Cornelis arrived in 1638 as Supercargo on the ship Arms of Norway.   

1642- He had a  a grant to settle Staten Island, in March of 1642 and has been called the Patroon of Staten Island, where his holdings there included a whisky distillery and farms.   

1643- His patroonship was destroyed in Kieft's War 1643-1645.

1655 And was again almost burned to the ground in 1655 in the Peach War.

 1659- On June 13, 1659 he surrendered his claim to Staten Island to the DWIC.   

A colorful character, at one point he chaired the Council of Eight, he was arrested twice and exiled for 7 years  by Petrus Stuyvesant.   in 1647 he famously survived the wreck of the Princess Amelia  that drowned both Willem Kieft and Everardus Bogardus on their way to settle a dispute in Amsterdam.   (As did his friend Jochim Kuyter.)

Eventually he left New Amsterdam and moved his family to New Haven.

Use the TIMELINE button to see many documents relating to his life.

Additional reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelis_Melyn