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BIOGRAPHY OF
THE LAROE (La ROUX) FAMILY.
THE LAROE (La ROUX) FAMILY, still numerous in Bergen County,
are descended from Jaques la Roux, who was born in 1657. Mr.
Riker in his "History of Harlem" says of him: "From
his name and affiliation with the French refugees we conclude
he was himself French, though Vander Vin usually carefully writes
his surname the first two or three times el Roey, and finally
adopts the form of El Roe. As he must have had warrant for this,
probably Jaques was of mixed blood, Spanish and Walloon. He
is always called by Vander Vin 'Jaco,' a juvenile form of his
name used by the Walloons. He was at New Harlem as early as
1673, a young man and unmarried. Probably he had then been here
but a short time. In 1677 he joined the Dutch Church at New
Amsterdam, but early the next year accompanied the Demarest family
to their settlement on the upper Hackensack River. At Hackensack
he married Hendricke Tennis Helling (Helms), and by her had issue
Peter, Henry, Samuel, Samuel, Abraham, and John." On the
decline of the French church at New Bridge, "which he must
have helped to form," says Riker, he joined the church at
Hackensack, April 5, 1696. The same year he, with the emigrant
Lozier and others, purchased of the Indians the "Old Hook,"
patent, containing 1,300 acres on the west side of the Hackensack
in Washington Township. The title to this tract was defective
and was not made good until April, 1704, after his death. He
was known as "Siques La Roux." Upon his death his
children inherited his property, married, and reared large families,
the descendants of whom spread rapidly over Bergen County. They
are still numerous.
Source: Genealogical History of Hudson and Bergen Counties,
New Jersey, Editor, Cornelius Burnham Harvey, The New Jersey
Genealogical Publishing Company, 1900, page 169-170.
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