USA > Pennsylvania > Bradford County > Athens > A history of old Tioga Point and early Athens, Pennsylvania > Part 34
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trader along the river. Judge Herrick, being interviewed by his grandson in 1866, gave the following information: "Col. Johnson of Philadelphia, was the Pennsylvania warrantee of Sharp Delaney (lottery warrant No. 84). William Miller was his tenant. He had four sons (names of two not recollected). Johnson oldest, John next, - also two daughters, one of whom married Samuel Hepburn. John lived and merchandized in Athens Borough; he died, his widow sold property now Chester Stephens and married Alphonso C. Stuart, attorney of Athens and Towanda. John died 9 Feb. 1812 at 32 years 9 mos. and is buried in the old graveyard. William is buried on the farm now owned by Hiram Phelps. The Miller family went west." From other sources William Miller is reported as an Indian trader at Newtown. His wife's name is not known. The daughters were Edith and Mar- garet, the latter the wife of David Alexander.
14* Daniel Moore was an Irishman who came to America as a soldier in the British army, which service he seems to have deserted. He moved farther back in the township, where he died about 1830, leaving a number of descendants in the valley.
OLD TIOGA POINT AND EARLY ATHENS
Towanda Creek, and south of the State line. "The price was placed so high that few ventured into the hilly part of Northern Pennsyl- vania." "Under the pressure of certain landjobbers, i. e., John Nichol- son, Robert Morris, William Bingham and others, an act was passed later on, reducing the price to 62 cents per acre. Speculation then ran wild, fictitious applications and poll deeds were freely used, and within a year or two all the lands in Bradford County had been applied for." April 3, 1792, an act was passed opening a land office for pre- emption sale of the balance of the lands in the new purchase of 1784, at the price of 63 cents per acre in 1,000 acre warrants, with 10 per cent. overplus, and six per cent. allowance for roads and creeks. A map of Athens Township, and explanatory list, invaluable for com- prehension of Pennsylvania titles by warrant and patent, is here given, the work of the late Zephon F. Walker, with his own words of intro- duction.
STONE
NEW YORK STATE WAVERLY
STILE STO.
.65
MILE
64
. 63
.€2
Si
60
58
267
84
69
98
129
578
1682
523
12
1126 127
128 /681561
16
130
119,120
12
/23
124
w
47
--
141
138
13
136
1351
1680
136
134
133
132
34 35/ 145 146 147
148
1/49:
4
3
2
15301
1533
1496
1679
F.
37
1154 153 152 151
150
6
7
8
10
2
790
19
20 6
7
8
10/15
14
13
12
11
1678
3
40
509!
151
----
1×16/17/18
19
205
5
22: 1677
17
8
5
4
1
:1512
1508
15
18
356 +
21
7
6
3
N
17
24
37
37
36
15/14
493
5
13 14
-
28
138
16
14
15 1490
15
1.4
12
11 22
.9
8
--
7
E
+4
SHESHE QUIN
ULSTER
ATHENS TWP. Original subdivision of Penn warrants, andNo's! THE BROKEN LINES ARE THE WARRANT BOUNDARIES.
Scale 400 rods= 1 inch.
381
B
LITCHFIELD
36
1511
4
25
12/11
4
2
-
20
--- - 21
13
12
16
.494
1515
15
2
359
,146/
34
27:26
2/
20
-10
-
151
1155
1676-
SMITHFIELD
No 1
1/25
46
-
23.
118
122
1532
31
14
1531
140 /39
0
19
167
Wt Noll
-
-
RIDGEBERRY
24
397
145
254
"The following is a statement of those tracts of land (in Athens Township) that were pre-empted in 1784 and warrants issued under the Indian purchase of 1768, and the lottery warrant issues of 1785, and new purchase issue of 1792."
Nos.
Acres
Per- ches
Warrantee Names
Warrant Date
When Sur- veyed
When Pat- ented
To Whom Patented
Locality
SURVEYS EAST OF RIVERS ON
ORDERS OF 1769
D 25
63
107
Christian Straley Jacob Whitmore John Stoner David Trisler
LOTTERY WARRANTS
1
1038
94
Josiah Lockhart
May, 1785 June, 1785 April, 1786 Josiah Lockhart
2
3014
George Latimore Edward Price
66
July, 1812 Erastus Loomis
3
357
4
262
96
Geo. and Sam'1 Fox
16
614
55
Tho. Pickering & Co. Nicholas Keister
July,
1785 Feb., 1792
23
550
Arthur Erwin
June, 1785 Feb., 1792
32
431
T. Pickering & Co.
June,
1785 1785
T. Pickering
40
503
12
Daniel Brith
July,
July,
1785|Oct., 1789
Between the Rivers
47
250
108
Arthur Erwin
July,
1785 Feb.,
1792
69
500
17
John Parrott
Sept., 1786 May,
1788
John Parrott
84
547
14
Sharp Delaney
66
86
5004
Elestor Parrott
Oct.,
July,
1785 Feb., 1792 Arthur Erwin
146
301
Jacob Weiss, Jr.
66
Aug., Oct.,
1785 Dec., 1831 Jno. Reddington
240
3844
William Harper
Sept., 1786
267
341
19
John Davis
Oct.,
Aug., 1785 Feb., 1792
Arthur Erwin
359
502
140
Nicholas Keister
1785 Feb.,
1792 Arthur Erwin
397
501
108
Arthur Erwin
1785 Feb., 1792
Arthur Erwin
523
225
Arthur Erwin
July., 1785 Feb., 1792
Arthur Erwin
561
256
141
Arthur Erwin
Aug., 1785 Feb., 1792
Arthur Erwin
578
275
79
Arthur Erwin
Oct., 1785 Feb., 1792
Arthur Erwin
Wilawana
255
LIST OF ATHENS TOWNSHIP WARRANTS
Northrup flats Franklin flats Satterlee flats
1790 16
3224
Aug., 1781
Samuel Ovenshire Joseph Wharton Joseph Wharton
280₴
Aug., 1781|
Dec., 1789
Geo. and Sam'l Fox Tho. Pickering Arthur Erwin Arthur Erwin
Tioga Point Queen Esther Greens landing Murray farm Sayre Borough Between Rivers West of Rivers
46
352
159
Joseph Erwin
Arthur Erwin Arthur Erwin
South Waverly West of Rivers Milltown West of Rivers
93
500
1786 Nov., 1791 Edward Bartholomew
136
264
Bartholomew & Patton Arthur Erwin
1785
151
401
William Young
356
505
48
Joseph Erwin
Sayre Borough Chemung Bend West of Rivers
1786
Oct., 1786 April, 1788 Sept., 1786
Johnson, McClay & Keene
July,
1785
19
501
.
Apr., 1769 Oct., 1773
Jan., 1840
3053
66
Aug., Aug.,
1490
Charles Carroll
1496
959 9702 990
1508
1509
990 990
1510
1511
990 9382
1512
1513
990
1514
990
1515
990
1122
1100
Charles Willing
April, 1792 Nov., 1792 MCEU EN, HALE, & DAVIDSON TRACT
Aug., 1792 Dec., 1792
McEuen, Hale & Davidson
West of Rivers
1677
3283
1678
3294
1679 1680
1681 1682 1530
James Wilson
1531
1532
990
1533
990
13 14
3563 414%
Paul Clinton Joseph Clinton Peter Clinton
15
411
36
405
37
304
149 110 41
Joseph Hagerman Andrew Pecker
ASYLUM COMPANY TRACT
Sept., 1793 Mar., 1794 1794 Abram Whitmore
1794
1794
VACANT LAND
C
103
148
G. S. Patterson
B
296
150
Silas W. Park
A
283
121
Samuel Ovenshire
Jan., 1840 Jan., 1840 Jan., 1840
F
378
112
Daniel McDuffee
Feb., 1815 Mar., 1815 Dec., 1824 Dan'1 McDuffee Aug., 1812 Elijah Buck
West of Rivers
256
OLD TIOGA POINT AND EARLY ATHENS
Wilawana ...
East of River
East of River
494
422
100
495
422
100
Joseph Duncan Peter Yarrington John Tripp
Nov., 1850 May, 1851 1862 Feb., 1862 Mar., 1862
G. S. Patterson Silas W. Park Sam'l Ovenshire
E
400
Elijah Buck
NEW
PURCHASE CARROLL TRA|CT July, 1792 Dec., 1792
¥
-
-
¥
-
-
West of Rivers
1676
370
Josiah Hewes & Myers Fisher Hewes & Fisher
-
Mar., 1800
Tho. McEuen Wm. Davidson, Tho. Hale McEuen, Hale & Davidson
-
LE RAY TRA CT Feb., 1793 Oct., 1794
493
404
61
East of Rivers
West of Rivers
3142 315 3163 3632 990 990
BING HAM TRACT
257
BINGHAM AND LE RAY DE CHAUMONT LANDS
Unfortunately, Mr. Walker appended no explanatory note, and space forbids a full history of the great land tracts hereabouts and their owners. The first and third lists in Mr. Walker's table are ex- plained in this chapter. Some attention will be given later to the tract of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, which embraced parts of Ridgeberry, Ulster, Athens, Burlington and Franklin.
The Bingham lands embraced altogether about 60,000 acres in Wells, Columbia, Smithfield, Springfield, South Creek, Ridgeberry, Ulster and Athens townships. William Bingham was a wealthy Phila- delphian, whose whole purchase was 1,000,000 acres in Pennsylvania. McEuen, Hale and Davidson were true Pennsylvania landjobbers. The Leray tract embraced Litchfield, Windham, Rome, Sheshequin and Athens east of the rivers. A copy of the original deed in the Craft Collection (date 1797) shows that in consideration of £27,000 Robert Morris conveyed to James Donatianus Le Ray de Chaumont15 (a French citizen of America) 80,830 acres of land between the Rivers Susquehanna and Delaware, 53,000 of which were in Luzerne County. It is said that this land was granted to Robert Morris in payment of money borrowed in Europe by Morris to carry on the war of the Revolution, but there is no corroborative evidence as with the Holland lands. Joseph Kingsbery,15% of Sheshequin, became the agent for Le
15 Donatien Le Ray de Chaumont, father of James, was a Frenchman with whom Benja- min Franklin lodged at Passy, near Paris. They became warm friends, and that de Chau- mont continued a friend to America is proven by subsequent events.
15* Joseph Kingsbery came from Enfield, Connecticut, to Sheshequin April 29, 1796. According to his own records, he was a surveyor and at once engaged in that occupation. He soon married Anna, daughter of Simon Spalding, at whose death he became the owner of the Spalding homestead, which has been occupied by his descendants until a very recent date. He became a prominent citizen of the region, and his letters on religion, politics, business, etc., show a remarkably versatile mind, eager to gain new information from important sources. In a letter of Silas Deane to Robert Morris, dated October, 1777, at Paris, he inti- mates that de Chaumont was a friendly French merchant who was shipping powder to Morris via Martinique, and Deane adds "Mr. de C. is a capital man in this Kingdom, well respected by the Ministry and a warm friend to America." In March, 1788, "M. de Chaumont's best compliments to Mr. G- - he wishes to know the direction of the gentleman who owns now the lands of Joseph Wharton. If Mr. G -- has altered his mind upon his demand for this tract, it is important he let it be known as M. de C. (son of Donatien) is going to N. York where he is to dispose in one manner or another of the money which is entrusted to him to be employed in land before the departure of the packet." This indicates that it was foreign capital, not his own, that was invested by de Chaumont. It has been generally sup- posed that James D. Le Ray de C. did not live in America, but there are plenty of let- ters in existence to prove that he did, although he often returned to Europe for long inter- vals, leaving affairs in the hands of his son Vincent, a haughty, overbearing man, who resided in LeRaysville, Jefferson County, New York. He seems to have appointed Kingsbery agent during one of his father's long absences. Very much of this land in the neighborhood of Athens had already been settled under Connecticut title. Both the de Chaumonts visited their lands in this valley. Sometimes they were obliged to cross the water to show title deeds, etc., to their purchasers. Large sums of money were borrowed on these lands, much of it from Gouverneur Morris, to whom a mortgage was given, and in 1815-16 there are many letters from him that show a keener insight than the de Chaumonts. C. F. Welles, Sr., at one time made a proposition to purchase, but was told that Nicholas Biddle was to become proprietor of a part; and in 1821 Kingsbery was notified that the elder de Chaumont was seeking a purchaser for the whole, regret being expressed at the probable cessation of inter- course; but Kingsbery being asked to procure settlers from New England for the New York lands. Apparently Biddle, on examination, was not satisfied with the so-called "Le Ray" title, and in 1822 possession and management was once more vested in the elder de Chaumont; but that very same year he seems to have sold a large part of it, and gave a trust deed to his son for the rest; and Kingsbery's agency doubtless ceased for awhile. At least there are no explanatory letters until ten or fifteen years later, when a letter from B. T. Case of Mont- rose, to Almon H. Read says, "It is no easy matter to fully elucidate the subject of the Le
G
258
OLD TIOGA POINT AND EARLY ATHENS
Ray about 1811. His papers have long been said to have been de- stroyed. But many have recently been found by Hon. O. D. Kinney, from which a sketch is given in note appended. While some of the tracts on Mr. Walker's list were purchased at a much later date than others, they are all included in the one table. For information about the Asylum Company Tract the reader is referred to "Azilum," by L. W. Murray, published 1903.
According to the Act of 1784, the first choice of lands on the flats and river bottoms was disposed of by lottery to such applicants as had enrolled their names in the land office. The drawing was at Lancaster, May 1, 1785 ; the names of the 705 applicants were placed in a wheel, and the man whose name was first drawn was entitled to the first choice, and so on. The money obtained from the sales ($42,000) was to be applied to improving the public roads from Philadelphia to the western part of the State, and to improving navigation in the Schuylkill River. Josiah Lockhart,16 a merchant of Lancaster, was the lucky man, and Tioga Point his choice, lottery warrant No. 1.
It would be interesting to know why he chose this particular tract, to which he gave the most appropriate name of "Indian Arrow," the first English name applied to Te-a-o-ga.
As the title to most of the land in the present Borough of Athens is derived from this warrant, the original document is here reproduced (see insert). It was obtained by the late Edward Herrick, Jr., from the papers of Gen. Henry Welles at the Stone House, and is now in pos- session of the Herrick heirs. It should be framed and hung in Tioga Point Museum for all generations to see. Though a copy of this warrant was long ago in print, the survey made in accordance with it a month later, antedating the Connecticut survey by a year, has never been reproduced or even alluded to heretofore; whether inadvertently or by reason of Connecticut prejudice, is not known. The original is still in existence in the Department of Internal Affairs at Harris- burg, and the accompanying cut is a fac-simile made expressly for this book.
Ray lands. They were sold in 1833 in New York City under a decree of the chancellor of the state for the payment of divers debts owing by the Le Rays in France and Belgium." He then goes on to prove that the title has never left the Commonwealth, because a great fraud had been perpetrated (explanation here unnecessary).
Count Alexander de la Rochefoucauld bought some of the tract close to Athens, but never completed payment.
Kingsbery had 21/2 per cent. for every "actual settler." There was much trouble about the title, and much complaint of fraud. Pierre Joseph De Caters of Antwerp, Belgium, was one of the purchasers of 1833, and the paper is still in existence, dated 1834, granting power of attorney to Col. Kingsbery to sell these lands and see that contracts were completed. The whole group of letters to and from Kingsbery are full of interest, especially those of the celebrated Gouverneur Morris, who discussed not only the business in hand, but every topic of the times in a masterly fashion.
16 Careful research reveals little about Josiah Lockhart. He was long a resident and shopkeeper of Lancaster, wealthy and eccentric. The impression has been that he was German, but his will mentions a brother in Ireland, and a brother Robert of Virginia, making his na- tionality doubtful. His wife was the daughter of William McClure of Franklin County, Penn- sylvania; his only child was a son. The exact date of his birth or death are not known. His will was proven in Lancaster in 1808. He was a merchant of some repute, and sold goods to M. Hollenback and John Harris of Tioga Point in 1785.
-
Mi dugerne Genitore Canned of the Commonwealth Shall to whom Phase presentschall yon Seeking.
Know Me Raten Consideration of the Lionis part of Soyab Sckarento the Receives Comola vois of this Commonwealth at the granting of the Wanant herein after monteren and of the Sum of Jules. pounds threeshillings lawful Strany nowpaid by him into the vais Office live in questo i the said Commonwealth unte bie said Josiah Sochart a Certain Tract of Sama coller Indian , Arrows Situat. in the Vant belägen Susquehanna and Tiago in the late Purchase Nathanberland County Beginning at Que Walnut Ties on the bank of Joy Luck, hence by la noof Nicholas Sister and Withut Koin Both_ Ha Fid dle In eighty six degrees last four Blownures and ninety six perches tuahost on My Bank of Jusque hanna Lives Hence down the fame ly Ht several loomises thereof to the Mouth of said Tioga buch hence up his jammely the fivenul bourses theroof to the place of Beginning containing One Thousand and ninty eight deces whoun half and allowance of Via & Gent for Roads Do With the uputionuances ( Which said That was savoryden_ furfuance of a Story Wanand Number One granted unto the said Josiah Sockan dates the Seventeenth day of key. 1995 ) Tohave and to hold the said Fract on parcel of Sand with the appistina nessunto the sand forthe_ Forkant and his di ins to the life of him the said josiah Lockand his Toris and Moins for even fire and scan of all Reflutions and Deformations o to Mines Konyatti's Quil bents or otherwise excepting and rescuemig only the Fifth first of all Goldand Silver One for the use of this Commonwealth to be delivery of Fix The Mouth dear of all Large Inwineup the Finallo Charles Biddle Esqui o Vico Mindent of the Jahren, Somtive Council hati herto out his hur ? ande xuscott Pate vous o be ko warto usedin grand the third day of apat on the. Bearefour Sono Wine Houses de ~ hundred and eighty six ansof the Common wealth the Tenth.
LOCKHART'S WARRANT
259
FIRST SURVEY OF TIOGA POINT
Mrs. Perkins, in "Early Times," speaks of an old map that was evidently Maclay's survey of all the warrants. The reproduction is so small, the inscription is here printed : "The Draught of a Tract of Land called situate in the Point between Susquehannah and Tioga in District No. 10 in North- umberland County Containing one Thousand thirty eight Acres Nine- ty four Perches with usual allow- ance for Roads, Surveyd June 27th Anno Dom 1785, in pursuance of the Warrt. No. 1 Dated at Phila- delphia 17th Day of May Anno Dom 1785 to Josiah Lockart.
"Wm. Maclay D. S." Lockhart paid for his choice twelve pounds and three shillings, a mere pit- tance. A glance at the Walker map will show that many more of these lottery war- rants were laid in Athens township. William Maclay, Deputy Surveyor, was dis- patched to survey and plot out these warrants.
The Draught fa that of Low called silimite in the Print between
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No actual survey of state line had been made up to this time. King Charles had designated the boundary of Penn's grant as on parallel of 42° ; the initial point thereof was fixed in 1774, and at this time Maclay was authorized to locate a more definite line, which was to form the north line of the warrants, as related in the following pages. It may here be observed that, as nearly as can be ascertained, Colonel Arthur Erwin, an account of whom will be given later, was the only holder of lottery warrants who came upon the ground.
Establishment of New York and Pennsylvania Boundary.
So much of the early history of both Pennsylvania and Connecticut claims at Tioga Point is connected with the various lines run between Pennsylvania and New York, that it seems best here to give the matter some attention. The source of information is the "Report of the Regents' Boundary Commission," published by the State of New York in 1886. The charter of Charles II to William Penn in 1680 described the northern boundary of the grant as on the parallel of 42°; this has never been disputed. As early as 1751 it seemed desirable to settle the boundary between the provinces; and Governor Clinton made an appeal to the Lords of Trade, enclosing a letter from the Lieut. Governor of Pennsylvania, mentioning the "lycence" granted to Col. William Johnson and Company; the company were the Sparkell family, who had already created much disturbance concerning the line between New York and New Jersey. Both parties were anxious to have the Pennsylvania line definitely fixed; and the more so after the organization of the Susquehanna Company in 1754.
Governor Hoyt, in his "Syllabus of the Controversy between Connecticut and Pennsylvania," says (page 40) :
-
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260
OLD TIOGA POINT AND EARLY ATHENS
"Perhaps it was not altogether ignorance of bounds that moved our worthy predecessors. In the course suggested to 'get rid' of the deed of 1754 to the Susquehanna Company, under date of July 2, 1755, Thomas Penn writes to Gov- ernor Morris, 'When a purchase (from the Indians) is made, I would not have it in words too particular, but to extend the Northern Boundary of Pennsylvania without any mention of a Degree. * * I had rather avoid making the Govern- ment of New York privy to it, as they expect we shall confine our purchase to the forty-second degree, whereas we shall certainly expect three degrees.'" This, of course, means to include the 43d degree, as was proven by later treaties giving the boundary line as running through "Oswegy"-really Owegy, or present Owego-which was accepted as the northern limit of Penn's province. Owegy, "by the distorted representation of the geography of the country," was er- roneously placed about where Tioga Point is located; therefore the Johnsons and many others believed it to be below the 42d parallel; while some old maps indicate that the Penns proposed to include the Susquehanna River from its source. A line drawn east from Owego would strike the Delaware a long dis -- tance above the point at which the line north to the Susquehanna leaves it, and would have left the Indian villages of Chenango, Chughnut and Ouaquaga in the possession of the whites, thus defeating the object of the detour to the Delaware. Upon Guy Johnson's map annexed to the Rev. Charles Inglis' Memorial con- cerning the Iroquois in 1771 (New York Documentary History, IV, 661), "Owegy" is more correctly located, and the Indian boundary is shown by a diagonal line drawn southeasterly from that point to the present Initial Point.
"In the Indian deed to the Penns, signed at Fort Stanwix, the same day that the deed defining the general boundary-line between the Indians and the Colonists was signed, the grant to Thomas and Richard Penn covered 'all that part of the Province of Pennsylvania not heretofore purchased of the Indians, within the said general boundary line, and beginning with the said boundary line, on the east side of the east branch of the river Susquehannah, at a place called Owegy, and running with the said boundary line down the said branch * * * then up the said river Delaware on the west side thereof to the intersection of it by an east line to be drawn from Owegy aforesaid to the said river Delaware, then with that east line to the beginning at Owegy aforesaid.' Sir William John- son and the New York commissioners present would not have consented to this grant had they an idea that 'Owegy' was north of the beginning of the forty-third degree."
In 1774 the Proprietaries petitioned the King to have the boundaries marked and fixed. By the advice of his Majesty's Council, Lieut. Governor Colden of New York appointed Samuel Holland, and the Governor of Pennsylvania ap- pointed David Rittenhouse, as commissioners for this purpose; the latter was one of the ablest astronomers and mathematicians of his time. They fixed the Initial Point of the boundary at Hale's Eddy, on the Delaware River. The weather was severe, and the danger and fatigue so great that they abandoned the work, having marked only the intersection of the forty-second parallel with the Delaware. A temporary "line of cession" was run by R. L. Hooper, in 1774 or 1775, from the mouth of Owego Creek; while laying out British Military Land Warrants in New York, in present Broome and Chemung Counties, ex- tending to the location of Waverly.
The matter now rested until after the Revolution; when, the Common- wealth having extinguished the Indian title, thought it desirable that the north- ern limit should be settled. Commissioners were appointed in 1783 to explore the Susquehanna, fix the line, etc. Deputy Surveyor William Maclay was one of these; and the Boundary Report says that in 1784 or 1785 he ran a line which he designated "the Temporary line of the State," across the Susquehanna valley and Chemung flats, from one-half to five-eighths of a mile south of the present boundary, forming the north line of the tract of Northumberlnd Lottery War- rants laid out by him in 1785. Farther west, near milestone 90, he ran another "temporary line" as warrant boundary; possibly one continuous line. Maclay also ran a line east of the Susquehanna; but this was never used as a base- line for warrant surveys.
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