Pieter Winne was the founder and patriarch of the Winne family of early Albany. He was born in Ghent, Flanders (Belgium) in 1609, the son of Franciscus and Anna Winne. Two decades later, he had married Frieslander Tannetje Adams and they began to raise a family.

He brought that family to New Netherland during the 1650s where he became a tenant in the colony of Rensselaerswyck. His farm was in the southwestern part of the manor called Bethlehem where he also operated a sawmill (probably along the Normanskill). By the end of the decade he also was established in Beverwyck - where he owned a house and became a prominent fur trader. In 1659, he was one of those placed in charge of the Beverwyck "Rattle Watch."

Subsequently, Winne gravitated more to the countryside where he held substantial lands. For several decades, farmer and mill operator Pieter Winne was one of the principal personages of Bethlehem. In 1672, he was appointed a magistrate for Bethlehem. He served until October 1684 when he was replaced. He was also active in the Albany Dutch church - serving in a number of capacities.

He wrote a will in 1677 and another one in July 1684. In the second will, he characterized himself as a magistrate living in Bethlehem and that he was "sick in body but of sound memory and understanding." It named his wife as sole heir during her widowhood. It also identified their twelve living children - whom he made his secondary heirs.

Founder of a large regional family, Pieter Winne lived into his eighties. He died during the early 1690s and his widow remarried in 1693. His descendants were mainline residents of colonial Albany and prominent throughout the region.

first posted: 01/07/02; updated 1/20/18