NJ History Nerd Tour #6 ... Pompton Mutiny 4Nov-22

NJ History NERD Tour #6 ...

New Jersey POMPTON MUTINY Tour, Wayne, Riverdale and Bloomingale, NJ

November 4, 2022 Gary Link and Bill Bogertman

Gary Link and Bill Bogertman had plans to visit the site of the Pompton Mutiny for many years... Our interest was piqued after our first Nerd Tour of Morristown National Historic Park and Jockey Hollow in March 2019 where we saw and read of the Pennsylvania Line Mutiny.  BUT there was another mutiny too....

We actually accomplished the following, in this order:

1. Franklin Lakes Historic Marker, Franklin Lake Road, Franklin Lakes, NJ
2. Pompton Furnace, Pompton Lakes Falls, Pompton Lakes, NJ
3. Drive by Susan Serico home (Director North Haledon Public Library)
4. Pompton Lakes Triangle Monuments - Hamburg Turnpike, Pompton Lakes, NJ
5. Pompton Mutiny Historical Marker 1, Riverdale, NJ (Morris County)
6. Pompton Mutiny Historical Marker 2, Bloomingdale, NJ
7. Slater's Mill (and Powder Horne Mill), Bloomingdale, NJ
8. Schuyler-Colfax House, Wayne, NJ
9. Franklin Clove, Franklin Lakes, NJ

The presentation below is not in the same order as our visits.

The MAIN STORY
Revolutionary War US Continental Army Mutiny 

CONTEXT  
The Pennsylvania Line Mutiny
January 1, 1781 at Jockey Hollow, Morristown, NJ

Internet... Mutiny of the Pennsylvania Line

It was at Jockey Hollow near Morristown, NJ, that the Pennsylvania Line mutinied. On January 1, 1781, 1,500 soldiers from the Pennsylvania Line—all 11 regiments under General Anthony Wayne’s command—insisted that their three-year enlistments were expired, killed three officers in a drunken rage and abandoned the Continental Army’s winter camp at Morristown, NJ. 

General Wayne and Congressional President Joseph Reed met with the mutineers to hear their grievances on January 7; they came to an agreement three days later. Half the men accepted discharges, while the other half took furloughs coupled with bonuses for reenlistment. Those who reenlisted formed the Pennsylvania Battalion, which went on to participate in the southern campaign. 

Painting: Mutiny of the Pennsylvania Line
 at Jockey Hollow, 1781

Remember, weather conditions had been harsh, pay and all supplies of food and clothing, arms and ammunition were late or nonexistent for several years. If mutinies continued to break out, Washington's Army would have destroyed itself before Britain had the chance. (NOTE: Throughout the war, the Continental Army (and Navy) was beset by shortages of food, clothing, ammunition, and arms. The root of the problem was that under the Articles of Confederation, the Continental Congress could not levy taxes to raise money from each the Thirteen Colonies. Throughout the American Revolution, the Army (and Navy) was dependent on donations from its citizens and loans from the Dutch, French and Spanish to survive. --from Marc Liebman 2Jan-22 Internet)

By January, the men were cold, starving and wanted to be paid. Part of Washington’s supply problems were made worse by the snowstorms that made roads impassable. Farmers were reluctant to part with food because they were hoarding what they had to get through the winter.

The New Jersey Line MUTINY
January 20, 1781 in Bloomingdale and Riverdale, NJ

Historic Marker on Union Avenue reads:
"FEDERAL HILL HISTORIC SITE
The site of the Revolutionary War era Pompton Mutiny which
occurred in the cold harsh winter of 1781.  It was in the eastern
valley overlooking Bloomingdale that an encampment of weary
troops mutinied. Consequently their two ringleaders were arrested,
tried and executed in the vicinity of what is not known as Union Ave."

These excellent terms in Jockey Hollow earlier in the month then prompted 200 New Jersey men stationed at "Pompton" to follow suit with their own mutiny, on January 20, 1781.
This time, the response was quite different. General George Washington used New England soldiers to disarm their New Jersey compatriots and executed two of the leading mutineers.
Embarrassed from the debacle with the Pennsylvania Line, and fearful that mutiny might become a habit which would destroy the Continental Army, General George Washington decided to act. He sent General Robert Howe with a force of 500 men to stop his internal rebellion.

Historic Marker Federal Hill,
Rt 511, Bloomingdale, NJ

Historic Marker,
Newark-Pompton Turnpike, Riverdale, NJ reads:
"POMPTON MUTINY
After five long winters of cold, hunger and disease
and at a crucial period in the Revolutionary War
The New Jersey Line Mutinied January 20, 1781.  
Two mutineers were shot and the uprising suppressed."

Howe arrived at the New Jersey Line's camp and took the soldiers by surprise.  They were outnumbered and surrendered immediately.  The New Jersey Line was to be made an example of, and their punishment severe.  

The mutiny's suppression, violent as it was, seems to have ended this kind of seditious talk throughout the nation... at least through the end of active hostilities. Like much of the Continental Army, the New Jersey Line was enduring a life with meager rations, wretched clothing and little pay. As with the Pennsylvania Line, many New Jersey soldiers believed that their reenlistments were complete at the end of 1780 but their confusing records prevented the soldiers from being discharged. And unfortunately, the commander at Pompton, Colonel Israel Shreve, (who fought at the Battle of Monmouth Courthouse June 28, 1778...refer to Nerd Tour #5) was not a leader who inspired confidence in his men during tough times. Not only did he tip the scales at 320 pounds (his son called him "very fleshy"), but his character did not impress General Washington. Shreve apparently was also not an enforcer of discipline, as order at Pompton became lax and discontentment rose, especially among the soldiers who lived in the huts located away from the main camp. Of course, consumption of alcohol by many of the soldiers inflamed their anger.

Two of the three leading officers, David Gilmore and John Tuttle, were convicted and sentenced to death. They were executed by firing squad. The men who were forced to carry out the capital punishment were several of the mutineers from the New Jersey Line. With tears in their eyes, they shot their former commanding officers.

From a discipline standpoint, the crushing of the Pompton Mutiny (so called because it took place in Pompton, New Jersey) was a success for the Continental Army.

NOTE: Controversy...The exact location of the mutineer's camp and the mutiny is still uncertain, but most historians now believe that their camp was on Federal Hill in Bloomingdale and Riverdale, New Jersey.

Wickipedia...It is not readily apparent where Pompton Camp, as described in Washington's letters, was located. Historians are also divided on what path the rebels took towards Trenton and where the actual location of their submission and execution occurred.

21st-century historian Robert A. Mayers affirms that William Nelson, writing Paterson and Its Environs, (Silk City) in the 1920s, was correct in his assertion that "In a thick wood, on the bleak and desolate summit of a rocky knob of the Ramapo Mountains, overlooking the Pompton Lakes Station on the New York, Susquehanna & Western Railroad, the hearty traveler can find two rude piles of weather-beaten field-stones. These are pointed out as marking the lonely, dishonored graves of the two Jersey mutineers." However, despite numerous attempts, no historian has been able to locate these graves since that era.^[4]

At times, Pompton Lakes, Bloomingdale, and Riverdale, New Jersey, have all laid claim to the site of these historic events.

Bill at Federal Hill Historical Marker on
Union Avenue, Bloomingdale, NJ

The Historical Marker reads,

"FEDERAL HILL HISTORIC SITE: The site of the Revolutionary War era Pompton Mutiny which occurred in the cold harsh winter of 1781. It was in the eastern valley overlooking Bloomingdale that an encampment of weary troops mutinied. Consequently, their two ringleaders were arrested, tried, and executed in the vicinity of what is now known as Union Avenue."

Gary at Federal Hill Marker

Gary and I got pictures of both historic markers, first on Newark-Pompton Turnpike in Riverdale, NJ, then up to Bloomingdale, near Federal Hill.  We had some difficulty locating the Federal Hill marker since the marker itself was not located perpendicular to the road, but parallel, so we drove by it twice.

Pompton Furnace
Pompton Falls, Pompton Lakes, NJ

The Pompton Falls raceway from the fence on 
Hemlock Road, Pompton Lakes, NJ

The hill behind the telephone pole shows
the remains of a large brick/block wall.

Remnants of old wall on Hemlock Road

Facebook Post: Ron Bowen, July 3, 2023? "You may have heard their names but can’t remember where you heard them. Their names are on a plaque in front of the Pompton Lakes reformed Church. It’s and Board family. They and other veterans who served in the Revolutionary War are listed. Their headstones are surprising in good condition after nearly 250 years. Cornelius Board donated a large concrete bench to sit on and to take a moment. Cornelius Board a Welsh miner, was probably the first person to mine for iron in the Ringwood area. He came to America in search of precious metals, of which he found none, but recognized rich outcroppings of magnetite iron ore deposits, as well as the requisite sources of water to power the furnaces and forges used in ironmaking. This led Board to purchase a large tract of property at Ringwood in 1740 from the East Jersey Proprietors. He was followed shortly thereafter by the Ogden family who established the Ringwood Company and built the first blast furnace in 1742. By 1771, the last ironmaster of the American Iron Company, Robert Erskine, was sent from England. He would manage the company during the Revolutionary War. Martin J. Ryerson first entered the ironworks business when he purchased the Pompton Ironworks on the Ramapo River in 1797. He sought to expand his iron holdings and within a few years was running forges at Bloomingdale and Wanaque to supplement the Pompton complex. In n 1807, Martin J. Ryerson purchased the historic ironworks. The Ryersons, father and sons, continued to operate the iron mines and forges on the property for the next half century. In addition to the property at Ringwood, the Ryersons had iron making operations that were located at Long Pond, Wanaque, Bloomingdale, and Pompton. I included The Ryerson "Freedom Furnace" located in Wanaque to give you an idea of what a furnace looked like. The Pompton Furnace is still visible from the Hamburg Turnpike.

Historic Marker Reads: "THE SANDSTONE ABUTMENT
AND RACEWAY LOCATED ON THE NORTH SIDE OF HEMLOCK 
ROAD ARE THE REMNANTS OF THE FURNACE AND 
IRONWORKS THAT SUPPLIED CANNONBALLS TO THE
CONTINENTAL ARMY IN 1776-1777 AND WAS AN ACTIVE SOURCE
OF SUPPLIES DURING THE WAR OF 1812 AND THE CIVIL WAR.
SITE OF THE LUDLUM STEEL CO., 1854. SITE OF THE POMPTON
FEEDER, A BRANCH OF THE MORRIS CANAL DESTROYED
BY THE FLOOD OF 1903."

Pompton Lakes Triangle
Hamburg Turnpike and Wanaque Avenue, Pompton Lakes, NJ

Historic Marker reads: "... WASHINGTON"S HEADQUARTERS
Since Pompton was on the main route North, the Continental army
camped here often.  Washington quartered at the Schuyler House,
July 12, 1777, and visited Colonel Van Cortlandt here, March 28, 1782."

At this location in the 1700's stood a house owned by a man named Casparus Schuyler, part of the Schuylers who were a prominent family in the area. 

During the Revolutionary War, Casparus Schuyler rented the house to a man named Mr. Curtis, who ran it as a tavern with his two sisters. The tavern was known as the Yellow Tavern or the Yellow Cottage. Due to army encampments in and around Pompton, the military supplied much of the tavern's clientele.  It was also here that General Washington met Van Cortland in Pompton Lakes, NJ.

Pompton Lakes Triangle,
Hamburg Turnpike and Wanaque Avenue, Pompton Lakes, NJ

Now, at this triangle sized piece of land, at the juncture of Wanaque Avenue and Hamburg Turnpike, is a relic of the USS Maine (exploding in Havana Harbor, Cuba, helping to spark the Spanish-American War in 1898), with monuments to WW1, WW2 and Korea War, the Washington's Headquarters Historic Marker, the Pompton Lakes Liberty Bell, forged in Baltimore, MD, and a Civil War cannon, perhaps a Model 1861 3-inch wrought iron rifle barrel.

The Plaque says, "Here, where in March 1782 stood Washington’s Headquarters,
Federal Rock Council No. 164, Jr. O. U. A. M. have placed this relic of the
Battleship USS Maine in memory of their fellow countrymen who lost their lives in
Havana Harbor Feby. 15, 1898, ‘Amor Patriae Duxit’, 1914"

 Slater's Mill Site
Union Avenue, Riverdale, NJ

 

Marker says, "SLATERS MILL, CIRCA 1850...
Built on site of Several Pre-Revolutionary Mills,
Joseph Slater Purchased Present Mill in 1861 for Factory
 Which Processed Beaver Fur Felt for Stetson Hats"

Powder Horne Mill Restaurant Site
Union Avenue, Riverdale, NJ

Schuyler-Van Ness Mill Site, built 1726

Personal note:  Wilma and I went to dinner with friends from Sussex CRC in the late 1970s, probably 1977 or 1978.  We remember it as very interesting, quaint and OLD!

History taken from northjersey.com, 2018... One of Riverdale’s oldest and most historic landmarks was destroyed by fire in 1986.It was located at 240 Hamburg Turnpike at a site that is now Appelt Park. The gourmet meals served in the fine restaurant, the memories of its décor with a notable antique collection; recall the Revolutionary times history of the site and the Appelts who the park there is named for continue to be conversation topics for those interested in borough history.

Today only a small part of the building’s foundation remains in the three-acre Appelt Park that now identifies the site. On the banks of the Pequannock River the park may offer an ever so short but memorable moment of tranquility to commuters who travel along today’s busy, crowded Hamburg Turnpike.

After the fire in destroyed the 120-seat Powder Horne Mill Restaurant, owner Henry Lachmann of West Paterson promised Riverdale Borough officials that he would rebuild the restaurant and reopen it. After 11 years of waiting for that to happen the local officials grew impatient, especially with safety, environmental and aesthetic concerns about the old burned-out building. As a last resort they moved to condemn the land and take municipal ownership. The plan was to remove what was left of the structure on the property. The Riverdale Quarry Company took on the job of demolishing what remained of the building.

Hoping to save a part of the borough’s 300-year history that it represented, it was planned to preserve two 1,500 pound pink granite millstones from the wreckage. These were to be turned into a historic piece of memorabilia to be displayed on the property. This job proved to be easier said than done. A bulldozer working on the demolition project ran over one of the stones and it was cracked into four pieces. Reports from the time said the other stone was stolen by a landscaper– who later returned it to the borough. They chose not to reveal the landscaper’s name.

So the borough officials moved ahead to turn the three-acre piece of property on the banks of the picturesque Pequannock River into a park. The local governing board decided to name the park for the Appelts. Howard Appelt, born on July 26, 1903, was 92 when he died in 1995.

Passaic County officials erected a guardrail along the lower part of the Appelt Park property. There are some parking spaces on the upper portion. The Schuyler-Van Ness Mill was built at the site in 1726. It was initially used as a sawmill. Later the building became a gristmill that produced flour for General George Washington’s troops during the Revolutionary War. It was used as a restaurant in later years.

Schuyler Family History

Historian Richard Townsend wrote that the Schuyler family played an important part in the settlement of the Pompton area. He said the mill that later became a restaurant was originally constructed by the Schuylers. Townsend saw the demolition of the building as a sad historical loss to the area. In his genealogy studies Townsend traced the Schuyler family beginnings back to Amsterdam, Holland.

The first of the family to arrive in America was Philip Pieterse Schuyler, son of Pieter Tjerck Schuyler and Geertruyt Phillips Van Schuylder Philip, according to Townsend’s findings, was born in Holland in February 1627. He emigrated from Amsterdam, Holland in 1656. Arent Schuyler, one of their 10 children, was born in 1662 near Albany, N.Y.

He married Jenneke Teller and had eight children. Arent’s second marriage was to Swantie Huysen Dyckhuyse in 1702 and five more Schuyler children were born of the marriage, according to Townsend’s study.

He went on to report that Arent Schuyler was a purchaser of the Pompton Patent along with David Mandeville, Hendrick Mandeville, Jan Mead, Joris Ryerson and Samuel Berrie. Townsend reported that Arent Schuyler was a trader from Albany who made his first trip through Wayne and Pompton in 1680 while traveling to Minisink along the Delaware River.

Schuyler was commissioned by a group of investors and authorities in New York. He also bought a large farm from Edmund Kingsland on New Barbadoes Neck, on the east side of the Passaic River.

According to Townsend’s studies, Arent Schuyler first settled in Pompton – building the northern part of the Schuyler-Colfax house located just below Pompton Falls. He later moved near Belleville just three miles north of Newark.

Arent Schuyler’s son, Casparus Schuyler, is credited with building a house in the area of the Hamburg Turnpike and Route 202.

Townsend’s report said Philip Schuyler occupied his father’s homestead at Pompton (Schuyler/Colfax House) and inherited one-third of the 1,260 acres of land between Pompton and Pequannock that was held in common by Samuel Bayard and Anthony Brocholst. Adonijah Schuyler was a freeholder for Pompton Township from its organization in Bergen County in 1797 until it passed into Passaic County in 1837, according to Townsend’s study. He was the husband of Elizabeth Bogert of Pompton.

In the 1930s the historic mill on Hamburg Turnpike was converted into a tea room and antique shop owned by Maude Paterson. By 1955 the building was renovated and opened as a restaurant. Lachmann bought it in 1985. Historians described it as one of the oldest commercial buildings in New Jersey. Locals remembered the uneven wide-pegged plank floors and the old Colonial atmosphere. 

Schuyler-Colfax House
Wayne, NJ

This house is located on 2343 Paterson Hamburg Turnpike in Wayne, Passaic County, New Jersey. Completed as a one-room farmhouse in 1695 by Arent Philipse Schuyler (1662-1730) the Schuyler homestead was passed to Arent Schuyler's great granddaughter Hester Schuyler who married William Colfax, commander of George Washington's Life Guards. Their grandson, Schuyler Colfax, Jr., was the 17th Vice President of the United States, (under Ulysses Grant). The Dutch Colonial style addition to the originally brick and field-stone building was added by Colfax in 1783.

from Wikipedia...Schuyler participated in the military actions of an early French and Indian War in Canada in the 1690s. In 1694, Schuyler traveled into north-western New Jersey to investigate rumors that the French were trying to incite the local Lenape population to attack English colonial settlements. Schuyler found no evidence of such rumors, but discovered a rich fertile valley where the Lenape grew a variety of crops. Schuyler reported his findings to his superiors and then convinced Military Officers, lawyers and politicians (Ryerson, Mandeville brothers, Mead, Brockhoist, Bayard) to invest in the purchase of the land he referred to as the Pompton Valley. Approximately 5,000 acres (20 sq km) were purchased on November 11, 1695. He built the Schuyler-Colfax House along the Pompton River.
In 1710, he bought a large tract on New Barbadoes Neck. The new purchase (present-day Kearny, North Arlington and Lyndhurst and Kingsland, had a significant deposit of copper, and the family became wealthy as they started to mine the metal at the Schuyler Copper Mine.  
Schuyler was married 3 times and had 12 children.

-from HMdb.org...
George Washington stayed at this house from July 11-14, 1777. 
The Schuyler-Colfax House was built in 1695, by Arent Schuyler,
who owned a number of mines throughout New Jersey.  The Schuyler
family still owned the house at the time of the American Revolution. 

NOTE: The original blue Historic Marker located directly on the highway, missing on our visit, but found in the outbuilding unseen to the right.

The sign reads: "SCHUYLER COLFAX HOUSE...
This house, which is Wayne’s oldest, was built in 1695 by
Ardent Schuyler, one of the leaders of the original settlement.
William Colfax, who married Hester Schuyler in 1783,
gave the house the Colfax name."

Gary searching for the Historical marker sign.
Note that for years, I noticed the blue sign,
virtually impossible to read since you are driving
by the house at 40-50 mph with no place
to stop and pull over.

Rear of the house.

Side of the house.

Stone Mile marker states:
"23 Miles to Hoboken or Jersey City"
The history of when this milestone was placed is unknown. It probably pre-dates the road that is alongside the property. The milestone sits near the Schuyler-Colfax House. This historic house is one of the 20 oldest homes in NJ. The original one-room house was built in 1694-5. One of the unique aspects of the house is that it stayed in the same family for 8 generations until it was sold to Township of Wayne to become a museum.

The property was purchased by Arent Schuyler who was sent on a secret mission by the English to see if the French were gathering troops. Arent liked the area so much, he found several investors to purchase what was then known as the Pompton Valley. These became the first settlers to the area that maintained a written history of the area.

I noticed in a small outbuilding
that the original sign was inside!

This is the sign that stood on Hamburg Turnpike's
very short shoulder in front of the house for years.

from HMdb.org...During Washington's stay here in 1777,
Capt. William Colfax of the Life Guard met Miss Hester Schuyler, whom he later married. Their son, Schuyler Colfax,
was President Grant's vice president.

Drive-By... at Franklin Clove, Franklin Lakes, NJ... 

The "Clove"
In the 17th century, Lenape Indians traveled the land we now call Franklin Lakes. They made winter camp in the “Clove” near Buttermilk Falls and fished in Micharagrape Pond ( now Franklin Lake). NO PICTURE INCLUDED, but we drove to the trail head where the Clove is located.  Gary took a personal tour there with a archeologist.

Stop... at Franklin Lakes Historical Marker, Franklin Lakes, NJ

Gary at the Franklin Lakes Mill Historic Marker

Franklin Lake

"Mills sprang up along the creeks: sawmills, gristmills, tanneries and forges. Daniel Youman’s Grist Mill on Franklin Lake was probably the first business established (it later served as a saw mill and a cider mill).

The 1876 Walker Atlas showed Franklin Lakes had about 100 residences, 5 mills, 1 tannery, 3 schools, 4 blacksmith and wagon shops, 1 church, 2 hotels, 1 store, and 2 railroad depots. -from History of Franklin Lakes

Mills sprang up along the creeks: sawmills, gristmills, tanneries and forges. Daniel Youman’s Grist Mill on Franklin Lake was probably the first business established (it later served as a saw mill and a cider mill).

 The historic marker says, ...

"Known to the Indians as “Michanagrape,” these waters were formed by the melting glacier some 10,000 years ago. In 1700 the lake was named Christian Pool when it was included in a land grant to Michael Hawden. Later called Great Pond, Big Pond and Crystal Pool, it became Franklin Lake in the late 19th century. The land around the lake was settled in the late 1700’s by farmers of Dutch heritage. The area was long known as the Ponds Neighborhood."

From HMdb.org Note mill race and rusty
equipment to the left.

We spent a great day experiencing local Revolutionary War history and discovering treasured pieces of our local NJ culture and HIS STORIES.