Book Reviews

Book Reviews James Claypoole's Letter Book, London and Philadelphia, 1681-1684. Edited by Marion Balderston. (The Huntington Library, Calif., 1967. 245 p. Coat of arms, facsimile, index. $7.50.) Mrs. Balderston's name is well known to students of the initial Quaker migration from the United Kingdom to Pennsylvania. Her pioneering studies of the Port Books in the Public Record Office in London have led to extensive revisions in the passenger lists for many vessels in the Penn fleet, probably the most important historically being that of the Welcome which brought the Proprietor. Mrs. Balderston opens this excellent work with a very readable and well documented biographical account of the Claypoole family and its connections, with special emphasis on the personality and family of the Both sos,, James, whose letter book is the subject of the work. The letter book extracts begin on page 27. The letters themselves have been much abridged by the elimination of his sermons and more wordy utterances, the author substituting a summary and commentary in italics following the transcribed verbatim portion of the letters. Instead of footnotes, biographical or genealogical data concerning those mentioned in the letters is included in these italicized sections. Explanations and definitions of archaic words and measures also appear here. Although this approach enhances the readability, it seriously affects the usefulness of the text proper, since no sources are cited for the information supplied. Following the last letter is a three-page, alphabetical listing of the masters of vessels named in the letters, with the name, burthen and destination of their ships. A most complete and useful index closes the volume. Not all of the letters in the original letter book have been exerpted in the present work. Where the author felt that a letter was not vital to the text, or was a repetition of one already exerpted, she has included a short summary in her notes following the preceding extract. Fifty-one of these she has excerpted were printed in The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography in Volume X (1886). Two items were of more than passing interest to this reviewer. In several letters, the fate of Miles Foster, otherwise Forster, is discussed. Edward Haistwell, in Claypoole's employ, sent a letter (which is not exerpted in the Lett, Book) to a merchant in Appledore, Devon, in May, 1681, introducing Miles, following which Miles, having been refused credit by his brother Luke, and being unable to sell his ship and cargo, went into hiding to avoid his creditors. There is further correspondence with other merchants about this, and by September, Miles was in debtors' prison, presumably in London. There he stayed despite Claypoole's requests for leniency from the young man's creditors. In 1683, Miles seems to have been released by an arrangement for a part payment and a note for the balance. By February, 1684, he had returned to New Jersey where he married Rebecca, daughter of Gawen Lawrie, governor of East New Jersey. This reviewer has run across Miles Forster's name frequently in the records of the Colonies and has always believed him to be of the Rhode Island family, and probably born there. These letters add this fascinating data to his biography, but do not supply evidence as to his home and paternity. The second item is the most interesting. In The American Genealogist, Volume 40, 39-42, this reviewer discussed the biographical data available on William Gibson, the famous Quaker preacher, and showed that a lot was warranted to him in Philadelphia by the Proprietor 12 4m (June) 1683. From the fact that no agent's name appeared, it seemed likely that he had received the warrant personally in Philadelphia- Mr. Francis James 145 146 The Pennsylvania Genealogical Magazine Dant, however, in the same publication, Volume 41, 218-219, stated that William Gibson was in London on 5 12m 1682/3, thereby ruling out his presence on the Welcome with William Penn, and also on 31 July 1683, when he wrote his will. He died 20 November 1684. From the Letter Book (p. 204), we find that William Gibson did indeed go to America, sailing in April, 1683, on the Endeavour of London, Francis Richardson, master, for New York and East New Jersey. Mrs. Balderston thinks that this ship probably also called at Philadelphia before returning, so Gibson could have been in Philadelphia on June 12, either by going overland from East Jersey, or by staying with the ship if it came up the Delaware. It is certainly passible that if he returned with the vessel he could have been in London by 31 July, though this is a tight schedule. This latter date is apparently based on the date of his will which gives his address. Whether or not the will states where he was when he signed it, is not known. It would seem possible that it might have been drawn on shipboard, after he had perhaps fallen ill aboard. There is also the not unknown possibility of a scrivener's error in the date, and that the will was actually drawn the year following. While Mrs. Balderston thinks perhaps this William on the Endeavour was the son of the preacher (p. 206), it seems extremely unlikely. Gibson was a friend of Claypoole and Penn, and a well known and famous person; if Claypoole had not meant the father, he would certainly have identified him as "William, Jr." or "William, the younger." From the above, it is apparent Mrs. Balderston's transcripts provide some biographical material on Claypoole's contemporaries. Its greatest value is to the social historian, providing as it does considerable insight into the business relationships, values and activities of the day. But while a few names may be added to passenger lists with its help, its genealogical value is limited. WALTER LEE SHEPPARD, JR. The Vase Derwerken-Van Derwerker Family. Compiled by Paul W. Prindle. (Baronet Litho Company, Johnstown, N. Y 1966. i, 370 p. Portraits, photographs, addenda, index. $10.00.) This record of some of the descendants of Roelof Gerritse Van Der Werken, in 1606 crane master of Groeningen, is the outgrowth of an accumulation of family data collected by Mrs. Grace (Van Derwerker) Everts, for many years the official Historian of Saratoga County, New York, and by Mrs. Jeannette R. Smith of Berkeley, California. In 1951, Mr. Prindle, a Fellow of the American Society of Genealogists since 1964, offered to compile their records in genealogical form. That compilation subsequently was rearranged by the late John J. Vrooman, former Supervisor of Historic Sites for the State of New York, with the assistance of his wife, Louise Henley Vroomanm, and was finally edited, indexed, and proofread by Mr. Prindle. While it does not pretend to be a complete record of all descendants of this pioneer Dutch emigrant to the New Netherlands, all those for whom significant records have been located, under the many variant spellings of the surname, are included and for the most part documented. Two unplaced family groups found in Western Township, Oneida County, and in Waterford Township, Saratoga County, as well as two other "selected, unplaced" families of Vanderwerkers in other localities, appear at the end of the records of the main family. A fifty-nine page index of persons completes the volume. Engaged by Simon de Groot "at the Esopus" to go to New Netherlands, in 1663 Roelof Gerritse Van Der Werken emigrated from Meppelen, province of Drenthe, Holland, on the Ship De Rosebaum, Pieter Reyersx van der Beets, captain. In the New World, Book Reviews 147 Roelof married Geertruy Jacobse, probably daughter of Jacob van Oostrant, and appears to have settled first in the vicinity of Albany where they were members of the Dutch Reformed Church of that place. By 1680, Roelof was in possmsion of a parcel of land called "the foreland of the Half Moon," above Albany on the west bank of the Hudson River in what is now Saratoga County. Roelof and Geertruy had twelve children, of whom eight five sons and three daughters — married and had issue. Of those eight, designated in the record the second generation, some of the issue of three are projected into the third generation, with some of their descendants carried down through the ninth generation. For the most part, these descendants appear to have lived out their lives in New York State, some in the eastern section, others in the middle and western areas of the state. Although the record has only 207 numbered individuals, a tremendous amount of data on the hundreds of others, whose descendants have not been brought down to the present, has been located and included. Because the family for generations was Dutch Reformed, cited church records — baptisms, marriages, burials — provide a continuing thread. Deeds and wills, many given in full, and, in later generations, census and vital records help to identify the families. Probably became the material Mr. Prindle had to arrange was collected by various people, there is considerable inconsistency in the method of presentation which is especially noticeable from the sixth generation on. The placement of biographical data pertaining to parents following the list of their children, rather than before it, tends to confuse the reader, and the use of the same type size and face for all generations makes it difficult to isolate particular families on a page, especially where no surnames are indicated for children. The use of capital letters for parents' names would have made each family progenitor more distinctive. It is a pity that such typographical omissions should detract from the otherwise excellent genealogical work exhibited in the whole record. The addition of a table of contents, indicating the start of each generation, and a list of illustra• tions, would also have been helpful. In spite of such criticisms, the family's descendants are indeed fortunate to have found among their number, one — John H. Van Derwerken, Jr. — who understood the value of preserving the family history and who was in a position to underwrite the cost of its preservation. Copies of the work are obtainable from him, care of his own organization, Baronet Litho Company, Johnstown, N. Y., 12095. HANNAH BENNER ROACH Information Wanted George Ely Russell, CG., 2906 Stonybrook Drive, Bowie, Md., 20715, is compiling a genealogy of the PRIEST family of Pennsylvania. He is particularly interested in unpublished records of the Priest-Frees-Freeze families of Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties, 1690-1800. Mr. Russell has much data to exchange and welcomes inquiries. Mrs. C. N. Priode, 331 Franklin St., Harrisonburg, Va., 22801, seeks data on the TOOMEY family of York and Perry Counties, Pa., and on the jitcoss family of York County; on JOHN BROWN of Adams County, and on CONRAD ERNEST of York County.