John Frelinghuysen (1727 – September 5, 1754) also known as Johannes Frelinghuysen was a minister in colonial New Jersey whose work in education laid the groundwork for the establishment

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

(as ''Queen's College'' in 1766) and the

New Brunswick Theological Seminary New Brunswick Theological Seminary is a seminary of the Reformed Church in America (RCA), a mainline Protestant denomination in Canada and the United States that follows the theological tradition and Christian practice of John Calvin. It was fo ...

(in 1784).

Biography

John Frelinghuysen was the second son of

Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen (born Theodor Jakob Frelinghaus, – ) was a German-American Dutch Reformed minister, theologian and the progenitor of the Frelinghuysen family in the United States of America. Frelinghuysen is most remember ...

(1691–1749), a German who had lived for a short time in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...

before emigrating in 1720. John married Dinah Van Bergh (1725–1807), and they had two children: Eva Frelinghuysen (1751 – ), Frederick Frelinghuysen (1753–1804), who became a major general in the

American Revolution The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...

. John preached in the revivalistic style of Calvinism that his father was known for as part of the

First Great Awakening The First Great Awakening, sometimes Great Awakening or the Evangelical Revival, was a series of Christian revivals that swept Britain and its thirteen North American colonies in the 1730s and 1740s. The revival movement permanently affected Pro ...

. He continued to serve the parishes in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

that his father had served at Raritan, Millstone, and North Branch. John lived in the

Old Dutch Parsonage The Old Dutch Parsonage is a historic house built in 1751, moved about 1913 and now located at 65 Washington Place, in the borough of Somerville in Somerset County, New Jersey, United States. It was added to the National Register of Historic Pla ...

Somerville Somerville may refer to: Places Australia *Somerville, Victoria, a town **Somerville railway station * Somerville, Western Australia, a suburb of Kalgoorlie, Australia New Zealand * Somerville, New Zealand, a suburb of Manukau City, New Zea ...

where he served the three local congregations until his death. He took in students and a room in the house served as a

Dutch Reformed The Dutch Reformed Church (, , abbreviated NHK ) was the largest Christian denomination in the Netherlands from the onset of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century until 1930. It was the traditional denomination of the Dutch royal fami ...

religious seminary. This center of education was a forerunner of the

and Queen's College, which later developed into

.The Founding of Queen's College
From "Seminary of Learning" to Public Research University: A Historical Sketch of Rutgers University, by Thomas J. Frusciano, University Archivist, Rutgers University Libraries. Retrieved February 6, 2012.
, Raritan Public Library. Retrieved February 6, 2012. John died on September 5, 1754, and was buried at the Old Somerville Cemetery.

Children

John married Dinah VanBerg and had the following children: * Eva Frelinghuysen (1751 – ), who married Casparus Van Nostrand *

Frederick Frelinghuysen (1753–1804) Frederick Frelinghuysen (April 13, 1753April 13, 1804) was an American lawyer, soldier, and senator from New Jersey. A graduate of the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), Frederick went on to become an officer during the American ...

, major general who was buried in Weston, New Jersey.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Frelinghuysen, John 1727 births 1754 deaths 18th-century Calvinist and Reformed ministers

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

People from Somerville, New Jersey American people of Dutch descent Reformed Church in America ministers People from colonial New Jersey American people of German descent 18th-century American clergy