Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1879-02-26
Fighting for $3.50, 100000.
The Big Bonanza Hkich the Yea Horn
aud .3nneke JAMS Heirs CiCim to
Hare Discorered

as n;atter of interesting news to people of
the same name as mentioned IN the article,
residing in this ccCnty.-ED.l
The Van Horn and Anneke JAMS
heirs think they have stumbled on a
new bonanza. Both bodies have, for
the last year, been actively engaged
in tracing their genealogy for cen
tuTy back. The Anneke Janses claim
a large portion of the land upon
which New York is founded, or what
is known in that city as the Trinity
Church estate The Van Horns also
claim tract IN close proximity to the
former, alleging that their ancestors,
century or so ago, leased this prop
erty for ninety-nine years, moved into
Pennsylvania, failed to collect the
rents, and gradually allowed their
title to be lost sight OF. But now the
heirs say they have made new dis
coveries. The Anneke Janses have
married into the Van Horns. and rice
reTSd, until some OF the Van Horns
are claimants to the Anneke Jams es-
tate, and rice UerSa. More than this,
they think they have ascertained that
both bodies are the legal heirs of an
other New York property, known as
the Lord Waldron's estate, as we'll as
to another property in Holland, which
in Itself is valued at SS2,000,000.
The efforts to perfect the titles to
the properties are, the heirs say. pro-
ceeding satisfactorily. The Trinity
estate once belonged to one Wolfert
Arnant Weber. grandchild of King
William ", OF Holland, who came to
this country in 1649. Woifert Sc
cured grant of sixty-two acres of
land, fronting on North river, and
running through Chatham street,
near to Chatham Square, from Peter
Stuyvesant. In turn, he became dis
satisfied with the property, and con-
veyed il to his aunt, Anneke Webber,
who came to this country with him.
She leased it to Governor Lovelace.
the first English Governor of New
York, by whom it was released to the
then Trinity church authorities
Meanwhile, Anneke married man by
the name of Jams, and had progeny.
When he died, she took unto herself
a man named Borgardus, by whom
she had children.
The families married and were
given in marriage, and to-day their
descendants are hunting up old deeds
and ransacking worn out trunks to
find some documents cy which they
can give a fair showing of their gene
alogy from either the Jams or Bor
gardus families.
Woifert Webber, when he came to
America, left considerable property
in Holland After his arrival here he
married a Gertrude Hassing, by
whom he had daughter christened
Hellegona. She married man named
Philip Minthorne in 1886. Wolfert
Webber died in Ills, leaving a will
in which his property was bequeated
to his daughter and making Min
thorne his executor. But sea travel
ing in those days, when ocean steam
ers were unknown, was risky exper-
iment, and the Minthornes did not
think the game worth the candle.
Borgardus essayed to cross the water
in their interest, but was lost on the
way. There the matter dropped for
the time.
The MinthoTnes had children, these
married, and so up to the present
day the family has been perpetuated.
Recently the Government of Holland
advertised for the heirs of the Web
Der estate, and the latter, who are
none Other than the Van Horns an3
Anneke Janses, although among those
in Philadelphia are names such as
Vanfelt, Huguaman, Woolsey, Cor
son, Johnson, Longshore, McAlister,
Townsend and Vandergrift, and who
have taken preliminary steps in the
direction of proving title and taking
possession
1he last estate to Which the heirs
have laid claim is The Harlem Flats,
which takes IN Hell Gate, Central
Park and large space of ground,
p, 500 acres of which are unoccupied.
The allegation is that this land was
conveyed by the Colonial Governor
of New York in 1856 to Lord r. Wal
dron and four others, the number be-
ing afterward increased to twenty
three, the additional ones being sons,
daughters and sons-in-law. The en-
tire property, they say, was willed to
the fifth generation of the second
grantees and the sixth generation of
the first ones. These generations
have now arrived once more in the
persons Of the Van Horns. 1t is cal
culated that the amount of property
for which a fight is shortly to be
made, in both the old and new worlds,
viii not fall much short of S250,000,-
600.