Knickerbocker, HERMAN JANSEN

Knickerbocker, HERMAN JANSEN, of Friesland, Holland, was one of the earliest settlers of New York. A descendant, Johannes (1749–1827), was an intimate friend of Washington Irving, who immortalised the name by his History of New York by 'Diedrich Knickerbocker' (1809). It has since been used as a generic term for New York families descended from the original Dutch settlers.