BROOME, LATOURETTE, AND MERCEREAU FAMILIES OF NEW YORK AND CONNECTICUT
17th to 19th Centuries
by
Book Details
About the Book
Broome, LaTourette, and Mercereau Families of New York and Connecticut
If you have a connection to Staten Island, New York, you probably have a connection to these families. The LaTourette and Mercereau families came separately to Staten Island from France in the late 17th century. They were French Huguenots who left France for religious freedom and were among the small number of early settlers on Staten Island. There were a lot of intermarriages between the LaTourette and Mercereau families and with the other Staten Island families, such as Broome, Chadrayne, Corsen, Doucinet, Lake, Poillon, and Vanderbilt. Later generations went further afield, though not very far – to Manhattan Island (New York City), Long Island, upstate New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut – to include Barnard, Chetwood, Fay, Gould, Jarvis, LaGrange, Phelps, Platt, and Smith. And still later, they included other families in other states.
This book tells the stories of these early American settlers and their descendants. Even if you don’t know of a connection to Staten Island, you may find a connection to a later descendant. And you will learn about early difficulties and successes of these pioneers.
About the Author
Letitia Broome Schwarz grew up in New Jersey and worked in New York City. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree, summa cum laude, in history. Her interest in history, particularly in the 18th century, has continued to the present time. Extensive traveling in the eastern coastal states from Maine to Virginia has enabled her to visit many historic sites multiple times. Her interest in family history started as a young adult and developed into years of research. Barbara Broome Semans enjoys problem-solving – she has a B.S. degree in math. So it was only natural that her interest was aroused by her sister’s research. Barbara’s interest developed into many years of extensive family-history research and travel to most of the places discussed in this book.