Here is the proper place for some statements made by David Barclay in his paper on Balmville read before the Newburgh Historical Society in 1899. He said that Captain John Evans in 1694 obtained from Colonel Fletcher, then Governor of New York, a patent for a tract of land on the west shore of the Hudson, extending from Stony Point to the south line of New Paltz, and westward to the Shawangunk Mountains, including two-thirds of Orange County and parts of Ulster and Rockland Counties, and estimated to contain 650,000 acres. The only settlement thereon at that time was that of Major Gregorie's heirs and followers at Murderer's Creek in the present towns of Cornwall and New Windsor. The patent was afterward annulled by an act of the assembly, which was confirmed, and the title reverted to the crown. Included in these lands must have been those unjustly transferred to Evans in 1694 by Governor Dongan "under the title of the lordship of the manor of Fletcherdom." Ruttenber says that the Evans patents, with others, were for a long time a disturbing element, and were entirely undefined except in general terms.

Near the close of the 17th century there was active competition in the extinguishment {sic} of the Indian titles and obtaining patents, and several patents were granted. Three of them, to associations, were issued at the following dates: Chesekook, December 30, 1702; Wawayanda, March 5, 1703; Minisink, August 28, 1704.

The Chesekook patent was included in a purchase from five Indian proprietors to Dr. John Bridges, Henry Ten Eyck, Derick Vandenburgh, John Cholwell, Christopher Dean, Lancaster Syms and John Merritt. The Wawayanda patent was a purchase from twelve Indians by the same parties, and five more, namely, Daniel Honan, Philip Rokeby, Benjamin Aske, Peter Mathews and Cornelius Christianse. The Minisink patent was to Mathew Ling, Ebenezer Wilson, Philip French, Derick Vandenburgh, Stephen De Lancey, Philip Rokeby, John Corbett, Daniel Honan, Caleb Cooper, William Sharpass, Robert Milward, Thomas Wearham, Lancaster Syms, John Pearson, Benjamin Aske, Petrus Bayard, John Cholwell, Peter Fanconier, Henry Swift, Hendrick Ten Eyck, Jarvis Marshall, Ann Bridges, George Clark.

This last purchase was of parts of Orange and Ulster Counties, beginning in Ulster at Hunting House, on the northeast of Bashe's land, running thence north to the Fishkill River, thence southerly to the south end of Great Minisink Island, thence south to the land granted John Bridges & Company (Wawayanda), and along that patent northward and along the patent of John Evans to the place of beginning. There is no record that the purchasers received a deed from the Indians, and it was reported, probably correctly, that when Depuis obtained the Minisink lands from the Indians, he got them drunk and never paid them the money agreed upon—treatment which they resented for a long time afterward in hostility to the white settlers.

The Chesekook patent was bounded north by the patent line of Evans, west by Highland Hills, south by Honan and Hawdon's patent, and east by "the lands of the bounds of Haverstraw and the Hudson."

The Wawayanda patent was bounded eastward by "the high hills of the Highlands" and the Evans patent, north by the division line of the counties of Orange and Ulster, westward by "the high hills eastward of Minisink" and south by the division line of New York and New Jersey.

The boundary lines of the three patents were defined in such general terms that for a long time they caused trouble as to titles, and in the final adjustment the territory claimed by the Wawayanda patentees was cut off, while on the west a tract called the Minisink angle, embracing 130,000 acres, was formed.

The English government began investigating the patents of such immense tracts in 1698, and the next year caused the Evans patent to be annulled, after which the territory covered by it was conveyed in small tracts issued at different times up to 1775. These conveyances, exclusive of those outside of the present county, were as follows:

1. Roger and Pinhorne Mompesson, 1000 acres, March 4th, 1709.

2. Ebenezer Wilson and Benjamin Aske, 2000 acres, March 7th, 1709.

3. Rip Van Dam, Adolph Phillipse, David Provost, Jr., Lancaster Symes and Thomas Jones, 3000 acres, March 23, 1709.

4. Gerardus Beekman, Rip Van Dam, Adolph Phillipse, Garrett Brass, Servas Vleerborne, and Daniel Van Vore, 3000 acres, March 24th, 1709.

5. Peter Matthews, William Sharpas, and William Davis, 2000 acres, Sept. 8th, 1709.

6. William Chambers and William Southerland, 1000 acres, Sept. 22, 1709.

7. Samuel Staats, June 5th, 1712.

8. Henry Wileman and Henry Van Bael, 3000 acres, June 30th, 1712.

9. Archibald Kennedy, 1200 acres, Aug. 11th, 1715.

10. Alexander Baird, Abner Van Vlacque, and Hermanus Johnson, 6000 acres, Feb. 28th, 1716.

11. Jeremiah Schuyler, Jacobus Van Courlandt, Frederick Phillipse, William Sharpas, and Isaac Bobbin, 10000 acres, Jan. 22d, 1719.

12. Edward Gatehouse, 1000 acres, Jan. 22, 1719.

13. Cornelius Low, Gerard Schuyler, and John Schuyler, 3292 acres, March 17th, 1719.

14. Thomas Brazier, 2000 acres, March 17th, 1719.

15. Phineas McIntosh, 2000 acres, April 9th, 1719.

16. John Lawrence, 2772 acres, April 9th, 1719.

17. John Haskell, 2000 acres, April 9th, 1719.

18. James Alexander, 2000 acres, April 9th, 1719.

19. Cadwallader Colden, 2000 acres, April 9th, 1719.

20. David Galatian, 1000 acres, June 4th, 1719.

21. Patrick McKnight, 2000 acres, July 7th, 1719.

22. Andrew Johnston, 2000 acres, July 7th, 1719.

23. Melchoir Gilles, 300 acres, Oct. 8th, 1719.

24. German Patent, 2190 acres, Dec. 18th, 1719.

25. John Johnston, Jr., two tracts, Feb. 3d, 1720.

26. Thomas Noxon, 2000 acres, May 25th, 1720.

27. William Huddleston, 2000 acres, June 2d, 1720.

28. Vincent Matthews, 800 acres, June 17th, 1720.

29. Richard Van Dam, 1000 acres, June 30th, 1720.

30. Francis Harrison, Oliver Schuyler, and Allen Jarratt, 5000 acres, July 7th, 1720.

31. Phillip Schuyler, Johannes Lansing, Jr., Henry Wileman, and Jacobus Bruyn, 8000 acres, July 7th, 1720.

32. Patrick Mac Gregorie, two tracts, 660 acres, Aug. 6th, 1720.

33. Mary Ingoldsby and her daughter, Mary Pinhorne, and Mary Pinhorne and Wm. Pinhorne, her children, two tracts, 5360 acres, Aug. 11th, 1720.

34. Jacobus Kipp, John Cruger, Phillip Cortland, David Provost, Oliver Schuyler, and John Schuyler, 7000 acres, Oct. 17th, 1720.

35. Lewis Morris and Vincent Pearce, two tracts, 1000 acres each, July 21st, 1721.

36. John Haskell, 2000 acres, August 24th, 1721.

37. Patrick Hume, 2000 acres, Nov. 29th, 1721.

38. James Henderson, two tracts, one not located, 1600 acres, Feb. 12th, 1722.

39. Jacobus Bruyn and Henry Wileman, 2500 acres, April 25th, 1722.

40. James Smith, 2000 acres, Dec. 15th, 1722.

41. Charles Congreve, 800 acres. May 17th, 1722.

42. Ann Hoaglandt, 2000 acres. May 24th, 1723.

43. Francis Harrison, Mary Tathani, Thomas Brazier, James Graham, and John Haskell, 5600 acres, July 10th, 1714.

44. William Bull and Richard Gerrard, 2600 acres, Aug. 10th, 1723.

45. William Bull and Richard Gerrard, two tracts, 1500 acres, Dec. 14th, 1724.

46. Isaac Bobbin, 600 acres, March 28th, 1726.

47. Edward Blagg and Johannes Hey, two tracts, 2000 acres each, March 28th, 1726.

48. Nathaniel Hazard and Joseph Sackett, two tracts, 4000 acres, Jan. 11th, 1727.

49. William Bradford, 2000 acres, Sept. 1st, 1727.

50. John Spratt and Andries Marschalk, 2000 acres, April 12th, 1728.

51. James Wallace, 2000 acres, March 2d, 1731.

52. Gabriel and William Ludlow, six tracts, 4000 acres, Oct. 18th, 1731.

53. Thomas Smith, 1000 acres. May 8th,