The Kuykendall Name

The origin of the Kuykendall name is Dutch. Genealogists such as Dr. George Benson Kuykendall, author of ``History of the Kuykendall Family'' (1919), have traced the name to an area near Wageningen overlooking the Rhine river.

Drawing from sources such as the Archives of the State of New York, the Holland Society, and records from 17th century Holland, Dr. Kuykendall explains that the name Kuykendall was not used as a surname in the modern sense until our Dutch ancestors had been in this country over fifty years. During the 17th century in Holland, only people of great prominence or social position used the family name as we do today; instead, they preferred the father's given name with the suffix ``sen'' attached. For example, our ancestor who immigrated from Holland to Fort Orange, New York, was called Jacob Luursen because his father was named Luur. Consequently, the name of Jacob's son was written as Luur Jacobsen in Dutch Reform Church records in 1650. More

Kuykendall Descendants

Jacob Luurson

Jacob, our first ancestor in America, was born in or near Waginengen, Holland, the son of Luur (last name unknown). He married Stynje Douwes in Amsterdam on August 28, 1638; Stynje was from Enkhuisen, Holland, born in January 1617, the daughter of Douwe Wiggersz and Agniete Coensen. I have included a copy of Stynje's baptismal record and their marriage intentions from archives in Amsterdam. A 1662 fire in the town hall of Wageningen prevents us from finding any older records on Jacob Luursen or his family. .. More

Luur Jacobson

Born in Fort Orange, New Netherlands, on May 29, 1650, Luur grew up as the colony was being firmly established on the banks of the Hudson River. His early years were spent in Esopus County (now Kingston, New York) and Rochester, especially after the death of his father Jacob in 1655 and Luur's mother Stynje was married to Claes Teunissen in 1657/8. The area was being rapidly populated by Protestant Dutch who established the Dutch Reform Church in 1642 and built the first school the year Luur was born. ... More

Abraham Kuykendall

The most fascinating account is that of Abraham, whose life spans the colonial, revolutionary, and frontier eras of the United States. Even more intriguing are the mystery of a pot of buried gold and tales of Abraham's ghost still said to haunt a creek called Pheasant Branch near Flat Rock, North Carolina. Born in Deerpark and baptized on October 18, 1719, Abraham moved to the Minisink area with his parents, then south into Pennsylvania, then down into western North Carolina through the famous Cumberland Gap. He married his first wife, Elizabeth, about 1743 and fathered eleven children between 1755 and 1792. ... More