Continuity and Change: 1749–1758

The decade, in which Cadwallader Colden lived the life of sexagenarian, was characterized by the continuance of a life spent mainly on his estate, with sporadic interjections of activities related to his roles as surveyor general and a member of the provincial Council. He remained a polarizing figure in the ever-expanding antipathy between the two competing political factions in New York. The one, which included Colden, sided with the governor and the Crown's control. The other, led by James Delancey and including the majority of the Assembly, favored more control by the colonists. Colden continued in his unswerving advocacy of Britain's imperialism and also in his attempts to gain personal recognition and appreciation in that regard. He used his long period of service without compensation as a platform for advancing the careers of his sons. The major change in the political arena was that the decade would become dominated by involvement of the province as a battleground during the early stages of the French and Indian War.

Colden's leisure time was continuously occupied by his attempts to gain recognition for what he perceived to be significant personal contributions to an understanding of the action of matter, the causes of gravitation, the principles of vital motion, and the transmission and reflection of light. By contrast, there was an apparent and expressed decrease in his interest in botany that was somewhat compensated for by the contributions of his daughter, whose expertise was a direct consequence of his deliberate direction. Although he had not practiced as a physician for the previous three decades, he maintained an interest in medicine as evidenced by his correspondence and the publication of articles on the subject.

At the onset of 1749, Colden wrote Governor Clinton in reference to the continuance of the opposition's publication of scandalous libels and their overt lack of respect for the king's authority as exercised by the governor.¹ Colden was comfortable in requesting that the governor appoint his son John clerk of the peace & of the common pleas for the city and county of Albany, as replacement for the recently deceased Philip Livingstone.² The affidavit for the appointment was executed in May with the stated provision that the profits, which accrue from the office, would be paid to Cadwallader.³

Governor William Shirley of Massachusetts was supportive of Governor Clinton and Colden, and served as a sympathetic sounding board for Colden's catharsis of his political concerns. In a long letter written to Shirley, Colden detailed the influence of Chief Justice Delancey, perhaps exceeding that of the governor. Colden indicated that the faction led by Delancey was desirous of a tyrannical government. Colden felt that he personally was in danger of a physical attack. Because the Assembly, controlled by Delancey's cohorts, blocked the financing required to protect the interests of the English colonists and allied Indians, Colden called upon Shirley to support Clinton and himself during Shirley's forthcoming trip to England.⁴

The Delancey-led faction relied on public opinion and the control of finances by the Assembly, which they dominated, to subvert the king's representative, the governor, and, consequently, the king's control. Colden's concern with political status in the Province of New York at that time was summarized in a letter to John Catherwood, the governor's secretary. According to Colden, the opposition continually acted to dissuade those who supported the kings prerogative and authority in theprovince. Colden wrote:

I shall observe in general that the method they have taken to asperse Gov^rs Character is such as the Greatest Villain would take to asperse the honestest man breathing & the only means that a villain can take…. It not only concerns the Ministry to discourage those Artifices which tend to destroy all Governm^t & to bring every thing into confusion but likewise concerns every honest man who desires to enjoy his estate & liberty in safety. For if such principles be encouraged by success who can be safe. The greatest rogue the most abandon'd villain will be the greatest & most valued man where such attempts meet with success or publick approbation.⁵

Colden went on to point out that the governor had no power over the militia or the building and provisioning of the forts required to prevent incursions by the French Canadians and their allied Indians. The lack of financing had already precluded taking of the French fort at Crown Point on Lake Champlain and Fort Niagara on the Niagara River. Colden suggested that part of the solution was to have England directly appoint and salary the colonies' chief justices.

The year 1749 witnessed the publication the large “Map of Pensilvania, New-Jersey, New-York, and the Three Delaware Counties” by Lewis Evans (fig. 7) on which it is stated that “the greatest Part of New York Province is owing to the honourable Cadwallader Colden Esq.” Coldengham is identified on the map and an inscription borrows from Benjamin Franklin's discovery for the statement “The Sea Clouds coming freightened with Electricity and inciting others less so, the Equilibrium is restored by Snaps of Lightning….” The map is one of few to specifically locate Coldengham.

In 1750, John, the first Colden child to be born at Coldengham, died at age twenty-one. At age seventeen, he began running the farm when his parents were away. He served as the clerk of the city and county of Albany from March 1749. Cadwallader was in New York City when he learned of his son's death. He had insufficient funds with him to pay the legacy and funeral expenses and he sent home for forty pounds.⁶

Figure 7. Lewis Evans, “A Map of Pensilvania, New-Jersey, New-York, and the Three Delaware Counties,” 1749. Engraved (3^rd state 1752), 64 x 48 cm. Courtesy Private Collector. The first map to depict the location of Coldengham. The material for the geography of New York and its boundaries was provided by Cadwallader Colden.

Colden, after serving over thirty years as surveyor general for the province, informed Governor Clinton that age had become a limiting factor. Colden requested that his son Alexander be appointed as his replacement. Colden expressed concern related to the “malice” against “myself tho' it may be restrain'd yet never ceases & only waits for a proper opportunity to exert itself.”⁷ In 1737, Alexander had been appointed ranger of Ulster County, where he operated a country store. In 1751, Alexander was appointed joint surveyor general of New York and became acting surveyor general when his father became acting governor in 1761. He was also post master of New York until his death in 1774.

Colden's continuous concern for his children's future is manifest in a 1755 letter to Peter Collinson.

I am under concern that all the care and trouble which I have taken should turn out so little advantage of my children & so very far short of what I might have done had I turn my thoughts as others commonly do to the advanceing my private fortune without any regard to the public weal. I now have seven children alive grown up to the state of men & woemen and twenty grand children. My children I am confident are allowed by all who know them to be deserving & my grand children promise as well as any children in the Country….”⁸

Throughout the remainder of Governor Clinton's tenure political animosities and polarization between his supporters and the faction led by Chief Justice Delancey continued. There was a move to suspend Delancey's appointment as lieutenant governor and appoint another. It was deemed more tactful to apply to the king and have him personally recall the commission.⁹ John Catherwood, secretary to Governor Clinton, also endorsed the removal of Delancey from the post of lieutenant governor.¹⁰

Delancey's influence persisted. When the governor's spokesmen addressed the Assembly made up of Delancey's cronies and relatives, they deliberately articulated messages that “were least calculated to kindle the party fires which Mr. Colden's incautious, luxuriant compositions and high principles had so often exasperated, to the advancement of the popularity of the person he meant to pull down.”¹¹ Clinton, who would be recalled and become a member of Parliament, continued to support Colden as evidenced by the last letter to Colden just six months before transferring the governorship to Sir Danvers Osborn.¹²

During this period, in appreciation of his aging, Colden evidenced concern with his finances. He desired that a salary be attached to the office of surveyor general, and that the salary come from the king in view of the attitude of the Assembly.¹³ Colden also addressed his two main correspondents in England requesting that they act on his behalf regarding the recently vacated position of deputy post master general of America. To Collinson, Colden wrote that the salary of 300 pounds sterling was particularly attractive because it required little effort and would therefore allow him to continue to pursue his intellectual interests. Colden indicated that he was particularly deserving, because, unlike the two previous predecessors who lived in Virginia, his location in New York placed him in the center of business. In addition, his long-term public service unaccompanied by any allowance from the Crown merited consideration.¹⁴

At the same time, Colden wrote John Mitchell soliciting his assistance in obtaining the position of deputy post master general. Colden, once again stressed that he had served the government for about thirty years without salary, and confessed that “I never had any talent at getting or saving money tho' I never was expensive but I have had a large family to support & I wish to be usefull to them before I leave them.”¹⁵ This was an embarrassment for Mitchell, who had applied for the post himself.¹⁶ Colden was informed of this by John Rutherfurd, who wrote that he thought that Mitchell would be appointed.¹⁷ After a long period of consideration, on August 10, 1753, Benjamin Franklin received the appointment.

In May 1753, a letter from George Montagu Dunk, the Second Earl of Halifax, who was president of the Board of Trade from 1748–1761, written in response to a letter from Colden, added to Colden's disappointment. Although the earl informed Colden that there was no reason to suppose that there was any disapprobation of Colden's character or performance, he affirmed the appointment of Delancey as lieutenant governor. He also indicated that it was not appropriate to remove Delancey from his seat on the Council. The earl added that the Crown could not provide a salary for the position of surveyor general. He went on to report that Sir Danvers Osborn would soon assume the governorship of the province of New York, and concluded with “My earnest wish is that even the Remembrance of former animosities would no longer remain, and that the only Contention for the future may be who shall most effectually promote the welfare Peace and Tranquillity of the Province.”¹⁸

On October 7, 1753, Osborn arrived in New York City to take up his post as governor. The last act of Clinton's administration was the delivery to Delancey of his commission to be lieutenant governor. This was performed at a meeting of the Council immediately after presenting the seal of office to Osborn. On October 11, the new governor convened the Council. The next morning between seven and eight, he was found dead, hanging in the garden of the home where he had been staying.¹⁹

As lieutenant governor, Delancey assumed control of the administration, a situation that would persist for two years. Regaled with the adulation of his faction, he convened the strongly supportive Assembly, which extolled his abilities and virtues. This was followed by an overt focus on what they defined as the malicious “mal-administration” of Governor Clinton. The Assembly listed nine specific instances of Clinton's activities that generated deep dissatisfaction. Meanwhile, Colden had retired to his country estate, a disheartened man who had witnessed passage of a commission of lieutenant governor, which he had desired, to his enemy, Delancey. His plan to neutralize the enemy had failed.²⁰

Sir Charles Hardy, the recently appointed governor of New York arrived in New York City on September 2, 1755. As a part of Hardy's commission, Delancey was added to the Council. Although Hardy had been named governor of Newfoundland in 1744, he never visited the island in that capacity. He was a naval officer with no tested administrative experience. He, therefore, relied heavily on Delancey. Correspondence between Colden and Hardy focused on the protection of the frontiers and the building of blockhouses to abort attacks.²¹

In 1756, the incursions by hostile Indians in Ulster and Orange Counties evoked an article in the Gazette censuring the Assembly. Initially, Colden was suspected of being the author, but the article was traced to a local Episcopal clergyman. A bill for raising and funding a militia was proposed. It was opposed by Colden, who deemed it insufficient. The Council sided with Colden, and the bill was consequently modified and passed.²² James Alexander, Colden's closest friend, exposed himself to inclement weather to attend the vote. He became ill and died shortly thereafter. On July 2, 1757, Hardy ended his governorship and hoisted his flag as rear admiral of the Blue in support of an expedition against Louisbourg. The administration of the province of New York reverted to Delancey.

The decade that extended from 1749 to 1758, for New Yorkers, was dominated by concern related to aggression and aggrandizement by the French Canadians and their Indian allies. The earlier years of that period were characterized by a sense of anticipation and a realization of the need to take protective measures. During the latter years, the soil of the province of New York was bloodied as the major site of what came to be known as the French and Indian War.

From the early part of the seventeenth century both England and France had staked claims on the North American continent. In 1713, as part of the Treaty of Utrecht, France ceded to Great Britain claims to the Hudson's Bay Company in Rupert's Land, Newfoundland, and Acadia. France was also to recognize British control over the Iroquois while trade with the more western Indians was open to traders of both nations. France retained control of Ile Saint Jean (Prince Edward Island) and Ile Royale (Cape Breton Island). In 1748, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle was confirmed by the Treaty of Utrecht.

The French had a long history of establishing forts to protect their commercial interests. In 1672, they built a fort on the north shore of the east entrance of Lake Ontario. A year later, they built a fort at Michilimackinac, where Lakes Huron, Michigan, and Superior come together. In 1684, a fort was erected at Niagara on the strait between Lakes Erie and Ontario. In 1732, they built a modern fort at Louisbourg on Cape Breton, subsequently built forts in Acadia and at Crown Point on Lake Champlain.

The British countered with construction of Fort Oswego on the southeastern shore of Lake Ontario in 1727 and the establishment of Halifax to rival Louisbourg in 1749. British claims and large land grants were extended into the Ohio Valley. As a consequence, in 1749 troops were sent forth from Montreal to the shores of the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers demanding that the British retreat to the eastern slopes of the Appalachian Mountains.

In a long letter written in August 1751, Colden summarized the state of Indian affairs for Governor Clinton.²³ Colden detailed the events that had taken place since Clinton's initial engagement with the leadership of the Six Nations. The commissioners for Indian affairs had become totally ineffective and the conduct of Indian affairs was delegated to the leadership of Colonel William Johnson, who had been adopted as a member of the Iroquois and was highly regarded by them. Johnson resigned his governmental position because he had received insufficient funds to gain influence and was required to expend his own monies. When skirmishes with Indians allied with the French broke out, Johnson advanced his own funds to supply the garrison at Fort Oswego. The Assembly refused to advance funds or reimburse Johnson. The Indians allied with the British felt cheated by the British traders.

In the same letter, Colden suggested that the provincials build a fort on the northeastern shore of Lake Ontario near the origin of the St. Lawrence River to counterbalance Fort Frontenac, which the French had recently built. He indicated that measures should be taken against the French fort at Crown Point in order to stop trade between Albany and Canada. He also championed the construction of a fort between Albany and Wood Creek on the route from Albany to Canada.

The onset of the French and Indian War was specifically related to the interests of the Virginia colony in the Ohio Valley. When Lieutenant Governor Robert Dinwiddie of Virginia learned that the French had recently built two forts near the south shore of Lake Erie and had stationed 1,500 regular troops in the area, on October 31, 1753, he dispatched George Washington, a twenty-one-year-old colonel in the Virginia militia, on a mission to insist that the French depart. During his journey of more than 500 miles, Washington surveyed the fork of the Ohio River, where the Allegheny River and Monongahela River joined, and suggested that it provided the optimal site for a fort in the region.

On February 17, 1754, work was begun on a redoubt, which was to become Fort Prince George, in honor of the heir to the British throne. On April 18, Captain Pierre de Contrecoeur, in command of 500 troops, took possession of the barely begun building. The French completed the structure and named it Fort Duquesne. At the same time Washington led troops from Virginia to the area where he learned of the surrender. Washington encamped at Great Meadows, about sixty-five miles southwest of the forks of the Ohio. On May 28, he attacked a small group of French troops, that was also camped in the area. The French later maintained that Washington's action initiated the war.²⁴ Anticipating reprisals, Washington erected a stockade at Great Meadows and named it Fort Necessity. On July 3, seven hundred French troops and over 350 Indians attacked the fort, and four hours later, Washington surrendered. He and his small contingent were allowed to return home.

At the same time that Washington was active in the Ohio Valley, diplomatic activity occurred in the northeastern colonies. Prior to opening of a proposed convention, Colden wrote Franklin his “Remarks on short hints to a Scheme for uniting the Northern Colonies.”²⁵ He questioned whether, when the colonies were united for defense, it should be accomplished by an act of Parliament or by the assemblies. He also queried whether the designated governor general would have legislative authority and suggested that the grand council should be elected for a long tenure.

A convention for the adoption of a Plan of Union of the Colonies met at the courthouse in Albany on July 10, 1754. Representatives of all of the colonies, with the exception of Georgia and Delaware, attended. James Delancey, as the only governor in attendance, presided. Franklin reported a draft of a proposal that would establish a president general and a grand council of forty-eight members from the eleven colonies represented.²⁶ Every representative at the convention consented to the plan with the exception of Delancey, who did not express opposition.²⁷ In spite of Franklin‘s historic cartoon “Join or Die,” the first political cartoon published in America (fig. 8), the convention failed to accomplish any of its goals.

In February 1755, British Major General Edward Braddock arrived in Virginia with two regiments and presented plans for a three-pronged attack to contain the French. The Massachusetts force was to refurbish Fort Oswego and then capture Fort Niagara. Colonel William Johnson, with New York troops and Iroquois allies, were to capture Fort Frederick at Crown Point on Lake Champlain. Braddock would achieve the surrender of Fort Duquesne and gain control of the Ohio Valley. Unrelated to Braddock's plan, in June, the Massachusetts militia, with naval support, took possession of Fort Beausejour in French Acadia and renamed the area Nova Scotia.

Shortly thereafter, Braddock embarked on his assault on Fort Duquesne. On July 8 the British were routed. Braddock was mortally wounded, and 907 of 1,459 British troops were killed or wounded.²⁸ Washington, who participated as a volunteer without rank or pay, had two horses shot from under him. Although several bullets pierced his clothing, he was not wounded.²⁹ Despite knowledge of that defeat, the Massachusetts troops proceeded to Fort Oswego and secured the post but General Shirley elected to defer an attack on Fort Niagara.

Figure 8. “Join or Die” cartoon by Benjamin Franklin. First published in the Philadelphia Gazette May 9, 1754. The first political cartoon published in America.

New York occupied center stage in the conflict for two years. History had sensitized the citizens. On November 28, 1745, a party of French and Indians destroyed the community of over one hundred individuals at Saratoga; the fort was later abandoned in 1747. In 1748, skirmishes occurred in the vicinity of Schenectady where several cabins were destroyed. In 1755, William Johnson, an Irish immigrant who became the most influential individual in maintaining the alliance between the New York colonials and the Iroquois, was assigned the leadership of a proposed attack on Fort Frederick at Crown Point.

In July, as the troops proceeded toward the southern shore of Lac Saint Sacrament, they constructed a fort, which would ultimately be named Fort Edward. When Johnson's contingent reached the lake, he renamed it Lake George to honor the king, and built Fort William Henry to protect the area. On September 8, the battle that pitted Johnson's troops against a French force led by Commander-in-Chief Marshall Dieskau resulted in a stirring victory for the British and included the capture of the French commander.

On March 18, 1756, Great Britain formally declared war on France, and France reciprocated the next day. A string of forts were built between Albany and Lake Ontario. Fort Williams was constructed on the shore of the Mohawk River near Wood Creek; Fort Bull was built four miles to the west; a blockhouse erected at the east end of Lake Oneida; Fort Herkimer was built at German Flats. The fort at Oswego was reinforced by the Massachusetts militia. The French destroyed Fort Bull, and led by the new Commander-in-Chief Louis-Joseph de Montcalm, captured Fort Oswego on August 14, taking 1,600 prisoners.³⁰ Toward the end of that year, Colden reported that about sixteen miles from Coldengham Indians burned several homes and murdered the inhabitants.³¹

In March 1757, the British repulsed four French attacks on Fort William Henry. Five months later, the French, led by Montcalm, forced the fort to capitulate. In spite of Montcalm's attempt to control his Indian allies, they went on a rampage wildly assaulting and killing the occupants of the fort who had surrendered. At the time the battle was about to take place, Cadwallader Colden received a detailed letter from his son Alexander in Albany. Alexander informed his father of the investment of Fort Edward by the French and the large number of French troops that had taken up their battle positions at Fort William Henry.³² Subsequent letters written from son to father over the ensuing weeks detailed the travesty that occurred at Fort William Henry.³³

In September of that year, Colden informed Delancey that, since the frontiers of Ulster and Orange Counties were enforced with the militia after the last incursion by Indians allied with the French, the local farmers had returned to their homes.³⁴ Two months later, he indicated to the lieutenant governor that he was proceeding to erect a series of blockhouses, each to be manned by twenty men, to provide defense in the vicinity of Coldengham. In that letter Colden reported that he was moving with his wife and daughters to Flushing on Long Island.³⁵ Shortly after he moved, “a large party of French & Indians Surprised Burnetsfield, a fine Village of Germans on the Mohawk river…. The Village is burnt & destroyed, about 12 persons killed, and above 200 carried away prisoners.”³⁶

The year 1758 marked the beginning of the turn in the tide of battle to the advantage of the British. William Pitt the Elder, who had initially been appointed secretary of state on December 4, 1756, and dismissed four months later, was reappointed on June 29, 1757. He intensified British activity in North America, increasing the supplies and allocation of troops. On July 26, after forty-nine days of bombardment, the French fort at Louisbourg on Cape Breton capitulated. The two other British goals for that year were the capture of Ticonderoga and Fort Duquesne.

On July 8, the British attacked Fort Carillon at Ticonderoga, but suffered a major defeat. Colden provided his constant correspondent, Collinson, with a detailed account of the event. In his letter, he indicated that his close friend Major John Rutherfurd of the Royal Americans lost his life during battle.³⁷ To compensate for that defeat, Fort Stanwix was built on the shore of the Mohawk River near Schenectady, and Fort Frontenac on Lake Ontario was captured on August 27. Fort Frontenac had provided the main source of supplies for both Forts Niagara and Duquesne. In the course of the defeat of the French at Fort Frontenac, the entire French fleet on Lake Ontario was captured. In September the battle for Fort Duquesne was begun under the leadership of Brigadier General Forbes. On November 24, the French dismantled, burned, and abandoned the fort. Two days later, the fortress was renamed Fort Pitt.

During the decade Colden remained peripheral to the major events of the ongoing war, and he participated infrequently in the deliberations and declarations of the provincial Council. It was a time during which hours of leisure could be dedicated to his persistent reflections on topics of medicine, the history of the Five Nations, the laws of physics and optics, and botany.

In 1751, Colden published in Gentlemen's Magazine an article on the value of pokeweed (Phytolacca, probably P. decandra) as a cure for cancer.³⁸ Colden indicated that the successful use of pokeweed had been reported by Doctor Samuel Johnson of Stratford, Connecticut. Colden, however, wrote that there was no rational basis for its efficacy and that he had no knowledge of a certain cure. Colden provided a botanical description of the plant and described how the corrosive juice of the plant was applied to the cancerous growth or ulcer. A year later Colden wrote Franklin, “No doubt you have seen the Cure of Cancer by the Poke weed published in the Gent^ms Magazine I have lately had a confirmation of this by a Cancer last year cured in a Womans breast I have no doubt it will generally make a perfect cure of a genuine Cancer from many Accounts.”³⁹ It is interesting that pokeweed nitrogen is currently used to provoke B lymphocyte proliferation in culture, suggesting an immunologic influence.

The same year, Colden wrote the New York printer James Parker suggesting the publication of a cure for hydrophobia caused by the bite of a dog. Colden referred to a report in newspapers in England by Doctor Mead. Mead reported that the therapy never failed if was applied after the bite and before the manifestations of hydrophobia (rabies) began. Treatment consisted of blood- letting and the use of medicine extracted from moss.⁴⁰ In 1753, Colden's letter to Doctor John Fothergill of London, “Concerning the Throat–Distemper” was published in the London Medical Observations and Inquiries.⁴¹

Interest in Colden's History of the Five Indian Nations rapidly waned. Whereas all 500 copies of the first edition printed by William Bradford in New York were sold,⁴² the 1747 London edition was less successful. The publisher, Thomas Osborne, initially was encouraging. A year after the publication, he wrote Colden, “The Book was received in the World with the greatest Reputation; But I find in most Books after there has been a Run of about two or three hundred, that it drops off but slowly, which is the Case of this, for I have Actually by me near 500 Books.”⁴³ Within two years of writing that letter, Osborne sold the remainder of the edition and his rights in it to another publisher.

In June 1751, Osborne indicated to Colden, “S^r I have Receiv'd the favour of both yours & Should have Answer'd the first before but that was upon so melancholy a Subject that I deferr'd writing as you will find hereafter Its True that I did inform you that the Indian History was well receiv'd but for what Reason I cannot tell the Sale of it fell off before I sold one Quarter and the Impression and the Demand has been So very Smal ever Since That I was Glad to dispose of them at any Rate and what I had remaining upon my hands, I sold for Twelve Pence a Book, so that I am a Loser by that undertaking at least Thirty pounds Therefore I cannot give Encouragement to continue it on I shall be proud of Serving you with any Thing that I have but am determined for the future to Trade for nothing but ready money by which means I can afford to Sell cheaper than another.”⁴⁴

In 1750, another second Edition was printed for John Whiston, at Mr. Boyle's Head, and Lockyer Davis at Lord Beacon's Head, both in Fleet-street, and John Ward opposite the Royal Exchange. In 1755, a third Edition was printed for Lockyer Davis, J. Wren in Salisbury-court, and J. Ward in Cornhill, opposite the Royal-Exchange.⁴⁵

Much of Colden's leisure time was consumed by his defense of his 1745 forty-eight page publication on action in matter and gravitation. In 1750, he wrote to Dr. Betts in London indicating that he had received little response to the notions expressed in the work, which suggested that it was regarded to be of little importance. Colden went on in that letter to affirm that, nevertheless, he had not been dissuaded from continuing his reflections. These included the application of his principles to the motion of the planets and the regulation of their course in their orbits. Colden, with a modicum of reserve, pointed out that he had provided an argument that Newton's theory of planetary motion was imperfect. Colden's hubris found expression in his assessment of his contributions. “I am fully persuaded that they will at last prevail & tho they may not suite the present taste of learning they will some how or other be embraced perhaps when the author is dead & forgot.”⁴⁶

Peter Collinson would arrange for the 1751 publication of a revised and enlarged (215-page) English edition under a new title, The Principles of Action in Matter, the Gravitation of Bodies and the Motion of the Planets, explained from those Principles. Abstracts appeared in Monthly Review, Gentlemen's Magazine, and London Magazine.⁴⁷ In the work, Colden pointed out that Newton had not defined the cause of gravitation or the cause of motion of the planets. Colden stated, “In this tract, the author presumes to think, that he has discovered the cause of this apparent attraction, and from which all the phenomena in gravitation evidently follow, as necessary consequences: and that he has likewise discovered an error, which has slipped from the sagacious Sir Isaac, by his not knowing the cause of this apparent attraction.”⁴⁸ This would result in a continuance of adverse criticism during subsequent periods of consideration.

Perhaps the most devastating comments were those made by Professor Euler of Berlin that were forwarded to Colden by Collinson.⁴⁹ Leonhard Euler was considered to be the preeminent mathematician of the eighteenth century and one of the greatest of all mathematicians. He has been honored with commemorative stamps by the Soviet Union and the German Republic, both venues of his work. Euler wrote: “The Book contains many Ingenious Reflections upon that Subject for a Man that has not entirely devoted Himself to a Study of it…. This shows but little knowledge of the principles of Motion & entirely disqualifies the author from Establishing the True Forces requisite to the Motion of the Planets…. Besides his explication on the Elasticity of the Ether is so ill imagined, that it is absolutely contrary to the first principles of Hydrostaticks. What an absurdity it is….” A year later, Colden wrote to Franklin, “M^r Collinson sent me some remarks made on it by Professor Euler of Berlin. He writes much like a Pedant highly conceited of himself.”⁵⁰

Abraham Gotthelf Kastner, professor of mathematics at Leipzig, who translated the 1751 edition into German, was also critical of the work and indicated that Colden was deficient in mathematical understanding.⁵¹ Kastner condescendingly added, “It would be something remarkable, if we could obtain from America, the solution of difficulties in physics, which have seemed insurmountable to the greatest geniuses of Europe, & if that, what was incomprehensible to a Newton should now be cleared up, by a countryman from the New World.”⁵²

The criticism emanating from authorities failed to dissuade Colden. On November 19, 1754, Colden sent Collinson a revised copy of the Principles with the accompanying message: “I have been more at leisure these twelve months passed than I have been for several years before I have taken this Opportunity to re-examine the Principles of Action in matter if I could not free them from just objections with a view to abandon those Principles…. After the greatest attention & care I am Capable I still remain persuaded of the truth of them & that they may be of use in every part of Physics.”⁵³

Colden amended the work, adding the observations of astronomers and also Newton's observations on light and colors. Colden suggested that his contribution might be of assistance in resolving the problem of astronomically measuring longitude at sea, for which a grand prize had recently been announced. Colden placed himself in the company of Descartes, who supplanted the authority of Aristotle and Newton, who affected Descartes similarly.⁵⁴

The last person to comment on Colden's work was Doctor John Bevis, who was a contributor of articles on astronomy and meteorology to Gentleman's Magazine and who responded to Collinson's solicitation. In 1755, Bevis stated that Colden's principles were in opposition to the established laws of mechanics and that Colden incorrectly separated self-motion from direction.⁵⁵

Ultimately, the manuscript of the revision was sent, in 1763, by Colden to Doctor Robert Whytt, professor of physiology and pathology at Edinburgh. He wrote Colden that if publication were not achieved, the manuscript would be submitted as a present and “that on the cover, mention should be made of these papers having been written by you, & made a present of, to y^e University of Edin^r where you had your first Education; as you imagine that they may contain the true principles of Physics and one day become usefull.”⁵⁶ Colden agreed and asked Whytt if it “will not be assuming too much to myself” to make the transfer.⁵⁷

During the decade between 1749 and 1758, the prolific correspondence between Colden and Franklin continued, and over two dozen letters passed between them. Colden wrote Franklin concerning the “Proposals relating to the Education of Youth in Pensylvania,” which he assumed were written by Franklin. Colden suggested that the rector or principal overseer of the education should have a salary, which was dependent on fees from the scholars. He was particularly pleased that agriculture had been included as one of the sciences and thought that the college should be distant from the distractions of city life. Colden did not think that Latin and Greek should be required, and indicated that the English language, both prose and poetry, should be stressed.⁵⁸

In 1750, Franklin sent Colden observations and experiments on electricity and a new hypothesis on the cause and effects of lightning.⁵⁹ Colden praised Franklin's experiments, but indicated that he was unable to formulate a cause for electricity, which he ascribed to “most subtile elastic fluid.”⁶⁰ In response to Franklin's jocular comment that “I am much in the Dark about Light,”⁶¹ Colden provided Franklin with an explanation of his own theory.⁶² In October 1752, Colden wrote Franklin that he read in the newspapers about the account of the “Electrical Kite.”⁶³ A year later, Franklin informed Colden that he had altered his theory regarding lightning; the clouds are “electrified negatively & the Earth positively…But as to the Methods propos'd for Practice, to guard against the Mischiefs of Lightning, they remain the same.”⁶⁴

David Colden, Cadwallader's youngest son, developed an interest in the subject of electricity. He conducted his own experiments and, in 1753, he dispatched a long and detailed letter to Abbé Nollet in response to Nollet's letters to Franklin. Nollet was a French priest who became the first professor of experimental physics at the University of Paris. Nollet had offered arguments opposing Franklin's theory of electricity, and David's correspondence was an attempt to reconcile the differences.⁶⁵ In 1757, while Franklin was in England, Cadwallader Colden wrote that he was pleased to have received a copy of Franklin's experiments on electricity. Colden confessed his personal ignorance and stated, “In the time I have been allowed amidst perpetual avocations to think on your experiments they seem to me to lead more directly to the cause than any set of experiments which I have seen.”⁶⁶

The Colden-Franklin correspondence of 1753 and 1754 contains a disagreement about the phenomenon of water spouts. Franklin was of the opinion that water spouts were the result of an ascending of the sea water due to whirlwinds. Colden initially wrote Franklin that, from his own observations, he concluded that Franklin's explanation was false. The creation of the spout, according to Colden could not have been the result of sucking water from the sea. Rather, Colden suggested that the spout was caused by the violent stream of wind that created a hollow on the surface of the water and raised the water in a circular uneven ring around the hollow.⁶⁷ Colden later wrote Franklin, “I long to see your explication of Water spouts but I must tell you beforehand that it will not be easy for you to convince me that the principle phenomena were not occasioned by a stream of Wind issuing with great force. My eyes & ears both concurring to give me this sentiment.”⁶⁸ Franklin was unmoved by Colden's objection and the subject was disputed by members of the Royal Society. Eventually the secretary recorded, “It seems yet undetermined which of the two opinions is best supported.”⁶⁹ Colden later proved to be correct.

Botany remained the one realm in which Cadwallader Colden generated no argument, no significant disagreement, no polarization, and maintained a position of high regard. At the beginning of the decade in question, in February 1749, Colden wrote Linnaeus that political commitments of the previous three years precluded his “Botanical amusements.”⁷⁰ Peter Kalm, who had been appointed by the Royal Swedish Academy of Science to travel to America to gather plants and seeds and make observations of the region, arrived in Philadelphia, subsequently visited Coldengham, and later requested a biography from Colden to be included in a proposed Biographia Botanicorum.⁷¹

In 1750, Colden confessed in his correspondence that he was aging. “I am now in my Grand Climacteric both my imagination & mind begin to flag & my health will not permit much application of mind at any time.”⁷² But, this did not prevent him from complying with Kalm's request for a personal biography. The biography that Colden submitted was factual and unembellished and he claimed no expertise in the science of botany.⁷³

Toward the end of 1754, a letter from Alexander Garden introduced him as part of the coterie of Colden's correspondents, who shared an interest in botany.⁷⁴

ALEXANDER GARDEN

Alexander Garden, who was forty-two years younger than Colden, shared several points of similarity with Colden in addition to an avid interest in botany. Garden was born in January 1730 in Birse, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, the son of a clergyman in the Church of Scotland. From 1743 to 1746, he was apprenticed to James Gordon, professor of medicine at Marischal College, Aberdeen, where Garden studied. After he was unable to obtain an appoint as a surgeon's second mate in the British navy, he returned as an apprentice to Gordon. From 1748 to 1750 he served as a surgeon's first mate aboard three ships. In 1750, he continued his medical studies at the University of Edinburgh, where his exposure to Charles Alston, the King's Botanist and Keeper of the Garden at Holyrood, stimulated his lifelong passion for botany. Garden received an MD degree from Marischal in 1752. Two years later he arrived in Prince William Parish, near Charles Town, South Carolina, to join the practice of William Rose.⁷⁵

Garden immediately began his correspondence with the leading botanists from England and Europe, initiated his studies of the flora in his vicinity, and extended those studies into Florida. In 1754, he traveled north, specifically, to meet Benjamin Franklin, John Bartram, and, subsequently, Cadwallader Colden. During his visit at Coldengham he gained an appreciation of Colden's daughter Jane's expertise in botany. Jane Colden was only five years older than Garden and when her father was occupied she served as hostess.⁷⁶ Garden wrote to his friend John Ellis, the author of Agriculture Improved and The Farmer's Instructor, “Not only the doctor himself is a great botanist, but his lovely daughter is a great master of the Linnaean method, and cultivates it with great assiduity.”⁷⁷ It was the beginning of an extended period of communication between Jane and Alexander and the occasional exchange of seeds and plants. During Garden's stay at Coldengham, John Bartram unexpectedly arrived.⁷⁸

In 1755, Garden returned to Charles Town where he developed a large medical practice. That year he accompanied South Carolina's governor, James Glen, on an expedition to the Cherokee territory in the Blue Ridge Mountains. In January he sent the Coldens seeds of Magnolia, Guatemala Indigo, Button snakeroot (a powerful diaphoretic), Catalpa, Dahoon Holly (an Evergreen), Palmetto, and Renialemia. The accompanying letter informed Colden that the Montagu house had been purchased for the repository of Sir Hans Sloane's collection and the Cotton Library and Harleian manuscripts. This was the genesis of The British Museum. The letter also mentioned Doctor James Lind's classic treatise on Scurvy.⁷⁹ The same year, Garden first wrote Linnaeus; this was the beginning of an extensive and long-term correspondence. In 1755, Garden was elected as the first corresponding member of the London Society of Arts and also the Premium Society, which was founded in London that year for granting premiums in Britain and the colonies for the encouragement of commerce, manufacturing, and agriculture. Colden was made a member on Garden's recommendation.⁸⁰

Garden made no landmark discoveries, but was particularly notable for his ability to classify plants. In several disputes with Linnaeus, Garden proved to be correct.⁸¹ Sometime in the 1760s, Garden sent Linnaeus a dissertation on the Carolina Siren, an amphibious mud iguana, which Linnaeus said was not only a new genus but a new class or order (Siren lacertian).⁸² Garden was recognized for his descriptions of the flora and fauna of America by election to the Philosophical Society of Edinbugh, the Royal Society of Uppsala, and the Royal Society of London. In 1768, he was elected a corresponding member of the American Society for Promoting and Propagating Useful Knowledge, the Philadelphia Medical Society, and the American Philosophical Society.⁸³

In 1765, the opposition to the Stamp Act in Charleston led Garden to proclaim in a letter, “The die is thrown for the sovereignty of America!”⁸⁴ Throughout the American Revolution, Garden continued to practice medicine in Charles Town but his loyalty to the British crown was manifest. Consequently, in 1782, his property was confiscated and he was formally banished. His son, Alexander, rose to the rank of major and aide-de-camp to General Nathanael Greene in the American Army during the American Revolution. The abandoned Garden plantation was taken over by the son. Alexander senior died in 1791 in London after a long illness.

A proposal to attach Garden's name to a plant was first made by Jane Colden. James Britten, in his paper “Jane Colden and the Flora of New York” wrote, “The plant (Hypericum virginicum)…had been sent her by Alexander Garden, who found it in New York in 1754; in return, Miss Colden sent him the description of the same plant, which she had discovered the previous summer, and ‘using the privilege of a first discoverer she was pleased to call this new plant Gardenia, in compliment to Dr. Garden.”⁸⁵Unfortunately, the plant in question turned out not to be new, and Garden's name was not attached.⁸⁶ But, in 1760, John Ellis named the genus Gardenia for him. The name pertained to the Cape Jasmine Gardenia that is found in the vicinity of the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa. Fothergilla gardenia also pertains to Alexander Garden.

In the Aberdeen Magazine of 1761, a description of the plant that Garden sent to Jane Colden appears. The article states,

Doctor Garden writes Doctor Whytt, that, in the summer 1754, he met, about a mile from the town of New York in New England, with a plant, which, at first, he took to be a hypericum, but, on examining it, found it different; upon which he took down its characters, and sent them, some days later, to Miss Jenny Colden (daughter of the Honourable Cadwallader Colden) a very ingenious young lady and curious Botanist. In return to this, Miss Colden sent Dr. Garden the characters of a plant which proves to be the same; it is No. 1533 of her collection, and was first found by her, Summer 1753. Using the privilege of a first discoverer, she was pleased to call the new plant Gardenia, in compliment to Dr. Garden.⁸⁷

Alexander Garden's name remains engrained with those of John Mitchell and Cadwallader Colden in the taxonomy of the world's flora.

JANE COLDEN

Jane Colden, who, along with her father, exchanged letters, seeds, and descriptions with Garden, merits special recognition in a biography of Cadwallader Colden. Garden noted that Jane's descriptions of plants were often more detailed and accurate than those of her father.⁸⁸ Not only was she the first recognized female botanist in America and perhaps the entire world, but deserves the appellation “America's First Female Scientist.” And all of her accomplishments took place within a brief period of time during the 1750s distant from any urban center and the halls of academia.

Jane, called Jenny by members of the family, the second oldest of the Coldens' daughters, was born in New York City on March 27, 1724, and moved to Coldengham with the family four years later. Jane and her siblings were educated at home. Although Colden wrote to Franklin that “I think the power of a nation consists in the knowledge and virtue of its inhabitants,”⁸⁹ none of his children were sent to elementary school or to an institution of higher education. The correspondence of his children that is included in the volumes of Collections of the New-York Historical Society provides evidence that all of his children were literate and well-versed. It is generally assumed that Colden's wife played a major role in the education of the children because Cadwallader was often absent from the home. Of Mrs. Colden it is written, “She is said to have taught them habits of virtue and economy and gave them in her life and character the brightest of examples, so it can be presumed that her daughters were apt scholars in the accomplishments required of well-bred and trained gentlewomen of the day.”⁹⁰ Jane, uniquely, stands out as her father's personally trained protégé as a botanist.

In 1755, Colden wrote to Gronovius,

I thought that Botany is an Amusement which may be made agreeable for the Ladies who are often at a loss to fill up their time if it could be made agreeable to them Their natural curiosity & the pleasure they take in the beauty & variety of dress seems to fit them for it The chief reason that few or none of them have hitherto applied themselves to this study I believe is because all the books of any value are wrote in Latin & and so filled with technical words that obtaining the necessary previous knowledge is so tiresome & disagreeable that they are discouraged at the first setting out & give it over before they can receive any pleasure in the pursuit

I have a daughter who has an inclination to reading & a curiosity for natural phylosophy or natural History & a sufficient capacity for attaining a competent knowledge I took the pains to explain Linnaeus's system & to put it in English for her use by freeing it from the Technical terms which was easily don by useing two or three words in place of one She is now grown very fond of the study and has made such progress in it as I believe would please you if you saw her performance Tho' perhaps she could not have been persuaded to learn the terms at first she now understands in some degree Linnaeus's characters notwithstanding that she does not understand Latin She has already a pretty large volume in writing of the Description of plants She has shewn a method of takeing the impression of the leaves on paper with printers ink by a simple kind of rolling press which is of use in distinguishing the species by their leaves No description in words alone can give so clear an Idea as when the description is assisted with a picture She has the impression of 300 plants in the manner you'l see by the sample sent you. That you may have some conception of her performance & manner of describing I propose to inclose some samples in her own writing some of which I think are new Genus's….⁹¹

In addition to teaching Jane the process of making ink impressions of leaves on paper, Colden had books sent from England to augment her education. He wrote Collinson, “[I]…design likewise to send you a Sample of my daughter Jenny's performances in Botany. As it is not usual for woemen to take pleasure in Botany as a Science I shall do what I can to incourage her in this amusement which fills up her idle hours to much better purpose than the usual amusements eagerly pursued by others of her sex. As she [Jane] cannot have the opportunity of seeing plants in a Botanical Garden I think the next best is to see the best cuts or pictures of them for which purpose I would buy for her Tournefort's Institutiones Herbariae, Morison's Historia Plantarum, or if you know any better books for this purpose as you are a better judge than I am will be obliged to make this choice.”⁹² Collinson replied: “I have at last been So luckky to geyt you a fine Tournefort's Herbal & the History of Plants and Martin in excellent preservation to which have added 2 Volumes of Edinburgh Essays for the sake of the Curious Botanic Dissertation off your ingenious daughter being the Only Lady that I have yett heard of that is a professor of the Linnean System of which He is not a Little proud.”⁹³

Jane was also inspired by the visits to Coldengham of the notable colonial botanists, John and William Bartram and Alexander Garden, and also that of Peter Kalm of Sweden. Jane gained the respect of the community of botanists. In a letter from John Bartram to Collinson dated 1753 describing his visit, he wrote, “Got our dinner and set out to gather seeds, and did not get back till two hours within night; that looked over some of the Doctor's daughter's botanical, curious observations.”⁹⁴ In 1756, Collinson wrote John Bartram that “Our friend Colden's daughter has, in a scientific manner sent over several sheets of plants, very curiously anatomized after his method. I believe she is the first lady that has attempted anything of this nature.”⁹⁵ A year later, John Bartram responded to a letter from Jane indicating that “I am very careful of it, and it keeps company with the choicest correspondence.”⁹⁶

Jane's expertise qualified her to instruct the fourteen-year-old Samuel Bard in the science of botany. In 1756, Bard was sent by his father, a friend of Cadwallader Colden, to Coldengham as an escape from New York City because of the boy's ill health. In A Domestic Narrative of the Life of Samuel Bard it is written, “This residence not only restored him to good health, but filled his memory with pleasing recollections both of the society and studies to which it introduced him. In the family resided Miss Colden…. With this lady, differing in years but united in tastes, Mr. Bard formed an intimate friendship; under her instruction he became skillful in botanizing, a pursuit which remained to him a favorable amusement, and which owed, perhaps, a part of its attraction to the pleasing associations with which it was originally connected, since to the end of his life, he never mentioned the name of his instructress without some admiration or attachment.”⁹⁷ Samuel Bard received his medical degree from Edinburgh and founded the first medical school in New York, King's College (now Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons) in 1765. Bard dedicated his thesis to Cadwallader Colden: “Samuel Bard wishes to dedicate these first fruits of his training to the Honorable Cadwallader Colden, Esquire, Lieutenant Governor of New York for the thousand benefits shown him publicly and privately….”⁹⁸

Jane evidenced confidence in her ability as a descriptive botanist and did not hesitate to differ with the authority of Linnaeus. With regard to Polygala (S'eneca or Snakeroot), she wrote, “Linnaeus describes this as being a Papilionatious Flower, and calls the two largest Leaves of the cup Alae, but as they continue, till the seed is ripe and the two flower Leaves, and its appendage folds [sic] together, I must beg leave to differ with him Added to this, the Seed Vessell, differs from all that I have observed of the Papilionatious Kind.”⁹⁹ About Clematis virginiana, she indicated, “Neither Linnaeus take notice that there are some Plants of the Clematis that bear only Male flowers, but this I have observed with such care, that there can be no doubt of it.”¹⁰⁰

Jane's contributions to botany gained the respect of others with an established reputation. Collinson wrote Linnaeus, “What is marvelous his [Colden's] daughter is perhaps the first lady that has perfectly studied your system. She deserves to be celebrated.” In a subsequent letter to Linnaeus, Collinson wrote, “Last week my friend, Mr. Ellis, wrote you a latter, recommending a curious botanic dissertation, by Miss Jane Colden. As this accomplished lady is the only one of the fair sex that I have heard of, who is scientifically skillful in the Linnaean system, you will no doubt distinguish her merits, and recommend her example to the ladies of every country.” In the referred to letter, Ellis had stated, “The young lady merits your esteem and does honor to your system.” He suggested that Linnaeus name a new genus for her, but that did not come to pass.¹⁰¹

All that remains of Jane Colden's botanical legacy is a manuscript that resided in the British Museum for over two hundred years, and is now in the manuscript section of the British Library. After her death it was acquired by Captain Frederick von Wangenheim, a Prussian serving in a Hessian regiment during the American Revolution. It next passed on to Godfrey Baldinger, who was professor of botany and medical theory at the University of Göttingen and Marburg. It finally became the property of Joseph Banks, president of the Royal Society. On his death, it went with his collection of books and botanical specimens to the British Museum.¹⁰²

A prefatory note by Wangenheim was published in an account of the manuscript in Schrader's Journal für die Botanik for 1800. The translation reads: “This MS., which has never been printed, contains a part of the New York Flora, and has been composed by a lady, the daughter of Governor Cadwallader Colden, well known for his botanical works, and also a physician. This lady married a doctor of medicine, Farquhar, a Scotchman by birth and she died soon afterwards. Some of the names are according to her father and according to Gronovius, and some are according to the Brandenburg doctor Schoepff, who has read this work. The trivial names are according to Linnaeus. This work is a remarkable one because it is that of a lady who possessed such a love for botany that she learned Latin, and judging by its nature is so worthy and correct that contains many even minute things.” It was written in New York in May 1782.¹⁰³

The title page identifies the author as the daughter of Cadwallader Colden; the name, Jane, is conspicuously absent.

FLORA

NOV.–EBORACENSIS.

Plantas in Solo Natali

collegit, descripsit,

delineavit,

COLDENIA,

Cadwallader Coldens

Filia.

The manuscript consists of 340 drawings, which are ink outlines washed in with neutral tint rather than the impressions referred to by Colden to Gronovius. The pages that include her written descriptions are numbered 1 to 341 but there are some pages with only the name of the plant on the top of the sheet. As noted by Britten, the descriptions are “excellent-full, careful and evidently taken from the living specimens.” One of these (No. 153 of the manuscript) was published in Essays and Observations, vol. 2 (Edinburgh, 1770). It was the plant that had been sent to her by Garden, who found it in New York, and she had tried to have it named Gardenia by Linnaeus. Another of her descriptions, translated into Latin was published in the Correspondence of Linnaeus, vol. i., page 94.¹⁰⁴

In her research, she conversed with the “Country People” and Indians, from whom she learned of the uses of some of the plants. A tea made of the leaves of the Mountain-mint (Pycnanthemum incanum) was used for stomach ailments. A preparation of the root of Goldthread (Coptis trifolia) was used for sore throat and canker sore. Prickly Ash (Aralia spinosa) was treatment for coughs and also dropsy (edema). Others were specified for use in cookery.¹⁰⁵ Jane is also credited with a 1756 memorandum of the process of making cheese on the farm.¹⁰⁶ Walter Rutherfurd, a Scottish officer who served in the French and Indian War and visited Coldengham in 1758, wrote, “She [Jane] makes the best cheese I ever ate in America.”¹⁰⁷

The period of Jane's dedication to botany ended abruptly with her marriage on March 12, 1759, to Dr. William Farquhar, a Scotsman, widower, and highly regarded practitioner of medicine in New York City. The couple met shortly after the Coldens moved to Flushing. Jane died on March 10, 1766 and her only child died the same year. The cause of her death and the death of her child were not reported.