Pelham Once Had a "Fountain of Youth" That Was Believed to Cure Illnesses Including Polio

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During the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century, Pelham had a fabled "Fountain of Youth" believed to have miraculous powers to cure all ailments.  News accounts noted that "thousands" journeyed "by auto and on foot to drink the waters."  Pelhamites collected bottles of the magical water to maintain youthfulness and to cure all ailments and diseases.  

Where was this magical fountain of youth?  

The elixir of youth bubbled from a spring beneath the fabled Split Rock that stood adjacent to Split Rock Road.  For many years, the crystal clear and cool water seemingly bubbled from sands at the bottom of the giant cleft that gave Split Rock is name -- and fame -- as Pelham's best-known landmark.

According to one account:

"If Willie cut his finger, it would soon heal it washed with water from Split Rock spring; if Mary got a bad cold, or some member of the family was stricken with some disease, Split Rock spring water was used in the sickroom.  In the infantile paralysis epidemic it was believed that the water would cure the illness.  Much of the water was used at that time."

So many people traveled to Split Rock to drink its fabled waters and collect some to take home that during the teens, well after the area had become part of Pelham Bay Park annexed by New York City, the City Parks Department "placed a pipe through one of the rocks" so that the water would flow "in such a way that it is easy to fill a glass or bottle."

The cool spring waters nourished and refreshed the entire area surrounding Split Rock.  One "product of the spring" during summer months was a luxuriant carpet of water cress.  Pelham Manor residents often enjoyed walks in the cool of the evening to Split Rock where they collected water cress and drank what they believed were healthful waters of Pelham's Fountain of Youth.

The waters, however, turned out to be not so healthful.  With so many Pelham Manor residents drinking from the fabled fountain, in 1922 the Pelham Manor Board of Trustees asked the Village Health Officer, Dr. Augustine C. McGuire, to look into whether the waters of the Fountain of Youth were safe to drink.

McGuire collected water and submitted it for laboratory analysis.  When the results came back, he was shocked.  The water was profoundly contaminated with bacteria and was absolutely unfit for human consumption.  He promptly issued the following announcement:

"'The residents of Pelham Manor should be warned against drinking any of the water from the Split Rock Spring.  It is contaminated.  Many Manor residents are in the habit of drinking the water, because it is noted to be the coolest in the district, it also is supposed to have medicinal properties, but at present the water is not in fit condition for drinking.  Boy scouts have in the past, on hikes, gone to the spring for water.  I have notified Commissioner of Health Royal S. Copeland, of New York City.  Within which territory the spring is, of the condition and facts.  It is hoped that action will be taken to purify the water of the spring."

Dr. McGuire notified the New York City Health Officer, Dr. Royal B. Copeland, of the findings.  Dr. Copeland promptly "promised to see that the spring is closed to the public."

Clearly, however, the spring was not closed permanently.  Indeed, for years thereafter Pelham Manor residents were still able to drink and collect waters from their beloved Fountain of Youth at Split Rock.  One report, for example, indicates that five years later in late August, 1927, "Pelham Manor residents who favor a drink of the cool water which flows from the spring near the Split Rock in Pelham Bay were disappointed Saturday to find that the spring had been blocked off.  The New York City Park department men cleaned the spring trough on Wednesday and the clear water is again flowing."

Detail from Undated Post Card Showing Split Rock in

About 1915.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

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"'Fountain of Youth' Will Be Analyzed
-----
Split Rock Spring, Guaranteed By Many to Cure All Known and Unknown Diseases
-----

Pelham Manor's 'fountain of youth' is to be analyzed.  The Split Rock spring, for many years the standby of the older settlers in case of illness or ailment, is to be tested by Health Officer McGuire.  Some of the older residents of the Manor guarantee the spring to cure all diseases or ailments.  If Willie cut his finger, it would soon heal it washed with water from Split Rock spring; if Mary got a bad cold, or some member of the family was stricken with some disease, Split Rock spring water was used in the sickroom.  In the infantile paralysis epidemic it was believed that the water would cure the illness.  Much of the water was used at that time.

Even to this day the spring is a favorite with many.  It is located at the Split Rock, on Split Rock Road, about a quarter mile south of the Pelham Summer Home.  The water used to seep through the sand in the split in the rocks, but a few years ago the Department of Parks of the City of New York placed a pipe through one of the rocks, and now the water flows in such a way that it is easy to fill a glass or bottle.  Even now, daily, a steady stream of motorists fill large bottles with the water.  Water cress is another product of the spring.  In summer the spring is covered with the greens and many Manor residents enjoy a walk in the cool of the evening for water and water cress."

Source:  "Fountain of Youth" Will Be Analyzed -- Split Rock Spring, Guaranteed By Many to Cure All Known and Unknown Diseases, The Pelham Sun, Apr. 28, 1922, p. 7, col. 2.  

"Water At Split Rock Spring Unfit To Drink
-----
Health Officer Finds That 'Fountain of Youth' In Pelham Manor Is Contaminated

The 'Fountain of Youth' is not.  Moreover, the water is contaminated and unfit for drinking purposes.  This is the decree of Health Officer McGuire of Pelham Manor, in regards to Split Rock Spring, long famed as a remedy for all ailments and diseases.  The village board ordered the water tested and the reply was unfavorable.

Dr. McGuire said, 'The residents of Pelham Manor should be warned against drinking any of the water from the Split Rock Spring.  It is contaminated.  Many Manor residents are in the habit of drinking the water, because it is noted to be the coolest in the district, it also is supposed to have medicinal properties, but at present the water is not in fit condition for drinking.  Boy scouts have in the past, on hikes, gone to the spring for water.  I have notified Commissioner of Health Royal S. Copeland, of New York City.  Within which territory the spring is, of the condition and facts.  It is hoped that action will be taken to purify the water of the spring."

Source:  Water At Split Rock Spring Unfit To Drink -- Health Officer Finds That 'Fountain of Youth' In Pelham Manor Is Contaminated, The Pelham Sun, May 5, 1922, p. 5, col. 4.  

"Water Condemned.

The thousands who have journeyed by auto and on foot to drink the waters from the spring on Split Rock road, known as the Split Rock spring, and take a bottle or more away to drink, will be disappointed to hear that the waters are condemned as polluted.  Dr. McGuire, the health officer, was asked by the village board to have the waters analyzed to ascertain the truth of the claim that the water had certain medicinal properties.  Dr. McGuire did so and reports the water polluted.  He has gone still further and notified the health department of the Bronx and asked that action be taken to prevent its use for drinking purposes.  It was near this spring that Anne Hutchinson was murdered by the Indians."

Source:  Water Condemned, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 9, 1922, p. 10, col. 3.  

"Medical Officer of Health McGuire has received a reply from Dr. Royal B. Copeland health officer of New York City, to the notification sent last week regarding the Split Rock Spring, which on investigation by Dr. McGuire, was found to contain poisonous bacilli.

The spring is located in New York territory, but many Pelham Manor residents have been drinking water from the spring in the belief that it had peculiar medicinal properties.

Dr. Copeland will take steps to prevent any further use of the Split Rock Spring."

Source:  [Untitled - Headline Cut Off], The Pelham Sun, May 12, 1922, Vol. 13, No. 11, p. 10, col. 2.  

"Will Close Spring.

Dr. Royal B. Copeland of the New York Department of Health has acknowledged receipt of the complaint sent by health officer Augustine C. McGuire of this village to the effect that the waters of the Split Rock spring are contaminated and has promised to see that the spring is closed to the public."

Source:  Will Close Spring, The Daily Argus [Mount Vernon, NY], May 15, 1922, p. 8, col. 4.  

"Split Rock Spring Blocked Off For Cleaning
-----

Pelham Manor residents who favor a drink of the cool water which flows from the spring near the Split Rock in Pelham Bay were disappointed Saturday to find that the spring had been blocked off.  The New York City Park department men cleaned the spring trough on Wednesday and the clear water is again flowing."

Source:  Split Rock Spring Blocked Off For Cleaning, The Pelham Sun, Sep. 2, 1927, p. 14, col. 2.  

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Images of the Pelham Countryside Published in 1901

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In 1901, William Abbatt published a fascinating book entitled "The Battle of Pell's Point (or Pelham) October 18, 1776 Being the Story of a Stubborn Fight."  The book collected research about the Battle of Pelham and provided an account of the events before, during, and after the battle.

For purposes of today's posting to the Historic Pelham Blog, however, it is not the Battle of Pelham that will be addressed.  Rather, today's posting includes a number of the lovely photographs of the Pelham countryside that Abbatt included in his book, with brief discussions of each image.  The images captured Pelham and the surrounding countryside shortly before great change in the form of residential development descended upon the region.  The photographs depict a simpler, more pastoral time.  Each image is set forth below, followed by a brief discussion of the image and, in some instances, a current view of the same scene.

Glover’s Rock in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above shows Glover’s Rock in about 1901 shortly before the first memorial tablet dedicated to the Battle of Pelham was installed on the giant glacial boulder on October 18 1901. The old City Island Road (known today as Orchard Beach Road) passes, unpaved, adjacent to Glover’s Rock with the tracks of the Pelham Bay and City Island Horse Railroad visible along the side of the road. In the distance a horse-drawn buggy can be seen making its way toward City Island along the road. Today, the paved Orchard Beach Road has been widened into a four-lane roadway with a grassy median in the center to carry heavy summer traffic to Orchard Beach (and to City Island).

Looking East From Glover's Rock in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above was taken in the roadway next to Glover’s Rock looking toward the east in about 1901. Once again, this is the old City Island Road (known today as Orchard Beach Road). The tracks of the Pelham Bay and City Island Horse Railroad extend along the side of the road into the distance where they curve around the bend toward City Island. Eleven pedestrians in three successive groups can be seen in the distance walking on the roadway toward Bartow Station on the New Haven Branch Line which is located behind the photographer.

Looking East from Glover’s Rock in July, 2016.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The Google Maps photograph immediately above depicts roughly the same view looking east from Glover’s Rock as it looks today. The two east-bound lanes of Orchard Beach Road curve in the distance toward City Island while the two west-bound lanes of the road (on the left in the photograph) curve in the distance toward the Orchard Beach parking area created when Pelham Bay was filled during the 1930s.

Looking West from Glover’s Rock in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above was taken in the roadway next to Glover’s Rock looking toward the west (toward today’s Shore Road and Bartow Station on the Branch Line) in about 1901. The roadway is the old City Island Road (today’s Orchard Beach Road). Once again, along the side of the road are the tracks of the Pelham Bay and City Island Horse Railroad that once ran between Bartow Station and City Island. In the foreground, on the roadway, are birds. In the distance behind them can be seen what appears to be a group of four pedestrians walking from City Island to Bartow Station. Hanging from the electrical lines near the telephone on the right in this photograph is an early electric street lamp to light the roadway.

Looking West from Glover’s Rock in July, 2016.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The Google Maps photograph immediately above depicts roughly the same view looking west from Glover’s Rock as it looks today. It is interesting to note that there is a modern street lamp in nearly the same location as in the similar photograph taken in 1901. A west-bound automobile can be seen in the distance traveling toward Shore Road.

Split Rock Road at the Junction with Shore Road in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above depicts Split Rock Road from its beginning at Shore Road. Split Rock Road can be seen winding into the distance and passing beneath the railroad overpass that carried the tracks of the New Haven Branch Line above the ancient Split Rock Road. The railroad overpass is plainly visible in the center of the photograph. Split Rock Road was closed in December, 1937. Later, during the 1950s, construction of the New England Thruway obliterated much of the ancient roadway between Split Rock and the New York City border with Pelham Manor where a portion of Split Rock Road remains today, lined with lovely residential homes. A portion of Split Rock Road that can be seen in this photograph taken in about 1901 essentially still exists, but serves as a golf cart path traveling beneath the same railroad overpass on the grounds of the Pelham Bay and Split Rock Golf Course complex along Shore Road. Today, the clubhouse of that golf complex stands in the area on the right of the roadway in this photograph, while the parking lot of that golf complex stands in the area on the left of the roadway in this photograph.

Split Rock Road at the Junction with Shore Road in July, 2016.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

This Google Maps photograph immediately above shows very, very roughly the same view of what once was the beginning of Split Rock Road at the junction with Shore Road. Vegetation obscures any view of the railroad overpass that stands essentially a little to the right beyond what can be seen of the driveway entrance to the golf complex clubhouse as it seems to disappear in the distance. The clubhouse can be seen on the right. The main parking lot of the complex is just out of the photograph on the left.

View from Split Rock Looking Across the Valley Toward Eastchester

in About 1901.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above seems to have been taken from a point a little beyond Split Rock looking toward Eastchester. Today the “valley” has been destroyed by construction of the New England Thruway. Additionally, the area in the distance referenced as “Eastchester” is now the City of Mount Vernon. Though Mount Vernon is the eighth largest city in the State of New York, it is the second most-densely populated city in the state. This once bucolic view certainly is no more.

View of Split Rock in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above shows a couple standing on Split Rock Road while admiring Split Rock. Split Rock was saved from demolition during the construction of the New England Thruway by a group of local historians who successfully urged engineers to move the planned roadway several feet in order to spare the famous Pelham landmark. The landmark now stands in an area surrounded by the Hutchinson River Parkway, the New England Thruway, and the entrance ramp from the Hutchinson River Parkway to the New England Thruway.

The Hill at Wolfs Lane in Pelham Manor in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above shows a portion of Wolfs Lane in Pelham Manor not far from Boston Post Road in about 1901. Portions of Wolfs Lane have been straightened and graded a number of times since then. Additionally, of course, the entire area since has been fully developed as a residential neighborhood. Though the area appears quite rural with a fenced pasture visible in the background, there are sidewalks on both sides of the unpaved roadway and a grill in the right foreground that appears to be part of a water drainage system. At the intersection of the unidentified road on the left with Wolfs Lane, there appears to be what likely is a gas lantern atop a pole.

Approximation of the Current View of the Hill at Wolfs

Lane in July, 2016.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

Wolfs Lane has changed so much in the last 115 years that it is nearly impossible to determine precisely from where the photograph taken of the area in 1901 was snapped. Nevertheless, based on the reference in the caption of the previous photograph taken in 1901 to the bridge over the Hutchinson River being about three-quarters of a mile away and the prominent hill and curve visible in that photograph, one possibility is that the photograph was taken along Wolfs Lane not far from today’s Sherwood Avenue. The Google Maps photograph immediately above depicts that area of Wolfs Lane.

The Bridge Over the Hutchinson River in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above shows the tiny little wooden bridge, resting on stone piers, that crossed the Hutchinson River in about 1901. The unpaved roadway climbing up the hill in the background appears to be today’s Highland Avenue in the City of Mount Vernon. The roadway crossing the bridge is the Old Boston Post Road, now named “Colonial Avenue” within the Town of Pelham (to the right in this photograph) and East Sandford Boulevard within the City of Mount Vernon (to the left in this photograph). Today there is a highway overpass that carries the Hutchinson River Parkway over Colonial Avenue that later was located immediately out of the view of this photograph on the right. Today the tiny little bridge has been replaced with a modern concrete and steel bridge so that cars traveling from Pelham on Colonial Avenue toward the City of Mount Vernon first pass beneath the overpass for the Hutchinson River Parkway and, immediately upon emerging from beneath that overpass, cross the modern bridge over the Hutchinson River that has replaced the tiny wooden bridge seen in this photograph.

The Bridge Over the Hutchinson River in July, 2016.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The Google Maps photograph immediately above shows the modern bridge that stands today near the site where the tiny little wooden bridge along Old Boston Post Road once crossed the Hutchinson River. The bridge is the roadway in the immediate foreground of the photograph with low railings on each side.  In this photograph, the bridge is being viewed from the East Sandford Boulevard side in the City of Mount Vernon. Behind the bridge in this photograph, of course, is the modern highway overpass that carries the Hutchinson River Parkway over Colonial Avenue on the Pelham side of the bridge.

St. Paul’s Church in Eastchester in About 1901.

NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

The photograph immediately above shows St. Paul’s Church in the Town of Eastchester in about 1901. A remnant stretch of the village green is visible on the left of the photograph with a winding unpaved road and a footpath visible as well. The church building, begun in 1764, still stands and is on the National Register of Historic Places. Many renowned Pelhamites are buried in its ancient cemetery. The structure no longer serves as a church.

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More About the Tablet Honoring Anne Hutchinson Placed on Split Rock on May 3, 1911

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On May 3, 1911, a stream of "sight-seeing automobiles" rolled out of New York City to Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park.  Split Rock was (and remains) one of the most notable Town of Pelham landmarks of all time.  That day, about one hundred people gathered around the landmark located adjacent to a now-closed section of Split Rock Road to celebrate the installation of a new bronze tablet to honor Anne Hutchinson, one of the most notable residents ever to live on the lands of the Manor of Pelham.  

I have written about the installation of this Anne Hutchinson memorial tablet before.  See Mon., Nov. 24, 2014:  Tablet Honoring Anne Hutchinson Placed on Split Rock on May 3, 1911.

The bronze tablet unveiled that day read:

"Anne Hutchinson, banished from the

Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of

her devotion to religious liberty.

This courageous woman sought freedom

from persecution in New Netherlands.

Near this rock in 1643 she and her house-

hold were massacred by Indians."

"Anne Hutchinson on Trial" by Edwin Austin.

The history of the placement, and subsequent theft, of the Split Rock bronze tablet dedicated to Anne Hutchinson is a fascinating story in and of itself.  The origins of the idea for the tablet seemed to have arisen from a lengthy article about Anne Hutchinson published in The New York Times on July 17, 1904.  That article told the story of Anne Hutchinson and urged the erection of a suitable monument to celebrate her life and to commemorate the time she spent on lands that became part of the Manor of Pelham.  The article read, in part:

"The people of New York ought to be proud that Anne Hutchinson's ashes lie beneath the soil of one of their public parks, and it would be a graceful tribute to her memory if her sisters of the twentieth century should see fit to mark her resting place with a suitable memorial to show the world where lived and died one of the noblest women of all time, whose life was as spotless as her teachings, and whose last words to her persecutors, when threatened with excommunication, were:  'Better to be cast out than to deny Christ.'"

Two days later, on July 19, 1904, the editorial page of  The New York Times embraced the notion of erecting such a monument.  The editorial read in part:  "she deserves a monument, and then think how delightfully easy it would be to give pain to Boston by the engraving on that monument of an inscription at once tactful and true.  For instance, it might read -- 'In memory of ANNE HUTCHINSON, a good woman whom Boston drove to a cruel death for claiming the right of free speech.'  Or this would do -- 'Here an Indian's hatchet ended a valuable life that Boston had made miserable.'"  

The initial article and the editorial that followed much later prompted a parade of "letters to the editor" of The New York Times urging the creation of such a memorial.  One letter to the editor urged that descendants of the persecutors of Anne Hutchinson fund her monument.  Significantly, the letter further noted that a member of the Bolton family of Pelham recently "took a party of Colonial Dames to the site of Anne Hutchinson's house not long ago to enlist their interest."   As will later be shown, the interest of the Colonial Dames was successfully enlisted. . . . Another such letter to the editor offered to donate money to fund the monument. 

A man named J. Edward Weld seems to have had the idea of affixing a bronze tablet to Split Rock as a monument to honor Anne Hutchinson.  In a letter to the editor of the New York Times dated April 21, 1909 and published by the Times on April 26, 1909, urged as follows:

"I visited Split Rock last week, and it would seem admirably adapted for a natural monument to her memory if the ground is properly cleared and inclosed and a bronze tablet affixed.  That portion of Pelham Bay Park is entirely unimproved, but the boulder stands close to the road and can be easily seen by all passers-by, being on Split Rock Road, one-quarter mile east of the Old Boston Road, and just south of Pelham Manor."

Two years later, on April 29, 1909, the New York Times reported that the Colonial Dames of New York had "taken up the matter" and, on Wednesday, May 3, 1909 would unveil a bronze tablet affixed to Split Rock to honor Anne Hutchinson -- exactly as J. Edward Weld had proposed two years earlier.  

On Wednesday, May 3, about one hundred members of the Colonial Dames traveled from the organization's headquarters on West 40th Street in Manhattan to Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park.  Mrs. William Robinson, State President of the Society, presided at the unveiling of the tablet.  One of the speakers that day was J. Edward Weld, who had proposed such a tablet on Split Rock two years earlier and who was a lineal descendant of Joseph Weld, of Roxbury, Mass., in whose house Mrs. Hutchinson was imprisoned before she was banished.  Other speakers included William B. Hornblower, an eminent New York City Lawyer who later became an Associate Judge on the New York Court of Appeals, and Reverend James de Normandie of Boston.  

Despite all the pomp and circumstance, within a short time (by early February 1914) the bronze tablet was gone, stolen by an unknown thief less than three years after it was unveiled.  Despite being well-fastened to Split Rock, the thief pried the tablet from the boulder.  It was never recovered.  At about the same time a massive bronze eagle weighing half a ton was stolen from the Prison Ships Martyrs' Monument in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn.  New York City Detectives traced the eagle to a junk shop, where they found it was being broken into pieces to be melted down.  Although there has never been any indication, other than possible coincidental timing, that the two events were related, if they were it is at least possible that the Hutchinson tablet was melted before the Detectives recovered the bronze eagle.  In any event, although we know today what the tablet said, research has not yet revealed any photographs of the tablet.

Anne Hutchinson's Banishment from Massachusetts

Bay Colony in 1638.  NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

Pelham's Beloved Split Rock as It Looks Today.  The Giant
Glacial Boulder Once Stood Adjacent to Split Rock Road in
Today's Pelham Bay Park.  Photo by the Author, 2005.
NOTE:  Click on Image to Enlarge.

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"THE TRAGEDY OF ANNE HUTCHINSON
-----
Disciple of Roger Williams, and a Born Leader, She Was Centuries Ahead of Her Time
-----

Within the limits of Pelham Bay Park, in the Borough of the Bronx, New York City, is Pelham's Neck, once called by the Dutch Annie's Hoeck, in memory of the tragic death there of one of the most noted Anglo-American women of the seventeenth century, a woman whose career fills a critically important page in New England's history -- who nearly subverted the constitution of one colony and who was the real founder of another.

Anne Hutchinson was a member of an old and well connected family of Lincolnshire, and was of gentle and heraldic blood on both father's and mother's side.  Her father, the Rev. Francis Marbury, first of Alford, Lincolnshire, a small market town twenty-four miles north of Boston, and later of London, where he was rector of St. Martin's Vintry, St. Pancras, and other parishes, was the third son of William Marbury, Esq., of Grisby, County Lincoln, and of Agnes, daughter of John Lenton, Esq. Anne Hutchinson was, too, of good literary stock.  Her mother was Bridget Dryden, daughter of John Dryden, Esq., of Canons Ashby, Northamptonshire, by his wife Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Cope, Knight.  The eldest brother of Bridget Dryden, Sir Erasmus Dryden, Baronet, was the grandfather of the Poet Laureate, John Dryden.  She was therefore second cousin to John Dryden.  Another cousin, Elizabeth Dryden, the daughter of Sir Erasmus, was the grandmother of the famous Dean of St. Patrick's, Jonathan Swift, best known to this generation as the author of the immortal satire, 'Gulliver's Travels.'

Francis and Bridget Marbury had eleven children, of which Anne, baptized at Alford July 20, 1591, was the second.  What education she had is unknown, but that it was of the best is indicated by the social condition of her parents and by the fact that three of her brothers were of Brasenose College, Oxford.  About 112 she married, probably in St. Martin's Vintry, the records of which are lost, William Hutchinson, whose family, says Col. Chester, (to whom I am indebted for these facts in her early history,) though reputable and in good circumstances, was not quite equal to hers.  William Hutchinson, who was baptized Aug. 14, 1586, was the son of Edward Aug. 14, 1586, was the son of Edward Hutchinson, mercer, of Alford, and grandson of John Hutchinson of Lincoln, Mayor of that city in 1556 and 1564.  The pair made their home in Alford, and there are recorded the baptisms of fourteen children born to them between the years 1613 and 1633.  In this latter year the Rev. John Cotton, Vicar of St. Botolph's in Boston, a noted preacher and controversialist, who had been cited to appear before Archbishop Laud for inclining toward Puritan doctrines and practices, sought refuge in flight and sailed for New England in the ship Griffin, arriving in Boston on Sept. 4.  A close intimacy existed between him and the Hutchinsons, and with him went Edward, the eldest son of the latter, a youth in his twenty-third year.  This departure of the first born from the parental roof was in anticipation of their own emigration the next year, delayed till then by the expected birth of a child.  In 1631/2 William Hutchinson and his entire family, consisting of his wife and ten remaining children, three having been buried at Alford, set sail on the Griffin, the same ship which had borne Mr. Cotton and their son to the New World.  Among some two hundred passengers were several ministers, who, following the custom of the time, beguiled the weary hours of the long voyage with sermons, sometimes three a day, as Winthrop tells us, which were subjected to critical discussion by the laity.  Mrs. Hutchinson, who had ideas of her own, took exceptions to some of the utterances of the Rev. Zachariah Symmes, and had with him a series of controversies.  In consequence of this, and possibly because she worsted him in argument, the reverend gentleman conceived against her a violent prejudice, which later contributed seriously to her downfall.  Soon after the arrival in Boston, when William Hutchinson and his wife were nominated for membership in the church, Mr. Symmes, who had become settled over the church in Charlestown, reported what he considered some of Mrs. Hutchinson's vagaries, and was thus instrumental in having the admission of the couple postponed.  But his opposition was not long effective, for she proved herself so good and serviceable a neighbor, especially in sickness, and so won all hearts by her intellectual ability, that she acquired more influence in Boston than any other woman of her time.

Anne Hutchinson found the Massachusetts colony a pure theocracy.  The State was ruled by the Church, but one Church was acknowledged, and no man could become a freeman and take part in the Government who was not a member of the Church in good standing.  The clergy were, therefore, omnipotent, and ruled spiritually and politically.  The weekly utterances from their pulpits were the most important of events, and the male members of the congregations, who constituted the body politic, were accustomed to hold meetings to discuss the sermons of their ministers.  Mrs. Hutchinson, finding that women were not expected to take part in these gatherings, instituted similar meetings for her sex at her own house, which occupied the site of the well-known 'Old Corner Bookstore,' on Washington and School Streets, nearly opposite the dwelling of Gov. Winthrop.  In the absence of social entertainments, these meetings soon became so popular that they were held twice a week and were attended by eighty or more women, including the most prominent matrons of the town, attracted by the personal magnetism of their hostess, whose knowledge of church history and familiarity with Scripture, expounded with eloquence and evident sincerity, held them captive and bound them to her opinions. . . . 

[Large Amount of Text Omitted from This Extensive, Full Newspaper Page Article]

AN ESTIMATE OF THE WOMAN.

If fortune had cast Anne Hutchinson's lot in the twentieth instead of the seventeenth century, she would have won the world's applause.  She was a born social leader, fully equipped with every qualification needed to sustain such a position.  She possessed all the graces of womanhood, with a personal magnetism that won hearts, a kindly and sympathetic nature, strong religious convictions, and the moral courage to uphold them, and was the equal in intellectual ability, if not the superior, of most of the men who condemned her.  Her misfortune was that her ambition tempted her to essay the impossible, to lead what Mr. Adams characterizes as 'a premature revolt against an organized and firmly-rooted oligarchy of theocrats.'  Her failure was not due to her sex, for Roger Williams had equally failed.  Both were simply in advance of their times, and both deserve measureless honor as the harbingers of principles now recognized by the civilized world as the bulwarks of human progress.  The people of New York ought to be proud that Anne Hutchinson's ashes lied beneath the soil of one of their public parks, and it would be a graceful tribute to her memory if her sisters of the twentieth century should see fit to mark her resting place with a suitable memorial to show the world where lived and died one of the noblest women of all time, whose life was as spotless as her teachings, and whose last words to her persecutors, when threatened with excommunication, were:  'Better to be cast out than to deny Christ.'"

Source:  Champlain, John D., THE TRAGEDY OF ANNE HUTCHINSON -- Disciple of Roger Williams, and a Born Leader, She Was Centuries Ahead of Her Time, N.Y. Times, Jul. 17, 1904.  

"TOPICS OF THE TIMES.
-----

--One of our contributors on Sunday suggested that New York owes a monument to ANNE HUTCHINSON, whose tragical death in what is now Pelham Bay Park ended a career of many and interesting vicissitudes.  We regard the suggestion as a good one, for several reasons.  In the first place, Mrs. HUTCHINSON, according to all accounts, was a very able as well as very estimable woman, and she made against the narrow, intolerant, and ferocious bigotry of her day a fight, losing, indeed, but so energetic, persistent, and courageous that even her ultimate defeat by the members of the Boston Theological Union had all the honor of a victory.  As for the beliefs -- or definitions -- wherein she differed from the constituted authorities of Boston and by differing excited their holy animosity to characteristic expression in persecution and calumny, their consequence has all evaporated now, and on one side as on the other the arguments are a mere rustling of the dryest [sic] of dry leaves.  But while the controversy then waged seems grotesquely trivial and futile now, it was sufficiently momentous then, and Mrs. HUTCHINSON stood for sense and freedom so far as she knew them and very appreciably more than did most of those around her.  So she deserves a monument, and then think how delightfully easy it would be to give pain to Boston by the engraving on that monument of an inscription at once tactful and true.  For instance, it might read -- 'In memory of ANNE HUTCHINSON, a good woman whom Boston drove to a cruel death for claiming the right of free speech.'  Or this would do -- 'Here an Indian's hatchet ended a valuable life that Boston had made miserable.'  By some such legend, cut in stone or bronze, public interest in the history of Mrs. HUTCHINSON could be aroused and maintained, and the task of entertaining visiting Bostonians would be much lightened.  Taken up to the park, they could be led to the monument and so provided with a topic of conversation that would insure both themselves and their hosts from ennui for the space of several days.  It wouldn't be exactly fair to hold them responsible for the persecution of Mrs. HUTCHINSON, but it certainly would be fun."

Source:  TOPICS OF THE TIMES, N.Y. Times, Jul. 19, 1904, p. 6, cols. 4-5 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"ANNE HUTCHINSON.
-----
Would Have Descendants of Her Persecutors Erect Her Monument.

To the Editor of The New York Times:

Your issue of July 17, 1904, contained a long article about Mistress Anne Hutchinson of Colonial times, who was driven from New England by religious persecutions and was slain by Indians within the present limits of Pelham Bay Park, New York City.  The article suggested that a memorial at the place of her death ought to be established to her memory.  Your paper on the following day [sic] in an editorial notice approved of the suggestion and hoped that it would be accomplished.  I have made a careful study of her life, and conceived the idea of having the memorial established by the descendants of those members of the General Court of Massachusetts who had voted for her condemnation and banishment.

Mr. John D. Champlain gave a lecture last month before the Barnard Club on the tragedy of Anne Hutchinson, and the late Rev. Dr. Bolton of Pelham took a party of Colonial D

James to the site of Anne Hutchinson's house not long ago to enlist their interest.

I visited Split Rock last week, and it would seem admirably adapted for a natural monument to her memory if the ground is properly cleared and inclosed and a bronze tablet affixed.  That portion of Pelham Bay Park is entirely unimproved, but the boulder stands close to the road and can be easily seen by all passers-by, being on Split Rock Road, one-quarter mile east of the Old Boston Road, and just south of Pelham Manor.

J. EDWARD WELD.

New York, April 21, 1909."

Source:  ANNE HUTCHINSON -- Would Have Descendants of Her Persecutors Erect Her Monument, N.Y. Times, Apr. 26, 1909. 

"Anne Hutchinson's Memorial.

To the Editor of The New York Times:

To Mr. J. Edward Weld:  I have read your letter to THE TIMES, and would be glad to contribute to a memorial for Anne Hutchinson in memory of my ancestor, John Cotton, who reluctantly ranged himself among her persecutors, and of whom Mrs. Hutchinson says:

'None did preach the covenant of free grace but Master Cotton.'

I am a descendant also of Gov. Thomas Dudley and Simon Bradstreet, both members of the General Court of Massachusetts, who voted unreservedly for the condemnation of Mrs. Hutchinson.  

ANNA ROSS WEEKS.

New York, April 26, 1909."

Source:  Anne Hutchinson's Memorial, N.Y. Times, Apr. 29, 1909.  

"ANNE HUTCHINSON TABLET
-----
To be Erected in Pelham Bay Park by Colonial Dames of New York.

Readers of THE TIMES who remember its advocacy in 1904 of the erection of some suitable memorial in honor of Anne Hutchinson will be glad to hear that the Colonial Dames of New York are about to dedicate to her, near the scene of her death in Pelham Bay Park, a bronze tablet with an appropriate inscription.  The tablet will be placed on Split Rock, a large natural bolder [sic] split in two parts, probably by the action of frost, possibly aided by the growth of a good-sized tree, whose stump is still in the crevice.

Mrs. Hutchinson's house stood south of the rock near the bank of the river, which still bears her name.

The tablet will be dedicated with appropriate ceremonies on Wednesday, May 3, when addresses will be made by Joseph Choate and, possibly ex-President Eliot of Harvard.

Originally suggested by an article published by THE TIMES, July 17, 1904, and advocated in an editorial two days later, the idea was adopted by J. Edward Weld of this city, a lineal descendant of Joseph Weld of Roxbury, Mass., in whose house Mrs. Hutchinson was incarcerated previous to her banishment.  Mr. Weld suggested that the memorial should be erected by the descendants of the persecutors of Mrs. Hutchinson, as a sort of atonement for the sins of their ancestors.  Nothing came of it until the matter was taken up by the Colonial Dames of New York.  

Anne Hutchinson was far above most women in the accident of birth.  Through the Blounts, Counts of Guisnes in Normandy, she was directly descended from Charlemagne through Judith, daughter of his grandson, Charles le Chauve, (the Bald,) who married Baldwin I., the first Count of Flanders.  The same family linked her with Spanish royalty, for a later ancestor, Sir Walter Blount, so prominent in the first part of Shakespeare's 'King Henry IV.,' who was slain at the battle of Shrewsbury, in which Henry IV. overthrew Harry Hotspur and his allies, married Donna Sancha de Ayala, of one of the most illustrious houses in Spain; descended from Don Vela, Infante of Aragon, to whose son, Don Sancho Velasques, Alfonso VI., King of Castile, gave the lordship of Ayala in 1074.

Mrs. Hutchinson was descended also from Lord Robert Fitz-Walter, 'Marshal of the Army of God and Holy Church,' leader of the Barons who forced Magna Charta from King John of Runnymede.  Perhaps some of the spirit of this ancestor possessed her when she contended with the Puritans of Boston for liberty of speech, of though, and of conscience.

Both of these connections were on the side of her father, the Rev. Francis Marbury, who was rector of several churches in London.

Though we know little of her education, we may be assured that it was commensurate with her birth, her station in life, and her surroundings, for at least three of her brothers were graduates of Oxford.  She was the intimate friend of John Cotton, the talented rector of St. Botolph's, and it was chiefly through his influence that she came to the New World.  Even her enemies praised her good deeds and her 'profitable and sober carriage,' and none ever spoke aught against her character.  Winthrop credits her with a 'ready wit.'  Cotton Mather, in 'Magnalia Christi,' calls her a 'gentlewoman of a haughty carriage, busy spirit, competent wit, and voluble tongue.'  She exercised such influence in Boston that most of the people upheld her in her revolt against clerical authority.  The Governor, members of the magistracy, and of the general court, scholars and men of learning, accepted her views and enrolled themselves among her followers.

Why, then, was she denounced as the 'American Jezabel,' cast out from the Church, and driven contumeliously [sic] into the wilderness?  The answer is simple in the light of to-day.  Many of the Massachusetts historians now hasten to do justice to her whom their fathers denounced.

She fled to New York for refuge, for the hatred of her clerical persecutors had followed her even into Rhode Island."

Source:   ANNE HUTCHINSON TABLET -- To be Erected in Pelham Bay Park by Colonial Dames of New York, N.Y. Times, Mar. 29, 1911.

"TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON
-----
Colonial Dames Unveil a Monument in Her Memory, in Pelham Bay Park.

The Colonial Dames of New York unveiled in Pelham Bay Park yesterday, a memorial tablet to Anne Hutchinson, whose religious beliefs led to her banishment from Boston by the Puritans in 1638.  The tablet is of bronze, and is set in one part of Split Rock, which is about a mile above the Bartow Station.

The inscription sets forth that Anne Hutchinson was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony because of her devotion to religious liberty, that she sought freedom from persecution in New Netherland, and in 1643 she and her household were massacred by the Indians.  Her home was not far from Split Rock.

About 100 members of the Colonial Dames went from their headquarters in West 40th street to Pelham Park, in sightseeing automobiles.

Mrs. William Robinson, State President of the Society, presided at the exercises.  The speakers were William B. Hornblower, Rev. James de Normandie of Boston, and J. Edward Weld.  Mr. Weld, is a lineal descendant of Joseph Weld, of Roxbury, Mass., in whose house Mrs. Hutchinson was imprisoned before she was banished."

Source:  TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON -- Colonial Dames Unveil a Monument in Her Memory, in Pelham Bay Park, The Yonkers Statesman, May 4, 1911, p. 5, col. 2.  

"In Memory of Anne Hutchinson.

The Colonial Dames unveiled a memorial tablet to Anne Marbury Hutchinson in Pelham Bay Park yesterday.  The history of this forceful woman belongs in a peculiar sense to Massachusetts, though she was murdered by Indians in her home of exile in Westchester County, this state.  Probably the Colonial Dames known little and care less about what she believed.  The significance of creeds has largely passed away.  Creed was a vital matter to Anne Hutchinson.  Born in Lincolnshire in 1590, married there in 1612, she came to Boston in 1634, and for four years was the stormy petrel of religious agitation there.  She won over John Cotton, the Boston pastor, to her views, got the unflinching support of the Governor, Sir Henry Vane; and aroused the indignant wrath of John Wilson, pastor at Charlestown; Hugh Peters, pastor at Salem, and John Winthrop.  She was the issue of a colony election in which her friends were beaten and Winthrop was elected to head the colony.  Her exile in 1638 followed.  

Anne Hutchinson stood for the 'Covenant of Grace' against the 'Covenant of Works.'  What did she believe?  Here are four of her formulae:

A Christian is not bound to pray, except as the spirit moves him.

A man may have all graces, and yet want Christ.

The devil and Nature may be the cause of good works.

God loves a man never the better for any holiness in him.

This was Antinomianism.  It was hateful to the Puritans.  They didn't want Anne Hutchinson around so they sent her away.  Just forty-four years later the spirit shown by Hugh Peters in Salem, the spirit of persecution, took its most lamentable phase in the execution of nineteen persons for witchcraft and the subjection of poor old Giles Corey to the peine forte et dure.  And it is a curious fact that the grandson of John Cotton, Cotton Mather, pastor of the North Church in Boston, was the fountain of learning and theology on which the witch killers drew for their inspiration, though the grandfather had been a friend and defender of Anne Hutchinson.  

Sometimes thinking men regret that the vitalism of creeds is disappearing.  The history of persecution in New England, if carefully followed up, is likely to lead one to just the opposite conclusion."

Source:  In Memory of Anne Hutchinson, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 4, 1911, p. 4, col. 3 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON.

-----

Colonial Dames Unveil a Monument in Her Memory.

The Colonial Dames of New York unveiled in Pelham Bay Park yesterday a memorial tablet to Anne Hutchinson, whose religious beliefs led to her banishment from Boston by the Puritans in 1638.  The tablet is of bronze and is set in one part of Split Rock, which is about a mile above the Bartow station.  The inscription sets forth that Anne Hutchinson was banished from the Massachusetts Bay Colony because of her devotion to religious liberty, that she sought freedom from persecution in New Netherland, and in 1643 she and her household were massacred by the Indians.  Her home was not far from Split Rock.

About one hundred members of the Colonial Dames went from their headquarters in West Fortieth street to Pelham Park in sightseeing automobiles.  There was a delay in getting one of the autos started.  When it got to Forty-eighth street one of the women who had been chilled by the cold breezes as the others were too -- stopped for rugs and wraps.  Then the suggestion was made that the auto continue on up Fifth avenue.  This proposal was opposed by one of the Colonial Dames who insisted that she would not be seen on the avenue in a sightseeing car.  She carried her point, and the auto took the Seventh avenue route.  

On the return trip the steering gear of one of the machines began to misbehave near the Bartow station.  The driver was confident that he could coax it to run back without mishap, but the women were frightened and they deserted the machine.  Luckily the Bartow railroad station was handy.  

Mrs. William Robinson, State president of the society, presided at the exercises.  The speakers were William B. Hornblower, the Rev. James de Normandie of Boston and J. Edward Weld.  Mr. Weld is a lineal descendant of Joseph Weld of Roxbury, Mass., in whose house Mrs. Hutchinson was imprisoned before she was banished.  When the idea of the memorial originated Mr. Weld suggested that it should be erected by the descendants of the persecutors of Mrs. Hutchinson as a sort of atonement for the sins of their ancestors and the Colonial Dames took up the idea.

Mr. Hornblower in his speech said that we shouldn't be too harsh on the Puritans, that we should overlook their faults and give thanks for their virtues.  He reviewed the history of the life of Mrs. Hutchinson and of her time.  He said that she had failings and undoubtedly at times was an uncomfortable neighbor.  

Just before Mrs. Robinson removed the American flag that covered the tablet Archibald M. Howe of Cambridge, Mass., made a short and unannounced speech in which he praised William Hutchinson, Anne's husband, of whom nothing had been said hitherto.  Mr. Howe thought the occasion should not be passed without a mention of Mr. Hutchinson's 'modesty and humility' and he said it and was applauded."

Source:  TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON -- Colonial Dames Unveil a Monument in Her Memory, The Sun [NY, NY], May 4, 1911, Vol. LXXVIII, No. 246, p. 8, col. 7. 

"TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON IS UNVEILED.
-----

The Colonial Dames of New York have unveiled in Pelham Bay Park a memorial tablet to Anne Hutchinson, whose religious beliefs led to her banishment from Boston by the Puritans in 1638.  The tablet is of bronze, and is set in one part of Split Rock, which is about a mile above the Bartow Station."

Source:  TABLET TO ANNE HUTCHINSON IS UNVEILED, Port Chester Journal, May 11, 1911, Vol. XLII, No. 3084, p. 1, col. 1.  

"HUTCHINSON TABLET STOLEN FROM ROCK
-----
Memorial to Woman Killed by Indians Torn Out by Thieves.
-----

A bronze tablet placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park to mark the spot near which Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643, has been stolen.  Detectives of the Bronx Detective Bureau are making a search and all second-hand and junk dealers have been warned.

The tablet reads:  'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her house- hold were massacred by Indians.'  

The tablet had been fastened into the rock, but the thieves dislodged it.  

A bronze eagle weighing half a ton was stolen Sunday from the Prison Ships Martyrs' Monument in Fort Greene Park, Brooklyn.  Detectives traced it to a junk shop, where they found it was being broken into pieces to be melted down."

Source:  HUTCHINSON TABLET STOLEN FROM ROCK -- Memorial to Woman Killed by Indians Torn Out by Thieves, The New York Press, Feb. 3, 1914, Vol. XXVII, No. 9561, p. 1, col. 3.  

"STEAL HUTCHINSON TABLET.
-----
Bronze Memorial in Pelham Bay Park Forced from the Split Rock.

A bronze tablet placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park, near which Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643, has been stolen.  The Bronx Detective Bureau is conducting a search for it and all second hand and junk dealers have been warned to look out for it.  It reads:

"Anne Hutchinson, banished from the

Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of

her devotion to religious liberty.

This courageous woman sought freedom

from persecution in New Netherlands.

Near this rock in 1643 she and her house-

hold were massacred by Indians."

The tablet had been fastened to the rock, but the thieves succeeded in dislodging it."

Source:  STEAL HUTCHINSON TABLET -- Bronze Memorial in Pelham Bay Park Forced from the Split Rock, N.Y. Times, Feb. 3, 1914, Vol. LXIII, No. 20464, p. 1, col. 7.  

"HISTORIC TABLET STOLEN
-----
Thieves Pry Hutchinson Memorial from Pelham Rock.

The bronze tablet placed by Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643 has been stolen.

The tablet reads:  'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her household were massacred by Indians.' 

The tablet had been fastened into the rock, but the thieves succeeded in dislodging it."

Source:  HISTORIC TABLET STOLEN -- Thieves Pry Hutchinson Memorial from Pelham Rock, New-York Tribune, Feb. 3, 1914, Vol. LXXIII, No. 24551, p. 1, col. 6.

"The bronze tablet placed by Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians has been stolen.  The tablet reads 'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her house- hold were massacred by Indians.'  The tablet had been fastened into the rock, but the thieves succeeded in dislodging it."

Source:  [Untitled], Utica Herald-Dispatch and Daily Gazette, Feb. 3, 1914, p. 6, col. 3.  

"ANNE HUTCHINSON TABLET IS STOLEN BY THIEVES
-----

NEW YORK, Feb. 3. -- The bronze tablet placed by Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock, in Pelham Bay park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643, has been stolen.  The tablet reads 'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her house- hold were massacred by Indians.'  The tablet had been fastened into the rock, but the thieves succeeded in dislodging it.'"

Source:  ANNE HUTCHINSON TABLET IS STOLEN BY THIEVES, Buffalo Evening News [Buffalo, NY], Feb. 3, 1914, p. 1, col. 7.  

"NEWS IN BRIEF. . . . 
HUTCHINSON TABLET STOLEN.

A bronze tablet placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park to mark the spot near which Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643, has been stolen."

Source:  NEWS IN BRIEF. . . HUTCHINSON TABLET STOLEN, The Daily Standard Union [Brooklyn, NY], Feb. 3, 1914, p. 3, col. 7.  

"D.A.R. TABLET STOLEN.
-----
Marked Spot Where Anne Hutchinson and Husband Were Killed.

NEW YORK.  February 3. -- The bronze tablet placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the split rock in Pelham Bay park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643 has been stolen.

The tablet reads:  'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her household were massacred by Indians.'  The tablet had been fastened into the rock, but the thieves succeeded in dislodging it."  

Source:  D.A.R. TABLET STOLEN -- Marked Spot Where Anne Hutchinson and Husband Were Killed, The Indianapolis News, Feb. 3, 1914, p. 12, col. 6 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

"Historic Tablet Is Stolen.

New York, Feb. 4. -- The bronze tablet placed by the Daughters of the American Revolution on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643, has been stolen."

Source:  Historic Tablet Is Stolen, The Mahoning Dispatch [Mahoning County, OH], Feb. 6, 1914, p. 7, col. 1.  

"Domestic. . . 

The bronze tablet placed by Daughters of the American Revolution on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay park at New York to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1643 has been stolen."

Source:  Domestic, Turner County Herald [Hurley, Dakota (SD)], Feb. 12, 1914, p. 2, col. 2.  

"Stole Tablet to a Martyr.

The bronze tablet placed by Daughters of the American Revolution [sic] on the Split Rock in Pelham Bay Park to mark the spot where Anne Hutchinson and her household were massacred by Indians in 1645 [sic] has been stolen.  The tablet reads:  

'Anne Hutchinson, banished from the Massachusetts Colonies in 1638 because of her devotion to religious liberty.  This courageous woman sought freedom from persecution in New Netherlands. Near this rock in 1643 she and her household were massacred by Indians.'

The tablet had been fastened into the rock."

Source:  Stole Tablet to a Martyr, Arizona Daily Star [Tuscon, AZ], Feb. 28, 1914, p. 6, col. 2 (NOTE:  Paid subscription required to access via this link).  

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