THE TOWN OF YONKERS. 629 



gives us the present name of the village. During the occupancy of the 

 Phill'ps's, it was called Phiilipsborough, after the Manor. 



The Dutch termed the Saw Mill, the Saeg kil (stream.) After the 

 Patroon's settlement, it was named in compliment to him, the Jonkers or 

 Yonkers kill and Colendoncks kill. " Several fine creeks enter into the 

 North river, says Van der Donck, such as the Colendonck's kill or Saw 

 kill." 



Yonkers is now a large and flourishing city. On April 12th, 1855, 

 rj- miles on the river front and \ a mile in width was incorporated, and 

 this act was amended in '57, '60, '68 and '71. The officers consisted of a 

 President, Wm. Radford ; Clerk, W. H. Post ; and six Trustees : Lemuel 

 W. Wells, Wm. C. Waring, Thos. A. Farrington, Reuben W. Van Pelt, 

 Fulding S. Grant, Jacob Reed. By act of Legislature, June 1st, 1872 

 the whole township was erected into a city, by the name of the city of 

 Yonkers and divided into four wards — a Mayor, City Clerk, and one Leg- 

 islative Board, consisting of eight Aldermen, and called the Common 

 Council. The first officers were, Mayor, Jas. C. Courter ; clerk, Wm. H. 

 Doty; President of Common Council, Ethan Flagg. For a time it 

 was under the Metropolitan police ; but by an act of the Legislature, 

 passed in 187 1, it was set off and formed a department of its own, con- 

 sisting of four commissioners, appointed by the Mayor — one each year 

 for four years term ; one captain, two sergeants, two seniors, two rounds- 

 men, and eighteen men. There are nine signal telegraph stations with 

 head quarters, besides telephones. The first commissioners were Chas. 

 R Dusenberry, R W. Cobb, Joseph Reene, Dennis McGrath. 



An act to provide water for the city of Yonkers was passed Feb. 28th, 

 73, and amended in ' 74 by the Legislature, and for the building of a 

 reservoir. The first commissioners were David Hawley, Peter P. Getty, 

 R. Eickemeyer, P. White, and S. Barker. Hawley and Barker resigned, 

 and J. H. Knox and Chas. H. Hamilton were appointed to fill the 

 vacancy. Wm. W. Wilson was appointed engineer. 



The fire department consists of a chief engineer, two assistants, 259 

 members, of Engine, Hose, and Hook and Ladder companies. There 

 are three principal hotels — the Getty House, Yonkers Hotel, and Pea- 

 \t ody House. 



The city is lighted by gas. There are several very large factories. It 

 has some handsome buildings, and seventeen churches — three Protestant 

 Episcopal, three Presbyterian, one Reformed, two Baptist, two Metho- 

 dist, two Roman Catholic, one Unitarian, one German, one African, 



a Vander Donck's X. X., N. Y. Hist. Soc. p. Ser. i. 142. 



