Brewer Families From Southside Virginia

 David Brewer has just published a new book, Brewer Families From Southside Virginia. Dave is one of the co-administrators of the Brewer DNA Project. He is focused on the Brewer families whose origins are found in the southern colonies of British North America. 

In Dave's words:

As we all know, over the past decade, several distinct branches of American families with the surname Brewer have been identified thanks to advances in DNA analysis and improved digital access to colonial and early American records. 

I've just published a new book, Brewer Families From Southside Virginia, in a further effort to sort out the ancestry of a broad group of Virginia pioneers, whose forebears mostly migrated from southwest England to the area south of the James River during the colonial period.  Among them were members of haplogroup I-Y15300, including George Brewer of Brunswick County, Thomas Brewer of Sussex County, William Brewer of Martins Brandon Parish in Prince George County, John Brewer of Hertford County, North Carolina, formerly of Southampton County, Virginia, and Benjamin Brewer of Franklin County, Georgia, formerly of North Carolina.  Their descendants have identified earliest known ancestors who lived in Indiana or southeastern states -- especially the Carolinas, Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama -- in the decades before and after the turn of the 19th Century.  Until now, traditional record research alone has not allowed them to trace their ancestries back to the period between the mid-1600's and mid-1700's, the heart of the American colonial era.  

This book also studies the possibly related families of John Brewer (I), the Ancient Planter of Jamestown Colony, the 18th and 19th Century John Brewer line of the Upper Parish of Nansemond County, Virginia, William Brewer of Isle of Wight County, Virginia, Joseph Brewer of Warren Counties, North Carolina, George Brewer of Northampton County, North Carolina.  

Several other family groups whose founders settled in the area south of the James River also receive detailed attention.  Those groups include the family of Sackfield Brewer (died 1699), which is unrelated to the members of haplogroup I-Y15300 on the male side.  However, they had common associates and kinships in Virginia.  The book also studies the family of Robert Brewer, who appears to have been of Romany descent, and who settled in Nansemond County in the late 1600’s.  

As with my recent book about the descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick County, I've published the new book with Kindle Books in both e-book and paperback formats.  I like the e-book format.  It's less expensive, and it's reader-friendly, with an interactive table of contents and hot linked end notes.  This makes it easy to navigate.  The cost of printing makes the margins very thin for the paperback version, which, at more than 500 pages in length, is priced at $20.  The e-book is priced at $5.  You can find both versions at Amazon.

Little is tidy in this family history, but such was the stuff of life in the rapidly expanding New America.  Accordingly, this book is work in progress, meant to be supplemented and corrected by the fruits of further research, including DNA test results.  Even now, the journey proceeds.

I look forward to your comments and questions. 

 

 Dave can be contacted through the Brewer DNA Project's website.

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New Netherland Settlers

 In 2024 The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society announced the launch of a new project named New Netherland Settlers. Rather than describe this new project I will simply direct you to the webpage which describes the project's purpose and scope and profiles the current key researchers. Last month the first sketches of individuals who settled in New Netherland prior to 1664 were published online. It does appear that they are accessible to non-members of the NYG&B Society, and so I would encourage all those interested in the persons who inhabited the short-lived colony of New Netherland to make use of this new resource. The available Search tool will search within the various individual sketches. In other words you can find individuals in this collection who are not the subject of a sketch themselves.

The format of the sketches is very much similar, perhaps even based upon, the format used by the late Robert Charles Anderson in his Great Migration Study Project which is hosted at American Ancestors, the website of the New England Historic Genealogical Society. The components of the New Netherland Settlers sketches can be found at the bottom of the New Netherland Settler sketches page. 

The introduction tells us that a complete list of known residents for whom sketches are planned will be released in the Fall of 2025. In addition it is stated that in time the sketches will be published in printed volumes.

As it is early in this project I was not surprised to find that, as of this post, sketches are not yet available for any of the New Netherland residents with the surname Brouwer, most of who are found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website. While we do not yet have a sketch for Adam Brouwer, one has been published for his wife, Magdalena Verdon's maternal grandmother, Aeltje Braconie. The sketch identifies for the first time a previously unknown son of Aeltje Braconie and her first husband Thomas Badie, himself named Thomas and baptized 24 October 1614 at the Roman Catholic church, Notre-Dame-aux-Fonts in Liège, in present day Belgium. My own sketch of Aeltje Braconie was published online on the Brouwer Genealogy Database some years ago. The post covering Aeltje's daughter Maria Badie was posted August 24, 2012. And so thirteen years later we now know of a brother of Maria Badie.

Much thanks to the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society for initiating the New Netherland Settlers project. I'm certain that readers of Brouwer Genealogy will be looking forward to the sketches of Adam Brouwer, Jan Brouwer and Willem Brouwer, all of whom left descendants who are with us today.

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New Book By David Brewer: Brewer Families of Moore, Chatham and Randolph Counties, North Carolina

 David Brewer, a co-administrator for the Brewer DNA Project (Family Tree DNA) has just published a new book, Brewer Families of Moore, Chatham and Randolph Counties, North Carolina: In Search of the Descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick County,Virginia. 

A description of his new book in David's words:

"In 2018, I wrote a book about the Brewer families from Moore and Southwest Chatham Counties, North Carolina. A lot has happened since then, both on the DNA and record fronts. So, I've completely rewritten the book, adding much more material and keeping track of current DNA advances. The new book more broadly focuses on the Brewer families who lived in Moore, Chatham and Randolph Counties, North Carolina in the period between 1750 and 1850. It compiles and integrates existing research with newer information, including current results of YDNA genetic testing of male descendants of the Brewers from this tri-county region. One of the conclusions the book reaches is that three sons of George Brewer of Brunswick County, Howell I, Lanier I, and John, (and their descendants) were present in northern Moore, southwestern Chatham, and southeast Randolph Counties between 1750 and 1850. 

Unlike the first version, this book also discusses in detail the Haw River Brewers, including George Brewer's probable sons Henry, Oliver, and Nathaniel Brewer, as well as probable descendants of George's son Nicholas Brewer, and several other possibly related Brewer families from northern Chatham County, including the families of John, Samuel and Abel Brewer. The book also discusses in detail descendants of these Brewer families who moved to Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, and South Carolina in the early decades of the 1800's. 

The book begins with a chronology, based on publicly recorded data, of early Brewer presence in the region and then turns to a more detailed discussion of particular individuals. Subjects of extended discussion include Lanier Brewers I and II, the Howell Brewers, Ambrose Brewer, men named Drury Brewer, Harmon Brewer, the Willis Brewers of Moore County, Kentucky and Ohio, Sampson Brewer, Micajah (Cager) Brewer, Nicholas Brewer of Bear Creek, the Tick Creek Brewers of southwest Chatham County, the Haw and New Hope River Brewers of Chatham, and the William Brewer family of Randolph County, North Carolina and Morgan County, Indiana, among other lines. 

With that peek under the hood, I've published the new book with Kindle Direct Publishing in both e-book and paperback formats. The e-book is less expensive and more reader-friendly, with an interactive table of contents and hot linked end notes. This makes it easy to navigate. The paperback version is priced at $15. The e-book is priced at $4.99. You can find both versions online at Amazon. I look forward to your comments and questions."

 

 

David can be contacted through the About us page on the Brewer DNA Project website. This book we be of interest to anyone working on tracing their Brewer ancestry to one of the numerous Brewer families whose origins are found in the southeastern U.S. states, whether they are descendants of George Brewer of Brunswick County, Virginia or otherwise.

Thank you David. I'm looking forward to reading the book.

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New Links For "The Brower Papers, 1734-1872"

 Below are new links for the posts of January 21, 2017, "The Brower Papers, 1734-1872," and the followup, "The Brower Papers, 1734-1872 Part II (January 24, 2017). As with many other links on this website the links for this post are broken. Such is the nature of the ephemeral internet.

No. 1. Indenture dated 1 September 1734 between Barhanardus Van diere of Bergen Co., New Jersey and numerous others all of Albany Co., New York and William Brower of "Schonaghton" for lots of woodland lying north of the Mohawk in Stone Arabia, Albany County.

No. 2. Deed for a wood lot in Stone Arabia from Hendreck Walrath to Hendreck Schremling dated 9 October 1739.

No. 3.  Deed from Hendreck Schremling to William Brower for six lots on the north side of the Mohawk, dated 10 December 1739.

No. 4. Bond of Cornelis Feele, Clas Feele and John Feele unto Margaret Acker, daughter of John Acker, dated 2 July 1743. "Margaret Acker" also known as Margariet Ekker or Ecker, was a daughter of Jan Ekker/Ecker/Ekkerson and Margrietje Vile, daughter of "Cornelis Feele" as his name is rendered in the bond. I have not worked out the genealogy but I would suspect that the three bondsman named "Feele" are Margaret's brothers. Margariet Ekker, baptized 21 July 1734 at Schenectady, married Harmanous Brouwer, 8 February 1755. Harmanous is a son of William Brouwer and Rebecca Vedder.

No. 5. The will of William Brower of "Stone Raby In the County of Albany on the Mohawks River yeoman," dated 10 February 1757. He is described as "Being Verry well in Good helth and Sound Perfect Mind and Memory." If born by 1669, which he would have had to have been if he is a son of William Brouwer who died in August 1668 and Lysbeth Drinkvelt, then William Brower of Stone Arabia would have been 86 or 87 years old in early 1757. The will was proved 15 February 1765, which again if born by 1669, would mean that William Brower may have lived to the age of 95 or 96.

No. 6. Indenture dated 2 June 1775 between Arent Brower and Harmen Brower, both of Stone Arabia.

No. 7. Indenture dated 22 May 1793 between Jacob Ekker, Abraham Coopman and Jacob G. Klock, Commissioners for Montgomery County, of the first part and Harmen Brower of the Town of Palatine, Montgomery County, of the second part. The parcels being sold to Harmen Brower appear to be lots that were confiscated from prior owners.

No. 8. Indenture dated 27 February 1798 between Cornelius Brower and Harme Brower, both of the Town of Palatine. The deed is for land that had been bequeathed in the will of William Brower to his sons Arent Brower and Harme Brower.

No. 9. The will of "John B. Jno. Van Eps" of the City of Schenectady, dated 25 March 1799. This would be Jan Baptist Van Eps, baptized 17 June 1752 at Schenectady, the son of Jan Baptist Van Eps and Maria Truax. In his will he names his wife Debora. Jan B. Van Eps married, as his second wife, Debora Brower on 26 January 1799. Debora is a daughter of Harmanus Brower and Margariet Ekker. The rather lengthy will of the elder Jan Baptist Van Eps can be found in Albany County Wills, vol. 3, pp. 241-246. It was dated 13 March 1800, followed by a codicil dated 24 May 1802 and an additional codicil dated 21 June 1805, proved 16 September 1805. The younger Jan Baptist Van Eps is said to have died 28 October 1821. His sister, Sarah Van Eps, married Wilhelmus Brower, a brother of Debora Brouwer.

No. 10. Indenture dated 5 March 1803 between Harme Brower of Palatine in Montgomery County and Margaret his wife, and Harme Brower, Jr., of the same place. The deed is for 47 acres of land in Palatine, New York.

No. 11. Indenture dated 5 March 1803 between Cornelius Brower of Palatine, Montgomery County and Elizabeth his wife, and Harme Brower, Jr., of the same place. This is a deed for lot number 22 in the Patent of Stone Arabia, Montgomery County.

No. 12. The will of Harme Brower of Stone Arabia, dated 14 March 1803. The testator names his son Wilhelmus, son Harme Brower, Jr., "farming utensils to be divided among my five sons," daughter Deborah Brower, three daughters Rebecca Van Deusen, Sarah Docksteder and Deborah Brower. Following the will is a receipt from John B. Jno. Van Eps, dated 1 October 1808 for the legacy left his wife Deborah by her father Harmen Brower.

No. 13. At the top of this page is a Bill of Money received from Benjamin Smith by Mr. Harmen Brower, dated 5 March 1794. The remainder of the page includes receipts from Jacob N. Doxstedder and Arindh Smith.

No. 14. Eight pages. Page 1 is an order for Arent Brower to appear before the Superior Court of Common Pleas in a matter of Hermanus Brower, plaintiff, v. Philip P. Empey. The remainder of the documents consists of varied minutes recorded in the courts (presumably Montgomery County) involving Harmen Brower. Dates are from the 1790s.

No. 15. The will of Herman Brower of the Town of Palatine, Montgomery County. Dated 11 January 1839. Names his wife, Magdalene, and sons and daughters. Signs with his mark. This is a fourteen page document and includes the probate record.

No. 16. Indenture dated 3 March 1848 between Herman H. Brower and Margaret his wife of the Town of Palatine, Montgomery County, and Frederick Brower of the same town and county. This is a deed for a woodlot in Palatine.

No. 17. Five pages of receipts and other varied court records involving Browers in Montgomery County. In at least one instance the surname is recorded as Brewer. 

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Y-DNA Haplogroups for Willem Adriaense Bennet

Contributed by Ron Bennett.

This is a follow-up to the earlier posts on the Y-DNA haplogroups for Willem Adriaense Bennet (WAB), which were generic. Since that time, eight descendants of WAB have upgraded to an extensive, full chromosome Y-DNA paternity test called BigY-700. Data processing alone for this test takes over 8 weeks, but the result is a sufficiently detailed list of individual mutations, which occur every 50 to 100 years on average, such that the software is able to create a biological family tree (called a TimeTree), showing the birth years of each common ancestor between branches.
 

The unique haplogroup (branch name) for WAB is E-FTB90013 (est. birth 1626, historical ~1605), which includes him, his two sons, and their descendants. His older son, Adrian Willemsen's haplogroup is E-FTB92022 (est. birth 1651, historical 1637). His great-grandson, Isaac Adrianson's haplogroup is E-FTD68674 (est. birth 1708, historical 1717).
 

This haplotree corroborates the WAB family tree on this site with the corrections published by Morrissey, et.al. in 2017, but does not match the original 1962 tree published by Ledley and subsequently by Kenneth Bennett.
The Y-DNA tree is skeletal due to the small number of descendants. Luckily we have four descendants from each of WAB's two sons, but only three of the eight grandsons documented here are represented. Additional male descendants are needed to fully corroborate the historical records family tree. Please contact FTDNA directly to order this test or contact me directly with questions. The test is a bit expensive, but the beauty is that nothing more is required of the participants except their DNA. The analysis will automatically connect you to all other Bennetts and other surnames (including Brouwer) who have ever taken this test.

Bennets/Bennetts interested in participating in the Bennett Y-DNA Project at FamilyTreeDNA should contact the Project directly via their website, and/or contact Ron Bennett directly.

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An Update to "Joseph Driggs Is Not Josias Drake, Jr."

 It has been fifteen years since "Joseph Driggs Is Not Josias Drake, Jr." was posted online. While this update does not change the conclusion of the original post (Joseph Driggs is still NOT Josias Drake, Jr.) it is here to bring to the attention of those interested in the question of Joseph Driggs' ancestry, the research of Richard Davis who has now found the origins of Joseph Driggs who died in East Haddam, Connecticut in 1748. This post will be short and any interest, further inquiry or questions should be directed to Richard Davis.

First a bit of housekeeping. Links provided on the original June 3, 2012 post, which itself was a copy of a post originally from 2008 (see Broken Links, The Ephemeral Nature of the Internet) were in need of repair. The original, "Joseph Driggs Is Not Josias Drake, Jr." is now online as a PDF. Please use the link found in the text of the June 3, 2012 post.

The incontestable proof that Joseph Driggs could not possibly be Josias Drake, Jr. was the result of Y-DNA testing of direct descendants of both Joseph Driggs and of Josias Drake's father, Josias Drats/Dratz whose wife was Aeltje Brouwer (a daughter of Adam Brouwer and Magdalena Verdon). Josias Drake, Jr., himself, is not known to have left any descendants. This work was initiated by Richard Davis and now some fifteen years later he has contacted me to inform me that he has "finally found the origin of Joseph Driggs (1681-1748) of Middletown, Connecticut." Richard did this by first matching five Y-DNA test results of five Driggs descendants with three Y-DNA matches from Sao Roque, Pico Island in the Azores, an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean which today is an autonomous region of Portugal. Through the traditional genealogical work that followed, Richard was able to trace Joseph Driggs paternal ancestry back to the late 1400s to some of the earliest settlers of Pico Island. 

Richard has written a 29 page report (including addendums) describing and explaining his research, which includes both genetic and traditional genealogical research. All and all it's a pretty interesting adventure that includes a visit to Pico Island itself. Richard has also created a couple of charts showing the paternal lineages of those tested.

I will not be making available online any of Richard's work. Again, those who are interested should reach out to Richard Davis directly. 

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