Crane Hook on the Delaware - NC CHAP

4 8 THE BUILDING OF CRANE HOOK CHURCH
Peterson," has been acquired by John Matson, who still owns his
original single lot adjoining; the eighth single lot, originally of
Olla Toersen, has been acquired by Simon Jansen (Symon John-
son), increasing the size of his large plantation.ls
Hendrick Lemmens in 1680 owned the original lot of Lars
Eskellson which adjoined the original lot of Samuel Peterson now
owned by John Matson. These are the "home lotts" that deter-
mine the position of the <strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> church property. Samuel
Peterson gave 30 feet to the church, so Lars Eskellson if he owned
the land in 1667 was the man who gave the church "so much land
as it should need." That Lars Eskellson owned this same lot the
second year after the church was built has confirmation in the list
of <strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> participants fined in the "Long Finn" conspiracy
of 1669, where Lars Eskellson, Samuel Peterson and John Matson
appear conse~utively.'~
Thus the court case and the official survey show that the plot
of ground belonging to <strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> church in 1667 was partly
on both sides of the line of division between Samuel Peterson's
home lot and that of Lars Eskellson. But there is no indication
of its site along the 150 perches of that boundary. John Matson
who acquired the Peterson lot next north of his own sold his
double lot, February 11/21, 1687, by the following deed:
John Matson alias Screeck of <strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> sold to Hendrick
Vandenbugh, merchant of New Castle County (and town) for a
17 At this time Samuel Petcrsc~n o\vned a tract of land on the north side of
the Christina (part of \vhich was later \X~illin~to\vn, now part of Wilmington),
his half of 400 acres convcvetl to him ancl Lars Cornelison on the 10th day of 8th
month, 1674, hv John Anderson Staltop (Ne\v Castle Deeds, K-1, 364). He had
been in possession of a piece of Holland Creek Marsh on the south bank of the
Christina since 1654-1655 ;IS Samuel Pcrs(s)on i Bogen and Samuel Peterson,
freeman (Johnson, Sufedi.rll Settlemeutr, 11, 721). "i Bogen" describing the location
of his marsh, at or in the shoulder (of lat~tl) or bend (of a stream), which later
deeds, survcvs, ancl a court taw sliow as on both sides of the South Market Street
causcwav (<strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> Map I) adici~ning John Paul Iacquet's tract. racquet sued
Peterson and Jacob Classon (Clawson) in 1674 (New Casrle Records, I, 122) for
mowing hay over on his tract. A survey for Jacquet (Book of Surveys (Penn)
326) sho\\rs Peterson's tract adjoining Iacquct's in the bencl of the creek. A recital
in Deed Book E-2, 341-344 (1783), trnccs Samucl's tract back to his son Peter who
inherited under his \vill, clated 20 Sept. 1699, cited in Deed Book K-1, 364,
mentioned above.
18 Confirmecl to Simon Jansen and Mattys Berckelsen (Eskelson?) July 1,
1669. land on <strong>Crane</strong> Hnok in their possrssion, 60 rods wide next to Laats Toorsen
and runnin,~ 600 rnds into the \voocls. - 0r1~11ral Title.r, 159. In the survey of
<strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> Land. 1680. Johnson's tract is 86 perches (or rods) wide and Berckelsen
ancl Toorsen have nnne.
19 List of 1669 ;IS "tr:~nscribed and examined at New Castle, May 11, 1675"
Ill /)Oi lir~I~~?ltl,
x11, 470.47 I
THE BUILDING OF CRANE HOOK CHURCH 49
Vallowable sum of money . . . a certain pantacon scituat Lying and
being in <strong>Crane</strong> hooke afored bounded to ye North west with ye
Church to ye South east with ye River Delaware to the South west
with the Land of John Crompton containing two Lotts being now
in the tenure and occupacon of ye sd John Mattson alias Screeck
with all ye housing outhousing . . . to haue and to hold &c.
Acknowledged in the Court of New Castle on Fabruary 15/25,
1687.20
"Northwest with the Church" coincides with the information
of the court case and survey, for the northwest line of Matson's
"two lotts" would include the northwest line of the lot formerly
of Peterson. Peterson's lot was 18 perches and 2 feet wide along
this back line dividing his cultivated land from his share of the
woodland, and as Peterson, according to the court minutes, gave
only 30 feet to the church, the church land began very near the
edge of Peterson's land or woodland and extended north into that
of Lars Eskellson, later of Lemmens. Of this extent there is no
record. Bounded to the northwest by the church suggests that the
church was outside the line of Matson's cultivated land and there-
fore in the woodland area belonging to this north lot. In a pre-
liminary recorded agreement for the sale to Vandenburg, Febru-
ary 26/March 8, 1685, "both home lotts & Woodland and all
the Marshes or Marsh Ground thereunto belonging," etc., are to
be conveyed. In the deed of sale and in subsequent indentures,
the suggestion is strengthened that the church land was in the
woodland.21 The Matson deed establishes the distance oi the
church from the Delaware River. The fast land of "home lotts"
faces the "great Marsh" along the river a fourth to a third of
a mile wide,22 which added to the 150 perches back to the woods
puts the church at least three-fourths of a mile from the water
and about a half mile back from the "wagon way leading to
Christina ferry."23
<strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> maps I and I1 were made by plotting <strong>Crane</strong>
<strong>Hook</strong> properties from contemporary deeds and surveys upon a
modern map of south Wilmington, with the aid of an air map24
20 New Castle County Deeds, B-1. 5-7, and see 134-135, sale of former
Simon Iohnson tract to John Grantham.
21 Ibid., 1-2, 5-7 134-135, 84.
22 New Castle County Book of Surveys (Penn). 297. A drawn plot is
recorded with the certificate of rcsurvey of <strong>Crane</strong> <strong>Hook</strong> land, Jan. 28/Feb. 8, 1703.
23 New C,r~tlc, Rc-cnrdr, 11, 50-53.
24 Tl~i\ c~xa~.l1