A history of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, from its first beginnings to the present time; including chapters of newly-discovered, Vol. II, Part 28

Author: Harvey, Oscar Jewell, 1851- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Wilkes-Barre [Raeder press]
Number of Pages: 683

USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > Wilkes-Barre > A history of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, from its first beginnings to the present time; including chapters of newly-discovered, Vol. II > Part 28

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At a general meeting of the Wyoming settlers held at Fort Wyo- ming December 18, 1772, with Capt. Stephen Fuller as Moderator, the following business was transacted* :

* * "It was then put to a vote wheather or no this Company will except of ye Report of ye Comtee that was apptd to say how old a Person should be to hold a setling right in ye Susquehannah Purchase. Voted in ye negative.

"Voted, That for ye futer their shall be but one Gaurd kept from this time untill ye first monday in March next, and that there shall be but 8 men to gaurd ye 24 hours this Winter season ; & for those of our brethren that live over ye river & ye upper end of Plymouth as far as Evelands, to come over & gaurd in ye Block-house, & to be brought over and carried over back again on free cost, provided they come between sunset and daylight out ; and whenever Kingstown shall build a gaurd-house, to gaurd in by them- selves, somewhere in ye centre of ye Inhabitantst ; and for ye town of Wilksbarre to finish ye block-house to gaurd in on their own cost, &c.

. "Voted, That no person or persons, now belonging to the Susquehannah Purchase, from this 18th day of this Instant Decemb! untill ye 1st day of May next shall sell to any person or Forrinor or stranger any Indian corn, Rye or Wheat to carry down the River out of ye limits of this Purchase, on ye forfiture of ye whole of such grain, and such other fine & penalty as this Company shall see cause to inflict. Nor no setler or prop! belonging to sd Purchase shall sell or carry down ye River out of ye sd Purchase any sort of graine, on ye forfiture of ye whole of such grain and pay a fine of 10sh. per bushel for every bushel so sold or carried from this place as abovesd -which forfitures shall be & belong, the one-half to ye Inspectors hereafter apptd & the other half to this Company, &c.

* See page 1,074 of "The Town Book of Wilkes Barre."

t The proprietor-settlers of Kingstown were, at this time, chiefly located near the upper end of the township, within the bounds of the present borough of Forty Fort.

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"Voted, That Christor Avery, Capt. Benj. Follet & Deacon Timothy Hopkins are apptd to inspect all such persons that shall sell or carry off or down sd River any sort of grayn, untill ye 1st day of May next, & make their complaint to ye Comtee of settlers."

At a general meeting of the Wyoming settlers held at Wilkes-Barre December 28, 1772, the following business was transacted* :

"Voted and determined by this Company-That the Comtee of Settlers be hereby enabled to give out warrants, signed by them as Comtee of Settlers, directed to ye several Collectors already apptd or who shall be apptd, to collect by distress all & every such rate or rates already granted or that shall hereafter be made or granted.

"Whereas, at an adjourned meeting of ye proprietors & settlers at Wilksbarre June 30th 1772, it was then voted that if any controversy arising between any two of this com- munity, that it should be determined by three judicious freeholders, &c .; and now, in addition to the above vote it is now voted that when judgment of arbitrators is passed in any matter of dispute, that then a return of sd arbitrators shall be made to ye Comtee of settlers, & they are hereby empowered to grant an execution, agreeable to ye judgment of sd arbitrators, to collect & distrain ye same ; sd execution shall be levied by a con- stable agreeable to ye laws of this Colony.

"The Constables chosen for each town are as follows : Daniel Gore for Wilksbarre, Nathan Denison for Kingstown, Thomas Heath for Plymouth, Ebenezer Marcy for Pitts- town, Timothy Keyes for Providence, John Franklin for Hanover. Nathan Denison refused to accept, & Abel Peirce was chosen in his stead.

"Voted and Determined by this Company, That if any person or persons shall at any time hereafter cut or make destruction of timber upon or near the River Susque- banna, whereby ye Proprs of ye Purchase suffers any loss or damage, that then ye whole of sd timber or saw-mill logs shall be forfited to ye Proprs in the Susquehanna Purchase ; & the Comtee of settlers are hereby impowered to make seisure of all such timber or logs that is brought down ye River suspected of being cut on ye Props land ; and if those persons that shall at any time bring down ye River any such timber are not able to give a satisfying account that sd timber was not cut on the Proprs or common land, it shall be liable to be seized & sold for ye use & benefit of ye sd Proprs * * *

"Voted, That no person or persons, settlers or forriners, coming into this place shall at any time hereafter sell or give to any Indian or Indians any spirituous lickquors, on ye forfiture of all such lickors & ye whole of all their goods & chattels, rights and effects, that they shall have on this Purchase ; & also be voted out of this Compy, un- less upon some extraordinary occasion, as sickness, &c .; without liberty first had & obtained of ye Comtee of settlers, or leave from ye Comtee that is apptd to inspect into their affairs, &c."

In a "List of Settlers at Wyoming in December, 1772"-prepared by the Committee of Settlers-are the following names not found in any of the lists for the preceding months of the same year-excepting the list of names appended to the memorial of October 3d, printed on page 751. Adams, Daniel Gardner, John-19th.

Ayers, Wm .- 5th.

Hyde, John

Pensil, John-Jr. Permit, John

Bidlack, Shubael

Harrington, Abijah

Sill, Elisha

Bancroft, John

Harrington, Peter-Jr.

Satterly, Benedict

Chase, Solomon

Hurd, John

Sweetland, Luket

-Went home 10th.

Hurd, Culver

Swift, John

Cooper, George

Hurd, Joshua-Out 1st.

Simons, Elijah-Capt.

Clark, Isaac-30th.

Hurlbut, William

Sprague, Josiah

Cook, Reuben Kelly, Dennis

Tracy, Elisha

Draper, Simeon-Maj.

Lomis, Elijah-26th.

Tammage, David Smith Young, John-Jr.

-Home 19th for family. Mount, Moses

Miner, in giving an account of affairs in Wyoming Valley in the Winter of 1772-'73, states in his "History of Wyoming," page 141, the following :

"The month of February, 1773, had so nearly exhausted the provisions of the Wilkesbarre settlement that five persons were selected to go to the Delaware, near Stroudsburg, for supplies. Mr. John Carey, * * then a lad of sixteen, volunteered as one of the party. The distance was fifty miles through the wilderness ; numerous streams,

* See "The Town Book of Wilkes Barre," page 1,076.

t On page 1,079 of "The Town Book of Wilkes Barre" the following receipt is recorded : "Wilks Barre in Connecticutt July 16th Day 172. Then Received of LUKE SWETLAND of Kent in sd. Colony Forty Dollars to Entitle him to one full Right or share in ye Susquehannah Purchase of Land-according to a vote of ye Susquehannah Compy. appointing me to sell ye same. also two Dollars as a tax granted by sd. Compy. on sd. Right. I say Received by me for ye use of sd. Compy. [Signed] "JOHN JENKINS, Comtee. for selling Rights." "Recd. ye above Certificate to record June ye 21st. 1778, & recorded per [Signed] "EZEKIEL PEIRCE, Clerk."

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including the deep and rapid Lehigh, were to be crossed. Had these been frozen over so as to be passable, their toils would have been sensibly mitigated ; but the ice had formed on each side, many feet from the shore, leaving in the center a deep, rushing flood. Stripping naked, tying their clothes and sacks on their heads and shoulders, cutting a way through the ice from the shore to the stream, and from the stream to the opposite shore, they waded through, dressed themselves, and found warmth in marching rapidly. Ar- riving at the good old Scotchman's," and sending in to make known their errand, Mr. McDowell came out, rubbing his hands in great glee, bade them welcome, but in his Scotch dialect-broad as his benevolence-told them he had a house thronged with com- pany, on the occasion of his daughter's wedding. Among the guests were magistrates and others, whose enmity was to be dreaded if they knew a party of Yankees were within reach ; but he gave directions that they should warm themselves noiselessly at an out- house, then take shelter in the barn, where comfortable blankets were spread on the mow, a most royal supper sent them, with spirits and wine ; their sacks were filled with flour, and their pockets with provisions. The four men took each an hundred pounds, young Carey seventy-five, and welcome was their return to their half-famished friends at Wilkesbarre.

"Never was an opening Spring, or the coming of the shad, looked for with more anxiety or hailed with more cordial delight. The fishing season, of course, dissipated all fears, and the dim eye was soon exchanged for the glance of joy and the sparkle of pleasure, and the dry, sunken cheek of want assumed the plump appearance of health and plenty. The Spring, too, was attended with sickness. Several deaths took place. Cap- tain Butler buried a son named Zebulon ; and soon after his wife followed her boy to the grave. Both were interred on the hill, t near where the upper street [North Street] of the borough is cut through the rocks as it passes from Main Street to the canal basin."

At a town-meeting held at "Wilksbarre February 16, 1773," with Captain Butler acting as Moderator, the following business was trans- acted# :

"Voted by this Company to continue ye Revd Mr. Jacob Johnson in ye work of ye Gospel ministry amongst us.

"Voted by this company to appoint a Comtee to draw a plan in order to suppress vice and immorality that abounds so much amongst us, and lay ye same before ye next meeting. Mr. [Elisha] Swift, Capt. [Obadiah] Gore, Deacon [Timothy] Hopkins, Capt. [Zebulon ] Butler and Capt. [Stephen] Fuller is appointed to draw ye plan.

"Voted by this Compy that each town [is] to warn a town-meeting, and for each town to appoint a Comtee of two men from each town to confer with ye Revd Mr. Jacob Johnson concerning his preaching ye Gospel amongst us & How his time shall be divided amongst us ; and to confer with M! Johnson upon ye premises and lay ye same before ye next meeting."

The next town-meeting was held March 1, 1773, when the follow- ing matters were disposed of§ :

"Voted, That Lieut. [Joseph] Gaylord, Mr. Parshall Terry, Capt. [Caleb] Bates, William Stewart, Isaac Tripp, Esq., are appointed as Comtee men to joyn with ye other Comtee men that was apptd ye last meeting in order to draw a plan to suppress vice & im- morality.

"Voted, to continue guarding & scouting as formerly for ye future.

"Voted, That if any of ye Prop!s & settlers now on ye land shall refuse or neglect to pay in their taxes in defraying charges in making roads, building bridges, &c., ye several Collectors are ordered to levy their warrants upon their lands, where other Estate can't be found, & post ye same in order for sale in twenty days after such warrant is levied, & sell ye same to ye highest bidder as ye law directs. * * *

"Voted, That those persons that are settlers in the Susquehanna Purchase that shall die a natural death, or lose his life any other way, his right or rights shall lie eight months without being manned, and not forfeited to ye Company."

At a town-meeting held March 22, 1773-Elisha Swift being Mod- erator-it was voted "to continue guarding and scouting as formerly." Also, a committee was appointed "to collect in all those bonds given to ye use of those settlers that took & regained possession" in 1771 of the lands in the Susquehanna Purchase. Eight days later another town- meeting was held at Wilkes-Barre, when the following business was transacted | :

* JOHN McDOWEL, mentioned on pages 730 and 736, ante.

t In the burial lot mentioned on page 756, but more fully described in Chapter XLIX.

Į See page 1,087 of "The Town Book of Wilkes Barre." § See ibid., p. 1,088.

[ See "The Town Book of Wilkes Barre," pages 1,004 and 1,097.

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"I'oted, That Captain Butler, Captain Fuller and Major Peirce be and are by this Company appointed as a Comtee to receive all ye Bonds given by a number of persons for settling rights for ye use of those persons that took & regained ye possession of our land at Wyoming in August, 1771. * * It is the intention and meaning of all parties upon ye executing of their bonds that ye same is not to be collected untill the title of ye Susqh lands is confirmed to ye sd proprs ; if never confirmed, never to be paid, &c.

"Voted, That Frederick Eveland is appointed to collect the road tax in Plymouth in ye room of Deacon [Timothy] Hopkins, deceased.

"Voted, That the Comtee of Settlers be desired to send to the several towns, or to their Comtees, requiring them to call all the inhabitants in each of ye gd towns to meet on Thursday next [April 1, 1773], at five a clock in ye afternoon on sd day, in some con- venient place in sd town, & that they then choose one person in each of sd towns as an officer to muster them & see that all are equipped according to law with fire-arms and ammunition ; and that they choose two Sergeants and a Clerk ; & that the sd chief officer is hereby commanded & directed to call ye sd inhabitants together once in fourteen days, for ye future, until this Compy orders otherwise ; & that in case of an alarm, on ye appearance of an enemy, he is directed to call ye sd inhabitants together & stand for ye defence of the sd towns & settlement without any further orders-always obeying all orders he or they shall receive from ye Comtee of Settlers from time to time."

Under the date of April 2, 1773, William Maclay*, Esq., wrote from Sunbury to James Tilghman, Esq., Secretary of the Pennsylvania Land Office, as followst :

"If Hell is justly considered as the rendivous of Rascals, we cannot entertain a doubt of WIOMING being the Place ! Burn'd Hands, cut Ears, &c., are considered as the certain certificates of superior merit ; we have certain Accounts of their having had several meetings lately to chuse a Sovereign & settle the State, &c., for it seems they have not now any Dependance on the Government of Connecticut. The time of the Descent on the West Branch, Fort Augusta, &c., is now fixed for May next ; I have no Doubt but the Desperate Tempers of these People will hurry them into some tragical affair, which will at least rouse our Government, when it may be too late to repair the mischief done by them. At the same time I am told there are some among them who would willingly become quiet subjects, and are afraid to own their sentiments."

At a town-meeting held at Wilkes-Barre, six days after the fore- going letter was written, Capt. Timothy Smitht was appointed to at- tend the meeting of The Susquehanna Company to be held at Hart- ford, Connecticut, April 27, 1773, "to lay before ye meeting at home ye Report that is now read before this company." The caption of

* WILLIAM MACLAY (mentioned on pages 724 and 725) was born at New Garden, Chester County, Pennsylvania, July 20, 1787, the son of Charles and Eleanor (Query) Maclay. Charles Maclay had im- migrated to America in 1784, and he lived in Chester County until 1740 and then removed to Cumberland County. In 1758 William Maclay accompanied General Forbes on his expedition into western Pennsyl- vania, as a Lieutenant in the "First Battalion" commanded by Lieut. Col. Hugh Mercer. (See note "S", page 861, Vol. I.) In 1763 Lieutenant Maclay accompanied Gen. Henry Bouquet's expedition to Fort Pitt. In April, 1760, Lieutenant Maclay having studied law was admitted to the Bar of York County. Pennsyl- vania, but he never practised his profession. He soon devoted his attention to land-surveying, and later, assisted by his younger brother, Samuel Maclay (who served in the Revolutionary War as a Lieutenant Colonel, and from 1808 to 1808 was a United States Senator from Pennsylvania), surveyed the lands on the West Branch of the Susquehanna which had been granted to the officers who had served in the Pennsyl- vania battalions during the French and Indian War. William Maclay himself acquired a considerable body of these lands.

At the beginning of the Revolutionary War William Maclay was active in raising and equipping troops for the Continental service, and, marching to "the front" with the Pennsylvania Associators, he participated in the battles of Trenton and Princeton. Later in the war he served in the Commissary Department. In 1781 he was elected a member of the Provincial Assembly. In September, 1788, the General Assembly of Pennsylvania appointed commissioners to, among other things, "ascertain where the northern boundary of the State will fall." William Maclay. James Wilkinson and William Mont- gomery were the commissioners appointed. William Montgomery resigned, and Joseph Montgomery was appointed in his place August 17, 1784. The commissioners never accomplished much, and were relieved from duty in the Spring of 1785. The same year Maclay was appointed one of the Deputy Surveyors to survey the lands of the Commonwealth acquired by the last purchase from the Indians-which was in 1784. In 1780 William Maclay was elected with Robert Morris to represent Pennsylvania in the United States Senate, and he drew the short term, ending March 3. 1791. He was a leader of the Opposition during the Administration of President Washington, and "the records show," states Meginness in his "History of the West Branch Valley," "that he [Maclay] was the actual founder of the Democratic party." He regarded Alexander Hamilton as totally corrupt. At the expiration of his term Senator Maclay retired to his farm near the present city of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. In 1795 he was a Representative in the Pennsylvania Legislature ; in 1796 he was a Presidential Elector for Thomas Jefferson ; from 1801 to 1808 he was an Associate Judge of the Dauphin County Courts, and in 1803 and '04 he served again as a Repre- sentative in the Legislature. He wrote "Sketches of Debate in the First Senate of the United States, 1780-'91 " He was married April 11, 1769, to Mary McClure, daughter of John Harris, the founder of Harrisburg, and they became the parents of three sons and six daughters. William Maclay died at Harrisburg April 16, 1804.

t See Meginness' "History of the West Branch Valley," edition of 1889, page 896.

# Mentioned on page 718, ante. Upon the organization of the male inhabitants of Kingston Township into a train-band, or militia company-in pursuance of the vote passed at the town-meeting held March 80, 1778, as previously noted-Timothy Smith, then in the thirty-third year of his life, had been elected Captain.

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the "report" thus referred to (the original document is MS. No. 25 in the collection mentioned in paragraph "(3)", page 29, Vol. I) is worded as follows : "Petition of John Durkee, Zeba Butler, Silas Parke, Ezekiel Peirce, Obadiah Gore, Jr., Stephen Fuller and Christopher Avery, and their associates whose names are hereto annexed," and it is dated at "Wilksbarre April 3, 1773." The petition recites the purchase of the Susquehanna lands from the Indians in 1754; the attempts of the New Englanders to settle the lands in 1762, '63, '69, &c., and then sets forth that there are "about 2,500 [sic] persons [on the lands] who are at this time under the greatest difficulty, distress, confusion and inconvenience imaginable, for want of being incorporated, and officers civil and military appointed among us [them]-not only for our [their] defence, security and protection against the vile incroachments of our neighbours the Penn- silvanians, but to keep up good order and regularity among ourselves." In conclusion it is prayed that a county may be erected and organized. Appended to the document are the names of 315 men-nearly all written by the same hand.

The New England settlers at Wyoming, and the chief men of The Susquehanna Company in Connecticut, had sought persistently, from the very beginning of their settlements on the Susquehanna, to obtain from the General Assembly of Connecticut not only a formal recognition of the existence of the infant colony, but the establishment therein of some authoritative form of government under the Connecticut Charter. In the Spring of 1773 it had been determined by the settlers that, inasmuch as they were rapidly increasing in number, and "peace prevailed and prosperity was enjoyed," they would make another earnest effort to secure the accomplishment of their political desires. Hence the memo- rial, or petition, just referred to.

With this memorial in hand Capt. Timothy Smith set out from his home in Kingston Township April 13, 1773, bound for Connecticut, where he arrived in time to attend the meeting of The Susquehanna Company held at Hartford on April 22d. This meeting was largely at- tended, and many important affairs were disposed of, as is shown by the following extracts from the original minutes.

"Whereas there are many memorials and Complaints now exhibited to this meeting, of interesting Consequence to the settlers, and this Company is not furnished with proper Exhibits justly to determine the same, it is now thought best and

"Voted, to refer the Consideration of all the aforesaid Complaints and Memorials to the Consideration of this Company at their Adjourned Meeting in June next, and that there shall be a letter of advice wrote to the Settlers on said Susquehanna land, advising them of the time of the adjournment of this meeting, and that they endeavor to make an amicable Settlement of all their plaints and grievances, and that the settlers appoint a proper Committee to appear at said adjourned meeting and inform said meeting relative to said Complaints, that they may be heard and Equitably redressed, if not settled before. "Upon the memorial of Elisha Williams, Thomas Baldwin and Silas Dean, a Com- mittee of the Towns of New Wethersfield, Yalestown, Bethlehem, Judea, Charlestown and New Simsbury, on the West Branch of the Susquehanna River-in part of their general rights in said Purchase-praying that they may have a township granted to them on the said West Branch, * * to settle on compact together, in order to secure said West Branch-Voted, That the proprietors of said Townships shall have one Township of land laid out on the West Branch in some proper place ( for the security and defence of said West Branch), six miles square ; and that the proprietors of said Township shall forthwith settle in said Township to the number of 120 settlers, and hold and keep said Township in opposition to any claim but the claim of this Company ; and that said town- ship now granted shall be considered as one of the three townships formerly granted by this Company on the West Branch of said river, to be settled for the security and defence of our said Purchase ; and that this so settling and defending and holding said township now granted shall be considered and allowed in lieu of the settlements on the above [three] townships, according to the votes of this Company, and to delay the settlement

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on said township for the term of five years, or to settle sooner, if it can be done with safety to themselves and the Company.

"Voted, That Col. Elizur Talcott and Samuel Gray, Esq., as agents for this Com- pany, prefer a memorial to the Honorable the General Assembly of the Colony of Con- necticut, to be held at Hartford in May next, representing the great difficulty that the settlers of the Susquehanna Purchase are under for want of civil government and authority, and praying that civil government may now be appointed for and among the settlers on the Susquehanna Purchase.

"Whereas, there is some difficulty with respect to the votes relative to the town- ship of Hanover, and the number of settlers to be placed in said township, it is the under- standing of this meeting that, by the votes of this Company, Capt. Lazarus Stewart and William Stewart and their associates should have the direction of filling up said town of Hanover, and that there shall not be less than thirty-six settlers in said town to hold the same ; the regulations of said town to be nevertheless under the control of this Company, as the other towns are."

One of the written "complaints" referred to in the foregoing min- utes is herewith printed for the first time. A copy of the original "com- plaint," or petition-without the names of the signers-was sent to Zebulon Butler after the meeting at Hartford, and from that copy the following has been taken-the spelling and punctuation of the original copy not being strictly adhered to, however.

"TO THE GENTLEMEN OF THE SUSQUEHANNA LAND CO.

"Sirs: As we are remote from ye Government to which we consider ourselves as belonging, and are destitute of ye advantages of civil authority, and being numerous, all of wh. we are sensible makes it the more a duty incumbent upon us to maintain & keep up good order and regularity among us. We are also sensible that divisions and animosi- ties amongst our settlers is dangerous and hurtful to the increase and growth of our set- tlement, and would undoubtedly be a matter of grief and real concern in your minds for us.

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A history of Wilkes-Barre, Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, from its first beginnings to the present time; including chapters of newly-discovered, Vol. II, Part 28

Author: Harvey, Oscar Jewell, 1851- [from old catalog] Publication date: 1909 Publisher: Wilkes-Barre [Raeder press] Number of Pages: 683

Author: Harvey, Oscar Jewell, 1851- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1909
Publisher: Wilkes-Barre [Raeder press]
Number of Pages: 683