John, son of the second Garret, was born August 28, 1745, and died on his eighty-ninth birth-day, in 1834; married, July 31, 1767, Maria, daughter of Tunis De Nise and Francinke Hendrickson. He settled on the farm in Pleasant Valley adjoining his father, now occupied by his grandson, David Schenck, and also for a time carried on the business of a fuller and then a saw-mill. While yet a young married man, and surrounded by a large family of young children, the War of the Revolution came on and he ardently embraced the patriotic cause, and as occasion called for, took up arms and at times engaged actively in the fight. He became captain of militia, and was a bold and enterprising office and possessed of influence. It is said that soon after the beginning of the was he war approached by a Loyalist and asked what he would take to embrace the royal cause. He answered, "The whole of Europe cannot buy me; give me liberty." Such was the value of his example and influence, and so obnoxious was he to the enemy, that his sister Anna, living on Long Island and in the midst of the foe, overheard some British officers talking about offering fifty guineas for the head of Captain John Schenck, dead or alive. She procured a pair of silver-mounted pistols, and sent them to him with the message, "John, don't you be taken alive." These pistols are carefully preserved at his old homestead, and may be seen there at the present day. His life was sought after and insecure, and sometimes for safety he passed his nights in concealment, at one time in a hay-stack in the field. This was discovered; but made aware of the discovery by some friends, the next night he went elsewhere. The enemy came, surrounded the stack and set it on fire; but he was out of their way. For a while, at least, he was in the main army, but was principally engaged in contests with the enemy about the vicinity of his home. At one time he drove off with his company a party of Refugees who had come over from Staten Island and landed on the East Point, and, having gone up in the country, collected a lot of cattle and driven them down to the shore, were engaged in trying to ship their plunder on their boats. They were attacked, the captain going on ahead and swinging his hat and calling to his men to come on. He himself shot one man down by the name of Lawrence, having struck him in the forehead with a bullet. At another time he was at the Highlands with his company, and a company of the enemy being there, he urged his superior officer, who was also there, to make the attack, but he was afraid and refused. The captain then assumed the responsibility, attacked the party, captured them and brought off most of them at least prisoners of war. When, in the month of June, 1781, the party of fifteen hundred invaded the county, they came up as far as Pleasant Valley and some firing occurred, and they engaged in plundering. A detachment went over to the residence of Captain John Kiming to burn his buildings. A skirmish took place and they were driven back. During the firing the mother, with her three-weeks old babe -- her De Lafayette -- retired to the cellar to get out of the way of the bullets. A grenadier was killed on the occasion and buried down in the orchard, where his grave was afterwards regarded as a ghost-like place by the boys. The captain himself was struck by two bullets fired by a Hessian, whom he pursued and captured.
Captain John Schenck and Maria Denise had nine sons, -- Garret, Tunis, WIlliam, John, Denise, Daniel, De Lafayette, David and Hendrick, -- all of whom lived to grow up, and all but one to marry; and four daughters, -- one died an infant, the others grew up and married.
