; J.8 HISTORY OF THE COUNTY OF WESTCHESTER. 



in this grant, &c. a On this land, adjoining the church, Mr. Townsend 

 erected the same year a large dwelling house, which is still standing, and 

 occupied at one time by the late Venerable Epenetus Wallace, M. D., 

 who was born in 1766, and a god-son of the Rev. Epenetus Townsend, 

 by whom he was baptized on Friday, April 10th, 1767. 6 The above 

 mentioned house was the one which Mr. Townsend's father enabled him 

 to build in 1769 and the sixty acres of land which he had bought for 

 him, all of which were taken possession of by the Continental Conven- 

 tion, 1776. Dr. Wallace's predecessors must have purchased the property 

 from the executor of Micajah Townsend, father of Epenetus; for in 

 1786, Jonathan Townsend, executor of the last will of Micajah Town- 

 send (died 9th of November, 1781), late of Queens County, deceased, 

 sold lands in this town to Nath. Brown and others. c Upon the 29th of 

 September, 1769, he thus addresses the Society: — 



MR. TOWNSEND TO THE SECRETARY. 



(Extract.) 

 "Salem, Province of New York, Sept. 29th, 1769. 

 Rev. Sir: — "Having nothing of importance to acquaint the Society with in 

 the spring, I deferred writing till now. I have constantly performed divine 

 service equally in my three churches of Salem, Ridgefield and Ridgebury, in 

 each of which places, people are zealous in their attendance on public worship ; 

 and I have the pleasure to observe that through the divine blessing on my 

 labors, each of those congregations is something increased. Since my arriving 

 to the mission I have baptized in the year past, two adults and thirty infants, 

 and have received between three or four communicants, but expect several more* 

 very soon. The fatigue which necessarily arises from a steady performance of 

 my duty in these three places, I have hitherto, and I trust in God I shall for the 

 future be enabled to undergo with cheerfulness ; though I expect it will in a little 

 while be increased — occasioned by the building of a new church in Salem, 

 which, when it is finished, I propose, with the Society's leave, to officiate in 

 sometimes. To acquaint the Society with the propriety of building a new 

 church at Salem I would observe, that Salem is a township twelve miles in 

 length and but two in breadth, joining on the one side to Connecticut and on the 

 other partly to Cortlandt's manor, which extends twenty miles westward to 

 Hudson river, and partly to another patent, which extends several miles westward 

 toward Bedford, which is the utmost limit of Mr. Avery's mission. The church 

 which is already built, is situated within about two miles of the north end of 

 Salem, on the borders of Cortlandt's manor, as the Society was informed in the 

 petition of the Church- wardens and Vestry. It was built by the people of this 

 part of Salem and Cortlandt's manor in conjunction, and this congregation is 

 something larger than either of those in Connecticut — there being generally, in 



a county Rec. Lib. H.,p. 384. 



h Dr. Dibblee records in his register : Salem, 1TC7, April 10th, baptized Epenetus Wallis, 

 Jotin Wallis. 

 c County Rec. 



