M. 16 Aug 1711
Wife: Sitje Van Wicklen
D. before 3 Feb 1727 in Hempstead, New York
Before New York City was a crowded metropolis, people like Hans Jorise Bergen lived off the land, operating a flour mill right on the East River. Hans was born in New Utrecht on August 31, 1684 to Joris Hansen Bergen and Sara Stryker, one of ten children. His heritage was Norwegian and Dutch, and included some of the original settlers of Brooklyn.
Hans was a young man of 24 when he joined his cousin Hans Michielse Bergen and others in causing a disturbance in town. On April 30, 1708, the group was tried for a “riot” at the tavern of Sarah Knight in Brooklyn. Mrs. Knight was the widow of an Englishman, Thomas Knight, and her tavern was located near the intersection of present-day Hoyt and Fulton streets. The tavern was next to land that had belonged to Hans’ father, and likely this is where Hans lived at the time. Mrs. Knight and another woman named Martha Brower were indicted for “false swearing” at the trial. It isn’t known if Hans or the others were convicted for the incident at the tavern, or even if they were guilty of anything at all.
Hans married a woman named Sitje Van Wicklen on August 16, 1711. They are known to have had three children, and they may have had others. On February 9, 1713, Hans bought over 20 acres of land located on Wallabout Bay. The property had a creek and a recently-built grist mill. Hans took over and operated the mill for several years. By the time he sold the property in 1723, it included a house, bolting house, bolting mill and dam along with the mill. There was also a meadow, and a beach on the East River.
The man who bought the property was named Remsen, and the mill became known as Remsens Mill. In 1776, the mill was adjacent to where a British ship was docked holding Americans as prisoners in brutal conditions. A few generations later, the property would be the site of the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
When Hans sold his Brooklyn property, he seems to have moved to Hempstead, a Dutch and English community located further east on Long Island. A probate record suggests that he died here in late 1726 or early 1727, and that his wife was deceased at that time as well. The inventory of his estate was taken on February 3, 1727. Among his possessions were 17 sheep, 8 cows, one steer, 4 other cattle, several calves, 9 swine and 2 mares — a decent-sized farm for colonial Long Island.
Children:
1. George Bergen – B. 9 Oct 1712; D. 13 Oct 1784; M. (1) Margaret Dumont (1715-1743), 3 Jun 1738; (2) Maria Hoagland (1720-1770); (3) Mareya Van Nuys (~1727-?), 22 Aug 1771
2. Mattie Bergen – B. about 1713, Long Island, New York; D. 13 Feb 1768, Somerset County, New Jersey; M. Abraham Dumont (1706-1787), 10 Aug 1733
3. Evert Bergen – B. 1717, Long Island, New York; D. 17 Nov 1776, Somerset County, New Jersey; M. Jane Hegeman, 1739
Sources:
The Bergen Family: The Descendants of Hans Hansen Bergen, Teunis G. Bergen, 1876
“Wallerand Dumont and his Somerset County Descendants,” John B. Dumont, Somerset County Quarterly, Volume 1, 1912
American Ancestry: Giving Name and Descent in the Male Line of Americans whose Ancestors Settled in the United States Previous to the Declaration of Independence, Volume 6, Thomas Patrick Hughes, Frank Marshall, 1891
Genealogical and personal memorial of Mercer County, New Jersey, Volume 2, Francis Bazley Lee, 190
Maps showing location of Hans property in 1766 and 1874.
When Hans sold his Brooklyn property, he seems to have moved to Hempstead, a Dutch and English community located further east on Long Island. A probate record suggests that he died here in late 1726 or early 1727, and that his wife was deceased at that time as well. The inventory of his estate was taken on February 3, 1727. Among his possessions were 17 sheep, 8 cows, one steer, 4 other cattle, several calves, 9 swine and 2 mares — a decent-sized farm for colonial Long Island.
Children:
1. George Bergen – B. 9 Oct 1712; D. 13 Oct 1784; M. (1) Margaret Dumont (1715-1743), 3 Jun 1738; (2) Maria Hoagland (1720-1770); (3) Mareya Van Nuys (~1727-?), 22 Aug 1771
2. Mattie Bergen – B. about 1713, Long Island, New York; D. 13 Feb 1768, Somerset County, New Jersey; M. Abraham Dumont (1706-1787), 10 Aug 1733
3. Evert Bergen – B. 1717, Long Island, New York; D. 17 Nov 1776, Somerset County, New Jersey; M. Jane Hegeman, 1739
Sources:
The Bergen Family: The Descendants of Hans Hansen Bergen, Teunis G. Bergen, 1876
“Wallerand Dumont and his Somerset County Descendants,” John B. Dumont, Somerset County Quarterly, Volume 1, 1912
American Ancestry: Giving Name and Descent in the Male Line of Americans whose Ancestors Settled in the United States Previous to the Declaration of Independence, Volume 6, Thomas Patrick Hughes, Frank Marshall, 1891
Genealogical and personal memorial of Mercer County, New Jersey, Volume 2, Francis Bazley Lee, 190
