Tomys Swartwout

Thomas or Tomys Swartwout (June 1, 1607 in Groningen[1] – October 1679, in Amsterdam)[2] was one of the earliest importers of tobacco from New Netherland to western and northern Europe, one of earliest settlers of New Netherland (present day United States), and a founder of Midwood (originally Midwout), Brooklyn, New York.

In April 1655, Stuyvesant and the Council of New Netherland appointed Swartwout a schepen (magistrate),[4] to serve with Snedeker and Adriaen Hegeman as the Court of Midwout.

[5] Being one of the original settlers, Swartwout was granted letters-patent by the Council of New Netherland, Director-General Stuyvesant, and the Dutch West India Company of 116 acres on April 13, 1655.

[4] Swartwout was one of the nineteen signers of the "Humble Remonstrance and Petition of the Colonies and Villages of this New Netherland Province" sent to Stuyvesant on December 11, 1653, an important early document in the campaign for democracy in America.

[3] Following Adriaen Van Der Donck's Remonstrance of 1650 about governance of the colony, the document signed by Swartwout set out discontents about Stuyvesant's authoritarian method of personally selecting, rather than electing, the council.