28 The Story of The Bronx 



was situated not far from the present Harlem River station 

 of the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad, at 

 Lincoln Avenue and East I32d Street. 



He had hardly established himself at Emmaus before an 

 Indian war broke out, which lasted with intervals for three 

 years, during which the Weckquaesgeeks destroyed all the 

 farms and bouweries in that section. The war was brought 

 about by Governor Kieft, who demanded from his tribe the 

 surrender of an Indian murderer who had killed at Harlem a 

 harmless Dutchman named Smits. Notwithstanding the ad- 

 verse opinions of his twelve councillors, William the Testy forced 

 the war with most disastrous effects to the colony. A treaty 

 was made with the Indians at Bronk's house in 1642; but the 

 Indians again began their depredations and continued them 

 until their power was completely broken and five hundred of 

 them slain at Mehanus by Captain John Underhill, in 1645. 



In the year 1643, Jonas Bronk, the first recorded white 

 settler of Westchester County, died ; and his estate was admin- 

 istered by friends in Harlem, Dominie Everardus Bogardus 

 (the husband of the famous Annetje Jans) and Jochim Petersen 

 Keyser. From the inventory of the estate, we must believe 

 that Heer Bronk was a gentleman of education, culture, and 

 refinement; for there appear books, silver table service, linen 

 napkins, and "six linen shirts." The books were chiefly 

 of a religious or theological, character, polemical discussions 

 so dear to the reader and writer of that day, and were in 

 several languages; so that Heer Bronk must have been some- 

 thing of a linguist. His son Peter afterwards settled near 

 Albany, in whose neighborhood, so it is said, his descendants 

 are to this day. The widow married Arendt Van Corlaer, 

 sheriff of Rensselaerswyck, « who sold " Brouncksland " to 



1 See The Lady of Fort St. John, by Mrs. Catherwood. 



