The Sanford-family era in the Hathorn House
Editor's note: This is part of an ongoing series of articles and columns provided by members of the Warwick Historical Society. This piece was written by Warwick Village Historian Beattie May.
One of the early pioneers to settle in Orange County in the 1760’s, David Sanford, built a house at the south end of Bellvale Mountain off Cascade Road. His great grandson, Ezra Sanford Jr., born there in 1793, fought in the War of 1812, for which he received a pension.
Many early families preferred living on higher ground because much of the valley had not yet been cleared and drained and residents were subject to fevers and chills. In the early 1800’s the Pelton and Morehouse families, neighbors of the Hathorn family, whose house stands just off Route 94 South, lost several family members to what may have been dengue fever.
It was not until a dam near their farms had been destroyed that the area became free of the disease-carrying insects that had thrived in the stagnant swampy waters.
'You pitch out for yourself'
Fred Cary Raynor, whose mountain-top farm adjoined Sanford’s at the time, notes in his unpublished: “Memoirs of my Boyhood Days” that “old Ezra Sanford … ran a potash works, grist mill, blacksmith shop and store there… He used to take grain over to the Sterling Furnace operation, traveling across the mountains by horseback on trails before any roads had been built and bringing back iron bars in payment. The bars were bent to fit over the horse’s back.”
Ezra’s mill was located near what was called the Mistucky Brook above Warwick’s three reservoirs.
Raynor’s memoir also notes that “old Ezra had a habit of walking round the table at mealtime with a loaf of homemade bread under his arm. He would cut off slices with a big knife and toss them to his sons at the table, saying “now, sons, as soon as you’re able, you pitch out for yourself and get a farm.”
And they did.
'The Chain Gang'
With the death of John Hathorn in 1825, his son George mortgaged the historic house and farm which Ezra Sanford Jr. purchased at auction in 1834 at the age of 41. Here he raised nine children, four sons and five daughters. He is pictured with his daughters who are all wearing chains they received from their father at Christmas. With true Sanford humor, they called themselves “The Chain Gang.”
Ezra’s sons included Uriah Terry, William Moore, George Washington and Pierson Ezra.
George’s farm, called Maple Terrace, purchased in 1847 and located at the north end of Maple Avenue, is still operated by Ezra’s great-great grandson, John W. Sanford III and his daughter, Dorothy.
Sanford was able to utilize all the facilities included with the Hathorn farm and continued as a successful farmer, blacksmith and potash producer.
He purchased additional land in the area, including a farm on DeKay Road and in the 1850’s, the property of the late Judge John Wheeler including a grist mill and tannery on the Wawayanda Creek, which he operated with his son William. William’s house still stands on Covered Bridge Road. In addition to grinding grain, they made harness and other leather products which were tanned and dyed on the property. The name Sanfordville first appears on an 1859 map of Warwick.
In 1876 the Hudson River artist, Jasper Cropsey, a neighbor and friend of Sanford’s, painted “The Old Mill,” a romantic oil painting of the Sanford mill now owned by the Chrysler Museum of Art in Norfolk, Virginia. A huge storm destroyed the mill in 1900.
'A man of most remarkable vitality'
In 1866, Ezra and five other Warwick families founded the Calvary Baptist Church and oversaw its building on West Street (now a sports facility). The new church was a break-away from the Old School Baptist Meeting House, Warwick’s first church. Ezra served as Elder and Deacon in the new church for many years.
Shortly before his 90th birthday in 1875, Ezra Sanford passed away. "He was a man of most remarkable vitality and has stood enough hardships and hazards in the battle of life to kill an ordinary man,” notes his obituary. He and his wife, Adeline Terry Sanford had been married for 61 years.
Pioneered hygienic barns
Pierson Ezra, the youngest of his four sons, was born in 1832. At the age of 39 he purchased the Morehouse property which adjoined the Hathorn land.
After Ezra’s death, Pierson moved into the historic homestead and continued the operation of the farms.
With the advent of the railroad in Warwick in 1863, and the new ease in getting their produce to wider markets, Warwick farmers prospered in the production of milk, butter and cheese.
Pierson Sanford was a prominent figure not only as a successful dairy farmer but also in local affairs. He pioneered hygienic barns and organized the Producers Milk Company, a wholesale and retail firm with interests throughout the eastern U.S. His large gray barn on the property which had been a cherished landmark, was demolished in 2009.
The clock, housed in the then Methodist Church, now the Clock Tower, was given to the Village in 1907 by Pierson Sanford.
In 1916 at the age of 94 Pierson Sanford passed away. His son Edward Burt Sanford and a daughter survived him. Edward, a lawyer, never married but continued to own the house until 1924 when it was sold to Charles Walling. The Sanford era in the historic homestead had come to an end after 90 long and productive years.
Essential information
The recently incorporated Friends of the Hathorn House is dedicated to the preservation of this house. Built in 1773 by John Hathorn, Warwick’s Revolutionary War militia leader and a member of the first Congress of the U. S., the house is in need of rescue if it is to survive. The group hopes to turn the site into a combined historical site and agricultural heritage resource through a mixed public and private occupancy that will ensure an income for future maintenance.
For further information about the organization and to learn how to become involved, visit the website at hathornhouse.wordpress.com or email hathornhouse@gmail.com.