Dirck Wesselse Ten Broeck Explained

Dirck Wesselse Ten Broeck
Order:Mayor of Albany, New York
Term Start2:1696
Term End2:1698
Predecessor2:Evert Bancker
Successor2:Hendrick Hansen
Birth Date:December 18, 1638
Death Place:Clermont, Province of New York
Parents:Wessel Ten Broeck
Children:13
Relatives:Johannes Cuyler (son-in-law)

Dirck Wesselse Ten Broeck (December 18, 1638 – November 24, 1717), also known as Dirck Wessels, was a prominent early settler of Albany, New York. He is known as "the progenitor of the Albany family of Ten Broecks."[1]

Early life

Dirck Ten Broeck was born on December 18, 1638, the second of five children of Wessel Ten Broeck, who worked for the West India Company.[2]

Career

In 1663, he was listed as "a free merchant in Albany", and purchased a house and lot on the corner of State and James Streets. In 1676, Governor Thomas Dongan appointed him Magistrate Commissary, and later Envoy to Canada. In 1686 he was a signatory of the "Charter of Beverwijck." After the first election under the charter he was appointed Recorder, in which office he served for ten years.[2]

In 1684, he was one of the purchasers of the 150,000-acre[3] Saratoga Patent together with Cornelis Van Dyck, Jan Jansen Bleecker, Pieter Schuyler, Johannes Wendel, David Schuyler, and Robert Livingston the Elder. He was one of the purchasers of the disputed Mohawk Patent in 1697, and other properties.[2]

Political career

At the time of the Schenectady massacre in 1690 Ten Broeck served as envoy to the Mohawks, Oneidas, and Onondagas to determine their loyalties. At this time also he served as a Major in the militia under Colonel Pieter Schuyler.[2]

In 1696, he was appointed Mayor of Albany by Governor Benjamin Fletcher. He was elected to the first Provincial Assembly of New York, and served through the Fifth Assembly. During Leisler's Rebellion he refused his support to Jacob Leisler.[2]

Together with Pieter Schuyler, Godfridius Dellius, and Evert Bancker, he was one of the four original members of the Commissioners for Indian Affairs appointed by Governor Fletcher in 1696.[2]

Personal life

In 1663, he married Christyna Van Buren (1644–1729), the daughter of Cornelis Maessen Van Buren and Catalyntje Martensen, in Albany. The couple had six sons and seven daughters:[4] [5]

Dirck Ten Broeck died on November 24, 1717, at his estate called "The Bouwerie" in Clermont, Province of New York and was buried there.[6]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Runk, Emma Ten Broeck. The Ten Broeck Genealogy. 1897. De Vinne Press. New York.
  2. Web site: Bielinski. Stefan. Dirck Wesselse Ten Broeck. exhibitions.nysm.nysed.gov. New York State Museum. September 12, 2017.
  3. Web site: Bielinski. Stefan. Saratoga Patent. The People of Colonial Albany Live Here. New York State Museum. May 11, 2014. May 12, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140512215715/http://www.nysm.nysed.gov/albany/na/sarapat.html. dead.
  4. Book: Laer. Arnold J. F. Van. Early Records of the City and County of Albany and Colony of Rensselaerswyck: Volume 4 (Mortgages 1, 1658-1660, and Wills 1-2, 1681-1765). 2009. Genealogical Publishing Company. 9780806351537. 29 June 2017. en.
  5. Book: Runk. Emma Ten Broeck. Ten Broeck Genealogy, Being The Records and Annals of Dirck Wesselse Ten Broeck of Albany and his Descendants. 1897. New York, De Vinne press. 29 June 2017.
  6. Book: Reynolds. Cuyler. Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs: A Record of Achievements of the People of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys in New York State, Included Within the Present Counties of Albany, Rensselaer, Washington, Saratoga, Montgomery, Fulton, Schenectady, Columbia and Greene. 1911. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. New York. 29 June 2017. en.