Marinus Willett (1740 - 1830)

Born 31 Jul 1740 in Jamaica, Queens, New York

Ancestors

Husband of Margaret (Bancker) Willett — married 1799 in Manhattan, New York, New York

Died 22 Aug 1830 at age 90 in New York, New York County (Manhattan), New York, United States

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Stacey Terrell [send private message]

Preceded by DeWitt Clinton

Marinus Willett 48th Mayor of New York City 1807-1808

Succeeded by DeWitt Clinton

Biography

Marinus Willett is the son of Edward Willett (1701-1794) and Alletta Clowes Willett (1704-1780). Marinus was a Colonel in the Revolutionary War and became the 48th Mayor of New York City, serving from 1807 to 1808.

Colonel Marinus Willett served with 1st New York Regiment, Continental Army during the American Revolution.

Marinus Willett is an NSSAR Patriot Ancestor.
NSSAR Ancestor #: P-320465
Rank: Colonel

At the beginning of the American Revolution, Marinus became an informal leader of the Sons of Liberty in New York City. When news arrived on April 23, 1775, of the battles at Lexington and Concord, Marinus and others broke into the New York City arsenal and seized the weapons.

On June 6, 1775, when the British soldiers in New York decided to evacuate the city, Marinus stopped the soldiers from taking spare arms with them.

On July 20, 1775, he and other members of the Sons of Liberty procured a sloop, surprised the guard, and captured a British storehouse at Turtle Bay.

Marinus was married three times. He and Mary Pearsee were married in 1760 and had one son, Marinus, Jr. After Mary died in 1793, Willett married a widow, Mrs. Susannah Vardill; that marriage ended in 1799 when Susannah Willett filed for divorce. His third wife was Margaret Bancker, the daughter of Christopher Bancker and Maria (Smith) Bancker. Marinus and Margaret had four children, together.^[1]

Burial: Trinity Churchyard, Manhattan, New York County (Manhattan), New York, USA ^[2]

From my (Stacey) notes on the Willett Men. This info is meant to help give a more well-rounded image of Marinus who has been described as a man that rose to power in spite of coming from a humble, working-class family. On the contrary, his extended family was a well-established and powerful entity in New York that thrived under British Rule. Understanding his family, I believe, makes his accomplishments all the more significant.

Ignore numbers--those belong to the Google Sheet/PDF that can be accessed at this link (Scroll over for drop-down bites of info on each person): [1]

Information has been pulled from the books, documents, and online resources that can be found at this link: [2]

The great-great-grandparents of Marinus Willett

[1] Thomas Willett 1621-1647 Born in Bristol, England The death date and location are unknown. Last “seen” in records in 1647 in connection to a case involving a bribe paid to an inspector to keep him off of his Bark (ship). Occupation: Soldier-Landowner-Shipowner Religion: Unclear as he seemingly swore an oath to the Dutch East India Company in order to be a property owner and while he married and had his children baptized in the Dutch Reformed Church, at that time it was the only church citizens were permitted to be affiliated with. This Thomas was clearly power hungry so he would have agreed to anything, while not necessarily believing in the institution. Residence: 48 Stone Street, New Amsterdam Before his death around the age of 26, he would distinguish himself as one of the largest landowners in the New Amsterdam/Pearl Street District.

[2] Sarah Cornell was born ca Mar 1623 in Saffron Walden, Essex. Sarah was baptized in Saffron Walden, Essex, on 30 Mar 1623. Sarah died ca 1690. Daughter of Thomas Cornell and Rebecca Briggs. Religion: Quaker Occupation: She ran a “small trade business” next to City Hall. Residences: Her family traveled from England-Boston-Rhode Island-New Amsterdam. After marriage, she lived most of her life in New Amsterdam but held ownership of properties in Cornell’s Neck and Flushing. Husband #1: Thomas Willett the soldier/landowner/shipowner Husband #2: Charles Bridges, was English Secretary for the Province under Gov. Stuyvesant, in 1652; was in the Governor's council. Military Commissary, in 1660; patentee of Flushing and of Gravesend Husband #3: John Lawrence Jr., youngest son of the 7th Mayor of New York. He is referred to as the “lunatic” son of John Lawrence.

The great-grandparents of Marinus Willett:

[3] Thomas Frances Willett of Flushing was born in Nov 1645. He was baptized in New Amsterdam Reformed Church, on 26 Nov 1645. Thomas married Helena Elbertse Stoothoff, daughter of Elbert Elbersen Stoothoff & Aeltje Cornelis Kool. Religion: Member and vestryman of Grace Church, Jamaica Queens NY Residence: New Amsterdam Flushing, New York Occupation: This Thomas like his father was a soldier (Lt. in 1673, Captain 1685, Col. 1698)) and a businessman who used his position in public office to grow his personal empire. Words like “Oligarch”, "Grandee", and “Anti-Leisler” have been used to describe him. He personally funded murder and robbery on the high seas, as well as the slave trade, and his involvement in these activities is discussed even today in contemporary books and newspapers including the Pulitzer Prize-winning book for American History: Gotham: A History of New York City to 1898, by Edwin G. Burrows and Mike Wallace. ^[3]

• Find mentions of many of the people listed here in Gotham. A must-read for any Willett researcher.

[4] Helena Elbertse Stoothoff 1646 in Flatlands, New York Daughter of Elbert Elbersen Stoothoff 1688) & Aeltje Cornelis Kool. Religion: Dutch Reformed Church

Elbert Elbertse Stoothoff was a representative of Flatlands in the General Assembly and has in documents been referred to as an attorney and a shopkeeper. Elbert was a member of the Nine Men from 1648 to 1650 and was a signatory to the Great Remonstrance of New Netherland. He was commandant of the militia of Amersfoort, and in 1654-1664 and 1673, he served as a magistrate of Amersfoort. Elbert is the namesake for Elbert men found in this line. Elbert’s second wife was Sarah Roeloffse.

The grandparents of Marinus Willett:

[7] Elbert Willett was born in 1676 and died in 1706 at 30 years of age. He married 13 May 1701 at Reformed Dutch Church, New York City Annatje Varick, a daughter of Rudolphus Varick Reverend and Margaret Vielboom Varick. Loyalist Occupation: Sheriff of Queens County, New York from 1705 to 1706. Residence: New York City. Second Residence: Queens County, New York. [31]

[13] Johanna VanVarick is the daughter of one of the wealthiest and most influential couples in New Amsterdam--Rudolphus Van Varick and Margrieta Visboom. It is said that after Elbert's death, she took her young boys and raised them on her own which given her parents would not have been difficult. Her mother has been written about at length in recent years after the discovery of her shop's inventory was located. More on that here: [http: //oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/bitstream/handle/1969.1/95162/Van%20Varick.pdf;sequence=1]

Parents of Marinus Willett

[20] Edward Willett was born on 10 August 1737 and died on 01 December 1794 at 57 years of age. He married on 09 May 1722 at Grace Episcopal Church, Jamaica, Queens County, New York Aletta Clowes and died 03 October 1780, a daughter of Samuel Clowes Attorney, and Katherine

Religion: Grace Episcopal Church, Jamaica, Queens County, New York. Loyalist Occupation: School teacher, farmer, Innskeeper Residence: Flushing, Queens County, New York.

[25] Aletta Clowes was the daughter of Samuel Clowes a counselor-at-law (first attorney to practice law in Long Island?), County Clerk for Jamaica, Long Island, and associate of Lord Cornbury.

Marinus Willett Background on wives and children

Marinus Willett was an American soldier and political leader from New York. He was characterized by historian Mark M. Boatner as "one of the truly outstanding American leaders of the Revolution." Much has been written about Marinus including how he acquired vast tracks of property and wealth by seizing prime pieces of real estate that had been in the hands of Loyalists. Looking over the relationships here one has to wonder if any of that land had belonged to his extended family. Prior to and between military service Marinus worked as a carpenter/cabinet maker. Marinus married 3 times and fathered an illegitimate child.

[32] Wed on April 2, 1760, Mary Pearson (spelled Pearsee on wedding license) was born in 1746; daughter of his first employer. I have no further details on her father at this time. She died July 3, 1793. Together she and Marinus had one child.

[33] Marinus Willett 1761/62-1778. Died at the age of 16 serving with Continental Army.

[34] Elizabeth Lough was the wife of solder Henrich Seeber under the command of Marinus at Fort Plains. Marinus was separated from his wife, some reports say she was "living apart" from her husband, and the two began an affair resulting in the birth of a son. The affair became public knowledge and Marinus supported his upbringing and education.

[35] Marinus Willett Seeber, 1782-1800. His son with Elizabeth Seeber, named after him, grew up to be a dance teacher--and that is the last I've been able to locate about him at this time.

[36] Susanna Nicoll, 1747-1806, was a two-time widow who has been described as "the reigning toast of New York society.". She is the daughter of Edward Nicoll and Agnes De Meyer. Her Great Aunt Marget Floyd was the first wife of William Willett (1695-1775) uncle of Marinus. Her first husband was Captain Joseph Jauncey. He was a merchant sea captain in Bermuda who settled in New York in 1743 as a merchant/businessman. He went on to fund privateers, including owning his own privateer fleets. He became the Warden of the Port in 1758-1774. He died suddenly in Charleston, SC in 1779. Her second husband was Thomas Vardell. Thomas has been called a “mariner”. He was a friend of Jauncey so while I haven’t seen him referred to as a privateer, I am going to assume he was. His father was the ardent Loyalist John Vardill. John Vardill was a professor who after serving the crown in the colonies during the Revolutionary War, went back to England and oversaw spying operations from his office on Downey Street. Marinus married Susanna on Oct. 3, 1793. Mary Pearson, his wife of 33 years, had died three months to the day prior to their wedding. It is said the marriage was an unhappy one and Susanna filed for divorce in 1799.

[37] Marinus Willett married a third time to Margaret Bancker (1774-1819), the young daughter of Willett's friends, Christopher and Mary Smith Bancker. Willett was 59; she was 24. Margaret descends from a long line of prominent men. Her grandfather Evert Gerritse Bancker was a Merchant, mayor, Indian commissioner, and landholder in New Albany. Her grandfather Evert Bancker was the third mayor of Albany and a privateer who made most of his wealth in the slave trade. Her uncle Adrian Bancker was a prominent silversmith. His works are on display today at The Met Fifth Avenue Her father Christopher and Daniel Crommelin built their wealth operating a smuggling business of mixed cargoes to New Amsterdam.

[38] Marinus Willett Junior (1800-1840) married Caroline Bronson. He was a physician. Caroline's father was Issac Bronson a surgeon during the American Revolutionary War. He was later a successful banker and land speculator and is credited with co-founding the New York Life Insurance and Trust Company and Ohio Life Insurance and Trust Company. Bronson was a member of the Society of the Cincinnati. Her sister married Col. James Boyles Murray of the same Murray family his uncle Gilbert Colden had married into.

[39] William married twice Elizabeth Carman and Frances Fletcher. He set himself apart from the others and the following is a list of his accomplishments: He was ordained to the ministry of the Methodist Episcopal church in 1823; preached in eastern New York and Connecticut, 1823-1826, and was transferred to the Genesee Conference in 1826, serving until 1833 and was a delegate to General Conference 1828. He was an instructor in Hebrew at Wesleyan University, 1836-1841; professor of Hebrew and Biblical literature there, 1841-1842, and in 1843 founded the Hebrew Institute at Newbury, Vt., of which he was president, 1843-1846. He edited the Newbury Biblical Magazine, 1843-1944; the New Bible Magazine in 1882, and is the author of: Scenes in the Wilderness (1842); A New Life of Summerfield (1857); The Life and Times of Herod the Great (1860); Herod Antipas; with Passages from the Life of Jesus (1866); The Messiah (1874); The Restitution of All Things (1880). He died in Jersey City, New Jersey, on Dec. 8, 1805.

[40] Edward Willett married Amelia Ann Stephens daughter of Benjamin L. Stephens, "one of the wealthiest men in New York City, and his wife Clemence Lloyd" according to bios of their son writer John Lloyd Stephens. Edward was an attorney and a counselor according to Longworth's American Almanac, New York Register, and City Directory of 1829. The address associated with this entry is 4 Wall Street. Most have Edward dying at Flat Rock, NC, but I do not have any further information on him.

[41] Died at the Willett mansion at 58 Broome Street at the age of 26. No other info has been located at this time.

Cousins of Marinus A great-uncle of Marinus, John Willett who married Mary Rodman [prominent Quakers], was the grandfather of Samuel and Walter Willett. These men fought with Col. Tarleton’s British Legion cavalry and received land grants in Annapolis County, Nova Scotia for their service.

Uncles of Marinus Marinus not only stood up against the British but also took a stand against his family. He is the only member of note to side with the Patriots.

His uncle William, a judge, married prominent Quaker women--one of those was the daughter Robert Field, a signer of the Flushing Remonstrance, a precursor to the U.S. Constitution's provision on freedom of religion on the Bill of Rights.

His uncle Thomas was also a judge who married Quaker women, his second wife was the daughter of Samuel Thorne, an original member of the "Society of Friends".

His uncle Cornelius was a Sheriff. A sheriff was appointed to keep law and order. He was also an officer of the British court. [3].)

His uncle John, who married the daughter of Dr. Rodman, the man who donated the land the Flushing Society of Friends stands on, was one of the 19 men arrested in 1775 for voting against sending delegates to the Provincial Congress. This landed him on the list Congress published of Queen’s Co Tories, aka “The Black List”.

His uncle Abraham became a Quaker. His daughter-in-law Hannah Lawrence was the daughter of Richard Lawrence and Hannah Browne. Her great-grandfather was Quaker minister John Browne. [4]

Sidenote on John Browne, Robert Browne a grandson of John's at the same time Marinus was fighting for the Revolution, was using his wealth and connections to follow the path he perceived to be the best for him and his fellow man. One of his accomplishments, in 1884, along with Alexander Hamilton, was to form the Manumission Society. [5]

Sources

1. ↑ Extracted and modified from Wikipedia.
2. ↑ Find a Grave, database, and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12607568/marinus-willett: accessed 05 November 2022), memorial page for Marinus Willett (31 Jul 1740–22 Aug 1830), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12607568, citing Trinity Churchyard, Manhattan, New York County (Manhattan), New York, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave .
3. ↑ https://www.pulitzer.org/winners/edwin-g-burrows-and-mike-wallace

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marinus_Willett
• Source/Photographer The Athenaeum: Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. Encyclopedia of the American Revolution. New York: McKay, 1966; revised 1974. ISBN 0-8117-0578-1.
• Lowenthal, Larry, Marinus Willett, Defender of the Northern Frontier, New York, 2000
• Marinus Willett: The Exploits of an Unheralded War Hero, by Richard J. Werther, JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, September 20, 2022, https://allthingsliberty.com/2022/09/marinus-willett-the-exploits-of-an-unheralded-war-hero/
• Links to sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pQph-KbVgfJfuVi9KSChQ9YOt7n0eCV4f0vImzfeb4s/edit?usp=sharing
• Find A Grave Memorial# 12607568; Maintained by: Find A Grave, Originally Created by: Dan Silva Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12607568/marinus-willett: accessed 05 November 2022), memorial page for Marinus Willett (31 Jul 1740–22 Aug 1830), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12607568, citing Trinity Churchyard, Manhattan, New York County (Manhattan), New York, USA; Maintained by Find a Grave .