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After a long digression to write about the life of Dr. Daniel Coxe before he became governor of West New Jersey in 1687, I am returning to my chronology to study the events of 1688 et seq., beginning with the Burlington Court session of February 1688, in which the list of those present began with “Daniell Coxe Esq. Governour.”
If the boy has ever lovingly watched the operation of one of the original sawmills, the old man’s memory will often go fondly back to those boyhood days. Whether they were or were not “the good old days” of which we hear so much, makes no difference at all. They were the days in which sawmills along country roads were almost as common as filling stations are today. And how much more interesting they were, and how much sweeter smelling!
The West Jersey Assembly met in May of 1687. The minutes of their meeting are not included in Leaming and Spicer’s Grants and Concessions, so for many years, people thought they had not met at all. We know of two matters undertaken by the Assembly in 1687. The first was the problem of the Province’s debt. Despite the fact that taxes had been levied, they could not be collected. Much of this was due to the scarcity of coin, which had to come from abroad. By May of 1687 the debt had risen to £1,250.
The year 1687 was intense for West New Jersey and for England in matters concerning politics and management of land, but not very much for the families of Gloucester who might have been connected with Samuel Green. If your interests are limited to genealogy, then you must wait for part two of 1687. If the politics of days long gone are your fancy, then this year and the next will be of particular interest.
Over the years of researching Hunterdon County history, I have often wondered about the early settlers of Gloucester, because many of them became early settlers of or investors in Hunterdon County, chief among them John Reading and Richard Bull. Now, thanks to this blog, I have a chance to learn about this town and how Reading and Bull fit into its history.
In 1686, there were a few events that boded ill for West New Jersey.
The Declaration of Indulgence, which James II issued in March (or April), was James’ attempt to get the Protestant English accustomed to having Catholics and dissident Protestants more visible in daily life. It granted amnesty to those imprisoned under laws against the practice of these religions. Following this, James granted many commissions to Catholics in the army. Seems like a good thing, but it was also a good example of how James misread his subjects, who truly feared that a strong Catholic sovereign like James might turn their country into an appendage of Catholic France.
On February 2, 1684, Charles II, only 54 years old, suffered a stroke. Perhaps he might have survived it, but given the medical practices of the day, he was doomed to die, which he did four days later. His brother James was now King of England.
Just to review, in 1680, James Duke of York, with prodding from William Penn, agreed to confirm the 1664 grant of West New Jersey to John Lord Berkeley. This, along with a special deed, confirmed the grant to Edward Byllinge, Berkeley’s successor. Byllinge thereby claimed the governorship of the colony, even though there was no provision for the position of Governor in the Concessions & Agreements.1
While Mahlon Stacy was enjoying the fruitful new land he and his fellow Quakers had settled in, a time bomb was ticking, set off by a poorly spelled letter written in Sept. 1679 by the Attorney General in England, Sir John Werden,1, which concluded with this: Quaere?
I have continued to struggle with the problem of finding the origins of Samuel Green, surveyor of West New Jersey, without much success. For one thing, records are limited. There are many deeds and surveys recorded for properties in West New Jersey, but other than the 1/32nd share mentioned before that Richard Green purchased and then sold to Anna Salter, there is nothing much to go on.