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566
Sailors’ Snug Harbor, an institution established for the support of aged and infirm mariners.1
An institution for the support and education of the destitute children of seamen is situated near
the Sailors’ Snug Harbor.2 Mew Brighton (p. v.) contains 5 churches, several manufac¬
tories,3 2 large family boarding houses, and the residences of many persons doing business in
New York City. TompSiinsville1 (p.v.) contains 4'churches and a number of manufactories.
In this village are numerous suburban residences; and near by was the Quarantine. Center™
ville is a hamlet. The census reports 7 churches in town.5
1VOBTHPIELD—was formed March 7, 1788. It is situated in the sr. w. part of the co.
and includes several small islands in Staten Island Sound and Newark Bay. Its surface is level
in the northern and central parts and hilly in the southern. Fresh Kils form the boundary
between this town and Westfield. Tbe soil is a clayey loam, under excellent cultivation. Along
the w. and s. borders are extensive salt marshes. The town is very thickly settled along the
shore of Newark Bay and th.e Kil Yan Kull. Port Richmond, (p. v.,) in the n. e. part of
the town, is a large manufacturing village,6 with convenient docks for shipping. Pop. 1,429.
(Graniteville, adjacent to Port Richmond, is a small settlement, with a pop. of 481. Granite
was formerly extensively quarried at this place.7 Mariners Harbor3 (p. v.) is a thickly
settled street along the shore of Newark Bay. Pop. 1,142. Old Place and Mew Spring¬
ville (p. o.) are hamlets. Clielsea is a small village nearly opposite the mouth of Rahway
River. Southfield and Hollins Mooli, are hamlets, and Long Mecii is a p. o. near Fresh
Kil. A part of Richmond and of Egberts ville9 are in this town. St. Andrew’s Church,
(Prot. E.,) at Richmond, is the oldest on the island, and under the Colonial Government it was
supported by a co. tax.4 The census reports 11 churches in town.5
SOUTHFIELD—was formed March 7, 1788. It is a long, narrow town extending along
New York Bay. Great Kils is a bay in the s. part.12 Its surface is level or gently undulating,
terminating in bluffs upon the e. shore. In the s. part are several small streams bordered by
salt meadows. Stapleton (p.v.) is a scattered village in the n. part of the town. It con¬
tains 4 churches. The Seamen’s Retreat13 and the Mariners’ Family Asylum11 are located here.
Clifton contains 2 churches and many beautiful residences. Richmond (p. v.) is situated
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7 The granite obtained at this place is very tough, and consists
of hornblende and feldspar intimately blended. It was quarried
by the Brick and Granite Co., (organized in May, 1848,) and was
largely used in making the Russ pavement of New York City. A
R.R. has been built from the quarry to the dock, 1 mi. distant.
8 Steamboats of N. J. C. R.R. Co. between Elizabethport and N.Y.
stop here daily. 9 Named from Jas. Egberts, a former resident.
10 Elias Duxbury. by will in 17 68, devised a certain plantation
as a glebe to this church. By the act of Feb. 18, 18.14, the trus¬
tees were authorized to sell this, and the proceeds were invested
for the benefit of the church. A large amount of valuable real
estate adjoining the Quarantine Ferry is owned hy this society,
and is leased for a term of 50 years.
u 3 Bap., 2 M. E., Evang. Luth., Cong., Meth., Prot. E., Ref.
Prot. D., and R. C.
12 The waters of the bay s. of this town were selected for the
anchorage of infected vessels by the commissioners for the re¬
moval of the quarantine, June 9, 1857.
is In March, 1801, a tax was imposed upon seamen and pas¬
sengers entering the port of NewYork, the proceeds of which
were applied to the Quarantine Hospital. But the injustice of
devoting a revenue derived from the hard earnings of seamen to
objects having no connection with their interests or support led
to the passage of a law in 1831, hy which this tax was directed
to he paid to the Board of Trustees of the Seamen’s Fund and
Retreat in the city of NewYork. A surplus that had been paid
into the State treasury, amounting to $12,197 68, was also placed
in the hands of the trustees. A tract of 40 acres was bought for
$10,000, temporary buildings were erected, and, on the 1st of Oct.
1831, 47 patients were admitted. The cornerstone of the present
structure was laid July 4,1835, and the building was finished in
1837. It is built of hammered stone, is 3 stories high, and will
accommodate 200 inmates. An insane hospital, houses for the
superintendent and physicians, and other buildings, have been
erected. The cost of tbe main building was $90,000, of the
insane hospital $6,000, and the total cost has been $115,000.
Up to Jan. 1, 1854,16,764 patients had been received, of whom
680 had died. By an act passed Api-il 7,1854, the mayor and
health officer of New York, the presidents of the Seamen's Sav¬
ings Bank and the Marine Society, and 7 other persons, (4 of
whom must be masters of vessels, appointed by the governor and
Senate.) were constituted trustees of the establishment. The
trustees must be residents of New York, Kings, Queens, or Rich¬
mond Cos.
14 By an act passed in 1847, the trustees of the Seamen’s Re¬
treat were directed to pi-ovide for the support of destitute sick
or infirm mothers, wives, sisters, daughters, and widows of sea¬
men, and $10,000 was applied for the erection cf suitable build- |
1
This establishment was founded by Robert Richard Randall,
of NewYork. By the provisions of his will, dated .June 1,1801,
several annuities and legacies were to he paid, and the residue
of his estate conveyed in trust to the State Chancellor, the
Mayor and Recorder of New York, the senior minister of the
Episcopal and of the Presbyterian chux-ches of the city, the
President of the Chamber of Commerce and the President and
Vice-President of the Marine Society, and their successors, for
the support of aged and infirm sailors. The trustees were incorp.
Feb. 6, 1806. The property thus bequeathed lay near Union
Square, in New Yoi-k, and a protracted and expensive lawsuit
prevented the trustees from fully executing the intentions of
the benefactor until many years after his death. This suit
was decided in the U. S. Supreme Court, in Feb. 1830, in favor
of the trustees. It was allowed to accumulate until 1830,
when the present site (embracing 163 acres) was purchased, and
preparations were made for the erection of the necessary build¬
ings. The cornerstone of the edifice was laid. Oct. 21,1831. The
buildings consist of a main edifice with two wings, a hospital,
(erected in 1853,) a commodious dining and lodging hall, (erected
in 1855,) a chapel, (erected in 1856,) the governor, physician,
ehaplain, and steward’s dwellings, a laundry, a gardener’s house,
and other buildings. The remains of the founder of the insti¬
tution were interred beneath a monument in front of the main
building, Aug. 31,1834. The officers of the establishment con¬
sist of a president, secretary, governor, treasurer, chaplain, phy¬
sician, assistant governor, steward, and agent, chosen annually
by the trustees. Capt. John Whettenwas the first governor, and
since 1845 Capt. De Peyster has held that office. The total number
of inmates received since 1845 has been 477; the present num¬
ber (Aug. 1858) is 380. Among the inmates the average number
of deaths is 25 per annum. The annual income of the institu¬
tion is $75,000.
2
“ The Society for the Relief of Destitute Children of Seamen”
was formed in 1846 and incorp. 1851. An annual payment of
$2 constitutes a member, and a single payment of $25, a life mem¬
ber. It is managed and chiefly supported by ladies. The yearly
3
facture of iron from the ore, and of steel from iron. At this
4
employ about 30 bands, and the Richmond Co. about 45. White
5
lead is also manufactured to some extent.
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