The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1878-07-06

mlSSlOh1fleS speak OF the RESIDENTS OIL
Transform as being their countrymen: but
Ferris, in his history of the Swedish settle
ments on the Delaware expresses the opin-
ion that they were not Swedes but colony
of IEollanders who had settled there, and
then spoke the Swedish language.
John Smith was the son OF VIM. Smith,
who is supposed to have been the person
who erected the first mill at the Head Of
Elk. This mill is known to have been
there as early as 1906, and the next year
one William Anderson petitioned the court
Head of Elk, che being u poor man and
much incumbered with people passing and
repassing to the said mill along the Queens
road, - which then ian from the lower ferry
at Perryville via North East, and crossed
the Big Elk creek at or near where the
bridge now stands at Mltchell's mill, and
ran down the peninsula east of the heads
of Back Creek, Bohemia and Sassafras
rivers and was long known as the old
Choptank road.
Three months after John Smith re-
ceved the deed for the one thousand acres
before referred to. he and his wife and
father-ir law sold the mill and eight acres,
on part of which it stood, to Thos. Jacobs,
boiler, who is described as being of Mid
dletown, Chester county, Pa. This land
is that south of Main street and west of the
road by the mill. Jacobs also bought an
other tract containing twenty -one acres on
the west side of the creek and running
considerable distance up the stream above
the breast of the dam. 1t was stipulated
in the deed that Jacobs was to have the
right to cut as much timber as would be
required to build dwelling house and also
to rebuild the said mill and no more upon
the other land Of Smith free of charge.
1t is worthy of remark as showing the con-
dition of the country and the customs of
the people that 1.-THE fishings, fishing
places and fowlng ways are specified as
being conveyed to Jacobs. THIS mill con-
tinued in possession of the Jacobs family
till 1874. when we learn that it was in
very bad condition, and Thos. Jacobs, the
grandson of the one who purchased it from
Smith, entered into copartuership with
Zebulon and Levi Hollingsworth for the
purpose of carrying on the milling bust,
ness. 1t was at this time that the old mill
now standing was built by the Messrs. Hol-
lingsworths, who built the mill and fur
nished it with pair of French burr mill
stones and put goo into the business.
The third story of the mill, which is frame,
was subsequently added to it.
This man John Smith did business in
curious manner, and we infer from some
things mentioned in this deed that he had
previously bargained to sell the mill to
Allen Robinet, for he mentions an agree
ment between that person and himself in
the deed, and Jacobs covenants to indem-
Nifty him for any breach of the said agree
ment. Reese Hinton lived at that time on
what was then called the Grange, which
had been originally taken up by William
Dare, and is described as being over
against the MILL" and was probably part
of the Holly Hall plantation, for William
Dare, the patentee of the Grange was also
the proprietor of tract called Newport,
which probably joined the Grange on the
west.
In iii Smith sold seventy acres north of
the Grange and adjoining the land of Jacobs
to Hinton, and the next year he sold ten
acres of marsh (which is the marsh west
of the gas works. to Henry Hollingsworth,
who, in I'LL, had bought fifty acres of
land from William Sluby, of New Castle,
for e2S. This land was described in the
deed as being south of and adjoining the
land of Simon Johnson.
Hollingsworth also owned some acres of
marsh which was between Hollingsworth'
Point and the mouth of Mill creek, and is
described as being near Giover's Hill, which
is the hill near the west end of the cause
way, across Little Elk, just above the Land,
ing. In l1l3 he returned and took up one
hundred and seventy -one acres of land,
called Elk Plains, near the Head of Elk
river, on the south side of path leading
from Head of Elk river to the town of New
Castle.
In 1920 the inhabitants of New Munster
and one Lewis Jones had quarrel about a
road from New Munster to the Head of
Elk. This road seems to have run some
distance east of where the road is now
located, and the quarrel appears to have
been long and bitter. The petitions pre-
scented to the court, i'll reference to 1t, are
interesting and curious.
In 1921, many of the inhabitants of the
upper part of the county presented petit
ton to the court, in which they state that
Whereas, the great and main Kings
road, leading through his lordship's pro-
vince Of Maryland, passing over the dan
gerous & swelling falls of the two heads of
Elk river, whereby many good people both
inhabitants of this county & strangers are
not only stopt & often disappointed in their
Journeys to their loss & damage, but like
wise often in danger and PERIL of their
lives, wherefore they pray that the court
would order good & sufficient horse X foot
bridges to be built over the said two falls
of the two heads of Elk river at the public
charge of the said county, which petition
was granted, and John Thomas was given
the contract for building the bridges which
he constructed some time during that or
the following year, for he presented petit
ton to the court at its session just year
afterwards, in which he states that "not
well considering the value of building the
said bridges at the time of agreeing for
the building of the same, he finds a great
deal more work than he expected & humbly
prays that the court would order two dis
Greet persons to view the said bridges &
make report of the same to the worshpful
court of the value of building Them with
which report he promised to be contented.
The court, after maturely considering"
the petition, ordered that he be paid 1000
pounds of tobacco, in accordance with his
no hrlI