Cemeteries and Gravestone Inscriptions from the William B. Bogardus Collection (Part I)

The files linked from this post, all from the William B. Bogardus Collection, relate to various cemetery records and gravestone transcriptions. They are taken from sources that were previously published in one form or another. Some may be difficult to track down, but in all cases the researcher is advised to seek out the original source for confirmation of the data and information found in the files. There are roughly forty or so files concerning cemetery and gravestone records, and they will be made available in a series of postings.

Miscellaneous Record of Bogardus and Brower Cemetery Inscriptions. The cover card says "possibly from New Jersey." They were collected from FHL flm #868290, item #7, which is found online here. The records are from a New Jersey chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (D.A.R.) and they pertain to locations in Ocean Co., and also to Paramus, Aquackanonk, Pascack, and Passaic Co. Most of the Browers in this file are not found on the BGD website, and I have not had the opportunity to try and identify them.

Gravestone Inscriptions from Cemetery at Brownback's Church, Chester Co., PA. These pages are from the National Genealogical Society Quarterly vol. 44 (March 1956). There is an introduction to the records. Brownback's Church was a Reformed Church (I believe German). The Browers on this list are not currently found on the BGD website.

"Old Tombstones & Unusual Cemeteries in Columbia Co., NY". This one entry is transcribed from a 1973 book by Gerda E. Divine which can be found through Google Books. The entry for Sarah, relict of Joshua Brewer, may pertain to a New England Brewer family originally from Tyringham, Massachusetts.

"Monument Inscriptions Prior to 1900 from Cemeteries in Clermont Co., OH". The transcriptions here are from a D.A.R. collection. One, A. H. Brower, was born in Kingston, New York in 1818. The Browers listed in this collection are not found on the BGD website.

"Cemeteries of Chester, New York". The Town of Chester is in Orange Co., New York. The record here pertains to the family of David Grosset Drake who is a great-grandson of Aeltje Brouwer and Josias Jansz Drats. He can be found on both the BGD and DGD.

"Dutchess County, N. Y., Tombstone Readings". The pages were published in Yesteryears Magazine, volume 17, no. 67 (Spring 1974), pages 153-154, by William L. Huffman. There are a lot of Browers here and believe that most, if not all, can be found on the BGD.

"Cemeteries - Dutchess County, New York". Just a couple of entries here. Susanna, wife of Elisha Brewer may pertain to the Elisha Brewer born ca. 1805, living in 1850 at Fishkill, and found on the BGD. The cover card states the source as FHL film #3989, but according to the FHL Catalog, this film covers Land Records in Cheshire, Connecticut, so there must be an error here. I have not discovered the original source.

Cemetery Records - Delaware County, New York. This short list was transcribed from Tree Talks, vol. 15, no. 1 (March 1975), p. 37. The three burials were in Pepacton Burial Ground in Delaware County, New York. Two are of unnamed BREWER children, while the third is for a Mary A. BROWER. I have not placed these individuals.

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More From the William B. Bogardus Collection

Below are some links for additional material gleaned from the William B. Bogardus Collection. This is an assortment of varied and, for the most part, unrelated material. Some of those mentioned can be found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website. Some others will be added to either the BGD or the Drake Genealogy Database websites, and there will be others that I simply do not have the time to enter into the databases, but the material is here for those who are interested.

Thomas Brewer Biographical Sketch. Thomas Brewer was born in Cornwall, England, came to the United States and lived at New Rochelle and Mamaroneck in Westchester County, New York.

James F. Brower Biographical Sketch. James F. Brower was born in Ulster County, New York, a son of David Brower and Eliza Lewis (according to the sketch). The ancestry of David Brower, the stated father of James F. Brower, has not been traced.

Some Brower and Drake burials at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. This handful of burials was taken from Minnie Cohen's typescript of 1932. I have not been able to locate all of them using the "burial search" at the Green-Wood Cemetery website.

Harvey Brower of Babylon, Long Island. Notes on the brief mention of Harvey Brower found in volume 14, no. 1 (Summer 1988) of the Suffolk County Historical Society "Register". Harvey has not been placed in a Brower family.

Tombstone Inscriptions, Brown Co., Ohio. Pages including those named Brewer or Brower.

Records of the First Lutheran Church in the City of Albany, N.Y. From the "Vosburg Collection." A few Brower and Bogardus entries.

I believe that it was about a year ago that I stated that I wanted to get through and make available by year's end (meaning end of 2012) all of what I had not yet gone through in the William B. Bogardus Collection. Well, that certainly did not happen, and I'm still looking at better then 500 items to consider. Sorry about the slow rate of uploading, but we will eventually get it all done. Patience is a virtue.

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James Brewer Executor of the Estate of Peter Brewer

Item number 7 from abstracts of miscellaneous Monmouth County Court Papers, part 1, involves the case of James Brewer, son and executor of the estate of Peter Brewer, deceased, vs. John Culp, administrator of the estate of Peter Noss, in which James Brewer is suing John Culp for money due to the estate of Peter Brewer, from the estate of Peter Noss, for an unpaid debt incurred during their lives. In this document James Brewer is appointing in his place as attorney, Jonathan Rheas, while John Culp is appointing in his place, Richard Stockton. The case is from the April 1786 term held in the court at Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey.

7. James Brewer, executor of the estate of Peter Brewer

This document was grouped with those believed to be pertinent to descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island. However, in this case, such a placement appears to be incorrect. The James Brewer mentioned in this document would have been born before 1765, and presently no such person has been identified or discovered among the descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands.

The James Brewer and Peter Brewer named in this file are more likely, James Bruere, born 9 Feb 1751 in Monmouth County, the son of Peter Bruere, born in 1697 and who came to America in 1709 with his parents, and two brothers, and two sisters. Peter Bruere settled in Monmouth County and lived at Upper Freehold. Those of us who are familiar with the fact that standardized spelling was not practiced during the colonial period in particular, and even well into the 19th century, understand that surnames are often found with varied spellings. Here is an example of that. BRUERE is written as BREWER by the Monmouth County Clerk. The BRUERE family was prominent in Monmouth County, New Jersey, and to a lesser extent in surrounding counties during the 1700s and 1800s. They are in no way related to the families descended from Jan Brouwer of Flatlands or Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, yet they lived in the same areas at the same time, and all three families often had their surnames recorded as BREWER in various Monmouth County records.

Some descendants of Peter Bruere can be accessed online at the Brouwer Genealogy Database.

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New York History Blog

I haven't written many, or possibly even any, posts in which I've recommended other blogs. The truth is I really don't spend much time reading or searching out many others. There is a very small handful, however, that I do follow. One is the New York History Blog, and I strongly recommend it for those interested in the history of the State of New York (which I would think many New Netherland Brouwer family descendants would be interested in).

I'm bringing the New York History blog up today because the post that they ran yesterday, July 15th, titled New Online Resources for New York History. The blog post does a nice and concise job of describing the three and so I'm not going to attempt to improve upon it.

Three new sources are mentioned here, and I took some time last night to explore each of them. Elephind has links to many newspapers of the past, and right of the bat, searching with the rather broad term, "Brower" I found the September 14, 1917 obituary of Richard Brower of Hempstead, Long Island in the Sun, published online by the Library of Congress.

The Founders Online site provided something of interest too. Look under "Author" for the George Washington Link, and click on the very first item, "A Journal of my Journey over the Mountains." Many of use who are trying to connect Brewers who settled in western Pennsylvania and the Ohio River Valley area to their ancestors in New Jersey and New York, are familiar with the route taken through the areas now known as Berkeley and Frederick Counties, West Virginia. George Washington was of course the first to survey these areas. In just looking at the first page of the journal, I noticed some familiar names.

Hopefully some of you will discover some important new information or leads using these websites. Good luck in your searches.

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Monmouth County Court Papers: Sylvanus Brewer

Item no. 6 in Part 1 of the abstracts of miscellaneous Monmouth County Court Papers pertaining to Brewers and Browers, is an agreement witnessed by Sylvanus Brewer. The agreement dated 2 April 1800, appears to be in regard to a debt owed by Hendrick Van Brunt and Anthony Holmes to Sarah Bacon. Sylvanus Brewer was simply a witness to the paper.

There is nothing that could be considered as genealogical evidence in this document, but it is most likely that this Sylvanus Brewer (there were not many Brewers by that name) was the one baptized 21 June 1767, recorded in the records of the Dutch Congregations at Freehold and Middletown. His parents were Hendrick Brouwer/Brewer and Abigeltie Hunt. Sylvanus is a descendant of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island.

Sylvanus was married to Idah West, probably around 1790 or so, and they had nine children. He died in 1820, and administration on his estate was granted to William Truax. According to an unpublished manuscript titled, "Outline Genealogy of Lorenzo D. Brewer of Hunterdon Co., New Jersey," Sylvanus Brewer "owned a farm of about thirty acres near Swimming River Bridge, near the small town of Freehold." Lorenzo D(ow) Brewer was a grandson of Sylvanus Brewer.

A copy of the document in PDF format can be accessed and downloaded here:  6. Witness Sylvanus Brewer

For more on Sylvanus and his descendants, and source citations, please consult the Brouwer Genealogy Database website.

For background on the Monmouth County Court papers Part 1, please see the post of December 6, 2012.

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Children of Peter Brewer and Hannah Sanborn: Rensselaer Brewer

Rensselaer Brewer was born 5 November 1820, certainly at Highgate, Vermont, and died 16 November 1897 at Boas, Richland Co., Wisconsin. The dates are from his certificate of death which names his parents as Peter Brewer and Hannah Sandborn.* It is Rensselaer's death record that is our source for the surname of his mother Hannah. Unfortunately the name of the informant is not included on the record. Therefore, we do not know how to gauge the accuracy of the statement regarding Hannah's maiden name.

Rensselaer Brewer was married to Phebe Honsinger on 1 September 1845 at Swanton, Franklin Co., Vermont. Phebe, born 20 December 1823, was a daughter of Michael Honsinger and Anna Dowel. She died on 30 April 1914 at Richland Center, Wisconsin. Rensselaer and Phebe had five known children.

In 1850, Rensselaer is found on the U. S. Federal census at Swanton, Vermont, age 30. In the household are Phebe Brewer (who would be his wife) and Richard Brewer (who would be a son, although we must remember that relationships were not specifically stated on the 1850 census). Rensselaer is enumerated as "Ranscher" Brewer, an example of only one of the numerous ways the spelling of his given name was mangled by those recording various records. Previous to 1850, Rensselaer and Phebe had two daughters, Samantha who died at age 16 months in 1848 and Josephine who died at about three weeks in 1849.

Soon after 1850 Rensselaer moved his family west to Wisconsin where so many others from northern Vermont had moved to. "Rensellen" Brewer is found on the 1860 U. S. census at Marshall, Richland Co., Wisconsin. His age is given as 40 years. On the census Phebe is recorded as age 38, Richard Brewer is age 10, and Lillie Brewer is age 8. All were born in Vermont.

In April 1843, Rensselaer Brewer bought two parcels of land in Highgate, Vermont from Peter Brewer. In March of 1844 he sold the same two parcels to Schuyler Brewer. In December 1844 Schuyler sold the same land back to Rensselaer, and in October 1847, Rensselaer Brewer of Swanton bought a parcel in Highgate from Jacob Brewer of Highgate.

During the Civil War, Rensselaer apparently served as a private with the 12th Wisconsin Infantry, Company I.

Three children of Rensselaer and Phebe Brewer lived into adulthood. Richard and Lillie are mentioned above. The third child, Michael, is first seen on the 1870 U. S. census at Dayton, Richland Co.,Wisconsin, where Rensselaer and his family is enumerated. Michael E. Brewer was born 24 March 1866 and was no doubt named for his maternal grandfather, Michael Honsinger. He was married to Catharine Templemire in Richland County on 17 November 1888. The couple is found in Richland County through the 1910 U. S. census. They had one known child, Hazel Phebe Brewer, who was born 4 June 1894. Catharine died in 1917, and in 1920, Michael is found in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, his age understated as 49, employed as a meat packer. In his household is his daughter Hazel P. Chase, and her husband, Fred Chase. Michael died in August of 1936 in Oklahoma City. To date, Hazel P. (Brewer) Chase is the only known grandchild of Rensselaer Brewer and Phebe Honsinger. Hazel had a daughter, Waunetta J. Chase, born in 1920.

Rensselaer's daughter, Lillie Brewer, was born 19 January 1852 in Franklin County, Vermont. She came to Wisconsin with her family and on 20 March 1870 was married to Benjamin Baxter at Sylvan, Richland County. They were apparently divorced soon afterwards. The 1910 census describes Lillie's marital status as divorced, and she is enumerated on that census as Lillie S. Brewer at Richland Center, Wisconsin. In 1880 she was enumerated as Lilly Baxter, a niece in the household of  P. C. (sic) and Lucy Brewer (Peter Earl Brewer and Lucy Edson). In 1900, as Lilly Brewer, "widow," she is enumerated with her mother, "Febe" Brewer in Dayton, Richland Co., Wisconsin. In 1920 she is found in Oklahoma City, and in 1930 at Hemet, Riverside Co., California. Lillie Brewer died on 21 Dec 1931 in Hemet, Riverside Co., California. Evidence of children or descendants has not been found.

Rensselaer and Phebe Brewer's eldest son, Richard "Dick" Brewer, has one of the more unexpected stories of any descendant of Adam Brouwer I have yet to come across. Richard was born 19 February 1850 at St. Albans (or possibly Swanton), Vermont. He went to Wisconsin as a child with his parents and sister Lillie. As the story has been told (both in published accounts and in correspondence with descendants of related lines) as a young man in Richland County, Richard Brewer fell in love with a woman who instead chose to marry one of his Brewer cousins. Heart broken, he immediately left Wisconsin, and in 1870, age 19, Richard Brewer is found in Marion, Jasper Co., Missouri, working on the farm of John Schooler (age 31, with a family). Soon after, he went to the New Mexico Territory and found work as a ranch hand in Lincoln County. From this point on, the life story of "Dick" Brewer has been told and written about, most notably by the well regarded Lincoln County historian, Frederick Nolan. In time Dick Brewer became a ranch owner himself, and in 1878 found himself in the middle of what is known as the Lincoln County War, which essentially was a feud between larger rival ranch owners that was settled with violence. In February 1878, John Tunstall, an Englishman, one of the larger ranch owners and a friend of Dick Brewer, was murdered by members of the Jesse Evans Gang who were under the sphere of another ranch owner, John Dolan. Dick Brewer was chosen to organize a posse, who called themselves the Regulators, to hunt down and capture the alleged murders. Among those in the posse was a young man, perhaps only 16 years old, who would become famous as "Billy the Kid," but at the time was known by the name of Henry Antrim**. The Regulators were in essence, Billy the Kid's first "gang," and Dick Brewer was his first, "gang leader." Things went wrong from the start for the Regulators, and the posse turned from being a group whose intent was to capture known murders to a gang of murders themselves. In April 1878, there was an encounter at Blazer's Mill in which the Regulators surrounded Andrew "Buckshot" Roberts who holed himself up in one of the buildings. During the ensuing gunfight, Dick Brewer was shot in the eye and killed by Roberts, who was in turn shot dead by Brewer's posse. A first hand account of John Patten (interviewed many years later) states that the two (Brewer and Roberts) were buried together in one coffin at Blazer's Mill. This was only the beginning of the Lincoln County War, and later events would supply the stories that would make legends out of Billy the Kid and some of the other participants. The period would be written about extensively and movies would be made. In the 1988 movie, The Young Guns, the part of Dick Brewer was played by the actor Charlie Sheen. Dick Brewer had just recently turned 28 at the the time he was killed. He was never married and left no known descendants.

Richard "Dick" Brewer

*The record of Rensselaer's death can be obtained through the Wisconsin Historical Society website. You will need to use their Genealogy search tools, specifically the Wisconsin Genealogy Index. Here they have Rensselaer indexed as "Reneilaer Brewer" and list his death date as November 16, 1892 (which is in conflict with the year 1897 as recorded on the actual record). The photocopy of the record that will be sent to you (should you choose to buy it) will be stamped, "Uncertified copy. Not valid for certification purposes. It is illegal to make this document available to the public in electronic format."

**The current belief is that Billy the Kid was born Henry McCarty, or William Henry McCarty, and went by the name of Henry Antrim, the surname being that of his stepfather, when he first came to Lincoln County. He was also known as William H. Bonney, which apparently was an alias he used during the peek of his notoriety. The name, Bonney, has been suggested as his mother's maiden name. His mother's name was Catharine, and she is usually referred to as Catharine McCarty. The identity of Billy the Kid's natural father is not certain.

See the Brouwer Genealogy Database website for source citations to vital data. Rensselaer Brewer and his family is also online at Ancestry.com.

A photo of the building in which "Buckshot" Roberts was cornered can be found online, placed there on the R.E.H. Two-Gun Raconteur website.

A list of Frederick Nolan's work can be found on his Wikipedia page. As you can see he is a rather prolific author who has written in a number of genres, on various subjects and under pen names. Recommended are The West of Billy the Kid (1999) and The Lincoln County War: A Documentary History (2009).

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Children of Peter Brewer and Hannah Sanborn: George G. Brewer

George G. Brewer was born about 1809, most certainly at Highgate, Vermont. His middle name was Gardner and he can be found in records as "Gardner G. Brewer." A descendant of George G. Brewer has participated in the Brewer DNA Project and the results of his Y-DNA test match those of other descendants of Adam Brouwer and more closely, those of Nicholas Brouwer (son of Adam) and Jeremiah Brower of Highgate, Vermont (presumed grandson of Nicholas Brouwer). As he was born "too late" to be a child of Jeremiah Brower, George G. Brewer is placed in the family of Peter Brewer and Hannah Sanborn. It is conceivable that George G. Brewer could be a son of one of Peter Brewer's brothers, however, since these families all appear to have removed themselves from the Highgate, Vermont area during the earlier part of the 1800s, it seems prudent to consider George as more likely a son of Peter.

On 25 May 1843, G. G. Brewer was one of the witnesses to a deed by which Peter Brewer of Highgate, Vermont conveyed land in Highgate to Schuyler Brewer of Highgate, Vermont. The other witness was Jacob Brewer, who was called "J. P." (Justice of the Peace).

On the 1850 U. S. Federal census, George Brewer, age 41, born in Vermont, is enumerated at Berkshire, Franklin Co., Vermont with Charlotte Brewer (age 41), Mary Brewer (17), Conrad Brewer (12), Hannah Brewer (12), Peter Brewer (8), Allen Brewer (4), Albert Brewer (4) and Charlotte E. Brewer (1). John G. Brewer is enumerated on the same census sheet, but it is not likely that he was George G. Brewer's father. John G. Brewer was a brother of Peter Brewer, and was born in 1792. His own son named George was born in 1818. Berkshire, Vermont is the second town east of Highgate (the town of Franklin is between them) and also boarders Canada.

George G. Brewer was married to Charlotte Barr who was born about 1809 in Vermont, and probably at Highgate. No record of their marriage has been found but it appears that they were married around, or just before 1830. A son, Sebastian Brewer, who appears to be the eldest child, was born about 1830. Charlotte was most likely the daughter of Conrad Barr and his wife Elizabeth Weaver. I have not researched the Barr family thoroughly enough to state this with certainty, but the fact that George and Charlotte named a son Conrad, is highly suggestive that Charlotte had a father (or brother) named Conrad. We know that George did not, and the given name Conrad is extremely rare among the descendants of Adam Brouwer. As of this writing, I know of no other descendants of Adam Brouwer, named, Conrad. The Barr family came to the Highgate, Vermont area from New York's Hudson Valley just after the American Revolution. The family was apparently among the German immigrants from the Palatinate who came to the Hudson Valley during the mid 1700s. Charlotte died in 1860 and is buried in Richland Center Cemetery, Richland County, Vermont.

Sometime between 1850 and 1860 George G. Brewer moved his family from northern Vermont to Richland County, Wisconsin. He was one of many heads of households to abandon the crowding and less fertile conditions of northern New England for the wider spaces and better farming lands available in the Midwest. George remained at Richland for the rest of his life and died there on 13 July 1886. He is buried in the Richland Center Cemetery.

It is believed that George and Charlotte had eleven children. Although I have not been able to find evidence for a claimed son named Jeremiah, born about 1831, or for a son named John, born about 1835. My initial information on George G. Brewer and his descendants comes from Karen Brewer Sims who did the initial research. Some of her sources, however, were second hand accounts prepared by others. Most of Karen's work is certainly correct and reliable, but the two sons, Jeremiah and John, do need to be vetted further. George and Charlotte's descendants did remain in Richland, Wisconsin well into the 20th century. As mentioned above, a descendant, through George's son Albert, has participated in the Brewer DNA Project. As my own work on researching George's descendants is limited, and rather than go through them individually here, I will simply provide a Family Group sheet with source citations, and a link to what research I have located for his descendants on Ancestry.com. Details can also be found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website.

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Incorrect Published Accounts: Genealogical and Memorial History of the State of New Jersey

One of the more notoriously incorrect Brouwer lineages ever published is found in Genealogical and Memorial History of the State of New Jersey, Volume 1, edited by Francis Bazley Lee (New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1910). Unfortunately this lineage, is not only nearly entirely incorrect, but has also been relied upon and repeated many times by 20th century Brouwer family researchers. Segments of the lineage can still be found on user submitted "Trees" at websites like Ancestry.com and RootsWeb (which is owned by Ancestry.com). Many have been mislead by the unfortunate publication of this line.

On pages 1414 and 1415 we find the supposed ancestry of Charles Chauncey Brower, born in 1876, of Farmingdale, Monmouth Co., New Jersey. The pages were included in the William B. Bogardus Collection and a scanned PDF is now online.

The problems start with (I) Adam Brouwer Berckhoven. As will be explained below, Charles Chauncey Brower is not a descendant of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, Long Island. Rather, he is a descendant of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island. The text correctly states that among Adam Brouwer's children was son Jacob Brouwer, who married "Anna" (Annetje Bogardus). The text incorrectly states that she was a daughter of "Domini Bogardus and Anneke Yans." She was instead a granddaughter of Dom. Everardus Bogardus and Anneke Jans, and a daughter of this couple's son Willem Bogardus. By now most of you who have spent time researching your Brouwer, Brower and Brewer ancestry are familiar with the story of Anneke Jans and are aware of the fact that many 19th and 20th century family researchers went out of their way to find a possible link to this ancestor so as to participate in one of the lawsuits involving claims upon her supposed estate. This may have well been a motive for the creation of this fictitious line published in the Genealogical and Memorial History of the State of New Jersey in 1910.

The errors continue with (II) Adam, who is said to be a "son of Adam Brouwer Berckhoven," and removed from Long Island to Monmouth County, New Jersey. This is incorrect. The Adam Brouwer, later referred to as Adam Brewer, who died in 1768 or 1769 in Monmouth County, was a grandson of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, Long Island, and has been stated to be a son of the above mentioned Jacob Brouwer and Annetje Bogardus (although in my view, this placement is not certain). The text continues, "Among his children was Sybrant, referred to below."

(III) Sybrant Brouwer, baptized 29 August 1683 at Breuckelen (Brooklyn), was a son of Jacob Brouwer and Annetje Bogardus. He was a grandson of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, but was not a son of Adam Brouwer/Brewer of Monmouth County. Sybrant was either a brother of Adam of Monmouth Co. (conventional belief) or a first cousin. Sybrant lived in New York City. He did not live in Monmouth Co., New Jersey.

(IV) Jacob, "eldest child of Sybrant and Sarah (Webber) Brower was born in Monmouth county, May 7, 1707 and married, November 2, 1724, Lea Studhard. Children: Jonas, John..." Where to start here. This passage is nearly complete fiction. It is correct that Sybrant Brouwer married Sarah Webber. They were married on 12 May 1706 at the Reformed Dutch Church of New York. Their son Jacob was baptized on 2 March 1707 at the same church. He was not born in Monmouth County, and he was not born on "May 7, 1707," as he was baptized two months prior to that date. No further record of Jacob, the son of Sybrant Brouwer and Sarah Webber has, to date, been found. What became of him is not known. Whether or not he reached adulthood is not known. No record has ever been found of a Jacob Brouwer and a Leah Studhard, although many posted genealogies and family trees still make this claim. There is no marriage record, no record of any of the claimed children, no probate and no land records that can define or support the existence of a couple named Jacob Brower and Lea Studhard. This fictitious couple did not have children named Jonas and John.

(V) John, "son of Jacob and Lea (Studhard) Brower, was born in 1733 and married, December 25, 1757, Katharine Verway. Children: Elias, referred to below; Mary." Jan Brouwer, baptized 8 May 1737 at the Reformed Dutch Church at Schraalenburgh, Bergen Co., New Jersey, the son of Isaac Brouwer and Rachel Demarest, was the "John Brower" who married Trijntje Verwey ("Katharine Verway") on 25 December 1757 at the New York Reformed Dutch Church. Jan Brouwer is a descendant of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, but he is not a descendant of Sybrant Brouwer, Adam Brewer of Monmouth Co., or Jacob Brouwer and Annetje Bogardus. Jan is a great-great-grandson of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus by way of Adam's eldest son, Pieter Brouwer. Jan Brouwer and Trijntje (Catrina/Catharine) did not have a "only son" named Elias. They did have a daughter Marie, baptized in 1770 at New York. She married Andrew Blanck. Jan and Trijntje had ten children, six sons and four daughters, nine of who are verified through baptism records.

(VI) Elias, "only son of John and Katharine (Verway) Brower, was born in Monmouth county in 1760 and married Elizabeth Palmer." Elias is not a son of Jan Brouwer and Trijntje Verwey, and he was not born in 1760. Elias Brower/Brewer and Elizabeth Palmer were married in New Jersey with a license dated 27 January 1753, seven years before his stated birth! This Elias Brower or Brewer was probably born in the decade of 1725 to 1735. His ancestry is not known, but he is almost certainly a descendant, either a grandson or great-grandson, of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island. (See the post, "Unplaced: Elias Brower/Brewer and Elizabeth Palmer/Parmer").

(VII) "Isaac I., only son of Elias and Elizabeth (Palmer) Brower was born June 10, 1781." It may well be that Isaac Brower/Brewer is a son of Elias Brower and Elizabeth Palmer, however, satisfactory proof of this idea has not been discovered. Isaac was not born on "June 10, 1781," in fact he was probably born around 1760. No record of baptism has been identified for Isaac, but the birth (3 November 1794) and baptism (17 January 1795) of his eldest child, Elias, is recorded in the register of the Dutch Congregations at Freehold and Middletown, New Jersey. A man born in 1781 would not have a son born in late 1794, only thirteen years later. Issac did marry Styntje Van Brunt (called "Schicha" in the text), and the list of their children appears to be correct with the possible exception of a son named Henry, who is yet to be discovered through baptism or other records. A cofirmed descendant of Isaac Brower and Styntje Van Brunt has recently participated in the Brewer DNA Project. His Y-DNA test results match with certainty, other known descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands. Therefore, Isaac is a descendant of Jan Brouwer and is not a descendant of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus. (See Jan Brouwer Group DNA Test results and the above mentioned post regarding Elias Brower and Elizabeth Palmer).

Generations (VIII), (IX) and (X) are likely correct (although present day researchers of this line should take the time to verify them through other records). The way these late 19th and early 20th century "Memorial Histories" worked, is the lineages were submitted by living persons, usually the last person in the line who in this case was Charles Chauncey Brower. Certainly he knew his parents and grandparents, and either knew, or knew of, his great-grandparents, as most (but not all) of us do.

Details and source citations for generations (I) through (VII) can be found on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website. Generations (VIII) through (X) will be added to the BGD in a future update. For more on Anneke Jans please utilize the label "Anneke Jans" found on the side bar of this page, under "Labels."

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