The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-10-25
Mr.. TOLERS EYE ON BILLIONS.
AND HE'S no HAVE A QUARTER
OF THE POT, IF HE WINS.
$3.50. NM, OOO the Estimated Profit or .
Wall street broker and N-Scientist
When the New Harlem Waterfront
Gets to Its RiEhtful Owners-Fas Put
" SlOO.ODO Genealogical Bureau.


Gets to Its RiEhtful Owners-Has Put
" 500. ono Genealogical Bureau.
Henry Pennington Tolcr may be remem-
bered as the most daring gambler In real
estate that New York has ever known.
Playing with chips for which nearly slOO. 900
OF his own money has paid, the stake he Is
to win OF lose is enormous.
Some say that the value of the property
is 81, 600 900 900. That is as good an est innate
as any The property consists of the water
| fronts along the East and Harlem rivers,
| from Seventy-fourth street to Spuyten Duy-
| vii Creek, the north shore OF Manhattan
Island and the waterfront along the Hudson,
| from the north end of the island to 10th
street, together with much of the land lying
| between.
! Back in the days when this island Of
Manhattan was the property of monarchs
over the seas, that part of it lying north Of
lire extending from Seventy fourth street
! and the East River to l29th street and the
| Hudson River was known as the town OF
| New HARLEM BY grants OF two English
Governors, Nicolls and Dongan, 1t was
! coded to twenty-three freeholders OF the
| corporation.
They were: John Delavall. Resolved
| Waldron, Joost van Obinus. Daniel Tour
| neur. Adolph Meyer, John Spragge. Jan
| Hendricks Brevoort, Jan Delamater, Isaac
Deamater, Barent Waldron, Johannes
Vermelje, Lawrence Jansen Qow). Peter
van Oblinus, Jan Dykeman, Jan Nagel,
Aren't Haramnse (Bussing). Cornelius
Jansen (KortrighU, Jacqueline Tourneur.
Hester Delamater Johannes verveelen.
William Haldron, Abraham Montanie, Petor
Parmenter.
These royal grants insured tho citizens
Of New HARLEM in the possession Of their
homesteads, but they did not include, ao-
cording to Mr.. Toler the present water
fronts, which are made lands 1t Is asserted,
therefore, that the present owners OF the
waterfront property are really squatters.
The legal principle on which this conten-
ton is based has never been raised before,
it is said. 1t is asserted that under the
grants of Nicolls and Dongan corporation
known as the Town of New HARLEM was
created. and to that corporation and not to
individual residents therein was granted the
property within theltown limits.
1t is asserted that the corporation never
alenated its original rights to anybody
that its existence has never terminated
and that it holds to-day all Of the prop
erty which it acquired by royal patent
except SO much as it disposed of by regu-
larly recorded deeds. Therefore, It IL
asserted that the tract which used to be
known as the Town Of New HARLEM. ex-
oept such portions as the original patentees
disposed Of liz owned by the descendants
of those patentees
1t was two years ago that Mr.. Toler
became interested in an investigation OF
the titles to property in New Haarlem.
He had gone but little way when 1t seemed
to him that the property was held by a
great many persons who had no legal title
to it. The law firm Of Toler 4 Nutting, Of
which his brother William Pennington
Toler is the senior member, looked the
matter up and told him that he was right
about it.. Thereupon, he decided to quit
the Stock Exchange, Of which he was
member, and to devote himself to recover
ing the New HARLEM lands from their
present owners.
In order to get at the basic facts for
litigation, it was necessary that all the
descendants. or as many as could be found,
of the original twenty-three patentees,
should be traced. To do that Mr.. Toler
equipped bureau for the purpose OF trac-
ing genealogies'
That bureau Is now doing its work in
part in the Exchange Court Building,
and in part at a Broadway. All told,
he has on payroll, including genealogists,
copyists, stenographers and other clerks.
something more than fifty men and women.
The tracing of the descendants Of tho
patentees has taken the tracers to Eng
land, the Netherlands and France. to India,
Africa, South America and the Philippine
Islands. 1t is estimated that there are
10000 of these descendants, and up to last
week &c, 900 had been run down.
The expense Of all the work so far has
been borne by Mr.. Toler, and the expense
of any litigation that may be started will
be borne by him. II the litigation sue
ceeds he is to receive rs per cent Of the net
proceeds. If the value Of the property in
question is $4,000, 900 600, MIR. Toler would
receive $3.50 600
Mr.. Toler has proceeded 80 far In his
work that he has called a meeting OF the
descendants VI bIic patSiiOS'' W ~ 41~'> ''-
Nov. 80. in the hall of the Casino Com
pany at 124th street and Seventh avenue.
Technically, the descendants have been
called together for the purpose Of holding
a town meeting. This is on the theory that
the Town of New HARLEM Is still In eS-
istence, and that no business can be trans
acted. relative to the town as a whole,
except through the agency OF a town
meeting.
From this meeting Mr.. Toler expects
To obtain authority to begin the proper
litigation. Within month after the meet
ing. Toler & Nutting will institute IN the
United States Circuit Court for the South
ern district of New York test suit against
some one of the present holders OF the
property in question.
The holders of the disputed property
In ch,de some Of the Wealthiest OF New
Works land owners The Rhinehnd"r
and Aston estates have large holdings IN
thp territory. as have former Vice. Prrsl-
dent Morton, Russell Sage, the lum'Y
Church CORPORATION, the Christian brothers,
the De Pcyster, Sche rnerhorrl, Bro@hl"LSt
and Cutting estates, the Cohs'u carl
Gas COMPANY, the Interurban Street Ran
wev Company, MontefiOre Home, ~.
Hebrew Orphan Asylum, the Convent I
the sacred Heart and the House Of Mrr'"'
not To sneak of the New York Central kal,-
road and the Manhattan Elevated E-'~
NJ Tolar was horn in Newark in lFh