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Posts Tagged ‘Yvette Hoitink’

Insight into the Series of Disasters

Posted in Alice Paak DeKorn, DeKorn, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, Kalamazoo late 1800s - early 1900s, Paak, Peek, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 1, 2014| 15 Comments »

Mystery solved!!!!

Yvette Hoitink at Dutch Genealogy has done it again!  She led me to the answer of whose house burned down and when.   I first wrote about this in my post A Series of Disasters.

A newspaper clipping, saved by my family, reported the story of a house fire.  A George Paake of Trimble Street in Kalamazoo, Michigan, lost his house.  He was ill, his wife had recently died, and he had 5 children ages 14 and under at home.  The unidentified paper called their recent lives a “series of disasters.”

I wasn’t sure if this was Teunis Peek, the father of my great-great-grandmother Alice Paak DeKorn (are you confused yet by Paake/Peek/Paak?  I am!!  Oh, and there is Pake, too. They are all the same name . . .) or someone else as I had no idea when the fire took place.

Through Yvette’s research, she was able to determine that George Paake who lost his house was actually Joost, the “missing” son of Teunis and brother of my great-great-grandmother.

His wife Lucy passed away in 1900, leaving 5 young children.  George/Joost was 50 at the time he was left a widower.

With Yvette’s research results, I was able to get a better notion of George who had married a Dutch woman Lucy Kliphouse and had five children with her and was buying the house with a mortgage with the Building and Loan Association.

In Genealogy Bank I had not been able to locate a Kalamazoo Gazette article about the fire, but after Yvette narrowed the fire down to just past 1900, I used the search terms “fire” “Kalamazoo” and “Trimble,” rather than using George’s name.  In that way I did find the Gazette article, which deems Mr. Paake “a worthy man.”

The fire happened on Wednesday, September 3, 1902, and the Gazette reported it the next day.

Within two years (1900-1902) George lost his wife and then his house.

Is it any wonder that in 1906 he married Ester Cook?  Unfortunately, after living in Kalamazoo for one year with George, Ester too passed away.  One more disaster in the series for George (and for Ester).

In 1908 he married Addie Amelia Giffos (probably Gifford) Wilder.  When he married Addie his children were ages 10-20.  I have no idea if this was a love marriage or a marriage of convenience, but it would be understandable that he would have liked some help raising these children.  Also, it appears that Addie had at least a 5-year-old daughter at the time of her marriage to George.

One last comment: if you have family history trails that run back to the Netherlands, you will want to contact Yvette.  She can break down those research barriers you think will never open to you.

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A Familial Occupation

Posted in Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, Lucille Edna Mulder Zuidweg, Michigan history, Mulder, Netherlands history, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 14, 2014| 16 Comments »

When I posted my genealogy to-do list, I asked if you could guess what occupation I found a few of my Mulder relatives engaged in during the 19th century in Holland. I said it was one I have had–and so have my parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.  Emily Ann at Child Out of Time wondered if it was teaching, which was a very good guess, based on our family history, but isn’t correct.

What I am talking about is retail.  My family was engaged in retail business for a long time.  My husband and I owned stores, and so did my parents. My grandfather owned a gas station. His father owned a fish market and a soda shop.

My 3rd great-grandfather, Karel Mulder, was born 21 February 1837 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands. He married Johanna Maria Boes on November 1861, also at Goes. On 27 August 1868, he married Klazina Otte at Goes. He died on 22 April 1881 in Goes.

His parents were Karel Mulder and Rose Melanie Bataille (remember the Bataille family?).  These are the children of Karel and Rose Melanie–namely, Karel and his siblings:

  • Karel Mulder, born 21 February 1837, Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands (Witnesses: Carel Mulder and Adriaan Zuijdweg). On 7 November 1861 he was an apothecary’s assistant in Goes. On 27 August 1868 he was an apothecary’s assistant in Goes. On 22 April 1881 he was a shopkeeper in Goes.Karel died on 22 April 1881.
  • Pieter Philip Mulder was born on 29 August 1838 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
  • Kornelis Mulder was born on 4 September 1840 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.25 He died on 3 June 1887 at the age of 46 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.26 On 3 June 1887 he was a shoemaker in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
  • Melanie Mulder was born on 21 January 1842 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.27 She died on 23 June 1884 at the age of 42 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
  • Johannes Mulder was born on 12 November 1843 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.29 He died on 7 January 1849 at the age of 5 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands. [died at age 5]
  • Andries Mulder was born on 23 January 1846 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands. [shop’s financial partner]
  • Jan Mulder was born on 9 December 1848 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.32 On 22 April 1881 he was a shopkeeper in paint and colonial goods in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.5
  • Johannes Mulder was born on 10 February 1851 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.33 He died on 26 June 1876 at the age of 25 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.34 On 26 June 1876 he was a shoemaker in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.
  • Jacobus Mulder was born on 13 May 1856 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.35 He died on 17 June 1874 at the age of 18 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.36 On 17 June 1874 he was a shopkeeper’s assistant in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.

My 3rd great-grandfather owned a “paint and colonial goods” store.

According to genealogist Yvette Hoitink:

Karel Mulder had a company in paint and colonial goods together with his brother Jan, called the “Gebroeders Mulder [Mulder brothers]”. This company owned a house at the Korte Kerkstraat (property tax registration section D nr. 377). The most important financer of this company was Andries Mulder in Goes, for a total of fl. 4000 (1/3 of the value of the company). This Andries is probably their brother Andries Mulder, son of Karel Mulder and Rose Melanie Bataille.

Here is a map of where the Mulder Brothers shop was located:

That means that at least 3 of the brothers were involved in the paint and colonial goods shop: Karel, Jan, and Andries. Two other brothers are shoemakers, one died at age five, and the professions of Pieter Philip (we don’t have a death date, so I’m not sure if he lived to maturity) and Melanie, the only girl.

Here are some photos taken by Yvette Hoitink of the building at the location of the Mulder Brothers shop. We don’t know if this is the original building or not. The houses adjacent to the building are original.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

What do you imagine a “paint and colonial goods” shop would have sold?

Finally, do you remember (from this blog post) what happened to Karel’s son, my great-great-grandfather Pieter?  He ended up in an orphanage!

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Remember That Relative Who Left for America Ahead of the Others?

Posted in Adriaan Zuijdweg/Adrian Zuidweg Sr., Adrian Zuidweg, Caledonia Michigan history, Cora DeKorn Zuidweg, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, Kalamazoo late 1800s - early 1900s, Lucille Edna Mulder Zuidweg, Michigan history, Mulder, Netherlands history, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 30, 2013| 15 Comments »

I’ve been given a detailed genealogical report by Dutch genealogist Adri van Gessel who I met through this blog. Adri and I have an astonishing connection, which was discovered when Adri happened to read the one post I wrote about my father’s uncle, Frank Klein. I will save the surprise about our connection for a future post!

More recently, Adri read my post about the link between the Mulders and Zuidwegs and has given me some valuable information on the Mulders in Michigan.

In that post, I provided a family tree of sorts to show how my grandparents were related. Carel Mulder (1780 – 1847) married Johanna Cornaaij (1782 – 1863). They had ten children. Grandpa’s great-grandmother Johanna Mulder was the 3rd child. Grandma’s great-great-grandfather was the 7th child.

Child number four, born between my two ancestors, was the only relative from the generation to emigrate from the Netherlands.  My relatives came to the United States one and two generations after him. (On Grandpa’s, the Zuidweg, side, Johannes’ sister’s son emigrated and came to Kalamazoo, Michigan.  On Grandma’s, the Mulder, side, nobody came to the United States for yet another generation, when the grandson of the  7th child of Carel and Johanna emigrated–that was Pieter the Orphan.  What is interesting about this is that a representative of the Mulder family came to Michigan before my ancestors did. And he started his own “dynasty” in the Holland, Michigan area).

This 4th child, Johannes Mulder, was born on 25 October 1809 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands. He was baptized on 6 November 1809 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.

On 10 May 1838 he married Henderika Johanna Hogesteger (born 1810 in Goes), daughter of Marinus Hogesteger and Geertrui Seibel. At this time, Johannes was listed as a bricklayer  (please note the connection there with Richard DeKorn, brickmason).

From this marriage, the following children were born:

From this marriage:

1  Karel Mulder was born on February 16, 1839 at Goes, see II-A.

2  Marinus Mulder was born on September 27, 1840 at Goes, see II-B.

3  N.N. Mulder was stillborn on September 30, 1841 at Goes.

4  Kornelis Mulder was born on December 30, 1842 at Goes, died on 6 January 1843 there.

5  Kornelis Mulder was born on February 27, 1844 at Goes, died on 15 May 1844 there.

6  Leendert Mulder was born on October 11, 1845 at Goes, see II-C.

7  Johannes Mulder (John) was born on October 11, 1850 at Goes, see II-D.

8  N.N. Mulder was stillborn on 29 April 1852 at Goes.

Almost twenty years later after his marriage,  Johannes, who was now working as a laborer in Goes, emigrated in 1857  with his wife and three children. He listed “amelioration of existence” as his reason for emigrating, and that is the reason most of my relatives seem to have given.

As you can see from the bolded names above, there were actually four surviving boys, but the oldest, Karel, appears to have emigrated in 1853. The others must have traveled to Michigan in 1857 with their parents where they settled in Holland, Ottawa, Michigan.

It looks as if Karel Mulder (1839 – 1878), the son of Johannes, actually was the first person in the Mulder family to immigrate to Michigan.  Then the parents and brothers followed him four years later. He would have been 14 years old.

This is an unconfirmed theory, but it makes sense for now with the information I have from Adri and Yvette.800px-Holland_MI_Tulips_01

The following are the descendents of Johannes Mulder (and therefore his father, Carel, the jailor’s hand) who have lived in the United States. If there is too much begetting here for you, skip to the end for my followup comments. My Comments.

Generation II

(from 1839 until 1911)

II-A  Karel Mulder, son of Johannes Mulder (I) and Henderika Johanna Hogesteger, was born on February 16, 1839 at Goes, died before 1878.

Karel was married on October 30, 1866 at Holland (MI) to Tenzina Bosch, daughter of Lubbert Bosch and Elizabeth van Laar. Tenzina was born in 1849 at Vriesland (MI), died in 1920. Tenzina was married on November 22, 1878 at Vriesland (MI) (2) to Nicholas Trompen. Nicholas was born on September 22, 1823, died on March 18, 1901 at Zeeland (MI). Tenzina was married in October 16, 1902 at Zutphen (MI) (3) to John Bouwens, son of Cornelis Bouwens and Maria Pouro. John was born in 1843.

Karel Mulder emigrated to the United Stated in 1853.

From this marriage:

1  Elizabeth Mulder was born on July 28, 1870 at Zeeland (MI), died on January 13, 1941 there.

Elizabeth was married to Gerrit Van Koevering, son of Christopher Van Koevering and Cornelia Dykwel. Gerrit was born on January 3, 1867 at Zeeland (MI), died on February 25, 1942 there.

2  Johanna Hendrika Mulder was born in 1872 at Zeeland (MI), died on September 13, 1872 there.

3  N.N. Mulder was born on December 5, 1873 at Zeeland (MI).

4  Johannes Karel Mulder (John K.) was born on November 14, 1874 at Zeeland (MI), see III-A.

II-B   Marinus Mulder, son of Johannes Mulder (I) and Henderika Johanna Hogesteger, was born on September 27, 1840 at Goes, died on April 4, 1911 at Holland (MI).

Marinus was married on June 5, 1866 to Jansje Scholten, daughter of Riekert Scholten and Trijntje ter Beek (Katherine). Jansje was born on March 3, 1843 at Apeldoorn (Holland), died in 1909.

From this marriage:

1    Johannes Mulder (John) was born on April 28, 1867 at Holland (MI), see III-B.

2    Catherine Mulder (Katie) was born on December 3, 1869 at Holland (MI), died on May 21, 1920 there.

3    Hendrika Johanna Mulder (Reka) was born on August 3, 1871 at Holland (MI), died on December 29, 1939 there.

Hendrika was married on November 28, 1901 at Holland (MI) to Frank Van Ark, son of Gradus Van Ark and Aaltje Oldenhof. Frank was born on March 11, 1870 at Holland (MI), died on January 8, 1937 there.

4    Mary Mulder was born in 1873 at Holland (MI), died on January 30, 1879 there.

5    Rikus Mulder was born on November 10, 1875 at Holland (MI), died on August 30, 1876 there.

6    Jansje Mulder (Jennie) was born on July 25, 1877 at Holland (MI), died on September 26, 1940 there.

Jansje was married on October 8, 1901 at Grand Haven (MI) (1) to Francis E. Fox, son of L.O. Fox and S. Rocket.

Jansje was married on February 6, 1907 at Holland (MI) (2) to Isaac Romein VerSchure, son of Adriaan Verschure and Sarah DeKraker. Isaac was born on March 20, 1866, died on April 12, 1936 at Holland (MI). Isaac was before married on December 24, 1891 at Holland (MI) (1) to Hattie Elizabeth Haven, daughter of Dewitt C. Haven and Lizzie Partridge. Hattie was born in 1874 at Brien Co (OH).

7    Riekus Henry Mulder was born on May 20, 1879 at Holland (MI), see III-C.

8    Karel L. Mulder (Charles) was born on April 9, 1881 at Holland (MI), died on November 11, 1937 at Kalamazoo (MI).

Karel was married on September 19, 1903 at Paw Paw (MI) to Adaell Pelton, daughter of F.S. Pelton and Katherine Colborn. Adaell was born in 1882.

9    Maria Mulder (Mary) was born on April 26, 1883 at Holland (MI), died on October 11, 1935 there.

Maria was married on April 8, 1908 at Holland (MI) to Harry A. Broek, son of Henry Broek and Helen Spanler. Harry was born in 1876.

10  Marinus Mulder (Mack) was born on February 19, 1885, see III-D.

11  Hendrik Mulder (Henry) was born on April 8, 1887 at Holland (MI), see III-E.

12  Leonard C. Mulder was born on May 4, 1889, see III-F.

II-C   Leendert Mulder, son of Johannes Mulder (I) and Henderika Johanna Hogesteger, was born on October 11, 1845 at Goes, died on September 13, 1897 at Holland (MI).

Leendert was married on October 30, 1866 at Holland (MI) to Janke Mulder, daughter of Berend Mulder and Antje Wierda. Janke was born on April 27, 1848 at Ferwerderadeel (Holland), died in 1935 at Holland (MI).

From this marriage:

1    Johanna Hendrika Mulder was born on July 4, 1867 at Holland (MI), died on December 24, 1941 there.

Johanna was married on September 3, 1891 at Holland (MI) to Henry Geerlings, son of Hendrik Geerlings and Dirkje Van Voorst. Henry was born on February 27, 1868 at Holland (MI), died in 1960 there.

2    Antje Mulder was born on February 10, 1869 at Holland (MI), died on August 4, 1869 there.

3    John B. Mulder was born on February 15, 1870 at Holland (MI), see III-G.

4    Benjamin A. Mulder was born in 1871 at Holland (MI), see III-H.

5    Charles Leonard Mulder was born on August 24, 1874 at Holland (MI), see III-I.

6    Antje J. Mulder was born on December 1, 1877 at Holland (MI).

Antje was married on August 7, 1901 at Holland (MI) to old John E. Kuizenga, son of Elder Kuizenga and Johanna K. Soldaat. John was born on December 20, 1876, died on July 8, 1949 at Holland (MI).

7    Helena M. Mulder was born in 1879, died in 1955.

Helena was married on June 6, 1900 at Holland (MI) to Andrew Steketee, son of Andries Steketee (Andrew) and Gertrude Schouten. Andrew was born on December 18, 1879 at Holland (MI), died in May 1970 there.

8    Marguerite B. Mulder was born on November 13, 1882 at Holland (MI), died after 1940.

Marguerite was married on May 31, 1906 at Holland (MI) to Anthony Karreman, son of Arie Karreman and Marguerite Koolmers. Anthony was born in 1881 in Nebraska, died after 1940.

9    Marinus Mulder was born on February 22, 1884 at Holland (MI), see III-J.

10  Jennie Mulder was born on July 18, 1886 at Holland (MI), died on August 5, 1887 there.

11  Leendert Mulder was born on August 1, 1889 at Holland (MI), died on August 2, 1897 there.

II-D  Johannes Mulder (John), son of Johannes Mulder (I) and Henderika Johanna Hogesteger, was born on October 11, 1850 at Goes, died on September 20, 1877 at Holland (MI).

Johannes was married on January 21, 1874 at Holland (MI) to Trijntje Zuidema (Nancy), daughter of Douwe Zuidema and Grietje Nieuwsma. Trijntje was born in 1853 at Lancaster (NY).

Trijntje was married on November 8, 1887 at Holland (MI) (2) to Evert Bos, son of Hinderikus Bos and Martje Dijkstra. Evert was born on October 22, 1845 at Wildervank (Holland) , died before 1910.

From this marriage:

1  Johanna H. Mulder (Jennie) was born on May 12, 1875 at Holland (MI), died on January 22, 1958 at Los Angeles (CA).

Johanna was married on May 17, 1905 at Holland (MI) to Abel Smeenge, son of Geert Smeenge and Isabella Anna Brink. Abel was born on March 18, 1879 at Eelde (Holland), died in 1945.

2  N.N. Mulder was stillborn on June 25, 1877 at Holland (MI).

800px-8thStreetHolland

Holland, Michigan (from Wikipedia)

Generation III

(from 1867 until 1964)

III-A   Johannes Karel Mulder (John K.), son of Karel Mulder (II-A) and Tenzina Bosch, was born on November 14, 1874 at Zeeland (MI), died on January 2, 1949 there. .

Johannes was married on January 11, 1900 at Vriesland (MI) to Johanna Verhage, daughter of Dirk Verhage and Annigje Timmer. Johanna was born on April 17, 1880 at Vriesland (MI), died on December 27, 1943 at Jamestown (MI).

From this marriage:

1  Nicholas Mulder was born on March 14, 1901 at Zeeland (MI), died in 1960.

Nicholas was married after 1940 to Margaret N.N.. Margaret was born on January 28, 1904, died on April 26, 1988.

III-B    Johannes Mulder (John), son of Marinus Mulder (II-B) and Jansje Scholten, was born on April 28, 1867 at Holland (MI).

Johannes was married on November 15, 1890 at Graafschap (MI) to Anna Bouws, daughter of Rikus Johannes Bouws and Zwaantje Diekevers (Susan). Anna was born on August 22, 1867 at Graafschap (MI), died before 1930.

From this marriage:

1  Marinus John Mulder was born on August 22, 1891 at Holland (MI), see IV-A.

2  Janette Mulder was born on August 13, 1893 at Holland (MI).

3  Jennie Mulder was born in 1896.

4  N.N. Mulder was born on November 19, 1899 at Holland (MI), died on November 24, 1899 there.

III-C   Riekus Henry Mulder, son of Marinus Mulder (II-B) and Jansje Scholten, was born on May 20, 1879 at Holland (MI), died in 1961.

Riekus was married on May 19, 1904 at Holland (MI) to Jennie M. Van Spyker, daughter of John van Spyker and Tillie Hunderman. Jennie was born in 1881, died in 1957.

From this marriage:

1  Russell H. Mulder was born in 1904, see IV-B.

2  Junia F. Mulder was born in 1907.

3  Vera M. Mulder was born on September 8, 1909, died in December 1984 at Holland (MI).

Vera was married on April 1, 1933 at Adams Co (IN) to Lester E. Flight, son of Richard Flight and Bertha Simmelink. Lester was born on July 1, 1907.

4  Evelyn E. Mulder was born in 1910.

5  Lillian Mulder was born in 1912.

6  Marian Mulder was born in 1915.

III-D   Marinus Mulder (Mack), son of Marinus Mulder (II-B) and Jansje Scholten, was born on February 19, 1885, died on December 13, 1955 at Benton Harbor (MI).

Marinus was married on June 10, 1908 at Benton Harbor (MI) to Anna Hoffman, daughter of Herman H. Hoffman and Bertha Clemens. Anna was born on August 31, 1882 at Benton Harbor (MI), died on April 12, 1955 there. .

From this marriage:

1  Dorothy M. Mulder was born in 1909.

2  Jack M. Mulder was born on March 8, 1914 at Benton Harbor (MI), see IV-C.

III-E    Hendrik Mulder (Henry), son of Marinus Mulder (II-B) and Jansje Scholten, was born on April 8, 1887 at Holland (MI), died on February 10, 1941 at Grand Haven (MI).

Hendrik was married on July 16, 1921 at Grand Haven (MI) to Della B. Willet, daughter of David B. Willet and Minnie Verny. Della was born in 1899.

From this marriage:

1  Robert L. Mulder was born on November 15, 1922, died in May 1987 at Holland (MI).

2  Charles Henry Mulder was born on September 28, 1925, see IV-D.

III-F    Leonard C. Mulder, son of Marinus Mulder (II-B) and Jansje Scholten, was born on May 4, 1889, died in August 1964.

Leonard was married on April 17, 1922 at Grand Haven (MI) to Blanche B. Lambert, daughter of Silas Oliver Lambert and Rose Marie Gross. Blanche was born in 1898 in Iowa.

Blanche was before married (1) to N.N. Hornbeck.

From this marriage:

1  Leonard Paul Mulder was born on September 12, 1923, died in November 1970.

2  Delzia Mae Mulder was born in 1926.

III-G   John B. Mulder, son of Leendert Mulder (II-C) and Janke Mulder, was born on February 15, 1870 at Holland (MI), died on June 21, 1931 there. .

John was married on January 2, 1890 at Holland (MI) to Myra Arvillia McCance, daughter of Ohio McCance and Roselia Dyer. Myra was born on August 2, 1870 in Fulton Co (OH), died on Friday August 6, 1920 at East Grand Rapids (MI).

From this marriage:

1  Bernice Mulder was born in 1891.

Bernice was married on June 27, 1917 at Holland (MI) to Cornelis Bartel Muste, son of Marinus Muste and Johanna Jonker. Cornelis was born on December 13, 1887 at Zierikzee (Holland).

2  Leon Leonard Mulder was born on August 6, 1892 at Holland (MI), see IV-E.

3  Jeanette Mulder was born on January 7, 1895 at Holland (MI).

4  Esther Rozelia Mulder was born on March 19, 1897 at Holland (MI).

5  Maybelle Mulder was born on April 1, 1899 at Holland (MI), died on June 15, 1931 there.

Maybelle was married to N.N. Huff.

III-H   Benjamin A. Mulder, son of Leendert Mulder (II-C) and Janke Mulder, was born in 1871 at Holland (MI), died on January 1, 1947 at Paw Paw (MI).

Benjamin was married on May 10, 1893 at Holland (MI) to Mary VanLandegend, daughter of John VanLandegend and Anna J. Peyster. Mary was born on September 18, 1871 at Holland (MI), died on June 8, 1946 at Paw Paw (MI).

From this marriage:

1  Lucile Mulder was born on January 18, 1894 at Holland (MI), died in May 1975 there.

2  N.N. Mulder was born on April 13, 1896 at Holland (MI).

3  Ruth Mulder was born on April 13, 1896 at Holland (MI), died on July 13, 1941 at Ann Arbor (MI).

Ruth was married on July 18, 1931 in Cass Co (MI) to Roy C. Beardslee, son of Clark H. Beardslee and Margaret Titus. Roy was born in 1888.

III-I     Charles Leonard Mulder, son of Leendert Mulder (II-C) and Janke Mulder, was born on August 24, 1874 at Holland (MI), died on April 21, 1904 there.

Charles was married on May 1, 1895 at Holland (MI) to Edna Isadore Reeve, daughter of James W. Reeve and Irene Fenn. Edna was born on October 30, 1875 at Gilchins (MI), died on August 22, 1936 at Chicago (IL).

From this marriage:

1  Vivian H. Mulder was born on October 17, 1895 at Holland (MI).

2  Evelyn Mulder was born in 1898.

III-J     Marinus Mulder, son of Leendert Mulder (II-C) and Janke Mulder, was born on February 22, 1884 at Holland (MI), died on December 27, 1950 there.

Marinus was married on June 10, 1915 at Overisel (MI) to Minnie Dora Albers, daughter of John Henry Albers and Gerritdiena Veldhuis (Geraldine). Minnie was born on March 8, 1887, died in February 1971 at Holland (MI).

From this marriage:

1  Dorothy M. Mulder was born in 1918.

Generation IV

(from 1891 until 1987)

IV-A Marinus John Mulder, son of Johannes Mulder (John) (III-B) and Anna Bouws, was born on August 22, 1891 at Holland (MI), died in 1961.

Marinus was married on June 30, 1915 at Graafschap (MI) to Gertrude Tien, daughter of Henry N. Tien and Cornelia Slint. Gertrude was born on November 8, 1890, died in August 1978 at Holland (MI).

From this marriage:

1  John W. Mulder was born on April 16, 1916, see V-A.

2  Kathryn M. Mulder was born in 1917.

Kathryn was married to Paul Harold Steffens, son of Harry Steffens and Anna Douma. Paul was born on February 25, 1916, died on January 18, 1996 at Holland (MI).

3  Anna Ruth Mulder was born on November 14, 1919, died on April 2, 2013 at Holland (MI).

Anna was married to John J. Batema, son of Johannes Batema (John) and Susie N.N.. John was born on April 20, 1916, died on November 11, 1989 at Holland (MI).

4  Harvey Dale Mulder was born in 1921, see V-B.

5  Robert Jay Mulder was born in 1923, see V-C.

6  Paul Melvin Mulder was born in 1924, see V-D.

7  Lois J. Mulder was born in 1927.

IV-B  Russell H. Mulder, son of Riekus Henry Mulder (III-C) and Jennie M. Van Spyker, was born in 1904.

Russell was married before 1930 to Gertrude N.N.. Gertrude was born in 1904.

From this marriage:

1  Sidney Jane Mulder was born in 1932 at Scotia (NY).

2  Donaldyne Mulder was born in 1935 at Scotia (NY).

IV-C Jack M. Mulder, son of Marinus Mulder (Mack) (III-D) and Anna Hoffman, was born on March 8, 1914 at Benton Harbor (MI), died in December 1984.

Jack was married on September 23, 1934 at Berrien Co (MI) to Marie Louise Price, daughter of Hubert Price and N.N. Glendenen. Marie was born on October 6, 1913 at Benton Harbor (MI), died on January 27, 2000.

From this marriage:

1  Jack Mulder was born in 1935.

2  James Raymond Mulder was born in 1938, see V-E.

3  Jerry Jay Mulder was born on July 27, 1941 at Benton Harbor (MI), died on October 17, 1941 there.

IV-D Charles Henry Mulder, son of Hendrik Mulder (Henry) (III-E) and Della B. Willet, was born on September 28, 1925.

Charles was married to Patricia Jane N.N.. Patricia was born in 1930.

From this marriage:

1  Steven Robert Mulder was born in 1956.

IV-E  Leon Leonard Mulder, son of John B. Mulder (III-G) and Myra Arvillia McCance, was born on August 6, 1892 at Holland (MI), died in February 1964.

Leon was married on December 1, 1917 at Grand Rapids (MI) to Laura C. Lindberg, daughter of Charles Lindberg and Johanna Johnson. Laura was born in 1886.

From this marriage:

1  Myra Mulder was born in 1920.

2  John Mulder was born in 1922.

Generation V

(from 1916 until 2013)

V-A       John W. Mulder, son of Marinus John Mulder (IV-A) and Gertrude Tien, was born on April 16, 1916, died on September 29, 2002 at Holland (MI).

John was married to Pauline Nyland, daughter of John Egbert Nyland and Willemina Donkelaar (Minnie). Pauline was born on July 2, 1919 at Holland (MI), died on January 8, 2011 there.

From this marriage:

1  Mary Ann Mulder was born on July 18, 1940 at Holland (MI), died on August 4, 1942 at Laketown (MI).

2  Mary Ann Mulder was born in 1943.

Mary was married to Glen Leon Elders. Glen was born in 1942.

3  Jonathan Mitchell Mulder was born in 1946, see VI-A.

4  Jean N. Mulder was born in 1949.

Jean was married to Ross A. De Witte. Ross was born in 1949.

V-B Harvey Dale Mulder, son of Marinus John Mulder (IV-A) and Gertrude Tien, was born in 1921.

Harvey was married to Kathryn Nellie N.N.. Kathryn was born on April 4, 1925, died on April 21, 2005.

From this marriage:

1  Brian Dale Mulder was born in 1954.

Brian was married to Lillian L. Postigo. Lillian was born in 1956.

V-C Robert Jay Mulder, son of Marinus John Mulder (IV-A) and Gertrude Tien, was born in 1923, died on September 10, 2012.

Robert was married in 1950 to Arlene A. N.N.. Arlene was born in 1924.

From this marriage:

1  Merilyn Mulder was born in 1952, died in 1954 at Holland (MI).

2  Marsha Kay Mulder was born in 1956.

Marsha was married to Dean Calvin Kuipers. Dean was born in 1953.

3  Sally Anne Mulder was born on July 7, 1958, died on September 9, 1965 at Holland (MI).

4  Robert S. Mulder was born in 1963, see VI-B.

V-D       Paul Melvin Mulder, son of Marinus John Mulder (IV-A) and Gertrude Tien, was born in 1924.

Paul was married to Joan Elizabeth N.N.. Joan was born in 1930.

From this marriage:

Donald Martin Mulder was born in 1962.

Donald was married to Susan A. N.N.. Susan was born in 1965.

V-E James Raymond Mulder, son of Jack M. Mulder (IV-C) and Marie Louise Price, was born in 1938.

James was married to Patricia Marie N.N.. Patricia was born in 1945.

From this marriage:

1  Todd Alan Mulder was born in 1970.

2  Scott Robert Mulder was born in 1971.

Generation VI

(from 1940 until 1965)

VI-A Jonathan Mitchell Mulder, son of John W. Mulder (V-A) and Pauline Nyland, was born in 1946.

Jonathan was married (1) to ???Pamela Marie Chappuzeau.

From this marriage:

1  Pamela Mulder was born in 1969.

2  Jonathan Mitchell Mulder was born in 1970.

Jonathan was married on July 3, 1993 at Grand Rapids (MI) to Patricia Ann VanAndel. Patricia was born in 1970.

3  David Vernon Mulder was born in 1973.

David was married to Sara Joan Sytsma. Sara was born in 1974.

Jonathan was married (2) to ???Vicki Lynn N.N.. Vicki was born in 1963.

From this marriage:

4  Matthew D. Mulder was born in 1990.

5  Ellie Mulder was born after 1991.

VI-B  Robert S. Mulder, son of Robert Jay Mulder (V-C) and Arlene A. N.N., was born in 1963.

Robert was married to Ronda R. Brouwer. Ronda was born in 1965.

From this marriage:

1  Rachel Lynn Mulder.

2  Kerri Renae Mulder.

3  Nathan Robert Mulder.

See?

My comments:  I grew up in southwestern Michigan, where so many Dutch immigrants settled. It is fascinating to see the last names of people I went to school with over the years popping up both as my ancestors’ names and the names of people my relatives married.  It makes me wonder what the statistics are for how many of the Dutch in Kalamazoo, Holland, and Grand Rapids are from the same area of Zeeland as my relatives.  How much of the population of Goes was lost to emigration in the 1800s? The rest of Zeeland? And what does “amelioration of existence” REALLY mean?

If you are a Mulder from the Holland, Michigan, area, we have common ancestors. Meet me over at Ancestry.com with your tree . . . .

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Pieter the Orphan

Posted in Caledonia Michigan history, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, Kalamazoo late 1800s - early 1900s, Lucille Edna Mulder Zuidweg, Mulder, Netherlands history, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 23, 2013| 18 Comments »

In the new information from Yvette Hoitink at Dutch Genealogy, I discovered that Grandma’s grandfather was an orphan in Goes.

When you’re the “current descendent” it’s easy to think of all the generations that came before as being unbroken links in the chain of each family name. But the reality is that sometimes the parents died before the children were grown.  That’s what happened to my great-great-grandfather.

Pieter Philippus Mulder was born on October 10, 1865 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.

Records show Pieter living in the city orphanage in Goes on August 2, 1881.  But how did this happen?

City Orphanage, Goes c. 1850 Source: Goes.nl

City Orphanage, Goes
c. 1850 Source: Goes.nl

Pieter’s mother Johanna Maria (Boes) Mulder died on November 19, 1867, when she was 32 years old. Pieter was only a baby at the time.  He had two older brothers and a younger brother. His older sister Rose Melanie had died as a baby. Another baby was stillborn about six weeks before the mother passed away, so it’s highly likely that she died from the complications of labor and childbirth.

At the time of Johanna’s death, Pieter’s father Karel was an apothecary’s assistant.

Karel remarried a woman named Klazina Otte nine months after Johanna died. They had seven children.

When Karel passed away on April 22, 1881, he was part owner of a family store (which I will write about in a future post).  It’s unclear to me what happened to his estate. Would it go to his children? And, if so, to all equally or to the oldest only? Or would it go to the 2nd wife?

Pieter and his siblings were now orphans. In 1881, the oldest child, another Karel, was 19 years old. The second oldest, Izaak, was 18. Their guardian was Krijn Wessels, a shopkeeper in Goes. He was married to their aunt Melanie Mulder.

Pieter and his brother Adrianus, ages 15 and 14, were sent to live at the orphanage.  Yvette thinks it’s likely that the maternal grandfather Isaak Boes (not a resident of Goes, but of Uzendijke, in southern Zeeland), a tailor, was the guardian for the younger boys.

This is how Yvette describes the orphanage:

The city orphanage in Goes, where Pieter Philippus and Adrianus Cornelis Mulder were living, was created during the Eighty Years War (war of independence from Spain, 1568-1648), around 1600. The Reformation, which took place around 1578 in Goes, had left the convents obsolete. The war had left many children orphaned, so around 1600, an orphanage was established in a former convent.

Orphans had to be at least three years old, from parents from Goes, and the child had to have lived in Goes for at least three years, be healthy and potty-trained. Religion was not a requirement, children went to their own churches on Sundays. Most boys were taught a trade, like carpenter, tailor or blacksmith. They would remain in the orphanage until they were 18 years old.2 These age limits also explain why the two oldest brothers did not reside at the orphanage: they had reached the age of 18.

The following are marvelous photographs taken by Yvette Hoitink of the orphanage which still stands today.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

How did what happened to Pieter and his brothers fit into Dutch culture at the time? It sounds right that they had guardians who were not their stepmother, to make sure that they were taken care of properly. How could the stepmother have taken care of the boys as well as her own children? But then it also seems cruel that they were forced out of the home with their half siblings.  And we can only imagine what the conditions at the orphanage were like.

After leaving the orphanage, it’s possible that Pieter fulfilled his military duties, as that was a requirement. Then Pieter worked as a fisherman. At age 19 he married Neeltje Gorsse, who was sixteen years old.  Since they were under the age of 21, they both had to have permission to get married. Neeltje’s parents gave consent, as did Pieter’s maternal grandfather.

My great-grandfather was born six weeks later.  Pieter and Neeltje had another son, Jan, a year later.

In 1887, when Pieter was 21 and working as a shoemaker, the couple emigrated from Kloetinge, where they were living and where their second child Jan was born–and moved to Michigan.

Pieter and his one-year-younger brother Adrianus must have been close from being sent to the orphanage together. Yet, Pieter and his wife moved to Kloetinge not too long after getting married–and then on to America in 1887. Adrianus was left behind in Goes. He worked as a shopkeeper’s assistant.  Unfortunately, Adrianus died on March 15, 1891, when he was just 24 years old. I wish I knew how he died.

Here is a photo of Pieter and Neeltje, living in the United States. At this point, all their children were still at home, although fairly grown, including Charles who was their first-born in Goes and the others who were born in Michigan. Jan, who had immigrated with the family, died while he was still a baby, just after he arrived in the U.S.

Pieter Philippus Mulder and Neeltje (Gorsse) Mulder

Pieter Philippus Mulder and Neeltje (Gorsse) Mulder

I wonder if Grandma knew that her grandfather had been an orphan.  As for me, I was astonished to realize that Great-Grandpa Charles Mulder, a man I knew and loved, was the first-born and the only living one of that generation who had been born in the Netherlands. As I was growing up, it seemed that the family “began” with Great-Grandpa. Yet, as you can see from the photo above, he had parents who had lived their own interesting lives!

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The Links Between the Mulders and the Zuidwegs

Posted in Adriaan Zuijdweg/Adrian Zuidweg Sr., Adrian Zuidweg, Caledonia Michigan history, Cora DeKorn Zuidweg, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, Kalamazoo late 1800s - early 1900s, Lucille Edna Mulder Zuidweg, Mulder, Netherlands history, Zuidweg, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 15, 2013| 13 Comments »

This post starts a new series about my Dutch ancestors, and I need to get a little of the basic information out of the way here.  Please bear with me.

Once again, I have been the recipient of good information from Yvette Hoitink at Dutch Genealogy.  She did further research on the Mulder branch of my family, but because of the “Intriguing Coincidence” I’ve written about earlier, this also meant further research on the Zuidweg branch.

My grandfather (the one of the 12 part story) was a Zuidweg and my grandmother (his wife and the creator of the scrapbook I’ve posted on here) was a Mulder.  And they share a common ancestor: one Carel Mulder from Goes, the Netherlands.

In Yvette’s initial research she discovered this Carel Mulder in the Zuidweg family–an ancestor of my grandfather, Adrian. He was born about 1781.  She found that on 5 May 1836 he was listed as a jailor’s hand in Goes.  He died on 19 May 1847 at the age of 66 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.”  At that point, because I recognized the name I researched and found that this man was an ancestor of my grandmother, Edna.

HERE IS A MODIFIED FAMILY TREE SHOWING HOW THE MULDERS AND ZUIDWEGS ARE CONNECTED THROUGH CAREL MULDER:

MULDERS ARE BOLDED.  ZUIDWEGS ARE ITALICIZED.

 

  • Carel Mulder (1780 – 1847) married Johanna Cornaaij (1782 – 1863)
  • Carel was from Goes (a town in Zeeland) and Johanna was from Middelburg (a town in Zeeland)
  • Carel’s parents were Johannes Mulder and Jacoba Verhoef
  • Carel and Johanna had ten children. One of their children (not my direct ancestor) immigrated to Holland, Michigan, in 1860.

The information for their descendents is in the following image as WordPress wouldn’t allow me to indent as I wished. Click on the image to see a larger version.

So when Adrian Zuidweg and Edna Mulder got married in 1932, they were re-linking the family lines.  The jailor’s hand, Carel Mulder, was Grandpa’s great-great-grandfather.  The jailor’s hand was Grandma’s great-great-great-grandfather.

It also means that Grandpa’s family at one time was a Mulder one, also.

 

I see some areas for further research based on this portion of the family tree.

* Jan Mulder, born not in Goes, but in Kloetinge, could not have immigrated to New York on his own, at the age of one year. What is this mystery? If there was a Jan born to the family, it would seem that he didn’t survive. Did someone steal his identity? Why would he not be born in Goes, where the family lived and where Great-Grandpa was born a year earlier? Maybe it’s an error. That needs to be checked on.

UPDATE ON JAN MULDER: Jan, or John, Mulder was born in Kloetinge in 1886 and immigrated with his parents and brother to Michigan. Unfortunately, he died in Kent, Michigan, before he was a year old. How sad to uproot your lives and travel all that way with your young family only to lose one of your children! (Info courtesy of Adri Van Gessel).  I should have known Yvette, with her extremely meticulous research, would never let an error like that slip by! 🙂

* Are there any records which could verify that Lucas really did die by falling on an anchor? And would he have been at sea or in port?

* Who is this Rose Melanie Bataille, a French woman, and why was she in Holland?

* I’d like to find out more about Johannes Mulder, born 1809 in Goes, to that “first generation” Carel and Johanna Cornaaij. He is a sibling of both Karel and Johanna, my ancestors that led to the Mulder and Zuidweg lines.  But before anybody else in the family immigrated to the U.S., he came to Holland, Michigan. What happened to him and his line?

THANKS FOR READING THROUGH THE MATH AND SCIENCE PORTION TODAY. I PROMISE THE NEXT POSTS SHARING THE RESULTS OF YVETTE’S RESEARCH WILL BE MORE ENTERTAINING! AND AS A REWARD FOR SLOGGING THROUGH THIS ONE, HERE IS MY FAVORITE PHOTO OF GRANDMA AND GRANDPA, TAKEN BEFORE THEY WERE MARRIED.

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A Series of Disasters

Posted in Alice Paak DeKorn, DeKorn, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo late 1800s - early 1900s, Paak, Peek, Richard DeKorn, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 28, 2013| 22 Comments »

I’m picking up here from my post All the Peek Girls.  In that post I showcased photos of my great-great grandmother Alice and her sisters.

The girls’ parents, my great-great-great grandparents, Teunis Peek (born on 5 Jun 1822 in Everdingen, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands) and  Jacoba Bassa (born on 18 Jun 1824 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands) were married on 21 Dec 1848 in Everdingen, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

At the time of their marriage, Teunis was a “farmer’s hand” in Everdingen.

On 23 November 1865, Jacoba died at the age of 41 in Lexmond.  At that time, Teunis was a farmer in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

Teunis and Jacoba had the following children:

Joost Peek was born on 25 Aug 1850 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

Aaltje Peek, born 9 Sep 1852, Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands; died 5 May 1908, Michigan,
United States.  This is my great-great grandmother, Alice Paak/Peek, who married Richard DeKorn.

Anna Catharina Peek was born on 6 Jan 1855 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

Maaike Peek was born on 29 Jul 1859 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

Cornelia Peek was born on 8 May 1862 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands.

Willempje Peek was born 17 dep 1856 in Lexmond, Zuid-Holland, the Netherlands. [Additional info:  must do research to see if Willempje survived or not]

Teunis and his children emigrated in 1868 to the United States.

After reading this information on the family, I speculated that Joost probably stayed behind in the Netherlands.  He would have been eighteen and might have already started his own life.  I had photos of the four girls (Alice, Annie, Mary, and Carrie), but no information from my family about the oldest, the boy Joost.

I recently discovered a clipping tucked in with the family photos.

There is no date or newspaper name on this clipping.  Here is an excerpt:

The residence of George Paake at 1016 Trimble Avenue was burned this morning about 10:30 o’clock and a worthy family which has had a series of disasters, left without a home.  The house which Mr. Paake was paying for in the Building and Loan Association was entirely ruined although most of the contents of the home were saved. Mr. Paake receives no insurance whatever and the little which had been accumulated by the family was lost.

The fire is only an incident in the history of the family. Mrs. Paake died a short time ago leaving five children, the oldest being fourteen years old. Since the mother’s death the little girl has had entire charge of the house and the four little children and has had all the responsibility of the family except the support which Mr. Paake gave as a laborer.  Recently he has been unable to work and was ill this morning when the fire occurred.

The neighbors have taken in the little ones and are doing all that is possible to alleviate the sufferings of the family. Mrs. Carrier has been responsible for raising a sum of money to which the neighbors have liberally contributed.

So many facts here.  But more questions.

Since the clipping was in with our treasured family photos, was this my family described in the article?

The size of the family seems to fit with the family of Teunis Peek, as is the recent death of the mother.  The impression is of an immigrant family who has been beset with many tragedies: the death of the mother, either the death of the first son (or him staying behind), the illness of the father, the loss of their home and the value they had in it.

Is Teunis George?  Most of the family changed their first names from a Dutch first name to an “English” first name.  It’s possible.

Although the Dutch records show the last name as Peek, my grandfather told me that the family was Paak or Paake.

However:  Jacoba, the wife of Teunis, passed away in 1865, and the family emigrated in 1868.  Alice, my great-great-grandmother, was born in 1852.  She would have been 16 when they arrived in Kalamazoo and caring for the household and her four younger siblings.    The very ancient clipping is now a deep gold color and very crisp.  If it’s from 1869 or 1870, and the family was that of Teunis, then Alice was probably 17 or 18, not 14.

In a 1906 City Directory, George is still listed at the same address (a rebuilt house?) and Cora W. Paak is listed as a boarder.  I wonder if that is his sister because Alice named one of her daughters Cora W (for Wilhelmina). Could be Cornelia (Carrie).

Or was George a brother of Teunis? (NO)

I’m waiting with bated breath for Yvette Hoitink to find me a little more information which might shed light on this mystery.  As of now, I don’t have any information on siblings of Teunis Peek.

EVENTUALLY we discovered that the fire happened to George (Joost) and his family.

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The Blog Will Now Come to Order

Posted in Adrian Zuidweg, Caledonia Michigan history, Family History, Genealogy, Lucille Edna Mulder Zuidweg, Mulder, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on March 4, 2013| 7 Comments »

This gavel belonged to my great-grandfather Charles Mulder of Caledonia, Michigan.

He was my maternal grandmother‘s father and his name at birth, in 1885 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands, was Karel Pieter Phillipus Mulder.  His great-great-grandfather was Carel Mulder, born March 8, 1780 in Goes, the Netherlands.  His occupation was a jailor’s hand.

This same Carel Mulder is also an ancestor of my maternal grandfather.  I wrote about the discovery of this coincidence in an earlier post.

Great Grandpa was a working farmer for many years.  I remember his farm with great affection because it had a rope swing from an apple tree, a barn, a chicken coop, outhouse, and fields where we once went on a hayride. Across the country road, a the thick woods nurtured a colorful assortment of wild flowers.

Great Grandpa, me (the first great grandchild), and Margaret

Great Grandpa, me (the first great-grandchild), and Margaret

In the above photo, Great Grandpa is with the only “great-grandmother” I knew, his second wife, Margaret, a very sweet lady.  My great-grandmother Clara passed away from uterine cancer two years before I was born.

Charles and Clara (Waldeck) Mulder

Charles and Clara (Waldeck) Mulder

My father told me that Great Grandpa held the position of Township Supervisor years ago and that is where he used this gavel.

On pages 252-256 of Ernest B. Fisher’s 1918 book, Grand Rapids and Kent County, Michigan: historical account of …, Volume 1, I discovered more specific information about Great Grandpa and Caledonia.

Fisher explains that Caledonia was a “wilderness” with narrow trails by the local Native Americans (“red men,” according to Fisher) when Europeans first arrived there.  He states:

At the mouth of Coldwater river was a great Indian camping ground and burial place. The Indians did not leave there entirely until a comparatively recent date. One of them, old Soh-na-go, or “Squirrel,” was seen at quite a late day visiting the burial place and the hunting grounds of his fathers, but the “white man’s axe” had been there and it was no longer a home for him.

He goes on to say:

Caledonia, situated on Section 29, is a prosperous village of 600 people. It was settled in 1850, the first plat was made in 1870, and it reached the dignity of an incorporated municipality in 1888. It is situated on the Michigan Central railroad and hence has good shipping facilities which make it the center of trade for a wide extent of fertile country. It has one Methodist and two United Brethren churches, a bank, and a weekly newspaper, the News, and the requisite number of mercantile establishments and general industries.

The township of Caledonia is one of the best agricultural districts in Kent county, and the thrifty farmers are profitably engaged in all classes of diversified farming.

What interested me is that I saw that inside one of Great Grandpa’s books he went to a (Dutch) Reformed Church in 1903.  He was so ensconced in life in Caledonia by 1915 that he was Township Supervisor (and Grandma was born in 1912 in Caledonia).  The quote above says that there was one Methodist and two United Brethren churches, and I do know that my grandmother was a Methodist and that we used to have family reunions in the basement of the Methodist Church in Caledonia when I was a kid.  So where did he go to the Reformed Church?

According to records I found through ancestry.com, he immigrated to the United States with his family when he was two or three and grew up in Grand Rapids, not out in the country on a farm, after all.

Back to what Mr. Fisher had to tell me about my great-grandfather:

Below is given a list of the supervisors of the township from its organization down to the present time: 1840, John P. McNaughton; 1842, Norman Foster; 1844, Roswell F. Tyler and William Gibson; 1845, John A. Cornell; 1846, Justus G. Beach; 1848, Reuben H. Smith; 1849, William H. Brown; 1854, Lyman Gerould; 1857, Zabin Williams; 1858, William H. Brown; 1860, Warren S. Hale; 1861, William H. Brown; 1863, William J. Wood; 1865, Adam B. Sherk; 1868, William J. Wood; 1869, Marcus Buell; 1870, Adam B. Sherk; 1871, Robert S. Jackson; 1872, William J. Wood; 1873, Martin Whitney; 1877, Austin W. Hill; 1878, Marcus Buell; 1879, Sherman T. Colson; 1889, Alfred W. Stow; 1891, Sherman T. Colson; 1895, Eugene Ward; 1900, Joseph E. Kennedy; 1901, Alfred Newman; 1904, EugeneWard; 1906, Alfred Newman; 1907, Frederick W. Ruehs; 1912, Merrill M. Kriger; 1914, John J. Luneke; 1915, Charles R. Mulder, present incumbent.

Great Grandpa was the Supervisor of the Township of Caledonia.  He used this gavel to call the meetings to order.  Maybe this desire for order comes to him from his great-great-grandfather, the jailor’s hand.

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Meet the Mother of Cora, Jennie, and Joseph

Posted in Alice Paak DeKorn, Cora DeKorn Zuidweg, DeKorn, Family History, Genealogy, Jennie DeKorn Culver, Paak, Peek, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on February 4, 2013| 14 Comments »

Alice Paak DeKorn

Alice Paak DeKorn (Aaltje Peek)

This lady was my great great grandmother, Alice Paak DeKorn.

She died May 5, 1908.  My grandfather, her grandson, was born October 31, 1908, so she never even saw him.  I think she has a kind face, but I don’t know any stories about her.

Yvette Hoitink observed that Alice’s marriage certificate states that she was born in Leymond.

Yvette says that this is “presumably Lexmond in Zuid-Holland. The Lexmond birth records are indexed on Genlias.nl. A search for Peek children born between 1850 and 1855 showed one candidate for Aleye Peek: Aaltje Peek b. 9 September 1852, daughter of Teunis Peek and Jacoba Bassa. The birth month and year match perfectly with Alice’s listing in the 1900 census.”

I noticed that Alice lived for 55 years.  Her daughter Cora, my great grandmother, died at the age of 57, so I can’t help but wonder if they both died of the same cause.  Cora died of leukemia or “cancer of the brain.”  Alice’s other daughter, Jennie, who was in last week’s post died at the age of 95.  Alice’s own mother died at the age of 41.

If you are working on your own family history, you might have noticed that you are interested in the age at death of your ancestors–for reasons of self-interest.

Although she was known as Alice for most of her life in the U.S., her American marriage certificate shows Alice as Aleye, which would have been Aaltje in the Netherlands.  I’m going to guess that some of the people filling out the documents in Kalamazoo were not Dutch.

Growing up in Kalamazoo, I had no idea that one of the family lines of my ancestry was Paak/Peek.  I went to school with kids with names like Peek and Peake, and I wonder if there is a connection.

Yvette discovered that Alice’s father, Teunis Peek, was found in the lists of emigrants at the National Archives website and that he left Lexmond for the U.S. in 1868.  She shows Alice emigrating in 1869, but it’s possible that they came together.

Jacoba had passed away in 1865, before her family emigrated.  Alice was one of six children, and I am guessing that Teunis brought all his children to the U.S.–or at least most of them.  The eldest was Joost, and he was 19 when the family moved.  It’s possible he stayed behind.

I’ll pick up the story of the Peeks in a future post.

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WHERE IN THE HECK IS KALAMAZOO?

Posted in Adrian Zuidweg, Family History, Genealogy, Kalamazoo history, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , on January 19, 2013| 12 Comments »

This is another post which I dedicate to Yvette Hoitink at Dutch Genealogy.

I described in other posts that  Yvette Hoitink, a Dutch genealogist, quickly and easily found a wealth of information about the Zuidweg family–my grandfather’s Dutch ancestors. 

Where in the heck is Kalamazoo? 

I grew up hearing that expression (or a more direct variation of it which reminds with “bell”).  When Kalamazooans travel outside Michigan, they tend to hear people ask some version of the phrase.  Even today, living out west, I find myself being asked the same thing.  I do what I have always done:  open my right palm and point to the fleshy lower outside section.  “Right there.  That’s where Kalamazoo is.”

With the help of Yvette’s genealogical research, I can now say that approximately 3/8 of my more recent ancestors come from Zeeland, a Dutch province–and most significantly from the town of Goes.  When I was young my grandmother taught me how to say it.  With an H sound, instead of a G, and a double O (rhymes with “goose”), as if you’re blowing out air from the diaphragm.  I have no idea if that is the correct Dutch pronunciation, but that has been our pronunciation.  I never knew where it was located.  I didn’t even bother to look or to ask “where in the heck is Goes?”

I’m not sure I trust pronunciations which are passed on through the family.  My grandparents were “Grandma and Grandpa Zuidweg,” pronounced like Zould (as in “should”) and weg (as in . . . “weg”).  At some point my uncle and his family started pronouncing their own name to rhyme with the name “Ludweg.”  That sounds wrong to me, but then it’s their name and not mine.

Once you start looking back into the generations, my ancestors are a little more spread out.  This is what Yvette wrote in her report:

All the Dutch immigrant ancestors of Adrian Zuidweg were found in Dutch records. Using birth, marriage and death records from the civil registration, four generations of his ancestors were traced. For three ancestors, the family was traced one generation further. In total, all 16 great-great-grandparents and 6 g-g-g-grandparents of Adrian Zuidweg were traced. His ancestors came from different provinces in the Netherlands: Zeeland, Zuid-Holland and Overijssel.

Don’t forget:  Adrian Zuidweg, my grandfather, is two generations before me, so this is actually going back pretty far.

English: Map of The Netherlands (including the...

You can see from the map that Zeeland and Zuid-Holland are the two southernmost provinces along the North Sea.  According to Lonely Planet, these provinces are the areas that give rise to our stereotypical ideas of “Holland.”

These two provinces are home to some of the strongest imagery – and biggest clichés –

associated with the Netherlands. You want dykes? Uh-huh. Windmills? Yeah. Tulips? OK.

Well, alright fellas, let’s gooooo…

The Keukenhof gardens are a place of pilgrimage for lovers of the lancelike leaves and

bell-shaped, varicoloured flower of the tulip, and the Zuid (South) Holland area is great for

biking and hiking, with trails and paths everywhere. Meanwhile, the built-up beaches of

Noordwijk aan Zee and south to Scheveningen are popular with locals.

Further south, Zeeland (Sea Land) is the dyke-protected province that people often associate

with the Netherlands when they’re not thinking of tulips, cheese and windmills.

Middelburg is the centre, with a serenity belying its proximity to the tragedies that spawned

the Delta Project.

Zuid Holland’s major cities are the biggest attractions: there’s Leiden, with its university

culture and old town (and proximity to the bulb fields); Den Haag, with its museums, stately

air and kitsch beach; charming, beautiful Delft, the home of Jan Vermeer; and mighty Rotterdam,

blessed with an edgy urban vibe, gritty cultural scene, and innovative architecture.

Several smaller places are also worth your time: Gouda is a perfect old canal town, while

Dordrecht has its own surprises – for humans and sheep alike. Just east and south of Dordrecht

is Biesbosch National Park, a sprawling natural area along the border with Noord Brabant.

What I want to know is if Spiced Leyden cheese comes from Leiden.  It’s my favorite cheese.  My husband’s is Gouda.  And what do you know, but I have family photos taken in Gouda, including this one of a beautiful baby:

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My Great-Grandfather Reinvented Himself as a Business Owner in the U.S.

Posted in Adriaan Zuijdweg/Adrian Zuidweg Sr., Adrian Zuidweg, DeKorn, Family History, Genealogy, Zuidweg, tagged , , , , , , , , , on January 1, 2013| 18 Comments »

As I shared in my last post Intriguing Coincidence or An “Of Course” Moment?, Yvette Hoitink, a Dutch genealogist, quickly and easily found a wealth of information about the Zuidweg family–my grandfather’s Dutch ancestors.  Dutch Genealogy is a site which describes Yvette’s amazing services.

I knew that the father of my grandfather, Adrian Zuidweg, born 1908 in Kalamazoo, was Adrian Zuidweg, born in The Netherlands.  Adrian Sr. owned a fish market when Grandpa was young.  In this photo he stands with an unidentified young employee.

Fish Market on Eleanor Street

Fish Market on Eleanor Street

My grandfather, Adrian Jr. told me he used to clean fish at the fish market when he was 8 or 9.

Adrian Zuidweg, Jr.

Adrian Zuidweg, Jr.

Eventually, the man who was my great-grandfather opened an ice cream parlor and candy store, and according to a story Grandpa told me, during the height of the Great Depression, he was able to buy a $1,000 marble countertop for his business.

Ice cream parlor and candy store

Ice cream parlor and candy store

All I knew of this man was of his life in Kalamazoo, Michigan.  I knew that he died at approximately age 50 of what might have been Bright’s (kidney) disease.  My grandmother told me that he didn’t eat all day long at work and would come home and eat a steak the size of a plate.

What I discovered from Yvette is an idea of who he was before he emigrated from Holland.  He was born Adriaan Zuijdweg on 3 January 1871 in Goes, Zeeland, the Netherlands.  He was a “letterzetter,” compositor or typesetter–possibly for a newspaper.  This fits with a photo I published on an earlier post of Adrian Sr. and another relative working on a newspaper in Kalamazoo.

Printshop at Holland American newspaper, 1899Adrian Zuidweg 3rd from left; Lou Leeuwenhoek 5th from left

Printshop at Holland American newspaper, 1899
Adrian Zuidweg 3rd from left; Lou Leeuwenhoek 5th from left

So it seems that Adrian took his typesetter skills to the United States, but decided to become an American “entrepreneur” by opening the fish market.

According to Yvette, it was in the United States that he lost the other “a” in his first name and the j in Zuijdweg–becoming Adrian Zuidweg.  The son he eventually had in 1980 was also named Adrian Zuidweg (no middle name, which is according to Yvette the Dutch tradition) and it was young Adrian who eventually changed the ice cream parlor into a Sunoco gas station.

One of the photos I have yet to know more about is one of him in what Grandpa said was his Dutch army uniform.

Adriaan Zuijdweg

Adriaan Zuijdweg

Four years after emigrating from the Netherlands for “amelioration of existence,” Adriaan/Adrian married my great-grandmother Cora Wilhelmina DeKorn.  The date was 18 May 1897 and the place was Kalamazoo (of course).

Adrian Zuidweg (Adriaan Zuijdweg) 1897

Adrian Zuidweg (Adriaan Zuijdweg) 1897

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