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TO: Bollen/Bullen and Stout Family Researchers
FROM: Duane A. Boggs
DATE: March 15, 2007
RE: Bollen Connections and a possible “Pirate”
I believe that James Bollen (the younger) and his sister, Anna (Bollen) Stout (wife of Jonathan of Middletown, New Jersey), had a brother George Bollen. All three were children of James Bollen (the elder), who was Secretary of the Colony of New Jersey from about 1665 to 1682 or so.
George Bollen was a mariner (as of 1692) working from the port of New York City. I would like to propose, as a THEORY needing more research to confirm or refute, that George was, in 1696, first mate on a ship (a galley? Or galleon?) named “The Adventure” under Captain William Kidd. Kidd, as you may know, moved from being a ship’s captain to being a “privateer” (an “authorized” pirate) and ultimately to being an outlaw pirate, who was hanged for certain crimes. If my THEORY is correct, then James and Anna had a brother with a colorful life (although it is not clear if he stayed with Kidd to the bitter end), and the children of James and Anna would have had an Uncle George who was a “pirate”. Sound far fetched? Please read on.
Years ago, when my genealogy research skills were less developed, I took notes from a book about a James Bollen and his brother George Bollen, both adults in 1690. I am fairly sure that the book I was reading was Colonial New Jersey: A History, by John E. Pomfret (Scribner 1973). At pages 202 and 204 are references about a power of attorney and a land transfer. Unfortunately, I did not pursue that information for many years. In 2007, I have revisited those notes and done further research.
I came across the following information from Patty B. Myers (2001): “In 1690 [James, the younger] was a carpenter of Middletown, Monmouth Co., New Jersey, when he was made an attorney of his brother George; and on 8 June 1692, James Bollen, carpenter of Middletown, deeded to Samuel Dennis of Woodbridge, N.J., all his estate, right, etc. he may have had in any property that his brother George deeded on that same date to Samuel Dennis of Woodbridge, James being attorney for George. (NJ Arch., 21:204.) His sister Ann had married on 27 Aug 1685 at Middletown, Monmouth Co., N.J. Jonathan Stout of Middletown (Stillwell, Vol. II, p. 185), and James may have lived near them.”
In my 2007 research, I have found the following website:
http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/nj/statewide/history/colrec/vol21/v21-07.txt
NEW JERSEY COLONIAL RECORDS Volume 21
1690 Nov. 18. Do. Do. George BOLLEN to his brother James BOLLEN, to act as land agent.
1692 June 8. Deed. George BOLLEN, late of N. Y. City, mariner, by his brother and attorney James BOLLEN, to Samuel DENNES of Woodbridge, for several lots, vizt: 1, a house lot of 11 acres, S. and E. the roads to, Strawberry Hill and Piscataway, W. Thos. BLUMFEILD junior, dec'd., now grantee, N. grantee, formerly Hopewell HULL; 2, 8 acres of meadow on W. side of Papiack Creek, W. the next lot of 20 a., N. a creek, E. Papiack Cr., S. Ephraim ANDREWS; 3, 20 a. adjoining the last; 4, 30 a., E. Ephraim ANDREWS.
As you undoubtedly know, when James Bollen (the elder) died circa 1683, there were certain court proceedings concerning his estate. His children James and Anna, being minors, chose two guardians. The records do not include any guardianship for George, so presumably he was no longer a minor at the time of his father’s death. IF we assume that the age of majority in the 1680s was 18, then James and Anna would both have been born after 1665, and this is consistent with other information about their dates of marriage, their life spans, etc. The necessary inference is that George was born before 1665.
We also know that James Bollen (the elder) left England in 1664 with a military contingent headed by Richard Nichols and sailed to New England. After meeting with certain colonial representatives of Massachusetts and Connecticut, Nichols sailed on to New Amsterdam and, in the name of King Charles II and the king’s younger brother, James, Duke of York (who was the future King James II), forced the surrender of the Dutch and renamed the place New York. My own personal hypothesis (even less than a theory), is that James Bollen’s wife and son George (and any other unknown children?) joined him in North America in 1665, perhaps arriving with Philip Carteret???
The implication/inference here is that George was at least conceived (if not born) before James left England in Spring 1664. Therefore, George was very likely born in or before January 1665 (and thus was indeed an adult of 18 years by the time of the court proceedings following his father’s death in 1683).
Why did James and Anna not choose their older brother as their guardian? My own belief is that he was not physically present in NJ on a regular basis and was therefore not suitable. His irregular presence could be accounted for by his working as a mariner, and thus often at sea and only occasionally in port.
In the days of sailing ships, sailors learned on the job. Cabin boys (as young as 10 or 12?) were like “apprentices” and might be taught something of reading, writing, navigating, the math necessary for keeping the bells to tell time, plotting the course, shooting the stars, etc. George might have gone to sea as a cabin boy as early as 1675, and so might not have been in the Woodbridge, NJ area to care for his younger siblings.
In 2007, I have also found the two following websites.
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=pnoble66&id=I41409
Source: Watson's Annals of Philadelphia And Pennsylvania, Vol II, Chapt er 4 (1857), excerpt http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/pa/philadelphia/areahistory/watson020 8.txt (Retrieved 8 Apr 2003] Contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by EVC.
Capt. William Kidd, Pirate
10 September 1696
Articles of agreement between Capt. William Kidd, commander of the good ship Adventure, and John Walker, Quartermaster. Subscribed and agreed to by the ship's company:
Starboard Watch
Robert Bradinham
George Bollen
[Many more names of other members of the crew; I have added the bold emphasis]
http://www.piratesinfo.com/mysql/phorum/read.php?7,58156
Re: Pirate Facts
Posted by: Foxe (Moderator)
Date: 01 September 2005, 06:00PM
Do you mean a list of the ranks and positions that make up a crew or a list of names of people in a particular crew?
If the former then I'd recommend looking at this thread or this site
If you mean the lists of crew men on various ships then I don't know of any site with a definitive collection, but I think we can probably list a few if we put our minds to it.
Kidd's crew on the Adventure Galley (from Expedition Whydah)
William Kidd, Captain
George Bollen, Mate
Henry Mead, Sailing Master
William Beck, Quartermaster
John Walker, Quartermaster
Robert Bradinham, Surgeon
Armand Viola, Surgeon's Mate
William Moore, Gunner
Archibald Buchanan, Gunner's Mate
Michael Calloway, Boatswain
Abel Owen, Cook
Robert Lamley, Cook's Boy
Richard Barleycorne, Captain's Boy
William Jenkins, Mate's Boy
Samuel Bradley, (Captain's Brother-in-Law)
John Finley
John Torksey
Alexander Gordon
George Sinclair
Joseph Palmer
John Wier
[Many more names; I have added the bold for emphasis]
I then did some research on William Kidd and I found the following (I have edited it to focus on the specifics that I believe are relevant).
“Kidd was born into a reputable family in Greenock, Scotland. . . . As a young man he chose to head out to sea, and bounced around freely from ship to ship for three decades. After war broke out between England and France, he showed courage and a bit of lucky timing in winning a French ship and saving English troops from destruction. With his newfound prestige, he finally settled in New York in 1691, at age 45 or 46. There he married [and] . . . had two daughters . . . During this time, Kidd was respected as an honest, hard-working ship captain. He befriended many prominent colonial citizens, including three governors.
“Later that year, on orders from the province of New York, Massachusetts, he captured an enemy privateer on the New England coast. Shortly thereafter, Kidd was awarded GBP150 for successful privateering in the Caribbean.
“On December 11 [1695], [Richard Coote, Earl of Bellomont], who was now governing New York, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire, asked the "trusty and well beloved Captain Kidd" (Hamilton, 1961) to attack Thomas Tew, John Ireland, Thomas Wake, William Maze, and all others who associated themselves with pirates, along with any enemy French ships. This preceded the voyage which established his reputation as a pirate, and cemented his image in history and folklore.
“Four-fifths of the cost for the venture was paid for by noble lords, who were amongst the most powerful men in England; the Earl of Orford, The Baron of Romney, the Duke of Shrewsbury and Sir John Somers. According to Henry Gilbert writing in The Book of Pirates, Kidd's backers were rumored to include King William himself. In fact, according to a time-honored practice, the King would receive a tenth share of everything captured. Kidd and an acquaintance, Colonel Robert Livingston, who orchestrated the whole thing, paid for the rest. Kidd had to sell his ship the Antigua to raise funds.
“The new ship, the Adventure Galley, was well suited to the task of catching pirates; weighing over 284 tons, it was equipped with 34 cannons, oars, and 150 men. The oars were a key advantage as it would enable him to maneuver in a battle when the winds had calmed and other ships were floating free. Kidd took pride in personally selecting the crew, choosing only those he deemed to be the best and most loyal officers. Unfortunately, soon after setting sail he was stopped by the HMS Duchess, whose captain pressed much of Kidd's crew for service in the navy, despite rampant protestation. [I wonder if the British Navy captain would have impressed mostly the lower-level crew, i.e., the common sailors, or if he would have impressed someone as high as Kidd’s first mate?? George Bollen might have been with Kidd and avoided the impressments???] To make up for the lack of officers, Kidd was sent replacement crew, the vast majority of whom were known and hardened criminals, some undoubtedly former pirates. [Another source says that he went to New York and hired a replacement crew there; whether they were “hardened criminals” deserves further investigation.]
“In September 1696, Kidd set sail again. [The “Agreement” signed by the crew, dated September 10, 1696, undoubtedly relates to this voyage, and so George Bollen was a ship “officer” (first mate). From another source I found the following concerning another member of Captain Kidd’s crew: “Jenkins, William (English) (c.1696) - age 14, apprenticed to chief mate, George Bollen”.] However, more bad luck struck, and a third of his crew soon perished due to the uncontrolled spread of cholera. To make matters worse, the brand-new ship developed many leaks. According to Gilbert, after taking a single French ship (which was legal under his commission) on the first leg of his voyage, he proceeded eastward to Madagascar but was not able to find pirates to take in that vicinity. Kidd then sailed to the Malabar Coast. During this time Kidd never attacked a single richly-laden Indian ship that passed before him, and probably was not yet pirate at the time. However, as it became obvious his ambitious enterprise was failing he became understandably desperate to cover its costs. But, once again, Kidd failed to attack several ships when given a chance, including a Dutchman and New York privateer. Some of the crew deserted Kidd the next time the Adventure Galley anchored offshore, and those who decided to stay behind made constant open-threats of mutiny.
“. . . on October 30, 1697. An argument developed between Kidd and his gunner William Moore, a strong follower of the mutinous crew. While Moore was on deck sharpening a chisel, Kidd called him a lousy dog. Moore retorted, "If I am a lousy dog, you have made me so; you have brought me to ruin and many more." After an exchange of strong words, Kidd snatched up and heaved an ironbound bucket at Moore. Moore fell to the deck with a fractured skull and died the following day. (Cordingly 1995).”
My interpretation is that the George Bollen who was first mate or chief mate was likely an experienced sailor (surely Kidd would not have hired a first mate who was young and inexperienced???). If this George Bollen had been sailing on ships for at least 10 years before 1696, and was at least 25 years old, then he would likely have been born in or before 1671. This is consistent with my estimate that George Bollen, brother of James and Anna, was born before 1665. Furthermore, in 1692, James’s and Anna’s brother George was a mariner in NYC, so he may have known Kidd (who settled there in 1691) and might have been his first mate even before 1696.
George Bollen may have been one of the people who died of cholera on that fateful voyage. Or perhaps he survived the disease and was part of the mutinous conduct off the coast of Africa. Or perhaps he was still alive at the time Kidd killed a crewman. Further research might reveal some of the subsequent history of this George Bollen. At any rate, IF George did not marry, and did not return to NJ or NY, then he might not have left any descendants, and, indeed, I am not aware of any other Bollens floating around colonial New Jersey at that time.
So did James and Anna Bollen have a brother George who sailed with Captain Kidd on “The Adventure” in 1696? I believe so, but if anyone has further information, please share.
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