The adventures of John Selkirk

 

Turns out this clipping is from the September 3, 1931 issue of the Knickerbocker News

If any of you have spoken to me lately, you know I am currently obsessed with James Selkirk (Revolutionary War veteran, memoir writer, tailor, farmer) and his wife Elizabeth Henry (homemaker, mother of ten.)

I recently came across this newspaper clipping, an obituary for John Selkirk.  What immediately caught my eye was the headline, Once Custer Aid. Then these phrases: "During his youth he prospected for gold.  He abandoned this pursuit and enlisted in the Seventh U.S. Cavalry, which Custer commanded. He was mustered out before the battle of Little Big Horn... for many years he fought Indians in the west with Custer."

I was immediately reminded of the Niver brothers of Bethlehem (the hamlet of Selkirk to be exact), both of whom went West. One with the 7th Calvary - Custer's regiment -  where he died at Little Big Horn.  The other prospected for gold, had adventures in the Wild West, settled in Illinois and eventually returned to Bethlehem.   

Take a minute to read my other blog posts related to these two:

Bethlehem NY History: Our Town Bethlehem February 2021: John I and the Niver Brothers

(You can also look for my articles on John Eddy (aka Conrad Niver) who purchased the old Hurlbut estate.)

What are the chances that two young Bethlehem men served with Custer?  More digging in the old newspapers turned up this notice for John Selkirk:

Albany Times Union, September 2, 1931 

After noting the dramatic headline that implies that Selkirk survived Little Big Horn when he wasn't actually there, there is this "...the old soldier and Indian fighter heard taps.  His life-long friend John Eddy of 732 Madison avenue, received the news last night."  

Did you catch it? John Eddy (that is Conrad Niver -  whose brother Garrett also served in the 7th Calvary) and John Selkirk were life-long friends. Serious historian chills here! 

John Eddy, back when he was still Conrad Niver, and John Selkirk grew up in the 1850s and 60s in the area that is now the hamlet of Selkirk (it didn't officially get named until after the railroad came through in the 1870s).  Both likely went to the District #2 one-room school, attended services at the First Reformed Church (both were baptized there), labored on their family farms and probably made their way to the Hudson River to fish.  

And apparently, both went west to seek their fortune.

What is interesting is the only documentation I could find about John Selkirk's military service was from when he registered with the National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers. It says he enlisted at Albany on August 21, 1866 when he was 18 years old. He had grey eyes, auburn hair and a ruddy complexion. He was with the 7th Calvary, company L, and was discharged October 30, 1867 at Fort Reynolds. Colorado. 

So far, so good.  Until you start looking at those dates. He served with the 7th for 14 months. Custer  took over the regiment on February 7, 1867. The battles at the Little Big Horn happened in June of 1876. 

I couldn't find him in the 1870 U.S. Census, but I know he married his first wife Eliza Grimshaw in  February 1870 and their daughter Eliza was born that November.  The 1875 N.Y. Census has the family living in Coeymans. The 1880 U.S. Census catches them in Hoboken, New Jersey where John is a ferryman. The 1892 N.Y. Census has him back in Bethlehem where he remains until at least 1925. The 1930 census captures him at the home of his daughter Iola Jane - known as Jean - in Los Angles, California, where he died the next year. 

So, I'm thinking that John Selkirk was out west from about 1866 to 1869/70.  His friend John Eddy on the other hand,  went west about 1870 and didn't return to Bethlehem until 1906. 

What I am imagining is the two old friends reuniting, kicking back for some cocktails, and reminiscing about their adventures out west. The stories probably grew and grew the more they were told.  I know that John Eddy often spoke of said adventures (ask me about his two dueling obituaries from when he died in 1935, one focuses on his Wild West adventures, the other emphasizes the fine upstanding man he became.)

And I must say, that the Selkirks seem to have produced many an adventurer besides John.  James Selkirk, John's grandfather, wrote a memoir of his Revolutionary War service that is pretty harrowing in places (except for the long boring marches - like the one from Rhode Island to New York).  Even before that, James showed a sense of adventure when he boarded the Gale in 1774 when he was about 17 years old to travel from Scotland to New York. 

One of James' sons, William, went west to Matagorda, Texas (Google the history of Selkirk Island for an interesting read. William was one of Stephen Austin's original settlers). 

And then there is Alexander Selkirk, the buccaneer who sailed for gold and adventure in 1703 and got marooned on a deserted island. His adventures inspired Daniel Defoe's book Robinson Crusoe. I seem to remember that he is an ancestor of our James Selkirk. 

And to conclude todays journey with the boisterous Selkirks, I leave you with this newspaper clipping from October 3, 1880 in the Albany Morning Express where John Selkirk got rowdy at Henry Redderson's saloon. 

I should note that I am pretty confident this is the right John Selkirk - there is however a younger cousin also named John Selkirk. I am amused to think that my John, about age 32 in 1880, who was a Hudson River pilot and ferryman besides a wild west adventurer, was taking a break from his work aboard ship, came ashore to the saloon, got all angry about being short changed, then went back to smash up the place. 

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And a PS if you've gotten all the way to the end of this post, I am on the hunt for any and all documentation, old photos, old letters, etc in regards to James and Elizabeth Selkirk and their descendants. Please shoot me an email if you've got a family connection! sleath@townofbethlehem.org