being allowed on them. They are said to have been the first vessels con- structed in this country for passengers only. They were called "The Experiments," and were commanded by Cap- tains Laban Paddock and Elihu Bunker. Steam naviga- tion was introduced in the following year, owing to which they proved unprofitable. John Lambert, an Englishman stopping here, three months after Robert Fulton passed up, says that on the 22nl day of November, he "embarked on one of the fine new sloops called the 'Experiments,' built expressly to carry passengers between Hudson and New York." "It was fitted up finely, and accommodations were very comfortable; fare for passage five dollars including a bed-place (berth) and three meals a day "with spirits." "About nine o'clock we left the wharf, which was crowded with people to see us depart, and having a smart breeze, soon left the City of Hudson behind us." He does not say when he reached New York !
On the 17th day of August, 1807, Fulton's steamboat, the
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Clermont, passed here through the Western channel, mak- ing the passage from New York in thirty-three hours, "without sails or oars, being propelled by a common water wheel, which was moved by the assistance of machinery, with steam." "On her return trip the next day, she grati- fied the citizens of Hudson by making her passage through the Hudson channel." Every spot which afforded a sight of the river was crowded with people eager to get a view of "the great curiosity."
Not long after her first trip she came from New York in twenty-seven hours, landing here with one hundred and twenty passengers, which fact was considered worthy of a special notice. In the "Bee" of June, 1808, appeared the following curious advertisement:
STEAMBOAT.
For the Information of the Public.
THE STEAMBOAT will leave NEW YORK for ALBANY every Saturday afternoon exactly at 6 o'clock and will pass West Point about 4 o'clock Sunday morning.
Newburgh 7 do.
Poughkeepsie
11 do.
Esopus
2 in the afternoon
Red Hook
4 do.
Catskill
7 do.
Hudson
9 in the evening
She will leave Albany for New York every Wednesday morning exactly at 8 o'clock and pass
Hudson about 3 in the afternoon
Esopus 8 in the evening
Poughkeepsie 12 at night
Newburgh 4 Thursday morning
West Point 7 do.
As the time at which the boat may arrive at the differ-
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ent places above mentioned, may vary an hour more or less, according to the advantage or disadvantage, of wind and tide, those who wish to come on board, will see the necessity of being on the spot, an hour before the time. Persons wishing to come on board from any other land- ing than here specified, can calculate the time the boat will pass, and be ready on her arrival. Inn keepers or boatmen who bring passengers on board, or take them ashore, will be allowed one shilling for each person.
Prices of Passage-From New York.
To West Point
$2.50
Newburgh
3.00
Poughkeepsie
3.50
Esopus
4.00
Red Hook
4.50
Hudson
5.00
Albany
7.00
From Albany.
To Hudson
$2.00
Red Hook
3.00
Esopus 3.50
Poughkeepsie
4.00
Newburgh and West Point 4.50
New York
7.00
All other passengers are to pay at the rate of one dollar for every twenty miles, and a half a dollar for every meal they may eat.
Children from 1 to 5 years of age, to pay one-third price, and sleep with the persons under whose care they are.
Young persons from 5 to 15 years of age, to pay half price, provided they sleep two in a berth, price for each one who requests to occupy a whole berth.
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
Servants who pay two-thirds price are entitled to a berth; they pay half price if they do not have a berth.
Every person paying full price is allowed 60 1bs. of baggage; if less than whole price, 40 lbs. They are to pay at the rate of three cents a pound for surplus bag- gage. Storekeepers who wish to carry light and valu- able merchandise, can be accommodated on paying three cents a pound.
Passengers will breakfast before they come on board; dinner will be served up exactly at 2 o'clock; tea with meats, which is also supper, at eight in the evening; and breakfast at 9 in the morning; no one has a claim on the steward for victuals at any other hour.
The Clermont had been lengthened, improved, and re- named the North River, before the opening of the season of 1808. These minute regulations were doubtless adopted by her owners when she was then placed on the route. She was commanded by Capt. Wiswall.
The first steamboat owned here was the Legislator, pur- chased in 1828, by the Hudson Tow Boat Company. Previous to this, large barges built for the transportation of freight, had been towed to New York by steamboats running from Albany.
The captains of the steamboats in that day were very important personages, wearing a uniform profusely trimmed with gold lace, and carrying a silver trumpet, through which they gave their orders.
The Legislator was soon succeeded by several lines of fine steamboats, which are still plying nightly between Hudson and New York, and daily between Hudson and Albany, and intervening points.
In addition to these we have "the neatest and swiftest steam ferry-boat on the river." So wrote the author of "Historical Sketches of Hudson" in the year 1860.
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
CHAPTER XII.
Robert Fulton.
Should the reader have become weary of digressions, and aver that this at least is too far afield, the writer can only plead in extenuation the tempting material placed at her disposal, from records in the possession of Robert Fulton's grandson, Robert Fulton Ludlow, of Claverack, New York.
It is hoped that the timeliness of this little sketch may, with its truthfulness prove its own raison d'être.
Robert Fulton was born in the year 1765 in Little Britain, Lancaster county, Pennsylvania.
He was of Irish parentage, his father having emigrated from Ireland in 1750, and purchased a farm of three hundred and sixty-four acres, in the town of Little Britain, for which he paid, nine hundred and sixty-five pounds.
There Robert Fulton was born, being the third child and eldest son. The following year the farm was mort- gaged and the family removed to Lancaster, where the father died in 1768.
Like many men of Fulton's mould the routine of school life had no attractions for him, much to the serious con- cern of his master, and also of his mother. He pre- ferred to spend his time in the machine shops and fac- tories in the neighborhood, where he was a prime favorite. He was clever with the pencil in drawing and designing, and when he was seventeen years of age he went to Philadelphia, where he supported himself by painting portraits.
He made the acquaintance of Benjamin Franklin and other distinguished men while there, who seem to have been much interested in him.
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
So successful was he in his profession, that in four years he saved enough to enable him to satisfy his boy- hood's dream, and buy a home for his widowed mother. Selecting a snug little place in Washington county, Penn., he bought it and deeded it to her. "A Golden Deed," one of his biographers calls it, thinking possibly-
"So shines a good deed in a naughty world."
Having thus affectionately provided for his mother, and being advised to go abroad for his health which was never very vigorous, in 1791-at the age of twenty-one years, he proceeded to London. Here he was cordially wel- comed by Benjamin West, the celebrated artist, then at the height of his fame, and was invited to become an inmate of his home.
Benjamin West was also a native of Pennsylvania and his father was an intimate friend of William Penn.
Fulton's life in London apart from his art studies as a pupil of West, was devoted to the work of perfecting himself as a civil engineer.
It is evident from his correspondence with Lord Stan- hope, a portion of which is still extant, that so early as 1783, he entertained the idea of propulsion by steam, while he pursued with ardor the study of canals, which he advocated in place of turnpikes, and in which he never lost interest during his very active life.
Fulton contributed to various London journals on his favorite topic, and published a treatise on "The Im- provement of Navigation" illustrated by plates made from his own drawings, a copy of which having been sent to General Washington, was most graciously acknowledged.
In 1797, having been made a civil engineer in '95, Fulton took up his residence in Paris, in the family of the Hon. Joel Barlow, then United States Minister to France. Here he acquired the French and German lan- guages, and also applied himself to the study of higher
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
mathematics, and other branches of science which com- pleted his equipment for practical work.
On the 3rd of July, 1801, Fulton and three companions tested a "plunger" as he called it, named the "Nautilus," and descended twenty-five feet below the surface of the Seine, remaining submerged one hour. On August 7th, with a store of compressed air contained in a cubic foot of space, the "Nautilus" remained under water six hours, without inconvenience to the occupants. Fulton also in- vented a crude torpedo which was to be launched from the submarine.
England kept Fulton under close surveillance while these experiments were being made, as she was then at war with France, but Fulton seems to have disliked Na- polean too much to desire to place them at his disposal. An English deputation suggested an interview with a neutral friend in Holland, to which Fulton acceded, spending three months there, but while accomplishing nothing tangible in diplomacy, he made some clever sketches of Dutch character, and scenery.
While the Dutch government was strictly neutral, a private citizen, presumably of Amsterdam, furnished Fulton with part of the money to go on with his experi- ments.
In 1803, the English Minister made a distinct proposi- tion to Fulton to withdraw from France, and give Eng- land the benefit of his inventions. This he consented to do, but on his arrival was surprised and hurt by the unfairness of the English in trials of his torpedoes. "Ob- taining permission he blew up a Danish vessel of two hundred tons, as if it had been a bag of feathers," and soon after returned to Paris.
On the arrival of the Hon. Robert L. Livingston as American Minister to France, Fulton's attention was turned afresh to the subject of steam navigation. This meeting of Robert Fulton and Chancellor Livingston was a for-
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
tunate event in the history of the steamboat, the one a man of great wealth and business sagacity, the other an inventive and artistic genius.
At once experiments were made with models on the Seine, and ere long, from Fulton's own original speci- fications was ordered, out of England's best shops, the engine that was to propel the first successful steamboat in the world!
Livingston had previously experimented somewhat on his own account, with the assistance of Brunel who was a French refugee, afterward famous as the Engineer of the Thames Tunnel in London.
So sanguine of success was the Chancellor, that he applied to the Legislature of the State of New York for protection, and a bill was passed granting him the exclu- sive right to navigate the waters of the state for twenty years, "providing he produced a boat within a year, that would attain a speed of four miles an hour."
While the bill was on its passage, Judge Livingston was the butt of the legislature and the standing joke of the callow members; which is not strange when even the learned Benjamin Franklin, and the American Philosophi- cal Society of Philadelphia pronounced the scheme im- possible and impracticable, giving weighty reasons there- for. "The project," wrote Fulton, "was viewed by the public with indifference, or contempt, as a visionary scheme. Never did a single word of encouragement, or of bright hope, or a warm wish, cross my path. Silence itself was but politeness, veiling doubt, or hiding its re- proaches."
The trial boat built by Livingston at great expense was never used, and the legislative enactment was ex- tended to cover the joint ownership of Livingston and Fulton, until it was finally repealed.
In 1806, Robert Fulton returned to America, and active work on the Clermont (named after Chancellor Living-
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
ston's estate on the Hudson) was begun at once. The engine did not arrive from England until 1807, and the hull having been constructed in a ship yard on the East River, the boat was completed in August, and ready for her first trip on the 16th of that month.
The boat was launched amidst a crowd of jeering spec- tators but when "Fulton's folly" demonstrated its inherent wisdom, the jeers were silenced or turned to awe and wonder.
The appearance of the Clermont at night must have been of an order to produce those sensations.
The dry pine fuel sent up a column of fiery sparks and vapor many feet above the flue, and the noise of her revolving paddle wheels was not reassuring.
The white wings of the "Half Moon" two hundred years before, had startled the untutored savages, but they were as the visit of an angel, compared to this fiery monster.
Fulton in his published report, says: "I left New York on Monday at one o'clock, and arrived at Chancellor Liv- ingston's seat at one o'clock on Tuesday-time twenty-four hours, distance one hundred and ten miles. On Wednes- day I departed from the Chancellor's at nine A. M., and reached Albany at five P. M. The sum is one hundred and fifty miles in thirty-two hours, equal to nearly five miles an hour. Returning I made it in thirty hours- just five miles an hour."
Fulton also says "that throughout the whole passage both ways, the wind was ahead, so the steam engine had no assistance from his sails." The whole report bears the stamp of real greatness in its modesty and simplicity.
In June, 1813, the New York journals had glowing ac- counts of a "Notable display of Steamboats in New York harbor, nine being displayed at once! The Robert Fulton for the East River, one each for the Potomac and James Rivers, and three running to Powles-Hook and Hoboken;
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
a circumstance of no trifling importance, as it adds much to the despatch, certainty and security of the principal ferries." Fulton's steam ferry boat is minutely described as "one of the marvels of the day."
In 1815, when only fifty years of age, Robert Fulton died, worn out by toil and anxiety. A succession of law suits to defend his numerous inventions, hastened the end.
He rests in Trinity churchyard in the city of New York, but his fame undying will live forever in the memory of the American people.
Robert Fulton married a daughter of Walter Livingston, whose spacious country house erected before the Revolu- tion, is still in good preservation. It is situated in the town of Livingston and has been occupied for many years by the Crofts family.
Here after the death of her husband, Mrs. Fulton and her three children resided for some time. She afterward married an English gentleman named Charles Augustus Dale, and removed to England.
Only eleven years after Robert Fulton's death she fol- lowed him to the tomb, and was buried among kinsfolk and friends in her native land. A modest monument in the fine old cemetery in Claverack, New York, bears this simple inscription :
Harriet Livingston Dale Died March 24, 1826. Aged 41 years.
One of her daughters married Robert Morris Ludlow, whose only child, Robert Fulton Ludlow, resides in the old Ludlow house, erected in the village of Claverack in 1786.
Here are preserved many valuable relics of Robert Fulton, notably a portrait of Fulton painted by Benjamin West and presented by the great artist "to his pupil as a memento." Also a portrait of Joel Barlow, and a variety of sketches painted by Robert Fulton, showing artistic
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
talent of a high order. The original compass by which the first steamboat Clermont was navigated may here be seen, the needle still pointing to the magnetic pole, un- mindful of the flight of years, that have witnessed the marvelous development of that mysterious power, which binds the needle's point and flashes in wireless teleg- raphy, and telephony across the sea.
Although it is not claimed that Robert Fulton's mind was the first to conceive the possibility of applying steam to the propulsion of vessels, it must forever be conceded that the final success of this great invention was due to his genius, persistence, and practical ability.
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HISTORY OF HUDSON
CHAPTER XIII.
Glimpse of City-Banks-Lodges Instituted.
A glimpse of the appearance of Hudson in 1807 may be obtained from the account given to the press by our "English Tourist," whom we left voyaging to the metropo- lis on board the packet "Experiments."
Possibly he saw on the beautiful hill just below this city, the rare merino sheep just sent over by Chancellor Livingston, from the noted flock of Prince Rambouillet, near Paris. These were distributed among his different farms along the river, and gave its name to Mount Merino.
Our Tourist says: "In the evening we arrived at Hud- son. This town is of modern construction, and like Troy consists of one long street. The houses are of wood or brick, many of them built with taste, and all spacious and commodious. Shops and warehouses are numerous, and there are several large inns from which I conceived that a considerable trade was carried on between this town and the interior. It has the appearance of a thriving settlement and advantageous for commerce. There are several large brick warehouses near the wharves for the reception of goods, and a great many small vessels sail continually between this town and New York.
"Ship building is carried on here, and a vessel of three or four hundred tons was just ready for launching. Sev- eral other vessels of that size were also in the harbor."
Another writer of the same date sees only the "com- manding views on every side," and says, "With Mount Merino on the south, Becraft's Mountain on the east, fine northern views, and the Catskills, always a delight greet-
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