Tl. SOJ-IENOK
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THE REV. WILLI7I]'tl. SOJ-IENOK, HIS ANCESTRY AXD !US DESCENDANTS. IIc th,1t L•11rNh not rrom wh,•n<•c he cnmc. Cnrcth little whither he s.:<>eth .. COMPILED BY A. D SCHENCK, u.·s. AR.\IY. W ASIIINGTOX : RUFUS H. DARBY. PUBLISHER. 1883. CONTENTS. l'incerna, Derivation and Definition. Schenck, Derivation and Definition. Schenck, Barons van Toutenburg. Schenck, van Nydeck. Roelof Martense Schenck. Gerret Roelfse Schenck. Koert Schenck. Rev. William Schenck. Descendants of the Rev. William Schenck. Appendix. Index, Genealogical. Index, General. ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THIS WORK. b. for horn. wid. for widow. m. mun·i<:-d. st. street. .," " d. died. ave. " avenue. hap." baptized. prob." probably. B. " son. sup. " suppose. dau." daughter. PREF1r1CE. No nation was ever more careful to frame and preserve its genealogical tables than Turael, and it seems strange that peoples, a11d especially families who have for generations re vered the Holy Scriptures ancl made them their guide through life, should almost entirely neglect their pluin teachings and example in this respect. However dispersed or depressed the nation was they never neglected to keep exact genealogical tables prepared from the authentic documents kept at J ernsalem, carefully preserved and renewed from time to time. But their " books of gen erations " were not peculiar alone to the Hebrews. The earliest Greek histories were also genealogies. )fan now scans with scrupulous care the chu.ractcr, and most especially the pedigree of his horses, cattle, and dogs; but when it comes to bis own, this care in almost all cases seems utterly superfluous and unworthy of any consideration whatever, yet at the same time, and under almost all other circumstances, he bas almost unlimited faith in the old rule "that blood will tell," and can cite incontestable proofs almost without limit that in general it dot's. With their blood and name, alwciys of good repute, the example of their Jives is the only legacy transmitted to us by our aneestors long since passed away, who have in their day and generation so ,veil performed every duty which fell to their lot in life. That their names and records are worthy to be preserved and transmitted ";th a laudable pride by their descendants to the remotest generation, none can deny. The genealo!?Y in Holland was compiled by Jonkheer Wil lirun Frederic George Louis van der Dussen, Knight of the Order of the Oak Crown, Lieutenant Colonel and Com mandaut of the Fortress of Nimeguen, in the Netherlands, (1878), secretary of one of the archealogical societi8$, editor of the great genealogical journal at the Hague, and one of the greatest genealogical authorities in the Netherlands. This 10 l'REFACE. work is in the po88ession of tho H.ov. Garret C. Schenck, and is an immonse folio volume, hand:30mely and strongly bound and clasped. It contnins a history of the fumily of the Schencks, Barons van Toutenburg, from the year 878 or 880 down to its offshoot in 1225, of a brunch known as the family of Schenck van :Nydeck, the history of this latter family being continued down to the time when some of its repre eentutives emigrated to this country. The contents ..were gathered after long and putient research and from the most authentic sources, a list of which will be found in the ap pendix. It is embellished with the couts-of-a1'Ills and colored escutcberins of these a1Jd their allied fomiliel',and with draw ings of the seals used by merubers of the family as early as 12il; also pictures of several of the old castles in which the family resided in feudul times, with likene88es of its uuthor ·and al~o of General Sir Martin Schenck van Nydeck, from whose brother, General Peter, the fumily in this country is descended. :Most of the Colonel's work will no doubt be re produced by the Rev. Mr. Schenck in his forthcoming work. It will be noticed that from tho time of' the marriage of the Rev. William Schenck, 17113, nntil the present, is about equul to that from about th,J average time of mar riage of the ancestors of the family in America, (Roelof and Jan Martense Se hen ck, and Johannes Schenck, of Bushwick,) down to his birth. In other wordK, in 1740 there were prob ably living three times as many of our name ns are now to be found of the descendants of the Rev. William Schenck, and from this some estimate run be made of the large num bers, living and dead, constituting this family in this country, and consequently the great extent of the labors of collecting and compiling its history. It bas beeu found inexpedient to enumerate in this work the collaterul descen::lants, so great are their numbers and so difficult to be renched. This family of Schencks in America is divided into three branches, represented at the heads of each by Hoelof and Jan Martense Schenck, of Nieu Amersfoort, now Flatlands, Long Island, New York, who immigrated from Utr<:1cht, in Holland, in 1650, and by Johannes Schenck, who, at the age of twenty-seven years, with his wife, Maria Magdaleua de Haes, immigrated from .Middleburg, Holland, in 1688, and settled finally at Bushwick, on Long Island. His father was )Iartin Schenck, of the Nydeck family, born in 1633 and died in 1704, a lieutenant bailif, or judge of the Wick or Province PREF.ACE, 11 of Kessel, and who had the degree of T. U. Doctor conferred on him. His father, Theodore, also held the same office, as did also Theodor~•s father, Martin. who was II son of Peter Schenck vau Nydeck, Bailif of Gibberfort, and don of the :first Derick Schenck van Nydeck, who died at Blynbeek in 1525. From these sources have descended very large families, scattered through the United Stutes and also in foreign coun tries. Those States in which they are most numerous are New York, New Jeriley, and Ohio. In Pennsylvania, Virginia, Indiana, and Iowa, also, they have estubliahed families of con siderable mag,itude, and repre3ent11tives cnn no doubt be found in all uf the Northwestern States. Those of the name living in that portion of New York bordering upon the upper region of the Hudson riv-er arc mainly descended from Jo hannes, of Bushwick. Doring the war of the Revolution this family was firmly de voted to the patriot cause, and contributed its full share to its success, an~ furnished a long list of officers and men for the American army. The same was also true of the late war of the Rebellion. The number who entered the Union army is not yet known, but in the "Roll of Honor," or record of the names of the Dnion soldiers, who died in the defense of the Union, interred in the national cemeteries, are found twenty-nine of the name of Schenck, the larger part of them belonging to one or other of the three branches of this family, and this does not include the names of many others who were killed in battle or dierl from wounds or of diseases incident to the service, and who were buried at their own homes. From the ratio of dead to survimr.s in that war there must have been near two hundred of our name and race who took part in that grand straggle to establish the integrity of our country; besides those in the army there were also many in the navy, some of whom were killed or died in that service. On the other hand no record has yet been found of any member of this family having served in the rebel . army. · There is no other family of the name for any- great length of time in this country except one. In l 740~ Michael Schenck, a German, immigrated from the Palatinate of the Rhine and settled near Lancaster, Pa., and his de5cend11nts form quite a large family, found mostly in that State and in Virginia and North Carolina. 12 PREF.ACE. In recent times others of the name have immigrated from va1ious parts of Germany, and probably also from the Netber lunds, nod settled in this country, but having no traceable connection with our family. The compiler of this work bas for some years past devoted many of his leisure hours to gatheriug its material, and ns from the nature of his life and duties us an army officor,sub. ject to so many changes, and from what he has with regret learned as to the fate of family and many other records in the history of the past, these may soon be scattered and lost, be desires to anticipate such a fate, and to rescue from ob livion the few facts yet remaining of the early history of his family, hoping that it may also incite others to some elforts to correct and ampli(y this imperfect beginning. These records, so for ns they relate to hia efforts t() collect, were mostly gathered for the information of the Rev. Garret C. Schenck, of .Marlboro, .Monmouth County, New Jersey, W!lO has been for near tit\r years engaged in the preparation c,f a complete genealogical history of the entire family, now very near perfected, and it is hoped that any one coming to the knowledge of auy mistake or waut of corupletPuess in the records to be found in these pag-es, will iulorm him of the fact. To him is due the efforts of the compiler to complete such of this work as he may claim as bis own, and to his constant courtesy and unwearying aid are due the sincerest acknowledgment and thanks, and it is hoped that this record will prove of value to him in the completion of.