Mollie Sneden
| Mollie Sneden | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 13, 1709 Dobbs Ferry, New York, British America |
| Died | January 31, 1810 (aged 101) Palisades, New York, United States |
| Occupation | Ferry Mistress; Public House owner |
| Known for | Operating a river ferry; British sympathies during Revolutionary War |
| Spouse(s) | Robert Sneden Jr. George Calhoun(?) |
| Parent(s) | John and Abigail Dobbs |
Mollie Sneden (January 13, 1709 – January 31, 1810) born as Mary Dobbs was the operator of a ferry service at Palisades, New York in the United States, before and after the American Revolution. During the war she was prohibited from running the ferry because of her British sympathies. Mollie Sneden is listed as a Woman of Distinction by the New York Senate.
Mollie Sneden was born Mary Dobbs in Westchester County, New York in 1709. Her parents, John and Abigail Dobbs, baptized her in Tarrytown, New York. Mollie grew up with two half-brothers by her father's first wife and four siblings by her mother, his second wife. The Dobbs Family operated a ferry across the Hudson River. Ferry operation began with Mollie's half-brother, William, in 1730, departing from an Indian village called Wysquaqua, later Dobbs Ferry. (see "Dobbs Ferry: The Beginning" by Jean Fritz in The Ferryman newsletter published by Dobbs Ferry Historical Society, November 1993 p2 http://dobbsferryhistory.org/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/026-1993_November.pdf) The route of Dobbs Ferry across the Hudson River is recognized as one of the earliest of the Hudson ferry routes. Mollie's husband, Robert Sneden Jr., though a carpenter and farmer by trade, assisted William in running the ferry. It is not known if Mollie experienced ferry operations first-hand, but given her future vocation and both her family's and husband's connection to the trade, it is conceivable she did. The date of Robert Sneden's wedding with Mollie Dobbs is uncertain, but the birth of their first child is recorded as 1733. The couple continued living on the east side of the Hudson for several years, during which time they gave birth to four more children.
Mollie and Robert moved directly across the Hudson from Dobbs Ferry with their five children in about 1740, where it is believed they rented from a local land-owner named Robert Corbett. Their new home was on land which was claimed by both New York and New Jersey. The dispute was not legally settled for nearly 30 years, when a commission appointed by the King of England set the border officially in 1769. The surveyor's description measures the state line as 79 chains and 27 links south of the Sneden house, placing their property in New York. Although this was new property for the Snedens, both Mollie and Robert would have known it well as the landing site of the Dobbs's ferry. While living on the west side of the Hudson, Mollie and Robert had four more children, the last born in 1750. This brought the total number of their children to nine.
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