The Ralph Hull Memorial Collection
Collection — Container: MSS Box 341
Identifier: MSS 2020.0016
Scope and Contents
Collection comprises a selection of Deeds and miscellaneous papers of the Reed and Hull families of Durham. The majority of the early deeds within pertain to a selection of lots in the towns of Durham, Greene County, and Conesville, Schoharie County - The Durham lots being located along route 145 in the vicinity of and adjoining the old Church lot on Meeting House Hill, and the Conesville documents relating to parcels on a the road from Cooksburg to Potters Hollow. Later documents pertain to the transaction and filing of deeds of the Hull family for portions of these parcels and others, and include correspondence with a lawyer from Greenville, New York.
Dates
- 1808-1988
Biographical / Historical
[Text extracted from a history of Twin Falls Farm and the Hull Family of Durham, originally publsihed in the New York State Agricultural Society's 51 Annual Century Farms Award Program in January 1988]
Twin Falls Farm, owned and operated by Ralph and Joyce Hull in partnership with their son John and his wife Charlene, has a long and rich history in Greene County. In the late 1700's, Ralph's great-great-grandfather, John Hull, was one of the original seven men who set- tled in Durham, a community in the northeast portion of the county. Travelling to the area from Durham, Connecticut, he helped establish the community. The following spring, he moved his entire family to Durham, NY.
About the same time, as a young boy, William Huntington Reed came to Durham from Connecticut with his family. The Reed family purchased 104 acres and began to work the land. In 1809, William married Phoebe Titus and acquired the farm from his father, Joseph. William and Phoebe had six children. John Huntington, the fourth child, remained on the farm with his father.
In 1850, John Reed married Antoinette Nearing and they had three children. Antoinette died 10 years later, and in 1861, John married Henrietta Post. The Reeds had five daughters - Louise, Kate, Edith, Henrietta and Mabel, and John continued the farm. After John's death in 1887, Henrietta managed the farm with the assistance of her children and neighbors.
Daughter Henrietta married John Hull, a descendant of the Hulls who had settled in Durham. John was known for his fine horses. In addition to operating the farm, he was a teamster, driving horses between Durham and Catskill, taking flour, meat and fruit to market and bringing supplies back to the community. Henrietta and John had 14 children, all born between 1899 and 1921.
The Hulls were very active in their church and followed strict church principles. During the early 1920's, John served as road commissioner for the town of Durham. In 1927, John and Henrietta purchased the farm outright from her sisters. Ralph, born in 1918 and the next-to-youngest child, remained on the farm and worked with his father.
In 1940, Ralph married Joyce Poultney and moved to Albany County to operate a farm owned by Joyce's father. After four years, they returned to Durham and bought land that is now the present farm. They added another 100 acres in 1950 and, in 1955, Ralph purchased his father's farm of 104 acres.
Twin Falls Farm, owned and operated by Ralph and Joyce Hull in partnership with their son John and his wife Charlene, has a long and rich history in Greene County. In the late 1700's, Ralph's great-great-grandfather, John Hull, was one of the original seven men who set- tled in Durham, a community in the northeast portion of the county. Travelling to the area from Durham, Connecticut, he helped establish the community. The following spring, he moved his entire family to Durham, NY.
About the same time, as a young boy, William Huntington Reed came to Durham from Connecticut with his family. The Reed family purchased 104 acres and began to work the land. In 1809, William married Phoebe Titus and acquired the farm from his father, Joseph. William and Phoebe had six children. John Huntington, the fourth child, remained on the farm with his father.
In 1850, John Reed married Antoinette Nearing and they had three children. Antoinette died 10 years later, and in 1861, John married Henrietta Post. The Reeds had five daughters - Louise, Kate, Edith, Henrietta and Mabel, and John continued the farm. After John's death in 1887, Henrietta managed the farm with the assistance of her children and neighbors.
Daughter Henrietta married John Hull, a descendant of the Hulls who had settled in Durham. John was known for his fine horses. In addition to operating the farm, he was a teamster, driving horses between Durham and Catskill, taking flour, meat and fruit to market and bringing supplies back to the community. Henrietta and John had 14 children, all born between 1899 and 1921.
The Hulls were very active in their church and followed strict church principles. During the early 1920's, John served as road commissioner for the town of Durham. In 1927, John and Henrietta purchased the farm outright from her sisters. Ralph, born in 1918 and the next-to-youngest child, remained on the farm and worked with his father.
In 1940, Ralph married Joyce Poultney and moved to Albany County to operate a farm owned by Joyce's father. After four years, they returned to Durham and bought land that is now the present farm. They added another 100 acres in 1950 and, in 1955, Ralph purchased his father's farm of 104 acres.
Extent
.1 Cubic Feet (One silver-colored legal size document case) : Primarily handwritten and typewritten legal documents.
Arrangement
Materials are arranged roughly in chronological order.
Immediate Source of Acquisition
Materials were delivered to the Vedder Research Library in the care of Durham Town Historian Mary Lou Nahas on behalf of Janet Hull Nelson, daughter of the late Ralph Hull of Durham. Documents were previously in possession of the family.
- Title
- Assorted Papers of the Reed and Hull Families
- Author
- Jonathan Palmer
- Date
- 2020-12-11
- Description rules
- dacs
- Language of description
- English
Repository Details
Part of the Vedder Research Library Repository