The old merchants of New York City / by Walter Barrett.

60

THE OLD MIERCHAI.ATS

Cunningham & Co. were also consignees of ships from
London, Bristol and Liverpool. They sold everything
that could be sold in this market - Irisl beef, butter,
salmon and tongues.
This house kept on steadily doing business on a large
scale during the years of trouble and anxiety, from 1768
to 1775, when the British took possession of the city.
They then had the ship "l Grace " in the Newry trade.
I suppose this great house got broke up during the
long seven years of the Revolutionary war, and that
the firm was changed. Mr. Robert Ross Waddell resided here during all that long period, and went into
business when the war was over, in 1784. He went
into business under his own name, at 61 Queen street.
He afterwards moved to 45 Pine street, and resided in
that house about twenty years -at least until 1818. I
think he died that year. He was one of the founders
of the St. Patrick's Society, and was secretary of it
from 1789 to 1808, a period of nineteen years. He was
treasurer of the Chamber of Commerce from 1780
to 1784. I do not know whether he left any descendants.
There was another family of note of the same name,
though English. It was that of Captain John Waddell,
who married Miss Ann Kirten, November 30, 1736,
whose mother, Mrs. Ann Kirten by-the-by, was tho
widow of William Kirten, who was born 2d February,
1680; (they married in New York City 31st July 1704).
She, Mrs. Ann Kirten, having been previously married
first to Samuel Pyles, second to William Floyd. John
Waddell came from Dover, in England, and he named a
ship which ho had built on the shore of the East River,
where Dover street now is, the Ipover, That circuri
stance gave the name to the street,