Conkling, David, d. 1787?

Members of the extended Conkling family could be found on Long Island dating from the 1600s. Little seems to be known about brothers David and Jacob Conkling, the principals in this collection. It seems clear that David was a merchant at Southold, Suffolk County (N.Y.), Long Island. Siding with the rebels during the American Revolution, Conkling spent time in prison during the war. He died in 1787. Judging from the correspondence in the collection written from Guilford, Connecticut, Jacob was a "refugee" from the British occupation of Long Island.

The Landon family papers relate principally to Henry Landon (died 1866) and to his father, Jared Landon (died circa 1815). Other Landons represented in the papers are Samuel Landon (circa 1700-1782), who was the father of Jared, and Samuel Hutchinson Landon (died circa 1843), who was the grandson of Jared and nephew of Henry. Another family relationship relevant to these papers is the marriage in 1819 of Henry to Mehetabel Griffing, the widow of Samuel Griffing.

The Landons were residents of Cutchogue, part of the town of Southold in Suffolk County on the eastern end of Long Island. During the American Revolution, both Samuel and his son Jared were supporters of the rebellion. As a result, during the British occupation of New York, father and son spent some time in prison. After his release, Samuel became a "refugee," fleeing with some family members to Guilford, Connecticut, where he would die in 1782. Jared remained on Long Island.

Samuel, Jared and Henry Landon owned farmland, but also held various Suffolk County and Southold public offices, including county judicial positions that earned them the appellation "Judge." Along with many other legal matters, Jared and Henry were involved, as either surrogate judges or as executors, with the administration of estates. For example, Jared was executor for his brother-in-law, merchant David Conkling, who was imprisoned with the Landons by the British. Henry was executor for Jared's grandson, Samuel H.

Both Jared and Henry represented their district in the New York State Assembly at various times. Henry was active in the local politics of Southold as a member of the emerging Democratic Party.