The Wayne family are mentioned in the early records of Yorkshire and Derbyshire, England, where for centuries they held position among the lesser gentry. These old Waynes bore the Christian names of Anthony, Gabriel and Francis, and many of them were soldiers by profession, some of them in the "War of the Roses," and mostly upon the side of their king. Among them was Captain Gabriel Wayne, apparently a near kinsman of Captain Anthony Wayne, the founder of the Waynes in America. The family in England bore arms: "Gules a chevron ermine between three inside gauntlets or." Anthony Wayne was born near the border line of Yorkshire and Derbyshire in the year 1666. He early became a soldier, and while yet a lad saw service in the low countries, it is said, under John Churchill, later the great Duke of Marlborough. He was with the English army in Ireland, and commanded a troop of horse at the "Boyne Water," in company with his lifelong friend, John Hunter, both of whom later settled down as farmers in county Wicklow, one having married a French woman, the other a native of Holland. Anthony Wayne settled near Rathdrum, Wicklow, Ireland, after 1690. His wife was named Faulkner, and he had seven sons, five of whom came to America. Anthony Wayne and family landed near Boston, Massachusetts, in 1723, and almost immediately proceeded to Pennsylvania, where they settled in Chester county. Here he found his old companion-in-arms, John Hunter, who had settled there in 1722. He purchased land at Easttown, Chester county, and is described in the deed as "Anthony Wayne, gentleman." Captain Anthony Wayne died in Easttown, December 2, 1739, and was buried in old St. David's, Radnor, where he was a vestryman and pewholder. Children: Francis, Gabriel, Isaac, Humphrey, Jacob, William, John, Sarah, Ann and Mary. The home Captain Anthony Wayne founded in Chester county was called Waynesborough, and is yet the home of descendants.
(II) Isaac, third son of Captain Anthony Wayne, was born in Ireland, and died in Chester county, Pennsylvania. He was a captain in the colonial wars, 1755, and is said to have been at Braddock's defeat. He served with honor all through his military career, and died on the eve of the American revolution, leaving a son whose brilliant record, covering the entire period of the war, and extending from the frozen Canada's to the tropic Florida, fills some of the most important pages of the history of our country.
(III) Anthony (2), son of Isaac Wayne, and known as "Mad" Anthony Wayne, the hero of everywhere, was brigadier-general in 1777; major-general by brevet, 1783-92; nominated by Washington as commander-in-chief of the army, which position he held until his death, near Erie, Pennsylvania, December 15, 1796. The Wayne family, of New Scotland, Albany county, New York, herein recorded, were planted in that county by Anthony Wayne, a grandson of Captain Anthony, the American founder. He was a cousin of General Anthony Wayne, and was of the third generation of Waynes in America, and one of the early settlers in the town of New Scotland, the date of his settlement being during, or immediately after, the revolution. He was an active patriot, and did not fall one whit behind his illustrious relative in devotion to the colonial cause. New Scotland then had few inhabitants, and among the loyal ones were William McCullock, Anthony Wayne, John Furbeck, John Wands, Robert Hilton, Albert Bradt, and the La Grange family. He married and had issue.
(IV) George, son of Anthony (2) Wayne, was born on the home farm in New Scotland, Albany county, New York, December 8, 1779, died May 10, 1837. He spent his life as a farmer of the town, prospered, and was a man of influence. He married, January 27, 1805, Elizabeth Coughtry, born August 17, 1783, died October 11, 1842. Children:
- Anthony, born January 19, 1806, died August 14, 1877; married, September 22, 1842, Mrs. Elizabeth Fuller.
- James, August 12, 1808, died March 28, 1873; married, September 12, 1833, Judith Russell.
- John Haswell, see forward.
- Sarah Ann, September 12, 1813, died April 18, 1848; married, March 26, 1834, George W. Bender.
- William, June 19, 1816, died April 13, 1892; married, December 28, 1843, Mary Cook.
- Elizabeth, December 30, 1818, died May 25, 1868; married, November 23, 1842, William H. Slingerland, who died in 1910, an honored citizen of the village of Slingerlands.
- Jane, November 16, 1821, died March 22, 1902; became the second wife of her brother-in-law, George W. Bender.
- Adaline, July 9, 1824, died July 25, 1869; married George M. Blodgett.
- Susanna, July 22, 1826, died October 2, 1828.
(V) John Haswell, son of George and Elizabeth (Coughtry) Wayne, was born in the town of New Scotland, Albany county, New York, January 12, 1811, died February 20, 1893, on the farm which had been his home for fifty-six years. He was a man of high character and purest purpose, and he commanded the respect of the community of which he was for so long a most prominent figure. He was a member of the Presbyterian church, and a Republican in politics after the formation of that party. He married Catherine Stanton, born in Coeymans, Albany county, New York, October 19, 1823, died in New Scotland, same county, December 17, 1887. She was a devout Presbyterian, and reared her family of five in conformity with the tenets of that faith. Children:
- George, born August 10, 1846; after three attempts he succeeded in eluding the vigilance of his parents, ran away to camp, and enlisted (being only eighteen years old) in the Union army; he saw some active service, sickened and died in the hospital at Washington, District of Columbia.
- Helen, August 23, 1848, died February 27, 1871; unmarried.
- James, see forward.
- Sarah Ann, born September 4, 1852, died August 16, 1861.
- Mary Jane, October 8, 1856, died August 19, 1861.
(VI) James, son of John Haswell and Catherine (Stanton) Wayne, was born in the village of Slingerlands, Albany county, New York, September 6, 1850, died in New Scotland, same county, May 23, 1910. He received a good education, and was a high-minded, public-spirited citizen. He was a leading farmer and stock raiser of the county, and was officially connected with the Albany County Agricultural Association. His farm, well stocked and beautifully situated, was noted for its fine orchards and well-kept, highly-cultivated condition. He was an active man in politics, but never worked for his own private advancement, and never accepted office. He was liberal and helpful, always lending the hand of assistance to those in misfortune. He attended the Presbyterian church, and was a Republican in politics. He married, December 23, 1875, in New Scotland, Alice, born December 9, 1856, daughter of David (2) and Lucretia (Reamer) Bradt, and granddaughter of David (1) Bradt, of New Scotland, a farmer, member of the Dutch Reformed church, and a Republican. He married ———— Winne, a member of the old Dutch Winne family, so prominent in Albany county annals. David (2) Bradt was born in Knox, Albany county, New York, in 1818, and died in 1902. He married Lucretia Reamer, born June 25, 1830. Still lives in Voorheesville, and is very smart for her eighty years. These families date from the earlier Dutch settlement of Albany county. Children of David (2) and Lucretia (Reamer) Bradt:
- Catherine, born October 10, 1850, in the town of Knox, died in the village of Voorheesville, July 29, 1895; married James Goodfellow, who survived her, and who married (second), a widow, Louisa (Hungerford) Taylor, who bore him a child, George.
- Alice, married James Wayne.
Children of Mr. and Mrs. Wayne:
- Jennie W., born January 6, 1877; married Professor Newton J. Ferguson, principal of a Brooklyn, New York, school; child,
- Helen O., born August 23, 1903.
- Bertha, May 30, 1880; married De Forest S. Dunlap, now of Ravena, New York.
- Dorothy C., November 18, 1883; unmarried; prominent in local and church work.
- David H., July 9, 1887; a graduate of Albany Business College; was two years page in the New York state legislature; now department clerk; married Jeane Wayne Bender, a graduate of Albany high school; child,
- James Edward, born October 4, 1909.
- Helen P., May 13, 1891; received a musical education; resides at home.
- Catherine Stanton, February 16, 1895; a student at Albany high school.
Mrs. Alice Bradt Wayne survives her husband, and resides on her beautiful estate in New Scotland with her unmarried children. They are all well known in the social life of the town. Mrs. Wayne attends the Presbyterian church.