Gc 97*. 701 Sch57pe 1152373 GENEALOGY COLLECTION Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015 https://archive.org/details/historyofschenec00pear_0 <3'M,c ok JTCUOTVPE PR I NT I NT, CO., BOSTON. A HISTORY OF Cbe gscbenectaftp latent IN THE DUTCH AND ENGLISH TIMES ; BEING CONTRIBUTIONS TOWARD A HISTORY OF THE LOWER MOHAWK VALLEY PROF. JONATHAN PEARSON . A. M., AND OTHERS. EDITED BY J. W. MAC MURRAY, A. M., U. S. A. % q]4 . 7et *$oh!Sl pfc ALBANY, NT. Y : 1883. Edition,— square octavo, 300 copies., and 50 quartos. Joel Mansell's Sons, Printers. 1152373 CONTENTS. 1 Table of Values 2 Illustrations 3 Preface, (the Editor) 4 Sketch of Prof. Pearson, (Rev. George Alexander) - 5 Introduction, (Prof. Pearson) 6 Division of Lands, (Prof. Pearson) - 7 Adult Freeholders, (Prof. Pearson) 8 Indian Wars on the Border, (Prof. Pearson) 9 Burning of Schenectady, (Prof. Pearson) - \ 10 Indian Wars on the Border, (Prof. Pearson) 11 Old French War, (Prof. Pearson) 12 Fortifications and Garrisons, (Prof. Pearson and the Editor) t3 The Reformed Nether Dutch Church, (Prof. Pearson, and § the Editor) v 14 The English Church, (the Editor) .J 15 The Presbyterian Church, (Rev. T. G. Darling) 16 Indian Trade, (Prof. Pearson and the Editor) 17 The Borough, (Prof. Pearson) ------ 18 The Schenectady Academy and Union College 19 “Schenectady” (the Editor) - 20 Houses in Ancient Albany County, (the Editor) 21 Appendices, (the Editor) ■ 22 Index Page iv V ix xv 1 58 82 231 244 271 290 304 334 389 399 409 426 433 436 441 451 455 TABLE OF VALUES CITED IN THESE PAGES. Amsterdam — Foot = 11.144 inches. Rhineland — Foot = 12.357 inches. Netherland — Mijle = 1093.62 yards = 3280.9 feet. English — Mile = 1760 yards = 5280 feet. XJ. S. — Acre = 4840 square, yards. U. S. — Acre = a square of 208.7 feet. Amsterdam — Morgen = 9722 square yards. Amsterdam — Morgen = or 2.0076 Eng. ac. U. S. — Gallon = 231 cubic inches. XJ. S. — Bushel = 2150 cubic inches. Amsterdam — Schepel (or skipple or sgepel) = bushel of grain i. e. a. “ struck bushel ” or ^ of heaped English bushel, Amsterdam — Mudde = 6786 cu. inches = 3.15725 English bushel dry measure = 4 Skipples dry measure. Netherlands — Last = 108 skipples (wheat) = 14 barrels (Fish) = 2 Tons (Ships tonnage). Netherlands — Anker = 2331 cu. in. = 9 gallons. Netherlands — Guilder = 37J to 40 cents U. S. money. Netherlands — Stuiver = English penny = 2 cents U. S. Netherlands — Rix dollar = 50 stivers. New Netherlands — Pound == $2.50. New Netherlands — Shilling = 12 \ cents. New Netherlands — Penny = 1 cent. English — Pound sterling = $4.84. Time — Old Style year in vogue among the Dutch, ended noon March 25th. From Jan’y 1st to March 25th both old and new styles are noted. Thus : Schenectady was destroyed during the night of February 8th, 16f$. That is to say in 1689 old style, but 1690 new style. Properly an event occurring in the morning of March 25th, 1705, was noted as of 1705 O. S. and 1706 N. S., or 170-f, while an event of the after- noon would be March 25th, 1706, under both styles. ILLUSTRATIONS 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Poeteait of Peof. Peaeson, Frontispiece With signature. (Heliotype.) Indian signatuees. 11 , 12, 17, 18, 19 (Cuts. ) Map of the Bouwlands 1664. 59 Constructed from actual survey and old deeds and descriptions. The four town blocks are also shown. Beatt house, Woestyne. 98 This old house is brick on front and sides, wood in rear. Bricks are set in colored pattern. (Heliotype.) Poeteait Bey. Baenaedus Feeeeman. 112 And fac-simile signature. (Cut.) Glen house, Scotia. 119 (Heliotype.) Mebee house. 132 (8d Flat, cut.) Abeaham Yates’ house. 229 (Cut.) Desteuction of Schenectady. 246 Engraved from a painting partly by Giles F. Yates. (Cut.) Signatuees of Albany Officials. 256 (Photo- engraving.) Map of Albany and vicinity. 290 From Sauthier’s map published in London in 1779, from data in colonial offices. The map was prepared for military purposes and shows minute details as to hofstedes * indicating with remarkable detail, buildings and enclosures. It may be con- sidered as accurate enough for the period from 1780 to 1780. (Photo-engraving.) Choeogeaphical map of the noetheen paet of Noeth Ameeica. 296 This map is added as showing routes to Canada and the names of places cited in the text. The representation of all western New York to near the present Utica, as part of Pennsylvania is curious. There are other features of interest in it. (Steel engraving.) History of the Schenectady Patent 13 14 15 16 17 18 De Graaf house and Beukendaal. 299 The vale on the right is Beukendaal or Beech vale. Along Ats sides occurred the skirmishing fight, exactly where, no one knows, or can know. The whites made a stand in the old red house and held ‘their own against the Indians until relief arrived. (Heliotype.) Indian Castle. 305 From Champlain’s account. (Photo-engraving.) Miller’s map. Quite fully described on its face and in the text. (Photo-engraving.) Mary Ann Rocque’s Map. 316 Copied from map in a curious little volume in the New York State Library, con- taining plans of royal forts in North America. This was doubtless engraved from a sketch by an officer of the British army stationed here or in the vicinity, and probablv dates from the close of the “ Old French War,” or the beginning of the “ 2d French War,” say from 1748 to 1763. (Photo-engraving.)i Yrooman’s Map 1768. 323 Is copied from a small rough manuscript map now in possession of Union College Library. (Photo-engraving.) Deed to Dutch Church Lot. 350 Copied from ancient document in the deacon’s chest in the Dutch church at Schen- ectady. (Photo-engraving.) 19 Dutch Church of 173-f. 352 Constructed from descriptions, plans and the aid of elderly persons now living who were familiar with its appearance, from which a sketch was made by Mr. Franklin H. Janes, architect, of Albany, whose courtesy, skill and taste have been of much ser- vice to the editor. (Photo-engraving.) j 20 Interior of the Church. 356 Was constructed in same manner as preceding cut. There are two errors in the drawing, the figures 1733, in Dutch style should have been on the wall over the pulpit, Genl. Fuller tells me, and the women in the congregation should have been bonnetless, as they rarely at that date wore bonnets or hats in or out doors. Probably also there are insufficient of the congregation asleep, but the sermon has not yet commenced, as indicated by the sexton stirring up the fires. Photo-engraving from drawing of Mr. Franklin H. Janes, of Albany. 21 Plan of Church of 1734. 357 (Photo-engraving.) 22 Church. 362 From Giles F. Yates* painting. (Photo-engraving.) 23 Oldest graye-stone in Mohawk Valley. 372 Copied from the stone in Union College Library. The inscription is dim and almost undecipherable. The cut is purposely made to show this, but the laid paper has made it w r orse. (Photo-engraving.) Illustrations. vii 24 Batteau on Mohawk River. 423 (Cut.) 25 Durham Boat. 426 (Cut.) 26 Map of the Country of the VI Nations. 433 By Guy Johnson, 1771, (Lithograph from a Steel engraving). 27 Schenectady Academy. 434 (Cut.) From Scribner’s Magazine. 28 Old Union College. 435 (Cut.) From Scribner’s Magazine. PREFACE. Professor Pearson, of Union College, enjoys a well earned reputation as student, translator and writer on the colonial history of Northern New York. During the past forty or more years, he has been a constant worker at the records of the ancient county of Albany and has accumulated a vast store of information, which has fortunately been put in writing and embraces many thousand pages of legal cap manuscript. This herculean task was a labor of love without hope of pecuniary profit; as Professor Alexander aptly expresses it — the recreation of a busy life. His friend, the late Joel Munsell, of antiquarian fame, induced him to print much of this matter and “ Early Records of the county of Albany,” translated from the original Dutch, “ Contributions toward the Genealogies of the First Settlers of Schenec- tady,” “ Genealogies of the First Settlers of Albany,” “ History of the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church in Schenectady ” besides very many magazine and newspaper articles have been given to the public from Mun- sell’s Press. There remain more than four thousand pages of unpublished manuscript and notes, much of which was written many years ago. Professor Pearson’s unique collection of facts has been at the service of all who sought to write on the subject and much has appeared from time to time from others, which was strictly his work. In the study of the subject he is unquestionably the best guide and it is doubtful if any facts essential to a history of the ancient Schenectady Patent have been overlooked by him. He gave the writer free use of most of his manuscript and notes, and they are in the main printed here that due credit may be given to the author and that the data may be at the service of the general historian. In the preparation of these contributions toward a history of the early settlements along the Mohawk river, Professor Pearson translated all known official records pertaining to the subject ; he made a careful and thorough search for all names, of settlers in the “Doop” and “Trouw” books (bap- tismal and marriage records), in the early churches of Albany and Schenectady, x History of the Schenectady Patent . translated the “City Kecords” — the “Mortgage” and “Notarial” books of Albany county; searched and transcribed all pertinent matter from records of secretary of State and of the clerk of the Court of Appeals of the State of New York, which he was able to find, as well as collated similar extracts from records of the office of secretary of State of Massachusetts, where there is much pertaining to this subject. He has also gone over the old landmarks with the aid of copies of ancient deeds, wills, and surveys in the public offices, and the assistance of very old men whose distinct memory included the colonial times, when few changes had taken place. There are few Mohawk Dutch family chests whose old letters have not furnished a quota of data and every known tombstone has contributed its facts. There may be much he did not reach, but it is marvelous that he gleaned so much from obscure and scattered sources of information and is only understood when one knows of his knowledge of the Dutch language and its local dialects, his special fitness for the work and the long years of patient labor he has given it. During several years the writer has carefully searched out his authorities and compared the manuscript notes with original records. In the years since they were written, many new facts have come to light and additions have been made in many places but they amount to so little compared with the original work of the author, that they are seldom separated. Indeed, details have been so frequently discussed, that it would be difficult to sepa- rate his changes from the writer’s. There are some matters of conclusion which have been changed and many additions, mainly however, in form of notes. Most of these occur in the condensation of more extended accounts. There are also additions by the writer and others, of separate chapters. In the early period of settlement of the Schenectady Patent, land was plenty and the value small, the methods of survey very crude and the de- scriptions vague. Land was stepped off, or measured with a pole, a rope, or pair of harness reins, which represented an approximate scale of measure- ment. Courses were run “ northerly ” “ north-by-west,” etc., or from some evanescent tree to an equally indefinite pool, or dove gat . So incorrect were the descriptions of thebounderies of lands granted or conveyed, that almost as much land lay in the gores where descriptions overlapped or under- lapped, as in the undisputed portions. The labor involved in retracing these Preface . xi old lines and defining “ how the lands were divided ” was almost incalcula- ble and required many years of patient toil. One of the sources of complication which the author had to contend against was the variation in form of names of the inhabitants. As a rule a man in those days had but one name, modified by that of his father, his birthplace or residence, his occupation or some personal characteristic and he was usually so spoken or written of whatever his name might properly be. Harme Janse Knickerbacker, i . e., Harme son of John the Knicker- baker, maker of knickers (or childrens’ marbles,) or small china ware in general; de Steenbacker, i. e ., brick maker. Storm van der Zee was Storm Bratt, who was born during a storm at sea , on the voyage to America. Kleyn Isaack meant little Isaac Swits, even when he was a man of mature years. Sander Leendertse Glen, probably was Alexander, (or Sandy for short) Lindsay of the Glen near Inverness, Scotland. Van Ness, derived probably from Inverness,* Scotland. It is not until late in English colonial times, that it became customary to use the full name even in official and church records. It is very fortunate for history that Prof. Pearson has made so full an analysis of these early names and fixed the connection between names now scarcely known and those of their descendants. Pearson’s history of the Dutch Church of Schenectady, which was prepared as part of this series, has been published quite fully in the memorial of the 200th anniversary (1881) of the church. Such parts as are of general interest * The word ness meaning promontory or head land occurs all along the east coast of Great Britain, especially in Scotland ; as Dungenness, Foulness, Sheerness, in southern England; and Fifeness, Buchanness, Clytheness, Odinness and numberless others in Scotland , where also whole counties take the name, as Caithness, Inverness. Holland traded extensively through the seaport town, Inverness with the highlands and the Glen country along Loch Ness. Scotchmen escaping from the strife and sterility of their own country to Holland, readily found ships there to convey them away to the Dutch colonies and they were known as from the Ness or “Van Ness” or of the “Glen,” etc. “ ’t Ness,” indicated the point in the river Y, at Amsterdam. The Yan Ness, Van Nes, Yan Est, Yan Nest families, seems to have been of different origin. xii History of ilie Schenectady Patent. appear here. The church organization was so interwoven with the town, that no history can be of value which does not include it. This church was the great land owner, loaner of money on mortgage and the church mill, which was the best; it dealt in dry goods, groceries, clothing and utensils, and was almoner of all the village poor. There are many details relating to the customs of the Dutch as a people prior to the Revolutionary war, at about which time most of their primitive peculiarities commenced to disappear. The war had taken the simple Dutchman from his bouwery on the flats and had brought him in contact with men from all the other colonies. Then again, the Mohawk river had become the highway along which a steady stream of immigrants has ever since been pouring, on its way to the westward. All accessions to the settlement were from other than Dutch sources. There were congregations of Episcopalians at the English church, and of Scotch settlers from the higher lands at the Presbyterian church. All these contributed gradually to the substitution of “ American ” customs in place of Dutch customs, which grew into disuse with the death of the older men. It will be seen that the chapter on the first settlers does not go beyond the first half century. If read in connection with “ Pearsons’ First Settlers of Albany,” and “of Schenectady” it will be found to contain all important facts, not tradition merely, known of these people. The chapters pertaining to the military history of the ancient dorp have naturally been of special interest to me, and I have illustrated them by maps, photographs and photo-engravings and have added copious additions. The short .article on the English church (St. George’s Episcopal), is an abridgement by the editor, of a sermon delivered by the present rector, the Rev. Wm. Payne, D.D., — with some notes, and copies from the records of the “ Society for the Propagation of the Gospel,” at Lambeth Palace, England, the country hereabouts having been while under British govern- ment included in the See of the Bishop of London. The Rev. Timothy G. Darling contributes the article on the Presbyterian church, of which he is the pastor. To Professor George Alexander, of Union College, I am indebted for preparing the article on Professor Pearson. Preface. xm It is nearly two centuries and a quarter since Schenectady was settled. It lies in a beautiful intervale on the margin of the Mohawk river. The great highway to the west led through it and along the only low valley pass through the Appalachian range; all other routes from the Atlantic led over mountain passes. Increase in traffic brought into existence the Erie canal, which served its purpose until the demands of commerce were met by the great four tracked New York Central railroad. Along the hillsides overlooking the valley, another great trunk railway will be in operation in a few months, and still another is working its way to the westward. A railroad to the south-west goes essentially over the trail toward the Susquehanna and Delaware valleys. To the northward another lays almost on the very trail past the Aal Plaas, Sarachtoge, Champlain Lake and Caughnawaga to Montreal, which was traversed by the destroying French and their allies, the Caughnawaga Mohawks, in 1690. The river flats were tilled for generations before 1661 by the Indians, and they still yield rich harvests in many cases to the descendants of the original white settlers — indeed to some whose ancestors antedated the Dutch regime. Out of the Dutch church schools grew the Schenectady Academy. It was incorporated by the State and became Union College, which with its five thousand Alumni has ever been a power for good in every state in the Union. Hanse Janse Eenkluys’ Kil still flows through Union’s grounds (in wet seasons), and his “ poor pasture ” is in much the same condition as when he left it to the poor, though immense works for building locomotive engines lie on one side and the Erie canal skirts along the upper edge. The beauty of the site has been commended by travelers, at intervals, for centuries since Yan Curler pronouced it “fhe most beautiful the eyes of man ever beheld.” The quaintness of the ancient Dutch architecture was always noted until 1819, when the major part of the old town was destroyed by fire and the landmarks of the Dutch period were swept away, leaving few specimens of its peculiar constructions. In two hundred and twenty-five years the village has grown to be a city in name. Thanks to its locomotive and stove works, a factory producing xiv History of the Schenectady Patent . plastic ware, shawl and knitting mills, it has a large commerce. Its popu- lation is but fifteen thousand in the city wards, but there is scarcely a directory of a city between Maine and Florida and Alaska, which does not contain names of Schenectady’s colonists. This history deals with ante-newspaper times, when even the practice of Avriting was not very common. The period since the Revolution is full of records of facts, and larger volumes could be written portraying its history. Professor Pearson’s labor represents the hard part of the task. It is to be hoped that workers as patient, skillful and conscientious as he, may carry the work to a later date. Much data is at hand for the purpose and may be-published at a future time. Sketch of Professor Pearson. xv SKETCH OF THE LIFE OF PROFESSOR JONATHAN PEARSON, A. M., Union College, Schenectady, N. Y. The subject of this sketch is by lineage an alien to the Dutch community whose annals he lias so diligently explored. His descent can be traced through seven generations from the Puritan fathers of New England. At some time previous to 1643, John Pearson, an English carpenter, settled in the town of Rowley, county of Essex, Massachusetts. There he erected a fulling mill and became the first manufacturer of cloth in the infant colony. He was evidently a substantial and leading citizen. For many years he served his generation as deacon in the church, moderator of the town and deputy in the General Court. Having provided well for his family of ten children he died, full of years and honors, near the close of tbe century. The family record for two hundred years, with its quaint scriptural names, reads like a genealogical chapter in the Old Testament. The meager story of their simple lives is sufficient to indicate that the Pearsons were a sturdy race of the genuine New England type, characterized by piety, industry and thrift. Caleb Pearson, the grandfather of Professor Pearson, entered the Revo- lutionary army as a fifer at the age of fourteen and served through the whole war. Shortly after the close of the struggle he settled in Chichester, N. H., when he erected mills, which his son Caleb owned and operated after him. There the subject of our sketch was born Feb. 23, 1813. Caleb Pearson apparently became dissatisfied with the fruits which his labor could wring from a stubborn soil, for in 1831 he joined the caravan that was then moving slowly westward to populate the plains of the interior. As he journeyed by the great thoroughfare of that day, the Erie canal, his eye was charmed by the rich valley about Schenectady, and especially by the sight of Union College, which seemed to promise him what he had xvi History of the Schenectady Patent. coveted, the opportunity to educate his children. He accordingly changed his plans, made his home in the ancient Dutch city, and resided there till the day of his death. Ilis son Jonathan, then a youth of eighteen, had previously secured a pre- paratory education at Dover, Pembroke and New Hampton academies, m the vicinity of his former home. In January, 1832, he entered Union College and graduated with honor in 1835. The following year he was appointed tutor and in 1839, assistant pro- fessor of Chemistry and Natural Philosophy. In 1849, he was elected pro- fessor of Natural History, and in 1873, was transferred to the department of Agriculture and Botany where he still serves. Thus for more than half a century his life has been incorporated with the life of his Alma Mater. In addition to the work of his department of instruction, other onerous and responsible duties have devolved upon him. Since 1854, he has been treasurer of the college, having in charge its varied and intricate financial interests. For years he has also held the office of librarian and has devoted a vast amount of time and labor to the puzzling and petty details of that try- ing vocation. The preparation of the general catalogue of the college has always devolved upon him, and he has repaid the affectionate esteem of thousands of Alumni by maintaining a constant interest in their individual fortunes. His mind is an encyclopcedia of facts concerning the Sons of Old Union. The mere fact that Professor Pearson has been called to engage in ser- vices so numerous and diverse, and that he has performed them satisfactorily through so long a period, is sufficient proof of his versatility and tireless in- dustry. Summer and winter, term time and vacation, have found him at his post, meeting with unruffled brow the numberless and exacting demands upon his time and patience. His antiquarian researches have been merely the recreations of a busy life. The interest awakened by the investigation of his own family tree, led him to think of exploring the scattered and puzzling records of the Dutch fami- lies who founded the settlements at Albany and along the valley of the Mohawk. The task was one of unusual difficulty. The colonists isolated from their own countrymen, and brought in contact with various races, civilized and savage, had developed a peculiar dialect in which English, Canadian, French and Indian words were freely incorporated with their Sketch of Professor Pearson . XVII mother tongue. To decipher the fragmentary relics of this vanishing speech, especially when still further obscured by the picturesque penman- ship and heterogeneous spelling of the early scribes, was an undertaking which would have appalled an ordinary investigator. With Professor Pearson, however, the difficulties of the pursuit served only to give it addi- tional zest. He continued his labors in this field through many years, without the hope of any reward except the pleasure of telling his neighbours the short and simple annals of their sires. He first transcribed, translated and collated the records of the Dutch church in Schenectady. Having mastered the pro- vincial dialect he afterwards performed a similar work upon the records of the Dutch church in Albany and also of the county clerk’s office. The results of these studies and others of a like character, are embodied in his histories of the old families of Schenectady and Albany, published years ago, and in the volume which this sketch accompanies. He has thus rescued from oblivion, and made accessible to all students of history, facts, the value and interest of which will increase as time advances, and the region which these Hollanders redeemed from the wilderness becomes the home of a still larger and more prosperous population. It would be indelicate in a sketch published during the life time of Pro- fessor Pearson to refer to those incidents which belong more especially to his private and domestic life, or to those qualities which have endeared him to his more intimate personal friends. He has been for many years a faithful and active member of the Baptist church, trusted and revered by all. As a son, a husband and a father, his relations have been too tender and sacred to permit of comment here. Those who may survive him and have shared and prized his friendship will wonder that they did not prize it more, when the genial and unobtrusive presence lives only in memory or immortal hope. INTRODUCTION Early in the seventeenth century, North America east of the Mississippi was claimed by right of discovery by four European nations : France, England, Spain and Holland. Although for fifty years there were but few colonists sent over, the whole continent was too small to hold them in peace. Jealousies and bickerings were rife ; the French crowded the English, and the English crowded the Dutch, until finally the latter disap- peared altogether and the rivalry between the former continued one hun- dred years longer. It was as plain then as it is now, that rival nations could not exist in the Mississippi Yalley. The last great struggle for supremacy commenced on the Ohio in 1754, and ended on the plains of Abraham, in 1759. Henceforward there was but one nation between the Atlantic and the Mississippi. The French commenced the settlement of Canada in 1603. Their object was two-fold : the conversion of the natives to the Christian faith, and trade. The missionary and the trader, therefore, went forth together visiting every tribe in the valleys of the St. Lawrence and the Mississippi, and rendering to each other mutual aid and assistance. No nation was ever more successful in winning the esteem and respect of the natives. The flexibility of the French character and the indomitable patience of their missionaries, were the secrets of their success. One nation alone resisted their influence ; all their efforts to coax or to drive the Iroquois or Five Nations into an alliance or even to remain long neutral, were unavailing. They were not unwilling to receive the French religion, but they preferred English strouds and gun powder.* Their friendship [* Champlain, with a few of his men accompanied by a large number of Algonquins, met and defeated a body of Mohawks near Crown Point on Lake Champlain. The Algonquins were an inferior and subject race, but the discharge of French muskets with the accompanying flash, report and death by invisible bullets, carried terror to the Mo- hawks and they were nearly destroyed by an enemy for whom they hacl hitherto only felt contempt. When the Dutch, the declared enemy of the French, came into the Mohawk countiy from the south, offering fire arms and vengeance against the French and Algonquins, they secured the firm and abiding friendship of the Six Nations. —Jesuit Relations ; Champlain’s Acct. ; ParTcman, etc. M’M. ] 2 History of the Schenectady Patent. was the salvation of the Province of New York. They claimed all the territory lying between the Hudson and the Maumee rivers, so that the French of Canada could never aim a blow at Albany or Schenectady with- out striking over the heads of the Five Nations. This celebrated confed- eracy, the terror of all surrounding tribes, was made up of the Mohawks, Oneidas, Onondagas, Cayugas and Senecas, five allied tribes, who acted as one nation ; herein lay their influence. During the long contest for dominion on this continent, between the French and English, they held the balance of power, and were assiduously courted by both parties. But after 1760, when the French influence ceased, their importance declined ; rum and gun powder had diminished their numbers and the once powerful Mohawks had almost ceased to exist as a separate tribe. During the Revolutionary war, large portions of the Oneidas and Tusca- roras favored the colonies and for safety were transferred to Schenectady,* whilst most of the Onondagas, Cayugas and the Senecas, the most numerous and westerly tribes, adhered to Great Britain and became an awful scourge to the frontier settlements in the Schoharie and Mohawk valleys. At no time between 1660 and 1760 could not the English colonies by combined action have crushed the French power in Canada and driven it from the country. During that long period the English population was from fifteen to twenty times that of the French. Thus in 1690, when Schen- ectady was burned, the white population of Canada was but 12,000, that of the English colonies more than 200,000 or nearly eighteen to one. In 1754 * Mr. Nicholas Veeder has seen “ 2,000 or 3,000 Indians in the Poor Pasture when Schuyler made a treaty with them. The Mohawks went to Canada and half of the Oneidas, in the Revolutionary war, the other half fought for us. They camped in the Pines on “ Albany Hill,” near McChes- neys. After the war was over the rest of the Oneidas came back from Canada to claim their lands. The Indian houses at Schenectady were made of bark, they were here about three years. The Mohawks before the Revolution were plenty ; could be seen in the roads in parties of fifteen or twenty ; made splint brooms and baskets. The town was full of them on New Years day — Nic : Veeder.'” Has seen the Onondaga tribe, 600 in number, marching thro’ Niskayuna street to Albany as prisoners of war, they having been in the King’s service. — A. V. Introduction. 3 the population of Canada was 80,000, and about 1,500,000 in the colonies, the ratio being nearly the same as in the other case. Yet, in spite of this disparity of numbers, the French were usually the aggressive party; they seldom waited to be attacked but boldly carried the torch and tomahawk into the enemy’s country. There is hardly a valley between the Penobscot and the Mohawk that has not echoed the cries of murdered victims, the midnight work of the French and their allied savages. In 1731 they boldly advanced a hun- dred miles into the province of New York and at the head of Lake Cham- plain built a fort on Crown Point, which they held twenty-eight years in spite of protest and menace. The apathy exhibited on the part of the colonies in view of such a danger- ous encroachment as this, was amazing, and in the end cost some of the best blood and treasure of the country. It is true several attempts were made to humble the French power, but divided councils, incompetent leaders and failure of the mother country to afford promised aid, rendered these expensive expeditions disgraceful failures. The chief cause of this ill success, however, was the want of union and cooperation among the colonies. Those immedi- ately threatened were ready to contribute more than their proportion of men and money to meet the danger, the others would do little or nothing. The New England states had early formed a confederacy for mutual support and assistance, but this association was neither long maintained nor extended beyond their borders. Each colony was an independent state, jealous of its rights and privileges ; it would yield little or nothing for the common good, but sat isolated and apart from its neighbors, cherishing the selfish doctrine of colonial sovereignty and provincial rights. This spirit was favored by the mother country from fear of the formidable strength which a united people might exhibit. At the beginning of the last French war in 1754, Franklin with his accustomed forethought and practical wisdom, prof- fered to the colonial delegates assembled at Albany, a plan of union. It was discussed and favorably received, yet it bore no fruit until twenty years later. The north-west passage to India was the fascinating day dream of the ad- venturers of the seventeenth century, and to this we owe the discovery by Hudson of the river which bears his name. This, his third voyage to America, was made in 1609 under the patronage of the Dutch East India Company. After coasting as far south as Chesapeake Bay, he returned and spent nearly a month in exploring the river to the head of navigation. This fortunate voy- 4 History of the Schenectady Patent. age gave him immortality and a new empire in the West to the Dutch nation. By priority of discovery they claimed the coast from Cape Cod to Dela- ware Bay and inland north to the lake and river of Canada (St Lawrence), and west as far as the hitherto unexplored wilderness could be opened up by the trader and trapper. Trading adventures were at once fitted out from Holland for the new Country, and the coast and rivers were carefully searched for peltries. Manhattan was made the chief port and headquarters of these enterprising traders and to prevent competition they procured from the States General in 1614, exclusive privileges under the name of the “ United Nether- land Company ’’and afterwards in 1621 as the “Privileged West India Com- pany.” The latter was a gigantic armed trading association, endowed with all the powers and sovereignty of an independent state. Its directors resided in Amsterdam, its authority was wielded in New Netherland by a director, who was at the same time the fountain of laws, the executive head and the chief of the judiciary. In a word he was supreme autocrat ; it is true he had a council but it was a mere cipher. The sole object of this company was trade, of which it had a complete monopoly. It is true indeed, by the second section of their charter the company was bound to “ advance the peopling of these fruitful and un- settled parts,” and to encourage colonization, but in this they utterly failed of their duty. The greed for gain swallowed up all other interests. At length the evil became so apparent and was so forcibly presented to the notice of the directors in Amsterdam, that they were obliged to seek a remedy. On the 7th day of June 1629, under the title of “Freedoms and Exemp- tions,” concession was made to Patroons to plant colonies in New Nether- land. Thus it was attempted to transfer to the new world, the objectionable features of the feudal system of the old. It burthened trade and agricul- ture with unnecessary restrictions and introduced at the same time aristoc- racy and slavery ; it prohibited manufactures and discouraged the settlement of the country by private persons. From the haste with which the directors in Holland proceeded to avail themselves of the privilege thus granted, one might almost suspect this charter was granted for their special profit and grat- ification. From the head waters of the Hudson around to the Delaware, immense tracts of the best lands were at once taken up, and instead of confin- ing themselves to the colonizing and cultivation of these lands, the Patroo?is engaged in trade contrary to the terms of their charter, as the directors Introduction. 5 claimed and to the ruin of the Company’s interests. Hence arose quarrels between the officers and servants of the two opposing parties, and in the end the company was forced to remove the evil by purchasing back the great manors already granted, Rensselaerswyck alone excepted. The failure of the West Indian Company and Patroons to fulfill the re- quisitions of their charters relating to the colonization of the New Province and the encouragement of agriculture, became so apparent in 1638 , as to call for the interference of the States General, and after the agitation and rejec- tion of many projects, the directors were induced to proclaim free trade and free lands to private persons under what they conceived necessary restrictions. This measure had a happy effect in increasing immigration not only from the mother country, but also from New England and Virginia, where reli- gious toleration was not so fully recognized in practice as in New Nether- land. The population of New Netherland at the beginning of Stuyvesant’s administration in 1647 , is variously estimated at 1,000 to 3,000 ; at its close in 1664 , it was about 10 , 000 . The Dutch had held the Province fifty years and this was the result of their attempts to colonize it. Its natu- ral advantages both for trade and agriculture, were unequalled by any like portion of the continent. The nation which had redeemed its own country from the ocean, that had conquered its freedom from the Spanish yoke and lead all the European nations in foreign trade, was just the people to found a new empire on these shores. The Dutch character was not wanting in the requisite energy, perseverance and pluck, but it was the system of govern- ment that was chiefly in fault, persevered in against protests and petitions. RENSSELAERSWYCK. In 1614 Albany was occupied as a post for the fur trade, of which Man- hattan became the headquarters. Until 1630 the population of both places consisted of few more than the officers and servants of the West India Company, in which was vested the monopoly of trade. This year the Patroon of Rensselaerswyck sent over the first little company of settlers to his manor, a vast tract extending from the mouth of the Mohawk river twenty-four miles down the Hudson and twenty-four miles on each side of it, and comprising more than 700,000 acres. The lands along the river and upon the islands, were gradually leased with the usual reservations of rents, 6 History of the Schenectady Patent. service, fowls and quarter sales. Few conveyances were made in fee. Both the foreign and domestic trade was claimed by the Patroon. Under such heavy disabilities the population increased slowly. But the proclamation of free trade and cultivation of the soil, in 1638, gave an impulse to the prosperity of the Colonie. Every man who could purchase a piece of duffels and strouds and an anker of brandy, became an Indian tracer; indeed, there were almost as many traders in Beverwyck as there were men. So keen did competition run in beaver skins, that bosloopers* or runners, were employed to penetrate the wilderness west of the village and meet the natives on their way down with peltries. The population of Beverwyck at this early period cannot be exactly known ; that it was small may be justly inferred from several facts. First : The church built in 1643 was thirty-four feet by nineteen feet in size, and contained but nine bancken (benches) for the worshippers, yet this house served the little community until 1656. Secondly: The number of colonists shown by the Van Rensselaer papers, as having been sent over to the Colonies up to 1646 is only 210f. It is not to be supposed that all those persons who wer,e attracted to Beverwyck by its happy location for Indian traffic, were either tenants or servants of the Patroon, or were even under his manorial jurisdiction. Fort Orange and the little hamlet which clustered around its walls for safety, were always claimed by the West India Company as under their exclusive authority. This claim, however, was strenuously resisted by the Patroon. Hence originated that memorable and almost bloody contest for power between those obstinate, hardheaded officials, Governor Stuyvesant and Commissioner Schlectenhorst. The Dongan charter of 1686 however, quieted all further questions of jurisdiction ; Albany became a city one mile wide on the river and thirteen and one-half (13J) miles long. The land outside these limits belonged to the Colonie. The early population of Beverwyck was changeable. After a few years spent in traffic with the Indians, some returned to Patriot , some retired to New Amsterdam, whilst others passed beyond the limits of the Colonie and purchased lands at Kinderhook, Claverac, Cattskill, Niskayuna, PTalvemaan and Schenectady. , * [ Woods runners. Couriers du bois in Canada.— M’M.] f O’Callaghan’s History N. N. Introduction. 7 SCHENECTADY. The ancient township of Schenectady embraced a territory of 128 square miles, a portion of the Mohawk valley sixteen miles long and eight miles wide. The western half is an irregular plateau elevated 400 or 500 feet above the Mohawk, a spur of the Helderberg, passing north into Saratoga county, the eastern half is a sandy plain, whose general level is 300 or 400 feet lower. The river running through the middle of this tract in a south- easterly direction, forms the most beautiful and striking natural object in its landscape. At the westerly boundary where it enters the town, it flows through a narrow valley, whose sides though covered with foliage, are too steep for cultivation. From the hill Towereune, the valley widens gradually to Poversen and MaalwycJc where the hills sink down into the great sand plain. Until the river reaches the city of Schenectady, it is a constant succession of rapids, and its general course is south-east, here it makes a great bend and flows with a deep, sluggish current north-eastward to the Aal Placets, the eastern boundary of the town. The tributaries of the Mohawk within the town are small and unimportant streams ; those at the west end flowing from the slates, are nearly or quite dry in summer, whilst those at the opposite end, fed from the sand, are constant spring brooks. On the north side of the river are the folio wing brooks : Chucktenunda* at Tower- eune, and coming east in succession are Yan Eps Kil, Droyberg, Verf, or color (paint) creek, called by the natives Tequatsera, Jan Mebie’s Kil Creek of the lake in Scotia, C romme Kil and Aal Plaats Kil. On the south side are Zandige Kil, the sloot, Pigel brugse Kil, Platte Kil, Poenties Kil, Willem Tellers Killetje, Zand Kil, Coehorn Kil and Symon Groots Kil. But of these streams, few are of sufficient size and constancy now to serve as motive power. With the exception of a little limestone in the extreme western limits of the town, all the rocks found in place belong to Hudson shales and consist of alternate layers of blue slate and sandstones, some of which are used for building purposes. In the west half this geological formation is most abundant, and the soil there is a clayey loam, underlaid with clay or hard pan. The immediate * This Mohawk word signifies S 'tone houses, overhanging rocks affording shelter. Several streams and localities have this name. 8 History of the Schenectady Patent. valley of the river where it breaks through the range of hills, is narrow and composed chiefly of drift of at least two elevations. The highest called the “stone flats/’ raised twenty to thirty feet above the water, consists of coarse gravel and bowlders and is chiefly found on;the north side of the river. The opposite bank is a lower plain of sand and gravel. The eastern half of the town has no hills worthy of the name ; its general level is perhaps 100 feet above the Mohawk, and the prevailing soil is a fine sand, underlaid with clay except in the extreme easterly limits where the clay loam again prevails. Besides this there is found in the bends and eddys of the river and upon the low islands, an alluvial deposit which is constantly enriched by the annual floods. This constitutes the widely known “Mohawk Flats,” which though cultivated by the white man for more than 200 years, have lost little of their unsurpassed fertility. In the early period of the settlement no other land was tilled, hence they were called the land , arable land, or bouwlandt , all else being denominated woodland and little valued. In addition to their fertility, these flats pre- sented another advantage to the first settler, they were mainly free from wood and ready for the plough and seed. For ages they had been the native’s corn land, whilst the adjacent forests and river furnished him with flesh and fish. The great sand belt which passes across the town from south to north, was once covered with a heavy growth of pines, whilst the high lands lying north and west of it produced the usual varieties of hard woods. Nothing could have been more charming to the eye of the first white men travel- ing up the Mohawk to Tiononderoga (Fort Hunter ), than the flats skirt- ing the river banks, clothed in bright green of the Indian corn and other summer crops of the red man. In 1642, the kind hearted Arent Van Curler visited the Indian castles on an errand of mercy, to rescue some captive Frenchmen from the hands of the cruel Mohawks. On his return he wrote to the Patroon (Kilian Van Rensselaer) in Amsterdam, that a half day’s journey from the Colonie , on the Mohawk river, there lies the most beautiful land that the eye of man ever beheld.* Who that has * Baer leyt qualyck een hcilven daegh Van den Colonie op de Maquaas Kil, dat Schoonste landt dat men met oogen bezien mack.— O' Callaghan’s Hist., N. N., i c , 335, 456. Introduction. 9 stood upon Niskayuna berg or Sehuylerberg and looked west and north over the bouwlandt and the adjacent islands can wonder at the rapture of the enthusiastic Dutchman, or can fail to discern in his admiration, the budding of that idea which twenty years after blossomed into the settle- ment of which he was the leader. The site of the village of Schenectady was admirably chosen. No other spot in the neighborhood of the bouwland offered such facilities for a village. From the eastern end of the “Great Flat” there makes out from the sandy bluff which surrounds it a low narrow spit, having upon the east, north and west sides the Mohawk river and Sand Kil. The extreme point only about 1,200 feet wide, was chosen for the site of the future city, a warm dry spot, easily fortified against an enemy and sufficiently elevated to be safe from the annual overflow, of the Mohawk river. This little flat contains but 115 acres and it was the site of an earlier Indian village * whose numerous dead have been from time to time found buried along the Binne Kil. FIRST SETTLEMENT OF SCHENECTADY. If we may believe tradition, Schenectady had already been occupied by the white man many years when Van Curler first visited it in 1642, in fact it has been claimed to be little if any junior to Albany. That a few fur traders and bosloopers early roved among the Mohawks, married and raised families of half breeds cannot be denied ; indeed there are respectable families in the valley to this day, whose pedigree may be traced back to these marriages. But that the white man made any perma- nent settlement on the Mohawk west of Albany before 1662, there is no good reason for believing, and in view of the opposition of Albany and the Colonie, improbable. In the summer of 1661 Arent Van Curler the leader of the first settlement, made formal application to Governor Stuyvesant for permission to settle upon the “ Great Flat ” lying west of Schenectady. The following is a translation of his letter : “Right Honorable Sir, My Lord When last at Manhatans I informed your honor that there were some friends and well wishers, who were well inclined with your Honor’s knowl- * A tradition that it was a former seat or capital of the Mohawks. 10 History of the Schenectady Patent . edge and approbation to take possession of and till the Groote Vlachte (Great Flats') well known to your worship ; whereto six or eight families are already inclined, and for which your Honor promised me a warrant author- ising us to purchase said lands, but by reason of your Honor’s daily occupa- tions nothing came of it. So then your Honor promised to send it later but I am persuaded the daily cares of your Honor’s government have driven it from your Honor’s remembrance. Truly the way is now open, the savages being inclined to abandon the land for a moderate price, the more so as trade is so slack and meagre. Hence it is the wish of our friends to dispatch the bearer of this, Philip Hen- drickse Brouwer, to refresh your Honor’s remembrance, for as much as it is high time, (if your Honor please) that the people provide themselves with hay and fodder for their beasts and like to lay out the road thither. Please not, your Honor, distrust the people as is generally done here, by the common folks, nor doubt that one loaf will last till another be gained. So then it will be better to provide betimes, to seize good fortune, for afterwards it may be too late. Doubtless as your Honor is likewise a lover of agriculture, your Honor will yield to the just request of the people ; the money for the purchase of the aforesaid land they themselves will furnish temporarily and until it shall be otherwise ordered by your Honor. Finally I pray your Honor to be pleased to favor the people’s good in- tention so far as possible, and conclude by commending your Honor to God’s grace with the wish for a long and happy administration, and further I remain ever Sir Your Honor’s most humble Rensselaerswyck ) Servant The 18th June, 1661. f A. Van Curler. P. S. If your Honor falls short three or four Muds of oats as feed for your Honor’s horses, please command me to supply your Honor with the same from my small store. Your Honor’s servant A. Y. Curler. * June 23, 1661. “The letter of Arent Yan Curler being presented and read on the 18th June, containing in substance a request by him and a few other persons for the large plain situated to the back of Fort Orange toward the interior, for the purpose of cultivation, and consent to purchase the same from the original proprietors and make a settlement there, etc. ; which being maturely considered, the Director General and Council resolved to consent to it ; pro- vided that the said lands on being purchased from the native proprietors be * Albany Records, xix. 179. Introduction . 11 as usual transferred to the Director General and Council aforesaid as repre- sentatives of the Lords Directory of the Privileged West India Company; and that whatever the petitioners shall pay for the aforesaid lands to the original proprietors, shall in due time be returned to them, or be discounted to them against the tenths.”* Before the Governor’s authority was received at Beverwyck a freshet laid the country for miles around under water. This was followed a few days after (June 26), by an inundation much greater than the first, which forced the inhabitants to quit their dwellings and fly with their cattle for safety to the woods on the adjoining hills. Incalculable damage was caused by these irruptions. The wheat and other grain were all prostrated, and had to be cut mostly for fodder, affording scarcely seed sufficient for the next spring. This visitation necessarily caused the postponement of the purchase of the “ Great Flat ” until the ensuing month when the following deed was obtained from the Indian owners. ”f “ Compareerde voor mij Johannes La Montague ten dienste vande Groet Wesendische Compagnie door de G 1 en Racden Van Nieu Ned erlant gead- mitteert, Viers Direct 1 en Commies op de fort 33 Orangie en Dorp Beverwy, eenige Oversten vant Maquaes Lant genaempt Cantuquo, Sanareetse, Aiadane Sodackdrasse eigenaers van een seeckere stuck Landts genaempt Op duyts de Groote Vlackten Liggende achter de fort Orangie tusschen de selve en het Maquaes Landt de welcke Verklaeren gecedeert en getransporteert te hebben gelyck sij seedeeren en transporteeren by deesen in reele en Actuelle possessie en sijgondom ten behoeve Van S r Arent Van Corlaer Ret gemelde stuck Landts of groote Vlackten op Wildts genaemdt Schonowe (is) in syn begrip en cir conference met syn geboomte en killen voor een seecker getal of Cargosoenen voor welck de transportanton bekennen sattisfactie van gehadt te hebben renonceerende voor nu en altyt op alle eygendom en pre- tensie die sij op het gemelde stuck Landts tot nutoe gehadt hebben, be- loovende het te bevryden voor all pretensie die andere Wilden soude hebben konnen. Actum in de fort 88 Orangie den 2 1 e July A, 1661, in presentie Van Marten Mouris en Willem Montagne daertee versocht. dit ist merck van Cantuquo The Bear. dit ist merck van Aiauane * Albany Records, xix. 180. f O’Callaghan’3 Hist., N. N., ii. 438. 12 History of the Schenectady Patent. dit ist SoNAUEETSIE merck van In Keunisse van ruij ) La Montague I Y. D r en Commies ( Motj(ris) opt fort 88 Orangie J William de La Montagne * ” (Translation) Appeared before me, Johannes La Montagne in the service of the Privi- leged West India Company by the Director General and Council of New Netherland admitted vice-director and clerk ( commies ) at Fort Orange and village of Beverwyck, certain sachems of the Mohawk’s land named Can- tuquo, Sonareetse, Aiadane, Sodachdrasse, owners of a certain piece of land named in Dutch the Groote Vlachte , and lying behind Fort Orange, between the same and the Mohawk’s lands, who declare that they have granted, transferred, as by these presents they do grant and transfer in real and actual possession and ownership to the behoof of M r Arent Van Corlaer, the said piece of land or Great Flat by the Indians named Schonowe, in its compass of circumference, with its woods and kils for a certain number of cargoes, for which the grantors acknowledge they have had satisfaction ; renouncing henceforth and forever all ownership and pretensions, which they to said pieces of land heretofore have had and promising to free it from all pretensions which other Indians may have. Done in Fort Orange the 2'7 th July, anno 1661, in presence of Marten Mouris and Willem Mon- tagne hereto invited. This is the mark X of Cantuqito, This is the mark X of Sonareetsie, This is the mark X of Aidane. M. Mon (bis) Acknowledged before me, William de La Montague, La Montagne Y. D., and Clerk at Fort Orange. * Deeds, ii. 542. f [“ The ancient Mohawk village which stood at this place, was called Connocharie- guharie or as Benson writes it Oronowaragouhre , in allusion to the vast piles of flood wood which were left every spring on the flats. The term origoniwoutt, appears to have been applied, at a later period, to the village at the same place ; perhaps the site was a litle varied in its particular location, and perhaps both names were applied at the same time to the place, being different modes of describing the position of the village. When the Dutch obtained a patent embracing the site in 1661, from Gov. Stuyvesant, the Indian name of the Vlachte or flats was mentioned therein, and it does not appear from Introduction . 13 On the sixth day of April, 1662, Arent Yan Curler again addressed the Director General and Council stating that in accordance with their resolu- tion of the 23d June last, he and his associates had purchased and taken possession of the Great Flat behind Fort Orange and were now “ engaged in constructing houses, mills and other buildings upon this plain,” and that inasmuch as it was necessary to sow and cultivate these lands this season, which cannot be well done before they have been surveyed and allotted ; therefore he solicits the Director General “ to authorize the surveyor Jacques Cortelyou, to measure and divide the same,” and for this purpose tnat he return with the petitioner. On this petition the following apostil was given. “Before the requested settlement can be formed and surveyed, the persons who are inclined to establish themselves there ought to number at least twenty families and communicate their names at the office of the secretary of the Director General and Council and furthermore to engage and promise not to trade with the savages.” * Another year passed and nothing was done towards the allotment of the lands among Yan Curler’s company. The inhabitants of Beverwyck and Colonie Rensselaerswyck “ were most anxious to retain the fur monopoly and had sufficient influence with the Director and Council to induce them to order that the settlers of Schenectady should confine themselves exclusively to agriculture and abstain from all trade with the Indians.f ” On the 9th Maj^, 1663, Governor Stuyvesant wrote to Commies La Mon- tagne and the court of Beverwyck, that by request he had sent up the sworn surveyor Jacques Cortelyou to lay out and survey the Great Flat, but as he “ was indirectly informed that some of the new settlers there had dared against his express orders dated April 6, 1662, to sell strong liquors to the any author, that Schenectady — the original Mohawk name for Albany — was applied to it till after the first surrender of the colony to England, four yems after the date of the 'patent” — Schoolcraft, Notes on the Iroquois. Yan Curler in 1643, designated it as “ dat Schoonste landt” that the eyes of man ever beheld. “ This Schoonechtendeel is 24 miles west from Albany.” — Danker & Sluyter's Journal , 1680. Query. — Did D & S., derive their name from Schoon = beautiful, achten = esteemed, valued , deel = portion of land (or del = a valley) ? or was it only a coincidence ? J I’M\ * Albany Records, xxi. 137. f O’Callaghan’s History, N. N., it. 441. 14 History of the Schenectady Patent. savages, he commanded the aforesaid Cortelyou to measure no lands for any individual there except he has previously signed the enclosed indenture in the presence of the commies and commissaries.” * “Indenture, Wee landholders on the Plain called 'promise hereby that we will not on the aforesaid Plain nor in its vicinity undertake to trade in any manner under any pretext whatsoever, with the savages either directly or indirectly under the penalty, if we or any of us violate this our solemn promise, without any opposition for the first offence of fifty beavers, for the second offence, one hundred, and for the third, forfeiture of our solicited and acquired lands on the aforesaid Plain. In witness whereof this was signed by us in Fort 1663. ”f Yan Curler laid the above communication of the governor and Council, before the “settlers of Schanechstede” on the 18th May, and proposed that they should subscribe to the annexed agreement as commended to him by Commies La Montagne and the magistrates of Beverwyck. To this the settlers unanimously answered, declaring their willingness “to obey the Noble West India Company and the supreme magistrates in New Netherland, with other subjects to pay all their taxes, and neither to do nor attempt anything contrary to published orders and placards, fully trusting that their Honors will not treat us less kindly nor impose duties upon us other, than upon the other subjects of this Province and being fully assured that your Honors will Seriously consider, that in consequence of your resolution of date 23d June 1661 these lands were purchased out of our own pockets for the Noble Company, settled at great expence, build- ings erected and the land stocked with cattle and horses ; and that if these settlers be treated otherwise and worse than other subjects, then all their labor would be in vain and they actually ruined, which God avert.” “We petition therefore that it may please your Honors to permit us the continued cultivation of these lands, as by letters patent you granted [ Marten’s island ] to Jan Barentse Wemp and Jacques Cornelise [Yan Slyck ] without any restrictions. J “Finally as the surveyor is in this vicinity and has no orders to survey the land save the aforesaid agreement is subscribed, we renew our request to prevent future differences and disputes that he may be authorised to survey and allot the land among us, otherwise we shall be compelled to help ourselves as best we can.” A. Yan Curler, Philip Hendrickse [Brouwer], Sander Leendertse Glen, * Albany Records, xx. 350. f Albany Records, xx. 351. \ Patent of date Nov. 12, 1662. Introduction. 15 The mark X The mark X The mark X name of Cat The mark X The mark X of Simon Volckertse [Veeder], Pieter [Adriaense Van Wogelum], alias Sogemacklic, of Tuenis Cornelisse [Swart], of Marten Cornelisse [Van Isselsteyn], Willem Teller, Gerrit Bancker, Bastiaen De Winter, as attorney in the ilyn [De Vos], widow of Arent Andriesse [Bratt], Pieter Jacobse Bosboom [De Steenbakker], Pieter Danielse Van Olinda, of Jan Barentse Wemp [Wemple], of Jacques Cornelisse [Van Slyck].”* This petition was taken into consideration by the Director General and Council on the 18th June, 1663. In their answer the petitioners are again referred to their past action, especially to that of April 6, 1662, in regard to the necessity of settlers at Schenectady confining themselves to agriculture, “because of the dangers which unavoidably must follow any trade with the Barbarians at such a distant place,” reminding them that “ it is not and never can be our intention to raise and foster one place and to expose another, yea, even the whole country to imminent danger.” f Renewed complaints both verbally and in writing, having been made to the Director General and Council by the inhabitants of the village of Bever- wyck, with regard to the injuries and losses which might be apprehended not only to Beverwyck and Colonie Rensselaers wyck, but also to Schenectady itself, if trade with the Indians be permitted at the latter settlement, par- ticularly at this dangerous period, — the Director and Council, on the same day, took into serious consideration these complaints, and the danger of carrying merchandize six or seven [Dutch] miles into the country, on horses and wagons, for purposes of trade with the savages, by whom it ought to be expected that such goods would be attacked and plundered upon the road, as indeed had already been the case, and “ even attempts made to violate the women, who went thither, as well as other insolences committed by the Barbarians not only in the road but in the settlement itself.” “ To prevent all which and many other mishaps, the Director General and Council order that no goods for the savages on any pretext whatsoever shall be carried thither, much less directly or indirectly bartered away, under * Albany Records, xx. 876. f Albany Records, xxi. 139. 16 History of the Schenectady Patent. penalty of the forfeiture of these goods and merchandize, to he applied one- half for the informer and the other for the officer of Fort Orange, or of Golonie Rensselaerswyck, by whom the prosecution shall be instituted — ; to this end commanding their officers and court of Fort Orange and village of Beverwyck not only to have this order vigorously executed, but further- more to visit the new settlement of Schenectady and there make an inven- tory of all the goods and merchandize already carried thither in violation of the act of concession of the Director General and Council of date the 6th of April, 1662, and see them removed thence within thrice twenty-four hours on penalty as before mentioned.” “Done in Fort amsterdam in New Netherland, 18th June, 1663.* The year passed away without any adjustment of these difficulties ; neither partition nor patents for the land could be had ; the people felt aggrieved that the privileges of trade should be accorded to Beverwyck and not to Schenectady, but they preferred to risk their cause to the mollify- ing power of time. On the 17th of April, 1664, another petition was presented to the Director General and Council by Sander Leendertse Glen, Willem Teller, and Harmen Vedder for themselves and the other inhabitants of the settlement named Schaneghstede, soliciting in substance that to prevent further dispute the surveyor might be sent up to lay out and parcel the land and house lots for every person interested. f The apostil to this petition was, that “ the Director General and Council deem it proper to prevent disputes that the land and lots mentioned in this petition should be laid out, and therefore that the surveyor shall be sent up by the first opportunity/’ “20 May, 1664. “ Resumed the apostill upon the petition of those interested in the lands of Schanechstede made the 17th April; — the surveyor Jacques Cortelyou is commanded to proceed from here on the first Sailing Vessel to Fort Orange to lay out the aforesaid lands in the best manner possible and for the best accommodation of those interested therein, viz.: to each man his Share. In case any dispute arise between neighbors, the aforesaid Cortelyou together with the commissary La Montagne to reconcile the parties if possible and if they cannot succeed, to send their report to the Director General and Council in New Netherland.” “Done in Fort Amsterdam.” J * Albany Records, xxi. 185. f Albany Records, xxii. 169. f Albany Records, xxii. 169 . Introduction. 17 Thus after a delay of two years, Governor Stuyvesant came to an under- standing with the settlers, and the several lots and farms were surveyed and conveyed to them by patents. INDIAN DEED AND FIRST PATENT FOR THE TOWNSHIP. The description given in Van Curler’s Indian deed of 1661 was quite indefinite and restricted the inhabitants to a comparatively small area. At this time and even for many years later, nothing was called land except the islands and alluvial flats bordering upon the river. Within ten years after the settlement commenced, all the tillable land was taken up and it became necessary to look for more farther west. Hence originated another negotiation with the Mohawks and the following deeds extinguishing the Indian title to the lands along the river to the present westerly limits of the county. ts On this 28 th May, 1670 , Kennighke and Auroensie, both sakemakers of the Maquase, acknowledge to have thankfully received the remainder of the sewant, tubs [of beer] and gunpowder, according to the tenor of the accompanying contract, and free the aforenamed buyers henceforth from all claims, and promise never more from this date to make any new action. In witness of the truth of which we have subscribed this with our own hands by our accustomed marks at Schanechted on the date as above in presence of Robbert Sanders and Jacques Cornelise [Van Slyck] both called as interpreters hereto. Phis mark was set by Kennighke This mark was set by Dorowingo Dorowingoese Robert Sanders. These letters were A ai rs Most obedient humble servant 18 May 1704 Sa: Sh: Broughton” f On the 25 of May, 1714, Schermerhorn appeared before the Governor and Council “ and after a full hearing of all matters” against him, was suspended from “acting further as Trustee of the said Towne.” But as he continued * Land papers, hi. 186. f Land Papers, hi. 186. 30 History of the Schenectady Patent . obstinate, disregarding the demand of the new Trustees for an accounting to them of his official acts, they commenced a suit against him in the court of chancery. The following is the substance of their complaint: “ 1705 July 5 ) Complaint of Peter Schuyler, John Sanderse Will Sharpas j Glen, Adam Yrooman, Daniel Johnson [Daniel Janse Van Antwerpen] and John Baptist Yan Eps, trustees of the town of Schenectady. VS. Ryer Schermerhorn. Whereas Col. Dongan, Governor • January, 1774. ) Ryer Schermerhorn, P. Benthuysen, John Glen.” “ Petition of the trustees of Schenectady in opposition to the foregoing petition of Ryer Schermerhorn and others. To the Hon ble Representatives of the Colony of New York in General assembly convened. The Petition of the Subscribers, Trustees of the Township of Skinnectady in behalf of themselves and the other Inhabitants of the said Township. “Humbly Sheweth That your Petitioners have been served with a copy of a petition signed by Ryer Schermerhorn, Johannes Glen Jr, and Peter Van Benthuysen in behalf of them selves and other persons therein named presented to the Hon ble House [Jan. 4 1774] setting forth that a grant was obtained by W m Teller, Ryer Schermerhorn, Sware Teunise, John Baptist Yan Eps and myndert Wemple, from Gov r Dongan Dated in they year 1684, for the Township of Schinectady, in trust for the rest of the freeholders of the In- habitants of Schinectady, which fact your petitioners do not deny but do say in answer thereto that the said Trustees Nominated in the said Grant did dispose of the town lands by their deeds as Trustees at a low rent re- served to the use of the said town : — that Ryer Schermerhorne in the said grant named was Grandfather to Ryer Schermerhorn the petitioner and that he was the only surviving trustee for fourteen or fifteen years, during all which time he Granted to the Inhabitants by his deeds such tracts of Lands within the said town as they applyed for,— that Ryer Schermerhorne one of the subscribing petitioners now holds lands to very considerable value in Yirtue of such deeds from the Trustees ; — that John Glen Jr another of the subscribing Petitioners has lately sold lands held by such Deeds to the value of at least one thousand pounds : — that the greatest part of the persons 48 History of the Schenectady Patent . named in the said Petition in Whose hehalf the said Petition is Presented have not any right Whatever to any of the unappropriated town’s lands as descendants from the original freeholders or by other ways or means whatso- ever : — that the disposal of the town lands has uninterruptedly from the date of the Patent from Governor Dongan in 1684 to this day been in the Trustees only, which right has been always exercised and acknowledged by the town untill the year 1755, when Ryer Schermerhorne one of the said Petitioners commenced a suit in Chancery against Arent Bradt at the time the only surviving Trustee ; — that the Chancellor at the Instance of the said Ryer Schermerhorne Issued an Injunction, prohibiting the said Arent Bradt from granting any of the town lands untill the determination of the said suit, notwithstanding which the said Ryer Schermerhorne and the said John Glen Jr have taken in and inclosed large tracts of the said town lands and now have the same in possession ; — that your petitioners are very anxious to have the suit now depending in Chancery determined with all possible speed and that your Petitioners are informed by their Councill that the delay is owing to the said Ryer Schermerhorne and not to them ; — that your Peti- tioners Verily believe the application to this House now made by the said Ryer Schermerhorne and his adherents proceeds from a consciousness that the suit in Chancery will be Determined against them ; — that the great Grievance complained of by the said Petitioners that they are prevented from cultivating the Common lands is Intirely occasioned by the Injunction procured by the said Ryer Schermerhorne and his adherents as aforesaid ; — that if the Injunction is taken off your Petitioners will proceed to grant the town lands as has always been accustomed and to the contrary of which not a single Instance can be produced from the beginning of time to this day. Your Petitioners therefore humbly pray the Hon b!e House not to stop the ordinary course of the law, but to leave the suit commenced by the said Schermerhorne to the determination of the Court where he thought proper to commence it and that the Hon b!e House will dismiss the Petition of the said Ryer Schermerhorne and his adherents, and your Petitioners as in duty bound shall ever pray.”* At or about the time of the foregoing petition ‘in 1774, the following— “ Case between the Trustees of the town of Schenectady and Ryer Schermerhorn” was laid before the Colonial Legislature.