Sunset at Gowanus Bay

Sunset at Gowanus Bay
Sunset at Gowanus Bay, Henry Gritten, 1851

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

Records of the Dutch Congregations of Freehold and Middletown

Families of Dutch ancestry from Kings County, Long Island first began settling in Monmouth County, New Jersey in the 1690s. By 1709 they were in significant enough number to require the services of their own minister. The Reformed Congregation of Freehold and Middletown was established in 1709. The first minister was Joseph Morgan, who was born in 1671 at Preston, New London Co., Connecticut, the son of Lt. Joseph Morgan and Dorothy Parke. He was enrolled with the Yale College graduating class of 1702, and served as minister at the Second Church of Greenwich, Connecticut and preached at Bedford in Westchester County, New York before coming to Monmouth County, New Jersey. In 1696 he was married to Sara Emmons, daughter of John Emmons (Emons/ Emans) and Sara Anthonise Janse (van Salee), a daughter of Anthony Jans van Salee and Grietje Reijners, early at New Amsterdam and the earliest settlers of Gravesend, Long Island.

The records of the Reformed Dutch Congregations of Freehold and Middletown were published in the Genealogical Magazine of New Jersey (GMNJ) beginning in 1947 with volume 22. They were continued through volume 38. Volume 22 provides a brief introduction, gives a list of the first church officers and members, and includes the baptisms recorded from 20 October 1709 to 21 April 1723. The records are not as complete as, for example, the records of the New York Reformed Church for the same time period. Some may find them a bit frustrating as there are many records in which the mother is not recorded or the child's name and sometimes gender, are not given. Many of the records do not list the witnesses/sponsors. However, they are all we've got, and when using them along with the New Jersey Probate records and Land Records, we can accurately reconstruct many of the colonial Dutch families of Monmouth County, New Jersey.

I have scanned my photocopies of the pages from the GMNJ and will place them online beginning with volume 22 below. It is suggested that you download the PDF for your own use.

Records of the Dutch Congregation of Freehold-Middletown, GMNJ v. 22 (1947)

For a bit more, and source citations for Rev. Joseph Morgan, please find his profile at the database, Descendants of Alice Freeman Thompson Parke by using one of the indexes.

BGB 216


7 comments:

  1. Hi Chris,
    I learned about your blog via Geneabloggers.
    Reading it, it struck me that the Brouwer name sounds very Dutch and in fact it is. Being Dutch myself, I was very much interested. I also have a blog with many genealogical subjects. One of my posts shows a survey of foreign genealogical blogs/sites showing Dutch origin surnames. The URL is http://www.patmcast.blogspot.com/2012/05/dutch-ancestors.html. The idea is to try and establish contacts between people who have an interest in the same surname. There are numerous cases in The Netherlands where people emigrated centuries ago without leaving a trace in Dutch archives. With my blog I try to bring Dutch and foreign (mainly US/CAN) genealogists together.
    Therefore, I like to have your permission to show your site in my a.m. blog.
    I look forward to your reaction!
    Kind regards,
    Peter

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hello Peter, Yes, by all means, please feel free to add a link to Brouwer Genealogy from your site. I'm all for any effort that brings people together for the purpose of researching shared ancestries.
      Brouwer certainly is a Dutch surname and a number of Brouwer families in the U.S. do have their ancestral roots in the Netherlands. Adam Brouwer (ca.1620-1692), however, was born in Cologne, and was more likely of German ancestry. His children and grandchildren, in colonial America, inter-married with families of Dutch, Scandinavian, Flemish/French and English roots.
      Hopefully some of your readers will find Brouwer Genealogy useful and will make some connections. I'll return the favor and highlight your website soon.

      Delete
  2. Chris,
    Thanks for your OK. Your blog is now mentioned in my list. In case you want to add/change anything, please let me know. I frequently "advertise" my list on various Dutch genealogy forums. So I hope some useful contacts will develop.
    Thanks in advance for paying attention to my blog. Is there any way I can follow yours?
    Have a nice day.
    Peter

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Peter. I in particular am hoping that some BROUWERs from Europe will become interested and join the Brewer DNA Project. Perhaps we can find some genetic matches with the descendants of the early New Netherland Brouwer families living today in the U.S. and Canada, and some distant cousins descended from relations who remained in Europe.
      There are a few ways to follow this website. If you follow the column of links at the left and scroll down you will find options to "Subscribe," "Follow by e-mail" or join as a "Follower" through Google.
      Thanks again.

      Delete
  3. Obviously I overlooked all the follow options. But not any more. Also thanks for following my blog. I'll mention the Brewer DNA Project here and there. How do you want people to contact you? Can you give me an email address that I can provide people with? Or by making a comment here?
    Peter

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anyone can contact me either by leaving a comment under the appropriate post, or by using the e-mail link that is available under my profile below, "About Me."

      Anyone interested in joining the Brewer DNA Projuct should visit the home page at Family Tree DNA, which is http://www.familytreedna.com/public/BrewerDNA/default.aspx, or by using the link available at the right under Brouwer-Brower-Brewer Links (all the way at the top).
      Thanks Peter

      Delete
  4. Chris,
    I mentioned your DNA project on 3 different genealogy sites in The Netherlands. Hope Brouwer descendants will be in touch with you.
    Peter

    ReplyDelete

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