Newtown Township.

parts which were assigned to the purchasers of outlying lands in the township to correspond with the number of acres bought by these, it is unnecessary to specify the names of the several owners of the "new town," or village, as it was called.

The taxables in 1715 in Newtown township were as follows:

Daniel Williamson, Reece Howell, William Bevan, David Thomas, William Phillips, Thomas Reece, John Reece, Jr., Lewis Reece, Lewis Lewis, Evan Lewis, William Lewis, John Reece, John Ffawkes, Morgan James, Lawrence Peirce, Daniel Williamson, John Williamson, James Price, John Meredith, Edward Thomas, William Thomas.

Freemen. - John Goodwin, Adam Treheall.

In 1799 the following was the return made of the taxables in the township at that date:

William Beaumont, George Bishop, Joseph Bishop, John Brooke, George Blake, Jonathan Bonsall, Thomas Bones, Amos Thomas, Thomas Courtney, Samuel Caley, Abram Calvert, Elizabeth Dunn, Nathan Davis, Joseph Davis (carpenter), Edward Evans, Joseph Esrey (carpenter), John Esrey, Evan Evans (weaver), John Fawkes, Joseph Fawkes, John Free, Abraham Free (shop-keeper), Richard Fawkes, John Garrett (joiner), James Gorman, John Fairlamb, Edward Hunter (justice of the peace), John Hunter, George Hunter, Joseph Hood (cutler), James Jones, John Jorman, Lewis Lewis, Henry Lewis, Azariah Lewis, Didymus Lewis, Evan Lewis, John Lewis, Joseph Lewis (wheelwright), David Lewis (tanner and shop-keeper), Jesse Lewis (mason), Thomas Moore, Abner Moore, Thomas Moore (joiner), Robert Mendenhall, Jonas Preston (physician), Gill Pennington, George Sites, Jesse Reece, Owen Shelton (shop-keeper), Hezekiah Thomas, Thomas Thomas, Jonathan Thomas, Ahiah Thomas, Gideon Thomas (cordwainer), Thomas Thomas (tailor and shop-keeper), Ezra Thomas (wheelwright), John Thompson (weaver), Isaac Thomas, Jr., Margaret Vernon, William Vandebee, John Williamson, Enos Williamson, Walter Williamson.

Inmates. - Joseph Thomas (carpenter), Hannah Hunter, Mary Reece, Rachel Matron, Jenkin Lewis, Elizabeth Lewis, John Steel (weaver).

Single Freemen. - Aaron Russell (weaver), Cadwallader Evans, Edward Evans, Samuel Fawkes (chairmaker), John Williamson, Samuel Lisle, Elias Baker (carpenter), Thomas Thomas, David Lewis, Anthony Matson, Elijah Matson, Nathan Robins, Lewis Reece, Jesse Lewis, Phineas Lewis, George Lewis (millwright), Jorman Hunter, James Crawford, John Logan, William Matson, Alexander Morrison, William Fulton, Jonas Alexander, Levis Maris (cordwainer), Michael Thomas (cordwainer), George Mace (cordwainer), Reece Thomas, Samuel Thomas (millwright), Richard Thomas (millwright), Richard Hood, Andrew McClellan, James Ramage (mason), Robert Berry, William Harlow, Jacob Dunn, Thomas Blake, Ezra Thomas (wheelwright).

Incidents of the Revolution. - During the Revolution, Newtown was several times visited by the foraging parties of the English army. After the interrupted battle near Goshen Friends' meeting-house, and the day previous to the massacre of Paoli, the enemy dashed into Newtown and carried off from the defenseless citizens considerable property. Capt. John Montressor records, under date of Sept. 19, 1777, "Lt. Col. Harcourt with a party of dragoons and Light Infantry made an Excursion on the Philadelphia road and brought in 150 horses, which were much wanted, got from New Town square 6 miles from hence. They took, likewise, one captain and 8 rebel prisoners."¹ In December, 1777, when Cornwallis made his three days' raid into Chester County, extending along the Schuylkill as far as Matson's Ferry, some of the British soldiers entered Newtown, and well maintained the account given of the action of the British troops on that occasion, "Robing and plundering every person they came across." To such an extent was this carried that Gen. James Potter indignantly records, "My penn cant describe there Barbarity and Crualty, nor can you conseve the waste and Destruction that attended there futsteps every where they go."² The damage inflicted on the residents of Newtown during these raids is poorly represented in the list of claims recorded of spoliation done by the British, for much being taken from Friends, no demand was ever made for compensation under the act of Assembly. The following are the claims which were presented, but never paid:

² Penna. Archives, 1st Series, vol. vi. p. 97.

At the dwelling of Mr. Lewis, on the Goshen road, to the west of old Newtown Square, were the American outposts and headquarters of Gen. James Potter, or as he terms it in a letter to President Wharton, on Nov. 13, 1777, "from the camp at Mr. Lewes." At this house Maj. John Clarke, Jr., of Gen. Greene's staff, who was ordered to keep Washington supplied with information of the movements of the enemy, also made his headquarters, for many of his letters to Washington are written therefrom. Although Lewis does not appear among the list of persons who had suffered by the war, we have actual information that he had lost largely by the presence of the enemy, for on the afternoon of Dec. 3, 1777, before Cornwallis' raid, Maj. Clarks writes, "On the 16th of September last, Baron Arendt took a mare from my landlord, valued at £100, and promised to return her next day, but has never done it. Mr. Lewis begs he may be ordered to do it, as the enemy has taken the remainder of his creatures and he has done me many services for the United States. I have given his complaint a place in this letter and beg leave to recommend him as a person worthy of compassion."³ At noon, on Dec. 12, 1777, Maj. Clarks wrote from Gen. Potter's headquarters at Lewes, "That a large body of the enemy was on the march to Darby, the numbers uncertain but formidable. At eight o'clock this morning about twenty dragoons of the enemy came up to the Fox Chase to give the alarm, and they then took the route to Darby."

Fitzpatrick, the noted outlaw, frequently visited Newtown, it being on the direct road to Philadelphia. One day, in the spring of 1778, it is related that Fitzpatrick, carrying a pistol in each hand, entered the bar-room of the old Newtown Square Tavern, then kept by Andrew Wilson, when several persons were present. He laid one pistol on the bar while he drank the liquor he had called for, then picking up the pis-