Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1913-08-08

this was set aside BY the assembly as being Part
of the Denizen of His Majesties Fort at New
York for the Benefit and Accommodation OF His
Majesties Governors and Commanders in Chief
for the Time Being" After this it became known
in familiar parlance as Governors Island, but not
all at in legal documents
In It's early history it furnished examples OF
rapine and graft which put TO shame the efforts
of the present day One of the early governors
Lord Cornbury, cousin of Queen Anne comes
down to us being universally detested" prin-
cipally for his questionable dealings in regard to
this piece Of land which the people at large were
already begrnng to cherish for its beauty ana
utility.
In ITO the island served in fact If not in NAME
as the first quarantine post of the province and
in that same year shiploads of "Palatines" re-
ligfous refugees, were housed there the proper.
est place for their sickness and poverty" said
Queen Anne who financed them parsimoniousy
One of these immigrants, Peter Zenger, was the
FIRST citizen to vindcate publicly the freedom Of
the press and personal liberty
Nutten Island Governors was made part of
the city Of New York by the Montgomery char
ter (1730) and an act of March T. 1883, included
it in the county. 1t in 1855 that it first full
filled its manifest destiny as a military post
From 1855 to 1873 there were several royal regi-
ments OF England living there These were the
Royal Americans, His Majesty's Sixty-first Regi-
ment of Foot under Lord Loudoun and His Ma
jesty's Twenty-second and Forty-fourth Regiments
OF Foot. Details of their life found by the
historian referred to in the private library of Col
onei tz-Clarence, Earl OF Munster. who commit
ted suicide (l842), and in the English army
ords 1754-1642. These regiments are in name
listing today. and the leader of the band who
played at the garden party Of the Army Relief
society is a iineai descendant OF one of the
officers.
In 1866 the NATURALIZATION was built in f776
Strong Castle erected General Putnam
writing at this time to the president of congress
speaks of it ''as very important post" Wash.
ington wrote OF Its strong works" the New York
Gazette referred to the thousand Continental men
stationed there; Lord Stirling considered ii bet
ter guarded than any other post" The brothers
Howe stayed there until the evacuation of New
York.
After the battle OF Long Island and the British
victory, August 81 1875 the Liberty" boys came
back under cover of the darkness and right under
the noses of the victorious enemy secured NUM-
lions and food
Tradition says that Governor Clinton loaned
the island once for race course (1TS4-5)
In 1894 ferry established which took mas
sengers at threepence head The one in use
averages $4,000 passengers a month
That year congress appropriated sS.72752 for
the islands defenses. In 1896 the works were
dignifed as forts. and about this date Knox re-
ports "On Governors Island. one Fashioned square.
commanding two low batteries quite finished
Between 1894 and 1906 more than $4,000 was
expended the works.
In 1898 the faculty and students OF Columh,aS
college, repeating their patriotic work In Harlem
came down to Governors Island with pickaxes
and shovels to help erect hreastworks when one
OF the French war scares aroused local fears and
inspired the call forsharbor defense In 1850 n
was ceded by the State of New York 10 the
United States, and in 1921 the Federal military
headquarters we're transferred there