Name/Title
Sarah Wells: Not Just The Name of a RoadEntry/Object ID
002729Tags
Sarah WellsScope and Content
Sarah Wells: Not Just The Name of a Road
Most of us have heard of the Sarah Wells Trail – the road, that is. But did you know that Sarah Wells was also one of Goshen Township’s earliest (non-Native American) settlers? It’s true.
Sarah Wells was the adopted daughter of Christopher and Elizabeth Denn. Christopher Denn was a carpenter by trade. In 1712, he moved his family from Staten Island to a spot by the Otterkill, about two miles from the present village of Goshen (which was part of the Wawayanda Patent). He sent Sarah out beforehand to travel to the spot and claim Christopher Denn’s land. Sarah, along with several Native Americans made the arduous journey up the Hudson and across rugged terrain to arrive at Denn’s claim. As quoted in Women in Orange County: A Short Her-Story, “though small for her age (18), (Sarah) was an agile girl capable of remarkable endurance. By herself with only a dog for a companion, she would travel through the night on horseback carrying grain bags for fifteen miles to the nearest grist-mill, having then to row them across the Fishkill River, wait for it to be ground into flour, row back and then retrace the long steps home again.” During this time, Sarah lived a happy, but rigorous life at “Denn Hill,” along with the Mr. and Mrs. Denn.
A few years later, Sarah met William Bull, a young English stonemason from England, who had landed in New York City in the spring of 1715 to seek his fortune. In 1716, William came to Orange County, where Daniel Cromline put him to work as a mason on the old stone Greycourt House. The Greycourt House had long been a public inn on the way from the Hudson to New Jersey, and was a famous resort for the people around. After a suitable courtship, Sarah and William married in 1718. Theirs was the first marriage within the town limits of Goshen.
At this time, Sarah received 100 acres from Christopher Denn, who had promised it to her in return for her having gone alone at his bidding to settle his claim and save his title to his land. To add to this, William had acquired from King George II shortly before their marriage an adjoining 100 acres. On this parcel, William Bull erected as their first home, a rude cabin of hand-sawed planks. He called the place “Hamptonburgh” after his native Wolverhampton in England. Later, William built the Bull Stone House, which was completed in 1727(?). As fate would have it, while the Bulls were waiting to move into the nearly-completed stone house, an earthquake put a large crack in the house which, although patched, can still be seen today.(?)
Sarah and William subsequently had twelve children. After a fruitful and contented life, Sarah died at the age of 102 on April 21, 1796, leaving behind 98 grandchildren, 212 great grandchildren and 13 great, great grandchildren.*
*Information taken from the following sources:
Eager, Samuel W. An Outline History of Orange County, New York. 1847. Goshen, NY: Orange County Genealogical Society: 1995.
Headley, Russell, ed. The History of Orange County New York. 2 vols. + index. Goshen, NY: Orange County Genealogical Society, 1993.
Women In Orange County: a Short Her-Story. Goshen, NY: Goshen (NY) Jayncees Bicentennial Committee, 1975.
To learn more about Sarah Wells, check out the
LOCAL HISTORY section at the MOFFAT LIBRARY of Washingtonville.
[Image: A black and white photograph of a two-story stone house surrounded by trees.]
The Bull Stone House, Built by Wm. Bull in 1722, Hamptonburgh, N. Y. near C