Historic Pelham

Presenting the rich history of Pelham, NY in Westchester County: current historical research, descriptions of how to research Pelham history online and genealogy discussions of Pelham families.

Friday, April 28, 2006

Important Web Site for History Researchers and Genealogists Available for Free Until May 31, 2006

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings

An important and robust Web site that indexes databases of archival collections throughout the world is available to the public for free until May 31, 2006. The site is located at http://www.archivegrid.org. (Google, please take note: I virtually have lived within the ArchiveGrid.org site during many, many, many sessions in the last few weeks.)

I have no connection to the ArchiveGrid.org site but cannot sing its praises too highly. Through this site I have discovered the locations of materials important to the history of Pelham in collections located throughout the world -- much less the United States. The site is maintained by RLG, a not-for-profit organization of over 150 research libraries, archives, museums and other cultural memory institutions founded in 1974 by The New York Public Library and the libraries of Columbia, Harvard and Yale Universities.

The ArchiveGrid.org Web site describes its services as follows:

"ArchiveGrid SM offers easy search access to nearly a million detailed archival collection description[s] written by archivists. This direct access to dispersed collections brings relevant information together with a single tool and eliminates the need to weed through the hundreds of pages of unwanted and irrelevant results one gets from general search engines. ArchiveGrid also reveals important content that can be hidden or hard to find with usual search methods on the open Web.

Detailed information about the archives themselves let the researcher find out easily where the collection is located, right down to the specific shelf and box where the documents are stored. Scholars can save time and money on non-essential travel while easily arranging a visit to the archive or requesting copies of material.

ArchiveGrid opens up a world of information for genealogists, with links to locations for birth and death records, ship logs, and cemetery records. Using ArchiveGrid, professional genealogists can offer more complete results much more quickly, and amateur genealogists have a professional-quality tool to work with themselves."

Source: ArchiveGrid.org, Features & Benefits (visited Apr. 28, 2006) <http://www.rlg.org/en/page.php?Page_ID=20875>.

A simple search for the word Pelham shows the power of the tool. The search returns 523 responsive items. The first page of results returns a reference to the Record Book of the Town of Pelham, NY for the years 1801 - 1851 located in the collections of The New York State Archives. I was aware of the existence of that item. Two items below in the search results, however, is a reference to the Records of Christ Church in Pelham from 1844 - 1893 held in the collections of the Westchester County Historical Society. I was not aware that the Society held those records and now need to review them in Elmsford, NY.

If these were the only two examples I could cite, there would not be much to say. However, of the 523 search results, many, many dozens of the results reflect very important collections of material related to the history of Pelham, some of which I was unaware.

I also have searched for, and found, much material on the history of City Island when it was part of Pelham and on many families who have lived in Pelham during the last three centuries. For those who are seriously interested in researching the history of Pelham or the genealogical backgrounds of Pelham families or residents, I recommend the site highly. It is available for free until May 31, 2006.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Burial Place of John Hunter (1778 - 1852) of Hunter's Island

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings

John Hunter was born in 1778. He was a privileged and well-educated young man who graduated from Columbia College. His father, Robert Hunter, was a wealthy merchant engaged in the “auctioneering and commission business” in New York City in the late 18th century.

As a young man, John joined his father’s firm and guided it to even greater success. He became an American "merchant prince". On April 28, 1799, John Hunter married one of the nation’s wealthiest heiresses, Elizabeth Desbrosses. Her estates reportedly included nearly two and a half million acres of land including real estate in Delaware, Sullivan and Green Counties as well as much real estate in New York City.

Some time between 1804 and 1812, John Hunter purchased an island known as Appleby’s Island and two tiny nearby islands know as the Twin Islands located off the shore of the Manor of Pelham. Appleby’s Island soon became known as “Hunter’s Island”.

Hunter built a fabulous mansion on the peak of the hill near the center of the island. He filled his mansion with the nation’s finest collections of old master paintings, books and wine. He entertained President Martin Van Buren in his home. He reportedly hosted the Marquis de Lafayette at his lavish estate. Tradition says that Louis Philippe of France and his brothers offered a fabulous sum to purchase the estate and that as early as 1815 Napoleon’s brother, Joseph, (the King of Spain) also tried to buy it.

John Hunter died in 1852. The whereabouts of his burial site have proven stubbornly difficult to locate.

On April 1, while reviewing Pelham-related materials in the collections of the New-York Historical Society Library I ran across a letter from the owner of the Geo. T. Davis Funeral Home of New Rochelle responding to an inquiry from Lockwood Barr, the author of a book on the history of Pelham published in 1946, about the burial place of John Hunter.

The letter stated that although John Hunter died in 1852, his body was among the first to be handled by the Grandfather of the owner of the Funeral Home and was buried in Beechwoods Cemetery in New Rochelle in 1866 -- fourteen years after Hunter's death. The writer of the letter speculated that John Hunter had been buried on Hunter's Island but, for some reason, was moved from that location to Beechwoods Cemetery in 1866.

A reader of the Historic Pelham Blog who is also a dedicated local historian has now provided me with copies of John Hunter's plot card from the Beechwoods Cemetery in New Rochelle as well as a map showing the location of his gravesite in that cemetery. The plot card seems to show John Hunter as the "owner" of Lot No. 306 to 309 and that he died on "Sept. 12, 1852" and was interred on "Sept. 14, 1852". According to the plot card, however, Hunter was interred in Beechwoods Cemetery plot 1815 on August 25, 1866 apparently at a cost of "$300". The plot is located, according to the map, near the convergence of Sylvan Avenue and Cypress Avenue within Beechwoods Cemetery.

A part of the mystery has been solved. Of course, an intriguing mystery remains -- why was John Hunter disinterred from his original burial spot and reinterred in Beechwoods Cemetery? One hypothesis follows.

Under John Hunter's will, his grandson (also named John Hunter) could choose to live on the Hunter Family's "Bayard Farm" on Throgs Neck when he reached the age of majority. If he so chose, however, the will required the sale of Hunter's Island so the proceeds could be shared among young John Hunter and his sisters. Because the young John Hunter chose to live on Bayard Farm, in 1866 Hunter’s Island was sold for $127,500 to Ambrose Kingsland, the Mayor of New York City. This transfer of ownership from the Hunter estate to Ambrose Kingsland seems approximately to coincide with the date that John Hunter's body was reinterred -- 14 years after his death -- in Beechwoods Cemetery, New Rochelle. This suggests, of course, that John Hunter was originally buried on Hunter's Island upon his death and moved from that location when Ambrose Kingsland bought the island.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings

Wednesday, April 26, 2006

Two Early Photographs of the Village of North Pelham

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click
Here for Index to All Blog Postings

Two photographs contained in the collections of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham offer wonderful early views of the Village of North Pelham, likely in the first few years of the 20th century. Today's Historic Pelham Blog Posting displays these two images.



The image above shows a portion of Fifth Avenue looking from the northeast toward the southwest. The raised grade of the New Haven Line railroad tracks can be seen in the distance. On the left is the Town Hall building that replaced the Town Hall building on Shore Road that served in that role until New York City annexed portions of Pelham for inclusion in the Pelham Bay Park.



The image above shows 2nd Street likely in the first few years of the 20th century. The area north of 2nd Street still has the quaint appearance of farmland with a few scattered farmhouses.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click
Here for Index to All Blog Postings

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

More About "Mammy Goose" of Goose Island

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings



On Thursday, March 10, 2005, I published to the Historic Pelham Blog an item entitled "Mammy Goose of Goose Island". In it I described one of the most eccentric characters ever to live in Pelham. Her name was Abigail Tice. Everyone knew her as "Mammy Goose". She lived on "Goose Island" in the middle of East Chester Creek only a few hundred yards from what was then known as "Bartow-on-the-Sound", a small hamlet within the Town of Pelham.



The Image Above Shows A Detail from Plate 35
of Beers Atlas of Westchester County Published
in 1868. The Red Arrow Points to Goose Island


At the time I published the item, I thought it unlikely that anyone had ever written about Mammy Goose. Recently, however, I ran across an item prepared in 1959 by J. Gardner Minard, then the Village Historian of the Village of North Pelham. He attributed the story he told to an item that appeared on the first page of the New York Sunday Mercury on an unspecified date.

Today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog relates Minard's account of "Mother Goose" of Goose Island.

"Pelham's Bard Spins Gothic Tale Of Life And Death On Goose Island When Snow Storm And Gale Attack

-----

Mother Goose Makes Vain Attempt To Secure Aid Only 1,000 Feet Away, When Father Goose Is Stricken Ill On Night Of Heavy Snow Storm And Elements Isolate Goose Island.

-----

By J. Gardner Minard

Just how long the old couple had lived on Goose Island perhaps will never be known; but my dad first visited them in the summer of 1869 and said they were firmly established there then. If memory serves it was during the winter of 1883-4 that tragedy overtook Goose Island.

I am indebted to the N. Y. Sunday Mercury for the story. It appeared in a full column on the first page and mother kept that copy for several years.

November saw the finish of the fishing season. Father Goose had laid in his stock of provisions for the winter. The big bins were filled with enough fire wood to last several months. The row boat was drawn up above the high water line, painted and stored for the winter. Goose Island was officially closed until spring.

There came a cold snap and the mercury hovered around zero. Thick ice formed around the shore of Goose Island with a shelf of thin ice extending almost to the center of the channel. Similar ice formed along the main shore and only the strong ebb and flow of the tide prevented ice forming in the main channel. Goose Island was now isolated from the outer world.

One evening a heavy snow with a gale of wind struck. Father Goose was taken violently ill. Mother Goose had always been able to care for mild cases, but this was beyond her. It required a doctor. The nearest building was Blizzard's hotel a thousand feet away. She knew the odds were against her being heard, but going outside she shouted and screamed in that direction. The wind not only outhowled her but carried her voice in the wrong direction. She became too hoarse to continue and coming inside saw her husband getting worse.

Unconventional Distress Signal

There was a small flag pole on the island, and as a drowning man grasps at a straw, she got out her red flannel petticoat and hoisted it up, knowing full well that it could not be seen at night nor even in the daylight with the air filled with snow. Daylight came and the storm showed no sign of abating. About ten o'clock it blew itself out and the sun now shone on a desolate world.

Two of Blizzard's patrons were standing at the entrance to Pelham bridge when one noticed the ragged red cloth handing from the top of the pole. They went into the hotel and called the others. Blizzard himself came out. They shouted and whistled but got no response. They blew a horn and rang a bell but to no purpose. There was trouble at Goose Island.

The old couple was too highly respected to be ignored. John P. Holler had an ice pond and ice houses on Boston Turnpike near Steve O'Dell's hotel. He served Blizzard during the summer. They hitched up a horse and cutter and drove over Pelham bridge to the Shore road; through Pelham Manor and Boston turnpike; over Lockwoods bridge to Hollers.

Holler was in his office. They told the story. Holler operated a fleet of delivery wagons including two open ones that were used in the winter for delivering cakes wholesale. You could take off the wheels and attach runners to the axles. Holler told his son, Dave, to hitch a team to one of them, take two each of ice saws, ice axes, slicing bars, pikes and tongs and also two men.

The Rescue

[They] drove to Baychester and started cutting a channel in the ice from Blizzards to the island. When they reached the solid ice around the island, they jumped out and ran to the cabin. The door was open. The inside was cold as an ice box. They found Father Goose frozen stiff in bed and his wife, semi-conscious and numb with the cold, sitting at his bedside holding his frozen hand. They tried to take her away but she resisted. While one remained behind to build a fire, the rest returned to the mainland.

There were no telephones in Baychester at the time but the station agent at Baychester was [a] Western Union operator and he sent a telegram to the coroner of Westchester County. The latter came on the Harlem river branch to West Mount Vernon, walked to the New Haven station First street and Fourth Avenue and bought a ticket for Baychester. He got off at New Rochelle and changed to the branch road getting off at Baychester. From Blizzard's he was ferried over to Goose Island.

Mother Goose was now thawed out and in a husky whisper told her story. Permission was given to remove the body. I do not recall the Mercury telling what became of Mother Goose or where the body of her husband was buried. One thing is certain; she packed up her few belongings and was brought ashore and never returned to the island.

Just where his body was buried became the subject of a dispute. Some say it was taken to City Island and buried in the cemetery there. Others claim he was buried in the public section of old St. Paul's church in Eastchester; but others declared the men returned to Goose Island with picks, shovels, sledge hammers and wedges and dug a grave in the frozen ground and buried him there. Several vowed they could point to the very spot in the garden.

I met three of those persons individually and went with them to the island and each pointed to a different post and not one of the places showed any sign of the ground having been disturbed. It is my believe that Father Goose is buried in the public section of St. Paul's graveyard.

This is the second and concluding chapter of Mr. Minard's tale of how he came to leave Mount Vernon for residence in Pelham and the colorful people he knew in those days."

Source: Account Prepared for Publication as "Pelham's Bard Spins Gothic Tale Of Life And Death On Goose Island When Snow Storm And Gale Attack", The Pelham Sun, Jul. 16, 1959.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings

Monday, April 24, 2006

1901 Article From the Pelham Manor Review Concerning The Village Improvement Association of Pelham Manor


Nearly fifty years ago, Pelham Town Historian Edgar H. Browne transcribed, verbatim, an article that appeared in the the "Pelham Manor Review" in October 1901. A typewritten manuscript containing that transcription is contained in the collections of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham.

The transcribed article sheds interesting light on a host of issues regarding the history of the Village of Pelham Manor. It seems to reflect the birth of efforts to replace the original branch line station structure with what later became a lovely station designed by nationally renowned architect Cass Gilbert. It indicates that a group of local citizens "approved" a proposal to extend the "Toonerville Trolley" line from Pelhamdale Avenue near the branch line station to the intersection of Pelhamdale Avenue and today's Shore Road near Travers Island. Today's Historic Pelham Blog posting provides the text of that transcription.

"THE VILLAGE IMPROVEMENT ASSOCIATION OF PELHAM MANOR

For a long time it has been in the minds of several members of this community that much might be done to beautify and to develop this unique and attractive suburb by combined efforts.

This thought took form in a meeting called for this purpose on June 20, 1901, from the minutes of which meeting we quote the following:

'A meeting of residents of Pelham Manor was held in Mrs. Hazen's parlor, Thursday June 20, 1901.

The following resolution, after discussion was passed: It is the sense of this meeting that an organization for matters of Village Improvement be formed. It shall be called the Village Improvement Association [Editor's Note: later changed to Society] of Pelham Manor, N.Y. It shall have a President, Vice President, treasurer and secretary and executive board.

Some features of the progressive work undertaken are indicated by the duties assigned to the various committees.

The Committee on Transportation is charged with the work of securing a new railroad station. The present structure, considering the amount and character of traffic which it represents, is as discreditable to the village as it is unworthy of the wealthy corporation which inflicts it upon our daily sight. The New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad, with its enormous resources, can easily give Pelham Manor a commodious and artistic station with sightly surroundings such as it has given to other places of no greater importance.

This Committee approved the extension of the trolley line on Pelhamdale Ave. from the railroad station to the Sound, in order to give the residents of Pelham Manor, the benefit of ready access to their beautiful waterfront. This extension will also afford access to Christ Church, facilitate the intercommunication between the railroad station and the New York Athletic Club grounds at Travers Island, increase the value of properties of all kinds throughout Pelham and Pelham Manor, and be of immense advantage to all who live within walking distance of the trolley line. . . .

There are about 500 inhabitants in the village- and 100 male voters. The Board of Trustees and Street Commissioner are police officers, and the village now employs three night and two day policemen."

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Friday, April 21, 2006

Locations of Pelham Homes (and a School) For Which Loutrel Briggs Prepared Designs


Editor's Note: After publishing the item below on April 21 I received a comment from one reader and an email from another reader pointing out an inexplicable error that I made indicating, erroneously, that 129 Corlies was within the Village of North Pelham when it was first built. Of course it was not. It is located in the Heights, an area within the Village of Pelham when it was first built. I have corrected the reference below. (I plead brain freeze. Thank you for the comments, though!!)

Recently I have published to the Historic Pelham Blog a number of items regarding the renowned landscape designer Loutrel Briggs and some of the gardens and landscape designs that he prepared for clients located in Pelham. For examples of such recent postings, see:

Thursday, October 20, 2005: Historic Loutrel Briggs Garden "Discovered" in Pelham Manor

Monday, December 19, 2005: Second Loutrel Briggs Garden "Discovered" in Pelham

Wednesday, April 19, 2006: Possibly More Historic Loutrel Briggs Gardens Located in Pelham?

In my April 19, 2006 posting, I listed Pelham-related entries from an index of Briggs papers in the collections of the South Carolina Historical Society. I now have reviewed old directories in the collections of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham to identify the locations of all but one of those listings. Below are the results of my research.

"Mr. Lockwood Barr
Pelham Manor, NY
Sept. 1928
Planting Plan of Garden (T)"

The Lockwood Barr home located at 20 Beech Tree Lane in Pelham Manor was previously identified as the site of a Loutrel Briggs garden in the rear of the home. The original garden layout and many of the original plantings still exist.

"Mrs. R. E. Coulson
Pelham Manor, NY
May 5, 1924
Planting Plan of Flower Garden (T)"

In 1924, Mr. and Mrs. Robert E. Colson lived at 107 Witherbee Avenue in Pelham Manor. Mr. Colson was an attorney.

"Davis Laing Esq.
Pelham Manor, NY
July 31, 1929
Construction Plan of Garden (T)"

The reference to "Davis" is an error. The correct name is "David Laing" (see entry immediately below.)

"David Laing Esq.
Pelham Manor, NY
Aug. 19, 1929
Lattice Screen Detail (T)"

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Mr. and Mrs. David Laing lived in the home that still stands at 1368 Park Lane in Pelham Manor.

"Prospect Hill School
Hudson St.Pelham, NY
Dec. 1932
General Plan of Grounds (T)"

The Prospect Hill School still stands in the Village of Pelham Manor. It is bordered by Hudson Street, Clay Avenue, Washington Avenue and Oak Lane.

"Mrs. Holton Scott
Pelham, NY
November 1, 1926
Planting Plan of Garden (T)"

Mr. and Mrs. Holton H. Scott lived at 129 Corlies Avenue in the Heights (Village of Pelham) in 1926. Mr. Scott was an engineer.

"Mr. Homer Sullivan
Pelham Wood [sic]
Westchester Co., NY
No Date
Residence (P)"

This reference remains a mystery. Although Pelhamwood is the neighborhood adjacent to, and immediately north of, the New Haven Line railroad tracks and the Pelham Train Station, review of phone directories in the possession of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham have yet to reveal the location of a residence in which "Mr. Homer Sullivan" lived.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Thursday, April 20, 2006

1788 Campaign Broadside Urging Support for Candidate Opposing Philip Pell of Pelham Manor

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

The American Memory collection of the Library of Congress contains a fascinating political broadside distributed anonymously in 1788. The broadside was part of the zealous debate between Federalists and Antifederalists that raged during the late 1780s.

Antifederalists opposed ratification of the proposed U.S. Constitution in 1787-1788. While recognizing that the federal government required more central authority than it had under the Articles of Confederation, they nevertheless argued that proponents of the Constitution went too far and proposed to grant too much power to the federal government. The debate raged as states considered whether to ratify the proposed constitution, and resulted in publication of the so-called "Federalist Papers" and "Antifederalist Papers".

Philip Pell of Pelham Manor was a strident Antifederalist who opposed ratification of the new constitution. The broadside was issued anonymously on March 4, 1788, signed by "A Federal Elector" and attacked the Antifederalists claiming that Westchester Antifederalists were duplicitously claiming to support one candidate while secretly planning to vote for Philip Pell. An image of the broadside appears immediately below and its text follows below that to facilitate searching.



"New-York preserved, or the Plot discovered.

WHILST the leaders of the antifederal junto in this city are raising a hue-and-cry against electing a Lawyer, as a Representative for this district, their adherents in Westchester county are supporting with all their zeal, Mr. PELL, another Lawyer, and a rank Antifederalist, in opposition to Mr. LAWRENCE. Nor is this all; many of the same party in this city are secretly ballotting for Mr. Pell, whilst they are duping Mr. Broome, and those who adhere to him, with professions of support. For shame! for shame! Such Federalists as have been deluded with the idea that the present contest was only betwixt a lawyer and a merchant, ought to open their eyes; and those who have not been deluded, ought to redouble their exertions to bring out every vote to defeat the artifices of a party whose real object is to destroy the present Constitution, and to remove the residence of Congress from this city.

March 4...........ONE and ALL.

THE Friends of Mr. John Broome have discovered, during the progress of the Poll, that Mr. Pell, and not Mr. Broome, is the candidate held up by the Antifederals in the county of Westchester; and that while the same party in this city, under an affected zeal for the mercantile interest, hold up Mr. Broome, they are secretly balloting for Mr. Pell.

They have therefore determined, in order to prevent a division of the Federal interest to join heart and hand with their fellow citizens, in supporting Mr. John Lawrence.

A Federal Elector.

March 4."

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

Possibly More Historic Loutrel Briggs Gardens Located in Pelham?

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

There is new evidence that several additional Loutrel Briggs gardens may exist in Pelham. Regular readers of the Historic Pelham Blog may recall that I recently have identified two gardens in Pelham that were designed by the renowned landscape architect Loutrel Winslow Briggs (1893 – 1977). Briggs is widely noted as among the “Pioneers of American Landscape Design” who literally shaped our history. See Birnbaum, Charles A. & Karson, Robin, eds., Pioneers of American Landscape Design, pp. 35-37 (The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. 2000).

Briggs gardens are known to exist at 20 Beech Tree Lane in the Village of Pelham Manor and 180 Pelhamdale Avenue in the Village of Pelham. See:

Thursday, October 20, 2005: Historic Loutrel Briggs Garden "Discovered" in Pelham Manor

Monday, December 19, 2005: Second Loutrel Briggs Garden "Discovered" in Pelham

The nation's expert on Loutrel Briggs and his landscape designs is James Cothran. Mr. Cothran has provided me with an index of projects undertaken by Loutrel Briggs during his lifetime. That list contains references to projects performed for a number of homeowners in Pelham, NY. Surprisingly, the list also indicates that Briggs prepared a "General Plan of Grounds" for Prospect Hill School in December 1932, shortly after the school opened. According to the list, Briggs performed the following projects for Pelham homeowners:

"Mr. Lockwood Barr
Pelham Manor, NY
Sept. 1928
Planting Plan of Garden (T)"

"Mrs. R. E. Coulson
Pelham Manor, NY
May 5, 1924
Planting Plan of Flower Garden (T)"

"Davis Laing Esq.
Pelham Manor, NY
July 31, 1929
Construction Plan of Garden (T)"

"David Laing Esq.
Pelham Manor, NY
Aug. 19, 1929
Lattice Screen Detail (T)"

"Prospect Hill School
Hudson St.
Pelham, NY
Dec. 1932
General Plan of Grounds (T)"

"Mrs. Holton Scott
Pelham, NY
November 1, 1926
Planting Plan of Garden (T)"

"Mr. Homer Sullivan
Pelham Wood [sic]
Westchester Co., NY
No Date
Residence (P)"

I have been able to determine the locations of the Coulson and Scott homes, but have not yet been able to determine the locations of the Laing and Sullivan residences. I will provide additional information on the gardens in a few days.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

Prospectus Issued by the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association in 1874


I have been working feverishly in almost every spare moment for the last several months to research the history of the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association. Regular readers may recall that I have published a number of blog postings on the topic, including:

Thursday, December 22, 2005: Area Planned for Development by The Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association in 1873

Monday, March 20, 2006: Charles J. Stephens and Henry C. Stephens of the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association

Monday, March 27, 2006: 1057 Esplanade: One of the Original Homes Built by the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association

The reason for my effort is that I will be presenting a paper on the topic during The 27th Conference on New York State History in conjunction with The Association of Public Historians of New York State sponsored by The Herber H. Lehman Center for American History, Columbia University and the New York State Archives Partnership Trust. The conference is scheduled from June 1 through June 3, 2006. A copy of the program for the conference is available here. At 10:15 a.m. on Saturday, June 3, I will present a paper entitled "The Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association: An Analysis of the Effects on Today's Village of Pelham Manor of a 'Failed' Effort to Develop a New York City Railroad Suburb During the 1870s".

During the course of my research, I have located an original "Prospectus" issued by the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association buried in the manuscript collections of the New York Public Library's "Science, Industry and Business Library" located at 188 Madison Avenue at 34th Street. Last Saturday my 9-year-old son and I spent hours in the library poring over the 21-page document. As might be expected, it sheds a great deal of light on the Association and its objectives.

Below is an image of the cover of the Prospectus published in 1804. Beneath that I have transcribed the page to facilitate searching and have provided a full citation to assist those who may wish to see the document themselves.



"PROSPECTUS

OF THE

Pelham Manor and Huguenot Heights

ASSOCIATION,

Organized under the Act of April 5th, 1853, as amended May 10th, 1870.

--------

OFFICERS:

S. H. WITHERBEE, President. C. J. STEPHENS, Secretary.
H. C. STEPHENS, Treasurer. R. M. MITCHILL, Sup’t.
E. G. SPILSBURY, Engineer.

--------

NEW YORK OFFICE

WITH

STEPHENS BROTHERS & COMPANY,

187 BROADWAY,

BETWEEN DEY AND COURTLANDT STREETS.

--------

New York :

JAMES HUGGINS, BOOK AND JOB PRINTER, 372 PEARL STREET.
-----
1874."

Source: Prospectus of the Pelham Manor and Huguenot Heights Association, Organized Under the Act of April 5th, 1853, as amended May 10th, 1870, p. 1 (NY, NY: James Huggins, Book & Job Printer 1874) (bound as item 6 in bound volume, call no. TB p.v. 1643, collections of the Science, Industry and Business Library collection of the New York Public Library).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Monday, April 17, 2006

The Online "David Rumsey Map Collection" Adds a Number of Important Pelham Maps


On March 21, 2006, the David Rumsey Map Collection maintained online by Cartography Associates added 1,048 new maps to the collection. Among the materials added to the collection were eight atlases depicting Westchester County and northern New York City ranging in date from 1881 to 1914.

For those interested in learning more about using online map collections -- including the wonderful David Rumsey Map Collection -- see the following:

Monday, February 14, 2005: Studying Antique Maps of Pelham Using Online Services That Provide High Resolution Scans -- Part I

Tuesday, February 15, 2005: Studying Antique Maps of Pelham Using Online Services That Provide High Resolution Scans -- Part II

Wednesday, February 16, 2005: Studying Antique Maps of Pelham Using Online Services That Provide High Resolution Scans -- Part III

Bromley, Westchester County, 1881

Among the materials recently added to the collection is the following atlas:

Atlas of Westchester County, New York. From Actual Surveys and Official Records by G. W. Bromley & Co., Civil Engineers. Published by Geo. W. & Walter S. Bromley. 243 Broadway, New York. 1881. Engraved by A.H. Mueller, 530 Locust St., Phila. Printed by F. Bourquin, 31 So. 6th St., Phila. Entered 1881, by G. W. Bromley & Co. Washington (Philadelphia, PA: F. Bourquin 1881).

Plates 56 and 57 of the Atlas show Pelham with a wonderful inset on page 57 showing "Pelham Manor". This important map shows the developments of the Prospect Hill Village Association and the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association that formed the early settlements that later became the central portion of today's Village of Pelham Manor.

Bromley, Westchester County, 1910

Also included among the materials recently added to the collection is the following atlas:

Atlas of Westchester County, New York. Volume One. From Actual Surveys and Official Plans by George W. and Walter S. Bromley, Civil Engineers. Published by G. W. Bromley and Co. 147 N. Fifth St., Philadelphia. 1910 (NY, NY: G.W. Bromley & Co. 1910).

Plate 17 is entitled "Part of the City of Mt. Vernon Ward 5 and the Town of Pelham". Included on the map is the northern half of the Town of Pelham from the New Haven line tracks to Chester Park and above.

Plate 18 is entitled "Part of the Town and Village of Pelham". It shows the Town of Pelham from the branch line on the south to the New Haven Line on the north.

Plate 19 is entitled "Part of the City of New Rochelle Ward 2" but also shows that part of the Town of Pelham between the branch line and the Long Island Sound.

Bromley, Mount Vernon & Pelham, 1914

Also included among the materials recently added to the collection is the following desk atlas:

Mount Vernon. Mount Vernon & Pelham. (G.W. Bromley & Co., 34 Pine Street, New York, 1914).

Plate 119 depicts the northern tip of Pelham.

Plate 120 shows a portion of Mount Vernon, but Plate 121 shows the northern portion of Pelham from Fourth Avenue / Lincoln Avenue to Willow Avenue in Chester Park.

Plate 122 shows a portion of Pelham from Lincoln Avenue southward to the New Haven main line bounded on the west by Pelham Reservoir and on the east by Fifth Avenue.

Plate 123 shows a portion of Pelham from 6th Street on the north to the New Haven main line on the south, bounded on the west by Fifth Avenue and on the east by the boundary with New Rochelle.

Plate 124 shows that portion of Pelham from the New Haven main line to Colonial Avenue, bounded by the Hutchinson River on the West and Highbrook Avenue on the East.

Plate 125 shows that portion of Pelham from the New Haven main line to Colonial Avenue, bounded by Highbrook Avenue on the west and Beechwoods Cemetery on the east.

Plate 126 shows that portion of Pelham from Colonial Avenue to Esplanade bounded by the Hutchinson River on the east and Monterey Avenue on the west.

Plate 127 shows Pelham from Colonial Avenue to Boston Post Road bounded on the west by Monterey Avenue and on the east by the branch line railroad tracks.

Plate 128 shows Pelham from the Esplanade to Prospect Avenue, bounded on the northeast by the Hutchinson River and on the southwest by Prospect Avenue and a portion of Highland.

Plate 129 shows the old Chestnut Grove Division developed by the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Association (Pelham from just north of Boston Post Road to the branch line railroad tracks bounded by Highland Avenue on the West and grounds that form today's Pelham Country Club on the east.

Plate 130 shows Pelham from just north of Secor Lane south to the New York City line bounded on the west by the Hutchinson River and on the east by Wolfs Lane and an area east of Peace Street.

Plate 131 shows an area that includes Prospect Hill bounded on the north by Highland Avenue and Prospect Avenue and on the south by an area southwest of Crittenden Avenue. On the east is the New Haven branch line.

Plate 132 shows the area between the New Haven branch line and Long Island Sound bounded by the New York City line on the southwest and an area northwest of Pelhamdale Avenue on the northwest.

Plate 133 shows the Mount Tom area and portions of Pelham and New Rochelle northeast of Pelhamdale Avenue adjacent to the lands depicted on Plate 132.

Conclusion

There are additional maps of Pelham that have been added to the online collection. These, of course, are in addition to the maps of Pelham and surrounding areas previously contained in the collection. The material provides a wealth of information for those interested in researching local history.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Three of the Original Homes of the Prospect Hill Village Association Founded in 1851


I have continued my research regarding the little hamlet that developed within the Town of Pelham in the early 1850s known as "Prospect Hill Village". For examples of recent postings on the topic published to the Historic Pelham Blog, see:

Friday, April 7, 2006: A View from Prospect Hill Looking West Published in 1887

Tuesday, April 4, 2006: More Information About the Prospect Hill Village Association Formed in the Early 1850s

Wednesday, March 30, 2005: Prospect Hill Village -- Yet Another Early Hamlet Within the Town of Pelham

Monday, November 21, 2005: Prospect Hill and Pelhamville Depicted on the 1868 Beers Atlas Map of Pelham - Part I

In today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog, I am providing photographs of three homes that were part of the original Prospect Hill Village development. The homes still stand on Prospect Hill in the Village of Pelham Manor. Beneath the three images, I have inserted an excerpt of a wonderful book entitled "A Glance At The Past Pelham's Growth From 1775 - 1975". Barbara Bartlett, Mimi Buckley and others prepared the book that The Junior League of Pelham, Inc. published in 1975. The excerpt deals with the Prospect Hill Village development.



Above: 100 Jackson Avenue, Pelham Manor, NY


Above: 949 Washington Avenue, Pelham Manor, NY


Above: 987 Washington Avenue, Pelham Manor, NY.
Moved To This Address From Unknown Location.


"PROSPECT HILL

In 1852, a year after Bryson did his survey of Pelhamville, he prepared a map of the area known as Prospect Hill. During Revolutionary times, this section was called "Hog Wallow", most likely because of the muddy condition of Split Rock Road. This area encompassed what is now that part of Pelham Manor including Prospect Avenue, Edgewood Avenue, Highland Avenue and parts of the Esplanade and Pelhamdale Avenue.

Since it is not known who requested the survey, it is impossible to determine the intent of the developer or developers. It is known that 100 Jackson Avenue and 949 Washington Avenue were built at that time and are fine examples of the type of home of the period. 987 Washington Avenue was also built at about the same time, but was moved to its present site at a later date. Its original location and the date of its removal are not known.

Both the exterior and the interior of 100 Jackson Avenue are essentially the same today as when the house was built, with the exception of the rear country kitchn. This room is now joined to the main house by means of a dining room. Just when this alteration was made is not certain, but it was some time after 1899. In 1875, this house was assessed at $1,200, which indicates that at the time it was a fine residence.

Another interesting feature of the area is that along some of the backyards of Washington Avenue, especially behind 949 Washington, the remains of the old stone wall dividing this land from John Hunter's property can be seen.

In 1840, John Hunter, who owned the land just to the southeast of Prospect Hill, deeded a small corner of his land on the border to the town of Pelham for the purpose of building a school. In 1866, for some reason, the town purchased part of Lot 51 from Terrance Malloy and moved the school to that site, which is now the front part of the main center section of 982 Split Rock Road. It has been said that the reason for the removal of the school was that Hunter wished to enlarge his racetrack. However, research has shown that his track was further south, nearer Throg's Neck. Also the configuration of the land at that spot would not have lent itself to the requirements of a racetrack. There was some sporadic building in the Prospect Hill area up until the time it was incorporated into the Village of Pelham Manor in 1915. However, some of these homes, which were originally very large, have been razed to allow for more modern construction."

Source: Bartlett, Barbara, et al., A Glance At The Past Pelham's Growth From 1775 - 1975, pp. 13-14 (Pelham, NY: The Junior League of Pelham, Inc. 1975).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Thursday, April 13, 2006

Rumors in 1657 That Thomas Pell Manipulated Local Native Americans To Protect His Land Acquisition From Incursions by the Dutch


Thomas Pell of Fairfield in the colony of Connecticut acquired the lands that later became Pelham, New York and surrounding areas on June 27, 1654. The "treaty" by which Pell acquired the lands was enlightened in one respect. It constituted more than a mere sale of the lands. It also required future cooperation and interaction between representatives of the Native Americans and the English settlers to protect the acquired lands against incursions.

In addition to the provisions that dealt with the Native Americans' transfer of land to Thomas Pell, there was a separate section at the foot of the treaty entitled "Articles of Agreement". That section affirmatively obligated both the English settlers and the Native Americans to choose two representatives one day in the Spring of "every yeare" to inspect the boundaries of the land that was the subject of the sale agreement so that "Right Knowledge may be kept wh out [without] injury to Either side yt Mutuall peace & love may be mayntayned."

The objective sounds noble. There are indications, however, that Thomas Pell expected more of the local Native Americans than merely inspecting the boundaries of the land he acquired once each spring. Rumors circulated in 1656 and 1657 that Pell "daily" told local Native Americans either to "return his money" or to protect the land he had acquired from them against incursions by the Dutch.

These rumors are reflected in an English translation of a fascinating Dutch report prepared in 1657. The report details a trip by a group of Dutch emissaries appointed by Director General Peter Stuyvesant that departed from Fort Amersterdam near the tip of today's Manhattan Island on December 29, 1656. The group traveled to Oostdorp (later the town of West Chester, located in Westchester County, until it was annexed by New York City and became part of today's Bronx).

The men who made the trip were: Brian Nuton, "Captn Lieutenant"; Cornelis Van Ruyven, "Secretary"; and Carel van Brugge, "Commissary". They traveled to Oostdorp to lodge objections, for the second time, to the English settlers' claims on the land. Those settlers reportedly had acquired the land from Thomas Pell.

According to the report, the object of the mission was to communicate that of the six individuals that the little settlement had nominated as possible Magistrates for Oostdorp, Director General Peter Stuyvesant had selected three to serve: "Mr. Newman, Mr. Lord and John Smith". The drum used to call the inhabitants together was beaten and the Dutch read to the assembled group the commission granted to the Magistrates. The Dutch representatives took oaths from a number of the inhabitants swearing allegiance to the Director General and his appointed Magistrates and laws "so far as these harmonized with the laws of God".

The group then presented a number of complaints to the Dutch that they asked the representatives to deliver on their behalf to the Director General and the Council at Fort Amsterdam. Among those complaints was one founded on the rumors surrounding Thomas Pell and his dealings with local Native Americans. The report stated, in pertinent part, as follows:

"The preceding being accomplished, divers of the Inhabitants made the following complaints which they requested us to present to the Hr General & Council, in order that a timely remedy may be applied: -

Firstly, regarding the insolence of the Indians; that they daily threaten to destroy them if they repair under the Dutch which some told us proceeded from Mr. Pel [sic] who purchased that piece of land from the Indians on this condition, as they said, that the Indians should deliver it to him unembarrassed, and maintain him in it against all who may have claims to it, and that the said Pel now daily importuned the Indians to return his money, or otherwise that the Indians according to Deed of Sale, should free him from the Dutch nation who claim it as their property. . . . "

Source: Papers Relating to Westchester County, Vol. XIII, pp. 924-25 (Ward Parsons 1849).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

1712 Census of Westchester County Documents Slave Ownership in Pelham



As I stated in my posting published to the Historic Pelham Blog on April 3, 2006, for several years I have tried to piece together some of the tragic history regarding slavery in the early years of Pelham's history. For those also working to piece together this history, I provide below a brief list of a few of the available resources on the topic:

Monday, April 3, 2006: 1805 Will of William Bayley of Pelham Included Disposition of Slaves

Friday, February 17, 2006: Runaway Slave Notice Published by John Pell in 1748 Comes to Light

Monday, July 18, 2005: Pelham Manor Runaway Slave Notice in August 29, 1789 Issue of The New-York Packet

Bell, Blake A., Records of Slavery and Slave Manumissions in 18th and 19th Century Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 27, Jul. 9, 2004.

Harris, William A., Records Related to Slave Manumissions: Pelham, New York, Vol. 123(3), The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, pp. 145-47 (Jul. 1992).

Today's Historic Pelham Blog Posting provides the text of the Census of Westchester County taken in 1712. I have taken the material from a publication issued in 1849 entitled "Papers Relating to Westchester County", Vol. XIII, p. 949 (Ward Parsons). Beneath the image of the chart reflecting that census taken from that publication, I have transcribed excertps of the chart that relate to Pelham.




"CENSUS OF WESTCHESTER COUNTY; 1712.

Pelham . . . . . . . . . .

Numbrs [sic] of Male persons Above Sixty years of Age 3
Numbrs [sic] of Male persons from sixteen to sixty years of Age 11
Numbrs [sic] of Male persons undr [sic] Sixteen 13
Numbrs [sic] of females Above Sixty 1
Numbers of females from Sixty to Sixteen 9
Numbers of females undr [sic] Sixteen 15
Numbrs [sic] of Male Slaves from Sixteen & Above 6
Numbrs [sic] of Male Slaves undr Sixteen 4
Numbrs [sic] of female slaves from Sixteen & Above 2
Numbrs [sic] of female Slaves undr [sic] Sixteen 1

[Total] 62 [sic - the true total is 65]"

As the above makes clear, of the total recorded population of 65 indicated as residing in Pelham in 1712, 13 -- 20% of the entire population -- were slaves. Ten of those slaves were male and 3 were female.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Tuesday, April 11, 2006

April 20, 1875 Marriage Certificate of Robert C. Black and Mary Grace Witherbee Black


Perhaps no two people influenced the development of the area that became the Village of Pelham Manor in the 19th Century than Robert C. Black and his wife, Mary Grace Witherbee Black. The supremely wealthy couple combined the fortunes of two families. Robert Black was a partner in the internationally-renowned jewelry firm Black Starr & Frost. Mary Grace Witherbee Black was the daughter of Silas H. Witherbee who owned, among other things, large land holdings and interests in iron mines and foundries.

The pair moved to Pelham Manor in the mid-1870s shortly after they were married on April 20, 1875. Robert Black became a founding member of the Pelham Manor Protective Club that served as a virtual municipal government before the Village of Pelham Manor was incorporated. Mary Black managed local land holdings and was known as a "tough as nails businesswoman" for her time. She built and leased homes as she worked to develop portions of the area that was the subject of the failed development efforts of the Pelham Manor & Huguenot Heights Assocation.

Today's Historic Pelham Blog Posting provides an image of the couple's original marriage certificate contained in the collections of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham. The simple certificate is handwritten on a folded sheet of notepaper. Beneath the image of the certificate that appears immediately below, I have transcribed the text of the certificate to facilitate searching.



"This is to certify, that on the 20th of April 1875, at the Brick Church, 5th Ave. and 37th st. New York. Mr. Robert C. Black and Miss Mary Grace Witherbee were Lawfully joined in marriage by me -

Lewis Francis
Pastor of Reformed Ch.
Green Point, Brooklyn

April 20th 1875"

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Monday, April 10, 2006

A Mystery Yet To Be Solved: The Pelham Trading Company Incorporated in 1901


Research has turned up yet another tantalizing mystery about the history of Pelham, New York. Buried in the collections of The Office of The Historian of The Town of Pelham is stock certificate "No. 1" issued by The Pelham Trading Company. An image of the stock certificate appears immediately below.



Very little information can be found about The Pelham Trading Company. An online index of companies incorporated with Westchester County addresses between 1876 and 1914 is available from the Westchester County Archives. It indicates that The Pelham Trading Company was incorporated May 6, 1901.

A reference to the company appears in the May 11, 1901 issue of The New York Times. The reference lists the members of the board of directors of the newly-formed company and notes that it was formed with capital of $6,000. The reference reads:

"Incorporated in Westchester.

The Pelham Trading Company: capital, $6,000. Directors - Robert C. Black, Edward M. Fowler, William K. Gillett, Alfred L. Hammett, and Henry B. B. Staples."

Source: New Corporations, N.Y. Times, May 11, 1901, p. 13.

These directors were long-standing residents of Pelham Manor. In fact, all were early members of the Pelham Manor Protective Club formed in 1881 as a virtual municipal government for the area before the Village of Pelham Manor was incorporated in 1891.

The stock certificate itself provides some information about the company. It notes that shares cost $25 each and that Pelham Manor resident Joseph English was the owner of 30 shares of capital stock of the company worth $750. The certificate was issued on July 9, 1901, barely two months after the company was incorporated.

The certificate further indicates that William K. Gillett served as President of the company and that Alfred L. Hammett served as the company's Treasurer. Beyond these few basic facts, nothing else is known about the history or the activities of this company. Only time will tell whether more can be uncovered . . . . .

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Friday, April 07, 2006

A View from Prospect Hill Looking West Published in 1887


As regular readers of the Historic Pelham Blog know, I have been working for several months to assemble information about the little hamlet that developed within the Town of Pelham in the early 1850s known as "Prospect Hill Village". For examples of recent postings on the topic published to the Historic Pelham Blog, see:

Tuesday, April 4, 2006: More Information About the Prospect Hill Village Association Formed in the Early 1850s

Wednesday, March 30, 2005: Prospect Hill Village -- Yet Another Early Hamlet Within the Town of Pelham

Monday, November 21, 2005: Prospect Hill and Pelhamville Depicted on the 1868 Beers Atlas Map of Pelham - Part I

Recently I acquired a copy of a wonderful book published in 1887 that contains a host of engraved images showing scenes in and around today's Pelham Bay Park (see citation below). Included among those images is one showing a view from "Prospect Hill, Looking Westward". The image appears immediately below.



I have not yet determined precisely from where the view was taken, but I suspect that the roadway with the split rail fence in the foreground is Split Rock Road. In the distance seems to be the steeple of St. Paul's Church (now Saint Paul's Church National Historic Site, 897 South Columbus Avenue, Mt. Vernon, NY, 10550).

This image makes clear how idyllic the area around Prospect Hill in today's Village of Pelham Manor was in the 19th century. Its beauty also shows why the area attracted one of the earliest real estate developments in the area in the early 1850s.

Source: Mullaly, John, The New Parks Beyond the Harlem (NY, NY: Record & Guide 1887) (172 pp.).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Thursday, April 06, 2006

Alexander Bampfield Henderson: "Lone Lord of the Isle"


Recently I have published a couple of postings to the Historic Pelham Blog regarding Alexander Henderson, a late 18th century owner of the island off the shore of Pelham that later became known as Hunter's Island. See:

Friday, March 31, 2006: Text of 1804 Will of Alexander Henderson, Owner of the Island Later Known as Hunter's Island

Friday, February 24, 2006: Notice of Settlement of the Estate of Alexander Henderson of Pelham in 1805

Today's Historic Pelham Blog Posting transcribes the text of an entry about the life of Alexander Bampfield Henderson published in J. Thomas Scharf's History of Westchester County published in 1886. The account includes information about how the subsequent owner of Henderson's Island, John Hunter, began to assemble his amazing art collection in the grand mansion that he built on the island previously owned by Alexander Henderson. That entry reads as follows:

""Long remembered among these who, at the close of the last century, sought a home in old Pelham, was a man of large fortune, an educated gentlemen [sic], a bachelor just touching the border of middle life, of whom, as it seems, only one memorial can now be found, and that the marble slab at the head of his grave, hinting briefly at the beginning and ending of his life-story. A single sentence utters its whole message, thus, - In memory of Alexander Bampfield Henderson, Esq., a native of Charleston, in South Carolina, but late of the town of Pelham and county of Westchester, who departed this life 26th December, 1804, aged 47 years.

On a bright summer's day, about ten years ago, in a solitary walk among the tombs of the old French Burial Ground, my attention was arrested by the inscription here copied. Although I had never seen the man, nor been his contemporary, I felt myself closely related and greatly indebted to him. For I was familiar with the story that from his beautiful residence, separated by Pelham Creek from the land estate of my grandparent, William Bailey [sic], he daily used to walk across the causeway and bridge to our homestead and relieve the loneliness of 'Bachelor Hall,' in the sympathetic enjoyment of our family life. Such was his habitude, indeed, during the most important period of my mother's history, her later school days. His private library, a true index of his cherished tastes, was one of the best, at the time, outside of the metropolis; and it greatly intensified his enjoyment of it, often recognizing in my mother, née Anne Bayley, a keen appreciation of books, to minister to her intellectual development by placing at her command the freshest productions of English literature, rendering her familiar with the standard works of Essayists and Poets, with most of those English classics, indeed, that would be found in the choicest home library at the close of the Eighteenth Century. Thus, working 'better than he knew,' he was providing the main topics of interest that ruled the course of our household talk throughout my school days, and was qualifying my mother to become, not professionally, but incidentally and really, the attractive companion and educator of her five children. Her grateful allusions to him made his name familiar to our ears; and often curious fancy would invest with the golden haze of romance the unwritten history of this 'Lone Lord of the Isle.' Rumor had sometimes whispered that, in his experience, the glow of youthful hope had been dimmed by the death of a first love, for whose vacant place no substitute could be found on earth.

In this connection it remains to be said, however, that, whether this suggestion were true or not, a few well-remembered facts, outlining his life course, were recently rehearsed to me by Elbert Roosevelt, Esq., whose life long residence in Pelham, near the Island, suggest [sic] a series of memories related to the whole vicinity, extending over two-thirds of a century. These conversational statements supply what was lacking to give a desired unity to the story.

Mr. Henderson, born in South Carolina, was of Scotch origin; was educated at the University of Edinburgh, and then took rank as a Surgeon in the English Army. Thus he was brought into communication with the British Ambassador in India, and was by him introduced to the Court of the reigning Prince, who engaged the Surgeon's professional services in behalf of his favorite wife, then seriously ill. The treatment was a success, and the delighted Prince honored Mr. Henderson, in his own way, by the presentation of a beautiful Circassian slave girl, about thirteen year of age. This present the Army Surgeon did not bring away with him from India; 'but, after establishing his home at the Island, said Mr. Roosevelt, 'he commissioned your father (Captain James Hague, of Pelham, commanding a ship in the India trade) to look after this princely gift, and bring with him the young Circassian as a passenger on his return voyage from Calcutta. With her, accordingly, Captain Hague sought an interview, but found her so well pleased with her position in the household of a British officer that she could not be induced to leave her new protector. Nevertheless, the Captain was accompanied with an Indian lad, the Surgeon's protégé, who was welcomed, treated as an adopted son, and bore the name of William Henderson. The lad survived the retired Surgeon eight years, and was buried by his side in the old French Burial Ground at New Rochelle. The two graves are surrounded by a well-wrought iron fence, and the smaller marble headstone bears this brief inscription: 'In memory of William Henderson, who died January 19, 1812, in the 25th year of his age.'

In his last sickness the young man was most kindly attended by Dr. Rogers, through whose influence or advice he bequeathed the sum of twelve hundred dollars, appropriated to the erection of a town house, 'for the use and convenience' of the people of New Rochelle. With the recognition of this gift the townspeople of our time generally associate the name of the owner of the Island Home; it is, however, the East India youth's memorial.

Henderson's Island, beautiful for situation, distinguished by its homestead, so greatly enriched by the best of home libraries in Pelham, became well known as Hunter's Island, more distinguished than ever by its new palatial mansion, with the best private art gallery in the United States. The propriety of this characterization by the use of the superlative degree was, probably, undisputed by any rival during the first two decades of this century. We may safely say that no one of the earlier generations of the Pells, or of the Huguenots, however aspiring, would have dreamed of such a possibility for a family home within the bounds of the manorial grant so recently chartered by an English king in troublous times, and then so thoroughly impoverished by the Revolutionary War. Under what conditions could it have seemed possible that some of the choicest treasures of ancient Italian galleries could be transferred to a secluded little island, fifteen miles from the city of New York, the purchase of a young American?

The explanation, as received from Mr. Hunter personally, was this: At the the [sic] time of his graduating from Columbia College, twenty-one years of age, it so happened that he came into full possession of his property. A friend and fellow-student, traveling in Europe while Napoleon was campaigning in Italy, wrote earnestly, reminding him that, on account of insecurity, art treasures were offered for sale at great sacrifice, and that an opportunity to indulge cherished tastes had now arrived, the like of which had not been known before and might never come again. 'My answer was prompt,' said Mr. Hunter, 'availing myself of his service, with faith in his judgment and discretion.' . . ."

Source: Old Pelham and New Rochelle by Rev. William Hague in Scharf, J. Thomas, History of Westchester County, New York, Including Morrisania, Kings Bridge, and West Farms, Which Have Been Annexed to New York City, Vol. I, pp. 711-12 (Philadelphia, PA: L. E. Preston & Co. 1886).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Wednesday, April 05, 2006

"Hawkswood", Later Known as the Marshall Mansion on Rodman's Neck in Pelham




In the early 19th century, Elisha W. King was a distinguished New York City lawyer. He also served as an alderman and an assemblyman. In the 1820s, he built a lavish home in Pelham on Rodman's Neck opposite City Island. According to one source, King purchased nearby High Island in 1829 and quarried stones from the island "which he used in the construction of a foundation" for the mansion he built on Rodman's Neck. See Twomey, Bill, The Bronx, in Bits and Pieces, p. 83 (Lincoln, NE: iUniverse, Inc. 2003). King named his mansion and the estate on which it stood "Hawkswood".


Post Card View of Hawkswood Ca. 1918.



After building the home, King retired there and lived in it until his death. Levin Rothrock Marshall of Natchez, Mississippi acquired the grand home and the estate on which it stood from Elisha King's widow for $30,000. The structure became known as the "Marshall Mansion". Marshall was a wealthy financier who summered on the estate until the Civil War when he moved to the area and maintained both a townhouse in New York City and the Marshall Mansion in Pelham.

According to information provided by the Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum and Carriage House, "Robert Bolton attributed the grounds of 'Hawkswood' to the Belgian-born Andre Parmentier, a celebrated gardener considered by Alexander Jackson Downing to be the first really important landscape practitioner 'of any note' in America. Although little of his work is actually documented, between 1825 and 1830, it is known that Parmentier planned gardens and supplied plant material for many New York area country houses."

The house later was converted and used as a hotel known as the "Colonial Hotel". In the 1880s the New York City Parks Department acquired the property for Pelham Bay Park.

Later the structure was used as a grand restaurant known as the "Colonial Inn". The post card view above shows the structure at that time. A book entitled "Great Georgian Houses of America" published in 1937 by the Architectural Relief Association featured the home.

New York City demolished the lovely structure in 1936 - 1937.

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Tuesday, April 04, 2006

More Information About the Prospect Hill Village Association Formed in the Early 1850s


During the early to mid-19th century, several small hamlets sprang up within the Town of Pelham in addition to the main population center on City Island. One of those hamlets was called "Prospect Hill Village". Occasionally I have published postings to the Historic Pelham Blog about Prospect Hill Village. See, e.g.:

Wednesday, March 30, 2005: Prospect Hill Village -- Yet Another Early Hamlet Within the Town of Pelham

Monday, November 21, 2005: Prospect Hill and Pelhamville Depicted on the 1868 Beers Atlas Map of Pelham - Part I

Research in the Library of the New-York Historical Society has revealed a set of the "Articles of the Prospect Hill Village Association" adopted July 21, 1851 as well as a shareholder's certificate of Robert C. Voorhies transferred to George T. Maxwell, May 29, 1852. Contained in the materials is the following description of the area selected by the Association for development:

"The site for the village is high and dry, consequently very healthy, and the view therefrom the most beautiful in the country. It is located on the Turnpike Road from New-York to New Rochelle, and within sight of the Pelhamville station, on the New-Haven Railroad."

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.

Monday, April 03, 2006

1805 Will of William Bayley of Pelham Included Disposition of Slaves


For several years I have tried to piece together some of the tragic history regarding slavery in the early years of Pelham's history. For those also working to piece together this history, I provide a brief list of a few of the available resources below:

Friday, February 17, 2006: Runaway Slave Notice Published by John Pell in 1748 Comes to Light

Monday, July 18, 2005: Pelham Manor Runaway Slave Notice in August 29, 1789 Issue of The New-York Packet

Bell, Blake A., Records of Slavery and Slave Manumissions in 18th and 19th Century Pelham, The Pelham Weekly, Vol. XIII, No. 27, Jul. 9, 2004.

Harris, William A., Records Related to Slave Manumissions: Pelham, New York, Vol. 123(3), The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, pp. 145-47 (Jul. 1992).

William Bayley and his wife, Sarah Pell Bayley, owned the lovely colonial farmhouse that still stands at 145 Shore Road (partially in Pelham Manor and partially in New Rochelle). The home is known as the "Kemble House" because it was owned by members of the Kemble family for nearly a century.

Bayley acquired the home and surrounding farmlands from John Pell. William and Sarah Pell Bayley were the aunt and uncle of Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton, the first native-born American canonized as a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. She spent portions of her childhood in the lovely home.

A number of landowners who lived in Pelham in the late 18th and early 19th centuries owned slaves. Among those were William Bayley. Today's Historic Pelham Blog Posting transcribes the text of William Bayley's will dated October 17, 1805 in which he included provisions relating to the slaves that he owned.

"WILLIAM BAYLEY

Liber G of Wills, page 274 (Typewritten Liber) Oct. 17, 1805

In the Name of God Amen, I william Bayley of the Town of Pelham in the county of Westchester and State of New York considering the uncertainty of this mortal life and being of sound and perfect mind and memory blessed by Almighty God for the same do make and publish this my last Will and Testament in manner and form following (that is to say)

First I order that all my just debts and funeral expenses be first paid.

I give to my beloved wife Sarah all my household furniture to be and remain at her disposal. I also give her the use and profits of the farm on which I now live so long as she remains my widow, but that during that time, no wood or timber shall be sold or carried off the farm. I also give and bequeath to my said wife the annual Interest arising on the Monies secured to be paid to me by Mortgage, Bond or Note excepting the sum of twelve hundred and fifty dollars which I give and bequeath to my son Joseph to be paid to him as soon as conveniently may be after my decease out of monies due me on bond or note. My said wife to be entitled to the Interest on the residue of my monies as aforesaid during the term of she shall remain my widow and at her death or remarriage whichever may happen I give and bequeath the principal sum due on such Mortgages bonds or notes to my two sons Joseph and William and my two daughters Susannah the wife of Jeremiah Schureman (*) and Nancy the wife of James Hague in equal parts. All my moveable property not already mentioned I order to be sold as soon as conveniently may be after my deceased either at public or private sale as my Executors may think best, and the monies arising from the sale thereof to be equally divided among all my children before named.

And further I do order and direct that at or upon the death or remarriage of my said wife whichever shall first happen that all my Real Estate be sold either at public or private sale as my Executors may think most beneficial to my Estate and the monies arising from such sale I do give and bequeath to my two sons and my two daughters before named in equal parts share and share alike. It is further my Will that my negro woman Sarah shall be supported and maintained by my said wife during the natural life of the said negro woman and in case she should survive my said wife that she be maintained in a decent and comfortable manner out of my Estate further I give the use of my negro boy Isaac otherwise called Ike to my said wife so long as she remains my widow and at her death or remarriage whichever first happen the Value of him to be ascertained by an equitable apprisement and that he have his Election to live with which ever of my said Children he may think proper such child paying the amount of such apprisisal [sic]. All the residue of my Estate if any not herein before bequeathed I give to all my said Children in equal parts. And lastly I do appoint my beloved wife Executrix and Jeremiah Schureman and James Hague Executors of this my last Will and Testament hereby revoking all former Wills by me made. In Witness Whereof I have hereunto set my hand and Seal the seventeenth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and five.

William Bayley (L.S.)

Signed, Sealed, published and declared by the above named William Bayley to be his last Will and Testament in the presence of us who have hereunto subscribed our names as Witnesses in the presence of the Testator.

Note the words bonds or notes on the first side interlined before signing and sealing

Jonathan G. Tompkins
Deborah Tompkins
Caleb Tompkins

Proved April 24, 1811 by deposition of Caleb Tompkins Esquire of the Town of Scarsdale. Letters Testamentary issued April 24, 1811 at a Court held at Poundridge to Sarah Bayley Executrix and Jeremiah Schureman Executor two of those in the will named. Recorded in Liber G of Wills page 273

(*) Jeremiah Schureman was the son of Jeremiah Schureman and his wife who was a DeVoe. Jeremiah, Sr. was the one who was killed in his doorway during the Revolution. See DeVow Genealogy, page 128.

.................

NOTE: William Bayley, the maker of the above will, (Liber G, page 274) was born in New Rochelle on August 8, 1745 and baptized with the name William LeCount Bayley in the Anglican Church, now Trinity. His parents were William Bayley and his wife, Susanne LeCounte. He died March 3, 1811, aged 65 years. He is buried in Trinity Churchyard, Huguenot Street, New Rochelle. He was the owner of the 'Kemble Property' on Pelham Road, just on the line between New Rochelle and Pelham. The very attractive old house still stands on the property. He married June 10, 1771, Sarah Pell, daughter of Joseph Pell (third Lord of the Manor) and his wife, Phebe. Sarah Pell Bayley died March 10, 1819, aged 78 years. She also is buried in Trinity Churchyard."

Source: Old Wills of New Rochelle: Copies of Wills by Citizens of New Rochelle, N.Y., 1784-1830, pp. 70-71 (New Rochelle Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution 1951) (Mimeographed copy of 250 pp. typescript).

Please Visit the Historic Pelham Web Site
Located at
http://www.historicpelham.com/.
Please Click Here for Index to All Blog Postings.