Traver Family
Papers, 1791-1940; bulk, 1791-1890

SC23197

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Biographical Note:

John C. Traver (1793-1861) and his heirs were farmers who resided in the Town of Schodack, Rensselaer County, New York. Originally, John C. Traver acquired the leaseholds of two farm lots that were part of the vast landholdings of Rensselaerswyck Manor. Eventually he was able to purchase full title to the land when the Van Rensselaer family began sell their lands outright after the anti-rent wars and changes in tax laws made the manorial system of tenant contracts a less-than-profitable venture.

Stephen Van Rensselaer III (1764-1839), the eighth Patroon of Rensselaerswyck, leased separate lots of land situated in Schodack to James Vanderpool, Jr. in 1791, and to Jacobus Hogeboom in 1799. In the nineteenth century, Caspar Lodewick acquired title to these two properties and combined them into one. After Caspar Lodewick died in April 1837, his heirs sold their interests in the property to Jeremiah Link and his wife, Susan Traver Link, in 1839. Five years later, in 1844, the Links released the property to John C. Traver, who may have been a relative. In 1852, these lots were released from rents and reservations of the manor when the terms of sale were finalized between Traver and William P. Van Rensselaer.

Information relative to John C. Traver and family is found in Federal Census records, various local records, and church records. These records indicate that John C. Traver married Catherine Sprung (1802-1891) and they had three children, Esther (b.1827), Elisabeth (b.1832) and Alexander (1835-1906). The family held membership with the Reformed Protestant Dutch Church of Greenbush so information on births, baptisms, and marriages can be found in the church's records.

Alexander Traver inherited the farm in Schodack upon the death of his father in 1861. He was married to Charlotte [?], who bore two children, John H. (ca.1870-1930) and Jessie (b. 1873). Alexander served in the National Guard of New York during the Civil War and was discharged in 1864. John H. Traver married Georgia Braithwaite (1874-1955) in East Greenbush, New York, on October 17, 1893. Georgia was the daughter of Carrie Braithwaite, of Ann Arbor, Michigan. Her father had apparently died when she was quite young, which is inferred from the fact her mother was widowed at the time of the 1880 Federal Census. Carrie Braithwaite later married Ira Garrison, a native of Schodack, New York, who studied medicine at the University of Michigan. After receiving his degree, he apparently practiced medicine in the Midwest for few years before he and his family settled in the Greenbush/Schodack area.
Scope and Content Note:

This collection consists chiefly of documents related to the history of the title to the lands held by John C. Traver and his heirs that were situated in the Town of Schodack, Rensselaer County, New York.  Included, are copies of the original leases for two farm lots that Stephen Van Rensselaer (1764-1839) granted to James Vanderpool, Jr. and Jacobus Hogeboom, respectively, during the 1790s; copies of releases, bonds, and mortgages related to the subsequent transfer and conveyance of the title of these farm lots, first to Casper Lodewick, later to Jeremiah Link, and finally to John C. Traver and his heirs.

The collection also includes a number of ancillary papers related to the probate of the estate of John C. Traver and his heirs; deeds to real property situated in Ann Arbor, Washtenaw County, Michigan; and letters and legal papers of allied Braithwaite and Garrison families.

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