raised a large family, of whom Rev. William B. Srope,
formerly pastor of the Baptist Church in Lambert-
ville, is one.
David P. Srope, second son of Christopher, was
born Nov. 1, 1787. At that time the then township
of Bethlehem was but sparsely settled, his father
having, after his discharge from the army, purchased
a small lot of land when his young wife and infant
children were nearly his only companions. Up to
the age of fifteen he had lived and labored within
five miles of his birthplace, but a proposition being
made to him to assist in the settling of an estate in
the territory of Orleans, now the State of Louisiana,
he concluded to undertake the journey. At that
time there were only a few lumbering stage-coaches
to carry passengers from place to place. With all
the disadvantages of that kind of travel, Mr. Srope
determined to undertake the hazardous journey to
Pittsburgh, Pa., in a sulky, and then go by water to
New Orleans. At that time much of the distance lay
through an almost trackless wilderness, with scarcely
a habitation within a day's ride. In spite of the
dangers incident to the journey, Mr. Srope started
out, and after several weeks spent upon the road
arrived at Pittsburgh ; then, taking passage on board
of an " ark," he commenced the descent of the Ohio
River, and thence down the Mississippi to New Or-
leans. On the Mississippi the ark passed, at Mem-
UNION.
509
phis, the first steamboat that ever plied on those
waters. Arriving at his destination, he spent several
months in settling up the estate, and then returned
home.
Jan. 17, 1817, Mr. Srope married Miss Eliza An-
derson, of Andersontown, Warren Co., N. J. ; she bore
Mm four children, of whom Joseph A. Srope, justice
of the peace, residing at Washington, Warren Co., is
one. Mrs. Srope died Dec. 7, 1848.
After Mr. Srope's marriage he settled in Lebanon
township, about 1830, and was elected a judge of tin-
Court of Common Pleas of Hunterdon County, which
position he held for ten years; he was also a justice of
the peace for twenty wars.
In 1849, Mr. Srope moved to Washington, Warren
Co., where he resided with his son, Joseph A., till
March 29, 1876, the day of his death; his remains
were interred in the Mansfield Cemetery, near Wash-
ington.
Isaac R. Srope, another son of Christopher, was born
Mr. 1, 1802, and was a blacksmith, but his life was
mostly spent in filling public trusts. He was mar-
ried, Dec. 25, 1828, to Sarah Roelofson, by whom he
had eight children, five of whom are still living. The
oldest, William T., resides in Frcnchtown and is en-
gaged in public business, being a justice of the peace,
notary public, and a master in Chancery.
In 1830, Isaac R. Srope was appointed deputy
sheriff of Hunterdon County, which office he filled
for three years. In 1 S : 1 7 lie moved from Bethle-
hem township to Baptisttown, in Kingwood town-
ship, He was assessor several years both in Beth-
lehem and in Kingwood. In 1841 he was elected to
the Assembly from Hunterdon County without op-
position, and was re-elected the following year.
He served again in 1840— 47, and the latter year was
the leader of the I democratic party in the Legislature.
In 1854 he was appointed a judge of the Court of
Common Pleas. He served three years as chosen
freeholder from Kingwood township. In 1861 he
moved to French town, and wa- elected a justice of the
peace, which Office he held at the time of his decease,
April 11', 1862.
Samuel P. Srope, youngest son of Christopher, was
horn Oct. 8, 1806. He emigrated to (Phi,, in L886,
aided there until his death, Sept. 20, 1866. He
married Elizabeth II. Lewis, Sept, 25, 1884.
Sarah Srope, f the daughters, married James
Met'longlin, who died at tin- residence of his son,
David Mel 'lougliu, in Clinton town-hip, Hunterdon
Oo., at the advanced age of over one I mini red year-.
Keheeea Srope. another daughter, married Mor-
deeai Roberta, and her two bous, Charles and John
II., have resided in Lambertville for several year-.
Catharine Srope, another daughter, married John
Sough, and Joseph ll. Hough, who has been for
more than fortj yean I Hand Secretary of the I Iran, 1
Lodge of Masons of New Jersey, is her oldest son.
Isaac Passant was an Englishman by birth. A
bachelor of both means and leisure, he came to this
country in the latter part of the last century and re-
sided in Flemington. Liking the country, he wrote
for some of his nephews and nieces to come lore.
But one accepted the offer, — Sarah, daughter of John
and Hannah Clark, who was born in Leicestershire,
England, March 11, 177n. A fter arriving here she con-
tinued with the Capner family, with whom she had
crossed the ocean, until 1799, when sin- married Dan-
iel, son of Philip Case, more commonly known at
that time by the name of Tanner Case; his father
was a German.
In 1804, Isaac Passam and Daniel Case and family
moved on a farm they had purchased of the Cou-
glc family, in Bethlehem, and erected a new stone
house and frame barn, still standing and in good
condition, and went to farming. The old buildings
were of logs and very uncomfortable. Daniel was
very fond of blooded stock. He brought the first
English sheep into this part of the country, obtain-
ing them from Capt. George Farmer, of Middlesex
County; they were part of the stock that William
Talbot was accused of smuggling into this country.
The country was new, and that kind of tanning
did not pay well at that time. Others, who earn,- ,,n
later, fared better, and even to thi- day we -,•,- and
feel what public-spirited individuals did for us by
such improvement in domestic animals. Isaac Pas-
sam and Daniel Case both died in 1S26, and their land
i- now in the possession of the fourth and fifth gen-
erations.
Mrs. Sarah Clark Case was a woman of good com-
mon sense, and as a nurse in sickness could hardly be
equaled. When they moved into this neighborhood
medical help was scarce and distant. The nearest was
at PittstOWU, and I>r. Forman dying very soon after
made the want more felt. Her good success in nurs-
ing caused her to be called on to prescribe, which she
did with such success that she devoted nearly all her
ti t,, it; she was also in much request as an aC-
COUCheUte. In 1816 the Legislature of New Jersey
passed a law declaring a- licensed all persons who
,1 g 1 -landing as physicians. ThUB she be-
came perhaps the first female practitioner in the
state, certainly in the county. She practiced until
age and increased medical facilities compelled her
to retire.
She always wished to have a physician in the fam-
ily. She had hut one sou, John 11. ; he had DO rel-
ish for the profession, bo she had t,, wait for another
generation. John married Mi<^ Elizabeth Bennett,
and when their -,,n-. l-aae and Daniel, Were horn,
there seemed to be reasons why they should not be
educated for professional lit',-. Bui when their third
son, Nathan, was horn he was immediately dedicated
t,, the profession of medicine, she did aot Bee the
fruition of her hopes, as ahe died in 1869.
On the west of the Passam and Case farm is what
was known a- the Lompkin and Lawshe farm — since
510
HUNTERDON COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
owned by Jonathan Robins and now in the hands of
his descendants — and the Hickory farm, part of which
was acquired from the Passam farm ; on the south
the land was owned by Henry Carter and called
the Carter farm, and the location east of this was
owned and occupied by John Clifford.
Progressing east, we come to the late residence of
William L. King, Esq., deceased, now owned by Miss
Anna King, his daughter. There are several dwell-
ings besides the homestead now occupied by Miss
Anna and Joseph King, occupied mostly by me-
chanics and the employees of Joseph King, who has
been in business here for several years.
Joseph King, father of William L., purchased this
property of Thomas Twining in 1810, and he (Twin-
ing) purchased it of James Parker and Gertrude his
wife, then of Perth Amboy, Middlesex Co., July 3,
1793, for £383. It was on farm No. 119 of the so-
ciety's map of division. Mr. Twining was a Quaker,
and ran a fulling-mill and cloth-dressing establish-
ment. It was later operated by Jacob Blain, son of
Jacob Blain, of Rocky Hill, Somerset Co., who during
his stay married Miss Ann, daughter of J. Youel or
Yewel, a Scotchman. From this union came several
children, among them Revs. John D. Blain and
Joseph Blain, ministers in the Methodist Episcopal
Church, and Jacob Blain, the present mail-carrier.
Farther east is the Grove farm, from 1775 to 1783
the residence of James Parker. He was son of John
Parker and grandson of Elisha Parker, who settled at
Woodbridge in 1765. James was the grandfather of
the Hon. Cortlandt Parker.
After Mr. Parker left Hunterdon, Hugh Exton
bought the Grove property, lived there some time, and
sold out and bought the " Union farm." It was on
this farm that the Union Furnace stood. The ruins
of the stack are still there, and bring to mind many
legends, particularly those of the French and Indian
war in 1755-65. When raids were made by the In-
dians, or when the whites anticipated one, the inhab-
itants for many miles around, particularly from that
part of Warren County lying between this and the
Blue Mountains, used to take shelter within the strong
walls of the buildings, which were mostly of stone.
Here the women and children would remain until
danger was over, the men daily scouring the woods
and, as far as they could, looking after their stock, and
coming in from miles around to sleep at night. This
Union farm is mostly owned by the descendants of
Hugh Exton in the third and fourth generations.
Some fifty years ago it was used as a dairy-farm.
Going back to the south border of the township,
we have the Crawford and Wilson farm. The house,
a stone building, is in good repair; it was built in
1765 by John Crawford, a vestryman in St. Thomas'
Episcopal Church, in Alexandria, previous to 1764.
Here he kept a store and tavern. He gave that part
of the original Presbyterian church lot that is on the
west side of the Kirkbride line, and John Chamber-
lin, living on the east side (a Baptist), the other part.
This yard was afterwards enlarged by purchase from
the Wilson farm, now so called from two of Mr. Craw-
ford's daughters marrying brothers, James and An-
drew Wilson, in the hands of whose descendants it
has ever since been. The present occupant is Mrs.
Catharine Hibler.
From this place we have running in a northwest-
erly direction the Lehigh Valley Railroad, more
familiarly known as the Easton and Amboy, a dis-
tance of five miles, having as stations Midvale and
Pattenburg, between which (while the road was build-
ing), Sept. 22, 1872, occurred what was called the
"Pattenburg Riot," and which caused a great excite-
ment at the time. It appears that late on Saturday
night or early on Sunday morning a white man, said
to be named Thomas Call, was found dead near the
mouth of the tunnel, whereupon there was a general
rising of the white workmen, who burned the log
shanty of the negro workmen, near the mouth of the
tunnel, and followed the fleeing inmates through Pat-
tenburg to another shanty, about a mile east, between
6 and 7 o'clock, and killed first, by the side of the
road, Dennis Powell, then Benjamin Dishmal, under
a porch of a dwelling-house, and then Oscar Bruce, in
the public highway. They were buried the next day
on land belonging to the railroad company, about 300
yards north from the Midvale station. They were
exemplary men, truthful and honest, and the negroes
all loved, honored, and revered their " Daddy" Dish-
mal.
Thomas Twining, when running his fulling-mill
and cloth-dressing establishment, employed one John
Porter, a son of an Episcopal clergyman who was a
chaplain in the British army. He was a good scholar,
an excellent linguist, and in epistolary writing had
few equals in either language, description, or senti-
ment. When he came to this country or where he
learned his trade is not known ; but he was a good
workman. He was a monomaniac. On hearing a
lady spoken of as handsome or attractive in manners,
he avoided every chance of meeting or seeing her, for
fear of being fascinated and drawn into love. He
claimed to own all the good farms within his knowl-
edge, having been forced to buy them. Through an
agent he had received a yearly legacy of 19 guineas
annually from his father's estate, sent to him by his
sister, who was executrix of her father's will. The
agent left Twining's, went into Morris County or
upper part of German Valley, and then the yearly
stipend ceased. This loss is said to have been the
cause of his unsettled mind.
After leaving these parts he was in Morris County
some time, but returned. At length it became neces-
sary that the town should help him, but he could not
and would not be removed to the poor-house. After
some two or three years' resistance he was taken there
under the plea that he might be convenient to his
farms around there, and under a bargain that he
UNION.
511
was a boarder, and not a pauper. He was over six
feel in height.
John I Trad made his appearance ill this township
shortly after tin- Involution; he -aid lie had i ic
i'roin Maryland and wished to teach school. He
-non found one, and commenced teaching. He was
apparently ahout thirty year- of age. He - 1 courted
and married a widow old enough to he his grand-
mother,— Mrs. Martin, the mother of Leonard Martin,
a soldier in the Revolution. There were a groat many
Of the past generation who received instruction from
hi in. lie lost his wife, and, like many other widowers,
he married again, — another widow; and when too
old to keep school they went to Gaston and kept a
shop. But, she dying in |s:M or Is:;:!, he sold out
and returned to his old friends. In the mean time he
applied for and received two pensions, — one from the
Stati' of .Maryland for two years' service in the Mary-
land line in the Revolution, and one iv the United
States for live year-' service in the army during tin-
same. He received a severe sabre-wound in the head
while iii the service, which may have caused or in-
creased his obliquity of mind, lie was particularly
reticent in regard to his former history, hut it was
gathered thai hi- father was an officer in the city of
London, his mother dying when he was horn. He
was hoarded out and kept at acl 1 until a young
man. when word came to him that his lather was
dead ; he was persuaded to run anas and conic to
America just as the Revolution was brewing. He
landed in Baltimore, and soon went into the army,
serving in the Maryland line for two years, and when
honorably discharged re-enlisted in the Continental
army for live years, served his time, got his honorable
discharge, and, being a good penman, found Borne
business in writing for a milling establishment Hi
s narried a Quakeress. They had one child, — a
daughter. They differed ; she drove him away and
he came here. He was affable and eaailj suited. If
he entered a house that was a little out of order, and
the I woman would apologize, Mr. Head had his
couplet ready :
" Poor w an 1 b
Until thejudgmont-doj â– - on."
He was simple and childlike in manner, hut very
determined when his mind was made up.
The territory Of this township, and some imme-
diately adjacent, was once famous for distillei
apple whisky. Since 1828 there was near the Hick-
ory Tavern Mr. Jonathan Robins; at the Cross
Stires, Thomas Stire-. and John Siitphin; at
I' nl'iirg, Tuni- Stire- and I'h as Stire- ; at Pitts-
town, Henry Stire-. Henry Snyder, and Jacob St ires;
at Barrens, William Maxwell and Josias Maxwell; at
Little's, Mai. John Little; at Daylor's, William Tay-
lor; and near Van Syckelville, Henry Carter, Charles
Robins, Ezekiel Cole, and Lewis Humphrey. These
were all in the town-hip, and ju-t on it- borders were
located, at Sigler's, Judge P. Sigler, and Michael
Haggerty at Clinton, — eight on the soil of the town-
ship, and two others deriving each much of their
support from it. A patent having been granted by
the 1 atent ( Mli el r d i til 1 1 ng s| i n t - l'r .111 grai n earl \
in this century, there were a great many patent dis-
tilleries erected in different parts of the country.
Luther Calvin, one of our early settlers, had built his
grist- and saw-mill a decade or two before; it proved
a great convenience to the neighborhood, as there were
m> mill accommodations lor a great distance around.
It was. of course, called Calvin's Mills. Here Sam-
uel Cummings and a Mr. Dolphin, in or about 1812,
commeii 1 making rye whisky according to the pat-
ent. It was afterwards run by Adam I). Kunkle and
Samuel Stevenson. This gave importance to the place,
which must needs have a hotter name than either
Calvin's or Case's Mills, and, at the suggestion of
Henry Carcuff, it was named I'attenhurg, in honor of
the patent distillery.
Much of this liquor was carted to Trenton and
Philadelphia, and there sold at from twenty-five to
thirty-live cents per gallon. From various causes
this business has gone down ; there is not at this time
a -ingle distillery in the town-hip. Although there
was so much liquor made, yet the people generally
were about as temperate in the use of it a- those "f
any Other township in the county.
At the time of the hirth of this township there were
four taverns. One was at Van Syckelville, with a
stone in the south-southwest corner of the building
marked " 1 >. R. 1768." David Reynolds kept it -oiiio
time, and afterwards moved into Morris County. A
Mr. Buskirs kept it several years in the latter part o£
the la-t century, ami the Messrs. Van Syckel in this
century up to about the middle, when it ceased to he
a public-house. It was for many years very exten-
sively patronized by the raft-men of the Delaware,
who. alter selling their rait- down the river, would
make their way hack on fool there being no stage-
lines, railroads, or canal- in those days in this part of
the country . carrying with them the proceeds of their
adventure. They went in companies ami squads of
different sizes. They were an honest, free-hearted
class of men. good citizens, and generally welcome
customers. The house is -till in a good state of pres-
ervation.
The Bonnell tavern, established in L767, was at
one time very noted, that and Bingo's being the
place- for holding the elections, one day in each, in
what at that t i ill UStitUted Aniwell township. It
was kept bj members of the Bonnell family nearly a
hundred year-, and when tin- New Jersey turnpike
i. iii 1812 18, was one of about forty that ad-
ministered to the wants of travelers on that road, an
average of nearly one lor every mile from New llrun -
wick io Easton. The Bigns were generally the likes
• See Molts " Pint CVnturjr of Huntordon."
512
HUNTERDON COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
nesses of military or naval heroes, as Perry, Pike,
Bainbridge, Jackson, and Lawrence.
Another tavern was one that was built by Cornelius
Carhart, along whose lands the New Jersey turnpike
ran. It was built of brick, and is sometimes called
the Brick Tavern. It was erected in September, 1813,
at the time of Com. Perry's victory on Lake Erie, the
news of which was received through a courier as the
workmen were putting on the last tier of joists, who
were so overjoyed at hearing of the victory that when
they put up the last pair of rafters and nailed the
bush on the peak, as was the custom of the day, and
poured some whisky out of a bottle on it, they unani-
mously called it Perryville, which name it still re-
tains as a post-town. But it has not grown much
since that day, only one dwelling and a blacksmith-
shop having been added to the tavern. It was a place
that for many years (until the time of railroads) en-
tertained drovers and droves, — more than any one
hotel in all this section of country, thousands of cattle
and sheep annually changing hands here. Railroad
facilities have in a great measure broken up the traffic.
James Hope for several years kept a tavern on the
New Jersey turnpike, close to the bridge that spans
the Raritan at Clinton. It had a military sign, and
was one of the above-mentioned forty-odd inns. This
one was lost by the formation of the town of Clinton.
All knowledge of the origin of the Mechlin tavern
seems to be " gone, buried beneath the dusky mantle of
obscurity." One Hartpense kept it in the early part
of this century. It, no doubt, was built before the
Revolution, and, with the " Hickory" tavern, helped
to quench the thirst of those who carted iron from
Bloomsbury to Pittstown. Its architecture was far in
advance of that of any other buildings of the same
age in the neighborhood. It was kept by Peter
Mechlin, Sr., for forty years, and by his son William
twenty years, and then the sign was down at least
twelve years before the buildings were all replaced
by new ones by William Mechlin. The farm is now
conducted by his son Hiram.
Hickory (tavern), when first built, was of logs and
was in this township, but when rebuilt by Mr. Peter
Van Syckel, early in the present century, it was
placed on the west side of the line, in Alexandria.
In its early days it was called the " Half-way House,"
and was much patronized by the teamsters who carted
iron from Bloomsbury to Pittstown. (It is said to
have derived its name, not from any hickory that
grew there, but from the scarcity of it. It is on the
dividing line of the water-shed. The water from the
shed as it then was went from the one side to the
Delaware, and from the other to the Raritan.) In
after-years it was famous for its balls and dances.
Some years since Garret Conover purchased the prop-
erty and took down the sign and sheds, and it is now
a productive farm.
The tavern in Van Syckelville was built in 17G3,
and, as the Union Iron-Works were at this time under
headway, it is very probable that the Mechlin and the
"Hickory" were erected about the same time.
There was a tavern for several years at Midvale, on
the property now owned by the Easton and Amboy
Railroad Company. The present house is in good
condition, though built early in this century ; it has
not been used for a tavern for fifty years. The old
one stood near where is now Andrew Van SyckeFs
store, and was on the road as it ran at that time from
New Hampton to Trenton.
John Crawford, in his stone house, built in 1765,
near the Bethlehem Presbyterian church, for several
years kept both store and tavern ; the house is in good
condition still.
During the building of the Easton and Amboy Rail-
road Lewis Humphrey built a commodious tavern in
Pattenburg, now occupied by William Sinclair. This
and the Perryville one, now kept by William Mettler,
late of Milford, are the present taverns.
Early in this century Aaron Van Syckel, Sr., pur-
chased a large farm, and, in addition to the tavern,
erected a store-house thereon, where for about forty
years was kept by himself and son, and later by his
grandson, one of the best stores in the county.
At that time (1827-28) a store was opened and kept
at Pattenburg by John and Andrew Race. Several
have kept there since, — viz, David Bowman, William
P. Smith, Jacob Apgar, Srope & Roberts (in 1855),
Ira Anderson, Edward Dolton, John Conover, Mar-
tenis & Weaver, Martenis, Barker & Brother, George
Barker, — and on the building of the railroad Peter
B. Srope opened a store and established a coal-yard,
the store being now kept by Srope & Maxwell. In
1846, Peter B. Srope, then living at what is now called
Norton, built a store-house which is now in the hands
of Messrs. Gano.
At Midvale Peter Stires erected a store-house on
the completion of the railroad, now occupied by
Andrew Van Syckel.
CIVIL HISTORY.
The township of Union took its stand among the
townships of the county of Hunterdon, April 11,
1853, by holding its first town-meeting at Perryville,
at the house of Henry Rockafellow,* who kept the
tavern at that time. The township officers have
been as follows :
MODERATOKS.
1863-55, A. W. Dunham ; 1856-58, Oliver Huffman ; 1859-65, George W.
Rea ; 1866, Sylvester Taylor ; 1867-68, George W. Rea ; 1869-70, Syl-
vester Taylor j 1871, George W. Rea ; 1872, Joseph Van Syckel; 1873-
80, George W. Rea.
TOWN CLERKS.
1853-69, John H. Case ; 1869-75, Asher S. H0U60I, Esq. ; 1876-76, George
B. Srope ; 1876-78, Joseph S. Taylor; 1878 to the present time, Alfred
Cook. ,
JUDGES OF ELECTION.