My name is Matthew Gajkowski and I am the volunteer administrator of the Croesen Surname Project. The project is for all who wish to work together to identify the relations of various Croesen-surname families through DNA testing of the Y chromosome. The Croesen suname has many variations, possibly originating from: 1) croes(e), Middle Dutch for a “crock”, and hence a seller of pottery, 2) croes, Middle Dutch for “curly”, and hence someone having curly hair, or 3) kruis or kruisen, Dutch for “cross” or “to cross”. All variant spellings of Croesen are welcome. If your surname spelling is missing from the list above, I'll be glad to add it. Surnames included The Croesen DNA Project are: Croes, Croesen, Cruise, Crusan, Crusen, Cruser, Cruzan, Cruzen, Krewson, Kroes, Kroesen, Krusen, Kruser If you do not see your surname variant spelling, just ask and I will add it to the list. Surnames, like the Y chromosome, are passed down from father to son in each generation. Whereas sometimes the “paper trail” of the family is not recorded or erroneous, specific “marker” mutations on the Y chromosome are assuredly present in each male descendant. It is through testing of these markers that we wish to trace back family history. Note that a female descendant named Croesen does not carry the Y chromosome and cannot have their own DNA tested for this project; they must recruit a Croesen-named male relative to undergo the test on their behalf. The test itself consists of collecting cells by swabbing the inside of your cheek with a simple brush. FamilyTreeDNA will mail you a kit, you will swab your cheek three times and mail the kit back. A lab will report a number of certain “markers” on the Y chromosome. The results will be reported to both you and this project. There is a choice as to how many “markers” are tested and reported. We recommend the 37-marker test. This will give us enough information to link people together accurately. The 67-marker test may be needed in some cases especially to link specific branches of the Croesen tree. FamilyTreeDNA has given us a little discount for our testing. 25 Marker Y-DNA* test $124 + postage 25 to 37 Marker Upgrade $49 25 to 67 Marker Upgrade $148 37 Marker Y-DNA* test $149 + postage 37 to 67 Marker Upgrade $99 67 Marker Y-DNA* test $239 + postage FamilyTreeDNA will archive your DNA for 25 years in case you decide to upgrade the number of markers in the future. A test of the Y chromosome is specifically designed only for genealogical purposes. Your privacy is protected at all times and no medical information is tested. Test results will only be reported via the number assigned to the kit and the name of your earliest known male ancestor. To begin participating in this project, click on the REQUEST TO JOIN THIS GROUP tab and review the options. If in addition, you would like to donate in order to offset the cost of testing for someone else, please click here. You may specify if you would like the money to go toward having a specific person tested, a specific last name Croesen, Cruise, Crusan, etc. or a specific line. I will keep group members and anyone donating money to the general fund well informed about the status of the project via e-mail. Again, I am a volunteer and collect no fees myself. Please feel free to contact me with any questions. What is currently known about the heads of some of the American branches: 1. Garret Dicksen Kroesen, 1637?-1680, sailed to America around 1660 from Wynschotten, Netherlands. He is the ancestor of many Kroesens (and various spellings) within the U.S, and quite possibly *all* of them. His descendants were first in Staten Island, and then Bucks County Pennsylvania. 2. Garret Crusan, 1755?-1838, appears first in a Westmoreland County Pennsylvania record in 1786. 3. Benjamin Cruzan, 1758?-1848, with short stays in various places in Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, eventually settled in the Marshall County area of Indiana. It is believed that these three families are related, and moreover, there are significant conjectures as to specifically how they are related. We seek to test (prove or disprove) these conjectures through Y-DNA testing of the present-day male descendants. There are also conjectures as to the history of this surname prior to the 1600's. Many in the families have stories that the family had originated in France, before migrating to the Netherlands. We will attempt also to connect the European history of these families, notably families with similar surnames in the southern and western portions of France.