Dear Listers, Is anyone researching the family of John Emans of Gravesend? He was married to Sarah Antonise Van Salle. Some secondary sources list John as having both a brother and a son named Abraham but these two Abrahams often appear to be confused and/or conflated. The confusion seems to go back to 1881 and Bergen's Register in which he makes both John and Abraham the sons of Andries Iman who appears on a ship's list in 1661, arriving at New Amsterdam. Bergen gives no references or documentation for this assignment. There are two sources which seem to support Bergen's claim of an earlier Abraham. One is in Styles (History of Kings Co, 1884, 1:170) and Stockwell (History of Gravesend, 1884, p. 15). However, closer examination proves that these are the same single source. Not just that they both make use of the same passage. Further examination of the sources reveal that not only are the passages the same, the pages are identical: identical type, page layout, page content. Closer study shows that the paper which was used by Styles is his History of Kings Co was written by Stockwell. Thus it develops that there really is only source, published in two different volumes. The passage is dated 25 March 1678 and concerns a Gravesend town meeting in which an Abraham Emans makes a request concerning the placement of a new highway. Obviously this passage could not be a reference to a son of John Emans and Sarah Antonise as that son is estimated to have been born in 1670. Recently in my work with the Gravesend records, I came across the exact same passage. Gravesend Records. Town Records-No. 1 (Copies) 1666-. Transcription by John L. Voorhies. New York Municipal Archives Microfilm Roll No. 62, Item 3010, p. 516: March 25, 1698. It was proposed in a legal meeting, & in presence of Justice Nicholas Stillwell, unto ye inhabitants and freeholders of our town by Abraham Emans, wether ye sd Abraham might engage & take unto his lott the General highway going down to the mill. And he ye sd Abraham allowing to the town a sufficient highway at the east side of his lott and more convenient to the town which was consented unto by the pluralitie of ye freeholders. (Text from Copies 1. Original is at Book 3, p. 88 and is almost unreadable.) Abraham Emans suggested changes in a highway on or near his land at a town meeting in Gravesend in 1698, not 1678. This is what is important...make this correction and there is now no evidence of an earlier Abraham Emans who may have been the son of the mysterious fellow called "Andries Imans". It is just speculation to think that this is the source of the idea, because Bergen had published the wrong information in 1881, but the Styles and Stockwell passages certainly would have given credibility to the idea for later researchers. That credibility is now removed and it can be said that there is no evidence for an earlier Abraham Emans and thus no supposed brother for John Emans. There is only the son of John Emans and his wife, Sarah Antonise. I hope this will help some of you straighten out possible problems with your databases. Renee L. Dauven Renee L. Dauven