Jacob Leisler Papers Project

02/20/2026

A recent query to the Jacob Leisler Institute relating to a possible relationship between New Netherland Domine Johannes Theodorus Polhemus/Polhemius (1598-1676) and Jacob Leisler took me back to my research in the 1990s resulting in an article published in the Van Voorhees NIEUWSBRIEF (Winter/Spring 1999), p. 3ff. My theory at that time was based primarily on research done in the 1920s by genealogist Louis P. DeBoer. An excellent analysis of that article is found on rootsweb:
https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~bodine/genealogy/n14900.html

My subsequent in-depth research into a possible connection of Polhemus and Leisler revealed that contemporary documents showed that THERE IS NONE! Unfortunately, by that time my interests had shifted to other topics and I did not write a follow-up essay. Nonetheless, I am surprised to discover that many current genealogies show this connection, although more likely derived from DeBoer’s work rather than my 1999 article. I would like to make it clear, however, that A FAMILIAL CONNECTION TO THE POLHEMUS FAMILY IS NOWHERE TO BE FOUND IN THE EXTENSIVE LEISLER FAMILY PAPERS.

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12/11/2025

Thank you for those who listened to the New York Historical "Live From New Amsterdam" podcast with Russell Shorto. I was overwhelmed when asked which book I would recommend, as several works came to mind. However, the work I meant to say was David Lovejoy, "The Glorious Revolution in America" (1972). An interesting comparison is in volume one of William Smith's "History of New York" (1757), which focuses on the Indigenous nations during this period. No work has yet appeared using all the materials available at the Jacob Leisler Institute.

12/04/2025

https://www.nyhistory.org/programs/live-from-new-amsterdam-jacob-leislers-new-york?date=2025-12-11

Explore the world o New York merchant Jacob Leisler, who led a rebellion against King James in New Amsterdam.

11/03/2025

As we continue to collect and edit the papers of Jacob Leisler's father, Frankfurt French Reformed minister Jacob Victorian Leisler, we come across numerous family connections to the Reformed communities throughout Europe, and particularly in Amsterdam. Why these connections have been overlooked will be discussed in another post. But here is an example.

Susanne Adelheid Wissenbach's mother, Jacob Leisler's maternal grandmother Catherine Aubert, was a member of the family of Aubert, Syndics of Geneva, Switzerland. Pierre Aubert, first cousin of Leisler's grandmother Catherine, wed Jael Goulart, daughter of Simon Goulart, the most influential Reformed theologian after John Calvin. Jael’s brother Simon was minister of the Amsterdam French church and her sister Anne married Timothy Poterat, minister of the Frankfurt am Main French congregation, the position that the Rev. Jacob Victorian Leisler was called to fill after Poterat’s death.

09/14/2025

Jennifer Playstead is interested in putting together a Summer 2026 SHEARS conference panel about the Dutch-New Yorker "Founding Fathers." For those interested please contact her at Jennifer Playstead

05/13/2025

09/10/2024

This thought-provoking Philipse Manor Hall YouTube program, originally presented in April 2023, enriches our understanding of British New Netherland. I highly recommend it.

Colonial New York City was the location for two large scale insurrections and conspiracies planned and enacted by the city’s sizable enslaved community. Not surprisingly, enslaved individuals of the Philipse family played a part in both plots. Join historian and Philipse Manor Hall’s Site Direct...

08/24/2024

Opening night of Jacob Leisler Institute's exhibition, "Becoming a New People: New Netherland Under British Rule, 1664-1773" at Circle 46 Gallery, 46 Green Street, Hudson NY. The exhibition is open to the public on Thursdays through Saturdays eleven to three, and by appointment on all other days except Sundays, until September 29.

08/18/2024

https://www.facebook.com/stories/195954255198235/UzpfSVNDOjExNDM0MTkzMzM0MjUyMjM=/?view_single=1

07/08/2024

https://www.youtube.com/...

For those unable to attend in person or by Zoom our Jacob Leisler Institute lectures, the last two lectures are now available on our YouTube Channel thanks to Institute administrator Dylan Jenks.

April 25: Owen Stanwood, "A French Fabulist in Leisler's New York:The Extraordinary Adventures of Mathieu Sagean." A fascinating tale of Leisler's New York administration being retold in the south of France is definitely worth listening to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aMdMni7nUQI

June 27: Toya Dubin, "Impressions of a New World: Jacob Leisler, Nicasius de Sille, and the Promised Eden of 1660s New Amsterdam." A visual and informative delight in the ongoing process of recreating a 3-D Virtual view of New Amsterdam in 1660. I highly recommend watching it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lQQfkR98Cvo&t=1018s

We thank the Hudson Area Library, the Van D**e Family Foundation, the Hudson River Bank and Trust Foundation, and the Bank of Greene County Charitable Foundation, as well as numerous private donors, for making these lectures possible.

A virtual lecture from Toya Dubin, hosted by the Jacob Leisler Institute, Hudson Area Library, and with support from the Columbia County Libraries Associatio...

05/25/2024

On Thursday, June 27, 6-7:30pm, the Jacob Leisler Institute for the Study of Early New York History, in collaboration with the Hudson Area Library and the Columbia County Libraries Association, hosts a presentation by Toya Dubin about New Amsterdam at the time of Jacob Leisler’s presence in the settlement. Her presentation includes an introduction to the 3D map of New Amsterdam in 1660 and the stories behind the work to maintain historical accuracy in this model. The event will be held virtually via Zoom.

To register: https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_mvFEIxo-SW-hTyXBM3ePsQ

This presentation is the third in a series of Leisler Lectures for 2024.