Roelof Jansz van Maesterlandt ^{1 2}

  General Notes:

The Dutch West India Company founded the colony of New Amsterdam\emdash later New York City\emdash in 1625 as a place to defend river access to the company's fur trade operations in the Hudson River, which extended to the colony of New Netherland\emdash later New York state.

But the efforts to colonize New Netherland were faltering. On June 7, 1629, the rules for settlements were relaxed. The first ship of colonists arrived in New Amsterdam on May 24, 1630, the only ship to arrive that year. On board were Roeloff Jans and his wife, Anneke Jans, and their two daughters.

Roeloff was commissioned to farm in the new colony for $72 a year, and the family moved up the Hudson River to the village of Beverwyck\emdash now Albany, New York. Their last two children were born on de Laets Burg Farm on the east bank of the Hudson.

Roeloff hadn't been a successful farmer, and he was replaced. The family then moved to New Amsterdam, where Roeloff became an employee of the West India Company.

In 1636, Governor Wouter Van Twiller granted to Roeloff and Anneke Jans a 62-acre farm, or Bowerie, on Manhattan Island just outside the limits of the New Amsterdam Settlement, between present-day Broadway and the Hudson River. Roeloff was contracted by the West India Company to farm the plot. He died shortly thereafter and Anneke inherited the land. ³

  Noted events in his life were:

• Immigration: Amsterdam, Holland, 1630, New Amsterdam, Albany County, New York, USA. ⁴

Roelof married Anneke Janse on 27 Aug 1623 in Maesterland, Bohusland, Norway. (Anneke Janse was born on 15 Jan 1605 in Flekkeroy, Vest, Agder, Norway,⁵ died on 23 Feb 1663 in Beverwyck, Albany County, New York, USA ⁵ and was buried in Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands, Albany County, New York, USA ¹.)