James Riker

author

James Riker

1822–1889

Best known for bringing early New York history to life, this 19th-century historian and genealogist wrote with a deep interest in family roots, local records, and the city’s Dutch beginnings.

1 Audiobook

"Evacuation Day", 1783, Its Many Stirring Events With Recollections of Capt. John Van Arsdale, of the Veteran Corps of Artillery, by Whose Efforts on That Day the Enemy Were Circumvented, and the American Flag Successfully Raised on the Battery

"Evacuation Day", 1783, Its Many Stirring Events With Recollections of Capt. John Van Arsdale, of the Veteran Corps of Artillery, by Whose Efforts on That Day the Enemy Were Circumvented, and the American Flag Successfully Raised on the Battery

by James Riker

About the author

Born in New York City in 1822, James Riker became a historian and genealogist whose work focused on colonial New York, old family lines, and the early history of places such as Harlem and Newtown. He left school young to work in his father’s business, but he continued studying history on his own and turned that passion into a lifetime of research and writing.

Riker’s books are still noted for their detailed use of documents, land records, and family histories. Among his best-known works are The Annals of Newtown and Harlem: Its Origin and Early Annals, both shaped by his interest in preserving the stories of early New York communities.

He died in 1889, but his papers and published histories remain valuable to researchers interested in New York’s colonial past, genealogy, and local history.