Sometime in 1743, Jacobus Vanderveer, the elder, whose grandfather had come to New York from North Holland in 1659, became the first Vanderveer to settle in the Bedminster area. He purchased 439 acres along the North Branch of the Raritan River where he established a homestead and successful grist and saw mills.

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries the Vanderveers were well-known members of the community. Jacobus, the elder, served in several ways. He was Justice of the Peace, an active member of the Dutch Reformed Church and instrumental in forming the church's Bedminster congregation. In 1759, Vanderveer donated land where the church was built north of Pluckemin. Aside from their civic and religious contributions, Vanderveer family members were staunch supporters of the American struggle for independence. Elias Vanderveer, "an active and spirited Whig," was taken prisoner during a British cavalry raid on Pluckemin in 1776. Lawrence Vanderveer served as a surgeon during the war and was also taken prisoner by the British. Jacobus Vanderveer, the younger, is known to have helped supply the army.