LAND OWNERS PRIOR TO THE REVOLUTION For 86 years after the purchase of Manhattan Island from the Indians, Fort Tryon Hill had no individual owner, and up to the year 1712, Long Hill, north of Hendrick van Oblinus' northern line which ran between 185th and 186th streets remained vacant land" of the town of Harlem. In 1708, the General Assembly passed an act providing for the partition of lands held in joint tenancy, or in common, and under it the freeholders of Harlem employed Peter Berrien of Newtown, L. I., an experienced surveyor, to run the lines, and appointed a committee of three, consisting of John Lawrence, Cornelius Luyster and Edward Blagge,"to see that a just and equal division be made of their undivided lands." (Riker's History of Harlem, page 821.) It took them nearly four years to perform this task, their difficulty being to divide equitably, as to quantity and quality, land of great diversity lying in various places from Manhattanville to Kingsbridge. The land was supposed to be allotted to the freeholders of Harlem, the joint owners, in proportion to their previous land-holdings. In 1712, the allotments were finally made, in four different groups of parcels called "divisions." The Fourth Division, within which lies the Fort Tryon property, comprised the lands lying between the Kingsbridge road and the Hudson river, beginning at Oblinus' northern line between 185th and 186th streets and extending to Dyckman street. This area was laid out into 18 long narrow lots, extending from the highway to the river, and numbered from 1 to 18 No. 1 being at the south and No. 18 at the north, as follows: The lots of the Fourth Division in which we are particularly interested are No. 9 on which stands the picturesque Libbey Castle; No. 10, which includes Fort Tryon and on which stands the chateau lately owned by Mr. C. K. G. Billings; and lots Nos. 11 to 18 both inclusive comprising the properties known in late years as the Hays and Sheafer tracts the greater part of these lots Nos. 9 to 18 being included in Mr. Rockefeller's gift to the city. As the most interesting history of Fort Tryon Hill centers in lots Nos. 9 and 10 of the Fourth Division, which were lately known as the Billing's tract before Mr. Rockefeller's purchase, we will confine the following description mainly to that part of the hill. The Billings tract is the area included within the broken line on the map (plate 26) south of the line A-A'. Lot No. 10 was bounded on the north by a line which began at the west side of the Kingsbridge road (now Broadway) at a point about two rods south of 198th street as laid out on John Randel, Jr.'s map of 1819, and ran to a point on the Hudson river about 3 rods south of 197th street (A-A' on plate 26). Its southern boundary began at the Kingsbridge road a couple of rods south of 196th street and ran to the Hudson river at the south side of 195th street (B-B' on plate 26). It contained 17 acres, 3 quarters and 36 rods. John or Jan Nagel, Jr., the owner of lot No. 10, was the son of John Nagel, Sr. (born 1645, died 1689), the latter having been a soldier in the employ of the Dutch West India Co., and an owner of extensive lands in upper Manhattan in the early English regime. John Nagel, Jr. (born 1675, died 1763), married Magdalena Dyckman February 2, 1708, cementing the union of two of the most prominent early landholding families of the island. already connected by the marriage in 1690 of the mother of John Nagel, Jr., with the father of Magdalena Dyckman. John Nagel, Jr., was a weaver by trade, but as he became sole owner of some 151 acres of paternal real estate, he probably was not closely confined to the loom. It was he who built the house which stood over a hundred years near the Harlem river on the line of 213th street and which was known as the Century House. Nagel avenue is named after this family. Soon after its allotment to Nagel, lot No. 10 became divided into two parts. The northern half remained in the Nagel family until the Revolution, after which we will again take up its history. The southern half of lot No. 10, comprising 8 acres, was acquired by Abraham Myer in 1715. (Riker, 603.) He died in 1756. On April 16, 1753, Abraham Myer conveyed the southern half of lot No. 10 to Abraham Myer, Jr. (recited in another conveyance in liber 154, page 335). Abraham Jr., was born in 1716 and died in 1772. He was survived by his wife (born Mattie Kortright) and five children, Abraham, Lawrence, Margaret, Engeltie and Bregie. His half of No. 10 appears to have remained in the Myer family until the Revolution. 66 Lot No. 9, according to the certificate of Peter Berrien, the engineer, dated June 25, 1712 (Riker, page 810), contained 32 acres, 1 q. and 20 r., being in breadth 43 1/3 rods, and runs from the said highway* between the land of Arent Bussing and John Nagel, N. 67° W., to Hudson's river." The northern boundary of lot No. 9 was coincident with the southern boundary of No. 10 above described (B-B′ on plate 26). The exact location of the southern boundary of lot No. 9 is uncertain, the present writer's opinion differing from others. The lot is above described as being 43 1/3 rods (714 feet) wide. A mortgage by John Low to Henry Cuyler (Liber 2 of mortgages, *Kingsbridge road. † Lot No. 8. Lot No. 10. Fort Tryon and Vicinity ekman February 2, 1708, cementing the 2. arominent early landholding families of fle y the marriage in 1690 of the meter A. 17 32 12 al estate, he probably was not dog she who built the house which sto Century House. Nagel avente lot No. 10 became divided prising 8 acres, was He died in wouthern half The lots of the Fourth Divisio interested are No. 9 on which Castle; No. 10, which include the chateau lately owned by 11 to 18 both inclusive co years as the Hays and S lots Nos. 9 to 18 being city. As the most inte in lots Nos. 9 and known as the Bill will confine the line on the r Lot No. at the we point al Rande' river SOU r .5. ܝ܂ . to the vall himself had glish gentleman with an ie record, who, near the end e largest land owner in Harlem on that account, lot No. 9, Fourth than the others. He was Mayor of New the division of 1712, the title to the Delavall lands .nvolved in controversy. On February 1, 1713, Peter oblinus, Johannes Waldron, etc., patentees of Harlem, conmed the Delavall lands to Abraham Gouverneur; but Capt. James Carteret, son-in-law of Capt. Delavall, had a daughter Elizabeth who married Philip Pipon, and Pipon claimed the entire property. Out of the jumble of counter-claims and litigation which ensued lot No. 9 became divided into two parts by a line approximately at C-C' (plate 26) the northern half representing the Gouverneur interest and the southern half the Pipen interest. Johannes Myer, through Gouverneur, perfected his hern half of No. 9, which passed subsequently to (Riker, 810-813.) Adolph Myer, 2d, who ed in 1762 and left it to his son Adolph, 3d. ars to have been in the Myer family at uth of the division line C-C' being 3 to Simon Johnson, who on Seprence Low. (Riker, 581, 810, Fort Tryon and Vicinity of Magdalena Dyckman, John Nagel, as he became sole owner of some inent early landholding families of the island man February 2, 1708, cementing the union of marriage in 1690 of the mother of John he probably was not closely ilt the house which stood se.. Nagel av enne on the line of 215th divided amily Jansen Low, owner of Lot er was born in Leerdam, held many responsible in Harlem in 1698 ker, 581.) s Marinus and John, s lands which aggregated at date, Marinus conveyed to ertain lot of woodland No. 9 scituate the township of Harlem aforesaid upon the Lange Bergh, beginning in the road at a two white oak saplings and runs thence north 7 degrees 118 rod to Hudson's river, thence in breadth Ludson's river 47 rod, thence southeasterly 67 degrees 106 rod to the road containing 32 acres 1 rod and 20 perches." (Liber 36, page 79.) John Low was still in possession of this half-portion as late as October 25, 1766, when he mortgaged it to Henry Cuyler of Albany. The description is the same as above. (Liber 2 of Mortgages, page 129.) Riker, in his History of Harlem (page 582) says that between 1762 and 1767 John Low sold his half of No. 9 to John Watkins. In view of the above-mentioned mortgage, we infer that the conveyance must have been in 1767. * In 1776, Marinus and John Low kept a tavern near the Fresh Water, or Collect Pond. The dimensions are those of the whole lot, not of the half lot. |