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History of Orange County
Town of Newburgh
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In the election of trustees the church succeeded by rejecting the votes of all who were not Episcopalians. This was clearly erroneous, and in violation of the charter. But having accomplished their purpose thus far, and knowing the inhabitants would not recognize the authority of their trustees, it was necessary to go a step further and cause their rights to be established in a court of law. For this purpose, and to lay a foundation for legal proceedings, they inducted the Rev. Cave Jones of New York, and put him into possession of the church and the lands set apart for the minister as they supposed, and brought their action of ejectment. The suit was intended to question the constitutionality of the act of the Legislature, which, if they could overthrow, would restore the Glebe rents, or a part of them, to the church. As the Episcopalians have always since the passage of said act thought themselves aggrieved and vitally injured in the chartered rights of their Church, and as it was a question of much interest to the parties, and of some feeling at the time, and now not well understood by the young, we propose to lay so much of that trial before the reader as will enable him to gather a pretty accurate knowledge of the merits of the question. He will at once see and regret that the cause was not decided upon its merits.
Jackson, ex dem. The Rector; Church Wardens, &c. of St. George's Church, in the parish of Newburgh; the Trustees of St. George’s Church, in said parish ; the Trustees of the parish of Newburgh; and Cave Jones, against Michael Nestles.
This warn an action of ejectment, for lands in the village of Newburgh, in the county of Orange. The cause was tried at the Orange circuit, before Mr. Justice Tompkins, on the 26th November, 1806. The lessors of the plaintiff claimed the premises in question, as a parcel of 100 acres of land, belonging to an episcopalian minister, duly inducted, as rector of St. George’s church in the parish of Newburgh.
The lessors of the Plaintiff introduced the patent as a part of their cause,—a copy of which we have given.
The lessors of the plaintiff, then proved, that during the time of the said trustees, and a short time after the granting the said charter, 100 acres of the said 500 acres of land, were surveyed, and set off for the use of a minister of the church of England. A short time afterwards, Mr. Watkins, a minister of the church of England, was inducted, agreeably to the charter, and had possession bf the 100 acres, as minister, and continued in possession thereof, several years, officiating as minister on the said glebe. Mr. Sears, a minister of the church of England, was inducted after Mr. Watkins, and a his successor, pursuant to the charter, and took possession of the said glebe, and continued in possession of it, officiating as minister, until the commencement of the war, in 1775.— During the time that Mr. Sears was in possession of the glebe, a house was erected thereon, for the use of the minister. After the war, in 1785 or 1786, Mr. Spering, a minister of the episcopal church, was employed to officiate on the glebe, and continued in possession thereof, until 1793 or 1794.
It was also proved that the premises in question, and the possession of the defendent, are parcel of the said 100 acres, called the parsonage lot or glebe. It was admitted, that two freeholders of the said patent, called the German patent, being episcopalians, were, on the 4th November 1805, and prior to the demises laid in the declaration, elected trustees of the parish of Newburgh, pursuant to a public notice, addressed to all the male inhabitants, of the age of twenty-one years, residing on the tract of land known by the name of the German patent, and belonging to the protestant episcopal church. At the time of the election of the said two trustees, there were no persons residing on the said patent, who claimed to be trustees of the said parish. At the election held, in pursuance of the said notice, a large majority of the inhabitants of the said patent, who assembled to vote, were excluded from voting, because they were not episcopalians, and for that reason only. None but episcopalians, who constituted about one-tenth part of the inhabitants, were allowed to vote at said election. The trustees so elected, entered, on the premises, and, afterwards, the present action was commenced.