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Richard French's family
The French/ Minisink Connection

From:DEEDS (VOL A-B), ORANGE, NEW YORK

Copyright (c) 2000 by Phoebe Cortessis (MzCortez@aol.com).
A 51 1705 Yarvis Marshall, merchant NYC to Thomas Winham NYC merchant - re. patent unto Mathew Ling, Ebenezer Willson, Phillip French, Drick Vanderburgh, Stephen Delancy, Philly Rokeby, John Corbett, David Hanson, Caleb Cooper, Wm Sharpas, Robert Milwards, said, Thomas Wenham, Lancaster Syms, John Person, Benjamin Ask, Petru Bayard, John Cholwell, Peter Fanconnier, Henry Swift, Hendrick Tenyck and said Yarbs Marshall, Anne Bridges and George Clark Or and Ul Co to main branch of Delaware River .
 
From Cousin Mike Frost-
The Minisink patent was granted Aug. 28, 1704, to Matthew Long, Ebenezer
Wilson, Philip French, Derick Vandenburgh, Stephen de Lansey, Philip
Rokeley, John Cobert, Daniel Howan, Caleb Cooper, William Sharpas, Robert
Milward, Thomas Wenham, Lancaster Syms, John Person, Benjamin Aske, Petrus
Bayard, John Colewell, Peter Fanconier, Henry Swift, Hendrick Ten Eycke,
Jarvis Marshall, Ann Bridges (widow of John Bridges), and George Clark. This
grant embraced the western part of Ulster and Orange Counties, and extended
southward on the Delaware River "to the south end of Great Minisink Island,"
and eastward "to the bounds of the Wawayanda patent granted to John Bridges
and Company." It was the attempt to crowd down these patents upon the lawful
territory of New Jersey, and to appropriate the rich lands of the Minisink
and the upper Wall-kill, under color of title from New York, that caused the
long and bitter boundary line controversy referred to in another part of
this work.

 
 Just struggling with what I have stumbled into... IS it mere coincidence? Do I have too much junk and not enough facts-- or do I have clues??/
 
 For a  map picture  it's on mapquest.com, centered on Middletown NY.
 
From the will of Fredrick Phillipse, filed 1707 NYC:I give to my daughter Anatje, wife of Phillip French, the
house and ground in New York where they at present live. Also the old ware
house and ground thereto belonging lying in the New street. And all my estate
of land in the County of Berghen in East New Jersey, to wit, a house lot in
the village of Bergen, a large garden, a Plantation of 15 acres, with 8
morgen or 16 acres of meadow with the right in the undivided wood land of two
farms and the Plantation. And all my lands in the County of Ulster, to wit, a
piece of land at Mombachus, containing 290 acres. A piece of land at Roundout
creek, mortgaged to me by John Ward, counting 700 acres. I also leave to her,
after my wife's decease, that lot of ground and appurtenances in New York
extending from ye Broadway to ye New street, lying between the ground lot of
Robert White and the ground of William the Clockluyer. Also one quarter of
all ships, goods, etc., to her during her life and then to her second son,
and for lack of such to her son Philip French.
 
 Mombacchus is about 25 miles north of Goshen.
 Philip is reported by Familysearch.com to have been born:
About 1674   Kilshall, , Suffolk, England
.
 
The first French I tend to place in Sussex/Minisink is  John C. French, believed by some to be b. 1711 to Richard and Elizabeth. He is believed to have lived in Sussex NJ., according to an on line, not substantiated by me source.
 
 The first French I found evidence of in the Sussex NJ area was Samuel, m. Helena Rosenkrans (More) in 1753; had Jacobus b. in '54 I think.
 I think there is a good chance this is the Samuel "Finch" reported killed and scalped by the Indians.
 Never found any more about them. Only Jacob French I found between then and 1790-1800 was in Glouchester NJ..
 
 I have long been troubled that My GGGgrandfather  RICHARD SHOWED UP IN WALPACK, nj IN 1793... PRESTO - NO DISCERNABLE LINK TO MOSES NEARBY, OR ANYONE ELSE. Deposited by flying horse in the dead of night, no doubt. 
 
 Moses (and Henry) had been there since at least 1773 apparently. From?? Figure they are about 20 or older then, so they are born about 1753 or earlier.... Henry disappears, Moses dies 1797.
 
 Noah French the Revoloutionary Dispatch rider/scout seems likely to have come from the area, he's b. 1752...
 
 One of Moses' son's is named John C., another Johnathan , 3rd is Aaron.
 An Aaron French from NJ is in Washington Co. PA. by 1800; Richard moves to Washington Co. Pa. in 1810.
 
 Our Dna study says we are closely related.. Hmm...
 
 Richard's first WIFE WAS EASTER "SCROSSMAN" BY DUTCH CHURCH RECORDS.  Ancestry says she was b. 24 Dec. 1771. They had children by 1799. 
 I "assume" she is about Richard's age, give or take a couple years.
 I have used >1775 as a working date of his b. so maybe I need to use >1770?
 
 
 Ester Scrossman may be the girl noted here. Thank you HERB!.
Posted by: Herb Nichols (ID *****1392) Date: June 03, 2005 at 19:19:52
In Reply to: Esther Crossman by Richard French of 862

"My 3x greatgrandfather Richard French and Ester SCrossman"
Dick:
Some five years ago, I was corresponding with two different
folks concerning an "Abner" Crossman.
With one of them, the correspondence continued over many
months.
As you can see below, there there is was an Ester at the right time, in the right place to qualify as a candidate as your Ester.

The stuff below comprises two different mails. I'm not
exactly sure where one ends and the next one begins.
I'm not even sure whether I contributed some of the research
myself. So I'm simply going to put " " around the entire
business.
It certainly does NOT give you a ggg grandmother, but it
MIGHT give you a good lead.

"There was a Michael Crossman in Sussex Co, NJ.
In THE MINUTE BOOK OF SUSSEX CO, NJ Court Records 1764-1766 by Brad and Carol Stark:
May Term, 1764 - Jacob Ford vs. Michael Crossman

August Term, 1765 - Joseph Green vs. Michael Crossman (at Newtown Aug 27,
1765)

Michael Crossman is juror #9 in case of George Beaty vs. Joseph Dawson (Aug 28,
1765)

Michael Crossman vs. Joseph Guering. " In debt. On motion of Reed for the
defendant, it?s ordered that the plaintiff give security for the costs in this action
before any further proceedings be ad, he not being a resident of this county." (Aug
28, 1765)

Michael Crossman is juror #7 in case of James Anderson vs. Derrick Hoff. (Aug 29, 1765)

So Michael Crossman was in court at Newton in Sussex Co.,
but was not a resident. He is the only Crosman in that book. Do you know anything about him?

[email address deleted]
Herb,
This comes to you third hand. That is,the person who sent
it to me got it from someone else. I have not seen these
records and don't know if there were sponsors, which would be helpful.

05/20/00
Thank you for your quick reply on the Crossman family. The
only tie another researcher has found is in the Hanover
Presbyterian Baptist Church Records 1746-1796 NJ.
#256 Crossman, Michael Joined 2 Jun, 1771

Baptisms:
Crossman, Abner son of Michael Bapt. 12 May 1771
Crossman, Robert " " " 2 Jun 1771
Crossman, Samuel " " " " "
Crossman, Elizabeth, Dau. " " " "
Crossman, Ester " " " " "
Crossman, Julia " " " " "

Obviously, the bapt. dates don't have much to do with birth
dates, but they were probably children still, but no wife
mentioned."
 That is made more interesting because Richard French is a witness to Mr. Dennis's will about 1803, Mr. Ludom and a Mr. GREEN are fellow witnesses.
By  civil tax RECORDS, MOSES AND HENRY FRENCH were tallied as "FRENSH" IN 1774 ..
 Guess the Dutch HAD TROUBLE WITH THE ENGLISH "C" SOUND.
 
Helena's husband Samuel French b. 1717-27 was supposed to be from Goshen.
 
 Looking for other relatively nearby.. aka nearest..Frenchs, I went to Cyndi's list; found 1790 census NY etc.
Checking the census, I came up with 30 Frenchs in the index for the category that had Orange County, and 4 Crossman's.
  Of the 30, only one French, Joseph, lived in the same geographic census (67) area as a Crossman, Ebenezer . Checking him, he appears to be son of another Ebeneezer, ( grandfather was from Ma.). No trail on his family.
 
 (One of the nearby census takers was a Van Auken.   NJ. records say Richards second wife was an Elizabeth Van Auken.)
 
 Joseph French lived in Scotchtown, in 1790 had one male under 16 living with him.
 Ebenezeer Crossman in 1790 lived in Middletown.
 
 Samuel French (Finch?) b. 1717-27 is supposed to be from Goshen.
 
 Goshen, Middletown and Scotchtown are within a radius of 5 miles. They are also just in what I think is considered Minisink.
 Adajacent to the southeast is.... can I stand it? Phillipsburg..
 
 Have not found anything on Joseph. assuming he's 35 or more in 1790, he's b. 1755 or so.
Or about the same age as Jacobus..et al.
 

From: Middletown: A Photographic History - CHAPTER ONE
© Copyright 1988, Peter A. Laskaris

[Digitized Page]

 I theorize John C. is a son of John of NYC. That there is a second John --the NJ. Brickmason.. (They're likely cousins. Maybe same , but I dont thimk so. )  John C. Is probably my Richards grandfather via I dont know who! Think Richard at Oldwick is the most logical father. ( Rich name daughter Selitie after Richard of Oldwick's last wife Seletje)  Richard left home for whatever reason around 1789, 16 yrs or so old. Went to Walpack so as to be near Uncle Moses.