Celebrating the life and legacy of one of America's

bravest border men, valiant veterans of the Revolution, and distinguished pioneers.

Three Journeys to the Genesee, The Life of Moses Van Campen, A Frontier Biography by Molly Beer, a native of Angelica, NY, was published in the Summer of 2009.

BookCoverThreeJourneysCover of "Three Journeys to the Genesee, The Life of Moses Van Campen, A Frontier Biography" by Molly Beer.This wonderful book is available for purchase in and around Angelica, NY at Angelica Country Store , Heritage Antiques, Angelica Main Street Gallery, and Catbird Griddle at the Farmers' Market on Saturdays.

From it's back cover, we share the Author's description of Three Journeys to the Genesee, The Life of Moses Van Campen, A Frontier Biography. "By foot and by boat, once in his underwear, Moses Van Campen (1757-1849) traveled to the Genesee River three times in his life. This brief new biography of Moses Van Campen details the adventures (and misadventures) of these three journeys, including General Sullivan's march across Iroquois territory, Van Campen's captivity as a prisoner of war, and the story of his long feud with the Seneca chief John Mohawk, to whom Van Campen had "lent his hatchet." Two centuries after Moses Van Campen settled in Angelica, New York, where he is considered a founding father, he remains iconic, a figure of his times and situation. "I was nurtured in the school of the rifle and the tomahawk," Moses like to boast, and this cultural ambidexterity is the result of a particular intersection in American geography and history."

“His Christianity was pure,
his views of religion sound
and scriptural, and his fidelity
and integrity of character
were like his own well aimed rifle,
true to the mark.”

 

– Rev. Thomas Aitken

Obituary of Moses Van Campen

"I was nurtured in the school of the rifle and the tomahawk."

 

- Moses Van Campen

“The notes of war are hushed,
The rage of battle o’er,
The warrior is at rest,
He hears our praise no more.
The soldier nobly fought
For all we dearly love,
He fought to gain a heavenly crown,
And now he reigns above.”

 

- Rev. Thomas Aitken
Inscription, Moses Van Campen's Headstone