THE SERENDIPITY OF FATE (January 2016)
Before I begin, I need to remind you that Mary Ann Crane was Harry Durland’s grandmother and therein lies the story of this message. One of our earliest ancestors on this American soil was Jasper Crane, and eleven generations later one of Jasper’s great grandsons followed in his footsteps. But I’m getting ahead of my story.
There is much to write about Jasper. He was an illustrious ancestor and there is a long record of his public life which shows him to be a well respected leader of the communities of which he owned property in New Haven, Branford, and Newark. A more historical perspective on Jasper can be found in the Know Your Roots issue of Volume VII Issue 2 of April 2002 but suffice it to say, Jasper and his family all became well respected leaders in Newark, New Jersey. His private life is obscure but his public life was very open. He was a sober, industrious, and devout Puritan and that was the reason for him to break away from New Haven and Branford and settle in the place that he opened up, which eventually became Newark, New Jersey.
During his life there, Jasper and his large family of nine children and their descendants became active in all of the town offices and it is said that for more than a century one can find the name of a Crane in the history of the town commissions. For example, in 1754 there were seven positions available and Cranes were elected to six of them. Also in 1759 the town elected Cranes to eight of the available offices.
Meanwhile during these years a new college was founded in l746 at Elizabeth, New Jersey. It was the educational and religious capital of the Scotch Irish. (We have Scotch Irish ancestors too, but not in New Jersey.) This college eventually became Princeton and its charter reads, “for the Education of Youth in the Learned Languages and in the Liberal Arts and Sciences.” It moved to Newark in the fall of 1747 and then to its present location nine years later, and then changed its name to Princeton in 1896. It has since become one of the most prestigious universities in the United States. During the American Revolution when New Jersey was a battleground, it survived occupation by soldiers from both sides and after our Independence continued to flourish.
Princeton continues to provide undergraduate and graduate instruction in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. Throughout its history, it has been known to world-renowned scholars, scientists, writers, and statesmen, including two U.S. presidents. It has been associated with 41 Nobel laureates and has many more accolades too numerous to mention.
To those memorable graduates, I add one of our very own carrying on the tradition of the Cranes in Newark, Dr. Daniel H. Larkin, an eleventh generation great grandson of Jasper Crane who has just received his PhD in Computer Science from Princeton and to whom I dedicate this message.
There is much to write about Jasper. He was an illustrious ancestor and there is a long record of his public life which shows him to be a well respected leader of the communities of which he owned property in New Haven, Branford, and Newark. A more historical perspective on Jasper can be found in the Know Your Roots issue of Volume VII Issue 2 of April 2002 but suffice it to say, Jasper and his family all became well respected leaders in Newark, New Jersey. His private life is obscure but his public life was very open. He was a sober, industrious, and devout Puritan and that was the reason for him to break away from New Haven and Branford and settle in the place that he opened up, which eventually became Newark, New Jersey.
During his life there, Jasper and his large family of nine children and their descendants became active in all of the town offices and it is said that for more than a century one can find the name of a Crane in the history of the town commissions. For example, in 1754 there were seven positions available and Cranes were elected to six of them. Also in 1759 the town elected Cranes to eight of the available offices.
Meanwhile during these years a new college was founded in l746 at Elizabeth, New Jersey. It was the educational and religious capital of the Scotch Irish. (We have Scotch Irish ancestors too, but not in New Jersey.) This college eventually became Princeton and its charter reads, “for the Education of Youth in the Learned Languages and in the Liberal Arts and Sciences.” It moved to Newark in the fall of 1747 and then to its present location nine years later, and then changed its name to Princeton in 1896. It has since become one of the most prestigious universities in the United States. During the American Revolution when New Jersey was a battleground, it survived occupation by soldiers from both sides and after our Independence continued to flourish.
Princeton continues to provide undergraduate and graduate instruction in the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and engineering. Throughout its history, it has been known to world-renowned scholars, scientists, writers, and statesmen, including two U.S. presidents. It has been associated with 41 Nobel laureates and has many more accolades too numerous to mention.
To those memorable graduates, I add one of our very own carrying on the tradition of the Cranes in Newark, Dr. Daniel H. Larkin, an eleventh generation great grandson of Jasper Crane who has just received his PhD in Computer Science from Princeton and to whom I dedicate this message.