Site hosted by Angelfire.com: Build your free website today!

VAN CUREN FAMILY HOME PAGE

In the 1500s, Spain was engaged in a "spiritual cleansing" known as the "Inquisition". To non-Catholics, this usually meant Imprisonment, torture, and/or execution. As the Spanish began conquering Western Europe, many were forced to flee to the safety of the Dutch States. Such is the case of Cologne, which was ceded to Spain in 1559.

As a matter of identification, wealthy classes from Cologne often attached the suffix "van Ceulen"(aka van Keulen) to their names, which literally means "of Cologne". Eventually, "van" names became recognized as surnames, and thus, the van Keulen/van Ceulen family was created.

Mathijs Jansen Van Ceulen, @1600-1648,

arrived in North America(New York) @ 1639, when he expressed interest in a parcel of land owned by Conraet van Keulen. By late 1641 Mathijs (Van Keuren progenitor) had made Fort Orange(aka Albany, NY) his home. In 1646 he purchased a land Patens of 50 Morgens (100 acres) on "Isle van Pappermemmins" (Island of Man Hats - Manhattan). Also around this time, he purchased lands in the Esopus, where Kingson is today.

The Dutch colonies at New Netherlandt proved to be a dismal failure and were eventually taken over by the British in 1664, at which time it was renamed New York. Mathijs' estate and lands were confirmed to his heirs in 1667, including the parcel on Manhattan known as Van Keulen's Bouwerie. His lands in Esopus were held by a guardian until his children came of age. Mathijs' son, Matthys Matthyssen, is the progenitor of the Van Keuren/ Van Curen family in America. Mathijs' children all used the patronymic "Matthyssen" initially, but in 1715, his grandsons (sons of Matthys Sr) decided to abandon the patronymic and return to the "Van" name - adopting the spelling "Van Keuren", changing the "L" to an "R". It is thought that the long time period between the death of Mathijs Jansen van Ceulen in 1648 and the attempt to revive the name in 1715 is likely the cause of the spelling variation.


Old Dutch surnames are different from surnames as we know them. "Van" names were simply suffixes identifying the families point of origin. Surnames were derived from the first name of the father (Father Matthys, children were Matthyssen), and so changed with each generation. (see Patronymics link below). Actual family surnames, as we know them today, starting gaining popularity in the 16th century. By the 18th century, the practice of patronymics was nearly nonexistent, being replaced with the modern day surname method of naming.

The English didn't care much for the Dutch way of surname changing, as it made record keeping very difficult. Estates, especially, were difficult to establish heirs for. As a result of British influence, American Dutch began abandoning Patronymic practice in the late 1600s and adopting the British surname method, creating true surnames and passing them on to their children. From the children of Mathijs Van Keulen, we get the surnames of Matthyssen, Jansen, Peersen, Van Steenberghen, and Van Keuren, along with variations for all of those.

There are many theories as to the 'why' of the name variations(spelling changes), but the most logicical is a combination of illiteracy (couldn't spell his own name) and unknowing record keepers making an educated guess, based on sound.


Early Netherland research is difficult because

Government records are largely incomplete, or lost

and private records are difficult to find and search.

Old Dutch Church records prove to be one of the best sources of information, but the switching back and forth between suffix names (begin with "de" or "van" and patronymic names confuses and complicates research efforts.


Several Van Keuren families began using the Van Curen surname around 1800, as they began emmigrating into the wilderness. As to family history, many word of mouth errors were passed down, as written histories were virtually non-existent. Example:

From an article on the Van Curen Family in the Northern Indianan Republican, dtd 9 Sep, 1909, the parents of Henry Van Curen (b. Hendricus Van Keuren, Hurley, NY, 1783) were born in Holland, came to America, and raised a large family. That article has proven to be false, as Dutch Reformed Church Records show that his father was born in Shawagunk, N Y, a descendant of Mathijs.(see Mathij(s) link below) His parents used the Van Keuren spelling, and that has almost exclusively been tied to Matthys, as it was a corrupution of the origanal name, Keulen, or Ceulen(as it often appears).

Sometime before 1830, Henry established himself as Van Curen, as he is listed in the 1830 NY census under that name. It was noted in the 1850 Indiana census that Henry could neither read nor write. That, with the fact that many Van Keurens were mistakenly identified as 'Van Curen' (including Henry's Father) in the 1790 N Y Census, possibly explains the name change.


Visit often, for we will continue to add information, as it becomes available

VAN CUREN GENEAOLOGY LINKS


Ancestors of Orange County, New York Alphabetical listing of graves in Orange County, NY

MATHIJS JANSEN VAN CEULEN

London Baptism, 2 Feb, 1602, of MATHIJS VAN CEULEN

FAMILY FILE INDEX(click on User Home Page Report)

DESCENDANTS OF MATHIJS VAN CEULEN, BOOK ORDER PAGE

Letters by Mathijs van Ceulen, 1638-1640

VAN KEULEN CHARTMAKERS OF AMSTERDAM

LUDOLPH VAN CEULEN, MATHEMATICIAN

DUTCH SOLDIERS ON SKATES

JANSEN FAMILY

PEERSEN FAMILY

VAN STEENBERGHEN FAMILY

CENSUS/MARRIAGE RECORDS

SURNAME SPRINGBOARD

PATRONYMICS EXPLAINED

HENRY VAN CUREN

PETER HOVER VAN CUREN

VAN CUREN/VAN KEUREN PHOTO ALBUM

Cornelius Van Keuren's Photo Album

Chalania Alvira Van Keuren McDowell

FAMILY OF THE AUTHOR

VAN KEUREN CORNERS, SULLIVAN COUNTY, NEW YORK

ISABEL IONE ROYSE

FAMILY OBITUARIES A - VC

FAMILY OBITUARIES VK - Z

EARLY VAN CUREN NEWS AND ARTICLES

Van Keulen Baptisms/Marriages at Amsterdam, 1574-1670

Van Keulen Baptisms/Marriages at Haerlem, Noord-Holland, 1574-1800

Van Keulen Baptisms/Marriages at Utrecht, Dordrecht, and Amersfoort, 1580-1680

1603 MAP OF THE NETHERLANDS

VAN KEURENS AND RELATED FAMILIES by Lisa Stitt

ANCESTORS OF CAROLYN ANN HEMMELGARN

ANCESTORS OF CONNIE VAN CUREN

VAN KEUREN ANCESTORS of Cathe Gordon

Deb Peterson's Searchable Genealogy Database

Email:


Angelfire - Easiest Free Home Pages
WhoWhere? - The Best Communications Guide on the Web
YAHOO, search engine and more
WEBCRAWLER, THE WEB'S BEST SEARCH ENGINE