TH E V AN C O RTLAN DT MAN O R

ANONYMO'S ADDRESS READ BY O THE LATE MRS . JAMES MARSLAND LAWT N

PRESIDENT- GENERAL

THE ORD ER OF COLONIAL LORD S OF MANORS IN AMERICA W m

L W r n 9 n WTM‘ WM E a'o THE SI'TH ANN'AL MEETING OF THE NEW YOR'BRANCH HELD IN THE CITY OF NEW YOR' ' 26 1918 JAN ARY ,

V AN CORTLANDT ARMS

Arms 'Argent'four Wings of a windmill conj oined in sa ltire sa ble 'voided le et een five sta rs l a ced crossw e gu s b w p is of the la st . e ' l s Cr st A sta r gu e .

M otto'V irtus sibi munus.

' V AN CORTLANDT MANOR

Cortla n dt The great Manor of , as granted to its first Lord , Cortla n dt l Stephanus Van , extended for ten mi es along the

Hudson River , from the southerly shore of the Croton River

to the line dividing Westchester and Putnam Counties , and ' hi t enty miles east to the Connecticut boundary line . T s large ‘ tract of beautiful country included the present townships of “ Cortla n dt ' , North Salem , Somers and orktown , with a part of ’ the town of Lewisboro . Cortla n dt Stephanus Van , first Lord of the Manor of Cort O Steve n se Cortla n dt soldie r in landt , was the son of laf Van , a _ di his the service of the West In an Company, who left home at D urn ste de v ' Wyk by in Holland , a illage not far from trecht, ' 1638 i . and came to this country in w th Wm ieft, Director '

‘ ’ r l o f ge n e a the Company s North American Provinces . t o The family , an ancient one , had come Holland from

Courland . Their coat armor is recorded in the Hall of Records d O in Amster am , and laf brought his coat of arms , as well as a ' Cor tla n dt portrait of his mother , Catharine Van , with him ' i n H r n 1 3 when he came over with ieft the ship a i g in 6 8 . Olaf Van Cortla n dt became a ma n of wealth and in'uence a n O fi m d held ma ny public f ces in New A sterdam . He married

An n e t e Loocke rma n s urn hout a . j of T , town in Belgium She i was possessed of a considerable fortune , and hav ng made e m large investments in the N w Netherlands , came to A erica o oocke rma n s i with her brother , G vert L to make inqu ries into

the success of her ventures . They had six children , of whom 43 h 1 t e . Stephanus , born in 6 , was eldest He received his c excellent education from tutors . He entered into the publi

‘ life of the City at an unusually early age , his first appointment

t e t i' a n - being to h Cour of Ass es , d at thirty four , he was chosen

- n Mayor , being the first American bor Mayor of New York

C . He 1693 ity entered the Militia , and in _ was the Colonel ' . commanding the ings County _ Militia He was the first in b A Judge _ Admiralty , appointed y Governor Andros'an sso o ciate Judge of the Colonial Court , and was in rapid successi n chosen Chancellor, then Collector of the Revenues and lastly , e Chief Justice of the Supreme Court . H was also a merchant , i h Of w t a place business at, the northeast corner of Pearl and a a Broad Streets , and with all these m ny and v ried claims upon his time , he yet found , or made , leisure to serve the interest

Of . Church , as well as State , as Senior Warden of Trin ity Church Cortla n dt n t Early in his career , Stephanus Van bega o Of acquire large tracts land , in what is now Westchester County , u on which he settled tenants , b ilt houses and established ferries . His earliest movement toward Obtaining these lands , afterwards hi s to comprise magnificent Manor , was to take out , pursuant f O m di . to the law the Provin ce , a license to purchase fro the In ans The original of this license from Governor Edmun d Andros IS preserved among the Van Cortla n dt papers . It is dated m 1 16 6 7 7 . Nove ber , i w s Cortla n d Th s license a general , and permitted Van t to

“ buy of the Indians whenever it could be conveniently done. N0 time was mentioned and it operated as an indefinite per mission to extinguish the Indian title to the regions named hi s 1683 and establish own . Six years after its date in , he ’ o s V a n b ught the penin ula , now known as erplanck s Point , d another large tract adjoining it to the 'eastward called by the A h a ma a . Indians , pp p g These lands were conveyed to him ‘ 1683 by deed . In he also purchased lands and meadows on the

‘ western shore Of the Hudson from the Sachems Of Haver a str w and that neighborhood . In this purchase was included ’ ' Salsbury s Island , now known as Iona Island . “ - In 1686 d , Thomas Dongan , Governor of the Province un er h James II purchased from the Indians , lands adjacent to t ose l d bought by Van Cort a n dt . These lands Dongan later conveye Cortla n dt W wa s to Van , hose final purchase , so far as is known an exten sive tract on the east side of the Hudson belonging to “ ' Ma c Gre or e Hew g , g ntleman of the City of New York , who O had btained it from the Indians . Van Cor tla n dt now set himself to the task of setting the hi H Peria ua ew boundaries of s e state . e set out in his g from N _ surve m a s York, leisurely y g the shores of the river he sailed , ’ Of w until he reached a point just North An thony s Nose , hich is now the dividing line between Westchester and Putnam

. S Counties Here he disembarked, ending his Indians to go “ ' u a days jo rney into the wilderness . This days journey was just t wenty miles a nd terminated at the boundary line of “ hi n Connecticut . T s Indian Walk , a exact straight line , is t Of Cortla n dt oday the accepted boundary of the Manor , and t h e northern boundary of the county .

8 THE OF THE M 'SE S W P ES FOR E E CE FRONT DOOR ANOR HO , HO ING LOO HOL D F N D L ‘ He had now acquired some acres . e a n cey gives it a s and nothing remained but to apply for a Royal c n firma tiOn i o . H s Charter, fitting of this princely estate s request for thi Charter, with the varied rights appertaining thereto was granted , and the territory was confirmed to him and erected i nto a Lordship and Manor by a Manor Grant a be ring date , June This original grant in perfect preservation is at the Manor House at Croton . It is beautifully i a n d engrossed upon two sk ns of vellum , the initial letter highly ornamented , has a portrait of William III . The great seal of l En g and IS attached to the document . s fOr h e hOldin o f our o u The Charter provide t g C t Le et a n d. C r t a n d s o Baron , and gives all the advowsons right f patronage in over all Churches that may be built on the Manor, appoint g ‘ in also the Lord of the Manor sole and only Ranger , as our i u realm of England . It provides n the f llest manner for all “ hunting and fishing rights and ends by giving the Lords of Cortla n dt the extraordinary privilege of sending a representa tive to the Provincial Assembly . This privilege was of so high an order that it wa s granted to but two more of the New 'ork — ' Ren ssela e rw ck 1705 a n d 1 7 15 Manors to y in Livingston in , r the forme eight, and the latter eighteen years later than the rtl n t grant to Van Co a d . r th r e . The topog aphy of e Mano is varied , and most b autiful “ ’ The majestic mountain Of Anthony s Nose at its northern s i n o sse sssi on Co rtla n dt boundary i still the p of the Van family, the e O t e as is also its southern boundary, beautiful vall y f h

Croton River . Between these two points and stretchin g eastward lay a re gio n remarkably wooded and watered and n i abounding in game of every description . Deer were ple t ful - h the w . a t e as were their foes , olves Be ver inhabited streams , and to this d y a branch of the Croton bears the name of “ a' Beaver Dam a n d a high wooded ridge near it is still called D ’ The eer s Delight . The broad bay where the Croton w joins the Hudson s armed with ducks , including the famous canvas back , and abounded in striped bass as . well as many a less kingly fish . Except for a few White people who clustered about the stone Manor House at the mouth of the Croton and a few more at ’ wa s Verplanck s Point, the whole Manor occupied by the fOr d n Indians , , though theyhad sol their actual title to the la d , they still considered that their ancient right to hunt , fish and plant corn held good . 10 LIBRAR'OF THE MANOR HO'SE

1 1

'

n - a fo rt The Ma or House itself was built originally for , for h o the protection of the tenantry against the Indians , w were — prone , at their semi annual f easts and dances to a dangerous

excitability . — Constructed of red sand stone and oblong in shape , the walls

three feet thick, are pierced with loop holes for musketry and r embrasures for cannon , and the general characte of the building, m 'a t its si plicity of line , the stone roof of its early days , and o a o its marked resemblance to the M h wk Valley f rts , built in 1638—1640 , would lead one to conclude that it had perhaps been r s in existence longbefo e hi tory speaks of it . However that may 168 1 be , tradition and events indicate that it was standing in , ’ and was a useful pla ce of refuge to Stephanus Van Cortla n dt s

tenants , until the Indians , being finally gone from the neigh borhood th e , a second story was built over the flat roof of fort, a veranda added and windows and doors cut through the

walls . It was now used as a hunting lodge a n d history tells of Governor Dongan stopping here on his hunting expeditions “ and of gay house parties of gentlemen , for he never went ' alone , quartered under its roof at one time and another . It

became also a summer home , or rather a home kept open all

o i . the year , and with slaves always there to wait up n the fam ly “ '

- The family by this time , was a large one , as Stephanus Cor tla n dt his wi Van and fe , Gertrude , the daughter of Philip i r P e te se r . Schuyler of Albany, had eleven child en

- Stephanus died in 1 700 at the age of fi fty seven . His wife l on g survived him and constantly visited the Manor to a ttend

t o business and interview the tenants . The coach of Lady va n Cortla n dt w of , ith its outriders wearing badges mourning , us m ade frequent trips between the Manor Ho e and the City, though the ladies might alsobe seen wending their way through ' ' the woods on horseback . The ladies were her daughters ,

‘ the seven Miss V a n Cor tla n dts who were distinguished for their

' d e cision of character , good sense , personal beauty and warm b ff for . a ection each other They were often accompanied _ y l Lady Be l omon t and other friends . The eleven children of Stephanus are named i n his will i n

O , the order of their birth , John , _ Margaret , Ann , liver , Mary

i E ' ' a n . Ph lip , Stephan , Gertrude , li abeth , ath ri e and Cornelia ' With the exception of giving Verpla nck’ s Point to John as his

eldest son , he divided his very large estate among his children a n d equally . Besides the Manor, it included houses lots in 14

— New York his share in the great Patent above the Highlands , a tract in Pennsylvania and other lands owned in conn ection ' — with Gulian Verplanck and pieces of land in other counties . ’ The children decided not to divide the land in their mother s.

f - 1 730 li e time , and it was not divided until , and not until

4 1 734 fi - November , , that a nal partition took _ place between ' e a hi the surviving childr n and gr ndc ldren , namely Philip Ver fD eLa n ce ' planck , Samuel and Margaret Bayard , Stephan y , “ hi Cortla n dt Cortla n dt P lip Van , Stephan Van , John Miller ,

Gertrude Beekman , William Skinner , Andrew Johnston and

c r . John S huyler, J The present town of Yorktown was the portion allotted to ’ ' e Gertrude Beekman and named after her , G rtrude s Borough , ’ ' r to n a n d Some s wn was origi ally Stephen s town . ha d b The population gradually increased , mills had been uilt , a roads made , and the tenantry a ided in est blishing farms , and most of the improvements begun by Stephanus Van Cortla n dt A t were carried out . the time of the first division of the Manor there were settlers upon almost all lots . By lots being meant the portions of each child . The lots were divided into farms

a 250 a . 1 750 aver ging cres By _ the whole Manor had become populated , as appears by the list of farms and tenants , in the 1 770 accounts . About , as the tenants had prospered and their “ ' families increased , they began to acquire the Soil right by purchase . — 'pon the death of Stephanus followed by that of his two — S n O i Cortla n dt ons , Joh and liver Ph lip Van , the third son , him became head of the family, and to fell the Manor House at Croton and its e normous surrounding estates. He was born in

1683 DePe ste r . and married Catharine , daughter of Abraham y 1729 He was an eminent merchant . In , he was appointed a ’ M on t o me rie s e Coun cillor of the Province at Governor g requ st , and was a commissioner of Indian affairs involving some claims 1 747 . f of the State of Connecticut . He died in O his five sons , three died young . The share of the elder son , Stephen , who did not long survive his father, was , lands in the eastern part th of e Manor, and the youngest son Pierre , inherited the Manor

hi s t of - House and its estate , and became , in urn , head the family . C rtla n dt his Pierre Van o married cousin , Johanna Livingston , i 749 and n 1 , they left New York for the Manor House at Croton

R . iver, hereafter to be their permanent home Hither came the troops of distinguished guests th at have made the old' house as 16 ERT ' E CORTLAND T W E OF E ' EE'M G R D (VAN ) , IF H NR B AN, 1688 DIE E WEEN 1 7 76 ND 1 7 7 BORN , D , B T A 9 O i i l i n i o Ric d W P a rk Es . ( r na ossess on har a ne er o O N . J . g p f y , ' f range , ) W M S' E WFE OE RE V . , I B TH LAND I , ILLIA INN EL 'A E (VAN CORT T) , R 694 E D 1747 BORN 1 ,DI

o O N J . ) Es . ran e d Wa P k , ', f g , (Original in t he possession of Richar yne ar er

' 18

famous for hospitality as for historic association . In 1 753 — “ Ca dwa lde r Colden writes to his wife I have had a pleasant ’ ride from Fishkill to Van Cortla n dt s passing easily through

the mountains and arrived at the Manor House at dusk . Young Pierre and his c harming wife keep up the hospitality of the house equal to his late father . He represented the Manor of COr tla n dt in the Colonial 1768 1 775 i Assembly from to , watching , w th apprehension the r encroachments of the Crown upon the libe ties of the Colonies . 17 74 ‘ In , Governor Tryon came for a night to the Manor House , a n d announced to his host the great favors that would be granted to h im if he would espouse the royal cause and adhere o r tla n dt to 'ing and Parliament . Van C answered him that he was chosen a representative by unanimous a pprobation of a people who placed confidence i n his integrity to use all his th e ability for their benefit and good of his country, as a true “ patriot , which line of conduct he was determined to pursue . discomfit d The e royal Governor returned to New York . The approaching storm called Van Cor tla n dt from the quiet life o f a a country gentleman to political and military activity . A “ 1 7 75 — letter of November, , says Thursday night were here to ’ a n d s supper breakfa t of Colonel Hammond s Regiment , three

- hundred men . The same month Van Cortla n dt was chosen t deputy to he Second Provincial Congress . He was also a u Ma 177 7 member of the third and fo rth congresses to y, , and wa s t then elec ed President of the Council of Safety . These were stirring times and brough t the Manor House ’ V i . F many sitors Here came Benjamin ranklin , in an old hi fashioned post chaise lent him by General P lip Schuyler , and his host lent h i m a horse the following day to take him the La Fa e tte next stage of his journey . To the old house y , _came d ' — e Rochambeau , and the Duke de Lau un Wash _ Steuben in ton hi On g was here many times, w le his army lay the shores ’

of the Hudson and alon g the heights of the Croton . In more e peaceful days the g reat Georg Whitefield had preached here , s standing on the high verandah, to spellbound cro upon the

lawn , who had been summoned from miles around by messen l Co r t a n dt . gers on horseback , sent out by Van

Directly in front of the house was the Continental Bridge , i hi 2 1781 where Wash ngton halted for a w le July , , and wrote “ i his in diary of the new bridge over the Croton . 'ntil th s

bridge was built, the ferry was the only means of crossing the river and the old Ferry House offered shelter to many soldiers

of the Revolution .

19 C RTLANDT B' S LIE'TENANT GOVERNOR PIERRE VAN O JARVI ,

172 1 D E 18 14 . BORN , I D t M n H u n dt Famil a t the V a n Cor tla n d a or o se , (Or igina l i n t he possession of the V a n Cortla y

— - . '. Croton on Ha dson , N . )

20 1 7 7 7 hi s i In he sent family to Rh nebeck, the Manor House being too' near neutral ground for safety— and in this year he was chosen Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York , i n General George Clinton , the Governor , being constantly the Cortla n dt the field , Van fulfilled duties of both Governor and “ ' — fillin f Lieutenant Governor g the o fice with great dignity .

- 1795 ffi He was Lieutenant Governor until , holding o ce for eighteen years, was President of the Convention that estab 1 783 e lished the Constitution . In this earnest patriot a com i d i his pa n e General Wash ngton on entry into New York City . r his l He ecords it thus in diary I went from Peekski l Tuesday, 18t n the h of November in compa y with His Excellency, Gov — 1. m e rn or . C0 Clinton , Col Benson and Ca pbell lodged that Cortla n dt night with General , Croton River (this was his son ,

‘ General Philip Van Cortla n dt of Revolutionary fame) proceeded ’ d E ou n ho n a n dw . C we ve lodged Wednesday night at s , where hi o his we met His Excellency General Was ngt n and aides . l t F . ort a n d The next night lodged with Mr . rederick V C at the F i . Yonkers, having dined with Gen . Lew s Morris riday m n w hi f orni g in company ith the Commander in C ef, as ar ’ t e as h Widow Day s at Harlem , where we held a Council . t rda Sa . y I rode down to Mr Stuyvesants , stayed there until then rode trium ha n t in to the Cit o Tuesday, p y with the C mmander ' in Chief .

With the coming of peace , the family returned to the Manor

In 18 4 - House and there 1 at the age of ninety four , Pierre Van “ r l e Co t a n dt died . The simplicity of his life says a notic of “ , hi s death , was that of an Ancient Patriarch . He has descended u wi to the grave , f ll of years , covered th honor and grateful for ’ his country s happiness . His hi a n Cor tla dt eldest son , General P lip V n now succeeded Th hi I to the entail . e story of s life S too long and too eventful b f F h s for space to e a forded to it here . rom the day he threw i royal commission into the fire and joined the Continental

Army his eventful career would demand a separate article . _ n R of W _ The friend of ashi gton , ochambeau , Lafayette , he was ’ o n i m a part of the c u try s h story in its most critical ti e , and a f him brilliant o ficer . Congress conferred upon the rank of

Brigadier General for hi s gallant conduct at Yorktown . He was one of the original members and founders of the Society of the Cincinnati , and was on most intimate terms with all the f foreign o ficers belon ging to this Society . He accompanied

Lafayette in his tour through this country in 1824 . He was a 2 1 4 E 183 1 CORTLANDT 1 7 9 , DI D BRIGADIE R- GENERAL PHILIP ,

'.

ti

’ EE'M N N LIA VAN ANDT WI E OF GE A G . B A , COR E ( CORTL ) , F R RD 17 53 E 1847 BORN , DI D C E P E CORTLAND T B'E 18 IE 1884 OLON L IERR VAN LLIOTT , BORN 15, D D s o the dt t (Origina l in the posses ion f V a n Cortla n Family at the V a n Cor tla n d Manor House . “

- - '. Croton on Hn dson N . , )

2 5 member of Congress for sixteen years . He died at the Manor 1 House in 183 . The Manor House and its estate now became the property of his r Cortla n dt hi s brother , General Pie re Van , who , like pre f hi decessor, held various public o fices , for w ch he was well i ofiice equipped , hav ng studied law in the of Alexander Hamilton , besides being an LL . D . of Rutgers College . He served in

Congress for two years . He was twice married , first to Mrs .

Taylor , daughter of General George Clinton . His second wife was Miss Ann Stevenson of Albany . m At his death, the Manor property ca e to his only son , l Colonel Pierre Van Cort a n dt . He married Miss Catharine H . e i Beck of Albany was a domestic man , delight ng in country

. Wh pursuits , living most of his life at the Manor House en he died it was truly said of him Residing all hi s years from c b “ boyhood to old age in this town whi h ears his name , he died ' without an enemy . On e S Cor tla n dt son survived him , James tevenson Van , who followed the tradition of his family in giving his services 1862 a to his country . He entered the army in , at the ge of eighteen , as Second Lieutenant and served until the end of the

-

- i Civil War . He took part in twenty two battles and skirm shes muste re d o ut of and was at the end the war , with the rank of

t . Cap ain , a title he gallantly won 28 1917 de scen He died at the Manor House April , , the last dant of the name in the direct line . Th i e Manor House , w th its extensive grounds is still in the possession of the family, as well as other portions of the original

Manor .

27