Nathaniel Palmer (1753 - 1826)

Born 3 Apr 1753 in North Salem, Westchester, Province of New York

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Rowland) Palmer — married about 1777 in Dutchess County, Province of New York [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 15 Feb 1826 at age 72 in Lysander, Onondaga, New York

Biography

Nathaniel Palmer served with New York during the American Revolution.

Nathaniel is the son of Hannah (Rundle) and Jonathan Palmer. He was born 3 April 1753 in North Salem, Westchester, NY,^[1] which is located about 50 miles north of New York City on the east side of the Hudson River. He moved with his parents first to Dutchess County, NY by 1761 (his father appears that year in a VT land record "of Dutchess County") and then to the Town of Coxsackie, Albany County by 1777 (the year his brother Jonathan enlisted in the militia from Catskill, Albany County). Coxsackie, north of Catskill at that time, was part of Albany County until 1800. Both towns were located on the west bank of the Hudson River and reached back from the river for about fifteen to twenty miles. By 1802, the area of Coxsackie the Palmers settled on became part of the Town of Greenville, Greene County.

Nathaniel married Elizabeth Rowland by 1778 (based on the year of birth of oldest child, Rowland), probably in Albany County or possibly Dutchess County. The earliest record of Nathaniel in Albany County is found in 1780 in the Coxsackie District Tax List.^[2] Nathaniel is found in the 1790 US Census in the Town of Coxsackie, Albany County, NY (now the Town of Greenville, Greene County).^[3]Nathaniel "was a blacksmith by trade,"^[4]as well as a farmer.

Children of Elizabeth and Nathaniel include:

1. Rowland (1779 - 1862) married 1st Lydia Blakeslee, 2nd Martha Cole
2. Phoebe (c. 1779 - 1851) married Ephraim E. Bogardus
3. John (1781 - 1877) married Lucinda Jumph
4. Smith (c.1785 - 1865-70) married 1st ?, 2nd Hannah
5. Anna (c.1788 - 1880) married James Palmer (her 1st cousin)
6. Oliver S (c.1789 - c.1877) married Chloe Palmer (his 1st cousin)
7. Nathaniel (1793 - aft. 1827) married 1st Matilda Blakeslee, 2nd Elizabeth
8. Mary (1795 - 1872) married John H. Lamson
9. Gilbert (1797 - ) married 1st ?, 2nd Ann Pitts
10. Hannah (c.1800 - c.1876) married William R. Stewart
11. Jonathan (1801 - 1848) married Amanda Wilcox

Another daughter, Elizabeth born c.1796, is included in Palmer Families in America by Horace W. Palmer in his biography of Nathaniel. However after further research, I believe that he is incorrect (see the note in her profile). Until definitive evidence is found, I have left her connected to Nathaniel.

It is believed that Nathaniel served in the militia during the Revolutionary War. His name is found in the Revolutionary War Names card file located in the Vedder Research Library, Coxsackie, NY. Most importantly, his son John shared the story that his father was one of the men who assisted in forging the large chain that stretched across the Hudson River below West Point to prevent the British boats from sailing up the river in a book published during his life time.^[4][5] There does not appear to be a military record for Nathaniel in any NY regiment, although he probably served in the 11th Albany Co. Regiment with his brothers. "His old flint-lock gun used by him was in 1923 in the possession of Rufus Morse Palmer of North Star, Mich."^[1]

Nathaniel does not appear on the 1810 US census in the Town of Coxsackie, but according to Beer's History of Greene County published in 1884, the list was in a "dilapidated condition and within a few years will probably become illegible."^[6] According to Beer's, the 1810 census is "the earliest census of Greene county existing among its records." Nathaniel is found on the List of Taxable Property in the town of Greenville, Greene County, NY for 1813. This record shows that he owned 120 acres, 1 house and 2 out-houses with a total value of $2,160.^[7] Other Palmers found on the tax list of 1813 are "James Jr. Palmer", "Benajah Palmer" and "Mathew Palmer".

At the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, his brother Jonathan Jr., in lieu of payment for his service, was granted land in central New York through the Military Bounty Land drawing. In 1793, Jonathan brought his family to his 600 acres of land in central New York, to the Town of Lysander, and settled there.^[5]This act would prove to be fortuitous for Nathaniel and his family.

When brother Jonathan died without an heir, about 1813, Nathaniel Palmer "of Greene County", was granted the administration of his brother's estate.^[8] By the spring of 1816,^[9] Nathaniel moved his family to the Lysander property on Lot No. 36. Nine of his eleven children (Anna and Smith remained in Greene County) would either come with him or follow him eventually to Lysander with their families. In the years to come, parts of the lot were sold to most of his children and other Palmer nieces and nephews coming from Greene County. They in turn divided his estate among themselves.^[1]So many Palmers moved into the area in the early 1800's that it was named "Palmertown" for a time. With the establishment of the Post Office about 1850, the hamlet was renamed Jacksonville in honor of recently elected President Jackson.^[9]

Nathaniel is found in the 1820 US Census for Lysander. The population of the town at that time was 1,723. Found on the same census page as Nathaniel are his sons Rowland, John, Oliver and Gilbert.^[10]

Nathaniel died in 1826 in Lysander, New York at the age of 73.^[1] He is buried in the Jacksonville Rural Cemetery in Lysander, NY.^[11]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Palmer, Horace Wilbur. Palmer Families in America, Neshanic Print Co., Neshanic, NJ, 1966, V I, p 348-50. Note: Mr. Palmer collected the information for his books over a period of fifty years beginning in the early 1900's. The basis of his work is taken from Dr. Byron Palmer's research, family record requests solicited by him, town records and church records. Most important is his examination of deeds, mortgages, wills and administrations throughout NY, NJ, CT, MA, PA, DE, VT, NH & ME.
2. ↑ Coxsackie District Tax List, Albany County, NY, 1780, located in the Vedder Research Library, Coxsackie, NY (accessed 16 July 2019)
3. ↑ United States Census, 1790; Census Place: Coxsackie, Albany, New York; Series: M637; Roll: 6; Page: 167; Image: 98; Family History Library Film: 0568146. Nathaniel Palmer. Ancestry.com. 1790 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

   1 male age 16 & up (Nathaniel), 4 males under 16 (Rowland, John, Smith, Oliver), 6 females including heads of families (includes Elizabeth, Phoebe, Anna)

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Johnson, Crisfield. History of Oswego County, New York, with Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers, L.H.Everts & Co, Philadelphia, 1877, p 465. [1]
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Bruce, Dwight H., ed. Onondaga's Centennial. Gleanings of a Century, Boston History Company, Boston, MA, 1896, V I, p 166. [2]
6. ↑ Beers, J. B., History of Greene County, New York, with Biographical Sketches of Its Prominent Men, George Macnamara, NY, 1884, pp 37-8. [3]
7. ↑ List of Taxable Property of Greene County, NY, 1813, located in the Vedder Research Library, Coxsackie, NY (accessed 16 July 2019).
8. ↑ Onondaga County, NY, Deed Book Vol 4 : 20, Syracuse, NY, 7 July 1813, as transcribed from Horace W. Palmer's, Palmer Families in America, p 358.
9. ↑ ^{9.0 9.1} 50 Miles of Waterfront by L. Pearl Palmer, The Messenger, Baldwinsville, NY, 29 August 1947, p 7. Note: The source of this article was the great-great granddaughter of Nathaniel Palmer, Flossie (Palmer) Davis of Fulton, NY. The writer, L. Pearl Palmer, was the Town of Lysander historian and writer of many local history pieces. She credits Flossie for her "very complete" research.

   "Nathaniel Palmer and Elizabeth, his wife, of Lysander, sell to Oliver S. Palmer 46 acres of Lot No. 45, consideration ... $230... April 29, 1816."

10. ↑ United States Census, 1820; Census Place: Lysander, Onondaga, New York; Page: 195; NARA Roll: M33_67; Image: 211. Nathaniel Palmer. Ancestry.com. 1820 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Images reproduced by FamilySearch.

    1 male age 16 to 25, 1 male 45 and over (Nathaniel), 1 female under 10, 1 female 16 to 25, 1 female 45 and over (Elizabeth)

11. ↑ Find A Grave, memorial page for Nathaniel Palmer (1753–15 Feb 1826), Find A Grave Memorial no. 33022299, citing Jacksonville Rural Cemetery, Lysander, Onondaga County, New York, USA. (accessed 08 July 2019) [4]