Hubbard family papers
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Creator
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Abstract
The Hubbard family papers characterize the business and legal transactions of father Elias Hubbard (died 1832), and son Elias Hubbard (died 1864) in the town of Flatlands (now part of Brooklyn), in Kings County, New York. These papers contain evidence of the community involvement of Elias junior, as well as the role of Elias senior in the American Revolutionary war. The collection also contains evidence of community dialogue and development through correspondence, meeting minutes and organizational documents; personal and political matters are also addressed through these materials. The collection's mortgages, deeds, wills, bonds, community tax records, enslaved persons' bills of sale, apprenticeship agreements and indentures display the economic and political forces surrounding the Hubbard family, as well as Brooklyn in general, in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century.
Biographical Note
The Hubbard family papers relate principally to Elias Hubbard (died 1832) and his son Elias Hubbard (died 1864). Huldah Hubbard (died 1851), who was the wife of Elias junior, is also represented in the collection, along with James Hubbard, father of Elias. The children of Elias senior and extended family of Huldah, including her father John Holmes and sister Catherine of New Jersey, are also mentioned in family wills.
The Hubbards resided in the town of Flatlands (now part of Brooklyn), in Kings County, New York, with members of their extended family in New Jersey and Connecticut.
Elias Hubbard senior was born in Flatlands in 1746. During the American Revolutionary period he was involved in local militias in Brooklyn; his allegiance during the war is not completely apparent in the collection, with documents supporting his oath of loyalty to King George in 1776, as well as papers displaying his rank of Lieutenant and then Captain of a local Regiment of the Kings County Militia (circa 1784-1787). He was also a member of the Dutch Reformed Church of Flatlands. He owned various properties in Flatlands and was a slaveholder. Both Elias senior and junior are mentioned in the 1810 Flatlands census. Upon his death in 1832, he willed the majority of his property to his children, principally his son, Elias junior.
Elias junior was born in 1776. He married Huldah Homes in 1801, and together they resided in Flatlands, N.Y. Elias junior owned property including a home, carriage and enslaved people; much of this property was inherited from his father. His apprenticeship as a dry goods merchant under the supervision of James V.H. Lawrence for five years is noted. Few materials reference his position as a lawyer, however there is no official documentation to support this title. Throughout his life, he held various offices in local organizations, specifically as secretary of the Flatlands Temperance Society, as a collector for the second district, and as a delegate of the Brooklyn City Charter. He participated in an effort in conjunction with members of the school board (Flatlands District No. 1) to remove an unfit teacher from the district. Like his father, he was also an active member of the Dutch Reformed Church of Flatlands. Elias died in 1864.
Arrangement
The Hubbard family papers were found to be organized into folders at the beginning of processing in 2010, with materials separated by the individuals in which they describe. There was no indication that the material was still in its original order. The materials were kept as they were found; organized at a folder level without series.
Users of the collection should be aware that the documents created by and concerning a specific individual will be found in folders with the individual's name, separated further by their subject matter. Materials involving a community or group of creators are separated by subject matter.
Oversize materials were removed from their original folders and placed in an oversize folder. Notes appear in each folder where oversize materials were found and they are also found on the container list. The oversize material can be found in one oversize folder, separated by notations.
Scope and Contents
The Hubbard family papers contain the legal, financial and business records of Elias Hubbard and his son, also named Elias. A large portion of the materials also concern Hubbard family life, and their role in the community of Flatlands, New York, where they resided. These materials provide insight into the economic, political and social climate of the town of Flatlands in the late 18th and early 19th century. In addition to Flatlands, Hubbard's papers encompass individuals from other areas, including New Utrecht, Gravesend, Flushing, and Monmouth and Somerset counties in New Jersey.
This collection contains mortgages, bonds, deeds, wills and other documents related to the land matters of the Hubbards. Also included are three indentures for servitude including those for a joyner, a household servant for the Hubbard family, and an indenture for the apprenticeship of Elias junior as a dry goods merchant. Many of the financial records concern the willing of the estates of family members and siblings to both Elias junior and Huldah Hubbard. The will of Elias senior is also included.
References to enslaved African Americans appear throughout the collection, particularly seen in legal documentation concerning sale, purchase, and inheritance through wills. The collection contains five enslaved persons' bills of sale, four of which were to the Hubbard family. The freedom and financial support of enslaved people is also mentioned in the will of John. W. Holmes, father of Huldah.
A large portion of the collection focuses on involvement in local organizations, specifically surrounding Elias junior. This is seen through meeting minutes and statements which display his appointment to the delegation concerned with the Brooklyn City charter, secretarial appointment and host of Flatland's town meetings, creation of a clamming bill, and early Temperance Society formation. This collection also contains materials surrounding the involvement of the community in attaining corporate status for the Protestant Dutch Reformed Church, along with receipts for the purchase of pews and mention of donated books by Elias junior.
Documentation of school board correspondence with the Superintendent of Common Schools for the State of New York as well as with the commissioner, inspector and trustees of Common Schools in the town of Flatlands is also present. This correspondence argued for the removal of W. Johnson from his position as Preacher in Flatlands School District No. 1 based on reports of public intoxication, foul language and subversion of the Christian Religion. A list of taxable town inhabitants in the Flatland school district(1833), and documentation discussing Flatlands School District No. 1's financials is also included.
This collection contains material from the American Revolutionary War period, including documents related to Elias senior's involvement throughout the war; specifically an oath of allegiance to King George and a pass granted to Elias as per his declaration, as well as a proclamation by General William Howe of the British Army offering protection to the Loyalists of Long Island. There are also documents supporting Elias senior's rise through the ranks as a member of the Kings County Militia. Some documents concern the taking of goods and services from Elias by the Loyalist forces in the early stages of the war.
A small portion of this collection contains miscellaneous items that have no apparent connection to the Hubbard family including an enslaved person's bill of sale from Flushing, Queens, a broadside dedicated to the German Citizens of Bucks County and a Union College lottery ticket.
Subjects
Organizations
Families
Genres
People
Topics
Conditions Governing Access
Open to researchers without restriction.
Conditions Governing Use
Material in this collection is in the public domain.
Preferred Citation
Identification of item, date (if known); Hubbard family papers, 1974.044, Box and Folder number; Brooklyn Historical Society.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
The Hubbard family papers were presented to the Long Island Historical Society (now the Brooklyn Historical Society) in 1927 by Timothy I. Hubbard.
Bibliographic References
A history of Hubbard family genealogy can be found in:
Day, Edward Warren. One Thousand years of Hubbard history, 866 to 1895: from Hubba, the Norse sea king, to the enlightened present. New York: H.P. Hubbard, 1895. Call number: CS 71. H83 1895
Census information can be found in: [1810 Census of the Town of Flatlands] copied by John D. Morrell National Archives, Washington, D.C., 1958. Call number: F129.B753 B758 1900z v. 3
About this Guide
Processing Information
The Hubbard family papers were processed in October 2010 by Rachel M. Oleaga.
Oppressive descriptive language was remediated from the subject terms, abstract, biographical/historical, and scope and contents notes in this finding aid as part of an anti-racist descriptive language audit performed in December 2020. Folder titles were retained to maintain record of descriptive language of collection creators.
