Ots-Toch / Owasto'k (Snowbird)

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Although early documents record Cornelis Antonissen Van Slyck‘s birth in Europe, he seems more likely to have born in the New World. The son of a Dutch immigrant and a woman of either Iroquoian or Algonquian speaking peoples, or both. This has been explored in various genealogical and historical studies for over a century. Several scholars support this interpretation, drawing on the evidence outlined below, and in “Broer Cornelis” (c. 1604–1676): Peacemaker of Early New York.

Like Ots-Toch, Cornelis lived in Kanatsiohareke and worked as an interpreter and envoy between the Kanienʼkehá꞉ka (Mohawk) and the Dutch. He was also fluent in Mahican (see "History of Schenectady Patent" above). His nickname, "Broer Cornelis" ("Brother Cornelis"), suggests a close relationship or kinship ties with Kanienʼkehá꞉ka. Such roles and titles were often reserved for individuals with familial ties to the community.[1] 

Cornelis's father is documented as Antonis (or Anthoni) Cornelissen Van Slyck, a Dutch settler from Breuckelen (Brooklyn). However, there is no surviving Dutch or church record naming Antonis’s wife—Cornelis’s mother. This omission was common when the mother was Native American, as such unions were often informal (not church-sanctioned) and not documented in Dutch ecclesiastical records.[1]

Cornelis held land in Caughnawaga—formerly Mohawk territory and now part of Montgomery County, New York. Today, the Caughnawaga Indian Village Site is recognized as a state archaeological landmark. His access to and control over land within Native territory suggests maternal kinship ties to the Mohawk, as land rights in Mohawk society were often matrilineal and required tribal approval. [2] Additionally, Cornelis held land at Cohoes, near the old Mohawk castle at the mouth of the Mohawk River, reportedly a gift from the Mohawks. Such gifts were indications of kinship and the esteem in which he was held.

Historians and genealogists have examined Cornelis's heritage. Jonathan Pearson's Contributions for the Genealogies of the First Settlers of the Ancient County of Albany acknowledges the Native ancestry through the maternal line, although without naming the mother. Pearson notes that Cornelis, known as "Broer Cornelis," married a Mohawk woman and had several children with her. Further, genealogical studies, such as those by Lorine McGinnis Schulze, discuss Cornelis's integration within Mohawk society and again his marriage to Ots-Toch.[3]

Pearson's genealogical work, published in 1872, documents early settlers of Albany, New York. In his entries on the Van Slyck family, he notes Cornelis's close associations with the Mohawk people but does not explicitly state his mother's heritage. The absence of maternal information, common in cases of Native ancestry due to informal unions and lack of church records, leaves room for interpretation. 

In The Iroquois, Dean R. Snow provides a comprehensive account of the Iroquois nations, including the Mohawks. While the book does not offer Cornelis Van Slyck's maternal lineage, it does offer context on the integration of individuals like Cornelis into Mohawk society, which support theories of maternal connections. 

Schulze's genealogical compilation focuses on Cornelis Van Slyck and his Mohawk wife, Ots-Toch. While the primary emphasis is on Ots-Toch, the work provides context on Cornelis's integration into Mohawk society, which may imply maternal connections. 

Genealogist John F. Brock has conducted studies on the Van Slyck family, supporting interpretations of Native maternal ancestry for Cornelis. 

[1] Schenectady History

[2] The Library of Congress

[3] Olivetree Genealogy

The circumstantial and contextual evidence supports the view that Cornelissen Van Slyck's mother was Mohawk (possibly Mahican). Her identity was likely unrecorded due to Dutch colonial biases and the informal nature of many early Dutch–Native unions. The combination of Cornelis's roles within the Mohawk community, the lack of maternal records, and land holdings strongly suggest a maternal Native American heritage. Much more about both Ots-Toch and Broer Cornelis>