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ORANGE COUNTY. 505
cburch and 18 dwellings; Oxford Bepot (p. o.) is a hamlet and station upon the Erie R. R.
The first settlements are supposed to have been made about 1735.1 The first church was erected
at Blooming Grove, in 1759 ; Rev. Enos Ayres was the first pastor.2
CHESTER.—was formed from Goshen, Warwick, Blooming Grove, and Monroe, March 22,
1845. It is an interior town, lying a little s. w. of the center of the co. The surface is rolling
in the n. w., hilly in the center, and mountainous in the s. w. The principal elevations are Goose
Pond Mt., Lazy Hill, Snake Hill, and Sugar Loaf Mt.,—all steep, rocky peaks, unfit for cultiva¬
tion. The highest summits are 500 to 600 ft. above the valleys. The principal streams are Gray
Court, Black Meadow, and Ditch Creeks. Along Gray Court Creek, near the n. boundary, are
extensive peat meadows, thoroughly drained, and forming the most productive tract in town.
The soil is a light, yellow loam, underlaid by clay. Limestone and slate are both found in town.
East Chester, (Chester p. o.,) Chester, and West Chester are three villages, situated
at the three angles of an equilateral triangle, 1 mi. apart. They contain the Chester Academy,
a bank, 2 churches, and about 1,500 inhabitants. Sugar ILoaf, (p. v.,) in the s. w. part, con¬
tains a church and 36 dwellings. The first settlement was made in 1716, at Gray Court, in the
N. e. corner of the town, by Daniel Crommeline, from Long Island.3 There are 3 churches in *
town; 2 M. E. and Presb.
COMWALL—was formed March 7,1788, as “New Cornwall.” Its name was changed March
3,1797. “ Cheesecocks,” now Monroe, and Blooming Grove were taken off in 1799. It lies upon the
Hudson, in the e. part of the co. The surface consists mainly of rocky peaks and ridges of “ The
Highlands.” Their declivities are steep, and their summits masses of rocks, in some cases covered
with a scanty growth of dwarfed forest trees. The highest peaks are Butter Hill, Crows N est, and Bear
Mountain,—respectively 1,529,1,418, and 1,350 ft. above the river.4 The valleys among the mountains
are deep, narrow, and rocky. A small portion of the n. w. part of the town is rolling or moderately
hilly. The principal streams are Murderers Creek and its principal tributary, Otter Kil, flowing
through broad, beautiful valleys in the n. part, and Bog Meadow Creek, emptying into the Hudson
below West Point. Upon the latter, near its mouth, is a series of cascades, known as Buttermilk
Palis. Cranberry, Long, Sutherlands, and Bog Meadow Ponds are small bodies of water among
the mountains. The soil in the valleys is a sandy, clayey, and gravelly loam. The hills are too
steep and rocky for cultivation. Canterbury, (Cornwall p.o.,) in the n.e. part of the town,
contains 8 churches, a woolen yarn factory, and tannery. Pop. 428. Cornwall ILanding,
on the Hudson, in the n. e. part, is the center of extensive brick manufactories. Pop. 615.
West Point, (p. o.,) on the Hudson, is the seat of the U. S. Military Academy. It contains
extensive barracks for the cadets and soldiers, 20 officers’ quarters, a philosophical building, con¬
taining the library, apparatus, and observatory, a laboratory for ordnance and ammunition, a
chapel, hospital, riding hall, stable, equipment shed, Catholic church, and 150 dwellings for
employees.5 ButtermilK. Falls, (p.v.,) 2 mi. below West Point, contains 3 churches and
307 inhabitants. Fort Montgomery, (p.v.,) in the S.E. part, contains 1 church and 16
dwellings; Bethlehem, in the n. w., a church and 12 dwellings. Ketchamtowm, in the
w., and Townsville, in the n., are hamlets. The first settlements are supposed to have been
made about 1720.5 The first church (Presb.) was formed in 1730, at Bethlehem; Rev. Mr. Chalker
was the first pastor, and Rev. Enos Ayres the second.6 Port Putnam, of the Revolution, was
situated immediately in the rear of West Point, and Fort Montgomery on the s.e. border of the
town.7 Idlewild, the residence of N. P. Willis, is near the Hudson, in the n. e. part of the town.
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taken during the several wars of the U.S.; aud among them
are 89 brass pieces captured in the several battles of the Mexi¬
can War, each marked when, where, and by whom cap¬
tured.
6 The first settlement was made at and near the village of
Canterbury. The tradition is that the first settlement was
made there by Germans, who made some clearings and planted
an orchard, but, becoming dissatisfied, sold out and left. The
next settlers were English, some of whom had first settled in
Conn. and Mass. Among the early settlers were the Suther¬
lands, Sacketts, Sherods, Brewsters, Woods, Clarks, Smiths,
Townsends, Van Duzens, Mandevilles, Bartons,, Sands, anil
Thorns. The first town meeting upon record in the precinct of
Cornwall was held in April, 1765.
7 There are 11 churches in town; 2 Presb., 2 Prot. E,, 2 Friends,
2 M. E., Bap., R. C., and Free.
8 A chain was stretched across the river from Fort Mont¬
gomery, but the fort was taken by the British and the chain
broken in Oct. 1777. A chain was afterward put across tha
river at West Point, and remained there during the war. |
1
Among the early settlers were the families of Strong, Brew¬
ster, Howell, Dubois, Coleman, Moffatt, Seely, Gilbert, Woodhull,
Tuthill, Goldsmith, Brooks, and Mathews.
2
There are 8 churches in town; 4 M. E., 2 Cong., Presb., and
Friends.
3
8 In company with others, Mr. Cromline purchased the Wa-
wayanda Patent of Philip Rockby and Hendrick Ten Eyck. He
was accompanied by Wm. Bull, an Englishman, whom he had
hired from an emigrant ship. During the first year of settlement
he erected a house long afterward kept as a tavern and known
as the “ Crommeline House.” Crommeline was a French refugee,
and he named his adopted home “ Gray Court,” after a village in
4
Upper SaSne, France. In one of the stones of the building, erected
in 1716, was cut the inscription, “D.C. 1716, G.C;:’ (i.e. Daniel
Crommeline, 1716, Gray Court.) The 'name of the stream,
meadows, and hamlet was derived from this.
5
near the center; Ant Hill, Lawyers Hill, and Mount Rascal, in
6
tlie s. w.; and Peat, Pine, Cold, and Round Hills, in the N. part.
7
In the yard at West Point is a large number of cannon
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