November 14, 1753. The freeholders and inhabitants of this town appointed Jacobus Lefferts, Peter Vandervoort, Jacob Remsen, Rem Remsen, and Nicholas Vechte, Trustees, “to defend our patent where in any manner our liberties, privileges and rights in our patent specified is encroached, lessened or taken away by the commonalty of the city of New-York.” A copy of the proceeding of the town meeting at which the above trustees were elected will be found in the appendix marked B.
Not satisfied with the encroachments they had made, the Corporation began to question the right of the inhabitants of Brooklyn to cross to and from New-York ferriage free in their own boats, and to carry over the inhabitants in those boats;—the result was, that in July, 1745, a suit was commenced by one of the inhabitants of Brooklyn, named Hendrick Remsen, against the Corporation of New-York, which was tried before a jury in Westchester county. A special verdict was found setting forth all its patents and charters, and among other things, that the road from which the said Hendrick Remsen ferried the inhabitants of Brooklyn to and from New-York, “then and long before was laid out for a public highway leading down to low water mark on the East River between the places aforesaid called the Wallaboucht and the Red Hook on Nassau Island, and the jurors aforesaid upon their oath aforesaid, do further say, that the River called the East River, over which the said Hendrick did carry the persons and goods aforesaid, from the said lands between the Wallabocht and the Red Hook, is a large and public and navigable river used by his Majesty’s ships and other ships and smaller vessels employed in trade and commerce, and hath always been so used from the first settlement of this Colony.” On argument judgment was rendered by the Supreme Court of this Colony in the month of October, 1775, in favour of Hendrick Remsen, that he recover his damages against the Mayor, Aldermen and Commonalty of the city of New-York, and the sum of one hundred and eighteen pounds, fourteen shillings and ten pence half penny for his costs and charges. An appeal to the King and Council from this decision, was brought by the Corporation, which was not determined in consequence of the Revolutionary war. There is a tradition in this town that the Corporation of New-York were so apprehensive of this claim on the part of the town of Brooklyn, that in order to disengage Hendrick Remsen from the interest of the town, they gave him a house and lot of land near Coenties Slip, in the city of New-York. How far this tradition is correct, the Compiler is unable to say.—It appears however, that he about that time became in possession of such property, and the same remained in his family within the memory of some of our inhabitants.
Our two Patents are confirmed by the Constitution of this State, which confirms all grants of land within the State, made by the authority of the King of Great Britain or his predecessors, prior to the 14th of August, 1775.
The Compiler thinking it would not be uninteresting to his fellow citizens to see a statement of the amount received by the Corporation of New-York for quit rent on the water lots claimed by them, has given the following short statement.
The Commissioners of the Sinking Fund of the City of New-York have received, from August 23d, 1813, to Dec. 31, 1824.
| For Water lot rents, | $17,635 24 |
| Commutation for water lot rents, | 17,275 41 |
| $34,910 65 | |
| The Corporation of New-York during the present year 1824, have received for water lot rents the sum of | $8,862 97 |
Within a short time the jurisdiction of the village of Brooklyn has been extended beyond low water mark, leaving the pretended right of soil still in the Corporation of New-York.[8] August term, 1821, in the case of Udall vs. the Trustees of Brooklyn, the Supreme Court of this State decided that Kings County, of which the village of Brooklyn is part, includes all the wharves, docks, and other artificial erections in the East River, opposite to the City of New-York, though west of the natural low water mark on the Nassau or Long-Island shore; and the jurisdiction of the village extends to the actual line of low water, whether formed by natural or artificial means. Same term, in the case of Stryker vs. the Mayor, &c. of the City of New-York, the Supreme Court decided that the city and county of New-York includes the whole of the Rivers and harbour adjacent to actual low water mark, on the opposite shores, as the same may be formed, from time to time, by docks, wharves and other permanent erections; and although the jurisdiction of the city does not extend so as to include such wharves, or artificial erections, yet it extends over the ships and vessels floating on the water, though they be fastened to such wharves or docks.
April 9, 1824. The Legislature of the State of New-York in the act to amend the act entitled “an Act to incorporate and vest certain powers in the freeholders and inhabitants of the village of Brooklyn in the County of Kings,” granted this town concurrent jurisdiction with the City of New-York in the service of process, in actions civil and criminal, on board of vessels attached to our wharves; and in the act for the establishment of a Board of Health in the village of Brooklyn, authority is given to the said Board to remove all infected vessels from the wharves within the said village.
The ferries have been unavoidably, in some degree, taken into consideration when speaking of our town rights. The compiler will therefore confine himself to such historical facts, and laws, and such proceedings, passed and had by the Colonial and State legislatures as may relate particularly to them.
During the early years of this Colony, the old ferry was from near the foot of Joralemon-street, to the Breede Graft, now Broad-street, in the City of New-York. At that period a creek ran through the middle of Broad-street, up which the boats ascended to a ferry-house which is still standing. At this time it is difficult to ascertain the exact period when the old ferry was established at its present situation on the Brooklyn side. In 1697, John Aeresen was ferry master.