John VanPelt Jr.                              

ohn VanPelt Jr. was one of the sons of John VanPelt Sr., who emigrated from Staten Island to Yates County early in the 19th century. He bought a farm southeast of Penn Yan (near the present Yates County Fairgrounds) in 1804, and lived there until he died in 1828. He was a Captain during the Revolutionary War, accompanied Washington and his army when they crossed the Delaware River and won their two great battles at Trenton and Princeton; prior to that he had fought at the battle of Long Island, White Plains and Short Hills. He was wounded three times during the conflict, but survived it and moved west a few years after it ended, along with his wife Sarah.

This couple were the parents of nine children, four sons and five daughters: Nancy, born 1792; John Jr., born 1794; Anthony, James, Rachel, George, Mary, Sarah and Charlotte, born 1808. Nancy was the mother of Joshua Titus who was born in Milo in 1811; he was only 17 years old when his grandfather died, but was made the residuary heir of the entire estate, and took care of his grandmother Sarah throughout her long life.

John VanPelt Jr. made his greatest impact on Penn Yan's history by going broke. His first wife Mary Lee, and his father both died in 1828. The same year he lost a judgment to Samuel S. Ellsworth for nearly $12,000 - an absolutely astounding amount for the time. He was forced to sell his home farm in Milo and a considerable property in Penn Yan. His creditors appointed an agent, and in 1834 the sales were made final. A map was drawn showing the subdivision of the property, and besides being one of the three earliest known maps of the village, it specifically mentions several buildings and their locations and description.

John Jr. was also referred to as "Captain" VanPelt and is often confused with his father on that account. Presumably he saw military service as a young man in the War of 1812; his captaincy was more likely of the local militia in the years after the war. By 1834 when his property was divided up, he and his second wife Eliza Ann were living in Springville, Erie County.

 

Far right: A sketch of part of the 1834 map of John VanPelt Jr.'s property in Penn Yan, as it was subdivided that year for sale. It all lies east of Main Street, with the boundary at the north being the lane down to Sheppard's fulling mill, now called Mill Street. The map implies that the property included all the land between Mill Street and Court Street on the south, only excluding "Cornwell's Garden" at the south end; this is not true, as can be proved by numerous deeds. The land shown in this sketch totals about three acres. Another three acres or more lay east of Jackson Street, including VanPelt's own dwelling, and another small parcel lay at the southeast corner of Main and Head Streets.