Family Tree Maker's Genealogy Site: Genealogy Report: Descendants of Michiel Jansen Vreeland

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Descendants of Michiel Jansen Vreeland

Generation No. 1

1. MICHIEL JANSEN¹ VREELAND was born 1610 in Broeckhuysen, North Brabant, Netherlands, and died Bef. June 1663 in Gamoenepa, Bergen Co., NJ. He married FITJE HARTMANS WESSELS, daughter of HARTMAN WESSELS and PREYNTJE. She was born 1611 in Cologne, Rheinland, Germany, and died Bef. October 17, 1697 in Bergen Co., NJ.

Notes for MICHIEL JANSEN VREELAND:
The Jansen - Vreelandt Family
Source: "Dutch Uncles and New England Cousins" by Wilson Ob er Clough, 1977
MICHAEL JANSEN, born about 1610, came for the patroon Van R ensselaer in 1639, leasing a farm known as Hoogeberch, hel d from 1640 to 1646. The patroon called him "one of the mos t upright farmers of the colony." But, like others, he fel l into some disagreement and moved to New Amsterdam, and th e farm was next leased to TEUNIS VAN VECHTEN, who's son Dir ck married JANSEN's daughter, Jannetje, one of the first ch ildren to be born in Rensselaerwyck. She died later on Dirc k's estate on the Catskill stream, an ancestress via HALLEN BECK…
Michael turned up in New Amsterdam as one of Stuyvesant's N ine Men, and as a signer of the 1649 Remonstrance. In 165 6 he complained that Indian raids had deprived him and hi s six children of seventeen years of labor, in consequenc e of which loss he was granted a lot in New Amsterdam, livi ng at Bever and Williams streets. In 1658 he obtained lan d in Bergen County, New jersey, purchased from the Indians , where he raised cattle and as first justice took the nam e VREELANDT.
EDITORS NOTE:
Michael's daughter, Jannetje Jansen married Dirck Van Vecht en and they had a daughter, Fytje Van Vechten. (see articl e of the Van Vechten Family). Fytje Van Vechten married Wil lem Jansz Caspersen Halenbek, thus bringing the Jansen-Vree landt Family together with the Hollenbeck Family and becomi ng a many times great grandmother of the editor.
Jansen Vreelandt Family
Source: The Old Dutch Reformed Church, It's Congregation an d It's Community Life
by Joan Vreeland Studer
Vreeland's Their Book
By Nicholas Garretson Vreeland
On the island of South Beveland, in the province of Zeeland , lies a small village, 's Heer Abtskerke, colloquially cal led Scrabbekercke. In 1640 we first hear of our ancestor an d he is called Michiel Janez van Scrabbekercke. Thus it's h ighly probable that Michiel lived (or was even born) at Scr abbekercke.
The other name for Michiel, other than Jansen or Jansz, wa s in the New Amsterdam Church records where he is referre d to as Michiel Jansen van den Berg, referring to the hil l farm at Rensselaerwyck, where he had first settled and wh ich he left in 1646 when he went to New Amsterdam.
There has been a story in all the Vreeland Families that Mi chiel came from a place called Vreeland. There is no proo f that our Michiel came from there but it does make sense , so we can only agree that he must have at least lived the re during his early life.
Early in the month of May, 1638, the ship Het Wapen van Noo rwegan (Arms of Norway) sailed from Texel. Michiel signed o n as a farmer. He arrived about August 4, 1638, with his wi fe Fitje (or fitie) Hartmans. It is noted that on many of t he birth records of the children, Fitje is listed as Fytj e Wessels Vreeland. They had seven children born in America .
Michiel brought two farm laborers with him and they joine d a small group in the Rensselaerwyck Colony. Not a great d eal is known about this colony except that Michiel was hea d farmer for the Patroon from 1640 to 1646. He was then kno wn as Michiel Jansen. In 1647 he was referred to (baptism r ecord) as Michiel Janszen Van den Berg. However, in the sam e year, Director General Stuyvesant and his Council selecte d nine men to give their advice and assist in promoting th e welfare of the colony and Michiel was one of the farmer s chosen. He was listed as Michiel Jansen Vreeland.
It was recorded that he started raising horses in 1648. The re was also a nasty bit, which a true romantic would fail t o report, about Michiel's sale of contraband munitions to t he Indians and a fine for selling beaver skins without payi ng duty. Actually he made his fortune in the trapping trade .
He moved to New Jersey in 1654 and on September 15, 1655, t he Indians raided. Of all the settlers' families, Vreelan d was the only one to escape entirely unharmed, with his wi fe and six children. He lost his house and all his possessi ons.
Michiel went back to Manhattan and opened a tap room on th e north side of Pearl Street, just south of Broad Street o n October 23, 1656. He prospered and bought other land in N ew Amsterdam.
All the settlers who had been forced to leave their homes i n Pavonia (Bayonne-Jersey City) because of the Indian War w anted to return. Michiel soon wearied of living in Manhatta n. In late January 1658, he too returned to his farm land a nd started raising cattle on a large scale. Soon he was qui te wealthy.
Michiel Jansen (Vreeland) was named as one of the first mag istrates of the first court of justice erected within the l imits of the present State of New Jersey, and of the earlie st organized municipal governments within that state.
Michiel died in 1663 before the month of June and so befor e New Netherlands was taken by the English. Fytje Hartmans , widow, continued to manage the considerable land holding s that Michiel left her. She sold and traded and was said t o have been an excellent business woman for those times. Sh e died in 1697 and left all her lands to her seven children .

Now - THE FIRST FEDERATED CHURCH of Bayonne, New Jersey. It s history goes back to 1638, when the ship, "Arms of Norway ", landed on the shores of Manhattan. In 1654, nine Dutch p assangers from this ship moved to what was then called Ne w Amsterdam. They were the first white settlers and consequ ently, the founders of Bayonne, New Jersey. The congregatio n started in the homes of these people. From there a smal l log church was built in the area of what is now Jersey Ci ty.
As the congregation grew, a stone church was erected in 168 0 on Bergen Avenue. 1723 finds the religious services movin g closer to the Bayonne area with a new church called the P rotestant Reformed Dutch Church of Bergen. As the congregat ion grew once more, two new churches were built, both stil l standing today. One is in Jersey City, dated 1841 and i s now called the old Bergen Church.

The other was established earlier in 1828 and dedicated o n January 11, 1829. It was named the Refrmed Dutch Church o f Bergen Neck. Among the prominent families in the movemen t were those of Cadmus, Van Buskirk, Cubberly, VanHorn, Zab riskie and Vreeland.

Children of MICHIEL VREELAND and FITJE WESSELS are:

	i.	JOHANNIS² VREELAND, m. NEELTJE (NEELTIE) HOAGLAND.
	ii.	JANNETJE VREELAND.
	iii.	ELIAS VREELAND.
	iv.	ENOCH VREELAND.
	v.	PRYNTJE VREELAND.
	vi.	ARIAENTJE VREELAND.
	vii.	CORNELIS VREELAND.
2.	viii.	HARTMAN MICHIELSEN VREELAND, b. October 01, 1651; d. January 18, 1705/06, Bergen Co., NJ.

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