- Title
- Excursion ot Trenton July 1835. Conflagration of New York Decr 1835.
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- Creator
- John Fanning Watson (1779-1860)
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- Description
- Watson ventured to Trenton on a newly built railroad with his son, Barron, in 1835 for the Fourth of July celebration. In Trenton, he wrote about John Adams' 1798 residence at the Trent family house. He reflected upon the Battle of Trenton and expressed dismay at not being able to find any persons that could provide him with local particulars of the Hessian battle. In his comments, Watson reveals himself to be an admirer of old fashioned social relations. Watson arrived in New York City about eight days after the great fire in December, 1835 and reviewed the remains. The area that had burned had recently been rebuilt "in costly grandeur," said Watson, having been the site that the Dutch had originally occupied. According to Watson, the only building standing was owned by John Benson, a cooper, located at 83 Water Street. Many out-of-town people were touring the area, while the wonder of native New Yorkers had subsided. Watson thought that much of the destruction was due to inferior construction methods that featured walls that were too thin and cheap lime from New England. Watson included a diagram of the area of the fire. Watson was born in Batsto, New Jersey, the son of William and Lucy Fanning Watson. In 1806 he opened a mercantile house in Philadelphia and was later listed as a bookseller and stationer. In 1814, Watson accepted a position as cashier of the Bank of Germantown and received a notary public commission. He remained with the bank until 1848. He then became secretary-treasurer of the Philadelphia, Germantown and Norristown Railroad, where he remained until 1859. Watson was also an amateur historian and a pioneer in the use of oral histories and public opinion questionnaires. He published, among other works, Annals of Philadelphia, Historic Tales of Olden Time Concerning the Settlement and Advancement of New York City and State, and Historic Tales of Olden Time Concerning the Early Settlement and Progress of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania. In 1812 he married Phebe Barron Crowell and had 7 children.
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- Format
- ["manuscript"]
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- Subjects
- ["Diaries","Men--Diaries","Trenton (N.J.)--Description and travel","New York (N.Y.)--Description and travel"]
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