General Notes

The “Lords of Manors” were titles awarded to large landowners and other important colonialists by the English Crown granting much the same rights as the Dutch patroonships. The first such manor was “Pelham”, based upon a patent granted to Thomas Pell in 1666 by the colonial governor. A similar patent was granted to John Archer for the manor of “Fordham” in 1671. John Archer the  first lord of the manor of Fordham, New York, said to have been the son of John Archer, who was the son of Humphrey Archer born 1527 died 1562, of Warwickshire, England who married  Elizabeth Townsend. This has not been proven and the pedigrees found would ssem to point to other parents.  John probably came from England to Fairfield, Conn. in 1648, thence to Westchester Co. New York abt. 1654/55. He was sheriff of New York City from 1679 to 1682. He died suddenly in his coach between Fordham and New York City in October 1685. He is buried on Tetard Hill. His eldest son John Archer Jr. became second lord of the manor. He married, Sarah Odell in 1686, daughter of William Odell of Fordham, and had children. Among others, John Odell married Mary Fowler. Samuel Odell, and Richard Odell, who left numerous descendants 1671 - John Archer receives a patent from the colonial governor for the manor of Fordham, which included almost all of today’s western
The Visitation of Warwick 1619 p. 308-309
The Visitation of Worcestershire 1569, P. 11,
The Visitation of Worcestershire 1634 P. 6.
Familie Minorum Gentium, P. 1257-1258
The Visitation of Oxfordshire, 1634, P. 319
The Visitation of Shropshire, 1623, P. 40-42

FORDHAM MANOR, granted to John ARCHER (ca. 1633-1684), merchant
SIZE/LOCATION: 3,900 acres in present-day Bronx County (Harry C.W. Mellick, The Manor of Fordham and Its Founder [New York: Fordham University Press, 1950] p. 72) [N.Y. Co. W522.15]
MAPS: Mellick, above, between pp. 72-73, 120-121, 134-135
DATE(S) OF GRANT: 13 November 1671 by Gov. Francis Lovelace (the Mannor of Fordham to "be an Intire Enfranchised Towneship Mannor & Place of itself"); transcript of original grant in Mellick, above, pp. 70-72, De Lancey pp. 159-160, and Land Patents Transcriptions 4:79-82 (Land Patents 4:83-85) Fordham's own court was added by Gov. Lovelace's grant of 10 or 20 April 1673, calling it the Mannor of Fordham (Landlord and Tenant p. 16; Mellick, above, pp. 80-81; General Entries 1:532-533)
RIGHTS GRANTED: local autonomy in 1671; the right to hold a court in 1673 (Landlord and Tenant pp. 15-17)
PUBLISHED HISTORY: Mellick, above; Minor Manors pp. 5-6
LOCATION OF PAPERS:
PUBLISHED PAPERS:
GRANTEE AND FAMILY: Mellick, above, pp. 167-176; Harry C.W. Mellick, "Descendants of John Archer of Fordham," typescript, 1951, at NYG&B [G AR 23jn]
TENANTS/RESIDENTS:
COMMENTS: On 14 November 1671, the day after Gov. Lovelace's grant, John Archer mortgaged the Manor of Fordham to Cornelis Van Steenwyck by a bargain and sale deed to take effect 14 November 1683. The mortgage apparently was not paid, and Fordham passed to Van Steenwyck. His widow married the Rev. Henricus Selyns, and they conveyed Fordham to the New York Reformed Dutch Church on 1 January 1695 (Mellick, Manor of Fordham, above, pp. 74-77, 104-107, 111, 118-119).