Map of Philipse Patent (showing the Oblong and Gore)

Adolphus Philipse (1665–1750) was a wealthy landowner of Dutch descent in the

Province of New York The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the Uni ...

. In 1697 he purchased a large tract of land along the east bank of the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

stretching all the way to the east to the Connecticut border. Then known as the "Highland Patent" it became in time referred to as the

Philipse Patent The Philipse Patent was a British royal patent for a large tract of land on the east bank of the Hudson River about 50 miles north of New York City. It was purchased in 1697 by Adolphus Philipse, a wealthy landowner of Dutch descent in the Provin ...

. After his death the Patent was inherited by his nephew,

Frederick Philipse II Frederick Philipse II ( – July 26, 1751), was a colonial American merchant, landowner, and politician. Philipse was the only son of Maria Sparkes, daughter of the Governor of Barbados, and Philip Philipse, eldest son of Frederick Philipse I, 1s ...

, his only heir-at-law, who became the second Lord of the Manor of Philipsborough in

Westchester County Westchester County is located in the U.S. state of New York. It is the seventh most populous county in the State of New York and the most populous north of New York City. According to the 2020 United States Census, the county had a population o ...

Early life

Adolphus Philipse was born in 1665, the second son of

Frederick Philipse Frederick Philipse (born Frederick Flypsen;Appleton, W.S. ''The Heraldic Journal, Recording the Amorial Bearings and Genealogies of American Families'', Wiggen & Lunt, Boston, 1867 1626 in Bolsward, Netherlands – December 23, 1702), first Lord ...

, the first Lord of the Manor of Philipsborough, a Dutch immigrant to North America of

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

n heritage who had risen to become one of the greatest landholders in the

New Netherlands New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva P ...

Career

In 1697, Philipse purchased a tract of land which ran along the northern

border, which received Royal sanction as the "Highland Patent", later known as the

.''Historical and Genealogical Record Dutchess and Putnam Counties New York'', Press of the A. V. Haight Co., Poughkeepsie, New York, 1912; pp. 62-7

"Adolph Philipse having thus acquired the title from the original owners, proceeded at once to take the necessary steps for obtaining a patent for his lands, and presented a petition to Benjamin Fletcher, who was then governor of the Province of New York, which was granted June 17, 1697." Spanning from the

to the then

Connecticut Colony The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...

it encompassed some 250 square miles. Philipse' elder brother

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who popularize ...

, heir to the manor and title, died in 1699. Upon Frederick's death in 1702, Adolphus received all the Manor north of Dobb's Ferry, including the present town. He was also named proprietor of a tract of land on the west bank of the Hudson north of Anthony's Nose and executor of Philip's estate. The balance of the Manor, the hereditary title, and family commercial holdings were bequeathed to his nephew,

. After the bachelor Adolphus' death in 1749 (Smith, others 1750), his Manor holdings and the Highland Patent passed to Frederick II, his only heir-at-law, who became the second Lord of the Manor at Philipsborough.Philipse family history: At the death of Frederick Philipse in 1751, the Highland Patent was inherited by his son, Philip Philipse, and three daughters, Susannah (wife of

Beverley Robinson Beverley Robinson (11 January 1721 – 9 April 1792), was a Virginia-born soldier who became a wealthy colonist of the Province of New York and is best known as a Loyalist during the American Revolutionary War. Robinson married Susanna Philips ...

), Mary (late wife of Col. Roger Morris), and Margaret, who died intestate. Margaret's portion was, by terms of her father's will, equally divided among her brother and sisters, and in 1751, after a survey of the whole tract, it was geographically divided into nine Lots; three on the river; three in the interior; three on the eastern (Connecticut) border. Each of the three heirs inherited a lot in each division.Pelletreau, William, S, ''History of Putnam County, New York – With Biographical Sketches of its Prominent Men'', W.W. Preston & Company, Philadelphia, 188

/ref> During the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

the Philipse Patent lands were confiscated by the Provisional New York government's Commissioners of Forfeiture. Sold afterwards, they became today's Putnam County.

Philipse Patent

Sugarloaf Hill Hudson Highlands from Bear Mountain Bridge

In 1697 Philipse purchased a tract of land from Dutch traders Lambert Dortlandt and Jan Sybrandt, who had bought it a few years before from several

Wiccopee East Fishkill is a town on the southern border of Dutchess County, New York, United States. The population was 29,707 at the 2020 census. The town was once the eastern portion of the town of Fishkill. Hudson Valley Research Park is located in th ...

chiefs.Putnam County Historical Societ

Adolphus Philipse profile This became known as the Highland Patent, and extended approximately 13 miles along the east shore of the Hudson River, from Annsville Creek to the Fishkill Creek, Fish Kill, and eastward some 20 or so miles to the border of the

Colony of Connecticut The ''Connecticut Colony'' or ''Colony of Connecticut'', originally known as the Connecticut River Colony or simply the River Colony, was an English colony in New England which later became Connecticut. It was organized on March 3, 1636 as a settl ...

, including

Pollopel Island Pollepel Island is a uninhabited island in the Hudson River in New York. The principal feature on the island is Bannerman's Castle, an abandoned military surplus warehouse. Description Pollepel Island has been called many different names, incl ...

in the Hudson.Smith, Philip Henry, ''General History of Putnam County: From 1609 to 1876, inclusive'', published by the author, Pawling, NY, 1877, p. 44 Shortly after purchasing it, Philipse, whose residence was the

Philipse Manor Hall Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site is a historic house museum located in the Getty Square neighborhood of Yonkers, New York. Originally the family seat of Philipse Manor, it is Westchester County's second oldest standing building after th ...

near Tarrytown, and who maintained only a bachelor shooting lodge on

Lake Mahopac Mahopac ( or ) is a hamlet (and census-designated place) in the town of Carmel in Putnam County, New York, United States. Also known as Lake Mahopac, the exurb is located some north of New York City, on US Route 6 at the county's southern central ...

in the Highland Patent, opened the tract to tenant settlers. Thus began a policy that lasted throughout his lifetime and his heirs' so long as they owned the land, to rent rather than sell, a practice which led to stunted growth for two and a half centuries to come. After Philipse's death in 1750 (Smith, 1749), the Highland Patent was inherited by his nephew,

, his only heir-at-law, who became the second Lord of the Manor at Philipsborough in

Family

Adolphus Philipse was the second son of

, the first lord of

Philipsburg Manor Philipsburg Manor (sometimes referred to as Philipse Manor) was a Manorialism, manor located north of New York City in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County in the Province of New York. Netherlands-born Frederick Philipse I and two p ...

, and

Margaret Hardenbroeck Margaret Hardenbroeck de Vries Philipse ( – ) was a prominent and wealthy merchant in the colonial Province of New York. She inherited great wealth from her first husband after his early death, and later married another merchant and landowner, F ...

. He was a younger brother of

Philip Philipse Philip Philipse (1663–1699) was the eldest son and heir of Frederick Philipse, a Dutch-born merchant trader, slaver, land baron, and 1st Lord of Philipsburg Manor. However, he died before his father, and by Frederick's will Philip's legacy was ...

.Philipse Manor Hall State Historic Site website

Philip Philipse, oldest son of Frederick Philipse I, and his wife, Mary, both died in Barbados in 1689 (on September 14 and October 18, respectively). Their death notices, signed by the rector of nearby St. James Church, list cause of death as "belly ake", aka dysentery, a frequent cause of death during that time period on the island.

References

External links

Putnam's Past

Boundary Changes of Putnam County
{{DEFAULTSORT:Philipse, Frederick 1665 births 1750 deaths American members of the Dutch Reformed Church American people of Dutch descent American slave traders Interlopers (business) Members of the New York General Assembly People of the Province of New York

Adolphus Adolf (also spelt Adolph or Adolphe, Adolfo and when Latinised Adolphus) is a given name used in German-speaking countries, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and to a lesser extent in vari ...