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From: Debbie <>
Subject: [NewCastle] Pencader Hundred, New Castle Co., DE, Part I
Date: Tue, 19 Aug 2003 22:02:12 -0400
Scharf, Thomas J., History of Delaware, 1609-1888.
Volume Two- pp. 854-880.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
PENCADER HUNDRED.
THIS hundred is a long, narrow strip of land on the Maryland line, and
is bounded on the north, east and south by the hundreds of White Clay
Creek, New Castle, Red Lyon and St. George’s. It is the only division
of New Castle County that is not confined within natural boundaries. The
greater part of the Welsh tract and a small portion of what in early
days was known as St. Augustine Manor comprise the territory of
Pencader. The early Welsh families settled in this hundred, principally
around Iron Hill. This being a hill of considerable elevation, gave
rise to the name Pencader, which is a Welsh term and signifies "the
highest seat." The larger portion of the land is in a state of
cultivation, and the remainder, chiefly in the vicinity of Iron and
Chestnut Hills, is well wooded. The soil is a red loam with a clay
sub-soil, and yields well. The land is watered by several small streams
which flow through it.
In 1801 surveys for the Chesapeake and Delaware Canal were made and a
route was selected. It passed near Glasgow, where a large reservoir
covering one hundred acres of land was commenced, but discontinued in
1803 for want of funds. The feeder was from Big Elk Creek to the
reservoir, and $100,000 were spent upon its construction. Several
arches then built are still standing (1888). In 1828 a new route for
the canal, passing through the southern part of the hundred, was
selected. The bed of St. George’s Creek was used as the channel. The
canal was completed in 1829.
The southern part of Pencader is land that in 1671 was granted by Lord
Baltimore to Augustine HERMAN, and was part of what was known as St.
Augustine Manor, and embraced land from the Delaware, between
Appoquinimink and St. George’s Creek, westward to Bohemia Manor. This
land, however, was in dispute, and Governor Lovelace protested against
the usurpation of Herman and others, in taking up this land. The land
west of the Delaware State line retained the name.
The Welsh tract is a large tract of land, the greater part of which is
in Pencader Hundred, and the remainder in Cecil County, Maryland.
Settlers were upon the land in 1684, and were driven off by George
TALBOT, the Governor of Maryland, who claimed the land as within his
territory. An instance of Talbot’s proceedings was furnished to the
Council at Philadelphia in a letter from Samuel LAND of New Castle,
dated May 30th. He acquainted them that the colonel had visited the
houses of Jonas ERSKINE, Andrew TILLE and a widow named OGLE, all
residing near New Castle; and, accompanied by three musketeers, to add
force to his demands, had informed them that unless they would
acknowledge Lord Baltimore as their proprietor within three weeks, and
pay their rents to him in the future, they would be dispossessed of
their land and turned out of their homes. The testimony of Joseph BOWLE
before the Council, recounting his experience with Talbot, gives a vivid
idea of the extent to which the abuses were carried. Bowle, who lived
at Iron Hill, about eight miles distant from New Castle, attested that
"Colonel Talbot ridd up to my house and was ready to ride over me, and
said, ‘Dam you, you Dogg, whom do you seat under here, you dogg! You
seat under noe body; you have noe Warrant from Penn nor my Lord;
therefore gett you gone or Else I’le sent you to St. Murry’s (St.
Mary's), and I being frighted, says he, ‘you Brazen-faced, Impudent,
Confident Dogg, I’l Sharten (shorten) Penn’s Territories by and by.’
The distinguishing feature of the tract is Iron Hill, which was known by
that name in 1661, and is mentioned in a letter from Vice-Director
Alexander D. HINIJOSSA, May 15th, as being the place where four
Englishmen were murdered by the Indians in April preceding. It is
evident that iron ore was then known to be at the place in considerable
quantity; hence the name.
William DAVIS, David EVANS and William WILLIS petitioned Penn for a
tract of 30,000 acres, the land to be divided divided and deeded to
settlers from South Wales, some of whom had at that time settled in
Radnor Township, Chester Co., PA. The petition was granted October 15,
1701, This tract was ever after known at the Welsh Tract. The grant
stated that they were to have "thirty thousand acres if there be so much
vacant in the place hereafter expressed; that is to say, behind the town
of New Castle westward, extending northward and southward, beginning to
the westward seven miles from the said town of New Castle, and extending
upward and downward as there shall be found room by regular strait lines
as near as may be." A few settlers were upon the tract at the time of
purchase and had made some improvements, but without any show of title;
they were soon dispossessed and the Welsh immediately after survey began
to locate upon the land. Soon after the survey was completed, John WELCH
selected 561 acres, and a little later 530 acres. Of the latter, he
sold 500 acres, August 17, 1727, to Thomas LEWIS. Another part of this
land was sold to James SYKES, and by his executors 281 3/4 acres was
conveyed to Robert FARIES on February 16, 1730. Robert Faries was a
native of Ireland, who came to this country and purchased land in Red
Lyon Hundred. After his death in 1749, the above-mentioned tract was
inherited by his son William. In the following year William Faries
purchased from Henry WHITESIDE a tract of land containing 113 acres. In
1760 he died intestate, leaving two sons and a daughter,— Jacob, Samuel
and Margaret. In 1770 Jacob purchased his sister’s share, and three
years later his brother’s portion. He also purchased several other
tracts adjoining his land. He died September 1, 1818, leaving seven
surviving children. The property was next owned by Jacob, Jr., who
procured it by descent and purchase. The next owner was William W., who
obtained possession after the decease of Jacob Faries, Jr. D.B. FERRIS
is the present owner of nearly all the land above mentioned.
One of the first to choose was James JAMES, who selected Iron Hill and
northward to the Christiana Creek, embracing 1244 acres of land. A deed
was granted by Davis, Evans and Willis, June 27, 1702, and confirmed by
Penn February 21, 1703. Thomas James took up 1250 acres by a deed dated
October 8, 1702, and David PRICE 1050 acres, deeded June 5, 1702. John
MORGAN took 1030 acres April 22, 1702, and also 1023 acres on the
head-waters of Dragon Creek nearly to the boundary of Red Lyon Hundred,
and John THOMAS took 632 acres, March 16, 1702. John GRIFFITH took up
222 acres, William JONES 1368 acres, and in 1702, 1379 acres. Howel
JAMES took up 1040 acres, and Philip JAMES 525 acres the same year.
Howel JAMES, by his will bearing date August 17, 1717, devised 250 acres
to his son, Howel, and 200 acres each to his other sons, James and
Philip. James sold his portion to his brother Philip, May 12, 1735.
Philip conveyed 200 acres on which a mill was located, to John JONES,
bolster, of Philadelphia, May 10, 1737, and 210 acres-lying on the north
side of Christiana Creek to Samuel ALLEN, November 8th, of the same
year. Among other things devised by Howel James, Sr., to his wife, was
an annuity of ten pounds to be paid out of his mills and plantation.
Some difficulty arose concerning this, and Alexander HAMILTON was
consulted. His opinion was as follows:
"I am of opinion that the devise by Howell James of ten Pounds to his
wife Phebe, to be layed out of his mills and plantation in such
proportion as in the said Will hereunto annexed is directed, and to be
paid yearly, is a good devise to Phebe for her life. But she cannot
arrest the possessor of the mills or Land for the money, the same being
a charge against the Estate and not against the person of the heir or
possessor of the mills and Land.
"A. HAMILTON.
"Philadelphia, March 13, 1726."
John WATKINS and many others selected lands from the Welsh tract. One
hundred and sixty-seven acres of the land of John Watkins passed to
David WILLIAMS, August 6, 1736; Thomas JOHNS, on November 10, 1729,
bought 1156 acres; Philip JAMES sold to Francis LAND, January 6, 1729,
400 acres on the southeast side of Iron Hill; David EVANS, November 15,
1723, sold to John EDWARDS 450 acres in two tracts, and the next day 300
acres to William REES. Before 1736 David EVANS removed to Cape Fear,
North Carolina. In a deed to his son Samuel, dated April 10, 1736, he
conveyed to him 200 acres, "whereon I have lived, formerly of Pencader,
now of Cape Fear, North Carolina." April 21, 1738, Solomon and David
EVANS unite in conveying 594 acres of land to Thomas EVANS, the 200
acres formerly conveyed to Solomon being part of the original tract. A
part of the James JAMES land came to his son Samuel by deed of gift,
June 3, 1723, on which soon after he built a forge, and, by his success
and the fact of there being plenty of ore near at hand, interested the
leading iron-masters of Pennsylvania to the locality to such an extent
that on October 15, 1725, an octopartite agreement was drawn up and
signed by Samuel JAMES, millwright; Rees JONES, tanner, of Pencader;
Samuel NUTT, of Chester County, ironmonger; Evan OWEN and William
BRANSON, merchants, both of Philadelphia; Thomas and John RUTTER,
smiths, also of Philadelphia; and Caspar WISTAR, brass-button maker,
also of the same city. These men formed a company, each holding an
eighth interest, for the purpose of erecting a furnace to be known as
the "ABBINGTON FURNACE," and to purchase lands in connection with it for
the use of the furnace. They made arrangements for the purchase of over
1000 acres of land in the vicinity, and on one acre and three-quarters
of it on the bank of Christiana Creek, which was purchased of Samuel
James, and conveyed by deed to Evan Owen and William Branson, on May 28,
1726, they erected the furnace and a forge, which were called "ABBINGTON
IRON WORKS." At the time the deed for the furnace lot was made out, the
eighth parts had been divided into sixteenths, and John LEACOCK, William
FISHBOURN, Edward BRADLEYand William MONINGTON were partners in interest
in the Iron Works Company.
On October 21, 1727, Gabriel GOULDNEY, of Bristol, England, became the
purchaser of one-sixteenth interest, and from the deed of conveyance
made at that time, the above-recited facts are obtained. It is not
ascertained how long the works were maintained by the company, but
probably not for many years. It was continued by Samuel JAMES until
1734, when upon a judgment obtained against him in the February term of
court of that year, his property was ordered to be seized and sold. The
sale was made by Henry NEWTON, sheriff of New Castle County, September
18, 1735, to Abraham TAYLOR and John WHITE the owners of the judgment.
The property is then mentioned as "THE FORGE" commonly called Samuel
JAMES’, with all the tools and utensils of the same, a lot of blacksmith
tools, and also the one-eighth interest in the "furnace commonly called
or known by the name of the Samuel James or the Abbington Iron Works,"
together with the eighth part of land, tenements and appurtenances
belonging to the furnace. It does not appear that the forge or furnace
was continued by the purchasing parties, but it is still mentioned as
such when sold by the sheriff January 4, 1768, to Andrew FISHER,
miller. The land on which the furnace was situated is now (1888) owned
by William McCONAUGHEY. A part of the old wall and a heap of cinders on
land now owned by COOCH Bros. marks the site of the old forge.
A short time after purchasing this property FISHER erected thereon a
grist-mill and a saw-mill. This, after his death in 1804, passed into
the hands of his sons, John and Samuel. The mill property and 45 acres
of land was sold August 19, 1808, to Thomas BRADLEY, and May 23, 1810,
to Alexander FORESTER. In both of these cases the property came back to
the grantors, and in 1815 vested solely in John Fisher. On the 11th of
April of the same year he conveyed this estate to Jacob TYSON. Since
that period the mills have been successively owned by William
SHAKESPEARE, Azariah SMITH, Thomas BRADLEY, and Joel P. WOODWARD. In
1863 the overshot wheel was replaced with iron wheels, the old saw-mill
torn down, and a department for sawing arranged in the space formerly
occupied by the overshot wheel. The gristmill was a two-and-a-half-story
building, forty by sixty feet, with a capacity of twenty-five barrels
per day. The capacity of the saw-mill was 200,000 feet of lumber per
year. In July, 1883, the mill was burned and it has never been rebuilt.
Among the settlers in Pencader in the vicinity of Iron Hill, from 1709
to 1720, are found the following names: John DEVONALT, Lewis PHILLIPS,
Philip TRUEAX, David MILES, Rees DAVID, Thomas EVANS, Thomas EDMUND,
Arthur EDWARD, John PHILLIPS. Thomas MORRIS, Jenkins JONES, John
BOULTON, Richard EDWARD, John GRIFFITH, Hugh EVAN, David LEWIS, Samuel
EVAN, Hugh DAVID, Anthony MATHEW, Simon MATHEW, Simon BUTLER, Arthur
MELCHOIR, George EATON, Elias THOMAS, Thomas EVAN Philip REES, John
BENTLEY, David JOHN, Richard LEWIS, Benjamin GRIFFITH, Emlin DAVID, John
MILLER, John JONES, Richard WITTEN, Griffith THOMAS, David DAVIS, Thomas
RICHARD, Cornelius VANSANT, and Richard HERBERT. These formed the
nucleus of the WELSH TRACT BAPTIST CHURCH, and many of them, after
residing here a few years, moved to other places for the purpose of
founding new churches.
Rev. Morgan EDWARDS, author of the "Materials towards a history of the
Baptists in Delaware State," was born May 9, 1822, in the parish of
Trevethin, Monmouthshire, Wales. He obtained his early education in
Wales, and was a student at the Bristol Academy, under the celebrated
Dr. Bernard FOSKETT. In 1738 he became a member of the Baptist Church,
and nineteen years later was ordained a minister of that church in
Ireland, where he remained for nine years. Upon the recommendation of
John HILL D.D., he was called to the pastorate of the Baptist Church of
Philadelphia, where he arrived May 23, 1761. In 1771 he resigned, and
moved to Pencader Hundred, Delaware, where he resided until his death,
January 28, 1795.
In 1736, Samuel KERR came from Scotland, and purchased two hundred acres
of the Welsh Tract from Rees JONES. He resided there until his death,
when the premises came into the possession of his son, Andrew, who
devised them to his son, Andrew. The premises, with a few changes made
by purchase or sale, are now owned by George G. Kerr, whose residence
and adjoining property is in White Clay Creek Hundred.
Thomas COOCH came from England and, in 1746, purchased a tract of land
in Pencader, containing two hundred acres, being a part of the land
warranted to William JAMES. He resided in this hundred, and purchased
other lands in the vicinity of the tract above-mentioned. On the 8th of
July, 1776, there was resurveyed to him to hundred and twenty-nine acres
on a warrant of resurvey granted June 5, 1776. In September of the same
year, while the BRITISH were in this neighborhood just previous to the
skirmish (the battle of Cooch's bridge) , they had their headquarters on
land of Thomas Cooch, at the present site of J. Wilkins Cooch’s
residence. During this skirmish the mill on these premises was burned
by the British.
At the time of his death, in 1791, Mr. Cooch was the owner of eight
hundred and fifty acres and one hundred and forty-two perches of land in
the Welsh Tract. This property was divided among his heirs, and the
larger part of it has descended and is now (1888) in the possession of
William and J. Wilkins Cooch. The old forge, erected in connection with
the "Abbington Iron Works," is on land owned by them.* Among the papers
of Thomas Cooch was found an assessment list of Pencader Hundred, with
the amount of tax paid by each person. The assessment was made by Thos.
JAMES, and contained the following names and amounts:
£
Richard Thomas22
John Wattson18
Thomas Cooch22
David John18
Daniel Howells12
David Rees8
David John (smith)8
John Williams12
Nathaniel Williams22
John David (cooper)10
Rachel Griffith (widow)8
John Elder10
John Porter10
James Read12
William Moore8
David Davies8
David Barr20
David Hutton10
John Lattimore8
John Mitchell12
James Pierson8
John Thomas15
Enoch Morgan10
Daniel Oborn16
John Steel14
John Griffith8
Thomas Wilson10
Thomas Rees10
James Anderson20
Philip Grimes10
James Grimes8
William Williams10
Robert Stewart10
John Hill8
Jane David (widow)8
Alexander Faires12
Robert Jonson8
Simon James22
Thomas James, Jr.8
Mary Evans (widow)8
John Henderson10
Benjamin Underwood14
Alexander Porter10
John Crafford8
William Faires, Jr15
Richard Griffith20
John Davies16
David Evans10
John McWhorter10
John Fairis12
Denis David (widow)10
Moris Morgan10
Thomas Williams20
David Thomas10
Benjamin Evans8
Joseph Moore8
John Griffith10
Thomas Lewis14
Howel Williams14
John Miller14
Francis Alexander8
William Fairis10
Thomas James22
James Jones18
Nathaniel Evans22
William Addear10
Hugh Haughey8
Joseph Thomas18
Thomas Thomas16
John Evans8
Henry Rowland10
David Rowland8
David Howels14
James McSparence8
John Brown (weaver)8
James Brefford8
Daniel Griffith8
Thomas Wattson8
Joseph Holland8
Joseph Oborn8
Rees Jones’s estate12
Ezekiel Deniston8
Morris Evans8
Thomas Coleman8
David James8
James Fairis8
Jonathan John8
William Lewelin8
Darby McDade8
Mickel Law8
Samuel Eakins8
Edward Gin8
John Brown8
Adam Barr8
Andrew Boyde10
John Stewart8
Hugh Stewart8
Tobyas Burk8
David Thomas (batchiler)10
Daniel Jones18
John Gofforth8
Morgan Jones10
Jenet Davies (widow)8
John Ladly8
Sidney Jonson8
John Stewart8
William Read8
Hugh Stewart8
Jeremiah Ryne8
William Quigley8
Jacob John8
William McMechan8
William Price8
James Price8
John Ladly8
David Anderson8
John Carney8
Alexander Robinson8
William Wilson8
Morris Williams10
David John8
£1094
*This land, and money for its preservation, was granted, in 2003, to the
State or Delaware by the Cooch family.
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