Author: Alan Wenzel
The Van Cleave (Van Cleef – Van Cleve) family progenitor was an early immigrant to New Amsterdam, arriving in 1653. By 1900 the family had spread from throughout the original colonies into nearly every state of the United States and many Provinces of Canada.

Aaron Van Cleave was baptized as Aert (named for his mother’s father) on July 26, 1711, at the Staten Island Dutch Reformed Church, Richmond County, New York, the third son and sixth child out of eleven known children of Isabrandt Van Cleef and Jannetje Aertse Vanderbilt.

He was married on September 24, 1734, at Middleton, Monmouth County, New Jersey, to Rachel Schenck, born in 1709 at Holmdel (Baptized on February 19, 1709, at the Freehold Dutch Reformed Church, Monmouth County, New Jersey), the daughter of Jan Roelofse Schenck and Sara Willemse Van Couwenhoven. Aaron and Rachel had six known children: John (1739-1812), Benjamin (1741-1819), William (1743-1787), Aaron (1745-1813), Ralph (1747-1798), and Jane (1749-1829), who married Daniel Boone’s brother Squire Boone Junior. All six children with their families moved to Kentucky with the Boone brothers.

Aert changed the spelling and pronunciation of his forename from Aert to the Anglicized Aaron, and the family surname from the Dutch Van Cleef to the Anglicized Germanic Van Cleave, the English for the German spelling of Cleve. Aaron’s brother Benjamin, and his descendants, used the German surname spelling of Van Cleve. Other brothers and their descendants continued to use the Dutch spelling of Van Cleef, which is the Dutch for Cleve. Other spellings include Van Clief (the German for the Dutch), and Van Cleaf (the English for the Dutch).

Aaron was living at New Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey from at least 1737 until at least 1745. On October 16, 1737 he was appointed Chimney Inspector. A man having this position made sure chimneys were free of fire causing soot.

During the early 1740’s Aaron was a coastal ships captain in partnership with his younger brother Benjamin, whose direct descendants include, among other luminaries, the Wright brothers. Aaron was Master of the 35-ton sloop Tiverton. There are several newspaper entries in the Boston Weekly News-Letter and the New York Weekly Post-Boy mentioning Aaron sailing into and out of ports. On June 27, 1744, as Ship’s Master, Aaron Van Cleave paid a port tax at Newport, Rhode Island for entering and docking his sloop. A sloop of 35-tons is a large variety and would have more sails and probably a crew of 6-8 men. Aaron and Benjamin terminated their shipping business due to skepticism over a security debt, to which they had to pay, causing the sale of the business and reduction of their wealth.

In 1748 and 1750 he is listed as living in Freehold, Monmouth County, New Jersey.

In the early 1750’s Aaron moved his family to the Forks of the Yadkin River in Rowan County, North Carolina. The first record of Aaron in North Carolina is a statement in the Minutes of October 13, 1755, in which he is named as one of 15 armed men who on June 23, 1755 threatened a surveying crew, driving them away from finishing their survey.

On January 13, 1756 he acted as a guide for a minister traveling by boat down the Pee Dee River.

On May 2, 1763 he purchased 766 acres located near Jersey Baptist Church in Rowan (now Davidson) County from Henry McCulloh, the original owner. Aaron mortgaged this land on December 7, 1763. On February 21, 1764 he purchased 640 acres of the Earl of Grandville Tract from the famous woodsman Daniel Boone and his wife Rebecca, located on the east side of Bear Creek, near the Forks of the Yadkin River in St. Luke Parish, Rowan (now Davie) County. Daniel’s father Squire Boone Senior was the original owner and had sold the land to his son on October 12, 1759.

On January 16, 1768 Aaron was appointed Constable of the lower end of the Forks of the Yadkin River. But on February 15, 1769 he and other Constables were fined for non-appearance in court, and on February 17, 1769 his appointment was rescinded.

He is listed in the 1768 and 1769 North Carolina Tax lists, as living in Rowan County, District of Craig.

He was a juror in the Salisbury court on November 5, 1771.

In the Moravian records of January 31, 1772: “Old South German man named Von Cleft living south Yadkin.”

And in records of 1772-73: “Van Cleft, a Dutchman of 60 years is leader of a group that gather at Dutchman’s Creek Meeting House;” The Heidelberg Evangelical Lutheran Church, located a few miles east of Mocksville.

On July 22, 1779 Aaron served on a Jury swearing allegiance to the rebelling colonies in open defiance of British King George III, which constitutes civil service during the American Revolution.

Aaron transferred his land in 1778 to his son Benjamin. From my research I’m certain Aaron died in 1780 or 1781. His wife Rachel died in 1784 or 1785. These years are calculated from dates their sons John and Benjamin are known to have been in Kentucky and in Rowan County where they were taking care of land deed transfers. During these years four of the five sons (John, Benjamin, Aaron, Ralph) were involved in the transferring between themselves of the land belonging to their father Aaron before it was eventually sold in 1785. By late 1785 they all are known to have made their move to Kentucky permanent. Aaron Junior and Ralph were the last to leave Rowan County, probably due to their caring for their mother until her death.

Aaron and Rachel are buried in the Heidelberg Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery, located a few miles east of Mocksville, in Davie (old Rowan) County, North Carolina.