Henricus Boelen II (May 5, 1697 – August 27, 1755) was a noted American

silversmith A silversmith is a metalworker who crafts objects from silver. The terms ''silversmith'' and ''goldsmith'' are not exact synonyms, as the techniques, training, history, and guilds are (or were, at least) largely the same but differed in that t ...

active in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Boelen was born in

, the son and apprentice of Dutch immigrant silversmith, Jacob Boelen I, who willed his business to Henricus in 1729. He became a freeman in 1718, married Jannetje Waldron on June 19, 1718, and served as master to his own son, Jacob Boelen II, around 1746. Boelen's pieces are collected in major museums, including the

Brooklyn Museum The Brooklyn Museum is an art museum in the New York City borough (New York City), borough of Brooklyn. At , the museum is New York City's second largest and contains an art collection with around 500,000 objects. Located near the Prospect Heig ...

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

museum, and

Winterthur Museum Winterthur Museum, Garden and Library is an American estate and museum in Winterthur, Delaware. Winterthur houses one of the richest collections of Americana in the United States. The museum and estate were the home of Henry Francis du Pont ...

References

* ''American silver at Winterthur'', Ian M. G. Quimby, Dianne Johnson, Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum, 1995, page 196. * ''American Silver of the XVII & XVIII Centuries: A Study Based on the Clearwater Collection'', Alphonso Trumpbour Clearwater, Clara Louise Avery, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1920, page xxxix. * ''Remembrance of Patria: Dutch Arts and Culture in Colonial America, 1609-1776'', Roderic H. Blackburn, Ruth Piwonka, SUNY Press, 1988, page 278.
Ancestry.com entry
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boelen, Henricus 1697 births 1755 deaths American silversmiths Artists from New York City 18th-century American artisans