George Brewer of Brunswick Co., Virginia: Two More Sources

In the previous post of December 18th, three published sources for researching lineages back to George Brewer of Brunswick Co., Virginia were reviewed. This post will cover two more. The two covered here should be used together and when used in such a way are more valuable than the previously mentioned three. Still, the two discussed in this post are not adequate in themselves for proof of a descent from George Brewer. At least not for our purposes. To reiterate what has been stated earlier, the purpose of this series of posts is not to compile a genealogy of the descendants of George Brewer. The purpose is to identify provable lineages for a few of our participants in the Brewer Y-DNA Project who currently believe that they are descendants of George Brewer. To date, none of the current participants have proved their lineage, and some of the pedigrees that have been submitted, have errors.

The first work includes two supplements. Marvin T. Broyhill III,  The Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1776: with notes of migrations of their descendants into North Carolina and other states (Tullahoma, Tennessee: Brewer Researcher. 1992). Digital copies of this work along with the two supplements are available online, for free, through the Family History Library's online catalog. It is important to recognize that this first work, published in 1992, was a Working Draft. The two supplements are: The Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1676, Supporting Documentation Part I, Virginia County Records, Virginia Marriage Records, Virginia Church Parish Records (Estill Springs, TN: Brewer Researcher. 1994), and The Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1676, Supporting Documentation Part II, English Records, More Virginia Records, Military Records, Related Families, NC Census, Land, Marriage and Estate Records, NC County Records (Estill Springs, TN. 1996).

The second work, which should be used in conjunction with Marvin T. Broyhill's work, is Foy E. Varner, Jr., Brewer Families of Southeast America, A Discussion and Correlation of the Literature (Kaneohe, HI: the Author. 2003). This work is available as an e-book (PDF) by contacting the author, Foy E. Varner, Jr. In using this work it is my suggestion that you first read the introduction at page 5. In particular, I would ask you to read, re-read, and then re-read again, the second paragraph. I have corresponded with a lot of people over the past fifteen years of working on genealogy relating to the Brouwer families of New Netherland, and this second paragraph sums up, very succinctly, the mind set that too many people have when they first begin searching for their ancestors. I would add to it that finding your correct genealogy takes a lot more than taking a DNA test or clicking on a fluttering leaf, or accepting what has been previously published. It takes a lot of work, and it is best, and most rewarding, to do it yourself.

With regards to Marvin T. Broyhill's work, the two supplements are more valuable than the volume they are supplementing. The supplements contain abstracts of records that the author had collected. This collection is valuable in that it brings together, in one place, abstracts of records that would otherwise take a terrific amount of time and expense to collect. Having said that, what is presented in the two supplements are still abstracts, they are not records in and of themselves. Abstracts, and transcriptions, can of course contain errors. And, each and every time an abstract or transcription is recopied, there is an opportunity for new errors to creep in. What is valuable in Broyhill's supplements is that a source, to varying degrees, is provided for each abstract. This is very helpful in shortening the time it might take to locate the original when needed. The abstracts in the supplements are arranged by county, which I found to be very efficient. It makes it easier to focus on, and find records for, one location at a time. In putting together a Database for the Brewer DNA Project's "Lanier - Brewer" group, I have relied heavily on Broyhill's two supplements. But, again I will emphasize, the abstracts in Broyhill's supplements are not substitutes for original records. If an issue regarding the interpretation of a record from the abstract arises, it will be necessary to locate and examine the original. If you are preparing your own pedigree to accompany your Y-DNA test results, my suggestion is to locate and obtain a copy of each original record abstracted by Broyhill, that you have used in compiling your own pedigree.

Broyhill's initial volume, as published in 1992 as a working draft, is much less useful than the supplements. I do not believe that Broyhill intended his work as a final genealogy. Each and every page is labeled at the bottom with either "working draft" or "1st draft." Unfortunately, some have apparently accepted Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1776, as a final genealogy and have used it verbatim to compile their own lineages. Ben R. Brewer, for one, in his The Long Brewer Road (see the December 18, 2014 post), acknowledges the work of Marvin T. Broyhill, and then essentially copies it, with few alterations, for his own work. In fact, the more I consider Ben R. Brewer's work, the less respect I have for it. I can not see how Broyhill intended his 1st draft to be used that way. My impression in regards to Broyhill's, Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1776, is that it was never intended as a final genealogy and should not be used as such. Anyone who has submitted a pedigree to the Brewer DNA Project, and used Broyhill's work as their only source, needs to go back and re-evaluate each placement that was taken directly from Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia. Many of the placements of individuals within families found in the work are conjecture. The compiler describes it as a working or 1st draft, and in light of that, this work should be thought of as a compilation of the author's thoughts as he is trying to work out some very difficult genealogies of multiple unrelated families. Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia, 1626-1776, is in itself not acceptable for compiling a pedigree for inclusion in the Brewer DNA Project.

What can be, and should be taken from Marvin T. Broyhill's initial work is an appreciation for the fact that there were numerous, and certainly unrelated, Brewer immigrants who came to colonial Virginia during the 17th century. It is also certain that there were many more, whose immigration records are lost, that came to the colony during the 18th century. Broyhill lists 17th century Brewer immigrants on pages 16 to 19. The opening words to the Brewer DNA Project's main page, "Not all BREWERs descend from the same lineage," is applicable even to just this small sub-set of Brewers found in colonial Virginia and North Carolina. Of the eleven groups we have identified at the Brewer DNA Project's Y-DNA Results page, eight represent groups who have origins in the region of Virginia, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and other places in the American south. I have no doubt that in the twelfth, "Un-grouped" category, that many of the results found there also have their earliest known ancestors found in the southern states.
Not all BREWERs whose origins are in the mid-Atlantic and southern states are related. Many do not share a common ancestor with others. George Brewer of Brunswick Co., Virginia, and his claimed descendants are just one family among many. They may or may not be the largest, but the fact that they are only one family of many must be accepted by anyone who is researching their Brewer ancestry in the mid-Atlantic and southern states. Please keep an open mind to this when researching your own individual ancestry.

Foy E. Varner, Jr.'s Brewer Families of Southeast America, as stated in the subtitle, is a Discussion and Correlation of the Literature, that literature being the work previously published by other authors. As mentioned above, this is an e-book that is available from the author. If you would like a copy, please send him an e-mail and ask for one. The e-book is 645 pages and about 522 are devoted to Marvin T. Broyhill's work. Also covered are the Ben R. Brewer's Long Brewer Road, and Edward Denton Brewer's House of Brewer. There are five other books as well, including James F. Bowman, The Ambrose Brewer Family, 1753-1855 which I anticipate will get mentioned before this series of posts dedicated to the "Lanier - Brewer" group ends.

Once again, please read the introduction. Here is where Foy E. Varner explains the purpose of his book. It is not a genealogy. Do not copy it for your own pedigree. Foy Varner's work is an excellent companion for help in making sense of previously published material, and Marvin T. Broyhill's work in particular. Broyhill's Brewer Families of Colonial Virginia is largely conjecture. However, when Broyhill's work is viewed as a finished genealogy, as I am afraid many have viewed it, it has to be acknowledged that it is filled with numerous errors. It contains serious misinterpretations, too many assumptions, and incorrect insertions of individuals into families that are not supported by evidence. All of Broyhill's statements found in his 1st draft, need to be questioned. They cannot be accepted at face value. Varner's Brewer Families of Southeast America will help you recognize some of the questions you should be asking about Broyhill's work. His book also offers a great deal more in explanations and reasons, and it includes conjecture of his own, which of course anyone who is serious about researching their own genealogy should question as well.

For those who are preparing a pedigree for the Brewer DNA Project: Use Broyhill's supplements as an initial source of records, but then make the effort to locate the original record you are using. Use Broyhill's 1st draft, along with Foy Varner's Brewer Families of Southeast America, as a guide, and to get clarification on any records found in Broyhill's supplements that you may have questions on. Do not use them as a stand alone source for constructing your pedigree.

In the next post I will point out some readily available sources found online.

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Published Brouwer Accounts: Post "Brouwer Beginnings"

Two articles that were published after William J. Hoffman's "Brouwer Beginnings" (published in 1947/48, The American Genealogist [TAG] vols. 23-24) should be mentioned.

"Adolphus Brower (1777-1855)," by Katherine Hewitt Cummin was published in TAG vol. 44, pp. 150-153. This article identifies Adolphus Brower, born 3 July 1777, died 23 August 1855, buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn, as a son of Isaac Brouwer and Jacomyntje Quackenbosch. Adolphus was married to Elizabeth Baker on 24 March 1799 in Brooklyn at the house of John Brower (recorded at St. Ann's Episcopal Church). The couple lived in Brooklyn and had nine children, eight of whom were baptized at St. Ann's. William J. Hoffman, in "Brouwer Beginnings," had suggested that this Adolphus Brower was a son of Adolf Brouwer (1725-ca.1780) and Elisabeth Lassing (this couple did have a son named Adolf/Adolphus, but he went to New Brunswick, Canada after the Revolutionary War). Katherine Hewitt Cummin's article corrects Hoffman's suggestion.

"Another Child of Peter (Adam) Brouwer," by Phyllis Miller, was published in the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, vol. 120 (1989) pp. 44-45. This article adds daughter Maria to the family of Pieter Brouwer and Petronella Kleyn. No record of baptism survives for Maria. She married Jacob Knoet/Clute by banns dated 16 November 1727 at Albany, New York. Hoffman had omitted Maria from the family of Pieter Brouwer. Her placement in the family is based upon Maria naming her eldest daughter Nelletie (diminutive of Petronella) for her mother, and second son Pieter, for her father, and of cross-sponsorships at baptisms between Maria and her siblings Jacob Brouwer (husband of Maria Bovy) and Cornelia Brouwer (wife of Claes Bovy).

I do have a copy of the Pieter Brouwer article available online. It was included in the William B. Bogardus Collection. I do not have a copy of the Adolphus Brower article available. It can be accessed online by those who are members of the New England Historic Genealogical Society at their website American Ancestors.

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Published Brouwer Accounts: DNA Analysis

The first major article regarding Brouwer families since William Hoffman's "Brouwer Beginnings" in 1947-48, did not appear until October of 2007. "DNA Analysis: Adam Brouwer Berckhoven, Elias Brouwer of New Jersey, and John Brewer of Ohio," by Richard D. Brewer, PhD, Scott Kraus, and William B. Bogardus, was published in the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record vol. 138, no. 4, pp. 245-49. It was the first article featuring the relatively new field of DNA analysis as applied to genealogical research to be published in the NYGBR. The research covered by the article clearly demonstrates, once and for all, the fact that Adam Brouwer of Gowanus and Jan Brouwer of Flatlands, contemporaries living in Kings County, Long Island, were not in any remote way related. It also put the hammer down on two notoriously false lineages, one from Jacob Brouwer (son of Adam) and his wife Annatje Bogardus (a granddaughter of the "famous" Anneke Jans), and the other from Pieter Brouwer (son of Adam) and his wife, Petronella Uldrickse Kleyn (Clein).

The Y-DNA testing was conducted by Family Tree DNA, the host company for the Brewer DNA Project. The testing on the participants in this research (descendants of Adam Brouwer, Elias Brouwer and John Brewer) resulted in the recognition of distinct Y-DNA signatures for Adam Brouwer and Jan Brouwer. It also demonstrated that Elias Brouwer of New Jersey and John Brewer of Ohio were closely related and, with the aid of some "traditional" genealogical research, it was shown that both were descendants of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands. Participants who have joined the Brewer DNA Project since publication of this article have re-enforced the results of 2007 and have added new data which is helping to distinguish between lines of descent from the various sons of Adam Brouwer and Jan Brouwer. The results are also a great help to those who are just beginning to research their Brouwer ancestry. A simple Y-DNA test of any present day male with the surname of Brower, Brewer or Brouwer who is uncertain of which early Brouwer progenitor he descends from, can now "narrow down the field" of possibilities by comparing his Y-DNA test results to others who had previously joined the project.

The DNA Analysis article was followed by a genealogical summery titled, "Jan Brouwer of Flatlands and Descendants." This work is not credited with an author. It was compiled by the Editor (at the time Patricia Law Hatcher) based upon the previously published account of John Reynolds Totten, with new input from the authors of the DNA Analysis article along with Harry Macy, Jr. (former editor of the NYGBR) and Henry B. Hoff (current editor of the New England Historic and Genealogical Register). This article is the most detailed published account of the children and grandchildren of Jan Brouwer to date. Many of the placements are based upon analysis and interpretation of indirect or coincidental evidence. It is an excellent example of the difficult job of trying to piece together an account of a Colonial New York family for whom few baptism, marriage, and especially, probate records exist.

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Published Brouwer Accounts: William J. Hoffman

With respect to published research on the Brouwer families of New Netherland, particularly the family and descendants of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, the work of William J. Hoffman conducted in the 1930s and 1940s represents the standard to which others are compared.

William John Hoffman was born on April 21, 1882 in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. After graduating from the Technical University at Delft in 1909 he came to the U. S. He was a mechanical engineer by profession and served on the New York Genealogical & Biographical Record's publishing committee from 1933 to 1941. He is most noted for his series of articles "An Amory of American Families of Dutch Descent" which appeared in the NYGBR from January 1933 to 1941. They have since been collected in a single volume edited by Francis J. Sypher and published in 2010 and bearing the same title as the series of articles. It is available from the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. William J. Hoffman died on August 11, 1955 at Jamaica Plains, Massachusetts. A memorial article was published in the NYGBR, volume 87, no. 2 (Apr. 1956), page 78.

William J. Hoffman contributed three published articles on Adam Brouwer and some of his descendants. The first, "Brouwer Corrections," appears in NYGBR vol. 69 (1938) pages 172-179. This article corrects errors and omissions by John R. Totten in his 1933 article in the NYGBR on the Verdon family ("Verdon Family Notes," NYGBR vol. 64: 105-132). Addressed is the family of Jacobus Brouwer and Jannetje Van der Beek, where Jacobus was incorrectly identified by Totten as a son of Adolph Brouwer and Jannetje Verdon. Hoffman uses the technique of studying baptismal sponsors to place Jacobus as a son of Abraham Brouwer and Elizabeth Ackerman. Hoffman next presents evidence for further corrections and additions to the family of Adolph Brouwer and Jannetje Verdon and identifies their son, Jacobus, as the Jacob Brouwer who married Elsye Hitchcock in 1747. Hoffman also makes the argument for the placement of Nicholas Brouwer of Dutchess County, New York (he married first Mary Dutcher and second Sarah Drake) as a child of Adolph Brouwer and Jannetje Verdon, who are also shown to have had a son, Isaac (married Jacomyntje Quackenbos), and a daughter, Rachel Brouwer (married William Lawrence). Much of Hoffman's reasoning is based upon the belief that baptismal sponsors at the baptisms of Dutch children in the late 1600s and early 1700s were recruited from the immediate families of the parents of the child being baptized.

In 1941, Hoffman published "Brouwer Notes No. II" in NYGBR vol. 72 no. 4, pages 332-337. This article covers the ancestry of Johannes Brouwer who married Catharine Duryea. Hoffman demonstrates that previous claims placing Johannes as a son of Johannes Brouwer and Susanna Deroilet (Droilhet) were incorrect. Here, using wills, as well as the observation of baptismal sponsors, and the naming of children based on the tradition of naming first and second born sons and daughters for the children's grandparents, to conclude that Johannes is actually a son of Jacob Brouwer and his wife Jannetje Hartje.

"Brouwer Beginnings," is Hoffman's most comprehensive work on the descendants of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus. Hoffman refers to Adam Brouwer as "Adam Brouwer Berchoven, from Cologne, Germany," and covers the first three generations of his descendants with some diversions on specific lines for additional generations (most notably on John Henri Isaac Browere, baptized as John Henry Brower, son of Jacob Brower and Catherine Jeander, who was an American sculptor). This series of four lengthy articles appeared in 1947 and 1948 in The American Genealogist in volume 23, no. 4 (1947), pages 193-206; volume 24, no. 1 (1948), pages 23-32; vol. 24, no. 2, pages 96-102 and vol. 24, no. 3, pages 161-170. As mentioned above, it is to date, the most authoritative account of the family of Adam Brouwer that has been published in a major genealogical journal, or otherwise. I have placed online PDFs of the four articles that comprise the series.

Brouwer Beginnings v.23 no.4 (1947)

Brouwer Beginnings v.24 no.1 (1948)

Brouwer Beginnings v.24 no.2 (1948)

Brouwer Beginnings v.24 no.3 (1948)

William Hoffman followed up "Brouwer Beginnings" with "Brouwer Corrections and Additions" published in The American Genealogist in volume 30 (1954), pages 176-177. His corrections here pertain to the families of Aeltje Brouwer and Josias Drats (descendants called Drake); Abraham Brouwer and his second wife, Elizabeth (Gerritsen) Britten/Brittain; additions to the family of Sara Brouwer (daughter of Adam) and her second husband, Thomas Knight; and adds baptism records for three children of Adolphus Brouwer and Lysbeth Lassing.

In addition, William J. Hoffman deposited his "Brouwer Beginnings Manuscript Notes" with the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society (their collection has since been transferred to the New York Public Library). A few years ago I was in possession of a photocopy of this manuscript (courtesy of William B. Bogardus). I did not copy or scan digital images of the pages myself (it was lengthy), and am no longer in possession of the copy, having donated it to the Western New York Genealogical Society (now found on their stacks in the Grosvenor Room at the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library). Hoffman did not provide sources in this manuscript. In addition to the family of Adam Brouwer he also had notes on the families of Jan Brouwer of Flatlands and Willem Brouwer of Beverwijck. I went through the entire manuscript and you will find citations to it on the Brouwer Genealogy Database website.

With all of this it has to be mentioned that there are some errors in Hoffman's published accounts. The appearance of errors can only be expected to be found in the coverage of such a large collection of families named Brouwer. I dare say that errors can be found in many, probably the vast majority of published genealogies, including those found in the major genealogical journals. It's a reminder that each time each and everyone of us set out to uncover our own family ancestries, we should use the compiled published accounts as a guide, and we should take the time and make the effort to confirm all claims using the record sources, and we should question and reason out assumptions for ourselves. This applies to all published accounts, no matter how "authoritative" the article is said to be, and no matter how well regarded the author's reputation is.

With the Brouwer Genealogy Database website, and with future postings to this blog site, I hope to add to, and when appropriate, correct and/or question previously published accounts of the Brouwer families of New Netherland. In time I'd like to follow the families of Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, Jan Brouwer of Flatlands and Willem Brouwer of Beverwijck for five generations. In doing so, however, I have no illusions that my work will be a "final" genealogy (no such thing exists). Instead it will be something for others to build on (and no doubt, correct). The hope is that as time progresses, each contributing genealogist (whether professional or amateur) can build upon and improve what came before him or her.

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Published Brouwer Accounts: John Reynolds Totten

John Reynolds Totten (1856-1936) was editor of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record (NYGBR) from 1921 until his death. He was the first Fellow of the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. He served the NYGBS in many rolls from the time he first joined (1894) until his death. A tribute to John Reynolds Totten by Howard S. F. Randolph, as well as a photo, can be found in NYGBR 67:2 (1936): 101-102.

Totten also conducted genealogical research and published many articles. His most extensive project was a genealogy of the Thatcher family (his maternal ancestry). He also contributed research on the Christophers and Preston families of New England (his wives ancestors). Although he apparently had no New Netherland ancestry of his own, he did have an interest in the early Dutch families of New Netherland and New York, and beginning in the early 1920s contributed a number of articles and genealogies regarding related families. Of interest to Brouwer researchers are "Anneke Jans and Her Two Husbands" (NYGBR 56 [1925]: 202-243); "Verdon Family Notes" (NYGBR 64 [1933]: 105-132; "Van der Beek Family Notes" (NYGBR 64 [1933]: 229-243, 367-387; "Praa-Bennet Family Notes" (NYGBR 65 [1934]: 305-319, 66 [1935]: 58-67) and of course "Brouwer (Brower-Brewer) Family Notes" (NYGBR 67 [1936]: 103-110, 217-229) published posthumously.

John Reynolds Totten has to be admired for bringing a far more rigorous standard of proof and an insistence on source citation for all claims to the NYGBR then had existed prior to his time as editor. In April 1933 (Vol. 64, pp.133-138) a "List of Abbreviations to be used in Articles - On Old New York Families - Submitted for Publication in The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record," was adopted (the list was created by Totten's long time colleague Howard S. F. Randolph). These abbreviations would be used in articles appearing in the NYGBR for many years to come.

Totten's attention to detail resulted in some very long articles as evidenced by the range of page numbers given above. He could be rather winded in his explanations and when presenting his reasoning and arguments. Extensive footnotes were often used for digressions on related families. Economy of words was apparently not an issue in his time, and a typical annual volume (four issues) of the NYGBR (which they preferred to refer to as the RECORD) ran upwards of 400 pages or more. Compare that with annual volumes in the 1980s which ran about 250 pages, or today's issues which run about 310 pages per annual volume.

As mentioned above, "Brouwer (Brower-Brewer) Family Notes" was published posthumously. It follows the memorial to John Reynolds Totten which was published in the April 1936 issue of the NYGBR. Totten states that his purpose for the article was to provide an accurate accounting of the Brouwers descended from Anneke Jans Bogardus through her grand-daughter Annatje Bogardus and her husband Jacob Brouwer (a son of Adam Brouwer). Claims of descent from Anneke Jans through this couple is without a doubt the source of a large number of the incorrect Brouwer lineages that Brouwer researchers will come across even today. Totten's approach was to understand all of the Brouwers that appeared in colonial New Netherland, before trying to filter out those who were the actual children of Jacob Brouwer and Annatje Bogardus. This is an approach that can be used regardless of time or place and one that I endorse today. I've stated to many others who I've corresponded with (for example), "if you want to correctly know your specific Brewer family who settled in the Ohio River Valley in the early 1800s, then you have to first know all the Brewer families who settled there at that time." Totten's approach is a technique that requires a good deal of time and effort. But it works.

What is most notable about the "Brouwer Family Notes" article is that it marks the first time that a published account of New Netherland Brouwer families was accompanied by evidence in the form of source citations. And, in typical Totten fashion, his reasons and conclusions are thoroughly explained. You will not find this in Pearson or Bergen's 19th century work. Although there are some errors (corrected later by William J. Hoffman, who will be featured in a future post), spending the time to carefully read Totten's "Brouwer Family Notes," is time well spent.

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Published Brouwer Accounts: Teunis G. Bergen

Teunis G. Bergen (1806-1881) was a son of Garret Bergen (1772-1845) and Jane Wyckoff (b. 1787). He was born at New Utrecht, Kings County, Long Island and lived at Bay Ridge in that town. He was a farmer and surveyor, attained the military rank of Colonel with the New York Militia, and served New Utrecht as Supervisor from 1836 to 1859. He was a U. S. Representative from New York's 2nd Congressional District for one term (1865-1867) and did not seek re-election. Genealogists and family historians know of him most for his work as a genealogist focused on the early families of Kings County.

Teunis G. Bergen is most noted for his lifelong work, The Bergen Family; or the Descendants of Hans Hansen Bergen... which was published in 1876. At the time of his death he left a manuscript which was subsequently published as Register in Alphabetical Order of the Early Settlers and Freeholders of Kings County, Long Island, N. Y., from its First Settlement by Europeans to 1700... which is available online at Google Books (Register of Early Settlers of Kings Co.). Teunis G. Bergen was not a descendant of any of the early Brouwer families of New Netherland, however, he does cover the Brouwer name in Early Settlers of Kings Co. This work is often used as an initial check when researching Kings County families. All claims found in it should be checked against reliable records as Bergen's work is known for errors.

His descriptions of the Brouwer families begins with Adam Brouwer on page 51 and continues to page 55. Among the errors are his statements that Adolphus Brouwer, who married Jannetje Verdon, was a son of Willem Brouwer and Elizabeth Simpson (Adolphus was a son of Nicholas Brouwer); his account of the family of Jacob Brouwer and Annetje Bogardus in which Bergen includes a daughter Elizabeth who married John Parcel (she was a daughter of Nicholas Brouwer), a daughter Hillegont baptized in 1697 (who is a daughter of Jacob's brother, Adam Brouwer), and a supposed son, Nicholas (for whom there is no known record); the inclusion of a Cornelius Brouwer of Dutchess County in the family of Jacob Brouwer and Petronella de la Montagne (the Cornelius Bergen was referring to was a son of Nazareth Brouwer and Anne Rozell); the placement of children, Matthys (bp. 1711) and Elizabeth (bp. 1713) in the family of Johannes Janse Brouwer, son of Johannes of Flatlands (the two siblings were children of Johannes Matthysz Brouwer and his wife Marritje Lamb, they were born in Westchester County and were baptized at the New York Reformed Dutch Church); and the claim that Adam Brouwer's son, Pieter Brouwer, married as a second wife, Geertruyd Jans, and as a third wife, Annetje Jansen of Flatlands (Bergen confuses and combines records of Adam Brouwer's son Pieter with that of Jan Brouwer's son, also named Pieter. The two were contemporaries). There are other errors, and as mentioned above, use this entire work of Teunis G. Bergen's with caution, and confirm all of his statements.

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Published Brouwer Family Accounts: Prof. Jonathan Pearson

Two of the earliest published accounts of Brouwer families found in New Netherland/New York are available in two works by Jonathan Pearson, Genealogies of the First Settlers of the Ancient County of Albany from 1630 to 1800 (first published in 1872), and Contributions for Genealogies of the First Settlers of the Patent and City of Schenectady, from 1662 to 1800 (first published in 1873). An online version of the later can be found at Genealogies of the First Settlers of Schenectady. In addition, the NEHGS has at their website, American Ancestors, a searchable database of this volume titled, First Settlers of Schenectady, from 1662 to 1800.

Jonathan Pearson was born in 1813 at Chichester, New Hampshire and died in Schenectady, New York in 1887. He graduated from Union College at Schenectady in 1835, and was a Professor of Chemistry and Natural History there for most of his adult life. The history and genealogies of the families of the Schenectady and Albany, New York area were subjects that he devoted a tremendous amount of his time to. He was an early contributor to both the New England Historic and Genealogical Register and the New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. In addition to the above two mentioned works, he published numerous other volumes on the early records and histories of Schenectady and Albany. For a short biography, written during his time, see Sketch of the Life of Professor Jonathan Pearson, by Rev. George Alexander. A another account is found in "Necrology," NEHGR vol. 43 (1889), page 437.

In the first of his two works, First Settlers of Albany (to shorten the title), Pearson's summaries of the BROUWER families can be found on pages 27 and 28. He profiles the following: Phillip Hendrickse Brouwer, brewer; Willem Brouwer; Hendrick Willemse Brouwer of Schenectady; Jacob Brouwer and Maria Bovie; Nicolaas Brouwer and Marytie Boom; Matheus Brouwer and Annatie Ouderkerk; Cornelis Brouwer and Elizabeth Visbach; Nicolaas Brouwer and Sarah Drake; Johannes Brouwer and Maritje DeWeaver; Cornelis Brouwer and Cathalyntje McManny; Gerrit Brouwer and Antje Seger; Willem Brouwer and Mary Marschalk. The accounts are very brief and it should be noted that (as with many early published accounts of Colonial families) there are errors. With the exception of mentioning that Hendrick Willemse Brouwer was a son of the Willem Brouwer profiled immediately before him, Pearson does not make any attempt to link these various Brouwer couples. Among this list are descendants of both Willem Brouwer of Beverwijck and Adam Brouwer of Gowanus, L. I.

In his second work (which we'll call First Settlers of Schenectady) Pearson again covers Phillip Hendrickse Brouwer, brewer; Willem (Hendrickse?) Brouwer, referred to as "perhaps brother of the last" (meaning Phillip Hendrickse); Hendrick Brouwer, "son of last" (meaning Willem); then adds, Willem Brouwer, "son of Willem of Albany"; Cornelis Brouwer, "son of Hendrick"; Hendrick Brouwer, "son of Hendrick"; Pieter Brouwer, "son of Hendrik"; Harmanus Brouwer, "son of Willem" (meaning the second Willem profiled); Hendrick Brouwer, "son of Cornelis"; Gillis Brouwer, "son of Pieter"; Richard of Albany and Mary Blann (Blean); Pieter of Albany and Catrina Chrisler; William of Albany and Mary Marschalk (also profiled in First Settlers of Albany); Matheus of Albany and Sarah West; Cornelius, "son of Hendrick" and Jannetje Demorest; Rev. Thomas Brouwer, third minister at Schenectady; Pieter, "son of Gillis" and Ann Catharine Stevens; Gillis, "son of Pieter" and Ellen (Helen) Vrooman; Abram Giles, "son of Giles," graduate of Union College, 1859. These profiles are found on ages 27-29. In addition, there are a number of female Brouwers, who can be found in the profiles of their various husbands, listed under their husband's surnames (use the indexes to locate them).

As with all published accounts of colonial period families, I use works such as Jonathan Pearson's First Settlers of Albany and First Settlers of Schenectady as "guides." I take down the information as presented by the author, and then look to confirm or contradict it by consulting the actual baptism, marriage, death and burial, probate and estate records, and land records that might be available.

Jonathan Pearson (1813-1887)

BGB 86