Hester Krom-Johnson

GEDCOM Note

From Cornelius Bevier's Diary

"Went to Wawarsing with a load of rye to mill for father. Stopped at the tavern, took a drink, and got some tobacco. Some of Captain Cortland's soldiers were there and drinking hard; some got drunk and they had to take their guns away; two of then tackled Tewn Osterhoudt because he wouldn't treat but they were so drunk that he throwed both of them and choked one of them pretty badly.

Went to the Fort with some potatoes. Sam went with me. Heard that Indian tracks had been seen above Honk Falls. Coon Bevier said he could outrun any living Indian, and hoped they would try to catch him.

All woke up by guns. Heard them shoot toward Fantinekill. After breakfast saw some smoke that way like a building. Heard there were Indians. Jesse's dog came down here and after a while Captain Cortland's soldiers came up and father went with them, with all the men toward Fantinekill and left us all alone. We heard them shoot after they had been gone about an hour and we heard the Indians yell and then we all started for the mountain. Sam and I took the silver mugs, the spoons, and some money and started for over the mountain. More than twenty people came with us because we knew the path over and they all carried their best things with them. We stopped by the spring and looked down and saw the fire at Mike Sock's and heard them shoot at Jesse's. Black Bob came up to us on the path. He said he had run from the Fantinekill and that the Indians had killed them all. We all started on foot as we could go and went along the mountain to Maratanza Pond and then hid all the silver and other things we could in the sand and them Sam and I went over to the house of Mentz and rested. Mrs. Mentz gave us some milk. They were all scared. When we got to the pond we went to the edge of the rocks and looked again. All the fire was out except John Bodley's house which smoked yet; we thought we could hear some shooting, but not sure. We went over to Shawangunk and told the people. Sam and I were bare-footed and outran most of the others until I hurt my foot in the burnt wood about Napanoch and it make me lame. In the night some of our folks came over, and said that the Indians had gone, and that som eof the people were lost in the mountains.

I went back over the mountain and rode part of the way on a horse as my foot was lame. We went down to Fantinekill and found the houses burned except Jesse Bevier's which was partly burnted but the solders drove the Indians off.

They had killed all Mike Sock's family before the soldiers came. It looked terrible around there."

Bevier, Katherine, The Bevier Family: A History of the Descendants of Louis Bevier Who Came from France to America in 1675 After a Sojourn of Ten Years in the Palatinate and Settled in New Paltz, New York. (New York: Tobias A. Wright, 1916) 41-43.