Reviewing the Unplaced Genetic Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L.I. Revisited (Part IV)

 This fourth installment continues the series that began with the post of March 19, 2022. The previous post was published March 28, 2022. Y-DNA testing is conducted through the Brewer DNA Project at FamilyTreeDNA (FTDNA). We strongly urge any and all members who have yet to upgrade to the advanced BigY-700 to do so. Test results from this level have significantly improved our understanding of the colonial period descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island. Enough with the preamble, we continue here with a revisit/reassessment of the 2015 report, "A Review of the Early Genetic Descendants of Jan Brouwer..." so let's get right into it.

We begin this post with Aaron W. Brewer who is found on pages 10-11 of the 2015 PDF. He is largely accepted as and most probably is a son of Aaron Brewer and Polly McFarland who were married 10 September 1812 in Harrison County, Kentucky. A descendant of Aaron W. Brewer has taken the BigY test. His identifying SNP I-Y7214 is the marker which identifies all descendants of Jan Brouwer. Following Aaron W. Brewer on the 2015 review is Stephen Brewer on pages 11-12, who married Mary Melinda Whitsett, more often called Polly, on 26 May 1811, also in Harrison County, Kentucky. Although strongly suspected, but not proved, it is likely that Aaron Brewer and Stephen Brewer were either brothers, or perhaps Stephen Brewer was Aaron Brewer's father. A descendant of Stephen Brewer has also taken the BigY test, and his results also identify him as I-Y7214. We will address all three of these individuals in this one segment. First I'd like to highlight some important points that are not new. Aaron Brewer (the elder) is found on the 1850 U.S. census at Union, Madison Co., Indiana, his age recorded as 63 years, place of birth as Virginia. The age gives is year of birth as about 1787. The location, Virginia, has to be considered more carefully. Virginia in 1850 is not the Virginia we know today, and Virginia in 1787, was not the Virginia that existed in 1850 when the census was taken. A short time ago Hank Graham forwarded a link to this very useful map of county formation in Virginia over the years from 1617 to 1995. Click on the years just mentioned, along with 1863 (the year West Virginia was created) and say 1776 (a year prior to the formation of the United States) and you'll get an idea of what I am talking about. Aaron Brewer may have been born in what we today call Virginia. Or, he may have been born in what we today call West Virginia, or perhaps even western Pennsylvania. Or, he may have been born outside of this area, perhaps in New Jersey, and was moved to someplace in Virginia as a young child, and in 1850, is confusing the place where he was raised with the place he was born. Stephen Brewer, in 1850 is at Union, Grant Co., Indiana, his age given on the U.S. census as 78 years (perhaps understated), place of birth as Virginia. In 1860, at Fairmount, Grant Co., Indiana, his age is recorded as 96 years (perhaps overstated), and the place again stated as Virginia. What was just mentioned for Aaron regarding being born in Virginia, applies to Stephen as well. On page 11 of the 2015 review, we cite Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens of Sedgewick County, Kansas (Chicago: Biographical Publishing Co., 1901) page 469, which says that Stephen was born in a “suburb of New York City,” and served during the Revolutionary War, as a teamster, along with his father who was also named Stephen. This statement was probably provided to the compilers of this book by Stephen's grandson, Milton Brewer (1847-1932). This info suggests that Stephen Brewer may have been born, not in Virginia, but in a "suburb of New York City," which could include New Jersey. The service in the Revolutionary War, may also suggest that he was born at least a bit earlier than 1772 and implied by his age in 1850, but not necessarily as early as 1764 as implied by his age in 1860. Another issue regarding Stephen Brewer is that he married in 1811 when, if born in 1772, he would have been 39 years old. That's late for a first marriage. He may have had a previous marriage, and perhaps other children (we know of seven born to Stephen and Polly Whitsett between 1812 and 1825, and Polly, born in 1793, was considerably younger than her husband). Not included in the 2015 review, is the presence of a Stephen Brewer on the 1810 U.S. census at Washington, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. His household consists of 1 male age 26-44 (so born between 1766 and 1784) and 1 female age under 10. No adult female is enumerated in this household. Stephen Brewer does not appear in Harrison County, Kentucky until 1811 when he is married and when he first appears on tax rolls. He does not appear on the tax rolls in Harrison County in 1809 or 1810. Stephen Brewer may be the man of the same name found in Fayette Co., Pennsylvania in 1810, and as suggested, he may well have had a previous wife, and at least one child by her. We do know of other BREWERs, including at least one known descendant of Jan Brouwer (that being David Brewer) in Fayette Co., Pennsylvania (see the March 28, 2022 post). Another important piece of information from the 2015 review is the mention of a Stephen Brewer on the 1793 tax roll at Bernards Twp., Somerset Co., New Jersey. Considering the claim found in Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens of Sedgewick County, Kansas mentioned above, this could be Stephen Brewer, or perhaps his father, said to be a Stephen Brewer. We also know that Elsie Lewis, the first wife of John Brewer of Scioto Co., Ohio was from a family from Bernards Township (see the March 28, 2022 post). It also needs to be noted that the give name, Stephen, does not appear elsewhere among the known descendants of Jan Brouwer. The name may come in from a maternal line, in other words, from the family of a woman who married one of Jan Brouwer's descendants who we have little information on (of which there are quite a few). Recapping, starting with Aaron Brewer, assuming he was born in, or close to 1787, he is likely among the sixth generation of descendants of Jan Brouwer. Aaron Brewer's grandfather would be found among the fourth generation descendants (the great-grandsons) of Jan Brouwer (pages 3-9 of the new Summary). Aaron Brewer may be a brother of Stephen Brewer, or, depending on whether Stephen's precise year of birth can be determined, a son of Stephen Brewer. Stephen Brewer, therefore may be a sixth generation descendant, or a fifth generation descendant. Stephen Brewer's father has said to have been a Stephen Brewer. If the younger Stephen Brewer is born somewhere between the two ages we have for him (78 in 1850, 96 in 1860) he was born between 1764 and 1772. If his father, Stephen Brewer was in his 20s when the younger Stephen was born, we'd expect him to have been born between 1734 and 1752. The elder Stephen would then be among the fourth generation descendants of Jan Brouwer. As of now we do not know of a Stephen among Jan Brouwer's known descendants. This assumes that the name Stephen is correct for Stephen Brewer's father. Looking at the third generation on the Summary, we see that Hans (No.5) has a six year gap between children from 1725-1731. He may also have had children post 1731 that have not been discovered. Hendrick (No.6) while we're unsure if he is even a descendant of Jan Brouwer, he did exist, and his family and knowledge of him is very incomplete. Also possible are three sons of Derck (No.3) being Pieter (No.9), Jacob (No.10) and Dirck (No.11). Both Pieter (No.9) and Jacob (No.10) have children baptized at regular intervals between 1731-32 and 1745-47 that would not allow for the inclusion of some other child (although it is still possible that the elder Stephen could have been born prior to 1731-32, or a within a year or two after 1747. Additionally, new Y-DNA results at the Brewer DNA Project, do not match the descendants of Aaron and Stephen with tested descendants of Pieter (No.9), so it is probable that Pieter (No.9) is not the ancestor we are looking for. We have not identified any children, nor a marriage, for Dirck (No.11). It is suggested that he lived on Long Island, but as the account in Biographical Sketches... mentioned above says, Stephen "was born in a suburb of New York City," and not only would include New Jersey, but also Kings and Queens Counties, on Long Island. The 2015 review suggested that both Aaron and Stephen could be in a line descended from Jan Brouwer's son Derck (No.3). This might be wrong. They could be descendants of Jan Brouwer's son Pieter (No.2) who is a father of Hans (No.5) and perhaps Hendrick (No.6). IF they are descendants of Derck (No.2) then it is likely through Dirck (No.11) or perhaps Jacob (No.10).

John J. Brewer, (pp. 12-13, also the post of November 2, 2012) died 28 March 1848 at Williamson, Wayne Co., New York, age 57yrs. 6 mos. as per his gravestone at Lakeview Cemetery in Pultneyville. That would place his birth at about September 1790. His wife in these earlier writings is said to be Elizabeth Waters, with that identification coming from the direct descendant who has taken a Y-DNA test. Apparently that belief has changed, and I'm now finding claims that she was Eliza Jeffrey (perhaps Jeffries?). Other than this there is no new genealogical information to report. The participating descendant has upgraded to a BigY-700 test, however, the results have not identified a unique SNP that the participant shares with some other tested descendant of Jan Brouwer. There are still nine other members among the descendants of Jan Brouwer, with the surname BREWER who have not yet upgraded to the BigY-700. If those members would do so, we might well find some closer matches, not just for the descendant of John J. Brewer, but for other members as well. Based on a birth in 1790, we'd have to suggest that John J. Brewer is a sixth generation descendant of Jan Brouwer. His older children born between 1816 and 1825, were all born in New Jersey (as per various census records). The youngest known child, Aaron, was born in 1831, in New York, presumably at Williamson. Identifying and locating the place origins of Eliza Jeffrey could point to just where in New Jersey this family originated. A search for John J. Brewer's ancestry should then begin there. The 2015 review suggests a possible ancestry that places John J. Brewer as a son of John Brower (1762-1845) who married Deborah Errickson and had at least two sons, Aaron (b.1794) and Benjamin (b.ca.1800). John Brower (1762-1845) lived in Monmouth County, New Jersey and is a son of Aris Brower (No.12). This is still a viable possibility, but certainly not the only one. John J. Brewer's ancestry is still very much an open question.

To be continued... (April 3, 2022)

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Brewer/Brower Deeds in Harrison County, Kentucky

 Deeds involving persons name BREWER and BROWER found in the Land Records of Harrison County, Kentucky.

Links to images found online at FamilySearch.org, "General Indexes, 1794-1894, and deeds, 1794-1866 [Harrison County, Kentucky]."

BREWERs found in General Index Vol. B, 1794-1894 (FHL film #007899173) at image 113: John J. Brewer, Richard Brewer, Stephen Brewer. This page leads you to pages 236 and 237 (image 241) of the same film. Here we find the following deeds:

Richard Brewer at Book 9: page 240; 9:442; 11:49

Stephen Brewer at 4:296

John J. Brewer at 25:148

BROWERs at image 114: Aaron Brower, p.284 (image 265). See 25:210

• 4:296. Indenture made 27 July 1814 between Stephen Brewer and Polly his wife of Harrison County of one part and Charles Whitsett of the county aforesaid of the second part. Stephen Brewer and Polly his wife, for consideration of $160, sold and relinquish their rights...as heirs of Joseph Whitsett, dec'd to all the real and personal estate of which said Joseph died possessed of, viz: 100 acres of land lying in Paddys Run and conveyed by William Johnson to the said Joseph and also thirty acres of land sixteen and a half acres of which is part conveyed by David Callaghan to said Joseph and thirteen and a half acres said Joseph purchased at Sheriff's sale, a tract belonging to the heirs of George Hamilton, dec'd... Signed Stephen Brewer and Polly Brewer (her mark). [Another indenture involving Charles Whitsett follows in this deed book]. Also see the Harrison County Court record of May 1814, below.
  

• 9:240. Indenture of bargain and sale entered 2 September 1823 between David J. Walker attorney for William Lewis of one part and Richard Brewer of the other part. For $75 received by David J. Walker, attorney, a tract or parcel of land in Harrison County, containing 100 acres, beginning at Daniel Whittey's north most corner...
• 9:442. Indenture dated 5 August 1825 between Richard Brewer of Harrison County of one part and Daniel Tewel of Mason County, Kentucky of the other part. Richard Brewer for consideration of $1 sold unto Daniel Tewel a tract or parcel of land being part of a tract said Brewer bought of Lewises survey in the County of Harrison and bounded as follows...containing 15 acres. Richard Brewer signs with his mark X.
• 11:49. Indenture of bargain and sale entered 4 February 1828 between Richard Brewer and Mary his wife of one part and Phillip Reed of the other part. For $250, receipt acknowledged by Richard Brewer and his wife Mary, a certain tract or parcel of land in Harrison County containing 100 acres beginning at Daniel Whittey's northwest corner... [this being the property that Richard Brewer bought in 1823 (9:240)]. Richard Brewer and Mary Brewer both sign with their marks, X. "Personally came before us the subscribers two acting Justices of the Peace for Bracken County Mary Brewer and being examined separate and apart from her husband did freely and voluntarily relinquish her right of dowery to the foregoing described tract or parcel of land given under our hands this 5th day of February 1828." Signed Wm. Putnam, Wm. B. Lurtey. The deed acknowledged at the Harrison County Clerk's Office, by Richard Brewer and Mary his wife, October 2, 1828.
• 25:148. Indenture dated [?] December 1852, between John J. Brewer and Hannah C. Brewer his wife of Carroll County, Kentucky of the first part and Willis T. Ziler of Harrison County of the second part. For $1200 paid by the party of the second part and acknowledged, a tract of land...containing 31 acres three rods and five poles and being lot No. 3 in the division of the estate of Jacob Ziler, dec'd the said Hannah C. Brewer being one of the children and heirs of said Jacob Ziler, dec'd, said division will be found in record Book G page 193 in the Harriosn County Court Clerk's Office. Signed John J. Brewer and Hannah C. Brewer.
• 25:210. Indenture dated 18 January 1855 between Aaron Brower and Polly Brower his wife late Polly Bell, George Bell and Susanna his wife and William Bell of Henry County and state of Indiana of the first part and Henry E. Shawhan of Harrison County and state of Kentucky of the second part. For the sum of $500 to be paid on 1 March 1855 (by Henry E. Shawhan), all the undivided eight interest claim and demands of them the party of the first part in and of the estate of John Lad Sr.(?), dec'd, late of Harrison County consisting of lands, slaves, personal property, money...to which daughter Nancy Bell would have been entitled had she survived said deceased, to have and to hold the estate hereby conveyed... Signed by Aaron Brower, Polly Brower (her mark X), George Bell (mark X), Susanna Bell (mark X), William Bell (mark X).

In addition to the above, we find in Harrison County Court Sessions of May 1814, " On motion of Charles Whitsett, the following persons are summoned to court to show cause why the noncupative will of Joseph Whitsett should not be established: Samuel Bell and Sally his wife; Griffith Foos and Elizabeth his wife; Burrell Mills and Nancy his wife; Richard Hall and Rebecca his wife; Stephen Irwin and Susannah his wife; Stephen Brewer and Polly his wife; William Parmer and Peggy his wife; Matilda Whitsett; Amelia Whitsett." This found in Pease, Janet K.. Abstracted Court Records, Grant, Harrison, Pendleton Counties, Kentucky (15 Volumes). Williamstown, KY: Grant County Historical Society, (1985-2002),  vol. 2, Harrison County Records, 1794-1828, p.38.

BGB 713

Reviewing The Unplaced Genetic Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L.I. Revisited (Part III)

 This post continues the series that begins with the post of March 19, 2022.

In this post we will focus on the 23 page PDF document that was put together in June 2015, and titled, "Review of the Early Generations of Descendants of Jan Brouwer and the Possible Placements of Known Genetic Descendants Whose Precise Ancestry is Not Known." I know, a mouthful. The Early Generations aspect was dealt with in the March 24, 2022 post, and so now we will move onto the unplaced genetic descendants. The order of unplaced genetic descendants will follow the order in which they were handled in the 2015 documents. The page numbers referenced here will refer to the page of the PDF. Numbers referring to the early generation descendants of Jan Brouwer, and so possible ancestors for the unplaced, refer to those found on "Summary of the Male Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L.I. through the Colonial Period." This may take three or four posts to get through, so lets get right into it.

We start with David Brewer found on pages 6-7. David is found on the 1850 U.S. census in Geneva, Jennings Co., Indiana, his age recorded as 88 years, birthplace recorded as New Jersey. This is the only record we have for his year of birth, which would then be about 1762. David is probably a fifth generation, great-great grandson of Jan Brouwer. David married Euphema Warner about 1785 (place not known, record of marriage not found). They had eight children born between 1787 and 1807. David's will, dated 24 February 1845, was probated in Jennings Co., Indiana, 4 August 1853. David's third child, son Samuel Brewer, said to have been born 14 February 1790, is found on the 1860 U.S. census in Harrison, Bartholomew Co., Indiana, age recorded as 77 (overstated compared to his claimed date of birth) and place of birth recorded as New Jersey. David's fourth child, Jacob Jennings Brewer, said to have been born 17 May 1792, is on both the 1850 and 1860 U.S. census records at Sand Creek, Jennings Co., Indiana, age given respectively as 58 and 68 years (which aligns with his birth date) and place of birth recorded as Pennsylvania in both instances. From this it appears that David Brewer was still in New Jersey during the 1780s, but was in Pennsylvania by 1792. The youngest child, daughter Sarah (b. 20 July 1807), married William Sawyer Riley, and is on the 1850 U.S. census at Geneva, Jennings Co., Indiana, age 42, born in Virginia, which as will be seen, at a place that is likely now in West Virginia. A new piece of information found since 2015, is the will of Nathaniel McFarson of Kingwood, Hunterdon Co., New Jersey, yeoman, written 30 September 1788 and proved 19 January 1789. The witnesses to the will were Samuel McFarson, Uriah Bonham and David Brewer (Abs. NJ Wills 7:144). David Brewer is on a tax list in Ohio County, Virginia in 1788 (Ohio Co. is now in West Virginia. It is on the panhandle that runs south to north between the southwestern counties of Pennsylvania and Ohio). In 1797 David Brewer's property in mentioned in a petition of citizens of Menhallen Twp., Fayette Co., Pennsylvania, asking for a division of the township. Redstone Twp. was created and David Brewer is found there on the 1800 U.S. census. In 1810, David Brewer is found at Elizabeth, Ohio Co., Virginia (now W.V.). In 1820 and 1830 he is enumerated in Tyler Co., Virginia (now W.V.). The most valuable piece of information regarding David Brewer is a biography written in 1899 by his grandson Jacob Jennings Warner Brewer, in which he states that his (meaning Jacob) great-grandfather was Derrick Brewer, "who was of Holland descent." Jacob J. W. Brewer was born in 1815 in Tyler Co., Virginia (his own words). His grandfather, David, was living when Jacob was an adult, and he may well have received the name of his grandfather's father directly from David himself. There really is no reason to doubt the statement. So, if born in 1762, David's father, perhaps in his 20s when David was born, was likely born himself between 1732 and 1742 give or take a few years on either side. Looking at the fourth generation of the Jan Brouwer family, the great-grandsons of Jan Brouwer, we have four Dirck Brouwers to choose from, No.19 (b.1729), No.21 (b.1732), No.26 (b.1743) and No.27 (b.1737). Eliminate No.19 as we know that he lived his life at Hempstead, L. I. and there is nothing that has been found to connect David to Hempstead. Of the three remaining, No.26 (b.1743), the youngest is the least likely as I'd suspect that he is the Derrick Brewer who died in 1769 with no mention of heirs when his small estate was settled. In 2015 we suggested No.21, the Dirck baptized 15 August 1732 at Harlingen, son of Elias Brouwer (No.8) and Helena Willemse. I would stay with that placement today, largely based on the fact that Derck (No.21) had a brother, David (No.22) he being the first male named David among Jan Brouwers's descendants. Dirck (No.27) baptized 29 May 1737 at Readington), son of Jacob Brouwer and Marike (___), could still be a possibility. One descendant of David Brewer, who is also a descendant of David's grandson Jacob J. W. Brewer, has taken the basic STR 37marker Y-DNA test. This test confirms the descendant as a descendant of Jan Brouwer, however, an upgrade to the latest BigY-700 test would add new genetic data that may better point the way towards the identity of David's father, and would certainly add new data beneficial to the group as a whole.

John Brewer of Scioto Co., Ohio is found on pages 7-9. Four direct male descendants have taken Y-DNA tests. Two of the four have taken FTDNA's Big-Y test. Their identifying SNP is I-Y7214 which is the identifying SNP for the Jan Brouwer Group as a whole. John Brewer first married Elsie Lewis by 1774 when their first child was born. If married during his twenties this would place his birth in the decade of about 1744 to 1754 give or take a few years. That would likely place John Brewer among the fourth generation and a great grandson of Jan Brouwer. Elsie Lewis' brother, Barnet Brewer, of Bernards Twp., Somerset Co., New Jersey, wrote his will 12 February 1807 (proved 19 Feb 1807) in which he mentions his sister Elsie as the "first wife" of John Brewer and their two children, Mary Brewer and Edward Brewer. John Brewer's second wife was Sarah Howell although I have yet to find confirmation of her family name. No record of their marriage has been found. Their first (of supposedly nine children) was born in 1779. In 1790 John Brewer is found on the U.S. census at Bullskin, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania. In 1797, John Brewer and his wife Sarah, of Bullskin, sold land in Bullskin. In December 1801, John Brewer is in Adams Co., Ohio when he collected a $6 bounty on three wolves. Scioto Co., Ohio was created out of Adams County in March 1803, and John Brewer remained there and died by May 1808 by accounts regarding his estate found in court records at Portsmouth, Ohio. Administration on his estate was granted 19 February 1809 to a Samuel Lucas, whose relationship to John Brewer's family is not known. Perhaps he was a creditor, perhaps he had some relationship to John's second wife, Sarah, who is found in later records regarding the estate. Of John Brewer's 11 children, seven are sons. Three of the sons are ancestors of participants in the Brewer DNA Project. Among the sons is a Richard Brewer, who is called "Derrick Brewer of Scioto County," in an 1816 deed by which he and siblings sell land from their father's estate. If born between 1744 and 1754, it's likely that John's father was born earlier than 1724. The 2015 report places John Brewer as probably one of the sons of Derck Brouwer (No.3). Based on newer BigY-700 test results, the Brewer DNA Project now suggests that John Brewer could be a son of one of the sons of Elias Brouwer (No.8, wife Helena Willemse), either Dirck (No.21) or David (No.22). He cannot be a son of Elias (No.23) had a son named John Brewer, but who is otherwise accounted for. If David Brewer (above) is also a son of Dirck (No.21) it would be suggested that both the descendant of David Brewer, and the remaining two descendants of John Brewer, upgrade their Y-DNA tests to the BigY-700. Results might expose unique identifying SNPs that could link the two to a more recent common ancestor than Jan Brouwer (No.1) or Derck Brouwer (No.3).

John Rose is found on pages 9-10. John Rose died in Madison, Pickaway Co., Ohio in December 1830. Seven descendants of four different sons of John Rose, have taken Y-DNA tests and from the results it is clear that John Rose is a genetic descendant of Jan Brouwer. Since 2015 four of those descendants have taken BigY-700 tests and will cover the results below. I will not spend time reviewing the traditional genealogical research findings here, but will instead direct the reader to the original 2015 document. There are a couple of new items of info to add. One, in an email from June 2021, Marg Bond, who has does considerable research on the descendants of John Rose and on the investigation of his ancestry, informs us that John Rose's wife, Dorothy, was Dorothy Eva Sirk, born 1768 in York Co., Pennsylvania, daughter of Mathias Sirk. The Sirks were in Louden Co., Virginia by 1782 and by 1795 were in Frederick Co., Virginia. She has also found a John Rose on a tax list in Frederick Co., Virginia in 1792. By 1802 he was in Rockingham Co., Virginia. It's likely that John Rose and Dorothy Eva Sirk were married in Louden Co., Virginia, or perhaps Frederick Co., Virginia. Another item is the appearance of a John Rose on the 1792 Hunterdon Co., New Jersey Militia roll at Amwell Township (see the post of March 26, 2021). The John Rose of Frederick Co., VA in 1792, and the John Rose of Amwell Twp., Hunterdon Co., NJ in 1792, may or may not be the same man. Advanced DNA testing in the form of FTDNA's BigY-700 test has added helpful genetic data with regards to the placement of John Rose within the Jan Brouwer family. The new test results have created a new genetic sub-branch of the Jan Brouwer branch (I-Y7214), with this new sub-branch identified by SNP I-FT135755. This SNP is shared by the descendants of Joh Rose with two others in the project, they being the Embody descendant and a descendant of Richard Brower (b.ca.1804) who lived at Lee, Oneida Co., New York and later Albion, Oswego Co., New York (see the post of June 20, 2019). In addition, two of the descendants of John Rose can be further identified by a unique SNP I-Y41503. Both of the two descendants are descendants of John Rose's son Anthony Rose (1792-1857). I-Y41503 is then a sub-branch of I-FT135755 which in turn is a sub-branch of I-Y7214. This can be seen on the YFull Y-Tree of February 25, 2022. John Rose was probably born between 1766 and 1770 (from age ranges found on the 1810, 1820 and 1830 U.S. census records), and probably in New Jersey, although the 1880 U.S. census for his son Solomon Rose (at Pleasant Hill, Nebraska) records Solomon's father's place of birth as Virginia. Records this far removed from the actual event, and reported by someone other than the individual the record is in regard to, can be unreliable, but having said that, Virginia is a possible location, and if so I'd suspect that John Rose's birth took place in Frederick County. To be clear, what I'm saying is that John Rose could have been born in either New Jersey or Virginia. The date range for his birth would likely place John Rose in the fifth generation of descendants of Jan Brouwer (i.e. a great-great grandson). We would then look for his father among those of the fourth generation. The Brewer DNA Project's Y-DNA analysis suggests that John Rose is probably among the descendants of Jan Brouwer's son Derck (No.3) and likely a descendant of Pieter Brouwer (No.9) who was at Bridgewater, New Jersey in 1753*. His sons, possible father's for John Rose, would be Petrus (No.24), Abraham (No.25) and Dirck (No.26). Of the three, Abraham does have known descendants and we'll get to them in a future post. Descendants for Petrus and Dirck have not been discovered. I would also add that in the summary, under Dirck (No.26) we discuss the Derrick Brewer of Somerset County whose estate was administered in 1769, and mention the fact that no heirs are mentioned. That no heirs were named, does not necessarily imply that Derrick Brewer never had any children. He may still have had a child born out of wedlock, as John Rose may have been. In other words, Derrick Brewer who died in 1769 should not be ignored. Now, which Dirck Brouwer of the fourth generation this belongs to, is another matter, although I would suspect that it was the youngest of the four, which would be Dirck (No.26).

*The issue here isn't so much a question of whether John Rose is a descendant of Pieter Brouwer (No.9), but rather is Pieter (No.9) a son of Derck (No.3) or is he a son of Pieter (No.2). See Pieter (No.9) in the Summary PDF.

To be continued...

BGB 712

Reviewing the Unplaced Genetic Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L. I. Revisited (Part II)

 This post continues the series beginning with the previous post of March 19, 2022. 

Before moving on to review the individual unplaced Earliest Known Ancestors (EKAs) of participants in the Brewer DNA Project who are known, by results of Y-DNA testing, to be somehow descended from Jan Brouwer, I thought it best to review and summarize the known descendants of Jan Brouwer through his sons, grandsons and great-grandsons. Most of those who cannot find the link between their EKA and Jan Brouwer, will most likely find it among Jan's male descendants found in the third and fourth generations (the grandsons and great-grandsons). The summary is provided as a PDF accessible with this link. I will further note that many of those found in the third and fourth generation remain open ended. That is to say, no record of their death or burial, nor an account of the settlement of an estate, has been found for them at the last known place where they lived. While their deaths and estates may have simply not been recorded, it is also possible that they moved on and such records are yet to be discovered, somewhere else. A number of others are known only from the record of their baptism. No record of these individuals as adults has yet to be identified. That does not mean that none exist. And it does not mean that the individual died before reaching adulthood. It may well mean that either additional records have not yet been found, or that known records simply have not been attributed to any one individual in question. So, using this summary as a starting point, keep searching. 

We will get to reviewing the unplaced EKAs who were discussed in a summary from 2015 in the next post of this series. I suspect that there will be two or three more posts. For the remainder of this post I just want to review the migration routes found for the descendants of Jan Brouwer, so lets get right into that.

Jan Brouwer lived at Flatlands on Long Island which, once counties were established, was in Kings County. Flatlands was also known, by the Dutch, as Amersfoort. It was located on the southeast shore of Long Island with the town of Gravesend (Kings Co.) to the west, and the town of Hempstead (Queens Co.) to the east. Today, Flatlands is a neighborhood in the Borough of Brooklyn, one of the five boroughs of New York City. Probate settlements from Jan's time are usually found in the Probate Books held at the Surrogate's Court of New York County, although a few can be found withing the Deed Books of Kings County*. Jan's son Pieter Brouwer also lived at Flatlands. Jan's son Derck appears to have lived for a time at Flushing and perhaps Jamaica, both in Queens County and closer to the north shore of Long Island. Jan's son Hendrick (no children) lived at Hempstead. Jan's son Johannes/Jan lived for a time at Gravesend and at Jamaica, but was of Hempstead when he wrote his will in 1712. The second generation, Jan's sons, did not venture far.

We start to see movement away from the south shore of Long Island with the third generation. The first baptism of the Freehold and Middletown Dutch Congregations was recorded in 1709. Services were held in the area as early as 1699. During the second decade of the 1700s, Annetje Jans Bergen, the widow of Jan's son Pieter Brouwer, moved to Middletown, Monmouth County, New Jersey with at least some of her children including sons Jan/John (no.4 in the summary) and Hans (no.5), and daughter Lucretia (m. Johannes Luyster). Jan, Hans, and Lucretia, all had children baptized by the Reformed Dutch Congregations of Freehold and Middletown during the decade of the 1720s and into the early 1730s. During the decades of the 1720s and 1730 we can place a few of Jan Brouwer's grandchildren at Middletown, Monmouth County, New Jersey. Descendants continued to be found in Monmouth County through the 1700s, 1800s and into the 1900s.

Jan Brouwer's other grandson named Jan (no.7) son of Derck Brouwer and Hannah Daws, had his own first child baptized at Jamaica, Queens County, Long Island in 1726. However, in 1729 he was in Somerset County, New Jersey where son Dirck was baptized at Raritan in that year. In 1732, when he wrote his will, Jan (calling himself John Brewer) was of Somerset County. Both Jan/John and his wife Aegje Sprong died at relatively young ages, leaving minor children who moved back to Long Island and lived at Hempstead with their great-uncle Hendrick Brower/Brewer. These children established what might be called the Hempstead branch of Jan Brouwer's descendants. They and their descendants largely remained in the Town of Hempstead, for a time during the period of the American Revolution known as South Hempstead, for the remainder of the 1700s, the 1800s and into the 1900s. 

Migration into the area of Somerset and Hunterdon Counties, New Jersey was by the Raritan River whose mouth is at Raritan Bay on the Atlantic coast, adjacent to Monmouth County and Staten Island, New York. The church at Raritan was organized March 9, 1699. The presence of Jan Brouwer's descendants in Somerset County, New Jersey appears to start about 1729 when the baptism of Jan Brouwer's (no.7) son Dirck is found at Raritan. We then see baptisms at Raritan, Harlingen (both in Somerset County) and Readington (Hunterdon County) through the 1730s and 1740s. Other than Jan's (no.7) will, no probate records have been found in Somerset or Hunterdon Counties during the colonial period. Generally speaking, migration of families from the Somerset/Hunterdon County area of New Jersey was westward, into Pennsylvania, particularly along the more southerly areas of the state that would later form the boundary with Maryland and Virginia. This would also include the areas of Frederick Co., Virginia and Berkeley Co., West Virginia. Men from Hunterdon County were in Frederick County by 1745. Jan Joostsz Van Meteran, as John Van Meter, had his will proved 3 September 1745 in Frederick County. His brother Isaac, as "Isaac Vanmetre of South Branch on the potowmack in Frederick County," wrote is will there 15 Feb 1754. Jan and Isaac's family was earlier found at Kingston, Ulster Co., New York. They were in Somerset County by 1706 when Jan's first child, daughter Sarah was baptized at Raritan. The Van Meter brothers were purchasers of large tracts in Frederick County. No doubt other Somerset/Hunterdon County area "Dutch" families followed them there. We know that a John Brewer, son of a Richard Brewer (see no.21) was in Frederick County by the time of the American Revolution. John's brother Samuel is said to have been born in Lancaster Co., Pennsylvania. Lancaster County is in the southeastern part of the state, but at the time Samuel and John were born it was a much larger county than it is today**. Generally speaking migration from the southern PA, northern VA region continued westward just prior to, during and in the years after the American Revolution, into southwestern Pennsylvania (Fayette, Washington, Westmoreland Counties) and what is now West Virginia (Monongalia County), and soon afterward along the Ohio River into eastern and northern Kentucky, southern Ohio, Indiana and eventually Illinois.

We first see a migration from the Somerset/Hunterdon County area to Albany County, New York in the early 1770s, on the eve of the American Revolutionary War. Elias Brouwer (no.23) has son David baptized at Schagticoke in 1773. Elias (no.23) himself was baptized at Readington in 1740. Abraham Brouwer/Brewer (no.25) himself baptized at Readington in 1734, is on a muster roll in Albany County, along with his son Peter Brewer, in 1782. They were at Duanesburgh. Peter's baptism has not been found but he was age 26-44 in 1800 (U.S. census, Duanesburgh) so born 1755-1763. Generally speaking migration from the Albany County area was westward through New York State. This began when the "Military Tract" consisting of bounty land grants given to Revolutionary War veterans opened up in the 1790s (there was also migration to this area by families directly from the Somerset/Hunterdon Cos. region of New Jersey). The opening of the Erie Canal in 1825, this accelerated migration to western New York, the Great Lakes region and on to Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, etc. We know that Elias (no.23) moved west and south to Otsego County. From there descendants moved to the Niagara frontier region and then on to Michigan and Wisconsin. Abraham (no.25) Brouwer's descendants initially moved just a bit westward, along the Mohawk River, to Schenectady and the Schoharie area, and to Madison County, New York.

So, now an more concise summary tracking the movement of Jan Brouwer's descendants:

• 1657-1690 Flatlands, Long Island
• 1690-1710 Flatlands, Gravesend (Kings Co.) and Jamaica (Queens Co.), Long Island
• 1710-1720 Kings and Queens Counties, now including Hempstead; first move to the Freehold-Middletown area of Monmouth County, New Jersey
• 1720-1730 Hempstead, Freehold-Middletown, first move to the Somerset/Hunterdon County area of New Jersey.
• 1740-1750 Hempstead, Freehold-Middletown, Somerset/Hunterdon Counties
• 1750-1770 Hempstead, Freehold-Middletown, Somerset/Hunterdon. A first movement into Pennsylvania and/or Frederick County, Virginia is possible.
• 1770-1780 Hempstead, Freehold-Middletown, Somerset/Hunterdon. First migration to Albany County, New York. Probable presence in Pennsylvania and/or Frederick County, Virginia
• 1790-1800 All of the above, while westward migration begins to western New York, southwestern Pennsylvania, and probably into Ohio.
  
• 1800-1850 Still found in large numbers at Hempstead and in Monmouth County. Lesser numbers in the Mohawk Valley counties in New York State, and in the Somerset/Hunterdon County area. Migration westward continues via the Great Lakes into Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, and via the Ohio River into Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

Summary of the Direct Male Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L.I. Through the Colonial Period.

 *The Family History Library in Salt Lake City as filmed and now digitized all of the probate and land books of both New York and Kings Counties, and they can be accessed online at FamilySearch.org.

**Please not that we do not yet know if this John Brewer, his brother Samuel and their father Richard Brewer, are, or are not, descendants of Jan Brouwer. We would need a Y-DNA test from a confirmed direct male descendant of either John or Samuel to determine whether or not they are with certainty.

Next post in this series, March 28, 2022.

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Reviewing the Unplaced Genetic Descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, L. I. Revisited (Part I)

 The June 19, 2015 post reviewed the unplaced genetic descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, Long Island. That post included a link to a PDF providing my thoughts at that time. That link, however, appears to be broken. Such is life online. Here is a new link: A Review of the Early Descendants of Jan Brouwer and the Possible Placement of Known Genetic Descendants Whose Ancestry is Not Known. Having done this it now needs to be said that this document was created nearly seven years ago and since then new info has been learned and more importantly, additional YDNA testing of more descendants coupled with more advanced testing, namely FTDNA's BigY-700 test, as made this document, although not obsolete, at least a bit dated. It's due for an upgrade. The intention of this post is to revisit and update the 2015 PDF and since it will be confined to a blog post I will try to be concise and brief while conveying critical new info for those continuing this research, so lets get right into it.

The Progenitor: Jan Brouwer came to New Amsterdam in 1657. He was a blacksmith and lived at Flatlands, Long Island. It does not appear that he lived at any other location. There is no extant record of his death or burial and no probate record. In April 1700 he executed a deed of maintenance with his son Pieter where by Pieter gained his father's property in exchange for maintaining Jan now in his old age. He confirmed the deed on 17 November 1702 and likely died sometime soon afterwards. Of his seven children, five were sons, four of whom reached adulthood, only two of whom had children of their own. Those two sons are Pieter, baptized 20 October 1660 at the New Amsterdam RDC, and Derck for whom no record of baptism survives but who was likely born by 1666 (took the Oath at Flatlands in September 1687 and so was at least 21 years of age). YDNA testing of descendants identify their common ancestral SNP as I-Y7214 (YFull's Y-Tree). All direct descendants, through direct paternal lines, of Jan Brouwer will be positive for this SNP and must be direct paternal line descendants of one of Jan's two sons, Pieter or Derck.

The Two Sons: Pieter Brouwer (bapt. 1660) likely lived his entire life at Flatlands, and apparently died between 1702 when his father confirmed his deed, and 1706 when his wife Antje Jans Berge(n) is listed on an assessment at Flatlands. She was living in 1731 when she was a member of the Dutch Reformed Congregation at Freehold and Middletown in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The couple may have had seven children although baptism records for only two survive. Of the children, two sons, Jan and Hans (yes they are different names) had children. Son, Jan, perhaps born about 1692, married Helena Van Cleef by 1724 and they had 10-12 children baptized between 1724 and 1749. The older children were baptized at Freehold-Middletown while later children were baptized at Harlingen and Raritan in Somerset County, or Readington in Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Four sons of Jan and Helena had descendants. A fifth, Johannes, the youngest, baptized in 1749 at Readington has not been traced. In 2015 we had yet to encounter a known, provable descendant of Pieter Brouwer who had taken a YDNA test. Since then we have found one. He is a descendant of Pieter's son Jan. He is found on the above mentioned YFull Y-Tree as id:YF67184 under I-Y7214. When or where Jan Brouwer (a.k.a. John Brewer) died has not been discovered. Pieter's other son leaving descendants was Hans, baptized 30 October 1695 at Flatbush, L.I. His wife was Nelke Goulder, they were married by 1720. He was a member of the Freehold-Middletown Church in 1725. Four known children were baptized there between 1720 and 1731. Of the four baptisms the child was named in only two, daughter Anke in 1720 and son Jan in 1731. "A son" was baptized in 1723, and "a child" in 1725. We have no idea if either of the two reached adulthood. It should be noted that there is a gap of six years between the baptism of Han's third and fourth child. Hans and Nelke may have had two or three additional children who have otherwise escaped identification. We do not know when or where Hans Brouwer died. No record of probate has been found. The last record for him is the baptism of his son Jan in 1731. 

The Two Sons: Derck Brouwer (b. ca. 1666). By my count there are now 40 members of the Brewer DNA Project who are identified by their Y-DNA tests as descendants of Jan Brouwer. Of these, as mentioned above, only one can be identified by traditional means as a descendant of Jan's son Pieter. In contrast the Project has eight who can show a confirm-able line back to Derck. Of the remainder, the majority, by virtue of DNA analysis, are also descendants of Derck Brouwer. It is apparent that Derck Brouwer left many more male descendants then did his older brother Pieter. Derck Brouwer married Hannah Daws on 6 October 1694 at Flatlands (according to T.G. Bergen). She was a daughter of Elias Daws who was at Gravesend, L. I. Derck and Hannah were inhabitants of Flushing, L. I. in 1698. "Derick Brewer's house" was mentioned in a deed from Stephen Hudson to Jeremiah Bedel (Hempstead, L.I. Town Records 8:294). No date on the deed, but from the time that Derck, or his son of the same name, would have been living.  [The date of this deed is 1742 and so the Derick Brewer mentioned must be Derck's presumed son]. On 22 September 1700, "Dirrick Brewer of Jamaica and Hendrick Brewer of Flatlands" sold a house and 75 acres on the borders of Hempstead, Flushing and Jamaica (Long Island). Back in 1694, Dirck Brower and Cornelius Williamson (Derck's brother-in-law) bought of Peter Carston of Cape May in West Jersey, two allotments of land at Gravesend. Derck likely died in 1702 or 1703. No record of probate is found. His wife, Hannah, remarried Joseph Goulder probably by 1704. Derck and Hannah had five sons. Jan is confirmed by a baptism record at Flatbush, 9 June 1695. Elias, likely born about 1699, is placed as a son by virtue of his name, having been named for his maternal grandfather. Sons Pieter and Jacob are likely by virtue of the fact that they both in turn gave sons the name Derck. They also named daughters Annatje which can be a diminutive of either Anna or Hannah. A likely son, Derck, again by virtue of his name, was on a 1738 muster roll in Queens County. He lived in Hempstead. To follow Derck's known descendants please see the October 6, 2012 post, and his profile on the Brouwer Genealogy Database. One final note regarding Derck. If your colonial period ancestor was named either Derck (Richard) or Elias, he is most certainly a descendant of Jan Brouwer's son, Derck Brouwer. The two names are not found among Pieter's known sons or grandsons, and neither name is found among the descendants of the unrelated New Netherland/New York/New Jersey families of Adam Brouwer (Gowanus, L. I.) or Willem Brouwer of Beverwijck (Albany, NY).

The 2015 PDF, linked above, described 12 Earliest Known Ancestors (EKFs) of members of the Brewer DNA Project who are genetic descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands who have yet to discover their exact lineage back to Jan. We will revisit them, and a few new ones, in subsequent posts which I'll post soon.  

This series continues with the post of March 24, 2022.

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