When and where did Jan Jansen Van Langedyck and his family come from and when did they arrive in the New World? These are questions, that to my knowledge, have not been asked before, but which I will attempt to answer. Keep in mind that much of what follows is speculative and based on scanty records, since the Van Langedycks kept a low profile here in the New World, but I believe that further research in the Netherlands will confirm much of what is stated below.

    First: Where did Jan come from and when did he arrive in New Amsterdam?

Noord Holland and Texel

    According to Arnold J. F. van Laer, (in Register of the Provincial Secretary, 1642-1647, page 429, Note 1.), "Langedyck is a small village near Heereveen, in the province of Friesland, Netherlands..." However, there is also another town called Langedijk in Nordt Holland, north of Amsterdam, and I believe it is this Langedijk that our Jan Jansen van Langedyck hailed from.

    St. Maarten, where a number of Jan Jansen Van Langedyck's children were born^�, is a small village in Nordt Holland, three Dutch miles northwest of Langedijk, (roughly in the middle of the peninsula), and just south of Texel. This island was the final loading and offloading point for most Dutch vessels before they left for New Amsterdam in the mid to late 1600s. Jan must have watched these ships leave for years before making his decision to join the caravan. I still don't know with absolute certainty which vessel he and his family shipped on, but it's apparent that he probably arrived in New Amsterdam in the summer of 1649 and promptly leased a bouwerij, (farm), and cattle to support his largish family.

^� Notably: Volke Jans, b. Abt. 1632, St. Marten, Nordt Hollandt; Geertje Janse Van Langedyck, b. Abt. 1639, St. Marten, Nordtholland and Jan Janszen Van Langedyck, b. Abt. 1647, St. Marten, Nordtholland.

    Secondly: What ship did Jan and his family sail on, and when?

    Two of the prime candidates for Jan Jansen Van Langedyck's ship are the Valckenier and the Prins Willem. The Valckenier arrived before July 7th, 1649, making her departure date probably sometime in late March or early April 1649, (much like Cornelis Wijnkoop's ship de Gelderse Bloem.) The Prins Willem arrived before April 21st, 1649, which means that she probably left sometime in January or February of 1649, pretty brutal weather for a young family like Jan's to have faced.

    If I had to choose between these two ships, (and keep in mind that this is by no means a complete list of all ships that landed in New Amsterdam that year, this is just a list of those that we know about), I would choose the Valckenier, both because of her approximate arrival date, (July 1649), and the date of the lease agreement for Cornelis Melyn's cattle. It seems to me that Jan would have leased a farm and cattle as soon as possible after landing so that he could feed his family. The April arrival for the Prins Willem would mean that Jan had to support his family for over five months before signing the September 6th, 1649 lease. I've found no evidence in any of the New Amsterdam records that Jan Jansen Van Langedyck was a wealthy man. That long a time span would have taxed his resources to the limit.

    Here are the relevant ship records from Lorine McGinnis Schulze's Olive Tree website and transcribed by my good friends Willem Rabbelier and Cor Snabel in the Netherlands:

    Ships Known to have left the Netherlands for the New World in 1649

Explanation of Abbreviations Used

VOC=Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie
VTC=Van Tweenhuysen Compagnie
HCC=Hans Claesz. Compagnie
WIC=West Indies Compagnie

reder = ship owner
bevrachter = loader
vertrekplaats = place of departure
aank. plaats = place of arrival
datum = date
na = after
voor = before
tussen = between
eind = end of
begin = beginning / early
kort na = shortly after
particulier = private owner

Schip: Valckenier
Schipper: Willem Tomasz.
Reder / Bevrachter: Verbrugge
Vertrekplaats: Amsterdam
Datum: 1649
Aank. plaats: Nieuw-A'dam
Datum: voor 17/7/1649

    Finally, I think we can safely say that apart from his trip across the Atlantic in late 1648 or early 1649, Jan was a bit of a homebody. If he was born in Langedijk in Nordt Holland, as his surname suggests, (but doesn't absolutely prove), then he really lived a pretty circumscribed life. He moved only three miles from his birthplace to St. Maarten where most of his children seem to have been born. After crossing the ocean, he leased a farm not far from New Amsterdam proper, on Manhattan, probably just outside of Wall Street. By 1658 he had moved back into the city to a property on Wall Street, a journey of just a few miles at most. (All of his court appearances took place in New Amsterdam proper so the journey must have been relatively short.) With the exception of his one known trip to Kingston around October 15, 1668 to attend the baptism of his grandson, Nicholas Wynkoop, most of his life seems to have revolved around the confines of hearth and home and church, a circle encompassing only three or four miles at most. Finally, in 1686, we find him living on the East River Shore above Wall Street, (Maiden Lane) with a couple of his sons. This is probably where he passed away, just a short hop from the property on Wall Street where he was living in 1658.

    That makes his journey across the Atlantic Ocean even more remarkable. There must have been powerful forces at work in his life to uproot him so completely.

    If you have any Van Langedyck family traditions or stories that you'd like to share I would really appreciate hearing from you. I would very much like to know more about Jan and his early days in New Amsterdam and/or the reason for his voyage in the first place. Please feel free to contact me at [email protected].

    Hoping to hear from you.

    Chris