Carroll County democrat. (Huntingdon, Tenn.) 188?-1971, 1913-08-08
LINN R1RzY N e0Ezn0e.5 N4.A20

thls was set asde 10y th5 assembly being =
Of the Denizen of His Majesties Fort at New
York for the Benefit and Accommodation of His
Majestie's Governors and Commanders in Chief
for the Time Being" After this 1t became known
in familiar parlance as Governors Island, but not
all at once in legal documents.
In its early history 1t 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 as being universally detested" prin-
cipally for his questionable dealings In regard to
this piece of land which the people at large were
already beginning to cherish for its beauty and
utility
In 1910 the island served, in fact II not in name
as the first quarantine post of the province and
in that same year shipoads of "Palatines," re-
ligious refugees were housed there, "the proper
est place for their sickness and poverty" said
Queen Anne, who financed them parsimoniously
One Of these immigrants Peter zenger was the
first citizen to vindicate 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 (17S0) and an act Of March T. 1888, included
it In the county. 1t was in 1856 that 1t 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 we're the
Royal Americans, His Majesty's Sixty-frst Regi-
ment of Foot under Lord Loudoun and His Ma.
jesty's Twenty-second and Fortyfourth Regiments
of Foot. Details Of their life were found by the
historian referred to in the private library of Col
onel Fitz-Clarence, Earl of Munster, who commit
ted suicide (1842), and in the English army rec
ords 1754-1S42. These regiments are in name ex-
listing today, and the leader of the band who
played at the garden party of the Army Relief
t.
officers.
In 1865 the first fortihcation was built in 1875
a Strong Castle" was erected General Putnam
writing at this time to the president of congress
speaks Of 1t as a 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 it "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 e. 1875, the Liberty boys came
back under cover Of the darkness and right under
the noses of the victorious enemy secured NUM-
tons and food
Tradition says that Governor Clinton loaned
the island once for race course 1784-5).
In 1894 ferry was established which took pas
sengers at threepence a head The one in use
now averages 10000 passengers a month
That year congress appropriated $3727.52 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 on the works
In 1888 the faculty and students of Columbia
college, repeating their patriotic work in Harlem.
came down to Governors Island with pickaxes
and shovels to. help erect breastworks when one
Of the French war scares aroused local fears and
inspired the call for harbor defense In 1880 it
was ceded by the State of New York to the
United States, and in 1921 the Federal military
headquarters were transferred there.