"The first mention in this country, of Tjerck Claessen DeWitt, the ancestor of the DeWitt family, is found in the "Trouw Boeck" or Register of Marriages of the Reformed (Collegiate) Dutch Church, of New York City, where it is recorded that on the 24th day of April, 1656, "Tjerck Claessen DeWitt van Grootholdt' en Zunderlandt," married "Barbara Andriessen van Amsterdam." Zunderlandt has not been definately located, but is probably Saterland, a district of Westphalia, on the southern border of East Friesland.
It seems, from the records, that he was connected with the distinguished DeWitt family of Dordrecht, Holland, but the line of connections doesn't appear yet. He had a wax seal engraved with the coat of arms borne by Jan (John or Johan) DeWitt, the Grand Pensionary of Holland. Undoubtedly, he brought this seal over with him, and it may have belonged to some forefather.
For a short time after his marriage he lived in New York (his first child, Andries, was born there), but in the spring of 1657 he moved to Albany, where he had purchased a house and lot. In accordance with Dutch custom, the first son was named Andries, baptized in New York 1657, for Barbara's father; the second son was Klaes, baptized 1664, for Tjerck's father; a younger son Lucas, for her brother.
In September, 1660, he exchanged his Albany property with Madame de Hutter, for land in Wiltwyck (now Kingston), "possession to be given May 1, 1661." He probably took possession at that time, as in September, 1661, he appears as plaintiff in an action at law before the Schepens Court of Wiltwyck, and on October 11th the same court ordered the Sheriff (Roeleff Swartwout) to pay him three and a half schepels of wheat in eight days and seven more in one month.
From this time until his death, he resided in Kingston and Hurley, and some of the land which he purchased is still in the hands of his descendants.
That he was a man of considerable means is shown by the fact that in 1661 he was taxed 125 guilders (about $50) to pay for building a church in Esopus.
"He was a navigator & owned a sloop of 50 ft. keel. Both a trader and farmer with some rank among the original settlers. In 1689 he refused to take the oath of allegiance to the British crown, as did many others, because the British authorities had not fulfilled their treaty stipulations on the country being surrendered to them, and he did not acknowledge that power during his lifetime."
