USA > Pennsylvania > Philadelphia County > Philadelphia > A history of the townships of Byberry and Moreland, in Philadelphia, Pa. : from their earliest settlements by the whites to the present time > Part 3
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20 Walter Forrest owned considerable land in the southeastern corner of Bensalem along the Poquessing Creek and Delaware River.
" This property is now owned by Jacob Eckfeldt.
of ye
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THE HISTORY OF
would then rather suffer inconvenience, than disturb the peace and harmony of the Society.
Some time during the summer of this year, Nicholas Moore commenced the erection of a mansion in the manor of Moreland, at a place he called Green Spring, about half a mile west of the present village of Somerton. This mansion is said to have been far superior to those in the surrounding country, and to have been built in correspondence with his official dignity as Speaker of the first Assembly of Pennsylvania. The house was near a spring of excellent water, which, as it trickled away, kept the grass green along its banks, hence the origin of its name. It was the first house erected within the present limits of Moreland. One account says, "While he was Chief Justice, he erected a courthouse and jail near his residence at Green Spring, where those who disregarded the laws were tried, and the guilty culprits punished; but owing to the general good morals of the inhabitants the jail seldom had any inmates."22
[1686.] After the meetings for public worship were removed to John Hart's house, the distance proved too great for many Friends living in the northern parts of the township, and in order to accommodate them, it was decreed that a meeting be held once a month, on First days, at the house of Henry English,23 so that two meet- ings for worship were, for a time, held in Byberry. The
22 It is not likely that any building constructed by Nicholas Moore at Green Spring could be dignified by the name of court-house or jail. He may, however, have conducted a species of magistrate's court here and he may have used some of his out-buildings as a jail.
23 This farm is now in the possession of Alfred Buckman.
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BYBERRY AND MORELAND.
ocalities of these meetings appear to have been unsatis- factory, and frequent changes were the result. In this ear, at the Quarterly Meeting of Friends, it was agreed hat a Monthly Meeting should be held at Byberry, Ox- ford and Cheltenham, "in course," the last week in each month, and on the days of the respective weekly meetings, that at Byberry coming on Fourth day. The time and place for this meeting were not satisfactory, and it was agreed, during the First month of the next year, [1687.]
to hold the monthly meetings at the house of Richard Worrel, Jr., and the time of meeting was changed to the last Second day of each and every month, to which place it was accordingly soon after re- moved.
From this time until 1691 the accounts preserved are very meagre. A few new settlers arrived from England, and the condition of those who were already here was gradually improving. There appears to have been a recip- rocal exercise of friendly feelings and good understand- ing among them, and through the blessings of Divine Providence upon their industry and prudent management, their temporal affairs were daily improving, and cheer- ing prospects of untold wealth were opening around them. The young men who came over in a state of single blessedness had taken to them affectionate partners, and settled on the fine lands in the township, and large fam- ilies of loving children were growing up around them, so that but little was wanted to fill up their measure of happiness, and make their condition as desirable as could reasonably be expected to fall to the lot of mortals; but earthly enjoyments, like all other earthly things, must
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THE HISTORY OF
find an end, and we learn that difficulties and dissension began to spring up in the colony, and, by the year 169 had increased to such an extent as to involve nearly th whole of the inhabitants in a bitter discussion of religiou principles. This was not confined to Byberry, but sprea all over Pennsylvania, and involved the Society of Friend in much trouble. These dissensions appear to have origi nated through the agency of George Keith, who ther [1691.]
resided in Philadelphia. He had been an emi- nent minister and writer, and being a man of extensive learning, had gained many followers. He de- sired to make some radical changes in the discipline and the doctrines held by the Society, which they were not willing to adopt. He was, therefore, warned of his con- duct by some Friends, which was not well received, and he finally withdrew from the Society. After this, a decla- ration was issued by his supporters in his favor, who then proceeded to disown those who testified against him. Such was the influence exerted, that they gained the ascendency in sixteen out of thirty-two meetings. In Byberry, the leading advocate of Keith and his doctrines was John Hart, who owned a tract of land containing four hundred and eighty-four acres in the southern part of Byberry, and was in respectable circumstances. He had been several times elected a member of the Assembly, and is described as having been a man of rank, character, and reputation, and to have been an eminent preacher. He early embraced the views held by Keith, and from his influence and connections, drew the Rushes, Colletts, and the most of those living in the southern part of By- berry to his support. The burial ground was on his farm,
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BYBERRY AND MORELAND.
und the house for worship near his residence, so that, on Account of these difficulties, Friends were induced to with- draw from the Meeting, and afterwards assembled at the house of Henry English.
Those who remained at the old meeting were John Hart, John Rush, Nathaniel Walton, and Richard Co !- ett, with their families, and some others by the name of Johnson, Jackson, and Foster. Those who seceded are mentioned as Giles Knight, John Carver, Daniel Walton, Thomas Walton, William Walton, Henry English, Thom- as Knight, John Gilbert, William Hibbs, John Brock, Thomas Groome, and others.
The Keithian meeting appears to have been unsuccess- ful, and after two or three years it was broken up-the adherents joining other religious persuasions. Some be- came Episcopalians, and assisted in founding a church called "All Saints'," in Lower Dublin; while others, be- coming. Baptists, but retaining the dress and language of the Quakers, were called Quaker Baptists.24 Some of these again changed into Seven-day Baptists, and were the originators of that sect.
Notwithstanding the long term of controversy and dis- cord through which the infant Meeting had just passed, it still continued to survive, and soon outgrew all its troubles. As Friends had seen fit to withdraw from Hart's meeting, they did not feel willing to bury their deceased Friends in the cemetery on his farm; therefore, we find that Henry English, one of the most prominent
" John Hart became a Baptist and was instrumental in founding the Southampton Baptist Church. He afterward removed to South- ampton Township, where he owned land. (See account of John Hart elsewhere).
Y
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members remaining with the Society, did, on the 2nd i the Ist month, give one acre of land to John Carver : Daniel Walton, in trust for Friends. The deed speci: [1694.] people of God, called Quakers, who are a that "the said one acre is for the use of shall be and continue in unity and religious fellowsl with Friends of Truth, and shall belong to the Month Meeting of said people, for whose use the said piece ground is intended to be employed as a burying-plac and to no other use or service whatsoever; provided a ways, that it is the true intent and meaning of the parti hereunto, that no person or persons who shall be declare by the members of the Monthly or Quarterly Meeting whereunto he or she shall belong, to be out of unity wit them, shall have any right or interest in said piece o - ground hereby granted, while he or she shall remain ou of unity and church fellowship with those people to whon he or they did so belong." It seems quite singular tha this instrument should confine the use of said piece of land to a "burying-place," as a meeting-house was badly. needed at that time; and shortly afterwards, with the full consent of the donor, a meeting-house was erected there- on. It was built of logs, ridged and notched at the cor- ners, chinked with mud, and according to the custom of the times, covered with bark. It stood in the northern corner of the present site of the old graveyard, and was the origin of the present Friends' Meeting. Here, in this humble structure, scarcely sufficient to shield its inmates from the weather, did our forefathers meet to manifest their devotion and gratitude to a bountiful Providence for the many favors which they were daily receiving. It
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as a rude structure, but served as the only place for orship during the next twenty years.
The most noted members of the Meeting at this time ere John Duncan, John Brock, William Beale, Thomas cott, and Abel Hingstone, in Byberry or adjoining part f Bensalem. About the same time, we find the name f Thomas Groome, as having settled near Somerton; nd the names John Cross, John Tibby, John Hybert, Nicholas Williams, Nicholas Tucker, Nathan Watamore, und William Carver, as residents of the township.
[1695.] The Meeting seems to have been on a firmer basis than at any previous time, and the members were nuch concerned, not only for the welfare of each other, but that the youth might be preserved in the Truth. The Yearly Meeting, held at Burlington, N. J., in 1694, re- commended that four Friends be appointed to have charge of the youth belonging to the Society, and in 2d mo. of this year, John Carver, of Byberry, was appointed one of the four for that purpose. It appears that some Friends of those days did not observe the golden rule, and the Meeting, feeling the necessity of having a closer observ- ance of the principles and customs of the Society, appoin- ed in the 12th mo., John Carver and John Brock, "to admonish those that profess God's truth and do not walk answerable thereto." This was the origin of the appoint- ment of overseers* in Byberry Meeting, a custom con-
* Those appointed to act in this capacity from this time to 1740, were John Brock, Abel Hingstone, William Beale, Thomas Groome, John Carver, Everard Bolton, John Duncan, Henry Comly, John Carver, 2d, Thomas Knight, son of Giles, Edmond Dunkin, Thomas Walton, William Dunkin, George James, Jonathan Knight, Joseph Gilbert, and Evan Thomas.
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THE HISTORY OF
tinued to the present time. The great concern of Friend seems to have been "to watch over each other for good and to build each other up in that most holy faith whic works by love to the purifying of the heart."
In the early part of this year some of the Gilbert settled in Byberry. In the 4th mo., 1685, Thomas Holme the surveyor-general, obtained a patent for six hundred acres of land in Byberry, bounded on the east by the Po quessing, and in the same year sold it to Nicholas Rideout On the 19th of 12th mo., 1695, John Gilbert purchased the said tract of land of Rideout, and having sold about one-half of it to John Carver, divided the remainder be- tween his two sons, Samuel and Joseph, who settled on it. These were the first of that name we have met with resid- ing in Byberry.
Affairs in Moreland began to assume a different aspect about this time. Nicholas Moore, who had been in deli- cate health almost from his arrival in America, died at his mansion, in Moreland, in 1689. During his life he retained possession of all his property, but it was much incumbered at the time of his decease. His creditors, among whom was John Holmes,25 on 23d of April, 1695, presented a petition to Council to have the accounts of the said Nicholas Moore examined, when it was found that the estate was indebted to different individuals to the sum of upwards of £270 sterling. The Council, there- fore, empowered John Holmes to sell the plantation and manor house at Green Spring, and such lands and im-
" John Holmes was not related to Thomas Holme, although he settled on a portion of Thomas Holme's tract of 1646 acres in Lower Dublin.
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BYBERRY AND MORELAND.
rovements in other parts of Moreland as might be suf- cient to pay all his just debts, educate his surviving hildren, and provide for the improvement of the re- hainder of the estate. Soon after this, in the same year, he mansion house, together with six hundred acres of and, was accordingly sold at public sale. It was pur- hased by Henry Comly, of Middletown, Bucks County, ho, in 1704, erected a mansion thereon, which is yet tanding, and is the oldest house* in Moreland. In the ear 1701 or '2, portions of this estate were sold in lots o suit purchasers, and the population soon began to in- rease. No account of these sales has been met with.26
[1701.] It was agreed in the Monthly Meeting, "that Preparative Meeting be established at Byberry, to be held on the weekly meeting day that happeneth next be- ore the Monthly Meeting, and that those Friends that are appointed as overseers to attend that service." This was the origin of the Preparative Meeting at Byberry, and t commenced soon afterwards, although no records of its proceedings have been found previous to 1721.
In the fore part of the eighteenth century, the children of the early settlers were entering upon the stage of active life. They were noted for their strength, activity, and vigor ; and had been brought up accustomed to many
* This house has, at different times since, had additions and altera- tions made to it, which have entirely changed its appearance. It has remained in the possession, and been the residence of descendants of the family of that name ever since, until the death of the late occupant, Franklin Comly, Esq., in 1860, when it passed into the hands of his son-in-law, Moses Knight.
26 Henry Comly, son of the original Henry Comly of Bucks county, purchased this tract indirectly through his father-in-law Robert Heaton in 1697.
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THE HISTORY OF
hardships, and inured to a life of toil. They were exper at hunting wild turkeys, bears, and raccoons, and man of them had acquired considerable reputation in that busi ness. They could use the axe, the grubbing-hoe, the spade, and the sickle, and prided themselves in so doing Then all the grain was reaped with sickles, and there was frequently some strife among them as to who was the best reaper. In all trials of this kind Joseph Gilbert is said to have carried off the palm, and was acknowledged the best reaper in the whole country. Upon one occasion a man came from New Jersey to try him, but yielded the contest long before night. The women, also, frequently engaged in outdoor work, and some of them were excellent hands. In those days the grain was generally stacked and all the threshing was done with flails. But few barns were then to be found, and these few were made of logs, and thatch- ed with straw. They were generally small, without any floors, and sufficed only for a shelter for some of the stock. Wagons had not yet been introduced, and sleds were used for hauling grain to the stacks and barns. When it was threshed and ready for market, if the ground was not covered with snow, it was carried on the backs of horses to the mills on the Pennypack or Poquessing Creeks. This was the custom until the introduction of carts, sev- eral years afterwards. The harness was all of home man- ufacture, the collars being made of straw or calamus tops, and the traces and lines of hemp or flax.
Some thirty-five or forty years had already passed away, and the land so destitute of timber, at first, was now covered with a growth of thrifty chestnut, oak, hickory, maple, ash, etc. As timber became more plenty, the set-
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tlers began to divide their farms by means of fences in- stead of ditches. Many of the young men became expert at chopping wood and splitting rails ; and it is said, on one: occasion, that Job Walton split three thousand six hun- dred rails in one week, the logs being cut off for him. This was a large week's work, and few of our rail-split- ters of this day can beat it. Fencing, however, was not universal at that time, and some preferred to dig ditches- and plant privet ( Ligustrum vulgare) hedges, in order to inclose their farms. These hedges answered the purpose. very well, and presented an effectual barrier against the encroachments of cattle and wild beasts. They gave the farms a pleasing appearance, particularly when in blossom ; and when the berries were ripe they afforded food for multitudes of wild pigeons, thousands of which were killed by the settlers. It is said these hedges, from some unknown cause, nearly all died a few years previous to the Revolution, and have never been in general use since.
We have met with no accounts of any schools previous to 1710. The children of the first settlers were brought up with a very limited chance of obtaining an education, and many of them were unable to read or even to write their own names. In this year it appears that Richard [1710.] Brockdon commenced a school at Byberry, but did not continue there more than a year, as the Meeting records, in 17II, mention the application of Richard Brockdon, late schoolmaster at Byberry, for a certificate to return to England. He was succeeded by William Davis, who remained until 1717, and then re- moved to New Jersey. After this we find mention of John Watmore, Roger Bragg, John Pear, and Walter
4
1
1
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THE HISTORY OF
Moore, as teachers in Byberry previous to 1753. The school was poorly conducted, and a want of interest in the great cause of education, in those having charge of the schools, seems to have been the great fault.
[1712.] Some time during this year, Giles Knight erected a bolting mill on the small stream of water passing through his meadow, lately owned by Nancy Walton.27 No flour was made at this mill, but the people took their grain to Pennepack or Poquessing mills, and, when it was ground, hauled it to Giles Knight's to have it bolted.
About this time we find among the early settlers of Moreland the name of William Roberts, Albertson Wal- ton, William Tillyer, Henry Comly, Nicholas Moore, Jr., John Blackford, Joseph Mitchell, Jonathan Comly, Richard Marple, and Derrick Krewson.28
[1714.] The old log meeting-house in Byberry, being no longer tenable, in this year a new house was erected on the acre given by English. It was a few feet to the east of the old one,29 was built of stone, thirty-five by fifty feet, two stories high, with arched ceilings, and double doors in front. It had large windows, with small lights of glass set in a leaden sash attached to a wooden
· 27 Benjamin Duffield moved into Moreland sometime between 1682 and 1685.
28 This mill was located on property now owned by Edward Shall- cross.
" The second meeting was located near a well which was once used for school purposes. It was afterward covered with timbers and soil. About sixty years ago some hogs rooted the soil away and exposed the well. It was then covered with a thicker layer of earth. The old well may be located by the sound heard when stamping the foot over it.
From John Watson, we learn that the sash were hung on hinges, that these sash were of lead and that they were filled with the luxury. glass.
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BYBERRY AND MORELAND.
frame, which was hung on hinges so as to open and close, and was without shutters. The gable ends of this house were not carried to a point, but from about midway of the rafters, another roof from each end was carried up to meet the main one. This was the style of building at that early day. The plan for warming this building was not by any means as complete as that now in use, for it is stated that the only means devised for warming it was by a fireplace in the west end, on the outside of the building and com- municating with an artificial stove, formed of cast iron plates, through which the heat was communicated to the room. The men warmed themselves before going in, and the women occupied the end next to the fire. In order to complete this house, Friends borrowed £50 of James Cooper, which was paid off by subscription, in 1723.
[1720.] About this time such things as fortune-telling, astrology, etc., were in considerable repute, and many of the settlers, even the most respectable, frequently resorted to them. Most Friends seem to have been in advance of the age in which they lived, for they not only bore testi- mony against these things as great evils, but dealt with some of their members for "meddling in predicting by astrology," etc. During this age of superstition many Friends were awakened to a just sense of the value and importance of properly educating their youth, and the Meeting was soon impressed with the necessity of erecting a suitable building for school purposes. Accordingly, in this year, we find a school-house was erected near the meeting-house. It was a log building about eighteen feet square. Here in this humble structure many of our early ancestors were educated; and it is probable that the oppor-
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THE HISTORY OF
tunities for acquiring an education were much better after the erection of the building than they had been before, as those who were educated about this time were generally spoken of as possessing considerable literary qualifica- tions, and their autographs, as found in some of the old papers, certainly would not suffer any disparagement if compared with many of the present day. No further ac- count of this school-house has been found. Some time previous to this a few houses had been built near each other in the eastern part of Moreland; and as the place began to assume more the appearance of a village, it was called Smithfield, the name of which has since been dis- carded for that of Somerton. About this time it con- tained ten buildings, among which were a store, a tavern, and a blacksmith shop, about half of which was situated in Byberry. This is the first account we have found of this village, and the time of its foundation cannot now with any certainty be known.
The houses, and indeed all the buildings erected by the settlers previous to this tiine, were with but few excep- tions formed of logs. They were rudely constructed tene- ments, being scarcely sufficient to shield their inmates from the rigors of the climate; but in them our fore- fathers dwelt in peace and contentment, and seemed to enjoy life quite as much as most of us in this more pro- gressive age. The houses were but one story high, with hipped roofs; and the room used for cooking contained a large fireplace, in which a fine blazing fire was kept during the cold weather of winter. In these large quantities of wood were consumed, often as much as ten to fifteen cords in one season, but as timber was plenty, and required only
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BYBERRY AND MORELAND.
the trouble of cutting, but little economy was exhibited in its use. These fireplaces were large enough to allow a person to sit on each side of the blazing fire, and those favored spots were generally occupied by the heads of the family, while the children hovered around in front in order to keep warm.
Farming was carried on in a rude and slovenly man- ner ; the implements were but poorly suited to their de- signed uses, and much of the fertility of the soil had been exhausted by continued farming, no pains being taken to make or apply manure so as to produce better crops. The dress of both male and female was of homespun, which was manufactured by the "busy housewife" of that day. During the summer it was customary for all classes to go barefoot, except on First days, when going to meeting ; the shoes, however, were taken off as soon as they arrived at home, and put away for a similar occasion. In going to market the men seldom wore shoes, and even the wo- men did not think it necessary to hide their feet and ankles, and were not troubled with such scandal as would be showered upon them for so doing at the present day.
Game had annually been growing more scarce; and most of the wild animals, such as deer, wild turkeys, panthers, and wolves, had become scarce. Previous to this time (1720) the latter animals had been trouble- some to the settlers by destroying their sheep and hogs, so that they had to be carefully secured in strong pens every night, or in the morning some would surely be missing.
Smaller animals, such as wild-cats, foxes, raccoons, etc., were still plenty, and the flocks of poultry often suf-
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THE HISTORY OF
fered from their depredations. Squirrels, partridges, pheasants, etc., were very abundant, notwithstanding the severity of the winters, and thousands of them were an- nually killed to furnish food for the settlers. Deer and bears were sometimes killed and furnished food for the family of the fortunate hunter, but at this time such things were not common.
[1721.] The earliest records of the Byberry Prepara- tive Meeting, which have escaped the destructive hand of time, bear the date of 2d month 18th. These are made up almost entirely of the pecuniary matters of the Society, being accounts of subscriptions for raising money for the necessary expenses of the Meeting, and for maintaining the poor. The charge for tending the meeting-house was only twenty shillings per annum, and this continued to be the price paid for several years thereafter. John Car- ver is mentioned as the clerk at that time. He appears to have given good satisfaction, as he was continued until 1740, when he requested the Meeting to appoint some one in his place. About this time African slavery was first introduced into Byberry by the more opulent settlers, as help for the rougher parts of the work indoors and out. They were mostly brought directly from Africa to Phila- delphia, but some were brought from Long Island. In 1727, in an inventory of the property of a deceased Friend, the following items occur : "One negro girl, £20; one negro boy, £30;" and again, in 1743, are these: "A negro woman, Phillis, £20; and one negro boy, Wallis, £14." These give us an idea of the value of slaves at that time. 30
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