Document: Petition of Johanna de Laet, widow of Johan de Hulter

[To the noble, worshipful, their honors the director general and councilors of New Netherland. [i]

Shows with due reverence Johanna de Hulter, widow of the late Johan de Hulter, that her, the petitioner’s, deceased husband, petitioned your honors on the 5th of November] 1654 for a patent [ in proper shape ] for the land, which he had [ bought ] with the consent [ of your honors ] from the naturellen, who declared themselves to be the lawful [ owners of the same ], and paid for with merchandise, whereupon your honors were pleased to resolve and to order that the bill of sale and conveyance should be exhibited to your honors and properly have recorded when a patent in the usual form would be issued and granted, as may be seen in greater detail by the register of your honors’ resolutions of the aforesaid date. As since then the Lord has taken out of the world the husband of your honors’ petitioner, leaving her as an afflicted widow with four fatherless children in this vale of tears, she is now compelled to turn to your honors with the humble petition that your honors will please to favor her with patents for the lands bought by her deceased husband with the knowledge and consent of your honors, so that your honors’ petitioner and her minor children may still have some hope to reap evenings and mornings some advantage of the great and excessive expenses and trouble that her late husband has had with it in rather an excessive manner. The bill of sale and conveyance, requested by your honors, are hereto annexed and I respectfully request that, after they have been recorded, they may be returned to your honors’ petitioner, which doing etc. signed, Johanna de Laet.