Notes for JOHN W VAN VELSOR:
Son of William and Martha (Losee) Van Velsor, Jr.
Born: November 28, 1767 in Oyster Bay, Nassau County, Long Island, New York.
Alternate Year of Birth: 1765.
Died: November 17, 1834 in Woodbury, Nassau County, Long Island, New York.
Buried: December, 1834 in Old Velsor Cemetery (Stillwell-Van Velsor Lane Burial Grounds), Cold Spring Harbor, Suffolk County, Long Island, New York.
Married: (1) Hannah Williams About 1785 in Oyster Bay Baptist Church, Oyster Bay Township, Nassau County, Long Island, New York.
(2) Marion ? About 1810 in Unknown.
John Van Velsor and Thomas Stillwell built Still-Van Velsor Lane. Another file states that John Van Velsor was born about 1770 and that his mother was Margaret Scnedacore (Family Search Compact Disc #11 Pin #311155 submitted by James W. Valentine 1824 South Wardson Street, Spokane, Washington 99212.) The first cnesus of the United States taken in the year 1790, State of New York, "John Velsor" is listed as head of household. Living with him were two free white males under 16 (presumably his sons); and his wife. In 1790, John W. Van Velsor would have been 23 years old.
An article was written by Ned Pains in the December 11, 1933 issue of the "Nassau Island News" regarding the Stillwell-Van Velsor Road, which contains the Van Velsor Family Burial Grounds:
"FORGETTEN ROAD DISCOVERED, IS PUT IN USE AGAIN: NASSAU IDLE GIVEN JOBS RECONDITIONING IT"
Abandoned, nearly forgotten for half its 200 years existence, the old Van Velsor-Stillwell road has recently been repaired by work relief labor and the gates that barred its entrance removed.
Hardly more than a mile long, the road, formerly known as 'The Lane", runs rather pointlessly now between the west side of the Syosset Cold Spring Road and the north side of the county highway between Cold Spring and Woodbury.
It was built by John Van Velsor and Thomas Stillwell so long ago that 84 year old William Velsor, great-grandson of the road-builder, does not remember having heard anyone say when it was built. He guesses 200 years ago. The road served to connect the farms of Van Velsor and Stillwell at either end.
No Map Filed
Supervisor Harry Tappen says that there never was any filed map of the road, which was true in many cases of the wagon paths cleared across farm lands for convenience of transportation without any anticipation of later developments into traffic-ridden highways.
About 1850, Velsor says, the Long Island Railroad built a spur line from Syosset to Huntington, and part of it was built along the roadbed of his great-grandfather's line. The railroad line, however, was never used to any great extent and soon abandoned. Some time later the road was rebuilt, this time on top of the railroad bed. The embankment, in some places as high as 60 feet, is still plainly visible, coming out of the woods to join the road then disappearing off toward Huntington at the road's conclusion.