Ancestral Photographs of Upstate New York

Tangled Roots and Twisted Branches

LEGG

The following information is taken from my grandmother's book, "Tangled Roots and Twisted Branches" (published 1987), with some minor reformatting for the web. This book is known to contain some errors. If you have any corrections or additions, please contact me.

This family came to the United States from Scotland before the Revolutionary War. I don't have record of the exact date. There were early settlers of this name in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. The first of this branch in this area is 1677 from court records of 7 January 1677, when SUSANNAH MERRITT and THOMAS MATTHYS (Van Keuren) were granted a release from their engagement to marry. The same court gave Sussannah Merrit permission to marry WILLIAM LEGG. The banns were called in the Kingston Dutch Church the following Sunday. Their seven children were all baptized in the same church, when their residence was given as Brabrant, an area just across the creek from Kingston, where Route 28 now goes. It was probably a grandson, John LEGG, who operated a grist mill and saw mill at a place called LEGG'S MILLS in the Lake Katrine area, toward Saugerties. He also had a spoke facory in the same area, and turned out spokes of a superior quality, and one of the first in New York State.
Two other descendants, WILLIAM and SAMUEL LEGG were both merchants at Upper Landing, near Saugerties, after the Revolutionary War. Samuel Legg made a fortune in the manufacture of the well-known "Esopus Whip" which was popular throughout the Hudson Valley. JOHN LEG, JR. and SAMUEL LEGG are listed in the 1st Regiment of Ulster County Militia in the Revolutionary War.
The children of WILLIAM LEGG and Susannah Merritt were:

Sussannah Legg baptized 2 Stpember 1678 Kingston, married 22 September 1698 to Jacob DuBois, born Leyden, France.

WILLIAM LEGG, JR. baptized Kingston, married Geesje / Grace Ploeg (daughter of Hendrick Albertse (PLOEG - surname first used about 1690) and Tryntje Pieters (OSTRANDER)). Tryntje came to this country 1650 from Amsterdam, Holland with her sister Grietje, and brother, Pieter Pietersen, the children of Pieter and Tryntje Pietersen. (They assumed the surname OSTRANDER). Pieter married to Rebecca TRAPHAGEN.
The children of William LEGG and Geesje Ploeg were:

Catrine born Brabrant, baptized Kingston, married 20 September 1733 Teunis Osterhout

William born 7 December 1713 married:

I: Maryte Burhans, his cousin (daughter of Margaret Legg and Johannes Burhans)

William born 1736

Samuel born 1739, married 1760 to Sara DuBois (daughter of Nathaniel DuBois and Sussana Kool)

Marietje LEGG married JOSIAH MYER. (See the MYER section with the rest of this line. This couple are the grandparents of Nancy Van Keuren who married Abram Osterhout -- RT)

Barent born 1740

Gretje / Geesje 1734

Margaret born 1737 married 1761 Henricus Post of Albany

Jan / John 1743

II: Sara DuBois, his cousin (daughter of Sussannah Legg and Jacob DuBois)

Johanna born 1717 Brabrant married 6 September 1735 to Richard Davenport

Henry born 1720

Lea born 1722 married Tobias Wynkoop

Samuel

Sarah baptized 16 June 1686 married Jacob Kool

Jan / John married 21 April 1701 Annetje Fynhout

Samuel 25 March 1688

Maria 6 april 1682 married 1707 John Davenport born Boston; res. Kingston

Margaret baptized 27 January 1684 married

I: Johannes BURHANS. (This couple's descendants also connect to Nancy Van Keuren who married Abram Osterhout -- RT) -- RT)
II: Barent Van Benthuysen, widower of Jannetje Van Wagenen.

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