Notes |
- Gérard died in August 1654, in the Netherlands. According to J. W. De Forest (1900, 55, 186), the probate records of The Hague indicate that the estate of Gérard de Forest, widower of Hester de la Grange, was partitioned on 7 June 1656. His heirs are listed as Crispin des Forest, Sara des Forest, widow of Barent von de Kaskelen, and David de Toit, husband of Hester des Forest. They are dividing an estate valued at 15,325 florins. J. W. De Forest does not mention Gereyt as one of the heirs. Nor does he discuss any outstanding sums owned by Van Rennsselaer to Gérard or any properties at Fort Orange. It seems unlikely that Gérard still held any property interests in the New Netherlands at the time of is death. It is possible that Van Rennsselaer may have already settled accounts with Gérard long before 1654. In fact, it might be that Gérard still owed Van Rennsselaer money since E. De Forest (1914, 1:78) reports that Gérard had trouble paying his share. Abbé Forest (1977, 30) points out that the records for Fort Orange were destroyed in a fire in 1911. Thus, we cannot verify in original documents if Gérard had any active interest in the settlement around 1657. Furthermore, we do not known if Crispin was dead in 1657 when Gereyt supposedly migrated to the New Netherlands to claim an inheritance he would have received through his father's death.
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