NATHANIEL HILL! April 7, 1768 at the Colden Store, Coldengham, New York

Thursday April 7, 1768
Coldengham, New York
Store of Cadwallader Colden, Jr.

Nathaniel Hill

Cadwallader Colden Jr. recorded in his DayBook that he received payment for nine sheep purchased by Nathaniel Hill at the Davis vendue on this day, 250 years ago.

A vendue is an auction held to settle the debts of one recently deceased. The surname 'Davis' only appears one other time in the DayBook and that is subsequent to this date. It is unknown who 'Davis' was and where the vendue was held.  But, apparently Colden facilitated some of the transactions. This makes sense as the store was the closest thing the community had to a bank. Perhaps Davis owed Colden money, and the Davis estate paid back Colden through sales of belongings, such as the nine sheep.

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This article is one in a series of a daily accountings of Colden Store transactions. Be sure you read the first installment for an introduction to the store. You should also read this article which appeared in the Journal of the Orange County Historical Society.

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This transaction is rare in that it is marked neither as a credit nor a debit. No account number is given for Nathaniel Hill. This makes sense only if Hill had no outstanding debts with the store and if he was not buying the sheep from the store. Perhaps the payment was credited to the outstanding balance of Davis, but there is no indication that was done.

In the subsequent transaction (see page 249-03 above), Han Crist Young's account was debited for a cash payment to Hill. Perhaps Hill turned around and sold some of the sheep to Young?

These two entries are the only mentions of Nathaniel Hill in the DayBook. This seems odd due to his proximity to the store and his wealth. The Hill surname appears eighty times in the DayBook, but they all belong to Doctor John Hill and his brother, William Hill, who do not appear to be related to Nathaniel.

In this year, 1768, Nathaniel Hill built a brick home just a bit further down the road from Colden's toward Goodwill Church. Perhaps the brick hauled by Colden were for this project?

The Hill home was a common gathering point during the Revolution. It was large, conveniently located on the main road between the Wallkill and Newburgh, and Nathaniel's son, Peter, was a Captain in the army.

This home still stands on Route 17K in Montgomery. It is known as the 'Brick House' and serves as a museum of the period.

Nathaniel Hill's Brick House. Photo taken by author in 2012.

The Brick House's size and elegance, along with the nearby Colden Stone Mansion and the Doctor Hill home, indicate the wealth that existed in this rural area in 1768.

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There were no transactions recorded the following day, Friday, April 8, 1768.

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