The Caucasian. (Shreveport, La.) 1900-192?, 1910-02-01

Woody pOgt SuNt SoHiS mum anu
a Few Blankets For $500 Acres.
Colonel John Lyon Gardiner, vet
eran of the civil war and for many
years owner of Gardeners island. In
Long Island sound. who recently died
at the home of his brother Nathan L..
Gardiner, in Easthampton, N. Y. was
sixty-nine years old and until recently
had spent many years of his life on
the island. which came into the pos.
session of the Gardiner family In 1889.
Mr. Gardiner was born In 1871 at
Easthampton. N. Y. He was gradual
ed from Columbia Law school In 1858
and admitted to the bar In 1896. In
the war of the rebellion he was lieu
tenant colonel of the Sixteenth regi.
ment, Sixth brigade, Second division,
national guard of New York, and be
came colonel In 1868 He was a lineal
descendant of Lord Lion Gardiner Of
GARDENERS island
Rouuht From an indian Chief.
GARDENERS island has a romantic his
tory. It was the first settlement With
In the present limits Of the state OF
New York It's founder. Lion Gardi-
ner, purchased 1t of Wyandauch. chief
of the Manhanketts, the great sacheIn
Of Long Island in 1850, and the price
he paid was one large black dog, one
gun, some powder and shot, some rum
aud few Dutch blankets, in value
about Go. In the same year Lion Gar
diner took up his residence there, and
III the following year the island was
secured to him by a grant of the Earl
of Sterling Since that time the prop
erty has been In the hands of the
Gardiner family, descending directly
through all these years from father
to son, possibly the only and Oldest
property In the United States which
has so passed.
Lion Gardiner. first proprietor and
lord of the manor, was an educated
Englishman of distinguished lineage.
He was born In 1900 and died IN 1868
III Eastbampton He had been an en-
.giueer in the English army, had served
with Lord Fairfax in the Netherlands
and had been made master of works
of Notifications In the camp Of Fred.
erick Henry. prince of Orange" He
came to America In 1886, In the en-
ploy of company of English noble
men, to build a city at the mouth of
the Connecticut river where eventual
~ he built and later commanded with
signal ability the Saybrook fort through
the perils of the great pequot war
He also built the first fort in Boston.
which continued in use until after the
Revolution. Ills son. David, was the
first white child born in Connecticut
and bis daughter Elizabeth was the
first child of English parentage born
In New York
First Called Isle of Wight.
Becoming dissatisfied with the man.
agement of affairs on both sides of
the Atlantic. he coveted an empire of
his own and purchased the island
which he called the Isle of Wight, but
now bears his name. 1t is nine miles
long. one and one-half miles wide aud
contains $500 acres, four miles from
the eastern extremity of Long Island.
The island was constituted in Lion
Gardeners time IAN entirely separate
and independent plantation, in nowise
upon either New England
or New York and In reality an isolated
miniature principality. In 1883 his
sons received the last patent erecting
the tlordship and manor of Gardeners
island" with all the privileges ac-
corded such institutions In England.
The island was held through eight
generations of unbroken descent as
an entailed and Independent barony
until its final annexation to the state
of New York By legislative act of
March I, 1888
PIundered by Spanish Pirates.
After the first lords death Gardi.
ner's island passed through some ex.
citing experiences Captain Kidd land
ed there OH one Of his treasure bury
ing expeditions and planted lots of
plate. which was afterward dlscoy-
cred and transferred to the colony of
The island was plum
dered by Spanish pirates In the trou-
bled days of the eighteenth century.
The manor was ravaged by British In
che Revolution During the war of 1912
q British feet dropped into Gardeners
bay. and the feet captain took toll of
Ri the provisions he could find on the
island; but. aside from that. no depre.
dations were made
In East Hampton Colonel John Lyon
Gardiner and others of the family
erected tomb for Lord Lion Gardi-
aer. the first Of the islands owners.
Ehere. iii arnlor. lies the recumbent
figure Of the soldier who found pur-
blasting value in a large woolly black
log back in The days OF Wyandauch.
he sachem.