HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY.
CHAPTER III
THE NEW REGIME
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In the latter part of June, or the early part
of the succeeding month of 1681 William Markham arrived "in this
river" from New York, bearing a document addressed "to the justices of
the peace, magistrates and other officers" by the deputy governor, Anthony Brockholls,
in which he announced the accession of a new regimes as follows:
Whereas his. majesty hath been graciously
pleased, by his letters-patent bearing date 4th March last, to give and grant to
William Penn, esquire, all the tract of land in America now called by the
name of Pennsylvania formerly under the protection and government of his royal
highness, as the same, is bounded (as described in the. charter), with all
powers, pre-eminences and jurisdictions necessary for the government of a
province, as by, letters-patent dolh at large appear, which, with his majesty's
gracious letter directed to the inhabitants and planters, within the said
limits, and a commission from the said William Penn to the bearer hereof,
William Markham, esquire, to be his deputy governor of the said province
have been produced and shown to us, and are entered upon record in the office of
records for this province, and by us highly approved of, as his majesty's royal
will and pleasure, therefore thought fit to intimate the same to you, to prevent
any doubt or trouble that might arise, and to give you our thanks for your good
service done. in your several offices and stations, during the time you remained
under his royal highness's government, expecting no further account than that
you readily submit and yield all due obedience to the said letters patent
according to the true intent and meaning thereof, in the performance and
enjoyments of which we wish you all happiness.
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* There are in the records of Bucks count y copies of two deed" dated March 22, 1681, one to John Alsop for one thousand acres (Deed Book 1, p. 17), and the other no Thomas Woolrich for a similar amount ( Decd (took 1, p. 200).
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and for islands and particular places, great sums of money, but be designs to
do things equally between all parties, and I believe truly does aim more at
justice and righteousness, and spreading of truth, than at his own particular
gain." In a letter dated on the 4th of the same month Penn writes that he
is " like to have many from France, some from Holland, and hear some Scotch
will go for my country." His expectations in regard to foreign emigration
were fully realized at a later date, but at this time his chief support was
derived from the Friends in the British isles, and especially in England. In
May, 1682, he ordered a list of the purchasers, with amount of land granted to
each, to be seat to Surveyor-General Holme, then in Pennsylvania. From
this it is ascertained that the proprietor had sold an aggregate of five hundred
and sixty-five thousand acres to some five hundred individuals, in parcels of
from two hundred and fifty to ten thousand acres each. Of these purchasers the
following located the whole or a part of their lands in Bucks county : Samuel Allen,
2000 acres; Nathaniel Allen, 2000; John Alsop, 1000; William Beakes,
1000; John Brock, 1000; Edmund Bennett, 1000; James Boyden,
1000; John Clows, 1000; Thomas Croasdale, 1000; Henry Comly,
500: James Claypoole, 5000; Henry Child, 500; James Dilworth,
1000; Francis Dove, 900; Benjamin East, 1250; Enoch Flowers,
2000 ; Leonard Fell, 250; Joseph and Lawrence Growden 10,000;
James Hill, 500; James Harrison, 5000; Thomas Holme, 5000;
Cuthert Hayburst, 500; Christopher (or Charch ) Harford, 1000;
Griffith Jones, 5000; John Jones, 500; Charles Jones and
Charles Jones, Jr., 2000; John and Edward Luff, 500; Thomas Langhorne,
250; Joseph and Daniel Milner, 250; Richard (or Robert) Marsh,
10,000; Henry Palling, 1000; Henry Paxson, 500; Joseph Potter,
250; George Pownel, 1000; John Pennington, 1250 ; Francis Plumstead,
2500 ; Thomas Rowland, 3500; Thomas Rudyard, 2000; Edward Samway,
500; John Swift, 500; Herbert Springer, 4000; Richard Sneed,
1500; Christopher Taylor, 5000; Richard Thatcher, 1000; Robert Turner,
6000; Robert and Richard Vickris (Vickers), 2000; Thomas Wolf,
250; William Wiggin, 500; Sarah Woolman, 250; Nicholas Walne,
1000 ; John Winn, 5000; Thomas Woolridge, 1000; William Yardley,
500.
In his "proposals," Penn published the terms upon which he
proposed to sell his lands, varying them to suit the demands of the three
classes of probable purchasers. "1st. To those that will buy. 2d. Those
that take up land upon rent. 3d. Servants. As to the first, the shares to be
certain as to the number of acres, each to contain 5,000 acres, free from any
Indian incumbrance, price ₤100, and 1s. English quit-rent for 100 acres;
quit-rent not to begin till after 1684. Second, renters to pay 1d. per acre, not
to exceed 200 acres. Third, servants, those that are carried; the master shall
be allowed 50 acres per head, and 50 acres to every servant when his time is
expired." In the same document the proprietor announced that " so soon
as any are engaged with me, we
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Page 129
Page 130 Page 131 five hundred, the warrants uniformly calling
for four hundred and ninety-two acres of country land and eight of the
"Northern Liberties," and in the same proportion for other amounts. On
the other side of the Schuylkill the liberties were allotted in the proportion
of ten acres to the five hundred.* In the division of the city property the
first adventurers were classified in accordance with the amount of their
purchases, those holding warrants for twenty, ten, five, one thousand, and five
hundred acres and less, being respectively associated together, and when the
plat was laid off, lots were surveyed for each class, the lots varying in size
and location for the respective classes, and disposed of to the individual
member by some form of lottery. These lots, however, were not contemplated in
the "concessions," nor were they a part of the purchase, but
appurtenant to it, and were granted under the later arrangement with Penn only
to the " first purchasers." In surveying the country lands no immediate
difficulties were encountered, but hero the plan of the " concessions"
was eventually found impracticable. Where it was desired by the " first
purchasers" and their quantity of lands amounted to five or ten thousand
acres, it was provided that their lot or township should be cast together, and
there are indications that the first adventurers locating lands in Bucks county,
availed themselves of this provision, which gave rise to a certain nomenclature
and boundaries that were subsequently confirmed by the court. It appears to have
been a part of Penn's plan to lay off tile whole province in such
townships, add his early warrants all contained the clause "wording to the
method of townships appointed by me," but the "method of
townships" was very soon lost sight of in the, rapid growth of the country,
and surveys were promiscuously made according to the wishes of the purchaser.
The claims of original purchasers were subsequently known as "old
right," many of which were long outstanding, and some were, not, surveyed
until after the revolution, while a few were probably abandoned. These lands
were bought at the uniform rate of one hundred pounds, and an annual quit-rent
of fifty shillings for five thousand sores, and in proportion for lesser
quantities, though purchasers had the option of avoiding quit-rents by the
payments of twenty pounds additional. To subsequent purchasers lands were, sold
on "now terms" that were not marked by any uniformity. At one time the
price of one hundred acres was five, pounds and an annual quit-rent of a bushel
of wheat. The quit-rent was sometimes fixed at one shilling sterling, which was
known as the "common rent," but more often as the "new rent"
or one penny sterling per acre. This subject occasioned some controversy between
the pro- * In Smith's laws of Pennsylvania,
1810, vol. ii. p.,107, referring to this fact, the learned compiler observes: It
is therefore presumed by 'those, whose age and information give weight to the
fact, that the one-fifth part taken from the holders in the 'Northern Liberties
made up the city plot, and the superiority In value made up for tile deficiency
in quantity, and time has amply realized their foresight. Page 132 prietor and the assembly in 1701, and a much
more serious disturbance in the administration of Governor Evans, in
which Bucks county bore a determined part, but quit-rents were not abolished
until the passage of the divesting ,act; after the declaration of independence. The ninth clause of the
"concessions" provides that "In every hundred thousand acres, the
governor and proprietary by lot reserveth ten to himself, which shall lie but in
one place." The conditions of this reservation had relation only to the
grants to the first purchasers, and the proprietors subsequently exercised this
right to withdraw at pleasure from the mass of unappropriated lands certain
other tracts of varying extent, and in such localities as suited their
convenience. These proprietary tracts have generally been called manors, though
technically not so in fact. No manor courts were ever established in the
province, but there is no doubt that it was the intention of Penn to do
so. In his charter to the Free Society of Traders in 1682, he constituted their
grant of twenty thousand acres a manor, by the name of the Manor of Frank, and
authorized the society to establish and hold a court-baron, court-leet and view
of frank-pledge, with all the powers and privileges belonging thereto. In all
the grants of land under the proprietary government the same fiction was
maintained, the patent nominally declaring the lands to be held as of some
certain manor, and many of them requiring the payment of quit-rent to be made at
the manor of Pennsbury. It is probable that the troubles which
afterward absorbed the attention of the proprietor alone prevented such a
transfer of the feudal institutions of England to the new province, and there
are indications that Penn, believing the opportunity for such a transfer only
temporarily, deferred, cherished the plan to the last. As late as 1701, in a
grant of "fifty sores in my manor of Pennsbury," the proprietor with
his own hand added the clause, "holding of the said manor, and under the
regulations of the court thereof, when erected." And in the same year, when
aboard ship for his final return to England, he authorized the commissioners of
property to erect manors with jurisdiction thereto annexed, as fully as he could
do by his charter. Neither the society of traders nor the commissioners* availed
themselves of the authority granted them in this respect, and it is probable
that the people would have early overthrown such a state of vassalage if it had
been imposed upon them. Of the nearly ninety tracts of this character
laid off for the proprietors or others in Pennsylvania, five are found in Bucks
county. The manor of Pennsbury was laid off in 1688 on the river, in the
southeastern part of Falls township, and consisted of eight thousand four
hundred and thirty-one acres. Penn designed this for his `country seat,
and spared neither pains per expense in * Joseph Growden petitioned the
commissioners to erect his tract into a manor, but his application was refused. Page 133 fitting it up; but he was destined to be
disappointed in his plans, and after a short occupancy ho left it in the care of
his agent, not to return to' it. Three hundred acres were reserved for the
grounds of the "palace," but the rest was sold from time to time in
parcels varying from fifty to more than six thousand acres. In 1708 the manor
house with its grounds was settled upon the elder branch of the family, and
remained in the possession of Penn's heirs until 1792, when it was sold
to Robert Crosier. The tracts located in Bucks county by the Free
Society of Traders were surveyed about 1700, but were not denominated manors.
Eight thousand six hundred and twelve acres of its grant was laid off in a
rectangular block to the left of the line which now separates Doylestown from
Buckingham and Plumstead. Along this line it extended 'three and nearly
three-quarter miles, and in a direction at right angles to this line it extended
four miles, including the upper part of the original township of Warwick, a
large part of New Britain township, and perhaps a strip of Hilltown. About
two-thirds of the present township of Doylestown was included in this survey.'
Another tract of five thousand acres called "Durham" was laid off for
the society, in the township which now bears that name, and was subsequently
sold to the furnace company. The larger tract was reduced by the sale of two
large parcels to little more than one-half of its original area prior to 1726;
when the remainder passed out of the society's possession. The society was
organized as a great trading and manufacturing corporation, and was
"endowed with divers immunities and privileges, by grant and charter,"
of the most liberal character. James Claypoole, the treasurer of the
society, wrote to a friend in July; 1682, of its purposes and prospects as
follows: "We are to send out one hundred servants to build houses, to plant
and improve land; and for cattle, and to set up a glass house for, bottles,
drinking glass, avid window glass, to supply the islands and continent of
America, and we hope to have wine and oil for merchandise, and some corn;
however, hemp for cordage, and for iron and lead, and other minerals, we have no
doubt of, so that, through the blessing of God, we may hope for a great
increase, and it may come to be a famous company. We have bought twenty thousand
acres of land, and shall have four hundred acres of it in the capital city,
where our house must be built, with divers warehouses and offices. As for the
governor, William Penn, he has been and will be very kind to us, besides
his subscription, which is considerable. He has given us the quit-rent of all
our land, and most ample patent or charter, to be confirmed by the first general
assembly in Pennsylvania, with as many privileges as we could desire, whereby we
are a corporation, a lordship, and manor, having a magistraoy and government
within ourselves, the three principal officers aforesaid being justices of the
peace." The. society never realized these bright anticipations, however. . The manor of Richland was laid off in 1708
"in the great swamp," for Page 134 . William Penn, and contained sixteen
thousand seven hundred and forty-nine' acres. This was located in the
northwestern part of the county, and included a part of the township to which it
gave its name, and others above it. When the proprietary rights were assumed by
the state, nearly six thousand acres had been sold to some fifty-six purchasers.
The manor of Perkasie was a tract of land laid off in the territory now included
in Rockhill and Hilltown townships. In 1788 it appears that twenty-five hundred
sores in "Rockland township," and a "part of Perkesea mannour,"
were sold to Thomas Freame, and called the manor of Freame, but nothing
further has been learned of it. On re-survey in 1785 the manor of Perkasie still
contained eleven thousand four hundred and sixty-two acres. When it was
originally laid off has not been ascertained, but in 1701 it was conveyed in
trust by William Penn to Samuel Carpenter and others, who
subsequently transferred it to John Penn. The property was eventually
divided among the heirs of William Penn, and in 1759 John Penn
donated his share to the "trustees of the college, academy, and charitable
school of Philadelphia." The manor lands appear to have been open to
purchasers as early as there was any demand for them, but shares of the other
heirs were not entirely disposed of to settlers until near the beginning of the
present century. The manor of Highlands is indicated on Holme's
map and was probably reserved as early as the manor of Pennsbury, though not so
early surveyed. It was laid off along the river from the upper boundary of Lower
Makefield; and contained seven thousand, seven hundred and fifty acres. It was
situated on the verge of the plantations and on the natural line of expansion,
and the proprietor was soon vexed by the encroachment of settlers who did not
respect his reservation. It is said that it was Penn's purpose to reserve
this tract for his children, but finding this impracticable he ordered it sold.
The London company purchased five thousand acres of it in 1709, and the
remainder was soon after disposed of to settlers. The company's tract was not
sold so early, though several purchases had been made prior to 1756. At this
time it was in the hands of trustees to be disposed of, and five years later,
together with a tract in Tinicum, was closed out at public sale. An important consideration in all original
land purchases, which appears to have been well understood between the
proprietor and purchasers, though not expressed in the "concessions"
nor in any of the fundamental documents por-taining to the provincial
government; was 'the quieting of the Indian claims to this region. In a letter
to James Harrison, previously quoted in part, Penn wrote: "If
any deal, let me know; I clear the king's and Indian title; the purchaser pays
the scrivener and surveyor." In the following month Penn instructed
his commissioners. "Be tender of offending the Indians, and hearken; by
honest spies, if you can hear that anybody inveigles the Indians not to sell, or
to stand off and raise the value upon you. You cannot want those that will Page 135 inform you, but to soften them to me and the
people, lot them know that you are come to sit down lovingly among them. Let my
letter and conditions with my purchasers about just dealing with them, be read
in their tongue, that they may see we have their good in our eye," etc. A
little later in those instructions, he wrote: "From time to time, in my
name, and for my use, buy land of them, where any justly pretends, for they will
sell one another's, if you be not careful, that so such as buy and come after
these adventurers may have land ready," etc. That this was the principle
which animated all of Penn's transactions is abundantly confirmed by the
records, a study of which leads the lion. Charles Smith--in an article
that is accepted as the most exhaustive and accurate statement of Pennsylvania
land questions ever made-to say that "it appears to have been his earnest
desire to extinguish every kind of title, or claim to the lands necessary for
the accommodation of this colony, and to live on terms of friendship with the
Indian nations." The tribes with which the whites first came in
contact on the Delaware bay and river were radically different from those who
occupied the interior, and at a later day became so conspicuous a figure in the
annals of the province. They appear to have been independent tribes of the Algonkin
family living on the tributary streams of the Delaware, "probably a tribe
in some parts, for every ton or twenty miles," Many of the names applied to
these tribes appear to have been arbitrary designations derived from the
aboriginal names given to the streams on which they dwelt, and few of them are
met in the records and writings of later years. Thus Smith, in his
History of New Jersey, speaks of the Assumpinks, Rankokes, Mingo, Andostaka,
Neshamine, and Shackamaxon tribes. Those about Burlington he calls the Mantas,
probably the "Roodehooks or Mantes" of the early Dutch adventurers and
the authors of the massacre which extinguished De Vries's colony in 1681.
"But these and others," says Smith, "were all of them
distinguished from .the back Indians, who were a more warlike people, by the
general name of the Delawares."He notes also other tribes that had a wider
reputation and occasionally "inhabited New Jersey and the first settled
part of Pennsylvania," among which are the Monseys, the Pomptons, the
Senecas, and the Maquaas. "The last was the most numerous and
powerful." These more notable tribes represent the two
great families of the Indian race which the earliest explorers found in
possession of the vast region defined by the great lakes and the St. Lawrence on
the north, and the Potomac and Chesapeake bay on the south. The Iroquois were
the first to reach this region in the course of their traditional migration from
the west, and settled in the lake district. Subsequently the Lenin Lenape, the
great head of the Algonkin family, found their way hither, and fixed upon the
Delaware river, as their. national centre. Of this nation only three branches
appear to have crossed the Alleghenies, of which the. Turtles and the Turkeys
continued their migration Page 136 to the seaboard, where they planted their
villages and remained until dispos- sessed by the whites. The Wolf branch,
better known by their English name of the Monseys, planted itself at the "Minisinks"
on the Delaware, extending the line of their villages on the east to the Hudson,
and to the Susquehanna on the west. From this branch were derived the different
tribes which occupy the foreground in the early annals of the pioneers. For a time the two great families lived on
terms o£ friendly intercourse, but. hostilities eventually broke out between
them, which, by means fair and foul, resulted in the humbling of the Delawares,
as they were named by the English. How this was accomplished is differently
related by the dominant and subject peoples. It appears, however, that the
Algonkins were at first successful, and threatened the extinction of their
rivals. This danger suggested the confederation of the Iroquois, a measure which
these astute natives were wise enough to accomplish, and from this period their
power began to increase among the Indian nations. Dates in connection with the
history of the North American aborigines are of the most uncertain character,
and when the complete ascendency of the Iroquois was effected, and whether
accomplished by force of arms or artifice, are still unsettled questions. Of. the "back Indians" the early
colonists appear to have been most in fear of the Susquehannocks. They are said
to have been the most formidable tribe of the Delaware nation. The river which
perpetuates their name marks the site of their villages, from which, in their
tribal prime, they pushed their forays, pursuing their victorious career to the
seaboard, and inspiring terror in the hearts of even the warlike Iroquois.
Various dates have been assigned to their final overthrow, but there is
substantial agreement in the fact that under the combined ravages of the
smallpox and their persistent foes, they were driven from their ancient seats.
They were still a warlike people, and in 1675 became involved with the English
in Maryland. A contest was waged here for two or three years with such
persistence that this once formidable tribe was practically annihilated. The
Dutch colonists on the Delaware appear to have suffered little from this state
of hostilities save in the diminution of-their trade, a matter which gave rise
to loud complaints and led them to make repeated offers of their friendly
offices in bringing about a peace. The early settlers on the Delaware were
singularly free from Indian outrages. With the exception of the destruction of
De Vries's colony, which may be attributed to the incapacity of the commandant
rather than the determined hostility of the natives, the colonists on the river
record no outrages received from their savage neighbors until 1661, when the
foray of the Seneccas brought a new element into this region. On January 4th of
this year three Englishmen find a Dutchman approaching New Amstel (Newcastle)
were murdered, and two or three weeks later several savages boldly entering the
town with the clothes of these men, offered them for sale. They were promptly
arrested, Page 138 Picture Page 139 tried, and acquitted, to the great displeasure
of the Maryland governor. It is quite probable that the arrested parties were
innocent of the murder, but the Maryland authorities, without sufficient
evidence, began a quarrel with the Susquehannocks, which, however, led to no
practical results, the Senecas taking advantage of the situation to attack their
hereditary foe and bring on a protracted war between the two nations. The
presence of these warriors gave rise to frequent alarms in the Delaware
settlements, several plantations were destroyed and one or two murders. are
noted; but the, invaders, having glutted their vengeance upon their own race,
retired without further interference with the whites. In 1670 the murder of a servant of Mr. Tom
by a drunken Indian was permitted to go unpunished through the negligence of the
magistrates, and this was followed in the next year by a similar murder of two
other whites. The excitement, the warlike preparations, and the peaceful ending
of this episode have been elsewhere noted. In 1675 occurred the determined
struggles between the Marylandors and the Susquehannocks. The Delaware colonists
reported their Indian neighbors as wavering in their loyalty, and Governor Andros,
while advising the whites to "be just to them," recommends that
precautions be taken for defense and promises to send needed supplies. The fears
of settlers happily proved unfounded, and from that time until the arrival of Penn
the two races lived in such harmony that, notwithstanding an occasional
repetition of these alarms disturbed the general sense of security, the settlers
paid scarcely any attention to providing for defense against Indian hostilities. Prior to Penn's arrival the limited
expansion of the settlements go the river had not given rise to any question of
the aboriginal title to the lands which the Indians freely sold. The local
tribes had been invariably willing, to sell all that the whites could buy,
though, it should be added, with no adequate appreciation of the character of
the transaction, and showed no hesitation in selling the same lands over and
over again as often as purchasers could he found. The earliest purchase was made
in 1629 by Godyn's agents, who secured from certain Indians, "the
lands belonging to them lying on the south side of aforesaid bay, by us named
the Bay of. South River, extending in length from Cape Hindlop to the north of
said river, about eight large miles [thirty-two English miles], and landmarks
half a mile [two English miles], to a certain valley or marsh through which
these bounds can be sufficiently distinguished." In 1688 Arent Corsson,
the commandant of Fort Nassau, bought "the Schuylkill and adjoining lands
for certain cargoes," which the grantors say in the deed "are not paid
in full, but for which we are fully satisfied at present." Five years later
the Swedes came, and, according to Acrelius, "immediately land was
bought from the Indians; a deed was given in low Dutch, as the Swede could yet
interpret the Indian. By this agreement the Swedes obtained all the western land
on the river, from Cape Henlopen to the falls at Trenton, then called by the Page 140 Indians Santican, and as much inward from it
in breadth as they might want." The limits of this purchase were plainly
indicated by "stakes and marks," and were never afterwards contested
by the savages, though frequently resold in parcels to the different governments
which succeeded. In the larger operations of William Penn
a new claim was developed. At this time the Iroquois exercised almost
unquestioned authority over the aboriginal occupants of the country east of the
Mississippi river, and, as conquerors of the different tribes, claimed the
absolute ownership of this vast territory. Until the coming of the Europeans
they maintained their supremacy by a policy not unlike that of the Romans.
Warlike tribes were divided and kept employed in further conquests or in
reducing refractory nations, while all were placed under a close surveillance
and some form of tribute. But when the whites established themselves upon the
continent and demonstrated their power, many of the subject tribes were quick to
perceive how they might profit by their friendship. Emboldened by such
alliances; some of the Algonkin tribes resisted the houndless claims of the
Iroquois, and much of the bloodshed and ravages of war inflicted upon the early
settlements in all parts of the country resulted from a too general neglect of
this change of attitude in the subject nations. Penn, fortunately wiser
in this respect than many of his contemporaries, not only extinguished the
claims of the dominant nation, but repeatedly purchased the rights of the native
'occupants, and thus saved his colony from much of the harassing experiences
which fell to the lot of less favored provinces. The terms of Penn's instructions to Markham,
under date of April 8, 1681, are not known, but they doubtless authorized him to
treat with the savages, as he did soon after his arrival in the province. By
virtue of the purchases of the Swedes and Govornor Andros, the lands to a
points eight miles above the falls already belonged to Penn, through his
succession to the rights aoquired by the preceding government, and Markham
probably sought a conference with the Indiana to secure the friendship of the
natives rather than add to the possessions of the new proprietor. However, at
the conference held at Shackamaxon, certain Indian "shackamakers" on
the 15th of July executed a deed to a certain tract of land- Beginning at a certain white oak in the land now in the
tenure of John Wood, and by him culled the Graystones, over against the
falls of Delaware river, and so from thence up ties river aide, to a
corner-marked spruce tree, with the letter P, at the foot of a mountain, and
from the said corner-marked spruce tree, along by the ledge or foot of the
mountains west-north-west, to a corner white oak marked with letter P, standing
by the Indian path that leads to an Indian town called Playwicky, and near the
head of a crook called 'I'owsissinick, and from thence west to the creek called
Neshammony's creek, and along by said Neshammony's creek unto the river
Delaware, alias Makerisk-kitton, and so bounded by ties said main river to the
sold first-mentioned white oak in John Wood's land, and all those
In September, in a letter to James Harrison,
then in England, Penn made still further concessions. "Now, dear
James," he writes, "for the 50 acres a servant to the master, and 50
to the servants; this is done for their sakes that cannot buy, for I must either
be paid by purchase or rent, that those that cannot buy may take up, if a master
of a family, 200 acres, at 1d. acre; afterwards, 50 acres per head for every man
and maid-servant, but still at the same rent, else none would buy or rent, and
so I should make nothing of my country; however, to encourage poor servants to
go, and be laborious, I have abated the 1d. ½d. per acre when they are out of
their time. Now if any about thee will engage and buy, there may be ten, yes
twenty, to one share, which mill be but £5 apiece, for which they each will
have 250 acres. For those that cannot pay passage, let me know their names, and
number, and ages; they must pay double rent to them that help them over; but
this know that the rent is never to be raised, and they are to enjoy it
forever."
islands called or known by the several names of Mattinicunk island, Sepassnick's island, and Oreckton's island, bring and being in the said river Delaware.*
At this conference certain Indians, who are termed right owners of the land called " Soepassincks" and the island of the same name, wore not present, but on the first day of the succeeding August, by an indorsement on the above deed, they ratified and approved the sale there recorded.
In the following November, Penn had arrived with a second company of colonists, and while there is no written evidence to the fact, a long line of well- confirmed tradition indicates that the proprietor held another conference with the Indians at Shackamaxon. Here he met the representatives of the, Delaware tribes of the Lenni Lenspe and the Iroquois tribes settled on the Conestoga. No concessions of land were sought by Penn, but in this interview he impressed the savages with a deep and abiding respect for his integrity, and established those friendly relations between the two races settled here, that long after his death proved the chief means of averting serious evils under circumstances which most exasperated the savages. In the following year there were numerous conferences with the representatives of the neighboring tribes in which consider, able concessions of land were secured. The first resulted in a deed dated June 23, 1683, by which certain Indians disposed of all their lands "lying betwixt Pennapooka and Nesheminah creeks, and all along upon Neshemineh creek, and backward of the same, and to run two days' journey with an horse up into the country, as the said river doth go." On the same day Tamanen and. Metamoquam released the same territory, omitting in their deed, however, the "two days’ journey" clause.** Other grants of land were made by the Indians in deeds dated on June 25th, July 14th, September 10th, and October 18th, of this year. Those concessions were made by tribe representatives and indi.
* In it surveyor's note-book now in the possession of Judge Richard Watson, but originally belonging to John Watson, is found a copy of the descriptive part of the above deed , with the following notes appended: 1. "This spruce stands by my measure 140 perches, measured by the bank of the river, above the mouth of the Great creek, so-called. 1750. 2. This W. O. tree was or is supposed to be or have stood near the N. E. Corner of Jos. Hamton's land, on a branch of the aforesaid Grant creek. 3. Playwicky, or Lawicky, was an Indian town or plantation about Philip Draket's below Henton's mill." This creek, in another note, Mr. Watson says was formerly called Baker's crook. In regard to the direction of the line from the spruce tree to the oak, Mr. Watson says, in a note on another subject: "The river itself, nearly opposite the spruce and for near 100 ps. above and below, Is not much different in its course from W. N. W., and consequently the course in the Indian grant is a mistake, because such a course would go up the river and comprehend no land at ell."
** On July 6th, 1697, this omission, whether intentional or not, was rectified by a deed in which "Taminy" joins with his sons and brother in granting all their lands lying between the Pennypack and Neshaminey creeks, "extending in length from the river Delaware, so far as a horse can travel in two summer days, and to carry its breadth according as the several courses of the said two creeks will admit," etc.
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viduals, and conveyed lands; in which they claimed a greater or less interest; situated on the Schuylkill, between the Schuylkill and Chester creek, between the Schuylkill and Pennypack creek, between the Susquehanna and Delaware, and one for lands from the Delaware river to Chesapeake bay, and up to the falls of the Susquehanna.
In 1684, only two concessions are noted; one by Maughougsin, on June 3d, for his lands on the Perkiomen creek, and the other by Richard Mettamicont in a deed June, 7th, by which he releases to William Penn all the lands on both sides of the Pennypack creek, of which he calls himself the owner. In the following year two more deeds are noted, one dated. July 30, 1685, in which certain Indian shackamakers and right owners of the lands lying between Chester and: Pennypack creeks grant lands extending from the boundaries of a grant made in 1683, up into the country, "to make up two full days' journey, as far as a man can go in two days;" and the other dated October 2d, in which certain ''Indian kings, shackamakers, right owners" convey to William Penn "all the lands from Duck creek to Chester creek, all along by the west side of Delaware river, and so between the said creeks, backwards as far as a man could ride' in two days with a home." On the 20th of August, 1686, Thomas Holme secured from certain Delaware chiefs a deed to certain lands between the Neshaminy and Delaware, to extend one-and-a-half days' walk from near Wrightstown into the interior. The original deed has never been discovered, and no attempt was made to mark out the lands granted until 1787. June 15, 1692; "King Taminent" with three other "kings" joined in a deed granting William Penn all their lands "lying between Neshamina and Poquessing, upon the river Delaware, and extending backwards to the utmost bounds of the province."
Thus far negotiations for lands had been conducted with the subject tribes, but not long before his return to England, in 1684, Penn secured the services of Governor Dungan, of New York, in obtaining from the Five Nations d release of their claims to "all that tract of land lying on both sides of the river Susquehanna, and the lakes adjacent in or near the province of Pennsylvania."The conveyance, was finally made to Penn, on January 18, 1696, "in consideration of one hundred pounds sterling." This was butt preliminary step, however. Penn's sense of justice would not permit him to accept the Iroquois theory of ownership, and he wisely took measures to have this sale confirmed by the occupants, or heirs of the former occupants, of this region. Accordingly, in September, 1700, while in the province on his second visit, he obtained from the "kings or sachems of the Susquehanna Indians, and of the river under that name, and lands lying on both sides thereof," a deed of all this region, "lying and being upon both sides of said river, and next adjoining the same, to the utmost confines of the lands which are, or formerly were, the right of the people or nation called the Susquehanna Indians," and a distinct
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confirmation of the bargain and sale effected with the Five Nations. Here however, the Conestoga Indians interposed their claims, refusing to recognize the validity of the Dungan purchase. Penn at once addressed himself with unfailing- patience to overcome this obstacle and on April 23, 1701, procured from the representatives of the Susquehanna, Potomac, and Conestoga tribes. a full confirmation of . both the previous deeds.*
Holme's purchase of 1686 was subsequently disputed, and if this grant be ignored, the lands within the present limits of Bucks county, save those lying west of the Neshaminy and those lying on the east side to the extent of the limits fixed in the deed of 1682, do not appear, at this time, to have been released by the Indiana. But there is little reason to doubt that a purchase was made in 1686, substantially as set forth in the conference of 1787, and neither the character of the boundaries mentioned, nor the fact that no early attempt was made to lay out the land thus acquired, raises a presumption against the validity of the proprietary claim. Of the twenty grants noted, only the deeds of 1682 and of July 14, 1688, attempt to define all; the boundaries of the lands conceded, and. these with indifferent success. The next in order of clearness in the definition of boundaries are six deeds, in five of which "days' journeys" are employed to measure the extension of the grant into the interior, the other with less definiteness indicating this extension in the terms "backwards to the utmost bounds of: the province." The twelve remaining deeds sire simply quit-claims of tribes or individuals to lands within a wide
* It appears that in 1727 certain of the Conestoga Indians and "divers of the Ganawese," with several chiefs and ethers of the Five Nations, arrived in Philadelphia from the Five Nations and the Susquehanna. They seem to have come to make an additional sale, of lands or to got an additional consideration for lands already sold years before, and Governor Gordon, replying to their speech, takes occasion to refer to Colonel Dungan's purchase, and adds; "The Five Nations were so sensible of this that they never since claimed these land , the' we have had many visits from them hither for brightening the chain of friendship. And five years since, when Sir William Keith and four gentlemen of the council were at Albany; at a general meeting of all the Five Nations, their chiefs of themselves confirmed the former grant, and absolutely released all pretensions to these lands; our records show this, and these people who are now hero cannot be sensible of it." It may be added that while no such record has been preserved to this day, the Indian delegation did not press the matter farther; and it may be considered a statement of the facts. In the treaty proceedings at Lancaster in 1744, however, the representatives of the Six Nations said that they had granted their lands to the governor of Now York in trust, but some time after he went to England " and carried our land with him, and there sold It to our brother Onas for a large sum of money; and when, at the instance of our brother Onas, we were minded to sell some lands, he told us we had sold the Susquehanna lands already to the governor of Now York, end drat-he had bought them from him in England; tho', when he came to understand how the governor of Now York had deceived its, he very generously paid us for our lands over again,"
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scope of country, without definitely indicating the locality or justness of the claims surrendered.
It seems that there was little expectation on the part of either party to these transactions that the lands transferred would be immediately marked out. There was no immediate demand for all of the land secured, but as opportunity offered concessions were sought by the proprietor rather as a precaution than as a moving necessity. Indeed, up to this time it is doubtful if any of the lines of the various concessions were marked opt, save where corner-trees formed a part of the description, and then only to far as to distinguish these objects, and it is certain that, with the exception of the walk of 1787, the different "journeys" indicated were never travelled. In 1688 Holme ran out the baseline provided for in the deed of July 80, 1685, but there is no indication that the matter was ever prosecuted further, or that in any other case, save the one indicated above, there were ever nay' preliminary measures taken. The provincial authorities, however, abated no jot or tittle of their rights to the lands, and sold them to settlers as occasion offered, though the Indians were still permitted to linger in their old haunts and to hunt, trap, and fish in the unocoupied territory without hindrance.
In 1684, John Chapman came from England and settled just above the line of Markham's grant. He was considerably in advance of any other settlement, but the Indians, who were about here in large numbers, took no exceptions to his encroachment upon their lands. On the contrary, he was the recipient of marked favors from them extending through a considerable period, an especial token of consideration being noted as late as 1694 by the historian, Proud. Smith, in his "History of Pennsylvania," also notes this general civility of the Indians, but relates that "one of the chiefs," coming to Chapman one day; "in an angry tone told him it was their land he was settled on, pointing to a small distance, where he said the bounds of the English purchase were, and borrowing an axe, marked a line to the southeast of his house, and went away without giving him any further trouble at that time." Watson, in the notebook to which reference, has already been made, adds another incident of this character on the authority of John Penquite, whose father settled near Chapman at a very early date. He well remembered seeing, when a lad, a line of marked trees crossing his father's farm to the Neshaminy, which the Indians said was the line between them and Penn, and ordered his father to till the ground on Penn's side only and not to meddle with theirs. These incidents have been urgently pressed forward to invalidate the claim that a purchase was made in 1686, but they may very well have occurred prior to that date, and if so would lose all significance. It is very probable, however, that they date much later, and it thus becomes interesting, indeed vitally essential to the opposition of the validity of the purchase of 1686, to identify the "Indians" and "chief" involved in these stories with those who are said to have been
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present or represented at the conference when the original deed of the "walking purchase" was made. No attempt of this sort has ever been made, and the complaining Indians were undoubtedly other individuals whose objections to the spread of the settlements had an entirely different origin.
Under the regime of William Penn the sale of their lands rapidly became a matter of serious import to the Indians. During the administration of the Swedes and Dutch, and even of the Duke of York, the expansion of the settlements had been slow and their location in a region not highly prized by the natives. The Indians, therefore, made no difficulty in selling whatever lands the whites asked for below the falls, and especially after experience had indicated that such sales left the land still in their possession to be sold again to the next comer. But whatever ideas they had primarily entertained as to the character of these transactions they found a radical change in this respect under Penn, and gradually ceased to cherish the delusion that the two races could permanently occupy the same territory. Although they sold their lands with the distinct understanding that the whites should not encroach upon their hunting-grounds and lands reserved by them, the more far-sighted of the race did not fail to observe that the tendency of the new settlements was to expand towards the interior, creating fresh demands for land, and that the end was not in view. The mass of the natives, however, did not share these views, and the sale of lands continued until at the beginning of the eighteenth century the region between the Susquehanna and the Delaware as far up as the, South mountain range had been conceded to the whites. To the conservative class of natives the extent of these grants proved a source of great irritation, and gave rise to a disposition to resist an expansion which was rapidly nearing their important villages and most highly-prized lands. Accordingly, as this element came into power and influence the new chiefs were found contesting the claims of the whites as they did in Bucks county. The deeds, with a single excep- tion, were never disputed, but the peculiar relation of the individual to the tribe and of one tribe to another afforded innumerable conflicting Indian claims, which were brought forward to delay the surrender of the lands conceded. Of these claims the whites gradually grew less tolerant, and so it came about that, while the Indians generally observed their treaties and appeared to have accurately understood their boundaries, and that while the whites as a whole were averse to warfare, and from conscientious motives carefully sought to avoid whatever was likely to provoke their warlike neighbors to acts of hostility, each found reasonable ground for frequent complaints of the other.
The gradual development of the settlements in the direction of the unmarked grants incurred the uneasiness of the Delaware tribes, and the depredations committed by the war parties of the Iroquois and southern Indians were fast fanning the spark into a flame of war. The Potomac was the natural boundary between the northern and southern Indians, but under the influence of the pro-
History of Bucks County By J.H. Battle Table of Contents
Chapter 3 Continue page 146 to 174
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