Peter Jay, Sr.

The only son and fourth child of Auguste and Anna Jay. At 18 he was sent from NYC to Bristol, England for four years to be educated while living with his aunt (Francois Jay Peloquin).

In 1728 he married Mary Van Cortland, daughter of Stephanus Van Cortland. They lived in NYC and Peter worked successfully as a merchant. Eight children were born from the marriage, but only 5 survived. A NYC smallpox epidemic in the 1740s left one child dead and two were blinded.

To escape the smallpox epidemic and care for their children; Peter bought a farm in Rye (1745) and the family moved there. Peter retired from business and spent his life in Rye improving the farm and became a scientific horticulturalist.

At the time of the Revolutionary War, Rye became "no man's land" so the remaining family moved to Fishkill and lived with Peter & Mary's youngest son Frederick.

Peter & Mary remained in Fishkill after the War and died there. It is thought they were interred in the vault of Gysbert Schenk, Esq. In 1807, their remains were moved from Fishkill to the East Meadow of the Rye farm (owned by their blind son Peter) along with other family remains from NYC and a single vault stone was placed at the spot.

In 1815 this meadow was deeded as a Cemetery Trust for all the descendants of Peter & Mary Jay and their husbands/wives/widows. In 1906 the cemetery was incorporated under NY law as a Private Family Cemetery and remains as such.