The Story of an Old Farm; or, life in New Jersey in the eighteenth century. With a genealogical appendix

Appendix

ilbe THntontBt=(5a3ette Somerville, Iftew Jeraeg 1889. Entered according to act of Congress, in the year 1889, by ANDREW D. MELLICK, Jr., of Plainfield. New Jersey, in the office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington.

Preface

. WHEN the writing of the "Story of an Old Farm" was undertaken it was not anticipated that the completed volume would find readers beyond a limited circle. The narrative it was supposed would prove interesting only to the descend ants of the founder of the homestead which had been the inspiration of its pages, and, perhaps, also, to a few local readers. But as the work progressed its scope broadened, until the compilation gradually assumed a character calculated to interest lovers and students of general history. Finally, valuable material accumulating, the author found embodied in the chapters so much fresh information relating to colonial and Revolutionary times in New Jersey as to warrant his seeking readers beyond the realm of kinsfolk and township residents. It was still necessary to preserve the original plan of the narrative, but it is hoped that the general reader will take in good part, and not find objectionable, the slight filament of family annals that runs through the successive chapters.

After all, it is but a gossamer thread, and one that has served an excellent purpose — now as a silken clue to the labyrinth of historical research, and always as the continuous cord upon which has crystallized a mass of interesting facts, traditions and incidents, illustrative of times and customs now long bygone. If there is any virtue in writing from an inward impulse , the pages of the "Story of an Old Farm" should furnish easy read ing and bear the marks of a "free and joyous expression." Though not by birth a son of the soil, heredity, environment and sympathy had made the author a Jerseyman to the core, and in telling the story of this old Somerset farm he brought to The Story of an Old Farm. IV the task an enthusiastic love for the subject. Throughout boyhood and youth all summers were passed in Bedminster township, in which this ancestral plantation is located ; thus was imbibed a deep affection for its waving grain fields, breezy uplands, broad meadows and babbling streams — an affection that has grown with each year of later life.

This love for its physical aspects and natural beauties inspired a corresponding interest in, and regard for, the memories of those men and women of previous generations who had passed their lives on this old homestead. So it was that a desire for investigation and research was incited, tending to divulge all that could be learned of the daily walk and conversa tion, not only of such persons as had called the " Old Stone House " home, but of their contemporaries throughout the county and state. This resulted in the collection of material that, though the writing of this book was not in contemplation at the time, ultimately powerfully promoted the completion of the work. All of the foregoing is not properly a preface but an explana tion. The true preface is to be found in the two chapters that open the story.

They will tell of this Jersey homestead and its early founder, and make plain the inspiration of this volume. And yet, all things considered, it is for these opening pages that the reader's most indulgent criticism is desired. The book con tains forty chapters. Of thirty-eight but little apprehension is felt as to their accuracy, for the statements therein have been subjected to the most rigid tests of severe scrutiny and repeated investigation. But for Chapters I. and II. it is confessed that allowances must be made. The picture they present of the farm, of its approach, and of the surrounding country, is painted by the hand of affection — an artist always prone to be too lavish with color. Scenes that were witnessed by the boyish eyes of nearly thirty years ago are now reproduced with a faithfulness that is of the past, rather than of the present.

While writing these chapters the walls of the author's chamber, under the touch of a loving remembrance, fell away, disclosing the sunny slope of a Somerset hill on which an old country house, with low eaves and thick stone walls, lies back from the meadows that border the north branch of the Raritan river, just where Peapack brook loses itself in that stream. This sturdy dwelling — seen with the eyes of memory — has a wealth of old-fashioned accessories, and Preface. V its surroundings are in perfect keeping with its happy expres sions of utilitarian simplicity and homely picturesqueness. The short, thick turf of its dooryard is shaded by contemplative elms, and studded with tall, bulbous bushes of box and roses of Sharon. At its eastern gable, in an ancient garden, bloom hereditary lilies, sweet peas and many-colored asters.

The little windows that pierce the western gable survey a colony of barns, haymows and strawricks ; while still beyond, an old orchard flanks the high way which creeps up a long hill until it disappears over its crest, a quarter of a mile, or more, away. Plenteous harvests gladden the fields, fleecy sheep whiten the hillsides, cattle, deep in the clover of the meadows, are steeped in sweet content, while in the house, at the barns and on the surrounding acres is to be heard the voice of happy industry. This is memory's picture — one full of cherished associations. Now, alas, all is changed ! Adversity and the grave have played sad havoc with the aspect and condition of the "Old Farm,*" and a visitor would look in vain for much that is apparently promised by these pages. The warmest acknowledgments of the author are due to the many persons who by their knowledge and advice have aided in the preparation of this work.

To enumerate them all would be to present a formidable list of coadjutors. It would be the sum of ingratitude, however, not to express the deep sense of obligations he is under to Doctor John C. Honeyman of New Germantown, N. J., whose patience and kindness have been unremitting. In the genealogical appendix his help has been invaluable, and the chapter treating of Zion Lutheran church would have been a mere skeleton of its present proportions without the information he has furnished. In many other ways the "Story of an Old Farm" has greatly benefited by Doctor Honeyman's intimate acquaintance with New Jersey's colonial and Revolutionary his tory. It is also desired to make particular mention of the valuable services freely given by William P. Sutphen, Esq., of Bedminster township — a life-long resident on the "Old Farm" and an antiquarian by nature and habit.

To him the author is indebted for many original papers, and much interesting lore regarding the old people and times of Bedminster. Much has also been learned from Adjutant-General William S. Stryker of Trenton, an eminent authority as to New Jersey's Revolutionary VI The Story of an Old Farm. period — from William Nelson, Esq. and the Honorable Frederick W. Ricord of the State Historical Society — and from the Reverend Henry P. Thompson of Readington, N. J. Efficient aid has been furnished by Charles W. Opdyke, Esq. of Plainfield, N. J., William 0. McDowell Esq. of Newark, N. J., and the late S. L. M. Barlow, Esq. of New York, the latter having kindly placed at the author's disposal his valuable library of Americana. Here is also the proper place to recognize the courtesy of the editors of the Magazine of American History, the Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography, and the New York Evening Post, who have permitted the reproduction in this volume of considerable matter that has already appeared in their columns.

On the coining pages there will be found numerous statements of a historical nature, some of which have not before been pub lished, while many of them appear for the first time in a con secutive or connected form or order. In reaching information that may appear fresh and new naturally some readers will deplore the omission of foot notes containing references to authorities. To such persons it is desired to explain that much care has been taken in preserving and tabulating the titles of books, the names of authors and individuals, and the evidence, generally, upon which all facts and statements, new or old, con tained herein are based. The writer will at any time cheerfully turn to these notes in order to answer personal applications for sources of information. In addition, a very comprehensive list of authorities will be found in the appendix.

And now ends this long and very personal prologue. The bell rings ! The curtain rises on the first scene, showing the Peapack stage, with horses harnessed and luggage strapped, only waiting for you, reader, to start for the " Old Farm." Plainfield, New Jersey, October 23, 1889. CONTENTS.

Chapter I

The Peapack Stage — Sunday Morning at Bedminster Church — A Eetired Hamlet. 1-11. From. Somerville to Bedminster — Scenes on the Way — A Loquacious Stage driver — An Ancient Tavern — The Blue Hills — The Revolutionary Village of Pluckamin — A Picturesque Ford — Van der Veer's Mills — The Venerable Church of Bedminster — Incidents of a Morning Service — The Foot-Path through the Graveyard — A Motley Array of Vehicles — The Small Boy and the Delightful Old Lady — The Village of the Lesser Cross Roads — Rusty Houses and Old- Fashioned Gardens — A Queer Little Shop — Wiseacres at the Village Store — The Old Schoolhouse — Boyish Reminiscences — The Admonitory Gad — The Mine Brook Swimming Hole — Over the Hills to the Old Farm.

Chapter II

The Old Farm — Its Upland Acres, Broad Meadows, and Ancient Stone Homestead. 12-21. Walking North From the Village — Observations by the Way— The Charms •of a Country Road — A Neglected God's-acre — The Confines of the Old Farm — A Royal Grove — The Landscape Full of Sentiment and Beauty — A Buoyant Country, and Grassy Cascades — The Outlook From the Long Hill — Summer Vegetation and the Lovely Mystery of Color — The Brawling Peapack Brook — A Grand Old Maple — The Old Stone House Rests on a Sunny Bank of Turf — Its Comely, Quaint Presence, and Wealth of Old-fashioned Accessories — A Charming Rural Picture — The Interior a Bit of the Old World— The Outer Kitchen and Dutch Oven — The Founders of This Old Homestead in 1752 — Why Their Story is Told in These Pages.

Chapter III

Bendorf on the Rhine — Johannes Moelich Emigrates to America — The Condition of Germany in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries. 22-34. Coblentz and its Ancient Town Wall — The Vast Fortification of Erhenbriet stein — Terraced Vineyards and Valleys Stored with Legend and Romance — The Story of an Old Farm. Bendorf Surrounded by Apple Orchards — The Aspect and Architecture of the Town — One of the Oldest Churches in Germany — The Home of Johannes Moe lick and His Wife Mariah Katrina — He Sets Sail for America The Great German Exodus and its Cause — German Happiness Before the Thirty Years' War — The Miseries of that Contest— The Country People Fly From Their Dis mantled Villages and Wasted Lands — Peace Banquets are Spread in 1648 — But Little Comfort Comes to the Rhine Valley — Subsequent Continental Wars — Louis XIV.

Devastates the Palatinate — Despotic Princes, Petty Persecutions and Cruel Conscriptions — The German Turns His Back on Fatherland — The Great Flood of Emigration to America.

Chapter IV

German Expatriation— The Distribution of Teuton Emigrants in the American Colonies. 35-49. First Movement to America — William Penn and Pennsylvania — Pastorious Settles Germantown — Neuwied — Settlement of the German Valley in New Jer sey — Newburgh Founded by Kockerthal — The Great Hegira to England in 1709 — Cause of the Movement — Camping on Blackheath— Thirty Eight Hundred Palatines Remove to Ireland — The Sufferings of Heidelberg — Emigrants from Heidelberg Found Newbern, North Carolina— Governor Robert Hunter — Ten Ship Loads of Palatines Brought by Him to New York — Settlement at Living ston Manor on the Hudson, and in Scoharie, Montgomery, and Herkimer Coun ties, New York — Disatisfaction of the Colonists with Their Treatment by the New York Authorities — Pennsylvania Grows in Favor with Emigrants — Arri vals between 1700 and the Revolution.

Chapter V

Johannes Moelich Reaches Pennsylvania in 1735 — His Experiences In Philadelphia And Germantown. 50-64. The Crooked Billet Wharf— Arrival of the Ship Mercury with Johannes Moelich — The Aspect and Area of the City — Johann Peter Moelich — Impres sions on Landing — A Walk on Chestnut Street — A Gang of Newly Imported Negroes — The Slave Auction — Colonial Houses — Quaint Interiors — Dogs as Meat Roasters— Whipped at a Cart's Tail — Stocks and Pillory — Flinging Eggs at Malefactors— The New State House — Visits of Savages to the City — Indian King Tavern — Christ Church — Odd Costumes— Quakers and Gallants — Old Gen tlemen and Servants — Penn's House — His Second Visit to Pennsylvania — William Trent— The Founding of Trenton in 1719— The Blue Anchor Tavern- Philadelphia Equipage in 1735 — Pack Horses — Introduction of Wagons — Johan nes Starts for Germantown — The Ride Through the Woods — The Aspect of the Settlement.

Chapter VI

Letters From The Old Country — Bendorf Comes Under The Dominion Of The Murdering Margrave of Anspach. 65-73. Joh. Georg Hager, the Village Præceptor Writes in 1745, Giving all the Contents. IX Bendorf Gossip- - A Great Fire Burns all the Houses Between the Stein-Gate and the Bach-Gate — Who Have Died, Who Have Married, Who Grown Rich and Poor — Bendorf Transferred to Anspach — The Many Separate Kingdoms of Ger many — Frederick and Maria Theresa — Despotic German Princes — Their Taxes and Oppressions — The Idiosyncracies and Wickednesses of Bendorfs New Ruler — German Lawyers— A Letter from Cousin Joh. Anton Kirberger in 1749 — How the Second Silesian War Distressed the Inhabitants of Bendorf — The Banks of the Rhine a Highway for Troops Marching between Holland and Austra — Billets and Forages Impoverish the People — More German History.

Chapter VII

Johannes Moelich Appears in New Jersey in 1747 — His Brother Godfrey — Echoes from the Ancient Walls of Zion Lutheran Church at New Germantown In Hunterdon County. 74-96. Johannes and Godfrey Moelich in Sussex County, N. J. — In 1750 Johannes Is Living on 400 Acres in Readington Tp., Hunterdon County — He and His Son in-law, Jacob Kline, there Establish a Tannery — Our Ancestor Is a Warden and Trustee of Zion Lutheran Church — Ralph Smith Conveys the Church Property to Johannes Moelich and His Co-Trustees in 1749 — Balthazar Pickel — David, Jonas and Tunis Melick — The Religious Fervor of Early German Emigrants — " Father Muhlenberg" Comes from Germany to Take Charge of the American Churches — His Saintly Character and Life Labors — An Old Time Missionary Who Could Fight the Devil But Was in Terror of Women — The First Perma nent Pastor of the Church Is Joh.

Albert Weygand — -A Pastoral Message from the Last Century — Reverend John Peter Gabriel Muhlenberg, Afterwards the Revolutionary General — Interesting Information Regarding Zion's Successive Pastors — The Worthies of the Congregation — A Letter from Father Muhlenberg to Johannes' Son Aaron and His Co-Trustees — William Graft's Long and Use ful Pastorate — A Methodist Missionary Makes a Schism in Zion — Henry Miller and His Devout Wife — How Johannes Signs His Name to Church Documents — St. Paul's Church in Pluckamin, Somerset County — George III. Grants a Royal Charter to Zion and St. Paul's — Aaron Moelich, One of the Petitioners — The Varied Spelling of the Family Name — In 1751 Johannes Decides Where to Plant the Permanent Homestead — A Survey of His Family in That Year.

Chapter VIII

Purchase of the "Old Farm" in 1751 — The Title and Early New Jersey History. 97-111. Johannes Buys 367 Acres of Land in Bedminster, Somerset Co. — Bedminster Indians — The Algonquins and Naraticongs — Present Traces of the Red Men — First and Last Indian Purchases — Fair Dealings with the Natives by New Jer sey People — Early New Jersey History — Charles II. 's Grant to the Duke of York — He Presents New Jersey to Sir George Carteret and Lord John Berkeley — Origin of the Name — Governor Philip Carteret at Elizabethtown — Pepys' Testimony As to the Virtue of Lady Elizabeth for Whom the Town Was Named — The Claim of the Elizabethtown Associates Under the Nicolls Grant — Concessions and Agreements Published in New England Increase the Popula- The Story of an Old Farm. X tion — Settlement of Piscataway, Woodbridge and Newark — The Province Divided into East and West Jersey — The Sale of West Jersey.

Chapter IX

The Twenty-four Proprietors of East New Jersey — George Willocks and the Peapack Patent. 112-128. Carteret Dies, and His Executors Sell East New Jersey — The Twenty-four Proprietors — Their Manner of Alienating the Whole or a Portion of Individual Interests — Perth Amboy, the Capital — The Origin of the Name — Population Under the Proprietors — Settlement of Monmouth County — Interesting Inform ation Regarding the Morris and Stout Families — Ancient Dutch Settlers of Bergen — Governors Under the Proprietors — Surrender of the Government to the Crown — John Heywood, Robert Burnett and James Willocks— In 1683 Burnett Conveys One-eighth of His Right to James Willocks — Doctor George Willocks Inherits from His Brother James — He Emigrates to East Jersey — His Possessions and Important Offices — Willocks's Ferries to Perth Amboy — Saint Peter's Church at Amboy and Its Benefactors — Thomas Gordon Settles near Plainfield — The Proprietors Convey to George Willocks and John Johnstone the Peapack Patent— Andrew Hamilton and John Johnstone — Scotch Emigra tion to East New Jersey.

Chapter X

The Story of the Title Completed — Early Somerset Land Grants 129-144. The Peapack Patent Iucludes Nearly all of Bedminster Township — Dis tinguished People Associated with Somerset Freeholds — Interesting Facts Concerning Gouverneur Morris and the Duchess of Gordon — -The First Real Estate Purchase in Bedminster — Daniel Axtell, a Son of the English Regicide Buys a Large Slice of the Peapack Patent — Some Corrections as to Generally Accepted Beliefs in the History of Somerset Land Titles — The Value of Bed minster Acres in 1726 — William Axtell, Patriot and Royalist — George Willocks' Death — His Will and its Benefactions — It Directs Partition and Sale of Peapack Patent — Xo Record of Such Proceedings Can be Found — Disagreements Between the Proprietors and the Willocks Heirs — John Johnstone's Will — Authorizes a Compromise as to Peapack Patent — George Leslie, in 1744, Receives a Grant of 2,000 Acres Out of the Patent — Its Area Includes the Present Site of Bedminster and the Old Farm — the Deed from George Leslie to Johannes Moelich — Thomas Bartow, Secretary of the Province — Judge Samuel Nevill and His Laws — The " New American Magazine " — James Parker, New Jersey's First Printer — The Bonds Johannes Gave in Buying the Farm — His Signature and Handwriting — The Pleasures of a Manuscript Lover.

Chapter XI

The Building of the "Old Stone House" — Redemptioners — White Slavery in the Colonies, 145-155. Johannes Occupies the Bedminster Land — A Temporary Log House is Contents. XI Erected — Scenes at its Building — The Raising Dinner — The Old Stone House is Built in 1752 — Preparing for the Work — Caspar Berger, a Redemptioner Stone Mason, Lays its Walls — His Advent in the Colony and Sale — He Obtains His Freedom by Building Stone Houses — All About Redemptioners — Indented Ser vants and Freewillers — Fraud Practised on them in the Old Countries — Inhu manities of Ship Captains — Colonial Laws as to Redemptioners — How this Class ■of Emigrants Thrived in the Province — The Walls of the "Stone House" go up Apace — Mariah Katrina Carries Mortar on Her Head — The Good Wife Objects to so Many Windows — The Completion of House and its Appearance — The Hanging of the Crane— The First Supper in the Living Room — A Home at Last on this Peaceful Bedminster Hillside.

Chapter XII

Johannes Goes to the Post Office — Bedminster and the Adjacent Townships in 1752, 156-168. Perth Amboy the Nearest Post Office — But two Post Offices in the Colony — Johannes Starts in the Capital of the Province — Bedminster Still a Wilderness — The Settlement of Morristown and Mendham — Lamington Church and Jane McCrea — Basking Ridge and its Flourishing Presbyterian Community — Lord Stirling's Residence — Jacobus Van der Veer's Log House — Establishing Van der Veer's Mills — Ephraim McDowell's Homestead — Johannes Dismounts at Eoff's Tavern at Pluckamin— Christian Eofl as Innkeeper — The Origin of the Name of Pluckamin — Aspect of the Village and .its First Storekeeper John Boylan — Early Families of the Neighborhood — Colonel McDaniel's Saw Mill — Somerville Not Yet in Existence — The First Court-Houses of Somerset County — William McDonald's Grist Mill — Johannes Smokes his Pipe as He Follows the Trail Over Pluckamin Hills — Wild Beasts and Bounties for Their Extirpa tion — Our Traveller Descends to the " Great Raritan Road " and Reaches Bound Brook.

Chapter XIII

Bound Brook in the Olden Time— The Raritan Valley in 1752, 169-181. Somerset's Oldest Settlement — Indian Corn Grounds — How Bound Brook Derived its Name — The First Land Purchase in the County — Thomas Codring ton's Homestead, Racawackhana — The Houses of George Cussart and Samuel Thompson — Lord Neil Campbell and his Plantation — The Presbyterian Church of Bound Brook is Founded in 1700 — Michael Field's Bequests to the Congrega tion — Colonial Lads and the Pedagogues — William Harris' Tavern — Van Nor den's Folly — Citizens of Bound Brook at the Time of Johannes' Visit — Preva lence of Lotteries — Johannes Rides Down the Raritan Valley — Country More Thickly Settled — English and Dutch Residents — Raritan Landing and its Industries — Mills in Franklin Township — Cornelius Lowe, Jr's., Stone Mansion — Johannes Reaches New Brunswick.

Chapter XIV

From an Indian Path to The King's Highway — Nbw Brunswick and Historic Piscataway. 182-199. The Story of an Old Farm. The Oldest Highway in New Jersey — The Lenni-Lenape Path From the Hudson to the Delaware — An Indian Thoroughfare From Minisink to the Sea —The Path up the Raritan— The Indian Path Becomes the Dutch Trail— The English Make it Their Road Across the Jerseys — The Growth of Settlements Along the Path — Inians Ferry Established — The Founding of New Brunswick —Its First Church in 1717— The Aspect of the King's Highway in 1748— New Brunswick's First Charter — Its Early Citizens — The Appearance of the City at the Time of Johannes' Visit— Our Traveller Continues His Journey — Historic Piscataway — Its Ancient Importance and Present Torpor — Interesting Frag ments of Antiquity From Its Town Records — The Baptists Build a"Meetinge- House" in 1685 — Edmund Dunham, in 1707, Forms the First Seventh-Day Bap tist Church in New Jersey — St. James Episcopal Church is Established in 1704 — Early Missionary Work in New Jersey — A Graveyard Two Centuries Old — Johannes Rides Along the King's Highway Through Bonhamtown.

Chapter XV

The Ancient Capital of The Province— Perth Amboy In 1752. 200-214. Perth Amboy in the Olden-Time — A Chartered City in 1718 — Governors under the Crown — The Pomp of the Advent of Royal Governors — The Early Beauty of Amboy — Love Grove — Old English Fairs — George Willocks's Long Ferry — The Town Green and the Royal Cross of St. George — The Town Hall, and the Scenes it Has Witnessed — Thomas Bartow, his House and Garden — The Homes of Doctor John Johnstone, and His Son Andrew — John Watson, The First American Painter — His House and Collection of Paintings — The Dwelling in which John Nevill Wrote the Laws of the Province — The Parker Homestead, Built in 1720— George Willocks and the Old Parsonage — The Effectiveness of Colonial Roofs — The City's Churches in 1752 — Gilbert Tennent and His Severe Text — The Religious Atmosphere of the Last Century.

Chapter XVI

Social Aspect of Perth Amboy in 1752 — The Gentry — Slavery — Travelling. 215-232. The Picturesqueness of Colonial Times — Local Color of Civilization at New Jersey's Capital — Indians, Soldiers, Hunters and Redemptioners — The Sturdy German Yeomanry — Society Distinctions — The Magnificence of the Gentry — We Are Introduced to a King's Councillor — His Vain Hopes for Amboy's Com mercial Greatness — The Ladies of the Last Century — Hallam's Theatre Company at the Town Hall — Sunday Morning at St. Peter's Church — Pomp and Parade at the Capital— The Mayor's Mace Bearer— Judicial Wigs and Robes of Office — The Flourish and Ceremony upon Opening Court— The Stately Minuet, and Royal Governor's Balls— The Many Negroes To Be Seen at Amboy— A Short History of Slavery in New Jersey— The British Government Fosters the Slave Trade — Extent of the Traffic in the Colonies — Cruel Punishments in N. J. — Burning, Maiming and Hanging Negroes— Somerset County Farmers and Their Slaves— Abolition of Slavery in New Jersey— Johannes' Choice of a Tavern- Travel Between New York and Philadelphia— The Miseries of the Journey — Clumsy Sloops, Springless Wagons, and Bad Roads. Contents. XIII

Chapter XVII

Clearing the Bedminster Land — Life on the " Old Farm " From 1752 to 1763. 233-246. German Farmers in New Jersey — Johannes Attacks his Timbered Hillsides — Manner of Clearing Land— Primitive Agriculture— Richness of the Soil — The Land Exhausted Ultimately for Want of Nourishment — Lime First Used as a Fertilizer — Natural Meadows the Only Grass Land — Introduction of Clover Seed into Somerset— Homemade Ploughs and Other Implements — Wheat, Rye, and Buckwheat are Cut with a Sickle — Establishing the Tannery — Horticulture in the Olden Time — Living, in the " Old Stone House "—What Colonial Farm ers Had to Eat — Some Extraordinary Dishes — The Beverages of That Time — The Industries of Farm Families — Old-Fashioned Frolics and Amusements — A Visit to the Bedrooms and Garret— Picturesque Garb and Curious Fabrics — Mariah Katrina as a House-Wife — A View of the Farm Kitchen — Flax and its Uses — Delicate Girls at a Discount — The Tribulations of Washing Day — Aaron Malick Marries Charlotte Miller — Changes in the Family — Another Letter from the Old Country.

Chapter XVIII

The Death of Johannes and Mariah in 1763 — Changes in the Township — The Dutch Congregations of the Raritan Valley — The Building of Bedminster Church. 247-265. Johannes in his Old Age — He and His Wife Die in 1763 — Aaron Succeeds Him in the " Stone House " — Changes in Bedminster — Settlement on the Axtell Tract — Jacobus Van Doren and Captain Joseph Nevius — The Dutch Reformed Churches in Somerset — The Log Church at North Branch — Raritan Church at Van Veghten's Bridge — Three Mile Run, Six Mile Run, and New Brunswick Churches — The Reverend Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen as Pastor of the United Congregations — His Son John Succeeds Him in 1750 — Dinah Van Bergh Marries Dominie Frelinghuysen — The Young Divinity Student, Jacob R. Har denbergh — He succeeds His Pastor, and Marries His Widow — Disparity of their Ages — The Religious Character and Attainments of the Juffrouw Hardenbergh — Reformed Dutch Congregation of Bedminster Organized in 1758 — The Building of the New Church — Donations of Jacobus Van der Veer, and Guisbert Sut phen — Description of the Edifice — The First Service.

Chapter XIX

More Changes in Bedminster — The Mills on Peapack Brook — Boyish Reminiscences — Marriages and Deaths. 266-279. Aaron Improves the Farm, and Enlarges the Tannery — A Saw and Grist Mill Established on Peapack Brook in 1751— William Allen, the First Miller— His Sons Sell the Mill to Stephen Hunt in 1767— The Building of the " Folley" — A Famous Rendezvous for Bedminster Boys — Penetrating the Hogback — A Picture of the Old Grist Mill with Its Pond and Rock-paved Stream — Youthful Remembrances — Fishing and Swimming in the "Jinny-Hole" — Miss Jane Bailey, Bedminster's Meg Merriles — Rural Sights and Sounds — The Loss of Water in Bedminster Streams — Aaron's Family Increases — Little Elizabeth Is Killed in The Story of an Old Farm. the Bark Mill— Philip and Peter Moelich Marry Sisters— Borrowing Money for Bedminster Church— The Ancient Bond of Jacobus Van der Veer, Marcus King and Aaron Malick — John Van der Veer Has Five Different Ways of Spelling His Surname— Mariah Moelich Marries Simon Ludewig Himroth, and Removes to Pennsylvania — More News from Bendorf — Another Interesting Letter from the Herr Præceptor.

Chapter XX

The Muttering That Preceded the Storm of the Revolution — Stamp Acts, Revenue Bills and Other Unjust Imposts Weaken the Loyalty of the New Jersey- People — Arming for the Fray. 280-292. The Approach of the Heroic Period of New Jersey's History — The Stamp Act and Its Repeal — New Jersey's Attitude of Hostility to Great Britain — The First Revolutionary Newspaper Is Printed at Burlington — The Boston Post Bill and Tea Duties — The British Government Applies the Torch of Coercion — Organiz ing for Defence — The Province Sends Deputies to the Continental Congress in September, 1774 — Formation of Committees of Correspondence — The Meetings of the Provincial Congress — An Historic Journey — Minutes of the First Meet ings of the Bedminster Committee of Observation and Inspection — Among the Members are Aaron Malick, Cornelius Lane, John Wortman — An Express- Rider Flies Through New Jersey Announcing the Battle of Lexington — Hud rick Fisher as President of the Second Provincial Congress — Three Other of Its Officers are from Somerset County — John Wortman and Guisbert Sutphen of the Bedminster Committee Are Sent to the Congress at Trenton on May 25, 1775 — Bedminster Proceeds to Arm for Defence — A New Brunswick Man Employed to Drill the Men — Stephen Hunt Is Sent to New York to Buy Arms — The Difficulty of Obtaining Munitions of War — Leaden Window and Clock Weights and Pewter Dishes Are Run into Bullets — Treating the Men When Training — The Third Session of Provincial Congress Convenes on the Fifth of August, 1775 — A Committee of Safety Is Appointed — Among the Members Are Five from Somerset.