Phillis Wheatly

In some ways, the story of the van Cortlandt's mirrors that of the Philipses. The reasons for this will be considered later. The manor of Cortlandt began in 1697, when King William III granted the family a royal charter for land (86,000 acres), which Stephanus van Cortlandt had purcahsed from the Kitchewane Indians and European landowners. The act was not a gratuitous gift of land but rather a bestowing of favor and special privileges. The land ran from Croton River to the Bear Mountain Bridge across the Hudson to Connecticut and was leased rather than sold to tenants. Eventually the choicest part of the manor was inherited by the eldest son of Stephanus and Gertrude Philip.