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History of Orange County
Town of Montgomery
Page 14
During the Revolution in 1782 a portion of the American army, consisting of a part of the Virginia Line and some others, laid encamped on the farm now owned by Mr. Peter Neaffie, about one mile north of the village of Walden, and on the north bank of the Tinbrook, then known as the Wilemantown Farm. It was so called from Henry Wileman, the Patentee of 3,000 acres of land at that place; and, at the commencement of the war, was owned by Peter Duboice, a British refugee, who had gone off and abandoned the farm. This is a beautiful location, the soil fine, and its untenanted condition was probably the reason why the troops occupied it. The forces—a portion of the army at New Windsor—wintered at the place to protect a number of baggage wagons, cannon and other munitions of war, sent for safety and more abundant subsistence in the country during winter. One cold night in the latter part of October, 1782, John McLean, afterwards Commissary General of this State for many years, was sent as a special messenger from this encampment to the Commander-in-chief at Newburgh on some important business. While on his way, and where Stony Brook crosses the Shawangunk road, he was waylaid, seized, taken from his horse, gagged, tied to a tree, and the papers relating to his mission taken away from him. Here he was left to the mercy of accident; to be relieved by the first neighbor or traveller who should pass that way. As good luck would have it, he was fortunately relieved during the ensuing morning, although almost perished by the cold of the night. This incident, no doubt, together with a familiarity with the Clinton family soon after the war, contributed to aid the political preferment of this gentleman.
The individuals who perpetrated this outrage on Mr. McLean, at the time, were suspected to be some of the gang of Claudius Smith; who, though then deceased, yet his band of marauders were still alive, and active in persecuting the Whigs. The rascals were not content with inflicting this personal violence, but stole his horse; and Mr. McLean afterwards claimed and received compensation from the proper authority. At the time we speak of, there was a large, brick dwelling house on the farm, which the troops used as an Arsenal, while they laid there. Many years afterwards, in 1806, when taken possession of by the ancestor of the present proprietor, several gun barrels and an old, wrought hand grenade, with other warlike implements, were dug up in the cellar, where they had laid undisturbed for twenty years. The soldiers for some cause, perhaps to make musket balls, tore off the lead which secured the pediment and roof of the building; which, being untenanted for many years after the war and unobserved, caused it to leak, and brought the edifice to a premature decay. This building we have often seen when a boy: it was torn down about the year 1809. Among the soldiers were two worthy Scotchmen, who were directed to cut down for camp purposes, a large white oak tree, which they effected by cutting it around on all sides. When the tree was about to fall, the two men ran away from it, but having no idea from the manner cut which way it would fall, both ran along the same snow track and were killed. The stump, showing the manner in which the tree had been cut down, remained undecayed and visible for many years. The army, while here, cleared about twenty acres of woodland.
That this building and locality had their revolutionary associations we were not aware, until a day or two since, when informed of the particulars above stated, by Mr. Cornelius Neaffie, of Walden, who had them from a most reliable source—an individual who lived in the vicinity at the time.
This Wileman farm was confiscated after the war as the property of Peter Duboice; but, in consequence of some conveyance made by him before he left to evade a forfeiture, and a claim founded upon it by the Schuyler or Livingston family, who were good Whigs, the confiscation was revoked or never carried into effect.
Extract from the Journal of the Committee of Safety, December 13, 1777.
“The account of John McLean for riding four days to Poughkeepsie— from thence to New Windsor and Little Britain and returning, to wit: 1st, 2nd and 3rd days of December to convey a letter from Maj. Gen. Gates, and two other letters to Brigadier Gen. George Clinton.
Ordered, That the Treasurer pay John McLean £4 16s. in full of said account.
The Committee of Safety appointed and employed several persons as riders, to convey dispatches, letters, etc. from place to place. John McLean, Abraham De Lamater and John Van Duzer were three of them. These were very useful and important officers, as they were trustworthy and always at the direction of the Committee.
Walden.—The place was originally called the High Falls of the Walkill. The fall of the stream is some forty feet. It is not perpendicular but in an angle of about forty-five degrees. When the stream is full of water the sight is beautiful beyond description, and is increased in grandeur by the resistance of its rocky and irregular descent. At every step the foaming flood is met by some obstructing rock, which throws the rush of water in another direction—there again to be impeded in its downward course, and forced aside by the mighty pressure from above. Thus struggling from rock to rock, deep buried by the headlong torrent, the flood in tones of thunder meets the abyss below, and plunging deep, comes boiling up throughout the mighty cauldron, and in whirling eddies flows on its way. The roar of this waterfall in the vicinity is almost deafening for a little while, and the view of it from both *sides of the stream, which, at this place, are high, is truly grand and magnificent. The abyss below is really frightful at such a time, yet, directly over it, at the foot of this fall, in old times the first settlers built a bridge which remained there till the site was changed to the present locality at Gallatin’s Mill.
The reason of building this bridge in this place was to accommodate a grist mill early erected at the very foot of the falls on the east side. We believe this mill was built by Mr. James Kidd, an early settler, but at what time we are not informed. At the formation of the town in 1768, we find it in possession of Mr. Johannes Decker, the ancestor of John and Jonah Decker of Blooming Grove. In 1789, it was owned by Cadwallader Colden, jun., the son of Major Cadwallader Colden, the third son of Lieutenant Governor Cadwallader Colden. The water power passed through several hands in succession, till it was occupied by the Messrs. Caprons as a cotton factory, the first of the kind at the place.
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*Errata--read banks