Disinger Family
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Sullivan Expedition - American Revolution
You can now watch Ken Burns' "The American Revolution" for free on pbs.org or your local PBS station. In particular, watch Episode 3 "The Times That Try Men’s Souls (July 1776 – January 1777)" that covers the Battle of Long Island (see below). In August of 1776, Nicolaus and John Deissinger served in the "Heidelberg Brigade," a Continental Army militia unit from Berks County, PA. (see below) Their unit was involved in the battle in Captain John Lesher's company of Colonel Patton’s Regiment. Also watch Episode 5 "The Soul of All America (December 1777 – May 1780)" that covers the Sullivan Expedition (see below).
Battle of Long Island
At 21, Nicolaus served in the "Heidelberg Brigade" (a militia unit from Berks County, PA, comprised of German-American patriots) in August 1776, along with his brother, Johan George (John), at 19. In the History of Berks County in Pennsylvania in the Revolution by Montgomery, Morton L., 1894, Nicolaus Teisinger and John Teisinger were listed as privates in Captain John Lesher's company in Colonel Patton’s Regiment. On August 11, 1776, after making preparations in Berks County, Captain Lesher's company marched 135 miles east to Perth Amboy, NJ, near Staten Island, NY. They apparently took part in the Battle of Long Island on August 27, 1776, where British forces defeated the Continental Army under George Washington. After suffering about 1,000 losses, the Continental Army safely retreated across the East River to Manhattan. Later Nicolaus would serve again in 1780 with his brother William.
Berks County Militia
During the American Revolution, Major General John Sullivan used Native American trails when he led his troops from Easton, Pennsylvania (30 miles east of Berks County, PA) to New York along the Great Warriors Path. In 1779, as ordered by Commander-in-Chief George Washington, General Sullivan and about 4,000 troops marched from Easton following Indian trails (see map below) to exact revenge on the Iroquois in New York for their attacks on colonialists the previous year. Some of his troops came from Berks County, as highlighted on the map. General Sullivan destroyed Indian villages along the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania and continued into New York, through Seneca County between Seneca Lake and Cayuga Lake, as well as Geneva and Canandaigua, New York. The Iroquois fought back, but were no match for their attackers, and many of the survivors fled to Niagara Falls and Canada. There are monuments and plaques along General Sullivan's path to commemorate the expedition.
Nicolaus Deisinger and his brother William served in Captain Conrad Shirman's Co, 6th Battalion, Berks County Militia. In 1780, the company was called into active duty against the Indians for 1 month. While Nicolaus and William did not seem to have taken part in General Sullivan's Expedition, they would almost certainly have heard stories about it from the militia veterans afterwards. Nicolaus was likely well aware that the Iroquois were completely defeated and their former lands were left abandoned. He also would have known that Indian trails along the Susquehanna River led directly to their lands in Seneca County and elsewhere in New York.
After the Sullivan Expedition
Below are two articles written by Seneca County Historian, Walt Gable, describing the Seneca County land designated a Cayuga Indian reservation in 1789 by treaty after the Sullivan Expedition. The reservation's western border was marked by Route 414, an old Indian path. In a 1795 treaty, the Cayugas released the reservation land to NY State, which then proceeded to sell lots to settlers. On the 1852 Partial Town of Fayette map, John Disinger's original farm in 1804 was to the west of the Reservation Road, Route 414. Afterwards, all the other Disinger-owned farms were to the east of Route 414 (except for part of John Disinger's third estate), meaning they were once part of the former Cayuga reservation that they purchased from NY State.
This website has tried to avoid long, involved history lessons. However, some history helps explain how (and why) it impacted the lives and decisions the Disingers made in the past, as this brief overview of the Sullivan Expedition does. You can see more information about it on Wikipedia and elsewhere on the net. It's apparent that the Sullian Expedition affected Nicolaus and his sons' decision to move to Seneca County, NY, and eventually Niagara County, NY.
Finger Lake Times
LOOKING BACK: A history of Seneca County's 'Reservation Road' By WALT GABLE Mar 13, 2022 -
Have you ever driven down the road that was once known as Reservation Road? If you have proceeded south from Seneca Falls on Route 414, you have. Actually, there are several Reservation Roads in New York state — just google those words to see them. How Reservation Road came about in Seneca County is the focus of this article.
Just a short distance south of Seneca Falls, at the corner of Route 414 and Tom Allen Road, there is an historic marker titled “Reservation Road.” That marker was funded by the New York State Education Department and erected in 1932, at the request of some local group. In 2020, Seneca County paid to have that weathered marker repainted so that its wording can be clearly read. The marker is basically the only visible evidence of what once was this area’s Reservation Road.
In the Treaty of Albany of 1789, the Cayuga Nation ceded to the state of New York all of the Cayugas’ lands, except specified reservations. The largest “reserved” reservation was approximately 100 square miles on the east and west sides of Cayuga Lake, with the western boundary running about three miles west of Cayuga Lake’s west shore. That western boundary line is the present location of Route 414 from Seneca Falls to the Romulus-Varick town line.
That 1789 pact helped clear the way for New York state to proceed to “award” the other parts of present-day Seneca County to New York state veterans for their service in the American Revolutionary War. The deed records for the properties immediately west of this Cayuga Reservation make reference to being part of some military lot number.
This road was an old Indian path, basically running south from present-day Seneca Falls to the present-day Romulus-Varick town line, and became known as the Reservation Road. The old path evolved into a more travel-worn “road” — logically widened, and with some improvement for wagons and carriages — as more and more European-American (White) settlers made extensive use of it to avoid trespassing on the Cayugas’ lands inside the reservation boundary.
In a 1795 treaty, the Cayugas ceded to New York state the Cayuga Reservation lands on both sides of Cayuga Lake. This came after the New Military Tract lots had been granted to Revolutionary War veterans. The state then proceeded to sell off lots within the former Cayuga Reservation. Deeds to those former Cayuga Reservation lands make reference to being a certain reservation lot number.
With more and more travel on this dirt “Reservation Road,” there was growing need for improvements to the road itself.
In 1850, C.W. Seely and Jacob Chamberlain were authorized by the state Legislature to lay a “plank road” extending from Seneca Falls south to Bearytown (the present-day hamlet of Fayette). Capital stock was issued in shares of $50, with much of that stock purchased by farmers along the road. The new plank road became a “toll road,” with people paying a fee to travel on it, thus leading to an expected profit for the stockholders.
However, the planks of this new toll road were not durable, being laid upon oak stringers and composed of elm and soft maple. The planks soon began to break up. Not surprisingly, the value of the stock shares depreciated to less than 40% of their face value. Within eight years, this plank road became worthless. The wooden remnants were removed and the road became just a dirt road again for many years.
The toll house is another interesting part about Reservation Road. Its exact location has been disputed. The historic marker says that the “toll gate” was at the historic marker’s location. Recent research has indicated there was a “toll house” about three-quarters of a mile north of Bearytown. This toll house was like the toll houses on many toll roads of that time: The road itself passed through the open portion of the toll house, and the major part of the building was a residence for the toll collector’s family.
Apparently, the last tolls were collected in 1875. Of course, the toll house no longer exists.
In time, the Reservation Road going from Bearytown south to Ovid was improved with stone gravel and became known as Ovid Stone Road. In the early 1950s, New York state Route 414 was realigned to bypass the hamlet of Romulus to the east, meaning that the entire road from Ovid to Seneca Falls — the former Reservation Road, with its extension to the south end of the town of Romulus — was now New York state Route 414.
Gable is the Seneca County historian.
Finger Lake Times
LOOKING BACK: A quick primer on treaties with the Cayugas By WALT GABLE Sep 24, 2022 -
Excerpt - The Cayugas - In 1789 at Albany, New York state concluded a contract with the Cayugas that greatly reduced their lands but protected the hunting and fishing rights for the Cayuga people. On Feb. 25, 1789, in a treaty concluded at Fort Stanwix, the Cayuga Nation sold 3 million acres to New York. This was all of the Cayuga lands with the exception of 64,015 acres (100 square miles) and two smaller tracts (the Rychman Square Mile and the Cayuga Ferry Square Mile). The approximately 64,000 acres became known as the Cayuga Reservation. In present Seneca County, this reservation extended as far west as Route 414 and as far south as the Varick-Romulus town line. ...
Nevertheless, on Nov. 1, 1796, New York State Surveyor-General Simeon DeWitt began the sale of Cayuga Reservation lands. Then, on Feb. 26, 1807, the Cayugas ceded all of their remaining land (some 3,200 acres) to New York state for $4,800.
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