Numbered
pages60-66. The actual letter begins
with page 61.
Niagara
Fire Insurance… Belvidere, N.J. Mch
22d 1898
Henry
J. Aten Hiawatha Kansas
My
Dear Cousin, Your good letter of Feby
28th ult was received and read with pleasure. Also the letter of March 18th
1898, containing the additional information, a(s?) relating to members of the
Aten family be(ing?) received into the old Readington Church w(as?) also duly
received, for which I return to y(ou?) my sincere thanks. I also received from
someone, I believe however from T.M. Be(am?) of Ashland Ohio a copy of the
“Industri(al?) Edition of the Ashland Gazette,” for which (I?) must return my
thanks to for your kindness in asking him to send it to me. It is very interesting, and his picture is
one of the things prized in it.
I
wrote hjim and returned my thanks for his kindness. You are certainly working
up the family history to t(he?) final ending, although you are so far away
from
the places where the old history abounds. You see out here we are not a very
long distance from the old Readington Curch in Readington township in Hunterdon
County. Three mile run is in Middlesex
County. You ask how to proceed.—well if you could be out here I could soon
inform you how to proceed—which would be that you and I would go to Somerville
the county seat of Somerset County, I have been there several times, and as I,
by virtue of being a Counsellor-at-Law etc., have free access to all the
record(s?,) old documents etc., we would soon get all the history to be got;
then we would go to the old Readington Church and get what is there to be
found, and so on around—It would be a pleasure to me to assist in your search
for history and information. It may be
that the records of both Somerset and Middlesex Counties will have to be
searched before all the information sought is obtained. The officer in charge
of the records of wills, and of Probate matters and the Settlements of estates
is the Surrogate of the County in N.J. as they are called
The
present Surrogate of Somerset County is Henry N. Spencer Somerville.
The
officer in charge of the records of Deeds, Mortgages etc, Deeds filed (as in
early times) partit(ion?) of lands, wads (?), records of marriages, census, etc
is called the County Clerk—the present County Clerk of Somerset Co., Frank W.
Somers—Somerville N.J.—Of Middlesex County
County Clerk John H. Conger New Brunswick
Surrogate Leonard Furman N. J.
The
Post Office address of the Readington Church—i.e., The old Dutch Reformed
is—Readington, N.J. You see those two
counties were originally settled very largely by the Dutch, while Hunterdon,
Sussex and now Warren, (originally Sussex) were settled largely by the Germans
and Scoth Irish. You see we have no
Dutch Reformed Churches in Warren County, while in Somerset and part of
Hunterdon and Middlesex, that church largely predominates. Hunterdon and Sussex and Warren are strong
Presbyterian
counties. We have a few German Reformed Churches about here, which is different from the Dutch Reformed. If you care to wait until it gets warm and long days I will go down to Somerville and search for you and see what I can find. I do not know what to say about the idea of whether Adrian came direct from Holland or not. I am not sure between you and I but that the genealogist at Chicago draws quite largely from some things found in the book written by Rev. T.H. Chambers, of which I once wrote you. Yes, so far as is known out here, if you get the record of the family of Adda Beer, you will have the record of all of Derick’s children—that grew up to manhood and womanhood—There is said to have been others who died before they were grown up. There might be found some record of baptisms of Adria(n’s?) family in the old Readington Church records—come out here and we will drive down some day and see about it.—I have received a letter from Mrs. Babcock of Lone Elm Kansas. I never knew Mr. or Mrs. Babcock personally but I am well acquainted with his brother Jacob Babcock who lives out here.
I
send to you along with this a copy of the last will of Nicholas Albertson, my
great great grand father and for whom I am named—Nicholas—This is of no
importance probably to you but will show you the names of his children, and
that he speaks of his dear wife Japie and of her aunt Catherine, which was the Catalinta
mentioned in the will of Adrian. Spring
has opened quite early out here. A
great many have gardens made in part, and many have plowed and sowed oats, also
potatoes. Early ones have been planted.—We are now enjoying what we call
Delaware Shad—a very fine spring fish, that ascends the Delaware river.—I do
not suppose you have them out with you.
I send you a little slip at the head of this letter
regarding the New Jersey Troop.
Bear in mind the New Jersey soldiers never falter, they are always ready
whenever it
may
be necessary. They were ready in the Revolution—again in 1872—also ready in the
Rebellion—and will be ready if the worst comes with Spain in the Cuban
matter. I am told that they are now
setting names for the formation of a six gun battery—in the counties of Morris,
Somerset, Hunterdon, Sussex and Warren.
I mean setting the names of those who would enlist at once—among those
who reside in the said five counties—with instructions to be ready to leave
home for the service within 24 hours. I do hope there will be no war—It would
be butchery and costly.----I send to you a little cutting relating to
Mrs. Susan Burd—she is a grand daughter of Japie (Aten) Abertson and the oldest
living descendant about here. The other
oldest, next to her, is Mrs. Elizabeth Albertson Emery of Owego Tioga County
New York—who is also a grand daughter.
We are all well at home—and I sincerely hope you are all well at your
home—Mrs. Josephine Hay is as well as usual at this time—all the other distant
kinsfolk of yours are usually well at this time so far as I have heard from
them lately. We all send love and kind
regards to you all, and I will be pleased to hear from you at any time that you
may find time to write to me.
In conclusion I am very fraternally
your cousin Nicholas Harris
P.S. Excuse hastily written letter, I write so very fast I do not take (….?)
Clippings
enclosed: one about “Jersey Troops Prepared” and one stating that: “Mrs. Susan Burd is quite ill at the home of
M.C. Allen, south of town, having suffered a slight stroke of paralysis on
Saturday last.”