Van Wagenen Gerritsen, Gerrit

  General Notes:

Sketch about Gerrit Gerritszen Van Wagenen

Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] (1635-1696) and Annetje Hermansse (1632-1703) were born and married (about 1656) at Wageningen, The Wageningen Council had a document testifying to their characters filed before they immigrated from Wageningen, Nethe rlands: "We, burgomasters, schepens and councilors of the city of Wagening, declare by these presents, that there appeared before us Hendrick Elissen and Jordiz Spiers, citizens of this city, at the request of Gerrit Gerritsen and Annetje Hermanss e, his wife. They have testified and certified, as they do by these presents, that they have good knowledge of the above named Gerrit Gerritsen and Annetje Hermansse, his wife, as to their life and conversation, and that they have always been cons idered and esteemed as pious and honest people, and that no complaint of any evil or diorderly conduct has ever reached their ears; on the contrary, they have always led quiet, pious and honest lives, as it becomes pious and honest persons. They e specially testify, that they govern their family well, and bring up their children in the fear of God, and in all modesty and respectability. As the above named persons have resolved to remove and proceed to New Netherland, in order to find greate r convenience, they give this attestation, grounded on their knowledge of them, having known them intimately, and having been in continual intercourse with them for many years, living in the same neighborhood. In testimony of the truth, we the bur gomasters of the city, have caused the private seal of the city to be hereto affixed. Done at Wagening, 27th November, 1660; by the ordinance of the same J Aquilin."

This family immigrated aboard De Trouw (Faith) when it sailed from The Netherlands on 22 December 1659 and arrived at New Netherlands in June of 1660. The Immigrant Ships Transcribers Guild lists passenger "Gerrit Gerritsen from Wageningen and wif e and one child 2 years of age". They reportedly sailed for a total cost of 90 florins. Their first two children are believed to have been born in about 1658 and 1660 and baptism records have not been found for them in The Netherlands (this may no t have been thoroughly searched) or in New Netherlands (this has been thoroughly searched). Children 3-8 have baptisms (1662-1678) on record at either the New Amsterdam Dutch Reformed Church or the Bergen Dutch Reformed Church and the "birthdates " on the Family Group page are actually their baptism dates. The second child was likely either born in The Netherlands and, as a babe in arms, was not counted as a passenger when they immigrated or was born on the voyage to America (in which cas e it might have been expected that there would have been a bapitsm upon arrival). The Ancestors and Descendants of Frederick Van Norstrand and Elizabeth Harris by Jacqueline Van Nostrand (1995) says that Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] "immigrate d 12 December 1660 from Netherlands to Communipaw, New Netherlands with his wife and 2 children aboard DeTrouw" which supports both children having been born in The Netherlands before the family immigrated to New Netherland. This family settled i n Communipaw in the Bergen area of New Netherland and Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] and his wife Annetje Hermansse appear to have lived there for the rest of their lives.

On 16 October 1662 Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] was appointed one of three schepens (magistrates) for the Bergen area by Director-General Stuyvesant who governed the area for the Dutch West India Company. At about this same time Gerrit Gerritse n and others petitioned Director-Genreal Stuyvesant for a clergyman for Bergen and Gerrit Gerritsen pledged 6 florins annually toward the suppport of this clergyman. On 18 June 1663 Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] was named one of three commissione rs to enclose Gemoenepa (Communipaw) with long palisades for defense against Indian raids. In 1663 Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] was also commissioned ensign of Gemoenepa's (Communipaw's) militia. Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] took the oath of a llegiance to England on 22 November 1665 after the English took over governing the Bergen area (1664). Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] received patents for 4 parcels of land in and near Bergen (about 100 acres in all) on 12 May 1668. After the Dutc h had recaptured New Netherlands (1672), Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] was again appointed a schepen at Bergen on 18 August 1673 and then, when the English reclaimed and named the area New Jersey, Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] was an officer a t Bergen for the English, too, in about 1680.

The Acquackanonk Patent was 14 settlers purchasing land in the Bergen area to settle on and build a community on. The 14 settlers were Hans Diedricks, Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] (also listed as "Gerrit the son of Gerrit who came from Wagening , a town in Holland, about 1660, in the ship Faith, and was known as Gerrit Van Wagening"), Walling Jacobs [Van Winkle], Symon Jacobs [Van Winkle], Elias Michielsen [Vreeland], Hartman Michielsen [Vreeland], Johannes Michielsen [Vreeland], Corneli us Michielsen [Vreeland], Adrian Adriansen Post, Urian Tomasen, Cornelius Rowlofson, Symon Jacobs, John Hendrick Speare, Cornelius Lubers, and Abraham Bookey. The Acquackanonk Patent was for the land extending from the Yantacaw River (on the south ) to the mountains (on the west) and the Passaic River (on the north and east). It was purchased from Captahem (sachem and chief) of the Lenni Lenape Indians for an agreed upon amount of blankets, kettles, powder, and other goods on 28 March 1679 . But the 14 settlers did not have an official title from the Indians and had to get clear title to the land that the English government would recognize and honor. There was quite a controversy over this and many of the settlers had by then settle d on the land. Apparently England's King Charles II had given the same land to reward some of his subjects and they, too, wished to claim the land. The 14 settlers were finally granted a patent or clear title to the Acquackanonk land (that they ha d purchased from the Indians previously) from the English dated 15 March 1684 for which they paid L50 (which covered all arrearages in quit-rents) and in which they agreed to an annual quit-rent of L14 thereafter (the first L14 due 25 March 1686 a nd every 25 March thereafter). This annual quit-rent, in addition to the original purchase price, was customary in those days and it was paid for many years by Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] and the others. Initially each of the patentees had take n a 100 acre lot and the rest was "held in common". The second parcelling to the 14 patentees was laid out along the river and called Goutum (Gotham) and the third parcelling was in 1701 and the 4th parcelling was in 1714 with York Avenue (now Eas t 18th Street in Jersey City, NJ) in Acquackanonk as the central line and plots on both sides of it with Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] sharing plot No. 5 with Hessel Pietersen in this division - these latter "parcellings" must have been to the he irs of Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] (1635-1696) as he had died in 1696 at the age of 61 years. Gerrit Gerritsen [Van Wagenen] never lived at Acquackanonk, but his sons did.

This was found at:
http://www.geni.com/people/Gerrit-Van-Wagenen/6000000011748234654

Gerrit had a relationship with Annatje Hermanse. (Annatje Hermanse was born in 1635 in Wageningen, Gelderland, Netherlands, died on September 7, 1696 in Bergen, Hudson, New Jersey, USA and was buried on September 7, 1696 in Jersey City, Hudson, New Jersey, USA.)