Sarah Rapelje (9 June 1625 – 1685) was the first

European European, or Europeans, or Europeneans, may refer to: In general * ''European'', an adjective referring to something of, from, or related to Europe ** Ethnic groups in Europe ** Demographics of Europe ** European cuisine, the cuisines of Europe ...

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

female born in

New Netherland New Netherland ( nl, Nieuw Nederland; la, Novum Belgium or ) was a 17th-century colonial province of the Dutch Republic that was located on the East Coast of the United States, east coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territor ...

Biography

Sarah Rapelje was the daughter of

Joris Jansen Rapelje Joris Jansen Rapelje (28 April 1604 – 21 February 1662/63) was a member of the Council of Twelve Men in the Dutch West India Company colony of New Netherland. He and his wife Catalina (Catalyntje) Trico (1605–1689) were among the earliest se ...

(1604-1663) and Catalina Trico (1605-1689), who were Walloon

Calvinists Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

who sailed on board the ship ''Eendracht'' from the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, also known as the (Seven) United Provinces, officially as the Republic of the Seven United Netherlands (Dutch: ''Republiek der Zeven Verenigde Nederlanden''), and commonly referred to in historiography ...

in 1624. The Rapeljes arrived at a site along the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

where they helped build one of the first Dutch settlements,

Fort Orange Fort Orange ( nl, Fort Oranje) was the first permanent Dutch settlement in New Netherland; the present-day city of Albany, New York developed at this site. It was built in 1624 as a replacement for Fort Nassau, which had been built on nearb ...

, where Sarah Rapelje was born on June 9, 1625 along the Waaleboght. Fort Orange would eventually become the fur-trading town of

Beverwijck Beverwijck ( ; ), often written using the pre-reform orthography Beverwyck, was a fur-trading community north of Fort Orange on the Hudson River in New Netherland that was renamed and developed as Albany, New York, after the English took cont ...

, which itself would later become

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...

. In 1626,

Manhattan Island Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

near the mouth of the Hudson River was bought by Dutch settlers from local Native Americans, and the Rapelje family were sent to help with the settlement of

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam ( nl, Nieuw Amsterdam, or ) was a 17th-century Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''factory'' gave rise ...

on the island's southern tip. Joris Rapelje later bought land on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

, across the

East River The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Queens ...

from New Amsterdam, in the village of Breuckelen (the basis of modern

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

) and eventually moved to

Wallabout Bay Wallabout Bay is a small body of water in Upper New York Bay along the northwest shore of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, between the present Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges. It is located opposite Corlear's Hook in Manhattan, acros ...

. Sarah Rapelje married Hans Hansen Bergen in 1639 with whom she had eight children, seven of whom lived into adulthood, until Bergen died in 1653. In 1654 Rapelje married Teunis Gysbertse Bogaert (b. 1625, Heicop,

- d. 1699, Breuckelen,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

) with whom she had seven more children. Through their youngest child and only son, Guysbert, she is the 7th-great grandmother of actor

Humphrey Bogart Humphrey DeForest Bogart (; December 25, 1899 – January 14, 1957), nicknamed Bogie, was an American film and stage actor. His performances in Classical Hollywood cinema films made him an American cultural icon. In 1999, the American Film In ...

. On April 24, 1660, New Netherland Governor

Peter Stuyvesant Peter Stuyvesant (; in Dutch also ''Pieter'' and ''Petrus'' Stuyvesant, ; 1610 – August 1672)Mooney, James E. "Stuyvesant, Peter" in p.1256 was a Dutch colonial officer who served as the last Dutch director-general of the colony of New Net ...

named Bogaert a

magistrate The term magistrate is used in a variety of systems of governments and laws to refer to a civilian officer who administers the law. In ancient Rome, a '' magistratus'' was one of the highest ranking government officers, and possessed both judici ...

of New Amersfoort and

Midwood Midwood is a neighborhood in the south-central part of the New York City borough of Brooklyn. It is bounded on the north by the Bay Ridge Branch tracks just above Avenue I and by the Brooklyn College campus of the City University of New York, a ...

. In 1663, Bogaert was appointed a magistrate in Breuckelen, succeeding his father-in-law Joris Jansen Rapelje, serving in that capacity until 1673. Bogaert also served as a magistrate of Bushwick between 1664 and 1665, and was a representative of Breuckelen in the

Hempstead Convention The Hempstead Convention was a ten-day assembly where 34 delegates met starting on February 28, 1665, "to settle good and known laws" according to a letter by newly appointed Governor Richard Nicolls, the first English colonial governor of the Prov ...

of 1665. Rapelje died in 1685 in Boswijck, a village that became the modern Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn. By the time Rapelje died the New Netherland colony had been ceded to the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

in 1664, and was rebranded the

Province of New York The Province of New York (1664–1776) was a British proprietary colony and later royal colony on the northeast coast of North America. As one of the Middle Colonies, New York achieved independence and worked with the others to found the Uni ...

Legacy

Rapelje's chair is in the permanent collection of the

Museum of the City of New York A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these i ...

, a gift of her Brinckerhoff descendants. Brooklyn's Rapelye Street is named after the family. Sarah Rapelje herself was granted a large tract of land in the

Wallabout Wallabout Bay is a small body of water in Upper New York Bay along the northwest shore of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, between the present Williamsburg and Manhattan Bridges. It is located opposite Corlear's Hook in Manhattan, acros ...

by Dutch authorities for being the first European Christian female to be born in the New Netherland. The family owned extensive property in the area of present-day Red Hook. Her descendants include British television presenter Clare Balding,

Tom Brokaw Thomas John Brokaw (; born February 6, 1940) is an American retired network television journalist and author. He first served as the co-anchor of ''The Today Show'' from 1976 to 1981 with Jane Pauley, then as the anchor and managing editor of '' ...

, Governor

Howard Dean Howard Brush Dean III (born November 17, 1948) is an American physician, author, lobbyist, and retired politician who served as the 79th governor of Vermont from 1991 to 2003 and chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 2005 to 200 ...

Royal Baking Powder Company The Royal Baking Powder Company was one of the largest producers of baking powder in the US. History It was started by brothers Joseph Christoffel Hoagland and Cornelius Nevius Hoagland in 1866, It later came under the ownership of William Z ...

president

Joseph C. Hoagland Joseph Christoffel Hoagland (June 19, 1841 – December 8, 1899, Manhattan) was the first president of the Royal Baking Powder Company. Biography The family began in the Americas with a Dutch settler to New Amsterdam, Dirck Jansen Hoogland, who ...

(1841-1899) and Grammy-winning musician

Mark O'Connor Mark O'Connor (born August 5, 1961) is an American fiddle player and composer whose music combines bluegrass, country, jazz and classical. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he has won six Country Music Association Musician Of The Year awards ...

References

External links

Sarah Rapalje (1625–1685), The New Netherland Institute

The Hidden History of the Rapeljes, Urban Environmentalist NYC, gowanuslounge.com

The Rapelje Family, The Baltimore Sun

The Rapelje Property, on the Brooklyn & Jamaica Rail Road, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

The Rapelje Estate, Foot of 35th Street, North River, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

Rapelje Avenue, Queens, New York, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

Rapelyea House, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

Rapelyea Estate, New York Public Library Digital Gallery

Biography

Legacy

References

External links

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