EARLY SETTING
The f i r s t record we find of John Smith, S r . and John Smith,
Jr., whom t r a d i t i o n claimed were our e a r l i e s t known a n c e s t o r s , i s in
H u n t i n g t o n ' s "History of Stamford, Conn., 'I* published i n 1868, where
they a r e named a s among a company of d i s s a t i s f i e d and r e s t l e s s men
under t h e l e a d e r s h i p of Rev. Richard Denton,? who had s e t t l e d a t
Wethersfield, Connecticut. S After being t h e r e a few years re1 i g i o u s
d i s s e n s i o n s a r o s e and they moved on to Stamford, then c a l l e d Rippowams, which p l a c e they were among t h e f i r s t t o s e t t l e . F u r t h e r ,
we find t h a t i n t h e summer of 1641, 276 a c r e s of land were a l I o t t e d
t o twenty-nine of t h e pioneer f a m i l i e s , and a t a meeting h e l d December 7, 1641, a l l o t m e n t s were made t o t h i r t e e n a d d i t i o n a l f a m i l i e s .
I n t h i s second a l l o t m e n t John Smith, S e n i o r and Junior, were each
given two a c r e s f o r home l o t s and t h r e e a c r e s o i woodland.
I n the Stamford migration of 1644 i t i s apparent t h a t many of
t h e f a m i l i e s who s e t t l e d i n Stamford came on t o Hempstead a f t e r
John Carman, Robert Fordham, and John Seaman had obtained a grant
of land from t h e I n d i a n s for most of what became t h e Towns of
Hempstead and North Hempstead i n 1643.
T h i s grant was confirmed
i n 1644 by William K i e f t , Dutch Governor General, and r a t i f i e d i n
1667 by Richard N i c h o l l s , E n g l i s h Governor General.
H u n t i n g t o n ' s "History," page 25, l i s t s f i f t y - n i n e pioneers who
were i n Stamford in 1642, and of t h e s e t h e following a r e known to
have come over t o Long I s l a n d i n 1644 w i t h Rev. Richard Denton:
Thomas Arma tage
Samuel Clarke
Benjamin Coe
John Coe ( s o n of R o b e r t )
Robert Coe
John E l l i s o n
John Fordham
Robert Fordham
Richard G i l d e r s l e e v e
Robert Jackson
John Karman ( Carman)
John Ogden
Henry P i e r s o n
James Pyne ( P i n e )
-
T H E ROCK SMITH FAMILY
2
Thur s ton Ra ynor
John Seaman
Simon S e i r i n g
Thomas Sherman
John S m i t h , S r .
John S m i t h , J r .
Edmund Wood
J e r e m i a h Wood
Jonas Wood
Francis Yates
According t o "Robert Coe, P u r i t a n " by J. G a r d n e r ~ a r t l e t t , $
and t h e "Beginnings of Conn." by D r . Andrews,q R o b e r t Coe was one
of t h e s i x c h u r c h members who s e c u r e d p e r m i s s i o n t o w i t h d r a w f r o m
t h e Watertown, M a s s a c h u s e t t s , c h u r c h and f o r m a new c h u r c h a t Wethe r s f i e l d under a "New Covenant i n Connecticut": he wanted a m o r e
P r e s b y t e r i a n f o r m of c h u r c h government. Soon, becoming d i s s a t i s f i e d
w i t h t h e W e t h e r s f i e l d c h u r c h , h e , w i t h h i s a d h e r e n t s , removed t o
Stamford and l a t e r t o Hempstead.
When Rev. R i c h a r d Denton and h i s p a r i s h o n e r s a r r i v e d i n Hemps t e a d h e s e t about a t once t o e s t a b l i s h a c h u r c h . The c o n g r e g a t i o n
of C h r i s t P r e s b y t e r i a n Church of Hempstead c l a i m s s u c c e s s i o n t o
t h i s f i r s t c h u r c h and b e l i e v e s i t t o be t h e f i r s t P r e s b y t e r i a n c h u r c h
founded i n America.
Long I s l a n d a t t h i s t i m e was a p a r t of New N e t h e r l a n d s under
W i l l i a m K i e f t , Governor and C a p t a i n G e n e r a l , w i t h t h e s e a t of government a t New Amsterdam on Manhattan I s l a n d . The Dutch w e r e i n
d e f i n i t e c o n t r o l of t h e s e t t l e m e n t s a t t h e mouth of t h e Hudson R i v e r ,
on Long I s l a n d , and a l o n g t h e s e a c o a s t t o t h e s o u t h a s f a r a s D e l a w a r e Bay. C o n n e c t i c u t , w h i l e n o m i n a l l y a D u t c h p o s s e s s i o n , was i n
a p e r i o d of t r a n s i t i o n between Dutch and E n g l i s h domination, and
l i t t l e governmental a u t h o r i t y was e x e r c i s e d by e i t h e r of them; t h e r e
was l i t t l e r e d r e s s f r o m I n d i a n d e p r e d a t i o n s , w h i c h w e r e of f r e q u e n t
occurrence.
By 1659 t h e B r i t i s h had f o r c e d t h e Dutch from t h e e a s t e r l y
p a r t of Long I s l a n d t o a point a s f a r w e s t a s S e a f o r d and p o s s i b l y
M e r r i c k . Through a t r e a t y of peace i n 1664, t h e Dutch ceded New
N e t h e r l a n d s t o England, but on July 2 8 , 1 6 7 2 , t a k i n g advantage of a
war between England and F r a n c e , they r e p o s s e s s e d i t and h e l d i t
f o u r t e e n months and e i g h t e e n days b e f o r e England r e c a p t u r e d i t , t h u s
ending Dutch dominion i n America.
C h a r l e s 11, King of England, g r a n t e d t h e f o r m e r Dutch h o l d ings t o h i s b r o t h e r James, Duke of York, who renamed New Amsterdam
New York, i n honor of h i m s e l f , and s o l d t h e c o a s t l i n e t o t h e s o u t h
EARLY SETTING
3
to S i r George C a r t e r e t , a J e r s e y nobleman, who e s t a b l i s h e d t h e Colony of New J e r s e y .
NOTES
*
Huntington, Rev. E l i j a h Baldwin. H i s t o r y of Stamford, Conn. Stamf o r d , 1868.
t Rev. Richard Denton i s believed t o have b e e n a n a t i v e of Y o r k s h i r e ,
England, and a g r a d u a t e of Cambridge i n 1623. He was m i n i s t e r a t
Colby Chapel, H a l i f a x , England, b e f o r e coming t o America. He was
a t Watertown, Massachusetts i n 1633 and i s supposed t o have been
i n W e t h e r s f i e l d t h e next y e a r . He r e t u r n e d to England in 1659 and
d i e d t h e r e t h r e e y e a r s l a t e r . He l e f t four s o n s , the l i n e of des c e n t of one of whom, Daniel Denton, i s well defined through the
succeeding g e n e r a t i o n s .
iW e t h e r s f i e l d i s a town on the west shore of t h e Connecticut R i v e r
a few m i l e s south of H a r t f o r d .
I t was s e t t l e d i n the autumn of
1634 by John Oldham and h i s a s s o c i a t e a d v e n t u r e r s , who came t h e r e
by way of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.
9 B a r t l e t t , Joseph Gardner. Robert Coe, P u r i t a n . Boston, 1911.
91 Andrews, C h a r l e s McLean. The Beginnings of Connecticut, 1632-1662.
New Haven, Yale U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s , 1934.
SETTLING ON LONG ISLAND
A f t e r coming t o Long I s l a n d in 1644, John Smith, t h e junior
of t h e two John Smiths, bought land f i r s t i n t h e extreme w e s t e r l y
p a r t of t h e Indian g r a n t a t Hungry H a r b o r , i n t h e v i c i n i t y of Valley
S t r e a m ; John Carman and Richard Denton remained i n Hempstead;
Richard G i l d e r s l e e v e s e t t l e d a t M e r r i c k ; John Seaman and Robert
Jackson s e t t l e d i n t h e more e a s t e r l y p a r t , a t Seaford and J e r u s a l e m
( ~ a n t a g h ) ;a Raynor went t o F r e e p o r t and a t l e a s t one of t h e Coes
s e t t l e d a s h o r t d i s t a n c e t o t h e w e s t . The Raynor homestead of t h e
e a r l y days i s s t i l l standing on t h e west s i d e of Main S t r e e t , Freep o r t , a c r o s s t h e road from t h e s i t e of Raynor's m i l l , a t the head of
navigation i n Freeport Creek.
Some of those who came from Stamford i n 1644 seem t o have
continued on t o t h e e a s t e r l y p a r t of Long I s l a n d .
I n "The F i r s t
Book of Records of t h e Town of Southampton,"* page 48, under d a t e
of September 3, 1650, i t says: " I t i s granted by t h e major p a r t of
t h i s towne t h a t Mr [ ~ o h n ] Ogden and h i s company s h a l l have Cow
Neck and I e f f e r i e s Neck f o r t h e i r owne proper r i g h t . . . I '
On page 66,
under d a t e of October 7, 1650, a r e t h e s e e n t r i e s : " I t was ordered
Court of E l e c t i o n
t h a t f i u e men ( s h a l l for t h e present
a t the
y e a r e ) , being chosen by t h e s a i d c o u r t , t o a c t and order a l l towne a f f a i r e s , whatsoeuer, excepting m a t t e r s of a d m i t t i n g of I n h a b i t a n t s or
giving of land, by t h e s a i d court was chosen Mr Thomas Topping, Mr
Thurston Raynor, Ionas Wood, Thomas Halsey, Mr I o s i a h Stanborough.. ."
. ..
.. .
An e n t r y in one of t h e o l d e s t books of record in t h e S t a t e
Library a t Albany says t h a t John Smith, S r . , of t h e f i r s t s e t t l e r s ,
proceeded to Suffolk County and e s t a b l i s h e d t h e "Rock" Smith family
Furman's " A n t i q u i t i e s l ' t says of t h e o r i g i n a l John Smiths:
there.
and t h e
"one o r i g i n a l l y s e t t l e d between Rockaway and Hempstead
[went t o ] Brookhaven."
other
...
.. .
The l o c a l i t i e s i n t h e Town of Hempstead s e l e c t e d by t h e f a m i l i e s
SETTLING ON LONG ISLAND
5
named a r e on the southern edge of the mainland of Long I s l a n d w i t h
extensive a r e a s of s a l t meadowland adjoining extending to the bays
and creeks.
Since the e a r l i e s t s e t t l e r s had a l l Long I s l a n d t o
s e l e c t from, the q u e s t i o n has been r a i s e d a s to why they took the
poorest land on t h e I s l a n d f o r t h e i r homes. While the land along
t h e extreme south edge of the I s l a n d was sandy and poor, i t was
o f f s e t by other decided advantages. These people came p r a c t i c a l l y
empty handed; they had been on the go f o r ten years or more and
here was an abundance of wood for t h e i r f i r e s , water was but a few
f e e t beneath the s u r f a c e , and t h e creeks and bay, r i g h t a t hand,
abounded i n f i s h , s h e l l - f i s h , and w i l d fowl. If the land f a i l e d them
the water would n o t . Then again, i t was good policy t o keep reasonably c l o s e together both for mutual help i n t h e i r work and f o r
p r o t e c t i o n from the Indians. While John James was Town Clerk of
Hempstead, i n 1657-8, under P e t e r Stuyvesant, Governor and Captain
General of New Netherlands, a l e t t e r was received r e p o r t i n g t h a t
John Smith had so many "Hoggs" k i l l e d or h u r t by the Indians t h a t ,
unless such depredations could be stopped, i t would make of t h e
s e t t l e r s a "poore" people. Another reason, romantic but u n l i k e l y ,
could be i n f e r r e d f o r t h e i r s e l e c t i o n o f t h i s p a r t i c u l a r p a r t of the
I s l a n d for permanent s e t t l e m e n t . I n the w i l l of John James, dated
Xarch 13, 1660, the o l d e s t document i n the c o l l e c t i o n of old p a p e r s ,
he i s d e s c r i b e d a s of C a r d i f f , i n the County of Glamorgan, i n the
P r i n c i p a l i t y of Wales. The physical formation of the south s i d e of
the Town of Hempstead, a s w e l l a s Brookhaven i n S u f f o l k County, i s
not d i s s i m i l a r t o t h a t i n the v i c i n i t y of C a r d i f f , where the Severn
River widens i n t o B r i s t o l Channel. The " f l a t p l a i n s of the Severn"
r e f e r r e d t o i n a book e n t i t l e d "Beauties of the Severn Valley1' a r e
d e s c r i b e d much a s the l o c a l i t i e s h e r e could be d e s c r i b e d .
I t could possibly be t h a t John James, w i t h t h e Smiths, G i l d e r s l e e v e s , Seamans, Jacksons, Raynors, Coes, and o t h e r s of the f i r s t
s e t t l e r s , came from the v i c i n i t y of Cardiff and t h a t the southern
w a t e r f r o n t of Long I s l a n d made an e s p e c i a l appeal to them. While
such a s o l u t i o n has i n i t an element of p o s s i b i l i t y , i t s likelihood
i s remote, inasmuch a s i t seems t o be a w e l l - e s t a b l i s h e d f a c t of
h i s t o r y t h a t the group of s e t t l e r s under the l e a d e r s h i p of Rev.
Richard Denton was a s e t of serious-minded English f a m i l i e s from
Yorkshire who had s e t out for the New World i n quest of g r e a t e r
opportunity f o r r e l i g i o u s peace and freedom of worship. I n t h i s
they must have been disappointed, f o r i n W e t h e r s f i e l d , i f not indeed in Watertown i n the Massachusetts Bay Colony, accounts of t h e i r
r e l i g i o u s b r o i l s and d i s s e n s i o n s found t h e i r way i n t o e a r l y h i s t o r y .
6
T H E ROCK SMITH FAMILY
One h i s t o r i c a l comment on Rev. Richard Denton says: "He had
i d e a l s of h i s own which varied w i t h others." Cotton Mather s a i d of
him: "Though he were a l i t t l e man, yet he had a great s o u l ; " and
again: "1 think he was b l i n d of one eye; n e v e r t h e l e s s , he was not
the l e a s t among the s e e r s of our I s r a e l ; he saw a very considerable
proportion of those things which 'eye h a t h not seen.'"*
NOTES
*
The F i r s t Book of Records of the Town of Southampton. Sag-Harbor, Hunt, 1874.
t Furman, G a b r i e l . A n t i q u i t i e s of Long I s l a n d . New York, Bouton,
1874. p.192.
$ l a t h e r , Cotton.
Magnalia C h r i s t i Americana. H a r t f o r d , Andrus,
1855. 2v. v.1, p.399.
I11
JOHN JAMES - WILL
The name of John James does n o t appear i n t h e l i s t of t h e
f i r s t s e t t l e r s . T h a t l i s t seems t o have been composed of heads of
f a m i l i e s , and from t h e t e r m s of h i s w i l l i t i s q u i t e e v i d e n t t h a t he
was a man w i t h o u t f a m i l y connection l i v i n g i n t h e f a m i l y of John
S m i t h , Jr. ( ~ o h nS m i t h R o c k ) .
H i s w i l l , a n unusual document, shows a r e g a r d , a l m o s t amounting t o a f f e c t i o n , i n which h e h e l d h i s p e r s o n a l b e l o n g i n g s , and g i v e s
e v i d e n c e of c a r e f u l thought i n t h e i r t e s t a m e n t a r y d i s t r i b u t i o n . I t
i s worth r e f l e c t i n g upon even now, and i s a s f o l l o w s :
I , John James, C a r d i f f e i n ye
I n ye name of god Amen."
County of Glamorgan, i n ye p r i n c i p a l i t y of Wales, b e i n g a t
p r e s e n t S i c k i n body: but b l e s s e d bee god I am of good &
p e r f f e c t memory, doe by t h e s e p r e s e n t s f o r y e w e l l ordering
of ye b l e s s i n g s of god bestowed upon mee f o r my r e l e e s s e : I
b l e s s e h i s name f o r i t & f o r h i s m e r c i f u l 1 providence over
mee a l l ye dayes of my l i f f e : I n p r i m i s , my w i l l is y t
[ i . e . , t h a t ] my d e b t s s h a l l bee payd, wt [ i . e . , w i t h ] ye o a t e s
& o t h e r g r a i n i n my lodgeing of each a p a r t , t h a t i s t o s a y
one hundred and s e a v e n g i l d e r s , e i g h t e e n s t i v e r s u n t o Mr.
Samuel1 D r i s i u s M i n i s t e r , of ye Church of C h r i s t a t Manhatt a n s : I t e m , unto Mrs. B r i d g e s , t w e n t i e one pound of B u t t e r ,
d u t c h Weight; t h e r e i s s u f f i c i e n t on my book t o pay i t :
I t e m , I g i v e and bequeath unto John S m i t h Rock Junior my
f e t h e r bed & b o l s t e r & 2 b l a n c k e t s , one red and a n o t h e r blew,
t o be g i v e n a t ye d e a t h of h i s p a r e n t s or on h i s day of marr i a g e o r when h e e s h a l l keep h i s house by h i s p a r e n t ' s Cons e n t : I t e m , I g i v e unto Hanna S m i t h , my Byble: and i f f h e r
B r o t h e r dye wt out i s s u e my bed & Appurtenances: I t e m , I
g i v e & bequeath unto Joan B r u d n e l l , s i x e pounds s t e r l i n g t o
bee payd i n o a t e s & o t h e r g r a i n a month a f f t e r my decease: I
doubt n o t but t h e r e w i l l bee s o e much o v e r p l u s .
When my
THE ROCK SMITH FAMILY
8
debts are payd, i t is to buy her part of a house: Item, I give
unto Thomas Jeacoks children 3a of trading cloth yt is on m y
bed to cloath them: Item, I bequeath unto Richard Stites one
sheet for a Winding sheet: to Josiah Furman one sheet, to
Goodwiffe Champion, one sheet, & ye other to make myself a
winding sheet: Item, I bequeath unto William Scaddin, one
english ell of Holland: to John Smith Rock ye remainder ffor
his children: I bequeath unto John Beadle m y doublet & black
cloth breeches & 40 s[hillings] his ffather owes mee to keep
him to scool: Item, I give to M r hicks [sic], the use m y
bookes of Arithmeticke: Item, I give to M r Gildersleeve m y
chair & ffree of all accounts between us: Item, I give m y
table & bench & cupboard to John Smith Rock & doe appoint
him to bee executor of this m y Last Will & Testament, and
William Scaddin to assist him: Item, I give & bequeath m y
white blancket to Goodwiffe Simons liveing near ye Wall on
M r Drisius land at Manhatans. Shee is a Washer Wooman; pray
send it saffely to her: Item, I desire m y executor to see m e e
decently buried & to have so much wine or drams as may wt
moderation bee drunk: Iff I have been too large in giveing,
I leave to their discretion; if there bee anything over to
give unto pious uses yt is to help repair ye meeting house &
to give 20 s[hillings] to ye Chuch [sic] at Flatbush; & thus
in Conclusion I Commend m y poor soule into ye Merciffull hands
of God, hoping to enioy ye Kingdome of heaven fforevermore.
Dated at Hemstead ye 13th of March, 1660:
John James
Witnesses:
John Seaman
Richard Brudnill
NOTE
*The transcriptions included in this monograph of the documents in
the collection of old papers are given exactly as originally written with these exceptions: some punctuation has been added where
its omission would make the meaning obscure; modernized forms of
-
JOHN JAMES
- WILL
- -
-
-
.--.
9
the spelling of some words have been used for the sake of clarity;
and the abbreviations ye, yt, and wt, which w e r e written in the
original one letter above the other, have necessarily been alined horizontally. Ed.
v
THE DESIGNATION "ROCK"
I n James S a v a g e ' s "Genealogical D i c t i o n a r y of t h e F i r s t S e t t l e r s of New England,I1 volume 4 , page 119, we find:
John [ s m i t h , ~ r . ] and John [ s m i t h ] , J r . , of Stamford among
t h e f i r s t s e t t l e r s i n 1641, both removed t o Hempstead, L . I .
The younger, i n 1675, gave a d e p o s i t i o n c a l l i n g himself 60
y e a r s o l d , i n which he s a y s t h a t formerly a t Stamford they
c a l l e d him Rock John Smith f o r d i s t i n c t i o n . "
The d e p o s i t i o n of t h e younger John Smith, being d i r e c t l y i n
l i n e w i t h t h e family t r a d i t i o n and, a t t h e same t i m e , taking i n t o
account t h e o r i g i n of t h e d e s i g n a t i o n "Rock" by which t h e family
had been known, gave r i s e t o a most d i l i g e n t s e a r c h f o r any paper
o r r e c o r d t o s u b s t a n t i a t e or g i v e a r e a s o n f o r such a d e p o s i t i o n t o
have been made and under what c i r c u m s t a n c e s . Although c a r e f u l
s e a r c h was made through the o l d e s t r e c o r d s i n t h e County C l e r k ' s
O f f i c e i n Jamaica, i n t h e L i b r a r y of t h e Long I s l a n d H i s t o r i c a l
S o c i e t y , Brooklyn, t o which I belong, The New York P u b l i c L i b r a r y ,
and t h e O f f i c e of t h e S e c r e t a r y of S t a t e , i n Albany, no information
bearing upon i t could be obtained. A legend, t o which a l l u s i o n i s
made i n the appendix, connects t h e o r i g i n of t h e "Rock1' Smith des i g n a t i o n w i t h a house b u i l t in New England w i t h a rock i n s i d e for
a f i r e p l a c e back.
The d e s i g n a t i o n presumably a p p l i e d t o the e a r l y family a s a
whole. I t i s used in about twenty of t h e old papers and i s found
i n individual names t o the f o u r t h g e n e r a t i o n , i n t e r m i t t e n t l y , but
a f t e r t h a t i t seems t o have f a l l e n i n t o d i s u s e almost e n t i r e l y .
John Smith Rock, h i m s e l f , i n an agreement w i t h members of h i s
family, under d a t e of May 2 0 , 1690, and i n h i s w i l l d a t e d May 10,
1 6 9 5 , t both voluminous documents, i s named simply a s John Smith;
i n o t h e r p a p e r s he made use of t h e 'lRock.ll
THE DESIGNATION "ROCK"
13
Lieutenant Jonathpn Smith, son of R o c k John Smith, in one of
the three military commissions issued to him, that f r o m Richard,
Earle of Bellomont, under date o f January 23, 1698, is n a m e d as
Jonathan Smith, alias Rock. Lieutenant Jonathan in a deed to his
son, Jonathan Smith, Jr., dated M a r c h 20, 1720, and in his will of
M a r c h 6, 1724, m a k e s n o mention of the Rock.
Jonathan Smith (third generation), son of Lieutenant Jonathan,
in a deed to his son, John Smith, dated September 22, 1738, calls
himself Jonathan S m i t h Rock, Sr., but signs i t "Jonathan Smith."
I n the body of a will m a d e the s a m e day, he is described as "JonaIn
than Smith, Sen., alias Rock," but signs i t "Jonathan Smith."
his final will of M a y 13, 1746, which is very long and very complicated, he m a k e s n o use of the designation R o c k at all.
G e r s h a m S m i t h (third generation), son of Lieutenant Jonathan
S m i t h and brother of Jonathan Smith, in his will of October 19, 1736,
describes himself as G e r s h a m R o c k Smith, but signed it "Gersham
Smith." Neither his son G e r s h a m , nor his grandson A d a m Smith, in
their full and explicit wills m a d e use of the R o c k in either the
body o f their wills or in the signatures.
In the sixth generation Raynor Smith, in the G e r s h a m Smith
line of descent, so called in the will of his father, A d a m Smith,
dated June 2, 1816, incorporated R o c k in his o w n n a m e and in that
of his sons, Zophar, James, T h o m a s , Oliver, Charles, and William,
children of his first marriage, which w a s to Ruth Whaley. Therefrom
the line of descent of Raynor R o c k Smith became the only branch of
the family to which the historically distinctive designation is definitely attached.
NOTES
* For
the sake of clarity the m a n y abbreviated words in the source
of this quotation have been spelled out. Ed.
? N e w Y o r k Historical Society. Collections. 1892. p.419-21.
ROCK JOHN SMITH
Rock John Smith ( f i r s t g e n e r a t i o n ) purchased p r o p e r t y f i r s t
i n t h e v i c i n i t y of Valley S t r e a m , a s h a s been noted. There i s a
deed from Ambros Sutton t o John Smith Rock, d a t e d December 16,
1661, which d e s c r i b e s the p r o p e r t y , only, a s being on the P l a i n s .
There i s another deed from Richard E l l i s o n t o John Rock Smith,
dated February 10, 1667, i n which t h e p r o p e r t y conveyed is des c r i b e d a s meadowland on t h e n o r t h s i d e of a neck c a l l e d Rockaway,
adjacent t o a p l a c e c a l l e d Hungry H a r b o r . One of t h e bounds i n t h i s
d e s c r i p t i o n is a bay t h a t p a r t s Hempstead and Jamaica.
Rock John Smith must have been an a s t u t e r e a l e s t a t e operat o r . Those purchases a t Hungry Harbor were followed by many more,
for i n deeds t o h i s son, Lieutenant Jonathan Smith, d a t e d , r e s p e c t i v e l y , March 3 0 , 1687 and October 2 8 , 1698, and by r e q u e s t s in h i s w i l l
of May 10, 1695, he disposed of the following p r o p e r t i e s :
All h i s home l o t i n the tenour and occupancy of Jonathan Smith,
bounded by John S m i t h ' s home l o t on the n o r t h , e a s t e r l y
and s o u t h e r l y by the road and w e s t e r l y by the home l o t
i n the tenour of George H e w l e t t , containing two and onehalf a c r e s .
Two-thirds of f i f t y a c r e s a t Tanners Hook P o i n t .
One hundred a c r e s a t Howsbay.
Twelve a c r e s of meadows a t Rockaway.
Five a c r e s upon the Indian Lands a t Rockaway.
Fourteen a c r e s of meadowland a t Coes L i t t l e Neck, w i t h the
upland belonging t o i t .
One-half of one and a half a c r e s a t the Half Moon.
One small l o t e a s t of Jonathan S m i t h ' s windmill in the Town
of Hempstead.
John Smith r e s e r v e d for himself a l i f e - r i g h t i n the f o u r t e e n
a c r e s a t Coes Neck, which may have been h i s home a t t h a t time. It
was located in what i s now the s o u t h w e s t e r l y p a r t of F r e e p o r t .
Besides the p r o p e r t i e s given to h i s son, Jonathan, John Smith
l e f t t h e s e a d d i t i o n a l p r o p e r t i e s to h i s son, Joseph Smith:
Twelve a c r e s of meadows a t Rockaway.
T h i r t e e n a c r e s of meadows a t H i c k s Neck.
Ten a c r e s of meadows a t Coes Neck, w i t h the upland belonging
to it.
Three a c r e s of land i n the Holly.
One p i e c e i n t h e Old F i e l d .
One piece a t the windmill, adjoining Armitage's.
I n a d d i t i o n t o t h e two deeds and w i l l , John Smith, on May 2 0 ,
1690, s i x t e e n y e a r s b e f o r e h i s death, executed a formal agreement of
n e a r l y a thousand words which was signed j o i n t l y by himself and h i s
sons Joseph and Jonathan, h i s daughter Hannah T r e d w e l l , and h i s
sons-in-law Samuel Denton, S r . and F r a n c i s Chappell. I n t h i s he
a g r e e d to make a d i v i s i o n of h i s r e a l and personal e s t a t e during
h i s lifetime.
He, however, made the following proviso, which he
apparently e x e r c i s e d :
. ..
doe d i s p o s e of my s t o c k &
Whereas I John Smith s e n r .
land & meadow unto my c h i l d r e n equally upon the Conditions
ffolowing ( v i z ) t h a t i f I doe not a l t e r i t before I dye everyone t o have such proportions of c a t l e & land & medow; ye
C a t l e to looke C a r e f u l l y a f t e r them during My l i f f e , And t o
remaine l i a b l e e i t h e r i n whole o r p a r t to bee Cald i n again
f f o r my use i f f I s t a n d i n need o r s e e Cause to C a l l them
i n ; the land & medow a l s o e upon the same tearmes f f o r my
c h i l d r e n to enjoy a s t h e r e [ s i c ] own proper i n h e r i t a n c e unl e s s I s e e Cause o r need to dispose of ye whole or any p a r t
of i t b e f o r e I dye.
And my s [ a i ] d c h i l d r e n s h a l l Annually
allow mee same Reasonable r e n t f f o r ye s [ a i ] d Medowland &
C a t l e i f I s e e cause:
...
T h i s agreement was witnessed by Jeremiah Hobart and Daniel
Denton.
According t o the agreement and the w i l l , Rock John S m i t h ' s
family c o n s i s t e d of the following:
Sons:
John Smith [ a t t h a t time deceased], Joseph, and Jonathan.
-
16
-
T H E ROCK SMITH FAMILY
Daughters: Mary, wife of Samuel Denton; Martha Chappell;
and Hannah Tredwell.
Grandchildren: Timothy and Richard Smith, sons of John
Smith [deceased]; Anne and Mary Rushmore, and William
and Stephen Chappell, children of Martha; and Sarah
and Mary Smith, presumably daughters of John Smith
[deceased].
In the will of R o c k John Smith m a d e five years after the
agreement, Martha Chappell is referred to as deceased, and the
granddaughter, Sarah Smith, had married William ( ? ) Pine. John
Smith apparently died in 1706 at the age of ninety-one. H i s will
w a s proved April 3, 1706.
A s interesting commentaries on R o c k John Smith and throwing
further light on h i m as a m a n , these t w o entries, selected from
among m a n y references to h i m in the early Hempstead T o w n Records,
are given here.
At a Towne-meetng ye 13th of M a y [1659] It is ordered that
John Smith rock is lycensed by general vote to keepe an ordenary and is allowed to sell meat drinck and Lodgeing for
strangers w'th theire retinew; both for horse and m a n , and
is to take such rates for his entertainement both of stranger
as shalbee found Conciderable and Lawfull, A n d is to keepe
such good ordre that i t m a y not be offensive unto ye L a w e s
of G o d & this place.*
B e e i t k n o w n unto all M e n by these presents, That I Anna
W o o d the wife of John W o o d formerly of R o d e Island, D o e
hereby give and bequeath unto John Smith of Hempstead (for
Distinction Sake called ~ o c k )m y welbeloved Sonne Jonathan
W o o d ( w h o will bee about ye twenty ninth of September next
ensuing the date hereof ffoure years old) for his o w n e to live
and abide with h i m or his heires until1 hee c o m e to bee twenty one yeares of age. A n d the said John Smith Doth likewise
hereby Ingage himselfe and his heires to Deale w t h her S o n
as with his o w n e A n d to provide for h i m during the time hee
abideth w t h him, meat, Drink, lodging and apparel1 Convenient
and Sufficient for him, even as for his owne, A n d D o t h likewise Ingage w h e n his time is expired, to furnish h i m with
t w o good suits of Apparrell fitted to his body, and to give
h i m one C o w e at his going a w a y , provided that hee abide with
17
ROCK JOHN SMITH
him the f u l l terme of the time above s p e c i f i e d . But i n case
that ye s a i d Anna Wood or h e r Husband s h a l l s e e cause w i t h i n
a twelvemoneth and a Day from ye day of ye d a t e h e r e o f , to
t a k e away t h e i r Sonne from the s a i d John Smith, they have
t h e i r l i b e r t y s o to do, Provided t h a t they Defray and D i s charge a l l such Charges and expences a s the s a i d John Smith
h a t h been a t i n maintaining of him w i t h food and Apparel1 or
other necessaries.
I n w i t n e s e whereof both p a r t i e s Do hereunto mutually
s u b s c r i b e t h e i r hands, t h i s 21st day of August, i n ye y e a r e
of our Lord C h r i s t one thousand S i x hundred S i x t y two, S t i l o
Novo.
her
Anna X Wood
mark
John X Smith
his
I n presence of
John T r e d w e l l
Jonas Houldswor t h
T h i s i s a t r u e Copie of ye O r i g i n a l l , both of them being
w r i t t e n by mee
Jonas Houldswor t h t
NOTES
" R e c o r d s of t h e Towns of North and South Hempstead, Long I s l a n d ,
v.1, p . 8 3 - 4 .
N.Y.
Jamaica, Long I s l a n d Farmer P r i n t , 1896. 8v.
i O p . c i t . v . 1 , p.128-9.