Area history: History and Early Settlers: Tinicum Twp, Bucks County, PA Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Jo Stocker. tiana@geocities.com USGENWEB NOTICE: Printing this file by non-commercial individuals and libraries is encouraged, as long as all notices and submitter information is included. Any other use, including copying files to other sites requires permission from the submitters PRIOR to uploading to any other sites. We encourage links to the state and county table of contents. ____________________________________________________________ Excerpts from "HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY", PA ____________________________________________________________ Further information can be found in "The History of Bucks County" TINICUM 1738 TINICUM is bounded by the Delaware river and Nockamixon on the north, the Delaware on the east, the Tochiconan which separates it from Plumstead and Bedmister, on the south, and by Nockamixon on the west. The area is seventeen thousand one hundred and seventy-seven acres On the 6th of September, 1699, William Penn wrote to James Logan from Pennsbury: "I desire to see T. Fairman, for that I hear an Indian township called Tohickon, rich lands and much cleared by the Indians, he has not surveyed to mine and children's tracts as I expected. It joins upon the back of my manor of Highlands, and I am sorry my surveyor-general did not inform me thereof. If it be not in thy warrants, put it in, except lands already or formerly taken up, or an Indian township. The Indians have been with me about it." Penn was very cross that his surveyor had neglected to lay off the tract alluded to, to himself and children, which was afterward formed into an Indian township. We find, in our investigations, that somewhere "above the Highlands," but the exact location is not known, ten thousand acres were confirmed to John Penn and his children. This may have reference to the same tract, and probably the "Indian township" was part of what is now Tinicum. The "London Company" was among the earliest land-owners in the township as well as the largest, and the purchase was probably made about the time the company bought part of manor of Highlands in 1699. The courses and distances are given by John Watson, who probably surveyed it when broken up, as follows: "Beginning at a white oak by the river Delaware, thence running by vacant lands, south-werst one thousand six hundred and sixty perches to a black oak; thence by land laid-out to said Proprietary's land south-cast six hundred and thirty-four perches to a post at the corner of John Streaper's land; thence north-cast by the said Streaper's land, one thousand one hundred and sixty perches to a white oak; thence south-east by the said Streaper's land, six hundred and eighty perches to a black oak sapling, to the said river; thence up the same on the several courses, one thousand six hundred and fifty-eight perches to the place of beginning, containing seven thousand five hundred acres." From these notes it is difficult to define the boundary at the present day. It had frontage of about five miles on the Delaware extending back about the same distance, and occupied the northern part of the township. We have seen a copy of the draft made by Benjamin Eastburn, surveyor-general, in 1740, but its accuracy is doubted as the lines do not extend eastward to the river. The stream of immigration that planted the Scotch-Irist on the banks of the Deep run, in Bedminster, carried settlers of the same race across the Tohickon, into the then wilderness of Tinicum in the first quarter of the last centry. By about 1730 we find settled there: MARSHALL, William, Edward and Moses COLLINs, Joseph HAVERFORD, Joseph THATCHER, Richard GRIFLEE(GRIFFITH), David MINTURN, Richard ROSS, James HALL, John WILLEY, James not one of whom was German. The actual date when each one of these immigrants settled in Tinicum it is impossible to give, or the place and the quantity of land taken up. Edward MARSHALL, who made the "Great Walk" for the Penns in 1737, was an inhabitant of the township at the time, and during part of his residence there, made his home on an island in the Delaware, which still bears his name. In 1737 MATTHEW HUGHES took up a tract in the lower part of the township, lying on the river road and extending back to the hills. In 1746 he granted forty acres to ADAM MEISNER, at the upper end of Pont Pleasant, then called the Narrows. In 1759 Mr. Hughes gave fifty- four acres to his son Uriah. In 1759 CASPER KOLB brought one hundred and fifty acres of the Proprietaries, which he sold in 1749 to MICHAEL HEANEY, who was probably the ancestor of the family of this name which now lives in the township. Arthur Erwin was the largest land owner in Tinicum at the close of the last century. Mr. Erwin was of Scotch-Irish birth. Mr. Erwin purchased one thousand five hundred and sixty eight acres and thirty-two perches, Robert Patterson-three hundred and twenty-four, Andrew Patterson-three hundred and twenty-two and Robert Wilson one hundred and thirty-one acres. By about 1730 we find settled in Tinicum twp. the following persons: William Marshall Edward Marshall Moses Marshall Joseph Collins Joseph Haverford Richard Thatcher David Griftee(Griffith) Richard Minturn James Ross John Hall James Willey Christopher Sigman ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1737 - Matthew Hughes took up tract in lower part of township ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1738 - We find : William, Edward and Moses Marshall Joseph and Jonathan Collins Joseph Haverford Richard Thatcher, David Griffee Richard Minturn James Ross John Hall James Willey James Stewart Joseph M. King Michael Williamson William Rickey John McKee John Peterson James Briggs James Campbell John Stewart James Johnston John Shall William Hill Joseph McFarland ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- In 1738 Conrad Kuster took up one hundred and a half acres of land on a branch of Tinicum creek. 1739 - Casper Kolb bought 150 acres which he sold in 1749 to Michael Heaney ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1746 - Adam Meisner - took 40 acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1753 - John Hart, 32 acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1750 - Frederick Wolfingers (one of my ancestors) had land near Kintnerville He had four sons and three daughters, who married into the families of Schick, Grover, Sassaman, Good, Hoffmann, Scheetz ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1759 - Uriah Hughes, son of Matthew given 54 acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- John Praul, of Bensalem, several hundred acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- John Van Fossen, a Hollander, one of the earliest land-owners ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joseph Lear, the grandfather of Mahlon C. Lear settled in Tinicum, near Erwinna, The family claim that Tobias Lear, the private secretary of General Washingon, was a brother of the aforesaid Joseph Lear. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1762 - Herman Ronsecrout Bernard Schneider Samuel McConogby William Richards Henry Newton Jacob Fox Robert Stovert John Wallace Martin Fryling ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Henry Stover resided in Tinicum in 1768 Christian Honk and NIcholas Hern owned land there in 1769 1774 -Jacob Kolb purchased two hundred and eleven acres in Tinicum ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1774 -The Williamses are decended from a Yankee ancestor, born in Boston, who removed to Wilmington, Delaware and thence to Philadelphia, where he married. The Great-great-grandfather of Hiram A. Williams purchased several hundred acres of John and Richard Penn. His son, Jeremiah Williams, purchased this tract of his father and settled in the township with his family before the Revolutionary War ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Henry Stover resided in Tinicum in 1768 and Christian Honk and Nicholas Hern owned land there in 1769 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1774 - Richard Stevens was the largest land-holder, owning four thousand one hundred and thirty-acres, nearly one-fourth of the land in the township. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arthur Erwin was the largest land-owner at the close of the century and for sometime before. Mr. Erwin purchased one thousand five hundred and sixty eight acres and thirty-two perches. He was of Scotch-Irish birth, and became a resident of the township prior to the Revolution. At his death he owned two-thousand acres in Tinicum, some in Durham, and twenty-five thousand acres in Steuben county, New York. He laid out the town of Erwinna in this country. At the time the family was the richest in the county, but it does not now own a foot of the ancestral acres. His son represented Bucks Co. in the assembly. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Robert Patterson, three hundred and twenty four acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Andrew Patterson, three hundred and twenty-two ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Robert Wilson, one hundred and thirty-two acres ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- The following information was sent to me my John G. Marshall, thanks John 1750'S- Joseph Smith, descendant of Robert Smith, an early settler of Buckingham. He was the son of Timothy and Sarah Smith and great-grandson of Thomas Canby, one of the earliest settlers in Solebury. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- In 1762, we find the names of Herman Ronseerout, Bernard Schneider, Samuel McConeghy, William Richards, Henry Newton, Jacob Fox, Robert Stovert, John Wallace, and Martin Fryling, three of which names are German In 1768 the inhabitants of Tinicum, Nockamixon, Bedminster and Plumstead asked permission of the court to build a stone bridge at their own expense, in place of the wooden one, but it was not granted. Among the petitioners are the names of George Hillpot(my family), William NcIntyre, Michael Worman and Abraham Fretz, probably the ancestors of the extensive families in this section of the county. The bridge over the Tohickon, on the Durham road, was built in 1765. This crossisng was called John Orr's ford, after the first settler of that place. Joseph Smith was married at Wrightstown Sept. 11, 1774 to Ann Smith, daughter of Samuel and Jane, of Buckingham who was born Nov. 11, 1754. Some of the Smiths of Buckingham, went to Tinicum as early as the spring of 1777. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- 1783- In May, 1783, Robert Smith, Joseph Smith, Uriah Hughes and Joseph Kinsey, all of Buckingham were in Tinicum Township. Joseph Smith made the first cast-iron mould-board in Pennsylvania. He was assisted by his sons, Mahlon, Jonas and Charles, and the father moved here in 1802. He also introduced the use of hard coal in blacksmith shops in Bucks County. Thomas Furness he was a saddler from Newtown-- Thomas Jenney Newtown-- Samuel Preston--John Chapman farmer land owner-- Joseph Doane-- John Watson-- Timothy Smith-- Samuel Baker owned 552AC along Knowlen's creek-- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Joseph Hampton owned land along Hough's creek-- Philp Draket owned a mill-- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- John Penqite deceased 1756-- Edward Marshall b 1710 d 11-7-1789 his 2nd wife Elizabeth Meaze Marshall b 1727 d 10-12-1807 80 yrs There are four churches in the township, Presbyterian, Lutheran and Reformed, Christian, and Baptist. That known as the Tinicum Prebyterian church is the oldest of that denomination, north of Deep Run. At what time it was organized we don't know that, but in the summer of 1739 Reverand James Campbell preached there and at Newtown. In the fall of that year, he received a call to this church, then called Tohickon, through Francis Williamson and John Orr, but he continued to supply his two congregations, occasionally going up to the Forks until 1744. where he was installed at Tohickon, May 24th. A few years after Afterward he went to North Carolina and died after 1780. The records of the church are missing down to 1762 and we know nothing of its history during the intervening period. The 16th of February, of that year the London Company conveyed thirteen acres and four perches to William Wear, of Springfield, and John Heaney and James Patterson of Tinicum for the use of the church. In 1767, the latter conveyed it to Robert Kennedy and James Blair, of Springfield, James McKee, Robert Smith, James McGlauchlin, and James Bailey of Tinicum and Nicholas Patterson and Alexander McCannon of Nockamixon, in trust for the Protestant congregation of Tinicum and adjoining townships. The records are again silent until 1785, when their pastor, Alexander Mitchel, left them. By consent of the Presbytery, the congregations of Deep Run and Tinicum were united in one charge in 1785, under the Reverand James Grier, who served to near the close of 1787, The meeting house and burial ground were enclosed in 1786, the church was incorporated March 28th, 1787