Thomas Powell (1641–1722) facts for kids
Thomas Powell (born 1641, died 1721 or 1722) was a landowner on Long Island in New York. This was during the time when America was still a group of colonies ruled by England. He is famous for buying a large area of land called the Bethpage Purchase from local Native American tribes on Long Island.
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Thomas Powell's Early Life
Powell was born in 1641, possibly in August or October. Some records say his parents were Thomas and Priscilla Powell. It's not clear if he was born in Wales, United Kingdom or in Connecticut, USA. Some stories say his parents were connected to a minister named John Davenport. Davenport led a group of Puritans to settle in the New Haven Colony in Connecticut. Other sources suggest Powell's father was involved in trading wine and rum.
In 1662, court records from Huntington, New York, show that Thomas Powell worked for the Jonas Halifax Wood family for nine years. This was like an apprenticeship, where he learned skills while working. After his service, Powell gave a statement about an unpaid debt for rum and wine owed by Jonas Halifax Wood's estate.
By 1666, Powell was working as a lawyer, helping with land sales in Oyster Bay. Some records say he married Wood's daughter in 1663 and bought his first home that same year. Other records simply say his first wife's name is unknown. After his service, Powell lived in Huntington for several years.
Powell's Role in Huntington
Powell held many important jobs in the town of Huntington. He was the town recorder in 1658, keeping official records. He also served as a constable (like a police officer), a surveyor (measuring land), an overseer, and a trustee.
In 1682, Powell refused to be constable again. This was because the job required him to swear an oath to collect taxes for the Church of England. By then, he had become a Quaker. Quakers had different religious beliefs and did not support the Church of England.
Long Island's History and Quakers
To understand Thomas Powell's life, it helps to know about the history of the area. The Plymouth Colony in Massachusetts was founded in 1620 by a group known as the Pilgrims. This was one of the first successful English settlements in North America. Soon, more colonies were started in the New England area.
A Puritan minister named John Davenport brought his followers from the Netherlands to America in 1637. They arrived in Boston but felt the Massachusetts Bay Colony was not strict enough in its religious practices. So, in 1638, Davenport and others sailed to a "new haven." They bought land from the Quinnipiac Native Americans, who needed protection from the Pequots. These settlers created the New Haven Colony. In 1662, this colony joined with the Connecticut Colony.
The English Civil War happened from 1642 to 1651. During this time, England did not have a king. Quakerism was a new religious group started by George Fox in England in the late 1640s. The first Quaker missionaries arrived in America in Boston in 1656 and on Long Island in 1657.
Quakers faced official punishment in England. This changed after 1689, when they were allowed more freedom. Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch leader of New Netherland, also tried to stop Quaker worship. Because of this, many Quakers settled further east in Oyster Bay. This area was near the border between Dutch and British lands. George Fox himself visited Oyster Bay in 1672.
Until 1664, Long Island was divided. The Dutch controlled the western part, and Connecticut claimed the eastern part. In 1664, all of Long Island became part of the Province of New York. This area was then called the Shire of York. Later, in 1683, the Shire of York was divided into counties like Suffolk County and Queens County. Nassau County was not formed until 1899.
Thomas Powell's Land Purchases
In 1686, the Governor of New York, Thomas Dongan, asked the town of Huntington to buy any remaining land from the local Native Americans. Thomas Powell, who already owned a lot of land in Huntington, was chosen by the town to make these new purchases.
The Bethpage Purchase
The Bethpage Purchase was a big land deal in 1687. Thomas Powell bought more than 15 square miles (about 10,000 acres) in central Long Island, New York. He paid £140 (English money) to local Native American tribes. These included the Marsapeque, Matinecoc, and Sacatogue tribes. The land was about 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from east to west and 5 miles (8.0 km) from north to south.
This land covers parts of today's Bethpage, Farmingdale, Old Bethpage, Plainedge, Plainview, and South Farmingdale (all in Nassau County). It also includes East Farmingdale and Melville (both in Suffolk County). At the time of the purchase, Nassau County was part of Queens County. Most of the Bethpage Purchase is in the Town of Oyster Bay. The parts in Suffolk County were then in the Town of Huntington.
Almost eight years later, on October 18, 1695, the Native American leaders signed the official deed for the purchase. The deed was written on sheepskin. It noted that Powell had already been using part of the land for more than seven years. The Native Americans kept the right to pick berries and hunt on the land they sold.
Powell named the land "Bethphage." He chose this name because it was located between two other places on Long Island: Jericho and Jerusalem. This was like the biblical town of Bethphage (meaning "house of figs"), which was between Jericho and Jerusalem in Israel. Today, the Long Island place once called "Jerusalem" is now known as Wantagh and Island Trees. The name Jericho is still used today. Over time, the second "H" was dropped from "Bethphage," making it "Bethpage."
Other Land Deals
Sources also mention that Powell made a second land purchase in 1699. This was called the "Rim of the Woods Purchase." It included land west of the original Bethpage Purchase. This area covers most of today's Bethpage and the northern part of Plainedge. By 1700, English colonists had bought almost all of Long Island from the Native Americans.
Thomas Powell's Later Life and Legacy
Thomas Powell and his first wife, Abigail Wood, had eight children. One of their sons was also named Thomas Powell (born 1665). Abigail died before 1688. Powell then married Elizabeth Phillips in 1690. They had seven children together. Most records say Powell lived in Westbury.
Powell sold parts of the Bethphage land to other Quaker farmers. His sons lived in the Bethpage Purchase area. One of the two houses Powell built around 1700 still stands today. It is on Merritts Road in Farmingdale.
Powell died on February 28, 1722, in Westbury, New York. This was another Quaker settlement. He is buried in Bethpage Cemetery in Farmingdale, New York. His remaining property was divided among his children and their families, as stated in his will. Because of his land deals, several farming communities grew in the area. Three different communities within the original Bethpage Purchase have been called Bethpage at different times. The first was near Merritts Road in Farmingdale. The second was today's Old Bethpage. The most recent is today's Bethpage.
