My 9th Great Grandfather. The Du Treux family were from northeast France (present day Belgium), French speaking, who became Protestants. At the time was under Spanish rule, was marked by bloodshed, repression and wide-spread loss of life. Many of the Du Treux family fled. Some found sanctuary in England and a large family group went, in exile, to the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, which had recently declared its independence from Spain, the Du Treuxes and other families settled in Amsterdam. As skilled artisans, they found employment, assistance, civil and religious freedoms. Among these was Philippe Du Trieux, born ca. 1586 at Roubaix in what is now France. By 1614, Philippe Du Treux was a skilled craftsman in Amsterdam, serving as a dyer. In 1615, in the Church of old Amsterdam, he married Jacquemine Noiret, from Lille, France. In 1620, Jacquemine died, leaving Philippe with three small children Marie, Philippe Jr., and Madeline, who died in infancy. In the meantime, the West India Company was being established to develop international commerce and to serve as a military arm of the Netherlands. A brisk fur trade had developed in the Hudson Valley region of America, and in 1623 the West India Company made the decision to occupy the land between the Delaware Valley and the Connecticut River with permanent settlers. Philippe and his family, along with 29 other families, entered into a contract with the West India Company to relocate to America. Philippe and his family wife Susanna and children Marie and Philippe Jr. departed the Netherlands at the beginning of April 1624 on the ship "New Netherland" and arrived at present day New York in mid-May. He and fellow emigrants came as free men and were granted freedom in all religious matters. They settled in Manhattan. There, Philippe and Susanna's family continued to expand four daughters and three sons. He became an employee of the West India Company and served until his death as the Court Messenger by Director Kieft in 1638. He received patent for lands in 'Smits Valley' in 1640. He owned a home on Beaver Street, near the Fort, which he sold in 1643, having acquired a sizable farm along the East River in 1640. This first landholding on American soil today is the site of many Commercial ventures. The land is located near the southern tip of Manhattan. It is on the shore south of the Brooklyn Bridge. Nearby Battery Park, there rests a beautiful monument erected in 1924 to honor the emigrants of the ship "New Netherlands. Donated by the people in Belgium, the tercentennial observance was supported by the leadership of four nations: Belgium, the Netherlands, France and the United States. Emigrant Philippe Du Treux is much of record under the Dutch on early Manhattan Island. Philippe and his eldest son, Philippe Jr., were killed in 1652.