Penelope Stout

Penelope Prince and her husband Richard Stout were among the original settlers of Middletown, colonial New Jersey's second English settlement, in 1664.  As “Penelope Van Prince” (Van Princes, Van Princis), she is the central figure in a popular legend that claims she survived a ship stranding and deadly Lenape attack. Penelope Prince: Legend and History There are two known historical records for Penelope Prince Stout. The first is from Gravesend on what was then Dutch Long Island. On 12 September 1648, “Pennellope Prince” was questioned after she accused one neighbor of milking another's cow. She "acknowledged her fault" and apologized, satisfying "both sides." The second record dates to the Stouts’ years in Middletown, New Jersey. On 26 February 1679-80, “Richard and Penelope Stout” sold an orchard, acreage, house, and barn for £66-5-3.” Nearly twenty different accounts of Penelope Prince Stout's early life and arrival in the American colonies have been published since 1765. They share in common the claims that she survived a ship stranding (or shipwreck) and a Lenape attack. However, no primary sources have been found to verify any element of the story. There is no known record of her birth, emigration, marriage to anyone other than Stout, or death. Nor is there a record of a ship stranding or wreck that plausibly fits Prince’s presence in New Netherland by 1643-4, when she married Stout. Published accounts of the legend include obvious historical errors and conflicting information.