"-^^0* »* \5 < ^o Vo^^ »"%^- %/ ^*'^^'. Vo^^ »V^^» ^^o/ / V^*/ Vt-^>\/ -o^^'^^Y ^'- ^^6^ .^^^' s ♦ • » ''^'^ .^^ - ^0' ; '^.-^ m VI • o > ^/^ f^- ^:v7Z:^v, A SKETCH OF FRAUNCES. TAVERN AND THOSE CONNECTED WITH ITS HISTORY SONS OF THE REVOLUTION BROAD AND PEARL STREETS NEW YORK CITY A SKETCH OF FRAUNCES TAVERN and those connected with its history BY HENRY RUSSELL DROWNE / Secretary of the Sons of the Revolution in the State of New York "For the life- thread of its site funs brightly back almost to the be- ginnings of the city, and the experience of its walls has struck almost every tone in the wide gamut of the city's social, commercial, civic and political career." Mrs. M. F. Pierce. "The ancient and famous inn where the Commander-in-Chief tenderly parted with his officers." George Wh,liam Curtis. FRAUNCES TAVERN NEW YORK 1919 d. /. Copyright 1919 by Henry RussKi^c Drowne 9-^33? ■CU514270 ■■-' 'J-' ^7 FRAUNCES TAVERN Broad & Pearl Streets New York City Our story starts at a very early period in the history of this great city, for historians tell us that shortly after Hudson returned to Holland with the"Half Moon/' five trading vessels were sent over here, among them the "Tiger," commanded by Captain Block, The "Tiger" caught fire and was completely destroyed in 1613, and a new ship was finished and launched the next spring (1614) called the "Onrest" (Restless), which was built on the site of what is now Fraunces Tavern. This was the first ship built here, and the third on the American Continent. The plot of ground upon which this building stands was diagonally I across the way from the site of the original "Stadt Huys" of New Amster- dam and was a water lot granted to Stephanus Van Courtlandt by the Mayor and Alderman of the City of New York, Nicholas Bayard, Mayor, on November 19, 1686 (Liber A of Water Grants, Page 22-23). It is described as bounded westerly by Prince's Graft Street (now Broad) and northerly by Strand Street (later Dock, Queen and lastly Pearl), originally the line of the strand at high water. On every 25th of March the rent was to be one peppercorn, if same be legally demanded. This was the twelfth grant, dated November 19, 1686, made by the Corporation under the power conferred by the Dongan Charter of April 27, 1686. Stephanus Van Courtlandt is recorded as having been, at the age of thirty-four, the third Mayor of the City in 1677, and again in 1686 and 1687, and was the first Mayor who had been born in America; the date of his birth being May 7, 1634. The family came from Keurtlandt (Cort- landt) in Holland, and they adopted van (from) Cortlandt as a stu'name. His father was Olof Stevensen Van Courtlandt, who bought the op- posite corner of Broad and Pearl Streets as early as February 24, 1665, which plot belonged to the family until 1785. He was made Commissary of the Customs Office of the Dutch West India Company in 1639 and had charge of the public stores until 1648. He then became a merchant, later was one of the richest men in the community, and in 1642 married Annetje Loockermans. In 1654 ^^ was appointed Burgomaster of New Amsterdam, remained in office almost continuously until 1664, when the colony was surrendered to the British. He died in 1687. The origin of the name Stone Street is said to be from the fact that he established his home and had a large brewery in Brouwer Street, where the dust raised by his great wagons so vexed his good wife that she persuaded him to lay a stone pavement before their property. This ex- cited so much curiosity and comment that it was soon called "Stone Street," which name it still bears. Stephanus Van Cortlandt married Gertruyd, daughter of Philip Pieterse Schuyler, in 1671 and died in 1701. They lived in New York until his estates were erected into a manor by patent from William III, King of England, on June 17, 1697, after which time he built the first Cortlandt Manor house on the shore of Croton Bay. This manor was held by a feudal tenure, for which the rent of forty shillings (about $10) was paid annually to the crown on the feast day of the Annunciation. During the Revolution the proprietors of Van Cortlandt Manor were Pierre, grandson of StevanuS; and his son, Philip Van Cortlandt. They espoused the Amer- ican Cause and were among the staunchest allies of Washington, despite the fact that the Phillipses and younger branches of the Van Cortlandt family were Tories. New York was, about 1680, a city of some three thousand inhabitants and comprised some three hundred and fifty houses. Pearl Street was first known as "The Strand" and faced the river, as indicated by the name. On April 11, 1700, Colonel Stephanus Van Cortlandt gave the lot on which Fraunces Tavern now stands to the husband of his daughter Anne, who had married in 1699 Etienne (or Stephen) de Lancey, a merchant (it is recorded in Liber 23 New York Deeds, page 147), and then described as being at the corner of Broad and Dock Streets. Etienne de Lancey, a French Huguenot, born in Caen, Normandy, October 24, 1662, came to this country in consequence of the repeal of the "Edict of Nantes." It is said that his mother gave him her jewels, which he took to England and sold for three hundred pounds. With this little fortune he came to New York in 1686, and started in business as a merchant. He was a member of the Assembly for some twenty-six years and at the time of his death, in 1 741, was buried in Trinity Churchyard. The house was built by him in 17 19, and was then one of the finest residences in the city, and during his occupancy historians say no hostess was more hospitable, gracious or popular than Mrs. Stephen de Lancey — the year is confirmed by the Minutes of the Common Council of New York under date of April 14, 17 19, as, "Mr, de Lancey applies for a small strip of land to make his lot more regular in shape, as he is now going to build a large brick house, etc.," — and was granted three and a half feet at one corner to straighten the lot and for the better regulating of said street and building. Just beyond on the water front were the two great sea basins which had been enclosed for the better loading and unloading of vessels and near by was the Royal Exchange, and later the Exchange Coffee House. It is not known when Stephen de Lancey ceased to use the house as a residence, but it is said that he built a new house on Broadway about 1730* and possibly soon after that it was used for public purposes, for in 1737 Henry Holt, a dancing master, announced that a ball would be given in Mr. de Lancey's house. Pantomine entertainments were given in Holt's Long Room in 1739, called "The Adventures of Harlequin and Scaramouch or the Spaniard Trick'd," to which was added "An Optick representing several of the most noted cities and remarkable places in Europe, America, etc.," for which tickets were sold at five shillings each. The property was inherited by James de Lancey, Chief Justice, lyieu- tenant Governor and Acting Governor of New York, who died in 1760, and his brother, Oliver de Lancey, who, being a royalist, removed to England at the close of the Revolution and died there in exile. Susannah, the daughter of Stephen de Lancey, was married to Sir Peter Warren, a Knight of the Bath, Vice Admiral of the Fleet and later Member of Parliament, whose epitaph is to be found in Westminster Abbey, London. While a captain in charge of a squadron at the Leeward Islands, he took some twenty-four prizes in less than four months. The captured ships were sent to New York and Messieurs Stephen de Lancey & Co. became his agents for the sale of his French and Spanish loot. They are thought to have been married in the de Lancey Mansion, and later set- tled in Greenwich Village, where they owned a tract of three hundred acres along the Hudson, which was laid out as an English park and where they made their home until he was elected to Parliament some years later. Warren, Abington, Fitzroy, and Skinner Streets all derived their names from this branch of the family. Following the occupancy by Henry Holt, the property was leased to Colonel Joseph Robinson, who was born in 1683 and came to New York shortly after 1700. He married, before 17 10, Mary, daughter of Leonard Huggens De Kleyn (her sister Elizabeth married Anthony * This was just north of Trinity Church, became the "Province Arms" in 1754 and was the Cape's Tavern referred to at the close of the Revolution at which the French Ambassador was entertained. Lispenard). An obituary notice of Colonel Robinson, who died March i6, 1759, appeared in"TheNew York Mercury," which mentioned him as a gentleman of unblemished reputation, a merchant, and a warden of Trinity Church, from 1724 to 1756. The house was offered for sale, by advertisement in "The New York Mercury," on January 22, 1759, at public vendue at the Merchants Coffee House and was quoted as "the corner being near the Long Bridge,* wherein Colonel Robinson now lives," and while no transfer is recorded, it is thought to have been purchased by de Lancey, Robinson & Company, the firm consisting of Oliver de Lancey, Beverley Robinson and James Parker, for it was soon after occupied by them as a store and warehouse ; their advertisement appears in "The Mercury" of May 28, 1759, as hav- ing moved into Colonel Robinson's late dwelling, being the corner house next to the Royal Exchange,** where they sold all sorts of European and East India goods, army and ship stores, etc., and was doubtless used by them until their partnership expired in December, 1762. Col. Beverley Robinson was born in Virginia in 1723, served under Wolfe at Quebec, was prominent in New York as a loyalist during the Revolution, and died in Thornbury, England, in 1792. He married Susannah Phillipse, of Yonkers, daughter of Frederick Phillipse, sister of Mary Phillipse, whom Washington admired. Mary was married in 1758 to Captain Roger Morris, who, being a royalist, the house he built for her was confiscated and occupied by Washington as his headquarters in September, 1776. This is the Roger Morris House, now called "Washington's Headquarters," more commonly known as the Jumel Mansion. It may be interesting to mention that the celebrated Madam Jumel was originally Betts Bowen, of Providence, R. I., who, as a young girl, was bound out from the poor- house there, as was customary in those days, to the writer's great-great- grandfather, Oliver Carpenter, from whose home she later ran away and started on her career. * The bridge formerly crossed the canal in Broad Street from near the present location of Stone and Bridge Streets. ** This building, in its day one of the most imposing in the city, was also known as the Merchant Exchange. It was a brick structure on arches erected in 1752 on the site of the old Market House, and stood in the middle of Broad Street, near Water. In the large room on second floor the first plays that New York ever saw were produced ; the Chamber of Commerce used it from 1770 to 1795, when the Tammany Society occupied it as a Museum until it was finally torn down in 1799. In 1762 the property was sold by de Lancey, Robinson & Company for for two thousand pounds (deed dated January 15, 1762) to Samuel Fratmces a man of French extraction from the West Indies, Fraunces, who had been an innkeeper in New York since 1755, took possession early in 1763, when he opened the place, calling it the "Queen's Head Tavern." His advertisement first appears in "The New York Gazette" of April 4. 1763. It was named after Queen Charlotte, the young wife of George III of England, who, as a girl of seventeen, was promoted to the honor of being Queen of England in consequence of an essay which she had written ad- dressed as a letter to Frederick the Great, King of Prussia, on "The Hor- rors of War." This touched the heart of George III and she became his wife the year before Fraunces took possession. The property has ever since been a Tavern, covering a period of one hundred and fifty-six years, and being a large house, was very well suited for the purpose of giving public entertainments as its "Long Room" could hardly be surpassed. It was patronized by the best people in New York and proverbial for its good Madeira. The year 1765 finds it leased by Fraunces to John Jones, and in 1766 to Bolton and Sigell, whose advertisement can be found in Holt's "New York Journal" of January 15, 1767. Fraunces at that time continued his business at the "Vauxhall Gardens," which was located on the Trinity Church farm at the corner of Greenwich and Warren streets, overlooking the Hudson River, comprising twenty-seven and a half lots of ground, and was later known as Mount Pleasant. This establishment he ran from 1765 until 1774, and it was there that "for four shillings magnificent wax figures were exhibited," etc. As early as March, 1764, a call was issued asking the merchants of the city, who had been gradually becoming united in protests against gov- ernmental action, to meet at the "Queen's Head Tavern," as well as on sub- sequent occasions; and on April 5, 1768, when the tavern was kept by Bolton & Sigell, the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York was founded in the "Long Room," consisting of twenty members with John Cruger as President, who were doubtless inspired with the idea of a commercial union for the protection and promotion of their business interests. The organization continued to meet there until it secured ^ room of its own in February, 1769, at the Royal Exchange. 6 Meetings were also held there by the New York Merchants on April 25, 1768, to consider the Non Importation Agreement, and again on March 13. 1769, by the subscribers to the agreement, when a committee was appointed to inquire into and inspect all European importations. Richard Bolton was the sole proprietor after February 5, 1770, his succession to the business being announced in Holt's "New York Journal" of February 8, and during his occupancy the "Long Room" was the favorite place for dancing parties, concerts and charitable entertainments. Fraunces again took possession of his property in May, 1770, and "The New York Society," an organization for the discussion of financial and economic subjects, which had met there when he was landlord in 1765, again resumed its meetings in the "Long Room." It was also opened for "the Polite and Rational Amusement of Philosophical Lectures, etc.," for which tickets were sold. On April 23, 1771, the occasion being Saint George's Day, an elegant entertainment was given on the premises to over one hundred and twenty persons. John Tabor Kempe, his Majesty's Attorney General, presided, the guests of honor being the Earl of Dunmore, General Gage and the gentlemen of the Council. One of the best organizations that then met at the Tavern every Satur- day evening was "The Social Club," a full list of the members of which has been preserved and is now in the possession of the New York His- torical Society, and shows many prominent citizens on the roll. They continued to meet until December, 1775, when, its membership con- sisting of both loyaHsts and patriots, it naturally came to an end. In 1775 Samuel Fraunces offered the "Queen's Head" for sale, but did not succeed, and continued as landlord until the British Army entered the city. He was a tavern keeper without a peer and when the time came to decide, struck for Liberty and Independence, abandoned his property and stuck to the colors, like a true patriot, and went out in 1776, presuma- bly with General Putnam's division. He appeared later, enlisted as a Private in Colonel Malcolm's First Regiment of New York State Troops in Continental service 1 780-1 781. It would seem that he may have been in New York some portion of the time during the British occupation, for the reason that in consequence of his generous advances and kindness to American prisoners and secret services he received a vote of thanks in 7 July, 1782, and £200 as a gratuity from Congress. His daughter Phoebe was Washington's housekeeper in the Mortier House on Richmond Hill, occupied by the Commander-in-Chief as Headquarters, in June, 1776, and it was she who revealed the plot to assassinate Generals Washington and Putnam, which led to the apprehension of her lover, an Irishman named Thomas Hickey, a British deserter, then a member of Washing- ton's bodyguard, in consequence of which he was promptly executed on June 28, 1776.* In this connection it may be of interest to listen to two letters written to his home in Providence, R. I., by the writer's great-grandfather, Dr. Solomon Drowne, a vSurgeon of the Revolution, who was then stationed in the General Hospital on Chambers Street in this city. This brings us in close touch with the incidents of the day and the sentiments of the time : "New York, June 24, 1776. Dear Sister Sally: I cannot let this opportunity slip without scribbling you a few lines, tho' I have but little time to do it in. It is now past ten; Mr. D. Smith told me he should set away home tomorrow or next day; and tomorrow morning I expect to go to Elizabeth Town, on some business of my own, and to serve my friend, Captain Timothy Hughs, who expects to set out for Canada in a day or two. He and I are now in possession of Mr. Gano's house, who has gone into ye country, to see Mrs. Gano, etc. Not one of ye family is in ye city. A most infernal plot has lately been discovered here, which, had it been put into execution, would have made America tremble, and been as fatal a stroke to us, this Country, as gun powder treason would to England, had it succeeded. The hellish conspirators were a number of Tories (the Mayor of ye City among them) and three of General Washington's Life Guards. The plan was to kill Generals Washington and Putnam, and as many other Commanding Officers as possible. I should have men- * Orderly Book, Friday, June 28, at New York. "The unhappy fate of Thomas Hickey executed this day for Mutiny, Sedition and Treachery: the General hopes will be a warning to every soldier in the Army to avoid those crimes and all others, so disgraceful to the character of the soldier and pernicious to his country, whose pay he receives and bread he eats." Thomas Hickey, one of Washington's Guard, was tried by court-martial and sentenced to death, the plot being traced to Governor Tryon, Mayor David Matthews having been the principal agent. tioned at first, — ^to set the city on fire in nine several places. To spike up the cannon. Then to give a signal to the Asia and ships expected; — and blow up the Magazine. Thej'^ had a large body of men, which were to attack ours amidst their confusion. The whole was discovered (as I am informed) by a Sergeant of ye Guards, whom they wanted to take into ye plot, and who, having got what he could from them, discovered all to the General. — The Drummer of ye Guards was to have stabbed ye General. The pretty fellows are in safe custody, and I hope I shall be able to give you a better account of them in my next. This morning a large Guard went to take two hundred Tories, who are under arms not very far from this City. I wish you would excuse me to Mr. J. Dabney for not writing to him. I intended to, and am sorry I have not time. I enquired at several shops for the buttons he desired me to^et him; but could find none. My duty to Dad, and Mama, Love to Sister Aplin, Billy, etc. I shall be very glad of a letter from each of you ; for I have not received one since I have been here. Yours, SoivOMON." The second letter is as follows: "N. York General Hospital, July 13, 1776. Dear Billy: I received yours by Mr. Arnold some time since, and about a week after, that by Mr. Green, tho' of an earlier date than ye other. — I was glad to hear all friends were well, both in town and country. It is now almost midnight, and but a little while since I returned to my chamber from carrying medicine to one of ye wards I have ye care of, — and applying a poultice to a man's foot, over which a gun carriage run yesterday, in th^ battle of ye ships, for a further account of which see Sally's letter. So you may judge how much time I have to write. I saw Mr. Glover here some time ago, who told me you was in Newport when he was there. I hope little Amy is well. You requested to know upon what terms I en- tered ye Hospital. I have as good a birth as I desired. Our pay is twenty dollars pr. month and 2 rations a day. We expect it will be raised soon in consequence of a petition to Congress for ye purpose. 9 I heartily congratulate you, my dear Brother, on being an inhabitant of ye Free and Independent States of America. I herewith send you a Gazette, which contains ye Declaration; and also an extract of a letter from Phila- delphia, which, if you have not had yet, should be glad you would show Tommy Russell. The Declaration was read, agreeable to general Orders, at ye head of ye Brigade, etc., this week; and loud Huzzas expressed the approbation of ye Freeborn Bands. The night following, the famous, gilded equestrian Statute of ye British King, in this city, was levelled with ye dust; his head taken off, and next morning, in a wheel barrow carried to His Excellency's Quarters, I was told. There is a large quan- tity of lead about it, which is to be run into bullets to destroy his Myrmidons. I suppose you have l\eard of ye execution of one of the General's Guards, concerned in ye hellish plot, discovered here some time past. There was a vast concourse of people to see ye poor fellow hanged. Sally wrote me that you had listed : should be glad if you would explain that matter in your next. 14th. I heard this evening, that Lord Howe had sent a Flag, with a letter directed to George Washington, Esq., and that it was returned un- opened because he gave him not his proper title; tho' ye Captain that brought it said its contents were of the utmost importance, and that Ld. Howe was very sorry he had not arrived a few days sooner, (Perhaps before Independence was declared; for 'tis said he is invested with un- limited power.) This may learn him a little manners, well; — two ships & 3 tenders up N. River; — Communication with Canada by water cut off: Something important will turn up soon. Mr. Arnold has not returned from Philadelphia yet; perhaps I may write by him. I am very tired, and it is past midnight. Write often to your Friend & Brother, Solomon. Give my love to friend Harry. I wish I had time to write to him. Remember me to ye lads." It is interesting to know that this is the only account of what was done with the head of the Statue of King George III, which was located on the present Bowling Green; the remainder was taken to the Wolcott place at 10 Litchfield, Connecticut, and there nearly all melted into bullets. Three pieces, however, of this statue, as well as the slab on which it stood, have been preserved, and can be seen in the museum of the New York His- torical Society in this City, and while all the pictures representing the scene of its destruction show the head of the British King as wearing a crown, it has lately been developed that the Statue of George III was modelled after that of the Emperor Marcus Aurelius in Rome, and that he was dressed in a toga, wearing a wreath on his head. Fraunces, after serving in the army, had gone back to New York on the news of the cessation of hostilities and preliminary treaty of peace, April i9» 1783, to reclaim his abandoned property. On some two or three oc- casions in 1 783, he came up from the city to provide for the American officers and their British guests, who met to arrange matters relative to the withdrawal of British troops in the vicinity of New York. In May, 1783, when General Washington and Sir Guy Carleton met near Tappan, a Philadelphia newspaper comments on the expense of the entertainment as amounting to the modest sum of five hundred pounds.* On the 4th of May, 1783, General Washington, Governor Clinton, General Scott, Lieutenant Colonels Trumbull, Cobb, Humphreys and Varick, after having visited General Knox, then in command at West Point, were furnished on their arrival at Tappan, with a repast provided by Fraunces. On the 6th of May also, the meeting quoted as taking place at Orangetown about 4 p.m. — General Washington, Governor Clinton, Egbert Benson, John M. Scott and Jona. Trumbull, Jr., being present "when a most sumptuous dinner was served to about thirty who ate and drank in the Peace and good fellowship, without drinking any toasts." Following this a subsequent conference and dinner was given by the English on board the "Perseverance," when a salute of seventeen guns was fired on the arrival and departure of the party. "This was the first complimentary salute fired by Great Britain in honor of an officer of the United States and virtually the first salute to the nation." Samuel Fraunces, in 1789, left his Jersey farm, to which he had re- * This probably alludes to the depreciated paper money of the period. The writer has two bills to Dr. Solomon Drowne, dated June 27, 1780. The amount of one is stated as 600 paper dollars or eight silver dollars, and it is receipted as paid in full by 300 paper dollars and four hard dollars, and the other reads for 30 pounds or 2 dol- lars in silver. II tired in 1785 when he sold the Tavern and became steward to President Washington at what was then the "White House" in New York, known as the Franklin Mansion located at No. 3 Cherry Street, near the east side of one of the Brooklyn Bridge piers in the neighborhood of the present Franklin Square. He also at this time opened a new tavern at No. 40 Cortlandt Street which was managed by his wife, where various enter- tainments were held until November, 1790, after which he removed to business for a brief period to a house in Broad Street, near the Exchange which was his last location in New York. One day he is said to have placed before the President a fine shad from the first catch of the season. The latter inquired the price. "Three dollars," replied the steward. "Take it away!" returned Washington scandalized; "it shall never be said that the President indulges in luxuries so expensive as this." Yet, on the other hand, Steward Fraunces kept the table well supplied with the popular beverages of the day, which were con- sidered permissible even though an "early" shad was not. Fraunces continued as Washington's vSteward to Philadelphia, when Congress reassembled there on the first Monday in December, 1790, and remained so until 1794 or later, as shown by a receipt signed by him which is now on exhibition at the Tavern. All this would seem to indicate that Wash- ington held him in high esteem, else why would he not, like others tem- porarily residing in New York, have brought his head servants from his Virginia mansion? The fact that Fraunces was so distinguished might seem to corroborate the story of Pheobe Fraunces' loyalty in 1776 and the General's gratitude. Fraunces had three daughters and a son, and some of his descendants are buried in Trinity Church Yard. Several incidents connected the Tavern with the Revolution, for on April 22, 1774, the Sons of Liberty and the Vigilance Committee met there and the result of the meeting was that an attack was made upon the ship "London," commanded by Captain Chambers, which had just arrived at the East India Company's wharf nearby and the tea chests in the cargo broken open and contents thrown overboard, for which "tea party" New York has as yet received little credit. As the troubles between king and colonies became more and more serious and demonstrative, Fraunces Tavern was the headquarters of opposition to the crown, and a favorite meeting place of the active patriots of those days. On May 14, 1774, in consequence of the news from England that the Port of Boston was to be closed on June first, a meeting of merchants assembled there to consider the question of uniting with the other colonies in a call for a Congress of the Colonies. The attendance proved so great that an adjournment was made to the Merchants Coffee House, where a Committee of Correspondence consisting of fifty merchants was appointed, who on May 23 issued the famous letter in which the idea of a union of the Colonies was first expressed, which resulted in the First Continental Congress. On August 25, 1774, the Massachusetts delegates to the Continental Congress were entertained by the New York delegates in the Chamber of the Royal Exchange, which was followed by a banquet in the "Long Room" at Fraunces Tavern. This is referred to in the Diary of John Adams as "the most splendid dinner I ever saw; a profusion of rich dishes, etc." On May 6, 1775, John Adams and the Massachusetts delegates to the Second Continental Congress stopped there over night on their way to Philadelphia, when they were received with the greatest enthusiasm and attention. On August 23, 1775, the building was struck by a shot from the British man of war, "Asia," and Philip Freneau made the occasion memorable in these lines: "Scarce a broadside was ended 'till another began again — • By Jove! it was nothing but Fire away Flannagan! Some thought him saluting his Sally's and Nancy's Till he drove a round shot through the roof of Sam Francis." The Third Provincial Congress met here from May 18 to June 30, 1776, and the following bill is in State Records as paid for an entertain- ment: "The Honorable Provincial Congress, Dr., to Samuel Fraunces* — New York. * This is the first record, the writer finds of his name being spelled Fraunces, piior to this it had appeared as Francis. 1 4th June, 1776. To an Entertainment £45 . o .0 To 6 Dozn & 6 Bottles of Madeira 23 . 8 .0 To 2 " &6 " Port 9.0.0 To Porter 23/ — • Cyder 37/ Spruce 4/6 4- 9-6 To Sangary 66/ — To do. 18/— Punch 12/ 4.16.0 To Madeira 12/ — Bitters 3/ — 0.15.0 To Lights 8/ — Wine Glasses broken 16/ 1.4.6 To 4 Wine Decanters 8/ — 2 Water Decanters 14/0 i . 2.0 To a Chainie Pudding Dish 12/ — Tumblers 14/ — . 1.6.0 £91 . 1 .0 (This accoant was audited and paid, June 25, 1776,)" It seems very probable that this bill is for the "elegant entertainment" writers refer to as June 18, 1776, which was given to General Washington and his suite, the general and stafif officers, and the commanding ofl&cers of the different regiments in and near the city by the Provincial Con- gress. The first toast on this occasion was Congress, the second The American Army, the third The American Navy, etc., although Inde- pendence had not yet been declared. In July, 1776, this being a large mansion, all the window sash leads (weights) were taken from the Tavern, lead being one of the most difficult of warlike stores to procure, and about one hundred tons were gathered in the city, which proved invaluable at Forts Montgomery and Clinton later. No doubt, during the British occupation, it was the scene of many convivial gatherings and entertainments given by the British Troops and that some of their ofl&cers had quarters there. One writer alludes to it as the "Tavern near the Ferry, at which, for seven years, the Oflficers of the British Army, including poor John Andre, had Gloried and drunk deep." On November 25, 1783, the first celebration of Evacuation Day took place, the occasion being a public dinner given by Governor Clinton to General Washington, the Commander-in-Chief and the General Oflficers. Fraunces was then again in possession of the Tavern and without doubt the old sign of the "Queens Head" bearing the portrait of Queen Char- lotte, was taken down and consigned to the rubbish heap in some neigh- H boring alley, and the place has since been known as Fraunces Tavern. Writers say Washington made his headquarters there and that the build- ing was illuminated in the evening. On this occasion the memorable thir- teen toasts were drunk, the first being to "The United States of America" and the last" May the Remembrance of THIS DAY be a Lesson to Princes;" and "The New York Gazette" of November 26, 1783, gives a full account of the parade and ceremonies of the day before and the public dinner given to the Commander-in-Chief at Fraunces Tavern in the evening. The bill as follows: "November 25, 1783 His Excellency, Governor Clinton to Sam'l. Fraunces, Dr. To an Entertainment £30. . 4. .0 To 75 Bottles of Madeira at 8/ To 18 " of Claret at 10/ To 16 " of Port at 6/ To 24 " of Spruce at 1/ To 24 " of Porter at 3/ To Lights 60/ Tea and Coffee 64/ To Brokeg To Punch The above bill is for an Entertainment of taking Possession of the City when the British evacuated the Southern District. Reed, the Contents in full 2d Feby., 1784. SamIv. Fraunces" There is another bill for a dinner at Cape's Tavern on Broadway, December 2, 1783, which was given by Governor Clinton in honor of the French Ambassador, the Chevalier de la Luzerne, who had just arrived from Philadelphia. General Washington, the principal officers of the Army and State, and many guests were present. This states the exact number of diners as 120 and figm-ing the existing bill for good spirits, it looks as if something considerably over four quarts apiece was consumed. The bill winds up with liberal charges for broken glasses, decanters and crockery, and a closing item of "coffee for eight gentlemen" 15 9- 4- .16.. I. . 4.. 3- .12. . 6. . 4.. 2. . 2. . 10. . ID. . £97. .12. . It has been suggested that these eight must have been the survivors of the feast, the rest being under the table. In the evening there was a grand display of fireworks at the Bowling Green and the whole city was illuminated. The writer has felt some remorse at digging these old bills out of State archives, for fear they might fall into the hands of some one who might hold our patriotic ancestors up as terrible examples and one can imagine his picturing a long line of wheelbarrows in lieu of taxi cabs, drawn up in front of the Tavern the morning after. Unfortunately, drinking was quite prevalent in these olden times and of the "Good Old Madeira" 'tis said "Not drunk is he who from the floor Can rise again and still drink more But drunk is he who prostrate lies Without the power to drink or rise." On December 4, 1783, the memorable scene occurred in Fraunces Tavern of Washington's Farewell to his Officers. Variouswriters estimate that some forty-four of our greatest military leaders were present, including Generals Greene, Knox, Wayne, Steuben, McDougall, vSchuyler, Lincoln, Gates, Putnam, Lee, Stark, Kosciuszko, Moultrie, Hamilton and Colonel Hum- phreys, Governor Clinton, Major Fish, Charles Carroll, Colonel Tallmadge and others, and for a very interesting account of this scene we are indebted to Colonel Tallmadge, whose original diary the Sons of the Revolution now own. The occasion, however, is also described as follows by the celebrated English writer Thackeray: "The last soldier had quitted the soil of the Republic, and the Com- mander-in-Chief proposed to leave New York for Annapolis, where Con- gress was sitting, and there resign his commission. About noon on the 4th day of December, a barge was in waiting at Whitehall Ferry to convey him across the Hudson. The chiefs of the Army assembled at a tavern near the ferry, and there the General joined them. "Seldom as he showed his emotion outwardly, on this day he could not disguise it. He filled a glass of wine and said, 'I bid you farewell with a heart full of love and gratitude and wish your latter days may be as prosperous and happy as those past have been glorious and honorable.' 16 Then he drank to them. 'I cannot come to each of you to take my leave,' he said, 'but shall be obliged if each of you will come and shake me by the hand.' WASHINGTON'S FAREWELL TO HIS OFFICERS ' Long Room — Fraunces Tavern — December 4, 1783 "General Knox, who was nearest, came forward, and the Chief, with tears in his eyes embraced him. The others came one by one to him, and took their leave without a word. A line of infantry was formed from the Tavern to the Ferry, and the General, with his officers following him, walked silently to the water. He stood up in the barge, taking off his hat and waving a farewell. And his comrades remained bareheaded on the shore until their leader's boat was out of view." Years afterward, one of the officers present, wrote as follows: "Happy as was the occasion, prayed for as it had been by him and all the patriots^ that we might at last feel that there was no enemy left in America, the triumph brought with it its sorrows, and I could hardly speak when 1 turned from taking my last look at him. It was extremely affecting, 17 and I do not think there were ever so manybroken hearts in New York as there were that night." Washington did not again return to New York until he came to be inaugurated as First President of the United States on April 6, 1789. In 1785 Fraunces, now having owned the Tavern for some twenty- three years, sold it for nineteen hundred and fifty pounds to George Powers, a butcher of Brooklyn, and retired to country life in New Jersey. The deed, dated April 23, states, "Samuel Fraunces, late of the City of New York, Innkeeper, but at present of the County of Monmouth, New Jersey, farmer, and Elizabeth, his wife, sell," etc.; after which time it passed through several hands. * It was then sold to Thomas Gardiner, June 22, 1801, for $7,500, whose granddaughter married the Count de Dion, and it was from her children, living in France, it was purchased by the Sons of the Revolution in 1904. The original deeds of the de Lanceys, Samuel Fraunces and his wife Elizabeth, and other later owners, are now on exhibition in one of the cases in the museum ; also photographs of early New York records, news- papers, etc., which are interesting as confirming the early history of the Tavern. The Long Room was frequently used for balls, lectures, etc., and as a meeting place for the St. Andrew's Society, the New York Society of the Cincinnati, the Governors of the New York Hospital, the Society of Arts and Agriculture, General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen; in fact, the Tavern appears to have taken the place at that period of the modern Delmonico's, and to have been one of the prominent places of entertainment in the city. In May, 1789, John Francis, who is supposed to have been the son of Saml. Fraunces, removed, from the "True Amer- ican" at No. 3 Great Dock, now Pearl St., which he had opened in August, 1785, to the Tavern, On February 2, 1790, the Supreme Court of the United States was opened in the City of New York, and in the evening "the Grand Jury of the United States for the District" gave a very elegant entertainment in honor of the Court at the Tavern, which was attended by national and city dignitaries, member of Congress, gentleman of the bar and leading * Bought by Dr. Nicholas Romayne April 30, 1795, for £2,200 (then equivalent to $5,500). Bought by John S. Moore, June 24, 1800. 18 citizens. The guests were John Jay of New York, Chief Justice, with Associate Justices WilHam Gushing of Massachusetts, James Wilson of Pennsylvania, Robert Harrison of Maryland, and John Blair of Virginia, and John Rutledge of South Carolina, also Edmond Randolph of Vir- ginia, Attorney General of the United States. On July 28, 1802, when Michael Little kept the Tavern, the two friends of De Witt Clinton and Col. John Swartwout met there to make arrange- ments for the duel which took place in Hoboken, N. J., on Saturday, July 31st. The Gentlemen of the Bar of the City of New York held a meeting there on February 11, 1802. On July 4, 1804, when kept by David Rose, the New York State Society of the Cincinnati, after their meeting at Federal Hall, held their annual banquet there, and at about this time it became known for a brief period as the Washington Hotel. On the occasion of the thirtieth anniversary of the Evacuation of the City of New York on November 25, 1813, when the Tavern was kept by Rudolphus Kent, the Veteran Corps of Artillery celebrated the occasion by having a dinner there, and also on the following year. Writer has lately learned that the New York Yacht Club was founded there in 1844, but the particular event that took place there that is of special interest to our Society was the assemblage called together by the late John Austin Stevens to celebrate the one hundredth anniversary of Washington's farewell. This occasion was on December 4, 1883, and there are still .several members of the Society who were present on that night. A very enjoyable and memorable evening was passed which resulted in the formal organization in the "Long Room" of the Society of the Sons of the Revolution, which had its inception at a meeting held at the New York Historical Society on February 22, 1876. A number of interesting souvenirs of this occasion can now be seen in the museum. In 1887, a Committee composed of James Mortimer Montgomery, John Clarkson Jay and George C. Genet, were appointed to try and ar- range for the acquisition of the Tavern, but it was found impossible to do so at that time. In 1904 Fraunces Tavern was purchased by the Sons of the Revolu- tion and the transfer gf the property is duly recorded in the Registrar's 19 office under the date of July 30th, and in the years 1906 and 1907 the restoration of the building was undertaken. To our late President, Frederick Samuel Tallmadge, the Society is everlastingly indebted for the funds that enabled them to undertake and complete this splendid work. (Commemorated by bronze tablet on the building.) On December 4, 1907, the 124th anniversary of Washington's Farewell was commemorated by the formal occupation and dedication of the building by the Sons of the Revolution. This took place with imposing ceremonies and was followed by a parade to the Chamber of Commerce, where addresses were made and a collation was served. RESTORATION. This building, the scene of Washington's farewell to his Officers, is one of our National shrines. No worthier object could have been proposed to a patriotic Society like the Sons of the Revolution, than to preserve and restore it to the original state in which the "great farewell" took place. No known view of the Tavern has been found to exist earlier than that which appeared in Valentine's Manual of the Common Council of New York for the year 1854, where, in addition to the picture I want to call your attention to the following extract from the article written by William J. Davis: "The City of New York has made many futile attempts to erect to the memory of Washington a suitable monument. It is already done. The preservation of Fraunces Tavern is the greatest monument that can be conceived or erected. Let the demagogue who would barter the liberties of his country for his personal aggrandizement visit it, and stand within that room where the greatest of men resigned his power, and be- came a simple farmer again, and will not that bright example bring him back to his duty again? It may become a second Mecca, to bring the faithful to behold the room in which occurred the scene of his greatness and magnanimity." This seems to prophecy the work that our Society has undertaken and- carried to completion. Fraunces' own description of the Tavern, which appeared in the "New York Gazette and the Weekly Mercury", is as follows: 20 "Queejn's Head TavErn. March 13, 1775 — To be sold at the Merchants' Coffee House on Tues- day the 3rd of April, at noon, by public auction or at private sale any time before. The Queen's Head Tavern, near the Exchange is three stories high with tile and lead roof, has 14 fire places, a most excellent large kitchen, fine dry cellars, with good and convenient offices sufficient for a large family, the business above mentioned, a Merchant or any other large trade, is a corner house very open and airy and in the most complete re- pair, near the new ferry. Further particulars and a good title will be given by Samuel Frauncis, who so far from declining his present busi- ness, is determined to use ever the utmost endeavors to carry on the same, to the pleasure and satisfaction of his friends and the public in general." In a "view of the City of New York from Brooklyn Heights, foot of Pierrepont Street, in 1798, by Monsieur C. B. Julian de St. Menin," the top of Faunces Tavern shows a gambrel or curb roof, gambreled (or, tech- nically, "hipped") also at the ends. The great problem encountered in the restoration was what did the building look like and of what did it consist when the historic Farewell took place within its walls? Mr. William H. Mersereau was the architect selected and to him is due a great deal of credit for the careful study he made of the subject. At the time of the purchase of the building by The Sons of the Revolution there was nothing whatever of Colonial architecture left in its appearance. The building had a modern first story and a flat roof, and even the very bricks were disguised. From a fine mansion of the time of Queen Anne it had degenerated into a common- place building like others in the vicinity, having been successively used as a warehouse, hotel with forty-six bedrooms and a saloon. In the year 1832 there had been a serious fire in the interior of the building, after which a new roof was added. In 1837 another fire occurred. In the year 1852 a very disastrous fire occurred which practically destroyed the easterly end on Pearl Street, and at this time two additional stories were put on the building and at later dates it had undergone still further changes, including the addition of a flat roof. The great question to be determined was the slope of the roof of the original mansion, which was finally dis- 21 covered when the additional stories were taken off and the old roof line was found indicated in the wall of the adjoining building, and was also proven to be correct by the different size of bricks used in older days as compared with those of more modern times. The Broad Street side had been made of yellow Dutch brick from Amsterdam and the Pearl Street side of red English brick. To properly replace and restore these two sides was a very serious problem for no similar yellow brick could be found in this country, and it was only by good luck that it was ascertained that similar 17 th century bricks were being made near Rotterdam, and some fourteen thousand of them were imported in a great hurry from Holland, packed in cases, so as not to de- lay the work. As regards the red bricks, they were obtained from old houses being torn down in Baltimore, and were fortunately accessible just at that time. The original timbers were retained above and below the Long Room and every brick and piece of lumber was left in place. In the replace- ment, the ground floor and roof were made of steel and concrete, and the intermediate floors filled with ashes, so as to make the structure as nearly fireproof as possible. The fireplaces were restored so that the present ap- pearance is practically the same as it was in the Revolutionary period. It was necessary to replace practically all the interior woodwork of the building owing to the frequent fires and general destruction, so that the staircase, wainscoating, etc., was modelled after that of the Phillipse Manor House, now the Yonkers City Hall. The roof design was also adapted from this building, which had been built practicaly at about the same period by the same people, so that now the Tavern can be revisited by the shades of the soldiers concerned in the "great scene" that took place here on December 4, 1783. Fraunces Tavern has never lost its name and has been open contin- uously as a house of public entertainment since 1762, having providentially escaped the great conflagrations of 1776, 1835 and 1845, which destroyed so much of New York. It has been preserved as an historical memorial of Washington and the days of the Revolution and even as a teacher it is worth a thousand times what it cost in dollars and cents. 22 WASHINGTON'S FAREWELL. Fraunces Tavern, December 4, 1783. Halt — Uncover — Here once stood When all his battle days were done The conqueror of Briton's hosts, Our Nation's father — Washington. He stood like some bold towering peak With crest of the eternal snows; His features like the God-carved crags On which the sunset glory glows. A clang of swords — a clink of spurs. Was mingled with the martial tread, As comrades mustered to his call And in his presence bared the head. These men who had defied a king And faced the iron blast of death Now stood like children 'fore their sire, Attentive and with bated breath. Resounded salvos of the guns And cheers of triumph in the street, But like the minute 'fore the charge One might have heard their brave hearts beat. As soared their hearts at victory, So sank they now in blank despair. For some this look will be the last Upon their Chief — their father there. They gazed in his gray searching eyes, They caught the tremor of his lip. And, as they grasped his great brown hand, They felt his soul was in the grip. This spot is sacred ; not by blood. But what is purer and more dear; 'Twas here he kissed each sun-scorched cheek, 'Twas here was shed the parting tear. F. K. 23 SONS OF THE REVOLUTION OBJECT OF THE SOCIETY Preamble to the Constitution Whereas, It has become evident from the decHne of proper celebra- tion of such National holidays as the Fourth of July, Washington's Birth- day, and the like, that popular interest in the events and men of the War of the Revolution is less than in the earlier days of the Republic ; And Whereas, This lack of interest is to be attributed not so much to lapse of time as to the neglect on the part of descendants of Revolutionary heroes to perform their duty of keeping before the public mind the memory of the services of their ancestors, and of the times in which they lived, and of the principles for which they contended; Therefore, The Society of the "Sons of the Revolution" has been instituted to perpetuate the memory of the men who, in military, naval or civil service, by their acts or counsel, achieved American Independence; to promote and assist in the proper celebration of the anniversaries of Washington's Birthday, the Battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill, the Fourth of July, the Capitulations of Saratoga and Yorktown, the Evacua- tion of New York by the British Army, and other prominent events relating to or connected with the War of the Revolution; to collect and secure for preservation the manuscript rolls, records and other documents and memorials relating to that War; to inspire among the members and their descendants the patriotic spirit of their forefathers; to inculcate in the community in general sentiments of Nationality and respect for the principles for which the patriots of the Revolution contended; to assist in the commemorative celebration of other great historical events of National importance, and to promote social intercourse and the feeling of fellow- ship among its members. 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