Thomas Pell, 1st Lord of Pelham Manor(1608 – September 21, 1669)[1]was an English-bornphysicianwho bought the area known asPelham, New York,as well as land that now includes the easternBronxand southernWestchester County, New York,and founded the town ofWestchesterat the head of navigation onWestchester Creekin 1654.[2]
Early life
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Pell was born inSussex,England in 1608. He was the eldest of two sons born to the former Mary Holland, fromHaldeninKent,and the Rev. John Pell, who was fromSouthwick,Sussex.His younger brother was the mathematician and political agentJohn Pell.His father died in 1616 and his mother died the following year.
Career
editIn the 1630s he emigrated toNew England;he lived inFairfield, Connecticut,as of 1654.[4][5]
In 1654,[6]Pell signed a treaty withChief Wampageand otherSiwanoyIndian tribal members that granted him 50,000 acres (20,000 ha) of tribal land, including all or part of what is nowthe Bronx,and land to the west alongLong Island Soundin what is now Westchester County, extending west to theHutchinson Riverand north toMamaroneck.[4][7]There are no contemporary records of the price he paid for the land, but an 1886 source states that the Siwanoy were paid with "sundryhogsheadofJamaicarum".[4]He named the area Pelham in honor of Pelham Burton, who had been his tutor in England (Although there is reason to believe this attribution is not correct).[7]
Pell was legally challenged by the Dutch courts, who considered the "English were trespassing on Dutch territory".[8]This dispute was finally resolved by Pell in September 1664 when the British Navy, supported by a militia invasion force consisting largely ofCity Islandcolonists and led by Pell himself, enteredNew Amsterdamand forcedPeter Stuyvesant,the Dutch Governor ofNew Netherland,to surrender the colony to the British.[7]
Personal life
editPell died on September 21, 1669, inFairfield, Connecticut.Having no children, he left his estate to a nephew,Sir John Pell(1643–1702), son of Thomas's only brother John. His nephew traveled from England to New York and took up residence as the 2ndLord of the ManorofPelham.[7]
The Pell family lived in this area until theRevolutionary Warand has remained prominent to the present, with family members including U.S. AmbassadorHerbert Pell,U.S. SenatorClaiborne Pell,and preservationistStephen Hyatt Pell.Thomas Pell's grandson Philip Pell II builtPelhamdaleat Pelham Manor about 1750.[9]
References
edit- ^Bell, Blake A."Brief Biographies of Thomas Pell, First Lord of the Manor of Pelham, and His Nephew, John, Published in 1912".
- ^"Bronx Chronology".Bronx County Historical Society. Archived fromthe originalon 2015-07-27.
- ^Frances N. Teague (1998).Bathsua Makin: Woman of Learning.Bucknell University Press. p.11.ISBN9780838753415.
- ^abc"The Treaty Oak".Bartow-Pell Mansion Museum.
- ^Blake A. Bell (2004).Thomas Pell and the Legend of the Pell Treaty Oak.iUniverse.ISBN9780595313341.
- ^Sources variously give the date of the transaction as June 27, November 11, or November 14, 1654.
- ^abcd"Town of Pelham History".
- ^James B. Saunders (1991)."History of Pelham Manor".excerpted from The Pelham Manor Story. Archived fromthe originalon 2010-08-30.
- ^Austin N. O'Brien (August 1982)."National Register of Historic Places Registration: Pelhamdale".New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.Archived fromthe originalon 2012-10-18.Retrieved2010-12-24.