1810–1812 & 1825–1827 Ledger of Belleville-Born Ship Captain and New York Merchant George Davis Documenting Atlantic Shipping, Elite Mercantile Networks, and Later Land Development and Welsh Settlement in Lewis County
On offer is a substantial manuscript ledger of ship captain, merchant, landholder and pioneering settler George Davis of New York and Turin, Lewis County (d. circa 1833). It docume nts two distinct but connected periods in his business life: first, the New York maritime and mercantile world of Kearny & Davis (often appearing as Kearney & Davis) from 1810 to 1812; and second, Davis’s Lewis County land, farming, sawmill, road-building, settlement, probate, and family-network accounts from 1825 to 1827. George Davis’ ledger represents a working record of a shipmaster born in Belleville, New Jersey, whose career took him from the role of ship captain to that of New York merchant to large-scale northern New York farmer and landholder, famously credited for contributing to the influx of Welsh settlers in early Lewis County. Davis was a pioneering force who was connected to the giants of early New York mercantile and landholding through both marriage and business relationships. He was connected to members of families including Kearny (Kearney), Schuyler, Van Rensselaer, De Peyster, Walrath, Constable, Markham, McVickar, Belknap, Bostwick, Crofoot, and many others. This ledger connects early 19th century Atlantic commerce, American shipping and vessel ownership partnerships, elite New York mercantile families, Lewis County land speculation and improvement, the rural economy, and local settler networks. See Bio Notes at the end of the listing for extensively researched biographical data on Davis, his family, and the key players in his familial and business interactions. Content Summary The ledger contains approximately 182 pages of ledger entries and notes, with the first 138 pages covering Davis’ business conducted in New York from June 1810 into late 1812. During this time, George Davis was a partner in the firm Kearny (Kearney) & Davis, and the ledger book belonged to the company. The final 44 pages cover1825-1827 (not always in chronological fashion). They begin in March 1826, with crucial 1825 material recorded near the end of the ledger. During the 1820s, Davis was in the Constableville and Turin areas of Lewis County, operating as large-scale landowner, seller, contract holder, mill investor, farmer, creditor, and local figure who managed wild land and improved farms with the goal of settling a number of Welsh immigrants on the hills west of Turin. 1810-1812: New York Merchants Kearny & Davis of 306 Greenwich The 1810-1812 material places Davis in the New York marine shipping and importing world immediately before the War of 1812 as a partner in the firm Kearny & Davis. We believe his partner was Archibald K. Kearny (1786-1868). The ledger along with historical newspaper records confirm that Kearny & Davis partnered with other firms in ownership of ships Edward, Aurilla, and Emeline. Those other firms were J. W. & P. Kearny, run by Archibald’s brothers, John Watts Kearny (1778-1850) and Philip Kearny (1780-1849) as well as B. W. Rogers & Co, run by Benjamin Woolsey Rogers (1775-1859). There is significant ledger evidence that another major player in the Kearny & Davis operations was John Arent Schuyler (1779-1817), a member of the copper-mining Schuyler line of New Jersey and New York. The ledger contains hundreds of entries that define the business relationships of the key players in the New York mercantile and maritime trades. Kearny & Davis were an entrenched part of the broader credit economy, and did business with giants in the early 19th century. Included among these business relations are J. R. Van Rensselaer (notable given Davis’s marriage into the De Peyster and Van Rensselaer kinship) and P. & A. Schermerhorn (the dominant NYC merchant firm operated by brothers Peter and Abraham Schermerhorn). Some excerpts give a sense of Kearny & Davis’ integration with the New York business landscape at the time: “To Wm Davy & Son recd of them on account ... 240.80 To Ship Edward recd of Cap. Singleton in Philadelphia ... 3455.63 To M P Kearny on a/c of Freight & adventure to Madeira…” [Sept, 1811] “Bills payable J.R. Van Rensselaer note due a/c Jan 14, 1800…Hubbard & G[reene] note disct’d, Jan 21, $528…R Watt note disct’d, Dec 10, 1000…” “A. & D. Coffin Dr. to Sundries. To John A. Schuyler, for sale of paint, $641.63….” [1812] “P & A. Schermerhorn Dr to Profit & Loss for amt of balance on paint & their bill due ... . 79” [1812] Many entries show the recording of the disbursements by Kearny & Davis to a variety of vendors and contractors, and the process of outfitting a ship for sailing, advertising the goods with which the ship will return and compensating all involved parties: “Disbursements Ship Edward Outfit to Madeira Dr To Cash a/c for balance P. Knapps a/c viz laborers ... 8.- ... 30.25 Ring ... 4.25 ... 23.- ... 1.87 medicine chest ... 10.- Wardens survey ... 5.- Glazier bill ... 2.63 Blackburgers do ... 5.94 clearance at custom house ... 6.60 I. Stout for 1/4 flour ... 8.- [Total] 105.54” [1811]. “New York Decr 5th 1811 Disbursts Aurilla to Savanna } Dr To Sundries To Robert Ansley Ship Stores ... 265.75 Capt Kearny ... 18.62 [Total] 284.37 To Westerfield & Mustard ship carpenters ... 100.- To Saml Hone Baker ... 110.70 To Tucker & March ship Chandlers ... 337.46 To John Fine Blockmaker ... 43.66 To Saml Burrows sail maker ... 135.12 To Sales of paint ect John A. Schuyler ... 7.84 To balance due Capt Kearny a/c cabin stores ... 31.38 To Wm Butler Blacksmith ... 47.45 To King & Coller Coopers ... 7.50 To Profit & Loss advertising for freight ... 300…” [1811]. Kearny & Davis was part-owner of vessels Edward, Aurilla and Emeline, and Davis himself held personal shipping interests which he transferred into the firm. Ledger entries and newspaper records record the Ship Aurilla venture as a three-part commercial arrangement between Kearny & Davis, B. W. Rogers & Co., and J. W. & P. Kearny. Brig Emeline and Ship Edward were partially owned by Kearny & Davis and JW & P Kearny. The ledger includes detailed notes related to the companies’ interests in the ships: “Sundries Dr. to Invoice for Ship Aurilla B. W. Rogers & Co., for their one-third: $2,142.72 J. W. & P. Kearny, for their one-third: $2,142.72 Invoice per Aurilla [a/c?], for our one-third: $2,142.72 [ ] for current account: $57.42 Total: $6,485.58” “Gave our [note] to United Insurance Co dated 9 Nov. nine months…on Cargo Ship Aurilla to Bristol for BW Rogers, JW & P Kearny and ourselves. Cargo 7600 2-1/2 fr...$190, policy - 1.25 Total 191.2” [Nov 14, 1810] “Kearny & Davis purchased from George Davis his one-half of the ship Edward, 7 May, at 6 months.” [Oct 22, 1810] “Brig Emeline Dr to Bills Payable For 1/6 part of said vessell bot of Thos Farmar sec Jany 15 note ... 351. 86” [Nov 15, 1811] “Gave our note to Ocean Insurance Co., dated 30 October, 12 months, a/c George Davis, shipment on Brig Emeline.” The late 1812 section appears to show the business being wound down or at least changing form as entries are no longer consistently dated chronologically and the final entry ends mid-page. That timing is suggestive given the disruption of maritime commerce during the War of 1812. 1825-1827: Lewis County Land-Owner, Pioneer, Farmer & Possible Conspirator Following his maritime merchant career, Davis transitioned into upstate New York land speculation. Data from the 1860 book, History of Lewis County by F. B. Hough reports that in March of 1817, Davis purchased from James McVickar over 5,224 acres of land in Townships 3 and 4 in the Turin area of Lewis County for $14,225. Ledger and land transfer records show that he also purchased pieces of the Silas Markham estate in 1825, among other land acquisitions. The Lewis County portion of the ledger begins in March 1826 and continues into September 1827, but the accounts include 1825 summary material and earlier references. The entries provide a fulsome picture of life in early Lewis County with Davis noting constant land deals, development plans, farming operations, sales and employee changes. He develops and sells land, deals in credit, is a landlord, runs a large farming venture, and makes a big push for settlers. The geographic center is Turin and the surrounding Lewis County settlement area, including the Welsh Settlement, Gummers Hill, Constableville, Lowville, Rome, and Utica. Davis’ ledger notes align with historic Lewis County landholder data, available online. Some excerpts: “Note I have this day agreed to sale the…mile on Lot M 88 to Gus Dickerson (Dickenson?) with 25 acres going for $350” [April 23, 1826]. “George L Lochs has agreed with George to take 100 acres from off the West side of Lot No 82 has pd out 8…cash out in about 3 weeks” [Oct 11, 1826]. “...sale of land…Daniel D. Walrath 103 acres of land from Lot No. 12 at 207, the ground being much harder” [Dec 19, 1826]. These entries preserve the practical language of land valuation and negotiation in a developing northern New York settlement. Davis dealt in lots, acreage, road access, mill sites, soil conditions, cash down, notes, interest, security, improvements, and the labor needed to make land productive. The sawmill accounts are among the strongest entries in the 1820s section: “Note I offer'd Abraham Walrath & [ ] the Saw mill on lot No. 5 with the 52. acres of land for $325 on condition of their paying $50 cash this offer was made in March or April last after the Dam was broken” [June 27, 1827]. “I have this day sold the saw mill on lot No 5 with two acres of land to Abm Walrath & John Bellenger for $170 at 3 years cr one half the mile and let is what I bought of Silas Marckahm s Estate the other half belongs to D.I.G [David Ireland Greene] and myself of course…” [July 7, 1827]. “I have sold John Bellinger 50 acres of land from off lot No 5 joining the mill yard. this is what I bought of the Markham estate of course private account at $3…150” [July 7, 1827] Additional excerpts: “Charles Damon has ended his contract for 50 acres to John Kentner…9 months $162.12 for which Kentner has paid for as follows:...note with interest $105.45…his note $14…property help $2.67…” [Aug 8, 1827]. "Delivered Roland Jones a deed for 57 ½ acres of land this day from lots No 67. 50 aces of which I had but of John How” [Nov, 1826] “...I am going to give Charles Damon a contract for the 54 acres of land which had formerly been taken up by Gus Dickerson” [May 4, 1826]. “Note Marvin Sackett had contracted with Nibbin for 17 acres of the lot 91 he had taken up but had made no payments which with the 50 acres he contracted me [is] 67 acres which amounted to this date…interest ch…$6 to $207 which he has settled [with] 3 head of cattle…Hennry’s note for balance…is $198.50 Walter Sackett on his notes $49.50…I have further cr Walter Sackett this day for 54 ½ bush of wheat…leaving a balance on his note of $42…given Mr. Kellen one of the notes” [March 23, 1827]. One of the final pages of the ledger (preceding many torn out pages) is Davis’ 1825 summary page near the end of the ledger dives into Davis’ efforts toward bringing in Welsh settlers to Lewis County. A brief excerpt of the 1825 content: “Sundry expenses for improvements…Paid…loan for building a saw mill on Lot No 91 75 acres from sime?...paid for cutting a road from the Welsh Settlement to Gummers hill…$75…pd Thos Major for his services in getting in settlers..50 acres land Lot No 72 $150…Alexander Rowley for exchange of farms $140…Improvements sold him whilst I bought 600 acres of land Lots No. 35, 36, 43, 72 and 73 $1800…” Davis’ entries provide an invaluable genealogical record of often difficult to locate upstate New York pioneers, and draws connections between many well-known New York City families that saw the potential of upstate NY. They paint a detailed picture of the land trade including how it was improved, sold, credited, recorded, settled and how the pioneering families negotiated and cooperated. Davis’ farming entries capture the minutia of day-to-day rural economy surrounding the land transactions. Excerpts: “Peter Schuyler & Co. Dr. To 1 yoke oxen & cow [?] ... $65 To 1 do. working oxen....$45 To 1 odd oxen — John Notley, Cr. him $21.50 [?] ... $23 To 1 yoke of Richard Davis .... $42 To 52 sheep sent them on the 21st ... $52 Total ... $227” [Sept 11, 1826]. “Abraham & John Adam Walrath Dr to 524 lbs Hay at 3/ $2,06…To 8 lush of oats at 3/…3” [May 2, 1827]. “Seth Miller…thirty bush ashes” [Dec 30, 1826]. “Lucy [Louisa Hubbard] Markham Dr to an order on Seth Miller & to her…leases…$1.50” [Jan 11, 1827]. “Ben and Titus Markham Dr…6 tons of Meadow Hay at $1…$6” “Rec’d from the Clap [Clapp] farm 29 bush oats…15 of corn” “Horace Clapp agreed to pay me 25 bushes of wheat a year for use of the barn from last hear no deduct the expense of repairing the floor he to sign us half the crop of potatoes” “Horace Johnson Dr to 1 Calf Shin weighing 11 ½ lbs at 12/100…1.35” [April 24, 1827] “[John] Radley’s son commenced work the twelfth of May and remained until the 19 and boarded here….John Radley’s son broke off work this evening…John Radley son returned this morning and went home on Saturday eve did not return on Monday…” [May, 1827]. “Doct Sherwood Dr, to 2 Gallons Sider…Eren Roberts is to have 9 Gallons of cider when called for” [March 19, 1827]. “Utica Bank Cr. By check in favor of Mrs. Constable, or bearer…$45” [Dec 7, 1826] [We believe Mrs. Constable to be Eliza McVickar Constable, the wife (and later widow) of William Constable Jr. (1786–1821). The couple settled in Constableville in 1810, where William managed inherited land across townships 3 and 4 until his early death in May 1821, leaving Eliza to manage the estate]. “Benj Vickery Dr Cash new year for years expenses to get your wife home. He quit work on the coming of the 15th” [April 17, 1826]. “Note Isaac W. Bostwick wrote me under date Nov 23 1825 that he had rec’d for me…to my credit $107” [April 17, 1826]. “John N. Roberts Cr…I have sold again to Noah Damon for whit I have taken his note out new next the Steers turn out in presence of John Notley as security” “James McVickar Dr 1 bush buckwheat seeded my ground on the 14th….” [June 16, 1826]. “Ezra Belknap By his two notes for $12 each amount of house rent” [May 3, 1827]. “George Bass Dr to 3 ½ yds factory Bot of Miller at ⅓…56” [Aug 8, 1827]. “G. Bass & C[harles] Crofoot have taken the job of taking out my manure for which I agree to allow $10 They also agree to draw in all my oats for which I am to give $15 if there should be more manure than I thought I am to allow then for it $25” [Aug 9, 1827]. “Sundries…Dr…George’s expenses on the road in going to Rome and Utica…” [Nov 28, 1826]. Entries related to probate matters and interpersonal/familial connections provide valuable context and confirmation to sometimes difficult to locate genealogical data, such as Davis’ work on the Silas Markham estate: “Surrogate Dr. Paid him by James McVickar, [st./sett.?] of Markham Estate…$30.00 Paid him balance by his nephew Seth Miller…$18.75” [Surrogate was Sylvester Miller, per probate records, Ancestry.com]. George Davis and The David Ireland Greene Banking Scandal Of particular note are George Davis’ entries relating his brother-in-law, David Ireland Greene (1782-1826), who was married to Catharine Adriana de Peyster Greene (1778-1858), sister of Davis’ wife’s, Hannah Berthia de Peyster Holmes Davis (1775-1831). Greene, a clerk at Phoenix Bank, was famously involved in an 1820 scandal whereby he defaulted on $147,000, which comprised one-fifth of the bank’s capital. Franklin B Hough’s 1860 book, History of Lewis County. The book asserts that George Davis was aware of and possibly involved with accepting funds for land transactions that were connected to the Phoenix funds. Greene was said to have fled to Quebec and then to France, before returning to America and staying with his brother-in-law, George Davis, in Constableville. Greene died in Davis’ home on September 5, 1826. Davis’ entries confirm and expand on aspects of this news story. Greene’s death is recorded as is the aftermath, where Greene’s wife, subsequently relocated, and at least two of their minor children were taken in by her brother, William De Peyster (1788-1876). Importantly, Greene also appears in the 1810-1812 portion of the ledger as a partner in the firm Hubbard & Greene, which did business with Kearny & Davis. Excerpts: “Mr. David Greene died at half past four o’clock in this morning” [Sept 5, 1826]. “Mrs Greene left this on the 19th of April for Claverack at which time the two Boys went up to W[illiam] De Peyster” [May 4, 1827]. “Note I paid for sundries things for Wm Depeyster by donation of his brother Arent…” [June 14, 1827]. This ledger book is an absolute goldmine for any collection focused on the genealogy or early history of New York merchants, maritime trade, land development, settlers, farming industry, economics, and familial and business connections. Biographical information on some of the many key players involved in George Davis’ business and family realm follow, though they barely scratch the surface of the hundreds of people and companies that appear in the ledger. Transcription Note: Transcriptions have been lightly punctuated for readability. Original spelling has generally been retained; uncertain readings and editorial expansions appear in square brackets, and ellipses generally indicate that the seller is shortening quotations, but sometimes indicate difficulty deciphering words. Condition: This ledger measures approximately 8.5 x 13 inches. It is hard covered and the spine and pages that remain are intact with legible writing in ink in multiple hands. Multiple pages have been torn out at some point, at the end of the ledger and between April-July 1826. The covers are in tact but show signs of wear and a few pages within the ledger have been partially torn. Overall, though, it remains sturdy and impressively intact for its age. Overall Fair. Provenance: The back of the ledger is explicitly inscribed: “New York, Mr. George Davis, Lewis County, Turin.” Davis’s name is also written in multiple other places on the inside back cover of the ledger. Associated Holdings at Rutgers University: The ledger shows Davis working with several members of the Kearny (Kearney) family, particularly in 1810-1812. Outside archival material indicates that related but separate Kearny business papers survive at Rutgers University, which include business papers (1786–1851), ledgers and letterbooks of three generations of Kearny men, and a letterbook of Philip & John W. Kearny covering 1811-1816, which would overlap with the ledger book of Kearny & Davis/George Davis. This ledger therefore appears to be an important privately held counterpart to a known Kearny business archive, especially because it documents the Davis firm, which worked extremely closely with John W. & P Kearny Co. Biographical Notes Captain George Davis was born in Belleville, Essex, New Jersey. He was a shipmaster and merchant partner in the firm Kearney & Davis, operating out of 306 Greenwich Street in New York City (Longworth’s American Almanac, 1813). On October 12, 1805, he married the widowed Hannah Berthia de Peyster Holmes (1775–1831), with whom he had at least two children: Pierre de Peyster Davis, who died in Peru, Illinois, in 1838, and Cornelia Van Rensselaer Davis (1807–1867), who later co-signed land deeds with her father and is buried in Claverack Cemetery. Following his wife's death in August 1831, which was reported in the New York Evening Post, Lewis County land records show that Davis managed his remaining properties for a short time, with his estate taking over in April of 1833, implying his death occurred in approximately March, 1833. Hannah Berthia de Peyster (1775–1831) was the daughter of Pierre Guilaume De Peyster (1746–1807) and Berthia Hall (1736–1826). Her siblings included, Cornelia, Arent Schuyler, Pierre Guillaume, William Sheriff, and Catherine Adriana, the latter of whom married the disgraced banker David Ireland Greene. Before her 1805 marriage to George Davis, Hannah married Charles Holmes on June 24, 1799. She was widowed at some point soon after. Hannah predeceased her second husband, passing away in Claverack, New York, on August 20, 1831. Her death was publicly announced in the New York Evening Post on August 29, 1831. Catharine Adrianna de Peyster (January 26, 1778 – December 28, 1858) was the younger sister of Hannah Berthia de Peyster. She married David Ireland Greene in New York, and together they had seven children: Mary Bethia (who later married John R. Kearny), William Armstrong, David C, Pierre de Peyster, Catharine Adrianna, David Henry, and Rutsen Van Rensselaer. Following her husband's death in 1826, the widowed Catharine maintained close financial and real estate ties with her sister Hannah's husband, George Davis, actively purchasing land from him in 1828, 1829, and 1831. She survived her sister Hannah by over twenty-seven years, ultimately passing away at the age of 80 at the Rye, New York, home of her son-in-law, John R. Kearny. David Ireland Greene (January 3, 1782 – September 5, 1826) was born in Norwich, Connecticut, to David and Rebecca Rose Greene, Greene graduated from Harvard College in 1800. He married to Catharine Adrianna de Peyster, thereby becoming the brother-in-law to Hannah Berthia de Peyster and her husband, Captain George Davis. David I Greene became a businessman affiliated with the firm Hubbard & Greene in New York, which did frequent business with Kearny & Davis, as seen in the ledger. Greene's business and real estate ventures frequently intertwined with his brother-in-law's; in 1818, he purchased Lewis County land from Davis and Thomas Aslop, per Lewis County land records. At the time, he was working at the Phoenix Bank as a clerk. Greene's career ended in infamy after he defaulted on $147,000 from his employer, Phoenix Bank, in 1820 after resigning his position as clerk. He then fled the country, eventually returning from exile to die at the Constableville home of his brother-in-law, George Davis, in 1826. Select 1810–1812 New York City Mercantile Connections Archibald Kennedy Kearny (May 22, 1786–July 1, 1868) was born in New Jersey to Philip and Susanna Watts Kearny. He grew up among twelve siblings, including Stephen Watts, Robert, John Watts, and Philip III. Initially pursuing a naval career, Archibald was warranted as a midshipman in the United States Navy on May 2, 1800, commissioned as a lieutenant on April 17, 1807, and resigned on July 5, 1808. He subsequently entered New York City’s commercial sphere as a ship broker operating from 42 Wall Street, the same address used by his relative Philip Kearny III. Archibald is highly likely to have been the “Kearny” in Kearny & Davis, directly connecting his business career with Captain George Davis and the extended family of Davis’s wife, Hannah Berthia de Peyster. A lifelong bachelor, Archibald died in Manhattan at age 82 and was interred in the John Watts Kearny vault at St. Mark’s Church on July 3, 1868. John Watts Kearny (November 11, 1778–December 29, 1850) was a prominent New York City merchant who co-founded John W. & Philip Kearny with his brother Philip in 1803. The firm operated from William and Garden Streets. That same year, John married Anne Watts, granddaughter of the Earl of Sterling, at Trinity Parish. In 1810, he built a residence at 2 Greenwich Street, placing him in close geographic and professional proximity to Captain George Davis, whose firm, Kearny & Davis, operated farther along the same street at 306 Greenwich and worked closely with the broader Kearny mercantile network. John maintained a prosperous New York business career until retiring around 1830, after which he relocated to Saugerties-on-Hudson, where he lived until his death. Philip Kearny III (October 1, 1780–April 12, 1849) was a pioneering New York City broker and a founding member of the New York Stock Exchange in 1817. After beginning his career in partnership with his brother John, he established a successful independent brokerage at 42 Wall Street. Like John, Philip married into the influential Watts family, wedding Susan Watts at Trinity Church on July 7, 1810. The Kearny brothers’ elite social and commercial standing intersected closely with the extended family of Hannah Berthia de Peyster: they worked professionally with her husband, Captain George Davis, while their relative John R. Kearny married Hannah’s niece, Mary Bethia Greene. A lifelong New York resident, Philip lived on an East 22nd Street estate inherited from his grandfather. Part of the property was later used to build Calvary Church, where Philip served as a devoted warden and was remembered by the parish as an esteemed and ardent supporter. His funeral was held there in late April 1849, followed by his interment in the John Watts vault at Trinity Churchyard. Benjamin Woolsey Rogers (1775–1859) was a prominent New York City hardware merchant and importer who belonged to the highest levels of the city’s commercial elite. The son of Moses Rogers and Sarah Woolsey Rogers, he drew upon powerful family connections that provided access to capital, insurance, maritime contacts, and established trading networks. Following the 1804 retirement of his maternal uncle, William Walton Woolsey, Benjamin assumed control of the family importing house and established B. W. Rogers & Co. at 235 Pearl Street. Through his shipping and mercantile ventures, Rogers became closely associated with Captain George Davis and his Kearny partners. B. W. Rogers & Co. routinely transacted with both Kearny & Davis and J. W. & Philip Kearny & Co. Their commercial trust culminated in major shared maritime investments, most notably the Ship Aurilla, in which Rogers, the Kearnys, and Kearny & Davis each held a one-third interest. P. & A. Schermerhorn was an influential nineteenth-century New York merchant, shipping, and real estate firm operated by brothers Peter and Abraham Schermerhorn. Members of one of the city’s oldest and wealthiest Dutch families, they inherited extensive New York City and Brooklyn property from their father, Peter “the Elder” Schermerhorn, with whom they also operated the ship chandlery P. Schermerhorn and Sons. The brothers became major figures in early American maritime commerce and urban development. Between 1811 and 1812, they constructed the historic Schermerhorn Row, a block of Federal-style warehouses and counting rooms on Manhattan’s Fulton Street that they leased to other merchants. Their industrial ambitions also shaped early Brooklyn: the firm’s attempt to purchase part of the Remsen estate for a large ropewalk—a lengthy facility used to manufacture rope—provoked a fierce zoning dispute with developers and trustees that influenced the village’s early street plan. Peter maintained an extensive seafaring and mercantile empire, while Abraham, who married Helen White, became a prominent New York landowner. John Arent Schuyler (April 12, 1779–October 12, 1817) was a prominent New Jersey landowner and heir to the Schuyler family’s influential copper-mining legacy at New Barbadoes Neck in Belleville. He was a second cousin once removed of Revolutionary War General Philip Schuyler and a third cousin of Philip’s daughter Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, wife of Alexander Hamilton. Schuyler belonged to a deeply interconnected network of elite Dutch-American families, including the Van Cortlandts, Bayards, and De Peysters, and shared extensive familial ties with Hannah Berthia de Peyster, whose relatives included Loyalist British officer Arent Schuyler DePeyster. Between 1810 and 1812, Schuyler also conducted business with Hannah’s husband, Captain George Davis, and Davis’s partner Kearny. As a wealthy heir to a family fortune derived from colonial copper discovered and extracted through enslaved labour, Schuyler represented the transition from colonial resource extraction to the expanding commercial and industrial networks of the nineteenth century. He married Eliza Kip in 1800 and had two children with her before her death in 1805. In 1807, he married Catherine Van Rensselaer of Claverack, New York, with whom he had five more children before his death in Belleville in 1817. Jacob Rutsen Van Rensselaer (September 27, 1767–September 30, 1835) was a prominent lawyer, Federalist politician, and militia commander born in Claverack, New York. The son of Continental Army officer Colonel Robert Van Rensselaer, he graduated from Yale University in 1787, served multiple terms in the New York State Assembly, became New York Secretary of State from 1813 to 1815, and represented his region at the 1821 New York Constitutional Convention. During the War of 1812, he also served as a drafted Columbia County militia commander charged with defending New York City. His social position placed him within the same elite commercial and familial circles as Hannah Berthia de Peyster. Between 1810 and 1812, the ledger documents a financial or commercial account between Van Rensselaer and Kearny & Davis, the firm co-run by Hannah’s husband, Captain George Davis. The families were also linked geographically and through marriage: Jacob’s sister Catherine married John Arent Schuyler, connecting the Van Rensselaers to the wider Schuyler and De Peyster network, while Hannah’s daughter, Cornelia Van Rensselaer Davis, was later buried in Jacob’s hometown of Claverack. His legacy is preserved at the Jacob Rutsen Van Rensselaer House and Mill Complex, built around 1805 in Claverack and now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. William Davy & Son was a prominent Philadelphia merchant firm that frequently transacted with Captain George Davis’s business, Kearny & Davis, supplying substantial quantities of goods, including copper and muskets. Established around 1804 from the earlier partnership Davy, Roberts & Co., the firm operated primarily from 112 Spruce Street, with warehouses near Arch Street and the Delaware River docks. Senior partner William Davy (1757–1827) was an English political dissident who fled to America during the 1794 “Socinian Migration” alongside scientist Joseph Priestley. A trusted civic figure and Superintendent of Indian Trading Houses for the United States government, he used his English connections to build an extensive transatlantic textile network. His son and junior partner, Albert Davy, managed the firm’s daily maritime logistics, dockside sales, and the administrative demands of its West Indies fleet during the turbulent trade embargoes of 1810–1812. The firm imported goods from London and Venezuela, and Albert later served as United States Consul at Leeds, England, during the 1830s and 1840s. Select 1825–1827 Upstate New York and Lewis County Connections Charles Crofoot (1786–1847), son of Gideon Crofoot of Hartford, Connecticut, was an early nineteenth-century New Yorker whose family eventually established connections across the expanding United States. He married Louisa in 1813, and the couple lived in several New York communities while raising their family. Their son Michael Elisha was born in Schenectady in 1822, and their daughter Rachel Lucinda was born in Canandaigua in 1826. Crofoot worked for George Davis alongside George Bass and was active in the Lewis County region before his family settled in Constableville around 1829. He died in Amsterdam, New York, in 1847 but is memorialized by a cenotaph in Pontiac, Michigan, where his son became a prominent lawyer and judge. His daughter later travelled west during the Gold Rush and settled in Santa Rosa, California. His son, the Honorable Michael E. Crofoot, renovated Pontiac’s oldest commercial building in 1882—now named The Crofoot after the family—and became an influential local and national figure, serving as Oakland County Probate Judge, attending the 1856 Democratic National Convention as a delegate, and eventually arguing before the United States Supreme Court. James McVickar (d. 1835), son of prominent New York linen merchant and estate executor John McVickar, was an important figure in the early land development and governance of Constableville. He arrived in 1813, married Eweretta Constable—strengthening his ties to the extensive William Constable land estate—and served the growing community as a county judge. A major participant in regional real estate, McVickar sold George Davis the large tract that helped fuel Davis’s early expansion in Lewis County. He remained an influential local civic leader until 1830, when he relocated with his family to New York City. He died there five years later, leaving his wife and three children. Colonel Seth Miller (1797–1867), son of early pioneers Seth Miller and Mary Wadsworth, was a lifelong Constableville resident, merchant, and civic leader. He opened a successful mercantile business in 1819 and operated it until his death. Miller contributed significantly to regional infrastructure as a proprietor and director of both the Rome Turnpike and the Rome and Turin Plank Road. Politically active as a Whig and later a Republican, he served as a colonel in the state militia and became Constableville’s first postmaster, holding the position almost continuously from 1826 to 1853. In 1822, he married Laura Todd, with whom he had nine children. His commercial, political, postal, and transportation work made him a foundational figure in the early civic development of Lewis County. Marvin Sacket, also recorded as Sackett (1796–after 1855), was a farmer and early Lewis County resident born in Westfield, Hampden County, Massachusetts, on October 16, 1796, to William Sacket and Olive Dean. He married Polly Nelson, daughter of Horace Nelson and Polley Killam, at Suffield, Connecticut, on February 17, 1818. Marvin served as a private in the 101st Regiment of the New York Militia during the War of 1812, alongside his brothers William and Samuel. By 1820, he was a householder in Lowville, Lewis County, and by 1830 was living in Turin. His appearance in George Davis’s ledger therefore dates from the period in which he was actively establishing himself and his family within the Lewis County settlement economy. In March 1827, Davis recorded that Marvin had contracted with a man named Nibbin for seventeen acres from Lot 91 and had separately contracted with Davis for another fifty acres. The account involved accrued interest, three head of cattle, promissory notes, wheat, and payments associated with Marvin’s relative Walter Sackett, illustrating how early Lewis County land transactions combined property, livestock, agricultural produce, personal security, and credit. Marvin later lived in Ohio, Herkimer County, before returning to Lewis County. The 1850 census recorded him as a farmer in West Turin with his wife Polly and their son Byron. Marvin and Polly had at least five sons: Horace N., Roswell, Heman S., James H., and Byron Sackett. The Walrath family, also recorded as Waltrath, Walrad, Walradt, and Walrod, was a prominent Palatine German kinship network that expanded from New York’s Mohawk Valley into Lewis County during the early nineteenth century. Older patriarchs such as Adam A. Walrath (1773–1854) and John Adam Walrath helped establish the family’s substantial agricultural and commercial presence in upstate New York. By 1825, a younger generation—including Abraham Walrath (1799–1874) and Daniel D. Walrath (1801–1865)—had assumed active roles in the family’s business affairs, conducting regular transactions and managing regional supply networks. Working as a closely connected group of fathers, sons, brothers, and uncles, the Walraths used their deep upstate roots to link their Lewis County agricultural and commercial interests with the broader New York economy. References Another blow up! (1820, July 25). Rochester Telegraph, p. 3. Ancestry.com. (n.d.). Ancestry: Genealogical and historical records database. Multiple census, directory, vital, probate, immigration, family-tree, and public-record collections consulted. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://www.ancestry.com/ Barck, D. C. (Ed.). (1940). Letters from John Pintard to his daughter, Eliza Noel Pintard Davidson, 1816–1833 (Vol. 70, pt. 1). New-York Historical Society. https://archive.org/details/lettersfromjohnp701pint Barrett, W. (1863). The old merchants of New York City: Second series. Carleton. https://bklyn-genealogy-info.stevemorse.org/Business/Merchant/Rogers32.html De Peyster, J. Watts 1821-1907. (1869). Personal and military history of Philip Kearny, major-general United States volunteers. New York: Rice and Gage. FamilySearch. (n.d.-a). Cornelia De Peyster, 1773–1849. FamilySearch Family Tree. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://ancestors.familysearch.org/en/GMTH-QHG/cornelia-de-peyster-1773-1849 FamilySearch. (n.d.-b). FamilySearch: Genealogical and historical records database. Multiple census, directory, vital, probate, land, and family-history collections consulted. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://www.familysearch.org/ FamilySearch. (n.d.-c). New York land records, 1630–1975 [Database with images]. Multiple New York county courthouses. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://www.familysearch.org/ FamilySearch. (n.d.-d). New York land records, 1630–1975 [Database with images]. Entry for Daniel D. Walrath and George Davis, February 23, 1827. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:D82F-DN3Z Find a Grave. (n.d.). Cornelia De Peyster Van Rensselaer, 1774–1849. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/6994380/cornelia-van_rensselaer Genealogy Trails History Group. (n.d.). Biographies of Lewis County, New York. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://genealogytrails.com/ny/lewis/bios.html Hough, F. B. (1860). A history of Lewis County, in the state of New York: From the beginning of its settlement to the present time. Munsell & Rowland. https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/A_history_of_Lewis_County%2C_in_the_state_of_New_York_-_from_the_beginning_of_its_settlement_to_the_present_time_%28IA_histlewiscountry00hougrich%29.pdf Longworth, D. (1812). Longworth’s American almanac, New-York register, and city directory, for the thirty-seventh year of American independence. David Longworth. Internet Archive. Rutgers University Libraries. (2006). Globalization and industrial America, 1830–2005: New Brunswick, New Jersey, and the Raritan River Valley, a microcosm: Bibliography of selected materials from Rutgers Special Collections and University Archives. https://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/document/globalizationbibpdf Spoor, D. W. (1901). Van Rensselaer family. New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. https://archive.org/download/vanrensselaerfam21spoo/vanrensselaerfam21spoo.pdf The Crofoot. (n.d.). About and history. https://thecrofoot.com/about-history/ The Latin Library. (n.d.). Philip Kearny (1815–1862). Retrieved July 11, 2026, from https://www.thelatinlibrary.com/chron/civilwarnotes/kearny.html Yale University Library. (n.d.). Woolsey family papers. Archives at Yale. Retrieved July 10, 2026, from https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/12/resources/4439 Research Note Genealogical and biographical research was compiled from numerous records available through Ancestry and FamilySearch, including census returns, city directories, vital records, probate files, family trees, land records, and other historical databases. Individual records are not separately listed because several hundred database pages were consulted.
