Dutchess County Historical Society Yearbook Vol 049 1964

Year Book Du tchess County Historical Society Volume 49

1964

Amy Ver Nooy, Editor The year book is published after the end of the year and includes reports of the activities of the society during the year. Copies are mailed without charge to those members whose dues are paid for the current year. Single issues are sold for $3.00 each and may be obtained through the secretary or the treasurer.

Address The Dutchess County Historical Society, Poughkeepsie, New York.

Copyright 1965 by the Dutchess County Historical Society 1

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DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY MEETINGS — MEMBERSHIP — DUES Meetings: At least two meetings of the society are held each year, the annual meeting in the spring and a semi-annual meeting in the fall.

Other meetings and social gatherings are arranged on occasion during the year.

Membership: Anyone with an interest in the history of the area is welcomed as a member. Membership in the society may be had by election at a meeting of the society or at a meeting of the Board of Trustees and the payment of dues.

Dues: Annual dues, $3.00; Joint membership (husband and wife), $5.00; Life membership, $75.00.

Annual dues are payable on January 1 of each year. These payments carry with them the right to hold office, to vote and to take part in the proceedings of the society.

Payment of three dollars at time of election entitles a new member to a copy of the year book for that current year. Next payment falls due the succeeding January and covers a copy of the year book issued in the year ensuing.

Copies of the year book are mailed only to those members whose dues are paid to date. Only one copy of the year book is mailed to a joint membership.

DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY Incorporated under the laws of the State of New York December 21, 1918 Certificate of Incorporation filed in the office of the Clerk of Dutchess County Book 10 of Cozporations page 153

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BOARD OF TRUSTEES President Baltus B. Van Kleeck Edmund Van Wyck Vice-President at Large Secretary Mrs. Amy Ver Nooy Treasurer George M. Gill Curator Term ending with the annual meeting, 1965 Joseph B. Bisbee Chester 0. Day:son, M.D. Newton D. Deuel Mrs. T. Van Kleeck Swift Term ending 1966 George A. Badgley Miss Ruth A. Halstead Mrs. J. Manfred Finkel Henry Noble MacCracken, Ph.D. Term ending 1967 Mrs. Hardy Steeholm Joseph W. Emsley Mrs. Stanley G. Smith George E. Whalen Term ending 1968 Roscoe Balch, Ph.D. Frederic A. Smith Richard A. Dwelley Mrs. C. Robert Southworth VICE-PRESIDENTS REPRESENTING Mrs. J. E. Spingarn Mrs. Irving Picard Mrs. F. Philip Hoag James Budd Rymph Thomas J. Boyce Mrs. Charles Boos Miss Edith Van Wyck Mrs. John Mulford Hackett Miss Hazel Skidmore Henry R. Billings Chester F. Eisenhuth Egbert Green Mrs. William B. Jordan Miss Agnes K. Bower Miss Annette Young Mrs. A. N. Mahoney Mrs. Donald E. Norton Miss Rachel Rynders

Mrs. Ronald F. Bogle Miss Louise H. Tompkins 3

TOWNS AND CITIES Town of Amenia C:ty of Beacon Town of Beekman Town of Clinton Town of Dover Town of East Fishkill Town of Fishkill Town of Hyde Park Town of LaGrange Town of Milan Town of North East Town of Pawling Town of Pine Plains Town of Pleasant Valley Town of Poughkeepsie City of Poughkeepsie Town of Red Hook Town of Rhinebeck Town of Stanford Town of Union Vale Town of Wappinger Town of Washington

OCCASIONAL PUBLICATIONS OF THE

DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY 1916—PAMPHLET, Troutbeck, A Dutchess County Homestead; by Charles E. Benton. Out of print.

1924—COLLECTIONS, VOL. 1; Poughkeepsie, The Origin and Meaning of the Word; by Helen Wilkinson Reynolds. (Price: $5.00) 1924—COLLECTIONS, VOL. II; Old Gravestones of Dutchess County, New York; collected and edited by J. Wilson Poucher, M.D., and Helen Wilkinson Reynolds. (Price: $20.00) 1928—COLLECTIONS, VOL. III; Records of the Town of Hyde Park, Dutchess County, New York; edited by Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Edition exhausted.

1930—COLLECTIONS, VOL. IV; Notices of Marriages and Deaths in Newspapers printed at Poughkeepsie, N. Y., 1778-1825; compiled and edited by Helen Wilkinson Reynolds. (Price: $5.00) 1932—COLLECTIONS, VOL. V; Records of the Reformed Dutch Church of New Hackensack, Dutchess County, New York; edited by Maria Bcckee Carpenter Tower. (Price $10.00) 1938—COLLECTIONS, VOL. VI; Eighteenth Century Records of the portion of Dutchess County, New York that was included in Rombout Precinct and the original Town of Fishkill. Collected

by William Willis Reese. Edited by Helen Wilkinson Reynolds.

(Price: $10.00) 1940—COLLECTIONS, VOL. VII; Records of Crum Elbow Precinct, Dutchess County. Edited by Franklin D. Roosevelt.

(Price: $15.00) 1958—COLLECTIONS, VOL. VIII; Family Vista, the Memoirs of Margaret Chanter Aldrich. (Price $1.00) A few copies of some of the above publications are available at the prices listed. For information address: Mrs. Amy Ver Nooy, Secretary, Dutchess County Historical Society, Poughkeepsie, N. Y. 4

CONTENTS Secretary's Minutes

6

Treasurer's Report

15

Our President Says: Baltus Barentszen Van Kleeck

18

The Annual Pilgrimage

20

Revision of the Bylaws

24

The Rivals for Dutchess Henry Noble MacCracken

27

Defending the Highlands in the Revolutionary War Kenneth C. Miller

36

The Restoration at New Windsor Cantonment Frederick P. Todd

39

"Life's Race Well Run" zirny V er Nooy

43

Books

53

Bible Records of Dutchess County Families

56

Th e Siciety cannot be responsible for statements made by contributors, although an effort is made for historical accuracy in the publication.

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SECRETARY'S MINUTES MEETING OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES February 7, 1964 A meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Dutchess County Historical Soc'ety was held on Friday afternoon, February 7, 1964, at the Poughkeepsie Savings Bank.

Present: President Van Kleeck, Vice-president Van Wyck, Mr. Bisbee, Mr. Buck, Dr. Davison, Mr. Emsley, Mrs. Swift, the treasurer and the secretary and Mr. John A. Wolf.

Mr. Van Kleeck called the meeting to order at 2:30 p.m. He explained some of the provisions of the will of Miss Caroline Thorn Wells, who died in 1939, and sad that Mr. Wolf would report on recent developments in the effort to settle the estate.

Mr. Wolf reported on a meeting, held February 3, at which time the executor had made an accounting of the estate and the Surrogate had been asked for an interpretation of the will.

After some consultation, it was voted that President Van Kleeck instruct Mr. Wolf to discuss the matter further with the trustees of the estate in accordance with the discussion which took place at this meeting of February 7.

Mr. Wolf also reported that the estate of the late William Platt Adams, of which this society is a beneficiary, would be settled within .a reasonable time.

The treasurer, Mr. Gill, reported that the money for dues was coming in very well and he reported a balance of $659 in the checking account.

The secretary reported that the society had lost eight members by death: Miss Mary E. Card, Mrs. R. Theodore Coe, Mrs. Charles de la Vergne, Dr. Milton M. Grover, Mrs. Harrie D. Knickerbocker, Miss Ida H. Ogilvie, Mr. Oakley D. Robinson, and Mrs. Frank Van Kleeck. And, there were two resignations.

The secretary showed a Testimonial which had been presented to the Dutchess County Historical Society in recognition of its cooperation and participation in the 175th Anniversary Celebration of the Ratification of the Federal Constitution by the State of New York at Poughkeepsie. The certificate was signed by The Honorable Victor C. Waryas, Mayor of the City of Poughkeepsie, Mr. Kenneth J. Utter, chairman of the Dutchess County Board of Supervisors, and Mr. Andrew J. Mihans, general chairman of the 175th Anniversary 6

Celebration Committee which was responsible for the successful commemoration.

The secretary reported the receipt of two manuscript family genealogies. One was the gift of Mr. Vincent E. Edmunds. The Ancestry and Descendants of Captain William Edmond, 1742-1806.

The other was the gift of Mrs. William G. Todd, An Outline of the Descendants of Captain Thomas Bull, 1606/10-1684, of Hartford, Connecticut. It was decided that, inasmuch as the society does not maintain a library and reference room, it would be desirable to place the manuscripts in the genealogical collection of the Adriance Memorial Library, on indefinite loan.

She also reported that most of the material for the 1963 issue of the year book was in hand and would be sent to the printer within the week.

Mrs. Swift, for the Glebe House committee, reported on the Open House Day, held on December 15. She spoke of the large attendance of interested people, the general atmosphere of festivity and the beautiful decorations which had been arranged by members of the Junior League, the Friendship Garden Club of Clinton Corners and the historical scciety. She told of the progress made in the improvements planned for the kitchen and the possible opening of the fireplace.

Mrs. Swift also told of the visit to the Glebe House made by members of the committee with Miss Maud E. Dilliard (author of An Album of New Netherland), and Mr. Daniel M. C. Hopping, a member of the Society of Architectural Historians, at which time the visitors had been much interested in the restoration of the building.

She also reported that there would be a further expense of $190 in connection with the reconstruction of the kitchen at the Glebe House and it was agreed that this society would pay one-half of the cost. She said that the brochure, descriptive of the house, was ready for printing and that the historical society would bear one-half of the price of printing.

The President spoke of the loss felt by this society, together with other societies in the state, in the death of the State Historian, Dr. Albert B. Corey, who died November 9, 1963, as the result of an automobile accident. Dr. Corey had visited this society on numerous occasions during the nineteen years that he was State Historian and was always most helpful with advice and encouragement. Mr. Van Kleeck said that he will be greatly missed by those who knew him.

The President also spoke with regret of the tragic death of President Kennedy on November 22. The society had canceled plans for the 7

semi-annual meeting to be held the next day and the treasurer had reimbursed those who had made reservations for lunch.

The secretary read a report which had been prepared for the semi-annual meeting and said that the names of those persons to have been elected members of the society had been added to the mailing list and would be included in the list of persons to be elected at this meeting. She then proposed the following new members and they were elected: Mr. Robert B. Breed, Mrs. Howard F. Carter, Mrs. Edwin Ward Case, Mr. Gustav Detjen, Jr., Mr. Vincent E. Edmunds, Mr. and Mrs. Edmund F. Grefrath, Mr. and Mrs. Edwin S. Ham, Miss Elise H. Kinkead, Mr. Peter Klinger, Mr. and IVIrs. Herbert H. Mastmann, Mr. Walter V. Miller, Mrs. Harold S. Mills, Mrs. Danforth H. Munsell, Miss Eileen E. Nagengast, Mr. and Mrs. Stanley J. Norris, Mrs. Leland P. Quinlavin and Mss Valere Voorhees.

It was reported that the society had at various times made minor changes in some of the rules and regulations governing the organization. It was moved and seconded that the President appoint a committee to go over the existing bylaws and prepare amendments to be voted upon at the annual meeting. Mr. Van Wyck, Mr. Van Kleeck and the secretary were appointed.

The matter of the spring meeting was discussed. It was noted that the society had been organized in 1914 at a meeting held in Pleasant Valley. And, it was suggested that plans be made for an anniversary meeting to be held there in May of this year. A committee, composed of the President, Mr. Buck and Mr. Gill, was appointed to make arrangements for such a meeting. The President said he would appoint a nominating committee to prepare a list of possible successors to those whose terms of office expire at the annual meeting. Mr. Van Wyck was asked to become chairman of the committee.

It was decided that arrangements be made with the Hyde Park Historical Association to hold at a later date the joint meeting which had been planned for November 23, 1963. The President said that he would confer with the President of the Hyde Park Historical Association to set a date which would be convenient for both societies.

The President reported that he had had a note from Mr. Robert D. King, director of the Poughkeepsie Planning Board, asking that this society assist in the preparation of a list of landmarks within the urban renewal area, such as the present City Hall, which should not be removed or destroyed. It was voted that the President assure Mr. King of the interest of the society and its desire to assist in making such a list.

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The secretary mentioned that, at the request of the office of the State Historian, a list was being assembled of the various monuments within the city, with date of dedication or unveiling.

There was no further business to be considered and the meeting adjourned.

Amy Ver Nooy, Secretary

ANNUAL MEETING MAY 15, 1964 On the evening of May 15, 1964, about one hundred and twentyfive members of the Dutchess County Historical Society assembled at the Presbyterian Church, Pleasant Valley, for dinner and the annual meeting.

The president, Mr. Van Kleeck, presided and said that it was very fitting that the fiftieth anniversary meeting be held at Pleasant Valley because the society had been organized in that community in 1914. He introduced the Reverend Marlin B. Stewart, pastor of the church, who asked the blessing.

After the dinner, served by the Women's Association of the church, Mr. Van Kleeck called the meeting to order. He asked Mr. Buck and Mr. Gill, who had made the arrangements for the meeting, to express the thanks of the society to the women's organization for their hospitality and for the delicious dinner.

The secretary read the minutes of a meeting of the Board of Trustees, held February 7, 1964. These were accepted as read.

The secretary reported that several gifts had been received, among them, an alphabetical list of marriages and baptisms performed in the South Amenia Presbyterian Church, an index to the chronological register published in the history of that church printed in 1959. This index was the gift of Miss Ruth E. Barlow who had compiled the history of the church. Miss J. S. Bassett of Goshen, New York, had given the society one volume of a family Bible (printed in six volumes) which had belonged to the Pells family of Dutchess County. The secretary explained that there were no family records in the B:ble. She also reported the gift of $25.00 sent by Fred B. Rogers, M.D., in appreciation for data sent him with reference to Dr. Shadrach Ricketson, an early physician of Dutchess County. (Dr. Ricketson advocated vaccination, was the author of a book, printed in New York in 1806, Means 9

of Preserving Health and Preventing Diseases, and of a pamphlet, LI Brief History of the Influenza, Which Prevailed in New-York in 1807, and had affiliated with the Dutchess County Medical Society in 1815.)

The secretary also reported that the society had lost three members by resignation and two by death; Mrs. Harry D. Matteson and General John Ross Delafield, an honorary member, a long-time trustee and the contributor of a number of articles to the year book and the host on numerous occasions when p lgrimages were made to his home, Montgomery Place.

The treasurer gave a report covering the last half of the year 1963 and told of the current state of the treasury. These reports were accepted as read.

Mr. Van Kleeck reported that he had received a communication from Mr. Benson R. Frost, Jr., concerning a partial distribution of funds from the estate of the late William Platt Adams and enclosing a check for $12,500. He stated that there would be a further distribution but it would be some time before an actual settlement could be made. Mr. Gill, the treasurer, recommended that the money be placed in an interest-bearing account and it was moved, seconded and passed that the treasurer be instructed to open an account in the Poughkeepsie Savings Bank in the name of the Dutchess County Historical Society, William Platt Adams Fund, and to deposit the cheek in that account.

In the absence of Mrs. Swift, Mrs. Southworth reported for the Glebe House committee. She gave the names of the present Glebe House committee, representing the historical society, as Mrs. T. Van Kleeck Swift, chairman, assisted by Mrs. Roland S. Child, Miss Emmeline Guernsey, Miss Ruth A. Halstead and Mrs. C. Robert Southworth.

She reported that Mr. Daniel M. C. Hopping, a member of the Society of Architectural Historians, who had visited the house during the winter, had made numerous helpful suggestions and had procured for the society from the Library of Congress copies of drawings of the exterior elevations and of the interior of the house, made by an historical survey in 1934.

She said that the Poughkeepsie Garden Club was continuing its master-plan for the garden and had planted a perennial border on the north side in the fall and had recently planted a dogwood tree in the shrub border.

She said the work of rehabilitating the kitchen was going forward, 10

that a crane had been installed in the fireplace, a slight crack in the south wall of the house would be inspected and repaired if necessary and that Mr. Van Wyck had some old brick which would be usable for hearth and chimney repairs and that some of the floor boarding would be replaced.

Mrs. Southworth also reported that several community groups had become aware of the availability of the Glebe House for meetings of small groups, among them, the Poughkeepsie Colony of the National Scciety of New Enieand Women, the Dutchess County Arts Ccuncil and a committee of the Children's Community Theatre.

She told that thirty-five groups of school children had been shown through the house and told of its history.

She said that the brochure describing the Glebe House had been assembled and that 3,000 copies had been printed at a cost of $165, one-half of which would be borne by the historical society.

She reported that some additional furnishings, dating before 1820, had been acquired and expressed the hope that there would be further donations. She told of the resignation of Mrs. Mildred E. Plumb, the very efficient hostess, who was about to leave and that she would be greatly missed.

'VII.. Van Kleeck commended the committee for its efforts and added that Mrs. Joseph Furlong is chairman of the Glebe House committee of the Junior League. He told of the tremendous amount of work which has been done by Mr. Van Wyck and Mr. Ham and that it has to be done gradually and accurately when money and materials are available. He said that the City Manager, the Mayor and the Common Council had been most cooperative. He urged the members to visit the house to see what has already been accomplished. And, he also regretted that Mrs. Plumb is removing from Poughkeepsie and said the committee would be glad to hear of a possible caretaker to take her place.

Mr. Van Kleeck explained that the bylaws had been adopted at the time of organizations in 1914, had been revised in 1928 and had been printed in the year book of that year. The only amendments wh:ch had been officially adopted had been added in 1946. at which time the amended bylaws had been printed. He pointed out that the existing rules called for two "stated meetings . . . each year: an annual meeting on the third Friday in May and a semi-annual meeting on the third Friday in October." For various reasons it had become impoSsible to arrange for meetings to be held on these particular dates and he outlined a proposed amendment which would be more in keepin:4 11

with the present practices of the society. He explained the other slight changes which would include membership rules similar to those in operation in other historical societies and the election of trustees for a term of four years and of other officers for a two-year term. Dr. MacCracken ccmmended the proposition and moved, and it was seconded and passed that the changes as outlined by Mr. Van Kleeck be adopted and that the bylaws be printed in the year book for 1964.

The president reported that the terms of office of four trustees had expired and called on the nominating committee for a report. Mr. Van Wyck, chairman of that committee, proposed the names of Mr. Frederic A. Smith (who had been elected in 1963 to fill the unexp:red term of Mrs. Stuart R. Anderson and was eligible for re-election), Dr. Roscoe Balch, Mr. Richard A. Dwelley and Mrs. C. Robert Southworth. They were unanimously elected, their terms to expire with the annual meeting of 1968.

The following names were presented and they were elected annual members of the society: Mr. Franklin Bowman, Brother Edward Cashin, Mr. and Mrs. Robert MT. Davenhall, Mr. Charles M. de la Vergne, Mrs. Marion L. Stone and Miss Ruth Van Dyne.

The president noted that the society had been invited by the Amer:can Association for State and Local History to contribute to a memorial fund in honor of the late Dr. Albert B. Corey, State Historian for nineteen years. It was moved, seconded and carried that a contribution be sent from this society unless a separate memorial fund in New York State were proposed for Dr. Corey. The trustees would invest.gate this matter.

Mr. Van Wyck introduced Mr. George A. Pohl, a member of the society, who spoke about the organization of a chapter of the Sons of the American Revolution in Dutchess County. He said that he felt many residents of the county were eligible and that he would be pleased to hear from persons who might be interested in forming a local chapter. Mr. Pohl had with him application forms and registration blanks.

Mr. Van Kleeck showed a new issue of the pamphlet, Dutchess County; a handbook for citizens, recently published by the League of Women Voters of Poughkeepsie, and recommended its purchase.

The president mentioned the names of the charter members of the society and noted that three are still active members: Mr. Joseph B. Bisbee, Mrs. Louis P. Hasbrouck and Miss Katharine Wodell.

He introduced Mrs. F. Irving Bower, who told of her acquaintance with some of the original members and of the many items of historical 12

interest which she had learned from them. She spcke of the number of prominent persons whose ancestors had lived in "the Valley".

Mr. Van Kleeck thanked Mrs. Bower for shar:ng her r:m:niscences concerning the persons who had organized the society fifty years ago. He told that some of his forebears, by the name of Ward, were early settlers in Pleasant Valley and that the f am lyhad lived for many, many years at "Locust Grove," southeast of the v:Ilage, where the mill stood for three or four generations. He ment'ened that his grandmother (Mary, daughter of Joshua Ward) was born in the Valley and used to tell him that when the minister of the Presbyterian Church was unable to be present her father would conduct the service and that he could preach as well as the minister and twice as long. Ha noted that his grandmother, her brother Alson, and sister Clara, sang in the choir and recalled for him many stories of their youth in the community and the "Locust Grove" homestead. He said that he was proud to have sprung from this delightful spot in Dutchess County.

He then introduced Mr. Frank V. Mylod, a prominent attorney, a former president of the society, one of the present trustees, and also the Historian of the City of Poughkeepsie. He mentioned that Mr. Mylod had been connected with the society since his early youth and had attended with his father, many of the meetings and pilgrimages.

He felt that there was no other person so well able to tell of the early years of the organization.

Mr. Mylod told somewhat of the history of the society, mentioning the highlights of accomplishments and the many enjoyable visits to historic places, the pleasant relationships with neighboring societies and the numbers of prominent persons who had been interested to address the various meetings. Mr. Mylod showed some attractive and some amusing motion pictures which he had taken on the pilgrimages and other occasions. They were enthusiastically received and included pictures taken on visits to Constitution Island, "Castle Rock" at Garrison, "Looking Rock" in Dutchess County, the home of Franklin D. Roosevelt and pictures of notables who have visited the county on important occasions. Mr. M-ylod told of his early association with the society, before he became a member, when he had been drafted as chauffeur for his father, the late John J. Mylod.

In expressing the appreciation of the members, Mr. Van Kleeck recalled that Mr. John J. IVIylod had been the City Historian for years, had served as trustee of the society for several terms and that he had been for many years an obliging source of historical information on all sorts of topics.

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The speaker was given a rising vote of thanks for his enjoyable contribution to a pleasant evening.

On motion, the meeting adjourned.

Amy Ver Nooy, Secretary

FISHKILL, February 13. Thursday the 6th inst. was celebrated as the anniversary of the alliance with France by the army, at the cantonment of New-Windsor. The troops having been reviewed by the Commander in Chief on their brigade parades, formed two lines, the first in front and the second on the heights in rear of the cantonment of the right wing; in which position a feu de joie was fired at a given signal, and exhibited a beautiful appearance to a great number of gentlemen and ladies who had previously assembled at the new public building; — to which place the officers of the whole army repaired as soon as the exhibition was finished, after hearing an oration suitable to the pleasing occasion pronounced by the Rev. Mr. Evans, chaplain of the New Hampshire brigade, and partaking of a cold collation (at which not less than five hundred gentlemen and ladies were present) the company concluded the day with the greatest demonstration of satisfaction and good humor.

The New-York Packet, and the American Advertiser Thursday, February 13, 1783

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REPORT OF THE TREASURER January 1, 1964 - June 30, 1964 PERMANENT ACCOUNT — Poughkeepsie Savings Bank Balance on hand, January 1, 1964 Interest

$ 8,779.40 169.56 8,948.96 600.00

Transfer to Checking Account

Balance on hand, June 30, 1964 $ 8,348.96 CHECKING ACCOUNT — Dutchess Bank and Trust Company Receipts Balance on hand, January 1, 1964 Received from dues Received from sale of books Gift Transfer from Savings Account Receipts, May meeting

$

412.49 973.00 65.00 25.00 600.00 366.00 $ 2,441.49

Disbursements $

Secretary Treasurer Office supplies Postage Printing Year Book Payment, May meeting Glebe House expenses

50.00 50.00 26.17 15.55 719.20 384.00 513.01 1,757.93 $

Balance on hand, June 30, 1964

683.56

THE HELEN WILKINSON REYNOLDS MEMORIAL FUND Poughkeepsie Savings Bank $ 3,420.82 70.98 4.00

Balance on hand, January 1, 1964 Interest Receipts Balance on hand, June 30, 1964 15

$ 3,495.80

THE WILLIAM PLATT ADAMS FUND Poughkeepsie Savings Bank $12,500.00 Received, May 22, 1964 57.55 Interest $12,557.55 Balance on hand, June 30, 1964 Respectfully submitted, George M. Gill, Treasurer REPORT OF THE TREASURER July 1, 1964 - December 31, 1964 PERMANENT ACCOUNT — Poughkeepsie Savings Bank $ 8,348.96 Balance on hand, July 1, 1964 170.89 Interest 8,519.85 700.00

Transfer to Checking Account

$ 7,819.85 Balance on hand, December 31, 1964 CHECKING ACCOUNT — Dutchess Bank and Trust Company Receipts Balance on hand, July 1, 1964 $ 683.56 Received from dues 71.00 Received from sale of books 77.00 Transfer from Permanent Account $700.00 Transfer from Adams Account 325.79 1,025.79 3.00

Receipts, May meeting

$ 1,860.35 Disbursements Secretary Treasurer Office supplies Postage Year Book Miscellaneous expense Glebe House expenses

$

50.00 50.00 28.85 81.77 1,084.80 1.00 166.55 $ 1,462.97

Balance on hand, December 31, 1964 16

$

397.38

THE HELEN WILKINSON REYNOLDS MEMORIAL FUND Poughkeeps:e Savings Bank Balance on hand, July 1, 1964 Interest

$ 3,495.80 74.65

Balance on hand, December 31, 1964

$ 3,570.45

THE WILLIAM PLATT ADAMS FUND Poughkeeps:e Savings Bank Balance on hand, July 1, 1964 Interest

$12,557.55 268.24

Transfer to Checking Account

$12,825.79 325.79

Balance on hand, December 31, 1964

$12,500.00

Respectfully submitted, George M. Gill, Treasurer

Otter Hunting in Pawling. Two large otters were recently captured cn the woodlands of Mr. J. W. Stark, in Pawling . . . Two other otters were seen in the neighborhood, and were tracked into the rocks but, night coming on, no effort was made to secure them. The largest of those caught measured 4 feet 2 inches, and the other some three inches shorter. These animals have become very rare, and why so many should be found in such close proximity to each other is a mystery.

Poughkeepsie Daily Eagle, January 18, 1873.

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OUR PRESIDENT SAYS: The annual meeting of the Dutchess County Historical Society was held on May 15, 1964, at the Presbyterian Church, Pleasant Valley. To hold the meeting at Pleasant Valley was felt to be especially suitable because the society had been organized there just fifty years ago. Mrs. Irving Bower's address with reminiscences of the people who had organized the society and Mr. Frank Mylod's pictures and his recollections of early meetings and pilgrimages were very much enjoyed. The Women's Association of the church served a delicious dinner prior to the business meeting. *

*

*

The semi-annual meeting, usually held in October, was delayed and finally omitted. The trustees transacted the few items of business which required attention. * * * The society's annual pilgrimage, held October 10, 1964, was a very rewarding experience for those who were able to attend. Through the kind assistance of Mrs. Finkel, a trustee of our society, arrangements were made for the trip to Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh and to the New Windsor Cantonment and Temple Hill. We are deeply indebted to our hosts, Major Kenneth C. Miller, Superintendent of Washington's Headquarters Historic Site, and to Colonel Frederick P. Todd, Director and Historian-at-Arms at the New -Windsor Cantonment, for their cordial welcomes. Both gentlemen spoke to the pilgrims about the very important and interesting historical land-marks. We were particularly pleased that the members of the East Fishkill Historical Society joined us on our pilgrimage and we very :much appreciated the help of the Wiccopee Boy Scout Troop No. 110 in the parking of cars. It was an enjoyable day.

Another very pleasant occasion was the Open House Day, held at the Glebe House on December 6. The rooms in the house had been prettily decorated with evergreen arrangements with dried flowers, fruits and nuts, such as might have been used in the early nineteenth century. Two little girls gave eighteenth century selections on a recorder and were dressed in costumes of the period. Members of the historical society and of the Junior League welcomed the more than three-hundred and fifty guests and served mulled cider and cakes.

Mrs. Southworth, of the historical society, and Mrs. Joseph F. Furlong, of the Junior League, were co-chairmen of the committee which planned the event and Mrs. S. Velma Pugsley was the chairman of decorations.

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Dr. Henry Noble MacCracken, President Emeritus of Vassar College, a former president and present trustee of our society, has written another book to add to his long list of publications. Prologue to Independence, the Trials of James illexander, 1715-1756, is the title of Dr. MacCracken's latest volume. The foreword is writtet by Carl Carmer. It was published by James H. Heineman, Inc., New York. * * * Our congratulations are extended to Miss Annette I. Young, a vice-president of this society representing the Town of Poughkeepsie, upon receiving a citation from the United States Department of the Interior, designating her home, "Locust Grove," a Registered National Historic Landmark. "Locust Grove" was the summer home of the inventor and artist, Samuel Finley Breese Morse, from 1847 until 1871. * * * When General John Ross Delafield died on April 8, 1964, the Dutchess County Historical Society lost one of its most valued members. General Delafield was elected to our society in 1925 and in the years following he served many terms as a trustee. He declined election to the Board of Trustees in 1961, due to ill health, and shortly thereafter the society named him an honorary member in recognition of his interest in and contributions to our historical society.

General Delafield spoke at many of our meetings, including pilgrimages to Montgomery Place, his summer residence, and to a number of other estates in his neighborhood. His many contributions to the year books have been outstanding records of the areas of northern Dutchess County, so familiar to General Delafield.

General Delafield was the founder and senior member of the New York law firm of Delafield, Hope, Linkler and Blanc. He was a retired Army reservist and had been the recipient of the Distinguished Service Medal.

General Delafield was a member of the Society of the Cincinnati and the St. Nicholas Society and was also active in the Hudson River Conservation Society. * * * We record with deep regret the death on February 7, 1964, of Mrs. Harrie D. Knickerbocker, a vice-president of the society representing the Town of Stanford since 1949. Other long-time members who passed away during the year include Miss Irene M. Braman, Mr. LaVerne M. Bull, Mrs. Peter 1VI. Cornell, Mrs. Harry D. Matteson and Miss Jean Earl Moehle.

Baltus Barentszen Van Kleeck 19

THE ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE A highly successful pilgrimage depends largely on the weather on the particular day set for the trip, or that of the day preceding. On the (iccasicn of the 1964 tour the weather was not up to that enjoyed on previous trips, but the sun was shining most of the day and there was no rain. An informative and interesting program had been arranged for a visit to Orange County, which would include stops at each of three of the twenty-four "Historic Sites" administered by the New York State Education Department.

Members of the Dutchess County Historical Society and of the East Fishkill Historical Society gathered at Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh at the scheduled flue. They were welcomed by Major Kenneth C. Miller, Superintendent, who explained that this was the first historic site in the United States selected for preservation.

The visitors first took the opportunity to inspect the house which had been the headquarters of General Washington from April 1782 until August 1783. They learned that the original part of the house was erected by Jonathan Hasbrouck in 1750 and two additions had been made to it before it was occupied by the General. They noted the room with seven doors, which he had used as a reception and living room, and admired the view of the river and surrounding area from the one window. They were told that it was here, in 1782, that General Washington had proposed the establishment of the "Order of the Purple Heart," which has been re-established and is continued as one of the best-known military awards of the United States. And, it was here that Washington rejected the plan of Colonel Lewis Nicola that a new government be formed with Washington as king.

Leaving the old house, the pilgrims walked over to the very well-equipped and maintained museum. Here Major Miller addressed the group and told them somewhat about the preservation of the headquarters and the many items connected with George Washington, his occupancy of the house during a part of the Revolutionary War and the events which occurred at that time. (Major Miller has contributed to this issue of the year book a resume of his talk on the occasion of the visit.) The visitors spent considerable time in examining the exhibits. They were much interested in the many displays and were particularly impressed with the items which had a Dutchess County associat'on and which Major Miller had thoughtfully designated with special markers.

About noontime, the group took one last look at the magnificent view of the Hudson, picked up a glossy horse chestnut or two (to 20

ward off the rheumatism in the coming cold months ) , and reluctantly left the Headquarters site.

Arriving a bit later at the New Windsor Cantonment, the visitors were greeted by Colonel Frederick P. Todd, Director and Historian-at-Arms, and welcomed into the nearly-completed "Temple."

They enjoyed their picnic lunches before the huge fireplace, with its cheering blaze. Colonel Todd told the story of Temple Hill and its acquisition and restoration by the State of New York and spoke of the possibility of the creation here of a replica of Mount Gulian. (Mount Gulian was the home built in the first half cf the eighteenth century

by Gulian Verplanck at Fishkill Landing. During the Revolution it was used by Baron Steuben as his headquarters and it was here that the Society of the Cincinnati was organized. The house and much of its contents burned September 5, 1931.)

Colonel Todd answered numerous questions and much was learned about the cantonment and the original build'ng on the site.

The recently-constructed building is a reproduction of the "Temple," erected in 1783 by the soldiers for a chapel and public building. In the months following October of 1782, some eight thousand soldiers were encamped around Temple Hill. There were troops from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey and Maryland. The soldiers built, of t:mber and stone, some of the best buildings that they occupied during the entire war. The Temple was first used on February 6, 1783, for a celebration of the alliance with France. On this occasion, by order of General Washington, in addition to a formal review of the troops and other exercises, a cold collation was provided for all of the officers and the ladies and gentlemen of the neighborhood to the number of about five hundred.

It was to the Temple that Washington called his officers, on March 19, and made his memorable address in reply to the Armstrong letters, expressing his confidence that Congress would provide the best means possible for the relief of the soldiers who had served so faithfully for so many years and had been so poorly paid.

At this time there was no intimation that King George had issued a proclamation on February 14, acknowledging the independence of the American colonies. The terms of peace were accepted April 19 by the Continental Congress and a cessation of hostilities was ordered.

It was soon after this that the disbandment of the army was begun and before the end of June all the soldiers had left, except a small detachment "to do ordinary duties" until General Washington took his final departure on August 18, 1783.

The Temple was struck by lightning about the time the soldiers 21

left. It was not entirely demolished, but it had served its purpose, and what remained of the building was sold at auction on September 2, 1783. Through diligent search, descriptions of the original building and its furnishings have been found which have enabled the present builders to duplicate the former Temple. The reconstruction of the historic site is rapidly progressing and will add an interesting chapter to the history of the Revolutionary War in the mid-Hudson area.

After inspecting the officers' hut and the stone monument (erected in 1891 by the Newburgh Revolutionary Monument Association), the guests proceeded to the house at Vail's Gate, known as Knox Headquarters. No address was made at this shrine but the visitors were told that the fieldstone house, built for John Ellison in 1754, was occupied at times by several officers of the army, including General Gates and General Greene, but that General Knox had been quartered there longer than any of the others.

It was during his occupancy that the house was known as the social center of New Windsor. Although Mrs. Washington spent considerable time in the area, it was young Mrs. Knox who was said to have entertained lavishly and to have relieved the monotony of the life at the cantonment. The present-day visitors were charmed with the house, its interior and its furnishings.

After the group dispersed, some of the pilgrims went down to Museum Village at Smith's Clove and others crossed the Bear Mountain Br:dge and stopped at Boscobel on the way home.

In 1933, when Orange County was celebrating the 150th anniversary of the events of 1783 and the close of the Revolutionary War, the Dutchess County Historical Society, on its annual pilgrimage, visited the same three historic sites. On that occasion, the Honorable Hamilton Fish, Member of Congress, made a patriotic address at Knox Headquarters. He spoke of the centenary observance, held in 1883, as "probably the largest and most important celebration ever held in Newburgh." In his remarks he stated, "The Republic that was born here still survives. . . . We still believe in the sovereignty of the American people and that our representative system of government, within the Republic, is the soundest, fairest, wisest and best ever developed by the mind of man."

And also in 1933, at Temple Hill, the late Reverend A. Elwood Corning, President of the Temple Hill Association, told of the hopes of that organization to reconstruct the Temple, to erect huts similar in design to those used by the soldiers of 1783 and to build a museum of American history to house relics connected especially with the 22

history of the Highlands of the Hudson. Mr. Corning would have been pleased to see what has been accomplished and what is promised for a project which he cherished for years.

The program for the 1964 visit was as follows: DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY The Annual Pilgrimage of the Dutchess County Hso .:cal Society will take place on Saturday, October 10. The trip th_s 3ca: will take us to neighboring Orange County.

10:15 a.m.

Meet at Washington's Headquarters, Liberty and Main Strerts, Newburgh.

Our Host: Major Kenneth C. Mil:e-, Historic Site Supe:intendent.

Tour of museum and house at this historic landmark.

11:30 a.m.

Leave Washington's Headquarters, route 9W to Route 94 past Knox Headquarters and take right turn, arriv:ng:

12:00 noon The New Windsor Cantonment and Temple Hill.

Our Host: Colonel Frederick P. Todd, Director and Historian-atArms.

12:00 noon to 1 p.m.

Ample time for your picnic at this beautiful spot.

1 p.m.

Tour of the New Windsor Cantonment Restoration and of Temple Hill (Wiccopee Boy Scout Troop No. 110 will assist in parLng cars.)

Suggestions for your afternoon enjoyment: Knox Headquarters, Newburgh.

Old Museum Village of Smith's Clove (On Route 17M, Monroe, Orange County) Boscobel Restoration (On Route 9D, Putnam County, south of Cold Spring)

In the New York Tribune of Wednesday last we find the following hit at our newly made city — "City of Poughkeepsie. The village of Poughkeepsie has at length become a city. Now let the people look out for taxes."

We hope our people will not need a hint as to the importance of looking out.

Poughkeepsie Eagle, April 1, 1854

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REVISION OF THE BYLAWS At a meeting of the Board of Trustees of the Dutchess County Historical Society, held February 7, 1964, it was noted that over the years it had become desirable and necessary to make some minor changes in rules which should be incorporated in the bylaws. A committee, composed of the President, the Vice-President and the Secretary, was appointed to study the existing bylaws and to recommend changes or amendments in certain areas. In accordance with the current rules, an outline of the proposed changes was sent to each member before the annual meeting, set for May 15, 1964.

At that meeting, the President read the bylaws and the proposed changes. It was moved, seconded and carried that the suggested amendments be adopted and that the revised bylaws be printed in the 1964 issue of the year book:

BYLAWS DUTCHESS COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY Name The name of this organization is: The Dutchess County Historical Society.

Object The object of the society shaLl be to discover, plocure and preserve whatever may re_ate to Ameican history in its several phases — soc;a1. economic, military, political, literary, artistic, etc., but particularly material regarding Dutchess County in the State of New York; To encourage the writing of papers and the delive.,y of addresses on subjects of historical interest; To collect objects of historical value and arrange for their preservation.

Members There shall be four classes of members: 1. Active members: individuals, societies and organizations 2. Active family members: husband and wife 3. Life members: any member who shall pay at one fare at least seventy-five dollars to the society 4. Honorary members: any person who, in the judgment of the trustees, has attained disfnction in historic work of research.

Dues The dues for active members shall be three dollars, payable at the time of election and thereafter annually on the first of January.

The dues for active family members shall be five dollars, payable at the time of election and thereafter annually on the fi rst of January.

Life members and honorary members shall be exempt from the payment of dues.

Any member in arrears for dues for six months shall be considered as having resigned from the society.

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Officers The officers of the Dutchess County Historical Society shall be: A president A vice-president at large A vice-president representing each town in Dutchess County A vice-president representing the City of Poughkeepsie A vice-president representing the City of Beacon A secretary A treasurer A curator Sixteen trustees Board of Trustees The Board of Trustees shall consist of: The president, ex-officio The vice-president at large, ex-officio The secretary, ex-officio The treasurer, ex-officio and sixteen trustees There shall not be duplication on the Board of Trustees. No one person may serve at the same time as an executive officer and a trustee.

Election of Officers and Trustees Officers and trustees shall be elected at the annual meeting of the society.

Terms of Officers and Trustees A president and a vice-president at large shall be elected for a term of two years, and each shall be eligible to succeed himself but once after having served one full term.

Vice-presidents representing the towns and cities of Dutchess County, a secretary, a treasurer and a curator shall be elected for a term of two years.

Sixteen trustees shall be elected in four classes, each to serve four years, but no trustee shall be eligible to succeed himself after having served one full term of four years.

Duties of Officers and Trustees President: The president shall preside at meetings of the society and of the Board of Trustees. He shall initiate and direct the activities of the society in conjunction with the Board of Trustees.

Vice-President at Large: The vice-president at large shall act in the absence of the president as need occasions.

Vice-Presidents for Towns and Cities of Dutchess County: It shall be the duty of the vice-presidents for the towns and cities to stimulate interest in the objects of the society in their several localities.

Secretary: The secretary shall keep a record of all meetings of the society and of the Board of Trustees; shall notify all persons elected to membership; shall notify members of the time and place of meetings; and shall perform all the duties of the secretary of the society.

Treasurer: The treasurer shall collect and disburse all moneys of the society under the direction of the Board of Trustees.

Curator: The curator shall be responsible for the safekeeping of all possessions of the society, other than securities or bank deposits. He shall keep an inventory of the possessions and shall notify the secretary in writing of all new acquisitions of the society, whether by purchase or by gift.

Trustees: The Board of Trustees shall transact any business of the society and have general management of its affairs, including the election of members.

Meetings There shall be at least two meetings of the society each year: an annual meeting during the month of May, and a semi-annual meeting dur25

ing the month of October. In addition to the annual and semi-annual meetings, a meeting of the society may be called by the president, or by the vice-president at large, or by the secretary, or upon request of five members of the society. The day and place of all meetings shall be chosen by the officers and all members shall be notified of a meeting by the secretary at least two weeks in advance.

Meetings of the Board of Trustees may be held at any time on the call of the president, or the vice-president at large, or the secretary, or of any three members of the Board of Trustees.

Ten members shall constitute a quorum of the society.

Five trustees shall constitute a quorum of the Board of Trustees.

Reports The officers of the society and the committees shall report to the society at the meetings in May and October upon such matters as are in their charge, and shall inform the members of the condition of the society.

Order of Business The order of business at any meeting of the society, or of the Board of Trustees, shall be as follows: Reading of the minutes of the previous meeting Reports of officers Reports of committees Election of members Unfinished business New business Adj ournment Amendments These bylaws may be amended at any regular, or special, meeting of the society by a majority vote of those present, provided a notice of the proposed amendment shall have accompanied the notice of the meeting at which it shall be acted upon.

On Saturday the regiment commanded by Lieut. Colonel Sleight was inspected on Poughkeepsie common. Their appearance and conduct during their parade, was such as entitled them to commendation. The company of artillery commanded by Capt. Hawkins, and the company of rangers, by Capt. Stoutenburgh, being in complete uniform, made a handsome appearance, and deserve much credit.

Poughkeepsie Journal, September 14, 1802

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THE RIVALS FOR DUTCHESS Henry Noble MacCrackena

No news is good news, but bad news is better. Dutchess County thrived so valiantly on bad news in her early days that everybody wanted to live there. After a century of bad news, she stood first in in the state in population and misfortune.

She was then devoted exclusively to farming — there is nothing so unlucky as a farmer, as everybody knows. "I sot twelve eggs and b'gosh, they all died on me but eleven," is the familiar story. Such was the tale of the Dutchess.

She was just too popular; no wonder she became so populous.

Massachusetts and Connecticut annexed her ;1 quiet Quakers and pious Palatines pushed upriver, and split her from southeast to northwest.2 The greedy Livingstons bit off a huge chunk in the north,3 and Philipse carved a lot from Beekman and Brett that was called Putnam in the course of time.4 A governor tried to swallow a hundred thousand acres in two gulps.5 Less greedy speculators from Westchester nibbled at every nook and forgotten pie-slice left by careless surveys between every patent and its neighbor. And those who came to pilfer remained to prosper.

The secret of her success was very simple; she compromised. It began with her beginning, when her neighbor Robert Livingston developed a flair for politics and sought a seat in the Assembly. Robert's Albany enemies, headed by Colonel Jacob Rutsen,6 were determined to keep him out.

Poughkeepsie's fi rst boss, Leonard Lewis, was in their pay, half rebellious Scot and half stubborn Dutch, like most of Dutchess men; he even defied Governor Hunter's goodnatured help for Livingston.

The manor lord finally bought him off. By promising to get a new courthouse for Poughkeepsie, in Lewis' own pocket, so to speak," Livingston got Lewis to agree to let Livingston move all his southern lots into Albany County. This explains the northern bounds of Dutchess, which now run east by south from Tivoli to Spencer's Corners, instead of meandering peaceably along the southern bank of Roelof Jansen's crooked kill, as they should.° It also explains, and this is important for our story, which really begins here, how Robert Livingston, having once got his toe in the a Dr. MacCracken, President Emeritus of Vassar College, former president and presently a trustee of the Dutchess County Historical Society, and historian of note, has used in this article many of the facts which he unearthed in the preparation of his recently published book: Prologue to Independence; the Trials of James Alexander, (New York, James H. Heineman, Inc., 1964).

See a review of the book in this issue of the year book.

27

political door, pushed his way into the governor's confidence and fought off the Albany crowd, until he was chosen speaker, and built up a successful party in support of the governor!

Robert had a son, Philip, a discreet and capable fellow, who shared his father's opinion that the right way to get rich in the fur trade was to protect and favor the Iroquois nations and make them strong enough to compete with the Erie and Huron nations, who trapped for the French.9 The Albany crowd did not agree. It was cheaper, they thought, to deal with the French as the middlemen and forget the Iroquois.

This meant death to their neighbors, but what did they care if a few settlers were massacred in Indian wars? The Albany crowd could trade their English blankets for French furs; the Iroquois could pay for the blankets at a ruinous French price. They might starve but they need not freeze; not all of them, anyhow. So the great eighteenth century issue grew until it engulfed the Indian nations in inter-tribal war and the French governors into an equally deadly series of wars with the English, ending in the greatest crime of all — an English Canada.

When Governor Hunter, the best New York ever had, was succeeded by Governor Burnet, the Livingston-Albany feud waxed hotter until Philip, who had succeeded his father as Indian commissioner, suggested that the governor replace Philipse and Schuyler at the head of the Albany crowd, with two young but capable friends of the Indians, James Alexander and Cadwallader Colden.1° Burnet complied, the more so as Hunter had already commended the two young men to his attention.

This introduces my hero to the reader, who is urged to purchase the slender book that tells Alexander's whole political story for the fi rst time. His defense of Dutchess is only a part of it, and necessarily incomplete. Need I say any more?

Colden had been for three years surveyor general of New York, Alexander for six years surveyor general of New Jersey. At Hunter's insistence, however, the latter had added the office of deputy secretary of the Governor's Council of New York.

In this double capacity Alexander had secured laws," adopted by both Dutch provinces, agreeing to a joint survey of their common boundary line. As it happened, his line favored New Jersey more than Stephen DeLancey thought fair. A member of the Albany crowd, he 28

chose to be offended. He had a patent for islands in the Delaware River, which would then go to Jersey.

DeLancey was already favored by the tricky French governors over the rest of the Albany crowd. In one instance, when the Canadian boundary was supposed to be completely closed, DeLancey had been paid twenty-five hundred deerskins in full satisfaction of his own account.12 We have the French governor's word for it that, from 1717 for the next twenty years, the Albany crowd maintained this illicit smuggling trade, to the entire satisfaction of the DeLancey interest and of the French governors of Canada. By a secret treaty between Albany and France, the French armies were instructed not to raid Albany or its "country," which, of course, included the Schuyler manor. On their part, the Albany crowd agreed to prevent any attack on Montreal from their quarter.13 Well did they succeed, under the leadership of their incomparable political boss, James DeLancey, Stephen's son. So long as he had his way, not a single pound of food or powder could be sent from Albany to supply the British armies in their French wars.14 Alexander and Colden were foolish enough to believe in honesty, in a diplomacy that appealed to public opinion and in a force that proceeded from the public law. They won in the end, but they never caught up with the great master of duplicity. It might be called treason, if it were not for the fact that in his own crooked way DeLancey actually met the desires of the Mammon of Unrighteousness that ruled England in those days. Walpole's cabinet was no better than DeLancey's "interest." The virtuous Scots found virtue, as usual, its own, and only, reward.

The DeLanceys, however, had a good point. In pressing the claims of New York to be the sole and only guardian of the western Indians, they were pressing an American, but not a royal, argument. Their treachery was directed against New York's friendly Indians, but the English cabinet that stood for "the King" really wanted peace with France, at any price. It lasted until they fell from office in 1742.

Alexander and Colden based their claims on the law of nature, which said that even Indians were human and that engagements made with them should be kept. Alexander collected all the Indian treaties, and bound them handsomely in four volumes, to prove the great English debt to them and their fidelity.

He joined Colden in a famous book, The History of the Five Nations, which is not much of a history, but an excellent lawyer's brief for New York's claim to be the protector — and the heir — of the 29

Iroquois. Together the two men well defended the law they had passed, forbidding the Albany-Montreal dea1.15 But how did all this affect the good people of Dutchess? Very directly and immediately; the Albany crowd thereupon opposed every step of Alexander's way, in the progress of Dutchess County from wilderness to rural paradise.

Schuyler, of the Albany magnates, had bought two large patents in Dutchess, one at Red Hook, and one below Poughkeepsie.16 Adolph Philipse (whom Alexander nicknamed "Ape" from his initials) had forged his way to the proprietorship of over a hundred and fifty thousand acres, that now comprise the whole of Putnam County but were then in Dutchess.

Thus, while Mrs. Alexander's cousin,17 Mrs. Catharyna Brett, entered upon her own great property at Fishkill and lived on terms of friendship with the Indians, Philipse treated the same Indians with abuse.

His heirs finally drove them homeless out of his land.

Similarly, Leonard Lewis, a hireling of the Albany traders, was accused of urging the Indians to kill Mrs. Brett. George Clarke, a dependent of DeLancey's, tried to encroach upon her patent. Colden and his Indian friends protected her and did her justice in their survey.18 When Alexander bought into the Little Nine Partners' patent and became himself a Ninth Partner,i° Governor Cosby, in 1734 a mere front for DeLancey, tried to steal the whole patent and sell it off among his friends.

Worst of all, when Alexander and Colden, with infinite pains, had secured the cession of the Oblong lands to New York and had carried out their famous compromise, by persuading the Connecticut settlers on the patent "to remain and become good Yorkers," the whole Albany pack in full cry joined forces with a conspiracy of English speculators to steal their entire sixty-four thousand acres.

With the whole nefarious deal we cannot be concerned; it is told in detail in the new book.2° It is sufficient here to say that for once virtue triumphed, and the Dutchess profited mightily by choosing the right ticket.

Two great benefits resulted in the country. In 1737, with James Alexander as the leader in the Assembly, an act was passed, breaking up the great patents into precincts.21 He had already shown the way in the Little Nine Partners with an accurate survey and a division into lots that could be, and soon were for the most part, sold to settlers.

Within ten years the whole of Dutchess, which had been left to revert to wilderness, was surveyed and most of it offered for sale. All that was needed was a purchaser. He was soon to be provided.

30

In the course of the survey, the Indians who lived in the patent were given three hundred acres of good land, near the Connecticut border, to cultivate as their own.22 Unfortunately, they were meat eaters, not vegetarians; the acreage was not nearly enough to meet their need. What little they retained soon excited the cupidity of Connecticut borderers.

They were, however, paid off in the Great Nine Partners with a large donation, making up in part for the illegality with which the patent had been secured. The patentees, headed by Caleb Heathcote, James DeLancey's father-in-law, made no haste to sell in eastern Dutchess, though their river lots were soon disposed of, and Stoutenburgh's soon became Hyde Park.23 Beekman's, the last of the great patents, was divided among the three heirs, Henry and his sisters, Mrs. Pawling and Mrs. Gilbert Livingston. Their nephew, DeLancey, controlled Beckman's vote in the Assembly, but Henry was a kind and popular landlord.24 The cession of the Oblong by Connecticut in 1731 meant that not only its land, but all the land adjoining for upward of fifty miles, was now "safe" land, its bounds measured and known, its title guaranteed by two provinces. The result was an immediate rush of dwellers from New England's all-too-pious bounds. Most of the Dutchess purchasers were Quakers, Baptists, Presbyterians or Methodists. Their new churches were either of these denominations, or clubbed together in union churches of their own, the source of the union churches of today.25 These, with the quiet and tolerant Dutch amalgam, soon formed a Dutchess way of thought, that had no room for Puritan intolerance.

Of this, indeed, there was little left in New England; York College had an Episcopalian rector, and Puritan churches were no longer called "independent," but "consociated."

They entered, not in parishes generally, but as individual settlers on their own land. Dutchess was well populated before villages began to appear. They were thus not likely to become subservient tenants of Albany landlords. An English officer called them "levellers by principle." 26 When the Connecticut "levellers" had been long enough in Dutchess to know what was going on, they joined their forces with Alexander and produced a healthy majority for the American cause.

They came just in time. Sackett, Cosby and Hopkins joined Van Wycks and Swartwouts to make up the Dutchess quota.27 Philipse's Dutchess took the name of a Yankee general, Putnam, who commanded the Hudson River defenses.

31

Only the ne'er-do-wells, who did not choose to accept New York as a state in being, but insisted on treating its land as public property to be occupied but not paid for, became willing hearers of the DeLancey gospel, anti-renters and anti-everything else, Tories in later years, spies and subverters in Revolutionary days. Of these there were but few, though they partly made up by the noise they made. The quiet Dutch and the hard-boiled Yankees took them over with decision, and without bloodshed, when the Revolution began..28 Meanwhile, Chief Justice DeLancey had badgered and bludgeoned his terrified governors, Cosby, Clarke and Clinton, into submission.

Upon Admiral Clinton, a bankrupt alcoholic he laid a throttle-hold, buying up all his IOU's and threatening him with jail if he dared disobey. 29 He drove Colden out of government and kept Alexander, illegally, from succession to his councillor's seat in New York. Thus Alexander was unable to assist the Mahikans of Shekomeko when they lost their land in 1745 or to prevent the Wappingers from falling easy prey to the ne'er-do-wells when they forged false deeds of sale.

But with the great body of prosperous Yankee farmers behind him, he and his pupil William Livingston were able to choke off a clever ruse of DeLancey to put the peasantry under permanent subjection by means of an Established church.

DeLancey succeeded in the four city counties: New York, Kings, Queens and Richmond; these had not profited by the Alexander expansion. William Livingston publicly charged that this submission had been gained by force.3° DeLancey had secured strong backing from the English church "at home." The Archbishop of Canterbury, his devoted friend and partner in the project, had been his tutor at Oxford. With an admiral as brother-in-law, and an uncle as Mayor of London, he was in an impregnable position — so long as Walpole and Newcastle ruled.

He outplayed his hand, however, when he founded King's College, predecessor of Columbia.31 The new institution was to be limited to Establishment and to train the aristocracy of the future; DeLancey was beginning to feel his age. Against this bold scheme, Alexander and William Livingston put forth their last joint opposition. William scattered his billposters broadcast through Dutchess from end to end.

He enlisted the one highly respected schoolmaster of the day, Chauncey Graham of the Fishkill schoo1,32 to help him in the effort. As the preceptor of the Livingston boys, Graham had great influence, that effectually killed DeLancey's attempt to destroy the serenity of Dutchess church-goers. The fault lay not in the Episcopal Church, but 32

with the unscrupulous group that used it as a covering shield for their assault on American institutions.33 The true use was sustained by the patriot, the Reverend Samuel Provoost, who conducted services in Poughkeepsie, and became New York's first bishop after peace had been made.34 He was Mrs. Alexander's grandson.

Taxation for the support of an imposed clergy was to Alexander only an extension of the policy of "taxation without representation," against which he and his pupil had strongly protested in so many words in Livingston's newspaper, the Independent Reflector, in 1752. Alexander sold it in his store and contributed articles to its pages.

He chose as his own successor a new leader for the liberals, Judge Robert R. Livingston of Clermont, whose son, Robert R., Jr., married Alexander's granddaughter, Mary Stevens. Judge Robert represented Dutchess at the provincial Stamp Act Congress. That was, indeed, the hey-day of Livingston force. Philip of the Manor was speaker of the Assembly; Robert R., his cousin, leader in the law; and William, the advocate and pamphleteer that first announced "no intercourse." The action of the Assembly35 was the boldest stand of any colony; New York paid for it with suspension of all legislation by the Privy Council.

Under the English ban Dutchess wheat exporters suffered greatly, and the DeLancey interest won the ensuing election. Robert lost his seat and William soon moved to Jersey, where he became the great war governor. Philip and the rest of the Livingston interest fought it out. Dutchess was ready for action when the news come of Lexington.

When Alexander died in 1756, Livingston kept on with his great dissent. DeLancey died in 1760, smarting under a reprimand which he rightly interpreted as dismissal, for he had been accused of flat disobedience to his English overlords and bidden to change his ways.36 It may seem strange to Americans today that the outstanding American Tory of his time should himself have been a rebel in his Toryism. Yet such was the case. By the degradation into which he had dragged the governship, DeLancey had done more to injure the status of the Crown, and its hold upon the American people, than Alexander had been able to accomplish by his honorable course of law, order and persuasion. Together, at any rate in the end, the two dead leaders projected, by action or reaction, the forces of revolution into the path of victory.

It has not been forgotten, in this brief sketch of the great rivalry, that the conflict was not individual, but general. On DeLancey's side 33

were most of the great landholders, the governors and their courts, the agents of disorder and peculation. In his family relatives alone he had a clear majority in the Assembly, it was said.37 On his side were the ruling party of England, who stood for peace, no matter how dishonored.

On Alexander's side were those of his own family, his son and his sons-in-law. His son had married Sarah Livingston, Philip's daughter.

His own daughter married Peter Livingston, a brother of Sarah. Another married John Stevens, the great Jersey leader. His grandson married a Morris, Gouverneur's sister. Another brother, Lewis, was a New York Signer.

Apart from the Livingston-Morris interest, his support came from the great Dutch families who had not bowed the knee to DeLancey : Provoost, Van Horne, and others.38 The Livingstons themselves were more than half Dutch by descent.

Among the commonalty were Colonel Charles Clinton and his sons, James and George (the American governor), Ogdens, Nevilles and others. These groups composed the patriots, the early Federalists and the legal lights of constitutional days.

Thus, what had begun as a petty rivalry between two leaders gradually assumed the form of a party conflict and, at last, flamed into a war that left Dutchess at the very heart of action, its shire town the capital of the young state.

The glamor of the great manors on "Tidewater" Hudson, so like and yet so unlike those of Tidewater Virginia, has overshadowed the essential tragedy of their life which can be found in the nemesis that left the Tory houses empty shells, their real story untold. It was a conflict, not of men but of ideas; the idea of inherited privilege against the idea of law; of public opinion against public fear; of humane forethought against reckless disregard of human rights.

Colden, who suffered most, said it best, "It is a terrible thing for a colony to live with an implacable chief justice."

NOTES Henry Noble MacCracken, Old Dutchess Forever! (New York, c1956), Ch. XX. (Annexation: Massachusetts, 1659; Connecticut, 1707) ; E. B. O'Callaghan, Documentary History of the State of New York, (Albany, 1850), 1:240.

(Population of Dutchess in 1714 was 445.)

2 MacCracken, Old Dutchess, pp. 102-112; 197-199.

3 Lawrence H. Leder, Robert Livingston, 1651-1728, and the Politics of Colonial New York (Chapel Hill, North Carolina, 1961), p. 239.

4 Ibid., p. 244.

5 Isaac Huntting, History of Little Nine Partners of North East Precinct, and Pine Plains, New York, Duchess County, (Amenia, New York, 1897).

6 Leder, Livingston, p. 239.

34

7 Ibid., pp. 239, 240.

8 / bid., p. 255; Year Book, Dutchess County Historical Society, VI (1921), p. 59; Alexander MSS., Box 10, New-York Historical Society.

9 E. B. O'Callaghan, Documents Relative to the Colonial History of the State of New York, (Albany, 1855), IX:1038-1040.

"Leder, Livingston, p. 255; MacCracken, Prologue to Independence, (New York, c1964), p. 4.

11 MacCracken, Prologue, pp. 11ff 12 O'Callaghan, Documents, IX:1030, 1040.

13 O'Callaghan, Documentary History, IV:637-639.

14 O'Callaghan, Documents, IX :1040.

15 Leder, Livingston, p. 281.

16 Huntting, Little Nine Partners, pp. 19-20.

17 Madam Brett's half-sister married Isaac DePeyster, Mrs. Alexander's uncle.

18 Helen Wilkinson Reynolds, Poughkeepsie, the Origin and Meaning of the Word, (Poughkeepsie, 1924), p. 50.

Huntting, Little Nine Partners, p. 25.

20 MacCracken, Prologue, Ch. VI. 21 MacCracken, Old Dutchess, p. 457.

22 Huntting, Little Nine Partners, p. 23.

23 Year Book, DCHS, XXIV (1939), pp. 78-80.

24 MacCracken, Old Dutchess, pp. 59-63; 77.

25 Ibid., pp. 58, 81-91, 457.

26 Ibid., pp. 239-244.

27 William Smith, The History of the Province of New York . . (London, 1757). (In his chapter on Dutchess County, Mr. Smith reports the strength of the militia to be 2,500, but the only villages in the county scarce deserve the name.)

28 MacCracken, Old Dutchess, p. 367.

29 MacCracken, Prologue, pp. 73-116.

"Ecclesiastical Records of the State of New York, (Albany, 1901), V:3482; MacCracken, Prologue, pp. 9, 86. .81-Ecclesiastical Records, V:3482; MacCracken, Prologue, p. 86.

32 Year Book, DCHS, VI (1921), pp. 52-53.

33 O'Callaghan, Documents, VII :406, 420.

34 MacCracken, Prologue, p. 133.

35 George Dangerfield, Chancellor Robert R. Livingston, (New York, 1960), pp. 34-38; Year Book, DCHS, XXX (1945), p. 55.

38 Allen Johnson and Dumas Malone, eds., Dictionary of American Biography, (New York, 1930), V:212.

37 O'Callaghan, Documentary History, IV :627-639.

38 MacCracken, Prologue, Ch, XIV.

TAKEN from one of my soldiers, between Fish-Kill Town and the Landing, a very valuable Cut and Thrust SWORD, the mounting silver, except the grasp, which is brass; There is a small hole in the blade, about two or three inches from the point; the scabbard was, when lost, covered with a rattle-snake skin. Whoever will deliver me the Sword, shall have One Hundred Dollars as a Reward.

Wm. FLEMING GAINES, Col. Hazen's regt., Gen. Howe's Div. Pine's Bridge, October 27.

New-York Packet, November 18, 1779 35

DEFENDING THE HIGHLANDS IN THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR* Kenneth C. Miller

It is indeed a great pleasure to welcome the members of the Dutchess County Historical Society here at Washington's Headquarters today because you, better than the general public, know and appreciate this area of the state and the great historical events which took place here during the American Revolution (1776-1783).

Too often our historic spots are spoken or thought of by themselves instead of as parts of the military complex of those days.

As you know, it was recognized at the outbreak of the war that control of the Hudson River was vital to the patriot cause so that New York and the states to the south could not be cut off from the New England states where most of our munitions were produced.

In 1777 a barrier, or boom, and a great iron chain were installed at the present site of the Bear Mountain Bridge in an effort to prevent the British from sailing up the river. In October of that year, the British attacked the two forts on the west side of the river from the land side and the gun batteries on Anthony's Nose from the rear. Being superior in numbers and training, they prevailed and our positions were captured and the chain removed. They then continued their way up the river to Kingston which they burned. The towns and villages along the river were treated to cannon and gunfire.

At Kingston, the British learned of General Burgoyne's predicament but, as they were unable to help him in time, they returned to New York.

It must be remembered that the population of our state at that time was only about 185,000 persons, of whom 25,000 were in New York City under control of the British. Most people lived on farms and their yearly income was barely enough to keep body and soul together. Nevertheless, they continued the fight and it is of interest to know that of the three hundred and eighteen official engagements of the eight years of war, ninety-two took place in New York State.

Dutchess County did her part with men and supplies during the struggle. Her men served in both the Continental army and the state militia in large numbers and it is probable that the majority of men in the two New York Continental regiments at the end of the war were from Dutchess County. * An outline of the talk given by Major Kenneth C. Miller, Superintendent of Washington's Headquarters at Newburgh, on October 10, 1964, the occasion of a pilgrimage made to the historic site by the Dutchess County Historical Society and the East Fishkill Historical Society.

36

And now a word about the "military complex" of our area, to which I referred a minute ago.

In 1778, a new chain and boom were installed at West Point and Constitution Island and were protected by twenty-eight forts and gun batteries — making that the most heavily fortified spot in North America at that time. It remained so throughout the rest of the war.

The first towns north of West Point were Fishkill and Fishkill Landing on the east and Newburgh on the west. It was then safe to establish great shops, repair depots and supply storage buildings at Fishkill and, aside from the artisans at work, there were usually about 2,400 soldiers to guard the installation, the most important of its kind.

From Constitution Island east, the New York and Connecticut militia as well as a regiment of dragoons were on guard to protect the area and try to prevent foodstuffs from reaching the British in New York.

And, of course, you all know of Sybil Ludington's ride to alert the men of her father's regiment.

At West Point, from 2,000 to 4,000 troops were maintained and both New York militia and Continentals camped in the nearby area.

At Suffern, a blockhouse and gun batteries at the pass north of the town were constantly manned and parts of the Continental army spent winters between Suffern and Newburgh. Some Virginia troops were camped as far north as Walden.

Beacon fires on top of Mount Beacon and on elevations on the west side were laid ready to be touched off.

All this then made the area solidly safe, which is why the British attempted to make their deal with General Benedict Arnold through the ill-fated Major John Andre in 1780. By great good fortune the plot was discovered, else West Point would have been lost to us and the river controlled by the British. Such a consequence and its implications are too terrible to contemplate even at this late date.

And, so you see that your side of the river and Dutchess County, in particular, have much of which to be proud historically. Washington, his aides and generals, as well as important persons of the time, were often in your area and "slept" there many times.

This defense posture was maintained until the very end of the 37

war. General Washington had his headquarters here and many of the homes still stand:ng housed his high subordinates here and in Beacon and Fishkill.

With the Continental troops at the New Windsor Cantonment (where you will go from here), West Point, Constitution Island, Fishkill and Suffern, as well as many smaller outposts on both sides of the river as far south as Peekskill, the war ended with our military strength concentrated in this area. It was from here that the men went home. The two New York Continental regiments marched from the cantonment to Poughkeepsie and presented their colors to Governor Clinton. (These colors had been made in France and had only just been received.)

Such is a thumbnail outline of the military importance of this part of the Hudson and its historic events. I feel sure that Dr. MacCracken and Mrs. Finkel will bear out what I have told you in these few minutes.

We here at Washington's Headquarters are happy that you chose to make your annual outing a visit to this place, the oldest Historic Site in the United States. Thank you for your attention and may you have good luck and enjoyment for the rest of your tour.

Jenny Lind was offered some thirty thousand pounds to sing at the Imperial Concerts at the Court of Russia. Jenny's significant negative to the offer was "Hungary."

Great is the triumph of genius, when the nightingale is too much for the bear.

The Journal & Poughkeepsie Eagle, May 11, 1850

38

THE RESTORATION AT NEW WINDSOR CANTONMENT* Frederick P. Todd

It is a great pleasure to welcome your distinguished society to the New Windsor Cantonment and to be able to greet you in this historic building. It is always nice to have you here, but your meeting today is particularly appropriate in view of our own developments and planning.

The New Windsor Cantonment is an historic restoration, one of a great many such developments, large and small, in this country.

You are interested in one or more of these enterprises yourself. I hope you will forgive me then if I lead you on a brief exploration into the philosophy of historic restoration.

To begin with, we can divide such restorations in several ways. For example, we can chvide them into those that have money and those that don't — and you know where the Cantonment stands on that division.

It is also possible to categorize them according to their method of restoring or reconstructing buildings. This is an often perplexing matter, but one of vital importance to us here. No matter how one approaches this problem, the keynote we find — the thing to be str:ved for — is validity. One's aim must be the integrity of the restoration and yet it is important for all of us in this business to avoid narrow definitions of what is val:d and what is honest.

First, there are those historic restorations whose buildings have been restored or reconstructed on their original sites. Williamsburg is the classic example; every structure there is just where it stood or:ginally, and each has been given the exact appearance — as exactly as careful research and expert knowledge can make it — as it had originally. Almost always in restorations of this sort the buildings are brought back to a precise moment of time. The 1760-1770 period is, I believe, the one selected by Will:amsburg. Every structure that stood in the town during those years must be represented and those which were not there in those years must be torn down.

At the other end of the spectrum are such out-of-door museums as Sturbridge and Shelbourne and, closer to us, Old Museum Village in Monroe. These restorations are located on sites which were nothing *A resume of the address made by Colonel Frederick P. Todd, Director and Historian-at Arms of the New Windsor Cantonment and Temple Hill, on October 10, 1964, the occas_cn of a piig image made to the h_storic site by members of the Dutchess County Historical Society and the East Fishkill Historical Society.

39

but open fields before the reconstruction started. Every house and barn and shed at Sturbridge has been moved from some other place, often miles away. However, bear in mind that every structure there is an original, selected as representing some interesting or characteristic type or period. They have been gathered together and arranged and labeled, as it were, to form a genuine out-of-door museum.

A far-out variety of this sort of museum is illustrated by Plimouth Village in Massachusetts. Here a group of seventeenth century houses, all constructed in the last few years from the ground up, illustrate the town of Plymouth as it existed during the first winter the Fathers spent there. It isn't even built on the same land where the village orig:nally stood. This land today is part of a modern city and it was impossible to get control of it. Plimouth Village stands five or so miles down the coast from Plymouth. Neither location nor structures — nor any part of them — are original.

Is one of these kinds of outdoor museums more valid than another? Does the loss of originality mean a loss of integrity? Is a reconstruction less honest than a reproduction? To these questions there will be as many answers and opinions as there are men in the business.

My own view is that integrity is a matter of the heart and the mind, not a matter of the degree of originality of buildings or of land.

To be sure, it is much more satisfactory to work with original things. The actual object is always more effective for museum display and interpretation than a reproduction of it. But a reproduction is better than nothing and in some cases can be made into a more effective exhibit than an original. The question of integrity depends upon the thought and care with which a reproduction is made and the fact that it is always clearly identified for what it is.

Here at New Windsor we have had to approach the problem of reconstruction from all the points of view I have mentioned. We are located on the org:nal camp site. The building you are in (The Temple) is exactly where it fi rst stood although it has been reproduced from the ground up. On the other hand, the structure just to the southwest of us is an authentic officers' hut (the only one to survive from the Revolution anywhere in the country) which stood on these camp grounds in 1783. Yet, it does not stand where it once did; indeed, we have no idea just where in the Cantonment it was originally located.

The buildings we are putting up around the Parade, just outside this building, are neither originals nor are they on original sites; nor 40

as a matter of fact, do we have positive evidence that buildings exactly like these stood in the Cantonment. We are doing here what was done at Sturbridge; we are creating a museum of military buildings around the Parade in order to give our visitors a quick view of what a cantonment was like. We are arbitrarily creating a military camp in capsule form.

All of this leads to a question I want to put before you and it concerns buildings, and especially one building, in Dutchess County.

You will recall that a year or so ago we rescued the Southard Dutch barn in Fishkill — when it was about to be destroyed by the approach of Route 84. We have it over here now, in wraps, ready to reconstruct. The stone footings are already in place.

You may also recall that there was some criticism of this move.

Opinions were expressed that the barn should never have left Fishkill and that it does not belong in the Cantonment. We are now faced with a situation that could be even more disturbing. We are hoping to reconstruct the Verplanck house, Tvlount Gulian, once the headquarters of Baron von Steuben and where the second meeting was held to form the Society of the Concinnati.

I imagine you all know the house I refer to. It stood just north of Beacon, overlooking the Hudson. It burned to the ground September 5, 1931, and what is left of it is now enshrouded in vines and trees.

Some years ago I penetrated to within a few feet of the ruins without being able to see them, so dense was the vegetation.

Mr. C. Kenneth Clinton, one of our trustees and a distinguished architect, has interested himself in its reconstruction. He has made numerous photographs and taken countless measurements of the ruins.

He has located pictures, plans and verbal descriptions of the original house.

From these he has worked up elaborate scale drawings. If funds can be raised he, and we, will be ready to reconstruct Mount Gulian.

But where should it be placed?

The logical and perfectly correct answer would be: where it was, of course. But is this so logical? Not only has an apartment house development been erected within a hundred or so feet of the original location of the house, but plans now exist, so I hear, to incorporate the site itself in the same or similar development.

Failing in putting it back where it stood originally, should we (or some other group) do as was done with Boscobel, move it to another hill-site overlooking the Hudson? But, where could we find and how could we procure such a site? And, even if a site could be purchased, are we prepared to expend the very considerable amount of money 41

(I feel $2,000,000 is a conservative est:mate of what Boscobel has cost) needed to create all of the facilities one must have to render the building accessible and pleasing to the visiting public?

We should like to place Mount Gulian in the New Windsor Cantonment. We have a fine location for it, on a hill, not overlooking the Hudson, to be sure, but a fine site for a gentleman's house. We will have by that time all of the necessary facilities for visitors, all the administrative and grounds-keeping personnel and equipment required.

Finally, we own the land.

Does this relocation of Mount Gulian sound to you like sacrilege?

Does the plan lack integrity? Admittedly, the new house would not be Mount Gulian, but, no matter what we might call it, are not the architectural lines and the romantic history of this fine old home worth saving? I think they are.

Fish-Kill, April 24 [1783] We hear that the communication of the North River is opened . . .

Already do we begin to experience the blessed return of peace.

The New-York Packet, and the American Advertiser April 24, 1783

42

"LIFE'S RACE WELL RUN" Amy Ver Nooy

Life's race well run, Life's work all done, Life's victory won, Now cometh rest.

These familiar lines were written in 1879 by Edward Hazen Parker, a practicing physician and surgeon in Dutchess County, "while riding in his gig." He felt that many medical men did a large share of their thinking at such times. He was one of the horse-and-buggy doctors and his practice took him on long trips over the roads of the county, and like most of his contemporaries, he drove his own horse.

At this particular time ample opportunity for contemplation and self-communion was afforded when he was obliged to take one of those long drives each day to see a patient who lived at some distance.

When Dr. Parker composed the poem, Professor William H. Crosby, the father of Mrs. John A. Roosevelt, was living in Poughkeepsie to be near his daughter and her family. He was a former professor of Latin and Greek at Rutgers College and of Latin at Columbia College. He had become a close friend of Dr. Parker and was impressed with the simple words of the poem. He made a translation of it into Latin verse and, at his request the two versions were printed in the New York Observer in the issue of May 13, 1880, with the names of both men attached — Dr. Parker's to the English and Professor Crosby's to the translation: "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." — Hebrews iv:9.

"Itaque Relinquitur Sabbatimus Populo Dei." Vulgate.

Cursus vitae bene actus, Opus vitae omne factum, Laurus vitae acquisita; Nunc venit quies.

Life's race well run, Life's work all done, Life's victory won, Now cometh rest.

Sorrows are o'er, Trials no more, Ship reacheth shore, Now cometh rest.

Res adversae praeterlapsae, Res tentantes non inventae, Navis littus jam att!ngens; Nunc venit quies.

Faith yields to sight, Day follows night, Jesus gives light, Now cometh rest.

Cedit nunc fides vivendo, Dies nocti supervenit, Lux a Jesu impertitur; Nunc venit quies.

We awhile wait, But soon or late, Death opes the gate, Then cometh rest.

Breve tern pus nos manemus, Sed ant jam aut saltem sero Portam nobis mors recludit — Tunc venit quies.

43

Following the death of President Garfield, September 19, 1881, four lines expressing the same sentiment were placed at the head of his coffin as he lay in state in the catafalque in Memorial Park, Cleveland, Ohio. The Cleveland version ran: Life's race well run, Life's work well done, Life's crown well won, Now comes rest.

The verse received wide publicity and favorable comment and there was much speculation as to its source. The Cleveland Sun endeavored to discover the author and the search uncovered an unusual and interesting series of events and coincidence.

More than a year later, it was disclosed that, during the illness of President Garfield, a friend in Boston had sent to Dr. C. C. Baldwin, president of the Western Reserve Historical Society, "an exceedingly pretty poem in the Latin language." Dr. Baldwin admired its simple beauty and had copies printed which he distributed among his literary friends. He asked one of them, NIL Levi Bauer, to render it into English. While working on a translation, with Dr. Baldwin and Mr. E. R. Perkins, Mr. Bauer expressed his belief that the Latin version was not the original and that the poem had fi rst been written in English.

However, they re-translated it into English, as follows: Life's race well run, Life's work well done, Life's crown well won And now comes rest.

All troubles o'er, We strive no more, Ship touching shore; And now comes rest.

Faith yields to sight, Day conquers night, From Christ comes light; And now comes rest.

Brief time we wait, For soon or late, Death swings the gate; And then comes rest.

It was from this double translation in Dr. Baldwin's possession that the excerpt was made for the inscription on the Garfield bier.

When Dr. Parker learned of the use of his verse he supposed it was "the imperfect remembrance of my lines as printed in the Observer," and said that, except that he was gratified that they should have lingered in anyone's memory, he thought no more about it.

44

Due to the wide publicity given them at the time of President Garfield's funeral, the same lines were used in a number of instances.

In the summer of 1882, they appeared as part of an epitaph in Brompton Cemetery, England, where the verse was used on a tombstone with the following inscription: "In memory of Elizabeth Jones, who died May 18, 1881 ; for fourteen years the faithful servant and friend of Alexandra, Princess of Wales, by whom this monument is erected."

Still the author of the lines had not been discovered and there was further publicity. Inquiries concerning the writer were received from the United States Consul F. H. Mason at Basel, Switzerland, and from Albert D. Shaw, United States Consul in England. These inquiries were brought to the attention of a Dr. John Mills of Northwold, Altringham, England, who had composed a very similar stanza in 1878, which he had offered for use on the gravestone of his brother.

Dr. Mills' lines ran: His work well done; — His race well run, His crown well won, — Here let him rest.

There had not been sufficient space on the stone for the quatrain and Dr. Mills was displeased with his attempts to compress the sentiment and it was not used. Later, he used two lines of the verse in an obituary of an old friend, Dr. W. B. Hodgson, Professor of Political Economy at Edinburgh University, who died August 24, 1880. However, his tribute to Dr. Hodgson did not appear in print before the very similar lines were used in connection with the Garfield obsequies and given such wide international circulation. (Later, both Dr. Parker and Dr. Mills were intrigued by the likeness of the thoughts expressed in such similar language in two widely separated instances and both agreed that it was a case of pure coincidence.)

The search brought to light another coincidence. A funeral ode, written after the death of President Garfield, was a longer poem of eight verses. The first line of the sixth verse began with the words, "Life's work well done," which was a direct quotation from the words used on the bier of the late president. The ode was composed by a Dr. Parker, — the Reverend Dr. E. P. Parker of Hartford, a complete stranger to Dr. Edward Hazen Parker.

All this time the Cleveland Sun and its literary editor had been searching for the writer of the original version. The Librarian of Congress and the librarian of Harvard University had been unable to find the quotation in any anthology and Mrs. Garfield could not help.

Letters were written to a number of prominent literary men and, 45

finally, one addressed to the Reverend Dr. Howard Crosby of New York City, a distinguished Greek scholar and an eminent clergyman, brought the desired identification in September of 1882. He wrote the newspaper, stating quite simply, that the Latin version had been made by his brother, Professor William H. Crosby of Poughkeepsie, from an original poem written by Dr. Edward Hazen Parker, a physician of Poughkeepsie. He enclosed a copy of the original verses which Dr. Parker had sent him. And, thus, to the satisfaction of all, solved the mystery.

There had been so much interest aroused, with speculation in literary circles concerning the authorship that Dr. Parker was persuaded to prepare a printed statement of the facts in the case. He published an attractive pamphlet, with illustrations by Professor Henry Van Ingen of Vassar College, which he presented to a number of friends.

Mr. Henry Booth was a recipient of one of the booklets which he later gave to the local history collection of the Adriance Memorial Library. In his pamphlet Dr. Parker modestly explained the circumstances under which he had composed the poem, "early in 1879, on the occasion of the death of a valued friend of myself and family, being the result of reflections on her busy, useful, Christian life, when I found myself obliged to take daily a long drive to see a patient."

The family friend was Lydia Ingraham Phinney, who died February 11, 1879. Shortly after the death of Miss Phinney, the lines were printed. They were set to music and sung a month later in Christ Church, Poughkeepsie, on the occasion of the funeral of Mrs. Jane Eliza Heydock, the mother of Mrs. Parker. Two years later, the hymn was used again at the funeral of Mrs. Sarah Olcott Heydock Parker, wife of Dr. Parker. After that the hymn was used on several occasions in Christ Church.

Dr. Parker ended his explanation, "In conclusion, I will acknowledge that it touches me deeply that these simple lines have reached so many hearts."

The fi rst verse, which has been so extensively quoted, has been included in current anthologies of quotations. The lines appear as Dr. Parker wrote them and are ascribed to him, but the accompanying note states that they were Stanza I of a funeral ode on James A. Garfield. *

*

*

Dr. Parker had come to Poughkeepsie in 1858 and affiliated with the Dutchess County Medical Society. When that organization was celebrating its centennial in 1906, Dr. Guy Carleton Bayley made an historical address which was later printed and in which he gave, as 46

far as he could discover, a record of all of the medical men of the county, most of whom had affiliated with the society. Among them, a very few were chosen for particular mention and Dr. Parker was one of these. Dr. Bayley quoted from an article published after the death of Dr. Parker, in a Commemorative Biographical Record of Dutchess County, which said in part: Edward Hazen Parker, son of Hon. Isaac and Sarah (Ainsworth) Parker, was born in the city of Boston, Mass., in 1823. Dr. Parker graduated from Dartmouth College in 1846, and received his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College in 1848. In the same year he was appointed Lecturer on Anatomy and Physiology at Bowdoin Medical College, and for the following nine years was editor of the New Hampshire Medical Journal. In 1853, Dr. Parker was called to the chair of Physiology and Pathology in the New York Medical College and associated himself in practice with Dr. Fordyce Barker in New York City. He at that time established the New York Medical Monthly, which he continued to edit personally for many years with great ability and success. In 1854 he received the degree of A.M. from Trinity College. In 1858, as the result of overwork, Dr. Parker had serious trouble with his eyes, necessitating his removal from the city, and in the outdoor life of a country practice to seek the recovery of his health. He came to Poughkeepsie, where as a general practitioner and consultant, he practiced his profession for nearly forty years. He was elected president of the New York State Medical Society in 1862 and, in the same year and in the succeeding one, went to the front as a volunteer surgeon in the service of New York State. The doctor was one of the trustees of, and visitlng surgeon to St. Barnabas Hospital from its opening until it was closed in 1887. In 1887 he was appointed visiting surgeon to Vassar Brothers' Hospital, and elected president of the medical board . . .

Dr. Parker was a physic'an of signal competency and sk.11, and as a surgeon he had few superiors. He was a man of very fine fibre, of unusual cultivation, and of hlgh scholarly attainments. Hs classical educat. on was sound and liberal, his sympathies most acute. He was also possessed of a fine poetical talent, which, in his busy life, was less frequently exercised than his friends could have desired.

The article concluded with the quotation of the first verse of the celebrated poem and added: "The poem applies most fittingly to his life which was marked through the long years of his devotion to his work by a conspicuous purity of character, great unselfishness and self sacrifice."

In his historical address, Dr. Bayley mentioned the death, in 1857, of Dr. Walter Hughson who had been the family physician in Dutchess County for James Roosevelt. James Roosevelt was then living at "Mount Hope," his estate just north of Poughkeepsie, and his brother, John A., was living across the road at "Rosedale," not far from the Crosby estate. James had asked his New York Medical adviser, Dr. Fordyce Barker, to recommend a competent man to settle in Poughkeepsie just at the time Dr. Parker was looking for such a location. Dr. Parker came to Dutchess County and remained here the rest of his life. He was the physician and friend of both Roosevelt 47

families and continued as such after "Mount Hope" had burned, in 1867, and James Roosevelt had purchased "Springwood" at Hyde Park and had removed there.

It was this Dr. Parker who attended Mrs. James Roosevelt when Franklin D. Roosevelt was born January 30, 1882. With no telephone service at that date, the doctor was summoned early in the day. In his Franklin Roosevelt at Hyde Park, Mr. Olin Dows has reproduced the note, written on a telegraph blank by the proud father, announcing to the John A. Roosevelt family the arrival of his son. The note was left at "Rosedale" by Dr. Parker on his return to Poughkeepsie from Hyde Park: Jan. 30th, 1882 Dear Ellen I have only a moment before Dr. Parker leaves to write you that Sallie has a bouncing boy. Poor child, she has had a very hard time. The boy was born at 9 P.M. and Dr. P. has been here since this A.M. 9:20.

Sallie sends her love; her mother is with her.

In Mrs. Kleeman's biography of Sara Delano Roosevelt the physician is mentioned several times. in comments on the diaries kept

by Mrs. Roosevelt: The diary's entries for each of the days following the child's birth had been headed, "Dr. Parker's Second Vrsit," or "fourth," or "s"xth."

After that "the doctor said the - e was no occasicn for his making any MD e visits:" but Mr. Roosevelt asked him to come again on the ten,h day . . .

When he was three months old Dr. Pa ker came to vaccinate h:m, a process that had to be repeated eight ernes before it took! . . .

[In 1882] thcy deeded to go to Europe. Meanwhile during the few days they remained at Hyde Park, Fianki"n became i_l. H s mother wrcte: "Franklin is feverish. He has becn trying to learn to swim in the river lately, and Dr. Pa ker thinks it is ma1a.ia. James and I hate to start with the dear little man ill, 1- u'.

Farl:e ra.-r-s the sea voyage is the best tleng to break it up . . .

When they came to Poughkeepsie, the Parker family consisted of the doctor, his wife, two daughters, Agnes Olcott (1854-1904) and Helen Choate (1856-1917) ; and Mrs. Jane E. Heydock, mother of Mrs. Parker. Two other children, Henry Francis (1860-1927) who became a phys'cian, and Mary Webster (1866) who married Charles Martin Niles, were born in Poughkeepsie. The first wife, Sarah Olcott He,:dock Parker, died November 7, 1881; aged 54 years.

With their arrival in the city the family began a long and close association with Christ Church, then located on Market Street. Dr. Parker served his church throughout the rest of his life, as vestryman, warden and delegate to the d:ocesan conventions. He was a close friend of the rectors of the parish and was especially helpful at the time of the erection of the present edifice on the property which the church owned and which had been for many years the "English 48

Burying Ground." The other members of his family were active in the work of the parish, Mrs. Parker and the daughters serving on the various committees devoted to women's work in the church. Dr. Parker was a generous contributor of both time and money. After his death, his daughters presented a silver chalice and paten for the communion service, in memory of their parents. A tablet memorializing the long and devoted service of Dr. Parker hangs in the church.

Dr. Parker was twice married. After the death of his first wife, he married, in 1883, Jeannie Catherine, the daughter of the Reverend Dr. Daniel Grosvenor Wright, owner and principal of the Poughkeepsie Female Academy. They had one son, Grosvenor Ainsworth Parker, born in 1885. Dr. Wright and his family were also staunch members of Christ Church.

In addition to his devotion to his church and to St. Barnabas Hospital and to Vassar Brothers Hospital, after it opened in 1887, Dr. Parker had many other interests in the city. In 1871, when the first division of the Poughkeepsie and Eastern Railroad was opened, a grand celebration was held and Dr. Parker was one of those who made the first trip on that section of the road and was one of the speakers at the banquet which followed. In 1872, he became a member of the Board of Education and served several terms thereafter. In 1874-75, he was a member of the Board of Health and was one of those who organized the Poughkeepsie Society of Natural Science. He was a member of the Masonic order, an officer of the Poughkeepsie Chapter No. 172, and was for several years a trustee of the Poughkeeps:e Female Academy, where his daughters were pupils. In 1879, he was one of those who formed the Charity Organization Society, the first attempt at centralized charity in the community, and in 1883, was a member of the Board of Police Commissioners of the city.

Most of the prominent professional and business men of the period following the war were members of the Poughkeepsie Literary Club, the Poughkeepsie Lyceum, The Club, and the Poughkeepsie Society of Natural Science. Dr. Parker and Dr. Crosby served in various offices, contributed papers and addressed the groups on subjects in their own fields. Dr. Parker exhibited a microscope and spoke on "The Process of Cutting Thin Sections . . . " One of his papers, "Edible Fungi," was later described as "the fullest paper on that subject that has been printed in this country, so little had been done in that way."

When Vassar Brothers Institute was formed in 1882, some of the older societies were absorbed as sections of the new institute. The new building, erected on the site of the old brewery and the gift of John Guy Vassar and Matthew Vassar, Jr., provided a meeting place, a 49

home for the various museum items which were being assembled and a commodius hall for the lectures, many of which were open to the general publ:c. The present-day course of lectures provided by Vassar Brothers Institute is a popular educational factor in the city.

Although Dr. Parker was known to have composed other poems, there seems to have been only one other which has appeared in print.

When Miss Helen W. Reynolds was preparing the manuscript for the first volume of her Records of Christ Church, she came across a copy of a few verses which Dr. Parker had written and which she has quoted in her history of the church. She told that Dr. Parker had entered the Sunday School room in the dusk of a winter afternoon and found the sexton "kneeling at a prie-dieu on the platform in devout and audible supplication." The physician was deeply touched and later set down his impressions in sympathetic and appealing verse.

Dr. Parker died November 10, 1896. On the morning of his funeral a meeting of the Dutchess County Medical Society was held at the court house. The minutes of that meeting report that the death of the surgeon was very keenly felt by the members and that Dr. Tuthill had talked at great length, eulogizing his friend, and had presented resolutions which were later engrossed and sent to the family.

The minutes referred to Dr. Parker as "one of its able and most industrious members, whose professional researches have enriched our meetings with most valuable papers and have placed their author in the foremost rank of the cultivators of medical science." It was a wellearned tribute and not presented lightly.

The members of the medical society attended the funeral in a body and acted, with the vestry of the church, as escort to the procession. There was no eulogy; there was only the simple and appropriate burial service of the Episcopal Church and the singing of Dr. Parker's own hymn. His grave in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery is marked with a simple stone and a military emblem, "Post 20, GAR," with a flag, in recognition of his service in the late war. *

*

In telling the circumstances under which he had written his verses, Dr. Parker said they had been composed following the death of an esteemed friend of his family, as he contemplated her busy, useful, Christian life.

The woman who had inspired the tribute was Lydia Ingraham Phinney, the daughter of a physician, Dr. Sturgis Phinney, and his wife, Alice Tobey, natives of Massachusetts. They came to the Hudson valley and resided at Catskill until about 1840, when they purchased 50

the property at 90 Market Street, Poughkeepsie. Dr. Phinney- died the next year and the widow and members of the family lived in the house for nearly forty years.

At the time the Phinney family came to Poughkeepsie the household consisted of Dr. and Mrs. Phinney and four daughters and one son; Aurilla Howland (1817-1854) and her husband, Henry Coffin, who made his home with the family; Sarah Haskell (1821-1888) who married, 1845, Henry C. Taylor; Lydia Ingraham (1823-1879) who did not marry; Franklin S. (1827-1876) who conducted a drug business in the city for some years; and Alice Rebecca (1831-1897) who married twice, Richard Richardson James and, after his death, Henry Livingston Thomas.

Miss Lydia Phinney was a devoted member of Christ Church and, like many other single women of her generation, spent much of her time serving others. She lived a block from the church and a few rods from the parish school. She probably taught in the school; there is no record of the teachers. She did gather, over the years, a large number of children from the school and the Sunday School and sponsored their baptisms. Together with Mrs. Parker and other pious women of the church, she formed a visiting committee and called on the poor and sick and undertook many of those other tasks known as "church work." She served as treasurer of the Board of Lady Managers of St. Barnabas Hospital, the only hospital in the city at the time.

Lydia Phinney died February 11, 1879 and her funeral was held at Christ Church. In those years obituaries printed in the newspapers were usually brief and many times a simple death notice of one or two lines sufficed to notify acquaintances. Occasionally a friend wrote an appreciative item which was published in the newspaper and such was the case in this instance. Miss Phinney was the subject of a three-inch paragraph which said, in part, "She has been so many years, in the church and Sunday School an earnest, faithful laborer, her loss will be greatly felt and in many a home of the poor and suffering can be found testimony of the love and respect in which she was held." Her funeral was held in the church she loved and a short time thereafter, through the efforts of Mrs. Parker and Mrs. Robert E. Taylor, a tablet to her memory was placed in the church. And, Dr. Parker expressed the feeling of his family in the comforting lines which have been used on so many occasions since that time.

In 1932, descendants of Dr. Phinney presented to the Adriance Memorial Library, Poughkeepsie, a large portrait of his three oldest daughters, a portrait which had hung for years, during the occupancy 51

of the family, in the home across the way at 90 Market Street. It is a delightful portrait, painted by an unknown artist about 1826, and was brought with them when the family moved to Poughkeepsie. The many patrons who frequent the library have become acquainted with and have admired the pleasing little girls of the early nineteenth century and it seems most fitting that they have come back to the neighborhood where they lived more than a hundred years ago.

Most of these people are resting in the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery and some of the lines composed by Dr. Parker are appropriately included in some of the tombstone inscriptions.

REFERENCES In addition to the files of newspapers, the file of village and city directories of Poughkeepsie in the Adriance Memorial Library, Poughkeepsie, the records in the office of the County Clerk of Dutchess County and the records of the Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery, the following works of reference have been consulted: Bayley, Guy Carleton: An Historical Address Delivered Before the Dutchess County Medical Society at its Centennial Meeting at Vassar Institute, January 10, 1906, . . . Poughkeepsie, 1906.

Bartlett, John, comp.: Familiar Quotations, . . . , L:tee, Brown & Co., New York, 1955.

Commemorat:ve Biographical Record of Duchess County, New York, . . . , J. H. Beers & Co., Chicago, 1897.

Dows, Olin: Franklin Roosevelt at Hyde Park, American Artists Group, c1949.

Hoyt's New Cyclopedia of Practical Quotations, Funk & Wagnalls Company, New York.

Kleeman, Rita Halle: Gracious Lady; the Life of Sara Delano Roosevelt, D. Appleton and Company, New York, 1935.

Parker, E. H., M.D.: "Life's Race Well Run," with a Sketch of its History, Hiram S. Wiltsie, Poughkeepsie, 1884.

Platt, Edmund, ed.: The Eagle's History of Poughkeepsie, . . . 1683-1905, Platt & Platt, Poughkeepsie, 1905.

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BOOKS Prologue to Independence; The Trials of James Alexander, American, 1715-1756. By Henry Noble MacCracken. (New York, James H. Heinemann, Inc. [c1964]. 134 pp., notes, bibliography, index. $4.95) Here is a book for our time and surely a man for our time, for James Alexander in his thinking is so abreast of our present day.

This is a vivid biography of the canny Scot, who came to New York in 1715 and was the first American businessman, the first corporation attorney, the first trust officer and organizer of the first mutual fund.

Alexander had just turned 24, when he arrived in August of 1715. Of all his characteristics, his greatest was his passion for independency. "Trained as he was in law, engineering and business accounting, richly grounded in a good classical education," he soon came to be the leading attorney in both New York and New Jersey.

He lived to peruse and examine, — to set down his thoughts. He inaugurated the system of records that has made New York history outstanding among the colonies. He collected and bound the treaties with the Indian nations. Here is the story of honest surveys, duly recorded. Here are the beginnings of due process of law and constitutional checks and balances.

The book has particular interest for us in Dutchess County because it was Alexander who carried out the settlement of the disputed boundary of the Oblong. And finally, after the settlement of the boundary between Connecticut and New York, came the great increase of population for Dutchess County, — the population trebling in twenty years. And, now in 1964, we are going through another upsurge.

Alexander, with John Peter Zenger, founded the first political newspaper in the colonies, the New York Weekly Journal. It was Alexander who wrote the brief for the Zenger trial. All of his writings were based on his belief that public events must not be kept private. He had no patience with people who said that things are all wrong, but what can we do about it?

Mary Sprat Alexander (her mother was a DePeyster) is a woman to know also. She too has the feeling of today's woman, for she had a home, a large family which she successfully managed, and she also ran a large business of her own.

If you have always found the dispute and settlement of the Oblong hard to understand, read Prologue to Independence.

53

Dr. MacCracken's latest book is good reading. The author is thorough in his research; original and skilled in the use of our English language. As he says of Alexander's writings, "the whole color and feel of the time is there mingled with jokes and nudges for the knowing."

Be a knowing one.

Evangeline Moore Darrow *

Dutchess County Data Books: Prepared by the Industrial Committee of the Board of Supervisors and the Dutchess County Planning Board, dated January 1964. It has 222 pages, mimeographed, with a flexible binding, and sells for $2.50.

This is by far the most comprehensive publication of its kind ever produced in the county. It is a compendium of useful information on the area.

It has sections on the history, especially pertaining to industry; county organization, with the personnel of its various boards, appointed and elected; industry and trade; employment and income; population statistics and housing; business services; utilities; community facilities, educational, recreational, health and welfare, religious; water supply; transportation and taxes, etc. All of these various chapters are supplemented with numerous charts, maps and diagrams.

The book provides information on anything and everything concerning the county. Of course, some of the current data is of 1964 and will shortly be out of date, but it will be a measuring stick of growth and development. The statistics are in compact form for ready reference.

It is a complete reference volume on Dutchess County, all in one book which will be of continual use.

The Editor

Several "paperbacks" (actually, some are pamphlets) have been recently printed and should have a wide distribution in the area. They were published by various churches which are celebrating anniversaries, all the way from one hundred to two hundred and fifty years. They 54

are illustrated and contain historical sketches of the organizations and edifices. Of course, the genealogists would have been pleased if the early records of baptisms and marriages in the churches had been included, especially for the years before the State of New York began to keep its vital statistics.

The History of the Church of the Regeneration, Pine Plains, New York, 1859-1964, compiled and edited by Harry E. Resseguie, is a readable and attractive church history. It was printed by the Connecticut Country Press of Lakeville and contains one hundred pages, with the pre-parish history (the scattered services of the Episcopal Church in the neighborhood), the organization of the church, an interesting and sympathetic record of the trials and tribulations, the successes and rejofcings over the years and the bright outlook for the future. Sections tell of the church music, the Sunday School and women's activities. Biographical notes on the clergymen who served the parish include tributes to the Right Reverend Horatio Potter, native of Dutchess County and for many years Bishop of the Diocese of New York, and to the Venerable Hcnry L. Ziegenfuss, Archdeacon of Dutchess. A chronological list of the officers of the parish, wardens and vestrymen, presents a roster of dedicated workers in its history.

In the past few years, Mr. Walter V. Miller, Historian of Columbia County, has compiled the histories of several churches in his neighborhood: The Two Hundred Fiftieth 'Inniversary of the Kinderhook Reformed Church, Kinderhook, New York, 1712-1962, gives a history of that parish. It contains bfographical sketches and portraits, when available, of former pastors, illustrations of the earlier church buildings, the exterior and interior of the present church. The pamphlet includes a list of the current members of the congregation and the officers of the church and the organizations connected with it. It was printed in 1962 by the Chatham Courier Company and contains sixty-seven pages.

St. John's Dutch Reformed Church, Upper Red Hook, N. Y., is a pamphlet of eighty-eight pages, published in 1963, in celebration of the 175th anniversary of the church, which was incorporated July 19, 1799, as "St. John's Low Dutch Reformed Church in the town of Rh'nebeck, in the county of Dutchess and state of New York." It was renewed January 3, 1817, as the "Reformed Protestant Dutch Church in the town of Red Hook, County of Dutchess, and state of New York, commonly called St. John's Church."

53

The booklet contains a history of the organization and of the old Red Church of Tivoli, biographical sketches and portraits of the various pastors who have served both churches and descriptions of the festivities and celebrations which have marked previous anniversaries.

The 125th Anniversary of the Nichols Methodist Church, Elizaville, New York, is a smaller pamphlet. It gives the history of the organization and a list of those who have served in the Elizaville neighborhood since the advent of Methodism there. The official board members and stewards of the congregation are listed.

Fiftieth Anniversary of the First Methodist Church, and One Hundred-Twentieth Anniversary of the Parish, North Germantown, New York, is the program which has just been prepared for the First Methodist Church of North Germantown. In addition to the outline for the celebration of the one hundred and twentieth anniversary of the church, to be held January 10-17, 1965, it contains a list of the present membership, officers of the several parish organizations, the resident pastors over the years and an historical sketch of Methodism in North Germantown, dating back to visits of the Reverend Freeborn Garretson and his "Young Men." The celebration also commemorates the fiftieth anniversary of the present edifice and there is included a reproduction of a photograph of the official board of the church.

The Editor

56

BIBLE RECORDS OF DUTCHESS COUNTY FAMILIES POLHEMUS FAMILY BIBLE Old and New Testaments. New York. Published by Whiting and Watson; J. Seymour, printer. 1813.

The Bible is owned by Mr. and Mrs. Clyde S. Polhemus of Poughkeepsie, New York. Mr. Polhemus is a descendant of James Polhemus (1792-1869).

New York, Monday, 8th of Sept., 1817. This Book was purchased by John Low for James Polhemus.

MARRIAGES James Polhemus and Catherine Hadley was Married on the 31st of December, 1816, by the Reverend Dr. Burke, New-York.

On the 11th of September, 1824, James Polhemus was married to his 2nd wife, Miss Mary Smith, at the house of her Father, Mr. Wm. Smith, in Islip, L. Island, by the Rev. Mr. Tuttle.

William S. Polhemus was married to Sarah Manning, July 6th, 1847, at Po'keepsie, N. Y. By the Rev. Mr. Fay. Mary Adelia Polhemus was married to John B. Hunt, October 13th, 1857.

By Rev. Mr. Chase, New York City.

BIRTHS James Polhemus was borne on Long Island on the 3d of Sept., 1792, and brought up in New York.

Catherine Polhemus, daughter of George Hadley, was borne on the 22d of October, 1796, in N. York.

Mary Polhemus, daughter of Wm. Smith, was born in Isl:p, Long Island, on the 25th of November, 1802.

Catherine Ann Polhemus was born in the city of New York, at No. 57 Vesey Street, on the 11th of July, 1819.

William S. Polhemus was born in Islip, L. I., 7th of September, 1825.

James Polhemus, jun., was born in New York, corner of Burrows and Sixth Street, on the 29th of October, 1827. Now Grove St. & Waverly.

John Po:hemus was born in New York, corner of Grove & Sixth Streets, on the 3d of December, 1829.

Israel Polhemus was born in Woodbridge, New Jersey, April 2d, 1832.

Mary Amelia Polhemus was born in New York, corner of Bowery and 11th Street, on the 14th of September, 1833.

Mary Adelia Polhemus was born in New York, Corner of 3d Avenue & 13th St., on the 2d of November, 1835.

Lou:za Ann Polhemus was born in New York, corner of 3d Avenue and 13th St., on the 13th March, 1838.

Freelove Antonett Polhemus was born in New York, corner of 3d Avenue & 43d Street, on the 13th of November, 1840.

Isaac Polhemus was Born the 29th December, 1847, at 5 A.M., corner of 43rd St. & 3rd Avenue.

DEATHS Catherine Polhemus died on Wednesday morning about half past one o'clock, September 10th, 1823; aged 26 years, 10 months and 18 Days.

Israel Polhemus Died in New York, corner of Bowery & 11th St., the 14th day of May, 1832; aged 6 weeks.

Mary Amelia Polhemus Died on Sunday morning, the 27th July, 1834; aged 10 months and 13 days, and Burned in Carmine St. Church Vault.

Louiza Ann Polhemus Died 13th April, 1840; aged 2 years and one month, and Buried in Carmine St. Church Vault.

57

Fieelove Antonett Polhemus Died 26th July, 1847, at Y2 past 4 O'Clock, A.M., corner ot 43d St. & 3d Avenue; aged 6 years, 8 months and 13 Days; & Buried .n Carmine St. Church Vault.

Isaac Polhemus Died 11th November, 1848, A' before 3 O'Clock, A.M., at the corner of 43d St. & 3d Av. ; aged 10 months & 13 Days & Buried in Carmine St. Church Vault.

John Polhemus Died June 11th, 1860; aged 30 years, 6 months and 18 days; and Buried in Cipress Hill cemetery, L. Island.

James Polhemus, Sr., Died Dec. 21st, 1869, 5% O'clock, P.M. At his residence, 343 East 45th st., in the 78th year of his age. Interred in Flushing cemetery.

James Polhemus died 18th December, 1873; aged 46 years, 3 months, 20 days.

Buried in Flushing Cemtery.

Agness Polhemus, wife of Isaac Peck, Died in Flushing, Long Island, on the 27th Dec., 1859; in the 70th year of her age.

Isaac Peck Died 9th May, 1860; in the 72d year of his age.

Mary Smith, 2nd Wife of James Polhemus, Sr., died April 28, 1888. Buried at Islip in her Father's family plot.

SS