Birth
There is very little known about William Crocker's place of birth, except that he was born somewhere in the state of New York. Based on analysis of US Census Records, there are a significant number of Crocker families living in Fort Edward, Washington Co., New York around the time of William's birth. Few other Crocker families have been found elsewhere in US Census Records for New York at this time. This may indicate that William was born in this area, but there is no conclusive evidence to confirm this.
One of the original settlers of Fort Edward is a Levi Crocker, who moved his family to the area from Connecticut in the 1760's. It is possible that William Crocker is a descendent of Levi Crocker, but it will take additional research to reveal the necessary links.
Biography
Little is known of William Crocker's childhood.
William Crocker served in the War of 1812 in Captain Samuel Hawley's company of Colonel Hardenbergh's regiment, New York Militia (later becoming the the 8th Infantry Company). He enlisted on 10 Sep 1813 in Albany or Windham, New York. He served in Plattsburgh and Albany, New York, and was promoted to Corporal while serving in Shattenger (?? Not sure of spelling).
Nothing is known of William's life between the years 1813 and 1823. On 4 Mar 1823, William Crocker married Ursula Hunter in Pittsford (Monroe Co.), New York.
Sometime in 1830 while still living in the state of New York (presumably in or near Monroe County), Ursula gave birth to their son, Hiram Crocker.
Sometime prior to 1840, William Crocker migrated his family from New York to the northern part of Romulus Township (Wayne Co.) Michigan. The US Census Records of 5 Jun 1840 list a William, his wife Ursula, and son Hiram. It is not known precisely why William decided to move his family to Michigan. However, it is known that he purchased land in Romulus Township and began farming.
William received land bounties for his service in the War of 1812. Under an Act of Congress passed on 28 Sep 1850, William received a Land Bounty Warrant for 40 acres (Warrant #6190) on 14 Nov 1850. Under another Act of Congress passed on 3 Mar 1855, William traded his 40 acre Land Warrant in order to receive a larger parcel of 120 acres (Warrant #34118) on 18 Apr 1855. It is assumed that this 120 acres is part of the 160 acres he later owned, but this cannot be confirmed.
The following map shows the location of William Crocker's property on a current map.
By 6 Aug 1850, William Crocker's property had grown to a value of $1,500, slightly above the typical value of other farmer's land in the Romulus Township area at this time. In this census year, there is another individual listed, Jane age 13 born in New York, as living in the household of William Crocker. It is unclear who this individual is, since there was no mention of her on the 1840 census. Although it has not been confirmed, this mysterious Jane may actually be the future wife of Hiram Crocker, since the ages are very close. Discrepancies in names were very common on census records at this time, so her last name may actually not be Crocker. Additional research may reveal the actual identity of this person.
On 6 Jul 1860, William Crocker's property is listed as being worth $3,000 and his personal estate is listed as being worth $500. Again, this is slightly above the typical value of other farmer's land in the Romulus Township area at this time. This may be due to the eventual size of his property, 160 acres by 1876. William's son, Hiram, had been married prior to 1860 and is also listed as living in Romulus Township with his own family, on or near the property of William Crocker. There is also a farm laborer listed as living in the household, Orlando A. Delong age 16 born in Michigan.
On 10 Jun 1870, William Crocker's property is listed as being worth $5,000 and his personal estate is listed as being worth $1,380 in 1870. In today's money, this is equivalent to $64,000 and $18,000, respectively, without accounting for appreciation of value (this calculation was done using only inflation figures). William's son, Hiram, and his 3 children (Ursula E., Loretta Mary, and Delbert Hiram) are shown as living in the household. There is also a farm laborer listed as living in the household, Phillip Seaton age 60 born in New York.
On 6 April 1871, William Crocker filed a "Declaration of Soldier for Pension" his service during the War of 1812. in response to an Act of Congress passed 14 Feb 1871 allowing certain veterans to make claims for pension. The declaration was witnessed and signed by his son, Hiram Crocker, and James Burns and was signed and filed by the Wayne Co. Deputy Clerk, M. J. Moynahan. This was followed up with the filing of a "Brief of Claim for a Survivor's Pension" on 22 Nov 1871.
On 14 Aug 1874, William Crocker passed away. Cause of death is listed as debility, in other words, old age. He lived a long life, 79 years, for this time. Establishing himself and the Crocker lineage in the state of Michigan and obtaining a moderate estate that was left to his family.
By 1876, 2 years after William's death, his estate was now owned by his wife, Ursula, and had grown to 160 acres. The following plat map from 1876 shows the location of this property, divided between sections 3 and 4 of Township 3 South (Romulus), Range 9 East from the Michigan Meridian-Toledo Strip.
It is unclear what portion(s) of the property in Romulus Township were acquired with the Land Warrants obtained from his service in the War of 1812. However, as the following map shows, the property was originally purchased through the Bureau of Land Management by Enoch T. Glass and Alvin Hanmer.
In February 1879, Ursula began receiving $8 per month from the pension claim originally filed by William Crocker in 1871 for his service during the War of 1812.
William's wife, Ursula, passed away 2 Mar 1890, leaving the property to James Wright, the husband of Ursula E. Crocker (Hiram's daughter, Delbert's sister). James and Ursula remained living on this property until at least 1910, after which there is no confirmation of them living in Romulus Township.
In the 1930's, the property came under the ownership of the Eloise House, a mental institution in Detroit. The land was farmed by the patients of the Eloise Hospital to provide for the institution until the mid 1980's.
In 1998, the property was purchased by Salvatore Cottone, a Detroit area land developer, along with over 200 neighboring acres. Mr. Cottone, along with other investors, turned the land into a sprawling golf club and housing community by the name of Gateway Golf Club.
Following is William Crocker's signature as signed on his Bounty Land documentation in 1855.
Death & Burial
William Crocker passed away on 14 Aug 1874 at his residence in Romulus Township. Dr. J.W. Converse attended William in his final weeks of life and confirmed his death. He was laid to rest at the Romulus City Cemetery.
