"Genealogy of the VAN SANT Family", by Grant VAN SANT, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1929: LETTER OF SAMUEL R. VAN SANT The name VAN SANT is variously spelled by different members of the family. Some spell it VAN ZANDT, others VANSANDT, VANSANT and VANZANT. I am quite sure the first settler of that name in this country spelled his name VAN ZANDT, as I understand that is the old Dutch or Holland way. The earliest record of any VAN SANT that I know anything about, was Jacobus VAN ZANDT, who was an early settler in New York, and according to Washington Irving, was one of the purchasers of the Island of Manhattan. He came to this country in 1613, on a vessel called the ""Goede Vrow",", or Good Wife, some three or four years after the return of Hendric HUDSON, the discoverer of the Hudson River. I realize that this may not be absolutely historical, as my authority is a book written by Washington Irving in rather a humorous strain relative to the KNICKERBOCKERS of New York. I am satisfied, however, from research that early in the seventeenth century there were VAN ZANDTSs in New Amsterdam prior to the capture of the city by the British, when the name was changed to New York. I think the name VAN ZANDT was probably changed after said capture, as it was not very popular to have such a Dutch name after their city was ruled by the English; so the name was Anglicized, changing it to VAN SANT or VANSANT. Relative to the spelling of the name, I quote from a book written by my uncle, Nicholas VAN SANT, titled "Sunset Memories". FAMILY NAME "Concerning the family name, VANSANT, there has been no little perplexity. For many years the impression was, that at some time and for some reason to us unknown, the old Holland name, VANZANDT, had been changed by dropping out the D and substituting S for Z; but a careful examination several years ago, satisfied me that this theory was incorrect, and that our long-standing mode of spelling the name agrees more nearly than any other with the original form. Making a search in the county Clerk's office of Richmond county, New York, in 1879, I found a Deed, dated May 2, 1706, the fifth year of the reign of Queen Anne of England, conveying land to Aries JANSEN by Stoffel and Rachel VANSANT, the last name of each of the grantors being spelled as here written, without the Z or the D. The search was made by request of George H. VANZANDT, of Philadelphia, counselor-at-law, who had been giving diligent attention to the subject of his own family pedigree, and incidentally of ours. From him I learned many interesting facts, some of which are given in the following extracts from his correspondence: ''I am engaged in looking up the genealogy of some members of the VANZANDT family---those descended from Stophel VANZANDT, formerly of Port Richmond, Staten Island, who settled there about 1680, and afterward removed to Bucks county, Pa., where for some time he was a Trustee of Bensalem Presbyterian church.......I suppose we have the same common ancestor. We have traced matters back to Staten Island. Rev. Dr. BROWNLEE, of the Reformed Dutch church, of Port Richmond, writes that Stophel VANZANT had his son Stophel baptized October 22, 1701, and his daughter Sophia in 1706; so it appears on the records of the church..' Here we must pause to note this medley of names relating to the same persons__in my correspondent's letter VANZANDT, in the baptismal record VANZANT, but in the Deed of conveyance VANSANT. Do these variations seem strange? Especially, do they invalidate the historical facts related? No one is stupid enough to hold this. These discrepancies in the orthography of proper names, as in hundreds of other things, are constantly occurring. Talk of various readings in the ancient manuscripts of the Bible! Other old writings of renown, reveal even greater variations; but they are not rejected as spurious on this account, nor must the Bible be thrust aside because of its various readings or its apparent discrepancies. was Stophel VANSANT a myth because his name was spelled in several different ways? Not at all, but a veritable man, who lived and moved and had his being at the close of the seventeenth century and beginning of the eighteenth. Doubtless our family name has come to stay; and so we will neither regretfully deplore it nor vainly boast of it, whatever may be its true orthography or its real etymology. I must, however, express a cordial sympathy with my Philadelphia correspondent in his decided preference for the Dutch form of spelling, since our family preference is at least equally decided in favor of the Spanish form. Incidentally, this has sometimes proved an agreeable service, as when, several years since, a son of the writer went to Baltimore, Md., an almost total stranger, to engage in mercantile business. One of the old and honored residents of that city was Joshus VANSANT, who once or oftener had served as mayor, and who for many years had held the office of city comptroller, in which, by his proverbial economy, carefulness, and honesty, he had won the odd but honorable sobriquet, "watchdog of the city treasury'". The young stranger, bearing his exact family name, though not at all related, soon found an answer to the question, "What's in a name?" for his own had become so well and favorably known in business circles through that long-trusted citizen as to become substantially helpful to him in winning an honest success." I know very little about my great grandfather, John VAN SANT, but from all that I can learn, I am satisfied that he was descended from Stophel VANZANDT who left New York and settled in Bucks county, Penn, on the Delaware River above Philadelphia. My reason for this is that I was so informed by my grandfather, Nicholas VAN SANT when I visited him in 1865. I wrote, at the time, a history of the family, getting all the data I could from my grandfather. He said that his father had often spoken about cousins in Bucks county. As the VAN SANTs were shipbuilders, he learned that trade from them on the Delaware and later came to New Jersey, where he entered the shipbuilding business. It was said of him that he could build a ship, rig her, and sail her to any port in the world. He was in this business when the Revolutionary War started. During that war, he built privateers for the Continental Government. One of these he commanded. The prizes captured were brought to a harbor in New Jersey known as Chestnut Neck, and the provisions and army supplies intended for the English were distributed to Washington's Army, The activity of these privateers became so exasperating and so destructive to British commerce, that an expedition was sent against Chestnut Neck, consisting of both land and sea forces A battle was fought and the Americans were defeated, and my ancestor's vessel amongst others, was burned. The town was never rebuilt. I have seen a monument erected at Chestnut Neck to the memory of the heroes who lost their lives defending this point, (The fortifications at Chestnut Neck were erected by Major WESTCOTT, referred to herein). The vessel owned and commanded by my great grandfather with others was burned, and some one hundred and ten years afterwards my father, at low tide, sawed off a piece of timber under water as far as he could, and made a gavel which he presented to my son, Grant, from the wreck, This we prize very highly. For his services he was paid in continental money, which was valueless, so after the war he was poorer by reason of this fact.