Person:Aeltje Unknown (9)

The Dutch granted feudal domains along the Hudson River to those who would transport at least 50 workers to the colony. The first was settled by Captain David Pieterson de Vries in 1639 but was abandoned by 1641 due to conflict with the Indians. A second colony was established under the sponsorship of Cornelius Melyn. They arrived at Staten Island aboard the vessel Netherlands Fortune on December 19, 1650. Among the 70 emigrants were Barent Driessen, his wife Aeltie and their infant son, Jan Barentsen. The family came directly from Oostenengh, an estate near Ahmen, a few miles north of Zutphen, a town on the Yssel River in the Province of Gelderland, Holland.

In 1655, Aeltie and her husband, Barent Driessen, were killed on Staten Island during what was known as the Peach Tree War. Their son, then a child of seven, survived.

For information about the conflict, see Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peach_Tree_War

1.   The Washington ancestry, and records of the McClain, Johnson, and forty other colonial American families: prepared for Edward Lee McClain
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2.   The Order of the Founders and Patriots of America Register, Lineages of Associates, 1993-2000: Nos. 1526-2814.