The Antirent Wars

America! The Home of the Brave and the Land of the Free!

Yet the land was anything but free. Most land was owned by wealthy aristocrats, descended from those who had been given grants in colonial times. In the South, even many of our Founding Fathers (e.g. Washington and Jefferson) held large plantations which were worked by slave labor. In the Hudson Valley, the feudal manors persisted.

What?! Feudalism in Free America?! But wasn't feudalism a European thing? And hadn't it died a long time before America came into being?

Yes, yes, and yes.

Even though feudalism had died in England and Netherlands, the Dutch reinstituted it here in New Netherlands. In order to settle the Hudson River Valley, the Dutch West India Company granted land--and full government of it--to anyone who would bring 50 families to settle that land.

Not only did that system get established under the Dutch, when the English took over the colony (renaming it New York), they confirmed the Dutch patents and retained them. After the Revolution, the lords of the manors simply applied new terminology and became landlords.

But by the 1830s, the tenants were realizing the unfairness of this system. They had worked to clear and improve land that they could never own; their only choice was to keep working that land (not profitable), hope to find land elsewhere (not likely)--or to try to change the system (which was to prove costly).

In Bernville (now hamlet of Berne) in 1839, a handful of such tenants met and agreed to put their demands to Patroon Stephen Van Rensselaer IV. Representatives went to meet with the Patroon in May. They were not warmly received.

That was the beginning of years of struggle, not only in Berne, but in all of the Upper Hudson area, a struggle not without sacrifice, and not without bloodshed. But it changed our American way of life.

The tenants were rising up against a system which had started over two hundred years earlier with the settlement of the Dutch colony of New Netherlands. Killian Van Rensselaer was a wealthy merchant in Holland who joined with others, in 1629, to obtain a charter for the Dutch West India Company to settle this new colony.

To further advance his fortune (and to meet the government's demand for settlement), he proposed that land be given to anyone who would bring in fifty settlers. Each such landholder would have the title of Patroon and he would have sole ownership and control over the land granted to him. Killian took full advantage of this plan. His land holdings centered around the city we call Albany today.

When the British took possession of the colony about 30 years later, the laws regarding land ownership remained intact. By the time of the Revolution, the land and title had passed to Stephen Van Rensselaer III, grandson of Killian. The manor was still called Rensselaerwyck (Dutch for Rensselaer Manor).

Stephen realized that much of the manor was not settled. To make the manor profitable, he needed settlers to move in, clear the land, build homes and barns, mills and roads. But people needed a good reason to leave their already-established farms, neighbors, and friends behind and trek through the wilderness to an unseen, unknown territory and begin their lives again.

On the other hand, many had a certain need to move. The flat, fertile Hudson River valley lands had been settled early. The settlers had had large farms and very large families. The extra hands were needed to help the family survive. But as was the tradition, the Elder upon making his will would divide the farm land between his sons. His sons in turn would do the same when the time came. Many of the farms had become so small that the farmers were not able to support their families or their animals. Also, certain heavily populated areas, such as Duchess County, were severely damaged by the British during the War. Churches, town halls, schools, homes and barns had been destroyed by fire during the British campaign. The residents began to wonder if it was worthwhile to rebuild where they were or if they should move on to more open land.

This situation provided a wonderful opportunity for Stephen Van Rensselaer. He sent out notices advertising his land, offering 120 acres free to any settler who would clear it and improve upon it for seven years. Upon completion of the seven years, the tenant would be given a lease.

Thousands of families accepted Van Rensselaer's offer. However, details of the lease were not made available at the time of signing on. They would not see the terms of their leases until the free seven years had passed, and they had already cleared and improved the land.

The final "sales agreement" offered by Van Rensselaer enraged the homesteaders. After seven years of hard work and hardships, they discovered that ultimately they did not own their farms free and clear. Steven Van Rensselaer III had misled them. Although Feudalism had been outlawed by New York State in 1782, it was still in full operation here with its incomplete sale, quarter sale, rent payments, day's labor and the Patroon's reserve of water, mineral and timber rights. Also, real estate taxes were the responsibility of the tenant. Their final "sales agreement" was called an "Indenture," nothing more than the durable lease from which their ancestors had fled in the old world.

Soon farmers began talking, secretly, among themselves. They met in the woods after dark far from their farms to avoid detection by agents and non-sympathizers. Even though the Patroon did not press the tenants for the terms of the leases, there were still hard feelings, and the Patroon knew not to go into the manor without armed guards.

When the "good" Patroon, Stephen Van Rensselaer III, died early in 1839, the situation became much worse. Stephen's will directed that his debts be paid from back rents (about $400,000.) Stephen IV inherited the part of the manor west of the Hudson River, including the hilltowns. (The manor was split between Stephen IV and his brother William, because primogeniture had been outlawed in New York. William took over the East Manor.)

Realizing this new threat the tenants decided to hold a formal meeting.

In the spring of 1839 a meeting was held in the Hamlet of Bern (Town of Bern, now Berne) and a committee of representatives was selected to meet with Stephen Van Rensselaer IV. <Lawrence Van Deusen> was selected as chairman of those representatives. Others noted in attendance included <Edgar Schoonmaker>, <Hugh Scott>, <Joseph Connor>, <John F. Shafer>, <Dennison Fish>, <Lawrence Fenner> and <Isaac Hoag>. On May 22, they visited the Manor office in Watervliet to speak with Van Rensselaer but he refused them audience. After the Patroon refused to hear their proposal in person, the committee adjourned to an Albany tavern, and drew up a proposal outlining what they thought was a fair and equitable way to purchase their farms outright, free and clear of their durable leases.

Later that summer a letter was sent to Van Deusen in which Van Rensselaer declined any terms or negotiations and demanded payment in full of all back rents at threat of eviction. This was the official beginning of the Anti-Rent Wars in the Helderbergs.

The Anti-Renters consisted mostly of two types of farmers: Those with good soil and productive farms who could afford to pay but chose not to because of the "incomplete sale"; and those with poor soil who could not produce enough to feed their families and the Patroon. But they all banded together to prepare to meet Van Rensselaer's threats with action. Writs of Ejectment were soon issued and Undersheriff Adams was sent to the hilltowns to serve notice on <Paul Vincent>, <Hugh Scott>, <Jacob Wright>, <Isaac Willsey>, <James Leggett>, <Peter Powell>, <Richard C. Fowler>, <Andres Onderdonck>, <David Smith>, <Jacob J. Dietz>, <John Jost Shaver>, <John Shaver> and <Peter Tarbush>. However, the Undersheriff had no idea what awaited him in the hilltowns. The Anti-Renters were strong, hardy men, survivors, made such from years of developing their farms; but they preferred to settle this matter peacefully and without incident. Their desire was to own the land upon which they had built their farms, raised their families and buried their kin. As Undersheriff Adams approached the first farm he heard the sound of tin dinner horns and was greeted with harsh, threatening words. The same scene would be repeated at each stop he made, perhaps reinforced by the sight of a pitchfork or club. The tin horns would grow louder and in greater number as he made his rounds. By day's end, Undersheriff Adams had not served one single "Writ of Ejectment". He was totally unnerved by the resounding horns and verbal abuse he had endured that day and made quick retreat off the mountain. It appeared that the Anti-Renters had won the first of many skirmishes.

My Fathers' People, posted on the Berne History site at
http://bernehistory.org/local/osterhoudt.htm

Barnard, Daniel Dewey 1797-1861.
"Anti-Rent" movement and outbreak in New York.
1846

Account by a "patrician" politician of the Antirent Wars. (See Penney, below, for biography of this reporter.)

Christiansen, Candace.

Calico and tin horns
New York: Dial Books, c1992.
Juvenile fiction: Hannah's parents think that she is too young to be involved in their resistance against their unfair landlord, until the sheriff's posse comes after her father and his fellow rebel farmers and Hannah is able to sound the warning signal.

Christman, Henry, 1906-

Tin horns and calico, a decisive episode in the emergence of democracy.
New York: Holt, c1945.
The classic work on the Antirent Wars. Christman thoroughly research his work, and interviewed a few eyewitnesses and some children of participants.

Cooper, James Fenimore, 1789-1851.
Satanstoe. Introd. by Robert L. Hough.
Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1962.

First book of a fiction trilogy about the Antirent Wars by the big landowner of Cooperstown.

Denison, Ray W.
Westward to Destiny
Port Sanilac, Michigan: Denison Arts, 2002
Historical novel about the Denisons who came to America in 1631, how the great-grandson of the immigrant, with forty of his kin, settles near Albany, NY where they suffer the tyranny of the "incomplete sale". They endure "rent wars", masked nightriders and barn burnings, eventually culminating in murder. The family disperses westward until a decade after the War of 1812 they settle in Canada amidst Empire Loyalists. After 100 years the Denisons again move - to the U.S.

Donhardt, Gary L.

Indian Ladder; A History of Life in the Helderbergs
Donhardt and Daughters Publishers
737 Gable Lane
Collierville, TN 38017
As the title says, this is the story of the Helderbergs, which necessarily includes chapters on the Antirent Wars.

Ellis, David Maldwyn.

Landlords and farmers in the Hudson-Mohawk region, 1790-1850, by David Maldwyn Ellis Ithaca, N. Y.: Cornell university press, 1946.
Ellis also includes the Antirent Wars as part of the coverage of his topic.

Gould, Jay, 1836-1892.

History of Delaware County and border wars of New York
New Orleans: Polyanthos, 1977.
Reprint. Originally published: History of Delaware County and border wars of New York. Roxbury [N.Y.]: Keeny & Gould, 1856.
Infamous millionaire who had once mapped Albany County writes on the side of the landowners, focuses on the events of Delaware County.

Gregg, Arthur B. .
Old Hellebergh.
Guilderland Center, NY: Guilderland Historical Society, 1975 (reprint)
Another work which includes coverage of the Antirent Wars, including some specifics not included by others.

Henke, Jack

Lawyers and the Law in New York: a Short History and Guide
Albany, New York: Charles Evans Hughes Press

Kimball, Francis P.

The Capital Region of New York State
New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co., Inc., 1942
Kimball covers a lot of ground in his three volumes, including the Antirent Wars, and especially the legal processes that occurred.

Parker, Amasa J.

Landmarks of Albany County, New York
Syracuse, N. Y.: D. Mason & co., 1897
Parker (judge at the mass trials in Delhi) writes history, not physical landmarks, and includes a section on the Antirent Wars which, when one knows who wrote it, is quite balanced.

Penney, Sherry.
Patrician in politics: Daniel Dewey Barnard of New York
Port Washington, N.Y.: Kennikat Press, 1974.
Biography of D.D. Bernard, politician from New York State, who wrote on the Antirent Wars (see above).

Terms

Patroon: Pronounced pa-TROHN, it means patron. In this use, patron is a nicer way of saying "master", implying that the patroon is serving the tenant even though it is the tenant who is serving and supporting the patroon.

Incomplete Sale: A contracted sale in which the actual transfer of the property is deferred, usually subject to satisfaction of certain terms. Under the terms of the Van Rennselaer contracts, the "purchasers" had both the obligations of property owners and the restrictions of tenants, including the payment of rent, none of which was credited toward purchase, and no easy means of completing the sale and taking title.

Quarter Sale: A provision in the Van Rennselaer contracts which required payment to the patroon of one-fourth of the property value in cash in order to release the property for sale to another.

Durable Lease: A lease which has no specified term and explicitly stays in effect so long as the tenant meets his obligations under the lease, and may pass to future generations as might be specified in the contract. In practice, the tenant had the right to continue occupying the property, but also had no other option except to leave with nothing, no fruit of his labor in clearing and improving the land, no cash value. This was not quite the binding to the land of the old European feudal system, but it was fairly close in actual consequences.

Primogeniture: The passing of land holdings and title to one's eldest son, usually to the exclusion of younger sons (and all daughters).

East Manor: The Portion of Rensselaerwyck which lay east of the Hudson River and which was inherited by William Van Rensselaer, corresponding to today's Rensselaer County and portions of Columbia County. (See also West Manor.)

West Manor: The portion of Rensselaerwyck which lay west of the Hudson River and which was inherited by Stephen Van Rensselaer IV, corresponding to today's Albany and Schenectady Counties.

(Come back to the Berne History Project to read more of this fascinating story and of the people who were involved. We'll be adding pages as we are able to write them.)

By Cheryl Wright and Rick Van Dusen