Davids, Brinckerhoff, and Van Wart Families
Researched by James M. Downey of New York City, prior to 1981

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  1. Letter from James Downey (1981)
  2. Davids Family (from 1774)
  3. Brinckerhoff Family (from 1604)
  4. Van Wart Family (from 1637)
  5. Boice Family (from 1745)
  6. Research by Jim Hanson (1991)
Davids Family
ABRAHAM DAVIDS, parentage unknown, was born in the vicinity of Tarrytown, Westchester County, N.Y. in 1774. About the year 1800 he brought his family down to New York City, and continued to reside there until about 1812 when he moved to what is now Chelsea, Duchess County, N.Y. He was the master of a sloop which sailed up and down the Hudson, ran grocery stores in both Fishkill and New York, and later in life was a U.S. Customs inspector in New York City. At one stage in his career he also ran the ferry between Newburgh and what is now Beacon, N.Y. After his retirement he lived with his daughter and son-in-law in Matteawan (now part of Beacon), N.Y., where he died Nov. 15, 1863 aged 89 years.

ABRAHAM DAVIDS married, about 1795, NANCY VAN WART of Tarrytown, daughter of Abraham and Mary (Youngs) Van Wart. She was born in Tarrytown about 1779 and died in Fishkill Landing, N.Y. July 28, 1849.

The children of Abraham and Nancy Davids were:

  1. Samuel Youngs, born Aug 20, 1796, died June 24, 1798. He is buried in the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Tarrytown.
  2. Washington, born 1800, died Dec 24, 1881 in poughkeepsie, N.Y. He married, about 1824, Mime or Jemima Rosecrance (1801-1860) of Fishkill. Their children were:
    • Anna Mary (1825-1850), married D.A.T. Gale
    • Emeline B. (1830-1889), married Lemuel A. Chichester
    • Delaphine C. (1831-1900), married George B. Gibbs
    • Caroline (1838-1908), married Stephen H. Warren
  3. Henry Van Wart (see below)
  4. Anna Maria, born Jan 15, 1809, died Jan 20, 1884 in Matteawan, N.Y. She married, before July 1, 1835, Thomas Pine Thorne of Fishkill (1805-1885). Their children:
    • Irving (1838-1884), married Catherine Shea
    • Mary E. (1843-1936), married William W. King
    • Octavia H. (1847-?), married (1st) Abner B. Mase, (2nd) William D. Barron, (3rd) Mr. Corbett
    • Edwin (1851-?)
    • Henry Van Wart (1855-1913), married Jennie Hawkes
  5. Abraham Isaac, generally called A. Isaac, born 1812, moved down to Charleston, South Carolina, and was living there in 1850. In 1856 he moved to Chicago, and lived there until 1864. He married, about 1838, Matilda ---. Their children :
    • Julia (c. 1839-?)
    • Henry (c. 1841-?)
    • Lawrence Lee (c. 1845-1893), resided in New York City.
    • Georgeanna
    • possibly others

HENRY VAN WART DAVIDS, son of Abraham and Nancy Davids, was born in New York City in 1803 and died in Fishkill Landing, N.Y. Feb 21, 1842. During his life he lived in both Fishkill and New York City. He was, like his father, the master of a Hudson River sloop, and also ran a grocery and worked as an inkmaker. The last few years of his life he was a dentist in Manhattan.

HENRY VAN WART DAVIDS married, may 27, 1822, Maria Brinckerhoff of Fishkill. After her husband's death in 1842 she brought the family down to Norfolk, Virginia, but before 1860, she returned to Fishkill where she lived with her brother Daniel. She died in Norwalk, Connecticut on June 8, 1885.

The children of Henry Van Wart and Maria Davids were:

  • Garret Brinckerhoff, born Mar 23, 1823, died Jan 7, 1885 in Baltimore, Maryland. He was a noted draughtsman, inventor and civil engineer. He married, in 1850, Mary Frances Hughes (1829-1886).
  • Emeline, born April 2, 1825, died May 3, 1903 in Sandwich, Illinois. She married, on Oct 7, 1846, Albert Montfort Cox (1822-1904)
  • Phoebe Ann, born Aug 8, 1827, died Dec. 28, 1874 in Sandwich, Illinois. She married on Nov 5, 1845 to Dr. Valentin Mott Vermilyea (1818-1906)
  • Oscar, born 1831, died Feb 9, 1859 in Norfolk, Virginia. He was unmarried
  • Henrietta, born May 7, 1833, died Jan 16, 1886 while on a visit to her brother Garret's family in Baltimore. She married first, in 1852, to John F. Fay, and second, to Edward Andrews.
  • Henry Stephen, born April 4, 1839, died Feb 8, 1888 in Sandwich, Illinois. He married on Dec 12, 1872, to Adeline Coy Brown (1852-1878). Like his brother Oscar, he was a carreer naval officer.

Brinckerhoff Family
  1. Joris Dircksen Brinckerhoff, son of Dirck Brinckerhoff, was born in Vorden, Gelderland about 1604. He moved to Amsterdam, where he married June 11, 1628, to Susannah Dubbels. He set sail for New Amsterdam on May 17, 1641, on the "Den Eyckenboom", and arrived in the New World August 14, 1641. He settled with his family in what is now Brooklyn, where he died Jan 16, 1661.
  2. Abraham Brinckerhoff, son of Joris Dircksen, was born in Amsterdam about 1631. He came to this country with his parents in 1641, and married May 20, 1660 Aeltje, daughter of Jan Stryker. He resided in Flatlands, Kings County (present-day Brooklyn) and in Newtown, Queens County, where he died in 1711. See website
  3. Jan Brinckerhoff, son of Abraham, was born about 1671. He married about 1698 to Catherine, daughter of Daniel Rapelje, and resided in Flushing, Queens. He died in 1707, and his widow subsequently married Joseph Van Cleef.
  4. Joris Brinckerhoff, son of Jan, was born in Flushing (baptized May 29, 1705). He married about 1728 to Elizabeth Smith, and that year removed to what is now Fishkill, Duchess County, New York, where he died about 1765.
  5. John G. Brinckerhoff, son of Joris, was born in Fishkill on May 13, 1733. He married on April 17, 1755 to Maria, daughter of Henry Ter Bosch. He owned a large farm on the banks of the Hudson, and was Captain in the Dutchess County militia during the Revolution. He died Mar 23, 1820.
  6. Garret Brinckerhoff, son of John G., was born in Fishkill on March 7, 1780. He married in Aug 1803 to Phebe, daughter of Simon Boice. He inherited his father's farm in Fishkill, and lived there until his death on May 21, 1846, which occured when a barn he was pulling down collapsed on him.

    The children of Garret and Phebe Brinckerhoff were:

    • Daniel, born Dec 8, 1804, married first on July 21 1829 to Caroline Boice (1809-1834). He married second on May 31, 1836 to Hannah Dubois (1808-1888). He was a prominent farmer and nurseryman in Fishkill, and died there on Dec 23, 1866.
    • Maria, born Aug 21, 1806, married Henry Van Wart Davids.
    • Stephen, born Mar. 29, 1810, married Jan 22, 1840 to Emma Brinckerhoff, daughter of his first cousin George. He inherited his father's farm in Fishkill, where he died Nov. 22, 1877.
    • Cornelius R., born Sept 25, 1812, married Feb 24, 1836, to Catherine Maria Russell (1819-1884). For a time he resided in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. and ran a steamboat on the Hudson, but in 1949 moved to Batavia, N.Y., and then on to Rochester, where he died Mar 18, 1881. He was a well-known engineer and inventor, and patented a number of farm implements.
Van Wart Family

  1. Jochem Woutersz (i.e., son of Wouter or Walter) Van Wart, the founder of the family in this country, was born about 1637. He married Christina Jans and lived on Long Island near Midwout (present day Flatbush, Brooklyn) until 1683, when the family moved to Tarrytown, Westchester County. He and his wife were both living in May 1716.
  2. Gerret Van Wart, son of Jochem, was born on Long Island about 1668. He married Cathleen, daughter of John Conklin, and resided in Tarrytown.
  3. Abraham Van Wart, son of Gerret, was born in Tarrytown (baptized Mar 21, 1710). He married on Aug 23, 1729 to Anna, daughter of Martin Mey, and resided near Elmsford, N.Y.
  4. Martin Van Wart, son of Abraham, was born near Elmsford (baptized Apr 17, 1733). He married on Oct 7, 1752, to Rachel Williams. During the Revolution he was a private in the Westchester County militia, and took part in a number of battles in the vicinity. He died in 1784.
  5. Abraham Van Wart, son of Martin, was born near Elmsford (baptized June 16, 1753). He married about 1776 to Mary Youngs, whose father Joseph Youngs, Esq. was a prominent rebel leader in Westchester County. Abraham was a lieutenant in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, and was known as "the King of Holland" due to his "splendid bearing and fine physique." He died in 1784. It is worthy of note that his younger brother Isaac (1758-1828) was one of three Westchester County militiamen who captured John Andre and thus foiled the plan of Benedict Arnold to surrender West Point to the British. For this act Isaac Van Wart was awarded the first-ever Congressional Medal of Honor.

    The children of Abraham and Mary Van Wart were:

    • Stephen, born about 1777, married Catherine Storm. He was the captain of the Hudson River steamboat "General Jackson", and was killed when that boat exploded near Peekskill, N.Y. on June 7, 1831.
    • Nancy, born about 1779, married Abraham Davids
    • Isaac, born about 1781
    • Henry, born 1783, married Sarah Irving, sister of the American writer Washington Irving. He moved to Edgebarton, England, where he died in 1873.
Boice Family

Simon Boice (also spelled Boyce, Buys, Bice, Byce, etc.), parentage unknown, was born between 1745 and 1755. He married in 1775 to Mary, last name unknown. Mary was born May 2, 1753 and died at the home of Gerret Brinckerhoff, her son-in-law, on Mar 13, 1841. Simon Boice must have died sometime between 1790, when he appears in the Fishkill (N.Y.) census, and 1800, when his name drops from the rolls. In 1790 he is listed as the head of a family containing one male over 16 years (Simon himself), three males under 16 years, and five females. Except for the fact that he served in the Dutchess County militia during the Revolution, nothing else is known about him.

The children of Simon and Mary Boice, so far as is known:

  1. Phebe, born June 9, 1780, died Mar. 26, 1844. She married in Aug 1803 to Gerret Brinckerhoff.
  2. Nathaniel, born Feb 3, 1782, died Aug 25, 1831. He married Phoebe, daughter of Daniel Coe. After his death, his widow married James Van Keuren. The children of Nathaniel and Phoebe Boice were:
    • Samuel
    • DeWitt Clinton (1818-1906), who married Eliza Monson Meyer
    • Mary Louisa, died unmarried
    • Emily, married John W. Spooner, died 1899
  3. John, born 1789, died at Houston, Texas on Nov 3, 1837. He married on Aug 29, 1811, at Kinderhook, N.Y., to Phebe, daughter of Thomas Palmer. She died in 1825, and he married on April 13, 1837, Elizabeth, widow of Ward M. Gazlay and daughter of Jonathan Carter. John Boice was a businessman in Newburgh, N.Y. The children of John and Phebe were:
    • Sarah (1812-1831) unmarried
    • Susan (1814-5-1829) unmarried
    • Daniel Birdsall (1817-1860), married Sarah Belknap Hasbrouck
    • Thomas P. (1820-1821)
    • Cynthia P. (1825-1887), married Miles Cooke

In June 2004, Jim Downey comments that the above data was in part extracted from wills written in New York, of which copies were made. The copies are much easier to access, but contain copying errors which have become perpetuated by researchers who use these copies. However, many of the original wills are stored in Albany, and can be read directly.

Jim Downey also stated that an old Davids family bible may exist, and old records from the Cox and Brinckerhoff families were maintained by a descendent of Augustus Adams named Peter W. Streich.

Original copies of old Fishkill newspapers are apparently kept at the State Historical Library in Madison, Wisconsin, and contain a wealth of obituaries and other data.

Abstract of The origins of the Montrose and David Families of Tarrytown, New York
by Jim Hansen of the Wisconsin Historical Society (with credit to Jim Downey)
New York Genealogical and Biographical Record, vol. 122, October 1991 and vol. 123, January 1992

In a book [Montross, a Family History, Staunton, Virginia, 1958] and an article [Origin of the Montross Family of New York Rec. 87, pg 67-76], John Wilson described an immigrant Pierre Montross and his wife, Marguerite David, daughter of Jean David and Esther Vincent, well-known Huguenots.

French-Canadian records, however, identify Marguerite's parents as Guillaume David and Marie Armand, and identify several of her siblings as ancestors of Tarrytown (NY) families.

Guillaume David, born about 1636, migrated to French Canada before 23 October 1657, when his son was baptized at Trois-Rivières. Guillaume (English: "William") was married to Marie Armand about 1656, either at Trois-Rivières (where there is no record) or elsewhere before migrating to Trois-Rivières. They moved to Quebec City before 1659, then to New York by 1679 with several children. Marie Armand likely did not have French origins (perhaps originally Marie Harmens). Their children:

  1. Jacques (baptized 23 Oct 1657 at Trois-Rivières)
  2. Anne (born 29 Nov 1659)
  3. Marguerite (born 12 Apr 1661)
  4. Madeleine (born 15 Feb 1666)
  5. Charles (born about 1672)
  6. David (born about 1675)
  7. Marie Angelique (born 8 March 1678)
Charles married Antje (=Anna) Lent on 10 April 1706 at Tarrytown Dutch Church, where she had been a member, and about this time, they changed their name to the more Dutch Davids. Their children :
  1. Willem (born about 1706-7)
  2. Hendrick (baptised 10 Aug 1708)
  3. Jacobus (baptized 8 Nov 1710)
  4. Johannes (baptized 24 Mar 1713)
  5. Herman (baptized 11 June 1715)
  6. Abraham (baptized 23 Apr 1717)
  7. Petrus (baptized 26 Aug 1719)
  8. Maria (baptized 24 Apr 1722)
  9. David (baptized 31 Mar 1724)
  10. Isaac (baptized 21 Aug 1731)

Isaac's children were :

  1. Hanatie (baptised Sept 1759)
  2. Corneleya (baptised 14 Apr 1761)
  3. Rebecca (baptized 28 June 1763)
  4. Isac (baptized 25 Jun 1765)
  5. Carel (baptized 18 Oct 1769)
  6. Abraham (baptized 9 May 1772)
This pair of articles is about 15 pages long. Jim Downey felt that the last named Abraham (above in red) is either the first-named Abraham at the top of Jim's 1981 summary of his research, or this last Abraham (above) died as a young child, and the next child (born 1774) became the first-named Abraham at the top of Jim's 1981 summary.

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