10 THE BOROUGH OF THE BRONX 



That Bronck was well pleased with the purchase of his prop- 

 erty is shown by a letter he penned to Pieter Van Alst, a relative 

 in the Old World, in which he speaks about his land in the most 

 glowing terms. "The invisible hand of the Almighty Father," 

 he writes, "surely guided me to this beautiful country, a land 

 covered with virgin forest and unlimited opportunities. It is a 

 veritable paradise and needs but the industrious hand of man to 

 make it the finest and most beautiful region in all the world." 

 Could Bronck rise out of his grave today he would see how well 

 his prophecy has been fulfilled. 



Bronck was evidently a man of culture and refinement. His 

 scholarly ability was displayed in the treaty of peace which he 

 drafted and which was signed in his house on March 28, 1642, by 

 the Dutch and by the Weckquaesgeek chiefs. This compact was 

 faithfully adhered to until his death in 1643. Bronck left a widow 

 and one son, Pieter Jonassen Bronck. The widow, Antonia Slag- 

 boom, married Arendt Van Corlear, Sheriff of Rensellaerswyck, 

 who sold Bronck's estate to Jacob Jans Stoll, and removed with 

 him to Albany, on the "Flatts." After Van Corlear's death his 

 widow lived in Schenectady. 



Frank C. Bronck, of Amsterdam, N. Y., has in his possession 

 a copy of the inventory of Bronck's personal effects taken in May, 

 1643, and several other papers. R. Bronck Fish, an attorney in 

 Fultonville, N. Y., owns a silver cup which belonged to Jonas 

 Bronck. 



There has been much discussion as to the genealogical origin 

 of Jonas Bronck. Many historians adhere to the belief that he 

 was Dutch, of Swedish extraction, probably from the fact that he 

 came to this country under the protection of the Dutch flag. 



The "Magazine of American History," January, 1908, tells us 

 that Jonas Bronck "was one of those worthy but unfortunate Men- 

 nonites who were driven from their homes in Holland to Denmark 

 by religious persecution. He . . . gained rapid promotion in 

 the army of the King of Denmark, who was very tolerant towards 

 the sect known as Mennonites. He served as commander in the 

 East Indies until 1638, when, with others of the persecuted he set 

 sail for America, and his name first appears on the records the fol- 

 lowing year, when he received a large grant of land in Westchester 

 County from the Sachems of Ranachqua." 



In the "Bronx Borough Record," December 20, 1902, Wm. R. 



