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                                                                                                                                      Revised December 2007

 

The Carrs of Orange County, NY and Sussex County NJ

in the 18th and 19th Centuries

  

 Contents

 

          Introduction                                                                            

          Walter Kerr m Margaret Johnston                                           

          George Carr m Jean Thomson

                        Hannah Carr m Joshua Smith                        

                        Elizabeth Carr m William Jackson Jr                          

                        Mary Carr m Thomas Bull                                          

                        Anna Carr m James Houston                                     

                        Margaret Carr m Matthew Howell                              

                        Phebe Carr m Ephraim Watkins                                 

                        Sarah Carr m -- Crawford                                           

                        George Carr Jr m Fiche Thompson                           

          Anthony Carr   

                        Mary Carr Armstrong

                        John Carr

                        David Carr m Jane Edsall

                        William Carr Jr. m Eleanor Post   

                        Robert Carr m Mary Green

                        Margaret Carr McWhorter

                        Catherine Carr Salmon

                        Samuel Carr m Mary Post                                                                       

William Carr m Catherine Poppino    

              William Carr m Deborah

              John Carr m Amy Armstrong                                     

                                    William Carr Line - Misc. Carrs                      

          David Kerr and the Mt. Eve Line                                             

          Probably Unrelated Carrs                                                      

          Directories                                                                              

                        

          Appendix I - Carr Lands and Wills                                          

          Appendix II - Carr Census/Location Analysis                          

  

by Oliver Popenoe

148 Doral Greens Drive West

Rye Brook, NY 10573-5404

914-939-0985     oliver@popenoe.com

  

Introduction

This paper is concerned with sorting out the Carr family most of  whom lived in Florida Village, Goshen Precinct, then Warwick Town in the 1700s and early 1800s, along with their close relatives.  They may all be descendants of George Carr, the first known Carr in the area, and perhaps also of the immigrant, Walter Kerr of Monmouth, NJ.  

In beginning my pursuit of  the Carrs, I was fortunate to find the work of  Lois Goff which she placed in the Orange County Genealogical Society library.  My work builds on her research although she believes that the line of William Carr is a different branch (possibly a different family) from the line of David Kerr that apparently included her ancestors.  I don't think so.

My hypothesis is that George Carr was a son of Walter Kerr, and that he had four sons:  Anthony Carr, William Carr, David Carr and George Carr, though only George was named in his will.  Note how the same set of given names keeps recurring.  Walter's sons were James, John, William, Joseph, Samuel, and, I believe, George.  David Kerr's were Mark, George, Anthony, Richard, James and Robert, later Samuel and David.  William Carr and Anthony Carr and their descendants used: William, John, Robert, Samuel, George, David, and Nathan (perhaps named after cousin Nathan Kerr, the minister.  The Sussex County Kerrs/Carrs used David, Robert, John, William, George and Samuel. 

Note also, that through much of the period studied, the names in all branches may be spelled Kerr, Carr, or occasionally Karr.  Thus the spelling of the last name is not a useful guide to sorting out the branches, though it does suggest that they all stem from a Kerr background.  Kerr, of course, is properly pronounced Carr (as with the actress Deborah Kerr), and the gradual change represents an Americanization of the original Scotch/Irish name.

These names keep repeating themselves from generation to generation, making it very difficult to sort them out.  In Appendix II I have tried to do so through an examination of tax and census lists correlated with any other information available. 

After a brief summary of Walter Kerr and some of  his known descendants, this paper begins with the first recorded Carr in Orange County--George Carr--and covers what I have found of the lines of his descendants--or presumed descendants.  My sources are a mixture of primary and secondary (or tertiary for that matter).  My object is to put down everything I can find in the hope that I or others will later be able to refine and correct the data.[1]  This revision does a considerable reshuffling ot the probable children of William and Anthony Carr compared to earlier versions.  No genealogy that goes back this far is ever complete or completely correct.  But to wait for something near perfection is to deny others the benefit of a lot of prior digging.  For simplicity, I have sometimes omitted month and day of events and also children who died young without issu

My numbering system for individuals begins with the children of Walter Ker as first generation, with each new generation adding a number, thus making it easy to identify my placement of people or to add people.  If the placement of people gets changed, their numbers will change too.  Unplaced people are unnumbered.

 

Walter Kerr

Walter Kerr was born in Scotland in 1656; he died at Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey in 1748 in his 92d year.  His wife, Margaret Johnston was born in 1661; died in 1734.  He was a non-conformist who came over from Scotland to Perth Amboy in 1685.  Armstrong says they "had at least five sons; no mention of any daughters has been discovered."  He says their relative ages are somewhat uncertain but lists them as William Ker, Samuel Ker, Joseph Ker, and John Ker; then adds James Ker for whom there is no record except a land deed "in right of his second son, James Ker." To this I am adding, on the admittedly flimsy evidence in this paper, a first son, George Ker/Carr.

               1. George Carr m (1) ?; m (2) Jean Thomson, after 1739.

               2. James Kerr, b before 169

               3. William Kerr, b ca 1700, d 1777.  After 1748, he moved to Somerset Co, NJ.  He was an elder in the Presbyterian Church at Lamington, NJ and is buried there.  By his first wife he had two children, names unknown.  His second wife, Catherine Loofbourow, b 1711, d 1776, bore him 8 children:

                              31  Margaret Kerr, b 1731

                              32  Mary Kerr, b 1733

                              33  Rev. Nathan Kerr, 1736-1804, m. Ann Livermore.  He was a graduate of Princeton, class of 1761, and pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Goshen, Orange County, for 38 years.  5 children:

                                331.  Oliver Kerr, 1765-1796.  A Princeton graduate and lawyer.  No issue.

                                          332.  Catherine Kerr, 1767-1795 in Johnstown, NY, m 1790, Rev Simon                                                                             Hasack.

                                333.  Hannah Kerr,  1769-1858.  m (1) Theodore Van Wick , d 1802; (2) John F Caldwell, d 1819.

                                          334   Margaret Kerr, b 1771

                                335.  Elizabeth Kerr, 1774-1824, m John McCarthy, 1763-1832, dau, Harriet.

                              34  Elizabeth Kerr, 1738-1765.  m 1758, John Gaston, 1730-1776. Lived in Lamington, NJ.

                                           341.   Catherine Gaston, 1759-1761

                                           342.  William Gaston, 1761-1809, m Naomi Teeple.

                                           343.  Joseph Gaston, 1763-1796, m Ida Van Arsdalen

                              35  Hannah Kerr, b 1740

                              36  Lydia Kerr, b 1742, m Col John Taylor

                              37  Sarah Kerr, b 1743, m Mr. Lucas

                              38  Nathaniel Kerr, b 1745.  children.

                              39  Walter Kerr, b 1748

                              3(10) David Kerr, b 1752, lived first at Lamington, later moved to Tonawanda, Erie, NY.                                m (1) Martha Faulkner, 7 children; m (2) Patty Pruyn, 7 children.

               4 Samuel Kerr m Catherine Mattison, b 1705.  11 children, including:

                              41  Walter Kerr, b 1732, m Ann Watson

                              42  William Kerr, b 1733, served in Heard's brigade as an ensign during the Revolution and two terms as Sheriff of Sussex County, NJ, each a three-year term, 1779-82, and 1785-88. 

                              43  Joseph Kerr, 1734-1825, m Elcy Hampton.  They lived in Hardwick Township, Sussex Co, now   Warren Co, NJ.  There were quite a few Kerrs around Hardwick Township; a Karrtown or Karrville was named after them.  Note that this is a long way from the townships of Sussex that border Warwick.

                              Among their 10 children were:

                                             431  Elizabeth or Elcy Kerr m Ephraim Green Sr, 1750-1824. They lived in Green Township (named for him) in southern Sussex Co, NJ.  His son, Ephraim Green, Jr, 1783-1824, was clerk and sheriff of Sussex County and President of Sussex Bank; he m Sarah, daughter of William  Armstrong.  I think this was one of the Sussex County                     Armstrongs; not the Warwick Armstrongs. 

                                             432   William Hampton Kerr, m Mary Goble.  They lived in Sussex Co.

                                             433  Lewis Kerr m Elizabeth Peppard, they moved to Washington Co. PA about 1808.

                                             434  Aaron Kerr, m Sarah Peppard, sister of Elizabeth.  He was elected at 22 an elder in the Presbyterian Church at Hardwick, Sussex Co, now Warren Co, NJ and about the same time elected to a seat in the NJ legislature.  He later moved to Washington Co, PA.

                                             435  Rev. Jacob Kerr, b 1738, m and lived at Somerset, MD.

               5.  Joseph Kerr, m (1) Margaret Craig; (2) Euphemia Watson.  11 children.  Somerset Co, NJ

               6.  John Ker,[3] b ca 1690 in Monmouth County, d ca 1740.  He married Deborah Jobs ca 1719.  After John’s death, Deborah m an unknown Tomson.  She was mentioned in her mother’s will as Deborah Tomson and later, as Deborah Thomson, gave her consent to the marriage of her daughter Catherine to Garret Wall.

                              61   Margaret Ker, b ca 1720, m  25 Oct 1739 in Middlesex County, NJ Thomas Story    

                              62   John Ker, b ca 1725, m <1747 Martha – in Middlesex County. Children: David Ker, b ca 1751, Joseph Ker, b ca 1756, Walter Ker, b ca 1759, m Elizabeth Page.

                              63   Rebecca Ker, b ca 1732

                              64   Joseph Ker, b ca 1734, m 16 Nov 1763 Mary Moore

                              65   Catherine Ker, m 24 Oct 1740 Garret Wall in Monmouth County

1.  George Carr, m2 Jean Thomson

                On July 30, 1759, George Carr wrote his will: [4]        

                              In the name of God, Amen.  I, George Carr, of Florida, in Orange County, being sick.  I leave to my son George all lands whereon I now live, with all appurtenances and my negro man 'Jack.'  I leave to my daughter Jean £50, also a mare and colt, to be paid by my son George when he is 23 years of age.  I leave to my daughter Jean my best cupboard, tables, iron pot and feather bed.  To my daughter, Mary Bull, £30.  To my daughter, Margaret Howell, £20.  To my daughters Anne, Phebe, and Sarah, £50 each.  If my son George should die,  then I leave all my estate to my daughters, Hannah, Elizabeth, Mary, Anna, Margaret, Phebe, Sarah, and Jean.  To my grandaughter, Elizabeth Jackson, £5.  To my grandson, George Smith, 2 sheep.  I make my sons in law, Matthew Howell and Thomas Bull, and my wife Jean, executors.            Witnesses:  George Bloom, John Martin, William Denn.[5]  Proved, April 7, 1760, before John Gale, Surrogate.

James Hector St John de Crevecoeur, who lived four miles SE of Goshen from 1769 to 1778, wrote:  "Agreeable to our customs, which indeed are those of nature, it is our duty to provide for our eldest children  while we live in order that our homesteads may be left to the youngest, who are the most helpless."[6] Accordingly, older sons were frequently left out of wills.  Major John Poppino, for example, is never mentioned in his father's will.  Similarly,  I believe that George Carr had three other sons, Anthony, William and David, who were not mentioned because they were older and already established.  This paper makes that assumption; it may later be proven wrong.

I assume that the order of names of the daughters represents their birth order and that George may have been the youngest, since all the girls except Jean were already married.  Anthony, William and David were probably the oldest, but I'll discuss them after the others.   So the children and presumed children of George Carr, and their spouses are:[7]

               11  Anthony Carr m ?

               12  William Carr d before 1780, m Catherine Poppino

               13  David Carr, m Jane Edsall?

               14  Hannah Carr d 1770, m Joshua Smith

               15  Elizabeth Carr d 1765, m William Jackson, Jr. 1722-1767

               16  Mary Carr d <1786, m Thomas Bull 1727-1801

               17  Anna Carr, m 1759,  James Houston

               18  Margaret Carr d 1777, m 1757, Matthew Howell 1726-1786

                    19    Phebe Carr, m Ephraim Watkins –1786

               1(10)  Sarah Carr, m --- Crawford

               1(11)  Jean Carr.

               1(12)  George Carr ca 1742-1812, m 1767 Fiche Thomson

What do we know about George Carr?  David Kerr is said to be a grandson of Walter Kerr.[8]  Lois Goff says that there is no evidence that George Carr descends from that family.  His name is always spelled Carr. 

According to Orange County land records[9] George Carr first bought land from Hendrick Wisner in Florida.   This transaction is not recorded; only referred to.  It could be sometime in the 1720s or possibly before.  In 1729 he bought for £25, an adjoining 50 acres from Samuel Clowes.  In 1735 he bought for £35/5, another adjoining 40 acres from Mordecai Lester, a merchant from Hempstead in Queens Co.  George Carr did not live in Amity, as stated in Ruttenber's history[10] but was just north of Goose Creek on the east side of the road from Florida to Goshen.  This was part of the original Florida Tract, though it is now in Goshen Town.  On 21 Sep 1750 he bought 30 acres, adjoining land of Johannes Wisner, from George McNish, son of one of the original proprietors of Goshen.[11]

In 1739, he was made overseer in the will of John Thomson;  William and David Carr were witnesses, providing the first indication that they were close relatives, I believe sons.  Elmire Conklin, the authority on the Thomson/Thompson family, thinks George Carr's (second) wife Jean was John Thomson's widow.  His son George Carr Junior was later (1767) to marry Fiche Thomson, probably the granddaughter of  John's brother-in law, James.[12]  Ruttenber in one of his biographies refers to George, Sr. as Rev. George Carr, a Presbyterian minister of Goshen.[13]  Since a lot has been written about the Presbyterian Church in Goshen with no mention of George, Ruttenber doubtless was confusing him with the Rev. Nathan Kerr who served there from 1766 to 1804.  There is a gap in the list of known ministers from 1754 to 1758 and it is conceivable George served at that time, however there is nothing in the records to indicate that he was a minister.  Most of the church records from 1721 to 1767 have been lost. 

A visiting Covenanter minister traveling in New York wrote:  “June 24, 1754.  Rode 11 miles to George Ker’s, Florida, spoke about 3:00 o’clock to the people.”[14]

In 1755, George Carr was listed as one of 12 slave holders in and around Florida, which would seem to make him a man of some worth. He had one male slave; no one had more than two.[15]

14  Hannah Carr m. Joshua Smith[16]

There were several Smith families in early Goshen.  Wait Smith, Sr., was one of the earliest, buying land in Goshen by 1722.  He died in 1753.  His wife's name was Charity and a daughter by that name married a Thompson.  It appears to be his son, Joshua Smith, who married Hannah Carr.  Hannah died in 1770 and left a will detailing her children:

               141.  George Smith

               142.  William Smith

               143.  Daniel Smith, d. 1810, no children

               144.  Tabitha Smith

               145.  Anna Smith, 1751-1810,  m Stephen Sayre,[17] a farmer in Walkill, d. 1820. (He was a brother of James           and John Sayre--Poppino relatives).  Children:

                              1451 Joshua Sayre, b. 1771, m1, Prudence Slauson, m2, Rebecca Greer   

                              1452  Jonathan Sayre, b. 1773, m1, Hannah Smith, m2, Mrs. Esther King

                              1453  Hannah Sayre, b. 1775, m 1796, Charles Smith

                              1454  Anna Sayre, 1785-1839, m Eliphalet Warner, 1773-1834.

                              1455   Stephen Sayre, m Ruth Seeley

                              1456   Elizabeth Sayre, m David H. Slauson

                              1457    Prudence Sayre, unm.

                              1458   William Allison Sayre, b 1793, m Sarah Murray

               146.  Phebe Smith, m William Denn, weaver and schoolmaster, d.1803-4. 

                              1461  William Denn

                              1462  Samuel Denn

                              1463  dau. m. William Amsbury

               147.  Jesse Smith d. 1829, m ?

                              1471   John A Smith

                              1472   Horace Smith

                              1473   Hiram Smith

                              1474   Bradner Smith

                              1475   Jesse Smith

                              1476   Joshua Smith

                              1477   Miriam Smith

                              1478    Dolly Smith                         
                              1479    Elizabeth Smith

               148.  Joshua Smith

15  Elizabeth Carr m William Jackson, Jr.

There were two Jackson families that came to Goshen about 1722:  James Jackson and William Jackson.  I have discussed the James Jackson family in a separate article on www.popenoe.com..   According to one account, William Jackson, Sr., from County Longworth, Ireland, came to America in 1722 with his wife and three sons: Michael Jackson, b 1708, John Jackson, and William Jackson, Jr., b. 1722 on the boat.  However a deed of 1718 shows that William Jackson of the City of New York bought land from Clowes and Everett.  It was several hundred acres which he later gave to his son, Michael, for love and affection.[18]  In about 1733, William Jackson, Sr. remarried, to the widow of William Smith who died in that year.  Samuel Seeley Sr. and Jr. were witnesses to the will.  It has been suggested, though I don’t know what the evidence is, that the widow Smith was Mary Seely, born 1716, daughter of Samuel.[19]   I think this is wrong.[20]

William Jackson, Jr., 1722-1767, m. c 1749, Elizabeth Carr, who d. 31 Dec 1765.[21]  In 1767 he married Mary Veghte, a widow. 

Elizabeth Carr and William Jackson had eight children:

                    151   Elizabeth Jackson, 1749-1790, m Israel Wells.  He was active in the Elmira area land speculation:  1788, 332 acres in Barton;  1790, 330 acres in Southport; in 1791, he transferred 9,360 acres which he had amassed from cousins Benjamin Jackson, John Jackson, Anthony Dobbins; brother-in-law Daniel Jackson, and others (probably mostly relatives).[22] [23]

                     152    Hannah Jackson, 1750-

               153.   George Jackson, 1752-1786

                    154    Daniel Jackson, 15 Apr 1754-1802, m 1778, Elizabeth McCoun from Oyster Bay, Long Island.  They lived on a farm in Chester and were buried in what was known as the Dr. Howell burial ground opposite the old Yelverton Tavern,  They were Quakers and there are no stones marking their graves.  Their son,

                             1545        Daniel Jackson, 2d, was b in Chester 28 Feb 1790 and m Eupheme C Dunham at St. George’s Church in NYC.  They lived part time in lower Manhatten and part time in Chester, taking a boat up to Piermont and a team from there.  Their son, Daniel Jackson 3d, was born in NYC 20 Feb 1831, spent most of his boyhood with his parents in Chester and went to the Academy for his schooling. He m Annie McCoun Noble from Bellevale in 1855 in the Episcopal Church in Goshen.  They built a a home called The Bog House up a lane on what is now Gibson Hill Road.[24] 

               155.  Silas Jackson, 1756-1809

               156.  Michael Jackson, 1758-1809.  m Anne Bradner, dau. of  Capt. Gilbert and Anne Bradner of Goshen.  Children:

                        1561   Silas Jackson, died young

                        1562   William Jackson, do.

                        1563   Gilbert Bradner Jackson, d. 1823, m 1815, Olivia Skellinger (who m2, Mr. Stevens.)

                                             15631.   Sally Ann Bradner Jackson, m Luther Reeve Little

                                             15632.   James Bradner Jackson

                        1564   Sarah (Sally) Jackson, 1785/6-1872 (in Monroe, Michigan). m. Capt. Daniel Carpenter.  no issue.

                        1565   George Jackson 1786-1847, m 1815 Millicent Forgerson 1791-1864.  Had 7 children, two of whom had descendants:

                                             15651   Henrietta Jackson,  m George Horton

                                             15652 . Sarah Elizabeth Jackson,  m Thomas T. Durland

                              1566   Elizabeth Jackson (twin of George), unm.

                              1567   Mary Jackson, m in Goshen, Ellis Strong, 1798-1872.  5 children.

               157.  George Jackson, 1760-1786

               158.  William Jackson III, b 1762

 

16   Mary Carr m Thomas Bull

When Mary Carr married Thomas Bull she connected the Carrs with one of Goshen’s first families.

I have mentioned that the first person to settle there was Christopher Denn.  There was a condition in the patent that unless a settlement was made by May, 1712, the patent would lapse. Denn undertook to meet that condition.  He first paid a visit there, befriended some Indians, and brought three young Indian men back to Staten Island .  He then sent back the Indians as guides, along with carpenters to build the first house, and all in charge of his sixteen-year-old adopted daughter, Sarah Wells.  Although Denn and his wife followed soon after, Sarah Wells is considered the first white woman to settle in Goshen.  In return for her services in settling his claim and saving his title, Denn promised Sarah 100 acres for herself.

In 1716 William Bull arrived on the scene.  He was a mason and stone cutter who got into financial difficulties in Dublin and was forced to flee to America.  He ended up in Hamptonburgh where he built the first stone house in Orange County for Daniel Cromline, one of the other original patentees.  He met Sarah Wells and married her in 1718.  Sarah received her promised 100 acres of land adjoining Denn's, and in 1722, William built a stone house for his family which is still standing.  Sarah and William had eight children, one of which was Thomas.  Sarah lived to be 102 and had 355 living descendants when she died.[25]

Thomas Bull, 1727-1801, married Mary Carr about 1750.  Also a mason, in 1769 he began work on a second house for his family.  It is still standing and open to the public in the Thomas Bull Memorial Park on the Montgomery-Goshen road.   During the Revolution, Thomas Bull was a loyalist and in 1778 he was detained under orders of Gov. Clinton and put in jail in Goshen to be held for exchange.  The prison was bad and Thomas soon became very ill.  In April 1779, Mary Carr Bull appealed through the sheriff to the governor to release her husband into her custody until he should be well again.  This was done and in August 1780, he was put back into jail in Fishkill.

Mary died before 1786, when Thomas Bull married Sarah Gale, by whom he had no children.  Children of Mary and Thomas, all born in Walkill precinct:

               161   David Bull, 1752-

               162   Absalom Bull, 1754-

               163   George Bull, 1756-

               164   Thomas Bull, 1758-

               165   Thomas Bull, 1760-

               166   Daniel Bull, 1762-  

               167   Abner Bull, 1765-

               168   Jane Bull, 1767-

               169   Isaac Bull, 1769-

               16(10)   Abner Bull, 1771-

               16(11)   Cadwallader Bull, 1773-

               16(12)   Sarah Bull, 1775-

17   Anna Carr m James Houston[26]

Three Houston brothers, Joseph, James and John emigrated from Ireland at the beginning of the 18th Century, arriving in Jamestown, Va.  Joseph was a clergyman.  After preaching a few years at Jamestown, he moved to Orange County and became pastor of the Goodwill Presbyterian Church in Montgomery.  Here he purchased some 600 acres of land on which he lived until his death.  He had two sons, Joseph and James, and four daughters.

James Houston was a Captain in the Revolutionary War and is buried at Goodwill Cemetery, Montgomery, Orange Co.  He married 30 Nov 1759, Anna Carr, b 1736, d 4 Dec 1782 and was buried with her husband.[27]  They had the following children:

               171.  Joseph Houston.  He was a physician at Amity and afterwards at Edenville, where he died.  (His house is still standing just south of the crossroads at Edenville; it was recently an inn). Dr. Houston was shown as licensed to practise physic and surgery in 1806, was witness to or executor of a number of wills between 1792 and 1813 (including William Armstrong, whose first wife was  Mary Carr).  In 1793 he contributed to the land fund of the Presbyterian Church in Warwick.  In 1796 he was chosen at a Warwick town meeting as a school commissioner, along with Henry Wisner.  Joseph married Ann (also called Nancy) Wisner, daughter of Henry Wisner, and sister of Jeffrey Wisner who was married to Elizabeth Armstrong, a Poppino descendant.  Joseph and Ann had ten children:

                              1711   Henry W Houston

                              1712   John H Houston, m 1816, Julia Ann Wheeler

                              1713   Richard Houston

                              1714   George W. Houston 

                              1715   Joseph A Houston, b ca 1810

                              1716   Andrew Houston

                              1717   Samuel Houston

                              1718   Harriet Houston

                              1719   Susan Houston

                              171(10)  Jane Houston

               172.  George Houston, 1763-1825.  During the Revolution, he was for a few months on guard in the Mamaking Valley to protect the settlers from Indians.  He settled on a farm in Scotchtown in 1787 and in 1805 moved to Walkill.  He gave land for the Presbyterian church and burial plots in Scotchtown and was for many years an elder.  He was a prime mover in the construction of the Goshen and Bloomingburgh turnpike.  George  m. Jane Hunter (dau. of Robert Hunter of Montgomery) who died in 1801, age 32, leaving the following children:

                              1721   Ann Houston, m Samuel W. Brown of Scotchtown

                              1722   John G Houston

                              1723   James G Houston

                              1724   Robert H Houston, b 20 Aug 1798 in Walkill.  At 16 he began learning the tanner’s and currier’s trade and at 20 he began managing his father’s farm.  In 1826 he went to Middletown and in company with Charles Dill  (later to marry Sally Carr) took over the Anderson Tannery . In 1829 he m Mary Dill, dau. of David Dill and Elizabeth Houston (dau of Joseph A. Houston, son of Dr. Joseph Houston).  They built another tannery, had an investment from Samuel S. Wickham and he continued as Houston and Wickham until he sold out to Wickham in 1851.  Meanwhile Houston had bought a farm of 60 acres adjoining the village and he laid this out along with other adjoining farms he later purchased, thus enlarging the villege of Middleburg. He was involved in extension of the railroad from Goshen, was in the lumber business in Sullivan County, and was an active Presbyterian, dying in 1889 at the age of 93.  Mary Dill Houston died in 1883 at about 80.

                              1725   George Houston

George married for the second time, Julia Thmpson, daughter of William Thompson of Goshen, and widow of Mr. Gale, by whom she had had a son, William Gale.  George and Julia had:

                              1726   Anthony Houston

                              1727   Jane Houston, his twin.  She m Charles Heard of Hamptonburg

                              1728   Henry Houston

                              1729   Sally Houston, m Hector Van Cleft

                              172(10)  Almire Houston, m Orange Horton of White Plains, NY

                              172(11)  Elizabeth Houston, m William Church of Orange, NJ

                              172(12)  Thomas Houston

               173.  Thomas Houston

               174.  James Houston

               175.  John Houston

               176.  Samuel Houston

               177.  Polly Houston, m. Robert Wilkin

               178.  Jane Houston, m. Adam Dickerson

               179.  Andrew Houston, d. 1838, m. 1799, Phebe Wisner, sister of William R. Wisner.  William was m. to Elizabeth Miller, a Poppino descendant.

 

18   Margaret Carr m Matthew Howell[28]

The Howells were a prominent family in Southampton, Long Island, some of whom moved to Orange County where they had many connections with various of the families in which we are interested.  Matthew Howell,  14 Feb 1726 - 5 Mar 1786, was the son of  Israel Howell, fourth generation in the American line, 1686-1739 and Abigail ---.  Matthew first married, 1753,  Mary Allison, probably in Orange Co. and they had one child, Matthew Howell, 1756-1836.  On 17 Nov 1757 he married Margaret Carr who died on 5 Jan 1777.  Their children:

               181   Mary Howell, 1758-1795

               182   Theophilus Howell, 1760-1829.  m 1787, Susanna Carpenter 1763-1790, daughter of Daniel Carpenter and Susanna Thompson.  Children:

                              1821   James Howell, b.1782

                              1822   Archibald Howell, 1784-1806

                              1823   Charles Howell, 1787-, m Susan Howell

               Theophilus m2, in Goshen 1792, Hannah Denton, 1765-1827.  Children:

                              1824   Sarah Howell, 1796- , m Aaron Van Duzer

                              1825   Theophilus Howell, d 1836

               183.  Margaret Howell, 1762-, m John Bradner, Esq., Judge of the Court of Common Pleas

               184.  Elizabeth Howell, 1764-, m William Moore

               185.  Philetus Howell, 1767-1817, m 1789, Mary Meeker.  Children:

                              1851  Aaron Howell

                              1852  Susan Howell, 1791-, m Charles Howell.

               186   Jane Howell 1773-

               187.  William Howell, 1775-

 

19   Phebe Carr m Ephraim Watkins [29] 

Ephraim's grandfather, Joseph Watkins, 1688-1711, lived in Stratford, Connecticut.  His son Ephraim was born there in 1706 and married there in 1727, Joanna Birdseye.  Most of his children moved to Orange County.  One son, Hezekiah, was a minister who, in 1744, became minister to congregations in Newburgh, New Windsor and Walkill.  His brother Ephraim, who m. Phebe Carr, died in 1786 and had these children:

               191.  Phebe Watkins

               192.  Jean Fairchild

               193.  Able Watkins

               194.  Ephraim Watkins

               195.  George Watkins

               196.  Joseph Watkins

               197.  Birdseye Watkins

 

1(10)   Sarah Carr m Thomas? Crawford

Sarah m Thomas Crawford 2 Nov 1761, about whom I know nothing.  There was a John Crawford who settled at Little Britain in 1730; his boys were David (whose son was Francis), and James, who settled in what is now Crawford.  Francis was married first to Eunice Watkins (b 1763), daughter of Ephraim Watkins' brother Samuel.  Early Crawfords in the Wallkill company of the Orange County militia in 1738 included James, John, William and Samuel.  Samuel, who died in 1767, was married to Ann Kidd.  James, who died in 1783, was m. to Elizabeth.  His will showed  brothers Samuel, David and Joseph.  Archibald McCurdy of Wallkill who d. 1786, had Samuel Watkins and Samuel Crawford as execs and David Crawford as witness

 

1(12)   George Carr Jr m Fiche Thompson

George Carr Jr. m. Fiche Thomson in Goshen, 14 Aug 1767.[30]   She was the daughter of John Tomson of Goshen whose will was probated 30 July 1778.  According to their wills, he was not the son of  John Thomson who died in 1739 and for whom George, Sr., William and David Carr were overseer and witnesses.  However, the elder John had a brother-in-law James Thomson who died the following year, leaving a son, John.

George Jr. inherited his father's farm lands north of Quaker Creek in what is now Goshen Town but very close to Florida Village.[31]  He and Fitch mortgaged their land to James Jauncey of NYC for £100 in 1776 and paid it off in 1777; then again in 1783 to William Treadmill of Great Neck: 170 acres, £250.  This was paid off in 1790 (Liber A, p 352). On 19 Aug 1784 he appears to have mortgaged the same land (though listed as 190 acres) to William Wisner of Warwick and he paid it off in 1789 (Liber A, p 427).   The 1801 tax list shows a George Carr with no land and only $15 worth of personal property. (That might, however, be George III, with the father out of the county as he seemed to be in 1800.)  In 1810 he was living with a female 16-26 and a male 10-16.  He is recorded by the Goshen Presbyterian Church as dying of pleurisy in December 1812.  He may have moved in with relatives closer to Goshen because his original home was much closer to the Florida than the Goshen church.

John's Tomson's will of 1777, a little unclear in its abstract, suggests that George and Fiche Carr had two daughters, Jane and Mary.  I think they probably also had two sons, George Jr. and William T, who were perhaps born after this.  The 1800 Census shows a George Carr, with a man and woman of 16-26, which I think would be George Carr III and perhaps a sister, plus a boy 10-16, which I take to be William T.[32]  The father must have been away at the time since he is not listed.  In 1810, we have William Carr (16-25) in Goshen, and George Carr Jr (26-45) in Warwick, apparently at the north end of Florida, therefore very close to William.  By 1820, William had gone to Port Byron, Cayuga County, and George had moved to New Milford, in Warwick Town.  George's widow was still there in 1830, but by 1840 had joined William's son in Port Byron.

               1(12)1.  Jane Carr, born before 1777

               1(12)2.  Mary Carr, born before 1777

               1(12)3.  George Carr Jr, born ca 1780, died before 1830.  Married Sarah Owen, daughter of John Owen(s) of Goshen on 23 September, 1801 at the Goshen Presbyterian Church.[33]  Her sister, Fanny Owen, m John J Poppino of Goshen.  Her first cousin Elizabeth Owen, m Nathaniel Roe of Warwick, whose son, Nathaniel, m Sarah Poppino.[34]  The 1820 census shows a large family: 2 boys under 10,  and 1 16-18; plus 2 girls under 10, and 2 10-16.  There are 2 men 26-45, one of whom would be George, a man over 45 who might be Sarah's father, and a woman 26-45, that would be Sarah.  Sarah later moved to Port Byron where she lived near William T Carr Jr.

               1(12)4.  William T Carr, born ca 1780, a tanner and currier by trade, who died in Port Byron, Cayuga County, at 48. 

                              1(12)41  William T Carr Jr., born in Orange County m Sophia McCraken, who was born in Washington County, NY.   He was a prosperous farmer in Port Byron.

                                             1(12)411  William H Carr, b 6 July 1841 in Port Byron, m 1861 Esther A Somers of Port Byron. He was the leading merchant in Meridian, Cayuga County and also served as Supervisor in Ira in 1876-77, and as town clerk for several years.

                                             1(12)412   Frances Carr, m Rev. L A Dibble of Troy, NY.

 

11   Anthony Carr 

In Oct 1737, Anthony Carr, along with Charles Kennedy and John Thomson, was a witness in a case before the Court of Common Pleas.  One of the judges was James Jackson about whose family I have written a separate paper.  In Oct 1744, Anthony Carr brought suit against Tho Dickey Esq [Thomas Dekay, who was an Associate Justice in Orange County].  In April 1745 DeKay sued Carr.[35]

On 19 Feb 1753, Richard Gardiner, who was interviewing farmers and surveying farms in the area of Warwick on behalf of the East NJ Proprietors claimed by NJ, wrote:  “Anthony Car is settled about a mile from [Nathaniel] Suttons and on north west corss his place hath been settled for 8 years….cleared near 40 acres the land is worth near 50 £ per hundred, he hath neither bought nor leased.”  On his map, Gardiner shows Carr located south east of Mt. Eve, perhaps around present Edenville.[36] 

Anthony Carr, along with David and William, is listed in Jonathan Elmer’s Florida Presbyterian Church account book for 1757.  The 1775 tax lists for Warwick show Anthony Kerr with a very low assessment of 2/9, suggesting a young man; this may be a later Anthony, son of David.

Edenville was originally called Postville having been settled by Major Jacobus Post Jr., b 20 June 1726, grandson of Captain Adrian Post, the immigrant from Holland.  Major Post built the original inn at Postville in 1735.  Family records indicate that three of his children married Carrs.[37]  These were: Eleanor Post married William Carr,  Mary Post married Samuel Carr, and Henry Post married Eleanor Carr.  Since Anthony Carr was the only one of his brothers to live around Postville/Edenville, I am assuming that these Carrs were his children.[38]  If Anthony had been settled for 8 years in 1753, and had been a witness (age at least 14) in 1737,  he would have been born ca 1723 or before.  He probably had children about the same age as those of his purported brothers, William and David.  I am also tentatively assigning him Mary Carr and John Carr with no evidence that they were his children but a probability that they were not children of William.or David.

        111   Mary Carr, b,d ?, m William Armstrong, Sr.,  1722-1805.[39]   

Mary was reportedly the first of Armstrong's three wives, therefore could have married him as early as the 1740s. If so, this would seem to rule her out as a child of William Carr.  She couldn't be a daughter of George Carr because he already had a Mary who married Thomas Bull.  The Carrs, the Armstrongs, and the Poppinos were intimately connected by geography and marriage (see my Armstrong Family).   She might have been the daughter of the first David Kerr (see the Mt. Eve Kerrs) though a much later account listed only one girl, Esther, along with six boys.  She does seem to belong to an earlier generation that the other children assigned to Anthony Carr.  She might have been a sister if the three purported brothers, Anthony, David and William, were not children of George Carrr..  I’m leaving her here for now.  Maybe someday someone will find out where she really belongs.

               112    John Carr

The 1790 census shows a John Carr, perhaps slightly older than the one who was William Carr’s son, below, who lived around Mt. Eve.  I cannot place him in William’s family, nor David’s family since they make no claim for such a person.  So, faut de mieaux, I’ll call him a son of Anthony since he seems to have lived around where Anthony did.  As with Mary above, I consider this just a parking place for now.

The 1790 census shows John with four females and one male under 16.  He would not be the father of William Carr listed below who left a well documented family that included a John, because that William was considerably older than 16 and not included in the census family.  One of his daughters could be Elizabeth, who married John Bradner.  Frank Bradner, the leading genealogist of the Bradner family, says that John Bradner was the son of Colville Bradner Sr. 1719-1799 and Margaret Moore.  Colville left 1/3 of his farm to John who, presumably, was in Orange County around 1800 then moved down to Pittsylvania in Halifax Co, VA.   His wife’s maiden name is not listed in any of the records but they had a son named John Carr Bradner.  Frank Bradner believes she was probably born about 1768-75 and married about 1794, probably at the Florida Presbyterian Church, whose records for that period no longer exist. [40]

113.   David Carr (ca 1757-1799) m1 Mary Edsall?, m2 Jane Edsall

We know there was a David Carr who was the brother of  William Carr Jr. because the latter mentions substituting for him in his pension request and he was an executor of David’s estate.[41] I am assuming that he is not the son of the earlier David Carr who witnessed the will in 1737 (and whom I treat as a son of George Carr) or the David Carr who was listed in Rev. Jonathan Elmer's account book, Florida, 1757, along with William Carr and Anthony Carr.[42]    I believe that David was the one who sold his farm in Florida in 1782, and then went to New Jersey. [43] 

In 1797, a David Carr was a trustee of the Presbyterian Church at Amity.[44]   He is said by some to have been the David Carr/Kerr who fathered the Mt. Eve line.   However, many of the early members of the church were probably formerly members of the Florida Church and were members of the families discussed in this paper.  Amity is very near the New Jersey border and I think it is more likely that the David of  Amity Church was the David Carr of Vernon, Sussex County, who died there in 1799. 

According to one account, his wife was probably Jane Edsall.  The Edsalls were an important family in both Orange County and Sussex County, whom I have discussed in a separate article.  Jane later moved to Bucks Co, PA.[45] 

David’s children were:[46]

                     1131    Edsall Carr (ca 1778->1850), Born in Orange County, in 1799 he married Mary Osburn.[47]  He moved to PA and apparently later m Lois Alger.  “Edsall lived in Monroe and on Towanda Hills until 1821 when he went West.  He generally accompanied the hunting expeditions.  He had children, Asenath (Mrs. Franklin French), Cynthia and John.”[48]  West was Ohio.  “Two brothers, Edsel and Samuel [Absalom] Carr, settled on Barron Run, near where the Newton Hunt now resides.” Edsel Carr was the first shoemaker in the village of Rosedale.[49]  Cynthia m her cousin Absalom, son of Edsall’s brother, about 1830 in Ohio, later moving to Illinois.

           1132    Absalom Carr (22 Feb 1780-11 Apr 1872).  Born in Orange Co, he married Dorcas (Allen?)  He and his wife are listed in the 1800 Census in Monroe, Wysox Twp., Luzerne (now Bradford) Co, PA, next door to Nathaniel Edsall.  In 1801 he went back to NJ to sell the property left him by his father.[50]  The deed was witnessed by Barton Edsall.  He served in the drafted militia of Luzerne Co during the War of 1812.  Jesse and Richard Edsall also served from the Wells area of Luzerne.  Absalom Sr. was a noted hunter and while on one of his hunting expeditions found coal on Barclay Mountain (near Monroe).[51]  About 1817 he moved to Champaign County, OH, then to Madison County and then about 1832-34, moved to Union County, then, following the death of his first wife, he remarried in Dec 1834 to Rebecca Davis, b ca 1806,  and moved on with his second wife to Marion County where they had two more children.[52]  Children by Dorcas:[53]                    

                             11321   Jane Carr, b ca 1803, same place, d 1841-2, m ca 1830 --- Danby, who died < 1820.

                             11322   Isaac Carr, b ca 1805, same place, m ca 1830 Lydia Rogers.

                   11323   Absalom Carr b ca 1808, came place, m ca 1830, Cynthia Carr, a cousin.

                   11324   Dorcas Carr, b ca 1810, same place, d ca 1842 in IL, m 30 Oct 1828, Clark Smith.

                   11325   Martha Carr, b  16 May 1813, same place, d > 1860, m Mar 1829 Thomas Cheney.

                   11326   John Carr, b ca 1832, Jackson Twp, Union Co, OH, m 19 July 1857, Susanna Thompson.

Children by Rebecca Davis:

                   11327   Priscilla Carr, b ca 1838, Big Island Twp, Marion Co, OH, m 18 Mar 1856 Isaac Redding.

                  11328   Daniel A Carr, b 10 May 1840, same place, d 20 Apr 1897, m 4 Jan 1861 Mary Jane Mattix Maddox].

               1133  Julia Carr b in NY 1781/2->1860), m Mr. Cully or Cooley.  In 1860 she was living in Big Island Twp, Marion Co, OH, near her brothers Absalom, Robert, and David E Carr.          

               1134   Abigail Carr, b ca 1784 in Orange County.

               1135   Polly Carr, b ca 1788 in same.

               1136   Robert Carr, b 1789/90, Vernon, m2 Apr 1851, Marion Co, OH  Elizabeth Redding

               1137   John Carr, b ca 1792 in Vernon.   

               1138   Elizabeth Carr, b ca 1794 in Vernon

               1139   David E Carr (13 Apr 1797-28 Nov 1879), m  22 Feb 1826, Mary Cheney, b 2 Aug 1802 in Wysox Typ, Luzerne  Co, PA , d 1 May 1875.             

                        11391  Elizabeth Carr,  b ca 1827

                        11392  David J. Carr, b ca 1831

                        11393  Abigail Carr, b ca 1833

                        11394  Cynthia Carr, b ca 1836

                        11395  Rebecca Carr, b ca 1838

                        11396  Julia Carr, b ca 1842

                        11397  John D. Carr, b ca 1844

114   William Carr Jr. (14 May 1761 – 14 Jan 1844) [54] m Eleanor

For years I and other researchers had been confused about William’s birth and death dates due to two DAR Grave Record volumes[55] which stated that he was buried at Woodlawn Cemetery, Elmira, and died 14 Jan 1814, age 82 yrs, 8 mo, 6 da.  However his and many other tombstones had been moved in 1876 by the city of Elmira from the Baptist Church Cemetery/Wisner Burying Ground, and before they were removed, Ausburn Towner, a local historian, newspaperman and writer, copied the inscriptions and they were published in the local newspapers.  He found that the date of death was 14 Jan 1844.[56] 

William Jr. served as an enlisted man in the Orange County Militia, Fourth Regiment, under Colonel John Hathorn.[57]  Also listed with him are John and Richard Carr.  David and David Carr, Jr. are listed as earning bounty rights with the Fourth Regiment.  From his pension application:

He entered into the service in August 1777 under Captain John Minthorn.  George Vance was just sixteen and Carr went as one of a class in said company for three months.  He marched through Sugar Loaf and Blooming Grove and Monroe to Fort Montgomery on the North River and stayed there about one month.  Governor George Clinton commanded at that time. 

[On May 25, 1775, the Continental Congress passed a resolution to build fortifications on the Hudson River that would prevent the British from passing up it.  Construction began in March 1776.  Located on the north bank of Popolopen Creek at the Hudson River, just north of the present Bear Mountain Bridge, the fortifications included six 32 pound cannons, and a cable across the river.  On the south bank was Fort Clinton; together they had a garrison of about 700 troops. On October 6, 1777, a force of 2,100 Loyalists, Hessians and British regulars attacked the forts with support from cannon fire from British ships.  By the end of the day both forts had fallen; the British burned them and tore down the stone buildings.  The battle was a pyrrhic victory for the British, as the campaign caused delays in sending reinforcements to General Burgoyne at Saratoga.  He surrendered ten days later.]

About a week before Fort Montgomery was taken, Captain Minthorn and Captain John Wood[58] of the New York militia were ordered with their companies to Ramapo now in Rockland County in passing through Smith’s Clove, a distance of about twenty miles.  Colonel Malcom of the Continental Army was lying at Ramapo with part of a regiment and recruiting.  Carr remained in Ramapo until the month of October and for some short time after Fort Montgomery was taken, then his company and the company commanded by Captain Wood were ordered to New Windsor, passing through Blagg’s Cove and what is now called Salisbury to New Windsor under the command of Major Moffat of the militia.  There was a regiment or part of a regiment of Continental troops commanded by Colonel Webb.  After remaining about twenty four hours, Captain Minthorn and Captain Wood with their companies were ordered to Esopus in Ulster County.  Carr marched with his company up the river towards Kingston (Esopus).  When within four or five miles of Kingston they were met by Governor Clinton who had just come from Kingston which had been burned by the enemy.   And they were ordered to Hurley, a few miles west of Kingston where they laid a few days and then were ordered back to New Windsor,. remaining there a short time and then discharged.

His next service was in 1778.  He belonged to the militia in Warwick commanded by Capt. John Sears.  They were divided into classes, each class furnishing a man.   He was ordered to Peenpack on the Ulster frontier under Captain Abraham Westfall.  He went direct with William Johnson, Vincent Wood and others.  Carr remained at Peenpack to guard the frontiers from the incursions of the Indians for nine months at which time his company was dismissed at Dewitt’s Fort [in Deerpark] by Major Dewitt.  He went in the spring and he was dismissed in the winter.  In July 1779 he was hired by a number of persons belonging to his company to go to the frontiers at Peenpack, the Indians having made incursions in that quarter.   He was stationed part of the time at Deckers Fort, part of the time at Jacob Chambers at which guards were kept.  A battle was fought with the Indians at this time about fifteen or twenty miles from where he was stationed on the 22nd of July in which many men and officers were killed.  Col. John Hathorn commanded.  At the end of six weeks, he was discharged and returned home. 

The next service was at Shendaken [25 miles NW of Kingston] in Ulster County about forty miles from Warwick and on the frontiers where the Indians had made frequent incursions.  Colonel Paulding commanded, Major Dewitt of the Militia was also there.  They went from Warwick to Peenpack under Captain Minthorn, then he went on to Shendaken through Mamakating Hollow.  Carr was in the service at that time three months, returning the way he went.  He returned in the fall of the year—and he thought it was