126 The Story of The Bronx 



clature) were situated on Spuyten Duyvil Neck, on what is 

 said to have been the site of the Indian village of Nipnichsen. 



Number One was a square, stone redoubt overlooking the 

 Hudson River and the mouth of the creek. It forms the foun- 

 dation of what is known in the vicinity as the Strang house, 

 originally built by a Mr. Cameron, and now occupied by 

 William C. Muschenheim of the Hotel Astor. When the house 

 was built, both Indian and Revolutionary relics were 

 unearthed, some of which are still preserved in the house. 



Number Two was a small circular fort on the crown of 

 Tippett's Hill, and was called "Fort Swartwout" by the 

 Americans, in honor of Colonel Abraham Swartwout, whose 

 regiment built it, as well as a small battery at the mouth of 

 the creek near the site of the Spuyten Duyvil station of the 

 New York Central and Hudson River Railroad. This battery, 

 with the Cock Hill fort on Manhattan, was to prevent the 

 enemy from entering the creek in boats. Upon the British 

 map made for General Howe by his engineer, Joseph Claude 

 Sauthier, and also upon the map made for Washington by S. 

 Lewis, Fort Number Two is called "Fort Independence, " and 

 the elevation, Tetard's Hill, the land to the northward toward 

 Seton Hospital being called the Heights of Fordham. This is 

 an error that still continues to mislead historians of the Revo- 

 lution when describing the events in this vicinity. 



Number Three was a small stone redoubt on the easterly 

 side of Tippett's Hill, which commanded the junction of the 

 Spuyten Duyvil road and the present Riverdale Avenue, as 

 well as the extreme northerly end of Manhattan Island oppo- 

 site the fort on Marble Hill, called Fort Prince Charles. 

 Between One and Two were two ravelins, and between Two 

 and Three, a curtain which joined the two redoubts. 



All three of these redoubts were hastily constructed by the 



