Origins of the Terwilliger Name

Origins of the Terwilliger Name:

As far as now is known, there was but one Terwilliger family in the United States. Thus, if you bear the Terwilliger name or descend from a Terwilliger, you are related to all others similarly named or descended, all having a common ancestor. You are part of the Terwilliger Family in America.

The beginnings of the Terwilliger family originate in Vianen, Holland, on the Lek River, a few miles south of Utrecht. The first three generations of the family are known by their patronymic names - a naming method followed in Holland and other countries of northeastern Europe where each child used as a surname a name derived from that of his or her father's first name. The endings of patronymic names vary somewhat in spelling and may differ between males and females. With this necessary explanation, the Terwilliger family begins with:

1.) Dirck __?__ - According to published sources, he was born in Vianen, Holland probably around 1610. He lived in Vianen and probably died there. According to tradition, he belonged to the "farming class", i.e. he was a farmer or farm laborer. His son, the emigrant to America, was:

2.) Evert Dircksen - He arrived at New Netherland (present-day New York City) on 15 Mar 1663 with two children aged 13 and 6 years, on the ship "De Arent" (The Eagle) commanded by Capt. Peter Corneliez Bez. Also on the ship's passenger list were Annetje Dircx, a widow, and her four year old child. Evert Dircksen was a widower, and Annetje Dircx is believed to have been his widowed sister. Concerning Evert Dircksen's children, the 13 year old and the six year old were both sons. Little more is found on Evert Dircksen, who evidently did not remarry. In May 1686, he witnessed the baptism of his son's first child who was named for him. He is found on the 1711 tax rolls of Shawangunk, Ulster Co., New York. His youngest son was:

3.) Jan Evertsen - The progenitor of all the Terwilligers. Born 1656 or 1657, Vianen, Holland. He was married in Kingston, New York in 1685 (banns 4/23) to Sytie Jacobz VanEtten. She was born in Kingston and baptized there 25 Mar 1668, daughter of Jacob Janse VanEtten and Annetje Adrianse. Sytie's father was from Etten, Holland; her mother was born in Amsterdam. They lived in Marbleton (an area west of Kingston, now part of Ulster Township) at the time of their marriages.

Children of Jan Evertsen & Sytie VanEtten

It was the first American-born generation which, following naming requirements under English rule, adopted some form of the name that evolved into Terwilliger, e.g. ter Wilge, Terwilligen, and occasionally Van der Willigen. It is a place name meaning at, by or near the willows. Either in Holland or America, an ancestor of this family lived near some willow trees. In another generation or so, the name is found consistently in records as Terwilliger, although often badly misspelled. Minor variations are still found today, such as Terwilleger, Terwillegar, and Terwilligar.

On 13 September 1694, Jan Evertsen obtained a land patent in Shawangunk, an area south of Kingston, NY now a township of Ulster County. Most of his sons remained in Shawangunk. Several are among the initial suscribers to, or early members of, the Shawangunk Reformed Dutch Church (RDC).

Shawangunk is very much the homeland of the Terwilliger family. There the Shawangunk Church remains beautifully preserved, facing the scenic white stone panorama of the Shawangunk Mountains. In the well-kept cemetery surrounding the church are to be found the gravestones of many of our forebears.

Spelling Variations / Locations:

Terwilliger's are used to having their name mangled in the worst possible way - through the years we've found 29 different ways of spelling it...ranging from Ter Wilge, Van Der Willigen, Terwilligen, Twillinger, Terwilleger, Terwilligar, Terwingler and on and on...but, the most common spelling has been Terwilliger throughout history and census records.

Some areas settled on a slightly different variation that continues to this day. Some examples are as follows:

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Copyright © 1997 by Robert C. Terwilliger

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Page last updated: 5/9/03

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